Musical Taste: The History (Part 1)

Hiya!

Finally I'm back. I'm back after a month and a half. Not bad, eh?

Was doing university entrance exams.. And so, wish me luck! Really hope that my fellow classmates can also get into where they want to be.

Anyway... As far as I'm concerned... It's holiday season here. Yep. And it's also Ramadhan! Oh, the Holy Month of Ramadhan... Welcome back.

Fasting season.

The cool thing is, from what I've heard... This year is quite special because, I believe, the next school year will begin after Ramadhan, after the Eid. So... I think.. No fasting while studying at school for this year..

But I'm way past that. :p

Anyway... I just wanna write about the history of my musical taste... Sort of.. Thing.

Have been thinking of writing this for quite some time... So.. Let's begin.

Introduction

Listening to songs have been a big, big part of my life... 

Okay. I gotta tell you. For those of you who have seen two of my last three posts... You probably realised that I have this weird taste for music... Yep.

Somehow.. I just can't really click with today's mainstream music.. Which is sort of a bummer, especially if you wanna try to connect with most people these days.

The only sort of recent mainstream artist whom I listen to is probably Ed Sheeran. Yeah. Even for Ed, I don't really listen to him all the time. It's just that, I believe, he's the only recent mainstream artist whose album I bought.

Besides Ed.. I do listen to new stuffs.. I bought several songs that have been played over and over again on the radio or at shopping malls... Catchy songs... Or I guess.. The fact that they are being played over and over again made them catchy? Dunno.

But mostly... In terms of "new stuffs"... I listen to not-really-mainstream-in-Indonesia songs.. Like.. Blur's new album "The Magic Whip" (2015). When Paul McCartney's "Kisses on The Bottom" (2012) and "New" (2013)  albums came out, I also listened to those.. Technically, those are new materials.. Right? I'm currently listening to Carl Barât and the Jackals' new album "Let It Reign" (2015), because I've been listening to The Libertines, again.. They are making a new album!! So that's quite cool. More on The Libertines later.

A few months ago, I was trying to explore more mainstream bands, and so I decided to start listening to the Arctic Monkeys. Bought their first (Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not (2006)) and latest (AM (2013)) albums... And in the end.. I quite like them. Though I very much prefer their first album than their latest. :p

Now... So.. What the hell do I listen to, then? And how come I listen to these stuffs instead of more-recent more-mainstream music?

Well, as I've told you before.. Today's mainstream music simply doesn't click. Dunno why. Probably since I was a little boy, I've been, sort of, accidentally "exposed" by "old mainstream music"... And then, a few years later, I developed this unconscious interest towards old mainstream music.. Dunno. Just a theory :p

Or actually... Is it because of genetics? Heard that musical taste is an inherited trait? Nah, dunno.

Okay, enough rambling. I just wanna share the evolution of my musical taste.. Sort of, what I hear, bands that I sort of follow. Yeah.

1. Bee Gees, Rod Stewart, and Queen

The earliest memories that I have of really listening to a band or an artist... I forgot which one I listened to first.. Probably the Bee Gees.

I had this VCD of one of their live appearances and I remember watching it. I also remember listening to their "Love Songs" compilation album... In form of a cassette. Yep. Old school, according to today's standard.

At the same time, I was also listening to Rod Stewart. I remember listening to "The Very Best of Rod Stewart" album. Forgot whether it was a cassette or a CD.

This was back in primary school, I guess.. I used to play them music in my (parents') car.

However, besides those two.. I remember Queen being the one which I really listened to and really follow. I had their three "Greatest Hits" cassettes, and I listened to them over and over again. I also remember that the first ever music CD that I really picked to buy.. was.. the "Queen Rock Montreal" album. I just checked wikipedia and apparently it was released in October 2007... I was in 6th grade..? whoa.

I liked to watch videos of their live concerts. I remember watching the Montreal one, and the Queen + Paul Rodgers one. 

And umm... Fun fact. One of the earliest memories of me using the Internet was actually watching this video of Freddie Mercury doing his thing before singing Under Pressure in Wembley '86. Just, wow. I mean, that was back when I had this dial-up connection thingy.

I mean, you gotta love Freddie Mercury, and Queen as a whole. Freddie was this, charismatic and funny figure on stage. And Queen's music. John Deacon's bass line, especially from "Under Pressure", Brian May's guitar play, Roger Taylor's drumming. Oh man. I just love their music and how they act on stage. The bass-lines, the guitar solos, the fast and hard drumming... The soul of it all.

This is how I fell in love with rock music.

Queen is really the first band that I ever got into. The first band where I learned to memorise the names of its members.

When I moved to France, I started collecting their studio albums... Though right now, I still haven't finished collecting them.. So.. We'll see

I remember still listening to Queen back in 7th grade... 

But actually, in 2008, I was introduced to this band...

Probably the band that influenced me the most.

And that is.....

2. The Beatles

Back in 2008, my father bought two Beatles cover album. One was this choral cover of The Beatles' songs, the other one was Jazz cover.

I actually forgot what made me decide to buy the "1" album. A compilation album of their 27 number one singles. I listened to it over, and over, and over again. In my car, on my CD player.

The Beatles.

I remember before I got that close with The Beatles... I remember thinking, "The Beatles. Yeah, have heard that this is the greatest band ever. But, naah, probably never gonna listen to it."

Well kid. You were totally wrong. You became this Beatlemania, Beatle-geek, Beatle-walking-encyclopedia back in junior high school.

I mean, wow. This post isn't gonna be enough to describe my "relationship" with The Beatles.

The first ever band-related T-Shirt that I ever bought, it was The Beatles. The first ever band-related book, The Beatles.

Back in junior high school, I started collecting all the original UK LPs or studio albums. Coincidentally, they were just releasing the remastered version of those LPs.. Wow. Just. Wow.

The first one that I bought was "Sgt. Pepper's". And from then on, during my jhs years... I tried to save up some money in order to buy new albums. And in the end, I finished collecting the 12 albums, plus the "Past Masters" album. Just. Wow. Good times.

My father went to the U.S. once, and he bought me The Beatles' "Anthology" book. Yep. That giant book. I was so. so. so. just. wow. Thank you, thank you dad.

I bought The Beatles' Anthology documentary, and have watched it for several times. I have also watched all of their movies + The Yellow Submarine. I even went on Tumblr, simply because it was full of Beatles-stuffs.

I don't know why, but back in jhs and even back in 10th grade, when I was already living abroad, I simply wanted to show my friends on how awesome The Beatles are. Frankly, looking back, I was a bit too much on being a Beatlemania.

But hey... You gotta love John, Paul, George, and Ringo. They are brilliant, funny, witty. 

From their Quarrymen-Rock and Roll years, to Hamburg, to their early U.K. success, Europe, the World. When they stopped touring and went on being this band with psychedelic and Indian influences, and then went on producing more music and more everlasting masterpieces. Their breakup, their solo careers, John's death, the Anthology session, George's death, more solo careers...

They are simply. Wow. Looking at how they have evolved and matured throughout those years. Even in the 60s, within a space of ten year, their music went through this drastic evolution. And they frickin' made masterpieces. Different genres throughout the 60s, but their music lives on. They pioneered lots of things, and really made a big influence on the music industry.

I simply can't rank which Beatle is my favourite. They are all unique in their own ways. Same thing goes with ranking their albums or their songs. When an album or a song matches your mood, you can simply enjoy it, even consider it as the best.

I thank God that I was given the privilege to watch Paul McCartney live, back in 2011. It was simply, amazing. I was also given the privilege to visit London and Liverpool, and most of the Beatles' sites. The 3 Savile Row, Abbey Road, the Cavern club replica..

The Beatles is still very important to me. And of course, I also listen to John, George, Paul, and Ringo's solo materials.

Right now, I'm listening to most of Paul's solo music, including Wings' music.

And by the way, June 18th, Happy Birthday Paul!

So yeah, The Beatles. Even the way I speak in English... I think it's sort of influenced by them. :p

3. ABBA, Michael Jackson, John Lennon and U2

Back in jhs, besides The Beatles, I also listened to John Lennon, U2, Michael Jackson, and ABBA. Yeah. Weird combo.

And btw, these are just the ones that I can remember.. sort of. The ones that I remember I really listened to, like, I have the CDs and I remember playing them CDs in my car.

I mean, not that I stopped listening to The Beatles or Queen or Rod Stewart or Bee Gees..

So, back in 2008, after watching "Mamma Mia!", I began listening to ABBA... Limited only to their greatest hits tho.

In 2009, after Michael Jackson's death, my parents bought "The Essential Michael Jackson" CD, and so I started listening to Michael Jackson.

And as for U2.. I can't really remember what made me buy that CD.. The "U218 Singles" CD thingy.

Those three are quite alright, I listened to them quite a lot back in jhs, besides The Beatles, of course.

And for John Lennon, obviously it was because I was listening to The Beatles. I bought the "Legend: The Very Best of John Lennon" album. It was good.

4. Paul McCartney and to be continued

Anyway... Summer 2011, I moved to Paris. And um... Before I moved to Paris, I remember that I started buying Paul McCartney's solo era albums.

Just before I moved, I bought "McCartney" and "McCartney II", newly remastered back then. And, like, whenever I listen to songs from those two albums... They remind me of my early days in Paris.

For example, whenever I listen to "Every Night", or "Coming Up", or "That Would Be Something".. They simply remind me of those early days.

I have mentioned about how I was collecting Queen's studio albums back in Paris. Well, I was also collecting Paul McCartney's solo era/Wings' albums, such as "RAM", "Band on the Run", "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard"... many more.

Moving back to Jakarta, it's getting hard for me to collect hard copies of those albums... I'm still looking for the newly-remastered version of "Venus and Mars" and "Wings at the Speed of Sound". :/ 

Back in 2012, I began to explore more bands, trying to look for new materials... 

And so, I started listening to lots of more bands/artists. A wider variety of genres. Decades of music. Etc2.

Just you wait for Part 2. Just you wait. 

And sorry for the bad English, like, oh no, my writing skill has deteriorated quite a lot. :o

See ya next time. Cheers.

Just a thingy

I don't know why, but for the last couple of months or so, I've been feeling kinda down. I've been thinking a lot, and probably a bit too much. Thinking about things that are probably unnecessary and too early for people my age.

Now, I don't think it's really important to talk about what I've been thinking recently. I don't know why, but I always feel a bit paranoid about sharing my thoughts online or to a wider audience... For now.

However, I feel like for the last few months, like I've lost something. Like, something is missing from my life. And after reading a post from another blog, I've come to the conclusion that... It is most possible that I haven't shared my thoughts or feelings as much as I used to, before I moved back here.

What I've been feeling, is that there's like this... thing, inside my chest. Like this heavy thing, I don't know what. Lately, I also get tired quite easily. I don't know why. It's like, something is lacking in my life.

As far as I can remember, usually, back there, I used to think and ponder on things while strolling. And then, whenever I had thoughts or any sort of feelings, I liked to share it with a couple of my friends. And it felt good afterwards. Whenever I had this "burden" inside me, I shared it, and then I felt better.

But I just realised that I haven't shared as much as I used to. I mean it's not like I share my thoughts or emotions all the time. But it's just that, I've been having different kinds of emotions and been thinking quite a lot lately, more than I used to. However, I haven't shared my thoughts or emotions as much as I used to. 

So yeah, probably this explains why I've been feeling kinda down lately. Like, something is building up inside me. I've been keeping all these thoughts and emotions to myself.

"Well then, why don't I just share all these thoughts and emotions to others, to my friends?"

It's not that easy. And this is probably one of the things which I've been thinking about... For some unknown reason, since I was a child, I don't like to "disturb" other people. I don't want to make them feel "annoyed".

Back in Paris, I shared stuffs with a couple of my friends, who sometimes looked interested at what I was talking about... But most of the times, they told me that they don't really care about it. And I really like talking with them because of this. Honesty. Nothing fake or artificial. Simple and plain, jovial conversations.

Another thing that I like about talking with them, is that they also talked about themselves. They also gave some sort of opinion on things that I shared to them. For those people, they probably know that I like to talk about things ranging from random nonsense, pop culture references, to politics, history, and philosophy/life in general. But moving back here, being separated from those people, makes it very difficult to talk to them.

Being very very honest, since I moved back here, I haven't found friends whom I can really connect with, just like with those peeps. Probably I have met them, but I have not met that version of them whom I can truly connect with.

Lately, I feel like I'm living in another world compared to my friends. Besides our classes, some aspects of life in Jakarta and Indonesia, university stuffs... And probably football and movies and TV series... I got nothing much to talk to them. Which is sad. Very sad indeed.

And I feel like lately, things that I want to talk about are getting more and more serious. Too serious for normal conversations, and I don't want to make my friends feel annoyed. 

It's like I have forgotten how to talk to people, how to socialize. It's like... I've forgotten how to make a casual conversation.

Man, I feel like an alien.

But probably, I've found an explanation to that...

It's the thinking that I've been doing.

Wait. A cycle. 

I've been thinking more, so things that I want to talk about gets more serious, which makes it hard for me to connect with others, which makes me feel kinda lonely, which makes me think more and more...

What the flying cow. This is scary.

I have to break the cycle.

Back when I was in high school... I had stuffs to do. University applications, all those written tasks and lab reports, and IAs... Final exams. And this meant that I had other things to focus on, besides thinking and pondering too much about life, and feeling alone.

Now? I "simply", well not that simple, need to learn and prepare for the univ. entrance exams + do all the Univ. applications...

Which is still a lot, actually, so never mind.

It's just that I can't really focus on those things, because I've been feeling a bit down recently..

Man... Another cycle. I can't concentrate, because I've been feeling a bit down lately, because I've been having different kinds of emotions and thinking a lot, because I'm not properly preparing for uni, because I can't concentrate...

This is proper scary, this. Even this post is toooo serious to be true.

So, I guess... I need a little push. A little bit of motivation. And also... I need to sort of... Get rid of(?) all these things inside my chest. This weird feeling, this pressure.

And then, hopefully I can move on and concentrate in doing all those things. Yay.

Yeah. I need that sort of motivation.

Man, writing does help clear things inside your head.

Now, coming back to a point which I've mentioned earlier, about myself not wanting to "disturb" others... This could probably be one of the reasons why it is so hard for me to start a conversation with someone...

Man. Why is it so hard for me to have a conversation with someone. I should probably stop thinking too much about it, and just do it... Eh? Yes? No? Who nose.

So, final remarks... I should find that extra motivation, somehow. So that I can concentrate more on my future... Because I need to concentrate and it is crucial.

I need to get rid of all of these thoughts and emotions... Probably? Is it the right thing to do..?

Okay. Let's focus on our future.

For now, let's stop wasting our time and energy thinking about "what ifs", because it's not worth it... For now, at least.

Yeah. One of the things which I've been thinking quite a lot recently...: My future.

I have to make choices, on which uni to go to, and what am I going to study for the next few years...

Which is, to think about it, it's like a domino effect. A series of "what ifs". Different scenarios. Alternate universes...

SEE? Too much thinking. Oh God.


Okay. So.. I need to focus on my future, while still "making the most of now" and "enjoying the moment".

But really, I don't want to make the wrong choice this time.

I've made plans before. And some plans worked out, some didn't. Some things in my life which I didn't plan, turned out to be fantastic. It's fascinating how destiny works.

I have some plans for my future. What I can do now, is to do the best that I can. To study. To work. To make maximum efforts. To pray for the best. 

I prayed. And I hope God has planned me the "best way" to achieve my dreams.

And I hope for the best of future for everyone. For my family. For this country. For Muslims all across the globe. And for humanity.

Btw, I've just finished watching "Guru Bangsa Tjokroaminoto", like, a few hours ago, at the cinema. Might do a review of this movie some times in the future... But for now, I just want to give a quote from that movie. 

"Hanya ada satu cara untuk berhijrah. Setinggi-tinggi ilmu, sepintar-pintar siasat, dan semurni-murni tauhid."

This quote is quite deep. Either that or I'm just seeing to much into it. That's why I can't give the "English" translation of this quote. If you're trying Google Translate... You'll have to decipher it. :p

Man, such a great movie. I'm such a history geek.

:p

Cheers.

Playlists

Hello, hello.

Finally I'm in the mood again to write. Well, not really. Just wanna share two playlists which I've made and an update on things that I'm doing right now and gonna do in the next few months. Hopefully. Bismillah.

So I made two playlists recently. One is the fourth disc of Ethan Hawke's The Beatles Black Album playlist, which was included in the movie "Boyhood". The other one is... Sort of a... Compilation of soothing music.. tracks.. thing..

So, the first playlist is called "Black Album IV"... I made the first three Ethan Hawke's playlists on my iPod too and I simply call them "Black Album" followed by Roman numerals I or II or III. 

Btw, here's the first three discs: http://www.buzzfeed.com/ethanhawke/boyhood-the-black-album#.nc3bxZyNz

The songs are taken from John, Paul, George, and Ringo's solo careers. Basically he reunited The Beatles... :'

Btw... Happy Birthday George Harrison! :D

Welp, anyway, I realised that some of my favourites, solo-era Beatles songs were not included in his three-discs playlist... So... I made the fourth disc, which includes some of my fav. songs that were not included in the Black Album, plus some songs that sort of match the playlist..(?)

So, without further ado, here is Black Album IV:

1. Nineteen Hundred And Eighty Five - (Paul McCartney & Wings)

2. Give Peace A Chance - (John Lennon)

3. All Those Years Ago - (George Harrison)

4. Peggy Sue - (John Lennon)

5. Oo You - (Paul McCartney)

6. Ding Dong, Ding Dong - (George Harrison)

7. Coming Up - (Paul McCartney)

8. Got My Mind Set On You - (George Harrison)

9. No More Lonely Nights - (Paul McCartney)

10. Nobody Told Me - (John Lennon)

11. When We Was Fab - (George Harrison)

12. How Do You Sleep? - (John Lennon)

13. Somebody Who Cares - (Paul McCartney)

14. Rising Sun - (George Harrison)

15. Never Without You - (Ringo Starr)

16. Working Class Hero - (John Lennon)

17. Let It Be Me (Demo) - (George Harrison)

18. Here Today - (Good Evening NYC, Paul McCartney)

19. Walk With You - (Ringo Starr ft. Paul McCartney)

20. Free as A Bird - (The Beatles)

Black Album I starts with "Band On The Run", so I think finishing what we have started, we have to begin/end(?) with "Nineteen Hundred And Eighty Five", the last track on the album "Band On The Run".

We also got John Lennon's song, widely believed aimed at Paul, "How Do You Sleep?"... Followed by Paul's song... "Somebody Who Cares"... Which I found quite beautiful.. And somehow I sort of relate Paul's song with John, knowing that John is no longer around.

I mean, essentially, despite the fallout, they are still the best songwriter partnership that has ever existed.

From 14 to 19... It's sort of the reality, really. John and George are no longer around with us. But their music and spirit live on. The Good Evening NYC version of "Here Today" is really what makes the reality hits us. Paul is still doing live concerts, with his voice becoming more and more scratchy or strained or hoarse..(?) Dunno the correct way to describe it.The way I see it in this playlist, "Here Today" is aimed at both John and George from track 16 and 17... 

"And if I say,

I really loved you and was glad you came along.

If you were here today.

Oo-oo-oo, for you were in my song.

Here today."

And then... "Walk With You". Again, reality hits.. Two of the remaining Beatles, singing together. 

"When I walk with you.

When I talk with you.

Everything will be fine."

And finally, the playlist ends with "Free as A Bird". The first track of Anthology becomes the last track here. :p I mean, you gotta end this playlist with all four Beatles together. :)

So yeah. That's that.

On to the second playlist...

This playlist. I was sort of in the mood of making a soothing compilation of songs, all taken from my iPod. 

I was listening to "Wonderful Tonight" by Eric Clapton when this idea struck me. I mean, I put the song on repeat, played it over and over again, realised that this is a frickin beautiful piece of music/ballad/song right here.

Before we begin the second playlist... Here is Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight":

Wonderful Tonight - Eric Clapton

"It's late in the evening, she's wondering what clothes to wear.

She puts on her make-up, and brushes her long blonde hair.

And then she asks me, 'Do I look all right?'

And I say, 'Yes, you look wonderful tonight.'

We go to a party, and everyone turns to see.

This beautiful lady, that's walking around with me.

And then she asks me, 'Do you feel all right?'

And I say, 'Yes, I feel wonderful tonight.'

I feel wonderful, because I see, the love light in your eyes.

And the wonder, of it all, is that you just don't re-alize how much I love you.

It's time to go home now, and I've got an aching head,

So I give her the car keys, and she helps me to bed.

And then I tell her, as I turn out the light,

I say, 'My darling, you were wonderful tonight.

Oh my darling, you were wonderful tonight.'"

Aw man. Just. So simple and beautiful at the same time. It Hits it perfectly, right in there.

So yeah, listening to this song, how beautiful and soothing it is... I thought, "Hey, let's make a playlist."

I mean, it's not a proper playlist with ups and downs... Sort of in an alphabetical order, this.. If this is a proper playlist, I'd probably put ABBA's "I Have A Dream" last. Gonna arrange it soon, when I have time.

ABBA - I Have A Dream

Air Supply - All Out of Love

Athlete - Chances (Vincent and The Doctor!!)

Barry Manilow - Mandy

The Beach Boys - God Only Knows

The Beatles - Mother Nature's Son

The Beatles - Here, There And Everywhere

Bee Gees - How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

Bee Gees - How Deep Is Your Love

Carpenters - (They Long to Be) Close to You

Cat Stevens - The Wind

The Corrs - Runaway

The Cranberries - Linger

Ed Sheeran - Photograph

Elvis Costello - She (Notting Hill!)

Eric Clapton - Wonderful Tonight

The Everly Brothers - All I Have to Do Is Dream

Frankie Valli - My Eyes Adored You

George Benson - Nothing's Gonna Change My Love For You

George Harrison - Let It Be Me

Johan Johannsson - Epilogue (The Theory of Everything)

John Lennon - Love

Julie Delpy - A Waltz for a Night (from Before Sunrise)

Kath Bloom - Come Here (again, from Before Sunrise.. That scene.)

Lionel Richie - Stuck On You

Oasis - Songbird

Paul McCartney - Jenny Wren

Paul McCartney - My Valentine

Paul McCartney - Somebody Who Cares (Three Maccas!)

Queen - Love Of My Life

Rod Stewart - You're In My Heart

Simon & Garfunkel - The Sounds of Silence

Sting - Fields of Gold

Wings - Mull of Kintyre (Actually, another Macca...)

So there we are. 34 tracks.

I mean... for a late-1996 born.. This is weird. Too many oldie hits, pops, and movie soundtracks... Plus. Out of nowhere... ED SHEERAN :p He's good tho.

I really need to listen to today's music. Ah well.

All those songs are from my iPod so.. I have like, over 2200 tracks on my iPod... But I believe, most probably, some of the most beautiful pieces of music are still out there somewhere... Outside my iPod I mean.

Moving on. Updates.

I'm in the process of applying to Univs. again. Studying for exams (though still lacking, really) and preparing all those documents, including a Motivation Letter.

Feels good to write again. Especially after a long hiatus, writing something similar to all those IB essays just feels good. 

Feels sad though, because most of my classmates are still struggling on their Try Outs. :( Really would like to help them. Just don't know how.

Anyway, I just hope for the best. And I hope that I have each and every requirements ready. I hope that the Indonesian system of application is... lenient..(?) I'm just afraid that I don't have all the requirements ready... being someone who graduated outside, in a private international school.

Sometimes, the information here is just not enough/lacking... I've been to the Ministry of Education several times, and it seems that they're also confused. 

Really hope that I won't have to wait for another year, simply because of a stupid mistake like.. Not being in the national database or something. 

I mean... That would suck. A lot. Like. Really. I've been preparing for the entrance exam for months and suddenly... Oh God, please no.

Bismillah. Wish me luck.

Cheers.

2015: Start

Hi again!

Before we begin, I would like to express my condolences and offer my thoughts and prayers... For those who are affected by the Klewer Market Fire, and for those who have lost their loved ones in the disastrous AirAsia QZ8501 crash.

It was the right thing to do for the government, national or regional, to ask, and to encourage Indonesians to celebrate this year's New Year's Eve moderately, in order to respect those who have just suffered and are still suffering from the recent disasters that happened here in this country.

It was the right thing to do, to encourage people to pray rather than celebrating with fireworks.

May Allah guide us through these tough times, give us strength, and patience. Amen.

So, UTC+7 have just entered 2015... Pretty cool.

Happy New Year all.

So basically, I spent this NYE playing Cities in Motion 2 while listening to people talking on YouTube.... Yeah. Quite educational, if you're willing to believe :p

At 23:50, I went outside with my iPod, took a video and some pictures, fireworks everywhere, loud bangs, glorious. Fireworks are always mesmerizing.

00:10, I went back inside.

:p

I don't know why but I just didn't feel like going out. Partly because I wasn't in the mood, partly because I caught a cold fever just recently, partly because I went out earlier already during the day (31/12/14), partly because I was curious to try to make a city in Cities in Motion 2... :p And partly because I wanted to accompany my parents... Though actually they went to bed early, so.. Yeah, not sure about that.

It's nice though, I'm feeling a bit tired already, planning to finish Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days.

And so.

To start 2015.

Here is a list of things to look forward to in 2015...

That I look forward to anyway...

Probably some interesting things are being left out.. Who nose.

• Broadchurch 2! Soon!
• Fifty Shades movie :/
• Insurgent!
• PAPER TOWNS!!!
• STAR WARS :D :D :D :D
• Hearts of Iron IV!
• Cities: Skylines!
• Doctor Who Series 9!!!!
• Doctor Who 10th Anniversary of Nu Who... Probably gonna be something.
• Once Upon A Time S04 second half!
• ASEAN Economic Community
• ManUtd back in the Champions League :)

Plus

Hopefully, getting some work experience before...

Univ. exam...

And hopefully... Finally... Get to study in a university.

Meet new people, new friends.

Build new connections.

Be more productive, more active.

Here's for 2015. Bismillah.

2014

Hi!

So in a few hours time, we are gonna enter 2015. Well, it's already 2015 in Australia and a few other places to the east of Indonesia... I guess. Can't really be bothered looking at the map. :p

Anyway. I'm kinda in the mood right now to write about 2014. It has been quite an interesting year for me personally, and probably for many people in this planet.

I spent last year's New Year's Eve in London with me sister and me sister's friends. Quite awesome, though I had to stand for around (I think) two or three hours straight. It was so crowded. Fortunately, we sort of got a nice spot, somewhere opposite the London Eye. The waiting was long and a bit boring. It was windy and drizzling.

When the fireworks started though. Ufff... Yes, it lasted only for a few minutes, but it was good. It was memorable. Glad to have spent a New Year's Eve at least once at a famous NYE location.

Anyway, I remember in that particular night... When the countdown started, I said to myself, 

"This is it man, 2014, the year in which you'll finally finish school after 12 years, in which you'll start a new stage in your life. Where will you be in a few months time?"

And then, this:

The vibration. People cheering, and recording, and taking pictures with their mobiles, or cameras, or vidcams. The vibration right at the end there, uff. It was nice.

Anyway, right after the fireworks, people were started to sing. One of the songs: 'Auld Lang Syne', of course. People were sharing drinks and toasting at each other. Personally, I was quite amazed. It was really the first time I've ever been in a crowd filled with strangers, celebrating NYE.

So yeah. That happened. A year ago today, in a few hours time.

And that's how 2014 started for me. Not with a whimper, but with a bang. Quite a loud one there, right at the end.



Many things have happened since then. 2014 has been a roller-coaster for me, emotionally, and physically. Mostly emotional. Not so much on the physical aspect. :p

I started blogging again, did quite well on my IELTS early in the year, did two uni interviews and failed both of them, passed the IB, didn't go to uni this year, finished my twelve years of formal education, graduated, went to prom (a memorable one, Uruguay got beaten 3-1 that night by Costa Rica :D :D), finally went up the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame with my friends, "visited" places in Paris with me friends, last stroll around Paris by myself, learned to let go of things while packing my stuffs, finally went back to Jakarta (alone), got used to taking public transports here in Jakarta, started taking Indonesian uni prep course, met new amazing friends and people, met old friends, saw a disaster happened with my very own eyes, started learning how to drive a car... 

I also learned to finally let go. And I made a strong decision of where to go next, of what to do in the future, my future. Hopefully this time, this time it'd be the right one, the most suitable one, the best one. 

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Here's for 2015.

Simply Can't Write + School Subjects

Hi.

So, I've been trying to write a couple of posts but... I just, simply, cannot finish dem posts.

Dem posts dem posts. Both of them are continuations from the umm, "Things I miss from Paris" thingy post thingy. Yg satu ttg Jum'atan, satu lagi ttg Strolling.

STROLLING. Which is so close to PUBLIC TRANSPORT. It's coming.

Masih pengen banget parah lanjut nulis ttg topik itu, tapi entah kenapa pas itu nulisnya kebanyakan dan lumayan banyak marahnya... Dan rasanya masih harus belajar lebih banyak lagi kalo mau nulis ttg ini.. Somehow.

Anyway.

Lebih mood cerita random, sekarang. And life update(s), probably.

Life's alright. Alhamdulillah.

That's it.

Damn.

Oh2, akhir2 ini gw kepikiran sesuatu. Suatu kebiasaan yg gw punya, kira2 dimulai sekitar 2 tahun yang lalu, yaitu: Ngomong ke diri gw sendiri, sendirian, tanpa ada orang lain.

Is it normal? Fuck, I'm weird. Atau diem2 semua orang punya kebiasaan ini... :O :O :O

Who knows? Who. Nose.

Di samping itu, kebiasaan lain yaitu... Random quotes dari film2/speech2 orang2 gitu, just randomly popping out inside me head.

Kayak yg barusan, "Who knows?" itu dari 50th Anniversary-nya Doctor Who, dari Tom Baker.

Man.

Bahkan "Man." ini pun diambil dari Gordon Ramsay...

Aw man, identity crisis. Jadi selama beberapa bulan/tahun belakangan ini, isi kepala gw itu, basically, omongan orang lain. Kalo perkataan2 gw itu semuanya diambil dari orang lain, then... what?

Meh.

Oke, kembali ke ngomong sendiri.

Semoga aja case yg satu ini engga sama kyk yg di Doctor Who, Series 8 Episode... 4? Judulnya "Listen."


"Listen."

"Question. Why do we talk, out loud, when we know... we're alone? Conjecture. Because we know we're not.

Evolution perfects survival skills. There are perfect hunters. There is perfect defence.

Question. Why is there no such thing, as perfect hiding? 

Answer. How would you know? Logically, if evolution were to perfect a creature whose primary skill were to hide from view, how could you know it existed? 

It could be with us every second and we would never know. How would you detect it? Even sense it.

Except, in those moments, when for no clear reason, you chose to speak aloud. 

What would such a creature want? What would it do? Well?"

So... Yeah.

But hey, I'm quite enjoying this... Weird habit. Which is weird, but, it makes me feel less lonely. 

"A silent companion" they call it.

So yeah, dua hal di atas... Normal ato engga? Ato mungkin ada yang tau berapa persen orang di dunia melakukan hal2 di atas...? :p

Moving on.



INTERNET AKHIRNYA DIPASAANG :D :D :D

Masih lambat, tapi better than nothing, eh?

Oh, oh, let's talk about pelajaran2 yang lagi gw pelajarin, dan maybe bandingin sama yg gw belajar pas di sana... Some of them anyway.

Yeh, I know. School is boring. Apalagi belajar.

Well, gatau kenapa, tapi untuk pelajaran2 yg emang bagi gw menarik, belajar itu quite enjoyable.

And yes. Untuk jadi manusia yg bisa berguna bagi nusa, bangsa, agama, etc2., belajar di sekolah itu ga cukup.

Beberapa waktu lalu ada yg ngomong ttg "Pendidikan" vs. "Sekolah". Contoh yg simpel: Ada aja orang yg sekolahnya tinggi2, gelar sampe Ph.D., tapi perilakunya ga baik, berarti pendidikan orang itu rendah.

Intinya, cari pengalaman, dan jadi orang yang berpendidikan tinggi, ga hanya sekolahnya tinggi.

And so yeah, akademik bukan segala2nya.

Tapi, mumpung gw dikasih "bonus" setahun belajar a la sekolah di sini... Dan mumpung yg lagi gw alamin ini cukup menarik (for me anyway)... Let's talk about it.

Oh God, I'm so boring. Talking about school subjects.

1. Maths
Mulai dari matematika. Matematika di sini itu... Gara2 di sini gw ngambil IPS, mungkin... Masih normal2 aja. Ada beberapa yg gw belajar di sana dan ternyata di sini, untuk anak IPS, ga diajarin. Contohnya, "Volumes of Revolution".

Tapi maths di sini itu, yaa namanya Asian Maths, tetep aja itung2annya cukup sangat tricky bagi gw. Apalagi di sini itu gaboleh pake kalkulator, ga kyk di sana. Man.

Belajar maths di sini jadi tau banyak shortcut2 gitu. Di sana itu diliatin, gimana cara dapetin suatu rumus. Di sini, langsung dikasih, langsung diliatin cara makenya. Done. Not that simple though.

Yg gw notice di sini itu adalah... Hitung2annya yg bener2 dites. Selain gapake kalkulator itu tadi, kita juga harus familiar sama faktorisasi segala macem, dan nyari mana aja yg bisa dicoret2 ato disederhanakan.. Etc2. Yang intinya, bisa bantu kita untuk hemat waktu.

Ga jarang, konsepnya kita udah kenal bgt, tapi giliran ngerjain soal, stuck gara2 hitung2annya. Gatau harus dibagi, kali, tambah, kurang, akarin, kuadratin, pindahin...

2. Bahasa Indonesia
Selanjutnya, Bahasa Indonesia. Well. Ini kayaknya yg paling gw ga bisa saat ini. Tiga tahun ga belajar Bahasa Indonesia, cuma pake Bahasa Indonesia untuk bicara sehari2 di rumah, sama kalo baca berita, ato dengerin debat Pilpres 2014.

I'm so screwed. Sejauh ini yg baru gw pelajarin itu adalah EYD atau Ejaan Yang Disempurnakan. Kalo diliat dari tes yg nanti bakal gw jalanin, gw harus bener2 ngerti bentuk2 kalimat, mana aja yg subjek, predikat, objek. Induk kalimat. Inti kalimat. Dll2.

Apalagi ya... Oh, shoot. Baru sadar sesuatu. Kalau mau kuliah di sini, apalagi hukum, berarti Bahasa Indonesia gw harus gw perbaiki... Semoga aja. Satu tahun. Should be enough.

3. English
English. Beda banget sama di sana. Of course. Di sini itu kyk bener2 belajar grammars, grammars, grammars, vocabs. Di sana... Grade 10 masih belajar grammars sih dikit2, soalnya gw masuk di kelas English as Second Language. English gw sucks, back then. And yes, it still is. Kyknya pernah gw mention deh, I'm suck at grammar. Dan pernah gw mention juga, native speakers itu kalo ditanyain grammar suka ga tau. Liat aja orang Indonesia masih ada aja yg bikin kesalahan2 kalo nulis :p

And btw... Kata "Jalan" itu gaboleh disingkat jadi "Jl." atau "Jln.", which means KTP semua orang salah :o :o :o

Ok, English. Grade 11 and 12 gw termasuk di kelas Inggris yg first language. Dan, itu lumayan. Essay2 gitu lumayan juga sih, dapet nilai 5-7 out of 7. Which was amazing, considering back in 2011 my English was still, shite. Real shite. Selama Gr. 11-12 itu jarang bgt atau kyknya ga pernah belajar grammar. Kebanyakan itu malah diskusi, ngobrol ttg culture, media, sama literature. Good times.

Belajar English di sini tapi cukup menarik. Lumayan juga setelah beberapa tahun belajar pake English dengan banyak grammatical errors kalo bikin essays, sekarang "dikasih kesempatan" untuk mantepin dose grammers. So, good2.

Always be positive, eh?

Well. Ada takut juga sih, dikit. Takut Englishnya ngilang. Apalagi writingnya. Thankfully, essay2 lama gw ada di laptop, so. Good2.

4. Geografi
Geografi sejauh ini, seru2 aja. Jadi anak IPS, enak juga sih ada IPA2 nya dikit. Dulu pas SMP, satu2nya hal dari Geografi yg gw suka itu adalah peta. Nope. Bukan skala. Bukan all those unsur2 peta. Tapi peta dunia, capital cities, borders, shapes. Dan itu kyknya satu2nya pelajaran di Geografi yg gw suka pas di SMP.

Sekarang tapi entah kenapa jadi lebih banyak yg menarik. Apalagi yg nyambung ke gimana cara kota, masyarakat, desa, industri, dkk. bekerja. Sumber Daya Alam, etc2. Cool.

5. Sosiologi
Sosiologi juga lumayan menarik. Dulu pas SMP kalo gasalah beberapa jam Geografi dipake untuk Sosiologi dan, jujur, pas SMP menurut gw Sosiologi itu cukup ngebosenin.

Btw, kepikiran sesuatu, Bahasa Indonesia yg ga baku itu diajarin juga ga sih? "Ngebosenin" insted of "membosankan"... I mean. It's part of our language. Gatau di daerah lain gimana, apa ini di Jakarta doang ato gimana. Tapi kyknya proper2 aja deh kalo dimasukkin ke pelajaran, belajar hubungan budaya sama bahasa. Bahasa yg dipake sehari2.

Lanjut. Iya, Sosiologi dulu bosen. Sekarang, ga terlalu bosen. Kyknya emang pas SMA di luar otak gw jadi lebih IPS entah kenapa. Tertarik ke kehidupan orang, negara, hubungan internasional, all those things that people do everyday, yg berpengaruh terhadap kehidupan kita sehari2, yg berpengaruh ke masa depan.v

Sosiologi. Belajar tentang interaksi antarmasyarakat, antarmanusia, unsur2 di masyarakat, dll2. So far so good.

6. Ekonomi + 7. Sejarah
Sebagai murid sejarah dimana pas SMA diajarin kebanyakan ttg Nazi Germany, Soviet Union, Peronist Argentina, Francoist Spain, Fascist Italy... Ekonomi itu, bukan forte gw.

Selama di SMA gw belajar History, gadapet Ekonomi. Well, I say gadapet, sebenernya gw milih History rather than Economics. Pas SMP, gw mostly ga ngerti dan ga tertarik dengan ekonomi. Meanwhile, back then, gw juga gaterlalu bagus di sejarah. Sejarah Indonesia, that is. Sejarah dunia kyk WWII gitu... Man. Gw lumayan tertarik.

Nah, gw pas Gr. 10 dikasi pilihan, Economics ato History. So of course gw milih History. Mikir2 bahwa di sekolah internasional, gw bakal belajar Sejarah Dunia, bukan sejarah Indonesia. :)

Back to Economics. Di sana itu Economics adalah bagian dari History. Just a way, to understand history better. Belajar sistem ekonomi sama economic policies di negara2 dictatorship sama authoritarian di atas, juga belajar... Other, economics. Kenapa hyperinflation di Weimar Republic bisa terjadi... Cuma sebatas itu. Tapi keren juga sih. Jadi ada some sort of, extra perspectives gitu towards economics.

Nah, karena kebanyakan topiknya ngebahas ttg single-party states or authoritarian government or dictatorship, yaaa ujung2nya economic policiesnya itu yaa yg model2 "guided", "socialist", "communist", thingy policies thingy. Kea Lenin's NEP or Stalin's FYPs or Hitler's or Peron's. Sebatas itu2 aja.

Nah, pas gw belajar ekonomi di sini itu... Gw masih noob. All those itung2an dan pembukuan (yg sebenernya gw belajar pas SMP). Tapi, sama casenya w/ geografi sama sosiologi, gw jadi lebih tertarik untuk belajar ekonomi, soalnya ini berpengaruh terhadap kehidupan orang banyak.

It's like, I want to know how these things work, you know? Dan ini yg bikin gw cukup semangat untuk terus belajar walaupun gw udah lulus high school. Weird. I know. But, hey, curiosity.

Yg paling menarik di ekonomi itu, sejauh ini, yg berhubungan sama pemerintahan. Pajak, APBN, fiscal policy (yg gw temuin di artikel yg jadi bahan preparation uni interview dan gw sama sekali gatau apa artinya), monetary policy, inflation, etc2.

Dan setelah belajar sejarah 3 tahun, gw ngeliat ekonomi, like, in a whole new fucking way. So exciting. Ada banyak faktor, ekonomi itu berputar, satu hal kecil bisa berdampak besar... Lumayan mirip sama cara gw ngeliat sejarah pas di sana... Lanjut ke yg terakhir.

Cara gw ngeliat sejarah pas SMP beda sama pas gw belajar di sana. Banyak faktor, dan hal terkecil pun bisa berdampak besar.

Selama di SMP, gw ngeliat bahwa sejarah itu cuma hapalan. Ngapain juga sih belajar sejarah?

But, oh man, thank God. Tiga tahun di luar itu worth it, for me anyway. Gw jadi ngeliat "belajar" in a whole new way, especially belajar sejarah. Semua itu bukan cuma hafalan. Tapi kita harus bikin koneksi2nya sama yg lain.

Itu yg selalu diingetin sama guru Biologi gw pas di sana. Bikin koneksinya, bikin hubungan2nya. Kyk sistem2 di tubuh kita, semuanya bisa kerjasama dengan cukup baik agar kita bisa tetep hidup.

Humans are so intricate. Very detailed. Pasti ada yg desain. ;)

Anyway.

Sejarah. Di sini itu, gw masih tertarik. Sama kyk pelajaran2 IPS lainnya, gw develop interest di sejarah pas SMA. Dan anehnya, pas di sana itu, gw malah jadi lebih tertarik sama sejarah Indonesia... 

Like. Ini 20th century Europe kayak gini... Pada saat yg sama, di Indonesia lagi kyk gimana ya?

Pas SMP gw belajar kata2 kyk "Komunisme", "Uni Soviet", yg akhirnya gw "temui" pas SMA. Dan gw bangun koneksinya, antara yg gw pelajarin di sana, sama sejarah Indonesia. Dan segalanya jadi, very interesting indeed.

Sejarah itu sangat luas. Scopenya besar bgt. Dari ekonomi, sosiologi, geografi, even biologi, fisika, kimia, astronomi, semuanya bisa dimasukkin ke sejarah. Karena, sejarah itu... Belajar dari masa lalu. Ngeliat all those webs and connections yg berujung ke, diri kita, sekarang, dan dunia ini, saat ini.

Boom.

Sejarah di sini sih pelajarannya ya beda. Ga cuma yg diajarin (sejarah Indonesia kebanyakan), tapi juga "apa aja" yg diajarin. Di sini emang lebih berasa menghafal. Kyk belajar fakta2 some sort of trivia gitu. Cara ngajarnya sih masih seru. Tapi yaa kyk ada yg kurang. Like, di sana itu kita kyk didorong untuk mikir, untuk bikin koneksi2nya, kenapa gara2 hal A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, dst., X bisa terjadi. Dan ga segampang itu, pasti ada grey areanya. Kalo di sini itu. Kerasa sih ada cause to effect, tapi entah simpel X ke Y, atau ga dijelasin kenapa X berpengaruh kenapa Y. Kalo dijelasin pun yaa simpel banget. Sangat simpel. Padahal selama 3 tahun gw belajar di sana, X ke Y itu ga sesimpel itu. Banyak hal2 lain, faktor2 lain, dan lots of grey area.

Fyuh.

I think that's that.

:)

Btw kalo ada yg mikir pelajaran yg diajarin di sana itu jauh lebih bagus, then... Engga juga kok. Segala2nya ada baik buruknya. Ada hal2 di sistem pendidikan di sini yg perlu diberesin. Tapi sekolah yg gw ambil di sana itu far, far from perfect. Beberapa hal di sini itu far, far better dibandingin yg di high school gw.

And so life goes on.

Cheers. :)