The Coward and the Unsung Hero

So, what about this mid-week Champions League semi-final?? Chelsea played like a group of cowards, Frank Lampard didn’t look like…Frank Lampard, and indeed…I wished Samuel Eto’o  could score a goal when John Terry couldn’t even charge him…

And…when was the last time you heard the name of…John O’Shea?? When Wes Brown got injured and O’Shea replaces him?? When Gary Neville can’t even see himself on the pitch?? When Rafael da Silva is not mature enough to be placed on the right-back in every match?? Yah…being a substitution almost all the time of his life in United is so pathetic, but that’s not until he saved his team from being lost. One goal against Liverpool in 2006/2007, and here he did it again against Arsenal in this season’s Champions League semi-final. Not being a star and sung by the supporters is not that bad, if you can do something. At least…you’re not a loser thinking of saving your own life without any brave to do something, or namely…coward…or…Chelsea???

Hal2 yg Terjadi: Part 6

Yah…beginilah nasib orang yg ngerjain skripsi… Kemudian perkembangannya seperti ini:

1. bingung mo pake apa, teori semiotik apa psikoanalisis, tapi karena teori semiotik lebih gampang, dengan PD-nya akhirnya milih pake teori semiotik

2. dengan seabrek fotokopian yg belum kebaca, malah pilih santai bentar dengan baca novel, bikin rangkuman ma ngetikpun jadi tertunda

3. karena tinta printer udah mepet, niatnya sih mo ngisi tinta ke catridge-nya secara independent, tapi ga tahu catridge-nya sakit apa, waktu nyuntikin tinta malah nyemprot ke mana2…dodol…

4. atmosfer males mulai melanda lagi, padahal targetnya mulai bulan Mei dah harus masuk analisis

5. haahh…tinggal berdoa aja moga2 aku cepet bangun dari rasa malesku ini…

Masalah yang Tak Pernah Selesai

Speaking of junior high school era, aku jadi inget kalo sebentar lagi Insya Allah aku bakal ngadain reuni khusus ma sahabat2ku sejak SMP. Mereka adalah orang2 yg selama ini masih mau berada di sampingku selama 10 tahun ini, apapun kondisinya. Hahh…tapi kalo nginget lagi masa2 SMP, aku jadi inget masalah itu lagi…Masalah yg (bagiku) ga pernah selesai, bahkan setelah 10 tahun.

Masalah itu, dia, orang itu, perasaan anak remaja bodoh itu, kisah cinta monyet yg ga pernah nyata, penolakan, pengkhianatan…semuanya… Masa2 buruk itu diperparah dengan kehidupan sekolah yg ternyata di luar dugaan, sex, drugs, gangs, borju2 remaja, manipulasi, tekanan, kompetisi, tawuran, perkelahian, perebutan… Sepertinya semua hal bodoh yg mengerikan sudah aku jalani dan lihat di masa2 SMP. Yah, SMP!! Ketika film2 dan sinetron2 murahan di TV menggambarkan masa2 itu di jenjang SMA, aku bahkan udah ngalamin hal itu lebih dini di masa SMP. Mungkin watak drama queen-ku masa itu memperparah apa yg aku alami, tapi setelah semakin aku maju ngejalanin hidup dan ngalamin banyak hal, aku akhirnya cuma bisa ngetawain watak drama queen-ku itu.

Tapi masih ada satu hal yg tetap ga bisa aku lupain dan cenderung aku pendam selama 10 tahun ini. Satu hal yg selalu aku bawa selama ini dan aku sendiri ga percaya kalo aku bisa hidup dengan dendam terkubur di dalam hati selama 10 tahun!!! Dendam… apa tepat kalo disebut begitu??? Aku ga akan pernah lupa pada apa yg telah dia lakuin ke aku sewaktu kelas 2 SMP dulu, aku bener2 ngerasa terhina. Kanak-kanak….dia nggunain kata itu buat nuding aku. I didn’t even say anything and he judged me like that??!! Aku bahkan berpikir gimana bisa dia make kata itu dan bertanya2 apakah dia bener2 nganggep dirinya sendiri dewasa. Mungkin seharusnya aku berterima kasih pada orang itu karena dari titik itulah aku mulai belajar untuk menjadi dewasa, tapi aku tetap ga bisa terima ma perlakuan dia ke aku. Dia bener2 kelihatan sombong…

Aku selalu aja berandai2 gimana kalo suatu saat nanti aku ketemu dia lagi setelah 10 tahun. Aku bener2 pengen ketemu dia lagi dan menguji tingkat kedewasaan dia, bisa sejauh mana dia…bisa sedewasa apa dia. Aku bener2 pengen ketemu dia lagi karena buat aku, masih ada masalah di antara kami yg tak pernah selesai sampai saat ini, ada rasa sakit hati yg belum pernah tersalurkan….sedikitpun…

Sok Menderita Sendiri

Aku jadi bener2 mikir, ternyata di luar Indonesia yg notabene negara sok miskin begini masih ada orang yg sok menderita. Memang bukan perkara uang kayak lazimnya orang2 Indonesia, tapi lebih ke masalah pribadi. Tapi yah…tetep aja namanya sok menderita sendiri, seolah2 ga ada orang lain yg lebih menderita daripada dia.

Orang ini ngingetin aku ke masa2 SMP-ku dulu di saat aku sendiri (jujur) pernah jadi salah satu orang yg merasa paling menderita. Such a drama queen. Aku ingat betul masa2 itu karena aku ga akan pernah lupa masa2 mengerikan dalam hidupku di mana semua hal seolah bergelombang di depan mata. Tapi untungnya masa2 itu sudah lewat. I’ve been out of it. Sekarang aku bingung gimana bisa dulu itu aku jadi orang yg merasa menderita sendiri. Sekarang aku bener2 bingung, bahkan ketika seperti ngeliat replikaku di depan mata pun, aku masih aja bingung.

Apa sih intinya merasa sok menderita sendiri?? Bahwa diri kita yg paling patut dikasihani? Bahwa masalah hidup kita yg lebih berat? Bahwa seharusnya orang2 di sekitar kita lebih banyak menaruh perhatian pada kita? Bahwa perhatian seluruh dunia harusnya tertuju pada kita? Sebegitu burukkah menjadi manusia??

Hanya karena terluka sedikit saja dan merasa iri dengan orang lain di sampingnya yg tiba2 dianggap lebih baik dari dirinya, seseorang merasa dialah orang yg paling patut dikasihani. Karena jalan pikirannya yg seperti itulah bahkan dia menganggap temannya sudah tak peduli lagi padanya hanya karena temannya mengritiknya terang2an. Apa karena kritik lalu bisa dianggap seseorang tak mau berteman lagi dengan kita? BODOH! Orang itu belum pernah ditusuk dari belakang seperti yg baru aja aku alami setahun yg lalu! Orang itu belum pernah kehilangan seseorang dalam hidupnya! Orang itu belum pernah merasakan memperjuangkan sesuatu ketika tidak didukung sama sekali oleh siapapun!

Aku kira dia pintar, tapi ternyata dia tidak lebih pintar dari orang yg bodoh sekalipun. Selama ini aku berpikiran bahwa orang yg pintar akan selalu bisa menghadapi hidupnya karena dia tahu apa yg harus dilakukan ketika menghadapi hidupnya, seberat apapun itu. Tapi ternyata, orang pintar belum tentu bijak. Mungkin memang perlu disadari bahwa kebijakan seseorang datang dari pengalaman hidup, bahkan pengalaman hidup orang terbodoh sekalipun.

Finally

So, this is what always happens in the world of football capitalism. You lost most of the times in the league, you got your position dropped on the table, you played like kindegarden children, you are horribly cursed on the media, and you can’t even believe in what you do, then….yeah…you fired your coach. Simple, easy, and you can save your money.

Many coaches and managers had undergone it, since..you know…coaches are just much the same as players, they are all just working class in capitalist structured-class society. So, when you can’t satisfy your boss, you get dumped. That’s it. So is Jürgen Klinsmann. When today’s news revealed his disposal by Bayern Munich’s management, I could just laugh at it…ironically. I could only say…finally. What happened…or maybe…what was being undergone by Munich for almost of the entire of this season has made me believe in the first place that I won’t even see him at the end of this season. Not that I have some sort of superstitious power, that just….makes sense.

I like Bayern indeed, and my admiration on them was even higher than mine on Schalke, but seeing them this season only makes me questioning myself. Schalke is not even better for most of this season also, but that’s not for the play, I believe. If you compare what Bayern and Schalke look like on the pitch, you’ll get my point. The worst decision ever taken by Schalke was firing Fred Rutten, trust me, since what Rutten had done for Schalke was better than what Klinsmann had. However, at least they can now get new atmosphere in the team so they can go on and…send Bayern some ass.

Yah, I can’t say anything but that finally word…whatsoever… But I’m very thankful that it is NOT Roberto Mancini who replaces Klinsmann. And perhaps…next, there will be other football club who wants to hire him and makes it look like…his Bayern.

Yang Kau Sebut Teman

Dunia ini emang penuh dengan persaingan. Kenyataan bahwa sebenernya manusia hidup di hutan rimba dan bertindak sebagai orang2 primitif yg harus saling tusuk supaya bisa dapat mangsa dan menguasai tanah hutan sering kali ga bisa dihindari karena watak manusia yg cenderung rakus, egois, dan haus akan segala2nya dengan segala cara pula. Apalagi manusia saat ini hidup di dunia yg 98% cenderung kapitalis. Jika mau menang, kadang harus sampe membunuh orang.

Persaingan menjadi yg terbaik dan mendapatkan yg diinginkan juga ga bisa dihindari, termasuk persaingan antar teman sendiri. Kejadian minggu kemaren bener2 udah membuktikan teoriku tentang manusia modern yg hidup di hutan rimba. Betapa ada beberapa orang yg rela ngelakuin apa aja demi apa yg mereka kejar, termasuk menusuk teman sendiri secara keras dan terang2an. Apa yg orang2 itu lakuin bener2 ga pantas di mataku. Oke, untuk urusan iri, aku tahu rasanya iri sama temen sendiri dan berusaha keras ngeluarin kemampuan terbaikku buat nandingin dia. Dan aku rasa banyak orang di dunia ini yg juga pernah ato sedang ngalamin hal yg sama. Untuk urusan saingan ma temen sendiri buat ngeraih yg ada di depan mata, aku juga pernah ngerasain dan tahu bener gimana rasanya. Bahkan aku tahu rasanya secara tidak langsung dijatuhkan teman sendiri. Tapi kalo udah sampe keterlaluan di mana begitu pengennya kita ngeraih sesuatu terus harus mengorbankan teman sendiri…itu bener2 dah ga pantes sama sekali!!!

Kita ini hidup di dunia apa?? Kita ga punya apa2 selain apa yg kita lakuin buat Tuhan dan orang lain, termasuk teman2 kita. Kita emang diharuskan buat berjuang sekeras mungkin untuk ngeraih hal2 yg baik, tapi tentunya dengan cara yg fair dan lurus. Karena sebenernya yg dihitung dari pencapaian dan prestasi kita adalah cara kita meraihnya, bukan tujuan ato targetnya!

Lagipula, di dunia ini kita ga punya siapa2 selain Tuhan dan orang2 terdekat kita, sekali lagi, tentunya termasuk teman2 kita. Kalo ada masalah dan kita butuh bantuan, kalo ada bahagia dan kita terkena euforia untuk berbagi, kita pasti akan lari ke orang2 terdekat kita…teman2 kita. Tuhan juga akan selalu menghitung tingkat silahturrahmi kita ke orang2, bagaimana kita menjalin hubungan baik dengan mereka. Pertemanan…seberat apapun hidup dan persaingan yg melingkupinya, tetaplah terlalu berharga untuk dihancurkan. Karena ketika kita tidak tahu mau ke mana…sering kali…hanya ada teman kita di depan mata…tidak ada orang lain.

Neuer, the Great!

Some days ago my friend talked about a very badly provocative celebration of Didier Drogba in the last Champions League quarter-final between Chelsea and Liverpool. I could accept that since, for me, that was very unnecessary. That was the very act of a person who just wanted to show off something which he didn’t actually do. Mark van Bommel ever did much more provocative celebration than that of Drogba, but at least, he was the one who scored the goal. But Drogba did nothing, he just wanted to see himself… cool. Provocative celebration is never cool anyway…because it is just…provocative.

But that’s not until last week clash in Bundesliga between Schalke 04 and Bayern Munich. One of my favorite goalkeepers who is Schalke’s man, Manuel Neuer, acted on the pitch. Yes…that was his super genius celebration in front of Bayern’s supporters. I can’t say that it was polite, nor was it not provocative because it was indeed. I can only say that Neuer is just very very much GENIUS!!! Not only as a player a.k.a goalkeeper (he can even be better than Iker Casillas and Edwin van der Sar, and of course…Oliver Kahn), but also as a person…a human being on the pitch, in front of his opponents or enemies whatsoever. I never thought that he could do such a celebration!

It’s not about he was imitating Oliver Kahn’s silly and ridiculous celebration to mock Bayern’s supporters…you know…many players had also ever imitated other players’ celebration to mock them. There was a player in EPL imitating Tim Cahil hitting the corner flag, there were many players imitating (not Cristiano) Ronaldo’s celebration, even Hamit Altintop himself imitated it for many times, for God’s sake! That’s the very not creative side of Hamit that I exclude from my why-I-like-him-so-much list…indeed. Borrusia Dortmund’s goalkeeper had also ever imitated Luca Toni’s particular celebration to mock him after knowing that Toni was actually offside and his goal was apparently canceled.

It is not about imitating the others to mock certain parties. But it’s indeed about the genius side of Neuer to act that way. In my perspective, perhaps, it’s because he was imitating Oliver Kahn, the former Bayern’s goalkeeper, who is highly respectful and considered a legend in German’s football. And he was of course…the controversial one. So, the point is…for me…it is about Neuer imitating Kahn (as the former Bayern’s goalkeeper) and quite…his controversy.

Last week clash between Bayern and Schalke would be nothing without Manuel Neuer after Hamit didn’t play from the first start and the twin siblings didn’t play against each other. It was great because Neuer’s great clean sheet achievement, and of course, his genius imitative celebration.

Well, fortunately, Oliver Kahn rejected Schalke’s proposal for being their manager like a month ago. If not…Neuer would be in so much trouble.

Kelly Clarkson’s New Album: All I Ever Wanted

Akhirnya, setelah album ketiga (My December) yg secara ekonomi gagal di pasaran tapi yg secara idealis menurutku amat sangat keren sekali, Kelly Clarkson ngeluarin lagi album baru Maret kemaren, All I Ever Wanted. Dan setelah berjuang habis2an sebagai penggemar beratnya buat ngedapetin album ini secara utuh, akhirnya bisa juga aku nikmatin lagu2nya…even it’s not really enjoyable.

Aku harus bilang…aku agak2 kecewa sama album ini. Aku bahkan sempet kaget waktu denger single pertamanya di radio, My Life Would Suck Without You. Aku sempet mikir…”Ini lagu siapa, sih?? Norak banget!” . Walo sebenernya aku mengenali suara Kelly Clarkson, tapi aku ga mau percaya karena lagunya bener2 kacau! Bukan tipe Kelly banget deh! Haahh…dan akhirnya aku harus percaya setelah penyiarnya bilang kalo itu emang Kelly Clarkson dengan single barunya.

Setelah menyimak semua lagu di album barunya pun (aku prefer yg deluxe edition), kekecewaanku belum bisa sepenuhnya sembuh. Aku bener2 dibuat kecewa sama hampir 3 ato 4 lagu di album ini. Lagu2 yg paling parah selain single pertamanya adalah I Want You sama I Do Not Hook Up (yg kayaknya bakal jadi single kedua), bener2 ancur deh… Aku bahkan sempet mikir, gimana bisa seorang penyanyi dan penulis lagu sejenius Kelly Clarkson yg ga cuma bermodalkan juara American Idol bisa nulis ato nyanyi lagu semacam itu??? Weird… Lagu Long Shot pun ga begitu enak didengar.

Lagu2 yg bisa dibilang lumayan enak didengar dan masih terdengar sangat Kelly Clarkson adalah Already Gone, Don’t Let Me Stop You, sama Impossible. Bahkan nada2 di Already Gone bener2 bisa bikin aku trenyuh… Di sisi lain, yg bisa dibilang bagus adalah lagu2 semacam Cry, Save You, If No One Will Listen, If I Can’t Have You, sama All I Ever Wanted. Bener2 semacam penyelamat deh…

The best part dari album ini justru ada di bonus track-nya. Aku suka banget The Day We Fell Apart sama hidden song-nya, Ready. Lagu Tip of My Tongue sebenernya bukan seleraku, tapi cukup lumayan daripada lagu2 parah yg aku sebutin di atas.

Oh ya ketinggalan satu nih! Buat para pendengar lagu2 Kelly Clarkson, mungkin bakalan shock berat sama lagu Whyyawannabringmedown. Yup! Menurutku, lagu ini bener2 menarik! Di lagu inilah Kelly menunjukkan keberanian dan kejeniusannya sebagai penyanyi dan pencipta lagu. Seems like rock ’n roll kalo aku bilang, keras and bener2 menghentak! Aku ga nyangka Kelly bisa nyanyi ampe sebegitunya, keren banget lah!!

Overall, di luar kekecewaanku terhadap beberapa lagu di album ini, aku tetep merasa bahwa Kelly bener2 masih konsisten menujukkan kemampuannya menyanyi dan mencipta lagu. Rata2 lagu di album ini bernuansa pop rock yg lebih keras dengan sound gitar yg lebih berani pula daripada lagu2 di album Breakaway, walopun sebenernya menurutku, secara idealis, ga sesempurna lagu2 di album My December.

Saviors of the Soul

Talking about Real Madrid might be so boring if it’s just about their big names, big players, big money, big reputation, etc. For me, personally, watching Madrid playing good games is very hard and confusing, since they rarely can show that they are a big team by playing it right. But, when watching them playing very badly and horribly, I can get a sense of excitement because I can see two things: 1. they are not really big team by play, but only by their money (oh, perhaps, they also have to count their amount of loan on bank!); 2. they can even still win the game by many ways, including the most dramatic ways….such a telenovela.

Watching Real Madrid’s 3-2 victory over Getafe last mid-week has indeed reminded me of their dramatic season of 2006/2007. Remember when they won the league so dramatically only based on the head-to-head system?? Right! That was the best drama that I could enjoy so far everytime I watch La Liga. Not to mention anything happened behind it (you know…). But indeed, seeing Madrid got their trophy even they actually…acted as if they didn’t play at all had indeed given me such a feeling of emotion. It was better than the 2005 Champions League final between Liverpool and AC Milan, and even greater than the last quarter-final of this season Champions League between Liverpool and Chelsea. I can never forget that season, and now I even remember it deeply, once more, after Madrid’s last match.

The similarity of last 2006/2007 season and this season (so far) is not quite on the drama, but on the ones who make the drama. Their victory over Getafe this mid-week absolutely reminds me so much of their dramatic victory over Sevilla (3-2) and Espanyol (4-3) in 2006/2007. Fighting against great-performed Sevilla, Real Madrid were left 2-1 at first, but after Guti Hernández came on the pitch, he totally changed the game and gave such an important assist for Robinho so that the former Madrid’s player could score a goal. Then…they won the game. I also remember one funny thing about that game. Maresca, Sevilla’s Italian midfielder, scored a very wonderful goal just like what Zinedine Zidane had done in the Champions League final against Bayer Leverkusen. It was really similar that the commentator said, ”Madrid really have to forget Zidane!! Right now they have Maresca doing it!!” Indeed…it was an irony. Well, whatever happened at that time, it was still a great dramatic victory of Madrid.

The second dramatic match in 2006/2007 was their victory over Espanyol. They were left 3-1 and horribly almost lost the game, but then they could win it 4-3 after Gonzalo Higuaín scored a crucial goal. Espanyol’s goalkeeper, Kameni, performed very well at that time and looked even really smarter and better than Iker Casillas. However, after being depressed over and over for the last minutes of the game, he eventually surrendered and was conceded 3 more goals.

Those players are the ones whom I’m talking about here, Guti Hernández and Gonzalo Higuaín. Last mid-week they did it again, they save their team dramatically. I actually didn’t expect Madrid to win since they played very badly. The defenders were awful and dull, Iker Casillas still couldn’t perform his best (just like for all these recent weeks), Guti himself, at the first half of the game, seemed not so confident and calm in playing his role (perhaps…private problem?). But that didn’t matter because he then could show his great skill and ability by making great assits, which dully couldn’t be executed by the dull strikers in front, such a shame! He also executed one nice free kick to make it draw and lift up Madrid’s hope to win. Higuaín struggled very well also. He always does it, you know…scoring crucial goals in the last second of the game.

Those two players were the ones who turned my skepticism to a great excitement in watching that match, despite the silly penalty by Getafe’s player, of course. For God’s sake, Iker Casillas is not that bad that you could despise him like that!!! Oh ya…for Pepe…I really hope that you’re one of the 18 players that will be dumped if Florentino Perez get his seat again.

The Fear – Lilly Allen

Nah, kalo lagu yg ini bener2 keren karena liriknya yg ironi dan mengena banget…KEREN!!

I want to be rich and I want lots of money
I don’t care about clever I don’t care about funny
I want loads of clothes and fuckloads of diamonds
I heard people die while they are trying to find them

And I’ll take my clothes off and it will be shameless
‘Cause everyone knows that’s how you get famous.

[Pre-chorus:]
I’ll look at the sun and I’ll look in the mirror
I’m on the right track, yeah I’m on to a winner.

[Chorus:]
I don’t know what’s right and what’s real anymore
And I don’t know how I’m meant to feel anymore
And when do you think it will all become clear?
‘Cause I’m being taking over by The Fear

Life’s about film stars and less about mothers
It’s all about fast cars and cussing each other
But it doesn’t matter cause I’m packing plastic
And that’s what makes my life so fucking fantastic

And I am a weapon of massive consumption
And it’s not my fault it’s how I’m programmed to function

[Pre-chorus]

[Chorus]

Forget about guns and forget ammunition
‘Cause I’m killing them all on my own little mission
Now I’m not a saint but I’m not a sinner
Now everything’s cool as long as I’m getting thinner

[Chorus]