End of Blogtober 2022

We made it. It's the last day of October. Oh my gosh hahaha. We did it....! 

Not. Well I actually ended up doing 7 posts on Saturday/Sunday. I can't do this daily man, it's a torture haha. Especially towards the end of the month where I get even more busy.

I just looked at the number of posts of my blog. And wow can't believe we're about 200 posts away to 2000! I suddenly have an idea about next year. Which is actually the 15th year that I will be "blogging". Even though the past 2 years I haven't been blogging often heh. But yeah. Maybe I can do it. 

The thing is I kinda enjoy this year's blogtober. Somehow it reminds me of my old blogging days. You know like when you just post about random photos. Or what you eat, or etc. I guess blogging doesn't necessarily have to be some lengthy posts and so on. It can be short ones that you enjoy doing. I'm also thinking of doing blogging prompts. Perhaps doing it together with my Daily Stoic journal.

Alright I guess that's all for this year's Blogtober. I don't want to give you high hopes about next year hah.

Hometown Glory

 One fine Saturday in Sukabumi.

Morning

 One of the perks of waking up early is I get to see blue skies again. And the mounrain.

Walking

Right another habit post! Since today is Friday. Okay this is not exactly a long habit but a new one actually. So recently my uncle and aunt has been doing this meditation exercise and they were recommending me to try and do it. I'm joining it to try and perhaps help with my insomnia. I did it last Sunday and I think I'm going to try to do it every weekend.

The problem is the exercise starts at 7 AM in the morning. And sometimes I find it difficult to wake up (duh!). But the thing is I was thinking of going to sleep at 2/3 AM, waking up at 7, join the exercise and then go back home at 9 and then sleep till 1/2 PM. So all in all I'll still get 7-8 hours of sleep. Back on Sunday I actually managed to sleep when I got home and it was such a deep deep slumber.

But somehow I can't sleep today hah. I ended up doing work until 1 PM and then falling asleep until 3 heh. But yes the sleep after the exercise is very very deep and I enjoy it. I wish I can get this quality of sleep every night haha. 

Back on the technique is called Ba Gua meditation. To me it is essentially walking meditation. And in my opinion walking meditation is one of the hardest to execute actually. Because not only you have to focus on your mind but also your walking. I am still learning about the technique today, my uncle and aunt is a pro already hah. So I'm hoping by continuing to do this weekly, I might improve.

And yeah that's my plan actually. I hope I can join the exercise every weekend. I can't do it on weekdays as I have things to do. And it's not practical to do it. But weekends are fine. I think it's a great thing to do to welcome your weekend with... Walking meditation.

Alright that's all from me again! Talk to you soon. Tomorrow.

Meatless

Indonesian salad

So I looked on my Facbook memories yesterday that back 6 years ago, it was my 300th day of going meatless. Well now... It's been 2100++ days of going meatless. And by sheer coincidence, I was eating the same food today and 6 years ago, where I celebrate my 300 meatless days - Gado gado.

Synchronicity?

Stoic

I think Stoicism is a great philosophy and definitely a way of life. I came across Stoicism a few years ago through Instagram. There are a lot of those quote and philosophy pages on IG and lot of them post about Stoicism. There are quotes by Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and so on. That's when I decided to get myself M. Aurelius' Meditations. Which is a fantastic book everyone should read!

Stoicism really teaches us how to live. I think the main core of the teaching is to really focus on the things we can control. And to really look at things in a practical and realist point of view. To me Stoicism feels like a handbook or a guidebook for a realist. It is a way to learn about how to live a more peaceful life? But the thing is I learned that it is difficult but not impossible hah.

I see a lot of mirroring and reflection between Stoicism and Buddhism. This is why I love the teachings. It's like I can see Stoicism in Buddhism and vice versa. 

In one way I feel like learning more about Stoicism has taught me how to become calmer and more peaceful and more practical. I think both Buddhism and Stoicism has a common enemy and that's our ego. But I don't think there's a specific word for ego in Stoicism. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Even the core philosophy of memento mori and amor fati is in line with Buddhism's Anicca (Impermanence) and Anatta (Non-self). That everything is impermament, and everything is marked with emptiness. There is a book about the similarities between Buddhism and and Stoicism and I think I should read that! There are a lot of videos discussing about Stoicism on YouTube too.

Alright I guess that's all for now. I think I need to really sit down and plan on what to write about Stoicism, if I want to write it well. Currently I'm just blabbering hah.

Daily Stoic

 Right talking about new habits, I have a new one since July. 

So one of my resolutions for 2022 is to actually learn more about Stoicism. Last year I finished reading Marcus Aurelius' Meditations and to be it's such an enlightening book. Ever since then I've been more interested to learn more about Stoicism. Actually I've been interested in it, that's why I got myself Meditations. So this year I decided to get myself the book "Daily Stoic" by Ryan Holiday!

It is basically a book with 366 daily Stoicism wisdom. I also got myself the Daily Stoic Journal, which is basically a 366 journal with daily prompts. I know I don't really like writing everyday but I decided to challenge myself this time round. Okay the thing is I ordered the book back in November I think? I was hoping that it'll arrive in January/Mid January ish as it takes 30-40 business day. And then like spam-journal for 11 days or so but... The journal arrived in March hah.

So I decided to do it in July as to celebrate me turning 30 hah. I've been doing it for 100 days now!

It's been going well so far. I usually journal 2 entries in one go (2 days once). I feel like it's a great daily exercise to talk about your mind, and to really give you space to ponder about life and its shenanigans. Okay maybe I should talk about Stoicism on another separate post!

But basically yes, it's a great new habit that I have been doing and it's awesome. 

See you tomorrow as we talk about Stoicism heh.

House of The Dragon

Okay I just finished watching the season finale of HOTD and oh my goodness it's... Depressing.

I will not post spoiler but it's depressing. Not because it's horrible but the episode is just sad in general! And it's even more depressing when we think that we need to wait for 2 more years (or one year plus) for the next season. But nevertheless I think the ending scene is well executed. It's silent, yet deafening. And Rhaenyra's emotion said it all in the end. I can't wait for HOTD 2!

I think HOTD is a great series overall. It's definitely worth the 3 year wait since GOT S8 last aired in 2019. I think we're in for a treat! Apparently there's gonna be 4 seasons, as suggested by GRRM. So I hope the show runners are going to heed his advice yeah. 

Alright that's all from me now. Let the 2 year wait begin.

Week 4

Okay so this is the last week of Blogtober. I seriously don't know what to write anymore! Haha. Okay I do have an idea though. I'm just going to update you with what I have been doing so far. I do have new habits actually! So I think I'm going to talk about that. Also my plans.

To be honest Blogtober is easier when you haven't blogged for two months HAHAHA. You have idea of what to write and I think that's great. I don't have to squeeze my brain to think of what to write. I guess this is how content creation work? You plan of what you're gonna make and then you just make a schedule of when you're going to post it. No wonder these content creators have schedules to shoot and stuff.

But no I'm not a content creator hah.

Alright lets go week 4!

The Rings of Power

Alright here we are now, I will talk about my thoughts about the series in general!

All in all I think TROP is a great series! As you can see in the past 4 posts, I love the script. I think it's amazing, I love the quotes by the characters. I love the chemistry of the characters as well. The cinematography is also very LOTR-ish. The sceneries and the camera work is amazing. Okay there are some cheesy scenes and kinda bad CGI but to me it's okay. It's not some dire thing

I think we can all say that there's a lot of (unnecessary) controversy to this series. From the casting of people of colours, to "not following the lore" and so on. First of all, I'm not a Tolkien scholar and neither do I read the books. But seriously? People are actually unhappy that there are actors of colour in this series? Like what? That is so ridiculous. I mean what is wrong with that?!

And the crazy part is that these actors actually receive harassments online. Why do we make it such a big deal is something I really cannot comprehend. It's a fantasy series in the end.

On another note, this series has made me feel like reading the books! Okay not the trilogy or The Hobits but other works by Tolkien like The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales. Thanks to a wonderful TROP community on Twitter, I do have some recommended books to read. 

I think I will begin with The Silmarillion. 

It's so weird to no longer have something to watch to on Friday nights haha. And it's also tormentous to have to wait another 2 years (according to a news article I read) for the next season. But we're going to have 5 seasons so it's great! I hope the series will end with the war of the last alliance.

Alright I guess that's all for this week's theme! I'm thinking of what to write for next week hah.

Powers

Right last one of the quotes. This is from Episode 7 and 8!

From Episode 7, between Galadriel and Theo 

"There are powers beyond darkness at work in this world
Perhaps on days such as this we've little choice but to trust to their designs
And surrender our own"

- Galadriel

From Episode 8, between The Wizard and Nori

"Betimes, our paths are laid before us by powers greater than our own
In those moments it's our task to make our feet go where our hearts wish not to tread 
No matter the perils awaiting us on the way"

- The Wizard / Istar

Small Passing Thing

This was from Episode 6, from Bronwyn and Theo

"In the end, this shadow is but a small and passing thing
There is light and high beauty forever beyond its reach.
Find the light, and the shadow will not find you/"

-Bronwyn

This Wandering Day

 

This is such a wonderful wonderful song! I really love this song and the lyrics, oh my goodness it's so beautiful and touching. I really love the homage to Tolkien here. And also the scene of this song in the series is incredible. Anyway here's the lyrics to this wanderful song! #punintended

This Wandering Day
by Bear McCreary and Megan Richards

The sun is fast fallin' beneath trees of stone
The light in the tower, no longer my home
Past eyes of pale fire, black sand for my bed
I trade all I've known for the unknown ahead

Call to me, call to me lands far away
For I must now wander this wandering day
Away I must wander this wandering day

Of drink I have little and food I have less
My strength tells me, "No", but the path demands, "Yes"
My legs are so short and the way is so long
I've no rest nor comfort, no comfort but song

Sing to me, sing to me lands far away
Oh, rise up and guide me this wandering day
Please, promise to find me this wandering day

At last comes their answer through cold and through frost
That not all who wonder or wander are lost
No matter the sorrow, no matter the cost
That not all who wonder or wander are lost

Hope

Okay for the next 4 days, I will be sharing my favourite quotes from Amazon Prime's The Rings of Power. Then I will talk about the show as it just ended last Friday. 

Let begin with the first one from Episode 5. The scene between Gil Galad and Elrond

"Hope is never mere, Elrond.
Even when it is meager.

When all other senses sleep,
the eye of hope is first to awaken, 
last to shut"

- Gil Galad

Dragons

Okay maybe I will begin the week with my thoughts on House of The Dragon (HOTD).

So HOTD is based on the story of House Targaryen. It's a prequel that dates back a hundred years plus before the events on Game of Thrones. We've been blessed so far with 9 episodes (I just watched the latest episode and it's epic!!!) and it's been a wonderful ride thus far. To me I feel like it's so worth the 3 year GOT hiatus since 2019. And the show has been incredible so far!

First of all I love the casting. Whoever is in the casting department deserves an award (if there's such award). The potrayal of young Rhaenyra and Alicent by Milly and Emily, and the older ones by Emma and Olivia is incredible. They're all such wonderful actors! I hope they win some award. 

But of all of the actors I really really think Paddy Considine should win an award for his portrayal of King Viserys. If he doesn't win an award next year, we will have a rebellion from the realm! Haha

Not only that the cinematography and CGI is also amazing. We're blessed with so many dragons (duh it's HOTD haha) and it's great! I also think the pacing of the series is alright. Some people are saying they're too slow paced but after all, there's gonna be 4 seasons so they have to pace things out.

It's going to be the season finale next Monday and I'm excited. 

Not so excited about the 2 year wait tho. 

Week 3

Alright it's the dawn of a new week and for this week I will be going into a theme of... Movies! Okay not exactly movies but more of series? Haha. As mentioned in my earlier post, I've been watching two series for the past 2 months: It's HBO's House of The Dragon and Amazon Prime's The Rings of Power!

The premiered around the same time (one week difference) and it's been a wonderful journey so far. TROP just finished their first season last Friday. It's so sad, there's no more TROP next week haha. HOTD has 2 more episodes to go and it's also sad, we'll have to wait for I think 2 more years before the next season! Gosh it's too long haha. But then again, the past 2 years felt like 2 decades so hopefully the next 2 years will feel like... 2 years heh.

So this week I will just be sharing my thoughts on these two series on different days. It's gonna be an easy week, I will be sharing mainly quotes I came across with in the show. Especially TROP!

Okay stick tight.

OMAD

Okay this is not really food related but more of diet related. I don't think I've talked about this in my blog before so here goes! So one new habit that I adapted in 2022 is... Okay you can call it intermittent fasting, 2MAD or more. But okay here goes the story.

Back in March, I was so shocked to find out that I am 97kg! Yes, 3 more kg to a hundred haha. Okay well it was quite my fault. Back in February-March I was cooking a lot. And trying lots of different recipes that involve... Noodles. I also ate lots of junk food haha. I didn't exercise a lot back then, I was just doing light weight exercises haha. So it was no wonder that I gained that much weight (from 92 kg).

I also happen to chance upon some articles on Intermittent Fasting (IF) and also... The OMAD diet, AKA One Meal A Day diet. Basically the rule is simple, you just eat one meal every 24 hours. I decided to give it a try in April! Happened to coincide with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadhan too so it's a good time I guess. I chose dinner for my meal. So I don't eat breakfast and lunch. Basically no calories enter my body in 24 hours. I do drink tea and water, and also take my vitamins.

Okay the first three days were really tough. First day was okay, I think it's the excitement/adrenaline. On the 2nd and 3rd day the temptation started kicking in haha.. In the evening/late afternoon my mouth has been "itching" to eat something. A snack, a cracker, and so on. But I pushed on. By the first week I actually lost 2kg. Pretty happy with the result. So I continued on.

2nd week was... Tougher! Hahaha. But I already got used to it so it wasn't that bad. By the end of the 2nd week I lost another 2kg. I was 94 back then so I tried to kick some slack on the 3rd week. I changed my diet to OMOSAD. One Meal One Snack A Day diet HAHAHA. At 5-6 PM ish I gave myself some snack. Back then I chose healthy snacks to munch on like nuts, or sometimes I'll just eat some tofu and tempe haha. Basically some small bites to feed my "mouth itchiness". 

By the 4th week I still stick to this plan. And in total I lost.... 7 kg in the end! But my weight floats on 90-91kg ish. And after April, I decided to adapt a 2MAD diet. 2 Meals A Day. Usually I skip breakfast. So I will fast for about 18 hours before my next meal. And it's been.... 6 months now? I still maintain my weight. Okay I do have to admit I need to exercise more. As now my weight has plateaued. The key is calorie deficit. And my body is definitely not doing that now.

Okay I'm not a dietary expert so I do not recommend this to everyone. If you want to give it a try, please do consider your daily activities, your food intake and so on. Don't just do it blindly! 

To me the most incredible lesson I learned from this experience is just that.. I am amazed by the human body. Like as a foodie, I didn't know I can survive for a month on one meal a day. I guess it's the power of the human body. It's also the power of the human mind. You just gotta push. 

For now I do 2MAD and also one OMAD day a week. I read that it's actually good to fast once in a while. So sometimes I would do OMAD in one day of the week. Usually it's Saturday for me. Or just a random weekday. I might also consider doing one full OMAD month every Ramadhan. 

Alright I guess that's all from me now! If you want you can give this a try :D

Buying Time (2)

Vegan egg tart anyone? 

Okay this is sort of a continuation from yesterday's post, but also a very random one. I recently discovered this shop on Instagram who... Sells vegan egg tarts!!! I'm so shooketh haha. They're called Bake and Grind and they also sell a few other baked goods. I decided to try their egg tarts and also their macaroni schotel and oh my goodness they're delicious! 

Macaroni schotel

I think the most mind blowing food is their macaroni schotel and egg tart. The macaroni schotel is super real. Like... If they don't use eggs then what did they use?! The only difference in taste is that they don't have the eggy taste. As for the rest, it's really good. So delicious. Will definitely repeat order!

Buying Time

Okay this is another food related post but also something else that I want to talk about.

So this is a curry rice I made one night, using Japanese instant curry paste. And I wanted to add like a patty inside, you know like those Japanese curry rice with katsu on it. For the "katsu" I used Green Rebel's mushroom patty, which is one of my favourite products from them!

Oh yes Green Rebel is an Indonesian brand that sells alternative protein. They're truly vegan and vegetarian saviour haha. I love most of their products, but sadly they're not available in my hometown so I usually get them when I'm in Jakarta/Bandung. They sell a range of products from ready to eat meals, and also like chick'n karage, beefless steak and my favourite mushroom patty. To be honest I'm very proud of them as they're a local brand but now they've went international! 

SG and Malaysia friends you can find them in selected supermarkets I think.

Alright moving to on to the next topic. I once read an article... Or was it a video I forgot. But basically they're asking, what is the best thing you can spend your money on? Some people answer with experience, some with luxury (as it's something exclusive). But the most interesting answer I see is... 

Time. 

The person goes to explain that you can spend your money on time. For example, when you buy food in a restaurant/through a delivery app, you're saving time. When you use a delivery service (Gojek/Grab etc), you're buying time. When you hire a cleaner/house maker, you're buying time. And I thought that's an interesting concept. And I think innovation and technology has enabled us to do this.

Many people would say that we can't buy time. But ever since I come across this article, it really got me thinking. Some people also say things like instant food is not real food, or that we should cook food from scratch. But I guess it all depends and goes back to the different individual. To some of us, we really don't have the time to cook from scratch. So we opt for the instant route.

So yeah maybe we are able to buy time after all. Not literally of course. 

Falafel

Falafel, tahini sauce, hummus over brown rice.

Falafel is one of my favourite middle-eastern foods. It is a simple dish, yet delicious, hearty and nutritious too! It's high in protein, so that's a great source for us vegans haha. Well I've never tried making my own falafel as ahem ahem I'm too lazy to make one haha. Also I don't have a food processor to blend all those chickpeas. And sometimes I'm afraid that I won't flavour them well.

Last year I came across Falafel Plate on Instagram. They're a shop selling frozen ready-to-make falafel and recently they sell their hummus too. It's a family recipe and it's so yummy! The falafel comes in a paste form, so all you have to do is to form them into balls and cook them. It's very easy and hassle-free, and thank goodness Paxel is now available in my hometown, so they can send it within one day.

Oh yes Paxel is a delivery service where you're guaranteed a one-day delivery. I think some cities cater same day delivery. They're famous for food delivery, especially for shops who are out of town. So if my parcel is delivered on Thursday, they will arrive on Friday. And I think they have frozen storage too. Cause whenever I receive my packet, they're always cold. or sometimes still frozen!

Falafel plate also sells hummus and tahini paste. And gosh I've been obsessed with tahini ever since I bought it from them haha. I didn't know it's such a versatile ingredient. You can make sauces, salad dressing and even like sauces for noodles. I haven't tried the later but I've been making my own "white sauce" (like the Halal Guys) with tahini. Which is is just tahini, lemon juice, sugar, salt and water. It is so creamy and very addictive! I also made some salad dressing with it.

Alright that's all for today. If you're in Indonesia you should give em a try! :D

Pasta!

As a vegan, pasta is a staple for all of us. I mean most of it is vegan, especially the dry ones. And it is also very easy to cook! Most of the vegan pasta recipes out there are cream-based ones or tomato based ones. Personally I don't like them as I prefer pasta that's light. Like Aglio e olio! Which is a vegan cult-classic, and it's a dish I always cook, especially when there's no food at home.

Aglio e Olio

You just need garlic, chili flakes, salt, pepper. And recently I discover adding herbs and spices helps to elevate the dish too. Not sure if this is a secret anymore but please add some pasta water. Also this is a random fact but back last month I found 3 packs of spaghetti that were expiring at the end of September. So I did the right thing to do. I made Aglio e Olio once a week hahaha.

Vodka, cream, tomato paste

Back for my birthday my sister bought me... A vodka tower for my present. I couldn't possibly finish everything and when I think of other uses for vodka... I can only think of one thing: Penne alla Vodka! Well I didn't have penne back then so I used fusilli instead. Very easy recipe too, I search them on YouTube. Stir fry some onion in olive oil, add a bit of vodka, burn off the alcohol, add tomato paste and mix in the cream (I used soy cream). Add seasoning and voila!

Fusilli Alla Vodka I guess

If you like it spicy you can add some chili flakes into the tomato paste too. It's quite nice and heaty. Before eating I top it off with some nooch AKA nutritional yeast. Since I can't eat cheese. Overall I think it's a hearty dish and it just warms your heart! In the beginning I don't really know what's the purpose of the vodka for heh. So I did make an experiment where I made another batch but using the pasta water only, instead of vodka. And I discovered the difference!

I find that the original recipe with vodka tastes more creamy. Like the sauce is more luscious and thick and yum. The one with pasta water tastes very... "Empty". That's one way to put it.

Well alright that's all for today's post. I hope you can give this recipe a try <3

Theme

So last week has made me think of something for Blogtober... How about we do a weekly theme to this year's Blogtober! Last week was about self sustenance, which is derived from a very random post about the rain hah. So yes I'm thinking of continuing it with this week. And this week's theme is...

Food.

Okay so well I've actually been cooking a lot lately. Not very often like everyday kind, but once a week I guess? Really depends on the food available at home haha. Also I think it's quite fun to cook, and therapeutic at times. Although to be honest I'm rather busy so most of the dishes I cook are pretty simple and straightforward. Pasta, and also err.... Instant food HAHAHA. Okay more of that this week,

Oh yes which also reminds me I think I should talk about my OMAD journey. I don't think I talked about this here. That's one for the list as well. Oh yes OMAD = One Meal A Day.

Alright today's just a review on this week's post. I will talk about food this week! See you

Ginger Bug Adventure

With the ginger bug, you can actually make a lot of drinks and experiment with it! I did read up online about the kind of drinks you can make with it. So here are a few drinks that I made with my ginger bug, my rating and also my thoughts about it. And some additional info about this whole experience!

Also sorry no photos, I'm too lazy to upload them one by one here haha.

#1 - Kunyit Asem and Jahe Merah + Ginger bug
This is actually an Indonesian traditional drink. Kunyit asem is a turmeric and tamarind drink, and jahe merah is... Red ginger? It's a ginger and brown sugar drink. So I ordered them from someone in my hometown and then added my ginger bug in them. According to my ginger beer recipe. Taste wise, it's 8/10 but fermentation wise... It's 4/10. By the 4th day, there's some Kahm's yeast growing on top of the turmeric beer haha. Not sure if it's Kahm's yeast or... Mould. But I'm still alive so all's good.

I did read once, I think, that there's more yeast in turmeric and tamarind. And also they use gula Jawa, or Javanese brown sugar. The sugar is usually wrapped in banana leaves/hang outside. So I think they might carry more yeast too. So yeah that should explain the extra growth hah. As for the ginger drink, I think I over-ferment it to an extent that it becomes sour. Almost taste like kombucha!

#2 - Naturally carbonated fruit sodas
This is very easy to make and also the best tasting ones haha, rating it 10/10! I just bought some store-bought fruit juices. I chose apple and blueberry juice. And then used the same recipe. It tastes really good and refreshing! However somehow it took longer for it to ferment and to fizz. Also do take note you can't use juices with weird preservative names. Like sodium ascorbate etc. And it might hamper with the yeast growth during the fermentation. Mine was safe I guess.

#3 - Pineapple Juice
This is kind of a success and fail. It does fizz, but I think I once again over-ferment it as it turns into a sour drink. It's so sour that once again, it almost tastes like pineapple cider haha. I might give it more sugar in the future. Giving this a rating of 7/10.

Okay there are a few additions that I did in making these drinks. I added extra sugar, as I don't want the yeast to eat up all the sugar of the original drink. The sugar will help to boost fermentation I suppose.

There are also times where I failed in making some drinks. For example I made some last month in September, and I actually made 4 bottles as I was planning to give it to my cousins to try. However, it didn't fizz in time for Mid-Autumn prayers :/ In fact I was fermenting it for almost 10 days but there's very little fizz. Upon some investigation, I come up with two conclusions.

I think weather plays a huge role. During this time it was raining everyday, and the temperature was colder than usual. So it might take longer for the ginger beer to ferment. Secondly, I think I used too many ginger. As mentioned in the previous post, I didn't use exact measurements heh. I added more ginger than usual as I was thinking that I'm going to need more for 4 bottles of ginger beer. But alas, ginger has some anti-fungal properties. So... Perhaps I might kill some yeast in the drink heh.

It's been a fun ride and adventure so far, making my own drinks! Somehow it feels more rewarding to make your own stuff haha. And cheaper too. Yes it takes a lot of time. But it's worth it I guess. Usually I will start making my ginger bug on Saturday/Sunday. And then I'll make the drinks on Wednesday, let it ferment until Saturday/Sunday again, and enjoy it for the week. I read up online that it's good to drink these fermented drink after you wake up on an empty stomach. And I've been doing that!

Well I don't feel any major difference, but my gut bacteria sure will! Also one observation I find is... I have less pimples on my face somehow. I'm not sure if this has something to do with this habit.

Alright that's all from me, for this ginger beer adventure! I will update you if I make more new drinks!

Ginger Beer

Ginger beer anyone?

Right, continuing with the theme of  self-sustenance, I shall talk about my ginger beer journey today! So the story began back in July. While in Jakarta I got myself my favourite Bundaberg ginger beer. And I was wondering if I can actually make my own, since it's so difficult to get it (can't find it here in my hometown). I searched some recipe and I decided to follow Joshua Weissman's recipe on YouTube!

My ginger bug (do not throw away)
Oh yes cover the bottle with a cloth/tissue paper and rubber band, don't cover it tight!

So to make your ginger beer, you need to make a ginger bug first. Basically it's like the starter of your ginger beer. It is a very straightforward and easy step. 500ml of water, two tablespoons of ginger and sugar each. Add the ginger and sugar every 24 hours for the next 3 days or so. A bit of warning, as a true blue Southeast Asian I just use our agaration method. I don't follow exact measurements hah.

My ginger bug is aliiiive

After 3 days the ginger bug turns to be very bubbly and kinda frothy. It smells very yeasty too. Reminds me of beer. After the ginger bug is ready we'll start to make our "ginger tea". Which is basically 2 litres of water, ginger and sugar. Once again, I use agaration for everything. I added extra sugar as compared to the recipe as I find it not sweet enough heh. Then cool the ginger tea. This is very important! If the tea is still hot, or even warm, you might kill the yeast in the ginger bug.

My ginger tea. Remember to cool it down!

Once it's cooled down, add half a cup of ginger bug. Close the bottle cap, and leave it in room temperature, away from sunlight, for about 3 days. It is also important to open your bottle once every 24 hours, if not the bottle might explode! My ginger beer was ready in about 72 hours. 

Leave it out for 3 days, opening once every 24 hours

You know it's ready when the ginger beer is fizzy and there's a gas buildup in the bottle. AKA the bottle pops when you open it. Then cool it in the fridge, and it's ready!

Personally I think this is a great and easy recipe to follow (thanks Joshua!). However there are some variations that might affect your results. Which I will cover in the next post haha. Alright I guess that's all from me now. I hope you can give thisva try and make your own ginger beer too! See you tomorrow.

Growing Our Own

Okay continuing from yesterday's post. A few months ago I discovered Alessandro AKA Spicy Moustache on Instagram. I was so fascinated by his work! His videos and posts are super informative, easy to follow, and very creative too! And he really inspires me to try and self-sustain myself.

Which brings me to my next point. So this is really random but last night I was meditating when I suddenly come across the thought of... Turning my room-top (I have space on top of my room hah) into a small veggie garden! I was just thinking of growing a few vegetable crops like tomatoes, cucumbers, long beans and so on. Cause right now there's no space at home to grow them haha.

I'm thinking of starting small, who knows my "garden" will be as bountiful as Alessandro's haha.

I think he's really awesome as he's inspiring other people to turn their backyard, front yard etc into a small farm and hopefully we can all learn to self-sustain ourselves in one way or another. And to be honest the idea of self-sustenance might be possible. If we all turn every space we have possible into a productive one. And of course with a bit of compassion, we can share with others!

Now... I just need to find a time to start my project heh. Wish me luck! 

Rain

It's been raining crazily this past few weeks. It's always a sunny noon, followed by a medium-heavy rain in the afternoon/evening time. The weather has been rather erratic this year. I was reading last year that we're going to face El Nino this year but nope. In fact I think 2022 has been one of the wettest year in recent years. If we're already entering the rainy season back in September, then... This is the year with the shortest dry period ever. I guess climate change is real huh.

I'm not mad at the wet weather. Wet weather would mean that the farmers will be able to plant, as they don't have to worry about not having enough water for their crops. But at the same time this would give a snowball effect where we'll have an abundant supply of vegetables, which will result in prices crashing. Just 2 weeks ago, we were harvesting chilies at a great price. Now, it crashed by 70%!

You know I often feel... Sad and weirded out. How in the past people would plant according to the seasons. They know when, and what to plant. But now I think this is getting more and more impossible. The weather is getting pretty much unpredictable and sometimes, catastrophic. We have flash floods, and extreme winds and so on. So sometimes I wonder if we're ready to face the future?

I read an article once where it says that in 2050, the earth will not have any arable land anymore. This is if we fail to thwart the destructive forces of climate change. I wonder, how are we going to face the future? Will there be enough food for everyone? How are we going to grow enough food?

While innovations are growing each year, with technologies such as urban farming, and high-tech farming (where we can grow crops in the desert etc), the next question I'm pondering is if we'll be quick enough to adapt to these measures. Or are we just going to leave many people behind.

The future looks bleak but... I have hopes.

That Was A Day

 

Alright I'm going to post about music today!

So recently, I discovered this video on my YouTube homepage. I gave it a play and when I heard the vocals I was like... Is that Tom from PREP? And when I saw his face I was like yes that's him! Hahaha. It was such a delightful surprise to discover this song and his band!

I know Tom sings in some DnB songs, I didn't know about this project! I downloaded the songs from Bandcamp right away and I really love the album. Sadly it is not available in Spotify Indonesia. But nevertheless it's a great album! What a great discovery indeed :D

Awakening

So during the concert, JSJG performed a song that I heard for the first time. I didn't know the title of the song and asked Imee on Facebook. She said that the song is titled Awakening, and it's not recorded yet. They are just bringing the song live in their concerts. I decided to search on YouTube and discovered some videos of the song's performance. Thanks to Imee's "Sadhu for The Music" concert on YouTube, I found the lyrics to the song and oh my Buddha, it's so beautiful and amazing.

I'm just going to put it right here!

人生如梦 光阴似水 心念如电 烦恼如风

刹那不住 它是无常 它是苦聚 它是空性

它是无我 不足依恋 不足挂怀 只要放下

Okay let me try to translate the song to my best ability... But it goes something like this.

"Life is like a dream, moments flow like water.
Your emotions/feelings are like lightning/electricity, your troubles are like the wind
Moment/time do not stay. It is impermanent, it is suffering, it is emptiness
it has no self, it does no attach. So don't attach to it, just let go"

Okay I'm not sure if the "moment/time" part is accurate. But from Google Translate, 刹那 means moment. So I take it that it's time/moment. Nevertheless, the lyrics of the song is amazing. And the song is amazing too! Please look it up on YouTube. I hope they will record it and release it soon.

Sound of Peace

Imee Ooi and Kanho Yakushiji, Sound of Peace concert Jakarta

Right lets begin this blogtober with a very late post about a wonderful concert I went to in July!

So back on 23rd July, I finally attended the first live music concert since the pandemic. And I'm grateful that I break this "hiatus" with the beautiful Sound of Peace concert by Imee Ooi and Kanho Yakushiji, and also the JSJG group! I'd say it's a great concert to start from haha. Nice and slow pace. I was a bit apprehensive back then because back in July Indonesia was still in the BA5 wave. I was scared that the concert might get cancelled or something but nope. Everything went well!

I've been listening to Imee Ooi songs since... I don't know, my secondary school days? I think like many other Indonesian Buddhists, we are very familiar with her music especially her famous Chant of Metta. I've been wanting to catch her live! As for Kanho I discovered him back in 2018 I think. I can't remember. But I really love his rendition of the Japanese version of the heart sutra.

When I see the announcement of the show I was so ecstatic! This is such a huge concert where two powerhouses of Buddhist music join forces haha. I went to buy the ticket right away.

Full crew!

Anyway I won't go into details of the concert. It's just a beautiful concert. I feel like my ears, eyes, and heart have been blessed with their music. Especially after such a long long time. The visuals in the background were amazing, accompanying the wonderful music too. Imee's voice is so heavenly and Kanho is also an excellent performer with his band. And a new discovery is the JSJG group!

I'm thankful that I manage to go for the concert. And well, here's to more concerts in the future!

I definitely need to shake off these pandemic fatigue.

Thank you Imee Ooi, Kanho Yakushiji and JSJG for the wonderful concert! 

Hope to see you again soon here in Indonesia. 

Making Plans

Okay maybe I should begin by listing down some of the posts I want to write about.

In no particular order:

- Imee Ooi x Kanho Yakushiji concert in July
- House of The Dragon
- The Ring of Power
- Ginger Beer
- Cooking 
- Music music
- Meditation stuff
- Books
- Journaling
- Poems?
- Random thoughts
- Change
- Looking forward
- More photos
- Random posts

Yeah I guess that's the gist of it. The first on the list will be special! Like gosh I was supposed to write about it back in August and I don't know why I didn't haha. So yes that's coming.

I've been doing a few cooking and experimenting with drinks and stuff too. I will write about it too!

See you soon again.

Hello again

Look who decided to blog after... Two months! HAHAHA. Oh my goodness. I don't know why either. It's so weird cause I was actually planning to go back to blogging after my July posts, as there were things I want to blog about that happened in July. But since I dedicated July to my 30 posts, I was thinking to blog them in August. But hey hey hey it's October now and I don't know where those posts went hah!

That's why I'm thinking since it's October now, maybe it's time to do another round of Blogtober! But this time round it's just... Me updating what's happening in life haha. Sort of a catch-up on the things that have happened in the past 2 months. I won't guarantee that I will blog everyday but I'll try.

But the goal is to have 31 posts by the end of October. You know what I'm trying to mean here.

Anyway yes it's October now. Can you believe it. We're left with three more months to the year and 2023 is dawning upon us. How's everyone's 2022 doing? I hope everyone is doing great. It's been a rather... I don't know how to put it. I don't want to do my yearly review yet I think it's too early haha. But yeah it's been an interesting year. I hope everyone will have a great epilogue to the year.

Alright we'll see how it goes. Here's to an Optimistic, Omnipotent and Onward October!