Ayer Mata di Kuala Lumpur

Yesterday was a tiring day; flashing (most of the times, fake) smiles all day long, menjadi penyambut tetamu for few hours [in high heels!] dan menjadi impromptu pengapit at my cousin’s wedding. Adehla letih. Anyways, congrats to another newlyweds, Bon and Zimah. Daud and I will be at your Subang reception next week, insyaAllah.

P. Ramlee The Musical! Wow. I’m in no position to write a review but I must say that I really enjoyed the show and the props were amazing. Seats kami di hadapan sekali maka segalanya begitu jelas! Thanks again, dear Su for (80% of) the ticket (price).

(L) Young P. Ramlee played by a very talented young actor and Young Azizah played by (MyStarz LG talent) Rachel. Cuteness.

(R) Dato’ Siti Nurhaliza [as Azizah], albeit appearing for only (about) 15 minutes, sang breathtakingly.


(L) Picture - P. Ramlee in the (very believable) train, on his way from Penang to Singapore. Sean Ghazi, although lacking the charm and persona of the legend himself, showed why he is the Sean Ghazi dengan lontaran mantap vokalnya (as both penyanyi dan pelakon).

(R) Oh I so adore Atilia as Junaidah! Suara yang sangat sangat merdu dan lakonan yang berjaya menerbitkan emosiku. I like lah.


(L) Melissa Saila as Norizan. Wow. Need I say more? Sememangnya sungguh hebat dan meruntun emosi.

(R) Liza Hanim as Saloma was believable dan suaranya, waduh waduh, suaranya was flawlessly beautiful.


But I think the stealer of the show was the extras. They were all very, very committed, walau sekecil manapun watak. All in all, it was in my humble, unlearned opinion, a very, very commendable tribute to the legend :)

Pictures are from here. Much thanks.

Wow. So much for being ‘in no position to write a review’, eh? Ngeee. A long Monday tomorrow; with few Court attendances and meetings :(

Filem Kita, Wajah Kita?

Dialog dalam siri baru Graduan (9 malam, Astro Ria) yang gua tengok 2 minit secara tidak sengaja ketika waktu iklan Jelatang bikin gua berang. Watak Diana Rafar mengamuk kepada watak Anding kerana kononnya watak Anding sebarkan yang watak Diana tidur dengan Bani, “Eh ko ni kan, mulut ko ni, macam mulut perempuan, tau!” Apakah?! Bad generalization mengenai perempuan oleh perempuan? Syabas!


This later reminds me of beberapa dialog drama/filem Melayu yang malar segar dalam minda gua dan Far, iaitu seperti:

“Tembak je dia, ayah” – Dialog Faizal Hussein di dalam filem Sembilu atau drama Sembilu Kasih. Tidak pasti. Seperti sama dan tak ada anjakan paradigma. Tapi dialog ini, is a classic, kerana dilontar oleh Faizal Husein yang merupakan seorang pelakon yang baik (sebenarnya).

“Tapi I baru je lepas makan udang” – Oleh Ogy Ahmad Daud dalam (salah satu) filem melayu kegemaranku, Ali Setan. Sering digunapakai semula di setiap keraian yang menyajikan udang.

“… lah, Syaiton” (sila tambah perkataan sendiri di hadapan) – Di dalam filem P. Ramlee. Sering digunapakai semula dalam keadaan geram.

“Tapi, Fendi…” bagi lelaki dan “Tapi, Zetty…” bagi perempuan. Dialog ini adalah cue bagi pelakon lagi satu untuk jump into the conversation dengan laju dan menyampuk/menepis. Tapi senario di kalangan pelakon amatur/tidak berbakat, akan ada pause 20 saat yang menjadikan dialog itu sangat dibuat-buat. Bak kata Bapak gua, “Memang pandai berlakon. Nampak sangat berlakon”.


Banyak lagi dialog drama/filem Melayu yang ingin kukongsi tapi di lain harilah ya. Ya, gua tonton drama/filem Melayu (yang terpilih). Karya Rashid Sibir, arahan Hitler Zami, garapan Shuhaimi Baba, Afdlin dan Yasmin adalah contoh penerbitan yang gua cuba sokong.

Sembilu Kasih and its lots, gua tonton bila terpaksa (baca: tak tahu nak buat apa/tiada perkara lain di TV) atau ketika gua in need of some good laugh (baca: gelakkan orang) Terkini, gua ingin menonton 1957: Hati Malaya!

Penulisan hari ini adalah in support of local production. Woot!


Updated: Read our Angkasawan's post-space entry here. Ain't he inspiring?

"May your morning be a beautiful one, may the sun shine on your soldiers’ armour, for in the afternoon, I will defeat you"

Saya merasa sedih kerana tunang saya tidak dapat pulang pada hujung minggu ini.

Saya merasa benci kerana saya telah menyebabkan diri saya terpaksa mengikuti siri Jelatang, sepertimana saya terpaksa mengikuti siri Duranni dahulu.

Saya mendengar lagu Mengenangmu oleh Kerispatih berulang-ulang kali pagi ini. Sungguh sayu lagi menyayukan.

Saya merasa rindu akan sahabat-sahabat baik saya.

Walaubagaimanapun, saya sebenarnya, anda faham-fahamlah, hal wanita.

*** Jika anda ingin membaca suatu artikel yang baik, sinikal dan menarik, sila klik di sini untuk 'Thank You, President Bush' oleh Paulo Coelho.

I've sunk out at sea, crashed my car, gone insane
And it felt so good I wanna do it again

It was Sweetheart's birthday yesterday. Happy birthday with lots and lots of love! Hope you like the bouquet of red roses I sent you, 'Mat Bunga'! Teehee! Happy birthday juga to other October babies I adore; Yunik dearie and my dear 'sister', Zuriani. Allah selamatkan kalian!

Sangat banyak to update but too lazy to write semua. Too lazy to work. Too lazy to read. Too lazy lah to do anything of substance. Ngeee. Can't wait to watch P. Ramlee The Musical this Friday with Kano & Su & some others. On the same day, ada jamuan raya di Firm. Woohoo can't wait for Sweetheart to be back in KL (again) this weekend for our buddies' wedding (Bon and Zimah!) Can't wait to meet other ex-classmates there. Should be fun!

Updated at 11 a.m: The Boss just came in and congratulated me. Apparently, we just won a case. A very tough one tau! It is the Boss’ client but I helped with the research and prepared the affidavits, submissions etc. Alhamdulillah.


Friends, I'm on board! Curious to find out what the hype is all about, I signed myself up and now I'm hooked. Add me up if you know me, ya!

Suasana di Hari Raya


Berlalulah sudah Ramadhan sebulan berpuasa
Tiba Syawal kita rayakan dengan rasa gembira

Anak muda di rantauan semuanya pulang ke desa
Ibu dan ayah keriangan bersyukur tak terkira

Bertukar senyuman dan salam ziarah-menziarahi
Tutur dan kata yang sopan saling memaafi

Suasana hari raya walau di mana pun jua
Memberikan ketenangan dan mententeramkan jiwa

Kuih dan muih beranika macam
Makanlah jangan hanya dipandang
Ketupat rendang sila nikmati kawan
Penat memasak malam ke pagi
Wajik dan dodol jangan lupakan
Peninggalan nenek zaman berzaman

Asyik bersembang pakcik dan makcik
Hai duit raya lupa nak diberi

Berlalulah sudah Ramadhan sebulan berpuasa
Tiba Syawal kita rayakan dengan rasa gembira

Anak muda di rantauan semuanya pulang ke desa
Ibu dan ayah keriangan bersyukur tak terkira

She's waiting for the right kind of pilot to come
"I would fly to the moon and back if you'll be my baby"

Alhamdulillah. The Firm is oddly generous this year, giving us generous amount of Duit Raya. When we first got the e-mail, I asked the others, “Biar betul?! Is this a spam?!” but after seeing the figure in my bank account this morning, alhamdulillah, bersyukur dan berterima kasih sahajalah.

Raya is approaching!

(1) New handbag & sandal to match = Checked
(2) Baju raya (sponsored by Bapaku – he insisted, ok? Ngeee) = Checked
(3) Diamond earring for Ibu dearest = Checked
(4) Linen shirt for Bapak dearest = Checked
(5) Fat ang pow for Little Bro & MakTok = Checked
(6) Duit raya for adik2 sepupu, anak2 sedara, kanak2 lain = Checked

To do: Kuih & kek raya - Ibu and I plan to do only 2 types of kuih tahun ini, i.e. cornflakes and my signature tart nenas (chewah). Yang lain, tunjuk.


Oh and Dr. Sheikh is leaving for the space tonight! Woohoo! Aku teramat mengkagumi para cerdik sains simply because aku lingkup sains. Ngeee. How did I survive a science stream boarding school, you ask? Hahaha. By getting enough As for other subjects tanpa mempedulikan Biologi, Kimia serta Fizik. Ngeee. Dan angkasawan berdua itu, my my, sangatlah mengkagumkan. “I promise to make Malaysia proud. That's a promise I plan to keep!” All the best, Dr. Sheikh Muszaphar. May Allah be with you all the way.


Owh. But no, lingkup sains is not the (main) reason why I chose to read the law. Teehee. Brothers and sisters, Happy Eid 1428! Maaf zahir & batin!

Apakah yang dikejar dalam hidupmu?

So I’ve talked to the Boss, and man, was she shocked. Two days after, the Firm made a counter offer I can’t resist; renewal of contract with a raise. Alhamdulillah. And after much contemplation dan pengaduan kepadaNya, against almost all suggestions/opinions/advises, I decided to accept the Firm’s offer and decline the Company’s. Maybe I’ll regret this decision, maybe I won’t. If I don’t, alhamdulillah. But if I do, please don’t tell me ‘I told you so’; just be there for me and watch me ‘ate it up and spit it out’. Ngeee.


On another note. Everybody loves Upin dan Ipin! Zura mentioned about it in her blog and Yunik told me some of the episodes are available on YouTube. Maka disebabkan gua hanya telah menonton the 1st episode on TV9, I searched them on YouTube and there they are, the adorable Upin and Ipin! Watch the 1st episode, Esok Puasa here. Watch my favourite episode, Dugaan here. Watch the 3rd episode, Nikmat here. Watch the 4th episode, Tarawikh here. Have a good weekend, y'all!

Updated on Monday the 8th:
Another potential Employer called and offered an interview, to which I safely replied, “Can I call you back in a moment?” simply because I did not know how to directly say “No, thank you”. Now that I’ve accepted the Firm’s offer, I know I should have withdrawn all the applications I sent last month via JobStreet, but I just can’t get myself to do so. Selfish, I know. Ngeee.

To withdraw or not to withdraw. You know I already know the answer.

Are you desperate to find something more?

"People do not think very much about death. They spend their lives worrying about absurdities; they put things off, and fail to notice important moments. They don’t take risks, because they think it’s dangerous. They complain a lot, but are afraid to take action. They want everything to change, but they themselves refuse to change."
~ Living Your Own Legend in Like the Flowing River by Paulo Coelho.

I complain a lot. I want things to change. Yet, I fail to take any risks and am so at ease in this comfort zone of mine. And so I sent an application, went to the interview, and much to my surprise, got the job. The basic pay they offered me is a few hundreds more than what I’m currently getting, it is a whole new ball game which is very good for my career advancement, it is a very different, diverse working circle which is good for my self improvement, and the HQ is in one of my favourite places in the world, Shah Alam.

And yet, contrary to the overwhelming reasons for me to say YES, my heart is saying NO. Bagaimana? Serabut rasanya. Huhu. Solution: Talk to the (current) Boss and ask her about my position in the firm [read: my soon-to-end contract and possibility of a (slight) raise]. Sukarnya.

Aah decision decision decision. Serabut serabut. Until I work up my courage and go see the Boss [Ngeee! Gentar!] after my meeting and Court today [A busy day ahead! Sigh!], aku mahu jawab a TAG yang mana di-TAG oleh Ardy, on FOODS! Glorious foods!

NAME 5 FAVOURITE FOODS THAT YOU FEEL LIKE HAVING NOW:
1. Ibu’s Kuih Lopes;
2. Amarin's Tom Yam & Ayam Pandan;
3. Lala Goreng Cili with Kacang Botol at our lala heaven, Hartamas Square;
4. Teh ais Restoran Soto Shah Alam, Seksyen 8 Shah Alam;
5. Mee Hoon Soto Restoran Soto Shah Alam, Seksyen 8 Shah Alam.

NAME 5 FOODS YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE FOR BREAKFAST:
1. Nasi Lemak Restoran Gembira, Seksyen 3 Shah Alam;
2. Mee Hoon Soto Restoran Soto Shah Alam, Seksyen 8 Shah Alam;
3. My own version of Nasi goreng cili padi with telur mata kerbau;
4. McDonald’s McEgg;
5. Roti Canai/Bom Restoran Gembira, Seksyen 3 Shah Alam.

NAME 5 FOODS YOU WOULD MOST LIKELY BUY FOR BERBUKA TODAY:
1. Anything Ibu will make (which would undoubtedly be super sedap);
2. The yummy kek coklat buah Ibu's friend got us;
3. Ayam Golek Bukit Sentosa;
4. Ibu's teh tarik;
5. Roti canai Restoran Jenal Bukit Sentosa (kuah banjir). Ngee.

Now I'm passing the Food Tag baton to:
1. Cik Yunik
2. Cik Tumirah
3. Cik Nijoh
4. Encik Kimi
5. Encik Chot

Bintang-bintang di malam cerah beri cahaya
Tak menghalang menyinari segala

Negative energy is all around me, be it in the form of irritating colleagues yang kacau aku sedangkan aku tak kacau mereka, impatient drivers yang hobinya menggunakan hon sesuka hati, demanding portfolios/clients, etc.

But I vow to myself to not let these negative energy get to me. They undoubtedly kadangkala menggangguku, but the existence of positive energy in many forms are enough to sustain the optimist in me, e.g.:

(a) Cheerful phone calls from the Sweetheart, cheering me up;

(b) A Judge who always seems to be in good spirit, he exudes charm and optimism. I wonder how he remains that positive, being in his profession;

(c) Watching Ari and Vince and Co on Entourage;

(d) (Of course), planning our wedding. Ngeee;

(e) Bertemu Ibu setiap kali pulang dari kerja, berbual-bual, menonton, berbuka. Spending time with my mom is my favorite thing to do;

(f) Pulang menziarah MakTok, di mana kesemua anak-anak dan almost kesemua cucu-cucu MakTok turut pulang, berbuka bersama, bersolat jemaah bersama, berterawikh bersama, dan seterusnya supper dan sahur bersama. Perasaan yang indah sekali;

(g) And (of course), hanging out with my girlfriends!

(A) First iftar di luar was at Amarin Heavenly Thai, where (the ever generous) Su belanja-ed us, as it was Kano’s birthday.

Kanoku who turned 26!

(B) On Saturday, my Srikandi959 sisters and I berbuka di Restoran Tupai-Tupai and had a great time!

[Picture courtesy of YATT] Bilangan yang hadir kurang dari previous year tetapi kemeriahannya tetap sama.

Widad dan Ayuni mengkespresikan kasih sayang terhadapku. Ngeee!

[Picture courtesy of YATT] Untuk pulang, seperti ber-jungle trekking.


(C) The highlight of the week was iftar with my beloved girls at one of my favourite restaurants, Seoul Bulgogi.
A wonderful time indeed :)

My girls (sorry Naem muka tak full), missing dearest Far.

Remember that happiness is a way of travel, not a destination

The Journey: Part 2
The-sister-I-never-had, Kano and I have been planning our (respective) weddings together because (1) our weddings are scheduled to be berdekatan; and (2) our fiancés are both far, far away. Heh. I tell you, planning your wedding with another good friend is so much fun lah. We do our surveys together and talk about it almost everyday. Hahaha. Of course it would be lovely to make the preparation with your fiancé as your assistant (face it, wedding preparations are for the brides, the grooms hanyalah pembantu, ngee), tapi jika tak boleh, planning it with someone with (almost) the same taste/desire/budget/passion is the next best thing.

An update: Last Friday, Kano and I went berbuka puasa at Pelita Nasi Kandar (oh so yummy) and later met with another photographer, from the NeurMaya team and we fell in love with their job and the packages they offered, so much that Kano has already placed a deposit as her booking confirmation. But yours truly is still undecided (what else is new?!) Stay tune!