excel^^adorable

Gayana Getaway (^^)

2012-01-20T22:24:00.004+08:00

I know it's too early to be stressed out, but yes I'm all stressed out!! I had low blood pressure on the second week of January and had a good 2 days off from work. The full diagnosis was 'low blood pressure due to severe dehydration'. And upon hearing this, I was like "o that explains why my lips are dry for the pass few days~"

I've been busy with personal projects actually and those are the source of pressure in my life right now. Too many thinking, decision making and logistics. So, on Saturday afteroon, when things were not in my way, I opened the booking.com website and search what kind of getaway that I can find nearby. I want a pure relaxation getaway; one where I can sit and let the time pass like nothing matters in this world... O yeah and I got in Gayana. And that cost me A LOT! Like A LOT. but I don't really mind :P

2pm: The idea popped out and made a quick search in the internet
2.30pm: Text bff Z, asked her whether she's free to join me
2.35pm: Make my booking in Booking.com and called the reception counter to confirm our departure from JP's jetty
4.30pm: Off to Gayana Eco Resort \(^^)/ Yeehaw!!!!!!!!!

This is Gayana Jetty. See how dense the jungle at the back. I just can't believe my eyes when I saw that; a dense jungle in just 15 minutes boat ride from KK! Wow!

This is Rimba Valley where our room is located. Our room was facing the jungle but it doesn't really matter because we were only there at night. That evening we spent our time strolling around the resort and drinking at the sunset bar.

In the morning, we went fish feeding after breakfast. The pic below is the king fish. They look like sharks but they're not at all related. We were very surprised to see how aggresive the fish were here. Not only the king fish that is; the Jack fish, the Grouper. There were all aggresive. This reminds us of this sign board that we actually laughed about in Sipadan that says something like 'Do not feed the fish. Fish feeding will upset the biological balance on the reef'

This is actually funny if it's directly translated into Malay. But then in Gayana we were like "Oooo.. This is what it means by 'biological balance upset'.."

They have this Marine Eco Research Center there where they do projects to conserve marine life like corals,clams and fish. I kind of enjoy seeing all the marine life inside the aquarium since I don't have to think about air tanks, depth and drowning. We saw this slim version of Patrick star in the touch pool!!

And the rest of the day was spent with snorkeling, canoeing and swimming in the infinty pool that I bragged about in FB

Semuanya ada d KK!! (^^)/

2011 in a glance & 2012 resolutions

2012-01-16T22:30:00.001+08:00

Here goes some flashback...

2011!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Family & Friends...

I'm very much thankful that I'm posted in Sabah instead of KL now that I'm closer to my family and school friends. I guess I've been away for too long to remember what a wonderful place Sabah is. In addition to the less traffic and crowd, I've my family and friends that are always there to support me through ups and downs. I no longer have to only listen to my mom stories about their picnics and get together because I actually have the chance to be there to join them. I was thinking maybe if I am in KL, I won't get to see my UIA friends as much as I can hang out with my school friends here. I love the 'classic' SMSLian hang outs; we just sit in a restaurant, chat, reminisce SMSL memories, observe and appreciate our surroundings, have a hearty laughs, karaoke and movies. In 2011, I had many of those hangouts that I lost count. Sweet!!!!

Career...

On the 1st half of 2011, I was still on training. I was shifting to a new department in monthly basis and I found it hard to cope with that especially when I started my clinical pharmacy training. But then when the training ends and I was officially a fully registered pharmacy, things started to get into my way :) Alhamdulillah. I was given the post of my preference which is inpatient pharmacy. So, for the 2nd half of 2011, I found joy in my work. One good thing about working in a setting with lack of facilities is that you get to be more independent and that also means that you get to learn more. Yes, I have to deal with more work loads, have to keep up with manual recordings and have to browse through references every now and then because there's no compilation of things that I'm searching for. But that's just one of the 'places' from which the joy radiates; the opportunity to learn something new in daily basis. Doing something in an endless routine without gaining anything new is boring and I don't like that. I was really depressed during the 1st half that I actually read these books to be motivated again :p

Climbing...

I'd put a lot of commitent into climbing. Like A LOT! I trained 3 to 4 times a week to improve on skills and techniques and also to build strength. But still, other climbers actually climb more than I do so I actually really really optimize my training though sometimes I do get distracted and only spend about an hour on the wall and the rest was chit chat.. I achieved quite a lot for climbing too last year. I won titles for 2 events and 1st runner up in one event. I went to 3 outdoor climbs last year; Kironggu, Berhala and Bat cave in Kuching. I think I'm more into the outdoor climb than the gym. I found it easier to finish outdoor routes than the gym because sometimes the route in the gym is meant for men so being short is a setback and I needed more energy and more power to execute a move to reach a higher hold (ok bahasa climber..).. But then in one point, after I end up second that is, I found that I'm not improving. I stayed at the same grade for many months so I thought it was time to rest and start anew after that. So I stopped climbing from October to December...

Travels..

I travelled a lot last year but most of it are short trips since I can't take long leaves during training. The more you are absent, the lesser your marks babe! So, where did I go???

Brunei-->> Sandakan-->> Kuching-->> Singapore -->> Bali -->> Tawau and the islands in Seporna

The Brunei trip was with my family and I drove all the way from Sabah to Brunei. Tired babe!! I won't do that again until that annoying ferry service that connects Limbang and Brunei is replaced by a bridge!

Sandakan and Kuching were climbing trips. They are very short, you know. 3-days trip. They felt like a dream but I really love them! Love the experience and love the new friends I made there :)

Singapore and Bali were my first looooooong vacation since working. Took 5 days leave and since it was Deepavali, that accumulated to 10 days holiday! I applied for the leave like 2 months earlier hehe That was the best long holiday ever because it made me feel young again with all the thrill rides (not that I'm old~ just that it felt like student years). Bali was an adventure since there were only two of us. We were like a real explorer!! \(^^)/

And islands in Semporna is a dream came true!!! A whole new experience with those school fish and scuba diving!! (^^) It's a pure relaxation too especially the night we sat on the deck gazing upon stars. I said to zeq as I look at the starry sky, "I just can't understand how some people don't believe in God.."

All in all, 2011 is full with sweet memories.. Now let's go to my 2012 resolutions!!!!!!

Family & Friends...

I hope to maintain the good ties and closeness.. Hope to spend more quality time with them (^^)

Career...

There are many areas to improve in my career. Need to expand my clinical knowledge because it really helps a lot in being the last person to check on the medication errors. Like if you know more, you have this gut feeling that there's something wrong in the prescription and you just naturally go and double check with the case notes. This happened a lot lately; the power of gut feeling~ (^^) I already manage to lessen procrastination on 2011 so my target this 2012 is to be committed to PUNCTUALITY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Climbing...

Since there were no improvements towards the end of 2011, so I'm hoping for one at the beginning of 2012. I'm going to do a lot of work out to increase strength. I won't get bulky, okay.. Climbers have lean muscles (^^) So in these first few weeks, I'm going to do 30 minutes traverse!!! I won't climb the walls if I have to. I need to rupture the muscles to make them renewed and strengthened hehe

Travels...

I already have at least four travel plans for this year. I won't mention it here though because I want it to be a surprise hehe. Actually, to me travelling is to explore and not merely for relaxation. I can relax during public holidays and just lie flat on my cozy mattress. Travelling is when I get out of my confinement, out of my coccoon to explore what is there outside of my comfort zone of work, home, family and friends. It's the time to see places, experience the culture and meet people. Although tired after all the trips made, I will always have new energy to start again with my usual routines after that. Can't wait!! \(^^)/

Others..

Love?? Keep it for another year.. I need to see my options in other continents before I decide to have one from here hahaha

Mabul-Siamil-Sipadan (^^)

2011-12-28T22:30:00.002+08:00

Hurm.. Let me think back when did Sipadan become one of my dream destination.. Yup! It was in form four when Z and KA found out that they've met when they were much younger; when KA and his family went for a vacation and had stayed in Uncle Chang's. I recalled them telling me the beauty of Sipadan, the coconut crab (that I didn't see), turtles (that I didn't also except the new babies that just hatched that was kept in a polystyrene box), the colourful fish and the water that has four colours...

So I've waited for approximately 9 years for it to come true. Bravo!!!! Patience is golden :p (tukar sket~)

First and foremost, I want to thank Z for the wonderful weekend. She was the best host ever. The trip was flawless except for no turtles and that was not her fault at all. It was me; the unlucky one :P

So the schedule was actually like this

KK-> Tawau -> Semporna -> Mabul -> Siamil ->Mabul -> Sipadan -> Smeporna -> Tawau -> KK

I took the night flight to Tawau and spent a night in Semporna. We depart from Semporna to Mabul the next evening

This is what Z called 'Floating'. I saw the sign board that writes the real name but then I just can't remember. Maybe she'll tell us in the comment for this post :P This is a very famous place, I presume. Those who visited Semporna will surely have pictures taken here.

We had lunch at this restaurant which I also don't remember the name..

(Haziah, laen kali tulis dalam buku!!Travel blog kunun.. Semua ko lupa.. (-_-"))

They serve delectable seafood!!! We had fried squid, mayonaise prawn and blackpepper chicken.. I miss the mayonaise prawn!!!! Where can I find it in KK???

So, this is Uncle Chang's place in Mabul. We stayed in one of these chalet on our first night. The boat ride was great; the water was surprisingly calm \(^^)/

Nothing much on the first night. We just relax and enjoyed the sunset on the deck. This is the same deck where we gaze upon the stars on the second night. We waited for a shooting star to make a wish. I thought I saw one and wished to see a whale. But then I didn't even get to see a single turtle (-_-")

We departed quite early to Siamil the next morning. Z arranged a Discovery Scuba Dive (DSD) for me. Luckily I'm used to carrying heavy bags during my mountain adventures in the past. The gears are like insanely HEAVY!!!! I had this weight belt strap around my waist. And there was the oxygen tank on my back. I freaked out, of course. I was like as heavy as a hippo with not enough fat to give me buoyancy!

Okay about Siamil, I think it's a beautiful island. We don't really explore the island because the main purpose was to explore what's lying beneath the water surface. So yeah it's beautiful. Nice beach for sun bathing hehe

This is a picture of me scuba diving. This is not at all deep ok.. Y?? Because I suddenly had claustrophobic once I submerged. The fact that I'm surrounded by water scared the hell out of me!!! I went as deep as 3m and when I saw Z's leg on top of me, I realized how deep it was and I just stop breathing :P Another weird thing is that I need to touch the sand to feel 'connected' to the ground.. I don't have such need while climbing, though :P

But then I got use to the breathing and depth during the third dive. I don't have any problem in equalizing too. So, I guess I'll consider taking a diving licence in the future but I won't do this a lot. It's a rather costly hobby and I think it's just tedious to remember all the hand signals and those safety things.

We reached Mabul at 4.30pm after that dive in Siamil. Z then took me for a walk around Mabul for sightseeing. We went into the village and look at how the locals live. They were apparently happy with their simple life. We went into the compounds of the most and the second most expensive resort in Mabul and took some pictures there. I think this picture is superb!!! especially that sun ray from the other side of the island hehe O ya, that night, there was a live band in Uncle Chang's (^^)

So the big day is of course SIPADAN!!!!!!!! \(^^)/

Z warned me about the big big fish and their large numbers. I was quite nervous to be honest hehe The boat ride from Mabul to Sipadan was around 20-30 minutes; depending on the weather. In sipadan, Z and I just snorkel. But it was not the type of snorkeling that I use to do; snorkel in shallow water. This was snorkeling in deep water!!!! Like 5-10m deep, I think.

So these are among the beautiful corals of Sipadan. There were so colourful and they cover quite a huge area of the ocean bed. And you can see tiny fish swimming inside those corals. At a deeper side, we even saw Sharks!!!! White tip if I'm not mistaken. I just froze when I saw one baby shark lazing on the ocean bed. But then after two to three encounters, I got use to seeing them already. The last Shark that we saw was quite huge! Maybe my size or even bigger. From my distance, I saw the shark was as big as the French diver who was diving right in front of it.

I say, this should be my most exciting encounter of all \(^^)/

These guys are like soooooooo fast. I was reluctant to jump into the water when I first saw this huge school of Baracudas. I was afraid I'll be eaten (-_-") And guess what, in mere minutes,while I was thinking whether to jump or not, they were gone!!!! Then, we manage to find them again hehe do watch the videos below

And this is a school of Jack fish (^^) When I saw them, I thought of Nemo. You know, the part where Nemo taught this school of fish to "Swim down!!!" That's them!! hehe This is a very very huge school. And right in the middle of this swarm was this one alpha Jack Fish who is obviously bigger than the other. And once, I saw 3 Jack fish swim out of the school and then suddenly that huge Jack fish went to chase those 3 fish back into the school. Woho!!!!!

Now lets watch the videos!!!! BARACUDA!!!

JACK FISH!!!!!!!!! \(^^)/

AND SHE IS MY BEST FRIEND WHO MADE MY DREAM COME TRUE

P.S. My waterproof camera is Nikon AW100 but I used my Sony cybershot for outdoor pics except those with dates on the right side.

Mornings in Jenin

2011-12-20T10:30:00.001+08:00

Yup! I just finished another book :) But before I go on with my review, I've a story of my own..

Recently, one of my staff went to Israel for pilgrimage. I was excited to see the pictures. I wanted to see what the land of Palestine have become these days. As I was browsing through the album..

Staff: Saya rasa bagus lagi bha dorang di bawah Israel. Maju.. Yang bahagian2 orang orang Palestin ni semua miskin..

I'm very bad at hiding my facial expression. I think I gave her a frown that says "What da..!!??" I, of course, don't agree with this. Never! The Palestinians are gradually being banished from their own land and this has been going on for almost a century. Just imagine if Sabahans are being exiled from their own land by some intruder.. Owh how sad that would be. Being colonized is a different thing. You're still staying in your own land but have to abide to the rulings of strangers.. But when you're being exiled, you have to abandon your own land and could only live with memories~

But then... Many people are not aware of the issue. They heard from the news that Israel is the bad guy but don't know what it's all about...

Sooooo.. Now about the book... I like it very much!!!

The characters are fictional but the chronology of attacks on the Palestinians are true. The author goes back to the days when there is still Palestine. She described how they'd lived in normalcy; nothing to be afraid of and can just go on with daily living without fear of death.

The story actually tells about the story of a family of 4 generations. The ones who'd lived in Palestine, the ones who have to deal with exile, the ones who have to deal with massacres and the ones who'd survived and have to deal with loss.

Actually, books like this are in a way kind of similar to each other. There'll be fear, uncertainties, longings, rage and whatnot. But the cliche' never bore me because that's the reality; those are the definite emotions that will arise when you're living the life of those in the stories.

The part that touched me most is their unwavering hope to go back to their own land. Like in From Beirut to Jerusalem, the characters in this book are also persevere and very good in reconstructing life.

I also like the author's style of writing; poetic and very detail that you can clearly imagine the how it was before the war and after that.. (^^) If you like Kite Runner, you'll like this very much

Kota Marudu; Mengayau 18 Nov 2011

2011-12-12T00:20:00.002+08:00

I always wanted to spend more time with my colleagues after office hours. But having family and school friends around made it difficult to spare time for activities with them. I often miss the outings; may it be due to work or I've already made plans on the suggested date. So for this BBQ, it was me who chose the date and thanks to my colleagues because it was their jubilance that made it a reality.

I've never been to the Northern part of Sabah before. The farthest I've ever been to would be Tuaran and I've no idea of what lay beyond that. So our first destination was Nadia's house in Kota Marudu.

Honestly, in this naive mind I'd imagined Kota Marudu is a very remote place with only a few blocks of buildings, small dusty road with live stock let loose on the roadside, small wooden unpainted houses and condense untouched greenery.

Okay.. I got one thing correct, Kota Marudu is rich with greenery but there were more buildings than the ones I'd imagined and the roads were not dusty and no live stock was let loose. I happened to be fond of it right away. Such a peaceful place it was.

So that night we had a very pleasant BBQ at Nadia's backyard. Nina marinated the chickens and prawns while I'd volunteered to marinate the mutton. Nina's recipe was excellent; the aroma of the roasted chickens and prawns was tentalizing. She really put a lot of effort to make them. You can see it from the perfection of their presentation and taste! I was working night shift the night before, so I just pour the marinating sauce on the mutton and that was it :P

I really love the atmosphere that night. We shared stories about our new working environment, reminisce some memories during PRP and had hearty laughters too.

Rajin kono.. haha

I slept right away after we'd finished cleaning up. I was too tired since I only slept for about 4 hours after the night shift. In the morning, it was Adah and Nadia's turn to prepare the breakfast. Aan and I was the first to reach for the food when they were served.

Kota Marudu was flagrantly hot during the day. I was sweating profusely and just can't wait to get into Nina's car when it was time for us to go to Kudat that Sunday morning. Adah and I were the only one who haven't been to that famous place. It was a shame on me though since I'm a Sabahan...

We reached the tip of Borneo at around 3pm. We's stopped for lunch and prayer on the way.

Honestly, I immediately fell in love with that place. The white sandy beach with the gentle wave hitting the shore; it was pure tranquility. When I stepped out of the car, a gust of gentle breeze was blowing then I noticed that the sound of waves were muffled by the sound of wind; again tranquility.. It was quite cloudy that evening thus there were only some trace of sunlight but still the aquamarine water glistened to its full glory..

We walked towards this part where there were sand stones and boulders. The waves there were more violent than that on the beach. I stood on the rocks to capture some pictures of the waves but later was scared of the waves. But I think I manage to get a good shot here hehe

Some people say, there are times when you can clearly see the point where the two oceans meet; the South China Sea and Sulu Sea. They say, you can see waves from opposite direction clash with each other in the middle of the sea. I didn't get to see that though.

We actually wanted to visit some other places like the Rungus long house and the bee farm, but then it was already late and suddenly it drizzle so we decided to call everything off and head back to our respective places

It was a short trip but I really enjoy spending times with my friends. And.. I love them very much :)

Spread the Beauty~

2011-12-02T20:03:00.002+08:00

Friend: Hey! How was your Maal Hijrah?
Gg: Good :)
Friend: O.. What's Maal Hijrah anyway? I don't know...
Gg: Hijra is actually the migration of our prophet from Mekah to Madinah to spread Islam. So that marks the starting of the Islamic calendar. So Maal Hijra is actually like a New Year to the Muslims
Friend: So what do you do during Maal Hijra?
Gg: We recite prayers in the evening. Some make resolutions..
Friend: So what's your resolution?
Gg: Wo! haha You wanna know?? Hurm.. to be a better person than I was last year, I guess :P

This brief conversation is the one that compelled me to write this post tonight. The conversation lasted for about a minute and then she was off to settle something elsewhere. Not so much info for her there. But that was the most concise definition of Hijra that I can give her in that short dialogue.

I was aware that dakwah is a resposibility of every Muslim since childhood but I was always having this mindset that I'm in no position to do so. Maybe it was due to my brash demeanour. Others seem to advocate my thinking as well. I was always nagged by the Naqibahs for things I didn't do. My tazkirahs were lame and I know nobody was listening. I was the only one in the prefect board who didn't have any position in BADAR, this Islamic society for students. And I remember very well how my ustaz have to stand beside me before class when the whole class recite the verses that we have to memorize for SPM. That time I refused to recite the verses infront of him. Even as he stood beside me, I stood there with my lips pursed together.

As I grow I learn that there are many ways to contribute in the path of dakwah; and it's not necessarily about being able to convert someone from a non-Muslim to a Muslim. Amr makruf nahi munkar is the most common in my life. But of course I was almost always at the recieving end lah! But what I want to write today is about spreading the beauty of Islam itself..

Recently I was disturbed by news that I know will somehow invoke hatred among religions. I was thinking, what if all of this are not true? then it'll be on us for spreading Fitnah.. but then only Allah knows for He is the All-knowing.

But from my personal experience whereby I have a lot of non-Muslim friends and some are even my best friends, I was never preached. Dialogues between us were always about understanding each others' beliefs just like the one above. I remember one night when I was in form 2, when the lights were already switched off in our dormitory, me and my friend exchanged holy books and we read them as we lie on her bed; me reading the bible and her browsing through a tafseer of mine. So in 2007, there was an interfaith talk in UIA, actually that wasn't my first time browsing through the bible.

Throughout my life, I travelled a lot. I met a lot of people and since I can converse in English quite fluently, so I have no problems communicating with foreigners. I love it actually because that's how I can pratice using proper English without adding any lah and avoid using broken English. They always ask about my faith since it is clear that I'm a Muslim from the scarf that I wear on my head. The most common questions..

Why do you pray 5 times a day?
Why do you have to cover your head?
Why does Muslim accept polygamy?
How you find time to pray 5 times a day?
Why do you fast?

See the pattern of their questions? They are trying to seek the justification of Islamic practice. They know that Muslims practice this and that but they don't know why. And when they understand, they accept it and show their respect. And to some who don't seek to understand, these are the people who ridicule, belittle and say all those bad things about Islam in the internet.. Which finally induce hatred.

Okay.. What I'm trying to say here is..

Firstly, if you hear or read anything that you think provocative and can induce hatred towards another religion, find your facts!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't take it as it is. If it happen to be true, act accordingly. Don't be engulfed by rage because excessive anger will always , ALWAYS bring about regret

Secondly, SMILE~ :D who knows if that beautiful smile of yours can make someone greet you and start a conversation and even ask you about your faith. *That actually happen to us in Bali. We smiled and the American girl asked "Where are you from? Are you Muslim faith?" she didn't ask anything about Islam lah. We were on this very small boat*

Thirdly, Islamophobia has been around for too long already. Those fallacious bad image of Islam is too well broadcasted that the only way that we can prove that we are not as such is by treating each and every human in this world with equal kindness and compassion.

Finally, Islam is beautiful but sayang the beauty revolves only in our Islamic world and doesn't go out beyond that. Now lets spread the beauty, let it radiate all over the Universe (^^) Let all the inhabitants of planet earth know that Islam is beautiful (^^)/ Chaiyok!!!!!!!!!

Okay ini post sempena maal hijra :)

Stanley and Sam.. :)

2011-11-26T01:05:00.004+08:00

Lately, I didn't have time to finish any fiction. But I've been reading these thin books; <300 pages. Lessons from Stanley the Cat and Letters to Sam.

I bought Lessons from Stanley the Cat first and finished it in mere minutes. It's very simple yet the messages are clear and concise. It tells you of what life lessons you can learn from a pet and I deemed all in it are undeniably correct but are the things that I've failed to notice all these years of having cats in my house.

The author have been observant alright. I love the way how she connects the behaviour of a cat to our daily living. Like this part that I love..

Pursue your goals like prey. Take time to make a good plan and have patience to follow through a number of times. Failure is simply another opportunity to create a different strategy. Do not take mistakes personally

And with these words there is an illustration of a cat in a pouncing position. This is very true, you see. My cats never give up when it comes to getting something that they want. Like if they're hungry, they'll be pestering you by rubbing their body against your feet endlessly. Or they'll just annoy you with their high pitch mewing or just bite your toe and that's when I finally give up and give them what they want.

Letters to Sam~ Hurm.. I've been flipping through the pages of this book in different bookstores for so many times already. Too expensive for its small number of pages. But I finally dicided to buy this book because I needed a book that contains a collection of short stories during my travel. So, this book suits my preference since the letters are divided into several parts.

Daniel Gottlieb, the author, is a Jewish psychologist who'd been a quadriplegic for so many years due to an accident. Sam is actually his grandson who is autistic so he wrote these letters to convey his message about love and life.

In this book, we can see the world from the eyes of the disabled; how he had to deal with sudden changes, heartbreaks, acceptance and finally starting anew. My favourite part in this book would be the part when his wheelchair tires got stuck in a gopher hole. No one was home to assist him so he got stuck there for hours and got frustrated. He yelled and yelled to his frustration. When he got tired, he stopped, and start to notice the singing birds and suddenly he found peace. The birds have been singing all along but he didn't notice it because he was too busy fighting to be 'released' from the gopher hole and was too frustrated when he failed.

The moral from that part of this book is that life can get hard sometimes and we'll cry and rage over it that we can be blinded of the things that give us peace although the things have always been there all along...

So that's it for Books~ Highly recommended for those seeking motivation and inspiration :)

Bajet Trip Bali~ Bajet Bule~

2011-11-23T01:21:00.002+08:00

This is gonna be a long post because I'm just SUPER EXCITED!\(^^)/

Okay first of all, let me start on how this whole thing came about.. Initially, the trip in Singapore was suppose to be a reunion; a huge one. I messaged all singles left in our class in fb about the trip. Quite a number responded in excitement, giving me high hopes that it'll be a huge one. But then when the date finally arrived, only 4 of us could make it. Mida and I manage to get our leave but Shifaa & Ray's leave were not approved, so the two of them could only join us in Singapore..

So, Mida and I got stuck.. Dialog semase itu..

Mida: Ape kite nak wat wei lepas dari Singapore..??
Gg: Aku tengok kau.. Kau tengok aku..
Mida: Gi Korea jom!!!!!!!!!
Gg: Ko gile ke!!!???
Mida: Abis tu kite nak watpe??
Gg: Kalo la kat Malaysia ni ade tempat macam Bali...
Mida: Bali jom!!!!!!
Gg: Ko serius???
Mida: Aku okay je :)

In less than 30 minutes we purchased two-way tickets to Bali (^^)v

So this is Bali map. I took this from Yasa Bali Tour website. I was the one who did the studying and plotted the whole journey because Mida was busied with the accreditation thingy. It took me 3 weeks to plan the whole thing. I say, planning a trip is HARD and you'll have to expect the unexpected. I think I did my study rather meticulously for this trip, but still there were quite a lot of changes made. Many of my friends went there before so I got a lot of help and recommendations from them.

But the tragic part should be the earthquake that happened 11 days before our trip. It freaked the hell out of me!!! When I heard the news that Thursday afternoon, I was so disturbed that I can't proceed with my work hahaha Alhamdulillah, everything was fine after the 2nd earthquake and the trip need not be cancelled :)

The first route that I plotted was

Kuta-> Uluwatu-> Kintamani-> Amed->Lovina->Bedugul-> Tanah Lot->Ubud

For this route I'd considered the distance between places and the roads that connect them. I was hoping to cover most of Bali's major attractions. However, when we arrive in Bali, we were surprised to find that Bali is actually a very HUGE island and transport is quite costly; especially when there were only the two of us to split the cost. (-_-") One more thing, no driver wanted to take us to Amed because it is quite remote. So we'd changed our route to...

Kuta-> Uluwatu -> Kintamani -> Lovina-> Bedugul ->Tanah Lot-> Ubud

When deciding for this route, we have to choose between the corals and shipwrecks in Amed and the mountains in Kintamani.. As you can guess, the two of us can never ever ever resist mountains. Afterall, we can still snorkel in Lovina :)

KUTA

So our first destination was Kuta. We booked a hotel in central Kuta so it was very convenient to go to Legian. Actually Legian was only in walking distance from our hotel but we didn't know until our last day in Bali!!!!!!!!!

To me, there was nothing much in Kuta and Legian. Heavy traffic, too many tourists, humid and the beaches were typical.. But since Mida don't get to see beautiful beaches in Pahang as much as I do in Sabah, so kasi can la Mida excited sorang2 :p Even the outlets there are the ones that you can find in Malaysia.

ULUWATU

I've never seen anything like Uluwatu before; one of the most scenic place I've ever been to. Me standing on a cliff that rises from the ocean, watching the slow motion waves beneath me, the gentle breeze.. Pergh! Feel habes~

Actually, the main attraction in Uluwatu is Uluwatu temple which is one of the main temple in Bali. The pictures of Uluwatu that you see in my facebook are actually taken within the compound of the temple. According to the local's belief, Uluwatu temple is the home of the guardian of the south gate which evades any evil forces that tries to intrude from the South. There are nine key directional temples in Bali that protect Bali from every corner of the island.

I hate the monkeys, though. There were sooooooo many of them here and they like to grab things. We have to remove our sunglasses, leaving us no shades against the deadly Bali sun and we had to squint our eyes. I also have to hide the beads of my shawl while strolling there. I was so afraid of the monkeys that I said to Mida, "Mida, aku cakap awal2 ni. Kalo monyet tu kaco ko, aku takkan tolong ko.." hahaha

KINTAMANI

It was almost 4 to 5 hours drive from Uluwatu to Kintamani. Along the way you get to see other major attractions of Bali but we didn't stop since it was getting dark. We reached Kintamani at around 8pm and we haven't book any hotel yet there. The one where we stayed for the night was a 3 star hotel which cost us around RM220 per night but it was worth it since our room balcony is so strategic; alluring us to climb Mount Batur that is..

Climbing Mount Batur was not in our plan at all. At first we only wanted to enjoy the view. But since our room is overlooking the remarkable landscape of Mount Batur and the lake, we just can't resist the temptation. What more if our hotel offered affordable packages!!! Mida was scrutinizing the piece of paper where they printed the packages while I was at the counter settling some bills. We went off to our room with the paper in Mida's hand after that. About 30 minutes later Mida blurt out "Jom hiking esok.." and I said, "Oh, aku sbenarnye menunggu ko cakap macam ni.." hahaha

So the next morning, we woke up at 3 am, had our breakfast at the restaurant and head off to the starting point with a van. The route of Mt Batur is quite deceiving you know. Very flat ground in the beginning and slowly it becomes steeper and steeper with lots of loose rocks. The rocks here reminds me of Mt Merapi in Padang :)

Mida and I were gasping for air as we climb. After more than a year of no hiking, we've lost most of our stamina (we haven't lost it all, though :P) So when we reached the top after 3 hours of hiking, there was this very cozy hut (the one behind me in the pic) which is actually where you can have coffee and have some egg and cheese sandwich and also roasted banana. They also have this tiny room where you can warm yourself with fire. O ya, we were the only Asian tourist up there heeee

I think I've climbed around 10 mountains in my 25 years of life and I say Mt Batur has the most beautiful scenery of all!!!! Firstly, when the sun rises everything just shine like gold. I've never seen anything like that. Mida manage to capture a picture of that. Then when the clouds cleared off, the scenery was just so amazing. The lake was shimmering in its full glory. Mount Abang and and Mount Agung stood in front of us in conspicuous majesty. And as you walk around you'll see different sceneries..

Like this black soil wasteland which is actually an aftermath of an eruption. According to our guide, Mt Batur is one of the most active volcano in Indonesia. Usually a volcano stays dormant for decades or maybe even centuries. But Mt. Batur erupted for a few times in the last century and the last one dated in the 1990's. To be honest, I wasn't listening that much when he told us about the mountain. Hehe too busy with my camera :P

So this is the picture of us sliding down the volcano. I've never experience anything like this in other mountains before. It was volcanic sands all around and you just slide down as you descend. This goes for a few hundred meters. Don't forget to bring your sunglasses to protect your eyes. I didn't bring mind so I'd to cover my face with my shawl all the way down. Ahax! saye rase gambar ini sangat co0l sbenarnye hehe

LOVINA

After the mountain, we head for the beach in Lovina. We departed at 1pm fom Kintamani and reached Lovina at around 4.30pm. Lovina is not as congested as the beaches in the south. You can just peacefully stroll around the shops and enjoy your drinks at any cafe by the beach. Most of the restaurants here have live band at night so you can enjoy the music as you pass by.

It was quite hard to find halal food in this area though. It seems like almost all of the restaurants have Babi Guling in their menu. We manage to find one seafood restaurant that doesnt serve that.

Lovina is famous for its Dolphins so that was actually what I was aiming to see here. I actually thought the dolphin-watching spot is near to shore but actually it was waaaaaaay in the middle of the sea. The boat we were in was very small and no life-jacket was provided. Luckily the weather was good that day so the boat ride was not bumpy or else I would be thrown off the boat :P

We did see their fins as they swim on the water surface but only from afar. We should've waited for them to jump but the Americans who were on our boat just can't wait to snorkel. And then came the funny moment where Mida had seasickness while snorkeling!!!!!!! hahaha ok jahat :P

Git Git Waterfall

So after Lovina, we spent a night in Ubud and on the way there we manage to stop at some tourist spots too like this very tall waterfall. Well, don't trust the travel guide that much because from what I read, this waterfall should be far and hard to reach. I told Mida about it but then when we negotiated with the car rental owner, he just agree to take us there and later we found out that this waterfall is very near to the road. There was a very convenient parking space nearby and it was less than 15 minutes walk to the waterfall

Since it is very tall and with boulders below it, this waterfall give out a very immense cloud of mist. As you can see in this pic, I'm all wet! I was actually standing around 10-15m from the waterfall. I also had to constantly wipe the lens of my camera to take pictures.

Bedugul

Then we stopped at Bedugul and visited Ulun Danu temple which is set at the lakeside of Lake Beratan; another main temple in Bali. This temple is the one printed on one of the Indonesian note. The compound is so well taken care of and the climate here is quite cold.

When we were there, there was this ceremony known as Ngaben. This is actually a ceremony for the dead whereby the family members of the dead will pay respects in all main temples in Bali before the creamation of the corpse. It's very unique. All of the Hindus were wearing white and they release ducks into the the lake at the end of the ceremony. We were lucky to have the chance to witness the ritual :)

Tanah Lot

And our last stop before spending the night in Ubud was Tanah Lot. I say, this should be the must-go tourism spot of Bali. If you google about Bali, the image of Tanah Lot should be among the first to appear on your screen. We reach here just before sunset. It was the low tide that time so we could walk towards this unique temple set on a rock. It wont be accessible during the high tide. We didn't dare to enter the temple because the monks seem to be giving blessings to those who enter.

And we were also rushing to catch the Kecak Dance which was held at the other end of Tanah Lot. We went there running you see because it was soooo far from the temple. Kecak Dance is a trance-like dance where the music was from the humming voices of men that form a circle and the dancers or should I say the actors performed their acts inside the circle. The dance tells the story of Ramayana and Sitadewi and Laksamana. Very interesting indeed especially the harmony they produce from the humming.

UBUD

It was already dark when we reach Ubud so we only had little time to spend here since we have to catch our flight. The airport is about 1 1/2 hour drive from Ubud so we have to leave early. O we were also running out of cash when we were in Ubud. Super broke man! Sampai kena hire Ojek instead of a taxi hahaha

Ubud is another peaceful place which is rich with culture. This is where the cultural centre is located and according to a friend we could actually watch many types of dance here. Mida and I were too busy searching for a spa so we didn't get to enjoy the culture that much huhu. With our scarce cash, we shopped for souvenirs at the market.

Ubud is definitely a place I want to visit again because I think I missed to many exciting things here.

And finally this is our picture in Kuta in front of the Hard Rock Cafe. See the guitar at the back.

We did another crazy thing before leaving. We stopped by at one of Bali's famous spa and treat ourselves with a 1.5 hours massage. The massage started at 6.30pm and our flight was 9.20pm. Do your own math. Kira berapa jak masa kami ada untuk rush pi airport hahaha GILA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And the queue for check in was damn long. I thought we were going to miss our flight. Luckily we didn't!!!

I would love to go to Bali again. It's a beautiful island with a lot of beautiful things to see and enjoyable activities to do.

O another thing that I would like to mention here is I'm so impressed by the Hindus' devotion towards their religion. They sure spend a lot of time and a lot of money on their rituals and ceremonies. They perform prayers for almost every single object in their life. And they truly believe in life after death that they are so afraid to do bad things because they believe when they are reincarnated later, they'll be punished for all their wrong-doings.

In Ubud, I dropped a 100 000Rp note and only realize it after a few minutes that the note is no longer in my grip. I later found the note at a nearby street that I just passed. There were quite a number of people passing by there but none of them took the note!!!

Okay that's all about my Bali trip. Currently I'm planning for our next next trip hehe get what I mean? :P

O ya.. Kenapa bajet bule..?? Bule is Mat salleh.. Kami bajet bule sebab every single place and every single activity pon kami jak asian and the rest are bule haha except for in Tanah Lot and Uluwatu la :P

1.11.08-11.11.11~ An honest memoir of a broken heart

2011-11-11T06:00:00.001+08:00

1.11.08-11.11.11.. Approximately 1106 days..

11.11.11.. That's the date that I intended to get married yearssssss ago and now that it's finally here so I guess I want to write something rather personal; not too revealing though. Just some insights of what I've been through..

The link there will bring you back to the writing of a heart broken 22 year old. Quite honest. I can feel my cheek blush just now when I read it again.. Embarassed, yes.. But I've no intention to delete that post because sometimes I do look back on older post just to see how I've grown over time..

I remember clearly how hard it was to accept the truth, to try to remain calm, to try to get hold of myself from doing something stupid and what I failed to do was of course holding back my tears. I didn't cry buckets of tears, no.. I cried lakes, rivers or even an ocean of tears. I always have problems with my lacrimal gland, so when I start crying I just couldn't stop...

Accepting the truth was hard but I think dealing with his absence was much harder. No more text messages in the morning, no more phone calls at night, no more birthday wishes, no more ears to listen to my rambles, no more someone to tease and to be teased by.. I remember trying hard not to think that he's happy with someone else. For many weeks after the break up, his name was always in my prayers like it always had for three years before that.

For many months I suffered from depression. I would wake up in the middle of the night and cried; sometimes feeling dejected. How could I not be in that state; I was being lied to for so long. One day, I confided to a bestfriend about my problem. Cross-legged on her bed, cupped my face in my hands and cried.. I confided to her about the sleepless nights, about not being able to forget him despite having all the fun in my single life.. Then she said...

"Don't you think you wake up at those hours for a reason.."

Then we start to chat rather seriously about the things that bothered me. We talked about justifying the reasons why I'd chosen to leave instead of making him choose. We talked about what have been affected since the break up. We talked about what good things that came my way after the break up.. At the end of the conversation she said..

"When it comes to this, seek for His help,G.. Pray.. Pray a lot.. Ask Allah to make you forget him if you have to.."

The hardest part should be maintaining good ties with his family.. Many of my friends are against this idea. They said it's as if I'm still waiting and hoping to get back with him. But I took my mom's advice into account for this part. Initially, I'd intended to maintain the relationship with his family because I thought I was in debt. But then my mom corrected my perspective..

"We maintain good ties with people in our life because they are part of our life.. Like how you accept family and your friends... You are sincere to these people because they are part of your life.. So why should his family be any different? They are already part of your life, right?"

Right... But to this day, facing his family is still the hardest thing for me. There are always holding-back-tears-moment during our meeting. Like sometimes his dad would say "Haziah dah macam anak kami sendiri," and that's when I'll grab the drink served and would quickly gulp it down my throat to fight back tears. During my most recent visit his mom said, "Patutla asyik teringat Haziah je due tige minggu ni, rupenye nak datang," and yes I gulped my drink at that very moment too.

I've made a lot of self-discovery in my journey to 11.11.11. There was a time when I really need someone to replace him because all I felt was emptiness. I had a stupid rebound but I manage to step back before it went any further. I'm pretty sure someone was hurt; but if it was meant to be it should've work out. I really have no intention to play with anybody's heart at that time.

The rebound made me realize that I shouldn't be having any relationship unless I'm ready to accept someone for who he really is; that is not to make comparison with 'him'. During the rebound I was constantly comparing!

Then there was a time when I met someone that I didn't make such comparison. I was very fond of this guy. He was always there to have a chat with, we had the same interest and finally I thought I should confess about my feelings towards him. I can be very ego and cold-hearted when it comes to liking a guy, you see. To gain the courage to pour my feelings was hard. I did istikharah to decide whether or not to confess. Well, I was compelled to do the istikharah because I'm very cautious about my pride as a girl, you know. The answer that I got was positive; Haziah, confess!!!!!!!! And I did!!!!!!!

Then comes a part that I couldn't understand at that time. I confessed, but the answer I got was negative. I found that he already has someone else. I was of course saddened by this. Most probably because it's been quite long since I got feelings for someone. But then, the sadness was temporary. This made me think, maybe there was something hidden behind the answer that I got from my istikharah. The answer made me confess, alright; but not so that I got the guy that I was fond of but to discover more about myself.

Heartbreak is painful; if you've never been through it, you won't know. But to think about it, no matter how nerve-wrecking a heartbreak can be, this is just a very small test if compared to what others are going through; endless opression and porverty, loss of immediate family, compromised rights and dignity and whatnot.

I've changed a lot since 1.11.08. Losing him had given me more time to learn about life and living. Losing him made me realize the things that really matter and the things that genuinely induce happiness to my soul. And most of all, I learn to whom I should impart my altruistic love to.

When it comes to marriage which is regarded as half of our deen; I just don't want to haste. As far as I can see, considering my current state and being, I need to improve a lot (seriously A LOT) on 'the other half' of our deen.. Who wouldn't want a perfect love story.. But I've decided some time ago no more flirting, just grow, wait and see what love story has Allah written for me.

And another thing that I want to highlight is, no matter how hurtful a heartbreak can be, don't be blinded by the pain that you fail to cherish the moment you are in. Seek happiness in everything around you. Don't let one person define who you are and ruin the rest of your life when he's no longer there. And... you are still beautiful even if you don't have a boyfriend~ hahaha

So it has been 1106 days.. And finally the day that I'm 'supposed to get married' has arrived. I used to dread the date for not having anyone by my side yet. But now, I'm all okay. I'm welcoming 11.11.11 with my arms wide open. Afterall, it falls on Friday. My all-time favourite day...

P.S. I'm very lucky to have supportive family and friends. Without them it will take me longer to stand again.. And have faith in what's waiting for you in the future because Allah always gives us back what he'd taken, may it be in the same form or another, and may it be here or in the Hereafter :)

Bile saye tulis dengan panjang dan tak letak gambar di dalamnye.. itulah post yang saye harap orang x mau bace :p tahniah kerane membace sampai habis

Singapore Trip!

2011-11-07T03:21:00.001+08:00

I haven't been writing any real post for the past few weeks.. That happens when I'm all stressed out; MENTAL BLOCK. My room was a mess, I can't concentrate on my reading, my muscles were stiff. A clear sign that I needed a break. So, before the vacation I decided not to climb just to relax my muscles. But the waiting made me suffer. I was counting days!!!!!!!! So when the day arrived, I was all ecstatic!!!

So lets start with the people involved in this blissful Singapore vacation. Yup! 4 beautiful ladies; Haziah Salleh, Shifaa Jamal, Hamida Hamid & Raihanah Ahmad!!!!!!!! \(^^)/ How I wish there were more of us because this was planned months ago. But, yeah, priorities changed as we grow~

So.. we to0k a bus from Larkin.. Alighted in MRT Kranji. We have problem finding our hotel.. So that's why Mida is busy studying the map here.. Which was to no avail... heeee

So that night, we met Syahmi and he took us to this place where we ate this Sup Tulang that was red in colour!!! It freaked me out at first but it was delicious!!!!!!!!!!

Yup! These are the fo0o0o0o0d~ The mee mamak was nice, the fried rice was delicious to0!

Syahmi left early because he had other plans. Then we walked to another mamak restaurant, ZamZam to eat this famous Murtabak!!! I was full actually but this mouthwatering Murtabak is just irresistable!! This is a serving for two person. Huge enough for the four of us though :)

The main event is of course HAVIN' FUN IN USS!!!!! \(^^)/
Well, we are crazy about thrill rides.; we used to chase every single fun fair in Kuantan

So this is the pic at the entrance. I thought we were running late but luckily we arrived exactly at 9.30am!! When it comes to havin' fun we can be super duper punctual.

There are different parts in USS; New York, Hollywood, Sci-Fi city, Ancient Egypt, The Lost World, Far far Away and Madagascar. We start off with New York. So as you can see in this pic, we're sitting on a bench and with those doors, steps and signage as our backdrop. Kinda like the ones you can see in 'How I met your Mother'.

Then we went to Sci Fi City and put our whole day in USS at risk by riding the most terrifying ride in USS first. It's a suspended coaster; where your feet is left dangling from the seats. It went up, around and upside down!!! I was afraid at first. It's been a year since I rode something like this. But then when it starts.. WEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!! Got my hands in the air and I was screaming on top of my lungs!!!! Well, I've very little fear on rides so I was really enjoying it. But I was a little bit dizzy when we were done. I can't walk straight; everything was still spinning and had to hold on the banister as I walk towards the exit.

Next was The Lost World. Nothing much here because most of the rides are meant for children. We rode the Canopy Flyer. It didn't look scary at all when you look at it from the ground. But then it was surprisingly fast!!

I guess, Far Far Away should be everybody's favourite. This is where we're supposed to meet our true love, right??? Hehe

So what's so special about Far far away?? EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!! We went into the 4D show first and wow I was impressed. I've never been into any 4D before so I really enjoyed it. When Fiona sneezed, water were sprayed on our face. And then there was this part where you can feel as if there were spiders crawling on your feet.

We also went to watch Donkey's show. I thought it was rather boring at first because there was just this screen where Donkey's image was projected on it. But then when the singing part was over, Donkey began to interact with the crowd and that sort of surprised me hehe Donkey was very funny and we were laughing and laughing till the end!

O yeah, we did meet with the current ruler of Far far away. Yes we did!

This is The Water World show; where everybody gets wet!! I also love this very much. One thing for sure is because the stuntmen were super hot :P and the other thing is because this show is so0o0o0 co0l. Before it starts, the stuntmen went around the stadium splashing water and shooting audience with water guns. And I think my jaw was opened throughout the show because I found the stunts were amazing! Like they can jump off into the water from the tower that I think should be around 15m high. No safety at all!

Nothing much in Madagascar. Met King Julien, Alex, Gloria and the Penguins. King Julien is so0o0o0o0o0 cute okay. He's the one who'll figure out poses for the pics. (^^)

This is a picture taken in Ancient Egypt. Oo0o0 I feel guilty about this. We missed the most exciting ride!!!!!!! Well, we were afraid that it would rain in the evening so we decided to go for the outdoor first and save the indoor if it rains. But then at about 5 something, I saw the Enchanted Ride in Far far away were closed. And the SciFi Roller coaster was no longer operating. So I'd assumed that the Egypt ride was closed too. huhu I wanna go again and try the ride!

After USS, we went to meet Syahmi again. It was me who wanted to see Esplanade, Marina bay and the famous Merlion. Kesian the girls kena berjalan jauh..

All and all I really love the trip. I wanna go to Singapore again!!! Next time I'm definitely going to the zo0!!!! And another trip to Sentosa is a must!!!!!!! \(^^)/

Soaring~ HIgh~

2011-10-31T19:41:00.000+08:00

I'm standing on the edge of a familiar cliff. Surrounded by a familiar landscape. I always love it up here..

In the morning, I'm the first to see the tangerine trace of sunlight from the east. I watch anxiously as the morning sunlight creeps to dissolve every trace of darkness. A fairly stiff breeze occasionally blow, swaying the branches of willow trees that stood below me. I would close my eyes and listen close to the sound of leaves touching each other as the wind blows, listen close to the chirping of birds and inhale deep the whiff of lush greenery.. Serene~

At night, the surrounding glow white in the moonlight. Sometimes the shadows cast by the moonlight frightened me; they produce intimidating shapes that seems to be waiting to strike when I'm not looking. Again I close my eyes, sitting still, knees touching my chest, arms wrapped around my knees. My mind goes back to when there was daylight, when things around me was crystal clear. I reminded myself of the beauty that surrounds me when there was light.. Fear dissipates into thin air...

I discovered this place years ago but I'd left. A year ago, I arrived at this very same place and left again. This year I'm standing here again on this cliff.. The view has always been perfect from up here.; never cease to make me feel that I belong here. Despite of all that, I always leave in the end.

Right now, I can see dark clouds on the horizon. Arms spread now, trying to reckon which way the wind is blowing.. I just can't tell.. Another reason to leave again. I don't want to be drenched by the rain. But that's not the only reason to leave.. I don't know whether I haven't been vigilant in the past but I'm starting to notice flaws in this place where I always seek for tranquility..

Now I'm going to soar into the sky and leave again.. Maybe I will return or maybe I'll find some other place where I truly belong :)

Salah sangka~ (-_-")

2011-10-17T01:06:00.000+08:00

This has been somewhat mind-boggling.. I think it's a self-guilt kind of feeling.. Because of me being so judgemental...

I've this mind-setting that sort of spark out of nowhere after I finished my study. Like I said before, I've been living in a 'regulated' world since I was 13. In school, our daily activities were scheduled to balance between study, religion and co-curricular activities. And in UIA, the islamic aura just seem to emanate from every corner of the university.

So back to my mind-setting.. I've set my mind not to be too freaked out if any of my friends don't rise from their seats to perform prayers during our hangouts. I also set my mind not to wear that awkward look on my face as I slide back into my seat after performing my prayers.. Again, I emphasize here that I don't know where that kind of mind-setting come from. In that kind of situation, I was actually in between not wanting them to feel uncomfortable and not wanting them to have the impression that I think I'm slightly better than them. You know what I mean?? Like, I'm totally aware that we are grown ups who are free to decide whether or not to observe our obligation as Muslims. But, yes, I'll definitely be happier if all of us rise to perform prayers.

So, what's this thing about salah sangka... Okay, I feel guilty already right now~ (-_-")

Well, it was this one very fine day in a shopping complex.. I was gazing rather dreamily at the direction of the entrance from afar; waiting for a friend to appear behind the automated glass door. Then when he did appear, he appeared with someone else. Being slightly short sighted, I could only guess who's the other person was; from the shape of his figures since I can't make out his face from that distance. And here comes the part that makes me feel guilty... You know what popped out in my mind when the view of this other person became clearer and I found out that my guess was right...

"Eyh?? X kan la dia jumpa dia ni d surau?"

But I'd kept it to myself until later that evening when my friend and I were alone again. I asked the details of how he'd met our friend. They bumped into each other when my friend was about to leave the surau. That time our friend was about to enter the surau. (Confusing nya la my friend, our friend nih)

I don't know.. I feel terrible for thinking that way. To think of it, who am I to judge him that way? That's why we shouldn't bother thinking of another person's connection with God because the outward look is only superficial. It's the inside that matters most which is only Allah who knows~

Sorry dude~

A sky full of lighters~

2011-10-09T09:57:00.002+08:00

A confiscated precious item :p

Weekend with Meng (^^)

2011-10-08T06:45:00.000+08:00

I was so0o0o0o0 tired after the trip to Sarawak. I guess I was really pushing myself to the limit. I was all weary throughout the week. Only went to climb once, and the rest was spent with me lying motionless on my bed after work.

So, I'd my night shift on Friday night (means no movie or dining out.. urgh..). But then luckily M called me that afternoon telling me he's coming to KK and is thinking of going to Labuan \(^^)/ Yeay! Finally I've interesting plans for the weekend.. Thanx M!!!

So this is a pic of me n my friend M. We're inside my car which was at that time inside the ferry

2nd October was my mom's birthday so I planned a simple surprise party which was finally ruined by my brother and my cousin. They told my mom that I was coming!!!!!!! (-_-")

Safiah and Mommy. Safiah's birthday was on 25th September so aci la potong kek sekali

My bro's birthday will be on 13th October and my nephew's will be on 11th November.
I don't know whether I can go back to Labuan for their birthdays, so aci la kumpol semua sekali :p

This girl? Huh! January!!! Tapi because muka lain2 suda kan masa orang potong kek, so we let her cut the cake. Biasala budak2 hehe

My small family (^^)

Meng and Fadil. Thanx guys sebab tolong angkat all the food and thanx Fadil for the ride in your hot sexy white Toyota Altis hehe

We had dinner with these girls (Ana, Ad n Rozie) that night. Azizam who was on duty that evening couldn't make it to the dinner. And actually, Nazmi joined us later that evening.

Well, I had a really great weekend. We went for a short tour in our old school. Met the teachers there. I was even asked to talk to some of the newly appointed prefects (konon nya mau inspire dorang la but it was just a normal conversation la..) I was very surprised when our teacher introduced me as "Antara pengawas paling garang batch 2003" to the girls hahaha malu I~

Meng and I even bumped into some other school friends while lepak2. We met Eyah and Fadli! \(^^)/ Yosh! That's it.. :)

Rock On 2: Bau, Sarawak

2011-09-27T03:02:00.007+08:00

Remember me having dizziness for many days recently? Well, I was diagnosed as having GERD. Damn it! I always thought it's a very trivial disorder. But in fact, I can't function at all!

So I missed a lot of training for the climb in Sarawak but I guess I was too excited that my adrenaline sky-rocketed and I manage to climb routes that were beyond my grade. This is my first time to climb lime stone so I was quite blur at first. The stones were too bulky and sharp and there were lots of overhang..

Actually, I don't know what to write because we just climb and climb and climb throughout the trip. so I just tell you what the pictures are all about :)

So this is the wall we climbed. Actually there's more to the left. The routes range from 5c-7c here.

The climbers preparing for the climb. We brought along binoculars to help us observe the surface prior to our climb. But it didn't help me much. Because.. I don't know how to use it.. I can't recognize the surface that I'm looking at :p

This is what lies in front of the wall. A paddy field! Ok, I always love paddy field..

This is Fairy Cave; located about 120m from the wall. There's another wall to climb here. Grade 5-6 (below)

This is the 'Snake Charmer' route 6c. A nice one but the rock was too slippery. There were fine dust on its surface; some kind of kulat they said. I don't know :p

This is 20 year-old Syahmi doing 7c. He almost finish the route. slip on the last hand hold. He's The King of the Caves!!!

Me at the starting point of the hardest climb in my life. That route's called 'Bomba Chimney', 6b+. FYI, I only can climb 5c and sometimes can clean 6a (okla.. rarely.. not sometimes).. So this is waaaaaaay beyond my grade. I pushed myself to finish the climb and as a result, there were lots of cuts and bruises after that!

I guess, Sara is also climbing the hardest route in her life there. She also manage to reach the top and being the youngest plus the spirit, she definitely deserve The Most Potential Climber title!

Playing cards (^^) Those who lose have to eat this spicy rojak buah hehe

Us eating the not spicy rojak buah..Syahmi and me have very little choice of food during the event because they serve pork there. But we survived! It was Syahmi who was so determine to find food haha I just sit and wait to see what he got for us :p

I really like the trip because it was a whole new experience. Thanks to those who'd helped me train for the event. I feel guilty for not being able to give a good commitment to the trainings.

There'll be another competition on 8th & 9th October at this 15m wall in JBS Putatan. I'm not sure whether I can win that one because there are stronger climbers now. Plus, I've never finish the wall before. It's too high and I'm too afraid of swinging.. So I guess my real challenge is not the other competitors; it's going to be the wall itself.

Ini Kisah Aku dan Seutas Jam Tangan

2011-09-25T22:27:00.002+08:00

I've no particular interest on wrist watch. To me, it's something that essentially tells the time and nothing more so I don't really splurge into buying expensive ones. But in my life there's this wrist watch that is somehow dear to me in an unexplainable way.

It's one of the collection of this famous brand. An analog watch with white braided leather strap, round silver casing and zirconias next to each number. Elegant in every way but somehow look kind of reserve. It captured my attention on my first glimpse. It was too expensive for me to own but over time, I manage to collect just enough money to make it mine.

I become attached to it. Silently admiring its delicate architecture, appreciating its function that somehow manage to help me improve my bad time management. I took it off every time I need to perform ablution; don't want to ruin the leather and also want to preserve the pure white colour of the strap. I kept it safe inside a box.

But then come a day when my life was so hectic that I misplaced it. I can't find it for months and finally gave up my search. Finally, I decided to get a new one since I really need a watch to tell the time. Mournfully, I walked into the same shop again to find a replacement. I stood for so long in front of the glass display shelf. I just couldn't find one that suit my taste. But then I noticed a unique-looking metal bracelet wrist watch.

This one was far elegant than my previous watch. The silver metal bracelet glisten with pride as light cast on it. Cubic shaped zirconias were lined on the bracelet surface. The printed name of the brand was larger on this watch compared to the previous one. I made my decision.. In mere minutes from my first encounter of the new watch, it was mine...

I'd forgotten all about the old watch. I'd taken good care of the new watch; extra care to be exact. Being all metal, I was being extra careful not to cause any scratch on it. I was being careful not to drop it either or I might lose the beautiful zirconias. I was getting a lot of praises from friends too. It seems that the money spent was worthwhile after all.

But then come a day when I accidentally found my old watch inside this gift box on my bookshelf. Then it all came back to me. I placed it inside the gift box because I couldn't find the box in which I usually kept it in. I was rushing to perform my prayer that time because it was already late and later there were other subsequent events that made me forgot where I'd placed it. It was vivid in my mind that it was a very hectic day; the day I misplaced my old watch. But anyhow, I was glad to find it still looking all brand new inside the gift box that I decided just to keep it there and continue wearing my new watch.

I wore the new watch for years. I occasionally check the old watch just to make sure it is still ticking. But then my new watch was taking its toll on my skin. Suddenly my skin developed an allergic reaction from contact with the metal strap. My skin became all reddish and itchy and some parts were even peeled off. I still continued wearing it, though. Thought I could withstand it all.

On another hectic day in m life, I accidentally dropped my new watch. To my surprise, the impact was so great that half of the zirconias had fallen off. It was a horrific scene and I felt so devastated since I've put a lot of effort to take a good care of it, to make it last for as long as I could. But I guess nothing last forever. I finally decided that it's time for me to let go of the new watch. My skin condition was getting worse, so it was the best time to let go.

I was too devastated to even remember about the old watch. But then one day, my cousin was scavenging over my things to find her missing earring. Then she opened the gift box on my bookshelf. I was startled when she exclaimed "Cantiknya ni jam!!!!!!!!!". I was so happy to see the watch as it rest on my cousin's palm. I was about to sit for an important exam that day, so the sudden appearance of the watch was like a savior because I'm usually seated at the back since my name starts with N and usually I can't tell the time because the exam hall watch is always in front.

Now, it's out of the gift box and I wear it everyday. Looking at it today made me realize the unconditional fondness that I always have for it. Have I misinterpret my own feelings towards it over these years? I'm back to the routine of taking care of it like I used to years ago but more attention this time. The leather strap soften over the years as it dwell inside the gift box making it less durable than before. I don't want to ever put it back inside that gift box as much as I don't want to wear the new watch again. But if I have to put it back, I definitely will put it back.. Maybe it belongs there.. Maybe the gift box is its rightful place...

Hector And The Search For Happiness

2011-09-20T21:21:00.000+08:00

I've been doing a lot of reading as usual but haven't got the time to post it here. Have been trying different authors just to look at their style of writing but for this one, I was simply attracted by the cartoon on the front cover. It was a standout from the rest of the books whose covers are a cliche of an adult novel..

So, when I saw this book, I quickly grab it to have a read of some sentences. You know, just to get the hint whether I'm going to like or not. I immediately liked it!!!!!!! I like the naivety of the writing style. The story start off with

"Once upon a time there was a young psychiatrist called Hector who was not very satisfied with himself."

And then goes Hector's journey all over the world in search of what makes people happy. Hector make a conclusion at the end of each encounter or an event and my favourite was when he was in China. He was walking towards this monastery on top a mountain and he felt serenity throughout his walk. Then he pulled out his little notebook and jot Happiness is a long walk in beautiful, unfamiliar mountains.

Hector actually went to many countries and met a lot of people. I like it that the author made me guess the countries that Hector went. The author wrote something like 'it's a country that speaks Hector's language' or 'a country where people always want more'. I just made a wild guess, though. Not very sure myself hehe

I also think it's good that Hector's character is not all perfect. He slept with women, had to deal with uncertainties and discontent. I think this book is nice for leisure read; witty!

SICC 1st annivesary

2011-09-17T14:55:00.000+08:00

So, SICC just celebrated its first birthday on the 10th and 11th of September. They had an open day on Saturday (10th) where you can climb for free and held a competition on Sunday (11th). I was all excited since Hari Raya actually. I came on Friday night for my training but end up doing route setting for the boulder. And most disappointing was that I had a food poisoning on Saturday and was having nausea and vomiting the whole day that I missed all the fun on Saturday

Wasn't getting better on Sunday morning either. I vomited at 11 am and at 11.30 am I decided that I MUST CLIMB!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was still dizzy as I get dressed; made my cousin iron my tudung for me (thanx beloved cousin!!!). And then I prayed hard as I start my car's engine. Prayed for safety as I drive and prayed for strength for my climbing.

Actually the competition starts at 9am and participants were divided into 2 groups. So what we have to do was climb as many routes as we can from 9am to 5 pm to collect points. So the group with the most point wins. There were also events for individuals; that's speed climb and hanging challenge where you hold hand holds for as long as you could.

I was not in my fittest form so I decided that I wont join individual event that day. I don't want to compete if I can't do my best because to me what's the point of competing if I know I'm about to lose. I don't mind losing if I'm fit enough, though hehe So I focused on collecting points for my group, THE GREY TEAM!!!!!!

I arrived at 1 pm and since I loss a lot of time already, I started right away. I started with the easiest grade because I haven't been climbing for 2 weeks and have been gaining weight during Hari Raya. Cleaned all Grade 5 routes as fast as I could. See those green and yellow stickers? Those are the Grade 5 routes that I completed. Cleaned 1 Grade 6A route; the blue sticker. And did up until bonus points for another 7 routes including 1 lead climb.

I did experienced some dizziness as I climb but still continue to do so. I drank 5 cans of 100 plus during the event to keep me hydrated. I wish that I could climb better but I guess with 20++ routes climbed, that's not bad for someone who's not in her fittest form :p

I used both my Saltic and Miura VS for the climb.. Saltic for easy ones and Miura VS for harder ones. I'm very satisfied with my Miura. My feet never slip, you know!!!!!!!!!!

So this is the picture of both teams. And yeay!! My team won!!!!!!!!!!!!!! \(^^)/ Go grey team!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SICC!!!!!!!!!!!! LOVE YA!!!!!!!!!!!

P.S. I really love the t-shirt. Have been longing for one with red Gecko!!

Dents

2011-09-12T15:48:00.001+08:00

I was on my way to another section of my department for medication identification. My mind was occupied by the images of the tablets inside my grip; round, oval, pink, yellow, dented, scored.. Then my eyes laid on the cars parked on the side of the road; most of them have dents. That promptly reminded me of this scene in Cars 2..

The scene where Mater, McQuinn's bestfriend, had refused to mend the dents on his body because those are the dents he'd gotten from the adventures with his bestfriend..

I like that part; awed by the message.. If that's to be applied on human; those dents are scars.. Scars on the delicate skin, invisible scars on your heart.. Like dents, scars are from hurtful events.. These days, like dents, scars can also be 'mend' with those magic creams that fade scars that makes as if it was never there... For that invisible scar, we could just forget about it. Pretend like it was never there...

To think of it, I too have scars that I don't want to erase.. The ones that I want to always be there.. The ones that remind me of my mischievous childhood.. The ones that remind me what bad decisions can do to me. The ones that remind me of months and months of waiting to be physically normal again. The ones that remind me no matter how hurtful a good decision is, it will always be a good decision in the end. The ones that remind me of achievements..

Don't get me wrong.. Like others, I don't enjoy reminiscing bad memories and experiences. But, sometimes I need to look back at those scars. It's as if they tell me

"Haziah, there were times when you were stronger"
"Haziah, there were times when you were more patient"
"Haziah, do you want to do the same mistake again?"
"Haziah, good times will come"

Sometimes, we are only concern of the depth of a wound, the length of the healing process, the ugliness of the scar and often we relent the flaw of the once normal skin or heart.. .. We disregard the lesson of the event from which the scar was obtained and most importantly we often neglect the fact that the scar marks the healing process. A scar simply means you're healed...

I remember back during my study years.. It was during physiology if I'm not mistaken.. We were taught that scars are not as strong as the original skin.. They break loose more easily.. But, I guess, in the case of those invisible scars from surviving adversities and heartbreak; they just make our heart stronger... :)

I Think I Wanna Marry You~

2011-09-05T12:49:00.001+08:00

Ok... The tittle is just random.. I don't know what to put but, yes, this post is pertaining to my all-time-dreaded topic MARRIAGE...

It's hard being 25.. I don't know how many times had I wrote that same phrase this year.. But, yeah, it's just unbelievably hard especially when you're single. And it's even torturous when people know you're single and have yet any plans to settle down.. So, I'm in the later case, of course. Maybe it's my mistake for being too vocal about my devotion towards singledom. My lifestyle explicitly explain that being free is my cup of tea and there's just no room in my life for any homo sapien whose MyKad printed with LELAKI.. (Fabregas x da MyKad (^^)v)

Sometimes I think this Marriage topic has this ghostlike thing about it, you see. It spooks me by the fact that it always manage to find me where ever I am. And when the topic is raised by someone, no matter how I try to deviate the conversation, the topic could always find a U-turn to get back to me (-_-") SPOOKY!!!!!!!!!!!

One time, when one of my bro in Puchong came for a holiday in Sabah with his family, he slipped a RM 50 note under my car's perfume. I found it weeks later and was puzzled; had the note just appear out of nowhere during my impoverish days??? (I found it when I was all broke. So you can guess how excited I was). I didn't expect it to be from him but he text me 2 weeks later..

Bro: Gg, E ade letak duit tau bawah perfume kete gg..
Gg: heh? E punye ke?? Kenape bagi duit?? (padahal ko happy kan masa jumpa tu duit, Haziah.. :p)
Bro: Saje.. Nanti gg bole beli minyak.. Tak pon bole buat blanja kawen <- See!!!! This conversation was not at all related. But someone could always find things to say to me that relates to Marriage~

(-_-") So I replied,

Gg: Oooo.. Gg simpan untuk kawen la.. Alhamdulillah, akhirnya bole kawen awal sket.. Thanx E!<- Layan jugak tuh hahaha

Last week there was also something like this at my workplace. I went to do some intervention in the ward and found that the doctor who'd written the prescription graduated from my University. He was the one asking me "Ko budak UIA kn?" I didn't recognize him, though. Maybe his looks changed. I don't know. I was frowning when I enter the Satelite Pharmacy. My staff asked,

Staff: Kenapa G?
Gg: Hurm.. Saya tengah fikir.. Tu doktor dari universiti saya bha, tapi saya nda kenal. Saya cuba mau ingat ni sapa dia..
Staff: Dia kenal kau G?
Gg: Nda la bha kenal. Tapi dia tau la saya pon dari UIA.
Staff: Fuiyoo00o0!!! Maksudya dia notice Gg la di UIA. Mungkin Gg sedang memandang wajah jodoh Gg tadi.. <-- SEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gg: Astaga kak! HAHAHAHA Ke situ pulak bha dia...

And then my staffs start imagining how the love story goes, which was in my opinion very fairytale-like and hilarious at the same time.. Sakit perut ketawa hahaha

I'm seeing myself like these women in 6 years to come.. :p 31 and single... haha

Kironggu Abseiling Trip

2011-08-18T01:52:00.001+08:00

The skin of my hands are currently 6 tones darker than the rest of my body.. It's been 2 weeks since the trip, still I haven't regain my fair skin..

Yeah~ Recently I've been doing quite a lot of outdoor activities again. On 30th June, we set out for an abseiling trip in Kironggu. It's near the spot where we did rock climbing in December. Just a little bit higher and we've to hike a bit to get up there.

My last abseiling was back in UIA during I-Quest. I abseiled on the walls of my own Kuliyyah, that is. My last outdoor abseiling was years ago during the Mount Senyum expedition. So, though I don't favour abseiling that much, I thought I would just join since I've no plans that Saturday.

So, as usual, I'm all excited especially finally I got the chance to hike. It was satisfying though it was a short hike. The scenery at the top was splendid but it was scorching hot!!!!!!!! I got quite excited to see monkey cups up there and exclaimed "OMG! periuk api!!" which was embarassing~ (^^*)v then my friend said, "G, kalo ni periuk api, meletup suda kita di atas ni.."

And then I get to make use of my daisy chain too! Well, I bought it because everybody else was buying it. When we were in Berhala, we used it to keep us safe while standing on the rocks so I've no idea what it's used for for this trip since we were standing on flat ridge.

So, actually it's used for safety too. You attach carabiners at both ends; one crab attached to your harness and the other attached to this steel wire (I guess it's steel). So you're safe while walking about on the ridge hehe

Here's the picture of the abseil. It's about ~30m from the top to the bottom. I abseil slowly to scrutinize on the rock surface. Well, we're going to climb this wall in the future. So, I was actually walking down rather than abseiling like those cool abseil you see in movies.

I was actually excited about the hike that I decided to do my second abseil.. So, during the second abseil, this clever girl hooked her camera on her harness back loop and have forgotten that she'd slipped her handphone in her pocket. Roy was asking me to adjust something when I heard a thud. Then I saw my camera tumbling all the way down.. "AARGH!!!" Well, I wasn't that horrified since I knew the camera bag have thick padding. But then I feel something slipping from my pocket.. And there goes my handphone; shattered into pieces when it crash on the rocks~"AAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!"

That was when I start to abseil down as quick as I could; konon2 mau safe my stuffs la... My camera was fine.. It took a few minutes to find my phone parts and miraculously, it survived the crash unscathed!

She who shouldn't be alive

I was actually already thinking of what phone to buy as I abseil down hahaha

Eat Pray Love.. (-_-")

2011-08-12T00:00:00.000+08:00

I don't know whether I'm the first person to say this.. I DON'T LIKE THIS BOOK...

I saw quite a lot of positive reviews from bloggers about the book, so that's why I bought it. And another thing is because Julia Roberts starred the motion picture. This is the book that I searched for two hours and finally saw two copies of it cloaked by towering books around it. There were two copies only!!! Obviously lots of pepole have been buying it~ But now, after having read 1/3 of it, I decided to stop because I just can't find any reason to proceed till the end...

This is an honest memoir indeed.. Honestly boring.. I was expecting the EAT part will make my mouth water just like Recipe for Life did.. But the author just go about telling about her depression, her dillema with men in her life, with her wanting to learn Italian.. And she goes all around the bushes before getting to the main point.. Maybe that's her way of making the book thicker..

I was expecting the EAT part would describe the taste of the food, how beautifully they are being served, the aroma.. Things like that... But the author just mention what she ate.. Just mention the names~ Like I know what those food are like by their names.. Even the way she describe Rome is so simple that it seems like there's nothing special about it..

Actually, my books are like a doorway for me to explore the places that I couldn't reach. My books are among the reasons why I'm so eager saving money to travel and see the places mentioned in the books with my own eyes. But this book doesn't excite me.. I wish I never bought it.. I should've bought another book...

Ramadhan 1432..

2011-08-03T20:53:00.006+08:00

Alhamdulillah.. I'm still here for another Ramadhan...

Being away from my comfortable-Islamic-zone, I've been a little bit observant. Back in UIA, you can feel that Ramadhan is the month of blessings with all the Islamic activities being so customary. You can see posters about Islamic talks, you have tadarus Al-Quran every night, you have a lot of Iftars.. Iftar kelas, Iftar course, Iftar ARC, Iftar this, Iftar that... And you can almost always listen to voices reciting quranic verses whereever you are. That's International Islamic University....

Now I'm no longer there and I'm in Sabah, in which Muslims are so often indistinguishable from the Non Muslims. S and I agreed that we didn't feel that Ramadhan was approaching. Nothing indicate that Syaaban was coming to its end because nobody was excited about Ramadhan. It was only S and I who kept reminding each other "Weyh, da nak pose weyh~"

But then again, now Ramadhan is here, I can see the gist of it despite of not being in the Islamic environment that I used to be in. Well, for one, every Muslim are trying their best to fulfill this pillar of Islam. And those whom I know are not the type who pray regularly are now walking their way to the mosque for terawih prayers!!! Well, pessimists might say "Ala~ Time Ramadhan je tuh," but to me, that's still a good thing. Better than nothing that is. At least they have the effort to get near to Allah during Ramadhan. Who knows, maybe they'll stick to doing the five daily prayers after Ramadhan. More women are wearing hijab during this holy month too. Well, that's a good thing eventhough it's temporary. At least the guys are protected from seeing things... You know, things~~ hehe

Gambar yang mesti mau berunsur gunung ganang dan batu :p

Well, another thing about this Ramadhan is that my neice and nephew are being trained by my mom to fast full day. My neice can't really handle the hunger but my mom, being strict as she always does, have insisted that she should wait until the adzan before she could touch any food. And my neice cried as she wait for the adzan. Kesian betol... But then after a few days, my neice got use to the fasting :)

My mom never pushed me, though. I had a very bad gastric when I was 8 that I was warded for a few hours for monitoring (and it wasn't Ramadhan that time). So she wasn't very strict about my fasting. I only fast when I reached my puberty. Even now, I rarely miss my meal but surprisingly I could always withstand fasting :)

Hurm, there was something amusing going on here in our house too. Well, Idham is also being trained to fast half-day. I wasn't fasting for the first few days since it was the time of the month so he saw me eating in the kitchen in the afternoon. On his way to school the next day he asked Umi,

"Umi, kak jiji tu Islam ka? kenapa dia nda puasa?"

When I was told about this, of course la I terus ketawa terbahak bahak.. I found it so funny. But then I'm quite impressed that he recognized fasting is one of the pillar of Islam, the basic act that portrays you being a Muslim :)

A Thousand Splendid Suns

2011-08-02T23:52:00.002+08:00

So.. After Recipe for Life which was somewhat a leisure reading that stimulate the secretion of gastric juice (chewah! ayat pharmacist), I opted to read something overwhelming that'll bring me to tears.. So.. Yeah.. I picked A Thousand Splendid Suns.

This is another brilliant work of Khaled Hosseini's. An absolute page turner and it took me only 3 days to finish it up (I'm actually a slow reader..).. The setting is still the same, the war-inflicted Afghanistan and in this book he addresses the oppression of women..

I really love how he blend history into this fiction. The story started off with when Afghanistan was under Communist in which women were treated almost equally (from what I understood) and were allowed to be educated; that's up to University level.

But then things change.. There were so many exchange of powers, so many killings and finally he brought readers to the Taliban era in which they practiced strict Islamic rulings
(extremely strict that is)

Most of the plots are actually stories from the household of the main characters. There are two main characters in this book, Mariam and Laila, and their stories are being told in alternate chapters. In this story, we can see how sons are favoured over daughters and how a woman's needs are often ignored.

There's a love story too.. I love the love story part because I think it's like a buffer that eases the agony throughout the whole story. It's a friendship turned into love, then separation, then reunion...

I guess, the most heartbreaking part was when women were deprived from recieving proper treatment for ailments. In the extremely strict law, the Taliban only allow female doctors to treat women. This is very ironic you see, because in their era, women were also not allowed to be educated so the number of female doctors were scarce. They were ordered to do procedures with their Burqa and that compromises the hygeine of a procedure..

The author described how hectic the women hospital was. So much clamour going on; people pleading to be treated first, wailing voices of pain, weeping family members, dusty air.. Gave me goosebumps as I imagined how it was..

After reading this, I'm so grateful to have been fated to be born in Malaysia, enjoying the peace and harmony. Grateful to have been granted a good mind and the opportunity to build up my potentials. There's so many things to be grateful of if we look at how actually people in the other parts of the world are being terrorized... Alhamdulillah~

Sometimes I wish I could help change the world.. Or give a helping hand...

\\(".) A helping hand.....

It's a choice~

2011-07-29T22:29:00.002+08:00

This is a lengthy post...

To think of it, Muslims are not outnumbered in Sabah. It's the practicing Muslims that we are lacking of in number. Very few indeed.

Recently, I've been poured with a lot of questions about the practices in Islam, especially about covering aurah and the daily prayers. It all start off when I actually rejected some of my friend's ideas to make me comfortable during my climb. Well, they suggested me wearing the scarf tied to the back (the one that'll reveal your neck) or wear a legging (that tight-fitting pants). And then the daily prayers issue was raised because I said I would only want to marry a guy who observe his prayers.

I've tried to explain the commandments that I'm obliged to follow and how it is a big deal to me that my spouse should be someone who observe his prayers. Some understood but some continued to argue that I can actually uncover my aurah, it's a matter of choice and that those who pray is not necessarily a good person who can make me happy. I, of course, tried again to counter those arguments but they continued to disagree with what I was saying. Then, I just stopped and shrugged... It wasn't a sign of retreat. But actually that time I started to realize that there was no point of arguing because I noticed that those who accepted my explaination at the very beginning were actually those who also practice their religion steadfastly and the ones who are still debating with me are actually those who doesn't practice their religion, so I just think they wouldn't undestand the spiritual connection that you have with the Creator when you observe the commandments. So then, there's just no point of explaining....

To be honest, I was offended by some of their arguments but I tried to maintain my cool and stayed calm and listened. I thought it'll be unfair if I get all sensitive and start to draw myself away just because they don't understand my belief and practices. They can't be blamed, you see. They've a lot of Muslim friends and from what I can see is that they misunderstood because the Muslim friends they have are living the same way as they do and it so happen that this Muslim friend here live a different way.

#2

Well, I was considered quite secular in my Uni. Some people said to me "Ko bukan wanita solehah~" or when I said something Islamically knowledegable, the respond that I usually get was "Fuiyo! Sejak bile???" Offended?? Tipulah kalo saya tidak offended.

"I observe my prayers, regularly recite Al-Quran, cover my aurah and just because I'm active and love to have fun so I'm not solehah?????"

Haha those are the things that usually crossed my mind when people say those offensive things to me. But, I'd taught myself that human being doesn't define how solehah you are. I'd taught myself to remember that the connection between me and Allah is private, and what people think about my solehah-ness won't make any difference at all. And I'd convinced myself that if there's ever any person who said "Wah! Haziah you are very solehah.. I wanna be like you," pergh sure I riak punya la :p

So.. What I'm trying to say is actually, what I think is, up to this age, what we embrace as our religion, as our worldview, as our practice is actually already by choice. We're a Muslim because we want to be one, and not because we are born as Muslim anymore. Why are there two different scenarios in the above??

Well, I just want to show you that it's not only the Non Muslims that'll question our belief and our conscience. The demotivatng words of the brothers and sisters in Islam can also discourage one from the right path.

O ya, one more thing that I think I should put here is that, back in Berhala during our rock climbing trip, it was actually my non Muslim friends who cleared the spot for me to pray and it was them who brought a compass so that I'll know where's the direction of Mecca.

I've made my choice long ago just like every of you did.. I'm no longer in my regulated world.. I need strength, I need guidance, I need reminders...

Aku rindu setengah mati padamu...

2011-07-26T12:11:00.000+08:00

Hurm.. When I listen to that song 'Aku Rindu Setengah Mati', I'll reminisce this handsome face

But what I'm missing and what I've been longing got nothing to do with this guy...

It's really hard not to miss the good old days that I used to have in the mountains with friends when everyday the Mount Kinabalu lie in front of me; sometimes in silhouette. It saddened me most of the times, but I'm so grateful that the pleasant memories of those days never leave me one bit that I could just lay down on bed, close my eyes and bring back to life every single thing that I miss so much inside my mind.

The Training~

I miss the last minute training that we used to have. An expedition would be announced at least a month earlier but it has always been at two weeks or less than that before the trip that we start to put on our jogging shoes and jogged to regain our stamina. That was when we become berserk. Sometimes pushing ourselves to the limit, leaving us panting at the end of the long distant run. Or, if it was too last minute, we'll just walk and chat and decide to just accept whatever hardship that lies ahead...

The Packing~

It's just ironic how the question "Ko bawak ape?" is so commonly exchanged among us when actually there were numerous previous packing activities. I guess, that question was part of the excitement. I miss the strolls we used to have in 'Cowboy' where we searched for cheap tit bits to fuel us up with energy during the climb. I miss the maths that Shifaa, Mida and I use to do when deciding how many clothes to bring. And at the end of the packing, we'll try to carry each other's bag and exclaim in astonishment how heavy they are.

An all-time favourite pic

The Climb~

The climb, of course, has always been the best part of it all. I remember the worries that we used to have at the beginning of the climb.. We were not worried of whether or not we're going to finish the climb because we always finish.. It was how savage the leeches are that troubled us most.. During our last expidition, the three of us cupped our hands on our face and sprayed Bygone to the whole body as if it is a perfume.

I miss the sounds of chirping birds. I miss the crunching sounds of dry leaves. I miss the brush of the soft mountain breeze. I miss the beautiful sunrise and sunset. I miss the gurgling streams of the mountains from which we attain drinking water...

I miss the night talks we used to have before going to sleep. When the night chill penetrate our cheap sleeping bags and gnawed our skin, we moved closer to each other. In one of the expedition, one of us got so hypothermic and was shivering. We stayed up that night rubbing heat balm on her skin.

At night, we were entertained by the sounds of crickets, and in the morning it was always the sounds of birds that greet us. I really like it as we run our fingers on the surface of the canvas that sheltered us at night to get the morning dew for ablutions. Every morning marked the start of a new adventure and everybody always seem to be fuming with excitement, as if there were no rigorous hike the day before.

I really miss gazing at the miniature form of the world that lay below us as we stand on a peak of the mountain.. To this day, I still fail to find words to describe what feelings I have as I stand on the peaks. It was not the feeling of mere victory, there was something else... And.. I want to feel it again and again and again~

Aku rindu setengah mati....

"There are things you can learn from books.. There are things you can be taught.. But here are also things that you must see and feel to learn.."

Good Bye BoBo~

2011-07-20T21:41:00.002+08:00

I'm more or less like 'Meroyan' right now...

This evening, as I step out of the hospital building, all I can see were dark clouds. Tears started to run down my cheeks as I turned my car key in the ignition.. I fought my tears for hours; that was since I receive the text message from Umie confirming that Bobo is dead. It's really hard to believe because she was perfectly healthy two days ago.. We saw a dead mouse near her box yesterday morning and assumed she played with it.

She must've bitten it and got infected or even poisoned. She vomitted all day. Before I went climbing that Tuesday night, I saw yellowish fluid drooling from the corner of her lips and wiped it with a tissue. Asked her whether she's ok or not (though I know she won't answer, of course). She didn't respond to the toy that I rolled towards her. Before I leave, I patted her back and said my goodbye.

I have generationssssss of cats before Bobo, especially during primary school. But since Uni, I don't get to take care much of our cats. They don't even recognize me when I'm at home for holiday. Instead of stroking their body against my feet, they would just stare at me as if saying "Hey you, new girl! What's up?"

So it's really different with Bobo. After all these years, my longing to take care of my own cat finally meet its end. Well, I actually lure her mom to becoming my cat by providing food hehe But then her mom got pregnant and she delivered under my bed.

I didn't even notice that she, Bobo's mom, was under my bed the night she delivered. I was awakened by the mewing sound at around 3am. And I fought the urge to take a look and waited until morning. Then, when I pull up my mattress, I saw two tiny furry kittens curled up like two tiny balls.. Idham named them Tutu and Bobo. Tutu died from an eye infection..

When Bobo was already strong enough to walk about and started to pee and poop, my brother and I shopped for things to make them a comfortable home at this one corner in our house. Idham cut a box for them to rest and play inside... It was so perfect; us working together like that.

This evening, I went to clear everything up... That is not without tears okay~ I cried the most when I saw the cat sand that I just bought for her last Friday. I was so proud to finally able to teach her where to poop~ T_T

It's just so sad.. Now, there's no longer seeing Bobo running around inside the house.. No more tapping sounds on my window when she wants to come inside.. No more her rubbing against my feet as I eat in the kitchen.. I'm going to miss Bobo a lot... T_T

Goodbye BoBo~

Recipe For Life...

2011-07-18T21:02:00.002+08:00

I love floating~ That's the period when you finish the provisional training and wait for the posting. My shoulders are free of burden.. I can work in my own pace and do the things I love like read books for hours... Hehe So yeah I just finish another novel (^^)/

Recipe For Life~

One word to describe this book.. DELICIOUS..

This time this bewitching square object took me to Italy. Well, the first part was set in London and then the main character was in so much trouble that she finally decided to go to Italy to spend her summer and learn how to cook...

Delicious is because the author described the Italian food in a rather intricate detail.. I can imagine the simmering tomato sauce.. The tantalizing aroma of the herbs.. I'm a big fan of Italian food!!! I can say reading about them is kind of vexing because they only hover in your mind but not linger with your tastebuds.

Well, I guess the synopsis made me put high expectations for this book.. Like to really 'learn' about the 'recipe of life'. I was expecting a hidden message like the one in 'The Alchemist' by Paulo Coelho but then the story line is rather straightforward.

The story was about this woman in her twenties, Alice, that acquainted with an old lady, Babetta, that she met during her summer holiday. Well both of them have their own dilemmas to solve.. I was trying to catch what is it that Babetta have taught Alice about.. But I just can't find any until the end.. The old woman wasn't showing any examplary deeds and actually the story just revolve around Alice's tumultuous life.

But I found something to like about the book though.. The book actually tells about the reality of life; the low and high tides. The book start off with Alice being raped and her boyfriend cheating. And then she got hold of things again and start to progress in cooking. Then as things seem to be in her way, suddenly new problems arise. Then she gave up her dream and got involved in a relationship for decades. It was a relationship that defer commitments. She lives with the guy in a big mansion but there was no love between them and she was not happy though she didn't realize it at first..

And then.. At the end, it conclude that if things don't seem to suit you in the beginning, it doesn't mean that it won't suit you in the end.. And yes.. All of us make wrong decisions sometimes.. Hehe That's how God have made our life.. Full of surprises which are beyond our limited knowledge..

O yeah.. I've a favourite phrase too

"Cooking is the most intimate thing you can do for someone. I make something for you with my hands and then you put it inside your body. What can be more intimate than that.."

So.. Conclusion seterusnya.. Mesti pandai masak baru bole kawen :P hahaha

The 7Ups

2011-07-15T11:24:00.000+08:00

(^^) I found this in one of my email. And I kinda like it very much.. The 7Ups...

Wake Up...Decide to have a good day.

Dress Up... The best way to dress up is to put on a smile. A smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

Shut Up... Say nice things and learn to listen.

Stand Up... For what you believe in.

Look Up... To the Mercy of God

Reach Up... For something higher.

Lift Up... Your Prayers.

Never Let Me Go~

2011-07-10T05:44:00.000+08:00

Again.. I judged a book by it's cover....

Ok.. Cover x nampak.. So actually the cover is from the movie's poster..

My first impression from seeing the cover was.. This must be a very vey sad love story.. The synopsis at the back doesn't tell much so that made me more curious. And suddenly it's on my shelf (^^)v

The storyline is not that straightforward and I'm actually quite confuse right now on how to actually make the review of this book..

The whole story consist of 3 parts; that's when they were kids, when they were teenagers and as adults. The first part was about their life in Hailsham, the boarding school where they live in. There were terms like 'donors', 'carers' and whatnot. At the end of the first part, I was still confused of who these kids really are because their life are different from normal kids, they have weird teachers whom they called the guardians and some weird routines in their daily living too. Finally I googled and read about the book in Wikipedia and found out that they're actually clones. And I was like "OMG! I actually bought a Sci-Fi!!!!" but kept on reading anyway.

The second part was about their life in the Cottages. I say their teenage life is my favourite because it was when they start to explore the outside world. Their adulthood somehow filled with agony because they start becoming donors. That's what they were created for; to donate their organs to 'normal people'. So it's really sad the part where they have to endure complications from the donations. Usually a clone could put up until 3 donations before they die.

All in all, I say this book is very plain. But what keeps me to the end is the way the author wrote about their friendship, about their feelings, their curiousity and how they care for each other, especially the bond between Kathy and Tommy (the main characters in the book). Both of them were so close that they didn't realize that what they have is actually love.

One more thing, I'm actually amazed by how a male writer can actually write about girls' friendship in an almost precise details. The friendship that Kathy had with her friends were almost like the ones that I had during my schooldays hehe Yeah maybe that's what keeps me going to the end though I've decided this is not my favourite genre since long long long time ago...

Bawal.. Lip Gloss.. & that GIRL~

2011-07-07T00:14:00.001+08:00

It's flattering when people think you're younger than your actual age but.... when people think you're in secondary school when you're actually 25, I've one word for that DEMORALIZING!!!!!!!!! (-_-")

Yup.. Demoralizing.. I don't know whether it's my character or is it my dressing but this is just too often these days. TOO OFTEN!!!!!!! And I don't think this is good for my working image.. Yalah, who'll believe a 'school girl' who talks to you about drugs....

Even my mom think I should consider putting on some make up on my face in which I'll definitely oppose to. It's not that I don't like make up, it's just that I've sensitive skin that zit will easily pop out even if I just apply compact face powder (-_-") (cewah.. Mo cakap all this while ko natural beauty la kan Haziah hahaha)

But.. yeah.. I googled some of the new fashion that Muslimah are currently following.. They just don't suit my taste and I'm just not the type who'll wear something that I'm not comfortable with. Some are too body-hugging, too striking, too heavy like they wear so many layers of clothing.. Undeniably pretty and covers the aurah very well, but c'mon.. This is Malaysia, we're exactly at the equatorial line girl.. HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! When I saw this 'heavy' fashion, I thought people would do anything to be stylish...

But I'm quite tempted to the currently so in hijab fashion.. I don't know what's the name of the style just it seems like every girl wear them these days. So I watched this tutorial in youtube and so happen that I've all the things needed for the style.. A scarf, shawl and 3 needles hehe So I tried it out before going to work

I'm not sure whether it's suppose to look like this or not...

Well... What I think about this style... It's nice.. Looks pretty on every girl that I saw wearing it... But I feel it's just SEMAK on me... (Most probably sebab salah pasang) With that part hanging infront of me.. The inner part that embrace my neck is kinda suffocating...

I think I just wave the idea to wear this style off.. Will just stick to my bawal and lip gloss

Don't have to worry about looking young.. You'll get old one day -ZEQ-

2nd July 10-2nd July 11: Slightly censored..

2011-07-03T12:26:00.001+08:00

2nd July... Today is exactly one year to the day I first reported for duty.. Can't believe how the time seem to melt away so quickly and now I'm on my way to becoming a fully registered pharmacist. YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, some juniors sent messages through fb and ym asking about what to prepare for work and stuffs. I wasn't so free when replying those messages so most of the replies were brief though I actually have a lot more to tell. So today, I'm in my story-telling mood and I think I have enough time to write everything that I actually wanted to share before starting my evening shift today :p

When most of my friends were elated about starting to work, Shifaa and I actually wanted more time to relax. Our holiday were so packed with travelling and hiking so the fact that we have to report duty was actually troublesome because we have to settle documents and have to do medical check up and stuffs. 2 weeks after the semester ended, I actually flew to KL to start my adventuressss and only went back on the 28th of June whereas the date to report for duty was 1st July. But the letter arrived on 1st July so I'd to wait until 2nd July to report for duty.

We were to report for duty in JKNS and the Timbalan Pengarah was the one who decided that I was to be posted in HQE. Well, I remember he asked me about why I chose HQE. So I said, it's the nearest hospital from my dad's house and I think HQE could give me good training and exposure since it is the main hospital in Sabah; every case are referred to HQE..

So then the training starts...

In patient->> Manufacturing->> Store->> DIS ->> TDM ->> TPN ->> CDR->>Enforcement ->> Clinical->> Out patient

I don't feel like writing the details of each station like jobscope and whatnot.. That'll be plain boring~ I know UIA students have enough of those sight visits where we used to go strolling around and just look and ask questions.. I still can't fathom the main objectives of that sort of visits. Here I'll just write some personal experiences.

Since we only have visits to hospital rather than training during studies, so I was quite clueless when I first stepped into the satelite pharmacy setting. But to think of it, if you're so blur during the first few months, it's okay. It's just normal to have that feeling though I do sometimes feel like a loser. During studies, we were always reminded to have good alliance with other healthcare providers especially the doctors. I remember how nervous I was when my boss asked me to call a doctor to do some interventions. It's pretty stupid to be so anxious to think of it now. No harm was done to me. And that evening, I text a friend (I don't remember who) that I just did my first intervention hahaha excited la pulak kan~

House~

It was also during the in patient that I first get to see the reality version of 'House'. The satelite pharmacy that I was in is inside a ward, so you get to pass patients' beds and see how they were. And our in patient module also include some case clerking so yeah I did see some patients in their worst conditions and also get to see some wailing relatives when there's a passing.. Gave me butterflies in the stomach back then, but now, I adapted to it.

Nothing much during manufacturing and store. DIS was busier than I thought it would be. I was reading journals all day long for one month. Luckily I'm an avid reader so I quite enjoy the reading hehe TDM, TPN and CDR are my favourite. I think this is the most distinguished parts of pharmacy; meaning no other people in the healthcare chain knows better of these things than a pharmacist. I enjoy running the samples, I enjoy calculating and the decision-making. I really do..

I really enjoy the 2 weeks attachment in Enforcement but I don't think it's suitable for me. It's really nice not to be in the office all the time. The staffs there do inspections in daily basis and I even joined two nationwide raids. Sometimes they get to be prosecutors too. But there was one afternoon when I joined one of the officer to send out a summon to this traditonal medicine practitioner. They did a raid months before and found some controlled drugs in the oils the man was using. So the enforcement decided to penalize him. His house was small with no furnitures; I was pretty sure the man can't afford to pay the penalty. And then the wife held my hand and was saying "Tolong la cik.. Tolong la kami..".. I was actually holding back tears... I know the trial for the case was on 1st March.. And know what, I saw the man in the Male ward early March while I was in my Clinical attachment. I guess he was put on so much pressure that he had a heart attack..

The Clinical rotation should be the second most challenging. My preceptor was busy with his studies when I was attached to his ward so he wasn't around most of the time. But when he was around, he really gave the effort to fill me in with as much as information as he could. Medical wards are very hectic. The patients turn-over is so fast and you get to see a lot of cases. Like, if you already set your mind at 5pm that day you want to read about this particular thing that night, when you come the next morning, there'll be 2 or 3 new cases and the one you read last night was like obsolete because it's either the patient is already transferred to another ward, or the new cases are more interesting haha

Out patient seems easy... But to me, OPD is the most challenging. Why?? Now I tell you~ It's in outpatient that I got scolded quite a lot~ Now, I'm thinking which worse case scenario should I be telling~

Ow.. Lets hear about Pakcik Diazepam la... Okay.. I was working night shift when this man came with a syrup diazepam prescription. When I check in our record, he already collected a full month supply the previous day. So, of course I cannot give!!!!!!! You know how stringent the rulings are when it comes to psychotropic drugs. Like we have to do police report even if a single tablet is missing what more if the record show you supplied more to a particular patient.

So I refuse to make the syrup unless the Pakcik give back the tablets he'd taken. So that was when the drama start. His voice roared like thunder inside the pharmacy; scolding me to my face.

"Masuk penjara la kau kalo anak saya mati malam ni!!!!!!!!!!!" That was one of his memorable phrase. Many "Bodoh la kamu orang!!!" too.

I was not being patient actually though the outward look does seem like I'm being patient with him. I was boiling inside. Fighting back the urge to scold him back that is. I stick with my refusal because I know this man knew the rulings very well and I know I'm right at that time. He has been taking the same medications for many years, I guess he should expect that we're not going to give. I seriously don't know how I got so stern that night that I said in a calm voice (though actually I feel like screaming..)

"Sekarang saya nda akan buat ini syrup selagi encik nda bawa tu tablets ke sini. Encik tau suda kan ini peraturan dia. Rumah encik dekat kan? Encik ambil tablets tu, encik datang sini balik, saya jamin syrup tu suda siap"

So finally he agreed to take the tablets. Masa buat the syrup, macam mau pecah tu mortar and pestle. Can you imagine how it feels to be fighting anger to that extend. He was cursing at me in front of oher waiting patients. Yes, he CURSED!!!!! To think about it now, mesti the patients who didn't uderstand think that I'm sooooo bad to have refused the man's request. But, I have to abide to rules maaa.. The amanah that I'm shouldered with. Agree??? O ya, he did apologize to me when he came back. I did so too because I want him to understand that I'm only being stubborn because I've to follow the rules, it's not that I'm not considerate..

And this is only one of them 'kerenah patients' okay.. There are many more....

I've been scolded by that on-top-of-the-chain-profession too. I found that the specialist and HO's are okay. It's those in between these two that I've been facing problems with. Once I was scolded because we ran out of maxolon. He asked me of the alternatives so I just tell him what we got in the hospital.. "Promethazine, Domperidone.." and in his ego-struck tone he said "Do you know they're not good prokinetic??" Pergh~ menyampah kalo ingat his tone. "Yes, I know. But those are the only ones that we have right now so unfortunately we have to choose either of them.."

And there was this guy also. He requested for a pharmacist to come to his ward so I went la.. I walk all the way and went to him and said "Yes, how can I help you?" He look at me from bottom to top "Where's CK?" "He's not around. I'm replacing him" He turned around, wave his hands; you know, the gesture that tells you, I don't need you here. Dem rude!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wah!!! this post is sooo long.. Okay la... I guess I should end this.. Hurm.. I don't intend to scare you juniors with this somewhat horrific stories of mine. I just think this is the part of my working experience that I wasn't prepared for back during the studies. We weren't taught much regarding how to handle stress and dealing with people; maybe indirectly through those community service we used to do.

And actually there are happy things and amusing things too. I still have hearty laughs at work and we have fun hangouts with fellow colleagues too. Sometimes you get to meet funny patients too. Like this tukang tilik pakcik who just babble about your personalities as you dispense. I was so blur that I asked "Em... Pakcik tengah cakap pasal saye ke??" haha :P

So... when it comes to the real working phase, these are the things that you have to expect
That was why when M asked me for some tips, I could only say "ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAY!!!" because there are many things that you won't get from the book when you work. It's sufficient enough if you have good basics. Yes, you have to read a lot during PRP, but you won't get the picture of what you're supposed to be reading unless you're already in the hospital setting...

So, Good Luck to Rx6 who'll be working soon. Be positive wheeever you're being posted. Learn as much as you can. And be ready to be very rajin!! (^^)/ And one more thing, remember to keep our feet on the ground.

Even after 1 year, I still don't know much.. Learning is a life-long process

I hope he reads this~

2011-06-28T00:25:00.000+08:00

Girls.. Yes, girls only... I think almost all of us have guy friends who we confide things to.. Maybe not to reveal as much as when we confide to a girlfriend.. But.. Yeah.. We have guy friends whom we share stories with. For my part, if I confide anything to a guy, I just wanted to listen to an opinion that's most probably would be from a different perspective than that of girls'. So yeah.. I've good friends... But I'm currently quite upset with one...

Well, recently, he's just weird.. One day he called me by a name that he shouldn't have. And I'd replied

"Kau ni buang tebiat ka apa?"

Maybe he thought I was okay with his joke. But actually I was not. I'm not being prejudice with him. It's just that I don't think it's appropriate fo him to call me that way. Our friendship is based on a firm foundation built with trust after years of acquaintance. I guess it's okay if he wants to flirt with any other girl but please.. Not me...

I'm not that kind of girl.. I'm not flattered with such callings or sweet talks.. I get upset with those things.. Especially when it's from someone I think I know well, I'm constantly in contact with, someone I trust and someone I care...

To some extend, I also feel betrayed.. Because I think he knew I'm not that kind of girl who he could call with names. I so often told him that I feel like punching flirtatious guys, I hate guys who befriended me and purposely want to get close with me because they feel like they have a chance to be more than friends just because I'm single. He knows I hate the kind of guy who text with every girl in the world.. He knows... He knows me very well... I just have no idea why he did that...

I really want him to know that I'm upset with what he did.. I don't expect him to apologize, I just don' want him to do that again.. I don't know how to let him know how I feel about it.. That's why I hope he reads this...

18-19 June: Berhala Island Climbing Trip

2011-06-23T21:44:00.005+08:00

One year of employment; my nerves were approaching the breaking point. The environment and staffs are okay; it's just that I've been having some unpleasant experiences with patients. Got scolded for things that were not my fault and that is not COOL..

So when the guys in SICC announced the date for Berhala trip, I signed up right away. Never had second thought. I knew that this is the getaway that I've been waiting for. Yeah.. I'd holidays with my family but it was always me who drive and I usually get sore when we arrived somewhere so actually my body is silently craving for a pure relaxation holiday...

We took a flight on Saturday morning and then checked in at this very neat backpackers lodge. I shared my dorm with a very nice Scottish woman whom I chatted with the whole Saturday night. Had my Ipod and a book with me. So before the climb, I spent some time listening to music while reading my book. Occasionally looking out through the window.. It was a bliss... A BLISS (^^)

Though from the pictures it's like some tiring trip but actually it was not. The route are tough, yes, but then I'd enough rest and enjoyed my time with nature very much. Brings back memories with ARC..

So now.. I know I uploaded hundreds of photos in FB but I actually intend to elaborate them in here (^^)/ YOSH!!!!

This was my first climb, the chimney. This was where the guys in SICC was inspired to design the chimney in SICC. The feeling.. hurm.. it's suppose to be an easy but was not so easy for me.. A lot of thinking all the way up and really have to trust your legs and the friction of your footing to get going...

2nd climb: Eat Blues Lama.. A 10m climb.. A slab all the way.. But the hand holds are dreadful and the foot holds are just fine lines... But I love this route because you get to do a lot of moves that you've been training in the gym.

7a route: my project of the day.. An unfinished project to be exact. It took me around 5 minutes to figure out the starting.. Hand jams, undercling, arete... This route have it all. I just can't believe I manage to get pass more than half of it. Got stuck around 3m below the ending because there's just NO hand holds!!!!!! except for this very fine crack that could fit less than an inch of my index finger and the only foot hold is at the arete that won't provide you with good balance to pull youself up... But I'm just proud to have passed more than half of it hehe (^^)v

2nd day, we climbed in Turtle Beach. I climbed 3 routes. Easy, intermediate and super coooool!!!!!!!!! haha The tide was high so it was hard to snap the photos of the routes from good angles..

Putting on my climbing shoes.. Actually I was quite nervous.. hehe Nda mau kasi lepas batu langsung though I was actually already have this safety line atached to me

So these are the routes. The rock is actually sand stone so it tends to crumble. Had some falling rock incidents during the climb. I stepped on porous rocks during my last climb and they fell. Luckily they didn't fell on any of the guys. I should've said "Fall" to warn the guys. But I panicked and said "JATOOOOH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

This is the Super COOOOL route... 30m... The white dot over there is actually Vince at the ending hehe

This is a mono on the super cool route. Manage to snap a shot haha I did this very quickly of course. This was the only hand hold to pull myself up and my foot was actually inside an uncomfortable pocket that only fit the tip of my right shoe... No foot hold on the left.. Can you imagine how hard it was to pull!!!!!!!!

And here are some videos that I recorded during the second day.

The first video is actually taken after my first climb. I was actually standing on the rock with my harness attached to this rope which is tied to a bolt embeded into the rock (Adeh... Hard to explain) It's just so cool because below me was all water since the tide was high. I was just sooooo excited because I don't get to do this everyday as a Pharmacist :p hehe Berangan jadi Jimmy Chin in this video :P

This video was actually taken at the top. Not sure of the height. The booklet that I was provided with says it's 30m. I stopped about 2m below the actual endpoint because there was a bee hive there so probably this was around 28m. My hardest climb so far. The first part was a slab (angled at less than 90) but the surface wasn't that friendly. Very few hand holds and foot holds. I was standing on a surfce that was as thick as a coin and that really hurts you know... The hand holds.. All the time were crimps.. LuckilyI did some practice on locking crimps in the gym. Some overhang part right in the middle and got stuck there for a few minute. The most defying would be the last part. Exactly 90 degress with crimps hand holds again. I decided to speak English in the video for the sake of this blog haha I was soooo excited so I just ramble there and still gasping for air haha

And this is just an embarassing video of my first jumaring. I saw the guys doing it for so many times already but never had the chance to do it. I posted this anyway because this is something I don't get to do everyday too hehe I had some difficulty at first but when Vince stopped the recording, that was when I figured out how to do it.. Ces!!!!

See, I succeed!!! Hehe

Know what, at the end of the trip I think I'm just crazy to have done all that haha

So that's it.. The World Is Amazing!!!!

Me and Me Blog...

2011-06-21T01:20:00.002+08:00

Was scheming through the list of links on my blog when I saw my archive actually dated from 2008. Which means, I've been blogging for almost four years now!!!! WOW!!! Can't believe I'm that persistent hehe

I don't really know where I stand as a blogger.. I don't have a chatbox and a visitor counter thus I don't have any idea of how often people actually access this blog. But I do have surprising experiences as a blogger. That's when total strangers said they knew me from my blog.

One was a friend of a friend. Me and my friend M joined our friend J with his friends for dinner (ok that's kind of confusing). So basically there were two guys that M and I never met before. So the more talkative guy started the conversation by asking M her name and what course she is studying. Then after M briefly introduced herself, the guy went silent.

So I was like "Why are you not asking me?" (X malu betol pi tanya begitu :p)

"O, kenal dah. Ade blog kan? Exceladorable"

I spontaneously blurt out, "O my God M, this means he knows half of my life already!!!" haha I was so freaked out. I never expect to meet someone who I didn't know who actually come across my blog. He might not be a follower, but he knew my blog!!! Malu pon ada masa tu hahaha

The second occasion was at a bus stop in Gombak. That time I haven't even put this blog in IIUM blogger thingy. I was waiting for the bus with a few other girls. Suddenly the one who sat beside me said, "Hey! I know you!! You have a blog right?? Exceladorable right??"

I seriously don't know what expression I wore on my face that time. I think my jaw-dropped. I only responded with "Yeah.. Yeah.. That's my blog.. Hehe" then the girl asked what I was doing in Gombak and stuff. Just normal conversation la.. Tiada pulak pi minta autograf haha If like that, I sure pengsan punya hahaha

But honestly, I enjoy writing as much I enjoy reading and that what keeps me writing eventhough I don't know whether it is read or not. I blog just simply because I love to write. I really really love to write and I love English too! hehe

To Allah we belong and to Him shall we return~

2011-06-15T22:55:00.005+08:00

I was dumbfounded as I read the first part of the SMS that just came in. Someone had passed away but who..??? Without reading the rest of the lengthy front part, I scroll down quickly to get the name.. Adhamerudin..

"ADHA!!???"

I replied a short SMS "ni Adha dak ARC tu ke?" and yes it is him.. I was stunned.. A little bit confused whether this is real or not... Then Mida called, all teary on the other side of the line.. Only by then I could digest all the information and accept that this is really happening.

He was a new member in ARC when I was in my final year. I remembered him very well. He was friendly, very enthusiastic when it comes to adventure and that smile on his face just never fade..

And just now I saw the news and saw the two black plastic bags in which one of it contain his body. The scene gave me shivers.. It have never crossed my mind that one day the news will flash about someone I know and have some memories with.

He was a very nice person, one you're very comfortable with. I remember when Mida and I went to help to clean the tents after their expedition to Tahan, he was so excited because it was his first mountain with ARC. He and the other juniors playfully said "Bile nak naek gunung dengan Kak Mida ngan Kak Jiji lak ni.."

And yeah not long after that we were in the same group in the Nuang expedition.

His passing is a tragic loss to us all. May he be blessed and placed among the believers.
Al Fatihah...

He was kind till the very end... He jumped to safe a friend's life without having thought of his own put into risk...

Sipitang->LImbang->Brunei: 28 May 2011

2011-06-15T22:45:00.000+08:00

To me the Keamatan holiday is a blessing, what more if it fell on Monday and Tuesday. We had a looooong weekend and my cousin had his wedding on the bride's side in Limbang that weekend. It was actually my idea to extend our travelling to Brunei because the last time I went there was when I was in Primary 3. So, since the idea originated from me so I was the official driver for the whole journey (-_-")V

We departed from KK on Friday night. Fetched my mom and my aunt in Beaufort and went
straight to Sipitang. It was raining like cats and dogs that night and it was quite hard for us to locate my cousin's house. The next morning, we departed from Sipitang to Limbang at 9 am. But we only manage to reach Limbang at around 3pm because there was this annoying, snaking long traffic jam in Temburong, where we have to ride this ferry to cross this river that's less than 50m wide!!!!!!!!!!! It was soooo troublesome..

The ferry ride was less than a minute that we can't get a very nice view to show you how NARROW the river is~

My dad described the river's width as "Ko bole humban orang di sebelah tu"
My uncle saw it in a different perspective "Kalo kentut kuat, orang kat seberang bole dengar.."

In Limbang, my cousin already booked a hotel room for us. RM 80 for a room as big as this

Surprisingly, I met two schoolmates in Limbang and man they were very surprised to see me haha

So we departed to Brunei after my cousin's wedding. Brunei wasn't that far at all. Took us around two hours to reach our relative's house there. That night our Bruneian relatives took us sight seeing and granted our wish to have a taste on the famous Nasi Katok which is actually rice, spiced chicken and sambal that taste good!

To be honest, there was not much to do in the affluent country. It's not a tourism spot; as if they don't even bother about the sector. But I was really fond of how they arrange the buildings there; they look so neat and yes Brunei is soooo clean too.

We went sight seeing by foot. Went to this field in the middle of the Bandar Seri Begawan

Went to pray at Masjid Umar Ali

The funny thing is, whereever we go in Brunei we'll meet people who have relatives in Labuan who happen to be acquainted to us too. The story has it that some of the Labuanites are actually Bruneian refugees during the World War II who wanted to escape from the Japanese.

"Dang, kanal ko si Polan??"
"Ooo, cikgu ku di sekolah rendah.." or "Anaknya kawan ku tusyen.." hehe

And you can see that Brunei is rich because their roads are so nice; no holes, no bumps... Rata betol!!! And there are lights along the road.. Tidak putus putus lampu jalan..

So that's it about the journey..

And I think my parents are already in the mood to have a son-in-law. My mom was fantasizing about my wedding..

"Nanti kalo adik kawen, mau buat bunga api and concert la.."
"Mami ingat adik artis???" (-_-")

My dad just got back from Indonesia and helped to buy some wedding souvenirs for my stepmom's nephew.. Then he suddenly said,

"Eyh, nanti kena pi Indon la kalo begini murah"
And I was like, buat2 nda dengar, grabbed all the stuffs they bought for me in Indonesia and scurried to my room "O my God!! Lambat suda mo pi kerja!!!!"

hehe (^^)v

I WON!!!!!!! \(^^)/

2011-06-11T06:35:00.001+08:00

Well, this is actually not new. This happened like about 4 weeks ago.. That's on 15th May. We have this Youth Day in KK and one of the event was speed climb competition. Honestly not my favourite because the previous speed climb competition gave me lots of bruises on both knees.. But.. I participated anyway because the prize was so tempting.. RM 100 for individual and RM 100 for group of 4.

Sooooo.. Long story short.. I WON!!!!!!!!!! \(^^)/

3 routes... Perliminary route.. Semifinal and the final..

The guys in the final

The girls in the final

Actually my time was not that fast ponnnnn.. Around 11-14 seconds. My record for the final was 14 secs while the one who got second was around 18 secs. But there was this girl who just tried wall climbing the day before the competition and I was damn scared when I saw her climb so fast!!!! She got the talent, but never train, so she got stuck on some parts where you need some skills to get the balance. I say, if she'd trained, I can guarantee that she'll be better than me!!!!!!!!

Anyway, after the speed climb we have this difficulty climb which is MY FAVOURITE. I like it when you need to think the climb and then difficulty climb needs more power and endurance. Four routes. Manage to finish one. The other three only up until the 7th panel. I was already exhausted during the difficulty climb and since there were only 3 of us, so there was little time to rest. Like around 5 minutes in between each climb. All and all it was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!

These are the links to the videos on youtube. Don't want to embed them here or else this post will be sooooooo lengthy heeee Actually I've edited one vid that combine them all but I've trouble uploading it on youtube which actually caused the delay of this post..

Pink... White... Yellow.. Blue...

O yeah~ the prize money worth RM125, I paid the whole sum to the dentist on Monday morning (-_-")

No pills please~ (-_-")

2011-06-08T11:54:00.000+08:00

I was resting on my mom's bed when I heard a woman's voice giving salam from outside. I rose, grab a hijjab and fought my way to the door with the throbbing pain in my head. Two ladies in the middle of 50's were standing outside. They wanted to see mom, but she was out. They wanted to talk about some direct selling health and skin products so I asked them to come in to wait for mom.

I looked at some of the products and was so surprised to see the price were up to thousands of ringgit. Then I came to this page of the catalogue that displayed pictures of fruits and vegetables that are known to us as beneficial for our health and well-being. But at the corner of that page were statements saying how many toxins and pesticides were found in them.

When I turn to the next page, there it was. The promotion of this supplement pill that contains all the nutrients in those fruits and vegetables which is claimed to be PURIFIED and FREE OF TOXINS.. I was like

"WHAT DA...!!!!?????"

inside my heart la. Not in front of the mak cik hehe

I don't know how many people fall for that, but I didn't. All the nutrients inside a compacted pill that taste nothing but bitter. I definitely won't trade that with the crunchy and juicy apple, the squishing sound of the orange as your finger pierce into the skin, the taste of the half-cooked carrot that I love so much. (yes I love the squishing sound of the orange) And and and.. I really love the time spent strolling in the market with my family buying fruits and vegetables.. All those are irreplaceable okay.. What more with 30 BITTER pills worth hundreds of ringgit..

Okay.. No offence pill lovers and sellers.. I'm a Pharmacist, I see pills in DAILY basis.. I don't need them for nutrients.. I'll do anything to not consume a pill.. Drive to the market, wash the fruits, peel the skin.. Anything.. Just NO pills please...

What If...

2011-05-31T22:07:00.003+08:00

What if... what feels right is wrong in every single way.. Explictly wrong...

Close your eyes in the dark.. And wait if a tale will ever happen....

No.. Nothing will...

Awesome!!!!

2011-05-26T22:27:00.004+08:00

I guess the working life is not as enjoyable as I'd anticipated it a year ago.. Before I graduated, I so often repeated the phrase "Cepatla keje, nak ade duit sendiri!!!!"

Well, now I've the money alright. But I just don't seem to have the ample time to enjoy life as much as I did during my study years anymore.Lesser and lesser adventure.. More and more responsibilities.. There's so much to sigh about these days but am trying to be as positive as I could to enjoy life. And I guess that's why the silly things I used to crap about becomes lesser and lesser in this blog too..

Just discovered this blog that talks about how life simple pleasures can be so awesome.. Well, fun to read it but it was like a smack on my face.. I honestly have forgotten how I used to just appreciate the view from the window of my compartment back in UIA.

So today, I tried it out again.. That's to appreciate simple simple things.. And there was this feeling of content that felt so terrific when I manage to persuade Idham to swallow his antibiotics! Voilla!!!

It's the same feeling of content that I usually felt when an elderly says "Terima kasih, nak.." after I dispense the medications...

Hurm.. Guess I'll try to be positive when cleaning Bobo's poops after this heee

"Cleaning poops makes the air fresher in this humble home!!! Awesome!!!!" hehe by the way, Bobo is my kitten heee

BOBO!!!!

Diriku di Bawah Bayu...

2011-05-22T10:43:00.005+08:00

I've always been a genuine Labuanites all this while although my friends in UIA always referred me as 'The Sabahan Girl" since I'm the only girl who's from Borneo in the batch. I realized I'm not actually a 'pure' Sabahan about a year ago when I actually don't remember the exact location of the famous Gaya street.

I was clueless when the hospital staffs called me 'Mandak' which actually originates from the word 'Sumandak' which means 'Girl'. And I was confused why people like to say 'Otoooookui!!!!'. And later found out that's a famous tag line of Suria KK morning crew, Otto and Dudu, that every Sabahan listen to every morning. Yes.. Every Sabahan listen to Otto and Dudu every morning. Ok, if not every, maybe 98.9% listen to them every morning.

Living here, I actually don't do much of the exploring yet as compared to the other PRPs from the Peninsular in my hospital. It's pretty embarassing when I don't know the places they mention and then they'll start telling me about those places in great detail. And there I was nodding, "uhuh"-ing and "Really?? we have that in Sabah?" (-_-")v

So... Yep.. I love being in this Land Below the Wind. And is having second thought whether I should proceed with my previous plan to settle down in the Peninsular to become a lecturer there. There's this peace that I don't seem to find back in the Peninsular. The traffic jam is still tolerable. The people are amazingly friendly. And we have everything here!!! Mountains, rivers, waterfalls, world famous diving spot, shopping malls etc etc etc... Just the stuffs that are cheap in the Peninsular can be extremely expensive here like tudung.. Dem!

Even every morning on my way to work I get to see this mesmerizing scenery of the magnificent Mount Kinabalu. It looked so heavenly, you know.. The mountain in silhouette, covered by white clouds and then the sky is crimson from the sun rising in the east.. Pergh!! Subhannallah..

And one more thing I notice in Sabah.. Sabahan guys are actually good looking!!!!! haha Ok enough..

Hurm.. Actually I wanted to post some pics of the places I love in KK but since I'm always the one who drive, so I didn't have the chance to snap much.. So I post this video instead. This is the video of explorers from the US on their trip to ascend the Big Wall of Borneo (^^) love it!

Roof.. Yeah!!! (^^)/

2011-05-11T20:06:00.000+08:00

I think it's almost a year since I started climbing.. Stopped for a few months though; that's from April until August last year.. Progress?? Quite a lot but still need to learn more. So this is the video of my first roof project.. Actually, this is the second route they set up for beginners on this roof, but the first one was too hard.. I kept on swinging away from the roof and finally lose grip. Even this one I couldn't finish but still trying to hehe

Here goes.. Black and Yellow.. Black and Yellow.. (^^)/

Magic of the old days~

2011-05-01T00:08:00.002+08:00

My mom just called. She told me about how my uncle was so cool when her little daughter kicked him when he told her not to run around because she might fall. My mom was like so geram but didn't do anything about it because ya la, my uncle was so cool, takkan la mau lebih-lebih pulak.

This actually reminds me about this evening when I was beaten mercilessly by my mom hahaha

I was in Primary 4. My parents were already divorced, Nenek was still alive and my uncle and his wife was still staying with us. I just got back from school, wore a pinafore that day, and I immediately saw satays served on the dining table in the kitchen. I got so excited that I jumped on a chair and start grabbing those satay while singing "Satay satay satay~~~". I heard my mom cried from the room, "Adik bukak pinafore!!!!"

I took off my pinafore with one hand holding a satay. As I munch those delicious satay and as the taste linger inside my buccal cavity, I toss my pinafore into the air. And ooopsss!!!! It landed on my mom's head!!!!!!

During one of my birthday party (^^)
Muka nda berubah langsung!!!!

I heard my mom screeched "Norhaziah!!!!!!!!!". I turned around and saw her turn green and suddenly her muscles gorge and she turned into a she-hulk!!!! Ok.. that was just a figment of my imagination. Actually, she got very furious and grabbed a broom and started to sway it at me. But I was very good at dodging. I manage to dodge quite a lot of swings and my mom got even furious when she missed. Then she manage to grab me and I was whipped.

I struggled to be freed and finally succeed and ran into the living room.. My mom took a plastic basin and threw it; it hit my back and I say my mom would've been a good handball player because the impulse was so intense and stinging!!!! And then I ran outside and then my mom gave up. She screamed, "Jangan masuk rumah!!!!!!!!!!"

So I stayed outside and that was when I started to cry... I actually cried because I was so mad that nobody helped me.. Not even Nenek and not even my uncle and his wife...

You know what, the day after that incident, I started doing my own laundry haha I don't quite remember what drives me into doing that but I guess that's the magic of the old school way of teaching the children. It's kind of barbaric in today's view but yeah.. it's just magical...

I don't quite understand why today's parents are so lenient with their children. I once read an article by Ustaz Hasrizal that it might be due to the fact that parents not wanting their kids to feel the hardship and the pain that they've been through. But, I guess they should be reminded that it's those hardship and pain that have brought them to what they are today.. Successful people (^^)

Half the Sky..

2011-04-26T22:47:00.002+08:00

I've just finished reading about Oprah's book collection when I'm suddenly reminded of writing the review about "Half The Sky"; a book I bought a month ago.. So here goes

I've always been the kind who judge a book by its cover. So obviously I was drawn to this book by the enticing phrase under the title "How to change the world". And also the reviews written inside those clouds are very encouraging too and one of them is actually by Khaled Hosseini.

Basically, this is another book that puts the limelight on human rights; particularly women. It narrates a lot of stories from all over the world about oppressed women; mostly due to traditional taboo in which women are stigmatized or put to a standard lower than that of men. As I read through chapter by chapter, I would sometimes run to my laptop and start typing the name mentioned to know more about the story. Some stories are just so unimaginable. The thing done to those women were so hineous that I would just stop reading, inhaled a deep breath, and then resume my reading...

One story that gave me goosebumps was about this thug in one of the slum in India who steal, molested men, raped women and murdered those who retaliate. This thug and his gang once sliced a woman's breast in front of the public, and then killed her and cut her into pieces. One man who wanted to report to the police was then burnt to death. So, one day this thug and his gang wanted to steal from this family whose daughter is the only university graduate in the slum. So, the daughter refused to open the door and even threaten the guy that she'll blow them all up by releasing the gas from the kitchen stove. Seeing the girl's bravery, the rest of the slum started to throw things to the gang that they finally retreat.

Not long after that, the thug was arrested and brought to trial. During the trial, as he walk to the stand, he saw a woman he once raped and arrogantly said to that woman, "When I'm released, I'll rape you again". The woman stood up, and slapped his face with her sandal. Then suddenly hundreds of women came trashing into the court. They are the victims of rape. They start to punch and stab the thug to death in the courtroom. Those women just can't stand it anymore and had brought justice into their own hands.

A handsome face and a golden heart.. Hehe

I got kind of excited too when I came across a story that was once mentioned in one of Oprah's talkshow. It was about how rape is rampant in Congo as a war weapon. I remember that particular episode because Ben Affleck went to Congo to assist the aid mission there hehe (^^)v

There are many more stories inside; such as about how women are forced into prostitutions and being stigmatized due to gender inequality.

I have to admit that it is kind of depressing to read this kind of book but I think it's another way of bringing myself out of my comfort zone and help me to realize that despite of all the bad things that befall me at times, I'm still very lucky than some other people somewhere in this world. Alhamdulillah... I say, this book is also galvanizing; that is it galvanizes you to want to do something about it.. Now one of Micheal Jackson's lyrics is hovering in my mind...

"If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change.."

It's a Passion...

2011-04-22T10:29:00.004+08:00

I've decided what I want in climbing...

It's not an obsession.. It's a passion..

I'm not aiming of becoming a competitive climber to win tittles.. I want to climb what the world has to offer...

Only a climber knows how this sport could become inevitably addictive.

A pic from our Merapi Expedition '09

Personally, comparing it to hiking, I feel that climbing gives out much more. When you hike, it tests your mental and physics. It's all about how far you could withstand the brutes of reaching the peak. With a super heavy haversack on your back, you have to triumph each and every obstacles on your way. In addition, you also have to endure the cold win, hot scorching sun and one of my own weakness is, to have the courage to emm... excrete waste in the wild haha :p (tried my best to search a proper word for that). When your mental focus is defeated by nature's ordeal, that's when you can say goodbye to the peak...

Climbing requires more than just stamina. An additional aspect you've got to have is technique. That's why you need to go to the gym to train and develope these techniques. Yeah.. I saw a lot of extreme hikers and very muscular elite paddlers who couldn't finish routes that for myself is kind of easy (am not showing off..). They're not lack power and energy but it's technique...

Ukraine..

Ever since I started climbing seriously, a very loyal customer to my climbing gym that is, I met a lot of people from all over the world with the same passion. I get to meet people from UK, US, Canada, Germany (GERMANY!!!!! \(^^)/) and France and also acquainted to a very nice lady from South Africa (am looking forward to a jungle trekking trip once she return from SA). They shared their climbing experiences and even tell you what alse they have in the other parts of the world.

New Zealand..

I joined two climbing groups in facebook. One is to connect our gym's climbers and the other one is that connects climbers from all over the world. They post pictures of places to climb, and I've to admit I'm very tempted to try out at least one of those amazing climbing sites abroad.

I linked two of my favourite gorgeous world class climbers' blogs too. Sean McColl's and Paul Robinson's. It's just exciting to read their journey in trying to accomplish great projects and also win tittles..

So that's it.. All I need now is an unshakable discpline to enable me to juggle between my two greatest commitments; being a Pharmacist and a Climber. I want to be good at them both..

And yeah.. this doesn't mean I'm going to neglect my other responsibilities lah, just no need to mention here :p

Was he ready...???

2011-04-19T00:04:00.000+08:00

Aha!!! I know the first thing that would've popped in your mind once reading the tittle would be MARRIAGE.. If you think so, YOU'RE WRONG. What I'm about to tell is totally deviated from the dreaded topic :p

Here goes...

I think, since my mom's retirement, she has gotten busier than when she was working. Every time she called or I called it would be..

"Mami baru lepas berkebun" or "Mami baru lepas hantar budak2 pi sekolah" or "Mami baru lepas cuci tingkap" or "Mami baru lepas main badminton" etc.

I guess, she can never stood still hehe So, she'd also been quite active in attending talks. Some about entrepreneurship (she has high aspirations yet I don't think she'll ever start :p) and at times attend some religious talks that teaches basic fiqh and stuffs..

So last Saturday she went to a Kursus Pengurusan Jenazah and had to bring along my 8 year-old niece since nobody was home to look after her. His brother went to follow my brother for this Carrom championship (and my bro victoriously won straight games and will be representing his office for this tournament in Terengganu.. I'm a proud sister (^^)/ haha).

I called my mom later that day to ask her what did she learn from the course. I've very very very little knowledge in Pengurusan Jenazah thingy..

Mami said, "Err, banyak belajar.. Err, nanti lah adik tengok note book mami,"

She told me the topics that was covered such as the signs of death, 'preparation' for death etc.

So today, 5 days after the course, my mom was about to go somewhere when she received a call telling that one of our relative just passed away. She cancelled her plans and brought her granddaughter to pay their last respect.

Then, on their way back home, my niece suddenly asked,

"Nenek, did the guy who just died was prepared???"

My mom was flabbergasted by the unanticipated question and she went into a silent pause for quite a number of seconds. Finally, she answered..

"Hurm.. Maybe he did.."

If I was in my mom's place, I think my silent pause would be a little bit longer hehe it's kind of hard to really explain this kind of thing to little kids since their minds are not yet ready to grasp deep ideation about death. I guess her short answer was for the best.

But what caught my attention is that my niece was listening to what the ustaz was talking about during the course and had kept it in her mind.. And now I've this question to extend to myself and all of us, have we been keeping that in mind??? Tettttttt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

180311 Jalan jalan

2011-04-03T07:50:00.004+08:00

I've been all stressed out throughout the clinical rotation. Literally had some bouts of anxiety episodes in which I woke up during the witching hour with this weird and somewhat nerdy tendency to grab on the Clinical Practice Guidelines that I was told to finish. Luckily, I survived and is still independent of tranquilizers... So actually this recent trip to KL was yet another excuse to escape the hustle and bustle of the hospital life...

It was Adi Asraf's wedding that I'd attended. We opted to ride a train to go there and our journey was of course not without drama.. That morning, we missed the first ETS train to Perak and had to wait for the slow-and-no-announcement train instead. All of us (Mar, Eqa, Mida and me) were actually so sleepy but Mida and I end up chatting all the way to Perak. We'd noticed all the stations in which the train had stopped until the sight of the mountains came into view. That was when our voice suddenly raised in excitement and it was like as if we were sealed in this invisible sphere that disconnect us from the real world..

Suddenly we heard Eqa calling our names. Both of us jubilantly looked at her; still excited with the recollection of memories of the mountains. With her eyes half-opened, she croaked "Woit, tengok kat luar stesen ape.." The train was already moving when we saw the sign board "Kampar" and Mida and I was like "OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

We manage to reach the wedding but of course off schedule. Ate Kuew Teoy, nasi campor and ice cream, took pictures and off we went. At the train station, we revised on the list of names of our classmates who'd married. Quite a lot already that the list needed two pairs of hands there and many are coming at the end of this year.

This is the picture of the ETS. Very comfortable indeed and most conveniently afforded with announcement of each coming station by this mellow voice of a woman.

The time passed so fast that day.. I really miss the times we had in UIA..
(wow.. that actually rhymes hehe)

On Sunday, I'd coaxed Shifaa to meet us in OU. I actually wanted to go to Camp5 to get a pair of brand new, high quality climbing shoes. I finally decided to try out this Saltic brand which was kind of foreign to me. And currently, I'm quite obsses with my new climbing shoes because it is just so freakin' comfortable!!!!! hehe It's just the yellow colour that's not in my favourite list though..

Stayed at Mida's place on my third night there. Shopped a bit in Wangsa Walk with Mida constantly professing of how she is shocked with my unprecedented frugality. Grabbed this amazing book... I'll have this book's review posted soon.

And the final drama of this trip was when I for the FIRST time ever, MISSED MY FLIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!! huhu But never mind.. There's always hikmah in disguised of every mishap.. And I immediately detect the hikmah for this one.. I met this fella in the pic that very day (^^)
This fella was in my wishlist and all this while, I thought I'll never see it in front of my eyes my whole life....

The End~

Bila mau kawen

2011-03-16T21:07:00.001+08:00

The "Bila mau kawen?" question is pouring on me like raindrops during the monsoon season.. I have no idea at all of how all the people around me are seem to be so united and unanimous in torturing me with such question...

My "InshaAllah tahun depan" scheme that I created last year could be the reason why the 'attack' is intensified this year.. D**N IT!!!! What a collateral damage!!!!!

So I created another scheme..

"Kawen??? Lambat lagi.. Susah la nak cari yang rajin, jarang ada dekat rumah and banyak duit.."

Hahaha! I always manage to make people's jaw drop with this answer. One of my friend spontaneously blurt, "O my God!!! You are so not ready to get married!!!!". And usually people would just shake their heads in disbelief and dismiss the topic.. Voilla!!!!!!!!!

But honestly, I don't really mean what I said of course. It's just a trick to get away from all the free of charge lecture entittle 'Marriage and its benefits' or 'List of the reasons why you should marry now!" which often last for at least 15 minutes. I just can't stand it...

Like I said before, I don't even have any specific attributes that I want in a guy. Over time, I will finally meet someone who is just perfect for me.

And you know what I really despise of all the things related to this pestering marriage topic?? It's when people urge me to FIND someone.. Cari CaRi CARI~ Oh common.. If I do found someone I'm fond of, could I actually ask him to marry me???? Ok, maybe I could.. But tell me, what's the percentage that I might succeed?? (the effect of reading too many journals.. obsessed with figures..)

Instead of CARI, I think when it comes to USAHA, DOA and improving oneself in many aspects of life is much much much more superior.

My friend is definitely right. I am NOT ready yet. Currently my body and mind are focused on my family and also on achieving something in my profession and climbing.. Let me deal and be good at these first and then I could focus on becoming a good wife (^^)

Sometimes I think it's either I haven't met him yet or I already had but still don't know it's him... It's ok for him to come by late.. Because I know he will come at the right time as Allah have willed

"Marriage is not the answer to eternal happiness. It is just another phase of life with totally different problems"

Cant agree more.. And that's why I don't want to enter that phase of life unprepared...

Taking it to a PERSONAL level...

2011-03-11T23:01:00.004+08:00

It's the end of my sixth week in the clinical rotation and I'm currently stationed in the ICU ward. 2 weeks full of turmoils to go...

Recently, I've been quite sentimental. A mixture of crisp emotions ever so frequently wash over me as I scrutinize the hospital surrounding. I'm starting to see the hospital as a small world that have almost everything in it...

In these weeks, in which I'm closest to the patients and their families, I saw a lot of things.. I saw the spark of joy in one's eyes as the doctor confirmed to him that he's recovering.

I saw a patient broke down on his bed when the doctor explained that he'll be debilitated for life. With most of his spine damaged, he could only quiver with tears running down his cheeks. It was a heart wrenching scene..

I saw patients who gave up hope and refuse treatment because they can't endure the excrutiating pain.

I also witnessed family members who never lose hope and waited for miracle to happen. Despite knowing the fact that the patient won't be able to 'make it', the family continue to take good care of the patient and had kept him comfortable.

There were two deliberate self-harm cases in which none survived

Currently in ICU, I'm still trying to get use to looking at those patients who have all the wires and tubes inserted into them and is trying to adapt with those irritating beeping sounds of the life support machines.

Looking at these people, I realize that.. yeah.. we don't have complete control of our fate... Everything happen by His will and we can never predict what's His plan for us tomorrow.

My self-deprecation episode have not entirely subside but I'm starting to gain confident again as I look at my patients. They are the reason why I should learn more. They are the reason for me to polish my knowledge and skills. They are the reason because I'm taking this to a personal level. I'm putting myself in the shoes of their family members who are fill with hope and that hope is actually in the hands of the healthcare team.

The healthcare team can never fight fate. But what they can do is to provide the best service. If I were in the shoes of those family members, I wouldn't want my family member to be treated by incompentent healthcare providers; may it be the doctor, the nurse or the pharmacist. Because these people complement each other. Any incompetentcy could be lethal in any stage of care.. And an incompetent pharmacist is what I DON'T want to be...

The Deceitful Route...

2011-02-23T22:12:00.006+08:00

I hurt my right hand today. I guess I overused it last Tuesday that it couldn't withstand today's climbing; though I only did one toprope and some very very light bouldering. I've no intention to worsen it so I decided to go home early before I'm tempted to climb again.. So here I am on my bed, in front of my laptop, with an abandoned infectious disease notes just beside me and to compensate my climbing I think I'll write something about climbing tonight.

Well, I just did a route setting on Tuesday. It was a very nice experience and it was harder than I thought it would be.

Firstly I'd to choose some hand and foot holds. It is best to choose holds that of the same colour to make the route recognizable to climbers. I chose the blue holds because I thought they were of different shapes and sizes and I'd wanted my route to be deceitful. Meaning, I want people to underestimate it and later think "Wah! Susah ni!" once they tried it hehehe

Before fixing those holds on the wall, I actually imagined how the route would be and the skills that I want climbers to apply as they climb. But honestly, when I finished fixing the holds, my route was even harder than I'd imgined!

Ryan, 12 y.o, assisted me during the route setting process. He helped me attach the holds at the starting point and then became my loyal belayer. He used two sand bags to balance our weight. That made me feel heavy. That red recycle bag I'm carrying was filled with holds and screws so that've caused heavier load for our tiny belayer. With that heavy load, I also found it harder to climb up.

Here's a video of me fixing the holds. Ryan was yelling from below, complaining about the far gap between the holds hehe

So here's a picture of me testing my own route. I fell 5 times but finally manage to reach the top..

The other climbers helped to name the route...

Crazy G!!!!!!
I succeed in making the route deceitful (^^)v

I'm eyeing you~~

2011-02-18T19:45:00.000+08:00

I can't take my eyes off you~ Miura VS...

This is my dream climbing shoes right now and it's DAMN EXPENSIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At least RM630!!!!

My Evolv, the right one to be exact, already got a hole on its sole for about a month now and I've been eyeing on some climbing shoes. And finally, when I saw this Miura VS, I got this feeling that we're meant to be haha :P

A high performance hook and loop closure shoe for amazing edging control and pocket climbing performance

Easy to use hook and loop closure system for easy on and off convenience. Slingshot rand and Powerhinge system gives you the ultimate edging power. 4mm Vibram® XS Edge and XS Grip2 (Women's model) sticky rubber outsole

WEIGHT: 8.23 oz/ 228 g LAST: WPD 75 CONSTRUCTION: Slip Lasted UPPER: Leather LINING: Dentex, unlined underfoot MIDSOLE: P3® with 1.1mm LaspoFlex SOLE: 4mm Vibram® XS Grip2

Some say this Miura VS are meant for pros and only those who can do 6c can have this and bla bla bla.. I don't care.. I want this one.. 6c is just far beyond my ability right now, but I think this Miura VS will get me there... (^^)/ Positive about that.. Will get there some day!!!!

But since it's so expensive, I think I'll save some money.. Planning on reducing my expenses on food because that will bring about multi-benefit.. Save money + slimmer & trimmer Haziah, and then slimmer and trimmer and light me will subsequently bring about easy climbing.. Yosh!! I'm so0o0o0o0 clever!!! hahaha

Torn between...

2011-02-11T16:00:00.000+08:00

Story No 1

A few years ago I dejected it when I was to teach a class of illiterate students. I thought it was unfair of the school system to let experienced teachers to focus on the bright students while those who perform poorly are left to an untrained substitute teacher like me. But then Allah wanted to show me something else.

Seated on the front row, it would've been easy for me to notice her. But she was so timid that I only manage to remember her name that was of two syllables at the end of my first week as a teacher. Later I found her to be constantly staring at the wall during my class; I thought she was just not interested. However, during an examination I found that she was rather 'different' than the rest of the class.

It was a BM objective paper where students were required to answer some grammar questions. A mock OMR paper was given to each student and I'd announced the instructions to my students. All of them understood the instruction except her. As her friends were busy shading the right answer on the OMR paper, she just stared blankly at her paper. I approached her and said, "M, hitamkan jawapan yang betul.."

Without even looking at the question paper, she shaded one of the circle on the first row. A student sitting nearby noticed my incredulous reaction said, "Dia nda pandai baca tu, cikgu". I was not surprised about that. Then I instructed her, "M, setiap baris ni, M hitamkan satu ok.. Mana-mana saja yang M rasa mau hitamkan.. Mesti hitamkan sampai habis tau.."

Then she started to shade the second row and then start to stare at the paper again. "Lagi satu.." then she shade the row below the second one.. Then I realized that she doesn't understand simple commands. I just stood there and continue saying "Lagi satu.." until she finish shading the 40th row.. As I stood there I thought, "MashaAllah, I'm gifted.."

Story No 2

It was the long semester break when I volunteered as a committee for a paralympic event in Labuan. I still remember every single moment of my time spent with those special athletes and one of them is what I'm going to tell. There were three gentlemen who represented their states for bowling. Physically perfect, I was curious of what are their disability that had qualified them as a Paralympic athlete. Then I came to get my answer when the room keys were distributed to the athletes. The guy incharge of the room keys were telling the three gentlemen their room number

"Bilik kamu 308.."

The three of them repeated after the guy "308.. 308.. 803.."

"Tiga.. Kosong.. Lapan.."

" 308.. 803.. 083.."

I was flummoxed at how short term their memories were... Once again "MashaAllah, I'm gifted.."

My story~

Currently, I'm stationed at one of the busiest ward in the hospital where I'm working. It's a medical ward that requires you to be well verse in all disciplines of health care and having attached with a very knowledgable preceptor sort of put me into a lot of stress. I'm not stressed out because he is strict or anything. In fact, he's kind and very keen in sharing his knowledge. It's just that my self-esteem is crumbled by the fact that my knowledge is so superficial as compared to his. At one point, I even thought

"Ok, lepas ni aku mau kerja di klinik kesihatan jak. Get married, pregnant and raise my children.."

But then, the stories mentioned sort of came to me as my feverish body lay flat on my bed yesterday. I was thinking... Some people in the world are not as gifted as me.. Some can't fathom the simplest command.. Some can't even remember the simplest things... But ME who CAN are now in the verge of giving up.. How shameful.. I better off giving my gift to someone else who would've used it for a better purpose...

I'm currently torn between whether I want to live that simple life that I ramble about during my self-deprecation or should I work hard for some period of time to be as good as my preceptor or even better. And I'm fully aware that the later is of more benefits; that is benefit to me and to the people I would serve. A simple life seems more appealing though but that simply means that I succumb to cowardice.. That simply means I just transgress my own principle to plow my potentials in everything I do... O I don't know..

Three phrases are currently in my mind.. One is this hadith...

Allah’s Messenger (SAW ) said: “The strong believer is better and more loved by Allah than the weak one, but they are both good.” (Muslim)

Second.. Is my best friend's favourite phrase or probably her motto..

"Start with the end in mind.."

And finally one of my own principle..

"If you can't be the best, you could at least be good.."

Still pondering...

Tinggi Gunung Kinabalu~ (^^)

2011-02-04T20:43:00.006+08:00

The last time I set foot on the grounds of Sabah highlands was actually about 8 years ago; right after SPM.. So, can you imagine how ecstatic I was about this trip?? If it weren't for the endless standing during my day in the ward, I probably couldn't sleep the night before; out of excitement. But I fell asleep very early and rose quite early too to prepare food..
Cooked mi goreng, chicken nugget and omlette hehe simple2 saja bha

Since I was on the wheel, I couldn't enjoy the sceneries that much. My eyes were focused on the winding road. I was actually quite nervous because I've never driven on winding roads before hehe On the left is the peak of mount Kinabalu. It was almost covered by the clouds there. On the right is a picture of this very huge waterfall. I wish to see it closer one day..

Actually, our main destination was Poring Hot Spring but I just coudn't resist the temptation to go to the Kinabalu Park. So when I saw the junction, I swerved to the left and went straight up until the starting point of the climb.. hehe See how excited I am in the pic!! The starting point is already so cold!! I was wearing a t-shirt, a cardigan and then I had to put on my sweater to get warm

e

The starting point is already quite high above the sea level so the surrounding forest was already the mossy type.. Before this, I only heard about the locals bringing up gas tanks on their backs. But that day I manage to see one!!! Quickly snapped the pic hehe

We didn't plan to try out the tracks at the first place, but then the entrance fee was quite cheap so.. WHY NOT!!!??? Hehe We hiked until the 1st checkpoint, Pondok Kandis. I was so surprised to see it is equipped with a sitting toilet haha O ya, there's a small waterfall halfway up..

Am I the only one in my batch who is getting fatter???

We did go to Poring as planned but by the time we arrived, my uncle's family was already on their way back to KK. We had our lunch in my car and then the kids went to swim their heart out in the sliding pool. I brought my clothes but was not in the mood to swim since the pools were jampacked with half-naked guys~ YUCK! So Pijah and I went to the canopy walk instead hehe

We were so hungry!!!!!

So this is how the canopy walk looked like. You have to pay Rm3 for adult and RM5 for your camera.. Weird right?? Your camera worth more than you...

The pic on the right is actually what lies below the canopy walk.. That's a waterfall there. With all those logs uprooted due to the land slide.. The scenery below it look so natural, you know.

So that's it~ I love Sabah~ Peace!

The Kite Runner~ T_T

2011-01-25T19:41:00.002+08:00

I know I'm like more than half a decade late.. This book was published in 2003 and Khaled Hosseini already has his 2nd novel published.. I just finish reading this book recently and I have like tons of praises to laud this author for this very fascinating piece of work!

The book was known to me about 2 years ago when Len pointed at it during one of our strolls in MPH Midvalley. She said lots of people recommended it to her and she saw the book in our library in Kuantan. I wasn't paying much attention back then because I already had another book in mind but I'd kept the detail in my mind

The Kite Runner; good book. Must read one day~

I've to say it's the price of English books that deprived me from buying them during my study years. Soooooo discouragingly expensive! Now... I can buy them as much as I please!! Muahaha!! So back to the book.. Let me tell you what it did to me...

I started reading it on the flight back to Kota Kinabalu from Penang. It was undeniably a page-turner and I manage to read half of it during the flight. I was sandwiched in between two chinese girls; one was sound asleep with her head propped againts the window and the other one flipping through a chinese magazine. There I was; the book clasped in my left hand and my right hand was continuously pulling plies of tissues because tears kept running down my cheeks! I think I cried in 2/3 of the journey hahaha

So what's so0o0o0 special about the book???

1stly. The Language... I say Khaled Hosseini is a great story teller.. The words, the adjectives he used was in every way perfect to enable readers to imagine every single plots clearly. You can feel the sorrow, the guilt, the love and whatnot of every character. He didn't need bombastic words to make his story beautiful~

Then of course the story itself.. It starts off with the beauty of the friendship between Amir and Hassan. Hassan's loyalty towards Amir was unshakable and he was so naive! And I was very touched by Baba's generosity and humility. He accepted his own servant as family, built orphanage, help the poor, stood up to what he thought was right and many more. Baba's character has its own flaws but I say he's like a Hero! hehe

I was also touched by the love of the Afghans towards their land.. When Amir came back to search for Sohrab, at first he thought he had forgotten Afghanistan and Afghanistan had forgotten him.. But then he still feel the sense of belonging to the land when he was there despite how horrific the condition was due to wars.. He didn't recognize most of the places he visited after years of exile.

Everybody have to read this!!!!

This kind of story kind of remind you to put your feet on the ground no matter how high you soar above the sky~

Let's ROCK!!! in Kironggu (^^)/

2011-01-19T20:54:00.006+08:00

When was the last time I wrote about my adventure~?? June?? July?? So0o0o0 long ago I guess that I couldn't even remember... Finally, on January 15, I had the chance to go back into the wild~ \(^^)/ yeay!!!!

Like Chris Sharma, I also have my own escort.. That's my cousin there.. I officially assigned her as my cameragirl but actually most of the sceneries are taken by me. Just the pics of me climbing were taken by her... And I had to scream from the top to alert her~

"Pijah!! Amek gambar!!!" hahaha

We departed from SICC around 8am and it was about 15-20 minutes drive to Kironggu from there. I've never been to that area and was quite surprise to find gravel road in KK. Well, it's actually an abandoned quarry, if i'm not mistaken... But the scenery was so nice over there.. Reminded me of my ARC days~

It was rather nostalgic walking along the path surrounded by lushes greenery.. You can hear the sound of waterfall from afar.. Singing birds.. It was as if nature was humming to the rhythm of my footsteps.. Like welcoming an old friend.. Wah! Soooo Nostalgic...

I was not informed about the existence of a waterfall just beside the rock climbing area and was so delighted to see it.. It's been too long since I last saw one... During my ARC days, waterfall was a norm.. You bath in it, sometimes even had your drink from it.. I immediately went to the waterfall instead of checking the climbing site. Too excited!!!

There are 4 routes all together and I only manage to finish three of it.. The rocks were sooooo slippery due to the heavy downpour the night before. I couldn't even smear!!!!

Rock climbing was sure a much much more different experience from wall climbing.. You have to search the place to hold on to and there were like so limited holds!!!! I felt like a blind girl as my hands crept along the rock surface to find the slightest crack for me to grip. Most of the time they are not visibe to the naked eye; you have to FEEL it... Be one with the rock~

At one time, I was only standing on a very tiny crack!!!! Like less than an inch and that really hurt my toe~

The pic at the left; I almost give up there!! There's a cave just below me and when I was standing there I couldn't find any place to hold on to.. I can't even see what was on top of me.. Really depressing! There was this huge crack but then it was a loose rock so I can't take the risk.. I don't know how I finally got up there haha It was the magic of positive thinking and determination, I guess..

Mesut evolve had his bath in the waterfall.. Just the sole that is~ hehe

This is the pic taken from 1/3 of the rock.. Roy, me, Ryan Pijah, Nelly, Zack, Lee and Shawn. Vince was behind the camera..

I really like it in SICC.. All the climbers are like one big family (^^)

Hurm.. Looking forward for coming trips.. I miss my ARC days~ I really do~

Penang~ All about fo0d!

2011-01-15T19:54:00.010+08:00

Now, let's divert from the marriage and wedding topic for a while.. Just want to share some of the details of my recent trip to Penang.. It was a short one indeed.. Departed from Kota Kinabalu on 31st December 2010 and was back in Kota Kinabalu on 1st January 2011. Trips like this makes me think that I should have a private jet.. If I could afford it, there'll sure be a hangar with my name on it in KKIA hehe

So, actually the trip was wedding-related.. It was Don's reception.

So glad that my juniors Rx6 was there to entertain me. Very grateful to Matmin, Along, Apip, Ja'a and Mat (sciences) for all the planned activities. But mainly the trip was about f00d F00D FOOD!!!!!

Honestly, my stomach was jam-packed throughout the trip. I think I ate more than 10 types of delicacies in that less than 24 hours waking hours in Penang.. My tastebud was overzealouly pampered haha so here goes the fo0d that I ate in Penang haha

After picking me up from the airport, we straight away went to this restaurant which is located inside a farm. It was quite deep inside a kampung that I really thought we were lost and there is nothing inside. But then, there it was.. I can say that the restaurant does has this pinch of exclusiveness in its appearance because each table was placed under a hut. They serve local foods and western there. What's amazing to me was when I saw ostrich was in the menu! I don't have any idea that ostrich meat can be so expensive. Even the telur dadar is RM 30++. The telur dadar must be as big as the talam~ hehe

I ordered Lamb Chop. The black pepper sauce was superb but I think they should also put coleslaw in the serving.. As you can see there's ony wedges and a tomato there.. It was delicious but I couldn't finish it.

Right after that we went to search for Char Kuew Teoy and we manage to find a delicious one YEAY!!!! \(^^)/
So I was actually slurping the scrumptious Char Kuew Teoy while the popping sounds of fireworks echoed in the air.

The next morning, we had breakfast at this place (I forgot the name~) located just next to our lodging. I was so surprised to find Nasi Lemak sold at the price of RM1. So the excited Haziah immediately bought the cheap Nasi Lemak. I tried the sandwiches; crab and chicken sandwich. I sipped some of Along's Mi Udang.. And then munched some local cakes. And then I was so tempted by Mat's Mi Sup that I also bought one hehe The mi Sup has it's own unique taste that couldn't be correctly described with words... Everything was so0o0o0o0 TASTY!

O ya.. The 10 types of delicacies I mentioned before included the ones eaten in Don's reception..
So after Don's reception, we rushed to the airport because my flight was at 7.30pm.. But... At 6pm, we actually stopped by at this stall that sells Mi Pitchay~ That's Mi Pitchay in the blue plate.. This one also couldn't be describe with words but man! I still remember how it taste~ It's unique.. An original Pitchay taste (whatever Pitchay means~). Actually we also ordered another mee which I don't quite remember the name.. Was it mee basah or something but was also nice! But I preferred Mi Pitchay!

So this is our Jalan Jalan Cari Makan crew. Actually I ate less before going to Penang. But after that, my appetite increased!!! I think my stomach was so stretched in Penang that now,if I don't fill it with enough food, it will roar violently!!!!

DIET HAZIAH!!! (^^)/

I'm also wondering how they slaughter Ostrich.. The neck is so0o0o0 long~

My Favourite Love Story~ Len's

2011-01-12T17:42:00.000+08:00

Since the night that I received that call, I've been having inevitable shots of flashbacks that whacked me to tears.. Not the kind of tears that pool in your eyes and sheen your eyeballs.. It was the kind of tears that run over your cheeks and make your nose clog~ There's just too many memories and now Len is married~ That's how life is... Full of surprises and change...

I still remember the day we got our SPM results. Len told me about her dream the day before; she was climbing up a rope to board this very huge ship, just like the Titanic. I made one of my ludicrous tafseer mimpi for her.

"Len, ko akan dapat kejayaan. Maybe 9A1 and ko sorang jak yang dapat.."

It so happens that she did get all A1 and she was the only girl amongst the five top scorers. I'm no ahlul nujum of course, that was a coincidence. When her result was confirmed, the first person that she hugged was me. There we were; crying and we were in each others' hands for like a few minutes. That was one of the happiest moment in my life. That afternoon, after a small treat by my father in Pizza Hut, we went to fulfill our nazar~ which was the same...

We used to laugh in mockery when anyone suggested to us to continue our study in UIA. We've thought the idea was ridiculous and impossible.. But then, a few weeks after the SPM result was out, there we were.. Sitting infront of Dewan Samudra filling UPU forms.. 1st, 2nd,3rd,4th and 5th choice.. All of them we wrote

UNIVERSITI ISLAM ANTARABANGSA...

After matriculation, we enrolled into different courses. Luckily we were placed in the same hostel block. But our timetables were so different that it was hard to spend much time with each other anymore. But we have alternate visits to each others' rooms until final year. But sometimes she'll find me fast asleep, wrapped in my blue blanket. Sometimes I'll find her asleep, tightly clutching either a novel or the Totoro that I gave for her birthday. But when we were both free, we'll have the whole night for ourselves.. Even just sitting there beside her while she play her flash games feels good enough.. (^^)

One afternoon in 2010.. In my mom's car..

Mommy: Adik, Len ada boyfriend??
GG: Uish! Budak tu tiada feeling!!!! Mana ada boyfriend tuh...

2nd Jan 2011, in my mom's car again..

Mommy: Adik cakap si Len nada boyfriend. Tengok2 kawen suda hari ni..
GG: Itula namanya jodooooooooh~ (^^)

Hurm.. I wont disclose to you their love story, of course. I have no rights to. But their love story is my favourite love story; a blend of fortitude and determination.. and many more elements that I've no wordsto describe them with hehe

Muka dorang sangat iras!! Macam mana aku bole nda prasan all these years!!!

This is my favourite picture of year 2011.. The beginning is already beautiful.. Expecting a lot more pleasant things to happen this year :)

Have a little faith~

2011-01-05T18:28:00.004+08:00

This book made it into my birthday wish list last year. I finally manage to have it on my bookshelf somewhere in October and finished reading it just before my 24th birthday. So now, I officially have the full collection of Mitch Albom's (^^)/ Yeay!!!!

So about the book.. It's a true story alright.. About a Jewish Reb and a Christian pastor.

Two stories combined in one book..

The story starts off with Albom recollecting the memory of his childhood. How he'd belonged to a devout jewish family and had ardently attended all religious classes. He mentioned that if he were to be 'the man of God', he'd all the chance to become one. Then, as he grew, his life evolved and his commitment towards his religion starts to insidiously slip away from his fingers. Visits to congregation become lesser and lesser and finally nil. And as he drift and wade in the worldly tide filled with obligations towards his job, his love life and whatnot, suddenly, the Reb whose sermonts he used to attend requested him to write a eulogy.

He reluctantly agreed to the Reb's request and then he'd decided to make some visits to really get to know the Reb in person. The visits was suppose to be for a few weeks but weeks turned into months and months turned into 8 years. The visits were quite similar to the once he made to his late Professor, Morrie. They'd talked about life, belief, death and many more

There were of course parts that I like in the book. One is when the Reb said,
"Religion doesn't fight, it's human who fight."

I like how the Reb had respected other religions during his lifetime. He mentioned that it's a human free will to choose a belief. He was saddened when the Israeli brutally attacked Palestine in the 60's. And there were also fables that he told that I really really like...
"One who sleeps in the storm"

About the Pastor.. That part to me is kind of a cliche. From a notorious drug dealer he become a Pastor; was enlightened when he was saved from being murdered. After the incident, he repented and become a pastor and what I like the most would be that he also provide shelter to the homeless. He welcomed homeless people to his church, give them food and that was when he preached.

When I mentioned the book to my cousin, she was surprised to why I was reading such book.. You know, like rabbi and pastor instead of imam.. But again, as I've mentioned in my other book reviews, it's the lessons in it that matters. I have chosen my belief and no book can shake what I uphold, inshaAllah.

To think about it, the Albom part at the beginning was kind of familiar.. You know, when you were small or when you were in the hostel or school, you tend to fulfill all religious obligations and some even manage to do additional supplications; the one posed as sunnah. But then, many would start to forget all those practices when they leave the place.. The ibadah become lesser and lesser and finally nil (nauzubillah..)

Overall, in a way this book could remind us on the importance of understanding our belief, what it meant to be istiqomah and to respect others belief.. I like it but... I still favour Five people I meet in heaven

ARC weddings (^^)

2010-12-31T08:25:00.004+08:00

The weather was brilliant that day. Excitement was pulsating in our nerves for it was the big day of one of our ARC besties~ Doned in our colourful baju kurung with our hands clutching elegant handbags, we were boiling to take dozens of pictures to immortalize the moments~

The groom, an ex-president of arc, gleamed at us in delight; perhaps proud that we have made it to his big day.

"I'm glad you girls made it! Let me introduce all of you to my wife and parents"

We towed in line behind our friend. The smell of his Black Polo perfume mingled with the air and he was undeniably more handsome than ever that day. Maybe that's what they called 'Seri Pengantin'

"Mom, these are GG, Mida and Shifaa. We climbed the mountains together back in university"

Pleased meeting us, his mom said, "oo0o0!! Welcome girls!!"

We engaged into a chat; filling her in with the details of our long journey to the wedding and brief accounts of the memories we had with the groom back during our climbing days. Then, she suddenly blurt out,

"So, when is your turn???"

Gg's face instantly turned red. Mida and Shifaa exchanged looks then Mida honestly replied in a sheepish tone

"Belom ada calon lagi,makcik.."

Upon hearing that, she reacted with an incredulous expression which gradually change into a sincere sympathetic loving gaze at the three girls. Patting our shoulders she said,

"InshaAllah tak lame lagi.. Makcik doakan"

-The End-

Ok.. Let me get this straight first. Actually this is a fantasy that the three of us created in one of the nights spent in our soggy tent during our transpeak expedition hehe we tried so hard to keep our voice low and was suffering from abdominal muscle cramps from trying to keep our laughters at bay.

So the two ARC ex-presidents are married now and I'm going to attend don's reception tomorrow. In this post I would like to congratulate my two best buddies \(^^)/

This is Judin and his bride Fazrina aka Apath
I couldn't make it to his wedding. Permission denied by my parents because I was just back from Terengganu.
The time sure flow so0o0o fast.. I remember Judin telling Mida and me about his plans to get married when we were in Satay Zul. I guess, we were amongst the first to know and was shell shocked!

Don and Sarah.. Can't wait for tomorrow!!!

\(^^)/

Well, I've been climbing with these guys for at least three years and I can say these guys are amongst the best of guy friends that I've ever had. We've been through the ups and downs that outdoor adventures had offered and these two girls are sure lucky (^^)

So I guess the two of you are officially "hanging the haversacks" ya??? hehe

So... who's next????? hehe

I'm giving way for all of you to go first because.... I've serious climbing to do hahaha :P
I'm not kidding :)

Beginning today~

2010-12-25T17:57:00.000+08:00

I found this in one of the inspirational website that I subscribed and I thought this is very nice and worthy to be shared with the rest of yous. This basically emphasize about living each day to the fullest.. Very very nice.. Here goes

Beginning today I will no longer worry about yesterday. It is in the past and the past will not change. Yet I can change by choosing to do so.

Beginning today I will no longer worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow will always be there waiting for me to make the most of it.

Beginning today I will look in the mirror, and I will see a person worthy of my respect and admiration. This capable person looking back at me is someone I enjoy spending time with and someone I would like to get to know better.

Beginning today I will cherish each moment of my life. I value this gift and unselfishly share it to enhance the lives of others.

Beginning today I will take a moment to step off the beaten path to revel in the mysteries I encounter. I will face challenges with courage and determination. I will overcome barriers that hinder my growth.

Beginning today I will take life one day at a time, one step at a time. Discouragement will not taint my positive self-image, my desire to succeed, or my capacity to love.

Unknown Author

Post it here so I can look at it whenever I feel like it (^^)

Congrats My Dear!!! (^^)

2010-12-24T18:35:00.000+08:00

I'm a very proud sister right now. The best birthday present ever was when I received a phone call from my cousin telling me she got straight A's!!!!!

Yup!!! Nurul Maizura got straight A's for her PMR!!!!

Well, I've been the bench mark when it comes to academic achievement in our very small family. Honestly, I'm very glad to let the 'little ones' to surpass what I've achieved. Records are meant to be broken, don't they?

O yeah, the brother Izan scored his UPSR with 4A 1B and I'm very proud to0 (^^)

Little ones, continue to pursue success in this world and the hereafter.

The heart of a Muslim is sincere
The heart of a Muslim is strong
The heart of a Muslim is filled with love
The heart of a Muslim does not lie
And the heart of a Muslim does what's right

\\(".) Praise be to Allah for the blessings bestowed upon us

24... An endeavour and a promise..

2010-12-21T22:04:00.007+08:00

As I remember... In the past.. I had asked for the same thing during my birthdays...

When I was 20.. I was immobilized for many months due to a fractured left femur. It was christmas when the girls threw a surprise party for me right after halaqah... I was surprised alright.. I even asked, "Whose birthday is this??" after they finished singing the birthday song.. Yes.. That night I'd wept and asked for the same thing while all my friends were asleep...

When I was 22.. I was roaming helplessly in the valley of 'lost'. Left the only guy that I've ever loved.. And was losing my own self-esteem, losing trust and was struck by a myriad of despair. My brother noticed my bloodshot eyes from crying day and night. He arranged a picnic on my birthday and I was given the task to prepare everything.. I guessed he wanted me to get busy with something and stop crying.. And amidst the sound of the gentle wave, with tears pooling in my eyes I'd asked for the same thing again and I'd made a promise that day..

I'd asked Allah to give me STRENGTH and for this year I'm going to ask for STRENGTH again~

I say, I'm currently in a transition phase; that is escaping my 'regulated' world and entering the 'real' world. I've to admit, I can be classified as the zany type, who seem to never run out of ideas for antics. But all this while I've actually been living in a 'regulated' world..

My first 'regulated' world was SMSL.. Al-mathurat before maghrib.. Congregational prayers.. Al-mulk and Yassin before bed.. Usrah and Qiamulail during weekends...

Then I moved on to UIA.. The Garden of Knowledge and VIRTUE.. Well, the difference between UIA and SMSL is that in UIA you don't have seniors pushing you to do all those religious rituals and obligations. But there's this aura in UIA that'll drive you to actually observe all those things; which is very good in my opinion..

But now, I'm in the 'REAL' world.. Still in the process of adapting to it.. New acquaintances are made day by day and they are from different walks of life and of different backgrounds and beliefs.. And not all of them understand my belief and my practices..

The 'REAL' world is, to me, very challenging.. That is why I beseech strength from the Almighty so that I won't be drifted away by the current of change. I'm totally aware that even when there's variance in the sense of the way my new friends and I socialize, it is really up to me to figure out how to uphold my conscience amidst this new environment.

I also need strength to evade all wasteful temptations. Now that my pocket is autmatically filled at the end of the month, I really would want the rizq that I've been working for to be chanelled into the right path and not just to fulfill my lavish desires.

I need physical strength to fulfill all my obligations; may it be career-wise, religion-wise and family-wise. Without physical strength, I won't be able to give equal attention to all these things which are very important to me.

Finally, I beseech strength to keep my PROMISE...

Happy 24th Birthday Haziah~
Be strong~
InshaAllah~

My Cousin's Wedding: Labuan Style (^^)

2010-12-15T19:45:00.002+08:00

28th November 2011 was my cousin's (Maslyn) wedding. I took a flight from KK on Friday night and it was sure a bumpy one because it was raining quite heavily that night. I missed the akad nikah and was already late for the 'malam berinai'. When I arrived, it was already the photography session and some relatives were already preoccupied with the karaoke set.

We were amongst the early birds for the big event on Sunday. Well, each of us were given our own task so that was why we were so early. Actually a few minutes before this pic was taken, I was still in my track suit and t-shirt and was carrying watermelons and some other things hehe

This is my cousin's pelamin. Very nice indeed!

So here's how we do it in Labuan... Firstly when the groom arrive, they'll exchange greetings and then one of the bride's family member will recite some doa and selawat before allowing the groom to enter. And the the groom will be brought to circle an umbrella for 7 times. But these days people simplified this practice with only doing so for 3 times

And then comes the besanding part. The tepung tawar thingy was done during malam berinai so basically during the besanding, the newly weds just sit there and let people look at them and take pictures. (^^)

Here's my favourite part of all! \(^^)/ Makan suap suap!
I actually don't know what's the formal name for this. This is just what I created myself since I was little. What I like about this one is that actually the pengantin belumba2 suap. There are 3 rounds so they belumba la sapa bole kasi habes the 3 rounds first..

Masa kecil2 dulu, my cousin and I always curi makan the pengantin leftovers. Orang tua2 cakap nanti cepat kawen. My cousin suda kawen.. Me belom lagi hehe So I think what the orang tua said is so not true hehe

This is our family photo with the pengantin. At the centre there, that's auntie Maranih, the bride's mom (^^)

Then after photography session with family and friends, comes the 'potong kek'. When I was little, they usually do this on Sunday nights. So, in the past it was nikah on Friday, malam berinai on Saturday, bersanding on Sunday (usually morning to midday) and then the ceremony ended with potong kek on Sunday night. But now, everybody is so busy that everything is done in one or two days.

As you can see my cousin is wearing cheong sam there. Well, we have some chinese blood in us but for my cousin Maslyn, her dad is chinese. So she's like more chinese than all of us.. Get it?? Hurm.. I'm also little confuse with what I'm trying to say here

So here's another family picture with the pengantin..
And then we went to Grand Dorsette to enjoy the fo0d festival hehe :P

So that's it.. The Wedding: Labuan style (^^)/

OPS cari mentua.. haha :P

On belay! Climbin'! (^^)/

2010-12-11T00:56:00.001+08:00

I've been missing the mountains.. And I've found a substitute to fill this empty space in my heart...

WALL CLIMBING!!!!

This is nothing new.. I know... But these days.. I mean recently, I'm just addicted to wall climbing...

I go to Sabah Indoor Climbing Centre (SICC) in Likas at least twice a week...
I could stay there for hours...
And when I got home, the routes that I failed to finish is just mind boggling...
My mind are still processing on how I could actually finish the routes...
The thoughts would hover for days.. That is until my next visit to SICC...
It's like an infection... A brain infection :P

I even bought two climbing books \(^^)/

This one is filled with lots of pics and basically talks about the essentials in rock climbing. Most suitable for beginners like me. And what I like the most about this one is that it's so easy to understand that I can share it with my young bros and cousins

This one is more of a motivational book with lots of inspiring words.. The things mentioned is, to me, even applicable in other daily activities. Mainly about attaining success and about having the correct, unshakable determination to finish up what we've started and intend to finish in excellence. One of the phrase in this book that caught my attention...

"In deviating from the flatlands of everyday existence, we take lif eto another dimension that bonds mind a nd body in a highly distinct way. Our senses and emotions are amplified as we experience the acute pains and pleasures, and heightened awareness unique to our crucible to the vertical world"

Well said indeed~ (^^)

And this is what you've to go to work with when you'd hours and hours of training for three consecutive days hehe

Hurm.. I'm not really sure of what I'm aiming for with all the hard work and trainings.. But they just gives me this feeling of content..

It would be really nice to become a world class climber~ But starting at 24.. That's quite late.. huhu

Nak hubby gini la... Supaya I can continue climbing hehe blonde, tall and handsome haha

Mountains... Don't worry... You're irreplacable.. I miss yous... T_T
O0o0 angin~ sampaikan rinduku pada gunung ganang~

BFF's wedding #1 MEKWA!!!

2010-12-06T21:13:00.002+08:00

I've abandoned my dear blog for weeks now.. Well, I was actually away during the weekends that I don't have time to update it. I usually do so on Friday nights. But for the past few weeks, Friday nights was meant for ronggeng in Terengganu with Matmin and wife and also last week I was on the flight bound to Labuan to attend my dear cousin's wedding (^^)

So here goes the pics from the first wedding of Rx5 the girls.. Nur Salwa Abdul Halim, my dear ex-roommate for 4 years. I definitely was looking forward for her wedding and wont miss it for the world! I swam the south china sea if I have to!!!

Here's the signage to her house.. When I first saw this, there was this odd feeling in my heart.. It was sort of a mixture of happiness and at the same time a pinch of... hurm.. sorrow.. It's not that I'm not happy with the wedding and I'm not jealous (please la~).. But it was like this sorrow that appear when you have to let go of something precious.. yeah~ it was like that~

The Rx girls~ That's Matmin's wife, Along, clad in purple on the left. Miftah and Ciey, our dear Rx6 junior was also present. It took us some time to make everybody to look at the camera.. Mida and Shifaa and Mar were busy with their Samsung android phones haha

Can you spot any 'nur' from some faces who are going to get married so0n???

These are the Rx guys.. Rx5 and Rx6.. Hurm.. I've few pics of them :P

So here's Mekwa and hubby hehe Please focus at the linking hands ye..
Mekwa was gripping her hubby's hand so tightly that we were afraid his fingers would tecabot!

The newly wed and Rx5 girls who made it to Mekwa's wedding (^^)
I really wish there were more of us.. It could've been merrier if there were more.. But surprisingly.. Even in this small amount, we did manage to make quite a lot of noise :P

Not in the pics: Girls from Klate

Me & Mekwa~

Mekwa, now a wife..
All those years... When I used to...

Come into her compartment every morning just to take boiled water for my Milo...
Ruin her bedsheet yang tegang just to have a short conversation and then leave..
Just roll around when she woke me up for Subuh prayer...

Just seem like yesterday~

How life can change so fast~