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Cat Valentine's Anti-Gambling Poem

It's one of my favorite scenes from all Sam and Cat episodes. This one is taken from episode #ToddlerClimbing. I wish you guys would stop gambling and.. stop laughing at the poem as well!

Short-stories by Klaus

Check some short stories written by me!

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Friday, November 14, 2014

In paradisum

Today would be the longest day, ever. Walking right beside you has never been this comfortable. Well, you know sometimes you talk too much and it bothers me somehow but now listening to you is a great pleasure for me. I don't know how long we've been walking but it's okay. I don't know either where we are going to go. Down the street we are going but still I can't figure out the destination. I thought you were going to treat me some pizza but this is not the way to pizzeria. 

Why is it so quiet today? Like.. seriously, there's no even any cars and motorbikes on the street. We meet only few people in the street and I wonder why it feels cold today, though it's summer. This is one fine Sunday afternoon in the summer. From where I stand, I can see the sea. Yes, it's there, shimmering in the sunlight. It's so magical, just like what you've said. The sky is so blue and it has never been this blue before. The sky meets the sea. It looks like a boy's bedroom wall for me, half painted in navy blue and baby blue. Summer wind blows softly like goodnight kisses on your cheek. It moves the clouds towards the sea. Oh, the clouds! You always say some clouds look like angels but I have no idea how come they look like angels. Clouds are just like cotton candy; they're soft and fluffy. I wonder how clouds taste. Are they tasteless? Or perhaps, bitter? Well, if they do have taste, then the black clouds will taste so bad. Bitter, as cough syrup. 

We've walked so far and now we are sitting on the dock, looking at the sea. I wonder what is beyond the sea, for sea is always mysterious, yet inviting to explore. Again the wind blows, then you get up, standing erect right beside me. Your black eyes look so wonderful, but there's something in your sight affrighting the deep inside of me. Smiling at me, you put your cap off and give it to me. There's something strange in the air and I wish I don't have to receive the cap. You walk toward the end of the dock and stop there. Looking back at me, again you smile and I see something in your smile--something that superstitiously hurts me inside. There are sun rays behind you and from where I sit, the rays look like wings attached on your back. It's so magical, yet I wish I don't have to see it. The rays shine brighter and brighter and they eventually become so blinding that I close my eyes. Summer wind blows harder now and it gives me the chills. It swishes, like somebody whispering goodbye in my ear. I hear the sound of waves and your voice, calling my name. Hiro, you'll be alright. No! That's not what I want to hear! Why do you have to say such thing? Where are you going? 

There's suddenly terrifying sound of explosion. I see it in the darkness--that great fire. Window panes break into small pieces. Small things can hurt you. The pieces wound my cheek and my neck. Where are you? Tadashi, where are you? 

I open my eyes and you are not there anymore. You've disappeared, just like that haunting picture of the great fire. In front of me, the sky meets the sea. It doesn't look like a boy's bedroom wall again; the sky has turned gold. Dark violet and gold, just like that velvet pall and the candle lights glimmering around you. I was wrong. I though only black clouds tasted bitter. In fact, white clouds taste bitter as well. One more thing: you're right. The clouds don't look like cotton candy anymore. They look like angels--angels that escort you to the paradise. So this is the end, isn't it, Tadashi? 


Aeternam habeas requiem

Saturday, November 8, 2014

C'est tout

I love it when rain comes down and the drops fall on my window. I always love it. I would place my cheek against the cold window pane, only to see the drops clearer. I love it when my windows fog up because I could write your name on it and look out the window through your name. I love it when steam come from my coffee cup because it brings me the aroma that reminds me of you. I still remember your face--that peaceful expression when you took your first sip of your coffee. Your eyes--that gaze when you looked out the window on that rainy afternoon, observing the passersby. Then you looked at me and gave me a smile I could never forget. I remember when we spent our time together, having nice talk over coffee on that rainy Thursday afternoon. You would always come up with interesting topics and oh! How I adore you--when you talked about small details you found around you that I barely noticed. "You've got red eyes" and "those clouds look like Normandie" or "the air smells like peach"; you are always able to see things from many different perspectives.  
London has the best cloudy skyline in the world and I could never hold myself not to look out the window when it rains. My flat has got amazing view of the city and I bet you'd like it. Well I wish you were here. I could just sit on my chair and enjoy London cloudy skyline while listening to some folk tunes for hours. But I hate stormy days and you know it. I'd shut the blinds and just sleep until the storm's gone. Thank God there hasn't been stormy days since the first day I came to London. Oh! How I still remember we used to listen to some folk tunes together, didn't we? Waiting for the rain to stop, we listened to your music and laughed together. You always have nice stories to share.  
Why does the smell of coffee always remind me of you? I wonder if the same thing happens to you. It ain't happen when I drink chocolate or tea, but coffee. Pasta. The smell of pasta! I don't think coffee and pasta would sound like well-combined smell but since you like pasta so much, then the combination doesn't matter to me. Guess what? I got Puttanesca and Affogato last night. They are no good together, right? Such an absurd dinner it was. Yeah I know that. But pasta and coffee are those taking me closer to you and I really, really wanted to be with you so I didn't mind the absurdity of the peculiar smell combination of Puttanesca and Affogato. Anyway, I like ice cream. I should have got two scoops of vanilla ice cream for my Affogato last night.  
Do you miss me? Because I miss you so much. 

I inhaled a deep breath and exhaled abruptly. Dampness was in the air and I kissed the frigidity. My coffee was no longer hot, for there was no steam coming from my cup. The computer screen turned pitch black, for I haven't used the computer for more than fifteen minutes. Just staring at the screen and noticing London skyline opaquely reflected on it, I could not even get up to turn the room heater on. No new mails, no new text messages. Goddamnit! She made me so frustrated. Didn't she realize how much I've been missing her? 

And my phone rang. And I saw her name. 

"Hello?" 

There was silence. 

"Hello?" 
"Ravel, is that you?" 

Her voice never changed. It was sweet and soft as a nightingale singing a nocturne. 

"Bella?" 
"Ravel, what happened? You did call me fifteen times, didn't you?" 

She mentioned no other name but mine. Ravel. I heard her calling my name clearly. 

"Bella, I miss you" 
"Oh, Ravel. I miss you, too. Please come back home" 

Then I burst into tears. I got a bunch of shits in my mind that I really wanted her to know but I ended up uttering cold and flat words--shits everyone can say. 

"I love you and I miss you. C'est tout

That was what I said to her, then she burst into tears. 


Friday, November 7, 2014

Pump It Up 2015

Waktu pertama kali dengar bahwa Pump akan mengeluarkan sekuel terbarunya, Pump It Up 2015, ekspresi saya kurang lebih seperti ini.. 


Entah kenapa saya ngerasa cepat aja gitu update ke sekuel terbarunya. Rasa-rasanya baru kemarin ini membuat semacam selebrasi untuk kedatangan Fiesta 2 dan main I'm The Best sampai mabok. Awalnya saya masih ragu-ragu bahwa sekuel itu bakalan ada dan saat saya cek, ternyata memang benar rencana untuk rilis sekuel itu ada dan katanya di luar sih sudah rilis. Kata teman saya sih Pump 2015 masuk ke Indonesia nanti sekitar bulan Februari tahun 2015, which means masih cukup lama--sekitar 3 bulan lagi. 

1st teaser screen shot
Andamiro sudah merilis so far dua teaser video untuk Pump It Up 2015. Teaser pertama hanya menampilkan nama-nama musisi yang karyanya bakalan muncul di sekuel terbaru dari seri Fiesta. Waktu nonton teaser pertama, saya cukup terkejut karena nama-nama musisi kece seperti M2U dan Paul Bazooka muncul di video tersebut. Mereka berdua selama ini dikenal sebagai musisi yang berkontribusi di DJMAX. Mungkin karena popularitas DJMAX mulai menurun (dan Technika 3 server shutdown sepertinya jadi alasan yang cukup signifikan), jadi dua musisi itu hijrah ke Pump. From fingers to feet. Saya jadi ga sabar mau dengar musik-musik yang Technika-ish di Pump. 


Pump It Up rasa Technika
Lagu-lagu baru yang disiapkan untuk Pump 2015 menurut saya adalah yang terkece dibandingkan dengan lagu-lagu untuk rilis dasar versi sebelumnya (meskipun saat Fiesta 2 dirilis, saya harus akui lagu-lagunya memang menarik karena cakupan Kpop yang lebih luas). Saya rasa Pump 2015 jadi versi pertama yang punya musik bergenre dubstep (Paul Bazooka - Meteorize). Ada cukup banyak lagu-lagu baru yang memberikan sentuhan musik Technika ke Pump. Ya, sebut aja Paul Bazooka dengan Meteorize yang kalo menurut saya sih lebih cocok dijadikan lagu untuk Technika (dan kebayang deh ribetnya karena kemungkinan akan banyak variasi tap notes + repeaters dan jackhammer notes). Ada juga M2U dengan Nemesis yang kalau dilihat-lihat lagi BG videonya punya kemiripan dengan BG video Cherokee karya xxdbxx di Technika dimana kedua video menampilkan objek boneka (I guess it's a teddy bear). Chinese Restaurant punya Memme punya beberapa aspek musikal yang mengingatkan saya sama Over The Rainbow punya Tsukasa (mungkin karena tempo dan synth-lead kali ya). SID-SOUND dengan Cosmical Rhythm mengingatkan saya dengan Say It From Your Heart punya Makou (perhatikan deh riff pianonya).

Teaser 1

Teaser 2

xxdbxx - Cherokee


Classique Party
Munculnya karya-karya classical crossover di Pump 2015 semakin memberikan kebahagiaan tambahan untuk para penikmat dan juga musisi yang bergulat di dunia musik klasik (kalau buat saya sih jadi semacam rejeki anak soleh). Ada Warak dengan Latino Virus yang merupakan versi crossover dari Pathetique Sonata, 3rd movement karya Beethoven (dan di versi Pump sebelumnya kita kenal dengan Beethoven's Virus). Ada Super Fantasy yang merupakan versi crossover dari Fantaisie-Improptu karya Chopin (kalau pemain O2JAM sih pasti kenal dengan Electro Fantasy). Ada juga Requiem yang merupakan karya klasik dengan judul yang sama dari komposer Giuseppe Verdi. 

Awalnya saat saya dengar bergabungnya Paul Bazooka dan M2U ke Pump, saya jadi punya ekspektasi bahwa beberapa musisi lain dari DJMAX juga akan bergabung dan ya.. mungkin menyumbang beberapa classical crossover tunes. Tadinya sih saya ngarep ada La Campanella


Going online
Ayiha! Pump 2015 sekarang terintegrasi dengan koneksi internet. Dengan kata lain, sistem ranking Pump 2015 bakalan kurang lebih mirip dengan sistem ranking di Technika. Tapi tetap saja akan ada fungsi USB kok jadi jangan lupa bawa flashdrive ya sebelum pergi ke arcade

Untuk saat ini sih, karena belum rilis di Indonesia.. 

Mari bersabar menunggu sambil main Fiesta 2. 


Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Over-anxiousness

Lately I've dealt with the loss of beloved belongings, as well as relatives or friends. Somebody stole my jacket which was a gift from my mom. My uncle passed away two days ago which shocked me. Some friends of mine posted statuses and photos of the death of their relatives. I have to be honest (as much as I wanted). I fear death and I fear losing people I love. What has happened lately has made me kind of scared. Yeah.. it has made me scared, as badly scared as a human being can be. 

The fear has made me so anxious. My mom goes to work every day and ever since I dealt with the loss, I have been asking her too many questions like "Where are you going?" or "When are you going to be home?" Well, seriously I've been feeling scared and the fear haunts me every day like a nightmare. I don't tell people that I've been feeling scared. Nor I show them how I'm so scared. But I think the way I ask people too many questions on such thing must have given them clues on my over anxiety. 


My parents attended my uncle's funeral and they had to stay in my grandma's house for a couple days since the family decided to bury my uncle in the hometown of my grandparents. My uncle died of heart attack and his sudden, unimaginable demise shocked me so bad that I ran from my home to met my friends and cried. Before leaving home, I repeatedly asked my mom when she and dad would be home and how long they would stay there in my grandma's hometown. I didn't contact my parents while they were away but I kept thinking of them and felt scared every night. I didn't want to lose my parents. I prayed to God that no harm could hurt them. 

It's not only about my parents. I've been worrying about my close friends as well. It scares me to know that a close friend of mine got caught in the rain in the night. I've kept praying to God that He will protect my family and my friends and that I don't have to deal with such loss again. 

Is it normal to feel this way? When I told my mom that I had this kind of over-anxiety, she told me it was normal to feel that way. Now the question is, how long would I have this kind of extreme anxiety? 

Monday, November 3, 2014

[Review] Mom's Records

First, I have to admit being born into an artsy family. My dad is good at drawing (mostly simple sketches of inanimate objects) and my mom is very fond of music. When I was 9 years old I enrolled in art class and the instructor taught me the basics of drawing and painting. I befriended oil pastels and acrylic paints. I was really good at drawing and painting but my interest in visual art didn't last long. As I grew older, I realized that my drawings became more and more absurd that I ended up giving up on drawing. 

Speaking of music, it was my uncle who introduced me to piano for the first time. Looking at some photos in old photo albums of my family, it's known that I played piano for the first time when I was three years old. Thanks to my mom, I learnt some basics of piano from her. Back then I had a toy piano which sounded like honky-tonky one and as I grew older, my mom bought me portable keyboard and eventually, an upright piano. My mom supported me a lot, encouraging me to enroll in music class. All the things that my mom has done has grown a huge interest in music in me. I've grown up into a musical person. 

Being a musical person makes me sensitive to music around me. My mom has a large music collection and back then she listened to her collection of '70s and '80s music a lot--an exposure to '70s and '80s music for me. When going out with my friends and having a nice coffee at a coffee shop where some oldies-but-goodies music is played, I'd be like "Oh this music is the one my mom listens to at home", leaving my friends confused. It's kind of funny to realize that when I was a kid, I didn't like such music. I found it boring--mom listening to Arjan Brass' "Leonie" while slowly enjoying his coffee (and sometimes, singing along and.. well honestly I find the song somewhat creepy), or my uncle going to disco and dancing to Summer's "Last Dance", wearing extravagant clothes. Now every time I listen to '70s and '80s music, especially disco ones, I reminisce my childhood listening to the songs and seeing my mom singing along while doing something like sewing clothes or baking a cake. What a classic picture of 90s family. 

I made a playlist of '70s and '80s music on 8tracks entitled 'Mom's Records'. The playlist contains some fancy 70s & 80s music inspired from my mom's records collection. The playlist was published in August and has so far reached 213 plays (well I need more plays to make it gold!). 



Well ten tracks of oldies music won't kill you, right? Or perhaps that's not enough, ar?

There are five songs out of ten from the playlist which I like the most. Richard Sanderson's "Reality" is the first track in the playlist (well the position may change but I put it in the first anyway). The slow disco track is the soundtrack of a 1980 French comedy movie titled La Boum. The song is sweet in nature and I think it's kind of popular among Koreans for the song appears in several Korean dramas. Andy Gibb's "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" is such a cute disco track. The tempo is moderate--which is faster than Sanderson's "Reality"--and the composition is somewhat merrier (at last for me). Lionel Richie's "My Love" is another cooling down moment in the playlist (and I should have not put "Reality" in the beginning actually for some reasons). I heard the song for the first time from the radio and asked my big brother to get the music for me and voila! He got it. For me, the best time to listen to this sweet ballad track is during afternoon tea time but first make sure that it's a sunny afternoon. Every time I listen to the song, I remember my big brother and.. yeah.. it's just.. oh I miss him so much.

He is so damn busy! I kind of curse his tight schedule.

I include Donna Summer's "Last Dance" in the playlist because I think I need something faster and more cheerful to balance the atmosphere (because slow ballad tunes can eventually become lullabies for me and that'd be so uncool to fall asleep and miss the rest of the tracks while trying so hard to enjoy the whole playlist). "Last Dance" is a perfect track to have some cute and energetic disco dance with your friends and beloved one. The track is used in Charlie's Angels movie; it's in the scene where Natalie dances in a high school reunion party. And... the last track of my very favorite tracks in the playlist is Samantha Sang's "Emotion". The song is so popular that it is covered by many artists (well my favorite cover version is MYMP's version, which was performed live in a radio program).

You can listen to the playlist online and reveal by yourself the rest of the songs included in the playlist. I'd love to hear any comments about the playlist. 

Sunday, November 2, 2014

[Review] The Chainsmokers - Kanye (featuring Siren)

I have never wished on hope,

didn't need a telescope
to see where I am going


Akhir-akhir ini Channel [V] Asia sedang sering memutar single terbaru The Chainsmokers yang judulnya Kanye. Lagu tersebut masuk ke dalam Top5 jadi wajar aja sering nongol di TV. Setelah sukses dengan single #SELFIE yang  sering dipake di video lawak di Vine, sekarang The Chainsmokers menawarkan sesuatu yang menurut saya berbeda dan inspiring. Melihat dari judulnya, kita mungkin ingat dengan seorang rapper Afro-Amerika, Kanye West. Dan memang benar, bahwa lagu ini kurang lebih menggambarkan tentang Kanye West, terlepas dari sosoknya yang kontroversial. Sebetulnya yang membuat saya suka dengan lagu ini adalah MVnya, meskipun liriknya juga bagus (cuma sayangnya saya memang tidak mengidolakan Kanye West). 


Komposisi
Dari segi lirik, memang lirik Kanye kurang lebih menggambarkan tentang sosok Kanye West yang optimistik. Sosok yang bisa melihat kemana arah tujuan dia dan yakin bahwa, terlepas dari kehidupan yang sulit, dia bisa sampai di puncak kesuksesan yang dia inginkan. Dan apapun achievement yang didapat, dia yakin bahwa dia bisa menjadi raja buat dirinya sendiri. 

Bicara tentang aransemen musik, Kanye adalah lagu bergenre EDM dengan tempo yang nggak ngebut, mungkin di kisaran Allegro kalau boleh menggunakan istilah tempo dalam musik. Yang saya suka dan menurut saya haunting dari lagu ini adalah piano riff dan vokal yang muncul di awal lagu. Dengan vokal di nada yang cukup tinggi (tapi warna suaranya masih tetap halus) dan piano riffs sederhana yang bermain pengulangan akord I - vi sampai sebelum chorus, saya merasakan dream-like effect, terutama kalau dikaitkan dengan scene yang ada di videonya. Bagusnya sih sambil mengikuti videonya supaya bisa lebih terbayang seperti apa. 


Overall sih yang saya baca dari beberapa komentar, ada yang bilang bahwa Kanye ini 'nanggung'. Mungkin nanggung sih karena menurut saya di chorus pertama ada unsur dubstep, sementara di bagian lagu yang lain unsur electrohouse-nya lebih kentara. Mungkin semacam dengar lagu Hello Kity punya Avril Lavigne dimana unsur dubstep muncul di bagian chorus sementara di bagian lainnya lebih kentara unsur gabungan antara rock dan electro. Tapi menurut saya sih, lagu ini sangat potensial buat haunting di pikiran, dan bagian yang haunting itu adalah bagian awal lagu, bagian piano riff dan vokal, bukan bagian chorus atau sebagainya. 

Seenggaknya buat saya sih begitu. Kadang sambil jalan, saya suka sambil nyanyi bagian awal lagunya. Dream-like dan.. kadang suka merasa merinding.


Plot video
Saya secara pribadi punya beberapa alasan untuk menyukai lagu. Pertama, karena aransemennya yang bagus. Kedua, karena pola akordnya (dan pola yang paling saya suka ada pola "Canon", seperti pola akord di karya Canon in D punya mbak Pachelbel). Ketiga, karena vokalisnya (apalagi kalau sudah suaranya bagus, orangnya cantik, itu sudah bonus banget). Keempat, karena music videonya. Kadang saya malah suka sama lagu karena kepincut oleh music videonya. Untuk Kanye, saya suka karena music videonya sebetulnya. Karena keseringan nonton, maka lagu itu pun semacam terus berputar-putar di benak saya, terutama di bagian awal lagu yang, seperti saya bilang sebelumnya, so haunting. MV untuk Kanye ini menceritakan tentang seorang chambermaid (atau cleaning service girl lah ya istilah yang lebih gampangnya) yang dalam satu malam merasakan kehidupan mewah dan pada akhirnya memutuskan untuk kembali ke kehidupan normalnya sebagai seorang chambermaid. Elizabeth Lancaster (2014) dalam artikelnya bahkan mengatakan bahwa MV dari Kanye ini totally a Cinderella story. Seorang chambermaid yang menjadi ratu pesta semalam, lalu keesokan paginya kembali menjadi seorang chambermaid.


Suatu malam di sebuah kamar hotel, seorang chambermaid sedang membersihkan bagian luar kamar mandi sementara ada dua orang perempuan dengan pakaian glamor (possibly tamu hotel) di kamar mandi tersebut sedang ngobrol. Saat kedua perempuan tersebut pergi, si chambermaid masuk ke kamar mandi dan mencoba-coba pakaian. Momen mencoba pakaian itu pada akhirnya menjadi momen metamorfosa dari seorang chambermaid menjadi seorang wanita glamor (atau mungkin sosialita?)







Si chambermaid-turned-socialite itu pun bertemu dengan beberapa orang di koridor hotel dan akhirnya pergi bersama mereka ke sebuah pesta dimana dia duduk di satu kursi--semacam singgasana--lalu dimahkotai.







Di scene dimana si chambermaid di mahkotai, kita lihat bahwa semua orang yang lain nampak inanimate sementara si chambermaid melihat ke sekelilingnya dengan takjub. Pencahayaan diberikan kepada si chambermaid sementara pencahayaan untuk karakter-karakter lain yang ada diredupkan, memfokuskan kita pada si chambermaid yang sekarang telah menjadi ratu pesta. Penonton diajak untuk merasakan apa yang chambermaid itu rasakan. It's like dreams come true and.. is this so real?




Si chambermaid dan teman-temannya akhirnya pergi ke sebuah house party dimana pestanya nggak kalah meriah dengan pesta yang ada di klub yang didatangi sebelumnya. Si chambermaid duduk bersama teman-temannya, mengobrol sambil minum sampanye. Sampai pada akhirnya seorang pelayan yang membawakan minuman terjatuh dan menumpahkan minuman yang dibawa ke lantai. Si chambermaid, yang kebetulan berada dekat di lokasi, refleks segera membantu si pelayan merapikan kekacauan. Si chambermaid melihat si pelayan dan disitulah momen dimana dia sadar bahwa.. well I was like her; I was a chambermaid. No. I am actually a chambermaid.













Mungkin bisa dikatakan bahwa momen pemberian mahkota kepada si pelayan merupakan momen dimana si chambermaid menyadari bahwa dia harus kembali ke realita--bekerja sebagai chambermaid. Atau.. it might sound like "Well it's over. Now your turn to be the queen". Setelah kejadian itu, si chambermaid meninggalkan pesta dan satu persatu melepaskan atribut 'ratu' yang ia kenakan, dari mulai syal bulu, sepatu, dan perhiasan yang ia kenakan. Si chambermaid berjalan semalaman dan pada akhirnya di datang ke satu tempat yang.. ya mungkin kalau kita nonton videonya kita bisa tebak tempat apa yang akhirnya ia kunjungi.







Si chambermaid pun pulang ke rumahnya.





Chambermaid tidak lagi menjadi ratu, seperti halnya Cinderella yang setelah lewat pukul dua belas malam pergi dari pesta dan kembali menjadi sosok pelayan. Ia kembali ke rumahnya, mencium si anak yang masih tertidur, melepas gaun pestanya dan kemudian tidur bersama suaminya. Di akhir video, kita akan melihat satu set pakaian kerja yang nampak baru saja di-laundry. Pakaian itu bisa kita lihat di awal video dikenakan oleh si chambermaid--pakaian seragam pelayan.


Sense of belonging
Pernahkah kita dapat kesempatan dimana apa yang kita mimpikan kemudian menjadi nyata, tapi nggak lama kemudian saat kita menikmati mimpi itu kita sadar bahwa.. well actually this is not my place atau I'm happy my life has changed but I think I want my old life back. Karakter chambermaid di video Kanye menggambarkan hal ini--hal yang buat saya secara personal pernah terjadi di hidup saya. Having a glamorous life and attending amazing parties, only to realize that I just wanted to go home and listened to music while reading magazines on my bed. Terkadang kehidupan yang dijalani saat ini bukanlah yang sesuai dengan kehidupan yang kita impikan, tapi kehidupan seperti ini bisa jadi adalah hal yang membuat kita merasa paling nyaman.

Menurut saya, si chambermaid sangat beruntung karena pernah mengalami dua kehidupan yang berbeda, realita dan mimpinya. Meskipun hanya untuk satu malam, si chambermaid, at least, pernah merasakan jadi ratu pesta dan berkumpul bersama orang-orang keren sambil minum sampanye. Sebetulnya bisa aja si chambermaid tinggal lebih lama di pesta (dan kasus ekstrimnya, tidak pernah kembali untuk bekerja sebagai chambermaid), tapi kadang nggak ada sense of belonging di tempat yang kita anggap sebagai tempat yang kita impikan. Nggak ada masalah dengan orang-orang yang ada dan segala sesuatunya nggak bermasalah dengan kita, hanya saja kita merasa bahwa.. ya, tempat kita bukan disini. Thank you people for the champagne and the music but I think I gotta go home now.

Mungkin si chambermaid tidak merasakan sense of belonging yang kuat. Mungkin. Sekali lagi, di video kita bisa lihat si chambermaid menikmati pestanya dan orang-orang yang ada pun bersikap ramah. Tidak ada masalah dan well semua orang tenggelam dalam euforia pesta. Tapi pada akhirnya si chambermaid meninggalkan pesta dan melepas semua atribut ratu yang dia kenakan saat pesta.

Seperti ada suara yang mengatakan bahwa lebih baik menjalani hidup seperti biasanya.


Konflik internal
Konflik yang dialami si chambermaid lebih ke arah konflik internal dimana dia sadar akan posisi dia yang sebenarnya dan harus memilih kehidupan mana yang ingin dia jalani dengan berbagai konsekuensinya. Dan si chambermaid lebih memilih untuk turun dari tahtanya sebagai ratu pesta lalu pulang ke rumah dan kembali ke kehidupannya sebagai seorang ibu dan chambermaid di salah satu hotel. Di video, kita akan lihat si chambermaid tinggal di rumah yang sederhana. Ya, bukan rumah mewah. Rumah sederhana. Tapi kita lihat bahwa si chambermaid saat pulang ke rumah datang ke kamar anaknya dan mencium si anak, lalu setelahnya berganti baju dan tidur di samping suaminya. And she seems just happy.

Mungkin saja dia berfikir bahwa, as long as I have family, my life is okay.

Jadi intinya, si chambermaid merasa bahwa kembali ke realita sebagai seorang chambermaid adalah keputusan yang terbaik. Dia memang nggak jadi ratu, tapi setidaknya dia sudah punya harta yang paling berharga... adalah keluarga ~ dan setidaknya dia juga pernah merasakan rasanya jadi ratu dan hidup di kehidupan yang mewah.


Be the king or the queen of yourself
Ada satu scene dimana si chambermaid membantu pelayan pesta merapikan gelas-gelas yang jatuh dan setelahnya si chambermaid memberikan mahkotanya dan memakaikannya ke si pelayan. Prosesi pemakaian mahkota itu saya anggap sebagai bukan hanya serah terima jabatan, tapi juga simbol penghargaan kepada pelayan (dan secara umum, berarti untuk seluruh pelayan di dunia atas bantuannya selama ini) dan simbol bahwa terlepas dari jabatan yang dimiliki, semua orang bisa menjadi raja atau ratu, setidaknya untuk dirinya sendiri. Seperti baris yang ada di lirik lagunya, I'll be the queen of me, semua orang bisa menjadi raja atau ratu bagi diri mereka sendiri.

Saya senang dengan penggambaran bagaimana pelayan dihargai di video Kanye. Seringkali kita lupa bahwa pelayan banyak berjasa dalam hidup kita. Bantu kita bawakan makanan, atau masak makanan, atau bersih-bersih. Kadang kita lupa bahwa mereka juga punya hak untuk menjadi raja atau ratu. Mungkin sesekali kita bisa kasih mereka kesempatan untuk jadi raja atau ratu.. mungkin pinjamkan mereka pakaian yang kita punya, atau gaun pesta? He he he..


Overall
Secara keseluruhan Kanye merupakan lagu yang buat saya sih inspiring. Akhir-akhir ini saya banyak lihat MV dari lagu-lagu yang plotnya nggak melulu tentang cinta. Sebut aja Superheroes milik The Script yang menyadarkan saya tentang cinta seorang ayah yang mungkin seringkali kita lupakan, atau kembali ke 2013, Popular Song milik Ariana Grande dan MIKA yang menceritakan tentang korban bully yang pada akhirnya sukses, meskipun di videonya titik balik itu ditandai oleh pembalasan dendam. Secara aransemen, Kanye berhasil bikin saya merasa dihantui oleh piano riffs dan vokal yang so dream-like. Secara lirik, Kanye mencoba mengajak pendengar untuk bisa optimis dalam menjalani hidup dan terlepas dari permasalahan atau rintangan dalam hidup, seseorang bisa mencapai puncak kesuksesan.

Bicara tentang MVnya, ini pasti kompleks karena ada beberapa poin yang saya dapat dari plot ceritanya. Pertama, MVnya mengingatkan saya (dan mungkin kita semua sebagai penonton) bahwa terkadang apa yang kita impikan bukanlah yang terbaik buat kita. Apa yang selama ini kita dambakan bisa saja baik, tapi belum tentu kita mau untuk selamanya berada di posisi yang didambakan tersebut. Kedua, keluarga itu penting karena tanpa keluarga, saya rasa sia-sia aja pencapaian yang didapat. Keluarga adalah tempat dimana kita bisa mendapatkan cinta dan kasih sayang. Si chambermaid menunjukkan bahwa nggak perlu menjadi ratu pun dia sudah bisa menjadi 'ratu', bagi dirinya sendiri dan keluarganya. Ketiga, ingatlah jasa orang-orang yang selama ini melayani kita. Tanpa mereka kita bisa kerimpungan, apalagi kalau makan di restoran. Kebayang deh kita yang harus menyajikan makanan pesanan kita dan bawakan ke meja kita.

Dan stanza pertama lagu itu pun kembali menghantui saya..
I have never wished on hope, 
didn't need a telescope
to see where I am going

Referensi
Lancaster, Elizabeth. (2014). The Chainsmokers' 'Kanye' Video Is A Total Cinderella Story. Retrieved on November 1 2014 from http://www.mtv.com/news/1915039/the-chainsmokers-kanye-video/