Excuses vs Reasons

This morning I attended a neighborhood community meeting.

The meeting leader announced many ideas to improve our neighborhood.

Ideas like how we should provide trash bags at selected local points for dog owners (so they can scoop their dogs' poop). How we should weed out untamed grass and wild flowers that giving unpleasant look at some houses. Sending out friendly reminder to fix broken fences. And bunch of another great solutions.

It was a fascinating observation.

I've noticed that no matter which ideas that was discussed, there's always two different parties debating the issue.

One group gave out 10 different excuses why those ideas will never work. They listed out lots compelling arguments why this can fail and those won't be realistic, and so on and so on. The opposite group gave out 10 different reasons on why we should do it and CAN do it. They lay out a good plan to attack the problem and brainstorm various choices for solutions.

I've noticed that generally in life, we are faced with either excuses to not to do it, or reasons to do it.

Some of us will hesitate, look back, and too scared to make things happen. They justify their own failures with bunch of excuses. We all have heard them.

I'm too old...
I'm too young...
It's too late for me...
My family will understand why I don't finish that degree...

But, there are some that will ignore those excuses. Instead of give in, they think differently. They see that it's possible to overcome the issues, whatever it is. They see failures as stepping stones to success.

I'm still alive so let's do it!
It's never too late to start something good!
There's no time like NOW!
Work hard so my family can have better future!

Hopefully you're in this elite class.

So what would you like to do? Do you want to be stuck with excuses? Or are your reasons strong enough to get you to the next level, of where you want to be?

It is so easy to blame it on excuses. The real art is to keep going and pursue whatever you're pursuing, because you have meaningful reasons to do it.

So from now on, stop having excuses! No more excuses! The only time you say "excuse me" is when you need to go to the bathroom. :)

Favorite Quotes

1. "Fail to plan is plan to fail" - Ben Franklin

2. "Life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent of how I react to it." -Charles Swindoll

3. "Do or do not. There is no try." -Yoda

4. "Choose people who lift you up" - Michelle Obama

5. "Perseverance is failing nineteen times and succeeding the twentieth." - Julie Andrews

6. "I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions." -Stephen Covey

7. "Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence." -Vince Lombardi

8. "Don't buy things you can't afford with money you don't have to impress people you don't like." - Dave Ramsey

9. "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." - Wayne Gretzky

10. "Just keep swimming." - Dory

Tic Tac Toe

Yesterday, I had the chance to spend time with 5 year old twins, Suzy and Leo. They both were very active and got bored easily. So, while I try to finish some work with their mom, I taught them a classic game called Tic-Tac-Toe.

You know that it's a win-lose game, or at least a draw. At the first game, Suzy won. And when Leo realized that Suzy won, he went into a corner, squatted down and cried! My first response was... wow! I did not realized that it would affect him so strongly, that it is important for him to win. So I called him back, and try to lure to him to play another game with us.

Next game, I kinda "helped" Leo to win so he can have his pride back. And when Suzy realized that her brother won, she ended up went into the same corner, squatted down, and cried!!! Holy mackerel! I looked at their mom. I must have the astonished look on my face, because she had a small laugh and said,"Yep, that's how they are. Can't even play together and let someone win".

I gathered the children back and I told them this,"Don't worry if you lose in some turn, just play again. Keep try and try again! You will win eventually."

After a while, I left them to play together and get back to their mom, working on our project. At some moment, I glanced at Suzy who played alone and I observed that she made a straight O's and cross it out (as if that she's winning). Hm, looks like it's easy to win if there's no X at all. Of course. It's always easy to win if there's no obstacles in between. The bet is when there is some challenge to throw you off, but if you keep focus and be strategic about your game, you'll develop creativity and be tactical in the process.

I'm pretty sure they'll be fine when they're older. I believe all of us (parents, teachers, other adults in society) can continue to teach the younger generations the importance of having sportsmanship spirits. How to face failure and get up again. How to not quit and cry in our corner, instead we should never surrender and keep moving forward. To remember that the obstacles and challenges that come our way will make our victory even sweeter.

After all, tic-tac-toe was just a game. Good game, Suzy and Leo!

How to Build A Strong Marriage

One wise woman once said to me,"You don't get married only on your wedding day. You get married EVERY day." And this statement is so true. Like every relationship, a strong and happy marriage doesn't happen just by itself. It is built. That means it does takes work day by day.

Every couple I've met, I asked them how long have they been married and what's their secrets to keep it successful. How to keep the love "fresh" even after decades passing by. And in my journey to collect the great marriage advice, I pretty much can sum it up into some simple points:

* Don't sweat small stuff
* Respect one another
* Don't go to bed angry
* Hug 4 times a day
* Good morning and good night kiss is a must
* Love each other
* Do one new thing together every week (new restaurants, new movie, etc)
* Have a date night once in a while
* Surprise them with a gift on a occasional day (not birthday/anniversary)
* Still say "I love you" even if you already married for 23 years.
* Never criticize your spouse in public
* Never yell at each other. Instead, correct their mistake with kind words.
* Be a team. Don't compete against each other. United marriage is stronger rather than 2 strong heads.
* Don't hold grudge/keep score.
* Never bring up past mistakes.
* Have fun together.
* Support each other in trial times.
* Always be loyal to your spouse.
* Relationship is give and take, not always take, take, take.
* Love is offered, not forced.

And there are 2 key points to remember in your marriage journey:

1. Open communication.
The two of you need to really be honest and committed to the promise you've set. And to really have an open communication. Let's say both you and your spouse already committed to pay the home mortgage extra by another $200 more. Now once in a while, another part of us thinking that we should push to pay more into the mortgage. "It's for our own good. Besides, if we pay another $500 extra, instead of $200, it'll push the principal down even further and make us pay off the home mortgage sooner!". It is a really good intention, but if you don't communicate this to your spouse and just do it without his or her own consent, then what would happen? Your spouse eventually will found out about it, and he (or she) will feel cheated out of the agreement. "What happen with our initial commitment? And why don't you tell me first about it?" Your spouse wants to be involved in every decision making related to both of your lives, like finances, the curfew for your kids, vacation planning, and etc. How would you feel if let's say your spouse shopping for a flat screen TV one day (with a good intention to replace the old bulky TV in your house that hasn't been functioning well since 2012), and then he (or she) just buy it without your approval? You will feel left out and this could keep the distance apart between the two of you. Every good successful marriage always have an open flow of communication, so just talk it out and discuss anything that comes your way. Tackle the problem together and you'll feel more united, like a good team!

2. Lower your expectation.
It's a silly idea to expect that our spouse will change to what we expect once the wedding bells stop ringing. The moment we get married, suddenly we have the urge to influence him/her to get rid of a habit that annoys us. The person we married it's our partner, not our craft project. We should never expect them to change to our "ideal" image, but instead, we're the one who should change on how we view them as our husband/wife. Love is love. It's not an ultimatum. A wife once said to her husband,"If you love me, then you should like what I cook." Then the husband said,"If you love me, then you should cook what I like." Now that's the right kind of love! And if your wife can't cook what you like, don't expect her to do that. Maybe you can teach her how to do it. But it's all comes from having a lower expectation. You'll be surprise if one day she really able to cook the food you like!

"To have and to hold, till death do us part."

May your marriage is always happy, forever and ever!!!

The Bed Sheet

*Permission granted by the author*

Recently my roommate and I were shopping for a new bed sheet set. As I finally move in to my new apartment for my new job, I decided that I have to have at least a new bed sheet set for my queen bed. My roommate was kind enough to allocate her time to shop with me, as she doesn't need a new bed sheet.

We went to the mall, browse around from one store to another store. From Macy's, JC Penney, to Sears, to even the stores that sell bed sheet set and pillow separately. After a good hour of browsing here and there, I finally made up my choice to the JC Penney Homes Collections brand. It was a good 300 count thread.  I know 400 and higher will be much nicer, but I don't have much in my budget for that! This one is priced at $50, and with stores' discount, the final price is at $29.99. Not bad at all considering the other set was in a range between $100 to $150!

So after shopping, we went home to our apartment. I set the new bed sheet immediately! I love getting new stuff! The new bed sheet feels good. It is soft enough to my skin, and I feel very comfortable in it.

Twenty minutes later, my roommate came in and said,"Andrea, you need to see this! In this website, you'll get 3 bed sheets set for only $56!!! I think you should return the one you just bought and get this one instead!"

Normally I would jump in and do it right away. 3 for $56, that means each one only priced at $18.66! Which is way cheaper than the $29.99 I just bought. But something hold my ground. This time, I stop and think first. My gut feeling is saying that I shouldn't do this. Why?

Because:
1. Do I really want to spend another hour to do all these stuff? Pull the bed sheet away from my bed, into the box, drive back to the mall, return it to the store, and then go back from the store, get online, and buy the new bed sheet? Right now at this point I don't have to do anything more as I already reach my goal: new bed sheet. I value my time. I really don't want to spend another time doing this again.

2. Am I really saving money by doing all these? Looks like it'll be cheaper to buy the 3 set for $56 vs 1 set for $30, but technically I have to spend $56. I can't spend just $18 in that online deal. If I spend $56, that means I have to shelled out $26 more from my pocket. I value my money. That $26 can go towards something else, like... saving!

3. Plus, do I really need the other 2 bed sheets? I only have 1 bed. And I don't think I'm diligent enough to change to the new bed sheet every now and then. Besides, usually I just wash them and put it back on again every time I need to change it. I don't want to end up having too many stuff that I won't need. Especially if I need to move again in the near future. I value my space. I don't want to have cluttered space storing stuff I don't need.

Conclusion: I said thank you to my roommate and politely decline her offer. I'm sure she has the very best intention, but in the end of the day, I already found the bed sheet I need, and now I can move on to the next thing that I need to do: finish unpacking my boxes! The sooner I finish these, the sooner I can relax in my new bed sheet!

Important Reminders

I've been away from blogging for the last 6 months, and I recently published my 125th blog post this morning. But just because I was away from blogging, it doesn't mean that I did nothing. As a matter of fact, I've been learning so many invaluable lessons from work and life in general.

I was busy at work and home. I literally had no time for anything else beside work, family, rest, and sleep. It's not that I think work is more important than anything else, but in reality, I do need to go to work if I want to be able to pay bills. Living is not cheap, you have to buy food, gas, pay mortgage (or rent) and other utilities that doesn't pay by itself (well, unless if you do the auto pay, but still you will need an incoming income to support that!). Rest is also important (gaming, Netflixing, etc), to keep my battery "recharged" and feel refreshed the next day after a good night sleep.

Nonetheless, now that I have a little bit of time for myself, I want to put these important reminders in this blog. This way I can share it with you and put a friendly reminder to myself just in case I wander in life aimlessly.

1. Life is a marathon.
Life is not a sprint. It's not just a matter from point A to point B.  Once you reach point B, you'll either have to think about point C, or life will push you to point D and you have to deal with it. Life never stops. I found that I feel more alive when I know that I'm running a marathon of life, which means I have a destination to reach, I have a goal to get, I have a target to hit. I compared myself between when I have a goal, and when I don't set a goal to myself, to be just "Que Sera Sera". I came to the conclusion that when I have a goal to achieve, I work more productively and I produced better results. It doesn't have to be a crazy goal, it's just have to be smart. The fact knowing that you did everything you can to get to your goal, it'll fulfill you. Remember, there is no comfort zone. Keep your eyes on the prize, and don't just fixate your vision, but RUN for it. Run to the finish line!

2. Don't be complacent.
Reached your goal? Good! But don't stop there. Get busy to your next goal. Don't let the last winning be your last. Do continue! Keep moving! Better get hustle! Keep going to where you need to be going. Create that momentum. You know what momentum is? Momentum is a force or speed of movement. You keep going until you hit the critical mass of whatever it is you're doing, until you became unstoppable. You won't reach momentum if you slacking, by stopping here and there, and especially by being complacent. So quit your daydreaming and back to working on your goals. Stop living in fantasy and get back to real world. What happened in the past, stay in the past. Move on!

3. Kaizen.
Sometimes we like to procrastinate. We like to delay on doing things we don't want to do. Who knows it'll go away so we don't have to do it anymore. Me myself included in this. Guilty! So one day after work, I told my husband that I was so disappointed at myself because I knew I was slacking. I didn't do my best. I found excuses on not giving myself 100%. My husband, the wise man he is, he simply put a YouTube video to help me overcome this laziness. Kaizen is basically an ideas of continuous improvement. There are great videos that worth to view for this Japanese principle:
a. How to apply it to improve your life.
b. A Japanese technique to overcome laziness.
c. Human Kaizen (Ted Talk)

The next day, I applied this Kaizen principle. I pushed myself to do things that I have to do even though I don't want to do it. I continuously improving my method, be more efficient, and magically my day was 180 degrees different than it was before. I produced better results, have better conversation with everyone I met, and leave work happier! I felt so accomplished! I said to myself: no more procrastinating! Do it now so you don't have to do it later!

There will be more important reminders in days head, but for now, I'll just focus on those three points above.

Life is a marathon, so don't be complacent; kaizen your way to reach your finish goal!

Home Fact: 1981 vs 2011

Interesting factoid:

In October 1981, average sales price of new homes sold in US was at $82,500.
The 30 year FRM (fixed-year mortgage) was at 18.45%.

Fast forward 30 years later, October 2011, new homes prices was at $242,300.
The 30 year FRM was at 4.07%.

Assuming no refinance happened in both scenario (house not being sold either, in both case the borrower paid the house fully 30 years), here's what will happen:

1981.
Monthly payments: $1,273.
Total payments: $458,524.
Total interest: $376,024.

2011.
Monthly payments: $1,166 ==> $107 lower than 1981.
Total payments: $419,967 ==> $38,557 cheaper than 1981.
Total interest: $177,667 ==> $198,357 less expensive than 1981.

So technically, you'll pay less in 2011, versus 1981.

Interesting.

Ini Mungkin Yang Terakhir

Ini mungkin tulisan blogku yang terakhir. Mungkin, karena aku tidak tahu kalo aku akan nulis2x lagi, atau tidak. Tapi kalo seandainya ini yang terakhir, aku mau mengucapkan banyak terima kasih karena kalian sudah membaca blogku ini.

Aku berharap kalian akan selalu hidup aman, damai, sentosa, dan nggak diganggu siapa pun juga. Kedamaian dan ketenangan hidup selalu bersama kalian semuanya.

Terima kasih atas waktu dan perhatian yang kalian curahkan saat membaca blogku ini. Terima kasih banyak!

Selamat berhari Minggu, Senin, Selasa, Rabu, Kamis, Jumat, Sabtu, dan Minggu lagi! :)

Sampai jumpa lagi! :)

Penting, nggak? (Is It Important?)

Masalah besar, jadikan kecil.
Masalah kecil, jadikan habis.

Kalo nggak penting, nggak usah tetap dipikirin.
Cuekkin aza, nanti juga masalahnya hilang.

Kalo penting, pikirkan dengan jernih.
Lepaskan emosi atau perasaan yang enggak enak.
Hadapi persoalan dengan kepala dingin.

Pikirkan, apa aku bisa hidup tanpa hal ini hari kemarin?
Kalo aku bisa, ya berarti hari ini aku tidak butuh hal ini.

Fokuskan pikiran dan hati untuk kepentingan masa depan.
Pengorbanan hari ini akan terasa manis saat kemenangan tiba di hari esok.

Hadapi setiap hari dengan semangat baru.
Jangan patah semangat, ini pun akan berlalu.

Hidup sesederhana mungkin.
Jauhkan diri dari segala komplikasi hal2x yang tidak penting.
Semakin sederhana, semakin bahagia.

Isilah hidup dengan orang-orang penting yang mencintaimu.
Jangan mikirin orang-orang tidak penting yang berlagak seolah-olah penting, padahal tidak sama sekali, apalagi jika mereka tidak mencintai dan tidak peduli pada dirimu sama sekali.

Waktulah yang akan membuktikan.
Bahwa dunia ini masih indah.
Dan masih penuh dengan orang-orang baik yang peduli dan sayang pada dirimu.
Walaupun engkau tidak menyangkanya.

Teman-teman yang baik dan tidak berharap apa2x daripadamu, jauh lebih berharga dari barang apapun juga di dunia ini.
Teman-teman yang penuh pengertian dan selalu mendukungmu, rangkullah mereka dan jangan lupakan ulang tahun mereka.

Hidup ini bukan hanya untuk hari ini saja.
Besok engkau masih hidup, dan lusa pun juga.
Berarti kau masih bisa berusaha untuk bahagia, jika hari ini penuh dengan perjuangan dan air mata.
Besok akan lebih baik.

Buat masalah besar jadi kecil.
Dan buat masalah kecil jadi hilang.

Senyum dan penuhi hidupmu dengan kebahagiaan.

============================================================

Big problem, make it smaller.
Small problem, make it disappear.

If not important, don't keep thinking about it.
Just let it go, the problems will eventually be gone.

If important, think clearly.
Let go of emotions or negative feelings.
Face the problem with clear head.

Think, can I live without this yesterday?
If yes, then I don't need it today.

Focus mind and heart for the future.
Sacrifice of today will taste sweet when you have tomorrow's victory.

Face each day with new spirit.
Don't be broken-hearted, this too will pass.

Live as simple as you can.
Distance yourself from all complications that are not necessary.
The simpler, the happier.

Fulfill your life with important people who love you.
Don't ever think of unimportant people who act like they important, but not at all, especially if they don't love you and don't care about you.

Time will prove.
That this world is still beautiful.
And still full with good people who care and love you.
Although you don't expect it.

Good friends who never hope to get anything from you, are way more valuable than anything in this world.
Understanding friends who always support you, hug them and never forget their birthdays.

Life is not only for today.
Tomorrow you'll still live, and the day after tomorrow.
That means you can still try to be happy, if today full of struggle and tears.
Tomorrow will be better.

Make big problems smaller.
And make small problems disappear.

Smile and fulfill your life with happiness.

The Third Christmas

This year is going to be the third Christmas of us keeping our commitment that we've made since July 2014. My husband and I have been in this journey called "Total Money Makeover" from Dave Ramsey, and we're still on to it. This is the third Christmas that we won't buy each other gifts until we reached our common goal: a paid off house.

No, Dave didn't say that we couldn't buy each other Christmas's gift. He said to budget it.

But both my husband and I know that if we continue keep buying each other's gifts, from the same source of money that should be put more toward paying house, then we won't reach our finish line sooner. We both want this so badly. So very very badly that we are willing to sacrifice Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, valentine's gifts, any day gifts. Simply put, no gifts until the house paid off!

On the bright side, these journey had made me more discipline in budgeting and I do see the result. I'm in control now towards our money and how we spend it, and not the other way around. Managing our finances is easy when we have common goals and only have to say no to ourselves.

But, sometimes there was a trying times. The hardest part is when there are others outside our family that giving us an awkward look with my attitude towards my money (my money, not their money.) A stare. A look that make me feel like I'm doing something wrong, although it was right in my book. Like when some friends are trying to pool some funds to buy somebody else something for whatever reason you can name it. It's probably only a ten or fifteen dollars, which is nothing to that person. But for me, that means a lot. While I'm sacrificing to not buy my fave snacks, skipping my fave Starbucks drinks that I used to drink everyday, omitting the chance of hubby buying me precious birthday and anniversary gifts, giving up my fave channel which is the Disney Channel when we had to cut down our cable to the most basic package that's basically just news and other channels I don't care for, letting go dining in restaurants for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, saying goodbye to vacation for the next 15 years; all these sacrifices so we can pay house faster and sooner, ...  then why in the world I should give them ten or fifteen dollars that I don't even have? It doesn't make sense.

I did get that hard-stare look. I did get the "are you crazy?" look. I probably get the "she's cheap" talk behind my back. I don't care. I said no. Because I know these are only distractions. Will I suddenly gain any popularity and raise up my social status if I volunteer to join the pool fund? I don't think so. The hardest part is keeping your face straight and not feel guilty about it. And I didn't feel guilty. Why? It's my money, not theirs. Whatever I do with my money is my 100% rights and responsibility. I don't answer to them. I answer to my family. I do have a responsibility to my family. And right now, paying house asap is a priority for us. If nobody wants to understand or respect that, that's not our problem.

And this is why this year's Christmas won't be so different than the last two. It's getting easier actually. Christmas without gifts, why not? We have each other anyway and that's all I need.

Daylight Saving Time

I've lived in Asia for the first 26 years of my life. I've lived in a beautiful country called Indonesia, where there are only 2 seasons: dry and rain, for 6 months each. The sun always rise in the east at 6 am, and sunset always happen at 6 pm in daily basis. We never change our time back and forth, except when the battery runs out.

So............ imagine my surprise when I found out about the Daylight Savings Time concept!

Before I move to America and get married with my lovely husband, we had a long distance relationship. Me being in Indo and him being in US, that means time difference between the two of us. Long story short, we decided to call each other after my work at night, which means in morning for him before he go to his work.

One time, I call him after my work done, probably about 7 or 8 pm, don't remember the exact time. All I know is that it was night at my place, which will be early morning at his place. I thought it will be 5 am in US, but it was 4 am! I thought, hm, did I calculate it wrong?

It turns out that in US, there is such a thing called daylight savings time. When everyone has to change their clocks to one hour ahead or later. Odd concept isn't it? But it is true. It's the time when you might get an extra hour of sleep. Or be shorted an hour. Depends on the timing. My husband's grandma made it easy for me to remember:

Spring forward (March) = adjust your clock to be 1 hour later. 
*Aargh! Lose 1 hour sleep!*

Fall back (November) = adjust your clock to be 1 hour before. 
*Yay, gain 1 hour to sleep!*

I'm sure there is a history of why and how the daylight savings time was born. But for me, this is another reason why I no longer wear a watch anymore. Don't want to be bothered to adjust one more clock.

Have I still live in Indonesia, or if I never meet my husband from yahoo chess, I would probably don't know and don't realize that there are people on the other side of the planet adjusting their clocks every November and March, and that's not because they ran out of battery.

Interesting isn't it?

Detox

de·tox

informal

noun

ˈdētäks/

1. 1.

   a process or period of time in which one abstains from or rids the body of toxic or unhealthy substances; detoxification.

   "he ended up in detox for three months"

We've heard of this term... a lot. The point is, to get rid of toxins by doing certain things. This article outline a very good example of a detox process and benefits. And in today's digital world, there is a such thing called digital detox!

In my opinion, there are 3 areas that we should always do when we detox:

1.  Mind detox
Cleanse your mind. Detach your mind from negativity. Whatever that is. Either in the form of clouded judgement, sarcasm, and profanity. Keep having positive thinking. For more information, check out this post. A very good practice of this, is to close your eyes, take a deep breath, empty your mind, and invite serenity. Every time you're going to overthink, stop it. Only allow good things come to your mind. Sometimes you can't control what happen to you in life, but you surely can control your mind.

2. Heart detox
Sometimes I don't know if I'm thinking or feeling. There's a subtle line between the two, and most often, it's ended up of my feeling this or that. From mind, flow to the heart. That's why it's so important to keep a positive mind. Because whatever you think could eventually follow to your heart. And heart is fragile. Too often we sacrifice a good relationship because our ego took over, and we say or do things that we didn't intend to do, and regret it later. So be careful on how you feel. Don't get carried away. Detox your heart, detox your feeling. Invite the calmness. Be the master of your heart.

3. Body detox
There are probably hundreds articles out there written about body detox. This is definitely important! Why? Because ... you live in your body! You still will need to take care your body until the day you no longer need it anymore. Cleanse your body from toxins, virus, glutton, and aim to be healthier. Watch your sodium intake, eat more fruits and veggies, and avoid bacon. Okay, you can probably eat bacon once in a while, but ensure you maintain a healthy diet. If your budget allows you, pamper yourself to spa, get a massage, and just relax. If it's not within your budget, no problem. Just pour liquid bath soap to your tub, and enjoy a nice bubbly bubble bath! I personally made it mandatory to myself to have a bubble bath once a week, with a yogurt mask. And ... drink tea. Hot green tea or chamomile tea. Tea soothes our feeling and refreshing our vitality.

And in the end of the day, after all these detoxing process are done, you found yourself more relax, calm, and ready to take more in life.

The Road to Blog

3 things I like to do, both consciously and unconsciously: to ponder, to write, to type. The first one, I can do it anytime. Well, anytime I don't require full concentration obviously, like when working or when cramming in an examination. One time when I was in Indonesia, I remember stepping into an escalator going down in Gajah Mada Plaza (a humble mall near my house; humble, because it was one of the earliest mall in Jakarta, simple and so 80's). My mind was somehow preoccupied with something deep like the meaning of life or something like that. That habit made me reflect on my surroundings, my current situation, what I want in life, gratitude, etc etc. I truly enjoy pondering.

Next, is to write. This is maybe because I like to read too. When I was 13, I wrote several stories. One my of friend in school, Dewi (I forgot her last name, sorry Wi!), but I remember she's very tall, dark skin, and pretty! She could be a model, but instead she chose to be a stewardess later on in life. Back to our junior high school time, Dewi borrowed my "novel" that I wrote, and read it during class. But unfortunately, a teacher found out about it and made her destroy my novel. Sniff!!!!!

Somehow I don't let that setback stop me though. I keep writing and sometimes I sent my stories to Perduki's team that handle bulletin and publication. Perduki is a religious organization group for businessman & woman. My parents belong to that organization and I grew up with them. They uploaded my stories and that challenged me to write and write more stories!


When I was in high school, I joined the journalism club. We had 2 choice: to be cartoonist or to be journalist. I chose the later because I enjoy interviewing, digging facts, and writing. I had the opportunity to interview several important public figures and upload our interview. Learn lots of things too. I really enjoyed it!

Third hobby: to type. I know it's weird, but I really do enjoy typing since I was firstly being taught to type in junior high school. It's a class, and yes we have "typing" examination too! It was probably around 1991 or 1992, I don't remember the exact year, but what I do remember though, we all learned to type using the original typewriter.

Our classroom examination is like this: the teacher put a sheet of paper covering our fingers while our fingers typing using that big clunky typewriter (imagine my difficulties pressing "Q" using my pinky! It was literally hard, you had to press that Q with your full energy with a pinky!). And our eyes, we can't see what we type on the paper, because we have to read the instruction paper that was put to our left. This practice basically making us to be able to type without even have to see the keyboard. I have to thank my typing teacher, because now, twenty something years later, I can type without looking at the keyboard at all. As if my fingers know which button to press and which fingers to do which letter. Very cool, huh?

There's also a warmth feeling listening to that original typewriter sound when you type something. And obviously there's no undo button on it. If you made a mistake, you have to scratch that paper and start from the beginning again... or you can use a white-out. But if you typing an important document, you can't use the white-out method.

Few years later, my dad bought us an electric typewriter, the brand is Brother. This was one of a very cool invention that I've ever had! I guess this is the "birth" of today's keyboard ancestor. I like how sleek it looks and how quiet the machine type when I type anything with it. It's just feel so modern, and yet this is the things of the 90s. Well, way back then, it was one of the best tool to use, before finally personal computer became common and available for everyone.

So all of these 3 hobbies combined, lead me into a new journey called blogging. The road to blog!

My friend Ignatia introduced me to a web called blogspot.com. She mentioned to me that I can blog anything I want using that web. It's pretty fascinating. I can ponder any thoughts or feelings or any topic I'd like to discuss, write it, and publish it! I get to do the things I like to do like typing! I can channel my ideas, or even some silly random things, and ... publish it! For me, it's not really matter if I have an audience of 1000 readers, or an audience of 1. For me, what important is, the matter not lost. The matter is retained, and can be passed on to everyone who like to read it.

I guess, as an introvert, this is one of my way showing how you can get to know me from a different side that you've never seen before. Even I sometimes surprised myself when I read my previous blogposts! And laugh at it too sometimes. :)

That's why my blog motto is : ... and everything in between. I'd like to be able to type about anything, but not just anything, but anything that worth pondering about. And motivating us. And cheering us up!

And that's how I ended up blogging these days. :)

WorkPlace: Bank of America (Banker)

Tanggal 28 Desember 2015, 3 hari sebelum akhir tahun, gue resmi jadi karyawan baru untuk Bank Of America, sebagai Personal Banker. Ini betul2x posisi impian sejak gue pindah dari Indo ke Amrik, semenjak dari tahun 2005. Setelah satu dekade, berhasil juga gue meraih posisi ini! Kalian kan tau, untuk menjadi bankir adalah sesuatu yang selalu gue impikan sejak dari jamannya gue jadi direct sales di Jakarta dulu. Seneng deh!

Berbulan-bulan sebelumnya, gue diinterview oleh calon bos gue, yang namanya Bapak Gautam, di cabang Camas, Washington. Gue agak deg2an juga lho pas interview, soalnya gue udah lama banget tidak berkiprah di dunia perbankan lagi. Maksudnya, pengalaman sembilan tahun terakhir kan di dunia call center, apakah dia akan memberi gue kesempatan?

Tapi untungnya, setelah berminggu2 kemudian, gue denger jawaban dari recruiter yang nelpon gue pada tanggal 11 Desember 2015 (dimana itu bertepatan dengan hari terakhir gue kerja di Capital One pula!), bahwa gue diterima! Hore!

Jadilah hari Senin, 28 Desember 2015, gue training sama komputer dulu di cabang downtown Vancouver, Washington. Manajer cabang di sini namanya Natalie, cewek tinggi berambut cepak, yang nggak segan2 membantu gue kalo gue ada pertanyaan2x sebagai anak baru, hehe. Gue juga kenalan sama relationship banker yang namanya Rachel, doi sudah 3 minggu gabung di bank kita, dan juga lagi menjalani masa2x training komputer.

Setelah satu minggu training di downtown Vancouver, training berikut berlanjut di cabang Fisher's Landing. Manajer cabang di sini namanya Paula, wanita berdarah Brasil dan berambut hitam sebahu. Doi juga tinggi sekali seperti Natalie! Sukanya ngegym jam 6 pagi sebelum ngantor. Makanya bodynya bagus sekali deh, kayak model aza! Banker yang ikutan mentraining gue namanya Michael, cowok berumur 27 tahun yang humoris dan suka bercanda. Asisten manajernya namanya Brittany, terus teller2 di sini namanya Brianne, Brianna, dan Vera. Terus, gue juga kenalan sama Brent, yang menjabat sebagai penasihat keuangan dari Merrill Edge (perusahaan partneran bank kita dengan perusahaan investasi Merryl Lynch).

Ada cerita lucu tentang Michael dan pacarnya. Jadi fast forward dua bulan kemudian, it's Valentine's Day. Michael order bunga untuk pacarnya sebagai kejutan. Tapi sayangnya bunganya tidak terkirim!! Jadilah dia marah2x sama toko bunga, kok bunganya nggak dikirim... kasian deh kau, Mike!

Nah, kebetulan boss gue Gautam itu bakalan pindah ke Michigan karena ibunya sakit keras. Jadinya gue kenalan sama boss baru yang namanya Brent. Orangnya stylish, modis, dan rambutnya selalu rapi. Brent ini betul2 tipe orang korporat, tapi sebagai manajer dia itu bagus sekali. Dia selalu percaya akan kemampuan gue dan mendorong gue untuk sukses. Dia selalu bilang,"I never worry about you." Gue merasa beruntung sekali bisa kerja di bawah pimpinan dia. Dan gue masih harus banyak belajar dari Brent ini. Mudah2an dia jadi boss gue untuk masa waktu yang lama, ya!

Setelah masa2x training itu selesai, akhirnya gue ditempatkan di cabang Orchards di awal bulan Maret 2015. Seneng banget deh pas gue tau kalo gua akan ditempatkan di cabang yang satu ini. Soalnya ini cabang paling deket dari rumah (what a dream come true!), cuma 7 menit kalo ngebut, dan 10 menit kalo lampu merahnya nyala. Hihihi, asik kan?!

Pimpinan cabangnya namanya Angie. Orangnya betul2x sanguin-koleris abis! Tegas, lugas, dan selalu ceria. Enerjik banget biarpun umur sudah 46. Doi punya pengalaman banyak di dunia perhiasan, secara 15 tahunan lebih dia kerja di bidang itu. Akhirnya suatu hari dia memutuskan untuk nyoba2x bank, dan dia dipromosi secara cepat dari banker ke branch manager. Pemimpin yang kuat dan jarang salah. Dan yang gua suka banget dari dia tuh, dia selalu melemparkan apresiasi yang banyak untuk anak buahnya, termasuk gua! Hampir tiap hari dia ngomong sama gue kalo dia bersyukur punya karyawan kayak gua! Nah lho... apa gak kebalik? Soalnya sejujurnya nih, gue merasa (dan juga bilang ke doi) kalo dia ini adalah salah satu bos terbaik yang pernah gue miliki! Beneran deh! Gue juga sangat terbuka sama Angie, dan dia juga kalo ngomong blak2an. Apa yang dipikirkan langsung dilontarkan. Di bawah pimpinan beliau, cabang kita termasuk cabang yang berkembang pesat, terutama dari segi nilai pelayanan nasabah.

Asisten manajer di sini namanya Scott. Pria berumur 32 ini kelihatannya kaku dan formil, tapi kalo sudah kenal deket, kita bisa dibecandain abis2an! Doi sudah kerja di bank kita selama sebelas tahun terakhir. Jadi kalo soal urusan prosedur dan jalur2 formal bank, dia ahlinya deh. Dia banyak memberi masukan pada gua dan banker2 baru di Orchards, terutama kalo kita membuat kesalahan dalam mengisi formulir2x atau aplikasi di komputer bank. Gue sangat bersyukur punya asisten manajer yang teliti dan mendetail seperti Scott, karena hal2x ini sangat penting bagi operasional cabang. Apalagi kalo sudah menghadapi audit kwartalan, wah, kalo nggak ada Scott, bisa kena audit deh kita!

Scott punya rencana untuk pindah ke perusahaan tempat kakaknya bekerja, jadi kita punya tambahan anggota baru beberapa minggu terakhir ini, yaitu Kimlyn. Nantinya Kimlyn ini akan menggantikan posisi Scott sebagai asisten manajer. Cewek berdarah Asia ini pintar, kalo ngomong cepet banget, dan modis banget penampilannya. Yang gue suka dari dia itu, dia selalu responsif sama pertanyaan2x gue, dan selalu menyapa gue kalo ketemu gue! Baik ya? :)

Banker2 di sini juga "anak2x baru", selain gue tentunya. Oh iya, nantinya nama titel Personal Banker ini akan berubah menjadi Relationship Manager. Giliran gue "dipromosi" adalah bulan Agustus 2015. Tapi itu berarti target bulanan juga meningkat. Nah, para RM kita adalah sebagai berikut:
- Dylan (Mar - Apr 2015) : anak muda berumur 22 ini kalo nyetir cepet dan suka kebut2an. Rambutnya disisir ke samping seperti Justin Bieber. Eh beneran deh, kalo ngeliat Dylan, gue jadi inget Justin Bieber. Lucu ya? Hehehe. Yang lebih lucu lagi, kata Angie, semenjak gue ditempatkan di Orchards, Dylan suka nggak masuk kerja. Entah kenapa. Akhirnya dia resign dan kerja di bank lain.
- Andrew (May - Aug 2015) : cowok tinggi berumur 25 ini masih single lho, ladies and gentleman! Orangnya sabar, baik, nggak pernah marah, lucu dan humoris pula. Sayang dia suka nggak masuk kalau ada sesuatu yang terjadi dengan keluarganya (ayahnya kena sakit jantung, Andrew sendiri pernah kena kecelakaan mobil di kurun waktu ini, dsb). Andrew memutuskan untuk pindah tinggal di Redmond, Washington, untuk tinggal bersama kakaknya. Jadinya dia pindah ke bank kita cabang Redmond.
- Eddie (Aug 2015 - sekarang) : bapak berumur 33 ini punya anak perempuan satu umur tujuh tahun yang manis sekali. Eddie juga orangnya kalem dan sabar. Dia ini dulunya adalah pimpinan cabang Verizon lho! Kayak Angie gitu! Tapi dia memutuskan untuk pindah jalur perbankan, soalnya kalo bank jam kerjanya kan 8pagi - 5sore, nggak kayak toko Verizon (jualan servis selular/handphone) yang bisa sampe jam 10 malem. Yang gue salut dari Eddie adalah semangatnya untuk mencoba dan terus belajar. Gue jadi inget, pas hari2 pertama dia masuk, dia dateng ke meja gue, duduk, dan konsultasi sama gue!! Dia tanya gue, udah berapa lama gue kerja di dunia perbankan. Dia juga minta tips2 supaya sukses jadi banker. Wah, angkat topi deh gue sama dia. Karena dia mengingatkan gue pada... diri gua sendiri! Gue juga orangnya mau belajar dari orang2 yang sudah lebih banyak pengalaman dari gue!! Gue ngerasa kita berdua bakalan cocok nih!

Selain RMs, cabang kita juga punya Relationship Banker (fifty2x gitu, setengah banker, setengah teller), yang namanya Aurora. Cewek muda berdarah Meksiko ini masih muda, deh. Umurnya baru 21 tahun! Hebat ya... udah kerja di bank! Dia ini kadang kerja sebagai banker, bareng2 gue dan Eddie, kadang kerja sebagai teller, tergantung dimana kebutuhan cabang pada hari2x tertentu. Sekarang ini Aurora lagi hamil anak pertama. Yah, kudoakan semoga lahirannya sukses deh!!

Beberapa bulan kemudian, kita punya tambahan rekan kerja baru: Caitlin sebagai Relationship Banker menggantikan Aurora dan Cyndy sebagai asisten manager menggantikan Scott yang akhirnya ditempatkan di cabang lain. Caitlin ini orangnya cantik luar biasa! Pantes deh jadi model atau aktris beken!! Orangnya juga baik dan pintar! Dia selalu kasih komplimen gratis pada kita2x dan gue slalu demen mendengarkan cerita2nya dengan pacarnya Joseph.

Cyndy, cewek humoris berdarah Filipina ini... ck ck ck, kocak abis!! Doi doyan bercanda dan bikin suasana jadi gak terlalu serius. Rambutnya hitam legam dan panjang sepinggang. Kalo perlu serius ya dia serius, tapi rata2x Cyndy selalu nyelipin joke2x lucu! :)

Para teller di cabang kita:
- Yasi : Wanita berdarah Persia ini umurnya baru 26 tahun, anak lelakinya satu baru umur dua tahun. Yasi ini punya satu kesamaan hobby sama gue. Kita berdua doyan banget nonton serial TV Psych. Kadang gue nonton bareng Yasi pas lagi lunch lewat cell phonenya dia. Thank you ya, Yasi!
- Jess : Ibu anak tiga ini juga masih muda, umur 26 tahun, dan berasal dari keluarga Meksiko. Kalo udah ngomong bahasa Spanyol sama Aurora, dunia jadi milik mereka deh. Hehe. Jess ampir mirip sama Yasi, sama2x suka nonton TV shows di cell phonenya. Dia lagi doyan nonton Nurse Jackie tuh.
- Alex (alias Alexandra) : Sekarang ini Alex lagi cuti hamil, karena dia baru lahiran anak keduanya. Alex punya inspirasi untuk suatu hari nanti jadi asisten manajer seperti Scott, makanya dia suka dikirim ke cabang2 lain untuk membantu operasional cabang2x yang bersangkutan. Wanita berdarah Irlandia ini punya suami yang namanya juga sama, Alex!
- Sofia : cewek berdarah Ukraina ini masih umur 18 tahun lho! Masih "hijau", hehehe. Dia suka ngobrol dan enak kalo diajak bercanda. Dia adalah tambahan terbaru untuk team teller kita. Pintar bicara bahasa Russia. Kebetulan! Soalnya cabang Orchards ini banyak nasabah2 dari Eropa Timur, dimana mereka semua bicara bahasa Rusia!
- Karen : ibu berumur 60 tahun ke atas ini sudah lama sekali kerja di bank kita. Sudah lebih dari 30 tahun kali! Suaranya berat serak2x basah. Badannya kurus sekali! Karen ini kerja part-time, jadi nggak masuk tiap hari. Dan akhirnya dia pensiun beberapa bulan yang lalu.
- Colin : cowok modis yang satu ini paling suka makan sushi! Jadi mengingatkan gue bahwa gue harus pergi ke restoran Sushi sebulan sekali paling enggak! Rambutnya tertata rapi, dan dia suka pake syal. Pokoknya keren deh. Sayangnya Colin akhirnya pindah ke cabang lain di luar kota, dimana dia akan tinggal bersama neneknya.
- Vildana : Cewek cantik berdarah Albania berumur 19 tahun ini sudah persis deh kayak modelnya Instagram. Doi orangnya baik, suaranya halus, rambutnya panjang sepinggang, pokoknya kalem manis cute abis deh!
- Sara : Teller yang satu ini tadinya pindahan dari IQ Credit union, dimana dulunya dia adalah vault teller di sana. Alasan dia pindah ke sini? Soalnya ibu mertuanya adalah pimpinan cabang kita, untuk cabang Fourth Plain. Ya koneksi dikit2 lah. Hehehe. Sara udah married, punya anak satu umur 5 tahun yang namanya Ryder kalo nggak salah.

Gue juga punya partner2x bisnis di sini :
- Yang ngurusin pinjaman rumah: Frank, Marcy, Jenny
- Yang ngurusin bidang perusahaan2x bisnis skala kecil & menengah : Joe, Nick, Sheila
- Yang ngurusin mesin untuk menerima kartu kredit, debit : Kim, Roberto
- Yang ngurusin investasi keuangan dari Merril Edge: Brent, Nadya

Hari2 di Bank of America ini sangat menyenangkan deh. Setiap hari selalu sibuk. Ada aja yang dikerjain. Untungnya gue rata2 masuk target kwartalan (yang penting target kwartalan, bukan bulanan). Dan setelah berbulan2x kerja di bank ini, gue merasa "hidup" lagi. Aneh! Gue merasa bahagia, terpenuhi, dan punya feeling kalo masa depan gue akan terus cerah! Mungkin itulah perasaan dimana kita kerja di bidang yang kita gemari. Kerja jadi terasa ringan. I love my work here!

Mungkin saking kesenengan kerja di dunia banking lagi, hasil kerja gue ternyata membuahkan prestasi yang membanggakan tiap bulannya. Sejak bulan Oktober 2016 sampai saat blog ini diedit (hari ini tanggal 26 Oktober 2017), gua selalu masuk target bulanan dan kwartalan. Dan ajaibnya, hasil prestasi kwartalan ini juga selalu tambah meningkat, dari 102%, 110%, 141%, dan bahkan kwartal terakhir (kwartal ketiga tahun 2017), malah melesat jadi 154%!!! Padahal gak gampang loh untuk masuk target! Puji Tuhan deh!!!

Para petinggi2x di sini sungguh menghargai kerja keras gue, dan mereka menganugerahi beberapa penghargaan seperti berikut:

Relationship Manager (2016 - Present)
Achievement:
- Q3-2017 Top Performers Luncheon with Nathan Nguyen, SVP Consumer Banking and Merrill Edge Region Executive
- Southern Washington August 2017 Associate of the Month
- Leadership Development Program
- Q2-2017 Top Performers Winner
- Top Performer Luncheon with Aron Levine, Head of Consumer Banking and Merrill Edge and Gioia McCarthy, Managing Director, Consumer Banking and Merrill Edge Division Executive
- Q2-2017 Top Performer Luncheon with Nathan Nguyen, SVP Consumer Banking and Merrill Edge Region Executive
- Q2-2017 Corporate Title Promotion (to AVP - Assistant Vice President)
- Southern Washington July 2017 MVP/Banker of the Month
- Q2-2017 Rank#2 RM (Relationship Manager) out of 138 for Greater Washington and Oregon Division
- Southern Washington April 2017 Associate of the Month
- Southern Washington April 2017 MVP/Banker of the Month
- Q1-2017 Top Performers Winner
- Q1-2017 Financial Center Spotlight Award
- Q4-2016 Corporate Title Promotion (to Officer)
- Southern Washington November 2016 Banker of the Month
- Southern Washington August 2016 Associate of the Month

Personal Banker (2015-2016) 
Achievement:
- Q1-2016 Rising Star Winner

Tanggal 17 Agustus 2017 adalah hari yang sangat bersejarah dalam hidup gue. Kenapa? Karena pada hari ini, boss-nya boss gue, Nathan Nguyen, mempromosi gue untuk jadi Assistant Vice President! OMG!!!!!!! Seumur-umur nggak pernah gue membayangkan gue bisa dapet posisi bergengsi ini. Gak pernah terlintas dalam pikiran! Apalagi kalian kan tau perjalanan karir gue yang kadang melesat kayak meteor ke atas (DSR-PFC-CRM-Sales Manager), terus belok lagi ke bawah (Teller-Debt Collector), and mencuat lagi ke atas dikit (Ops Desk - IMC Analyst), dan mentok lagi ke bawah (laid off), and mulai dari awal lagi (Personal Banker terus Relationship Manager).  AVP ini adalah corporate title, jadi job group gue tetep sama yaitu RM, tapi sekarang ibaratnya gue RM tingkat 3 gitu lho. Tingkat 1 gak ada titelnya apa2x, tingkat 2 titelnya Officer, tingkat 3 AVP.

Gak cuma itu, Brent, boss gue yang bener2x menaruh perhatian pada gue atas hasil kerja keras gue selama ini, dia bilang dia akan mempersiapkan posisi gue berikutnya dengan mengusulkan pada Christine untuk mencalonkan gue sebagai Financial Center Operational Manager. Christine ini bossnya Angie, dimana Angie itu branch manager di cabang yang gue tempati saat ini. Dan Brent menempatkan gue untuk bergabung dengan kelas pertama Leadership Development program, yaitu program 6 bulan bagi para top RM mempersiapkan mereka untuk posisi berikutnya. Keren banget ya?

Nah, segitu dulu cerita tentang dunia kerja gue di Bank of America. I really love working at this company, this branch, and sekarang gue menjalani impian gua!! Living my dream! :)

Staycation

A: I'm going to vacation next week. One week off from work! Yay!
B: That's great! Where are you going to?
A: No where. Just stay at home and relax to the max.
B: Ah you're going staycation.
A: Staycation?
B: Yep. Staycation. It's where you suppose to go on vacation, but you stay at home.

That was the conversation I had before I leave my office last week. Or similar conversation like that. I'm not sure when the term "staycation" became official. But in 2009, they did add this made-up word to the dictionary. It even has its own Wikipedia version!

This year I already have 3 staycations. And all of them feel great! And I'm planning to have more staycations in the future, rather than vacations. Why?

Because... I hate air travel.

As I grow older (not sure since when), I grew more and more disliking air travel. I  don't like waiting to check my bags in the counter. Then that long walk to the gate. Then waiting to board. It's just drive me nuts! Yes I can shop around, but usually there are no arcade in airplane, so after window shopping, then what to do? Just waiting. Sure there's facebook and multi-media stuff, but then what?

And then, waiting for the lines to form up when they call out your seat number. And the fact that I get nervous when I'm board on an airplane. I hate that claustrophobic feeling when I had to put my small luggage below the chairs. And then I heard someone coughing. Great, virus spread in a small space. Then some baby crying. Oh where's the peace and happiness? Where's the serenity when I need it? Definitely not in a plane. And don't forget that uneasy feeling when someone lurching over you to get his bag stored at the top baggage space.

And the take off time. That funky funny feeling when you clutch to the front of your armrest. Praying, hoping, and wishing that the pilot will not make any error in the attempt to fly this iron bird to the sky. You close your eyes and your hands holding your loved ones. You feel gravitated towards the clouds. And the fact that soon you have to pop your ear. Aarrgh!

Finally you have few peaceful moments to watch a movie, or listen to the music, but suddenly there's that urge to go to the restroom. Great! Because now there is a line. You gotta wait again. And when it's your turn... what's that smell? Omigosh! That cramped space and that distinct odor that you can't wait to escape from! It's probably the quickest time to number one!

You get back to your seat and checking how many times this flight had left. Still 4 more hours to go. Great, just great! The person sitting in front of you recline her seat, and now you have less leg room. Wonderful isn't it? You swear that next time you'll choose a first class flight. As you always do whenever you fly in an airplane. But then you realize that money doesn't grow on trees and there are always better use of money rather than upgrading to the business or first class. You dismissed that idea.

Then it's the time to enjoy lunch. Food always makes me happy, and airplane food is one of them. It's not great or anything, but I rarely have any complains for the airplane food, which is the only thing that make me happy when I'm 35,000 feet above the land. And the good news is, you can have refill on your drinks and snacks. But at this time I gotta be wary for the drinks, because I don't want to make a second trip to that horrible little room labeled rest room...

20 minutes before your flight ends, the pilot made an announcement that we are so close to our destination spot, and you cheer at your seat! Well, not literally, but that feeling of freedom that you've been longing for so long... so excited! The airplane soon makes it descent, and you just can't wait to get this flight over and done with.

You see the small cities from above. Your eyes leap with joy to see the small cars become bigger and bigger as your plane gracefully going closer to the land. You finally felt the wheel touching the ground. It's that moment where you want to unbuckle your seat belt, but you know you can't. Not until the plane reach its final resting place, gate A67. You think it's over, but technically it's not yet. It's now the time to............ wait again. Although you see other passengers already unbuckle their seatbelt and start standing up. Some of them standing up funny, with some shoulders and head bit bowing down because they're too tall to fully standing up. Otherwise their head will bump into the top baggage space. Some other people start turning off their cell and texting around. The waiting game.

After what it seems to be forever, finally the lines start to move. You're walking away from your seat, towards the exit, and of course the person in front of you have to stop you from getting there because she's getting her bags out from the top baggage space, with difficulty. You wait patiently and wonder if you ever going to make it out from this plane. 30 seconds later, she finally able to get it out and suddenly the world is in harmony again. You say thank you and smile at the nice stewardess who had served your beverages and stepping out from the plane.

The happy moment is here again, now that you can breathe fresh air, and have lots of space to roam around! But wait! You still have to get your other bags, right? The big one that won't fit in as carry-out bags? That moment when you feel you're free but you're not free yet? Sigh. You dutifully go to baggage counter area. Scouting which counter that will deliver your luggage. It's baggage counter number 10. And where the heck is that?

You finally found the baggage area, and here we go again. Waiting for the bags. The rubber belt start moving and you start scanning each bag one by one. Eventually your bags arrived and the moment where you saw your bags, you feel like,"That's the one! That's my bags!". You wait impatiently until the bags arrived at your spot, and grab it like there's no time like now.

Next, you find a cab and he take you and your family to your hotel. Then the check-in time. Since you endure that long flights and the whole ordeals, this another waiting period is nothing. Soon enough you get your keys, and finally you can relax on that big king Californian bed. Phew!

And that's why I choose staycations.  No fuss, no drama, no waiting. Don't want to fly anymore unless I absolutely necessary have to. Although I've detailed how excruciating it is for me to fly, but I know I'll fly again one day. Just not in any near future (I hope).

Maybe I should try cruise next time. :)