Bidadari Dari Timur..

I was so upset when I missed the launching of this book during the KL Bookfair last week. It was even attended by Tok Guru himself! Hmm, did I tell you that I missed the whole bookfair affair?? Initially I wasn't so devastated since most of the book that I aimed to get can be found easily in MPH or Kino, except this very particular book ( I assume, although I never actually try to find it in the nearest bookstore). However I managed to get hold of it from a friend, who happened to be a bookdealer.

So this morning, after my Subuh prayer, I read this 107 pages book that I was certain can be finished for a mere half an hour. This book actually acts as my Tazkirah Subuh on this wonderful early weekend morning, where most of the people are still cuddling their comfortable blanket -_- ( I was glad, I was very energetic this morning, or else I would usually do the same ritual as the others..)

OK, I actually wants to highlight some synopsis of this book. They called it `novelette' as it has the fancy words normally used in the commercial Malay novels.. :) I would suggest this book to all ladies, as I presume usually ladies appreciate fancy words (bahasa puitis) and it really touches the bottom of hearts and deepest of soul. For men whom enjoy novels, feel free to get hold of this book.

The book is actually a mini memoir of the beloved wife of Tok Guru (Datuk) Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, the well known ulama' and also the MB of Kelantan. Datin Tuan Sabariah Tuan Ishak, a soft spoken, brave at heart and a loving wife and mother of ten children, being a wife of a super busy and dedicated religious leader like Tok Guru for more than 30 years.. there are so much to learn from her valuable experience. Especially to wives and ehem, wife to be (to whom who may concern, haha).

It was filled with excerpts from the Holy Quran, and her real experience of growing up her 5 sons and 5 daughters, and handling the house chores. And she also gave a glance on how Tok Guru managed to spend time with his children and his hobby of hunting and farming (I suppose it is hard to find an MB with interesting hobby like this) despite his busy schedule. However, the thing that I treasure most in this brief novelette are a few doa that was recited by him every now and then. One of my favourite, was the one which he recited before the 13th GE. It surely will shed your tears!

Bottomline is, please read this book.. it is so touching and inspiring at the same time..and it is so thin that you can finish in few minutes, seriously. Enjoy!

Logik Etika Estestika

Logik
Etika
Estestika.

Tiga elemen ini merupakan aras tanda sesebuah karya seni itu bermutu atau sebaliknya, menurut Faisal Tehrani (FT) dalam majalah Muslimah keluaran Mei 2008.

Sebagai orang yang memperjuangkan karya seni sastera, beliau membincangkan tentang tiga elemen yang sangat kurang diterapkan dalam karya seni di negara kita, sama ada filem, drama, penulisan dan sebagainya. Tapi kali ini mungkin saya nak fokus kepada karya drama televisyen dan filem, sebab kalau masuk penulisan makin panjang hujahya.

Nilai pertama, logik. Kalau kita lihat memang banyak cerita yang dipaparkan di televisyen mahupun layar perak adalah tak logik. Bak kata FT, Ayat-ayat Cinta itupun tak logik. Sebenarnya nilai logik yang ada dalam sesebuah cerita itu turut membantu penghayatan penonton sekaligus mengaitkan dengan kehidupan realiti.Bukan hanya terperangkap dalam dunia fantasi yang entah apa-apa. Watak utama yang terlalu sempurna, kehidupan yang terlalu banyak kebetulan (baca:terlalu banyak!!), dunia yang hanya dipenuhi angan-angan dan yang jelita mesti akan berkahwin dengan putera raja dan hidup mewah, yang miskin pasti akan terperangkap dalam gejala sosial seterusnya menjadi perosak masyarakat. Memanglah tiada yang mustahil di dunia ni, tapi yang lebih penting apakah nilai yang boleh diambil oleh penonton (aundience’s take-away) di akhir cerita nanti?

Nilai kedua,etika. Ni amat kurang didapati dalam drama tv kita akhir-akhir ini. Asyik-asyik cerita skandal, putus cinta, korporat terlibat rasuah, gelap duit, bohsia, rebut suami orang dan sewaktu dengannya.Logik? Memanglah logik. Macam cerita Yasmin Ahmad, memang logik dan berlaku dalam masyarakat kita. Tapi perlu ke sisi itu yang ditonjolkan dalam filem, secara jujur dan telus, tanpa sebarang tapisan? Macam mana dengan penonton bawah umur, yang tak faham double meaning dan cheeky body gesture? Mungkinkah mak ayah mereka akan dibom dengan macam-macam soalan selepas tengok cerita macam ni. Pada fikiran mereka, mungkin budaya Melayu kita memang macam ni agaknya.

Kebanyakan cerita memang ada selitkan unsur-unsur keinsafan dan pengajaran buat jahat dibalas jahat pada penghujung cerita.Itu saya tak nafikan, tapi mungkin sikit sangat.. kebanyakan isi cerita lebih kepada yang berbentuk skandal dan sensasi. Cubalah bayangkan, kalau budak-budak kecil asyik disajikan cerita-cerita macam ni,lama kelamaan akan terprogram dalam otak mereka dan besar nanti macam nilah corak pemikiran mereka.Cita-cita nak jadi model, nak kahwin dengan orang kaya, nak jadi artis..

Nilai ketiga, estestika. FT kata estestika ni keindahan,nilai yang jadikan subah cerita nampak menarik dan bagus. Saya sendiri, sangat suka filem yang memaparkan shot alam yang cantik, dari sudut yang menarik dan peralihan plot yang kemas.Pendek kata, perfect cinematography (he art or technique of movie photography, including both the shooting and development of the film). Saya tak nafikan filem Yasmin memang cantik.. tapi sayang estestikanya ada, etikanya kurang.

Memang banyak filem dan drama sekarang, tinggi nilai estestika dan kurang nilai etika. Kalau filem `cantik’, maka mudahlah diangkat di festival filem dan menang anugerah filem dan drama. Tapi mana nilai sebenar sesebuah filem itu, kalau akhirnya penonton tak dapat apa pun. Sedikit pun tak bertambah nilai kemanusiaan, ilmu mahupun intelektual. Saya merasakan, dan mengharapkan orang-orang seni perlu lebih kreatif dan berfikiran jauh untuk menjadikan filem dan drama mereka mengasuh masyarakat menjadi lebih baik, bukannya tanpa impak. Jauh sekali menjadikan mereka lebih hanyut dengan dunia rekaan mereka. Mungkin saya boleh lihat lebih banyak program tv dan filem yang menepati konsep yang tiga ini, insya Allah.

Enjoying Allah's creation

At dusk, taken from the double skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur.

Anlene Concentrate

(malas nak amik gamba sendiri, ni ehsan afzanistrator.blogspot.com)

Whoever knows me personally, you all would know that I, being a self proclaimed health freak,am always promoting people at my age to consume milk, namely Anlene to avoid osteophorosis (excuse my spelling, please) when you are older. The powder form of Anlene is (for me) not as tasty as normal milk, but I managed to live with it anyway. But recently, they produce something that is much more better in taste, and higher in calcium content too.

To non milk lover (like me) but badly need some calcium supply in your body, I encouraged you guys to try this. Sangat sedap ok, tak rasa susu langsung, rasa vanilla! To milk (and vanilla) lover like Ci, you would love this to bits. Seriously. Its just that for this you need to pau your Mom more often, as it comes in mini packages of 125ml and priced around RM1.50 each.. hehe.

Sangat sedap! Cubalah untuk tulang yang kuat dan sihat.

Seindah bidadari syurga..

Sedikit perkongsian ilmu dari blog WP ladies

Antara pengisian yang dikongsi yang berpandukan buku tulisan ulama terkenal, Syeikh Mutawalli Sya’rawi bertajuk `Tazkirah Peringatan Hari Akhirat’ seperti berikut:

1) Orang yang paling banyak menerima ujian adalah orang yang telah mendapat Hidayah – sesungguhnya Allah menguji mengikut kemampuan hamba-Nya. Apabila kita telah mengetahui sesuatu hukum Allah itu dan masih lagi ingkar, maka dosa yang kita dapat lebih besar daripada orang yang tidak mengetahui

2) Ciri-ciri penghuni syurga:

I. Mulutnya sentiasa memuji Allah
II. Sentiasa beristighfar dan memuji Allah 70 kali sehari (seperti amalan Nabi Muhammad saw)
III. Salam penghormatannya adalah salam, penutup doa mereka adalah alhamdulillah
IV. Ahli-ahli syurga dan isteri-isteri mereka duduk di tempat teduh, menperoleh buah-buahan dan segala yang diminta
V. Allah dan malaikat memberi salam kepada ahli syurga
VI. Wanita penghuni syurga adalah isteri-isteri yang suci dan mereka kekal di dalamnya
VII. Rombongan pertama yang masuk syurga adalah seperti bulan purnama, yang kedua seperti bintang bergemerlapan dengan masing-masing dua isteri
VIII. Di syurga tiada yang bujang, semuanya berpasangan

3) Dalil-dalil yang dikongsi tentang ahli syurga :

i)Surah Yunus, ayat 10- percakapan ahli syurga
Maksudnya : Doa mereka di dalamnya ialah: "Subhanakallahumma", dan salam penghormatan mereka ialah: "Salam". Dan penutup doa mereka ialah: "Alhamdulillaahi Rabbil 'aalamin."

ii)Surah Al Zukhruf, ayat 87- Doa Nabi Yunus ketika ditelan ikan nun
Maksudnya : "..Bahawa tidak ada Tuhan (yang berhak disembah) selain Engkau. Maha Suci Engkau, sesungguhnya aku adalah termasuk orang-orang yang zalim."
( Digalakkan baca sewaktu bersolat hajat, sujud terakhir)

iii)Surah Al Baqarah, ayat 25- Ganjaran didapati ahli syurga
“Dan sampaikanlah berita gembira kepada mereka yang beriman dan berbuat baik, bahwa bagi mereka disediakan surga-surga yang mengalir sungai-sungai di dalamnya. Setiap mereka diberi rezeki buah-buahan dalam surga-surga itu, mereka mengatakan: "Inilah yang pernah diberikan kepada kami dahulu." Mereka diberi buah-buahan yang serupa dan untuk mereka di dalamnya ada istri-istri yang suci dan mereka kekal di dalamnya.”

4) Dalil dan hadis kehebatan wanita :

i) Surah An Nisa, ayat 32
“Dan janganlah kamu iri hati terhadap apa yang dikaruniakan Allah kepada sebahagian kamu lebih banyak dari sebahagian yang lain. (Karena) bagi orang laki-laki ada bahagian daripada apa yang mereka usahakan, dan bagi para wanita (pun) ada bahagian dari apa yang mereka usahakan, dan mohonlah kepada Allah sebagian dari karunia-Nya. Sesungguhnya Allah Maha Mengetahui segala sesuatu.”

ii) Sabda Rasulullah “ Wanita itu dikahwini kerana hartanya, keturunannya, paras rupanya dan agamanya. Maka pilihlah yang beragama”

iii) “Wanita yang berkat adalah wanita yang mudah dipinang, murah maharnya dan mudah rahimnya (mudah hamil)

iv) “Sebaik-baik wanita yang menunggang kuda dari kaum Quraisy adalah yang menyayangi anak kecilnya dan yang menhormati suaminya”

v) Jika wanita menunaikan solat lima waktu, berpuasa di bulan Ramadhan, menjaga kehormatan dan mentaati suami maka pastilah dia masuk syurga

vi) Lelaki yang mempunyai anak perempuan dan mendidik anaknya dengan baik, maka anak itu akan menjadi pendindingnya dari azab api neraka

vii) “Kesenangan dunia yang paling baik adalah isteri solehah”

Pesta Buku !

Pesta Buku Antarabangsa kembali lagi!

pada

17-26 April 2009
Pusat Dagangan Dunia Putra (PWTC), Kuala Lumpur

dari surah Al Alaq, ayat 1 hingga 5 :
[96.1] Bacalah dengan (menyebut) nama Tuhanmu Yang menciptakan,

[96.2] Dia telah menciptakan manusia dari segumpal darah.

[96.3] Bacalah, dan Tuhanmulah Yang Maha Pemurah,

[96.4] Yang mengajar (manusia) dengan perantaraan kalam.

[96.5] Dia mengajarkan kepada manusia apa yang tidak diketahuinya.

Personal Target :

1) Manikam Kalbu (FT)

2) Koleksi Pak Latip yang saya tiada - Umar Al Khattab, Abu Bakar Sahabat Sejati, Hikayat Amir Hamzah 1,2,3 (mengikut bajet di poket)

3) Original version of Slumdog Millionaire -apakah nama dia? tak ingat dah

English ke Bahasa Melayu?

Sebenarnya ni isu tentang PPSMI. Tapi saja taknak letak tajuk PPSMI sebab bosan dan macam dah muak (tapi tulis juga kan). Dah berzaman orang berdemo pasal PPSMI ni baru saya nak komen kan? Itulah, pada mula lagi sejak PPSMI ni timbul, saya tak faham apa relevannya. Tapi kerajaan terus melaksanakannya. Rasanya saya mula perasan pun masa adik saya ambil subjek EST (English in Science and Technology) dan cakap ramai kawan-kawan dia tak dapat A subjek tu. Lepas tu 2 tahun kemudian, tanya pula sepupu dia ambil tak EST, katanya cikgu cakap ni subjek tak wajib ambil. Pulak. Besar kemungkinan sebab takut peratus lulus dan rekod semua A (straight A’s) sekolah jatuh sebab ramai orang tak lulus EST.

PPSMI diperkenalkan kononnya supaya nak budak-budak pandai Inggeris, jadi bila bekerja lebih kompeten dan senang diterima syarikat multinasional.Tapi betul ke PPSMI ni jalan terbaik?

Saya memang tak sokong PPSMI, tapi saya sokong budak-budak belajar cakap bahasa Inggeris paling kurang masa sekolah menengah. Waktu sekolah rendah, bagi saya budak-budak ni baru nak belajar benda-benda asas. Ikutlah lidah (mother tongue) masing-masing, apa yang dibelajar di rumah, yang diajar oleh mak ayah (dan atuk/nenek/bibik?). Sebab tu sebelum ni selain sekolah Melayu, ada sekolah Inggeris, sekolah rendah jenis kebangsaan Cina dan Tamil. Tapi kalau dah sendiri pilih, contohnya anak Melayu yang ibu bapanya masukkan ke sekolah Cina, memang kena ambil masa sikitlah untuk sesuaikan diri. Awalnya memang susah, tapi lama-lama dah biasa dan jadi senang. Budak-budaklah katakan, mudah sangat untuk terima pelajaran dan pengetahuan baru.

Fikir balik, bukankah konsep ni sama je dengan usaha kerajaan melaksanakan PPSMI? Supaya para pelajar sudah terbiasa dengan bahasa Inggeris sejak kecil dan penguasaan mereka semakin baik bila dah besar.

TETAPI, konsep orang Melayu masukkan anak ke sekolah Cina, atau orang Cina masukkan anak ke sekolah Melayu, mungkin relevan untuk yang di bandar. I would say orang di bandar tiada masalah untuk PPSMI, mereka yang memilih sendiri corak pembelajaran anak masing-masing, tak kisah bahasa pengantarnya Inggeris atau Melayu.

Tetapi macam mana dengan mereka yang tinggal di luar bandar? Anak-anak orang bandar mungkin dah biasa diajar oleh ibu bapa tentang terma-terma Sains, belajar asas Matematik, dan zaman sekarang, ramai ibu bapa dah melatih anak-anak kecil bercakap bahasa Inggeris (walaupun kadang-kadang bahasa Inggeris sendiri berterabur).

Anak-anak di luar bandar, bahasa pengantarnya majoriti masih lagi Melayu. Perkataan sains usah cakaplah, sangat jarang didengar. Matematik pun setakat kira pakai jari. Maksudnya asas sebelum masuk sekolah kurang kukuh, sebab tu la nak masuk sekolah darjah satu supaya cikgu boleh ajar. Tapi kalau dah cikgu ajar terus bahasa Inggeris, budak-budak ni kena mula dari kosong. Lebih teruk kalau cikgu tu pun bahasa Inggerisnya tunggang langgang. Ada sesetengah budak pula jenis malu bertanya pada cikgu, balik rumah tanya pada mak ayah. Sudah kalau mak ayah pun tak faham, macam mana tu?

Sebenarnya bagi saya, terpulang kepada cara ibu bapa mendidik anak-anak dan persekitaran anak-anak tu sendiri. Kalau dari kecil dah rancang nak didik anak cakap bahasa Inggeris, kita kenalah belajar juga supaya taklah ajar `home-made English' kepada anak-anak. Grammar kena betul, vocabulary kena banyak dan penggunaannya tepat.

Kita sering dengar ibu bapa sekarang ajar anak kecil kononnya nak cakap English, tapi Englishnya sepatah dua je. Contoh macam `Come, come. Eat,eat’ bila nak suruh anak makan. Ataupun `Amin good boy kan. Sit,sit. Mama nak eat kejap’ bila anak taknak duduk diam. Perkataan yang digunakan seharian ni yang akan diingat oleh budak-budak, takut nanti dah terbiasa dan bila besar nanti ujian English pun teruk, Melayu pun hancur!

Still, you all can argue on that. Baguslah daripada tak tahu langsung cakap Inggeris kan. Sepatah dua jadilah. Apa-apa pun, terpulang. Tapi saya sokong bahasa pengantar Inggeris diguna di universiti. Sebab secara umumnya asas pengetahuan tu dah ada, contoh fizik, matematik, kimia (kalau ambil kejuruteraan) jadi taklah susah sangat walaupun kena usaha lebih sikit untuk faham istilah dalam bahasa Inggeris dan buku-buku rujukan tebal tu. Eh, nanti isu bahasa kebangsaan pulak, perpaduan lagi. Hmm, the choice is yours. Asal rajin belajar, usaha, ikhtiar dan tawakkal, insya Allah berjaya. Tak kisah la pandai English ke tidak, kan?

(Memang isu lama dan well-known. Saja terasa nak kongsi)

Hepatitis B

I had my first Hepatitis B jab when I was 24 yr 3 mnths, which was precisely last week.

My big brother even commented on me having the jab at the same time when his son was due for the jab, only that Ajim was having a slight fever therefore his session will be postponed to some other time(note: Nowadays, babies are compulsory to get Hepatitis B jab,not like our time previously).

Ajim with his Pak Su(background:cousin Adam is sleeping)

I only discovered last year, during a thorough medical check up that I have none ( read: zero reading) of Hep B antibody in my body,hence the doctor suggested me to take the jab whenever I'm free (or whenever I am eligible to be covered by my company insurance).

So I went to the clinic and the jab was quick, the only unpleasant fact is the jab is not covered by ING.Tipu betul.. since I've checked with them earlier and they said it was covered.Anyway, murah je pun.Health is the ultimate wealth, right?The other hassleness that you must bear is there are two other follow up jabs, one after a month,and another 5 months later.And in my case,my body produce none of the antibody thus I need to get the Hep B booster every 5 years. Sounds tedious?Well the choice is yours.

Well, hepatitis B is disease caused by hepatitis B virus which infects the liver of hominoidae, including humans, and causes an inflammation call hepatitis. Actually the virus most probably can be deadly for infants, whereas most adult (90%) usually recovered when attacked by the virus. More info can be found here.

So, don't forget to ask your doctor on your Hep B antibody next time you're having your medical check up or blood test.

Bukit Gantang

Its odd (or should i say co-incidence?), when I think about the result of the by elections that was announced last night, I came across this familiar phrase from the Holy Quran, which most of Muslims read every morning in the mathurat recitation with translation as below:

"Say, `O Allâh! the Lord of all power, You grant power to whomsoever You will and take away power from whomsoever You please, and confer honour and dignity on whomsoever You will and disgrace whomsoever You will. All good lies in Your hand. Verily, You are the Possessor of full power to do all You will" (3 : 26)

(translation in Malay)

Katakanlah, "Wahai Tuhan pemilik kekuasaan, engkau anugerahkan kekuasaan bagi siapa yang Engkau kehendaki dan mencabut kekuasaan dari siapa yang Engkau kehendaki. Engkau muliakan siapa yang Engkau kehendaki, dan Engkau hinakan siapa yang Engkau kehendaki, dalam tangan-Mu segala kebaikkan, sesungguhnya Engkau Mahakuasa atas segala sesuatu." (QS Ali Imran [3]: 26).

At Bukit Gantang, the rakyat has spoken.

Post Earth Hour

(pos tertangguh seminggu. Mintak maaf!)

Seronok dengar reaksi ramai orang tentang Earth Hour.

Ada yang kata takde impak, takyah sokong.
Ada yang kata kita tutup sejam setahun je, apalah sangat signifikannya kan.

Tapi kami tetap sokong.Ini buktinya.

Gelap woo..

Eh sempat pulak maih flash camera (haiya!)

MRR2 (haih, gelap earth hour ni pun, jem tetap jem..)

Bagi saya yang penting nak mulakan kesedaran di kalangan orang ramai, seterusnya jadikan tabiat menjimatkan elektrik dalam kehidupan kita.Bukannya susah kan.

P/S : Tahu tak kenapa 28 Mac dipilih sebagai earth hour? sebab bermulanya `light saving' time pada musim panas di Eropah. Maksudnya, kalau selalu mereka mula kerja pukul 8, waktu light saving mereka mula kerja pukul 7 pagi sebab waktu siang yang panjang..

Jom tutup lampu

Malam ni, 8.30 malam - 9.30 malam, sejam je.

Jangan lupa beli lilin siap-siap.

Dan jangan ramai-ramai keluar rumah pergi makan luar pulak, takut Earth hour jadi Thief Hour.. :P

Udang jahat

(Warning! : pos ini tidak penting dan boleh diabaikan.Sekian)

Situasi 1

Saye : Eh sedap la kuih nie.
Abah : Haah sedap inti dia.
Saye : Abah tau tak sekarang ni saye selalu kena rashes, tak tau makan ape.
Abah : Makan kuih nie kot?
Saye : Kuih ni inti dia serunding ikan bilis la, bukan udang.
Abah : (Rasa kuih) Laa ni inti udang la nie.
Saye : Yeke? Manis pedas je. rasa udang ke nie?
Abah : Laa, ni rase udang la nie, takkan tak tau rasa udang macam mana.
Saye : Memang la tak tau, tak penah makan seumur hidup.
Abah : Ooh ok..-_- sorry lupa.

Situasi 2

Saye : (sms) Akak, sorry saya tak dapat join malam nie, kena rashes teruk..
Akak : Okay takpe..
Saye : Ini mesti sebab popia jahat tadi makan mase tea break.
A : Popia tu inti udang kot?
Saye : Tapi sedap.
A : Erm.

Situasi 3

Saye : Dokter, saya kena rashes nie.
Dr : (Check check) ohh kamu memang ade allergies ke.
Saye : Yup
Dr : Ok la ambik ubat nie, nanti sapu dua kali sehari bla bla
Saye : Ubat nie saye dah ada dah Dokter, takde ubat lain ke.Agak-agak yang kuat sikit ke.
Dr : Takde, memang ubat ni je. Awak kena la selalu pakai. Lagipun allergies ni memang takkan hilang terus sebab its in your genes.
Saye : Oo ok (dah tau dah.chis ubat nie lagi)

Recovered

Regarding previous post :

They said January babies are easily get hurt, but recover very fast.

How true(at least for me).

Besides, I also get angry very fast and cool down a split second later.

Sometimes I smack someone's idea right onto their face and reconsider it after a while.

Also I do snap at people and regret it immediately after that.

I can't stop but thinking, it is always my ego came in before my rationale state of mind.

(I hope I am normal and did not harm anyone.At least, yet.Sorry, to whom it may concern, if I've done that)

Back to the recovery topic, its not that hard for me (although when I fell flat it was so painful) to recover. Alhamdulillah its my luck to have a 9 days out of office affair ( training-leave-training) just when I need it the most(yayy!happy happy).

Also hanged out with my favourite girl friend (and a few attempt to reward myself (read:shopping) and persuading Ci to also shop) helped to ease the burden. Well like uda put it, its nice to meet old friends because we felt so `in-line' and attach to each other. We just talk on anything, we criticize anything under the sun, we share everything including the deepest secrets. And yes, gossips and updates are the main ingredients over here.Haha.

And just with the above, I'm living my normal life again. Happily ^_^

I Learnt

I learn to bounce back when I fall
I learn to accept the fate
I learn to strive harder
I learn to not take things for granted
I learn that there is a rainbow after a thunderstorm.

Its good to felt down and frustrated, once in awhile.

We become more alert.

More resilient.

More willing to face new things.

More prone to take risks.

More likely to take challenges.

May Allah blesses us, Ameen.

Good time in Terengganu

I am on my last day of training in Terengganu. Sometimes it feels good to get rid of the workload hassle and have a getaway to learn new knowledge cum vacation at a place far away from the buzzing and hectic KL. I was blessed as the training was held in a peaceful resort at the estuary in Kuala Terengganu. Well wait, when was the last time I went to K.T.? Was it more than 10 years ago?

So you know, learning during the day and spending time in a spacious hotel room at night for a few days, this is what I really need. I have no reason what so ever to think about office work. PPA review? Checked. LBVF? Checked. Only a meeting awaited for me on Friday afternoon, but none other urgent matter to be attended (database updating/analysis yang tak pernah habis tu, abaikan saje. Haha). The moment I realize that I need a break from office work was when I attended a 2-days health programme, and I did my blood test. It was higher than usual! I was shocked and panicked. As since university time I checked my blood pressure every now and then without fail, and it is always the normal reading 80/120. Kebetulan these past few weeks there were so many things happened and so many things to be taken care of, and I was kind of tensed and miserable.

Here, I gained my peace of mind. I read newspapers and books, watching news and surfing the net every night. Therefore I managed to update my blog everyday this week. But I do thought of staying in this comfort hotel alone, with all the facilities are meant for two, is kind of a waste. I did try to persuade my Mum to come along but my Dad tak bagi.Haha as expected.. but as I went to Pasar Payang today and seen the lovely silks and batiks ( and bargained for a pair or two, ahem ahem), I was actually relieved my Mum did not tag along. Kalau tak mungkin dia takmau balik. Then we asked the driver's hospitality (we went to pekan K.T using the hotel's shuttle) to drop us at Losong for a short shopping of the ever famous Keropok lekor Losong. Wah I did felt like a tourist, hehe.

The truth is I missed the experience of a local, Malaysian-type vacation. And Terengganu is one of the best place to be, with its friendly citizen,beautiful beaches, lovely batik and songket, and keropok lekor (saya adalah hantu keropok lekor, for your info), who could actually resist? I even bought Awang Goneng's book- Growing up in Terengganu (although I haven't even start to read it yet) as I heard the exotic element of Terengganu's culture was beautifully written in it. And on the way back on a bridge of the main road heading to Pulau Duyong, I could see Masjid Kristal and the rest of the monuments in Pulau Wan Man. It is beautiful indeed, but I hope people nearby would use the mosque as what it is supposed to be used, and not just as an adornment.

And tomorrow, my flight to KL will be at 10.05 am and I'll be straight back to office for the afternoon meeting. Haih, life must go on anyway.

'Kemudian setelah selesai sembahyang maka bertebarlah kamu di muka bumi (untuk menjalankan urusan masing-masing), dan carilah apa yang kamu hajati dari limpah kurnia Allah serta ingatlah akan Allah banyak-banyak (dalam segala keadaan) supaya kamu berjaya (di dunia dan di akhirat)'

(Surah al-Jumu’ah: 10)

P/S: Another reason I am inspired to write many posts is because of Jeremy Sheldon's (an article of his visit to Malaysia in NST, today. Btw he is an avid and successful British writer) tagline : 'Get the writing muscle toned!'

Cuti Pra-Bersalin 5 Hari

Kelantan dah buat, negeri lain bila lagi

Salmah Mat Husain Wed Feb 25, 09 6:20:41 pm MYT

KOTA BHARU, 25 Feb (Hrkh) - Kelantan sekali lagi mencetus reformasi baru dalam pentadbiran kerajaan apabila hari ini meluluskan cuti pra bersalin selama lima hari sebelum tarikh melahirkan anak.

Keputusan yang menggembirakan kakitangan wanita itu dibuat pada mesyuarat Exco kerajaan negeri.
Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Perancangan Ekonomi, Kewangan dan Kebajikan Negeri, Dato' Husam Musa, berkata cuti bergaji itu akan dilaksanakan segera.
"Ia akan berjalan sebaik sahaja surat pekeliling dikeluarkan oleh Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri," katanya kepada pemberita selepas mesyuarat terbabit di Kota Darulnaim.
Beliau berkata, walau pun cuti pra bersalin itu hanya lima hari, namun ia akan menjadi tujuh hari apabila dicampur dengan cuti mingguan dua hari.
Menurutnya, dengan penambahan cuti berkenaan kakitangan awam wanita yang melahirkan anak akan memperolehi cuti sebanyak 65 hari termasuk cuti selepas bersalin.
Beliau berkata, kemudahan cuti berkenaan diberikan kepada kakitangan wanita bagi memberi ruang secukupnya kepada mereka untuk berehat sebelum melahirkan anak.
"Semua orang tahu, setiap ibu yang mengandung akan mengalami masalah keletihan yang berpanjangan khususnya di saat-saat akhir ketika mahu melahirkan anak," katanya. - mj

A Curious Case of..

I an currently undergoing a training in the East Coast. Some of the keypoints I learnt today is about concept of ultrasonic, and how it differs in range.

Before a cat gets killed out of curiousity, I asked Uncle Google on the definition of ultrasonic:

The term "ultrasonic" applied to sound refers to anything above the frequencies of audible sound, and nominally includes anything over 20,000 Hz. Ultrasound is cyclic sound pressure with a frequency greater than the upper limit of human hearing. Although this limit varies from person to person, it is approximately 20 kilohertz (20,000 hertz) in healthy, young adults and thus, 20 kHz serves as a useful lower limit in describing ultrasound. The production of ultrasound is used in many different fields, typically to penetrate a medium and measure the reflection signature or supply focused energy.

Then I wonder, how is supersonic differs in range, compared to ultrasonic?

The term supersonic is used to define a speed that is over the speed of sound (Mach 1). At a typical temperature like 21 °C (70 °F), the threshold value required for an object to be traveling at a supersonic speed is approximately 344 m/s, (1,129 ft/s, 761 mph or 1,238 km/h).

Ooh ok, actually they're incomparable to each other, like comparing apple and orange. Ultrasonic refers to very high frequency, whereas supersonic refers to very high speed.

Thus I can't avoid but thinking,

superman lawan ultraman, sape yang akan menang nanti?

P/S : I'm high on caffein, thus the merapu thought

Boycott Extended

These past few months show most Muslims' dedication on boycotting Israel-related products, especially a lot of American products. This is to show our true support for our brothers and sisters whom living over possibility of life or death everyday. But what most people did not aware, including me, is we forgot to boycott their other strong alliance whom is very dear to our heart, at least geographically, Singapore. I even have plans in mind to go to Singapore during summer sale or just to hang around in the many tourist attractions there, and now I felt bad. Many sources pointed Singapore as one of Israel's main sponsor in their deadly blown of innocent people in Gaza.Until it is proven otherwise, lets extend our boycott to the country.

Eating habits

Some people asked about my eating habits, as I told them its hard for me to gain weight. Actually the reason is they noticed me being very choosy in selecting my food.

As now I'm used to consume green tea, I even drink normal tea without sugar.

And I prefer hot beverages more than cold ones. I even order air buah suam kalo nak sangat minum air buah.

I don't consume carbonated drinks.

I hate teh tarik and always avoid caffeinated drinks.

Nasi lemak and roti canai is not among my favourite dishes.

I started to drink milk everyday every morning (although initially I hate it).

In buffet meals, I choose one or two lauk je and ignore the rest, or just take a little portion of each.

I don't drink in between meal.

I hate veggie but opt for fruits.

But I do eat some veggie that looks good and `comel' (if not, I won't consume it)

I dont eat mutton and control my beef intake.

I don't eat most of animal organs i.e liver, pedal, etc etc

Instead, I eat lots of white meat (chicken and fish).

Ever since I got food poisoning two years ago, I stopped eating kerang bakar.

I love rice and could not stand more than a day without it (unless masa tu takde nasi la kan)

I have one major weakness; I could not resist fried food. They are too tasty to be ignored.

I could not stop but comment on the fat content in rendang, the carbons & carcinogen on satay, etc etc everytime I eat those food.

.........

Am I a health freak?
(I secretly think I am.Minus the fried food part)
........
When I think again, my current eating habits are quite irony since I am the total opposite 5-10 years ago. Hmm.

10 Soalan dalam Kepala

Nak tulis pasal banyaaaakk benda.

Pasal work life, personal life, Perak, Elizabeth Wong, musim panas dan hujan di petang hari, banyak outstation, banyak keje, evaluation season (PPA) telah tiba, competency being assessed, anak buah dah pandai meniarap, kekawan ramai kawin, taktau kenapa tapi malas nak update blog, gosip terkini..

Tapi akhirnya I settled with posting a few questions yang keep on lingering on my mind:

1.Kenapa cuaca panas sangat sekarang, sampai boleh capai 35 degree during day.

2.Kenapa sekarang rasanya senang sangat jumpa gadis Melayu yang tanpa segan silu pakai dress/skirt pendek and sleeveless. Sekali pandang cam amoi, banyak kali pandang kulit sawo matang je rupanya.Kalau 10 tahun dulu rasanya agak rare sight la kot.

3. Kenapa someone can be just annoying in nature.

4. Kenapa kalau stress, tekanan darah naik (tak caya kalau stress keje tu, gi jumpa doktor buat blood test)

5. Baru-baru ni kes ada orang meninggal dunia termakan ikan buntal. Adakah memang ramai orang masih tidak tahu ikan buntal adalah beracun?Kesedaran itu kurangkah di kalangan masyarakat? (I'm not questioning, just curious)

6. Kenapa adat perkahwinan Melayu nie leceh sangat. Kena buat majlis risik, majlis tunang, kena hantar kad wangi custom printed, majlis nikah, kena bagi hadiah, kena bagi doorgifts, kena ada kek 3 tingkat/pulut kuning 3 tingkat, majlis sanding,majlis bertandang.

7. Kenapa sekarang economic crisis tapi our goverment insisted that Malaysia ni kebal dan tak terjejas. Sah-sah setiap hari berita tulis (the Sun la at least) ramai yang kena buang kerja dan some factory workers dah kena suruh pergi keje 2 minggu je sebulan (lagi 2 minggu disuruh cuti i.e unpaid leave)

8. Kenapa Elizabeth Wong nak letak gak jawatan padahal memang jelas ada orang nak trap dia supaya letak jawatan. Tapi jika tindakan itu yang terbaik utk PR (you know, ada pihak yang akan mensensasikan isu moral macam yang pernah panas sebelum ini), maybe another by election is the best solution.

9. Kenapa orang nak buat baik selalu disalah erti dan kalau buat jahat ada je orang sokong.

10. Kenapa manusia selalu berperang (dan selalunya kalah) dengan nafsu dunia i.e nak kasut baru, handbag baru, baju baru, keta baru, rumah baru.. the list never end.

Cukup la kot 10. Nanti kalau dah ingat tulis lagi.



6.

konflik identiti

Blog mengalami konflik identiti.. will resume soonest.

Thanks :)

On for high end stuff

Once a senior in her near 40 ( and obviously, filthy rich) gave me an advise on woman's way of shopping, and I believe it is worth sharing.

(sebelum tu, i need to caution male readers that what you will read might not be important to you, or will not understand the dilemma that women always have. But a good read if you want to understand your spouse better.)

She was plain shock when she just started working in KLCC. I think because of the office is in the same building with the shopping mall and the mall is filled with high end brands boutiques that cause most women (and some men!) striving all their mights to get hold on these branded stuff. Even there's a remark among the staffs " Kalau keje kat KLCC takyah la you pakai beg Coach, sebab ramai sangat orang pakai and takut sama ngan diorang plak nanti " Yes, Coach bags that are the cheapest would worth RM1000++.

Ye,memang normal women's instict suka sangat branded stuffs, at least if you can't afford it you still like it and dreamt that one day you would own at least one. I've no problem with the hundred ringgit range but thousands, are, quite ridiculous in my point of view. One more thing, this issue won't arise if you're really an SM or GM with puluhan tahun experience and people can easily guess your salary, or if you're married with wealthy men, VIPs or VVIPs, then LV and Ferragamo would be your best friends and people will easily respect that. But if you're a fresh grads or with less than 5 years experience?? Please jangan melenting if people talk and talk about you and the way you spend, because that is just beyond normal for ordinary people.

This kakak then shared her experience and conveyed her advise.

She think most Malaysian ladies, especially in cities are getting more `kiasu' than ever. She met several ladies yang kalau dikira harga semua baju, aksesori satu badan would worth more than RM10000! Dan ada gak yang beli selipar basahan (kan orang selalu ada selipar kat ofis) brand Ferragamo. Gila tak gila kan orang sekarang. Huhu

Her advice were:

She suggested that a fresh grad employees should realize her own financial state, and draw a line and do not go overboard. The istilah was 'just graduate', and it doesn't hurt to spend a few hundreds to award yourself with handbags and shoes every now and then, but not too often. Usually the normal range for 'just graduates' worth hundreds, and the brands in the market are the usual : Sembonia, Paris Hilton, Renoma, GL, CR, Guess etc. Tapi ni pun come in various range, some RM200-RM300, some RM400-RM600. Depends on your budget and your preference.

Tapi tapi tapi.. ada satu lagi style `just graduates' nie. They might not buy something that is more than RM80 or won't go for branded stuff (so its cheaper), tapi masalahnya they buy alot.. ni syndrom compulsive shoppers la nie. Nampak kasuk ni lawa, sandal ni cantik, baju tu cam cun, handbag nie in trend dan terpaut dihati dan semua beli. Pastu campur-campur semua spending dah lebih daripada you buy one branded stuff. Camne tu? :P

And then after some time, maybe in 5 or 10 years, when you're quite stable and can afford them, you're advanced to `Masters' where you can start on Coach and Bonia, where the range can be in (RM800-RM2000 or more, depends on the model). Sometimes when the time is right, you can seek a good bargain for Furla, Celine or Aigner yang small size (read : smaller of course cheaper!) or brands yang baru je sampai Malaysia dan harga belum tinggi lagi.

Lepas tu when you're in `pHd' level, then you have nothing to loose after belasan atau puluhan tahun working experience with huge paycheck. Then, you're entitle to experience an LV, Prada, Ferragamo and aything from the long lists of high end boutiques that normally can be found only at KLCC and Pavillion.

Well those were her advise to me and several other young ladies who were with me at the time.

Of course people might disagree with her and have their different views on this. But for me, those advise are practical for normal people yang makan gaji in normal circumstances in Malaysia. If you were born with silver spoon in mouth and don't mind your wealthy parents pay for everything, then it is a whole different story. Or if you're a super successful direct seller/ marketer or you live oversea where you can get those branded stuffs in much lower prices.

For myself, with a normal salary of an exec with less than one year experience, bonus pun tak penah dapat lagi, I winced in reluctance and would never buy anything above RM400. Most of whatever I owned that worth more than that were given by my parents, itupun sebab diorang sendiri yang pujuk I suruh pakai apa yang diorang belikan. And I was blessed, thank God sebab I'm not a compulsive shopper or shopaholics.. :) I, like other ordinary ladies are also so in love with branded stuffs and suka sangat tengok-tengok show rooms tu kan, try-try depan cermin, tapi to date, I can stop myself from buying most of the time (kadang-kadang terlepas gak, haha reward yourself la kiranya tu hehe).Sangat suka ok, save duit and can use for something much more important ( like, helping for the betterment of others?) Satu lagi I'm also blessed that I'm surrounded by friends yang tak la kiasu on branded stuff, so I takde la terkena peer pressure ke apa. Cayalah korang!

OK tu je, i think its worth sharing sebab terkesan di hatiku, and her advice makes me think. This senior of mine are definitely already in `pHd' level, but what she carried was just a free pouch to sumbat her basic needs i.e purse, tissues and keys (that I think she obtained from buying cosmetics or something) and her appearance adalah sederhana. I kind of respect her for that.

Buy smart! :)

In heart and mind

Too many things to write yet too little time. I consider January was a super busy month, and I even had a lot in mind to share with you guys, just wait for the right time.

At last I post pics of seorang yang bertakhta di hati sekarang. My mum even used him as her secret weapon bila I mengelat malas balik rumah di hujung minggu dengan berkata " Taknak balik ke? Tak rindu kat Hazim??" Eei..sabar je la.Dia ni baru je kena cukur jambul + aqiqah haritu dan menambah berat badan sekilo setiap bulan dengan jayanya. To date, dia adalah 6 kilos dengan umur 3 months and 9 days old. Erm, bleh tahan lenguh dukung..

On other note, congrats to Erdogan for his swift move in Davos. Two thumbs up!!

Also let us pray for the recovery of Gaza and may the Zions get the payback.

Never stop donating and boycotting!

Palestine : Kita Peduli

"By Friday midday the Israeli attack on Gaza has left 425 Palestinians killed and at least 2220 other injured including, 300 in critical condition"

Read full story here

Kalau anda merasai kesakitan saudara-saudara kita di sana dan kurang pasti nak buat apa, berikut merupakan saranan Dr. Mahmoud Ezzat,Setiausaha Agung,Jamaah Ikhwan Muslimin:

(Terjemahan : Maszlee Malik, Sumber: http://www.palestin/kini.info )

Dengan ini, saya menyeru setiap pihak agar:

1- Qunut Nazilah – Membaca qunut nazilah pada setiap kali solat dan ajarkan makna qunut dan cara melakukannya kepada orang-orang yang masih belum mengetahui hakikat qunut.

QUNUT NAZILAH

اللهم ﺇنانجعلك في نحورأعدائناونعوذبك من شرورهم اللهم بدد شملهم وفرق جمعهم وستت
كلمتهم وزلزل أقدامهموسلط عليهم كلبا من كلابك يا قهار يا جبار يا منتقمياالله ياالله يااللهاللهم يا منزل الكتاب ويا مجري السحاب ويا هازم الاحزابﺇهزمهم ﺇهزمهم ﺇهزمهوانصرنا عليهم

Maksudnya:
Ya Allah, kami letakkan Kamu dibatang leher musuh kami,
dan kami berlindung dengan Mu dari kejahatan mereka,
Ya Allah leburkan kumpulan mereka,
kacau-bilaukan persatuan mereka,
cerai-beraikan pakatan mereka,
goncangkan pendirian mereka,
hantarkan anjing2 kami ke atas mereka, wahai Tuhan Yang Gagah Perkasa,
wahai Tuhan Yang Tuhan Yang Bersifat Murka, Ya Allah 3x,
wahai Tuhan Yang Menurunkan Al-Quran,
wahai Tuhan Yang Mengarakkan Awan,
wahai Tuhan Yang Menewaskan Bala Tentera Ahzab,
kalahkan mereka, menangkanlah kami ke atas mereka…

2- Tinggalkan makanan, minuman dan kerehatan yang berlebihan dan salurkannya kepada saudara-saudara kita di Palestin. Salurkan wang anda kepada pertubuhan-pertubuh an kebajikan tempatan yang terlibat menguruskan sumbangan untuk membantu rakyat Palestin.

3- Mendermalah untuk pembelian ubat-ubatan yang diperlukan. Menyumbang secara terus sama ada sumbangan yang berbentuk material ataupun kewangan. Hospital-hospital dan klinik-klinik di Gaza sedang kehabisan ubat-ubatan untuk merawat para pesakit.

4- Bagi sesiapa yang mempunyai kemampuan dan kesempatan, sertailah misi-misi kemanusiaan untuk membantu rakyat Gaza (untuk menyalurkan kelengkapan pakaian, makanan dan bahan api)

5- Mobilisasi rakyat untuk bangkit melahirkan solidariti bersama rakyat Gaza yang dizalimi dan sedang menghadapi krisis kemanusiaan yang semakin meruncing. Demo, bantahan, memorandum dan juga segala wasilah yang sesuai mestilah digunakan untuk tujuan tersebut. ( Maka bolehlah join demo2 aman yang diadakan sekitar anda. Ingatlah bukan kita je buat demo tapi seluruh dunia pun buat demo kutuk Israel dan U.S)

6- Sebarkan maklumat kesengsaraan rakyat Gaza kepada seluruh rakyat dan penduduk dunia melalui teknologi yang ada seperti poster, banner, penulisan artikel di akhbar-akhbar, majalah-majalah, e-mail, laman web, sms, Ym dan lain-lain lagi. (bloggers, blog la pasal Palestin)

7- Wujudkan Tabung Palestin di setiap rumah (Didiklah anak-anak agar mula menabung dari duit perbelanjaan mereka untuk rakyat Palestin). Sikap ini akan mewujudkan perasaan kebersamaan mereka dengan rakyat Palestin yang ditindas.

(satu saluran menderma yang ada - Aman Palestin)

8- Bagi para pemudi dan wanita yang beriman, mereka hendaklah berderma dengan barang-barang perhiasan berharga yang mereka miliki.

9- Kepada seluruh warga yang bekerja, gunakanlah kedudukan kamu untuk menyelamatkan Palestin. Sebagai contoh :

a. Para Pendakwah : Bangunkan Ummah untuk membantu Palestin dan serulah pihak-pihak berkuasa dengan kebenaran. (note : bloggers, sebarkan di blog2 anda)

b. Ahli-ahli Parlimen : Gunakan segala jentera pemantauan supaya Kerajaan melaksanakan tanggungjawabnya secepat mungkin.

c. Para aktivis Politik dan Parti : Himpunkan rakyat untuk isu ini, berlumba-lumbalah sekarang untuk menyelamatkan ummah.

d. Para Pengamal Undang-undang : Berusahalah di peringkat nasional dan antarabangsa untuk mengutuk perang dan penyembelihan secara beramai-ramai ini.

e. Para Wartawan : Gunakan kedudukan anda untuk membentuk pendapat umum rakyat samada melalui media bercetak mahupun media audio visual. Sebarkan kesedaran mengenai usaha ummah untuk menyelamatkan Palestin. Dedahkan pekung musuh, berilah peringatan kepada mereka yang masih bersikap alpa dan leka, serulah ummah dan bangunkan orang-orang yang lalai.

10- ( Ni saje sendiri nak tambah) Setuju dengan saranan my friend here, hidupkan balik kegiatan boikot barang-barang Israel, selagi boleh apa yang terdaya. Takyah dah hang out kat Star bucks and kurangkan/hentikan makan kat Mc Donalds (sekadar menyebut beberapa nama, kerana diri ini pun kekadang terleka dihasut Ronald McDonald kasut gedabak ituh.Bela hantu kot? Tak guna betul) Lagi satu, cuba kita buang sikap defensif bila orang ajak boikot je pastu cakap " Ala, ko pun pakai henfon Nokia gak" As I said earlier, boikot selagi terdaya, tapi kalau dok mengadap Coke and McD setiap hari tu takde effort langsung namanya.

Untuk yang dah lupa apa keluaran kuncu-Kuncu Israel tuh

Dan.... jangan lupa kita berdoa dan terus berdoa.Semoga Allah bersama saudara-saudara kita, sama ada hidup menang atau mati syahid. Allahuakbar!

USB Modem laa...

(pos ini didedikasikan khas untuk Ms Jess.. haha)

Silalah dapatkan benda nie.. juga merupakan rahsiaku sehingga berjaya update blog dengan jayanya sejak kebelakangan ini.Wahaha (gelak jahat bercampur puas hati)

However it took me 6 months gak untuk ditimbang2kan, sama ada berbaloi tak nak dapatkan benda alah ni di samping pembayaran bulanan yang boleh tahan la jugak.

Sehinggalah sampai ke PC fair baru-baru ni, walaupun hajat di hati nak mendapatkan sebijik laptop bersaiz mini tapi hampa sebab yang Atom nyer range (8") semuanya takde CD drive. Adakah patut? (siapa tau laptop 8" atau 9" yang hebat specnya, jenama best dan ada CD drive, ehem serta harganya berpatutan i.e below RM2000 sila bagitahu saya dengan segera. Haha).

So far not bad,untuk promo masa PC Fair, for 7.2 Mbps, free for first two months, then pay monthly RM129 permonth sampai 18th months, habis contract je RM98 permonth and boleh terminate bila-bila masa.Modem is all yours, takyah lease2 cam Maxis. Harga modem? Bayar dalam RM150 bila register tu, tu je dan your broadband akan diactivate kan dalam masa kurang dari 24 jam lepas register. Activation fee? None. Modem pulak jenis plug and play so takyah takut, terus connect je :)

Performance so far ok, good.. tapi namapun broadband tak boleh la nak expect stability cam streamyx. Sometimes ada gak disconnected tiba-tiba tapi jarang la.Tapi memang wide coverage dan not much hassle eventhough try bukak kat area-area pedalaman.

Kalau jenis bajet outstation selalu and takde phone 3G yang dilengkapi Wifi serta embedded modem, dan ala-ala memang selalu usung laptop kehulu kehilir, saya recommend anda dapatkan USB modem broadband ni. Setakat ni performance dia memuaskan la tapi taktau la lepas ni macam mana kan.

Saya pun tak berniat la nak compare dengan Maxis punya modem tapi my conclusion is the Celcom broadband deal ni memang not bad, especially tang coverage dia tu. Tapi ramai pakar meramalkan tahun 2009 nanti broadband modem akan jadi semakin murah, dan laptop size mini dan Smartphone akan jadi kegilaan ramai. Jadi, akan ku tunggu tahun hadapan untuk laptop 8" ku... yeah.

Discussion Celcom vs Maxis broadband:
http://www.malaysiabloggers.com/showthread.php?t=5103&page=4

Salam Tahun Baru 1430H

latest family photo : my expanding family

Ya Allah Ya Tuhan kami, Engkau sahajalah yang maha kekal dan sediakala, dan di atas kelebihan rezeki Engkau yang Maha Besar, dan kemurahanmu yang cukup, dan pada tahun baru yang menjelang tiba ini, kami memohom kepadaMu ya Allah, pemeliharaan dari godaan syaitan dan kuncu-kuncunya, dan kami memohon pertolongan dari tarikan nafsu yang mendorong melakukan kejahatan, yang mengganggu daku untuk membesarkan Mu, Ya Zal Jalali Wal Ikram..

Salam tahun baru 1430H dari kami sekeluarga, semoga tahun ini menjadikan kita insan yang lebih baik dari tahun-tahun yang sebelumnya , ameen.. :)

Matter of choice

Situasi 1

Baru-baru ni kita digegarkan dengan tragedi tanah runtuh. Baru beberapa hari selepas kejadian banglo ranap di Ulu Yam, tragedi Bukit Antarabangsa pula berlaku. Maka ramailah yang menuding jari menyalahkan pelbagai pihak. Tapi saya rasa semua maklum, hujung-hujung tahun ni memang musim monsun mengganas. Banjir dan tanah runtuh memang selalu terjadi terutama bila dekat musim tengkujuh macam sekarang ni. Kadang-kadang teruk, kadang-kadang tidak, kadang-kadang meragut nyawa. Kalau di Kedah (mungkin negeri lain pun begitu, saya hanya ambil contoh di kampung ayah saya) terutama daerah Pendang, banyak rumah-rumah lama bertiang tinggi supaya kalau banjir taklah hanyut semua benda. Paling tidak tak perlu berpindah kalau setakat air naik satu-dua meter. Dan kalau ikut dahululah, mana ada orang buat rumah di lereng bukit, itu cari pasal namanya. Kita kan tahu kawasan bukit biasanya ada `jalan air' dan pasak bumi ni tak boleh diganggu sewenang-wenangnya, alamat ekologi alam akan terganggu.

Situasi 2

Ramai orang meluahkan rasa tak puas hati, siap buat perbandingan tentang tandas di sesetengah pusat membeli belah, pejabat atau kompleks moden zaman sekarang. Kebaratan, katanya sebab tiada hos pancuran dan paip air. Biasanya hanya ada paip pencuci (dari dalam mangkuk tu) dan kertas tisu. Menyusahkan orang, tak Melayu- friendly. Tapi pernahkah orang yang complaint tu melihat tandas-tandas di luar negara, semuanya memang tiada hos pancuran. Sebab apa? nak menjamin kebersihan tandas. Jadi kalau orang Melayu macam kita ni ke luar negara dan nak ke tandas, apa kita lakukan? Kita bawa botol kosong untuk isi air dalam hand bag kemana je kita pergi, supaya senang ke tandas. Tisu memang wajib ada di tandas mereka jadi kita tak payah risau untuk beristinjak dengan sempurna.

Situasi 3

Di pusat bandaraya, ramai orang mengeluh perkhidmatan tren yang lambat, tak menepati masaa, dah lah penuh sesak dengan manusia. Walaupun sampai di stesen on time di Masjid Jamek (sebagai contoh, orang yang kena tukar tren macam saya) tapi tak bermakna boleh sampai ofis on time. Mungkin tren yang ke lima baru kita dapat naik sejak masa kita menunggu di stesen itu. Tak kondusif langsung dan menghilangkan mood nak pergi kerja. Apatah lagi bila sampai ofis lambat dan dimarahi bos. Tapi, sebenarnya kita tahu kalau kita keluar awal, sampai di stesen awal, naik tren awal yang takkan sesak macam sardin. Kita boleh je nak pergi ofis dengan selesa.

Quote dari whoever diambil dari Truth or Fiction tiba-tiba menjelma di minda saya;

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

Sangat lah benar.

Pernah tak rasa..

(Precaution : Don’t read this post as a person whom just had the worst day of her life. Imagine a person who had accepted everything happened to her, the good and bad, and felt grateful for everything and thankful as atleast she is able to breathe the next day. She just happen to take some time out of her daily life, sit at one corner and think the whys.)

Pernah tak rasa..

In working environment and in daily life,

We think we have planned everything smoothly, flawless. We almost sure it will happen, only a matter of time. We know that is the best plan ever as we almost cracked our heads for it, nothing can come in between. Suddenly, in a less than two minutes discussion, everything shattered into pieces and the plan go haywire.

We think we strived hard, harder than the rest to make things happen. We gave our 101 percent commitment and even get acknowledgements from the high ranked for that. But when the appreciation thing comes, you’re plain left out.

We think we’ve tried our best to talk to people, and (think we) successfully persuaded them to attend an event. They even asked so much that showed their genuine interest and ensure 99% they will attend. But when the day came, they just did not show their faces, without any reason.

We think we’ve given the best cooperation to others, help all our might to ensure something a huge success. Even if the whole thing is not even ours, we get our hands dirty and put our best effort. But when the time comes for us to need others’ cooperation, the only thing they provide are hundreds of excuses.

Some points learned:

1) Kita hanya merancang, Allah tentukan
2) Sometimes what we really badly want is not the best for us..
3) Tidak mengapa jika diri tidak dihargai, tapi bimbanglah bila diri tidak lagi berharga.. (pinjam Ami’s recent gtalk status)
4) Don’t ever feel we’re the best, the most treasured asset of the company, sometimes we’re just not there yet, and we did not even realize that. Somewhere I heard people say, “ Riak adalah apabila kita merasa diri kita sangat bernilai..”
5) Never expect we will get what we give, sometimes life is just cruel in nature
6) Never give up and always deliver the best you can give. As anything less than your best is a waste of the gift

Any additional advise, anyone? :)

Travelling (Again)?

Assalamualaikum wbt and good day.

This morning I attended a kuliyyah and the ustazah said, Islam encouraged people who have extra money to go sight-seeing and experiencing new world, and bukannya bershopping. (ahaha like a smack on the head!)

How true.

Just to reflect during my childhood days, I happened to study in an all girls school, ala2 sekolah bandar la jugak..multiracial school and most of the students anak-anak orang berada la kiranya. I felt so down la jugak when most of my friends boasted about their family, "My Dad studied in UK", "I was born in US", " I just came back to Malaysia when I was 10" those kind of kid talks. And I actually experienced none at that time. And I did hope and pray that I would eventually set my feet on those countries someday, insya Allah.

Once when I came back from school, I went to my Dad and asked, " Abah, kenapa abah tak belajar kat oversea dulu?"
Abah said, "Dulu Abah dah dapat tempat untuk sambung belajar kat oversea, tapi scholar host abah tak bagi"
"Oh.."
And I still remember I marah sangat dengan my Dad's scholar provider!! Yelah kalau tak mesti I pun mesti boleh berlagak cakap my Dad graduated from oversea jugak kan (Alhamdulillah Allah didn't give me the chance, kalau tak dah dapat dah dosa berlagak=riak:P)

Then, I prayed my big brother dapat study kat oversea so I get the chance to visit him once in a while, but apparently he's not and just studied locally.Fine.

Later on after SPM, I tried to get myself to study abroad, and after a lot of interesting and unfortunate circumstances (believe me, alot!!), I was stuck in a local uni as well. I felt down for a while but I never regret this to happen. I was destined to be :)

Meanwhile, me and the whole family enjoyed Discovery Channel, Travel and Living, and other similar documentaries..we also enjoyed reading atlas and maps, wishing we will go there one day. Tak salah berangan kan..

Then, Abah got his license, the family's financial became considerably stable and then the whole ritual of frequent travelling started.

Alhamdulillah, for the past five years, I travelled abroad more than I ever did in my life, thanks to my parents (of course I was sponsored, I cannot afford it on my own, anyway) . While some of my friends get the opportunity as they studied abroad , some had parents and relatives stayed abroad and got the chance to visit them , and some had their job took them everywhere around the world, where they never had the experience before in their life. I believe that now, in the present world, travelling and going abroad were not considered rare and was not an exclusive hobby for the rich and wealth, anymore.

Now, everyone can fly (pinjam tagline Air Asia). Too many low rates flights, too many destinations, too many promotions to encourage people to spend their money in tourism industry.Or perhaps, Malaysians style of living is very much improved,Alhamdulillah. Its not rare now to see students going to UK with friends during summer break, new executives taking long off-days to enjoy winter in Beijing, newly wed couples honeymooning in Hong Kong and Bali..and the list goes on.

I'm not really sure where this post heads to, but I really hope those who had more opportunities to travel abroad to take the chance and look for tanda-tanda kebesaran Allah..they are always there.Lagi jauh kita berjalan, lagi banyak kita akan belajar and don't hesitate to share with the others too.Previously, I always felt reluctant to share my overseas experience, takut la kena cop berlagak ke ape kan, but I believe it relies more to your niat, and people will perceive well. To share is to care :)

Some

Some people are just annoying by nature.

Jadi maafkanlah mereka...

P/S : I might annoy some people by just writing this. So please forgive me.

(Its amazing how brain works, isn't it?)

Experiencing Makcikhood

These past few weeks had been exciting for me. I've got to take care my little nephew whom will turn 2 months in few days time.

For some, this might be a day to day routine but for me, all this were extremely new. I've got a brother when I was 3, I don't have any experience taking care of my little cousins and my Mom never babysits anyone.

So when Hazim arrived last weekend and stayed the whole 3 days for Raya Haji in my house (biasanya dia datang kejap2 je, or stayed overnight.Most of the time dia kat rumah atuk lagi satu), my makcikhood instinct was tested. Ahaha.

Jaga baby ni is a weird experience, yet interesting. Masa belum pernah jaga baby, memang excited gila nak tunggu my SIL delivered and tak sabar nak tolong jaga baby tu..(siapa tak suka baby kan). Baby is always adorable and cute and playful, nak-nak my nephew ni sangat aktif dan dah terer gelak walaupun umur tak sampai 2 bulan lagi. Mungkin dia belajar gelak sempena raya haji haritu (ada kaitan ke). Pastu suka buat muka comel, muka kesian, muka cubaan untuk mengamuk dan sebagainya.

Tetapi...

Baby tantrums are unavoided. Si Hazim bertuah ni memang bertuah, pantang letak je kat tilam dia nangis, kalau tak angkat meraung2. Bukan nangis2 comel tu ye, dia nangis cam kena pukul tu. So orang kat umah tu take turns pegang dia,dah tu bila pegang je dia tido. Pastu bangun nangis mintak susu and tido lagi. Time nak sendawa pun payah sangat si kecik ni sebab dia boleh mamai-mamai and tido masa kena tepuk nak burp kan dia. Bertuah betul anak buah aku sorang ni..kalau mengeliat and menguap pun nangis gak, padahal dia sendiri yang buat tu. Kita tak usik pun.

Paling best I learnt to take care of Hazim. Dari tukar nappy, sapu minyak telon, baby oil, bedak, baby lotion, pakai barut, pakai mitten and booties, pakai baju and seluar. I didn't know that siapkan baby ni must be in sequence. Pastu belajar mandikan baby. The good thing is Hazim ni suka mandi, lepas mandi je good mood dan mula bercakap ngan orang tapi baby talk la (macam ooh dan aah) dan membuat sound effect (kat mana la belajar tu). So saya sebagai makcik best bercakap la ngan dia.. siap pi luar rumah tunjuk "Ni kucing", "Ni pokok", " Ni kereta MyVi" "Eh hari dah hujan la Hazim" yelah the expets said that eventhough babies at his age could not understand what people said, but the brain has started to process the things that he hear and see. New things learned : Never knew minyak telon brand Bebiku smells so good. Rasa nak curik je.

Besides, I learned how to make baby's formula milk. Rule of thumb : must be the right mixture of milk and water, and warm. Kalo tak Hazim campak je botol tak nak minum susu sejuk.Memang le senang je buat susu tapi kalo dah sehari dalam 10 kali (dia pakai botol kecik tu), lenguh gak mak ngah. Pastu baby sorang ni susah nak burp, suruh burp dibantainye tido (walaupun masa tu dia tengah duduk), then once in a while bila tengah dukung dia muntah susu sikit2. Selamat la baju semua orang. My luck was when I wore a brand new shirt, wahahaa padan muka saya. Kesimpulan : Jangan pakai baju baru masa tengah dukung baby. Haha and then lepas basuh botol2 susu dia tu, pakai sterilizer plak. New things learned : Baru tahu sterilizer comes in tablets.

On raya's eve I experienced handling baby perut kembung..abis sumer orang berjaga sebab baby nangis tak berhenti (Tapi atuk and abah dia dah selamat di alam mimpi la.. as usual). Macam2 minyak guna, penat nangis dia berenti kejap pastu sambung lagi..sampai la kul 1-2 pagi.
Tula sikit sebanyak kisah seorang makcik.Kalau saya ni makcik jaga 3 hari pun dah rasa penat, mak ayah dia lagi la.. biasanya diorang siap ada shift untuk jaga anak tengah malam. Pastu I think this is a good training ground for me la, for future preparation..

*experienced difficulties to post pictures. Will post later, insya Allah.Update with a picture

On high impact presentation and inspirational talk

Assalamualaikum wbt and good day.

I love listening to inspiring talks by the high ranked, charismatic people. I know most of us do. It feels so good to hear them talk, their wisdom shows in every moves, gestures, words and sounds.

During my uni days, I love listening to my Chancellor and my Rector's speech. Those two are among the most influential leaders, at least for me, during my uni days. Eveytime they deliver a talk in any occasion or engagement session, I won't miss the opportunity to listen to them, regardless whatever topic they deliver. I know that sometimes not all the points given can be accepted, but nevertheless I just love to hear them, to know what they have in mind in a particular topic.

Here in my organisation, there's more opportunity to listen to these big shots, as many engagement sessions, talks, forum and seminars being held. I love the impact of these successful men (or women) aspiring people, they make the audience engaged until the end and the young ones dreamt to be just like them one day. At least, they make ME feels that way.

One thing I realised is, the higher your position is, the more people will listen. That's one of the advantage of being in control. You hold the power to influence other people.

I recalled my recent experience while handling a seminar just a week ago. One of the speaker (whom I personally adored for his perfect quality of a leader, and eventually he gained success at a considerably very young age) talked about integrity, a classic necessities that is lacking in the heart of employees of most organization in the world. As he was aware his audience are professionals with vast experience, he knew it is no use to elaborate about the definition of integrity, and how it will affect your employment if ever you get caught. Well, those way of elaborating is only suitable for the young execs, but these are matured (read : old) people with many years of experience, certainly different ways of delivering the message of integrity is needed!

So, guess how he delivered the message to his audience?

He started with some definition from Stephen L Carter book. Hey, these people are professionals man, everything they hear must be supported with facts and figures! Later he gave some real examples on the impact of greed and corruption, among which are the humiliated takeovers and bancruptcy of the two giants, Lehmann Brothers and Merril Lynch. Their mighty empire collapsed simply because of their attitude; their breach of trust and lack of integrity.

Furthermore, he took several verses from the Qur'an and hadith and elaborated in a simple and smooth way that touches the depth of heart. As integrity strongly related with responsibility or amanah, he quoted the hadith below :

Sabda Rasulullah SAW :
“ Tiada Iman bagi orang yang tidak Amanah dan Tiada Agama bagi orang yang tidak menepati janji “
[Riwayat : Imam Ahmad]

Sabda Rasulullah SAW :
“ Umat KU akan sentiasa berada di dalam kebaikkan selagi mana mereka tidak menganggap Amanah sebagai punca kekayaan dan sedekah sebagai hutang”
[Riwayat : Imam Ahmad]

Later the speaker amazed me even more, I heard the word `Qana'ah' being used for the first time by a man with a CEO status in my organisation. Qana'ah in context of upholding integrity can be explained as contentment, which is not the fulfillment of what you want, it is the realisation of how much you already have. He also added that the happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that come along their way.

Lastly, he ended his talk with a message 'Kehidupan adalah Ujian, dan Dunia adalah Perhiasan", supported with a beautiful verse 7 of surah Al-Kahfi, as below:

"Sesungguhnya Kami telah menjadikan apa yang ada di bumi sebagai perhiasan baginya, untuk Kami menguji mereka, siapakah di antaranya yang terbaik perbuatannya."

It was that sweet and simple, wrapped perfectly in thirty minutes, and earned the loudest applause from the audience. I was amazed on how his simple his presentation slides are, yet he made a very high impact to the audience. I guess his experience as a CEO and a high impact speaker helped a lot as well. To verify the success of his talk, he got the highest rating among the other speakers in the event. Well deserved, what more can I say.

So you know, the same message conveyed by a laymen compared to the same message conveyed by a high-ranked person really had a huge difference. I've heard the same message being told in a Ceramah not long ago, but it hardly made an impact to the audience. Again, it is the power THAT influence people, which leads TO influence people in an impactful presentation.

I wish to master that skill and be like one of them some day.

If Allah's will, insya Allah.

Quick tips on Paris trip

Eurostar station in Paris.. the Gare du Nord.

My mum's friend just called her for some advice on a trip to Paris..


If you're a first timer, I think this will be beneficial for you too.



0. The first thing you must do when you reach Paris is to GRAB A MAP. These Frenchmen are usually either refuse to talk in English (they're too proud anyway), or they don't know a word in English. But of course, not all. Some are very nice (and handsome, no kidding). They dressed smartly even for a leisure walk on the park.

1. Almost all famous places for tourist can be reach via metro(the intercity train). So don't bother catch up a taxi or rent a car.

2. You're not encouraged to bring imitation bags (made in Siam or elsewhere but France) of brands which are originated from France, i.e Gucci, Prada or LV. If you're unlucky enough and get caught, you might be arrested.

3. For ladies and mums, one compulsory place for you to stop for a very cheap but high quality French lace is at Anvers, a few stop from the Eurostar stop station , Gare du Nord. Seriously, it is CHEAP. You can get the usually RM450/m in Jalan TAR for just RM400/ 4 metres with fancier designs! Highly recommended for bride-to-be ehehe.

4. If you eventually happen to be in London, Paris is just two hours away via Eurostar. Boleh je nak balik hari.

5. Eiffel Tower visit is a must, and the nearest metro (train) stations are Bir Hakeim or Trocadero.

6. To find a mosque/prayer room in Paris is very very hard, so I do encourage the Muslims to dress well (long overcoat, jubah, tudung menepati piawai) and alway equipped your handy bag with sejadah kecik, who knows you'll be praying under the trees or stairs.

7. As usual, travelling in summer is a whole lot easier as you can get up to 12 hours of daylight and easier to perform your solat.

8. Equipped yourself with a knowledge oon V.A.T . You might save a few hundreds EURO when you shop! (never heard of it? Try ask Pakcik Google)

Ame and Kak Lynn (with Hazim dalam perut.. ehehe)

Hope these quick tips helps! :)

What would you do if..

What would you do if.. you like the challenge in your office work but you hate your immediate boss?

First, you have to identify the root cause of the hatred feeling :

Why you hate your boss?

1. The boss is not a good role model (balik awal, selalu MC, selalu EL, keluar ofis tak cakap ngan subordinate, not efficiently managing subordinates)
2. You perform all your boss' work and never get recognition for it
3. When something screw up, you always take the blame (instead of your boss)
4. When you kena hentam dengan your big boss, he just stood there, silent and do nothing
5. When again, something screw up, he tried to push the blame to everyone but himself.
6. You're the one who always stay back to meet the big bosses since your immediate boss always not in office
7. You always get calls from him, asking you even the tiniest questions whenever you're out of office i.e going training, MCs, or ALs
8. The boss curse when he mismanaged things i.e silap antar email (I hate people cursing!)
9. The boss never motivates his subordinates, but expect perfect delivery of work
10. The boss kalut gila, dan kalau dia kalut akan membuatkan subordinates semua kalut sekali (you know, impossible demands, etc)
11. You feel like you never will perform under his supervision
12. .. and the list goes on

What you can do?

First, you must understand the situation.

1. Maybe the boss has family problems (i.e family members sick)
2. Maybe the boss has financial problems (although he seems rich)
3. Maybe he hates his job
4. Maybe he has not attend any stress management training
5. Maybe he hates his boss
6. Maybe he plans to resign sometimes soon

..and plan for your next action.

1. Ignore the negative vibe and continue work as usual
2. Take any opportunity comes, i.e going training, forum, workshops, etc
3. Best opportunities to spread your network by communicating direct with other managers and higher management in the department
4. Ignore him whenever got the chance
5. Tell him the truth in the best manner
6. Pray your immediate boss will get a transfer letter soon
6. Plan where to go next (after you leave the department.. ahaha)

On Bankcrupcies and Economic Meltdown

I was in a quest to find simpler elaboration on the U.S economic meltdown detail. In fact, we've heard about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but do we realise that those are just nicknames? I just discovered that Tun had helped to explained this issue in simpler and understandable way.

Taken from www.chedet.com :

22. Fortunately for us we succeeded in stopping the trade in Ringgit and restoring its value. But the system is still in place. And now it is the US Dollar which is devalued.

23. But trading in currencies is only one of the abuses. The banks are lending more money than they have. They actually go to the people to persuade them to borrow.

24. Their clients can borrow 100 per cent of the money to buy a house for example.

25. They need not worry about paying or servicing the loan. The price of the house would appreciate. You may even have a second mortgage. You may even sell at a profit.

26. In the meantime the bank would register the loan and add the projected earnings from interest maybe over 20 years. That done the bank can put all the loans together and sell it to the hedge funds at a discount after adding potential interest.

27. The more risky the loan the higher would be the interest and the higher would be the profit. The hedge funds which buy the loans can basically sell the mortgages to investors in the fund or to the huge Government financed Federal National Mortgage Association, nicknamed Fannie Mae, and the Federal Home Mortgage Corporation, nicknamed Freddie Mac.

28. Now the hedge funds and the banks would feel safe and enjoy the huge profits that they have made.

29. But when hundreds of thousands of house buyers find themselves unable to pay simply because they have no money, and could not sell the houses and could not borrow from banks, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae would not be able to pay the hedge funds. Then the hedge funds would collapse and drag down the banks with them.

I guess the explaination worth.