tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83385502024-03-08T08:31:07.520+08:00AcE ManaL sharing her stuffPerseverance and Tawakkal. No guts, no glory!ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.comBlogger264125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-64009816687368627722015-05-06T06:33:00.003+08:002015-05-06T13:44:33.409+08:00henna and temporary insomnia.Kak teh (zaharah othman of <a href="http://kakteh.blogspot.com/">choc a block</a> blog) together with Ailin (of Ailin from Aalborg) made a call for many of us former bloggers to kickstart our old blog again.<br />
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Really not much left to say as most of them have been said on my FB.<br />
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But of course, many things have happened since i last blogging actively. More nephews and nieces, only 3 of us siblings yet to get married, and getting more and more friends on FB.<br />
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Yeah i mention FB for the third time now. That is how avid FB user I am.<br />
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Anyways....<br />
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There is a reason why we have to pay a certain amount of charge to pay people who does your hair, nails both manicure and pedicure , facial for skin care, tailor your clothes, massages, what not.<br />
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Well, in as much as I love to do some of them myself, sometimes it can be a messy business.<br />
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And so it happens on Saturday night when i decided to apply henna to my hair. I have tried doing it myself once before and i messed up a lot of things : my pillow case, my hair towel and not to mention my own finger nails. So after all that first episode of the henna drama, this time i thought i am more prepared. So there i was preparing everything necessary for my 2nd henna experiment:<br />
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1. a pair of transparent disposable kitchen gloves<br />
2. a small comb, foldable one i got from airplane kit<br />
3. a spoon and an empty tub to mix the henna powder from the satchet<br />
4. a small cup half filled with water.<br />
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First i took a shower, wash my hair with shampoo and conditioner. Done.<br />
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With my hair still towel dry damp, I picked the gloves and wore them gently so that they wouldn't tear. I began mixing the henna powder in the tub. This time i am very careful to add water bit by bit only and stir up the powder gently to create a liquidy paste. Not too thick and not too thin.<br />
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Things were going as planned. Not bad me. So the subsequent task was to apply those henna on my hair. See, i just had to henna my hair after seeing 2-3 strands of white hair appearing visibly right above my ears. So there i was ever so gingerly but gently rubbing those henna paste all over hair , right to the last end tip of the hair. While doing so, i tried as much as possible this time not to make too much mess in the bathroom. And then i picked up the foldable comb and went combing the hair down so that all the henna coated all over my hair and to also ensure that they were all evenly distributed. Having done that, i twisted my hair and clamped it up with a hair claw. I cleaned up the tub, the comb and all the bathroom surface and floor off any henna stains and removed my gloves and chucked them in the bin.<br />
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And while waiting for the hair to dry up, this time i just let it air dry 1st. I didn't wanna touch the hair not until i was gonna wash it. It took me a while of course. I made sure my aircon and fan were on so i wouldnt sweat much. Coz if i did, some of the henna will drip on my face along with the sweat when my head starts feeling warm. About an hour after that, all the henna dried up completely and i went washing the hair again. And then washing the toilet again from all the stains. Not as bad as my 1st and it was manageable. Using the same old towel that I have used during my 1st henna experiment, this time i didnt care much if i was gonna stain the towel again. It already bore the indelible henna mark before despite me washing the pinkish towel with Vanish.<br />
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And all the process took me hours! Yes. Hours! It robbed me off my usual sleeping time and i couldnt sleep much after that. I laid a folded batik cloth on my pillow just so that no henna would stain in case i was sweating while i was sleeping.<br />
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Yupp, i didnt sleep till subuh. Only after that I could take some hours to sleep. And i didnt like it. Coz the next day, the sleeping pattern continued. Good thing Monday was a public holiday. And earlier on Tuesday , 05 May, I had my morning lecture. With barely enough sleep i had the night before, i went and did my lecture and all. 2 hours passed and its already midday. I tried to remain alert doing my work in my office but i think if i continued being on the same sleeping pattern, it would do no good to me at all! So i decided to leave office earlier than usual , headed home. Yup i was right. Soon as i reached home, it only took me like perhaps another hour or so before i felt sleepy. There i was in bed sleeping like a log for 4 hours and woke up close to 10pm.<br />
Got up, did whatever necessary and went back to sleep for a few hours and woke up before 3am. Had my my early breakfast, and did this blog writing.<br />
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The next time i am ever gonna dye my hair again....Hmm... No wait. Perhaps i will let the hairdresser do it. She took like nearly 2 and a half hour to complete the treatment everything including full hair blowing and all. I will just bring my henna sachet with me and let her do the rest. No i am never gonna wreck my sleeping pattern like that again. Being insomniac is bad i tell you. Its bad enough that I am a nocturnal person.<br />
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And thats why it is OK to pay them to carry such messy works for us. And of course we want to get good service from them too.<br />
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<br />ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-67579493824903163182011-09-13T19:34:00.000+08:002011-09-13T19:34:13.238+08:00MSc or a PhD student wanted<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="mbl notesBlogText clearfix"><div>I am looking for :<br />
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<strong> ONE MSc candidate</strong> with a chemical engineering MEng or BEng student, priority for the CGPA 3.0++ student, (CGPA of 2.85-2.95 also accepted if he/she is fully committed)<br />
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<strong>OR</strong><br />
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<strong>ONE PhD candidate</strong> with a chemical engineering MEng or BEng (CGPA 3.70++ first class degree) or with an MSc degree<br />
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to carry out a project in catalysis , design and reaction engineering at the Dept of Chemical & Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering & Built Environment, The National University of Malaysia (UKM). Kindly please send me the CV to :<strong>manal@eng.ukm.my</strong> ASAP or <b>before 30 September 2011</b>.<br />
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A chemistry background graduate with passion to be involved in both chemical reaction and catalysis and reactor design is also acceptable.<br />
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You will be awarded with tax-free allowance of RM1600/month for MSc candidate and RM1800/month for PhD candidate. Local or foreign (non-malaysian) students are welcome to apply.<br />
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Thank you.<br />
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DR. MANAL ISMAIL</div></div></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-40828625416637096392011-02-15T03:13:00.000+08:002011-02-15T03:13:01.502+08:00After a long hiatus on Maulidur Rasul 1432H (15 Feb 2011)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHY0JWCDs8mrdpPWlCI1jywGtIIvhhEeMLXQanOYJ9UPav2aSZVs9wiouW6ztaq2vyCqm753DD0BANFis5AeAuekYkvTtyimEOJIE2e9QIlZuYbYn_Ib2c-5qq7nD9UE_vJDTA/s1600/180469_191019650925328_100000518837106_641212_538832_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHY0JWCDs8mrdpPWlCI1jywGtIIvhhEeMLXQanOYJ9UPav2aSZVs9wiouW6ztaq2vyCqm753DD0BANFis5AeAuekYkvTtyimEOJIE2e9QIlZuYbYn_Ib2c-5qq7nD9UE_vJDTA/s320/180469_191019650925328_100000518837106_641212_538832_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am back to the blogworld and may be adding another new blog for the more academic use. It has been 11 months , thanks to the timing stamp on Mak Ji Esah's <a href="http://cholericworld.blogspot.com/">blog</a> that I think it is time to begin another new chapter. That is another Maulidul Rasul 1432 H.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There has been so many things happened the last year , or since the last blog posting to be precise. One most significant thing is the meagre savings. I spent almost all my money on installing a new kitchen cabinet that I did not have much more to spend throughout the year other than paying bills, bills and bills (loans, credit cards, utilities, Astro, internet, you name it). I was dried up on the kitty bank but I did not have much problems with people around me including my family. I had to be very careful with my expenditure that I avoided going to cinemas or most of the favourite pastimes that required money including travelling. Good thing I had one opportunity to attend an overseas <a href="http://www.chemeca2010.com/">conference</a> in Adelaide, Australia, played with kangaroos there, took pictures with Osmond the Koala and was thought of as someone from Sydney or Melbourne i.e. the 2 bigger, more metropolitan cities in the whole Australasia continent. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I even did not manage to do much of clothes and shoes shopping last year, and dont even ask on shoes or handbags, except necessities. My 2010 was spent more on KPI, publishing more journal papers, etc etc academic stuff, and in between, enjoyed whatever little I had. My personal life seemed to be heading to another level last year but it ended up in the last week of December with an absolute expiry date 01-01-2011. There goes the on-off 3 years relationship. Banished saved for good memories.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">A minimalist I was in 2010, that did not stopped me from acting and behaving like a diva whenever necessary or naturally. Sure I didnt have that much money but it never stopped me from sashaying around with whatever that I have in the most confident manner. And the good thing about living like 10mins away from your parents meant that you can come dine there more like a guest than a permanent resident. And THAT really saved me on the grocery shopping somehow.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">As we are into the 46th day of 2011, I am slowly recovering my kittybank. My mother spent nearly a month visiting my eldest sister in Birmingham who is on a short sabbatical with her husband, attaching themselves with Warwick University where both earned their PhD degrees. Hosni Mubarak, the 4th president of Egypt has just stepped down on 11-02-2011 after 18 days of demonstration by the Egyptian people mostly held at Tahrir Square in Cairo. Faculty dinner was held on 21-01-2011, Friday at DECTAR, UKM, with Arabian 1001 night as the theme.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">And for the last 11 months, I became more and more redha (accepting whatever destined for me by God).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Lets all give salawat to our greatest most revered prophet Nabi Muhammad (SAW) on remembering his birth day:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-6043211469759645032010-03-01T21:48:00.002+08:002010-03-02T00:44:35.101+08:00A good article in conjunction with MaulidulRasul 1431H<b><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 128);font-family:verdana,Arial;font-size:100%;" ><br />From Islamicity:<br /><br />A journey of exploration, leading to Islam<br /><br /><br /></span></b><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><table style="float: left;" width="16%" border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4"><tbody><tr><td width="100%"><a href="http://www.islamicity.com/global/images/photo/People/Daniel_Abdal-Hayy_Moore__170x204.JPG" target="_new"><img src="http://www.islamicity.com/global/images/photo/People/Daniel_Abdal-Hayy_Moore__170x204.JPG" width="170" border="0" height="204" /></a></td> </tr> </tbody></table> </span> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >I became a Muslim when it seemed I had already accepted Islam in my bones, as if beyond choice, and I only had to make a leap to embrace it formally. Outwardly I was content; inwardly I was coasting. My three year old theatre company was disbanded after a hilariously chaotic production for a Tim Leary Benefit at the Family Dog in San Francisco, circa '68 Ð naturally, the orange juice everyone had passed around was spiked, so that the chorus members were doing the final scene in the first ten minutes Ð and for six months I had been typing out poetry manuscripts in my attic in Berkeley preparatory to a big publishing push.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >I considered myself a Zen Buddhist, but I was other things as well. My normal routine was to get up, sit zazen, smoke a joint, do half an hour of yoga, then read the <em>Mathnawi</em> of Rumi, the long mystical poem of that great Persian Sufi of the thirteenth century.</span></span></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >Then I met the man who was to be my guide to our teacher in Morocco, Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Habib, may Allah be pleased with him. At first, the meeting was simply remarkable, and my guide a simply a remarkable man. But soon our encounter was to become extraordinary, leading to a revolution in my life from which I have never recovered, and never hope to.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >The man looked like an eccentric Englishman. He too had only recently come out of the English version of the Hippie Wave. He was older, refined in his manners, spectacularly witty and intellectual, but of that kind prevalent then who had hobnobbed with the Beatles and knew the Tantric Art collection of Brian Jones firsthand. He had been on all the classic drug quests Ð peyote in the Yucatan, mescaline with Laura Huxley Ð but with the kif quest in Morocco, he had stumbled on Islam, and then the Sufis, and the game was up. A profound change had taken place in his life that when far beyond the psychedelic experience.</span></span></p> <p align="center"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><i><span style="color: rgb(128, 128, 128);font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" ><img src="http://www.islamicity.com/global/images/photo/Other/start_quote_rb%7E24x13.GIF" width="24" height="13" /> It is hard to put forward any kind of explanation of Islam, to try to suggest the beauty of its totality, through the medium of words. The light of Islam, since it is transformational and alchemical in nature, almost always comes via a human messenger who is a transmitter of the picture by his very being. <img src="http://www.islamicity.com/global/images/photo/Other/end_quote_rb%7E24x13.GIF" width="24" height="13" /></span></i></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >For the three days following our meeting, two other Americans and I listened in awe as this magnificent storyteller unfolded the picture of Islam, of the perfection of the Prophet Muhammad, and of the 100 year old plus Shaykh, sitting under a great fig tree in a garden with his disciples, singing praises of Allah. It was everything I'd always dreamed of. It was poetry come alive. It was the visionary experience made part of daily life, with the Prophet a perfectly balanced master of wisdom and simplicity, an historically accessible Buddha, with a mixture of the earthiness of Moses, the otherworldliness of Jesus, and a light all his own.</span></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >The prophetic knowledge our guide talked about was a kind of spiritual existentialism. It was a matter of how you enter a room, which foot you entered with, that you sipped water but gulped mild, that you said "bismillah" (In the name of Allah) before eating or drinking, and "alhamdulillah" (Praise be to Allah) afterwards, and so on. But rather than seeing this as a burden of hundreds of "how-to's", it was more like what the LSD experience taught us, that there is a "right" way to do things that has, if you will, a cosmic resonance. It is a constant awareness of courtesy to the Creator and His creation that in itself ensures and almost visionary intensity.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >It is hard to put forward any kind of explanation of Islam, to try to suggest the beauty of its totality, through the medium of words. The light of Islam, since it is transformational and alchemical in nature, almost always comes via a human messenger who is a transmitter of the picture by his very being.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >Face to face with our guide, what struck us most was his impeccable, noble behavior. He seemed to be living what he was saying. Finally, the moment came, as a surprise, when he confronted me with my life. "Well," he said one morning after three full days of rapturous agreement that what he was bringing us was the best thing we'd ever heard. "What do you think? Do you want to become a Muslim?"</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >I hedged. "It's the most beautiful thing I've heard about so far. After all my Zen Buddhism, all my yoga, Tibetan Buddhism and Hindu gurus, this is certainly it! But I think I would like to travel a little, see the world, go to Afghanistan (then unoccupied), maybe meet my Shaykh in a mountain village far off somewhere."</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >"That's not good enough. You have to decide now. Yes or no. If it's yes, then we start on a great adventure. If it's no, then no blame, I've done my duty. I'll just say goodbye and go on my way. But you have to decide now. I'll go downstairs and read a magazine and wait. Take your time."</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >When he had left the room I saw there was no choice. My whole being had already acquiesced. All my years up to that moment simply rolled away. I was face-to-face with worship of Allah, wholly and purely, with the Path before me well-trodden, heavily sign posted, with a guide to a Master plunk in front of me. Or I could reject all of this for a totally self-invented and uncertain future.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" >It was the day of my birthday, just to make it that much more dramatic. I chose Islam.</span></span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" > </span></p> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" ><i>Daniel Abdal-Hayy Moore was born in 1940 in Oakland, California. His first book of poems, Dawn Visions, was published by Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Books, San Francisco, in 1964, and the second in 1972, Burnt Heart / An Ode to the War Dead. He became a Sufi Muslim in 1970, performed the Hajj in 1972, and has lived and traveled throughout Morocco, Spain, Algeria and Nigeria, landing in California and publishing The Desert is the Only Way Out, and Chronicles of Akhira. Living in Philadelphia since 1990, in 1996 he published The Ramadan Sonnets, and in 2002 a new book of poems with Syracuse University Press, The Blind Beekeeper. He is also widely published on the worldwide web: The American Muslim, DeenPort, and his own website: <a href="http://www.danielmoorepoetry.com/" target="_blank">www.danielmoorepoetry.com</a> among others</i></span></span>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-49192887741127767592010-03-01T17:17:00.001+08:002010-03-01T17:17:35.135+08:00AVATARIZE YOURSELF<script type="text/javascript" src="http://widgets.clearspring.com/o/4b01c6c7456da357/4b8b862e5a6c4e6b/4b01c6c7456da357/ce8d08bc/widget.js"></script>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-9197481447607114772010-02-25T15:37:00.002+08:002010-02-25T15:39:25.369+08:00O Fresh Milk....<p><br /></p><p>I MISSED downing semi-skimmed milk back in the UK!!!<br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">*****************************************************************************<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The article from DailyMail:</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">After the bottle of milk and the carton, now comes the bag of milk.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The new containers are being introduced to 500 Sainsbury’s stores in a move that could finally end the 130-year reign of the milk bottle and its plastic successors.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Each two-pint container will be priced at 80p, which is 6p cheaper than an average carton. </span><br /></p><div class="clear"> </div><div class="clear"> </div> <img src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/02/24/article-1253577-0873C275000005DC-124_634x330.jpg" alt="milk in a bag" class="blkBorder" width="634" height="330" /><br /> <br /><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">It is designed to fit easily into a reuseable jug, which contains a spike to pierce it open. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The product uses 75 per cent less packaging than a plastic carton and is easier and cheaper to produce and transport.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">In fact, switching to the bags could save 1.4million kilos of packaging a year – equivalent to 700 doubledecker buses.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Sainsbury’s spokesman Emma Metcalf King said: ‘This is the biggest change to occur to the nation’s shopping habits for at least a decade.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">‘The familiar clink of the glass milk bottle could finally become a thing of the past. ‘The bags will prove to be a huge hit with environmentally aware shoppers, as well as those on a tight budget.’ </span><br /></p><div class="floatRHS"> <img src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/02/24/article-1253577-0872D77D000005DC-597_306x313.jpg" alt="The new bags of milk will be 6p cheaper than a normal plastic bottle" class="blkBorder" width="306" height="313" /> <p style="text-align: left;" class="imageCaption">The new bags of milk will be 6p cheaper than a normal plastic bottle</p></div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">It is not the first time bags have been used for milk packaging, however. Thirty years ago, dairies in Essex tried and failed to encourage them.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Havoc was caused by packs which leaked in transit, while shoppers found the bags were punctured by the packaging on other products.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"> More recently, Dairy Crest, the Co-op, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s itself have also run trials.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">But today’s move by the supermarket giant, which is giving away half a million milk bags to customers in April, follows a successful 18-month trial at its stores.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">After years of rigorous tests, manufacturers believe they have developed a milk bag able to withstand being bashed about in a car boot or on a crowded bus.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">And consumers are more likely to take to them this time round because they are far more conscious of green issues such as the carbon footprint, supporters of the technology suggest.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">A spokesman for the Government’s waste and packaging advisory body, WRAP, said: ‘What is important in any type of milk container, whether it’s a glass bottle, a pouch or a plastic bottle is increasing recycled content and making it easier to recycle.’<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;"> Bottles have been the preferred milk container in Britain since 1880 when they were introduced by the Express Dairy Company. They were dominant until the 1970s, before losing favour to Tetra Pak cardboard containers.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Britons consume around 180million pints of milk a week. Two-thirds are sold in plastic bottles, which have been the preferred container since the early 1990s.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Milk sold in bags is already a common choice for 60 per cent of consumers in Canada, Poland, South Africa and China. </span></p><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br />Read more: <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1253577/Drinka-bagga-milka-day--Pintas-new-look.html#ixzz0gWzXAdON">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1253577/Drinka-bagga-milka-day--Pintas-new-look.html#ixzz0gWzXAdON</a><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-56137891776486958572010-02-01T04:10:00.003+08:002010-02-01T05:14:24.449+08:00What did I miss<div style="text-align: justify;">I had to lock myself in the house literally speaking today as the internal lock in my main wooden door (enter-exit) broken somehow. I can still leave the house through other exit like from the back of the kitchen or through the sliding door grilles. But it felt odd. I have called a repairman to come over my place on monday afternoon to fix it, and if it needed a new lock, then so be it, better to replace it soon then i reckon.<br /><br />I was hooked on the Astro sport channel today most of the time apart from watching " Casablanca" in between on TV2 earlier. It was indeed a good movie considering that it was made during WW2 and it was actually my 1st time really got to watch most part of the movie. Bogey (Humphrey Bogart) really put that "here's looking at u kid" quote in my mind and it just kept replaying on and on. I guess i was just amazed at how good actually that movie and how funny in a wry way Bogey was. I only managed to watch him in his other movie "Sabrina" (the original make) and how deep the impact he left me. He wasnt really a looker or anything like that, not that he's all plain either. He just had this charisma of a great actor of his time. No wonder Lauren Bacall his wife never stopped swooning over him , how she can never let go of her moments with him despite his demise for nearly 5 decades.<br /><br />Roger Federer won his 16th Grand Slam today too at Australian Open 2010. I had the opportunity to "wander" outside the Rod Laver stadium, Melbourne where the venue was back in sept 2007. He defeated Andy Murray in a straight set. This time he wasnt doing his all famous watershed but Andy did shed some tears. That was the 2nd time they met on a grand slam final, the 1st one was at the US Open 2008. Andy did have some advantage over Fed as in he has 6-4 winning record throughout their meeting but Fed prevailed yet again in the Grand Slam final. Not only that, he also managed to win back the AO having lost to his another famous rival, Rafael Nadal. The latter called for match retirement during his QF match against Murray. That match saw Murray already leading by 2 sets.<br /><br />Serena Williams also won her 5th AO beating a former champion Justine Henin on 2-1 sets. Williams bagged another winning trophy from women's double playing side by side with her big sister Venus. That would be like a commiseration for Venus who lost during QF to Na Li, who then lost to Serena in SF. One thing for sure, once she and Fed reached the semis, i have already hoped and predicted that it would be Fed and Serena to win. And i was spot on. Double spot on!<br /><br /><br />Egypt won their African Cup Nation again too defeating Ghana by 1-0 in Angola. I was beaming with pride for my other half Nation. They deserved this win, truly, after what all that bloody commotion happened during their 1st round match with Algeria last december 2009. Good thing they trashed them algerian by 4-0 in the semi en route to final.<br /><br />I just had my sahur, thats basically day 01 for the replacement fasting of Ramadhan last year. This is already into the 2nd month of the Hijriyah and the next ramadhan is like another 7 months away or so. Its ummm quite unfortunate that I had to replace a LOT of days really and so its gonna be another "big" feat to do all the missing days but I will have to no matter what. Its an obligation and its compulsory.<br /><br /><br />Blogging also has slowed down quite substantially since the last quarter of 2009. It gets so much simpler writing a few things on Facebook. I'd usually leave a few updates and my whereabouts there too. Though of course i could write more in the blog but i just cant be arsed spending time writing that much when most of my thoughts are frequently aired on FB.<br /><br /><br />I also miss London. I dunno why. When i saw movies like Bridget Jones Diary and Love Actually, everything there looked very very very familiar. Somehow there's almost not much of a "friendly" flirt here in malaysia, though I do get occassional passes and so on. I know them guys prolly think it wasnt appropriate to be that direct or so but they can be so damn stupid not taking such oppportunity to do so. Yea sure some chinese (msian and he's cute too) fella just like to stand soooo close to me while explaining about things on car at the workshop and some few other malaysian fellas dared enough to be little bit more friendly but that was it. I had a LOT more passes when i was in India, Egypt, Syria and England (to name a few countries i have visited last year) than I had in msia for the past 3 years. Are Malaysian guys so bloody slow and dimwit or what? Or that I gave them a wrong indication and wrong aura or what? I think thats prolly one of the reasons why I miss london (and other places, travelling) so much. Malaysian men and Manal Ismail prolly dont gel that well in the attraction department. Or perhaps they think i am married hence no point getting into trouble approaching me? As in there was one time when i was in sabah last year and i was almost getting interrogated on my marital status when they read in the form i wrote as single. They asked me how come a woman this beautiful like me can be single. Surely at least it was due to divorce or something or that I DO have a boyfriend, or the least would be that I am engaged.<br /><br />And maybe perhaps i dont go out that much?<br /><br /><br />Just when i stop hoping but praying nonetheless for my future endeavours, one of my aunts in cairo introduced me to her office mate. He was smitten by me the 1st time he saw me. And few days before that, i went to Irbid , Jordan, visiting my 5th sister there with my mum and my old flame came over to see me there. He clearly has feelings for me still yet he needed to sort out his issues and himself too.<br /><br />I think of my other old flame in london too. Saw him in my dream a couple of nights ago but he didnt really even look at me at all. He looked well, and i was happy for him. Although i think he wasnt prepared to face me. Its just too painful , too awkward to talk to someone whom u had had a very deep meaningful relationship only to end up due to some silly issues. But i think its for the best. I dont think I wanna be part of his family and he prolly deserved his own kind. Maybe he;'s married now, i dunno. Where ever he is now, I hope he's doing fine and if destiny had it, we may cross each other's path once again. I dont mind having him as friend. He is still in my FB friends list to say the least.<br /><br /><br />May this year 2010 be a much better one to me,and I wanna keep on persevere and be a better person too. And i wanna achieve more in life.<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-12554646816774331442009-11-21T00:09:00.002+08:002009-11-21T00:19:15.620+08:00Chemically or comically atrocious?<h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Perhaps we should switch to something more organic and pricey body care. Or perhaps, we should do some body detox/cleansing every now and then to help remove any harmful toxic that may remain longer in our body? </span><br /></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size:100%;">From Daily Mail:</span><br /></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></h1><h1 style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 1.8em;font-size:130%;" >Revealed... the 515 chemicals women put on their bodies every day</span></h1><br /><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Women and beauty products - it's a love affair that's been going on for centuries. And no wonder. There's nothing like a new lipstick or favourite perfume to make us look and feel good. Or so we thought...<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">In fact, according to a new report, most of our favourite cosmetics are cocktails of industrially produced and potentially dangerous chemicals that could damage our health and, in some cases, rather than delivering on their potent 'anti-ageing' promise, are causing us to age faster.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Research by Bionsen, a natural deodorant company, found that the average woman's daily grooming and make-up routine means she 'hosts' a staggering 515 different synthetic chemicals on her body every single day.<br /></span></p><div class="clear"> </div><div> <img src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/11/19/article-1229275-07498D23000005DC-57_964x1071.jpg" alt="make up graphic" class="blkBorder" height="1071" width="964" /> <p class="imageCaption"><br /></p></div> <p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Many of those are also used in products such as household cleaners, and have been linked to a number of health problems from allergies and skin sensitivity to more serious hormonal disturbances, fertility problems and even cancer.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Parabens, for example, which are designed to preserve the shelf-life of your cosmetics, are one of the most widely used preservatives in the world, and are found in shampoos, hair gels, shaving gels and body lotions. But their use is becoming increasingly controversial - a range of different studies has linked them to serious health problems including breast cancer, as well as fertility issues in men.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Research from the Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine suggests that some parabens we had previously presumed to be safe, such as Methylparaben, may mutate and become toxic when exposed to sunlight, causing premature skin ageing and an increased risk of skin cancer.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Methylparabens are found in more than 16,000 products, including moisturisers and toothpastes. Cosmetic producers have always defended their use of parabens on the grounds that they can't be absorbed into the body.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">But many leading researchers disagree, including Dr Barbara Olioso, an independent professional chemist, who says: 'Research shows that between 20 and 60 per cent of parabens may be absorbed into the body.'<br /></span></p><p> </p><div class="relatedItemsTopBorder"> </div> <div class="relatedItems"> <h4>More...</h4> <ul><li><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/beauty/article-1228940/Beauty-confidential-My-hair-brittle-lifeless-What-I-shine.html">Beauty confidential: My hair is brittle and lifeless, what can I do to get back the shine?</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/beauty/article-1229169/Im-A-Celebrity-From-Katie-Price-Kerry-Katona-battle-make-free-D-list-stars.html">I'm a celebrity: From Katie Price to Kerry Katona, battle of the make-up free D-list stars</a></li><li><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/beauty/article-1228875/Speed-read-As-Boots-celebrates-160th-anniversary-look-rise-High-Street-health-beauty-staple.html">As Boots celebrates its 160th anniversary, we look back at the rise of the High Street chemist</a></li></ul> </div><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">There are a number of laws designed to protect us from dangerous chemicals in cosmetics, but researchers worry that they don't go far enough. For example, cosmetic manufacturers are required to list their ingredients, but they don't have to tell us about any impurities found in the raw materials or used in the manufacturing process, so long as they don't end up in the finished product.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The industry insists that our cosmetics are safe. The Cosmetic Toiletries and Perfumery Association said last night: 'Stringent laws require all cosmetics to be safe, and each product undergoes a rigorous safety assessment. The number of ingredients in a product, or whether it is natural or man-made, has no bearing on how safe it is.'<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">They also say that any chemicals are present in safe doses that can't harm us. While that may be true, there is some disagreement over what constitutes a 'safe' level - for young people and children, or sensitive adults, these levels may not be so safe at all.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">And even if the relatively small amounts in individual products don't hurt us, there is growing concern over the number of products women use daily, and the cumulative effect of so many chemicals being used all over our bodies every day, for many years.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">As Charlotte Smith, spokesperson for Bionsen, says: 'Women have never been more image-conscious and their beauty regimes have changed over the years, from a simple "wash & go" attitude, to daily fake-tan applications, regular manicures, false lashes and hair extensions.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">'Lots of the high-tech, new generation cosmetics and beauty "wonder" treatments naturally contain more chemicals to achieve even better results, which, of course, means women apply more chemicals than ever before.'<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">If you want to protect yourself from chemical overload, reduce your overall cosmetics usage; switch to natural or organic products, and read the labels on your beauty and grooming products with care. <br /></span></p><ul style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"><li><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The Women's Environmental network has more detailed information and advice about ingredients contained in beauty products: www.wen.org. uk; The Cosmetics Database, a website which gives a 'hazard rating' for products: cosmeticsdatabase.com. Or read Skin Deep: The Essential Guide To What's In The Toiletries And Cosmetics You Use (Rodale), by Pat Thomas. </span></li></ul><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br />Read more: <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/beauty/article-1229275/Revealed--515-chemicals-women-bodies-day.html#ixzz0XPta5oN3">http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/beauty/article-1229275/Revealed--515-chemicals-women-bodies-day.html#ixzz0XPta5oN3</a><br /></div><br /><br /><div id="TixyyLink" style="border: medium none ; overflow: hidden; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-46203292201187492162009-09-30T23:48:00.004+08:002009-09-30T23:57:41.832+08:00Raya Aidil Fitri 20/09/ 2009Nice date combo innit? 20 - 09 - 2009 happened to be 1 Shawal 1430H. Its Raya Aidil Fitri again!<br /><br />Not so much happening, but that 1st day was really the day I really celebrated. And after that dozed off...and visited just one house the day after....and many sleep off....<br /><br />Oh well....at least on that weekend I went out to KL with a buddy of mine and we went around Pavillion and Berjaya Times Square (for Krispy Kreme that was).ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-69089100813954107422009-08-25T00:55:00.006+08:002009-08-25T02:15:13.682+08:00Another internationally famous Malaysian lady<div style="text-align: justify;">The world just love this kinda news particularly when it could be easily ridiculed and joked around by those anti-Islam people. It is a bit beguiling this case as she JUST so happened to be THE ONLY ONE caught in the act while downing her Beer in Malaysia. While alcohol drinking has become more of an open act at a certain areas in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, this lady may have then chosen the "wrong" spot by condoning her own happy hour act like nobody's business down at an east coast city, Kuantan.<br /><br />So much of this brouhaha....However, she should also be given the laudable credit for sharing her own guilty conscience - a feisty chick. While drinking is forbidden in Islam, I also personally think that if she was doing it in a proper drinking vicinity then it is her own problems and not the authority. She did not ask the whole Kuantan to be merry with her on the street or in kampung thus making her an innocent in the eye of the civil law. Knowing that she has committed one of the biggest sins, she succumbed to the punishment and allowing herself to be caned as part of her repentence. Now, this is really truly brave of her to face her own peril while she is alive in this world. Lets pray that her acceptance toward such predicament will be rewarded greatly by God in the hereafter. I hope she may get excused for her first error like what Tun Det said.<br /><br />The news is for your reading:<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><h1 style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);" id="yn-story-title">Caning of Malaysian woman who drank beer postponed</h1><br /><br />By SEAN YOONG, Associated Press Writer <span class="fn org">Sean Yoong, Associated Press Writer</span> – <abbr title="2009-08-24T08:20:31-0700" class="recenttimedate">1 hr 2 mins ago<br /><br /><br /></abbr><!-- end .byline --> <div class="yn-story-content"> <p>KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The first woman in Muslim-majority <span style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_0">Malaysia</span> to face caning for drinking beer was reprieved Monday because of the holy month of <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_1">Ramadan</span>. Her family said she would rather get the thrashing with a rattan cane now and put the ordeal behind her.</p><p><br /></p> <p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg323eZzB2OJvPpIQwOEX2D-e_FhjDn_TCv1PyMoNPObdsU8u8Pr0T_vkbw8GIqJZQSPFTypxl_eEl5hTv299s_lgiQCpy4arH-AAqauDUPeOLD1Tkx2hXQwLJKyS6R1XnUctYy/s1600-h/kartika+sari.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg323eZzB2OJvPpIQwOEX2D-e_FhjDn_TCv1PyMoNPObdsU8u8Pr0T_vkbw8GIqJZQSPFTypxl_eEl5hTv299s_lgiQCpy4arH-AAqauDUPeOLD1Tkx2hXQwLJKyS6R1XnUctYy/s320/kartika+sari.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373576351041818594" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Islamic officials had taken Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno (pic), a 32-year-old mother of two, into custody and were driving her to a women's prison for the caning when they abruptly turned around and sent her back to her family home in northern Malaysia.</p> <p>"She feels like a football being kicked around," Kartika's father, Shukarno Abdul Muttalib, told The Associated Press. "She's so exhausted and unhappy with the delay. She would prefer to just receive the six strokes and have everything finished."</p> <p><span style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_2">Amnesty International</span>, Malaysian lawyers and some politicians have condemned the sentence, while other critics have warned it would tarnish Malaysia's image as a moderate country. Islamic officials have defended it as necessary to uphold Islamic values — underscoring tensions between religious conservatives and more liberal and secular elements in society.</p> <p>Beer, wine and liquor is widely available at shops, bars and restaurants in Malaysia, unlike in more austere Islamic nations such as <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_3">Iran</span> and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_4">Pakistan</span>. Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and other minorities in Malaysia are free to consume alcohol but its <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_5">Shariah law</span> forbids Muslims — who make up 60 percent of the 27 million population — from drinking, although a minority of Muslims still indulge despite the religious stricture.</p> <p>Islamic morality police — enforcement officials of the Islamic Religious Department — arrested Kartika in a raid for drinking beer at a hotel lounge at a beach resort in Cherating in <span style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_6">Pahang</span> state in December 2007. Kartika was sentenced to six lashes of a rattan cane by the Shariah court last month in what was considered a warning to other Muslims to abide by religious rules.</p> <p>Islamic law provides for a three-year prison term and caning for Muslims caught drinking. Most previous offenders were fined and no woman has ever been caned.</p> <p>The <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_7">morality police</span> are not a pervasive force in Malaysia, and most citizens were surprised at the verdict against Kartika.</p> <p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_8">Mohamad Sahfri Abdul Aziz</span>, a <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_9">state legislator</span> in charge of religious affairs, said Monday the Attorney General's office advised that Kartika's caning should be delayed for compassionate reasons until after the Muslim fasting month of <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_10">Ramadan</span>, which began Saturday.</p> <p>"The sentence is not being canceled," Mohamad Sahfri said, without specifying exactly when it would be carried out.</p> <p>In an interview with the AP last week, Kartika said she regretted drinking and was even willing to be caned in public in order to send a clear message to other Muslims to avoid alcohol. Authorities said the caning had to be done at a prison.</p> <p>Government officials have remained silent on the issue even though the local media have reported on it extensively. The only prominent personality to comment has been former <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_11">Malaysian Prime Minister</span> <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_12">Mahathir Mohamad</span>.</p> <p>On Monday, he urged authorities to check Islamic teachings to determine whether it would be appropriate to cane Kartika for drinking.</p> <p>"Is it possible that a judge may have been unfair or mistaken in his consideration? Is there no room in Islam for mercy toward those who commit an error for the first time?" Mahathir wrote on his widely read blog.</p> <p>Chandra Muzaffar, president of the Malaysian think tank, International Movement for a Just World, said the international attention on Kartika's case could "provide ammunition" for some people to criticize Malaysia's capacity for <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_13">religious tolerance</span>.</p> <p>"She should not be caned in the first place," Chandra said. "What we should do is advise her. This punitive psychology is a bane for Muslim societies, and we should get away from it."</p> <p>Islamic officials had insisted that the caning's purpose is to educate rather than punish. They say the rattan cane supposed to be used on Kartika would be smaller and lighter than the one used for men, and that she will remain clothed.</p> <p>Men convicted of crimes such as rape and bribery in <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_14">Malaysia</span> are caned on their bare buttocks, breaking the skin and leaving permanent scars. </p><p> Rattan canes used in the punishment are made from <span style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_15">palm plants</span> common in tropical parts of Asia. They have been used for decades for corporal punishments in countries such as Malaysia, Singapore and <span style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204); cursor: pointer;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_16">Brunei</span>. </p><p> Separately Monday, officials in the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_17">central state of Selangor</span> near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's largest city, stepped up efforts to deter drinking by empowering mosque officials to arrest Muslims who consume liquor in public places, The Star newspaper's Web site quoted <span style="background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; cursor: pointer; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1251127240_18">state lawmaker</span> Hassan Ali as saying.</p><p><br /></p><p>**********************************************************************************</p><p><br /></p><p>On a lighter note, caning a model sounds a bit kinky innit? U have been a naughty girl aren't u? Zappp.....Naughty naughty....zaaaappps.......You want some more caning? Zaaaaappps.......You loving it doncha? Zaaapppp.....</p><p><br /></p><p>NO, wait...this IS Ramadhan. How could I be having such an unpure thought? Naughty me!<br /></p> </div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-30315529815180281352009-08-24T00:12:00.004+08:002009-08-25T01:56:22.128+08:00Watching the sunset from Marina Bay hotel suite<div style="text-align: justify;">While killing my time waiting for Maghrib and then dinner at Admiral Cove, Marina Bay, Port Dickson, I took pictures of the scene just outside my hotel window by my Sony cybershot DSC-T77:<br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><br />1. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs6R5K6l1dDs3Kcb5z2m_Y7oJuQ8gLslpCwnC2ouiLEX5gwXSK4hwJgM7IvbYdLNhQ2W7xf92FuhrxNZKJ926Cex4YLZf0xIVNzKQpyn_uSF59UYIf_Ds-T6Q5mL-bL2R_qAPf/s1600-h/DSC00236.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs6R5K6l1dDs3Kcb5z2m_Y7oJuQ8gLslpCwnC2ouiLEX5gwXSK4hwJgM7IvbYdLNhQ2W7xf92FuhrxNZKJ926Cex4YLZf0xIVNzKQpyn_uSF59UYIf_Ds-T6Q5mL-bL2R_qAPf/s320/DSC00236.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373587587736700146" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />2.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCjOvpoVeikddX5c9JEK2pTFv42_JqmuKsBmGj5sx29udPOj6NwV4fDetgJbGxBCBEQgVsxa9WjFq1lX5zonCh2yWMPRgSJdgAjNpLUysVdyCKesFbKs5WJ2ivN4ceyfvZF6ij/s1600-h/DSC00241.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCjOvpoVeikddX5c9JEK2pTFv42_JqmuKsBmGj5sx29udPOj6NwV4fDetgJbGxBCBEQgVsxa9WjFq1lX5zonCh2yWMPRgSJdgAjNpLUysVdyCKesFbKs5WJ2ivN4ceyfvZF6ij/s320/DSC00241.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373589052768059090" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />3.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFXJm71HfdnAbIX-vsUYO8f-Tpga4hCx7BGeXeecUQQwBAqlskGI5XuMSdeYGVF8nO6AM6U0QVCnEqlytu-B7D-UteDLrvZ7P11NtO-KfAXEvPOiegxt0fAoOSA7iuKitTm9Jd/s1600-h/DSC00246.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFXJm71HfdnAbIX-vsUYO8f-Tpga4hCx7BGeXeecUQQwBAqlskGI5XuMSdeYGVF8nO6AM6U0QVCnEqlytu-B7D-UteDLrvZ7P11NtO-KfAXEvPOiegxt0fAoOSA7iuKitTm9Jd/s320/DSC00246.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373589057771711906" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />4.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbw1NyMOuY2gqne6EAYmD_oyOa737dYCQ7V0ANYIxEACZtTHUYfn7BNeHH3UJ1rNXSmM-iOIVUG7bRsH8aLsPlYnC00pRbqMPsdTWGBY1TuCtsLwWp6ONHtQnuZOkvETo78FRr/s1600-h/DSC00253.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbw1NyMOuY2gqne6EAYmD_oyOa737dYCQ7V0ANYIxEACZtTHUYfn7BNeHH3UJ1rNXSmM-iOIVUG7bRsH8aLsPlYnC00pRbqMPsdTWGBY1TuCtsLwWp6ONHtQnuZOkvETo78FRr/s320/DSC00253.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373589067883849602" border="0" /></a><br />I see. You are expecting the Sun slowly setting like a half shape circle on the horizon eh? Naahh...it didnt happen like that the day I saw it. But I like the sky colours as the day turn to dusk. And whats more, I was facing the Sun. So I reckon my Sony Cybershot is quite nifty at capturing such shots.ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-38547778365178792342009-08-15T23:31:00.017+08:002009-08-20T14:04:00.463+08:00Gucci, Levi's, Bonia, Ms.Read dan sandal Bata<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmmpjscRkLYqivxM8rjUQm8f5ER3tpTK54uf6HQr9U2kDxHko0GhFtcPs7BFkF081umtMnAImtpve7FTQ6aBu2veajIk_s__hrIDdQ9Sk5zSwWDzckOdpO41Xjk_H_9REdzNtq/s1600-h/SABAHMAPSPS06.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 264px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmmpjscRkLYqivxM8rjUQm8f5ER3tpTK54uf6HQr9U2kDxHko0GhFtcPs7BFkF081umtMnAImtpve7FTQ6aBu2veajIk_s__hrIDdQ9Sk5zSwWDzckOdpO41Xjk_H_9REdzNtq/s320/SABAHMAPSPS06.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371921470349825746" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Sabah.....where do i begin?<br /><br />As if I went anywhere further than Kota Kinabalu, the state capital.<br /><br /><br />I instantly like KK...the people, the ambience, the south china sea along the newly appointed bandaraya status .They wrote it as "Bandar Raya" instead of bandaraya on their signboard. Initially i thought, there might be a bandar raya somewhere. But the Pusat gave out the clue. And so it was. ONE of the endearing yet quirky things about KK that I love. Dont mention the cutesy kadazan fellas clad in their hotpants and cultural tribe, similar to a Red-Indian ensemble custom (and those Amazonian tribes) siap ada feathers stuck in their headband lagi for culture shows laaa dey! Ape ingat diorang berkeliaran like that ka? I dunno why but I couldnt help looking at them and how they are almost FREE of visible body hair except on their head (hell, dont ask me whatever between their thigh ok....!)<br /><br /><br />Their coconut is only RM2.5o during the daytime, sold like abundant(!) along jalan tun fuad stephen opposite warisan complex, the one where Centre point is situated just behind it. The juice? Marvellous! One fruit could easily fill up THREE 300ml plastic cups. What a joy kan?<br /><br />Where the fish is Pasar Filipino? OOOoooo now it is called Pasar Handikraf. But everyone seemed to be sticking to its old name and what is it famous for? Sabah handicraft laa...what kinda question is that? Ada orang filipino ka? Takda! They all kat Pulau Gaya bah. Or perhaps creating an eye-sore somewhere in the heart of the vibrant city. No, i am no racist bah (thats bah bah sabah for u), but apparently this filipino arent really accepted well in Sabah but they survived anyway, those political asylum seekers dating as far as 3 decades or more. So if anyone wanna start hunting for some decor or pearls (harvested ones), this is your starting point. Prices are bargainable and most sellers are ladies. One thing though, it was bloody sauna inside the market. They should install air-condition la!<br /><br />What a conference trip that was. I enjoyed the city more than the conference though i met many researchers across malaysia, korea and india there. Organized by UMS and held at Novotel, 1Borneo, the ICCBPE-SOMChE 2009 conference was OK but that was it. I met my old friend there too, Rachel Mansa. She was soooo into her 2 beautiful princes and she just kept going on and on telling me how great her kids were and all. I bet she must be feeling so proud now that she is a mother of 2 and how she loved them to bits. It inspired me to be a mother more n more.<br /><br /><br />And so we rented a manual Iswara for only RM60/day, drove by yours truly, the 4 ladies went out shopping for pearl brooches, ikan masin, udang kering, pearls, Swarovski brooches etc all around KK.<br /><br />BY Saturday, I was all alone again, and in the morning, I went on foot all the way to Jesselton Point from Promenade, stopping only 4 times at kedai kelapa muda and taking nasi ayam for brunch at a nearby resto, then to a local mobile phone shop to top up my mobile credit and after that bought four types of hot bread rolls. It was a fine day indeed and the only thing i had in mind was an island stroll. I also rang another old friend of mine, Sakinah reminding her of our meeting in the afternoon on my way to the jetty. I had 3 choices: Sapi, Mamutik or Manukan island? After a not so long thought, Manukan made into the top. Off I went to the counter asking for the boat ticket and so on. The price was very reasonable! Only RM17 return plus another RM6 for jetty tax. Brilliant innit? Duncha just love Sabah?<br /><br />There I was, a pretty voluptious damsel riding the boat that also carried another 2 passengers , i presumed a couple, and they hailed from Thailand. The boat driver was a jolly tubby fella who probably has been doing his job driving to and fro for most of his life. He nonchalantly manouver the boat that occasionally, no, more than a couple of times sending the boat into a few bumpy rides. Thank god for my ample bottom, i muttered silently. They dont call it a bumpy ride if it wasnt for inflicting your bum or is it? Otherwise, lebam ok.<br /><br /><br />What can Manukan Island offer u? Besides the clean and shallow shores, yes, they also have this one mile , make it 2 miles return jungle trail. I took the trail 1st upon arriving and didnt really make it exactly 2 miles though but enough to have taken pictures of small monitor lizards which seemed to be the main inhabitants of this island. And while trudging on my returning route, i saw this 3-feet monitor lizards with the head the size of an average lady's fist. It was so shy (of my presence kot?) that it hid between the bushes as soon as it saw me heading not far from it. As if aku nak tangkap dia kan? But i stopped to wonder in amazement how old must this lizard be looking at his relatively massive size compared to the little ones that were only slightly bigger with tails longer than the house gecko. I felt , ok, i imagined like I was a National Geographic documentary lady just doing this trail. Only that I was in my Gucci shades (bought for Rupiah-150,000), Levis' jeans, Bonia sling bag , Ms.Read top, Ariani-like tudung and a pair of comfie Bata sandal. Which doesnt qualify me as a jungle documentary lady lest i would damage the whole dressing ensemble.<br /><br /><br />I then made more strolls down the beach, passing by bikini clad ladies, some looked like a whale on the lazychair. Why la she had to bare everything? Anyways, i picked some shells too, saja to kill the time. ON my way back I met 12 of our postgraduate students who were enjoying their time there too. We took some photos together and one of them pointed to a sea-cucumber creature near us resting and curling near the rock under the sea water. At 1st i thought it was dead, so i picked it up, but guess what, the Gamat , as it is known locally (also very famous in Langkawi) actually a living breathing sea urchin, with jelly like body as I squeeze it. I then put it back to where it was and not long after that, it started to curl again. Apa la punya animal. But it was sold at high price in the market, dried and ready to be converted into local cuisine as well as a source of ointment and healthy supplements.<br /><br /><br />Those postgraduates were more adventurous as they rented an Avanza and went all the way to Ranau where they headed to Kundasang and marvelled at the Gunung Kinabalu view. And all I had was the banjaran(rocky ranges) Crocker that could well be seen as the backdrop of KK itself. I told myself , with a little jealousy already creeping inside of me, that I will come back and this time will do the driving out of KK definitely. And of course, I will have to fork out some money too so i will only select the auto-clutch car for easier and more convenient cruising around some dodgy,potholed road en route to those places like Kundasang, etc. Maybe i can plan the trip with my parents and whoever nak follow to sabah for that reason. Or maybe i can ask out kot2 ade orang nak join. Ye la most of my friends are married people hence the difficulty for them to leave their family and be my travelling company. Susah kan? Thats why I ended up a lone traveller who happened to come across many wonderful people.<br /><br /><br />What else? Perhaps to get fitter with more money (or more conferences/outstations) so I can travel more.<br /><br /><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-58193320989794686612009-08-06T16:04:00.002+08:002009-08-06T16:30:16.168+08:00Short Sojourn in Penang 4-6 Aug 2009<div style="text-align: justify;">I came here for a meeting with our 3 3rd year students at MOX-Linde, Bayan Baru, Penang, and I still managed to have 2 lovely days here.<br /><br />Upon arriving at a not so grand Berjaya Hotel at Jalan Burmah, Pulau Tikus, i had a quick rest before meeting an old friend, Ku-man who took me for a dinner at Chilli's , Gurney Plaza. It was our first ever meet since 2005. He got his Masters degree during that year and I was with a PhD degree from Imperial and we were friends since the end of 2004 when he began doing his Masters then.<br /><br />Tuesday morning, from 9.00am to 12pm I was at MOX having discussions and presentations on visiting our students there. It was a pleasant meeting but I was tired nonetheless. Then I took a cab to Jalan Penang to shop for some pickles at Chowrasta Market. I thought of taking lunch too but the funny weather of hot-humid-rainy-hot-humid seemed to kill my appetite that I decided to just head back to the hotel for some afternoon siesta. That evening, I met more old friends at Queensbay Mall but the dinner was somewhere else. I was craving for Penang taste so I managed to coax Ku-man, the ever willing driver by the evening to go search for some awesome Char Koey Teow. So off we went near SunTech not far from bayan lepas and i ordered a small plate of Char Koey Teow. Definitely delicious! Thumbs up. Well, the dinner didnt stop there and our Jalan2 Cari Makan continued its journey to Restoran Hameediyah along Lebuh Campbell, off Jalan Penang for some biryani <span style="font-style: italic;"></span>and some few dishes complementary to our taste bud. And what is biryani without raita salad eh? Though i didnt get to "down" mango lassi as it was already finished, it was still a fantastic meal. I got to taste turkey curry too for the 1st time ever. We ended our night by hanging out at Starbucks Cafe at Gurney Plaza before he sent me back to the hotel.<br /><br />Thursday I checked out from the hotel and headed to Queensbay Mall by myself. It was a safe bet at it was the nearest mall to the bayan lepas airport. And I was also to meet Ubi, another blogger mate for the 1st time. For the 1st few hours, i went around the mall while tugging my lugagges around with me. Apparently that Mall didnt have the storage service. Oh well. I went to Borders just browsing the bookshelf and then i passed by a manicure spa. The prices were quite reasonable so i had some upper lips hair removal and pedicure - for the 1st time ever in my life!<br /><br />Alrightie then, I am with Ubi at Coffee Bean over a nice warm Earl Grey tea and will then be heading to Bayan Lepas Airport.<br /><br /><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-32050500071693389242009-07-26T22:31:00.004+08:002009-08-03T12:22:44.126+08:00Obituary: Michael Jackson and Yasmin Ahmad<div style="text-align: justify;">26 June 2009, one early morning at Aston Hotel, Bandung, I was shocked to receive the news that the King of Pop died. It was 25 June in LA that afternoon.<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3uFBGdrmXwaJlXKio75FQP3Weu7UTQuna-hMoi_txm2lzU6CVTtEzyqGTdboGwGhsAQe7LeOP94VgaiwrcDkQnckRP5rX63u4P9v8gJLyDcQqeqP6x1Syu-oTdEDhOOW9pxW/s1600-h/mj001.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3uFBGdrmXwaJlXKio75FQP3Weu7UTQuna-hMoi_txm2lzU6CVTtEzyqGTdboGwGhsAQe7LeOP94VgaiwrcDkQnckRP5rX63u4P9v8gJLyDcQqeqP6x1Syu-oTdEDhOOW9pxW/s320/mj001.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362778801886443426" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Goodbye dear Michael Jackson (1958-2009). Although we have never met in real life, I still remember vividly the dream I had with u when i was 9 years old and we were "engaged". And then u changed your face and skin colour in Bad and thats when I lost my whole admiration on u as a man but you remain one of my favourite singers/performers/artiste of all time.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhe138rm3-YZppB4WnIKVowT_RCE6wLzWlJXgcN8WXxbw8gfbs9w_tRhJzfOvIp6FkIeNotLPM3iKwQYDEyOADXI9NEnPOjJDNeL3ku5oRr9MyIbpWYT-MYBTQMQLBXoFWWZLV/s1600-h/mj010.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhe138rm3-YZppB4WnIKVowT_RCE6wLzWlJXgcN8WXxbw8gfbs9w_tRhJzfOvIp6FkIeNotLPM3iKwQYDEyOADXI9NEnPOjJDNeL3ku5oRr9MyIbpWYT-MYBTQMQLBXoFWWZLV/s320/mj010.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362778799221188466" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I began knowing u during your Thriller golden years. U wore those huge black sunglasses, and that was how you become my idol then.<br /><br />Just one month after his demise, God has called Yasmin Ahmad to leave the world and to rest in peace. I only knew her through her blog and she did response to some of my comments in her inbox. But I was also shocked and saddened nonetheless.<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlC8Ht50SU2h3nF0QlWV6YiG7LvKaFIZjP-kU5ddyI3PvdBmPYDzG7QzdHCfiaewHlNzblyPXKaDlezZXpKVcdKU07ZHK4TRyQGItyoOV1FXVqrjUauEX1HgHUf-kLymdVYfM/s1600-h/yasmin+ahmad+and+her+husband.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlC8Ht50SU2h3nF0QlWV6YiG7LvKaFIZjP-kU5ddyI3PvdBmPYDzG7QzdHCfiaewHlNzblyPXKaDlezZXpKVcdKU07ZHK4TRyQGItyoOV1FXVqrjUauEX1HgHUf-kLymdVYfM/s320/yasmin+ahmad+and+her+husband.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362778795385544402" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Almarhumah Yasmin Ahmad (1958-2009) is survived by husband Abdullah Tan Yew Long (pic), parents, siblings and her children(?). Her movie legacy though not many but almost all have stroke a chord to many. Her last movie , Talentime was my first ever Malaysian movie that I watched at a local cinema. I considered myself lucky as I won 2 free tickets to watch the preview at Cathay Cinemaplex at The Curve with one of my Masters student, Rahimah on filling an online contest in The Star Online sponsored by SilkyGirl. It was also the first movie I watch at a theatre for 2009. Transformers II: Revenge of the Fallen was the second movie I watched with my 3rd brother., Hakeem (at 1 Utama) also on a 2-free tickets winning as I entered the contest through SMS held by MIXFm. The 3rd and the 1st movie bought on my own was Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.<br /><br />I had actually wanted to watch another Yasmin Ahmad's movie, Mukhsin 2 years ago as I was thrilled that she picked the movie tag that I felt the most suitable one as part of her movie exercises/opinion polls from the blogreaders. But the 1st 7 months of that year was a bit turbulent for me , consequently I wasnt in the mood of going to watch movies, usually by myself.<br /><br />Both Yasmin and Michael born in the same year, 1958 and she was only one month older than him. Yet they both died tragically in the same year, only one month apart too. These 2 genuises die early and become immortalized through their art works, songs, movies, controversies, etc.<br /><br />I shed tears during MJ's death, and today, I shed tears again for dear Yasmin. May God rest both of you in peace with bountiful blessings.<br /><br />AlFatihah to Yasmin Ahmad (and perhaps MJ too as he was announced as Muslim since November 2008).<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-44452048107261490992009-07-22T23:42:00.004+08:002009-07-23T00:03:05.208+08:00Wot-e-va<div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Le me see....first it was watching 1st seededRoger Federer winning his 15th Grand Slam at Wimbledon by defeating a long time underdog and one time grand slam champion Andy Roddick in 5-set "thriller". Well Fed already made a new record now as far as winning tennis grand slam is concerned. He now topped the all-time great with Peter Sampras now holding the second place winning 14 grand slams. We also seen Rafael Nadal dropping himself out of the Wimbledon tournament due to knee injury and has now become the 2nd seed. As for women's single, Serena Williams beat her sister Venus in straight set, and they both teamed up to win another winning trophy in women's double.<br /><br />Last month, it was a bit of jetsetting and out and about for me. 1st week of June, i was in Pahang, stayed at Legend Hotel Cherating with parents and youngest sis, went to Pekan to see some relatives and went for the 1st time to Kemaman, well all that was my 1st ever driving trip to pekan and kemaman. Surprisingly, Kemaman was really getting better and modern and we had very nice terengganu luncheon at Warung Aziz Satta at kuala kemaman.<br /><br />A week after that, I flew to South Korea attending 2nd MFC symposium at Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, GIST. It is situated in Gwangju province,south west of S.Korea and it is about an hour from Gwangju City. Before we went back to malaysia, we managed to spend just a day at Seoul for some bit of shopping, well, brooches mostly. Korean people are very nice and helpful, most of them. My colleague, Puan Shahrom and I had a good time there, and I felt at home in korea in no time. There were a lot of churches everywhere and apparently christianity has become like the 1st religion there. On our way to Seoul from Jeongsan train station, Gwangju, we passed along churches after churches and even a few cathedrals too. They also have one big cathedral in Seoul city itself and just one masjid.<br /><br />2 weeks later, I went to Bandung with half of the department members to attend a seminar and MOU meeting with Institut Teknologi Bandung, ITB in Bandung, Indonesia. That was my 3rd time visit to bandung and we still took time to do some few more shoppings at Pasar Baru, a 7-storey clothing and household market as well as at the factory outlets.<br /><br />This month marked another turn of the year and i celebrated with my 2 other nephews also born in the same month. Whats more significant is that I received quite a number of well-wishes on my Facebook site. Thats really something. I also got treated with a birthday lunch with another colleague of mine who was also my senior in KISAS and a cousin to Pak Adib, Wan Fariza.<br /><br />Else, this is already the 3rd week of Semester 1 2009-2010. Lotsa things to do.<br /><br />Oh yes, we also received visit from our collaborator from Lincoln Venture Ltd, New Zealand, Dr. Neil Pasco who then gave a one day seminar on bioelectrochemistry and single culture microbial fuel cell.<br /><br />Pictures of the above mentioned events will be posted later.<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-69336846680001011712009-06-03T15:38:00.004+08:002009-06-03T16:04:06.516+08:00One Wisdom tooth gone<div style="text-align: justify;">I have just had one wisdom tooth pulled out (extracted) from the upper left hand side of the palate.<br /><br />It was a less than 30 mins job to pull one mighty wisdom tooth that was already infected by caries and it was located pretty much in the back that brushing alone might not be that effective and regular gurgling with mouth wash might help. Good thing the other 3 wisdom teeth are well intact and i am planning to be more conscious when it comes to taking care of my teeth.<br /><br />And today was my very 1st time ever to go through such an experience as an adult.<br /><br />More on wisdom teeth, read <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom_teeth">here</a>.<br /><br />Now my left cheek looked a bit puffy coz i am biting a thick gauze to stop the bleeding and to speed up the healing process. I have also been prescribed with painkillers that will help ease the after-extraction pain once the 3 anaesthetic jabs effect i had withdraw.<br /><br />Seriously, it does not look good at all, that tooth as it is full of cavities but the bone structure is <span style="font-style: italic;">mighty</span> strong. It was nearly an inch size when i saw it placed on the dentist bowl next to my seat. Gigi tu memang power, uols.<br /><br />I did it FOC uols. Because it is a UKM campus clinic.<br /><br /><br /><br />Moral of the story:<br /><br />#1. Do not neglect washing our mouth with a proper mouthwash as brushing alone is not totally effective and dental flossing cannot totally remove the debris between our teeth especially when it is so far behind like wisdom teeth.<br /><br />#2. Love your teeth. Take care of them more often and have it descaled at least twice a year.<br /><br />#3. Marry a dentist if it helps beautify your teeth (ok pun intended)<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-54338161563197239102009-06-01T00:39:00.004+08:002009-06-01T00:58:16.892+08:00Byebye for now, Nadal.....BYE BYE Nadal......<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgohrXGGqwWqQqxD03NzBp1G2f4xTkUy_7326oeJqkWuIKqvuzzgfUAb6ZTeUrdIVfi-1WSLYn4W03LvE1SARxh3gv-qekrQvVZbdf9c8a2vyM5FHrAmoU2tI7VEsqR5Brt7Xc8/s1600-h/capt.rog15705311504.france_tennis_french_open_rog157.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgohrXGGqwWqQqxD03NzBp1G2f4xTkUy_7326oeJqkWuIKqvuzzgfUAb6ZTeUrdIVfi-1WSLYn4W03LvE1SARxh3gv-qekrQvVZbdf9c8a2vyM5FHrAmoU2tI7VEsqR5Brt7Xc8/s320/capt.rog15705311504.france_tennis_french_open_rog157.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342030137652762322" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRansnVnlSD_nEHVFhyIief-wRUGjdeI18Bnqxu4YfTkMohLqS0VOs9AnNj0LvJ67gJSlIWtiSmGL-ONSXRoGr7BjmPfPenNJ_18HlHAO4nPKQkV9ZBVdjV-JgvUHdG4WpbO45/s1600-h/capt.xrog16005311433.france_tennis_french_open_xrog160.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRansnVnlSD_nEHVFhyIief-wRUGjdeI18Bnqxu4YfTkMohLqS0VOs9AnNj0LvJ67gJSlIWtiSmGL-ONSXRoGr7BjmPfPenNJ_18HlHAO4nPKQkV9ZBVdjV-JgvUHdG4WpbO45/s320/capt.xrog16005311433.france_tennis_french_open_xrog160.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342030133125882066" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">RAFAEL Nadal's unbeaten record at Roland Garros is officially shattered by his shocking loss to Swiss 23rd seed Robin Soderling 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-4, 7-6 (2) on Sunday afternoon.<br /><br />Another <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> so big upset was seeing 8th seeed Ana Ivanovic, the 2008 FO champion off too beaten by Belarusian 9th seed Victoria Azarenka.<br /><br />See I told u there're gonna be a few UPSETS soon. But I did not see it coming for Nadal. Poor poor baby. This is also rather shocking as the most defeat Federer ever had so far as no.1 on a Grand Slam turf was losing in the semi. And Nadal had to bye bye us now in the FOURTH round.<br /><br />Rafa, pull yourself back together soon ok, and get that Madrid loss to Fed images off your mind too. And <span style="font-weight: bold;">BURN</span> that <span style="font-weight: bold;">PINK</span> tshirt, literally speaking. <br /><br />Novak Djokovic gone too, losing to Philip Kohlschreiber.<br /><br /><br />Meanwhile, Safina is doing rather excellent with successfully causing 2 bagels already for her 2 opponents. Her brother, the handsome Marat Safin already left the turf much earlier losing in the 2nd round. At least people will remember him as a two times Grand Slams champion.<br /><br /><br />Who am I rooting for FO men and women's single champions? I better not say.<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-47850579028034664242009-05-29T01:14:00.004+08:002009-05-29T03:43:02.491+08:00Roger Federer: Will he or will he not?Its already Day 5 into the Roland Garros aka French Open, and things are heating up so does the French weather judging by the bright sunny day as I watched the games on Astro channel 816+.<br /><br /><br />Will we ever gonna see him again like what he did back in US Open 2008 , throwing punches in the air and winning the only Grand Slam of 2008:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9LNzFRVfcUqofPZCYODbPlSgvvBXq3wiLVvDu-VKmIiV2hqE90Op-CM1czCo-7-LVqGOQbXejpOm0FiCyKwh8RPogsaghNHpU51kw2CIS7JfR0EgOSjiNwEsRFFQgFs3-Lpl/s1600-h/l3382616.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE9LNzFRVfcUqofPZCYODbPlSgvvBXq3wiLVvDu-VKmIiV2hqE90Op-CM1czCo-7-LVqGOQbXejpOm0FiCyKwh8RPogsaghNHpU51kw2CIS7JfR0EgOSjiNwEsRFFQgFs3-Lpl/s320/l3382616.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340924841196388002" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Or will he be doing his now infamous watershed trademark just like the one at the Australian Open 2009 nearly 4 months ago? :<br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguopLwki1c2uZ3aTU3F-XmVmyw52DNQcMKZWP8oY7IOMejfjrd8vjEJWLzdFS_PypnoANjdBMgdq-PYZXEJZGwM63S6_GMl0bKf2CUdvCXBZwBJ_7RpaN2sWxVpF9UiWoqny6z/s1600-h/roger_8+2009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 227px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguopLwki1c2uZ3aTU3F-XmVmyw52DNQcMKZWP8oY7IOMejfjrd8vjEJWLzdFS_PypnoANjdBMgdq-PYZXEJZGwM63S6_GMl0bKf2CUdvCXBZwBJ_7RpaN2sWxVpF9UiWoqny6z/s320/roger_8+2009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340924839809057058" border="0" /></a>He was so full of tears, trembling and mumbling words. And Nadal had had to console him even though that was supposed to be his Day! What a big baby Federer was. BUT then again, all those agonies of not beating Nadal and losing another of his favourite tennis court just took its tolls. Nadal "unceremoniously" defeated him at Wimbledon 2008 at what was touted as the game of the millenia and he did that again at Rod Laver arena. People have been saying that the only way to beat Nadal is at where he is best: Rolland Garros. However, they are also mean to Nadal, as if he always needed to prove he is WORTH his skills (and those butt scratching and bottle lining routines and counting the steps along the base line stuff) and that he is seen as the Obstacle to Federer. Cant they just leave him alone and stop crucifying him for making Federer the No.2? He's such a cutie. He is. In the rugged spanish way.<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp1pwwP6ElgZ1m99g1-qRm7WQFsm1uTqurvh716uMg6SkqlEkMFUkxgQ4eBIcG3GyZGODOqgheE17GuVc3kSTbeOrRNrJELjEnFwdeXbfODf3BWw7KxV9KkMS_8UQFehJYPAwx/s1600-h/4c7d4a48115311e34557333f4cd99db6-getty-86043963cb004_the_madrid_op.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp1pwwP6ElgZ1m99g1-qRm7WQFsm1uTqurvh716uMg6SkqlEkMFUkxgQ4eBIcG3GyZGODOqgheE17GuVc3kSTbeOrRNrJELjEnFwdeXbfODf3BWw7KxV9KkMS_8UQFehJYPAwx/s320/4c7d4a48115311e34557333f4cd99db6-getty-86043963cb004_the_madrid_op.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340961576431508642" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">A few weeks ago, Federer has just defeated Rafael Nadal at the ATP Madrid Open 2009 AND the world was seeing a newly wedded man and a soon to be daddy looking all sharp and happy., full of satisfaction, something probably not even his Missus could have provided (OK I was talking cock, but Federer probably doing better with Wawrinka. OK My bad! Oops I did it again?) That was like his 1st ever win in 2009 as opposed to his appalling 1st quarter of the year performance. Save for his marriage and the baby news. Other than that, he seemed to not accumulating much point at all but he was and still is No.2 based on his over 10000 points , just a few hundreds, sorry, a few thousand short to Nadal's. Murray and Djokovic are catching up very fast too, in the 3rd and 4th place.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlPqb-1WHhqjvVfKArEs0qbexeElMhz6FZUM95sm7Btwx2qi3aTblN83XOEFs1WH3YbQDhK91uthJTY7v5WJeq3gMjG3Bb-gfm6oRDpqrhrCVqtIXW2UZGcA4rllfzCoCb-Hb2/s1600-h/09f5b0ff6133040d0a24985968d8f207-getty-tennis-fra-open-roland-garros.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 272px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlPqb-1WHhqjvVfKArEs0qbexeElMhz6FZUM95sm7Btwx2qi3aTblN83XOEFs1WH3YbQDhK91uthJTY7v5WJeq3gMjG3Bb-gfm6oRDpqrhrCVqtIXW2UZGcA4rllfzCoCb-Hb2/s320/09f5b0ff6133040d0a24985968d8f207-getty-tennis-fra-open-roland-garros.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340961571491972514" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNxsSxoWFsrWTdzFjePL_yfdUhP4Lfrr4P7vH8BahrecCZM8JBMV-_eJ3-cOma03akaFs9c66TbKCvbflsfwc3lLUsGcIuIvY0cKiXGodcBfDA93KBGhkz4dzK2OvUeqth10qW/s1600-h/209662c0884abeffbfee45c555c30165-getty-86044121jj024_madrid_tennis.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 232px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNxsSxoWFsrWTdzFjePL_yfdUhP4Lfrr4P7vH8BahrecCZM8JBMV-_eJ3-cOma03akaFs9c66TbKCvbflsfwc3lLUsGcIuIvY0cKiXGodcBfDA93KBGhkz4dzK2OvUeqth10qW/s320/209662c0884abeffbfee45c555c30165-getty-86044121jj024_madrid_tennis.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340961565527438994" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><br /><br />What about the Women's single drama? Dinara Safina is now the world no.1 and she has YET to win any Grand slam. Ana Ivanovic, though she has yet to win any for almost a year now, seemed to be playing really hard to win back the French Open title just like what she did last year. Safina has been winnning a few WTP tournaments already and she sure is on fire trying to prove the critics that she too is a grand slam champion material. Nevertheless we cannot sideline people like Serena, Venus, Jelena, and even Maria Sharapova is back with her revolting grunts (but kinda erotic too in a SnM way).<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">We will be seeing some few upsets soon too. And some new players making their first impact on the leading board. Its a whole "ball in the court" thingy. And some luck of course. Who will be doing more unforced errors and who will be capitalizing on it too.<br /><br />************************************************************************************<br /><br />This is another ball game altogether.<br /><br />We can call so many names, and curse many crude words when it comes to slamming a man. But if its a woman, either they are dumb or they are told off as the bitch (or cow). As in stupid cow, smart bitch, or just "bitch". Men are prolly so used to getting so many curses thrown at them that it prolly becomes like music to their ears except if they are told to eff their sister or mother or SOB. That would prolly set them off the hook and end up in a massive brawl.<br /><br />Can we think of what else would send men berserk? They said those with a challenging something ( feel free to guess whatever u like) might have a shorter temper too but they arent necessarily the scariest.<br /><br /><br />************************************************************************************<br /><br />Am I intimidating? Or just assertive and gutsy? They say its in my eyes. They can turn from a humble loving glare to a fierce, fiery glare. I can make a baby love me or prolly scared of me. I can chase more than 20 monkeys away from our faculty porch and I can make a cat come purring and rubbing its head around my ankle. I could even make a cockroach creeping away to hide from me only to end up dead as I spray them with Shieldtox for roaches.<br /><br />It prolly affect men too. It either lure them to me or scare the shit outta them. OK I was exaggerating but there were some truth in that too. My mother always told me (so as some of my friends) to not be garang sangat /little bit aggresive/ taunting with men (this she meant when I see a prospect). BUT I am not. OK sometimes a little bit and that remind me of Bree Van Der Kemp/Hodge (Desperate Housewives) doing her best "queen" look and talk, it either turn them on or repress them. Well, sometimes its hard to suffer a fool gladly so to speak.<br /><br />*************************************************************************************<br /><br />Oh well, lets leave a few more later. Nonetheless, I would like to remember ITEX 2009 that was held on 15- 17 May 2009 as a sweet memory winning a gold and bronze for two product inventions.<br /><br /></div></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-54464211199825646992009-05-03T02:41:00.005+08:002009-05-03T09:12:39.443+08:00Of happier times and thoughtful exes<div style="text-align: justify;">To be frank, I do not feel like posting an entry just to elaborate the subject above.<br /><br />What is more, it could also bring tears to my eyes.<br /><br /><br />Despite whatever remorseful feelings and how I kept getting in and out of a relationship, I am grateful never the least. Consequently I cannot hate them or bear very ugly thoughts or murderous ones even. Sure such a relationship would led to two souls or just one feeling sad and blue, hurt and jilted. But come to think of it, would I want a divorce or a broken engagement? I certainly would not want that. Perhaps it is another reason and another challenge before I will get into another better level, meeting another better man and getting a better outcomes rather than facing yet another predicament.<br /><br /><br />What I have yet to achieve, I made it like a "volunteer" job to help uniting other people. Which gives me some sort of an inner satisfaction seeing them tying the knots. Which I know they are meant to be together. But my situation has it that I rather carry things on my own. That "on my own" are the very 3 words that could describe my actions, behaviour, decision, etc. That too made me a good observer and a well, I should say, have a knack in good character/personality judgment. But it does take time and patience while I am carrying out the observation part. Apparently,that observer skill does help instigate my self-control too. You see, I didnt fall in love right away and managed to do it so that I will bounce back into my usual momentum in a shorter period of time after one unsuccessful relationship. It keeps me grounded and wanting to be a better person having learnt more things in life.<br /><br /><br />And tomorrow I will be rekindling an old friendship with a girl mate after nearly 6 years of moving apart. We had a fall out in 2003 and then 5 years later, we reconnected through Facebook. She's now happily married to her long time boyfriend and they have a 7 months old baby girl. What pulled us closer again is perhaps the fact that we somehow share similarities in thinking and personality having born on the same birth date and year. One was born in Sri Lanka and yours truly was born in Malaysia. During the separation, we sort of keep in touch now and then through our mutual friends. I went asking about her, and I found out that she too did the same. WE did miss so many things during that 5 years. <span style="font-weight: bold;">BUT</span> i dont know why, probably it is a cosmic thing that I actually saw her wedding reception back in 2007 March in my dream. While I did not know that she got married that time, I kept that in my heart as it was too real.<br /><br /><br />Then some time in early 2008, well, almost a year after that, we added each other in the Facebook. I collected all the courage I had and began writing her an email telling her of my dream. I told her how surprised and amazed I was when I found out that she and her husband looked exactly the same in the dream as their wedding photos. That was how we gradually revive our old friendship. She would update me with the news on her 3 months pregnancy and 6 months later bearing the news of her 1st born baby. She emailed me photos of her baby girl too, from the few days of birth to a few months old.<br /><br />As we spoke on the phone, it felt like we have never been apart. I know deep down that I was and still a bit nervous of such meeting, but I am liking the fact that no matter what , we feel for each other. Whatever anger, resentment, disappointment I had is slowly dissolving. Nevertheless, I must always remind myself to not repeat the same mistake again and be more matured and sensible. The fact that she is willing to see me again is something I really appreciate. We can forgive and we can never forget.<br /><br />And to my exes, thanks for still being nice and thoughtful to me even if we are no longer a couple. It is awkward and can be very awkward at times talking/meeting with an ex, but their ability to charm their way in and to put me on a pedestal is somewhat a relief and a personal victory that I know I am appreciated and will always be, which makes me a very special person. Walaupun I juga sangat mengharapkan that bakal bini diorg will suffer but tu la kan, nak marah lama2 pun ape guna. Dia akan jadi milik orang lain seperti juga saya.<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-74280461339886299742009-04-21T01:33:00.008+08:002009-04-21T03:57:36.603+08:00Dreams are like my signs and premonitions<div style="text-align: justify;">It may be like a miracle bestowed upon me based on my truest and deepest faith to God (albeit can be a bit mischievous and stubborn of a lady), but dreams are and have been like an almost a true source of premonition, of things that would be predicted to happen, things that are actually going on and so on, a link between 2 souls who loved each other so much, or a sort of a demonstration of how much i was disappointed with a person, a good or bad omen, etc. Well,some are just forgettable, meaningless dreams, faceless, shambled and disarrayed. Quite a few times i became some friends to some big names in Hollywood too. That include having a dream with Brad Pitt (3 times but not in a row but not that far ahead the gap of the sequence either, and I am not a big fan of his ) who befriended me and told me he was having problems with one of his former girlfriends, Gwyneth Parltrow (now the wife of Chris Martin of Coldplay). Not long after that i read in the news and saw on the tv on their breakup.<br /><br /><br />Alhamdulillah i very seldom getting nightmares but I can never forget the last one I had back in October 2005 after my viva. In it I saw a ghostly lady figure who had tormented a family in malaysia while i was still in London. Boy, did I relay that message to them and how thankful they were for having foretold such premonition despite receiving such warning that it may well be an act of a sihr (voodoo and all those black magic evil things). Scary siotttt I tell thee. No, nothing of a vampire or that sort. But that lady "tried" to fight with me in the dream that ended with the victory on my side. She appeared to be of a half woman, half serpent apparition and I sort of "killed" her. And in that dream too, her "father" came to me so furious that he got so balistic that I was his daughter's "brutal" killer. I can actually still remember him shouting at me :"<span style="font-style: italic;">Pembunuh! Kau pembunuh! Kau bunuh anak aku!" </span>(Murderer! You are a murderer! You killed my daughter!) . Truth be told, such sihr did try to disturb the family's peace and what I have seen in the dream were actually real evil people who tried to do black magic to them. And that was actually my first ever experience that I really wish I wont have to go through it again, ever!<br /><br /><br />No, i didnt end up having a Harry Potter scar either.<br /><br /><br /><br />Dreams like these have helped me to go through so many odds and obstacles when it comes to having a relationship with the opposite sex. How i prayed and wished silently what would be the outcome as my instincts began telling me we were not meant for each other, that it was merely infatuati0n or gap filler or that we have crossed our lines from being just ordinary mates to something else and it didnt feel right or as matter of fact, didnt go that well.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Dreams have also been a likely indication and an almost real connection between myself and maybe my mum, or my exes, and so on. I one time woken in my dream to see my dad "appeared" in my old en suite room in Vellacott House, Du Cane Road (west london). He was asking for my health and was like looking at me hoping i am doing well and all. It was so very real that in that dream i was like just awaken , lifting up my duvet upon hearing the sound of my dad in the room. That was just an example of the many true premonition or indication of the feelings that reconnect two close souls.<br /><br /><br />I dreamt how one of my exes,of whom i had the closest most intimate relationship thus far, the east london fella, about how much he loved me and how much he had wanted to be with me, and the part where we were both in his mother's homeland and so on. Amazingly, he did go there after like 6 months or so of those dreams, recurring ones even but at a different spot. And strangely enough, even though i have never been there, i actually saw things as if i was there. And those places are real.<br /><br /><br /><br />I dreamt one time i met that ex through a newly found friend of mine and it so happened that she was his new girl. It was about 3 months or so since our last fallout and in that dream he didnt even wanna look at me. That "girl" seemed so nice, that she prepared snacks, food and all for me as her guest. And by the time i was about to leave, i asked her which bus would take me to central london. Coz once i am there i will be just fine on finding my way around. She and that ex discussed in front of me, his eyes never really met mine, and they settled on either bus route 53 or 26. Strange enough, once i woke up (in my parents house in Bangi, Malaysia), I quickly went through the bus map and found out that both routes indeed came from east london and their last terminal would be around trafalgar sq and somewhere near The Strand.<br /><br /><br />And those were only dreams.<br /><br /><br /><br />I also dreamt how much that ex kept coming towards me, from the end of last year trying to woo me again and so on, and i kept pushing him away, ignoring him and the whole shebang.<br /><br /><br />And I also dreamt that my soon to be ex was not really that bloody serious with me. A coward and a self absorbed man he can be, but a caring one too. OK I am a bit of a self-absorbed person too but with more sensibility and in a positive way. We both have yet to really fall in love and now we are already growing apart. All because his family opposed my existence in his life and he had had the audacity to tell me that he just could not love me to fight for both of us to be together. Boohooo....what a fucking retard. Good thing i never really bow down and surrendered my feelings to him too. I am just too posh and an ice queen . I need reassurance and he failed to do so almost miserably. I didnt even shed one tear, ok i lied, just one tear drop and its all sunshine again.<br /><br /><br />In that dream, both of us visited a girl mate at another country (the scene was supposed to be somewhere in Spain). I was about to tell them the fact that many Greek people can be a bit too into their own kind when I saw him kissing her cheek fondly and held up the tip of her chin and looking at each other's eyes lovingly. That dream ended there. I woke up with some feelings that something aint going fine soon and I am ready to accept the outcome. Not that I dont sense that things were getting more obvious that we were slowly drifted in the different current direction....<br /><br /><br />It is never a full stop "quest" and "an adventure" to find the one who will truly loves me and ask for my hand and so on and he is in the rightful mind, stable, likeminded and shares many similar thingssssss (that many ssss is meant for soooooo many things i am not bothered to spell out further ). Even though the east londoner ex was so deep into me, he was still struggling to make ends meet and that he has issues with his family. Somehow i also dreamt that I saw him as a successful entrepeneur that he had always wished for and I would not mind extending a friendship with him knowing that he can never get me out of his head....I am like a force of nature or so it is.<br /><br /><br />Honestly, I am happy that my guardian angels and God love me so much. And i have never stopped believing that He has the best laid plan for me.<br /><br />And my mum is trying her luck again to try to match me up with some fella known to be a friend of a member of our family. Sabar jer laa....heck who knows, her persistence may soon hit the jackpot, <span style="font-style: italic;">wallahu a'lam</span> (And Allah knows more).<br /><br />No matter how awkward it can be at times, I did stay as friends with those exes.....(many that have remained friends)<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-90645560829600618032009-04-14T18:12:00.002+08:002009-04-14T18:18:35.266+08:00Octuplets and Federer got HitchedFor reading pleasure:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-size:130%;" ><span style="font-weight: bold;">News #1</span></span> :<br /><h1 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;">An army of nannies and a frenzy of feeding... as the last of the octuplets comes home from hospital, life in the Suleman home </span></h1>Source of news, click <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1169778/An-army-nannies-frenzy-feeding--the-octuplets-comes-home-hospital-life-Suleman-home.html">here</a>.<br /><br /><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">Having six children to care for would give any mother sleepless nights. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">But that was before Nadya Suleman gave birth to octuplets in January - bringing the total number of her brood up to 14.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1.2em;">The last of the octuplets, Jonah, was released from hospital last night. Jonah weighed just 1 pound, 8 ounces (0.67 kilograms). Hospital officials say he now weighs 4 pounds, 10 ounces (2.09 kilograms), and is able to bottle feed.</span></p><div class="clear"> </div> <img src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/04/13/article-0-046EBC49000005DC-796_634x892.jpg" alt="Nadya Suleman and six of her babies" class="blkBorder" width="634" height="892" /> <p class="imageCaption">In residence: Nadya Suleman and the six babies that have come home so far. Josiah joined his brothers and sisters shortly after this picture was taken, Jonah is yet to come home from hospital</p><p class="imageCaption"><br /></p><p class="imageCaption"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">News #2: </span></span><br /></p><p class="imageCaption">Source of news, click <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1169716/Roger-Federer-marries-long-term-girlfriend-intimate-ceremony.html">here</a>. They have their own blog too, click <a href="http://www.rogerfederer.com/en/rogers/news/newsdetail.cfm?uNC=89147318&uPage=8&uNewsID=889">here</a>: </p><br /><h1 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Roger Federer marries long-term girlfriend in intimate ceremony</span></h1><br /><p>Tennis star Roger Federer tied the knot with his long-term girlfriend over the Easter weekend.</p><p>The 13-times Grand Slam winner married Mirka Vavrinec in an intimate ceremony in his home town of Basel, Switzerland.</p><p>He broke the news on his official website.</p><div class="clear"> </div><div class="thinCenter"> <a href="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/04/13/article-1169716-04F71A1E0000044D-160_468x427_popup.jpg" rel="" class="lightboxPopupLink" onclick="return false"> <span class="clickToEnlargeTop"></span><span class="clickToEnlargeButton"></span> <img src="http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/04/13/article-1169716-04F71A1E0000044D-160_468x427.jpg" alt="Roger Federer and Mirka Vavrinec" class="blkBorder" width="468" height="427" /> </a> <p class="imageCaption">Married: Roger Federer and Mirka Vavrinec tied the knot in Basel, Switzerland<br /></p></div> <p>On Saturday, Federer, 27, wrote: 'Earlier today, in my hometown of Basel, surrounded by a small group of close friends and family, Mirka and I got married. <br /></p><p>'It was a beautiful spring day and an incredibly joyous occasion. Mr and Mrs Roger Federer wish all of you a Happy Easter weekend.'</p>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-72136142402459236842009-04-09T19:40:00.006+08:002009-04-09T22:42:20.184+08:00Dynamic Duo?We read 3 different kinda news today but they are all shocking and surprising (some are exciting ones) nonetheless:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">1. The new Malaysian PM, Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak (made and swore as the 6th PM last week) had lined up his new cabinet, some of which managed to remain in their Pak Lah's position since PR12.<br /><br />Najib also retains his hold as the Minister of Finance and made Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin his DPM. The latter also acts as the Minister of Education.<br /><br />But are they really the NEW dynamic duo? A force to be reckon with? A partnership sealed for the betterment of rakyat? I have yet to see anything as dynamic not since the pairing of Anwar and Mahathir when these two veteran politicians held the topmost positions. But they ended up being a volatile duo as the then DPM was sacked by his premier during his service nearly 11 years ago. And THAT was the beginning of the whole new Malaysia Boleh that led to political reformations and debacles, people doing public demonstrations and the dramas just kept going on and on, more twisting plots , wives with bigger hairdos and their men getting naughtier too.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRBcuAuoNJKY3gmPX09USarZ7rFDmDDP-TC-wov0-4AFugcCuu7KrmCtM72s1az5oh4yfBUmFIzwgPmCuh77yANspSG0C4uYS9Kofhc5PZy-WqUrMkh9wZYMRlcFA2s60I6q9/s1600-h/najib-mahyudin.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 278px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaRBcuAuoNJKY3gmPX09USarZ7rFDmDDP-TC-wov0-4AFugcCuu7KrmCtM72s1az5oh4yfBUmFIzwgPmCuh77yANspSG0C4uYS9Kofhc5PZy-WqUrMkh9wZYMRlcFA2s60I6q9/s320/najib-mahyudin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322656718300001410" border="0" /></a><br />Muhyiddin (right) shook hands with Najib<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">We will see how it goes.<br /><br /><br /><br />2. The hooliganisms in Kota Bahru, Kelantan and a goalkeeper who was charged with an assault as he went berserk by punching in the face and stamped his foot over an opponent team player.<br /><br />WTF?<br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">3. The UNCLEAR reasons of why Sirul and Azilah were sentenced to be hanged to death over the Altantuya murder case. They may or may not be the one who shot her and explode the body using a C4. But who knows kan who is/are THE real criminal(s) here. Altaltuya has her motives so as her killers. May Allah have mercy on Sirul and Azilah's souls and He Knows Best.<br /><br />It is pretty much a Tamil Movie scene, this whole high profile case. If only someone or whoever or i dunno, if ever, took that Rajnikanth or Kamalhassan role (Raja Petra Kamarudin probably not yet a suitable candidate or a likely hero here but at least he made his point clearly that has risked his life) , hopefully the good will win (in style!).<br /><br /><br /></div><br /><br />May Allah continues to shower his bountiful blessings on Malaysia soil. Ameen.ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-75771749068914292452009-04-08T14:34:00.004+08:002009-04-08T14:51:43.045+08:00JAI HO!!!!AR Rahman did it again in this masterpiece which has already won an oscar for The Best Song in the recent 81st Annual Academy Award from the best movie "Slumdog Millionaire":<br /><br /><br /><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/F_ppm6tRRxg&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/F_ppm6tRRxg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object><br /><br />They could've done it better using other more soulful singer but Pussycat Dolls seemed like the best they can settle for some commercial value, IMHO.<br /><br />But I like it anyway.<br /><br />Here is the original one in Sanskrit-hindi-urdu with some Spanish Rap:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z32SCbI4dNU&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z32SCbI4dNU&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Enjoy.ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-64864105249015502372009-04-07T11:53:00.008+08:002009-04-07T16:00:41.815+08:00Weeeeeee!!!! Aztech Wireless Adaptor<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Awesomeness....</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTK7uUUumDcg81M4VeEKSG9ffXpYj0HVtYNMUjr8FNWSXw5VsUPjYx0PSbq7bmAYDmKpvXG2FBkcQ2OAe9dAavOP5Lv0k1yK-D_864s4eA5yeLZLynFDbKXZ5lFIsDnwmsik3D/s1600-h/aztech+wireless+adaptor.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 226px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTK7uUUumDcg81M4VeEKSG9ffXpYj0HVtYNMUjr8FNWSXw5VsUPjYx0PSbq7bmAYDmKpvXG2FBkcQ2OAe9dAavOP5Lv0k1yK-D_864s4eA5yeLZLynFDbKXZ5lFIsDnwmsik3D/s320/aztech+wireless+adaptor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321793873712617826" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Exciting innit when your desktop can be connected sans cable to the internet modem? To me it is, and for that, I thank thee <span style="font-weight: bold;">AZTECH </span> (and other few companies) who has come up with this <span style="font-weight: bold;">Wireless Adaptor model WL851USB</span>. Its so simple to install on the USB port and voila, I can now use my mobile and my laptop simultaneously via wireless connection.<br /><br />Whats more awesome? I can use this adaptor for my laptop as well to increase the wifi reception strength. Quite handy this gadget.<br /><br />Price I paid: Rm95.00 from a local PC shop at Jalan Reko.<br /></div><br /><br />*******************************************************************************<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">I happened to observe a little gecko lizard of perhaps 1 week old or less trying to defend itself against 5-6 red ant armies at my car porch this morning. A full grown-up lizard would just happily catching those red ants with its long sticky tongue and swallow them in one big gulp to its heart content one after another without much worry as it is far bigger than them. But for poor young lizard, it struggled to keep those ants away from it no matter how feeble it was. Those ants seemed like they wouldnt let their "prey" get away that easily and so they made attacks left right and center and even managed to crawl over its tiny tail. Little Liz fought hard, really really hard. It managed to keep those predators away at bay for a while with all its might, till one TM (telekom malaysia) guy came to my house this morning and accidentally stepped on those ants and lizard mercilessly . He probably never really care whatever small things lying on the cement car porch. But there it was, little Liz, all squashed up head to tail! Soon there will be more and more ants coming forward to clean up the carnage and ultimately succeeded to secure a food supply for the day in the form of baby lizard flesh. Who knows what sort of a delicacies it might offer those ants, but being natural hardworking creatures , I presumed they are more than grateful to whatever type of food as long as its edible. Heck, they have also done some good thing to the environment by removing those bits of carcass off my place.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">PS</span>: I have been watching Animal Planet on Astro 556 and one time, the image of a bigger lizard (biawak -monitor lizard) swallowing a baby crocodile is still fresh in my mind. I guess no matter how ugly and gruesome an adult crocodile might be, its babies are practically meek and susceptible to being a prey for any hungry carnivor lurking near the river bank/swamp etc crocodile habitat. I have also seen on huge gecko lizard at my parents place some few weeks ago and it was like 10 inches or so long. One would wonder how it has survived all these while eating smaller insects off the wall and growing larger than its average 4-5 inches lizard mates.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">That TM fella came with his other 2 technician mates came to check on my wifi modem as I lodged a report 2 days earlier having lost the internet connection. After a few tinkering and troubleshooting here and there, they <span style="font-style: italic;">somehow</span> found the source of the problem (and that too after i talked over with them and all that fella said was he knew his job and he'd get it done) and went locating a Streamyx Main Port near a playground about 200 meters from my house. I asked them if thats TM way to help their customer solve their problem by keep sending in their contract technicians and all? They said thats how it works in TM and if one external Streamyx port got hit by the lightning, chances are other users may be affected the same. They replaced the faulty port with a new one (or whatever they claimed they did), and I got my connection back on.<br /><br />Commiseration? Its FOC. Not complaining.<br /></div>ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8338550.post-86289492039340091142009-03-18T10:17:00.005+08:002009-03-18T10:46:37.589+08:00Aku seekor nyamuk terhebat<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAHq3nmeGFEo9S-d0F3ld4vy0fjrHXrFj-Q6UH2kq25PP-JqWme34-PR8Ca8GP0SBitmgS9oxodNIBdy5CVpblUPC2F820hEsCVZRhsVWjYgsCTS8VeLkdMUH2Qup0KpiELGJ/s1600-h/7177_mosquito_cartoon.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 259px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGAHq3nmeGFEo9S-d0F3ld4vy0fjrHXrFj-Q6UH2kq25PP-JqWme34-PR8Ca8GP0SBitmgS9oxodNIBdy5CVpblUPC2F820hEsCVZRhsVWjYgsCTS8VeLkdMUH2Qup0KpiELGJ/s320/7177_mosquito_cartoon.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314349944724820626" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/UKM/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpg" alt="" /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Aaahhhh.......aku tak takut laaaaa Shieldtox tu??? ape sangat sembur2, ingat aku dah tak reti bina kekebalan dalaman ka??? bodo itu pompuan...!</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Oooooiii kawan2....mari la kita joli sakan and sambil2 tu hirup darah dia kan? dah la sorg2 dok dalam office, banyak kerja sangat la tuh konon!</span><br /><br /><br />Maka berterbangan laa 5-6 ekor nyamuk keliling office yang seluas 14 kaki x 14 kaki bersamaan 196 kaki persegi itewww. Maknanya, 14 kuasa dua la tuh.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Kawan2!!!! Dia still sembur2 lagi laa Shieldtox kat kita!!!! jom kita hover2 around office dia sampai dia naik bosan. Cheehhhh dia pon tengah on alert tu, kemut taknak derma barang 1-2 ml darah. Kemoooooooooooottttt!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyEE9ZcfQX3Ca9yOdOXPNICJthCXCDyyX47RLBpy29GV7SQP77snIMg3d7S09SG15pLycOth-WTbAnxlNzub59pZWyjCc6pmGZR_S0OYBlze5kiPTNwAYzpJ5cCCbMJZgod2G0/s1600-h/2005-10-02.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyEE9ZcfQX3Ca9yOdOXPNICJthCXCDyyX47RLBpy29GV7SQP77snIMg3d7S09SG15pLycOth-WTbAnxlNzub59pZWyjCc6pmGZR_S0OYBlze5kiPTNwAYzpJ5cCCbMJZgod2G0/s320/2005-10-02.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314351203891713106" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Eiishhhh sembur laaaaa sembur laaaa......aku pedulik hapaaaaaaaaaaa!</span><br /><br />Seketika dia berpusar2 di udara mencari kawan2nya yang lain. Ke manakah mereka pergi? takkan dah mamposssss kot benak hatinya berkata2.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Tak pe....Tak Pe, ko dengan Shieldtox ko menang ini kali. Aku nak sembunyi kat ventilation atas bilik ko and tunggu sampai dah segala bau2 harum Shieldtox hilang. Kan ku serang ko once ko masuk jer office ko balik! Ko dengar tak! U hear me???! eh ape bangang aku ni, mana dia dengar, tengok ajer la size badan aku yang agak2nya kalau di scale down kan adalah serupa nisbah 1: 10,000, yakni pompuan tu 10,000 kali lebih bagak dari aku!</span><br /><br />Pagi keesokannya.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Cissss.....dia main sembur lagi????? dah la aku lapaaaaaarrrr gilaaaaa vaviiii ok....vavi pon tak laparrrr macam haku, how? I need blood, u stingy old hag! Naaaahhh aku serang ko dari tepi.....eh eh fuhhhh selamat dari kena pelepaaapppp tengah kedua2 tapak tangan gergasi dia.....</span><br /><br />Dan nyamuk itu masih belum dapat habuannya.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">halaaaammaaaakkkkk, dia pi sembur baik punya kena daaahhh!!!!!!! Nampak nya aku mati kekempisan perut juga laaa....</span><br /><br />Lalu menghembuskan nafasnya yang terakhir di atas sebuah black planner-diary.<br /><br />Sekian karangan saya pada pagi ini.ManaLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01368513253232521951noreply@blogger.com8