Escape to Fool's Paradise

Akhir bulan lalu saya mengikuti workshop ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) in Education yang deselenggarakan oleh UNESCO APEID (Asia-Pacific Programme of Educational Innovation for Development) di Queen's Park Hotel, dekat Plaza Emporium. Tema workshopnya adalah Celebrating Innovative ICT in Education Practices: From Idea to Impact. Pesertanya berasal dari Jepang, Korea, RRC, Filipina, India, Brunai, Malaysia, Singapura, Kambodia dan Thailand. Saya sendiri tercatat dari institusi Thailand. Sayang sekali Indonesia tidak berpartisipasi padahal seluruh rangkaian workshop mulai pameran, penyerahan hadiah inovasi, welcome dinner dan makan siang untuk 3 hari diadakan dengan cuma-cuma, sponsor dari Intel dan Japanese Funds-in-Trust.

APEID sering mengirim undangan untuk mengirim makalah, presentasi atau menghadiri konferensi dan workshop tingkat internasional yang diadakan secara tahunan. Mereka menyimpan kontak peserta di databasenya termasuk kontak saya. Akhir tahun lalu saya diminta presentasi di Youth Forum nya. Di satu sisi saya tersanjung karena masih dianggap muda. Di sisi lain kata Youth bisa diartikan sebagai hijau atau minus pengalaman. Jadi Youth Forum bisa jadi adalah forum yang dibuat untuk yang minus pengalamannya hehehe. Tapi saya senang melihat semangat pemuda-pemudi Asia Pasifik yang peduli pendidikan dan berbagi pengalaman dengan mereka. Sayang saya tidak menjumpai mereka lagi di workshop terakhir ini :(

Kembali ke topik awal, sebenarnya ICT dalam pendidikan dan pengajaran sudah lama dikenalkan dan didorong penggunaannya. Di negara maju, ICT skills sudah lama dimasukkan dalam kurikulum pendidikan dasar dan terintegrasi dalam hampir semua matapelajaran. Di Asia Tenggara mungkin baru di Singapura saja. Saya masih bicara dalam lingkup pendidikan dasar loh. Di Indonesia, hmmm.. saya tidak punya data statistiknya. Mungkin baru di sekolah dasar swasta internasional yang berkapital besar saja yang jumlahnya bisa dihitung dengan jari. Kendalanya terlihat sangat banyak dan nyata mulai dari kebijakan pemerintah pusat dan daerah dalam penyediaan hardware dan software, infrastruktur, sampai sumber daya manusia. Jangankan di tingkat pendidikan dasar, pemenuhan kebutuhan ICT di tingkat pendidikan menengah saja sepertinya masih belum seimbang antara yang di kota besar dan sebaliknya, juga sekolah negeri dan swasta. Dan saya yakin untuk memenuhi 100% cakupan wajib belajar pendidikan dasar saja kita masih berjuang keras. Tapi saya percaya perubahan ke arah lebih baik akan datang pada masanya kalau kita semua berusaha dengan sungguh-sungguh. Klise banget ya.

Intinya ICT adalah alat pembelajaran. Hukum penggunaannya di Indonesia masih sunnah. Kalau digunakan akan memberi nilai tambah yang sangat baik sebagai bekal kemampuan sumber daya manusia bersaing di dunia global. Tapi setidaknya yang paling kita butuhkan dan mendesak saat ini adalah kemampuan, semangat dan kreatifitas guru dalam mengajar, dengan atau tanpa ICT.

Link

In case any of you has gone down the road or plan to (just kid), here's a worth reading info for your knowledge. TIME magazine senior reporter interviewed a senior marriage counselor and revealed some interesting thoughts. Click on the above link to read more. But if it's not convincing yet, have a look at the opening paragraph of the interview as follows:

In her 30 years of counseling couples, Mira Kirshenbaum has discerned 17 reasons that people have extramarital affairs. In a near majority of couples, one partner will cheat on the other at some point. In her new book, "When Good People Have Affairs: Inside the Hearts & Minds of People in Two Relationships" (St. Martin's), Kirshenbaum explains the reasons and offers some helpful — and sometimes surprising — advice on how to manage the consequences. TIME senior reporter Andrea Sachs reached Kirshenbaum at her office in Boston: (Now go ahead and click the link for your own sake :)

We might as well interested in buying the book. But better stay away from affairs or don't even think about it. Okay?!!

Ahh... I'm happy to finally be free from root canal miseries. I just had a tooth pulled! I was hesitant to see a dentist initially for I thought it wasn't that bad and that I still could take and enjoy the pain. (I wonder if there's anybody who shares the same feelings with me). I guess I was just afraid. But I finally realized that it really affected my quality of life. Toothaches always progress. And for me, the pain was getting unbearable. A cavity developed in my lower left third molar (wisdom tooth) was the culprit. So I went to a near by Ramkhamhaeng hospital to have it treated.

Going to see a dentist was not as easy as I thought. First, I had to que and wait for about an hour and a half. It was a predictable waste of time and I was glad I had a book to read. After a long while I was sent to a room. A nurse took an X ray shot of my lower left teeth. Then, a dentist examined it and suggested me to have it treated. He perhaps has just passed his mid age so I thought he might be an experienced dentist. Plus he speaks English. "It may take at least two or tree visits to do so," he said. But then he asked me to make another appointment with a specialist to remove the initial filling and clean the root canal and then get back to him afterwards. I got confused and pissed at the same time by the complication he caused. Hadn't I asked him to treat me asap that day, he might have asked me to come back on the next day. I started to wonder if he has a hidden agenda behind the 3 visits. You know, more visits equal more cash, aight?

Luckily the specialist was only next door and had agreed to see me in a while. But I had to wait for another half of an hour. Lord have mercy. I was in so much pain. Finally, a nurse called me in. I entered the room and met with the specialist. She was a young female with a pair or thick glasses. Looking at her, I knew that she might have Chinese descendants. But the bad news was she doesn't speak English. I had to use an interpretation service to communicate with her :( I was lucky 'mon cher' was there - as he always has been, thanks dear. The specialist suggested me to have it pulled instead of treating it. She thought there was no use of keeping my bad wisdom tooth. Root canal treatment, as she said, can fix the problem for only a period of time. After that, the pain might strike back. She doesn't share the same opinion with the previous Dentist, apparently. And after a long in depth 3 way multilanguage consultation, I decided to follow her suggestions. But then she said I must come back in 3 hours for the extraction because another dentist would do that for me. What the h***? "I needed immediate actions!!" They really tried my patience at a really perfect time. Went home with antibiotics and pain killer and back in 3 hours.

My third dentist speaks English.. God bless him. We had a good chit chat while I was lying on the reclining table.. or chair.. or whatever. This dentist maybe at his early 40, bald yet friendly, fast and determined. He reassured me to give up my bad tooth and asked if it would be my first time. I was all pale and nervous. It was my first time :P And the real show began. A nurse sprayed some liquid around the bad tooth that gave me chilling sensations. Then the dentist said that I should relax, inhale and exhale deep and slowly. He gave me 3 local anaesthetic injections and said 'sorry, it's gonna hurt' before each shot. My mouth was wide open. I wanted to protest but I couldn't. I mean, "What was all those sorries for?" I know he meant good but it really affected me inside. Talking to me could help divert my attention and would not make me anticipate all those shots. He laughed at me heartily for I was closing my eyes during the whole process. But he did a good job and I thanked him. It was all done only in a few minutes. A few minutes that cost me a whole day. A few minutes of full tense. And I was finally free. Half of my mouth was still numb even after 3 hours. "And what's with 3 anyway? 3 visits, 3 dentists, 3 hours, 3 injections??"

I didn't get any particular instruction as to what to do after the extraction. I noticed I was given a piece of paper by the admin staff with writings that were all in Thai. So I browsed for some info on what to do next. I found a good piece of info by Minh Nguyen, one of America's top dentists, on this page. And here is the info for your knowledge:

After an extraction, it's important for a blood clot to form to stop the bleeding and begin the healing process. That's why your dentist will ask you to bite on a gauze pad for 30 to 45 minutes after an extraction. If bleeding or oozing continues after you remove the gauze pad, place another gauze pad on the area and bite firmly for another 30 minutes. You may have to do this several times.

After the blood clot forms, it's important to protect it, especially for the next 24 hours. It's important to not:

• smoke and chew tobacco
• drinking alcohol
• suck through a straw
• rinse your mouth vigorously
• clean the teeth next to the extraction site

These activities could dislodge the clot and slow down healing.

Limit yourself to calm activities for the first 24 hours. This keeps your blood pressure lower, reduces bleeding, and helps the healing process.

How I hate to see blood. "Stay healthy all and do brush your teeth!"

Saya engga jadi beli buku bekas. Karena dorongan dari kelompok pembaca yang berencana berdiskusi akhir bulan ini saya engga jadi mampir ke Dasa. Bukan apa-apa, setelah menelpon ke Dasa saya dapat informasi kalau mereka tidak punya buku yang akan dibahas nanti. Memang masih tergolong keluaran baru sih. Dan saya tetap saja dibuat heran oleh perbedaan yang lumayan antara harga buku di Kinokunia dan Asia Book. Tidak tanggung-tanggung, di Kinokunia harga satu buku itu melebihi harga sekarung makanan Jumbo.. jatah makanannya sebulan. Terpujilah Asia Book karena kebijaksanaannya. Selain itu, Asia Book selalu mudah membuat pelanggan pulang dengan senyuman setelah mendapat diskon 10% untuk keanggotaan di sana.

Saya sempat mengalami kesulitan mencari-cari judul itu sebelumnya. Saya bertanya kepada salah satu penjaga toko: "Mas, punya buku ini?" Penjaga toko segera berjalan ke rak buku khusus sastra Asia dan dengan lincah mencabutnya dari himpitan kawanannya sebelum memberikannya pada saya. Untuk beberapa waktu saya sibuk memperhatikan buku yang masih tersegel itu, membolak balik dan membaca review di sampul belakang. Terus terang saya sempat kaget dengan ketebalannya. Lalu saya bertanya lagi pada penjaga toko yang sama: "Ga ada yang paperback, Mas?" Penjaga toko itu menjawab singkat: "Itu sudah paperback, Mbak." Duh!!! Saya menyesali pertanyaan bodoh itu. Dalam hati saya mengeluh.. mudah-mudahan saya bisa menyelesaikan seluruh halaman (hampir 1000 lembar) dalam waktu yang pendek. Setelah itu saya akan pakai buku itu untuk mengganjal pintu depan agar tidak menutup seenaknya. Atau sebagai barbel untuk membentuk otot bagian atas lengan saya.

Untuk buku-buku lain yang sudah saya daftar dan ingin saya bawa pulang, saya sudah menyampaikan pesan telepati kepada mereka untuk sabar menunggu. Daftar itu juga punya kemungkinan menyusut setelah saya tahu bahwa teman saya yang baik hati punya beberapa yang saya mau dan dengan senang hati berniat meminjamkan mereka untuk saya. Saya hanya perlu menunggu sampai pertengahan bulan depan sampai teman saya yang baik hati itu kembali dari Jakarta. Syukurlah dia sempat menikmati tahu gejrot rekomendasi saya. Mudah-mudahan teman saya enggak tertarik ikut berdemo anti kenaikan BBM atau demo-demo lain. Ikutan demo anti Samak aja di sini hehehe. Saya sudah mengabari tentang rencana saya menginvasi apartemennya sekaligus mengkontaminasi air kolam renangnya dua minggu lagi. Kebetulan saya ogah pinjam buku di perpustakaan karena batas waktunya membuat saya terburu-buru.

Sebelum lupa saya juga secara pribadi dan terpaksa harus minta maaf ke Jumbo karena jatah makan dia bulan ini masuk ke pengganjal pintu itu. Harusnya saya beli sekarung Purina Alpo ukuran 10 kg. Tapi kemarin hanya beli yang 500 gram saja yang pasti akan habis dalam satu setengah hari. Tapi saya punya alasan lain sebenarnya. Kebetulan yang ukuran 10 kg di sudah habis di semalam. Jadi malam ini saya mau ke supermarket lain saja.

Akhirnya, untuk menyesuaikan dengan judul di atas saya mau bilang thank you. So here it is: "Thank you." Saya selalu menikmati jalan-jalan denganmu tanpa buru-buru.

Beib, let's sip some cups of coffee here. I've already made a list of those killer books I wanna bring home.

Aku perlu memberikan selamat dan apresiasi untuk kemuan dan kemampuanmu meninggalkan tembakau sejak 18 bulan yang lalu. Untuk itu, kamu dan udara bersih yang kita hirup, juga untuk kesehatan aku bersulang.

Tapi aku masih dibuat sedih oleh kenyataan dan kebenaran dari  Tuhan Sembilan Senti oleh Taufik Ismail. Sudah baca kan? 

One Thursday night a few weeks ago, out of boredom, we decided to go to a new place to drink and listen to live Blues (I drink mineral water, btw). The place is called Tokyo Joe's. I did some research on the place on the Internet prior to that and reading some reviews, I learned that the place was not bad. So off we went to Sukhumvit 26. We spotted the place easily but had difficulties parking the wheels. After spending some time negotiating with a security guard of a housing complex near by, we were finally able to rest the car right in front of a spirit house which we were not supposed to. It wasn't quite a good start, we thought. But as soon as I got inside the place, I was all smile knowing that my favorite band, Blues on Blues, was performing. The sound system, ambiance, and food (I ordered Japanese) were not that bad. The place is three stories high but most audiences chose to be on the ground floor where the band was. I like the way they arrange the place; it's warm, cozy and friendly. It somehow allows the band to interact with the audiences and we felt close to one another. Most of the audiences were farangs, but I also spotted a couple of Japanese and Thai as well. I hope it's just a wrong impression of mine, but I noticed that the waiters were slow and less attentive or even less friendly to fellow asian customers - a not so uncommon experience. Tokyo Joe's is new compared to the Saxophone. It was established in 2003. But preference is personal. Aside from the poor parking management and less friendly waiters, to me the place is somewhat more civilized. One of the things I like about Tokyo Joe's is that it's a smoke free area, except for a few tables outside. You won't go home with the awful smell of smoke all over. After all, I've been living a smoke free life since December 2006 - from second hand smoke to be precise. Anyways, Tokyo Joe's website can be found here and I think it needs a great deal of improvement. For now, I give 3 stars to Tokyo Joe's. Hope it will improve the next time we go there. 

Ola Ibu, apa kabar? Posenya keren deh, mirip Beyonce di cover majalah Rolling Stone :D    Semoga tetap sehat dan panjang umur; tambah rukun, lebih sayang dan disayang Bapak.    Selamat ulang tahun. Samudera peluk cium buat Ibu dan 55 tahun yang nyaris terukir di wajah itu. Pernah membayangkan wajah Titi Kamal saat ia berumur 55 tahun? Mungkin seperti Ibuku ini hihi

You know what.. I dreamt of bringing Jumbo home last night. Weird thing was that I put him flat in a tux container and folded it inside my luggage before flying my way down to the town. Soon as I got home, I pulled him out of the container (still flat) and blew him just to get him back into his organic shape. That was sooo Tom & Jerry. But I wonder when that day would come.. to really bring him home and let him meet his grandparents hihi. He'd sniff and woof at the clear air.. running freely and happily chasing feathers, chickens, cats. And the most relieving part is.. there's almost zero dog population in the neighborhood.. Yay!!.. no more dogfights. But the neighbors might not be as happy as I am about Jumbo... as DOG=Haram!!

Anyways, I'll just take it as a reminder that more trips are in schedule. It's okay you don't get to go to KL for the meeting. Just don't forget to bring me some fine wine, martini and champagne after the trip to Ho Chi Minh... wink* ;)

PS. The pic is not really related to the post but it might help to imagine Jumbo being flat. It was taken just as he was having a meaningful conversation with a literally boy next door :D

Aku hanya ingin memastikan kalau hari ini tidak akan terlewat begitu saja tanpa mengingatnya. Memaknai arti hari bumi, saat pertama kali dia meneriakkan tangisan pertama, juga di bumi; saat bapak ibunya terbaring tanpa daya, juga di bumi. Satu dengan jahitan panjang di perut yang sebelumnya terbelah untuk sekedar mengeluarkannya, satu lagi dengan jahitan di pangkal paha yang patah dan sebatang platina yang tertanam dalamnya. Tak perlu bertanya atau menyesali mengapa ia menghantam roda-roda itu. Tapi ia sendiri tak pandai berbohong, rasa bersalah itu tetap ada. Dan mungkin itu jugalah yang membuatnya menjadi  lebih sayang dan sulit menolak permintaan-permintaannya. Tapi, apa benar rasa bersalah terhadap seseorang bisa menambah rasa sayang? Mungkin. Pengalaman pribadiku membuktikannya hanya setelah semuanya terlambat. Terkadang aku tidak bisa berhenti menyalahkan diri. Aku tidak cukup berusaha, berbuat dan menujukkan padanya. Dan terunaku sesungguhnya tak layak untuk dipersalahkan juga. Karena itu sebaiknya aku memulai memupuk dan menyiram ingatan-ingatan yang menyegarkan saja dengannya.

Aku ingat betapa dia menikmati saat berenang di sungai di dekat rumah dengan kepala yang mendongak menadah terik matahari. Aku tak habis pikir mengapa dia ingin bagian itu saja yang tak basah padahal seluruh bagian tubuhnya terendam air. Tak heran kulitnya wajahnya jadi terbakar dan kelam begitu. Ingat juga saat menyanyi bersamanya dengan tangan yang menggenggam imajinasi dan tak berhenti memukul ruang kosong di antara kedua lututnya. Lagu-lagu dari band kesukaanku saat itu otomatis jadi kesukaannya, begitu juga sebaliknya. Mulai dari Take That, Mr. Big, Smashing Pumpkins, Collective Soul, Guns 'n Roses sampai Sepultura. Bisa dibayangkan, aku berhasil membuatnya menyukai Take That! Dia bahkan sempat membeli album The Best of Take That yang dia pinjamkan ke teman gadisnya dan tak pernah kembali. ....Sampai saat seminggu terakhir dalam hidupnya aku masih berbagi ruang kamar dengannya. Dan malam hari sebelum dia benar-benar pergi aku sudah membasahi bantalnya dangan tangisanku yang menderu. Aku sudah tahu.

Sigh.. hidup di bumi ini seperti menggadaikan tarikan nafas dengan kesedihan. Seperti seorang bayi yang memulai hidup dengan tangisannya sendiri, lalu mengakhirinya bersama tangisan orang lain yang menyayanginya... kalau ada. Selamat ulang tahun untuknya. Hari ini, hari bumi, 25 tahun yang lalu. Dia pasti sudah sarjana, sudah bekerja dan bersiap meminang gadis... seharusnya. I miss him so :(

It's a dog community where Jumbo meets and makes new buddies online. Well, actually the owner does. Still, it's fun. So, come and pat my dog. You should make one for your fluffy buddy, too. Even if your buddy has RIP, it will keep the memory alive. All dogs around the world, unite! Cats are welcome, too :D Woof!

Start:	Jun 26, '08 10:00a
End:	Jun 29, '08 8:00p
Location:	Impact Muang Thong Thani

Thailand International Dog Show 2008 (formerly Thailand Dog Show) will be bigger and better with more exhibitors, more activities and more fun for you, your family and your beloved dogs.

This show is a special gathering place where you can find all the goods and services for your dogs in one place. You will also enjoy a host of exciting and entertaining activities, competitions, shows, clinics, seminars and workshops during the show.

If you are a dog owner or dog lover, Thailand International Dog Show 2008 is a show that you cannot afford to miss out on.

Buku ini sudah tak terbaca lagi, tertimpa coretan hitam tinta bolpenku yang sudah terlalu rindu mengacak-acak abjad dan aksara. Baru seminggu yang lalu aku berkesempatan melihat salah satu dari koleksi masterpiece-nya. Membaca tulisan-tulisannya lagi membuat akar rambut lembut di tanganku terasa tercabut dan ngilu. Ia mampu memetik urat sedih di jantungku, mengadu domba semesta inderaku yang terlalu lama bermimpi tentang kunang-kunang kuburan.

Perempuan, sedahsyat inikah pukulan genderang imajimu. Dan kebenaran dalam kata-kata umpatanmu itu seperti.....argh!!! Sungguh, aku perlu belajar banyak darimu.

Dalam kabin berbuku-buku duduk di deretan kosong bukanlah pilihan bijaksana. Membiarkan jiwa menari tak terkendali di langit-langit lorong panjang ini sama halnya seperti melepas pitbull dalam pertarungan penghabisan.

Perjalanan ini lagi-lagi meninggalkan luka perih, mengurai gerimis di ujung matanya yang tiba-tiba tertahan dan mengering karena terpaksa. Aku yakin, hati pualam pun tak mungkin mampu mempertahankan kerasnya.

Dan ketika kepak ini belum lagi ingin berhenti, aku bawa nyanyian hatinya dalam toples gelas agar tak lekas layu.

Ibu, jika nanti tangan-tangan jalang itu mulai liar bermain di bongkahan kepalaku, butiran embun di mataku akan mengalir sungai untukmu saja.