Comic Frontier 2013: Pasar Doujinshi Indonesia

Tadi siang saya mampir ke Comic Frontier 2013 (Comifuro 3) yang diselenggarakan di Pusat Studi Jepang, FIB UI. Comifuro adalah pasar doujinshi (karya terbitan swadaya, baik itu karya ide sendiri atau karya berdasarkan karakter/intellectual property yang sudah ada). Walaupun ini sudah Comifuro ketiga, saya baru kali pertama datang. Jadi pada hari kedua ini saya berangkat karena agak penasaran.

Lokasi acara hanya berjarak 20 menit jalan kaki pelan-pelan dari tempat tinggal saya. Masih pagi saat saya datang, jadi sebenarnya lebih sepi daripada foto di atas yang saya ambil sekitar sejam kemudian. PSJ UI dibagi menjadi lima bagian (A sampai E) yang diisi oleh berbagai komunitas, kelompok, atau perorangan yang memamerkan atau menjual karya mereka.

Pengunjung menjajal lagu-lagu garapan Natsuki Records.

Jenis produk yang banyak dijual adalah pin, poster, stiker, gantungan kunci/ponsel, kartu pos, kipas, dan komik. Ada juga tiga atau empat meja yang menjual CD musik. Produk yang paling berbeda di Comifuro 3 adalah permainan kartu. Sebagian besar produk itu merupakan doujinshi dari anime Jepang, tapi ada juga doujinshi IP barat dan karya-karya original. 

Grup Well+Done dan karya-karya original mereka.

Grup Fairytaleholic membuat karya-karya dongeng original dan adaptasi.

Dua permainan kartu original dari Great Conspiracy Theory

Saya kurang mengamati anime terkini, jadi saya kurang mengenali karakter-karakter yang beredar di Comifuro. Karena teman menitip beberapa barang kepada saya, saya jadi paham sedikit. Serial anime/manga yang sedang terkenal adalah Shingeki no Kyojin, Kuroko no Basket, dan Free!. Mewakili belahan dunia lain, ada Thor, The Hobbit, dan Frozen.

Shingeki no Kyojin

Komik doujinshi Evangelion, salah satu dari dua saja serial yang sudah saya tonton dan baca di antara macam-macam serial di Comifuro (satu lagi Hunter x Hunter).

Stiker karakter-karakter The Hobbit dan Frozen; sayangnya, saya kehabisan Legolas.

Kegiatan Comifuro 3 pada hari kedua adalah karaoke bebas dan cosplay. Teman saya ikut bernyanyi (lihat video ini) pada sesi pertama dan kedua. Saya terlalu capek untuk menunggu cosplay dan belum ada cosplayer menarik (bagi saya) pada siang hari. Jadi saya pulang saja.

Karaokenya sepi, tapi lumayan asyik.

Belanjaan saya dan titipan teman saya.

Tujuan utama saya membeli majalah komik Indonesia re:on volume 4 (terbaru) yang belum beredar di toko buku. Tapi saya tidak tahan juga sepenuhnya menahan keinginan untuk membeli macam-macam barang. Saya membeli novel Ange Saga: Lust karangan teman saya; sayangnya, dia sendiri tidak bisa hadir jadi saya belum minta tanda tangannya.

Akhir kata, saya cukup senang datang ke Comifuro karena tidak terlalu ramai dan bisa mengobrol dengan komunitas-komunitas kreatif. Tapi semoga tidak banyak acara seperti Comifuro karena bisa-bisa dompet saya kurus, hahaha.

Wisata Fantasiyah Episode 2: Monas, Museum Wayang, Museum Bahari, Pelabuhan Sunda Kelapa

Oh, leave her, Johnny, leave her! For the voyage is long and the winds don't blow, and it's time for us to leave her! -Leave Her, Johnny (lagu klasik, OST Assassin's Creed: Black Flag)

Assassin's Creed (serial video game yang beberapa novel adaptasinya sudah saya terjemahkan) mengambil latar dunia bajak laut untuk video game yang diluncurkan bulan lalu. Hal ini mengingatkan saya bahwa saya belum mengunjungi Museum Bahari, apalagi Pelabuhan Sunda Kelapa. Maka saya /coret/menculik/coret/ mengajak teman saya yang menggemari Assassin's Creed juga untuk berkunjung ke sana.

Di sekeliling Monas sedang dibangun relief sejarah Indonesia.

Jam setengah sembilan pagi saya bertemu teman saya di Stasiun Gambir (dia dari Bandung). Karena kami berdua belum pernah ke Museum Nasional, kami memang sudah memasukkan Monas ke dalam daftar objek kunjungan kami hari ini.

Bagian dalam Monas

Mungkin harapan saya terlalu tinggi bagi Monas. Ternyata isinya diorama sejarah Indonesia seperti yang sudah saya pelajari di bangku sekolah. Diorama di Monas mirip diorama di Museum PKI, tapi ceritanya tidak seterperinci Museum PKI karena topiknya umum. Di lantai atas ada Ruang Kemerdekaan yang berisi amfiteater dengan penerangan buruk. Pada dinding tengah (yang menjulang ke atas menjadi lingga Monas) Ruang Kemerdekaan ini ada pernyataan kemerdekaan Indonesia, peta Indonesia, Garuda Pancasila, dan pintu berlapis emas. Kami juga sempat menikmati pemandangan Jakarta Pusat dari Cawan (bagian yoni Monas).

Rekomendasi Korea Indonesia Film Festival 2014 : Snowpiercer

Kata kunci: distopia, aksi, pemberontakan, kereta api
Penonton: 10+ (10-16 tahun sebaiknya menonton dengan pengawasan orangtua)
Konten kekerasan: banyak darah dan perkelahian bersenjata walaupun tidak sadis
Konten seksual: hampir tidak ada

Jangan tonton trailer Snowpiercer apabila Anda hendak menonton filmnya.
Adegan-adegan kejutan akan menjadi tidak mengejutkan gara-gara menonton trailer ini.
(Yes, I hate trailers.)

Snowpiercer sedang diputar di Korea Indonesia Film Festival (23-28 Oktober 2014).

Snowpiercer (diangkat dari novel grafis berjudul Le Transperceneige) berkisah tentang dunia kita beberapa puluh tahun ke depan. Konon pada tahun 2014 para pemimpin dunia memutuskan untuk melepaskan sebuah zat untuk memperbaiki atmosfer demi meredakan pemanasan global. Apa yang malah terjadi? Seluruh dunia menjadi lebih dingin daripada kutub selatan! “Kebetulan” seorang juragan kereta api (Mr. Wilford) sudah membuat kereta api swadaya sehingga bisa mengangkut seribuan manusia. Selama belasan tahun mereka hidup di kereta api buatan Wilford Corp yang melaju tanpa pernah berhenti agar manusia-manusia tidak mati beku akibat cuaca ekstrem di luar.

47 Ronin: A Black and White Samurai Movie

Keywords: action, fantasy, Japan, Samurai, revenge
Audience: 13+ (under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian)
Violent content: much blood and severed limbs (mild visualization)
Sexual content: kissing scene, rape attempt scene (mild visualization)

This movie review is basically written upon a paradox: I'm writing a review about why I didn't want to write a review of this movie.

I saw the movie wall promotion on Blitz before watching The Hobbit last week. The promotional poster was captivating, especially the female villain. And then I was lucky enough to watch 47 Ronin last night (thanks to Duniaku.net).

sumber foto: screencrush.com

The 119 minutes watching the movie didn't leave me with the feeling of wanting to write a review about it. Unlike Snowpiercer, an impressive movie that I still want to tell people about, 47 Ronin was something that I don't know what to discuss about.

Oh, it's not a bad movie. It served us with great visual exploitation and neat storyline (not without plot holes). The problem is everything was black and white. The protagonists were good people: a noble group of Samurai and the only mistake they had made was looking down at the main character (Kai the half-breed, played by Keanu Reeves). The antagonists were bad people who lusted after power and hegemony. No one was in-between. No one.

(If you do want to watch the movie, don't check the trailer. It contains spoilers. I checked the trailer the day after I watched the movie and I was so relieved that I hadn't seen it.)

And the visualization of most things in the movie supported the black and white tendency. Behold, this is where the good people lived: bright buildings, square, forest, and hills! Now take a look at where the bad people lived: a dark castle looming over a tight square surrounded by mighty walls!

I can rant more about the cheesy love story and the odd ways the Japanese people interact in the movie. But Keanu Reeves is a good guy; I can't do that to him (or I'm just too lazy to write more). However, I couldn't say 47 Ronin is not entertaining. It's fun, especially for those haven't much exposed to Samurai spirit. For those looking for something deep, you'd rather watch The Last Samurai again.

Cerpen: Adikku dan Si Bengkok

“Icha… Kamu lihat adikmu tidak?” tanya Mama padaku. Beliau mondar-mandir di ruang keluarga kami yang cukup besar, mencari-cari Uta, adikku. Mama membawa sepotong handuk bergambar robot.

Uta pasti bersembunyi lagi karena tidak mau disuruh mandi, batinku.

“Nggak, Ma. Aku baru dari luar menangkap Si Bengkok. Mama sudah periksa di kamarnya?”

“Sudah! Di balik gorden tidak ada! Di dalam lemari baju juga tidak!”

“Kolong kasurnya sudah diperiksa, Ma?”

Mendengar kata-kataku itu, Mama langsung melesat ke kamar adikku di lantai atas. Tak lama kemudian terdengar suara Mama mengomel panjang-pendek sementara adikku memprotes keras tidak mau mandi.

Aku membuka kulkas dan mengambil seikat kangkung. Kuberikan kangkung itu pada si Bengkok dalam kandangnya di halaman rumah kami.

Si Bengkok adalah kelinci peliharaan kami. Bulunya belang hitam-putih. Telinganya panjang. Kalau sedang santai atau sedang menjilati kakinya yang basah, salah satu telinganya terkulai lemas seperti bengkok. Itulah sebabnya ia dipanggil Si Bengkok.

The Goblin Market by Christina Rosetti

(Puisi ini saya temukan dalam beberapa novel terjemahan saya.)
MORNING and evening
Maids heard the goblins cry:
"Come buy our orchard fruits,
Come buy, come buy:
Apples and quinces,
Lemons and oranges,
Plump unpecked cherries-
Melons and raspberries,
Bloom-down-cheeked peaches,
Swart-headed mulberries,
Wild free-born cranberries,
Crab-apples, dewberries,
Pine-apples, blackberries,
Apricots, strawberries--
All ripe together
In summer weather--
Morns that pass by,
Fair eves that fly;
Come buy, come buy;
Our grapes fresh from the vine,
Pomegranates full and fine,
Dates and sharp bullaces,
Rare pears and greengages,
Damsons and bilberries,
Taste them and try:
Currants and gooseberries,
Bright-fire-like barberries,
Figs to fill your mouth,
Citrons from the South,
Sweet to tongue and sound to eye,
Come buy, come buy."
Evening by evening
Among the brookside rushes,
Laura bowed her head to hear,
Lizzie veiled her blushes:
Crouching close together
In the cooling weather,
With clasping arms and cautioning lips,
With tingling cheeks and finger-tips.
"Lie close," Laura said,
Pricking up her golden head:
We must not look at goblin men,
We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots?"
"Come buy," call the goblins
Hobbling down the glen.
"O! cried Lizzie, Laura, Laura,
You should not peep at goblin men."
Lizzie covered up her eyes
Covered close lest they should look;
Laura reared her glossy head,
And whispered like the restless brook:
"Look, Lizzie, look, Lizzie,
Down the glen tramp little men.
One hauls a basket,
One bears a plate,
One lugs a golden dish
Of many pounds' weight.
How fair the vine must grow
Whose grapes are so luscious;
How warm the wind must blow
Through those fruit bushes."
"No," said Lizzie, "no, no, no;
Their offers should not charm us,
Their evil gifts would harm us."
She thrust a dimpled finger
In each ear, shut eyes and ran:
Curious Laura chose to linger
Wondering at each merchant man.
One had a cat's face,
One whisked a tail,
One tramped at a rat's pace,
One crawled like a snail,
One like a wombat prowled obtuse and furry,
One like a ratel tumbled hurry-scurry.
Lizzie heard a voice like voice of doves
Cooing all together:
They sounded kind and full of loves
In the pleasant weather.
Laura stretched her gleaming neck
Like a rush-imbedded swan,
Like a lily from the beck,
Like a moonlit poplar branch,
Like a vessel at the launch
When its last restraint is gone.
Backwards up the mossy glen
Turned and trooped the goblin men,
With their shrill repeated cry,
"Come buy, come buy."
When they reached where Laura was
They stood stock still upon the moss,
Leering at each other,
Brother with queer brother;
Signalling each other,
Brother with sly brother.
One set his basket down,
One reared his plate;
One began to weave a crown
Of tendrils, leaves, and rough nuts brown
(Men sell not such in any town);
One heaved the golden weight
Of dish and fruit to offer her:
"Come buy, come buy," was still their cry.
Laura stared but did not stir,
Longed but had no money:
The whisk-tailed merchant bade her taste
In tones as smooth as honey,
The cat-faced purr'd,
The rat-paced spoke a word
Of welcome, and the snail-paced even was heard;
One parrot-voiced and jolly
Cried "Pretty Goblin" still for "Pretty Polly";
One whistled like a bird.
But sweet-tooth Laura spoke in haste:
"Good folk, I have no coin;
To take were to purloin:
I have no copper in my purse,
I have no silver either,
And all my gold is on the furze
That shakes in windy weather
Above the rusty heather."
"You have much gold upon your head,"
They answered altogether:
"Buy from us with a golden curl."
She clipped a precious golden lock,
She dropped a tear more rare than pearl,
Then sucked their fruit globes fair or red:
Sweeter than honey from the rock,
Stronger than man-rejoicing wine,
Clearer than water flowed that juice;
She never tasted such before,
How should it cloy with length of use?
She sucked and sucked and sucked the more
Fruits which that unknown orchard bore,
She sucked until her lips were sore;
Then flung the emptied rinds away,
But gathered up one kernel stone,
And knew not was it night or day
As she turned home alone.
Lizzie met her at the gate
Full of wise upbraidings:
"Dear, you should not stay so late,
Twilight is not good for maidens;
Should not loiter in the glen
In the haunts of goblin men.
Do you not remember Jeanie,
How she met them in the moonlight,
Took their gifts both choice and many,
Ate their fruits and wore their flowers
Plucked from bowers
Where summer ripens at all hours?
But ever in the moonlight
She pined and pined away;
Sought them by night and day,
Found them no more, but dwindled and grew gray;
Then fell with the first snow,
While to this day no grass will grow
Where she lies low:
I planted daisies there a year ago
That never blow.
You should not loiter so."
"Nay hush," said Laura.
"Nay hush, my sister:
I ate and ate my fill,
Yet my mouth waters still;
To-morrow night I will
Buy more," and kissed her.
"Have done with sorrow;
I'll bring you plums to-morrow
Fresh on their mother twigs,
Cherries worth getting;
You cannot think what figs
My teeth have met in,
What melons, icy-cold
Piled on a dish of gold
Too huge for me to hold,
What peaches with a velvet nap,
Pellucid grapes without one seed:
Odorous indeed must be the mead
Whereon they grow, and pure the wave they drink,
With lilies at the brink,
And sugar-sweet their sap."
Golden head by golden head,
Like two pigeons in one nest
Folded in each other's wings,
They lay down, in their curtained bed:
Like two blossoms on one stem,
Like two flakes of new-fallen snow,
Like two wands of ivory
Tipped with gold for awful kings.
Moon and stars beamed in at them,
Wind sang to them lullaby,
Lumbering owls forbore to fly,
Not a bat flapped to and fro
Round their rest:
Cheek to cheek and breast to breast
Locked together in one nest.
Early in the morning
When the first cock crowed his warning,
Neat like bees, as sweet and busy,
Laura rose with Lizzie:
Fetched in honey, milked the cows,
Aired and set to rights the house,
Kneaded cakes of whitest wheat,
Cakes for dainty mouths to eat,
Next churned butter, whipped up cream,
Fed their poultry, sat and sewed;
Talked as modest maidens should
Lizzie with an open heart,
Laura in an absent dream,
One content, one sick in part;
One warbling for the mere bright day's delight,
One longing for the night.
At length slow evening came--
They went with pitchers to the reedy brook;
Lizzie most placid in her look,
Laura most like a leaping flame.
They drew the gurgling water from its deep
Lizzie plucked purple and rich golden flags,
Then turning homeward said: "The sunset flushes
Those furthest loftiest crags;
Come, Laura, not another maiden lags,
No wilful squirrel wags,
The beasts and birds are fast asleep."
But Laura loitered still among the rushes
And said the bank was steep.
And said the hour was early still,
The dew not fallen, the wind not chill:
Listening ever, but not catching
The customary cry,
"Come buy, come buy,"
With its iterated jingle
Of sugar-baited words:
Not for all her watching
Once discerning even one goblin
Racing, whisking, tumbling, hobbling;
Let alone the herds
That used to tramp along the glen,
In groups or single,
Of brisk fruit-merchant men.
Till Lizzie urged, "O Laura, come,
I hear the fruit-call, but I dare not look:
You should not loiter longer at this brook:
Come with me home.
The stars rise, the moon bends her arc,
Each glow-worm winks her spark,
Let us get home before the night grows dark;
For clouds may gather even
Though this is summer weather,
Put out the lights and drench us through;
Then if we lost our way what should we do?"
Laura turned cold as stone
To find her sister heard that cry alone,
That goblin cry,
"Come buy our fruits, come buy."
Must she then buy no more such dainty fruit?
Must she no more such succous pasture find,
Gone deaf and blind?
Her tree of life drooped from the root:
She said not one word in her heart's sore ache;
But peering thro' the dimness, naught discerning,
Trudged home, her pitcher dripping all the way;
So crept to bed, and lay
Silent 'til Lizzie slept;
Then sat up in a passionate yearning,
And gnashed her teeth for balked desire, and wept
As if her heart would break.
Day after day, night after night,
Laura kept watch in vain,
In sullen silence of exceeding pain.
She never caught again the goblin cry:
"Come buy, come buy,"
She never spied the goblin men
Hawking their fruits along the glen:
But when the noon waxed bright
Her hair grew thin and gray;
She dwindled, as the fair full moon doth turn
To swift decay, and burn
Her fire away.
One day remembering her kernel-stone
She set it by a wall that faced the south;
Dewed it with tears, hoped for a root,
Watched for a waxing shoot,
But there came none;
It never saw the sun,
It never felt the trickling moisture run:
While with sunk eyes and faded mouth
She dreamed of melons, as a traveller sees
False waves in desert drouth
With shade of leaf-crowned trees,
And burns the thirstier in the sandful breeze.
She no more swept the house,
Tended the fowls or cows,
Fetched honey, kneaded cakes of wheat,
Brought water from the brook:
But sat down listless in the chimney-nook
And would not eat.
Tender Lizzie could not bear
To watch her sister's cankerous care,
Yet not to share.
She night and morning
Caught the goblins' cry:
"Come buy our orchard fruits,
Come buy, come buy."
Beside the brook, along the glen
She heard the tramp of goblin men,
The voice and stir
Poor Laura could not hear;
Longed to buy fruit to comfort her,
But feared to pay too dear,
She thought of Jeanie in her grave,
Who should have been a bride;
But who for joys brides hope to have
Fell sick and died
In her gay prime,
In earliest winter-time,
With the first glazing rime,
With the first snow-fall of crisp winter-time.
Till Laura, dwindling,
Seemed knocking at Death's door:
Then Lizzie weighed no more
Better and worse,
But put a silver penny in her purse,
Kissed Laura, crossed the heath with clumps of furze
At twilight, halted by the brook,
And for the first time in her life
Began to listen and look.
Laughed every goblin
When they spied her peeping:
Came towards her hobbling,
Flying, running, leaping,
Puffing and blowing,
Chuckling, clapping, crowing,
Clucking and gobbling,
Mopping and mowing,
Full of airs and graces,
Pulling wry faces,
Demure grimaces,
Cat-like and rat-like,
Ratel and wombat-like,
Snail-paced in a hurry,
Parrot-voiced and whistler,
Helter-skelter, hurry-skurry,
Chattering like magpies,
Fluttering like pigeons,
Gliding like fishes, --
Hugged her and kissed her;
Squeezed and caressed her;
Stretched up their dishes,
Panniers and plates:
"Look at our apples
Russet and dun,
Bob at our cherries
Bite at our peaches,
Citrons and dates,
Grapes for the asking,
Pears red with basking
Out in the sun,
Plums on their twigs;
Pluck them and suck them,
Pomegranates, figs."
"Good folk," said Lizzie,
Mindful of Jeanie,
"Give me much and many"; --
Held out her apron,
Tossed them her penny.
"Nay, take a seat with us,
Honor and eat with us,"
They answered grinning;
"Our feast is but beginning.
Night yet is early,
Warm and dew-pearly,
Wakeful and starry:
Such fruits as these
No man can carry;
Half their bloom would fly,
Half their dew would dry,
Half their flavor would pass by.
Sit down and feast with us,
Be welcome guest with us,
Cheer you and rest with us."
"Thank you," said Lizzie; "but one waits
At home alone for me:
So, without further parleying,
If you will not sell me any
Of your fruits though much and many,
Give me back my silver penny
I tossed you for a fee."
They began to scratch their pates,
No longer wagging, purring,
But visibly demurring,
Grunting and snarling.
One called her proud,
Cross-grained, uncivil;
Their tones waxed loud,
Their looks were evil.
Lashing their tails
They trod and hustled her,
Elbowed and jostled her,
Clawed with their nails,
Barking, mewing, hissing, mocking,
Tore her gown and soiled her stocking,
Twitched her hair out by the roots,
Stamped upon her tender feet,
Held her hands and squeezed their fruits
Against her mouth to make her eat.
White and golden Lizzie stood,
Like a lily in a flood,
Like a rock of blue-veined stone
Lashed by tides obstreperously, --
Like a beacon left alone
In a hoary roaring sea,
Sending up a golden fire, --
Like a fruit-crowned orange-tree
White with blossoms honey-sweet
Sore beset by wasp and bee, --
Like a royal virgin town
Topped with gilded dome and spire
Close beleaguered by a fleet
Mad to tear her standard down.
One may lead a horse to water,
Twenty cannot make him drink.
Though the goblins cuffed and caught her,
Coaxed and fought her,
Bullied and besought her,
Scratched her, pinched her black as ink,
Kicked and knocked her,
Mauled and mocked her,
Lizzie uttered not a word;
Would not open lip from lip
Lest they should cram a mouthful in;
But laughed in heart to feel the drip
Of juice that syruped all her face,
And lodged in dimples of her chin,
And streaked her neck which quaked like curd.
At last the evil people,
Worn out by her resistance,
Flung back her penny, kicked their fruit
Along whichever road they took,
Not leaving root or stone or shoot.
Some writhed into the ground,
Some dived into the brook
With ring and ripple.
Some scudded on the gale without a sound,
Some vanished in the distance.
In a smart, ache, tingle,
Lizzie went her way;
Knew not was it night or day;
Sprang up the bank, tore through the furze,
Threaded copse and dingle,
And heard her penny jingle
Bouncing in her purse, --
Its bounce was music to her ear.
She ran and ran
As if she feared some goblin man
Dogged her with gibe or curse
Or something worse:
But not one goblin skurried after,
Nor was she pricked by fear;
The kind heart made her windy-paced
That urged her home quite out of breath with haste
And inward laughter.
She cried "Laura," up the garden,
"Did you miss me ?
Come and kiss me.
Never mind my bruises,
Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices
Squeezed from goblin fruits for you,
Goblin pulp and goblin dew.
Eat me, drink me, love me;
Laura, make much of me:
For your sake I have braved the glen
And had to do with goblin merchant men."
Laura started from her chair,
Flung her arms up in the air,
Clutched her hair:
"Lizzie, Lizzie, have you tasted
For my sake the fruit forbidden?
Must your light like mine be hidden,
Your young life like mine be wasted,
Undone in mine undoing,
And ruined in my ruin;
Thirsty, cankered, goblin-ridden?"
She clung about her sister,
Kissed and kissed and kissed her:
Tears once again
Refreshed her shrunken eyes,
Dropping like rain
After long sultry drouth;
Shaking with aguish fear, and pain,
She kissed and kissed her with a hungry mouth.
Her lips began to scorch,
That juice was wormwood to her tongue,
She loathed the feast:
Writhing as one possessed she leaped and sung,
Rent all her robe, and wrung
Her hands in lamentable haste,
And beat her breast.
Her locks streamed like the torch
Borne by a racer at full speed,
Or like the mane of horses in their flight,
Or like an eagle when she stems the light
Straight toward the sun,
Or like a caged thing freed,
Or like a flying flag when armies run.
Swift fire spread through her veins, knocked at her heart,
Met the fire smouldering there
And overbore its lesser flame,
She gorged on bitterness without a name:
Ah! fool, to choose such part
Of soul-consuming care!
Sense failed in the mortal strife:
Like the watch-tower of a town
Which an earthquake shatters down,
Like a lightning-stricken mast,
Like a wind-uprooted tree
Spun about,
Like a foam-topped water-spout
Cast down headlong in the sea,
She fell at last;
Pleasure past and anguish past,
Is it death or is it life ?
Life out of death.
That night long Lizzie watched by her,
Counted her pulse's flagging stir,
Felt for her breath,
Held water to her lips, and cooled her face
With tears and fanning leaves:
But when the first birds chirped about their eaves,
And early reapers plodded to the place
Of golden sheaves,
And dew-wet grass
Bowed in the morning winds so brisk to pass,
And new buds with new day
Opened of cup-like lilies on the stream,
Laura awoke as from a dream,
Laughed in the innocent old way,
Hugged Lizzie but not twice or thrice;
Her gleaming locks showed not one thread of gray,
Her breath was sweet as May,
And light danced in her eyes.
Days, weeks, months,years
Afterwards, when both were wives
With children of their own;
Their mother-hearts beset with fears,
Their lives bound up in tender lives;
Laura would call the little ones
And tell them of her early prime,
Those pleasant days long gone
Of not-returning time:
Would talk about the haunted glen,
The wicked, quaint fruit-merchant men,
Their fruits like honey to the throat,
But poison in the blood;
(Men sell not such in any town;)
Would tell them how her sister stood
In deadly peril to do her good,
And win the fiery antidote:
Then joining hands to little hands
Would bid them cling together,
"For there is no friend like a sister,
In calm or stormy weather,
To cheer one on the tedious way,
To fetch one if one goes astray,
To lift one if one totters down,
To strengthen whilst one stands."

Cerpen: Cinta Nada

(semula cerita ini diniatkan menjadi bersambung, tapi saya belum menulis sambungannya sampai sekarang)

“Wuuuuus! Jeng jeng jeng!”

Semua boneka di kamar Alia-Tania tercekat mendengar suara itu. Beberapa boneka bahkan memberanikan diri melirik. Padahal, tahulah mereka bahwa boneka tak sepatutnya bergerak sedikit pun ketika ada manusia di kamar. Manusia yang tidak sedang tidur, tentu saja.

Sosok itu pun melesat di depan rumah boneka. Dia diangkat tinggi-tinggi oleh pemiliknya. Jubah merah terang mengepak di belakang kostum biru yang melekat ke badan kekar. Ketika wajahnya mengarah ke rumah boneka, sosok itu mengilatkan senyum secemerlang gagang pintu.

Nada melihat senyum itu dari sudut mata plastiknya, tapi ia tidak berani berharap senyum itu ditujukan kepadanya. Senyum itu pasti untuk geng boneka modis. Atau Britney. Mereka tinggal satu lantai di atas dapur tempat tinggal Nada bersama Ibu Kartini.

Cerpen: Penyihir Pulau Putih

(Cerpen ini diikutsertakan pada ajang Fantasy Fiesta 2011.)

Langit di atas kastil bagaikan tumpahan tinta yang diperciki garam, tapi titik-titik garam yang seharusnya asin itu malah berpendar menyala. Bahkan, di mataku, semua titik berkilauan itu sedang menjulurkan tangan dan kaki mereka, menari-nari berusaha menggapaiku.

Begitu pula aku.

Kedua tanganku yang terulur ke depan kunaikkan perlahan, merasakan setiap jengkal gerakanku dibanjiri kekuatan cahaya bintang. Satu tangan terentang ke atas sementara tangan lainnya menebas ke samping dengan cepat. Maka kukerahkan tenagaku, jiwa dan ragaku, dalam tarian apiku malam ini.

Cerpen: Sahabatku Maya

(Cerpen ini diikutsertakan dalam LMCR 2011)

Maya menangkapkan kupu-kupu untukku setiap hari.

Begitu aku sampai di kamar sepulang sekolah, aku selalu menemukan sahabatku itu duduk di pinggir kasur. Senyum hangatnya pasti mengembang menyambut kedatanganku.

“Kau pasti suka,” ucap Maya seraya mengulurkan kupu-kupu yang hinggap jari telunjuknya.

Kupu-kupu dari Maya hari ini berwarna oranye dengan bintik-bintik ungu, kugantung di tirai jendela kamarku yang tertutup. Kini kupu-kupu itu bergabung bersama banyak kupu-kupu lain yang semua kudapatkan dari Maya. Cokelat muda bermata merah bata. Hijau mangga berhiasan berlian-berlian kuning terang. Bening dengan torehan pelangi. Semuanya hidup, mengepakkan sayap mereka naik turun perlahan.

“Di mana kau menemukannya?” tanyaku sambil memperhatikan sayap kupu-kupu baruku.

Jurus Anak Kos 1: Memasak

Beberapa hari belakangan ini saya masak lagi, padahal sudah lama mengandalkan warteg dan rumah makan walaupun selalu masak nasi dengan penanak nasi. Gara-garanya suatu pagi saya menengok jam: hampir jam 6 pagi. Di memori saya ada catatan: kalau mau kebagian beli jamur, datang ke warung paling lambat jam 6 pagi. Timbullah kerinduan terhadap jamur tiram. Saya segera berganti baju dan 10 menit kemudian kembali ke kosan dengan... sekantong belanjaan.

Ini nih yang bikin kangen masak :3

Karena saya masih sendiri, saya tidak termotivasi mengasah kemampuan memasak. Setidaknya, berkat tinggal di kos mulai 2007, kemampuan memasak saya dari nol menjadi "survival" (sekadar untuk bertahan hidup). Berkat kos sekarang yang dapurnya lebih,bagus daripada kos pertama dan kedua, kemampuan memasak saya naik tingkat menjadi "edible" (bisa dimakan). :))

Nasi goreng manis asem asin x)

Saya maunya masak yang praktis-praktis saja, toh yang makan saya sendiri dan saya bukan pemilih dalam hal makanan. Pada tingkat survival, saya memasok bumbu-bumbu jadi buatan pabrik. Sekarang saya memasok bumbu-bumbu bubuk seperti keluaran Kupu-Kupu. Bumbu bubuk yang harus selalu ada adalah Bawang Putih, Ketumbar, dan Lada Hitam. Sayangnya, tidak ada bawang merah bubuk dan saya terlalu suka bawang bombay dan daun bawang, jadi saya masih pasrah mengupas dan memotongnya.

Sup random

Bahan makanan kesukaan saya untuk memasak adalah apa saja yang tinggal dipotong (tidak perlu dikupas) dan murah. Bahan-bahan yang paling mungkin masuk kantong belanjaan saya adalah tahu, kacang panjang, taoge, jamur, tomat, sawi, dan kol. Saya suka sekali kentang, wortel, dan jagung, tapi saya malas mengupasnya, jadi jarang-jarang saja deh.

Kangen mashed potatoes D:

Masakan yang paling sering saya buat (di samping telur ceplok/dadar/orak-arik/rebus) adalah nasi goreng, tumis, sup, dan tahu/tempe/jamur goreng/krispi. Variasi tumis dan sup saya tidak banyak, tergantung bahan yang sedang ada saja saya masukkan. Kalau sedang mau repot, saya masak capcay atau bihun goreng. 

Nanti kalau ada motivasi baru, semoga kemampuan memasak saya bisa naik tingkat lagi. ;)

Kembalinya Semangat Blogging berkat Kontes Srikandi Blogger

Blog pertama saya diluncurkan selepas saya lulus kuliah tingkat sarjana, yaitu pada awal 2009. Setelah sepanjang kuliah terbiasa menulis, saya pikir ada baiknya saya tetap menulis untuk berbagi pengalaman dengan teman-teman. Mungkin saya kemudian lebih senang mengutik-utik blog karena pada akhirnya saya mempunyai banyak blog dengan isi sedikit-sedikit, termasuk blog bahasa dan sastra, blog ulasan buku, blog terjemahan saya, kompasiana, dan lain-lain.

Kalau blogwalking, saya jarang melakukannya. Namun, saat mencari informasi di dunia maya sering kali menemukannya di blog-blog pribadi. Biasanya informasi yang saya cari itu menyangkut bahan terjemahan atau cerita yang sedang saya tulis.

Dua tahun belakangan ini saya jarang mengisi blog-blog saya karena kebutuhan menulis sudah tersalurkan lewat kuliah saya di tingkat pascasarjana, juga lewat pekerjaan saya mengisi newsletter dan website Vandaria. Bahkan, saat saya dijebloskan ke sebuah blog reporter oleh seorang teman, saya tetap malas menulis untuk di luar pekerjaan. Bagaimanapun, keinginan untuk menulis itu selalu ada. Sehabis mengalami, membaca, menonton, atau memikirkan sesuatu, kata demi kata bergandengan dan merayap di dalam benak saya. Sering kali saya keluarkan mereka lewat media sosial, tapi kecil saja kepuasan yang saya rasakan sesudah menulisnya.

Sejarah adalah guru kehidupan dan tulisan adalah salah satu sumber rujukan sejarah
dan blogging adalah salah satu bentuk penulisan ;)

Saya baru tergerak untuk kembali meramaikan blog pribadi saat melihat pengumuman Srikandi Blogger tahun 2014. Pada awal tahun 2013 saya sudah melihat kemeriahan kontes ini dari partisipasi Kak Dina Begum, Kak Octaviani Nur Hasanah, dan para peserta lain yang kebetulan ada di linimasa saya. Saya sadar blog saya sepi karena tulisan saya memang tidak banyak dan malah tersebar di mana-mana. Tapi masih ada waktu, kendati sempit, untuk mengisinya lagi. Benar saja, pada hari saya menetapkan hati untuk ikut, saya langsung menulis tiga pos.

Rasanya masih jauh sekali untuk saya menjadi 50 besar Srikandi Blogger 2014, tapi saya berterima kasih atas semangat yang kontes ini berikan kepada saya.

Frozen: Membebaskan Diri dari Rasa Takut

Kata kunci: dongeng, putri raja, salju, keluarga
Penonton: semua umur (anak di bawah 13 tahun perlu pengawasan orangtua)
Konten kekerasan: perkelahian dengan senjata tapi tanpa darah
Konten seksual: satu adegan ciuman sebentar

Frozen adalah film animasi Walt Disney Pictures terbaru yang diadaptasi secara bebas dari novel Snow Queen karya Hans Christian Andersen. Alkisah Kerajaan Arendelle terjerat salju pada musim panas akibat terwujudnya sebuah ramalan. Demi rakyatnya yang kedinginan, Putri Anne pergi ke gunung untuk menemui Ratu Salju yang diharapkannya bisa menghilangkan salju yang tidak pada masanya ini. Dalam perjalanan, Anne bertemu dan dibantu oleh Kristoff, seorang penjual balok es yang terancam kehilangan sumber nafkahnya apabila salju tidak mencair. Bencana ini menyingkap rahasia yang sudah lama disimpan oleh keluarga kerajaan dan hanya diketahui oleh Sang Ratu Salju.

Menjadi Pemburu Singa Mati dan Berburu Instrumen Mortal di Festival Pembaca Indonesia 2013

Akhir pekan lalu, 7-8 Desember 2013, saya ikut serta dalam acara Festival Pembaca Indonesia 2013. Berbeda dengan tahun-tahun sebelumnya, acara tahun ini diselenggarakan di Museum Bank Mandiri. Saya tinggal naik kereta dari Stasiun UI sampai Stasiun Kota lalu jalan kaki sedikit; lebih mudah daripada pergi ke Pasar Festival seperti tahun-tahun sebelumnya.

Booth Pemburu Singa Mati dijaga Lily
(Foto: Dina Begum)

Saya hadir dua hari dalam acara ini untuk menjaga booth Pemburu Singa Mati (lapak penerjemah, penyunting, dan penyelaras kata yang bekerja untuk penerbitan buku, baik secara tetap maupun lepas). Lebih banyak tentang kegiatan kami di booth itu bisa dilihat di tulisan Mba Dina Begum di sini dan di sini. Kami memperkenalkan pekerjaan kami kepada para pengunjung dan mengajak mereka untuk ikut serta dalam kuis berhadiah buku-buku yang disumbangkan oleh teman-teman seprofesi atau penerbit, termasuk buku-buku hasil pekerjaan kami.

Leo, maskot Pemburu Singa Mati, dan para peserta kuis
(Foto: Dina Begum)

Pada hari pertama saya tidak banyak melihat-lihat lapak-lapak lain, tapi memang terlihat lebih sepi dibandingkan tahun 2011 (tahun 2012 memang sepi juga). Sore hari saya membolos dari jaga booth untuk kopi darat bersama teman-teman LCDP, grup penulis fantasi. Selain mengobrol, kami menulis flash-fiction secara bergantian dan menciptakan cerita yang aneh bin ajaib, hahaha.

Diorama pendirian Bank Mandiri (1)

Diorama pendirian Bank Mandiri (2)

Separuh hari kedua kurang-lebih sama dengan separuh hari pertama: menjaga lapak Pemburu Singa Mati. Teman-teman pembaca atau sesama kuli buku mampir untuk bersilaturahmi. Kami juga bergantian menengok lapak-lapak lain. Salah satu orang baru saya temukan pada hari itu adalah Bu Meda, penerjemah City of Ashes dan City of Fallen Angels (nomor dua dan empat serial Mortal Instruments yang saya terjemahkan nomor satu, tiga, dan limanya).

Melody Violine dan Meda Satrio di booth TMIndo
(Foto: TMIndo)

Untunglah kertas kuis habis sebelum jam 2 siang, jadi saya bisa kabur ke booth komunitas TMIndo (penggemar serial Mortal Instruments karya Cassandra Clare) untuk ikut permainan Perburuan Instrumen Mortal. Walaupun tim saya hanya menjadi juara kedua, setiap orang dari kami mendapatkan hadiah CD OST film City of Bones yang dirilis Agustus lalu. Padahal, sehari lalu aku mempertimbangkan untuk membelinya sendiri. xD

tim City of Bones
kiri ke kanan: Nurul, Dinda, Laras, Melody
(Foto: TMIndo)

Hadiah Perburuan Instumen Mortal
Terima kasih, TMIndo!

Selesai berburu, kakak-kakak Pemburu Singa Mati sudah membereskan lapak kami (maaf saya tidak bantu-bantu waktu itu). Kami menyempatkan diri foto-foto dulu di panggung sebelum pulang. :p

Para Pemburu Singa Mati
kiri ke kanan: Melody Violine, Lulu Fitri Rahman, Dina Begum, Barokah Ruziati
(Foto: Feby Indirani)

Selamat kepada Goodreads Indonesia yang sudah menyelenggarakan Festival Pembaca Indonesia 2013. Terima kasih kepada kakak-kakak penjaga resmi lapak Pemburu Singa Mati (Dina Begum, Barokah Ruziati, Lulu Fitri Rahman), kakak-kakak yang ikut membantu kami menjaga booth, dan kakak-kakak yang menyumbangkan buku-bukunya untuk dipajang dan dibagikan di booth. Terima kasih juga kepada semua pengunjung yang sudah mau dikerjai untuk mengerjakan kuis! :D

Fire dari GPU, pin dari TMIndo, Public Relations Writing dan Sakit 1/2 Jiwa dari bookswap

Wisata Fantasiyah Episode 1: Cirebon

Peringatan: Ini cerita perjalanan yang tidak informatif, semata berisi curhat saya tentang perjalanan ke Cirebon sebulan lalu.

"The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there."

-L.P. Hartley

Sebenarnya saya orang yang malas pergi-pergi. Tapi belakangan ini saya berpikir bahwa menjelajahi tempat-tempat bersejarah adalah jalan mudah untuk mengunjungi masa lalu, membayangkan kehidupan yang sama sekali asing bagi kita, dan menjadikannya inspirasi bagi penulisan cerita fantasi.

Maka 16 November 2013 lalu saya jalan-jalan ke Cirebon. Pemicunya adalah foto yang diunggah oleh salah seorang teman penulis fantasi tentang kereta kuda di salah satu keraton Cirebon dengan teknologi yang canggih pada masa lalu. Begitu mengetahui Cirebon dekat (bisa pulang-pergi; saya malas menginap), saya langsung mencari tahu objek-objek wisata di sana dan sangat tertarik kepada Gua Sunyaragi. Saya memang tidak tertarik berbelanja dan selalu biasa saja terhadap makanan (sekhas apa pun). Saya mengincar situs-situs arkeologis untuk mencari inspirasi penulisan cerita fantasi. Maka saya merongrong (iya, maksa) teman-teman untuk menemani saya ke Cirebon.

Ini dia 3 korban saya :p