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Friday, April 30, 2004
"Curiosity killed the cat" for some reason, i was curious about the saying - curiosity killed the cat. you all know this idiom that reminds us that being too curious can be dangerous. i wonder where and when did it came from. is it true that curiosity is that dangerous? is there really a cat on record died because it was too curious? why didn't curiosity kill the dog or mouse or chicken?
as usual, i began my search on google & here's the results i found about its origin... the original saying was "care kills a cat". it was meant to be a warning that worry is bad for your health & can lead to an early grave. over time, the world "care" evolved into "curiosity". "cats" are used because they are curious animals that like to investigate, but their curiosity can get them hurt. anyone who has cats know how they tend to poke their feline noses everywhere. and THAT, my friend, could be dangerous... as shown in the ford sportka commercial ad. have u seen the ad? it had begun circulating on the internet & if u haven't seen it, i can email it to u (1mb).the video clip starts with a view of a suburban neighborhood where a small blue automobile parked in a driveway. then a ginger domestic cat appear near the car & as the cat watches, the car's sunroof slowly opens. the CURIOUS cat hops onto the car & pokes its head into the open sunroof. what happens next is horrifying. the sunroof automatically begins to CLOSE again, trapping the cat by its neck. as the hopeless cat struggles to extricate itself, the sunroof CUTS OFF ITS HEAD & we can see the cat's headless body slides down the windscreen to the ground. at the end of the video clip it's written: "The Ford SportKa, The Ka's Evil Twin". wanna read various interesting comments about the ad? ------------- "Whoever made this ad deserves to have their head chopped off in a sunroof. End of discussion." [Posted by Pat] "I too found the commercial sick & twisted! NOT FUNNY ON ANY LEVEL! Why would the overpaid mental cases at Ford think that beheading a cat would somehow entice me to buy their car? They need to seek professional help... NOW!" [Posted by Dave] "Fantastic stuff... it's not pretty to watch, but everyone's talking about the SportKa now! Which just goes to show, there's no such thing as bad publicity." [Posted by Anne-Marie] "I showed the ads to my 180 high school seniors. The laughter was overwhelming. The students all insisted for a copy to be emailed to them. This ad is all over the net now with a young crowd that loves it. They understand it is all computer generated and they see the humor. These kids love their autos and hate birds and cats that frequently dirty clean cars. Ford just increased market share with its generation. This is just an observation from my 180 students that viewed it." [Posted by Gary] "The only thing wrong with that idea is that you end up with the stinking cat head in your car." [Posted by Steve] "Great publicity or bad publicity? Lots of people wont buy this car, believe me, I saw on tv that Ford latinamerica is having serious doubts about releasing the evil twin in some latin countries, since people are disapproving the commercial (cat & bird version). I have seen a lot of really cool commercials, for example the Indu version of Peugeot or the "Geropa" ad made for Renault Clio. Those are good marketing moves, theres no need to make some twisted and sick ad to win people's attention." [Posted by Lucho] "This ad about killing animals is supposed to make me buy one of their vehicles? That was pretty much the most disgusting commercial I've seen! I don't care if it was for real or not - they made it LOOK real - that's what counts. THAT'S what makes the people sick! Did the management get a chance to review this before it went out? I doubt it - unless the management cares nothing of cruelty to animals or is just as ignorant as the person(s) who created that ad. NO FORD FOR ME!". [Posted by Teresa] ------------- FORD said the ad was meant as part of a "viral campaign", where short videos are released on to the internet & redistributed by e-mail, as people find them funny. but the cat clip - made by ogilvy & mather - had been rejected by ford and as an alternative, a clip showing *a pigeon being smacked to death by the hood of the car while attempting to land on it* had been chosen (if u also haven't seen it, just ask me to forward it to u). ford & ogilvy now have begun a full investigation to find out how this unapproved material somehow "leaked" to the internet. a spokesman for ford assured that the action in the video clip was totally computer generated - no animal was harmed. some people said regardless the controversy it generated, ford got exactly what they wanted by this case - an effective "viral marketing" campaign that attracts a good deal of attention to their new SportKa model which has a "bad boy" image. ford got terrific media coverage, after all. the concept of viral advertising has become popular, as people thought to be more likely to pay attention to e-mails sent by their friends. but ford's experience shows that =just as with computer viruses= viral ads cannot be controlled. back to curiousity now. children are usually warned aginst curiosity. but it is curiosity which leads them to learn about the world, to ask many many questions all the time & learn better understanding from its answers, to find out what's fun and (as consequences) what hurts, to test their skills & develop new one. their curiosity is their engine which drives their creativity. i think we all need to have a healthy curiosity. i've always been curious. a great part of information i have was acquired by looking up something & finding something else on the way. i've always enjoyed a look on children's eyes when they find something new. at my age now i'm still amazed sometimes when i contemplate the mysteries of life. i guess it's important not to stop questioning. albert einstein once said that he has no special talents, he's only passionately curious. :) "curiosity is the very basis of education & if u tell me that curiosity killed the cat, i say only the cat died nobly." - arnold edinborough stelly @ 2:21 PM Friday, April 16, 2004 wedplus preparation (part 2)I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see. The longer I live the more my mind dwells upon the beauty and the wonder of the world. [John Burroughs]quote di atas sangat tepat menggambarkan perasaan saya, terutama di saat WEEKEND ketika waktu tampak enggan berkompromi melambatkan laju detaknya. [entry kali ini dalam bahasa indonesia saja berhubung saya lagi kehabisan kata untuk bercerita] gereja tempat pemberkatan pada wedplus preparation terakhir saya menyinggung soal kapel sanur *my favourite chapel*. tidak semua orang bisa menikah di sini, hanya alumni SANUR (santa ursula) dan mungkin mereka yg kenal dekat dengan suster / pengurus kapel. too bad i have to skip this chance of a life time setelah menimbang beberapa hal - salah satunya kapasitas kapel yang hanya bisa memuat 100an orang. tak pikir2 akhirnya pilihan beralih ke gereja theresia, menteng. letak gereja yang cukup strategis ditambah dengan akomodasi AC tentunya menjadi nilai plus untuk mengakomodir handai taulan yang berkenan hadir. saya sendiri tidak asing dengan gereja ini karena telah beberapa kali main organ mengiringi koor kantor (jaman dulu saat masih bekerja di thamrin) dan koor there. dari kost saya di jl. riau waktu itu saya suka jalan malam2 ke gereja utk ikut latihan nyanyi bersama koor there. namun ternyata oh ternyata, tidak mudah mendapatkan izin menikah di sana pada hari minggu, mengingat saya bukan warga paroki there. tante saya yang memang aktivis there harus terlebih dahulu melobby pastor & dewan parokinya... *coz i don't want to drag stories out, i'll get straight to it* perjuangannya BERHASILLL!! nama saya & calon suami pun bisa masuk ke daftar pasangan yang akan menikah bulan agustus ini. i was once again reminded that my life is truly blessed. it's a warm feeling knowing that there is someone who love u & care about u. and always remember, god will make a way. once again, i am thankful. baju penganten saya akan memakai gaun rancangan billy tjong, desainer muda yang sudah merintis jalan di kancah internasional. kebetulan ko billy adalah adik dari sahabat keluarga saya. kedua foto ini diambil saat saya datang ke studionya pertama kali dan langsung diminta coba2 gaun yang ada. *cantikkan yang mana, hayo??* =) 
oh and one more thing, billy tjong juga fotografer digital yang berbakat. karya2nya yg elegan memenuhi dinding studionya di kompleks hotel willtop, pangeran jayakarta. saya & tommy sudah mendaftar menjadi pasien selanjutnya untuk sesi foto outdoor. mumpung tarifnya "harga persaudaraan" harus dimanfaatkan sebaik2nya, dong...  tommy sendiri sudah memesan jas di wong hang =distinguised tailor since 1933=. wong hang ini tdk sengaja kita temukan di citraland mal saat mereka berpameran menggelar dagangannya. kehandalan wanita yg bertugas saat itu dalam menjelaskan keunggulan jas rancangan wong hang membuat saya & tommy langsung memberi tanda jadi dengan penuh keyakinan. *pelajaran utk semua businessman/woman yang suka berpameran: tempatkan orang yang TEPAT untuk menjaga counter anda. (read: memahami betul deskripsi & kualitas barang/jasa yang dijual, penuh semangat dalam menjawab keingintahuan konsumen, peka akan kerisauan & kebutuhan konsumen.*
rumah masa depan inilah tampang depan rumahku dan tommy nanti. 
di minggu2 awal kita berdua mulai mengurus rumah, kita belanja kompor gas, tabung gas, rak piring, meja setrikaan berikut setrikaannya, guci aqua, dan tentu saja peralatan makan & memasak sekedarnya. kurang lebih itulah barang2 utama yang harus ada karena tommy berencana menempati rumah ini terlebih dulu. 
[oot: di toko kelontong tempat saya belanja tersebut, bisa2nya saya menemukan 2 patung mungil malaikat dari porselen - handmade & imported. mayan utk pajangan rumah nanti. *ada yg tertarik? "teman2"nya masih mayan banyak kok di rak kaca toko*] 
rumah kita sedang direnovasi sekarang & karenanya kita b'2 sibuk bolak balik ke sana setiap weekend. padahal terlalu sering maen ke sana juga tidak baik soalnya bisa bikin bangkrut... =p kasur penganten ai..ai..ai.. judulnya.. *norak mode:on* waktu kita hunting kasur, saya & tommy rajin liat pameran furniture di jhcc & pameran kasur di mal2. saya pun rajin ngumpulin brosur & buat perbandingan antara kasur naturatex, spring air, dreamline, serta, lady americana, dunlopillo.... u name it, deh! hehehe... (if 're looking a suitable mattress for yrself, u can borrow all my brochures & price lists). anyway, dari awal saya sudah jatuh cinta sama kasur serta. tau kenapa? karena saya naksir boneka domba yang jadi bonusnya. *i cannot resist the temptation* (tommy cuma bisa geleng2 kepala waktu dia tau). akhirnya saya menemukan toko chandrakarya furniture di internet & it turns out harga mereka cukup bersaing dengan harga pameran (harga pameran di jhcc diembel2i diskon besar jika bisa trade-in kasur bekas tipe apa saja). ternyata setelah kita berkunjung ke sana, i got more than i expected, sodara2! harganya sudah lebih murah dari harga pameran, tidak perlu trade-in kasur bekas, plus =with all my negotiating power= saya berhasil minta supaya bonusnya disamakan dengan bonus pameran yaitu 2 pasang bantal guling + 1 boneka domba. & guess what... bonekanya lebih BESAARR dari boneka yang ditawarkan di pameran (mungkin stok lama). can never lucky enough finding another offer, right? *does a victory dance* 
next in wedplus preparation (part 3): ranjang penganten dari aesthetics home little note: all of those busy activities related to our weddin' preparation had corrupted our quota of having-fun-hours. kadang sangking capeknya kita jadi sensitif satu sama lain. perkelahian kecil2an pun tak terelakkan. we're still in the process of knowing each other & learning to communicate well. (i wish i have those mind-reading tools attached in his brain so i can read his mind without him has to say anything about it) but hey, the fun part about fighting is the make-up part, right? =) many will be coming upon us along the way... & shall we be the toughest of all. shorter little note: don't u think it's silly coz i was actually out of words at the beginning of this post but turns out i'm flooding it with so many words instead... *i do truly hope that yr eyeballs are still on the right angle after reading this long report* tootles. have a good weekend, everybody! {home sweet home}  stelly @ 10:48 AM Sunday, April 11, 2004 ullen sentaluullen sentalu museum is located on the slopes of mt. merapi (kaliurang), about 25 km from yogyakarta's town center. it is far from traffic pollution & crowds of malioboloro & filled with cool & fresh air. my friend promoted it as the best museum in yogyakarta. it is indeed exceptional, with fascinating displays which give rare insight into the little known inner lives of princesses & queens. ullen sentalu is an acronim of javanese language : "lateng blencong sejatine tataraning lumaku"- taken from the light (blencong/pelita) used in wayang kulit show, means *light of life* ("pelita kehidupan"). the museum was opened in '97, privately owned by thomas haryonagoro, a retired businessman who investing savings in this museum to express his love & appreciation of javanese culture richness as well as to preserve old batik forms & other arts of the kratons.
at first u'll be welcomed with a cup of delicious ginger tea made by special recipe of the wife of a past sultan of surakarta. then a guide will escort u around the complex. no picture allowed!! first section we entered was underground tunnel. it was built to protect selves from activity's danger of mt. merapi. here u can find life-sized paintings of various sultan with their wives, photographs of the palace, and other interesting historical photographs of people & events during the colonial era (including the beauty of palace's flower : gusti nurul kusumawardhani -- *my friend kept repeating how beatiful she is*). there are various artifacts, including the actual clothing (batiks & kebayas) worn in the portraits which were carefully displayed in glass cabinets. then we're taken to floating buildings with stone corridors which have many turns... *just like secret garden*. one room is designed as a real princess' room of surakarta's palace (it's the room of gusti sekar kedaton koes sapariyam, daughter of sunan pb XI a.k.a tinaka). on the wall u can read love letters & poems written to (& from) friends & family during 1939-1949. u can also see several batiks which ever worn by tinaka and her accesories. second room is called "pendapa pengantin keraton yogyakarta". here u can meet special batiks made during 1950s to be worn in marriage procession, also the photographs of marriage celebration of 7 couples - sons & daughter of sultan hb VIII in 1930s. other rooms are batiks rooms where u can compare special batik styles of yogyakarta & surakarta & north coastal towns of java. 
[the pic above was katon bagaskara's location for his 1999 video clip of his song "tidurlah tidur, bidadari kecilku"] it is worth a trip to kaliurang! each visitor comes out rewarded with deeper appreciation of the depth of javanese culture, which u cannot find at yogyakarta's palace nor other museums.  stelly @ 10:40 PM Thursday, April 01, 2004 wedplus* preparation (part 1)since i don't have much time lately to write, i just put in here my letter to my friends last month...------------------------- monday, march 15, 2004 knock knock! have a refreshed spirit everybody? hope u all are ready to get back to the jungle with newly-polished pair of boots. sometimes i just feel i don't have enough weekends. the two days off a week are usually full with personal activities while weekdays have its own routine agendas. and as some of u might already knew, i'm getting married this year... *surprise surprise* =) talking about that, i used to picture myself preparing my wedding one year in advance. now it's less than five months and i only have weekends to check my must-to-do-list (much attention must be paid to my job lately in connection with upcoming public expose, bilingual annual report & shareholders meeting... - not to mention ir website update which need my clear action soon). but somehow it's a relief to know that my friend was successful in planning his own wedding less than 2 MONTHS!!! so my fellow friends (especially my choir & taize friends), please excuse me if i cannot participate in any choir practice lately. i find it even tougher to maintain an active social calendar. ok, this time i'm writing about my "wedding plus" preparation ("wedding plus" term is given by tinnie, my dear friend, when she found out that my preparation is not merely related to the big day, but also to our future house matters). since many people write their wedding journal, why don't i make my own? this way, i'd probably spilled some secrets of my personal life which is a) probably gonna bored u a lot, or b) interesting enough for those of u who are planning to tie the knot soon.. *doubtful, concerning my limited ability of story telling*, or c) interesting enough for those who has not much opportunity to see or talk with me yet care about me... ;P point (c) is actually my reason of writing to u all... this way i can maintain my relation to u although we're far apart & separated by our own busy activities. *dontchathink?* well, just cut this yadda yadda short... (short? stelly's writing? u better doubt it! hehehe) and start with the highlight of my wedding plus preparation... kapel sanur since long before i even met tommy, i've fallen in love with sancta ursula chapel at jl.pos. my mom & day were married there & i used to come there to pray each morning before my class during high school (if i'm not too late of course!). it isn't big so it can create family atmosphere with all guests... and... just look at the interior... isn't it beautiful?? 
(to be continued to part 2... ) *wedplus=wedding plus preparation stelly @ 7:22 PM |
