Nursing corner

Further to the post below. Here is their "nursing room". Don't expect too much. It is actually NOT a room. It is a cubicle with wooden wall and two office chairs behind it! Have you been to the nursing room in Plasa Senayan or PIM? This one here is nowhere near it. Isn't it ironic that you have better nursing room in shopping malls than in hospitals?

And this is the best mother and baby hospital in town!

Stinky hospital

We love this hospital, mostly because it is close by and it has good doctors. But this morning it stinks. As we entered the clinic, we immediately sensed a really bad smell. Obviously somebody just threw up. It's a scent of puke all over. Some visitors were covering their nose. Of course we asked the nurses what had happened (surely it's a puke) and why they had not tried getting rid of the smell (which is very easy; if they wanted to). But this is their response: "Smell? What smell?" Can you believe it? As I'm writing this the smell is still bothering.

And this is the best mother and baby hospital in town!

Good boy don't cry

Alfie has been picking up words and words. He is now able to construct them into meaningful sentences, albeit imperfectly. One thing needs more improvement is his associating English sentences used by his teachers with their true meaning. Apparently context is much more important (or probably easier to comprehend) to a toddler, regardless of the lexicographic meaning, i.e. text attached.

So for example, Alfie's understanding of "good boy don't cry" is "throw it into the trash bin". I notice, whenever we ask him to throw stuff into the bin, he goes "Good boy don't cry". As it turns out, at his school, when anybody (mostly boys) happens to cry, the teacher pulls out tissue paper, wipes his tears, and asks him to throw the tissue paper into the bin. In so doing, she keeps saying (presumably in the attempt to calm down the boy): Good boy don't cry.

Isn't language amazing?

Driving in Jakarta

"Papa, why do we always have this heavy traffic jam?"
"Because this is Jakarta. It's supposed to be busy, crowded and noisy"
"I see. Look, you told me red means stop, but why are those motorists crossing it?"
"They're color-blinded"
"And what's with all this honking?"
"We do that. We're friendly"
"Papa, I love Jakarta"

Is Alfie an anomaly?

We'd been worried that Alfie would show his rejection and jealousy in welcoming his younger brother. Every parents that we met always told us and reminded to 'watch out the big brother' or he would hit or do harmful things to his younger brother, out of jealousy. The fact is, Alfie just loves his brother so much. He actually helps me taking care of Alwyn. "Mom, Alwyn is crying, go nurse him" is just an example.

Today, we just found out another anomaly. We had to take a new nanny for him yesterday. His nanny, who had been taking care of him since he was baby, now changed to taking care of Alwyn -- she is an expert of newborn babies; so we needed a replacement for the now-toddler Alfie. So there we were, picking up the new nanny. Again, we were quite anxious. People had been telling us that toddlers would not let go of their nannies easily. As it turned out, we needed not to be that anxious. It took Alfie only two hours to like her new nanny! We were so relieved...

As I'm writing this the two boys are sleeping already. I thank Alfie for being such a nice boy...

Overthonged Spidey

"Papa, why is Spidey's underwear outside?"
"Ugh, because it is what superheroes do..."
"I want to be a superhero. Can I wear my underwear like that"
"No, not until you can fly"
"Hey, in that case, it wouldn't hurt if I let Spidey wear mine as well, would it? After all, he is a superhero"
"..."

Hulk and Alfie

Alfie's new buddy, The Incredible Hulk

Vulgar Bahasa or Bahasa Vulgar, whatever

I know we have taken this for granted since long time ago. We say "banjir kanal" while what we mean is "kanal banjir" or flood channel (or better yet "saluran air" or water channel). We all know that the right Bahasa Indonesia structure follows noun-adjective or noun-adverb order like that of French and unlike that of English. But of course we have violated this here and there. We see people selling "pisang goreng" or fried banana but the sign on the cart says "goreng pisang".

I guess I shouldn't care too much either.

Baby Barack

The New York Times reported that there has been an increasing number of babies named Barack, after the president elect.

It reminds me of an email from Neil McCulloch over at Sussex some time ago. "How are the boys? Since you name your kids after great economists -- Alfie Marshall and Alwyn Young; would the third be Paul?" The email came a week after Krugman got his Nobel.

Actually I've been thinking of Armand -- after Armen Alchian.

But of course Anna says enough is enough.

Don't underestimate kids

We've been irritated by Alfie's new hobby: fridge inspection. Too bad our fridge comes without lock key. Every now and then Alfie opens the refrigerator and takes stuff out or simply reorganizes the things inside, the way he likes it.

So I came up with this brilliant idea. Put a security mechanism on the door. I bought one of those Japanese made household thingies. Then I put it on.

And it took only 5 minutes for Alfie to figure out how to get around the system. Now, instead of a lock he sees it as yet another new toy...

Greetings from Bogor

Papa, will they destroy this statue? You know I heard they just passed a law that prohibits things like this?

The Gas Chamber

This is actually a class room. It so happened the uni got some funding from State Gas Company. As a token of appreciation, the room is named "Ruang Gas Negara" or literally "state gas room". Which always reminds me of gas chamber in those stories about Auschwitchz...

The Troublemakers

Alfie vs Alwyn (inflation adjusted)

Top: Alwyn, October 26, 2008 (~ 2 months old)
Bottom: Alfie, October 28, 2006 (~ 2 months old)

Alwyn 2 months old

Alfie's favorite Beatle

I just noticed. Alfie's favorite Beatle is that of Ringo Starr. That makes him another non-mainstream Beatlemania. Before in the house there is one. Me, who prefers George Harrison to the other three.

Wishing you a happy 1429th Eid Day

... from all of us.
Anna, Aco, Alfie,Alwyn

For Alfie

Alfie, I apologize that I was mad at you.

You are sleeping now. I am busy reading and sending short messages regarding the Eid Day. When you grow up, you'll understand what that is, the SMS, the Eid Day. But that's beside the point now. I just want to explain that what I did to you, slapping your wrist, was not cool. And I'm sorry. Even more so, as I am watching you sleeping so peacefully.

Once ago, I don't remember exactly when, I told myself that I would follow your grandpa's way: never punish his children physically. I guess I failed today. Yet, to make me feel better, I insisted that it was just the slap-on-the-wrist slap on the wrist. You, on the other hand, were surprised nevertheless and cried "Papa, that hurts!". I admit I was being a bad father who lost his temper. Maybe it was the nanny's absence that made me exhausted and in turn loosing my cool. Maybe it was the culmination of a series: you drew pictures on table, you almost broke a glass plate, you poured water into my laptop. All those finally led to the slap as you were yelling so loudly just an inch from your sleeping baby brother's ear.

While admittedly, these are probably your happiest days: free from the nanny and spending all time with your otherwise office-working parents. You had probably looking forward to a time like this when you could see your papa and mama every minute and second. When you could ask him or her to read any story you like. Or simply to show them how advance you were as a two year old. You, in other words, deserve to be spoiled this week. And I blew it.

I am sorry for two counts. First, for slapping your wrist (and thus ignoring those books' advice of never-slap-your-child-just-talk-to-them). Second, for not being able to tell you my regret directly in words, even though I knew you forgave me right away; as 15 minutes afterward you asked me to read you Clifford -- which in fact amplified my guilty feeling.

So here it is. While everybody is asking forgiveness one another in the eve of the Eid Day, I tender mine especially to you. You would not give a damn to this post of course. But someday you'll read it and know that once when you were two, your father was mad at you, slapped you, then regretted it.

I'm gonna sleep next to you know. So when you woke up, I'll be there telling you what I wrote here in plain words. Of course you (and your mother for that matter) will think I'm nuts. But I'll do it anyway.

Alfie's gig

 

 

Alfie: Hi, I'm Alfie. Mind if I join?
The girl: Not at all. What do you play? I'd like to sing
Alfie: I'll do piano
The girl: Alright. What do we sing?
Alfie: Yellow submarine?

Anna's three boys

or rather: two boys and one shameless older dude...

Doc Oc and Alfie

Anna texted me over to Manila. She was teaching English to Alfie.

Anna: What's this [pointing to a picture of octopus]
Alfie: Ehm... gurita! [that's Indonesian for octopus]
Anna: Yes, it is also octopus
Alfie: No, it's gurita!
Anna: OK. In English it is octopus
Alfie: But Doctor Octopus is in Papa's Spiderman comic!
Anna: ?

Picture taken from Wikipedia

Meet Alwyn

Alwyn

Dear friends,

We're delighted to inform you that Alfie now has a baby brother, Alwyn. He was born Tuesday August 26, 2008 at 0821 am in Bunda Hospital Jakarta. Birthweight is 3.7 kgs and birthlength is 50 cms. (Anna opted for waterbirth and it was cool, by the way).

The name is Alwyn Yang Patunru. Some of you would think I was inspired by the Chicago economist Alwyn Young (whose research on learning by doing I used for my undergraduate thesis). Yes, partly, maybe. But it was also because we wanted a middle name that goes in-sync with Alfie's "Shan". "Yang" (pronounced 'young') means sunny place (as in yin-yang). I was told, it can also mean "mighty".

Alfie is now with his grandma. But from what he sounds over the phone, he seems to have a mixed feeling on Alwyn's presence: a fun buddy but also a competition.

Pictures and all will be posted soon.

Ready to go...

Alfie's looking forward to his cocktail party

Salute to the country

Alfie is saluting the country's 63rd Independence Day. His second birthday is one day after.

Alfie's update

It's been awhile. So many things have developed.

Alfie now has become the most talkative person in the entire house (population size: 4). He even proudly calls himself a "burung beo" (mockingbird), because he picks up on whatever you say. Now he can sing three or four songs from Barney's (usually his memory fails him after halfway through in which case he would mumble some alien words). His favorites include London Bridge is Falling Down and Ring Around the Rosies (is that the correct title?). He has his own version of ABCD song: he goes a-b-c-d in English pronunciation then e-f-g in Indonesian pronunciation, then he deliberately spells the remaining very vaguely to avoid criticism from his parents -- he only makes it clear when it comes to m-m-m-o-p (his version of "l-m-n-o-p"). He can count from 1 to 9 even if the objects are only 3 or 4. And he memorizes TV commercials way better than his mom. For example, he recognizes Indomie Seleraku commercial just by listening to the very first two tones.

He also started to like characters other than Barney's and Tom-and-Jerry: Spiderman, Spongebob, and SBY.

(Not so) Old Man and the sea Boy

"Can't believe we're finally doing this, Pap. I mean, you've been promising me playing kite together like years ago"
"Sorry, Son. I said sorry already, right? And what do you mean 'years ago' you're not even 2 yet. Don't exaggerate. But hey, look at the bright side: here we are walking in a park with a kite. Let's hope the wind is good"
"OK, Pap, but promise me you'll take me swimming after this"
"Errgh, how about next week? Pap has to do some works in the aftern..."
"Oh, c'mon, Papa. It's weekend for god's sakes. What's with all those works? It's not like we're going broke once you skip a work or two, right?"
"Hey, who taught you that? You talk like a grown up"
"Mom"
"Ah, don't listen to your Mom"
"But she's cool, Pap. She just bought me a new pair of shoes. Look at this. Yeah, they're kind of too big, but I don't mind. I can use them longer. You call that 'economics', don't you?"
"Oh, let's not get into that. OK, I promise you we'll go swimming later"
"Thanks, Pap! That's my old man!"
"Shut up"

Lunch, shall we?

Alfie and his buddy, Nathan. Can't wait for the meals.

Update: Alfie's recovered

Thank God Alfie only stayed for three days at the hospital. But that was enough, of course. He now hates the concept of hospitals and doctors and nurses -- looks like a thing we have to work on in the next few weeks or so (because he still has some scheduled immunization plans). He showed strong resistance when we took him for a check up last Thursday.

Home is always sweet even to the 1.5 year old. The first thing he did when we arrived home last Tuesday was walking around and checking on his toys. Next we asked about Bulan -- that is his girl friend next door, about the same age. He's been improving since. Now we can say Alfie is back to normal again (by that, I mean including his resuming Barney and Tom-Jerry watching, drawing on the sofa, and tearing Papa's magazines apart). His weight has also come back to the pre-hospital level. Anna can even catch up with her delayed work -- she's now in India, allowing me and Alfie for more quality time.

We thank all of you for your sympathy and support -- you know who you are.

Thanks.

poor lil' alfie is ill and he reminds me of ... me

I was already 13 or 14 when it happened. My friends and I had just come back from camping when I started feeling something weird on the right side of my forehead. But I ignored it. Two or three days later, my temple felt itchy and it had red rashes. Then my parents took me to hospital. According to the doctor there, it was an effect of a snake poison. But I didn't recall getting bitten by snake. The doctor said it was possible that I slept on a spot where some snake had just disposed its poison -- something like that. The following days were terrible. The itch expanded to my head, neck, and back. And now it was not just itchy, it was burning and very painful. Then my right eye.I could not open it. My parents consulted many physicians as well traditional healers. But it took some time.

One night when I was asleep I somehow felt that somebody was watching me. I woke up in silence and I knew it was my father sitting right next to me, staring at me. From the angle of my left eye, I could vaguely saw him -- the room was rather dark. But I saw it: wet eyes with tears. My father was silently crying. His mouth was moving -- I knew he was praying. Deep down in my heart I felt very warm. I felt his love and care. To the maximum. He didn't even know that I was already awake.

That memory just came again. When I am the father and Alfie is the son. Now Alfie is ill and hospitalized. He is having a dengue fever. His doctor said his statistics showed improvement this morning. But he still needs to stay a couple days more. What makes it difficult is Alfie's resistance to IV infusion that runs through the vein on his left forearm. He, like myself, turns out to hate the idea of injection. But what could we do? Because of his age and especially his strong opposition toward the fluid infusion, the nurses put support board around his left arm. I tried cheer him up saying he looked like a cool robot. I failed. He still did not like that thing.

So, we keep trying distract him so he has no time to see his left arm. But whenever we fail, he immediately tries to get it off by shaking the arm or even trying banging it on the bed! Oh poor Alfie, of course he could not get rid of it. He then just cries and cries and my heart aches every time he does that.

And every time he cries I also remember my father. I now know exactly what he felt that night. I can never thank you enough, Pak. I have marks on my forehead and wear glasses because of the accident, but I'm thankful that I'm alright. But on top of that I'm thankful to have you. And Alfie.

... and compose

... and later he composes his first song about beach...

On the beach...

Alfie is enjoying his beach experience...

That's "Mona"!

Alfie has been liking a piece of picture he tore out from Tempo magazine. The picture is supposed to show Jakarta's landmarks. He recognizes the distinctive Wisma BNI building and calls it "kanto Mama" (from 'kantor mama' - mama's office building). And there is another 'building' he likes to stare at. It's the national monument, Monas. We told him, the name's Monas, and he goes "Mona, mona".

We drove around last Saturday. When we were in Gambir area, suddenly Alfie shouted: "Mona! Mona!" -- he finally was aware that the thing in the picture exists tall and clear. So we stopped the car. And here he is, telling you all: THAT'S MONA!

From Alfie to Aunt Maria

This is Alfie congratulating aunt Maria Boerngen for her successful PhD defense. Congrats, Auntie!

What happened to Coffee Bean?

We used to love Coffee Bean. Now we're at one in Plasa Senayan. We're surprised that our favourite cesar salad is no longer good. The coffee tastes bad, and the tea is served without the bag... So we called a friend who used to work here. It turns out, she quit already. "I quit. Management is lousy now".

But I still like the cup.

Alfie's first picnic

I said I loved holidays and hated the government's take on them. This one's about the love part. It's even more special, because Alfie is involved.

We wanted to enjoy at least one of those many forced dayoffs. We had been quite concerned that the concept of animal Alfie had in mind seemed to be all about Barney the dinosaur and ants.

So we took him to Taman Safari. It turned out, he was amazed by elephants and giraffes and -- to my disappointment -- was less interested in tigers. (How could someone not love tigers?). Oh, there was one more thing he loved: frog. But that one he saw was a stuffed frog at the souvenirs store.

And here is the unintended consequence of the safari: Alfie now refuses to sit the back seat!

Embracing 2008

The end of the year is drawing near. We would like to do a little reflection. First of course, Alfie had his first birthday. It was quite a fun with families and friends to whom we owe thanks. As of today Alfie has made further progress. He's got 7 teeth and about 50 words -- 50 percent of which we are still trying to decode. His best friend is Barney and he enjoys tearing down books and newspapers -- his way of getting complete attention from Papa and Mama. Recently Alfie got a new cousin, Nadia. Alfie tried a school. He didn't like it much. Especially because the Misses there forced him to change 'Papa' to 'Daddy' and 'Mama' to 'Mommy'. He quit that school.

Anna and Aco didn't do too much traveling compared to 2006. But one was special, because they did it together, with Alfie too, who was so happy to meet with his cousins in Tokyo.

Other than that all, it's business as usual. Aco published one article at AJAE, wrote some other working papers, and set up a new blog with Dede Basri. He still has his love-hate relationship with Kompas daily. Anna's year seems more interesting. She got herself a new camera and has been busy collecting books and references on photography. She was offered a new job in an oil company but she decided to stay with her office, location being the prime consideration.

Hope next year will be fun, too. Happy new year, everybody.

Alfie and ballbath

Alfie's first modeling career

Here.

Upcoming and vanishing things (1)

Soon, USB ports/hubs will be available on walls everywhere. And very gradually, those power sockets with holes (the two or three holes) and the corresponding power plugs will vanish.

Posting from Gmail

This is a test. I'm posting from Gmail. See how it plays out.

Questions of the day

1. Why don't wedding parties in general here serve coffee?
2. Why did people invent wasabi?

Kidzania

This is so cool! Good place to teach your kids to become true capitalists...

Off to school

Alfie can't wait to go to school...

What Alfie does when mom and dad are teaching

Sometimes Anna and I have to teach on Saturdays. That's when Alfie enjoys walking around the campus.

Alfie said to Mbak Tary: "Do they people really need that beautiful pond with fountain? Is it because their library has all the good books needed by the students, already?"

Of course he didn't say that.

teaching discipline

At 12 month, Alfie is a very busy baby. He is very eager to explore things around him. I cannot stand his movements around the living room, touching and messing up with remote control, paper, pen, plug, cord, and cupboard.

So, one day, I punished him by putting him next to the fridge, letting him hold it as he cannot walk at that time. I told him: alfie, strap (or straff - in dutch). After 1-2 minutes enjoying the "straff", Alfie felt bored. He started to ask me to help him move (ie release him from the fridge). He almost cried as I didn't offer him my hand to support him walk. However, after 2 to 3 times of "straff", he now requested to be "straffed". He is willing to go to the fridge and hold it and say: strap. For him "straff" is a game.

Well, I need to think something else to teach him discipline.

Ramadhan Paradox?

Ramadhan, the fasting month, is coming. Unfortunately, there are some paradoxes that usually come with it – at least here, in the so-called largest muslim country. First, it is supposed to be peaceful, but that is the time where we see a few people destroy pubs, restaurants, and other places, in the name of religion. Second it is supposed to be a month of full self-control, but it is also the month where we notice some fasting people force everybody else to be in the same situation. As in “Look, I’m fasting, do not eat in front of me”.

And there is the third paradox. That is, the fact that inflation is always high in Ramadhan. We understand that prices go up in the months of non-harvest time, beginning-of-school time, and New Year’s. We also understand that right after the Ramadhan, people celebrate the Eid day with lots of food and new clothes and even new furniture. In the days of Ramadhan, mothers (and young fathers of the recent generation, if you like) cook lots of food. And then follows kolak and coconut water and martabak manis – many of these are absent in non-Ramadhan dinners at home. Nearing the end of the month, we observe a massive flow of people coming home: mudik. And traffic of SMS for Ramadhan greetings is so high; the networks are jammed many times. As result, most families end up with bigger expenditure in Ramadhan. Those in the supply side respond, too, of course. So, yes, finally prices go up quite significantly.

Sounds like there’s nothing wrong about it. Maybe no. But isn’t it strange that the main idea behind the fasting month is to restraint from consuming too much? Or at least, consume less than what you do in the other months? Or, as the sermon says, to experience the life of and therefore to empathize with the poor?

Happy Ramadhan, I wish you all. Maaf lahir batin.

Alfie is one y-o

Alfie, today's August 18 and that means you're one year old. Happy birthday. Thanks for being born and fun, for taking so much space in the bed, for the midnight wake up calls, and for making Dad always want to go home and to even cancel some of his trips. Happy growing, Son. But stay cute.

You can almost walk without help now. You have four teeth. You play with your toys and you can even demand your right to food and all. That's good, Son. You've got character already.

Sorry for sometimes being so busy when you ask me to play with you. But it's OK, you can tear down the new newspapers as you like (but not Dad's comics, please). You can play with the remote controls. You can even throw your mini black jeep to the door or hide Mom's stuff. Don't be shy.

Don't worry we're not gonna force you with all those 'teach-your-baby-how-to's now. You take your time, enjoy your toys, and study whenever you like. But when you can read later, don't rush into Mom's novels or Dad's non-fictions -- because they're probably boring to you. Dad still keeps his Winnetous for you -- the old Pradnja Paramita editions. But he will understand if by the time you can enjoy books, you prefer PlayStation or something like that. Just make us proud in your own way. You don't need to become economist like Dad or an accountant like Mom. Hey, professional painter or pianist sounds great, too. Or mathematician or computer scientist or sport columnist or whatever.

Again, happy birthday.

Bermain petak umpet

Tak terasa, hampir satu tahun usia Alfie. Tanggal 18 Agustus ini, dia akan merayakan ulang tahunnya yang pertama. Ditinjau dari tumbuh kembang bayi seusianya, Alfie termasuk yang cukup maju. Ibaratnya, kalau kita kursus Bahasa Inggris, Alfie ada di tingkat Intermediate. Saat ini Alfie sudah menjadi anak yang sangat sosial, dia senang sekali bertegur sapa dengan orang tak dikenal yang ditemuinya di jalan, lift, mal, taman dan lain-lain. Padahal sebelumnya, Alfie sempat mengalami stranger anxiety pada usia 5 bulan. Dia mulai mengenali orang, hanya mau digendong dengan orang-orang yang sudah dia kenal dekat. Begitu ada orang asing yang mendekat dan ingin menggendongnya, dia langsung menangis sekeras-kerasnya. Namun, lambat laun dia mulai beradaptasi dengan semakin seringnya dia berinteraksi dengan orang-orang di sekitarnya.

Pada usianya yang ke 8 bulan, Alfie sudah bisa duduk sendiri, menendang bola dengan tepat, mengejar dan melemparnya. Kesenangannya akan bola semakin menjadi-jadi sejak pertandingan piala AFC disiarkan di televisi. Alfie suka menonton pertandingan bola. Dia bisa ikut merasakan irama pertandingan dengan bertepuk tangan pada saat gol atau hampir gol, berteriak-teriak saat sedang seru dan ikut memeragakan tendangan dengan kakinya. Sampai-sampai lebih seru menonton Alfie yang sedang menonton bola daripada pertandingannya sendiri.

Sebulan terakhir ini sejak Alfie sedang giat-giatnya belajar berjalan. Sekarang dia sudah berani melangkah sendiri, walau cuma 3-4 langkah, kemudian mulai tidak seimbang dan oleng, dan terjatuh akhirnya.. Beberapa minggu ini, kita sering mengajak Alfie bermain petak umpet, atau tepatnya, mengajar Alfie bermain petak umpet. Bermula dari mulai kolokannya Alfie sama sang mama, setiap kali melihat mamanya menghilang atau keluar ruangan, dia mulai menangis. Maka, kita menyiasatinya dengan bermain ‘cari mama’ yang kemudian berkembang menjadi ‘petak umpet’ versi Alfie. Ternyata menanamkan suatu konsep permainan kepada bayi 11 bulan tidaklah mudah. Beberapa kali kita coba, sampai saat ini dia belum mengerti juga konsep “gantian”. Begini maksudnya, setiap bermain petak umpet dengan Alfie, dia selalu paling senang sebagai yang mencari. Dia mengerti, bahwa dia harus mencari orang yang bersembunyi, dan selama ini dia selalu berhasil ‘menemukan’ kita yang bersembunyi. Dia senang sekali begitu berhasil ‘menemukan’ kita. Nah, biasanya, setelah kita berhasil ‘ditemukan’, kita menyuruh Alfie untuk bersembunyi (gantian). Awalnya, dia tidak mengerti, dia kekeh mau mencari lagi. Setelah beberapa kali bermain, dia mulai mengerti, dan mulailah dia bersembunyi (tentu saja masih dengan di-titah sama pengasuhnya). Tapi, dasar bayi, dia tidak tahan untuk menunggu. Selagi kita pura-pura mencari Alfie yang sembunyi, tiba-tiba dia menongolkan muka dan badannya dari persembunyian dan dia yang berteriak-teriak, seakan-akan dia yang menemukan, hahaha, lucunya.

Privacy

Privacy is some complicated concept, as it turns out. Anna and I were running on treadmill this morning. As usual, she set her TV to BBC and I to MTV (then V-channel then F-channel then MTV again then V-channel again -- OK, I am an easily bored person). We had learned that the earphones provided by the gym were lousy: the noise level was comparable to that of 70s made. I guess that is the reason why only one or two persons use them. The solution should be trivial, maybe: bring your own Bose QuiteComfort! Well, we don't have one, of course. So, we, just like other people, had to listen directly to the TV speaker. We were cautious, though, that the sound might annoy other gym users. So we tried to set the volume as low as possible, while still hearable. (At other time, when closed captioning is available, we prefer to just read it, set the volume to zero, and be free from guilt of annoying anybody -- who needs volume and caption when Kelly Ripa is on air?).

But today. There was this one man who was really annoying. Apparently he was a new member. He was on the treadmill right to the left of Anna -- who was on my left. And he set his TV to ESPN and set the volume so loud -- so loud you could hear it from the entrance. My goodness. Unfortunately, he seemed to have had his guilt nerve cut somewhere, so no matter how people stared at him with a 'dude-turn-that-down-please!' look, he did not care. Anna hypothesized that the guy might be a) technology illterate, b) deaf, or c) mannerless. Then we saw him switching channels, so option 'a' was out. Then he responded to a trainer who greeted him, so option 'b' was also out. We concluded, therefore, he was just another mannerless person in the world.

But then, fitness center is a public place, you say? Not really. (Economist will call it a club good, since members should pay some fee). And, how do you ask for privacy while you yourself is at the margin of intruding other people's privacy? Most importantly, what is 'privacy' anyway?

Well, it is complicated.

But Alfie seemed to understand. He demanded his own, while we were in Tokyo...

Father and Son

Alfie and Bernard

Alfie in red

9 months, 9.7 kgs, 74 cms.

Vietnam

I had this wild thought of moving to Vietnam. It was all because I had to read a lot of Vietnam before a presentation two days ago in Ho Chi Minh City. Anna didn't seem to oppose the idea. She even said that, well, if you can teach in a good university there, why not.

Now I know I would not. Vietnam, at least as shown by its economic center, Saigon, isn't where I prefer to live in. True, the economy is growing impressively, market is opening up, poverty rate is decreasing, population is big, and its ease of doing business is at least better than that that of Indonesia.

But, no I don't think so.

The Godfather?

Aco and Alfie posed as Don Vito and Michael Corleone :)

Cheesy Kartini's Day

It was the first time I had to travel and left Alfie at home. I couldn’t find excuse anymore; my HR had been questioning me after I rescheduled the mandatory training four times. So, last Sunday I flew to London.

Being away from home, I started to become melancholic. It was a totally different feeling from what I had expected. I had never been to London and was eager to come and pay a visit to Buckingham Palace, British Museum, Shakespeare’s Corner, etc. I love traveling, and am always looking forward to it. But this time, I could not wait to be home. Life has changed.

Apart from attending the boring training, I used my five days and nights isolated in Milton Keynes for contemplating. Back then, I used to underestimate career women who were married and had children. When it came to me, I realized that it was not easy to be the good one, and too bad some people took it for granted.

Agree or not, a working mom is a good example of a manager; she has to manage her family, her career, her husband as well as herself. To those who spend lots of money attending seminar or motivational session to become a great manager, you’d rather save your money.

On the day I left home, some Indonesian women were enthusiastically celebrating Kartini’s day by wearing traditional outfit - kebaya is one popular example. I couldn’t help laughing seeing waitresses, bank tellers, teachers, sales girls, and others trying very hard to even walk normally in that outfit. It was just too much -- and too far from what a (working) mom means.

locally single

while anna is in london, i spend my nights reading. well at least, that was my plan. i've got lots of books piling up -- most of which i hadn't had time to read. but i guess the plan was too ambitious.

yes, i finished my haruki murakami's "norwegian wood" and "kafka on the shore" in toilet. interesting novels. and i started that biography of ayn rand, a used book i got from aksara couple of days ago. but then, distraction, distraction. this teaching thing, i have to re-read many textbooks also. so i ended up switching back and forth between scarth's "macroeconomics", branden's "the passion of ayn rand", mankiw's "macroeconmics", and some classics: north on intitutional economics and coase on economists.

and the music. recently i've been listening intensively to french classics. satie and ravel being the most. i guess the reason why i love these french guys more than the germans is because they're more subtle, more impressionistic, more, well, free and jazzy.

but of course the greatest joy is still alfie. he now understands what i say. ask him where an ant is, and he will look down at the floor trying to spot it. or, say lamp and gekko, and he'll look up toward the ceiling.

today i have to go to mothercare, i guess. alfie is running out of his cream.

anna, alfie says "cikecakeci" back to you.

Alfie - 8 month

Even though Alfie is having a cold and runny nose, his smile is still very charming. By 6 month he can sit without support. Now he is mastering new skill: bumping on his feet and playing football. He can also crawl and say 'mama'. He hates instant food, ants, and any kind of formula.

Back to Sanity

Since we moved to the apartment, we hadn’t had time to subscribe to cable TV until last weekend. After more than a month, switching from one to another local channel, we have been driven away from sanity. Welcome back NG, Discovery, AXN, and friends :)

The Piano

Anna has a piano at her parents’ home. No one has played it for a long time -- even abandoned as Anna lived in Sidney back then. When she’s back in Jakarta, she’s busy with lots of traveling, never really has time to take care of the piano.

Until last week, this guy, who happens to know stuff about piano, paid a visit to Anna’s dad. And he somehow saw the poor, abandoned piano. He said he wanted to buy that thing. He mentioned his offer price – and it’s a big money. Knowing this, Anna decided not to sell it. Instead, we’re going to take it to a piano doctor, re-tune it, and give it a proper place in our home.

Sometimes you don’t realize the value of a thing until somebody else reveals it.

My teacher is an ant

Have you ever sung one song and before you know it, you have switched into another different song, just because they share common tones? It happens a lot to me. Especially these days when Anna asks me to sing for Alfie (not that I can sing -- far from that).

Like last night. I was out of playlist in my mind when I started to hum some Louis Armstrong's sweet jazzy old songs. But Anna protested, "No jazz, please -- he's a baby!". So I stopped and tried very hard to recall any children song. I came up with "Semut-Semut Kecil". I sang it:

semut-semut kecil
saya mau tanya
adakah kamu
di dalam tanah
punya mama papa

semua baktimu
akan kuukir
di dalam hatiku
s'bagai prasasti
t'rima kasihku
'tuk pengabdianmu...

Then I realized, I have just switched to another song! It became "Terpujilah" (or is that even the right title?). Alfie was not calmed down. Because I was laughing myself outloud. How come an ant became my ... teacher?

Alfie killed James Bond

For Tante Nitse.

Am I a lousy shopper?

In a stark contrast to Anna’s, my average search cost is, I think, too high. Ask me to buy everyday stuff -- bread, toothpaste, diapers, everything. Then I will buy them at the first store I find them. I don’t do comparison; I don’t go to other shops. What drives me in shopping is my assumption that for trivial stuff, prices are pretty much the same everywhere. The slight difference, if any, is just enough to cancel out the trouble to find the lower price – it is not enough to compensate for my time spending on searching.

Anna, on the other hand, is a born shopper. Ask her which department stores are now selling diapers 19,500 rupiah lower than the others. She knows exactly which one. She even remembers how much we spend on a box of ice cream a month ago (and tells me what a great deal or otherwise a rip-off I am about to do when I am buying the same ice cream now – me being clueless on the price change!).

I asked her once, why she bothers all the trouble in shopping. She said, she did it with "almost no additional cost". I didn’t believe it, of course. But she argued that she had been doing it for a long time, she knew what to compare and where to do it. “If you do this”, she told me, “you need to invest quite a lot before you know what you are doing, because you have zero knowledge on smart-shopping”. “I did my investment long time ago, and I did it efficiently. So efficient, I can do shopping my way faster than you do yours”.

So I said, “If you know already which store would sell at what price, why then you still need to do comparison?” She responded, “You don’t get it, do you? Shopping is a good itself. I am willing to pay for being able to window-shop before I turn back and buy the one I want. You might think this is bizarre. But it is not more bizarre than your reading lots of those econ books of yours before you decide which one you really believe”. I thought she had a point there.

You might think the answer lies in the marginal utility of income. As theory puts it, marginal utility of income goes in the opposite direction with the level of income – just like any other good. If this theory is true, then you would predict that Anna earns fewer than me. But that would be wrong. (Here’s a little secret: she earns a lot higher than me!). So I resort to my first hypothesis. It’s my search cost. (I’m gonna need to test this sooner or later, I guess).

Imlek

Alfie is a dog. Anna a tiger. And me, a rat.

I don't care what Suhu Beny will make of that, but we're gonna make the pig year a good one.

Happy Chinese new year!

One morning on the street of Jakarta

So we were at this Tomang junction, the light just turned red. The street corner was as usual full of beggars and ‘asongan’s (moving street sellers with small boxes of stuff: snacks, bottled water, or even kids’ toys). One beggar approached us. She was a 20-something woman -- without disability. She knocked on the window, and Aco quickly gave a no-sign, so she took off. Then came a man selling fried peanuts, wrapped in credit-card size of plastic bags. Aco scrolled down his window and bought five. I didn’t have time to warn him how unhealthy that food might be. Then, the light turned green.

When we arrived at Slipi traffic light, similar jam and crowd welcomed us. A little boy, maybe six or seven year old was approaching us. Aco scrolled down his window, calling the boy. Then, to my surprise, he gave him four bags of peanuts he just bought! He told him: “Sell these, kid, earn the money”. Then, the light turned green.

So I asked Aco, why he refused to give money to the young female beggar, bought something he didn’t consume from an asongan man, and gave it away to a beggar boy. He said, he refused to give money to those ‘strong enough to work’. “It’s a matter of principle”. He continued, “I’d rather give money to those who give me something in return, even if I don’t really need it”. Apparently that was his reason to buy the peanuts. But why then you gave them to that boy? “First, because I don’t want the peanuts. Second, because I don’t like to see that boy begging, I wanted to give him something he didn’t ask, but he could use to get money with”.

My office building, Wisma BNI, was right ahead, but I still have one more question left. “Why did you save one bag of peanut?”. Aco looked at me and said, “I’m gonna give it to a disabled, old man at Salemba junction”.

I love competition

While Aco was en route to Tokyo for a conference, Alfie and I moved to my parents’ house until he is back next Wednesday. Coincidently, my sister also stayed over for the night and she asked me to drive her to Carrefour to buy a formula for her daughter.

The business nature of retail industry is of small margin and high volume. Due to tight competition, each retail races to increase their sales. A lot of marketing strategies have been taken, to name some: 20% discount for purchase with a certain credit card, buy-one-get-one-free, and the most frequent one: products promotion. This offers particular products at lowered price for a certain period of time -usually 2 or 3 days. The objective is to invite consumers to the store with the expectation that the customer will not go to the store just to buy the advertised product(s). Hopefully (and most of the time) they also buy other stuffs. This strategy is expected to boost their sales and of course their revenue.

If you notice, in Kompas Friday edition there are always one-full-page advertisements by either Carrefour or Hypermart or Giant - the top three hypermarkets. This week, Carrefour offered a 35,000rp discount for a tin of 900gr Pediasure (that's a milk formula for babies). Since there had been many complaints over the availability of the product, it is stated on the ad that one customer can only buy 2 tins. Since my sister wanted to stock up, she asked my other sister to come along.

So, this morning the three of us went to Carrefour quite early to anticipate the crowd and long queue at the cashier. We had this strategy that each of us had to take 2 tins and ring them at different cashier. This worked well. Around 20 minutes we each had a bag with 2 tins of Pediasure :). Mission accomplished. However, looking at the pile of Pediasure over the shelf, my sister couldn't resist the temptation to buy even more. She made a quick count: "Vanessa finished 1 tin a week. Six tins will only last for 1.5month. Let's do another round!"

So yes, we did it again. This time it took longer, but we ended up with 12 tins and saved 420,000rp. We didn't even need to buy other stuff, as Carrefour wished.

I love competition!

How to cheat the time in Jakarta+, 1

That's it. I'm a high degree risk averse person. Not only that, my discount rate is so damn high. Put it another way: I'm paranoid yet impatience.

We live in this small but pleasant house in Karawaci, Tangerang (remember the no-kissing-on-the-street zone? Yes this is that). Geographically, it is close enough to the Cengkareng airport. But boy, I'm no lucky, when it comes to going to the airport, it is, well, far.

I've got two, no three options, basically. One, enter the airport through a backdoor -- this is almost literal, since that means you can enter only if you are authorized or you have that stupid sticker on your windshield. That 'backdoor' is my term for an entrance to the airport supposedly for officials only (or anybody who happens to have sticker, legal or illegally). Many times, I was successful with this entrance, even without a sticker or anything (it's not like I'm a cheap bastard -- well I'm, a little -- but hey I don't fly every day? But being me who preaches the there-is-no-free-lunch at schools, I always promised myself that I should buy that sticker -- never really got time to, though). Here's what I do instead: just wear a suit with formal tie and tell them guards you are in a hurry to catch your flight...

Second, ...

Oops, we have to board.. Sorry, catch you later..

Welcome 2007

Read carefully :)

hard to say I am sorry

I'm always confused how some people use the word “maaf” ('sorry').

One morning when approaching toll gate, my driver asked for toll money. I gave him the money. While he was taking it from me, he said “Maaf”.

On another occasion, on our way to office, the driver suddenly hit the car break, shocking us in the back. Apparently he was trying to avoid a big hole on the road. We, sitting on the rear seats immediately shouted “What's going on?” And he very calmly replied “Ada lubang, Bu” ('There was a hole, Mam'). No, there was no 'sorry', nothing.

Apparently, what ‘sorry’ means to us, is different with what it means to others. I guess sometimes it can mean 'thanks', yes?

And this one is hillarious. Yesterday, the rain was really heavy. As you know, in Jakarta that means traffic jam. Stucked in a street for 20 minutes, our driver took the initiative to make a detour. We agreed, as there seemed no better solution. We did not expect that he actually did not know well the route he took. After two hours of driving nowhere, we were back to where we started. I hopelessly complained: “I thought you knew the route!” And he softly grumbled: “Just now, I took the wrong turn.” No, there was no ‘sorry’ at all... By the time we reached the toll gate, I gave the money. He took it and said, "Maaf"...

Maybe I just don't know the exact meaning of 'maaf'...

What's that, Pa?

Alfie finds something

4 months, 8 kilograms, 67 centimeters

Smackdown

If Alfie grows as fast as this, imagine in the next couple of years :)

By 11 November:

7.1kgs

63cms

Bald Alfie

2 months
6.3 kgs
61 cms

Sleeping Alfie

Sleepy Alfie

Alfie

Preparing for the baby, that is the reason for the long absence of posting. Yes, Anna and I have been occupied by the welcoming of our first baby, Alfie. Our doctors predicted August 15 as Alfie’s birth day, but he chose to come out 3 days later.

Friends and families, please meet Alfie Shan Patunru, the little being who carries our genes. "Alfie" is a variant of alpha or of alif – both indicate “first”. "Shan" is a Mandarin of "mountain". Alfie was born 3.77 kilograms and 51 centimeters with normal delivery. His mother was well, despite the extra pain from vacuum pump. Thank you, God for the added joy to the family.

And there the new life has begun. We have done things to home to welcome the new comer. The bedroom now looks even more compact with a new colorful cabinet for Alfie’s stuff – our home decorator might be disappointed to know that his design had to be significantly altered, but Alfie can explain.

Anna has prepared a stack of music for Alfie. Of course she’s biased toward classics, and me jazz. But we believe Alfie has the right to his own bias. So we play him everything. From Bach to Chopin, from Ella to Diana Krall, from Titik Puspa to Tina Toon -- everything. As it turns out, Alfie seems to like ... ABBA and Fleetwood Mac! Whatever you say, Alfie...

update on the mud

The last two days newspaper headlines read:

• The mud has overflowed one of high school in Porong up to its top!
• No solution on how to stop the spurt out of the mud nor to get rid of it
• The temporary dam was broken and around 6000 people must be evacuated
• Need another 3 months to handle the mud (you think so? No, I don’t)

People who claim yourselves as Government, now you can should do something. Where are you?

oh my mud!

OK, that’s it! Enough reading the news everyday about the Lapindo Brantas’s mud that messes up people live in Sidoarjo, East Java.

It’s been almost 3 months since the hydrogen sulfide gas mixed with ammonia and hot mud spurted out over the residential area in Porong and over Surabaya-Gempol highway. Today, it is reported, the highway is closed due to the high risk of the mud that is already 4 meters high to be overflowed to the road. Companies located around the mud area have lost billion rupiahs, not to mention other companies that have to transport their products through this highway. Also, don’t forget, the lives of people whose house have been flooded since the first day of the spurt.

What would have happened if the company is not Lapindo, but Newmont or Freeport? Still remember couple of months ago when people brutally demonstrated in front of Freeport head office in Jakarta accusing the company of polluting the environment?

Get cornered by your kid? Blame the store next door

There was this stupid commercial on TV. It featured a famous local rockstar singing "Motor juga manusia..." (motorbike is human, too), a twisted version of the rocker's hits, "Rocker Juga Manusia" (rocker is human, too). I was laughing the first time I saw the commercial. But that was it. I didn't care and I forgot already.

Until this morning.

Anna pointed out a reader's letter in Kompas. The reader, a father of a curious son, is complaining about that commercial. He was bugged by his son who kept asking him, "Dad, is motorbike human?". No matter how hard the frustrated father tried to convince the son that "No, motorbike is motorbike. It's not human, Son", the son was stubborn like a stone. "No, Dad, that guy on TV says motorbike is human. It's human, Dad".

So the hopeless father wrote to Kompas. He argued that commercials should not mislead. That the company, PT Astra Honda Motor should be wiser. He even complained that the commercial should not pushed too hard just to have a rising rockstar advertising for it.

I say, get a life.

Every company should be free to advertise in whatever way it likes. You buy if you like and don't if you don't.

As for your kid's bugging you, it sounded like you failed to argue with him. It's your fault, not the store next door.

The real me

My sister sent me this. It is my niece Pacchi's work. Pacchi told her mom: "This is Uncle Aco". I'm flattered.

Signalling on the road

Do you notice bumper stickers? I do. Not only bumper stickers. But also other "signalling instruments" in/on cars. Sometimes they are entertaining. Some examples:

A name of some top university abroad = I went abroad and I have brain.
A name of god-knows-where university abroad = I went abroad and I didn't even need a brain.
A name of domestic, state university = I was on subsidy.
A name of domestic, private university = My parents are rich. Call me.
"Baby on board" sign = Don't rear-end my car, I have baby. Go rear-end others.
A Harley Davidson sticker = I'm a biker, I'm cool.
A military or police badge/insignia = Stay away, me first. (Or: Hey, we're family, don't stop me).
Red-numbered license plate = Who needs licence and traffic rules?
Yellow-numbered license plate = Who needs traffic rules?
B 1 XX = Try me, Idiot!
"My other car is YYY" sticker = I'm cheap bastard.

....

If she can do it really well, she doesn’t do that

We’d been living only the two of use for almost one year. We’d got used to take care of our needs on our own (or more precisely: I could take care of myself, and Aco could himself). We managed to collaborate on weekends, though: I prepare special breakfast, Aco did the laundry. In the afternoon I fold the dried clothes, Aco washed the dishes. Or something like that.

Until a woman knocked at our door one Sunday morning. She said she could be of help: washing dishes, laundering and ironing clothes, etc., for a reasonable pay. I thought, OK, we could give her a try.

So she comes every Sunday morning. She does exactly what she promised: washing dishes, laundering and ironing clothes, plus cleaning floor and bathrooms. Only less than I expect. On all those activities, I, or even Aco, can do a lot better.

I gather, our dining sets have some stain intact. The clothes are not shiny. The floor is too wet. And the ironing isn’t perfect either. I can’t really enjoy the infotainment on TV, because I always have to tell her what to do and what not to do. That function goes to Aco when I think I deserve extra Sunday morning sleep. And he usually complains (“I want to blog”).

I discussed this with Aco one day. He told me, those things should have been predictable – those “less than expected” results from the woman helper. He argued, if she could be really good in all those activities, she would have not appeared knocking on our door in the first place. Because she should have valued her labor higher and demanded higher wage. As a result, she would have applied for a better position, say as a manager in a hotel launderette. With a pay rate that we would not be willing to agree with, as a price for our enjoying our Sunday morning. Working as a helper in our house might be the best the woman can do. Even if her best is not our best. (Aco says, this is the comparative advantage principle)

I think that’s true.

Siem Reap

I am writing this post in one of many internet stalls in Siem Reap, Cambodia. After 3 days being away from computer and the net, I felt isolated. Well, I can't deny that I can't live with the Net. The connection here is quite fast and it costs US75c/h. Not too bad. I have been here for almost 4 days, accompanying Aco who is invited by CALD to give a presentation on some liberal economic things (well, he will explain later, I guess). While he was attending the conference, I walked around by myself to see some interesting facts about this city - and country.

One thing that I can't help with this city is its weather. April is a "killer month" as written by Lonely Planet, my guide for every travel that I do. But, I can't really plan the travel, since I am just a free-rider :) (Aco doesn't think so) . Oh btw, fake version of Cambodia's Lonely Planet issue is sold for US3 in Siem Reap. Unfortunately, I bought it at Changi for US20!

Since it is extremely hot and humid (at noon it is around 38C), I limit my exploration to late afternoon, giving me so little time for looking around. However, after 2 days, I concluded that nothing much can be seen in Siem Reap. The city itself is very small, centered around Siem Reap river. Along the way you can see a lot of hotels, old and new, and some are still under-construction. Obviously, tourism is blooming and definitely Angkor Wat is the magnet. I plan to visit Angkor Wat this afternoon, so the next post will probably be on Angkor Wat.

As in other Indochine countries, Khmer people are very nice and polite. It is very safe for a woman (like me) to walk around the city by myself. Many modes of transportation are available, from bicycle to motorbike (ojek as we called in Jakarta), from tuk-tuk to helicopter (to see the city and Angkor Wat from the sky). But, of course those can't beat walking, if the weather is nice.
One interesting place which is the center of the attraction in Siem Reap is Psar Chaa (Old Market). Amazingly, the word 'market' in Khmer is pronounced the same as pasar in Indonesian. Lots of cafes, restaurants, guesthouses, massage centers and souvenir shops around this area. One advise, better come in the evening to see the "real life" of this area.

One fine typical day

This is what we do almost everyday…

5am: Wake up. Brew coffee. Browse CNN or if necessary, local TVs for hot gossips.

5:45am: Take off. Yes, it’s early. But that’s how we live with otherwise long traffic jam. Read Kompas and the Jakarta Post on the way. Sometimes Aco can’t help blogging, especially if the news freaks him out.

6:30am: Arrive at gym. Light exercise and take showers. (In non-typical day we take off at 6:30, of course after taking shower!).

8:00am: Aco drops me off at my office, then he proceeds to his.

12:00pm: Aco calls me (or the other way around) with standard pickup line: “What’s your eating?”

5:00pm: I call Aco (or the other way around) with: “What time are we leaving?”

7:30-ish-pm (or non-typically 8-9 pm!): Aco picks me up. We stop by for a quick meal.

8:00 pm: Driving home. Traffic jam, almost always.

9:00 or 9:30pm depending on the traffic flow: Arrive at home, exhausted. Take showers. Finish up with the newspapers (or start with weekly magazines if any).

10:00pm: Lazily playing with TV channels. If CSI is on, then it’d be my intro to sleep. Sometimes, this guy Aming beats CSI or Alias (he’s smart and funny), though he obviously would have hard time beating Desperate Housewives.

11:00pm: Aco wakes me up: “Go to bed. Don’t sleep here on the sofa”. By that time he has turned off the TV… He looks tired, too (in non-typical day he can go on with his damn laptop until 1am).

Did I say typical?
Because we have life, too, you know...

Guys don't keep pennies coins

Over coffee this morning (guys, in case you're not aware yet, Coffee Bean is offering a 50% off for BNI card holders -- go get that delicious Caesar's Salad!) Anna pointed to me that my wallet was growing. I didn't realize I had been putting small pieces of papernotes in it -- about teaching, about research issues, about things to blog, etc. Damn, what was I thinking? I looked at the wallet. She was right. It was ugly. She had been telling me to optimize economize with my O2, but I'm just an old-fashioned who can't completely get off papers. Out of embarrasment, I threw those notes away...

Then we talked about guys who keep coins in their wallets. If two or three pieces of small papers could make my wallet look so ugly, you can imagine that of a guy who keeps coins in it. Some guys even proudly ("look, I've got money") put their big fat wallets full of coins in their Levi's back pocket. That's a total turnoff, I overheard girls' talk once. "Like we don't know it's not part of his body?"

Now that my working environment doesn't allow me to wear Levi's everyday (blame those meetings with clients), I should've not concerned too much, because of course I can put my wallet in my pants' front pocket. But as Anna told me: "Eeew, you look like that Nazi's general from the World War!", especially when the other front pocket is already occupied by my handphone.

OK, I am not keeping coins in my wallet ever again...

(Now a little confession ... and why I stroke the word "pennies" in the title). Back a couple of years ago I was a typical grad student. By "typical" I mean, a guy who accumulated (like or not) pennies in his apartment. Everytime I came home, there was always one penny or two (along with dimes and quarters of course) in my pocket (not in the wallet, girls). I put them in my big glass bowl. Every semester the pennies grew quickly. So I went to my bank to get them transformed to paper bills, to ease carrying and transaction. So far so good. But...

One day I entered the bank hurrily with a sack of pennies. I told the cashier: "Can I change my pennies...". Alas, my accent screwed up. The cashier looked at me with weird expression (later I knew she was trying hard not to laugh). Apparently I pronounced the word "pennies" a little too hurrily, so I might have said another word with completely different meaning...!

Fast forward: I'm much more careful now. Even when teaching Game Theory, for example. Whenever I use the example of "Matching Pennies" game, I change that damn word into "coins"...