Hi all
What to write? I have done nothing that felt adventurous or of note in any special way since I wrote last, just settled into a routine, which since my purpose and plan at work remain unclear, may change any day – so it feels strange to make such a big deal of that. But I guess I’ll just start writing and see where it takes me.
My commute has not objectively improved any, although it’s been awhile since it has reduced me to actual tears (=progress).* Recently I've been braving the pollution and traffic to walk instead of taking an ojek to and from the busway. One night one of the drivers at the ojek post on my route home made mean-spirited fun of me - to general hilarity of the 15 or so drivers gathered - when neither of the 2 helmet options he offered me fastened and I told him I would just walk. (They tend to tell you “No problem, no problem, it’s not far” when they have busted helmets. The thinking behind the helmets is less about protecting your head from cracking open and more about not getting ticketed by the police for not wearing one… If you’re not going far, you’re not likely to be passing any police checks.) The mocking really hurt my feelings – I thought that I had a special bond with those guys and that they had accepted my quirky helmet rule – so f' them anyway. I'll keep my 5000 rupiah.
Inexplicably all the drivers at the ojek post on the way to work have wonderfully functional helmets but I’ve been skipping the morning ojek ride quite a lot too. Frankly I’m desperate for the exercise. The gym options are insanely expensive; there’s little hope of my getting up at 4:30 am to get out to run before the traffic and pollution is impossible; there are pools where I could swim, but nothing that would fit into my weekday. However, my belly is noticeably flabbier and I have the stress response of a rabbit, so something’s got to give.**
So anyway, I leave the house between 7:30 and 8:00 whether to talk or grab an ojek, usually eating something small standing up in the kitchen and then eating again and making myself coffee once I reach the office around 9/9:30. Typically everyone in the office eats together, after the midday prayer, sitting on the ground on bamboo mats in the central open area on the first floor of the building. The office assistant makes rice for everyone and goes out to a food stall to get our orders of veg and protein. Usually I order from her (gado-gado is 10,000 rupiah or a little over $1, fried tofu and boiled greens is Rp.8000), but sometimes I bring leftovers Ibu*** packs up for me or a sandwich. (Another new belly-alert rule, I’m trying to take only a tiny bit of rice, and to go Mama M style and eat half of what’s given to me to eat the other half the next day.)
The office is a 2-story building that seems like it was originally built as a house, in a otherwise totally residential neighborhood (other than the usual small shops and eating stalls, and the strip mall types along the main road). The few local NGOs I’ve visited here all seem to be like this, in fairly random out-of-the-way neighborhoods almost certainly chosen based on proximity to the director’s house.
I have gone on two site visits in different villages in West Java, observing a meeting and a training and talking to some of the field staff and members of the organization, but mostly otherwise I’ve been hanging at the office thrashing around trying to figure the organization out, trying to make myself understood in Indonesian (with occasional moments of elegance and more occasional moments of shitshow), and trying to figure out what I’m doing here, in at least a short-to-medium term kind of way.
This week I did an actual assignment with deliverables and a deadline, namely developing a concept and budget, writing up program outcomes data, and summarizing past funding, all for a major grant proposal. (These are things that I am well trained to do and can, in fact, do. Felt nice to be reminded.) I think it turned out well, and moreover it gave me a chance to work closely with the director and show my stuff a little bit. So Monday we’re having a conversation. I have some ideas about what my role(s) could be, I think she does too, so I think we'll be able to get a semblance of a job description together.
Then, the reverse commute. An occasional stop at the mall along the way. Dinner and usually some TV at home. Home being my uncle’s house; dinner typically being something Ibu prepared, usually Indonesian aka rice based (but not always - I'm addicted to her roast chicken and potatoes. I'm trying to take less of whatever it is, no matter how good, due to the belly alert.) TV usually being the best worst of American pop culture - we’re following American Idol pretty closely - and/or Al-Jazeera news. To bed in "my" enchanting guest room, and it starts over again.
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Weekends are a different story. I have a very bare bones social life so far. … How does one meet people? …I’m seriously pondering this question though mostly managing to keep it from distressing me too much yet. As Amy Sedaris said, "I think it's good for a person to spend time alone. It gives them an opportunity to discover who they are are and to figure out why they are always alone."
Clearly I have made friends before in life, but none of the usual methods apply here as far as I can tell. I’m not in a program with other people with whom I am forced to interact at trainings or when I collect my mail. The few people I do socialize with other than my uncle’s friends are already approaching the limit of the friends-of-friends in Jakarta and the language school connections. People I work with are lovely but at different “places” literally, as well as metaphorically – it’s not a bunch of single, free, and disengaged young people with disposable income to burn at after-work happy hours, not just because the happy hour options in that neighborhood are extremely limited and almost everyone is observant Muslim enough to pray 5 times a day.**** I would consider joining a recreational team sport, except that I am generally a disaster when it comes to throwing or kicking and keeping track of teammates moving in many different directions. Maybe a book club? Expat ladies mixers (vomit)? I mean like… Craigslist Jakarta?
Ideas or insights, let me know.
Ideas or insights, let me know.
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I'm maybe being dramatic about my social isolation. I am not, you will note, living in a “dank and unfriendly boarding house in East Jakarta” or however I put it when I was getting ready to leave Yogya. What with the possibility I’ll be working in the field (aka outside of Jakarta) a lot, and with the commute being manageable - not appealing, but manageable – Uncle J is graciously continuing to put me up. I am extraordinarily well looked after, including having people to come home to and with whom to tag along on weekend jaunts.
If you know my family this generosity and looking-after-of-our-own is unsurprising, and nonetheless I remain deeply grateful and appreciative, and do recognize that I have it pretty good, busy social life or not.
And on that, I am being called to dinner. Grateful, grateful.
Love,
M
*I’m considering introducing Jakarta to telecommuting. It does seem like I'll be spending a lot of time loving my computer anyway, so the only reason to do the physical commute 5 days/week is that the organization (and I imagine most everywhere in Indonesia) operates on a face-to-face basis. For the recent data gathering I had to do, mostly I walked up to people as I discovered what I needed, and sat there while they wrote information down from memory, or compiled it from a few different files and handscribled notes, and referred me to another person or 2 whom I had to chase down separately to get the rest of the info off of their personal computers . Not so much with the, I'll email you and ask for what I need and expect the information to be in my inbox by the end of the day, or having a central server with a standard format and folder for program data and past proposal drafts.
**I have a Jillian Michaels workout downloaded though, and may be able to sneak into the gym at the hotel located where I transition from mikrolet to busway on my way home from work, so regular exercise is tantalizingly within reach.
***The Ibu here is the woman who works for my uncle as a cook. (See my post about the Ibu at the Yogya homestay for an explanation of the Ibu/Mba phenomenon.) There are actually 2 Ibu's here, the other working as more of an all-purpose servant, although my uncle calls her Mba because she's younger than he is. But I should call her Ibu. Which makes things a little confusing.
****I've heard that karaoke is popular in Indonesia and that my boss is really good... However, I haven't heard about any karaoke outings at the office yet. Will keep you posted.
