Snorkling Hanauma Bay, 5 Oct 08

Snorkling time...Hanauma Bay is only 10 minutes from Hawaii Kai. It is really beautiful place to go snorkling. I saw colorful fish and sea turtle. Entrance fee is $5 but, if you have State ID is free. I had one so I am no need to pay. And snorkling mask rental is $9.
The member who came were Alfee, Kelvin, Yon, Gladis, Prabu, David and Me.

SURFING WAIKIKI, 4 Oct 08

This was our pictures when we were taking surfing lesson at waikiki.
It was really fun but "bangkrut" euy, if i take it every week. The fee was $30 for 1 hour lesson. So only once for my experience would be enough. Look..I can stand on the board..
The member who took a lesson were Alfee, David, Me, Pui and Mai. And other member who going surfing were Mariko, Makiko, Junko, and Masa. Yoan came with us also but she just swimming at waikiki.

My 5 strengths

I just completed strength finder at internet based on "strengths finder 2.0" book from gallup press. So, tell me is it describe me well or not??

-YS-

Below are my top five themes of talent, ranked in the order revealed by my responses to the Clifton StrengthsFinder.

As you may know, the Clifton StrengthsFinder measures the 34 themes of talent determined by The Gallup Organization as those that most consistently predict outstanding performance. The greater the presence of a theme of talent within a person, the more likely that person is to spontaneously exhibit those talents in day-to-day behaviors.

Focusing on natural talents helps people build them into strengths and enjoy personal, academic, and career success through consistent, near-perfect performance.

How well do you think these themes describe me?



Learner


You love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill mastered—this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences—yoga or piano lessons or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments where you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the “getting there.”




Maximizer


Excellence, not average, is your measure. Taking something from below average to slightly above average takes a great deal of effort and in your opinion is not very rewarding. Transforming something strong into something superb takes just as much effort but is much more thrilling. Strengths, whether yours or someone else’s, fascinate you. Like a diver after pearls, you search them out, watching for the telltale signs of a strength. A glimpse of untutored excellence, rapid learning, a skill mastered without recourse to steps—all these are clues that a strength may be in play. And having found a strength, you feel compelled to nurture it, refine it, and stretch it toward excellence. You polish the pearl until it shines. This natural sorting of strengths means that others see you as discriminating. You choose to spend time with people who appreciate your particular strengths. Likewise, you are attracted to others who seem to have found and cultivated their own strengths. You tend to avoid those who want to fix you and make you well rounded. You don’t want to spend your life bemoaning what you lack. Rather, you want to capitalize on the gifts with which you are blessed. It’s more fun. It’s more productive. And, counterintuitively, it is more demanding.


Futuristic


“Wouldn’t it be great if . . .” You are the kind of person who loves to peer over the horizon. The future fascinates you. As if it were projected on the wall, you see in detail what the future might hold, and this detailed picture keeps pulling you forward, into tomorrow. While the exact content of the picture will depend on your other strengths and interests—a better product, a better team, a better life, or a better world—it will always be inspirational to you. You are a dreamer who sees visions of what could be and who cherishes those visions. When the present proves too frustrating and the people around you too pragmatic, you conjure up your visions of the future and they energize you. They can energize others, too. In fact, very often people look to you to describe your visions of the future. They want a picture that can raise their sights and thereby their spirits. You can paint it for them. Practice. Choose your words carefully. Make the picture as vivid as possible. People will want to latch on to the hope you bring.


Positivity


You are generous with praise, quick to smile, and always on the lookout for the positive in the situation. Some call you lighthearted. Others just wish that their glass were as full as yours seems to be. But either way, people want to be around you. Their world looks better around you because your enthusiasm is contagious. Lacking your energy and optimism, some find their world drab with repetition or, worse, heavy with pressure. You seem to find a way to lighten their spirit. You inject drama into every project. You celebrate every achievement. You find ways to make everything more exciting and more vital. Some cynics may reject your energy, but you are rarely dragged down. Your Positivity won’t allow it. Somehow you can’t quite escape your conviction that it is good to be alive, that work can be fun, and that no matter what the setbacks, one must never lose one’s sense of humor.


Strategic


The Strategic theme enables you to sort through the clutter and find the best route. It is not a skill that can be taught. It is a distinct way of thinking, a special perspective on the world at large. This perspective allows you to see patterns where others simply see complexity. Mindful of these patterns, you play out alternative scenarios, always asking, “What if this happened? Okay, well what if this happened?” This recurring question helps you see around the next corner. There you can evaluate accurately the potential obstacles. Guided by where you see each path leading, you start to make selections. You discard the paths that lead nowhere. You discard the paths that lead straight into resistance. You discard the paths that lead into a fog of confusion. You cull and make selections until you arrive at the chosen path—your strategy. Armed with your strategy, you strike forward. This is your Strategic theme at work: “What if?” Select. Strike.

Women don’t cook

It is funny, in my class we have 8 men and 17 women. Only kazuko could cook well and the rest of women just so so or could not cook at all. So we hope by the end of this program we will be able to cook.

Just like today. We have dinner together at Mai house. As usual that kazuko cooked for us. This was the first time for Pui cooked rice and we were tising Pui about this.

Almost every body bring sandwich for their lunch. Food was a problem for everybody at class. If some one cooked for her/his lunch, she/he will receive accolade. It is hard to find a good and cheap food in Hawaii. We all are missing our favorite food…

Just like me, I miss nasi padang J

Photo EWKLP Fall 2008

http://s491.photobucket.com/albums/rr275/EWKLP08/
Here are some pictures of my class activities at JAIMS Honolulu, Hawaii.
These are compilation from all the class members.
Enjoy...

Puasa dan Lebaran

Ini adalah pengalaman ke tiga saya untuk berpuasa dan berlebaran di negara lain. Pertama ketika tahun 1995 di North Judson, Indiana. Kedua tahun 2006 umroh lailatul qadar hingga lebaran dan tahun ini di honolulu, Hawaii. 

Setiap pengalaman berbeda. Dulu waktu itu saya masih SMA dan juga di kota saya tinggal jauh sekali dari mesjid, jadi saya hanya berpuasa dan tidak merayakan lebaran.

Pegalaman ke dua sangat berbeda, di mana saya memang meniatkan beribadah di masjidil harom, sehingga suasana ramadhan dan lebaran sangat amat terasa. 

Dan kali ini pengalaman ketiga tidak terlalu jauh dengan pengalaman pertama dimana hanya saya sendiri yang muslim dalam lingkungan. Saya sempat berpuasa di pesawat dan menunggu di narita. Saya juga sempat berpuasa di hawaii untuk 4 hari karena setelah itu saya menstruasi sehingga tidak puasa. Mungkin karena saya tidak berpuasa juga menjelang lebaran sehingga suasana lebaran sangat amat tidak terasa. 

Malam ini adalah malam takbiran di hawaii, dimana di jakarta sudah merayakan lebaran tentunya. Tapi suasana itu tidak saya rasakan sama sekali. Eh ada sih sedikit, karena saya masih menerima sms dan email lebaran dari keluarga dan teman2 saya. Thanks a lot ya guys...

Sebenarnya di Honolulu ada mesjid yang terletak di bukit Manoa kira-kira 6 km dari tempat turun bis (harus jalan kaki) tapi sehubungan saya tinggal di daerah hawaii kai dan itu sekitar 1 jam naik bis di tambah nunggu bis 1 jam, jadi tidak mungkin saya ke down town dan juga harus segera balik ke kampus karena hari itu ada kuliah.. mmm belajar itu kan juga ibadah ( ngeles aja :) ) 

Tapi saya sangat bersyukur bisa merasakan hal ini semua. Insya Allah dengan semua ini saya bisa berdakwah serta menambah keimanan saya. Amin.

SELAMAT HARI RAYA IDUL FITRI 1429 HIJRIAH

MOHON MAAF LAHIR DAN BATIN

Semoga kita dilapangkan dada untuk bisa saling memaafkan dan sabar serta ikhlas dalam menjalani hidup. Amin.