Maria Elena

Maria Elena | Peliks | Shortnap | Greek Helen

2012-01-27T18:51:00.002+08:00

Assalamualaikum,

my name is Maria Elena. today, i shall be talking about myself because.. i don't know. i just feel like it.
MAHAABAHAHAA! gelak terabur please. AMARAN! ini post panjang gila. kalau anda ada awesome, anda baca sampai habis. hahaha! =p kidding!

first things first.

"maria, apahat lu pakai itu nama peliks untuk lu punyat bloggerisme?" tanya beberapa orang.

peliks just came to me when i created this blog (2008, ehem) sebab masa tu 'mariaelena', 'mariaelenaisawesome', 'mariasharapova', 'marsupilami', 'batumarmar' dan sewaktu dengannya dah taken. sedih bangat itu masa, maka i thought, apa satu word yang paling senang mau diingat, senang nak recognise and unique?
OUGGHHH! BEBEH! tapi tu pun taken.
so i thought.... peliks la ini macam. dengan selambanya i typed it out, tengok tengok available! wahhh! manyak how liau!! so that's how my peliks got it's name. brahammaaahahaha! gelak terabur again please.

second things second.

"mariah carey, vhy iz your vizeo chanel (yes, i'm talking about the brand) iz shortnap?"

shortnap was easyyyyy. i ni the kind of person who can take naps easily anytime, anywhere. i can sleep standing up, sitting, in awkward positions, and i sleep comfortably. terror kan? not scary, but hebat. jahaujaahaaa! gelak terabur again lahai.
so masa i nak create my youtube account, again all the names i wanted to use all taken, so i thought...stress la ini macam. i vant to take a short nap la.
OUGHHH!!!! SHORTNAPITIS!!
but that sounded very odd. so i pendekkan to shortnap. myeheuheuhiaaaaauuuuuu! gelak gelak terabur tutup mulut please.

third things third.

"maria, ko nye pesbuk page pahal name maria elena is greek helen?"

ahhh~ itu a bit the long story wannn.
masa tu (2008, and i was 21years old) i tengah kemaruk tengok anime and i masa tu tengah adore gila Belldandy. kenal tak beliau? barangsiapa yang kenal, meh high five sket sebab kita goddess wannabe. hahahahha!!
belldandy is a character in an anime called Oh My Goddess! so yeah.. i wanted to be like her: cantik, lemah lembut, penyabar, and kuat. and so i googled for some greek-ish character i can use for myself and i found Helen, daughter of Zeus. so bajet-ing goddess macam Belldandy punya pasal, i pun guna lah Maria Elena is Greek Helen. coz i bajet-isme. know what i'm sayin' dawg?
namun, hakikatnya i memang takde sifat macam greek goddesses. kasar, gangsta, flying-kickable, and so much more. mostly, i am only human. =')
but oh well, a girl can hope and change is permitted. mana tau one day i'll be in the best form i can be? insyAllah~ =D

fourth things fourth.
i am Maria Elena, the only girl among siblings of 4 and my brothers have implanted in me to be as gangsta as i could for safety reasons. one time, masa taekwondo dulu, Sir pernah buat adegan rogol, and since then i memang PHOBIAAAAAA dengan being too soft. takut men would take advantage of that and i'd be too helpless to defend myself. scary isn't it? and my bros helped me to be gangsta-ish by bullying me and fist-fighting with me as if i was one of them. =\
i am currently working as an engineer di kilang sebelah sana. malas nak pingpongpingpong (normally people would say pumpangpumpang kan? tapi that sounds like kompang to me. haha!) pasal kerja saya sebab nanti nampak macam boasting lak. a lot of people have been asking:
1. engineer apa?
2. kat mana?
3. senang ke?
4. best ke?
5. belajar utp camane? senang ke?
6. kena result camane nak masuk utp?

please see below for the answers:
1. process engineer
2. kat kilang
3. biasa je. keje pape pun ada time senang, ada time tak senang. kalau nak berjaya, kena lah tabah face kesusahan.
4. biasa je. keje pape pun ada best and tak best. kalau nak berjaya, kena lah tabah face it all.
5. belajar utp sama je macam belajar mana mana. cuma it's environment is very conducive and it's terletak kat tempat yang tak senang nak get entertainments. which is good in a way =)
6. i pun not sure sekarang camane. i got my scholarship masa kat matrix on 2nd semester. so i tak gi educamp. after matrix straight masuk utp. sorry... tak dapat nak tolong.. please google it yourself k? jangan malas.

a lot of people have been pressing me about videos too, and to that saya jawab "saya keje dek. kalau saya takde keje, memang saya buat la. kot. sebab kalau ada free time, saya nak belajar masak sebenarnya." means to say, making videos is not my main priority. blogging, to me tak susah sebab i just typeeee je. videos kena edit edit and sebab i sorang je feature in my own videos, it takes double the time to shoot. sadderisme. sometimes i just wish someone can just do all those editting and holding camera stuff for me. myeheeehebeeleheee! gelak terabur keluar hingus please.

i love my family and i try to spend time with them whenever i can. my mom and i sangat close and some weekends, we'll try to go out and do something. mother daughter bonding la =) my family lak memang suka chill ramai ramai. that's why i am close with my cousins, aunt and uncles and grandmothers. love them long timeee! when it comes to friends lak, i ni memang tak reti nak keep in touch through social networking ni. i prefer jumpa lepak. sebab online lepaking is not real enough for me. =p but i do keep my close friends in mind and heart. i may not contact them always, but i always think about them. sweet kan? hahaa! =p

on life matters, i have my principles and disciplines which i stick to. and i definitely realise now that i have no problem admitting my weaknesses to the public. partly because i know i'm not the only going through......life. =) i love traveling (sampai i kena take up part time jobs to support this love of mine) because i get to see Allah SWT's amazing creations and how i always find similarities in some things. i started wearing the hijab after i got back from my first ever eurotrip with my friends! hehe! =)
i saw His Mightiness and i saw His fairness. i fell in love with other countries, but my love for my country and religion deepens and i'm grateful for the experiences.
sometimes we need to compare ourselves with those who have lesser so that we truly appreciate what we have. syukur.. =)

on public attention, fame, popularity, whatever you wanna call it, i honestly don't want to care about it. i do appreciate the many supports and all of you who have been encouraging me, sharing with me, teguring me and being really really cool with me!

YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!!!

but i don't want to be perasan-bajet-bagus-ish-padahal-tak-pun, so i'm really sorry to those of you yang macam expecting me to be..errr..i tak tau nak describe camane...celebrity-ish? whatever la! i'm sorry i won't put myself in a position yang macam..aiseyman..macam i ni blogger tegar, famous amous, and stuff, coz i just rasa it's not right. the fact is, i am just a person. takde mukjizat ke apa for you peeps to be in awe about. i just like writing and i am brave enough to be myself (sorry macam poyo sikit =p). all those times yang ada blogger awards whatever, macam dulu digi, then nuffnang, now world blogger whatever ni, i macam malas nak pingpongpingpong about them sebab i fikir, kalau Allah swt permits it, then i'll win. but if i didn't, then it must be because He knows i am not fit for it. He knows me better than i know myself =)
pasal all this modelling and stuff, i admit that i still do it. but only for fun and as a side income. told you i want to travel =p i do try not to go overboard with it. i'd rather be a good role model than a model. know what i mean? haha! i'll try my best la k adik adik =)

from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much for supporting me all this while!

my friends, my family, my readers, my viewers, may Allah swt bless you =)
kalau ada salah silap, buat you terasa ke tercirit ke, buat you rasa nak menampar muka haku ni, buat you termuntah hijau ada sayur sikit ke, sorry sangat sangat..

kalau ada you terserempak ngan i, pastu you thought "eh, maria shmaria ke tu?" pastu bila nak tegur takut sebab muka i macam gangsta, sorry ek.. muka i memang macam tu sebab kata dah.. my bros dah cukup train i baek punya. hahahaa! just tegur je. =)

i'd rather be Elvis? nahhhhh!! i'd rather be myself. hehe!

peace =)

ps: this was a lunch hour post. so excuse my grammatical errors and loss for words moments. and extremely sorry for much poyoness here. just wanna clear things up.

pps: for your information, Asfirdaus Asri (tunang saya) is not a Dato' and not a son of a Dato'. i saje je bagi dia that nickname sebab dulu, dia selalu ada this laugh when talking to his customers (dia buat business dong) which was, to me, very Dato'-ish. kalau korang tengok malay drama yang ada character dato' yang gatal ngan dia punya secretary pastu dia gelak "ehek ehek ehek" konon macam macho la kan, that was the laugh. but now dia dah tak buat dah. hahaha! but still he's a dato' to me. =p <---another thing i have to clear up. so excusez moi ah!

Kuala Lumpur

2012-01-22T21:21:00.000+08:00

Assalamualaikum =)

ini pagi i ada sesi bergambar for Women of Malaysia (insyAllah will be featured for February issue) and it was at this awesome place which my noobself and my mom (i had her come with =p) didn't know about.

"apa ini tempat?"

hoooo yeaaahhhh, Perpustakaan Kuala Lumpur.

i only know National Library, tak aware pun ada library lain.. and this library is the one dekat Dataran Merdeka. CANTIK OKAYYY!! and sooo clean! reminds me of Harry Potter for some reason. nampak sangat i bukan orang KL. ye adik adik kakak abang aunty uncle nenek datuk sekalian, saya orang selangor. peace. mueheheee =p

inside, i got ready in this meeting room (boleh sewa bilik tu ok!! cool!) and ada mic sume. memang cool!

mem besar ni ialah delegate yang tegas menegakkan para remaja untuk baca buku. you tak baca, you kena hempuk. takut? ahakkk!!

so after the interview, my mom and i apa lagi, jalan jalan la!! it was such a lovely day for a stroll anyway =D (and because we don't really know what was around that area.. guilty of being kl-noob)

Galeri ni best!

the gallery is small, simple and quaint, and the best part is that it's free! takyah nak bayar entrance fee kejadah. masuk, tengok, tangkap gambau, and... tangkap gambau. kalau ada duit lebih, buy some souvenirs la!

ini memang awesome.

mama was imagining if this thing can be used as hantaran. i tak tau mother. ups to you ok? hehe!

tudung kelepet terbaik. hilang terus effect 'bawal'. tut tut tut.. =\

Arch woodcraft = maximum coolness

after checking out the gallery, kita pun keluar la to get vitamin D. and of course to check more cool things out.

Restoran Warisan! nak masuk but tutup.. sad..

maka i pun buat peace.

ini macam. ahakkk =p

mom met new friends. alhamdulillah ma! hehehe!! =p

bebehs, you think Rome je ke ada fountain fountain?

pffft! Malaysia pun ada ok! and it's way awesome-r! coz Malaysia memang awesome.

ada gaya macam baru menang olympics tak?

KL at its best.

clear sky, clear roads, clear dataran merdeka, and me showing off my kungfu skills. terbaik.

setelah puas berjalan, we went to chill la. guess who we met?!

PITBULL!!!! best gila ok Pitbull join kitorang makan tutti frutti. hahahaha!!

kidding la. that's my dad, mentor to Pitbull. unbelievable? don't believe it. hehe!

by the way, for the interview, Jubahsouq.com was kind enough to lend me their jaw-dropping-eyes-watering-gorgeous jubahs!

absolutely stunning choices i was given, and with the help of my lovely mother, this was what i wore:

the theme was Beauty of Knowledge, so i thought i want to potray a muslimah yang knowledgeable. hahhaha!

at first wanted to go for "YO, I'M AN ENGINEER DUDE!" look, but then, tak semestinya engineers je yang pandai kan? (if that sounds poyo, sorry!!) that's why i thought of jubah. universal sikit =) i sure am nervous about the outcome of the interview. hopefully it'll be ok.. we'll see la next month camane.

so okay okaaayyyyhh.. i know i'm a kl-noob. when it comes to KL, i think shopping malls and masjid india. kira shopping areas la. i never thought of checking out the original KL buildings from colonial times sebab.. yeah, tak terfikir la kan. takde orang pun ajak "Maria, jom gi jalan jalan kat KL tengok buildings old school!".

korang memang.

so apa lagi? if you people nak do something different for a change (since shopping malls can be boring), ajak la your friends or family to go around KL and really explore it!

to everyone who's celebrating chinese new year, GONG XI FA CAIIIII!! pili pili pala paaaa~ (lagu pasal mercun). and to those yang balik kampung bercuti, drive safely and have fun!

peace.

Reflect

2012-01-17T13:52:00.001+08:00

Assalamualaikum

last weekend, i emceed a fashion show (for ladies, mind you naughty boys) called Reflection.
honestly, i don't know how it went because i was the one talking and hanging around backstage, trying my utter best to repel my nerves. if it was me watching the show, probably i can tell how it went.
but from what a lot of people said, it was good. alhamdulillah =)

it was my first time emceeing events like this. i've done emceeing before, tapi memang fully scripted la. diri belakang podium pastu baca jeeeee. easy peasy lemon squeezy. making videos is way easier! cakap depan camera sorang2 as if i cakap dengan the whole world! and yang best nya, i boleh edit and re-take kalau i messed up! haha!
but this time around i kena jalan sambil cakap, kena announce itu ini and fill up awkward silent moments. nyeh.

i don't know how hosts/presenters/emcees do that effortlessly.
tabik hormat!

i only hope i delivered my best. i don't have pics because i didn't give my camera to anyone and i don't think people wanna take pics of me pun.
oh and i know there're guy readers here so i takmo bagi korang opportunity to tengok perempuan showcase baju atas badan mereka. not from my blog anyway. their badan is not for me to tayang free free. =p

just wanna say, it was a great experience on my part, the designers have shown their creativity at best, and the event was hopefully entertaining for all guests =D
shout out to AmmaraHijabi & the Insiders for trusting me to be the emcee for their event!!

enough about the show!

just wanna share something i've learnt last night.

when performing your solat, please try to slow down and recite the surahs properly. kita ada something called makhraj. tengok sini for reference. kalau salah sebut or tinggal huruf or salah tajwid, the meaning might be different. maka, tak betullah surah anda baca. maka rugi lah solat anda.. sayang kan? praying 5 times a day won't mean much kalau surah yang ada 4,5 ayat jadi satu je (sebab baca laju2).

so sabar dalam melakukan solat.

pastu, niat kena betul. ni fundamental. and then takbiratul ihram jangan tinggal. sebutlah "Allahuakbar" and remember it's meaning: Allah The Almighty. girls are encouraged to say it too but not out loud! asal diri sendiri boleh dengar, ok la tu. Allah is Mighty, we shouldn't be scared to admit that. =)

lastly, bila tahiyyat awal and akhir, jangan la baca laju laju! sabarrrrrrrrr~
sebab again, kalau salah sebut, salah makhraj, salah tajwid, mungkin maksud jadi lain.

please read up on Rukun Solat if you want to know more on do's and don'ts' when performing prayers.
and do share if you want here! or in your blog or wherever la! dalam Islam, sesama manusia, tak perlu lah kedekut ilmu =)

ps: ini lunch hour post. mueheheheee =p

Have a great day ahead!

peace.

Sabar

2012-01-04T02:38:00.000+08:00

Assalamualaikum wbt

confession: i am quite an impatient person.
when i dig deep within myself, i found that the thing i hate most, is waiting. no matter what form.
sometimes when waiting gets to my nerves, i get angry.
and when i'm angry, astaghfirullahalazim..

it's very disappointing.
i used to ask myself "why is it that you can change your outlook, change your lifestyle and whatnot, but you can't be patient and control your temper?" everytime after i've done something stupid because i was too impatient. that's the thing about me. i know i need to chill, to sabar and calm down, but the next time, the same cycle will happen again.

Allah Maha Adil.
He knows i am an impatient person, so He tests me by letting me handle the most impatient client. i felt harassed almost everyday by the number of calls, emails and texts that i almost always lost my temper. since i can't just throw my tantrum at work (don't want my colleagues and bosses to think i'm unprofessional), i let it out by throwing rocks, slamming my car door (as if that helps! pfft), and what's worse, sometimes, i would let some cursing slip off of my tongue after talking or replying my client's email.
in hopes that it could make me feel better.
it doesn't and never did. but i do it anyway =\

then one day, not long ago, i did solat jemaah isyak in a masjid near my workplace. on the second rakaat, the imam's mic's volume went lower and lower thus causing the imam to recite the surahs louder so that we could all hear him. but i couldn't hear him anyway.. 'cause of that, my mind started to wander. i started thinking about the most random things and then suddenly i realised the imam dah rukuk. so of course i followed. then i thought to myself, "ya Allah, sorry ek.. apasal la i tak kuat iman ni.. i hope You can wait for me (to be beriman enough)".

it was like a tight slap given across my face as i stood for qiyam..

how dare i.. how dare i ask Allah swt to wait for me, whereas i couldn't even wait for others?
how can i ask Allah, The Almighty, to be patient with me, when i can't with others?
how dare i ask Allah, The Giver of Life and Giver of Death, to wait for me to be a better person, as if i'm the one who gets to decide when i want to die?

i cried while praying that time.
and when i read Surah Al-fatihah, fresh tears streamed down my face.

Surah Al- fatihah:

Bismillahirrahmanirahim (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful)
Alhamdulillahi rabbil 'aalamin (All praise and thanks are Allah's, the Lord of the Alamin - mankind, jinn & all that exists)
Ar-rahman ir-raheem (The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful)
Maaliki yawm id-deen (The Only Owner (and the Only Ruling Judge) of the Day of Recompense)
Iyaaka na'budu waiyaka nasta'een (You (alone) we worship, and You (alone) we ask for help - for each and everything)
Ihdina ssirat al-mustaqeem (Guide us to the Straight Way)
Siraat alladheena an'amta 'alayhim, ghairil maghdoobi 'alayhim wa lad-daleen (The Way of those on whom you have bestowed Your Grace, not the way of those who earned Your Anger, nor of those who went astray)

Ameen.

my life could be taken away whenever He pleases, and there i was, asking Him to wait.
"how dare you.." i kept saying to myself.. indeed. how dare me..

i'm sharing this side of me which i'm ashamed of to those of you reading this.. and i'm sharing it because i know there are some people who share this same problem. we're only human. we make mistakes, and we're far from perfect. but it's time to change.. we'll never know if we have a 'tomorrow'.

so here's my new year's resolution. instead of a list of things that i want to do, i only have one thing that i need to do.

i need to be patient.

to be patient when doa, performing prayers, listening to others, eating, executing tasks, basically everything and anything. insyAllah..

Surah Al-Imran (3:120);
"..But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."

Surah Hud (11:115);
"And be patient, verily, Allah wastes not the reward of the good-doers."

Guide us to the Straight Way

let's chat..

2011-12-29T13:23:00.003+08:00

..at *insert social web*, that is!!

Assalamualaikum.

KALAU INI SAYA, SILA TEGUR

KALAU INI ANDA, SILA BUAT APA YANG PATUT.

iaitu berubah

dan minum milo ais dan makan nasi lemak bungkus dalam opis.

terbaik..

*lunch hour update. whadya expect?

tudungs are from TudungPeople (yang brown and green sarung tu) and the green hoodie from Calaqisya. awesome shawls you can get from them, i promise. =D

note:

1. ya, i nampak berisi sikit. bila nampak kecut, orang jealous. bila nampak kembang sket, orang mengata. vat iz dis man? i iz normal no matter vat veight i iz! heheee =p juz kidding.

2. ya, i know this video isn't like what you probably expect. i just thought that maybe we should remind each other to keep more in touch with the reality instead of the cyber world =)

3. please don't jadikan habit all this "u follow me, i follow u back" or "please add me at my *insert social web*!". why are you asking for people to stalk you? it's weird. anyone can stalk you if they want to, don't have to force them to do so. peace. =)

Have a good day!

international look

2011-12-18T14:46:00.000+08:00

assalamualaikum wahai green-lovers!

just recently i've been looking through my baby pictures, because, well.. if i might say so myself, imma cute bebeh. hahahaha!! muntah-hijau-pastu-ada-sayur-sayur-sikit-please. =p

my family always talk (present tense sebab we still talk about it) about how i looked chinese as a baby and how i look very different now as an adult. ye la.. dulu mata sepet la gak. kulit putih macam amoi. gigi dua batang besar. cakap pun boleh tahan macam chinese la. hahahahaa! ok tu exaggerate je. tengok pics sebagai supporting evidence.

saya si comel muka bacin duduk atas lap.. emm.. sape ek tu.. tak kenal. ahak! (yang tengah cedok nasi is my younger-looking tokwan. she's chinese-malay)

abang abang setan yang selalu buli saya . setan pun setan, sayang tetap sayang. =B

"ni hau maaa?"

"wo ai barney and friends! wahahahahaha!"

do you agree?
i pun tak tau la. all i notice is my cuteness. muntah-brown-ada-coco-pops-sikit-please. =p

now lak, muka i ni boleh pass as pakistani, bangladeshi, chinese mualaf, malay (duhh), arab, dan macam macam lagi. bukan i tipu, ladies and gentleman. i don't even take it as a compliment neither an insult. i just rasa its kelakar.

one time i was at a petrol station and this pakistani helper tu tanya i.

Pakistani helper: awak.. pakistan ka?
saya: ha? you rasa? (senyum senget sebelah tanda curious)
Pakistani helper: pakistan (angguk tanda hipotesis beliau diterima)
saya: mana ada la! saya melayu.
Pakistani helper: ha?! tipu!
saya: ya Allah. tak tipu la! tolong saya isi minyak ya. saya bayar dulu.
Pakistani helper: (pandang saya with the look of disappointment)
saya: (senyum mata tutup, tunjuk gigi, tunjuk peace sebagai tanda "lek la bro")

another time, i was with my friends in JB. a chinese shopkeeper dengan selambanya tanya..

chinese shopkeeper: (tanya kawan tapi tuding jari ke arah saya) she arab ah?
saya: saya ke?
chinese shopkeeper: (tengok saya dengan muka terkejut. boleh nampak kening dia hilang dalam bangs dia) eh? you malay kah?
saya: ya lorrr. aunty ingat saya arab ka?
chinese shopkeeper: ahahaah ahahahh (gelak awkward) sorry ya sorry.

lagi satu. i was at my office. a supplier came and introduced himself to us. kita dah kenal the company, but this guy was new.

saya: hi, i'm maria.
supplier: maria?
saya: yeah. (senyum)
supplier: you're a convert ke? (tanya perlahan lahan)
saya: ha? why you say that? (curious dan terkejut)
supplier: maria is an indian name, right?
saya: ahahahahahahh! where got laaaaa! ada ramai orang nama maria okaaayyyy~

bukan i tipu, again. dah banyak kali i kena these kinda things. apart from that, ramai gak claimed they saw me at places i never was! ada yang nampak i kat klcc la, kat terengganu la, kat kolej mana entah la padahal i was some place else. muka i international and i rasa i dah lebih 7 pelanduk serupa. beribu riban dah kot. hahaha!!

kalau orang kata mamat ni pakistani, boleh percaya coz my cousin ni half-pakistani, half-malaysian.

maybe it is the eyes and the nose.

funny how i was from chinese looking baby to a... apa-apa-bangsa-looking-pun-boleh adult. haha!!

well. kalau orang kata i have pakistani whatever look yang belah2 india, i tak kisah sangat coz i memang ada indian genes. arwah moyang tok is from sri lanka, indian muslim la gitu. and my tokwan is chinese.

kalau orang kata i muka macam scottish or irish or or.. or japanese, memang i terkejut beruk la! and i akan buat pose beruk kalau orang cakap camtu. true story.

conclusion?

you put it down like new york city,

i never sleep, wild like los angeles,

my fantasy hotter than miami,

i feel the heat,

oh miss international love~

tiba tiba lagu pitbull. =p

i guess how we are as babies can never really guarantee how we turn out as adults, in any aspect. =)

peace.

Girl talk Part 3

2011-12-12T13:46:00.000+08:00

Assalamualaikum wahai pembaca dan pengunjung Malaysia di bulan December yang awesome ini =P

ahak ahak ahakk!!

last weekend was my engagement with mr.asfirdaus asri and family. can you believe it?

i'm someone's tunang dah! hahaaha!!

syukur alhamdulillah ='D

on my engagement day, the baju kurung i wore was actually my mother's baju bersanding and it's 28 years old!!! it looks just as new and alhamdulillah i can fit in them. terror kan? so take note girls! make a real decent baju kurung (because it fits any occasion, in my opinion) on your wedding day or any special day so that you can pass it down to your daughters. i'll be wearing my mom's baju nikah on my nikah day as well. ahak! =D
and, subhanAllah, the hantarans.. my mom made them herself! i bought the gifts and she decorated it so beautifully, to the point that some actually thought we hired someone to do it. it's really that gorgeous!!

mom's work of art =')

mom's baju bersanding =)

my cousin, Faressa, did my make up and i loved it. it wasn't heavy and it was just perfect! you can check her out at her blog! i was wearing maysaa cream snood and C alaqisya shawl. have to thank Yana for making them specially for me. =D

as i was getting made up by faressa, and when i saw the watch was showing that it was nearing 3pm, i became ecstatic and restless! terus jadi hyper! kesian my friends, terpaksa layan i. hahaha!

kata dah =p

while i was upstairs, preparing and waiting, my family were busy preparing as well to greet asfirdaus's family who some came all the way from melaka and seremban. bless them =')
when they arrived and when i saw satu group pakai purple gelap (their theme colour) terus perut macam buat somersault swimming freestyle flip turn. amboi lah. jadi nervous pulaaakk! hahaha! but it was only momentarily.

after hearing some snippets of balas pantun between my uncle, Babo and Asfirdaus's grandfather, Tok, i was delighted again. they were really funny! i missed the part where they discussed about the wedding dates, hantaran, etc etc but oh well. i was just eager to walk in macam queen towards the pelamin. hahaha! =p

asfirdaus's tok from melaka as his spokesperson =D

the guys in my family clearly entertained by his jokes!

my uncle as my family's spokesperson evidently making everyone laugh (tgk tok as!) hehee! thanks babo!

and so, after everything was agreed and settled, as's mom placed the engagement ring dan secara langsungnya saya menjadi almost-daughter-in-law beliau. teeheee!!!

oh joy ='D

insyallah soon, they will be my in-laws!

this one right here, my forever and ever family yang awesome =D

all in all, it was a pleasant day. cuma after the whole thing, i didn't mingle much with asfirdaus's family.. i feel bad about it still. i wanted to talk to them but bila dah depan muka, i jadi segan macam entahpape.
i was tongue-tied tak tentu pasal pastu all i did was smile macam kambing mintak penampar and then macam awkward sorang sorang. *facepunch*
i memang ada weakness tak reti nak strike a conversation with aunts/uncles yang tak kenal.. in fact, i memang tak reti nak small talk! if they're above my age group, i jadi gagap.
motif kan? haihhhh.. takpe. i have 1 year to redeem myself!! ahak!

so, all the pics here were taken by Udey and Mukhriz! they made everything look RM1mill worth padahal tak pun! hehe! so do check out their facebook page for more amazing photos and Udey's blog and Mukhriz's blog! strongly recommended!! =D

alhamdulillah, Allah swt had granted a lovely day! everything went well, the food was good, the decorations were amazing, asfirdaus and his family arrived safely to our house and back to theirs, and asfirdaus and myself are now happily engaged!

also, a HUGE thanks to my aunts and uncles, my cousins, my brothers and ultimately

MY PARENTS!

korang memang terbaik!

nikah. a start of a new chapter in our lives.

before i end this post, here's an AWESOME video which basically summarises the engagement!

Maria Elena Zarul & Asfirdaus Asri Engagement Ceremony from Shafiq Zamri on Vimeo.

thank you all for your amazing support and well wishes!!

i thank you from the bottom of my heart, truly. =')

melake le kite

2011-11-30T18:44:00.001+08:00

salam peeps!

itu hali saya dan girrpren saya pigi melake.
itu hali sehali saje la. day tlip olang kate.

i've been to Melaka several times but i'm never bored of the place. the first time was the best! i went with my UTP girrrprenss and we had so much fun walking around and exploring the heart of melaka!

anyway sebab dah pernah gi melaka kan, so i ngan my bebeh ni saje je la jalan jalan. bukan nak shopping, bukan nak sight-seeing, just wanna chill. release tensi orang kate. kitorang sampai je, terus on a quest to find a toilet. beb, lama tahan beb. haha!!

"mana toilet ek?"

muka tak tahan pundi kencing

gaya macho tak tahan pundi kencing

adreen kucing bajet innocent. =p

saya part time aerobic instructor sebenarnya. (that's why i'm an athlete =p)

ok ok. so we found the toilet la eventually and after performing our prayers, we walked a bit and went straight to UMBAI to eat seafoooddd!! i tak dapattt pun tau rasa makan ikan bakar masa gi melaka dulu dulu!

alhamdulillah dapat gak!

siakap sweet & sour bebeh

siakap bakaaarrrrrr yummmeeeyhhh

ze sotong el goreng el tepung

giant udang masak el steam

nasi lomak biasa. teehee!

yeah. puas. happy. seronok. terharu. semua pun ada. hehehe!

i bet melaka-ians would recommend somewhere better kan, but saya sebagai tourist local, nak try la the famous umbai. do let me know kalau ada tempat makan seafood yang lagi terbaek! =D

you see, how gemuk the udang is sampai nak kopek pun manyak susah! juicy dan manis dia.. perghhh.. terbaek la!!

just the two of us pun boleh melicinkan pinggan mangkuk tau. don't play play!

okay, tepuk tangan mars and reen, sebab muka belacan yang bacin melampau.

this was taken in a UFO kat tengah tengah melaka bandaraya called taming sari. =p

after sesi menjilat pinggan mangkuk dan sebagainya, we went back home and prepared ourselves to face reality. *sigh*

eventhough we were tired before going on this day-trip, kena pergi kerja the next day, an impromptu 'release tension' trip was a better option than walking around a shopping mall. honestly i'm really tired of malls. hehe!

can't wait for the next trip! maybe nak gi penang lak. or perhentian. woohoo!

ps: to ernie, inot, tasha, no'in, farah, iylia, melaka and pulau besar kirim salam kat korang. ahak!

galaxy line

2011-11-26T12:30:00.000+08:00

recently ada a few people asked me about this..

so...

it's samsung galaxy note time!

hahahaa!

(seriously macam jadi duta lak)

if you don't know what samsung galaxy note is, you can read it here: when gadget fever strikes

if you wanna know its multiple functionalities, read (and watch) it here: still having the gadget fever

and now i'll share with you samsung galaxy note potential buyers, which line is best (in my opinion).

the retail price, fyi, is about RM2300.

but if you use celcom, you can get it at a far more cheaper price!

brader, tengok ni brader.

Samsung Galaxy Note RRP : RM2299	Celcom Exec 50 + Celcom Broadband mBasic	Celcom Exec 50 + Celcom Broadband mAdvance	Celcom Exec 250
Monthly commitment	RM88	RM108	RM250
Data volume	1GB	3GB	5GB
Upfront payment	RM300	RM300	RM600
12-month contract	RM1,818	RM1,778	RM1,668
18-month contract	RM1,748	RM1,698	RM1,368

i would take this Celcom Exec 50 + Celcom Broadband mAdvance. memang monthly commitment macam high tapi dapat 3gb and contract dia lagi murah! and it's affordable for me. kalau you all yang nak beli, choose a plan that suits your affordability ok? =D

when it comes to internet services, i rasa celcom ni by far the best. one thing, dia punya network coverage memang the widest in Malaysia, and then dia punya network quality pun very good which means nak buat video calls, surfing, email-ing sume memang takde hal la. since network coverage dia besar, means nak stream videos pun masyuk la! boleh tengok matluthfi nya videos, tengok ceramah2, tengok makeup tutorial (motif?) when you're on the go bebeh!

this is just an opinion of what's best. if you need to know more about on celcom's packages, you can just go here k!

hope this post helps!

salam.

let's help!

2011-11-25T13:14:00.001+08:00

Assalamualaikum to my dear Malaysians.

i saw this video by Health Equity Initiatives and i was moved by it.
how little i know about forced labour and human trafickking of refugees.. they came here, escaping from the sufferings they faced in their country, only to find, they still couldn't get peace..

i don't know what it feels like to be a refugee, but i imagine it must be really tough!

alhamdulillah i'm not and i don't have to be one.. =')

now we've all talked about making changes in the world, kan?
i'm sure you've had those times when you sat with your friends, discussing things about politics or business or lifestyle that kononnya your ideas can make our world a better place. kan?
i'm sure, like me, you want to help when you can. right?
so let's!!!

to help stand up against forced labour and human trafickking, you can go to this link here: http://chn.ge/heimalaysiapetition and sign up the petition.
really easy and insyallah, we'll make a difference!

"small deeds done are better than big deeds planned"

ingenieur life

2011-11-21T13:20:00.001+08:00

lately i've been quite stressed out with my life.

i haven't been eating nor sleeping right.
after work, i think about work, when i sleep, i worry about work, when i wake up the next day, i'm afraid to go to work.
all this constant thinking and worrying is because of my projects which i'm leading and i as the youngest engineer to do so, i lack knowledge, experience and sadly respect.

i've been running around the factory, trying to get things done, driving around to places to find parts which are always 'urgent' and at the same time, making sure that everything in the office is under control. nak buat process engineering and being a project leader at the same time is not as easy as i thought..

and to top things up, recently i just learnt something about myself that i'm not proud of.
and i have to thank my cousin for that. =)
we're so aware about the faults of people around us (whether we know them personally or not) but honestly, how aware are we about our own faults?
change is good but never is easy, especially if the change is for the better.

but now my head hurts just thinking about the many changes i have to apply on myself and of course, managing work.

i know i should just chill. but i can't.
i have a dateline to complete my projects, have the technicians to at least respect me enough to listen to me, to come up with a system to make work more manageable, and change.
it's not that i'm unhappy, i'm completely happy! but i'm just wound up with work.

hope it'll be ok soon, once i habiskan projects 5 ketul ni, i nak chill lama-lama and i hope the next time i'm going to lead a project, i'll gain these people's respect. pastu i nak muhasabah diri.
haha!

a wise person once said to me,

'the test gets harder when the reward is better'.

hopefully this is my test, and hopefully i can overcome this phase in my life.
insyallah =)

kepada adik2 saya,
jangan la nak rush rush nak bekerja. earning your own money sounds cool and stuff, but remember, you have to work for it. sabar k? =)

k la. lunch hour dah habis. time to sambung kerja.
assalamualaikum =)

...still having that gadget fever i guess =p

2011-11-16T00:02:00.001+08:00

teeheheee..

just an addition to my previous post =p

see what Samsung galaxy Note can do!

1. if you like doodling/designing/drawing/colouring/writing poems (pun bolehhh~)/etc etc, then you must check this out!!!

2. if you're working and you need to do your job while you're on the go, this note is very reliable and helpful!

&lt;p&gt;http://bit.ly/udX8g4&lt;/p&gt;

3. if you're a social butterfly and you're hooked tweeting and facebooking, see THIS, memang puas hati la nak stalk (ehem) orang, senang nak tengok, power mata pun maybe takde la increase =p, and takyah susah susah nak type guna jari on the touchscreen. use stylus sudehhhh =D

&lt;p&gt;http://bit.ly/sTHYpz&lt;/p&gt;

4. if you're the kind yang kena manage your time, see THIS! this note ada planner baek punya! =D

5. if you're all of the above, then you've probably wanna see its' portability =p

&lt;p&gt;http://bit.ly/tolFIs&lt;/p&gt;

therefore, i'd like to conclude that

this note is just everything i need!!

sekian,
terima kasih.

when gadget fever strikes

2011-11-11T00:48:00.001+08:00

for those of you who don't know.. wait..
i think memang not many know this pun.

i love gadgets~

i do~
but i'm not the kind yang want to have the latest gadgets. i just like to know the current technologies, new systems, new designs, that sort of thing. and i don't buy them on a whim. i really really analyse gadgets, read reviews and ask around if i consider on buying anything. it's not cheap kan. =\
and to me, the brands, they don't mean so much to me. if it's good in quality, performance and price (ahak!), then i'm good =p

anyway..
i saw this on the news haritu, and well well well.. technology has done it again!

this Galaxy Samsung Note, is some really awesome piece of thing i'm itching to get my hands on! See see seee!!

and i saw some videos of people revealing and checking it out on youtube. buat i jealous je. belek belek macam "oh it's no biggie, i got this for free, woohoo!"

aiseyman. i pun nak. you can watch the videos here (for english version), here (for malay version) and here (to see how it fits into pockets)~~

sebenarnya, i've always wanted to buy ipad or samsung tablet but i don't like the idea of carrying them. dah la besar gabak buat sakit shoulder je if i put in my handbag. and i imagine kalau i nak main angry birds or cut the rope or even watch my favourite series, people approximately 1 meter away from me pun boleh intai intai. i value my privacy you know! =p

so this galaxy note is like a combination of samsung tablet and galaxy phone tu, but smaller than the tablet and slightly bigger than the phone.

ehem..
allow me to speak geek-ish language from here forth ya? =B

samsung galaxy note has this new technology called AMOLED.
this new technology allows you to flip pages, play games or whatever motion on the phone 3 times faster than any other smartphones! the note is extra responsive, the colours, i expect, will be very clear and your wide angle viewing macam lagi best especially bila nak take pictures and stuff.

macam best kan?

this galaxy note also ada stylus (as shown in the videos linked) and you can just write up whatever you want instead of having to type it with your cute fingers.
which directly means... NO MORE TYPO!! hahaha! trust yana (petisuara) would wanna buy this, dia queen typo. wan (hentakbelipat) tu pun should get this. ha bagus la tu, pasangan dewa typo. muahahaha!!

and because the screen is big (5.3 inches yaw!) and HD, boleh la saya nak tengok movie sambil baring, sambil masak, sambil basuh baju, etc etc.
the best thing about benda ni, you can multitask!!
for example, i can watch a movie and download emails at the same time instead of kena bukak satu satu! ni memang functionality yang terbaekkkk!!

it's coming to Malaysia soon! i hope it's reasonable in price.. if i'm not wrong, DiGi and Celcom ada offers on it. should check that out..

for your information, from 11th Nov to 13th Nov, first 100 buyers will get free galaxy note cover with swarovski cystals. talk about bling bling taken to the next level yaw at PAVILION! first 50 buyers from Aeon tebrau (Johor Bahru) and Queensbay mall (Penang, i miss you) will also get the same thing. woohoo!

fiiuuhhhh!! i patut jadi duta samsung la..
oh well. today is just one of those days yang i rasa excited pasal something. hehee!!
have a good Friday!

salam =)

case compare dan complain

2011-11-09T01:15:00.000+08:00

assalamualaikum~

i don't really remember where i saw this, but a while ago, i macam ternampak (again i forgot where) a group of girls comparing themselves with random people.
example:
"cantik nya maria selena gomez (pun boleehhh).. untung lah.. dah la boipren asbieber (pun boleeehhhh)"

"untunglah husband hot"

"untunglah dia kaya"

"untunglah ni.. untunglah tu.."

- these are only examples ok! =p

so back then when i saw these kinds of comments, it's like.. men-downkan i.
i lak yang down! padahal diorang duk sibuk nakkan apa orang lain ada. motif kan?
but see, i rasa sedih tu, sebab we shouldn't compare.

rezeki diorang camtu, nak buat camane?
so what if we don't have their rezeki. we're all blessed anyway!!
we can read right? else you won't be reading this.
we can see right?
we can eat, taste, drink, talk, we can do so many things!
whereas there are people who are less fortunate than us. some can't see, some can't hear, some don't even know what internet is!

we are blessed.
we are fortunate enough.

it's time to stop comparing and complaining. i've made a video already about it kan? 'who wins' tu.
and here, i nak relate kan ngan bloggers. (and i'm sorry i bring this up)
a few times some people tag me on their blog posts, and some posts are about the number of followers on blogs. pastu duk compare compare. honestly, i rasa itu tak perlu.

anyway, when you compare, chances are; you'll become competitive for no good reason, you'll forget the rezeki that you already have, you'll become spoil in your own world, wanting and craving for something only you know, and because you can't get it, you'll get depressed. and when depression looms, negativity will become part of you.
when you complain, you're just wasting your time! lagi lagi when you complain and do nothing about it.
you can compare and complain, but there has to be a limit..

and we can't wish we're someone else or live someone else's life because it's not possible.
someone once said to me
"susah tau jadi i.." pastu ada sadface.
and i thought, well, it's never easy for anyone.

Allah swt has given us life, the life we're living, and is it 'nice' of us if we wished we can have another person's life?

be grateful. that's all it takes.
not confidence, not arrogance, not make up, not clothes.
nothing of the sort.

just be grateful.
maybe it's time to stop all this 'untunglah' thing. kita lebihkan 'alhamdulillah'. =)

if you really cannot get through the toughness in your life, you can't stop wanting something you don't have,
then here, let the words from Allah SWT guide you:

Surah Al-Baqarah

taken via phone (instagram)

Surah Ta-ha

taken via phone (instagram)

and so much more =')

life is amazing! we are all amazing!

it'll be a waste if you can't see how amazing it is (because you're too busy comparing and complaining =p)!

if you can, take some time in a day to read the Quran. =)

insyallah you'll learn new things everyday. and together, we share la ya!

حي على الفلاح

"hayya alal falah"

marilah ke arah kejayaan.

ps: sorry if i offended anyone. just want to give a friendly reminder =) sometimes we need that right! ahak!

peace.

Girl talk Part 2

2011-10-27T22:06:00.001+08:00

Assalamualaikum!

ahak ahak ahak!!

ahaaaaaaakk!

ok ok. mars, leklu.

last few weeks, ada 2 kereta awesome ni datang rumah.

my parents and i sambut la these awesome guests. =D

these awesome guests are Asfirdaus aka Dato's family!

his mom and dad happy betul! hehe!

so Asfirdaus's family came over to our house and our families met for the first time!

jauh gak their journey to come to our place. =')

so their purpose is to menjadi perisik. haha! joking joking.

untuk merisik.

heheee!! =p

ni berlakon je ya. =p

fatin and my-toya-looking-self presenting the ring. cantik dulang diorang hiaskan. aspidos claimed he designed it. eceeehh! =3

after discussion between our families, it's

woohoo!!

tokmak memang suka mencelah dalam gambar. hehehehe!!! comel tul!

after the whole discussion, we proceeded to the dining area and had some food prepared by my dear tokwan. tokwan memang best!

the men talked about serious stuff, while the ladies just talk about almost everything else. my cat ni suka menyibuk and fatin, pantang nampak my camera! hahaa!

my mom and asfirdaus's mom dah best friend, alhamdulillah!

(curi dari facebook mama. sorry ibu! muahahaha =p)

all in all, alhamdulillah syukur that everything went well. im glad that we're finally taking that step (eventhough this is just one small step) towards, insyallah, marriage.

kalau ada orang notice, my brothers aren't in the pictures.. they were busy with work and all, and if they were present pun, confirm diorang tak muat frame. haha! jahat sis diorang ni =p

and i'm sooooo glad that his family can accept me to be part of theirs. ye la, saya ni takde la perfect mana. still a lot to improve on myself. syukur.. =')

i don't think it's common for people to talk about risik time kan. but i'm sharing this part of my life because i truly appreciate your support and prayers for myself and asfirdaus to be together. insyallah, kalau Allah SWT izinkan, kita akan go towards what we prayed for. =)

please dear friends, pray that Allah SWT dapat permudahkan perjalanan kami semua dan sekeluarga.

thank you all so much!

how much cheese can you handle?

2011-10-21T10:44:00.000+08:00

so i went to Pizza Hut the other day and had a wonderful dinner with my beloved soon-to-be-insyallah-fiance. (fiance dalam islam sudah, fiance dalam melayu belum. sabar laaa! hehe!)
we had the cheesiest pizza evahh!!!

wahh!!
menu manyak cheese woohh!
apa ni? apa ni?

rupanya this month, Pizza Hut keluarkan the cheesiest pizzas, the Ultimate Cheesy 7 Pizza, whereby ada 7 types of cheese on one pizza iaitu *drumroll please* romano, monterey jack, parmesan, cream cheese, provolone, mozarella, and cheddar.
congrats, you can speak italian! hahahaa!

there are three types of pizza of this species: cheesy pepperoni, cheesy chicken and cheesy hawaaian chicken =D

For more info about the pizza set and stuff, you can go on to their FB page here

dato' and i chose to have the cheesy pepperoni =)

the whole combination of the pizza: the cheeses, the crust, and the pepperoni.. subhanallah, masyuk!
see!

very meliurkan!

and it's sooooo cheesy!

sampai..

cheesie from cheeserland wanted to be one of the cheese on the pizza!

siap ada orang tangkap gambar i makan the pizza!!

dato' cheesy-pizza-face pun jerit kegembiraan tauu!!

If you still can’t believe the cheesiness, fine!

Tengok la sini kalau tak caye! *click*

Oh oh, ada SMS contest!

The Grand Prize is RM100,000 cash! Siapa tak mau!?

And then ada 5 winners for 1^st prize, dapat menang LCD TV by Panasonic, model Panasonic viera

10 winners for 2^nd prize, dapat iPad 2 yo. Bagi I boleh? Mahahaha! Kidding =p

Lastly, 20 winners for consolation prize shall get RM500 Pizza Hut vouchers! Open table please! Hahaha!!

In conclusion, i had my cheesiest moments with dato' that day. and thanks to Pizza Hut''s cheesy treat, as we were heading back home pun tercheesy-cheesy with each other. is that too much info? ahak!

oh ya!

dato' cheesy-pizza-face said 'assalamualaikum, kalau tak jawab dosa, kalau jawab sayang'

eh, dia kenal maria kot?

hahahaha!! lame.. =p

so can you handle this much cheese?

minggu peliks

2011-10-21T01:41:00.000+08:00

allow me to rant my heart out.

after all, this blog is suppose to be about me.

my own perasan bajet bagus ngan muka kekadang mintak penampo blog. tapi takyah la tampar please nanti pipi tembam sebelah, sape nak betulkan? haih. dah start merepek. =p

andyvays, (anyways dalam bahasa igloo) (bahasa igloo doesn't exist, fyi)

to rant, or not to rant?

rant.

so a few days ago, i had a weird day. wait, scratch that. i had a weird week.

it wasn't so weird earlier this week. but tengah tengah tu.. astaghfirullahalazim..

on this one fine day, i kept dropping everything i hold. syndrome butter fingers yang melampau. dah budak mckk, jangan tiba2 perasan ingat i cite pasal band butterfingers tu ya. i know they rock, i love them too, but i'm talking about being clumsy.

best ke maria, type as if you're talking to people?

lantak.

andyvays,

i dropped my phone on numerous occasions. my phone ni agak la precious. bukan agak. memang precious gila la wei. so those times i dropped it, on hard floor, on carpeted floor, on tables, almost in the toilet (fiuhh!!) and on 90degrees elbows, rasa cam time stopped and the sound of the impact cracked my heart open.

melampau kan description?

but because it's precious, it's important and definitely not cheap, rasa sakit kot!

tapi motif jatuhkan phone? memang takde la. dia nak jatuh. aiseyman..

pastu bukan phone je.

books.

pens.

even PLC. nasib la PLC tu rosak. kalau tak, mampus nak kena bayar rm10,000++. memang boleh jadi makcik cleaner part time kat company i tu sepuluh tahun to pay back.

ok enough about workplace!

after work, i headed to midvalley kerana mau ketemu rakan-rakan.

it was raining heavily then, and on a slight corner, kereta depan kereta den punya brake lights dinyalakan, maka saya pun tekanlah brake.

pastu suddenly my car started swerving left and right and left and right!!!

woi!! i thought i was going to get into an accident!!!

it was so mighty scary, i cannot explain..

dah la i was driving my kembara!

so swerving left and right was really freaky because i don't want to topple over like an upturned turtle!

eventhough that sounds really cute, but it won't look cute if it was my car that's upturned.. alhamdulillah tak la.

alhamdulillah i managed to control my car. alhamdulillah i did not panic when my car swerved out of control.

alhamdulillah i did not cause any accidents as well.

=')

good thing also, i got a gift from my friend!

alhamdulillah. rasa ok balik =)

hehee..

the next day lak...

i walked into my office that morning. and i saw my boss and colleague looking at me in a way that, aiyo.. how to describe ek? that mischievous look sort of thing, you know? but i buat dunno je la.

and theeeennnn..

my other colleague ni datang kat i.

dia tanya saya, "apasal u itu macam? saya tada tau!"

i lagi la tak tau. i tanya la dia, apa pasal dia kan.

dia cakap "itu video u punya, kita sume sudah tengok!"

panggeling gelinggg *sound effect kaca pecah*

rupa rupanya, boss pun dah tengok..

apa tak diorang tengok i semacam pagi tu kan.

jangan cakap la. i memang tak mampu nak tengok bos lepas tu.

bukan merajuk. i was afraid he might not take me seriously. ye la. i'm supposed to be an engineer.. tak serious langsung bila dalam video kan.

haihh..

so my advise to you young ones.

if you plan to make youtube videos, think about the consequences you might face in future. you think you can stomach your future employers to know and watch your videos? if you insist, make your profile not related to your real name sangat la.. so if they google you, they wont find your 'other life'. ecehhh! hahaha!

but it's up to u.

oh tertinggal pulak. haritu masa tengah jog on the treadmill, i tersadung. yes. i tripped.

and then jatuh atas that board monitor thingy. orang kiri kanan tengok (kot), maka saya terus off-kan treadmill tu, took my bottle and walked away as fast as i could. malu teramat!!

oh well.

despite all the pelik-ness of these few days, i do have a lot to be grateful about.

and one thing's for sure, i have people that cares for me and of course, i thank Allah SWT for the experiences. hopefully i'll learn my lessons, and continue on trying to be a better person.

insyallah~

rasa macam nak makan popia.

maka saya berchillpopia lah!

place: istana budaya - Secret Life of Nora. memang terbaik!

dress: Poplook

shawl: Calaqisya

outer: Kimono wrap by Calaqisya

belt: Moschino hak milik ibu yang saya kebas. woohoo!

and my favourite photo of recent

place: UTP, Teronoh - 11th Convocation

shawl: Tepi Jalan (bukan nama kedai)

top: Primark

dress: Poplook

bag: CalaMan

my dato' is so handsome! hehehehee!!

and i really can't wait for this weekend =) hope everything will go smoothly, insyallah!

ps: another weird thing.. i've blogged so frequent this week!! pelikssss!!!!!!! okbye.

nak professional kena ada email professional =)

2011-10-19T17:54:00.001+08:00

Dear Sir/Madam,

RE: APPLYING FOR THE POST OF BLOGENGINEER

I, Maria Elena, am hoping to get a job at your establishment as a Blogengineer. Please see the attached resume for your perusal.

You can contact me at 6789998212 and greenismyfavecolour@gmail.com.

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

Maria Elena

++++

ok, this is just a mock cover letter! all the details are just made up but if you can draw your attention to the email, sounds silly isn't it?

andddd that's why i want to share this tip!

i know it's convocation season now which means all you fresh grads will or already have started looking for jobs!

that's great!

so about the email~

i pernah had the task to filter resumes to help my boss in my old company.

and a few potential employee he immediately rejects because of the email address. if he finds it too long, too complicated and weird, dia tanak tengok pun the rest. coz well, usually we put our emails at the top kan.

it's first impression.

according to his philosophy, if this person who wants to be employed, can't even have a real email address, how would he know this person is matured enough to work with him?

well, that's his philosophy. whether i agree or not, dia dah boss kot. means dia lagi tau pasal kerja dari saya yang noob ni kan. then, who knows brape ramai lagi yang thinks like him kan?

so that's why, it's really important to have a real email address.

and i strongly recommend myemail because your email address will be based on your name on your MyKad! if you don't understand why, well it's because you have to register with your real name and IC and then your email will have to be authenticated by JPN. ha, amik tu. serious gila!

myemail ni pun actually very good for those yang dah ber-family, working professionals and those yang nak start business because its got unlimited inbox size, dia punya e-billing system is very systematic and safe because they have tracking features that will make sure you receive the bills, save the environment because you're not using papers kan and so much more!!

you can check out other ways to optimise your myemail at Facebook too! =D

in conclusion, get one important thing right, which is your email address! and when you get on to the interview, then that's a different type of first impression!

good luck!!! =D

Johnson’s Body Care really know what women want

2011-10-17T11:45:00.001+08:00

Ladies and girls.

As a lady (ehem =B), I want to spread awareness about skin care.

Thing is ladies, I realize that our environment and climate is not so good for our skin. Sometimes it gets really hot, sometimes it’s very humid, sometimes very hazy, etc etc. Know what I’m sayin?

We all have to start thinking about protecting our skin!!

So how can we have nice and smooth skin, at the same time, protected from overexposure of sunlight?

Heard of Johnson’s Body Care? (I bet you do!)

Since I’ve started working, tangan and kaki jadi tan sampai nampak bekas jam and from my feet’s tan, you can tell I wear flats sebab ada rounded shape tu.

Yeah, sounds funny kan? but sometimes I felt embarrassed by it. Bila masuk rumah orang, time open house kan, I get so insecure when people look at my feet. Hehe!

Now what I do everyday before going to work is, I apply lotion called Johnson’s^® Body Care Naturally White Daily UV Lotion on my body (because it moisturizes as well! Woohoo!) and pat on a bit of Johnson’s Body Care Naturally White UV White Powder on my face, hands and feet. Alhamdulillah, my bekas jam and bekas flats tans are gone! Hahaha!

With these, your skin will be protected, and subsequently will be have healthy and even skin tone and helps bring out your natural fairness! =D

Ok so here’s the juice.

If you have this product (either one would be good), you can enter a contest called Johnson’s Body Care Fair and Radiant Photo Contest!

It’s simple really and I promise you, the prizes are AWESOME!!

1^st Prize Winner

· RM 2,000 Aster Spring facial and body treatment voucher

· RM 1,500 Topshop shopping voucher

· 1 x Johnson’s^® Body Care Hamper

2^nd Prize Winner

· RM 1,500 Aster Spring facial and body treatment voucher

· RM 1,000 Topshop shopping voucher

· 1 x Johnson’s^® Body Care Hamper

3^rd Prize Winner

· RM 1,000 Aster Spring facial and body treatment voucher

· RM 500 Topshop shopping voucher

· 1 x Johnson’s^® Body Care Hamper

10 Consolation Prize Winners

· RM 200 Topshop shopping voucher each

· 1 x Johnson’s® Body Care Hamper

Online Top Voted Winner

· 1 x Johnson’s® Body Care Hamper

Are you enticed?

You should be! Hehehe =p

If the prizes got you geared up, here’s how to enter it!

Submit a photo of yourself (and you HAVE to be a girl aged 18 and above!) which shows how beautiful you skin is! you can enter online and offline of course! =D

Online:

Purchase any Johnson's Body Care Naturally White Lotion or Powder
Log in to: So Soft, So Johnson's facebook page here
Fill in the fields required along with proof of purchase and submit 1 frontal pic that reveals the skin's natural fairness and even skin tone in the entry form downloaded from contest website
Pic have to be clear and visible to be eligible and qualify as entry or submission.

Offline:

Purchase any Johnson's Body Care Naturally White Lotion or Powder
Fill in the fields required along with proof of purchase and submit 1 frontal pic that reveals the skin's natural fairness and even skin tone and mail it to:

"Johnson's Body Care Fair and Radiant Photo contest"

Johnson & Johnson Sdn Bhd

Lot 3 & 5, Jalan Tandang, 46050 Petaling Jaya,

Selangor, Malaysia

3. Make sure your photo is clear and visible to be eligible and qualify for submission!

Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Let’s take care of our skin and win some prizes! Woohoo! =D

what's in your drawer?

2011-10-14T10:12:00.001+08:00

I’ve always loved Libresse’s adverts. They’re so cool and funny! I especially loved Adibah Noor’s ads with Libresse!

And recently, I saw a new Libresse advert which made me laugh like crazy!!

Serious, korang pasti gelak nya la! Click Here!

kelakar kan?!

But the point of the video is how stains are scary! And truly, they are!

So Libresse has taken the liberty to produce panty liners that’s practical for daily use. Woohoo!

There are two types of pantyliners:

Slim pantyliner which has different front and back with split at the rear to keep the liner securely in place and the Super Slim Pantyliner which is as flexible as your panty for comfort and ultimately, cares for your hygiene!

Libresse Super slim pantyliner, my personal choice because it’s super slim, light and comfortable!

Back to the video~

It’s about how scary stains are, and yes, apart from that, there’s a contest!

It’s called ‘The Drawer’ Contest.

Notice underneath the video, there are 2 contests? One is the ‘Go Crazy Quiz’ and the other is ‘What’s in your drawer?’.

The ‘Go Crazy Quiz’ is really easy! All you have to do is watch the video (and laugh!) and just answer the questions, referring to the video, describe Libresse in 3 words and show a proof of your Libresse pantyliner purchase! And you can easily win RM100 worth voucher from KFC. Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Hehee!!

The ‘What’s in your drawer?’ contest is fairly easy too! the cool bit about this contest is that you pick your prize first! And the prizes consist of MAC cosmetic set, IPad2, SK-II skincare set, LV bag and Samsung Galaxy S2. *slurppp!*

After choosing YOUR prize, then you upload a picture macam konon konon benda tu dalam drawer la.

Here’s an example!

Upload your picture, like so ->

And the picture will be in the video!!

you need to get as many votes as you can to win your prize! The more votes you get, the better but don’t worry! Coz it’s all fair and square because there will be judges who will choose winners based on creativity. And of course, you need to show a proof of your purchase of Libresse Pantyliner =D

really simple and fun! Do read the contest terms and conditions kayyhh!!

Heheee!

So good luck GIRLS!! And take care of your hygiene because Stains Are Scaryyy!!!!

kami ada suara =)

2011-10-11T01:32:00.000+08:00

*ketibas = ketiak basah

OK!

story concert Suara Kami dah melalut ke laut. gomenasai! and all that dialogues, please don't take it seriously and i hope i didn't offend Yuna (and fans), Faizal Tahir (and fans), Dato' Sri Mohd Najib (and fans) and Datin Seri Rosmah (and fans) in this post! i made it all up and just hantam suka hati i je. muahahaha!

tapi serious, sorry tau kalau terasa.

heee..

anyhoos, Suara Kami Concert was held on 17th September at Stadium Merdeka. although this post is quite basi, but nasib la. muahahahaa! saya selaku mix melayu cina & india (sila percaya), suka gak la the concert sebab masa concert tu, sume bangsa and agama, from performers to audience, had almost the same thought in mind.

we just wanna chill =)

from the pictures, you boleh nampak la yang i tak duduk ngan crowd kat padang sebab i am too old for this stuff (sape tengok how i met your mother, sila sengih). hehe!!

so yeah~

kami ada suara.

dan kami chill.

salam.

Makeup Story

2011-09-27T01:12:00.001+08:00

recently i went to a Maybelline New York Fashion Week Workshop and had the opportunity to meet really awesome people and importantly, i've learnt new looks we can make with makeup!

ahak!!
i know myself well enough that i'm not a makeup person.
i do wear them, but only at special occasions or events.
tu pun depends on my mood.

so at this workshop, i was taken aback with all the makeup, and for the first time in my life, i was actually excited!
ask Nisa and Cik Epal! i was sitting next to Nisa and practically ask her about all of Maybelline's products because.. let's face it. i don't own much makeup.
my basics are foundation, face powder, eyeliner, lip balm.
done.
but at the workshop, i was introduced to many more products which rupanya ada properties yang good for the skin! and from the workshop, tau la sedikit sebanyak techniques to wear them. myehehehe =p

anyway, more about the workshop, you can read them at Nisa's and MadamMondoq's blog on their experience =D

ehem.

few days ago, i had time, see. so i thought it'd be a good opportunity to make a makeup tutorial.
PLEASE PLEEEAAAAAASEEEE know that i'm not a professional make up artist, and i'm really noob at this!
but why am i so daring to share it?
sebab i boleh.
muahahah!
no la. because i thought, well, not all of us know how to wear makeup the right way. and there're so many tutorials out there but i know mine's annoying and full of gedik-buatan.
that counts for something. kot.

whatever.

=p

hope you enjoyed it nonetheless =)

jadi tak berlakon macam Michelle Phan?

Thunder

2011-09-21T14:51:00.004+08:00

Assalamualaikum~

it's raining really hard now, and along with the rain, are thunders and lightnings.

because of that, i feel like sharing this:

Surah Ar-Ra'd (Thunder)

13.11 For each one are successive [angels] before and behind him who protect him by the decree of Allah . Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves. And when Allah intends for a people ill, there is no repelling it. And there is not for them besides Him any patron.

13.12 It is He who shows you lightening, [causing] fear and aspiration, and generates the heavy clouds.

13.13 And the thunder exalts [ Allah ] with praise of Him - and the angels [as well] from fear of Him - and He sends thunderbolts and strikes therewith whom He wills while they dispute about Allah ; and He is severe in assault

*Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.
please read the full Surah. i find it really amazing. like how besar kuasa Allah SWT and how everything happens with reasons only Allah SWT knows. =')

let's hope that we can change for the better =)
have a good day people!
and may you find the rain, thunders and lightnings not troublesome. heee..

Not-So Wordless Wednesday: Analysis Report

2011-09-14T01:23:00.000+08:00

Salam

Please see below, printscreen of my instagram photos taken from oldest to most recent:

Analysis:

photo vs number of likes

1. 9 words women use - 25 likes

2. Surah Al-an'am - 9 likes

3. Surah Al-ma'idah - 3 likes

4. Vainpot during Raya - 29 likes

hypothesis:

(based on assumption only so takyah emo emo. kalau emo, gi amik wudu')

semakin vain gambar, semakin ramai like

conclusion:

lu pikirlah sendiri.

ps: bapak besar gambo gambo i! lantak lah. asal korang nampak. muahahahahaahahahahahahhaha! ok dah shh.

ambil berkat

2011-09-13T00:19:00.002+08:00

i think this is the first time i've attended a nikah of a friend. i felt very honoured to be part of it, more because i was Adriani's bridesmaid and i gave a speech! it was very impromptu and i majorly crapped myself out there. i was doing accents okay, and i don't think that's normal! haaha!! yanny, you asked for it!! =p

i didn't get to see the akad nikah but i was there before that (masa lunch hour tu! sempat!). demi kawan =)

the decorations of the room and her pelamin were simple yet very yanny-ish: they exuded softness and simple-girlishness. buat i rasa nak kawen je. muahahaha!

but oh the reception..

cantik yang amat!!!!

Yanny's dress was made by Jezmine Blossom and it was designed by both Yanny & Jezmine.

when i entered the dressing room, i was immediately taken aback by how beautiful the dress was!

and when Yanny had it on,

voila!!

a princess was turned into a queen =')

pelamin cantik gila!

bridesmaids gila!

happy gila =')

i am utterly happy for you both and i feel blessed that i had the opportunity to know Yanny before she became a Mrs. hehee!

may Allah SWT bless this newlyweds and may their future be filled with love and happiness.

amin.

should you need to ask me when it'll be my turn?

all i can say, if Allah SWT izinkan, insyallah it'll happen.

yes, perasaan nak kahwin membuak buak tapi SABAR LAH WEI! hehee!!

all pictures taken with my iPhone and Olympus E-PL1.