June Plc Gals

Anidah and family sleptover last nite.She's one of the June Plc gals during my NZ days (about 30 years ago?) It felt just like 30 years ago...she with her kind spirit, her hubby (now a family friend..he and Nik love like no other..haha..sometimes Anidah and I yang feel out of place cos' the two would talk non-stop! Walhal yang berkawan lama is Anidah and I) would share ilmu2 agama he picks up after he left military service.'Tall' (his pet name) knows a lot about tasawuf and sufism.Dah boleh mengubat orang (just solat 2 rakaat, baca doa yang selalu Nabi baca and start baca apa yang patut pada pesakit, he said.This was done when a person kena sampuk and there was no one else to heal except him yang pandai sikit).

He led the Maghrib prayer and we had Sekinchan and Thai dinner at my plc (I beli siap2.Where got time to cook, honey.Balik from work, I was like an injured cochcroach ~ lipas kudung~ stopped at this outlet, that outlet to come out with a nice and exotic dish combination for my guests..nyata mereka sangat gumbira with my choices cuma maid ngok I masak nasi untuk 4 when there's 8 of us!!! Geram tak? But dgn izin Allah, tak ketara...maka taklah I malu...)

Then we invited the 2 sheikhs over.By now I dah nak tertidur. :) The 3rd Sheikh (not Sheikh Nasr!) dah balik so sheikhs 2 ni diam sikit except Sheikh Nasser dok sibuk mencari if I simpan patung lagi tak dalam rumah (malaikat tak masuk,he said).I dah sempat sorokkan my 3 african giraffes kat bilik atas...

Lupa nak cakap kat hubby Sunday ni I ajak Makoto and kawan2 dia dari Saudi, Canada and Africa datang...mungkin nak ajak Maher too (we have a prog together petang tu) Haiyoo..lupa...tak sempat nak masak tu..Sekinchan lagi la nampak gayanya!

Ikan Bakar Sekinchan

It's been a hectic Sunday but we made time to lunch at Ikan Bakar Sekinchan (many outlets but there's one in our neighbourhood).

You guys must try.Memang Sekinchan! But the outlet near our place tu terlalu hot although air-cons dia berderet (one of the waiters kata boss dah panggil org baiki but still hot).Go in the evening for a cooler time.They are open 7 days a week till 12 midnight.

The biz is owned by a Malay enterpreneur.Khabarnya gaji waiter dia lebig dari RM1K sebulan with other perks (percutian ke Bali for top performance for 40 pekerja).Ada kerja part time, Dato' Jamal? Saya kerja keras pun Boss tak hantar cuti ke Bali... :)

Sunday hasn't ended..another exciting meeting in later part of the evening (free dinner by Kak Mun.Haha).I hope it's not Ikan Bakar Sekinchan!

Selamat Pengantin Baru to Azlan & Fazlinda

On behalf of warga I-Glass, saya mengucapkan selamat pengantin baru to Azlan Shah Sharifudin (pembaca tetap I-Glass) dan pasangan jelitanya Fazlinda Hamzah.Kita doakan agar dirahmati Allah jodoh mereka ini hingga ke akhir hayat.

Share with us pics!

On deen and right sources in learning

The 3 sheikhs visited IIUM main campus today.Dr Azman's Quranic class was hijacked for the talk at 10 am but students (from Muslim minority countries) appreciated the 1 hour session as Sheikh Al-Hares spoke on the importance of knowing Arabic to understand Quran and the danger of relying on translated works (like Yusuf Ali is bad news, OK? Most mosques in Australia have withdrawn copies of Yusuf Ali cos' his translations are off on a tangent..kufur in many..I love Yusuf Ali..cos' of the many references he has in his footnotes of things literary and philosophical).

The Sheikhs read doas twice at CERDAS..so maybe we'd get our first million soon.Haha.
Bro. Nasser performed nasyeed ..ahh..so mengasyikkan dan memilukan...I don't have to know what the nasyeed meant..it's so melodious..

A student from a Communist occupied country said while the religion advocates both male and female to learn, read Quran, etc..it is very difficult to do that in her country..people go to jail for reading Quran.Almost in tears, she asked the Sheikh what best solution would he offer to overcome such a situation.

I was teary too..here we are ...free to read the Quran and yet...so malas to do so...we take our religious freedom for granted in this country...

Sheikh said a lot of people could still practise their religiosity but practising it quietly.No excuse not to do, huh?

Another student came fwd and congratulated us for such quality prog.Sapa yang kata CERDAS tu nama macam sekolah kampong? :)) We are INTERNATIONAL, babe. :)

What are friends for

My zikir story isn't done yet.Let me share with you last night's event.

Dr S rang to say she would not be able to make it cos' she felt so unwell.She doesn't live too far away from my place so I told her I'd pick her up. What are friends for.

The zikir group and Dr P arrived while I was on my way back from picking Dr S from her apt.Mek and Nik dah kalut tak tau apa nak buat (Nik hadn't met any of them before). I told them just get the prayer mats out, get the group to pray Maghrib dulu, etc.

Masa kita arrived tu, depa tengah solat berjumaah.Hmm, nice.
Lepas tu depa started the zikir.Mat Salleh tu (lupa nak tanya nama dia!) suruh tutup lampu except lampu kat garden..wah..macam Sheikh Nazim kaa? I hear depa ratip dalam gelap, campur laki perempuan...

But in our session, the women duduk one side, men satu side (but berdepan2) Mungkin that's why the guy suruh tutup lampu.Supaya dapat FOCUS.haha.

The zikir went 100 times (no glossy mags to flick this time).Sekali sekali Sheikh tanya ada sapa2 rasa apa2? panas? sakit2? pening? nak muntah?a few hands would go up.Then sheikh would come and baca atas kepala dia and sembur2: puh puh...haha..quite funny watching him do this..

Lepas tu yang lagi funny is episode nak sembelih jin...wough..guess who was the first calon?

ME! Sheikh said come Sister Faridah, you sit here. Lepas tu he serkop my head dgn kain semayang I.tak kasi warning ..terus serkop.Then terus grabbed my head from behind and started to slaughter my head dgn tangan dia.Wough! Drama Queen mesti scream.haha.So that Sheikh is happy and Queen pun happy, kan? It was a performance, really.Like all rituals. :)

Tapi sakit betullah! He knew which side to slaughter (my left which was giving much problem to me)

Dgn izin Allah, my leg pain hilang! (or not as bisa as the nights before).

What is going on, HONEY???
Hopefully I'll be OK for my umrah trip.Will need to walk a lot nanti.

zikir group

A good friend of mine rang pretty late and asked if I wish to join a zikir group from Australia. It's part of our healing process.I jumped at the invitation and took Mek and Mak with me (tak jadi keluar dinner at Rebung ke Mebung kaa..Top Hat kaa Mop Hat kaa).

2 Arab sheikhs (they just came back from Canada) and pembantu Australians mereka chanted some zikirs on me and my friends (we were asked to hold hands).100 kali (panjang zikirnya).I was so bored...so nampak special edition buku kawin William and Kate..I was flicking through the glossy pages and admiring quietly some of the baju the guests wore..then tiba2 one of the Aussie guys tutup mag tu dgn tikar semayang...kantoi! (the rest laughed AT me) Haiyo!

But you haven't heard enough...My friend was the host..she was asked if she had olive oil sebab nanti olive oil tu kena minum and sapu kat badan at least once a day.My friend pi ambik olive oil yang orang guna utk berasmara! Haha.I could not help laughing (my fren ni single mom..jenis yang innocent).I told her...yang ini tak boleh minum.People use this for dot dot dot.The lady from Germany laughed the loudest! The guys were still doing their zikir.The women could not sit still.

Oh what a night! I love my friends.Kita ni tak sihat but we are happy. :))
We'll have another meeting at my house before those guys balik semula ke Sydney.Mek kata my healers very da international.

home sweet home

Touched down around 5 pm at KLIA.Brunei was good but home is home.
Ada accident menghala ke KL from KLIA but my taxi driver was clever in getting a short cut so it wasn't a long wait for us.Masa dia dok jumped queue tu, ada la another car of north africans overtook his car..the taxi driver said, "Ini negro..manyak jahat."

Haha...welcome to the land of racism of all sorts!
I go back to work tmrw...am still exhausted..but meetings (with the Kull, with clients). Penat doh.

Mek is in town.Dia ajak I keluar dinner with Mom besok malam.Z would be home too.Mek nak pi Rebung.I hate Rebung.I nak pi Top Hat.Mek said mak likes malay cuisine.We'll see besok.

Salam from Brunei

I touched down around 8 pm.Ramainya warga IIUM on the flight...some are flying to the UK (transit in Brunei), others are attending a conference at Uni. Brunei.

Suib and family fetched me at the airport.It's a different hotel than the last we stayed in.Better and dikelilingi oleh shops (my eyes sparkle at this.Haha).But internet use kat hotel ni leceh sikitlah.So do not expect daily updates (unless I'm so bored and have ntg to do).

Busy days ahead.Need to buy some local books before I start talking to the writers.

Suib was telling me how Brunei government bagi byk incentive to those yang hafal Quran (Brunei wants to be negara zikir..isn't that something? The first hafiz dapat BND100K and student hafiz dapat s/ship some BND2K a month.Oh wow!) Sultan jaga makan minum rakyat dia (ayam yang diimpot dari Msia pun are closely monitored..they have org dia jaga penyembelihan di Msia..penyembelihan ayam mas di Msia utk export ke Brunei dipantau oleh org2 Brunei sendiri.Begitu juga those done in Australia/NZ.Hotels semua halal..no arak..)

Bagusnya pemimpin mcm ni...

Meeting old friends

What happens when you meet friends you have not seen for years?

With the ladies, they first scream, then they hug.Smooch, smooch kiri kanan (I know guys love watching us do this.Haha.Once at a viva exam, a group of old girlfriends met in so many months.A guy was waiting and was disappointed the smooching episode didn't take place.He admitted, "I was waiting...")

Anyway, I met some of my Uni. of Waikato alums of the 80s at a dinner hosted by the uni at the NZ High Comm's home (new High Commissioner).Kita punya VC of 6 years old has done a lot to put the uni on the map.The former NZ PM is our Chancellor (Jim Bolger).His wife very friendly.I boleh panggil dia mcm ni Oh Mrs Bolgerrrr...(masa nak ambik gambar..and she comes running...)

I thot I put this on record.The pics will come later.

the reiki man

I saw him last Sunday (recommended by a fren called K).She said this reiki man (who comes once a month from Ipoh) could do "magic".Haha.I hear that too often now.I went anyway.

He said,"oh..awak masih ada gangguan..saya tlg buang". Lepas tu kasi ubat2 "aura" (in the form of homeopathy pills to re-charge blocked energy.He is, after all, the reiki man).

I went back to where I began (sakit mcm mula2 kena: tak boleh tidur, woke up in pain).Before that my sleeping pattern was OK (slept through the night, no more mimpi2 hantu/nightmares).The only comfort now is, I can go back to sleep.Before, kan...sampai ke pagi.A lot to bersyukur for, actually.

Today Kak Mah gave me a number. :) Gonna call this Haji.

My sister said I'm a healer junkie.Maybe I'm collecting materials for my short stories.Who knows what would come of this.

Stay tuned.

Uncle Kong's Funeral

Uncle Kong tu my Chinese neighbour yang meninggal 2 hari lepas.

Semasa hidupnya, dia sangat ceria..ada hari2 tertentu dia akan berkaraoke lagu2 klasik Cina (suara taklah macam Andy Williams).Kadang2 jiran2 tak larat juga tapi biasa dia bernyanyi waktu org pi kerja.

Kalau raya Cina, dia mesti buat lion dance.Kita tompang tengok percuma je.

Hari ini, di hari penghabisan keluarga mereka nak say goodbye, ada marching band disewa khas (2 hari lepas music Cina mcm lion dance tu).Hari ni, lagu2 orang putih.Kami semua terhibur (I pi kerja lambat sebab nak warm up my legs dulu).

You know what?
I cried!
Sebabnya terharu anak2 dia all out nak show their love for their dead dad.I think he was a good dad (bila keluarga dia berkumpul, anak2 dia diizinkannya park depan rumah kita sesuka hati mereka.Haha.Bila Nik tegor..sebab keluarga kita pun dtg juga nak park kat situ..dia akan kata dgn senyum manisnya "sorry! sorry ah?" dan aleh kereta).

Yes, funerals are about what happens to the loved ones you leave behind..how do they cope..what do they do to express their love, regret and all that jazz.

I see that before my eyes.Anak2 Uncle Kong going all out.The death was so sudden for them (anak from USA pun bergegas balik tapi ayah dah dalam keranda).

Sekian laporan live dari rumah saya.

Z is 19 today

Anak dara saya menyambut birthday-nya yang ke 19 hari ini.Semoga panjang umur, murah rezeki, bertambah iman dan ilmu yang bermanfaat dan boleh dimanfaatkan oleh orang ramai.

Dia di kolej sedang sibuk buat exams dia (leading to A Level exam.Markah2 tahun ini boleh dikira utk exam sebenarnya tahun depan so the pressure is on).We will celebrate on Saturday with her at her college, InsyaAllah (sebab exam still on..tak leh balik rumah).

19 years ago, start at midnite I was in labour already.Masa tu tak intense and I told the nurse: oh is this what the fuss is all about? Tak sakit pun!"

Nurse tu kata, "You wait."

And true enough, 6 hours labour ...towards the end rasa macam nak mati sakitnya.I had my eyes close all the time sampai Z lahir at around waktu suboh May 11.I opened my eyes kejap to peep at Z then closed them again till they wheeled me back to my room.Nurse tu sampai cakap, "Ma'am, you may open your eyes now." Haha...I was afraid I might change into a pumpkin after delivery! Tak berani buka mata to see a new world.

Nik said Z was in a sac and the doc had to cut the sac open to keluarkan dia..and she was sucking her thumb! Lepas tu she smiled at her dad (kalau Dad dia tak exaggerate lah but he swears this was what he saw in the labour room)

Z is anak doa.I had problems conceiving and when my uncle (an imam at the kampong and his doas always dimakbulkan Allah..people went to him for doas..he's that good) went to do his umrah one fine year, we kirim doa for a child.

When I conceived for the 5th time (didn't know it till we got home from the UK..yeah..Z was conceived in London and no wonder I was so 'car sick' when we were touring Europe.Rupa2nya pregnant!) and I had the usual signs of having a miscarriage, I had given up..thinking ah..this is yet another episode..

But my gynae said, "hey, there's heart beat here!" (in the previous pregnancies, the heart beat wasn't there at all).
We were like hah? oh wow..
I was bedridden and after 3 months, looked like the pregnancy was OK.Didn't have much of a problem except I was eating a lot! By 9 months, I was your tong deram.I cringed at the reflection I saw in the mirror.

And then May 11, Suboh ..Z was born..what a joy! what a beautiful baby!
It was easy raising her since birth (she slept with the maid for a year...haha).

Well gal, Ibu and Papa doa that you will not change so much now that you dah jadi a young adult.Jangan ber-boi-fren till habis belajar (this is what my mom told me.Haha).

Have a great day and never forget to bersyukur all the time.See you Saturday (my gal stalks my blog).

Saying goodbye to Kak Pah

Kah Pah is not my imaginary friend.haha.

She and I went back a longgggggggggg way..before Z was born.We used to teach at Matric in the late 80s (before I left for Liverpool to do my Master's). Between her and me, we have almost 30 years between us.She was trained at Kirby.A beautiful lady who never married (her love story mengalahkan filem Hindi...very sad.I wish I could share all of it but takut kena saman.Haha)

Kak Pah is moving back to JB (her hometown).Yesterday was my goodbye to her.We went out to lunch at the Curve, eating pancakes and lamb chops.She said she didn't know me anymore (punya lama tak jumpa).I said I'm still the same, always in a rush but would still make time for good friends.And we talked of old days.The people we knew, the common interests we had.It's hard saying goodbye to someone you know and one who knows you so well.Kak Pah and I pun kuat bergadoh (marble headed women!)I remember her joining me in London in one of my conference trips.We were discussing a topic.As always, she would (or I would) take a different take.Lepas tu kita 'gaduh'.Haha.But lepas tu baik balik.That's Kak Pah for you.People think she's my mother.

Well, Kak Pah...thank you for your friendship, arguments and debates (semalam I saw a book on Saddam Hussein on her coffee table: the book featured Saddam as a thinker.Mana dia dapat buku tu pun I tak tau.She said she'd had it long before the 1st Gulf War and that she thought highly of Saddam).

As a student of History, her interest in so many things fascinates me.This is one friend who never bores you.

Kak Pah, we will miss you.
But I think we'll make that trip to JB one of these days and say hello again.Take care and God bless.

Seha, Shuib and Freedom

For my younger readers, you'd be too young to remember Freedom, satu kumpulan musik yang mempunyai sepasang penyanyi yang sangat luarbiasa waktu tu : Seha and Shuib.

Seha meninggal beberapa tahun lalu sebab kanser.A real beauty and a real talent.Shuib has stopped singing.Sayang sekali.

My fav is Mulanya Di sini.I didn't know Freedom's love songs yang lain2nya sungguh tragik.

playing mom

It's Makoto's first day today..there's the ELS registration to do, ID card to be sorted out, accommodation matters, visa, etc etc.

I had to show him how to do this and that.We took a ride to KL tompang Nik ( I malas drive).From there naik monorail and then LRT to KLCC.You know I don't take public transport, kan? I must have looked so lost ...but people were so helpful.They treated me like a tourist.Haha.I could not believe Msians are so kind! I must have this muka kesian look on me.

Lepas dropping Makoto at ELS and talking to Douglas on arrangement kita nak share profits, I pi jumpa Wak for foot reflexology (my spine and leg were aching!).Wak is my long time blind masseur and Allah gives him this ability to heal like no one else could.You tau, all my pains went away after my one hour session with Wak? God bless him.

Then I took a cab home.Cost me a bomb.Then went back to KL to pick my new son.Kerja gila, kan? Balik ke IIUM, sorted what needed to be sorted out.Went to pick Habib.Long is in town and Habib had to work on her prob. pulak.

So long day.
Makoto will live on campus next week.He needs to improve his Arabic and learn Islam.Campus life will be good for him.

Bradley Cooper is the new Brad Pitt

from the movie "Limitless" with de Niro
r/ship tak pernah kekal lama
was romantically linked with aniston for a while

Hari ni dok melayan anak dara saya (bonding time).

Ada pulak anak teruna baru datang so kita pi tengok wayang kat One Utama.Limitless.Pilihan suami.Dah tanya ada violence ke tak, he said no, takda..ini cerita kelakar.

Nasib Bradley Cooper hensem (half Italian half Irish OK?).So the movie (which promotes drug abuse!) was bearable with the Cooper element.Haha.But ada juga violent scenes (I was like closing my eyes much of the time, asking Z what happens now..dia buat apa sekarang, etc etc)

Nik and Makoto suka sangatlah movie tu (one scene has a special package for Cooper which says urgent.So he opens the package: dalamnya ada 2 pasang tangan yang sudah dikerat..satu kulit hitam, satu kulit putih which belong to his 2 bodyguards.Yewl...ngeri!)

This is the kinda movie Hollywood comes out with these days...

Next time I will be the one who will decide which movie to go to (romantic comedy with hugh grant or jennifer aniston.)

But dinner was good.And the thai massage that came after that.Heavenly.

ceramah agama

I must share this with you.

Last night, we (me, Nik and Makoto) went to listen to Imam Imran Hosein's talk at the surau.Ramainya orang! And what was more surprising, anak2 muda yang mukanya bersih dan beriman.

I asked a guy near me, "where do these young people come from?"
He said he could not answer that (either dia tak tau atau he's part of the group and not telling.Haha).

So the good old Imam was telling us pasal the spreading of power (military) of the zionists, that the kecoh2 in the middle east memang dirancangkan (I told you so!) so that the seemingly kebangkitan Islam would be reason enough for tentera musuh to validate their military expansion atas dasar security and self defense against terrorism.The Imam quoted hadith and verses from the Quran to support his theory (of conspiracy).

A lot of questions from the guys during Q&A.I didn't want to embarrass him with my questions so I went to him after the talk when there was a smaller group (of men again). There I asked him: aren't you over-rating the strength of the Yahudi? It's as though the Muslims are not capable of taking charge...instead of submitting to the threat of the zionists, why can't we think of what to do next and be positive for once? We cannot be talking about the stagnant state we are in all the time..what are the ways to move forward, etc etc.

Lama juga dia termenung nak menjawab then he went on the old record: I do not see any Muslim leaders rejecting the current financial system, (I kata maybe at the same time, we should also be thinking about working on our science and technology..think of innovation..and not think that the financial system is all there is in life to save Islam..)

Tapi he continued to speak on pasal duit, hahaha.
I also do not agree with him attacking Harun Yahya like that.He may not agree with Harun Yahya but Harun Yahya cannot be wrong all the time (he's a well-respected writer with lots of followers in the Muslim world).It's OK to difffer in thoughts..attack the ideas NOT the man.

But I still like the good old Imam.Bought his travelogue book (siap dapat autograph dia dedicated to me..I told him to write "For Faridah" in the book.Heh).Hubby bought Jerusalem in the Quran (asked the Imam to write Nik's name too.He asked Nik what? Pandai pulak dia! I said Nik Affendi.He said ahh..so he's from Kelantan.Hmm alahai,he's gone local!)

Must catch Harun Yahya pulak.There's a write up saying he's schizophrenic.Macam2lah.

when you have too much time...

time is a luxury this weekend.Tak tau nak buat apa! Nak tulis email pun tak boleh, nak kacau kawan2 kat facebook pun orang habis bercuti..nak ber-blog pun takda cerita menarik.

But Makoto arrived jam 2 am semalam.There was a flight delay in Beijing.Patut sampai jam 12 midnight.

Nasib dia tak mau apa2.If not, I'd be too sleepy to cook or prepare apa2.Bibik pun ngantuk.

This morning, I buat b/fast.But we also bought nasi dagang,pulut ikan masin etc.I bought ikan goreng bertepong for Makoto and told him it's a kinda tempura.Apa lagi, mamat tu makan dengan ekor2 ikan tu sekali, probably thinking it's crispy as tempura.Nasib kepala ikan pun dia tak makan.

Then we went to Salikin's boutique nak tempah baju raya.Mak oiii...mahal juga but what the heck...bukan selalu nak melaram.Z pun tompang sekaki.

Then we went to see my mom at Ummi's.She tiba2 boleh cakap Jepun dengan Makoto (she grew up during the Japanese Occupation in the 40s and had picked up some Japanese).My mom always enjoys my foreign students whenever I take them home for raya ke hapa ke.So she dah biasa jumpa budak2 international macam ni.

While I pi semayang, I heard dia sibuk ajar Makoto cakap Melayu.

"Makan"
"Minum"
"Sedap"

Nampak dia happy je (she loves having company..suka berborak)

Ingat nak tengok wayang malam ni but Nik ajak pi surau dengar ceramah agama.Dia nak ajak Makoto sekali (which means kena pinjamkan sepasang baju Melayu Nik pada dia).

Maybe I'll read a book in a bit.Terasa boring cuti lama2 macam ni. :)

pesta buku, royal wedding dan pening kepala

quite a full day today.I forgot about the royal wedding and booked today as my hydrotherapy day so I missed much of the ceremony (but was in time for the balcony kisses.heh)

one mamat tak tau taruk mata mana hit my car while we were waiting at the traffic light around kia peng area.Cheh! I had a bad headache, terpaksa turun to see if there were a dent.The guy came out and apologised and tried to convince me takda apa2, cik.I sempat mumbled, "macamana awak bawak kereta?" but too pening to be hysterical.Haha.

The jam was bad on the way back.But lepas solat. terus lepak depan TV with Z (who's home for the long weekend).I don't like William in red.Tak padan dgn baju si Kate tu.
Tak suka juga si Camilla there.Diana should be there, and alive.

I was at the pesta buku earlier.What a disappointment.Publishers are just interested in making money (flooding the market with books they know would sell NOT books to educate).I was looking for books they would never put there for lack of a good market: literary books and very few had literature section in their booths.Even Cambridge Uni Press.Totally disgusting.When I asked them to search for a few titles, one gal said oh we have them tapi tak bawak.Takdalah usaha to get my contacts and say we'll send them to you if you pay now (which I would not mind doing).

But at least the crowds were there.Which means more and more Malaysians are reading and interested in books.That's quite a comfort.

Loving your mom in her old age

When our moms are old and frail, it won't be easy to love them. They'd push you away for the slightest hurt they feel and you would have bent your back to serve them and yet, nothing is enough.

Cos' all they want is your time.Not your money.Or tasty, foreign looking foods.

I try to bond with my ailing mom as much as I can (all my siblings try hard too) but alas, all of us work.And sometimes we have to move our mom around (which she does not like).Like yesterday, I had to send her back to my niece's home cos' it's closer to her dialysis centre and there's a fulltime maid to look after her (while she's so weak at the moment).Her maids when she was staying at Sal's had left (she fired them one by one.Haha).Sal works and has no maid.So we have to place mom at my niece's while waiting for the new maid to arrive.

She cried after I left, it seems.She told my niece's bibik, oh...all my children do not want me..they put me everywhere.

Not true at all.Sometimes we leave our husbands to sleep with her nights (Kak Ngah does this a lot).Sal is thinking of taking an unpaid leave to look after my mom fulltime.I limp to her every day despite my leg pain and would stay with her as long as I can before her bed time cos' she likes me to rub minyak zaitun campur air zam2 yang Habeeb dah ruqyahkan on her body and leg every nite before she sleeps.She finds comfort in that.I think she just enjoys human touches and feels loved.I don't mind making her happy in whatever small way I can give)

But bila dia merajuk..alamak! Very da susah.Sometimes I buat pekak je.Like she'd say do not buy me any pizzas or chicken wings any more.I do not want your food.I'd say fine! You don't have to eat them! (but I know the moment I'm out of sight, she would ask Bibik to feed her those pizzas and chicken wings.Haha).I know her tricks dah lama. :))

So I guess when the going gets tough, the tough gets going.Keyword is sabar.Once you get through it, there's a feeling of tranquilty and peace inside you. You cannot put a price to that.

PROPHETIC TRADITIONS ON BELIEVERS’ APPROACH TO THE RULERS

1-‘Abd Allah ibnMas‘ud reported that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “You will see after me taking place many things undesirable [at the hands of the rulers]’; then the people asked the Prophet (s.a.w.) as to what he advised them to do in that situation. The Prophet (s.a.w.) said: ‘Pay unto them [the rulers] their right and invoke Allah concerning your right”

2-‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abbas reported that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “He who finds in his leader something he dislikes must remain patient. Verily, he who came out of his loyalty to the ruler even to a little extent died death of ignorance”.

3-‘Ubadah ibnSamit reported that the Prophet (s.a.w.) uttered and we pledged allegiance to the Prophet (s.a.w.) for complete loyalty (al-sam‘wa al-ta‘ah) in all situations, and for keeping away from conflict with the ruler except that there is very clear blasphemy on the part of the rulers (kufranbawahan).
Reference: Al-Bukhari, Muhammad ibnIsma‘il, Sahih (Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-‘Arabi, Beirut, 1400 A.H.), Vol. 4, pp. 312-313, kitab al-Fitan, Report No. (1) 7052, (2) 7053-7054, and (3) 7056.

4-Abu Hurayrah reports that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “He who obeyed me actually obeyed Allah; he who obeyed my governor (amiri which originally signifies leader) actually obeyed me; he who disobeyed my governor actually disobeyed me”.

5-Anas ibn Malik reports that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “Listen to and obey the leader appointed for you even though he is an ugly abyssinian slave”.

6-‘Abd Allah ibnMas‘ud reports that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “Total obedience to the leader is obligatory for Muslim as long as the leader did not command to commit sin. If Muslims were commanded to do wrong obedience to the leader is no more in place”.

7-‘Ali ibnAbiTalib reports that once the Prophet (s.a.w.) sent a small contingent of army under the leadership of a combatant from Ansar, advising the soldiers to obey their leader. During the expedition when once the contingent leader got angry with his subordinates due to some reasons, he asked: Did the Prophet (s.a.w.) not command you to obey me? When the people confirmed it, he ordered them to prepare a big fire and enter it. They refused to enter the fire on the ground that they followed the Prophet (s.a.w.) with a view to protecting themselves from the fire. Upon their return to Madinah the whole event was reported to the Prophet (s.a.w.) who said: “Had you entered the fire, you would never have come out of it. Obedience to the leader is indeed only in the matter of what is good (ma‘ruf)”.
Reference:Al-Bukhari, Muhammad ibnIsma‘il, Sahih (Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-‘Arabi, Beirut, 1400 A.H.), Vol. 4, pp. 328-330, kitab al-Ahkam, Report No. (5) 7137, (6) 7142, (6) 7144, and (7) 7145.

8-‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Umar reports that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “Listening and obedience to the leader is compulsory as long as the people are not commanded to commit what is sin. If the people were to do what is wrong, there is no listening and obedience to the leader”.

9-Abu Hurayrah reports that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “He who obeyed me indeed obeyed Allah; he who disobeyed me indeed disobeyed Allah. He who obeyed the leader indeed obeyed me; he who disobeyed the leader indeed disobeyed me. The leader is indeed a shield behind which war is fought and victory achieved. If the leader commanded the people to uphold piety and observed justice, he would certainly be rewarded; if he did something wrong, he is accountable to Allah”.
Reference: Al-Bukhari, Muhammad ibnIsma‘il, Sahih (Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-‘Arabi, Beirut, 1400 A.H.), Vol. 2, p. 347, kitab al-Jihad wa al-Siyar, Report No. (8) 2955, and (9) 2957.

Note: These reports (1-9) are also available in Muslim, ibn al-Hajjaj al-Qushayri, Sahih (Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-‘Arabi, Beirut, 2000), pp. 828-832, kitab al-Imarah, Report Nos. 1834-1844.

Prof. Dr. Israr Ahmad Khan
Department of Qur’an and Sunnah Studies
Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences
International Islamic University Malaysia
Tel: 03-61965538
H/P: 017-6801375
Email Add: israr53@yahoo.com; israr@iium.edu.my

My mom's healers (tak berapa seram)

Yesterday I was busy ferrying my mom's healers.One of them a Quran and Sunnah postgraduate student who came to read some ruqyah verses at my mom's room.

Later that afternoon another friend came to read more Quranic verses.My mom tiba-tiba tak boleh bangun and would often get her athma attack yang would not respond to her electric inhaler (macam kat hospital tu..it looks like a vacuum cleaner!) My niece, a doctor, said it's all in her mind (psychosomatic problem) ...she accused me of having the same disease.I said true..except mine is real.Haha.

After the afternoon treatment, my mom could walk by herself.Ni macam NLP je.But I'm glad she could bangun and pray duduk.That is all that matters.
I stayed as long as I could (hujan lebat sampai 3 sessions).

Back at home, I remember Imam Huseein was giving a talk at a surau near my place.Alas, too late.Masa Nik and I pi, orang dah tengah solat Isyak and then makan.We turned balik.Prof AbuShouk will invite him over to IIUM for another session.I have heard him before.Nice English.Nak terlena mendengar nya.So musical.

Shopping with Ijat and Aiman was fun last night.Depa borong betul2 cos' I told them spend! spend! I have lots of moneyyyy (haha..I was just kidding them but they took me literally)Takpalah, not every day I go shopping with them.

Siri 2: Adegan seram

I should not entertain this so much but a thread on jinn on my fb just triggered my memory of an experience with Dato' Ismail Kamus 2 years ago.

Not easy to see him but my friend and I waited as long as it took us.It all started with me accompanying my mom in a visit to see another Ustaz (now also a Dato')Tiba2 this ustaz called me forward and started treating me (with telor ayam) which he placed on my stomach (masa tu my husband and sisters and mom were with me)and the telor melekat.2 men tried to pull, then the following nite 3 men yang gemok2, and the 3rd nite 4 men..semua tak boleh tarik the telor stuck on me.Everytime the so called ustaz managed to pull through the egg and crack it up, adalah benda2 di dalamnya which he said was sent to me.I was in the form of denial.Apa ni ustaz, I asked the 1st night.

He said, "aha, you tak tau orang sekarang main ilmu sihir macam daun kayu..they don't even have to look at you, just jelir their tongue at you without looking at you and you are done."

Horror!

So I trusted him (being so trusting!) but masuk kali ke 7, I figured something was not right when this so called ustaz started to meraba! (I was with my 2 sisters and his assistant).Mereka tak kata apa macam kena pukau!

I stopped going and dismissed his 'reading' as rubbish!

However, I went to Darul Shifa' and Ismail Kamus for 2nd and 3rd opinions.Just in case cos' on the 2nd day after I went to the bomoh penipu, I did go through some paranormal experiences (someone was choking me as I dressed to go to work, etc).

Darul Shifa' cleared me.Ismail Kamus just went ahead with treatment without telling me anything.That is not the point of my story.My point is this:

He does group treatment (in which the range is so varied and for me so dangerous..you duduk dgn orang yang sakit2 biasa and those yang betul2 gila/kena rasuk) It was the scariest point in my life.I never went again sebab the day I went (with my husband) we were greeted by a young, clean shaven and well-spoken man.At the door, he told my husband, kita kalau nak datang berubat ni, sebelum masuk kena baca lahauwaalla kuwataillah minnazorlimin or somethimng like that (it could be another ayat).So my husband apologised dgn begitu polite and said we didn't know (and recited accordingly)

While waiting, the young man started to berceramah on living in a multiracial country.He started with Tuan2 dan Puan2 hadirin sekalian, kita apabila tinggal dalam masyarakat majmuk seperti Malaysia ini...

At this point, the penjaga registration (a lady) went to this young speaker and said,"duduk! duduk! kejap lagi ustaz datang".

Rupa2nya dia pun pesakit! Hahaha (kesian Nik who was so apologetic earlier)

When Dato' finally came, I found out I was in the same group as this bright looking young man (rupa2nya dia pelajar cemerlang who got a scholarship to study in Jordan and was doing well tapi tak tau silap kat mana, jin masuk dalam badan dia)

My friend who came with me also was in the same group (4 of us) but she was lucky she did not sit betul2 sebelah budak ni (his father said ada masa he would want to tikam his dad with pisau bila dia masuk ke alam jin dia)but masa Dato' masuk, he said wahhh..Dato' sekarang nampak semakin muda ya.I was amazed. :)

dato' buat budak ni dulu.He said dalam kepala awak banyak jin.And masa Dato buat, dia tanya budak tu, apa rasa? Budak tu kata tajam macam pisau.

Luckily time I, Dato' tak kata apa2 so I guess there was nothing wrong and life went on (and I travelled so much those years).

Group healing is dangerous. I remember just before meeting Dato' I went to one branch which was associated to the branch in Kg Baru.Yang itu lagi takut.One young man (strapped cos' he was so violent) forced himself into the treatment room where I was with my friend and 2 other ladies.I remember the young man looking directly at me and menggilai HA HA HA!

4 orang ustaz cuba tangkap dia and calm him down and started having a conversation with the boy tengah kena rasuk.

"Kenapa kau buat dia macam ni?"
"Sebab aku suka diaLAH!!"
and the boy wanted to menerpa our direction (my lutut dah cair masa ni, ketakutan!)
then ustaz tu campak lada hitam..the boy dropped like dead.

Lega

Then like a contortionist, he bounced back and menggilai lagi.It was so ugly but I managed to sneak out quickly out of the room, tinggal kawan I yang masih tengah berubat.Hahaha.

Never again group healing like that and indeed, I read a book on healing, this method is to be avoided for the same reason I mentioned above.The range of ailments is so wide.

cerita seram yang anda tidak mahu dengar

amaran: jangan baca ini di waktu malam

Maka sudah jadi tabi'i (ejaan tak pasti) orang melayu dan ramai bangsa asia dan se-zone dengannya, apabila sakit yang pelik-pelik, mereka akan mendapatkan pendapat kedua dan ketiga dan seterusnya..dari ustaz, shaman, bomoh, kiai dan apa sahaja.

Harus berhati2 kerana jika kita percaya mereka BOLEH menyembohkan, kita syirik.
Harus berhati2 kerana jika kita percaya apa mereka kata, kita juga boleh syirik.

Dengan itu, saya bercerita dalam ketakutan.
Sekiranya anda akan mempercayai apa yang akan saya ceritakan.
Bacalah sekadar pengetahuan.
Atau sekadar ingin tahu.Bahawa masih ada dunia yang sebegini.
Mana yang baik, kita ambik ikhtibar.

Tetapi saya akui ramai yang saya temui adalah dari kalangan yang baik-baik.Saya tidak mempertikaikan keikhlasan mereka.

Cerita ini ialah mengenai interpetasi masing2 tentang apa yang berlaku.The other side of the story of the modern medical world.

Saya tidak akan ceritakan semua tetapi hanya sedutan the 'best'.Sorry.:)

Maka saya pun diperkenalkan kpd satu nama.Susah untuk berjumpa kerana sangat ramai clientsnya tetapi tokoh ini sangat rendah diri maka diizinkan juga saya menemuinya atas dasar kasihan.

Pada mulanya katanya saya tidak apa2.Cuma masalah medikal biasa.Tetapi sekiranya ada gangguan lain, dia akan beritahu saya kemudian (selepas solat hajat dan lain2).

Selepas Maghrib,beliau menelefon saya dan megesahkan MEMANG ada gangguan lain.Maka dia pun mendoakan cara beliau.Proses pemulihan adalah gradual.Saya sangat tidak sabar kerana sudah 2 bulan tidak tidur dan setiap jam 2 am selalu berguling2 macam kena voodoo.Doc medical saya juga tidak percaya slipped disc boleh sakit mcm ini rupa dan menasihatkan saya mencari rawatan spiritual juga.

Dalam pada itu, saya cuba cari apa sebab sebenarnya kaki kiri saya sakit sangat mcm tidak normal ini.Kawan2 saya ramai juga yang slipped disc tetapi tidak seorang yang went through what I went through.I guess if a scientific explaination is needed, I could say masing2 mungkin punya kondisi yang berlainan.Mungkin.

Satu hari, tokoh saya selepas didesak, memberitahu saya bacaannya:

Saya lihat kakak telah terpijak permainan anak jin.
Saya: di mana?
Tokoh: di dapor kakak
Saya: tapi ITU dapor saya.Dia tidak harus bermain2 di situ!

Ya, you might think it's funny (I laughed when tokoh told me this) but when I told Mek (my funny sister), she said her fren one day terduduk kat anak jin on her sofa at home.Puas berubat sana sini.Tak baik2.Then one ustaz told her (careful..syirik alert)

And yet, said Mek, there was another story in which anak kawan dia terlanggar anak jin dengan basikal sehingga cedera parah(anak jin yang cedera parah)...puas juga berubat (syirik alert! syirik alert!)

Maka apa yang perlu saya buat, tanya saya kpd tokoh.For truce ~ minta maaf: saya perlu tabur 7 atau lebih bunga kenanga di dapor saya dan besoknya harus dibuang di persimpangan empat.

Sewaktu permintaan ini dibuat, saya belum tahu kisah anak jin ini,Tokoh cuma meminta saya berbuat demikian dan saya tidak bertanya.Saya fikirkan tokoh mahu dapor saya wangi.Heh heh.

Kesimpulan cerita saya, jangan tanam pokok kenanga.Jin suka. :)

Day off

I took the day off today (mc).Dah bersiap nak pi kerja, singgah pi physio kejap then bang! at the car park slope ~ I fell! Wough..nasib a car about to pass didn't hit me!

How fragile life is.

Wong put ice on my leg and I did the rest of the routine.Did an extra activity today.
My head still pusing (food poisoning on Sunday and the doc said yes, it can cause head to spin.My fren said she had the same food item and had food poisoning as well.I went with Bibik.She had the same meal.She also had spinning spells.So I have struck off this bistro ~ never again its laksa johor)

Z is home in between exams.We decided to have a night out at Eastin.Tengok the female vocalist in mini skirt goyang2 kaki dia, I jeles.I can't shake my leg like that anymore.Sakit jatuh tadi. :(

I had a good rest, though.

farewell arif

Pyan text-ed saying the pengkebumian would be after Zohor so I took my time, enjoying my bfast at HUKM after feeding my mom cheesecake (my mom ni canggih sikit..sejak dia duduk KL, dia suka b'fast orang putih..pancake lah...pie lah..I think we spoil her)

Then when I finally drove over to Bangi, jumpa isteri dan mak aruah...I tanya wife dia..mana dia jenazahnya?

Selamba she said dah tanam.

I said what??

They had to tanam early (I was an hour late)..dah 3 hari Arif kat Australia.
Tak sempat juga to let him know I was there...

So lepas borak2 with the family, I called Pyan who was still at the graveyard.Bagus punya budak.Suruh dia ambik I pun, dia buat tak dengar. :)) He gave me directions.

I found it.Nasib the boys (and Tini who just arrived with her hubby) masih ada lagi kat kubur tu.Kalau tak, takut ada yang menegor "sorang je ke?"...

So Azhan led the yassin and doa tahlil tengah panas2 tu.lucky ada payung.I went cos' of his kindness carikan life tree for the Bangkok team masa Asia Pac Plays Festival kita tu.Bangkok dah threatened nak pull out kalau tak dapat pokok idup for their performance.Arif cari tengah malam buta tu juga.

May Allah bless him.Kata Israr who sempat sambut and hantar jenazah sampai ke liang lihad (they were all IIUM rugby players I think), muka aruah macam orang tidur.Despite 3 days dah meninggal, tak lebam.

Mak dia kata bukan heart attack.He got meningitis.
Semoga rohnya ditempatkan di jannah.

When mak dia tanya who I was and I told her, she said..oh yes, Arif ada sebut pasal you and thanked me for coming.

I wanted to tell her about the tree but I know she would break down.

Hydrotherapy

I went to my first hydrotherapy session at Prince Court today.Enjoyed it so much.The pool was warm (heated pool) and not that deep.They only allow 4 people at one session so it was nice.My water physiotherapist was a lady.Very nice one.

People usually takut nak pi Prince Court but it's not that expensive (maybe the rooms are a bit more than other private hospitals) but other services are pretty reasonable.I go there for its hydrotherapy facilities (SDMC's will only be ready in 2013).Syok weiii..dah lama I tak masuk pool ( I have the phobia since I almost drown in Olympic-size pool at Hilton in Istanbul.Many years ago)

Anyway, anyone can go and use the facility at Prince Court.Just get a referral letter from your orthopedic (addressed to the Physiotherapist),make your appointment and be willing to pay for the service.Tak mahal.RM120 per session which lasts 40 mins( I paid RM200 for 20 mins for using a machine at a chiropractor's centre at Mont Kiara OK? Dahlah tak berkesan, sakit dan mahal pulak.)

Balik dari pool, I tidur nyenyak.Wanted to visit my mom tapi hujan lebat pulak.Besoklah.

Al fatihah Arif

A poem by Brunei poet Yahya MS on the death of his daughter (for a former student: Allahyarham Arif Azman who passed away in Melbourne at 10 am today):


Tangan kami bukan tak kasih

Tangan Tuhan, tapi, itu lebih sayang

maka dipanggilnya kau ke sisiNya

tanpa banyak cara dan acara [...]

Allahumma,

telahku serahkan semula anakku

kerana Engkau memintanya,

Kau jadikan ia taruhan

dan kusempurnakan menurut dayaku

telah sampai waktunya

dan tiada daya mengingkarinya (from Perjalanan Terakhir Anakku Yang Hilang, 2003, 39-41)


We'll miss you, Arif.Al fatihah.

Adegan yang anda tak mau lihat minggu ini

I made a scene at the hospital today.My appt was at 4 pm but I got to see the doc only 3 hours later.I pun apa lagi...mengamuk sakan.Dgn nurses kat counter.Dengan doktor.Hey, when you are a spine patient, you don't wait that long OK?Badan I ni mcm sotong kalau berdiri or duduk lama2.

So doc (yang I gempaq2 last visit saying he's so good, he's so good tu..he is tapi time management terok sgt.Masa he was on the defensive tu, he said pernah ada patient dari Kuching kena tunggu 8 jam.Ayooo..I said..you should be ashamed!)

Lepas tu he said cuba lah faham kerja dia (yang I tau dia suka ambik patients ramai2,mungkin nak duit lebih)..wife dia pun tak tau pukul berapa dia balik.I said but I'm not your wife,I'm your patient who's married to another man who would ask why dinner isn't ready on time (masa tu dah 7 pm).I kata if the West can do it (keep the time), why can't we.Dah ternganga2 dia nak jawab (he's trained at Cambridge and told me that he had worked at best hospitals in London and Australia) I kata I pun pernah got treated in hospitals in those countries..no one waited 3 or 8 hours to see a doctor on appointment.

I said he had no respect for his patients which he denied (dia dok sibuk kata patient kat dalam in consultation lagi penting dari yang luar),I said thank you very much for making that clear.Now that I know how he works, I have the choice to go to other orthopedics.He said my choice.We both thanked each other politely.Hahaha...drama betul.

I told him my orthopedic kat Prince Court suruh I get a neurologist's assessment.He didn't think it was necessary cos' it would lead to surgery which he was against.I said I insist on it..I need to know if my nerves are OK (leg nerves..nerves lain memang tak OK kalau jumpa doc macam ni hari2! Haha)He said fine.Lepas tu kata at least I'm easy to talk with (maknanya dah ramai la patients dia yang mengamuk2 tu)I pun kata yah.I like you too but I don't like waiting for 3 hours to see him.

Lepas tu dia kata lain kali dtg as last patient and he'll wait for me.OK, done.
So we parted as two mature people.Haha.It was not nasty.We were just expressing ourselves.He could handle criticism well.Muka dia cool je.Dulu pernah dia tulis referral letter yang berbunyi" this pleasant lady..." (apa punya surat dah).Now dia taulah betapa pleasantnya I.Hahaha

But I have second thoughts seeing him again.Gila nak tunggu lama2 ( I almost missed my Asr and I missed my power dinner because of the long wait).You may have a good product but if the service/customer relations is bad..no go, man.

Tapi my 3rd thought is this: dia je orthopedic yang kata I tak perlu surgery.Itu sebab I still like him. :)

The good news is: my leg is actually getting better (confirmed by this doc.)
Maybe I won't see the neurologist after all.Buat mengabeh ke boraih je.Friday I go hydrotherapy at Prince Court.All I need is exercise I think ~ to strengthen my muscles.

Can we handle freedom of expression and criticism?

We have a long way to go, this country, but only idiots do not know that.

Very often when we get into debates, there are people who think we want war.And I'm the type who gets alive only by debating and arguing.Heh.

But anyway, let's talk about my leg.And my physiotherapist.
I see him twice a week these days.Hari ni I minta dia jgn massage my back cos' I'd get really bad leg pain as a result so he put the anti-stress stuffs on my leg.Apa lagi, I menjerit sekuat hati cos' I got a really bad leg cramp!! Wong pun panicked.Haha.

Ayoo...when will I get out of this pain.

I think of Kottakkal.

M for mystery, M for mom

My mom is back in the hospital.3 days today.She looks like she's getting worse.So they transferred her to CCU for close monitoring.The thing is we can't sleepover. I spent all morning with her at the hospital, sempat baca 3x yassin.Then I had to leave for work.Itupun Dr H helped cover KBM meeting. I text-ed my ustaz and asked if he could offer a special prayer for my mom.He said OK.Not long after that, Kak Ngah (who dropped by at lunch hours) rang to say mak went into a deep sleep sampai 7 org kejutkan dia tak sedar2.By now her readings of everything were normal.When she finally woke up, she said ada orang bawak dia jalan2..turun and naik bukit, bawak pi sungai hitam berlumpur, got kala jengking and left her in a boat..she knew she would not find her way back and would have drowned.Then the mysterious thing was the conversation she heard of two creatures:

A: ni semua bencana 2 orang tu.

B: Yang mana?

A: Dia dah pergi kerja

B: Yang mana?

A: Yang sakit tulang belakang tu

Funny right? No one sakit tulang belakang in the family except me.Did I save my mom cos' I baca Yassin before I left for work? Was it ustaz's special prayer that brought her back? But the two creatures tried again 4 times throughout the day..trying to take my mom on a longgggg journey.Everytime there would be someone who would wake her up again. Tonight we worry cos' it's no entry at CCU after 7.30pm.I just pray to Allah our Mom will be OK.I can only visit in the morning.

And we pray it's not her time to go...yet.

Lat the Musical

Lat and my family

Roti dua! Bumped into Dr Ruzy and hubby Dr Imran, seated behind us! (best friends of NZ days and now) kita 'membesar' bersama Z donning a Yuna styled tudung

pernah jadi top model...sekarang..peh!

the great cast

I never wept at a musical but at Lat the Musical, I did.

Maybe I reconnected with my childhood.Lat was part of my childhood.We all grew up on Keluarga si Mamat and Lat the Kampong Boy.As a young fan (I was in my primary or lower secondary then) I wrote to him, hoping for a response but did not really expect one.But Lat wrote back...sent me a pic of a flying pig that said You were the talk of town and inside it: even pigs could fly and he also drew a naked Epit (his youngest caricature of a kampong boy who I loved so much then).

So when we bumped into him as we were exiting the theatre...(the crowds were not there yet)..I just could not believe my luck.He came fwd and tegor kita (I had my MIL conveniently seated on a wheelchair to attract his attention!haha..wasn't planned)

Lat: datang dari mana?

Me (laughing): dari Kota Damansara (maybe he thought we were from IJN seberang jalan tu)

Lat: lagu2 sedap ya?

Me: ha'ah tapi it's quite sad actually

Lat: memanglah..kalau cerita betul.

I wanted to tell him I was the flying pig card gal..I wanted to give him my book..I wanted to say so many things..tapi teringat dalam play tu he said hidup dia dah takda privacy, dia malu nak jumpa peminat etc etc..so I walked away, leaving many things unsaid.Out of respect for him and respect for other fans queueing to take pics with him!

Fantastic storyline, bad costuming (except scenes in London and abroad), great cast (loved the kids), great music.

I'd go again.Show is on till April 5.Don't miss it!

Pics at CERDAS-Bank Muamalat Launch

Some pics at the event:

Rector kita

The MoU between IiBF and Bank Muamalat

Prof. Dato Azmi macam menteri

Yours truly semasa pertukaran cenderahati

the people at lunch sponsored by Bank Muamalat

teka sapa ikat reben ni?

(jawaban: Dr Haslina)

Yours truly dgn lawyer (syariah) Hafiz yang lawak

Yours truly di meja VVIP (rose yang mekar)

Dr Badri, my dean

MoU signing

The two CEOs

Yours truly menerangkan pasal hadiah

kpd CEO Bank Muamalat (personalised gift)

Brothers in Islam from Persatuan Cina Muslim

Some from Persatuan India Muslim

sudah-sudahlah tu

these days a lot of things make me angry but the latest shot on Anwar Ibrahim really make me wanna puke.Most fbookers (who will vote) asked, "takda modal lain ke?"

When less than 20% of the nation's population have university qualifications, inilah jadinya.
Hey bodos, sudah2lah tu...last GE 5 states sudah kantoi, mahu kantoi 5 lagi in the next GE?? We want REAL deliveries, not scandals in the papers.

Start working, stupid! Malaysia needs a lot of saving.

the power of making swift decision

I learnt something from today's event: the early bird catches the fattest worm.

When I wrote to numerous banks for a smart partnership with my Centre (a business wing of my Kulliyyah), Bank Muamalat made the swiftest decision and we moved into very swift move on a community programme.Other banks came 3 months late (but we still accepted their generous cheques...hahaha..but for other projects).Oh what a wonderful world when corporations are so involved in community services!

The product launch went extremely well.The bank sponsored a very nice lunch for students of the prog. they sponsored.We worked all day yesterday to do final touch ups...a lot of last min. improvisations esp the launching gimmick but hey! It was worth it.The gimmick was not your typical touch the button or ribbon cutting thingy ~ the audience loved it,said it was very clever (thankyouthankyou...pls hire Dr Haslina and me if you want nice storytellers/storyboard artists)

Yang penting we have something good going for the next 6 months and I hope many more after that.We want to see changes in the society.CSR rocks! The new Bank Muamalat CEO is a very intelligent man who has done well in re-branding Bank Muamalat.His b/ground isn't Finance/Banking per se.He's a businessman..see the difference? An articulate businessman recognises opportunities and makes smart decisions. :)) I think all Bank CEOS should know how to do business and not just be related to the Prime Minister.

Rehearsal

I never believed in rehearsals since I left school but IIUM suka sgt buat rehearsal.Mcm budak sekolah.

But after today's experience, I understand why better! Hoboy! Things can really go wrong if you do not rehearse.Suruh budak2 KAED buat launching gimmick but KAED kids are always busy.Suruh datang, tak datang.Suruh buat tu, lain yang keluar.In the end, Dr Haslina and I terpaksa buat cerita launching gimmick depa ni...but when you pay peanuts..what can you expect, kan? Budak2 pulak tahun 2...but I think they learn a lot from working with us (and team from the Bank).Dr H and I memang demanding. :))

But at the rehearsal, things didn't match at all..puas kita fikir how to solve the prob.Budak2 tu nampak tensi habis..mana nak fikir assignments due..and our project besok..but we gave them some suggestions.Hopefully things will go well besok.

My mom did her 3rd prosedure on her fistula hand.I went kejap but the surgery ptg baru boleh buat.Prof Hanafiah told his team of docs how lovely a lady my mom was (my sisters and I were like looking at each other and signalling iya la tu..hahaha.But memang the docs at HUKM love my mom sebab dia kinky.Hahaha).

Sal and Kak Ngah were the only ones who could hang around for the surgery (mcm biasalah.I pray that Allah reward them with the best).I'll visit besok after my event, InsyaAllah.

High drama pagi ni

It poured like mad this morn.Hubby warned me NOT to keluar early (flash flood in Kota Damansara, city of sin).I had to call Tan and say I'd drop by after work to sign a few docos.

Pagi ni was busy trying to persuade the big boss to attend our event/s on Saturday.Busy sms-es back and forth dalam kekalutan hujan pagi.Not easy to negotiate with your Boss.Takda sapa berani nak beritau dia apa2.Akhirnya I ambik keputusan berani mati and text-ed him what I thought.Hahaha.But I put it like I was trained in PR work (I do it better than my husband sometimes!).Phew..bukan senang weh! But alhamdulillah Dato Seri said OK to our plans on Saturday.I'm sure Dato' Azmi did his bit as well.I know my Dean did his best too.

Let's hope the other Dato CEO is OK with time.Kat Msia, people always arrive late, kan? It gives me the jitters.

By this time next year, folks, I want a new job.A job that will give me ocean view and lots of spa time.

Overheard...

It's my mom's month.She refused to go to her dialysis centre a couple of days ago.Sal was frantic.I made it worse.No one has the energy to go on another long ER trip.

But our mom would always win.So no dialysis for her that Saturday.Sal went off for her holiday and put mak in my care (which I didn't mind.Sal was in a dire need for a break).

Malam tu I dengar mak mcm ada symptoms of drowning but she buat2 control macho.I slept early.Kak Ngah was still text-ing me past midnite.I told her I was on valium and must have dozed off (I took something lesser than valium, though and woke up again at half past 1 in the morning.Went to check my mom's room.Alamak, she locked it.no way of knowing if she's OK or not)

By 6 am, I saw lights from her room.OKlah tu.Didn't want to disturb her.If she's not well, she would usually knock on my door.

Yang kelakar was Mek's ph conversation with her.Mak kata she wanted to balik Raub and live alone.Mek was like what? Who's going to take care of you.

Mak: Sedangkan ulat dalam batu boleh hidup (yeah..that ibu si Tanggang tone)
Mek: But the problem is...you are not ulat.

When Mek related the story to me, I was like bergulong2 ketawa.She's so funny!
Mak I yang tak pernah mau mengalah retorted: itulah sebab mak hantar kau orang belajar tinggi2..supaya kaorang boleh pandai menjawab balik...

Kelakar, kan? :)
Tadi pagi she gave me RM50 suruh beli pizza.I asked Z to order.

Z rang me later to ask if she could order another piece.I said kongsi je dgn wan.She said but wan said she wanted a small piece je and tak mau order yang besar. :))

Yup, my mom dah masuk ke alam kanak2 dia.Sometimes we forget that.

a deal which is no deal?

Sigh..I don't know what to say.
Are people not serious about anything at all these days?? (i'm just re-acting to a situation in which I may have to call off one of our progs at CERDAS.I cannot risk speakers turning up late.Not when people are paying to hear them speak on integrity, responsibility, maybe punctuality!

Lesson learnt: do not rush into organising a prog unless you know the people you invite, personally.
However, I pray to God things will go accordingly.There would always be hiccups, right?

This is another short story material.

nice lazy weekend

Z was home over the weekend.You know what it means...$$ and more $$ to cater to her needs, kan?
So we went to dine at Bangsar Shopping Centre. Semua eateries mcm dah bosan nak masuk but hey, we hadn't been to the Pressroom.So we went.

Makanannya sedap, price reasonable.Ramai mat salleh but many looked like wood choppers (Z's aside to me.Hahaha).And why do Malaysians dine and talk so loud at the same time? Macam pasar ikan! I like a quiet environment when I eat.Kalau tak, rasa nak tercekik menelan! I think if there's something we need to improve on, it is our dining etiquette.Kalau kat rumah, takpalah so casual.

Z had her do at the Turkish School. We bought a variety of foreign goodies (foods and drinks): from South Korea (kim chi); Iran (goat drink dia masin!); baklava from Turkiye (hmm nice!) and some chicken rice from Central Asia (yang ada tan-tan kat belakang nama negara dia).Met some of Z's turkish teachers and of cos', the amiable Principal of the school.Lama dah tak jumpa mereka. Berpeluk2 mesra.

We also visited Pak Din.Every time, there would be new surprises.Kali ni with Nabihah. :)

Effective Dawah Workshop

This is a short notice but my biz partner just alerted me of her guest coming mid March.Introducing..ta-ra..Bro. Idris Tawfiq, former British Catholic priest who converted to Islam and now travels round the world to share with his audience about what Islam is.

CERDAS being CERDAS will host his workshop on Effective Dawah at only RM200 per head (it's now or never, folks.Jangan kedekut when it comes to menuntut ilmu).

Here's our details:
Date: March 28, 2011 (Monday)
Venue: IIUM Gombak (will confirm the room later)
Contact person: Prof Faridah 013 353 3342

Itinerary:
9 - 10 am What is dawah? Why is it important?
10 -10-30 am Coffee break
10.30 - 12 noon Tips on effective dawah
12 - 2.00 pm Lunch and prayer break
2 - 3 pm Experience sharing ( participants share what work/what not in their dawah work)
3 - 4 pm Conclusion (Where do we go from here)
4 pm Coffee break and adjourn

Please spread the info esp to your orang2 surau and masjid.This is a speaker you will not want to miss!
See you at CERDAS!

Benefits of charity/sadaqah

A friend whose home was broken into a couple of weeks ago is traumatised.She rang me up for support (I was in my power meeting.Can I call you back soonest I'm done, I asked.Poor thing).

When I rang her (hours after I got home and remembered), I spoke of my experience being tested with ailment. It is God's way of reminding us to remember Him.First, feel grateful that Allah reminded us. She told me what I knew myself cos' I went through it: dah lama tak baca Quran, dah lama tak buat amalan2 sunat, etc.

And I shared with her fadilat sadaqah.Four things:

1. Sadaqah memanjangkan usia
2.Sadaqah meluaskan rezeki
3.Sadaqah menghindarkan kita dari penyakit
4.Sadaqah menghindarkan kita dari bala/musibah

But do it kerana Allah (not becos' we want all fours stated above).Do it cos' you mean it (ikhlas...sehingga tangan kiri tidak tahu tangan kanan memberi). Sadaqah is not only monetary.A smile is a sadaqah.A kindness done is a sadaqah.Sadaqah is something you give consistently.Biar sedikit.

As we talked on the phone, we both felt comforted.I didn't counsel her.I counselled myself.

Sometimes you need a friend on the other end.To understand what you go through.

Meeting went well

Alhamdulillah we had fun discussing possibilities for one of our projects this year.One of the perks I like working at CERDAS is the opportunity to meet new people, new clientele, new humour, new creativity (in getting job done).Eh, syok lah kerja macam ni.If only my legs could run faster!

I have another interesting project tonight.Talk about it later.

Seminar on Peace and Conflict Studies

It went well, alhamdulillah.We had great fun over the 2 days.Our homegrown scholars were so erudite and funny.The four keynotes were absolutely fantastic.Prof Dan Christie's coolness was so cool that he got all of us gawking at him and listening intently.Kawan I kata dia hensem.Haha.He's a well-known Peace Psychologist and when asked whether peace psychologists (largely consulted in times of war or in preparation of war) contributed more to peace or conflict.Ta-ra...he said more to war.Mat Salleh is always transparent, kan? Kalau local politicians,mesti belit sana, belit sini.

The whole thing was conducted in an informal way (audience butting in whenever they liked..throwing in witty remarks, provocating the speakers etc)

It was a nice collaboration between CERDAS, Psy Dept and Political Science although many students came up to us and gave full credit to CERDAS.Hahaha..I had to correct them and said it was Psy/Pol Sci's project...we were just helping out (for the dough).They didn't want to believe.Gasaklah.. diehard fans ni...some were fans from my Alumni days :)

Anyway, another cheque has come in and we'll have a meeting with one of our clients on Monday on how to publicise one of the progs we do.MasyaAllah, Allah be praised.We didn't ask to be famous but we'll take it anyway. :))

Healers and doctors

Everyone knows I have been feeling a wee bit under the weather lately.Because of the natural inclination to get better, one would consult one healer after the other, knocking on medical consultant's door from time to time, alternative med practitioners' as well.

I can write a book on this! It's interesting how doctors and healers have their own personalities and approaches.Not even one is the same.It's so amazing (and funny at times).

One thing for sure: if you see traditional healers, most would say ada gangguan (either syaitan atau jinn).There are a couple of exceptions (the skeptics).There are those who claim they only use verses of Quran but you can never be sure if they too are not guilty of associating themselves with their own jinns.

There are others who tell you different things by day and another by night (all in one day..like I change my mind...I thought but!)

Interesting meetings,folks but I have concluded earlier: hanya Allah Maha Penyembuh, hanya Allah Maha Pelindung, the rest are just good samaritans trying to assist the sick and needy. Take it or leave it.

Please do not voodoo me for saying this but ramai juga yang menipu! Just be careful not to fall into syirik acts (bila dia start mintak ayam seekor, benang banyak colours..beware! Run for your life! I have heard so many stories from other friends...ada yang mintak tanah kubur.Na'uzubillah!)

The doctors are interesting creatures as well but the ones I saw today were the nicest, the most professional I'd met.Remember my experience with two Orthopedics two years ago? (I ended crying after meeting one cos' he was so insensitive and arrogant and I screamed at his face: get me another doctor! I guess I was equally arrogant but hey, I was the one in pain and paying!)

My Physician at the former SJMC (hate the new name) was so cool.I liked him cos' he said there was nothing wrong with me..just some lack of vits somewhere (I had packed my bag to be admitted cos' my GP said I ought to be admitted.Chiss! GPs usually act like they are the specialists and are good at giving false alarms.Don't voodoo me for saying this!)

My Orthopedic Surgeon was better (trained at Cambridge..my first impression was..sure conservative habis ni..mesti nak kerat aku 18...) My God, how wrong I was.We have a new breed of doctors who are so open to so many things (one even applauded me for going complementary med!)

OK folks, thanks for your prayers.Let's hope the healing process continue to be easy and that Allah continues to protect me and all of us and give us health for indeed health is wealth.

The next fiction

Folks, I am writing fiction all the time without it being written!

It's funny how easy it is to self-censor: you are afraid of being judged (not so much this with me); you are afraid of your 'enemy' stalking you and casting more evil on you (heh..may be...), you are afraid of your work creating political unrest 40 years from now (haha, I wish!)

So let me tell you my latest fiction:

A series of tests fell upon the protagonist.He looked for solutions outside himself but later discovered that the cure was actually within himself and his total submission to the Maker.Tareqat? Hakikat? Sufism? Quite intriguing if you start googling on the topic.To purify yourself you need to do this:

1.banyak beristighfar
2.kurangkan makan dan minum
3.solat wajib jangan tinggal dan banyakkan amalan-amalan sunat seperti amalan yang dibuat oleh Rasulullah (saw)
4.rendah diri dan tidak menyombongkan diri
5.mengurangi tidur
6.banyak zikir dan berfikiran yang baik-baik sahaja
7.kurang bercakap
8. zuhud
9.menerima dengan senang hati anugerah dari Allah
10.yakin hanya kepada Allah (e.g. hanya Dia Maha Penyembuh, hanya dia Maha Melindungi, hanya dia Pemberi Rezeki, etc)
11.sentiasa berbuat baik sesama manusia, tinggal hawa nafsu dan kesenangan dunia dan mengamalkan ajaran Islam bersungguh2.

I got this from an article by Abdi Ramran Umamah.Really cool.

Now to weave all these into the written form.I appreciate oral literature now! To write is soooooooooo difficult.

In health and in sickness..

I was visiting someone I just met at the Prince Court Medical Centre today.Beautiful woman who had gone through a lot in life, seemingly regretting some. I can't help wondering what I would be like in her position.Would I have as much strength? As much patience? As much forgiveness of those I have wronged and sinned against? (usually done unintentionally).

I learnt this: in health and in sickness, you'll triumph if you hold on to the rope of Allah.A complete submission.
I have been tried in the last month or so (in my ailment, losing sleep and in immense pain) but I have come to this conclusion: things happen for reasons only known to Allah, and ONLY by HIS grace.You simply have to persevere in your pain and sadness.

Seeing my new friend sitting a pretty picture in her continuous search for happiness and internal peace (occasionally breaking down with every prayer recited by a Kuwaiti imam on her MP3), I could not help thinking how fortunate we both are...that we still have time to offer our gratitude for our test of sickness (it brought us closer to Allah) and that whatever hardships we face now are nothing compared to others.

In times of health and sickness, Allah is your only Companion. And not many people recognise this until they are fully tested.

Ready made sons and a long weekend

Happy Chinese New Year.I have the whole week off.

The 6 hafiz boys from Brunei came to stay over the long break.Oh my! I could not help imagining if I had 6 sons and a daughter! Nik seemed the happiest! (budak2 pinjam kain pelekat dia, sembahyang jumaah sama-sama, baca yassin malam jumaat...wahhh..it's like the perfect family setup!)

We took them to Mazidah's Art's Cream Gallery for the gelatos before dining at Bosphorus (Turkish cuisine).Imagine if you had a big family macam ni nak makan kat luar.Balik mesti limping! Hahaha.

Z looked like the spoilt only gal child.Orang lain makan benda sama, she'd order extra.Abang2 dia tengok je.Haha.
Oh well, have a nice long weekend.

Farewell party at Langgak Golf

I thought I'd drop by, say farewell to NZ High Commissioner His Excellency David Kersey and his lovely wife Gillian Das, and leave.
It was hard to leave early.People at the party were nice to chat with. :) Jumpa lah duta2 negara2 yang lain.I distributed our peace and conflict studies seminar flyers.Ada duta nak datang but I said kena bayar juga. Terpaksa buat muka tebal.

Azran Osman Rani, CEO of Air Asia X was there too.This guy's wittiness could be easily passed off as arrogance.I tak suka sangat dia for this. He always makes anyone talking to him feel stupid. :) I asked him betul ke Air Asia crashed kat Kuching (I tak baca papers so when my friend said the media didn't cover the news, we all thought papers dah kena beli).Azran explained what happened.I said then their PR should have explained this to their clients who now fear flying AA..Azran kata front page in NST and ada dalam Star also.I said oh.I don't read papers anymore. I said my friend said she looked for the crash news.Azran said if she were looking for the crash news, memanglah takkan jumpa.He said (nicely though) that the plane skidded but no one was hurt.Duh! Doesn't that make you feel stupid? :) But you have got to give it to this young chap lah.He's very alert, very quick.Very sportive too.

I also met this interesting lawyer who said something flattering to me: you look very intellectual.Hahaha.I said pls have some more food (mcm party tu aku yang punya!) Kita planned nak buat some projects bersama.Ni yang syok bila network.Got so many ideas to do this and that.With Puan Sri Elizabeth Amar Leo Moggie of Badan Warisan also ...and the Lady High Commissioner from Africa pun ada projects bagus nak buat.If only I could walk faster!

Footnote on David Kersey: I think like most NZ High Commissioners before him, David is very friendly and humble.He served 4 years plus in Malaysia (it felt like a couple of years je).David has done a lot for NZ-Msia ties and I like what one of his friends said in his farewell toast to David: what do you give a man who's leaving Msia and coming back again (his wife, Gillian is of Msian origin and they do return to KL pretty often).Well, good luck to both David and Gillian and thank you both for your hospitality especially in hosting our Asia-Pac dinner 2 years ago.Your kindness will go a longggggg way.

mencari daun mengkudu

Last night I slept better.Was it Darren's healing touch? (my physiotherapist who's very attentive and kind).Was it all the doas? But I slept longer hours and less pain last night.Syukurlah.

Nik came back with some Darul Shifa' solution: goreng lada hitam dengan garam kasar and alas dgn daun mengkudu and just tunku kat tempat yang sakit.

This morning I went looking for all these stuffs.Garam and lada hitam, no prob.Daun mengkudu? Yikes...how does it look like in the first place.I thought of a spot at IIUM.Rang Nora tanya itukah daun mengkudu.Dia pun tak sure.After making enquiries, she rang back and said, itu bukan daun mengkudu.Itu pucuk kaduk yang orang selalu buat nasi ulam. Kantoi!

So at the Achehnese shop, I asked around, "Do you know where I could get daun mengkudu?" The cashier pointed to a bush across the road.But there were so many trees and scrubs.Yang mana satu? People were so busy to stop and show me.

Then I went around and started picking what I thought was mengkudu.A lady who earlier heard that I was looking for mengkudu, stopped me and said, itu pokok bunga, puan..mengkudu pokok besar tu. Still, she was pointing at a distance and there were many pokok besar.

Finally tengok I so bodoh, she came down out of her car and showed me betul2 inilah mengkudu.Hahaha.I can't believe strangers can be so kind! May God bless her!

Bibik tunku..ayoo..like a spa sedapnya...more!more! but I had to go to work.Nanti malam sambung ~ after my farewell dinner with NZ High Commissioner at Langgak Golf.David and Gilian are beautiful people.Walaupun I sakit kaki, I must go sekejap and bid them farewell (they were supportive of our Asia-Pac conference 2 years ago by hosting one of our dinners).

Azwadi's farewell lunch

With the owners of Art's Cream Gallery, Pavilion

(best local gelato you can get in Malaysia, at a very reasonable price.Go enjoy!)

So we all went to Mazidah's Art's Cream Gallery at the Pavilion to say farewell to Azwadi.Wan Helmi (the new manager)also joined us. Everyone said they loved the place.The gelatos, tiramisu cake and pastas were great.Great companions, lots of laughter.Hopefully the pics will come soon.

Was late for my chiro treatment but managed to do it, anyway.I feel it makes no difference (cos' of driving?).Sigh.
But seeing Mazidah and her husband, Affendi was good.Must bring Z and Nik to this place.They would love their durian gelato.

Slipped disc and Tanjong Malim Pau

I am still in pain despite various alternative treatments for my slipped disc.Alhamdulillah I still have my mobility and still go to work.Do not like me signed up for ridiculous package in times of need (people would always take advantage of your pain).Remember I paid almost RM50K for my spine treatment 2 years ago? It worked for a while and now the guy wanted more money if I were to continue with him.I should go to the police.But my lesson is an expensive one.A lot of wasted energy and time as well.

So now I'm seeing this South African chiropractor at Mt Kiara.Before that, a Russia-trained neurologist who's free lancing.I gave up on him cos' the treatment was so painful (but it worked for my upper body..my frozen shoulders, stiff neck etc).

Everyone's screaming Avoid surgery! Avoid surgery!
But if the pain is so extreme and I go sleepless for so long, how? Can tahan kah?

So on Saturday, I agreed to go with Nik to visit Z and we took her out to eat Tanjong Malim pau.Ayohhh..so many people and the place is so badly managed.Service so slow, place so dirty...I told Nik kalau sedap macamana pun, kalau mcm ni, I would not come again.He agreed.But then came in the pau in all flavors and the King Prawn Mee...ayo yoo...manyak sedap! It was worth the long wait!

Malam tu, I twisted and turned again.In pain.Kalau ada sapa2 tau a painless therapy centre for slipped disc, pls O pls let me know.

Power Voice workshop with Richard la Faber

Finally the workshop we had been looking forward to!

It went very well..our participants left with a big smile on their face.Richard is an angel.He's such a humble and generous person.Suara sedap giler.We all became like him at the end: resonance, deep, confident voices.The guys from Kuantan went back as macho men. :)) But as always the rest of the world failed to recognise opportunities.But it is better to look at the half filled glass than the half empty one and those who made the effort would definitely rule the world. :))

The next time you hear me speak, ahem...macam pembaca berita. Grin.

11.1.11 Surprise Party

Yes, thank you all for your best wishes on the day I turn er..24. I love all of you too.I have been blessed with so many great friends (great students/former students).

My CERDAS office planned a bday surprise but unfortunately, I found out! It was so funny.It started with Hasnah telling me Dr. H wanted to meet at 12.30 for a short discussion (kita memang byk projects this year).I said OK but I have to rush to pick my mom to send her to her dialysis centre.Sementara tu I went down to the cafeteria to have my lunch and went back to the pantry to have my health drink.On my way to the kitchen, I saw Nadira bergegas-gegas like she was up to no good (I was wondering hmm..dia buat apa pulak ni).But I let it go.At the pantry I saw Dr H tengah mengeluarkan lots of plates from the cabinet and I asked what was going on.Her answer takda apa..takda apa just meant there was something fishy going on then zap! I suspected!

Lepas tu Dr H said jom kita pi meeting room kejap.I just burst laughing and said eleh leh leh...nak kasi I surprise party ya? They all kantoi! And kita ketawa mcm nak bergolek2 lagi.
At the meeting room was a real surprise ==> I didn't expect they'd go all out to prepare stuffs for me: siap with a lovely cake which Hasnah pressured her babysitter to bake in the middle of the nite!
Guys, I am touched and thank you for your nice gesture.May Allah bless each of you.Dr Haslina: thank you so much for being such a great partner at CERDAS.I hope you'll be rewarded accordingly.I hope we'll make lots of money for CERDAS this year so that we can retire early and live in Hawaii. Haha.

To Abam: thank you for those lovely roses, hand-made carpets and I love that card (which says "you are so beautiful"). Nik just know how to please me. :))
To Z: although I love Lady Gaga and can sing her song...what do I do with the CD you bought me? Haha.I accept anyway.Thanks honey.I know you are proud of me for being able to sing "I want your ugly..I want your love!love! love!love!" Well, I can do Madonna too.Nak tengok? Wink.

Birthday dinner

We went to Top Hat on Jalan Stonor to celebrate my birthday (besok but Z is going back on Monday so kita keluar awal so that we could be together).

Top Hat has been winning Best Restaurant for 5 years berturut2 (until 2007 I think) and is very popular with corporations.They were having a group of RMCs celebrating their 50th year the nite we were there but RMCs being RMCs..so disciplined.Their party ain't noisy at all.I liked!

Go for Top Hat's Onion Soup.Sedap giler.Caesar Salad is not as nice as Mandarin O's.
The lamb ribs are not as nice as Tony Roma's but OK-lah.
The juices were great.
Environs was great but if you go upstairs mcm rumah hantu...
But I'd go again for a private function with close friends.The place is cosy.Food range tak banyak,though but banyak2 pun buat apa.You can only eat a dish at a time.It's more than twice cheaper than dining at Mandarin O

Old gals in the new block

Happy new year, everyone! I didn't stay up late to watch new year fireworks (Z did...she slept over at one of the rich apartments near KLCC and saw the bright future ~ a young teenager's perspective).

The new year started with so many unfinished/postponed businesses.DELL hosted the Foleys (from the US).Jack Foley is a well-known arts critic, poet and talk show host in San Francisco.His wife Adelle is also famous as a haiku poet.Their son Dr. Sean Foley is at ISTAC as a Fulbright scholar so when Sean offered his parents to read at the Dept, I jumped at the opportunity.And what fun it was.Jack is a genius (reads Latin, Greek, German and French).I just love listening to him.He's also very, very funny. We had Kerry (Sean's wife) in the afternoon to speak on issues surrounding women trafickking.A new world for our students.

Then Nik's mom got admitted into the hospital.Then my mom (at IJN).My spine's pain spread to my hip...I had to take leave to rest (but of cos' I had to run between 'serving' my mom and my mom in law).If this is a test from God, I'd do what my NLP friend tells me to do, "makin aku diuji, makin aku redho dan ikhlas Ya Allah." I have a new zikir, "Makin aku diuji, makin aku sayang kepadaMu dan Islam, Ya Allah" ~ just so you don't kufur with ujian! (reversed psychology).

Have you been to the new IJN block? Waaahhhh...macam hotel! Whoever designed it was a good soul.It's so people-friendly (the kind of place you don't mind being sick in).It's like being in a 5-star shopping mall! (OK I exaggerate a little but you do get that feeling).

But as I sms-ed Datin Z whose husband sits on IJN board...some nurses behave like they work in small district hospitals...tak padan dgn bangunan yang begitu indah dan canggih! HUKM nurses nampak better trained!

We are celebrating my bday early this year (cos' Z goes back to her college tomorrow).I'll tell you about this new place we have just discovered.