Sunday, April 28, 2013

What an eventful day...Saturday

It was morning full of activity, nak kata kalut, tak jugak. Cuma byk benda nak juggle. I had to fetch hubby from Terminal 3, he came back from Singapore. Then both of us went to SDMC for my monthly pre-natal checkup. This was almost 11am. Queue at Delaila's was long, so we decided to have roti canai at our favourite place, we drove to Fawwaz. After that was past 1130am so hubby dropped me at SDMC, still got around 10 people before my turn. Hubby then rushed home to send off Hayaa to school.
Tak sempat hubby joined my check-up. Baby was ok. Doc kata nampak mcm lelaki tapi tak berapa sure, kita tgk lah next check-up. Huiiii...kalau dapat boy, alangkah murahnya rezeki, double joy. Doa laa. After check-up, urine test & blood sampling (uggghhh...tak pandai cucuk la lab tech ni..sakit laa jugak), we went to Mandarin Oriental for lunch. While driving, mak called, ajak pi melawat Mak Teh at hospital ptg2 sikit. She was admitted sebab dah lemah demam nye psl. So that cut our afternoon trip, ingat nak layan Iron Man 3, kensel.
Dah berapa minggu plan nak makan kat MO nih, sempena my birthday. Hubby ordered : Szechuan soup, salted egg butter prawn, black pepper venison, steamed cod fish fillet and mixed vege. On top of this, I ordered 2 types of dimsum, one steamed (beef dumpling) & one fried (Shanghai style)...belasah je. Soup was niiiiceee, prawn..fuhh lemak berkrim..sedap you..and I like the not so salty and quite gritty texture of the flour layering the prawn, courtesy of the salted egg. Venison? Lembuttt siuttt. First time makan venison nih. Hubby was in ecstasy, kept shaking his head (closed eyes some more). Nampak sangat dia yang teringin makan kat MO ni benornya. We did not finish the prawn (2 pieces) and dimsum (3 pieces), kenyang. Tapauuu...! Tapau pun dapat paper bag MO class gitu, kakakaa.
After lunch, we sort of 'Touch N Go' at Coach..hmmm..remember the handbag that hubby promised. Ini lah dia! Woohooo! Suddenly mak called, she's going with Abg Tam instead. So time is ours again. Since kita dah muktamad nak beli that particular design, sebelum ni pernah stopover kat kedai to belek2, purchasing was very brief and efficient. We went back home to fetch Hayaa from school. Actually ada drama tauuu kat sini. Refer to another post.
Dapat tau, ada family friend (ex-USM) from Ipoh confirm singgah rumah for dinner. Awal2 tu mcm tak confirm lagi. So I rushed to Jaya Grocer and bought sayur2, fruits and mini ice cream for kids (ada 5 org kut). By the time I got home, Kerok & wife (Ogy) and kids dah sampai pun. Rumah dah kecah bebudak main toys. Apa lagi, start jadi General kat dapur. Macam biasa, kita kuar arahan je, askar Mbak Mus masak laaaa...ehehehehe. I did the rest : set the table, prepare drinks & cut fruits, offer ice-cream & hot drinks for after dinner.
By 8 something, Helmi & Misbah lak sampai from Penang. They freshened up (they over-night kat rumah kitaorg) and dinner pun start around 815 pm. Makan2, then 930pm kut baru beransur. Kerok dropped family at Rooftop Garden Hotel and the guys after that pi main badminton tang mana tah. Gilooo.
Fuhhh, penat la jugak malam tu tapi rasa puas hati la dapat entertain guests. My sciatica (right butt cheek) flared up really bad. Lepas duduk2 rest after rumah tu aman damai, I practically could not stand up straight. Terbongkok2 dibuatnya. Sciatica shooting pains, tangkap sampai ke buku lali. Adoiii...siang tadi dah terasa2 masa jalan2 kat KLCC. Hmmm..dah malam, jadi full-fledge la, since I was on my feet a lot. Dengan grocery shopping lah and guest entertaining lah. Tido pun, susah nak cari position yg kurang denyut2 kat sciatica nerve tuh.
Post event note : Nasib baik Senja FC menang next pagi Ahad tuh. Berbaloi org Ipoh & Penang datang. and double berbaloi kita meng entertain guest.

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Zakat Simpanan Tabung Haji

This question crops up from time to time, at least for me personally. Whether I need to pay zakat simpanan for my tabung haji deposit. I've settled this issue before via search , cuma I want to capture on this blog for my future reference.
Fresh search gives :

'From http://www.pakdi.net/adakah-kita-wajib-bayar-zakat-simpanan-tabung-haji/
Berikut adalah jawapan dari laman web Tabung Haji:
* ada link to LUTH, but link could not be found (http://www.tabunghaji.gov.my/TH/Soalan/Tabungan/Soalan%20v2/14.htm)

Adakah pendeposit TH wajib membayar zakat simpanan atas wang simpanannya di TH ?
Jawapan:
Wang simpanan pendeposit-pendeposit TH disatukan dalam Kumpulan Simpanan Pendeposit-pendeposit dan dijadikan sebagai modal perniagaan. Modal perniagaan ini dilabur oleh TH dalam bidang-bidang perniagaan seperti pelaburan harta tanah, bangunan, perladangan, perusahaan dan bidang-bidang lain yang halal mengikut lunas-lunas Islam. Kumpulan Wang simpanan Pendeposit ini hanya digunakan oleh TH untuk tujuan perniagaan.
TH membayar zakat perniagaan bagi pihak pendeposit dan dengan demikian pendeposit tidak perlu lagi membayar zakat simpanan ke atas wang simpanannya di TH.
Ini merupakan keputusan Persidangan Jawatankuasa Fatwa Majlis Kebangsaan Bagi Hal Ehwal Ugama Islam Malaysia Kali Ke-17 yang bersidang pada 3 May 1979 telah membincangkan Pembayaran Zakat Oleh Tabung Haji.

Persidangan tersebut memutuskan:
1. Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji adalah diwajibkan membayar zakat bagi pihak penyimpan-penyimpan dari wang simpanannya, dari hasil pelaburan dan dari harta yang diperniagakan serta segala keuntungan daripadanya.
2. Setelah dikeluarkan zakat oleh Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji bagi pihak penyimpan-penyimpan itu, maka barulah keuntungan bersih itu dibahagi di antara penyimpan dengan Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji menurut peratus yang ditentukan.
3. Lembaga Urusan dan Tabung Haji sendiri tidak diwajibkan mengeluarkan zakat dari harta yang didapatinya dari (ii) di atas.
4. Zakat tersebut hendaklah dibayar kepada Majlis Agama Islam negeri-negeri, mengikut kadar simpanan penyimpan-penyimpan di negeri masing-masing.'

I've searched and verified the 3 May 1979 persidangan Jawatankuasa Fatwa. See print screen below.
For complete viewing, visit http://www.e-fatwa.gov.my/fatwa-kebangsaan/pembayaran-zakat-oleh-tabung-haji
*Warning* The following is purely my own point of view and judgement.
Come to think of it, I paid zakat pendapatan (for that year). Then duit lebih pendapatan, I saved it in LUTH. I know that banks/ co-op/ etc use depositor's savings sebagai modal perniagaan. So my money becomes modal perniagaan for LUTH.
LUTH used it for their business and 1 year later, LUTH paid zakat perniagaan on the profit that they made out of depositors savings including my savings (1st zakat on LUTH savings/modal niaga). Talking with my feelings here, rasa macam over la pulak if I have to pay for zakat simpanan (2nd time zakat??!) on the same year...kena zakat 2 kali on same asset?
My take is, talking with some rationalization here, sepatutnya, sesuatu dikenakan zakat once a year (kena cukup haul/ jangka masa). So kalau LUTH dah settle kan zakat perniagaan on my savings/modal niaga, I do not need to settle zakat simpanan on my savings. For clarity, niat terus bila deposit kat LUTH yang duit ni adalah untuk tujuan perniagaan ie. the money that goes to LUTH bukanlah simpanan tetapi adalah perniagaan.
Let's look at another angle. Does my money actually in 'tersimpan' status? LUTH may have used it to buy land, invest, build properties etc. How long is my money in 'tersimpan' status? How long is my money in 'business-mode' status? Cukup setahun kah? Just leave it to LUTH lah. Kalau dia kata duit tu is in 'business-mode' then it's obviously not 'tersimpan' mode.
Another angle. I worked for a year and paid zakat pendapatan for that year. From my pendapatan, I've got some extras which I bundled & gave to a 'body' to do business. After a year, business was profitable and zakat perniagaan was paid for it, with the assistance by the 'body'. I got back my original business money plus profit and dumped this load in a bank savings account. After a year, I got some dividend and paid zakat simpanan for the savings & dividend (since this bank does not pay zakat on my behalf). Fair is it? Just pay zakat for that particular harta once a year.
Wallahu'alam.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Bibik and Hypertension

Bibik is in the borderline of 1st stage hypertension (hi blood pressure). End of last week, Hayaa told bibik yang mata bibik merah. True enough, there were streaks of bright red in her white eyes (left eye). Apparently this has happened before while I was in Lyon and family stayed in Sepang with Mama & Baba. Mama said salur darah bursted and gave her eye drop during the first incident.
Just to make sure, we took bibik to Klinik Menara. Yep, doc confirmed burst capillary which will clear in few days and no effect on vision. He asked whether accidentally she rubbed her eyes too strong, or pricked her eyes with nails, or had extreme cough/sneeze. Neither of those, bibik said. Doc checked blood pressure, it was 144mm Hg (is the unit correct?) and limit for 1st stage hypertension in 140.
So the theory now is the eye blood capillary burst because of the HBP. And search results on the website says so. She must have it for quite some time coz once in a while she would experience headache and dizziness. We advised her to reduce salt intake and I need to buy more fruits and vege for her daily consumption. I also plan to take her for a full medical check-up, just to make sure there's no underlying reason. Kut laa ada renal problem, cholestrol tinggi, etc. Diabetic dak kut, kebetulan Klinik Menara ada buat free glucose test and she got results like 6.7.
Dah lama tak buat medical check-up for her, since FOMEMA requires medical check-up for those working in year 1-3 only (ke? lebih kurang la..). Then 1-2 months or so, we'll go for a return check-up. Hish..risau la jugak. Tak mahu la nanti dia balik for good tapi sakit2. Also risau la kan, sebab dia yg dok jaga my kids and one baby is coming.

Gift and free stuff today!

Fifi turned up today, ada ala2 study group dgn Anil. Tak semena2, dapat la pulak macaron KLCC..besday prezen. hmm..hmm. I like this one than the one yg Shikin bawak from Paris (maniiiiss benor). This one manis la jugak tapi takde le maneh bebenor mcm Paris punya. Dah di Malaysianized kut.
Patutnya amik gambo time kotak penuh..lupa hihihi
After lunch pulak, mdm Suri terhengen nak minum San Fran, alang2 tengah ada offer buy 1 free 1 with CIMB credit card, tak semena2 kita pun dapat la habuan. Nompang rezeki org, alhamdulillah...ni second cup actually. Last week Nida yg belanja...kakakaka. Doc Delaila tak bagi minum kopi...ah, belasah je. Bukannya minum bercawan2 pun. I am limiting myself to 1 cup a week.
Macam gemuk pendek la pulak. Regular cup je pun. Janji sedaaap.
Itulah rezeki saya hari ini. Syukur alhamdulillah. Moga2 murah rezeki opismate2 nih..amiin. Lepaih ni nak redah drive balik rumah plak. Haihhh...be prepared for the jam (hujan ni...)

Monday, April 22, 2013

Shah Alam..senarai penuh calon PRU13

Calon2 nya adalah (drumrolll) :

P108 Shah Alam
Khalid Abdul Samad (PAS)
Zulkifli Noordin (BN)

N40 DUN Kota Anggerik
Mohd Yusof Din (BN)
Yaakop Sapari (PKR)
Eriq Faisal Rusli (Bebas)

N41 DUN Batu Tiga
Datuk Ahmad Nawawi M Zin (BN)
Rodziah Ismail (PKR)
Mohd Uzir Che Husin (Bebas)

Gedik la pulak ahahahaa..hai first time nak mengundi. Teruk, tak teruk. Dulu2 tak heran dgn politik2. Tapi lately ni jadi heran sebab rasa hampeh benor gomen la ni. Lagi2 bila duit rakyat ditabur2 sesuka hati.
Last Sunday, actually ada segerombolan BN campaigners kat Pasar Tani. Tak kecoh2 pun, macam jalan2 cari makan kat pasar je derang2 ni. Tak perasan pulak yang mana satu calonnya. Takde pun orang kerumun, salam2 or amik gambar.
About 20mins later, ada one guy tiba2 melintas in front of me raising his HP camera high. Apakah pulak? Initially I thought he wanted to take impressive food photo (like earlier I saw 1 lady taking photo of kambing golek). Then I saw segerombolan orang, oooOO..PAS nye campaigners la plak. Much smaller nye gerombolan, easily 1/3 of BN's. Then I saw the calon YB Khalid, easily spotted lah kan sebab 2-3org nak amik gambo and bergambo. Ada jugak org salam2. Sama je, tak kecoh2 pun. Org datang nak beli brg pasar beb, bukannya nak tgk org berkempen, so rilek2 je sumer orang. Baguslah.
Seronok pulak rasenya..seronok sebab bahang PRU13 dah terasa, now that I've decided to vote and seriously vote. Ni bukan atas2 pagar, or ikut2 orang. Did and still doing my homework and making an informed decision to cast my vote. Apa2 pun, teringat blog Prof Dr Muhaya (sori kalau salah eja), 'Undi supaya senang menjawab di akhirat nanti.' Ohhh! Sangat2 setuju. Thanks to opis mate Tadha for sharing this fine view.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Boston Marathon...now Bukit Gasing

A lady runner was stabbed Saturday PM when running the trail in Bukit Gasing. She was with her daughter when both were approached by 2 armed men (wearing full face helmet - to remain anonymous I guess). She managed to tell her daughter to run for safety while she blocked the armed men. Unfortunately, the stab that she received punctured her lung and she died due to the injury.
Aiiii...sedihnya..heard this news on SinarFM. Can't help feeling that the person scouting for SinarFM news is a runner as well. Police suspected this as a murder case. Wallahu'alam..jauhkanlah kami sekeluarga daripada orang2 yg zalim, Ya Allah.

Coloring Contest @ Space U8

The event was in Saturday early morning. We were a bit worried, takut Hayaa' liat nak bangun, get cranky etc since dia ni jenih bangun lambat. So we started to brainwash her ever since we received the notification about the event. It was a bit helpful that she was excited to go for the event. Friday night, ingat nak suruh dia tido awal. Hmmm...tgk2, ada Underworld : Awakening, which I have not watched yet, starts at 10pm ends around 12midnight. Nak tgk jugak...kalau nak tgk jugak maknanya bebudak pun tido lambat laa..Diaorg ni bukannya pandai nak tido sendiri, except maybe Huda kalau dia ngantuk. Gamble je lah, kalau Hayaa cranky susah nak bangun esok pagi.
Saturday morning. Hubby tepuk sikit je Hayaa. "Hari ni kita nak buat apa?' She woke up saying, 'Kita pegi SpaceU8.' Hubby told her to go downstairs for he milo/susu (emmm..she's still on bottle hokay) and she happily went downstairs. Kakakaka..that was easy! Thank god! Huda awal2 lagi dah bangun, this early riser sorang nih..senang nak urus sket.
SpaceU8 were thronged with people by the time we got there. Ramai sungguh! Apparently, the invitation to the event was given to schools within Shah Alam. Registered Hayaa and ushered her to a spot and sat her down. Siap bukak lah tray makan IKEA aka makeshift meja mewarna. Nampak jugak la 2-3 org, came complete with kusi kontot, fuuuuhh!
While waiting for the event to start
 Agak panas la jugak courtyard tuh. The rest of family members had to stand aside. Oh yes, kitaorg angkut sekali bibik & Huda. Dekat je pun mall ni. Kalau event dragged too long, Hubby planned to send both bibik & Huda balik while I wait for Hayaa. Coloring started at 9am. Penat weh berdiri preggy2 nih. Terserempak pulak Kak Ja. I think dah 2 tahun tak jumpa dia! The last reunion was raya 2 years ago. Apparently one of her kids joined the event. So we chatted, catching up on stories. Kak Ja dah nak bersara next year from TUDM. Baru je umur 39! Rupanya, TUDM tak simpan orang lama2. Keep them fresh hmmm?
Maintain muda je Kak Ja pun, cuma berisik sket
 Lepaih tu, we parted for a while to check on the kids. Hmmpphh..parted for good pun. Tak sempat nak salam2. Tak larat nak berdiri, we decided to makan2 kat Simply Reca. Makan sempoi2 je. We ordered a plate of Thai fried rice, sotong goreng tepung and hot drinks sorang satu. I ordered hot lemon tea, agak manis. I drank half and poured warm water to dilute, taste went ok after that. Sotong goreng tepung sedap. Nasik pun sedap. Harga steep...ehehehe. Hubby bayar. Dia yg chose the place. Ada je mamak (Restoran Subaidah) few shoplots away.
Huda ate most of the fried rice. Early riser and good eater. Sayaaang anak mama. See the sotong goreng tepung?
Once in a while, hubby would check on Hayaa. Bibik & Huda pun would take a walk to Hayaa, just to stifle the boredom of sitting & doing nothing. Me? Update staus kat FB lerrr..eheheheh. When the food was just about to habis, Hubby checked for one last time, telling me that Hayaa dah start melangut. Most kids were..dah habih mewarna laa tu. But she did not submit her drawing yet..So kitaorg perabih all the food & drinks, bayar and off we went.
Memang betul dia dah dok melangut with one little girl (classmate kut). So I asked her nak balik tak and she nodded. I guessed she was a bit turned off by the loudspeaker high volume. Once in a while she would tutup telinga. We were about to move from the courtyard when I saw hubby signaling from sidelines to submit her drawing...ada ka pegi selit dalam goodie bag Dutch Lady. I took out the drawing. Punya lah bland..sorry heh Hayaa..memang bland pun! Warna macam tak tekan je pensel warna tu..hahahhaa..memang confirm tak menang punya!
Oh yes, I saw 1 chinese boy pulun mengaler. Fuhhh..memang naik la warna drawing dia. And mom was looking on, macam kiasu gitu. And the boy was like looking at her mom for approval. Memang la kiasu...cher tgk Hayaa nye drawing? Mau cik kak tu koyak & bakar kut kalau anak dia kaler cam tu. Tak sempat pulak Mama snap Hayaa nye drawing, kalut nak kuar from courtyard...sebab parents bukannya boleh loiter kat contest area. Tapi sempat la snap Hayaa with School, mascot Dutch Lady kut?
Not so scary heh? Dulu2, punya la takut dgn any mascot.
Tak pe Hayaa. Mama bukannya nak Hayaa menang. I just want you to have the experience of entering a coloring contest. And I know you were having fun, you said so yourself when we were walking back to the car (you still had your hands latched to your ears..Walid bagi tau dah tak bising, baru Hayaa nak turung tangan..ish ish ish). And you said so again in the car. Lain kali kita participate lagi eh?
By then, it was about 1045am. Fuhh..best, balik rumah & sambung malas2an.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Yesterday was my birthday..on the verge of 40s (o_O)

38 years old already. Gahhh! Nothing earth-shaking happened though. Biasa-biasa aje :)
Let's see..Hubby wished me this morning before we parted our ways to the office. Sempat la tanya kita nak apa. So I gave the customary answer, 'apa2 je laa..'. As if he didn't remember about the Coach handbag that I told him 1 month ago! Men!
Hmm...then I got this one call early in the morning from Fifi. He asked technical questions regarding treatment chemicals. At the end of it, he wished me HBD...ohohoho! The first person office mate to wish me so. Kita pun saspek, adik2 yg lain di opis ni pun mesti tahu jugak kan?
Anyways, around noon, Nida came to my cubicle, saying that she would like to eat early. 'Lapar'. Kita ok je. Preggy2 ni, perut sentiasa mintak diisi. I even brought my nasi lemak bungkus & kuih lopez (tak sempat mkn lagi..dah bfast actually kat rumah, gatal beli kat kedai mesra). 6 of us going down the elevator and somebody said let's go to Pizza Hut. Kita ok je, so I blurted, 'Ok je, kita belanja, hari ni birthday kita.' Tiba2 je...kecoh. 'Alaaa! KMar ni, spoil laaaa..tak surprise laa!' Kakakaka..hmph, siap hentak kaki lagi sorang tu. Sorry for spoiling my own birthday makan2? Apakah..?
I decided to go for another notch, 'Nanti ada saper2 lagi keee nak dtg Pizza Hut and say 'Surprise'?' That earned me rolling eyes. Kakakaka..So we took our seat and sorang tu terlepas cakap, 'Eh, Syau tak sampai lagi?' Hahahaah..kena marah awek tu, pecah tembelang. Kita pun ngusik laaa..'Ooo Syau datang, dia dtg bwk kek ke.' That one earned a ala2 merajuk note 'Hah, I don't want to say anything.' Hoh, ye lah tuuuu..cake is coming. And yes, few minutes later datang lah minah tu dgn Secret Recipe, serang hendap tak menjadi coz I turned and saw her a few feet away. Spoil lagi eh? Hahahah!
Maka makan2 lah kami, dgn my favorite slice of cakes (carrot & choc walnut brownies), thanks to Nida's insider information. It was raining lebat gila, by the time we were done and last round of wishes were conveyed (sempat lagi budak2 ni ngutuk, 'Kmar yg menspoilkan birthday mkn2'...kekekeke), the rain cooled down a bit.
Hmmm..itu citer belah tgh hari. Citer belah malam. Hohohoho...got my birthday present from hubby when we got home. Tiba2 je hubby sua beg recycle wih a box wrapped in newspaper (!). hahahah..Katanya, I would agree not to bazir2 balut dgn nice wrapper. Betullah tu! Should have taken the photo of the box. From the size, I guessed that it's an ipad. Betul lagi tuu. I joked about the handbag..tak ade lah ye? Guess what, 'abg bagi lah jugak nanti'...woooopsie! best ke haper. Sempat plan time tu to eat out this weekend and go & buy the handbag...suke..suke.
I was about to shred the newspaper cover when I saw two airmail envelopes on the dining table. Yeyyyy!! My online ordered charms are here. Sapa sangke, ngam2 sampai on my birthday. A gift to myself yg sampai on time plak tu...hebaat..hebaat. So I took both the still wrapped box and the envelopes upstairs. Yep, white ipad. While unboxing Hayaa saw the ipad. I told Hayaa that it's my birthday and asked her to sing me a birthday song. Kekeke..so dia pun nyayi lah. As a happy2 closure, I requested a kiss from both Hayaa & Huda. Muahhh..muahhhsss!
The new ipad with retina display..pakai old cover dulu..bak kata San Francisco Coffee, Life is Good.
Gift to myself. Trollbeads bracelet & charms - fav charm coffee bean. Tenyeh la jugak Pandora charms
*sigh* so secara amnya, it was a good birthday..hmm..tapi ada satu benda je yg tak terjadi. Mama selalunya antor sms. Lupa kut. Well..I'm sure there will be some habuan for me. Itu byk tahun tak miss. We'll see lah what I will get next from mama. Teruk eh...eheheheh?

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Felt the baby moves :)

There were few occasions before that I thought (with some uncertainty) that I felt the baby moves. But last night, confirmed lah baby kicks ke/ jab ke/ whatever kekekeke. I was watching A Gentleman's Dignity (k-drama) on NTV7. The show ended and I was about to rise from the sofa when I feel a jab/pull/twinge/something on the left side of my tummy.
A bit surprised by the strange sensation at first, but I figured it out 2-3 seconds later 'must be the baby'. Hiihihi..hello baby. The second sensation was when I got upstairs and about to lie on the bed. Hmmm...I'm marking 10-1015pm as the probable time for baby to make it usual presence know.
Penting tu. Last pregnancies, Dr Delaila advised me to note the routine ie when the baby moves, frequency & duration, nature of movement. Any deviation or changes from the routine is the time to be concerned. Na'uzubillah. Mintak2 lancar lah pregnancy ni. Amiin.
Oh yes, happy birthday to me ehehehe.

Monday, April 15, 2013

Boston Marathon 2013..what a tragedy

Oh my god...2 bombings near the finishing line of Boston Marathon. Sapa yg jahat sangat ni. This is truly a sad day for running community. 3 were killed (including 8 year old boy..sedihnya) and 100plus were hurt. This is really terrible. Jahatnya diaorg ni...Ya Allah, semoga orang2 ini mendapat balasan di akhirat dan jauhkanlah kami dari malapetaka seperti ini.

“Today our running community, our family, was attacked. No matter where we live, what we do, how fast we are, what our dreams are, what we are running from, or where our miles lead – we are a running family. We mark miles, we ache, we try, we fail, we triumph and we endure. I don’t know if our family was the target, or if the splendor of the event or venue was the intended backdrop – but it doesn’t really matter. We are hurting. We are wounded. We are wondering. We fear. We grieve.

Let’s instead do what runners do best. Let’s be strong. Let’s be patient as information comes in. Let’s pace ourselves. Let’s endure. Let’s close the gap and tighten up the pack. Let’s recover together.
The road ahead is long. But little do they know, we’re good with that.”
- Kristin Armstrong.

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Winter is coming this weekend...aaaaaa!!

Oooooooo...I really can't wait. 20th April 9pm HBO. Eheheheh..Game of Thrones season 3 lah. Last weekend, I re-watched my favourite episodes both in Season 1 and Season 2.

I got the softcopy version (thank you to Fifi, the torrent tokey). Actually, most of the episodes, I watched it on HBO, especially Season 2. I decided for Season 2, I decided to re-watch the last 5 episodes. Bengong kang kepala otak, marathon berjam2 depan laptop tu. Quite a number of scenes caught me by surprised, I gasped, I hissed. Mostly battle and gory scenes. Bleghh ! Typical GoT..
Hmmm..hopefully budak2 tu tak merengek nak tengok channel 613 diaorg la masa mama nak ngadap GoTS3 nih...

Thursday, April 11, 2013

I missed so many special running events..sob sob

The first inaugural Malaysia Women Marathon happened recently in i-City Shah Alam on 7th Apr. I registered for 21km and even dragged hubby along as pacer.  Kononnya nak jalan all the way since cut-off nye quite generous ie 4hrs. Tapi saya perasan, if I did brisk walking during the weekend, I would feel light headed the next 1-2 days. So I decided tak payah lah attempt. Membahayakan diri & baby, terpaksalah forego.
Huhuhu..terkilan la jugak. Bertambah2 terkilan when I read the race report/ review of those runner bloggers that I follow : Nannoor, Lina, Pui San. Esp Nannoor & Lina, it was their FMV. Aaaaa jeles..anyways, good for them. Takpa, I know my time will come. Be patient heh. Baby is more important. Nanti baby besar, kita nak mengadu kat dia, bagi dia tau sikit mama kempunan lari masa ngandung kat dia (teruk tak? kakakaka).
This year, I plan it to be my year of half marathons. I've registered for 21KM events banyak ooo. Forego lagi... *sigh* nasib baik tak frust menonggeng, since memang kami dua org berusaha to get another kid. So in a way, di sudut hati tu tau things like this will happen.
Let's see those that I had and am going to forego...Brooks HM in March, this was supposed to be my 1st HM. I planned to run maybe up to 15-17KM (coz I've done 14KM) then walk all the way kalau tak larat, just to get a feel of HM. That one, first time they are giving out mini trophy instead of medal. Hubby pun tak lari sebab dok demam je few weeks before (ke dia pun ter'infect' with morning sickness..hmm..hmm?). We both gave away our race kit. My friend Yat ran with my bib and her boss ran with hubby's. Thanks Yat, terubat hati..siap dedicated the run to me on FB. Uhuhuhuh.
Next, would be the SCKLM. Konon2nya mother of all marathons in Malaysia. Last year, tgk banner2 race ni in KL bersepah2, pasang hajat je la time tu. Time2 tu, baru nak jinak2 berlari. This year, I registered me & hubby for 21KM. Yat is also joining. Takpe lah, terpaksa ku lepas kan jugak. Harap2 hubby proceed lari. So far, dia dok pegi gym 2-3 kali seminggu. Tak pikir lagi nak let go race kit ke saper.
Lagi satu, idea gila la jugak, I registered for FM, River Jungle Marathon for both of us. Heheheh..I plan to lenggang kangkung je this one, since the cut-off time is quite generous ie 8 hrs. Tapi organizer ni pun cannot make up their mind. Kdg2 website kata no cut-off (really?!) since they made it explicitly clear that this is not a race. Pastu, tak jadi pulak (duhhhh...) since kesian kat volunteers berjam2 and berpanas menunggu. Yang ni pun tak pikir nak let go race kit ke saper.
Byk lagi yang lain2, tapi the next one that I look forward to is Penang Bridge Marathon, Yat's homeground. She has been running this one every year, kalau tak injured lah. And this year is going to be run on the new 2nd link bridge..Uwaaaa...another special event that I missed.
This is the HM that I look forward to. I like hubby's medal last year. He ran solo since at that time I was in Lyon for work (sempat lari in J'oggiles 14.5KM okayyy..geram nye pasal missed out Penang Bridge). So I was hoping another beautiful medal AND after series of HMs, I sort of planning for a PR/ serious HM race on this one. Yang awal2 HM tu, just to set baseline.
This one would be the merriest as well. Yat & hubby will be running (of course, kita laa yg tolong register kan), together with Bedeng and Achai (kita jugak yg tolong register kan...apa laa..sib baik I enjoy register benda2 ni, so buleh la nak tolong register kan). This is part of their preparation for Mount Kinabalu hike. Another event I'll be missing...dah register for Kinabalu then 2 weeks after got to know preggy..nangis (hehehe..tak le nangis, saja drama)...Tgh pantang kut during hiking date. Few of friends based in Penang have voiced their interest to join the run ie Pokja, Amon. There will be a convoi driving from KL to Penang and we have offered to port in Gambier. Aiii..best nya. Kalau tak meriah, tak tau la.

Hahhhh..itu lah dia. Dear baby (baru 14weeks kut), I know you are worth it. In fact tak patut pun dicompare your worthiness dengan siri2 HM nih..you are way, way above. Macam lah mama tak bleh masuk event2 ni following year kan. Tapi mama nak sulk jugak..uwaaaa. Bagi chan la mama sulk eh? Sayaaaang baby.

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Perut kembung bila petang2

Bila petang2 je, my stomach will be bloated. It usually starts around 6ish. By 7ish, perut kembung tu jadi full-fledge lah. Time2 ni rasa lemau, mengah, nak muntah. I don't know why. Nak kata lapar, tak jugak. Bila dinnertime, makan pun tak bersemangat, sebab perut rasa dah sengkak. So makan sikit2 je la. Thankfully, 10 mins or so after dinner, the bloating would be gone.
Hmmm..why do I feel this would only occur duirng weekdays but not during weekend. Need to observe some more. I've got one theory ie I do not have this problem during weekend because I can 'vent', do 'pressure release' (sorry la, kalau dah engineer tu, term2 engineering jugak la kuar), anytime and anywhere at the comfort of my house. At the office, I had to do 'containment' causing serious 'pressure buildup' kekekeke. Logic tak?

Learning to play guitar

I wanted to be able to play guitar since I was in my secondary school (primary school, I wanted to play violin, only God knows why). What actually triggered my interest to play guitar? It happened when I listened to an instrumental song, guitar exactly. The song titled 'Wishful Thinking' by Earl Klugh. Go on, try listening to the song. It's sooo cute and soothing and really calls up my happy2 thoughts/ moments.
When I was in uni, I started noticing people who have guitar or able to play guitar - cousins, friends, dorm mates - and I would feel so jealous of them! I was schooled in sekolah agama, so it was not that easy to pick up a guitar and strum, without earning serious rebuke from my parents (so I thought). But lo and behold, one day my youngest brother came back from his semester break strapped with a guitar. He would strum (and made noise - not music) and my parents said nothing...huh. I was already working at this time. Learning to play guitar was a hazy dream, not forgotten, but a dream nonetheless.
A couple of times I did try to initiate my guitar leaning curve. Once was during my 2nd maternity leave in which I borrowed my sis-in-law's guitar. I took 3 months of leave and thought I would be able to learn it during this time. Nope, did not happen. Busy with baby I guess. I returned the guitar, the bag dusty from lack of use.
Towards the end of 2011, THE SONG happened. Hehehe..that song re-ignited my interest. I cried listening to that song. It was so beautiful and I said to myself, wouldn't it be heaven if I can play this song with a guitar. After listening to rounds and rounds of this song, the spark became a fierce fire, burning uncontrollably. Everytime I listened to this song, I would imagine holding a guitar and I would strum the invisible guitar along with the song. And so it began, my journey to play guitar. Hihihihi...the song?
Best kan lagu niii???!!!
I borrowed the guitar again from my SIL. This would be my second attemp. Thankfully, I found a website which gives tips and tricks to be successful in learning to play guitar. I found one tip which really strike me hard. Basically, I need to make sure the guitar is readily available and within reach so that everytime the urge is there, I just need to reach for the guitar. Last time, I always zip the guitar bag into its bag and unzip whenever I feel like playing. It was a hassle and tedious. The tip really works for me. This time around, I keep my SIL guitar out of the bag, at the corner of my room.
Come April 2012, I thought, why not ask for a guitar from hubby as my birthday present. Hehehe..it happened okay?! So this month, it would be 1 year since I first held my own guitar. Frankly, my favourite birthday present ever!
Yamaha FG700MS model bought in April 2012 at Yamaha Music Shop in Subang Parade. Love it..muahhs!
 Remembering the precious tip, I even bought a guitar stand. I also bought a capo since Thousand Years requires a capo at third fret (chewahh..bunyi mcm pro gitu...akakakaka). Bought as well a soft guitar bag. Got a free guitar pick which was lost, my kids somehow berebut2 nak main dgn pick ni, I dunno where it goes. Never mind, I prefer to use my finger and nails.
My beloved guitar on a stand, within reach 24/7. The one & only? Only time will tell :)
It took me 2-3 months to be able to play Thousand Years, not bad huh?! Ehehehe...courtesy of Youtube. Thank you Youtube for making it happen! And maybe 2-3 months for me to be able to play as well as sing Thousand Years (am I cool or what ahahahah!). So far, that's the only song that I can play fully. Other songs..hmm..let's see. I can strum fully What's Up (4 non blondes) but could not yet sing along. I can play sing the verses & chorus of Someone Like You (Adele) but not the bridges. I plan to complete learning Adele's, then maybe move to a happy2 and crowd singing song like 2 Steps Behind (Def Leppard).
Wish me luck eh?

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Hayaa's Art Gallery

My eldest is 7 this year and currently she is crazy about drawing and coloring, especially rainbows. While I was lazing on the bed, she creatively turned a nook of my (cluttered ehm!) room into her personal art gallery. How she did it? She wound a string around two trophies, turned it into some sort of a make-shift cloth-line. Then she swiped (I think from the bibik, Nenek Mus) the cloth pegs and attached her drawings to the cloth-line.
Tadaaa! Her first unofficial art gallery. Please ignore the clutter hokay?

Close-up Gallery #1

Gallery #2

Gallery #3
Hayaa's work. Ada sekali tu, Huda pergi 'knock' on the house, saying 'Eyo, eyo'. Cute heh?
Oh yes. Unfortunately some of our walls also become the 'drawing canvas'.
This was 2-3 years ago, Hayaa's work. Still there :D
Ni Huda nye hasil tangan kut
Yg atas tu mcm Hayaa punya kerja. Bwh2 tu, Huda kut.
Yep, berconteng2 dinding. Nasib baik depa conteng tingkat atas je. Tunggu lah budak2 besar, baru nak repaint.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Parlimen bubar akhirnya...

Uihhhh..berjanggut menunggu weh. Yesterday, I got so worried over the fate of Malaysia, when PM announced BR1M for PETRONAS which is RM1000 per person. Telekom (RM500/person), TNB (1 month salary) they also got BR1M. Sheesshh..this guy is spending government money (aka rakyat's money) like he owns it.
And somebody said there was a rumor that we may not need to pay tax for 2012. Aiyooohh..I got more worried. Habih la kering kontang our nation's coffer. When parlimen dibubarkan hari ni, I was so relieved. No more menabur2 duit...for now. I guess, LHDN is business as usual also.
Anyways, my purpose for this post is to make sure that I remember who has served my area as ahli Parlimen (Shah Alam) and ahli DUN (Kota Anggerik). YB Khalid Abd Samad (PAS) and YB Yaakob Sapari (PKR) respectively. Baca2 internet, gayanya macam both will be bertanding in PRU13. Who else will be bertanding? Mari kita tunggu dan lihat.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

I sneeze and scramble for Vitamin C

Does Vitamin C boost our immune system? Seems that the jury is still out there on this, but most of the time the doctors that I gone to would prescribed Vit C. So every time I have indications of falling sick, I would pop the Vit C pills. Among my favourite indicators are sneezing, throat discomfort and chills. If I took Vit C as soon as possible, InsyaAllah the indicators will go away. If I took 'em too late, the sneezing escalates to sore throat, then escalates some more to running nose, then it will develop into full fledge cough or flu.
I sneezed in the car today on the way to work and I sneezed again after having breakfast. Apa lagi, pop one Vit C pill la. Hehehe...I do believe Vit C boosts my immunity. So much so, I have a bottle of it stashed in my office drawer.
Buffered C by Blackmores, 1000mg
I take buffered Vit C. This was advised by my colleague mdm Siti. Konon2 nya a slow release of Vit C is beneficial for the body to absorb it fully, rather than subjecting the body to a sudden slug of Vit C. Another colleague told me that human body is not capable to absorb more XXXmg of Vit C in one go (I forgot..ehehe). The excess Vit C will be release through urine.
2 weeks back I had batuk & selsema. Thank god that was a short one. I recovered quite fast. Years ago I used to suffer batuk & selsema like 1-2 months. So, hopefully me popping Vit C this morning will stop me from developing cough again.