Thank you, (Allahyarham) Tunku!
Happy 50th birthday, beloved Malaysia!

"Whereas, in the course of human history, no nation, in order to salvage itself, will ever remain static for a long time. It will be compelled to decide on one of two directions, to go forward or to go backward" ~ Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj.

So I want to take this time out
to apologize for things that I’ve done,
Things that haven’t occurred yet,
And things that they don’t want to take responsibility for.

In the spirit of Shaaban! Inspired by Akon's Sorry, Blame It On Me and Dr. A’id Al-Qarni, I’d like to share an excerpt from the book ‘You Can Be The Happiest Woman In The World: A Treasure Chest of Reminders’ by Dr. A’id:

Think of the world as a whole;
Of the hospitals filled with patients who have been stricken with disease and calamity for many years. And the prisons in which thousands of people are held behind bars, their lives and pleasures ruined. And the asylums and hospitals which accommodate people who have lost their minds and have become insane. Are there not poor people living in tattered tents and hovels, who cannot find a bite to eat? Are there not women who have been stricken with calamities that took away all their children in a single accident? Or women who have lost their sight or hearing, or whose arms or legs have been amputated, or who have lost their minds, or who have been stricken with chronic diseases such as cancer and the like? But you are sound in body and in good health, living a life of tranquility, security and contentment. So give thanks to Allah, the Exalted, All-Merciful for His blessings.

Like I said before, you gotta take your muse wherever you can find them.


In the spirit of MERDEKA! You know lah kan? I memang just have to write about our national team beating Myanmar by 3-1. Woohoo! Kudos, Malaysia! Rugilah if you are among the few yang memilih untuk tidak menonton semalam. The barisan pemain! Not only they (mostly) looked good, they played well too! I now have another name added to my Potential Name For Future Son list - ZAQUAN. Ngeee. Anyways, I think Christopher Raj says it best in his article, Merdeka High in the NST today:

Last night, Malaysia, powered mostly by Under-23 players and with Safee in inspirational form, took their time settling down but once they did, they took the fight to Myanmar. The Malaysian game had a touch of aggression in it and it served them well as Myanmar were equally robust. [Read the rest of the article in NST]

"You know you are on the road to success if you would do your job,
and not be paid for it" ~ Oprah Winfrey

I have not stopped working since I got back from the Court this morning. Phew lega rasanya dapat bernafas dan berlibur seketika. Ekeleh dah jam enam dah pun. The sound of cards punching out bertubi-tubi kedengaran.

Menyampah! It does not help tau, that almost everyone I love are doing fun stuffs while I’m slaving myself seolah-olah gaji gua RM5000. Apahal? Wah wah, siapa?! Siapakah mereka itu?

(a) My mom! Who will be watching a paid-for theater at the Istana Budaya tonight with her friends;

(b) My fiance! Who is attending an AG’s Chambers conference in Awana Kijal, Terengganu. Sangatlah leisure in paradise;

(c) My Kindred Spirit, Far! Who dengan bahagianya is honey-mooning di heaven on earth (tempat dirahsiakan demi menjaga privasi honeymooners);

(d) My best friend, Ayin! Who is completing her marathon of Gilmore Girls.


Huwaaa! Okay okay. Whine all I want but the truth is, I like what I do! I do! Mind-boggling submissions. Demanding clients. Court attendances. Etcetera etcetera. I like lah! But I’d like to be paid like I deserve. Mengerti?

Here's to love and laughter and happy ever after!

Phew what a tiring start to my Monday! The journey from tol Jalan Duta to the office which usually take 10-15 mins took 2 1/2 hours today. Imagine how tired otak gua kini before even mula bekerja! Huhu. Anyways, back to the initial purpose of the entry. My Saturday was a FUN DAY filled with:

One very beautiful, very happy bride:

One very, very happy groom:

Gadis-gadis yang kukasihi:

And Sweetheart and friends:

Selingan - Oh I just love this shot; of Aniz touching up Far’s make up selepas tangisan dirembeskan apabila keluarganya berangkat pulang:

Later on, me and some others went to Elham’s where we were greeted with good foods and wonderful hospitality. Kami kemudiannya dibawa melawat-lawat Banda Hilir and the Jonker’s Street yang tersangat femes itu. Sayangnya my camera battery went flat there. But it was so much fun!

Oklah, sempatlah took some pictures.
Sweetheart snapping picture with his phone:



Congratulations again to the newlyweds!

Take my hand.
Take my whole life too.
For I can’t help falling in love with you.

Tunjukkan aku jalan lurusMu
Terangiku dalam setiap langkah hidupku

Oh sinful temptation. Now that I’ve finally made a vow to myself not to make any unnecessary purchases to save up for our wedding, the ELLE bag I told you about, the one I’ve been wanting all along, is finally on the rack at SOGO, shining and calling out my name. Help me!!!

I’ve always liked this nasyid but until today, I never knew that it is by Ungu. Ia menenangkan dan mengingatkan. Hence in the spirit of Jumaat, penghulu segala hari, I'd like to share with you SurgaMu by Ungu:

Berkata Mu'az bahawasanya Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. telah bersabda: Allah telah berfirman: "Orang-orang yang berkasih sayang kerana keagungan-Ku, akan memperoleh mimbar-mimbar dari cahaya, yang sangat dicita-citakan oleh para nabi dan ahli syahid."

I am currently typing this at home, on my half-day medical leave. I couldn’t sleep despite the throbbing headache and decided to blog.

Far’s wedding went well but I went home with unwelcome souvenir; something-need-not-be-mentioned-here and a fever. The house we stayed in was a vacant, fully-furnished house, so naturally, the house mites/ dust/ germs decided to get friendly with yours truly, hence the fever.

Some friends have been asking for the pictures from the wedding; my apology for lack of picture quantity/quality – basically because I was the pengapit but mostly because I was not feeling well due to the mentioned (and unmentioned) reason above. Anyways, congrats to Far and her hubby, Asril. Here’s wishing the newlyweds a lifetime of happiness. Ameen!

The lovely bride in the lovely white dress
with the lovely bouquet of roses.

The gang (without Nijoh who couldn’t make it) before the Aqad ceremony. Sengih gang we are indeed. And spending time with them, well, is always always so much fun.

The very, very sweet hantaran from Far to her hubby.

There goes, one down, 8 to go! And Jaja dearie is next!

No matter how far you are I'm near
It makes no difference who you are
I am your angel

“Adik-beradik ke?” The question we got asked by many people, many times, of which our answer would always be, “Yes, but not biologically”.

My non-biological sister, my best friend, my inseparable other half, my kindred spirit, Farah Hanani, is getting married tomorrow to a very lucky man and now I feel like a father letting go of his beloved daughter; proud, sad and anxious, but mostly very happy.

My wish for them is that Allah will always bless their union with rahmah, mawaddah and everlasting growing love, so that years from now, they may look back on their wedding day as the day they loved each other the least.

Kindy dear, this love of mine is here to stay! Always always.

If birds flying south is a sign of changes
At least you can predict this every year

Do you know the show Miami Ink?
I like it! I think tattoo is a freaking awesome art and the fact that the featured tattoo artists are mainly droolsome – now that is a bonus.

Do you know the 30 minutes comedy Seinfeld?
I sometimes think Jerry Seinfeld is cute. That cheeky smile of his, seperti akan explode dari mulutnya witty sarcasm setiap kali dia tersenyum.

Do you know Liz Lemon from another 30 minutes comedy, 30 Rocks?
She rocks - She is smart. She is sarcastic and takes no crap from no one. And she is wacky and cute and weird. As the-guy-in-the-wacky-hat put it, she “makes smart looks sexy”.

Did you know that I have had 3 meals today?
First it was nasi goreng for breakfast at home, then Mi Sup with Naem at 11.30 and the latest was lunch at Krung Thep, courtesy of the bosses for the general litigation team. I am officially bloated.

Did you know that I will be on leave tomorrow?
Oh yeah. On my leave application, the reason was worded as: ‘Personal Matter’ which should actually be read as: "Tak kuasa nak layan kerja". Heh.

Did you know that Barbie's measurements if she were life size is 39-23-33?
Pergh. The scarier thing about that - it is humanly possible to achieve. Ngee.


Inspired by Yunik's blog: Rasa bersalah selepas menulis entri sia-sia ini selepas membaca entri Yunik. Takziah kepada keluarga mangsa-mangsa yang terlibat dalam pusara di lebuh raya tersebut. Al-Fatihah.

The good times hide, so will I
Watch the world roll by from my hole
I'm gonna let the bad times roll

You gotta take your muse wherever you can find them. Be it:

By planning your wedding; or

By going to the International Jewellery Fair held in Mandarin Oriental and making some essential purchases; or

By spending time doing fun fun fun stuffs with your sweetheart; or

By watching High School Musical with your mom (who liked the movie very much she cheered for Wild Cats when they scored their victory point) and wondering that whether you’d be somewhat close to being a pedophile if you think Zac Efron is cute; or

By YM-ing with Kano about wedding preparations; or

By YM-ing with Yunik about Dilbert and Summer Love and everything fun; or

By eating this and that, here and there without feeling guilty; or

By watching the hot hot hot Timothy Olyphant pairing up with Jennifer Garner in the movie Catch and Release and thinking that if you were Ben Affleck, you’d be damned because Timothy is simply yummy.

Mr. 'Yummy' Timothy. Ngeee.

The past two weekends were wonderful. And then comes Mondays. The thing is, I don’t want to feel like I have to go to work and do my work. I want to want to. That’s what's lacking here. Too much to ask for?

So where is the passion when you need it the most?

Sometimes I impress myself.
For that, allow me to pat myself on the back.
Pat pat pat. There.

Anyways:

Thanks, Mr. Scott Adams for your genius creation. I adore Dilbert.
Great minds (and/or underpaid people) sure think alike.

I want to write about the harsh, bias and unseemly comment made by NS*T against the AG's Chambers in today's NS*T, but let me save that for later; my mind is over-crowded with a lot of unfinished businesses. Later, peeps!


*A quick update at 6 p.m:

Alice is the only female engineer in Dilbert's department. She's habitually overworked. Her cardiovascular system is basically coffee. She has a quick temper when confronted with the idiocy of her co-workers. She does not handle criticism well.


Wow. How strange. Description of Alice reminds me of me *sigh*

“I must obey the inscrutable exhortations of my soul”
~ Calvin, Calvin & Hobbes

Indeed, Mr. Bill Watterson.

Sometimes, last-minute panic is just the right sort of inspiration I need.
Semi-inspired, I currently am.
Just for the sake of clearing the work loads off my desk.
And off my crowded mind.

I wish you readers a less crowded mind and a more inspired soul.

There's gotta be more to life
Than chasing down every temporary high to satisfy me

Harper’s Bazaar (July 2004): What do you like most about yourself?

Shu Qi: My personality. Look at my eyes and eyebrows, aren’t they far apart? People tell me that that indicates an easy going trait. It’s true. I am simple. The expiry date for any of my unpleasant memories is less than a day. Why abuse myself? Happiness is more important.

However inspiring the ever adorable Shu Qi may be, lately, I am so uninspired even Oprah cannot do anything about it.

But after reading half through Khaled Hosseini's latest gem, A Thousand Splendid Suns which Sweetheart bought for me, I was hit by a rush of remorse and kesyukuran. I call it the Khaled Hosseini's effect, seperti kesan buku sebelumnya jua. Syukur.

Thankful for not being forced into marriage with just anyone. Thankful to my parents for letting me be anything my heart desires. Thankful to the country for letting Muslim women soar as high as anyone else. Thankful for good education. Thankful for pretty roof covering me from rain and shine. Thankful for never ending supply of clean water. But mostly, thankful for not having the fear of being bombed as I'm typing this. I'm thankful for life.


But still. Can I be thankful and/but uninspired? Ngeee.

“Is that why you help people? The weird feeling in your stomach?”
~ Randy to Earl, in My Name is Earl.

Am not in the mood to write. Heck, am not in the mood for anything but I need to do something to increase my chirpiness level, so here goes, will rant and share some trivial lagha facts yang berlegar2 dalam sistemku with you:

(1) You know you’re really approaching the time of the month when you cry watching Avril’s When You’re Gone music video.

(2) I think whoever came up with the idea for My Name Is Earl is a genius. Marilah click here to play the Karma Quiz.

(3) I finally have the answer to the question: “Which reality tv show are you most likely to be part of?” It is The Apprentice: Martha Stewart. The show is so much fun! But I think Martha is scary. That uptight look on her! Coo coo!

(4) I think Ja Rule has the sexiest voice. Mark Sloan too.

(5) And Shonda Rhimes, she is an absolute genius. Do you know that she was named as one of the Time 100 people who help shape the world?!


And in the spirit of Jumaat penghulu segala hari, am sharing something the Boss’ PA forwarded to me yesterday. Click here and marilah memperbaiki mutu solat! Have a blessed Friday and a good weekend, semua!

"When the well is dry, we learn the worth of water"
~ Benjamin Franklin

Someone just told me the weirdest thing. I was refilling my bottle with some plain water when the tea lady asked me:

TL: AM, betul ke kalau minum banyak air kosong boleh gemuk?
AM: Apa? Siapa cakap? Taklah. Kalau air manis, possible lah.
TL: Budak2 clerk ni haa. Tak minum air langsung. Katanya boleh buncit.
AM: Air kosong?! Air kosong lah bagus. Tak betullah Kak. Bahaya sungguh tak minum air kosong.

Jangan minum air kosong to prevent bloated tummy? That is like the weirdest diet formula I’ve ever heard. Because as far as I know, plain water is good. Unless you’re hypothermic lah kan. So I did some googling, kot-kotlah betul tanggapan mereka. And here’s something I found yang cukup untuk menyanggah pendapat mereka:

Why should you drink water?

(a) It is an essential nutrient and makes up > 60% of adult body weight
(b) It is needed for all body functions, such as nutrient digestion, absorption, transport, and metabolism
(c) It aids in body-temperature maintenance
(d) It is vital to electrolyte balance
(e) Water contains no calories or fat
(f) May help with weight loss by acting as a natural appetite suppressant
(g) Prevents complications from dehydration, such as headache or fatigue
(h) May benefit people with respiratory diseases by thinning mucous secretions that worsen asthma
(i) May help people who experience recurrent urinary tract infections by increasing their urine flow
(j) May help reduce cancer risk of the colon, kidneys, bladder.

To have a read on the research done by University of Michigan, click here. Alahaai kakak-kakak, minumla plain water. Buncit tu sebab lain tu.