Heaven & Earth

Does heaven and earth exist other than in a loverโ€™s smile? Yes. Dream.

โ€”

although not there, I still seek heaven and earth in you through my dream ๐Ÿฅฐ happy new year to the other time zones until every spot on earth is covered by Jan 1, 2023

3 1st on Jan 1st

There is always first.
A tree greeting breeze and sky
Comes from minute seed.

โ€”

1st breakfast to make
1st movie to (re)watch in 2023 – an energizing movie! always love Sandra Bullock
1st chore while 1st movie rewatch after 1st breakfast completed โ€” more 1st things on Jan 1st of 1st long weekend in 2023 โ€” iโ€™m gonna love 2023 much ๐Ÿ’—

Counting Blessings

Thereโ€™s always blessing counted through breathing. Close eyes, the air prays for you.

โ€”

this is enough for the whole day! no rice today ๐Ÿ˜Š
1st plate for breakfast ๐Ÿ’ urap Jawa in cassava leaves, long bean, kecipir (square bean), carrot and sprout + raw long bean and damn kencur (fragrant ginger leaves)
that raw leaves are leaves of kencur (fragrant ginger), fragrant and refreshing ๐Ÿ˜Š the yellow leaf was not wasted๐Ÿ˜€
tempe and tofu, side dish that rocks! ๐Ÿ˜‡

Days Hum with A Smile

Days hum with a smile,
Swiping hours of hunger
Leaving only joy.

โ€”

opening the freezer, i found a bag of oxtail; bought 1kg even before the trip โ€” ok, the best choice was making oxtail soup! ๐Ÿ˜Ž
1st serving – i love delicious oxtail soup! ๐Ÿ’•
2nd one, there were 3 more โ€” thanks god i donโ€™t have cholesterol issue so it was a 2-day oxtail soup every meal with smiles and hums ๐Ÿ˜€

Romance

Romance is a dimmed space under a dome bedazzled with glowing stars.

โ€”

dear glowing stars, letโ€™s celebrate this light warm heartโ€ฆ. dear clean sky, keep being a space for this light warm heartโ€ฆ. dear centred earth, hug this light warm heart in a serene mood forever

The Right Pink

The rose apple is pink enough to be harvested. Itโ€™s the right time.

โ€”

waiting for the flight home, once again looked at the pink Lucy and once again blessed this key ring โ€œwill definitely be suddenly Lucy Van Pelt to the snobbish and to the arrogantโ€ ๐Ÿ˜‡

About Lucy Van Pelt

They Call It This, I Call It That

Or I call it this, they call it that. It is it. Pronouns that fool aroundโ€”

Some know, like telling. Some know, donโ€™t tell enjoying the fun of knowingโ€”

Some names are easy. Some are hard. All refer to one uttered many.

Some are fooled with words, some with views, lots with both. Few are clear with both

Which one is called a blessing? Ahโ€ฆ. Choose a door and say your oath.

Salaam.

โ€”

they call it this, i call it that
they call it red anthurium, i call it anthurium
they call it golden shower orchids, i call it oncidium
they call it layered yellow alamanda, i call it alamanda
they call it fragrant orchids, i call it orchids
they call it patterned pink rose, i call it rose

Super Charged

Super charged young boys can beat super charged old champs just with light laughter.

โ€”

two boys joined our group to go river-rafting
while the adults were resting after 1-hour rafting before the next 1-hour, these boys were playing
and they played helmets throwing ๐Ÿ˜‚
we asked the boys to stand upโ€ฆ. ๐Ÿ’
only one succeeded ๐Ÿ˜‚ the other fell down on to the boat soft floor of the swift waves in Ayung River ๐Ÿ˜€

Fastfood

Life pace gets faster,
Food follows the same pattern.
Time and space collide.

โ€”

My nephews always want fast food. They said it is good and fast. On the contrary I am not a big fan of fast food. So we always go to fast food restaurants first for them to eat then theyโ€™ll drive me to local restaurants for mine.

It takes longer time but giving fair treatment to all fellow travelers are the right thing to do.

Salaam.

๐Ÿ˜˜

urap Bali ๐Ÿ’ is more greasy compared to urap Jawa, both are superb!
sate lilit is Balinese special skewer; the stick should be lemongrass
balado terong – not so good in the most recent restaurant but still better than French fries ๐Ÿ˜„

Old Bone

Old bone works so hard
To chase young heart. Worth doing
For meaningful lifeโ€”

โ€”

thatโ€™s not alcohol, thatโ€™s green melon flavour syrup ๐Ÿ˜€ my two brothers could get mad at me if I feed them the R-OH substances ๐Ÿ˜Š
they rock! i now be a careful rider ๐Ÿ™ƒ โ€œwhereโ€™s your young bone, Mbak?!โ€ ๐Ÿ˜‚

Morning

Morning gives her vibe with fragrance of dews to start a day that is bright.

โ€”

our view is a small pura (Balinese Hindu temple) for the surrounding villagers at Dedari river bank to pray when they are nearby and a bit far from their houses

Skyโ€™s Blessing in Uluwatu

Rain is a blessing
From the sky before starting
Journey to the north.

โ€”

Me: Boys, the rain seem to stay heavy. Boys, are you ok?

Nephews: Yes, it is fun! We just want to pee again!

Me: Donโ€™t pee on your pants ya.

What a conversation!

heavy rain + heavy wind the whole day which only stopped right before until almost after Tari Kecak show, hundreds of human beings from different parts of the globe experienced the same happening that might result in different memoriesโ€” a nostalgic one with these boys, splashing our bodies and bags in hugs with blessing sky water ๐Ÿฅฐ
the start of show, the blessing water took a break
in Javanese and Balinese tradition Rama and Sinta is a couple adopted to depict true love โ€” in my opinion, no! I think it was boring to be a wife of a great (almost) perfect king so Sinta purposely put Rama in a love trial to test his love by letting herself be in a kidnap trial without fighting back against the kidnapper and all its drama ๐Ÿ˜„
Rahwana came in his own buta (giant) form to kidnap Sinta and he failed
Sinta was kidnapped by an old weak polite beggar who was actually Rahwana
Jatayu, the bird that visited Sinta in Alengkaโ€™s palace
Anoman Obong โ€” in Javanese and Balinese culture Anoman is considered a monkey demigod who is very very very old butq energetic in moves and young in heart ๐Ÿ’— fyi, โ€œAnoman Obongโ€ scene should be with sunset background in normal weather ๐Ÿ’—
almost the end of show, restart of blessing water from the sky

I Left

I left my flowers behind a closed door to be beautiful stories.

โ€”

home alone and still continuously blooming; when I am home, they will be a history of blooming flowers left behind a closed door โ€” employ some adjectives to make a factual history an extraordinary story ๐Ÿ’

Challenge

Being young in heart is a challenge for those who goes aging sweetly.

โ€”

Traveling with those adventurous always energises me. Otherwise, I prefer (mostly) traveling alone so I can do whatever crazy as I wish.

Enjoying Bali with these two young human beings bring the 5-years-ago me who would move around as if having high power unlimitedly charged. After hibernating because of the dear virus, I want to have my young fun again with my nephews like I did the same fun with myself back then.

Letโ€™s have fun go mad, my dear boys!

Remember, boys! You can smoke cigarette. You can vape. But you canโ€™t alcohol. ๐Ÿ˜ƒ

๐Ÿ’

nephews = protectors? no, annoying boys ๐Ÿ˜˜ waiting for the rental car โ€” my official driver and navigator

Love Rain (haiku for lunch)

How she loves pink rain!
Glistening in the blue sky
Swaying to the earthโ€”

โ€”

rain colour is pink ๐Ÿ™„ if you wear pink glasses ๐Ÿคญ

Heaven on Earth

Smileโ€™s heaven on earthโ€”
Circulating joy. Taste it.
An eternityโ€”

โ€”

pempek (deep fried fish cake) Palembang – love it, love it! no time to make, bought it in Indo Express ๐Ÿ’ trust me itโ€™s heaven on earth

About pempek Palembang, click here.

Missing You

Missing you, dear you who might not realise that youโ€™re you whoโ€™s dearly missed.

โ€”

โ€œoncomโ€ in grated cassava (oncom di jero = combro), Sundanese deep fried snack that in Singapore is only available in Indo Express โ€” not a best combro but a perfect one when homesick

Moon to Cat

Hey, Cat. You smile cute, calming the mood. Wave to me. I am wholly yours.

Hey, Moon. You shine bright, showering the night. Greet me. My paws are all yours.

โ€”

wordless conversation is beautiful ๐Ÿ’—

A Cake

Perfect is a cake baked with heart and soul for those waiting patiently.

โ€”

There is nothing perfect in material thing. Perfect lies in the patience of queueing buyers and in the chefโ€™s dedication of making the best cake for those patiently waiting. And moreโ€ฆ

It looks like just a cake but there are more than stories of recipe behind it. There is love of mother to her child. There is trial and error of a chef for her best cake. There is a rent that the shop should pay. There is a smile after every bite of the chocolate chiffon cake. There are best materials supplied by many different shops whose owners commit to customer satisfaction. There is mood that demands stability. There is a city that will be remembered because of this cake. And so on, and so forth. And all happen because of heart vibrating love with any reason possible in this life.

What looks simple or trivial knocks loudly if we lend some listening space.

Salaam.

๐Ÿ’—

many things about Japan fascinate me; I wish this country with its ethical practices can last much longer than whatโ€™s predicted ๐Ÿ’

Ouch Call! (ranting)

A stroke of a brush is how universe started. A surprise that lastsโ€”

โ€”

Certain friend is good at the same time destroyer of mood. I have one who can leave meโ€œouch ouch ouch oooouuuuchโ€ for at least one week. This person loves ouching friends as an ice breaker but to some of us he has made it to the next level. This time he ouched me romantically, the worst of all my ouch experience from him. Call one โ€œouch callerโ€.

OC: Ready for a forced holiday? Have fun! Donโ€™t work every night, just every two nights.

Me: (1st ouch) Hmmm ok, Sir.

โ€ฆ. Blah blah blah

OC: How is your romance? Get rid of him. He doesnโ€™t even care about you. Donโ€™t be stupid. You are not a door mat.

Me: (2nd ouch)

OC: What type of man do you want? Am I not good enough?

Me: (3rd ouch, but I have to say something) Hey, hey! Not a good time to talk about romance. Painting here and donโ€™t want to lose vibe in the head.

OC: Tell me then. Handsome? Healthy? Rich? Hard working? Iโ€ฆ Amโ€ฆ Everything!

Me: (Laughing like crazy as this person was very right about himself) Are you a sales person of your own product?

OC: Yes! And Iโ€™ve been selling my quality to you for the past how long with no buy in. Youโ€™re getting older and older.

Me: (OUCH OUCH OUCH) Ok, ok. I have to explain. I want someone whom I can be comfortable being with even when both of us donโ€™t like the same things. Can you, Mr Cruel Oucher?

OC: What! Of course not! When I go to party, you have to go to party with me. When I go to the gym, you have to go with me. When I cook, you have to cook all what I want. Blah blah blahโ€ฆ. You have to do what I like to do! If necessary you should give up what you like to like what I like.

Me: (Still couldnโ€™t stop laughing) You are not. You are not that right person. You are just my ouch person.

OC: Is he still that person?

Me: Yes.

The next is the most ouched one but probably the most accurate to describe a fact.

OC: Then you have thin hope, thin chance. Not compatible. You donโ€™t even know how to party. You donโ€™t even know how to drink except that weak wine. You donโ€™t even know how to flirt. He might not like reading. He might not like art and literature and walking. He might not like biking. He might hate you singing. He might hate you writing. He might hate you touching your hair again and again. You are not his physical type of beauty. He might hate you with your job. He might hate you being honest and independent. He just doesnโ€™t like you as you. Oh! So relief I could say all these finally.

Me: (OUCH OUCH OUCH OOOOUUUUCH and this will last long) Youโ€™re right. Very right. Time to stop your ouches, Sir.

OC: Then you still say no to me?

Me: (Mild ouch but I got impatient) You? I canโ€™t tolerate a die hard nerd like you. You cook better than women. You manage money too well; you are stingy! You love your nephews and nieces more than anyone else, you wonโ€™t care about me. You work too hard. You eat too much healthy food, I love deep fried. You ouch people too much. Listen. Donโ€™t call me just to ouch me.

OC: Ok, ok. How are you?

Me: Fine.

OC: Broken heart still?

Me: (ouch) Not really, just a bruise and scratch. Will get over it soon.

OC: It will be gone. For you not too soon though because you are not intelligent in romance. Be patient with yourself. (He was calming and that is when everyone likes him, a calm nice guy โ€” unfortunately came too late after too many ouches happened.) Describe how you think about that person and letโ€™s start the real conversation of today.

Me: My universe

OC: I want to throw up! You imagine him as a Chris Martin? Hahaha!

Me: Never heard of him singing hahaha!

Then we started to chat without ouches for almost two hours โ€” a very nice two hours. A good friend to me is that who ouches me but still makes me comfortable with her/his genuineness.

Thank you! ๐Ÿค

Chris Martin is My Universe ๐Ÿ˜

Disclaimer: blogged with this ouch callerโ€™s consent with one condition โ€œno exaggerationโ€ which is not accepted like he never said โ€œI want to throw upโ€ and never said that he is handsome and rich although he is rich but not handsome ๐Ÿ˜Š

Love

Perennially
Love celebrates all seasons
Cycle by cycle.

โ€”

finally got pink lilies; back light makes it darkly perfect ๐Ÿ’
have a nice weekend from pink lilies ๐Ÿ™‚
all about perspective; seeing absence as a potential is like a bud of lily before opening the petals happily, even like a bulb of lily before springing before the winter is spinning away

Friends & Love Stories (ranting)

See this pendulum
Swinging between two far poles
Knowing each otherโ€”

โ€”

Someone called me and asked if we could have a dinner. We hadnโ€™t met for many years. Knowing this person was in Singapore, I excitedly agreed to meet. Meeting this person, I was given a shock. This person looked weary and older than oneโ€™s age. The excellent appearance and posture was totally gone. That time I felt so blessed for for being me.

Me: I am not a marriage advisor, dear. Not even ever married yet! (Thatโ€™s after a very long ranting from the friend stopped).

SO: But I know you are the most suitable one I can talk to.

Me: Ohโ€ฆ. (damn wrong, whispered to myself)

SO: โ€ฆ. A broken marriageโ€ฆ !@#$%^&*()_+=-::โ€™<>,./?~~~~~~~~~~ What should I do?

Me: Ohโ€ฆ. (proven wrong talking to me, whispered to myself)

SO: โ€ฆ. Divorce is painfulโ€ฆ. !@#$%^&*()_+=-::โ€™<>,./?~~~~~~~~~~ What should I do?

Me: Ohโ€ฆ. Ummm (starting to show sympathy) I understand how you feel in this situation. Must be painful. Your own stress, the other oneโ€™s stress, your children, other peopleโ€™s impression and words about you, your workโ€ฆ.. Everything seems not at your side. I can understand you feel unwanted, useless, bad, irresponsible. Yet decision was made. You just should face it. How? Not sure if my word is reasonable and responsible but I think you just need to keep being you: working as before, doing activities that are still accessible, talking to your children like before, talking to your ex about the childrenโ€ฆ.

SO: You donโ€™t know! It is not that easy!

Me: Ohโ€ฆ. I am so sorry. I might not fully understand it is not that easy. I am so sorry for my ignorance. (told ya I am not the right person, whispered to myself)

SO: How would you survive alone all this time? You seem so happy with your life. Sometimes I regret for getting married too young. Look at you and X and Y and Z. All the singles are happy.

Me: (Oh! A sudden death! I know this would come but too soon, too soon. Let me find the right words. Whispered again to myself ) Ummmโ€ฆ. I think it is not that easy tooโ€ฆ. Ummmโ€ฆ. I am happy, yes. Not always, but most of the time I am. Yet I also probably started hard.

SO: You donโ€™t seem ever in hard time.

Me: Thatโ€™s what you see. !@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@&%%%%%%%%%%%%%.

this is there, whoever the person is

SO: So do you think I can survive?

Me: Of course. Although our problem is not the same, I am sure you can. Donโ€™t underestimate your ability to cope with the hardship of life. You are stronger than you think. You just donโ€™t know it yet.

forgive yourself, donโ€™t be too harsh to self (talk to the hand, Maโ€™am) ๐Ÿ˜

SO: You really donโ€™t want to get married?

Me: (This question I never like, never like, never like; whispered to myself, but need to find the best words that wonโ€™t cause any further question.) This is out of context; you should not ask me this question. Not that I donโ€™t want. Itโ€™s just about time.

SO: Do you fall in love?

Me: Ok, now you are asking me question about me.

SO: I feel good when knowing I am not alone.

Me: (Make sense, but why me oh my God!) Ok. Ok. I can make you feel better. Yes I fall in love and break my heart. And I donโ€™t want to break my heart again.

SO: So you donโ€™t want to fall in love again?

Me: Of course not like that. I fall in love again and again.

SO: With whom?

Me: With my eyes. With my lips. With my hair. With my morning. With my job. With myโ€ฆ. (I saw the person got annoyed but I continued with more things) Hahahaโ€ฆ.

fall in love, be in love, donโ€™t be ashamed of your feeling; it is a blessing although the beloved doesnโ€™t care โ€”not good enough oneโ€” or doesnโ€™t know โ€”tell or leave as simple as that ๐Ÿ™ƒ

SO: Is it that easy?

Me: Nothing is easy automatically. It takes practice and time.

SO: What if I donโ€™t get married again in the future?

Me: Thatโ€™s too far away. Think about what you can do today.

SO: Do you think I still have a chance to get married?

Me: Of course if you want! Just find the right person.

SO: How can I find it? How?

Me: (Oh my God, help me before I can help others. Whispered to myself while finding the best words for this troubled person; even an intelligent person can be as dumb as this in oneโ€™s bad time) Hey, hey! If I know how to get the right person, I would have been married much earlier. This question is irrelevant.

SO: Hahahaโ€ฆโ€ฆ! Sorry, sorry! Hahahaโ€ฆโ€ฆ..!

Me: (Ok, at least I made you happy, whispered to myself. Mostly smiling among listening to the ranting, I enjoyed a perfect night โ€” no rain, enough breezeโ€ฆ. Hours can feel like minutesโ€ฆ. On and on and on and on until midnight. Whispered to myself.) Cinderella has to go home, my friend. Or else, she will be back to be Cendrillon.

been there done that and not anymore

SO: I feel so much better. It feels like I find myself again. Maybe I was too preoccupied with not important things that I thought I lost the person I had known so long, myself.

Me: I might be like that in the same situation, maybe worse.

SO: Thank you very much.

Me: (I didnโ€™t do anything. Just sat down and listened and responded to you. Whispered to myself for how many times heaven knows) The least I can do. It is good to meet long lost friend. Welcome back.

there is always reason to be happy; make it! it takes time but your happiness is the ultimate goal of your life; self align!

Dear friend, I know youโ€™ll read this with a smile. Get better. See you some day. When meeting me again, make sure you look nicer.

Lesson learnt: Be patient with those facing fresh-from-the-oven problem. Donโ€™t judge. Be a good listener. Donโ€™t try to be a perfect advisor because you are not. Be yourself. Donโ€™t get offended, someone in trouble may unintentionally disturb you.

Music

Historyโ€™s a script with which she commits a dream to be in a home.

โ€”

thinking of you is drawing note in life; one at a timeโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ’ i just want a home, not more not less
letting go off you is drawing note in life; one at a time ๐Ÿ’ i just want a home, not more not less