Life is Healthy

Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang | Tue, 04/06/2010 6:20 PM

Customs and excise officers have arrested another Indian national at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport for attempting to smuggle 15 kilograms of ketamine, worth Rp 15 billion, from India to Indonesia.

Airport customs chief Bahaduri Wijayanta said Tuesday the suspect, identified as Baskara Narayafami, 55, who flew from Chennai, India, arrived at the airport on Monday aboard a Thai Airways airplane.

Bahaduri said the suspect mixed the drug with food stuffs such as sugar, rice and powder, and wrapped it in 15 silver-colored plastic bags in his luggage.

“The suspect testified he was asked by a Malaysian citizen called Alam in India to carry the luggage to Indonesia and was promised Rp 15 million if he could submit it to someone in Jakarta,” Bahaduri said.

Working in cooperation with police, customs officers took the suspect to the alleged drop off point where he would submit the drug, but no one came to pick him up from the promised location.

“This is the fifth Indian national we have arrested smuggling drugs into the country this year,” Bahaduri said.

The suspect had violated Articles 196 and 197 of the 2009 Law on Health, which bans illegal distribution of ketamine. Violators face up to 15 years’ imprisonment.

Bahaduri added that the suspect and drug evidence would be handed over to police for further investigation.

Once again, I'm just getting over a "stomach thing." For three days, I was pretty down. I drank a lot of ice water. Today I just have that shaky, weak, unsteady feeling that you get when you're finally getting over something. My immunity must be in the toilet--literally with all the germs that reside in there. I've been taking vitamins and trying to get it in order but sometimes "it" does what it wants to do.

On the bright side, I probably lost a little weight. But it's water weight so it'll find its way home if I don't hide well enough.

I don't think I need to say that I haven't been exercising--so I won't.

Friday night, there was a bat in my bedroom. That's right, a bat. I woke up hearing something at the window. Then it was at the other window. "What the heck?" I'm thinking. So I turn on the light. From out of the shutters flies a bat--and it starts dive bombing my head. I lay low on the bed and try to cover up. At my first chance, I jump up and run into the kitchen to get a broom. While I was in there, I propped the backdoor open. In the midst of all of this, the dogs are running around barking like idiots.

I go back into the bedroom and use the broom to poke at the blinds until the bat comes flying out. Now I swat his ass into the hallway. He flies into the kitchen. I run into the kitchen and survey the room trying to find out where he's hiding--the whole time with my broom raised and ready. I see him trying to climb onto the blender. I use the broom to scoop him up and toss him toward the open door--out he flies. Thank God. The dogs are still barking.  My brother slept through the whole thing.

I should be back in action tomorrow. At least, that's my hope.

In the park, my five-year-old niece (playing the part of a police officer) catches and arrests me (playing the part of a criminal) and locks me up by the climbing frame (playing the part of a high-security jail for category A prisoners (highly dangerous to the public or national security or people who are ticklish)).

MY FIVE-YEAR-OLD NIECE: You've got to stay there for a hundred and one years, and I'm going to watch you so you don't escape.

ME: But if you're going to watch me for a hundred and one years, which of us is the real prisoner?

MY FIVE-YEAR-OLD NIECE: You. You are.

The Jakarta Post, Tue, 04/06/2010 11:58 AM

BATAM: Customs and excise officers confiscated 3.5 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine valued at Rp 7 billion, found inside a suitcase at the Batam International Ferry Terminal on Monday.

Customs head Heru Setioko said the drugs, wrapped in aluminium foil, had been brought into the country by Fetty Churiaty, 41, from Jakarta. She had arrived in Batam from Stulang Laut Port in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on a Pintas Samudra ferry, Heru said.

"This is the fifth seizure of crystal meth from Malaysia in the last three months this year. This shows checks in Malaysia are not optimal.

"They only scrutinize people coming in while those coming out of Malaysia do not undergo thorough checks," Heru said.

He said he had called on the Malaysian government to improve security checks for passengers leaving Malaysia. - JP

Marlena has lost seventy pounds in about 10 months. In the video below she explains how she went about it by changing her lifestyle rather than going on a diet.

Marlena has a very popular YouTube channel called "MakeupGeek TV". She has over 200,000 subscribers and her makeup tutorial videos have been viewed over 34 million times.

Antara News, Monday, April 5, 2010 13:38 WIB

Cipanas (ANTARA News) - First Lady Ani Yudhoyono inspected a herb garden at Cipanas presidential palace complex in Cianjur, West Java, on Monday morning.

The 2,600-square meter herbal garden with around 207 kinds of herbal plants, located at the east side of Cipanas palace, will serve as an example of herbal medicine development in the country.

Member of presidential team of doctors, dr Hardy Pranata said the development of herb garden at Cipanas palace was in line with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono`s program to introduce the country`s people with the cultivation, research, and use of herbal medicine at home.

"The expansion of herb garden here is in accordance with President Yudhoyono`s 2008 desire to preserve herbal medicine as a natural resource in the country," Hardy Pranata said.

Hardy who is concurrently Indonesian Herbal Doctors Association said the initiative to develop herb garden was also based on the instruction from the health minister on January 6, 2010 for the doctors to prescribe herbal medicine for their patients.

Meanwhile, director of the Indonesian traditional medicine at the National Agency of Drug and Food Control dr Sherley said the cultivation of herbal medicine in the country would continue to be developed.

"We will continue to cultivate herbal plants and to classify it into traditional medicine," Sherley said.