Negative

The urine test on May 25, 2006 showed a negative result. I am not pregnant. Fortunately, I had prepared myself for this. I had told Endra about the possibly unfavorable result.

Maybe it's the best for us. We decide to try the 'Natural Cycle'-IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) procedure again, as soon as possible.

Earthquake in Yogya

Yogyakarta Earthquake Map, National Seismological Center - BMG Pusat Indonesia version
Source: Yayasan Air Putih Media Center from Mutoha (Coordinator of Jogja Astro Club - JAC Indonesia)

Today at 5.53 am, a 5.9 R earthquake hit Yogyakarta, Surakarta (Solo), Klaten, and Magelang and it was felt also in the northern part of Central Java, such as Semarang, Kudus, Blora, as well as in Surabaya (east of Java). The epicentrum was in the Indian Ocean, 37 km south of Yogya and 33 km beneath. There were 4 other quakes followed several hours later. There was a rumor of tsunami, too, that people ran to the northern part of Yogya which was higher than the southern area. Death toll has reached more than 2,200 people in Yogyakarta Province alone, not to mention in the southeastern part of Central Java area such as Solo and Klaten. And the worst area hit is Bantul (south of Yogya).

Mom called me, telling me about the quake in Yogya and that all families were safe. Alhamdulillaah. Later, I called dik Dayat (my cousin) there. His families were all safe. His children were about going to school when the quake hit Yogya. He told me that he couldn't make any phone call.

I felt sorry for all people of Yogya, Solo, and Klaten. May God give us strength to face the disaster.

Ovum Pick-Up (OPU) & Embryo Transfer (ET)

In mid February 2006, we (Endra and I) joined the 'Melati' Program at 'Harapan Kita' Hospital, a fertility clinic at the hospital. After a series of examination, the doctor advised us to take on the 'Natural Cycle' procedure, a kind of assisted reproductive technology. And we agreed. However, the April cycle was canceled.

Last Sunday, May 7, 2006, in accordance with the procedure, we visited the doctor at the hospital; and we were told to have an OPU measure on Tuesday, May 9, 2006. Then, if the ovum became embryo, an ET measure would be taken on Thursday, May 11, 2006.

Sunday night, I should have a hormonal check and a hormonal injection. Monday morning, again I had a hormonal check. At 10 pm I had to start fasting. Tuesday morning at 7.00 am, we should be at the hospital. There were 3 patients (including me) who would have an OPU. The OPU procedure only took 30 minutes. A little pain, of course, but bearable. The doctor got 2 ovums out of me.

Alhamdulillaah, 1 ovum developed into an embryo. It was a happy moment when the doctor showed us the picture of the divided cell. The embryo, then, was transfered to inside my womb yesterday. We (all 4 women who had ET) had to lie down for a while after the measure.

Will the embryo implant itself inside the uterus? Will I get pregnant? Will it continue to develop into a healthy fetus and can be delivered as a healthy baby? It's still a looooooong way to have a baby. But so far, Endra and I thank God for all His gifts to us and our family. Ya Allah, alhamdulillaah.

What Kind of Coffee Are You?

You Are an Espresso

At your best, you are: straight shooting, ambitious, and energetic At your worst, you are: anxious and high strung You drink coffee when: anytime you're not sleeping Your caffeine addiction level: high

What Kind of Coffee Are You?

What Sort of Artist Should You Be?

You Should Be a Poet

You have a way with words... and a talent for drawing the pure emotions out of experiences. Your poetry has the potential to make people laugh and cry at the same time. You just need to write it!

What Sort of Artist Should You Be?

(A POET????? u kidding me! big doubt!)

What Do I Learn Today?

I left the house at about 8.30 am to pay the electricity bill, draw money from ATM, transfer money to Ita's account (to pay the Fraggle Rock Complete 1st Season DVDs), buy some groceries (milk etc) and take Endra's jacket from 5àSec. When I got home, mbak Was (ibu Sumirah's daughter.. and who is ibu Sumirah?.. she's ex-ibu urut/massage lady .. not doing massage anymore) had been standing in front of the fence, waiting for someone to open it. Ow, there's no one home; the maid was buying something to cook. I've told mbak Was to come over on May 5 and she did.

At 10.05 am I watched the Oprah Winfrey Show. And after that, computer time! checking emails, internet browsing and learning Macromedia Dreamweaver MX application. The technicians from 'Gloria AC Service Center' came at about 2 pm. They fixed the washer part of the washing machine.

The computer time will continue ticking until Endra coming home from work. Ah and yes, CSI:Miami tonight in Indosiar TV Station. That's my day for today. And what do I learn today?
1. How lucky Endra and me. Alhamdulillaah (we don't have to worry about paying house-rent, etc, etc, a long list actually);
2. When we fail on something, that's the way God tell us that we have to take another path (from the Oprah Winfrey Show);
3. Everything will come beautiful in its own time (from somewhere in the internet);
4. You can learn Dreamweaver application by following the tutorial provided.

Munich and Other Stories

I have a special memory about Munich. Back in 1968, sooooo long ago. I was almost 6 years old, then. My two younger sisters and I were left at a hotel room in Munich. I have no idea how long we have been left there. Maybe we felt asleep that afternoon, that our parents didn't wake us up. They went shopping. However, we kept calm realizing our parents weren't with us. When our parents got back to the hotel, they brought us dresses. I've got a pale blue gorgeous dress. It was the most beautiful dress I have ever had in life. (Too bad, I wore the dress only for several times for it's a 'party' dress.) That's how I remember Munich.

Now, Munich comes into a movie. It's not about Munich at all, although the backgorund of the story was a tragedy in the 1972 Olympic in Munich, where Israeli athletes were taken as hostages by some Palestinians. All the athletes were dead. This is a film about revenge. It was said that 9 of 11 Palestinians involved in the attack were killed by the operation.

Another story is Monsoon Wedding by Mira Nair. It's an interesting movie about the upcoming wedding ceremony in Delhi, India. The big family came from around the globe to celebrate the wedding. There were family problems, too; settled one by one. I didn't watch many India (or related to India) movies, only Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (a bollywood movie) and Bend It Like Beckham (also about an upcoming wedding ceremony of India families in England). Somehow, Monsoon Wedding reminds me of My Big Fat Greek Wedding, that wedding is important and the whole big family gather to celebrate the event. People are the same after all.

We (Endra and me) watched Zatoichi and New Zatoichi, a film (and a remake film) about a blind master swordsman who live by gambling and giving massages. I prefer Zatoichi for it has more classical taste and sometimes funny.

Pile of DVDs to watch, among others are My Left Foot, Truman Capote, [Good Night, and Good Luck.], The Constant Gardener and Brokeback Mountain, not to mention Endra's choices. I have VCDs waiting to watch, too: Tintin series and some Charlie Chaplin's films. So many movies, so many books, so little time. *sigh*

About Brokeback Mountain, I searched the book at Kinokuniya Bookstore at PIM2, but I couldn't afford the price. Too expensive (more than Rp 100,000 for a thin book, while the Indonesian translation is only about Rp 25,000). Knowing that I searched the book, Endra bought me the DVD while coming home from work the next day. Thank you 'Ndra. How sweet of you. That's my Endra ♡.