Red hot cili api meeting

...we walked away with more to think about. Like why some people would rather be on the defensive rather than listen to what the masses are saying? If we do not recognise the fact that there are real issues to be addressed, we'd never ever be able to solve the problems.Hence, no change.Hence, why bother to even discuss things?

I'm reflecting on my Kull meeting with the top management.Prof. Noraini presented Kull's status.Then Prez spoke.She menyampuk and Prez sportingly said ok..you wanna debate, let's do it.Wough! Like 1 million times! :) So we spoke.Mula2 Profs tu semua diam je cos' I think everyone was thinking wht's the point but as Prez encouraged us to speak up with Noraini bertalu2 questioning..haha bless this woman trained at Oxford...we started arguing to validate that hey, the arts deserves a fair budget too to grow..ni asyik2 favour medicine and engineering..mentelaah la two deputy rectors dari sinun.Haha...Dulu we had two rectors from our kull...takda la pulak depa nak lempor million2 kat kita..cos' I suspect they had to be seen as fair leaders dan tak biased. I was still sore about my younger colleagues being told to do their pgrad studies locally.Which was denied by the relevant office - depa kata they still send...sila kasi nama? Yang pergi tu cari sources lain..haiya...not only our dept complaining of this,dept lain juga.Bkn kita pandang rendah local grads but if they had done their studies here, kasi chan la depa menimba pengalaman luar..see how things are done..face the challenges abroad, build the networks to bring home...

Anyway, kita tengoklah.Prez sokong apa I cakap.We'll encourage the young ones to go to the best uni. outside Msia. But I think it was a good discussion.At least we'd get our Endnotes..:))

Ma'thurat 32

"O Allah, I seek refuge in You from anxiety and grief, and I seek refuge in You from weakness and indolence, and I seek refuge in You from cowardice and miserliness and I seek refuge in You from the burden of debts and the oppression of men."

Woohoo..oppression of men...Men..panic not.The Malay translation is "penindasan manusia." :) But let me chip in manusia yang byk menindas adalah men. :)) Most of the nations have male leaders, kan? And many things do not go right in the world now, kan?

Anyway, IWFF soft launch video clip was played again by Dato Sri Rector at the uni's monthly assembly so about 3000 more people know of IWFF.The pressure builds on! But my shariah team (Islamic scholars and a couple from HS/Humanities) and I had a very fruitful discussion and the shariah compliant framework telah menjadi sangat2 comprehensive and highly intellectual.Kita pun tak sangka but as I had raised before...this Fest has a life of its own.We are mere players.Takbir! Mart is preparing the rules and regulations. Dato is looking at the legal needs of the partnership and if all goes well, we'll roll in a bit.May Allah make it easy for us.Ini BUKAN kerja mudah.Ini macam seekor semut nak tolak satu kayu balak from Pahang to KL! Jalan kaki!

Ma'thurat 31

"I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from evil of what He has created"

Isn't that beautiful? Perfect words of Allah...evil He has created.Wough!

Anyway, you didn't know that at the IWFF soft launch my Rector announced a new Centre and named me as the Head/Director.Later I sms-ed her saying I could not do this now..not until IWFF is over (focus, babe.I need focus.This multitasking belief is a myth.Mana ada orang boleh buat kerja perfect when on multitasks) but am willing to assist with the making of the Centre and now I am having fun detailing/visioning what it should be like.The highest honour one could have in a life time.Takbir! :))

If it happens the way I envision it, folks...YOU gonna love me for it.If you pray for me that it will happen the way I dream it, I'm gonna love you for it.

My good friend Haji Zaidon is arriving 'home' today.He has not been home for decades! Kita dengar je ceritanya nanti.Nik and I will take him out on a dinner or something.

Ma'thurat 30

O Allah we seek refuge in You from associating with You anything that we know, and we seek Your forgiveness from associating anything that we do not know"

A bit tricky this one (itulah pentingnya kena faham bahasa arab!). If it helps, terjemahan melayu nya berbunyi:

"Ya Tuhanku, sesungguhnya kami berlindung dengan Engkau dari menyegutukan Engkau dgn sesuatu apa jua yang kami ketahui dan kami memohon dari Engkau terhadap kesalahan yang kami tidak mengetahuinya."

I need to check this one out with an Arabic speaking friend whose Islamic knowledge is also sound.Will beep back but I have a feeling the verse is to remind us NOT to liken Allah to anything we know or do not know (i.e. anything imagined). Ni kira mengenal sifat 20 Allah tu le yang kita mengaji kat kelas2 agama kita dulu.Wallahualam.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_x6KFTVjuw

Macam nilah dunia...

Nik and I were saddened by a piece of news on a close friend's fb wall.Dia dan isterinya telah bercerai.We attended their wedding reception in the USA and thought what a lovely couple they were.

I mcm biasa, cuba jadi orang tengah..kot2 mereka boleh kembali bersama.Yang lelaki cerita sebab musabab.Complicated sikitlah nak berbaik balik.Yang perempuan cuma ucap terima kasih di atas kata2 baik I.Susah kalau ada pihak ke tiga dan byk rasa rendah diri dlm salah seorang pasangan ni.Yang itu kena address dulu..perasaan rendah diri itu.Yang satu kena la cuba memahami

Tapi kalau pasangan kita terdedah kpd penyakit kelamin melalui pihak ketiga ni, baiklah tinggalkan.Cari yang bersih.

But it is still a sad thing for us to know.Allah lebih mengetahui.

Macam nilah dunia, part 2:

As I was sipping my hot milo at the kedai mamak, saw In Pursuit of Happiness movie.It was that part when the church choir was singing, "O  Lord, do not move the mountain...but give us strength to climb it...cos' you promised to meet us in the world of prayers..O Lord, do not move the mountain, give us strength to work around it."

Waaahhhh...cantik doa tu! :)) Mountain was translated as "rintangan" in the Malay subtitle.Betul juga yah? God would never put a mountain before us/on us, if it was not meant to test our faith in Him.Why ask for it to be moved away? Just pray for strength.Am I getting personal here? No...this is a general reminder for all.I thought that was a very positive doa.

Enjoy your day.Hari ni takda Ma'thurat sebab I kena food poisoning but the vomitting and diarrhea have eased up a lot, alhamdulillah(I loved the female doc at the clinic near my plc.Baik la dia.Kita boleh gelak2 lagi dlm keadaan I lembik longlai tu. Haha)

Macam nilah dunia, part 3:

Kalau Zul ada, he would accuse me of trying to save space. :) But I need to record a couple of things here.

Mamun dropped by to say hello (with wife and Latif). Ingat juga dia kat I.I mcm biasa, tak ingat (sgt memalukan..walhal dah puas makan minum dan naik small aircraft dgn dia and geng masa lawatan ke Dhaka dulu) I mcm biasa ingat dia dtg nakkan pertolongan of sorts. Terok, kan? Ni sebab kalau kat KL, gitu lah.Org dtg hanya bila nak benda.Walhal dia dtg cuma nak menyambung silrahturrahim.And we agreed to network with other alumni chapters.

Lepas tu Dr. Nora rang to say S dah meninggal semalam (our mutual colleague since Matric days.S was from Burma and was our neighbour for a long time in Subang Jaya..was the first to visit me after I lahirkan Zafirah..him and Najmi.Hi S, maafkan saya sebab tak sempat telefon sebelum nafas terakhir mu.Semoga dicucuri rahmah.Al fatihah.Dia meninggal di Burma.Bapanya dulu Menteri Kehakiman sebelum junta took over.Tapi S sgt la humble.Selalu org ingat dia jual roti canai).

His story is a sad story.Kasihnya dia terhadap the only child he had..yang kemudian byk memberinya kesedihan walaupun anaknya berjaya dari segi material.He would always carry her letter with him (placed next to his heart). Anak dia dah jadi rakyat NZ.Gaduh dgn bapaknya kes kawin dgn laki yang enggan masuk Islam.Maknya dah lama denounced Islam.Na'uzubillah.

Tapi masih belum terlambat utk kita doakan agar anak S ni pulang ke pangkal asal.I think satu hari dia akan menyesal but we hope dia akan jadi Muslim yang baik dan mendoakan ayahnya.

Ma'thurat 29

"In the name of Allah with Whose name nothing in the Earth or in the Heaven can cause harm; and He is the All-Hearing the All-Knowing."

Said in Arabic, this is a powerful doa/prayer (say it 3 times).Nothing can hurt if you do.
I recall the story of a wife (if I remember it correctly) who was hated so much by the husband (it had to be another woman, right?) that he wished to harm her.Tried to poison her, no go.Tried this, no go.Tried that, no go.I will not give you details of some of the stuffs he did on her (do not want to give ideas to readers..haha)

Her strength was just reciting bismillahirrohmanirroheemmm in every move that she makes..In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Most Compassionate.

Just connect this story to Ma'thurat no. 29 here in good and bad times, InsyaAllah you'd be fine from all harms (unless Allah wills it).

A close friend (much younger than me) is undergoing her chemo treatment..we were happy when she survived the ordeal a few years ago.And we'll pray she will too, this time.Dr. A is sangat tough.Semoga Allah bersamanya sentiasa.Like Dr Haslina with my CERDAS work, Dr. A was always with me when we were at the Alumni/Career Div. in giving her support during tough and trying times doing the impossible (and alhamdullilah, this woman of faith helped me pull through many hurdles together)

For that Ya Allah, tolonglah ringankan kesakitan dan dugaan sahabat saya ini.

Sunday, in the kitchen

Only God knows how long I had not done real cooking.

Today, while waiting to attend Azwadi's kenduri or teman Nik pi test drive his dream car, I decided to try Evan's broccoli soup (and had taught Bibik how to do Azra's honeyed roast chicken pineapple dish).Bibik was out of focus..I notice this for some time now.I asked if she fell in love with that Sepang guy (a married man).She didn't affirm or confirm.I hope not.She's such a good woman but 2 weeks ago she dreamt of a little baby..ustaz selalu kata kalau mimpi budak kecik esp if kita menyusukan dia, mimpi ular hitam, mimpi jatuh kat tempat kotor..itu petanda kita kena ilmu sihir.I really,really hope not.Bibik ni jujur but we never know what loneliness can do you.Sigh..I pray to God it's just some home worries that she's thinking of.I pun kena la sabar, kan? Tadi I dah jerit2, "What is wrong with you, Bibik?!" ~ cos' she tak salin betul2 recipe soup Evan as I read out to her.Lain I suruh letak, lain dia taruk.

But alhamdulillah, sempat I selamatkan.Kesian Bibik.I'll talk to her in a bit.
I'll share with you the recipe when I'm free.Evan pun merepek juga but I like the layers of taste as dia soup lapiskan perasa different sayor.Mcm kek lapis Sarawak. :))

Have a good weekend ~ what's left of it.

Part 2, Sunday, in the kitchen:

We were still talking about the IWFF soft launch at Azwadi's plc.According to Has, sebenarnya Zara yang launched the event.Guling2! I told them I actually saw that from my table.And told them how hati I berkata2 pasal pulak Zara ni yang tekan button computer tu sampai menyala semuanya?! Kah3.Zara said Tan Sri dah pressed but butang tu dok pause so she wanted to get it right by pressing, pressing. :))

Anyway, Munira saw the news on Hijrah.

More cerita behind the scene: perihal Mart tanya I if he was needed at the pc.I was told by Corp Comm, 3 org je needed so I told him tak perlu.But actually we needed him masa Q&A.After pc, Datuk tanya whr were you, M said I was shoving him with reps from the Embassies, suruh network. :)) Kelakar betul.

And I must record this: Datuk Othman Hafsham was the first Malay to do a degree in film studies in London.Dia pergi naik kapal.About 27 days baru sampai.His dad wanted him to do Political Sci but he said dia nak belajar filem.His dad asked: kau nak jadi P.Ramlee? Jika kau nak buat filem, aku tak support engkau.
And that's how he left for London.That was in the 1960s.

I think most artists in this country have a similar story.

Wedding no. 2

 the first table we were at before Jonson, bapa pengantin, told us our table was

elsewhere (kita dah siap 3-4 courses dah! The new table had a better view)

 this wedding was very inclusive.All the cousins performed

 another dance item by cousins

 I guess they were friends of the bride/groom.Some flew from NYC

and London (biasalah,kan?)

 Jon doing his Man Bai's "Kau Ilham Ku", later joined by his

cousins/siblings

 Jon doing an English number with his best man (his younger bro) and sister

 I liked this number.Jon and Aruna doing a variety of dance performances.Jon good at twisting

and breakdancing.They even did an inang! (and a Chinese dance)

 Band Filipino which I tak berapa gemor but they had nice vocals

and some songs were irresistible. :)

Dah start dah...here, doing the gangnam

Our second wedding during this sch holiday was held at a hotel downtown.An Indian Xtian one.Bising mcm concert.Reggae live band from Manila ke hapa.Bkn utk org tua mcm Nik and I!But the bride and groom were so comey and charming.I got interested when both took to the stage and danced! Lawak giler.Then the groom started to sing for his beautiful and bubbly wife.Dia pilih lagu melayu by Man Bai.The Filipino singer said, "Strangely, he chose a Malay song."
Amboi! Kalau Kak Pah ada, she'd say..lajaknya dia!  :)) Jon brought the whole crowd singing Man Bai.Sungguh 1Malaysia.The crowd was 90% Indian.When Jon and Aruna came to our table, I told Jon, "Your Man Bai song was great." Kita tunjuk thumbs up kita sama2.Comey.

I was told the soft launch was on TV Hijrah at the 8 pm news.I missed sebab sibuk berconcert kat the wedding. Lama2 kita semua started to geleng2, hanggok2.The music was irresistible.:))

IWFF 2013's soft launch

 The ladies who were responsible for the launch station

(habis bunga I kena gunting! Haha) Thank you Dr Riza (middle)

Zara (left) and Has (right)

 The setting before the arrival of guests (thanks Zurina and

Corp Comm team, headed by Dr Baha)

 My orang kuat Zul (who was still up at 4 am doing

final touchups with Jeff)

Thank you, Zul!

 Bunting by ZI Production (Thank you Jeff and Datuk!)

 MC (Thank you Dr. Aida)

 Backdrop

 IIUM's Rector, President and FDAM Prez, Datuk Othman Hafsham

 The film preview

 keluar, kot?

 There will be many more late nites after this

(this was taken one senja after IWFF work)

Ta-da..orang2 di belakang soft launch kita hari ini

Syukur alhamdulillah, the long awaited, much delayed soft launch of Islamic World Film Festival 2013 (IWFF 2013) was done today dengan penuh kesederhanaan but meriah.

Some pics (more will come later) There was a press conference (yours truly pun menyelit la juga,kan? Datuk Othman Hafsham was there as well.There were other big names tapi tak hafal nama mereka semua.Reps from the embassies pun ada, media..fulamak...(must be the combination of Corp Comm and Datuk ZI's networks..Datuk ZI brought another Datuk in charge of PC and the other Datuk Zul inilah yang jadi prompter-nya..who started and ended the pc..wough..meriah, OK?)

I must thank Aji Kitul for the initial collection of films.We did use some of these movies in our 12 mins preview of some of the best films by Muslim film makers.But the whole format has taken a different shape now (we have to abandon the key concept of the initial proposal - also done by the IIUM team. The festival now has a life of its own...it seems to go where we never foresaw it going.I guess setiap sesuatu itu ada takdirnya.We are mere players).I must thank alumnus Shamsul for his important role in connecting me with his good friend, Datuk ZI and Nik's close friend,Rohiman for his friend, Mart.I will not forget the earlier support from my FDAM friends Azrain,Syed,Jamil,Kamal and later En. Rahim.OK, ini bukan lagi Malam Anugerah yah? I should not go I wish to thank my mother, my aruah father, etc etc...Kerja byk lagi nak buat nih!

The media were wonderful at pc.Al Hijrah, Awani, Bernama, Utusan, Kuwait News, were all there.Al Jazeera will come later (dah janji)

It is really hard work from now on.We had promised many things at the pc.Time to deliver now.Please make your doa.This is just not for IIUM but for Msia, SEAsia and the ummah.May God make it easy for us.

Ma'thurat 28

"Glory be to Allah, and all praise is due to Him as much as the number of His creation, and as much as befits Himself, and as much as the weight of His throne, and as much as the ink needed to record His words"


Too many meetings this month.There was one in the morning which I was not aware of! I joined a bit later and it was nice buat kecoh with the rest of the Kull Profs. :)) We came out with more tasks...the trick is, said Prof Moten, is not to open your (loud) mouth.I said => I learnt it from you.Ahaks.But I think we'd have a good system going if what we'd proposed to do is delivered.I'd be working on something which I would enjoy doing.The trick is when you wanna open your loud mouth, make sure you say something which will work well with you. :)

The clan's (my side) going to Spore this weekend.I have to stay back for my social events: weddings, launches, kenduris.

Record breaking!

I had never worked so hard and so late like tonight.Just got home from a meeting (Great Eastern Mall -- there would always be a new face at every meeting.Kali ni Datuk's brother.I think we were all on the same page, alhamdulillah)

We got a lot more done this evening.Mart just got back from Cambodia, flu and all.Jeff took the cake, rushing from Putrajaya, all committed.I love working with this group.I have never seen so much enthusiasm,commitment, selflessness.Semoga terus mendapat petunjuk Allah dan diberi bimbingan.

Nik should be home tomorrow.Rang me up about NEET...Not in Education, Employment or Training.Zul was just talking about it earlier so I had a nice discussion on this.It can be a worrying trend if it ain't productive or contributive to the society.

Sambung bsk.

Ma'thurat 27

"I am pleased with Allah as my Lord, and with Islam as my religion, and with Muhammad as Apostle and Messenger of Allah"

Official chauffeur of the day

I guess it was my last stint for this week..playing host to friends from abroad.I guess Dipika is the last to leave. She's such a joy to be with.Her debut novel Thunder Demons is impressive.I could relate to it.Non-pretentious indeed.But I haven't really read cover to cover.What little I saw/read was good. A well-researched novel.Reminds me of Suchen Lim's work.

We then (Quayum, Dipika and I) lunched at Kak Leha's restaurant.Quayum belanja.Weiii..syukur di atas rezeki but both Dipika and I agreed we over-ate (the spread was superb).The talk was most useful (on writing to be published). On my way driving her home, we decided to stop at the Curve to shop. :) But I left early. Penat meeting after meeting after meeting. My fav hair salon and my spa centre habis tutup.I do not know for good or for renovation (I was told the hair salon's closedown would be temporary and the spa centre next door might be so too.I hope! My package money masih beratus2 ringgit lagi tak pakai).Business can't be that bad but lots of shops have shut down.

Ma'thurat 26

"O My Lord, all praise is due to You as befits the majesty of your countenance and greatness of Your power."


In between entertaining guests and meetings.The D-day is Friday.Watch this space.

Ma'thurat 25

"O Allah, whatever grace I get in the morning (or afternoon), or any of your creatures gets, it is from You alone.There is no partner with You.All praise is due to You and You alone is gratitude due."

What a week that was! In between the joy of seeing old friends again and the ugly pictures of war/genocide of the Palestinians, I guess I should be thankful to Allah that I do get the opportunity to try refine my being.Whatever it means lah, kan? What is important is that we get or try to be better as a person each day.

In case you guys have not donated for the Gaza cause, Viva Palestina Malaysia's Maybank account is 5643 2460 1324

Don't even think of packing your kain2 baju buruk/selimut2 busuk (kita org Malaysia suka buat kerja macam ni..bila ada call for disaster areas, mula la kasi baju2 buruk sebab nak spring clean our home.Orang MERCY kata kadang2 dapat seluar dalam koyak lah.Tak senonoh!)  cos' it's easier to send money to them (they will get their stuffs from negara2 jiran..tak boleh sebut yang mana di sini..nanti kena serang oleh Israel jahanam)

Remember to give generously.Zaman Rasulullah dulu, people bergolok gadai to kembangkan syiar Islam sampai mati pun papa.

KL Art Scene

 Kimball talking to the audience at Sutra

 He plays for friends, salon style

 

 Local talent, Mano Maniam doing a Salleh ben Junid (I think)

I arrived midway

 Satay Station near the Istana Budaya sedap gila

 

It can be pretty interesting, actually if the community is all wired.

We were at Kimball's performance at Sutra.We arrived like 30 mins late, missing some of the best stunts by local artists.Mano Maniam was doing his bit, diiringi muzik piano K.
The last number by K was electrifying but very intense in parts.Bkn music tapi bising.But when he moved to a gentler and more lyrical pieces..haiyooo..mcm Richard Clydermanlah pulak.

Met Dipika and other musicians/artists termasuk Sabeera. A new friend Syahidah wanted to invite me to her event next week.A glass-maker from the UK ke stg nak dtg.Tak silap I lah, she said a glass-maker.Ahaks.

Pics from this evening's do will be posted later.

Old friends

good friends from NZ days (30 years down the road)

 group pic with students and colleagues

Dinner with Jai at Marche

 It's not cheap, OK Phil?

 The Kiwi CFO doing his bit to promote NZ

eating nasi lemak Mok Ku yang sgt sedap

Spent all day with guest speaker Philip and dined out with him and Jai.Nik could not join us. Again, cerita hantu.Jai was such a good storyteller.P and I kaki menjeritnya. :))

But it was indeed a lovely time getting together after almost 30 years.P's talk was well-received.For a stock exchange man, he has a great sense of humour and the students asked many good questions.

Will post pics later.Long day for me. But recharged. :)

Weddings

 With Puan Zaiton of DBP

  We were the runners-up (of the self-proclaimed best couple award)

The Couple of the Year Award went to Datuk and Datin!

 friends meeting friends

 nope, she didn't sing

 Dato' Hattan sang,

right infront of my table

The baby of the group

It's that time of the year.Our first was a while ago.I loved the wedding concept...open space, informal.Many familiar faces.Food was great.

Byk media people/artists but since I don't watch much TV, I didn't really know who they were except the old ones like Dato' Hattan and Dato' Siti Nurhaliza and hubby Datuk K.

Salon culture in KL

 the art gallery

 Kimball before a painting at the dining area

 part of the gorgeous garden

 mangkok nasi mcm mak's

 the airy dining overlooking the stage and pond

 Ramli suka sangat daun layu ni (for its colour)

 I was mesmerised by these payung raja lama

two artists in conversation at lunch

Was all afternoon with guest pianist Kimball Gallagher.Nik was kind enough to pick him up from LCCT ngok.Amin could not find anyone as everyone's busy preparing the location at ISTAC.

From there we dropped him off at Ramli's plc.Ramli, being the gracious person he was, invited us over for a simple lunch.Except it was not simple at all.Rumah Ramli ni mcm Sutra juga but Ramli said you are like any other mat salleh...everything looks the same for you.Kamaria is not, he insisted.Ahaks.I guess not as I did the home tour.It's like a boutique hotel.In Bali.He did his own landscape.Rumah mak dia which he renovated after she passed away.I'll post some pics after the wedding mlm ni or bsk if I get too lazy to do it.

Ramli ni lawak gila.I love his story about him keeping safe his mom's jewelleries.Then his two sisters went to him after some years ke hapa and said, OK now Ramli...where is it? We have looked everywhere...(I just had to laugh out loud as he told us the story).Pinggan mangkok makan dia (inherited from the mom) reminded me of mak's old as well.So exotic.So precious.

Lepas tu kita cerita pasal pythons..Rosli found a baby python on Anna's bed at Rumah University a day before she arrived and checked in.Rosli punya bagus told her about it that Anna would check the room inside out every time she retired to her room.But she said she was more afraid of the monkeys than the python.

Then Ramli cerita pasal python in his oven when he was living in Sg. Pencala.A 12 feet one.I just went yikes! Lepas tu drove over to ISTAC.Kimball spoke on his music and the salon culture he often promoted.That's how it began, anyway.I'll write more later. Gotta be ready for the wedding.

Maal Hijrah

The surau had a special solat hajat and also maal hijrah talk.Not that good but the gist was not so bad.Basically Hijrah means berkorban.Berkorban everything for Allah.Ustaz said to maafkan everyone and that to doa tingkatkan iman kita semua.

The rambutans served were good. That made my new year meaningful.

Selamat tahun baru Hijrah, everyone. Let's hope we can do more good this year.

Ma'thurat 24

Ma'thurat, kita jangan lupa:

"O Allah, we are now in the morning (or afternoon) with grace, health and protection from You.So continue to bestow Your grace, health and protection upon me in this world and Hereafter"

Selamat menyambut Awal Muharram.Kita harap kita semua berubah menjadi insan yang diredhoi Allah. Saya maafkan semua yang cuba menyakiti saya dan saya juga minta maaf jika blog entries ini memberi ketidak-selesaan kepada mana-mana pihak.But this is my space. Ahaks (nada macam belum tobat!)

Mlm ni surau buat solat special mengakhiri tahun dan memulakan tahun baru Islam.I hope you won't forget too doa akhir/awal tahun.

Of perverts, stalkers and cyberbullies

I was going through some blogs and quite a number of female bloggers complain of the above.This should make an interesting gender studies research.Like rape, some men do not rape for sex..they just want to show dominance and power.Sick, isn't it?

A word of caution..do not trust every normal looking esp. religious looking or religious sounding people esp men out there.For gals/women, do not be overly friendly with any man who offers to do your homework, your children's homework, help with your business projects etc.A male friend once said, men never help for nothing.This is an age of risk.You never know what you'd get.Or what you'd lose.

Be very, very afraid of wolves in sheepskins.

My last entry on perverts, stalkers and cyberbullies.

Footnote: A friend who is an expert on criminal mind/s was saying cyber psychopaths would get their kicks from annoying or rather bullying others online.E-terrorism, yah? They would not stop until perhaps the authorities get them.Your silence will only make them more determined to annoy you further so don't think it will work if you lie low. 

Another tip from the expert: it's best to put these cyber bullies on iggie.

Deepavali update

deepavali at sunway lagoon club

 early arrivals

 more early arrivals



 make way for me, Sir.

 my fav spot of the day: tosei paling sedap

 2 heroes of the country: Mr. FOMCA man and Mr. SUHAKAM man

You can say Diwali or Deepavali.Both also can

As expected, the tosay was good. Without shame, I went for several helpings.I was at the same table with two gentlemen from the Labour Dept.We started talking about employees' rights, equal pay etc ..memang..I ni tak tau nak hormat orang...pilih lah tajuk2 yg deepavali sikit, kan? But bila lagi nak dpt inside stories.In the end, we all had fun talking.You'd be surprised to know that the gomen's decision to have a min pay of RM 900 ditentang oleh company yg besar2 ni..nak minta gomen lanjutkan tempoh implementasi.Terok, kan? RM 900 tu way below world's average pay at USD1500.

I said prob is if gaji naik, barang pun naik..sama juga.Cik Nik kita dgn bijak menyampuk..but kalau gaji tak naik, brg terus naik, worse.Haha..iyalah..iyalah.

Then ada satu lagi joker.An activist (another reason why I like going to Datuk M's annual open house selain tosay yang sedap ialah tetamu2 dia kebanyakannya activists.Tapi lawak).So Mr J ni kwn Nik juga.Nik kata let's say hi to J.I asked where is he from.Nik : Portugal.

So I told J, Nik said you're from Portugal.Pakcik ni kata yes but our ancestors were mainly from Goa.I said are you sure you are not Jewish cos' kat Goa kan byk Jewish settlements dulu2 masa zaman colonial..and saki baki masih ada sekarang.J ketawa kuat2.He said I have an answer to that : who cares.

Haha.

I'll put up the pics later.

Was going through some fb postings on Deepavali (some people are so lucky holidaying in Prague...)...one entry complained for being mistaken for a Hindu.Dia pi hantar kereta nak cuci but was asked tak mau wax ke for raya. Another Hindu fren was asked if he were carrying the kavadi this year.I remember my own blunder last year and another one at raya a few years back.Yg Indian Muslim tu I asked at a seminar held on deepavali eve: so besok Deepavali? He said I don't celebrate, I'm Muslim.Kantoi jahanam!

At a raya puasa open house,I asked 2 Indian looking guests if they ate beef..they said they had no problem.Rupa2nya Indian Muslims.And they were from IIUM too ( different Kulliyyah).Kantoi!