5 Simple Tips for a Healthier Life

5 Simple Tips for a Healthier Life

Healthier life? Everyone wants it!

Sometimes, we all now what to do in order to stay healthy. Frankly, who doesn’t now the importance of exercise, nutritional food and avoiding stress. Easy to say, but when in comes to implementing it, we always have excuses.

Being a cancer survivor, I have to be extremely careful with my health. Not only that I have to work with the negative side effects of all treatments that I have to go through, including mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy, medicines and more, but also maintain my health in general. It’s not always that easy and most of the time, the only enemy is myself!

But on the positive notes, I do believe that I can do it, or at least, try to do better. And for sure, there’s no harm in inviting others to do the same, right?

So here are 5 super simple tips for a healthier life a la Mama Bo et Obi.

Be happy and be grateful

I keep this mantra inside my heart and my head. That I am happy and I am forever grateful for that! 

Seringkali kita lupa bahwa kita dilimpahi begitu banyak berkah-Nya setiap hari, setiap saat. Aku masih suka berkaca-kaca kalau mengingat betapa aku masih bisa berkumpul dengan orang-orang tercinta, masih bisa ngebolang dengan anak-anak dan suami, masih bisa menikmati indahnya matahari pagi setiap harinya. Dan tidak ada alasan untuk tidak bahagia, apalagi tidak bersyukur dengan semua rahmat-Nya ini.

So please, if you don’t mind, repeat this whenever you can ... I am happy and I am grateful.

Drink plenty of water

This is a very important matter but we tend to forget. I have been trying to make sure that I  drink enough water every day. I bring my water bottle and tumbler everywhere, and I put big bottles in my office, cars and my bed room. 

And now I drink alkaline water most of the time as it works as great detox for me.

I also feel more hydrated and the water tastes good and fresh.

Exercise more and go out, relax!

Oh exercise. I have to admit this is the toughest part. I always find excuses to stop my yoga session, or avoid my static bike, or simply walk 10 thousand steps every day. I'm either too lazy to do thing or just too tired already from work and traveling. Occasionally I swim with my kids and enjoy out time on the beach.

But again, never give up on yourself and I always try to stay active and take fun forms of exercises. Those include long-enough shopping hours, taking the stairs (luckily I have three floors to explore at home).

And another important thing we need to do on regular basis is going out and relaxing!

Going to the beach, picnic, tracking, swimming, or doing whatever makes you relax and happy is highly recommended!

Eat more fresh veggies and fruits

How I love to eat more and more fresh veggies and fruits. The problem is that I’m not always in the position of having them with me. 

We Indonesians love veggies but we always cook them. And they taste good, indeed. And usually, we you eat outside, vegetables will come in the form of sayur asem, sop, lodeh, capcay, aneka tumisan, dan rebusan or steamed veggies. Sometimes they are also mixed in fried rice, fried noddles or even stew. But since they are cooked, the vitamins and important elements contained in them are gone

So, now I try to make sure that fresh veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, kale and more. As for fruits, it’s easier because they are indeed delicious. Obi, my daughter, and I are huge fans of oranges, mangoes, grapes, bananas, apples, pineapples and more.

Sleep enough

Indeed. We all need our sleep and we have to make sure that we sleep for a healthy dose of 8 hours a day. Now the question is.. have we slept enough?

Not in my case, unfortunately.

Sometimes because of the works as well as unnecessary complication from my ‘work’ and ‘dedication’ for my social media accounts. Like it or not, I have to dedicate some parts of my sleeping time to ‘fulfill my obligations’. Not a good habit obviously, but I guess many of you are doing the same thing. I have been trying to manage that and I think I’m progressing on this. I’m quite discipline in ensuring that my beauty, healthy sleep is fulfilled. So perhaps, you should try it too!

So, they are super simple tips you can immediately implement. Good luck with the implementation of it if so you wish. 

Stay happy and healthy!

Home Collection and Beyond

Home collection and beyond...

Tidak terasa tantangan ngeblog  tiap hari #BPN30dayChallenge2018 sudah masuk ke hari 11 ya! 

So proud (and surprised) I still continue submitting my post till now.

Even when I am away from home and now is enjoying my time in the beautiful continent of Africa, I am trying consistently working on my posts. Wish me luck!

So this time, the question is about things or gooda I collect at home.
How I love this question!
Being a hoarder (in a positive way) I certainly have tons of items that I specifically collect as hobbies.
Sebenarnya aku bingung harus mulai dari mana kalau bicara mengenai barang-barang yang saya kumpulkan di rumah. Soalnya banyak banget LOL.
Dan karena pertanyaan ini, jadi ketahuan deh kalau aku memang hoarder berat, alias tukang ngumpulin barang-barang, termasuk yang ngga jelas :).

For sure I love buying purple stuff and all those cute items, be it for me, my kids, or my home. So since most of my stuff are purple, let’s check out what I have been collecting so far.

Souvenirs from countries

I have to admit that I just can't help buying all those cute souvenirs from the cities and countries I have visited. I usually buy t-shirt, shot glass, mug, magnet, post cards, plates, accessories, dolls or toys, and anything unique from that particular place. 

You can imagine how many stuff my family has from our traveling and I haven't really got a chance to display them properly. You know, like in a special commode or closet. I just put them on my side tables and take turn on displaying different items from different countries.

Dinnerwares

I just can’t help it! 
I love cute dinnerware and I do collect them.

It feels good to put all those yummy food on beautiful plates and serve them to your loved ones.

So I have been collecting series of dinnerwares complete with its accessories.

Serving plates, salad plates, bowls, spoons and forks, cheese plates, salt and pepper shakers, and napkin rings are some of the examples of stuff I have for dinnerwares.
It's a bit problematic now as again I need a special place to store them and I haven't got one, not in our new house now.

Books

Obviously, I have tons of them as I really like reading. My family loves reading too so I have tons of books which we bring here and there.
My passion is traveling so I have so many traveling and coffee table books about particular country, city, or culture. We also enjoy sci-fi stories, mystery, cartoon and funny stories. My hubby has a lot of books about photography and I also collect some book on Do-It-Yourself projects. 

Not to mention the magazines. I guess I better stop now :) 

Lipsticks

Lipstick, lipstick, lipstick.
I don't intend to collect them but apparently I have to0 many it has conquered my bedroom and armoire.
Again, I won't say more about it as I think I can make one dedicated post for my lipstick collection.

Now, tell me what you have collected at home!
Do you manage to keep them well?
Will you keep them or you will do something about it?

5 Awesome Books for your Teens

Who loves reading books here?
I do!
And I try to make sure that my family loves them too.

I do have a big collection of books and I have to admit that I do bring them wherever we are moving. So you can imagine those boxes of books I have from places we’ve lived before. When we were in NYC, books were so easy to find and some of the are super cheap, as we can definitely but the second-hand or preloved ones. No wonder we brought back 10 big boxes of books to add to our collection.

And now, allow me to share 5 awesome books for your teens.

Being a mom of 2 teenagers (one is teenager-to-be actually), I’m trying to make sure that they have good quality reading materials at home. Let’s find out what’s on our list.

Harry Potter series

J.K Rowling’s fantastic works are definitely on top of the list!

Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley are three teenagers with out-of-this-world lifetime experience that makes you want to enroll to Hogward School of magic right away. We’re not the only ones being spellbound by their adventures as millions of people are joining the band.

I spent my university years reading the complete series of this book and I keep them all. From the Philosopher’s Stone to Deathly Hollow, I passionately read the stories page by page, trying to relive those scenes in my head, until the movies were out.

Now my kids develop the same habit or reading and bring Potter’s books here and there.

I have the complete collections in English, Bahasa Indonesia and the pictorial series now, although it is only up to the 3rd book, the Prisoner of Azkaban.

The kids enjoy the magical world filled with wizards, creatures and unthinkable imaginations! They also learn many good (and bad) attitudes as well as family values and determination from these books. Have fun exploring the other side and have a magical journey!

Percy Jackson series

Rick Riordan’s wild imagination about the life of demigods ,- that is the children of Gods and humans,- in Half-Blood (now you know why they name it like that) Camp is really fascinating. They do live like us humans and among us as well, but they get this bonus of attracting and engaging monsters (luckily we can not see them thanks to the ‘mist’) who are trying to destroy the world or simply being revengeful. So say hi to centaurs, satyr, nymphs, wind spirits, ghouls, cyclops and of course, the gods and goddesses! Not only that we learn about the names, the characters, the history and myths, as well as those interesting lives of Greek Gods and their complicated affairs (believe me, they ARE complicated), but we also learn about courage, friendship, leadership, perseverance, loyalty and good hearts.

We started reading this as the first book, the Lightning Thief, was listed in Bo’s reading list on the 6th Grade. They even had a special tour to the Met museum, especially the ancient Greek section, to find some artifacts and figures mentioned in the book. It was really fun! I guess starting from there we got hooked by Jackson and friends’ adventures. We now collect and all the complete series, with the final battle of the Last Olympian takes place in New York City!

Riordan has written so many interesting series including the continuation of Percy Jackson’s adventures with the Roman Gods, then another adventure with the Egyptian Gods. Really interesting!

Laura Ingalls series

How I grew up with Laura, Mary, Carry, Grace, Pa, Ma and Jack!

To those born around the same years as I do, Little House on the Prairie or Laura Ingalls Wilder series must ring a bell. Beautifully telling us the stories and adventures of the pioneering family in the early years of the US independence, Laura and her family shared some wonderful family values that they held dear despite the tough and harsh journey they have to go through as they moved around from the Big Woods to DeSmet, where they finally resided.

I wept with them when the whole family was sick and Mary ended up blind or when Charlotte, Laura’s doll was found wasted on the mud by some spoiled girl.

I shared the joy when Laura became a teacher at the very young age and when they diacovered a lovely swimming spot aby the Plum Creek.

And I was curious when they started making snow sugar or smoked beef from Pa’s game.

I also enjoyed reading the Farmer Boy, Laura’s dearest husband childhood story.

My kids showed similar fascination as I introduced that adventurous life of Laura and her family.  I hope they managed to read the complete stories.

The Land of Stories series

Now this is another series you should not miss!

What a twisted plots of all those legendary and classic fairy tales we know since we were kids!
Chris Colfer is a darling genius!

Remember him from Glee TV series? 

Never thought he is a super talented writer as well.

Again we embarked on the journey of this series from Bo’s reading list in the 5th grade. Fascinated by the first book, the Wishing spell, we now have the complete series as well, up to the 6th book. And reading these series is super fun, as it completely changes our perspectives about all those traditional characters in the fairy tales. I don’t wanna spill the beans but apparently villains are not always that bad! So go get the book and prove it yourself ;).

Diary of the Wimpy Kids

I guess this book is famous enough, at least at the US, as I have seen many of the school students reading it at quite a young age. The adventures of Greg Heffley and his brothers, Rodrick and Manny, as well as his best friend, Rowley, are Hilarious. This book is more like an elementary student diary and I like the fact that Jeff Kinney, the author, put so many interesting sketches and hand writing notes in the book. 

Bo et Obi enjoy all those mischievous adventures, but at the end of the day there will be good messages highlighted from all those events. I do enjoy reading it as well so we can diacuss further about the stories and what the kids learn from the stories afterwards. It was certainly a fun experience.

There are so many incredible books out there that you kids may or will definitely enjoy.
Those books will be great gifts as well!
Now...Tell us about your favorite book or books!

What makes you love them?

Mari Bicara tentang 5 Blogger Favoritku

5 favorite bloggers of mine..

First, I have to admit that it is super difficult just to find 5 favorite bloggers of mine!

Why only 5?

10 will be much more helpful LOL

But unfortunately, the question for #BPN30dayChallenge2018 clearly say that I can only choose 5 of my favorite bloggers and talk about them.

Sebenernya ini salah satu pertanyaan sulit menurutku. 
Karena ada begitu banyak blogger keren yang ada di dunia perbloggeran, baik di Indonesia maupun at global level. 
Dan aku tuh punya banyak blogger favorit di berbagai kategori, misalnya untuk urusan resep dan makanan, untuk traveling, untuk fotografi, untuk per-SEO-an dan sebagainya, termasuk untuk yang lucu-lucuan aja. 

Selain itu, kategori blogger favorit juga macam-macam. Ada yang aku suka karena tulisannya, desain blognya, foto-fotonya, warna blognya, meme dan GIF yang dipakai, infografisnya, or yang lain. Ada juga yang aku suka karena suka kasih hadiah dan giveaways. Tuuuh kan, kebayang banyaknya blogger favorit aku.

Sekarang tantangannya adalah menetapkan siapa yang paling favorit. 
Hmmm, bisa ngga ya? Mari kita coba.

So without further a do, let's start with the list.

Oh ya, ini tidak ada urutan terfavorit or yang paling tidak favorit ya karena ke-lima-limanya semua favorit aku.

Theresa Mahoney - theresasmixednuts.com

Theresa is one of my 'first' blogger friend when I moved to NYC.

And just like the name of her blog suggested, her blog is a beautiful melange of super delicious recipes, reviews of various products, gift tips, home decorations, great tips and tricks at home, and more. She always has those wonderful food photos that make me wanna eat them right away. She's a gorgeous mom of two who loves traveling around as well and lately, her feed on her Instagram about her trip to Iceland is awesome!

Walaupun tidak tinggal di New York City, tapi saya belajar banyak tentang aneka budaya dan kebiasaan lokal orang Amerika dari Theresa. Mulai dari makanan, jadwal sekolah, harı libur favorit, musim tercantik, sampai adat membuang sampah. Bener-bener terbantu deeh!

Makanya jangan heran kalau aku tidak pernah absen mampir ke blognya. 
And you know what, Theresa juga ngga pernah absen mampir ke blog aku lho!

Marischka Prudence -  marischkaprudence.blogspot.com

Kalian pasti bisa tebak kenapa aku suka ngintip blognya Pru.
Yuuup indeed, karena banyak banget cerita perjalanan seru yang ditulisnya plus banyak destinasi diving yang suka buat aku mupeng berat. 

Terus terang yang paling menarik buatku ya wisata bawah laut di Indonesia yang cantik ini. Ada banyak destinasi wisata menyelam di indonesia yang belum terjamah dan indahnya bukan main. Pru sangat beruntung sudah sempat mengunjungi tempat-tempat cantik itu.

Selain itu, blog Pru juga banyak berikan tips - tips perjalanan yang asyik dan pastinya bermanfaat banget buat kita yang doyan traveling.
Yang pasti sekarang aku lagi suka dengan rambutnya yang ungu!
I wish I coul do the same LOL.

Shinta Ries - shintaries.com

Nah ini blognya cikgu, alias one of the master of Blogger Perempuan hehehe.

Aku suka main ke blognya Mba Shinta  karena isinya gado-gado. Buat kami yang memilih jalan ‘gado-gado’ alias life style blog, ini salah satu contoh baiknya :).
Aku suka dengan tampilan blognya yang super clean.
Mengusung tema the perks of being a modern mom, Mba Shinta interestingly mixes her daily life and experience as an ultra modern, super busy mom, in various stories.
Walaupun ngga selalu komentar, aku suka baca cerita-cerita seru di sini, terutama seri perjalanan ke India yang buat aku semangat pengen ke sana juga.

And now she has expanded her passion and dreams to create Blogger Perempuan, so that we, Indonesian female bloggers, can soar high together. That is UBER cool!

Chase Jarvis - www.chasejarvis.com/photos/

Pertama tahu fotografer keren ini dari Instagram.
Jadi ceritanya suamiku dan aku suka kepoin IG account yang memang seru-seru, terutama fotografer kelas dunia yang memang hasil fotonya itu bikin kita dumbfounded sangking kerennya. 

Nah salah satunya doi ini... yang sudah traveling around the world dan banyak memotret orang-orang terkenal. Well, kalau aku dan Udi memang senangnya foto-foto yang  humanis dan Chase itu selalu dapet ‘soul’ dari subyek foto yang dia abadikan. Coba intip blognya dan klik foto. Pasti suka deh. 

Huda Kattan / Huda Beauty

Aku agak ragu nih apakah akun Huda yang ada di Instagram bisa dikategorikan mini blog? I guess bisa yaa.. dan aku udah lama bangeet ngefans sama beauty influencer cantik kelahiran AS dan berdarah Iraq ini memulai karirnya sebagai Make-up artist dan blogger plus vlogger dan sekarang sukses dengan bisnis produk-produk kecantikannya. 

Dan sejak pertama coba matte lipstick hasil racikan Huda, aku langsung jatuh cinta.
Her love to bold colors and adventurous shades makes me even love her more!
Yang asyiknya, Huda juga tidak lupa pada kulitnya. 
Lihat deh akun Instagramnya yang banyak dipenuhi apresiasinyabterhadap para fans dan juga MUA berbakat lainnya.
Pokoknya aku cinta berat deh!

Aku sebenarnya masih punya daftar yang panjaaang untuk para blogger keren yang sering aku datangi, baik sebagai silent reader, maupun aktif. Blogger-blogger Indonesia juga banyaaak banget yang keren dan aku senang karena sekarang bisa Belajar lebih banyak lagi dari mereka.

Satu hal yang pasti, semua blogger-blogger keren ini bikin kita tambah semangaaat yaaa  ngeblog yang serius. Karena mereka buktikan bahwa passion dan mimpi besar bisa membawa kita ke tempat-tempat luar biasa dan karir yang gemilang.

Kalau kamu, siapa saja blogger favoritnya?

What's in my bag?

What's in my bag? pic: pixabay

What's in my bag?

Interested to know what are the must-bring items in my bag?

Can you guess what are those?

Here's another interesting question we have for #BNP30dayChallenge 2018

Lima benda yang ada di tasmu.

Apa sajakah itu?

To begin with, I always use big, big bags.

Small bags, unfortunately, do not fit me.

Not only because I have a towering figure (another way of saying obese :)) , but also because I always have a lot of things inside of my bags.

I just don't know why I have so many things inside but those are the things I need on daily basis. And 5 is such a small number in this case.

So, let's see what we have in my bag

SMART PHONE

This is a must! 

Pokoknya ngga bisa deh yang namanya hape ketinggalan.

Well, I don’t want to sound like a gadget freak but every thing is in my amart phone now. Contacts, works, drafts, photos and even my electronic wallet. So you can imagine how important it is LOL. I might forget my wallet or my money I still can tolerate it. But leaving my smart phone? A big No No. Oh, and one more thing, I always bring my phone with its charger and cable. I big package we have here. 

WATER BOTTLE

Stay hydrated is the best option for me who is traveling around on daily basis and mostly in the middle of the day. And Indonesia is hot, hot. Commuting in the middle of the day, even with online transportation and cars, still make me easily thirsty. So, water bottle has to be inside the bag. All the time.

I usually bring my alkaline water feom home and keep some at the office. Nowadays, we have many choices of bottled alkaline water so I’m good.

COSMETIC POUCH

Here is THE most entertaining part of my bag.

Why? Because my cosmetic pouch is like the world of its own.

Pasti tau kaaan Lena-a. Karena memang isinya banyak aja hehehe.

Aku suka masukkan at least 4-6 lipstick at the same time, walaupun ngga semuanya full size karena Aku juga punya banyak yang travel size dan imut gitu. Terus ada bedak, mini perfume, eye liner, eye shadow (mini), highlighter, sisir mini, hand lotion, dan cotton buds plus tapas. Tuuuh..komplit kan hehehe.

Yang ngga ada make-up remover aja, karena akan selalu sabar untuk bebersihan di rumah biar afdoe.

WALLET

Well, wallet is important as I put all my carda in there. I don’t always bring cash but I have all my cards, including my ID, driving license, insurance card, credit cards and more. 

Jadi bukan uang di dompet yang penting, tapi semua kartu identitas yang perlu dibawa setiap saat.

HAND FAN

This is one of the latest addition to my bag.

While in NYC, I never bring hand fan in my bag.

Sejak pindah ke Indonesia, aku sering banget kepanasan hehehe. Yah wajar lah, arena suhunya memang hangat-hangat kuku begitu.

Jadi daripada mati gaya karena kepanasan, kapas di tangan sering beraksi.

Untungnya aku punya beberapa koleksi kipas yang lucu-lucu, jadi seneeeng bawanya.

That's the must-have items in my bag.

What about you?

Benda wajib apa yang harus ada di tasmu? Share yaaa.

See you on the next post..

5 Favorite Restaurants in New York City a la My Purple World

Here comes the review of our favorite restaurants!

Well, as we continue #BPN30dayChallenge2018, day 7 requires your honest reviews about 5 of our favorite restaurants.

I guess I will start with 5 restaurants in New York city then in Indonesia.

Sounds delicious?

Indeed!

Berhubung saya belum banyak mampir ke restoran enak di tanah air, kai ini saya mau menuliskan 5 restaurant favorit saya dan The Frakarsas di New York City. Boleh kan yaaa.. karena memang restorannya asyik-asyik lho.

Let’s start!

The Halal Guys

The best gyro and chicken I have tried. 

Seriously!

And NYC loves it too! 

Whenever I go get it,  there will always be lining up, be it in the after noon, evening, or even midnight.

Let's line up :P

With only $8 for platters of chicken, beef, combo, or falafel and $6 for the sandwiches, surely people love this taste food.

And the taste..it's simply exquisite! I don't think I can do justice in trying to describe the delicious taste of beef and chicken gyro from the Halal Guys.

You can find them on West 53rd st and the 6th Ave.

They also open the restaurant in the 14th and 2nd ave.

Try it if you are happen to be in the Big Apple.

Ravagh Persian Grill

Halal and great taste indeed, that’s the first thing I have in mind when it comes to Ravagh Persian Grill. And the portion is big. No, it's huge! 

I always try the combination grill, with delicious grilled chicken, beef, and lamb in one huge plate. Of course I will not eat them all myself but share tem with othere or take them home.

We usually have 2 plates of rice which you can change or upgrade into sweet and sour one (with Cherry on it) or the one with saffron. The standard one is a plate of Basmati rice, which is alao good because it has low GI.

The desserts are also interesting. Try the traditional ice cream and faloodeeh, then tell me what you think about the taste :)

Blue Box at Tiffany’s

Favorite corner!

Remember Breakfast at Tiffany’s? One of the classic movies I love to watch.

And Tiffany’s itself is a world-famous jeweller, known for its intricate design anda high quality diamonds and gemstones.

And now they have the cafe!

The Blue Box cafe, to be exact.

It's a super cozy cafe indeed! And simply beautiful with blue robin ambience here and there and Tiffany's famous silver and dinnerware :). 

Besides all those top-notch Tiffany's trade mark blue tableware, the ambience, the food and the service is lovely! 

We had to wait a little while although my reservation was for 12.15, but as soon as we got our table we were served right away. We tried the lunch menu and I looooove the mushroom soup! Super tasty! The lobster salad is also fresh and my Emerald as well as NY Cheese Cake is great. 

Happy me :)

They only have breakfast menu, lunch or tea, for a fixed price of USD 29, 39, and 49 respectively. Will try the breakfast and tea menu next time :) 

It's crazy to get the reservation here as it's fully packed all the time but would be happy to come back here again with more friends. I learned the tricks from the Tiffany's staff btw, try it to RSVP slightly after midnight, didn't get the reservation right away but I put the notifications and they send me updates once the tables are available. And I got it after trying it once :)

Ali Baba

Looking for restaurants serving halal food in NYC, particularly Manhattan, can be a bit challenging, if not difficult.

Although we have a , but most of the halal restaurants are located in Queens, in certain areas such as Astoria, Elmhurst and Jamaica.

Turkish pizza, pide :)

But luckily, in Midtown Manhattan, we have one lovely restaurant serving halal food that we love.  Ali Baba Restaurant.

This Turkish restaurant serves a good variety of delicious mediterranean food.

My favourite is chicken adana and chicken kebab, as well as their lentil soup, salad, as well as pidé and cheese roll. Their falafels are also delicious.

Taverna Kyclades

grilled calamari

Last but not least, it's Taverna Kyclades.

Our love for fresh seafood, which reminds us of home, brings us to this famous and most authentic Greek Taverna in Astoria, Queens, NYC, our dearest neighbourhood.

We love all the seafood, starting from grilled and fried calamari, grilled whiting, salmon steak, oyster, crab cake and more!
With super friendly service and a long line, this family restaurant is coined as one of the most authentic Greek restaurants in NYC.
And my family fully supports that!

So, that's 5 favorite restaurant that the Frakarsas often visit and enjoy in NYC.

Do you like any of those restaurants as well?

Which one do you think is your favorite?

Ada apa dengan Bob, PNS, botak, lipstick, dan diving?

"So, people call you Bob ma?
Not Indah?"
Obi, my dear daughter, confronted me with that question when we were on outmr way back home from Gandaria City Mall.
She overheard my old friend, whom I bumped into after dinner at TGIF, called me with my ever-famous nick name from my high school time.
"Why Bob, ma? Are you like a tomboy during your school days, ma?"
More questions were bombarded by here and my hubby just smiled and said “I haven’t heard people call you that for a long time!”.

Mungkin teman-teman yang suka baca blog aku bingung dengan percakapan di atas.
Siapa Bob?
Bob Sadino? Bob Tutupoli? Bob Marley?
Apa hubungannya dengan Mama Bo et Obi?

Di tantangan #BPN30dayChallenge2018 hari ke-6, kita diminta menulis 5 fakta tentang diri kita. Mostly 5 fakta yang teman-teman belum tau.
Pilihan saya adalah Bob, PNS, botak, lipstick addict, dan diving.
Apalagi ini maksudnya?
Keep calm and read on :)

Ada Apa dengan Bob?

Jadi, nama ‘sayang’ yang dikasih teman-teman saya waktu sekolah, persisnya waktu SMA, adalah Bob.
Be Oo Be.
Tau kenapa? Karena rambut panjangku yang gimbal seperti Bob Marley, the famous reggae singer I love. And I happen to remember most of his songs and the lyrics.
Kalau aku pulang ke Lampung, mostly teman-teman sekolahku memanggilku Bob dan aku suka senyum-senyum sendiri.
Banyak cerita saat oku masih dipanggil Bob, termasuk  kisah kasih di SMA.
Bisa-bisa aku tulis satu posting sendiri deeeh LOL.

Ada apa dengan PNS?

Aku seorang Pegawai Negeri Sipil atau PNS lho.
Atau kalau sekarang namanya ASN, Aparatur Sipil Negara.
Walaupun banyak komentar miring tentang PNS atau ASN, saya bangga bisa menjadi punggawa negara tengan segala konsekuensinya.
Ada yang bilang ASN itu kerjanya enak karena datang ke kantor, sarapan, baca surat kabar, makan siang, ngopi, terus pulang.
Well, that's is not the case in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, kantorku tercinta.
Sejak  bergabung tahún 2002, banyak hal penting dan pelajaran bidup yang saya dapatkan. Hingga saat ini, alhamdulillah kami sempat menjalankan tugas Belajar  Magang, dan penempatan di beberapa negara. Satu hal yang pasti, Aku bangga bisa menjadi diplomat yang mewakili Indonesia di berbagai negara maupun Perwakilan organisasi internasional.
Ada yang mau temenin aku jadi PNS?

Ada apa dengan botak?

I used to be bald and I love it!
Ada yang pernah merasakan nikmatnya botak?
Kepala plontos tanpa sehelai rambutpun?
Aku pernah dan sukaaa banget.
Tidak dinyana, aku suka banget saat kepala aku plontos akibat kemoterapi yang harus jalani sebanyak 16 kali. Aku memang seorang penyintas kanker payudara and I'm proud to call myself a fighter, a survivor!
Sekitar 2 tahun aku botak dan betul-betul menikmatinya dan sekarang pun masuk suka tergoda untuk botak lagi.
Boleh kana ya :).

Ada apa dengan lipstik?

Aaah lipstick cintaku. 
Rasanya kalau bicara lipstik I can go on and  on and on and on. Ngga ada matinya pokoknya. Pokoknya petualangan aku dengan aneka macam lipstik dari berbagai warna dan merk benar-benar membuatku sådar kalau aku adalah lipstick addict, if not lipstick hoarder. Nanti deh, aku cerita khusus tentang lipstik. Dan pssst, sekarang aku punya kira-kira 90an lipstik aneka merk dan warna hasil 'menjarah' Sephora, Macy's dan beberapa toko online maupun offline di New York City!

Dan ada apa dengan diving?

And finally, I have to admit I love diving so much!
Sejak 'menyesal' karena baru dapat sertifikat diving di tahun 2011, saya selalu mencoba  untuk mampir ke berbagai tempat yang terkenal karena diving spot mereka. 
Dan bahagianya, Indonesia adalah surga untuk para penyelam.
Karena itu, saat tau akan kembali ke Tanah air, oku pun langsung komunikasi dengan my diving buddies di lampung, my beloved hometown. Cita-cita tuh bisa diving di berbagai spot keren di Indonesia dan dunia, biar ngga kalah dengan #myitchyfeet yang Sudan melanglang buana ke lebih dari 50 negara. So far, Aku baru diving di Indonesia, Amerika Serikat, St. Vincent & the Grenadines plus Grenada di Karibia. Doakan aku bisa lebih sering diving lagi yaaaa.


So, that's the (not so new) 5 facts about me.
Tell me yours so we can get to know one another closer.

Are you a Social Media Freak?

Have you asked yourself this question?
Are you a Social Media freak?

I have!

And surprisingly, the answer to that question is YES.
A big yes!

I don't know whether I have to be sad, afraid, happy or excited about it, but judging from my daily routines and habits, I have to admit that I have spent so much time on this social media accounts of mine! 

At this time, I have been juggling between my Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat and my blog, My Purple World. I used to have Path as well, but now the account is closed. in some of the those platforms, I have more than one accounts. Let alone the office accounts that I have to take care of, for some period of time.

With my family and full time job waiting, you can imagine how crazy it is for me.
And I am exhausted!

Banyak di antara kita yang seringkali tidak sadar telah menjadi 'budak' media sosial dengan segala bentuknya.
Tidak terkecuali saya.
Apalagi saat ini, hampir semua kantor (baca: Kementerian ) menggunakan digital platform dan aktif di berbagai akun media sosial sebagai bagian dari portfolia atau pekerjaan kita. 

Saya pribadi sangat menyukai media sosial. 
Atau mungkin sudah 'kecanduan', kalau kata suamiku. Bagaimana tidak kecanduan kalau pagi bangun tidur langsung pegang hape (tentunya setelah menyelesaikan kewajiban-kewajibanku :)), di sela-sela pekerjaan cek aneka akun media sosial dan malam menjelang tidur pun masih aktif 'merajalela' di platform-platform tersebut.
Parah? 
Pastinya...
Dan semua itu bukan tidak ada konsekuensinya.

Perhatian saya untuk keluarga terpecah, anak-anak dan suami pun kerap protes berat. 
Saya mulai kekurangan waktu untuk istirahat dan beberapa pekerjaan juga tidak selesai pada waktunya. Belum lagi resiko dan bahaya-bahaya akibat perhatian terpecah karena sibuk dengan hape dan tidak memperhatikan jalan atau sekitar saya.

Seringkali saya bertanya dan mencoba jujur pada diri sendiri.
Apa yang sebenarnya saya cari di media sosial?
Pengakuan? senang-senang? pencitraan? hanya mau pamer? menyelesaikan kewajiban? atau menyebarkan pesan baik? bawa manfaat untuk orang-orang? mencari berkah?
Atau semuanya?

I do recognise some benefits I got from social media. 
It's the place where you can learn so many good things as well as explore the world
Social media brings about changes in the world, in your world and the people around you. 
It provides spaces for self-development.
Being part of the world netizen is another rewarding experience as well.
Through social media, we can contribute to the betterment of the world, no matter how small it is.
But of course, social media has many perils we all need to be aware of. 
Bullying, harassment, pornography, illicit and improper materials, gambling,  and more are waiting and lingering at the corner.

Then, the best thing to work on it is FIND THE BALANCE.
How we can properly measure the benefits of social media without being drawn to its negative consequences.
Saya yang sudah mulai menunjukkan tanda-tanda kecanduan media sosial harus segera mengambil langkah agar tidak menjadi 'budak' digital.
So, I gotta to do something about it!
And I have to do it NOW!

Ada beberapa hal sederhana yang saya lakukan untuk mengatasi hal ini.
Mau tau apa saja? Simak tips sederhana dari Mama Bo et Obi berikut ini.

1. ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU DO FACE PROBLEM WITH IT

Pertama kita harus mengakui bahwa kita memang menghadapi masalah dengan segala media sosial itu. Terkadang kita tidak sadar kalau kita sudah sampai pada tahap kecanduan dan harus segera berhenti. Kalau tidak sadar kalau kita menghadapi masalah, bagaimana kita mau mengatasinya?  So, for me, this is the first step to overcome my problems. Saat saya kewalahan dengan semua ini, saya tau saya harus berhenti 

2. KNOW WHEN TO STOP AND SELF DISCIPLINE IS A MUST

Ini salah satu hal penting yang kerap saya tekankan pada diri sendiri. 
Saya harus tau kapan harus berhenti.
No is a no...dan itu artinya saya harus jujur pada diri sendiri kalau memang sudah kewalahan dan stop. 
Ketika semua aktivitas saya di media sosial ternyata sangat overwhelming, saya harus camkan pada diri sendiri batasan yang sesuai dengan kemampuan diri.
In this case, self discipline is a must!

5. ASK HELP FROM OTHERS 

Jangan lupa, kalau memang tidak mampu mengatasi hal ini, minta tolong dengan orang lain. Saat saya sudah kewalahan dengan segala urusan media sosial dan mengeluh, suami saya biasanya akan membantu. Well, he needs to help me otherwise he will pay some consequences as well. So once you need to get some help from others, don't hesitate.

5. PUT YOUR GADGETS AWAY DAN BE CONFIDENT 

Ini yang paling penting.
Jauhkan gawaimu dan istirahat sejenak.
Saya sekarang sangat menikmati saat-saat santai ngobrol dengan suami dan anak-anak, tanpa gangguan berbagai media sosial.
Dan yakinlah, semua itu jadi lebih menyenangkan.

Itu sedikit tips dari aku untuk mengatasi 'kecanduan' pada media sosial.
Do you have some tips to share?