Transpired by certain events, I started to observe some particular things around me that helps me have this long-awaited inspiration to write again. So thanks to THAT person whom I would soon mention, and then especially thanks to the persons who would soon be the victim in my writing, again.

The financial crisis

Indonesian has a saying: Like a frog inside a shell (which I dumbly translated from “Bagai katak dalam tempurung”), which describes or usually mocks persons who have little knowledge of the news of the world. (but why or how would a frog be inside a shell in the first place…? it still catches me…). If you don’t know about the worldwide financial crisis that hits everywhere (so the news said, I’m quoting), you must be a one hell of a frog!

Now, after the insulting part is delivered, I think it’s enough for me… to start another insult. 

Anyway. I never thought I felt its presence in Indonesia. What changed? People still crammed the malls at weekends. The shirt size I wanted was out of stock! The cafeterias were filled with meaningless chatter (why, if it hits those chatters, they would probably better have tea, coffee, ice cream back at home, not at some jazzy little cafe shops).

But then, Europe might have different story.

A friend of Mine

Let’s say his initial AK (this, again per my usual habit, is of course a true initial). He lives somewhere in Europe (the country that’s surrounded by France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, and Poland… Its flag is Black Red Yellow horizontal strip. What? Still dunno? Emm. Nazi. SERIOUSLY, get out of the shell, FROG). 

He’s a student that earns 500usd per day. Yeap! That is a figure I disfigure. The actual is probably twice or thrice that. Smart. Handsome (some say, though I keep agreeing and disagreeing depending on my mood and his behaviour. peace!). Nice and Single (right? what’s wrong with nice handsome people yet single? gay. raise your hand to agree and shut up to disagree). 

He hated Indonesian movie, never even watched the national must-watch-teen-movie AADC. Not to mention Ayat-Ayat Cinta that made our president cry.

Then there was this event where Indonesians who stay in his German town *ups* would watch the famed Laskar Pelangi together there. Free. But for a person who does not even like Indonesian movies, who cares? He does.

Turned out there was free food. And he was all so eager to attend, even when I heard there was hailstorm and it was dangerous to go outside. Even it threatened to ruin his 150usd jacket. (okay okay, it’s a marked up side-story). So I thought, okay lah, he’s excused. One could never pass a free food and socializing, right?

Later that night, he was unable to sleep. I smelt guilt. He didn’t even pay attention to the film but he got to eat, for free. But I kept the silence since I didn’t have the substantial evidence from his stool sample. But even if I got his stool sample, I would still be wrong. Problem was he was so eager for the next day to come. Another free food. At the church. After the Easter service. Think about: 1000usd earning per day and free food and serial pattern of gathering free food and church. I could imagine the elusive Thermodynamics Law better.

“Okay, honestly”, I asked, “are you short of money or something?” 

“no. It’s free food, man :))” (YM archive available for proof)

This frenzy free food hunting raised my eyebrows. We texted with YM while he “hunted” around the hall (that’s how I imagined him, without the spear and the deer-skin bikini of course). I thought he was so busy doing search, lock, and hunt that he rarely replied me. Maybe handling two plates of Indonesian cakes, one of Mee Goreng, and BlackBerry was just too hard for anybody’s acrobatic skills. Yeah, you read it right, a BB user. :D
Well, for the sake of our friendship, I should start lifting the mood… First of all, he missed Indonesian food. Excused.

He’s a student. That is to validate the gossip that all students are superb free food hunters regardless of anything. If one happens to be a not, write him off a student status already!

Then maybe he converted into a good Christian instead and decided to go to the church, right? Even though fot the fact that he texted me with his BlackBerry and got stared at during the service…

And then there’s the reason that he got nothing better to do that day. Right?

But 1000usd…. I dunno. Free food is surely that tempting, I guess.

AK, we’re still friends right? Right? *heehee*

The Terminal

This happened exactly after I texted with AK while he was food gathering.

Background info: There were two parts of the team for directional drilling. One was MWD, our team, and the other was DD. DD generally had much more income than us MWD. Much more. Many of them whom I know were spenders. Big spenders. Well, there were some cases of anomaly, but it was just human nature.

So, I was still at the rigsite at that time. We were tidying up for going back to town. I had this little chat with my partner.

HIM: So I have booked the flight for us for tomorrow. All’s full for today. 
ME: Okay. So we’re going to Palembang today?
HIM: Yes, we stay overnight and then head for airport early tomorrow.
ME: Cool no problem. The DDs are all going home too?
HIM: Yes. All three of them. We’re all going to stay in the same hotel.

One of the DD was a new guy.

ME: Oh, the three of them?
HIM: Yes, all of them. Even J. (mentioning the new DD). Talk about that, he asked me how much it would cost for one night stay in the hotel.
ME: And?
HIM: I told him around 400thou rupiah. (newsflash: it was probably the amount of money DD trainee earned in one day at site. He had worked for 2 weeks in the site)
ME: Okay, and?
HIM: He replied in shock. He said, “What? That expensive? I think I’d pass.”
ME: SO where will he be staying?
HIM: He said this, “It’s okay. You people can stay in the hotel and I’ll just spend the night in the bus terminal”
ME: … WHAT??
HIM: (chuckle) yeah right? Mas Y (this is the senior DD, who earns probably 4mio a day) had the same reaction. Mas Y said “J! You’re humiliating our reputation as DD. NO DD stays at the terminal! Don’t act like homeless people. You would stay in the hotel, no matter what. What nonsense. Terminal!! Bah, that’s where thugs and thieves sleep, not a civilized man, more than that, surely not DD!!”
ME: Oh mi god, he rocked the new low of being DD!

He stayed in the hotel, all right. The day after, when we landed at Jakarta airport, he looked like hell. Disheveled hair. Sleepy eyes. Dull expression. The one you would describe a homeless, indeed. Why, I wonder whether bus terminal chair had better cushion than the hotel bed we stayed in that night..

The Man and The Kid

Okay this happened 3 weeks ago.

I was walking in PI, waiting for my friends to come as they were still stuck in the office. We were about to watch a movie in the new PI and Ex extension. 

Then a man approached me. With him was a kid, not older than 10. The man wore a shirt, with red and white box pattern. Cheap. On his back was a shabby backpack. His hair was parted in the middle, and the type you found in chinese markets selling fishes and vegetable or fruits. Simple. Poor. And yeah, he was Chinese. Definitely.

“Ko, Ko, could you do me a little favor” his voice trembled a little as he got closer. So close I thought he wanted to kiss me. His voice sounded like Fear. Desperate. Trouble. And of course he spoke Indonesian not English.

I stared at his face, keeping my distance, avoiding eye contact. Hypnotism crossed my mind.

“My child and I,” I looked at the child. Ordinary. Cheap shirts too, “we just came from Surabaya.” Still the quiver. Surabaya! Ha! That explained the choice of clothing, maybe!?

“I just got kicked by my mother-in-law from our house. I came here with my son.” The kid again. Still avoiding eye contact as much as possible. Trouble. I smelled money. “I was looking for a friend who worked in Gucci,” (I thought, was there a Gucci shop in PI? Yes, I supposed), “to look for his help. But when I reached there apparently he no longer worked there. Now I couldn’t get any help and I had nobody here. I just wanted to go back to Surabaya now. But I had no money.”

RIGHT? MONEY! “How much do you need?” I put on my cool face, which some thought as heartless expression. I wish.

“The bus costs 60thou per person. Please ko, we are truly in a pinch right now”

“so you need 120thou for you and your kid?”

“yes… Please… We just want to go back to Surabaya now. We can not afford anything here. All’s left is for our meal. Please Ko”

Damn. He had to bring a kid. I said “sorry, I don’t have that much” (A LIE lah, don’t underestimate the content of my wallet. LOL)

“Oh I see. Never mind Ko. Never mind. SOrry to bother you. I won’t disturb you no more”

He moved away. Every sentence he delivered was filled with quiver, as if he was in the brink of tears and tomorrow was the end of the day.

He brought the kid to the escalator railing and just stood there. I stood at where I was the whole time and watched them. They didn’t move. The kid. SHIT. How cruel was I to let that kid suffer if his words were true. And they were just standing there, not “hunting” for another victim, looking into space as if they had given up hope.

I started to move away. And then I couldn’t. My humanness. Damn this weak side of me. How could I carry a Guess jeans in my bag and not spare a 120thou to help these people. Even though if he lied, karma would work itself, right? So I came to him and handed him 150thou. “Use it” and I went away. He said something about blessing and something and kept thanking me before the distance set us apart.

I walked away feeling like a saint.

THAT, until I walked at Grand Indonesia three weeks after and I saw both of them again. I wished I were Devil instead and made a satay out of them.

Fate had little things to joke on people. This time it’s telling me: “Look, I taught you many lessons and you never changed. Fooled and fooled again”

They still wore the same clothing. Surprising. Another joke of life.

They went up an escalator that I was about to take. I rerouted. I finished my appointment in an eyeglass store and went to look for drinks. Another joke. We saw each other in the end. 

And he dared calling at me! “Ko, KO, please ko” from some distance away.

I glanced at him sharply, and then the kid and then walked away leisurely, ignoring them as if his sound was just a clap of the sandals on the floor. 

He kept calling to me several times. I never confronted him, never looked back.I am a saint, right?

Actually, he called, “KO, Ko, maaf ko… Kooo, Maaf ko.” again and again.

Now, ‘Maaf‘ can mean several things. It could be a word to be used to seek for attention in super polite term. It could also be a word to express guilt. Did he even remember me and asked for forgiveness? Did he still have the thing called humiliation? Or he just targeted me as a next fresh victim? I didn’t bother to find out. 150thou was charity. The rest was up to the God, Angels, and Demons.

GET A JOB when you still had two feet to walk with, two hands to work with, three weeks to live on, and a full brain to think with! LOW!

The UnderWear

This was after the man with the kid incident.

As I walked up an escalator, a man and a girl walked down at the other side of mine. I always regard GI as one of a high class malls in Jakarta. Its location across Plaza Indonesia only emphasizes that.

Generally, the East Wing of GI is of higher class than its counterpart of West Wing. But even as I walk in the West Wing at that time, it is inexcusable excuse when I saw the man, wearing ONLY underwear walking down the escalator and easily having conversation with a smile on his face! UNDERWEAR!

I didn’t mean that he wore underpants. But an underwear tee-shirt, the one we used for the night, or when lay low at home, or one we saw jobless old men wore while they were sipping bad coffee and conversing bad topic in a run-down waroeng. Even my sleeping underwear looked better than that!

If the brand had been Pierre-Cardin, or CK, or D&G, or whatever, an underwear might look cool. But a swan-brand underwear??? And the kind you find after being through hundreds of washing and looked so worn-out? The fabric was falling apart thin. And the emblem of swan brand in red letters and swan-picture still remained a little in the right bottom side corner… A new one would probably costs less than 15 thou, and he had to wear a worn-out one, to walk on one of the grandest malls? IN daylight? Among the soft golden light of the mall? And with a smile? 

And I was so awed by his underwear I didn’t even have time to look at his pants. Hm maybe loss of humiliation and universal rights to express oneself freely (and don’t forget, cheaply!) are the next step to human fashion.. or human evolution. Let’s loose the shirt and wear bikinis to the mall instead. Horrrayy.

Huh, I should have taken pictures of him, but how would I dare. He wore an underwear to Grand Indonesia! That’s obvious that he has more guts than me!! I wouldn’t dare take the chance of getting into trouble with that kind of man! Geez.