"Apa makna Merdeka, Mama?" (BM entry)

Salam,

Fathini sejak pertengahan Ogos ni, selalu bertanyakan soalan "Apa makna merdeka, Mama?". Di tadika Fathini, cikgu2 menyuruh semua kanak2 mewarnakan Jalur Gemilang dan menghiaskan tadika mereka dgn Jalur Gemilang dan lukisan 2 mereka. Setiap pagi juga, mereka perlu menyanyikan 'Negaraku' Malangnya Fathini masih tak ingat lirik lagu Negaraku. Oh ye, berbalik pada soalan cepu emas bukan perak Fathini tadi, jawapan yg saya berikan adalah jawapan biasa iaitu "Merdeka ertinya kita bebas dari penjajahan". Masalahnya, Fathini adalah seorang kanak2 berusia 5 tahun yg suka berfikir. Jadinya dia terus bertanyakan beberapa soalan lain sampailah saya pun dah tak tahu bagaimana nak menjawab lagi. Bila nak ceritakan tentang sejarah Malaysia, rasanya panjang sangat. Tapi dia nak tahu macam2 dan sepatutnya saya menggalakkan sifat ingin tahu Fathini.

Apa yg saya buat? Kami pun sama2 cari maklumat kat internet, saya bagi dia tengok sikit2 dan baca. Keputusannya, Fathini lagi tak faham sbb banyak maklumat yg berjela2 dan sukar untuk kanak2 semuda Fathini nak faham. Aduh! Pening kepala saya masa tu. (sebenarnya smlm dan hr ni dia tanya lg.). Kalau saya tak bagi jawapan yg dapat memuaskan hatinya, Fathini akan terus bertanya dan bertanya. Oleh kerana itu, saya pun terpaksalah cari maklumat2 lagi untuk cari jawapan terbaik untuk Fathini.

Bila saya rasa sudah cukup maklumat dan juga saya fikir2kan apa jawapan terbaik untuk memberi pemahaman pada Fathini, ini dia jawapan2nya:

• Merdeka tu maknanya bebas dari penjajah (org jahat yg nak merampas negara kita).
  

• Merdeka dari segi fikiran kita pun ye macam orang2 lain tak boleh nak paksa kita buat apa yg kita tak suka.
• Tapi Tini, walaupun kita merdeka, kita masih lg perlu ikut suruhan agama dan jaga perangai kita. Mama tak nak Tini rasa merdeka, maknanya Tini boleh buat semua yg Tini nak. 
• Bila merdeka, kita kena ingat yg kita perlu sayang kat negara kita.

Selepas saya cakap semua tu, Tini akhirnya puas hati. Itu pun rasanya tahun depan dia akan tanya lg dan soalannya mungkin akan lebih susah untuk dijawab. Ada tak anak2 lain yg ingin tahu juga mengenai merdeka? Apa yg anda semua bagitahu?

An unsuccessful Shopping Therapy.

Salam,

I went out with my two bodyguards (my younger brothers- Aeji and Epit) and Hafizah yg sibuk2 nak ikut walaupun opah dia cakap baik tak yah ikut to PKNS Shah Alam today. I knew that there would a huge crowd during the weekend. Well, everybody is rushing to do Raya Shopping and PKNS Shah Alam is famous with Raya Bazaar. It is one of my favourite shopping spot for raya. It has been 4 years since the last time I went there. That's why I was quite surprised to see some of the changes there.

This morning when we went out at about 11.30 a.m., we thought it was still early. However, we were quite surprised to see there were already a lot of cars especially at the car park. We had to go around few times until we finally found a -not- so-big spot for my Kancil. nasib baik bawak Kancil senang nak parking

Then, we crossed the road to enter PKNS, once again we were surprised to see that there were so many people there. We had to walk inch by inch and the shopping therapy (which I previously planned) became unsuccessful. But, I've promised my younger brothers- Epit and Aeji that they could choose what they want for Raya. So, we still checked out all the booths and we managed to buy one baju kurung for myself, one baju Melayu for Aeji, some clothes for Fathini and Hafizah (she even chose her own clothes!), a pair of new sandals for me, two tudung for my MIL and my youngest sis- Awin and some brooches. Epit didn't want to buy anything though I asked him to choose what he want. He couldn't find anything that he would like to buy.

I didn't take any photos there and I don't think I want to show any of the clothes or things that we bought today. The reason I'm writing about this experience is, just to share my thoughts of having the shopping therapy shouldn't be done during this particular month and before the busy Raya preparation week!
mcmla org lain tak tahu :P I also pity some babies and toddlers that had to follow their parents to the shopping mall. Well, Hafizah was told to stay at home with her opah but she insisted to come along. huhu. I had to carry her since it was quite dangerous to let her walk in the crowd. Luckily I had two strong bodyguards that could also carry Hafizah and also the things we bought. We had to quickly shorten our shopping trip after Hafizah started to complain. She said "I'm tired", "When can we go home, Mama?" and "I'm hungry". (even though she had Fried Rice before we left the house and I also brought along a bottle of water and some cookies for her. huhu)

Now, what about your shopping experiences this year? Where did you go or where do you plan to go? Did you bring along your kids and how did they behave?

Need a motivation boost now.

Salam,
I came back from NZ at the end of April this year. I rested for a month before I went back to work in the previous workplace.And now....................after almost three months going back to work, I feel somehow demotivated. I'm sure is it me or it it because I'm just not interested to teach the same syllabus for another month. I know that I shouldn't complain, but I just can't help it. I don't really see the point of teaching and educating some students who are most of the time not interested to learn and just want to use their student's visa to stay longer in Malaysia and go for a long holiday in Malaysia. I actually hate it when I realized that I myself is making excuses after excuses but seriously I'm kind of fed-up dealing with some of them. I'm losing my wits end and the worst thing is, I can't share how I feel now with my hubby. He himself has his own problem with his failed experiments. He is struggling to finish everything in these two months time.

I'm asking your opinion on this- can anybody tells me how to boost up your motivation in doing your job?

Meeting Prof. Muhammad Hj. Salleh (a National Writer)

Salam,
I promised to write the update on Poetry Reciting Night that happened two nights (on 28th April 2010) before we came back to Malaysia. Only today I managed to at least share about what happened during the poetry night. If you've been reading some of my previous entries, you definitely notice that I really love Poems. When I was a TESL student in PPP/ITM and UKM, literature is always my favourite subject for each semester. We had to study different types of literature like Asian literature, Classic literature (of course learnt about Shakespeare's masterpieces) and Modern Literature. All right, before I go too far discussing the literature (which maybe might bore some of you), let me go back to the topic of this entry.

That special night, we were lucky to have Prof. Haji Muhammad Salleh as our guest of honour. He was on his sabbatical leave and he planned to visit NZ and other countries like Fiji, Samoa and the others. Here is a little bit about him.

Born in 1942 Muhammad Haji Salleh is one of Malaysia´s leading poets. For more than 30 years, through his poetry, translations and literary criticism and theory, as well as by publishing the magazine Tengara, a journal of Southeast Asian Literature, he has been contributing to the literary and cultural life of Malaysia. Openly rejecting conformity to western cultural patterns, his poems often refer to myths and legends of the Malay oral tradition. Haji Saleh lives with his family near Kuala Lumpur.

Muhammad Haji Salleh is one of Malaysia´s leading poets. Born in 1942 he studied in England and the USA, and since 1978 he has been a professor for Malaysian literature at the National University in Bangi near Kuala Lumpur. He has also made a name for himself as an essayist, cultural critic, translator and publisher of Tengara, a magazine for Southeast Asian literature.
The Poetry Reciting Event started with Prof. Hj. Muhammad Salleh introduced himself to us and he told us a little bit of his aim during his sabbatical leave. Then, all of us had our dinner together. Everybody brought some food to be shared and WUMA (Waikato University Malaysian Association) ordered Nasi Tomato as the main dish. While eating dinner, we mingled around and catched up with our friends. Prof. and another guest of honour that night (I can't remember his name. huhu) sat with our WUMA president, Izhar. While my two friends, Dr Fid, Rina and I were sitting at the next table with his wife. Somehow we managed to ask a lot of questions about Prof. to his wife.

The poetry reciting was started by the other honourable guest. He is one of the lecturers in Waikato University. He used to teach in Brunei and he is married to a Sabahan. His Bahasa Melayu was not bad at all when he attempted to recite a poem in BM.  Though he struggled to pronounce some words, his efforts was really amazing. When it was time for Prof. Hj. Muhammad Salleh, he took the centre stage and brought along his netbook. His style of reciting was quite relaxing and audience friendly. He recited about three poems from his new poetry collections. The most interesting poem that he wrote was about "Durian". The poem was about a letter that he pretended to write to Thailand's King. He complained when Thailand had came out with the new hybrid of Durian when the strong smell has completely gone. All of his poems indicated that he wanted to say out loud his opinion about the latest issue in our society.

Right after Prof. ended his poetry reciting, one of our friends - Hanani took over the stage to recite a famous poem from another National Writer (Sasterawan Negara) A. Samad Said. The title of the poem was "Tetamu Senja". If any of you remembered, that poem was used as the lyrics in one of Kopratasa's song. Hanani recited the poem with a lot of emotions and high spirits. The last performances during that night were the singing session by a group called "Dr. Sazali's Brothers". (Dr. Sazali  is one of Waikato Uni.'s lecturer who just joined the uni. since early last year). The band consisted of Dr. Sazali, Dr. Norwan (M.D.), Izhar, Along (one of Phd's student's son) and the lead singer was Jun. She sang two Dato Siti Nurhaliza's traditional songs and later she asked a duet partner to sing with her to sing the famous song in 90's "Doa Buat Kekasih" (originally sang by Ramli Sarip and Khadijah Ibrahim). Jun sang very well and the band was quite good in providing the music for her. Only during the duet, her duet partner was sometimes out of tune but we still enjoyed their performances. Before the event ended, Izhar as WUMA president gave some token of appreciations to all of the performers especially to our honourable guest, Prof. Hj, Muhammad Salleh.

As usual, we left the event, we had some more photo shoots. Some of my friends took the opportunity to take some photos with me as they said they might not able to see me again before I left Hamilton, NZ. Of course we also took a picture with Prof. Meeting him was one of the sweetest moment in my life. He is truly a great poet with a great mind!

Kes rumah meletup, mercun dan bunga api. (BM entry)

Salam,
 Rasanya ramai yg dah baca suratkhabar smlm mengenai sebuah rumah yg menyimpan stok mercun dan bunga api meletup dan menyebabkan seorang kanak2 berumur 6 thn meninggal dan dua org lg cedera parah. Setakat ni, ini kes pertama yg melibatkan mercun dan bunga api thn ni. Setiap thn , masih ada kes2 putus jari atau cedera akibat bermain mercun buatan sendiri. Walaupun  dah diharamkan, ramai lg yg sanggup cari stok mercun dan bunga api di negara2 jiran seperti Thailand atau hingga di China. Selalunya mangsa2 yg putus jari, cedera parah atau meninggal adalah orang2 Melayu kita. Sedih kan bila baca kes2 sebegini terutama bila ia melibatkan kanak2 yg masih bersekolah. Kalau dah putus jari atau hilang jari, tak pasal2 dah hilang nikmat sempurna anggota badan.

Kami waktu kecil2 dulu pun ada main mercun dan bunga api. Mmg kami dpt stok dan bekalan yg banyak dr negara jiran, Thailand. Maklumla dah duduk di Tumpat, Kelantan yg dah dekat2 sempadan ke Siam tu. Cuma ahamdulillah tak pernah pula kami adik beradik cedera bila bermain mercun dan bunga api. Mungkin sbb kami tak berani dan tak memandai2 mereka mercun sendiri menggunakan serbuk Carbide dan mengisikannya dlm paip besi spy ia boleh meletup dgn lebih kuat. (SILA JGN LAKUKAN INI DI RUMAH YE :P) Bab2 lawan dgn budak2 kampung sebelah tu, biasalah. Tiap2 mlm lps Terawih, mesti ada bedilan2 dan das2 tembakan mercun  kedengaran. Saya pun sama2 juga menyertai adik2 lelaki saya. (Sbbnya adik2 lelaki ada 5 org!). Pakcik bongsu saya je yg pernah cedera (tapi tak parah pun) akibat mercun meletup di tgnnya. Kelakar juga masa tu sbb dia masuk rumah meraung2 minta tolong. "Aduh, tolonglah. Sakit ni", itu yg pakcik sy raungkan. Arwah Tok mmg garang, dia tak kesiankan pun malah suruh pakcik saya pergi sambung main sbb kalau dilarang pun mesti pakcik sy tak dengar. Suami saya pula ada bekas berparut di lengannya akibat dicucuh dgn bunga api sewaktu dia bermain2 bunga api dgn adik2nya. 

Skrg ni, semua tu tingga kenangan jelah. Kalau boleh saya tak nak pun anak2 saya main bunga api sbb sebenarnya tak de faedahnya dan hanya membazirkan duit je. Saya pun tak faham dan tak tahu (mungkin kena kaji ni) dari mana asalnya budaya main bunga api di bulan Ramadhan dan di mlm raya ni. Ada yg tahu ke asal-usulnya? Pengalaman anda pula bagaimana? Ada yg pernah tercedera bila main bunga api atau mercun?

Selling Nasi Lemak to those who are not fasting- is it okay?

Salam,

I've been wondering about why there is a stall holder at the roadside on the way to my office selling Nasi Lemak to those who are not fasting. (NON MUSLIMS). The stall holder is Muslim. She is selling Nasi Lemak as usual in the morning to non-muslims as (I presume) she doesn't want to lose her customers and also lose her income. But her stall is the only one at roadside which is still operating during Ramadhan. The other stall holders are taking a break this month and (again I presume) maybe they are selling in the evening in a Ramadhan Bazaar.

My question is is it okay to sell the food especially in the morning and when you don't want to lose your loyal customers? This is not the only place that I see and it's not the first time. I remember when I used to live in Nibong Tebal, there's also a Nasi Lemak stall which was still operating like usual in the morning during Ramadhan. If you are well versed with Islamic Syariah, can you please share with me what's the verdict? (Apa hukumnya ye?).

Do we need flavour enhancer or food seasonings in our cooking?

Salam,

Yesterday I went out for Iftar with my younger brother, Rafiuddin and his special friend. We chose to have our Iftar in one of the food court area in Kelana Jaya. We ordered some usual stall food - Fried Rice. I ordered "Nasi Goreng USA" (USA Fried Rice?hehe), my brother ordered "Nasi Goreng Biasa" (Normal Fried Rice? not sure with the translation :p) and his special friend had bought some food from the nearest Ramadhan Bazaar. It was my first time eating and breaking the fast outside. (normally I break the fast at home). As I'm so used to eat home cooking food, I can't really enjoy the food that I had yesterday. WHY? Well, first of all, I'm not a big fan of eating food that contains MSG. banyak sgt pak aji smlm, balik rumah dahaga sgt2 Second, the food was actually tasteless even with the food enhancer (Ajinomoto).

picture- credit to Mr. Google

 Actually I shouldn't complain because the food price there is quite reasonable compared to other eatery places in KJ. I just don't understand why do they (the stall operator/ the cook) need to use some food enhancer. Maybe there are also some of you out there like to use some food enhancer like this or using the other brands. But for me, whenever possible, I want to avoid eating food that contain MSG. We all know the long term effects pf consuming MSG right? If you are not sure about the effects, click here to read more.

A nice food doesn't need extra umpph by adding unnecessary flavors or additives. The normal salt and spices are enough to enhance the flavor. I've been brought up in a family that hate using this kind of food enhancer. However, I realized that we can't avoid MSG when we buy some ready made processed food. So, all we can do is to read the label carefully before we decide to buy any processed food.

So, what do you think about this?

Harapan Ramadhan (BM Entry)

Salam,
Setiap kali bulan Ramadhan, ada satu lagu nasyid yg sy suka sgt. Tajuknya "Harapan Ramadhan" yg dinyanyikan oleh Man Bai dan kumpulan Raihan. Liriknya betul2 membuatkan sy rasa syahdu. Bila dihayati liriknya mmg boleh membuatkan kita berfikir kelebihan2 bulan ramadhan. Jom sama2  kita hayati lagu ini sempena hari Jumaat ni.

My MIL was in Jejak Rasul 16 Episode 8- TODAY!

Salam,
Since 1 Ramadhan, we've been watching Jejak Rasul 16 which has a very interesting approach this year. The theme of the program this year is about "Trilogi Suara Kebenaran" (if I translate it, I woud say- The Voices of Truth Trilogy). There'll be three main parts in Jejak Rasul (Prophets' Trails) this year; first is about Mothers Of Believers like Khadijah, Aisyah, Fatimah and etc , the second part is about wars during Prophet Muhammad and the last part is about Jews and Israel.

Today, in Episode 8, my MIL appeared as one of the spoke person who was responsible to share some stories about the GREAT WOMEN during Prophet Muhammad's era, My MIL was responsible of telling some stories about Nubbayyah who sacrificed everything in order to fight in the name of Islam. She was interviewed by Ezzah Aziz Fawzy when she was still working in University of Thoyyibbah in Madinah. We (her children and daughters' in-laws feel very proud ) to see her appeared on tv especially for this special program like "Jejak Rasul". The way she narrated the story abut Nusayybah has made me realized how she has actually try to emulate those GREAT WOMEN in Islamic History.

 It's a llittle bit blur.

BUT here is a photo from my own collection:

I really adore and respect my MIL since she started her career from the bottom i.e. she started as a nurse, then she did her Masters in Nursing in Australia when she already had 4 children and she had to take care 3 of them (including my hubby when he was 12 until 14) and she managed to finally get her Philosophical Doctorate Degree about 4 years ago. She doesn't mind taking care of her SIL (who is now staying with us since she has a serious diabetes problem) and she used to take care of her nieces and nephews who used to stay with her for certain periods of time. 

When I'm telling about my MIL, this doesn't mean that I forgot my own late mum. Of course she will always come first and she is still my NO. 1 idol too. I'm just glad that I have my late mum and my MIL who can really give good examples to me on how to be a GOOD MUSLIM.

After a week in Ramadhan, how far have you achieved? (A self-checklist)

Salam,

It's been a week since we started to fast this year. When I looked back since the first day, I realize that I haven't achieved so much. Each Ramadhan I aim to achieve some targets in order to become a better Muslim and I'm sure it applies to every Muslim out there. As we all know, Ramadhan is the best month to train our self.

So, here's my own checklist: (this list is not for bragging but just as a reminder)

• I just managed to finished one chapter in Quran. (banyak lg nak habiskan, tak tahu sempat ke tak ni)
• Sometimes I still can't hold my tongue and avoid from talking about other people tak nak mengumpat tapi kdg2 terlepas cakap :P
• I haven't donate anything yet this year and I'm thinking about those unfortunate people like poor people and orphans.
• There were some nights when I skipped the Terawih Prayer. For example, tonight- because both my daughters are not feeling well. So I determine not to skip the prayer anymore- if possible.
• My last target is to be sincere in doing all the good deeds and I hope that Allah will bless my family and I.

Now, what about you? Do you have any targets or aims for this Ramadhan? If yes, I would like to hear from you too.

Who knowa how to delete this?

Salam,

I just need to ask for a help om how to delete the annoying image on my blog that says "This image has been moved or  deleted - photo bucket". If you notice the image is a nuisance when you want to read any entries in my blog. So, please if you know how, can you please tell me. Any help would be much appreciated. Thank you.

A short report for today.

Salam,

This is just a very short report about how I've managed to bring along my two princesses to Al-Hidayah Mosque to perform Terawih Prayer. I followed my parents-in-laws to the mosque and I had to bring along my daughters as I want to expose them to this prayer. They didn't perform the prayer but at least they could see and had a nice experience at the mosque. Alhamdulillah, they behaved very well as they just sat at the back and read the books that they brought along and waited for us (my MIL, SIL and I) who performed the prayer. I actually warned them before we went out from the house that they have to behave or else I won't be able to bring them. How I miss the whole Terawih prayer scene in Malaysia. So, after almost  4 years, tonight was the first time I had the chance to embrace the whole experience again.

Baru tertunai janji (BM entry & Dialek Kelate)

Salam,

Hr ni, barulah ambo menunaikan janji dgn mok & ayoh mertuaku. Janji gapo tu? Sebenarnyo, 3 mg lps ambo janji nok masok Nasi Kerabu. Tapi doh 2 mg lps ado jah majlis2 & kenduri2 kat luar,  jdnyo hasrat nok masok Nasi Kerabu terpakso ditangguh. Versi Nasi Kerabu hr ni, lain sikit ulam2 dio sbb doh Mok Mertuo hok pilih ule2 hok dio suko. Ambo tok caro asal ado tumis, mumbu dgn budu.

Ambo start masok dr pkl 3 sbb takut lambat2 tok de siap. Gapo hok ambo buat? Ok, ni buke nok bui resipi deh sbb resipi Nasi Kerabu bulih jah demo cari atau tanyo kat GOOGLE. Ni caro2 mudoh nok masok Nasi Kerabu:

1. Goreng 'nyo'sapa kering dgn warno perang2. Lps tu nok mudoh, ambo guno ikan mackerel dlm tin jah. Tumbuk bwg merah(2,3 ulas),lada hite(1 sudu kecik), serai (dlm 2 bate) pahtu tumbukla ike. Jge lupo bubuh gare dgn gulo secukup raso.
2. Pahtu mesin lado kering (4-5 btg), bwg merah (3-4 ulas), halio sikit dgn lengkuah sikit, serai (1 bate). Mesin sampai lumak. Bubuh sate'(santan) dr 1/2 biji 'nyo' dlm puyuk. Keno bui sate' didih molek baru bubuh mugo2 hok kito mesin sakni. Lps gelegok 2,3 kali bubuh ase jawo sikit dgn gare. Hok molek sekali biar api kecik utk biar kuoh pekat molek. Kalu cair tok sedakla.
3. Gorengla khepok, ike celup tepung atau pun kalu rajin watla aye percik. Hr ni ambo wat ike celup tepung jah sbb ado banyok ike kembung haluh2. Guno tepung beras, telur sebutir, serbuk kunyit sikit dgn garam dlm adune utk goreng tu.
4. Akhir sekali racik haluh2 ule2 atau sayur2 hok demo berehi. Hr ni ambo guno daun kesum, daun kunyit (ni Mok Mertua minat ye), timun dgn kacang botor. Nasi pulok ambo masok nasi biaso jah sbb ado lebih banyok lg nasi male. Kalu biaso, tumbuk serai 1 bate, serbuk kunyit 1 sudu, daun limau purut bubuh dlm nasi utk jadi Nasi Kerabu Kuning. (resipi turun temurun Muloh Ma ambo). Sokmo dengar Nasi Kerabu Biru. Payoh nok cari bunga utk jd warno biru tu deh. Ore2 dok jua pun guno pewarno jah. :p

Hr ni tok teringak nok ambik kamera jdnyo tak dokla gambar Nasi Kerabu hok hr ni.

Aci dop kalu ambo letok gambar Nasi Kerabu hok ambo buat dulu2 maso di NZ. heheh

Hot Nasi Lemak! Hot Nasi Lemak!

Salam,

Today, I would like to share one of my experiences during the fasting month when we were in Hamilton, NZ. About 2 years ago (2008), I remember that we (my friends and I) prepared Nasi Lemak for Iftar organized by the Muslim Club in Waikato University. For the iftar, members from different countries were encouraged to bring and share their special food so we can try the diverse kinds of food. Some Malaysian families wanted to bring a plate of special sweet food (kuih-muih). But there were about 4 families including my family decided to cook "Nasi Lemak" and prepared the dish together.

On the day itself, we started cooking at 8 a.m. (because we broke our fast 6 something). I fried the anchovies and my friends prepared the sambal - i.e. the hot sauce for anchovies. Then, we also added some huge Curry Puffs using roti canai pastry sheets. There were also some fried chickens and cucumbers with lettuce as the salad. The last thing that we had to cook was the rice itself. The special rice cooked with coconut milk, 2-inches of ginger and pandan leaves. By 4.30 p.m., we had to quickly bring all the food to event which was conducted in the hallway of lecture halls.

My friends and I busy preparing the food. 

Frying some chickens and baking some curry puffs at the same time.

During the Iftar, we didn't what was the reaction for Nasi Lemak at the men's site. (Men and Women were separated). But at the women's site, our Nasi Lemak was among the first dish that was sold out eventhough the sambal was quite hot. Some arabs complimented our dish and they even asked us how to cook it. The other dishes were Khabsa from Saudi, Fried noodles and pasta from various countries, a lot of dates from Saudi and Yemen, Beriyani rice from Pakistan, and some other unidentified dishes. (I was not sure what is the name of some dishes). Unfortunately, I can't find the photos of the Iftar itself as I'm using my netbook and the photos are in my hubby's external hard drive. We actually ate some dates and some sweet dishes before we continue to eat after Maghrib's prayer. mula2 ada Msians yg nak mkn terus tapi segan pulak bila yg lain ajak smbhyg dulu baru sambung mkn

This year, my hubby said they'll have the same traditions during Ramadhan. Every weekends, some clubs or some families will organize Iftar's event either in the university or some houses. Malaysian community will also have "Terawih"prayer at some individual houses and after the prayer, there'll be some food. (moreh). So, I don't have to worry so much about my hubby this year. I know that he'll have a nice experience this Ramadhan as we used to have.

Excuses, excuses and just another execuses.........

Salam,

I can't help but sharing what some the excuses given by my students for not doing their homework especially this fasting month. They just use "fasting" as the major excuse for not paying attention in class, being sleepy and refusing to do any homework. I normally don't give homework everyday but every alternate days or sometimes only 2 times per week, I'll give some.

These are the excuses:

1. "Teacher, we are fasting so we are tired". My reaction was "During Prophet's Muhammad, they fought in the name of Islam and didn't think twice to go to war". ni duduk dlm kelas, belajar je pun penat. yg kita cakap tak berhenti2 ni tak penat. isk3x
2. "No more tests please teacher because  we can't think when we are fasting". Then my reaction for that was "Your brain can still work even when you are fasting, so please stop whining". sebenarnya diaorg tak boleh merokok, jd bila puasa terus jd mcm tak berapa cerdas akibat tak dpt merokok.
3. "We need some break because we are tired to learn for three consecutive hours". For this one, somehow I pity them and of course myself. So, I normally give them some break about 5 minutes in between. Though they normally take longer.

I'm just ashamed to my non-muslim students because they seldom complain. I normally have problems with some muslim students who don't want to pay attention and sometimes just wasting their money and time in the class. WHY can't we as MUSLIMS show the good examples? Supposedly, we have to show to non-muslims that fasting will never affect our daily activities and we should show that we are strong physically and mentally to perform this ritual. Why do you reckon about this issue? Have anything to comment on this?

Fasting ONLY for two and half hours before breaking the fast.

Salam,
I'm not the one who was fasting only two hours before breaking the fast today. It's Fathini who did it. She told me that some of her friends in the kindy, were fasting today. So, after I fetched her and Hafizah, she said she wanted to try fasting from 5 p.m. until it was time to break the fast. I didn't want to discourage her from doing that though it's not really what we are supposed to do if we want to fast. She's 5 years old now, I want to slowly teach her about fasting and let her understand of the whole concept. May be tomorrow, I better ask her to join us when we have our early morning Sahur. And then ask her to refrain herself from eating and drinking anything until afternoon. Well, that's how I was taught to practice fasting when I was little. I started practising when I was 5 years old too. But I only managed to fast for half day in three consecutive days.

What about you? When was the first time you started to fast? How do you teach and train your kids to fast? I would love to know about your experiences too. Maybe I can get a tip or twos on how to train my eldest daughter to fast this year.

Ramadhan kali ini............(BM entry)

Salam semua,

Sepertimana yg lain, saya ingin mengucapkan Selamat Berpuasa untuk semua. Semoga ibadah puasa dan ibadah2 lain kita di bulan mulia ini akan diberkati Allah. Ramadhan kali ini, saya berpeluang menyambutnya di tanahair tercinta  selepas hampir 4 thn meyambutnya di New Zealand. Cuma suami tercinta pula yg skrg ini bertungkus lumus menyiapkan kerja2 makmal dan kemudian tesis phd di NZ. Perasaan mmg agak sayu juga bila berjauhan di bulan mulia ni tapi inilah salah satu pengorbanan yg perlu kami lakukan.

Sebenarnya sepanjang perkahwinan kami, kami sudah biasa terpaksa berjauhan dek kerana tugas. Tahun pertama sehingga tahun kedua, kami hanya dapat sama2 berpuasa dan berbuka di hjg minggu. Thn ketiga, alhamdulillah kami dpt berpuasa, smbhyg terawih bersama2. Thn keempat hingga keenam, kami berada di NZ. Dan thn ini adalah thn ketujuh, kami berpisah lg buat sementara. Saya hanya dapat berharap suami saya akan dapat segera menyiapkan tugasannya dan pulang ke pangkuan kami.

Saya rasa saya tak pernah berkongsi pengalaman berpuasa di NZ kan. Jd, mungkin di entri lain saya akan cuba menulis pengalaman2 saya sewaktu berpuasa di sana. Kalau diikutkan, mmglah suasana tu berlainan kerana hanya umat Islam yg boleh dikatakan golongan minoriti sahaja di sana yg berpuasa. Bazaar Ramadhan pun tak de ye. Semua mknan perlu dimasak sendiri tapi kami terutama org2 Malaysia, ada juga bertukar2 juadah dan setiap hjg minggu berpakat utk mengadakan majlis berbuka puasa di rumah2 yg berlainan.

Rasanya saya perlu menyambung cerita tentang berpuasa di NZ pada lain kali. Hafizah dan Fathini pun dah tertidur ni. Saya pun dah mengantuk. Jd, sekali lagi..............SELAMAT BERPUASA UNTUK SEMUA.

How do you know that you are exercising too much?

Salam,

I read some interesting articles about over-exercising on THE STAR today. The articles are basically about some people who can be addicted to exercise or in other words, they are over-exercising. Well, frankly speaking, I'm not one of them. (because I seldom do any exercises these days. malas dan mcm2 alasan lg:P) My parents-in-law are more active than me because at least once a week they'll go to an aerobic session with their friends.

We all know that any doctors would advise us to exercise BUT there's a limit. Some people just don't know how to stop or they think they need more exercises or else they would feel stressful. Some Hollywood celebrities have this problem just because they want to make sure that they will always look good on the red carpet. So, if you want to read the articles please click this "Addicted To Exercise" and "Sweat Sensation".

Here are some excerpt from the article "Sweat Sensation" that might be useful:

TEN signs that you’re exercising too much (in no particular order):
1. You feel a flu coming but still head out to the gym to get as much as you possibly can. After all, if you’re going to be sick for a couple of days, you better work harder in advance.
2. A family emergency has cropped up but you’re still trying desperately to fit in a two-hour workout sometime during the day.
3. You feel guilty, anxious, restless and depressed if you have to miss a day at the gym.
4. You spend 45 minutes on the treadmill everyday. If, for some reason, you’re in a rush and can only afford 35 minutes, you try and think of how you can make up for the lost 10 minutes: climb the stairs at work all day or skip dinner, perhaps?
5. You would rather exercise than spend time at the movies with your friends.
6. You feel tired all the time.
7. Your legs feel heavy, your resting heart rate is high, you get tired faster and you can’t seem to push yourself as hard as you used to.
8. You think you can actually feel your “muffin top” getting bigger just because you missed a day at the gym.
9, You can’t seem to fall asleep easily at night.
10. You experience little or no sexual desire. Seriously, you’d rather exercise.
(from thestar.com.my/lifestyle)

My form of exercises these days is only when I have to stand in the LRT every morning from Tmn Bahagia tu KLCC and then walk to the office which I normally take about 10-12 minutes ( brisk walk). Other than that, maybe running up and down the stairs at the office to go my classes. (there are three levels there) I miss those days when I was actively practicing Taekwondo 2 times per week about one hour per session. (it was about 9 years ago. huhu) I had to stop practicing Taekwondo after the same injury on my left knee kept recurring. I basically broke the ligaments on my left knee and I couldn't walk for about 2 months when I fell. I had to take a-two-months-leave from my previous job it almost jeopardizing my record. (yelah masa tu kerja bawah kerajaan, kakitgn kerajaan kan hanya boleh ambil cuti bergaji tak lebih dr dua bulan).

Since Ramadhan is approaching, most of us would never think about exercising anymore right? But for me, I will just do the normal walking activities (I mean to go to work) and also running up and down the stairs. Whatever we do, even it is stated in Islam, DO IT IN MODERATION.

Seksanya bila gaji masuk lambat. (BM entry)

Salam,

Hr ni dlm kepala otak ni tak de dok pikir benda lain dah. Mesti korang semua pelik kan kenapa sy nak membebel pasal gaji masuk lambat. Bg nak memahamkan korang semua, sy tak kerja tetap (only as a part timer) je. Mengajar kat pusat bhs bawah satu syarikat swasta kat KL. Syarikat ni kira syarikat franchise dr Amerika Syarikat. Gaji dibayar mengikut jam dan kalau kita sakit atau tak dpt mengajar kelas kita, org lain akan ganti dan dpt duit tu. Yg seksanya, gaji selalu lambat. Alasan diaorg, gaji part timer hanya akan masuk seminggu lps full timer dpt gaji dan slps diaorg ambil kira betul2 berapa jam yg kita dah ajar bln sblm tu. Cuma kalau korang pun kerja syarikat swasta, benda ni kira adatla kan. Bab2 kita lambat dpt gaji diaorg mcm sengaja tak dengar rungutan. Tapi bab2 diaorg pulak selalu suruh kita buat kerja tak berbayar tu tak pulak diaorg nampak. atau pun mmg sengaja buat2 takk nampak:p 

Kalau sy dah tahu pasal masalah ni, kenapa masih nak kerja kat situ? Masalah terbesar skrg, sudah tentu sbb bukan senang nak cari kerja part time kat tempat lain. Kenapa pula sy tak nak kerja full time? Sebenarnya, bukan tak nak tapi dah ada perancangan nak sambung belajar lps suami sy habiskan phd. Sy pun pernah kerja tetap di salah sebuah universiti tempatan. Walaupun gaji tetap tiap2 bln dan dpt setiap akhir bln, bab2 kena buat kerja lebih pun tak dpt gaji lebih. Bukan nak berkira sgt, tapi bila kedudukan kita sbg guru bhs pun mcm di pandang mcm kelas kedua oleh sesetengah pensyarah tu yg buat sy berazam satu hari nanti sy pun kena juga jd pensyarah. Cuma rezeki tu belum ada kerana dah buat perjanjian dgn suami bg peluang dia habiskan dulu. Yelah, kalau2 dua2 belajar takut anak2 tak terabai. Mungkin org lain boleh tapi kami rasa kami tak mampu.

Alamak entah apa2 membebel hr ni dah. Tujuan asal hanya nak redakan perasaan ni. Tambah2 kesiankan Fathini yg merengek2 nak minta belikan beg sekolah baru. Bukan tak cukup duit nak beli skrg tapi duit yg ada nak kena guna utk beli brg2 keperluan lain. huhu. Nasib baik anak2 bila kita minta bersabar, diaorg akan senyap bila 2, 3 kali kita cakap yg "Mama belum dpt gajila sayang".

Korang pulak mcmmana? Ada masalah pasal gaji lambat masuk? Atau selalunya duit ada je lebih sblm masuk gaji seterusnya? Kalau nak kata belanja ikut suka pun tak juga. Sebabnya skrg sy ergi kerja pun pakai baju2 lama, sandal yg dibeli dgn harga RM20 je dan bawa beg yg selalunya diguna utk letak brg2 keperluan anak. Sampaikan ada makcik yg jual buah-buahan kat stesen LRT tanya sy, "Adik kerja apa adik?, "Kerja cuci2 ke?". Huhu. Sy bengang juga bila makcik cakap sy ni kerja cuci2 je. skrg boikot tak nak beli buah2 dr makcik tu dah. teruk ke tapi sy dah kecik hati tau Kalau pening dgn entri ni, anggaplah ni entri paling merapu dan abaikan sajalah ye. huhu

The longest tongue twister?

Salam,

How many of you have been asked by your English teachers (when you were either in primary or secondary school) to practice your pronunciation by practicing some tongue twisters? sila angkat tgn tapi jgn nampak ketiak dah la. hehe I remember when I was in standard five , the first tongue twister that my English teacher ( can't remember her name, huhu) was:

Sally sells sea shells by the sea shore. But if Sally sells sea shells by the sea shore then where are the sea shells Sally sells?

And there were some other tongue twisters which are famous like:

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

How much wood could Chuck Woods' woodchuck chuck, if Chuck Woods' woodchuck could and would chuck wood? If Chuck Woods' woodchuck could and would chuck wood, how much wood could and would Chuck Woods' woodchuck chuck? Chuck Woods' woodchuck would chuck, he would, as much as he could, and chuck as much wood as any woodchuck would, if a woodchuck could and would chuck wood.

Do you know that there are about almost 500 English tongue twisters that have been recorded? They came from different places and were created by different writers. While the longest tongue twister is:

There once was a woman
Named Uma Mona Newman
She made many mini-cinnamon M&Ms
One month for the millennium
I heard she made a minimum
Of at least a million of ‘em
And made some of ‘em feminine
She made them with illuminated
Aluminum chrysanthemums
With a minimum of cinnamon
Made by a man from Tiananmen


Uma Mona Newman
made for the millennium
a minimum of a million
feminine cinnamon
aluminum chrysanthemum M&Ms.

She was commonly nominated
For her M&Ms that demonstrated
Abdominally sophisticated
And perfectly administrated
perfection that was indicated
By the times that it was imitated
But not completely duplicated
By the many who insinuated
The complexity was overstated
But finally they were most persuaded
Though to admit it yes they hated
That she had a gift most underrated
Of making the M&Ms they ate
Uma Mona Newman
made for the millennium
a minimum of a million
feminine cinnamon
aluminum chrysanthemum M&Ms.

The BIG QUESTION here, will any tongue twister help you to improve your pronunciation? I reckon, it wouldn't help you much if you don't learn about phonetic and phonemic in English. Plus, even if you ask any native speakers to say any tongue twisters out loud, I bet they also face some difficulties to say them quickly. If it just for fun and as a pronunciation game in class, then I would say it can make the class become livelier.

So, my challenge for you today is ...............you guess what? OF COURSE, I would love you to try the tongue twisters that I've put up here especially the longest tongue twister. GOOD LUCK. ;)

Let's go to school.

Salam,

Today's entry is about Fathini and Hafizah who are now attending a kindergarten cum nursery from 8.15 a.m. until 4.30 p.m. Fathini doesn't mind to spend about 8 hours there but Hafizah is having the separation anxiety. Maybe because before this, they only spent about 3 1/2 hours there and by 12 p.m. my hubby would pick them up. And now my hubby is not here (in Msia), so I'm the one who has to send them in the morning and pick them up in the evening.

I don't want to write so much now, so why don't you take a look at some pictures of them in their uniforms:

These photos are taken before they go to their kindy

And these photos are taken after my hubby pick them up

I really treasure these photos as in the future, I can show these to them and tell them about their first experiences in their kindergarten. I'm sure the other mum and dads also have some photos and other documentations as the momentous of their schooling age.

Was I so stupid to let it go? (or is it because of a cheap business tactic?)

Salam,

Yesterday, I went to one of the biggest mall in Kelana Jaya. ada satu je pun yg paling besar, jd kalau biasa kat tempat tu rasanya anda boleh teka yg mana with my daughters. We went there to buy some essential supplies that we need. On our way back, we were offered a free reusable shopping bag by one of the promoters at the ground level. It was my mistake to believe that they were just giving away the bags without any obligations. There was a catch or sort of business tactic to attract customers. They were promoting some very expensive kitchen appliances mahal utk sayala kot sbb semuanya harga tak kurang dr RM2000. One of the promoters asked me to open a free voucher that comes with a surprise gift. I was actually taken aback when my free gift was a set of electric kitchen burner that costs about more than RM3000! However, the promoter didn't believe me and she called the other promoters to run a double check. According to her, the free prizes were only an eye massager or body massaager that costs less than RM1000.

Her friend, (the other promoter) called the headquarter to find out the truth. When they went through the system, they were actually giving away 10 free vouchers that offer a free set of electric kitchen burner! So, I was one of the lucky 10. The thing is, I didn't feel so lucky because, in order for me to get the free gift, I have to buy one of the other products. All of the other products cost about more than RM3000! In fact, the promoters encouraged me to take the set of pots and pans that costs about RM3589. They kept trying to influence me by saying that I can pay only about RM1,200 first and bring back the electrical kitchen burner. Then, I have about one year to finish the payment. Plus they promise me that I will get another free gift from the participating bank. Another free gift was the hydro vacuum cleaner. I didn't know how to react or tell them that I was interested with the offer BUT........................my biggest problem was of course the money. Then, the other problems were I didn't know where to keep those things as I'm still living with my in-laws and my hubby wouldn't like the idea of buying these things which cost like a fortune for us (at least for now).

At last, I felt like there was a big lump when they said if I'm not interested with the gifts, I have to cancel the voucher. I really hate the way they treated me yesterday. After I told them that I might not have enough money for now, they kept pressuring me and lastly gave me an impermissible look like they were saying "What a loser!".

Am I regretting my decision now? Well, NO because I have my own valid reasons not to agree with that cheap business tactic. Plus, I don't think I need a RM3000 kitchen burner to cook or a special hydro vacuum cleaner or set of pots and pans that costs about RM3589! beli set periuk yg elok kat Pkln Kubor pun baru dlm RM200 lebih je What do you think? Do you think that I've made a stupid decision? If you were in the same situation, would you agree to buy the product in order to get two free gifts?

A Nice Blogger Award from other bloggers

Salam,

I want to apologize to Nadiah and other blogger friends who gave me this award before. It's only now that I can put up the award. So, thanks a lot for the award and your recognition. walaupun rasanya blog sy ni taklah lawa sgt. heading pun mcm tak lengkap. huhu

Here are the questions that I need to answer in order to receive the award:

1. What's on your mind now?
    Lots of things and some are too personal to be shared.

2. What's your nick name?
    For this blog, before this I used 'A temporary housewife'. I changed the name recently to 'A transformed  housewife' as there are a lot changes in my life as well as my status.

3. 3 people you loved the most are................
    My darling hubby, Fathini and Hafzah.

4. What do you call our other half?
    Ayang (it  means 'darling') ni pun sbb hubby tak suka dipanggil abg or 'abe' (bhs kelate) . hehe
5. What kind of gift do you wish to get from your hubby?
    For now, I just wish he will be able to finish his phd thesis as soon as possible and come back to Msia.

6. Which blogs you prefer to read?
    Blogs with a lot of useful tips, information and sharing some life experiences with others.

7. Tag another 15 bloggers for this award.
    This is not easy. Well, to make it fair, those who haven't receive this award are encourage to take this award.