Coffee Break With Me

Weekend Kami Yang Lepas.

2010-03-07T19:36:00.008+08:00

Last week adalah menyeronokkan. Tetiba kami mengalami percutian mengejut sempena Hari Keluarga ofis saya.

Tempat yg dituju ialah Felda Hot Spring, Sg Klah di Perak. Dari KL cuma 1 jam lebih je. En Suami Terchenta seperti biasalah nak bertolak awal. Saya seperti biasa la, rilek je. Nasib baik kami sampai lambat, sebab rupa-rupanya bilik kami tak siap lagi walaupun tiba di sana pukul 3ptg!

Posing dulu sementara tunggu bilik siap...

En Suami merangkap driver pun nak posing jugak.

Tak sia-sia kami tunggu begitu lama, bilik kami adalah sangat anggun! Dengar citer, Uncle Deri lah arkitek yang men-design ini resort. Syabas Uncle Deri! Psst... boleh ke buat interior design utk rumah kami? (macam la byk sgt duit kau, Carneyz).

Katil single yang dicantumkan. Disappointed sebab tak dapat katil queen apa lagi sbb dah bayar RM200/smlm...

Kerusi yang tak digunakan.

Bilik besar dan selesa, kami pon suka hati!

Lepas check-in, apa lagi haruslah memenuhi tujuan utama ke resort ni - main air! Ada dua jenis kolam air di resort ni i.e. kolam air panas dan kolam air sejuk.

Tak tau apa maksudnya, tapi cuma fokus perkataan 'berendam' je :p Hehe.

Kolam air sejuk - kami main slide mengalahkan budak-budak sampai kena tegur dgn bos! Muahaha!

Isk... Tak abis-abis Suami Terchenta melompat macam kanak-kanak Ribena!

Dah bosan bermain-main air, satu lagi aktiviti yang menarek ialah merebus telur. 5 biji = RM2. Uniknya di sini, air panas ni ialah au naturel gitu.

Ni aktiviti yang unik di sini - rebus telur!

Boleh refer kat papan tanda untuk tempoh merebus telur ikut citarasa masing-masing...

Malam tu pulak, ada dinner bersama semua staff. Setiap family dikehendaki datang dengan tema masing-masing.

Cuba teka, apa tema kami??

En Suami concentrate dgr karaoke sampai buah tu tak sampai ke mulut beliau!

The next day, kena bangun awal-awal pagi lagi sebab ada aktiviti senam-robik.

Angkat tangan semua...!

Lepas senam-robik, semua dah kelaparan dan berpusu-pusu pergi ke kafe macam piranha. Lepas bekpes, aktiviti sukaneka pun dimulakan.

Comel sungguh anak colleague saya. Boleh saya makan dia tak?

Tengoklah budak2 ni sungguh teruja nak tangkap bola. Siapa tangkap bola paling banyak, team dia la menang

Lepas aktiviti - tolong hakim kira bola yang berjaya ditangkap...! Siyes comel.

Ni pulak aktiviti baling belon air ke belakang

Good catch!

Mak dan bapak pun turut bermain di padang. Ada permainan baling belon air ke belakang dan boling kelapa. Apa yang pasti, memandangkan orang yang menyambut belon air di belakang saya ialah bini bos sendiri, saya berhati-hati baling supaya beliau tak basah! :p Kalau tak, bersiap-sedia akan mendapat rating buruk tahun ni. Heheh.

Lastly, ini ialah satu percutian yang boleh dikelaskan menghiburkan. Saya puas hati. Mungkin sebab sebelum ni saya sebenarnya tidak la begitu teruja hendak pergi :p Ok Msjbox, apa lagi kita serbu Felda Hot Spring Sg Klah ni! (tapi nak pergi sini, kena poket tebal sket)

Benda Ini ialah...

2010-03-06T00:12:00.002+08:00

Dan jawapannya ialah...

Nak tau kat mana saya dapat benda ni, sila baca posting seterusnya! Family Day di Felda Hot Spring Resort, Sg Klah! ;p

Teka benda ini...

2010-03-03T00:12:00.000+08:00

Siapakah yang boleh menterror kan diri meneka benda ini???

Teka, teka... Jangan tak teka! ;)

Perkara Hari Ini dah Semalam

2010-02-26T23:41:00.000+08:00

Kawan-kawan, terlebih dahulu mari kita berselawat ke atas Junjungan Besar, Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. Terima kasih Ya Allah, kerana mengutuskan baginda sebagai Nabi kami dan kerana menjadikan kami Umat baginda. Salam Maulidur Rasul :)

Kamu tahu semalam saya sebok menghebohkan di FB akan bermain futsal di Ampang Sports Planet pukul 8 malam?

The real story is saya dan ofismet telah kena DITCHED. Sampai2 di sana, seorang pun tak nampak batang hidung. Dari satu court ke satu court, kami menjengok2 macam anak zirafah hilang ibu. Eh, anak zirafah hilang ibu kena jengok2 jugak ke? Bukankah leher zirafah panjang macam... zirafah??

Melalut. Anyway, kesudahannya ialah happy ending. Kami tetap meneruskan usaha gigih bermain futsal. Dengan strangers. HAHAHA! Sumpah. Kami buat muka bodoh pergi jumpa satu team yang ada players perempuan dan tanya,

'Hi guys. Boleh tak kiteorang join? Kiteorang baru je kena ditched. Sedey giler.' Tambah buat-buat muka yang tak tabah. Dan nasib baik percubaan nasib kami berjaya. Kalau tak. Sia-sia saja membuat ketabahan hati datang bermain futsal.

Oh yeah. Saya masih KAKI BANGKU. :(

Hari ni pulak, Suami Terchenta dan saya pergi ke Jusco. Konon-konon hendak membeli sepasang seluar jeans baru. Akhirnya tiada yang berkenan. Lalu kami menyoppingkan diri di Jusco, membeli barang-barang dapur. Bila nak keluar, dengan tak semena-mena adalah hujan. Sementara tunggu hujan berhenti, kami pun lepak di Starbucks membuat ini:

La~la~la~...

Baik-baik, jangan runtuh...

Hmm... fikirkan strategi seterusnya.

Siyes comel Suami Terchenta concentrate mengalihkan blok ni.

Keputusan berani runtuh!

Sepandai-pandai mengalih blok, akhirnya jatuh berderai jua!

Sesekali, bermain permainan tradisional (i.e. yang tak memerlukan elektrik dan Internet) pun sangat mengujakan. Hehe.

Biggest Loser Sister - It Starts In March!

2010-02-25T00:47:00.000+08:00

One of my favourite reality show is The Biggest Loser Asia which is currently at Episode 112.
Every Tuesday night (when I ponteng-ed my Quran recital class - saya seorang yang jujur) I will take hostage of the TV remote control and tuned in to Hallmark Channel to satisfy my sadistic desire to see who will be kicked out of the show.
AHAHAHAHA! Evil kau Carneyz, very evil...

Source: The Biggest Loser Asia Club's website

The first few episodes were really boring. The contestants kept going in and out of Prince Court Medical Centre that I wondered whether those people were really sick or it was just a part of PCMC's promotion strategies. I mean, demam pun nak kena masuk wad kat hospital paling mahal di Malaysia ke?

Then after one by one of the contestants were eliminated (mostly from the Red Team), things started to get more interesting. To be honest, I sort of hate-love the Red Team - they were annoyingly too patriotic (the remaining team members kicked Nadia out not because of her performance but because they preferred her to one of their countrymen).

But at the same time, I have always have a soft spot for losers - HAHAHA! So not true! OK, OK... I just want the show to continue having intense fights and competitions between the two teams for as long as Carlos remains in the game. BRING IT ON! *cats' claws gesture*

On the other hand, the Blue Team has become too much like the Brady Bunch that one of the contestants even declared, 'I will never vote for one of the Blue Team!' after kicking out poor Kevin. Tak ke kesian kat budak tu?? I totally and whole-heartedly agree with Kevin when he said, 'The Blue Team are heartless!' because they decided that Martha should stay and Kevin should be given the Jimmy Choo. Martha did not lose weight that week, and she got to stay because she was formerly in the ~~Brady Bunch~~ Blue team?

Meanwhile, Martha continued to annoy me because she seemed to have the 'I'm the youngest and cutest and my elder siblings will protect me' kinda mindset. Marilyn had to slog and push herself to make sure she did not fall below the yellow line so the team wouldn't face the heartache of choosing between her and Martha. Does that same thought apply to Martha? To me, she was like, 'Oh yeah, it's ok to be below the yellow line as long as Carlos is there with me'. She knows the rest will NEVER eliminate her over The Enemy even though her performance sucks.

Oh boy, she was wrong BIG TIME this week. Carlos miraculously lost 9kgs that week and that pushed Tony below the yellow line together with Martha. Tony who constantly showed good track record of losing weight pun telah disingkirkan. Drama, drama... I hope Carlos will continue to pull off big weight loss and competed against King David yang sememangnya sangat tidak sebulu dengan Carlos in the finale.

OK, enough of my favourite TV show at the moment.

Berbalik kepada topik cerita pada hari ini.

Kakanda saya sedang bersemangat waja untuk menurunkan berat badan. Sibuk memberitahu beliau sedang memakan pisang panggang untuk minum petang (pisang panggang adalah sangat tidak kewls, kakak). Kerana terikut-ikut kan pengaruh TV, saya pun mencabar kakanda saya dalam pertandingan:

"The Biggest Loser Sister"

Kamu semua membuat muka ini --> -_- <-- Apakah??

Ya, sejak kecil kami suka cabar-mencabar. Itukan ialah tanggungjawab adik-badek? Hehe. Kakak dan saya secara normal ialah semacam pasaran saham - mula-mula saya naik, dia turun. Dia naik, saya turun. Benar kan? Semasa kecil, sayalah budak gemuk yang selalu membontot kakak saya yang menjadi pujaan budak lelaki di kawasan perjiranan kami. Semasa di universiti, kakak saya mengalami kesihatan yang menggalakkan, sementara saya yang berpinggang ramping menjadi pujaan ramai (muahaha! ayat yang palsu belaka).

Tetapi sekarang akhirnya kami adalah setara. Ini ialah sesuatu yang merisaukan. Kami tak mau turun naik lagi, dan tak mau bersama-sama naik. Kami mau sama-sama turun. Biar gaji kami saja yang naik! HAHAHA!

Therefore, ini ialah syarat pertandingan kami:

1. Pertandingan dibuka kepada dua orang peserta sahaja - saya dan kakak.
2. Ukuran timbangan adalah dibuat setiap bulan - sesiapa yang berjaya menurunkan kg paling banyak, yang kalah akan bayar RM1.
3. Setiap 1hb bermula Mac, kami akan melaporkan berat timbangan terkini i.e. berat pada awal pagi (7am) di blog khas yang akan dirahsiakan URL nya (aisey, kejatuhan airmuka sekiranya pembaca blog tahu berat sebenar saya).
4. Bayaran akan dilangsaikan secara bentuk duit raya semasa Hari Raya Aidilfitri tahun ini.
5. Sekiranya peserta terkena buatan orang, secara automatik pertandingan dibatalkan tanpa kerugian pada mana-mana pihak yang membatalkan pertandingan.
6. Keputusan akan diumumkan di blog ini (dengan jumlah penurunan kg setiap peserta) e.g. Carneyz: -1kg, Kazoonka: -1kg.

Kamu rasa sungguh adil, kan? Fair & square!

Baiklah sister, mari kita mulakan pertandingan. Let's kick ass! Eh salah! Let's kick off the weight!

Our Wedding Photos Are More Than Just National Education Stuffs

2010-02-23T23:14:00.000+08:00

Three years ago, Mr & Mrs Junaidix got hitched in a simple, ~~low cost~~ modest wedding of the year. Sesuai la kan, mengikut Sunnah Nabi.

We did not have professional photographer capturing the once-in-a-lifetime moments.
We only had a pair of wedding attire each, which was meant for the nikah ceremony.
They were not made in Bandung nor Jakarta, but by a Chinese tailor in Wangsa Maju whom a friend of a friend told us was the cheapest tailor in KL.

The pinnacle of our simple wedding.
We. Printed. Our. Own. Wedding. Card. By. Ourselves.
...
Haji Bakhil would be proud to have us as relatives.

Because we are so stingy like Hj Bakhil, our wedding photos were mainly taken by my elder sister who was my wedding make-up artist slash photographer. Kata jimat kos kaannn... Nasib baik kakandaku yang baik hati tak hantar invois lepas tu.

Kerana photographer merangkap mak andam perlu amik gambar, pengantin kena touch up diri-sendiri!

Of course yours truly was the one who whipped out Photoshop and touch-up2 the photos afterward to make them look yummier and come out straight from a professional studio. After all, if you can't have it, fake it! Muahaha! After the wedding, I posted the photos on my blog and Flickr for the viewing pleasure of our friends who could not make it to our wedding due to the its 'oversea' location.

We never gave two hoots about them later.

A year passed by. Suddenly we were told that one of our wedding photos appeared in the National Service (NS) textbook!

Quick-quick sepantas kilat we checked our email and mailbox, in case we missed seeing the email / mail seeking for our permission to re-publish our wedding photo in a national level text-book. Nada. Nil. Zit. I guessed we were doing a national service of our own by posing for the benefits of national education. Hey, but those kids got paid, why didn't we???

And what happened to Intellectual Property right? What? Tak de IP? Kau tengok betul2 muka siapa yang sakan bersanding dalam gambar tu and tell me that again??

We figured that since it is for educational purpose, therefore we decided to just let the ministry off the hook. Dapat ~~publisiti~~ pahala kan. At least after this if we were caught in khalwat, and forgot to bring our marriage cert, we could always tell them to look up the proof in PLKN textbook. Satu Malaya tahu kami pasangan yang sah ye.

Tonight, boom! Deja vu. As I was bloghopping, I found a photo of my newly-wedded hand with my wedding ring on my newly-wedded finger in another photo:

You cilok my photo, I cilok yours balik! Hahaha! Taken from a blog - nama blog adalah dirahsiakan

Can't remember which photo? Let me show the original one:

Jari-jemariku yang masih suci dan dara semasa waktu itu

So, moral of the story.
#1. Just because our wedding is cheapskate wedding of the year, does not mean it won't get national coverage and mengalahkan wedding beratus-ratus ribu ringgit. So get creative, not expensive, uols.
#2. Learn Photoshop skills, and you'll save RM3k - can buy a complete bedroom set or pay off 5 months of your rental or even go for a luxurious domestic honeymoon.
#3. Watermark your photos, bebeh! Nanti orang suka hati cilok tanpa perasaan kesalahan, walaupun dia kerja dengan kementerian ok!

Untuk yang Tidak Berapa Shopaholics.

2010-02-21T14:27:00.000+08:00

Pernah tak korang terasa nak pergi shopping baju tapi macam malas nak keluar + tak de idea nak beli baju fesyen apa? Ataupun tengah cari inspirasi fesyen yang sesuai tapi malas nak keluar masuk dressing room? Yalah kan, kena tanggalkan tudung, bukak butang baju, tanggalkan seluar (ok la, korang tau la apa yang perlu dibuat semasa proses buka baju). Lepas tu, pasang balik, keluar cari baju lain, masuk balik dressing room dan mengulangi perbuatan yang sama.

Untuk someone yang tak suka buat benda yang sama berulang-ulang macam saya, process membeli-belah baju sometimes sangat meletihkan. Melainkan saya memang ada mood nak mencuba pakaian. Tapi selalunya tak. Ditambah dengan En Suami Terchenta, lepas 10 minit je dah buat muka boring. Dah bising nak balik. Dari ada mood, terus la mood jatuh merudum.

Sekarang mungkin tak lagi. Sekarang apa yang perlu saya buat ialah mencuba fesyen yang saya suka di Looklet. Macam main anak patung. Lepas tu bila dah jumpa 'Look' yang saya suka, saya boleh la try cari baju yang lebih kurang serupa dengan 'Look' yang dah saya create tu.

Contohnya:

Pakaian yang sesuai untuk keluar tengok movie dengan Suami Terchenta

Tapi melainkan duit korang berkoyan-koyan la kan, mesti korang akan try untuk cari pakaian yang versatil dan boleh pakai untuk apa saja. Contohnya, tank top hitam boleh dipakai untuk beriadah di gym atau sebagai vest untuk ke pejabat:

Vest hitam dipadankan dengan tracksuit maroon dan jaket hitam

Vest hitam dipakai dengan blaus lengan panjang, dan seluar hitam

So, yes. Ini ialah aktiviti yang sangat fun, sebab ada banyak choice pakaian dan aksesori yang boleh dipadankan.

P/S: Cubalah ada model lelaki jugak, supaya saya boleh try cari 'Look' yang sesuai untuk En Suami Terchenta.

Our Weekend Project

2010-02-14T13:03:00.001+08:00

Di department saya, asal meeting je, kakak yang buat tempahan makanan akan tanya kat saya,

'Dik, nak fruit tart ke?'
Saya pun akan jawab, 'Of course!'

>Sigh< Saya memang heart fruit tarts. Sampai kakak tu dah tak payah tanya lagi. Meeting saya je, ada fruit tarts. Fruit tarts je, meeting saya. Tea lady sorong fruit tarts masuk bilik meeting je, orang dah tau itu meeting saya. Wakaka! Dramatik kau, Carneyz!

Sempena cuti CNY, adik saya menghabiskan cuti beliau di rumah kami memandangkan semua housemates nya dah balik kampung.

4 hari bercuti tanpa plan apa-apa, haruslah kami berfikir untuk melakukan projek. Maka, dengan semangat tinggi + birthday adik pun dah nak dekat (esok!), kami launch projek besar-besaran di rumah!

Iaitu...

Weekend Project - by Carneyz & Miss Dekyah

Fruit Tartlets
Resipi adalah dicilok dari blog Dapur Kak CT. Yummy! Thank you Kak CT! :)

Wakaka! Saya malas nak salin resipi di sini jadi kamu haruslah rajin ke blog Kak CT yang marveles tu. Boleh bikin perut lapar.

Anyways, sebagai bukti usaha gigih kami dari malam semalam (membuat pastri / kulit tart adalah sangat menjenuhkan!), dilampirkan di sini sekeping gambar berukuran 578x408 px untuk makluman pihak tuan dan puan <-- apakah ayat skema ini?? :

Selama ni tau membedal je tak tau pun proses-proses membikin fruit tartlets ni. Sepatutnya untuk menambahkan kecomelan fruit tarts ni, perlu letak buah kiwi, buah anggur dan buah strawberry. Tapi di tengah-tengah bulan yang sempit ni, cuma boleh letak dua jenis buah - buah anggur dan buah kiwi.

Masa potong buah kiwi pula, rupa2nya buah kiwi itu tidak sehijau yang disangka! Kreatif! Kreatif! Therefore apa lagi, celuplah dalam pewarna merah kasi nampak anggun lagi sama fruit tartlets kami. Jeng, jeng, jeng! Anggun tak? Comel tak?

Rasanya pun sama macam yang selalu di order dalam meeting. In fact, kadang-kadang kulit tart dalam meeting rasa terlebih tepung tapi resipi Kak CT ni, pastri nya rasa manis dan secukup rasa. Boleh la meneruskan usaha gigih lagi lepas ni :)

Akhir sekali, saya nak ucapkan "Happy Birthday" kepada kakak dan adik saya yang bakal menyambut hari lahir ke *tuuuttt* pada 15hb Februari 2010 (esok!). Kepada kakak kami, kami akan makan fruit tarts ni bagi pihak beliau *wink*

Also, Happy Chinese New Year to all my friends who celebrate CNY!

Merepeks bila tidak boleh tido

2010-02-12T01:17:00.000+08:00

Jam sudah pukul 12.21am. Saya masih terkebil2 di depan lappie. Sudah jelajah alam maya satu round, bermuka-buku sekejap dan membaca berita yang semakin hari semakin mem-buhsan-kan. Politik, kes skandal, dadah. Apa, belum ada lagi ke berita orang Malaysia cipta kereta tak payah pakai petrol yang ekonomi (sumpah, lepas ni saya tak de kerja kerana kompeni jugak tak de bisnes minyak lagi).

Haih.

Minggu ni sedikit aman tenteram di ofis. Tapi jiwa saya kacau. Kamu tau tenteram tu macam mana? Bukan tenteram yang selamat, tapi tenang sebelum ribut melanda. Kamu tau kan, sebelum ribut menggila angin sepoi2 bahasa pun tak rasa? Perasaan tu la yang sedang melempar-lemparkan diri di dinding hati saya.

Lately saya rasa penat. Seolah beban-beban yang berat dan besar sedang bertenggek di bahu kiri dan kanan. Aih, itu bukan malaikat 'Atid dan Raqib. Itu beban emosi. Ada beberapa kategori beban emosi yang sedang bergayut-gayutan di hujung hati saya:

1. Beban kerja - ini semua orang tau. Tak payah cerita lanjut. Bukak saja Archive, walaupun blog ini dinamakan 'Coffee Break' tapi adalah sebenarnya tipu-daya sahaja. Lebih mirip kepada melontar perasaan stress gara-gara kerja.

2. Beban kewangan - kerana saya ialah berdarah jenis 'A'. Semua adalah mahu dibuat. Rumah yang baru dibeli, perlukah renovation besar-besaran? Tapi mau sambung study. Dan juga, mau start projek juta-juta sekarang terpaksa pakai khidmat pakar. Dalam hidup saya, semua perlu dibuat SEKARANG. Tiada scheduled delivery. Saya tidak punya kesabaran yang tinggi. I WANT IT NOW! ((sah saya adalah Gen-Y))

3. Beban relationship - in case ada yang tidak sepatutnya ada di sini sedang membaca. Saya simpan saja perkara emo di dalam hati. Tapi hakikatnya, saya tidak tau apa masalah mereka kerana mereka pun tidak mau berterus-terang dengan saya. Mungkinkah ada kelemahan saya, miscommunication atau sekadar suka-suka mencari nemesis? Hmm. Office politics memang adalah sukar ditafsirkan. Walaupun saya buat-buat tidak kesah dan tidak mau macam orang patah hati (kenapa perlu macam LOSER, sedangkan saya tak rasa begitu?) tapi subconsciously saya still stress juga berdepan dengan orang sebegini.

Oh ya. Juga kerana ada spesis kawan yang masih lagi gatal mulut bertanya bila nak timang anak:

Senario:
Saya: Hello. Tahniah sebab ko dah dapat baby :)
Gatal mulut: Makaseh. Korang bila nak ada anak pulak? Still planning lagi ke? Aku yang kawen lagi lambat dari ko pun dah dapat anak. Potpetpotpetpotpet...
Saya: ... -_- <-- tiada jawapan. (lebih baik aku takyah contact ko, camni malas la nak tengok baby ko kalau setakat nak dengar betapa terer nya ko buat anak)

Kalau anak tu buat dalam oven Panasonic kami, dah lama kami buat ok. Tapi zuriat itu datangnya dari Allah maka haruslah bersabar dan berdoa dgn kami supaya dapat anak kembar (erk. Apakah??)

Dan honestly. Sejak saya berkawen, saya sudah jadi tidak pandai meluahkan buku hati saya. Saya pun tak pandai bercerita dengan Suami Terchenta, sebab saya takut lepas tu beliau akan jadi semakin ringan. Sudah la lepas kawen dia jadi lebih ringan (sebab pikul beban sendiri + pikul saya), therefore saya tak mau membebankan beliau lagi dengan beban saya. Akhirnya memerap-pekasam kan semua emosi di dalam hati sendiri. Sometimes our soulmate, the love of our life, the very best of best friends, tak boleh jadi tempat mengadu macam best friend yang lain. Sebab antara kita dan dia, ada dinding perasaan. Kita sayangkan beliau, tak mau beliau sedih kerana kisah duka kita. Bukan adalah kerana kita mau berahsia dengan beliau sesuka-hati.

Argh. Lagipun, siyes sudah tak pandai meluahkan perasaan. Saya tak tau dari mana hendak mula bercerita sekiranya mau pun.

To all my best friends, I miss you. I miss Eva, and the times we used to share our problems under the starry sky while eating ice cream on the swing. I miss Agatha, and the times we used to hang out during weekend to discuss our life's events. I miss that best friend who broke my heart, and the times we swapped stories in the library. I miss Mamat, when we used to run together and pour secrets at the wee hour. I even miss my guy best friend I could share about anything that bothered me and then we laughed and things are ok again. I miss Fab 5, the way we always looked out for each other.

Sudah penat menumpahkan sedikit rasa. Hopefully Tuhan akan kabulkan doa saya.

Saya mau happy.

Selalu.

Forever and ever.

Ketemu dengan life passion. Sesuatu yang boleh bikin jiwa saya teruja setiap kali bangun pagi.

Tuhan.

Legion 2010 - Where God Is The VIllain and Old Folks & Children Kill People

2010-02-01T13:23:00.000+08:00

Last night, after checking out GSC cinema rating for this movie, Suami Terchenta and I decided that we should go and watch this movie for ourselves (that, and the fact that Sherlock Holmes was not showing last night). After 2 hours in the movie, Suami Terchenta came out confused and I came out feeling like I'd wasted RM23 of my hard-earned salary.

Plot:

An out-of-the-way diner becomes the unlikely battleground for the survival of the human race. When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity's only hope lies in a group of strangers trapped in a desert diner with the Archangel Michael.

Source: Legion 2010 Official Site (About)

So, the story started with this bunch of miserable characters stuck in the middle of nowhere, each with their own complicated issues. As they were getting on each other's nerve, in walked a cheerful old lady (I mean, really old lady) who sat down, greeted everyone and ordered steak. All of a sudden, she got really grumpy about her steak (I would too, considering the state of hygiene the dine-in practices!) and she started to curse the baby in the waitress' womb. Granny suddenly got so agitated, she bit off another customer and transformed into Spiderman!

Credit: Moviedime.com

I have to admit I got freaked out at this Granny. Grannies are supposed to be sweet or formidable, not jumping off and crawling on the wall and ceiling. So, that's the first outrageous BS that came up during the movie.

Credit: Guardian.co.uk

The second BS came a little while later, after they shot the Grandma dead. A man drove up to the dine-in, and introduced himself as - (gasp) - the Angel, Michael. C'on, this man is tattooed all over his body, and he's an angel? He looks like he belongs to some punk clubs, not God's House of Angels. Never mind, maybe the movie needs a tough-looking character to boost its popularity amongst female viewers.

Michael came, all business-like, started to distribute fire-arms and told them the Granny was possessed by angels. Not demons, or evil spirits or anything. That's BS no. 3 for you. As one of the characters rightly put, 'I don't know which version of the Holy Book you read, but in mine, angels are supposed to be the good ones!'

Then horror of horror, here's the biggest BS and bombshell Michael drops - that God is tired of humankind and wants to exterminate them from this Earth. Michael seemed to think he knows what's best for God and excuse me again, like who are YOU again?

The director seems to got really disillussioned here. Someone who knows better than God? God is the Ultimate of ALL BEINGS, and here comes somebody who seems to know better than He does. The stupidity of this movie was enough to give me stroke.

Michael preached about how humans, the object of God's love have fallen into disgrace through greed, murders and wars. Yet the one who will lead humankind out of the darkness is a child born out of wedlock. The one Granny cursed to 'f***in' burn in hell'. It's like murder is bad, and a thief will punish a murderer for the act of crime committed. Or does it mean that fornication is not a big Sin anymore?

Apparently not to the Director. To him, it's ok to curse the Archangel with the letter 'F' and it's ok to lead people to believe that God is indecisive? Like, first He disgraced Michael for disobeying him and defending the bad bad humans, then He changed His mind and restored Michael the glory of being an angel again for showing compassion? Huh? No wonder Gabriel looked confused for being the faithful one. So, yes. Sex out of wedlock is acceptable in this movie.

Please la... God is nowhere that shallow. He's the Almighty God, for God's sake! Everything He planned has been laid down in His Books, i.e when Earth was created and when everything should end.

My rating: 1/10 (deduct '9' largely due to the overall storyline and concept).

The only good thing that came out of this movie was us on the way back refreshing our religious knowledge - like, the names of angels and their roles. So, let's give a little test to the blog readers:

10 Angels That Everyone Should Know

1. Gabriel / Jibrail: God's Archangel and Messenger to the Prophets.
2. Michael / Mikhail: His role?
3. Ridhwan: His role?
4. Maalik:
5. Raqib:
6. 'Atid:
7. Munkar:
8. Nakir:
9. Izrail:
10. Raphael / Israfil:

No prizes for all correct answers, except that we all could refresh our knowledge :)

Bersuka-ria di Air Terjun Gabai

2010-01-31T10:59:00.002+08:00

Semalam adalah hari yang sangat fun.

Telah keluar berpoya-poya dengan suksesnya bersama Fab 1+1.

Fab 2 telah terkena buatan orang, dan sejak itu telah muntah-muntah dan tamo keluar rumah.

Fab 3 & 4 jauh di perantauan. (Sapa suruh buang diri di sana?)

Dan saya selaku Fab 5 telah mengkidnap En Suami Terchenta untuk join sekaki, bersuka-ria di Air Terjun Gabai.

Ada menarek?

Malam sebelumnya, Cik Nana telah calling2x:

Nana: U jadi tak pergi piknik di Gabai Falls ni?
Carneyz yang comel : Jadi, jadi... I nak bawak nasi lemak tau.
Nana: Ok, I bawak sandwic dengan air.
Carneyz yang comel: Pukul 4pm di Lookout Point tau. Jangan lambat.

Pukul 4.30pm, baru tiba di Lookout Point. Cis. Sungguh janji Melayu. Bukan salah kami, kebetulan hari ni ialah hari Thaipusam, dan kami tinggal di Batu Caves. Sungguh kelupaan.

Mujur kami datang lambat, therefore boleh la parking di dalam. Bayaran masuk ialah RM1 seorang. Boleh la, memandangkan kawasan air terjun ni perlu dijaga. Kalau tak, mungkin lebih menyerupai tempat pelupusan sampah-sarap. Rakyat kebanyakan masih punya mentality yang very pathetic, suka mencemarkan kawasan pelancongan.

Anyway, setibanya di sana, kami terus la tergedik2 menaiki tangga dengan semangat tinggi. Halfway, kami sudah pancit. Huhu..! Terus la berhenti di separuh jalan, dan cari port sesuai untuk berkelah. Maka aktiviti pertama ialah melantak nasi lemak. Aiseymen. Terlupa ambil gambar kami bersantap dengan seleranya.

Tiba-tiba datang seorang pakcik lalu menengking kami, 'Hoi! Siapa suruh turun ke situ? Tak nampak ke tempat masuk tu bertutup??' Amboi, budi bahasa budaya kita... penat YB Najib promote budi bahasa dengan iklan menelan belanja juta-juta. Tapi, mungkin pakcik tu concern takut kami jatuh tergolek2 ke bawah. Saya boleh bayangkan betapa comelnya kami bergolek-golekan macam kentang dari puncak air terjun sampai ke bawah. Sebelum pakcik tu datang dan tolak kami semua, perlulah berkemas-kemas untuk cari port lain.

Akhirnya memutuskan untuk turun semula ke bawah. Lepas meletak barang-barang makanan, kami teruslah menyerbu air terjun yang dingin.
SEJUK TAU!
Tapi fun giler, wa cakap lu.

Macam kanak-kanak hingusan, kami menyerbu ke bawah air terjun macam orang tak penah jumpa air sebelum ni. Dan apa lagi, sesi cam-whoring pun berjalan:

Best giler water therapy!

Encik Suami Terchenta pun tak nak ketinggalan, bercam-whoring sama-sama:

Siapa ambil gambar saya tengah tak bersedia ni? Dilla, gigit karang!

Thank you Nana & Dilla, sebab ajak buat aktiviti wiken yg menarek. Sebenarnya malam semalam kami nak pergi ke Kampung Kuantan jugak, nak tengok kelip-kelip di malam hari. Tapi bila sampai di rumah, hujan membuatkan plan kami terbantut. Lagi kerana review di Internet mengatakan lebih baik sampai di sana sebelum pukul 11pm. Therefore, maybe next time buat aktiviti Tom Sawyer, bak kata Dilla.

Lastly, gambar kami berempat:

Air Terjun Sg Gabai cuma terletak 30minit dari KL. Nak pergi ke sana, kena melalui Ampang menghala ke Lookout Point. Seterusnya, straight sampai ke traffic light dan belok ke kiri. Dari traffic light, akan mengambil masa 20 minit lagi untuk sampai ke air terjun. Kemudahan di sana termasuk surau, bilik air dan jugak gerai menjual makanan. Pelawat dikenakan bayaran RM1 seorang (dewasa) dan RM0.50 untuk kanak-kanak. Weekend adalah amat penuh dengan orang mandi-manda, so datang awal / lambat macam kami. Jangan lupa bawak makanan tapi silalah jangan buang sampah merata-rata. Anda akan dimarahi oleh pakcik yg garang. *wink*

Hidup cuti-cuti Malaysia!

Di mana kotak komen...?

2010-01-31T00:45:00.006+08:00

Ramai yang telah mengkomen blog saya tak de tempat komen.

Apakah...?

((( Saya terkedu sebentar)))

Hakikatnya, blog saya ada kotak komen, di mana anda semua boleh menokok-tambah cerita saya. Saya suka cerita saya ditokok-tambah. Hehe.

Baiklah kawan-kawan yang dihormati. Mari saya ajar anda cara-cara mengkomen di blog saya:

1. Mula-mula haruslah pergi ke blog Carneyz.com:

2. Then click di atas ikon kotak dialog (bubble talk) macam di bawah:

3. Lepas tu anda akan dibawa ke page untuk mengkomen. Very appreciate sekiranya anda komen dengan meninggalkan nama.

Senang bukan? Hopefully anda semua boleh memanfaatkan kemudahan kotak komen dengan jayanya.

Selamat mencuba! :)

Bersyukur la jadi...

2010-01-29T18:47:00.000+08:00

Semalam saya baru balik dari Kuantan. Trip 2 hari. Macam biasa, uruskan program. Penat, tapi saya rasa terhibur sedikit. Kawan-kawan dari Kerteh sangat heaven. Saya memang heart mereka semua :)

Anyway, dalam program ada satu slot bersama Ustaz. Ustaz kami telah membuat lawak yang saya rasa, sungguh la outrageous tapi boleh diterima akal.

Lawak Ustaz #1: Bersyukur
'Kamu,' Ustaz menunjuk seorang participant.
'Kalau Allah jadikan mu babi, mu suko dok?'
Sepantas kilat, beliau menggeleng-gelengkan kepala.
'Bakpo mu dok suko?' Ustaz tanya.
'Iskh... haram Ustaz. Najis berat...' Beliau menjawab.
Semua orang angguk-angguk kepala, tanda setuju.
Semua kecuali mereka yang berkecuali (hehehe...)
'Kamu tau dok, babi tu setiap hari mengucap 'Alhamdulillah' sebab dia lahir sebagai babi.' Ustaz berkata dengan sangat serius.
Erk. Apakah??
'Sebab dok ramai orang makan dia. Alhamdullilah, ana jadi babi, tak dok orang nak makan ana...'
'HAHAHAHAHA!'Tiba-tiba dewan bergema dengan gelak ketawa.
'Mu tau dok, ayam tu makhluk yang paling susah hati? Sebab orang Melayu, Cina, India semua makan dia. KFC dok sibuk carik ayam.'
OMG. Ustaz ni dari mana la beliau dapat idea yang sungguh outrageous ni?

Lawak Ustaz #2: Lembap
Ustaz dok pandang saya tengah cek email.
Maklumlah walaupun tengah outstation, haruslah saya tidak mengabaikan kerja di ofis pada saat-saat genting ni.
'Ustaz nak cek email ke?' Saya tanya dengan sopan-santun. Segan ma.
'Kalau tak menyusahkan.' Ustaz pun bersopan-santun dengan saya.
Lepas saya log out, saya pun beri Ustaz pinjam notebook.
'Maaf la Ustaz, Internet lembab sikit.'
'Lo... kalau lembap, mu lap la dengan kain buruk.' Ustaz dengan selamba menjawab.
Apakah???

Hehehe. Sungguhpun begitu, Ustaz sangat la berdedikasi dengan tugas beliau. Selain dari CEO kami, dia orang kedua busy dalam company.

Huaargh. Hari ni sangat la malas. Tapi saya rasa seronok sebab dapat cuti 4 hari. Cuma tak best nya, Suami Terchenta tak dapat cuti. Huhu... Kalau tak, saya dah lama beli tiket balik Sarawak. Tapi, sebab kami baru-baru ni membuat 'investment terkejut', jadi tak dapat la nak balik ke sana.

Hmm. Mungkin hujung bulan depan, saya mau ajak Bonda Terchenta datang ke sini sempena besday beliau.

CSR - The House Makeover Experience

2010-01-24T23:56:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I spent the whole day helping to make over a senior citizen's house. Yes, it was one of our company's CSR activities. If there was one thing I like about working where I'm working now, it is the passion and compassion people have towards helping other less fortunate people. So in that spirit, we all woke up really early and left home at the crack of dawn to Batu 18, Hulu Langat.

The humble shack we visited - before the makeover

Every time we had CSR activities, it never fails to make me realise how lucky and blessed my life is. I know sometimes I feel miserable about work, work and work environment (no Fab 5 to cheer up my days). But at the end of the day I have Suami Terchenta to go back to, my family back at home, a regular paycheque to keep life going sweet and smooth.

Others may not share the same privileges that I have always taken for granted. Take the example of this makcik we visited yesterday. She is a spinster (unmarried lady), with no family, sebatang kara. She was so lonely that she caught a cat to cheer her up and kept it on leash so it won't run away. Unfortunately, the cat died after that. She was still asking for the cat's replacement when we visited her.

The house after we painted it - and in the middle of getting her possessions out of the house

When I first peeked into the house, the condition was enough to make me feel depressed. That was just one look - the makcik spent every day waking up to the depressing state of her house, the musky smell of damp floor, trapped stale air and whatever that had stayed permanently in the house for years.

She had no bed, not even a mattress to lie down on. Her bedroom was unfit to live in (except for mice), so she slept in her living area, on a hand-me-down carpet that emanated a smelly odor around the house. She did not have any furniture save for a small dining table and a slightly bigger but worn out table where she put her food supply (some had even passed the expiry date). Since she did not own a cupboard, she hang her clothes on a stick which she hang on a corner of her living room, and behind the hang clothes were the clothes rack where she kept donated clothes (some were not even in good conditions).

As we were clearing her house, a few mice appeared from nowhere and ran all over the place. The girls screamed and ran out (including moi). Thankfully nobody passed out. Hehe.

We separated a few good things and threw out the rest that we deemed broken and un-usable. Then we washed dirty things, took out her carpet and threw out her very old, rotten tikar getah (vinyl mat) so we could install a new one. After her house was cleared, we gave her wall a coat of whitewashed paint to brighten the interior of her house, washed her window, painted the window-sill and her front door, and then fitted in the vinyl mat.

Instantly, the house was transformed.

The smelly odor is gone, the brand new vinyl mat is fitted in and the wall looks brighter after it's painted

It was a far cry from the place we saw in the morning. We put in new furniture in her house including a new bed, a new wooden cupboard and canvas cupboard, as well as a new cooking cabinet. We fitted in new bedsheet, new curtain and new bathroom cabinet. Then we organised her food supply including the ones we bought for her and taught her how to use the electric kettle and the new gas stove. The makcik looked all flustered but happy once her house resembled more like a house than just a run-down shack.

Outside, her house compound was also transformed. The men had cleared out the lalangs, overgrown branches and her drain. It looked 10 times more spacious than before.

No more lalangs around her house compound

But at the end of the day, I still felt really sad for her. Sure, she may have a more live-able space to spend the rest of her days, but when everybody left, she was all alone again. I wish we could give her something more than just materials, but we could not.

My colleague brought his son with him to the makcik's house. As he was working, his son lay down on the floor and played by himself. The makcik could not stop looking at the little boy with longing in her eyes. She kept on saying, 'Kimi duduk dengan makcik ye. Nanti Kimi duduk dengan makcik, nak tak?' all the while holding the boy's hand. The boy, in all his innocence, shook his head and withdrew his hand.

It just broke my heart. All she ever wanted was someone to love and banished the loneliness she felt in her heart. It was the same pain I felt when I did my first CSR - this 15-year old girl who was from Sarawak, abandoned by her mother at the orphanage and suddenly she met a fellow Sarawakian who understood her language and hugged her and listened to her story. And suddenly it's time to leave - and she stared miserably and longingly at this someone who could be her big sister - someone who could love her and not just take care of her.

I still could not find the courage to find her again - because I could not bear to break her heart again.

I want to always remember this feeling - that life has been kind to me no matter how crappy I feel nowadays.

I don't have a close friend in my office to talk to, like last time? The makcik does not have anybody to talk to all these years.

I don't have any kids and my biological clock is bugging me? The makcik never found her partner and never could have kids at her age.

I don't like my job and I wish I could quit my job now? Well. I guess at least I have income that I could spend helping other less fortunate people.

Sometimes people, you will never know how good life has been for you. Not till you have gone out and helped others who never had the life you have. So, whenever you have the chance, go and help others. Because giving never makes you feel poorer, it makes you feel richer.

At least that's how I felt. G'nite folks!

Early Morning Trippin': Broga Hill

2010-01-17T21:03:00.000+08:00

Psst. Kamu nak tengok aksi2 hyper kami pagi tadik??

Puas.
Walaupun terpaksa keluar dari rumah seawal 5.30pagi.
Lagi terpaksa parking sebatu jauhnya dari kaki bukit.
DAN.
Melawan graviti untuk sampai ke puncak.
Tapi kami puas.

WELCOME TO BROGA HILL, BEBEH!

Buat sesiapa yang tak tau Broga Hill tu apa, dan kat mana. Broga Hill terletak di Semenyih, half an hour je dari KL. Ia ialah tempat hiking yang sangat tinggi, dengan view yang sangat chantek. Macam kat overseas gitew. Silalah google Broga Hill.

Sebenarnya senyuman dalam gambar ialah senyuman lepas sejam sampai ke puncak. Nak sampai ke puncak, Tuhan saja yang tau! Mintak nyawa ok! Korang ingat kami boleh melompat kijang terus lepas naik ke puncak tu?? Oh tidak! Serius capek. Pancittt....

Saya sendiri yang jadi tukang bikin plan terkejut mau menangis2 tergolek-golek nak sampai ke puncak. Hanya sebab respek dengan CM & Kak CT yang steady menapak ke puncak bukit memaksa diri saya kontrol ~~macho~~ cun walaupun setiap inci peparu saya nak terbakar! Jantung saya nak pecah! Hati saya haru-biru sebab tak bawak makanan hatta sekeping coklat pun, dan perut pon mula buat lagu keroncong.

Penat.. fuhhh... penat... penattttt....

Sampai je di puncak, CM & Kak CT kelihatan tersepuk di sebalik lalang tinggi. Sama-sama capek. Tapi saya harus bagi kredit sebab berjaya sampai ke puncak lebih awal dari kami. Hehe. Walaupun Kak CT baru baik dari gastrik, dan CM terpaksa makan ubat darah tinggi dengan sekotak air Milo. Caya lah! Akhirnya hasrat CM nak amik gambar sunrise terbantut, sebab nak angkat kamera pun dah tak terdaya...

Sama-sama melepas lelah di sebalik lalang...

Lastly, naik bukit dan sekian mencabar, nak turun bukit pun tak kurang mencabar. Silap teknik, jadilah macam Suami Terchenta - sakit pinggang. Kesian En Suami... Nasib baik ada ubat di rumah.

Apapun, akhirnya berjaya jugak mencapai hasrat untuk merakam gambar di Broga Hill ni. Thanks CM & Kak CT yang sporting join kami, dan En Suami Terchenta yang sekarang sedang mengalami masa kecederaan.

Nak hiking kat Broga Hill lagi? Maybe not now!

What would you do?

2010-01-10T22:28:00.001+08:00

What would you do when you're angry but no one cares? What would you do when you keep dreaming of yesterdays? Or when you feel like you're trapped in your life?

What would you do when your life seems out of control and you feel like you'll never ever climb out of this misery, coz no matter how hard you try things still stay miserably the same? What would you do when friends are too far to warm your heart?

What would you do when you try to tell someone how you felt but couldn't find the right words?

I'm asking you. What would you do if you are me?

When Life Gets A Little Too Boring...

2010-01-08T00:44:00.000+08:00

... I take a hike up the hill.

One fine morning in Bintulu, I decided to do something that I had not done for a long, long time. That is, going hiking up Bukit Nyabau. Seronok, wa cakap lu! Even my mom who was dead set against abusing her knees agreed with me that it was worth it.

Aiyoh. You never go hiking, memang la tak tau apa-apa. Wait until you see these pictures:

Berjalan-jalan di dalam hutan

Mula-mula kita panjat bukit dengan kecuraman 90 darjah!

Alamak. Baru berlaku runtuhan tanah. Tak boleh pijak di situ, nanti jatuh.

Ok. I'm starting to get the hang of hanging off the cliff.

Yaay! Berjaya!

Adik pun sukses!

Bonda sangat bangga sebab berjaya mendaki tebing yg curam.

And then, you are rewarded with this view from atop

Another fascinating thing about hiking is coming across exotic plants, like this pitcher's plant:

And a really beautiful flower:

Psst. Who wants to go hiking at Broga Hill next week? :)

Adventure junkie - Trip ke Gua Niah

2010-01-06T23:12:00.000+08:00

Perbuatan sekarang: Menonton Giuliana & Bill di Astro channel 712. Giuliana sgt comel. Bill bawak Giuliana naik small aircraft tapi minah tu cuak giler. Omg. Kalau saya jd minah tu saya akan mintak hubby saya bawak smp muntah darah. Sgt meninggikan adrenalin ok!

Talking abt adrenaline. Dua minggu lepas saya menjalani adventure di Gua Niah. Haruslah bila balik kampung halaman mencuri kesempatan melawat tempat menarik di negeri sendiri. Sebab. Air muka saya terjatuh tiap kali orang tanya, 'Kau pernah Gua Niah kan?' Biar saya membuka pekung di dada. INI IALAH PERTAMA KALI TELAPAK KAKIKU BERPIJAK DI GUA NIAH *lariiik!*

Sangat kesian kan. Tapi takpelah. Better late than never! Trip ini ialah sebenarnya tak dirancang. Otw balik dari rumah Kakanda Terchenta tiba-tiba kereta kami melencong ke Gua Niah. So bermulalah aktiviti paranormal kami anak-beranak. Saya, Bonda Terchenta, dan adik2.Dari Miri ke Gua Niah cuma ambil masa 1.5 jam.

Bayaran masuk cuma RM10 seorg (RM5 utk student). Tambang perahu ke seberang cuma RM1 seorg (one way). Dari jeti perahu, kami kena menapak sebanyak 10,000 langkah. AHAHA! Acah je. Baru 3km atau 45minit. Kesian Bonda kena buli. Tapi mesti mak dah kurus kan? ;)

Kalau korang sukakan adventure dan tak kesah menginjak-injak tahi kelawar maupun membiarkan aroma tahi kelawar menyapa keras di hidung, maka saya rekemenkan tempat ni. Tapi kalau korang jenis yang geli-geleman, pembersih dan sangat la sensitif dengan bau-bau najis, forget it. Kamu lebih baik duduk di KL je.

Saya tak mau cerita panjang2 lagi sebab jari2 saya dah letih menghentak keyboard. Therefore, layankan je gambar2 ni:

Happy New Year 2010!

2010-01-01T13:05:00.000+08:00

Ini ialah Carneyz, membuat laporan tahun baru menggunakan ID Suami Terchenta. Saya malas nak log out dan login semula. Hahaha. Adakah ini attitude semasa tahun baru? Cis. Memang tak boleh harap.

Sebelum saya membebel rentetan malam semalam yang boleh bikin kami dapat anugerah pekerja paling berdedikasi di akhir 2009 (cewah!), saya nak ucapkan Selamat Tahun Baru 2010 KAWAN-KAWAN! Sila doakan tahun ini keluarga kami akan bertambah Mr + Mrs Junaidix + Junaidix Jr. + Carneyz Jr. HAHAHAHA! Tamak kan saya? Orang lain nak anak sorang, saya nak double dose. Tapi sebenarnya kalau boleh. Saya nak SEORANG ANAK BAGI SETIAP TAHUN KAMI DAH MEMBINA RUMAHTANGGA INI (En Junaidix tak hiraukan saya dengan angan-angan extreme ni, beliau sedang tergolek di atas katil sensorang sebab kepenatan bekerja keras semalaman - ooii, dia bekerja keras sebab ni ye. Bukan projek multi-million dollar kami tu (PERINGATAN: Blog ini mesra keluarga dan tidak mengandungi unsur-unsur yang tidak dibenarkan.)

Berbalik cerita malam semalam. Semalam kami balik kerja awal. Setelah singgah sebentar di Low Yat membeli casing handphone saya yang baru. Kesian sama itu handphone, bertelanjang bulat sejak bajunya hilang. Lagi sentiasa jatuh dan berkecai. Apa ko ingat hp tu RM2 je Carneyz??

Back to storyline asal. Sampai je di rumah, kami pon makan malam yang tak seberapa, lepas tu dengan kadar segera kembali menghadap laptop masing-masing. Hidupkan Internet, online kan YM. Siyes giler comel kan? Duduk serumah pon nak YM each other. Keskeskes... Nanti saya bagitau sebab apa kena pakai YM.

Maka bermulalah tempoh bekerja keras di luar waktu pejabat yang berakhir pukul 5.30pg tadi. En Suami sebagai web engineer mulalah memasang rangka-rangka yang sepatutnya. Saya sebagai ~~kuli batak~~ designer tak bertauliah mula bersilat dengan kekasih lama saya, En. Adobe Photoshop CS4 (sebelum saya terjebak ke kancah perkahwinan, chenta hati saya ialah En Photoshop yang gagah perkasa lagi bikin hati saya teruja). Selesai satu design, saya hantar file tuh kat En Junaidix menggunakan YM. Apa kes nak hantar email maupun thumbdrive. Cehcehceh...

Sesambil tu kami menonton citer FaceOff, diikuti Da Vinci Code. Ini ialah environment kerja yang saya suka. Bilalah kami dapat bekerja di rumah saja nih! Boleh tengok tv sambil buat kerja yang saya suka (iaitu bersilat dengan En Photoshop).

Sebenarnya kerja-kerja contengan website tuh tak la terlalu susah tapi sebab saya dah lama simpan skill design dalam kotak lepas tu kunci dan buang kotak itu jauh-jauh ke dasar hati saya memandangkan kerjaya saya yang sentiasa seboks, jadi pada mulanya saya jadi kekok. Nak cari brush pon terkial-kial. Wakakaka! Apa lagi nak buat animated gif. Ko gila berpeluh-peluh aku malam kelmarin. Bagai hilang akal. Tapi sedikit demi sedikit, ingatan saya kembali pulih. Akhirnya tercetus design-design yg tak seberapa ini.

Tahun ni jugak kami bercadang hendak melibatkan diri secara sukarela dan dengan semangat sivik yang tinggi, untuk menghidupkan Msjbox (iaitu chenta hati pertama Suami Terchenta). Jadi harap-harap kawan-kawan akan menyokong usaha murni kami yang gigih ni... ok?

Selamat Hari Raya, eh! Tahun Baru uols! :)

May The Light Guides Us Until The End of Time - Happy 3rd Anniversary

2009-12-15T23:59:00.001+08:00

Today our marriage turned 3 years old. 3 years old, people. 3 fantastic, bittersweet, honest-to-God years of being man and wife.

Some people said that at the current divorce rate, anyone who made it to the third year will have it easier to deal with in the years after. At the very beginning, we spent our time trying to fit square pegs into round holes. Rubbing at each other's differences, bickering and discovering the other side we never saw before. The first year we courted and being oh so lovey-dovey till everybody else vomited blood.

Past one year, we sort of got an idea or two of the stranger we vowed to live with to the end of our days. We learned to accept the differences, sometimes not graciously but sort of you know you gotta accept them anyway. The fuzzy film in front of our eyes was slowly eroding, revealing the real person we were.

Came second year, we settled into our routine. We could already read each other's minds, body language, likes and dislikes. Yet we were still lost at which direction we should point our relationship to - Romeo & Juliet? Edward & Bella? Or are we destined to be BFF (Best Friend Forever?) I see that we are leaning more towards BFF, darling. While it is still good, I wished we could hold on to that romantic stage. It has been a long time since I got a call from someone telling me how much he missed me.

My darling husband, I know living with me is not easy. If I had to live with myself, I would probably consider an annulment. But you stuck by, undaunted. You endured my disgruntled nature, moodiness, and even crazy working schedule. I read in a paper a few weeks ago, how a hubby divorced his wife because she's too busy working. And I thank God I had married you instead of that guy.

I know I am not a perfect wife. Do you still remember that regular dinner I cooked every night during the first few months of our marriage? If you don't, I don't blame you. But you can take my waist measurement as proof of that glorious happy time. Yes, I have not been cooking, let alone warming up anything on the stove since I started work in this new company. MIL is right - I am not feeding you well enough.

I know I like to complain a lot. I complained about my work when you're tired with yours. I complained about the lack of attention from you when I want you to work harder for our family's future. I cared more about my own hardships rather than yours.

My love, tonight I feel so small beside you. No, I'm not talking about size. I'm talking about emotion. Tonight I was ready to believe that you would not think much of our anniversary.

But I was so WRONG! Suddenly you handed me a small box. All of a sudden, I felt so embarrassed. So guilty. I thought I could not accept this gift, not when both of us could not afford such luxuries at this time of the year. Not when I believed that you were pressured into buying this for me so I would not sulk for being unappreciated.

To cut it short, you proved that you are a GREATER spouse than me. Not because of the gift you bought which made me cry, but because you truly believe that I am the LOVE of your life. That despite my weaknesses, you still see the goodness in me. My dear, I don't know why, but tonight I feel the need to shed tears. Of joy, of humility, of love and gratitude.

God, I want to be a good wife to this man. I want to be a good mother to his children. I want to be his best friend, his accomplice, his ally, his partner. For as long as You give me time, please grant my prayer.

Selamat Ulangtahun Perkahwinan, sayang. You are still, the man, the very best of man in my life. I love you.

Mari Bicara Dengan Suami Terchenta

2009-11-30T21:54:00.000+08:00

Firstly, saya mahu ucap terima kasih. Terima kasih Amy, Husna. Kalian berjaya meraih mood saya kembali. Saya sudah kurang depressed. Life still perlu diteruskan.

Ahad lepas. Semalam lah. Kami sama-sama di dapur. Saya tengah chop bawang merah. Chop halus-halus, biar tak dak rasa dah. Bley gitu? Tapi hati masih kepingin tambah bawang. Owh, life is so complicated. En Suami Terchenta sedang memanaskan air. Di tangan beliau separuh bungkus spaghetti bersedia untuk direndam di dalam air panas yang menggelegak. Nasib la kau, spagetti. Pasti spagetti sedang mintak nyawa sebelum diterjunkan di dalam air panas menggelegak.

'Potpetpotpetpotpet...' Kami berborak2. Tentang kerja. Tentang projek side income beliau. Tentang saya dan perasaan meluat dengan kerja.

Sambil tangan saya menghidupkan api, memanaskan kuali, menuang minyak lantas menumis bawang. Tangan dan mulut sama-sama busy di dapur. Tangan mencapai meatball, lalu dicampak ke dalam kuali. Kemudian mencapai daging kisar.

'Kamu lihat ni, sayang? Ini barulah minced meat.' Saya berkata sambil menunjukkan label bungkusan cap Ramly's. Suami Terchenta senyum kambing. Ternyata beliau memang tak tau membezakan minced meat dengan minced chicken. Satu berwarna merah, satu berwarna putih. Malam Khamis, kami makan spagetti minced chicken uols. Lepas tu beliau komplen rasanya tak sama dengan spagetti bolognese. Haih! *tepuk dahi*

Mujurlah sekarang En Suami Terchenta sudah tau rebus spagetti. Sebelum rebus kena letak minyak zaitun sesudu dua, supaya spagetti tak melekat. Maklumlah, spagetti tu berkanji. Next time, saya akan ajar En Suami membuat kuah spagetti ala Italian.

Yes, mintak ampun sebab kami seboks bekerja sekarang, menambah pendapatan rumahtangga. Saya sedang menunggu download trial Microsoft Office 2007 supaya lepas ni saya boleh sambung buat kerja di rumah. En Suami pulak sedang bermeeting di luar tentang projek side income beliau. Tomorrow, lusa dan tulat, saya akan berjauhan dari Suami Terchenta, demi KERJA DAN TAK LAIN TAK BUKAN KERNA KERJA. Oh Tuhanku, bila boleh kami merasa hidup yang free dari beban kerja?

How Could This Be...

2009-11-29T16:18:00.002+08:00

'A lady committed suicide at my apartment a few days ago.' My friend announced over our dinner of char kuey teow.

It was enough to make me pause between shoving a spoonful of the char kuey teow in my mouth to ask, 'Oh my God! How?'

My friend shrugged and continued to eat as she explained, 'She jumped off the building.'

I thought of it as we walked to our Quran recital class at Heritage building. I thought of it when the class finished. It wasn't the gory details that my friend helpfully supplied later on that bugged me. It was the action itself that made me ponder.

What was her thinking when she made that final decision to step off the rail or whatever that became her jumping platform? What problems could be so huge that pushed her to the point of no return?

Did she regret it as she saw the ground closing in on her?

I am not suicidal, never. The idea of eternal damnation keeps me away from such thoughts. It was just sometimes life could be so depressing that I wished I could just... break away. Not end it. Just - walk out and start over again.

I did that almost a year ago. I changed my job. I started over. But somehow I did not factor in the transition effect. The altitude change sickness or whatever. From somewhere higher up to being back at the bottom in just a day. Surely it caused a bit of emotional wreckage, a little confusion, a lot of stress? It did. Throw in the loss of a child we hoped for, sudden weight gain due to hormonal imbalance that is VERY hard to lose, and major policy changes in the new company that made us look like the monster in the company? How then, could I not feel depressed?

How could this be the right choice if it makes me unhappier each day, if it makes us grow apart every day and makes me lose interest with my life? I no longer have any passion, not even an ounce, on things I used to love. Graphic design, reading, shopping, being around people... Every day I go back from work and all I want to do is crawl on the bed or lose myself in repeated tv programs until I drift off to dreamland, dreaming of restless dreams.

I tried to brave myself into facing this increasing complicated life by telling, 'You don't have to think of it. You just do it one thing at a time.' It worked for a while but it slowed me down and things keep coming. I know one day I am going to succumb to this brain pressure. The evidences are showing up on my health. The hormonal imbalance that messed up my productive organs, my weight and everything else is impact from the pressure I am trying to contain within.

Yet I still feel that darkness is wrapping its fingers around my heart. Suffocating me. Exhausting me. I wish I could outrun it FOREVER. I wish I could, once and for all, break away from this boring job and figure out what I want to do in life and work towards that instead!

Before I run out of time. Before I realise that I'm 40, still unhappy with my life's choice but too coward to change it.

Oh God. Tell me that there is more to life than this.

Menang 4-3!

2009-11-18T00:22:00.001+08:00

Ini bukan tipu. Ini betul-betul punya. Kami menang friendship match lawan Ma****** bukan setakat 2-1, tapi 4-3! Kawan-kawan, mari sama2 angkat tangan sambil jerit, 'HOYEEE!'

Sebelum aku story pasal game futsal malam ni, meh citer sket asal-usul penglibatan aku di dalam sukan futsal malam ni.

Minggu lepas, kami dapat email menyeru staff-staff untuk join futsal friendly match dengan satu kompeni ni. Demi ~~memenuhi KPI saya~~ menyahut saranan semangat berpasukan, aku pon sign up sekali. Pastu siap pujuk2 member satu dept join sekali. Huhu. Hiduplah ~~KPI~~ sukan untuk negara!

Oh my God! Aku rasa macam mimpi. Macam boleh tampar muka sendiri 10x. Walaupun kami prektis sekali je tapi kami menang. Walaupun kami baru nak decide siapa main position apa 10 minit before kami start game, tapi kami menang:

'Eh, siapa nak main position apa ni? Erk. Defend? Amende tuh?'

Dah la aku serius seorang kaki bangku. Sepak bola pun dengan kadar kelajuan 10km/j. Goalkeeper boleh jalan lenggang-kangkung nak tangkap bola aku ok! MUAHAHA! Aku gelak cover line nih. Therefore, aku rasa macam tak percaya pulak bila kami menang. Gambatte!

Ehem. Warm up dulu. Prektis tendang bola

Sebelum start game, kami beratur untuk bertukar-tukar cenderahati. Kami semua dapat diari. Erk. Hopefully itu ialah diari untuk tahun depan ye geng lawan. Hehe.

Mari-mari, kita tukar hadiah Krismas.

Aku main position defend, ambik kau! Yang bestnya, bila game nak start aku leh tanya, 'Eh, defend tu apa? Dia buat apa ha?' *ramai2 pengsan di court Ampang Sports Planet*

Game tu habis pukul 9pm dan kami semua pulang dengan gumbira (ini ialah ayat malas dari orang mengantok yang keletihan lepas menang futsal).

You're Happy Because You Want Yourself to Be Happy

2009-11-16T23:26:00.003+08:00

Recently I have been experiencing a rough patch at work, which is nothing to do with work surprisingly. How I hold up emotionally, only God, Ainie and Jen know. Ok, Ainie & Jen are in the know because we used to share same office, faced same ~~dragons~~ characters, and came up with cute nicknames for them. Durian? However did Ainie manage to come up with that. Tsk.

Anyway, I wouldn't spill here because that wouldn't be professional, kan. Enough to say, my way of dealing with difficult characters is, I choose not to care. For me, life moves on in whatever ways I choose. If I choose to be happy, my life will be happy. Lesson to everybody - never lets other people dictate how you should feel. Happiness should come from within.

Lesson I learn from the whole experience. Whatever happens, there must be a hikmah. Maybe God just want to show me who are my real friends. People like Jen and Ainie, because we once quarreled and did not speak for months but the strength of our friendship lasted us through that and the bond became even stronger once we overcame our differences. People like Kak Za, who dared to point out my mistakes right in my face instead of talking behind my back to others. People like my dear friend Bib, who stand by me through thick or thin over the past 9 years, people like Agatha, who stood to defend me when someone tried to backstab me, and people like Eva, who never judged me and accepted me for me.

Of course, there are also people who boost up my morale like Msjbox buddies, and recently people I met over a game of futsal. The hikmah I see is, when one door closed, another door opens. More opportunities to meet more people. More experiences doing new things that enrich my life.

I believe in seeing a glass half full. I do not want to dwell on negative thoughts. Work is already so stressful, why stress myself even more thinking about people's behaviors and attitude? One thing I like about my old company - almost everybody back-stabbed everybody but in the office, professional facade is still maintained even though you hate that person's guts so bad. When you have to communicate to that person, you will do it in a professional way. You don't try to avoid communicating to them, you don't re-route the communication to a middle person and you certainly don't display your crude communication skill because that will show your weakness. In other words, you don't mix up your work and personal issues together.

So, best if I keep a respectful distance towards these characters in order not to be affected by their hostile attitude. Hanya Allah membalas dan Allah itu Maha Adil lagi Maha Mengetahui.

3 Steps to Have Wallet-Friendly Holidays

2009-11-11T00:35:00.000+08:00

When it comes to impulsive holidays, Suami Terchenta and I have this motto - carpe diem! (seize the day). If you think that it means we have loads of $$ to go on holiday, you are very far from the truth because seriously. We always have budget holiday wan!

Step #1: Marry an impulsive adventurer

Hold my hands tight - we are going on plenty of adventures!

#2: Exploit opportunities and follow your heart

Since we are already in Sabak Bernam for CSR site visit, let's hop over to Lumut and then Pangkor!

#3: Stay at places where early reservation is not required (a.k.a. budget hotel)

Why pay more, just walk and save your moolah on taxi charges!

So let's go cuti-cuti Malaysia, Mr & Mrs Junaidix's style!

p/s: I'll do a review on the resort later.