Sunday, September 13, 2015

Cerita Kita #CastingCallBatch2

I'd like to start this post with a simple thank you to my parents and my bestfriends +Sri Rejeki Handayani and +ulin nuha for always believe in me. And of course, for +Gogirl! Magazine and CleanAndClear for this huge opportunity.

Thank you so much. I'm so grateful and honored to be involved in such a huge event :)

Sekitar satu atau dua bulan yang lalu, aku lagi iseng buka laman Facebook, kebetulan ada advertisement tentang Casting Call untuk kontributor Cerita Kita Batch 2. Ada 5 kelas yang akan dimentori oleh orang-orang yang berpengalaman; Photography Class, Beauty Class, Graphic Design Class, Fashion Styling Class, dan Writing Class. Karena aku memang udah suka nulis sejak jaman sekolah, aku mutusin buat daftar ke Writing Class.

Honestly, gak pernah terlintas di benakku akan lolos ke final. Aku bahkan sebenernya udah lupa kalo pernah daftar acara ini.

Sampe kira-kira 2 minggu yang lalu, aku dapet telpon dari nomer Jakarta waktu lagi ngajar les. Tapi karena HP sering aku silent, telpon itu cuma sekedar lewat alias missed call aja. Besoknya, nomer itu ngehubungin lagi waktu aku perjalanan pulang kuliah. Begitu sampe rumah, ada SMS dari Kak Annisa yang minta aku buat notice dia kalo udah bisa dihubungin. Sekitar 30 menit kemudian, Kak Annisa telpon ke nomerku dan kasih kabar ke aku yang jadi salah satu calon finalis Casting Call Batch 2. Remember the keyword here, calon. Even so, aku udah excited banget.

Keesokan harinya, aku bolak-balik ngunjungin laman Cerita Kita buat liat pengumuman. Karena sampe malem belum ada postingan juga, aku nyerah dan berhenti. 

Waktu hari Sabtu, 29 Agustus 2015, kebetulan paket internet smartphoneku lagi habis. Praktis, aku gak bisa buka website. Akhirnya, aku minta tolong Yani untuk ngecek website Cerita Kita, mungkin aja udah di-post. Gak ada 15 menit, dia udah SMS lagi ke aku, ngasih tau kalo namaku ada di daftar finalis.

Setelah perdebatan singkat yang konyol, aku akhirnya beli pulsa untuk paket internet dan langsung buka ngetik alamat Cerita Kita di tab baru. Kaget, seneng, gak nyangka, speechless, semuanya jadi satu waktu beneran ada namaku di daftar. Masih inget banget tanganku gemetar karena excitement.

Sekitar seminggu kemudian, Kak Nisa mulai ngehubungin aku tentang rencana keberangkatan dan segala macemnya. It was exciting! Kebetulan aku gak sengaja nemu Ulfa yang ternyata berdomisili di Salatiga. We chatted and talked about the upcoming event which was so fun.

Me and Ulfa on our way to Jakarta
Akhirnya, hari yang dinantiin dateng juga. Hari Sabtu kemarin (12/09/15), aku dan Ulfa yang emang udah janjian buat ketemu di bandara akhirnya terbang ke Jakarta. Our flight was so early, I nearly fell asleep on my way to airport hahaha. Sesampainya di bandara Soekarno-Hatta, ternyata kita itu peserta luar kota yang terakhir. Azizah (Pekanbaru), Balqis (Lampung), dan Janis (Bali) udah duluan nyampe di Gate 2F. Sebenernya ada Ollyvia (Manado) tapi ternyata karena ada miskom, Ollyvia udah keburu dijemput sama temennya.

Dari bandara, Kak Ayu langsung nganterin kita ke venue acara, Conclave. We arrived way too early. Alhasil kita harus nunggu di Library selama beberapa jam.


Yay for all of us!
Sekitar jam 1-an, setelah para finalis selesai registrasi dan foto di photobooth yang keren banget (I want to see the pictures really bad!), kita masuk ke salah satu ruangan untuk acara pembukaan gitu. Kak Ucita Pohan yang bertugas sebagai MC berhasil ngebuat acara tambah seru!

Kemudian, aku masuk ke ruangan yang khusus disediain untuk Writing Class bareng 10 finalis lain. We got Anita Moran as our coach! Kak Anita bukan cuma jago dalam hal Creative Writing, dia juga bisa bikin layout jadi tambah menarik gitu, plus she's super gorgeous! 


We learned from the best!
Setelah belajar gimana cara membuat artikel yang baik, kita diwajibkan buat nulis satu artikel dengan tema bebas sebanyak satu halaman dengan waktu 45 menit. I remember how the others were typing furiously to their laptops and I just sat there, lacking ideas. Pikiranku bener-bener blank. Modal nekat, aku nulis apa aja yang ada di pikiranku. Pada akhirnya, baru paragraf ketiga udah stuck gitu aja. Sempet bete abis karena cewek yang disamping kanan-kiriku udah mulai editing artikel mereka, akhirnya aku ganti judul. Gak cuma sekali, aku kemarin sampe 2 atau 3 kali ganti judul.


Abis itu pasrah aja. I didn't expect anything from it. Karena aku sadar, tulisanku jauh banget dari kata sempurna. Tapi yang paling penting bukan hasil akhir, melainkan prosesnya. Bisa termasuk dalam 50 finalis dan bisa dateng ke Jakarta aja udah bersyukur banget.
I looked so tiny here LOL
Smile can make you happy

Sebelum pengumuman, ada Join Class dulu dong. Di kelas ini, semuanya bebas buat tanya tentang confidence dan skin problems. Seru! Banyak pengetahuan baru yang aku dapet dari kelas ini. Salah satu yang paling penting, masih bisa pake make up meskipun wajah lagi berjerawat dengan syarat tidak mengandung minyak.


Acara selanjutnya, pengumuman pemenang Instagram. 

Pada saat pembukaan, Kak Uci udah nyuruh para peserta workshop buat upload foto sebanyak-banyaknya di Instagram dengan caption yang menarik dan diberi hashtag #SiapTampil #CastingCallBatch2, serta mention akun Instagram GoGirl! dan Cerita Kita. Aku sendiri gak jago dalam hal foto, I basically just take whatever I like. Jadi, I was surprised to hear my name. Gak nyangka banget bisa menang padahal cuma upload foto sederhana di Instagram. Thank you for the MAP Voucher, GoGirl! 
Instagram winners!

Acara terakhir, the announcement. Pengumumuman 10 kontributor Cerita Kita dari 5 kelas yang ada. Aku dan Ulfa (she was in the Photography Class) udah gak berharap buat lolos. Yang ada di pikiran kita adalah "kapan ke hotel?". Before you think anything further, just remember we came to the Ahmad Yani airport at 6 in the morning. Sementara pengumuman itu dibacain sekitar jam 5. We were tired, yes. Tapi hal itu gak menyurutkan semangat kita untuk bertepuk tangan ketika satu-persatu kontributor terpilih dipanggil ke depan. They worked hard, we needed to appreciate that!


My expression on the second one tho..
Waktu Kak Uci manggil namaku pertama kali, aku cuma bisa bengong. I turned to Ulfa and said, "Is that true? Aku? Beneran?". Sampe akhirnya beberapa cewek yang ada di depanku tepuk tangan meriah dan Ulfa nyuruh aku buat maju. My hands were shaking and I wanted to cry so freaking bad! Semuanya terjadi di luar perkiraanku.


She was such an amazing coach! Thank you, Kak Anita Moran!
It was definitely worth the early flight and missing the orientation day at my uni.

Malemnya, Kak Ayu dan finalis yang berasal dari luar kota langsung meluncur ke Hotel Grand Kemang. Lagi-lagi aku berpasangan sama Ulfa hahaha. Di kamar, kita ngomongin banyak hal random sampe akhirnya perut minta diisi. We decided to go to Domino's Pizza, karena kebetulan voucherku berlaku di situ.

Kita sampe di hotel lagi jam 10 malem dan langsung siap-siap tidur. She slept first meanwhile I did my homework which is due today

Paginya, aku bangun lebih dulu dan langsung cek HP (kebiasan buruk! *scold myself*). Sekitar jam 07.30, kita berdua turun buat sarapan sekalian check out. Time flew too fast! Tau-tau kita berdua udah di bandara lagi untuk pulang ke Semarang.


Iya tau, muka aku emang lebar :p

By the way, I met my internet friend today as well! Hi, Nabila!! 4 tahun temenan dan akhirnya bisa ketemu walau cuma sebentar. Makasih gifts-nya, I love them very much! I still hope to see you again, maybe with Reiza next time! Love you, bub! 

Aku sadar banget betapa beruntungnya aku selama weekend ini. I went to Jakarta without any expectation and came home with these incredible gifts. Gak ada kata-kata yang bisa aku rangkai untuk mengekspresikan betapa senang dan terhormatnya aku karena terpilih jadi kontributor untuk Cerita Kita dari Batch 2.


Thank you, Nab!






Dear readers, di akhir post ini aku mau bilang beberapa hal:


  1. BERMIMPILAH. As long as you can dream it, there is a hope. And that hope will make you believe, you can achieve it.
  2. Have faith in yourself. Jangan hiraukan mereka yang pengen liat kamu gagal.
  3. DON'T EVER GIVE UP. Hidup memang gak mudah, tapi kamu jangan nyerah gitu aja. Keep trying, although people are doubting you.
Writing has always been my passion since a long time ago. 

I used to write secretly in my book just so my parents won't be suspicious. Dan ini adalah kesempatan besar yang aku dapetin dengan usahaku sendiri. Do you know how it feels? It feels fun-freaking-tastic! I earned this and I'm proud of myself.


I am awkward but I'm still happy!
Last but not least, terima kasih kepada semua yang terlibat event menakjubkan ini!


I swear I didn't rob a drugstore!
Gogirl! Magazine yang bener-bener total dalam semua hal dan Clean and Clear yang gak berhenti menyemangati para gadis remaja untuk menemukan passion. Terima kasih banyak! Dan untuk para finalis, you girls are so talented and I'm more than happy to meet you. Sukses terus semuanya!


Photocredit: Ulfa, @Gogirlmagazine, @CleanandClearID, @ceritakitaID


I FREAKING DID IT!


Kisses,

Dee

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Book nerd alert!

You guys!! I've been dying to write here! But college has just started and because I have a part-time job, free time is such a rarity for me *insert frustrating emoji here*. Just this afternoon I had to skip one of my classes due to the dizziness I felt. And I felt terrible for cancelling a tutor session with a kid.

Thank goodness I feel a lot better after took two hours nap. So, here I am, writing about random stuffs again.

Earlier this week, a friend of mine asked me to give a book recommendation for her thesis. I suggested some of my favourite books but I don't know what will she choose.

And then, I just remember that some people asked about what kind of book or novel I like. Honestly, I don't exactly know about that. I usually read the synopsis (on the back cover of the book), and a review before I decide to read the entire book. One of my bestfriend is a book nerd too, so, she often gives me good recommendations. If I happen to like it, I will download the full version. In some cases, she (my bestfriend) lends me her books.

IF I have to choose one, I probably will choose romantic books. Cheesy but what can I say? I'm a sucker for romantic gestures even if it just in the books *grins playfully*. But that doesn't mean I'm not a fan of the other genres because I certainly am.

This time, I have made a list of books I've read, whether in its Indonesian versions or the English ones. You may find it online or in bookstores, totally your choice. If you prefer the e-book version, I suggest you download the EPUB version than the PDF ones. It's a lot easier to read them with Universal Book Reader app (on phones or tablets). I absolutely love that app!

A list of books I've read:

- Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth (I love the third book!****)
- The Fault in Our Stars by John Green***
- The Maze Runner by James Dashner****
- The Scorch Trial by James Dashner****
- The Death Cure by James Dashner****
- The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (the book is different than the film)*****
- Paper Towns by John Green
- Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell (I can relate to this book on a personal level)****
- The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins***
- The Duff by Kody Keplinger**
- Looking For Alaska by John Green (MY ULTIMATE FAVOURITE)*****
- Breaking Dawn from Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer
- Void Moon by Michael Connelly
- The Crush by Sandra Brown

Meanwhile this one is a list of books I'm currently reading AND about to read:

- Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (I still haven't finished it in a year, damn it)
- Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green
- Hopeless by Colleen Hoover
- Emma by Jane Austen
- Beautiful Disaster series by Jamie McGuire
- Ten Tiny Breaths series by K.A. Tucker
- We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
- Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
- To All The Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han
- After series by Anna Todd (I've read the fanfic versions on Wattpad but still..)
- The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare (I'm excited for the TV show!)
- Every You, Every Me by David Levithan
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
- Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead


There are a hell lot of books I want to read but I only got a little time to finish it. As for the moment, I'm reading Hopeless, After We Collided, and Pride and Prejudice. I can't stay only reading one book, I always end up reading two books (I have no idea why though).

Oh, and I put the stars on the books that I like. Five stars mean I absolutely love it.

I hope you find this post useful. But if you're not, that's okay too.



Kisses,

Dee