The Verses of Love : Genuflect To Show Respect.

Alright..November is already here. My last week at Affin will be next week. I am finally at the brink of  the expiry date of serving the 3 months resignation. I really hope it’s gonna be a quiet last day; no farewell thingies or whatsoever; but of course for few people I’m close like Linda, Mona ‘the moan’, Regie – I will miss them.

Anyway as for jobs hunting, kinda lazy to job hunt actually as I’m cross-finger for KPLI. But yeah, I am practical – If I don’t get the job, then baru i gear up job-hunting (erkk?? macam kes failed PTD dulu..tak sampai 1 bulan lepas kecewa tahap gila babeng failed PTD, I was accepted masuk Affin Bank; out of main rembat jer la tu hehe). And yeah, to shut few mouths yg asyik dok tanya what work will I’ll be doing during the so called Jobless Period, I did apply as Research Assistant. (RA) for School of Communication USM. So far, I’ve been informed there is no vacancy but two of the scholar entities (being one of them is the DEAN) were pretty interested in meeting me and talk to me for further discussion as they found my curiculum vitae kinda impressive (erkk? yeah, whatever!). Tapi tengoklah macam mana…Goyang kaki kot dulu negehegee..

Lately, lotsa things happen. As a human, sometimes you can easily goaded by temptations. And it makes you sad that you feel like you are drifted in the ferocious sea. Dan rasa semakin menjauhi Allah SWT kerna terlalu mengikut jiwa manusia. Nak tulis satu persatu pun rumit. But yesterday, someone sent me the snipet of the song “Ayat-Ayat Cinta” by Rossa which is the original soundtrack of the film with the name itself. I don’t really like the song at first tapi bila tengok video klip yg ada snipet of the film and the lyrics and also baca sinopsis filem (saya tak menonton filem ni) tu dalam Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayat-Ayat_Cinta_(film); saya rasa lagu tu memang hebat walaupun vokal Rossa is average. Kekuatannya terletak pada lirik membuatkan hati insaf pada-Nya especially pada bait – Namun ku harus tinggalkan cinta, Ketika ku bersujud. Whoa.. the lyrics of Indonesian songs memang ringkas tapi susunan garapannya memang menangkap maksud mendalam. 

Maafkan bila ku tak sempurna
Cinta ini tak mungkin ku cegah
Ayat-ayat cinta bercerita
Cintaku padamu
Bila bahagia mulai menyentuh
Seakan ku bisa hidup lebih lama
Namun harus ku tinggalkan cinta ketika ku bersujud

 

Rumah Terbuka (Part IV): The House of Nadia Akwal @ Kota Damansara.

A Rumah Terbuka was meant as a platform to apologizes and ask for forgiveness. It is also a place where you can actually entertain friends and people around you. On Saturday 26th October, went to Nadia’s house with Regie, Linda and her fiance Apai.

Nak dijadikan cerita bila dah sampai Nadia’s neighborhood, kami dengan konfidennya pergi ke salah satu rumah yg dok organize rumah terbuka. Tunggu punya tunggu, Nadia tak muncul2x juga. Being me – not a patient person, I called her ;

” Nadia, where are you? We are like practically at the front door of your house”

“Arrr? Where lar you guys?  I AM AT the front door and I don’t see you.”

“We are like at the area where they have this red canopies tents with NAZA emblem on them”

“LOL! THAT’S NOT MY HOUSE laar! It’s Datuk Dzul’s house from NAZAKIA !!!”

Hhahaha.. dengan selamba and control malu, all of us went out from the house. Geez~ What an experience – but I kinda like it though. Anyway, found Nadia’s house which was like immensely (well not really la..Im exaggerating haha!) thronged with guests and pink-and-white canopies tents. The house served Moghul dishes (Nadia said as per emails she circulated to us) maybe to pay tribute to her Afghani/Pakistani root; although she said that’s to pay homage to Deepavali (OOkkkk..hehe). Although she’s busy with her guests, she still have time to layan us we are really honored and appreciate that. One thing I found that Nadia’s family is a down-to-earth despite being being a upper class (her father is the CEO (kot?) of AKPK (Agensi Kaunseling dan Pengurusan Kredit); the agency which is responsible to counsel penghutang2x kad kredit yang dibebani hutang tak berbayar) and living in a high-end area. They are friendly and approachable people and that differentiate them with other snobbish people who act-like-they-are-rich-and-try-to-show-people-they-are-upperclass-BUT-actually-just-middle class-people! On whole, thanks Nadia !!! And also thanks to Linda and Apai for driving Regie and me home.. jauh tu dari Kl to Putrajaya! Hhehe.. =)

 

Rumah Terbuka (Part III) : The House of WKSB & Affin Islamic Bank Berhad.

Yesterday, the schedule was kinda hectic. One of my customer namely WK Sdn Bhd held Rumah Terbuka at their Shah Alam office. Went there with Zaza and Abg Ali and the foods were all thumbs-up! I mean really delicious; laksa (I ate twice), nasi briyani (tak sempat nak makan), the fruits cookies..yummy!~. After that, went to visit the supplier NSB; of another customer, KS Sdn Bhd which happened to be located at the same business park as WK Sdn Bhd. The discussion which was meant for a simple tete-a-tete to verify the existence of NSB business was lengthen to almost an hour as the owner NSB was trying to seek opportunity to have financing with us. Phew~

Around 3.30pm., we went back to Menara Affin and went up to the 18th floor as it was Affin Islamic’s turn to organize our Rumah Terbuka! I simply donned the white robe a.k.a. jubah as that morning terlambat bangun so just grabbed jer la apa yang sempat! LOL..hehe, it caused quite a stir but yeah, as long as I wear something takpalah kan? hehe.. In addition to the makan2x, Affin Islamic also did our own marhaban (chanting in praising the Lord SWT) and all guests were given door gives of GOLD DINAR! Above all, it was a successful event for Affin Islamic Bank Berhad! Congratulations to those who were in charge of doing all the preparations!

 

 

Rumah Terbuka (Part II) : The House Of The Joy Luck Club @ Penang.

Well, one thing about me is that I’m a spontaneous person. Yerp, a “on-spur-of-the-moment” person! When I feel like I wanna do something or be somewhere adamantly on that particular moment, nothing’s gonna hold me back; of course except Allah SWT. Anyway, last Friday, I received this one POSITIVELY-SHOCKING JOB offer from some entities-which-I-cannot-reveal… a job opportunity which sounds inviting and I have to said I was kinda felt privileged and honored! It’s something that if could given time, I definitely strive my butt off and Insya Allah, put my 100% FOCUS on that! But anyway, I was not really keen into the offer although IT FELT NICE to be offered THAT!

I was given time to think and ponder about it. So, I called Mak and talked to her just to siphon out. The next day on Saturday, I was feeling kinda longing to go back to Northern region and I really need a consoling place to think about the dilemma.. and a ridiculous idea just suddenly popped out = I’m taking some goddamn fly tickets go-and-fro to Penang & Kedah and coming back to KL Tomorrow (Sunday)!!! Hahaha.. sometimes I surprise myself but hey, that’s the wonderful thing I like about myself. Full of mysteries..just like beyond the unknown part of a riverbend( Erk???)!!  So, took ERL to KLIA, grabbed go-and-fro tikcets to Penang… off we FLY to Penang!

Muzem told me he was to conduct tis Rumah Terbuka on Ahad, so that was one of the plan why I decided to fly North. In addition, I also told him and Khirwan about the offer and would like to know what were their piece of mind on THAT OFFER. Sampai Penang pukul 3.30 PM, Khirwan tolong amik saya kat airport and he then tolong hantar saya ke Jetty Penang aka Port Swettenham (thanks my friend!). Crossing the Malacca Straits (so nice to feel the zephyr and the sea breeze!) and then took a bus went back to Jitra, Kedah. Talking to Ayah and Mak were very consoling and alleviating; although both are of two different characteristics. Ayah seorang yang suka provoke, transparent yet diplomatic person who has the thousand skills on How-To-Melt-People’s-Heart (I’m serious!) whereas Mak is a good listener yet opinioted (betul ker ejaan ni? Check sendirilah yer!). But in the end, it is I who make the decision and it is I who decide that. Their words are simply to sooth me. Thanks Mak and Ayah!

 

On Sunday, naik bas bertolak ke Penang semula, ke rumah Muzem at Blok Permai Indah opposite USM. I was kinda shocked that the house was like CONGESTED with Muzem’s friends from maktab KPLI. Nak tak nak disebabkan Muzem terpaksa melayan kawan2x yg ramai tuh, he asked me to stay OUTSIDE of the house!!!! Hhahaa, sounds pathetic rite but I truly understand Muzem’s situation. Let him decided what’s the best. After semua dah beransur pulang, barulah saya ‘dibenarkan’ masuk (sedey tak?hahaha). And of course, adalah a few of Muzem’s friends yg datang lagi. – And of course I don’t know them but I don’t have qualm on initiating some cheezy ; not to say lame as well; conversation!  Dzul, my high school friend pun datang and it was nice seeing him back. Anyway, kudos to Muzem and his friends for organizing the close-knitted Rumah Terbuka; and I was informed that all delicacies were kitchen-made by these BACHELORS! Rajin kan? If me memang sorry lah…ehehe.

To end the short stint kat Northern region tu, Dzul antar ke airport Penang and on 4.15 P.M, I flew back to KLIA. Hhehe phew~. What a nice activity to kill the weekend, eh? =)

Rumah Terbuka (Part I) : The House of Conventional Business Banking & Trade Finance.

The month of Syawal is full with Rumah Terbuka events. Lately, it has become a custom in Malaysia that the whole Syawal is dedicated for Rumah terbuka (to entertain friends and acquiantances) as most people were busy spending time with family on the first week of Raya. Anyway, just now the Business Banking Division (Conventional) - which comprises of Corporate Banking, Contract Financing & co-joint with Trade Finance organized their Rumah Terbuka at Menara Affin’s 18th Floor a.k.a The Banquet Boulevard.

It was quite festive as the event co-celebrating the upcoming Deepavali. Extravagant decoration (lemang, kad-kad raya, ketupat) digantung and nostalgic raya songs berkumandang. It was nice meeting friends sebab the whole Bank was like gathering dekat atas 18th floor *aww*. Anyway, this Thursday is Affin Islamic punya turn. I wonder how it gonna fare? AFFIN ISLAMIC BOLEH! =)

*The crowd thronging the Banquet Boulevard -turns-into traditional-esque ‘kampung’.

* Me, Mona (looking nice in blue, eh?hehe), Linda and Mimi – Busy eating Satay! I look so scrawny. Shud be eating more in the hibernation period nanti =)

*Hehehe..Me and two foxy (erk??/hehe) colleagues, Fathiyah aka Fa & Zara!

* Me & Linda ! I’m sure to miss her when I’m gone. *sniff* …And bawah picture Zaidi (hehee, biasalah dia ), Kareena & Me !

* Me and the gothic punk-hearted Seth Rina! =)

* Zara and Me! I think she’s photogenic, ain’t her? *wink*wink =)

P/s : Muzem, aku tak dapat update blog pasal rumah terbuka Penang dan my ’spontaneous weekend’ sebab gambar2x tak di-emailkan pada aku lagi! Tolong tanya kat empunya camera KIKI LALA!! =p

Mythical Malay Magic : “Kekasihku Seru.”

I just need to jot tis down while i’m still in the fever of it. The amazing TV3’s teleseries “Kekasihku Seru” is one of the most brilliant masterpiece I’ve ever witness in the Malaysian silverscreen (or TV-screen!Erk?!) history. An incredible depiction of Malay mythical culture being fictionalized into horror teleseries is a tedious responsibility yet the production house who produced this masterpiece deserves a standing ovation and even a thunderous applause for its breathtaking cinematography.

I have to say that I’m amazed with the narration of the story and the cinematography! The scripwriter should be given credit for everything as the subject of saka is very much still considered as a taboo subject amongst the Malay community although there were already some steps being taken to commercialize the idea; such as Shuhaimi Baba’s “Waris Jari Hantu.“ The star studded casts had also showcased spectacular performances; especially Emilia Rosmilda as Marissa and Umie Aida as Mas Suri. Marissa is potrayed as a naive yet a determinant girl whereas Mas Suri is the composed and sensible auntie of Marissa who is the epitome of the family’s strength. Saka involves black magic to control an inherited gin (saka) and it was usually being practised during ancient days by the olden people to protect themselves from danger and enemies. If I’m not mistaken, it was actually famously originated from Negeri Sembilan (the term ’saka’; which meant that the inheritance OF from a mother-to-a-daughter); but other Malay states also have their own stories of ‘hantu bela-belaaan’ and everything of that sort.

The journey of the teleseries centers on Marissa, the great-great grandchildren of Mastura who first bestowed the dark curse upon the family. Directed by foreigner Khabir Bhatia, the teleseries chronichles around the family who is burdened by a curse which was set upon them by mistake made by the ancestor, Mastura. Mastura was a rich svelte who is admired by many men but none won her heart except for Waris, a commoner. Mastura’s father opposed the relationship and thus the twosome chose to elope-and-get-married. Both Mastura and Waris knows that the time will come where Mastura’s father would find them and the only definite end to the turmoil would be death. Therefore, both made a vow. They both went to see a she-shaman and concealed dark curse that would bind them. Should any of them would be killed, the dead one can be summoned to live again and lead the remaining life with the other! And of course not soon enough, the twosome was discovered by Mastura’s father and Waris was killed.

Devastated by Waris’s death, Mastura summoned him back with the dark curse set upon both of them. Waris did came back, only to be less than a soul, more than a spirit. He has become a saka (inherited gin). To cut the story short, Mastura who then repented by devoting herself back to religion and faith to God tried very hard to avoid him and even married another man. Unfortunately, Waris hunted her down and keep coaxing her to submit herself to him. He began to coax Mastura’s daughter, Masitah…and the history repeats itself all down the lineage. Each and every inheritant (the daughter of the family) tried hard to resist the temptation; while some were easily coaxed.

The teleseries still being aired on TV3, every Thusday 9.30 p.m. and I have to say that I’m simply loving this. Maybe tis sounds a lil bit far-fetched, but hey, it’s my blog and I think tis is a piece of thing I wanna share with y’all! I have inserted one of the drama snipet. In this scene, Mastura’s daughter, Masitah was still a lil’ kid and she’s being taunted by her peers. She cried for help and Waris, the Saka came to revenge for her by killing the naughty brats!  Well, that’s lesson worth to be learnt by brats! Hahaha!

Motorcycle Matinee : Water Vs Oil.

Hhehe..drama unfolds again! As usual like every weekend, I’ll spend my mornings (more like towards afternoon la sebab bangun lewat gak dari weekedays hehe) kat Bandar Baru Bangi. Di Putrajaya, nothing much to do sebab there are hardly any restoran or groceries shops; ada pun kat certain cluster jer la like Presint 8 and Presint 16. So today, decided to service motorcycle and minum2x di Restoran 24 hours Hassan Cafe (once a Penangite always a Penangite! Habit makan roti canai atau nasi kandar and teh tarik on weekend mornings memang tak dapat elak dah!).

Around 2.00p.m, I pushed off from Bandar Baru Bangi and nak balik Putrajaya. Alih2x, dah masuk simpang Presint 7, hujan mulalah turun, pouring cats and dogs! Damn! Terpaksalah saya menumpang teduh bawah one of the fly-over. Tunggu punya tunggu sampai 3.30 p.m hujan tak henti2x lagi and kaki pun dah lenguh mencangkung! Yer lah, the pavement under the fly-over is like surfaced with garnites and sharp pebbles! So, I decided to just speed jerlah meredah hujan..Lagipun rumah di Presint 18 taklah jauh sangat. Sebab hujan lebat sangat, saya ‘mengecilkan’ badan saya dan melonjongkan (erk? I dunno what istilah to use) badan ke depan mcm budak2x racing @ rempit selalu buat tuh sebab nak elak hujan lebat. I sped the bike and tak sedar pulak ada lopak besar di hadapan. I thought it was merely lopak yang kecil. Sekali bila dah rempuh lopak tuh (which was suprisingly dalam and besar).. DUSSSHHH! I was left soaking wet and yang lebih mendramatikkan situasi, motorbike pulak tiba-tiba terhenti! Shite!

 

Saya cuba startkan enjin motor tapi gagal. Tengok2x ada skru yang tertanggal and satu tiub yang saya rasa saluran minyak tergantung terjuntai (erk??) di bahagian bawah moto. Damn! Baru jer tukar minyak hitam tadi.. ARGH! Saya jadi gabra..dah la tengah jalan, hujan lebat pulak..baju nipis takada raincoat. Dengan mengigil kesejukan (i’m scrawny thin so senang sejuk, whaddaya expect?!) and soaking wet, I called Kakak and informed her and mintak Abg Zam came to the rescue. Around 20 minutes menunggu di dalam hujan lebat, akhirnya Abg Zam sampai jugak. After several attempt and de-watering the engine, masih gak tak dapat hidupkan. We then went to Abg Sri (my cousin) ’s house di Presint 8 to pinjam motorcycle so that boleh tolak motor yang rosak tuh. Sambil tu snap la few pictures untuk stok gelak tulis dalam blog hehe.

With Abg Zam riding Abg Sri’s motor  and pushing  my motorbike (I just sit on it and control the navigation), we managed to get my bike sampai Presint 18. Phew~ Rasanya esok baru boleh nak hantar bengkel sebab kat Putrajaya ni mmg takada bengkel; only at nearest town like Bandar Baru Bangi or Dengkil. Well, that’s so much about my motorcycle matinee. It’s just another adventure to share with my frends. Somene did asked a question = why I’m like so DOCUMENTING my endeavors? LOL! It’s actually more of a personal thing coz whenever I read back, its kinda nice to know that I’ve gone thru certain unkempt phases in life and every words that I jotted down was a fresh emotion siphon into transcription! And of course, it’s kinda nice to share news with your friends out there. So, doesn’t matter. It’s our lives we are writing about!~ =)

Original Sin Is Basic Instinct : What Nourishes Me Destroys Me.

After two days of medical leaves (MC), I guess the emotional turbulence begin to cease.  Time to pick up and really moves on with life. I simply cannot coop myself forever, mourning about whatever that might or (may) happened; although I have to say it wasn’t goin so well. Still, I am an honest. I speak what I felt and not having qualm embracing the insecurities and all the impurities; up on my sleeves.

Anyway, on Wednesday, i spontaneously decided to go see dentist to pluck my Wisdom Tooth. It just wasn’t something I planned. It’s just one of the few physical torture that I could think to alleviate my emotional meltdown ari tuh. No, I won’t go to the extend of playing with knives and cut myself (which by the way is kinda fascinating idea); and I’m definitely not someone who is like torturing his body for nothing. I just felt that it was the right time at the right moment to deal with excruciating pain, blood and piercing drills. Well, I won’t go detail on it; it was a no-biggie dental issue; the ernomously big tooth was succesfully plucked out from my gum. Yeah, I won’t attached the picture of my wisdom tooth – but hey, the doktor said my gigi cantik! *lol*

The minor dental-surgery somewhat somehow alleviate the emotional turbulence I was having, though. Like a bait of diversion, more like. Anyway, on Friday started kerja balik after 2 days of hiatus (Wednesday & Thursday) and it’s just nice to distract yourself into works rather than melayan perasaan bodowh *sheesh*. With this dark state of mind, I think I can resume my reading on Stephen King’s “Bag of Bones.” Pembacaan buku ni before this terganggu sebab masa tu pun baru je habiskan “Pet Sematary” karya Stephen King; so I thought too many violence and dark stuffs back-to-back is too much IF THE STATE OF MIND IS IN SERENITY. Selain tu baru je habiskan siri trilogi “His Dark Materials” karangan Philip Pullman (I will update on this later!) and masa tu juga baru habis membaca  Sidney Sheldon’s “Tell Me Your Dream” (Regina’s!).

But really, I have no mood on updating my blog. But I won’t take a bow. It’s the fact of life and should we not to embrace that? We just have to open eyes more to appreciate those who have been always appreciating and love you rather than being so melodramatic *sheesh, how many times, eh? haha*. Well, I’m an adult now. Who may look like a teensy-tween. But I can take care of myself. I’m looking forward to open new door and see what lies ahead. It maybe a life-changing experience.

P/s : Angie’s on W Magazine November issue (sans makeup); breastfeeding either Leon or Viv. Photographed by Pitt. It’s simple but full of life. Lesson learnt = embrace your basic instinct.

Childlike’s Changeling.

Time never defies us. As we grow up, we learn how to cope with the anguish and pain of our lives. We open our hearts to all possibilities and we learn to sooth our own sadness. Isolation and self-seclusion may heals the wound; but the memories will be cherished forever. We learn to let things go and try to move on with our lives. It may hurts like a blade thru ribs and the heart beats hard whenever we think about it. We may feel like crying but no one is to be blamed. We may feel that the emotion is the most sacred and will not be tainted by speculations or stranger’s unholy thoughts. It is we who suffer but it is we who is fighting own demon,  very own Changeling. Nicole Kidman once quoted :

“It is my nature as a human to wish happiness in everyone I love. I am in different place now.”

Eid Mubaraq 2008 : Ensemble of 4 Generations @ Kampung Padang, Jitra, Kedah.

Pictures speak thousand words. Selamat Hari Raya. May the joyous season brings prosperity =). The whole Tok Mat’s clan get a Raya get-togezzer at Kampung Padang, Jitra, Kedah. An ensemble of 4 generations all together. All hail to Tok Mat! =)