9/17, 9/18, 9/19. 9/20/2012

9/17/2012

Well, its Monday again. At least one thing is universal. ...waking up on Monday morning sucks. While I got ready I did one thing different this morning, I started chewing one of my pieces of gum to help me get through the extra-long assembly. For whatever reason the ceremony was shorter, and there was no flag raising (like a normal weekday). I'm not complaining, I was just confused. The assembly was normal, except for a announcement that made everyone cheer a lot. Apparently, my school won some sort of award and it was a big deal. I went to digital drawing and I learned how to do something. Then, I was off to manual drawing (for the first time). The teacher asked me what supplies I had and I told him that I had pens and colored pencils. That was not enough. I didn't know what I needed so I didn't buy anything. Now I know I need a ruler pencils and a thick marker (like a sharpie). He showed me how to make a design and I spent the rest of class drawing 600 1cm X 1cm little boxes and then filling them in with triangles. The rest of the class seemed completely uninterested with what I was told to do. Maybe, they had already done the assignment but my teacher explained to the class how to do it... so I rather doubt it. The teacher left after 10 minutes because he had a meeting. I don't know why teachers have meetings during their classes but, it is really weird. When it was break time for lunch my friends went outside to eat lunch. I wasn't hungry so I just took a short nap instead. Great idea.. I still love naps. Class ended at 1pm which is an hour earlier than it should end so I knew my driver wouldn't be waiting for me. I started walking home, most people are really in awe of the tall (yes Jesse I am tall here) white girl in an Indonesian school uniform so they just stare at me but they don't try to talk to me or stop me. I wasn't really paying attention when a man stood up in my way. When I looked at him it was one of my family's drivers and he seemed concerned that I was walking home because he should have been picking me up in an hour. I explained that school finished and then kept walking home. When I got home I had to explain to the maid that my school ended early again so I just walked, and that I like walking so it is OK.  I did my seminary lesson and then I started to draw. I didn't know I could draw, but I guess I am really good at following instructions because if I use a 'how to draw' lesson my art turns out pretty good. After drawing Po and Master Snake from The Kung Fu Panda, I drew Sully, Mike and Boo from Monsters Inc. I went downstairs ate dinner and then watched The Green Lantern. I was so tired that I fell asleep during the movie (it was only 9pm).

9/17/2012 Highlight

Right after I got home from school I went to my favorite spot in the whole house. It is the balcony that overlooks the street. I sat there eating an Indonesian lollipop and just relaxing. While I was sitting up on the balcony a vendor walked by.  People sell thing in the street all the time in these carts and while they move down the street they make a kind of call to let people know that they are there. The vendor didn't surprise me but what did was the vendor's dread-locks. I haven't seen dread-locks since I got here and I promised my Uncle David that I wouldn't come home with dreads because no one had them here, so I thought it was kind of funny.

9/18/2012

I just have a couple of observations today

1.       If you are not smiling and constantly talking people think you are bored or unhappy.

2.       If you say you are sick, every Indonesian thinks that there are only two ways you could be sick. You either A. Did not eat breakfast or B. You are cold (I am never- ever cold here)

3.       There are always going to be people who make you want to hurt them - Boys in some of my classes spent the entire class time laughing at me and calling my name.

4.       Just because I am an American and I am not Muslim does not mean that I am interested in every boy in the school. So, boy, you  can stop posing every time I walk by.

5.       Most people are nice and they just want to help.

6.       Right now it is 90 degrees outside and I am in my house wearing sweats, a long sleeve t-shirt and socks. Because, if one more mosquito bites me, I am going to have a mental and physical breakdown and the only way to stop them from biting me is to wear lots of clothes.

7.       Mosquitoes are the worst.

8.       Being at school from 6:30am to 4:00pm is the worst.

9.       Angklung practice after school is so much fun and it was worth it to stay at school for an extra two hours.

10.   There is no way to sit comfortably on the floor especially tile floors. You can either sit in a very uncomfortable but dignified way or you can sit in a slightly more comfortable and undignified way. I end up just laying down on the floor most of the time (it is neither comfortable or dignified.)

11.   Hot showers fix everything.

12.   I am so lucky to be at SMK 4 and play with computers all day instead of learning from textbooks.

13.   How I Met Your Mother is possibly the best show ever, and it distracts me from doing other more important things.

14.   My English is getting worse everyday

15.   I put off doing these blogs too long... because I am too lazy :)

9/18/2012 Highlight

I really enjoyed Angklung practice today after school. It is now my favorite class because I get to learn something completely new. The people are so nice and they helped me learn how to read music and taught me that there are two different ways to play the Angklung (by shaking it and playing it in staccato). I wish that the club could replace some of my classes at school so that I could learn more.

9/19/2012

I want to start by saying that having a uniform at school is really great, unless you wear the wrong shirt. I would also like to say that if you took a picture of our school assembly yesterday, I would be the worst Waldo ever. Imagine, if you will, a courtyard filled with people. Everyone is wearing white shirts and had black hair, now add in someone wearing a black and white paisley shirt (one of the other uniform shirts) with brown hair. You now have an idea of about how much I stood out today. I tried to ignore the fact that I had unknowingly made myself stand out even more (if that was possible). At least I am already used to people staring at me or else it would have been really awkward. I started to day with four hours of English class. It is normally really boring but, after the lesson the teacher left and we just talked. I showed the students how to draw Mickey Mouse on the white board and I taught them some English. In return they taught me a lot on Indonesian and talked to me a lot. I had Indonesian class outside of school later that day and the teacher asked me to prepare a conversation for class. So, I started writing and when I told the students what I was doing they got really excited and helped me write the paper. I was really enjoying myself and I was not looking forward to Math. I asked what time it was and someone told me that it was 9:40. According to my schedule my math class started at 10. Everyone kept talking and having fun and I thought... there is no reason to go to math when I am having so much fun here (yes, this girl who has never skipped a class in her life is now skipping whenever it is convenient). I was feeling like such a boss.. missing math class and then another teacher walked into our room. I knew that I didn't want to find out what that teacher taught so I excused myself and headed to my third and last class of the day. I got to the class and when I showed the teacher my schedule she told me that it was too early and that I had to go to math. This confused me because I know that we talked for at least an hour after someone told me it was 9:40, I should have missed a lot of math if not all of it. Apparently my friends watch was wrong, it was now 10am and I still had to go to math... darn. I got to math right before the teacher arrived and I was able to be present for the entire boring lesson. At one point the expo markers stopped working so the teacher sent a student out to get more and he continued talking, about random things that I had no interest in so I ignored him and mode it through the hour and a half long class. When the terror of math was finally over I had a 45minute lunch break. I decided to spend the time sitting on my favorite bench near the courtyard. I just sat there studying Indonesian minding my own business when it seemed like at least twenty people swarmed me and started asking questions, and introducing themselves. It was actually really fun and I enjoyed talking to them. In Indonesia it is really common for someone to tell you that they are handsome or beautiful and then ask of you think they are pretty. Mostly boys do this to me and they ask "do you like me? Am I handsome?" Most of the time I respond by saying "I don't know" or "I don't understand" or "I do not want to answer that question." I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings and as an American I am just not used to telling people that I think they are ugly/pretty to their face (that is something we Americans prefer to say behind someone's back).  And then they ask a question that I have been asked at least a hundred times already, "Do you have a boyfriend." I say "No, I do not have a boyfriend." They look shocked and then get really excited and today a boy even did a victory fist pump. Someone should have had the decency to tell me that everyone would want to date me here and that I might want to just say that I have a boyfriend. Well, here comes Astronaut Mike Dexter... just kidding I will just tell them that I am not allowed to have a serious relationship (THANK YOU ROTARY!!). When lunch was over I went to culture class, which turned out to be exactly the same class that I had earlier that week with different students. I really don't care if I take the same class, it is fun and there are only two girls in the class full of guys so I would feel bad to abandon them. I have now officially gone to all of my classes, and I haven't gotten lost in a couple of days. School finished and I walked out to the front of the school, I was waiting for my driver to come and pick me up. I waited at least ten minutes so I thought that he forgot about me and that I should just walk home. I started walking home and I got more than halfway there when my driver pulled over to the side of the side of the road and drove me home the rest of the way. I got home, changed really fast, ate a little and then I was back in the car to go to my class. Before I went to my class we stopped to pick up Diandra at her college. I was already really tired and I slept in the car most of the way. When I got to class, we practiced having conversations  about buying things. Then Aunt Melly showed up. We took pictures, finished our lesson and then Aunt Melly went to take us home. On our way she bought Satay or Sate (spelled both ways) and we drove to one of her friend's house (who happens to be the inbound coordinator for Indonesia). We ate at her house and just talked for a while. The family had a beautiful black and white husky. I miss dogs, here in Indonesia cats are much more popular than dogs and lots of people are irrationally afraid of dogs. We ate lots, talked lots and I played with the dog a lot and then Aunt Melly finally decided to take me home. When we got home Aunt Melly and Laetitia talked to my family. I was so tired when they went home I staggered up the stairs to my room did a game for seminary and went to sleep, all intentions of writing my blog were gone. Sorry again that it took me so long to write this and that my English is getting worse at an alarming rate. Thanks for reading

9/19/2012 Highlight

This morning at the assembly a teacher spoke and I understood every word. Of course that is because she was talking in English not the normal Indonesian but it was still fun to understand what was going on for once. She talked about how every student needs to focus on studying English because no matter how good they are at using technology there will be no place for them in the global economy if they do not know how to communicate. While she was talking all the students stirred nervously because they could not understand everything she was saying. It was nice to have everyone feel close to how I feel everyday (except for the fact that everyone in my school has taken English for at least 5 years and I have only taking Indonesian for a little more than a month).

9/20/2012

For the first time I woke up to my own alarm it was pretty great. I straightened my hair and put on make-up (By The Way girls in my school are not allowed to wear make-up but no one has told me that I can't wear it so I keep on doing whatever I want). Today I had modeling again so I wanted to look pretty for the tons of photos I would be taking. I changed and went to class. This round of modeling was much more fun. Possibly because I mostly took group pictures and I know everyone in the class more so we have more to talk about. All the girl in my class are so pretty but they think I am pretty and that they are no wear near as pretty as I am. In America I am pretty average, I would never describe myself as 'the only super hot babe in school' because I am not but, people here call me Barbie all the time. I wish they would be happy with the way they looked and stop trying to whiten their skin so that they can look like Americans. We played around for a long time, just taking lots and lots of pictures. I also brought my new Indonesian study book to school today, and my friends really like taking it looking through it and then quizzing me. I am learning the language even faster now, and I am able to say more and more things in Indonesian. When class was over I went to English. My class learned about gerunds and how to use them in English. I spent the class studying Indonesian and talking to my friends. Half way through class we had a break for lunch, I got out my computer and started playing music. One of my friends asked me if we could Skype my mom (in Florida, my real mom). In Indonesia it was 1:30 so in America it was 2:30am. I told him that it was 2:30am and he looked confused and then said "Oh, your mom is sleeping?" and I said "Yes, my mom is sleeping it is 2:30 in the morning! I am sorry but we cannot talk to her now." When lunch was over my teacher gave us an assignment from the book to do. At my school the students have to buy the books if they want one or they can just share with their friends. I was not planning on buying any of my books because I wouldn't use them anyway.  My teacher requires that we write out the entire question out if we want full credit. So I started writing and writing and doing boring English. I might actually get another B on the assignment because I thought the sentences were boring so I enhanced them a little bit. When I finally finished one of my friends with a book called me over to ask me what some of the answers were and she started writing in her book. I asked her if she had to write out the whole problem and she said "no, I can just write it in the book." I went over to my teacher and rechecked that if I had a book I could just write the answers she said that was correct and that the book cost 8,000 Rupiah. Sorry Dad but you will be paying for my 80 cent book because I am too lazy to write complete sentences for my English class. After school I had Angklung practice again. Wow, it is way harder than I thought it was. Someone handed me a second Angklung to play and it only took about 10 minutes to give up on that pipe dream. I picked one of the instruments and played with my class. We finished learning an entire song and I had to try really hard to keep up. The music teacher doesn't even teach the class, it is run by students and they had to help me learn how to play faster and better. I still really enjoyed the challenge. By the end of the class the girl next to me, who was playing three Angklungs did the entire song with her eyes shut, that is skill. Maybe after a year I will be able to do that. I got home, had lunch, changed, did seminary and relaxed. Then I started uploading pictures to Facebook, several hours and 303 pictures later I was finally done and it was too late to write my blog :)

9/20/2012 Highlight

I was glad that I was finally able to upload all my pictures to facebook. My mom had been getting on me about putting pictures up. Every time someone puts a picture of me up she says "Thanks for putting this picture up, the only way we see pictures is if someone else puts them up because, Alaina never does." Thanks Mom. Well I finally finished and I feel accomplished, so you are welcome Mom and everyone else who was getting bored with looking at my old photos. Thanks for reading! I love you all :)