Happy 2010

So it will be new year tonite. Happy New Year to all.

May the new year be better, brighter, happier, more industrious, productive and positive. More fruitful, berkat. More iman, 'amal. A year where dreams are fulfilled. Aspirations reached. Spirits soar.

Wish everybody the best of the very, very best next year.

Happy New Year!!!

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Some Serious Thoughts (That I Occassionally Have..)

So Christmas is gone. And the year's ending fast.

Do you ever have new year resolutions? Of late, more often than not I do. I checked the ones I made for 2009. I had a long list which I divided into different categories - financial, spiritual, work, family etc etc (I like things to come in compartments; so everything must belong to a group of some sort).

For 2009 I achieved some things on my list but screwed lots. I suppose that's normal..?

I am preparing a similar list for 2010. Of course somethings are transferred lock, stock and barrel - like losing weight (let's do a ho-ho-ho laugh here..)

This year I have a new perspective on my resolutions. I translate these resolutions as my goals for the coming new year. And goals have processes associated with them. The process to attain each goal is as important as (if not more important than) the goal itself - I read this from Robert Kiyosaki (author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad).

Any goal aka resolution without a process attached to it is just another empty dream (I personally translate this to angan-angan mat jenin).

So basically I am taking my resolution a bit more seriously this year - with some serious thoughts on how to achieve them. A process. A plan. A workable plan.

(Semangat nye..)

What's more I'll let you read this for some thoughts. About last year, next year, about ourselves.

This is from an American uh.. (whose name I will not mention. I mean, if I cant quote a squat from Usman Awang or Hamka or.. (?) who am I to blah.. blah - and I will not elaborate on this thread of thought..). Anyway the quote is here ~

"What lies behind us
And what lies before us
Are tiny matters
Compared to what lies within us."

Ponder this.

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At The Movies

And we hurried all the way hoping we are not so late. We skipped the popcorn-and-coke ritual and dashed straight to the theatre stopping at the doors to get our 3D glasses. Of course the movie had started when we got in and co-incidently a couple of guys were in our seats. We sort of told them to "move along now and get to your own seats".



I like the movie - although the story line is pretty much predictable. I think the movie is flawless - its visual is picture perfect.

Among comments the media made had included that the movie has messages on environment protection, anti-war and that "the American military was pure evil...".



The movie has also been likened to Dances with Wolves (love that; starred by Kevin Costner) and associated with other movies including Braveheart (with Mel Gibson), Jurassic Park and Pocahontas. And Smurf of course, for the obvious reason.

It is also considered to be a front-runner for awards and nominations at the next Academy Awards, including best picture.

I love the movie. It proves yet another theory I have - askar orang Amerika memang jahat! Anyway if you have not seen this, go ahead and do it because it definitely is money well spent at the cinemas.

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Turning Over A New Leaf After All.. ?

And while having tea with the girls last week Delinn had said this blog does not have tales about the terrible me anymore.

I suppose that's because I have nothing terrible to tell. Now. I used to have lots of that while at the toxic office. While you cant stop and think about work there (You just work. Period. ) - here, there is time to sit and think and plan work. I suppose that translates it just about right; operational is almost always fire fighting anyway. Always like a rush against the clock.

So in a way I am deducing that this current office turns me into someone more at peace with world. . muah-ha-ha.. The previous one simply makes me bad.

If you somehow do believe that, you will believe almost anything.

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Season To Be Merry

And we decided to get Eirfan the PSP after all. He had asked for one for doing good in his UPSR.

For a while I thought maybe we shouldnt. I doubt my brother bought one for his son for getting good results in the UPSR (or anything come to think of it. I can imagine him saying it a waste of time / money). But considering many of Eirfan's friends have PSPs we bought one anyway.

He seemed pleased with the present although he didnt show it so much (I hope he likes it!) Maybe his abangs were disappointed. They were hoping for a PS3 or an Xbox. But what would I do with the PS2 then?

We got the PSP at the Sony outlet in KLCC (the Christmas decoration was beautiful there - pix below). It came with standard games (according to Eirfan these games are outdated games that is why they are given free). I was disappointed - there in no Tetris, Galaga, Dig Dug or Pac-man included in the cartridge given..



I told Eirfan I have the right to keep the PSP at times I deem suitable. He of course agreed at the time. Let's hope this is something worthwhile bought.

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Of Wonders, Promise And Hope

[Hijr 15:16] And indeed We created towers in the skies, and beautified it for the beholders. 16. Dan demi sesungguhnya! Kami telah menjadikan di langit: bintang-bintang (yang berbagai bentuk dan keadaan) serta kami hiasi langit itu bagi orang-orang yang melihatnya.

[Hijr 15:19] And We spread out the earth, and placed mountains as anchors in it, and in it grew all things by a proper measure. 19. Dan bumi ini Kami bentangkan, dan Kami letakkan padanya gunung-ganang yang kukuh terdiri, serta Kami tumbuhkan padanya tiap-tiap sesuatu yang tertentu timbangannya.

[Hijr 15:45] Indeed the pious are amidst Gardens and springs. 45. Sesungguhnya orang-orang yang bertaqwa adalah ditempatkan di dalam beberapa taman Syurga, dengan matair-matair terpancar padanya.

[Hijr 15:56] He said, "Who is it that despairs from the mercy of his Lord, except those who are astray?" 56. Nabi Ibrahim berkata: “Dan tiadalah sesiapa yang berputus asa dari rahmat Tuhannya melainkan orang-orang yang sesat”.

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Pagan?

I was reading and found some claims made about Christmas being actually originated from celebration during the pagan days.

I googled "origins of Christmas" and the like to find out more.

It seemed the history of Christmas is a varied story. Early Europeans marked the year's longest night -- the winter solstice -- as the beginning of longer days and the rebirth of the sun. They slaughtered livestock that could not be kept through the winter and feasted from late December through January.

In ancient Rome, people celebrated rowdy festival from Dec. 17 to Dec. 24 in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture. The celebration consisted of a carnival-like period of feasting, carousing and gambling.

Later the church decided that Christians needed a December holiday to rival solstice celebrations. Church leaders selected Dec. 25 for the celebration. Christmas gained ground over the next several hundred years.

Early Christmas absorbed some of the Roman festival's excesses which featured feasting, drinking and riotous behavior. In fact in 1647 the English Parliament had banned the celebration of Christmas entirely, considering it a festival with no biblical justification and a time of wasteful and immoral behavior.

Charles Dickens with his novel 'A Christmas Carol' helped revive the 'spirit' of Christmas and seasonal merriment. The novel played a major role in portraying (his secular view of) Christmas as a holiday emphasizing family, goodwill, and compassion.

Hmm.. there's a lot more to tell - about the Christmas tree and its baubles and mistletoe and the log and etc etc. But I dont want to bore you.

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Happy Times

And AidilAdha came and went.

The first day we stayed home, we visited, ate and then were merry (so sad - got no photos).

The second day we did the qurban; and then we cook, ate and then were merry. Photos here.

The befallen sacrifices..

.. masak-masak.. I leave this to the experts. I take photos only..

The third and subsequent days we went back to see our mums. We of course ate and ate and were merry.

No photos either. I wanted to get photos of the pair of angsa jahat (according to my mum..), the lone itik nila (the others have alas, but died said mum), the mushrooms Eirfan and I saw on the busut and the old but still sturdy kampung house; but at the last minute had forgotten all about them!)

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Books, Books And More Books Part 19

Yes, yes, I have been very busy and didnt have the mind for blogging (although I did have the time..) Nevertheless..

And I finished this book over the Aidil Adha weekend / holidays.

If you are looking for something spectacular to read, this might be it. It definitely is intense, consuming and hard to put down.

It's not an 'easy' book - I mean Dan Brown does not use my everyday kind of words. And there were definitely lots of research done by the author to write a great book like this. The twists and plots would get anyone turning the page for more.

Like his previous DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons is also about symbology. It is actually a prequel to the Da Vinci Code.

I basically consider this an intelligent book with topics on anti-matter, discrete particle physics and the long-ago history.

Read it. You'll like it - if you can flip the almost 500 pages of them all, that is.

And co-incidently, do you know what is the smallest country in the world? .. it is the Vatican City actually, with a total area of 0.2 sq miles - yeap, that small (fyi total area for KL is 97 sq miles and Taiping is 72 sq miles).

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Books, Books And More Books Part 18

And I have finally completed this.

I'd recommend it to anyone who meet people a lot; need (want?) to impress a lot of people, think they need to catch up on how to have interesting conversations. Maybe for marketeers, star / starlets wanna-be's, socialites etc etc.

Seriously though, yes for marketeers and for those who mingle a lot and need to brush up on their creativity at communicating.

For someone like me who converses in mono-syllables (as if!), it is a good book to get an idea of what de Bono writes.

Read this book if you want to learn about de Bono or if you want to change the way you think or simply because you are looking for smart ideas to not make anyone fall asleep while you are talking!

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UnScrambling The UnFamiliar

We were watching 'French Food at Home - Chateau Special with Laura Calder' when Iman asked what is chateau? And feeling important (feeling important is a role mums have the right to play; ho-ho-ho) I proudly said, a château is a big country house in France.

I double-checked with wikipedia and true enough, it says château is a manor house or a residence of the lord or a country house. It is pronounced sh-a (as in banana)-t-o (as in boat) -- shato. Percayalah, but then again this could be the case of a blind leading the blind.

And the other day I had a tex-mex chicken roll from San Francisco cafe for lunch. I only had that because everybody else had had their lunch and rather than sit alone for mine I did the sandwich roll take-away. Tex-mex is actually short for Texan-Mexican. As the name implies, whatever Tex-Mex has its origin in Texas, with Mexican influences. The things that came to my mind are Tex-Mex food like taco (as in Taco Bell, obviously) and nachos. And also Tex-Mex music aka Tejano music (fyi that is pronounced as Tehano) and the late Selena.

There is this site that I love that has lots of Tex-Mex recipes - check it out here.

And last but not least, everybody's favorite word - voilà. This is (another French) word that literally translates to "here" in English. It's usually used as a slang term to say "taa daa" sort of expression... Also usually pronounced wrong by Americans for some reason, they like to say it like "wala."

And do continue to read this that I got from the net; written by an American, concerning this word.

Walla is a word used by retarded Americans who don't know any foreign languages and barely know their own. The correct word they are looking for is "voila", which loosely translates as "here it is", "there you go", or similar meanings. Of course, the word voila properly pronounced in French sounds a bit like "vwalla", but with the "v" in front pronounced softly, almost like an "f". Being stupid Americans though, they can't pronounce anything which doesn't sound 100% English (not that they can pronounce English either) so in their incredibly lazy way, they don't even try to pronounce it correctly.

So there you are! Or maybe I should just say, Voila!

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Yeay, It Is Friday!

I've just added the fish tank to the blog (and am feeling so pleased with myself!) But while watching the fish swim I wondered, will the fish sleep at night or would they simply swim, swim and (help..) swim even when I shut down the notebook..? Kesian pulak. (Duh, what an insane thought.)

Anyway, it's Friday evening - yeay..


This weekend I will :-
1. make some (more) cookies to be delivered next week
2. beading (I've completed 1 simplest kurung out of the 11 - yeay..)
3. pick up Luq at the station (yeay.. he's back for the end of year break)
4. do my morning walks
5. get replacement for that lost textbook
6. read, read and read some more
7. roll up my sleeves and tackle those weeds on my vege plot (what is left of it anyway..)
8. do I have time to shop for a new T?

Hey, this plan doesnt look half as bad after all. What have you got planned?

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Memoirs Of The Toxic Office

I just want to officially inform everyone that I have deleted my posts on the BFH / BBFH - the worst ones of them anyway, if not all. I cant remember all that I have written on this subject.

Somehow those writings seem very emotional, unprofessional - now. So there are no more of these pix that I love so much then (me ala Jessica Alba was what I had written then of the second photo). I am going to let by-gone be by-gones (no, not turning over a new leaf. Not yet anyway).


Well, that's that. Just so you know.

ps - I suppose Delinn is going to put this under the header of baik-baik..

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Trick or Treat?

I hate being surprised. Because I could get surprised real good.

When Eirfan was 5 or 6 he hid behind the curtains and surprised me as I walked into the house. I got real mad with him. He cried, the poor baby, when all he wanted to do was play.

From there on people in the house knew never to catch me unawares.

I was getting dinner ready the other day when I thought I heard my daughter scream. I listened at the bottom of the stairs but then heard laughs. Satisfied nothing was wrong I went back to the kitchen. Later I thought "someone" was watching me. I turned to the living room and sure enough there is this ugly looking face staring at me. I thought something was familiar - the shirt actually; I recognize the shirt. I said to my son, dont you dare scare me - you never guess what I might do. He laughed, took off the mask and said, that is why I am standing here far enough from you and not there in the kitchen right behind you!

He was wearing that mask below (but that is Eirfan with the mask). And I hate it. He got it for the Halloween do at his office.

He was pleased that he got Iman and Eirfan screaming in fright. Satisfied that I got a bit of a shock..

Later Eirfan gave his father a fright (he said nasib baik bapak tak jerit like a girl). Tried to frighten his abang but according to abang he is too macho to be frightened with such an ugly mask like that.

Eirfan cant wait for his Abang Luq to get home for the semester break so that he can play the same trick on his abang then.

I know I am repeating myself - but I hate that mask.

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Sunday Muddles

And these headaches always curb my activities. On top of that I get cantankerous too. I've already complained the evening is too hot. The net connection too slow. The air-cond not cool enough. And that's just a few examples.

I went out early to Jalan TAR today. I needed to get beads for the kurungs I need to sew. (I've got 11 of those. The girl gave me her baju, her mother's baju and her sister's. So work has got to start now!)

I made kueh lopis for breakfast but didnt feel like any so it was only cocoa for breakfast this morning. Maybe that's the cause for the headache - skipped breakfast.

The sun was out in full blast too as we walked in town. That could be the culprit too.

We had briyani at Insaf. I made a glutton of myself because I was real hungry. Maybe that's the reason for the migraine. The bill was huge because we had lamb shank and chicken and fish roes with the rice. That could be a likely reason for the migraine too.

I need bottles for the cookies I had to deliver this coming week. There's none in Bagus. Neither are they available at Yen's (Yen's is closed on Sunday as I found out just now). Ugh.. And to add misery to the so-called injury, the cookies are not ready yet either.

I hate it when things are messy like this. On top of that the house is in shambles too.. Luckily I have home-made pizza ready for dinner although I do have to visit the book store tonite because someone had to replace his missing loaned text books..

Nevertheless I have completed the beads on my baju yesterday (yeayy - at least I have achieved something this weekend!) No photos of that yet though.

Wish me well. Please.

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Net Savvy

When my nephew got engaged, I knew it via his Facebook (I like the phrase 'I heard it on the grapevine' better, come to think of it). Of course we barraged his mother for not inviting, not calling, not.. not.. not.. Turned out she had very good reasons. Anyway.

I do not have an account on Facebook. But my 50-something year old sister has one and is so proud of it (she never lets us forget that). I told her she only signed up so that she can snoop on her daughter who is studying abroad (whom of course, is on Facebook).

Eirfan has an account. I occasionally would poke around the space looking at the list of his friends. What he writes (I am a concerned mother). I worry he might make friends with you-dont-know-who on the net. Or innocently reveals more information than he should. I never want to underestimate the harm that the net could wreak from crafty evil minds.

According to stats, Facebook is probably the most popular social networking site of all (58% of all social networking visits), next is MySpace (with 31%) (http://www.socialnetworkingwatch.com/all_social_networking_statistics/).

Rank	Country	Number of Facebook users	%growth Jan 09 - Sep 09
1	USA	84,596,240	101.04%
2	UK	20,228,480	35.42%
3	Turkey	13,996,380	76.4%
4	Canada	12,667,220	16.62%
5	France	12,032,020	82.66%
6	Italy	10,903,620	95.21%
7	Indonesia	8,786,920	879.55%
8	Australia	6,591,640	52.23%
9	Colombia	6,488,200	78.60%
10	Spain	6,314,220	143.22%
11	Argentina	6,036,060	167.64%
12	Chile	5,465,740	31.61%
13	Philippines	4,832,040	1136.76%
14	Mexico	4,731,700	228.44%
15	Venezuela	4,223,740	125.36%
16	India	3,980,260	271.54%
17	Germany	3,875,800	208.71%
18	Malaysia	2,619,040	207.97%
19	Sweden	2,587,300	52.49%
20	Belgium	2,557,000	54.41%
21	Hong Kong	2,350,460	61.15%
22	Taiwan	2,257,340	1899.42%
23	Norway	2,193,820	50.66%
24	Denmark	2,100,840	18.27%
25	South Africa	1,899,600	106.43%
26	Egypt	1,896,120	130.51%
27	Greece	1,858,620	85.94%
28	Israel	1,782,700	106.95%
29	Singapore	1,650,660	123%
30	Switzerland	1,634,260	45.54%

Facebook usage statistics by country - top 30 countries - 10th Sep 09 (http://www.nickburcher.com/2009/09/facebook-usage-statistics-sep-09-huge.html)

Malaysia is 18th for Facebook although in terms of total population we are at the 46th place with a total of 25,869,719 people in the country. (My, we are ahead in social networking.)

So. Be careful.

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Books, Books and More Books Part 17

And I have lots of material that falls under the category of reading-in-progress. First is a couple of better back related books, including one on pilates. I am reading both. It is about standing tall, better posture, better flexibility etc etc. I am hoping this would be the silver bullet for all the achy back ailments.. But progress is so slow..


Next is a book by de Bono. I am interested to read about lateral thinking (yeah, yeah I know - it is an old concept..) But since I dont have that particular book and Ilyas has this (much to my surprise) I decided to read it. After all, if Ilyas read it, I should too.. I am maybe 60% done on this but so far I cant say it is mind boggling or that I will have a beautiful mind (an even more beautiful one, come to think of it) after finishing this..


Right, then I have this book since like forever - everytime I read a few pages of this I will doze off. So I read this whenever I need help to zzzz.... This is progressing so, so slow also.


And I was so excited about this book. I seriously read it untul like half-way through. Then I started to lose focus and it is still unfinished. (Ahem, and no wonder I am not yet rich. Coincidently, do you personally think rich or kaya or whatever you call it, a dirty word?)


And Dan Brown is someone whose book I enjoy (although I read only one book of his - and I didnt even finish that!) But I like the way his story unfold. I havent even started on this actually. Terlalu banyak projek nak buat; tak sempat nak buka yang ni..


And this is a favorite, favorite magazine of mine. It is informative, inspirational, have insight into topics that are relevant to me as a person, I think. I usually get the back dated issues for these - they are like fifty percent cheaper. I purposely put this particular issue here because Annie Lennox appeared on its cover and I simply adore her.


And scattered around my room, under my pillow, on the bedstand and anywhere else are these books. Oh, nothing in the picture? (Kalau tak nampak apa dalam gambar tu dia .. fill in the blanks). These are the books that we are shy to reveal. And no, dont let your mind wonder off to an unknown tangent please. It is those books - you know.. ha-ha. Actually these are the important books, kitab, ilmiah (adalah sesikit sana sini).


So those are some of the projects I am having currently; banyak yang terbengkalai yang betul nye pun. But I am always positive (please note the beautiful mind) - although I dont finish these - yet - ever the optimist (yeah, I am beautiful) - at least nawaitu ada. Maybe I'll finish these slowly, but surely.

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Colors Of The Season

Simply love these colors of fall. Picked it up from here.

Siti, if you are reading these - you owe us some fall photos. Btw, are your costumes ready for the big night-fright this coming weekend? Photos of that too, ok?

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Are We Done Yet?

Sigh. What a relief to be able to sit in front of this pc!

Yesterday I was happy that I dont have to prepare lunch today. We've got a 'merapatkan silaturrahim' lunch invitation - yeay!! How nice - I plan to take things easy today.

I put roti canai with leftover kari and sambal on the table for breakfast. Then I remembered I had some leftover durian. So I made some kuah durian to go with bread. After that I noticed kelapa parut in the fridge. I've been meaning to make some kueh ketayap (do you call it that?) for some time. They are Eirfan's favorite. I got that done and that goes onto the table too.

After that I made some sardine fillings for the pastry that I have. That should take care of tomorrow's breakfast. Then I remembered pulak I have lots of chicken breasts that I already planned for pandan chicken. So I prepared that too and put that in the fridge. That's for dinner today.

And yes, I need to boil the chickpeas for the soup. I am THINKING of eating better again, and the soup is so light and filling..

And after all that, there goes the morning. Of course I need not prepare lunch, nevertheless I had meals until tomorrow all planned out. Letih la.

Anyway the ketayap didnt turn perfect. Need practice there. And the pandan chicken recipe is here. And welcome to my day where no lunch preparation is required.

Oh, and one more thing - no we are not done yet - a mother's work is never done.. but still love oodles in everything that are done.

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Beauty, Beast and Businessmen

While blog-hopping I found a very interesting entry. It goes like so.

A woman, who calls herself Ms Pretty wants lo live in NY. Comfortably of course. In order to achieve this dream of hers she is looking for potential bachelors to be her husband. Rich bachelors of course. So she posted questions on a forum how to meet rich guys etc.

The funny thing is her question was answered by a one CEO who is a businessman and is rich of course. He said from the economics / business point of view Ms Pretty would be a bad investment. Her beauty wont last forever and that means basically her value will depreciate. Whereas him a successful business man, thinks he will appreciate in value given time. What made Ms Pretty thinks she is a valuable investment anyway? An asset like her usually is viable only for leasing - you get what I mean. He suggested she call him if she wants to be uh, leased. Ha-ha.

I had a good time reading it but I do note that everybody wants things the fast and easy way. Percayalah, life is never meant to be that easy. Even in fairy tales. Look at what Cinderella had to go through before the prince came her way. Snow White was poisoned. And Beauty had to bear with Beast before he turned charming.

Duh, you get the drift..

Read the full article here.

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Beads and Baju Raya (or not)

Macam budak kecik, this year I made 3 baju raya for myself. But I can tell you friends who have 6 (baju raya & baju baru bukan baju raya. Oh, there is a difference? I had asked)

Or the other girl who shook her head and refused to talk about her baju raya. Trust me, she had many.

Anyway. Crazy as I am over beading I wanted to put them on all my kurungs.

The first is a bright red kurung with tiny flowers. No matter what I tried the beads dont look right. In the end I decided to do without beading on that kurung after all. Until today I had not taken out the few beads I had sewed on (sheepish smile here). So that didnt turn out to be a baju raya after all.

The second one I did turned out beautiful (ha-ha, even if I say so myself!) I love it. I think it looks superlicious (almost like food that looked so good it is a shame that you have to eat it). And I have that photo below. And more here.


The third is a nice kurung moden with puffy sleeves. I started on the beads on the 5th Syawal (ha-ha. Missed the deadline after all due to the baking that I did. Maybe I'll write on that baking stint later) - and that project is still work in progress. It's simply for the reason that as I was happily beading my baju someone called me and said you must jahit the beads on my baju because my husband is going to be awarded for blah.. blah..

I said ok, send me the baju. I completed her baju this past week and ps - her baju turned out superlicious too.. I'll put that here once I uploaded the photos.

So anyway, all in all I have only but 1 baju raya after all.

And at the same time I also did a beading on Iman's kebaya. I'll get a photo of that later too.

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Simple, But Not That Simple It Seem

Yeay.. it is Friday.

And when I got home I was feeling like, I am not going to even think about what's for dinner.

Later I logged to the net and went to Domino's site and then called for delivery from my fixed line. The conversation went like so:
Me : 2 large pizza for delivery please
She : I'm sorry but your no has no customer details. Have you made any order through this no before?
Me : I dont know. I dont remember
She : Maybe you ordered through your mobile before. Can I have the number?
Me : Blah, blah
She : Sorry ma'am but there are no details on that no either
Me : (no words but duh..?)
She : Oh wait, let me check. Hold on a moment yeah? Yes we have your details. You are ..
Me : (ada pun)
She : Are your details corrrect?
Me : Yes
She : Can you give me the earlier no? The one you are calling from?
Me : NO. This number in not mine anyway. I wont be using this anymore.
She : But ma'am, we..
Me : Can I order now? (I dont care much about your customer database at this point of time)
She : Of course ma'am. Do you want to order now?
Me : (got smoke out of my ears) If you dont mind, yes please (dripping with sarcasm)
She : What would you like?
Me : 2 large pizzas
She : What flavor?
Me : (Suddenly flustered) Flavor? What flavor?
She : Yes, what flavor do you want?
Me : (Eyes wildly searching the Domino's website on the monitor in front of me looking for clues. Alas, but none found) Err..
She : What flavors do you want on top of the pizza? The topping.
Me : Cakap la topping. You said flavor.
She : Sometimes we call it flavor in the shop. Or topping.
Me : (Penipu besar!! Geram)

.. and you thought you had a bad day!

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Is That What It Is?

I love cooking shows. By almost anyone; except Ms Lawson (maybe I am envious of her; after all she is known as the kitchen goddess..) And then at a time I simply love Jamie Oliver too (despite his less than perfect / genteel techniques in the kitchen).

I keep tabs of the unfamiliar and exciting ingredients that are used in the recipes. Rosemary, sage and fresh oregano were my favorites at a time. Then there was crème fraîche (and I go like what is that? How to pronounce it? Duh..) After that there were fresh vanilla and vanilla pods (I only ever knew vanilla that I pour out of the bottle). And I would scour the supermarkets just to find and see what these alluring and beautiful ingredients are all about.

Just a few weeks back as we were watching tv, I asked my husband what ingredient was the chef using. He said entah (like he would know if I dont.. he-he) It looked much like a piece of cheese. The pronunciation is foreign. Later I found out it is called foie gras. Much later I discovered that it is pronounced as fwa grah (it is French).

I never thought of looking it up; until recently when I got a mail from Mira on what it is, how it is produced. And then I think I should ban the chefs who ever call for foie gras in their recipe..

Foie gras is literally translated as "fat liver" but it is actually fattened liver of duck and geese. It is considered as a delicacy in fine dining.

In producing foie gras the birds are force fed a rich mixture. The largest production of commercial foie gras is done in France and Israel. The US will only allow this product to be imported in a cooked stage, either canned, vacuum-sealed, or frozen. And the state of California has actually banned this product.

Look at these photos.. first, prepared foie gras. And then below, urgh, how it all started.




So be brave. Prepare to be appalled. And revolted. Learn, and then ban foie gras.

Oh, and co-incidently, I find there is nothing alluring nor exciting about foie gras, do you?

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Masya Allah, Alhamdulillah, Astaghfirullah

The garden of knowledge and virtue. Taman ilmu dan budi. Arent those beautiful phrases? These are the taglines (if I can call them that) for IIUM / UIA.


And the convo at the university today went on almost perfectly. The ceremony started on time in fact they were very punctual all the way; everybody queued nicely and everything went on very smoothly.

Uh, except (ha-ha of course I have something to comment on) that the mc went overboard with her pronunciation of the names like Zain which became Zayyn and Mohamed is stressed on the e and not Muhamad etc etc.


Nevertheless, the students nasyid was very, very good. Unfortunately they didnt perform during recess; which is a shame. The rector's speech was quite moving that left tears in the eyes. But I doubt the graduans were listening; they were making all sorts gestures at the camera.

I am happy, relieved that there is yet another milestone achieved. Dan mengaminkan sepenuh hati doa yang dibacakan.


And yet at the same time cant help but wonder at the audacity of man (or should I translate that to me?); walau sebanyak mana jua pun rahmat diberi Allah namun masih lagi lupa dan alpa dengan segala kurnia dari Nya.

Astaghfirullahul'adzim. Astaghfirullahul'adzim. Astaghfirullahul'adzim.

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Apa Ada Dengan Cinta?

If I may say so, I do love the title. Sila baca dengan slang Indon - it seem more fun that way.

It is post-Ramadhan and I am back to my sing-alongs in tune to the radio while driving to / from work. Not that I know that many songs to sing along anyway (and Eirfan would almost always cover his ears whenever I do sing). And song lyrics dont change much through the generations; it is almost always about love. New-found love, endless love, pledges of love, worship with love. Then there are lost love, war of love and I-hate-you-now-it-is-over kind of love.

What's love anyway if not just a rush of adrenaline with loads of over-rated and over-flooded emotions; rather than good old logical sense. And just like when you are in a rush, soon you'll get tired and you'll return to your normal pace. That's when the bubble would burst and you find out in cold reality that love on its own is not sustainable in the long run (pun intended, of course).. (Owh, did I actually write that love is like that?)

Anyway. Not long ago I said to my kids something like, apa lah nak bercinta sangat - cinta tu tak de apa pun. They are all like going steady right now. The smart reply I got was, mama boleh la cakap sebab time mama dah lepas! That actually put me in the right place, I thought.

LOL

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Raya Blues

More about raya walaupun raya tak semeriah mana. What is raya to you?

It is to be with mum. Sit with her, minta maaf, tell mutual stories of Ramadhan, tell other stories. Bagi mak duit raya. She can tell me what she wants done and I will do it.

To be with the family. Minta maaf dengan suami. Bersalaman dan cium anak-anak. Berpesan dengan yang baik-baik. Bagi duit raya. Tangkap gambar raya (a must!). Makan yang baik-baik di hari raya.

It is about seeing and meeting people you love and whom you love being around with. A cynic that I am, some maybe family but not one you are fond of. Others may not be family, but you simply enjoy meeting and being with them..

It is not about duit raya (my children insist on visiting their Antie Leli because of her generosity in giving duit raya; which unfortunately made me equally reluctant to visit her. Much to my children's delight, we met her at Antie Timah's place.)

It is not about food. Sesia je puasa sebulan and then make a glutton of yourself on raya.

It is not about forcing oneself to visit anyone when the heart is not into it. Be sincere about it. My arwah PakUda was one of the nicest guy on the planet. We used to visit him without fail every raya. Kalau tak rasa nak pergi visit, tak payah pergi (..?)

It is not about baju raya (I finally came to terms with this. Or have I..?)

ps - And I seriously hate gloomy, despondent, melancholy pre-raya, raya and post-raya moods; like right now.

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The Eve of Eidul Fitr

Is it raya tomorrow? I assume it is..

Nevertheless everything's finally DONE. The last songkok bought. Kasut Eirfan nestled under his bed. All the rendang finished etc etc. We even bought some bunga api to light off tonite. I only need to do some final cleaning.

Raya is so flat (searching for a better word but cant find one) this time around. And raya preparation is basically raya for me - the mad dash around town for the perfect bayu melayu; the sweat to get the food ready; the anxiety that the wajik would turn the way that it should - like mom's.

After eidul fitr solat and seeking forgiveness from everyone and giving duit raya and tangkap gambar (of course), what else is there left of raya? I usually would burrow down with a good book to rest and find peace - at last - after the hectic of Ramadhan and the preparation for raya itself.

Never one to watch tv on raya I find there's not much to do after 1st Syawal. And I am usually among the early ones to turn up at work aftr the festives.

This raya is not much different; we are celebrating raya in Keramat (instead of Bangi) this year. Then we'll travel back to the in-laws.

I wish I am that much happier and in a more celebrating mood. But in actual fact I am burnt out - of raya prep. How much more cynical than that can you be on a raya eve?

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A Ramadhan Doodle

Ramadhan's almost ending. Relief? Sad? Disappointed? Or rejuvenated and inspired? I am having mixed feelings; but it definitely was not better than last year.

Anyway. I did some last minute shopping today. Went to Isetan to get some clothes for Eirfan. I saw a mom with her 4 kids. The children were running around and under the hung clothes, yelling in the store and almost knocking down the fitting room with their antics. The younger one was crying saying 'nak balik..' (what else?) I kept my distance - they remind me too much of my own predicament like maybe 10 years ago. How time flies!

I went home to get dinner ready. Luqman came home today so it is going to be full house. There is lamb briani and keli goreng cili and kari ikan and tauhu sumbat. I even managed to make kueh lopis; the children's favorite. Then Iman text messaged me saying 'I have to do ot today. Wont be able to make it to dinner. OK I thought, 1 down. Later Ilyas called and said I am going with friends for iftar. OK. Kaia came home and announced, I am going out for dinner. Duh? I take these in my stride (my hsband could tell you otherwise, maybe). I wondered too how many times I had disappoint my mum too.

Ah, need not be melancholy - it is raya after all.

Tomorrow is going to be another full day. My sister is coming over and we are going to do some baking together. I plan to do some cleaning too - and re-arranging. It is raya after all.

And I still have a few stuff to get. Songkok. Butang baju melayu. Kasut Eirfan. It is raya after all.

I wonder if I ever make that much preparation for my Ramadhan..

More colorful Ramadhan pix here.

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A Ramadhan Weekend

And so it is already the end of the first week of fasting.
Nevertheless I am still looking, searching for the ketenangan that is associated with the holy month. Which seem so elusive at this instant.

Mungkin kena banyak lagi berdoa. Mungkin beramal dengan jasmani tapi tidak dengan hati.

I am looking forward for a better Ramadhan than last year. Bukan ke kita pun berdoa, semoga Ramadhan ini lebih baik dari yang sebelum nya.

Mungkin hakikat nya, terlalu sibuk dengan urusan duniawi...

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