Crocus

I missed the time when I saw the early spring bloomers: e.g. crocus for the first time.

It was late winter, @UMIST, Manchester about 15 years ago. 

Spring has nearly there, with strong winds, rain and sunny days in between. It was such an unpleasant transition time.










But, hey look, I saw many green grass-like leaves at the campus lawn one day. Then, some blooms. Yellow, purple, white, even pink flowers were blooming...

 
...even this stripes crocus looked amazingly stunning.

















They become such a wonderful carpet at many botanical gardens. 

Actually, there is also 'autumn' crocus that blooms in every late summer/early autumn. I saw this type @Oldenburg Botanical Garden last summer.

The stigma of autumn crocus, called saffron, is an expensive spice to make aromatic/fragrant dishes. The spice saffron is from genus Crocus sativus.

I was so blessed... being able to enjoy crocus once more in Europe last March.  

Such a fresh welcome from the land for the spring season...



Pekanbaru,

With every privilege, comes responsibility and challenges

I realized the meaning of the title a few years ago, when I finished some service/business trips for the University. 

It means, for every single thing I've done using the university money or public money, means, 

I have to give it back to the people and uni by sharing knowledge, changing mind-set or improving system.  (responsibility)

and,
it's not easy, because what I've learned at the training/meeting/seminar, mostly something relatively new or not applicable at some level at my workplace. (challenge)

So, then we need to socialize the ideas by doing presentation, discussion, persuasion, and even lobbying some senior colleague to help communicating the knowledge to other colleague.

It is difficult for me to accept the notion that the scholarships, service/business trips, grants, or other type of funding are merely an access to use public money without any responsible product return to the public. 

We must do the best and remind us always that:

"the consequences come with the authorized privilege shouldn't let us forget that we have responsibility to use the opportunity wisely. 

We must return the favor to the public, by providing, working and servicing them through our profession, since they are most eligible party who supposed to get a maximum benefit from our privilege."

And now, I'm wondering the same things, for everything that I've got from Allah...

Pekanbaru,

Deciduous Trees

It was winter when I visited Amsterdam early this year.

The city is more beautiful, with so many deciduous trees around. 

The deciduous trees have shed their foliage in fall annually. 

It is called deciduous, because it is associated with dropping some parts when it is no longer needed.  

Or in a romantic way can be said: the leaves are falling away after their purpose are finished. *super romantic*

The leaves have left the trees because couldn't do any photosynthesis when the temperature drops.

Some aged trees give stellar effect to the sky, especially when we look above the ground. 

The trees such as black skeletons that stretch their fingers to the atmosphere. 

The branches show their complicated pattern, but they are still trying to create a balance for the whole structure. 

The unique pattern depends on the trees fractal nature, i.e. the pattern of the large structures are repeated by the smaller structures.

During that time, I think sometimes city has been transformed into something magical. 

You probably would like to see the transformation in this video.

Pekanbaru,

Semangat Menulis

Sebagai seorang dosen dan peneliti, mestinya aku lebih rajin nulis dan publikasi di mana-mana. Tetapi, kadang momentum untuk mengerjakan tulisan itu datang tidak lama dan terus pergi tanpa bisa dilacak. Padahal, menulis itu tidak perlu momentum, karena kalau terpaksa baru bisa menulis, barangkali tidak semua karya enak dibaca atau dipahami.

Terus, bagaimana supaya bisa semangat menulis?

Aku punya beberapa tips berdasarkan pengalaman pribadi:

a) Buat rencana menulis
Meski terdengar kurang mentereng seperti membuat rencana keuangan atau rencana kerja harian, tetapi rencana menulis itu membantu kita untuk mengantisipasi atau memblock waktu mengerjakan tulisan. Biar lebih spesifik, buat rencana dengan sistem block, supaya kita bisa memperkirakan berapa lama waktu yang diperlukan untuk tiap tulisan.

b) Kumpulkan literatur dan data jauh-jauh hari
Sebenarnya, dasar dari semua tulisan itu adalah literatur dan data. Literatur dan data perlu dikumpulkan jauh-jauh hari supaya bisa dibaca dan dipikirkan sebelum menulis. Jika sudah mahir, tentu proses ini memakan waktu beberapa jam saja lalu kita sudah bisa menuliskannya. Tetapi untuk pemula, perlu berhari-hari mengumpulkan data dengan kata kunci yang tepat, lalu membaca dan menganalisa, kemudian menuliskannya dengan bahasa sendiri. 

c) Membaca tentang proses menulis
Obat paling menguatkan saat mengerjakan sesuatu yang sukar adalah meninjau kembali proses yang dialami orang lain. Pada saat itu kita sama-sama merasakan sensasi dan kesulitan-kesulitan yang mereka alami, seperti menghilangkan writer-block, kehilangan data, dan tidak memiliki manajemen waktu yang baik. Beberapa literatur yang bagus seperti buku-buku NH Dhini, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Ahmad Fuadi, maupun buku-buku seperti Daily Rituals- How Artists Work, menceritakan proses-proses kreatif dalam menata ide, menulis serta menata waktu, bisa membantu mendapatkan inspirasi saat kesulitan.

d) Menulis itu seperti mengayuh sepeda
Sekali mulai menulis, maka menulislah tanpa henti. Jangan selalu ingin sempurna kalau baru pertama menuliskannya. Tulis, lalu simpan, dan edit kembali beberapa waktu kemudian. Saat tulisan sudah 90%, maka bersiaplah untuk lebih bersemangat mengayuh, karena kita sering merasa tertekan dan mudah menyerah pada stage ini. Kemudian, jangan khawatirkan komentar siapapun, terus keluarkan pikiran. Masalah hal-hal tidak relevan bisa diedit kemudian.

e) Menulis bersama teman atau tim
Kadang-kadang menulis sendiri itu tidak enak. Paling menyenangkan kalau menulis proposal bersama tim, lalu saling mengisi bagian-bagian yang kosong atau membantu mengedit punya teman lain. Proses ini membantu mempercepat penulisan sekaligus mengeluarkan ide-ide baru. Kalau memang topik tulisan kita berbeda, at least mengetahui seseorang sedang menulis suatu topik yang berat juga menyenangkan. Harness energi penulis itu dan gunakan untuk menambah semangat dalam menulis tulisan kita.

Pekanbaru,

Make the Most of the Process: a PhD Journey

My experience of doing a PhD is quite remarkable.

I'd like to review it, as I recently attended a Professional Development Activity session organised by Australia Awards Indonesia in Jakarta. 

My first encounter with the Australia Development Scholarship (ADS) recipients was in Denpasar, Bali, in 1999. As a recipient of other scholarships, I was mesmerised by the colleagues from ADS. They impressed me with their intelligence, articulation, thoughtfulness, and confidence, and I was determined to be one of them.

Alhamdulillah, I was granted the ADS in 2007.

There was also a strong reason to study in Australia: the rapid development of geopolymer research in some significant Australian universities and industries. Geopolymer was still developing as a viable construction material. More gaps need to be filled, and more cases for specific environmental implementation need to be studied. I would like to be a part of the development and contribute to concrete knowledge.

Again, as I mentioned before, doing a PhD requires tremendous determination. 
After some minor and significant, even very considerable, roadblocks during the process, I finished it. 

However, there are some things I'd like to share with everyone.

Despite all the mess and the terrible things that I've experienced related to materials, methods, relationships, budgets, knowledge challenges, travels, part-time jobs, and many more, 

I just want to say, "Make the most of the process."

It means taking every opportunity to make this journey as meaningful as possible...

Work on it, don't dwell on the roadblocks, and try to make the most of this journey. 

I've learned from many things and people around me. 
about intercultural friendships, multicultural lifestyles, ethics, discipline, conformity, collegiality, moral values, communication, good standards, project management, research skills, and, most importantly, managing skills.

I developed a support system across many aspects of my study. The goal is to have a backup system from the lab managers, technicians, PhD colleagues, faculty staff, lecturers from Student Learning Support, international friends, and family:
to assist me with lab work, 
to proofread my English papers, 
to exchange views about my research development, 
to encourage the research and writing process, 
to emulate their routine in my research, 
to have international friendships outside my PhD peers with some undergrads and locals, and 
to get eternal support from family in many different ways.

I also pushed myself to establish a routine, maintain discipline in my experimental work and work pattern, and stay enthusiastic about my research.

I also constantly create a vision of how the thesis would look, including the color of the graphs, the number of pages, and the list of references. 

And suddenly, I finished my PhD in 2011.

I tried to emulate this notion in everything I do at work now to help me achieve the best results.

As a positive sign that you are using something well...
"You are very positive about many things, 
you have a positive attitude towards people around you, and 
you want to give back to the society that supports you; all you know about it...

And... you even look younger than your exact physical age."

Pekanbaru,