what's on aqua drive
i was an intruder, really, in the alamsjah family. starts from friday, the evening before the h-day when i came to kampung melayu, aqua drive, and them having guests from konjen. then i helped them arranging the hall at the masjid (about an hour drive from the house), being seksi sibuk yg kurang penting. (it was nice having myself helpful to them though.) and i went with one of the uncles. stayed at his family's place. i even had to do all the prayers jama'ah with them. (i didn't remember the last time i had to do that. good lord, i didn't even remember the last time i do any prayer at all.) we watched tv and talked nothing the rest of the night—me burnt up after one hectic day but stayed up nonetheless—because none of them (om harry and his daughter pinky - or is it pingki?) seemed to be interested in doing so. instead we waited for adzan subuh around 2.30 am. and we had to wake up around 7 the morning after. geez.
the next morning was even worse. them being all laid back and everything—so i thought there's no need to rush—but it's actually the opposite: they'd prepared before while i took it too easy. and when om harry dropped us at aqua drive again, things gotten worse to worser yet—did nothing but sitting useless while the other had lotsa important things to do—and helping them with the preparation just got me on my nerve. i couldn't believe i'd gotten myself into that situation.
the masjid. load. unload. and wait. wait, wait, wait. everyone knows everyone and i know no one and no one knows me. i could almost hear their mind,
"who's that guy?" one'd say.
"i thought i know all member of the family!" another thought.
"ini sapa sih anak atu kok tau2 ada disini," and as much as i wanted to glare at them, if not yell, i couldn't do much but smile and keep helping as much as i could. everybody—the men, that is—was either wearing a suit or batik shirt. and black pants. i wore none of the above: green shirt,(g2000, tugged in), black belt with front metal and a pair of khaki pants, hugo boss. (no, i got them from a factory outlet.) i was being an outsider most of the time, those vancouverits and vancouveriettes talked to each other but rarely to me. i was just referred to as monique's friend or rene's elementary school's friend. how could i not like them?
the food, the actual main reason of why i came—monique made a promise they're gonna be great—was okay. but i didn't indulge myself too much; heck, i didn't know what happened but i lost my appetite. they're allright—definitely not the most delicious i've tasted, yet enough to provide me the taste i've been longing for. especially the sate padang.
but even so, i can't say that i had a great time. the rest of the reception? got bored. more unloading, and stuck with rene. which was better, i guess, than if he wasn't there. sure, we were kinda bored, but at least in the evening we got to go at this cool place down at yaletown—helluva great—and boozed ourselves while catching up on ex-alizharians out there. martini and a shot, after one freakin' year of no alcohol consumption whatsoever. the best part of the three-day trip, for sure.
the next best part, then, was when monique's mother told me to stay at the house for that night, and sleep in her room. i was half-drunk when we got home so i slept right away; but in the morning, when i finally got the chance to see what's in the room, i found a stack of these books:
Nasehat Pengantin Wanita: Perkawinan Menurut Islam
Fiqih Wanita
What No One Tells The Bride
Sex for Dummies
and, one copy of a DVD:
Y Tu Mama Tambien
oo, yeah. enjoy your ride, missy!
[finished written 08:06 am, July 7, 2004, at Gate C10 of Taipei International airport]