Talking about health, my this year medical check-up result just arrived yesterday. It’s a yellow light.
Weight, BMI, Cholesstroll, rho GTP under scrutiny. I have to admit that this year I’ve been loose. Food and exercise. Lot’s of thing to be blame, but nothing should be blame. It’s only me.
So no more excuse, back to pedal to work from this season.
Have to.

Some to quote:
” When I will be six years old, I don’t want to do any homework.”
” When I will be seven years old, I don’t want to go to elementary school.”
” When I will be ten years old, will I be a father? ”

other:
“I want to go to Tanzania. But if can’t, let’s go to Kidzania.”

Reason to smile:

Having many pet shop and zoo facilities around in the city, I think we kind of lucky.
Wait, did I say “lucky”? On a second thought, I take that back. Because from animal-exposure point of view, what I’m about to write bellow is what I call lucky.

My father used to work in an oil company which office and housing camp located in the middle of Sumatra island, Indonesia. Tropical forest was a stone-throw away from our home, school and play ground. There are numbers of encounters to forest’s fellow, but let me highlight some of my personal experiences.

One day, when my big sist opened our clothes cupboard at home, she was stunned when a one meter length green snake welcomed her. We ended up calling the pest control department of the oil company who came in 911 speed and took control from there. This department is one of the important emergency line together with the ambulance/fire engine and security.

We had a big mango tree at the right yard of our home. My mother always not happy because we always loose the competition to  harvest the long awaited fruit. Our competitor: a group of wild monkeys who love to play around on the tree early morning and have their mangos breakfast.

Some of the member(or I suspect the king) of the monkey group have really no hesitation to human being. I was in high school age when I was chased, yes, chased = the monkey  ran after me tried to grab (I was in the bicycle) near my friend house. I was scared to death, but my friend succeed to scared the monkey away by threw some stone toward the naughty ape.

My geologist father often had to go on field trip to some oil rig in the middle of deep jungle. On his way, he often spot some wild animal we usually see only in TV or zoo. Sometime he brought home some unique gift for us, the children. Once he brought us a turtle who were slowly  crossed the street when his car came. Another time, he brought us this moisten bundle of soil-ball-like. Later he explained to us that is how the elephant’s poop look (and smell and feel) like.

Though I didn’t see that in real, but I saw at the front page of our camp community newspaper, the news and photo of a tiger whose sitting on top of the air conditioner unit outside of a neighborhood building. It said, it’s been a cold rainy season that the king of the juggle found the comfort of warmth sitting on the unit.

So tell me, who is lucky?

 
(I think it is a great story to tell/to be red by my grand children and generations after one day. Hope at that time, they still get the chance to have some animal exposure)

Yesterday, I bought his music again. We went to nearby beach listened to his upbeat Billie Jean at maximum volume at our car’s stereo, tried to moonwalk and danced to celebrate the best entertainer of all time.

Thank you for the beautiful music you brought to the planet, Michael.

But for me, whose so far even cactus can’t bear me.
In this metropolitan city.
The first ever cooporative tomato trees (they are two in a pot) really make my days, weeks, and so far month.
Please tomato tree, don’t you die on me.

My object of affection everyday when I back from work… ofcourse beside my kids. But my kids love them too.

Prior to the speeches, we were walking around the room looking at pictures of those innocent children faces affected by the conflict. For sure, I can see Raisa deep stared to the posters resulted in deep compassion.
After the long speeches, it was time to collect the money from some hundred audiences seated in the Foreign Correspondence Club room where the program was held. When the lady behind the microphone ask for anybody who like to contribute, Raisa was the first person walked to front of the room, drained what ever money she had in her Sanrio’s Cinnamon purse. It was 1003 yen, a sum of money she collected in months from multiple token from me or hubby when she did something good.

Dozens of adult audience followed her afterward with bigger yen.
If you want to follow, see the fact about the situation and how you can help in UNHCR pagehere, or google for many other alternative pocket which collect the donation.

Two weeks ago, just before Golden Week, the company I worked for distributed to each and every employee 50 pieces of surgical face mask with BFE (Bacterial Filtration Efficiency) over 99%. We the employee have to have the mask handy and in case the company instruct us to do so, we should wear the mask in anticipation of the swine flu pandemic.
It is now confirmed in Japan that the virus is having their party in Osaka, Hyogo and Kobe area. So far 96 cases confirmed, up to 1000 is predicted. Many schools closed for at least a week, and government advise all school in those prefectures to do the same.
Many company instruct their employee to wear the mask at work, specially the public facing job.

Here we are in some hundreds kilometers away, waiting for our time.

Wash your hand routinely, avoid touching your nose/mouth area, wear mask, avoid public space as much as you can, eat healthy.

Some fourteen years ago, I was in my defense seminar for my BA thesis. Came the final question from my professor on why I chose the topic and model which she considered I can choose more complex  base on my GPA, scorecard & capability. The professor no doubt is one of the youngest(at that time) and smartest in faculty. She came from reputable scholar family well-known in Indonesia, graduated from one of most reputable Economics faculty in the world. She was my thesis adviser and grilled me in the making process, I thought she will not asked me such question on the d-day.

To be honest, I never like school. I like study, but the topic and system of schooling in Indonesia (at my time), I never fond of. The more likely of one-way style. The superiority of the lecturer. The judgement base on your capacity of memorizing some text, etc, etc. More than school, I was interested in student organization. I found one which connects the student to more practical business life. I learned a lot in the organization: team-work, leadership, professionalism and all practically needed in business life rather than theory. Nevertheless, I never tolerate myself to have GPA less than 3, which I consider as a ticket to get a good job in MNC company.
Having 3+ GPA in hand, I aimed for a bold thesis for another A generator, but not a difficult one. I wanted to end my 4 years of study quickly and jump to the real world of business.
Not to bored anyone, just in brief, the thesis was about International Economics. To be precise, I analyzed using a model, if the government applied tariff system (which the existence is for protection) really make the textile industry in Indonesia more efficient and competitive or the opposite.

In my memory, I was not able to give a good answer to the question my professor asked. Though base on all performance the panel of professors gave me an A for my thesis, deep in me, I was not satisfied for not being able to answer that one question to my standard. Many times after the seminar day, I was thinking to myself and imagine many possibility of better answers I could give to my professor that day. I could say, though the topic is not new, it is the fact that the government keep the policy which actually kill our own industry. Therefore, more and more study and sounding to prove, is needed so this can be changed, for the betterment of the country.
Why didn’t I think of them in that room? I feel it like an uncompleted business.

I never meet the professor again after that day. I thought I just need to let it go…
I was wrong.

Last Sunday, over a decade later, I met the professor. She came to Japan for a university business and accompanied by a dear lady whose very closed with us (another professor, who happened to be my good friend’s mother).
I came by to the hotel to brought the dear lady to a dinner, the professor joint us.
She may not remember me (but she said, by name she forgot, but once she saw me she remembered), I’m just one among hundreds if not thousands student which defense seminar she attended.
But I was the one, who is lucky enough to remember, not to let it go, and get the chance to answer the question she threw me fourteen years ago.

Now I’m satisfied.