2 thousand years is just two days...

Just got back from the Friday prayers. What I would like to share is the tazkirah before the prayers. It was by one Ustaz, (I arrived after he had started his tazkirah so I don't know his name). And what he said really affected me. He said that with one sin, we will burn in Hell. And in Hell, one day is equivalent to 1 thousand years on Earth. He continued by saying that according to his calculations, the day Nabi Isa was brought up to the heavens, which was around 2 thousand years ago, that it has been only two days in Hell. He goes on by saying that our lives on Earth is so short, compared to the afterlife. So, therefore we must try our hardest not to sin, because we can't imagine how long the afterlife is. We seriously cannot imagine it. Since this is still the month of Ramadhan, we must double our efforts and try not to talk our way out of good deeds.

Frustrated...

Happy Ramadhan, fellow Muslims. In this month, I will try to improve in my efforts to become a good Muslim. And hopefully it will last till the next Ramadhan, when my efforts will double, if I live that long, insyaAllah. I've been thinking of death lately, and I'm not sure why. Maybe I'm getting more matured as I grow older. Or is it something else entirely. It is said in a hadith, that the Angel Israil will gaze upon the face of the person that will die in a couple of weeks or months. I can't be sure which. And when that happens, that person will be dazed for a while, and after that will not think anything of that incident.

So, now I often think about death. About what will happen to me in the afterlife. About what will happen to my wife and kids. I've sinned. I don't know anyone alive that hasn't sinned. But I'm trying to do better. I really do try. Not only am I trying not to sin, but I'm trying to be a better Muslim in ways that has been taught to me. And from religious books.

I'm tired of all the charades and the back stabbing and the insincerity of people. I'm tired of all the blaming and none of the advising. I'm tired of life.

Please don't get me wrong. My wife and children are one of the reasons for me to embrace life. To live life to the fullest. But that's about it. I'm frustrated. I'm saddened. I'm depressed. I think this would be the most appropriate time to use the phrase, "F**k this s**t! I'm outta here!"

Saturday, Sunday and Monday.

Has had a busy couple of days. The reason for my absence. On Saturday, was busy finishing an English assignment for my client. Then on Sunday, had lunch with my family and my cousin from Australia, with his wife and 2 year old son. And to our unending surprise, his son has the same birthday as my daughter. The exact same day. 6th of March 2009. Cool, huh! After that, sent my niece to Malacca and drove back the same day. Was exhausted by the end of the day. And slept early. Well, earlier than usual.

On Monday, arrived at the office around 7.30 in the morning and the first thing I did was to check my office email. Then, downloaded three documents, printed them, and photocopied 45 copies of those documents. Was preparing for a meeting with the Chief Operating Officer of my workplace. Alhamdulillah the meeting went well. :)

After that had lunch with an old friend. :)

It's Friday, people!

"Well, hello there. Didn't see you standing there. How long have you been standing there, looking at me with that crazed look. Ok, calm down, and put down that weird looking thing that resembles a dildo. Oh it is a dildo. Ok now I'm freaking out. Get away from me! Help! Help!"

And that's when I woke up drenched in sweat and some other liquids I can't identify. Heheh. Just wanted to try a new opening. Hope that works for you.

I was quite busy yesterday. Too busy to even blog a line or two. I won't bore you with details of my two meetings yesterday morning, and my trip to Equatorial Hotel to check on the rehearsal for today's conference. Or the rush to the clinic with my beloved.

My cousin's in town and can't wait to meet him and his family this Sunday. He's staying in Australia, by the way. So we haven't seen each other I think about 10 years, maybe? I think it's more than 10 years. Anyway, my family (parents, sister, brother) will be having lunch with them this Sunday. Hope they like my gifts. :)

Well, nothing much to blog about. I have a meeting after Friday prayers. And if I have time, I might blog after or before that. Till then, toodles.

Halfway through the week.

Hello there folks! Look at that, it's Wednesday! Yesterday, went looking high and low for the elusive Hot Ticket by Maxis. The first stop was Maxis KLCC and to my utter surprise, they were out of Hot Tickets. Can you believe that! So after that I went to a number of shops looking for the Ticket and lo and behold, they were all out of the Ticket. Dang it! So, after buying dinner for the family, drove home in a sullen mood. Was very frustrated because was out of phone credit.

This morning, bought a top up at the cash deposit machine at the office. That was my first time, and it was really easy. Thank goodness for technology. :)

Happy Birthday!!!

Although it's kinda late, just wanna wish my beloved and our daughter "Happy Birthday!". Their birthdays are in July, 4th and 14th. My 2nd daughter's birthday is on the 6th of March, and mine is on the 10th of January. Just in case anyone was wondering. :)

Just wanted to put a picture of my family there. It was taken by Abang Anaz, my cousin's talented husband. I really love this picture. Thanks Abang Anaz. :)

The iPhone 5

As some of you may or may not know, I'm crazy about Apple's iPhone. Well, actually, all Apple's 'i' products such as the iPad, and the iPod (iPod Touch, to be precise). I'm currently using the iPhone 3G, yes, not even the 3G S. So I've had this phone for quite some time. When the 3G S model came out, I wanted to get that, but then as luck would have it, I did not manage to own one. So, I waited for the iPhone 4. And when that came out, I was blown away by Facetime, and the faster processor and the retina display. But, I didn't like the shape. Although it was thinner than the iPhone 3G S, it didn't have any of the Apple sleekness to it. It looked too boxy. But I still wanted it. Then.

But now, there are rumors going around that the next iPhone will be out either late September or early October of this year, 2011. So, currently, I'm waiting patiently for the release of the new iPhone. I really hope Apple will go back to the sleek designs. The picture above is a rendition of the iPhone 5. Cool huh. I really hope that's how it will look like. :)

F**k this sh*t! I'm outta here!

Top of the morning to ya, lovely folks! I know the title seems harsh. But let me explain. Do I really need to?Actually, I want to. The title, "F**k this sh*t! I'm outta here!" actually refers to a movie review. Seriously.

I can't remember the name of the movie, but I saw the trailer in TGV's website and wanted to know more about the movie. So I googled it and found a review of the movie. In the review, it wrote that the author saw the movie in the cinema, and while watching half way through the movie, a woman in front of him said out loud, "F**k this sh*t! I'm outta here!", because it was too scary for her.

So, I was thinking, how scary can the movie be. I still don't know because I haven't seen it. If I can only remember the title, I might be able to look for it in the shops.

Manic Monday

Good morning folks! It's almost 12 in the afternoon, though. Just wanted to blog about a new little eatery at my office. It serves almost all kinds of food. From eastern to western, ready made, made to order and all such things. The food is quite nice, actually, and the price is reasonable.

I've gotten to know the owners, a husband and wife team. But am more friendly with the wife as she handles the cashier counter while the husband is always in the kitchen. So anyway, we started talking, the wife and I, and we realized that we had one thing in common. We love to read. The wife, the husband and me. :)

So, after that, while the three of us were discussing books, like the nerds we are, suddenly the wife says to me, "Why not I lend you some of my books!" So now I have two of her books and I haven't passed her mine yet. Keep forgetting to bring the book to work. Hope I remember tomorrow.

I'm currently reading White Ninja. And it's a good read. :)

Sunday Night Live

Woke up at 5.00 pm, and felt very rested. Felt as if I've slept the entire day. And woke up to the sounds of the movie Cars. Had a shower and we were off to my beloved's close friend's house.

There, I downloaded a few 'live wallpapers' for my beloved's close friend's brand new Samsung Galaxy Tab. Actually, her husband and I were busy with the gadget while my beloved and her close friend were busy with other things, namely, handbags. :) Then, I connected the Tab to my laptop and downloaded some movies into the Tab.

Now, it's 10 at night and am feeling kinda sleepy. And now my back has started feeling stiff. I need a massage badly. And my stomach kinda hurts as well, this is due to the lack of exercise. And tomorrow's a working day.

Good night, people. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite. :)

Jom Gotong Royong

Good afternoon folks! Had a really busy morning cleaning up the nearby surau. It was fun and tiring. Earlier in the morning, went to Haji Tapah to take away some breakfast for my beloved and my two princesses. Then, after depositing the food, went straight to the surau with some mini apoms.

The activity started around 9 in the morning, so since some of us arrived early, we ate some breakfast and chatted among ourselves. Got to know a couple of people living nearby. A couple of us started the Gotong Royong by trying to clear some land of garbage. Then after that was done, we started to clear the huge drains surrounding the surau.

Now that was hard work. The drains were quite deep and it was filled to the brim with sand and vegetation. We dug deep, and perspired like crazy. I perspired until I had no more sweat in me. Seriously.

After finishing that task (each of us did a portion of the drain; it was long and deep) we rested under the tent and chatted. After which we had lunch and went back to our homes.

Am now feeling very sleepy. And the couch beckons. Good afternoon folks. Off to lala land. :)

Paul

Well hello there. How are you guys and gals? Hope everyone is well. Today, stayed at my parents' house in Cheras, babysitting my two princesses while my beloved went to her school's sports day. Babysitting usually entails feeding the two princesses, bathing them, and chasing them around the house, pleading to them to pick up the toys and clothes strewn all over the house.

There, had the chance to watch Paul. And by 'there', I meant my parents' house. It's a movie about an alien named Paul, and his journey to go back to his home planet with the help of two nerds.

It's so funny. In one scene, Paul was talking to one of the nerds and the nerds asked, "How am I able to understand you? Are you using a neuro transmitter router?" (More or less) Then Paul answered, "I'm speaking English, you f*cking idiot!" Is that funny or what. :)

Well, got to go. Maybe I'll continue tonight. Maybe not. Who knows. :)

The iPad2

Will you look at that. Three posts in one day. I'm impressed. Seriously. :) Ok enough of that. I want to talk about the iPad2. Recently, I went looking for the iPad2. I wanted to get it for my wife's birthday. So, my wife and I with our two daughters went in search of it. We went to Machines in KLCC and found out that they were out of the iPad2. They only had the original iPad. I wanted to get the iPad2 because it had Facetime and is slightly thinner than the first iPad.

So anyway, I liked the Machines page in Facebook and read diligently at their posts. And finally, Machines announced that the iPad2 will be arriving in Machines the following Saturday. So that morning, after buying breakfast for my family, I drove to KLCC and arrived at Machines at 8.00 in the morning. And to my surprise, there was already a long line of people waiting outside the store. Machines opens at 10.00 in the morning and it was only 8.00 and the line was quite long. The guy behind me asked his wife to stand in line while he went and counted the people in the line. He told me I was person number 60 in the line. Can you believe that!

So, since we had nothing better to do, we started chatting, the guy in front of me and the guy behind me. We had about two whole hours before Machines opens. Anyway, we found out quite a lot about each other. I guess that was the plus side to waiting in line.

So at 10.00am, Machines opened. And they started giving out these little black and white cards. If you wanted a white iPad2, then they'll give you the white card and if you wanted the black one, they'll give you the black card. You get the picture. So there I was, holding on to that little black card, and hoping that I will get that iPad2. We weren't sure what the having the card meant. It either meant we had a chance of getting the iPad2, or if the card was just for show.

After one and a half hours of waiting, I was finally in the store and at the counter. When I gave the cashier my black card, he called out the number on the card and another employee went and look for the iPad2 in the store. It was then that I realized that the card was an inventory card. If you are holding on to the card, that means your iPad2 is waiting in the store. How cool is that.

Finally, I successfully purchased the iPad2. And it was worth the wait. :)

Wow, look at that, two posts in one day.... not bad....

Hello there. How's everyone? Fine? Great? That's good to know. You know. I've been meeting people from my past lately. I can't remember the order of appearances, but I've gotten in touch with my old primary school friends, and even my pen pals (at the time, the internet was very very new, so we were still writing and posting letters to each other, yes, seriously).

The story goes, my pen pal saw my name commenting on my cousin's status, and she told my cousin that the name sounds very familiar. And when she saw my picture, she confirmed it with my cousin. She knows me. We used to write letters to each other. Back then, writing letters to strangers was the equivalent to adding someone you don't know on Facebook. Seriously.

And I've started contacting my Uni friends as well. Well actually, I was contacted by that particular person. :) And we've been chatting ever since.

Besides that, I've watched Transformers: Dark of the Moon and it is a really good movie. But somehow, it just didn't blow me away as I expected it to. I seriously prefer Megan Fox as the heroine. Who cares if the new heroine is a model, bring back Ms. Fox!

I've seen Thor as well, and I love that movie. The hero (who is also a model) is perfect as Thor. Yes I will say 'seriously' again. And I think the movie's a good start to Thor. It defines the characters and the atmosphere of Thor.

I've read up on Thor in a book called 'The Intrepid Enchanter". In that book, the hero gets thrown into the world of the Norse Gods. And that was my first encounter with Odin, Thor, Loki, and a few others.

Ok, I've got to go. But do remind me to talk about the iPad2. Great device. Cheerios!

Lots of stuff to blog about, and so little time... :)

First off, just wanted to say hi to anyone reading this, besides me. And that I was motivated by a cousin to start blogging again. :) I was reading her blog and thought that blogging was fun. And I have lots of things to blog about.

The surau near my house is finally open. It officially opened on the first day of the school holidays which was on the 28th of May 2011. It's called Surau Sayyidina Umar Al-Khattab. And alhamdulillah the people from the neighborhood are swarming to the surau for all the five prayers. The surau is organizing a Jom Gotong Royong activity this Sunday and I'm involved. How cool is that. :) I'm handling the food for that day. I'm also a committee member, in Biro Kebajikan, or the Biro of Righteousness? I'm not sure of the exact translation of Kebajikan. Other than that, I've gotten to know my long lost cousin. :)

Well, I think there's more, but I can't seem to concentrate. Got lots to do at the moment. Hopefully, I remember to update this blog as often as I can.

Well, do take care and cheerios! :)

Astro B.yond Rocks!!!

Well, hello there dear reader(s). If there are any left. Hehe. Just wanted to blog about anything, really. Am feeling kinda busy, with too much to do and so little time to finish them. Am currently reading Tun Dr Mahathir's 'A Doctor In the House', Andrea Hirata's fourth book, 'Maryamah Karpov', 'Kisah-kisah Ringkas Rasulullah S.A.W', and am still struggling to finish 'Yakjuj Makjuj'.

Tun Dr Mahathir's book is a fantastic read. I'm reading it slowly, very very slowly, so that I can savour every word he wrote, and every thought in his brilliant head.

Maryamah Karpov is proving to be as good as the previous three books Andrea wrote, so I'm enjoying reading that too. 'Kisah-kisah Ringkas Rasulullah S.A.W' is very interesting, as it has a lot of short stories which I haven't come across before this. And 'Yakjuj Makjuj', the book started out as a promising read but when I arrived at the half way point of the book, things began to slow down. Seriously.

Just got the Astro B.yond. And now I'm wondering how in the heck did we view television before this? Because the pictures are so much clearer until it made some movies look like some cheap budgeted movie.

A new neighbor just moved in to the front and left of us. A very friendly and nice couple with four kids. The eldest is getting married soon, somewhere in November 2011. The first time we met them, my wife and I were complimenting them on their renovation. And the wife brought us on a tour of the house. And it was impressive. Very impressive. I heard that the cost of the renovation is more than the cost of the house.

Am waiting for a new furniture to arrive. Not sure when. Tried to call the person in charge but no one picked up the phone. Will try to call later.

2011, translations, books, and allowances...

Welcome 2011! Okay, I'm developing a habit of updating my blog once a year, and that is not good. So I will try to blog every week, or month, at least.

Just so I remember, I just got a call from the HR people and apparently, I'll be finally getting my allowance, alhamdulillah. I went for a translation course for ten days in December 2010, and it was fun. Tiring but fun. My course mates are great. In our class, we had two pensioners, two students, a couple of government servants, some teachers, a lecturer, people working for the private sector, and a housewife. And the lecturers were great as well. This particular lecturer, Pn. Jun. She was an inspiration to all of us there. I mean, she would suggest some books to read, and we would all buy them. Actually, I bought 8 books throughout the course. 4 novels by Andrea Hirata. A history / novel of Sultan Muhammad al-Fateh, an autobiography of a Menteri Besar, and two dictionaries.

The course ended with a four-hour written exam, and I just got the results today. I passed, alhamdulillah. So now I'm a certified translator.

I would like to blog more about the books I'm reading, but maybe another time. I've read Lasykar Pelangi and Sang Pemimpi, and am currently reading Edensor. All by Andrea Hirata. Good read. Seriously good read. Pn. Jun told us that to master the Malay language, then it is imperative that we read these books. And I totally agree with her. Thanks Pn. Jun.