Yesterday, I buried my grandpa

I mean, literally, yesterday, I helped burying my grandpa’s soulless body in to his last worldly house; pouring down the brown soil that endorsed our lives, and our ancestors, since only God knows when, in to the grave.

My grandpa passed away Friday night, and yesterday, we held his funeral.

He’s 81 years old, some of the family member said. So old and sick in the past few months. I visited him a couple of days before when the family said that his health had dropped down badly. I remembered the last time I held his hand, and he smiled at me. I wondered if he still recognizes me. My mom kept telling him that I am his grandson, and he just nodded and smiled.Continue Reading

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My Casual Night-War

I wrote this first sentence with a fast heartbeat as I just got in to a fight– a war, if I put it in to perspective– with two flying cockroaches in my room. I killed one of them, and one other is still hiding somewhere between the cupboard. I just can’t sleep knowing he’s still alive and creeping slowly, waiting for me to fall asleep when he can finally ambush me with his counter-attack grossness; avenging his dead friend’s– or maybe his lovers– wrecked body in a suicidal terrorist mission.

I wrecked the body using an electric racket, disabling his capability to fly, and then smashed it with a broom stick. I also used my chemical weapon, baygon, to force them out of their shady little hiding place, so I can face them directly on the open battlefield. It was an epic adrenaline rush. And on top of that, it is not over, yet.Continue Reading

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Yusuf: Kisah Terbaik versi Al-Qur’an; dan Happy Ending

Jika sebelum ini anda bertanya kepada saya apa kisah terbaik dalam Al-Qur’an, mungkin saya akan bingung dan menjawab secara diplomatis: semua kisah dalam Al-Qur’an adalah kisah-kisah terbaik. Saya akan kesulitan memilih cerita mana yang lebih bagus, apakah Nabi Musa vs Fir’aun, ataukah Nabi Ibrahim dan Isma’il, ataukah kisah Maryam dan Nabi Isa, ataukah kisah Nabi Musa dan Khidr, ataukah kisah Ashabul Kahfi; banyak sekali kisah-kisah yang menarik dalam Al-Qur’an. Tapi saya baru tahu, ada satu kisah yang dideskripsikan Al-Qur’an sebagai ahsanal qasas: kisah terbaik. Dan tidak saya duga, kisah itu adalah kisah Yusuf dalam surat yang didedikasikan dengan nama beliau sendiri: Yusuf.Continue Reading

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Distant World: Final Fantasy of the odd Past, Present, and Future

Sedikit cerita, dulu di pertengahan tahun ’80-an, perusahaan video game ternama asal jepang, Square, tengah menghadapi kebangkrutan. Salah satu desainer game di sana, pak Hironobu Sakaguchi, berniat mau kembali dunia akademik saja kalau perusahaannya ini bangkrut. Tapi sebelum bangkrut, pak Sakaguchi ingin bikin sebuah game yang berarti secara personal buat dia; tanpa embel-embel ingin laku dipasaran. Game ini adalah usaha terakhir dia di Square; setelah game ini saya balik ke kampus, begitulah dulu niat beliau. Makanya game ini dia beri nama Final Fantasy.

Sejak saat itu, sudah dibikin lebih dari 15 game Final Fantasy di berbagai konsol (yang jadul sampai yang modern), juga sudah dibikin sedikitnya 6 film Final Fantasy. Sepertinya belum ada franchise game RPG yang bisa lebih sukses dari franchise Final Fantasy.

Saya juga main Final Fantasy, dulu, di masa-masa paling aneh dalam hidup saya.Continue Reading

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