Dear Readers: An Introduction

Dear reader(s),

Thanks for visiting. As all civilized people should know, an introduction is mandatory. So here it goes, a recap of things (I consider) worthy enough to be shared with you.

My name is Andini Haryani. I'm Indonesian, got married to an Indonesian man on December 12th, 2009. His name is Aris Pramudito. I have not decided to take his name, because apparently we are both too lazy to do all the paperwork for needed documentations. So as for now, I'm sticking to my simple and typical Indonesian name.

Two weeks after the wedding, we flew to Houston, Texas, USA. My husband works for an oil company here in Houston. Before we got married, we were in a 3 years long distance relationship and it sucked. Big time. So with two huge suitcases by my sides, I left everything behind; my family, my friends, my dogs, my Jakarta, my Indonesia. The farewell broke my heart into millions of little pieces.

As a typical middle class Indonesian, I was accustomed to be provided with facilities. My mother had a household assistant and a gardener to help us with everyday life activities, from the simplest things such as changing the lightbulb, washing the dishes, to washing the car, mowing the lawn, fixing the roof, even painting the garage and do the grocery shopping. The help around my house in Indonesia started at 9 am and ended at 5 pm and then we had to things on our own. In most households in Indonesia it continues 24 hours. Household assistant(s) usually live in the house too. Here we do everything ourselves. I'll tell you later about the constant drama between my husband and his tools. It's funny and absolutely depressing at the same time.

I worked as a freelance writer and translator back in Indonesia. I used to work full time for a travel magazine, but quit the office drama altogether in 2006 and decided to self employed myself. Now I'm a full time housewife. Without any kids yet, I have lots and lots of spare time on my hand. Actually I can do more cleaning around the house, but it seems like I don't have enough motivation to do MORE cleaning. I cook, of course. Eating out all the time would drain out our monthly budget in a heartbeat. To sum it up, I'm a lazy housewife, but I love my man, so I do basic things to keep him content.

I don't have a clue of what this blog would become. I would probably just write about the life I'm living here. If that could catch any interest from any readers out there then it would be awesome, but if not then at least I don't have to do MORE cleaning and fill my spare time with blogging.

I'm writing in English because I already have a blog in Bahasa Indonesia (you can check it out here: It's Me, Being Chauvinistic and Totally in Love with Indonesia) and I am determined to keep my brains intact by practicing my English in any way possible. So here is my attempt to write in English.

It would be great to hear from you. Please feel free to leave your comments or even recipes. Simple ones though!


Love,
Andini