The Diary of a CEO's Wife

Monday felt familiar in the way Mondays always do. My husband disappeared into his marathon meetings, and I faced my own mountain of work that had quietly grown over the weekend. Neither of us had the energy to cook. And with our eldest away in Lampung , the house felt both lighter and a little too quiet. So we surrendered to the simplest decision of the day: let’s eat out. For lunch we tried Omah Mbah Wie , a little place that serves homestyle dishes that taste like they were cooked by someone’s loving grandmother. The moment we stepped inside, it felt like being transported to a village far from the polished streets of BSD . The wooden chairs, the gentle clatter, the warm aroma of spices... all of it wrapped around us like a memory. The food was comforting in a way only home cooking can be. We ate until we were full, sipped our drinks slowly, and somehow the bill was only seventy-two thousand rupiah. I even had leftovers to take home. It made me smile, that simple abundance. By dinne...

I woke up later than I planned, the kind of late that only happens after a night of absolute exhaustion. Eight in the morning felt like a small luxury in my Jakarta home. I dragged myself out of bed and headed straight to the bathroom, still half-dreaming, still feeling the weight of yesterday clinging to my shoulders. By nine, I slipped next door to pick up the bread I had ordered. I’m not even a bread person, really, but the auntie next door makes the kind that somehow tastes like comfort. Of course, I couldn’t just grab the bread and sprint home. Neighborly life doesn’t work like that. There were stories to exchange, warm laughter to share, the kind of long, winding conversations that make you forget the minutes passing. It was already ten when I finally walked home, arms full of bread, heart a little lighter. Breakfast was waiting. My husband had bought chicken porridge with cheese, and it tasted so good. A little before noon, our guests arrived straight from the airport. They had ...

Today I woke up already feeling like I was running, and by the time the clock struck six, my husband and I were on the road to the airport. Our eldest was flying to Lampung for a campus field trip for 4 days that morning.  From the airport, we drove straight to the dorm to pick up our youngest. Just like that, the three of us were complete again, even if only until the next errand called us away. We went home for a short breather, that kind of pause where your body feels still but your mind is already planning the next thing. By eleven, we were back on the move, heading to one of our properties in South Jakarta . The main agenda of the day was simple on paper. Key handover from an outgoing tenant, then supervising Cleansheet rangers to prepare the house for the next person moving in tomorrow. In reality, of course, nothing ever stays simple. We arrived at noon and immediately ordered our favorite sate to be delivered, because cleaning days deserve good food. The rain arrived rig...

This Friday felt ordinary on the surface yet carried a string of small stories that lingered long after the day ended. I started the afternoon with my husband, slipping away for a simple lunch at Subway. We paid with a BCA credit card and caught the 50 percent promo for all items except the sets. Two sandwiches for around eighty thousand felt like a tiny victory, the kind that makes you smile because life still surprises you with little pockets of savings. After lunch we moved to Starbucks, where I had promised to meet Mbak Natalia Lukita. She had first reached out through my Instagram DMs, curious about my experience with hysterectomy because she might need the same procedure. I could sense the mix of fear and hope in her questions. I told her what I always tell women who ask. I feel relieved, truly relieved. The risk of uterine cancer, gone completely. The pre-menopause symptoms that once hovered around my days, gone too. And of course, the freedom from monthly periods. That one stil...

Today was one of those days that felt like life pressed fast forward. Three meetings in a row already made my head spin, yet my husband somehow survived five without collapsing. I still wonder how he does it. Maybe love for the work truly fuels a different kind of stamina. The day began softly, with morning coffee at Bartisserie Ashta with Troy. Between sips of warm coffee and the quiet buzz of the mall waking up, we talked about ideas and possibilities. It felt like peeking through a small window into new collaborations waiting to happen. I’m grateful to Ollz for making that connection, because serendipity often arrives through people who believe in us. Lunch came quickly after. We rushed to Senggol Canteen at the MSIG Building Sudirman . My husband’s angel investor joined, and even in the brief hour we had, conversations moved fast. He asked my thoughts on a few things, and I appreciated the way he values my perspective. Sometimes the quickest lunches carry the weight of bigger dec...

I didn’t expect to spend an entire day at Smesco Hall, from ten in the morning to seven in the evening, but that’s exactly what happened. My husband and I walked in expecting a typical tech event. Instead, we found ourselves swept into a crowd so huge and so alive that it felt more like a reunion festival than a conference. Everywhere I turned, there were familiar faces. Some I knew from the early days of StartupLokal in 2010, others were people I’d only recently met through newer circles. It was surreal, really, to feel time folding into itself like that. More than a decade of community, innovation, friendships and projects, all met in one buzzing venue. What also impressed me was how the hall stayed full the entire day. Morning, afternoon, evening, still full. At first I thought it was just the early hype, but no. By the end of the event it was still packed and later I understood why. The closing was a mini-concert by Tulus, and honestly, who wouldn’t stay for that? As for the talks,...

Today was one of those super gloomy, dark, rainy days where the sky feels like it’s about to fall on you. But honestly, I kinda loved it. I spent the whole day at home with my husband. Cozy, calm, nothing fancy… and somehow it felt romantic. We even accidentally fell asleep, and when I woke up, boom: five missed calls from my eldest. She wanted a ride home.  By the time we called her back, she was already home on her own, casually hanging out at Lawson for late lunch. So I asked her to bring me Chiki Balls . She came back with the huge one. And then my husband opened it and fed me using chopsticks. It was such a silly kind of romantic, but that’s exactly the kind I love.  At 7pm, after dinner, I delivered an MBTI workshop for the Wondermoms community by Nobu . The theme was building better connections with MBTI , and it was honestly so fun. The participants were excited, throwing questions, participating, sharing stories. I loved the energy. There were so many questions we ...

Monday started with hubby busy for serial meetings and I catch up some paperworks.  At 11am I had a final check point for my MBTI webinar with Wondermoms powered by Nobu . Everything’s ready.  And then me and my husband dropped our eldest off at campus. On the way home we stopped by a warteg to buy stock for the week. And guess what, with only 52k we brought home nine full packets of lauk . Nine. I don’t know why that made me so disproportionately happy, but it did. Maybe because it feels like winning at adulthood in the simplest way possible. Back home, the cleansheet ranger came for the apartment. Fresh sheets, clean air, tidy corners, empty laundry. I swear that alone can reset my mood by 80 percent. The afternoon was my favorite slice of the day. I curled up on the sofa by the window with Okki’s new book . The breeze was soft, the kind that brushes your face like it knows you need it. I read a few chapters, then slowly drifted off into a heavenly, unplanned nap. Honestl...

This morning started with my husband driving our eldest to Comifuro again. By lunchtime the three of us, minus the eldest, went to Warung Guling Pak Made . It's ur very first visit. I didn’t expect much, but the food was genuinely good for me. Non-halal, of course, but totally worth it. The place is small but totally decent, and the best part was how friendly the staff were. Like, friendlier than BCA security guards, if you can imagine that. I mean it in the best way. We were meeting Okki Sutanto there with his wife and child. He came all the way just to hand-deliver his newest book:   Yang Tak Terkatakan tentang Menuju Dewasa . Super thoughtful. And honestly we feel so privileged, getting to read it before it’s even officially released. Congrats once again, Okki! After lunch we slipped over to Cotti Coffee for a bit, then dropped the youngest back at her dorm. On the way home we of course made our signature stop: the gorengan stall in front of the Amaris Hotel. Some rituals just...

This morning started the way many of my Saturdays do lately. Subuh-subuh , my husband was already out the door, sending our eldest to Comifuro . Just like every year, she’s selling merch again with her friends while cosplaying. Comifuro really is like Lebaran for all the wibu kids , so for my daughter, it’s basically a   must attend , no negotiation. By noon I was too lazy to cook, so I dragged my husband and our youngest out for lunch. She wanted sei, so off we went to Sei Sapi Lamalera . My husband and I had tried it before and honestly, it’s so good. Surprisingly affordable too. Totally worth it. After lunch, we slipped next door to Portakamp Coffee . We had been here once and noticed they had tons of board games. Back then we said, “We should bring the kids someday.” And today was apparently   that   day. And guess what happened? We played Monopoly for six hours. Six. Hours. At first, I was the one nearly bankrupt. Like, genuinely ready to cry because I kept mortgagi...

This morning started with my husband already sitting at the Mazda workshop after dropping our daughter at college. It’s time for our CX-5’s routine service. Yes, the one that’s already ten years old. Honestly, it doesn’t feel like a decade at all. I still remember the day I got the keys to that dream car, totally free from tiket.com’s car ownership program. What a moment. Mind you, I posted about that dream car in 2012 , and finally got it for FREE in 2015. Talk about Law of Attraction or Reticular Activating System!  We’re getting it serviced now to prepare for our end-of-year Java road trip. Fingers crossed she behaves well on the highway. She’s always been my favorite car, even though she once spent some time in Bali being rented out. Now she’s back with us and officially assigned to our youngest, who can finally drive and has her license. By noon, I was still stuck editing a video for the Sinar Mas Land competition. And somehow I finished and uploaded it right on time. The dead...

You know those days when you wake up and suddenly feel like Santa clause on a weekday. That was me today. I started early in Menara Dea 2, Mega Kuningan, hand-delivering a giveaway gift from my “back from hiatus” moment to my follower, Mbak Rista. Too bad we couldn’t chat longer because I had a meeting lined up and she was in the middle of training. Next time, for sure. After that, my husband parked at Menara Karya while I slipped into the building right next to it, Menara Kadin. Why? To meet Mbak Rika, from my old office twenty years ago! I still can’t wrap my head around it… she’s been working there since before I joined in 2005, and she’s still there today. Two decades. That level of loyalty is wild. She took me on a mini-tour of the office, and oh my goodness, nostalgia hit hard. My old room has now merged with her former room and transformed into a meeting space. Meanwhile, her current office is huge with a drop-dead gorgeous view 😍 And guess what? She still keeps this pic of us ...

After lunch, I jumped straight into an online briefing with a partner. Right after that, I had a presentation with a public company that wants to run an MBTI assessment for 180 of their C-level and M-level leaders between the end of this year and early next year.  When the work stuff wrapped up, I slipped out for some solo fitness time. Just me, cable row machine, and YouTube playing Fellexandro Ruby and Home of the Underdogs with Pastor Alvin Rajagukguk talking about relationships . The kind of conversation that makes you nod while sweating, like, “Yup, that hits.” Later in the afternoon, I went with my husband to pick up our eldest from her campus. We ended up having an early dinner together at my husband’s favorite Burger Bangor .  It’s one of those spots tucked inside a ruko, mostly geared toward Grab and Gojek orders. The dine-in area is upstairs and honestly, so hot, stuffy and sticky. But eating together made it worth it. Before heading home, we stopped by a warteg in ...

A cozy, reflective story about a sleepy, rainy Tuesday filled with simple cooking, quiet romance, and unexpected naps.

Okay, this post is 10 days backdate, FYI. I was trying to remember what I did ten days ago and my mind was just… blank. You know that feeling, right? Like the day slipped through some tiny hole in my memory.  So I did what I always do when my brain refuses to cooperate: I opened my photos. And suddenly the day came back, not loudly, but in small familiar whispers. There it was the imported celery I bought because it looked too green and too crisp to ignore. I don’t even know why it made me happy, but it did. Maybe because I put it on a transparent glass of vas as a substitute of flowers, but edible 😄 Then the salad supplies: lettuce , cherry tomatoes , sweet corn , organic wafu dressing , edamame ,  almond sea salt . Also, cold presse juices: lady ruby and joyful day . Looking at them now, I can almost feel that tiny spark of intention I had that day. Like I was quietly telling myself let’s try again to be kinder to this body. And of course the Ayam Kalasan . I remember tha...

Jakarta-Bekasi-Karawaci.  From Southgate Residence, to Kemang Village, to Pakuwon Mall, to Kemang View Apartment, to Karawaci, then BSD. All in Sunday. Some Sundays feel like a gentle inhale and exhale. This one felt like a long, winding laugh you can’t quite control but wouldn’t trade for anything. We were still in the staycation bubble at Southgate Residence , half-floating in that weekend fantasy where time doesn’t exist and alarms are optional. The plan was simple: join online church at the private cinema room at 10. Easy. Peaceful. Holy, even. Of course, reality had other plans. When everyone stays up too late watching random videos, doomscrolling, and pretending tomorrow doesn’t exist, there is only one possible outcome. Woke up too late. Naturally. We scrambled out of bed like a family who forgot an exam, except instead of textbooks we carried our messy hair and hunger pangs. We managed to start service at 11, still half-asleep and definitely starving, but there’s something ...