In case you've heard...

Yes, there were two bombings in Jakarta today. I was not in the city when it happened, but I heard about it pretty quickly from friends more technologically connected than I am. The two hotels attacked are in Central Jakarta, not very close to where I live (West Jakarta), but reasonably close to my church.

I wasn't worried until one of the members of the foundation that governs IPEKA gathered the expatriates at the end of our retreat and told us not to worry. He also suggested that we maintain a low profile for the rest of the weekend. Wise advice, since the bombings seemed to target foreigners.

I don't really know anything more than what you can find online at this point. If you want to see what the reporting is like from Indonesia, here is the link to The Jakarta Post. One point of interest is that the bombings could be in response to the presidential election last week. It isn't official yet, but it looks like the incumbent president, a moderate Muslim who has helped Indonesia move away from its militaristic/dictatorial past, won with a sizable majority. Also, in the April elections, the more radical Islamic parties posted significant losses. Altogether, Indonesia needs your prayers, for the victims and their families, for the perpetrators, and for the people in power.

Actually the bombings are not so much occupying my attention as my digestive tract, which has rapidly turned unhappy in the last few hours. It's a bummer because it's threatening to interfere with my music video debut. A musician friend of mine has asked me to be a part of his music video, and they're filming tomorrow. But I am not. feeling. well.