[Burger King, Jakarta] Petugas Judes

Another post of mine at Jalansutra mailing list, msg#75211 (again, no response). There was a discussion concerning a (new) Burger King outlet at Senayan City, Jakarta. So I spilled my last experience at that place, which happens to be unpleasant. After posting, I started to notice that my recent posts at this mailing list mostly contained unpleasant experience, or complaints :P

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Saya dan keluarga menyempatkan mampir ke BK di Senayan City ini pada tanggal 9 September 2007. Kami sengaja datang pagi (pk. 10.00, ketika baru buka) supaya tidak terjebak antrian panjang. Untuk anak2, saya pesankan Kids' Meal, tapi sayang mainannya (bonus menu anak2) sudah habis. Ini kedua kalinya saya ke BK Senayan City, dan selalu mainannya habis. Okelah, nggak apa2 tanpa mainan.

Ketika harus memilih minuman, ternyata tidak ada pilihan lain utk Kids' Meal selain minuman bersoda (iced tea sedang habis). Padahal anak2 saya nggak doyan soda. Ketika saya tanya, apakah boleh diganti jus, mbak di kasir bertanya pada seorang manager pria yang sedang
bertugas. Tidak boleh, katanya. Saya bilang (coba2), "Masa nggak bisa jadi kompensasi habisnya mainan?". Manager membalas dengan ketus, sambil menunjuk ke tulisan MAAF MAINAN HABIS, "Kan kami sudah bilang nggak ada mainan, Bu, nggak bisa dong.. (bla bla bla)". Saya putus saja, "Ya udah, cuma tanya aja, nggak boleh juga nggak apa2". Kaget deh, saya tanya senyum2 malah dia balas dengan judes.

Sayang waktu kami sempit untuk sarapan itu, jadi saya nggak bisa menuntaskan masalah ini. Paling enggak mereka harus tau gimana cara petugas2 BK di luar Indonesia melayani pelanggan (setidaknya di tempat2 yg pernah saya hampiri - di London dan di kota2 di Belanda). Sayang sekali kalau layanannya buruk, padahal burgernya termasuk favorit saya.

Photo source: detik.com

Have you ever been..

..disappointed by a friend?

..and when you try to forgive her
and forget the cause,
still you cannot let go
just yet?

..and in that attempt
you try to blame yourself for letting it all happened
since you already know that what happened
was actually expected,
knowing the particular habit of your friend?

..and yet you still consider her your truest friend?


Reach me, friend, for I am still fond of you.
But I cannot laugh or chat with you

just yet



Image from http://www.jupiterimages.com/

Another Random Post

So many occurrences to log about in the past few weeks but I could hardly find the time to do it. Some highlights are noted down here.

1. The End of Curhat Exhibition
The exhibition at Space59 was officially closed last Saturday, Sept. 22nd, 2007, with a workshop about creating comics by Alva - continued with a discussion session. It was a small group of people, but the subject became more and more intriguing and the discussion more exciting. Presents were, among others, Thoriq, Pidi, personels of PHB and C59. Thanks a lot, people! Especially to Thoriq who came all the way from Jakarta (and back on the same day) by travel(*) for this very last day of the expo; I highly appreciate it! 

Now the walls of the gallery are emptied from my works; the cardboard figures are left standing against the walls of the front room, along with other accessories. "Curhat" lampions are still hanging above the ceiling of the parking space; the remaining merchandise are stored away. I haven't properly thanked Space59 crew for their assistance, support and camaraderie during the exhibition, but I'll surely show gratitudes in one way or another.  

(*)travel = a term for an inter-city transportation system, commonly using minibuses

2. 24 Hour Comics Day 2007
Mark your calendar: October 20th, 2007 is the 24 Hour Comics Day for the whole world! Which means that people who'd like to challenge themselves - to make 24 pages of comics in 24 straight hours - will make their attempt simultaneously on that very day! Comics community in Bandung will participate again in this event, organized by Pengajian Komik DKV ITB, held at Space59!
A 'hotspot' or a facility for free Internet connections will be prepared. Drawings will be scanned and uploaded to websites as soon as they are ready. Drinks (coffee!) and food (sugar!) will be provided. Music and entertainment, comradeship, gags and laughter will happen spontaneously. Well, at least those are the plans - let's wish they all come true.

3. Dhanu had another sleep-over
The weekend when Curhat exhibition was closed was the weekend Dhanu spent a night at school. Cendekia arranged a "SanLat" (Pesantren Kilat, a two-days religion course), which included "BakSos" (Bakti Sosial, a social action - this time it's dedicated to homeless people). Parents have contributed provisions through the school, so the kids could distribute the stuff themselves directly to the homeless people. They had their dinner at a canteen of Salman, a big mosque located accross ITB (university where I work), then spent the night in sleeping bags and tents at school (in classrooms and yards).
I picked him up on Sunday afternoon; he looked tired but content. The program went okay, according to Dhanu. He liked the overnight stay and the most impressive happening for him was playing duizendpoten with his friends, using their sleeping bags. Oh, and also the fighting over the light in the classroom - should it be turned on or off - when they were about to sleep.

4. Books!
I've read quite a few, new, interesting ones, but couldn't find time to update my GoodReads list, moreover to make comments or reviews for them. I should do something about it, especially now that I am granted a librarian status.

5. Keeping contacts
Last but not least (for now), I should appologize for not being able to reply or respond to my contacts' posts, as often as I like! I dropped by occasionally, though, between my flights from one venture to another, but managed only to leave silent 'footprints'. And my sketchbook-album is long overdue for updating! Sorry, folks! 

jesse and shawn

album ini hanya terbuka utk adi dan tiyas. adi, kenalkan tiyas adikku yang menggarap warna dan lay-out (peletakan teks dan gambar) buku jesse and shawn. tiyas, ini adi yang menulis script buku ini sebagai bagian dari disertasinya.

Workshop Ngomik di SPACE59

Start:	Sep 19, '07 4:00p
End:	Sep 22, '07 6:00p
Location:	Bandung

Undangan Kursu59ambar Komik

Bersama Alva (Martabakomikita / Pengajian Komik DKV-ITB), Tita (penggambar), Pidi Baiq (haji), dan kemungkinan akan ada tamu kejutan.
Kegiatan tgl 19, 20 dan 22 September 2007, Pukul 16.00 s/d 18.00 WIB
di SPACE59, Jl. Merak No. 2, Bandung.

Tidak dipungut bayaran (gratis!) dan akan disediakan minuman dan
makanan kecil pembuka puasa. Peserta dipersilakan membawa kertas dan
alat-alat gambar masing-masing.

Peserta tidak dibatasi umurnya, dari usia SD hingga anak kuliahan,
sampai pegawai dan pensiunan pun boleh.

Kursus akan meliputi:
- Creating characters
- Visual storytelling dan background/setting
- Hal2 lain seputar pembuatan komik

Sampai ketemu di SPACE59!

PS. SPACE59 juga akan menjadi host acara 24 Hour Comics Day di
Bandung, tgl 20 Oktober 2007! Mari bergabung, kita ngomik bareng
sehari semalam!

PPS.
Tentang SPACE59: http://space59bandung.multiply.com
Tentang "Curhat Tita": http://esduren.multiply.com
Tentang Martabakomik: http://martabakomikita.multiply.com
Tentang PidiBaiq: http://pidibaiq.multiply.com
Tentang 24 Hour Comics Day: http://24hourcomics.com/

Rackety Saturday at SPACE59

Sudden ideas came to Pidi, as they usually do, on Wednesday, "Let's make an event at SPACE59 on Saturday afternoon!". Go ahead, I told him, you can perform. "You'll have a discussion session, too!". Alright, I said, just prepare a program and the invitation. The latter was distributed to our contacts through mailing lists, websites and SMS, as commonly done nowadays. It was supposed to start at 4 pm, but of course in reality it began a bit later.

I arrived at the gallery at around 2.30 pm, to meet an appointment while preparing my material. Indeed, I made a PowerPoint presentation for this evening, containing a short story about me, my drawings and other relevant activities.

Passing four o'clock, a group of people - bringing guitars and tambourines - entered the gallery and Pidi asked them to start performing. The way he introduced them might offend some sensitive people, but nobody seemed to mind. I asked Pidi who these guys really are. "I don't know", he said, "I just found them around the corner of the street, and asked them to perform here. They'd like to". "Really?!" my eyebrows and voice raised. "Seriously", he chuckled. Don't believe a word he said.

During their performance, the "Jakarta support team" came: Deedee, Dezig, and many others whose name I've come accross lots of times at Multiply. Glad to finally meet you all in person, guys!

Then it was my turn to face the audience. It's never been easy for me to talk about my self, so visual assistance is always in order. I showed my earliest documented drawing, from my apprenticeship era in Germany (1995), my travel log in Indonesia and Australia (1996-1997), to my student life in The Netherlands (starting 1998), continued with family life in Amsterdam (2000), up to today. I presented as well photos of exhibitions, publications and other works. It didn't take long, really.
The Q&A session was great. Thanks to all for the appreciation; I'm happy to find out that, after all, my doubt about the acceptance of this kind of work is gradually decreasing. This 'readiness' of Indonesian comics community was actually the first question from Deedee, followed by an inquiry about my returning to Indonesia. Another question was about keeping privacy (it's still a diary, indeed) while maintaining a wide audience who view my drawings. The rest were remarks and comments, all of which I felt very grateful for.

The conclusion? Curhat doesn't always have to be whiny! Haha.

The program continued with a performance from Pidi, who played guitar and sang his heart out, his way, for some minutes. I got the chance to chat and shop (Nat, Nunu and Chica, I got your stuff!) - and to be in several snapshots with the Jakarta team!      

The sun went down, flagging down the sign of break-fast. The gallery provided cups of water, Teh Botol and fried snacks from a street vendor. Afterwards, some interior lights were switched off, the guests dripping off the premise - leaving the gallery serene and vacant again in the dim light. That was quite a memorable afternoon, thanks to everyone!

Photo: courtesy of Dhani, at http://dezig.multiply.com/photos/album/271/Curhat_Tita_
Other photos can be seen at Alice's http://alsqtecture.multiply.com/photos/album/212/Pameran_Curhat_Tita_Dinner_Boemi_Joglo_ at Arini's http://louiesmum.multiply.com/photos/album/69/curhat_TITA_1592007_space59_Bandung_
and at Olive's http://obendon.multiply.com/photos/album/264/dKambers_ka_Bandung_euyy_
====================

SPACE59 will hold a workshop for making comics (Kursu59ambar Komik) on the 19th, 20th and 22nd of September. Announcement will be released as soon as responsible parties are confirmed.
Starting Monday, new merchandise will be produced, i.e. stickers and magnets. T-shirts that are sold out will also be reproduced. Online selling will be prepared approaching the closing of the exhibition, at the Multiply of SPACE59.   

Rame-rame di "Curhat"

Start:	Sep 15, '07 4:00p
End:	Sep 15, '07 6:00p
Location:	Bandung

Sabtu sore besok akan ada rame-rame di pameran "Curhat"! Kemungkinan besar ada ngobrol2 dengan Tita dan Pidi, dan penampilan Pidi sebagai penyanyi tengil bersama lawan2nya para PanasDalam.

Tempatnya di SPACE59, Jl. Merak No. 2, Bandung. Ancer2nya di belakang Gedung Telkom yg deket Gasibu, masuknya dari Jl. Surapati, belokan pertama ke kiri itu sudah Jalan Merak. Sama dengan jalannya RM Ciganea dan Sari Bundo.

Yang sempat mampir, datang yaa!

p.s. SPACE59 punya Multiply juga sekarang, ID-nya space59bandung

[Atmosphere, Bandung] Etika Mengoreksi Pesanan?

Tulisan ini saya posting di milis Jalansutra, msg #74574, 2 hari yg lalu (belum ada tanggapan). Saya simpan saja di sini sebagai arsip.
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Senin malam yang lalu saya dan keluarga (suami, anak2 dan ibu saya) makan malam di Atmosphere, Bandung. Terakhir kali kami ke sini adalah tahun 2002 untuk makan siang. Waktu itu saya belum masuk milis JS dan seingat saya semuanya berlangsung lancar dan memuaskan. Apalagi karena senangnya menemukan tempat segar seperti oase di tengah2 kota Bandung yang mulai padat dengan bangunan beton.

Namun Senin malam lalu ada kejadian yang sedikit aneh. Soal kualitas makanan, sebenarnya normal2 saja dari segi rasa dan harga. Yang saya pesan adalah beef schnitzel (tertera di buku menu sebagai salah satu menu baru, jadi saya coba - tapi ternyata tidak istimewa), anak2 makan "Little Mermaid" yg adalah ikan fillet goreng tepung dengan saus tartar dan kentang goreng. Suami saya makan fettuccine (lumayan, katanya), sementara ibu juga memesan menu baru "Japanese garlic steak" (ini enak! matangnya pas, masih empuk dan garlic-nya cukup terasa tanpa mendominasi).

Untuk makanan penutup, saya pesan "Atmosphere Sundae", yang pada menu terdeskripsikan sebagai: 1 bola es krim pistachio, 1 bola es krim vanilla, guyuran chocolate fudge hangat dan taburan remukan kacang. Ketika pesanan saya datang, ternyata yang menjadi pasangan es krim pistachio adalah es krim coklat - sedangkan saya tidak doyan es krim coklat. Saya bertanya pada waitress-nya, kenapa komposisi hidangannya berbeda dengan yang di menu? Waitress pun memanggil seorang koleganya (yang sepertinya posisinya lebih tinggi), yang segera mengambil gelas es krim saya dan dengan ramah mempersilakan saya untuk menunggu.

Beberapa saat kemudian ia kembali dengan penjelasan bahwa es krim vanilla-nya 'di bawah' sedang habis, jadi sekarang sedang diambilkan 'dari atas'. Setelah sekian menit, seorang waitress membawa kembali pesanan saya. Harapan saya, porsi kali ini adalah freshly-made, diulang dari awal dengan komposisi sesuai di menu. Ternyata yang datang adalah gelas saya yg tadi, hanya saja es krim coklatnya di-scoop keluar dari gelas dan seonggok es krim vanilla dimasukkan sebagai gantinya.

Rasanya jadi berantakan: sebagian besar es krim pistachio-nya sudah meleleh, chocolate fudge-nya sudah mengeras, serpihan kacangnya sudah melempem. Es krim vanilla-nya memang ada, tapi di bawah tetap ada lelehan es krim coklat yang tadi.

Sedangkan tadi siang, ketika saya makan di gerai Es Teler 77 yg terletak di dalam BIP (Bandung), ketika saya menemukan seuntai rambut pada "Es Gaul" dan menunjukkannya pada waitress, dengan segera Es Gaul tersebut diganti dengan yang sama sekali baru.

Jadi kenapa ya restoran sekelas Atmosphere tidak menerapkan etika serupa ketika mengoreksi pesanan saya? Mohon perhatiannya bila ada personel atau representatif dari Atmosphere di milis ini, agar pelayanannya dapat menjadi lebih baik lagi.

Salam,

Tita


Atmosphere Resort Cafe
Jl. Lengkong Besar 97
Bandung 40126
T +62 22 4262815
F +62 22 4262667
W http://www.atmosphere.co.id/bandung/

Kartun diambil dari http://www.cartoonstock.com/

Opening of "Curhat" at SPACE59

Wednesday night, Sept 5th, 2007. The opening of SPACE59 gallery and also of "Curhat Tita" exhibition, that is held until Sept 22nd, 2007. From Sybrand's camera.

Tita at GoodReads

http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/222402
A site where I've been composing a list of my books, or books I've read. Quite recommended for an inventory-freak like me.

Exhibition: "Curhat Tita"

Start:	Sep 5, '07 7:00p
End:	Sep 22, '07
Location:	Jl. Merak 2, Bandung, Indonesia

All are invited! The opening, at Wednesday night, will be filled - among others - with a drawing demo (anyone is welcome to join), a discussion session, and Panas Dalam live performance.

T-shirts and other merchandise based on my drawings will be sold. There will also cool packages - each containing a comic (er.. drawing) book and a T-shirt - available for sale.

See you there!

Come One, Come All!

Pameran Curhat Tita
5-22 September 2007
SPACE59
Jalan Merak 2
BANDUNG
T 022 250 5959
F 022 250 0124

Pembukaan
Rabu 5 September 2007
pukul 18:59 WIB
oleh Prof. Dr. Bambang Sugiarto
Demo gambar Tita dkk
Diskusi bersama Tita
Hiburan:
- Demo Grafiti
- Bad Boy Blues
- Pidi Baiq dan Musuh

Tim Kalong: Maswied, Maskiki, Maspidibaiq, Maswidjana, Masgiman, Masmiko