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  • On boycotting palm oil

    Nindya

    I know that this sounds so passe, but I honestly feel that the action of boycotting is never an old news. We boycott certain products/brands in different ways, times, and reasons. Also, since we are now rampant with the news of Indonesia getting burned (not “burning”. “Being/getting burned”. There’s a difference), there have been some discussions among Indonesians themselves on boycotting palm oil-derivatives products.

    One of them was an IG Reels by Nadya Hutagalung. Nadya was an MTV VJ for MTV Asia back in late 90s/early 2000s and a model. She’s now still a model, and she has been focusing on environmental issues. In the video, she remarked on how we could choose chocolates (the sugary snack) that are not using palm oil as part of the ingredients.

    Now, I’m not focusing on Nadya’s video. What I found interesting was the comments. Don’t get me wrong, the comments were mostly positive and in support of her. However, I noticed some of them read, “tapi saya masih pake minyak sawit untuk masak/menggoreng…” (“… but I still use palm oil for cooking and deep-frying…”)

    As a housewife and the one that is usually cooking for the family: I get it. Palm oil is cheap and easily available in this part of the world. It’s even considered as one of the elements in Indonesian’s sembako (sembilan bahan pokok/the nine essentials) and palm oil itself has been one of the backbones of the country (and its neighbor, Malaysia) economy. To ban palm oil from Indonesia’s kitchens would be cruel, especially if those who condemn the oil are those live-love-laugh white people with no understanding how the world works and how Global South came to be. Those people can just go to Hell for all I care, because I know exactly those types; begpackers and colonizers leeching off the locals in Bali, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh City, and Bangkok. Somehow they got the caucasity to lecture the very locals they robbed from about “live mindfully and environmentally-friendly”.

    This is where I think Nadya is on point in her video: She talked about chocolates. A “fun food”, something that might not be needed by every kitchen in Indonesia in daily basis. Yes, it might be difficult for the families to switch to different type of oils for cooking or method due to access or price, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to switch to a different brand of chocolate.

    I know no-one asked; that said, I would say that it’s okay if you still use palm oil for cooking. In my case, I do use palm oil for frying or sautée-ing, but I have been able to keep the consumption at minimum/as little as possible, thanks to airfryer. If you still use regular stove and wok to deep fry your bakwan jagung or perkedel with palm oil, hey, no worries. You can try find other alternatives for your less-essential needs, such as snacks. If, in the end, you still couldn’t switch products or brands at all for whatever reason, I hope that you wouldn’t beat yourself over it. Leave the switch and the boycott to us who can do it. What matters is that we now know and we know how to voice out our concerns, which means that as an end-consumer, we have rights to force the corporations to comply with the environmental regulations, no? As in, yes, we still need palm oil, but we want the one from sustainable sources.

    So while palm oil can be produced sustainably, most claims about sustainable production risk greenwashing the sector’s widespread environmental harms. Many environmentalists would argue that we need to reduce the amount of vegetable oils that we consume, alongside improving production. Demand could be cut by reducing our consumption of ultra processed foods and cosmetics or stopping the use of palm oil in biofuels.

    —- Sustainable palm oil

    Remember the “trend” Hit the Pan and Underconsumption? That trend of using the products, mostly beauty/cosmetics products and skincare, until it’s very last drop/swipe? Or that trend of stop doing hauls, especially clothing, that coming from fast-fashion companies such as Shein? Yeah, that shouldn’t be a trend. That should be our normal. Unfortunately, social media set our consumption level to turbo mode because so-and-so just bought the newest phone or so-and-so got themselves a sweet deal on Shein or Amazon or wherever it is. This goes the same way with our palm oil and O&G (oil and gas) industries. Humans still need energy sources to continue with their lives, but there is, and always been, a line between making the best out of the sources and plain greed.

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  • “The Mysterious Affairs at Styles” by Agatha Christie

    Nindya

    When reading “The Mystery of the Blue Train”, I learned that Agatha Christie’s, and Hercule Poirot’s, very first debut novel was “The Mysterious Affairs at Styles”, so naturally, I cracked open the book to see more of the introduction of the great detective.

    I must say, Ms. Christie definitely opened it with a bang. Right away, smack dab in the middle: A murder in a closed, locked room. Fans’ favorite. I love how this type of case was the starting point for Agatha Christie, as she then proved to be one of the experts, if not the expert, on closed-room murders. That said, considering this novel was her debut, things were still quite… a lot. So many elements moving and going; Lawrence Cavendish stood over with such horror on his face, the matter(s) with cocoa and coffee, so much strychnine, fight 👏 fight 👏 fight, burned documents, missing keys, espionage, and l’amore.

    Not as bad as the Screaming Marmot meme, I did find myself going, “HMMMMMM?! HMMM???!!!” whenever I see Hastings simping (sorry, can’t help it) over Mrs. Cavendish. First, dude, she is your friend’s wife. WIIIIFEEEE. W-I-F-E. What was it? Oh yeah, matrimony bond, witnessed by humans and God. Why are you simping on her it’s beyond me. Was it fashionable during World War I considering so many men were being sent to the frontlines, I don’t even know. Then, just like flipping one’s hand, this man, Hastings, suddenly proposed to Cynthia Murdoch just because she said that Hastings “has always been so kind, and you know such a lot” and he saw her “with the sunlight glinting down on her head”, which was enough for me to yell, “WHAT THE ACTUAL F–” which I couldn’t continue because I was in the middle of a pedicure session.

    That said, yes, I know, debut novel. Yes.

    My favorite part of this novel, though, is Ms. Christie’s knowledge of the procedures; started from the autopsy, the inquest, and when Scotland Yard got involved. I also loved the fact that Ms., Christie had been so true on writing about her women characters, and how complex the women are. I also mentioned about how often the fatal poison, strychnine, mentioned in the novel, and I got so glad that Poirot admitted that, too.

    “I do not know,” said Poirot. “But one thing does strike me. No doubt it has struck you too.”

    “What is that?”

    “Why, that there is altogether too much strychnine about this case. This is the third time we run up against it.”

    — Chapter 10: The Arrest

    This novel also taught me an important lesson: Hercule Poirot is an immigrant.

    “Yes, my friend, she had kindly extended hospitality to seven of my countrypeople, who, alas, are refugees from their native land. We Belgians will always remember her with gratitude.”

    — Chapter 2: The 16th and 17th of July

    Abolish ICE.

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  • “It’s that yoga-kind of day.”

    Nindya

    As someone with a chronic condition of overthinking and anxiety like me (please note that I have never been formally and medically diagnosed, so I’m not going to say that I have an anxiety disorder. That said, yes, I tend to worry about everything), it has been difficult for me to find a suitable exercise to keep me healthy. People have been mentioning about “runners’ high” or “dopamine hits”, but not me. I have never been able to find the joy in jogging, let alone running. I loathe zumba class (I attended to a couple of sessions until I decided to quit), and I avoid gym sessions. I always ended up tired, pissed, sweaty, stinky, even more pissed because I got sweaty and stinky, and hungry.

    Swimming helped me a bit… ish. Yes, it’s quite relaxing as you glide in the water and feel the cool water around you when it’s summer and hot outside, but I always got that small voice in the back of my mind, nagging, with its tiny squeaky voice, “what if…?” or “hey, you forgot this…”

    Recently, though, I saw a video on Instagram (I forgot to save it) that mentioning something about exercising for people with “a lot of thoughts in their mind”. I remember the vlogger mentioned something along the line of, “what they need to do is to regulate their nervous system so their brain won’t have the time to ask questions. Doing repetitive simple movements that not making them push themselves physically too hard usually helps.” What the vlogger said then reminded me of Qi Gong type of exercise. I’m quite familiar with this type of exercise, thanks to Xiaohongshu and watching older folks moving during my morning walk in the park.

    I then decided to give the exercise a try. It did help, though. I usually do the simple movements when I feel everything is too much for me, be it mentally or physically. Be it reading too much bad news about Indonesia or a really late bedtime. I feel that rather than not doing anything with the excuse of “I feel tired because I slept super late/I feel hopeless after reading another horrible news from Indonesia”, I could do something, such as waving my arms left and right while doing a tiptoe movements on my legs. I usually feel better afterwards, and more energized. Sometimes, I followed it with a quick simple yoga session or a walking pad session.

    In case you are curious, you can check out this video:

    I also found that the routine taught me to be more patient with myself. Some days, I could only managed to do a 10-minutes simple routine. Some days, I could do a yoga session without forcing and pushing myself. Today is one of those days.

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  • “The Wee Free Men: The Beginning” by Terry Pratchett

    Nindya

    I found it interesting that Terry Pratchett had been so good in writing down poignant thoughts that would make you pause and think, without him being preachy. This book reminds me of Studio Ghibli’s movies exactly for the same reason. The ideas are always oh so subtle, but it made you feel a certain way about how you used to be and, hopefully, a gentle nudge to be better.

    My first introduction to Terry Pratchett’s work was the novel “Good Omens”. I love how “naive” the characters always are, regardless of their omnipotent status or power. Who can forget Death’s answer when being asked, “you’re Hell’s Angels, then? What chapter are you from?” with “REVELATIONS. CHAPTER SIX.” It’s always that “good intentions”, and we all know that the road to Hell is paved with Good Intentions. Hence in this novel, I was delighted when I saw Death’s greetings, “GOOD AFTERNOON.”

    Tiffany Aching is a really interesting character. I love how imperfect she is. She knew she didn’t love her brother, Wentworth, at least not the kind of siblings affection, but she knew she’s selfish by stating, “my brother!” in front of the Queen of the Faeries. Her imperfections were not her weapons or “that cute side of her”. It was her side that she suppressed because society asked her to “love and care” her siblings, no matter how annoying (and sticky) they are.

    I also love how vivid the places and the emotions were. I know Terry Pratchett was good, but never realized he was this good. He wove words and sentences to express something in an abstract yet really clear in our mind. For example, a “cold and thin feelings inside the chest” to describe homesickness. He also respected his characters. No character is too small for him, and it seemed like he always made sure each character, even the background ones, would have something to do or say. My favorite part: When the Nac Mac Feegles fought and bickered with each other when they disguised themselves as a “human” in “A Hat Full of Sky”.

    I wish I could write more about this book. Unfortunately, this book is too vast and too rich to be summed in one blog post. At least for now.

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  • “Activist musician”

    Nindya

    Reading Ed Sheeran’s speech when he opened his Philadelphia concert gave me a bit of a pause, that immediately followed by, “huh. Anywayyyy…” This part, particularly:

    I don’t want to disappoint fans, and I’ve never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet.

    There has always been that voice: “But I just want to make music/play music/draw/create!” Hell yea, we just want to make music! Draw! Crochet! Why should we care about “politics” and whatever is going on at the other side of the world, whether someone gets bombed to smithereens or not?

    The “problem”, though, is the fact that even our ability and opportunity to create art is political. The reason why you could get a shiny brand-new guitar in your hands, or those nice wool yarns you can get at your nearby craft stores, those are all a result of political actions and decisions. I mean, hey, a sewing machine is one of the items that are banned in entering Palestine. But sure, go off with those “I just want to do crochet! I don’t care about politics!”

    I can understand the mental fatigue and despair in seeing today’s current news. No human being could handle this level of information and news tsunami. It feels like all of us are grasping at straws for a sliver of good news. When such dark waves are tiding in, it’s normal and expected of us to find some small joys, such as making music, strumming our guitars, painting, or knitting. That said, I don’t think we could negate that whatever we are enjoying, and not enjoying, right now is a result of some powerful people’s decisions and, well, the game of politics.

    This is why the term “activist musician” does not sit well with me. We are in the year of our Lord of 2026, and being apolitical would be… I don’t know, sad? Miserable? I’m not sure how often an Ed Sheeran opens his social media, but I honestly wonder if he ever reads something like “silence is complicity”.

    I once chatted about this with Ari. Specifically, on why some megastars prefer to stay quiet and “cari jalan aman” (I’m trying to find the English equivalent of this. Hm. “Choosing the safer route”?) despite the number of followers they have. Ari commented that, “perhaps that’s the reason why they stay quiet: They don’t want to lose their followers.” I also wondered if the reason they never share their opinions or thoughts is that they never have one in the first place. Their images have been so polished and fabricated up to a point that they forgot how to be themselves. It’s like that scene on “Sen to Chihiro” (Spirited Away) by Studio Ghibli, you know? When Chihiro got her name “taken” by Yuubaba, the evil witch and the bath-house owner, and changed into “Sen”. Haku told her to “remember your name”; because, ultimately, you should not forget who you really are. Perhaps this is what’s happened, and is happening, to the Ed Sheerans out there. They got so used to being directed, being told what to speak, see, hear, and think, so they forgot how to do it on their own in the first place. As Macklemore said, “his typical apolitical stance was being challenged.” Ed Sheeran got so used to being an Ed Sheeran, he might forgot how it is like to be Edward Christopher Sheeran.

    I’m not hating on Ed Sheeran. I don’t even feel anger. I just feel sad. Pity, even, seeing an adult man looking at what the world has gone into and deciding, “well, not my business. I just want to sing.” Well, you and your tours and concerts, all those, are thanks to political decisions.

    Fun fact, especially to those who “only want to sing”: During the administration of President Soekarno, Indonesia’s first president, the band members of Koes Bersaudara got thrown into the jail for one crime: Their music was inspired by The Beatles. Soekarno was hell-bent on eradicating any “western influences” in Indonesia, and he set his wrath on The Beatles, rock n’ roll, and western music in general, mocking it as “musik ngak-ngik-ngok”. This was Soekarno’s speech during Indonesia’s Independence Day celebration in 1959:

    “Dan engkau, hei pemuda-pemuda dan pemudi-pemudi; engkau yang tentunya anti-imperialisme ekonomi, engkau yang menentang imperialisme politik; kenapa di kalangan engkau banyak yang tidak menentang imperialisme kebudayaan? Kenapa di kalangan engkau banyak yang masih rock n roll, rock n roll-an, dansi- dansian ala cha-cha-cha, musik-musikan ala ngak-ngik-ngok, gila-gilaan, dan lain-lain sebagainya lagi? Kenapa di kalangan engkau banjak yang gemar membaca tulisan-tulisan dari luaran, yang nyata itu adalah imperialisme kebudayaan?”

    Then, on the next administration by President Soeharto, it was the ballad and melancholic genre that got the hit as it was dubbed as “pop cengeng“. Betharia Sonata, one of Indonesia’s famous singers, was forced to sing “more upbeat, joyful songs” in 1988.

    Bahkan, menurutnya, lagu-lagu cengeng bisa membuat masyarakat menyerah dan melemahkan komitmen pembangunan bangsa. Ditambah lagi, lagu tersebut hanya bualan semata sebab bukan dibuat berdasarkan kenyataan di masyarakat.

    Insert that all-singing-and-all-dancing-and-all-smiles North Korea performers meme or video here.

    I’m closing this post with a quote from Terry Pratchett, taken from his book “The Wee Free Men: The Beginning”:

    “Them as can do has to do for them as can’t. And someone has to speak up for them as has no voices.”

    (I am also not denying the fact that Ed might not be apolitical, since I didn’t see it when he showed his support to Ukraine. It could be that he chooses to be political depending on skin colors or him too scared to face the “wrath” of some old white dude called themselves as “billionaires” with halitosis and hemorrhoids.)

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The Blogger

Nindya. Kapkap. she/her. Indonesian in Malaysia. Millennial. Lo-fi. Post-Rock. Gregorian. Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Murder mystery genre. “Love is Love“.

Read more about me here.

readme.txt

This is my personal blog, so anything goes. This blog has been around since 2014, which means you would, and could, see my past writings with different perspectives and mindsets at that time. This blog is a record-keeping of what I was, what I am, and what I will be. What I wrote in the past might not reflect who I am right now, nor me revisiting the topic.

While things here are generally PG-13, I must remind you that I’m an adult, which means some topics might be too heavy for younger readers.

Unless stated otherwise, posts mentioning brand names or places here are not ads/paid content.

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