the not-so-perfect life...

you don't play-play with the first lady of malaysia

2012-01-25T15:17:00.002+08:00

Say... what???

I saw the news today in MSN Malaysia's website. And I couldn't believe my eyes at first. I went "Whaaa...?" and "Huh???"

ROSMAH GETS HER OWN iOS GAME!

The headline screams. Whoa! Really? I mean, really? Seriously? This is serious, my friends. This is very, very serious. I kid you not.

Source of pictures here

The description reads:

This tongue in cheek game takes Malaysian First Lady Rosmah Mansor's claim that she saved the money it took for a RM24.4 million diamond ring and turns it on it's head. As a somewhat familiar female figure, save as much money as it takes to gain an arsenal of Birkin bags, and ultimately, the holy grail of all rings.

It almost got me rolling on the floor in a bout of laughter. Almost. Whoever came up with this game, my hats off to you.

But, of course, it's not for free, yo! This is Bik Mama we're talking about, remember? No money, no talk la!

Lucky all you Apple users out there, I must say. *insert troll face here*

isu halal/haram subway

2012-01-20T18:19:00.001+08:00

Semalam lagi dah kecoh pasal Subway yang takde sijil halal dari JAKIM, hasil laporan 999 di TV3. Dekat Twitter, macam-macam fatwa yang timbul pasal isu ni. Aku sebenarnya malas nak komen banyak-banyak tapi sebab aku kena sound kat Twitter, maka aku rasa terpanggil nak komen dengan panjang lebar kat blog sendiri.

Ceritanya, aku terbaca satu komen di page FB Subway Malaysia. Lalu aku tweet pasal benda tu macam ni:

Dan demikian, bila naik tweet tu, ada orang pulak yang reply:

Aku terkedu sekejap bila baca. Sebab apa? Sebab tiba-tiba masuk bab akidah. Tak terlintas pulak di kepala hotak aku nak buat main-main pasal akidah. 'Abang' tu main taram je kata aku buat main pasal akidah. Belum apa-apa lagi. Bukan aku tak boleh ditegur, cuma bila ditembak mengejut macam tu, terkedu jugakla, 'Abang'.

Aku pun cakap aku bukan buat main. And here's the reply:

Okey, aku agak lost di sini. Bahagian mana yang aku kutuk JAKIM? Habaq mai sat. Walaupun aku tak sekolah agama, aku pun tahu mencari yang halal itu adalah wajib. Tak payah nak copy paste ayat Quran/sunah/hadis pun aku tahu mencari yang halal tu satu ibadah. Ye, aku tau la aku tak sekolah agama, tapi bab agama, aku tak bergurau. Makanya, ini adalah reply aku yang tak berapa nak panjang lebar:

Aku rasa, tweet aku dah nyatakan pandangan aku dalam hal ni. 'Abang', jangan cepat sangat patronize sebelum usul periksa statement tu. Kalau pergi laman FB yang ada komen tu, ada komen yang penuh. Menuduh saya bwt main pasal akidah sebelum apa-apa, tak cool la, brader. Tanya dulu, atau minta pendapat sepenuhnya. Ni dak, main 'tembak' aje. Kutuk JAKIM pun saya tak buat, malahan tak terniat langsung.

JAKIM sajakah badan yang boleh mengesahkan status halal sesuatu produk itu? Yang lain-lain takde kelayakan? Macam aku kata, look at the bigger picture. Jangan nak patronize orang sangat. Jangan nak melatah sangat. Aku takde target JAKIM pun.

'Adik' bukan nak kutuk JAKIM pun, 'Abang'. Cuma tertanya-tanya je, kalau takde sijil JAKIM je, haram? IFRC takleh pakai la gitu?

Apa-apa pun, kalau was-was, jangan makan. Tak susah pun, ye dak? Sekarang cuba bagitau, kupon Subway yang dapat dari kalendar tu, nak buat apa?

starbucks' epic fail

2012-01-18T13:53:00.001+08:00

So Starbucks has introduced it's Starbucks Card, which functions like a debit card for Starbucks only. And you will even get rewarded for your purchases. After certain amount of purchases of course. So, being the Starbucks' enthusiast myself (yela, yela, aku elitis!), I got myself the card. I was planning to get the Starbucks' 2012 planner with my purchases.

And guess what? When nearing to my 15th purchase (that's how much purchases needed to redeem the planner), the tracker stopped updating my reward. Horror!

So you see, my last purchase was on 10th January 2012. My tracker was showing 13 beverages purchased before I made that purchase. I bought a Valencia Frappucino and Valencia Macchiato on 10th January. So the tracker should show 15 beverages, right? Right?

Wrong! It remains 13 beverages purchased. So I made a report to their customers service and they said it will be solved in 2 days. I called on the 12th January 2012. Both screen shots were taken today. And what date is it today? Again, what date is it today? Yes, correct.

Disappointed? You bet I am. One week and a day has passed since I made my last purchase. 6 days after I made a report. World-class much? Think again.

how do i look?

2012-01-12T15:00:00.001+08:00

Okay, new year, new look.

I want to go as minimal/simple as possible. How is it looking right now?

Okay. Now to find my blogging spirit back. I lost it somewhere at the end of 2011.

2011: lukisan yang berwarna-warni

2011-12-30T10:30:00.001+08:00

Sedar tak sedar, mahu tak mahu, tahun 2011 sudah hampir sampai ke penghujung. Whew. Sekejap aje aku rasa tahun 2011 ni. Kalaulah nak dilukis tahun ini dalam hidup aku, pastinya akan jadi satu lukisan yang penuh berwarna-warni. Macam-macam yang terjadi dalam tahun 2011 ni. Ada suka, ada duka, ada naiknya, ada turunnya. Tapi Alhamdulillah, aku masih berdiri di sini.

Tahun 2011 juga mencatatkan pelbagai peristiwa penting untuk diri aku sendiri. Ahhh... bakal jadi nostalgik angka 2011 ini. Suatu masa nanti, kalau aku toleh kembali ke belakang, pasti tahun 2011 akan jadi satu tahun yang tersemat kemas dalam lipatan kenangan.

Cabut gigi...

Lama tak berkunjung ke klinik pergigian, aku terpaksa pergi jugak sebab tak tahan menanggung sakit. Cabut gigi macam rasa masuk bilik hukuman gantung. Ngeri. Ye, aku dramatik. Aku takut dengan doktor gigi, okey? Gelak apa gelak? Tumbuk kang! Walaupun aku selamat melalui pengalaman-hampir-mati tu, aku tak teringin nak mengulanginya dalam masa terdekat ni. Lain kali ajelah ye aku pergi jumpa doktor gigi. 2013 ke...

Baby Aliff...

Bila sebut nama Aliff, aku rasa sebak, sedih. Aku kenal Baby Aliff sekitar Oktober 2010. Aku jatuh sayang dengan budak kecik tu. Aku nak jadi pelindung Baby Aliff dari segala hal yang buruk. Aku nak tengok Aliff membesar dengan baik. Aku nak buat macam-macam benda untuk Baby Aliff. Tapi takdir menentukan yang Baby Aliff akan berlalu dari hidup aku. Kerana manusia tak sempurna. Walaupun aku tak jumpa Baby Aliff lagi, aku sentiasa doakan kesejahteraan dia.

Baby Aliff ada satu tempat yang tersangat istimewa di hati aku. Sampai saat sekarang, aku masih teringatkan budak kecik tu. Sampai sekarang, aku masih rindukan Baby Aliff. Semoga dia gembira dan sihat sejahtera di samping ibu tersayang. Terima kasih, Puan Mastura, sebab benarkan Baby Aliff hadir dalam hidup kami, walau cuma untuk seketika.

Bertunang...

Masin mulut adik-adik aku, tahu? Masin. Nak dekat hujung bulan Ramadhan, adik aku kata tahun depan aku tak beraya di Kedah dah. Aku beraya dengan keluarga baru. Termakbul doa diorang. Tahun 2011, aku jadi tunangan orang. Tahun 2012, insya-Allah, jadi isteri orang pulak. Mak nervous, noks. Tak pasti sama ada betul-betul dah sedia nak pegang status isteri ke belum. Tapi kalau nak tunggu sedia, sampai kiamat pun belum tentu lagi sedia, ye dak?

Walaupun bertunang mengejut, aku tetap happy. Aku dah jumpa Mr. Right. Aku dah jumpa seseorang yang bahunya sedia berkhidmat untuk aku tanpa banyak soal. Terima kasih, Encik Tunang, kerana menerima diri ini seadanya. Semoga kebahagiaan ini kekal hendaknya. Insya-Allah...

Kehilangan...

Tragedi. Aku kehilangan seorang sahabat. Seorang sahabat yang banyak melukis kenangan indah bersama aku. Seorang sahabat yang aku sentiasa doakan kebahagiannya. Dia pergi tanpa pesan. Dia tinggalkan keluarga, dia tinggalkan suami yang tak sampai enam bulan dinikahi, dia pergi tinggalkan teman-teman yang teramat menyayanginya, dia pergi tinggalkan segala-galanya untuk menghadap Penciptanya. Setiap kali namanya terngiang di telinga, hati aku jadi sebu. Cepat benar kau pergi, Sheila... Al-Fatihah aku hadiahkan untukmu setiap kali aku teringatkan saat kita bersama. Kau tenanglah di sana, wahai sahabat.

Tukar kerja...

Akhirnya, aku beranikan diri keluar dari zon selesa. Akhirnya, aku mengambil keputusan muktamad untuk berhenti dari kerja aku sekarang dan langsung menukar haluan aku. Setelah tiga tahun menghadapi kerenah manusia dewasa yang pelbagai, aku bakal menghadapi kerenah anak-anak kecil. Kesabaran perlu tinggi. Takpe, training untuk masa depan tu. Eh? Ehehehe.

Itu serba sedikit tahun 2011 aku. Banyak lagi sebenarnya yang berlaku. Tapi takkan nak cerita semua kat sini, kan? Tak muat la oi. Kalau nak tau sepintas lalu, scroll ajelah kat toolbar Junkyard kat sebelah kanan tu.

Ini penutup posting untuk 2011. Kita jumpa lagi tahun depan. Selamat tahun baru, kawan-kawan.

wordless wednesday #12 - true story

2011-12-21T10:25:00.004+08:00

supermums & superdads: a commitment of a lifetime

2011-12-13T14:44:00.000+08:00

Last Satruday, I was given the chance to attend a gathering of parents with special kids. They are from a support group in Facebook which is called Supermum's & Superdad's Angel Group. Held for two days from 10th December until 11th December 2011 at Perangsang Templer Golf Club, it was the first gathering to be held for this group.

I was appointed as the emcee for the event. For two days, I was exposed to the lives of this special children, or angels. I have to say, it was indeed an eye-opener to get to know all the families. I have a new-found respect for the parents who are so committed, dedicated and determined to give and do the best for their angels.

Seminars were also held during the gathering, where credible and awesome speakers were invited. Fezia Tyebally, Chad Timmermans, Puan Nur Rafidah (UKM), Encik Mohamad Kholid Hamzah, and Dr. Hasnah Toran (UKM) were the speakers during the two-days gathering. Each is an expert in their own field. Honestly, I learned a lot of things from the seminars. Even though my experience with special kids are very limited, I think I can relate and understand what the speakers were talking about.

Chad preparing to start his session. Fezia doing the introduction to Watsu based hydrotherapy.

Puan Nur Rafidah, Encik Kholid and Dr. Hasnah giving their talks.

Apart from the seminars, activities like sports and ice-breaking session were also organized by the very competent committee. I believe each family had tonnes of fun during all the activities. Though it was the first time meeting each other, the families got along really well. I guess having one particular thing in common made them comfortable with each other even more than family with typical kids.

Supermums and superdads with their angels.


6-year old angel, Janna putting all the candies in her shirt. Smart girl.

Sukaneka!

Y'know, honestly, those two days were such memorable days. I get to know some new people, I get to know some of the angels, who are very adorable and yes, they're very special. A 17-year old angel, Nadia, especially is very affectionate with people. She would hug the people around her, without caring if they're strangers.

The normal kids with their own activities.

After two days being with the families, I have to admit, I admire them all for their strength and courage in raising their angels as best as they can. The little angels are mostly happy lot, smiling and laughing, responding well to their environment. I fell in love with them all. I really did.

Little angel Sofea with her superdad. She's a daddy's princess. I just wanna take her home with me.

The very bubbly Janna with Chad in the pool during Fezia's session.

Mustaqim and his supermum.

Aiman @ Iman. Handsome dude, eh? He loves the pool a lot. A LOT.

Little Damia' and her supermum. Isn't she cute? Awww...

The backbone of the event, Kak Ju and her little angel, Aiman with his sisters.

All in all, it was a successful first gathering, in my honest opinion. I am humbled and honored and floored to be able to participate in this event. It ain't easy to care for these angels but what these people have, they have guts, they have awesomely huge hearts. My hats off to the supermums and superdads.

The Supermums.

The Superdads.

My heartfelt thanks to my aunt, Mak Tam Azlina Abdul Aziz for giving me the chance to come along, to Kak Ju and her husband for all the assistance getting us back and fro between the clubhouse and the condo. Same goes to Kak Mazni and her husband. And thank you, thank you, thank you so much to all the families for making me feel like I am a part of your family as well.

I've said it once, and I will say it again. To the supermums and superdads, I salute all of you!

in memory of sheila...

2011-12-12T11:12:00.000+08:00

It was 9.55am when I first read about it last Saturday. I was busy packing my stuff for one night away from home. I had the chance to log in to my Facebook in the midst of the packing. And then I saw it. The heartbreaking news.

"Isteri saya telah pulang ke rahmatullah pada pukul 9.30 pagi ini. Innaalillahiwainnailaahiraji'un. Doakan supaya dia ditempatkan di kalangan org beriman."

I had to stop everything I do and sit down. I SMS-ed Dian, another friend about the news. She's gone. She's really gone. I told myself that I will accept whatever Allah has written for her. He knows the best. She won't be suffering anymore. She has gone to a better place, this friend of mine. So I blinked back my tears. I held on to what little strength I have. I told myself I need to hold myself together for the next two days. I have a job to do. And I'm going to do it no matter what.

So for two days, I let the thought of Sheila tucked securely behind a thin wall of my mind. Sometimes, the thought would sneak in, threatening to unravel its sorrow on me. But I pushed it back. Until last night, when I had the world to myself. Slowly, Sheila's face played in my mind. And along with her, the memories surfaced.

There were the nights when we would hang around at the playground behind our rented flat. We would sit on the bench, licking away at our ice creams. While we talked and laughed. We talked of so many things. Our families, our friends, our studies. We talked about boys and other little things girls will talk about. She would always be the one who'd crack jokes and tease me.

There was that time we were studying together for our finals and she broke down and cried. The stress got to her. And all four of us ended up crying as well. But we laughed at the silliness of it after a while. We laughed so hard that the neighbor came knocking at our door, asking us to shut up as it was already late into the night. That brought fresh laughter, though muted.

Then there were the times when we had our meals together in the house, or at the mamak restaurant near to the house, or at the campus' cafe. Or the time when we walked together to have our dinner at Bawal Power. The times we had in the classes. And the one time she comforted me when problem rose between me and some of my friends. She was there when my tears came trickling down at the betrayal of my so-called best friend.

The short time I had with Sheila, it was more vivid than all the times I was in Penang for my study. I don't remember having any arguments or fights with Sheila. I don't even remember if I've ever been angry with Sheila. Not once. I guess the kind of friendship we have is one that is in complete understanding with each other. God, how I miss all that time we had together.

The last time I saw Sheila was at her husband's majlis menyambut menantu. She looked so pretty. She looked well despite losing the first child she was carrying. I couldn't tell just how much pain and sorrow were hidden behind her smiling face resulting from the miscarriage. My heart went out to her for the brave front she puts on. She's like that, that Sheila. She's tough. We changed few words during the function and I managed to hug her. Little that I know that it would be the last time for me to see her, hear her voice and hold her.

Sorrow and grief hit me with such force that I could not breathe. I lose a friend. A friend that has been so good to me. A friend that never asked anything in return. A friend that made me laugh. A friend who waited for me to get on the bus heading home before she headed home herself. I cried like the day I cried when I lose my father. Yes, I accept it. Yes, I am redha with her passing away. But I had to mourn for that friend I lose, the friend that I will never have the chance to hear her laughter again. The friend who just got married to the man she loved last September.

Rest easy now, Sheila. You've been such a good friend in your life. That's why so many people are mourning for your loss. You've made your presence felt in so many lives, especially your loved ones. Rest now, my friend. There is one special place in my heart that you'll live forever. I'm gonna miss you alright, but I know right now, you're in a better place. I love you, Sheila. And goodbye, my dear friend.

Al-Fatihah...

prayer for a friend

2011-12-06T10:32:00.001+08:00

A close and good friend of mine, Sheila, met with an accident yesterday morning. She is now in a critical condition with brain and liver badly injured. She's in the ICU at Hospital Temerloh. She is now fighting for her life. Surgery cannot be performed until her blood pressure stabilized. This 48 hours will be a critical time for her.

Please, include her in your prayers, whoever you are, wherever you are...

life-saving facts

2011-12-05T14:30:00.001+08:00

A new SMS/message/e-mail has gone viral in Malaysia last week. The message sounds more or less like this:

"For the next few days, please do not drink any product from Pepsi, Tropicana Juice, Sprite, 7Up, Coca Cola etc. A worker from the company has added his blood contaminated with HIV into the drinks. As seen on NTV7. Please forward this message bla bla bla bla bla..."

My, my. Such serious message. My ass shivered when I read that message. Let's get the facts straight, shall we?

Fact #1

The message said any product from Pepsi bla bla bla Coca-Cola. Now wait a minute here. Pepsi and Coca-Cola are two different products from two different companies. That should tip you off straight away that this message is a hoax. It can't be that the worker is working for two different companies, no? Pepsi is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo while Coca Cola is produced by The Coca-Cola Company. Go google it. Now.

Fact #2

HIV does not live long outside the body. Even if small amounts of HIV-infected blood or semen was consumed, exposure to the air, heat from cooking, and stomach acid would destroy the virus. Therefore, there is no risk of contracting HIV from eating food, or in this case, from drinking Pepsi or Coke or Tropicana Juice or Sprite or even Barbican.

Fact #3

The message is originated from India. The original message is full of grammar mistakes that I cringed reading it. Here's the message:

[Source]

See how ridiculous the message is? Whoever started this must be hanged to death. Seriously. And when the message comes to Malaysia, ND TV becomes NTV7. Nice, very nice.

Fact #4

Those drinks mentioned in the message are loaded with sugar. It's not good for you. So don't even drink it in the first place. I don't need to remind you that, do I? Meh. Like you're going to even listen to me. Big Mac + Fries + Coke = WIN, right? Riiiiiight.

Fact #5

Those who believe this message and forward it to other people? They are called IDIOTS.

awak sayang saya tak?

2011-12-02T15:41:00.001+08:00

"Awak..."
"Hmm?"
"Awak sayang saya tak?"
"Sayang."
"Yeke?"
"Yela."
"Tu aje?"
"Maksud awak?"
"Yela... awak sayang saya banyak mana?"
"Banyak sangat."
"Hmm..."
"Tak puas hati la tu."
"Takdelah..."
"Yelah tu."
"Malas lah nak cakap dengan awak ni. Bye!"

Aku kira, dialog macam di atas sering terjadi antara sepasang kekasih. Aku rasalah. Aku tak banyak pengalaman tapi aku rasa aku pernah bertanyakan soalan macam di atas satu ketika dulu. Saja nak dengar jawapan dari pakwe masa tu. Perempuan suka sebenarnya dengan ayat-ayat cinta/romantis macam tu. Eh, yeke? Yelah kot. Aku kan perempuan, aku tau lah. Berbunga rasanya hati kalau sang kekasih cakap "Saya sayang awak" atau "I love you", tak gitu? Haruslah!

Dengan Encik Tunang, aku tak ingat aku pernah tanya tak soalan-soalan macam tu. Serius aku tak ingat. Pernah ke tanya? Tapi jujur cakap, aku tak terasa nak tanya. Ada perkara, kita tak perlu tanya. Dari gerak gaya, dari nada, dari perbuatan, kita boleh tau samada seseorang itu sayangkan kita atau tak. Lagi pun, lepas berapa kali bercouple, aku rasa soalan "Awak sayang saya tak?" ni dah semakin tak relevan. Kenapa? Sebab bagi aku, bila kita perlu tanya soalan macam tu, semacam kita rasa insecure dengan perhubungan yang sedia ada. Itu pada pandangan akulah.

Sebenarnya, pada pandangan aku, kata-kata sayang atau cinta tu, biarlah datang secara natural. Atau secara spontan. Kan lebih manis dan mengujakan macam tu? Kata-kata sayang/cinta tak perlu diminta-minta. Tak perlu juga dipaksa-paksa. Tak seronok macam tu. Macam tak ikhlas pun ada kan kan kan? Aku tau, orang perempuan yang suka sangat tanya soalan ni. Kalau jawab tak mengikut kehendak hati, mulalah muncung panjang sedepa, boleh buat gantung hanger. Eleh... toksah nak nipu akulah kata korang tak pernah buat camtu. Aku perempuan, aku tahulah!

Tapi kan kan kan... kenapa eh, kita selalu terlupa nak ucapkan kata-kata sayang tu pada ahli keluarga kita? Kalau kat pakwe ke, makwe ke, laju je. Hari-hari cakap "I love you! Muah muah muah!" kat SMS, kat YM, kat Twitter, kat Facebook, kat blog, kat mane-mane jelah. Sampai naik muak orang tengok. Tapi kalau kat mak ayah, takde pun nak muah muah muah. Ok, janganlah sampai muah muah muah. Kang orang tua tu kata korang buang tebiat. Cukup sekadar "I love you, mak!" atau "Love you, ayah!"

Malu? Sebenarnya aku pun sama jugak. Mama bukan jenis yang affectionate macam tu. Dia bab-bab macam cerita Hindustan ni kureng sikit. Tapi Hari Raya dan hari lahir Mama jadi hari istimewa, bila anak-anak peluk cium Mama dan tanpa segan-silu cakap "Love you, Mama!" Salah konsep ni. Patutnya hari-hari kena cakap dan buat. Tapi seriuslah, nanti Mama kata aku buang tebiat. So macam mana?

SMS?

Hantar e-mail?

Cakap depan-depan?

Isshhhh...

Takpelah, tunggu je lah 27 Disember nanti aku cakap kat Mama "I love you."

wordless wednesday #11 - you and your drama

2011-11-30T10:10:00.001+08:00

day 1 - big fight

2011-11-29T13:45:00.001+08:00

Sometimes, it's easier to feel unhappy rather than vice versa. It's easier to forget the good times and remember the hard times. It's easier to give up than just fight. It's easier to lost track of everything than keeping your life on the right lane. It's easier to just not do anything at all.

But then, that's not life. That's not how we're suppose to go on. We fall, we lose, we suffer. But that doesn't mean life will stop at that. We fall, we get back up. No matter how long it will take, we will get up. We might scraped ourselves by falling down but it will heal in time. We lose, we learn from it again and again. We suffer, but always not for long. We find hope. We find strength. We find courage.

The process of changing, turning your life around is never easy. It's a bumpy road to travel through. Challenges will come your way. Patience and faith will be tested

...

....

.....

......

What crap. I want a Big Mac, with fries and Coke. I want Secret Recipe's chocolate brownies topped with vanilla ice-cream. I want pizza and chicken lasagna from Domino's. I want KFC's Hot & Spicy chicken. I want a plate of nasi lemak with chicken rendang.

But most of all, I want to look good for myself. So I will prevail. I will fight the temptation. I will succeed.

And maybe, I should stop watching Food Network.

inglish edukesyen

2011-11-25T10:36:00.000+08:00

Baru-baru ni, bila Harimau Muda menang pingat emas untuk Sukan SEA, Liverpool FC mengucapkan tahniah kat Harimau Muda melalui Facebook. Maka berduyun-duyunlah rakyat Malaysia mengaku mereka bangga menjadi rakyat Malaysia dan mengucapkan terima kasih kat LFC sebab ucapan tahniah tu. Bukan tu isu yang aku nak bangkitkan kat sini sebenarnya. Isu sebenarnya adalah apabila aku nampak komen-komen yang kata ini:

Congrates! Congrates! Congrates! Aku terpaksa facepalm bila nampak perkataan ni. Aku rasa malu bagi pihak mereka yang guna perkataan 'Congrates' ni. Serius weh. Dari mana korang belajar perkataan ni? Habaq mai sat, sapa yang ajaq hangpa perkataan 'Congrates' ni? Kalau cari dalam kamus dwi-bahasa, tak jumpa perkataan ni. Hatta google translate pun tak mampu nak translatekan perkataan ni. Tak caya? Tengok ni:

Nampak? Aku tak tipu. Perkataan 'Congrates' ni tak wujud, wahai kawan-kawan sekalian. Ya, aku tau korang nak mengucapkan 'Tahniah' dengan penuh bergaya tapi tolonglah gunakan perkataan yang betul. Perkataan asalnya adalah 'Congratulations' atau dalam bahasa ibunda kita, 'Tahniah'. Dan kependekan 'Congratulations' ialah BUKAN 'CONGRATES'. Kependekannya ialah 'CONGRATS'. Yang korang memandai pergi tambah huruf E tu siapa yang ajar? Ayah Pin ye? Patutlah...

Kalau korang letak 'Congrats', nescaya google translate pun mampu menafsirkannya...

Nampak tu? Tak nampak, sila klik kat gambar untuk gambar yang lebih besar dan jelas. Kalau tak nampak gak, sah pendek umur. Benda ni sangat simple sebenarnya, tapi yang salah tetap salah. Sebutan pun akan jadi lain. Banyak kali dah aku nampak perkataan 'Congrates' ni di Facebook, di blog, di Twitter pun ada walaupun rakyat Twitterjaya dah berapa kali perli perkataan 'Congrates' tu. Kenapalah kita suka sangat nak menambah atau ubah benda yang dah sedia simple, hah? Musykil, musykil.

Jadi, tolonglah, berhenti guna perkataan yang tak wujud tu. Malu tau Suarez ke, Gerrard ke tengok korang guna perkataan yang tak wujud tu. Bila Nelly kata orang Malaysia tak pandai cakap inglish, korang marah. Tapi kalau dah eja congrats pun tak betul, nak salahkan siapa?

Betul kata Usop Wilcha, penting tau inglish edukesyen tu.

wordless wednesday #10 - siriusly?

2011-11-23T15:39:00.001+08:00

[Source]

hear the roar?

2011-11-22T14:52:00.001+08:00

Tigers pounce. Unsuspectingly.

I bet last night hundreds, maybe even thousands, young Malaysian across the country are aspired to be a footballer. Just like Baddrol Bakhtiar. Just like Khairul Fahmi Che Mat. Or Mohd Muslim Ahmad. Or Gurusamy Kandasamy. These are the Malaysian heroes. The heroes that silenced Gelora Bung Karno Stadium. The heroes that, despite all the taunts, insults, threats and boos came out triumphant in front of the people who preferred to call all Malaysians as "Maling".

Well, seems like us malings stole the medal right under your nose. People may or may not remember the amount of medals you took (either fairly or otherwise), but people, especially us malings will always, always remember the day our Harimau pounced on Garuda.

Congratulations to the Harimau Muda squad. And thank you for silencing the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium. You guys made them weep, yo! Priceless.

And Mr. F put it ever so aptly at the end of the match.

"Ambik upah tak hormat lagu kebangsaan orang."

murder on the dance floor

2011-11-21T18:52:00.000+08:00

She glanced at the clock on the right side at bottom of her white Dell laptop. 5:47 PM. She won't be able to make it today, she thought to herself. She drummed her fingers on the desk, her foot tapping impatiently to some unheard music. She could feel the bile rising in her throat. She bit her lower lips hard as she went through her Facebook's news feed. Same old, same old. She switched to Twitter. The timeline was filled with tiger avatars in various forms, even in the form of the popular Tiger Balm. She smiled. Had to. The spirits were high, obviously.

She took another glance at the person across. Her patience limit at an all-time high. She turned the ring on her right ring finger around and around. Even the tiger avatars could not cheer her up anymore. 5:54 PM. She reached for her mobile.

"Mama balik dulu." she typed and pressed the 'Send' button. Her heart cried at the thought of having to bear with the ever-so-efficient KTM Komuter. She sighed, resigned to her fate as she listened to the chatter of that person across. She typed in the pig's icon in the open Yahoo! Messenger's window.

"Oh, it's very easy. I can do it by myself actually," after what it seemed like an eternity, the person across her desk said nonchalantly. Her fingers tensed. 6:02 PM.

She saw red. Only red. She got up. Rage boiled in her. Slowly she walked towards the desk across.

"Tahu tak hari ni final match Harimau Malaya lawan Indonesia? Tahu tak!? Tadi kau yang beria suruh aku tunggu sebab nak edit dokumen? Punya setia aku dok menunggu macam tunggul, siap mesej mak aku suruh dia balik dulu sebab tunggu kau. In the end kau cakap kau boleh buat sendiri! Ambik ni! Ambik! Ambik!" she grabbed the black netbook and beat that man senselessly on the head. After 15 minutes of rage, witnessed by the young lady from a foreign country, the man slumped unconsciously on the desk. His head a bloody mess.

A smile curled up her lips. Satisfied, she put the netbook back on the desk and walked back to her place. She took a deep breath. And laughed maniacally. Oh, so much fun! She thought.

Yeah, right. In my head. All in my head. 6:52 PM. All alone in the office typing this shit. Blegh.

wordless wednesday #9 - them...

2011-11-16T16:00:00.001+08:00

bersyukurlah!

2011-11-14T16:24:00.001+08:00

Kata orang, bersyukurlah dengan apa yang kita ada.
Kata orang, bersyukurlah dengan keadaan kita seadanya.
Pendek kata, kata orang, bersyukurlah wahai umat manusia oi!

Aku bukan orang tak tau bersyukur. Aku ada rumah untuk didiami, ada baju untuk dipakai, ada kereta Mama nak tumpang pergi kerja tiap-tiap hari, ada laptop sendiri untuk memblog benda-benda mengarut seperti ni, dan walaupun gemuk dan rabun, aku tak tergolong dalam golongan OKU. Alhamdulillah. Aku antara manusia yang boleh dikatakan bertuah jugakla di muka bumi ni.

Ya, aku tahu bersyukur. Tapi kadang-kadang, harus diingat, dengan menerima keadaan kita seadanya sahaja, manusia bisa jadi complacent. Tahu apa tu complacent? Okey, jom kita try google translate tengok apa maksud complacent:

Complacent = berpuas hati. Senang cerita, complacent ni bermakna senang sangat berpuas hati. Aku sebenarnya spesis yang complacent jugak. Aku buat kerja yang sama dah tiga tahun lebih. Aku tak pernah terfikir nak tukar kerja. Sampailah ke bulan lepas.

Aku buat semua kerja. Tapi gaji aku adalah sangat ciput. Nampak macam tak bersyukur kan? Macam ni lah, bayangkan situasi aku. Aku buat semua kerja kat ofis aku. Dari buat quotation ke tulis cek, dari beli alat tulis ke kemas ofis. Semua aku buat. Sebab aku staf tunggal kat ofis. Takdek orang lain dah kerja sini kecuali aku dengan bos. Jadi kalau ada kesilapan, ada benda yang tak kena, siapa yang kena marah? Cuba teka, cuba teka. Pandaiii...

Kadang - kadang aku kerja sampai 9 malam. Selalu aku kerja lebih dari masa yang sepatutnya. Aku tak pernah dapat OT. Aku ulang, tak pernah dapat OT. Ada orang, bila tau aku masih di ofis pukul 8 malam, kemain galak lagi kata aku kaya, banyak OT. Dan selalunya aku berdoa dalam hati, semoga masin mulut kalian ni. Esok lusa boleh aku pecat bos sendiri sambil buat gaya Donald Trump, "You're fired!"

Pagi ni, bila bangun tidur, aku rasa sangat-sangat depressed. Sangat. Aku jenis yang tak layan Isnin yang biru. Aku jarang terkena penyakit Isnin yang biru. Tapi pagi ni, aku rasa sangat berat nak kerja. Aku datang kerja dengan hati yang tak gembira, dengan semangat yang pudar. Agaknya, bekalan semangat dan kesabaran aku dah nak kehabisan dikikis masa. Aku rasa sangat penat. Sangat.

Mungkin aku tak bersyukur. Ada kerja, ada pendapatan. Tapi cubalah letak diri korang pulak kat tempat kat aku. Kalau korang tak tertekan dalam masa seminggu atau sebulan buat apa yang aku buat dengan bayaran yang aku dapat, tolonglah gantikan tempat aku. Pleaseeeeeee....

wordless wednesday #8 - violets are blue

2011-11-02T09:40:00.001+08:00

nobody said it was easy

2011-11-01T10:27:00.001+08:00

I took one step a time. Gentle little steps. Gingerly. I tried to keep my face blank, trying to wipe off any trace of discomfort. I won't break, I told myself repeatedly. I can do this, not so far away anymore. I tried to console myself. I listened to the chatter of the people around me, just to keep myself distracted. Some wore the look of dejection, they sat by the road glumly, staring at the ground, into nothingness. Some chatted amiably, as if nothing happened, as if it was a daily occurrence. Some went on aimlessly, looking somewhat lost.

He walked in a slow pace, just a step in front me. Once in a while, he would look back and smile. I would smile back, despite the pain I felt. I refused to let him see. I refused to give up right in front of him. So I dragged my legs, heavy as they were. I tried hard to ignore the burning pain. I took a swig from the bottle of water I was carrying. I adjusted the white cardigan I was wearing as it slipped off my shoulder. It was a bit hot. A little breeze would certainly help. But with the number of people milling around, a little breeze would go away unnoticed.

As I walked, I accidentally kicked a plastic water container. Seemed like there were hundreds of those thing strewn all over the place. Plastic water bottles, food wrappers and containers, aluminium cans, straws, plastic bags, cigarette boxes. It was a pity, really, to witness this kind of almost careless neglect done by most people. I could only shake my head. The condition inside was even worse. I almost gagged earlier when we were inside. How could people be so irresponsible? I thought to myself.

He stopped suddenly. Only then I noticed I was lagging behind. The pain had become more pronounced. He waited for me patiently and as I got closer, he held out his hand. I took it and hand in hand, we walked. According to my pace, which was very slow. He asked me if I'm doing okay. I just nodded. He took my black handbag and slung it on his shoulder casually. I adjusted my cardigan again. I could feel the sweat seeping through my black blouse inside the white cardigan.

Halfway through, we stopped. He sat on the ground and looked up at me. He asked me to sit down. I shook my head.

"Pakai kasut abanglah, nak?"

"Habis abang nak pakai apa? Sandal ni?"

"Yelah."

I looked at him incredulously. He took off his simple white slip-on shoe.

"Dah, tukar."

And so we walked to Tesco's parking lot side by side, my hand in his, a little faster than before. Me wearing his shoe. And him in my brown heeled sandals.

So Terengganu lose the Cup to Negeri Sembilan. So I got my feet blistered. I went to bed smiling anyway that night.

My Mr. F is such a sweetheart, no?

once it is dark...

2011-10-31T12:17:00.000+08:00

I was standing outside a parking lot when a woman walked past me. She walked quickly in her yellow baju kurung and beige handbag. Her hair was twisted in a chignon elegantly. Her fair skin turned to a delicate shade of red, thanks to the blazing sun. She went to a white Honda Civic parked near to the lake. A silver MyVi sat on the right side of her car while a black Vios parked on the left. I don't know the lady, but somehow, my eyes followed her every move.

She unzipped her beige handbag. Looking for the car keys, I assume. While she searched, three figures suddenly appeared in front of her. Out of nowhere. Her eyes went wide at the three figures. Blood drained from her face. And I could feel the chill in the air as I stood and watch the three figures closed in on her. Time seemed to stop. Three figures garbed in white with shoulder length hair had their backs to me. I couldn't tell if any of them was male or female, or both. All I could see is the fear in the woman's ashen face. But I couldn't do anything. I was rooted to the place where I stood. Alone.

The three figure got closer to her. That's when I noticed something weird. No legs. Where their legs should be, I could only see thin white dress fading away into the ground. I could feel the fear seeped into me. My heart beat madly inside of my chest. I wanted to scream. I wanted to run away. But it was impossible. It's like, I lost the control of my body. So I just stood there, staring at the lady and three figures in sheer fear. Though the sun is blazing over our head, I felt cold. So cold, I shivered.

The three figures were talking to that lady in a language I could not understand. Wait. They weren't talking. They were whispering to her. Somehow, even quite far away, I could hear them whisper. The sound made my hair stand. By this time, the lady in bright yellow baju kurung seemed to be in some sort of trance. Her face went completely blank. Expressionless. Her eyes, they were as empty as her face. She dropped her handbag. The three figures kept whispering to her in a foreign language.

Suddenly, the three white figures moved away from the lady. They still had their backs to me. The lady took one step. Then another. And another. Slowly. Ever so slowly. Fear gripped me. I wanted to scream so badly. The lady was heading towards the lake nearby. Somehow I knew she will jump into the lake. Somehow I knew she will drown. I wanted to stop her. I wanted to run and grab her. But I couldn't move. Not even a muscle. The scream got lodged in my throat.

Only few steps separated the lady from the seemingly menacing deep green lake. The three figures stood to watch, standing very close to each other, shoulder to shoulder. The whispering has stopped. I shut my eyes tightly and inhaled. I was reading every surah from the Quran which I could remember at that time, which wasn't much. I fumbled a lot. I was shaking so badly. When I opened my eyes, the lady was standing very close to the edge of the lake. No, no, no! I was screaming in my head. Only in my head.

I looked at the three figures. With their backs to me, they floated away together, not missing one single step. They looked like they were joined to each other, like Siamese twin. I looked back at the lady. From the way she moved, I knew she was about to jump into the lake. And my voice decided to come back at that time. I screamed. I screamed at the top of my lungs. I screamed with all my might. The lady stopped. She stood still at the edge of the lake. She turned around, looking directly at me. Her face were contorted with fear. She pointed her finger at a direction. My eyes followed the pointed finger.

The three figures had turned around. The three figures were closing in on me. The three figures were hissing with anger. My heart stopped. I couldn't even breath. I was totally engulfed in fear. I can see their faces now.

Problem is, they didn't have any faces. At all. No eyes. No nose. No mouth. And they were closing in on me. I couldn't run away. I couldn't move. All I could do is wait.

And I woke up, drenched in sweat. I gulped the air few times before reaching for my Xperia mini pro beside my pillow. 4.30 a.m. A dream. It was just a dream. No, no. Not a dream. Nightmare. Yet, another nightmare.

alkisah pelancong pak arab

2011-10-11T12:53:00.000+08:00

Aku benci kebanyakan pelancong dari Timur Tengah. Serius aku benci. Ye, diorang penjana ekonomi negara. Ye, diorang belanja banyak di bumi bertuah ni. Tapi sesungguhnya, perangai mereka yang merasakan kedudukan mereka yang lebih tinggi dari orang lain membuatkan aku tersangat benci dan meluat dengan pelancong dari negara-negara Timur Tengah.

Pak Arab ni kebanyakannya rasa darjat dan kedudukan diorang lagi tinggi dari orang lain. Superiority. Diorang rasa diorang banyak duit, keturunan Nabi Muhammad S.A.W., diorang boleh pijak kepala bangsa lain. Bangsat sungguh perangai mereka ni. Serius. Dalam beberapa minggu kebelakangan ni, company aku handle dua family Arab. Dua saja. Tapi sakit kepala macam handle pelancong lima bas.

Alkisah Pertama

Pak Arab ni nak duduk hotel bertaraf 4 atau 5 bintang sahaja. 3 bintang, sebelah mata pun tak pandang. Tapi yang kelakar, harga hotel nak yang 3 bintang. Jadah apa? Satu keluarga ni, sendiri minta satu hotel di Langkawi yang agak popular. 4 bintang. Dah sampai, boleh pulak komplen bilik kecik. Nak tukar hotel yang lagi satu, adik beradik hotel ni jugak. Mengada sungguh. Kau yang mintak, lepas tu kau pulak komplen?

Alkisah Kedua

Family Pak Arab ni bukan besar pun, 2 dewasa dengan sorang anak kecik. Tapi kebanyakan operator pelancongan tahu, beg Pak Arab ni bukan kecik anak. Beg diorang boleh bawak masuk orang dewasa. So selalunya, operator akan provide van untuk diorang. Oi, ni Pak Arab oi! Tak main la van. Takde kelassss! Kurang-kurang nak MPV la. Avanza ke, Innova ke, Estima ke. Ni bagi van? Ewwww. Itulah perangai Pak Arab. Nak kereta atau MPV sahaja. Van tidak mahu. Mengada sungguh.

Alkisah Ketiga

Di KL, minta hotel taraf 4 bintang jugak. Tengah kota weh. Bukan hotel lekeh ni, hotel yang popular jugak. Dia sendiri mintak nak hotel ni. Ye, dia yang mintak. Kitorang cadangkan hotel lain, tak mau. Nak hotel nan satu ni jugak. Okeylah, customers are always right kan? Sampai hotel, guess what? Komplen lagi. Bilik kecik. Mengada tak? Mengada kannnn! Nak duduk bilik lain, nak Club Room. Pundek dia Club Room! Kalau dia nak bayar lebih takpe jugak. Mengada tahap cipan goreng berlada.

Alkisah Keempat

Ni yang terjadi hari ini. Satu family nak balik dah. Alhamdulillah, syukur dah nak balik. Kurang sakit kepala. Satu hari aku cari driver semalam, nak buat transfer out. Sampai pukul 11 malam pun aku dok cari driver lagi. Sebab driver asal ada family emergency, ada ahli keluarga dia meninggal. Nasib baik aku jumpa jugak driver. Pukul 11 pagi sepatutnya transfer. Pukul 11.30 driver call kata Pak Arab belum turun. Okey, takpe. Pak Arab ni tak pernahnya punctual, ~~macam KTM~~.

Dalam pukul 11.45, driver call sekali lagi. Dia kata Pak Arab nak van. Aku ulang, Pak Arab nak V.A.N. Aku dah hantar driver yang bawak Camry. Camry bukan kereta bodoh weh. Okey, driver aku dengan baik hatinya panggil kawan dia yang bawak van. Van sampai, dia buat hal lagi. Tahu apa Pak Arab tu nak? Dia nak van bawak beg dia pergi airport. Dan dia nak Camry tu bawak dia. Ya, van untuk beg sahaja. Beg yang 5 ketul yang sederhana besar. Yang boleh muat dalam Camry.

Tahu apa perasaan aku? Aku rasa nak bawak senapang pergi hotel tu, tembak Pak Arab tu kat kepala sambil kata "Eat shit and go to hell!"

wordless wednesday #7 - howling is absolutely necessary

2011-10-05T10:21:00.002+08:00

KTM: the never-ending story

2011-10-04T13:37:00.003+08:00

Look, I've been using KTM Komuter for as long as I can remember. And as long as I can remember, the word 'delay' is rather synonym with KTM Komuter. Seriously. How many of us KL-ites have experienced KTM's 'efficiency' in terms of the on-time performance? On Fridays, especially, the service goes from worst to horrifying. You don't even wanna know what happen when it rains. You'll spit in disgust, believe me. What are they doing, I have no idea, since the service never improved since... I don't know... forever?

And then, come the news. They're replacing the old coaches with new ones. The SCS (six-car set) is said to make its debut this December. 38 sets for six coaches. Here's a sneak peek at the SCS:

Source

Honestly, I don't have any complaints about the current coaches they're using. Most of the time, they're decent and comfortable. Yes, sometimes the air-conditioner doesn't work but that is, to me, minor problem. The issue here, the main point is, the constant delay. Constant as in every single day. Yes. Every. Single. Day. Even on the weekends, early morning, when people are not working and the crowd is considerably lesser than that of weekdays. Why is that? It is simply unacceptable.

Don't talk about the new coaches. Let's talk about your efficiency, or lack of it, KTM. Just how many people are late to work and just how many people got home after dinner because of your constant delay? Your service is an utter embarrassment to the people of Malaysia. Seriously. And don't go saying that if we don't like your service, we can take our asses to other mode of transportation or buy our own car. Some of us do not have the option or the luxury to do so.

And you, the users, be considerate, will ya? Other people queued up at the right line for hours and some of you brainless morons just come and stand in the middle of the line like a fucking boss. For example, this lady:

This kind of attitude pissed me off more than KTM's delay. People queued up for hours, along the correct line and you just come up, with your fucking innocent face and just stood there in the middle? Be thankful I didn't shove your ass off the platform, lady. Now all you people do not do this. Yes, I understand we're all trying to get somewhere as soon as possible, but this kind of attitude is a big NO-NO. Like I say, be considerate.

And should you're able to avoid using KTM Komuter, avoid it all cost. Honestly.

how i met him

2011-10-03T10:49:00.000+08:00

I know some of my friends were initially shocked when I announce my engagement. Without one single hint that I'm in a relationship with anyone, I dropped the engagement bomb. Even some of my relatives were surprised. My, my, what mystery, eh? I'm willing to bet that some of my readers are also surprised with the announcement, eh?

The truth is, after years of miserable relationship that failed, I kinda don't want to jinx this one. I kept it mostly to myself. But my sisters know about him once we started to get close. Well, you can't hide anything from your sisters, y'know. That's the rule in the family. It's enough that they know about him. I did not want the whole world to know. Yet. But even though it's out now I'm now tied to a man, most people still do not know him. Well, let just keep it that way, at least until the day I got married to him.

I've known him for years, this man. Years that I lost count of. We started off as casual friends, nothing major. He's the type who like to tease, kid around, whereas I was an over-sensitive, emotional sort at that time. Lots of time, I would just stop speaking to him and ignore him. I deleted him from my Yahoo! contacts far too many times. We shared nothing special at that time. We were, in a way, strangers. And after some time, we just stopped contacting each other. I was, of course, occupied with the other guys in my life.

And then one day, I saw a friend request from him in Facebook. Without thinking too much, I just approved the request. But still, we kept it casual, simple even. We said "Hi" to each other few times and that was about it. Then last year, after breaking up with my then boyfriend, I decided to catch a movie. And he offered to accompany me. I realized I was on the rebound, I was heart-broken and I swore to steer clear off men for a while. He wasn't aware of that fact. We went for the movie, anyway. Just the two of us. I couldn't even remember which movie did we saw that very first time.

And after that, we just sorta clicked. One movie after another, which led to dinner. Which led to many other things. Mizz Nina's album launch, the i-City trip, countless movies... and one day, he brought me to meet his colleagues. It kinda stopped me in my track and got me thinking, "Are we really serious?". The answer wasn't that hard to find. He makes me laugh all the time, he takes good care of me, he never raises his voice to me, he criticizes in a gentle way, he's affectionate. Who am I kidding, really? We are serious. We have feelings for each other. It caught me off guard at first, but it felt right. It felt wonderful. It still feels wonderful.

And so here we are now, engaged to each other. And pretty much in love. A year in a relationship, yes, it's young, it's fragile. But I do believe that what we have is strong. He sorta keeps me anchored, reminding me what's important in life. He keeps a clear head while mine is one big, jumbled mess. See, we're just great for each other. We may or may not know each other very well. But hey, God's willing, we will have a lifetime to figure out each other. In the meantime, we'll take it one day at at a time.

Wish us all the very best.

wordless wednesday #6 - beautiful hastiness

2011-09-14T11:52:00.001+08:00


This picture is courtesy of Mr. Fiancé himself.

this what surreal feels like

2011-09-13T11:02:00.002+08:00

Alright. Most of you probably know about this already. I'm engaged. Yes, I am. I got engaged last Saturday, on the 10th of September. I kept the relationship to myself mostly and my family as previous relationships failed miserably. I want this one to work. And Alhamdulillah, it works fine so far. And I am officially engaged.

The rings.

So according to the elders, the engagement will go on, more or less, for about a year. In the meantime, we're to prepare for the Big Day. I'm sorry, I don't have much pictures to show off here as the engagement came as a surprise on that day. We're not very prepared. But thankfully, everything went off smoothly. We got engaged, nevertheless. And for me, it still feels a bit surreal. I'm still trying to digest the fact that I am now engaged to be married. For a year. Or less! Phew. It's quite overwhelming, to be honest. But I'm taking it all in a stride.

So now, a lot of things to be done. A year will go by in a blink, trust me. I'm getting married. Who could've believe that, eh? Even I, myself is having a hard time to believe it. Me, getting married? Oh wow. Wow. This is... this is... unreal. Gotta get used to it, no? Dang, I'm feeling nervous already. Deep breath, everyone, deep breath. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Right.

Okay.

I still can't believe I'm engaged. And I'm getting married. Phew.

i got caught up

2011-09-05T17:14:00.001+08:00

Hey there, people. So how was your Raya? Great, I hope. My Raya is splendid, as usual. Good food and great company goes a loooooooong way to make you forget your work, even for a while.

Anyhow, something big is happening to me. Big. Major. And just thinking about it makes my stomach twist and turn in every possible way. It's not a bad thing. A good thing (I hope). Let this week past first, then I'll consider whether I'm gonna let you in on the big thing or not. Wish me luck, anyway.

And here comes the pictures from the Aidilfitri celebration. Well, some of it anyway...

My three beautiful sisters, garbed in jubah. Yep, we went for jubah this time around.

My dear, dear Tok laughing with Pak Su. She's so cute, no?

Pak Tam with his antiques. Never fail to make us laugh.

Both my Toks. Mama's side and Abah's side.

Went to arwah Abah's hometown and his childhood home. Felt kinda wistful. And surely, I miss him a lot. Now that my life is about to change in a major way, I miss his presence even more than ever. I hope he's happy and at peace wherever he is. I miss you, Abah. Al -Fatihah...

wordless wednesday #5 - oh, raya datang lagi!

2011-08-24T14:11:00.003+08:00

just enjoy the show

2011-08-16T11:12:00.000+08:00

Approximately two weeks to go before Raya. So how's the preparation coming along? Excited yet? Raya songs are being played on daily basis on local radio stations now that Raya is only two weeks away, feeding the Raya mood. Even the folks on Twitter are twittering away with Raya-themed hashtags.

As for me, well... maybe I'm getting old. Maybe. I don't feel like celebrating. Maybe it's tad too early? I dunno. Time will tell. The only thing I'm feeling great about is the chance to break away from work, from the office. One week without work? Pure bliss, I tell you. No waking up early in the morning. No primping yourself up for work. No dealing with KTM's crappy schedule. And most importantly, no drama (my Twitter followers will surely know what I'm talking about).

Another thing to look forward to, meeting my cousins and aunts and uncles. There will always be good times. The jokes, the laughter, the endless teasing... just good times. And some of my cousins are celebrating their Raya for the first time with their spouses. Now that is new. Additional family members. More good times ahead? Hopefully.

In the meantime, this little dude will be sorely missed...


Baby Aliff

My dear Aliff, now that it will be difficult to see you, please grow up strong and good. The lives and hearts you've touched, we will all be praying for you. We will forget you not, my dear boy. Miss you, we will but in our hearts, you will forever live. Take care, little dude. I really do love you so much.

wordless wednesday #4 - terlepas seekor!

2011-08-03T09:57:00.001+08:00

harimau main bola

2011-07-29T15:31:00.000+08:00

Sesungguhnya di sini aku mengaku, sebelum piala Suzuki, aku tak ambil pusing tentang pasukan bola sepak negara. Aku tak ambil kisah langsung. Aku tak kenal siapa Safee Sali, aku tak kenal siapa Khairul Fahmi, aku tak kenal siapa K. Rajagopal. Bagi aku, pasukan bola sepak Malaysia, pada suatu ketika, hanya wujud untuk meramaikan dunia sukan tempatan. Hanya nak bagi cukup syarat, kata orang.


Piala AFF Suzuki 2010

Itu dulu. Itu sebelum Harimau Malaya menang pingat emas di SEA Games, sebelum kita menang piala Suzuki di Indonesia. Aku rasa, selepas Harimau Malaya menang piala AFF Suzuki pada tahun lepas, lebih ramai orang yang dibukakan matanya. Termasuk aku. Baru aku nak nampak pasukan bola sepak negara. Better late than never, pada aku. Sekurang-kurangnya, takdelah susah sangat nak tengok kalau mereka ni beraksi secara langsung dari nak tengok Chelsea, kan?

Semalam, Harimau Malaya tumpas pada pasukan Singapura. Sedih? Kecewa? Sudah tentu. Tapi, semalam juga menyaksikan bahawa Harimau Malaya telah memenangi hati rakyat Malaysia. 85,000 tiket habis dijual. Aku bukan antara 85,000 yang bertuah tu. Aku tengok di Dataran Merdeka dengan rakyat Malaysia yang lain. Suasana sama meriah macam di stadium. Serius. Ok, taklah sehangat di stadium tapi semangat tu ada. Aku kira ini satu petanda yang cukup baik untuk arena bola sepak tanah air. Rakyat Malaysia mula kembali kepada bola sepak tempatan setelah bertahun lamanya disogokkan dengan aksi-aksi bola sepak dari negara luar.

Hero Malaya? Ahem.

Kini, baru kita kenal anak tempatan kita sendiri juga cekap bermain bola. Baru kita tahu kita boleh letak harapan pada orang kita sendiri. Tentunya perjalanan Harimau Malaya masih jauh. Masih banyak ruang untuk diperbaiki, dimantapkan. Tapi sekarang, Harimau Malaya ada sokongan yang kuat. Harimau Malaya sudah menjadi idola rakyat Malaysia. Harimau Malaya bermain dengan penuh integriti semalam, bagi aku. Takdelah langgar sikit berguling sampai 8 kali macam heroin Hindustan. Ya, macam heroin, bukan hero. Biar kekalahan itu jadi pengajaran, buat penambah pengalaman. Biarlah heroin-heroin berbaju merah bangga dengan kemenangan mereka. Mereka main wayang, bukan main bola.

Buat Harimau Malaya, aku bangga dengan kalian. Semoga Harimau Malaya terus melangkah ke depan. Taring biar kasi tunjuk sikit!

big plans

2011-07-25T12:39:00.000+08:00

People said, everything goes with money. Hard to argue really. In this world today, money is the universal language. No money, no talk. Easy. Simple.

But is it, really?

I have plans. Big plans. For the future. My future. And it is definitely not simple.

Wish me luck.

day 14 - procrastinator is me

2011-07-21T15:08:00.001+08:00

This is going to be a short update. Because I'm feeling guilty for not committing myself to the meme.

Day 14 - Favorite book of your favorite writer

The Five Greatest Warriors

Captain Jack West, Jr. is back with his mismatched crew members. This book starts off right where The Six Sacred Stones ends, where Captain West is falling to his death. But surely the hero cannot die. Captain West stays alive and continue his mission to save the world from the Dark Sun, from the power-hungry nations, and from his very own father.

This time, the challenges are more dangerous, more risky. Captain West has to race against time (as always) in order to save the entire human civilization from being wiped off the face of the earth. But along the way, he has to fight his father and half-brother. Captain West's team got separated as they continue on their assigned mission.

This book is more intense than the first two books, Seven Deadly Wonders and The Six Sacred Stones. The actions are more dizzying than ever. And being the final book in the Captain Jack West series, death is unavoidable. The deaths are mostly gruesome, that made me go "Shit!" at times. Captain West loses one of his best friends, and one of the key characters in the series.

To sum it all up, Five Greatest Warriors is one action-packed book that will keep you at the edge of your seat all the time. This is the best book out of the three books in the series. Kudos to you, Mr. Reilly

Okay, now excuse me while I go procrastinate a little bit more.

wordless wednesday #3 - i looked cool. virtually

2011-07-20T12:52:00.000+08:00

jauh sangat!

2011-07-15T15:28:00.000+08:00

Aku selalu jugak tengok/dengar orang mengeluh. Di Twitter. Di Facebook. Di blog. Di dunia bukan maya. Mana-mana saja ada aje orang yang mengeluh. Mengeluh pendek, mengeluh panjang, mengeluh sekerat... macam-macam ada. Aku pun ada juga mengeluh. Kalau benda tak terjadi ikut perkiraan aku, aku mengeluh. Kalau apa yang aku nak aku tak dapat, aku mengeluh. Kalau aku buat silap pun aku mengeluh. Manusia, kan. Mengeluh tu semacam satu karakteristik yang memang sudah ditanam dalam seseorang manusia. Macam aku. Macam kau. Macam dia.

Kadang-kadang, kita tak sedar pun kita mengeluh. Sebab dah terlalu biasa mengeluh.

Tapi, aku pun tahu, mengeluh itu tak baik. Tak baik sama sekali. Aku nak kikis sifat suka mengeluh tu. Kalau boleh, biar tiada keluhan langsung keluar dari mulut atau hati aku ni. Aku mahu hidup tanpa perlu adanya keluhan. Biar sedikit, biar kurang, biar sakit, aku tak mahu mengeluh. Aku cuma nak teruskan hidup dengan lapang dada. Susah memanglah susah, tapi bukan mustahil pun. Jangan sampai aku berpepatah pulak.

Mahu aku berlari

Berlari sejauh yang mungkin

Berlari dari realiti

Berlari dari masa lampau

Berlari dari masa kini

Berlari dari diri aku sendiri

Tapi...

Kiranya itu, bukan satu percaturan yang bijak

Berlarilah aku

Di atas treadmill pun jadilah

Destinasi aku...

Jauh sangat!

wordless wednesday #2 - "i'm a douchebag yang tak reti nak queue"

2011-07-06T10:23:00.000+08:00

wordless wednesday #1

2011-06-29T12:01:00.000+08:00

day 13 - the man behind

2011-06-20T13:30:00.005+08:00

Wow. I'm really taking my time with this book meme, eh? Hangat-hangat tahi ayam betul. But, I'll get to it. Trust me. Not.

Day 13 - Your favorite writer

Dude looks nerdy, no? He is Matthew Reilly.

I've got to thanks my cousin, Suria, for introducing me to my first Matthew Reilly's book. It was the first book of the Jack West's adventure series, Seven Deadly Wonders. That book got me hooked alright. I just love the way he writes. Never a dull moment in any of his books so far. And they're always fast-paced, full of riddles and puzzles and of course, interesting characters.

I think Matt Reilly is a genius, just like J.K Rowling. He creates this world of adventure filled with such interesting tidbits, histories, and characters. I've read all the books in the Jack West's adventure series and I love all three books. For me, you either hate or love his kind of style. I love it. Despite my love and devotion for chick-lits, I have a special room for Matt Reilly's books.

Oh. And I have so many favorite authors. There are Nora Roberts, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Julie James, Jennifer Crusie, Pamela Britton... err... do I need to go on here? Of course, you guys probably expected those names I mention as my favorite authors. But I've highlighted some books written by those ladies already so I thought I'd go with Reilly. I would've put Dan Brown but I heard his latest novel (can't remember the title) is a HUGE letdown. So, there you go.

k-pop: apa masalahnya?

2011-06-17T16:08:00.003+08:00

Kalau ikutkan, aku malas nak komen benda ni sebenarnya. Sebab apa? Sebab bagi aku, benda remeh. Semua orang ada pendapat sendiri, kan kan kan? Tapi kenapa, dalam kita menyuarakan pendapat kita sendiri, kita tak boleh nak menghormati pendapat orang lain? Kenapa? Why, tell me why? Kau suka keroncong, aku suka zapin, apa masalahnya? Okey, tipu. Aku tak tau pun sebenarnya nak layan zapin ni. Aku cuma bagi contoh.

Aku tengok kebelakangan ni, ramai betul orang mengutuk K-Pop. Ramai yang mencari sisi-sisi negatif K-Pop. Ramai yang hanya nampak kekurangan K-Pop. K-Pop, by the way, ialah merujuk kepada Korean Pop, iaitu lagu-lagu/muzik dari Korea. Aku suka K-Pop. Serius. Aku minat K-Pop. Aku suka BIG BANG, aku suka 2NE1, aku suka Baek Ji-Young, aku layan Girls Generation/SNSD.

BIG BANG: Seungri, GD, Taeyang, Daesung dan TOP. Tengok, aku siap tahu nama lagi.

Aku takla searif mana nak menilai sesuatu hasil seni tu, tapi lagu/muzik, macam makanan jugak, ikut selera masing-masing, ye dak? Aku kata lagu-lagu K-Pop tu sedap didengar dan menarik untuk ditonton. Faham ke tak lagu diorang tu? Helo, kata music is universal? Yang Shakira dok nyanyi Waka Waka tu, korang faham ke setiap bait-bait kata dia? Jangan nak tipu sangat. Korang nyanyi lagu tu segala idgham, dengung dia entah betul entah tidak pun bukan korang tahu, ye dak? Samalah macam aku dengar lagu K-Pop. Janji lagu-lagu dia kena dengan selera aku, beat dia menarik, jalan aje.

Girls Generation/SNSD. Maap, memang aku tak tau nama-nama diorang ni. Aku kenal Yoona sorang je.

Adik aku yang paling bongsu, Syaqirin, suka layan lagu-lagu rock kapak zaman 90-an. Segala macam BPR, Black Dog Bone bagai dia layan. Dia pernah nyanyi lagu Cinta Pantai Merdeka (aku tak tau siapa nyanyi) depan aku dari mula sampai habis. Lagu-lagu rock kapak tu makanan dia hari-hari. Aku setakat mengusik je kata taste dia teruk. Sebab aku tak layan lagu-lagu macam tu. Tapi takdela pulak aku pi huha sana huha sini mengutuk lagu-lagu tu dengan riaknya. Dah selera dia ke situ, biaq pi la kat dia, ye dak? Takkan kita nak paksa orang suka benda yang kita suka? Mana adil, beb!

2NE1. Pun aku tak tahu nama.

Ada sesetengah orang yang layan K-Pop, tapi kengkonon buat-buat tak layan. Kat Twitter habis dikutuknya K-Pop tu macam sampah gila. Padahal kalau lagu Nobody keluar, menari mengalahkan pondan Filipina. Dasar hipokrit, tahu? Kalau orang boleh hormat apa yang kau suka, kenapa kau tak boleh hormat apa yang orang suka? If you have something bad to say about what other people like, keep it to your fucking self, okay? Nak dengar lagu apa, layan muzik negara mana sekali pun, adalah hak milik setiap insan.

Super Junior. Kumpulan yang dok buat nama kat Eropah sekarang. Mak hayam hado?

Artis-artis Malaysia janganlah cepat melenting sangat dengan kehadiran K-Pop ni. Anggaplah ia sebagai satu persaingan sihat untuk uolls buat lagu-lagu/muzik yang lebih menarik. Apa pekdahnya yang kau nak laser sini, laser sana? Artis K-Pop ada kisah ke? Paling kuat pun, dia senyum je. Diorang ni kental sebab dah training dengan dahsyatnya. Setakat artis Malaysia ~~mak hayam~~ melaser, heran apa diorang, ye dak? ~~Bukannya mak hayam fofuler sampai ke Eropah nun.~~ Pokok pangkalnya, peminat tahu menilai mana yang baik dan mana yang buruk. Setakat dengar lagu, enjoy konsert artis-artis Korea, apa masalahnya?

Tapi kan kan kan... seriuslah. Aku serius memang tak boleh terima yang ini...

Tolong mak, mak geli nyah! Mak geli!

weekend with baby aliff

2011-06-13T13:56:00.000+08:00

Last weekend, we had the pleasure of having Baby Aliff in our house. Hooray! Because my aunt went out of town, we had the chance to babysit Aliff for the weekend. His mother had some sort of seminar to attend every Saturday and Sunday, so someone has to take care of Aliff. Aliff has grown so much after his ordeals.

Such a beautiful boy!

He was a bit cranky on Saturday, but nothing we could not handle. Next month, Aliff will turn one. Almost unbelievable, right? After all that he went through last year, Aliff is now growing up. Not as normal as other kids, but he is definitely growing up well. His neck is a bit weak but hopefully, after series of therapy, he will be alright.

Sshhh... baby's sleeping.

Aliff likes to play with water. He will move all his limbs in water, splashing water all over. Most kids love water, no? I think in the long run, it will be beneficial for Aliff to spend his time in pool to loosen his usually stiff limbs. Therapy is one thing, but it is another thing to keep Aliff's muscles, senses and mind stimulated all the time. It takes constant effort to ensure Aliff's development.

Aliff with my sister, Aishah.

Aliff loves the outdoors. He likes to stay outside, where the birds fly and the wind blows. I think he likes the sense of being out in the open air where there is no restriction or closed space to suffocate him. And there are lots of things to be seen and heard. Aliff is a curious boy, it seems. And he responds well to music.

Perhaps thinking when he can roam freely around...

Mama loves Aliff, too. She played with him, bathed him and even slept beside him. I hope, though, that that are not the signs of a nak-cucu-cepat syndrome. Tee-hee. But, who's to say? It has indeed been a long time since we have any babies to take care of and fuss over. One time, when changing his diaper, Mama even said "Dah berapa tahun tak buat ni!"

It has been a pleasure to have you, Baby Aliff. We're missing you already. Come back again soon, okay, baby?

spot the difference?

2011-06-08T16:03:00.000+08:00

Okay, I need you people to look at this picture closely and carefully. Look at every angle:

Saw anything out of the ordinary? No, not the blurry faces. That was done on purpose. No? Okay, let's zoom it in...

Now, do you see it?

Honestly, I can't see a thing out of the ordinary. The highlighted area suppose to show some kind of... err... entity, maybe. But honestly, it looks like the neighbor's pokok bunga. Not that I'm skeptical (or maybe I am), but seriously, do you see anything at all that looks like... err... something spooky?

an extra special post

2011-06-06T13:19:00.001+08:00

Just in case you thought I forgot, no, I do not. I may not be the first, or the earliest to wish you, but I hope this entire post will make it a little extra special for you, on your very special day.

How long have we known each other, eh? Sometimes I feel like it's forever. You're like one of my sisters whenever you come around to the house. I can talk just about anything with you. Anything. Even though we don't really have much in common, except our love for books. But I bet you don't even have time to read nowadays.

I remember back in 2003, when we received our SPM results. Mine was so bad, I don't feel like going home. So I hung around your house until evening. I hate the school. I hate some of the people. But I have you and the other girls to make it bearable. Remember those times when we skipped school? I had to carry my blue mountain bike through that hole so that we can escape. Those were the good times.

Honestly, I don't remember if we ever fought. Do you? I remember many things about our friendship, but not any fight. Even when you moved away, even when we went our own way to complete our studies. You down south and me up north. Yeah, then we drift further apart. Physically, at least. We still keep in touch with each other, through our blogs (I read yours every time you update it), through Twitter and Facebook.

Another thing I don't remember, is if I ever dedicate an entire post to you. So, on this special day, I'm dedicating this entire post to you and you only.

Happy birthday to you, my dear friend, Wani.

From left to right: Wani, me and Mimah

Thank you for being such a great friend for all this time. Thank you for just being there whenever I need an ear to listen to all my complains and wallowing. Thank you for just being you.

Happy birthday again, my friend. May all your wishes be fulfilled and may all your dreams come true.

bahagian yang kurang rasional berbicara

2011-06-03T12:35:00.001+08:00

Aku jarang buat benda gila. Gila, dalam erti kata lain, buat benda yang tak pernah aku buat selama ni. Tapi kadang-kadang, ada jugak aku buat. Contohnya, pergi Penang balik hari tanpa hala tuju. Saja-saja buat. Sebab aku rindu Penang. Kat Penang, pandai nak naik bas mana pergi sana sini. Kat KL? Komuter ada, LRT ada. Naik bas haram aku tak tahu. Angah je yang pandai. Dia siap hafal nombor bas.

Tapi tak tau kenapa dua tiga hari ni, bahagian aku yang kurang rasional mula berbicara. Perkara pertama yang aku tergerak nak buat ialah potong rambut. Sependek mungkin. Gila, tahu? Muka aku bulat macam bola. Kalau potong rambut sependek-pendeknya, terus nampak macam Jabulani.

Rambut paling pendek pernah aku ada. Gambar dolu-dolu. Jangan gelak.

Nama pun kurang rasional, nak buat perangai je kerja. Bikin pening kepala kau ni. Tapi takpe, normal sentiasa pun bosan jugak, kan? Sekali-sekala nak buat sesuatu dia luar kebiasaan, apa salahnya? Bukan nak terjun KLCC pun, potong rambut je. Okey, ayat penyedap hati. Sayang sebenarnya nak potong. Dah panjang. Tapi, tapi, tapi... sebenarnya aku malas nak jaga. Malas nak syampu kemudian letak perapi. Panas pulak tu. Okey, masa untuk berfikir.

Benda kedua yang kurang rasional aku nak buat, nak pi naik Genting. Seorang diri. Ini betul-betul tak rasional. Pertama sekali, apa jadah nak buat naik Genting sorang-sorang? Kedua, tak takut ke pi Genting sorang? Kalau orang culik macam mana? Kena pukau ke, ha? Nak main Space Shot sorang-sorang? Nak naik roller coaster sorang-sorang? Nak jalan-jalan sorang-sorang? Nak buat semuanya sorang-sorang?

Aku dah kata, kurang rasional. Orang lain kata kurang cerdik. Kalau Mama, dia mesti kata kerja bodoh.

Aku paling cemburu dengan yang ini.

Dah lama tak pi Genting. Orang lain pergi, aku kena tinggal sentiasa. Cemburu, tahu? Aku nak pergi sorang-sorang je lah macam gitu. Tapi sebenarnya ada sedikit tak berani. Tapi, siapa yang nak culik aku? Takde punya orang nak culik. Tak larat nak bawak oi. Apa salahnya enjoy seorang diri? Jalan-jalan, tengok ragam umat manusia, tengok kekasih berkasih-kasihan, tengok budak-budak bersuka ria. Macam best...

Aku kurang rasional. Jangan percaya sangat dengan apa yang tertulis di sini.

Okey, aku tipu. Benda ni boleh terjadi. Bila-bila masa. Bila bahagian yang kurang rasional menguasai diri.

day 12 - love you, love you not

2011-06-02T14:28:00.000+08:00

Okay, hey, we're back with the meme. Forgive me for the lack of entries for the past few weeks but I've been busy. Ahem. Busy.

Before I go with the meme, I just want to say I really really really really really wanna see X-Men: First Class. Really. But seems like my sisters already have their own plans this coming weekend. Sad. Sad. ~~The life of an unwanted girl~~. Right. I'll probably go and see it on my own. Or maybe I'll twist few arms. We'll see.

Day 12 - A book you used to love but don't anymore

Don't laugh. I mean it. Don't sneer. I really mean it. Even if you're so freaking tempted to do so. This will make you roll your eyes and go "Seriously?!". Yeah, seriously.

It's Stephenie Meyer's Breaking Dawn

Look, out of all four books, this one had been my favorite. Yes, I've read 'em all. All of it. Same thing can't be said about the so-called Twilighters out there. So you see, I *used* to love this book. I even read it twice. Yes, twice. Stop rolling your eyes.

Then the movie came out. And the madness started. And then there's Rob Pattinson, doing his very kayu stuff as Edward. And the whole sparkling thing. It's one thing to read about, another thing to actually witness Rob Pattinson shirtless and ... well, sparkled. It's... frankly? Disgusting. Sorry, all you worshipers out there. I just can't stomach it any longer.

The book is decent enough, good enough to keep me flipping through it pages twice. But then I think, the whole Twilight madness got a little bit too much that I just think this book has become overrated. Yes, overrated. But, hey, that's just me. But honestly, I adore the Edward in the book much more than in the movie. I feel like driving a stake through the heart of the movie version of Edward and yell at him "Just fucking put some fucking emotion in your fucking act, asshole!"

Right. Now I'm getting ready for the attacks from the worshipers.

a fresh start

2011-06-01T10:43:00.000+08:00

I'm tired already of the black background. Looked gloomy enough to prompt me to change to this new layout. How do you like the new layout, folks? It's provided by Blogger, by the way. Nothing fancy.

So what's been up? Nothing, really, to be honest. Had a bad case of flu recently. Which got the boss sending me home early on Monday and me taking the day off on Tuesday. Still stuck with the flu, but recovering bit by bit. I still eat ice cream, though.

We all scream for ice cream!

Bad, bad, bad. I know. I couldn't sleep last night because of the coughing. Padan muka! Fine, no more ice cream after this.

Yeah, like you would believe that for a second.

Anyways, on to the other news; Mama's going for her umrah end of this month. So we will be without her for two weeks. How are we suppose to hold the fort for two weeks, eh? I just hope we can manage. Hope. I think we'll manage. I mean, most of us are qualified grown-ups, right? Right? Riiiighhht. See, I'm rolling my eyes right now as I'm typing this.

A cousin got married this week. Selamat pengantin baru to my cousin, Nur Adila and husband, whom I only know as Wan. Sorry I could not make it to the wedding. Work. And of course, suddenly got the flu bug. *Sniff*

What else to tell? Oh yeah. The 30 days book meme will resume after this, worry not. Reading is a good way to fill the gap of human companionship, you know? At least I won't have any fight with books. I'm just saying.

And I'll just stop now before I rant some more.

HiShop:The Future of Shopping. And 'Hooray' to That!

2011-05-20T10:10:00.019+08:00

Shopping, my friends, is a serious business. Yes, it is, trust me. Well, for us ladies, at least, it is very serious. Come on, spending money is of course a serious business. Spending money on your favorite things? It's a bonus. Spending money on your favorite things at discounted price? Now my friends, that is just priceless.

Come here. Come closer. Let me tell you a secret. Let me tell you about HiShop. Yes la, HiShop la! Now read carefully, word by word so won't miss anything out. This is about shopping, girls. Pssstt...

HiShop is Malaysia's premier members-only online shopping club. Once registered, you are granted exclusive access to their online private sales of branded goods that include ready-to-wear clothes, handbags, accessories and home furnishing at up to 80% discount (don't we all just love the D-word?). HiShop's branded goods and limited edition items are carefully selected and come with a 100% authenticity guarantee.

HiShop promises the best deal in town where their discount deals and sales are of the best value you will ever find. The people at HiShop are committed to deliver the most competitive pricing without ever compromising the quality of their goods. Their goods are 100% genuine. I repeat, 100% genuine. At HiShop, they believe that "Fakes are never in fashion".

Some of the items on sale are cK bags. I've already fallen in love with that Borsa Donna bag (item #2, top). Oh, drool! Just look at the price. No, don't rub your eyes. You're not dreaming.

Dress, anyone? Now wouldn't that Borsa Donna will look absolutely fab with the peach demi dress?

Branded goods. Check.

Discounted price. Check.

Genuine goods. Check.

Oh, did I tell you that shopping via HiShop is totally hassle-free? You don't have to trouble yourself to go out, fight the crowd or worse, traffic jam (yikes!). Everything is at the tip of your finger. Just click away at the comfort of your home. Or office. Or wherever you are. Easy, no? And you don't even have to worry about payment. They accept credit cards and you can even make payment via maybank2u or CIMBclicks. They're all secured, of course. How convenient is that?

Do it like Claire do, just at HiShop.

Shopping, my friends, has never been this simple and awesome!

day 11 - there's the exit door

2011-05-19T11:22:00.002+08:00

I wish life is easy. I wish men will grow brains. I wish women will stop nagging. I wish I have endless supply of books. I wish, I wish, I wish. Oh, how we all wish! If only there's a blue dude appearing from a magic lamp to fulfill it all...

Day 11 - A book you hated

Lauren Weisberger's Chasing Harry Winston

Adriana, Emmy and Leigh are best friends living in Manhattan, New York.

Adriana - The Brazilian goddess, the ultimate ~~slut~~ socialite who will sleep with just about anything male.

Emmy - The flat-chested serial monogamist who had been dumped by her five-year boyfriend for a virgin cheerleader (like I would believe that for a minute!).

Leigh - The obsessive and compulsive one with lots of issues despite having perfect everything i.e boyfriend, job, place... or so her friends thought.

One day, the two of them made a pact of changing their lives in a year. Adriana is to settle with ONE guy while Emmy will sleep around as she trot around the globe within a year. Leigh? Well, she has it all, no? The perfect boyfriend every women drool upon, the job with one of the top publishers, a place of her own with lots of space, unlike Emmy's. And she has this No-Human-Contact every Monday night.

It is the story of 3 not-so-young women in the big city. Each with their own issue and conflicts.

Coming from Lauren Weisberger (The Devil Wears Prada), I was expecting a good read, if not a great one. The result: DISAPPOINTING! It was a HUGE letdown for me as I went through page by page. It's like reading a novel wrote by a lazy and amateurish author! There's nothing interesting or anything remotely new in this novel. It's bland. It's meaningless. It's just downright stupid. Even the title doesn't fit the story. At all.

I have only one word for this novel: BLEARGH!!!

Needless to say, this book is utter crap.

i will be gone

2011-05-10T17:12:00.000+08:00

I will be gone

Sooner or later

Today or tomorrow

I will be gone

Just when you thought

I will be around forever

You turn your head around

I will be gone

Just when you thought

I am just a phone call away

You dial the number

and I will be gone

I will be gone

If you are going to keep playing

this guessing game

If you are going to keep me

fumble around in the darkness

I will be gone

in just a matter of a second

I will be gone

Without you even noticing it

I will be gone

Without you even believing it

I will be gone

Without you asking me to go

I will be gone

and I won't even say goodbye

day 10 - a walk down memory lane

2011-05-05T11:49:00.001+08:00

My uncle likes to put up the pictures of our childhood on Facebook. There were pictures of my siblings and I when were such little kids. Sometimes, I could not even believe that the girl in the picture is me.

How cute we are, huh?

The good old times are missed dearly. But that doesn't mean we can't reminisce about it in once in a while, right? With that in mind, I searched high and low for the book for the next item in the 30-days-of-book meme.

Day 10 - Favorite classic book

The word classic brings names like T.S Eliot, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Jane Austen and even William Shakespeare to one's mind. But here's the thing; I'm not so much into classics. I know some of the stories like Austen's Pride & Prejudice, Dickens' Great Expectations and of course, some of Shakespeare's famous works. But I'm not really into them. Heck, I even have Pride & Prejudice in my keepsake, yet to be read.

So, I'm going to cheat a little this time. I won't go beyond the 1900's to qualify one book as a classic.

Nancy Drew - The Mystery at Lilac Inn

Come on now. How many of you grow up reading Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys? Hands up, hands up. The series are even translated to Malay back then, renaming the series to Siri Salma and Anak-anak Hadi. I read the Malay version first before shifting to the English version. Mysteries were my favorite genre back then. And back then, I wanted to be Nancy Drew when I grow up.

This book was first published in 1931. Now this, this is my definition of classic. Nancy Drew is a fictional young amateur detective in various mystery series for all ages. She was created by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate book packaging firm. The books in the Nancy Drew series have been written by various authors, but are published under the pseudonym Carolyn Keene.

I love all the books under the Nancy Drew series, to be honest. But The Mystery at Lilac Inn just kinda stuck with me for a long time. The story involves Nancy Drew helping her friend, Emily Crandell find out who stole her heirloom jewels. This book was rewritten in 1961 after coming under fire for its hints at racism. I am sure I read the rewritten, un-racist version of this book.

It's a good book anyway. And I love Nancy Drew. The book version, anyway. The movie version is so... meh.

day 09 - the calm before the storm

2011-05-04T11:16:00.001+08:00

You know, I never thought myself as an avid reader, or a bookworm back when I was a student. I thought "Hey, I just like to read to pass my time". But then again, who am I kidding? I love books since I was a kid. My parents taught me how to read even before they send me to the kindergarten. I have more interest in books more than the idiot box. I love the smell of a new book and the way a worn-out book looks.

I love books. There's no other way to put it. And that is why I'm not complaining about this meme. In fact, I love it! I love how I have to dig up my library (or virtual library, thanks to Goodreads) to comply with the list. Going through all the books I've read, it's a joy only known to me. I found comfort and happiness in it. And you, you have to bear with me for the next 21 posts.

Day 09 - A book you thought you wouldn't like but end up loving

My test of a good novel is dreading to begin the last chapter. ~Thomas Helm

Iris Johansen's The Face of Deception

Synopsis (as usual, taken from Goodreads):

After losing her beloved child to a serial killer, forensic sculptor Eve Duncan survives by focusing on her career. The best in her field at rebuilding faces from bare skull bones, Eve specializes in identifying missing children.

When billionaire John Logan requests her help in identifying an adult skull, Eve--already swamped with work--tells Logan that she isn't interested. But when he volunteers to donate a large sum of money to a charity for missing children in exchange for her time, Eve reluctantly agrees.

Logan neglects to tell her that there are powerful, desperate people who are determined to keep the skull's true identity a secret at any cost. Eve's gut instincts tell her that Logan is holding back vital information: Does the billionaire really believe that he's uncovered new insight into the Kennedy assassination? Or does the skull tie him to a mysterious murder?

When I first got my hand on this book, I was a bit skeptical. I've read Iris Johansen's works. Mostly they're about romance, with steamy not-your-average romp in the sheet (or out of it) scenes. Can she write a good suspense/thriller/mystery novel? Do I really want to read this? I did, eventually, but with not very high hopes. Or expectations. I did expect, though, a mediocre read.

And I am glad, to this day, that I was wrong. Totally wrong.

This is a well-written book. Well-plotted. And the characters are strong. Especially the character of Eve Duncan. That woman is my definition of a smart and cool woman. She's not easily bullied and she's got guts. Her character is developed really well through out the book. By the end of the book, I think I know Eve really well.

The Face of Deception is another good mystery novel. This is as close as you can get to a forensic anthropologist. I am always fascinated by the work of a forensic anthropologist. How they're able to construct face from a bare skull, how they're able to recognize/identify any damage or defects to the face or the skull. They must have really good instincts, no?

This is actually the first book from the Eve Duncan forensic thrillers. I am yet to read any other book in this series so I cannot comment on how the other book in the series fares. But as far as I know, this first book got me hooked.

day 08 - maybe, maybe not

2011-05-03T11:42:00.000+08:00

I refuse to be sidetracked. I refuse to be sidetracked. I refuse to be sidetracked.

And so here I am. Repeating that words like a mantra may help me to focus and go on until day thirty. As long as I refuse to be sidetracked. Well, at least I try to not be sidetracked by other things. Like how hard it is to reserve a seat to watch Fast & Furious 5. Or how difficult it is to put your trust in yet another person when you know heartbreak is on the line. Or why people still spell 'Congrats' as 'Congrates'. Or... okay, I got easily distracted. Let's get on with the program.

Day 08 - Most overrated book

Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones

Her name is Susie. Last name Salmon, like the fish. She is fourteen. And she is telling us a story. The only thing is, she's dead. Yep, she's dead. She's telling her story from the Heaven.

From some of the reviews I've read, some people shed tears reading this book. Maybe I'm not too sensitive because I could not find a reason to cry, even after I finished reading. Just that I found the story to be kinda disturbing. And different.

I felt a bit impatient towards the end of the book. And there's a bit of "Ghost" (as in the movie) going on. It's disturbing, really. If reading a story from the point of view of a dead person is not disturbing enough, I don't know what is.
~ Taken from my Goodreads

It's interesting, really, that this book has got people coming to me, telling me that this book is sad. Maybe I don't have the softest of heart because I do not feel any kind of sadness or anything near that after reading The Lovely Bones. What I really feel is, creeped-out. Look, I like the way the story is written, the way the characters are developed. But the whole dead-girl-telling-her-stories-from-the-high-heaven just won't do it for me.

And the part where she actually make love with Ray through her friend's body? I just think that is wrong. So very wrong on so many levels. I mean, how does she know that the friend is permissible to sex? How can she be sure that the sex won't affect the two people? Is it even right to trespass into another person's body and mind? Yeah, I get it that she wants to experience sex (of all things) as she dies young. But you're dead. Move on. Stop haunting the ones you care and love about.

I don't get the sad part. Really I don't. I just think it's disturbing. And that is why I think this book is overrated.

review lagi: pecah

2011-04-29T13:44:00.004+08:00

Aku ingat aku nak mulakan review ini dengan mukadimah yang panjang (dan bosan) tentang novel Melayu dan aku. Tapi ini bukan masanya. Aku sendiri bosan dengan mukadimah yang aku taipkan tadi. Aku tekan kunci backspace dan mula semula. Aku nak buat review, bukan nak membebel. Tapi selalunya konon-konon nak buat review yang pendek, ringkas dan padat. Tipu. Konon-konon. Mesti jadi panjang berjela juga nanti.

Siapa Khairulnizam Bakeri? Aku tak kenal. Aku tak pernah lagi bersua dengan nama ni dalam dunia penulisan di Malaysia. Dia ada blog, aku tak pernah baca. Dia ada Twitter, aku baru kenal. Aku kenal Khairulnizam Bakeri melalui kicauan mamat rempit berhelmet biru di Twitter. Dan aku juga hanya tahu mengenai novel Pecah melalui kicauan teman-teman di Twitter. Bagus Twitter ni, kan?

Pecah berkisar tentang jenayah terancang yang sempurna. Pecah berkisar tentang rahsia dan misteri di sebalik jenayah terancang yang sempurna. Sekumpulan lelaki yang dikepalai Herman merompak sebuah bank di Shah Alam. Alan, salah seorang perompak, cedera ditembak pengurus bank. Sudahnya, dia terperangkap di hospital. Hospital yang sama juga menempatkan Bakar, seorang penghuni rumah orang tua yang punya latar belakang hitam.

Selain wang ringgit, sebuah peti simpanan turut dirompak. Inspektor Paul yang menyiasat kes rompakan dihimpit bingung dengan rahsia peti simpanan itu. Peti simpanan itu pula berada di bawah nama Bakar, orang tua yang terbaring koma di hospital. Dan kemudian Alan dapat menghilangkan diri dari pemerhatian polis, dari radar Inspektor Paul. Jalan untuk menyelesaikan kes rompakan tersekat.

Watak-watak di dalam Pecah adalah saling berkait sesama mereka. Mereka ada kisah di sebalik hubungan yang terjalin. Kisah watak-watak novel Pecah dipersembahkan dalam bentuk flashback yang membawa pembaca mengenali setiap karakter dengan lebih dekat. Apa motif bank dirompak? Apa motif hanya sebuah peti simpanan dilarikan? Hanya sehingga helaian muka surat terakhir baru semua jawapan terungkai.

Tak salah kalau aku kategorikan Pecah dalam genre aksi atau thriller. Jadilah aku macam Inspektor Paul, mencari logik di sebalik rompakan yang terjadi. Baca dari muka surat pertama sampai muka surat terakhir. Aku baca dua kali muka surat terakhir sahaja. Serius. Sebab aku terkejut dengan ending Pecah. Nak hadam pengakhirannya ambil sedikit masa.

Kisah dalam novel Pecah bukan kisah yang boleh kita lihat hari-hari, bukan kisah biasa. Tapi itulah keistimewaan Pecah. Pecah bukan novel klise. Dan aku suka Pecah. Suka sangat-sangat. Sebab ada aksi, ada misteri, ada adegan flashback yang realistik, ada perkataan-perkataan yang mengharuskan aku buka Kamus Dewan, ada pembalasan dendam, ada adegan ranjang (yang selalunya tak berani ditonjolkan orang lain), ada rahsia. Yang tak ada, kisah cinta meleleh. Tak rasa kekurangan pun.

Ehem. Satu lagi novel yang berautograf. And yes, Encik Nizam, I enjoy Pecah. Very much.

Terima kasih buat saudara Nizam untuk sebuah novel yang aku kira agak hebat ini. Bahasanya cantik tersusun, karakternya realistik tanpa perlu nama yang tergeliat lidah nak menyebut dan yang paling istimewa, perbualan karakter Stephen dan Zhu En dalam bahasa Kantonis (lengkap dengan translasi). Banyak sebenarnya keistimewaan Pecah. Nak tahu, kena baca sendiri.

day 07 - don't judge a book by its cover. sometimes...

2011-04-28T12:00:00.000+08:00

Yawwwwwnnnn. Good morning, folks. By the time I am done typing all the words for this post, morning will end. I am late, again, today, no thanks to the ever unreliable ~~Keretapi Terlambat Malaysia~~ KTM. I think even one million comments or complaints won't change one single thing about their unreliability. Oh well, welcome to Bolehland.

So we arrive at day seven. I have an announcement to make. Once in a while, this meme will be interrupted to give way to some other posting/entry. As a rule, I only post one entry per day. Take note that my blog is not one of that buat-entry-seperenggan-setiap-dua-jam-tapi-berjuta-gambar blogs. This is a personal blog where I rant. Rant, geddit? Twitter limits the user to 140-words per tweet. Definitely not enough when I'm in full steam.

Day 07 - The most underrated book

How exactly do you define "underrated", pray tell me? As for me, an underrated book is a book that not many people know/realize that it exists. And a good or great book at that. Well, that is my two cents. My take for the most underrated book?

John Case's The Genesis Code

What is this book about? Well, in a nutshell, The Genesis Code tells the story of how an ambitious doctor/scientist clones the DNA of a man known to the whole wide world and insert the DNA to several fetuses. It's the DNA of Jesus Christ. However, one by one, the mothers and their children who bore the DNA are being killed gruesomely. Joe Lassiter's sister and nephew included. Now isn't that just mind-boggling? I think it's awesome.

I read this book in the midst of Da Vinci Code's hype. And I could not put it down. It's just so very intriguing. And fast-paced. The whole Jesus-cloning thing is so very interesting. The puzzles, riddles, questions, the chase, the murder... phew! This is one action-packed book, I must say. Exhilarating at times. I never got boring reading this book. Sure, it took me some time to reach for this book as the author is unknown to me but once I started, I could not put it down.

The book was first published in 1993, compared to Da Vinci Code which was first published in 2003. So to say that this book is influenced by the Da Vinci Code is ridiculous. I just think that after the Da Vinci Code's success only that people started to take notice of this kind of book. You will either love or hate The Genesis Code. Some people just hate it, labeling the book as a Da Vinci Code wannabe and unbelievable. In case they, or you missed it, it's a fiction. You do know the meaning of fiction, right?

day 06 - goodbye's the saddest word

2011-04-27T10:39:00.002+08:00

There are, in time, some books that will leave impact in our lives. Books that change the way you think and the way you see things. And then, there are books that leave a mark in your very heart...

Day 06- A book that makes you sad

Jill Hucklesby's Last Kiss of the Butterfly

This book is absolutely heart-wrenching. It tells the story of a mother-daughter relationship from the daughter's point of view. The mother is ill and this book tells the last journey that they've taken together. The daughter is really close to her mother and the fact that she'll lose her sooner or later is eating away at her and her spirit. She tries to memorize every little thing about her mother. Her laughter, her voice, her smell. Every single thing she can. Though when the time comes, nothing could prepare her.

Last Kiss of the Butterfly is a tear-jerker. I had to read it alone in my bedroom so that no one can see the tears pouring down from my eyes. The words, the emotion that runs through this book... it's just intense. Losing a person we love so much, from the deepest of our soul is never easy. More so when it is the one person we're close to, the one person who gave birth to us.

There you go, the one book that takes me on an emotional flight. This one is a keeper.

day 05 - happy happy, joy joy

2011-04-26T10:11:00.002+08:00

First of all, sorry I couldn't make it yesterday for day five as I had to give way to a book review. I just had to. But, hey, I am here now. All set and ready for day five of 30-days of book meme.

Day 05 - A book that makes you happy

Oh, gee... gosh! As you can see from day one, I have so many happy books. Pleasing me ain't a hard thing to do, eh? Sure, I have lots of happy books. And now I have to pick one that is not yet featured in this meme. Lemme see...

Here it is, Sandra Hill's Frankly, My Dear...

I am sure by now, most of you would notice that the title is a very popular quote from the famous movie/book, Gone With the Wind. The book itself refers to the movie a lot as the heroine is a hopeless romantic with a weakness for anything sweet. The heroine, a glamorous model is send back to the days of the Old South in Louisiana, where she falls in love with the handsome owner of a bayou plantation. By a voodoo spell, nonetheless.

I love this book a lot. I think the time-travel think is so cool. Imagine a life without electricity, running tap water, hair dryer, makeup (eeeks!), television, the Internet (double eeeeks!) and other things we take granted for day by day. Selene, though, takes it all in her stride with her fake eyelashes and contact lenses. Selene is a courageous and smart woman. Though she believes that James, the owner of the bayou plantation, is her Rhett.

The reference to Gone With the Wind are fun. Selene's interaction with James' son, Etienne, is one to look out for. That little kid is really something. Frankly, My Dear... is highly entertaining with its quirky and varied characters. I laughed a lot when I read this book. It's just one of that books you'll always remember even after you've gone through so many books.

So, another one of my happy books. What's yours, by the way? And this happy books thing? Tomorrow there will be none of it. Until then, ciao!

review: kerana terpaksa

2011-04-25T11:33:00.006+08:00

Jumaat lepas, aku ambil kesempatan (mencuri kesempatan, sebenarnya) menjejakkan kaki ke PWTC untuk KL International Book Fair 2011 (KLIBF2011). KLIBF2011 bermula dari 22 April 2011 hingga 1 Mei 2011. Penggila-penggila buku aku pasti tidak tega membiarkan diri sendiri tidak menjengukkan wajah ke sana. Rugi woi!

Aku pergi, matlamat sudah tetap sebenarnya. Aku nak beli tiga buku keluaran syarikat penerbitan Amir Muhammad, FIXI. Tapi itu cerita lain. Cerita kali ini, cerita tentang novel tulisan seorang teman yang aku kenali melalui Twitter. Seseorang yang aku cukup suka penulisannya melalui blognya yang turut terselit artikel-artikel dari kolumnya di Sinar Harian. Ini bukan bodek atau kerana terpaksa ye, ini jujur.

Okey, aku dah kata aku akan buat review novel beliau, maka aku kotakan kata-kata aku. Perlu diingat, aku bukan pembaca novel Melayu yang tegar. Aku sedikit skeptik dengan novel Melayu dan aku suka stereotaip novel Melayu. Tapi tak kesemuanya, hanya sesetengah novel Melayu. Yes, I am snobbish like that. Tapi tak bermaksud aku tak layak buat review, kan?

Kerana Terpaksa mengisahkan seorang gadis, Suria dan seorang pemuda, Tengku Haizal. Mereka bertemu, berkenal dan menyulam kasih ketika masih di bangku sekolah. Suria hanya seorang anak gadis yang lahir di dalam sebuah keluarga biasa, golongan orang kebanyakan yang perlu bekerja untuk mencari sesuap nasi. Tengku Haizal pula datangnya dari generasi berdarah biru yang tak kenal erti susah.

Kata orang, enggang sama pipit manakan terbang bersama. Sejak dari mula, hubungan antara Suria dan Tengku Haizal mendapat tentangan maha hebat dari bonda Tengku Haizal. Dugaan demi dugaan mendatangi sepasang kekasih ini, dari zaman persekolahan hingga ke universiti dibawa hingga ke alam dewasa. Rasa kasih, cinta, ragu dan marah berlaga dari masa ke semasa. Tak pernah perhubungan mereka dilanda tenang.

Membaca Kerana Terpaksa seolah-olah seperti sedang menonton sebuah drama Melayu di TV3. Ada orang baik, ada orang jahat. Ada orang biasa, ada Mak Datin. Ada cerita cinta. Aku orang kebanyakan, maka aku rasa aku serasi dengan watak Suria. Aku faham dengan dilema Suria, dengan kekeliruan dan keraguan Suria. Dan aku juga faham dengan kekerasan hati dan kedegilan Suria. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Begitu pepatah Inggeris yang aku rasa Suria gunapakai.

Watak Tengku Haizal pula... macam mana nak kata ya? Ya, dia anak orang kaya. Tapi anak orang kaya ni tak ada wawasankah? Tak ada cita-citakah dia? Kerjanya mengejar cinta Suria, dari negara sendiri ke negara orang. Geram jugak aku dengan si Romeo (bak kata Suria) ni yang semacam terlalu taksub dengan Suria. Kalau aku, aku tak mahu hidup dengan lelaki macam ni. Memangla kaya, tak payah bekerja, tapi apa jaminan masa hadapan? Contoh apa yang diberi kepada anak-anak kelak?

Olahan karakter-karakter lain dalam Kerana Terpaksa adalah hampir realistik. Ibu yang garang dan tegas namun cukup menyayangi anak-anaknya, bapa yang tidak banyak bicara namun apabila mulutnya dibuka, penuh dengan maksud dan pengajaran. Adik-beradik yang tak lokek membantu bila diperlukan. Ikatan keluarga yang aku kira semua orang boleh faham.

Jalan cerita Kerana Terpaksa pun, aku kira, semua orang boleh faham. Ringkas sahaja. Cerita cinta dua insan yang mendapat tentangan. Cuma aku rasa kalau penggunaan loghat Terengganu diselitkan sekali-sekala di dalam dialognya, akan lebih realistik. Kedua-dua mereka berasal dari Terengganu, jadi aku rasa ada kekurangan bila dialong-dialognya dituturkan seperti orang KL yang bercakap. Kalau boleh diselitkan perkataan "lof" (menggantikan perkataan "love" yang ditutur dalam loghat Inggeris), aku rasa sepatah dua perkataan di dalam loghat Terengganu takkan menggugat pemahaman pembaca.

Aku juga semacam seorang spelling gestapo, laju je nampak kesalahan ejaan. Tapi tidaklah banyak sampai merosakkan pengalaman membaca Kerana Terpaksa. Terganggu saja sedikit dengan kepelbagaian ejaan dissertation. Kalau ejaan lain-lain keliru pulak pembaca nanti dengan bahasa akademik ni. Ada dua tiga lagi typo tapi tak ingat. Itu tandanya, ia tak penting pun.

Secara keseluruhannya, bagi aku, sebagai sebuah percubaan pertama, Kerana Terpaksa mampu menandingi novel-novel Melayu dalam genre yang sama yang sedia ada di pasaran. Tiada yang kompleks, yang renyah tentang Kerana Terpaksa. Aku enjoy membaca hasil pena penulis ini. Aku menyumpah-nyumpah si bonda Tengku Haizal dengan onarnya. Aku berfikir sejenak bila pilihan bonda Tengku Haizal mengatakan bahawa "Love is overrated". Itu maknanya penulisan Ilham Kalsom berkesan. Dan bagi aku, itu sudah cukup bagus.

Ya, aku nak tunjuk dekat semua orang bahawa akulah orang pertama yang dapat autograf beliau.

Sekian, terima kasih.

Nota kaki: Ulasan dilakukan dengan hati yang rela dan bukan kerana terpaksa. Tiada sebarang unsur-unsur rasuah terlibat dalam proses pembikinan ulasan yang tidak seberapa ini. Aku bukan seorang pengulas/pengkritik profesional, hanya menaip dari sudut pandangan aku sendiri. Jika ada yang tersentuh hati, maaf dipohon.

day 04 - the one that charmed its way in

2011-04-22T11:44:00.002+08:00

And so we arrived at day four. I should give myself a pat on my back because I made it this far. It's not easy, yo, when you're addicted to Twitter and you have to spend your time here. But hey, this is books we're talking about. I'm not going to make any excuse whatsoever. Well, maybe not this time.

Day 04 - Favorite book of your favorite series

Yesterday, I told you about the series I love and adore so much. So today, gotta pick one book I love the most out of all the seven books featured in the series. This is the book:

The final book in the series, Natural Born Charmer.

Natural Born Charmer is about one of Chicago Stars' prolific quarterbacks, Dean Robillard. He is the luckiest man in the world with his movie-star good looks, his success on the field and of course, he is super rich. He drives an Aston Martin Vanquish, if I may add. But life in the glory lane has started to pale, and Dean has set off on a trip to figure out what's gone wrong. When he hits a lonely stretch of Colorado highway, he spies something that will shake up his gilded life in ways he can't imagine. A young woman . . . dressed in a beaver suit. Complete with the tail.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Blue Bailey, a beaver on a mission. Okay, no, not a beaver. She's Dean's love interest. And her life is complicated enough to have a gorgeous sports car driving Greek god stepping into it. Together, they head over to his under-renovation summer house. Only to get their lives tangled with a charismatic but aging rock star; a beautiful, fifty-two-year-old woman trying to make peace with her rock and roll past; an eleven-year-old who desperately needs a family; and a bitter old woman who hates them all.

As I mentioned before, the books in the Chicago Stars series are my happy books. And this book is no exception. In fact, this book is my ultimate happy book. Here's my take on the book on Goodreads:

Could a book makes you deliriously happy? I mean, really. But then, this book did it for me. I grin like a fool after reading this book. I feel deliriously happy, it was ridiculous. After all, it is just a book. Not just any book, though. It's the latest one from the Chicago Stars series. And I love every single second of it! I really do. It makes me sigh with longing to have what Blue and Dean have with each other. Pathetic, I know. But the book did that to me. Better than fairy tale.

I guess that sums up why I love this book so much. It's sad, though, that this is the last book in the Chicago Stars series. I was kinda hoping that there will be more of it. But alas, as a perfect ending, Natural Born Charmer is just... perfect.

P/S: There won't be any entry for the weekends, so I'll see you next Monday, okay? By the way, the KL International Book Fair will start today. Who's going? I know I am.

day 03 - all good things come in multiple numbers

2011-04-21T11:10:00.004+08:00

Wow, day three? I must be stoned enough to reach this level.

Kidding.

Okay, let's see what we have for day three. On your mark, get set, go!

Day 03 - Your favorite series

Honestly, I'm torn. Torn between Stephanie Laurens' Bastion Club series and Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Chicago Stars series. Well, they're not really series because of the book in the series is about different people. But hey, they're in the same... uh, series. After deliberating for some time, I've decided to go with the series which I reread each and every one of the book more than three times.

Obviously, Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Chicago Stars series.

Comprising of seven books, the Chicago Stars series tell the stories about different players from the Chicago Stars Football Club. No, it's not about the sport itself. But rather about their love story. Romance, obviously, my friends. All the men in this series are your typical built, suave, handsome and rich. I won't say perfect because each of them has their own issue to deal with.

The Chicago Stars series is your ultimate chick lit indulgence. You've got the boy-meets-girl, the wooing part, the sex (but of course), the fight, the tug-of-war, battle-of-the sexes and last but not least, the expected happy ending. What's not to love, eh? You've got all the ingredients of a great contemporary romance series. Happy books, I call them.

There are, of course, some hits and misses but overall, I love the series as a whole. I adore most of the characters though they can be quite frustrating at times. I'm planning to collect all the books in the series, by the way. Sadly, BookXcess doesn't have all the books. And to buy it from the likes of MPH or Popular or Kinokuya... I'll go bankrupt. But... we'll see. We'll just wait and see. And Natural Born Charmer is missing from my keepsake. Someone's gonna lose a finger.

day 02 - a repeat performance

2011-04-20T10:52:00.002+08:00

So, day number two for the 30-days of book meme. Actually, let me just say this, this is a freaking good meme because I have to actually survey my books and guess what? Some of them are missing. Again. No big news there. I've lost two of my favorite books before. Still haven't be replaced. Next time, I'm going to lock my books up.

Kidding.

Day 02 - A book that you've read more than 3 times

This, my dear friends, is not a fair question. As a book-lover, you know there will be books that you will reread. Over and over again. You'll want to relive the experience, the feelings you gain from those books. Those books are the books that you smile, laugh or cry at. I have lots of it. Mine are the ones that make me goes "Ahhh..." And because I have to choose one, the best of the lot is:

Jennifer Crusie's Bet Me

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Minerva Dobbs knows that happily-ever-after is a fairy tale, especially with a man who asked her to dinner to win a bet. Even if he is gorgeous and successful Calvin Morrisey. Cal knows commitment is impossible, especially with a woman as cranky as Min Dobbs. Even if she does wear great shoes, and keep him on his toes. When they say good-bye at the end of their evening, they cut their losses and agree never to see each other again.

But Fate has other plans, and it's not long before Min and Cal meet again. Soon, they're dealing with a jealous ex-boyfriend, Krispy Kreme donuts, a determined psychologist, chaos theory, a freakishly intelligent cat, Chicken Marsala, and more risky propositions than either of them ever dreamed of. Including the biggest gamble of all-true love.

If I have to name ONE all-time favorite book, this will be it. I freaking love this book. I love it more than all Dan Brown's books combined. It's a modern day fairy-tale. The dialogues are witty, funny and believable. The characters are like that, too. And I adore both Min and Cal. I even adore their friends. And Min's orange cat, Elvis.And it refers to Elvis Costello, not Elvis Presley, by the way.

Because of this book, I fell in love with Elvis Costello's She. Because of this book, I learn about Krispy Kreme way before they make their way to our shore. There are so many little things I like about Bet Me. I even love the fact that Cal was once a dyslexic. And of course there's Min with her great shoes. And her transformation from the dumpy Min to sexy, confident Min. Oh, and there's Cal's adorable nephew.

This is my happy book. If I wanna be happy and believe in true love (yeah, right) all over again, I'll read this book. If I wanna coo and giggle like a school girl, I'll read Bet Me. If I wanna go to sleep dreaming about happy-ever-after, Bet Me is always a sure bet. Happy book, remember? Gosh, I miss this book. Yep, Bet Me is missing. Someone loves it as I much as I do, it seems.

So there you have it, the book that I read countless times. If you're a hopeless romantic like I am, and you like chick lit as much as I do, you must read Bet Me. Yes, you must.

Until day three, adieu!

30-days of book meme

2011-04-19T11:12:00.001+08:00

Well, hello there, my friends. I've been tagged. That's the reason why you're seeing/reading this post. This lady has tagged me for a 30-days of book meme. Which I will gladly complete. You know that I'm in a serious relationship with books, right? There will be 30 questions/categories for each day. So there will be altogether 30 entries for this meme.

Shall we start now?

Day 01 - Best Book You Read Last Year

Well, well, well. This is a tough one. I don't want to discriminate any of my books, you see. But alas, I have to choose one, and only one. So the best book I read in 2010 is *drum roll*...

Nora Roberts' Tribute

Tribute tells a story of Cilla, a former child star who has found more satisfying work as a restorer of old houses, has come to her grandmother’s farmhouse, tools at her side, to rescue it from ruin. However, someone is not happy with what she is doing. And that person wants Cilla to be gone. Living in the shadow of her famous grandmother is not easy for Cilla. And because of her grandmother's old ways, Cilla has to deal with the consequences.

I've always been a fan of Nora Roberts. I think she is a damn good storyteller. The detailing in Tribute is rich and vivid. I could easily imagine the farmhouse Cilla's restoring. The communication between Cilla and her love interest, a graphic novelist, Ford Sawyer is simple and casual. Ford is one of my favorite male characters, by the way.

The story is well-written, the characters are well-developed. Once I started reading this book, I'm lost in Cilla McGowan's world. It's her struggle, her background, her attitude that got me loving this book. They made a TV-movie out of this book but it isn't as good (as usual for books-to-movies thingy). But I do like Brittany Murphy's portrayal of Cilla. I want a different Ford, though. The Ford in the book is funny, silly and oh-so-romantic. The Ford in TV is... boring. But maybe that's just me.

That's it. The best book I read last year. Be warned, though, that my list will be infested with chick lits or contemporary romance or historical romance. I'm a hopeless romantic. I devour romance novels like I devour a piece of very good pizza.

End of Day 01. Wonder what's in store for Day 02...

that near-to-death experience

2011-04-12T15:09:00.000+08:00

Okay, the title is indeed a dramatic one. Over-the-top. So sue me.

I went to the dentist last Saturday. Horri-freaking-fying. Seriously. I'll let these screen captures tell you the story.

Note: Read from the bottom.

Yes, I had a tooth removed. And yes, I am scared of dentist. I avoid going to dentist as long as I can. Always have bad experience with dentist. Since I was a little girl. Yeah, yeah, I'm a wimp. Don't have to tell me twice.

And here are some of the response I got from my *ehem* wimpy *ehem* tweets.

Now go laugh at me.

angkat, tolak, masuk... kenyang!

2011-03-23T12:43:00.005+08:00

Ini ialah posting secara rawak. Tiada tujuan spesifik. Cuma aku rasa bersalah apabila minggu lepas aku memblog secara rakus, tapi minggu ni aku membisu. Minggu ini, ini posting pertama. Tak cool, beb, tak cool. Tapi kalau minggu depan, atau mungkin bulan depan blog kembali sunyi, salahkan Twitter. Serius. Facebook pun sudah hilang keseksiannya. Itu memang serius.

Serupa seperti seorang jurugambar yang aku kenal, aku pun mencari bahan-bahan yang menarik untuk menjadi tatapan mata aku dan mata korang bila buka blog yang tak semenggah ni. Aku pun jadi seorang poseur. Poseur blogger dan jurugambar. Kenyataanya, lagi banyak gambar, lebih sedap mata memandang.

Tak gitu, wahai Cik Jurugambar?

Seronok tahu, berjalan-jalan di sekitar kotarayaku, tengok gelagat orang. Lama tak menjejak kaki di sekitar Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman. Aku dah graduate dari Jalan TAR ke Mid Valley. Aku bukan seorang pemandu. Aku bergantung harap pada KTM Komuter, walaupun sebenarnya KTM Komuter suka memberi harapan penuh kepalsuan pada orang kebanyakan macam aku.

Jalan-jalan di Jalan TAR, aku telah menetapkan satu destinasi. Itu pun setelah disogok dengan kata-kata indah dari penduduk Twitterjaya. Macam kena hipnotis. Maka minda dah termaktub, nak cari Restoran Kudu. Nak makan nasi di Kudu. Ada cerita kelakar, tahu? Ceritanya, naik teksi dari Semua House nak ke Kudu yang jaraknya adala dalam tujuh minit berjalan kaki dari Sogo. Macam diperbodohkan dengan alam semesta.

Semata-mata nak makan nasi kandar ini.

Apa aku boleh kata? Orgasmik. Nasi kandar dengan lauk sotong, campuran kuah kari, bendi rebus/celur, telur asin, sayur kobis dan keriak-keriuk papadom bergabung lalu meletup. Aku rasa macam sebulan tak makan nasi bila makan nasi kandar di Kudu. Terharu. Cik Jurugambar, jangan cerita. Sekali suap, dia macam dicium Francesco Carrozzini.

Sudahlah hujan turun renyai-renyai petang tu. Lepas pekena nasi kandar yang orgasmik, kena berjalan demi untuk mengelakkan rasa nak tidur di tengah-tengah jalan. Hujan. Jalan. Tahu apa yang sedap? Kopi. Sumpah tekak terus terloncat-loncat kegembiraan bilamana imej kopi panas terlukis di otak. Dari kejauhan sudah ternampak Starbucks. Oh. Jalan dulu, wei, bagi turun nasi!

Dasar elitis! Macam kedai kopi lain takde kopi panas. Pada Yahudi juga duit ditabur, kan?

Oops. Jangan ada punggung yang terluka, ya?

Alkisahnya, aku bertemu 'seseorang' pada hari itu. Mujur di siang hari. Kalau di malam hari? Mungkin aku pengsan dulu sebelum sempat butang kamera ditekan. Tapi di siang hari pun macam gampang juga, tahu? Efek 'pakaian' beliau... terlalu kuat. Imaginasi aku, macam ditekan-tekan untuk bermain. Pelbagai senario terbayang dalam kepala otak aku.

Kalau 'dia' muncul di malam hari di sebelah katil aku, lalu bagaimana? Rasa aku, nak menjerit pun lidah dah kelu. Hanya mampu main mata, mungkin. Tu pun kalau 'dia' ada mata. Celaka. Sekarang aku dah rasa seram.

Ah. Perlu aku ingatkan di sini, semalam hari lahir aku. Yang ke-26. Aku tak tipu. Aku dah 26 tahun, bukan 15 atau 17 tahun atau pun 23 tahun seperti yang digembar-gemburkan sesetengah pihak. Kembang-kempis hidung aku pun, aku tetap takkan menafikan umur aku. Bisa aja kalau kalian tetap berkeras dengan kenyataan kalian bahawa umur aku adalah 15, 17 atau 23 tahun. Forever young.

Aku Along. Dia Angah. Hakikatnya, umur aku dengan dia tak sampai setahun beza pun.

Aku harap ada orang bagi buku ni sebagai hadiah pada aku. Aku nak baca. Persetankan apa kata orang.

Ahhhhhh. Hidup ini kadang-kala terasa manisnya. Lagi-lagi bila diberi perhatian pada hari lahir sendiri, kan? Tapi jujurnya, aku sudah rasa sedikit tua. Aku sudah rasa dunia sedikit berubah paksinya. Bukan sebab gempa bumi itu. Dunia aku. Apa, kalau dunia ini berubah paksi, korang ada perasan ke? Korang ada kisah? Tak, kan? Jangan nak tipu. Janji korang boleh log in Facebook, dah cukup. Oops. Jangan terluka punggung lagi. Aku bergurau. Dengan sinis.

Hidup ini, kadang-kala manis. Macam Creme Brulee ni. Nikmati ia selagi mampu.

why i won't lost my way

2011-03-20T00:12:00.013+08:00

There's this one person, who will never ever let me stray too far from my track. She will correct me when I'm wrong. She will reprimand or scold me for things I did that I know wrong but pretend otherwise.She will warn me if have any intention of straying. She keeps me grounded. All the time.

Oh. And she is the person who keeps me from spending my money on err... things I don't actually need.

And she is a year younger than me. She is my sister.

Fondly known as Kak Ngah or Angah among the family, she turns 25 today. Yes, you guess it right. This entire post is dedicated specially for my sister, one of my closest and best friends, Angah.

Happy birthday to you...

Happy birthday to Angah...

Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday, dear sis. You're now a year wiser, yeah? I hope all your dreams will come true, Angah. We all know just how hard you work to achieve you have today. You excelled in your studies, your have your own business, you are very grounded and you're one tough cookie. Abah would be so proud of you. Just like we all are.

She's a generous soul, this sister of mine. And ever so helpful and patient. But beware, you don't want to piss her off. Once you get on her bad side, you'll regret it for a looooong time. But she's a fun person to hang out with, mark my word. More so if you're a K-Pop and K-Drama junkie. 3 hari 3 malam pun tak habis cerita weh!

Angah and me having lunch at IKEA. I usually go out with my sisters.

I am lucky to have her as a sister. Very lucky, in fact. I could never imagine my life without her. Each of my sibling is like a part of my soul, you see. I could never imagine my life without them. Never. Gaduh, gaduh jugak but remember, blood is indeed thicker than water.

Here's to you, Angah. Happy glorious birthday. I heart you.

Oh. Did I ever mention that Angah is single? She is, in fact, very very single. *hint hint*

say "hi" to your water

2011-03-18T10:10:00.001+08:00

Every single day, we're exposed to new things around us. Whether it's an idea, a creation, a word, a thought or anything at all, we're always exposed to something new. I found out through my mother and sisters recently that you can actually to water. Now isn't that intriguing? I was so intrigued, I had to google about it. Google is, after all, a man's best friend.

The theory, or should I say the idea, came from a Japanese author and entrepreneur, Masaru Emoto. According to Emoto, molecular structure of the water will change according to the words or thoughts directed to the water itself. Negative words/thoughts will produce "ugly" molecular structure and positive words/thoughts will result in "good" water. In a way, you can actually "talk and drink" your way to health. Fascinating, no?

Maybe that is why it is good to say selawat ke atas Rasul before you drink. You can actually sing to the water, do you know that? Well, don't do it while you're having a drink at mamak, though, or your friends and the mamak will think you're crazy.

So far, there's nothing concrete yet about this theory. They (scientists) call it pseudoscience. I don't know... maybe Emoto is just fooling around to sell his water products. A Brent Atwater wrote an article about talking to water. She even went to say that you can even talk your cells back to health. Well, I don't know if that's all hogwash or what.

I talked to my water this morning, anyway. Yes, I'm crazy that way, but hey, it won't hurt to try, no? I told the water to be nice to me and make my skin looks like Korean celebrities. Hey, a girl gotta do what a girl gotta do. Maybe you should try to sing to your water?

we like to move it move it!

2011-03-17T11:22:00.003+08:00

Ada satu kegilaan yang sedang berlaku di rumah aku sekarang. It's madness, yo! Kegilaan itu adalah bernama PlayStation Move. Apa itu PlayStation Move? Baca sini, please. Tapi kalau malas nak baca, secara ringkasnya, PlayStation Move ialah seperti extension untuk PlayStation. It's a motion-sensing controller. Means, korang kena bergerak untuk menggunakan benda ni. Dan ia adalah super duper cool, y'all!

Ini ialah rupa controller tersebut:

Cool, kan? Macam mikrofon yang funky, no?

And you know what's the coolest thing about PlayStation Move? Boleh main game sambil exercise. How freaking cool is that? The term for it is 'Exergame' to be exact. Nama pun PlayStation Move, jawabnya kenala move around, kan?

Antara game yang aku paling layan sekali ialah game Archery dalam siri Sports Champions.

Grafik sangat cantik, rasa macam real je bila main.

Ada enam games semuanya dalam siri Sports Champions. Satu lagi yang paling layan ialah Gladiator Duel Game lawan pedang. Yang ini rasanya lagi ekstrem dari game lain sebab kena gerakkan seluruh anggota badan. ~~Sampai ada yang sakit pinggang main Gladiator ni!~~ Gladiator boleh main 2 orang so kalau rasa-rasa macam nak lepas geram, sangatla sesuai.

Hot chicks? Cat fight? LOL.

Adik-adik aku main dengan penuh perasaan, ok, bila main Gladiator Duel. Kawasan depan TV tu kena bagi clear sebelum main. Kalau tak, akan terjadi kemalangan jiwa. Tak percaya? Tengok ni:

Gambar ialah blur sebab diorang tengah bergerak dengan pantas. Nampak benda yang macam lightsaber tu? Tu lah motion controller tu.

Bila first time main, semua orang jadi macam orang tua lepas tu. Ada yang sakit pinggang, sakit badan, sakit itu, sakit ini. Yang jadi tempang sekejap pun ada jugak. Itu penangan PlayStation Move. Tapi lama-lama dah biasa, okeyla.

Last sekali, aku tinggalkan korang dengan rakaman orang yang main GladiatorDuel dengan penuh aksi:

Do try this at home, ya? Hehehehe.

50 books a year

2011-03-16T12:15:00.007+08:00

I'm aiming to read at least 50 books this year. For an avid reader, it's really not much but for me, 50 books a year is a lot. Reason being that I have to find the time to read. Time is a luxury when you're working and to find the time to read is almost impossible. But I love to read. Not reading any book in a certain amount of time will make me feel... well, depressed. A bit.

Mind you, I don't really read what I call smart-and-serious books. My favorite genre is romance, be it contemporary or historical. Simple, really. But that doesn't mean I'm a hopeless romantic. Well... at least, I *hope* so. Tearing up at a beautiful love story doesn't count, right? Right? Oh well...

Here are some the books I've read for the year 2011. Up until today, I've read a total of 16 out of 50 books. Not bad, eh? I'm getting there, alright.

I'm always looking for book sales so that I can grab some books at a bargain price. Books are rather expensive here in Malaysia, but there's always BookXcess. And then there's the annual Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair. You'll go crazy for the books, if you like to read.

This year, the KLIBF will be held from 22nd April until 1st May 2011. As usual, it will be held at the Putra World Trade Center (PWTC). Free admission, some more. So do go there and check out the books. I, for one, am not going to miss it. I still have lost of books to be read at home but... we'll see. Maybe another two or three won't hurt. Or maybe another five.

of plans and the future

2011-03-15T17:32:00.000+08:00

Recently, an old friend of mine got engaged to her sweetheart. I went, of course. And old friendships rekindled. No surprise, though, that most of them are either married, engaged to be married or to be engaged soon. Good fun aside, us the single ones got peppered with the obvious question: When is your turn? All I have to say is, all in good time, my friends, all in good time.

Interestingly, very recently, one of my sisters told me that she plans to get engaged to her boyfriend by the next year. And they plan to tie the knot within a year or two. They even talk about purchasing house and all. It stopped me in my tracks, actually. My sister. All grown up. And she's getting herself prepared to start a new life, a new family.

And I ask myself, what plans do I have for myself? I can't think of any. Yet. Not very comforting, no? Here I am, about to turn 26 in a week and I am without a plan for my future. Freaking scary. Seriously. What am I going to do? What is my direction? Where do I go from here? Ahh. Questions and more questions. Yet, no answer.

I don't know, guys. I can't see the future. I can't tell where will I end up, who will I end up with, and what will I become. But I do know that I don't want to be alone for the rest of my life. Well, we'll just have to wait and see now, don't we? I'm getting goosebumps, thinking about the future.

This one is for my friend, Ayu, congratulations on your engagement. You looked gorgeous in the red dress.

And the gifts are absolutely preeee-tay!

Here's to you, my friend. And all you my friends, married or not, engaged or not, let us be happy with whatever we have and be grateful for it. And when my turn comes, you will surely know about it. Fret not, ya!

no words but these...

2011-03-04T15:58:00.002+08:00

Dear Jessie,
I miss you.

miracles do exist

2011-01-26T15:50:00.000+08:00

Dear friends, remember Baby Aliff?

If no, let me remind you.

Baby Aliff was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Hospital Ampang on 07th October 2010 due to subdural haemotoma or pendarahan otak. According to the doctors, Aliff suffered the bleeding due to either a fall, being shaken hard or terhantuk. Read more here.

More than 3 months has passed after that fateful day, which a month spent at the ICU for Baby Aliff. How's Baby Aliff doing now? I am more than happy to report that Baby Aliff is now well on his way to recovery. He's an active little boy. A super boy, if you will.

A month after being discharged from Hospital Ampang, Aliff and his mother again were being tested when HKL confirmed that there are still excess of liquids in Aliff's brain. Aliff's head had to be perforated to drain the excess liquids out. Two holes were made on top of his little head and tubes were inserted for that purpose, as you can see in the picture. Most of the time, Aliff was cranky and moody. His fever comes and goes while he went through it all. Needless to say, Aliff had gone through a lot more than some of us. And he is still a baby. But he is one strong baby.

But now he's no longer cooped in the hospital. The scar from the perforation remains to remind those who know Aliff of his ordeal. What matters is that Aliff survives. Alhamdulillah. Allah has given Aliff a strong will and spirit. Allah has given Aliff's mother the most precious gift ever; his life. And Aliff makes us all believe in the power of prayers and of course, miracles.

Aliff is now going through series of therapies to strengthen his head and neck. Along the way, generous souls have come forward to help Aliff and his mother, to lighten the burden of the single mother. Dr. Sazlina, especially, has been a lot of of help. A lot. Thank you, Dr. Saz. We can't thank you enough. May Allah bless you. May Allah bless all of you who have help Aliff in so many ways and for your prayers.

This is Baby Aliff now. He's doing really well. He 'talks' a lot. He can turn over on his own, though he does need some support because his neck and head is still weak. Though he is one month behind his development, Baby Aliff is catching up fast. He's a sweet little angel. He captures my heart. He captures the hearts of all the those who meet him.

Oops, puting tercabut pulak!

My heartfelt thanks again to all of you for the prayers and the help. Aliff is still here with us because of it. Thank you so very much.

Dear Aliff, be a good boy and grow up fast, okay? I love you, kiddo. Even when you're cranky.

khurafat: ini bukan sebuah review

2011-01-22T23:56:00.000+08:00

22 Januari 2011, GSC Mid Valley Megamall (Hall 12) - Tiket untuk tayangan filem Khurafat arahan Syamsul Yusof pada pukul 1.45 petang dilaporkan habis dijual. Itu pun menurut observasi penulis sendiri ketika duduk di dalam panggung menunggu iklan habis ditayangkan sambil mengunyah bertih jagung yang rangup dan enak.

Kira-kira jam 2 petang, lampu panggung dipadamkan dan tayangan filem Khurafat dimulakan. Penulis merasakan bahawa permulaan filem tersebut agak boleh tahan dan seperti menjanjikan sesuatu yang lebih baik. Penulis sehingga sanggup menyerahkan bertih jagung kepada adiknya untuk memberi fokus yang dalam kepada filem itu.

Namun begitu, apabila detik filem memasuki fasa takut-tak-takut, terdengar suara-suara yang kurang enak dari belakang dan sebaris tempat duduk penulis. Detik tidak best ini terjadi apabila Aishah (Liyana Jasmay), isteri kepada Johan (Syamsul) melihat hantu yang lebih menakutkan dari hantu Ju-On merangkak menaiki tangga rumahnya.

"Eee... suami dia tak dengar ke?"
"Eee... tak suka la cerita hantu macam ni!"
"Eh, kenapa diorang tidur sorang pusing arah lain, sorang arah lain?"

Ketika ini penulis berasa teramat menyampah dengan suara-suara sumbang tersebut lantas terus menyuarakan rasa bebal terhadap meleis-meleis itu melalui Twitter. Penonton di barisan J, kerusi 15 dan 16 amatlah mencabar kesabaran penulis dalam menghayati ketakutan filem Khurafat dan ketrampilan Syamsul Yusof sebagai pengarah, pelakon dan pen-rapper filem tersebut.

Beberapa minit kemudian, suara-suara sumbang pula kedengaran dari barisan I, tempat duduk 10 hinga 14.

"Heee... nanti hantu keluar!"
"Kenapa macam tu?"
"Kenapa macam ni"

Sambil kaki mereka menendang tempat duduk penulis dan juga adik penulis di sebelah. Tidak terlampau jika dikatakan bila-bila masa sahaja penulis dan adik beliau sendiri akan menjadi hantu yang lebih menakutkan dari hantu Anna.

Minat penulis pada ketika itu untuk menghayati hasil karya anak Datuk Yusof Haslam terus lenyap dibawa suara-suara gedik nak mampos meleis-meleis di barisan J dan I. Maka penulis meluahkan segala rasa di dalam Twitter. Adik penulis pula memberi amaran kepada meleis di barisan J untuk memperlahankan suara mereka, namun nampaknya mereka cuma akan faham bahasa tapak tangan. Kami teror, tapi kami bukan terrorist.

Tiada langsung ketakutan bersarang di jiwa penulis, sekalipun apabila melihat Johan membawa mayat yang sudah siap dikapan berlari di dalam hutan. Takut sikit je bila tengok muka hantu Anna tercongok kat dalam keranda. Oh. Dengan takut sikit je bila hantu Anna skodeng Aishah kat tingkap bilik.

Secara kesimpulannya, penulis tidak berapa menghayati filem yang khabarnya sudah mengutip untung kasar RM 2 juta something ni. Nak jerit pun tak berapa nak feel. Kalau jerit kat meleis barisan J dan I mungkin adalah lebih feel. Tapi lakonan Sabrina Ali sebagai Anna adalah mantap. Boleh tak you pergi kacau malaun barisan J dan I yang bising tu malam ni, wahai Anna? Please, please, please? Lakonan Syamsul masih ada ruang untuk diperbaiki. Dan Cik Liyana Jasmay sebagai isteri? Uh, maaf, penulis tidak berapa nak boleh telan.

Nasihat penulis, kalau anda rasa nak menonton filem ini, pastikan anda beli semua seat di barisan hadapan dan belakang anda dan juga semua seat di barisan anda untuk mengelakkan komentari secara live yang amat menyakitkan hati. Atau lebih afdal tunggu Astro Box Office. Atau kalau dah kedekut taik hidung masin sangat, sila tunggu tayangan filem ini di Aidilfitri nanti.

Sekian dulu bukan-sebuah-review dari saya, Ummi Farhana Zulkifli. Semoga meleis-meleis yang disebutkan di atas membaca penulisan saya ini dan segera bertaubat sebelum hantu Anna skodeng anda di tingkap.

Seat penulis adalah bernombor 13. Malang sekali.
Eh, khurafat doh!

konspirasi illuminati?

2011-01-21T15:52:00.007+08:00

Aku rasa memang konspirasi Illuminati la untuk mencarik-carikkan hati aku bila melangkah ke tahun baru ni. Serius. Ok, tak, tak serius. Aku tipu je. Mana ada konspirasi Illuminati bagai ni oi! Jangan dok berkonspirasi sangat, faham?

Setiap apa yang terjadi dalam hidup kita, ada hikmahnya, tahu? Bukan saja-saja benda tu nak jadi. Ingat, yang baik itu datangnya dari Allah dan yang buruk itu, sendiri mau ingat la dei! Ini pesanan ~~penaja~~ untuk diri aku sendiri. Sebab aku tengah heartbroken. Usah ditanya mengapa dan bagaimana. Cewah!

Source: Google

Hidup ni kena melangkah maju ke hadapan, bukan ke belakang. Toleh ke belakang sekali-sekala untuk ambil iktibar, belajar melalui kesilapan. Bak kata Julius Caesar, "Experience is the teacher of all things." So, hidup perlu diteruskan dengan menjadikan pengalaman sebagai cikgu. Bukan cikgu Sains ke, Matematik ke, Sejarah ke... tapi cikgu subjek 'Kehidupan'. Kat sekolah takde ajar, harap maklum.

Source: Google jugak

Aku harap, orang senyum bila baca posting kali ni. Bukan bersimpati, tetapi sebaliknya senyum sebab aku masih boleh berdiri, berjalan dan berjoging walaupun aku terjatuh. Aku masih tahu bangun sendiri tanpa perlu dipimpin. Jalan pun boleh jalan sendiri tapi aku suka sangkut tangan kat adik aku bila berjalan. Mesra gitu tau.

Saya heartbroken, saya okey. Esok tengok Khurafat nak?

the facebook hoax

2011-01-10T15:30:00.002+08:00

Hoax (hōks)
Noun - something intended to deceive; deliberate trickery intended to gain an advantage

Bahasa Melayu - bang bang boom, kau dah kena tipu!

I bet that most of you now are aware of the news that has been going around for the last few days that Facebook is going to shut down on March 15th. Honestly, just how many of you went "Noooooo! This cannot be happening!"? Come on now, raise your hand up, lemme see it. Okay, fine, you're too cool to admit it.

But I know that deep down inside, you're panicking like hell.

Alamak, macam mane dengan Farmville aku?
Alamak, nanti kat ofis takde ape nak buat dah la!
Alamak, takleh la aku stalk mamat kacak pakai Ray Ban tu dah!
Alamak, takleh la nak buat untung beribu-ribu RM login Facebook dah!

TIDAAAAAKKKKK!!!

But do you even stop for a while to T.H.I.N.K? Facebook is a multi-billion dollar business. Do you think they will ever shut down as long as they're generating billions of dollars? It's like saying Microsoft will stop producing more OS! Gasp! Unthinkable! Gilo ko apo?

Use your God-given brain, people. And stop posting ridiculous statuses and tweets regarding Facebook's closure. Facebook is not closing down. I repeat, Facebook WILL.NOT.CLOSE.DOWN. Not on March 15th, not anytime soon. Okay? Cheer up. You won't lose your cows.

To all you Malaysian, please, don't be so fukken gullible, can? You guys believe just about anything people posted on the net. You can only trust 90% of what's being circulated in the Internet, don't you know about that? Smarten up a bit la. And do some research before you go around telling people that ~~Malay people is of genius descendant~~ Facebook will pull its plug. Get it from genuine resource, okay?

Now excuse me while I go cook up a storm in World Cafe.

hand in hand: new year and resolution(s)

2011-01-03T11:55:00.002+08:00

New year, new resolutions. Or is it? Or is it just same old brand new resolutions? Bah! It's not like I care much really. I am, for one, is not big on resolutions. Because I know I don't have much discipline. Seriously.

But for 2011, I start it off with daily resolutions. I start small. Seriously small. My resolution on the 1st January? To have the famous IKEA meatballs. I did it. Useless resolution? Maybe. But at least I achieved it. What made it even better? I had it with people I know, people I adore. And the meatball kicked ass.

On the 2nd of January, I made a resolution to clean my room until my mom won't have anything to complain about. I changed the bed-sheet, folded/hung all my clothes, vacuumed the floor, wiped the dust... the whole nine yard. And guess what? I did it. Resolution 2nd January was a success. It took some time for me to get it done but I did it. And damn right, I am happy and proud of it. Even when my sister got on my prettily made up bed, I went bonkers.

Oh. And sorry, I don't have any pictures for my bedroom. It's a private sanctuary. Mine.

And today, I made a resolution to have proper breakfast at home. Proper as in I could savor the food without any haste. While watching Oprah's rerun. And of course I did it. I survived 2nd January, no? Breakfast was a no-brainer. Koko Crunch pun jadi. With cold milk.

See? I don't have to go big on my resolutions. I take it one at a time. I don't do this-year-I'm-going-to-be-a-millionaire kinda resolutions. I'm realistic yo. I know my limits. And small as it may seem, me succeeding with my daily resolutions makes me a happy person.

On that note, I wish you all a very Happy New Year and hopefully, 2011 will be a much better year than previous years for you, you, you, you and of course, me.

selamat pengantin baru!

2010-12-23T15:45:00.001+08:00

My closest cousin, Intan Suria, just got married last Friday to a great guy, Mohd Fadhil.

She's the first one to step into the world of marriage. She's the eldest among all the cousins and she's the first one to get married. In a way, it feels kinda weird now that one of my cousins (mother's side) is married. Weird because now we have a new member in our extended family. It's a good weird, by the way.

And I'd like to extend a hearty welcome to Fadhil on behalf of my family. We're a crazy and loud bunch so you have to excuse us once in a while, ya? Hehehe.

Anyway, here's the new happily wedded couple:

Selamat pengantin baru, my dear cousin! You looked beautiful on your wedding day, by the way. Malas aku nak komen depan-depan, satgi perasan lebih. Wahahahaha!

I wish you and your husband all the happiness in the world. And may the marriage lasts forever and ever. And may the little brats come along soon.

ini reviu bollywood hai

2010-12-03T12:39:00.005+08:00

Aku rasa aku tak pernah buat reviu filem-filem Bollywood, kan? Dasar hipokrit betul aku ni. Punyalah mencintai filim Bollywood tapi satu reviu pun tak pernah buat. Jadi untuk menebus ke-hipokrit-an aku itu, maka aku akan buat reviu tiga filem sekaligus. Tiga? Ya, tiga. Tak suka, tutup mata. Aku suka filem Bollywood. Fakta, bukan auta. Okey, jom kita mulakan reviu hari ini!

1. I Hate Luv Storys

Pelakon: Imran Khan (Jay, hero), Sonam Kapoor (Simran, heroin), Sameer Dattani (Raj), Samir Soni (Veer), Bruna Abdullah (Giselle)

Sinopsis: Simran suka sangat kisah cinta, Jay benci sangat kisah cinta. Walaupun bekerja sebagai penolong seorang pengarah terkemuka yang siang malam buat kisah cinta, Jay tetap tak suka kisah cinta. Merepek, katanya. Lagi-lagi kisah cinta Bollywood, penuh dengan kemerepekan. Jay kata, bukan aku.

Jay dan Simran bertemu, kepercayaan bertentangan. Dan entah macam mana, Simran jatuh cinta dengan Jay, walaupun dia dah ada seorang tunang yang sempurna. Jay mula-mula rejek Simran habis-habisan. Dia tak percaya cinta, dia tak jatuh cinta, dia tak rasa cinta. Itu kata Jay. Maka Simran pun kecewa, tak nak kawan Jay dah.

Bila Simran dah tak nak kawan dengan dia, barulah Jay tu sedar dia pun dah jatuh cinta dengan Simran. Maka dia pun kena berusaha untuk mendapatkan cinta Simran yang dah tak nak kawan dengan dia, dengan pertolongan kawan-kawan dia.

Suka: Cerita ni buat parodi filem-filem Bollywood lain. Antara cerita yang diparodikan ialah Dil Chahta Hai, Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, Mohabbatein, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai dan banyak lagi. Serius kelakar.

Tak suka: Starting agak lembab.

Soundtrack: Best, menarik. Lagu-lagu dia romantik dan merdu, standard Hindustan la kan. Antara lagu yang aku suka ialah Bahara dan Sadka.

Trivia: Imran Khan ialah anak saudara kepada Aamir Khan. Sonam Kapoor pula ialah anak kepada Anil Kapoor.

Rating:

2. Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani

Pelakon: Ranbir Kapoor (Prem, hero), Katrina Kaif (Jenny, heroin), Upen Patel (Rahul) dan penampilan istimewa dalam lebih kurang lima minit, Salman Khan sebagai Salman Khan.

Sinopsis: Prem, presiden Happy Club ialah seorang jejaka yang takde kerja nak buat selain mengacau orang lain dengan kawan-kawan dia. Terberkenalan dengan Jenny bila dia salah nak culik kekasih kawan dia. Prem jatuh cinta pandang pertama dengan Jenny tapi dia tak reti macam mana nak bagitau Jenny.

Semenjak berkenalan dengan Jenny, Prem berubah sikap. Dia mula bekerja dan tak ~~merempit~~ melepak lagi. Tapi keluarga Jenny tak suka Prem, jadi diorang nak kahwinkan Jenny dengan seorang mamat yang macam sial. Prem tolong Jenny lari tapi dia tak bagitau jugak dia suka Jenny.

Rupa-rupanya, Jenny dah ada kekasih hati, Rahul. Bapak Rahul pulak tak suka Jenny sebab Rahul beragama Hindu dan Jenny ialah Kristian. Bapak Jenny ialah seorang ahli politik, harap maklum. Jadinya, Prem yang sayang sangat kat Jenny cuba menyatukan Jenny dengan Rahul walaupun dia tak rela.

Suka: Cerita ni takde saat-saat serius langsung. Dari mula sampai habis, lawak je. Tapi bukan lawak slapstik, okey. Gandingan Ranbir Kapoor dan Katrina sangatla meletop dan comel. Serius aku suka cerita ni.

Tak suka: Kadang-kadang rasa macam meleret sangat, jadi lambat.

Soundtrack: Lagu dalam cerita ni semuanya best. Kiranya sesuaila dengan trend muzik sekarang yang upbeat dan tak ketinggalan zaman. Antara lagu yang aku suka ialah Prem Ki Naiyyan, Tera Hone Laga Hoon dan Jab Pyaar Hota Hai.

Trivia: Ranbir Kapoor merupakan anak kepada Rishi Kapoor (hero Bobby). Katrina Kaif dan Salman Khan pernah bercinta selama beberapa tahun tapi kemudian putus.

Rating:

3. Anjaana Anjaani

Pelakon: Ranbir Kapoor (Aakash), Priyanka Chopra (Kiara), Zayed Khan (Kunal)

Sinopsis: Aakash dan Kiara bertemu di atas jambatan George Washington sebab dua-dua nak bunuh diri. Aakash nak bunuh diri sebab masalah kerja dan kewangan, Kiara pulak nak bunuh diri sebab tunang dia curang. Nak bunuh diri pun tak jadi sebab ada aje halangan. Macam-macam cara diorang cuba nak bunuh diri tapi gagal.

Kiara akhirnya buat keputusan diorang akan bunuh diri sama-sama pada 31 Disember, malam tahun baru. Sebelum bunuh diri, Kiara dan Aakash sama-sama cuba untuk buat benda yang diorang tak pernah buat masa diorang hidup.

Dalam menjalani hari-hari terakhir mereka, Aakash jatuh cinta kat Kiara ~~sebab Kiara cun sangat~~. Kiara pulak asyik teringat kat tunang tak guna dia lagi. Akhirnya Aakash kata takyahla bunuh diri, balik je rumah masing-masing.

Suka: Ranbir sangatla kacak dalam cerita ni dan Priyanka sangatla cantik dengan rambut pendek dia. Cerita dia agak lain dari cerita Hindustan lain.

Tak suka: Idea nak bunuh diri tu terlampau.

Soundtrack: Lagu dia kebanyakan best dan upbeat. Antara lagu kegemaran aku ialah Anjaana Anjaani, I Feel Good dan Tumse Hi Tumse.

Trivia: Priyanka Chopra ialah Miss World 2000. Filem ni shooting sepenuhnya di US.

Rating:

Itu dia reviu aku yang tak berapa nak serius. Aku reviu melalui pandangan aku, okey. Setakat nak merehatkan otak di hujung minggu bolehla layan filem-filem yang aku reviukan di atas. Kalau tak suka sudah, pergi main jauh-jauh.

Sekian.

it's not perfect but...

2010-11-30T16:38:00.002+08:00

Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye! So I've been awarded with Interesting Blog Award from my childhood friend, Ila Nadia. Why, thank you, Ila, for the award. I'm flattered. Really I am. Because for one, I've never thought of my blog being interesting for all the mindless rants.

Here's it is!

Thank you again, Ila!

Of course, I have to answer few questions (instead of making long winded acceptance speech like they do in Academy Award) in order to 'officiate' the award. So here it goes:

What's the friend's blog to your eyes?
Lots of my friends are now married but I don't really know how their married lives are. I go to her blog to get glimpses of her married life. I'm fascinated by it. Don't ask me why.
The title of your blog and the reason behind it.
Well, I think it's pretty obvious, no? Life is never perfect. Mine is not, at least. But that's the way I love it.
The reason behind your blog URL.
Read it here
Your style of writing.
This blog is like a personal space for me to rant to my heart's content so mostly my posts are my personal craps. Yes, sometimes I'll do reviews (books and movies mostly) but mostly, they are about my personal life.
What do you think when you look at other people's blogs and compare it to yours?
We all have our own preferences, no? What's the point in having such bombastic design when the contents are useless? Honestly, I think a lot of blogs out there are like that right now. Indah rupa dari isi.
When did you start to blog?
March 2006.
Who's the first person to follow your blog?
None other than Wani.

I'm suppose to tag other people or give out this award to other people but you know what? All of you (yang ada blog la!), you people are winner in your own way. So there you go.

save the sharks

2010-11-24T16:19:00.002+08:00

Recently, I saw a documentary regarding shark finning on National Geographic. The documentary is titled Sharkwater. And it's an eye-opener. Seriously. The images are disturbing and at the same time, heartbreaking. One particular footage showed some fishermen gleefully hacking up the fins of a shark and after harvesting the fins, they kicked the shark back into the water. Animal cruelty at its best.

Do you know that an estimated 200 million sharks die every year due to being hunted, caught and finning activities? An estimated 100 million sharks are killed for their fins only. That means about 250,000 sharks die a day.

Finning, my friends, is the practice of hacking off the shark's fins using hot metal blade and throwing it back into the sea, alive. Now without the fins, sharks cannot move, thus resulting in death due to starvation, been eaten alive by other fish or they will drown (if they are not in constant movement their gills cannot extract oxygen from the water).

The finning is practiced due to high demand for the fins (obviously) for the shark fin soup which has been touted as the most impressive and exotic delicacy, especially in Asia. Ironically, the fins itself do not add any flavor to the soup (the broth is usually made from chicken stock) and they certainly do not have any added nutritional value. The fins only add texture to the soup. Such barbaric and inhumane way just to fill up the tummy and to show off class. Aren't we selfish?

Sharks are mighty predators, they are at the top of the underwater food chain. That does not make sharks our enemy at all. In fact, sharks are very important for our very own survival. You see, God does not create something for no reason at all. So how are sharks important to human beings survival?

Being at the top of the food chain, sharks play an important role in the ecosystem by maintaining the species below them in the food chain and serving as an indicator for ocean health. They help remove the weak and the sick as well as keeping the balance with competitors helping to ensure species diversity. (Source)
As predators, they shift their prey’s spatial habitat, which alters the feeding strategy and diets of other species. Through the spatial controls and abundance, sharks indirectly maintain the seagrass and coral reef habitats. The loss of sharks has led to the decline in coral reefs, seagrass beds and the loss of commercial fisheries. (Source)
By taking sharks out of the coral reef ecosystem, the larger predatory fish, such as groupers, increase in abundance and feed on the herbivores. With less herbivores, macroalgae expands and coral can no longer compete, shifting the ecosystem to one of algae dominance, affecting the survival of the reef system. (Source)
Now, do you know that 70% of the oxygen in our atmosphere is produced by phytoplankton? Sharks actually prevent the the overconsumption of the plankton by other fish, thereby moderating global warming. (Source)

Those mentioned above are just few of many reasons why sharks are important to us. Can you imagine what will happen if sharks are wiped off from the face of the earth? What will happen to the ecosystem? What will happen to US?

For so long we've been 'forced' into believing that sharks are dangerous to human. They've been portrayed as having some sort of vendetta against the human race. Movies like Jaws and Deep Blue Sea incorporate that beliefs, which eventually lead us to believe that killing sharks is okay. It is not, I assure you.

The extinction of sharks will be the beginning of the end for us. The population of sharks decreased for over 90% for the last few years. This mass killing of sharks has got to be stopped pronto or we will face ecology imbalance which will harm the earth and will eventually harm the human race.

Before I end, here are some of the pictures of the gruesome 'murder':

There is no justification in killing this magnificent creature. None at all. Let's stop this ruthless killing once and for all. Stop eating/ordering/demanding the shark fin soup. Remember, one bowl of soup is just another step to our very own extinction, not just the sharks.

Further information:

he's baaaaack!

2010-11-08T21:16:00.005+08:00

Aarghhhh! He's back! He's back!

The BIG. BAD. WOLF is back, with a bite, y'all. Remember this? Yeah, well, the sale is BAAAACKKK! As you can see from the pictures above, he is back, more menacing than ever, threatening to burn the hole in your pocket. I hyperventilate every time I see the pictures they posted on their Facebook profile. And I'm going. I don't care.

Paperback novels from famous authors going at RM 8.00 each, which book lovers could ever resist? I certainly can not. Hyperventilate, remember?

So, when?
12th - 17th November 2010
10am-9pm

Where?
South City Plaza, Seri Kembangan

How to get there

Click click click

My advice is to go early so you can grab all the famous titles. And bring a box, a trolley or whatever that will make it easier for you to lug all those books around. Trust me, you will be needing it.

Now, are you excited yet?

good news

2010-10-27T13:23:00.002+08:00

Dear friends,

Thanks to all your prayers, Baby Aliff will be discharged from the hospital by tomorrow, insya Allah. Baby Aliff is still in recuperating process but he is now much much better than the last 3 weeks. He's an active baby, always moving around.

He was moved from the ICU last Sunday as his fever subsided and his breathing improved. He can move both his limbs but his right limbs will need to be strengthened. Except from a little phlegm in his throat, Aliff is doing great now.

Maybe I'll put a picture or two of him soon here. Until then, thank you so much for all the prayers and encouragement given to both Aliff and his mother. May Allah bless us all.

***************IMPORTANT***************

Baby Aliff needs a baby cot/crib. Any of you out there has any to spare please let me know ASAP. Spread the news, my friends.

******************************************

no more

2010-10-16T18:41:00.002+08:00

I'm sorry but there will be no more updates on Baby Aliff in this blog as there's been some conflict with certain side. Updates will only be via my Facebook or Twitter account.

And to all those free Opera Mini users:

NO MORE ONLINE SECARA FREE YO!

Apparently, Maxis found a way to block us cheapskate from browsing without charging. So there you go, no more free browsing. ~~Penat je aku buat tutorial nak online secara free!~~

That's all for now, folks.

more on aliff

2010-10-15T15:30:00.004+08:00

Almost one week in the ICU, Baby Aliff is still recuperating from his ordeal. Here are bits and pieces of Aliff's development so far:

Aliff is gradually regaining consciousness.
Aliff is able to move his fingers and toes but they are very limited movements.
His fever is gone.
His breathing is no longer labored and hard, though he is still being hooked up to the ventilator to help him breathe.
Aliff's right limbs are semi-paralyzed due to the serious bleeding on his left brain.
Aliff will start his series of long, hard and painful therapy with a physiotherapist soon.
The therapy is going to help him to move his limbs, at least for 50%.
His blood pressure is maintained at a low level to avoid more bleeding in his brain.

Update on 14th Oct 2010:

Aliff is now feverish again.
He still cannot move his right limbs.
Latest news is that Baby Aliff's eyes seem to not responding to any stimulation, but according to the doctors, it is still early to tell.
He is still being fed through tube.

Update on 15th Oct 2010:

Aliff is still feverish. Yesterday he opened his eyes and raised his left arm. His ventilator and breathing tube was removed, but the feeding tube still remain attached. His breathing is a bit difficult with phlegm clogging up his airways and they had to suck out the phlegm. The doctors are monitoring his breathing. If everything goes well, he will be moved to normal pediatric ward.

P/S: I will update this post from time to time to keep all of you posted with Aliff's development.

quick update on baby aliff

2010-10-12T10:54:00.000+08:00

Dear friends,

Alhamdulillah, thanks to your prayers and Allah's grace, Aliff is gradually gaining consciousness. Please keep praying for baby Aliff and his mother. Baby Aliff is indeed a fighter.

Let us all pray that Aliff will recover soon and lead a normal, happy life.

let's pray for baby aliff

2010-10-10T20:30:00.005+08:00

Dear friends,

This is baby Aliff. Aliff is just two months old. Aliff was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Hospital Ampang on 07th October 2010 due to subdural haemotoma or pendarahan otak. According to the doctors, Aliff suffered the bleeding due to either a fall, being shaken hard or terhantuk.

When his mother picked him up from the babysitter's house on that fateful day, Aliff was blue from crying. The babysitter told the mother that Aliff had been crying for almost four hours. The mother was shocked to hear this and asked why she did not send Aliff to the hospital and the babysitter replied that she doesn't have Aliff's birth cert so she just let him cry.

The mother then took Aliff immediately to the hospital. CT scan was conducted on Aliff and the doctor confirmed that his brain is swollen. Aliff was immediately put on life support. Up until today, three pints of blood has been pumped into Aliff's system. Aliff has not open his eyes since he was admitted into the ICU. The doctors gave Aliff a 50-50 chance to survive.

Imagine if you're the mother, who waited for ten years for Aliff to arrive into the world. It will certainly break your heart. It broke my heart. Seeing that little body lying on the bed with all sorts of tubes attached to his little body and the machines surrounding his bed, it pains me.

The doctors put Aliff on three types of medication, two types for his blood pressure and another one is for his heart. Aliff's breathing is helped by the ventilator. His breathing is hard, the chest heaves up and down visibly, as if breathing is a really hard work for him. Aliff's body is cold and unresponsive.

Yesterday, Aliff was hit with a fever. Until today, his fever still subsists. The doctors tried to take one of the medications off of him but then his blood pressure dropped drastically. A recent CT scan showed that his brain is still swollen and the blood clot is still there in his brain. The doctors are still in discussion whether Aliff needs a surgery or no.

Aliff is now in adult's ICU because they do not have ICU for children in Hospital Ampang. Because of his critical condition, it is impossible for them to move him to another hospital. So they modified everything according to his needs. Even his bed is an adult bed. Aliff is the only child in the ICU.

Everyday, his mother would recite holy verses to Aliff. She will talk to Aliff, telling Aliff to be strong and to come back to her so that they could go home and play together. She is a single mother who loves her child so much that she never left his side since he was admitted. She tells Aliff that she loves him to his ear every single day. Sometimes, the machines will beep, signaling his reaction to his mother's voice.

Dear friends,

Please, please, please pray for baby Aliif. Please include him in your prayer so that he will open his eyes and be okay. Please pray for his life and for his future. Aliff has got a long road ahead of him. His mother is waiting patiently for him to wake up.

The babysitter has been questioned by the police but she denied any wrongdoings. However, it seems that now her whole family is moving away from their current resident. The sister of the mother caught them moving their things in the middle of the night. My question is, if you're not guilty why are you running away? The husband at first refused to let the police in but the police told him that they can arrest him for obstruction of justice.

Please, friends, remember Aliff in your prayers. An innocent child should not be subjected to this kind of suffering. Please pray for Aliff's well being. Please pray for the mother to be strong for her child. Let us all, regardless of our religion, pray that Aliff will be okay and fine. Hoping that the power of prayer will help Aliff and his mother through this hardship.

Dear Aliff,

Please be strong. Please be okay. Please...

why i love twitter

2010-10-08T19:10:00.002+08:00

I just love love love Twitter. Really, I do. That is why you are seeing less and less of me around nowadays. I run out of things to say here because I rant too much on Twitter. Oh, how I can rant on Twitter! Kenapa, tak percaya? Just check with this guy, or my cousin. They can verify that I rant almost daily on Twitter. I even rage on Twitter. Seriously. And when I rage, my words can be really err... fancy? Or colorful? Err...

I love Twitter mostly because I could just say whatever that pops into my head at anytime. When I'm sad, happy or pissed off, I could just share it with Twitter. And most of the times, I will get instant reply or comments. How awesome is that? ~~Bukan macam blog, dua tiga hari baru ada orang nak komen.~~ And news travel much much faster on Twitter than CNN or BBC or the likes. Earthquakes, traffic jams, riots, deaths... you name it, you got it seconds after it happened. I like to keep my self up to date, you know.

And then there is this thing I call Twitter-rage where I just let my anger spilled. Where I just curse and curse and curse. There are some things I won't say here and on Facebook but I will say it in Twitter. Why? Simply because there are still lots of people are Twitter-blind. So I can rant and curse for all I like... for now. I have free rein as to what I say on my Twitter. And I can be as wacky as I want. And I can surely maki ikut suka hati aku towards certain person. Don't tell anyone, okay?

Hey, if you have Twitter, give me a holler. Kalau setakat register akaun fake semata-mata nak follow aku so that you can know what I say and then spread it to other people, you can go to hell. Find a life. If you can.

online secara freeeeee!

2010-10-04T22:30:00.005+08:00

Aku rasa ramai orang adalah masih blur lagi dengan konsep Opera Mini. Opera Mini, secara ringkasnya, ialah browser untuk telefon korang. Bagi aku, itu ialah Opera Mini. Simple. Mudah. Browser telefon, sepertimana Firefox atau Chrome browser untuk PC. Aku dah lama gunakan Opera Mini sebab aku rajin online. Aku suka ber-facebook, aku suka ber-twitter. Malah kalau tengah tengok TV, kalau aku tak tau siapa pelakon yang ada kat rancangan tu, aku boleh google on the spot. Takyah bukak PC or laptop.

Tapi, korang tahu tak bahawa sesungguhnya korang boleh browse internet secara percuma dengan menggunakan Opera Mini? Eh kejap. Apa yang bakal aku taipkan di sini adalah khusus untuk mata pengguna-pengguna prepaid Hotlink sahaja. Yang pengguna-pengguna lain tu bolehla klik butang 'X' sekarang juga. Tapi kalau nak teruskan membaca pun I tak kisah, noks. Sama-sama berkongsi pengetahuan (benda ni termasuk ke dalam kategori pengetahuan?).

So, macam mana nak online secara percuma melalui Opera Mini? Mudah aje caranya. Ini langkah-langkahnya:

Download Opera Mini ke henpon anda. Install.
* Orang kata Opera Mini versi 5.0 ke atas saja boleh buat ni tapi aku punya versi 4.2, boleh je online free.

Tekan *100# pada telefon dan kemudian tekan butang dial atau send.

Kemudian ambil pilihan no. 7 ataupun Internet and Settings/Internet dan Tetapan.

Pilih no. 3 atau Prepaid Broadband.

Pilih no. 4 atau Service Switching.

Pilih no. 2 atau Switch to Prepaid Broadband.

Pilih no. 1 atau Proceed.

Tunggu SMS pengesahan.

Bukak Opera Mini.

Apa lagi, online la!

See? Senang je kan? Kan dah kate...

Tapi, pastikan korang check baki kredit korang dulu. Lepas tu, test-test Opera Mini buat ~~sejam dua~~ seminit dua dan check semula baki. Kompem takde tolak punya.

Tapi kena ingat beberapa perkara:

Bila dah switch ke Prepaid Broadband, korang takleh send atau receive MMS. Video call masih boleh.
Untuk send atau receive MMS, buat seperti langkah 2 hingga 5.
Kemudian pilih Switch to Hotlink dan Proceed.
Dalam 5 - 10 minit selepas dapat SMS pengesahan, dah boleh send atau receive MMS.
Ini ialah untuk PENGGUNA PREPAID HOTLINK SAHAJA.

Silalah mencuba. Kalau tak boleh jugak, lantak korang la ye. Eheh!

P/S: Selamat mencuba. Kalau ada apa-apa nak tanya, sila la tanya. Kalau boleh ditolong, akan ditolong. Kalau tak, maap la ye. Sekian.

Update:
Ok, sedikit update untuk korang yang ada soalan. Opera Mini boleh didownload di sini. Sedikit step by step tutorial:

Kemudian pilih siri telefon. Masuk dalam telefon dan install. You are then good to go. Nak lebih mudah, bukak internet di telefon dan taipkan m.opera.com. Brand dan siri telefon will be automatically detected dan software Opera Mini boleh didownload terus. Install. Boleh guna dah. Sebelum guna, ikut step untuk online secara free.

Dan diulangi di sini, online secara free ni ialah hanya untuk pengguna prepaid Hotlink sahaja.

smooch that!

2010-09-29T12:17:00.000+08:00

Going to work with public transportation every single day, you're bound to see or hear something interesting or funny. Or maybe, you'll experience it on your own. I've had had so many incident in the past that I've lost count. But there was one incident that I still remember. Vividly. And it never fail to bring a smile to my face.

It happened when I was on board of Putra LRT heading to Kelana Jaya. I was standing, holding on to the steel pole. There were people standing nearby as well. While the train was moving smoothly along, I chatted with my sister, who was at that time doing her training at my office. Naturally, I let go of the pole while chatting, trying to make a point to my sister. Big mistake. Big, big mistake.

Suddenly, SKRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTT!!! Without warning whatsoever, the emergency brake was pulled (for lack of better operational word). The train lunged violently forward before coming to an abrupt stop.

Of course, it had to do that while I was not holding on to the pole.
Of course, it had to do that while there were people standing near to me. MEN mostly.
AND of course, it was too late before I grabbed hold of the pole.

Before you ask, OR laugh, NO, I did not fall flat on my face. I bumped, really hard, into a man's back. His shoulder, to be exact. Wait. His hard shoulder is more accurate. I was feeling a bit dizzy and stunned from the impact. I mumbled an apology and quickly straightened myself up. When I raised my head, I was horrified. Nooooo!!! My mind screamed.

THERE WAS A PINK GLOSSY LIPSTICK MARKING ON THE GUY'S SHIRT! Exactly where my face landed! On his shoulder! No, no, no, no, no, no! I searched urgently for his fingers, to see any sign of a ring, but he had his back on me. Damn it! How do I wipe off that offending mark from his shirt? Damn it all! While I was trying to figure out what to do, the train moved again, thankfully at a slower speed. And before I could do or say anything about it, he got off at the next stop.

And my mind went "Mampos la kalau dia dah kahwin. Mampos la kalau bini dia nampak bekas lipstik tu. Mampos! Finish! The end!"

Then, my logic kicked in, "He must be going to his office. His colleagues must notice that marking. They will let him know and of course he'll clean that marking off his shirt. Right? Right? RIGHT?"

Riiiiiigghttt!

Until now I wonder just what happened after he walked out off the train. I honestly hope that the lipstick mark would not harm him in any way. It was an accident, to start with. I was not aiming for his shoulder. I really really really hope nothing bad happened to him, or embarrassing. And I really really really really hope we won't be bumping into each other again. EVER!

blank

2010-09-20T15:29:00.001+08:00

.....

.......

.........

..........

I really don't know what to tell you about apart from how great Aidilfitri was. Most of you probably saw the pictures tagged by my sisters on the Facebook. You can also see some of the photos here and here. My Aidilfitri was, in every sense of word, fantastic. How's yours?

I gotta get back to work now. I'm running out of words. I'll write longer when time permits. In the meantime, take care y'all.

it's that time of the year, again

2010-09-08T12:01:00.000+08:00

Heyya, folks! By the time you read this, I may be well on my way to Kedah. Raya for my family is always in Kedah, where all the families, near and far will come together to celebrate this joyous occasion. It's always filled with laughter and fond memories. Eid, for our family, is a family occasion. I will enjoy every single moment of it this year. And I sure hope you will, too.

Here's wishing you a very blessed Aidilfitri.

Credit to: Cepotet
Her drawings never fail to make me smile.

For those of you who's going back to your hometown, have a safe journey home.

To my friends, hopefully we'll see each other before Raya ends.

Selamat Hari Raya, everyone! If I've ever wronged you in any ways, I humbly apologize. Maaf zahir dan batin.

serabut my kepala otak

2010-09-06T11:50:00.002+08:00

Dah confirm hari Rabu start cuti Raya. Dah confirm nak balik kampung hari Rabu. ~~Tak confirm lagi Raya jatuh hari Khamis atau Jumaat.~~ Dah confirm harus balik ke KL hari Selasa sebab Rabu start kerja balik ~~walaupun Khamis tu cuti umum~~.

Tapiiii...

Melihatkan beban kerja yang ada, macam misi mustahil untuk siapkan semua by Selasa. Rasa macam nak siat-siat orang pun ada. Orang lain nak Raya, ada pulak orang yang nak ke obersi. Ya, aku faham, urusan kerja/penting. Tapi kalau dah tahu nak ke obersi masa nak dekat Raya, tak boleh ke setelkan awal-awal? Ni lagi dua tiga hari lagi nak pergi baru la terhegeh-hegeh nak minta apply visa, nak booking tiket, nak booking hotel, nak tu nak ni. Serabut my kepala otak ok!

Lagi dua tiga hari nak pergi, nak suruh booking tiket kapal terbang ingat senang? Ingat travel agent ni boleh buat magic macam David Blaine? Tiket mahal, bising. Seat takde, bising. Ya, aku tau, customers are always right. Dari perspektif customer, memangla kamu je yang betul. Aku pun kalau di tempat customer, aku je yang betul. Tapi ada reti nak bertimbang rasa sikit tak? Aih... serabut my kepala otak!

Kadang-kadang fikir, I am better off quitting this shitty job. Pagi ni saja dah lebih sembilan kali angkat telefon "Hello, good morning, ******* Travel," sampai kering air liur. But but but, I love this shitty job. Aku suka buat quotation untuk klien yang nak melancong ke Malaysia. Aku suka arrangekan pengangkutan dan tempat tinggal mereka. Dan yang paling aku suka, bila mereka kata "My holiday is very nice!". It gives me the ultimate satisfaction.

Dan tiba-tiba aku terperasankan sesuatu. Yang suka buat last minit ni semua orang Malaysia. Nak visa dua hari atau sehari sebelum bertolak, orang Malaysia. Nak tiket kapal terbang 36 jam sebelum bertolak, orang Malaysia. Nak book hotel lima jam sebelum check in, orang Malaysia jugak. Tipikal sungguh. Maka aku kena jadi superwoman untuk menunaikan permintaan-permintaan sebegini. Serabut my kepala otak ok!

Dah tau banyak kerja, kejadah yang dok tulis blog lagi ni? Tak reti-reti nak sambung kerja? ~~Nak tulis blog, pergi kerja gomen!~~. Dah, dah. Sambung kerja!

in the hour of the late...

2010-09-02T16:26:00.000+08:00

In the hour of the late
I could almost hear your whisper
I could almost feel you breath
like you've never been gone
like you're always close to me

In the hour of the late
I could almost make out your face
in the dark shadow
I could almost reach my hands to you
and feel the warmth
that emanates from your skin

In the hour of the late
I realized I was tracing memories
I was trying to grab my dreams
and I was drowned
in my own tears
as I tried to get a hold on reality

In the hour of the late
I whispered
I poured my heart out
The words of love
The words of endearment
and I prayed that you know
that I will always, always, always
miss you.

vampires suck

2010-08-23T15:41:00.000+08:00

I don't hate Twilight, either books or the movie franchise. Really, I don't. I thought the books are readable (except for the part where I want to tear my hair out in frustration towards Bella Swan), the first movie is decent, the second movie...... well, let's move on. My point is that I don't hate Twilight. I'm just not in favor of it.

Thus why I thought Vampires Suck is funny. It's a movie spoof, mainly targeting the Twilight movies. The movie makes fun of Daybreakers, True Blood and Vampire Diaries as well. All vampire-related features. Vampires Suck is a shitty movie, yes, no doubt about it but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it.

But I don't think vampires suck. Vampires like the Salvatore brothers (Vampire Diaries)? Man, I'd invite them into the house anytime! And if someone else play Edward apart from Rob Pattinson, well, maybe I'll play nice. Those over-moussed hair... well, let's pretend I didn't say anything, shall we? Go, Team Edward *not!*.

By the way, how's your Ramadhan shaping up?

salam ramadhan

2010-08-10T13:49:00.006+08:00

The holy month is here yet again. And I feel like I can take a very deep breath now that Ramadhan is here. Why? I don't know. I just feel... relieved. And I wish for an uneventful Ramadhan this year.

To all of you, my Muslim friends, I wish you

Salam Ramadhan Al-Mubarak
"May this Ramadhan be a blessed one for all of us."

And Suria's family will be in KL on the first Ramadhan. It's a very nice way to start Ramadhan; with family.

Now I can seriously focus on my diet. Err. I think.