boulevard-ijab (IJA & ME) - one half completing the other half....

The ticking (of time)... The morning I will NEVER forget!!!

2011-08-29T20:45:00.001+08:00

Dear readers, any new post shall come after this one. This will always be my first ever entry, in honouring my memories with Mak.

New entry below: Eid greetings from Pakcik Turtle.

First created: 25 March 2011, 8:50am
Last updated: 04 May 2011, 8:25pm

When I decided to blog again a few weeks ago, little did I expect and never did I wish that the 2nd entry this year would be about the day that my mum passed away...

Mak was loved by many due to her loving and caring nature and how she touched people's lives. We are missing her so much, so greatly that sometimes, until today, some of us still shed our tears.

One thing for sure, Mak's death has greatly affected different individuals in different ways. Some miss how she regularly visited them. Others miss the sight of her, when she greeted and welcoming them at the front door right up to when she bid them goodbye.

People had turned to her for advice or just to share our problems, whether by seeing her in person or by calling her up. Mak made us feel appreciated and she treated us all the same, respective of who. We are still in sorrow Mak, saddened by your unexpected passing.

I trust, not one person in this world who has their mums by their sides when they grow up, would ever want to lose their mums. Ever! As for me, I’m not sure how or when it started, but I do know that some time when I was still in school, I was praying that my mum would never leave me alone, that she would never die. I was even hoping to God to take me first, instead of her, because I couldn’t imagine living without her around...

Maybe that belief had somehow crawled its way and embedded itself in my subconscious mind that up until recently, I still thought that my mum was going to live forever, or at least she would outlive me.

Just like between most parent and child out there, my mum and I were quite tight. There were stuffs that until today, only Mak knew and I am quite sure, some of the things she told me, she never told anybody else.

Every day, I would call her up. Even when I was attending a course or on a vacation (if not abroad), I would still make the effort to talk to her.

For some, you might think what I could possibly have to say to her every day. Well, just like those who still live with their parents, there are always things to say to each other rite?

I just loved to hear her tone when she picked up the phone and said “Assalamualaikum”. She put a certain melody to it. Sometimes, the way that I responded "Waalaikumussalam" also in tune with hers. Now, it’s just in my memory.

Some of our conversations may occasionally revolved different things, but for most calls, these were the usual stuffs that I would ask her:

“Mak buat apa?” (what were you doing?)

Mak dah sembahyang (Dhuha) ke?” (Were you praying Dhuha?) “Mak tengah ngaji Qur’an ke?” (Were you reciting the Qur’an?)

“Sky (our cat) teman Mak solat tadi tak? Sky sekarang suka tidur kat mana? Sky sihat?” (Did Sky accompany you while you were praying? Where does Sky like to sleep these days? Is Sky well?)

Asking about Sky was a must for me everytime I talked to her over the phone. She too had noticed that about me. Sky - now 16, who was bought by my sister in the US, had become my parents’ companion. Sky was very cuddly with Mak – sitting by Mak’s sejadah when she prayed or reading the Qur’an, waking Mak up almost every night just to get her to accompany him eating, climbing up the stairs only when called by Mak and at times, would follow Mak around the house to whichever rooms she went into. I remember how she was so concerned when Sky had developed a growth underneath his ear. She was against the idea to get the growth surgically removed, fearing that Sky might not take the operation well and died. She did not want to risk losing Sky, losing her pet friend...

Turned out, it was Mak who left us first......

“Mak minum apa pagi tadi? Mak makan apa tengah hari ni, masak ke beli?” (What did you have for breakfast? What are you planning to have for lunch, you cook or just buy from outside?)

“Mak takda merayap pergi mana-mana hari ni?” (You are not planning to crawl around today?) – we always jokingly said the word merayap to describe going somewhere.

“Ayah buat apa? Ayah dah pergi kelas (mengajar)?” (What is Ayah doing? Has Ayah gone to teach religious classes?”

“Mak Ibu ada plan balik Muar?” (Is Mak Ibu (her older sister who lives in Malacca) coming back to Muar?)

“Atuk Batu Pahat apa khabar?” (How is Grandma (Ayah’s mother) in Batu Pahat?)

“Tadi Mak ada pergi rumah Mak Lang? Mak Lang apa khabar?” (Did you go to Mak Lang’s house today? How is she doing?) - Mak Lang is Mak’s auntie who lives on her own.

“Tok Cik sihat? Apa khabar dia?” (How is Tok Cik doing?) – Tok Cik is Mak Lang’s brother. Tok Cik lost his wife a few years ago. Both were very close to Mak. Mak had helped in whatever ways she could to ease Tok Cik’s grief. Tok Cik recently remarried, two days after Mak was laid to rest. The date for Tok Cik to remarry was agreed by many, including Mak. Mak’s death was indeed unexpected… by many.

Of course, our conversation was never this scripted. For most of time, after asking one or two of the usual stuffs, we ended up talking about almost everything under the sun.

On certain days, if there were more things to say, like if we had certain plans the coming weekend, or to update her on my son’s funny behaviours (who turned 4 last 1st April), I would call her more than once in a day.

Unless I heard from her or Ayah that she had not been feeling well, I hardly had to ask from either of them if she was well. Mak had always been healthy and well. She made her regular check ups and doctors always gave her the good news. Other than her cholesterol level which was sometimes quite high, she passed all her other tests. Maybe this was partly the reason why I still thought she had plenty of years ahead of her – plenty enough to see her grand children grow up.

One time, I asked her if my routine calls ever bugged her in any way. She said, she was very happy everytime she received my calls. She would start to wonder (though never to make a big fuss about it) when I missed calling her.

In the past, I didn’t realize I had this one funny habit, until Mak pointed it out one day. She said, despite knowing that it was her who picked up the phone (and the fact that there were no other female adults in the house), I would still ask “Mak ya?” I made her chuckle (silently) every single time I did that.

The habit stopped after that. Now that Mak is gone, the habit had mysteriously come back, during the few times when I called Mak Ibu. I remember, I had said "Mak Ibu ya?" Could my subconscious mind be hoping that Mak Ibu would correct me? Like Mak did….?

(You might wonder, how often did I call Ayah? I spoke to him whenever possible, during the times when I called Mak up. Usually, at the time when I called, Ayah was busy doing house chores, or preparing his course materials, or was not even home, teaching classes. With Ayah hardly kept his handphone with him, calling Mak’s handphone seemed to be the best way to keep in touch. Ayah would normally call me after his night classes, to ask how everyone was doing or to speak to Ikhwan)

I go back hometown with my family at least once in a month. Occasionally, we also take extended weekends.

Mak just loved to see Ikhwan whenever she could, or to speak to Ikhwan over the phone, (although sometimes, Ikhwan was too busy playing or not in the right mood, to want to talk to her).

Mak practically knew about almost every single cheeky and smart thing that Ikhwan said or did. Even by just hearing stories about Ikhwan from me, she was already excited and sometimes impressed by his behaviours. She said, judging from Ikhwan’s bubbly nature and quick thinking, he could very well grow up to be a very smart and soleh (religious) man. So, she encouraged me to raise him well. Insha’ Allah Mak…

About one month prior to that fateful day, we went back hometown (the 2nd last time I ever saw her in Muar). Not long after that weekend, Mak started complaining about how she lost her appetitie to eat. She went to see 3 different doctors, including the one who gave us the immunisation for our Umrah trip. She took different tests just to be certain - but test results all showed Mak was fine. I did not go home again during this period, as Mak said she was not in a serious condition. Further, we planned to do so on the weekend of 12-13 March.

10th March (Thursday) - I was listening to IKIM FM on my way home from work. The ustaz was talking about ways to get others to listen and follow our advice/instructions. One of the examples given, was how to talk to our sick parents so we could get them to go to the hospital. Immediately upon hearing that, I had this weird feeling. For some reason unknown, I thought about Mak. Mak was never afraid of needles or the doctors. Although she had seen different doctors, Mak sure had not gone to the hospital. Maybe this was a sign that I should bring Mak to the hospital this weekend. If only I did...

11th March (Friday) - After work, I brought wife and kid to catch the movie, Mars Needs Moms. We couldn't go back to Muar that Friday evening (as we would usually do) because wife had to work the next morning. So, we departed on Saturday evening instead. The movie ended after 9pm. While waiting for wife to complete her Isha' prayer, I called Mak. When Mak heard where we were, Mak commented in a non-scolding manner "merayap aja korang ni.." (you guys hardly stay home). It was the last time I ever heard her saying "merayap".. How I Need my Mom still....

12th March (Saturday) - it was the start of a week long school holiday. The traffic along the highway was horrendous. Because of that, I only reached Muar close to 10pm. I was surprised to see how pale and frail looking Mak was. Mak said, she had lost 7kg for the past one month. Knowing that we all already had our dinner, Mak wanted to go to bed. I didn't object. In fact, I encouraged her to (sleep). Mak didn't make me any coffee that time, and neither did she have any energy to chit chat with me as usual. Poor Mak, because of waiting for me, she had to stay up late. Otherwise, although she may not be able to sleep immediately, she would have gone to rest on the bed early, as early as 8pm (according to Ayah).

That night, I had a weird feeling again. There is a single bed in Mak's room. I felt so much wanting to sleep with Mak that night, to sleep on that single bed. But, I didn't voice it out. I was thinking, how could an adult man like me, still wanting to do that. If only I did go ahead. If only I did sleep in her room. Now...that chance is never going to come again.

13th March (Sunday) - We didn't have Mak's fried rice that morning of course (I sorely miss her fried rice, along with her few other dishes, that tasted so delicous and different, no one else could beat). As early as 8am, all four of us (except Mak) were ready to go to Ayah's Umrah class. Mak couldn't go for she did not feel very well. She looked very sad, for she wanted so badly to go to the class with Ikhwan.

After lunch, both my wife and I mentioned about our intention to bring Mak to the hospital, in order to be thorough. Mak didn't really object, except saying that she would get the result for her complete blood test from a GP the next morning. She said, any decision to go to the hospital would depend on what the result entail. Mak didn't really object, and I didn't really persuade (like what the IKIM ustaz had taught me). I was so stupid and selfish. Even worse, I fell asleep for the whole freaking one and a half hours on the couch. That time could have been better utilised by bringing her to the hospital instead. I feel like I had let Mak down....bad!

After waking up, it was almost time to go back. Ayah had gone for a class, so we missed him. Before getting into the car, I kissed her hand and cheeks, and whispered to her ears 'Mak...try to get something to eat.' When leaving the house, as usual, I honked and waved again for one last time. Usually, I couldn't really see Mak anymore from inside the car - my view was normally blocked to see where she was standing. But that day, she actually bent down so low that she almost touched the floor, just so as she could see me leaving (and I could see her). She waved at me and smiled. She looked so sparkingly cheerful. At that time, I had that weird feeling again. Maybe because it was her last goodbye.

Earlier that day, it crossed my mind that maybe I should take leave the next Monday, just so that I could be with Mak a little longer, or at least so that I could bring her to the hospital (since that Sunday was such a short day). But I didn't go ahead with that plan. I didn't even mention it to anybody. If only I did, I might have make Mak really happy and appreciated (during her final days).

14th March (Monday) - 11:40am, it was the last time I made a call to her. When she picked it up, the first thing she told me was "Mak kena warded ni. Tak dapat pergi Umrah." (I had to be warded..I won't be going for Umrah). When I reacted all panicky, then she laughed "Eh, Mak gurau aja ni. Mak tarik balik. Mak pergi Umrah..." (I was only kidding. I do want to go for Umrah).Turned out Mak wasn't kidding.

Mak said the doctor's result showed that she was fine, except that this time, it also indicated that she had a tiroid, which was new (as she didn't have that before). The doctor gave her some medication, plenty enough for her to bring some supplies for Umrah. At that time, she sounded so happy, so I asked her why. She told me, she was at Tok Cik's house, talking about the preparations for Tok Cik's big day. She said she was excited for she'd be getting a new aunt.

During that one month period when she had no appetitie, she once cried to me over the phone, saying that if anything were to happen, she hoped she could at least witness these 2 things: Umrah with Ikhwan and seeing Tok Chik remarried again. I remember at the time when she was crying, all of a sudden, the line got cut off, and I had difficulty calling back. When I did manage to call back, the moment was gone. She was already calm. I explained to her what happened and told her "Ok ya Mak, tak ada apa-apa lah Mak." (you have nothing to worry about). At that time, I was still thinking Mak's condition was temporary, Mak was going to be OK, Mak was going to live much longer... I was a fool (for thinking like that and for not seeing the signs). Those were the exact two things that Mak didn't get to see and experience....

After work that monday, I wanted to pay RM 500 for my credit card bill. But the ATM machine at the place that I went to, didn't have cash deposit service. So, the RM 500, along with some Ringgit bills remained in my wallet.

I then walked into a bookstore. A book grabbed my attention. The title "Doa-doa Untuk Ibu Bapa" (Prayers to Recite for Your Parents). Initially, I did not realise that the title was actually "...Untuk Arwah Ibu Bapa" (...For Your Deceased Parents), since the font for the word 'Arwah' was smaller than the rest. I decided to buy the book nonetheless, thinking that Mak could use it, to pray for her deceased parents. Little did I know, that the book is actually for me to use instead.

15th March (Tuesday) - 1:00am, I received a call from Kaklong. She told me that Mak had been hospitalised. Ayah said, Mak had difficulty breathing and her blood pressure had dropped. Kaklong and I planned to leave after Subuh the next day. But wife said, with Mak's blood pressure dropped, that could mean serious. So, she called up Muar Hospital and talked to the doctor in charge. After hanging up, she advised us to drive home immediately. We trusted her coz she knew better. So, we convoyed together, driving back to Muar.

We reached the hospital after 4am. Mak was awake, with her breathing mask on. All four of us (me, wife, kaklong and brother in law) managed to see her and talked to her a little bit. When we went for Subuh prayer, wife told us that Mak's heart responded well to the medication. We were relieved to hear that. But she then added, the first 48 hours after any heart patient was admitted was crucial, and anything could happen. Something did happen. We were called back to the hospital. Mak had a major attack during Subuh time.

Mak was pronounced dead at 10:55am, although I had a feeling, she might have left us before that official time.

In the past, Mak mentioned that if given a choice, she would rather not to be bed ridden for so long, so as not to trouble her children and children in laws.

She was only warded for about 12 hours or so... Mak, if given a choice, I wouldn't mind taking care of you at all, even if it meant quitting my job.

I helped in the process of bathing her. When the lady poured water on her lifeless face, my heart was saying "Mak, janganlah tinggalkan Nizar Mak. Bangunlah balik Mak. Orang tu jirus air kat muka Mak tu. Bangunlah Mak." (Mak, don't leave me behind. Wake up Mak. That person is pouring water onto your face, so please wake up).

The total costs charged by the Hospital for Mak's funeral arrangement: mandi, kafan + keranda (bathe, kafan + coffin) was RM 500. I had the exact amount. The RM 500 was still in my wallet. I still had not used a Ringgit of it.

25th March 2011 was the day that I went for Umrah with my wife, Ikhwan and Ayah. Mak was so eager to go there with Ikhwan that time around. But Allah had a different plan for her. She was called upon to meet The Almighty, before she could experience all that.

Mak…

Ikhwan 'performed' one complete Umrah on the night we arrived in Mekah, although he did that while he was unconsious (sleeping) and he was pushed on a wheel chair.

One afternoon, Ikhwan managed to follow his Mum, making one complete round of Tawaf.

In total, Ikhwan made 4 trips between Safa and Marwah for Sai'.

Ayah and I managed to bring Ikhwan to Raudhah, Alhamdulillah. Look at the way he posed here Mak.

On the final day when we were in Madinah, Ikhwan was so playful outside our hotel room. His laughter and boisterous voice had caused occupants from other rooms to come out and 'play' with him. You would have been entertained by him too...

Mak…

Twice, I cried so hard while in Masjidil Haram. One time, at Marwah, after completing my Sai'. The other, after the call for Subuh prayer, in front of Kaa'bah. It was the final Subuh in Mekah for me.

The images of you kept playing in my head. You, wearing that favourite blue robe. You, waving goodbye to me on that Sunday evening. Witnessing your suffering that Tuesday morning, struggling for air. The images of you after you had that major attack.

I was too overwhelmed by my feelings. Although I managed to compose myself after a while, my tear glands couldn't seem to stop. Tears just kept running down on my cheeks, hard and continous, that before I managed to wipe away a tear on one cheek, another (tear) already dropped from the other (cheek).

Mak…

I always feel that I don't have that many friends but that never seemed to matter to me before, because at the end of the day, I knew that....I had you, you were there for me to turn to. Even by just hearing your voice, you just took my troubles away.... But now..you're gone Mak......

Not that long ago, I decided to assign different ringtones to different names (those whom I always call). For Mak's number, I chose the song Come Home by One Republic. The reason for the song was because, I knew that Mak would always eagerly await for me to come home, to see me again whether at her home, or my home, or kaklong's home.

The number is still in my phone, with the same ringtone. Except that now, the song has a different meaning. Now, I wish I could see you again Mak, to hear your voice, to be comforted by you, to hug you and kiss your cheeks and hands again, even if it's only in a dream. Now, it's more apt to say, Mak is never coming back Home again.

Rashidah Abd. Hamid

Born: 3rd of June 1939

Date and Time of Death: 15th March 2011 (10 Rabiul Akhir 1432H) at 10:55am

Place of Death: Ward no. 16, CRW1, CCU, Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital Muar

Place of burial: In front of parent’s house at Parit Besar, Jalan Temenggong Ahmad, Muar Johor

The above was her last ever photo. She no longer needed spectacles after having her eye surgeries done. She took the photo to renew her passport for her planned Umrah trip with her grandson.... that never happened.

This is Ikhwan's first ever video when he was only 2 months' old. Other than Ikhwan's shrieking voice towards the end of the video, it only has Mak's voice throughout. The video is also on YouTube.

My blog tagline says 'one half completing the other half'. The thing is, I feel that, that other half (which is me) is no longer complete ..

P/S: I decided not (yet) to elaborate, the chronological events that happened on the day that Mak passed away, and the days that follow... Maybe one day I will...

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Raya without Mak....

2011-08-29T20:30:00.012+08:00

This year marks de 1st Raya of not having Mak around.

It's Raya eve today. I just want to say Happy Eid to all Muslims, and end this message with a little poem from Pakcik (Uncle) Turtle. You can see the photo of Pakcik Turtle at my Flickr page here.

Pakcik Turtle looks at his clock,
It's time for de Eid prayer,
Pakcik Turtle puts on a 'songkok',
And wish u Selamat Hari Raya...

P/S: 'songkok' is a typical head covering worn by Muslim men in Malaysia, as shown in the photo.

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

A 'surprise' after 9 months...

2011-03-03T00:48:00.025+08:00

After 9 months of silence, what better way to start blogging again, than to begin it with the above photo eh? One look at the photo may make you think that it seems age never really catches up with me, or rather, it actually moves backward? Hahahaahhaa......

In my defense (like I need one, haha), the lady photographers (yes! more than one) told us the guys, to make funny faces while they snapped our photo. How could I know that those guys didn't have a sense of humor? I mean, that was how they interpreted as being funny? As a result, I became the only one who acted clownish. Sob.. sob...

Anyway, as the banner behind us suggests, the photo was taken during my 3-week course in Tokyo Japan, last July 2010. These guys may give you the impression that it was a seriously grueling course. Actually, it was not. I had a blast touring around Japan (as much as I could and for most of the time, I ventured out on my own) and I was much loved (kes perasan.. haha) by my course mates, facilitators and lecturers.

Anyway, I have so much to tell you (readers, or at least, this blog diary of mine), not only about my 'trip' to Japan, but also what went on throughout the past 9 months (had this involved a pregnant woman, the baby is going to or already pops out eh?). Hopefully, I can give you a quick overview this weekend, before blogging those interesting events in detail, after that. So... yes! I'll c u soon....

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Some stuffs that crossed my mind or touched my heart....

2010-05-30T02:06:00.003+08:00

1) Loving me...

The other night, my son was wearing his home-slippers which he got from the Hollywood Hotel in HK Disneyland, where he spent his one night, early this month. I was taking out a work shirt from the wardrobe when he suddenly came into the room and asked me to look at him with the slippers on. I complimented him and the slippers, and then he said "Saayaangg Ayah" Wanting to kid with him, I asked whether was it Mickey Mouse or him who loved me. Hiis reply was "Ikhwan..lah.." I came down on one knee and hugged him. He hugged me back so tight that I couldnt un-hug him. It lasted for a few seconds longer than the usual (hugging time). If not mistaken, that was the first time that he held on to me, not wanting to let go until he was ready. Usually, he would rush it just so that he could start watching his favourite show or go to the kitchen to get his sweet from his mum or something. Nonetheless, touching eh...?

By the way, isn't it cool that while most hotels only provide (crappy) complimentary adult slippers (which can usually be worn for only a few times), the hotels in Disneyland do think about their small guests and give them a pair, and they are of good quality too.

2) Beverages

Almost every morning, I would call my folks' home. Sometimes, I call hometown, up to 3 times a day, especially if there WAS something else to talk about, other than a quick chat. A quick chat would usually involve some usual questions I ask my mum or dad.

Likewise, every now and then, we get calls from hometown too. Usually, it's from the grandparents wanting to talk to Ikhwan - to listen to his bubbly words.

One night, it was just me and Ikhwan home. When the phone rang, Ikhwan picked it up and it was my dad on the other line. I could hear my dad asking him whether he already had his dinner or not. He said he already did, which was true. Then my dad asked, what did he had for a drink? His response was "Kopi takda, teh takda, air suam aja..." (No coffee, no tea, just plain water).

Again, his answer was honest, but it made me burst with laughter. First of all, the way he answered was like, as though he was 'orang tua' (some old man). Then, what's with such an elaborate answer son? Yes, we gave you sips from our coffee sometimes, but never the whole mug. We hardly drink tea and most likely never mentioned it to you before. You must have learned that such a drink exist from someone else eh?

Finally, "..air suam aja..."? Son, were you trying to hint that plain water was so.... errr... plain? Aaahhh.... poor you.... You see, my wife usually makes him Ribena, or water mixed with honey, or some other tasty drinks. But with me, I usually stick to plain water - simple plus less dishes to wash. You may think I'm lazy, but plain water is also good what? :-)

What he said that night was one of those many harmless-but-yet-really-funny lines that came out of his mouth, that really cracked everybody up.. WE ALL LOVE YOU SON...

3) A friend to Nature

Malaysians are more environmental conscious these days or at least, this is what the retailers are trying to educate us. True?

There is one major book store which deducts RM 0.50 off your purchase, if you bring your own reusable/environmental friendly bag. Now, more and more hypermarkets and mini markets in Malaysia (even the less well-known ones) are encouraging customers to bring their own reusable bags on certain days of the week (otherwise, customers will have to pay for the plastic bags). It's also been said that in the future, the practise of charging customers for plastic bags will become a daily thing.

Actually, the latter practise has been adopted by developed countries way way back. I remember how when I got back from my study in the UK a decade ago, I wanted to bring this good habit home. I was also under the impression that the same policy was being practised here.

There were a number of times when I went out to shop, I told the cashier that there was no need for bags, either because I brought my own or because I didn't see the need, due to the small number of items purchased, or I wanted to consume that one item straight away.

Here were some responses that I received from the cashiers, who were obviously perplexed by my request:

(a) "No! You have to put that in a plastic bag. Otherwise, the security will hold you for stealing." (Hmmm, I wonder why we didn't think this before - that customers could carry out their bought items in their hands, so long as the cashiers had put the sticker 'PAID' on them).

(b) "No! You can't put that in your own bag. Otherwise, the security will check your bag and hold you for stealing. You should have left any other bags outside anyway..." (Hmmm, I wonder why we didn't think this before - that customers could carry out their bought items in bags other than the retailers' ones. What was the security alarm system for anyway? Wasn't it to detect any unauthorised smuggling of unpaid items?)

(c) The cashier nudged her friend, upon looking at me taking a bag from my pant's pocket. They both laughed, probably thinking how silly it was to bring your own bags and fold them into your pockets (Well missies, look who's laughing now? You were lucky I didn't take out pigeons after pigeons from my pockets instead).

It is amazing just how slow we came to realise the need to reduce the use of plastic bags. If only I were the Environmental Minister a decade ago? :-)

Coming up soon:

(1) How colours colour my life...

(2) Travel journals and photos - A Famosa Resort Malacca and Hong Kong

(3) How I made Ikhwan cry and I still couldn't get that image and his cries out of my head...

(4) How I made my mum cry for close to two weeks...

Stay tune, if you can bear the delays between updates :-)

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Ikhwan and his toys - I hope Ikhwan will always remember his Thomas & Friends toy collections

2010-04-08T00:56:00.009+08:00

Last 1st April marked the day when Ikhwan turned 3 years old. His current obsessions include Thomas and Friends, raksasa (monsters), Ultraman, cars and the animals (elephants, ducks, tigers etc).

For most parents in the world, some of the earliest things they teach their kids would be the 'A', 'B', 'C' and what better ways to make that learning interesting for the kids other than to match the letters with animal names such as 'C for cat - meowww', 'E for elephant - eeekkkkk' and 'T for tiger - aummmmm'. Likewise for Ikhwan. This (the learning of A,B,C), together with the catchy 'Old McDonald' song and the recent family visit to the Safari in Malacca (I will write more on this soon), has contributed much to Ikhwan's fascination with the animal world.

Cars - I'm not a caratic (car fanatic, hehe), but once in a while, I do read articles on cars or buy car magazines. I notice that whenever that happens, Ikhwan will always want to take a peek, if not wanting the paper/magazine all to himself. I guess his liking for cars is in his genes. I just push his interest further by buying him some car toys and letting him watch Cars (the cartoon). Also, the fact that he always sits in the front passenger seat whenever we ride together since he was little, may have also played the part in arousing his curiosity on cars. I remember when I just got my new car last November, he kept saying, "Car Ayah, car baru" (baru means new - you see, we Malaysians always mix the language, even the little ones).

Ultraman and monsters - thanks to our previous baby sitter whose son always play the Ultraman video game, and his mother, who entertained his request by buying him some Ultraman movies, he always imagined himself as Ultraman. Whenever he said, "Ayah, nak yash!" - that would mean he wanted some 'sparring' sessions with me (don't ask me where he get the word yash from). He was always Ultraman, while I was a monster.

Guess the Ultraman stories always depict monsters as baddies and uncool - until one day, he caught the movie Ice Age 3. That movie completely changed his perception on monsters. Nowadays he is always a monster. I remember one day, when he was pretending to be a monster, I asked him "Who am I?" He immediately replied "baby elephant" (in reference to Ice Age 3). Funny huh? I would prefer to be named a father elephant instead. Our roles have reversed somehow haha.

Recently, all three of us watched the movie 'How To Train A Dragon' at the cinema. As expected, he had a blast!!!

Thomas and Friends (T&F). I admit, it's all me who started it. You see, when I was a kid, I've always wanted a train set, with all those little houses, little trees, little people, mountains, animals etc etc. But that would be a ridiculous thing to ask from parents yeah?

So now, I'm living up my unfulfilled childhood fantasy through Ikhwan by telling him "Let's watch T&F on the Disney channel". Not enough with that, I bought him (close to 10) T&F DVDs, T&F story books and lots and lots of railway lines (ops sori, that's the line from T&F opening sequence, heeee). I meant lots and lots of T&F toys. This way, I get to be a kid again - minus the diapers, haha!!!

I memorise the T&F theme song and always sing it to him. Imagine a jovial dad singing to his kid - Disney style. By Disney style - I mean 'hitting' high frequencies when reaching the end of the song and spreading my arms out while doing so.

I also teach Ikhwan the different characters from T&F - Thomas (of course), James, Percy, Emily, Toby, Gordon, Henry and Edward. Impressively, Ikhwan has memorised them all. Even if the pictures in his books don't clearly show which particular characters, he can still tell the difference and name them correctly. I remember how one night, my wife tried to make up her own storyline and blindly named the train characters in one of his books. She ended up being corrected by Ikhwan due to wrong names given..... :-)

Anwyay, here are photos of our T&F toys (mine and Ikhwan's that is, hehe).

Twist the knob and see Thomas moves along the 'railway line'.

I just love Percy and his carriages. The chocolate did actually smell like chocolate, for quite some time after it was unwrapped.

Don't you just love (I guess) Harold the helicopter, carrying Sodor mails? When you pull Thomas, the fans of the planes will spin around, while the crane at the back of the lorry will turn left and right.

Flick one of the switches at the back of Percy - you can hear the choo choo sound when you move it. Flick the other - it's the theme music. For James, his eyes will move as he is pushed or pulled. Thomas has switches that will turn either the front or the back lights on.

I haven't opened this toy set yet. I'm waiting until we have finally moved into our new home in about 2 months' time or so.

The first Toby has slide shows, viewable from the lense. The other Toby 'gives' you three different surprises everytime the door is closed and then opened back again. Plus, what better way to brush your teeth while on the train, if not using T&F toothbrush eh? Ok, I'm rambling... Heck, it's close to 1am....

This is all Ikhwan. His imagination must be running wild when he arranged the toys like this, or he was probably remembering episodes from T&F, where the coaches always ended in trouble whenever they reached the dead end at high speeds. Sadly, Emily was considered useless and thus, thrown into the bins :-)

P/S: While it may seem that Ikwan and I are very tight, he's actually closer and cheekier with his mother. Not that I blame him or feeling jealous with my wife or anything, but I do know the reason behind this. This had something to do with what happened in the past, when I, a new father with still a lot of temper issues to handle, was left with a baby, and my wife's work schedule was a lot crazier back then. What I may reveal in a future post may shock you, and possibly Ikhwan, should he reads this when he's older...

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

I remember the time when...I devoured at my wedding...

2010-02-16T14:53:00.018+08:00

Last 29th of January was our 4th wedding anniversary. Both me and wife had been wanting for a quick getaway. So, this year's surprise from me to wifey (and kiddo) was a quick getaway. More on that in a separate entry.

In some places, it is impolite or improper for a bride or a groom to be eating so much. In other words, we need to control our behaviours while eating in front of the guests. Not only do the newlyweds are forbidden to be chewing so loudly (obviously), we are also expected to be eating only in small portions. This means, no bone crunching or shell crushing or soup slurping is allowed. Despite how hungry the newlyweds may be, our plates should only have some rice, with some gravy and a few pieces of meats (which preferably be stripped down from the bones by the maid of honours).

Looking back on the day I got married, I kinda' forgot about these 'rules' (despite having received a few reminders from my aunties beforehand). Because of that, I ate like nobody's business. It only hit me when my cousin's wife, who sat across the table, raised up a bowl of rice and said to me insinuatingly, "Nak tambah?" (You want some more?) before she laughed.

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Yikes, that was embarrassing! It became talk of the town for quite a while. I got teased even to this day (if somehow, a related topic is brought up). My cousin even said that he had never seen such a hungry groom in his life before.... Hahaha... well, what to do? I'm not really good at following rules plus, I like to eat!

Anyway, I realise that I've never really shared my wedding photos before, so here are some:

I will always remember...Ikhwan's sleeping habits...

2010-01-25T00:28:00.004+08:00

A quick glance at the above photos, may make you to think that they show some kind of skin rashes or diseases or something. Or perhaps burn marks?

Well, neither is correct. Actually, that's what happen whenever little Ikhwan sleeps on my hands a little too long - he would leave his 'ear' mark on my skin.

Ever since he was less than a year old, he really likes to sleep on our palms - guess they are just the right sizes to be his small pillows!

Only when he is fast asleep, would we gently lift our palms away. Cute - if you ask me. I just love watching him falling asleep. How he slowly dozed off - eye lids could hardly remain open (and in the process, I too would start to doze off, haha...) On the occasions that he slept for too long on our hands (his other favourite is to put his head on the lower arm, close to the elbow), our hands would feel so cramped, we could hardly move them.

Surely, when he's grown up enough, this sleeping habit of his would be a thing of the past. He may not remember it anymore, but I will surely remember it, and thus, 'documenting' it in this blog is one sure way! Even now, he's slowling starting to 'drift away' from this habit. He would rather, despite how cumbersome it is, cling on to his Thomas, Percy and Toby trains than to hug our hands before he sleeps, and Thomas, Percy and Toby trains would be the first things he would look for when he wakes up. Talk about 'obsessed' huh? Which reminds me, how at one time, he liked the song Obsessed by Mariah Carey :-)

Anyway, here's another photo which clearly shows my hand being pinned underneath Ikhwan's head while he was asleep. See how my palm is directly under his cute chubby cheek?

That's our 'little' Ikhwan....

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

I remember the time...when I took my first roller coaster ride...

2010-01-01T04:03:00.004+08:00

Time is.... 2:43am of 1st January 2010. You may think that I stayed up, to wait for the 2010 countdown on t.v. or because I just got back from celebrating it elsewhere. If the latter, with Ikhwan in the picture? No way, and for me to abandon my wife and kid just to do that? Even more no way...

Actually, the whole family was 'unconscious' (sleeping) through midnight just now :) At least this year (or should I say last year?), all of us were home on new year's eve. During last new year's eve, my wife was on-call. That night, I already put Ikhwan to bed before the midnight came. Only when the fire-crackers were lit up to mark the beginning of 2009, was I awaken and remembered 'Oh... It's new year...'

So you see, new year, or rather, new year's eve is just like any other day and any other night. Not just to me, but also to my family and parents. We never went out to celebrate and sometimes, we hardly waited in front of the t.v.

Looks like this year, the fire-crackers (whether the ones at KLCC or at the nearby lake) were not loud enough to make us wake up and cheer Happy New Year 2010. Nonetheless, I am wishing this to you - For the brighter future in 2010 and beyond.

Anyhow, I would like to start the year by blogging about the past. While it is true, no good will come out by reliving and pondering about the past, especially the bad memories and mistakes, but it is from past bad memories and mistakes, that we learn to grow. After all, there is no tomorrow if there was no yesterday, right?

However, what I'll be blogging (now and more to come) is not about past bad memories and mistakes. But rather, those unforgettable memories worth to be documented, in multiple colours and white and orange (as opposed to black and white, since the wordings in this blog are in multiple colours against white and orange background - see the joke? Hahaha....).

From the entry title, I reckon, you can guess what memory that I'll be sharing with you today.... The year was 1999. The ride was Space Mountain in Disneyland Paris.

Why was it memorable? Not just because it was in Disneyland and that it was my first time, but also because my life could have ended that day.

Now, the latter statement may stir some questions, like did I almost get hit by the roller coaster or was there a serious technical failure? Well, neither of those.

When I agreed to go to the Disneyland with some friends, little did I imagine how frightful a roller coaster ride would be. I also forgot how I was never fond of heights, and that roller coasters and heights - they mixed together! Guess the word Disneyland had clouded it all...

When we got there, the guys decided to take the Space Mountain as the first ride. As the que moved slowly, fear started to sink in, but for some reason I just kept it to myself. Probably because I still wasn't sure what to expect and thinking, it was only my normal reaction since I was about to try something new.

What made the ride so frightening, other than the swooshing and turning and twisting, was... the whole place was so dark! The ride was enclosed in a building (and with the lights off!) instead of out in the open like other rides in the park. But that was not the worse part. The worse part was, despite how frightened I was, I couldn't scream at all... I couldn't let my fear out - not even a short shriek. Luckily, the ride didn't trigger any abnormalilty to my heart conditions that could lead to...death? Yikes!

I was grasping so hard on the restrainer (each passenger was restrained individually, unlike what is shown in the picture above), had the ride been longer, the metal would have dented by my clench. The fact that it was dark around me, made it feel like I was thrown into the space. I couldn't shut my eyes either. Perhaps, it was fear of the unknown and I was looking for something visible that could comfort me.

Then, the ride came to a sudden halt. Slowly and surely, the train was climbing up. As we were ascending, the passengers were cheering by the sights of planets and stars, temporarily litting up the place. The others may be enjoying themselves, but not me. Do you what I did? I was hell bent on trying to 'escape' by trying to push the restrainer open. Had my attempt been successful, I could have fallen to a certain death...Yikes!

After reaching the peak of its climb, the train descended to such a great speed, that I could feel my head was dangling at certain points. My friends later told me, the 'dangling' feeling that I had was due to the train making a 360-degree loop (or loops).

The train stopped (finally!) at its starting point. But that was not the end of how close I was to danger... or death. Funnily, or rather, stupidly, while others exited from the train by stepping out to their right side, I, who was sitting on the left side of the train, stepped out to my left. Immediately, the train was filled with new (exited) passengers. Puzzled, after realising all the others were on the other side of the track, couple that with my dazed and confused feelings, resulted from the traumatic roller-coaster-ride experience, I felt the urge to climb down onto the track (to get to my friends). Had I not been told by the security, that there was a door that I could enter to exit from the place, I could have followed that urge (to climb down) and be electrocuted...Yikes!

My friends were shocked to learn that I had suppressed my fear. They taught me to just let it go - scream it out... I followed them and took other rides after that of course (Heck! it's Disneyland). From thereon, I just screamed and screamed... even when I was not feeling that scared. Alhamdulillah... I survived the first and those other rides. However, at this age, no more rides for me, thanks. Kiddy rides... maybe... with my kid(s), hehe...

Meantime, I leave you with some photos, taken when I went to Disneyland the 2nd time. Yep, I went there twice, with different groups of friends.

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

How time quickly passes by...

2009-12-19T23:15:00.005+08:00

Wow!!! Has it really been 3 months since I last wrote in this blog? I won't be surprised if my regular readers (not that many, to be honest with you...) have already given up checking on my blog for any updates.

Yikes!! How quickly time passed us by (or passed me by, with all that's been going on...) Speaking of what's been going on lately, just so you know, we already received Ikhwan's 'mystery gift' for being one of the lucky winners in the Pa & Ma's 'Mandi Manda' column (thank you to the publisher for keeping their word).

But, that's just about it (that I'm going to share with you for now), because in my coming posts, I will not be talking about what happened last October, or the new car that I got last November, or the rather shocking news that I received just recently. Instead, I will be reminiscing further down the lane - the unforgettable experiences that I encountered many months or even years ago. It could be something as memorable like the day I got married, or something as petty like being stuck in a traffic jam (which for some reason, the experience still sticks to my mind)...

Meanwhile I leave you for today, with one of the most recent photos of little Ikhwan (he weighs more than 15kg now - not so little anymore, eh?). This is how he usually poses, whenever we ask him to smile for the camera. Isn't he adorable?

(P/S: No! That's not the new car that I got last November)

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Car Door Empty Promises Festival Cut Short?

2009-09-26T10:35:00.004+08:00

First of all, wishing all Muslims a Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir dan Batin. May we all have a barakah Ramadhan this year and years to come, Insha' Allah.

During the 4-day off, a massive exodus of people are leaving the cities, whether to go back hometown or simply, to take advantage of the holidays by going travelling. Due to the large no. of vehicles on the roads, accidents are prone to happen. Other than that, the slow-moving traffic may also cause some of us to make stops at rest areas. This had prompted me to share an experience that I encoutered, to some friends and families. Now to the rest of you, here it is...

"We all have heard this before: how someone's car was stolen after the driver stepped out of the car to open the house gate; or while the driver was taking a leak at a gas station. Such unfortunate events usually occurred when people left their cars with the engines still running. Even more unfortunate if the thugs took the cars with people (usually women and children) still inside.

Sometimes when we hear something like this happen to other people, we might think that it can never happen to us, OR we will always take necessary precautions to avoid such mishaps from ever happening to us.

Now a sensible lesson to learn from all this would be never to leave your car with the engine on and always to lock the car before you leave right?

But for those with families, they may encounter a situation where the children are sleeping inside the car when they need to leave the car for a short while. In such a case, as long as the spouse stays behind to lock from the inside, the engines and air condition will remain on.

So you thought by doing it this way, your family is spared from harm, until an honest mistake almost changed it all.

I could never forget the night when my family and I were heading back to KL from hometown. The traffic was heavy and slow. After reaching a main rest area, I had to stop for a break.

We parked at a well lit area and with people around. Since it was cool inside the car, I decided to turn off the engine and lock it. But just after walking a few metres away, the car alarm went off. Baffled, coupled with the urgent need for me to go to the loo, I turned the engine back on and asked my wife to lock from the inside.

Our little angel was sleeping soundly at the back seat with wife sitting next to him. After I left, she received a phone call. While on the phone, a man came, stood facing the driver's side of the car and tried to open the door.

Thinking it was me, she unlocked the door. Luckily, since she was sitting behind the front passenger's seat and with the phone tucked between her ear and her shoulder, it took her a while to unlock the door, and the man already left just as she managed to.

Realising it could not have been me, she locked it back again. Had she unlocked it a second sooner or the man returned upon hearing her at the door...?

After that incident, my wife and I had agreed on a system. Whoever has to leave, the other needs to lock immediately if the other stays inside the car. The one who leaves also needs to show the face first to get back inside.

Perhaps you could use this system too, if necessary. Show your smiley or cheeky face at the window all you want, if it can ensure your family's safety, then why not. These days, people with bad intentions can be anyone and they will act whenever an opportunity presents itself, where ever that may be.

We ought to protect our loved ones at whatever cost. It is our family who matters the most. Don’t you agree that we may meet different people every day, but it is our own family whom we always go back to. People may throw all sorts of nasty remarks and assumptions about us, but at the end of the day, we know who we are and our family are the ones who will never turn their backs on us.

May you and your family have safe journeys and great health, always..."

I submitted the 'article' to a major daily and it was published 10th September 2009 (see above). Only the gist of the story was featured, and as expected, the babbling parts were removed :-)

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

When I had a 'berbuka puasa' (break fast) with my wife at this one restaurant the other day, the bill came with a short survey, asking for customers' feedback. The survey stated that a gift would be mail delivered to those who completed and returned the survey. I remembered answering the survey the first time we ate there, some months back. I also remembered we never received any gift whatsoever.

This had prompted me to write to the local daily again, and on 18th September 2009, it came out (see above). Many portions had been chopped off, mainly due to make space, instead of for clarity purpose. Personally, I think, the original article serves the meaning better, don't you think? :-)

"The public has been warned not to fall into the trap of some get-rich-quick schemes or dubious lucky draws, since such illegitimate methods are organised by unscrupulous parties in order for them to trick us into parting with our money.

But how about those other presumably 'legal' contests and product surveys which promise gifts and prizes to customers, sometimes by just entering/submitting entries? These companies gain extra profits and sales at the expense of customers' time and money (regardless how small the latter may be).

I remember when a well known brand for baby milk formula had a promotion of giving away free small packs to those who sent in a certain number of the brand's milk spoons. Till date, no free packs ever received by us. The company had called me once to ask for my wife's name and to confirm our address, but only to send an unrelated mail from their partner. How else would they know my phone no. and house address if the spoons hadn't reached them in the first place?

In a parenting magazine, our baby's photo was selected to be among the lucky few to receive product hampers. Two months had passed and still nothing (YES! I'm referring to the Pa&Ma magazine. See previous entry). The mag did not indicate that we have to pick up the hamper ourselves or we need to call them up to arrange for a delivery. If the latter is the case, why is that so? Why should customers care more instead of them?

A couple of surveys that I foolishly volunteered to answer (one to a music distribution company, the other a food outlet), after getting hooked by the promise 'A Mystery Gift Awaits You'. Again, still no gifts - quite a mystery.The public should have proper channels to lodge complaints when incidents such as these happen. Writing a letter directly to those organisers/companies would almost definitely fall on their deaf ears. It is one thing to have bad customer service, and another to trick customers with empty promises."

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

Now here's the latest one. I had just sent this 'little' article to a few local papers. I made it as brief and straight to the point as possible and hopefully, it too will be published without under too much scrutiny of the editors' scissors :-)

"Whenever a major festival approaches, departmental stores would greet shoppers with festival decorations. Such decorations attract tourists and locals of all races alike.

Hari Raya may have been given double-standard treatment in the past with flimsy decorations in certain malls. But this year is a different picture. Despite the current economic uncertainty, there were more choices of places that offered Ramadhan buffets and the spirit of Hari Raya can be felt everywhere. Thank you to all shopping malls, departmental stores, specialty shops, hotels and restaurants who have given it all out to decorate their premises. Suria KLCC deserves a special mention for its unique kampong theme with Lat’s cartoons drawn on hard woods, shaped into individual cartoon characters, a kampong house, fences, trees etc.

However, although Hari Raya lasts for a month, the ambience within the malls does not usually last that long. Decorations are taken down, sometimes barely a week into Hari Raya. Can't they wait for at least two weeks?"

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

'Posing macam ni ok tak Ayah?' - Of showering and sponging

2009-08-04T06:07:00.004+08:00

I was so delighted to find out last Wednesday that the photo I sent to the Pa & Ma magazine is featured in the 'Mandi Manda' column of the August edition, that I showed the column to some of my colleagues.

The above photo which was edited due to space constraint of the column and to make way for other kids' photos, was selected as one of the lucky few to receive prizes. Don't you think the caption that I created to go along with the photo, 'Posing macam ni ok tak Ayah' (Am I posing correctly Ayah?) aptly describes the photo?

But my enthusiasm was cut short when at 4:20, the babysitter called me, telling me that Ikhwan had a fit due to fever. That explained why I had a bad feeling when I kissed him that morning. He was perfectly fine the night before, and still showed no indication of having a fever when my wife sent him over in the afternoon, before she went to work.

What freaked us out was the fact that the babysitter could have missed it (the fit). She too was not well and decided to sleep next to Ikhwan. She was awaken when she heard some funny noises coming from Ikhwan. Had she slept in the next room or she was too deep in her sleep? We shudder to think....

Another incident that shocked us was how she ran to a clinic across the road from her apartment building, I mean in her, possibly still drowsy condition (from just waking up and her sickness).

After the doctor had not fully successful in making his fit stopped, her husband who happened to be nearby, drove both of them to HUKM. For this, we really thanked her and husband for taking care of Ikhwan just like their own.

I arrived at the hospital just before 5 and immediately rushed to the Emergency Unit. No one seemed to be able to contact my wife. It must have been a hectic day (as usual) at the Kajang Hospital. Coincidentally, my parents-in-law were nearby the Kajang town and they decided to stop at the hospital to break the news to my wife.

My wife and parents-in-law only reached HUKM close to 9 o'clock that night. Ikhwan was cleared to go. For the first time, I took care of Ikhwan all on my own during the time when he needed a parent the most. All the while, it was my wife who stayed and spent nights at the hospital, tending for him. Those four hours of him hugging me and calling for me, would hopefully make our father-and-son bond much stronger, Insha' Allah.

Ikhwan is at the peak of being so active and so curious of trying and learning new stuffs. All of us are just amazed at his energy and bubbly nature. We just hope the fit won't ever happen again to him, Ikhwan Rasydan.... Aaaamiiinnnnn.....

© Copyright Abdun Nizar Ahmad

Mizunderstood - some 'little' jokes to brighten your day!

2009-06-20T03:12:00.004+08:00

Here are some little ‘jokes’ that I want to share, based on real life experiences. Hopefully, they will brighten up more, your already brightened day!

For those who know me well, they'd know that I’ve been working in the field of Intellectual Property (IP), especially in patents, throughout almost my entire career life. Prior to working for the present company, I was with this IP firm called Michael Yeoh (not the real name).

Now, here’s a typical conversation that took place whenever I tried to explain to people (especially those I just met at functions not related to my job and I didn't bring my name cards), about the line of work that I do. Usually, it would start with the other person struggling to get my name right... sigh...

Person A: Hi! I'm A

Me: I'm Abdun..

Person A: Hi Abdul...
Me: No, not Abdul, but Abduuuuunnnnn (see how I pronounced my name as though reciting an Al Qur'an verse with tajwid Idgham Maal Ghunnah)

Person A: Errr... Sori, so, how to spell your name?
Me: It's A-B-D-U-N, with the N, not L...

Person A: I see, so, it's A-D-D....
Me: (thinking quietly) Are your trying to spell out the word ADDRESS?

So, after sorting that matter out, here's the next confusion that ensues:

Person A: So, where do you work?
Me: I work with this firm called Michael Yeoh.
Person A: Michelle Yeoh? The actress?
Me: No… no… Michael Yeoh … (emphasizing on the word ‘Michael’)
Person A: So, what does it do?
Me: It’s an IP firm…..
Person A: I see, so you are an IT person… you do computer programming?
Me: No, not IT, but IP…. Intellectual Property!
Person A: Property? So, the company builds condos or what?
Me: Intellectual Property is ‘Harta Intelek’ – you know those Trademark and Copyright stuffs… But I deal mainly with patent matters.
Person A: Patterns? You are a designer? You design clothing patterns?

Usually, at this point of time, I’d be too lazy to carry on with the conversation and tried to change the topic to something else, say… like the weather for instance. Now that I’m with a well known company, finally, whenever someone is asking me where I work now, I can simply say the name of the company, without being misunderstood by the other party.

Talk about being misundersood, my son, Ikhwan, despite his young age of just turning slightly over two years old, had been misunderstood by people too.

For a start, people always say Ikhwan looks like a Chinese. So, when Ikhwan grows up, he will probably get that a lot more (be mistaken as a Chinese). Someone might even straight away talk Chinese to him.

Ikhwan is also quite tall and big for his age. People have come to us thinking he's already 5 or 6 years old. The other day, when we were in the elevator at a shopping mall, with Ikhwan sitting in his stroller, another family walked in (a couple and their kid). Then, the mother said to her child, "Tengok abang tu, baik aja duduk dalam stroller," which means in English, "Look at that 'abang' - sitting so obediently in his stroller." (The direct translation for 'abang' would be 'older brother'. But the Malays also commonly use it to politely referring those who are presumably, slightly older)

One quick look at the couple's child, both my wife and I knew that he was way much older than Ikhwan. Heck! He no longer needed to rely on a stroller to go out with his parents.

Anyway, how about this as another joke? Enjoy... :-)

The new Chairman of the Company, Mr. Ikhwan Rasydan is ready to chair his first ever board meeting. Sitting 'stylishly' in his specially ordered chair, he poses for the camera before he commences with the meeting.

Suddenly, there is a sudden change in Mr. Chairman's expression. He's probably not happy with the way his photo is taken OR perhaps he doesn't like the ambience in the meeting room OR can it be due to the choice of refreshments for that day OR may be, he just wants the camera for himself?

The Board members are puzzled when suddenly Mr. Chairman broke into tears. They know that the meeting is probably going to be postponed now OR they will surely be next in line to get scolded after the photographer's turn. It's going to be a long day...:-)

Trekking The Star (spoilers ahead!)

2009-05-24T04:08:00.010+08:00

Last year, when I learned that a new Star Trek movie was due to be released in 2009, my heart was compounded with both eagerness...and doubt. Eager, because upon seeing the name J.J. Abrams at the helm, I knew he was going to make it great. But at the same time, I had doubt if I ever going to like the movie at all. I mean, look at Star Wars! Although I did watch the three Star Wars movies when I was a kid, I never did become an avid fan. Thanx to George Lucas for coming up with those crappy prequels (ok, so Sith was slightly better than the first two), now I kinda' hate Star Wars.

Likewise, I was never a Trekkie. Well, I may recognise some of the characters from the TV show and know what the story revolved around, but only vaguely. If The Simpsons hadn't used Leonard Nimoy as a guest voice in some of its episodes, I might not even know there was a character named Spock Prime. True, the Star Trek movies starring Patrick Stewart (who also played Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men franchise) as Captain Jean-Luc Picard were quite recent, but they failed to attract me to become a fan.

But when I saw Trailer 2 of the new Star Trek movie some months back, I knew that Abrams will be taking us for a thrill ride. My doubt was immediately replaced with uncontrollable anticipation. (You can view the trailers here. I think trailers 2 and 3 were made brilliantly, without giving too much away, with nice music scores. I especially love Trailer 3 more - more touching).

Gladly, my anticipation was met with satisfaction. Heck, I dragged my wife along just to watch it again, and she too, had enjoyed it and both of us are non-Trek followers.

For most movies, they usually left me awed only when the end credits started rolling in or after I left the cinema. But for Star Trek, it made my jaw dropped even at the beginning of the movie, and my jaw continued to drop (literally) at most times throughout the movie. Yes, it is THAT good!!!

What made Star Trek such an unforgettable movie? Well, for a start - it is a fun movie and full of action right from the start - from the attack on USS Kelvin, to when younger Kirk destroys the classic car (for no apparent reason), and the fight scene between Kirk and Sulu with some bad Romulans on the drill machine, right up to the climax battle sequences. With the characters running (usually to save themselves or others) for most of the time, indicates that the pacing is not going to slow down and moviegoers should stay glued to the screen and in their seats - like when the 800 souls are 'flying away' for their lives, or when Kirk rushes (with McCoy and Uhura entails behind him) to prevent the USS Entreprise from falling into the trap, or when Spock and the Vulcan elders are running out of the cave, or when Kirk is trying to save himself from being eaten by the (cool) space monsters on Delta Vega, or how about when Earth's core is being drilled from space and the Earthlings are running towards it, wondering what it is (the drill machine is a reminiscence of the Alien space craft from the Independence Day movie - with hot, fiery beam fired from the centre of the craft and the beam is protected by circular side walls. In Star Trek, it is the side wall that Sulu uses to bounce himself back up to safety).

Despite its fast pace, all the main characters (the good guys and the 'bad' ones) are properly introduced and developed - we either love them or hate them. The movie also invokes our tear 'glands'. Both Kirk and Spock lose a parent in tragic turn of events! Our hero James T. Kirk is both beaten (his dad dies, and so, he settles for a less-than-ordinary life) and got beaten up rather badly, I mean...literally. First, the bar fight, then by Spock and towards the end of the movie, by some Romulans thugs. The Romulans are headed by Nero, played by Eric Bana (Bana is clean shaven and tattoed - making him almost unrecognisable). We also feel for Spock, with personality crisis (half human/half Vulcan) and trying hard not to be emotionally compromised after witnessing the tragedy that befalls his mother (an older and taller Winona Ryder) and home planet.

In one memorable scene, Abrams brilliantly puts all the (good) characters on the bridge. Totally priceless, especially for the fans!

The movie provides good comic relief when Kirk is trying hard to get Uhura's first name, or seeing Kirk's reaction to those numerous vaccine shots, or Chekov's first scene with his accent, or Scotty and his false calculation when transporting Kirk and Spock right in the middle of the enemies.

Go watch this one! So what if you don't understand those sci-fi technical stuffs like 'external inertial damper' or you worry if you can't fully appreciate the characters. The movie calls for repeat viewing, for fans (of the Star Trek franchise) and non-fans alike. After all, the Rolling Stone calls it as a 'Pure Filmmaking Exhilaration' and 'An Irresistable Invitation For Fun', and Access Hollywood "The First 'Star Trek' For Everyone" (true indeed), and Newsweek with its simple yet accurate two-word review to sum it up - "Way Cool".

Pick and Choose 1 - A Toothpaste Ad

2009-05-17T01:31:00.001+08:00

A branded toothpaste company has decided to use this photo for their latest ad campaign. However, they are torn in what tagline to use. Help them choose from the followings:

1. Regardless of age - you need to beam your teeth!

2. Your teeth can help you express your emotions.

3. With teeth this good, it's hard not to have another candid camera moment.

4. You need to grin - even when you're mad!

5. Brand X toothpaste - you'll have no reasons not to show your teeth again.

6. When your child is all angry, wanting to get hold of your camera, you know it's time for another picture perfect!

7. Aren't you glad you brushed your child's teeth with Brand X toothpaste this morning?

Planes and Ballons

2009-05-02T06:53:00.001+08:00

Recently, I mentioned about having my two weeks off. The two-week off also meant two weeks without salary. I didn't mind being salary-less for a short period of time, and the 'new' company had allowed me to postpone my starting date with them. I really needed the break. After all, I still wasn't ready, physically, spiritually AND mentally for the transition of my career journey to take place right after I left the 'old' office.

Wife was working as usual during my break of course. But, since I had some time away from work, we thought of planning a trip together - and so we did, just the three of us for the first time. So, off we went to... LANGKAWI!!! (from 22 to 24 February, the day before my birthday)

We took the AirAsia. Initially, we were worried on how Ikhwan would react when looking at the sheer size of the plane, hearing the loud noise of the plane's engine and being on the plane itself (we gave him sweets to help reduce the effects of 'blocked' ears on him, especially during take off and landing times).

Surprise, surprise... he was as active and talkative as usual. Even when on the plane, he was friendly to strangers.

He did look rather perplexed sometimes, like when he felt the inclination as the plane took off, or when we took him up the cable car ride to Gunung Mat Chincang (Chopped-off Mountain) and when he saw the beach, the rolling waves and the vast ocean (from the beach) for the first time in his life.

A little bit about Langkawi - It is a cluster of 99 islands, but the main island is the major attraction and accessible by ferry and by air. When you are there, I'd say renting a car and exploring the island on your own is more recommended than depending on taxis or tour guides. The roads are so easy to navigate and no traffic congestion at all! (unless during peak periods I guess).

When you are at Langkawi, a trip to Mount Mat Chincang by cable cars is a must for all nature lovers (I prefer sight seeing from up a mountain without the hassle of climbing up the mountain myself, so this fits me well). The total journey up the mountain is 2.2km. As you feel the incline of 42°, enjoy the surrounding views - the green forests, the choppy peaks (thus the name of the mountain), the rock formation that took 450 million years to form, the Telaga Tujuh waterfalls, the sea and some of the 99 islands. When going up and down in the cable car, we could see that Ikwan might have felt a bit 'gayat' (afraid of heights) but not knowing how to express his feelings. 'Cian dia...'

When at the Middle Station, you can choose whether to alight from the cable car, enjoy the sceneries at the viewing platform there or just stay inside the cable car, which will take you further up the Top Station.

The Top Station is at 709m above sea level and has two viewing platforms. Up there, if the weather is clear, you can see the mainland Kedah and South Thailand. Talk about the weather - the cable car only opens at 10 and closes at 6 (if not mistaken). So, if you only leave your hotel after 10, most likely by the time you are on top of the mountain, it's close to noon already. You know how noon is like in this tropical country. So, imagine standing on the viewing platform during mid-day. Most likely, you'll be drenched in sweat and your eyes cringed due to the sunlight. So, you may want to go there later in the evening instead, like after 3, where the weather is a little milder and not so hot.

One more attraction not to be missed when at Top Station is the The Langkawi Sky Bridge. The curved pedestrian bridge provides different perspectives over the land (including Thailand’s Tarutao Island) and sea, perches precariously over a spectacular chasm, 700m above sea level. Incredibly, the cable-stayed bridge curves 125m around a single support.

When at the bridge, it somehow reminisced me to the time when I went to the Neuschwanstein Castle in Fussen, Germany (read here and view here). A bridge nearby the castle, was just almost as high. From the bridge, I could see the castle, a waterfall, a deep gorge and the nearby mountain and forests. The weather may be cooler and breezy, but it was a straight bridge. So, I'd say the Langkawi bridge is more unique in its special ways.

Other places that we went to and things that we did were strolling down the beach (Ikhwan was quite intimidated by the waves and the sand, the latter due to him probably thinking the sand is swallowing him), visiting the Underwater World (don't miss the penguins!!) and Dataran Lang (Eagle Square - Langkawi was derived from the Malay word 'helang') and did some shopping. A funny thing happened at Underwater. Ikwan was so exhausted when we arrived there, we couldn't wake him up. Since we didn't want him to miss the chance looking at all those fishes, we went for lunch at this one restaurant. Even being in that rather noisy and stuffy restaurant couldn't wake him, until we reached the Underwater entrance door back again, one hour later. All in all, we were satisfied and enjoyed ourselves. Ikhwan was also such a sport! We know that it is very likely Ikhwan won't be able to remember most of these experiences, if not all. So, every now and then, I would tell him stories about being on the plane or our cable car rides, in my efforts that hopefully, some memories could be etched in his memory somehow, Wallahua'lam...

But we plan to go there again someday and stay there longer. Next time around, we want to take the excursion to that Lake of Pregnant Maiden where the excursion includes eagle watching/feeding, visit one of those waterfalls/caves and perhaps the Crocodile Park, the Mardi Agrotechnology Park and those historical places like Makam Mahsuri and Burnt Rice (I visited the historical ones when I was in school). Wife also wants to do more shopping (and I wish we did drop by at that particular store selling Italian-made products. The store is among the many stores at the foot of Gunung Mat Chinchang. I want to look for Versace jeans).

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

1st April was Ikhwan's 2nd Birthday. We had it all planned, even from last year to have Ikhwan's 2nd Birthday celebration a grand one! So, the condo hall was already booked, and some invitations had already been sent out! But due to a mixed up at the workplace, the size of the guests had been to be shrunken (luckily, I haven't sent out the invitations to everyone that I wished to invite yet).

Initially, I was told that I had to go outstation to an overseas country, on that same day we planned for Ikhwan's birthday party (it was the 4th, Saturday). So, the invitations had to be cancelled (imagine having to do that to those who already said 'yes') and we thought of having a very small one instead, just a 'kenduri doa selamat' (a gathering to thank God for all His blessings) among close family members only, so that it could end early.

But at the last minute, the outstation trip got cancelled. Due to lack of time (and lack of spirit to have it so big anymore), the size of the guests was increased just a little bit, by inviting some close friends, and we did have it in the hall. So, if you read this, and you did get invited the first time round (and then said 'yes') but the invitation to you was cancelled, I do apologise if you weren't re-invited. It was still a small party anyway, and not as grandeur as initially planned. No hard feelings yeah?? :-(

Anyway, Ikhwan showed his intimacy, caring and gentleman side during the party. He gave his heart (or rather, a heart-shaped ballon) to a beautiful young lady, but somehow got rejected. Aaaahhhh, poor him .... (see below photos) I am sooo proud of him. So cute, huh? Hehe ...

Anyway, you can view more photos of the Langkawi trip and Ikhwan's Birthday here:
1) Langkawi
2) Birthday party for Ikhwan

The lesson behind...?

2009-04-11T08:24:00.007+08:00

It has been a while huh? Oh, yes, has it been...

Each day had passed on so quickly, that I found it hard to recap! What with leaving IT, then having a nice two weeks off (which included spending some time away for the first time with wife and kiddo), attended a 16-day unforgettable course and now, having started at a new place with so much to do (and I kinda' enjoy it very much!).

Time had not allowed me to concentrate on anything else other than what's ahead of my career and family paths, that blogging was no longer part of my agenda, let alone free surfing and blog hopping and errrr... that other thing. What with the prospect of going mobile every now and then, the trend (of seldom blogging) may seem to continue. I just hope all is fine, especially my blog readers and blog friends.

During the course, I had the opportunity to join a community service at a welfare home for orphans and kids from underpreviliged native families.

Among the activities, we had some games organised for the kids. I was one of the facilitators for those below 12 years old. Since it was raining that morning, the games had to be done indoor, in one of their halls.

On one chart in the hall, something grabbed my attention. The words "ALL WORK WITHOUT PLAYING, MAKES JACK A DULL BOY" were written across the chart. Obviously, whoever put it there (I reckon one of the staff or regular volunteers of the home) was influenced by the movie The Shining, which is based on the book of the same title by Stephen King.

Just a quick info about the movie (I haven't read the book but the movie is one of my favourite horror movies of all time). It tells the story of writer Jack Torrance, who is in a desperate need to come up with a brilliant idea for his next book. For that, he applies for a job as the winter caretaker at the ominous, mountain-locked Overlook Hotel so that he can write in peace. Despite learning that the previous caretaker had gone mad and killed his wife and twin daughters before killing himself, he still agrees to take the job, bringing his wife and son with him.

During the long winter season, the hotel becomes eerily quiet and all communication (on the road at least) is shut from the outside world due to heavy snowing. So, just the three of them living in the hotel. Slowly Jack becomes possessed by the evil, demonic presence in the hotel and starts to act psychotic. In one scene, Jack's wife sneaked up to his work desk, and found out that all her husband had been typing for the past few months was this: "ALL WORK AND NO PLAY, MAKES JACK A DULL BOY"; and it was repeated lines after lines, paragraphs after paragraphs, pages after pages (with hundreds of those pages).

The movie was rated R for a reason. With scary scenes, which include blood pouring down and flooding the hotel floors; the naked and rotten old woman traumatising Jack; the twin girls appearing out of nowhere showing Jack's son where and how they died and Jack ripping apart the door with an axe to get to his wife. Even Jack's face expressions (played brilliantly by Jack Nicholson) was scary enough.

I find it hard to understand, of all the great and valuable quotations available out there, or perhaps lessons that could be learned from those children stories that the kids must have heard of or read from, that particular 'quotation' from the movie made it to the chart instead. They even kept the name Jack in it.

True, one part of our lives (be it working or playing) should not be too far more extreme than the other. However, when it comes to kids, it is common for them to prefer playing than working or studying. Having that 'quotation' up there is like in a way, giving the kids a green light to play more, so that they won't become dull due to working hard (or smart). Imagine a kid came to you and asked, "Where is the quotation taken from?" and you replied, "Oh, it's from an R rated movie." You can lie but it still feels a bit off, that's what I think.

P/S: The photo above represents the playful side of me, and also what I'll be blogging about next - Ikhwan's 2nd Birthday...

Cyber World Part 3...

2009-03-02T00:27:00.001+08:00

I was doing some market research recently on all things parenting, and a particular result hit me: there are people out there, who entered these in their search "how to molest a child without getting caught." Yikes! pretty disturbing huh? I wonder what these paedophiles were looking for? Help from former paedophiles? This shows the dark nature of the Internet.

On a non-related matter, when I googled 'holiday villa langkawi' a few days ago, I clicked on a result that seemed to me was the official website to that resort. If the website IS indeed the official site, it sure is disappointing. In it, they kept repeating the words ".......in the northern tip of Peninsular Malaysia off the coast of Kedah" in almost all of the sentences. After visiting the site, for sure the message that the geographical location of both the Langkawi island and the resort itself is in the northern tip of Peninsular Malaysia, off the coast of Kedah is very much inculcated in our minds. The links "Location" available at the top and bottom of the website's main page seem to be redundant. Talk about a different kind of dark nature of the Internet. Hahaha....

Anyway, putting aside how crappy the website is, here's a photo of the resort, nestled within the tranquility of the Langkawi island, which is in the northern tip of Peninsular Malaysia off the coast of Kedah :-)))) Nice huh?

The journey...

2009-02-17T14:19:00.001+08:00

The distance before taking off may be rather short, but the whole journey was long and unforgettable.

At times, the path was treacherous and difficult.

At other times, it was relatively easier with clear breeze to accompany me along the way.

Sometimes, the ground was pretentiously dangerous - as I thought it was safe to walk on, when it turned out it was a quicksand.

More often than not, the air was polluted with a stench, it suffocated me, that I wanted to break free.

Now that I am flying high in the sky, as I looked back, I can say that my overall journey, be it hard or easy, was accompanied by really good and kind-hearted people. Thanks to them!

A tribute to big baby boys

2009-01-30T04:20:00.006+08:00

Ikhwan loves his books, whether to read them in his own baby words, or just to flip through the pages (and looking so intently and sooo...cute at the same time hehehe). For some unlucky ones (the books), he would scribble on the pages or tear the pages off.

Other than reading to him, we also teach him to talk. He already gets some words right and knows how to use them correcly. Words like 'air' (pronounced as aa-yer which is Malay for water), tiu (for thank you), chehh (for 'terima kasih' - Malay for thank you), 'tuh' (short for 'jatuh', which is drop or fall), please, 'tit tit' (for the remote), fish, pen, 'abang', 'kakak', 'adik', 'atok', hello, Allah, Allahuakbar, 'sapa ni?' (who is this?) and his favourite sentence of all, 'nak pergi mana ni?' (where are we going?). For the latter, he may not say it word for word. It is more like mumbling the whole thing, but, yeah, other people have heard it too...and they agreed that he said those words alright!

I remember that particular day, as I turned the pages of a book, I told him names of farm animals. He tried to follow, but all came out wrongly. So, instead of 'cat', 'hen', 'goat' and 'cow', he said 'aah', 'ooohh', 'eeeee' and another 'aah'.

When I taught him to say 'ba', 'na', 'na' one by one - he managed to follow each one exactly. But when I said the whole word 'banana' - he couldn't. It was still a three-syllable word, but sounded nothing like 'banana'... so funny!

Reminiscing the incidents with little Ikhwan, my mind straight away remembered this particular episode of Friends, when Joey tried to learn French from Phoebe.

For those who are fans of Friends, would know that Joey is one immature dude! Despite his cheekiness, he had all these younger sisters lined up behind him and the fact that he managed to 'nail' so many women to his bed, whom all were hooked by his opening line 'how you doing?' really says something about the 'mature' side of him :-)

This video portrays his rather immature character:

See how cheeky and childish Joey is when he wouldn't want to let go of his penguin doll, Hugsy and give it to Rachel's baby.

If Joey's wobbly acting career might be the reason for his rather immature character (since he had to rely on his friends for money and food, and man, he sure loved to eat), how about Raymond, who already made it as a renowned sports journalist/writer, married to a loving wife (who sometimes could be quite fierce, thanx to Raymond and her parents in law) and blessed with three kids, and yet, he was still very much like a big baby? Could Raymond's childish acts and irresponsible behaviours had something to do with him living so close to his parents (their house was across the street from his) and that both them and his brother visited him all the time?

See this video from an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond (I just love this sitcom, my wife and I could very much relate to the show - too bad it has ended).

A grown up man can be childish and immature all he wants, and yet still manage to save the world. With a baby face and cheeky smile, and still fond of comic books and toys, he can use this to his advantage. Take Hiro Nakamura of Heroes for example, due to his strong liking towards Star Trek, he has the ability to teleport and bend time and space. Through his ability, he has helped save the world and rectify matters for countless times, and everytime he succeds, he shouts "I did it!!" with so much vigor like a 10-year old (as shown below).

They say, men are generally less mature or late to mature compared to women. Put a man and a woman of the same age in the same room, chances are the woman is much more mature in her thinking and behaviours than the man.

Why is this so? Is it because men are more vulnerable to mid-life crisis, or feeling insecure, or it's their issues with parents, or their constant need for attention and affection (which can be from their parents or their wives), or men have issues of letting go (of their comics, toys, etc, hehehee)?

Perhaps female readers of this blog can give their insights. Have the men in your lives ever acted so immature before? If yes, why or what prompted them to act that way?

As for me, until today, I just love cartoons and toys, and act childish and cheeky (ok, the latter may only occur at certain times and towards certain people only). As George Costanza had said in an episode of Seinfeld, "I always see myself as a younger brother, eager to learn more".

Whenever I buy new toys or children books for Ikhwan, sometimes I wonder whether am I actually feeding my own excitement towards those things, although of course, those things would become Ikhwan's stuffs once I brought them home (but I can still play them with him what? hahahahahaha). Heck, I have two adult sized Spider-man T-shirts which I wear even when I go out with my family.

Now, back to our little Ikhwan. He is still immature of course - but what do you expect from a 2 year old? Haha... But lately, he sure is developing very fast. He's like a sponge - absorbing almost eveything that he sees/hears other people say and do.

He respects the elders when he shakes his hands with them, he waves goodbye like a grown up, he knows how to blow his kisses (sometimes using his both hands and says 'muaahhh'), helps his Ibu make the bed sometimes, pretends like he were sweeping the floor, cleans up his toys and puts them back into his toy chest (he now have two toy chests - each packed with different toys of different kinds, we basically let him play with different ones every few days), knows how to roll and kick a ball back and forth with me, performs 'wheely' while riding on his bikes (he has two bikes and one car - all are gifts from his grannies and tok's) and loves talking on the phone, whether really talking to someone or just imagining (his imaginary phone could be something as small as a piece of paper the size of his thumb - the smallest phone in the world indeed - he even passed it around for us talk to his 'phone').

Ikhwan loves the wirid and doa' aired over Astro Oasis. Almost everyday without fail, he is glued in front of the t.v. to watch (and at the same time listen) to that channel. He follows us when we perform our prayers and knows how to stand (with his arms placed on his tummy) and sujud in prayers. He also understands that everytime after adzan (the call for prayers for the Muslims) concludes (whether he heard it from t.v. or from the nearby mosque or when I was the one who adzan), there is a doa' after adzan. He would raise his two hands up, while listening to me/wife reciting the doa'.

That day, after I finished my adzan in the house, he immediately squatted with his arms raised. At first I was wondering why did he squat. Then I realised I too was squatting. All this while, I was squatting so that my eyes would be almost on the same level as his, so that he wouldn't have to look up while I was reciting the doa'. Little did I expect that he'd follow exactly what I did. So cute huh?

During dinner a couple of nights ago, while biting on a chicken bone, I twirled it at the same time. Immediately, he twirled the small piece of chicken meat that he had on his hand the same way.

Those are just some of the things he copied and did. Well, that's our boy! :-)) Meantime, here's a video of him, taken a few months ago...

P/S: 29 January - our 3rd wedding anniversary. This year, we didn't take a day off to celebrate, because we kinda' already celebrated it in advanced last weekend, also in conjunction with wife's birthday.

Hush...!!! Silence of the mouths...

2009-01-15T13:30:00.009+08:00

The year 2008 ended with a big bang, or rather, plenty of big bangs, and they still carry on till today. No, I'm not referring to any particular celebrations in conjunction with the new year. But I reckon, you could have guessed already that I was referring to the war that is happening in Palestine.

I have long given up wanting to know too much in detail about the turmoil in Palestine. Whether the news is aired over the t.v., radio or from the newspapers, or from the Internet or email, I would usually avoid reading them, let alone viewing/looking at the related videos/photos.

Photos deemed not suitable for public viewing are usually not published over the mainstream media. However, they are still available aplenty from the Internet. Photos of bloodied, burned or blown off victims and in some instances, body parts and pieces of the victims scattered on the streets and among the rubbles.

I would cringe whenever my eyes caught a glimpse of such photos from the email I got. I also don't want to know all the gritty details that result from the war, like how many members in a family are killed this time or what is the age of the young girl lying motionless in the cradle of her crying father.

My heart can't take it anymore especially knowing that many victims are children!! More so these days, with me having a child of my own, it just breaks me. If I were to still keep track with the latest updates of what's going on in the Middle East (especially Palestine and Iraq), I would most likely be so overwhelmed by emotions - anger (I think those whose hearts don't feel the slightest anger, they are made of stone. I mean this is not about religions anymore, but about humans slaughter other humans), sadness and mad, so freaking mad, that I would tremble and feel very much wanting to go there and help the Palestineans.

The only help that most of us can extend to the Palestineans is in the form of donations and prayers. True, we should never deny or dout the power of doa', but it doesn't feel enough...don't you think?

The Israhell Zionis argues that they need to defend themselves from the Hamas. Bollocks! What gave them right to kill small children anyway?

The country that they, the Israhell Zionis, proudly call Israel, was never theirs in the first place. They occupied them illegally, and through Britain (and now they are leveraging on the US), they manipulated the UN to recognise the land they live in as their own country. Now, they want to expand their border by killing, chasing off the Palestineans. As the then Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir had said, this war is about territorial, with the sole purpose of getting rid of the Palestineans.

In a recent interview by the media, a lady (I didn't get her name and her position, but I believe she was either the head of MERCY Malaysia or Islamic Relief Malaysia) said that "You can say it is collateral damange if after you bomb a building, some civilians are killed. But these children have bullet holes in their heads and bodies, this is something else." True, it's a massacre, a genocide!!! What kind of self-defense (as the Israhell argues) would that be?

This tragedy made us realise about one thing - unless we are bed-ridden with some uncured diseases, or we are so poor, that we can't afford to send our children to school, or something else which are as serious, all other problems that we encounter seem so minute, surmountable and not worth our energy worrying about.

Maybe we should just shut the hell up and realise how lucky we are compared to the Palestineans. Problems like stuck in a traffic jam, or the weather is hot, or issues with colleagues, they are nothing, considering there are not even roads in Palestine to begin with since most of them are all bombed up; the Palestineans fled their houses with only the clothes on their backs and most of them had lost somebody - families, friends and colleagues.

Of course, sometimes, we DO need to let out our frustation on life's issues, but make it a point that they will only be shared with someone you can trust, and then.... HUSH! There is no point of making our issues known to everybody. Considering we are able to voice out those issues in the first place, meaning, we are still lucky enough!

There was a point in my life when I was influenced by the behaviour of some 'makciks' (aunties) that I liked to complain and complain and complain and complain - to friends, to bosses and even wrote them in this blog, until I realised one day, this was not in my nature, and that it had to stop! Since that day, never again did I complain, especially to people of authorities. This had also prompted me to delete some entries in this blog that I considered as 'petty matters'.

Meantime, in case any of you are wondering why there's a butterfly in my cartoon (above) or the cartoon looks somewhat familiar to you, I was actually inspired by the movie poster of Silence of the Lambs (see below).

P/S: One thing that I did regret though when speaking about the Palestine tragedy - this country was willing to cancel the New Year celebrations after it was hit by tsunami some few years back. Sadly, all those sinful celebrations (most of them are anyway) were carried on as usual this year, despite the fact that Palestine was first attacked in 27 December 2008, and as the new year approached, the attacks escalated along with the number of casualties! Where was the sensitivity of this country's leaders? If tsunami was the work of nature, the Palestine tragedy is much worse as it is the work of us humans.

Are we going to respect the dead only if our own fellow people are dead? Why can't we just drop those meaningless parties and festivals once and for all? What have we got to lose anyway?

The new year ...of time and how it passes us by...

2009-01-03T04:22:00.006+08:00

It's the new year again! For school kids, the end of the year 2008 meant the beginning of their new school term.

Speaking of school holidays, Malaysia has four school term breaks a year with the one at the year end being the longest - about 6 weeks off. Usually, during school holidays, I'd try to avoid going to the shopping malls as much as possible. Why? The malls would be flocked by school kids and the sights of them sometimes suffocate and sicken me. Well, not all of them of course, but yeah, for most of them. From the way they behave (how can kids of the opposite sex who are no older than 15 years of age, can be holding hands and hugging each other in public?), to the way they dress (tattoos, piercing, skimpy clothes) and talk (talking and laughing so loud with no manners towards other people whatsoever).

Now, let's not talk about how they behave elsewhere (surely you've seen young kids on 'their' motorcycles, speeding and riding dangerously while on the roads, without helmets and and licenses). We've also heard from the news, about school boys who rape their peers and in some cases, adult women or how about those school girls who got pregnant after willingly having sexual intercourse with their boyfriends?

I may not be a social person or an extrovert during my school years but as I recall, even those school mates who were social, they were not as 'wild' as some kids these days.

Speaking of remembering the yesterdays and yesteryears, those whose puberty years were in the 70's, 80's and (early) 90's, would remember what I'm about to reminisce here (some of them may only be experienced by the Malaysians though):

Great outdoor activities would include playing pebbles or spinning tops, 'galah panjang' (a game where you stand in the middle of a court, preventing your friends from crossing over to the court section behind you and should you be able to touch a person in any way, you shout 'JADIK' meaning 'your turn to be in the middle'); 'main kejar-kejar' (need I explain more? - basically you just run and run and run and run...), 'tarik upih pinang' (one or two people pulling the coconut or palm leaf around the neighbourhood, with a person sitting on it), rounders, swimming in the rivers, 'nyorok-nyorok' (hide and seek), and many others.

How about indoors games like checkers (some of us here use bottle caps as the pieces), board and card games (remember Happy Family anyone?), or the 'fancy' electronic game like the one featured below. For some, they didn't even need to have the electronic game to enjoy one. They could enjoy the same with a friend by clenching each other's fingers and use their thumbs (those who played this before, would know what I'm talking about).

Other than playing those indoor games, the cartoons on t.v. were cool too. Just to name a few - Doraemon, Thundercats, Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs, M.A.S.K (my favourite), Smurfs, Jem (yeah, I watched this too ;pp), Transformers, Woody Woodpecker Show and The Simpsons (another of my favourite which is still around till today... yeah!!).

Some hit t.v. series would be like Captain Power, Battlestar Galactica, 'V' (yes, the letter V), McGyver, 21 Jump Street, Beverly Hills 90210 and Knight Rider.

Let's not forget those prime time soaps like Return to Eden (an Australian show - my whole family was a big fan), Dallas, Knotts Landing and Dynasty (remember Joan Collins anyone?).

The sitcoms were really funny and great back then and also ran on many seasons. For examples, Saved By The Bell, Full House, Family Ties, Growing Pains and of course the greatest sitcom ever... Friends.

We had some really cool movies back then, very creative and original in ideas, very entertaining and for some... very scary. I love horror movies like Nightmare on Elm Street, Poltergeist, House, The Kindred, Candyman, The Shining (arguably one of the scariest - All Work And No Play Makes Jack A Dull Boy....spooky), Halloween, Fright Night (also a favourite), Gremlins (ok, for some kids, this could be scary), Hellraiser (ugh! the brutalities...), Little Shop Of Horrors (funny and scary), Alien and Aliens (my favourites), The Thing (what a scary thing!) and Friday the 13th.

Other great movies are like Back To The Future series, Star Wars series, Indiana Jones series, Gandhi, Airport 77, Jaws series, Labyrinth, Rambo series, Rainman (a great one) etc etc.

It was a pop era. For some singers, they really had the spotlights shine on them (although for some, they are no longer heard of anymore). Big names with big hits are like Madonna, Michael Jacson, Richard Marx, Rick Springfield, Belinda Carlisle, Def Leppard, Miami Sound Machine, Rick Ashley (and his goofy dance moves), Milli Vanilli (oh, the deception), Vanilla Ice (a white who didn't know how to be black and went bankrupt in a blink), Cindy Lauper, Martika, Phil Collins, Michael Bolton (remember the voice?), Bonnie Tyler, New Kids On The Block, The Bangles, Debbie Gibson, Tiffany, Extreme, Chicago, ... the list really goes on....

If school kids these days compare what handphone brands they use, back then we compared pencil boxes and cases. Some pencil boxes were like a James Bond gadget - press here, one compartment would pop up, press another, another compartment would pop up. We were very good in Geography too coz the erasers had flags of different countries imprinted on them :))How about indulge in the many junk foods available and for most of them, they came with free toys too. Remember Sumi jelly, Chickadees and Tora? These foods were usually advertised over the t.v. using Mat Sentul as the voiceover.

Aaaahhh... the tiny little biscuits with icing on top. Usually ate just the icing, without the crackers, heheheee...It feels like yesterday that I had one of these foods, heard one of those songs, watched one of those movies/tv series/cartoons, owned one of those pencil boxes and played one of those games. Since it feels like yesterday, guess I'm not really that old huh? Hahaha...

What would I hope for 2009 and years to come? Very noticeable changes of course - in many, if not all, aspects of life - changes that come from within me... spiritually, emotionally, intellectually and physically.

Hopefully, the environment is treating me right too, and by environment, I don't mean just the world climate but also the economy, the political arena and most importantly, the environment within my family, our house and our neighbourhood.

I think I'd like to become a little bit of selfish too from now on, by always asking myself questions like 'oh yeah? so?', 'what's in it for me?', 'what do I care?', 'so what's it going to be?' and 'why the heck would I care/help/bother?'

Anyway, last 29 December 2008 (a national holiday here) also marked the new year (1430 Hijrah) for us Muslims. So, to my non-Muslim friends who always wish me Happy New Year during the Eidul Fitri, Eid is not really the new year for us Muslims, Awal Muharam is (Muharam is the first month in the Islamic calendar)..... ok? :))

HAPPY NEW YEAR 1430H AND 2009 TO ALL OF YOU OUT THERE!!!!!! MAY ALL YOUR WISHES COME TRUE (THE GOOD ONES AND MAYBE SOME BAD ONES TOO?, HAHAHHAA).....

P/S: Speaking of being selfish just now, lately, I see myself transformed into some stubborn and hard-headed person (as in 'keras hati'). I don't know whether being the man in the family had played any part in that, or it's the life experiences that taught me to become one. My wife sees that change in me, others too and once, my 'keras hati'ness had shocked a friend. Is that a good thing? (being hard-headed and not easily swayed). Guess from now on, no more Mr Nice Guy huh!

From books to movies...of words and adaptations...

2008-12-18T13:28:00.012+08:00

History has seen that quite a number of books (and in some cases, comics) out there that had been adapted into movies. The books may not necessarily need to be extremely popular for the movies to sell well at the box office. Likewise, best-seller books may not be well adapted into movies and the movies may flop.

Take Stephen King's books for example. With the exception of Christine and The Mist which received rave reviews and were quite well-accepted by moviegoers, other movies adapted from his books tanked!

I remember reading Phantoms by Dean Koontz many years ago. It was one of the scariest books I've ever read. Every page of the book was so vividly horrifying. Unfortunately, the movie, despite having big actors in it, failed to attract people to flock the cinemas.

I once had a dream to write a book. A book that I hoped, could open doors to other possibilities, and one of them was which to have it adapted into a movie (or a series of movies). The book already had a title; each characters named and their characteristics visualised; the draft was ready up to Chapter 7 (if not mistaken).... in fact for some chapters, they were almost complete.

Three friends read the draft. A couple of them had even showed their willingness to be a part of it. One was willing to be my editor, while another, a talented artist, drew some sketches so that we could later pick one to be the book cover. He also drew some of the monsters (see below) to be inserted into the pages of the book - plus he also loves to draw, so pretty much, he just wanted to (draw them).

Then reality hit me. I am not that great (in writing). I may have received comments before about how my simple style of English writing can still somehow grasp their attention. But, is it enough that based on these comments alone made by only a few people, I can expect (other) readers to be hooked by maintaining the same style throughout the book? Surely readers would want something out of the ordinary and simplicities, and expect me to get out of my comfort zone of writing.

The book project got postponed indefinitely, for so many years now. It never left my mind completely though, at least not yet. Hmm... maybe I should write it in Bahasa Malaysia (BM) first, although again, I'm not an excellent BM writer either. Or perhaps I should find myself a ghost writer or a co-writer. Or perhaps publish a graphic novel instead, a collaboration with my artistic friend there. Hmm... I don't really know.

This whole thing about getting my book out came back to my mind after reading an article, about how easy it is for a 9-year-old boy, Alex Greven, who initially wrote his book and self-published it at a school book fair, became almost instantly famous. Not only his 48-page advice book, "How to Talk to Girls" became a best-seller, it has also been optioned by Fox for a possible theatrical release. The film rights to him were sold for low-to-mid six figures. How lucky of him huh?

Reading the article made me think about the path I have threaded my way through all this while, and the future paths that I should take (and plan to take). We Muslims are always encouraged to appreciate the 5 things before the 5 things arrive. One of them was 'while we are still free before we are busy' and another one, 'while we are still alive before we are dead'.

More often than not, we are so busy with worldly matters, we forget about the world that follows. Then, we may say we are very busy, but usually busy for other people. In a recent Oprah Winfrey show, she said 84% of people hate their jobs. So, if we are too busy with jobs that we hate (or maybe not particularly fond of), isn't it time, we make it count? Isn't it time we become busy FOR ourselves for a change? ...sigh...

Meantime, talk about adaptation from comics, you can view the trailer of the coming Wolverine movie here.

Lost in translation...? Of words and confusion

2008-12-05T18:31:00.005+08:00

Ad 1: Fun Fun rain coat
I went for a travel excursion the other day. The travel organiser provided us with a gift bag that consisted of some stuffs like mosquito repellant patches, a balm, a packet of baby wipes (they included this in because the wipes were safe to be applied on the face), a small bottle of sunblock lotion and a rain coat.

The label for the rain jacket struck my attention (see above) and made me and a friend laugh. Putting aside the possibility that the photo could have been Photoshopped, don't you think these models are rather sad/angry looking, as though they were forced to pose. I would say the brand name Fun Fun should have been Sad Sad instead. Perhaps these kid models are Sad Sad because it rains, and putting on those rain jackets doesn't help in making things easier or any happier either :))

Ad 2: Sofa set

One day, as I flipped through an interior design magazine, I noticed the bi-lingual magazine contained so many grammatical errors. Whether the articles are in English or in Malay, I was appalled by the number of wrong words used. Considering that the magazine was published by a renowned Malaysian interior designer and tv personality, those mistakes should not have happened in the first place. I mean, didn't they proof read?

I do enjoy reading advertisements in papers and magazines sometimes. Since my wife and I were looking for contractors and contacts for interior items, I was browsing through the ads in the magazine too. On the second last page, there was an ad on a sofa set. Judging from the sets shown in the ad, I'd say, design wise....well... nothing intriguing about them. At least they were not as interesting as the words they used in their ad, which said:

"There is gene filling around view, it is as happiness, sweet and warm, and the thoughts are cleared in details, nobody knows where does confidence come from. Maybe it has thousands of resources, millions of embodiments, but when we are faced with the warm and real house, the confidence is easy to be found, placing myself into complete space, closing eyes such as the extending branch, colour stretching and white cloud disappearance field in deep heart becomes lovely soon....

When you want to sell something, credibility is built through proper use of words so that information about your product is delivered effectively to readers/potential buyers. I wonder if the ad was prepared by the same writers for the magazine since the words used are all too flowery and catchy, they lost their meaning. I as a reader, ended up dazed and confused - just what the heck were they trying to say here?

Now, let's quickly translate what could possibly be the message(s) that the ad was trying (too hard) to tell us, shall we?

"...gene filling around view..." and "...where does confidence come from..."

- hmmmm....if humans, animals, insects... whatever, are in the same room where the sofa is, kinda' hard to imagine that their genes could somehow exit their bodies and fill up the room. With regard to confidence, maybe it's in their genes (pun intended), hehee..

"...placing myself into complete space..."

- I wonder whether does the ad try to make us imagine being lost into complete space or it was describing what the copywriter was feeling when he/she wrote the ad. It sure sounds like the latter. Maybe the copywriter should write a novel some day.

- I think ads should always make customers understand what benefits they will get from choosing a particular product or service, and this can be achieved by using the word 'YOU' instead of 'I/ME'. Say for examples, an ad for a fabric softener "Softness you can feel" or a courier service "The name you can trust!". Unless of course it's something like McDonald's tagline that says I'm lovin' it! - even THAT is putting us, the customers to say I'm lovin' it!, not the McDonald's owners/franchisees/franchisors.

"...extending branch, colour stretching and white cloud disappearance field in deep heart becomes lovely soon..."

- errrr... what?????

Ad 3: Hijama air vacuum

Hijama is the Arabic term for acupuncture. My parents have this one health gadget to help them perform hijama on their own. The gadget, just like the conservative approach, use cuppings. However, it provides a more relaxed and less painful way and does not cause blood to be drawn by vacuum since it does not involve skin incision or burning of papers inside the cup to make the cup cling to the skin. Nowadays, they no longer use it though when one day, my mum experienced some skin disorder at the site chosen for cupping.

I found the box with the gadget still inside it the other day, on a shelf. Judging from the 'instructions to use' on the box, obviously the whole thing is made in China. Then, on the side of the box, here's what the manufacture wrote with regard to the benefits from using the product:

Health care gift, old and little all proper
- hmmmm, so how about those who are young and big? hehee..

Elegant features and economy enduring
- great to know that the features are elegant that it can endure (if not help us to endure) the current economic turmoil.

Ego diagnosis, health care prevention
- so it's recommended to any egotistical maniac out there who doesn't care about their health then?

Inside disease, outside remove, result special - I bet it is...

Traditional Chinese medicine, China treasure
- how lucky we are...while archeologists spend years digging for treasures buried in the land of China, we could easily get this from the night market.

Ads 4: Ad on radio and t.v.
Don't you just hate it when you see or hear an ad over the t.v. or radio that ends with laughter? Say for examples, family members are laughing because the foods are delicious as mum cooks only with the cooking oil brand J or two friends can now play tennis together because they no longer have sprained muscles, thanx to the massage oil brand K or a customer laughs with a sales assistant when buying a washing machine at a well known electrical/electronic store......hahahaa, hohohoh, hehehehee...

Oh please....enough pretending already! These ads make me (and wife) sick...

The 'sick' year? (updated today...)

2008-11-30T19:06:00.000+08:00

I got a call from my dad last couple of days, saying that my mother was vomiting for 7 times the night before and didn't sleep the whole night. The call came as quite a shock to me. First of all, because just like babies, older people tend to dehydrate quickly from diarrhoea or vomiting and this could lead to more serious complications. So, the news got me worried and I'm still worried. After all, she has reached the stage where a simple headache is enough to get me all uptight.

It seems that a few people I know fall (drastically) ill this year, even for a short period of time.

For example, I suffered a number of very bad migraine episodes this year and a few other aches here and there, which I would rather not to elaborate.

Then, Tok Zal passed away last Ramadhan after two weeks being admitted into the hospital.

Ikhwan's babysitter (Kak Ana) was also admitted into the hospital recently due to diabetic complication and infection to her kidney and lungs. Seeing her lying there unconscious on the hospital bed, with all those tubes and monitor screens really gave me an uncomfortable feeling and reminded me of Tok Zal when she was in the hospital. Kak Ana was already discharged. Whether or not she can resume taking care of babies (which includes Ikhwan) after this, is a different matter. What important now is for her to fully recover soon, Insha' Allah.

Then, there were 3 other people I know of, who had dengue fever (on separate occasions)....

... and only yesterday, I had a tooth extracted. It was the most painful toothache ever. I had to take 7 pain killer pills within an hour the night before, just so that the pain subsided, although of course I was scolded by my wife when she found that out, because overdosage of pain killers can have its adverse side effects. Funny though, the pain is still quite unbearable to this day...huhuhu....

"And when I am ill, it is He Who cures me;"

Al-Shuara (Surah 26, verse 80)

The 'little' things about me...

2008-11-14T01:15:00.003+08:00

My name

Full name is Abdun Nizar Ahmad. With the exception of few relatives, everybody else in the family and at schools (primary and secondary) called me Nizar. A couple of relatives call me Abun, while all three cousins from my mother side call me.... guess what - John McKeterk, or in short, John. Since it's a made up name, I don't really know the spelling to the second name, but judging from sound, that should be it. To this day, they still call me John, their spouses also call the same, and their children - Cik John (Cik is the short for Pakcik, which is Uncle). As for my uncle and auntie (my cousins' parents), they sometims call me Nizar, and sometimes John.

Ever since I began my college/university years, everyone there called me Abdun with very few who prefer Abun. I remember a joke made by a housemate back in the UK - he said Abun Sabun (sabun is soap). Issshhh.. of all the names, but I didn't take it seriously :)

Now, if I meet someone new, if they are relatives (like in the case of my wife's side whom I never met before OR from my side, who may not remember my name), I'd introduce myself as Nizar. But, if they are not (going to be my) relatives, then it's gonna be Abdun. Don't ask me why. I'm comfortable of introducing myself that way.

The address book in my phone

Due to most people calling me Abdun, although I may not be the most important person in their lives, my name usually happens to be the first one in their phone's address book. This has a disadvantage. People had been accidentally calling me/sending me empty messages. What really annoying is that sometimes, the calls/smses caught me at the wrong times like in the wee hours of morning (if they are going to sleep with the phones by their sides, why can't they lock the phones, dang it!) or after rushing to get to the phone, only to hear people's conversations (the case of phones in their pants' pockets or handbags and the calls accidentally made) or kids' voices (obviously their kids are playing with the phones).

There was one time, my phone kept beeping due to receiving almost a dozen of empty messages, one after another, to the extent that it started to attract the unnecessary attention from people at the office. The smses were all coming from a person I met at a seminar.

Guess, I was in the wrong mood to be disturbed like that. You know what I did? I texted her, "since you hardly know me, you might as well remove my name from your phone book." Pretty nasty huh?

There was another incident where after picking up the phone, I heard a friend's conversation with another....and they were talking about me. Luckily, all I heard were compliments about me. I was smiling ear to ear....it took me a while before I hung up the phone :))

All these incidents had taught me something. In my phone book, I put 'abdun' and 'zzzdun' as the first and last names. The numbers behind those names are invalid of course, so those in the 2nd and 2nd last list are spared from any accidental pressing on their numbers.

My nature

I have stint eyes, but without my glasses, people perceive my eyes as rather big (especially if I roll my eyes). Well, so many people had said so, guess that is true. Wife said, my bulging eyes must be the reason why Ikhwan gets so excited whenever I do some acts in front of him.

I am a quiet person and shy by nature, ahaks.... I mean, seriously.. throw me into a social gathering packed with 'strangers', I'd definitely feel very uncomfortable. I think because I hate the fact that I have to put on a (fake) smiling face, and having to think what to say most of the time.

But once well acquainted, you will probably see my bubbling nature. Heck, some even said I was naughty.

On precaution steps

1. Before entering a lift, as the doors open, I always double-check that the lift floor is of the same level as the floor where I'm standing at. Why? Because stories about people who fell to their deaths when they entered the lifts which were not there (after the doors were opened) scare the crap out of me!

2. When driving, if the light is green for me to drive straight or make a turn, I will always make sure the light is really green - to the extent I have to verbally say it sometimes, for example I'd say "terus...hijau" (translation: straight...green). Sounds like I'm too safety conscious huh? Hmmm...despite of this, I still beat the red light once in a while, huhu...

3. I make sure I do these things before leaving the car (after parking it) - the gear is at PARKING, the handbrake is pulled, the aircond is off and the steering is locked. If say, I also need to switch off the headlights or the wipers or the rear window demister as well, I'd do those other things first, followed by the four, starting with PARKING, and the rest in that order. I would also sing them (the four things) in my head or hum them just to make sure they are done.

4. If there are routines that I do in the car, I also have own routine before leaving the house, especially where travelling is required, using the Power of 2 'formula'. Two things in my right pants' pocket - car key and hanky; left pocket - house keys and card holders (that hold credit cards, shopping reward cards and Touch N' Go card); elsewhere around the waist - small comb and wallet AND phone holder with phone in it; and upper body area - wrist watch and glasses. I hate forgetting things which may cause unnecessary strain to the brain. Even with having these routines, I still forget sometimes, usually involving bringing the phone holder but without the phone.

I'm a sucker for......

zombies. Movies have portrayed zombies to be moving so slow like....errr, the dead (but somehow still able to catch and eat the survivors, like in Shaun of the Dead), or can still run so fast, you might s*it your pants while trying to escape (like in 28 Days Later). Fast or slow, the zombies are either undead (Dawn of the Dead) or they are not yet dead, just infected with some kind of disease (I Am Legend). Either way, they are hunger for flesh and blood. Don't let them catch you, as they will devour you alive. If only your certain body parts are eaten or you were bitten or scratched by zombies, be prepared to join the zombies club soon. Movie-makers always come out with fresh storylines and some horrific/gory scenes never before seen involving zombies being killed or zombies killing people. Apart from zombie movies, as I also love horror and slasher movies. Hmmm.. maybe I should just say, I love movies. Period.

Friends and The Simpsons. I can watch all Friends episodes over and over again until I throw up (I've never actually done that, hehe). So far, no other sitcoms can beat Friends in terms of great storylines, and along with them, come those funny lines (Joey and Phoebe gets the best lines), outrageous acts (like Chandler's quirkiness), memorable characters (Monica's constant urge to clean) and unforgettable scenes (like the one where Rachel and Ross had a big fight when Ross, who thought they were on a break, had slept with someone else). Some favourite episodes would be (among others): the one with the wedding in London, the one where Phoebe tried to seduce Chandler who had been secretly dating Monica, the one with Brad Pitt as a guest, the one where Joey learned French from Phoebe, the one when Joey confessed to Rachel that he's falling for her etc etc etc.

With regard to The Simpsons, just like Friends, I've been a fan since school time. The longest ever running sitcom received its well-deserving airtime last Halloween with a dozen episodes shown back to back. I had a great time, especially since for some of the episodes, I've never seen them before.

I believe in...

respecting other people, regardless of differences in ages, ranks, races and faiths. Say, for example you have a kid niece or a nephew, it doesn't mean you as an adult can easily look down on him/her, because when they grow up, they can easily strike back at you. So how does it feel to be at the receiving end for a change?

good personal hygiene, which I think, should be taken seriously. It's understandable if after a long day, you still haven't gotten the chance to freshen up. What I can't tolerate is those who constantly disregard their personal hygiene. Heck, their bad body odour foul the environment and public places very early in the morning and they expect us to talk or be around them? I also can't stand those who spit in public. Sadly, we Asians are well known for this bad behaviour (other than generally being bad drivers and like to talk at the cinemas). I remember reading how the New Zealand government was trying to educate the Asians not to spit on their sidewalks. Wonder how that went...?

Movies that I watched this year and can't seem to get enough of:

Cloverfield and Bridge to Terabithia. Read my reviews on the movies here and here. While, here's the theme song to the latter. An excellent attempt from a cute-cum-excellent young actress:

I really feel like going....
to so many places in the world. One of them would be New York - probably influenced by how NY is portrayed in TV shows and movies, like in Heroes, Cloverfield, CSI:NY etc etc.

am mostly awed by...
God's given gift - the human intellect. How babies develop physically, mentally and spiritually, starting from not knowing anything; new inventions are discovered numbering thousands every year; new catchy songs keep coming out, each sounds usually different from the other, considering there are so many singers for so many years and each album has at least 10 songs; ideas may be repeated but brilliant writers always know how to make the stories fresh and interesting.

scenic places - whether it involves beaches, mountains or lakes/lochs. Top that with a peaceful friendly neighbourhood and nice weather (the latter is open to your own interpretation). I always love to travel. I may no longer be able to travel extensively like in the past, but whenever opportunity to travel comes along, I always take some kind of memorabilia home, and it can be as simple and cheap as a nice looking paper/plastic bag that I get after buying a magazine. I still keep those bags, some, for 10 years now, that I collected from travelling. Now, I shall leave you with this beautiful photo that I found from the Net. Not sure where the place is, but it looks like Bergen in Norway.

As much as I want to start a tag on this, I've learned my lesson that people are not going to do it. But you are welcome to share whatever little things about you that you don't mind other people knowing.

Walk the talk.. walk and talk...walk and laugh...walk and run...walk while looking somewhere else...

2008-11-02T03:45:00.005+08:00

Tuesday, 21st October 2008 marked an important date in our lives, especially to Ikhwan. It was the day when he made his first steps on his own, willingly, without being encouraged or forced upon. Yes, he started walking that day, witnessed by my parents who were in town last week and my wife. I was not at home due to working.

True, Ikhwan started walking rather late. But we are proud of him nonetheless. This was only one of his shortcomings, which could (or could not) have something to do with genetic, since both his parents started walking late too. Surely, as a human being and as he grows up, he will have and discover other flaws. As long as hopefully, none of those flaws would impede him from becoming a soleh Muslim; an obedient child; a smart, intelligent, caring and responsible person etc etc.. you know all those things that any parents with a sound mind would want their children to become.

Other than his walking development, in other areas, he develops normally, if not quite fast, compared to other kids of his age. He already has a full set of teeth, he knew how to sip his drinks using straws since only a few months' old, and he's always full of energy and with such intensity whenever he crawls as shown in this video clip which was taken at my folks' house!

I'd say that his crawls are equivalent to walking and running, while his walks are equivalent to.....ermmm... driving a car. Why? Because on the first three days after he started walking, he already tried running a bit (like speeding while on the road), walking with his eyes wondering about instead of looking straight (ok, this could be equivalent to a hazardous driving hehe..), encircling us (like making a 6 o'clock turn at a roundabout) and walking for a distance, then making a U-turn (I mean, literally, the way he turned his body around was like making a U-turn). As though wanting to catch up, not a day is missed without him walking (because I read there are babies who after discovering their ability to walk, may skip some days without wanting to walk at all).

He also discoverd on his own, that instead of struggling to stand up from his sitting position, he can use the palms of his hands to push himself up... Now, he's learning to throw some rubber balls while standing up, although at the moment, we try to discourage him from doing so frequently, especially if he's looking rather tired and unstable.

On another development, Ikhwan has always been amazed by cats. In fact, 'cat' and 'meow' are two of the early words we taught him. Now, he knows where to point at whenever we ask him to show which one is cat from his alphabets chart.

My parents own a cat (of American Shorthair breed), bought by my sis back when she was in the States. I mentioned about him quite a number of times before in this blog. The cat goes by the name Sky. The thing about Sky is that he gets easily intimidated by strangers, especially noisy and active small kids. Well, you can pretty much guess how Sky would react to my son! In this video, my son was looking so curiously and intently at Sky who was having his meal. The 'peeking' made Sky rather restless of course, but a cat's gotta eat when a cat's gotta eat right? :))

In this final video of today, we really enjoyed his laughter and would like to share that moment here... (I think he got the idea to laugh that way, probably from the way I peek-a-boo at him). As seen here, he was standing by his car which was a birthday present from my parents-in-law.

UP NEXT:

1. The 'little' things about me.

2. The 'little' things about Ikhwan (P/S: How about the 'little' things about my wife? Hmmmmmm.......maybe I shouldn't go into that....)

3. Ads that go wrong...

The dawn of Raya....

2008-10-17T07:07:00.003+08:00

This year, Aidilfitri (Raya) fell in the middle of the week, which was on Wednesday and Thursday (1st and 2nd October). For most Muslims (and those who want to take advantage of the holidays), Friday was the last day of working, so the whole week that followed was a 'festive' week for them.

The timing was right. When my wife started her first day at the new workplace (a bigger and better-manned district hospital), it was already half way through the Ramadhan. So, the duty roaster for Raya was already out and the names of hospital staff needed to be working during those days were already up. After all, my wife was still tagging, so her superior willingly allowed her to take the whole week off too - no questions asked!

We already had the house 'decorated' a week before the festive week. We had a cleaner dropped by to do the difficult cleaning jobs. Once that done, we decided to rearrange the furniture and the stuffs that we displayed on the racks.

Here are photos showing what we did, together with description of them, written in interior-design-magazine style :)

This cabinet was a surprise that I got for my wife who went back hometown during her 1-month confinement period (after giving birth to Ikhwan). The family photo frame was taken during last year's Raya. The green flowers were part of the 'bunga hantaran' for our wedding.

The furniture arrangement is new, the mat is new, the curtains are new (courtesy of my mother in law) and the Raya lamps are new (hung outside the sliding door, by the grill).

We just love this section at the corner of the wall, flanked by the sofa sets. We try to make it simple - a big frame with four photos of our beloved Ikhwan on the top shelve; a glass gift that my father-in-law bought when he attended a fish show (yes, fish!) in Germany together with another glass gift that I bought in Switzerland on the second shelve; the bottom shelve has the 'fruit holder' that we bought in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. Next to the rack are vases with flowers and a small magazine/paper rack (not shown).

We want to limit putting too many stuffs on the larger dining table. So, all those jars containing Raya cookies are placed on the S-shaped coffee table. As you can see from the photo here, Ikhwan also did not want to be left out from being photographed - 'talking' his way through to be captured by his dad's camera :) He is indeed the love of our lives - seeing him growing up really takes our worries away. He's the main attraction in the house, really...

This photo was taken from the entrance door. Funny, we never thought of doing it this way - the hall sure looks more spacious.

Despite the preparations, this year's Raya was in sombre mood due to the recent death in the families (she was related to both my side and my wife's side). My wife already got her a Raya gift. As for me, the usual Raya cookies for her and her husband.

The first few weeks after her death and after Raya began, were extremely difficult for her husband. Actually, I don't think he has fully recovered from the loss till now....

P/S: Although it's already the third week of Raya, think it's not too late for me (heck! we celebrate it for a month right?) to wish Selamat Hari Raya to all Muslim readers. To everyone (regardless of faiths) - I seek forgiveness from you, should after reading my blog, your feelings are hurt in any way (directly or indirectly). Although the 'hurting' may sometimes be intentional, hehee... but let's bygones be bygones, shall we...?
Up next! The 'little' things about me....

I'm not moving.......ok, I'm moving now, hahahahaha...

2008-10-09T01:18:00.003+08:00

Well, who would have guessed it? After writing about how my son enjoys my rendition of the chorus to the song "The Man Who Can't Be Moved" by The Script, on that same night, I managed to record a video on that.

See how my son over-enjoyed himself when I purposely sang it out of tune with the intention to tickle his funny bones. See also how he laughed when I said to him, "Ok, I'm moving now". Although the visual itself is a treat, if possible, make sure you crank up the volume too kay! :)))

The Man Who Can't Be Moved (son Laughs at My Rendition of the So - Funny bloopers R us

I'm not moving.......I'm not moviiiiiing.. ing..

2008-10-08T13:25:00.000+08:00

They just keep coming up with great songs huh? Right now, the one that caught my ears is by The Script, called The Man Who Can't Be Moved. Naturally, when you listen to a song, before you get too familiar with it, the simple words in the lyrics would be the ones that you memorise first. In the case of this song, it's definitely the chorus part that goes:

So I'm not moving... I'm not moving. I'm not moving... I'm not moving.

My son really enjoys himself whenever I sing this part to him, especially if I make silly voice so that it sounds funny. Anyway, here's the clip - cool song, catchy lyrics and a very interesing vid:

Here are two other cool songs and vids. What a beautiful song Fall For You by Secondhand Serenade - 'sungguh mendayu-dayu'. The other one is Check Yes Juliet by We The Kings. Other than keep coming up with great songs, they tend to have weird names for bands and songs also huh? :-)

P/S: These days, whenever he has the chance, Ikhwan really likes to climb on top or on the back of me or my wife - to ride like we were horses. If the 'horses' were to slow, he would shake his body so vigorously and laugh at the same time. Imagine that happening while your stomach is empty. Now, my tummy sores a bit, hehee....

UP NEXT:

1. The dawn of Raya...

2. The little things about me...

...she has departed...

2008-09-26T06:42:00.005+08:00

There was a call at 3 o'clock last Wednesday morning the 24th (which was also the 24th of Ramadhan). Usually, I wouldn't be easily awaken by the ringing phones, but that morning, I could hear my wife's conversation.

The thing that we feared the most, had happened. A close relative, who had been hospitalised for the past 2 weeks had passed away.

Just about three weeks ago, she came to our house (she and her husband followed my father in law who wanted to pick up my mother in law after attending to Ikhwan). Who would have thought that would be the last time I met her, who was still all healthy and well at that time. Indeed, Allah had it planned for her (and for us). She got to see for one last time, how her niece and nephew had settled down (the first time she came over, it was pretty much vacant with no proper furniture). Too bad wife was working that day to see her.

I owed her for suggesting to my dad to introduce me to the woman who is now my wife.

She was a nice, kind-hearted and generous person. I'm not just saying it - that's the truth.

She was a good cook too. Her husband would always prefer eating in, than out, so that he could saviour her delicious meals every time.

Whenever we visited her, her hospitality was 1st class and top notch! There was always something in her kitchen, waiting to be cooked and served to her guests. Not just drinks and biscuits mind you. Sometimes, it was like there was a feast...., and it was not even meal times. Even in the case of regular visits from my parents (yes, they were close), or if we saw her at her mother's house (instead of her own), she would still show the same generous hospitality to us (in fact, to anybody).

Despite feeling sad with her departure, I haven't shed a tear. To be honest, I could feel that the sadness is brewing inside me. Usually, in cases like this where I felt like crying but couldn't, it'd be just a matter of time before something pokes me, which would then ignite me to break down!

Yes, her death was devastating and rather untimely due to coming Aidilfitri. Allah loves her more to take her during this holy Ramadhan, and this year's (and future) Ramadhan and Aidilfitri will not be the same.

"Tok Zal (how I used to call her) / Mak Pot (how my wife used to call her) - YOU WILL BE SORELY MISSED! May you be blessed by the Rahmatullah, Insha' Allah...."

Let's talk about.... holes

2008-09-19T01:21:00.006+08:00

- A certain black hole is feared at because of its powerful sucking power.

- A certain other black hole may cause a ship to sink.

- Some people find pleasure hitting a ball into a hole, only to pick it up later.

- A 'couple' of holes were very much talked about during a recent election.

- A certain hole in the heart may be amended through surgeries.

- A certain other hole in the heart may not be easily amended and healed.- Some people are willing to do just about anything to get themselves out of (hell) holes.

- Having holes in the pocket may mean it's time to pay a trip to meet a financial advisor, if not a tailor.

- Some people dig up more holes to cover other holes.

- Some people stuff their hands into holes in the ground in the name of science.

- Some people make tons of cash (if not lose them) by naming their albums "..holes" or making movies about people trapped in holes.

P/S: Speaking about a movie on people trapped in holes, I saw Apocalypto recently and I should say, what an awesome movie! Totally original! Not a chick flick though... errr..I guess...

The Hours, The Days, The Week

2008-09-10T07:23:00.017+08:00

The followings were the events that unfolded during week 23 August to 29 August 2008:

23 August

It was not an ordinary day but a much awaited Saturday. I was feeling all excited and pumped up to start the day. I would be attending a workshop. That day was planned many weeks ago and after telling my parents of my plan, they had agreed to come over to look after Ikhwan (since wife would be working that day). Ikhwan was rather feverish the night before but seemed ok that morning. I informed my parents of his fever should his fever came back.

In the workshop, I learn and re-learn a lot of things that day. Throughout the day, I kept my motivational level at optimum by being an active 'student'.

The course ended slightly later than anticipated. Upon reaching home, I was still in high spirit, wanting to share my excitement with my wife, and probably, parents too (why not right?).

I noticed she already reached home before me. As I stepped inside the house, I was greeted with some rather shocking news. Ikhwan's fever had gotten worse, to the extent that he threw a fit (my mum was holding him at that time). Apparently, my dad tried to contact me over the phone, to ask if I could come home impromptu, but I missed the call since the ringtone was off. My dad's fingers were hurt and bled a bit after he put them inside Ikhwan's mouth, fearing that the fit would cause Ikhwan to accidentally bite his tongue. The fit lasted for a few minutes, and just as it ended, wife came home.

My sweet little Ikhwan. Poor him, he had to go through it without his parents around. Luckily, my parents were more experienced when dealing with such incidents. Obviously, Allah had a different plan for all of us that day. Sure, with regard to attending the workshop, the day went as planned. But should I had cancelled it before, which lead to my parents cancelling their trip up to KL, I would have been with Ikhwan alone that day. I wouldn't know for sure, what to do when Ikhwan had a fit, or what if I was in a different room at that time, not realising what had happened to Ikhwan.

Since Ikhwan now had a history of fit, my folks advised us that in the future, we should never leave him alone for more than a few minutes whenever he has fever. We should also always check up on him, especially at night.

Actually, this was the 2nd time Ikhwan had a fit. Speaking of the first time, it was not so much because of fever. It was more due to a 'disturbance'.

Yes, I do believe those things exist. Things that cannot be seen through our naked eyes (unless they choose to manifest themselves in some forms), having the sole purpose of trying to deviate the sons of Adam from the path of truth.

I reached home quite late on the night it happened. One of those nasty and evil things must have had followed me home, then disturbing Ikhwan, to the extent that he had a fit. Even after the fit was over, Ikhwan was crying weirdly and kept wanting to look at one particular spot despite our attempt to prevent him from doing so (since he looked really scared everytime his eyes managed to gaze upon that spot). Me and wife got anxious and worried by the situation. We recited Al Qur'an verses and also called my dad to ask his help in getting rid of 'it'.

At one point, I was so scared, I switched on all the lights in the hall and dining area. But somehow I did not have the guts to step into the kitchen and did the same. The dark kitchen crept me up!

Back to the events that unfolded during THE week. I met, or rather, my car met with two accidents in a span of 5 days. The first accident was a clear-cut case that it was not my fault. I was minding my own business, driving in my lane, in a straight line, when all of a sudden, a driver reversed his car from the parking lot and hit the left side of my car. It happened rather unexpectedly, that I didn't even get the chance to honk him. Seconds before his car hit mine, I could see how he and his mate were talking to each other (instead of the driver looking through his mirrors). I guess, the road was clear at the time when they got into the car, and the driver must have not expected me to be behind him when he was reversing. Sigh...

I hate confrontation - and luckily that was avoided since the driver immediately admitted it was his fault, and agreed to pay for the damage (he already did).

The car was not yet fixed when again, a different car bang it. On one of those very rare nights where I stayed back at work, on my way home, the second accident happened. This time around was not so much of a clear cut case...and did involve some confrontations in settling the matter. Just like in any other similar case or scenario, logically, neither one would admit their fault right? In the end, we paid for our own damages. Actually, even when I explained the chronology of the accident to some of the people I know, they too had mixed opinions on who was at fault.

29 August 2008
The 2nd accident occurred on the night of 29 August 2008. I was really surprised by it, considering the short period for both accidents to happen. On top of that, till that day, Ikhwan had still not yet recovered from his sickness.

I was too shock I guess, that I kinda' lost my confidence to continue driving home. Praise to Allah, I managed to. Upon reaching home, my wife and mother-in-law (who was around to look after Ikhwan) tried to comfort me and said I should be thankful that both accidents only affected cars.

When everybody else had already gone to bed, I was still in front of the t.v. Not really paying attention to what was shown on the screen, I contemplated on the intensity of that week. What started off as something I really looked forward to (the Saturday workshop), escalated to unwanted things (Ikhwan's fit and the accidents). Quite a week....

Then a movie was about to begin. It was Bridge to Terabithia. I had always wanted to catch this movie, and so, since the night was still quite early, I decided to stay up.

The movie is based on a book published in 1977 which garnered an award (Newbery Medal) the following year. The book is studied in English studies classes in many countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and the United States.

The story revolves around a fifth grader Jesse Aarons, a middle child and the only boy in a family of five children. He befriends his new neighbor, a single child Leslie Burke, when he loses a footrace to her at school. Jesse, who is artistic but also fearful, angry, and depressed thinks highly of Leslie, a girl who is smart, talented and outgoing.

The two soon become close friends. Together, they imagine a kingdom in the woods near their homes, accessible only by a rope swing over a creek. The kingdom is filled with giants, trolls and other magical beings and they name it Terabithia.

Jesse has a crush on his music teacher, Miss Edmunds. When one day, Miss Edmunds invites Jesse to accompany her to the Art Gallery, initially Jesse wants to ask Leslie along but changes his mind since he'd rather spend time alone with his teacher. Without Jesse around, Leslie goes to Terabithia by herself. While swinging over the rain-swollen creek, the rope breaks. Leslie falls into the creek and drowns.

Jesse is overwhelmed by grief and guilt. He misses Leslie and is becoming so depressed, he decides to be an outcast and still goes to Terabithia alone. He even ignores and scolds May Belle, the second youngest sister who adores and admires Jesse.

Leslie's grief-stricken parents decide to move. Jesse asks them if he can take some of their wooden planks by their shed. Jesse attempts to deal with his grief by making amends with those around him, especially with May Belle. Using the wooden planks, he goes down to Terabithia to build a bridge. A bridge he builds especially for May Belle, so as she crosses it, he is to make her the Princess of Terabithia.

It was a splendid movie, and I'm sure the book is even more amazing. I agree with the critics - praise to the young actors for such credible performances.

A few scenes made me feel sad and a bit teary. I could relate to them somehow... But when it came to one scene, a teardrop finally ran down on my cheek. Then........ another. I don't know whether it was the events over the week that overwhelmed me or the movie had hit and touched me in so many ways, I didn't expect them coming.

I doubt it was the former...

Although a pure coincidence, the number 2, popped up again that week... and no, I didn't make it up when I said about a couple of teardrops.

Ikhwan's Gadgets - Part 3

2008-09-04T18:16:00.002+08:00

For you who may have read it before, you may know the history behind why Ikhwan has three strollers.

The other day, I managed to find this plastic cover for strollers, good for protecting Ikhwan from rain (see 2nd pic). Now, when it rains heavily, I no longer need to bend my body while pushing the stroller with one hand, while the other hand is holding an umbrella.

I remember one day, while queuing up at the counter, the man in front me was paying for a feeding seat (presumably it was for his own baby, otherwise he must be a very generous person). It was a fancy seat - with sturdy frames, (very) padded cushions, buttons to play songs, and other removable accessories.

When the cashier scanned the product codes, appeared the price of the seat - it was RM 599!!! Wow, how freaking expensive!!! Now THAT would be over-pampering your baby... errr.. I think :). Guess he really could afford paying that much, huh.

The one that we got for Ikhwan, On-The-Go Booster Seat, was less than 1/6 of that seat's price. Other than its affordable price, when we decided to buy it, we liked the fact that it was portable. When in folded/unopened state, the seat looks very much like a bag. Due to its compactness and lightweightness, it is easy to carry it around by its handle. When ready to use, we just need to pull out one valve and it will self-inflate into a sturdy (yes, it's sturdy too) booster seat. Just look at how comfortable and secured Ikhwan is (there are safety belt and restraint of course).

When it comes to meal times, yeah, Ikhwan knows he has to sit there. But there has been a few occasions where he would just simply refuse to do so, especially when his Ibu just gets back from work. He would prefer to sit on his Ibu's lap instead. Now, the seat has some unremovable stain marks already (from his dropped foods and spilled drinks).

Kids with meals and messes, they all come together! The seat's still usable of course, but come to think of it, luckily we didn't get him a RM 600 seat! Haha..

P/S: A lot of things can happen in a day, let alone in a week. Whatever they may be, just hope that your week doesn't end with tears in your eyes. Visit this blog again to find out about my encounters during THE WEEK.

Ikhwan's Gadgets - Part 2

2008-08-31T05:32:00.001+08:00

Obviously, it's no longer suitable for Ikhwan to still be lying down on this bouncer for he may topple over. This picture was taken when he was only a few months' old, 'eating' his teether which was bought by his mother. The bouncer was a present from my parents to celebrate the birth of Ikhwan.

The car seat was a gift from my sister and brother in law. Other than sitting around or sleeping or drinking his milk while inside the car, Ikhwan loves other activities too. Among them is playing with his pelican, flipping through his black-and-white cards or 'reading' his cloth book.

Whenever we stop at traffic lights, if he's very much awake and active but still not yet engaged in 'reading', I would ask him "Nak buku?" (meaning "Would you like a book?"). Immediately, he would point up. Then, I would ask him to choose either the cards or the cloth book. He doesn't have any particular favourite. But for cards, it seems that he knows which one is the train, and for the book, he knows which page shows the blue fish.

This Fold & Go Diaper Changer is a changing pad, organiser (no, not meant for you to record your appointments, haha) and travel case in one! Whenever we go out with Ikhwan, we never leave this diaper changer behind. What a cool idea to help parents during those diapering accidents! :)

When folded, it's very compact to fit into the diaper bag or to be hung on the stroller. When unfolded, it is a full size changing pad with easy access to other compartments. The see-inside mesh pockets can hold 2 to 3 nappies (although it can store up to 4 if you force it, like I usually do) and refillable wipes container.

The diaper duck dispenser is a separate item. Again, the small size of the dispenser makes it easy to fit into diaper bag or stroller pouch. The dispenser can store a roll of 12 durable and easy-tear bags. The idea behind this baby accesory invention is the same as pulling and tearing off aluminium foil or cling wrap out of its dispenser at perforation whenever we need one. One thing about the dispenser is that the duck makes it look too catchy to the eyes of Ikhwan. We just don't like him wanting to play with it!

Now, here's one cool thing about the bags. Each bag has a fresh baby powder scent. Although of course, it's not scented enough to make you wanting to smell the bag close to your nose and forget what’s inside the bag, haha...

Nowadays, we use the dispenser and the bags only occasionally. The cost of buying the refill bags is of course more than buying those small sized non-scented plastic bags. The latter option is not just cheaper, but still serves the purpose of 'bag it, then toss it away', whenever we are on the go.

Ikhwan's Gadgets - Part 1

2008-08-22T07:19:00.002+08:00

I've shared with you some of the Ikhwan's toys before. He now has quite an extensive collection of toys, the number of which has increased notably since we bought him his first toy. I'd definitely share more in the future.

Meantime, other than toys, Ikhwan also owns a number of 'fancy' and cool gadgets (or should I say, accessories). If toys are something that BOTH Ikhwan and I can enjoy playing with :-), the gadgets are more for his developments and safety, while at the same time, making his and his parents' life easier. I admit some of his gadgets are not really necessities, but heck, I love shopping them for Ikhwan. After all, these gadgets do amaze me in terms of their designs and functionalities.

Take the foldable drying rack here for example. Don't you think whoever came out with the idea of airing baby's bottles this way, brilliant? The rack allows bottles (even those very tall ones) to be placed upside down - what a quick and easy way to clean and dry the bottles! The rack also provides neat and easy storage for nipples, cups, valves, bottle covers and other accessories.

The one next to it is a microwave sterelizer. Pour in some water into the container, place the nipples and bottles (upside down) inside it, then put in the microwave. The power of microwave will heat up the water to create steam. What happens next, well, you get the idea....

I remember assembling Ikhwan's cot with the help of my dad - quite a tricky task! The cot is further accessorised of course - all in the name of fun and learning :)

So far, Ikhwan had only spent a few nights sleeping in the crib. Why? Being cheeky and cuddly, just before he sleeps, Ikhwan would want to play with our hands, fingers and elbows (gasp! he's like his dad). So, we thought it'd be difficult to satisfy his before-sleep routines if he were to sleep in the cot.

Nowadays, we put a mattress on the floor and all three of us sleep there every night. The thing about sleeping this way is that, sometimes it's hard to get him to bed. His parents may already feel drowsy and sleepy, but Ikhwan would still be active - crawling here and there, climbing up our bodies, playing hide-and-seek (he really enjoys doing this with me...) etc etc. Hahaa...

Hopefully, as he grows up more, he would want to sleep back in the cot - a 6-year old can still fit in there anyway...

For some of Ikhwan's toys, we noticed that he enjoyed playing with those more in the past than today. Likewise for his gadgets, there are those that no longer (fully) amaze him. This particular dreamshow, which we attach to the cot, used to occupy him before he dozed off. Or simply, we would switch it on to let him listen to any of the 3 soothing lullabies, while at the same time, he would gaze upon the characters, stars and moons which are projected onto the ceiling/wall.

These days, we, the parents who occupy him before he dozes off, hahaa. Other than that, the dreamshow also consumes so much battery power, and I suspect it's also already broken. So, until I get the batteries replaced and probably having it fixed, the dreamshow is hardly switched on anymore.

Well Ikhwan, Ayah would share more of your gadgets in the future, ok! :-o

All I Need

2008-08-10T12:54:00.007+08:00

I listen to all types of music. I'm also more keen to listen to English songs than Malay ones, probably because I was exposed to English songs since at a very young age. My wife on the other hand, prefers the latter or at least a mix of both. Whenever she rides with me and all she hears is English songs from my car stereo, she would sometimes ask me to tune in to a different radio station.

I don't really mind listening to Malay songs actually. They sure have improved and varied these past years in terms of genres and catchiness. Occasional listening to Malay songs is fine with me - as long as not too many or listening to them for too long.

Anyway, I enjoy any songs that are soothing to the ears, but bands like Yellowcard, Green Day, Boys Like Girls, Maroon 5 and All American Rejects top my lists of favourite singers. My preference has surprised a few people before. Guess, my personality doesn't quite match my taste in music - they reckoned I'd be more into pop or slow/sentimental music. Yeah, that may be true in the past, like when I was below 10 years old.

In my opinion, there's nothing wrong (for me at least) to like music. I've never been overly obsessed on any particular artists. I always never let music come first before other important matters like praying times or when calls for prayers are being summoned by the muezzins; or let it interefere with my chores where silence is needed. But I do sometimes need music to accompany my reading or when doing house chores.

Anyway, here's a video clip of a song that I can't seem to get enough of, whenever I listen to it. It's a beautiful song, called All (I Need) by a talented band (One Republic). As I understand it (from the lyrics), the song is about someone whose relationships and social life is affected due to much clinging on to the past. But my interpretation could be wrong..., so what's your interpretation?

Another catchy song from the band is called Mercy. Absolutely love it!

By the way, now that I have my own mp3 lists of favourite songs (see below my profile), hope you guys will enjoy it as much as I do... and for those enjoy the oldies, I've added hits from Belinda Carlisle too! Just click on the 'Menu' and scroll 'Left' or 'Right' to find out the track numbers of her songs. More oldies will be added soon of course... :-)

The green in my 'backyard'...

2008-07-30T12:58:00.004+08:00

At times, especially on weekend mornings, I would let myself loose by looking at this view. True, there's nothing special about this place, and there may be no streams or waterfalls to complement these greeneries, but still, the green soothes my eyes. Plus, I get to enjoy it with my son too; with no direct sunlight to hurt our eyes, we can both look out from the 3rd bedroom window any time of the day. Yep! The mini jungle is in the backyard of our condo unit.

What influenced me to buy this house some three years ago (among other reasons), are the fact that there's a lake just across the road, the kitchen is hidden (unlike most apartments/condos I've seen where kitchen is the first thing people see when they enter the house), all the four rooms are spacious, and the balcony is big (enough to accommodate my mini garden, a small pond, a coffee table with two chairs and some space for airing our clothes). Our end unit also comes with an extra 'benefit' - a treat to the mini jungle. Although of course, our little Ikhwan does more than just enjoying the view. He'd also shout, mumble things out loud and bang on the window grills.

Meantime, I just learned that a blogger friend, Kak Raden Galoh, whose cancer is found to have spread to 4 areas: the flesh in between the ribs, the liver, the right jaw node and the left shoulder node. My heart and prayers go out to her. May Allah grant strength and courage to her and her family, during these difficult times. Aaamiiinnnnnn......

Rota...

2008-07-20T08:03:00.007+08:00

The Beginning

It was on Friday, 30 May 2008. My family and I had a dinner at a restaurant. They were serving some crisp poppodums (the above photo is not poppodums) as part of the meals. Upon seeing my food which came first and since his porridge still had not arrived, Ikhwan, as usual, was excited to have some.

Silly of me to think that the poppodum would have the same texture as Ikhwan's biscuits (i.e. soft when in mouth). Just as my wife tried to stop me from giving him quite a big chunk of poppodum, Ikhwan already put it in his mouth and tried to swallow it whole. Because of that, Ikhwan was either choking or trying to vomit the poppodum back out. He then, did vomit - not just the poppodum but most probably, almost his entire meal for that day. It was like water coming out of the hose after the tap was open. I would never forget the pain expression on his face and immediately, guilt took over me.

His vomit was all over the table where he sat by and on the floor and did not stop there. When wife took him to the sink to clean him up, Ikhwan vomited some more.

The Days That Follow

Ikhwan was feverish the following weekend, quite weak and did not eat much. Initially, we did not suspect anything serious. Then, on Sunday night, Ikhwan vomited the same way he did the previous Friday. Seeing that, I felt more guilty, fearing that could I have ignited something serious that had affected Ikhwan's digestive or breathing system....?

Wife took a day off the next day, hoping that Ikwan would recover from whatever bug he was having.

On Tuesday, Ikhwan's condition hadn't fully improved but his fever did subside a bit. So, we decided to send Ikhwan over to his sitter's house as usual. Around 3pm, I received a call from his sitter who said Ikhwan was burning hot, hardly ate and slept and cried most of the time that day. She also believed he had tonsilitis for his throat had inflammation. I could hear him crying. I called out to him, and his sitter told him that 'Ayah' was on the phone. His cry slowed down a bit. I talked to him further, trying to calm him down.

After hanging up the phone, I broke into tears. I had difficulty in telling a colleague about my son being sick, because emotion took the better of me. I think the reason I became teary was because;

1. I felt so helpless hearing him cry over the phone, not being able to hug and comfort him.
2. I could picture in my head how he must be looking at the earpiece when I was talking to him. He must have wanted his parents to be around.
3. I had myself to blame for making him sick due to the whole feeding-him-with-poppodum-when-I-shouldn't-have, which I believed had ignited his sickness.

That night, we hardly slept (especially wife) and neither did Ikhwan. We feared that his temperature would sore without us realising. Every time he ate or had his milk, he would vomit them all back, almost immediately. The vomiting was projectile and so much (considering he ate and drank very little, compared to his usual amount)!

The Hospital

Wednesday, 04 June 2008 - I took an emergency leave. Wife went to work, to rearrange her work schedules with her colleagues so that she could come home early and perhaps, took another day or two off too.

Soon after she left, I realised Ikhwan was breathing rather heavily, like he was very tired. He had also developed cough and flu. He hugged my right hand tight, with my palm as his pillow. He tried to sleep but was too restless to do so.

I could feel how hot his body was. My attempt to give him the pill through his bottom failed - it kept coming back out!!! I started to panic. My wife was still at work. Being a doctor, she knew these stuffs better. Usually, she was the one in-charge in giving Ikhwan medicine this way. With Ikhwan's body temperature like this, oral medicine would take some time to have any effect.

I gave Ikhwan a tap-it sponging. Once done, I rang my wife. I must have sounded all panicky that soon after that, wife called back, saying she was heading home.

At the hospital, the doctor measured his temperature. It was about 40 degrees C. Ikhwan was also dehydrated. This warranted him to be hospitalised. Wife told me that her leave application for Wednesday to Friday was approved. Unfortunately, she could not escape from working that following weekend.

Ikhwan needed to be put on drips. About 4 people had to hold Ikhwan on the bed, on each side, since the nurses had difficulty in finding his vein (and Ikhwan was struggling at the same time). One poke after another, they still couldn't find it. For every poke, Ikhwas was crying and screaming loudly.

The hospital did some tests on his stool and Ikhwan was diagnosed with Rotavirus, which meant this was no ordinary case of diarrhoea, fever and vomiting. That same day, all four of Ikhwan's grandparents and my brother in law drove up to visit Ikhwan. In laws went back to Muar in the evening, while my parents stayed for two more days.

On the second day Ikhwan was hospitalised, Ikhwan had no more diarrhoea and vomiting. I drove to the hospital straight after work. Wife told me the needle that allowed Ikhwan to receive his drips had caused his hand to become swollen. Luckily he was not infected. So, they had pull that out and the process of finding his vein started all over again. After more than 10 pokes (in total) were attempted on Ikhwan, this time around, the doctor gave up. This angered me a little bit, although my wife seemed to understand (of course!) that for those who are chubby or overweight (babies and adults alike), finding their veins could be quite a task.

The doctor advised my wife to give him enough liquid. Well, if only his appetite had come back and he drank as much! His lips cracked due to dryness, tongue had white patches on it, while throat was still as red as ever. All this caused difficulty for him to drink. In matter of days, he had already lost weight. I stayed at the hospital till well past midnight and only had dinner afterwards. I really didn't feel like leaving those two behind.

Friday morning, driving to work as usual. While stopping at one traffic light, the vision of Ikhwan looking up to his 'Ibu' with his sunken eyes and looking so frail, came to mind. Again, I broke down. Streams of tears running down on my cheeks and it didn't bother me if people could see me. I heard that, in couples, one of them would usually be more emotional than the other. Guess, in the case of wife and I, no question there who would that person be, huh?

While in the hospital, I noticed there were a few babies who were by themselves and taken care by nurses. Wife said those were from welfare homes - babies who were orphans or abandoned. Wife remembered cases where doctors or nurses, who, after spending days nursing the babies, felt attached to them and later adopted them.

Well, I could relate to that. There was this one baby girl who was about Ikhwan's age, if not older by a few months. She was so cute, of bubbly nature and friendly - she was the one who greeted me and my mum when we walked pass by her bed. She cried when we left her. That was rather devastating, having to leave her like that. I told wife, if only raising up a child was easy and cheap, I would adopt her for sure. At least, Ikhwan had a friend to play with at home.

The 'After-Hospital' Effect

On the third day (Friday) evening, the doctor allowed him to be discharged. I picked them up after work. He was still rather feverish and weak that Saturday, and slept for many hours. It was apparent, his full recovery only started that Sunday.

Days that followed after being hospitalised, Ikhwan's behaviour changed a bit. Normally, he would be like that bubbly baby girl, the first to greet or smile at strangers. But the experience of being surrounded by strangers (the nurses and doctors), being hurt at and to live in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable environment, must had traumatised him. Everytime while in elevators, he would cry so loudly if there were other people nearby. There was this one day, when we passed by a man with him in the stroller, he also cried. The man wasn't even looking at us and was surprised to hear Ikhwan cry.

My wife and I were worried of course, in case he got too scared of people. Now, after a few weeks had gone by, Ikhwan is back to his usual self. Actually, more friendly than before. He also eats more these days, laughs louder and very, very talkative. That's our boy!!! :-)))

Meantime, you can read about my cousin niece's and nephew's encounter with Rotavirus here.

P/S: Please note that the above photograph serves as an illustration purpose only. There's no scientific evidence linking the Rota Crackers with Rota virus and thus, I should not be held responsible for any decline in sales of Rota Crackers should any readers feel contempted to buy the crackers as a result of reading this article.

Indiana 'Skully'.....the 'Happening' 'Hulk' (spoilers ahead!)

2008-07-09T01:11:00.002+08:00

If I were to rank my favourite Indie movies, I'd definitely say The Temple of Doom first, followed by Raiders of the Lost Ark. Not really a fan of The Last Crusade - rather boring. I went to catch The Temple of Doom at the cinema - it was my first time (at the cinema). I was still a small kid. Back in the days, there were still no cineplexes around yet. You pretty much watched this one giant screen with so many other people. That day, my family and I were in the first class seats - meaning we were on the first floor and the seats were far back from the screen.

How uncomfortable the chairs were at that time, to me at least. Being small and rather lightweight, I remember that everytime I tried to lean back, the seat tilted and because of that, I sat close to the edge of the seat most of the time, fearing that I would be squeezed between the seat and the back rest should the seat closed with me still inside the seat. Funny huh? Despite feeling afraid, I did manage to enjoy the movie. Heck, who could forget such scenes like the heart-pulling sacrficial ceremony or the scene with all the bugs or when they had monkeys' brains for dinner or the final scene with the hanging bridge, and by hanging, I mean literally.

Indie is like a Bond, but without fancy gadgets. Give him the whip and the hat plus some map for directions and perhaps a compass, then he's in business. So, when they announced the release of the latest Indie, surely those who grew up watching Indiana Jones, would have had high expectations, especially since we can see the same actor at the helm.

But be warned, for this one may (slightly) disappoint you. If you are in it for the ride, then chances are you'll be entertained. But if you catch this because you miss the good 'old' adventures of Indiana Jones, then you may find yourself hating him instead for... yes, Indie IS old. Yes, there are adventures and greedy baddies and some secret passages waiting to be explored, but I can safely say, a certain young actor steals most of the (action) scenes.... and for a reason. Yep, despite the crappy ending, the movie also concludes with a hint - that an Indiana Jones Jr. will follow suit... Let's just hope his rides are much better than his father's.

I was so relieved when I learned that The Incredible Hulk was not directed by Ang Lee 'coz that would have been disaster, multiplied by two. In fact, I don't think the latest Hulk is a continuation of the other one. Watch this - you'll probably enjoy this giant greenie. I definitely did enjoy myself. The ending scene also comes with a hint - it seems that they may combine Hulk and Iron Man to join forces in preventing mayhem from threatening mankind (if not creating one). Let's just wait if they make a movie out of that premise one day.

My oh my, they (the critics) sure are giving this movie a hard time. With the exception of the few (of the critics), others have nothing else to say but to condemn - not just the movie, but also the actors and the director. Some even predicted M Night's career is about to end based on their judgement of this movie.

OK, so this may not be a masterpiece equivalent to The Sixth Sense and this movie, just like Lady In The Water, doesn't have the director's signature twist in the end, but it does make us think about our survival, should the Mother Nature tries to get rid of us.

Sure, other summer movies have plenty of action and kicking/explosion stuffs to keep moviegoers entertained but once in a while, why not let our brain do some thinking and our heart do some feeling by watching this movie. After all, the movie does explore the possibility despite the unlikeliness. But if you still after some action stuffs, there are some rather gory scenes in the movie on how people kill themselves, which may satisfy your appetite. I mean, if that's the kind of thing you like to see - workers dropping themselves off a building or a man inviting himself to be the lunch to a bunch of hungry tigers.

Finally, if you are a fan of The X-Files, here's a movie poster for you. The movie is due to be released soon. I shall reserve my thoughts on how the movie would fair and be accepted. But all I can say right now is that I've had enough of aliens already.

Out of the norm..Of life and its up's and down's

2008-06-28T02:00:00.009+08:00

So some say I'm rather different and weird - if that is so, then why do I feel like I'm so..... ordinary? .... and I feel like I need to break out of this norm, break away from this commonness, this.... comfort, stagnant and mundane life. Yes, being a family man and having Ikhwan around have tremendously enriched my life, but I'm talking about personal achievement and satisfaction here....

I obviously need some thinking to do. Hmmmm.... talk about thinking, just recently two people said in one day, that I think too much. I sure heard such a comment thrown at me before. If only I could be as impulsive - doing whatever I want to do, like.... errr... Matt.

Several routes have been laid, and more, may probably be laid upon us (me and wife). Ya Allah, show us the best paths that we should take, and please, please do ease up our journey as we thread on them, Aaamiinnnn......

Guess this blog is called Boulevard-Ijab for a reason huh?

Movies that I (and possibly wife too) can relate to right now - Ratatouille and Surf's Up. Ok, I know, both are cartoons - but heck, I'm young at heart remember.... or should I say, I'm a big boy ? :-)

I wonder.......? Part 2

2008-06-10T01:29:00.008+08:00

ON MENTALITY OF SOME PEOPLE

Case 1

When I was at the hospital the other day, attending to Ikhwan who had been sick, I stumbled upon an old friend whom I have not met since like, more than a decade ago. She shared with me a story about a little problem she's facing at her work place. Apparently she had brushed against an office boy the wrong way when she first joined the company some six years back.

From then on, this office boy holds a certain grudge on her. To this day, he still intimidates and taunts her (I'm not really at liberty to elaborate how), talks bad about her behind her back (he has a favourite pal to do this with), including to people who have nothing to do with either one of them, like the security guards for example. Intially, she thought that after these many years, the guy would just back off and each one could mind own business, but apparently she was mistaken. It really stresses her out sometimes, to the extent that she gets carried away, and becomes all moody and temperamental at home. Reporting to her superiors didn't seem to help. In fact she felt that the company took his side. She said, with her qualification background and job position, she really deserves to be respected and not treated this way...

Here's my advice to you sis - get the hell out of there! Quickly....

I'm sure his mindet and IQ are so low, that he still contemplates on a trivial matter that happened between you two. Obviously, you are so much better than him. For example, you did help bring in money for the company before, didn't you? This shows you worth more than him. The amount may not be in millions of ringgit, but compare that to him.... he's just an office boy, a servant, who brings in letters for other people. You may put in a pile of s*it into your letter envelopes, he'd still send them for you (knowing so or not). Now, do you see how pathetic this guy is...?

I am ashamed to call him a man. His mouth sure is a c**t...

This may sound condescending, but I'm just trying to boost your spirit up ok! What I'm trying to say is that, this world is soooo big than just the two of you. There are other better and wonderful things that you can explore out there, than to be cooped up with this piece of trash.

Case 2

I really don't get it, why is it for some, after resigning, they'd still come the 'old' office for occasional visits? If it were me, I wouldn't 'plaster' my face all over the office again, as though I were some kind of celebrity who had to go back to my roots to see how other people are doing. I mean, even if meetings with ex-colleagues were unavoidable, I would surely avoid coming back to the old office, at least not during working hours. There's always an option to meet up outside instead.

This is not to be mistaken as, say, after resigning from a company, they joined back the same company. I know of some people, including a couple of blogger friends, who did so. That's a completely different scenario which is perfectly fine by me, in my opinion.... coz, surely you can't work at the old office, unless you ARE back at that office now, can you?

ON ROAD SAFETY

Why is it that some people go all the way in modifying their cars' headlights and signal lights without paying attention to safety and other road users? I mean, using white bulbs as headlights can be really annoying to the eyes since they are more glaring. Meantime, other people may fail to realise when you give your signal since the lights are in red colour (this is the reason why they shouldn't be in the same colour as the brake lights). Guess, to these people, yellow is not their thing... but how about safety? Hello????

You can read I wonder.......? Part 1 here.

Overwhelmed....

2008-06-02T01:21:00.004+08:00

It was an early Sunday morning and the time was 1.15am. Earlier that night, my wife brought Ikhwan into our room around 9pm. At first, since the door was open, I could hear from inside our room, how Ikhwan was still mumbling instead of going straight to sleep. Then, not long after that, all was quiet, implying that both mother and son were already deep in their sweet dreams :-)

I wasn't sure what time I had fallen asleep in the living room, and with the t.v. still on. But when I woke up at 1.15am, there he was, sleeping next to me. Surprised, I quickly turned off the t.v. so that I could bring him back inside immediately (since both of us were sleeping on the carpet). He was awaken by my action, and after that, he did his usual before-and-after-sleeping-whenever-there's-someone-next-to-him cheeky routine, i.e. by rolling himself to the left and right and back again and again (this is one of his many other cheeky behaviours).

My wife didn't realise when Ikhwan crawled out of the mattress to get to me. If only we could ask him whether he was purposely looking for me or he was actually sleep walking (or rather, sleep crawling).

"Rasa terharu tak, Ikhwan cari Abang tengah-tengah malam?", my wife asked (Are you touched, that Ikhwan was looking for you in the middle of the night?).

Actually, I was more surprised than overwhelmed when I saw him sleeping there, right next to me. But, now that she had pointed it out, yeah, it WAS rather overwhelming...

P/S: Latest news from hometown about Sky, the cutest cat alive - he is recovering.....
PP/S: Up next, what to expect and not to expect from the latest Indiana Jones movie?

Solemn....

2008-05-22T17:31:00.000+08:00

We'll be going back hometown tomorrow for a relative's wedding which happens this weekend. It's been about a month since we last went back, and Ikhwan's four grannies can't wait to see him and miss him so much.

I learn from parents that our beloved cat, Sky has been sick for about a week now. He's 13 years old, and that is considered quite an old age (not to forget, wise) for cats. We love Sky very much. I..... love Sky very much. It's just that lately, I hadn't been able to spend as much time with him whenever I was in hometown - being a family man and all... Sky is such a unique cat - his characters can't be found in any other cats I've known and seen. I hope he'll recover fully soon enough.

I remember the first cat my sister and I owned. His name was Nit. The day he died, I was crying my eyes out. I was 12 years old at that time, if I'm not mistaken and that day marked the first day I started having a diary. Now, I no longer write, as in by hand, in a diary anymore. This blog is more or less a diary of mine too...

Meantime, David Cook wins the American Idol - a difference of 12 million votes between him and the 2nd place winner, David Archuleta.... way to go Cook!!!