Marriages

If you really think about it so many things can go wrong in a marriage..... but then again, so many things can also turn out alright !!! since life's a gamble anyway, for those of you who are hesitating out there, just take the plunge people :)

Today has been all about weddings.

A close relative finally found the right one at 44 and a big congratulations go out to the newly weds. she threw a very quiet & low key kenduri kesyukuran cum wedding reception for family & friends after zohor. indeed she looked every inch the radiant bride even though its been about a week since the nikah ceremony. semoga berbahagia dunia akhirat dan dilimpahi nikmat rahmatNYA.

Later in the day golfman & i were both invited to a pre-wedding meeting, which included a scrumptious dinner (graciously prepared by the tuan rumah herself). one of his golf buddies was marrying off his daughter in 2 weeks time and was putting together family & friends to help out with the ushering duties. the host used to be one of the senior vps so there'll be plenty of oilmen attending. and it came as no surprise that the hubs was appointed one of the 'oilmen usherers' since he'd certainly be in his element.... jgn brtukar jadi p.ramlee's orang minyak dah ler heheh.

Hmmm... rupanya ada jugak jejaka german yang kecik molek ek.

Workout Log
AM/aerobics - 45 mins/medium pace/dataran shah alam
AM/run - 4k/35 mins/tasik

Kecemerlangan

Cemerlang... surely a word that carries with it such high expectations. especially if we jazz it up with a couple of glam words or turn it into the national catch phrase like 'cemerlang, gemilang & terbilang'.

A heavy responsibility to carry.

Especially if you're a kid.

AH's school had a majlis anugerah kecemerlangan pelajar2 PMR & SPM this morning along with the annual PIBG meeting. 68 students went on stage to be personally presented with a pen and certificate by the shah alam mayor himself... which means AH & gang have been lucky enough to meet up with the previous MB and also the mayor over their pmr achievement. the spm recepients were also there looking pretty jubilant over their awards, and at spm level, they truly deserve it. for us malaysians whether we like it or not, spm is one of life's major crossroads.

The thing is what's our perception of the word 'cemerlang'? yes, we all want our kids to be cemerlang but sometimes i think we've all developed a sort of tunnel vision where the word is concerned. perform, perform, perform.... its all about the A's. now who's not proud of having a kid who comes up with straight A's, but at what cost? its ok if they are allowed to play as hard as we want them to work but sometimes, sometimes, we get so carried away that we heartlessly take away all the joy from their lives.

Case in point is AH's new pengetua. she's sooooo into discipline (during her speech she admitted to having majored in psychology but also admits to being a disciplinarian... a word that she actually had trouble pronouncing) she forgets that she's dealing with kids. kids are born full of hope & optimism.... until we heartlessly squash it dead that is. high school is not just a place where they gather knowledge about the world and their surrroundings, its also a place where they discover themselves. they need to interact and come to terms with their limits & boundaries.... and for that we need to accord them with a certain amount of freedom.

Discipline is necessary to maintain a certain level of order and self displine is needed if we want to keep improving ourselves. but like everything else, we should avoid extremes... even when it comes to something as necessary as discipline. teachers can insist on discipline all they want during the course of a school day but it surely doesnt bode well for the students if they're not allowed to let their hair down on certain special occasions like school matches & sportsday?!

Instruction was given that excessive cheering, face markings, related accessories like head gears or arm bands will not be tolerated.... the pengetua had determined that it's all related to 'rowdy behaviour'. ooh come on.... how can one generate motivation and inspiration in the fields through docility & meekness??? how can we produce champions when we put their spirits on a tight leash? and how can we keep the sporting spirit alive with the children when we ourselves are not sporting?

And with so much emphasis placed on academic achievement, surely it also doesnt bode well for the students if their annual ceria-ton (or concert day), an event which is very much looked forward to, might be scraped from the school calendar all in the name of keeping discipline?! sportsday and concertday are 2 events that's a must for any school, be it in shah alam or yokohama.... because thats when the kids get the opportunity to showcase their other talents.

We need to remember its not just about IQ, its also about emotional intelligence & social intelligence.... and a whole lot of other things that completes us as a person.

If we want kecemerlangan from the kids, we really do need to get things into its proper perspective.

Maulidur Rasul

Very very quiet on the home front this morning.... just a bunch of sleeping children (2 semi-adults actually) and extremely pampered kitty cats (theres 3 now thanks to mak & her new found role as catwoman).

I had to miss out on the perarakan maulidur rasul with my gang of officemates but i just couldnt squeeze in the morning practises into my already loaded schedule. it would have been fun being part of the state parade... you would end up quite sweaty & bothered in the sponsored 'costume' but fun nevertheless (a band of old farts goofing about lol).

As usual it was the tasik again for me. i wish i felt more safe & secure running along the roads of shah alam (its home after all) but the dog & monkey incident still haunts me so in the end its always, always, the tasik. it gets pretty boring sometimes making the same loop over and over buuuut.. i hate feeling scared more than i hate the boredom of repetition. theres usually lots of people about no matter the time of day (no dogs or monkeys for sure) and repetition can be rather theurapetic in its own way (or so i keep telling myself hehe).

So unless a running buddy miraculously turns up (i'm not giving up on turning my man into just that person but its gonna take awhile yet lol), its the same old same old.

AF came home late last nite for a nice long weekend break since his friday lectures were cancelled. unfortunately today, on another of his usual kl forays, he banged the avanza against another tiang, yet again (the same spot as before but this time its banged up pretty badly). gawd whats with him and his left side? his judgement really sucks big time.

Weell, accidents do happen i guess but he'll still have to face the music when golfman comes home saturday morning.

AH seems happy enough after her outing to sunway with ainal & gang. there was the F1 school thingy followed by a nice long session of ice skating. thank god she has quite a level head on her shoulders. its actually a blessing she pulled out of that sinking relationship when she did. she probably would've ended up hurting herself even more by letting it drag on. but for a 15 year old to put her foot down and say 'either you love me or you dont', especially to a guy she's been hero worshipping for as long as i can remember.... now that took a lot of guts!!! power to you my darling!! insyallah theres already someone better out there just waiting to be discovered ;)

Now to my other darling who cant be home this time round due to his endless stream of assignments.... ijat sayang, nanti ma cuba jenguk ek when abah comes home. luvya lots missya plenty.

Workout Log
AM/run - 8k/tasik/ forgot all about timing but it must've been pretty slow bcos i wasnt sweating as much as usual. hmmm..

Reminders

Reminder 1.

The January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter lists some of the benefits of 30 minutes of exercise a day:

Lower blood pressure: A reduction of 5 to 10 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) is possible. In some cases, that’s enough to prevent or reduce the need for blood pressure medications.

Improve cholesterol: Exercise often increases the concentration of high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good” cholesterol in the blood), especially when accompanied by weight loss. Exercise also helps reduce triglyceride levels.

Prevent or manage type 2 diabetes: Exercise helps insulin work better, lowering blood sugar. - diabetes is a great concern of mine, very high risk from my paternal side.

Manage weight: Coupling exercise with a healthy diet is the best way to shed fat and maintain a healthier body composition.

Prevent osteoporosis: Exercise may increase bone density and protect against bone mass decline, especially if weight-bearing activities are involved.

Prevent cancer: Exercise has been shown to strengthen the immune system, improve circulation, reduce body fat and speed digestion. Each has a role in preventing cancer, particularly cancers of the colon, prostate, uterine lining and breast. - from my maternal side.

Maintain mental well-being: Exercise may help reduce stress, improve mild-to-moderate depression and anxiety, improve sleep and boost moods.

Increase energy and stamina: A lack of energy often results from inactivity, not age. - hear, hear..... theres hope yet for old farts like me heheh. lets get active people!!!!

Reminder 2.

ScienceDaily (Feb. 9, 2008) — The consequences of quitting exercise may be greater than previously thought, according to a new study from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that determined that the weight gained during an exercise hiatus can be tough to shed when exercise is resumed at a later date.

The study, conducted by Paul Williams of Berkeley Lab’s Life Sciences Division, found that the key to staying trim is to remain active year-round, year-after-year, and to avoid seasonal and irregular exercise patterns. Most of all, don’t quit. Failure to do so may be a contributing factor in the nation’s obesity epidemic. It should prompt people to think twice before taking a break from their exercise regimens, despite the pressures of family and work obligations, or waning motivation.

Using data collected from the National Runners’ Health Study, Williams found that the impacts of increasing and decreasing vigorous exercise aren’t the same among all runners. At distances above 20 miles per week in men and 10 miles per week in women, the pounds gained by running less were about the same as the pounds lost by running more. At these exercise levels, the effects of training and quitting training are comparable, and the weight gains and losses associated with changes in exercise levels are probably reversible.

However, Williams found that people who didn’t run as many miles per week face an uphill battle if they want to lose the pounds accumulated during an exercise hiatus. At these less intense levels, an interruption in exercise produces weight gain that is not lost by simply resuming the same exercise regimen.

“At lower mileages, there is asymmetric weight gain and loss from increasing and decreasing exercise, leading to an expected weight gain from an exercise hiatus,” says Williams. “In other words, if you stop exercising, you don’t get to resume where you left off if you want to lose weight.”

Specifically, Williams compared 17,280 men and 5,970 women who decreased their running distance with 4,632 men and 1,953 women who increased their running distance over a 7.7-year period. He found that runners who decreased their distance from five to zero miles per week gained four times as much weight as those who decreased their distance from 25 to 20 miles per week. He also found that people who started running after an exercise layoff didn’t lose weight until their mileage exceeded 20 miles per week in men, and 10 miles per week in women.

Adeh susah betui laaa.... dah active nak kena keep active pulak tu. but then nobody said keeping fit & healthy was a breeze now did they?

hmmmm its definitely a life long commitment. takpe la mudah2an tak nyusahkan anak2 nanti, insyallah.

Keeping busy

When one is in a troubled state of mind keeping busy is probably one of the best options. dwelling on it will only make things worse so.... busy busy busy. and when one tires of all that running about, sleep isnt too bad a choice either. you conk off and next thing you know... "hey, its another day" ;)

Then of course theres always, always peace & solace in the AlMighty.


Workout Log
AM/run - 4k/35 mins/ tasik

A Week without..

... the man.

Functioning and managing as only half of a complete whole is nothing new but its been awhile. Abe's been home for the past couple of months so it needs some getting used to... again. the good part is, this time its just for a week.. the bad part is, he might be reassigned to the caspian sea for yet another undetermined length of time.

Gawd, how i hate managing alone.

But..... we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

One of the compensations of being left behind is having some space to call my own... which means i get to run in the mornings again and maybe be able to move back to a certain level of consistency. i find that without regular exercise fatigue sets in more easily and i just dont have room for that in my life. not with so many depending on me.... to stay sane, happy, healthy & functioning.


Workout Log
AM/Slow Jog - 4k/40 mins/ tasik

Growth

My heart goes out to my lil girl.

What you did certainly took a lot of guts but he shouldnt be allowed to keep on breaking your heart. and however painful it might be right now, you will overcome this insyallah.

WE will always love you no matter what.

Helpless

As parents it hurts us to no end when we sometimes have to take on the role of a helpless bystander.. while our children battle the challenges that life seems to constantly throw at all of us; challenges that are actually necessary for our growth.

The urge to shield & to protect is sooo strong that sometimes we literally have to force ourselves to step back and not interfere. heck we love them with all our heart & soul... so its only natural that we'd want to intervene when a mistake seems to be in the making. aaaah, how frequently we've interfered with the ready justification of " i did it because i love you"!!

But makan garam dulu doesnt guarantee that we're always right and what is best for us doesnt necessarily mean it would be best for them. sometimes they need to go through the heartache & hardship to become stronger; they need to make the mistakes so that they can learn from it and become better.

Still, knowing all this doesnt make it any easier.

Just understand one thing though, mama's always here for you.. and you.. and you, no matter what. selagi hayat di kandung badan mama akan mendoakan yang terbaik.

Where were you?

" i walked for miles along the beach.. searching endlessly for someone wonderful to step out of the darkness and change my life. it never crossed my mind that the person could be me "
- ANON


i've been soo busy, i've almost lost touch with myself....


Workout Log.
Run/PM - 3km/forgot about keeping time/sect. 9

Big words

".... orchestrating learning opportunities.... "

Management books are interesting tapi kalau the authors tetiba get these 'syiok sendiri' attacks, agak leceh la nak faham. apa salahnya kalau keep it simple and direct but nooooooo.... nampaknya the more berbelit the better. why? baru nampak macam dia pandai kot sebab the masses tak paham.

Sebenarnye simplifying things and making it easily understood lagi challenging, lagi menunjukkan ke'terra'an seseorang tu bukan sebaliknye. if only most writers could understand that, senang hidup.

Golfman pun actually terpengaruh jugak dengan budaya 'lets make it berbelit2' ni (skit2 la). there was this unfinished report that he brought home and although he kept singing about it the whole weekend, tapi tak jugak buat2. i knew he was going to throw in a last minute effort... with me in the equation somehow. sooo when the somewhat unscheduled sweet talking/kissing/caressing started, i couldnt help but laugh. alaaaa trick lama la bang hehehe... quite obviously an udang sebalik mee/ scooter sebalik lori kinda situation, dah tau sangat. Abe weh, tak butter up pun kita tolong jugak la, takkan nak biar Abe bersengkang mata sorang2 kan ;)

So he whips out a couple of management books and shows me some of the important sounding terms that could be used to spice up his report.

Hah?

Iisssh.... toksah nak ikut2 sangat la all the bombastic words my darling. keeping it sweet & simple should be the order of the day. biar ramai yang faham and appreciate what you're trying to get across; not swayed by the 'glamorous' feel tapi bila kaji habuk pun tarak.

Lets just leave that to our dear politicians... after all they've turned it into an artform.


Workout Log
Aerobics/Am - 40 mins/mid to high/dataran shah alam

Once in 4 years..

A special day? perhaps.... after all it doesnt come around every year now does it?!!

Tapi kan i'm thinking kalau ikut je lunar months, tak yah la nak adjust2 (eh ya ke?). rasanya la but what do i know.

Yang pasti i'm going nuts-o!!

.. my monthly's gone haywire this month, probably premenapausal in nature (i dont even want to think about the other possibilities).

.. my previous projek cuti sekolah (moving the kiddoes bedrooms) is still on hold until we install air cond to the den. and the hubs isnt showing any signs of that happening anytime soon.

.. the recent skyhigh water bill seems to be indicative of a leak somewhere along the pipes within the property (it has rocketted to RM300+ without any reason whatsoever), which means we need to engage the services of a plumber. but golfman isnt showing any signs of that happening anytime soon either (he'd rather tutup the mains before he goes off to bed).

.. the erratic weather and sudden downpours have caused mild (but still irratingly inconvenient) flooding of my wet kitchen, thus cementing the fact that the contractor we'd hired was a freakin' asshole. some rectification work is necessary but again i dont foresee anything happening anytime soon.

Aaargghh.

BUT regardless of all the BS.... 29/02/2008 is still a special day.

RK trivia - i am addicted to text twist. after a while it becomes kinda boring but i still sit there like a fool and do it anyway. pathetic... that i am i guess. or compulsive without the obsessive? dunno but right now the whooshing sound is bliss.

Kereta oh kereta

Alahai lamanya nak arrange tukar nama ni.... should always think twice before buying a car whose owner is over the seas. leceh seribu kali leceh.

Dah letih la hunggar sana hunggar sini, asyik laju tak menentu. i've never been a wilting bunga tanjung behind the wheels (my kids will attest to my fast driving) but lately its been a madder than mad rush... and i dont think it augers well for anyone.

Crash - boom - bang!!! gawd, thats the last thing i'd want to happen!!! but i find myself flooring the pedal just the same... mainly because i wanna get off the roads as fast as i can.

This super supir-o needs a little time-out. yup, she'd rather be pounding the pavements. ooh the morning runs is a thing of the past now. its been absolutely ages and the sad thing is i still havent been able to come up with a satisfactory alternative. uwaaaaah!!!

Nak keter, nak keter... mane keter?!!

Hmmm rindu la kat my boys. kalau diorang ada panjang skit langkah. nak gi tenguk 10000 BC tapi my daro asyik nak gi ngan bf dia je walaupun mamat tu sekarang tengah bz memanjang. AF tu ok tapi dia tu bila balik selalunya banyak sangat aktiviti, keluar ngan ab la arin la boboy la. AI senang skit nak heret (asalkan makan kat luar semuanya boleh je hehehe) tapi budak tu plak jarang nak balik.

Sigh.

(eh banyak mengeluh la aku ni lately).

ya Allah aku sentiasa mensyukuri segala nikmat MU..

(so yang ngadu2 ni... saja nak bermanja je sebenarnya).

Hmmm

As people grow older they should know better.... maklum la dah makan garam awal, dah banyak pengalaman hidup. as the saying goes 'the older the wiser'.

But not so. its not a given thing that one gets wiser with age. depends on how open they are to their surroundings and how willing to learn from their own & other people's life experiences. for some who are endlessly in denial, who 'choose' to stay hopelessly blur, or are just arrogantly dismissive of views other than their own..... might very well end up with 'peter pan' mentality the whole of their life. sampai satu tahap dah jadi 'tak relevan'.

Paling tak suka bila tenguk orang dah berumur suka marah2. its bad enough if a young punk loses his temper in public tapi lagi teruk kalau tenguk an old fart mengamuk-ngamuk tanpa arah tujuan. memalukan.... mana pergi segala kesabaran? bukan ke lagi tua patut lagi bersabar? lebih-lebih lagi kalau di masukkan pulak bab keimanan.... mana letaknya kemanisan iman?

Buruk sungguh perangai. macam mana nak jadi contoh? pastu senang2 nak menuding jari pada yang muda belia!!! kenapa nak jadi ketam kalau boleh jadi khalifah?!

Sigh.. teramat la rugi.

Pohon petunjuk ke jalan yang KAU redhai.

Wardrobe change

I do realise i'm in dire need of new work clothes.... i've been recycling the same stuff over & over & over and the years have finally taken its toll. what i have i like, tapi kesian je tenguk semua dah lusuh tak bermaya. but to go out and face those racks & racks of endless choices and actually having to choose the ones that suit me best (bcos of limited funds la otherwise no problem, tibai je semua kan?!)... just the thought of it puts me off every time.

I'm a simple person and most comfortable in jeans & tshirt. but of course thats not an option for work lol, not even for site visits and such. so its usually mix & match stuff, with an inclination towards a simple contemporary style (if you could even call it that la). tapiiiiii..... considering my age i'm thinking maybe its time i made my peace with the baju kurung. so far its presence in my wardrobe is only out of necessity. bukannya apa, i have this thing about its kain beralun i.e. the gathers thats bunched up on the side. makes me feel unbalanced somehow and very very uncomfortable, not to mention clumsy. i usually end up using just the top of the baju kurung and teaming it up with one of my dependable black or blue kain selisih instead of the matching bottom.

Yup its high time for a change la.

Especially because with baju kurung you dont have to think beyond choice of material design. theres plenty 'off the rack' so you dont have to worry about finding a reputable tailor. and getting the right size isnt a big deal either because it can be loose and big for all anyone cares. for people like me, one who goes absolutely bonkers when presented with a sea of empty parking lots but is happy with just one, narrowing the options is extremely helpful. and its also very versatile - with the right accessories (the right tudung, the right shoes & bag) it can be transformed from casual to formal in the blink of an eye!! tak payah pening2 fikirkan which blouse would suit which longskirt and whether the kebaya will still fit given your penchant for yummylicious cheesecake even after a substantial (read: heavy) dinner.

Betul la.... very the easy. now if i can only stop myself from cringing everytime i think about it.


Workout Log.
gym/treadmill - 4km/35mins/300cal/speed @7 but fiddled around with the incline levels.

Captured images

Truth be told we're a camera-shy family..... we dont really have lotsa pics to show off and kalau adapun gitu2 je. now that the kids are all grown i sometimes wish there were more captured images for me to go back to. going down memory lane without these little triggers can be quite an uphill endeavour, especially when i've become that much more sluggish in the 'memory recall' department lol.

Recently for a family that isnt too clicker happy (as in trigger happy) we're suddenly seeing a lot of clicking equipment about the place. AI's diploma in mass comm requires that he lugs around a dslr camera so last year we got him a pentax (friggin expensive but lucky thing we got one that was on sale). last week AF came home with the sole purpose of getting himself something similar, a sony this time (bought largely on his own sholarship surplus), to facilitate his teaching modules. and latest is AH... she's in the 'sidang redaksi majalah sekolah' and who'd have thought she'd be appointed as one of the photographers?!! omigosh, another cam in the house (from zero to trio?) but this time it'll be one of 'em automatic thingies.. like cybershot perhaps (oh but she says it has to be of a certain megapixel and no, i really dont know what i'm talking about lol).

Hmmmm maybe it's time i got me one of 'em facials since i might very well be the object of errr, interest nanti kan (perasan hehehehe). but i also have this nagging suspicion it wont be doing much good la dah kerepot mepot ni hikhik ;)

What a relief to finally have i/net connection again. we were cut off from the rest of the whole wide world (another shortform for the www lol) part of saturday and all of sunday. AH was supremely annoyed she couldnt get online.... partly because of the 'terencat-ness' it'd caused to her chatting & myspace, partly the 'terbantut-ness' to her guitar sessions like access to tabs, lyrics and utube. she usually spends her time playing mainstream english hits like misery business, polaroid etc etc. but i did catch her trying out malay hits recently and i must say her rendition (bantai version she says) of faisal's kasih tercipta & imran ajmain's 1000 tahun was pretty amazing. but then i'm her mom so i'm biased i guess heheh.

She's an introvert but to a certain extent having a bf helped her open up a bit but its a slow process. no i dont want her to do a 360 deg turn on me no way. its just that i sometimes wish she'd sing at school and blow her schoolmates away.... to most of them she's the sweet, nerdish rather predictable prefect, another face in the crowd. aside from her close friends they've never seen the kick-ass side of her lol. but that one, she has many layers... and i'm slowly discovering some of them myself :)

Panas petang

Never underestimate the effects of the afternoon heat..... it can really get to ya!!!!

I always try to avoid running in the late afternoon tapi apa kan daya when theres no other option available to me. semenjak tinggal satu je kereta to our disposal my morning schedule memang kena tolak ketepi..... nak sampai ofis on time pun dah satu rahmat after sending off AH and her daddy to their respective destination. i love the cool morning air when i'm huffing and puffing away like a mad cow.... bila inhale masuk tu segar je rasanye, and the ole lungs bersemangat la skit nak berfungsi.

Kurang enjoy sebenarnya lari petang2 especially now. badan yang dah berumur ni agak memberontak bila dipaksa bermengah2 sambil disalai mentari yang walaupun dah mula mengundur namun bahangnya tetap terasa. kejap je dah letih..... leceh ah. nak pergi bersantai kat gym takut tersangkut pulak kat bulatan kayangan yang sibuk sangat selepas waktu kerja. malam2 pulak dah nak kena melayan famili.

Aaaarggghhh and i hate it that i find myself making lots & lots of excuses sekarang ni!!!! gawd, i just want my car back!!!! tapi nak mintak balik dari aie when he obviously needs it more than me tak sampai hati la plak so...... ish tak sabar la tunggu settle whatever it is that needs to be settled before we can start using the 'new' car (secondhand actually but still new la to us lol) that we're buying.

*sigh*

Dulu2 hantar ambik bebudak je kesana sini.... tapi sekarang tambah plak mengantar mengambik paknye not only to work and back but also to the golf course or wherever else the need may be.

*double sigh*

Weh, penat la jadi super supir-o ni!!!! (but i'm also perfectly sure the Abe himself pun super penat naik turun lrt so kesian gak la kat dia actually heheh.... luvya babe!!).


Workout Log
Run/PM - 4k/tasik/took my own sweet time.

Mak's 64th

Semoga dipanjangkan umur dalam keimanan & kesejahteraan yang tak bertepi.

2007 was a traumatic year for mak and losing her bestfriend towards the end of it was a big blow to her already waning spirit. she knows she has my full support but with my rather full life right now, i know that she's keeping back a lot of things from me.

She needs people her own age to share the aches & pains and all the uncertainties that comes with growing old. but everytime i try to make some sort of arrangement for her, she's never interested so.... i guess she knows what she needs better than me. mana boleh paksa2..... orang tua2 tersangat la sensitif when it comes to these things.

I just want you to have peace of mind and soul mak..... happy 64th birthday!!!

Meragam

I dont enjoy soaps nor am i able to stomach hindustani movies (beautiful scenery tho). bukan apa i just cant take prolonged conflict or too much drama at one seating. i'm more of a discovery/national geog/ci channel freak. documentaries & sitcoms are more my taste but of course since i'm still a chick (albeit an old one), i do enjoy the occasional sickeningly sweet love story :)

Anyways documentaries selalu cover stories about myths and the busting of such myths and kita pun have more than our fair share of such stuff. theres always something or other that we'd just love to debunk especially the ones yang macam tak masuk akal je. one of them is the belief that kalau kita nak beli kereta baru jangan cakap depan kereta lama nanti 'dia' (meaning said car) will start to meragam aka merajuk.

Hehehe kinda boggles the mind a lil bit there kan, sebab mana la kereta nak berperasaan and merajuk2 macam tu kan? after all its a friggin machine kan, mana ada feelings!!!! weell.... so far its been great with us, with our fair share of cars, the comings & goings of which tak la meninggalkan kesan sangat. bila sampai masa nak tukar, tukar je la apa kisah sangat.... everything has its time.

Tapi lately Abe and i cant help but notice, semenjak dua menjak nak beli kereta baru ni, our car has been really acting up macam primadona lagaknye. hari tu out of the blue breakdown giler2 kat kelana jaya sampai kena tow and masuk workshop. after a good haul kitorang ingat ok la but nooooo..... petang tadi tak pasal2 meragam lagi kat of all places bulatan yang teramat sibuk (entah apa nama bulatan tu entah) connecting sg besi-jalan loke yew-cheras-kg pandan!!!!!! tengah drive tu tetiba je the cessation of power, dengan pergerakan yang amat la perlahan mengalahkan kereta lembu. pedal to the metal pun tak de kesan whatsoever, menghengsut ever so slowly to the chagrin (or anger more like it) of fellow drivers sampai la dapat berhenti kat tepi (thank god tak obstruct traffic). if we'd stopped at the roundabout it would have caused a massive jam for sure.

We were actually trying to find our way back to taman maluri, cheras and was inching our way along with the others towards the roundabout when it happened. helpless we took the nearest exit (the otak tak function, on the spot kind of decision) into jalan loke yew and came to a complete stop a few metres away (right in front a big bridal shop i think). as usual thank you aam, even tho it took what seemed like hours for help to arrive, you were still there when we needed you. seems that it was nothing other than the low fuel..... even tho the warning light had only just blinked and the indicator showed a plus minus 47mile capacity before hitting 'empty', the car can (if it wants to) decide to go dead on you!!! actually a while after we'd unceremoniously stopped by the roadside, the hubs did try restarting the car and it did respond. but rather than have it suddenly die on us again, we decided to just stay put... at least until professional help was available.

Funny, sebelum ni pun bukannya tak pernah drive while the fuel indicator lights were blinking.... selalunya memang sempat la setakat nak cari petrol station to fill up. in fact kekadang tu siap pusing-pusing singgah menyinggah sana sini pun sebab about 40 miles tu sempat juga la buat macam2. TAPI why did the car suddenly decide to die on us now?

Agaknya la kan, sekarang ni ada 'orang' tu dah pandai merajuk kot?!!!


Workout Log
Briskwalk/PM - 3K /about 30 mins/around neighbourhood
(temankan cik Abe who's urat rajin suddenly decided to make itself felt lol)

Sports Day

Wheeeeeeeee...... its sports day for AH and gang!!!!

That girly girl of mine is pretty happy that her kapitan-o bf successfully led their sports house to victory as overall champion as well as coming up tops in the kawad category. looks like his dedication and hardwork (and also her sacrifice in the face of his neverending 'bz bz bz' status) has paid off.

I dunno but somethings just not right. shes not saying but i can sense it... since school started they've somehow been drifting further and further apart. being bz is a major part of it and now she has to contend with his sudden popularity & limelight pulak. it might just go to his head.

You gotta be strong girl. better a bz man than a lady's man i suppose.

(unless of course if he's both.... and when that happens then you better RUUUUUN for dear life!!)

OOh and kudos to AH's classmates on their debut as actors in NTV7's kurus which aired tonite. way to go smk sek 9!!!!!!


Workout Log
Aerobics/AM - 30 mins/dataran shah alam
- (had to drop off girl @ matsushita stadium first so was kinda late)
Run/Am - 4k/35mins/tasik
- (the aerobics was a good warm up)

Sharing

... is not necessarily caring lol!!!!

Not when it comes to sharing viruses that is. cik Abe dah seminggu down with flu so since kami ni dah berjanji untuk berkongsi hidup dan secara tak langsung everything else that comes with it, maka dengan itu terkongsi la juga virusnya.

Absolutely pening, joints creaking, aches and pains almost every part that has the capacity for sensation.... life's suddenly not so good.

After dropping off the girl and the hubs, i made a beeline for the clinic because i knew for a fact, kalau dah balik memang tak larat nak keluar lagi so i made sure i got me my meds, my mc and it was straight to the bed for me.

Dapat lena uninterrupted 2-3 jam baru legaaaa.

Then it was back to my supir-o duties... and with the semi-high induced by the cough & selsema meds, the outlook was a lot rosier. until sundown..... and it was back to the bed for me.

Eeeek. i need to fight this.

Thank god AI made it to kl and is back in lendu safe & sound. i hate it when he and his friends have to get about in a rented car.... this time on an assignment that required an interview with a kl based publisher. cuak bila fikirkan the sad condition of most rentals (students would obviously go for cheap ones) and i do wish the Abe would hurry up and arrange something for kiddo no. 2. but for now, doa je la yang mengiringi anak2.

Stop the rumours

The Triple Filter test

One day a man came to a Muslim scholar and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?"

"Hold on a minute," the scholar replied. "Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."

"Triple filter?"

"That's right," the scholar continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test.

The first is the filter of Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."

"All right," said the scholar. "So you don't really know if it's true or not.

Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?"

"No, on the contrary......"

"So," the scholar continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left: the filter of Usefulness.

Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"

"No, not really."

"Well," concluded the scholar, "if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?"

i must remind myself of this more often.

kalau tak betul dah jatuh fitnah (berat tu) and theres just no end to mengumpat (equally berat). i really should open my mouth only when absolutely necessary but its a hard thing to do especially bila tengah galak bergebang. tapi....... kerana mulut badan binasa so ganbatte RK!!! *pressing lips firmly together (ouch kebas la pulok hehehe)*

Ever grateful

One of the benefits of growing old (yeah it doesnt just turn u into an ugly old hag who cant seem to remember anything anymore hehehe) is that things dont really disturb or bother you as much as they used to. life's more peaceful, serene.

For example if i find myself or any of the kids breaking a fav mug or teapot or vase... as i look down at the broken pieces i start thinking, heck so what, its just a mug/teapot/vase and i have lots of that anyway. believe me it would have been a completely different scenario if it was say, 10 years back. penuh telinga bebudak kena sumbu and kalau sendiri yang buat, tak habis2 la dilanda waves upon waves of penyesalan.

And used to be, kalau cik Abe asyik membebel ke, terlajak main golf ke, terlupa pape ke, 'absent' while present ke.... alamak hai, sakit hati ni bukan kepalang, meluap2 rasanya. or when he comes home and start getting all grumpy & angry for no apparent reason (its usually work related but still) i cant help but feel ever so guilty & defensive... tapi sekarang ni suka hati you la!! he has the right to whatever he's feeling and since its not within my control, i shouldnt be feeling bad about it. i just try to stay out of his way or when i'm feeling generous, be silently supportive.

I also used to get this bouts of melancholy and discontent.. the root of which i've never really been succesful in trying to fathom. it was just a sort of darkness that permeated my existence. but since i hit 40 (those many years ago), i've been more at peace with the world and myself. i guess i'm finally able to really really accept the concept of 'bersyukur' and being grateful of all my blessings... be it apparent or in disguise. not that i wasnt grateful before , i was, but i just didnt allow it to completely embrace me.

Yes, as i look at my life i know i am truly blessed.

So at this point in time i've become mellower and angstfree. but then the trick now is to balance it up with the right amount of passion. it'd be so easy to suddenly be brimming with so much mellowness that one actually stops feeling passionate about anything or worse still stop caring. oh busted vacuum? how inconvenient but thats ok.... oh he broke his promise? he shouldnt have but thats ok..... oh she kicked the teacher? how terrible but thats ok.

Too mellow.

Now anything thats in the extreme is bad. life needs equilibrium so gotta work on my passion.

Hmmm.. wonder when age is going to start getting me all the wiser?

Workout Log
Run/AM - 4k/tasik/35mins

Poor dahleeng

... it turned out to be such an ntah pape day for my daro.

Her bf turned 17 last month and he suddenly morphed into a rather busy young man. during the school hols she had him almost entirely to herself, goofing n fooling around each chance they had. but the start of school see's him juggling between the preparations for several major events like the up and coming sports day, sukma and of course spm. quite a substantial load to bear, one that his gf must come to terms with i guess.

Actually today's arrival was eagerly anticipated because they were finally going out again. if i remember rightly their last real date was in late december so its been quite awhile. unfortunately, it failed to materialise because something turned up and he had to cancel. as AH was dealing with the disappointment an unexpected call from her cousins suddenly changed everything..... she now found herself in a rather disorganized outing at sunway lagoon!!! why disorganized? because the invitation came out of the blue (so i'm guessing it was impromptu as usual) and the so-called plan kept changing so often that they didnt get to go into the lagoon until well after 3pm!! sheesh..... not very cost effective considering that the park closes at 6.30pm. kids!!

She agreed to go just to get away from the earlier disappointment but in the end it didnt really help all that much.

Sweetheart, kita hanya merancang......

Gigi oh gigi

We're simple people. me. the hubs. the kids. so simple in fact that sometimes i think we really really annoy my mom.

In our household, theres no hard & fast rule about anything (excluding hukum tuhan of course).... flexibility & adaptability is the name of the game. walaupun ada house rules, tapi they just serve as basic guidelines. kalau boleh justify alternatives why not?

So bebudak can have anjal bedtimes, reschedule chores or have unexpected friends pop over any time of the day. no standing to ceremony. yours truly herself wont think twice about ditching her cleaning & mopping if something more important turns up (especially if its anything to do with the kiddoes). unfortunately it wrecks havoc on my mother's nerves sebab she's the sort of person who needs to plan in advance and feels good when her life is regulated.

Kesian tapi thats not the way i want things to be with my family. memang kena berdisiplin sikit sebanyak tapi tak la rigid. somehow in life you have to be able to go with the flow and roll with the punches. in fact jangan terkejut kalau ada harinya rumah berselerak sebab penghuninya semua tetiba decide nak spend some time at the park instead heheh.

Semalam i finally made arrangements for AH to see my good friend Dr S, a senior dentist who also happens to be a 'gum'/periodontics expert. AH needs some work done on her teeth.... for someone who really HATES milk, her teeth have turned out pretty strong because she still has this one, very the stubborn gigi susu (a canine to be exact) yang masih berdiri teguh sampai the real tooth terpaksa grow behind it.

We wouldnt have realised it if AH didnt have that big scare early last year. she woke up one morning to really heavy bleeding of her gums. it was so traumatic that she stopped sucking her thumb cold turkey (ehemm... she was then still the occasional thumb sucker). for 2 whole weeks she was teary and depressed, convinced that she was going to lose all of her teeth and the prospect scared her shitless.

A visit to the dentist brought things back to its proper perspective. she WASNT losing her teeth (obviously heheh) and even though she was practising good dental hygiene, she was to pay more attention to her gums (that meant flossing and mouthwash w/out fail). and no going back to her 'baby habit' either. it was also during that time that we discovered the existence of her gigi berlapis. it grew in such a way that it wasnt noticeable unless you peeped inside. in fact AH herself thought it was one HUGE tooth instead of 2.

I was pretty miffed actually. AH's teeth was ok to begin with and i'd thought thank god, none of my kids needed braces after all. the idea of braces were pretty scary to me. all that reconstruction.... what if things dont turn out as planned? call me old fashion tapi kalau setakat senget sikit2 tu biar je la.

But now, tak sampai hati la pulak nak leave AH with a gaping space once her gigi susu decides to fall off (entah bila).... and when the dentist (or whatever it is u call the orthodontic fella) told us we probably had to take out 4 of her teeth in preparation for the braces, i sorta freaked out and just took a time-out from making any decisions.

Nasib baik we'd put it on hold until after pmr.... cos now S thinks we probably could get away with something a lil less drastic in trying to settle the problem.

we'll see.

Adhoc event?

..... ntah la but from the look of things macam tu la gayanya.

Majlis Anugerah Cemerlang Negeri Selangor 2008..... dirasmikan oleh YAB MB di anjurkan oleh jps/jab pendidikan selangor. and it had the trappings of a last minute scheme cooked up by some smart alecs in one of their 'aha' moments right in the middle of some dark murky nite.

Nobody seemed to know anything beyond the fact that the PMR 2007 straight As candidates were getting certificates and RM200 from the state government for their achievement..... and they're all supposed to be personally accompanied by parents or guardians as opposed to just their teachers. letters for parents were distributed friday and it didnt really clarify anything except the time involved i.e. 1pm to 6pm and venue i.e. stadium malawati shah alam. no programme or event highlights were included, bila tanya cikgu diorang pun tak tau thus the absolute confusion that ensued. total fiasco wa cakap sama luu.

Mana taknye awal2 lagi dah face traffic jam nak masuk kawasan parking stadium malawati. lucky thing i'm a shah alam native so tau la selok belok jalan n shortcut to worm my way out of the sea of cars. pastu after finally securing a parking space dah jam pulak kat entrance sebab kena daftar (without any visible instructions anywhere and kena pandai2 je sendiri). the problem with letting people make their own way is the danger of it turning into a free for all. true enough there was a lot of pushing n shoving, ngalahkan kambing but what would one expect when there was no shephards in sight to begin with?!!!!

It was a relieve to finally make our way to the main stadium area where the students were grouped together according to their respective schools and parents were relegated to the upper level seats. rupanya majlis proper was actually scheduled to start at 3pm but there we were, valiantly fighting off the fuzziness of sleep that was threatening to destroy our credibility as proud parents lol.

Kalau tak kerana nak raikan anak2 memang dah lama angkat kaki. kalau tak kerana nak raikan anak2 dah lama guling2 on the floor like a mad dog in fits of maniacal laughter.

Nak pilihanraya punya pasal macam2 ada. and bukannya tak berterima kasih tapi kalau dah nak buat tu, buat la betul-betul, biar terasa keikhlasan & kesungguhannya.

Weekend tally

Saturday saw me attending 2 weddings..... satu setakat menyambut undangan jiran, and the other had the hubs bertugas sebagai penyambut tetamu!! yelahkan golf buddy punya pasal kena la bantu membantu hehehe. last weekend was the nikah & wedding reception on the brides side, this weekend menyambut menantu pulak.

Thank god all i had to do was sit and try (i'm stressing on the word try ok) to look pretty because earlier that morning i went nuts and did 2 loops of the tasik (i.e. 8km). patutnya kacang mamak je for some people.. tapi den teraso loteh la jugak sebab den dah lamo tak buet hehehe.

All in all the reception went according to plan. kira ok la sebab mana ada perfect apa2pun kan.

Workout Log
Saturday - AM run/8k/tasik
Sunday - AM aerobics/30mins... cut short by the rain so sambung lari
- AM run 4k/tasik... best la pulak lari dalam hujan.

Kesian..

.. bila tenguk cik Abe totally pooped at the end of each working day.

Ye lah kan sebelum ni berambik beranto from doorstep to office lobby... jalan kat turkmenistan tu plak mana ada jam macam kat KL ni. everything soooo the very tenang n teratur (accept bab2 makan n perkara2 yg berlaku behind closed doors).

Tetiba hah... not only kena deal with jams (from shah alam to lrt station kelana jaya) but also bersesak2 naik public transport plak lepas tu. kesian tenguk jejaka ku bersusah2 sebegitu namun respect sangat his decision to let AF continue using the avanza for college and to let me have free reign with his car menguruskan si AH. pengorbanan seorang ayah.... jangan sia2kan wahai anak2.

But insyallah its going to end soon. light is finally visible at the end of the tunnel. financing for the other car dah almost finalised and now awaiting for cik Abe's friend i.e. the car owner (yang dah balik ke turk'stan pun) to return and settle all the necessary paperwork. then its freedom for the hubs (and me tooo yehaaaa. no more rushing, no more traffic jams n i can start running in the morning again).

AI's assignment

Looks like i'm gonna be spending more time with the idiot box these 3 days.

Seems that AI's been given an assignment that involves elaborating on the tv news headline. and of all the tv stations available, it had to be news from bernama which is available only thru astro. adeh, i didnt even know astro ada news... let alone what time its aired!!!!! tv3 pun jarang2 tenguk hehehe. unlike mak, at home shes known as the berita super-slueth while me, i'm the google super-slut.... she thrives on headlines while i get high on data.

But now for AI, i have to wait patiently, remote in hand and wait for the moment that clock strikes 8.30pm, then its channel 104 for me. i'll have to report to him the bernama news headlines because he has no access to it back in lendu. and no access means no write up for the assignment.

Adeh malasnyo den tapi apo nak buet, keno la tolong anak den ni haa.

Workout Log
PM Gym/treadmill - 3k/30mins/230cal/speed avg 6.6

Itu kamu

....kau terindah.... masih ada yang tercantik.

JL meraikan keindahan all women thru estranged? now aint that nice :) but... and this is a big BUT, jauh disudut hati terasa kekesalan keatas perlakuan bodoh faisal yang telah mengundang marah pihak2 yang teramat cepat melenting and inadvertently deprieved most of us of 2 sangat la sedap didengar songs.

Earlier there was that riveting 3hr+ game where weary djokovic finally got the better of superduper tsonga, and even tho both are extremely powerful players, experience still counts over pure unadulterated strength i guess.

So sunday was spent mostly stuck right in front of the idiot box.


*sigh* i'm getting fat.

And talking about..

... death.

Last nite while i was out nite jogging with AH (her last minute ditch effort to get into the groove for the cross-country this morning) i received an sms from arin, AF's bestfriend, that his granny has just passed away. the funeral (sembahyang jenazah & burial) was to be held at 10 am today.

Memandangkan the parents are also our close friends (we go waaaay back to our student days in new england), cik Abe decided to forgo his meeting and we both made our way to kuala selangor. embak siti aisah died at 79 of old age and a weak heart. she was an extremely sweet old lady with a ready smile on her face..... always. semoga rohnya dicucuri rahmat dan bersama mereka yang beriman.

About AH's cross-country, well.... glad to report she didnt do too badly for someone who's always had a million excuses for not running. ni of course gara2 mendapat bf yang sportyman la ni hehehe. nak tak nak kena la sporty gak walaupun tempias2 je. he on the other hand, came in 1st.... for the 2nd consecutive year. i'm guessing she will have to deal with his sudden popularity after this. as it is he's starting to get a little to busy most of the time and thats not really a good sign.

AI pulak had spent the nite in kuala pilah with his mates. convoy 4-5 kereta and sunning it out kat some lata or other. sheesh dia seronok2, yang kita ni risau bagi nak giler..... maklum la, kereta2 yang bebudak kolej sewa ni selalunya tak la reliable sangat sebab murah tp nak kata apa? budak dah nak mencecah 20 tahun bukannya nak dengar sangat leteran orang tua2. doa je laa. and at time of post, dia dah selamat pun balik ke lendu. alhamdulillah syukur :)

And i expect i'll be seeing AF's batang hidung back at home tonite. yang sorang ni balik almost every weekend, so kurang la skit mama dia rindu2an.

Aaaah.... what would i do without me kiddoes ya?!!

Saling melengkapkan

to better appreciate light there is darkness,
to better appreciate love there is hate,
to better appreciate life there is death.

I'm growing older and in the normal scheme of things, death will be something to be dealt with more than ever before.... ya lah barang lama expiry datenya pun dah semakin hampir la kan. as it is pun, people around me seem to be falling like leaves at a pretty alarming rate.

I have a very small family... arwah abah had 4 siblings (now tinggal 2), mom has only one (mak/ayah sama) while i'm anak tunggal (mak/ayah sama). and somehow because of that, my dealings with death has so far been very very limited. in fact i'm quite inexperienced in such matters and if death were to affect me directly, i really would be at a lost of what to do. sebelum ni boleh la nak harap kat orang lain kan but now i'm the 'senior' adult, i'm the orang tua2!!!

Of course i've read up about it and heard the occasional ceramah but like everything else in life, its got a lot to do with timing. unless you're in the situation or close to it you can never really be truly receptive.... mostly its like air di daun keladi, lalu aje takde kesan pun.

Not this time. i must brush up unless i want to be caught off guard and totally unprepared. i'm not being morbid but tak bersedia for something as crucial as this is being nothing short of cruel actually. its not something you would want to do for loved ones.... or anyone for that matter.

So where else to start but at the beginning.

Brushing up on some basics....

Fiqh-us-Sunnah Volume 4, Page 16: What Should be Done When Someone Dies
It is sunnah to do the following when a person dies:

-1- Advise the dying person to say: "La ilaha illa-Allah" (there is no god but Allah). It is narrated on the authority of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Prompt your dying people to say: 'La ilaha illa-Allah'." (Muslim, Abu Daw'ud, Tirmizhi) Another report on the authority of Mu'azh ibn Jabal states that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "He whose last words are 'La ilaha illa- Allah' shall enter Paradise." (Narrated by Abu Daw'ud; Al-Hakim considers it a sound hadith)

This prompting (talqin) is necessary only when the dying person is unable to utter the shahadah (La ilaha illa- Allah . . . ). If such a person is able to utter these words then there is no need for prompting, but he should rather be advised to do so. Such advice is useful in cases of persons who are in possession of their faculties of reason and speech. If one is already mentally impaired such advice cannot be of benefit. But one who is unable to speak might say these words in his heart. The scholars are of the opinion that no pressure should be put on the dying person. So one should not say to him, "Say, 'La ilaha ill-Allah'," lest he should become annoyed and utter something improper. One may say the shahadah, however, in such a way that the dying person might be able to hear it and repeat it. If he utters it once, he should not be asked to repeat it unless he says some words after it. In such a case he should be asked to repeat shahadah to ensure that it be his last utterance.

Most scholars are of the opinion that one attending a dying person may repeat only the words: "La ilaha ill-Allah," according to the apparent meaning of the hadith. Others are of the opinion that the dying person should be prompted to utter the two testimonies (that is, "I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger"). The purpose is to remind him of the Oneness of Allah, which includes both of the two testimonies.

-2- Lay the dying person so that the qibla is on his right side. To this effect it is recorded that Abu Qatadah said: "Upon arrival in Madinah, the Prophet, peace be upon him, enquired about a person called al-Bara ibn Ma'rur. The people told the Prophet, peace be upon him, that he had died, and had willed one-third of his property to the Prophet, peace be upon him, and that his face be turned toward the Ka'bah at the time of his death. Hearing this, the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: 'He has been true to his innate nature. I return the one-third of his property to his children. ' Then the Prophet, peace be upon him, left and offered a prayer for him and prayed, saying: 'O Allah! Forgive him, have mercy on him, and cause him to enter Your Paradise. Indeed, You have accepted this prayer'." (Narrated by Al-Baihaqi and Al-Hakim, who observes: "I know of no hadith, other than this one, with regard to turning the face of a dying person toward Ka'bah.")

Ahmad reported that Fatimah, the daughter of the Prophet, peace be upon him, at the time of her death, turned toward the Ka'bah and placed her right hand under her head. This is the sleeping position recommended by the Prophet, peace be upon him, and in a grave, a dead body should also be placed in the same position. A report recorded from Ash-Shafi'i says: The body of the deceased should be laid flat on his back with his feet toward the Ka'bah, and his face raised a little, facing it. The majority of scholars, however favor the first position and hold it to be preferable.

-3- Recite Surah Ya Sin from the Qur'an. (Surah 36 of the Qur'an) This is reported by Ahmad, Abu Daw'ud, Nasa'i, Al-Hakim, and Ibn Hibban, and the last two of them grade it as a sound hadith. They report also on the authority of M'aqil ibn Yasar, that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "Ya Sin is the heart of the Qur'an. Whoever recites it seeking the pleasure of Allah and the hereafter will receive Allah's forgiveness. So recite it to your dead." (Ibn al-Qattan considers this hadith weak and manifests some confusion, doubt, and even ignorance about some of its narrators. Ad-Dar al-Qutni is reported to have said: "In the chain of narrators of this hadith there is confusion. Its text is obscure and is not correct.")

Ibn Hibban observes: This hadith refers to the recitation of Ya Sin for those on the eve of death and not for those already dead. This interpretation is supported by Ahmad, who recorded in his Al-Musnad that Safwan states: "The most eminent scholars say: 'The recitation of Surah Ya Sin at the time of a person's death makes death easy for him'. "The compiler of Musnad al-Firdaus attributes this hadith to Abu ad-Darda and Abu Zharr. They both narrated: "The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: 'If any person is on his deathbed and Ya Sin is recited to him, Allah makes his suffering easier'."

-4- Close the eyes of the deceased. It is narrated by Muslim that the Prophet, peace be upon him, went to visit Abu Salmah. He saw that his eyes were wide open and blank with the stare of death. So the Prophet, peace be upon him, closed his eyes and said: "Verily, when a soul is seized, the eyesight follows it."

-5- Cover the deceased: 'Aishah said: "When the Messenger of Allah died, he was covered with a piece of cloth that had some designs on it." This is reported by Bukhari and Muslim. The objective here is clearly to safeguard the respect and dignity of the deceased in death against prying eyes and against the exposure of his or her body to the idle curiosity of those looking for changes in its physical condition and features.

There is a consensus among scholars regarding the permissibility of kissing a dead person. The Prophet, peace be upon him, kissed 'Uthman ibn Maz'un after his death. Similarly, when the Prophet died, Abu Bakr leaned over him and kissed him between his eyes saying: "O my Prophet! O my best friend! !"

-6- Prepare the body for burial without delay, as soon as death is confirmed (by specialists i. e., a qualified physician or the like).

The guardian of the deceased should wash, wrap, and arrange for the burial of the body soon after the funeral prayer for the deceased, because the body might deteriorate if burial is delayed. This is based on a report, recorded by Abu Daw'ud from al-Husayn ibn Wujuh that when Talhah ibn al-Bara fell ill, the Prophet, peace upon him, said: "I see that Talhah is on the verge of death. Inform me about him (when he passes away) and make immediate preparations for his burial, for a Muslim's remains should not be left long with his family after his death."

The burial may be delayed only for the guardian, provided no physical deterioration in the condition of the body is feared from such delay. Ahmad and Tirmizhi report on the authority of Ali ibn Abu Talib that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "O Ali, never delay three things: prayer when its time approaches, the funeral when death is confirmed, and marrying a widow or a divorcee when a suitable match is found for her."

-7- Settle the debt of the deceased. Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and Tirmizhi have recorded a hadith on the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah said: "A believer's soul remains in suspense until all his debts are paid off." Tirmizhi considers this a sound hadith.

This means that the judgement regarding a soul's salvation or perdition or its entry into Paradise is held in abeyance until its debts are fully paid off and settled. This applies to a person who leaves some property upon his death. His debt should be paid out of the property that he leaves behind. In the case of a person who dies in debt which he sincerely intended to pay, but has no property (nor leaves any behind to pay his debt), according to a confirmed report, his debt will be settled by Allah, the Exalted. Concerning a person who dies in debt with sufficient means to pay it and was willing to do so, but his heirs do not pay it, Bukhari records on the authority of Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "If anyone takes other people's money with the intention to repay it and then he or she should die without settling the debt, Allah will pay the debt on his behalf. And if anyone takes money or property (of others) with the intention of destroying it, Allah will destroy him."

A hadith recorded by Ahmad, Abu Nu'aym, Al-Bazzar, and At-Tabarani from the Prophet, peace be upon him, says: "The debtor will be summoned before Allah on the Day of Judgement. Then Allah will ask him: 'O Son of Adam ! Why did you incur debt and infringe on others ' rights? ' The man would reply: 'My Lord! You know I took it, but I neither abused nor lost it. It was stolen or bumed in a fire or lost its value.' Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, will say: 'My slave has told the truth, and I am more entitled (than anyone else) to settle his debt. Then Allah will issue a command and something will be placed on his scales causing his good deeds to outweigh his bad ones. And so, by Allah's Grace, he will enter Paradise'."

The Prophet, peace be upon him, did not perform funeral prayers for those who had died in debt. When, however, Allah the Almighty, granted him certain lands as a result of conquests, and the community's wealth increased, he offered funeral prayer for them and settled their debts.

Bukhari reports that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "I am nearer to the believers than their own selves. So if someone dies leaving behind debt, but no wherewithal to settle it, we shall pay his debt, and if someone dies and leaves some estate behind him, it is for his heirs (to pay his debt)."

This hadith shows that the debt of a deceased Muslim may be paid from the public exchequer out of the zakah funds specified as the portion for the people in debt. This is one of the prescribed categories of zakah recipients. Death by itself does not annul one's debt or other responsibilities to the living.

when i get home i'm going to dig out my kitab2 lama.

Workout Log
crosstraining:
PM Gym/rower - 18mins/198 cal/avg 20 strokes per min
PM Gym/treadmill - 1.5k/15mins/90 cal/speed avg 6.5

Midweek reprieve

Aahhhh.... a break in the middle of a working week. always something one looks forward to.

I started the day early. el supir-o (read: driver aka yours truly) had to send zee big bozz to mines resort & golf club for his game. i needed the car for marketing & my myriad of other chores, and with just one vehicle at our disposal, kena la mengantor & mengambik. once i had him safely deposited there, it was the tasik for me yehaaa!!!!

Puas dapat lari pagi2 with time at my disposal tak payah nak terkejar-kejar masuk ofis.

Now after pekena tohseh telur & cilok skit roti sardin AH, time i tackled the chicken and fish thats thawing away in my sink. nak masak apa laaaa pulak hari ni?!!!!!!

Workout Log

AM Run - 5k/40mins/tasik

Beating boredom

Heh...

Kalau ada sesape yang menjangkakan diri akan sangap giler before days end maka give this website a try... the range of 'how to's' is quite mindblowing. alternate between u-tube and you should be able to keep those eyes open this monday hehehe.

http://www.videojug.com/


Workout Log
PM Treadmill - 4.2k/40mins/320cal/speed 6-7.5

In high gear

Sunday went rushing by in a blurry flash..... and i have 2 poor aching feet as saksi.

AF announced he had to make another visit to lowyat because the new laptop that his friend kirim had a busted CD-rom (or something like that la). since arin had already kept him company the whole day yesterday he now roped me and his father in. kebetulan the big guy tak main golf today soooooo berjaya lah si anak memujuk si ayah untuk melepak bersama, walaupun persetujuan tu agak half-hearted.

Hehehe. i knew things were going to get interesting because... si anak loooooves window shopping and si ayah pulak absolutely abhooooores it !!!! tambahan pula, pagi-pagi lagi si ayah telah pun penat melayan karenah si isteri untuk 1. sama-sama bersenamrobik (walaupun its not his thang) 2. menolak trolley yang sarat dengan keperluan di GIANT (which is also not his thang truth be told lol).

Me ? lets just let father & son settle this between them while i remain the onlooker ;)

So pusing punya pusing punya pusing punya pusing, AF settled his puter related problems while the big guy somehow managed to hang on to his sanity. all in all it was a sunday well spent. what more could a woman ask for right heheh?!!

But AH.... weeeell, its been a rather tough weekend for her. she's starting to realise that love isnt always sweet & rosy and having a relationship at an early age can be pretty tough. in fact its tough at any age. i just hope she remembers to have fun along the way.... young people shouldnt be in such a hurry to act like an old married couple; it'll come soon enough lol.


Workout Log
AM Aerobics - 50 mins/ medium impact aerobics.
tak best sbb shahir the hyper instructor was MIA, but its better than nothing i guess.

Feasible

Okies...... i did it 2 days in a row already and its actually more than just feasible :)

- come lunchbreak and i'm out of the office pronto
- singgah kantin beli lauk skit for mak & AH
- quick lauk drop-off at home on the way to KSAS
- 40 to 45 mins at KSAS gym
- back to sek 9 to pick up AH by 1.50pm
- singgah rumah for quick shower & solat
- back at the office by 2.15 - 2.30pm (i'm usually amongst the last to leave the office anyway, which should make up for any lost time).

My greatest worry was the nightmarish kayangan roundabout.... it can be quite the motorist's piece of hell tapi so far the traffic has been ok. in fact its been quite smooth actually.

Hehehe... feelin' good bay-beh!!!

Ooh and I should mention that AH’s also up & about and finally working that butt. her school’s cross-country & annual sports meet are both coming up soon and she’s training hard under her strict house captain... who coincidentally also happens to be her bf. *snicker* tu laaaa selama ni mama dok ajak lari tak nak. kan dah sakit2 segala tulang-temulang semua hikhik. skarang nak ngelak pun dah tak boleh kan kan ;)

Workout Log
Wed : PM Treadmill - 3.2k/35mins/300cal(speed 6-7).
Thurs : PM Treadmill - 4.3k/45mins/330cal(speed 6-8).

Reality check

I read somewhere the average age of american women to hit menopause is around 51... and bukan sebab taksub dengan 'the americans' yg gunakan diorang sebagai contoh tapi sebab its their research material yg most readily available & accessible.

Anyway...according to the mayo clinic (www.mayoclinic.com/health/menopause): Technically, you don't actually "hit" menopause until it's been one year since your final menstrual period. In the United States, that happens about age 51, on average.
sooooo.... since its just 4 more years to go for me, i can safely say that i'm now well into the perimenopausal stage of my life. hmmmmmm...

PERIMENOPAUSE
.... marks the interval in which your body begins its transition into menopause. Perimenopause encompasses the years leading up to menopause — anywhere from two to eight years — plus the first year after your final period. It's a natural part of aging that signals the ending of your reproductive years.

The levels of your reproductive hormones — estrogen and progesterone — rise and fall unevenly during perimenopause. Your menstrual cycles may lengthen or shorten, and you begin having menstrual cycles in which you don't ovulate. It's only during cycles when you do ovulate that you can become pregnant.

When perimenopause starts and how long it lasts varies. You'll probably notice signs of impending menopause, such as menstrual irregularities, sometime in your 40s. But some women notice changes as early as their mid-30s.

SIGNS & SYMPTOMS
Perimenopause causes some subtle — and some not-so-subtle — changes in your body. Some things you might experience include:

Menstrual irregularities. The intervals may be longer or shorter, your flow may be scanty to profuse, and you may skip some periods. As ovulation becomes more erratic, the lower levels of progesterone may lead to longer and heavier periods.
- when i was daro trang tang tang i had senggugut/menstrual cramps which surprisingly went away after my 1st baby... up until i hit 45. now its back in full force along with heavy flow and clotting the first few days. leceh betui laa.

Hot flashes and sleep problems. About 75 percent to 85 percent of women experience hot flashes during perimenopause. Their intensity, duration and frequency vary. Sleep problems are often due to hot flashes or night sweats, but sometimes sleep becomes erratic even without them.
- the hot flashes belum ada thank god sebab i've always been one with elevated body temperature (panas sokmo). factor in the hot flashes and i just might go into spontaneous combustion heheh.

Mood changes. Some women experience mood swings, irritability or depression during perimenopause, but the cause of these symptoms may be sleep disruption or other menopausal symptoms more than the hormonal changes of menopause.
- relatively stable so far

Vaginal and bladder problems. When estrogen levels diminish, your vaginal tissues may lose lubrication and elasticity, making intercourse painful. Low estrogen levels may also leave you more vulnerable to urinary or vaginal infections. Loss of tissue tone may contribute to urinary incontinence.
- eeeek, pls dear God spare me!!

Decreasing fertility. As ovulation becomes irregular, your ability to conceive decreases. However, as long as you're having periods, pregnancy remains a possibility. If that's not what you want, use birth control until you've had no periods for 12 months.
- xpe la kot since i dont plan on changing any more baby diapers anyway

Changes in sexual function. During perimenopause, sexual arousal and desire may change. But for most women who had satisfactory sexual intimacy before menopause, this will continue through perimenopause and beyond.
- maybe it takes a wee bit longer to fire up but once the engine starts its roaring to go hehee.

Loss of bone. With declining estrogen levels, you start to lose bone more quickly than you replace it, increasing your risk of osteoporosis.
- i'm hoping the running helps

Changing cholesterol levels. Declining estrogen levels may lead to unfavorable changes in your blood cholesterol levels, including an increase in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol — the "bad" cholesterol — which contributes to an increased risk of heart disease. At the same time, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol — the "good" cholesterol — decreases in many women as they age, which also increases the risk for heart disease.
- alamak, kena hati2 ni.... bab makan kena jaga lebih.


Adeh...


Double adeeeh.


Nothing much i can do to stop the biological clock from ticking i guess... but i aint taking it lying down thats for sure ;)

Oh and incidentally, i think i've figured out a more realistic alternative to replace my morning runs. nak lari petang after work tak pernah nak menjadi (ada je alasan). and since AH masuk upper sec and her pick-up time has been extended to 1.55-2.00pm, my lunchbreaks usually just go to waste.... sooooo why not i take off to the KSAS gym and pound away at the treadmill!!!! ngeeeeeeee.... syiok tu and i heard they now have 2 of those contraption so tak payah queue.

Trying it out today :)

Monday..

Start of the week.... like the others before it.

And like many others, if you're not careful the week would be gone before you know it. kalau tak bersungguh untuk make something out of it, its just summore time passing you by. bangun tido bangun tido tup tup dah separuh abad.

Gotta make plans. simple achievable plans, plans to ensure that i get something meaningful done on a weekly basis. like updating my recording, my filing and sifting thru my outdated data base. or like making good that threat of throwing away all accumulated rubbish regardless of ownership (so kiddoes beware, consider this a warning).

Get it done. get it all done.

Just do it woman!!!

Another victim

The big C...... its relentless.

About 2 weeks ago mak lost her close confidante & most dear friend aunty miah to the big C and today, it has taken my SIL.

Al-fatihah.

Kak leha drew her last breath about 12.50pm... she leaves behind a devastated husband, 4 children and several grandchildren. because erin who was flying all the way from perth was arriving earliest around 11pm, arwah hanya dapat dikebumikan after 11.30pm at the muslim cemetary, USJ.

Semoga roh arwah dicucuri rahmat dan di tempatkan bersama mereka yang beriman.

Workout Log
AM Run - 4k/30mins/tasik

Awal Muharram

Puas hati..... i started the first day of the new year by completing an 8k run round the tasik this morning :)

Not a great feat by the usual standard but enough for me, especially since i've been more of a couch potato than a pavement pounder lately. its a relief to know the creaky ole knees can still take it laa.

AI made a surprise appearance returning home by express bus. used to be you'd only see him around once in a blue moon but this year, its 2x already. i dont mind at all bcos i love having all the kids home. unfortunately i'm noticing that things are not going too well for the guy.... he's rather emo-ish at the moment and i'm guessing its female related. sigh.. he's not the type to open up unlike his elder bro and since i cant read minds, theres nothing much i can do to help. i really hope you find peace & happiness soon anak.

AH's also having a tough time adjusting to a rather slow phase in her 'relationship' (especially after the whirlwind dates during the school hols) but i'm guessing the bf is a lil overwhelmed with sukma as well as spm looming ahead. kena la realistik kan being students, school and everything else related to it must take centre stage.... it cant be the honeymoon stage forever babe. and ingat no angau2 business otherwise mama will have to take on the necessary actions ;)


Workout Log
Run - 8k/AM/tasik

Eve of 1429H

Sambutan maal hijrah biarlah sekurang2nya diiringi dengan doa... dan seelok2nya dihiasi dengan ibadah serta kemeriahan di masjid & surau. walaupun telah disebut bahawa sebenarnya terdapat **amalan2 dibulan muharram yang tidak mengikut hadis rasulullah yang sahih, namun selagi amalan yang dijalankan itu ikhlas dan tepat, why not. wallahualam.

Doa Akhir Tahun dibaca 3 kali pada akhir waktu Asar atau sebelum masuk waktu Maghrib pada akhir bulan Zulhijjah.



Doa Awal Tahun dibaca 3 kali selepas maghrib di awal/satu Muharram.



(Refer: http://www.islam.gov.my/program/doa.html )


Yours truly dilanda dilemma sebenarnya. mom wants to go to the mosque sometime lepas asar and would probably be staying till isya... myself cant really be with her because Abe comes home around maghrib and would be expecting me to pick him up kat komuter station, with dinner all ready n waiting after a hard day at work. that would usually mean jemaah at home for maghrib & isya.

Lucky thing it sorted itself out this morning when mak announced that she'll be going with our neighbour instead. alhamdulillah, kalau idak payah laa. i just cant go to the mosque when my duties at home tak beres. nanti lain pulak jadinya.

Juggling between ibu (walaupun my very own) & suami is tricky business.

Ooh btw, this morning Abe's bini muda (read: keter bm) broke down, rather conveniently i might add, right beside the drop-off zone of the MAS training centre in kelana jaya. dunno.. it was the waterpump or something like that. had to be towed away but luckily Abe's regular mechanic was close by - stuttguard, taman mayang which also meant free towing services by AAM (tapi had to wait for over an hour sampai cramp punggung).

It's probably gonna take some time i think... but lucky for us a close friend of the hubs has generously loaned us his spare car :) syukur alhamdulillah at least tak la terus patah kaki!!

Selamat Menyambut MA'AL HIJRAH 1429H

Note (**)
Di antara amalan-amalan pada bulan Muharam ini yang tidak bersumberkan sunah Rasulullah s.a.w. yang sahih ialah:

1. Memakai celak pada hari Asyura dengan kepercayaan ia tidak akan ditimpa sakit mata buat selama-lamanya. Amalan ini diambil daripada hadis maudhu' (palsu) yang diriwayatkan oleh Ibn Abbas, bahawa Rasulullah s.a.w. bersabda: Sesiapa yang memakai celak mata daripada arang pencelak mata pada hari Asyura, maka ia tidak akan ditimpa sakit mata buat selama-lamanya. (Rujuk: al-Albani, Silsilah Ahadith al-Dhaifah, 624). Ibn al-Jauzi, al-Maudhu'at, 2/116)

Hadis ini hukumnya maudhu' (palsu). Imam Ahmad berkata: ``Tidak ada riwayat (yang sahih) daripada Rasulullah s.a.w. tentang amalan memakai celak pada hari Asyura, dan ia adalah bidaah.''

2. Solat sunat yang khusus pada hari Asyura. Amalan ini juga bersumberkan hadis maudhu': ``Sesiapa yang sembahyang padanya (hari Asyura) empat rakaat, ia membaca pada setiap rakaat sekali surah al-Fatihah, dan lima puluh kali surah al-Ikhlas (Qul huwallahu ahad), maka Allah akan mengampunkan dosanya lima puluh tahun.''

3. Mandi yang khusus pada hari Asyura dengan tanggapan dapat menghindarkan diri daripada sebarang penyakit pada sepanjang tahun. Amalan ini juga bersandarkan kepada sebuah hadis maudhu': ``Sesiapa yang mandi dan bersuci pada hari Asyura, ia tidak akan ditimpa sebarang penyakit pada sepanjang tahun, kecuali mati.''

4. Melebihkan pemberian seperti makanan, minuman, pakaian kepada ahli keluarga pada hari Asyura dengan harapan semoga akan dimurahkan rezeki sepanjang tahun. Ini berdasarkan sebuah hadis daripada Alqamah bin Abdullah bahawa Rasulullah s.a.w. bersabda yang maksudnya:

Sesiapa yang melapangkan pemberian (makanan, minuman dan pakaian) kepada ahli keluarganya pada hari Asyura, nescaya Allah akan melapangkan ke atasnya rezeki sepanjang tahunnya. Hadis ini hukumnya maudhu', disebut oleh Ibn al-Jauzi di dalam kitabnya al-Maudhu'at,2/115).

5. Menyediakan makanan yang khas seperti bubur (bubur Asyura) yang dikaitkan dengan sunah Rasulullah s.a.w. atau disandarkan kepada peristiwa Nabi Nuh a.s. yang menyuruh para pengikutnya memasak daripada sisa-sisa makanan dan biji-bijian setelah mendarat dan selamat daripada taufan besar.

Ini juga adalah tanggapan yang tidak benar dan ia bersumberkan cerita-cerita dongeng Israiliyat. Inilah yang disebut oleh al-Imam Ibn Kathir di dalam kitab Qashas al-Anbiya.

6. Membaca doa akhir tahun dan awal tahun. Tidak terdapat sebarang hadis sahih yang menyebut tentang amalan membaca doa akhir tahun dan doa awal tahun dengan jaminan penghapusan dosa setahun yang lepas, sebagaimana yang diamalkan oleh sesetengah daripada umat Islam.

Demikian juga tidak ada hadis-hadis sahih yang menyebut doa tersebut secara khusus.

As-Syiekh Ali Mahfuz di dalam kitabnya al-Ibda' fi Madhar al-Ibtida' menyebut bahawa kebanyakan hadis maudhu' yang berkaitan dengan amalan pada bulan Muharam khususnya pada hari Asyura telah dicipta oleh golongan pembunuh Husain.

Beliau juga memetik kata-kata al-Allamah Ibn al-'Izz al-Hanafi: ``Sesungguhnya tidak sahih daripada Nabi s.a.w. sebarang amalan pun pada hari Asyura selain puasa Baginda.

Ada pun golongan Rafidhah melakukan bidaah dengan mengadakan upacara berkabung demi melahirkan kesedihan di atas pembunuhan Husain pada hari ini.

Dan golongan yang jahil daripada Ahli Sunah menzahirkan kegembiraan mereka dengan membuat makanan daripada biji-bijian (bubur) dan memakai celak, dan mereka meriwayatkan hadis-hadis maudhu' tentang bercelak mata dan melapangkan pemberian makanan dan pakaian kepada ahli keluarga.''

(Syiekh Ali Mahfuz, al-Ibda' fi Madhar al-Ibtida' (Beirut: Dar Kutub al-Ilmiah, Cet. 1, 2001), hal. 271)

Demikianlah beberapa contoh daripada amalan-amalan umat Islam di dalam bulan Muharam ini yang tidak bersumberkan sunah Rasulullah s.a.w. yang sahih, mahu pun para sahabat dan para Imam kaum Muslimin. Justeru, jalan yang terbaik ialah dengan mengikuti sunah Baginda s.a.w. dan seburuk-buruk perkara pula ialah mencipta sesuatu yang baru di dalam urusan agama. Semoga kita semua diberikan petunjuk oleh Allah s.w.t. untuk mengikuti sunah Rasulullah s.a.w.
(Refer: http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/content.asp?y=2005&dt=0218&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Bicara_Agama&pg=ba_01.htm )

Age

Aduh..... tulang temulang ku!!!!

Take away my regular activities and i'm suddenly left with aching & creaking joints!!! alahai tau la dah tua (four-oh-seven is just round the corner.. gulp) tapi i feel soooooooooo very very the ancient!!! i agree with the fitness gurus that a break of more than 2 weeks is enough to set your fitness level waaaay back. take a long rest and suffer the dire consequences baay-beh!!!

I know it sounds like i'm spewing lame excuses but i'm just not in the right frame of mind to claim my usual 'me' time right now.... not until AH's room is ready. i promised her a room by 2008 and its kinda overdue. but to get her room ready i hafta move the boys accumulated stuff out (since its their room that she's moving into).. and to get the stuff out i hafta get the den downstairs ready first.. and to start on the den i hafta move everything that's in it upstairs to the 'still-under-construction-library'. which all in all means quite a major make-over. and sadly yours truly have been guilty of procrastinating because truth be told, its all a tad overwhelming.

Aarghh... belum apa2 dah penat weh!!!!

But at least AH seems very motivated about school. she's in the class she wanted and hasnt been complaining even tho there's loads of homework already!! which makes me very happy but also very guilty about not keeping my side of the bargain.

Aaarghhh.... sorry baby!!!!

And also a note to the boys, especially AI..... thank you so so much darleengs for giving up ur little haven. i do know how much it means to you and the sacrifice is very very appreciated... tapi its all for adik's sanity ok.

So now its up to me.

I can do it... i can do it... i can do it!!! :)

All 'my precious'

i was spring cleaning my puter and came up with this old pics of my most precious :)

kawaaiii!!!

1997







(Melbourne/Canberra/Sydney Trip)



... and after 10 years still sooooo kawaaiiii ;)

2007



(Eidul Fitri, Shah Alam)

Big trouble

Yup..... i'm on a downward spiral at a time when i should be all fired up with new year resolutions!!

Ever since i can remember, i'd be totally consumed by this deep ferocious hunger one week before my monthly. its like i'm driven to keep stuffing my face... and can escalate to a point where i can even imagine myself devouring a whole freakin' lamb roasting away at the pits. me and me alone, no sharing sharing business lol.

And the saddest part is, its also the time i am at my most bloated self - kembong giler - and that feeling pisses me off to no end. and when i'm pissed, i do the next worst thing.... i binge.... and if thats not bad enough.... i binge at nite!!!!!!

Adeh.

And right now with only one car at our disposal (AF had already cilok-ed the avanza to upsi and we're still in the midst of arranging the financing for another car), i have to give up my morning runs because of the mad rush in dropping AH off to school and sending her daddy to the nearest LRT station at kelana jaya, before making for the office myself.

Sigh.

I feel sooooooo FAT & BLOATED..... a whale!!!!

HELP!!

Tak bole jadi...... even if the heat saps away at my energy like a siphon, i hafta start running in the late afternoon. its that or i'll just go stark raving mad. i need muh regular 'fix'.

School term 2008

1st day of school = massive jam !!!!

I remember those days when the kids first started school and i was part of the proud mommies & daddies anxiously waiting for their offsprings to be placed and settled into their respective classes. i remember scanning classrooms and fighting the strong almost 'primitive' urge to grab them the best seat in class, even if it was already taken lol. i remember..... weelll..... a lot of things :)

You just cant help but be anxious and worried and harassed and.... almost entirely lost in your own world!!! and with that in mind i always have this soft spot for those 'primary one' parents who'll usually be sporting either the 'hyper-focus' look or the 'ultra-dazed' look on their faces. and thats why i bear the grid-lock of cars with a smile.... hardly discernable but a smile nontheless.

AH was in high spirits when she was getting ready for school this morning. maklum la lama sangat berkepok kat rumah pun boleh jadi boring jugak akhirnya. plus the fact that she did well in her pmr and my gabra little girl can now walk tall lol... oh and also plus the other fact that she'll be seeing her bf every schoolday instead of going out on spasmodic dates, which can be few and far between (heh kecik lagi mana boleh dating selalu la anak weh!!!).

Her greatest worry was not getting a spot in the pure science classes but there was also the added pressure of having both bros in science 1 class before her. alhamdulillah she got what she wanted and is now officially in form 4 science 1, smk seksyen 9, shah alam. heheh and pls dont mention anything about boarding schools or hostels and such.... she'd give you a look that could kill you instantly or at the very least leave you mortally wounded lol. she's happy where she is and actually, so am i :) i wouldnt stand in her way if she wanted to continue elsewhere, but what on earth would i do without our regular pok-pek sessions?

So thats that. now comes the time to start selecting good tuition classes but the ground work is up to AH of course. top on the list - BM!!!!! its a tough paper and should never ever be taken for granted especially because its also the basic requirement for all local college entries. the standard has been raised so high that i'd probably fail if i were to sit for that paper again lol

Necessary adjustments

Dengan bertambahnya umur bertambah laa juga masa yang diperlukan untuk menerima & menangani perubahan heheh. for example i cant begin to count just how many times i've automatically written down 2007 whenever i'm minuting out the letters from my in-tray!!

And i've also only now realised i've completely forgotten about getting the 2008 diary infill. i cant schedule out my week because i've run out of pages lol. next stop is surely the bookstore.

So looks like i started the new year with a price negotiation meeting for another istana project. which incidentally turned out to be rather unsuccessful due to the main contractor's failure to furnish us with the necessary info and justifications for his incredibly high offer. hopefully its not an indication of what 2008 would be bringing in. i would so love to cruise thru the year smoothly with as little hiccup as possible :)

Dont we all?

Happy New Year

2008... semoga dilimpahi nikmat & rahmatNYA