//August 08, 2010//

Being a journalist is a job everyone should be adored of, at least for me. I adore the job, and the passion remains from writing alone. Those noble people are working behind the desk or behind the war, and they deliver the news in a way we never thought before. The term ‘news’ alone then expand to bigger meaning. For some people, continent and country become some terrible place to live on. So people need some fun and joy, to brighten up the day, to cheer up the life. Some heroes come to do the job, the oh-so-popular word is to entertain. Music and cinema, actor and soap opera. Then, we found term to establish the news. It is infotainment. Creating news related to the world of the performer, the entertainer, and the people behind the curtains.

Infotainment
/in-fo-tain-ment/
A television program that presents information (as news) in a manner intended to be entertaining.

—Merriam-Webster Dictionary

They informed, and they become entertainment. Becoming the heroes, saving the world, spreading the latest laugh and the biggest mocking.

Indonesia is well known for having the 4^th largest population on the entire universe, donating more than 200 million people to step on the earth, and consuming the air, painfully. We become some beautiful archipelago in the south east, having well known also for the island of God, Bali. Well known also to produce trending topic in the entire night, in some little social networking. I’ve been cynical to the website since some other time, but I just can’t resist consuming the web like the rest of the universe. It’s like sleeping pill for the nocturnal, it’s addictive. A 160 character report, drawing world so clearly yet so blurry. The attributes become everyday phrase. People get clicked when hearing words like timeline, followers, and re-tweet. Micro-blog has gone nuts and oh-so-popular. You got judge by not having the account and suddenly, the CNN has reported Indonesia on some little column. Not only for having corruption, not only by the travel warning, but by making #arielpeterporn and #keongracun top the topic of the entire world. Beating Nolan’s Inception or Jobs’ I-phone. Can we be proud of? Oh, I’m not taking the side. I’m taking a stand. I’m not. Being well known for some little craziness is not making me proud, at all.

Infotainment gone berserk, they want to be the latest and the juiciest. So we live the day, by minute-oh-so-minute report on the crazy oh-so-called-news. The chitchat doesn’t end here, people are taking it harder than I am. They called it shame, and disgrace. And some is rumored by holding conference to make it Haram. The chairman of Indonesia infotainment gone live. They make opinions and some powerful arguments. Saying we are journalist, saying we are heroes by live up the air, saying you should be thankful because we entertained people while others just making it miserable. But the word Haram is a strong word, and as long as I can remember Islam thought me once you said it, it is final. Infotainment can’t be classified by the word. But, the conference doesn’t talk about the infotainment, they talking about some dirtier traits people nowadays have a lot. Spreading other’s kitchen business, digging other people’s mistake, and made it a blast on everyday’s life. Gossiping is the exact term. It is a long time sworn old enemy and we both already know the danger.

As for me, it is a bigger model of some little community. This model represents the country, and some neighborhood beneath it. Because it works also on my community. Yes I know some people who are playing ‘the infotainment’ on my community, they spread the news about people, their habits, their love-life and some weren’t actually true. Perception and speculation, oh we both already know the danger.

The fasting month will come in seconds, Ramadhan will says hello in 3 days. Let’s take some stand, becoming a better person we all dreamed of. I want to be cynical once more, to the world of infotainment or some stalker on other people’s profile. I just want to be cynical and let’s hope it is for forever more.

//August 07, 2010//

Seandainya kita kenal sedari dulu, mungkin saya akan menulis lirik lagu.

Dan kamu akan menyanyikannya waktu hujan.

//August 05, 2010//

Dan hari ini saya kembali berjalan kaki. Menelusuri Cisitu, Pasar Simpang, Dipati Ukur, Pusat Belanja Balubur, Nasir Photo dan kembali ke kampus.

Panas, Bandung sedang terik-teriknya. Salahnya, saya memakai kaos hitam.

Belanja dua kaos polos, spidol kaos hitam, scan roll 5 buah roll film yang segera meludeskan uang di kantong saya (cih, belum lunas lagi). It was worth every cent, then. Setelah kepala mendadak panas, membuat kurva warna-warni akhirnya bisa berpanas-panas di jalan lagi. Menandakan saya masih penikmat jalan. Mood boostersekali bisa menyapa anak kecil di jalan, memotret jalanan Dago, dan beli es krim di McD Simpang. Padahal paginya, baru saja saya membuat puisi tentang mabok TA dan sekarang tepat di jam 22.14 revisi saya sudah beres (plus saya punya kaos baru hasil stensil dan sudah baca komik keluaran Jump terbaru). Rupanya saya tidak perlu teriak tentang keluhan saya tentang beratnya TA. Toh sudah kodratnya semua Tugas Akhir susah, makanya ditaruh di akhir dan dinamakan akhir pula. Daripada membanjiri dunia dengan keluhan, ternyata lebih bahagia menarik nafas, baca bismillah dan memulai pelan-pelan. Selesai, efektif, tidak perlu esek-esek negatif.

Besok kembali berhadapan dengan dosen pembimbing. Mungkin ditambah revisi lagi, tak tahu, pasrah saja.

Tapi, mau jujur kali ini. Bahwa saya ingin sidang duluan.

//August 03, 2010//

I want to meet you on a music store.

Where the stereo is swinging the mood around and we’ll meet when your hand touching some dusty CDs, on an old record aisle. You’ll talk long about the golden era of music where rock is the only reason why mankind can survive until now. And I will listen to you, with so much admiration why people like you could exist. I’m not cool enough, like the rest of the universe. I’m just a punk geek, without too much skinny black jeans and without some cool band T-shirt. I would like jazz and some Earth, Wind, and Fire to accompany my bad mood, but I’m not cool enough to attend some concert or any live performance. I don’t go to Java Jazz, it’s too popular, and some random chicks will exchange their phone number with some random guys. And I’m not cool enough to do the same, to buy clothes reminding the events, with dates printed on the front. I didn’t celebrate ASH concert, or some of Kings of Convenience. I don’t get familiar with indie, slow music, like Kimya Dawson, The Moldy Peaches or She&Him. Though they’re catchy and have genius sweet lyrics. Yes, I do love Vampire Weekend or some bit of Owl City. But my heartthrob still flying on 70s era, with some of Beatles, Beach Boys, Rolling Stone, or AC/DC. And until now punk still becomes my obsession, with Blink 182 or some ASH. The surprise is, you still think it’s cool and you still ask me to listen to each other. Music is just any other language, and people can’t wait to find someone who speaks in the same language.

I want to meet you on a music store.

I’ll be holding tickets and you’ll be holding the map. Let’s jump to a train and we’ll be taking pictures. Searching the sun, the wind and what’s there to left. I’ll be asleep on your shoulder and you’ll still act like nothing happen. And I still know, you’ll breathing heavily with faster heart beat. I’ll act there’s nothing happen. But we both know, something is happen.

I can’t wait to meet you on a music store. Or some railway station :)

//August 01, 2010//

August is time for a change.
To be a better person with a lot of pray and no little whine.
Hello August, you’re a holy, you’re the savior.
Let’s be brave, to deliver the speech or having some confession.
I have enough talk and a full of month to revitalize my soul. Hopefully for distance future.
Come August, we’ll be friends in no time.