Mum & Her Orchids

Mum's favorite past time is gardening and her passion lies in orchid cultivation. Nothing pleases her more that seeing her flowers in bloom. And bloom they do those flowers of hers. We are amazed that her flowers grow so well.

My brother had taken these photos and showed them to her. She said, Cantik nya.. When my brother told her the flowers are actually hers she said unbelievably, Ye ke..? ha-ha.. So these are some of the orchids that mum has in her garden. Trust me, she has many, many more..

Makan-Makan

Had a makan-makan at Damansara last weekend.

Only one word could describe the food that was served - wow! There was beriani gam and roasted lamb legs and beef with blackpepper sauce. There was also buttered button mushroom and salad with edible flowers accompanied by an assortment of dressing.

For dessert there were cream puffs and a selection of kuih Melayu with lots of delicious chocolates. And let's not forget the fruits - there were manggis and rambutan and longan and etc. Did I forget anything else?

Oops, of course there was mak there.. hehe.. got carried away with the food there for a moment. And Mak Su and of course the other members of the clan. I wanted to get some pictures but didnt have a camera with me.

Only Eirfan was eager to tag along to his auntie's house; the others were busy elsewhere.. sokmo macam tu. We told everyone else about the food when we got home. They were mad/glad they didnt go depending on their concern with regards to the waistline..

Thank you to the host & hostess for the greatest lunch - and there goes my good intentions on bersederhana where eating is concerned..

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Getting Back To Basics

Visited someone at the hospital last weekend. He's had an operation for colon cancer. Was in the ICU for some time but now recovering in the wards, Alhamdulillah.

He's as weak as a baby, cant even begin to sit up on his own on bed. The specialist has not briefed immediate family the next steps toward recovery. May he have a speedy recovery.

There are 6 beds in the ward, all with similar cases. The most heartrending patient of all was a 20-something adik being taken care of by his father. Kesian. Dari kecil sampai besar, tak habis ayah jaga anak tu. May Allah bless them both.

I decided to be more careful and selective on the family diet. Nothing works like being healthy. Ya Allah, please bless us with good health.

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It's A Sad Story Again..

I sent off the other bachelor back to campus on Sun. He was in a jovial mood - meeting friends again. But not that crazy about school I would guess.

This time the boys had to share a house outside campus so it's a new experience for them. The house is a brand new one. I hope they would not 'destroy ' the house at the end of the tenure - like all bachelors do.

& yesterday the other bachelor also returned to his own campus. Classes are starting again.

It's going to be quiet around here. No one to fight over the PC. No one prowling in the kitchen looking for food. No one coming in or going out for teh tarik. No one stopping and honking in front of my gate. No one asking where the socks are. No one wanting to use the car... Yeap, it's going to be real quiet.

Someone remarked that my blog has a sad mood to it. Sedih actually the word that was used. I thought about it, and agreed that to some extent it is sedih. But personally I'd rather describe the blog as emotional ..

And yeah I know, I am being emotional again ..

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On Music

I am no expert on music. But I know what I do or do not like. The kids say my songs are out-dated. So do my friends.

In fact the kids say the songs I like got out-dated many times and I still listen to them. Examples are like Emotion which was sung again by Destiny's Child some time back and Every Breath You Take. Nevertheless I still like the original versions sang by ? (whom I cant recall) and Police respectively. I actually resented Puff when he sang every Breath You Take in his very own version.

I got laughed at by a friend who loved AC/DC because I like Anne Murray. But AC/DC?? Come on, get some real music please.. Someone asked me, why Dione Warwick? And I got a snicker or two for still liking Sting and Lennox and Streisand.

I favored Janet Jackson and Madonna and Toni Braxton and Mariah Carey for a bit but got tired of their colorful stories. Was engulfed by Robbie Williams and who's-that-guy? (Ronan Keating actually) for a while too. Occassionally I like the songs but not the singers themselves like Eminen and Destiny's Child.

Lately Il Divo is top on my list. And I got a good ribbing for that too.

I guess I can can tolerate very small doses of modern pop like Britney's Everytime, but I'll stick to evergreens. No teasing or raised eye brows or jokes about my choice of music or singers, please. Thank you.

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A Wedding In The Family

& suddenly we had two weddings in a row in the family. Last month was cousin Aida's and most recently Nana's.

A nice touch ~ lovely photos of the bride & groom put up at the main entrance..

And the pakciks seem to have an enjoyable late morning tea and assorted kuih-muih..
The children seem to have fun..

And the makciks were busily gossiping. Must be something serious.. heh-heh.. (And hence the signs of the children getting bored. Take note they have started fidgeting & changed the camera settings ..)
Then the children started to be funny.. like the Malay heros from the 60s with tilted songkoks here..

After akad ~ the bride & groom having tea..

Everything had went well. Bride & groom mingling with aunts, cousins, nieces & nephews..

Till the next niece's/nephew's wedding..

Congrats to the bride & groom and parents of the bride for a very nice wedding.

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World Cup Mania

It wouldnt do if I dont have anything to say about the World Cup, right? Everybody's got something to say about it..

There are two football freaks at home. One had to catch all that hype with friends on mega screens at some mamak shop somewhere. The other just contented to watch all the actions at home.

The others? So.. well, yeah it is the World Cup..

Me? I thought the grass is really green at all the fields. And that the temperature is pretty hot for an European summer. And that the commentator that we had smiled a bit too much for a sports scaster and Shebby could do a much better job than that main anchor guy. I love the color that the Dutch guys wore and most of all I think van Bastan still look great at 40-something.

That's all that I can sum up on the games.

Oh, and that chauvunist-flavored joke we get on email about the world cup? Yeah that one. I am sure the girls are very happy the men are occupied elsewhere during these games. That way we get to do the things that we enjoy doing without anybody checking up on us.. heh-heh..

I personally think the World Cup should be held more often ~ like every other year or so..

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