What I've been up to …

Yesterday I got an sms from KZ asking me to attend the discussion on our preparation for our DC endorsement which is to be carried out next week. The discussion will start at 6.30pm at wisma UOA, Jalan Pinang, which is nearby KLCC.
DH was nice enough to offer to drive me to the Monorail station in Brickfields. DH fetched me at my S alam office at 5.30pm sharp . Since we were a bit early I asked him to leave me at an LRT station so that I can go to KLCC first, on my way to Wisma UOA. Why, you might ask? This is why:

The Tesco card is as a reference to the bag’s size

The handbag was at 50% off, so I thought it would make a good buy. I’ve not purchased a decent handbag for AGES! Most of the time either I do not like the design, or it’s just too expensive for me. I never want to buy a handbag at normal price, so for the past 4 or 5 years (or more?) I’ve been buying/using el-cheapo handbags There was also a time when I used Tupperware’s PVC handbags

The handbag above, I saw at Parkson KLCC when we went there for the MPO concert last week. I thought it would not be appropriate to buy it then, and bring my shopping bad into the concert, so I deferred buying it, i.e. until yesterday. I thought the bag would fit my 3rd hand Lumix camera. When I transfered my stuff from the old bag last night, I realised that it’s a bit too small, even though the Lumix CAN fit in well. I just need to cut down on other garbage

Or, get myself another handbag? Especially for travelling, when I need to stuff in a lot more garbage!

Now, back to yesterday… Satisfied with the purchase, I walked to my meeting place. The crowd at the fountain just outside KLCC never fail to amaze me. Everytime I have to walk this path, I’d always stop for a moment to enjoy the view and ambiance. It looks so relaxed that you just forget the chaotic traffic just outside it!

Hence the pix below:

But alas, I have to walk towards the other KLCC (the convention centre). Wisma UOA is in the background. If you look carefully, you can see the letters UOA on the rooftop:

For the umpteenth time, I said to myself, that ONE DAY I will just come to KLCC to enjoy the dusk. Maybe bring the kids too, if they are interested. Watch a movie too? Let’s hope I really get to do it one day, and that time, I’ll be taking pix with my Lumix?

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I was informed by a fellow alumnus that our alma-mater, SMSTMFP has been announced as the Overall Best SBP (Sekolah Berasrama Penuh) in both academic and extra-curricular activities. The announcement was made recently at the “Hari Kecemerlangan SBP 2008″ held in SMSAH, Jitra.

Well done to all denizens of SMSTMFP!!

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I thought since I published the first and second “Suara Hati Cikgu Hasan Baseri”, I might as well publish the third one, as sent by him to the SPM 1980 e-group yesterday. I hope those concerned would read this, and would contact the relevant people to arrange for the meeting with cikgu.

ASALAMUALIKUM ANAK-ANAK YANG DI KASIHI SEKALIAN:
Pertama izinkan saya terlebih dahulu mengucap syukur
ke hadrat Allah S.W.T kerana dengan limpah kurnianya
saya terus diberi kekuatan, terutama untuk terus
menulis di blog ini.
Mungkin agak lama saya tidak menulis di sini. Bukan
kerana lupa, tetapi keadaan kerja yang selalu
menghalang saya menulis. Apapun saya tidak pernah
lekang daripada menatap blog ini dan membaca semua
tulisan yang anda tuliskan di dalamnya. Saya membaca
tulisan fiza frizzy, Abd Ghafar Ibrahim, Nazri M,
drejeme, Sukkuriya Masri, Zul Md Nor, Shahreza,
Marlina dan Othman Md Zain yang pernah menulis tentang
kunjungannya ke rumah saya. Terima kasih kerana masih
mengingati saya.
Dalam tulisannya Othman ada menulis “kalau tidak ada
halangan Cikgu Hasan akan ke kelantan pada bulan Mei
nanti”. Tulisan itu benar-benar telah menjadikan saya
selalu memikirkan untuk merealisasikan janji saya itu.
Apapun saya hampir gagal dibuatnya. Saya sudah
mendapat surat arahan yang meminta saya menghadiri
kursus di Pulau Pinang pada 25 Mei. Saya lantas
memberitahu Othman saya tidak berupaya untuk
menunaikan janji saya ke Kelantan.
Tetapi siapakah yang paling tahu tentang suratan
yang telah siap Tuhan tuliskan. Alhamdulilah, kursus
yang sepatutnya saya hadir telah dibatalkan. Jadi
saya membuat keputusan baru. Insya-Allah kalau tiada
apa-apa halangan saya akan ke Kelantan pada 28 Mei
nanti. Saya amat berterima kasih kepada Che Ngah
Ismail yang telah sudi mencari tempat penginapan untuk
saya.
Saya tidak tahu apakah kunjungan saya kali ini akan
mampu mempertemukan saya dengan satu senarai panjang
bekas anak murid saya yang ada di sana? Kadang-kadang
saya takut, kalau-kalau mereka tidak lagi sudi
menerima saya. Ah! Tidak mengapa, setidak-tidaknya,
kehadiran saya di Kota Bharu dan Pengkalan Chepa akan
cepat dapat mengubat segala kerinduan saya kepada
tempat yang paling banyak meninggalkan nostalgia
kepada saya. SMS KELANTAN. Selama 34 tahun saya
menghabiskan masa di sekolah sebagai guru, SMS
kelantanlah yang paling banyak saya kenang dalam
kehidupan keguruan saya. Sebab itu bila ada bekas
pelajar SMS Kelantan bercerita tentang rakan-rakan
sekelas mereka, saya akan cepat menyampuk, kerana
alhamdulillah, setakad ini masih kuat ingatan saya
terhadap mereka. Biarpun muka-muka mereka yang sempat
bertemu dengan saya itu sudah jauh berubah bebanding
dengan rupa mereka yang pernah ada di dalam ingatan
saya 30 tahu dahulu, tetapi Insya-Allah semua mereka
tetap sentiasa berada di hati saya.
Saya akan berada di Kelantan sehingga 30 Mei. Satu
yang saya pinta, tidak payahlah anda (bekas anak
murid saya yang membaca luahan ini)bersusah payah
meninggalkan kerja kerana mahu berjumpa saya. Cukuplah
dengan ingatan anda kepada saya selama ini. Saya sudah
cukup bersyukur dengan apa yang Tuhan telah berikan
kepada saya. Saya berkesempatan melihat kejayaan anda
biarpun saya tidak banyak membantu anda semua
mengecapi kejayaan. Itu sudah cukup untuk menjadi
penawar kepada kepuasan yang saya cari selama ini.
Percayalah, saya hadir di Pengkalan Chepa kerana
mahu mengubat kerinduan. Itu sahaja. Dan
setidak-tidaknya saya telah membawa keluarga saya
untuk melihat tempat pertama saya memulakan tugas
sebagai seorang guru. Kini setelah lebih 34 tahun,
guru itu kembali semula ke tempat tersebut cuma untuk
melihat tempat ia berpasung dengan tugas yang cukup
mencabar. Insya-Allah guru tua itu akan datang untuk
memunggah segala nostalgia yang pernah dimimpikannya
selama ini.
Cukup setakad ini hati saya bersuara. Salam hormat
untuk semua dari Cikgu Hasan Baseri Budiman

I won’t be in Kota Bharu but I hope cikgu and my friends will have a great get together.

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Last night I attended a concert at the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra concert. The MPO has existed since 1998, and only 10 years later I had the chance to attend to one of its shows.

This is my second classical concert! The first one was way back in 1981, when I was newly married to DH. DH has been an avid classical music fan (he even took up a full year subject on “Musicology” when he was in his 2nd year uni. He told me that he used to buy tickets/coupons in bulk (for the whole year) to attend to classical music concerts in there (in Adelaide). The night he took to the concert, it was at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. We went on “student” tickets. What stays in my memory was that we were the only youths that night! All other attendees were at least middle age, if not pensioners!

I quite enjoy the show – if I’m not mistaken it was playing Antonio Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons”. I don’t mind listening to classical music, but I have to admit that if I hear a piece, I don’t really know whose music it is. Maybe with a couple of exceptions such aas those belonging to Beethoven and Bach Tchaikovsky.

My children say that I am “Buta Musik Klasik” (Classical Music Illiterate), but so what?

No photography was allowed, but I guessed that’s because they don’t want the audience to disturb the show. Despite that I saw a couple of flash lights went off, and I thought using the phone-camera to capture some of the moments won’t do much harm.

During the intermission:

And here are some of the pix as we were leaving the place:

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Today is our first Sunday at home, in 5 weeks! And with 4 kids at home, there’s a lot of housework to be done.

Last night I was at the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra concert, and I was about to blog about it just now when this news on The Star attracted my attention:

Tokyo’s top college honours Jeanne Abdullah

TOKYO: Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah, wife of Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, was yesterday conferred the highest honorary award by the renowned Soka Women’s College in Tokyo.

The Soka Joshi Tanki Daigaku Saiko A Yosho award is given to people who have made significant contributions to human development.

Highest honour: Jeanne receiving a medal after being bestowed the Soka Joshi Tanki Daigaku Saiko A Yosho award from Fukushima at the Soka Women’s College in Tokyo, Japan, yesterday.

Jeanne was conferred the award for her contribution to and support of the development of women in Malaysia.

read more here.

OK, I have no qualms with people getting such awards if they deserve them. Just read the reason (which I have highlighted in bold) for giving her the award. Honestly, she’s only been the prime minister’s wife for less then ONE year. How much contributions has she really made? I have nothing against her, but to say that she has contributed much to women development in Malaysia? I don’t think so

Why not just say that she’s given the award simply because she’s the prime minister’s wife? Period!

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Today was not a working day for me. I’ve agreed to meet up Mr Tang YK at Sri Hartamas Shopping Complex at 3.30pm. This was our first meet, and it was a fruitful one

Just before 6pm, I headed towards KL for another of my discussion with my fellow friends for the Dale Carnegie endorsement.

Unfortunately, due to the earlier rain (which at that time, was still drizzling), the traffic really built up

I got really stuck in the jam, and only reached my destination at 8pm

There was one point when I was very close to the Petronas Twin Tower, and the car was not moving for a good 10 minutes, that I remembered to snap this pic:

Not a great shot, but then, I was really really bored, so took out my handphone for the shot. Another one before I finally moved on:

I must start to learn to carry the Lumix that I’ve inherited from Nuni.

To DH, if he’s reading this, I need a bigger and stronger handbag lah!

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Not a very interesting topic, eh?

But the above two have kept me busy the past couple of days.

On Wednesday, I had to man our booth at WCIT 2008. OK la, not really OUR booth. It’s the e-government booth, but since our company develops the HR system for the government, we had to be there too with JPA to show the system and demo to any visitor who’d be interested in it.

Our booth was just a small part of the huge “e-Government” booth, so it was not that spacious. Initially I wanted to bring my “newly acquired” 3rd hand (Lumix) camera, but thinking that it is a bit too bulky for my handbag (I really need a new handbag!) I decided against it. Furthermore I really need some time to familiarise myself with that Lumix. So, I didn’t take any pic at WCIT except for this one which I did just before I left:

I met a few familiar acquaintances during the WCIT:

1. Nazrah – my x-student in UNISEL who’s now working in HUKM.
2. Naza – Nuni’s x-schoolmate whose mum later became my friend.
3. Kamil Musa – my x-schoolmate from secondary school days.
4. Sharifa@Sherri – another x-student from UNISEL who now teaches English part-time and sells Prudential insurance and takaful full time!

I should have brought the camera, then I would (hopefully) have remembered to take more meaningful pix of these meetings.

The WCIT thingy was only one day. Tuesday night and last night I was in KL until very late (as late as 11pm) to be with a few friends. We are preparing ourselves for the endorsement to become Dale Carnegie trainers.

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It was last Sunday, and it was very brief, indeed.

Just before we left Nuni to head back to S Alam, we decided to go out together for a while, then to have lunch before we send Nuni back to her place.

Hence, we ended up in Plaza Gurney. We entered 3 bookshops in total i.e. Popular, Big Book and MPH before we decided that it was time to have lunch.

Oh, I forgot to mention earlier that, while we were in the “Big Book” shop, I came across an autobiography book on “The Two Ronnies” by Ronnie Corbett. I used to follow their show way back in the 1980s. I am also a fan of “Open All Hours“. I’ll put up the pic of the front cover later.. And at this shop the book (hard-cover!) was selling at only RM12! Now, THAT’s a bargain. The book on sale at www.amazon.com has a different front cover, but i bet the the contents are the same. Oh, i found the hard-cover version here, and it’s exactly like the one that I bought

We went to the basement and found a “Laksa Shack” outlet, and all agreed to have lunch there. I ordered Laksa Singapore (I love most laksas, but laksa kelantan, laksa johor and laksa Singapore top the list )

Me with my laksa:

Nuni’s Laksa Asam with the kids’ ABC:

Another pose:

When we went to send Nuni, we decided to stay at her place for a while before leaving her behind. The kids (and me, occasionally) shared the ice-cream that Nuni bought just the night before.

I couldn’t resist starting to read the biography, and was caught by DH with his new SLR:

And, here’s at a very interesting page:

The tallest in the pic is John Cleese. According to Ronnie Corbett (i.e. the short guy), they used to make fun of themselves by describing themselves as “low class”, “middle class” and “upper class”according to their heights!

But now, I am too busy to continue reading the book. I hope to do so this coming weekend, though

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Tonight, while having quality time at Nuni’s place, I managed to watch the Akademi Fantasia 6 concert. Next week will be its final and tonight is the 2nd time that I managed to watch the concert in full for this season. As I said earlier, I am not really into AF6, but I thought that now there are only 6 of them, hopefuly their performance would be much better (also after having gone through the classes and coaching for several weeks).

I may not be an expert in music and songs, but somehow I felt that the juries were a bit bias when giving their comments, esp Fauziah Ahmad Daud. I just couldn’t enjoy Riz’s singing, or even Nubhan’s and Toi’s and these guys actually managed to get into the final next week!? Poor Stanly, he was voted out. Maybe his “penghayatan” (appreciation) of the song was not up to the juries’ standard, but I was surely entertained by him!

Oh, I forgot to mention that Stacy and Nadia are the other two finalists – as expected, since they’ve been quite consistent in their performance (so I ws told by those who follow), and their poerformance tonight was relatively better than the other 3 finalists!

I may not be watching next week’s concert, and am not that keen either. If I am free, and the TV is free, maybe I’ll watch it. Otherwise, I might just give it a miss

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This morning, I sms-ed my friend, A to inform her that my family was on the way to visit Nuni. In her reply she described me as “truly Nomad”

Come to think of it, it’s been quite a while since we lst spent our weekend at home (home as in Shah Alam). Let’s check:

Last week(10 May & 11 May): We were in Kota Bharu for Nafis’ School Function

The Week before that (1st – 4th May) : Brunei & Labuan

26th & 27th April: Balanophora Search at Fraser’s Hill (OK, that’s our holiday home)

18th &19th April: On the 18th we went to Melaka to visit our new-born nephew, 19th went to Nukman’s School.

12th & 13th April : Yes!We were home that weekend!

4t, 5th & 6th April: We were in Phnom Penh

Anyway, back to our trip today. We left home just after 7am. We visited (another) new-born niece in Segambut. MIL was there and she prepared pulut kuning & cihcken curry for us! Sumptious breakfast, indeed!

Baby Naomi Anis aka Yomi:

Yomi’s clueless big bro, Alif:

I managed to carry Alif, very briefly :

We left Segambut at 9m. DH drove all the way until we stopped for petrol at R&R near Taiping, where I took over. I was happy, because I thought it’d be only about 1.5 hrs from Penang, so I wouldn’t have to drive too long.

How wrong I was to be! First, the construction just before Juru really slowed down the traffic

Then, as we were closer to the Penang bridge exit, we could see on the fly-over in front of us (of traffic from the north that was heading towards the bridge), vehicles WERE NOT moving AT ALL! We waited for almost 20 minutes, to move maybe about 50 meters! The exit to Penang bridge was still at least 150 meters away.

I told DH that I had the feeling that there was something wrong on the bridge (such as an accident). An ambulance that headed towards the same direction (of course it had to cut the Q) reaffirmed my suspicion.

I also saw several cars got out of the Q and headed north. Maybe they decided to use the ferry? “What should we do,” I asked DH. “Up to you”, he said.

Hence I decided to head towards the ferry terminal too. The last time we took the ferry was almost 10 yrs ago! The road towards the ferry terminal looked so unfamiliar to me. When we reached there, we found ourselves among another huge group of vehicles!

I sms-ed Nuni, who said that it’s common for the traffic to build up on Saturdays. I guessed the 20-25 minutes (or more) we wasted trying to get into the Penang Bridge exit earlier caused us to be much behind in the Q for the ferry.

Whatever it is, we eventually found ourselves on the ferry at 2.10pm – just like tourists DH armed with his camera, and the rest of us climbed up the upper deck, walked around and looked out very excitedly.

Since we were there, we might s well make the most of it. We went to the upper deck. It was cosy:

Ayi with Aina:

Candid pose for the family album:

Getting closer to the island:

Soon it was time to leave the ferry:

And very much later, we picked up Nuni (we were 1.5 hrs behind the ETA), who then joined us to have late lunch at Kapitan’s:

The briyani and tandoori were very nice! Or was it because we were starving?

Anyway, we are spending quality time at Nuni’s place. We’ll leave for Shah Alam tomorrow

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