Guess Where I Went Last Night!

Okay, here's the scoop, I went to the guys' graduation ceremony yesterday. Took pictures of 'em and their families (and also their boy/girlfriends, fiances, spouses - my God I'm getting old). We went to a mall later on, celebrating their new status as the unemployed workforce. As for me, I had been in a really bad mood from the start of the day. Fortunately, Ms. B came to the rescue. She called me when I was eating a cleverly disguised beef bowl rice bowl (90% rice, 8% beef, 2% bowl). Here's how it went:

Me: Yes?
B : Where are you?
Me: At a mall with the guys, wassup?
B: Well... I got two free press passes for the Hoobastank Concert tonight.
Me: What? Like? This night?
B: Yeah, just got it from a co-worker from a sister magazine.
Me: What time will they be they playing?
B: 8-ish
Me: That's like... less than 3 hours. Count me in!
B: Okay, C U!

Next thing I know, after gloating to the guys (har har har, sorry guys, if she had more than 2 tickets, I'd be glad to share it with you) I rushed to her office, and hightailed it to Hooba. We arrived at 8.40, parked, hustled by the parking guy to pay 20.000 rupiahs up front (that's a little more than two bucks - extremly expensive for Jakarta standards, but if you don't pay up, you'll find scratch marks on your car when you get back, freakin assholes).

By then the band had already started their first song. So we rushed to the entrance, met several artists along the way, some of which B greeted like a friend (working in the media does have its priviledges). When we went inside, the place wasn't as crowded as we thought it would be (unlike the Linkin Park concert awhile back). We went to the edge of the crowd and enjoyed the first song that we heard that night. I also got to practice my photography skills with my dad's smaller semi pro Canon Powershot G7 (too bad I didn't bring my SLR, it's really hard to take pictures under poor lightings).











Before I went to the concert, some friends told me that Hoobastank was not that good in doing live performances. Well, they sure proved 'em wrong last night. The concert was great! Douglas Robb, the frontman and vocalist, was able to communicate well with the crowd. He also memorized some basic Indonesian like "bagus!" (good!) and "nyanyi sama-sama!" (let's sing together!). The crowd really loved him for it. Dan Astrin on the guitars kicked ass last night. And so was Chris Hesse on the drums. The crowd sang happy birthday for him. It's his 27th birthday, according to Doug (Yeah right, Doug...).

Can't wait for the next (free) concert! Har har har.

My Pet Peeves

Everyone has their pet peeves, random things that easily ticks 'em off. My top 5 are these:
1. Indonesian drivers (especially those friggin motorcycles)
Not that I'm generalizing or anything, But most drivers here use their bollocks, not their brains. Proof? Here you go.
2. Indonesian soap operas
Indonesian soap operas are the worst ones of their kind. The acting... wait, WHAT ACTING? And don't get me started with the storylines. But I do look forward for "Jomblo," the only one worth watching these days.
3. Queue breakers
Welcome to Indonesia, the land of the free. Free to break any queue, that is (and coming soon, free to break any rule too, har har har). Fuckin idiots don't have a clue of getting in line. Nor do they have any compassion for other people already standing in line for an hour. Selfish bastards, that's what they are.
4. Self righteous fundamentalists
You know who they are. Trampling along main streets, closing bars and nightclubs (not that I go there, mind you). Preaching on the 7 o'clock news about immorality, religion, and how they serve a higher purpose. Who the hell do they think they are? Here's a free advice, GET A LIFE!
5. Backstabbers
Self-explanatory.

Yes, I do realize that numero uno a cuatro really represents Indonesia's conditions. So for fairness' sake, next time I'll explain the benefits of living in this extremist-infested, disaster-magnet, corruption-consumed country we call Indonesia. It's fuckin chaotic, you're gonna love it.

Tasty!

Aaah, finally, new looks for my blog. About time, I might add... . So... whaddayathink? Tasty, eh? Not bad for an HTML newbie, huh? Suggestions and comments are welcome.

Why Do Men Have Nipples?

I've been wondering that myself. Why do men have nipples? They don't do anything. They don't have any medical purpose. They don't even serve any artistic value (Remember Joel Schumacher's infamous Batman Forever suit? No? here's a reminder.). When I saw this book in Kinokuniya, I was somewhat intrigued (though not confident enough to buy it, especially with the inevitable random raising of the eyebrows) So when my ex offered me to borrow her's, how can I possibly refuse?

The book actually offers some great insight. The writers have answers to the most absurd questions like "Can you lose a contact lens in the back of your head?" or "If you are stranded on a desert island, should you drink seawater or your own urine?" and of course, "Why do men have nipples?"

So, why do men have nipples? The answer, quoted from page 30, is this:

We are mammals and blessed with body hair, three middle ear bones, and the ability to nourish our young with milk that females produced in modified sweat glands called mammary glands. Although females have the mammary glands, we all start out in the similar way in the embryo. During development, the embryo follows a female template until about six weeks, when the male sex chromosome kicks in for a male embryo. The embryo then begins to develop all of its male characteristics. Men are thus left with nipples and also with some breast tissue. Men can even get breast cancer and there are some medical conditions that can cause male breasts to enlarge. Abnormal enlargement of breasts in a male is known as gynecomastia. Gynecomastia can be caused by using anabolic steroids. So, if your favorite athlete suddenly develops man boobs and start winning medals then you know the reason why.

Holy Shit, an iPhone!

I've been wondering why there aren't any gadget that I'll look up to in 2007. Enter, the iPhone. Apple just announced it on their website and I just read Time's exclusive about it 5 minutes ago. Steve Jobs also introduced it at the MacWorld Expo 2007 in Frisco. As a certified nerd, these kind of news always wakes me up.

With no keyboard in sight, the iPhone mimics most PDA-phones in the market. But it's not an Apple product if it doesn't offer something different. Jobs said that the phone will revolutionize the way we use our cellphones today. The most important aspect of the iPhone is that it's designed to work effortlessly and still retain the stylish Apple forte. The menu bar at the bottom of the main menu, as you can see above, consists of several icons representing the most basic functions (phone, mail, web, iPod). You might also be able to change the other icons of the main menu (similar to the dock in OS X). When you touch one of those icons, the phone not only opens the corresponding application, it actually transforms the 320 x 420 screen to the application.

Not only that, the iPhone has built in sensors that will adjust the screen when you rotate the phone from portrait to landscape (a la the first Sony MP3 walkman). There are also proximity sensors that can detect when you put your ear to the speaker. This way you won't accidentally touch the icons on the display when you're taking a call (smart!).

Apple also develops the multi touch feature. Similar to the way you use the mouse on the macbook touchpad, you can use one finger to move around the menu, but you can also use two fingers to zoom in or out and scroll through pages. This is a very ingenious interface system. This way, you'll only have to use your fingers (two fingers max, to be exact) to control the device.


The iPhone itself has similar dimensions to the iPod, 61mm x115mm x 11.6mm, and weights about 135 grams. It has a 2 MP camera and a 4 GB and 8 GB storage with an aproximate price of $499 and $599, respectively. The iPhone will be available in the US in June, Europe by the end of this year, and it'll find it's way to Asia and the rest of the world next year (damnit!).

Bless you, Steve Jobs, for reminding me how it feels like to drool over new technology all over again. Can't wait for 2008!

The New SoKlin Ad :)

Made this myself. The pocong was taken from this website. The detergent was scanned from some old magazine. Feels good to have an outlet for my evolving creativity.

Prius is Coming!

I went to the local Toyota Website today. They have a new section there called Toyota Hybrid. Do you know what this means?? It means that it's just a matter of time before Prius comes out! Yippee!! Actually, it won't make any difference for me since I won't have enough money to buy it. But still, a vehicle that's capable to reach 25 km/l deserves to have that kind of attention. That's like going to the gas station once a month. Eat that, Shell!

Now, if only they could make a hybrid macbook.

Additional Resolution

Do you know how it feels like to start anew with nothing but problems in your life? Waking up suddenly feels like starting a car after a long winter. Although you know that most of the things you'll come across for the next couple of weeks is either arduos misadventures or constant dissapointments, you still have to get up and get out. Otherwise you'll just be stuck there for the rest of the season. You can't put your life on hold! That's just a waste of time.

Presuming that you have an entourage of close friends nearby, they sure will help you to get through those couple of weeks, but what if that's one of your problems? No, I'm not saying that you're misanthropic. Let's just imagine that you're in a delicate situation with some of the buddies... and the rest of them... well, let's assume that they've got bigger things on their mind for the time being. Asking any of them for help surely will not be as easy as it used to be, let alone them offering you help.

It's only a matter of time till you breakdown and fall. Then what will you do? Who the hell will help you get up? No one. No one but yourself! So this is my overdue additional resolution: to be more self reliant for the things that really matters in life . Ask me how it went 360 days from now, if you please.