Doing the math

If you insist on taking a wholistic view of how the multiple economies work here in Indonesia, it's better for your blood pressure and overall happiness. Here's an example from yesterday:

As some of you know, our dogs are high maintenance and have always had their own line item in our budget. Yesterday, it was time to check their urine again for infections and crystals, so my very happy driver went happily to the vet's office with two containers of pee: one labeled 'Theda' and the other labeled "Olivia".  Total bill for total urine workup?  44,000 rupiah each (divide by 9000 and you get $4.89).

Later in the day, I headed to the grocery store that is a four-minute walk from our house, and bought.. you know.. FOOD.  I had found fennel at another store, so I was looking for leeks for the soup I was planning to make.  I found them.  Three of them.  Healthy looking, fresh.. and 207,000 rupiah (that would be $23, no kidding).  Why?  Because it came all the way from Australia--which is farther than you think, just ask my mom who recently took that trip.

Rather than getting all flustered about it.. I realized that I'd actually made purchases at a fraction of the cost of Washington!

- $9.78 for two pee tests
- $23 for three leeks
total: $32.78

Pee tests at home would have been easily $40.. so, honey, we saved money yesterday!  I'll never have to get a job at this rate! Yeeeeehaw!!

Gaga saga is over

from the Jakarta Post

You may have heard that Lady Gaga was going to have a concert here in Jakarta next weekend.  That is until the conservative muslim clerics started calling her satanic and a bunch of other silly stuff, and threatened violence if she performed.  Okay, they weren't going to openly kill her or anything, but still pretty nasty threats.  It was a big deal [and long, it's been front page news for weeks and weeks and weeks] largely because it became a test of whether the government was going to defend the right to freedom of expression or cave to small powerful political/social forces.  It caved.  Fundamentalists here are few, but apparently loud.  The government let the drama go on so long that Gaga finally cancelled her tour.  And she said for the Jakarta Post, "There is nothing holy about hatred." 

From a financial standpoint, cancelling was dumb too.  52,000 tickets need to be reimbursed and Indonesia just lost the revenue from 12,000 foreign tourists that were coming in from all over the region for the concert.  The Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy [I LOVE these ministry names!] suggested improved communication in the future saying that Indonesia will remain an interesting destination for musicians. Ummm.. okay.  So maybe for James Taylor at least.  We'll see if Elton comes back. <sigh>

  

Sophia's egg..S!

As you saw from a posting earlier this month, we had been waiting for Sophia to lay an egg.. and we even made her a four-poster bed for the process.  She quite liked the bed--especially playing queen-of-the-lizard-habitat by spending days on its roof.  And we waited... finally, when we arrived to class last Monday, we found a proud Sophia with TWO eggs!  She hadn't laid them in the soft dirt of the bed, but next to it in a cozy corner. They seem huge to have both been inside that little lizard (I felt the same way about my own kids once they came out too!).  So now we wait for 2 months and see who comes out of the eggs.  Fingers crossed that all goes well!

Ebs lost his training wheels!

Yesterday Eben lost his training wheels, with Zeric's help!  Hooray for Eben!!

Okay, the video is being moody.. here are some pix:

A peek into why the GOI is such a mess

So, I'm not working yet but I have been talking with people since we got here about how things work and don't work in Indonesia.  The thing you hear the most is how corrupt everyone is--from the top guys the whole way down to everyone on the street.  The other thing you hear is about how Indonesia is/is becoming a "middle income country" in that it makes enough money to take care of itself.  The challenge is using it well. There is actually a ministry here called The Ministry of Administrative Reform and Bureaucratic Rerforms. [I'm sure that it sounds better in Indonesian.] There is also a very active anti-corruption commission. I've been thinking that maybe things are on the up-and-up.

Zeric is in Surabaya today in a workshop to talk about the local government's ability to manage money, including donor money (read: your tax dollars).  He sent me the picture above which is the flow chart for how the budget process works at the local goverment level.  Are you scared?  I am.  I was supposed to continue the job hunt today, but I think I'll go back to making lemon sorbet for those gin fizzes..

Remembering Grandma Jo

A year ago today, Grandma Jo died.  We lit our yahrzeit candle this morning and talked about her.  It's so interesting to hear what Jaffa and Eben remember of the stories we tell, and it makes me really happy that they feel connected to their people.  I asked them if they remembered who she was.  "Grandpa Jon's mom."  Jaffa remembered that she gave both of them stuffed animals, and that Milo Jo Ball (her stuffed bulldog) came from Grandma Jo's house after she died.  Eben got a stuffed puma he named Pumba. 

Jaffa remembered Josie as a round lady with white hair, so I pulled out this picture and told her about how beautiful she was, and how Grandma Jo and Jaffa had the same hair. That's a big deal for Jaf, she's been paying a lot of attention to her hair lately, and adamant that it stay long and only be trimmed. 

Jaffa then remembered the stories I told about how Grandpa Irving used to flirt with Josie, and hug her and kiss her.  And she said, "they were in love".   That's a really good thing to remember about them, because it was so true.

French PER fair

The French school is partners with an organization called "Pour les Enfants de la Rue" (translated as "For Street Kids").  They do loads of fund raisers for the organization.  My favorite in the preschool was when they had big containers for the kids to fill with coins, and of course every kids was begging their parents for coins for weeks.  Whoever came up with that idea should get lots of brownie points because it worked and I'm sure they made bank.


The most recent fundraiser was a fair.  It was really well organized and loads of people volunteered to help with the games.  I volunteered Zeric, and as it turns out, he spent four very hot sunny hours manning the soccer shoot.  Sorry about that, Zeric.

The first thing we slackers did was to hit the cake table.  We started the day with chocolate cake and crepes with Nutella.  We knew it was going to be a good day!

There were loads of games, we played fish for the bathtub ducks five times. We used a water gun to put out the flame on candles.  We tossed coins onto floating plates, we got tattoos [not the real ones, not even for me]. We did puzzles, we played in the bouncy castle, we knocked over cans with a tennis ball [incidentally, Eben is both-handed on that one].  It was a fun day, and we spent lots of money to support the cause. 

A is for jAffa

Eben has found the part deep inside of himself that loves to draw and write.  It took longer than for Jaffa (who started as soon as she could hold a pencil), but he is on a roll now and cranking out loads of awesome art. And does the same as Jaf where he gets up in the morning with an idea and has to get it on paper.  Even if we're late for school (grrrr).  This is a rocket that he drew the other morning, then gave it to Jaf because she was "having a hard day" by the time she came downstairs at 7am.  It cheered her up -- of course!!

Did you notice that we have two left-handed kids?  Jaffa has been talking about how he writes right-to-left like she never did that. Ahem.  He's funny because when he signs, he signs everything with both of their names.  Lately, we've gotten Batman, a glass-bottom boat, a hotel, firetrucks, and Theda in her crate.

And now, when he's writing something and getting help with spelling and the next letter is A .. he says oh yeah, "A like J - A.  Got it."  Funny. 

"I wish there was no such thing

as far away", says Jaffa.  She misses everyone in America so much.  And our house.  She said she wishes we could see whoever we want anytime.  Me too.  I've been thinking about that Star Trek transporter.  Anyone know where I can get one?

Mother's Day... massage...

...that's how it started, and now that we've been spa-ing regularly, Zeric's good hands have great technique too!  Feet!! Feet!  More feet!!

And then I got fabulous cards from Jaf and Ebs.  Eben put sooooo many hearts on his card because he loves me so much. Jaffa approved.  He signed for her too.  He's very inclusive of his sister.

And THEN I got breakfast in bed!  [Some of you know that I need coffee first--which Zeric takes care of every morning without fail--and I don't eat until 10 or 11, so this was PERFECT!]  Buttermilk and cupcakes and sushi and corn-on-the-cob and ice cream.

YUM!!

We then went with some good friends to another of those over-the-top brunches.  This one at an Asian restau.  We drank champagne and ate dim sum and fresh noodle soup and jellyfish and 100-year-old egg (not me!) and durian spring rolls (not me!).  Until sometime in the afternoon.

It was the perfect Mother's Day!

No no dog

do not pee on the cat!!!  Love, Jaffa

Wanna be Lady Gaga? Come to Indonesia!

It's true, she's performing in Jakarta on June 3rd.   But really?  Anyone can be Lady Gaga in Jakarta. This post has been in the works for a long time. I've been collecting pictures ince we've gotten here. 

pre-deal scowling

You see, Indonesians are super friendly, and they mostly like bule (pronounced boolay, meaning white people - you know muzungu, toubab, vaza, all that).  They especially like kids, kids with light and/or curly hair and not dark eyes.  The two favorite things they like to do to them?  Pinch their cheeks, and have their picture taken with them.  [On the former point, refer to the sign about touching on the recent turtle posting.]

So... given that our children meet all of the requirements to pinched and photographed, it happens a lot.  And they hate it. Well, they used to. There are a lot of pictures on Indonesians' cameras of my kids scowling.  Until our trip to Batavia.  I was sick apologizing for grouchy kids so I made them a deal: for every nice picture, you get a piece of candy.  It has to be a nice smile, and you have to have been nice to the people.  Deal.  We started this mid-way through our day, and by 2pm they earned SEVEN pieces each.  And I paid up in the M&Ms that Aunt Tirzy sent in ther latest care package.  Keep 'em coming, Lope!!

Jaffa was in on the deal, Eben not yet..

Then I decided to take pictures of people taking pictures of my kids.  I mean, it's fair, right?

Here's one where I got both sides.. and Colin and Copa too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and then I turned around at Batavia, and Memere turned into Lady Gaga!!!  First, her fan club was rather small..

then it grew...

and grew some more!

So I owed her 3 cocktails!! [See posting on Gin fizzes.. yummmmmmmm]

Stay posted.. I'm going to keep taking pictures of people taking pictures of my family for as long as I'm feeding my kids candy.

Awaiting an egg

As you know, we just survived two weeks of school vacation.  For the second and post-Gili week, we took in Geckie and Sophia again.  We like hanging out with them.  They are very pretty, easy and we usually take them not long enough to have to clean their cage, except this time (thanks, Zeric).

One day I looked at Sophia and thought.. she's looking round.  Hmmm... so I texted the teacher.  Yep, she's "in season".  So.. off we went searching the internet for what she needed and what to do.  As it turns out, she needs dirt in which to dig a hole.  And a nest that is covered, that will feel safe. Filled with perilite (huh??). 

A day later, we figured it out with a plastic container, and she loved it.  Zeric calls it her four-poster bed because I need to make the roof a bit higher and used skewers.  Very comfy. She wasn't as close to laying this egg as we thought (which was a relief and a bummer all at once), and she liked sleeping on the roof rather than inside.. but now she has a nesting place when she needs it.  We are first on the list for adoption of the new little one.  Fingers crossed!!

  

Oh, and come to find out.. Geckie and Sophia are African leopard lizards.  By the way.

Jaffa's latest drawing jag

She did it again.. and we've been reading a dino encyclopedia, so no surprise about the theme:

and then.. one entitled "me"

love the hair and the umbrella. not sure what's happening with the appendages though.

What we did for Earth Day

In the spirit of Earth Day, we decided to do three things differently this year:

• use cloth napkins
• make our own gift wrapping paper (see above, Jaffa's awesome designs superimposed on sponge painting on newspaper)
• get a recycling organization into our compound (see http://www.jakartagreenproject.com/, the money earned goes towards educating street kids).. that one is still in progress, will keep you posted.

Oh, and we're helping Zeric remember to turn off the bathroom light.

Hindi electric slide

One of the things that has surprised me here in Indonesia is the presence of contemporary Asian culture.  So obviously I expect all of the traditional stuff: the food, the batik, the great carving and weaving and music.  I even expect the new funky art and the fashion designers that do great stuff with batik (and distinctly NOT batik).  I enjoy hearing about the pop bands and trying to understand their songs on the radio.  Didn't really expect the craze over the Korean boy bands.. and the real mind-bender was watching a huge crowd in Batavia square do the Hindi electric slide.  Same concept as what some of you all do at weddings at home, but Bollywood music and lots more hand movement and wobble heads. 

So... Indian music and dance, in a line, in public in Jakarta.  Ya? Not bad.. just weird.

   

Kota Tua (The Old City)

So Memere wanted to see the Dutch colonial heritag of Jakarta, the part of the city called Batavia.  Batavia was named after the original people of northern Jakarta, the Betawi.  The Dutch kept that name for the city.  Hmmmmm.. the thing is, the buildings are old--like 400 years old--and the Indonesians are not exactly proud of their colonial history.  It shows.  Only in the last few years have they started to renovate some of the buildings.. and the buildings have weathered 400 years of tropical climate, and the process of redoing is expensive and slow.  Nevertheless, Saturday morning we were off bright and early heading to the north of Jakarta to explore.  Without traffic it still took more than an hour in the car... but we're used to that now :)

We started with Chicken Market Bridge, which is the last remaining drawbridge in the city.  It burned down not too long ago, but was rebuilt to the original specs.  It was the 'London Bridge' for a long time, and then something else, and then Chicken Market (the market, thankfully is no longer there), and now it's named after a Dutch princess but no one uses that name.  Pleasant as it was, the bridge itself was over canal.  That canal--like all others in Jakarta--needed to be dredged, badly.  So even though it was early morning and not yet crazy hot.. it was mega stinky. So stinky that Mem almost lost her breakfast.  So... we whizzed by all of the old buildings close by.. and headed towards the square where buildings had been renovated and where we were far from the lovely brown waters of the canal. Phew.

We started with the Puppet Museum, which was lovely and had been supported by a number embassies in the last years, including ours.  They had all kinds of puppets and it was nicely put together, and it helped to have an awesome guide named Bram to talk us through everything.  There are basically two kinds of Indonesian puppets: wayang golek (the ones that are like dolls), and wayang kulit (the flat ones made of leather that they use to do the shadow performances at night). Both are made with an incredible amount of care and detail.  The leather ones--even though they only make shadows--are elaborately painted and have amazing workmanship.  Only buffalo skin will do.  We saw a lot of both kinds.. and some really big ones.  See Eben bowing and taking his hat off for the life-sized Hanuman puppet.  

We saw life-sized puppets for weddings and puppets used to recount the colonial story (so, white people puppets dressed in colonial garb). We saw puppets made of straw, we saw the ones they use for a kids program like Sesame Street, and we even saw some from other countries.. including a unicorn from the US (whose mane was apparently tasty for Indo bugs; I must remember to call the Muppets and see if we can get something else in there under 'Puppets from the United States'). We even saw a Jaffa puppet!

The museum (and the other buildings surrounding the square) were old Dutch administrative buildings, so there were tombs in them of the former governers.  Like this one:

Bram said that they have since exhumed the bodies and brought them back to the old country.

The other buildings we saw were in various states of disrepair, including one that had a tree that was at least 50 years old growing through it..

And then we went to lunch.. at Cafe Batavia.  Wow.. I needed my long dress and bustle or something.  They do jazz on weekend nights too, so Zeric is psyched.  And the food was good :)

 The square itself was pleasant and geared to tourists. It was interesting to think about the kinds of things that happened there.  How it was the center of colonial life, and how many decisions were made in those buildings.  And now.. quite a contrast having the delapidated buildings in the backdrop and a tent in the square where you can get some good ol' KFC.

After sandwiches, beer, lime juice drinks, spring rolls.. we then went to the Jakarta museum.  Another old admin building.. and this one had jails in the basement.  Looong discussion with the kids about those. I think they were trying to decide how bad they could be without getting tossed in.  We saw military stuff and old furniture and the pre-historic cave man stuff and statues and... all kinds of things, kinda labeled and no real order, but interesting.  A chill stroll through the collection before heading to the car, and home for a nap.  And that was Batavia.

  

Ahoy matey!!

The French do this thing where they have eight weeks of school, followed by two weeks of vacation.  Repeat.  Seems like a lot of time off.  Good thing I'm not working or I might have had an anxiety attack about it by now.

So this vacation, Gili was one of our weeks, and then... we were home for a week.  We did all kinds of fun things, but one of the best was building the pirate ship complete with ferocious flag and emergency oars.  Jaffa and Eben did most of it themselves, asking only for help with the things that required a really sharp edge and some muscle.  Ta da!  And when we had our French friends Mathilde and Lazare (aka Captain Ameri-Buzz) over for a 6-hour plyadate, the pirate ship featured prominantly.  Treasure maps were drawn, teasure chests were hidden, and crocodiles ate limbs (or was it chicken and rice? as that's what is served for lunch at school every day according to my children).

What a bunch of creative kids! And what fun to watch..

Lightening

When Memere comes to Jakarta, she sews.  Before she left this time, she made Eben a pair of racecar pjs that have hardly come off of his body since they were first put on.  They are AWESOME.  Then we watched Cars (again). Then he had the great idea one morning to go out an find his racecar helmet.  Outfit complete.  He's zoomin'!!