About Me

My photo
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
A 40 something dad of five and a half wonderful kids with amazingly different traits and temperament from whom he wants a break from at times, yet wish they never grow older.....and be with him always.....(howzat possible?)and now wishing that he can be a stay at home dad......

28 December, 2006

Urgh.....have to pack

Ibraheem
Yusof


We are leaving for Langkawi tomorrow on Asia's best budget airline. The kids are excited as this is the first real holiday this year as wifey had exhausted her annual leave entitlement before mid this year....! Accommodation (for five days and four nights) has been arranged but the rest are still hazy. I have various feedback and input from friends, parents and relatives.....I have decided to leave our transportation arrangement until we reach the isle which is sooo unlike me but I just want to have the kick of it i.e. for not arranging anything beforehand. Made a few phone calls to car rental companies and they sounded quite desperate; so there!

I'm supposed to pack the brood's garb now but I thought writing up this entry won't hurt and definitely more exciting! Wifey has gone to sleep.... and the kids too. But she just needs to pack her stuff and the miscellaneous which she's going to do later probably 5 in the a.m.

Borrowed a dSLR from a friend (Olympus E300) to bring to Langkawi and the two pics above were taken using it. Will post pics next year!


Have to continue packing.....So people- Eid Mubarak and a Happy New Year!

My three stooges

Look at how adorable and innocent my three stooges are? Well not when they are all alert and awake though..They are monsters! This pic was taken about 5 30 am today...Yup they actually shared a two-seater couch the whole night long. I dont know how they ended up on the couch as the last time I checked on them - they were sleeping in their beds..Must be the bonding instinct that brought them together here on my couch! Pic like this makes me want to have more kids....LOL!

Progression for Khadijah




26th December was Khadijah's orientation day for her Secondary school, Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seksyen 5 Wangsa Maju (yes a mouthful school name!). I had to go on leave an accompany her for some parents' briefing plus buying books etc.


I was quite impressed with the efficiency of Jabatan Penidikan Wilayah Persekutuan. We submitted Khadijah's application on 19th December 2006 (late afternoon) and the outcome was posted out on 21st December 2006. You know how we procrastinated to register Khadijah for her secondary school. Not that we wanted to but Khadijah could not decide on which school she wanted to go to and finally settled on this school....It's the best school in Keramat area, apparently (and believe it or not Keramat area schools include Convent Bukit Nanas and St John's!).


I must say I was riled and incensed at how the parents behave that day....We had this long queue for registration and yes...these people were jumping queue oblivious of the rest of the world! I had to speak up, didn't I? And the queue jumpers surprisingly disappeared instantly (and I thought I was going to be bashed up for speaking up considering how gung-ho they were)!


It was a good briefing and I was impressed with the organizer. I'm looking forward to Khadijah's progression to secondary school....Although I foresee that more challenges and issues to be faced, it'll be a good experience for wifey and I.

Yet another wedding


The spokesperson


The gifts


The dais


The paperwork


Signing life away?


Spoonfeeding or what? - The script


The nervous bride


The handshake


Icing on the cake for moi




I was meant to post this ages ago, considering that the Akad Nikah (solemnisation of marriage) ceremony took place some one week back (22nd December 2006 to be exact) but was too lazy to do it. Anyway....yes Fuad aka Ad has finally joined the bandwagon of men with commitments etc etc etc.......But he is only 22!!!


It was a manic Friday for me with deadlines and clients' unreasonable demands....Had to leave work early for Ad's nikah. Rushed home, took shower donned my best garb fit for a wedding and screamed at Khadijah to get ready in the process (yes brought Khadijah along so that she could experience a nikah ceremony). We left home about 7ish for Kg Melayu Subang (my aunt's house) to gather before proceeding to Pinggiran USJ (the bride's house-Fiza). The nikah was scheduled to commence at 9 pm. As always, driving in KL on a Friday evening is just hell. Managed to cilok here and there and reached our first destination an hour later....Not bad, actually for aFriday evening drive.


We had my brother to lead us to Fiza's house as he had the privilege of having Ad in his car. I was cussing like mad at the way he drove...zig-zagging throughout the journey..I was driving an MPV for god's sake with three kids and a sevnty plus year old aunt! Anyway, survived the Formula 1 guide and safely reached Pinggiran USJ just on the dot only to be told that the kadhi (the person who administers the ceremony) was still in Bukit Jelutung! The kadhi that evening was the Reistrar of the Register of Marriage & Divorce of Petaling Jaya. Apparently, they were short of staff as the other two kadhis were away performing their hajj.


The ceremony had to be done in a reverse order to save time.....! The exchange of gifts first.....the dinner second and lastly the nikah. Anyway, it didn't matter to me as I got to eat first before the nikah. Dinner was damn brill.....There was gulai kawah which is peculiar to the east coast clans (Fiza's father is from Trengganu). It was lovely.. I had fried ikan selar and gado gado (i think it was.....). An unusual combination but it sync really well in my tummy! Dessert was kek gula hangus (caramalised sugar cake)!


Upon the kadhi's arrival we were ushered in and had to leave our food behind...sigh! That was about 10 ish. At least we were only an hour behind..I remember one nikah ceremony wifey and I attended (my father's brother's nikah) some 14/15 years back...we had to wait from 8 pm to close about 2 am...! The kadhi for Ad's nikah was like Ben Elton...very funny! So it was quite a breeze for the couple and the crowd that night. Intermittent with laughters, the ceremony was not a dull and mundane one. I enjoyed it!


To my disgust though, the Kadhi came up with a script for the groom to read when accepting the nikah.....! I was like.....excuse me? How difficult can "Aku terima nikah (so and so) dengan mas kahwin RM80 tunai" be? I must confess... the whole experience can be daunting..More so if you have a fierce looking kadhi! It is known that sometimes the groom has to recite the acceptance of the nikah a few times albeit the sentence is less than a two-liner!


Anyway.....read my daughter's blog for more pictures on the nikah and the reception at my aunt's house....Having withdrawal syndrome to write about weddings for the time being!!!


Congrats Ad & Fizah.....!

21 December, 2006

Yeayy Rascal Flats

My daughter and I agree most of the times on my choice of songs..The latest is "What hurts the most" by Rascal Flats. The last time we had a disagreement is the song "Hate Me" by Blue October which I sooo like but she doesnt. Anyway enjoy Rascal Flats!

Bukan Diriku

Hey peeps...This is one of my fave songs but this version is by my fave singer, Anuar Zain...Enjoy! I'm soooo into Indon music of late; it's a pity that Malay songs have to be stereotypical.....! My latest discovery is a band called Dygta.





I have also taken the liberty to include the original singer's music video of the same song....SAMSONS...(the lyrics...scroll below!)




BUKAN DIRIKU

Setelah kupahami
Ku bukan yang terbaik
Yang ada di hatimu
Tak dapat kusangsikan
Ternyata dirinyalah
Yang mengerti kamu
Bukanlah diriku

Kini maafkan aku
Bila kumenjadi bisu
Kepada dirimu
Bukan santunku terbungkam
Hanya hatiku perbatas

Tuk mengertikamu
Maafkanlah aku

c/o
Walau....
Kumasih mencintaimu
Kuharus meninggalkanmu
Kuharus melupakanmu
Meski....
Hatiku menyangimu
Nurani membutuhkanmu
Kuharus merelakanmu

Dan hanyalah dirimu
Yang mampu memahamiku
Yang dapat mengerti aku
Ternyata dirinyalah
Yang sanggup menyanjungimu
Yang ramah menyentuhmu
Bukanlah diriku

20 December, 2006

The Rolls Royce of Chocs


I was given this yummy Royce chocolate by my partner (thanks Ping). Ping told me that this is the Rolls Royce of chocs.....! Gawd...I have never tasted such decadance in a chocolate..It just melts the minute it comes into contact with your tongue which you have to experience it yourself to appreciate what I'm trying to explain..!

It came nicely packed and insulated in this padded bag with a small ice-pack as well (and the whole package tied with an exquisite organza ribbon as a touch of class) just to ensure its freshness and to protect it against our harsh weather. The choccies came in small blocks...possibly about 16 of them in the box. The one Ping gave was au lait, I think (milk chocolate)...covered with cocoa dust to the max....! Yum Yum.


I was tempted just to have it all to myself and wallop everything at the office but the brood at home has somehow planted this chip in my brain that I was not supposed to! And just like a remote controlled robot...I brought the divine package home..YES to share!


Yours truly, wifey and the brood whacked everything within seconds, literally. Wifey and I had about three pieces between us and guess who ate the most? Yes Ib and Yusof.......! Despite the bitterness of the cocoa dust, surprisingly the kids loved it...Underneath the bitterness lies the heavenly melt-as-soon-as-it-enters-the-mouth choc...Mmm...., I feel like dashing to Isetan KLCC now and get one box, this time for moi strictly! Nope cant possibly do that..client's coming!

18 December, 2006

Mes Fille

Finally the certificate for Khadijah's first major Francaise exam accredited by the French Ministry of Education was issued...Her exam was in October last year - it's DELF A1 level, the very first step of DELF (Diplome D'Etudes En Langue Francaise). Next exam will be end of this year after completing a certain no of hours of class instructions.
She's so in to it that she wants to enrol for a holiday class (apparently, according to her, as a refresher) which I flatly refused to allow that to happen so that she can enjoy her hols...!

The afterthought of the Bok House

Why is it that we Malaysians do not think ahead (a gross generalization, I know but aiming at a specific section of Malaysians, is my intention)? Take this news report for an example.....!

17 December, 2006

A much deserved time out

I have longed for this time out with wifey a good one month. Prior to wifey's missed abortion August this year with her sixth pregnancy, we used to go out on dates Friday evenings after work. It's just entirely impossible to go from home as Ib, the insecure one, will inevitably prevent such thing from happening....! He doesn't just whine but shakes up the entire neighbourhood with his ear-piercing cry whenever yours truly and wifey exclude the kids from our outings (yes Shilla & Jab, that was him just now before we went out!). But tonight we just walked-off and plugged our ears coz we needed time out desperately. No we are not selfish....; we brought everybody to the pool from 0730 hrs till 1000 hrs, then breakfast with them; spent time with them at home after that; attended a wedding with them thereafter......So there...!




MY CREME BRULEE LECKA LECKA


Wanted to catch Casino Royale but only mid-nite show was available at TGV KLCC (sigh....). Our first stop was La Cucur since wifey had to have her dose of nescafe for the day which she claimed she had the misfortune of not having one since morning (which I think, now, she had one over breakfast......- I have been trying to coax her reduce her daily caffeine intake; without much success, as you can tell). We ended up with two packets of nasi lemak (between us) and her Nescafe considering we decided from home that we would not have dinner coz we pigged out at, yet again, a wedding this afternoon - I had three plateful of nasi minyak and so did wifey (maybe one plate less than I had). No drinks for me as they didn't serve mineral water...! I ended up with Creme Brulee Lecka Lecka ice cream (apparently 99.1% fat free) which station is just diagonally opposite La Cucur...It was a wee bit sweet for me but finished it anyway (How I wish I can have that ice cream from Gelatissimo, which I had in Sydney (near ChinaTown) a couple of years back....).

Ended up at Kinokuniya, our fave place browsing books and mags - how romantic. I was trying to find this book called "Ayat-ayat Cinta" by Habiburrahman El-shirazy (Al-Azhar University graduate from Indonesia) which came highly recommended by a friend. Unfortunately sold out! This may be a first Malay novel which I am going to add to my library collection! Our damage at Kino was only the latest National Geographic (for Khadijah) and Haven (for me as it features Henry Bong's house - owner of Pucuk Rebung, KLCC, which boasts his Malaya antique collection) magazines. I still have tonnes of books on the shelves waiting to be read. Currently reading Bill Bryson's "A Short History of Nearly Everything" and three other books.....


At the end of it, we felt rejuvenated and invigorated to face the trials and tribulations of the rat race for the week ahead!

Don't you just wonder...?

Check this blog of Susan Loone, a former journalist on the Mongolian X File on her murder(Altantuya that is). Interesting and mind-jolting!

It's finally gone


I have always been fascinated by this majestic mansion everytime I drove past it. But....it's gone now.....! So much for the National Heritage Act 2005! It's just too frustrating to write about it.

Yeayy...short hair


Thanks wifey...finally my two little Smurfs (they dont have Smurfs anymore, do they?) have short hair.....Thanks to yours truly's procrastination. It's really not procrastination but the desire to see then both like Brit Indie band members..(like Oasis etc....). Well they dont exactly turn out to be like them....Their hair was all over the place and looked very unkempt until dear wifey could not stand it anymore...Worse still for Ib; he had eczema all over the scalp which almost ended as a bad infection as he was scratching all over his head and bled in the process...(all dad's doing!). A visit to the hairdresser took care of it and they look happier, I must say. But they dont come cheap nowadays for a haircut...It's like RM15/pax on a dry cut...My dad sometimes, whenever my kids are in Muar, takes them for RM3 haircuts....without compromising on the quality of haircut...!
Well, I still have Yusof to bring to the hairdressers next week...before we leave for Langkawi!

15 December, 2006

Nasi Padang lunch for me......


(Top to bottom)The stall is a makeshift one between two buildings (well don't know whether City Hall has approved this shop; but has been there for years) diagonally opposite Allianze on Lebuh Ampang; My lunch today......yum yum.


My limau ais

Decided to have lunch at this Nasi Padang stall/shop near Lebuh Ampang since been thinking of its pegedil with roasted chicken bits. Have not popped by for quite a while.........It was on my way to Mesjid Jame' anyway, for Friday mass prayers.
It was divine....! Had pegedil (potato ball), tempeh (fermented soy beans) goreng (fried), thinly sliced fried potato (like crisps), kuah lemak tempoyak (fermented durian paste) infused with lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves, fresh tempoyak, sauteed brinjal sprinkled with fresh chilli paste and fried egg. The kuah lemak tempoyak was very thick and sinful but delightful...a must try for you out there! Dont forget the pegedil as I can only find this pegedil with roasted chicken bits only at this stall in Kuala Lumpur.
They also serve "sup tulang" here....But decided against having one bowl today; may be during my next visit. Definitely feel energized now!

Altantuya saga continues......

Check this post by Jeff Ooi linking The Age, Australia's article....Mmm....is it finally unfolding? Wallahualam!

Soo...exhausted

I slept about 8.30 pm last night whilst watching the news and waiting for dear wifey to return from her ad-hoc-customer-service job which she has been dumped with the past few days (Everyone in her office, yes not a single soul spared, to call existing pre-paid users to make sure that they are already registered before the 15th Dec deadline imposed by MCMC - Wifey was given abot 1350 names to call)...! I just knocked out and remained on the couch until 6.30 this morning sleeping soundly. Wifey seems to think that I have been under-eating. It might be the case! I have been skipping rice and substitute it with whole grains....(muesli or boiled mixed grains or bread/pasta made of only whole grains). I suppose, wifey is right this time - i need to increase the intake now. I have skipped the gym this morning to re-energize!

Wifey has also decided to join me at the gym every morning but only on two ocassions this week that it materialised..That's the thing about "the instructor" and "the doer" within your brain...You have to shut off the instructor mode and switch to the doer mode..otherwise nothing gets done! Well as for wifey, that's not the case. She cooks, irons, cleans etc every morning...despite having a full time maid in her employ (this is the reason why she only joined me at the gym twice this week) ! What to do...she sets the standard very high....end up doing things on her own. Well, the paramount criteria for us with the maid is to provide "day care" for the kids..The rest somehow is not that important for us....My contribution is to make sure that the clothes get washed everyday! Yup....I dont allow my maid to operate the washing machine!
Khadijah is back from Mak Tok's house...She's like wifey....! She just has to have her own bed to sleep in (one caveat tho.....hotel beds are fine for the both of them). Wifey just cannot sleep soundly if it's not our bed! This is the reason why Khadijah harassed us to pick her up yesterday; but Mak Tok was kind enough to send her back!
In the meantime.....re-energizing today and will be back at the gym with wifey tomorrow!

14 December, 2006

Gobsmacked by Sanders today!


This posting by Sanders really hit me right in the face....What have I added to my personal resume this year? 2006 is just about to come to its close in about 17 days' time...Well for one, I started blogging which I have been wanting to do for the past two years..does that count? I should think so... Oh yes.....I also started eating healthily this year....So there, I have two things to add to mypersonal resume..Yeayy!


Apart from that, no i haven't added anything new to my life. Well, still have half a month to find something to do.....PROVIDED I can make the time for it. Isnt it a bit cliched to say...you dont have time for things ? Fact of the matter is, it's about time management, aint it? It's a matter of making time for it....I dont want to suffer from "excusitis" (learnt about this new disease in a book called "The Magic of Thinking Big" by Schwartz which I read four years back).
So people.....before you start regretting in the following years to come....., it's really not too late for anything! Just get to doing the things what you have been thinking of doing or always been wanting to do....Get to the "ED" mode and not "ING"!!!


13 December, 2006

It's Face Workout mate! No worries!


Check this article out from The Age, Australia.....It's not facial for the metrosexual, apparently, but Face Workout.....Does it make any difference? I dont think so......It's just the lingo innit?
Mmm....why not if it makes one feel good? Naah.....not for me!


disclaimer : picture is the copyright of The Age, Australia

Part 2 of the Celebration


THE EXECUTIVE CHEF
(My auntie Uteh Ros who has been cooking for weddings since god knows when. Inherited the talent from my late grandmother who used to cook even for the Sultan of Johore! Uteh Ros cooked briyani gam for my wedding reception....Gr8 food!).


THE SPACIOUS KITCHEN
(This is exactly behind my parents' house. Don't you just love this....The smell of burning wood...etc....You dont get this in KL anymore).

BEEF BRIYANI SIMMERING..YUM YUM
(mmm........Johore is famous for its Briyani..The beef was sooo tender and a perfect accompaniment to the saffron rice)



TWO POTS OF SAFFRON RICE
(Believe it or not.....there was no rice left at about 5 pm on that day......My aunt cooked about 4 big pots, I think. And according to her one pot can fill up 400-500 tummies).

THE BACK ALLEY - DRINK STATION
(The drink of the day was longan....My cousin-in-law, Ali was in charge of the drink station..Thumbs up to him...no hitches at all!).


YOUNG HELP WASHING DISHES
(I was truly amazed by this lad's enthusiasm...He is possibly about 6 years of age but he did extremely well washing dirty dishes. Even Khadijah isn't too keen washing her own dirty plates at homes...Still under training).


WHERE THE "DINING" PLACE WAS
(This is where the guests had their food-next to Memeng's house....buffet style..(sigh....see my comments earlier Part 1) - it was great fun, though, collecting dirty plates from the table..Yes yours truly managed to help this time. The last occasion I did this was perhaps Man's wedding 14 years ago, in Batu Pahat....).


PELAMIN/DAIS
(Well......nothing much to say about the pelamin).


KAMPUNG DATUK SRI AMAR KOMPANG BOYS
(the Kompang boy on the right is Abg Chik, Memeng's younger brother).


ARRIVAL OF THE BRIDE & GROOM
(After a slight delay, the couple arrived.....The make-up person was not available that day......hence the delay).


"MAKAN BERDAMAI"
(Wifey cooked one of the dishes for the main table...I think it was the sweet and sour fish)



This took place on 2nd December 2006 in Muar....This overdue entry was because of some technical difficulties which I encountered with my pc...and then of course the always not so reliable broadband service which I subscribe to...(sigh).
Arrived in Muar Friday night with wifey, Khadijah, Afiq and Afiqah (nephew and niece)...Upon arrival I had a gastric attack (as a result of popping antibiotic capsules which I took to stop the yellow discharge oozing from my toe nail) and immediately forage for food at my parents' house but to no avail...It was about midnight and without wasting time headed for Parit Sakai, accompanied by Ib who was missing me as he had been in Muar since Tuesday, hoping to devour a bowl of Soto or Mee Bandung. Luck was not on my side as the stall was already closing. Parit Sakai stall is my favourite haunt whenever I am back in Muar, like twice or thrice a year......!

Drove back to Muar town slowly and guess what? The Murtabak Singapore stall next to Mobil petrol kiosk in Parit Perupuk was still open.....Had a RM8 Murtabak Singapore but only managed to finish half of it. It was huge and thick....Lots of minced beef and eggs...Heavenly...! It took care of all the gastric juices and headed home a happy man! Slept soundly.....and woke up about 6 am the same day! Breakfast for the day was Busu Noi's (Memeng's mom) contribution. It was nasi lemak wrapped in banana leaf...and apparently it was 30 sen per packet.....I was like.....Hello...do they actually make money at all? Finished two packets of nasi lemak.....and felt contented after that.....Well after breakfast..was work...work...work.....Prior to work..chatted with the Executive Chef, Uteh Ros at the big kitchen....!


Day three kicked off with a visit to our fave breakfast place in Muar (my late granddad's much-loved hang out place too!), the kopitiam opposite the Electric Board or known as TNB now, with my cousin and her family as well as my sister, Yeop, her hubby and Nabil, my nephew! You have to exerience a true Muar breakfast if you happen to pass by...Just visit any of the kopitiams in Muar (No this is not Uncle Lim's/Kluang Railway Station type of food which is only impressive on the ambience bit and nothing to shout about, gastronomically speaking). It's Mee Bandung, Mee Rebus, Lontong, Nasi Lemak, Satay and all the heavy weights of artery-clooging-dishes which they serve at all the kopitiams in Muar! We had Roti Kaya (the nice fluffy white ones and buns as well) grilled using charcoal and also steamed....as well as mee rebus. T O T A L
B L I S S....The coffee was damn "kick" tooo! I had kopi-o-peng (iced black coffee) to go with my steamed kaya buns.....Am salivating whilst typing this entry...excuse me for the mess...LOL!


The wedding was great but the side activities made it more exciting! Cant wait to be back in Muar for the food.....Must visit Parit Jawa this time for the assam pedas. I once was brought by my uncle, Pak Jak, to Parit Jawa when I came back from England 15 years back and never visited that place since. He and his then wife, Mak Ijah, brought me to this fishermen's village in Parit Jawa about mid-night...They serve assam pedas freshly cooked that time of the day...to cater for all the fishermen who leave for the sea about 1-2 am......AND the assam pedas.....DAMN NICE!

Hey KLites - ur new year present!!!!!

Check this Reuters' report!

Well.....another inflationary contributor for next year......!

Malaysian Gastronomy Gem



Well, check this out! An Ang Moh food blogger who puts any Malaysian to shame.....Very adventurous indeed..... It's so sad, I can say that for myself, how we stick to the norm and routine & not realizing there're loads of interesting fare out there waiting to be discovered and devoured.....Check out the springy banana cake pic in the entry "Smoking Allowed"!

Enjoy this blog which I have put as one of my links (nice pics too!!!!).....I certainly am enjoying it!
NOTE: the blog covers both halal and non-halal food!

disclaimer: the picture is the copyright of the owner of eatingasia.typepad.com

Good ole Dahl!


Dont you just love Roald Dahl......?


My first exposure to him was when I was 17 - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; thanks Zuri for the introduction....(well not too late I guess coz I have friends who, as of today, do not know who Roald Dahl is......!) I still enjoy his works....Reading aloud especially to my kids...Khadijah owns almost a complete set of Dahl. I particularly enjoy Esio Trot!


How very true this poem by Dahl..Imagine if we (Yani and I) had cable tv at home....? I think not having ASTRO at home was, positively, one of the best decisions we made unanimously. Even with 5 channels terrestrially transmitted my kids are already like zombies perched on the sofa day in day out...With the school hols it's even worse!
Well this poems sums it up......Parents out there - don't let your kids end up being dead up in the brain by watching too much tv......Well......still coaxing little by little my kids to move away from the idiot box to the box of knowledge (the book shelf that is.....).


Enjoy this poem by Roald Dahl........



TELEVISION

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let Them near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out. (Last week in someone's place we saw A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry.
'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain Our darling children?
Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you, 'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow: THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ!
They'd READ and READ, AND READ and READ, and then proceed To READ some more.
Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be? Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland, And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and- Just How The Camel Got His Hump, And How the Monkey Lost His Rump, And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rate and Mr. Mole- Oh, books, what books they used to know, Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books, Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you That, in about a week or two Of having nothing else to do, They'll now begin to feel the need Of having something to read.
And once they start -- oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy That fills their hearts.
They'll grow so keen They'll wonder what they'd ever seen In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid Will love you more for what you did.


12 December, 2006

Lokman Aslam of OIAM



This boy (Lokman Aslam) truly has got potential.....His voice is unique and fresh for the Malaysian music industry...But he only made it to the top 7 round which is a very disappointing news for me.... I did not follow closely One In A Million ("OIAM") but stumbled upon his video clip on youtube whilst searching for the song TERBAIK by ELLO which i really..really like. I think Lokman's rendition of this song is very moving....I've had enough of Mawi, Felix and the lot on the airwave....It's time to give talented persons with originality and individuality the spot which they truly deserve; not just some other singers' clones!....Enjoy the video clip and here's the lyrics (which is simple but meaningful).....

Just click on his name above for link to his website which will play the song terbaik once you are connected and you can sample his perfomances throughout OIAM! Enjoy!

TERBAIK-ELLO

Tak kusangka
Kau hadir di hidupku
Kau penuhi semua
Impian hidupku

Sungguh Tuhan
Ku bersyukur padamu
Kau izinkan aku
Untuk mencintainya

chorus:-

Kau terbaik
Yang pernah kumiliki
Jangan kau
Pergi dariku
Namun bila
Harus berpisah
Ku ingin kau tahu
Kaulah yang terbaik

Quick Hi!

It's been quite a while since I last posted on my blog.....(sigh). Firstly, my pc at home crashed.....luckily it wasnt bcoz of any bug. It just needed a clean up....too much dirt accumulated, apparently! Then there was the streamyx bungle up just when the pc was delivered to my house.....darn it! It should be up within these few days.
A lot of things happened thsese past two weeks or so...The ones which must be mentioned now are Memeng's wedding in Muar and the passing on of my senior partner cum mentor (so...sad...).
I will try to post in greater details once my broadband connection at home is up and running. Till then....Gotta go back reading dox.

01 December, 2006

An emotional roller coaster ride it was........




Just came back from GSC Mid Valley......Feeling a bit knackered but have to immortalise my thots before my memory fails me due to the inevitable ageing process...LOL!

Where should I begin? (sing to the tune of "Love Story" while you are at it! - very witty huh! LOL - "Love Story"...."Cinta", get it?)

I like the opening of the movie where it's narrated sthg to the effect - in life , in our pursuit of success, we fail to differentiate what's urgent and what's important. We tend to attend to the urgent and fail miserably in attending to the ones we love or was it.... fail to acknowledge the existence of "L O V E".....How very true...!

The camera shots, I must say are totally distinct and have no similitude at all with those of other Malay movies which I normally cursorily watch in between entertaining guests, with a lot of "please -dont-insult-my-intelligence" comments, over the hari raya holidays. Kudos to the creative brains behind the movie! Some of the scenes/shots remind me of "Nescafe" advert shots which indeed are pleasing to the sensories.
I also like how the "runut bunyi" (this is a new phrase I learnt which means "soundtrack") is interlaced ingeniously throughout the movie which creates and sets the mood of the audience - e.g how the chorus of the song "Cinta" (sung by Misha & Jac) was cleverly played in one of the scenes - and the song "Perpisahan" too, was interposed quite nicely! It really brought out the emotions in the audience - I can say that for myself.

The plot - 5 love stories not inter-connected but the script writer has successfully managed to weave the main characters to gel nicely (quite a feat for somebody who has not written for a feature length film before, if I'm not mistaken). The one thing which I like most about this movie is that there is no room for boredom to creep on you - it's very fast moving.Get ready to go on an emotional coaster ride.....! I noticed that wifey was sobbing and laughing almost simultaneously during some of the scenes. I do not want to attempt to give you a synopsis of the movie so that you can have a fresh outlook when you watch it but i dare say that you'll be able to identify with at least one of the characters or possibly, the love stories.

The acting I must say is not too dramatic or over the top (OTT)- almost "selamba" (understated?) and believable; you can relate to it, in other words.The only OTT scene must probably be when Azlan (Eizlan Yusof) took Azura (Fasha Sandha) on their first date.....but not too OTT if you compare this scene with other malay movies; after all Azlan is damn rich in the movie....he can afford it!

Watch out for a cameo appearance by the director,which i totally missed (only realised this when the credits were rolled at the end of movie).

The crowd today was mono-ethnic.....I was hoping with all the hype for the past 2 months or so and since the underlying theme is universal, it should appeal to all....
Oh ya.....Khadijah enjoyed herself watching the movie....a bit of explanation to do about teenage love though! I must share this with you....while on the walkalator down to the car park, there was this mushy teenage couple doing things which they should not be doing....and I cautioned (this is a very mild word) Khadijah (it was a warning, rather) if ever i caught her or come to know that she was like that i would chop off her arms and you know what she said? With a smug face - "I will not have a boyfriend, dad!" Yah, right!

All in all, i highly recommend to watch this and give the film 4 out of 5 stars (benchmarking it with other Malay movies, that is!). Wifey and I are scheduled to watch this again on 9th December, i think, to accompany some friends who are currently away in Cape Town (the plan was that we should wait for them to come back, but heck the temptation was too hard for us to handle.....sorry Bad!)
p/s Nina.....go watch it!

Tower Records - you lost one sale!




Whilst waiting for the movie (CINTA) to start I loitered aimlessly on the 3rd floor of Mid Valley, going in and out of some sports related shops (didnt buy anything coz the sale starts tomorrow) whilst wifey and Khadijah were on a book-hunting mission at MPH (they actually bought about 5 books - 2 for Khadijah, 2 for Ib and 1 for Umar and none for me......sigh!). I discovered this music shop, Rock Corner, after my feet almost gave up on me, to my joy! The minute I entered the shop, I saw the Original Sound Track CD of the movie I was about to watch (CINTA). Actually, I called Tower Records yesterday to inquire whether it was already out but the sales assistant told me that it would be quite a while before the CD would be out (i suspect that that sales person was just too lazy to check - this is the level of customer service in Malaysia, if you have not noticed!).

Overall, the soundtrack carries two new songs for the movie while one is a cover version by VE for the movie specifically. The rest are nice songs....I give it 4 out of 5. Khadijah likes "Pantun" by Zainal Abidin and she's taken back her words that Perpisahan is not nice.... The last track on the CD is quite touching as it is excerpt of dialogue between Alisa and her Dad.

Well Tower Records, with one sale lost today, this might have not reduced your profit margin dramatically but think of other opportunities lost if you keep hiring staff with indifferent attitude!

on my mind certainly constantly

on my mind certainly constantly