A Million Girls Would Kill to Have This Job!

If you’ve ever watched the movie The Devil Wears Prada (or read the book), maybe you‘ve ever heard of that line. “This job” here refers to job in a fashion magazine.

Just think you ought to know: I love magazines. I just… I always have! And ever since one of my classmates brought the very first issue of Cosmo Girl Indonesia in my first year of high school (I was 14 then), I immediately want to work in a magazine. An international fashion magazine, to make it more specific. Well, I love fashion (Oh yes, I do! I think every woman do!), and even though I’m not that much into fashion, but wouldn’t it be super awesome? *drooling*

Zillion thanks to God, I’m so lucky to finally got that chance (yeaaayy! :D). There have been a lot of people ask me, how it feels like to work in a high-end fashion magazine. Well, after a week working there, here’s what I can tell you…

1. I think the movie The Devil Wears Prada (and Ugly Betty too) are a wee bit exaggerating. No, there’s no such thing as bitchy office mate who stare at you from head to toe, try to bring you down just because your lack of style, talk shit behind your back, or stab each other’s back (well, at least not in front of me! :D). The girls are quite friendly and they helped me a lot. They invited me to lunch, let me use their computer and cell phone, and shared their snacks. (Yea, I have to admit that after my (canceled) second interview few weeks ago, I cried in the bathroom while making a phone call to my Yandi. But let me just say that that was just a wrong impression I got, and me being a crybaby. :D)
 
2. But it is true that everyone is sooo stylish and glamorous! Even the one whose job seems to have nothing to do with fashion, like the Business Director or Secretary. There’s no formal and boring office look here, everyone’s free to wear whatever they feel like wearing. You name it: ripped jeans, legging (they comes in every color and pattern), mini dress, Doc Marten boots in shocking pink color, smokey eyes…
 
3. Oh, and there’s no strict working hour, too. They usually come to the office at 9, and then go mall-hopping.
 
4. The girls don’t try so hard to be super skinny like in the movies. They eat ‘nasi padang’ and ‘gorengan’, and eat snacks during work. Just like the rest of us… :D
 
5. But the guys are not too friendly. They didn’t even bother to ask my name before they get me to do some job for them. Don’t know why. When I told this to my friend Icha, she asked, “Are you sure they’re straight?” LOL!
 
6. And my Editor-in-Chief? She’s nothing like the wicked dragon lady in The Devil Wears Prada (or the legendary Editor-in-Chief of Vogue US, Anna Wintour, who widely believed as the inspiration for that character). If I were a boy, I would have fallen in love with her, no kidding. She’s still very young, and nice and humble and sincere. And very very stylish too, of course. And what amaze me the most: the moment she heard Adzan maghrib, she left her desk and prayed. I think I should make a new movie, titled The Angel Wears Prada. :D
 
7. No, we don’t get branded stuff for free. I’m telling you: we BORROW them instead. In our office, we’ve got three huge wardrobes loaded with oh-so-fabulous bags, shoes, clothes, and jewelries from fancy brands that I had to try sooo hard to hold the urge to steal them. He-he. There was even a handbag at the same price of a car that I didn’t dare to touch.
 
8. Unlike in other places, noone praised me because I graduated from ‘the-so-called-best-university-in-this-country’. Most of them graduated from private fashion or art schools, or from abroad. They were like, “What? So you’re an engineer? What the hell are you doing here?” So I had to keep my chin down for this time, and I had to work twice harder only to prove that I can really write.

And what did I actually do? Sadly, since I’m the “new kid on the block”, they didn’t let me report something or interview someone, so I had to sit in front of my computer from 9 to 6, and…
- Edited a contributor’s writing about a trip to Komodo Island. Later on, I found out that she’s a well-known traveler and ever worked for a TV program. Wow, it did me an honor to edit her writing.
- Wrote about traveling to London. I made some kind of calendar event for the year 2010 and hotel recommendation. Before writing this, I was warned that our readers comes from A+ class, so they will be attracted by luxurious boutiques, luxurious spas, yada yada yada…, and I had to make sure that the hotels I recommend for them are 5-star ones.
- Translated an interview with Katia Verber (Russian’s socialite, like Paris Hilton)
- Translated two articles from our US edition about career and health tips, and googled some additional infos.
- Googled some images.
And when I’m done with my tasks, they just let me sit on a cozy couch in the corner and read some magazines. We have plenty of international fashion magazines here, from Vogue Australia to Marie Claire Hongkong. And it felt like heaven to a magazines fetish like me! Imagine you’re a chocolate addict and you’re working in a chocolate factory. :D
 
A pretty fine first week, it is. But sadly it’s my last week also. No, it’s not that I give up. In fact, I can’t be more grateful than this. I've made a dream and I've made it come true, and I’ve proved to those who didn’t believe that hey, dreams DO come true! I merely got a better offer, better opportunity, and better challenge in another place. I mean, mall-hopping every single day and brag about Gwen Stefani's lipstick when everyone else in this country is in an uproar over Pansus Bank Century or Artalyta Suryani's unbelievably luxurious cell may be a fun thing to do in few weeks, but there's no way I'm going to do that thing for the rest of my life! Yea, so... I’m moving from fashion to politics.

Maybe a million girls would kill to have this job. The thing is, I’m not one of them… :)