Time to go

When the time comes, you have to go. It happened to Pak Abu today, it will happen to everybody in the picture. All the best to him.

Having a cuppa

Bumped into a friend after Friday prayer. Had a short chit chat at the stall in front of the mosque.

The house in Seremban

The house in Seremban

Its empty now as the previous tenant has left. Taking a rest after arriving from KL. Unfortunately can't even lie down without the kids running all over me.

Four seasons?

The past few days it has been raining. That really helps to ease the heat that has been unrelenting. Now the days are a lot cooler but it seems that the haze is making its way back. Its not coming from Indonesia now but locally. Hmmm….When will it all end. We don't get four seasons in Malaysia but we do get different kind of seasons. Haze, rain, hot, cool, warm, dry.  

The pain is unbearable

When I'm sick, I dare not take medicine because most of the tablets contain Pharmaceutimol. I don't know what it is but when I take it, it will cause my head to have a very bad migraine. The pain becomes unbearable. It will keep pounding my head until the effect wears off. Usually it will last a few days. The problem with it is that the cure for it keeps changing. At one time I took water that has been mixed with 'assam jawa'. That worked but only for that time. Pain killer drug didn't work before but the last time I had the migraine, it worked. I even tried putting ice to my head to kill the pain but it didn't work. That's why I am really scared of taking medicine that contain pharmaceutimol.

In Seremban over the weekend

Went to Seremban over the weekend to have a look at our house. The tenant did a good job. He left the house intact and clean. We wanted to stay at the house overnight but decided its better at a hotel as the house was empty. Furthermore, it was hot even with the fan on. At the moment, we will leave the house as it is until my position is clear. What I mean is whether I continue working or stop. That will be known sometime in June I hope. Then We have to decide. To rent or not to rent or to stay in Seremban or not. Its quite a nice place actually. The area is near to most things convenient like the petrol station, supermarkets, shops, restaurants etc. 

It was fun

Lucky thing the kids came after the game was over. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to concentrate what with Akid and Maisarah running all over the place. They were uncontrollable. They had a good time anyway. By the time I reached home last night, it was almost midnight. I had the misfortune of taking the wrong road going home. Instead of going through DUKE, I ended up on the MRR 11. I had to make a U turn at Sri Gombak to go back to DUKE and finally back home. That cost a few minutes of traveling time. Was damn tired after the excursion last night but it was fun. Once a year thing.

Bowling time

Was at the bowling alley in One Utama last night for the company yearly bowling tournament. Surprisingly, played my best game ever. At one time I was on three strikes in a row. Never happened to me before. After all, I play bowling only once a year. Just goes to show there's still room for improvement, even at sixty. Needless to say, I played my part to make the group I was in champion. Brought back a stand fan, very convenient these days in the sweltering heat.

Hot

The heat shows no sign of relenting. Last night was especially terrible. I had the air condition, a fan and an air cooler on in the living room. Still, I can feel the heat. It gets cool early in the morning but before that, its unbearable. Now they say it will be till June to be followed by La Nina, heavy rain that may cause flooding. Sigh……… It couldn't get any worse! 

Can go far

Been following Liverpool ever since Klopp was made the manager. I notice that the transformation was almost immediate but they had problem with consistency. One game they were playing like champion while in another game, they were struggling like minnows. I guess they need getting use to playing the way Klopp once them to play. However, lately, they have found a bit if consistency. After the great comeback against Dortmund that had everybody jumping out of their seats, they have now gone on to win two straight matches in the league. That says a lot about their status now. I think this team is in for an interesting and fruitful journey, as long as their manager remains.

Relax….

one month

Stumble

I'm having a confidence crisis with my recitation of the Quran while being the imam in a congregation. Versers that I can recite without any problem becomes a liability when reciting as the imam. It just disappear from my head, causing me to stumble. It gets so bad that it happens almost every time I am in front. Don't know how I can overcome this. After about a year, I still get nervous whenever I am leading the prayer. Not only that, its worse than before. Thought at one time I had overcome it but at this very moment, I am in my worse period. That's the reason I stumble I guess. Maybe I need a break. 

What else?

Yesterday was very hot. The weather was unrelenting even at night. To make it worse, there was no electricity last night for about half an hour from 11.30 to midnight. That compounded the effect. I was unable to sleep. I was also worried about Munirah. Alhamdulillah, it came back after half an hour. We were already contemplating about what we can do if there is no electricity till morning. 

Yesterday the papers busy reporting on the next phenomena after El Nino. This time it is La Nina, the opposite of El Nino. La Nina will bring rain but too much of it such that it will cause flooding. It will happen in October so they say. Hmm…… I wonder what else will come next? 

Mind boggling

So soon, the weekend is over. Saturday went just like that. It was spent mainly in the house with Munirah requiring much attention. On Sunday I went for my usual jog at Lake Titiwangsa. Then, so soon, it was already nighttime. Time for the talk at the surau. Came back, watch the tennis and football matches being shown live on TV. However, the one I was waiting for was Barcelona. How could a team that was the best in the world suddenly is now in crisis. A team that was winning at will suddenly  stop winning, losing three of their four last games, the other one a draw. Knocked out of the Champions league in the process. Surrendering their nine points cushion in the La Liga. Its mind boggling.

If Allah wills, it will

Last night I gave my monthly talk at the surau. It was all right. I was quite satisfied with my performance and the response from the listeners. Not that there are many like the thousands who came to listen to Dr Zakir Naik but nonetheless, it is an honor for me to be given the chance to speak regularly at the surau even if I can count with my fingers the number of listeners. Alhamdulillah. All praise is to Allah. After all, I never anticipated that it would happened. I am almost sixty years old. Never have I given religious talks anywhere to anybody in my life. Suddenly, I am asked and given a monthly slot. That's is really something I never thought would happened but Allah is great. If Allah wills, it will.

These days

Ever since Munirah was born, I had to curb a few of my activities. I had to give a miss to two Futsal games on Friday night. I also had to give a miss praying at the surau a few times. With three small kids, its a bit difficult for the wife to cope sometime, especially Minurah as she is only a month's old. Maisarah, as said before, is also getting very cheeky and mischievous. Perhaps she finds it a bit strange with a new addition in the family She will get over it in sha Allah once she gets older. Now she is too small to know better. Its been over a month already with Munirah. She is coping well, what with the El Nino and all.

What a Match!

I was woken by the sound of Munirah crying at about 4.30am. After attending to her , I looked at my handphone to see the score of the match between Liverpool and Dortmund. It was 3-3, with just a few minutes left to play. Liverpool needed to score one more because if it stayed that way, Dortmund will go through to the next round. I turned on the TV to see the match. Then I looked at my handphone again, all within seconds. I couldn't believed my eyes. The score this time was 4-3 in Liverpool's favor. Wow! What a match. Pity I didn't get to see it. Too early in the morning. 

Getting out of hand

The continuing hot weather had us going to the shop to buy a portable air cond or an air cooler. Under normal circumstances, it is a no brainer but with the kids in tow, it becomes extra hard. Maisarah especially was getting out of hand. She was running all over the place, knocking things down in the process. Besides worrying about her safety, I was also worried she might break something that will punch a big hole in my pocket. 

Cheeky

 

Ever since her younger sister came into being, Maisarah has been getting very mischievous. She cannot sit still even for a second. At two years four months, she is really a handful these days. She will grow insha Allah and learn about life. As it is now, Akid at almost four years old is controllable. He  already has a sense of what is right and what is wrong, unlike Maisarah where everything is a game.

The kids

Give her a year and Munirah will be joining her brother and sister having fun.

Hmm...

The weather is still damn hot. I bought an air cooler for almost a thousand but after using it for a while, I don't think it is helping much. I wanted to buy a portable air condition unit but where to get rid of the hot air? The trickling water? That's why I decided against it. Now it looks like I might have made a mistake. That's not much I can do except to continue using the air cooler as best as I can. 

Its almost a month since Munirah was born. She is taking plenty of milk and growing up well. Akid is almost four years old. He can talk now and is well behave. However, the same cannot be said for Maisarah. She is hyperactive. She don't understand it when we reprimand her. She thinks we are playing a game. Anyway, she will grow up soon. After all, she is only two years and four months old.  

Mind boggling

The PAC report on the 1MDB only adds more questions to the fiasco. A lot of money went some where but are untraceable. A lot of things that happened don't make sense at all like how the Board was not aware of some of the transaction involving billions. What is the company's operating practices? Its mind boggling! These questions and a lot more need answers. Until we get the answers, the 1MDB saga is not going to end anytime soon. Its going to drag on for sometime yet!

My Saturday

These days, without the Touch and Go card, you will have a hard time driving around KL. It happened to me last Saturday. I was on my way to two wedding event and an Akikah celebrations but at the first toll gate, my card Smart card failed to work. I move to the T & G side after the cars behind gave me some space but again the card failed. There's no more money in the card I thought. Lucky thing the person behind me was generous enough to let me through using his card. I thought that was the end of the problem until I realized that on most highways in KL, there's no more paying the toll by cash. I need to have a card to get through, otherwise I will be caught with the same problem. At the next petrol station, I decided to put in 50 ringgit for the card but it failed. The card is somehow not functioning. That's when my problem really started. I had to find my back to the house using roads without toll. It took quite a while but I managed through Sentul and Gombak to get home. However, there goes my three invitations for the day.

Undone by the water

He was leading by five strokes at the turn but was undone by the water at the par three twelve on the home stretch. He hit the water twice, giving up four strokes in the process. He fought back courageously with two birdies in the next three holes but in the end, it was too much, even for him. He had to give up the title. That's the story of Jordan Spieth in the 2016 US masters. Leading from the first day and looked poised to retain the title going down the final stretch, he failed when it matters. I felt sorry for him but when you are playing against the best, one bad hole is enough to let somebody else sneak through. That person was Danny Willet.

Killing two birds with one stone

For the first time last night, after three weeks, Munirah had a bad night. What it means is that she didn't sleep well last night. What it also means is that I had to be awake as well to look after her but actually, it was not really bad. It was about 3.30 am. She was crying. The mother was already too tired to care for her. I had to take my turn. It went on till about 5am before she was sleeping soundly again. The Golf Master open in the US was showing live on TV. There was also the football match between Liverpool and Dortmund. I took the opportunity to see both of them which under normal circumstances, I wouldn't. Killing two birds with one stone as they say. 

Keeping healthy

In life, you can never tell what can happen next. A seemingly healthy person can suddenly suffer a stroke but a person who is fat and can't even walk a few metres without having breathing difficulties never suffered one. I jog with intermittent burst of speed whenever I can find the time during weekends.  I can hold my own in a futsal game with people less than half my age. My walking pace is faster than most people. Its a natural thing for me. Running up stairs three storey high is also not a problem for me. However, even with all of the above, it doesn't mean that I can stop worrying about my health. I must try my best to keep healthy by eating the right food, drinking correctly, sleeping well and exercising. The rest is up to Allah, the Almighty. 

Its Bakun now

Its been more than three years since I started working again. Its been great most of the time. I have enjoyed working, working my brain to the fullest. It keeps my body healthy and my brain active. Age has never been a factor although I will be sixty in July this year. I am still healthy alhamdulillah. I can still enjoy a game or two of futsal. I would love to continue working for another few more years but off course, that depends on my employer. No matter what, I have enjoyed my second coming, in terms of work I mean. I have learned many new things, met many new people. In working again, I went back to my roots, to when I first started working. That is back to Hydro power plants. It was Temengor back then, more than thirty years ago. Its Bakun now.

Which is me?

I remember some of the faces above but not all. We were small boys then, in primary school. Those days are gone. Only the memories are left. It puts a lump in my throat, my heart feels with emotion, my mind thinking about those days. That's life. You move on, like it or not.

The changing days

The sun comes in earlier these days. At seven in the morning, the sun is already up. Unlike earlier in the year, in January for instance, at seven in the morning, it is still dark. So, in a way, Malaysia has weather changes, or rather, not weather but darkness and brightness. The evening prayer is a bit earlier now, so are the other prayer times. In a few months, the time for the morning prayer will be about five thirty. At seven, the sun will be bright and sunny. Every year, we go through these changes. I noticed them because I go to work at seven in the morning, every time. At the beginning of the year, it is still dark. As the years moves on, at seven in the morning, it is brighter and brighter. It peak towards the middle of the year. Then it moves back till the end of the year when it gets dark again at seven. 

Old Classmates

I don't know where most of my friends from my primary school days are but the picture below was made possible through the Whatsup application. Only a few of us are in the group at the moment. The rest are still at large, their whereabouts unknown. From the few in the group, all of them are living away from Selama. Would be great if we can meet again someday. Most if not all are grandfathers and grandmothers already. Most are retired. We have all come a long way. I guess among us, I am the only one still bringing up children. Like I said, I am starting all over again. 

Primary school days

Standard 4 and 5 I think. My primary school in Selama Perak. Most of those in the pictures are not living in Selama anymore. Somehow that's how it is in this world. I for one have left Selama a long time ago. As soon as I finished primary school, my parents sent me to a secondary school in Taiping, about 45km away from Selama. Five years after that on completing secondary school, I left for England to further my studies. Again five years later, on coming back from England, my first posting as a salaried man was in Grik Perak. So, I effectively left Selama in 1969, almost fifty years ago.

No turning back

Most of my friends are retired. Their children are all grown up, married and living on their own. For them, the future is secured. There's no more mountains to climb. Its only living whatever is left of the life, perhaps travel every now and then, have lunch or dinner with friends, frequent the mosques, look after their grandchildren and maybe catch up on the reading until the inevitable day comes. I am at the same stage as well but for me, life has taken on a different turned. I am still working. I am still bringing up children. I still have mountains to climb. I am still thinking and plotting for the future. In other words, I am starting all over again. Its tough sometime but then life has to go on. There's no turning back. Yes, there's no turning back.

The heat is unbearable

The El Nino phenomena is still going strong. I felt it on Friday when going for Friday prayer. I felt it yesterday while in the house. Fortunately, when I'm in the office, the air condition is so strong that the El Nino is forgotten. Lunch places are all walking distance from my office so I don't feel it so much. On Friday, I venture out a bit further to go for Friday prayer. That's why I felt it. During weekends like today, I'm at home. That's also when I feel it. During prayers at the surau, I sweat. Even when its night time. This El Nino is really strong. Its unbearable at times. I read that air condition units are being sold like hotcakes. The shops are making a killing. At least some people are benefiting from it!

How to keep fit?

I felt really tired jogging yesterday. Its been months since I last jog due to various reasons. There's no excuse really if you want to be fit and healthy. Come what may, the exercise must continue but for me, a little discourse will keep me away from the jogging track. That's how it has been for so many years. There was a time when I jog thrice weekly. That was when I had enough time after work to go jogging. Nowadays, I go home after work a bit late in the day so there's no way I can go jogging. Its only on weekends but on weekends, I usually have so many things to do that I skip the jogging part. I ended up some time months without jogging. How to keep fit?