Hurt

There is already a lot of talk about the newly released film “Walk the Line”. It chronicles the life of Johnny Cash, played by Joaquin Phoenix, from early childhood up till his death on September 12th, 2003, due to complications related to diabetes. His wife June Carter Cash followed him 4 months later. To say that ‘the man in black’ is anything less than a legend would be blasphemous. He played with the likes of Buddy Holly, Bob Dylan, and even The King. His voice, style, and demeanor have always set him apart from other country singers as well as his notorious dark side. The film seems promising and it has turned OSCAR heads but I doubt a biography will win again this year. Phoenix also sings his own tracks and Reese Witherspoon apparently breaks new ground with her portrayal of June Carter.

Apart from being larger than life, Cash also wrote some fucking good songs. His older stuff rolled out like stories with a smooth chorus between chapters. Some of the classics I enjoy are Cocaine, A Boy Named Sue, and One Piece at a Time. In his deep gruff voice he managed to relate with the common man and his everyday struggles. Not just the agony he faces in everyday reality but also the mental torture of being torn between heaven and hell, felling like a rag in the tug of war between God and Lucifer.

The song Cocaine is about a guy on a cocaine binge who shoots his wife and follows his path all the way into prison. Cash actually recorded that song while playing live at the Folsom Prison for the inmates. When he sings in the last verse “The judge he smiled as he picked up his pen, 99 years in the Folsom pen, 99 years underneath that ground, I can't forget the day I shot that bad bitch down”, you can here the whole crowd break out into a cheer.

Like most rock stars, Johnny Cash’s life was filled with drugs, booze, and overall insanity. Even the like of Ray Charles could not escape that vicious pitfall. It is left up to the movie to tell that story now. However, the last track Cash left us with was a cover of a song written by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. Many people have described this song as the best ‘anti-drug’ song they ever heard. It obviously struck a chord with Cash and his rendition of the song and the video for it kind of turned out to be his obituary. The original is equally heart wrenching. It is not everyday you come across lyrics like these.

In the music video directed by Mark Romanek, Cash does not wear any make up nor is any lighting used to make his aging face look any younger. The clips flash between him sitting in a chair playing the song on his guitar and singing, and snap shots of his life gone by, him in his younger years. His wife June Carter Cash is also featured in the video. It is astonishing that a man looking so frail could still sound so powerful and the imagery combined with that can stir up some emotions. If you have not heard this track then you are really missing out.

"Hurt"

I hurt myself today
To see if I still feel I focus on the pain
The only thing that's real
The needle tears a holeThe old familiar sting
Try to kill it all away
But I remember everything

[Chorus:]What have I become
My sweetest friend
Everyone I know goes away
In the end
And you could have it all
My empire of dirt
I will let you down
I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns
Upon my liar's chair
Full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair
Beneath the stains of time
The feelings disappear
You are someone else
I am still right here

[Chorus:]What have I become

My sweetest friend

Everyone I know goes away

In the end

And you could have it all

My empire of dirt

I will let you down

I will make you hurt

If I could start again

A million miles away

I would keep myself

I would find a way

Props

I try to steer away from subjects related to politics and religion. They are touchy topics and should only be approached by talented and responsible writers. Two such bloggers on the local Indo scene, who I have mentioned before, are IndCoup and Jakartaas. Their articles are critical, smart, and opinionated. They also open the floor to alternate opinions in their comments and respond tactfully to counter criticism. Personally I do not like people fucking with me so I just keep my beliefs to myself.

Recently by way of the above mentioned blog’s I found the Indonesia Anonymus Blog. The authors describe themselves as “a group of Indonesians, ranting about our beloved country. We are not native english speakers (or writers, in this case), so please excuse our grammar. We call ourselves anonymus because we could not decide whose name should be put as a writer. This blog is a result of many people grumbling about many things in many ways.”

This group of educated professionals is critical of the country they love so much and more so of the people running it. They have only been online for a month now but have already churned out some very thought provoking entries. I am excited to see what else they come up with next and I hope in time they do attract enough attention to create some ripples and eventually waves. However, I ask myself, what if they did make waves. Would some political figurehead be able to pull strings and have them shut down? On numerous occasions IndCoup has pointed the finger and to my knowledge has not received any threats. I like to believe that Indonesians have more freedom of speech than their neighbors in Malaysia and Singapore, basically because Indonesians have strength in numbers.

A fellow Blogger in Malaysia is once again under the microscope. Sixth Seal is probably the first blog I ever read and was also a source of inspiration for me to start my own. Once again, due to the controversial nature of his blog, he has his back against the wall. He has been forced to apologize for his entries and no one should have to express regret for conveying their own thoughts and opinions, much less for exposing a flaw that exists within and obviously imperfect system. I amongst others have also found information on his site beneficial and the commentary has been therapeutic for numerous others. This is not a question of whether what he is doing is right or wrong, but rather if the government has a right to silence him. It would be an injustice if we were denied access to the writings of William Burroughs, Hunter Thompson, or Lewis Carroll, would it not? Power to the people!

Oh, Christmas Tree

So it’s the first weekend after Thanksgiving and it is customary to erect the tree just about now, so we did just that. I got 3 kids at home and they love the process. We put on some good ole sappy songs and wore the cheesy red hats while we decked the halls with bowels of holly. Honestly though, it was fun. Some friends came by and we all had a few drinks too.

We got some really unique decorations from Bali that are carved from wood and painted. This is a little Santa but we got Angels, Stars, Moons, and even Fruits!!! This is the tropics damit.

Everybody knows that a tree aint no Christmas tree till it got some balls. So we gave this tree some balls.

Every year this bastard finds his way out of some dusty old box and perches under the tree. For the first week, while his battery lasts, he sings “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” every time his sound detector is set off. It can get quite irritating.

Half way through the process you can see that there are no decorations around the top of the tree. That is because it is one tall ass son of a bitch. I was too damn hung over to climb onto a rickety old chair. Check out the velvet thing I bought just that morning to cover the base of the tree. Who comes up with this stuff?

This guy has got to be the coolest ornament on the tree. He is The Bubble Butt Santa…

I don’t really dig the star we have going now but until I find something really special, this will have to do. It is a bit too heavy as well and by the time Christmas comes around; it will be lopsided for sure.

It took us about an hour and it was pretty good fun putting up the Christmas tree. The seasons warm feelings start to sink in and I would be lying if I said I was not just a little bit excited. For the few years in between where there were no kids and I did not bother to have a tree it just did not feel like Christmas. This year I will have a lot of family visiting Jakarta and this may just be like the good old days once again.

Champions

It has been a long ass week and I am looking forward to heading home by 4pm and watching the 4th ODI Cricket match between India and South Africa. This series has not been as eventful as the last one against Sri Lanka, where India won 6 games out of 7, but I am hoping things will turn today. SA won the first game and India the second. The third game was rained off and called a draw on Wednesday. This puts them neck and neck right now. The shining star of the team at present (in my opinion) is Mahendra Singh Dhoni. This guy is a fucking hero. Only 24 years old and he is already making a name in the sport. You can check out his stats here. All sports need some players like this who are fun to watch because they simply kick ass.

I should also add that cricket is the most fun sport to watch. With soccer games, just as you are getting tipsy and enjoying your drink, the game has already reached its climax and is soon over. Cricket on the other hand is slow and drawn out for the more seasoned viewers. You have to pace yourself, ordering drinks but snacking just enough in between so as not to be too full or tire yourself. It’s an art I tell you, just knowing when the right time to switch from beer to vodka is. By the end of the game the adrenaline just about brings you to a coherent level. Women should be aware that guys who watch cricket are more patient and over all better lovers.

And speaking of better lovers, Ghanaians are generally very proud and conscious of there sexual performance (as most men are). Passing a signboard on the road, I had to ask my buddy Amit to take a picture.

Champion Condoms, Wo Ye Metcho!!! From what I gather the punch line implies that the condoms are for macho men. As for the logo or picture, I can’t figure out what the hell it is, but the big yellow blob splat does not assure me that these condoms are all that safe. Now having used condoms in Ghana, I can only say that it was an extremely uncomfortable experience. The latex was as thick as cardboard man!!! You could not cum if you were fucking sandpaper.

Durex, Trojan, and other leading Western brands strive to maintain sensitivity; the condoms in Ghana seem to have no concern for that at all. Trojan implies in their ad that their condom skin is as thin as a bubble, but I might as well have wrapped my dick in bubble paper before having sex. I should add though, it was nice to finally put on a condom that was not too small for me…. Let me clear my throat!

Word Play

With so many websites springing up, this was bound to happen. These are some website URL’s that have been ‘lost in translation’. I guess when you are standing so close to something you can’t spot the obvious. But really, what the fuck were these people thinking??!! It makes me BLUR lah.

http://www.whorepresents.com/

This is actually Who Represents. You can type in a name of an artist on their site and find out who their management is. I thought it was a site to buy gifts for my whore, or where other whores might be presenting something. No such luck.


http://www.expertsexchange.com/

And for those of you in need of a sex change, you have found the experts. Your one stop to chop it off. No, it’s the Experts Exchange. For your best resources on the net. Freaky.


http://www.penisland.net/

Who the fuck needs to go to Disney land when we got Penis Land!!! I know where I am taking my kids next summer. Have they got big buildings shaped like cocks? This in fact is Pen Island. The specialize in custom made pens. But I wonder how they could not have noticed the flaw in their URL when they have written, “Don't be fooled by those imposters at www.penisland.org, or www.pen-island.net, we're the real deal!” on their homepage. Its mind boggling.


http://www.therapistfinder.com/

Finally a search engine we can really use. I am so tiers of ‘Friend Finder’ and ‘Adult Friend Finder’. I just wanna find the bitch who raped me. This is The Rapist Finder. Now we can track down all those fuckers and lock em up for good! Actually, this is a Therapist Finder, which coincidently is something I could also use. I’m gonna go ahead and bookmark it.


http://www.powergenitalia.com/

This should be MY home page URL, Power Genitalia. In actual fact it is the web site for some Italian power company.


http://www.molestationnursery.com/

The Molestation Nursery must be some resort for sick pedophiles. But honestly, naming a kids school Mole Station Nursery is humor in really bad taste. How could they not have noticed what they were up to? It’s a sick world I tell you.

CARNIVALE

As usual, I fill my bouts of insomnia watching episode after episode of mindless TV series. All of them pirated DVD’s of course. Some of them have been quite good (story wise) and others have found their way to my garbage bin very quickly. I recently came across a series called CARNIVALE. I do not recall ever hearing of it before. The image on the cover looked quite interesting. It seemed kind of dirty and melancholy with dull colors and dreary looking characters. It suited my mood at the time so I picked it up.

The story is set in 1934, in the dust bowl of America, where people were suffering from the great depression. The open title sequence is awesome with clips of that era infused with images of tarot cards and carnival freaks. The footage has a grimy feel to it and the music in the back ground is what I would call, pretty hypnotic. The first episodes introduction contains the phrase, “Into each generation is born a creature of light and a creature of darkness.” I like these mystical stories of the clash between good and evil. And it is even better when the line between the 2 is so unclear that you don’t know where either one stands.


Such is the premises of CARNIVALE, with out giving too much away. The bilateral story starts on one end when an 18 year old man recently faced with his mothers death is rescued by and eventually joins a traveling caravan. The troop includes freaks and geeks of all nature and even a bunch of psychics to boot. They are handled by a little person named Samson who in turn is in turn commanded by a character referred to as Management. I am on the 9th episode now and I yet have to see this ‘Management”. The young boy harbors some mysterious powers that he is still exploring and his unsolved past seems to haunt him.


On the opposite side we are following the story of a Reverend, who is also in possession of some baffling strengths. He faces the trials and tribulations of the corrupt world he lives in and he is constantly infuriated by the limitations they place on his humanitarian goals, which he believes are being communicated to him by God. He is haunted by apocalyptic visions that tie him and seemingly bring him closer to the boy, although they seem to have never met. It is evident to me however that this show will climax once these 2 personalities clash.

This show is extremely slow and I would not recommend it to people who like fast paced action like in 24. But none the less the story line is gripping if you allow yourself to be absorbed by it. The music helps transport you back to the 30’s and the style of filming completes the transition. The show features numerous other characters that are equally charismatic and interesting. How often will you get to see a bearded lady make love with a blind psychic or beautiful conjoined twins seduce a group of men with their hypnotic voices? There are dark twists and sometimes confusing curves but if you are ready to let your imagination run wild then you could have fun with this. Not to mention that CARNIVALE did win 5 Emmys© for their last season.

Highlands

Only 2 hours out of Accra are the hills of Aburi. The hills have been a retreat for Ghanaians for many years now, and the Aburi Botanical Gardens attract local and foreign visitors alike. As a child I remember spending some Sundays there with the family and even public holidays having huge picnics there with the whole Indian community of Accra, which was not too large at the time. There were numerous flowers, plants, and enormous old trees. Not to mention a rusty old helicopter that we kids loved playing on. We played cricket, football, and amore while our parents got pissed drunk and blasted very loud Hindi music. Those were the days.

When I was in Ghana last week I went up to Aburi to check out some properties. Over the years, foreigners and wealthy industrialists have realized the value of having a weekend getaway in the cool hills. With a new road being built, Aburi is now even closer to Accra. And once the road is built it will be easier to transport building equipment to the sites. The red dirt track in the picture is actually going to be a 4 lane highway. One day.

So in Aburi, the land is still pretty cheap. Actually it is very cheap. But it is really hard to come by a good plot and when you do it is not very simple to insure that you are actually buying the plot you are looking at or any land at all for that matter. It is hard to know who the actual owners of the plots are and most times they are just simple farmers. You have to have a good connection in the government office to be sure any land you want to purchase is legit. This is a common problem in third world countries and I even know people who have been duped like this in Bali. We trekked through some pretty thick bushes to find some hill side properties.

At some points we even had to get out and move on by foot.

But the views were pretty spectacular and the weather was not too hot. There was one place where we could see over the small town in Aburi.

The piece of cleared land with the big tree in the middle is apparently Rita Marley’s property. This is where she has set up a recording studio. I think this seems like a pretty wikid place to record a reggae album. And I am sure that she could grow da kine ganj in that weather.

We came across this house that I really loved. Apparently it has been under construction now for some 10 years. This is not uncommon in Ghana. Many times you will see halve complete projects, abandoned. Some people are willed properties and proceed to build on them one brick at a time. And other times children spend decades fighting over who the property was willed to. This one in particular seemed ideal to me. The garden was huge and there is a steep drop in front of the house insuring that no one could build directly in front of you. I could totally picture an awesome infinity pool right on that edge.

The view from this hill was fabulous as well. It looks right over the city so the lights at night would create a captivating picture. Even in the day time the shadows of the clouds as mesmerizing.

There were numerous houses coming up around the area but all of them pretty well scattered. This one in particular caught my eye. I am not sure if you can see it clearly in the picture but it has a pool as well as tennis court at the highest point of the house. Also there is a small path from the house leading to a circular structure that would be an ideal entertainment center.


After spending the day at Aburi we stopped in at another local chop bar. Many of you would probably be very familiar with place. In fact we had one in Hawaii as well. I wonder if they would have an issue with the copyrights of this name.

Ghanaian i-Pod

I have told you about my own i-pod, the i-Buzz, which is the attachment that gets ladies off, and I even wrote about the breast implant mp3 player as well. I cant find that entry to link back to though. But absolutely none of those are comparable to the Ghanian i-pod.



As you can see, this puppy runs on a car battery so it has a pretty long life time. I am sure you can run it for at least a year with out having to change. Also, if you are from Ghana, you would be pretty good at balancing heavy stuff on your head quite effortlessly. It also comes with its own set of loudspeakers so you can be the life of the next party you visit. I am not sure how people would react if you tried using this while traveling.

Happy Diwali

Better late than never dude… Diwali is the Hindu New Year. I don’t really know the facts about this so don’t quote this entry in any manner what so ever. As I have stated before, I am a Sindhi. It seems every cast of Indian has their own way to celebrate this occasion. Ours is extremely fiscal oriented. Yes, we pray for money. But in all fairness we do pray for happiness too. Whatever the fuck that is.

So every year we light DIYA’S (candles) and brighten our houses to welcome the goddess of wealth, LAXMI. We do prayers in our homes and especially our offices. The ‘elders’ customarily give us some cash gifts. But recently I find my parents to be very stingy and some dumb ass youngsters look up at me with wanting eyes. The time for me to start dispensing cash has defiantly not come. For the last 2 or 3 years I have not spent Diwali with my whole family so I have not really bothered with all the prayers. This year however I was staying with my friend’s family in Ghana and they take this thing pretty seriously.

At this ceremony, images of deities were lined up on a table in the conference room and some invoice or accounts books were lined up in front of them. This is more of a gesture as most of us are using computers for our work at present. The last time I had a ceremony in my office I just set up next to my PC.

The ceremony commences with the recital of some prayers and a mixture of a red powder is made with water and flowers.

Using the mixture, we draw the Hindu swastika on every book and put prayers on each page. Back in the day my father would write the prayer by hand every book but now we get those little pink slips that have all the necessary wordage on them, and they just need to be placed in the book. What a time saver.

The ceremony usually takes about 30 minutes and everyone takes a turn holding a tray containing paraphernalia in front of the idols. It ends with this final act which I believe is unique to the Sindhi’s. In this bowl that now contains milk, water, red powder, flowers, and raw rice, there is also hidden amongst many silver coins, a few real gold ones. We each dip into the bowl, hoping to extract a gold coil and then tap it against our teeth. This is kind of a good luck for the future thing. After numerous tries I still never found the gold one. I guess it is going to be another hard year for me.

In more ways than one, it was fun to spend Diwali in Accra. I met a lot of my family that night that I had not seen in years. I also got to experience a full family prayer after so long. My Uncle even gave me quite a bit of KARCHI (pocket money). I felt like a kid again with not so many responsibilities. The rest of the night we just hung out with good friends and got extremely pissed!

Dynasty Chinese Restaurant

The Dynasty Chinese Restaurant in Accra has been noted as the best in the country for over 5 years now. Located right on Oxford Street in the commercial Osu area, it is not easy to miss. They are not extremely popular with tourists because they are more expensive than the other Chinese restaurants in the city, but they are extremely popular with local residents. It is impossible to get a table there on a Sunday with out a booking. They serve up an awesome array of dim-sum even. The property is flying both the Ghanaian and Chinese flags.

For some strange reason, and most of the Accra boys will testify, the Chinese food in Accra is way better than the stuff we get out here in that Far East or anywhere else in the world for that mater. This is most likely because we grew up on it and they have some items on the menu that I have just never seen on this side of the planet. What initially separated Chinese food in Ghana from the rest of the world are the condiments. Once we are seated the first thing we are served is a plate containing chopped onions, green chilies, and ginger. We mix this in a small dipping bowl with Soya sauce and the local chili paste called SHIT-O. It is very spicy and makes for a great sauce mixture.

The standard first dish up is the Hot and Sour soup. It is loaded with flavor and tender shredded pork and mushrooms. It is the best cure for a hangover I have found yet. That and a cold beer of course.

Another specialty at Dynasty is the marinated pork ribs. I can’t even describe how moist and juicy the meat is. It just melts in your mouth. Along side that we had the fried chicken wings which is an old school classic there. It just does not taste the same anywhere else.

This was a fairly light meal as I had literally checked my luggage in and was only grabbing a flight before hopping on the plane. The last dish is a very unique one. It is a mixture of flat noodles, thin sliced cucumber, cold shredded chicken, and spicy peanut sauce. It is fucking awesome when mixed with the condiments sauce. This combined light meal is perfect for a Sunday afternoon, and it will still leave you enough space to lounge around the pool, sucking beers till late evening.

Tempting Fate

Most people are relieved and happy to come home after a long trip away. For some reason it is quite the opposite for me. I can’t seem to slip this feeling. Maybe I have just had enough of this city. Maybe I am just not built to stay in one place for so long. Some days I want to just get rid of my business and go do something different. Become an 18 wheeler truck driver maybe. Drive across the US delivering cargo without a concern for what it is I am carrying. I could met different people and have all new experiences. Somehow I feel all my adventures here have been exhausted. If this is all there is then I might as well check out now.

Once again I can’t sleep and food does not even taste that good anymore. Everyday is like some intense cocaine withdrawal downer. There is no joy left in the simple things and I never really cared for them that much in the first place. Acceptance of all responsibility and stability are part of growing up but I am still not ready for it. I don’t think I ever will be. There is still something out there that I have to see, know, or find. But when I say it our loud it all just comes off as vacant passion.

The world is changing but I seem to be standing still. I do not want to be a pillar or a well rooted tree. I would rather be an insignificant leaf that floats on the wind as it falls to the ground, rotting on the soil. There is a character in the book Atlas Shrugged who as a child growing up saw a solid tree perched on a hill as a symbol of strength, only one day to find that it had been knocked over by a bolt of lightning during a storm. At a closer glance he finds this tree was not solid at all but rather old and hollow. It was long dead and gone, before the storm. Maybe I am like that tree… Empty. One day they will find out.

Maybe I need a drink. Maybe I don’t. On a less depressing note, here is a new iPOD accessory that I recently came across. It is not directly affiliated with Apple but rumor has it that they have been sold out for the Christmas season. The iBUZZ will make a great gift for any of your female friends (or your deranged male ones). “A super-fun sex toy that plugs into your iPOD! The music-activated vibrating bullet stimulates you in time with your favorite music. And you can listen to your songs while you're enjoying the vibrations”. So it moves to the beat of the bass. The next time you see some chick on the bus smiling while listening to her iPOD, you think about what is making her so damn happy.

Tuff Gong Reggae Shop

Rita Marley, the wife of the late Robert Nesta Marley, recently moved to Ghana where she has built a small home in the hill tops of Aburi. She has also set up a recording studio where she works with international reggae artists and she has put up a small shop selling reggae memorabilia.

The Tuff Gong Reggae Shop is located just outside Accra, near the foothill of Aburi, in the Medina sub-district. It is not difficult to find as there is only one straight road going through the area and the shop is located right behind the gas station at the end of the road. It was a colorful little place with music playing around the outside as well. Right next door they have set up a small Rastafarian restaurant, which serves all vegetarian food.

The merchandise inside seems like excess or reject stocks manufactured for the western markets. I say this only because I noticed some slightly damaged t-shirts in the lot. They also had a variety of CD and cassettes. I did not realize that Rita Marley had recorded her own albums and that too so many. I was not tempted to buy one though.

Even the potted plants around the shop were painted the customary red, gold, and green. The atmosphere around the shop was pleasant, only I wish it was not so far out of the city. I was actually supposed to have a meeting with Rita Marley there that afternoon but I missed her by 30 minutes because I was held up in traffic. This would have been a much more interesting post had I actually met her. But I have met her before and I did speak to her on the phone this time. Who knows, maybe on the next trip to Ghana I will be able to burn an original track in her studio.


And I believe here too I must give Amit credit for the pictures. We’re not worthy!!!