Ikhwan and his toys - I hope Ikhwan will always remember his Thomas & Friends toy collections
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 yashfrom). 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...
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?"
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...
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...
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 hookedby 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.
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 areSad 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...
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.
- 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 Oxford Dictionary says "boulevard" means wide city street, often with trees on each side. As for me, "boulevard" is the path that I thread my way through in life. At times, the trees give me protection from the hot sun above. While at other times, no amount of trees can comfort me when it pours. Come rain or shine, the road continues to provide me with the journey of life until it reaches its destination.
People say I'm sweet, kind, a gentleman, caring, romantic and observant (let's just concentrate on the good attributes). I love those who matter to me, and care about things that count. I'm a Malay Muslim and proud to be one. I DON'T think Islam should be judged by those nasty followers. Islam should be judged by the religion itself; its teachings and the purpose behind them. I mean, humans will still behave like humans right? Usually, regardless of religions that they embrace. It is also in my nature to please, since I believe that TO PLEASE EVERYONE IS AN IMPOSSIBLE FEAT, BUT NOT TRYING TO PLEASE ANYONE OTHER THAN ONESELF IS A POSSIBLE DEFEAT (own quote). Apart from sharing the things I read, watch and listen to, I'd also share my thoughts and feelings, and express my views on certain issues. Last by no means least, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM EVERYONE OF YOU OUT THERE ABOUT ANYTHING! If we knew each other 'in the previous life' and had lost contact, or we hardly contact each other nowadays, do email me or comment on my entries. Feel free to explore my blog & website (http://members.fortunecity.com/abdunmy/). Cheerio & Wassalam.
Sometimes, to boldly go (where no one has gone before) at warp speed may cause you unnecessary troubles.
Own quote, based on Star Trek
Lesson from the quote: Rushing to reach your destinations or goals may get you there fast, but may not always be the smartest thing to do!
"Note The Quote (Malay translation)"
Kadang kala, perjalanan (ke tempat yang tidak pernah ditujui) pada kelajuan maksimum boleh menyebabkan kesusahan pada diri sendiri.
Rekaan sendiri, berdasarkan dari Star Trek
Pengajaran: Terburu-buru untuk sampai ke destinasi atau matlamat hidup mungkin boleh membawa kita ke sana dengan cepat, tetapi langkah itu tidak semestinya yang terbaik!
You have to find something that you love enough to be able to take risks, jump over the hurdles and break through the brick walls that are always going to be placed in front of you. If you don't have that kind of feeling for what it is you are doing, you'll stop at the first giant hurdle.
George Lucas (Film Director and Producer)
"Favourite Note The Quote 2"
A sign in a mosque on the need to switch off handphones:
P/S: Email me if you wish to receive a "Weekly Note The Quote" newsletter, a compilation of quotations that appear here in this column or in any of my blog entries within a particular week. Please put Note The Quote in your email subject. TQ.
If you have a specific field/term to search on Islam, you can also enter your search item(s) at Islamic Web Directory, available at the bottom of an entry entitled Proofs. For your convenience in accessing the Directory, Proofs is available in "Other own (cool) stuffs" column. Thank you.
Penguin Rush
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....
