A day for reflection

Its 8 am in the morning on Merdeka day. The TV is blaring away on the Merdeka celebrations that is going on in KL. Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka! My wife is oblivious to it all, busy potting away somewhere around the house while my children are still in bed, I presume or busy playing games on the computer.
As I sit by the poolside relfecting on the life that has been, can't help thinking how life has its twist and its turn. I have had my ups and my downs. Sometimes I feel as if the whole world is at my feet. I'm on top of it, with nothing to worry about and no problems that cannot be solved. Everything is on the go.
But there have been times when I feel down in the doldrums. Nothing seems to be going right and life is but a constant struggle.
God is great. Life can be easy sometime. It can also be difficult but life is never boring. Its a combination of the mind, the physical, the spiritual, the strength, the emotions, the feelings, the thoughts, the anger, the happiness, the ..............
Life is all that and more. It is never a no brainer.

The day after

After the excitement of the past three days, its reality check once again. The carnival is over. Everybody has gone back to where they came from. Permatang Pauh can once again return to normal.
As for me, its back to KL and to the daily realities of life. The air condition in my room is still not working properly. Got to call the repairman. My new car is somewhere! Don't know when I can collect it. The monthly telephone, electricity, water, Astro, Celcom and Internet bills has long been outstanding. Need to pay the moment I reached KL or I will be cut off. Then there's the monthly payment for the cars, house, credit cards, petrol, touch and go card..... the list goes on and on. Its endless!
How I wish the carnival can go on forever!

What a night to end the day!

They came in the thousands. Young, old, big, small, fat, thin, tall, short. Different they may be but they all had one thing in common. They came to celebrate the result. Never mind the result was not known yet but in their mind, they have only one winner.
When it came the roar was ear splitting. Fireworks appeared out of nowhere. The sound of drum beat the air. Joy were seen on all of their faces. What a way to end to the day.

Day of reckoning in Permatang Pauh

Driving through Permatang Pauh was like driving through a sea of flags, posters, buntings, makeshift stalls by the roadside, tables, chairs, cars and vans blaring away, people and whatever have you. Yes, its was a carnival allright! Day or night, it made no difference!
Dropped by a food stall to catch some breadth after going through the traffic jam. What! In Permatang Pauh. Yes, in Permatang Pauh.
My guess is half the people in Permatang Pauh at the moment is not a resident. Politicians, campaigners, journalists, self appointed reporters, visitors, party workers, helpers, friends, relatives, they were all here.
The day has finally come. Its decision time for the folks of Permatang Pauh. And it can have far reaching consequence beyond what they can ever imagine.

Could this be the day that started it all?

Left for Permatang Pauh monday morning, the day after Hakimi's graduation. Not one to miss the excitement of the by election that is going on there. Mind you, this is not just any by election. This is the MOTHER of all by elections.
Need to be there to witness it first hand! See the action, taste the excitement, feel the buzz, soak in the atmosphere. Could be a historical day in the making!

A day to be proud of

24th August 2008. That's the date when Hakimi's finally receives his scroll. A degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Uniten. The whole family was there to join in the celebration. Reminded me of my own graduation day years ago in Surrey, England. Come to think of it, I have gone through graduation day three times already. One in UK, one in US and one in Malaysia. Not bad for a small town boy call Selama.

Yes, I'm on holi 'day'

I've only taken 10 days off so far this year. Starting tomorrow, I'm about to change that. Yes, I'm going on holiday and its going to be 5 days leave. Plus the weekend, it will mean seven days away from the office!

What a nice break! or at least I think it will be a nice break. No special plan but I'm determine to enjoy the break. Most probably it will be just lazing around the house. A short trip somewhere in between is also in the offing.

The day finally comes...at least half of it!

The Car
After a long wait, the NEO Satria finally is in my hands or in my son's hand to be exact. Seems like the car was waiting for its rightful owner to be back before it finally decides to turn up.
Hanafi is back for the one week mid term holiday. Just at the same time, the car was ready to be picked up from the dealer. What a nice coincidence! Now there's only one left. Insha Allah, next week it will come.

Eating out
Discovered a nice place for eating out in Sg Buloh. It is situated about 3 km after turning right at the traffic light in Sg Plong. The place offers a combination of barbQ and steamboat. Can't quite remember the name but it's open air. On most weekends it is full therefore you have to be early or you will be disapointed.
There might be other places offering this kind of combination but personally I have not seen one except for this.

A different day

I woke up a feeling excited. A feeling of eager anticipation feels the air! After all, today it is going to be different. Instead of the usual drive to the office, this morning I'II be taking a different route to a different destination. I'm going to the Malaysian nuclear energy set up somewhere near Dengkil.

Never thought there is such a thing in Malaysia. I have heard of some nuclear activities in the country before but never put much thought into it. I thought Malaysia must be some light years away from anything to do with nuclear.

What awaited me was definitely a surprise. Along the way to the destination, I passed through two office complexes that houses activities related to nuclear. Wonder what they do there?

My knowledge on nuclear only relates to weapons and power. Malaysia don't have nuclear weapons. Malaysia don't have a nuclear power plant. So what do they do there?

I remember the days (1)

My father never had enough money. In my primary school days, I was always the last in the class to have all my textbooks as my father could not afford to buy all at one go. The school fees was another. I was always the last to pay.
Nevertheless, if there's one thing that he paid serious attention to, then it is education. He will never compromise on education. To him, education is the passport to a better future. Education is one thing that he will make sure all his children gets, no matter how difficult it is.
He always reminded us children, I cannot give you money but I will make sure you get education.
Off course, when I was young, I couldn't understand his obsession with education. I cannot understand why he wouldn't let me go for a swim at the old mining pool nearby, play football all day long at the small field near the house or go roaming around the kampong with my friends. I envy my friends. They were free to do what they wanted but me, I had to get permission and more likely than not, the answer would be no!
He would scrutinised my school books, asked me about my homework and checked my test results every now and then. A red mark would mean instant question and answer session. Although he never raised a hand on me, his stare is enough to scare the shit out of me.
But it did had the effect of making my marks always on the high side. I never like it then and always wish he would not be so hard on me.
But then as I get older, I begin to understand. Now I am grateful for what he had done! I owe a lot to him, to say the least.
He might not be around anymore but his legacy has a lasting effect on me. I am practising it on my children.

Finally, the day is near .......

Cars
I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Everything is clearer now. Yesterday, I viewed the car (NEO Satria) after a long, long wait. Paid the down payment, will sign the agreement today and viola! the car should be mine within days!

As for the other car, the process is ongoing already. I have chosen the colour, the car is in the workshop and Insha Allah, by the end of the month, latest, I'II be driving it.

Sick
Suddenly I'm feeling sick. My body is aching all over and the mind feels tired and unable to focus. Since moving to the new office in Bangsar, I've fallen sick a number of times. Must be the temperature in the office. Damm cold..... feels like I'm in winterland!

Ramadan
Ramadan is just round the corner. Its the time once again to take stock of myself, what have I done or have become since the last Ramadan. Have I improved, changed for the better or remained stagnant. Worse still, have I gone on reverse? Sometimes you just don't know!

We are too busy living our temporary life in this temporary world that we tend to forget about the permanent life in the hereafter.

A day for weddings

It is not the school holidays yet but weddings seem to be the order of the day. Saturday my wife and I attended one. Sunday there was another. Along the way, we noticed many more weddings. Must be the fasting month that is coming soon!

In KL for the day

While waiting for a meeting to begin, I took some photographs of KL from the top. The top was actually the 10th floor of a building in KL Maju Junction area.

KL with all the buildings, its a concrete jungle allright. Can't help feeling how different it is from Sungai Buloh, yet its only 40 minutes away by car.

Engagement day

Saturday 2nd August was at my sister's place in Subang Jaya to witness the engagement of my niece. An occasion to be rejoiced. The groom to be is from Perlis.
Wishing her all the best till wedding day and forever.


Was supposed to test drive the Mercedes later in the day but was informed at the last moment the car is not ready. What a letdown!

I remember the days

Living and working in KL nowadays is such a contrast to living in Selama Perak in my early years. Life then was simple. We don't own any form of tranport save for the bicycles, no TV, no air condition, no telephone, no handphone, no computers, no washing machine and no..... in other words whatever we consider as necessary now was just unheard of then. The house itself was a small two rooms house.

School was about a mile away. It was made up of just two blocks of one storey building. One block houses the classrooms, six in all if I remember correctly while the other smaller block houses the office. Every morning, I would walk to school about a mile away from the family house. In standard four, I was given an old bicycle which used to be my brother's. From then on, this bicycle would be my faithful companion, be it going to school or anywhere else.

My father rented a small space in a restaurant in Selama town. This would be his office where he would be earning his living by servicing the kampong folks helping them to write simple letters, deals with the district office, fill forms, make queries etc.

Life was simple. There was always enough food on the table although I don't think he ever earned enough. I don't remember father had any saving. Whatever earned was spent right away in order to keep the family going. Nevertheless, life was still fun.

Mother was the one who took care of us while father goes to work. She was caring, very understanding and a loving mother. There's nothing more we could have asked of her. She carried out her task very well, always there when we needed her.