Just finished reading 'Angels and Demons' another great book from the writer of the international best seller 'The Da Vinci Code' - Dan Brown . The past week has been very relaxing and quite productive too.
This is by far, the longest time I have been able to spend with my wife and Rahil since we got married. I was able to finish two novels (the ones I mentioned above) and a paper which has been accepted for presentation in a conference in New Delhi next year. I also renewed our maid's visa, visited old friends and family members and watched countless movies on Astro, Oh! and EAT a lot. I have gained back the few kgs I lost during the fasting month - all in two days. Unfortunately, as they say, nothing lasts for ever and my vacation ends on monday when I get back to work - in Kedah.
Coming back to 'The Da Vinci Code'. The book is quite controversial and is not surprising that some of my Christian friends were not really happy with the portrayal of the Catholic church in it. However, their reaction was not as bad as that of my Muslim friends when Salman Rusdie came out with the 'Satanic Verses'. Anyway, read it for yourself and you can judge.
20 November 2004
19 November 2004
Sad Loss
I was really sad to learn about the murder of Margaret Hassan by millitants in Iraq. I cannot understand why these people would kill a woman who was an Iraqi citizen and a convert to Islam. In fact she was known to be a vocal critic of the U.S. invasion. I guess to these people she was another white woman working for a foreign organization (She was CARE's International director).
Al Fatihah
Al Fatihah
14 November 2004
Selamat Hari Raya
Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri
Maaf Zahir dan Batin
Have been eating non stop today.
Maaf Zahir dan Batin
Have been eating non stop today.
10 November 2004
Balik Kota
While almost everyone I know is going back to their "Kampungs", I am going back to the big Kota - KL.
My wife's father is from Perak but grew up in Singapore and KL. On the other hand, my mother-in-law is from Perlis. My wife was born and grew up in KL - apart from a short secondary school stint in Terengganu(not a good experience, according to her). In other words she is a bonafide KL girl.
They used to go back to Perlis or Perak every Raya but now both the grandparents - grandfather on father's side and grandmother on mother's side now reside in KL. In fact, their grandmother is staying with them right now. So no more "Balik Kampung". It was intersting to note that many of our friends also don't go back to their Kampungs anymore due to the simple fact that they grew up and were raised in KL and most of their grandparents have passed away or were now staying with them in KL. I wonder how many of you guys are in the same position now.
My wife's father is from Perak but grew up in Singapore and KL. On the other hand, my mother-in-law is from Perlis. My wife was born and grew up in KL - apart from a short secondary school stint in Terengganu(not a good experience, according to her). In other words she is a bonafide KL girl.
They used to go back to Perlis or Perak every Raya but now both the grandparents - grandfather on father's side and grandmother on mother's side now reside in KL. In fact, their grandmother is staying with them right now. So no more "Balik Kampung". It was intersting to note that many of our friends also don't go back to their Kampungs anymore due to the simple fact that they grew up and were raised in KL and most of their grandparents have passed away or were now staying with them in KL. I wonder how many of you guys are in the same position now.
05 November 2004
2 Birthdays
2 of the most important ladies in my life recetly celebrated their birthdays. My daughter Rahil who turned 1 last month and my wife - who is still young ;-)
My parents came down to KL from Kota Bharu for 4 days. Rahil's birthday was a small affair with only the immediate family members and some close friends. She was introduced to Chocolate that day (my sister bought a chocolate banana cake) and as you can see from the pictures, Rahil loved it.
My wife's birthday, on the other hand was a very quiet affair. We had buka puasa (breaking of fast) together with the rest of her family and her sister bought a Cheese cake.
Our wedding anniversary and the birthdays are only a few days apart. Seems like endless celebrations but a bit tough on my pocket. I thank the government for the little extra (to my pay) last month. I couldn't have done without it.
My parents came down to KL from Kota Bharu for 4 days. Rahil's birthday was a small affair with only the immediate family members and some close friends. She was introduced to Chocolate that day (my sister bought a chocolate banana cake) and as you can see from the pictures, Rahil loved it.
My wife's birthday, on the other hand was a very quiet affair. We had buka puasa (breaking of fast) together with the rest of her family and her sister bought a Cheese cake.
Our wedding anniversary and the birthdays are only a few days apart. Seems like endless celebrations but a bit tough on my pocket. I thank the government for the little extra (to my pay) last month. I couldn't have done without it.
26 October 2004
Kill Cat
I may end up killing a cat. I know this post is not going to go down well with cat lovers, animal rights activists and others, especially my wife. My wife is the kind of person who will go down into a drain to rescue a kitten (and she has done this a few times). She won't hesitate to pick up a flea ridden - God knows where it has been - cat. All the time going "Chuck! Chuck!" - the special sound that Malaysian's use to call cats.
Anyway, coming back to my story. Most of my neighbors keep cats and some have more than one. I have never been a cat person but I kind of tolerated them. I noticed that a few of them are the cute furry Persian cats. However, what really makes me angry is that these cats have made my porch/ my garden their toilet. It is really annoying when you find cat shit in your new garden. That is not as bad as on your porch. The one in the garden, I just cover it up with some soil and that’s it but the one on the porch you have to scrap off and then wash it. And the SMELL. Even Rahil’s poop doesn’t smell that bad. I have to pour concentrated Detol on the spot and spray air freshener all around. I wonder why these cats don't poop in their own houses, with their nice gardens.
A few days back, one of my friends stayed overnight in my house. In the morning, he was really pissed off to find that a cat had done its job on his ‘Chapals’, which he had left outside the door. He’s a retired army officer and I discovered that he has some phobia of cats ever since his favourite cat scratched him when he was a kid. On narrating my particular problem to him, he suggested that I keep a pile of stones, watch out for the cat and you know what to do ;-). I replied that it might not help in improving neighbourly relations.
Yesterday, I was horrified to find a big piece on top of my precious ‘Halba’ seedlings and near the ‘pagaga’ plants. I know that this is the holy month of Ramadhan, The month of forgiveness of ‘Sabar’ but ...
Anyway, coming back to my story. Most of my neighbors keep cats and some have more than one. I have never been a cat person but I kind of tolerated them. I noticed that a few of them are the cute furry Persian cats. However, what really makes me angry is that these cats have made my porch/ my garden their toilet. It is really annoying when you find cat shit in your new garden. That is not as bad as on your porch. The one in the garden, I just cover it up with some soil and that’s it but the one on the porch you have to scrap off and then wash it. And the SMELL. Even Rahil’s poop doesn’t smell that bad. I have to pour concentrated Detol on the spot and spray air freshener all around. I wonder why these cats don't poop in their own houses, with their nice gardens.
A few days back, one of my friends stayed overnight in my house. In the morning, he was really pissed off to find that a cat had done its job on his ‘Chapals’, which he had left outside the door. He’s a retired army officer and I discovered that he has some phobia of cats ever since his favourite cat scratched him when he was a kid. On narrating my particular problem to him, he suggested that I keep a pile of stones, watch out for the cat and you know what to do ;-). I replied that it might not help in improving neighbourly relations.
Yesterday, I was horrified to find a big piece on top of my precious ‘Halba’ seedlings and near the ‘pagaga’ plants. I know that this is the holy month of Ramadhan, The month of forgiveness of ‘Sabar’ but ...
24 October 2004
Two Years
Two years! Time seems to pass so quickly. It seems only yesterday that we used to sit at Starbucks in Bangsar discussing our Economics notes. And soon we were married. Rahil came along soon. We just celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary last week. After the usual exchange of gifts – she gave me a Tissot watch. She already has a Tissot watch and bought me one with the same design - only mine is a man's watch and just a little bigger. According to my wife, we should wear matching watches and who am I to disagree. I let her choose a pair of small and shiny something from Diamond and Platinum at Mid Valley Mega Mall. I think she is happy and I am happy that she didn't choose something over a thousand and believe me there were a lot of those.
It was nearing Buka Puasa (breaking of fast) time and we rushed to Chilis on the ground floor. On enquiry, a waitress serving food there told us “no place” and walked off. She really needs some lessons in customer service. Anyway, we went in and found a long queue of people. They told us that we had to wait about 20 minutes and berbuka wasjust 10 minutes away. I was tempted to go somewhere else but my wife insisted we stay.
The people there were really kind and gave us both a Teh O Ais Limau (Lemon Tea) to break our fast. We finally got a nice place and the food was great even though we had to wait a bit. Maybe it was due to the fact that we had to wait. When you are hungry, everything is tasty. Next year, we will have Rahil with us.
It was nearing Buka Puasa (breaking of fast) time and we rushed to Chilis on the ground floor. On enquiry, a waitress serving food there told us “no place” and walked off. She really needs some lessons in customer service. Anyway, we went in and found a long queue of people. They told us that we had to wait about 20 minutes and berbuka wasjust 10 minutes away. I was tempted to go somewhere else but my wife insisted we stay.
The people there were really kind and gave us both a Teh O Ais Limau (Lemon Tea) to break our fast. We finally got a nice place and the food was great even though we had to wait a bit. Maybe it was due to the fact that we had to wait. When you are hungry, everything is tasty. Next year, we will have Rahil with us.
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