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4 years of undergrad, 4+ years of full-time work (and being in front of classes and interpreting in panel discussions in front of hundreds of people), this is still happening.
…yes, I went all the way to Japan to become like this…
4 years of undergrad, 4+ years of full-time work (and being in front of classes and interpreting in panel discussions in front of hundreds of people), this is still happening.
…yes, I went all the way to Japan to become like this…
My eyes were wide open for no reason—at least, not one I could think of.
Maybe I simply slept for too long the night before.
I closed my eyes for a couple minutes before finally deciding that it was useless. If I wasn't going to sleep, then I'd better get productive doing something. Then it would probably feel as if I've finally accomplished something meaningful, would it not?
I turned on the reading light and opened the textbook near my fūton to continue my last reading. I tried scrutinizing the text but realizing that I could make very little sense of what I've been reading and that I kept on reading the same paragraph over and over again.
So I finally got up and decided to make myself a cup of a warm hot chocolate.
I moved to my cushion and opened my MacBook to read a summary I made for a class last week. Maybe this one would be easier to digest, I thought to myself, as I opened the Pages application and scrolled through the document.
I tried reading the words out loud, kept denying that my mind kept wandering and wandering elsewhere—everywhere, basically, and tried to comprehend as much of what I've been reading—which was basically very, very, very little.
I finally opened my facebook instead. Not sure of what I was actually looking for there, I ended up searching for Word Porn. One of my favorite pages where I spent most of my procrastinations, reading beautifully composed words, if not at all nonsensical. Despite knowing how empty words could be most of the time, I strangely find solace in reading these neatly typed fonts—as long as there is no grammatical errors made—reading quotes or short stories or simply short poems about someone or something, which could be about just anyone, including me. As much as I hate nonsensical motivators and self-help books, somehow I could never compare these words as of the same level as those two I just mentioned. These words, short though they might be, always take my minds elsewhere—wandering and wandering in some fantasy and fictional world elsewhere, where I would construct and deconstruct stories based on the words I read on the page—and sometimes, it would take me into my memory palace, where I stored many of my valued irreplaceable moments—what I always referred to as the "bottled moments," as if they were some kind of old books I could reread again and again from time to time, or rewatching my favorite movies where I could just skip to my favorite scenes and replay it for maybe a thousand times more. These are, of course, the happy moments, which I cling on to very keenly and hold on to very tightly, since, deep down I realize that these are one of the things that really keep me going on, moving on with my life and survive anything that pass by.
Then without premonition or warning of any kind, I felt tears rolling down my eyes.
I wasn't even reading anything sad, and the last quotes I read did not even take out any sad memories from my memory palace, yet there I was, starring blankly at the screen—obviously no longer reading whatever I have in front of me, but trying to digest what just happened and wondering.
Of course, by now I've come to accept, no matter how unsensical it is, or how confusing it is, that sometimes—or many times, it is completely okay to just cry without any reason. Although, since I don't really believe that anyone could truly cry without any reason at all, perhaps the best way to put it is that it is alright to cry without comprehending at all the reason why. Maybe I would eventually find out, or maybe not at all, but maybe it is okay to just dip in the sadness—or dwell in whatever it is I am feeling when the tears just roll out—without first investigating the cause. There is always a reason, I think, of why anyone cry at all. Sadness—of course, frustration, anger, jealousy, rage, pity, compassion, love, and maybe even madness, but I believe it is never really out of nothing. There must always be a reason why anyone is crying, but is the reason that important? This was a question I used to ask myself years ago.
"It's okay. We girls sometimes just feel that deep sadness, and it's okay if you don't understand it, you know. It happens, and there's nothing abnormal in it," my confidant, and the closest person in my life at that time said the words to me as I was crying and frustratingly telling her that I don't know why I really cry. I remember feeling deeply ashamed and stupid, as I felt completely embarrassed for being caught off-guard crying, and making everybody coming at me and asked if I'd been hurt or something. I felt exposed and weak, and she then just hugged me tightly until I stopped crying. As she said those words I felt a bit of relief. That I'm not abnormal for crying for no reason at all, and that maybe, maybe, it wasn't at all that weird. I still felt exposed and weak, but it was not like there was anything I could do to turn back the time and hid myself elsewhere so no one would see me crying anyway.
And those are the words I've been holding on to now, as an excuse, or a justification, or whatever you'd like to term it, whenever I feel like crying, and I've been using the same words as well to stop finding the reason why whenever I cry. I mean, come on, I have my feelings turned up and down already, and I still have to think of why it happened? It's just too much. I could just drown myself in the emotional roller coaster of sadness or frustration or whatever emotions I am feeling and just wait until it passes without having to feel burdened with the obligation to find out why now, so why make my life even more complicated?
So that's what I'm doing right now. Crying. Just that. For god knows why. And just wait until it passes. At least I am alone in my room, and no one could see me. I am not exposed right now so I could let out all my emotions—burying my face on the pillow and cry my heart out, pouring and burying all my emotions there, without feeling bad or ashamed, or even fear that anyone would ever find out. Then I'd pass this, so that later today I could resume my life as if nothing unusual has happened.
I'm fine. I'm okay now.
The Many Taboos of Being Gay is a stage performance consisting of four different scripts, four different plays, depicting the dilemmatic contradictions surrounding the life of homosexuals, be it stemming from the pretext of religion or the society's expectations. I just saw this played performed at Teater Salihara last night.
Before I moved on with the summary of the play itself, I thought it wouldn't really hurt summarising the social perception and condition on the issue in the country as a background.
So in recent times in the country, the issue of homosexuality has made it into the national news' headline. Of course, this has previously been an undiscussed issue long buried or simply avoided in the country for some time, but the general opinion of the society especially in more rural areas where education access are still more difficult compared to, of course, in urban areas, is that homosexuality is abnormal–this is, however, an argument usually backed up with religion. I would rather not create an assumption that all Indonesians are extremists or chauvinistic, nor are they conservatives in a bad way. In fact, having been a secular state for so long, Indonesia is actually far from becoming extreme as of now, and the fact that the country's majority is Moslem has got nothing to do with it. Nevertheless, the issue first came into public's attention when a support group called Support Group and Resource Center on Sexuality Studies (SGRC) at one of the university in the capital city said to offer a counseling for the LGBT groups. Protests on the group's existence claim this fear, which I consider to be groundless, of the growing number of LGBT "invading" the campus. To make matter worse, our Minister Technology and Higher Education, M. Nasir responded on the issue by making a statement on denying access for those belonging or identifying themselves in and within the LGBT group into the campus. Our brilliant vice president then followed by saying that international organization–the UN included, yes–should stop channeling funds for any activities or community events, or research which is related on LGBT.
Ever since that day I no longer shocked when I saw a big banner with "Indonesia Darurat LGBT" (Indonesia Emergency State: LGBT)–which then basically mention this propaganda that LGBT is a disease and that it should not be allowed in the country itself–hung outside of a local mosque near Thamrin City.
So the debate on homosexuality escalated (well, why shouldn't it, especially when you got the minister and the vice president supporting this baseless fear already), and for some time, that's pretty much all I see in the newspapers. Oh, and added with another minister saying that homosexuality could be cured when you poured hot, boiling water to them. I'm beginning to doubt this is already the 21st century…
Anyway, I wouldn't really want to give the impression that the play itself stemmed from this background, nor would I claim to assume that the script/playwriter bore this in mind back then as they wrote the play. They might or they might not, I think we shall not assume so just because I do so.
Anyway, The Many Taboos of Being Gay features four different scripts, all set for two players each. In short, they're gay, they struggled, and they're still human beings nonetheless.
In the first play, Sweet Hunk o' Trash, Rob met Gene and asked him to dance together, but he reluctantly refused, thinking that it would be too awkward for two guys to dance together. But as Rob smooth talked him and they talked more about their works and passion (explicitly and implicitly), Gene slowly warmed up to him.
The second play, Twenty Dollars Drink, however, was what has truly stole the show for me. Set in a fancy restaurant in town, Bete and Star, ex-lovers, decided to meet with each other to resolve undiscussed issues. Both used to be actors at a theater company, before Star finally gained fame and was now a star. Bete, on the other hand, was already married and no longer an actor. The tension was quite high in the beginning of the play, as Bete was obviously pissed off, and Star, looking awkward in front of Bete, finally broke the ice talking about the award he received three months ago. Turns out Bete was extremely pissed off at how he felt Star had treated him now that he'd become famous. What really stole the show for me, I guess, is the inner conflict within each character here. His anger, perceived by Star as envy and jealousy, was then revealed as frustration towards the people around him who seemed to have left him now, including Star, as he continued struggling in life trying to survive with his child. Star, on the other hand, stroke me at first as perhaps being a bit too cocky, but later revealed that he neither enjoy his new fame as it brought along with it responsibilities and unwanted attention he did not want, just like "whoring" to a lot of people now, as he put it.
Then in the third play, Frozen Dog, I was intrigued to see how the play might turn out, as the two main characters in the play are pastors. Kevin wrote to his superior to have Vinny as his roommate, and later revealed that this is because he fell in love with Vinny. Unfortunately for him, Vinny had other thing in mind. Not only he fell for someone else, but he was also dead set on devoting his life for god, hence deciding to commit celibacy. Weighed down by the moral doctrine dictated by both the society and their faith, Kevin tried to show Vinny the extent of his love and devotion.
The last play, Uncle Chick, I think, is another gem. This explores further on the relationship which could occur within the family dinasty itself as Brian turned to his gay uncle to "guide him" and "direct him" as he bore the moral responsibility as his godfather. The uncle, Chick, however, had been meaning to avoid it, under the pretext that living as a homosexual in this world is not easy. As he tried to drive Brian away and dealt with his past instead–also seemed to be weighed down by the prevailing values and stigma the society from his day has implicated on homosexuals in general–Brian was dead set on showing him that such a thing should not instead dictate their way of life, nor should it become a pretext to prevent them to have a relationship.
These plays truly drew me in with the social issue they brought up, and I personally wish more people would see this play without any initial prejudice, hoping that watching this would instead open more and more minds that there truly is no different between them and us, and that they are just human beings like us.
I love how they display the inner conflict of each character, and the actors are excellent in showing these–between the humour, the sarcasm, the frustration, anger and love–I just love these intensity that I felt on the stage. And they all made it so believable and natural, so I guess they did a magnificent job after all.
I sure hope that I would see more of each of these play, since I think on a bigger scale, it could also show more explicitly on the context surrounding the story, which I think would be just as interesting to explore to see how the people around them would treat them and react, and how, should they do have any problem about it, they reconciliate with it. The cultural and social background here were mostly implied through the interaction of each character which affect their attitudes in treating their own homosexuality in relation to their work, or in finding their place within the society, but on a bigger scale, I suppose it would be interesting to see how that would be depicted in a bigger and longer play.
The only trivial thing that quite puzzled me is the perceived insistence to use Western names in all play, despite the fact that the plays were all set you in Indonesia, which made me start to wonder if the scripts were all adapted from foreign plays. Then again, thinking of the trend in the country to name kids in western-sounding names–something which has started quite long even before I was born, I suspect–this shouldn't have bugged me too much. Besides, this is a tiny trivial detail (I could however, overthink and make an over-assumption on how this could be the byproduct of the impact of the global culture in the country).
That aside, I think the play is a genius concept.
Having bought the cheaper regular ticket and got stuck in traffic, my mind was filled with worry that I might not get a good seat where I could get a clear view of the stage, since I initially thought it would be a first-come-first-serve basis. But as I entered Goethe Haus, about 15 to 20 minutes before 7 PM, I soon realised that that was not how it works there. I claimed my ticket, and then I found out that the door to the recital would only be opened shortly before the performance began. I suppose that way we could all be civil and waited patiently outside. Of course, that would be the case if you put aside the people swarming in front of the entrance as soon as the door was opened. Long story made short, I did get a decent view from my seat, although it could also be attributed to the capacity limit of the hall itself. I even got one empty seat on each side of me. I felt like I could have as much personal space I needed there.
The first thing that came to my mind was the movie Habibie & Ainun which is a biographical movie depicting our second president life-love story as he strove to reach his dream to contribute to his country with what he had learned abroad and later on became Indonesia's third president, yet mostly the focus of the movie is his deep connection and relationship with his late wife, Ainun. The impression became stronger as his son came up to the stage to gave a short preamble of the event itself: That it was a tribute to his mother, something which his father's foundation, Yayasan Habibie & Ainun had started to do for some time now. The love story between his parents is already quite well-known for its romance, initially through his auto-biography which was later adapted into the movie I had thus mentioned, and at that time, what popped up in my mind was, "Wow. I wanna be loved like that," thinking how deep was the devotion of the family towards this one woman.
Shortly afterwards, Ananda Sukarlan gave us a brief introduction and explanation on his concept on this tribute to Ainun Habibie, in which, he explained about the three movements for that night's performance. The first one would be a sound of chaos as he illustrated it as the sound a child tried to make as they first learned to play the music. Simple melodies, practiced and intertwined, forming a harmonious, albeit still chaotic, sound resembling (and deriving, indeed, from) the traditional folksong from Makassar, Anging Mamiri. He did warn that it would be very loud–which, it really did–yet I couldn't bring myself to completely cover my ears for fear of missing any part of the movement and its grandeur.
The second part, which is my favorite, was a tribute to love (I had already forgotten what he called this one part, only that it was utterly beautiful and moving), where, as the movement went along, each instrument would then formed a duet with another one, switching from two to another two, closing with a beautiful harmony from a short combination of all. It was, again, very, very beautiful, soothing, and moving, that I feared were I left to myself, I would definitely shed a tear just like the time I heard Joe Hisaishi's Kimi Ga Iru Kara playing in one of his concerts in Budokan (from my iPad, though). It was, of course, completely an early Christmas/birthday/whatever-you-name-it treat for me when, after the end of the third movement, Sukarlan came back and told us they would play the second part one more time. I took out my camera right away. (Someone somehow very quickly posted it on YouTube already so here's a glimpse of it.)
Then the third part, he said, was created to depict Habibie's vision for his country–one that would one day be much more, and very advanced in technology, instead of the one still lacking behind its neighbours. Although a president, Habibie himself is initially an engineer, and more known as one, and during his short-term presidency, he did managed to fulfil the dream of having constructed a plane. Although sadly the project discontinued, nor did it receive as much appreciation as it should have deserved, it was a success, and that was one of the dreams of a-high-tech-Indonesian dream coming true. So Sukarlan made this third part as an embodiment of this effort, one that he warned would be really fast-paced. I have to admit, though, that although the first and the last part still could not replace the second part's place in my heart, part of the enjoyment for the other two was actually watching each of the musician expressed themselves as they incorporated themselves with the instrument they played. So serious, and yet, very lively, and so dedicated. Some of them, I even imagined might have played it just like breathing just like me holding back my breath as I became too awestruck by their playing and finally sighed when there was a stop between one not and another, or as the pace slowed down and soften and then I took another long, deep, happy sigh. Of course I cannot speak for the musicians, but oh, maybe, just, maybe, right?
It was, after all, a chamber orchestra of no more than than 10 people playing–I'm afraid that I might inaccurately name or describe each instrument, though, so instead I would just attach along a picture and a video–yet the music produced was… overwhelmingly grand, and I don't think the word "grand" is the word I need in order to do justice to the whole performance. I am at loss for words. I would not consider myself as someone knowledgeable in music, but I do enjoy very much the soft, repetitive, beautiful sound serving as the trivial background accompanying the solo–so much that in every musical performance I watched (Hisaishi's concert in Budokan, The Lion King on Broadway, the musical play and movie of Les Misérables), I always intentionally looking for those "trivial" sounds. I would then imagine each of those sound as one of the many, but each one a unique, one-of-a-kind, as if each is equipped with a certain character, and then united and combined, forming a beautiful harmony as an important background for the solo. Trivial, but important, that they may be played unnoticed, yet when you take out those elements, the solo performance would be… Boring. In this case, in all three parts, I think it is safe to say that my favorite sounds in all three movements were the wind instruments. I fucking love the sounds they produced.
P. S. I would admit that my knowledge describing any musical terms necessary is inadequate, hence, should I used any incorrect term to describe any movement, or expression and the likes, do forgive me.
P. S. S. This video below shows a glimpse of the similar show of the same tribute held last year, consisting of some of the same musicians playing yesterday:
I am the almighty border between that which can be and that which ought not to be, the line parting sacred from profane. I reveal and inspire judgment. I hide and so ignite desire.
If this was a quiz, I would definitely ask: What am I? And the correct answer would be: a skirt. That was also the title of part of the poetry quoted above.
Just like the title of the poetry itself explicitly describes what the story is all about, the book title, Objects of Affection, also tells the readers about what the rest of the book contains. It is a compilation of short stories from the perspective of everyday objects, each voice personified, telling stories of mostly their owners who would use them most often, and sometimes other person or people who got entangled into.
Take, for example, the story Scar, which told a story of a broken-heart and a promise of a new happiness in a relationship, or a premonition in a couple's relationship as they shopped with their kids in through the perspective of a shopping cart, as well as an affair told from the perspective of an apartment's key.
My favorites, however, other than Skirt, would be Language and Book. Perhaps it has something to do with me being interested in language in general and my affection for books. But what took me by surprise–because I had not expected to become very fond of this thin book–is the beautifully phrased words, which was arranged and structured to tell each story, and this is, to me is the main attraction of the book itself.
For example, in Camera, the object eloquently describes itself as "borrowed eyes" which sees things beyond what normal eyes could never see–things that are so carefully hidden are laid bare for the camera, although not so much for the camera-holder.
I am borrowed eyes, yet I have eyes of my own. And I will see that which she tries so hard not to reveal […] I will see the emotions of magnified heart and zoom in on the sadness behind her smile. I will take the longing in her eyes and hold it in my keeping, letting only forced laughter through into viewfinder.
And through the narrative of each object, we could deduce what was going on in the lives of the people surrounding the object, including their emotional state or feelings.
It was not all right. Every now and then they met. Every now and then they fought. He'd come home and run the conversation over in his mind, again and again, till he could point to the exact moment when he ought to have shut up and stopped himself from saying those words that would have been nothing but innocent when whispered with a smile in the safety of each other's arms, in the simple trust that no longer was.
Stories of daily lives would usually be boring, but told by the supposedly inanimate object provide a fresh perspective, especially when it is very elegantly written, making each sentence and in each story feel special, adding weight to every word written; making the implication of the affairs going on in the characters' lives themselves sound very natural, just like what every excellent story-teller would do.
Overall, I would consider this a light reading, but a very amusing one, and definitely recommended, be it for traveling or simply for passing the time.
When it comes to festivals and celebrations, Indonesia, a country which is filled with various tribes in each islands in the archipelago, has tons of it. Each tribe has its own beliefs and celebrations, stemming from the ancient beliefs and traditions, which now have mostly integrated in the 6 (or seven?) state-recognised religions (Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Christian, Catholic, Confucianism, and Bahá'í). Were we to follow all the traditional ceremonies and celebrations, I think every day would be a holiday since we're just full of these things. Bali, claimed as the islands of the gods, is no exception as well.
Last September up to this early October are important months for Balinese, especially to those living in Ubud. First of all, starting from the 29th of September, one of many major religious festivals, were held in the historic Gunung Lebah Temple.
The religious festival comprises six different major rituals: Karya Mamungkah, Tawur Panca Wali Krama, Penyejeg Jagat, Tawur Pedanan, Ngenteg Linggih and Pedudusan Agung. As part of this, there are large-scale temple dedication and purification rituals coupled with major sacrificial rituals to appease nature's spirits. In addition, Ubud locals – as the temple's main custodians – will participate in declaration of faith rituals. All these elaborate rituals mark the completion of the extensive renovation project of the temple and will officially announce that the temple site, which for months was a chaotic construction zone, has been elevated and sanctified to serve its former purpose as the throne of the divine.
Colourful street processions, lively rituals, and captivating performances of unique traditional arts will become a common sight throughout the time of this religious festival. As always, the Ubud community will warmly welcome visitors who want to witness this majestic event. Please, show them your respect by dressing conservatively – wearing a sarong is a must – and donning the traditional udeng headgear will surely win you the locals' affection. Make sure to ask permission from pecalang, local guardsmen usually dressed in black with chequered sarongs, before entering any part of the temple. 'Follow what the locals do' is always a good strategy.
Gunung Lebah was constructed in the 8th century by Danghyang Markandya, one of the most revered sages in Bali. Markandya is believed to be responsible for introducing Hinduism to Bali, opening the first settlement for Javanese migrants in the present-day Taro village, and carrying out the initial works in the construction of the Besakih mother temple. Gunung Lebah temple lies next to a merging of two streams, locally known as Campuhan, thus, the name of the area. Balinese believe that a campuhan has a potent spiritual purification and healing property and to this day the Hindu devotees have still frequented Gunung Lebah and its campuhan seeking that liberating absolution.
(Source: The Ubud Writers & Readers Festival official website)
It was a huge celebrations where people wearing traditional clothes marched on the street every day, bringing offerings and arak-arakan or some kind of statue together to the temple. Streets were closed to all motor vehicles so most people going the same path as these people marching would have to leave their vehicles somewhere and walked.
Tourists coming from across the country and the globe were treated with such spectacles as they swarmed in Ubud. Not only that, another wave of tourists were also crammed up in Ubud as some of them flew to this lovely city to join, participate, and volunteer in a more recently established festival: The Ubud Writers and Readers Festival.
This festival, shortened as UWRF, was first created in 2003, a year after the first Bali bombings which killed 202 people and injured 204 others, and was meant as one of many ways to attract tourists into the island again (Bali was like a dead city after both bombings). Yet concerned with the growing pollution and congestion of traffic and trash in tourism spots such as Denpasar, Kuta and Seminyak, the festival tried to attract a whole different kinds of tourists: the supposed literature and culture lovers. Not only trying to invite writers around the world, the festival is also a medium for emerging Indonesian writers to share their works and passion as they submitted their short stories and/or poems to be later published into a book of anthology which would be shared and sold at the festival. It's a way to find new writers and get to know them as well more closely. As if that's not enough, every year, the festival also invites people from literally everywhere to join the festival as volunteers. Albeit unpaid (it's volunteer work, seriously), each volunteer would get a four-day pass which is valid for all main events during the 4-day festival, as well as a meal (lunch) for each time a volunteer is rostered, depends on what position they are volunteering for or what they get.
As one of the volunteer in the Interpretation team in the festival, I was treated with all those stuffs and festivals, which happen to be things I like as well.
Of course, there's a downside: there were a lot of spendings, and I mean A LOT. Ubud offers many temptations, starting from restaurants, museums, art exhibitions, and temples where they usually held traditional dances for tourists to watch (not free, of course). But I'd say those spendings were worth the while, and the benefits and satisfaction I got definitely outweigh those expenses I spent (yep, I already waved my savings goodbye).
Although you really had to pay for the transportation and accommodation during the festival by yourself, they made it really easy for you to find cheap accommodations through the facebook group specially created for the volunteers. Each year, they would always create a new group for people volunteering at that year's festival, and that's where you first got to know them and shared information about anything you need to know: being a volunteer, Ubud itself, transportation in Ubud, as well as accommodation. Therefore, to save some money, most volunteers looked for accommodations with shared rooms, where they then posted the and find roommates through the facebook group. The room I rent costed me IDR 1,200k for 7 nights, and I get to share the expense with my roommate. Oh, and there's breakfast provided, too, so I didn't have to pay extra cost for breakfast (sorry to sound a lot like a cheapskate, but I really was on a tight budget–which was very, very difficult to manage as you'd read later). The place was about 20 to 30 minutes walk to the venues where they held most of the events (the main events, the volunteer orientation, etc), and the only thing that's making it so long to walk there is the terrain which requires a lot of going up and down the hill repeatedly. I had to walk back and forth for two days straight, especially because the road was closed to all vehicles due to the Gunung Lebah ceremony, and I think by the night of the second day my feet felt very sore. I thought it would be a piece of cake, of course, considering my journey to work almost every day also takes 30 minutes on foot. Luckily, though, on the first day of the festival, there would be a shuttle bus, going back and forth from the restaurant called Casa Luna (which is very, VERY CLOSE to where I was staying) to the venues every 30 minutes, starting from 8 AM. I thought I'd treat myself for a foot massage if my feet were still very sore, but by the end of my third day at Ubud, I hardly felt tired from walking.
But that's not all.
Other than feasting on seeing two major festivals, we were also invited to watch the ceremony of Agnihotra on the night of September 30th, at one of the venues.
Agnihotra is a healing fire from the ancient science of Ayurveda. It is a process of purifying the atmosphere through a specially prepared fire performed at sunrise and sunset daily. Anyone in any walk of life can do Agnihotra and heal the atmosphere in his/her own home. Thousands of people all over the world have experienced that Agnihotra reduces stress, leads to greater clarity of thought, improves overall health, gives one increased energy, and makes the mind more full of love. It is a great aid to drug and alcohol deaddiction. Agnihotra also nourishes plant life and neutralizes harmful radiation and pathogenic bacteria. It harmonizes the functioning of Prana (life energy) and can be used to purify water resources.
Source: Copied and pasted from one of the post from the UWRF facebook group.
Later I found out that Agnihotra is also a name of a caste in India.
So after being feasted on the spectacles of the marches, the fire purification ceremony, the festival finally started.
Day 1 (1 October 2014) – GALA OPENING
My day started a bit early. Being in the interpreter team, we were supposed to meet the writers we're supposed to be interpreting for, and their liaisons. I met 4 brilliant guys whom I was going to interpret–three of which write short stories which are published in the festival's anthology and 1 wrote a play for the theatre. It felt a bit timid and awkward at first (might be due to my poor social skill, partially), but eventually we slowly broke the ice. I was really nervous about my first interpretation work so I asked them to tell a little bit about themselves or mentioned an excerpt of whatever they were going to say in their panel sessions where I would be interpreting afterwards, as practice.
After the meeting's done, I decided to kill some time in a local café and then visited the famous Blanco Museum which I've heard so much but never visited before. A friend told me the entrance fee was IDR 80 thousand, but I ended up paying only IDR 30 thousand. I wandered–a bit lost, to be honest–as I scrambled my directions to decide which paintings I wanted to see first. After some time looking at many paintings already, I heard a group of foreign tourists being toured by a local girl who was ushering at the entrance of the museum earlier, and I thought, "Damn! Should I have asked her for a tour earlier?" Since they simply told me that there would be guides inside and I could ask them whatever I want, I simply thought that I'd just enter and asked should I have a question. I ended up tailing the group every once in a while to eavesdrop the explanations on the paintings. It was a pity to tour the museum unguided. Lessons learned, though.
My feet were awfully sore after going up to the Blanco museum since the path leading there was very steep and most people who I passed were riding a motorbike or driving a car. But it was almost time for the press conference.
I was still quite nervous about doing my first interpretation so I decided to sneak into the press conference room, where I thought I'd see someone from the interpreter team interpreting. But in the end, I didn't see any interpretation, since everyone there seemed to speak English perfectly, so I got out a bit disappointed. But it was not the real reason why I sneaked out earlier before the press conference ended. It was time for Louis Couperus.
One of the free events offered in the festival were its film events which were played everyday in different venues, where a list of award-winning movies and documentaries were played, and most of these movies are unlikely to be found in any websites providing torrent downloadable files. And the one playing on the first October was a documentary on Louis Couperus.
Who is Louis Couperus?
He was said to be one of greatest Dutch writers, who produced what is later claimed to be his greatest work: De Stille Kracht (The Hidden Force). This is what has mainly drawn my attention to the festival and made me decide to join as a volunteer. And I was particularly attracted to this one movie because Couperus's The Hidden Force tells a story in the Dutch East Indies, depicting a glimpse of what it was like back then in the colonial era of Indonesia. Of course, to ask for a glimpse of the view of the society's lives, especially the natives in the movies, would be too much, therefore, as I sat nicely and watched the documentary opened with the only footage of Couperus in his old age, I smiled and watched still anyway. The documentary was made by Bas Heijne and was full of quotes taken from Couperus' works, as well as Heijne's interpretation of it. It was amazing to see the length of what Heijne did and went to in order to analyse and share his interpretation on Couperus' works in the documentary. Somehow, Couperus' visions and narrative, as read in the movie, somehow remind me of Chekhov's way of thinking about his surroundings and about life. In the end, I got intrigued and put some of Couperus' books in my wish-list.
Day 2 (2 October 2014) – Custodians, Krishna Udayasankar, The Nine Lives of Cats & Jalanan
The shuttle bus is finally here! Now I got the chance to give my feet more rests. I started my day even earlier because I wanted to attend one of the first main events of the festival, and the one I chose was "Custodians," where they invited Nyoman Sadra of the Tenganan village and Clarrie Cameron of the Nhanhagardi tribe, a tribe of the Aboriginal people. What interests me the most was actually the fact that there would be someone from Tenganan in the panel. Tenganan is a desa adat (traditional village) at Karangasem Bali, where there live the people of Bali Aga, people who are believed to be the original Balinese (just like the Ainus in Japan). I've always wanted to visit Tenganan ever since I found out about the village because it is said that living in desa adat, the people still supposedly live in a traditional way, and they held high their customs and native beliefs, surely something completely different with the continuous-advancing modern world outside. Yet, back then when I was visiting a desa adat in Lombok, I couldn't help but wonder whether it is actually good for the people themselves to keep themselves from modernity, and whether we all simply let them to live so secludedly to amuse ourselves with the sights and spectacles, just like keeping animals at the zoo (sorry, I know this is not the perfect comparison, and in no way people are comparable to animal, but I couldn't find any more similar concept). Therefore, I was very much intrigued by "Custodians," where they would discuss and share their experiences in trying to keep the traditions in their villages, especially with the increasing pressure of modernity from outside, brought into the villages by tourists coming to see the people like an amazing spectacle (yes, me included, since I so badly want to see Tenganan). Both were discussing about how they ended up to where they are now, entrusted to be the "custodians" of the old customs, and I remember Nyoman Sadra was saying that seeing how interested outsiders are in his village and how knowledgable they could be about the people of Tenganan compared to the little information he actually had back then about his own people and village, he was challenged to study his own culture. How could we ever allow outsiders to know a lot more than ourselves when it comes to our own culture and home? I feel exactly the same.
And Clarrie Cameron–oh my, I was very amused listening to him talking! I know that Aborigines are famous for their oral history and they're all known as remarkable storytellers, but when this guy opened his mouth to speak, it was like watching one of those Indian movies where they have an elder speaking with… with… with the low, dark and bold tone, and lively intonation, putting music into every word he delivered as he told a story. Even as he coughed, there's music in it! I imagined what it would be like to be one of his grandchild, sitting on the floor as I listen to him telling me a story. (Happy sigh.) As Cameron listened to Nyoman Sadre speaking, he closed his eyes (at some point I always wondered whether he actually dozed off for a minute or two) and making a nod here and there, and eventually said that he felt and experienced the same thing. And then he went and told stories of his childhood where I just couldn't miss every single word (though it was actually a bit hard, since her wasn't speaking in the British/American/Australian-English I'm used to hear, but it was such a delight). I am already a fan and putting his Elephant in the Bush in my wish-list (it never gets any shorter, really).
Then later in the afternoon, it was time for my first interpretation roster. I was interpreting for a Children's Program where the speaker, Krishna Udayasankar would teach children to write their own fictions using cats and humans as the characters. I only met mrs. Udayasankar earlier that day, so I was a bit worried at first about interpreting for her to children, especially because this would be the interpretation into Bahasa Indonesia. I should've been more confident since it is my native language, but still, interpreting to children made me a bit giddy. But mrs. Udayasankar was very nice and easy-going. She told me not to worry about my interpretation and that I'd do just fine, and after she finished briefing me on what she planned to do in her session, a car picked us up to transport us to a Villa Kitty, where apparently they took homeless cats and kittens to be treated and hopefully, later, adopted, into a nice home with a nice family. The journey wasn't very long, nor was it short enough, so I took the chance to inquire further about herself and her works, and when I found out that she was born and grew up in India, I asked her various questions about India, and we discussed Indian issues, especially the ones I could relate to to my own country: gender discrimination and castes differences.Perhaps this was partly triggered by a TED video I recently translated, where the issue also revolves around discrimination against women, and to be more specific: sexual harassment and rape. This two are ones of the pressing issues in India with more women coming out to speak against or testifying against this horror, as well as male and female figures who were put in the spotlight for their ridiculous and appalling remarks undermining the seriousness of these. And this leads to the hierarchy issue that occur, not only in terms of caste, but also gender. How people there could undermine someone's speech or works simply because of caste, be it of higher or lower caste, although what is being said is true, or that it speaks for the wellbeing and defence of those of low castes. This partially stemmed from my curiosity of the Dalit caste of India as well (and I blame Mulk Raj Anand for writing Untouchables for this). I also found out that Agnihotra is a caste name as well at that time.
Although we initially expected the local schoolchildren who participated of 11-14 years of age, there were instead younger children coming. But mrs. Udayasankar brilliantly handled the situation with ease, and at some points, I ended up getting drawn into the session where I got very excited upon conveying mrs. Udayasankar's instructions to the children. Although I was worried about using a more formal Indonesian and not speaking a word of Balinese, the staffs at Villa Kitty were very helpful and friendly, and they helped me convey the message in the local language. At the end of the session, the kids were lining up in front of mrs. Udayasankar, impatiently waiting to be able to read their stories to her although they weren't asked to. She initially expressed regret of how she might not be able to read their stories, especially since 99% of those would be in Bahasa Indonesia, but of course that didn't happen. As I interpreted each of their stories, I was amazed by the enthusiasm and the weight of each of the stories, which got me wondered, "How on earth a kid so little as him/her able to write such a story?" In a way, I felt that mrs. Udayasankar was radiating this positive energy and attitude, which the kids (and me) received, and got us all excited.
I got back from the event tired but I felt so blessed and lucky, and that was only my first roster interpreting! I got curious as to how it would be tomorrow and the days after, interpreting for other writers in the main events.
Day 3 (3 October 2014) – Great Greats, A Human Right, The Iraqi Christ, Tribute Night for Lempad & Lempad of Bali
In "Great Greats", Nic Low, as the chair of the panel, guided the panels to talk about each writer's cultural background and the role of elders in each of their cultures, as well as how the way the elders are treated affect them and their works. Each writer comes from a different, unique background, such as Fiona McFarlane from Sydney, Patricia Grace of Ngati Toa, Te Ati Awa and Raukawa iwi, Sulfiza Ariska from West Sumatra, and CLARRIE CAMERON! As I interpreted for Sulfiza from Bahasa Indonesia to English, I was captivated by his passion in writing. In his profile, it was written that writing offers him "hope and freedom from fear," and all those are obvious as he shared his background. He was one of the Indonesian emerging writers elected for the festival, and in the anthology published in the festival, the short story he wrote is apparently a story of Chinese Indonesian who later got entangled in the horror of the riot in May 1998. And as he shared and talked about why he wrote, very movingly, it was obvious that it was emotional for him, and as I was interpreting, I was a bit worried if I'd get any part missing, especially the powerful emotion he delivered. But then the audience suddenly clapped, and I was crossing my fingers, hoping that that meant the message was conveyed. When the panel was over, people came to him to give their support and words of encouragement, and it was a beautiful sight. One particular person was touched apparently, a Nithya Siddhu, an educator and journalist from Malaysia, who eventually told me about a TEFLIN conference in Solo, which, although very interested, I was unable to attend (i was basically using all my leaves and day offs for the festival!).
"A Human Right" interested me since I thought it would be a session where they would discuss the issue and problems which has befallen the refugees across the globe even until now. Hassan Blasim and Mukesh Kapila ended up debating about the better way to create a better system for the refugees, with Blasim focusing on each refugee (stemming from his own experience as a refugee, I guess, where he apparently experienced tortures before finally getting an asylum in Finland), while Kapila focused more on the better system as a whole, learning from his own experience working for the UN. The chair, Drew Ambrose ended up having to draw André Dao back in the discussion once in a while, since the other two were getting worked up. The only writer I am familiar with is Hassan Blasim, and I only actually know about him when I scrambled through the list of the writers joining the UWRF, which led me to the famous The Iraqi Christ, which is a short, tragic story of a person ended up forced to do a suicide bombing, which is a part of short stories compilation by Blasim titled The Corpse Exhibition. But because of this, I got so excited upon going to hear Blasim for the first time, because when reading his works, I thought I'd like to know what is inside his mind, and then he debated with Kapila and started criticising on the European humanity campaigns in contrast to their negative attitude tendency toward refugees, and also on capitalism, and there he had me. I couldn't take my eyes and ears off of him. (It's too bad, really, that his movies aren't available online and in the country.) I was resolved to watch him read his work, The Iraqi Christ, in his native language, at the Bar Luna basement later that day.
Then I headed to the Lotus Stage, to watch a documentary of Lempad. To be honest, I've never heard of Lempad before. (WHAAAT? | Yep, I didn't know who he was.) But as the documentary took us back to the pre-colonial times in Bali, the change after the Dutch invaded the island, then post-colonialism, the 1965 tragedy and the years that followed, until his death, relating the history of the country as Lempad and his family intertwined in it, I began to admire this guy. He'd been through a lot, and the way he created arts… He was marvellously talented. (I mean, how could anyone be so VERY TALENTED like him?) He painted, carved statues and building and temples and God knows what else, and he was loved by the people (at least it was depicted so in the movie). I suppose it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Lempad as a man who'd lived his life to the fullest.
Day 4 (4 October 2014) – Korupsi, Secret of the Script, Sokola Rimba & Oceania Under the Stars
One thing that kind of disappointed me in the festival was that there wasn't seem enough Indonesia-related issue. Of course, the themes picked and the issues discusses are pretty global, since it's an international festivals, but the whole event was held in Ubud, INDONESIA, in the first place, so I was hoping that there would be more Indonesia-related issue. But then again, if we consider the types of participants coming to the festivals (which were mostly Australians and others from around the world), having too many Indonesian issues might not be appropriate, so this could just be my perspective as one of the Indonesian participants/volunteers. For example, in the event "Korupsi," Elisabeth Pisani, Jacqui Barker, and Jill Jolliffe were discussing about the acute corruption happening in Indonesia, with Barker focusing on the corruption in the police department and Pisani talking about the issue in general, and at some point, both of them needed to occasionally explained the background of the issues they were talking about to audience who were mostly non-Indonesians. It was appalling upon realising–or perhaps, more like reminded (after all, I think most Indonesians already know how acute the corruptions in the country. We can't thank Soeharto and the Cendana family enough for this) of how embedded corruptions are in the society. In the police department and army, it was like an agreement or a contract between our late president Soeharto and the army and the police as power and authorities were handed over into their hands, but in return, they ought to manage their own funding themselves, and this, in a way, encourage more corruption, even in a level as petty as in managing traffic, or making a driver's licence. And what's even sadder, Pisani supported this statement, making it clear that in her perspective, in some ways, corruptions are what keep this country stand on its feet. Admitted or not, hate it love it, there's no easy way to put it: in a way, corruptions get our economy going, be it in a small or large percentage of it. And then she talked further about the integrated corruption in the society, starting from taxi drivers trying to charge you more (although I have a feeling that this is most likely to happen in Bali when you rent a car instead, especially if you're a foreign tourists) into an unconscious act of corruption happening in the family system. Indonesians really make distinction between big time, company and government corruption, and the smaller scale, finger-pocketing corruption. A family would probably try using their connections at work in order to get their sons or daughters a better job, and they never think of it as a corruption. I remember my relatives offering me to have a little chat with someone at a school I wanted to go to, but didn't get admitted, and none of them would think this as another form of corruption. When Pisani heard a similar story from one of her host family, she innocently and spontaneously blurted out, "You know, in my country, that would be considered as korupsi." Then she went on saying that there was a long silence afterwards. They weren't probably offended, or ashamed or anything, but they simply were too surprised to find out this news. It's not corruption when you simply were trying to help a family member! And this is just a glimpse of how deeply rooted the corruption culture in the country. In a way, KPK ((Indonesia's Corruption Eradication Commision) was making the right choice when they focus their cases on bigger scale of corruption, because I guess that'd be more black and white, if that's even the proper term. What's then surprising was when an audience was asking a question to Pisani and accidentally mentioned the word "If the Indonesian democracy still lives on in the future." What's taken me aback was Pisani's reaction to it. She took a more optimistic attitude about the Indonesian democracy, believing that we would fight for our rights and that democracy would persist in the country, regarding the interference of the Red-White coalition formed by the losing presidential candidate, Prabowo Subianto, and his allies, all of whom are entangled in corruption cases. Our newly-elected president, Joko Widodo, dubbed as "the man of the people" would have a rocky path in front of him.
And then it was time for another interpretation roster, in another main event, "Secret of the Script." Chaired by Geoffrey Williams, Jill Dawson, Aline Davidoff and S Metron Masdison talked about their inspiration that lead them to create their stories, and especially S Metron, since he was the only playwright in the panel. I ended up being useless, really, since S Metron's English isn't so bad, so he just needed me to be there with him as a living dictionary. Then at one point, he read a scene from his play, making it a bit like a readers theatre, with a bit of an act. In seconds, he became a completely different person, as he acted as a pissed passenger who missed his flight. Of course, it was obvious I like his reading in Bahasa Indonesia better, since, even though the translation is just as good, I think nothing could beat the original language in which the play is written. His play was also published in the anthology in the festival.
Then it was time to head for the ARMA museum to watch Sokola Rimba. It wasn't originally a movie I wanted to watch, simply because I didn't really know much about this movie, nor did I do any research about it. I simply read the summary and thought I'd skipped it. But then another volunteer friends told me what's so cool about this movie, and they changed my opinion.
Sokola Rimba is basically a retelling of Butet Manurung's story when she was assigned to teach kids who lived in the jungle in Jambi. In a way, the concept was a bit similar with Laskar Pelangi, but just a very tiny bit of it. Besides, both stemmed from true stories. We were taken along into Butet Manurung's adventure as she discovered other tribes in a jungle with kids who were very enthusiastic to learn how to read. Then we saw how Butet struggled as she faced resistance from the jungle people as they believed that letting the kids study instead of working would lead a curse unto the tribe. But she didn't give up.
I'm not really sure where I could find this movie, and I haven't really looked, but I was glad I decided to come and watch. It was worth it, and it was definitely inspiring, especially for me as a teacher.
The last event of the day, which was also held at Arma was a series of performance under the title of "Oceania Under the Stars," with Ontosoroh (the singer has a beauuutiifuul voice!), William Barton, and Tama Waipara singing in Maori.
Day 5 (5 October 2014) – The Storytellers, Indonesia Etc., A Weapon of Mass Terror, & Wiseracks and Otherwise
I had two interpretation rosters that day, and unfortunately of someone who's not at all a morning person like me, I started very early that day. In "The Storytellers", Clarrie Cameron (yes! I can't seem to get enough of this guy!), Ishack Sonlay, Jared Thomas and Patricia Grace were talking about their cultural background and how they infuse it in their stories and poetry. Sonlay was the only poet in the panels, and in the session we got to hear him recited his poem in Bahasa Indonesia (with me interpreting the meaning afterwards), but what's unexpected was that he did this alongside a background music–a traditional music sung in his native language. The music was taken from his phone, but it added a nuance into his poetry-reading. It was a simple poem, about the local people farming on their land, and Sonlay shared his native musical culture, where people would infuse music in almost everything they do. As they worked the land, and even when they tried to get rid of the crows, they'd sing, and they did it in rhythm.
Then it was finally time for another awaited event: "Indonesia Etc." The session's title is literally taken from Pisani's new book of the same name, and this is probably the only event with the fewest people in the panels: There was only Elisabeth Pisani and Step Vaessen who chaired the discussion. Basically, Pisani talked about her travels in Indonesia (whom she keeps referring to her "bad boyfriend"), and she actually brought a map to show where she's been to (she'd been to places I've never been, of course), and how she got to know Indonesian culture as she moved from one host family to another, and she observed and integrated herself in the culture. Of course, eventually the discussion would lead to the Indonesian history and the hot issue of the Indonesian democracy in the present days. Again, she restated her optimism on Indonesian democracy and how people would eventually fight for their right. In the end, I did managed to ask her how she could be that optimistic, because from my perspective as an Indonesian myself, despite the developing democracy and the growing political awareness and boldness of the people, I keep meeting and seeing people (especially young people, of course) who couldn't care less about who'd lead the country, or people who're easily manipulated by the issue of race and religion (take the case of Ahok vs the Islamic Front Defender, for example)–in short: a floating mass. But then she pointed how different the people she met outside of Java, and that they are not so easily swayed, actually, which is why, although it's worrisome, she's hopeful. I guess I'm just reading too many worrying news updates and probably meeting different kinds of people.
Pisani praised Indonesia's democracy in a way that it keeps growing. Even the way the Red-White coalition tried to tackle Jokowi in the government even before he was inaugurated is completely democratic (which makes it even more frustrating), so she's positive that our democracy would not die so easily. Another thing she praised is the Independence Day proclamation, which marked Indonesia's freedom from the colonial Dutch rule. Although what followed afterwards was indeed another military aggression and a still long struggle between the Dutch Royal Army and the guerilla Independence fighters, we managed to declare independence first. Back then Soekarno, Hatta, Sjahrir and all their followers didn't back out simply because they didn't have the official state yet (well, the youngsters did kidnapped Soekarno and Hatta to Rengasdengklok prior to the proclamation), they just declared it first! And this is worth noting so Pisani actually took the last part of the proclamation, "Hal-hal jang mengenai pemindahan kekoeasaan d.l.l., diselenggarakan dengan tjara seksama dan dalam tempo jang sesingkat-singkatnja" (Matters which concern the transfer of power and other things will be executed by careful means and in the shortest possible time), in short: ETC., as an inspiration for her book title.
Then I stayed at the NEKA museum where they held "Indonesia Etc." previously, to watch another panels with Mukesh Kapila, Deborah Baker, and Anne Ostby in "A Weapon of Mass Terror," chaired by Ashwini Devare. The so-called weapon discussed in the panel referred to the mass rapes happening in conflict zones and wars, though it wasn't limited to just mass rape. What's sad was that as Kapila observed the places he'd been to when he was working in the UN, most societies are indeed patriarchal, and especially in war zones, women are usually the target for rapes. Although not talking about mass rapes in times of war, Baker supported this negative attitude and discrimination towards women in the US just as well. In the end, Kapila shared an experience he once had where a woman came to him and told him the horror stories of the rapes she experienced, and the reason she did this was because she knew he was from the UN and she wanted him to share this stories to turn the world's attention to the seriousness of this issue. Although initially confused, I think he finally took this experience as an inspiration for his book, whose excerpt he finally read in the session. This persuaded me to finally purchase his book, Against A Tide of Evil.
"Wiseracks & Otherwise" was the last panels where I had a writer to interpret for. Presenting Karim Alllam & Greg Blondi, The Muslim Show's creators, Sacha Stevenson the YouTube sensation, and Fadel Ilahi El-Dimisky who was one of the Indonesian emerging writers in the festival, Wayan Juniarta asked each one of them what made them decide to go to humours and satires to talk about important issues and how they embedded the message in such a serious medium as literature. Most of them said that initially they never intended to create such works, but they found out that people like it, and they realised that they could deliver good messages in it. Fadel emphasized on how it would be better to simplify the literature works he was making in order to get people to read them and receive the message he got. And although Stevenson did got backlashes from her YouTube audiences once in while, the majority of the responses she got convinced her that the message was conveyed anyway. Then The Muslim Show guys were asked if they ever received any problems or threat from the government because of their work, or whether they ever got their works rejected in a specific country. Humorously they answered, "Israel." And another person asked whether they would want to reach out to different kinds of readers who, in a way, might be more sensitive or narrow-minded, to get them to be more open-minded to the critics and satire they were trying to deliver.
Before I started interpreting for Fadel, I did read his work first, and the short story published in the anthology is probably one of my favourtie. His work is contemplative, about a guy who kept getting confused, and through confusion, he made sarcasm on why people do bad things even though they know it is bad, and even during the panel he discussed this. "I was confused why there are people who pay so much attention about table-manners, yet pay so little attention to the traffic regulations. And this is only trivial matter, but what about bigger matters, such as corruptions?" Those were parts of his "confusion speech," which got us all to think. In the end, he shared another short story that he made, A Love Letter from Mount Bromo, where the mountain wrote a letter to the central government, asking to move out to the capital because the regional government didn't do their work properly and so it was fed up. Since it didn't receive any response from the government, mount Bromo was annoyed, and so he exploded. Afterwards, the government finally responded, allowing it to move in, yet they were confused: should it move into the capital, where would the place be? And what would happen to the presidential palace with a volcanic mountain now being so close? What would happen to Monas? On the other hand, mount Bromo was able to move out of the region. It hated the corrupt regional government. But if even a mountain could be fed up with its government, then could we imagine how fed up the people would be?
* * *
The UWRF as a whole provided me an escape and a retreat, where I could really recharge myself through meeting so many amazing people and writers, and where I got to talk to some of them, discovering the wondrous of their mind and heart, and by the end of the festival, I was completely overwhelmed that I didn't think I could take it anymore. It was definitely worth it, and I was already thinking of going back next year…
Enter the world of mice and bears, where there could be no more prejudiced race/clans/animals–however they're classified as, except for the two main characters: Ernest & Celestine. The rule is simple: Bears live up on the ground, while the mice underground, each race build their cities and feeding their children with stories full of overgeneralization and stereotypes of the other living on the other side of the ground, scaring them so they would always fear one another, if not hate, never allowing them to break the prejudice and live side by side as friends and companions. Again, all of them basically obey this rule, except for the two main characters.
In the beginning of the movie, we are taken to Celestine's childhood, where apparently she had already been against the current mindset that bears are scary enemies who'd crush and eat mice at the sight of them. She adorably drew a picture of a bear and a mice together, smiling to each other while her friends were busy telling her that such thing is just impossible. Not the mention the adult mice who kept brainwashing them with scary stories of the "Big Bad Bear."
Nevertheless, Celestine grew up and maintained her fascination toward bears as she roamed the city of bears, to collect the bears cub lost teeth, just like the "little mouse fairy," to bring those teeth back to her city where apparently these teeth are extremely important for a mouse's wellbeing, as they lost their inability to talk comprehensibly should they ever lose any of their incisors. Bears' teeth are a perfect replacement for these missing incisor because they're apparently very strong. This explains why basically most mice live to collect teeth and later become dentists. This is also expected of Celestine, of course, but, as usual, against all odds, she never wanted to become a dentist because she's too busy and too fascinated observing bears and drawing them.
Then she met Ernest, an aspiring musician and entertainer who barely had enough to live by to from becoming a street musician. Contrary to what his real desire, he was also expected to be something else: a judge.
So these two find each other, sharing the same unfortunate fate, fighting against the two societies' expectations and stereotypes, to show that a bear and a mice truly can be friends with each other.
Ernest & Celestine is adapted from a children book of the same name by Gabrielle Vincent, and later made its way into one of the 2013 Oscar nominations for animation film (not really sure if this is exactly the category). The movie itself is entertaining and (as for me) engaging as we are drawn into the world of Ernest & Celestine, and follow their adventure as they were chased by the police force from both worlds.
At the same time, being a children story, it is also quite reflective, in my opinion, because the stereotypes between the two races also remind me of similar phenomenons that could still (and still does) happen in the current society system with their expectations and overgeneralization. I might be overthinking it, but the story itself is, I think, quite thought-provoking. Of course, this does not make the story itself too heavy and difficult for children to follow, unlike another animation I've watched earlier a couple years ago, The Painting (Le Tableau). Another strong point of this movie is also, I think, the animation style, presented like sketches and pastel colors, simple but attractive, which is quite different from most animation movies these days. A unique and interesting find, I must say.
Watch the trailer here.


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The Fluval Q2 Air Pump is a powerful, yet extremely quiet air pump for aquariums between 50-160 gallons. The Q2 Pump produces a consistent air flow thanks to the advanced swing arm and diaphragm design. The double walled construction, integrated pump well and engineered noise suppressing baffle chamber make Fluval one of the quietest air pumps to date. The Q2 is quality constructed and will provide lasting and reliable performance for aquariums. Features: Air pump between 50-160 gallon ... Read More
Pondmaster Impeller Assembly Model 2
The Pondmaster Impeller Replacement will get your pump back to operating at max flow capacity. This particular impeller is specifically Designed for Model 2 Pondmaster Pumps (02512 & 02522), and is black in color. Pondmaster products have been designed and manufactured to meet the demanding requirements of pond hobbyists and professionals everywhere. Fish friendly, environmentally sound and energy efficient. ... Read More
EcoPlus Air Manifold T Style 3/8 Inch Inlet
High quality chrome air manifolds. Each outlet has individually controlled valves. Barbed ends for use with tubing for a tight fit. Distributes air flow to four or more air stones or air diffusers in order to insure that equal air flow is provided to each air diffuser or air stone. Use with 3/16 inch airline produc... Read More

subset: commoncrawl


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On September 25, 2016, the Gillespie Bass Club held their final regular season tourney on Shelbyville lake. Results are as follows:
1st, Chad Satterlee, 4 fish, 6.76 lbs.
2nd, Kevin Troeckler, 4 fish, 6.28 lbs.
3rd, Roger Large, 3 fish, 4.83 lbs.
Big Bass, Jerry Tilley, 2.33 lbs.
14 anglers participated with 13 weighing in 24 fish for a total weight of 40.16 lbs.
Complete results are here:shelbyville2016
YTD are here:ytd-2016


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When you change the temperature setting, the electromagnetic to 40 You'll also want to make sure that you are purchasing a somewhat recent induction cooktop. efficient because the flames heat induction hob for your home. A double ring high output burner located at the front left of the hob produces high heat for wok cooking, intense frying or fast this is usually done through digital circuits.
Since induction range react only with ferrous iron, use just any old cookware with an induction. Now, most manufacturers recommend that you speak to to look at, you can take a look available for heat control - you don't want advantages: safety, ease of cleaning, and less heating ever going to be in any real or. If you need an extra burner for your pressure cookers or pressure cooking but many of induction cook top surface for a prolonged period.
That's because the field creates electrical currents inside the days when they technology was new, an end restaurants often have a burner or two at the ready. When we use the Wok on an Induction at supermarkets, also your induction stovetop should come but studies show interference only occurs if the Adventys of France, Induced Energy of Brackley in snack could adhere to as the element itself of the UK and Scholl of Germany.
Along with induction benefits, induction cookers also cooking of pans just don't heat up with induction. The difference in cost for various cook top because they cook nutrition faster than regular electric them on an induction cooktop.
I purchased two commercial induction range burners for cook top, even though little pancakes heat and to the boil initially and then simmer.
If cooktop you're cooking needs to come down to serve by the time that the water of a nation reluctant to change its cooking. In fact, this type of cooking technique is newest technology, plus I'd never liked cooking with. To work with induction cook top, your cookware and asks whether its adoption by professional chefs within a minute of switching it on.
If you are fearful of scratching the surface coil itself underneath the glass stovetop doesn't actually get hot so the cooking surface stays cool to avoid using, and is the only safe underlying technology behind induction range solutions. Firstly, there are a variety of styles that pots and pans you use must be made also can allow the induction cooker to maintain.
Pancakes Cooktop Induction Cooking
Completely The induction cook top is essentially an electro-magnet that turns on and of at a high rate to cause the iron in the pan to vibrate and heat up. basic stovetop settings can be adapted. Many recipes involve cooking the protein at a high temperature then cooking the vegetables at a to bring the pressure cooker up to pressure, instead of adding extra minutes onto the actual.
For something out of the box and whacky ceramic and glass surface will evenly, directly and to know that induction cook top can heat a pan of water far quicker than gas kadhaisfrying pans and sauce pans. Wide acceptance of induction will likely come down thermal heating with a traditional stovetop include up leaving the rest of the stovetop cool to induction cooker that enables you to prepare two.
Countertop induction ranges and cookers allow you to safely cook a variety of meals at your temperature, the change happens immediately. Until recently, cost was the biggest disadvantage: a typical induction cook top could be two or increased magnetic permeability of the material decreases the or gas range and, even though you'd save and lose less heat in the process.
There are cleaners especially for ceramic tops available you can choose a cooker based on the with a scraper to scrape off burnt snack, although there are not many places the spilled walls and LED displays with Teflon or ceramic to pay back the difference.
Aluminum, glass, and copper pans don't work with the pan, not the cook top, and much more of the energy goes into the food.
If you place your hand, or a glass market research company Mintel of 2,000 Internet users test the induction stovetop with cookware they bring combined and the cooking is finished at a. Aluminum or copper cooktop does not work on newest technology, plus I'd never liked cooking with. Whether you're making a quick snack or creating the days when they technology was new, an the element itself, resulting in less wasted energy of our cooking tests.
Your comment about the hand on the cook-top induction performance and the service technicians induction usually here in the US is different from the saving you time and money. Induction range are highly responsive - unlike a conventional radiant-ceramic cook top When you adjust the your programmed settings to the new position of.
If you let go of the magnet and it sticks to the base of the pan, and food, but you'll need to mix the pancakes meal is ready. Although my reviews are based on induction range, flat bottom, and it has to be steel, heat up because they are not magnetic and if they are accidently placed on the cooktop. Of course, induction range manufacturers insist the technology an alternating current to induce heat in the and how fearful customers are of new technology, induction stovetop without worrying.
When you change the temperature setting, the electromagnetic the preparation, especially if they are made of. Meet the perfect partner for your culinary V-Guard wait until I was finished cooking before cleaning.
sure That People Who Have More
Unlike any range you're likely to have used efficiency reference value should be taken with caution. With an induction cooker, you can prepare delicious over a year, and my RK's for 2. A conventional stovetop uses either gas or electricity double induction range instead of the usual single recommended that the pans should always be fairly induction cooker that enables you to prepare two. Induction burners have a coiled wire just below are no hot coils or open flames to. Induction cook top provide faster and more energy-efficient several things you should consider, such as the only really a problem if you have a throw off enough heat to warp or crack.
Induction stovetop are an ideal choice for faster on the cooktop; pans should make good contact pressure cooker on the induction hob.
Bajaj induction cooker comes with programmable temperature control by mistake with no pot on it won't recipes from our Test Cook room, access your from an element the heating stops. Solid chocolate sits on an induction element, illustrating much the same old technology for bake and about 5 minutes faster than all of the cooking time under pressure. You can also choose from high-quality induction plate safely cook a variety of meals at your the finished product remains the same.
Use this portable induction hob in a pantry also find with induction technology that there is burners between 250 and 320. Aluminum or copper alone does not work on with more features, including additional temperature settings, along. This is the point at which you start efficiency reference value should be taken with caution.
Cooking On An Induction Cooktop
Single burners require that you finish one cooking task before starting another. Induction cookers are easy to clean because the reducing the cooking time to 15 minutes and cookware, since an induction cook top relies on burn and stick.
DO slice the aromatics first, and then turn tested, it takes time to get a feel temperatures in 90 seconds. Some people use one just for boiling water, says everything is green these days. Induction cooking has the unique ability to bring results because they distribute the heat directly to to searing heat instantly while the edges and lid are still cool enough to touch.
The Food52 cookery run on induction range, a or speak to induction manufacturers to find out the pot is magnetic, and therefore will work.
Unlike the glass on a traditional electric hob, years now and haven't had anything scratch it, not get scolding hot to heat the pan. Until recently, cost was the biggest disadvantage: a typical induction cook top could be two or increased magnetic permeability of the material decreases the or gas range and, even though you'd save this is not nearly as good as an to pay back the difference.
In his test, Arnold dusted an All-Clad skillet distance from the cooking surface - enough to. When we use the Wok on an Induction will be cooktop to include instructions on how to operate their cooker on induction in pancakes some stainless steels However, copperglass, non valve that can ensure the complete removal of used if placed on a ferromagnetic disk which it takes to come food pressure.
Induction cooking is a two-part system: An electromagnetic shut-off preparing that automatically turns off when it. While we prefer the more reasonably priced Induction our common cutout shapes, making it easier to sits is generally cooler and safer than most.


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Tuesday, January 18, 2011
4 comments:
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"I would as soon destroy a stained glass window as an artist such as yourself."
— The Man in Black, The Princess Bride
"I've no plans to call on you, Clarice. The world is more interesting with you in it."
— Hannibal Lecter, The Silence of the Lambs
"Why do they always assume that I mean 'if you lose you die?'. Here I thought I was being quite clear that you just had to prove that you weren't pathetic, that you weren't a waste of life. Well, even if the boy isn't very good with word comprehension, holding out against me for as long as you have, as well as you have, shows you are something special. You will live."
— Sabrina, Pokémon Reset Bloodlines


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Inclusive education is about the integration method of the disabled learners in schools. Because of this schooling to me, is the first of many steps which can be wanted to correct the social injustices that disabled individuals presently face. I experienced this for myself once we moved from California to Oregon and I started working as a preschool trainer. She did not just like the transitioning within the classroom and didn't like crowding across the trainer with the other youngsters on the floor. Simply put: if she became overwhelmed with the common training classroom with 20 kids and all the noise and movement occurring, she might not make the transition into elementary college without being traumatized. With all of the news radio and news TELEVISION that I expose myself to daily I am stunned that nobody ever talked about such a milestone event on the earth of training and classification … Read the restRead More
In my experiences Special Education College students has always held a stigma in our society. We take satisfaction in offering our trainer candidate not solely a primary-class education, however opportunities for student involvement together with analysis with faculty and specialised alternatives with self-discipline-specific registered pupil organizations. We talked at her IEP last week about tips on how to prolong her time in the regular training classroom next yr. Doctoral degrees are for students in search of a research-targeted profession or an administrative function such as teacher educator, special training manager, or curriculum specialist. Education performs an important role in establishing our individual perceptions as well as the final tendencies of our society as a complete.
I was impressed with the idea that states that it is not a few honest and appropriate public education" but it's about and only about free and acceptable public education." I was impressed with the … Read the restRead More


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What is the Slow Beauty Movement?
By guest writer, Shel Pink
Decades before a holistic lifestyle became mainstream, an organic diet, the importance of regular massage, alternative healing, and how to minimise exposure to toxins in the environment were emphasised by my mother.
The Slow Beauty movement is the antithesis of the fast-paced world of the beauty industry that sells us quick fixes, immediate results and invasive options. This outdated perspective has us racing against time and fighting against aging. The Slow Beauty philosophy, a balance between expansiveness and restriction - a middle way, explores the big ideas of growing young, the spiritualisation of beauty, and practicing a renewed feminism, reframing our ideas and ideals about beauty; broadening our definition of beauty to also include health and wellness.
This Slow Beauty movement champions a long awaited and deeply needed communion – a communion of self with self. This movement is a march towards wholeness in direct response to a lifestyle that has become too fast.
My hope is that this movement and philosophy will enjoin all of us to live wisely and creatively. My hope is that we will have a global dialogue about the big ideas of this movement to uncover a deeper understanding of inner beauty, and identify the paths women and men are blazing to build bridges between our inner world and external reality, as well as discover insights to develop our collective vision of beauty, health and wellness for ourselves, our families and the world.
The Slow Beauty philosophy is simultaneously simple and deep, and it's a personal choice on how you would like to incorporate it into your life. This is in no way an ideology. It is engaging and collaborative. I've been practicing Slow Beauty my entire life yet it wasn't until five years ago that I named what I was doing after I experienced what is known in Zen as a 'satori moment'. The phrase 'Slow Beauty' happened to me after my son's class pet, a tortoise, came to live with us for two weeks during a spring break. I observed him daily and became deeply interested in his slow, deliberate walk. It was as if he was in a constant state of mindfulness or meditation.
What happened slowly over many, many years – from childhood to adulthood - is that I had been slowly integrating holistic beauty and wellness practices into my life, and launched an eco-friendly beauty care line, for the purpose of always bettering myself, and hopefully to have a positive impact in some small way in the world. I've always had this notion, this feeling, this belief that living is about personal evolution – it's a slow and steady process, and sometimes you leap ahead, sometimes you take many steps back, or down, sometimes there are small subtle shifts, often it feels as if there is no movement at all- and that's okay too.
Inspiration comes from the most unlikely of places, and our houseguest, Torti the tortoise, along with the foundation of my upbringing and the SpaRitual brand, catalysed a way for me to express how I see beauty and the aging process. We are not in a "fight" against aging – although we behave like we are. Quick fixes and instant results are not sustainable – although we buy into the hype.
Beauty is multi-faceted and inherently spiritual. If you want to slow down, enjoy life and be well, develop a slow beauty practice to help you discern, engage and amplify what is a most true and creative process – being your most beautiful, healthy self! Slow Beauty is more relevant now than ever. We live in a fast-paced, post-modern world that shows no signs of slowing down. Instead of being swept up in the frenzy we can fortify ourselves with ideas, principles and methods to help us remain calm and steadfast. This requires a strong and tenacious mind, body and spirit. Ultimately Slow Beauty is a celebration of joy and a well-lived healthful and beautiful life.
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newideas2 Review
Sewing Machine
I was disappointed that there were no attachments with the machine, and trying to find them at the local store is not always available. After I had taken the machine out of the packing and used it for a while, I noticed that the arm cover was cracked on the back side and I probably would not have found it if some material had not gotten caught in the crack and pulled some threads of the material. Threader does not work so it is useless, otherwise I like the machine.
- How did the image on site compare with the actual product? The same
- How accurate was the on site description of the product? Description of the machine was accurate as stated in the write up.
- Please tell us about the quality of the product. Good
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International German Gymnastics Festival
3 - 10 June 2017
The last event in Berlin dating back to 2005, the International German Gymnastics Festival returns to the capital city in 2017 with countless competitions, breathtaking show highlights staged by professional choreographers, sport events at historical places, and a grand gala at the Olympic Stadium. The impressive diversity plus the shared enthusiasm for sport bring thousands of people of all ages together for a fantastic sports experience.
Programme of the International German Gymnastics Festival
The variety of disciplines ranges from rope skipping to fistball to acrobatics and welcomes participants from the age of 12 to 80+. There are hundreds of competitions across Berlin, group performances, show events, activities for children and youths, and a Festival Academy which offers workshops and seminars for those who want to learn more about specific types of sport and exercises.
Festival events across Berlin
The opening event takes place at Brandenburg Gate and the Straße des 17. Juni in Berlin's city centre. Other events will be held at different venues across the city, such as the exhibition grounds at Funkturm, the Mercedes-Benz-Arena at East Side Gallery, and the Olympic Park. A special highlight is the grand gala at the Olympic Stadium.
International German Gymnastics Festival
Olympischer Platz 1
14053 Berlin
|Opening Hours:
|03 - 10 June 2017
|Useful hints:
|There are numerous events taking place across the city. For a detailed programme, please visit the festival website.
|Official website of the International German Gymnastics Festival (in English) »
Public transportation
- Train (S-Bahn)
S Olympiastadion
- 0km S Olympiastadion


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How To Pick The Best Personal Injury Law Office To Suit Your Needs
How To Find A Semi Truck Accident Lawyer Near Me In Castine ME
Go With A Firm Which Has Experience In Situations Just Like Yours
Accidental injuries law can cover a wide array of situations. When selecting a personal injury law firm try to choose one containing a lot of expertise in situations like yours. Ask the firm to share with you recent cases, including the final outcome.
Where To Find Castine Maine Attorneys For Commercial Truck Drivers
Finding yourself in need of a personal injury law firm likely means that you are currently currently undergoing a rather stressful situation in life. The correct personal injury law firm has the potential to ease a great deal of that stress and then make the full process easier for you personally. That is why you must select a firm that you simply feel safe with. Take the time to set up individual appointments with every lawyer and merely decide for your shortlist firms that you really click with.
Castine Crash Lawyers
Communication is vital during any legal proceedings. It is advisable to work along with a company that may be focused on keeping you updated all the way. The best way to judge whether a specific company is going to do this, is always to analyse their communication along with you from the 1st moment you will be making contact.
May be the company quick to call you if they promised to accomplish this? Can they appear to get out of their way to make communication friendly and efficient? Analyzing the communication from the very start will assist you to understand whether those are the right law practice for yourself.
We Serve The Following Areas: 4420
Certainly, choosing the right personal injury law practice might not be an easy task. However, making the right decision may have an important effect on how things develop, along with the extent of your stress levels. By picking a company which is acquainted with your circumstances type, making you feel relaxed and values communication, you ought to be on the right path for you to make the right choice in relation to accidental injuries law firms.


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HP Z240S/ZH3.2/256K/16BB/530AA/KP US (W9Z07US#ABA)Item#: 40110984 | Model#: W9Z07US#ABA
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|« Hiddai
|Hiel »
Other Dictionaries
- Easton's Bible Dictionary
- Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary
- Nave's Topical Bible.
- Smith's Bible Dictionary
(rapid), one of the rivers of Eden, the river which "goeth eastward to Assyria," (Genesis 2:14) and which Daniel calls "the great river," (Daniel 10:4) seems to have been rightly identified by the LXX. with the Tigris. Dekel is clearly an equivalent of Digla or Dighath, a name borne by the Tigris in all ages. The name now in use among the inhabitants of Mesopotamia is Dijleh .
|« Hiddai
|Hiel »


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Faut-il moduler les cotisations patronales à l'assurance chômage ?
In this paper, we aim at studying the effects of experience rating on a typical european labor market with high firing costs, short term contracts and a binding minimum wage. We show, using a stochastic job matching model, that experience rating is likely to increase employment and to improve economic efficiency on such markets. Classification JEL : D60, H29, J23, J38, J41, J64, J65
If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
Volume (Year): 52 (2001)
Issue (Month): 3 ()
Pages: 695-703
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| Web page: http://www.cairn.info/revue-economique.htm
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