Till The Next Time, Tree!

Hey-ho.

Christmas tree back in its box again.

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The idle days between outings were filled with reading, and I came across several new authors, new to me at least, like Harlan Coben and Duncan Falconer, whose fiction I recommend to all who like a rattling good yarn!

However, though Twelve Days of Christmas have gone by, the consolation is that, with Jakarta’s remaining resident foreigners all drifting back from their Yuletide overseas jaunts, the party season will resume next week and continue through the year.

As predicted this morning, my day passed agreeably, my visitor on time, more or less, a pleasant hour or so, then, since the sun was still shining down, I hung out the washing and headed for the warteg, where the cheery proprietrix welcomed me and her young assistants served up my usual order.

Then back across the road to a brand-new IndoMaret, much closer than the other mini-marts round here, where I resupplied myself with cigs.

The place only opened days ago, but when I walked in, the young lad behind the counter at once declared ‘Yes, Mister, Bohem Hijau, ya?’

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Astounded at his psychic powers, I nodded, then he revealed that he had formerly worked in another shop and remembered their only foreign customer and his taste in smokes! I thanked him and wandered home, but not to do the ironing – another visitor tomorrow to assist with that!

Tonight, at home, actually cooking myself – mince and potatoes, a favourite from way back.

And tomorrow is another day. Nice to relax, and there’s also a pleasant thought to contemplate.

Only two more weeks till that ratbag gets evicted from the White House!.

Memo to H. E. Moazzam Malik – Haul Down The EU Rag!

…………

Apart from family events, it’s fair to say I haven’t felt so full of hope and glory since, a week or so after my finals, I hurried up to the old uni quad and one of my fellow-students who’d beaten me to the ‘results’ board yelled out, “Ross, you got a good one!“

• 

• That too was a sunny morning, though not as warm as my usual Jakarta morns out front. Little did I know, that long-ago day at the alma mater, that I’d end up here in Jakarta.

However, here I am, and so, this fine Friday, I’d like to suggest to His Excellency Moazzam Malik, British Ambassador to Indonesia, that he ought to organise an official party, for every true Brit in town, at the splendid new embassy compound over by Jalan Rasuna Said….

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——-‘

….when the hated symbol of the EUSSR is hauled down.

I realise ‘Our Man in Jakarta’ has to wait till whoever in London gets round to pressing the ‘Article 50’ button, but such a ceremony to mark the liberation of the UK would be a most welcome way to spend a Saturday arvo.

I was down Rasuna Said yesterday, a lot of embassies along that busy road, and I noticed the Hungarians and Poles have the horrid Brussels banner flying at the same height as their own proud flags.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

That’s the situation at the UK Embassy in Bratislava, replicated offensively around the world

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Given how those two countries, and another twenty, were treated with disrespect last week, when only the In-Crowd Six were consulted on Brexit…

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Founding EU members talk Brexit in Berlin
Internasional–Deutsche Welle

….surely those nations thus treated as ‘second-class citizens’ should strike back?

It’s always been an unpleasant sight to see the supranational banner flown, not lower than, but on a par with, the national flags that all should honour.  

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To my friends and readers in Budapest and Warsaw, Bratislava and Prague, and the other dissed capitals, may I suggest they urge their leaders to make Brussels atone for that sin of omission last week.

Lower the EUSSR rag to half-mast – until it’s time to bin it altogether!

Wow! Some Juncker Output We Can Agree With!

EU referendum live: Juncker calls for immediate start to Brexit …

Having celebrated intensively last night, no time nor energy for blogging today. But must mention my rare concurrence with Juncker. The sooner Brits get disentangled from Brussels, the better.

And with a nice visitor due to arrive here soon, even more reasons to be cheerful, besides those already uplifting my hung-over spirits…

….Britain free, Camoron out…and the pleasant prospect of being again in a position to belabour Boris without the inhibition of being on the same side in the Brexit battle.

 

Jakarta Marathon 2016 – Register Now!

ooooooo

I did my share of marathon running, Belfast (twice) London, New York and Helsinki, and loved every minute of it.

But maybe not here.

Most of the day it’s way too hot to run, at least more than a few yards to catch a kopaja.

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So these runs start in the very early hours, which are not for me, never have been.

But I’d like to watch the Jakarta Marathon, and cheer on the participants.

So please register! 

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Pondok Indah Mall, Books on Sale! Till 26th June?

Got back from an outing to PIM not long ago, and have to report that Periplus book store has some bargains this week and next.

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PIM -Pondok Indah Mall

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In fact the shop assistant who served me said the discounts would last till 26th June!

I got two paperbacks, one being Stephen King’s ‘Dome’ which was originally priced at over Rp.100,000, and another, by a lesser known author, again marked above Rp.100k.

There were stickers attached telling would-be buyers they were now Rp.41,000 and Rp.38,000 respectively.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

• 
• ================================

• A good buy, by anyone’s standards!
• But when I took them over to the cashier, I was delighted to learn that the sale meant ANOTHER 50% reduction, so I only had to pay the princely sum of Rp.40,000 for the two of them!

So get yourselves on down there to Periplus, while it lasts. 

Kemana, 4 Minute? Kesini!

ooooooooooooooooo

Oh no!

How else can one respond to the shock/horror news that the ‘Korean girl band,’ 4 Minute, pictured above, might be on the verge of breaking up.  

http://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2016/06/13/korean-girl-group-4minute-may-disband.html

Well, I’m not especially into K-Pop but these cute Korean singers at least know how to dress like girls.

So one could respond by inviting them for auditions to start a new ensemble, and my small rented home in North West Jakarta would be a very suitable venue for such auditions.

Thing is, several of my usual retinue of visitors are talking about pulang kampung, going home for the holiday week due next month. 

So I may be bored and Home Alone.  Even my adored  warteg will close for a week, it seems. So how to find food?

 Having such charming house-guests would alleviate my temporary gloom.

But can 4 Minute cook?

 

 

So Much For Saturday! Jim Beam, Marxists and Mutants!

Well, so much for Saturday night!

I ran into major computer problems on Friday night, having installed a new anti-virus because the laptop was running as slow as David Camoron’s gob when asked to give a straight answer

Suddenly, the whole thing went blank- darkness was upon the face of the blog.

I began my repair work at 1am and finally got to bed at 4am!

So when I rose yesterday,to make myself a brunch of pork and beans, it was near enough noon, and it seemed folly to contemplate going out on the town, as originally intended.

I’d smsed a few people about a special ‘all-the-cocktails-u-can-drink’ event, but nobody had firmed up.

I don’t do dilatory, so stayed home.

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My voluntarily housebound status was rewarded with the opportunity to watch the new Outcast! series, a possession horror set in West Virginia, which seems promising.

And after that there was the new ‘Wayward Pines 2,’ as its predecessor a bit illogical, but lots of action as a doc is kidnapped and transported into a future marxist-type police state, surrounded by ravening mutants.

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a marxist or a mutant?

oooooooooooooooooo

• Not much to choose between marxists and mutants in terms of evil, but the muties at least have the excuse of relapsed brain development.

ANYWAY…

Around 10.30pm, one of my pals texted me to say she’d had to wait 45 minutes to get her first drink at the ‘cocktail’ do, so I had made the right decision to stay indoors with my buddy Mr. Jim Beam.

Hence today, indolence.

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But no sunshine to bathe in. 

 

Mirror, Mirror…? My Heart Goes Out To Emily!

It’s a bright morning, but it IS morning, third black coffee so far, so nothing too serious to start.

I had quite a few nights in last week, a tad tedious but a fantastic way to save money. 

But most weeks I get out and about, and that oftimes begets a tough exercise in coming to terms with reality when I rise for brunch and take a gander at the tell-tale mirror.

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So, quite contrary to my headline above, my heart doesn’t REALLY go out too far to Emily.

Actress and model Emily Ratajkowski says her good looks have caused psychological suffering her whole life…

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Actress Emily Ratajkowski: I’m Too Sexy to Land ‘Serious Roles’

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Poor wee lassie! Chivalry requires a compassionate response!

As noted here from time to time, I still have vacancies some mornings for somebody to do my ironing.

Now, Emily, THAT would be a serious, indeed, a demanding role indeed.

If you’re interested in landing it, please use my comments column to get in touch!  

Memories of Scargill’s Red Nazis, As Jakarta Cabbies Run Amok

Officer Down! NUM bootboys attack a fallen cop

………………

Those of you who were in the UK during the marxist-run National Union of Mine-Workers’ violent strike thirty-something years ago must have been as appalled as me to learn of what happened in Jakarta today.

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Who could forget their red fuhrer Scargill’s war against parliamentary democracy?

His hoodlums waged a campaign of vicious intimidation against working miners who defied his bully-boy strategy.

Praise be there was Maggie Thatcher to prevent the triumph of their brutality.

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• 

Who the Hell do these ‘protestors’ think they are?

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• While many of the cabbies involved in the protest demos against their Uber and GoJek compeititors behaved responsibly, others did not. Some thugs in their ranks not only criticised colleagues who exercised their right to work but physically attacked them.

Worse, the louts intimidated passengers.

00000

 Ahok

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Hurray for Governor Ahok, who says he’ll revoke the licenses of cab companies which don’t take stern action against lawless ratbags who engaged in vandalism and forced passengers to get out of the taxis in the middle of the street. One such incident took place on the innercity toll road along Jl. Gatot Subroto outside the House of Representatives in South Jakarta.

So THAT was why one of the people who kept me waiting at Ratu Plaza yesterday smsed to say she was ‘scared!’

Here’s me thinking it was the heavy rain that deterred her from arriving on time. I’m glad I didn’t reproach her when she finally did arrive! 

Taxi drivers were also involved in brawls with Gojek drivers near Jl. Sudirman in Central Jakarta, which brought traffic to a standstill.

I was actually on Sudirman, to and fro, passing the time, awaiting my acquaintance, but saw no signs of this mayhem!

A brawl also took place in front of the State Palace, where taxi drivers were also demonstrating.Hundreds of taxi drivers threw soil and water bottles at Gojek drivers passing the road near the palace. Gojek drivers shouted back at the taxi drivers.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/03/22/ahok-threatens-revoke-permits-companies-whose-cabbies-involved-violence.html

Indonesia’s authorities should emulate the UK’s much-missed Iron Lady when faced with such  disgraceful antics.

Tower of Beer, Unseen in Seminyak!

I keep hearing that Bali’s Seminyak is going ‘downmarket,’ becoming more like Kuta and/or Legian, but since I’m not snobby I went there last time I stopped off in The Isle of The Gods, and happed upon this place, the Aviary Resto. 

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It’s located at Jalan Kayu Aya and if you want to call ahead, the number is(0361) 732512

It’s a pleasant enough place but what made it notable, to me, was one of its menu items, viz.

Tower of Beer, six bottles, Rp.200,000 – in other words, buy five, get one free.

 

 A similar, larger tower, more than six bottles for sure!

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The waiter politely apologised when we ordered said ‘tower,’ saying the beer was available but it had not that day been constructed into a tower. We assured him that, since it was our immediate intention to dismantle the edifice, he need not fear incurring our displeasure.

Oh, yes. Another good thing about the Aviary is – Fish n chips for Rp.45,000.