I was up early on boxing day. Yeah! What else if not for shopping that is. While waiting for B to finish showering, I decided to call all my SILs (I have 4 of them) and asked what they'd like. I can be thoughtful you know! One wanted a working Clarks shoes. One was still in Egypt with bro. One wanted a crystal cake stand with a cover and one I couldn't get hold of. Instead it was my eldest brother who answered.
"Yes Nora. What's up?"
"Everything's good. What about you and K. N?
"We're good. I'm very busy now. Did you just call to chit chat?"
"Sort of. Today's Boxing Day and I'm going to shop crazy. Nak pesan apa2?"
"That's okay. Anyway pound is too expensive. I have to cut short la. I'm stormed with news. An earthquake just happened in Sumatra and it caused a tsunami 10m high. Coastal areas of S.E.A are badly affected. I'm sending all my reporters out to scoop news. Penang was badly hit. As of now dah 8 org mati"
"MasyaAllah! That's really bad!!"
"Yupp!!! So gotta go kay. Happy shopping and take care!"
"Yeah... you too. Bye!"
I was too shocked for words.
May Allah bless the souls of those dimished and wiped out by the sea and menempatkan mereka dikalangan org2 soleh and solehah. Amin...
Al-Fatihah.
Monday, December 27, 2004
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
Phlattt On His Face
It started out as a horse play but ended with a swollen nose for Zareef.
I was cooking yesterday when...
"Nak Mummy go in front"
"Why darling?"
"Nak Mummy charge Monster Inc." (charge is Zareef's vocab for switching on the dvd player and loading any dvd of his choice)
"Okay"
And so I did as requested and decided to sit down for a breather. Zareef sat on his car and started to push towards me. I pushed him away with my foot. He pushed again and I pushed him away... again. This happened for a few times with him laughing and trying to charge me with his car when suddenly he tipped over and fell flat on his face. I heard a resounding crack and he started to cry in agony.
When I lifted him, his nose was bleeding profusely. Oh My God!! What have I done?!!
"Sakit Mummy! Sakit!!"
I tried to wipe away his blood but it kept streaming out. I was in a state of panic. Zareef held to me for dear life while bawling away. I know he is in great pain because if he wasn't he wouldn't utter the word sakit. Ye lah... kita yg dah besar ni pun kalau kena tumbuk kat hidung sampai berdarah pun rasa macam nak berpinar dunia, ni kan lagi budak kecik...
I did everything that I could remember from reading and hearing old folks tale; pinching his nose to stop the bleeding, held a cold towel against his nose to ease the pain, tipped his head et. al... thankfully his bleeding stopped after a good 5 minutes but that was the longest, torturous 5 minutes ever! Par none!! He cried and he cried and he cried himself to sleep on my shoulders for a good 45 minutes. I tried putting him down so that he could sleep properly but he wouldn't let me. I called B and demanded that he come back and take a look at his son. By this time, Zareef's nose bridge has grown and swelled up. I was so worried that he broke his nose.
Woke Zareef up.
"Zareef hungry"
"Zareef nak fried rice?"
"Nak"
He ate and ate like there's no tomorrow. He drank all of his juice. Thereafter, he was his usual self. Laughing, jumping and playing about.
"Nose Zareef sakit tak?"
"Tak sakit pun"
"Tadi Zareef cry. Nose Zareef ada darah. Nose Zareef sakit tak?"
"Zareef tak cry pun. Nose Zareef tak sakit pun" and the little kid touched his nose.
But to play it safe, we took him to the NHS Walk-In. The triage nurse assessed him. I voiced out my concerns of a broken nose. So she said another nurse will be with us to assess further. We waited for almost 45 minutes and all that while, Zareef was happily running about looking at other people as if nothing had happen to him just a couple of hours ago. It was a relief to see Zareef so happy that we even doubted that anything was wrong with his nose.
We were called in and a different nurse took a look at Zareef. She said that since Zareef was only two, there are hardly any bones in his nose yet. It's still filled with cartilages. So his nose can't be broken unlike if the same thing were to happen to an adult. The swelling will subside in 5 to 6 days time but she told us to take Zareef to the Royal Infirmary if his nose were to get out of shape. A slight turn, and we have to take him to the hospital. Oh dear! Tak mancung dah hidung anak aku nih...
As you can see from the pictures, Zareef's nose is a bit penyek. I pray that it'll return to normal once the swelling is gone. Not for vanity sake but for the sake of my son needing unnecessary operations, alterations or prodding to his nose.
I've learnt my lesson. No more horseplaying with my son. What we see harmless as adults are extremely dangerous to our child. It was the scariest moment in my life. Sometimes I forget that Zareef is only a two year old boy and not a 28 year old kid from the way I treat him.
Motherhood is a bliss but sometimes it brings out the beast in us.
Eating with a swollen nose
I was cooking yesterday when...
"Nak Mummy go in front"
"Why darling?"
"Nak Mummy charge Monster Inc." (charge is Zareef's vocab for switching on the dvd player and loading any dvd of his choice)
"Okay"
And so I did as requested and decided to sit down for a breather. Zareef sat on his car and started to push towards me. I pushed him away with my foot. He pushed again and I pushed him away... again. This happened for a few times with him laughing and trying to charge me with his car when suddenly he tipped over and fell flat on his face. I heard a resounding crack and he started to cry in agony.
When I lifted him, his nose was bleeding profusely. Oh My God!! What have I done?!!
"Sakit Mummy! Sakit!!"
I tried to wipe away his blood but it kept streaming out. I was in a state of panic. Zareef held to me for dear life while bawling away. I know he is in great pain because if he wasn't he wouldn't utter the word sakit. Ye lah... kita yg dah besar ni pun kalau kena tumbuk kat hidung sampai berdarah pun rasa macam nak berpinar dunia, ni kan lagi budak kecik...
I did everything that I could remember from reading and hearing old folks tale; pinching his nose to stop the bleeding, held a cold towel against his nose to ease the pain, tipped his head et. al... thankfully his bleeding stopped after a good 5 minutes but that was the longest, torturous 5 minutes ever! Par none!! He cried and he cried and he cried himself to sleep on my shoulders for a good 45 minutes. I tried putting him down so that he could sleep properly but he wouldn't let me. I called B and demanded that he come back and take a look at his son. By this time, Zareef's nose bridge has grown and swelled up. I was so worried that he broke his nose.
Woke Zareef up.
"Zareef hungry"
"Zareef nak fried rice?"
"Nak"
He ate and ate like there's no tomorrow. He drank all of his juice. Thereafter, he was his usual self. Laughing, jumping and playing about.
"Nose Zareef sakit tak?"
"Tak sakit pun"
"Tadi Zareef cry. Nose Zareef ada darah. Nose Zareef sakit tak?"
"Zareef tak cry pun. Nose Zareef tak sakit pun" and the little kid touched his nose.
But to play it safe, we took him to the NHS Walk-In. The triage nurse assessed him. I voiced out my concerns of a broken nose. So she said another nurse will be with us to assess further. We waited for almost 45 minutes and all that while, Zareef was happily running about looking at other people as if nothing had happen to him just a couple of hours ago. It was a relief to see Zareef so happy that we even doubted that anything was wrong with his nose.
We were called in and a different nurse took a look at Zareef. She said that since Zareef was only two, there are hardly any bones in his nose yet. It's still filled with cartilages. So his nose can't be broken unlike if the same thing were to happen to an adult. The swelling will subside in 5 to 6 days time but she told us to take Zareef to the Royal Infirmary if his nose were to get out of shape. A slight turn, and we have to take him to the hospital. Oh dear! Tak mancung dah hidung anak aku nih...
As you can see from the pictures, Zareef's nose is a bit penyek. I pray that it'll return to normal once the swelling is gone. Not for vanity sake but for the sake of my son needing unnecessary operations, alterations or prodding to his nose.
I've learnt my lesson. No more horseplaying with my son. What we see harmless as adults are extremely dangerous to our child. It was the scariest moment in my life. Sometimes I forget that Zareef is only a two year old boy and not a 28 year old kid from the way I treat him.
Motherhood is a bliss but sometimes it brings out the beast in us.
Eating with a swollen nose
Friday, December 17, 2004
Coronary Angioplasty
Got news from home that MIL is in SMC recovering from the above procedure. Apparently, she complained of chest pains and it wasn't the first time. So, my BIL decided to send her to SMC for further checkups. The doctor did several tests- urine, blood, the works. The result; MIL's cholesterol level was skyhigh. Her's was 15 treble that of the average 5. They did a scan and found that one of her arteries was blocked and so a coronary angioplasty was deemed necessary. Alhamdulillah the procedure went well and she's out of the woods. Right now she's recovering at home under the care of my two younger BILs. Luckily both of them are home. One just finished his studies at UTP and the other is on semester break.
Hearing the news was a shock to both B and I. MIL is only 49 but she has suffered high blood pressure eversince her second child was born and it has not gone down ever since. This is certainly an eye opener for me.
You see, I weigh in at the end of the scale or nearly, so I'm quite concern with how I fare in the health department. From now on, it's a change of lifestyle for me. Eat less, exercise more and have happy thoughts. No more stressing out. It's all or nothing now.
Hearing the news was a shock to both B and I. MIL is only 49 but she has suffered high blood pressure eversince her second child was born and it has not gone down ever since. This is certainly an eye opener for me.
You see, I weigh in at the end of the scale or nearly, so I'm quite concern with how I fare in the health department. From now on, it's a change of lifestyle for me. Eat less, exercise more and have happy thoughts. No more stressing out. It's all or nothing now.
Monday, December 13, 2004
Growing Up, You Say??
Zareef is taking his afternoon nap now. So, I'm going to write really, really fast before he wakes up and spoils the ideas that I have for blogging today.
Talking about the little kiddo, B and I have decided (well, it's the former mainly) to pull out Zareef from his current nursery. Reason being, he's not happy going there. So, when the son is unhappy, so is the dad.
"Zareef nak pegi Balamory nursery today?"
"No! Zayeef tak nak"
"Kenapa Zareef tak nak? Zareef can play with friends. Zareef can play with Liz and Vicky"
"Zayeef nak play with mommy. Zayeef nak Harry Potter. Zayeef nak car flying"
And so the scene repeats itself every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I would send him right up to the door of his Blue room while B waits in the background because he can't bear to see his son crying and wailing his heart out everytime we leave him there. It would always be me to hand Zareef over to his teachers. At this point, Zareef would be screaming "Nak Mummy! Nak Mummy!" and bawling and struggling to get free. Usually, it'll take him about 5 to 10 minutes to cool down and play about. At 4.30, when we pick him up, he'll be crying again when he sees us. According to Vicky, he was fine for the whole session except at the beginning when I left him and in the end when he sees other parents picking up their children.
So, to end all his sufferings, we (it's more of B) opted to stop sending him to the nursery. Darn it! There goes my precious personal time but hey... I get to save £90 a month and spend it on ... shopping??
*****
Yesterday was a day of DVD marathon. I managed to watch Princess Diaries 2, The Stepford Wives and Dodgeball. I know, I know... they're all old stories but I didn't get to see them when they were released in the theaters. Having a two year old has stopped B and I from frequenting the cinemas for more than that period. We've missed countless premieres and I have lost tracked of all the latest movies to-date.
I admit it. I'm a sucker for teenage, sappy, happy ending, funny romantic stories. Grow up you tell me? Well, age wise I am but deep in my heart of hearts, I'm still a young kid. Heck! I'd rather watch O.C (Benjamin Mackenzie's rolling eyes is something that I have yet to achieve)and One Tree Hill (Chad Michael Murray is simply delicious!) reruns any time of day rather than... the news?? My all time favorites would be Dawson's Creek, Gilmore Girls, Beverly Hills 90210 (I watched all the reruns repeatedly having it recorded on VHS when I was in the States) and Roswell. I don't know why but maybe, just maybe I'm not quite ready to admit to myself that I'm a wife and a mom or another maybe, I'm not ready to grow up, just yet.
But for now, I'm happy watching a stockful of DVDs courtesy of my pet sis and her hubby who kindly loaned us their hundred pounds worth of DVDs. Yeay!!
*****
The year 2004 is coming to an end in 18 days time and I have yet to list down my 2005 resolutions which in my case never materialized. This time around, I'm going to list down in this blog of mine as a constant reminder to myself and for others to motivate me (hopefully ada yg sudi jadi motivator) to accomplish.
1. Lose weight. This has been at the top of my list since... forever!
2. Learn to be grateful to God for what I have.
3. Buy a house preferably a semi-detached or a bungalow when I come home next year.
4. Be a faithful Muslim.
5. Make life easier for B and Zareef.
6. Spend more time with family.
7. Contribute to a charity be it money, time, energy or knowledge.
8. Get a new hunky-dory job.
9. Make more new friends and less enemies.
10. Repay my parents for everything that they have done for me.
Well, that's about it. I have learnt from the past to make it small at first and build it up from there. That said, I'm starting my baby steps now, hoping that I'll be able to leap and bound not long after that.
Talking about the little kiddo, B and I have decided (well, it's the former mainly) to pull out Zareef from his current nursery. Reason being, he's not happy going there. So, when the son is unhappy, so is the dad.
"Zareef nak pegi Balamory nursery today?"
"No! Zayeef tak nak"
"Kenapa Zareef tak nak? Zareef can play with friends. Zareef can play with Liz and Vicky"
"Zayeef nak play with mommy. Zayeef nak Harry Potter. Zayeef nak car flying"
And so the scene repeats itself every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I would send him right up to the door of his Blue room while B waits in the background because he can't bear to see his son crying and wailing his heart out everytime we leave him there. It would always be me to hand Zareef over to his teachers. At this point, Zareef would be screaming "Nak Mummy! Nak Mummy!" and bawling and struggling to get free. Usually, it'll take him about 5 to 10 minutes to cool down and play about. At 4.30, when we pick him up, he'll be crying again when he sees us. According to Vicky, he was fine for the whole session except at the beginning when I left him and in the end when he sees other parents picking up their children.
So, to end all his sufferings, we (it's more of B) opted to stop sending him to the nursery. Darn it! There goes my precious personal time but hey... I get to save £90 a month and spend it on ... shopping??
*****
Yesterday was a day of DVD marathon. I managed to watch Princess Diaries 2, The Stepford Wives and Dodgeball. I know, I know... they're all old stories but I didn't get to see them when they were released in the theaters. Having a two year old has stopped B and I from frequenting the cinemas for more than that period. We've missed countless premieres and I have lost tracked of all the latest movies to-date.
I admit it. I'm a sucker for teenage, sappy, happy ending, funny romantic stories. Grow up you tell me? Well, age wise I am but deep in my heart of hearts, I'm still a young kid. Heck! I'd rather watch O.C (Benjamin Mackenzie's rolling eyes is something that I have yet to achieve)and One Tree Hill (Chad Michael Murray is simply delicious!) reruns any time of day rather than... the news?? My all time favorites would be Dawson's Creek, Gilmore Girls, Beverly Hills 90210 (I watched all the reruns repeatedly having it recorded on VHS when I was in the States) and Roswell. I don't know why but maybe, just maybe I'm not quite ready to admit to myself that I'm a wife and a mom or another maybe, I'm not ready to grow up, just yet.
But for now, I'm happy watching a stockful of DVDs courtesy of my pet sis and her hubby who kindly loaned us their hundred pounds worth of DVDs. Yeay!!
*****
The year 2004 is coming to an end in 18 days time and I have yet to list down my 2005 resolutions which in my case never materialized. This time around, I'm going to list down in this blog of mine as a constant reminder to myself and for others to motivate me (hopefully ada yg sudi jadi motivator) to accomplish.
1. Lose weight. This has been at the top of my list since... forever!
2. Learn to be grateful to God for what I have.
3. Buy a house preferably a semi-detached or a bungalow when I come home next year.
4. Be a faithful Muslim.
5. Make life easier for B and Zareef.
6. Spend more time with family.
7. Contribute to a charity be it money, time, energy or knowledge.
8. Get a new hunky-dory job.
9. Make more new friends and less enemies.
10. Repay my parents for everything that they have done for me.
Well, that's about it. I have learnt from the past to make it small at first and build it up from there. That said, I'm starting my baby steps now, hoping that I'll be able to leap and bound not long after that.
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Is it time to let the traditions go?
Zareef had his first ever Christmas party yesterday. Unfortunately, he didn't have such a good time according to his teacher, Liz. She said that Zareef was feeling a bit scared of the crowd and loud music plus it was pretty dark in there. Or just maybe Zareef wasn't ready for the night life yet, so it seem.
When B and I came to pick him up, he was crying his heart out. He was definitely ready to leave. Despite not enjoying the party, Zareef managed to sit on Santa's lap and got a box of Lego Duplo as his Christmas gift.
All dressed up for his party
When B and I came to pick him up, he was crying his heart out. He was definitely ready to leave. Despite not enjoying the party, Zareef managed to sit on Santa's lap and got a box of Lego Duplo as his Christmas gift.
All dressed up for his party
Not quite ready for the dance floor yet
*****
While on break during work today, I had the chance to read The Sun left by John Doe. Apparently, Britons are freaking out because some of their Christmas traditions are being banned by their respective local councils in fear of offending the minorities of this country.
In Luton, the city council gave directives of naming their Christmas Lights as Luminous Lights in apprehensiveness of disrespecting 20,000 odd Muslims in Bedfordshire. The phrase 'Merry Christmas' was slashed out of Christmas cards coming from No. 10. Instead, it was replaced with just 'Have a Happy New Year' and signed by Tony Blair himself! In some big stores in London, Santa's grotto were not seen in view of recent paedophile events and to protect both the Santa and children from abuse allegations.
All this are done by the bureaucrats themselves! The killjoys of Christmas. The meddlers of all muddles. The sole reason given was not to offend people of different religions. Well... that is total BULL!!!
I'm a Muslim and I do not condemn Christmas celebrations. In fact, I have never condemn any religious celebrations be it Deepavali, Chinese New Year, Hanukkah or Easter. I believe that each and everyone of us has the right to celebrate the festivals of their professed faith. Even Islam teaches us to respect others even if it means respecting their different beliefs and religious teachings.
It is absurd that some officials in this country use health and safety reasons to account for the ban of Christmas traditions. It's like saying that we can't have ketupat for our Raya, the Chinese can't give angpow to children and singletons, the Indians can't draw their 'kolam' on their driveways and no bunnies for Easter.
I don't mind at all that Zareef went for his Christmas party. Veritably, I'm glad that Zareef got to experience Christmas as part of his due course in enriching his life. I wouldn't want to raise my child to lead a recluse life. Instead, I want his to be one embellished with different cultures, traditions and values.
With that, I rest my case.
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
It's the season to be jolly... tra la la la la la la la la...
It's the time of year again when every kid wishes to be on Santa's good list, parents dash madly to complete their shopping list and run huge credit bills and shopping establishments run joyously to the bank to deposit their healthy revenues.
Yupp people... it's Christmas time...
Fact of the matter is, I actually, truly love Christmas! Not as much as I embrace Raya but I welcome the thought of hearing Christmas songs blasting its way in shopping malls, the tall handsome tree beautifully decorated making it's presence felt and outrageous sales happening all at once everywhere all over the nation.
Don't get me wrong. I'm just celebrating the festive side of Christmas not the Nativity side. In fact, I not only celebrate Christmas, I usher in Chinese New Year (red angpows, mandarin oranges and the blasted crackers), Deepavali (homemade authentic thosais), Easter (bless the sinful but delicious Easter eggs) and Thanksgiving (turkey anyone?) just to name a few. Must be because I'm from a multi-racial country that welcomes diversity of all sorts that resulted me in being a heterogeneous person.
I love hearing Christmas songs rendered by the evergreen singers like Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Aretha Franklin. It's like hearing the persona gratas of Sanisah Huri, Sudirman, P. Ramlee during Raya. The Christmas tree never ceased to amaze me with it's many yet distinctive ornaments and lights lip-lapping (ada ka such word?) all the way. Mince pies so sweet that they'll numb your brain out if you have too much.
And talk about the sales!! It's total madness! Everywhere I turn, it's huge banners all over the shop windows bearing the letters S.A.L.E. B would say that the shops have been on sale for the whole year but the prices are so ridiculously low that I kid you not. The day before, I was sauntering down Loughborough's High Street with Zareef and saw that Clarks had a 50% sale. Went in and browsed through for I wasn't really expecting them to sell anything less than 50%. But lo and behold, I saw Jue's handbag at a bargain price of £5. I snorted in amazement. Damn! Kalau Jue tau beg yg dia dok berebut ngan minah salleh mana ntah dah jadik £5 mesti pengsan.
Anyhoo, we will be having our own Christmas parties to attend to. Zareef's nursery is holding their party tomorrow at Cognito complete with a visit from the great man himself... HO HO HO... with a disco thrown in and various drinks and food included. Whallau! Kecik2 lagi anak aku dah pandai berparty! But never mind... he's still too small to understand anything. B's party is on the 16th and mine will be on the 23rd.
So... to fellow readers and friends who do really celebrate Christmas, I wish you a Merry Christmas. May the season be filled with endless joys and happiness. To the rest, enjoy the holidays and have a very wonderful New Year!
Yupp people... it's Christmas time...
Fact of the matter is, I actually, truly love Christmas! Not as much as I embrace Raya but I welcome the thought of hearing Christmas songs blasting its way in shopping malls, the tall handsome tree beautifully decorated making it's presence felt and outrageous sales happening all at once everywhere all over the nation.
Don't get me wrong. I'm just celebrating the festive side of Christmas not the Nativity side. In fact, I not only celebrate Christmas, I usher in Chinese New Year (red angpows, mandarin oranges and the blasted crackers), Deepavali (homemade authentic thosais), Easter (bless the sinful but delicious Easter eggs) and Thanksgiving (turkey anyone?) just to name a few. Must be because I'm from a multi-racial country that welcomes diversity of all sorts that resulted me in being a heterogeneous person.
I love hearing Christmas songs rendered by the evergreen singers like Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Aretha Franklin. It's like hearing the persona gratas of Sanisah Huri, Sudirman, P. Ramlee during Raya. The Christmas tree never ceased to amaze me with it's many yet distinctive ornaments and lights lip-lapping (ada ka such word?) all the way. Mince pies so sweet that they'll numb your brain out if you have too much.
And talk about the sales!! It's total madness! Everywhere I turn, it's huge banners all over the shop windows bearing the letters S.A.L.E. B would say that the shops have been on sale for the whole year but the prices are so ridiculously low that I kid you not. The day before, I was sauntering down Loughborough's High Street with Zareef and saw that Clarks had a 50% sale. Went in and browsed through for I wasn't really expecting them to sell anything less than 50%. But lo and behold, I saw Jue's handbag at a bargain price of £5. I snorted in amazement. Damn! Kalau Jue tau beg yg dia dok berebut ngan minah salleh mana ntah dah jadik £5 mesti pengsan.
Anyhoo, we will be having our own Christmas parties to attend to. Zareef's nursery is holding their party tomorrow at Cognito complete with a visit from the great man himself... HO HO HO... with a disco thrown in and various drinks and food included. Whallau! Kecik2 lagi anak aku dah pandai berparty! But never mind... he's still too small to understand anything. B's party is on the 16th and mine will be on the 23rd.
So... to fellow readers and friends who do really celebrate Christmas, I wish you a Merry Christmas. May the season be filled with endless joys and happiness. To the rest, enjoy the holidays and have a very wonderful New Year!
Saturday, December 04, 2004
I Love...
I love.....
1. kissing and 'gomoling' Zareef.
2. kissing B.
3. the smell of rain.
4. to see old couples holding hands when walking.
5. SHOPPING!!!
6. reading blogs.
7. watching Zareef when he's fast asleep.
8. eating Japanese food.
9. my Murakami Speedy 30 bag.
10. talking and catching up on things with B.
11. the smell of fresh cut grass.
12. getting snail mails.
13. the touch of Zareef's baby soft skin.
14. daydreaming.
15. going on holidays
16. facial treatments.
17. surprising people when they're the least surprised.
18. my alma maters - SSP and Purdue.
19. getting to know B's unknown quirkiness as the years go by.
20. eating out.
21. to chill out with close friends.
22. to try new acquired tastes.
23. adrenaline rushes.
24. setting my foot on foreign land.
25. the smell of B's Acqua di Gio.
I can go on and on and on... but I'll stop here for now.
*****
My cousin's daughter is taking up medicine in Moscow and she's only into her first year. Last night, she YM'ed me asking the definition of wave propagation. Heck... I know what it is at the top of my head but trying to put it in layman's terms for a freshy to really comprehend is just not in my expertise (that's why I make a lousy teacher). So what does a net freak like me do when I need to know something immediately? You betcha! I googled up 'Wave Propagation'. Voila!! Hundreds return my desperate cry for help but one truly did a good job in making it crystal clear complete with diagrams and what not. Thank God for the Superhighway and Thank God that she had me for her ever reachable techy aunt (hihihii... kes masuk lif tekan butang).
1. kissing and 'gomoling' Zareef.
2. kissing B.
3. the smell of rain.
4. to see old couples holding hands when walking.
5. SHOPPING!!!
6. reading blogs.
7. watching Zareef when he's fast asleep.
8. eating Japanese food.
9. my Murakami Speedy 30 bag.
10. talking and catching up on things with B.
11. the smell of fresh cut grass.
12. getting snail mails.
13. the touch of Zareef's baby soft skin.
14. daydreaming.
15. going on holidays
16. facial treatments.
17. surprising people when they're the least surprised.
18. my alma maters - SSP and Purdue.
19. getting to know B's unknown quirkiness as the years go by.
20. eating out.
21. to chill out with close friends.
22. to try new acquired tastes.
23. adrenaline rushes.
24. setting my foot on foreign land.
25. the smell of B's Acqua di Gio.
I can go on and on and on... but I'll stop here for now.
*****
My cousin's daughter is taking up medicine in Moscow and she's only into her first year. Last night, she YM'ed me asking the definition of wave propagation. Heck... I know what it is at the top of my head but trying to put it in layman's terms for a freshy to really comprehend is just not in my expertise (that's why I make a lousy teacher). So what does a net freak like me do when I need to know something immediately? You betcha! I googled up 'Wave Propagation'. Voila!! Hundreds return my desperate cry for help but one truly did a good job in making it crystal clear complete with diagrams and what not. Thank God for the Superhighway and Thank God that she had me for her ever reachable techy aunt (hihihii... kes masuk lif tekan butang).
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
China Away
My shopping excursion did not end with the Queens (see previous post). On Saturday (the same week) I was up just after the birds were, all ready and geared up for my china hunt at the Wedgwood Factory Shop Clearance Sale. I dragged a reluctant B and a cranky Zareef out of the bed. Hehehe... mummy nak shopping punya pasal, semua org kena bangun awal pagi2 buta hari Sabtu di kala musim winter ini.
I knew about this sale about a couple of weeks back and have been informing anyone that have crossed path with me about it. Hasil dpd pukulan canang yang maha hebat, I managed to round up 4 friends of mine who also roused up their disheartened families respectively. We convoyed all the way to Stoke. I thought we were among the early birds but was I wrong! The car park was already filled to the brim. Loads and loads of tour buses filled with aged ladies (true! must have left their slow partners behind) from as far as London were already queuing up. Man! The line was the worst ever, par none! Even the line for rides in Universal Studios couldn't compare to this. Luckily I had a friend way up front of the line, at the entrance door to be exact. So, dengan muka selambanya, menolak trolley yg berisi Zareef mara ke depan and terus beratur bersama2 kawan saya itu. Hhihihi... talking about cutting queues. Tiba-tiba, a tap on my shoulder and...
'Excuse me, why are you cutting the line? We've been waiting here forever and you simply waltzed in front of us'
'Oh... I was here before you but I went out of line to get the trolley so that I can put my son in it and the chinas too... See...' I showed towards Zareef (Nasib baik masa tu Zareef was fully cooperating and buat muka sejuk cum cute dia tu). Takde la nampak guilty as charged.
'She's with me. We were here before you were. She just went out of the line to get the cart.'
'I see. I'm sorry then.'
'It's alright.'
Phew! Lega!!
Anyway, it took me 30 minutes to go inside the warehouse from here. It was bloody cold. I stood for so long that my feet went numb. Zareef started to get restless so I called for reinforcements. Yupp... it's B to Zareef's rescue. I told B to take Zareef into the cafe in the factory shop and buy hot chocolate and some pastries for breakfast. After what I felt like an eternity, the staff that guarded the door let my friend and I in. Only two were allowed at a time. Apparently, the line inside the warehouse were not moving. Everyone were busy choosing but no one was paying.
When I got in, euphoria overwhelmed me. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think, I couldn't speak and I dare not touch anything. My friend was going... 'Sabar Nora... take a deep breath and pilih cepat2. Nanti orang lain kaut banyak2, nangis tak berlagu pulak'. People were grabbing chinas like nobody's business. Berbakul2. Tak cukup bakul... bertrolley2!... I would say, some of them would have easily spent thousands of pounds.
After a thorough scouting and examining, I've decided to pick the Jade range and to completely furnish my Nantucket collection. I was utterly amazed at the price slash. Everything in the warehouse were discounted at 75% or more
I knew about this sale about a couple of weeks back and have been informing anyone that have crossed path with me about it. Hasil dpd pukulan canang yang maha hebat, I managed to round up 4 friends of mine who also roused up their disheartened families respectively. We convoyed all the way to Stoke. I thought we were among the early birds but was I wrong! The car park was already filled to the brim. Loads and loads of tour buses filled with aged ladies (true! must have left their slow partners behind) from as far as London were already queuing up. Man! The line was the worst ever, par none! Even the line for rides in Universal Studios couldn't compare to this. Luckily I had a friend way up front of the line, at the entrance door to be exact. So, dengan muka selambanya, menolak trolley yg berisi Zareef mara ke depan and terus beratur bersama2 kawan saya itu. Hhihihi... talking about cutting queues. Tiba-tiba, a tap on my shoulder and...
'Excuse me, why are you cutting the line? We've been waiting here forever and you simply waltzed in front of us'
'Oh... I was here before you but I went out of line to get the trolley so that I can put my son in it and the chinas too... See...' I showed towards Zareef (Nasib baik masa tu Zareef was fully cooperating and buat muka sejuk cum cute dia tu). Takde la nampak guilty as charged.
'She's with me. We were here before you were. She just went out of the line to get the cart.'
'I see. I'm sorry then.'
'It's alright.'
Phew! Lega!!
Anyway, it took me 30 minutes to go inside the warehouse from here. It was bloody cold. I stood for so long that my feet went numb. Zareef started to get restless so I called for reinforcements. Yupp... it's B to Zareef's rescue. I told B to take Zareef into the cafe in the factory shop and buy hot chocolate and some pastries for breakfast. After what I felt like an eternity, the staff that guarded the door let my friend and I in. Only two were allowed at a time. Apparently, the line inside the warehouse were not moving. Everyone were busy choosing but no one was paying.
When I got in, euphoria overwhelmed me. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think, I couldn't speak and I dare not touch anything. My friend was going... 'Sabar Nora... take a deep breath and pilih cepat2. Nanti orang lain kaut banyak2, nangis tak berlagu pulak'. People were grabbing chinas like nobody's business. Berbakul2. Tak cukup bakul... bertrolley2!... I would say, some of them would have easily spent thousands of pounds.
After a thorough scouting and examining, I've decided to pick the Jade range and to completely furnish my Nantucket collection. I was utterly amazed at the price slash. Everything in the warehouse were discounted at 75% or more
These are what I got for myself. Yeah... all mine! My preciousssss!! Muahahahha...
Let me narrate and justify my purchases from left to right
1. Crystal tumblers and crystal wine glasses by Stuart Crystal. 6 for £10. Actual price was £40. Dirt cheap, eh?!
2. The Jade range. Bought a teapot, a tureen, a gravy boat and plate, a platter, 6 teacups and saucers and 6 8" plates.
3. The Nantucket range. Since I've bought the dinner plates aeons ago at the price of a quid each (bought 6 at first the topped it off with 10), I bought the tureen, a huge salad bowl and 6 small bowls. Darn it! Should have bought 12 of the small bowls. Nevermind. Kurang sikit cost.
4. Wokay... here's the price shocker. The Jade Tureen that I bought was originally priced at £210 but I bought it at £31.50, I think. I paid only 15% of the actual price!!! Mind blowing, ain't it?! Just zoom in and see for yourself.
5. The Jade teacup was originally priced at £95 and I got it for $14.18!!! This clearance sale is no joke, man! No wonder the sign says 'Multi Million Pounds Wedgwood Warehouse Clearance Sale'. They're not kidding, I tell you.
The damage? Quite a lot... The sale pretty much burnt a large hole in my pocket and this time I have no more pockets to seluk2. So, I'll be pretty much inactive in the shopping department for the next two months. But come Boxing Day... I'm backkkkkkk ... hehehehhe... I can already see B's head shaking and his eyes glaring at me like Ryan's of The O.C. but I don't care. I can foresee myself painting Bicester Shopping Village RED. Yupp folks. I'm heading there this Boxing Day for they have a Ferragamo and Bally outlet there! Muahahhahha.... But for now... I'll just be as quiet as a mouse.
Monday, November 29, 2004
The Queen and I
On the third day of Syawal (Monday), a friend called up...
A: Hari ni buat apa? Cuti kan...
N: A'aah... kenapa?
A: Jom pi carik kilang Queen Anne kat Birm tuh?!
N: Waaaa... menarik jugak kan. Kejap eh.. tanya B dia nak pi tak
And so after much coaxing (on B's part), we headed to Birmingham in our quest to search for the Queen Anne factory. Pusing punya pusing, berapa kali ntah buat u-turn kat roundabout, I felt the ray of hope diminishing slowly. Man! We're never gonna find this factory when suddenly... Voila!! There it was right infront of our very own eyes and we've drove past it TWICE!!! Aiyarkkk... buta sungguh co-pilot sorang nih but can't blame me though. I didn't have directions to this place. We were merely following the lead.
Hehehhe... adrenaline started coarsing through my veins and I feel right down giddy plus I couldn't help but smile gleefully. I had a glint in my eye. The palms of my hand started to sweat and itch at the same time. Yeah baby!! Shopping time!!! Nothing could or can stop me now. B's constant reminder of not to buy too many was unheeded.
The factory looked very old. In fact, it looked so factory-like that we weren't convinced that there's a shop concealed behind the old, ugly and smoky facade. There were no factory shops out front. There were no indications what so ever hinting us of the whereabouts of the gleaming polished silverware. There was only the sign of 'WORK ENTRANCE' right smack in the middle of the factory. B started to give me the look.
'Betul ke nih? Takde rupa cam ada kedai pun... Buat habis minyak je datang jauh2'.
My heart started to sink. Images of the silverware was starting to vaporize slowly.
'Tak pe Nora. Jom kita press doorbell kat Work Entrance tu and tanya' My friend said in an attempt to lift my spirit.
She pressed while all of us waited. A young lady appeared and said '
Are you here for the shop?'
Hell yes! but I politely said 'Yes please. Do you know where it is?'
'Follow me please'
Those three words right then were music to my ears. Yiehaaa... our time and effort weren't wasted after all. We followed her into the factory and straight through several doors before reaching a room filled with boxes after boxes of Queen Anne. When I went in and looked around, I felt like the room was spinning. Every nook and cranny, every inch of space on the table, every shelves and every gap under the table was filled with the silverware.
'These are all seconds. The price are half of the RRP in the shops. If you pay by cash, you won't have to pay the VAT but if you're using a credit card, then the VAT will be included'
I quickly scoured my purse and saw that I have £55. That's a relief. The prices are not bad at all. There's a file listing all silverwares available with their RRPs, second's price with and without VAT included. What you see below is what I bought for myself. The total came to a quid short of sixty. Yeah... B and I terpaksa menyeluk segala poket yg ada and came up with the balance in coins. The good thing is... since we spent quite an exorbitable amount of money (there were three of us), the young lady let us have quite a few of our small items come free. I got to have 3 freebies - the toast holder, the letter opener and the serviette holder. My friend spent treble of my amount and got a large oval silverware free! How lucky of her!!
Llah... this is the price breakdown of the items I bought above...
1. Double rectangular casserole £16. RRP is £32
2. Single oval casserole with warmer £11. RRP is £22
3. Single rectangular casserole with warmer £10. RRP is £20
4. Sandwich tray with holder £6
5. Bon Bon tray with holder £3
Ada banyak lagi. Round, Oval, Oblong Trays with and without legs (amat sesuai utk letak kek dan barang hantaran), tempat letak kuih (4,6 and 8 places), butter tray, jam tray etc. Lemme know...
A: Hari ni buat apa? Cuti kan...
N: A'aah... kenapa?
A: Jom pi carik kilang Queen Anne kat Birm tuh?!
N: Waaaa... menarik jugak kan. Kejap eh.. tanya B dia nak pi tak
And so after much coaxing (on B's part), we headed to Birmingham in our quest to search for the Queen Anne factory. Pusing punya pusing, berapa kali ntah buat u-turn kat roundabout, I felt the ray of hope diminishing slowly. Man! We're never gonna find this factory when suddenly... Voila!! There it was right infront of our very own eyes and we've drove past it TWICE!!! Aiyarkkk... buta sungguh co-pilot sorang nih but can't blame me though. I didn't have directions to this place. We were merely following the lead.
Hehehhe... adrenaline started coarsing through my veins and I feel right down giddy plus I couldn't help but smile gleefully. I had a glint in my eye. The palms of my hand started to sweat and itch at the same time. Yeah baby!! Shopping time!!! Nothing could or can stop me now. B's constant reminder of not to buy too many was unheeded.
The factory looked very old. In fact, it looked so factory-like that we weren't convinced that there's a shop concealed behind the old, ugly and smoky facade. There were no factory shops out front. There were no indications what so ever hinting us of the whereabouts of the gleaming polished silverware. There was only the sign of 'WORK ENTRANCE' right smack in the middle of the factory. B started to give me the look.
'Betul ke nih? Takde rupa cam ada kedai pun... Buat habis minyak je datang jauh2'.
My heart started to sink. Images of the silverware was starting to vaporize slowly.
'Tak pe Nora. Jom kita press doorbell kat Work Entrance tu and tanya' My friend said in an attempt to lift my spirit.
She pressed while all of us waited. A young lady appeared and said '
Are you here for the shop?'
Hell yes! but I politely said 'Yes please. Do you know where it is?'
'Follow me please'
Those three words right then were music to my ears. Yiehaaa... our time and effort weren't wasted after all. We followed her into the factory and straight through several doors before reaching a room filled with boxes after boxes of Queen Anne. When I went in and looked around, I felt like the room was spinning. Every nook and cranny, every inch of space on the table, every shelves and every gap under the table was filled with the silverware.
'These are all seconds. The price are half of the RRP in the shops. If you pay by cash, you won't have to pay the VAT but if you're using a credit card, then the VAT will be included'
I quickly scoured my purse and saw that I have £55. That's a relief. The prices are not bad at all. There's a file listing all silverwares available with their RRPs, second's price with and without VAT included. What you see below is what I bought for myself. The total came to a quid short of sixty. Yeah... B and I terpaksa menyeluk segala poket yg ada and came up with the balance in coins. The good thing is... since we spent quite an exorbitable amount of money (there were three of us), the young lady let us have quite a few of our small items come free. I got to have 3 freebies - the toast holder, the letter opener and the serviette holder. My friend spent treble of my amount and got a large oval silverware free! How lucky of her!!
Llah... this is the price breakdown of the items I bought above...
1. Double rectangular casserole £16. RRP is £32
2. Single oval casserole with warmer £11. RRP is £22
3. Single rectangular casserole with warmer £10. RRP is £20
4. Sandwich tray with holder £6
5. Bon Bon tray with holder £3
Ada banyak lagi. Round, Oval, Oblong Trays with and without legs (amat sesuai utk letak kek dan barang hantaran), tempat letak kuih (4,6 and 8 places), butter tray, jam tray etc. Lemme know...
Thursday, November 25, 2004
Down and Out
I've contracted the virus. Muscle aches... head is jackhammering away... eyes throbbing... throat sored and there's nothing that I can do except take paracetamol and sleep it away. Thank God B is the dad that I hope he would be. He's taking Zareef under his wings.
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
I'm worth....
Got this from Osman... and.... *drum rolling in the background*
I'm worth $1,653,250.98!
Yeah... yeah... not as much as Osman there... but... it's more than $1.5 million!!! I must have done something good! kui kuikui...
Wanna know how much you're worth, CLICK HERE
I'm worth $1,653,250.98!
Yeah... yeah... not as much as Osman there... but... it's more than $1.5 million!!! I must have done something good! kui kuikui...
Wanna know how much you're worth, CLICK HERE
Monday, November 22, 2004
Raya Chronicles
We celebrated 1st Syawal on Saturday. Yupp... it was a day earlier than our counterparts back home. It was a shocker for me as I was anticipating Raya to be on Sunday just like Malaysia and Saudi Arabia but noooo...
So... there I was in total frantic and kelam kabut, started cooking up a storm on Friday as soon as I knew about it officially on the Islamic Channel (836 on Sky). By 1 am, I've finished cooking the nasi impit (plastopat as my dad would call it), rendang minang (upon special request from B), kuah kacang and sayur lodeh. My plan to include lemang and to finish up my pineapple tarts and bake fruit cake did not materialize.
Sleeping late resulted us in waking up late the next morning and was late for the Raya Prayers. We only made it to listen to the khutbah gave by a friend of ours.
We spent the whole day visiting friends, going from one house to another. There was a total of 11 open houses on the first day but we only managed to do a round of 6 houses. The tummy was too full to accommodate anymore food plus I had to prepare for our open house the following day. Made mee jawa in addition to all the food that I've cooked on the eve of raya. Throngs of friends came. There must be like more than 100 people who visited us from 11 am right till 9 pm. I was so damn tired after that, that I left B to do the cleaning up while I dozed off with Zareef.
Raya in Loughborough was sooooo happening that I didn't even have time to be sad. Good thing, eh?!
Pagi Raya
So... there I was in total frantic and kelam kabut, started cooking up a storm on Friday as soon as I knew about it officially on the Islamic Channel (836 on Sky). By 1 am, I've finished cooking the nasi impit (plastopat as my dad would call it), rendang minang (upon special request from B), kuah kacang and sayur lodeh. My plan to include lemang and to finish up my pineapple tarts and bake fruit cake did not materialize.
Sleeping late resulted us in waking up late the next morning and was late for the Raya Prayers. We only made it to listen to the khutbah gave by a friend of ours.
We spent the whole day visiting friends, going from one house to another. There was a total of 11 open houses on the first day but we only managed to do a round of 6 houses. The tummy was too full to accommodate anymore food plus I had to prepare for our open house the following day. Made mee jawa in addition to all the food that I've cooked on the eve of raya. Throngs of friends came. There must be like more than 100 people who visited us from 11 am right till 9 pm. I was so damn tired after that, that I left B to do the cleaning up while I dozed off with Zareef.
Raya in Loughborough was sooooo happening that I didn't even have time to be sad. Good thing, eh?!
Pagi Raya
Saturday, November 13, 2004
1 Syawal
It was pretty in pink for Zareef in his first ever baju melayu given by his Wan (B's mom) last year. It was too big for him then but it fits like a glove now.
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Eid Mubarak
My family and I would like to wish all Muslims, our family, relatives and friends a very happy and joyous Eid Mubarak. May peace and harmony be upon each and everyone of us on this wonderful and meaningful day. In typical Malaysian style... ampun dan maaf dipinta atas segala salah dan silap. Bila makan ketupat, lemang, nasi impit, rendang, kuah kacang, lodeh, sambal goreng, kek2, kuih2 dan biskut2 tu... ingat2 la kat kami di perantauan nih... HUAHHHH... sedey aa nih... nak balik!!!
Kami di Loughborough, Leicestershire...
Bard, Nora and Zareef Imran
p/s: Us enjoying the gondola ride in Venice. But lemme tell you this... it's one hell of a smelly ride...
p/s II: Rini dear... aku dah buat hang nye cheesy spuds yesterday for buka puasa. You're a genius!! It was lip smackin', tummy filling, goobledegook fantastic!!! Kitorang makan tak ingat dunia dah... Thanx a zillion for the recipe. Will definitely make it again very, very soon...
Kami di Loughborough, Leicestershire...
Bard, Nora and Zareef Imran
p/s: Us enjoying the gondola ride in Venice. But lemme tell you this... it's one hell of a smelly ride...
p/s II: Rini dear... aku dah buat hang nye cheesy spuds yesterday for buka puasa. You're a genius!! It was lip smackin', tummy filling, goobledegook fantastic!!! Kitorang makan tak ingat dunia dah... Thanx a zillion for the recipe. Will definitely make it again very, very soon...
Monday, November 08, 2004
Sunday, November 07, 2004
Shoes, Shoes and More Shoes....
Zareef has more shoes than any kid that I know. Even his shoes outnumber B's easily. I bought for him a new pair of Nike shoes at Fosse Park. B was going on about how many shoes does a 2 year old kid need? Well, I simply said it was his Raya shoes. Everyone needs a baju Raya and kasut Raya and everything Raya. You see, I was brought up by my parents that come Raya, all of us would get loads of new clothes and a pair or two of new shoes. When I was small, I'd have like 8 to 9 dresses and at least a new pair of shoes.
Back then, mom would drag my dad and I to Jalan TAR and start combing every inch of the street. Her favorite haunt would be the Globe Silk Store and Mun Loong (takde dah... ganti with... aisey tak ingat dah). Then she'll let me roam the entire children's section on my own (Mun Loong used to have a good selection of branded wear like Ladybird, Kitikat, Kiko, Villa,Popeye apa2 ntah lagi) and let me choose my own wardrobe. Pretty neat, eh?! She'll sit down with my dad and wait patiently while I happily do my pickings. Later on, I'll present it to them complete with reasonable reasons that I could cook up at that particular moment as to why I should wear this and this and this. Hehheheh... guess old habits die hard because I still do that (the reasoning part) to B because he'd ask me the ever so famous 'WHY?' especially when it comes to shoes and bags.
Well, back to Zareef's shoe, he has like 3 Nikes, 1 Reebok, 2 Timberlands, 3 or 4 Nexts, 4 Clarks, 2 Gaps, 2 Bob The Builder and hmm I've lost count.
Let me see if I can post pictures of him strutting his stuff...
Back then, mom would drag my dad and I to Jalan TAR and start combing every inch of the street. Her favorite haunt would be the Globe Silk Store and Mun Loong (takde dah... ganti with... aisey tak ingat dah). Then she'll let me roam the entire children's section on my own (Mun Loong used to have a good selection of branded wear like Ladybird, Kitikat, Kiko, Villa,Popeye apa2 ntah lagi) and let me choose my own wardrobe. Pretty neat, eh?! She'll sit down with my dad and wait patiently while I happily do my pickings. Later on, I'll present it to them complete with reasonable reasons that I could cook up at that particular moment as to why I should wear this and this and this. Hehheheh... guess old habits die hard because I still do that (the reasoning part) to B because he'd ask me the ever so famous 'WHY?' especially when it comes to shoes and bags.
Well, back to Zareef's shoe, he has like 3 Nikes, 1 Reebok, 2 Timberlands, 3 or 4 Nexts, 4 Clarks, 2 Gaps, 2 Bob The Builder and hmm I've lost count.
Let me see if I can post pictures of him strutting his stuff...
Saturday, November 06, 2004
Still Can't Get The Hang Of It
Argghhh!!! Learning new things are always frustrating at first. I'm still trying my way around the blogspot and it's already giving me stress. When I post, it doesn't come out. When I want to post a picture, it doesn't come out as well. When I edit, the old edition still exists. When I delete, it's still there!
Can someone tell me how to post pictures and write descriptions about it as well? How do I go about doing it if I want to post more than 1 pix and write description about it one after another i.e. picture, description then another picture, description?
Can someone tell me how to post pictures and write descriptions about it as well? How do I go about doing it if I want to post more than 1 pix and write description about it one after another i.e. picture, description then another picture, description?
Tuesday, November 02, 2004
Rock-a-bye-Baby
Yeah... I'm literally typing this with Zareef hanging onto me for dear life. The problem with my son is that he doesn't like sleeping alone. He'll insist that Mommy sleeps with him so that he can gentel my mulut till he drops deep into slumberland. The problem with Mommy is that she really needs this nap time to catch up on housework, blog work and personal timeout. Ni sumer nenek dia punye pasal coz when he was small, my mom would cuddle him endlessly and rocked him to sleep. Now I'm paying the price of rearing a spoilt rotten grandson.
I know I've been a bit sloppy on updating. Here's a quick update...
I know I've been a bit sloppy on updating. Here's a quick update...
Finally the apprentice ended (really miss it). The finalist were Kwame and Bill. Am really glad that Amy didn't get to the cut coz she sucked big time during the important interview with all the big kahunas of Trump Corporation. It's like she's living up to the dumb blond image. Bill got it! Yeah!!!... I was rooting for Kwame but he spoilt it for himself when he didn't fire Omarosa for fucking up and lying.
The Dad from 'Who Wants to Marry My Dad' chose Christena over Kristy. Hihi... the latter was a Miss USA once upon a time ago with huge made up boobs (they are huge I tell you! and hard too!!... ) Christena was chosen for her motherly attributes. Talk about having your kids choose a spouse for you... Quite a suspense
Zareef went to his first day of nursery last Wednesday. He had fun playing with other kids. However, the downside of being an only child is that he's used to playing alone that he doesn't know how to share. So when other kids started coming to him and playing his toys, he gets all cross and started to shout. Oh my! What a sight!! When his second visit came on Friday, his minder, Liz asked me to leave so that he'll get used to the idea of being left behind to play and picked up after awhile. When I walked out of his sight, he started to howl and wail with all his might. His screams vibrated the whole building and back. He made such a racket that I just couldn't bear to leave him behind but the nursery manager said that it's common for every child to make a fuss for the first time. I sat in the manager's office and I could hear him screaming his guts out crying for me "Nak mummy! Nak mummy!". The manager told me to be resilient and not break down to his cries. After half an hour of wailing, he finally calmed down but didn't want to play with others. He didn't even take his tea. All that time he was clinging on to either Liz or Vicky. When I came to pick him up and 4.15 pm with B, he cried again this time penuh syahdu. He'll go again tomorrow and we'll see how it goes.
Had a really weird dream last night and it wall about my ex's. All of them stuck in one dream. Didn't dare to tell B coz ironically he wasn't included. But after all... it's just a dream, ain't it?
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Do you want to marry my Dad?
Wiheeee... no can do... my dad is happily married to my mom for ages now. It's just a show which I caught on five yesterday. It's a US reality show where a dad lets his four kids choose a wife for him out of 12 bevy beauties. Two of them were eliminated yesterday. One got eliminated when given a doggy bag containing a dessert of chocolate covered strawberries. A doggy bag! How insulting!! If it was me, I'd really give them a showdown. The other one was eliminated after a champagne mixer where the dad got to know each and everyone and choose two whom he didn't felt for. When the two ladies were called out, they were led to a garage where they were put on a lie detector and asked a few questions. The one caught telling a lie was eliminated. Phewww... what a way to get a new mom. But I would say that the dad was quite good looking in a Ben Kingsley (from the King and I) kind of way. And he drives a red Ferrari!!! with a huge mansion on the golf course... man... what a catch...
Later in the evening while performing iftar with B, we caught The Apprentice. The episode was a recap done by Donald Trump on the past 10 candidates vying for a presidential post in one of his companies. B got to catch on what's what and who's who and now he's hooked! Today will show the final six - Amy, Nick, Bill, Katrina, Kwame and Troy in action. I'm voting for Amy!! She's beautiful, smart, sassy, sharp and has all these amazing ideas for each project that she's led and won.
My plan to make Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves (read previous post) did not materialized. Instead B asked if I could make sambal belacan and fry some ikan kering. Walllaaauuu!! Now the house reaks of ikan kering and I can't get rid of the smell coz it's too cold to open the windows. So every now and then, I keep on spraying air freshener till B says he gets a headache not from fasting but from the air freshener that I kept forcing on him and Zareef. Oh yeah, made a chocolate cheesecake as well coz I was craving for it.
Hmmm... Zareef is taking his afternoon nap. Might get a quick bath and think of what to eat for today's iftar. All this has made me realized how I miss home sooo much. During this time, my eyes would get bigger than my belly when I scout around for food at Bazaar Ramadhan in Bangsar. You see, before I came here, I worked in Bangsar and so would make a quick pit stop at this food mecca and buy my money's worth of food. It's like I become a food junky and every sight of food makes me salivate just like the dog in the Pavlovian theory. In fact, I spend more money on food during the month of Ramadhan than any other month. So, how is that possible when there are no devils around (they are chained and kept in hell for the whole duration of Ramadhan) to tempt or lure me? Must be the devil in me!
Was looking at some baby pictures with Zareef just now when I suddenly realized how much he has grown over the past two years. (His birthday was on 13/10). I showed him his baby pictures and he kept on saying 'Ni baby' and I would keep on saying 'No, this is Zareef'. At last he caught on and looked thrilled whenever I show him the pixs.
Opppsss... bangun dah anak mummy.. gotta go.. toodles!
Later in the evening while performing iftar with B, we caught The Apprentice. The episode was a recap done by Donald Trump on the past 10 candidates vying for a presidential post in one of his companies. B got to catch on what's what and who's who and now he's hooked! Today will show the final six - Amy, Nick, Bill, Katrina, Kwame and Troy in action. I'm voting for Amy!! She's beautiful, smart, sassy, sharp and has all these amazing ideas for each project that she's led and won.
My plan to make Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves (read previous post) did not materialized. Instead B asked if I could make sambal belacan and fry some ikan kering. Walllaaauuu!! Now the house reaks of ikan kering and I can't get rid of the smell coz it's too cold to open the windows. So every now and then, I keep on spraying air freshener till B says he gets a headache not from fasting but from the air freshener that I kept forcing on him and Zareef. Oh yeah, made a chocolate cheesecake as well coz I was craving for it.
Hmmm... Zareef is taking his afternoon nap. Might get a quick bath and think of what to eat for today's iftar. All this has made me realized how I miss home sooo much. During this time, my eyes would get bigger than my belly when I scout around for food at Bazaar Ramadhan in Bangsar. You see, before I came here, I worked in Bangsar and so would make a quick pit stop at this food mecca and buy my money's worth of food. It's like I become a food junky and every sight of food makes me salivate just like the dog in the Pavlovian theory. In fact, I spend more money on food during the month of Ramadhan than any other month. So, how is that possible when there are no devils around (they are chained and kept in hell for the whole duration of Ramadhan) to tempt or lure me? Must be the devil in me!
Was looking at some baby pictures with Zareef just now when I suddenly realized how much he has grown over the past two years. (His birthday was on 13/10). I showed him his baby pictures and he kept on saying 'Ni baby' and I would keep on saying 'No, this is Zareef'. At last he caught on and looked thrilled whenever I show him the pixs.
Opppsss... bangun dah anak mummy.. gotta go.. toodles!
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Moi's First Attempt
My first attempt ever on blogging. It was all inspired after reading hundreds of blogs done by friends so have decided to pen down (or should I say key down?) my thoughts.
Currently my landlord is upgrading our heater in the living room. Yeah about time too!... It's getting pretty chilly now with the temperature scaling down to single digits. He's kind enough to change our front door and patio sliding to doors to double glazing which is a mighty relief coz I can actually feel the draught coming through both entries.
Today's the third day of Ramadhan. This will be my third time fasting and celebrating Eid Mubarak here. Not too shabby given that I only fast for about 10 hours and the weather is not as harsh as back home. The only thing is, I get pretty hungry by noon and my tummy is making all this rumbling noises. This reminded me of my days back at Purdue when I used to have my last class at 4.30. By then when the lecture hall was quiet and everyone was listening real hard to what the prof's saying and suddenly there would be 'brrrrr' sound and everyone would look around trying to find the culprit. In fact, if there were more than one of us (malays) in the class, it would a case of tummy rumbles one after another. I used to bring in a can of soda and choc bar with me to break fast. Around 5 ish, you can hear popping and fizzing sounds everywhere in the hall and munch here and munch there.
Am trying to figure out what to cook for break of fast today. Might try my hands on making Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves. Had it yesterday at a friends house and it was scrumplicious!! Even Zareef loves it. Will see ya.
Currently my landlord is upgrading our heater in the living room. Yeah about time too!... It's getting pretty chilly now with the temperature scaling down to single digits. He's kind enough to change our front door and patio sliding to doors to double glazing which is a mighty relief coz I can actually feel the draught coming through both entries.
Today's the third day of Ramadhan. This will be my third time fasting and celebrating Eid Mubarak here. Not too shabby given that I only fast for about 10 hours and the weather is not as harsh as back home. The only thing is, I get pretty hungry by noon and my tummy is making all this rumbling noises. This reminded me of my days back at Purdue when I used to have my last class at 4.30. By then when the lecture hall was quiet and everyone was listening real hard to what the prof's saying and suddenly there would be 'brrrrr' sound and everyone would look around trying to find the culprit. In fact, if there were more than one of us (malays) in the class, it would a case of tummy rumbles one after another. I used to bring in a can of soda and choc bar with me to break fast. Around 5 ish, you can hear popping and fizzing sounds everywhere in the hall and munch here and munch there.
Am trying to figure out what to cook for break of fast today. Might try my hands on making Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves. Had it yesterday at a friends house and it was scrumplicious!! Even Zareef loves it. Will see ya.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)