When I had trouble to pee a few months back, I went to Asakusa Hospital. I must had been the youngest patient of the day that particular day because all around me, I only saw obaachan and ojiichan in their golden- if not platinum- years.
I didn't have to wait that long to see the doctor. Answered several questions and the doctor told me that I was suffering from "chi". I knew that chi is blood in nihongo, but I didn't quite understand this other "chi" the doctor was talking about. The nurse who was assisting him quickly went in search of an English-Japanese dictionary while the doctor began to explain 'chi' in greater details, using a small anatomical model to help make things clearer for me.
It wasn't long before the nurse returned with a dictionary and she showed me the word "hemorrhoids". At the time I was not familiar with the word, but thanks to the doctor's explanation using the anatomical model, I understood that I was having trouble due to poor muscle tone in the southern region, which might be due to increased straining during bowel movements, and that this is rather common for pregnant women. I was given some cream, and advised to drink more fluids, eat more fiber and practise Kegel exercise.
Later, when I consulted Ailin (a doctor who is on unpaid leave, accompanying her husband doing his Master in Tokyo) I learned that hemorrhoids is what we call buasir in Malay, also often referred to as 'piles' in Malaysia.
Despite language barrier, the doctor went to great length to explain the symptoms and causes of piles to me, until he was satisfied that I understood his explanation. Although I am sure that he must had been rather frustrated that I did not immediately grasp the meaning of his explanation, he never once raised his voice to me. He treated me with respect, and I found comfort in knowing that the doctor cared enough to explain things in details, that he is well qualified to properly identify and respond to my specific needs.
#####
Fast forward two months later.
I found myself in PPUM's Paediatric Emergency room, being talked to as if I was daft for bringing Humaidi to get stitched up.
Well, Humaidi accidentally hit the edge of the bed last week, causing a rather nasty cut on his left eye. Our first response was to clean the cut on his left upper eyelid with minyak gamat and cover it with a band-aid. Hubby and I took him to see Dr Johari, my family's trusted GP right after his clinic was opened, at about 9 a.m.
Dr Johari cleaned the cut and changed the band-aid with a more proper dressing. He advised us to go to the hospital if we want the cut to be stitched up, so that there'll be less chances of infection, but he doubted that Humaidi would be stitched up since the cut is on the upper eyelid and needed very fine needle which is often reserved for plastic surgeon and Humaidi's case is not an emergency. He tried to connect the cut together with a tissue glue plaster - which Humaidi managed to take off as soon as we reached home.
Mak and Ayah did not want to take any chances - Humaidi hit his eye on the edge of the bed, and for all that we know, that might cause some delayed effect on his vision. We called up some relatives, and one of my uncles got a recommendation from an expert paediatric to call up Dr Razak, a paediatric surgeon in Damansara Specialist Hospital. Called up Dr Razak's clinic and we were advised to bring in the child to the hospital's ER, where they could call up Dr Razak on his handphone to attend to Humaidi.
But by the end of that day I was not feeling well, and hubby too was suffering from toothache, so we postponed taking Humaidi to the clinic.
First thing the next morning, I went to see Dr Jo again - this time because I was down with flu. Right after that, Ayah drove me and Humaidi to see Dr Razak in Damansara. Dr Razak checked the dressing on Humaidi's eye, and already there was some whitish infection on the cut. It was quite a struggle for the doctor to check on my son's eye, but he managed it despite Humaidi's gelupur.
The doctor's advise - to minimise risk of further infection, it would be better to get the cut stitched up. But in order to do that, the doctor would have to make another cut, clean the current wound and only then stitch it up. They will need to put Humaidi to sleep for about 45 minutes using anaesthetic, thus will need the operation theatre to perform the surgery. The doctor was even willing to circumcise Humaidi for no extra charge too, but they need to get the boy admitted for the surgery.
The cost?
Dr Razak estimated it to be around Rm4000 - RM5000.
Ayah and I looked at each other. That's a big amount for us. Ayah thanked the doctor and told him that we need to discuss this with the boy's dad first. I knew that hubby would never agree to pay that much for a 'minor' surgery, so I suggested to Ayah to try going to a government hospital. Ayah agreed, but by then it was nearly Zohor, so Ayah brought us back home first, for lunch and prayer.
It wasn't long after Ayah sent me back home when Mak returned from Huzaifah's playschool and asked me to quickly accompany her to the hospital. Huzaifah had an asthma attack!
On the way to PPUM, Mak briefed me that the playschool management had called her up to come and pick Huzaifah since he was wheezing. Probably from eating too much rambutan. There's a rambutan tree in the playschool's backyard and Huzaifah has been asking the teachers there to get him "buah mbutan" all the time. (The first time, my jakun boy actually ate the whole fruit, pit and all - to his teacher's amazement. They quickly pitted the fruit for him first after that). Huzaifah has no problem with eating watermelon or ice, but I forgot that eating too much rambutan could trigger an asthma attack, so not only I did not warn the teachers at his school, my parents and I in fact bought him a lot of rambutan over the weekend after seeing how much he enjoyed eating the fruit (and Huzaifah has always been a fussy eater). Only after he got the asthma attack that we remember how hazardous rambutan could be to an asthmatic child (and since then we have substituted rambutan with canned longan)
Mak left Huzaifah and I at the PPUM's Paediatric Emergency area, at which he was quickly attended to. I didn't have to wait at all as the doctor in charge quickly asked the nurse to prepare the nebulizer. For the first time, Huzaifah was very cooperative in using the nebulizer. Probably because he couldn't wait to 'attack' the playhouse available in the waiting area. (Which he did even before the gas was not quite finished but he has stopped wheezing, leaving my lap, insisting to be allowed to go "main-main")
Mak returned back with Ayah and Humaidi - to let the doctor take a look at Humaidi's eye. By then I managed to perform my Zohor solat, but hadn't pick Huzaifah's prescribed medicine yet. Turned out Mak had already briefed the doctor in charge (a different doctor, not the one who attended to Huzaifah, I guess his shift was already over by then) , so the doctor wanted to check on some details with me.
I was far from happy with the tone that the doctor used.
Apart from repeating "awak faham tak..." as if I was daft, he was not keen to listen to what I have to say. But I said it anyway
"Look, I know that my son is not in dire emergency need. I know that his cut might already started healing. But I also know that there are chances of infection happening. It already happened earlier but a doctor cleaned his cut this morning. And I am worried that such infection could occur again and somehow affect my son's vision. It is not so much the scar that I'm worried about - it is his vision that I'm most concerned about"
The doctor went quiet for a while.
"Okay, let me consult some eye specialist then," he said.
When I returned to the waiting area after getting Humaidi's registration process completed, Mak told me that already there were two doctors who came to check on Humaidi. They were away to consult an even more senior doctor.
The eye specialist that I met was firm and kind. He explained that since Humaidi's cut was already more than 24 hour old, the healing process has started so it would be difficult to stitch the cut unless they make another cut on top of the current one. But it would be more a plastic surgery rather than a necessary one and they would need to use the operation theatre to do that and well we all know how the operation theatre is needed for more urgent cases. Even a tissue glue could not do the trick because the eye would be bunched up weirdly.
"He will be okay, the cut will heal on its own, but there will be a scar" the doctor assured me.
"I'm okay with the scar. After all, he's a boy" (Boys and scars - inseparable)
The doctor smiled.
"What about chances of infection?," I queried
"We will prescribe an ointment for the eyelid to help prevent infection."
I nodded my head.
"And if you are not happy with the progress, I can arrange for an appointment in the eye clinic next week," he said further.
#####
A week has passed.
Humaidi seems to be healing well.
Huzaifah too is back to his old jumping-there-climbing-here self
But the memory of being treated like I was daft by a doctor lingers on...
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
7 facts about me
Ahkak Zurr tagged me last month. I'm supposed to share 7 facts about myself, some random, some weird. Here goes...
- Perceived differently by different people
Some told me I'm one of the most kelakar persons they've ever known while others have asked me to be less serious. Personally, I think I am usually more on the merapu meraban side than serious because those who told me that I'm funny (ha ha, not funny weird) usually are those I consider to be rather close to me and know me better...
- Hate folding and ironing clothes
A mountain of laundry waiting to be attended to was nothing extraordinary in my household (and Mak's household too, when we do not have any helper around) I suspect that a lot of people shares my sentiment about folding and ironing clothes. I mean, I've heard a lot of people declare their love for cooking, baking even vacuuming, but I have yet to hear someone enthuses, "Oh, I just looovvvveee ironing. It's so soothing/relaxing/calming..." Back in Japan, the iron was rarely used - only for hubby's jubah (for Friday prayer), baju raya and on several 'special ocassions'.
- Used to have a diary named Ricky Alden Chan
Ricky - from Richard Dean Anderson (of MacGyver), Alden is the middle name of Tommy Page (yeah, yeah, so I used to like Tommy Page, so what?) and Chan is after Jackie Chan.
- Could take ages to decide whether or not to accept someone as a friend on FB
Partly due to the fact that Facebook is banned in the office, but sometimes I do take my own sweet time deliberating on whether to accept or ignore some invitations. Like that guy from high school who caused a terrible heartache when I was 16 (who was finally accepted because a girlfriend said that his asking to be on my list might be deemed as an apology of some sort - besides we are both married with kids now) or a senior from college who deemed I was not 'good enough' to be 'introduced' to her hubby's anak usrah (who happened to be my ex). Despite being forgiven, that was a little harder to forget, so her request was finally ignored. By the way, I can be bad at remembering names and faces, so usually invitations with some introduction messages get the clearing faster than those with none.
- Love trying out new dishes.
So long as they are halal, of course. Been trained by Mak to develop an adventurous tastebud - so food is seldom a problem for me if I need to travel overseas since I am not a masakan melayu-reliant person.
- Not a fan of shoes or handbags
I know, I know, if they can afford it, most women are expected to like and owe several pair of shoes and handbags. Preferably branded ones. I 'owe' some nice ones on FB, but am not really 'into' them in real life. (Yeah, yeah, hubby is indeed one lucky fella, hehehe...)
- Not quite as quick at adapting back to the job scene
I wish I could pick things up faster, or get the hang of things more easily - but after 3 years of study leave and was more like a stay-at-home mother than a studious graduate student - I found myself not as quick at learning stuff at the office as I expected. And I miss being able to spend all day long with my boys... (I know I should be grateful for having a stable job and all, alhamdulillah, but oh well...)
Should I tag others? Most seem to have already done this tag, but in case they haven't, I am passing this on to Theta, Hanny, Ina, Faizly, Zarin, Kit and Kakaq.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Been awarded...
Received this cute "award" from Faizly.
Maybe it's not a big award that comes with the title Datuk like the one Shah Rukh Khan received from the government of Melaka, (One 2 Ka 4, filmed in Melaka was not even a hit, ye tak Masni?), I'm still touched by the sincerity of this dear brother of mine. Excerpt of his "award conferment speech" read:
* Kak Azra aka my beloved Kakak angkatSo,I hereby to give away the award to the person I find them very supportive,encouraging,charismatic and the utmost to whom I often share my ups & downs and in some exorbitant grim circumstances throughout my student-life-journey.
Thank you dik!
I hereby pass this "award" on to:
* Kit
* Ahkak Zurr
* Kakaq
* Jaja
* Kak Lela
* Kak Ita & Che Lee
Hope this will help bringing a smile and brighten your day the way Faizly's did mine...
* Kit
* Ahkak Zurr
* Kakaq
* Jaja
* Kak Lela
* Kak Ita & Che Lee
Hope this will help bringing a smile and brighten your day the way Faizly's did mine...
Contoh jawapan...
(Based on actual answers in Pendidikan Islam Tingkatan 4's final exam...)
Nyatakan contoh nikmat kurniaan Allah...
* Sumber air dari sungai yang mengalir dan roti telur
Nyatakan cara lain untuk mendapatkan petunjuk dari Allah selain daripada berdoa
* Berdoa
Hikmah Allah memberi dosa dan pahala pada manusia berdasarkan amalan masing-masing
* Berani buat berani tanggung
Bahagian kefahaman tulisan jawi
* Golongan yang tidak beragama digelar mahar/malahad
* Allah sayang mereka yang menzalimi qiamullail
Nyatakan contoh nikmat kurniaan Allah...
* Sumber air dari sungai yang mengalir dan roti telur
Nyatakan cara lain untuk mendapatkan petunjuk dari Allah selain daripada berdoa
* Berdoa
Hikmah Allah memberi dosa dan pahala pada manusia berdasarkan amalan masing-masing
* Berani buat berani tanggung
Bahagian kefahaman tulisan jawi
* Golongan yang tidak beragama digelar mahar/malahad
* Allah sayang mereka yang menzalimi qiamullail
Friday, October 24, 2008
"Brother, you should be behind me..."
He suddenly cut in the line.
Not right in front of me, but in front the girl who was standing in front of me.
“Hey!,” I almost blurted out loudly, but I turned back instead and looked for hubby. Hubby had just found a table for us, sitting down while attending to our purchases that night.
The guy was an Arab, so I motioned to hubby, pleading him in sign language to ask the guy in front to follow the queue. Hubby shrugged and pointed at the shopping bags instead. Yes, this is Malaysia – we can’t leave our belongings unattended simply like that, and it would be quite a hassle for hubby to come up to me with all the bags and finding another table after that.
I asked the girl in front of me – did the guy in front of her returned to his original position or did he just jump the queue. The girl clarified that it was the latter.
“Why don’t you ask him to follow the queue then?” I suggested.
“Ish, takutlah akak, dia besar…”
“Eh, apa pulak nak takut. Bukan kita yang salah, dia yang salah. Tegur je,” I further encouraged her.
“Takutlah... ”
She was right. The guy was over 6 feet tall, and looked “gagah perkasa”. In contrast, the girl in front of me was rather petite, and could easily pass for a high school student.
“Takpe dik, kita berani sebab kita betul, bukan kita yang salah,” I said just before I tapped on the guy’s shoulder.
He turned back.
“Brother, you should be behind me. There’s a line here in case you didn’t notice, so you should be behind me,” I said firmly.
He did not apologize, but quickly muttered “Okay, okay, okay”. While he did not move from his position, he made way for the petite girl and me to get our respective orders before him.
I looked at the girl, “See, it’s okay. We’re only asking for what is right and we should not be afraid of asking for our right...”
The girl was afraid of creating a scene - she had this image of this guy barking at her or something equally bad if she was to ask him to follow the queue properly. To be honest, I too was rather intimidated by the guy's size. But I guess I could not quell the part in me which simply wanted to shout out "Hey, that's not right!".
Well, at least the Arab guy did not create a scene by arguing back.
At least he did not pretend to be ignorant of the queue and acted bodoh sombong.
At least he made way for us to be ahead of him.
But I have a feeling that this kind of incident would never ever happen in Japan…
Not right in front of me, but in front the girl who was standing in front of me.
“Hey!,” I almost blurted out loudly, but I turned back instead and looked for hubby. Hubby had just found a table for us, sitting down while attending to our purchases that night.
The guy was an Arab, so I motioned to hubby, pleading him in sign language to ask the guy in front to follow the queue. Hubby shrugged and pointed at the shopping bags instead. Yes, this is Malaysia – we can’t leave our belongings unattended simply like that, and it would be quite a hassle for hubby to come up to me with all the bags and finding another table after that.
I asked the girl in front of me – did the guy in front of her returned to his original position or did he just jump the queue. The girl clarified that it was the latter.
“Why don’t you ask him to follow the queue then?” I suggested.
“Ish, takutlah akak, dia besar…”
“Eh, apa pulak nak takut. Bukan kita yang salah, dia yang salah. Tegur je,” I further encouraged her.
“Takutlah... ”
She was right. The guy was over 6 feet tall, and looked “gagah perkasa”. In contrast, the girl in front of me was rather petite, and could easily pass for a high school student.
“Takpe dik, kita berani sebab kita betul, bukan kita yang salah,” I said just before I tapped on the guy’s shoulder.
He turned back.
“Brother, you should be behind me. There’s a line here in case you didn’t notice, so you should be behind me,” I said firmly.
He did not apologize, but quickly muttered “Okay, okay, okay”. While he did not move from his position, he made way for the petite girl and me to get our respective orders before him.
I looked at the girl, “See, it’s okay. We’re only asking for what is right and we should not be afraid of asking for our right...”
The girl was afraid of creating a scene - she had this image of this guy barking at her or something equally bad if she was to ask him to follow the queue properly. To be honest, I too was rather intimidated by the guy's size. But I guess I could not quell the part in me which simply wanted to shout out "Hey, that's not right!".
Well, at least the Arab guy did not create a scene by arguing back.
At least he did not pretend to be ignorant of the queue and acted bodoh sombong.
At least he made way for us to be ahead of him.
But I have a feeling that this kind of incident would never ever happen in Japan…
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Am back...
Sorry for not blogging for so long.
Hope my Muslim readers had had a great Ramadhan and Eid this year.
Been back in Malaysia since 26th September 2008, 4 days before Eid. After 3 years of spending Raya abroad, we really did Raya sakan this year. Mak and Ayah were especially excited to spend their first Raya with three grandchildren - Huzaifah, Humaidi and Uwais, my brother's first born.
Am now posted in Putrajaya, while hubby too gets to be posted in Putrajaya, alhamdulillah. It's not easy for a teacher to get posted in Putrajaya, but as it happened, one ustazah was about to accompany her husband who has been posted overseas, so it was a timely opening for hubby to fill in her vacant post. Besides, male teachers are in great demand everywhere now, thus he got his posting even earlier than I got mine.
Huzaifah is attending Babah and Ummi playschool, not far from Mak's place. Mak said that while he seems to be getting along fine with his schoolmates, he hasn't been communicating with them the way some of his peers are doing. Other three year olds have been asking questions like "what's your name" and "where do you live", which Huzaifah just shrugged off as he continued on playing with whatever toy he got in his clutch then. Huzaifah is so active playing there that not only has his skin turns darker (even berkilat a bit) but the other day, his teacher also reported to Mak that Huzaifah was caught climbing on the small fences separating the classes - which nobody ever attempted before. Well, anyway he seems so happy to be able to jump around after years of staying in a small place like our home back in Asakusa. The day after we were back in Kampung Tunku - both Huzaifah and Humaidi went 'tawaf'ing around their grandparents' place a few times, in a few sessions. It might seem like a jakun thing to do - but understandably so after being confined to a place so far smaller than their current residence...
Humaidi is getting spoiled a lot now - asking to be picked up and 'dukung'ed all the time. His Ayah Lang, my youngest brother Amirul, is a favorite 'victim'. I still do not know what exactly to say when people remarked that Humaidi does not seem to take after neither me nor hubby but looks more like a Japanese kid. Most of the time I jokingly say that he might take after Kimura sensei who helped delivered him.
Been more than a month since my graduation day - will try to post some pics of the memorable day, a few of those taken before we left Japan and some Raya pics later, insya Allah. Can't promise to write often now I'm already back in office and all, but will try to update this blog at least once a week...
Hope my Muslim readers had had a great Ramadhan and Eid this year.
Been back in Malaysia since 26th September 2008, 4 days before Eid. After 3 years of spending Raya abroad, we really did Raya sakan this year. Mak and Ayah were especially excited to spend their first Raya with three grandchildren - Huzaifah, Humaidi and Uwais, my brother's first born.
Am now posted in Putrajaya, while hubby too gets to be posted in Putrajaya, alhamdulillah. It's not easy for a teacher to get posted in Putrajaya, but as it happened, one ustazah was about to accompany her husband who has been posted overseas, so it was a timely opening for hubby to fill in her vacant post. Besides, male teachers are in great demand everywhere now, thus he got his posting even earlier than I got mine.
Huzaifah is attending Babah and Ummi playschool, not far from Mak's place. Mak said that while he seems to be getting along fine with his schoolmates, he hasn't been communicating with them the way some of his peers are doing. Other three year olds have been asking questions like "what's your name" and "where do you live", which Huzaifah just shrugged off as he continued on playing with whatever toy he got in his clutch then. Huzaifah is so active playing there that not only has his skin turns darker (even berkilat a bit) but the other day, his teacher also reported to Mak that Huzaifah was caught climbing on the small fences separating the classes - which nobody ever attempted before. Well, anyway he seems so happy to be able to jump around after years of staying in a small place like our home back in Asakusa. The day after we were back in Kampung Tunku - both Huzaifah and Humaidi went 'tawaf'ing around their grandparents' place a few times, in a few sessions. It might seem like a jakun thing to do - but understandably so after being confined to a place so far smaller than their current residence...
Humaidi is getting spoiled a lot now - asking to be picked up and 'dukung'ed all the time. His Ayah Lang, my youngest brother Amirul, is a favorite 'victim'. I still do not know what exactly to say when people remarked that Humaidi does not seem to take after neither me nor hubby but looks more like a Japanese kid. Most of the time I jokingly say that he might take after Kimura sensei who helped delivered him.
Been more than a month since my graduation day - will try to post some pics of the memorable day, a few of those taken before we left Japan and some Raya pics later, insya Allah. Can't promise to write often now I'm already back in office and all, but will try to update this blog at least once a week...
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Ｅｒｒ．．．
Ｊｕｓｔ ａ ｑｕｉｃｋ ｎｏｔｅ ｔｏ ｌｅｔ ｙｏｕ ｋｎｏｗ ｔｈａｔ Ｉ ｍｉｇｈｔ ｎｏｔ ｂｅ ａｂｌｅ ｔｏ ｂｌｏｇ ａｓ ｍｕｃｈ ａｓ Ｉ ｌｉｋｅ （ａｎｄ ｐｌａｎｎｅｄ ｔｏ） ｎｏｗ ｔｈａｔ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｉｓ ｎｏ ｉｎｔｅｒｎｅｔ ｃｏｎｎｅｃｔｉｏｎ ａｔ ｈｏｍｅ．
Ｔｈｉｓ ｅｎｔｒｙ ｗａｓ ｐｏｓｔｅｄ ｆｒｏｍ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ － ｈｅｒｅ ｔｏｄａｙ ｆｏｒ ｔｗｏ ｒｅａｓｏｎｓ； ｔｈｅ ｍｏｎｔｈｌｙ ｓｉｇｎ－ｕｐ （ｆｏｒ ａｌｌｏｗａｎｃｅ） ａｎｄ ｔｏ ｓｕｂｍｉｔ ｍｙ ａｐｐｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎ ｆｏｒｍ ｆｏｒ ｒｅｔｕｒｎ ｆｌｉｇｈｔ ｔｉｃｋｅｔ． Ｉ ｓｈｏｕｌｄ ｈａｖｅ ｓｕｂｍｉｔｔｅｄ ｔｈｅ ｌａｔｔｅｒ ａ ｌｏｎｇ ｗｈｉｌｅ ａｇｏ － ｉｎ Ｊｕｌｙ， ｂｕｔ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗｅｒｅ ｓｏｍｅ ｐｒｏｂｌｅｍｓ． Ｆｉｒｓｔ， ｔｈｅ ｎｏｔｉｆｉｃａｔｉｏｎ ｅｍａｉｌ ｗａｓ ａｄｄｒｅｓｓｅｄ ｔｏ ｍｙ ｏｌｄ ｏｆｆｉｃｅ ｅｍａｉｌ ａｄｄｒｅｓｓ ｗｈｉｃｈ ｉｓ ｎｏ ｌｏｎｇｅｒ ｉｎ ｕｓｅ． Ｔｈｅｎ，ｏｎｃｅ Ｉ ｆｉｌｌｅｄ ｕｐ ｓｏｍｅ ｆｏｒｍｓ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅｍ ｔｏ ｐｒｅｐａｒｅ ｔｈｅ ａｃｔｕａｌ ｆｏｒｍｓ （ｎｏ ｄｏｕｂｔ ａｂｏｕｔ ｉｔ － Ｊａｐａｎｅｓｅ ｓｉｍｐｌｙ ｌｏｖｅ ｔｈｅｉｒ ｐａｐｅｒｗｏｒｋｓ）， ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗａｓ ｔｈｅ ｍａｔｔｅｒ ｏｆ ｇｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｔｈｅ ｐｅｒｓｏｎａｌ ｓｅａｌ ｏｆ ｍｙ ｓｕｐｅｒｖｉｓｏｒ － ｗｈｏ ｈａｓ ｇｏｎｅ ｔｒａｖｅｌｉｎｇ ａｎｄ ｗｉｌｌ ｏｎｌｙ ｂｅ ｂａｃｋ ｉｎ Ｊａｐａｎ ｂｙ ｌａｔｅ Ｓｅｐｔｅｍｂｅｒ． Ｔｈｅｎ， Ｉ ｗａｓ ａｓｋｅｄ ｔｏ ｇｅｔ ｔｈｅ ｓｅａｌ ｏｆ ｅｉｔｈｅｒ ｏｎｅ ｏｆ ｔｈｅ ａｃａｄｅｍｉｃ ａｄｖｉｓｏｒｓ ｉｎ ｍｙ ｇｒａｄｕａｔｅ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ． Ｃｏｎｔａｃｔｅｄ ｔｈｅｍ ｂｙ ｅｍａｉｌ； ｏｎｅ ｒｅｓｐｏｎｄｅｄ ｂｙ ｌｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｍｅ ｋｎｏｗ ｔｈａｔ ｈｅ ｗｏｕｌｄ ｎｏｔ ｂｅ ｉｎ Ｔｏｋｙｏ ｔｈｉｓ ｗｅｅｋ， ａｎｄ ｎｏ ｒｅｓｐｏｎｓｅ ｗｈａｔｓｏｅｖｅｒ ｆｒｏｍ ｔｈｅ ｏｔｈｅｒ． Ｔｈｅ ｏｆｆｉｃｅｒ ｉｎ ｃｈａｒｇｅ ｏｆ Ｍａｍｂｕｓｈｏ ｓｔｕｄｅｎｔｓ ｉｎ ｍｙ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ ａｄｖｉｓｅｄ ｍｅ ｔｏ ｃｏｍｅ ｔｏ ｔｈｅ ｏｆｆｉｃｅ ａｎｙｗａｙ － ａｎｄ ｈｅ ｈｅｌｐｅｄ ｍｅ ｇｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｔｈｅ ｑｕｉｅｔ ｐｒｏｆｅｓｓｏｒ’ｓ
Ｌｅｓｓ ｔｈａｎ ａ ｍｏｎｔｈ ｂｅｆｏｒｅ ｗｅ ｒｅｔｕｒｎ ｔｏ Ｍａｌａｙｓｉａ － ａｎｄ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｉｓ ａ ｌｏｔ Ｉ ｗａｎｔ ｔｏ ｂｌｏｇ ａｂｏｕｔ．．． Ｌａｔｅｌｙ ｗｅ’ｖｅ ｂｅｅｎ ｓｈｏｗｅｒｅｄ ｗｉｔｈ ａｌｌ ｋｉｎｄ ｏｆ ｓａｙｏｎａｒａ ｇｉｆｔｓ ａｎｄ ｔｒｅａｔｓ， ｔｈａｔ ｈｕｂｂｙ ａｎｄ Ｉ ｃａｎ’ｔ ｔｈａｎｋ ｅｖｅｒｙｏｎｅ ｅｎｏｕｇｈ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅｉｒ ｋｉｎｄｎｅｓｓ ａｎｄ ｇｅｎｅｒｏｓｉｔｙ． Ｍａｙ Ａｌｌａｈ ｂｌｅｓｓ ａｎｄ ｒｅｗａｒｄ ｔｈｅｍ ａｃｃｏｒｄｉｎｇｌｙ．．．
Ｏｈ － ｂｙ ｔｈｅ ｂｙ － ａｌｈａｍｄｕｌｉｌａｈ， Ｉ ｊｕｓｔ ｇｏｔ ｍｙ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｎｅｐｈｅｗ，ｎａｍｅｄ Ｕｗａｉｓ，ｙｅｓｔｅｒｄａｙ． Ｔｈｅ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｓｏｎ ｏｆ ｔｈｅ ｔｈｅ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｓｏｎ， ｂｏｒｎ ｏｎ １ｓｔ Ｒａｍａｄｈａｎ ／ １ｓｔ Ｓｅｐｔｅｍｂｅｒ ｉｎ Ｒｏｏｍ ｎｏ １． Ａｙａｈ ｉｓ ｓｏ ｈａｐｐｙ ｔｏ ｇｒｅｅｔ ａｎｄ ｍｅｅｔ ｈｉｓ ｔｈｉｒｄ ｇｒａｎｄｓｏｎ ― ”ｅｓｏｋ－ｅｓｏｋ ｂｏｌｅｈ ｌａ ｄｅｐａ ｐａｋａｔ－ｐａｋａｔ ｍａｉｎ ｌｉｇａｎ－ｌｉｇａｎ ｋａｔ ｒｕｍａｈ Ｔｏｋ Ａｙａｈ” Ｂｏｙｓ ｂｅｉｎｇ ｂｏｙｓ， Ｉ ｂｅｌｉｅｖｅ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗｉｌｌ ｂｅ ｍｏｒｅ ｔｈａｎ ｍｅｒｅｌｙ ”ｍａｉｎ ｌｉｇａｎ－ｌｉｇａｎ” ｉｎｖｏｌｖｅｄ．．．Ｅｖｅｎ ｒｉｇｈｔ ｎｏｗ Ｈｕｚａｉｆａｈ ｉｓ ａｌｒｅａｄｙ ｓｈｏｗｉｎｇ ｓｉｇｎｓ ｏｆ ”ｂｕｌｌｙｉｎｇ” Ｈｕｍａｉｄｉ － ｂｕｔ Ｈｕｍａｉｄｉ ｓｅｅｍｓ ｔｏ ｂｅ ｇｒｏｗｉｎｇ ａｔ ａ ｆａｓｔｅｒ ｐａｃｅ ｔｈａｎ ｈｉｓ ｅｌｄｅｒ ｂｒｏｔｈｅｒ，ｓｏ ｗｅ’ｌｌ ｓｅｅ．．．
Ｗｅｌｌ， ｔｉｌｌ ｎｅｘｔ ｔｉｍｅ （ａｎｄ ｎｏ ｇｕａｒａｎｔｅｅ ｗｈｅｎ ｔｈａｔ ｗｉｌｌ ｂｅ） － Ｒａｍａｄｈａｎ Ｋａｒｅｅｍ ｔｏ ａｌｌ ｍｙ Ｍｕｓｌｉｍ ｒｅａｄｅｒｓ． Ｓｅｌａｍａｔ ｂｅｒｐｅｓｔａ ｉｂａｄａｈ！
Ｔｈｉｓ ｅｎｔｒｙ ｗａｓ ｐｏｓｔｅｄ ｆｒｏｍ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ － ｈｅｒｅ ｔｏｄａｙ ｆｏｒ ｔｗｏ ｒｅａｓｏｎｓ； ｔｈｅ ｍｏｎｔｈｌｙ ｓｉｇｎ－ｕｐ （ｆｏｒ ａｌｌｏｗａｎｃｅ） ａｎｄ ｔｏ ｓｕｂｍｉｔ ｍｙ ａｐｐｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎ ｆｏｒｍ ｆｏｒ ｒｅｔｕｒｎ ｆｌｉｇｈｔ ｔｉｃｋｅｔ． Ｉ ｓｈｏｕｌｄ ｈａｖｅ ｓｕｂｍｉｔｔｅｄ ｔｈｅ ｌａｔｔｅｒ ａ ｌｏｎｇ ｗｈｉｌｅ ａｇｏ － ｉｎ Ｊｕｌｙ， ｂｕｔ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗｅｒｅ ｓｏｍｅ ｐｒｏｂｌｅｍｓ． Ｆｉｒｓｔ， ｔｈｅ ｎｏｔｉｆｉｃａｔｉｏｎ ｅｍａｉｌ ｗａｓ ａｄｄｒｅｓｓｅｄ ｔｏ ｍｙ ｏｌｄ ｏｆｆｉｃｅ ｅｍａｉｌ ａｄｄｒｅｓｓ ｗｈｉｃｈ ｉｓ ｎｏ ｌｏｎｇｅｒ ｉｎ ｕｓｅ． Ｔｈｅｎ，ｏｎｃｅ Ｉ ｆｉｌｌｅｄ ｕｐ ｓｏｍｅ ｆｏｒｍｓ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅｍ ｔｏ ｐｒｅｐａｒｅ ｔｈｅ ａｃｔｕａｌ ｆｏｒｍｓ （ｎｏ ｄｏｕｂｔ ａｂｏｕｔ ｉｔ － Ｊａｐａｎｅｓｅ ｓｉｍｐｌｙ ｌｏｖｅ ｔｈｅｉｒ ｐａｐｅｒｗｏｒｋｓ）， ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗａｓ ｔｈｅ ｍａｔｔｅｒ ｏｆ ｇｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｔｈｅ ｐｅｒｓｏｎａｌ ｓｅａｌ ｏｆ ｍｙ ｓｕｐｅｒｖｉｓｏｒ － ｗｈｏ ｈａｓ ｇｏｎｅ ｔｒａｖｅｌｉｎｇ ａｎｄ ｗｉｌｌ ｏｎｌｙ ｂｅ ｂａｃｋ ｉｎ Ｊａｐａｎ ｂｙ ｌａｔｅ Ｓｅｐｔｅｍｂｅｒ． Ｔｈｅｎ， Ｉ ｗａｓ ａｓｋｅｄ ｔｏ ｇｅｔ ｔｈｅ ｓｅａｌ ｏｆ ｅｉｔｈｅｒ ｏｎｅ ｏｆ ｔｈｅ ａｃａｄｅｍｉｃ ａｄｖｉｓｏｒｓ ｉｎ ｍｙ ｇｒａｄｕａｔｅ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ． Ｃｏｎｔａｃｔｅｄ ｔｈｅｍ ｂｙ ｅｍａｉｌ； ｏｎｅ ｒｅｓｐｏｎｄｅｄ ｂｙ ｌｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｍｅ ｋｎｏｗ ｔｈａｔ ｈｅ ｗｏｕｌｄ ｎｏｔ ｂｅ ｉｎ Ｔｏｋｙｏ ｔｈｉｓ ｗｅｅｋ， ａｎｄ ｎｏ ｒｅｓｐｏｎｓｅ ｗｈａｔｓｏｅｖｅｒ ｆｒｏｍ ｔｈｅ ｏｔｈｅｒ． Ｔｈｅ ｏｆｆｉｃｅｒ ｉｎ ｃｈａｒｇｅ ｏｆ Ｍａｍｂｕｓｈｏ ｓｔｕｄｅｎｔｓ ｉｎ ｍｙ ｓｃｈｏｏｌ ａｄｖｉｓｅｄ ｍｅ ｔｏ ｃｏｍｅ ｔｏ ｔｈｅ ｏｆｆｉｃｅ ａｎｙｗａｙ － ａｎｄ ｈｅ ｈｅｌｐｅｄ ｍｅ ｇｅｔｔｉｎｇ ｔｈｅ ｑｕｉｅｔ ｐｒｏｆｅｓｓｏｒ’ｓ
Ｌｅｓｓ ｔｈａｎ ａ ｍｏｎｔｈ ｂｅｆｏｒｅ ｗｅ ｒｅｔｕｒｎ ｔｏ Ｍａｌａｙｓｉａ － ａｎｄ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｉｓ ａ ｌｏｔ Ｉ ｗａｎｔ ｔｏ ｂｌｏｇ ａｂｏｕｔ．．． Ｌａｔｅｌｙ ｗｅ’ｖｅ ｂｅｅｎ ｓｈｏｗｅｒｅｄ ｗｉｔｈ ａｌｌ ｋｉｎｄ ｏｆ ｓａｙｏｎａｒａ ｇｉｆｔｓ ａｎｄ ｔｒｅａｔｓ， ｔｈａｔ ｈｕｂｂｙ ａｎｄ Ｉ ｃａｎ’ｔ ｔｈａｎｋ ｅｖｅｒｙｏｎｅ ｅｎｏｕｇｈ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅｉｒ ｋｉｎｄｎｅｓｓ ａｎｄ ｇｅｎｅｒｏｓｉｔｙ． Ｍａｙ Ａｌｌａｈ ｂｌｅｓｓ ａｎｄ ｒｅｗａｒｄ ｔｈｅｍ ａｃｃｏｒｄｉｎｇｌｙ．．．
Ｏｈ － ｂｙ ｔｈｅ ｂｙ － ａｌｈａｍｄｕｌｉｌａｈ， Ｉ ｊｕｓｔ ｇｏｔ ｍｙ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｎｅｐｈｅｗ，ｎａｍｅｄ Ｕｗａｉｓ，ｙｅｓｔｅｒｄａｙ． Ｔｈｅ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｓｏｎ ｏｆ ｔｈｅ ｔｈｅ ｆｉｒｓｔ ｓｏｎ， ｂｏｒｎ ｏｎ １ｓｔ Ｒａｍａｄｈａｎ ／ １ｓｔ Ｓｅｐｔｅｍｂｅｒ ｉｎ Ｒｏｏｍ ｎｏ １． Ａｙａｈ ｉｓ ｓｏ ｈａｐｐｙ ｔｏ ｇｒｅｅｔ ａｎｄ ｍｅｅｔ ｈｉｓ ｔｈｉｒｄ ｇｒａｎｄｓｏｎ ― ”ｅｓｏｋ－ｅｓｏｋ ｂｏｌｅｈ ｌａ ｄｅｐａ ｐａｋａｔ－ｐａｋａｔ ｍａｉｎ ｌｉｇａｎ－ｌｉｇａｎ ｋａｔ ｒｕｍａｈ Ｔｏｋ Ａｙａｈ” Ｂｏｙｓ ｂｅｉｎｇ ｂｏｙｓ， Ｉ ｂｅｌｉｅｖｅ ｔｈｅｒｅ ｗｉｌｌ ｂｅ ｍｏｒｅ ｔｈａｎ ｍｅｒｅｌｙ ”ｍａｉｎ ｌｉｇａｎ－ｌｉｇａｎ” ｉｎｖｏｌｖｅｄ．．．Ｅｖｅｎ ｒｉｇｈｔ ｎｏｗ Ｈｕｚａｉｆａｈ ｉｓ ａｌｒｅａｄｙ ｓｈｏｗｉｎｇ ｓｉｇｎｓ ｏｆ ”ｂｕｌｌｙｉｎｇ” Ｈｕｍａｉｄｉ － ｂｕｔ Ｈｕｍａｉｄｉ ｓｅｅｍｓ ｔｏ ｂｅ ｇｒｏｗｉｎｇ ａｔ ａ ｆａｓｔｅｒ ｐａｃｅ ｔｈａｎ ｈｉｓ ｅｌｄｅｒ ｂｒｏｔｈｅｒ，ｓｏ ｗｅ’ｌｌ ｓｅｅ．．．
Ｗｅｌｌ， ｔｉｌｌ ｎｅｘｔ ｔｉｍｅ （ａｎｄ ｎｏ ｇｕａｒａｎｔｅｅ ｗｈｅｎ ｔｈａｔ ｗｉｌｌ ｂｅ） － Ｒａｍａｄｈａｎ Ｋａｒｅｅｍ ｔｏ ａｌｌ ｍｙ Ｍｕｓｌｉｍ ｒｅａｄｅｒｓ． Ｓｅｌａｍａｔ ｂｅｒｐｅｓｔａ ｉｂａｄａｈ！
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
The Jeruk Kelubi Thief
We were out that day - attending a small birthday party in Gyotoku, if I am not mistaken.
Mida and Acoi had left some jeruk for me at home that evening.
I was really looking forward to eating some jeruk - but we only left Gyotoku at around 9.30 p.m. and when we arrived home about an hour later - there was no sign of the jeruk.
No sign of it on the first floor.
Nor on the second, third, fourth or fifth floor.
Checked the first floor again - on the shoe racks, at the back of the door, in the office area.
Nothing.
Texted Acoi - asking where did he put the jeruk?
Mida called me back almost immediately.
"Dekat pintu depan masjid, kat bawah."
Oh dear, I should have advised them beforehand to put it in front of the house, on the fifth floor.
"Tak ada ke? Orang dah kebas ke? Alaa... kitorang dah bagi semua jeruk yang ada kat rumah ni..."
So there, no rezeki lah kot. I thought I just have to wait a little while longer as I had also asked Mak to post me some jeruk from Malaysia...
The thing is - sometimes hubby and I left some stuff for homeless ojichans next to the masjid's door, but so far, nobody has taken anything left for us on the masjid's door. Stuff like non halal milk (two cans of Meiji Hohoemi formula that I received after giving birth to Humaidi), non halal sweets (containing gelatine, mistakenly bought by hubby), non halal chocolate (containing alcohol, given to us by non Muslim friends) or non halal crisps (mistakenly bought) and as such.
Anyway, right after Mida called, I went back down, and looked at the spot where hubby and I usually leave some stuff for homeless ojichans - and what do you know? There was a white plastic bag containing several disposable bento containers filled with jeruk!
I excitedly texted Mida again, explaining that I found it at the spot where we usually leave some stuff for the homeless.
"Ada jeruk salak, kelubi, mangga 2 jenis, kedondong, pala..." Mida explained the supposed contents for me.
Salak. Checked
2 variety of Mangga. Checked
Kedondong. Checked
Pala. Checked.
Eh,eh - no kelubi lah...
"Hah? Jeruk kelubi tak ada?"
Nope, not one single kelubi was among the assorted jeruk left.
"Agaknya pakcik homeless tu ingat kelubi tu umeboshi kot..."
I hope that ojichan, whoever he is, did not get stomachache from eating jeruk kelubi which might have been mistaken for umeboshi...
Mida and Acoi had left some jeruk for me at home that evening.
I was really looking forward to eating some jeruk - but we only left Gyotoku at around 9.30 p.m. and when we arrived home about an hour later - there was no sign of the jeruk.
No sign of it on the first floor.
Nor on the second, third, fourth or fifth floor.
Checked the first floor again - on the shoe racks, at the back of the door, in the office area.
Nothing.
Texted Acoi - asking where did he put the jeruk?
Mida called me back almost immediately.
"Dekat pintu depan masjid, kat bawah."
Oh dear, I should have advised them beforehand to put it in front of the house, on the fifth floor.
"Tak ada ke? Orang dah kebas ke? Alaa... kitorang dah bagi semua jeruk yang ada kat rumah ni..."
So there, no rezeki lah kot. I thought I just have to wait a little while longer as I had also asked Mak to post me some jeruk from Malaysia...
The thing is - sometimes hubby and I left some stuff for homeless ojichans next to the masjid's door, but so far, nobody has taken anything left for us on the masjid's door. Stuff like non halal milk (two cans of Meiji Hohoemi formula that I received after giving birth to Humaidi), non halal sweets (containing gelatine, mistakenly bought by hubby), non halal chocolate (containing alcohol, given to us by non Muslim friends) or non halal crisps (mistakenly bought) and as such.
Anyway, right after Mida called, I went back down, and looked at the spot where hubby and I usually leave some stuff for homeless ojichans - and what do you know? There was a white plastic bag containing several disposable bento containers filled with jeruk!
I excitedly texted Mida again, explaining that I found it at the spot where we usually leave some stuff for the homeless.
"Ada jeruk salak, kelubi, mangga 2 jenis, kedondong, pala..." Mida explained the supposed contents for me.
Salak. Checked
2 variety of Mangga. Checked
Kedondong. Checked
Pala. Checked.
Eh,eh - no kelubi lah...
"Hah? Jeruk kelubi tak ada?"
Nope, not one single kelubi was among the assorted jeruk left.
"Agaknya pakcik homeless tu ingat kelubi tu umeboshi kot..."
I hope that ojichan, whoever he is, did not get stomachache from eating jeruk kelubi which might have been mistaken for umeboshi...
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Long Time No See
Apologies to all - KI and Che Nah included - for not updating earlier...
As many have suspected, I have been 'melepek' due to vomiting/nausea/headaches.
Sorry for abandoning this blog for some time...
I've been away from blogosphere for so long that I don't know where to start...
#####
Condolences
... to Kak Shaz and Akhi Amin on the loss of their beloved son, Amir Ashraf.
Kak Shaz, one of the kindest, gentlest souls I've ever met, used to be in the same dorm with me back in high school. It's been ages since we last met so the news was really shocking. Her first born is austistic, so Amir Ashraf, the second child used to play the role of the first born - a protective, caring big brother who enjoyed making toys from recycled materials for his siblings. Too often we think of children as gifts from the above - but they are only temporary loans from The Creator - it must had been hard to return this particular loan back to the rightful Owner, but then we are only humans, and we all belong to The AlMighty...
Our doa for the family and the innocent child...
... to Kak Lela on the loss of her beloved mother.
May Allah place her among those blessed by Him always.
#####
Congratulations
... to Rosli and family on the arrival of the latest member of the family, a healthy baby boy and to Kamarul and family on the birth of Adia's baby sister. Mabruk, and may they both grow up as anak soleh/ah
#####
Thesis?
Got five questions during the oral examination - two each from the second and third examiner, and one from my own sensei, the chief examiner. Got some critics and comments from the third examiner too - he seemed to be the only one who actually read the thesis in full. When the second examiner asked a question I didn't expected (as I believed it had been discussed in details in my thesis), the third examiner actually defended me by saying something along the line of "she had written one whole chapter on that..."
Heh.
#####
More later, insya Allah... I really want to share the story of the jeruk kelubi thief...
As many have suspected, I have been 'melepek' due to vomiting/nausea/headaches.
Sorry for abandoning this blog for some time...
I've been away from blogosphere for so long that I don't know where to start...
#####
Condolences
... to Kak Shaz and Akhi Amin on the loss of their beloved son, Amir Ashraf.
Kak Shaz, one of the kindest, gentlest souls I've ever met, used to be in the same dorm with me back in high school. It's been ages since we last met so the news was really shocking. Her first born is austistic, so Amir Ashraf, the second child used to play the role of the first born - a protective, caring big brother who enjoyed making toys from recycled materials for his siblings. Too often we think of children as gifts from the above - but they are only temporary loans from The Creator - it must had been hard to return this particular loan back to the rightful Owner, but then we are only humans, and we all belong to The AlMighty...
Our doa for the family and the innocent child...
... to Kak Lela on the loss of her beloved mother.
May Allah place her among those blessed by Him always.
#####
Congratulations
... to Rosli and family on the arrival of the latest member of the family, a healthy baby boy and to Kamarul and family on the birth of Adia's baby sister. Mabruk, and may they both grow up as anak soleh/ah
#####
Thesis?
Got five questions during the oral examination - two each from the second and third examiner, and one from my own sensei, the chief examiner. Got some critics and comments from the third examiner too - he seemed to be the only one who actually read the thesis in full. When the second examiner asked a question I didn't expected (as I believed it had been discussed in details in my thesis), the third examiner actually defended me by saying something along the line of "she had written one whole chapter on that..."
Heh.
#####
More later, insya Allah... I really want to share the story of the jeruk kelubi thief...
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Acknowledgements...
All praises go to Allah; it is with His blessings that I managed to complete this thesis.
My sincere gratitude goes to my supervisor, Professor L H S, who has shared a lot of his expertise and research insights. I am also indebted to various GSAPS lecturers for their guidance and assistance, and I warmly thank Professor S S, for useful advice and thoughts shared while attending his class on Globalization of Cultures. Yes sir, I agree that often “cultural diversity should come first”.
I especially owed it to Normizan Abu Bakar and Ganjar Nugruho for thoughtful advice and constructive criticisms which often helped me to find the “jigsaw frame” for this thesis and the pieces of puzzles to fit in the said frame.
My gratitude goes to the people and committee members of Homestay Pelegong Cooperative, especially Puan F B, Pak Wan, and Encik B S for sharing extensive discussions and interesting points to ponder upon. I must also thank the girls at the Tourism Services department of the Malaysian Ministry of Tourism; Izamalina, Siti Afeefah and Hamdiah Ismail for friendly help and valuable inputs.
My heartfelt thanks go to all my friends, old and new, near and far. Still, some special ones deserve mentioning here – Che Nah and Sarina for sharing tips on how to simultaneously manage both graduate school and growing family, Kak Marsita Yunus for sharing insights on homestay tourism, Iffah, Jue, Masni, Yam, Nita and Kamarol for distant support and encouragement, and last but not least, Siyi, Mega, Hien, Emi, Yuko, members of Professor Lim’s zemi and the usual lot at GSAPS library whose concern and presence had given me the constant moral and practical support I needed, particularly during the eleventh hour.
My family have been a long lasting source of energy during this exhaustive research. Grandparents, uncles, aunties, cousins, in-laws all have given me a loving environment where to develop. Brothers, Azrul and Amirul, sister-in-law Sarah, half-sister Ameera, half-brother Abdul Karim and almost-brother Faizly included. My parents, Baharom Hassan and Ngasobah Seliman have always supported and encouraged me to go further than I had thought possible. Lastly, I owe my loving thanks to my husband Mohd Amin Mohd Tahir, and my sons Muhammad Azmi Huzaifah and Muhammad Akif Humaidi for being a source of inspiration and motivation for me. To them I dedicate this thesis.
Central Kyushu Masjid Project
The Beppu Muslim Association is urgently seeking donations and financial assistance to build a masjid.
The payment deadline is on July 23, 2008; 10% of the payment would be forfeited in case they can't pay in full.
Why build a mosque in Beppu?
Muslims face difficulty to perform congregations for prayer, especially for Friday and Eid prayers; they usually rent halls for such events, but of course they can't rent any place easily.
Then, some Muslims, especially children and new generations, are affected by the Japanese culture and other ideologies, and grow up with no idea of true Islamic teachings.
The project so far?
They have already signed the initial contract for a four storey, centrally air conditioned, concrete building in
Ishigaki. The place overlooks the Beppu seaside and is in proximity to major departmental stores, restaurants and bus stops/railways station, not to mention surrounded by many Muslim residents too. Previously the place was used as an office.
Total cost of building : 27 million Yens
Paid up amount : 5.4 million Yens (20% of total) in April 2008
For more Information, following persons can be contacted :
Japanese, English & Urdu : 090-2082-5541
Malaysian : 090-3417-7084
E-mail : oitamasjidproject@ gmail.com
Funds can be transferred to the following either Bank or Postal accounts of Beppu Muslim
POSTAL ACCOUNT
Account No 17220-17632791
Account Name BEPPU MUSLIM ASSOCIATION
BANK ACCOUNT
THE OITA BANK, LTD
Branch WASADA (わさだ支店)
Account Number 0183-058-5264818
Account Name BEPPU MUSLIM AASOCIATION
Monday, July 07, 2008
Done - for now...
Submitted the thesis this evening - finally! Alhamdulillah...
Was I fully satisfied with the end result?
Err... Hmm... Urghh...
(Anyway, Ganjar kept reassured me - so long as u submit something that resembles an academic paper with the required word counts - chances are you'll pass...
I hope he's right...)
The thesis had been haunting me for quite some times now - felt like i was eating, drinking, sleeping, even dreaming thesis... So, yes, am really glad that I'm done with it. For now. The oral exam is going to be held by the end of this month insya Allah, but... I'll think about that next week, I guess...
For now - I just want to go home, and unwind.
Maybe read a book - just received Nisah's "Tawarikh Cinta" (thank you so much dear, for both the novel and the Dewan Sastera) yesterday and there's a copy of Sue Townsend's "Public Confessions of a Middle-aged woman" I have yet to read...
Hmm, decision, decision...
By the way - anyone knows where can I get some "jeruk" here in Japan without having to resort to asking somebody to post them from Malaysia? Not cili jeruk or bawang jeruk - just any preserved fruit jeruk. Salak, kelubi or kuini, preferably, but mangga or any other is okay too...
Was I fully satisfied with the end result?
Err... Hmm... Urghh...
(Anyway, Ganjar kept reassured me - so long as u submit something that resembles an academic paper with the required word counts - chances are you'll pass...
I hope he's right...)
The thesis had been haunting me for quite some times now - felt like i was eating, drinking, sleeping, even dreaming thesis... So, yes, am really glad that I'm done with it. For now. The oral exam is going to be held by the end of this month insya Allah, but... I'll think about that next week, I guess...
For now - I just want to go home, and unwind.
Maybe read a book - just received Nisah's "Tawarikh Cinta" (thank you so much dear, for both the novel and the Dewan Sastera) yesterday and there's a copy of Sue Townsend's "Public Confessions of a Middle-aged woman" I have yet to read...
Hmm, decision, decision...
By the way - anyone knows where can I get some "jeruk" here in Japan without having to resort to asking somebody to post them from Malaysia? Not cili jeruk or bawang jeruk - just any preserved fruit jeruk. Salak, kelubi or kuini, preferably, but mangga or any other is okay too...
Saturday, July 05, 2008
Anak itu rezeki...
On FB
"... anak kan rezeki
rezeki ko sampai jepun
rezeki duduk kat jepun
and another one Insya Allah
rezeki utk ko balik Malaysia.."
"... anak kan rezeki
rezeki ko sampai jepun
rezeki duduk kat jepun
and another one Insya Allah
rezeki utk ko balik Malaysia.."
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Once upon a time...
I am allergic of exams and datelines.
The nearer they are, the more feverish I become, and I even vomit.
I used to vomit on the mornings of exam days back in my undergraduate days
Now that the dateline for my thesis is impending, the nausea bouts are back...
#####
I used to say "tak nak belajar dah, nak kahwin lah" while I was doing some last minute revision before sitting for an exam during undergraduate days.
Mind you - that only happened during exam fever - other than that I was not so keen on marrying at early age, ha ha...
Donner aka Dr Aida once asked me "Kak A.Z. masih dok rasa nak kahwin lagi ke?" a week after I finished my final exam, and I looked at her quizzingly, which made her retorted "Laa, kan akak yang sibuk dok cakap "nak kahwin, tak nak study" hari tu?"
Rather embarassing really, especially since Donner was my main masseur (the nausea bouts came with headaches and all) during last-minute revision period... and I must had been repeating myself again and again during all those hours
I even planned not to sit for a paper once, felt like my mind had been wiped totally blank, but Donner firmly told me to go to the hall and just answer based on whatever remnants that remained inside my blank mind...
I actually got a 2.1 for that particular paper, alhamdulillah
#####
Now that I am married with kids and struggling to finish writing up my thesis,
I am glad I grabbed the chance to further my studies, here in Japan.
There are so many things yet to be learned, to be discovered, and I believe in taking every chances one gets to learn and improve oneself...
No more uttering nonsense along the line of "tak nak belajarlah..."
The nearer they are, the more feverish I become, and I even vomit.
I used to vomit on the mornings of exam days back in my undergraduate days
Now that the dateline for my thesis is impending, the nausea bouts are back...
#####
I used to say "tak nak belajar dah, nak kahwin lah" while I was doing some last minute revision before sitting for an exam during undergraduate days.
Mind you - that only happened during exam fever - other than that I was not so keen on marrying at early age, ha ha...
Donner aka Dr Aida once asked me "Kak A.Z. masih dok rasa nak kahwin lagi ke?" a week after I finished my final exam, and I looked at her quizzingly, which made her retorted "Laa, kan akak yang sibuk dok cakap "nak kahwin, tak nak study" hari tu?"
Rather embarassing really, especially since Donner was my main masseur (the nausea bouts came with headaches and all) during last-minute revision period... and I must had been repeating myself again and again during all those hours
I even planned not to sit for a paper once, felt like my mind had been wiped totally blank, but Donner firmly told me to go to the hall and just answer based on whatever remnants that remained inside my blank mind...
I actually got a 2.1 for that particular paper, alhamdulillah
#####
Now that I am married with kids and struggling to finish writing up my thesis,
I am glad I grabbed the chance to further my studies, here in Japan.
There are so many things yet to be learned, to be discovered, and I believe in taking every chances one gets to learn and improve oneself...
No more uttering nonsense along the line of "tak nak belajarlah..."
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Trivia...
1.
(During lunch in the student lounge, in Japanese,
with a mature PhD Japanese student whose kids are in their twenties)
Y-san: So you make your own bento everyday?
Me: Yes, I have to cook for my family anyway...
Y-san: Your family is with you? Must be tough then...
Me: I have two kids, boys. It is not easy, but I don't mind the extra chores so long as we get to be together.
Y-san: But it must be hard to handle both studying and caring for the family...
Me: That's why I am here in school - can't get anything (academic) done at home...
Y-san: What about your reading?
Me: Most of it done on the train...
Y-san: Sugoi ne, yokudekimashita...
Me: Oh, there's no such thing - I just do what I have to do...
#####
2.
(With Amy, who's currently pursuing her Masters in Sydney on FB)
Amy: A.Z. I dreamt of you last night
Me: Good dream, I hope
Amy: Oh, it was a good one. You came to my home, in Sydney, with other friends, and we caught up on old times.
Me: I hope your dream will come true
Amy: Me too
Me: I've never been to Sydney yet, hehehe
Amy: Must be I was ralat sangat that we did not get to see each other when I was in Tokyo, sampai termimpi-mimpi jumpa u...
#####
3.
A friend shared her experience as a volunteer Bahasa Malaysia teacher in the UK for expatriate Malay kids under 7 years old;
"... puas kita cakap "A untuk Ayam"
dia org jawab ramai-ramai "Noooooo, A is for Apple"
kita kata ye la that's for English but for Bahasa Malaysia,
A is for Ayam
2-3 orang lagi pula kata
"Teacher, that's not Ayam, that's Chicken!!!
CHICKEN, TEACHER!!!!"
ada mak ayah bagitau
anak dia eja buku, "booku"
ni dah balik Malaysia dah la ni..."
#####
4.
Closer at home, Yam's 9 year old daughter, Khadijah Najwa scored all A's in her mid-year exam except for BM.
Yam told me, one of Khadijah's sentence read as:
" Jovan dimarahi kerana mencuru tuan punya epal"
#####
5.
SMS from Fauzee, a fellow PTD who is currently pursuing his MA in GRIPS (and already has 2 girls before the newborn arrived) read as;
"Salam. Alhamdulillah saya telah dikurniakan seorang lagi anak perempuan pada 16 Jun jam 9.36 pm"
The reply;
"Alhamdulillah. Omedetou gozaimas. Mudah2an jadi anak solehah penyejuk mata ayah ibu. Kirim salam kat Ailin, lepas ni kene tukar senduk aar nampaknya (^-^)v"
I said it, but I still couldn't figure out what on earth is the co-relations between baby's gender and cooking ladles?
(Mothers of all boys are sometimes advised to exchange ladles/spatulas with mothers of all girls and vice versa before trying to get a baby of the other gender...)
(During lunch in the student lounge, in Japanese,
with a mature PhD Japanese student whose kids are in their twenties)
Y-san: So you make your own bento everyday?
Me: Yes, I have to cook for my family anyway...
Y-san: Your family is with you? Must be tough then...
Me: I have two kids, boys. It is not easy, but I don't mind the extra chores so long as we get to be together.
Y-san: But it must be hard to handle both studying and caring for the family...
Me: That's why I am here in school - can't get anything (academic) done at home...
Y-san: What about your reading?
Me: Most of it done on the train...
Y-san: Sugoi ne, yokudekimashita...
Me: Oh, there's no such thing - I just do what I have to do...
#####
2.
(With Amy, who's currently pursuing her Masters in Sydney on FB)
Amy: A.Z. I dreamt of you last night
Me: Good dream, I hope
Amy: Oh, it was a good one. You came to my home, in Sydney, with other friends, and we caught up on old times.
Me: I hope your dream will come true
Amy: Me too
Me: I've never been to Sydney yet, hehehe
Amy: Must be I was ralat sangat that we did not get to see each other when I was in Tokyo, sampai termimpi-mimpi jumpa u...
#####
3.
A friend shared her experience as a volunteer Bahasa Malaysia teacher in the UK for expatriate Malay kids under 7 years old;
"... puas kita cakap "A untuk Ayam"
dia org jawab ramai-ramai "Noooooo, A is for Apple"
kita kata ye la that's for English but for Bahasa Malaysia,
A is for Ayam
2-3 orang lagi pula kata
"Teacher, that's not Ayam, that's Chicken!!!
CHICKEN, TEACHER!!!!"
ada mak ayah bagitau
anak dia eja buku, "booku"
ni dah balik Malaysia dah la ni..."
#####
4.
Closer at home, Yam's 9 year old daughter, Khadijah Najwa scored all A's in her mid-year exam except for BM.
Yam told me, one of Khadijah's sentence read as:
" Jovan dimarahi kerana mencuru tuan punya epal"
#####
5.
SMS from Fauzee, a fellow PTD who is currently pursuing his MA in GRIPS (and already has 2 girls before the newborn arrived) read as;
"Salam. Alhamdulillah saya telah dikurniakan seorang lagi anak perempuan pada 16 Jun jam 9.36 pm"
The reply;
"Alhamdulillah. Omedetou gozaimas. Mudah2an jadi anak solehah penyejuk mata ayah ibu. Kirim salam kat Ailin, lepas ni kene tukar senduk aar nampaknya (^-^)v"
I said it, but I still couldn't figure out what on earth is the co-relations between baby's gender and cooking ladles?
(Mothers of all boys are sometimes advised to exchange ladles/spatulas with mothers of all girls and vice versa before trying to get a baby of the other gender...)
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
More notes on this and that
Over YM (on the effects of Malaysian civil servants being paid twice monthly)
dt : makin ramai orang susah hati duit tak cukup
makin ramai mengular dan cari part time
makin turun produktiviti di ofis
makin tambah beban org kerja kewangan
makin tambah kos pengurusan
#####
"Civil servants should change their spending habits..."
If one is getting less than RM1500 a month, with 5 school-age kids, living in a small apartment with no place to grow own veggies and herbs, plus loads of this-and-that loans to be paid, how could one still justify paying the meager salary twice a month (in this days when everything is expensive) as a move to help such persons manage their spending better?
#####
The poor in Malaysia are doing poorer than the poor in Japan or UK.
At least in Japan, the poor here have the options to shop at discount stores and 99/100yen shop. Beggars won't mind eating food brought from discount stores because well, at least they still get to eat whatever the richer ones are eating - rice, noodles, bread, veggies, canned food - although in lesser quality and lower prices
Similary, in UK, the poor can shop in discount supermarket chains like Aldi, or Lidl or Netto - to get food at discount prices.
But we don't offer that kind of option in Malaysia...
#####
Once not too long ago, I used to take 2 hours, riding my bike all over Gyotoku for best bargains.
One shop would be selling cooking oil at reduced price, the other offers good quality eggs and bread at 100 yen, yet another would be selling detergents and toiletries at half the normal price. I went shopping from one shop to another, tried to stretch my yen as far as it could.
It was not easy, though we managed to save a little by the end of the month.
It must be harder for those in Malaysia who rarely gets to buy stuff at discount prices from different shops located near to each other...
dt : makin ramai orang susah hati duit tak cukup
makin ramai mengular dan cari part time
makin turun produktiviti di ofis
makin tambah beban org kerja kewangan
makin tambah kos pengurusan
#####
"Civil servants should change their spending habits..."
If one is getting less than RM1500 a month, with 5 school-age kids, living in a small apartment with no place to grow own veggies and herbs, plus loads of this-and-that loans to be paid, how could one still justify paying the meager salary twice a month (in this days when everything is expensive) as a move to help such persons manage their spending better?
#####
The poor in Malaysia are doing poorer than the poor in Japan or UK.
At least in Japan, the poor here have the options to shop at discount stores and 99/100yen shop. Beggars won't mind eating food brought from discount stores because well, at least they still get to eat whatever the richer ones are eating - rice, noodles, bread, veggies, canned food - although in lesser quality and lower prices
Similary, in UK, the poor can shop in discount supermarket chains like Aldi, or Lidl or Netto - to get food at discount prices.
But we don't offer that kind of option in Malaysia...
#####
Once not too long ago, I used to take 2 hours, riding my bike all over Gyotoku for best bargains.
One shop would be selling cooking oil at reduced price, the other offers good quality eggs and bread at 100 yen, yet another would be selling detergents and toiletries at half the normal price. I went shopping from one shop to another, tried to stretch my yen as far as it could.
It was not easy, though we managed to save a little by the end of the month.
It must be harder for those in Malaysia who rarely gets to buy stuff at discount prices from different shops located near to each other...
Thursday, June 12, 2008
A day in the life of...
Huzaifah and Humaidi (aka Ujai and Akif), as 'told' to their Abang Sabah, can be read here.
It's in BM, a light entry on my children's antics -
including stuff like Humaidi cheering himself on, saying "tateh" as he walks;
or Huzaifah's "unique" pose with Peace sign (using one whole hand or L-shaped sign instead of V);
or Huzaifah's quick reply of "amau" whenever Ibu asked him "nak hanger tak?" after an episode of misconduct...
It's in BM, a light entry on my children's antics -
including stuff like Humaidi cheering himself on, saying "tateh" as he walks;
or Huzaifah's "unique" pose with Peace sign (using one whole hand or L-shaped sign instead of V);
or Huzaifah's quick reply of "amau" whenever Ibu asked him "nak hanger tak?" after an episode of misconduct...
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Of grave digging and knife frenzies...
Our condolence for Ariffin and his wife in Kochi, Shikoku, for the lost of their third child even before she was properly born - may they get to be reunited with their precious little one in heaven one day, insya Allah...
Al-fatihah...
#####
Ariffin came all the way from Kochi with his little one flown in a special container yesterday. Hubby and En Amin, the Consular from Malaysian Embassy picked Ariffin and his little one from Haneda Airport and managed the janazah in Islamic Center in Setagaya before going to the Islamic Graveyard in Enzan, Yamanashi.
It cost 70,000 yen to get a burial plot there, and another 30,000 to get the graveyard dug, so the three of them decided to dig the grave themselves, manually digging using the shovels provided there. The caretaker of the graveyard area is a monk, who later hosted a sushi lunch for the three of them after the burial was over. Hubby had his first experience of giving a talqin, as he had never sent any janazah to the graveyard in Japan before.
#####
Not able to find a babysitter, I had to give my zemi session a miss yesterday. I know my sensei would not be pleased with my absence, now that we, the final year students in our last semester, are in the critical period of writing our thesis. Not that I didn't try to get some help - but Faizly happened to have a replacement class yesterday too, so there...
Well, I guess funeral is a bigger thing than just missing zemi, and besides Mak always told me to make things easier for others, while praying and hoping that Allah will make things easier for us...
#####
The amok in Akihabara is the worst street stabbing case in recent years. This sick psycho guy is tired of his life and thus he decided to take 7 others, injuring 10 as well. He drove a rented truck all the way from Yamanashi area, which is about 3 hours away from Tokyo, bought the dagger he used to stab others in Fukui and even consistently posting timely messages on a mobile phone site, among others to record his stopping at a rest area in Kanazawa, announced his arrival in Akihabara and declared "It's time" 2o minutes before his killing spree.
Some experts claimed that the guy might had posted the messages not as a way to declare the attack to the general public, but more as in updating his own realtime blog. Realtime bloggers often update their sites several times an hour, posting entries regarding their activities and feelings.
#####
There were 67 multiple stabbing rampages in Japan between 1998 and 2007, and at least 5 cases this year alone.
The scary part is that usually the guy running amok just wanted to kill, not caring who the victims are (dare demo yokatta). Random stabber ranged from as young as 16 year old to 40 year old - all within the usually 'baligh' age, when they are able to tell right from wrong. But I guess when they do not believe in God - there is no real sense of right or wrong
#####
In a way it must had been something akin to a slap for the Japanese National Police Agency - now that the G8 Summit is near, they have been busy opening Counter Terrorism counters all over the country, usually suspecting gaijins to be possible threats, and one day - a Nihonjin killed 7 and injured 10 others in Tokyo.
Dush dush.
#####
Many Nihonjin interviewed in the TV said that, "...this is unforgivable. It doesn't make sense."
I hope they will also take time to think about similar "unforgivable incidents" happening daily in other parts of the world.
In Palestine, for example...
#####
One respected Muslim Nihonjin from Nihon Muslim Kyoukai will give a talk in Asakusa Mosque this Saturday, 14 June. For more information, please go here.
Invitation is open to all...
Al-fatihah...
#####
Ariffin came all the way from Kochi with his little one flown in a special container yesterday. Hubby and En Amin, the Consular from Malaysian Embassy picked Ariffin and his little one from Haneda Airport and managed the janazah in Islamic Center in Setagaya before going to the Islamic Graveyard in Enzan, Yamanashi.
It cost 70,000 yen to get a burial plot there, and another 30,000 to get the graveyard dug, so the three of them decided to dig the grave themselves, manually digging using the shovels provided there. The caretaker of the graveyard area is a monk, who later hosted a sushi lunch for the three of them after the burial was over. Hubby had his first experience of giving a talqin, as he had never sent any janazah to the graveyard in Japan before.
#####
Not able to find a babysitter, I had to give my zemi session a miss yesterday. I know my sensei would not be pleased with my absence, now that we, the final year students in our last semester, are in the critical period of writing our thesis. Not that I didn't try to get some help - but Faizly happened to have a replacement class yesterday too, so there...
Well, I guess funeral is a bigger thing than just missing zemi, and besides Mak always told me to make things easier for others, while praying and hoping that Allah will make things easier for us...
#####
The amok in Akihabara is the worst street stabbing case in recent years. This sick psycho guy is tired of his life and thus he decided to take 7 others, injuring 10 as well. He drove a rented truck all the way from Yamanashi area, which is about 3 hours away from Tokyo, bought the dagger he used to stab others in Fukui and even consistently posting timely messages on a mobile phone site, among others to record his stopping at a rest area in Kanazawa, announced his arrival in Akihabara and declared "It's time" 2o minutes before his killing spree.
Some experts claimed that the guy might had posted the messages not as a way to declare the attack to the general public, but more as in updating his own realtime blog. Realtime bloggers often update their sites several times an hour, posting entries regarding their activities and feelings.
#####
There were 67 multiple stabbing rampages in Japan between 1998 and 2007, and at least 5 cases this year alone.
The scary part is that usually the guy running amok just wanted to kill, not caring who the victims are (dare demo yokatta). Random stabber ranged from as young as 16 year old to 40 year old - all within the usually 'baligh' age, when they are able to tell right from wrong. But I guess when they do not believe in God - there is no real sense of right or wrong
#####
In a way it must had been something akin to a slap for the Japanese National Police Agency - now that the G8 Summit is near, they have been busy opening Counter Terrorism counters all over the country, usually suspecting gaijins to be possible threats, and one day - a Nihonjin killed 7 and injured 10 others in Tokyo.
Dush dush.
#####
Many Nihonjin interviewed in the TV said that, "...this is unforgivable. It doesn't make sense."
I hope they will also take time to think about similar "unforgivable incidents" happening daily in other parts of the world.
In Palestine, for example...
#####
One respected Muslim Nihonjin from Nihon Muslim Kyoukai will give a talk in Asakusa Mosque this Saturday, 14 June. For more information, please go here.
Invitation is open to all...
Saturday, June 07, 2008
The obligatory entry on Malaysian fuel price hike
(harga) minyak naik = (rakyat) naik minyak?
#####
"Now that fuel prices have gone up, some bus companies have followed suit and more than doubled their fares." (The Star, Saturday 7 June 2008)
That, despite bus operators still receiving subsidized diesel.
And it has been increased to 100% subsidies too, rather than previous allocation of 70% of fuel consumption...
#####
With the fuel price rise, people would expect a better and more reliable public transport system.
Got really surprised to learn that (the already not so efficient) KTM Komuter have reduced their frequency from every 15 minutes during peak hours to every 20 minutes all day long... Eh, they are not getting 100% subsidized fuel ke?...
#####
No more subsidized fuel for IPPs. It doesn't make sense that they get to pay so little yet make so much profit from electricity tariff. And electricity tariff hike is next in agenda...
#####
If the rakyat is expected to pay the 'real-world' price of fuel without subsidy,
I guess it's only fair for the rakyat to pay 'real-world' price for cars too.
The rakyat has already paid a hefty tax as a price for the 'subsidy' in advance.
So if the subsidy is lessened, then the high tax on cars must be lessened too.
#####
If the government wants more people to "change their lifestyle",
then they must also promote radical cyclist-and-pedestrian-friendly measures
Top of the list would involve introducing a much more efficient, reliable public transport system, reaching to a wider possible commuters.
And introducing safe pedestrian/cyclist pathway along the main roads, as well as
introducing stricter law that will ensure motorists to be more cautious of and courteous to pedestrians/cyclists (rather than honking at people using zebra crossing from a mile away, refusing to slow down even a bit...)
#####
And what about alternative fuel/engine?
Here's an interesting article - "Gaza Cars: From Cooking oil to Batteries"
#####
"Now that fuel prices have gone up, some bus companies have followed suit and more than doubled their fares." (The Star, Saturday 7 June 2008)
That, despite bus operators still receiving subsidized diesel.
And it has been increased to 100% subsidies too, rather than previous allocation of 70% of fuel consumption...
#####
With the fuel price rise, people would expect a better and more reliable public transport system.
Got really surprised to learn that (the already not so efficient) KTM Komuter have reduced their frequency from every 15 minutes during peak hours to every 20 minutes all day long... Eh, they are not getting 100% subsidized fuel ke?...
#####
No more subsidized fuel for IPPs. It doesn't make sense that they get to pay so little yet make so much profit from electricity tariff. And electricity tariff hike is next in agenda...
#####
If the rakyat is expected to pay the 'real-world' price of fuel without subsidy,
I guess it's only fair for the rakyat to pay 'real-world' price for cars too.
The rakyat has already paid a hefty tax as a price for the 'subsidy' in advance.
So if the subsidy is lessened, then the high tax on cars must be lessened too.
#####
If the government wants more people to "change their lifestyle",
then they must also promote radical cyclist-and-pedestrian-friendly measures
Top of the list would involve introducing a much more efficient, reliable public transport system, reaching to a wider possible commuters.
And introducing safe pedestrian/cyclist pathway along the main roads, as well as
introducing stricter law that will ensure motorists to be more cautious of and courteous to pedestrians/cyclists (rather than honking at people using zebra crossing from a mile away, refusing to slow down even a bit...)
#####
And what about alternative fuel/engine?
Here's an interesting article - "Gaza Cars: From Cooking oil to Batteries"
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Shorter notes on this and that
My friend Nisah has written a short story based on this entry of mine.
I was made to understand that it might appear in Dewan Sastera this month
It's a worth-to-be-pondered-upon cerpen, so you might want to go grab a copy of Dewan Sastera and find out for yourself how Nisah had interpreted my entry into a (published) short story
#####
message by a friend over YM
"kadang aku pikir
buat masters susah2 pun
bukan boleh naik gaji
buat PTK baru boleh naik gaji..."
oO (kalau macam tu, baik tak payah ambik cuti belajar buat masters)
oO (ambik je cuti belajar buat PTK)
#####
Not that I am an expert on religious stuff,
But I do agree with Faisal Tehrani regarding this issue raised by Dr Asri
Surely there must many more Muslim scholars that we can refer to than just Ibnu Taimiyyah, Albani or Ben Baz...
On a lighter note -
what's with Dr Asri and people named Faizal?
First, there was his public comment on Faizal Tahir
and now Faizal Musa (Faisal Tehrani's real name)
#####
It's tough being a tudung-clad Muslimah in a country where the police are suspicious of Muslims. The other day three Malaysian girls who came all the way from KL for a one week holiday in Tokyo went to Tokyo Dome, intending to watch Larc-en-Ciel in concert. But they had been interrogated by a police detective, who asked for their passports and asked all sort of rather disturbing questions.
"Will we be all right in Narita when we leave Tokyo?," one of them asked me anxiously over the phone after they cancelled their plan of watching the concert and went straight back to their hotel near Shinjuku.
"Yes dear. They will only be too happy to say bye-bye to any person with the slightest hint of being a terrorist suspect"
Yes, Tokyo - although maybe to a lesser degree compared to Hokkaido - is also becoming a virtual police state now that the G8 Summit is near. All (ridiculous) kind of security measures are taken as the government, the police and the mainstream media harp on and on about possible 'terrorist attacks'...
I wish Arudou Debito was there to help the girls...
I was made to understand that it might appear in Dewan Sastera this month
It's a worth-to-be-pondered-upon cerpen, so you might want to go grab a copy of Dewan Sastera and find out for yourself how Nisah had interpreted my entry into a (published) short story
#####
message by a friend over YM
"kadang aku pikir
buat masters susah2 pun
bukan boleh naik gaji
buat PTK baru boleh naik gaji..."
oO (kalau macam tu, baik tak payah ambik cuti belajar buat masters)
oO (ambik je cuti belajar buat PTK)
#####
Not that I am an expert on religious stuff,
But I do agree with Faisal Tehrani regarding this issue raised by Dr Asri
Surely there must many more Muslim scholars that we can refer to than just Ibnu Taimiyyah, Albani or Ben Baz...
On a lighter note -
what's with Dr Asri and people named Faizal?
First, there was his public comment on Faizal Tahir
and now Faizal Musa (Faisal Tehrani's real name)
#####
It's tough being a tudung-clad Muslimah in a country where the police are suspicious of Muslims. The other day three Malaysian girls who came all the way from KL for a one week holiday in Tokyo went to Tokyo Dome, intending to watch Larc-en-Ciel in concert. But they had been interrogated by a police detective, who asked for their passports and asked all sort of rather disturbing questions.
"Will we be all right in Narita when we leave Tokyo?," one of them asked me anxiously over the phone after they cancelled their plan of watching the concert and went straight back to their hotel near Shinjuku.
"Yes dear. They will only be too happy to say bye-bye to any person with the slightest hint of being a terrorist suspect"
Yes, Tokyo - although maybe to a lesser degree compared to Hokkaido - is also becoming a virtual police state now that the G8 Summit is near. All (ridiculous) kind of security measures are taken as the government, the police and the mainstream media harp on and on about possible 'terrorist attacks'...
I wish Arudou Debito was there to help the girls...
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