Brain Conflict
Every morning feels like a drag to work now, and I was close to taking an emergency leave today. Morale and motivation are definitely not at the best level these days, and I've been looking forward to the weekend since this last Monday. Fair enough I feel, since I've had to come to work last Saturday and Sunday anyway. Half of my brain now tells me 'you have a lot more work to do', while the other half of it saying 'p**s off!!'. Yup, at times like this I wonder how I manage to get myself to work.
Ok la.. to be fair, I'm paid to be here from 8 to 5 to get things done, so I'll let the former half of my brain win today. It's the right thing to do anyway. Come tomorrow till Monday, my latter half of the brain will win hands down.
For now, have to psyche myself up.. Izwan Boleh!
Friday, April 29, 2005
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Feeling Lucky
Feeling Lucky
I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I kind of lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself a question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?
- Dirty Harry, 1971 -
It's been a rather hectic beginning to the week. As matter of fact, I can't really point out exactly when my week began, since this past Saturday and Sunday were working days for me. The amount of work that they're giving us, and not to mention the increasingly unrealistic datelines they're demanding makes me feel like reporting my employers to Suhakam. Crazy.. crazy...
Anyhow, though my weekend was somehow spoilt by having to come to work, it turned out to be an enjoyable weekend for me nevertheless. The highlight of the weekend was definitely sending my car for tinting. It cost us a cool RM 1,400, and boy am I glad it times very well with my pay day. By the time I took my money out to get the tinting done, the balance in my bank account was down to 3 figures only. Not only that, they were 3 figures threatening to come down to 2. So the fact that pay day was 3 days after we've done the extra addition to the Matrix was a real help. The car feels complete now, and I've behaved like a small kid with a new toy. Jakun sket..
My ears are acting up again. I've been having this consistent problem with my hearing since I was 17. No, it's not symptoms of old age thank you. It's just that the wax in my ears have this tendency of hardening and block my eardrums. Been going to the ENT specialists on average once every 3 years now when the wax gets too hard that they have to perform a minor jet-spray treatment to remove it. The wax in my ears are threatening to get hard again now it seems. It isn't too bad now though that only one ear is affected. But there have been instances when both of my ears will get blocked and I would become partially deaf for a while. Just as recently as 3 years ago this happened to me and I could barely hear a thing for almost a week until the ENT specialist performed the routine jet-spray treatment on me. It was a bloody miserable week for me as I could barely hear and I would have to ask people to speak louder and repeat whatever they were saying. I remember watching TV at that time and I had to turn on the volume so loud that I could practically feel the sofa I was sitting on vibrating from the loud noise from the TV. Not to mention the noise it made in the house. My brother in law just got home at the same time and he claimed to have heard the noise as he parked the car. To be honest, I wished I could have turned the TV volume louder as even all that wrecking noise it was making were whispers to me.
The experience has made me to reflect countless of times and made me to count my blessings. It has given me the opportunity to have a taste of what the deaf experiences and the frustration that comes with being in a world of silence. Yeah, it is very frustrating I tell you. Very often we take for granted these simple but crucial blessings that God gifts us; the blessing of our basic 5 senses. In moments of deprivation do we realise how lucky we have been.
I do feel lucky. And blessed too.
I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement I kind of lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you've got to ask yourself a question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?
- Dirty Harry, 1971 -
It's been a rather hectic beginning to the week. As matter of fact, I can't really point out exactly when my week began, since this past Saturday and Sunday were working days for me. The amount of work that they're giving us, and not to mention the increasingly unrealistic datelines they're demanding makes me feel like reporting my employers to Suhakam. Crazy.. crazy...
Anyhow, though my weekend was somehow spoilt by having to come to work, it turned out to be an enjoyable weekend for me nevertheless. The highlight of the weekend was definitely sending my car for tinting. It cost us a cool RM 1,400, and boy am I glad it times very well with my pay day. By the time I took my money out to get the tinting done, the balance in my bank account was down to 3 figures only. Not only that, they were 3 figures threatening to come down to 2. So the fact that pay day was 3 days after we've done the extra addition to the Matrix was a real help. The car feels complete now, and I've behaved like a small kid with a new toy. Jakun sket..
My ears are acting up again. I've been having this consistent problem with my hearing since I was 17. No, it's not symptoms of old age thank you. It's just that the wax in my ears have this tendency of hardening and block my eardrums. Been going to the ENT specialists on average once every 3 years now when the wax gets too hard that they have to perform a minor jet-spray treatment to remove it. The wax in my ears are threatening to get hard again now it seems. It isn't too bad now though that only one ear is affected. But there have been instances when both of my ears will get blocked and I would become partially deaf for a while. Just as recently as 3 years ago this happened to me and I could barely hear a thing for almost a week until the ENT specialist performed the routine jet-spray treatment on me. It was a bloody miserable week for me as I could barely hear and I would have to ask people to speak louder and repeat whatever they were saying. I remember watching TV at that time and I had to turn on the volume so loud that I could practically feel the sofa I was sitting on vibrating from the loud noise from the TV. Not to mention the noise it made in the house. My brother in law just got home at the same time and he claimed to have heard the noise as he parked the car. To be honest, I wished I could have turned the TV volume louder as even all that wrecking noise it was making were whispers to me.
The experience has made me to reflect countless of times and made me to count my blessings. It has given me the opportunity to have a taste of what the deaf experiences and the frustration that comes with being in a world of silence. Yeah, it is very frustrating I tell you. Very often we take for granted these simple but crucial blessings that God gifts us; the blessing of our basic 5 senses. In moments of deprivation do we realise how lucky we have been.
I do feel lucky. And blessed too.
Friday, April 22, 2005
*Sigh*
*Sigh*
I think I'm pretty much in a weekend mood already. My workstation is once again a big pile of mess, just one week after I've done a major spring cleaning here. i think I need to go on a vacation of some sort, and be away from the office for a long, long, time. I feel like driving around in my Matrix in a country of mountains and wide open land, and just drive around without any care in the world. And stay over in a country cottage where there's no chance someone would be looking for me.
Oh how I wish...
Mood to work has deserted me completely at this moment. I just feel like running off and have an early weekend. So many things to do, and so many things to remember. And I've been playing catch up for a while now, that it exasperates me. I have to say, my self esteem is not at its best at this point in time.
2 more hours and I'm outta here...
I think I'm pretty much in a weekend mood already. My workstation is once again a big pile of mess, just one week after I've done a major spring cleaning here. i think I need to go on a vacation of some sort, and be away from the office for a long, long, time. I feel like driving around in my Matrix in a country of mountains and wide open land, and just drive around without any care in the world. And stay over in a country cottage where there's no chance someone would be looking for me.
Oh how I wish...
Mood to work has deserted me completely at this moment. I just feel like running off and have an early weekend. So many things to do, and so many things to remember. And I've been playing catch up for a while now, that it exasperates me. I have to say, my self esteem is not at its best at this point in time.
2 more hours and I'm outta here...
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
A Happy Day!
A Happy Day!
I'm so darn busy this week, but I have to get this off my chest before I begin the day.
The Happy Song
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Kalau rasa gembira beginilah caranya..
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Man do I feel good this morning. In fact, the build up to my such good feeling today had started since yesterday, when I went to JPJ to register my car. Yup, that's it folks. I've finally got my Matrix baby. We arrived at JPJ Wangsa Maju at 8.30 am yesterday, which was actually rather late if you intend to bid for the good numbers. We had listed down a few numbers for bidding, and I was quite keen on this one particular number, 3389, which was in fact similar to my father's authentic Volvo's number. But amazingly, the number was taken up in the space of 15 minutes while we were waiting to be called to the counter to register. We managed to get another number on our list however. Our list was courtesy of our car dealer, who is a nice Chinese guy and apparently very literate with the meanings of numbers. The number we got in the end was 3963, and it apparently means 'easy to get rich', or so he says. My father on the other hand said the 2 numbers in the middle somehow implied a 'reversed' playboy, apparently refering to the misplaced '69'. Haha... We were lucky that there weren't too many people registering their vehicles yesterday, and the registration process that usually would have taken up 2 hours, were completed in only half an hour. Nasib baikk...
Drove the car home last night with a coat hangar stuck in my mouth, smiling all the way home. There's no describing the feeling of driving the car out of the showroom. And this morning, I arrived at the office about half an hour late. Was being extra careful on the road; no ciluk2 (jumping queues) this morning, and it was the first time in my recorded memory that I took more than 5 minutes to park my car. *sigh* I think it's a normal behaviour that comes with having something new... hehe..
Will be sending the car for V-Kool installation this weekend. Then my new Matrix will be complete. Insya-Allah and Alhamdulillah...
Ok la back to work. Can't believe I've written this long already. Before that, another happy song for the road:
Mari kita..Mari kita..
Bergembira tepok tangan sama sama
Kita menari sambil langgar kanan kiri
Goyang badan goyang kaki
Hooree hooree
Hip hip hooree
Hooree hooree hooree hooree
Hip hip hooree hooree hooree
Bergembira, bergembira
Ha ha ha ha
La la la la la la la la la.........
I'm so darn busy this week, but I have to get this off my chest before I begin the day.
The Happy Song
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Kalau rasa gembira beginilah caranya..
Kalau rasa gembira tepuk tangan..
Clap.. clap.. clap..
Man do I feel good this morning. In fact, the build up to my such good feeling today had started since yesterday, when I went to JPJ to register my car. Yup, that's it folks. I've finally got my Matrix baby. We arrived at JPJ Wangsa Maju at 8.30 am yesterday, which was actually rather late if you intend to bid for the good numbers. We had listed down a few numbers for bidding, and I was quite keen on this one particular number, 3389, which was in fact similar to my father's authentic Volvo's number. But amazingly, the number was taken up in the space of 15 minutes while we were waiting to be called to the counter to register. We managed to get another number on our list however. Our list was courtesy of our car dealer, who is a nice Chinese guy and apparently very literate with the meanings of numbers. The number we got in the end was 3963, and it apparently means 'easy to get rich', or so he says. My father on the other hand said the 2 numbers in the middle somehow implied a 'reversed' playboy, apparently refering to the misplaced '69'. Haha... We were lucky that there weren't too many people registering their vehicles yesterday, and the registration process that usually would have taken up 2 hours, were completed in only half an hour. Nasib baikk...
Drove the car home last night with a coat hangar stuck in my mouth, smiling all the way home. There's no describing the feeling of driving the car out of the showroom. And this morning, I arrived at the office about half an hour late. Was being extra careful on the road; no ciluk2 (jumping queues) this morning, and it was the first time in my recorded memory that I took more than 5 minutes to park my car. *sigh* I think it's a normal behaviour that comes with having something new... hehe..
Will be sending the car for V-Kool installation this weekend. Then my new Matrix will be complete. Insya-Allah and Alhamdulillah...
Ok la back to work. Can't believe I've written this long already. Before that, another happy song for the road:
Mari kita..Mari kita..
Bergembira tepok tangan sama sama
Kita menari sambil langgar kanan kiri
Goyang badan goyang kaki
Hooree hooree
Hip hip hooree
Hooree hooree hooree hooree
Hip hip hooree hooree hooree
Bergembira, bergembira
Ha ha ha ha
La la la la la la la la la.........
Saturday, April 16, 2005
An Alarming Morning
An Alarming Morning
The whole house was wokened up by the house security alarm this morning. The alarm triggered off around 5 this morning, and yours truly was in the bathroom setting out for some toilet business. And to add coincidence to the story, there was also a separate incident happening in the bathroom just before the alarm was triggered; i had an encounter with a cockroach of grandfather-sized proportion, which apparently was as surprised and horrified to see me as I was to see it. The cockroach actually tried to find a place to hide, attempting to squeeze itself through the small holes of the sift that drains the water from the bathroom to the gutter outside. Back in the days when it was of a relatively quaint size, it would have probably escaped. Fat cockroach had no such luck this time and I went for the kill.
It was actually quite skillful in dodging the gayung i was using to wham it, and it actually had the nerve to make a counter attack on me. While I was clobbering away maddeningly, hitting the brave roach a couple of times slightly, that was when the alarm triggered off and my attention was immediately taken away to more serious concern.
The memory of my house being broken into in October last year suddenly came back rushing in my mind, and instinctively I grabbed a long spear that was in my room (which my father must have gotten from the many souvenirs he received while he was serving in Sarawak) and went out to check what was going on. Outside in the living room was my father, clad only in his kain sarong and a long sword in his hands, apparently prepared for any possibility. While we might have looked like rejected extra casts from The Lord of The Rings, the anxiety we felt was real. We went and inspected hurriedly at the possible points where we felt the house might have been broken through, bracing for any possibility. It was at this point that I only began to realise, I was only clad in a towel.
The indicator on the alarm control system showed that the breach or its attempt that prompted the alarm was made from my room and my brother's. However, we couldn't find any signs of attempt to break into the house anywhere. As the mystery deepened and anxiety escalated, I mentioned about my personal duel with the heroic roach earlier. Apparently, the impact of my bangings of the gayung on the tile floor caused enough vibration to set off the security alarm, which had a sensor placed at the toilet's ventilator.
There were nervous sighs of relief at this confession of mine all over in the house, and we were prepared to dismiss the incident due to that. We then set about to get ourselves ready for Subuh. But could that really be the reason for triggering the alarm? Or could someone actually tried to breach into our house through the ventilator of my bathroom, and somehow clumsily ran off triggering the alarm, at the sound of the bangings that I was making in the bathroom? Hmm... I don't know. We checked the windows and the ventilator from outside this morning and there were no signs of attempted forced entry.
I went back to my bathroom after we reset the alarm, getting ready for Subuh. To my surprise, the badly wounded roach was still running around looking for escape. Must have been one of those dim ones (and mightily strong as well) I guess, still running about unable to figure out where to hide after all that time.
I took the aerosol can and got it out of its misery.
What a way to start off the weekend.
The whole house was wokened up by the house security alarm this morning. The alarm triggered off around 5 this morning, and yours truly was in the bathroom setting out for some toilet business. And to add coincidence to the story, there was also a separate incident happening in the bathroom just before the alarm was triggered; i had an encounter with a cockroach of grandfather-sized proportion, which apparently was as surprised and horrified to see me as I was to see it. The cockroach actually tried to find a place to hide, attempting to squeeze itself through the small holes of the sift that drains the water from the bathroom to the gutter outside. Back in the days when it was of a relatively quaint size, it would have probably escaped. Fat cockroach had no such luck this time and I went for the kill.
It was actually quite skillful in dodging the gayung i was using to wham it, and it actually had the nerve to make a counter attack on me. While I was clobbering away maddeningly, hitting the brave roach a couple of times slightly, that was when the alarm triggered off and my attention was immediately taken away to more serious concern.
The memory of my house being broken into in October last year suddenly came back rushing in my mind, and instinctively I grabbed a long spear that was in my room (which my father must have gotten from the many souvenirs he received while he was serving in Sarawak) and went out to check what was going on. Outside in the living room was my father, clad only in his kain sarong and a long sword in his hands, apparently prepared for any possibility. While we might have looked like rejected extra casts from The Lord of The Rings, the anxiety we felt was real. We went and inspected hurriedly at the possible points where we felt the house might have been broken through, bracing for any possibility. It was at this point that I only began to realise, I was only clad in a towel.
The indicator on the alarm control system showed that the breach or its attempt that prompted the alarm was made from my room and my brother's. However, we couldn't find any signs of attempt to break into the house anywhere. As the mystery deepened and anxiety escalated, I mentioned about my personal duel with the heroic roach earlier. Apparently, the impact of my bangings of the gayung on the tile floor caused enough vibration to set off the security alarm, which had a sensor placed at the toilet's ventilator.
There were nervous sighs of relief at this confession of mine all over in the house, and we were prepared to dismiss the incident due to that. We then set about to get ourselves ready for Subuh. But could that really be the reason for triggering the alarm? Or could someone actually tried to breach into our house through the ventilator of my bathroom, and somehow clumsily ran off triggering the alarm, at the sound of the bangings that I was making in the bathroom? Hmm... I don't know. We checked the windows and the ventilator from outside this morning and there were no signs of attempted forced entry.
I went back to my bathroom after we reset the alarm, getting ready for Subuh. To my surprise, the badly wounded roach was still running around looking for escape. Must have been one of those dim ones (and mightily strong as well) I guess, still running about unable to figure out where to hide after all that time.
I took the aerosol can and got it out of its misery.
What a way to start off the weekend.
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Decisions... Decisions...
Decisions... Decisions...
Life is full of decisions. At the moment, I feel like there is so many for me to make. Decisions to make at work, at home, in my personal life, in my relations with friends and families etc. Suddenly i feel as though I have to make decisions on so many things at the same time that my head feels like bursting.
I guess it doesn't help that I'm the kinda person you can describe as crisis-shirker. Meaning I would usually avoid confrontations, or situations where I would be required to make a critical decision. When the going gets tough, I choose to have a coffee break instead, rather than buff up and get tough. I know it is not right, and I'm still conditioning myself to get better at handling problems life sometimes offers you.
The biggest decision I've had to make this year was buying a new car. Ohh.. haven't I mentioned this before? I decided that I would need a bigger car than my previous 2-door Satria. Thought of making do with wifey's Kelisa in the short term to help our budget, but with car prices expected to go up in the next couple of months, I guess I had to make a move soon. And what car is it?
The drool-inducing Matrix
At RM74k (on the road price, insurance and additional accessories included), I find it a good steal. We're pretty much in the process of finalising the purchase deal. The only thing that's stalling the process is the fact that I do not yet have enough money to supplement my car loan. I have to cough up an additional RM14k or so to make the deal complete. To be honest, it's not that i do not have the money. Remember the Satria I've offloaded? I actually make around RM20k from the sale of that car. And my inability to get my hands on that money is a problem that stands out like a sore thumb with me now.
Some people say making deals with friends is not so different from dealing with the devil himself. Oh well, ok... I made that up. But really, you know what the attitude is like when you make deals with friends or families. The theme would usually be 'lebih kurang'. 'Alaa... dengan member pun nak berkira ke, lebih kurang je laa...' is the order of the day. The friend or family member you're dealing with would expect you to give them some lee-way if they somehow do not come good with their promise or part of the bargain. And the problem is more often than not, you will end up more on the 'kurang' side than on the 'lebih'. Mana boleh tahann...
I offloaded the Satria to a close friend who promised me to give me the proceeds in a month's time, and mind you, we made this deal in early Feb 05. And now it'd mid April 05 already. What pisses me off is that why did he make such promise when he knew it was going to be difficult for him to come good with it? And what pisses me of further is that I still have to pay the car's loan monthly instalments until the car has been sold. Ok la, to be fair to him, he is selling the car for me and not buying it from me. He does second hand car dealership in his part time you see. But had he been honest with me about what the real scenario would have been, I wouldn't have been so annoyed. I would have at least planned my finances accordingly. Or maybe offloaded it elsewhere.
So let that be a lesson to you Izwan...
On another note, after a looong contemplation, I've finally decided to register for my ACCA exams in June 2005. That proved to be another tough decision to make. Coughed out GBP 153 for the registration just now, so really have to hit the books in the next month and a half.
Not to mention reduce the visits to San Francisco Coffee to stay easy on the wallet... :-(
Life is full of decisions. At the moment, I feel like there is so many for me to make. Decisions to make at work, at home, in my personal life, in my relations with friends and families etc. Suddenly i feel as though I have to make decisions on so many things at the same time that my head feels like bursting.
I guess it doesn't help that I'm the kinda person you can describe as crisis-shirker. Meaning I would usually avoid confrontations, or situations where I would be required to make a critical decision. When the going gets tough, I choose to have a coffee break instead, rather than buff up and get tough. I know it is not right, and I'm still conditioning myself to get better at handling problems life sometimes offers you.
The biggest decision I've had to make this year was buying a new car. Ohh.. haven't I mentioned this before? I decided that I would need a bigger car than my previous 2-door Satria. Thought of making do with wifey's Kelisa in the short term to help our budget, but with car prices expected to go up in the next couple of months, I guess I had to make a move soon. And what car is it?
The drool-inducing Matrix
At RM74k (on the road price, insurance and additional accessories included), I find it a good steal. We're pretty much in the process of finalising the purchase deal. The only thing that's stalling the process is the fact that I do not yet have enough money to supplement my car loan. I have to cough up an additional RM14k or so to make the deal complete. To be honest, it's not that i do not have the money. Remember the Satria I've offloaded? I actually make around RM20k from the sale of that car. And my inability to get my hands on that money is a problem that stands out like a sore thumb with me now.
Some people say making deals with friends is not so different from dealing with the devil himself. Oh well, ok... I made that up. But really, you know what the attitude is like when you make deals with friends or families. The theme would usually be 'lebih kurang'. 'Alaa... dengan member pun nak berkira ke, lebih kurang je laa...' is the order of the day. The friend or family member you're dealing with would expect you to give them some lee-way if they somehow do not come good with their promise or part of the bargain. And the problem is more often than not, you will end up more on the 'kurang' side than on the 'lebih'. Mana boleh tahann...
I offloaded the Satria to a close friend who promised me to give me the proceeds in a month's time, and mind you, we made this deal in early Feb 05. And now it'd mid April 05 already. What pisses me off is that why did he make such promise when he knew it was going to be difficult for him to come good with it? And what pisses me of further is that I still have to pay the car's loan monthly instalments until the car has been sold. Ok la, to be fair to him, he is selling the car for me and not buying it from me. He does second hand car dealership in his part time you see. But had he been honest with me about what the real scenario would have been, I wouldn't have been so annoyed. I would have at least planned my finances accordingly. Or maybe offloaded it elsewhere.
So let that be a lesson to you Izwan...
On another note, after a looong contemplation, I've finally decided to register for my ACCA exams in June 2005. That proved to be another tough decision to make. Coughed out GBP 153 for the registration just now, so really have to hit the books in the next month and a half.
Not to mention reduce the visits to San Francisco Coffee to stay easy on the wallet... :-(
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
How To Make an Izwan
How To Make an Izwan
| How to make a Izwan |
| Ingredients: 1 part friendliness 3 parts silliness 3 parts leadership |
| Method: Combine in a tall glass half filled with crushed ice. Add a little lustfulness if desired! |
Monday, April 11, 2005
Jogging!
Jogging!
Managed to get away from the office for an hour or so for a session of jogging today. The chance to do so is very rare these days, when I could not be seen leaving my workstation earlier than 7 pm without getting groans of disapproval from many. I would love to say that it's due to my unquestionable popularity here, but if only that was true. Everybody needs answers to their requests and queries pronto from me, and honestly there are times when I even forget what i was going to do on any given day to begin with.
Been piling up the weight like no one's business, so hopefully the 45 minutes jog session would do me good.
Managed to get away from the office for an hour or so for a session of jogging today. The chance to do so is very rare these days, when I could not be seen leaving my workstation earlier than 7 pm without getting groans of disapproval from many. I would love to say that it's due to my unquestionable popularity here, but if only that was true. Everybody needs answers to their requests and queries pronto from me, and honestly there are times when I even forget what i was going to do on any given day to begin with.
Been piling up the weight like no one's business, so hopefully the 45 minutes jog session would do me good.
Any Given Sunday
Any Given Sunday
For the first time in weeks, yesterday's Sunday turned out to be a normal one for me. Normal in a sense that I could do whatever I wanted to do on any given Sunday. What I'm getting at is that it was the first Sunday in the last couple of weeks that I didn't have to come to the office and instead spent it like anyone would on a normal Sunday.
I think it has a relaxing effect on me already. I'm not as grouchy and as negative come Monday morning. All work and no play does make Izwan a very groucy boy... The Monday blues effect is somehow less. I do believe that to be effective, you have to have a good balance of work and play. But really, when it comes to it, work can be real murder.
Went to Midvalley Megamall with wifey yesterday. Main mission: to get a baby monitor for baby Hannah. We had surveyed KLCC for it, but every store we went that sells baby products seem to have sold it out. Luckily, Jayajusco in Megamall has it, and now my sister could be more flexible to be around the house. The baby monitor showed how practical it could be already yesterday when we were having dinner last night. I had a quick eerie sense when the baby monitor suddenly came to live, the one that sort of reminded you to movies like Signs or The Ring. First came the static sound for the first 10 seconds or so, and then the cries that the baby made. It's a wonderful gadget nevertheless, that it would catch the slightest of sounds the baby makes, but not other light sounds in the background (e.g. the fan, walking movements etc). So it was a day of wonderful discovery for yours truly...;-).
Also bought myself 2 long sleeve shirts for work while in Midvalley. My wife said that my other shirts are getting a bit worn out. So today, i'm wearing one of those I bought yesterday. It gives me that sense of newness today... no wonder I don't feel the blues so much. Hehe... and to cap the wonderful day, we had ice cream at Baskin Robbins before leaving for home. And just to share such a wonderful feeling I had yesterday, I bought 2 more quarts of Baskins to take away home for the whole family.
And that's what I call a real Sunday... ;-)
For the first time in weeks, yesterday's Sunday turned out to be a normal one for me. Normal in a sense that I could do whatever I wanted to do on any given Sunday. What I'm getting at is that it was the first Sunday in the last couple of weeks that I didn't have to come to the office and instead spent it like anyone would on a normal Sunday.
I think it has a relaxing effect on me already. I'm not as grouchy and as negative come Monday morning. All work and no play does make Izwan a very groucy boy... The Monday blues effect is somehow less. I do believe that to be effective, you have to have a good balance of work and play. But really, when it comes to it, work can be real murder.
Went to Midvalley Megamall with wifey yesterday. Main mission: to get a baby monitor for baby Hannah. We had surveyed KLCC for it, but every store we went that sells baby products seem to have sold it out. Luckily, Jayajusco in Megamall has it, and now my sister could be more flexible to be around the house. The baby monitor showed how practical it could be already yesterday when we were having dinner last night. I had a quick eerie sense when the baby monitor suddenly came to live, the one that sort of reminded you to movies like Signs or The Ring. First came the static sound for the first 10 seconds or so, and then the cries that the baby made. It's a wonderful gadget nevertheless, that it would catch the slightest of sounds the baby makes, but not other light sounds in the background (e.g. the fan, walking movements etc). So it was a day of wonderful discovery for yours truly...;-).
Also bought myself 2 long sleeve shirts for work while in Midvalley. My wife said that my other shirts are getting a bit worn out. So today, i'm wearing one of those I bought yesterday. It gives me that sense of newness today... no wonder I don't feel the blues so much. Hehe... and to cap the wonderful day, we had ice cream at Baskin Robbins before leaving for home. And just to share such a wonderful feeling I had yesterday, I bought 2 more quarts of Baskins to take away home for the whole family.
And that's what I call a real Sunday... ;-)
Saturday, April 09, 2005
Wish I Was Elsewhere
Wish I Was Elsewhere
Hi there. It has been another long hiatus eh? I guess some people are beginning to get used to that fact on this blog. Yup, the blue moon comes by as often as my updates. I'm really sorry folks (like there's really anyone out there anymore!), but I've been so preoccupied (the usual excuse eh?). This time of the year, the month of March and April to be exact, is a humongously busy time for people in my line. Well, I know, I know... I can almost hear murmurs at the back saying my updates have always been few and far in between at any time in the year... *sigh*..
Ok la.. so maybe it's just a lame reason for lack of updates. Having said that, I'm in the office today, even though Saturday is not an official working day for my company. Forever trying to tie up loose ends... it's that time of the year of audit, reports, and company board meetings. It's that time of the year when bilis in the company like me gets enmeshed in the sambal for the nasi lemak that's to be served to the big fishes...
Some metaphor...
Honestly, though my body is here, my mind has been all over the place this morning. Here's a list of places I would rather be this point of time:
1. In bed... I could just sleep the whole morning.
2. In front of the TV watching the Amazing Race.
3. At the cinemas, contemplating on what show to watch in the afternoon.
4. Queenstown, New Zealand. Couldn't get enough of the place.
5. Anywhere else but here...
There are some other things on my mind that's been bugging me off late, but maybe that's for another entry.
At the moment, I have to hold on tight to the reins that's holding my mind from running away from my body, and get some work done.
Hi there. It has been another long hiatus eh? I guess some people are beginning to get used to that fact on this blog. Yup, the blue moon comes by as often as my updates. I'm really sorry folks (like there's really anyone out there anymore!), but I've been so preoccupied (the usual excuse eh?). This time of the year, the month of March and April to be exact, is a humongously busy time for people in my line. Well, I know, I know... I can almost hear murmurs at the back saying my updates have always been few and far in between at any time in the year... *sigh*..
Ok la.. so maybe it's just a lame reason for lack of updates. Having said that, I'm in the office today, even though Saturday is not an official working day for my company. Forever trying to tie up loose ends... it's that time of the year of audit, reports, and company board meetings. It's that time of the year when bilis in the company like me gets enmeshed in the sambal for the nasi lemak that's to be served to the big fishes...
Some metaphor...
Honestly, though my body is here, my mind has been all over the place this morning. Here's a list of places I would rather be this point of time:
1. In bed... I could just sleep the whole morning.
2. In front of the TV watching the Amazing Race.
3. At the cinemas, contemplating on what show to watch in the afternoon.
4. Queenstown, New Zealand. Couldn't get enough of the place.
5. Anywhere else but here...
There are some other things on my mind that's been bugging me off late, but maybe that's for another entry.
At the moment, I have to hold on tight to the reins that's holding my mind from running away from my body, and get some work done.
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Welcome Hannah!
Welcome Hannah!
Last Sunday, 6th March 2005 was a very happy moment for my family. My elder sister Lili, safely gave birth to the cutest baby girl. Welcome to the family Hannah!
Her birth was also close to being coincidental with Lili’s own birthday, which is on the 4th of March. I guess the baby wanted my sister to be over with her birthday dinners and celebrations first before deciding to come out to this world. We took my sister out for her birthday dinner on the night of the 5th of March 2005, and after dinner we had her cut her birthday cake. I could see that night that she was looking very tired. I felt a sense of pity and admiration looking at her that night. I asked her how was she feeling as she edged closer towards her labour. She replied in her usual good spirits,’I can’t wait to get this over with’.
The next day after Subuh she was bleeding. My brother in law took her to the hospital, and the doctor said she was beginning to come into labour. When I arrived at the hospital later that morning, she looked in agony. Man, that must have been the first time I saw my sister in such pain and agony, and she had not even gone to the labour room yet! I noticed that my mum and my sister’s mother-in-law were by her side, giving words of calm and encouragement. I have to say la, these 2 mothers were very calm. My brother-in-law on the other hand, looked understandably anxious and nervous.
Wonderfully, my sister wasn’t in labour for too long. As a matter of fact, it was a very short while. She went into the labour room at 11.45am, with very minimal contraction at that time. I was already contemplating spending the rest of the day at the hospital. By 12.30pm however, my brother-in-law appeared from the labour room with the new-born Hannah. Alhamdulillah... I’ve heard of stories where the mother goes through contraction for hours. Someone even told me that the average time of contraction for the first born child is about 12 hours. So to get it over with in less than an hour is a God gift.
I guess Hannah must have heard what my sister said the night before... :-).
Will try to get her pics on the blog next. Stay tuned!
Last Sunday, 6th March 2005 was a very happy moment for my family. My elder sister Lili, safely gave birth to the cutest baby girl. Welcome to the family Hannah!
Her birth was also close to being coincidental with Lili’s own birthday, which is on the 4th of March. I guess the baby wanted my sister to be over with her birthday dinners and celebrations first before deciding to come out to this world. We took my sister out for her birthday dinner on the night of the 5th of March 2005, and after dinner we had her cut her birthday cake. I could see that night that she was looking very tired. I felt a sense of pity and admiration looking at her that night. I asked her how was she feeling as she edged closer towards her labour. She replied in her usual good spirits,’I can’t wait to get this over with’.
The next day after Subuh she was bleeding. My brother in law took her to the hospital, and the doctor said she was beginning to come into labour. When I arrived at the hospital later that morning, she looked in agony. Man, that must have been the first time I saw my sister in such pain and agony, and she had not even gone to the labour room yet! I noticed that my mum and my sister’s mother-in-law were by her side, giving words of calm and encouragement. I have to say la, these 2 mothers were very calm. My brother-in-law on the other hand, looked understandably anxious and nervous.
Wonderfully, my sister wasn’t in labour for too long. As a matter of fact, it was a very short while. She went into the labour room at 11.45am, with very minimal contraction at that time. I was already contemplating spending the rest of the day at the hospital. By 12.30pm however, my brother-in-law appeared from the labour room with the new-born Hannah. Alhamdulillah... I’ve heard of stories where the mother goes through contraction for hours. Someone even told me that the average time of contraction for the first born child is about 12 hours. So to get it over with in less than an hour is a God gift.
I guess Hannah must have heard what my sister said the night before... :-).
Will try to get her pics on the blog next. Stay tuned!
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Loser Test
Loser Test
I feel kind of a loser doing this test, but being in the office at 6.46pm waiting for my brother to finish work before I could go home, I just had nothing better to do. (Lots to do actually, but not gonna think about it now...)
So here's the result of my test. I'm kinda cool it seems. Really? It kinda make me kind of a loser as well, doesn't it? Hah... who cares.
I feel kind of a loser doing this test, but being in the office at 6.46pm waiting for my brother to finish work before I could go home, I just had nothing better to do. (Lots to do actually, but not gonna think about it now...)
So here's the result of my test. I'm kinda cool it seems. Really? It kinda make me kind of a loser as well, doesn't it? Hah... who cares.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Another Monday Morning Rambling and A Perfect Wedding Gift
Another Monday Morning Rambling and A Perfect Wedding Gift
It is now 11 in the morning, and I think my brain has finally woken up to work. It took a cup of Neslo, and a few dunks of Oreo biscuit to get my brains cracking however. Lucky, with the office deserted today, I could afford the luxury of a slow start today. It’s a Monday morning in the last week of the year, and the office resembles the presence of the post-Hari Raya holidays. Many people are desperate to finish off their leaves before the new year... lucky sods.
I spent most of the weekend helping out at my aunt’s place to prepare for my cousin’s engagement, which took place yesterday. Come to think of it, it was only slightly more than a year ago when I got engaged to my wife. Wow, does time fly... more and more of my younger cousins are either getting engaged or married, and boy it makes me feel old. It is very easy for me to fall into nostalgic mode when I look at my nieces and nephews (all children of my cousins) and reminisce the days when my cousins and I were their age. Those were the days when we had little care in the world and the highlight of our lives were either birthday parties or family gatherings such as yesterday, where all the cousins would gather and we would play games like hide-and-seek or police sentry. Sigh... life was so simple then.
Talking about engagements and weddings, I received the following story from a friend this morning. I know now the perfect item to buy for a wedding gift... :-p.
> Suasana masih riuh di luar. Sanak saudara semuanya
> berkampung disini. Gelak ketawa, gurau senda jelas
> kedengaran. Aku memimpin isteriku ke dalam bilik
> pengantin. Suara-suara sumbang terlalu banyak yang
> menegurku.
>
> "Hai, malam masih muda, dah nak masuk tidur?" sapa
> Pak Ucu.
>
> "Orang muda bang Aji, biarlah. Air dah penuh kat
> kepala tu." sahut Pak Tam; disambut hilai ketawa sanak
> saudara yang lain.
>
> Meriah sungguh keadaan diluar walau jam sudah
> menunjukkan pukul 11.00 malam.
>
> Hadiah yang masih belum dibuka ku susun ke tepi.
> Lampu ku tutup. Merebah diri ke katil pengantin, aku
> menoleh ke arah isteriku.
>
> "Kita tidur dulu lah yer. Ramai sangat orang kat
> luar tu." Isteriku hanya mengangguk tanda setuju.
>
> Entah pukul berapa sekarang, aku pun tidak tahu.
> Keadaan di luar gelap gelita dan senyap sunyi. Tanda
> sanak saudaraku telah pulang dan keluargaku
> telah tidur.
>
> Jari jemariku lembut membelai rambutnya. Ku selak
> rambut ikal yang menutupi telinganya lalu membisikkan
> "Assalammualaikum!" ke telinganya untuk menguji
> isteriku.
>
> "Wa alaikummussalam." Rupanya isteriku masih belum
> tidur.
>
> Ku kucup pipi halusnya. Ku kucup dahinya yang mulus.
> Semerbak harumnya menusuk deria bauku. Akanku tunaikan
> tanggungjawabku sebagai suami malam ini. Jari-jemari
> ini terus membelai tubuhnya.
>
> Perasaanku tidak dapat dikawal
> lagi, namun...
>
> "Kringgggggggggggggg...."
>
> "Tik..tik..tik..tik..."
>
> "Kring..krong..kring..krong"
>
> "Tooott..Tooott...Toott"
>
> "Buzzzz....Buzzzzz..Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz"
>
> Bunyi-bunyi jam loceng entah dari mana memenuhi
> ruang bilikku. Terkejut dengan segala macam bunyi yang
> ada, aku membuka lampu. Serentak itu, terang
> benderang seluruh rumahku. Bunyi-bunyi ini telah
> berjaya membangunkan semua orang di rumahku.
>
> Aku mencari-cari punca bunyi-bunyi itu. Mataku
> terarah ke sekotak hadiah yang masih terbalut rapi.
> Aku buka dengan pantas dan di dalamnya terdapat 5
> buah jam loceng.
>
> Juga sekeping kad berbunyi...
>
> Selamat Pengantin Baru,
>
> Jangan gopoh-gopoh. Baru Pukul 2 pagi.
> Jangan maree.. kami potong stim...
>
> Dalam hatiku.. cilakak punya kengkawan. Potong stim
> betullah!!!
>
> TAMAT
>
> P/S:
> if 100 kengkawan bagi 10 jam loceng = 1000 jam loceng,
>
>
> 100 jam diset pukul 12.00malam
> 100 lagi diset pukul 1.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 2.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 3.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 4.00pagi
> 100 diset pukul 5.00pagi
> 100 diset pukul 6.00pagi.
>
> Boleh haru biru rumah pengantin.... Tapi takpe boleh buka
> kedai jam lepas malam pertama.
It is now 11 in the morning, and I think my brain has finally woken up to work. It took a cup of Neslo, and a few dunks of Oreo biscuit to get my brains cracking however. Lucky, with the office deserted today, I could afford the luxury of a slow start today. It’s a Monday morning in the last week of the year, and the office resembles the presence of the post-Hari Raya holidays. Many people are desperate to finish off their leaves before the new year... lucky sods.
I spent most of the weekend helping out at my aunt’s place to prepare for my cousin’s engagement, which took place yesterday. Come to think of it, it was only slightly more than a year ago when I got engaged to my wife. Wow, does time fly... more and more of my younger cousins are either getting engaged or married, and boy it makes me feel old. It is very easy for me to fall into nostalgic mode when I look at my nieces and nephews (all children of my cousins) and reminisce the days when my cousins and I were their age. Those were the days when we had little care in the world and the highlight of our lives were either birthday parties or family gatherings such as yesterday, where all the cousins would gather and we would play games like hide-and-seek or police sentry. Sigh... life was so simple then.
Talking about engagements and weddings, I received the following story from a friend this morning. I know now the perfect item to buy for a wedding gift... :-p.
> Suasana masih riuh di luar. Sanak saudara semuanya
> berkampung disini. Gelak ketawa, gurau senda jelas
> kedengaran. Aku memimpin isteriku ke dalam bilik
> pengantin. Suara-suara sumbang terlalu banyak yang
> menegurku.
>
> "Hai, malam masih muda, dah nak masuk tidur?" sapa
> Pak Ucu.
>
> "Orang muda bang Aji, biarlah. Air dah penuh kat
> kepala tu." sahut Pak Tam; disambut hilai ketawa sanak
> saudara yang lain.
>
> Meriah sungguh keadaan diluar walau jam sudah
> menunjukkan pukul 11.00 malam.
>
> Hadiah yang masih belum dibuka ku susun ke tepi.
> Lampu ku tutup. Merebah diri ke katil pengantin, aku
> menoleh ke arah isteriku.
>
> "Kita tidur dulu lah yer. Ramai sangat orang kat
> luar tu." Isteriku hanya mengangguk tanda setuju.
>
> Entah pukul berapa sekarang, aku pun tidak tahu.
> Keadaan di luar gelap gelita dan senyap sunyi. Tanda
> sanak saudaraku telah pulang dan keluargaku
> telah tidur.
>
> Jari jemariku lembut membelai rambutnya. Ku selak
> rambut ikal yang menutupi telinganya lalu membisikkan
> "Assalammualaikum!" ke telinganya untuk menguji
> isteriku.
>
> "Wa alaikummussalam." Rupanya isteriku masih belum
> tidur.
>
> Ku kucup pipi halusnya. Ku kucup dahinya yang mulus.
> Semerbak harumnya menusuk deria bauku. Akanku tunaikan
> tanggungjawabku sebagai suami malam ini. Jari-jemari
> ini terus membelai tubuhnya.
>
> Perasaanku tidak dapat dikawal
> lagi, namun...
>
> "Kringgggggggggggggg...."
>
> "Tik..tik..tik..tik..."
>
> "Kring..krong..kring..krong"
>
> "Tooott..Tooott...Toott"
>
> "Buzzzz....Buzzzzz..Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz"
>
> Bunyi-bunyi jam loceng entah dari mana memenuhi
> ruang bilikku. Terkejut dengan segala macam bunyi yang
> ada, aku membuka lampu. Serentak itu, terang
> benderang seluruh rumahku. Bunyi-bunyi ini telah
> berjaya membangunkan semua orang di rumahku.
>
> Aku mencari-cari punca bunyi-bunyi itu. Mataku
> terarah ke sekotak hadiah yang masih terbalut rapi.
> Aku buka dengan pantas dan di dalamnya terdapat 5
> buah jam loceng.
>
> Juga sekeping kad berbunyi...
>
> Selamat Pengantin Baru,
>
> Jangan gopoh-gopoh. Baru Pukul 2 pagi.
> Jangan maree.. kami potong stim...
>
> Dalam hatiku.. cilakak punya kengkawan. Potong stim
> betullah!!!
>
> TAMAT
>
> P/S:
> if 100 kengkawan bagi 10 jam loceng = 1000 jam loceng,
>
>
> 100 jam diset pukul 12.00malam
> 100 lagi diset pukul 1.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 2.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 3.00pagi
> 200 diset pukul 4.00pagi
> 100 diset pukul 5.00pagi
> 100 diset pukul 6.00pagi.
>
> Boleh haru biru rumah pengantin.... Tapi takpe boleh buka
> kedai jam lepas malam pertama.
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
On A Bingeing Spree
On A Bingeing Spree
I’ve been in the habit of bingeing lately. Hardly an hour passes by without me stuffing myself with snacks or junk food. Karipap, biskut bantal, Cheesters (would you believe they actually sell this in big packs for RM1.99 in Cold Storage KLCC? Heck you even get one free from buying one!), kuih koci... you name it, I will eat it. I seem to have developed a craving for sweet and MSG-rich food, and this does not seem to go very well with my wife. Already, she’s planning to place a restriction of fast food and junk food alike on me, and if she has it her way, I will only be eating fast food once a month beginning 1st January 2005. At the moment, I’m negotiating with her to make that 3 times a month, to cater for 3 different fast food joints. I can’t imagine having to choose among KFC, McDonalds, and Burger King in any one month. That will be a difficult decision to make... :-p
Back to my bingeing habit, it’s been worrying me a bit. As a result of it, I’ve gained a horrifying 3 kilos to my frame in the last 2 weeks, and my craving is not showing any signs of ebbing away. I’ve put extra effort on my work out sessions to slow down the weight gain, while trying to curb this food bingeing habit at the same time. I fear should this weight gain trend continues, by end of this week, I shall be plump enough to impersonate father Christmas. Ho-Ho-Ho... Verryy Funnyy!!
Ok.. ok... back to work! :-p
I’ve been in the habit of bingeing lately. Hardly an hour passes by without me stuffing myself with snacks or junk food. Karipap, biskut bantal, Cheesters (would you believe they actually sell this in big packs for RM1.99 in Cold Storage KLCC? Heck you even get one free from buying one!), kuih koci... you name it, I will eat it. I seem to have developed a craving for sweet and MSG-rich food, and this does not seem to go very well with my wife. Already, she’s planning to place a restriction of fast food and junk food alike on me, and if she has it her way, I will only be eating fast food once a month beginning 1st January 2005. At the moment, I’m negotiating with her to make that 3 times a month, to cater for 3 different fast food joints. I can’t imagine having to choose among KFC, McDonalds, and Burger King in any one month. That will be a difficult decision to make... :-p
Back to my bingeing habit, it’s been worrying me a bit. As a result of it, I’ve gained a horrifying 3 kilos to my frame in the last 2 weeks, and my craving is not showing any signs of ebbing away. I’ve put extra effort on my work out sessions to slow down the weight gain, while trying to curb this food bingeing habit at the same time. I fear should this weight gain trend continues, by end of this week, I shall be plump enough to impersonate father Christmas. Ho-Ho-Ho... Verryy Funnyy!!
Ok.. ok... back to work! :-p
Monday, December 20, 2004
Another Monday: Return of The Blues.
Another Monday: Return of The Blues.
Another Monday morning. Another Monday blues. Am feeling less motivated to work today. Strange. I had done a major spring cleaning to my almost pig-sty-like workplace last Thursday and Friday, and the place is much clearer and cleaner now. Thought that I’d be more motivated to work with a cleaner workplace. Turns out it makes me feel more relaxed and lazy. I guess I work better in a disorderly place where everything is all over the place to remind me of the things that I have to do. Now that everything is kept nicely in files and folders, I become a bit clueless of what to do next. Either that, or I’m just suffering from the Monday morning blues.
I had a good weekend however. Stayed at home mostly, then did some chores which I had been wanting to do. Most interestingly, my wife and I managed to muster ourselves out of bed on Sunday morning and took a morning walk and jog at the Royal Lake Garden. It required an iron will to leave the lovely bed and blanket on only one of two mornings when I could afford morning lie-ins in a week, but in the end it was more than worth it. Heck, I am even planning to make it a permanent feature after this for the both of us. Apart from getting the chance to be alone with wifey, exercising in the morning makes me feel good throughout the day. After our morning walk, we went to the Orchid Garden nearby to get some shoots of orchids. Definitely not one of my usual weekends...:-). My father couldn’t believe that this son of his was trying out at gardening. This son who would usually catch blisters from a half hour sweeping of leaves on the house lawn. Unbelievable? Believe it! Hehe...
Was actually planning to pot the orchids yesterday. But we had promised my mum’s maid to take her out to shopping for stuffs ahead of her holiday to her hometown in Jogjakarta end of this month. By the time we got home from the shopping expedition (shopping always is an expedition for me!), we were too exhausted to even contemplate gardening. So I had to postpone putting on my gardening gloves till today.
Anyhow, I had better get to work now. The good thing about this blog is it gives me the needed inspiration for me to jumpstart my day. Usually, after writing a few paragraphs, my mind would have worked out enough for me to remember the next deadline that I have to meet. Cam dengki la pulak... :-p
Later!
Another Monday morning. Another Monday blues. Am feeling less motivated to work today. Strange. I had done a major spring cleaning to my almost pig-sty-like workplace last Thursday and Friday, and the place is much clearer and cleaner now. Thought that I’d be more motivated to work with a cleaner workplace. Turns out it makes me feel more relaxed and lazy. I guess I work better in a disorderly place where everything is all over the place to remind me of the things that I have to do. Now that everything is kept nicely in files and folders, I become a bit clueless of what to do next. Either that, or I’m just suffering from the Monday morning blues.
I had a good weekend however. Stayed at home mostly, then did some chores which I had been wanting to do. Most interestingly, my wife and I managed to muster ourselves out of bed on Sunday morning and took a morning walk and jog at the Royal Lake Garden. It required an iron will to leave the lovely bed and blanket on only one of two mornings when I could afford morning lie-ins in a week, but in the end it was more than worth it. Heck, I am even planning to make it a permanent feature after this for the both of us. Apart from getting the chance to be alone with wifey, exercising in the morning makes me feel good throughout the day. After our morning walk, we went to the Orchid Garden nearby to get some shoots of orchids. Definitely not one of my usual weekends...:-). My father couldn’t believe that this son of his was trying out at gardening. This son who would usually catch blisters from a half hour sweeping of leaves on the house lawn. Unbelievable? Believe it! Hehe...
Was actually planning to pot the orchids yesterday. But we had promised my mum’s maid to take her out to shopping for stuffs ahead of her holiday to her hometown in Jogjakarta end of this month. By the time we got home from the shopping expedition (shopping always is an expedition for me!), we were too exhausted to even contemplate gardening. So I had to postpone putting on my gardening gloves till today.
Anyhow, I had better get to work now. The good thing about this blog is it gives me the needed inspiration for me to jumpstart my day. Usually, after writing a few paragraphs, my mind would have worked out enough for me to remember the next deadline that I have to meet. Cam dengki la pulak... :-p
Later!
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Raya Hangover
Raya Hangover
I have been back in the office since yesterday when the official holiday for Hari Raya ended, and boy, have I been struggling to find the motivation to do any useful work in the office. Heck, I didn’t even have any drive to write anything for the blog yesterday. The office was as good as empty, apart from 2-3 of my colleagues who chose to come back from the holiday early. All the bosses won’t be around till next Monday, and as the saying goes in Malay, when the cat’s not around the mouses come out to dance. Hmm.. I think that’s how the saying sounds like anyway...
I just got back from a morning coffee break with wifey just now at San Francisco Coffee House. Needed to have something to jumpstart my day, since I’ve been on the verge of power failure since yesterday. And boy do I feel better (albeit a little) after a dose of cafe mocha, hence this entry I guess. To be honest, I’m still very much in a holiday mood, and while my seemingly ever-horizontal-growing body is here, my mind is very much elsewhere. The problem is I have no more leave to take, after all the holiday galore I’ve had throughout the year todate. Am itching to go and catch the movies in the cinema. Top movies on my prioroty list at the moment are The Grudge and The Incredibles...
Raya this time was a cross country adventure. My parents celebrate Raya in their hometown in Johor, while my parents-in-law celebrate it at the other end of the Malaysian peninsula in Perak and Kedah. My wife and I covered a distance of no less than 1,000 km throughout the period between the eve of Raya on Saturday and Tuesday. Traffic on the highways during the festive season could be a nightmare however. I was told that up to 2.5 million cars had left KL during the Deepa Raya celebration. The worse of the traffic I encountered was on the return trip to KL from Ipoh on Tuesday night, when we took almost 5 hours to complete a journey which would usually have taken 2 hours under normal circumstances. Lucky I had the best of company with me throughout the journey however... :-)
The drive to the office today and yesterday was a breeze. It took us only 20 minutes to get to work from home. Kalau lah driving kat KL camnih hari2... kan ke baguih. The stress level throughout KL can be reduced as a result. I can only dream for that to happen though...
Oh yeah, and to my blog visitors, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir Batin. And thank you for coming to visit... :-).
I have been back in the office since yesterday when the official holiday for Hari Raya ended, and boy, have I been struggling to find the motivation to do any useful work in the office. Heck, I didn’t even have any drive to write anything for the blog yesterday. The office was as good as empty, apart from 2-3 of my colleagues who chose to come back from the holiday early. All the bosses won’t be around till next Monday, and as the saying goes in Malay, when the cat’s not around the mouses come out to dance. Hmm.. I think that’s how the saying sounds like anyway...
I just got back from a morning coffee break with wifey just now at San Francisco Coffee House. Needed to have something to jumpstart my day, since I’ve been on the verge of power failure since yesterday. And boy do I feel better (albeit a little) after a dose of cafe mocha, hence this entry I guess. To be honest, I’m still very much in a holiday mood, and while my seemingly ever-horizontal-growing body is here, my mind is very much elsewhere. The problem is I have no more leave to take, after all the holiday galore I’ve had throughout the year todate. Am itching to go and catch the movies in the cinema. Top movies on my prioroty list at the moment are The Grudge and The Incredibles...
Raya this time was a cross country adventure. My parents celebrate Raya in their hometown in Johor, while my parents-in-law celebrate it at the other end of the Malaysian peninsula in Perak and Kedah. My wife and I covered a distance of no less than 1,000 km throughout the period between the eve of Raya on Saturday and Tuesday. Traffic on the highways during the festive season could be a nightmare however. I was told that up to 2.5 million cars had left KL during the Deepa Raya celebration. The worse of the traffic I encountered was on the return trip to KL from Ipoh on Tuesday night, when we took almost 5 hours to complete a journey which would usually have taken 2 hours under normal circumstances. Lucky I had the best of company with me throughout the journey however... :-)
The drive to the office today and yesterday was a breeze. It took us only 20 minutes to get to work from home. Kalau lah driving kat KL camnih hari2... kan ke baguih. The stress level throughout KL can be reduced as a result. I can only dream for that to happen though...
Oh yeah, and to my blog visitors, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir Batin. And thank you for coming to visit... :-).
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
An October Tragedy
An October Tragedy
I had promised to write about my honeymoon in NZ in my last entry. But something happened last weekend that probably warrants this to be written first: my house was broken into last Saturday, on the 2nd day of Ramadhan.
When it happened, my family and I were just concluding our Subuh prayers in the main hall of our house, which is on the ground floor. I had heard some strange sounds coming from the roof that morning when I woke up for sahur, but I dismissed it to being sounds made by a cat or monkey, which was always the case. Apparently the robbers came in through the window of my parents’s room, which was the only window in the house that didn’t have grills.
When I saw them coming down and confronted us in the main hall, the situation had not sunk in to me yet, and I thought it was my brother in law. But then it occured to me that my brother in law and my sister were away at his parents’s house that morning. By the time it sunk in, they were already around us, and they were armed with knives and a hammer. My feeling then was one of utmost dread, and I could feel my blood draining from my face. Pucat gila..
One of the robbers repeatedly told us to be quiet and not resist or he would kill us. He kept saying, ‘Kau kalau gerak aku bunuh semuanya. Aku bunuh isteri kau. Aku bunuh kamu nanti.’ They tied all the men in the house, which were my dad, my brother and myself. My father tried to talk to them and reason with them and one of the robbers hit him as a result. We were too stumped to do anything. And I feared the worst.
They told us that they just wanted to rob us, and they had no intention of harming us. Ironically, they kept telling us that they were fellow Muslims, and that they were fasting as we were. Before we knew it, they were ransacking the house for valuables. My dad and I plead that no one was harmed, and one of them made a reassurance that they were Muslims, and they wouldn’t do such a thing. I felt like saying back, ‘orang Islam pun merompak ke’, but my brother, sensing my intention from my expression, gave me a nudge that any answer to his statement wouldn’t be the right one. At least the robber’s reassurance calmed me.
The robbers left the house with our valuables after a ransacking galore that lasted for almost half an hour. It could have been worse. They only left because the house phone rang incessantly, and they got scared. I realised later that they’d been scared all the while they were in the house. It was just a matter of who was more scared between them and us. It turns out the call was made by my wife, who was outside the house washing when the intruders broke into the house. She managed to escape by climbing up our 10 feet tall front gate, and ran to the neighbour's house to get help. To this day, she still wonders how she’d done it, especially when she was wearing kain batik time tuh. You're a hero dear! : - )
My first fear when I saw the intruders in the house was the safety of my mother and my wife. I’ve heard so many tragic stories where the robbers have other intentions than robbing their victims once they’d broken into their house, and it has always been one of my worst nightmares when the robbers have ill-intentions on the women in the house. A friend of my neighbour’s house was broken into, and the robbers did the unspeakable to their daughter in front of them. Nauzubillah...
The general feeling is that around this time of the year, when Raya Aidilfitri is approaching is when robberies become rampant. It is when these people rob to have enough money to either go back to their homes (especially the immigrant labours), or get new stuffs for the big day. Either way it’s wise to be careful. Never take for granted the funny sounds you hear around the house.
I had promised to write about my honeymoon in NZ in my last entry. But something happened last weekend that probably warrants this to be written first: my house was broken into last Saturday, on the 2nd day of Ramadhan.
When it happened, my family and I were just concluding our Subuh prayers in the main hall of our house, which is on the ground floor. I had heard some strange sounds coming from the roof that morning when I woke up for sahur, but I dismissed it to being sounds made by a cat or monkey, which was always the case. Apparently the robbers came in through the window of my parents’s room, which was the only window in the house that didn’t have grills.
When I saw them coming down and confronted us in the main hall, the situation had not sunk in to me yet, and I thought it was my brother in law. But then it occured to me that my brother in law and my sister were away at his parents’s house that morning. By the time it sunk in, they were already around us, and they were armed with knives and a hammer. My feeling then was one of utmost dread, and I could feel my blood draining from my face. Pucat gila..
One of the robbers repeatedly told us to be quiet and not resist or he would kill us. He kept saying, ‘Kau kalau gerak aku bunuh semuanya. Aku bunuh isteri kau. Aku bunuh kamu nanti.’ They tied all the men in the house, which were my dad, my brother and myself. My father tried to talk to them and reason with them and one of the robbers hit him as a result. We were too stumped to do anything. And I feared the worst.
They told us that they just wanted to rob us, and they had no intention of harming us. Ironically, they kept telling us that they were fellow Muslims, and that they were fasting as we were. Before we knew it, they were ransacking the house for valuables. My dad and I plead that no one was harmed, and one of them made a reassurance that they were Muslims, and they wouldn’t do such a thing. I felt like saying back, ‘orang Islam pun merompak ke’, but my brother, sensing my intention from my expression, gave me a nudge that any answer to his statement wouldn’t be the right one. At least the robber’s reassurance calmed me.
The robbers left the house with our valuables after a ransacking galore that lasted for almost half an hour. It could have been worse. They only left because the house phone rang incessantly, and they got scared. I realised later that they’d been scared all the while they were in the house. It was just a matter of who was more scared between them and us. It turns out the call was made by my wife, who was outside the house washing when the intruders broke into the house. She managed to escape by climbing up our 10 feet tall front gate, and ran to the neighbour's house to get help. To this day, she still wonders how she’d done it, especially when she was wearing kain batik time tuh. You're a hero dear! : - )
My first fear when I saw the intruders in the house was the safety of my mother and my wife. I’ve heard so many tragic stories where the robbers have other intentions than robbing their victims once they’d broken into their house, and it has always been one of my worst nightmares when the robbers have ill-intentions on the women in the house. A friend of my neighbour’s house was broken into, and the robbers did the unspeakable to their daughter in front of them. Nauzubillah...
The general feeling is that around this time of the year, when Raya Aidilfitri is approaching is when robberies become rampant. It is when these people rob to have enough money to either go back to their homes (especially the immigrant labours), or get new stuffs for the big day. Either way it’s wise to be careful. Never take for granted the funny sounds you hear around the house.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Return of The Newly Wed
Return of The Newly Wed
Boy it has been another long hiatus for me. After my last entry on the troubling text messages I had received, I had been very preoccupied with the wedding preparation. Alhamdulillah, the nikah went smoothly well on the 4th of September 2004. The akad had to be done 3 times however, though in no way it was my fault if you please. My now father in law was the one who performed the akad on me, and I am proud to say *ehem*ehem* that I was as cool as ice when I uttered my part of the akad. However, one of the witnesses of the nikah was quite particular about the way the akad sentences were uttered, and we had to repeat the process twice. Not that I’m complaining. Looking back, it gave me the chance to bask in the limelight longer, and savour this one in a lifetime moment. Insya-Allah… :-)
So what can I say about life after marriage? Well, in short I would say it is an enriching experience. Suddenly, I am responsible over someone else’s well being. And I had never been responsible over any other life-being bigger than a gold fish previously! So a great paradigm shift was required here. It feels like a call towards being a more responsible and accountable person. While previously my main concern used to be what strategy to apply for my football Championship Manager game, now it has turned to how should I manage this union that is my marriage. It has only been a month, and I’m still learning.
The best part of marriage is of course the companionship. While previously I had to wake up on my own, now I wake up with a lovely lady beside me. The idea might sound tempting, but some of you might be surprised to know that it is not really the physical part of the relationship that one cherishes the most. It is simply the presence of your significant other, both physically and emotionally, that makes it meaningful. While previously I would have to go over a personal problem on my own, now I have someone to share it with. 2 heads make better work than 1. ‘I’ rarely exist anymore. Most of the time, it’s ‘We’.
We went on our honeymoon between the 22nd September and 2nd October in the land of Lord of The Rings. Look out for my next entry for a rather long account of the whole trip. There will be pics too, so if you don’t care to read what a love-drunken honeymooning husband has to babble, you can always look at the beautiful scenery in the pictures. :-p
Till then, ciao for now!
Boy it has been another long hiatus for me. After my last entry on the troubling text messages I had received, I had been very preoccupied with the wedding preparation. Alhamdulillah, the nikah went smoothly well on the 4th of September 2004. The akad had to be done 3 times however, though in no way it was my fault if you please. My now father in law was the one who performed the akad on me, and I am proud to say *ehem*ehem* that I was as cool as ice when I uttered my part of the akad. However, one of the witnesses of the nikah was quite particular about the way the akad sentences were uttered, and we had to repeat the process twice. Not that I’m complaining. Looking back, it gave me the chance to bask in the limelight longer, and savour this one in a lifetime moment. Insya-Allah… :-)
So what can I say about life after marriage? Well, in short I would say it is an enriching experience. Suddenly, I am responsible over someone else’s well being. And I had never been responsible over any other life-being bigger than a gold fish previously! So a great paradigm shift was required here. It feels like a call towards being a more responsible and accountable person. While previously my main concern used to be what strategy to apply for my football Championship Manager game, now it has turned to how should I manage this union that is my marriage. It has only been a month, and I’m still learning.
The best part of marriage is of course the companionship. While previously I had to wake up on my own, now I wake up with a lovely lady beside me. The idea might sound tempting, but some of you might be surprised to know that it is not really the physical part of the relationship that one cherishes the most. It is simply the presence of your significant other, both physically and emotionally, that makes it meaningful. While previously I would have to go over a personal problem on my own, now I have someone to share it with. 2 heads make better work than 1. ‘I’ rarely exist anymore. Most of the time, it’s ‘We’.
We went on our honeymoon between the 22nd September and 2nd October in the land of Lord of The Rings. Look out for my next entry for a rather long account of the whole trip. There will be pics too, so if you don’t care to read what a love-drunken honeymooning husband has to babble, you can always look at the beautiful scenery in the pictures. :-p
Till then, ciao for now!
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Text Messages From Hell
Text Messages From Hell
Someone sent me a barrage of sms text messages on the eve of Merdeka Day. His (I still do not know whether the person was a he or she, but let’s for the sake of convenience, assume the person was a he) first text message was a simple wish of Hari Merdeka, followed by a question as to when my wedding was going to take place. I did not have his number saved in my handphone’s phone book, so I did not know who the message was from. I replied his message saying thank you, and asking who he was. I was surprised when he sounded hostile in his reply, to the extent of using such words as ‘pergi blah’ and ‘mampus’. He was ticked off and could not believe that I did not have his number in my phone. Furthermore, he vented his anger that he didn’t get an invitation to my wedding.
I was caught unawares by his reply. I thought if this person was someone I was in regular contact with, I first of all would surely have had his number in my phone. And secondly, chances are I would have also invited him to my wedding. As I’d mentioned in my earlier entry, I’ve had to go through the unenviable task of filtering my guest list for my reception, and I have done so by inviting all those who are in close contacts with me among friends and workmates, those whom I’d have to deal with everyday. So when this guy started swearing because he wasn’t invited, my mind started to run a list of people I might have accidentally missed out. Up to this point, no name have come to my mind yet.
Messages from him kept coming until midnight, even after I’d stopped replying to him. And even after all that, he still did not tell me who he was. I had apologised to him if I had left him out by mistake, but apparently he was undeterred. In the last of his text messages, he accuses me of being ‘damn selfish’ and cruel, and he told me to just wait for the day when the ‘tables are turned’. What does that mean? Have I committed an unforgiveable crime? It seems to me the person might have a feeling of vengeance for me that goes beyond the issue of this wedding invitation. And perhaps this was his best way of letting it out on me. Why else then did he choose to stay anonymous the whole time?
I know how it feels when a friend of yours celebrate a big day, and leaves you out from his invitation. I have a friend whom I’ve known from my studying days, whom I meet almost every week playing futsal and getting together before he was married. You can say, we have the same circle of friends. I did not get his invitation, even after I had accidentally joked with him the WEEKEND BEFORE his wedding about not getting his invitation yet. Yet I still wasn’t invited. But did I go out on a swearing and conscience barrage on this guy? For all I know, he might have had the same constraint as I do now, and had had to keep a straight face whenever his uninvited friends asked him about his wedding.
I know how bad it feels. Believe me, it feels just as bad, if not worse, not being able to invite everyone you know to your most special day and not getting invited to an equivalent event of someone you know. All you can do is hope that people will understand. It seems that you can't please everyone.
Someone sent me a barrage of sms text messages on the eve of Merdeka Day. His (I still do not know whether the person was a he or she, but let’s for the sake of convenience, assume the person was a he) first text message was a simple wish of Hari Merdeka, followed by a question as to when my wedding was going to take place. I did not have his number saved in my handphone’s phone book, so I did not know who the message was from. I replied his message saying thank you, and asking who he was. I was surprised when he sounded hostile in his reply, to the extent of using such words as ‘pergi blah’ and ‘mampus’. He was ticked off and could not believe that I did not have his number in my phone. Furthermore, he vented his anger that he didn’t get an invitation to my wedding.
I was caught unawares by his reply. I thought if this person was someone I was in regular contact with, I first of all would surely have had his number in my phone. And secondly, chances are I would have also invited him to my wedding. As I’d mentioned in my earlier entry, I’ve had to go through the unenviable task of filtering my guest list for my reception, and I have done so by inviting all those who are in close contacts with me among friends and workmates, those whom I’d have to deal with everyday. So when this guy started swearing because he wasn’t invited, my mind started to run a list of people I might have accidentally missed out. Up to this point, no name have come to my mind yet.
Messages from him kept coming until midnight, even after I’d stopped replying to him. And even after all that, he still did not tell me who he was. I had apologised to him if I had left him out by mistake, but apparently he was undeterred. In the last of his text messages, he accuses me of being ‘damn selfish’ and cruel, and he told me to just wait for the day when the ‘tables are turned’. What does that mean? Have I committed an unforgiveable crime? It seems to me the person might have a feeling of vengeance for me that goes beyond the issue of this wedding invitation. And perhaps this was his best way of letting it out on me. Why else then did he choose to stay anonymous the whole time?
I know how it feels when a friend of yours celebrate a big day, and leaves you out from his invitation. I have a friend whom I’ve known from my studying days, whom I meet almost every week playing futsal and getting together before he was married. You can say, we have the same circle of friends. I did not get his invitation, even after I had accidentally joked with him the WEEKEND BEFORE his wedding about not getting his invitation yet. Yet I still wasn’t invited. But did I go out on a swearing and conscience barrage on this guy? For all I know, he might have had the same constraint as I do now, and had had to keep a straight face whenever his uninvited friends asked him about his wedding.
I know how bad it feels. Believe me, it feels just as bad, if not worse, not being able to invite everyone you know to your most special day and not getting invited to an equivalent event of someone you know. All you can do is hope that people will understand. It seems that you can't please everyone.
Saturday, August 28, 2004
The Big Day Looms
The Big Day Looms
I have been a bit quiet of late. Well, in fact it has been more than a month. After my last entry dated 23rd July, I went on a trip with my family from Southampton to London and eventually Edinburgh, where I could not get an internet connection to continue blogging. I’ve been back in Malaysia for almost a month now, and just as I feared, I have not had the decent time to blog. Heck, I have not had any decent idea to write about either.
Coming back to work after a 2 weeks break proved to be quite stressful. I realised while I was away, some of the work were set aside for me until my return. The place I work still lack the mutual knowledge of everyone’s work that it is unimaginable for any of us to leave the office for more than 2 weeks. I went to the office right after the day I arrived in Malaysia, albeit still in a state of jet lag. Have to say many things didn’t quite register in my head in that first few days, but I managed to pull through until the end of the week. The only thing that kept me awake and made me look forward to come to the office nevertheless was to see my fiancee. Could not wait for another day to see her...
This last couple of weeks, I have been busy with the wedding arrangements. Barang2 hantaran semua dah siap, what’s left is the wang hantaran which I would have to withdraw in the form of bank draft sometime this week. Fortunately, I just received my yearly bonus 2 days ago, and the fact that I also received a performance bonus this year helps matters a lot. I tell you, when people say murah rezeki bila nak kahwin nih, they are not lying. We should have faith of the rewards in doing the right things. Banyak berkat.
The only thing that makes me feel slightly upset is the fact that my wedding reception will be held formally in one of the reception halls in KL. Not that I’m complaining about the place (or the fact that my parents are taking the tab completely... thanks mum and dad :-)), it’s just that holding the event there disables me to invite all the people I know. Since my parents are taking the tab for the event, most of the guests will be theirs, which leaves only about 1/6 of the quota for me. I have had to go through the heartbreaking process of filtering my guest list and apologising to some people for not being able to invite them to my reception. It makes me feel bad having to do it, but I guess I have to be fair to my parents too...
The wedding is now just around the corner, and admittedly butterflies have begun to fly around in my stomach, albeit small ones. I think the butterflies will get bigger the closer I get to the date of the nikah. Some cheeky guy friends of mine who have just recently tied the knot themselves have begun to intimidate me with their own experience during the akad. Not to mention their advice on the nocturnal activities of married people. Dang... am looking forward to the big day with a mixture of joy and suspense.
I have been a bit quiet of late. Well, in fact it has been more than a month. After my last entry dated 23rd July, I went on a trip with my family from Southampton to London and eventually Edinburgh, where I could not get an internet connection to continue blogging. I’ve been back in Malaysia for almost a month now, and just as I feared, I have not had the decent time to blog. Heck, I have not had any decent idea to write about either.
Coming back to work after a 2 weeks break proved to be quite stressful. I realised while I was away, some of the work were set aside for me until my return. The place I work still lack the mutual knowledge of everyone’s work that it is unimaginable for any of us to leave the office for more than 2 weeks. I went to the office right after the day I arrived in Malaysia, albeit still in a state of jet lag. Have to say many things didn’t quite register in my head in that first few days, but I managed to pull through until the end of the week. The only thing that kept me awake and made me look forward to come to the office nevertheless was to see my fiancee. Could not wait for another day to see her...
This last couple of weeks, I have been busy with the wedding arrangements. Barang2 hantaran semua dah siap, what’s left is the wang hantaran which I would have to withdraw in the form of bank draft sometime this week. Fortunately, I just received my yearly bonus 2 days ago, and the fact that I also received a performance bonus this year helps matters a lot. I tell you, when people say murah rezeki bila nak kahwin nih, they are not lying. We should have faith of the rewards in doing the right things. Banyak berkat.
The only thing that makes me feel slightly upset is the fact that my wedding reception will be held formally in one of the reception halls in KL. Not that I’m complaining about the place (or the fact that my parents are taking the tab completely... thanks mum and dad :-)), it’s just that holding the event there disables me to invite all the people I know. Since my parents are taking the tab for the event, most of the guests will be theirs, which leaves only about 1/6 of the quota for me. I have had to go through the heartbreaking process of filtering my guest list and apologising to some people for not being able to invite them to my reception. It makes me feel bad having to do it, but I guess I have to be fair to my parents too...
The wedding is now just around the corner, and admittedly butterflies have begun to fly around in my stomach, albeit small ones. I think the butterflies will get bigger the closer I get to the date of the nikah. Some cheeky guy friends of mine who have just recently tied the knot themselves have begun to intimidate me with their own experience during the akad. Not to mention their advice on the nocturnal activities of married people. Dang... am looking forward to the big day with a mixture of joy and suspense.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
My Heart and Joy!
Listening To
Snap Shots
