Friday, January 09, 2009

GANU BRIEF GETAWAY

* Note : I found this old draft, which never got posted after I wrote it because my lappie had a problem with uploading pics then, lembab nak mampos!



End of March 2008, I took a little time off to visit a dear friend whom I hadn't seen since 2002. Gosh, had it really been that long? Actually about 2 weeks earlier, I called Nore up for a chat. I hadn't seen or spoken to her in months, and to think that our offices were only 2 LRT stations away from each other! Kita ni selalu sibuk dengan hal masing-masing, sampai lupa pada orang lain, kan?




Anyway, at the end of our conversation, we decided that both of us needed a break, and it would be nice to see Lia after all these years. So off to Kuantan we went!








The weather was great, pokok tepi highway pun nampak cantik hehe :-) We began a leisurely drive on Friday morning, and arrived in Kuantan in time for lunch, at a small restaurant on the riverbank.



I've never liked ikan patin sebab selalu bau hanyir lumpur, but they're expert patin cooks in Kuantan! Ikan patin masak tempoyak, finger licking, wa cakap lu! Lia was a most gracious host. We spent the rest of the day at Lia's place. Dari aku mula masuk keta (Nore drove), sepanjang jalan dari KL dok sembang je, sampai kat Kuantan pun dok sembang bertiga, masuk tido kul 5.00 pagi. Motormouths!






On Saturday, we continued our roadtrip. Lia dari awal pesan suruh bawak extra baju, katanya nak singgah tepi pantai, so kitorang okey je la. We stopped to have breakfast at Kemaman Kopitiam.


Everything on the menu was so good! Roti bakar, telur rebus, little packets of nasi lemak (lauk sambal ikan, "huuhhh?", tapi sedap!), nasi dagang... melantak! The restaurant was packed to the brim, tua-muda-bebudak-melayu-cina-india-mat saleh, semua ada. Me & Nore got so hooked on their coffee (kopi cham dia best!), that we had forgotten that coffee is diuretic. Sib baik lepak lama sket kat kopitiam tu, sempat la gi toilet sekali :-P Kalau asyik nak ter-kench dalam keta nanti, payah.




We headed to Kuala Terengganu. Nore wanted to get some batiks, yelah kitorang keje gomen kan. Then Lia tanya, u girls remember our last roadtrip to KT? Flashback - Year 2000, me & Nore drove up to Kuantan to attend a friend's wedding, and we also stayed over at Lia's then. After the wedding, we drove on to KT. We passed by a beautiful stretch of beach with a huge rock formation on it, and we stopped to look at the scenery then. But apparently this time around, Lia had other plans for us, hence the extra clothes.





The place is in Kuala Abang, atas sket dari Dungun. There is a small guesthouse there, comprising of only three chalets, sandwiched in between the chalet operator's house, and her mother-in-law's house. How quaint!




Tak senonoh, pepagi buta kitorang pegi ketuk pintu rumah makcik tu, tanya pasal sewa chalet (and also to tumpang her toilet - the coffee we had consumed in Kemaman was still doing it's job!) The chalets were available only for the day, as a party from Kelantan had booked them for Sunday. "OK makcik, kami nak gi Pasar Payang dulu, balik kang kami singgah lagi".



So off we went to KT pulak. Terus ke Pasar Payang, borong batik - sengih je budak kedai tu, ada la dalam RM3000 worth of sale kat kitorang je. Of course lepas tu tuju ke section foodstuff plak. Yang aku never miss beli every time aku ke Pasar Payang is opak dan nese. Opak is disks of dried tapioca crackers, and nese is disks of natural palm sugar, much better quality than the palm sugar we get in KL. Jajan yang lain tu biasalah, macam-macam ada dari kuih kapit ke jeruk buah salak. Also bought a few kilos of pauh mah ite, manis betul! I bought turtle eggs for mom, and had to endure Lia 'Miss Greenpeace's scowl and lecture on turtle conservation hehe :-) Nak buat camana, mak aku suka telur penyu...





No trip to KT is sah kalau tak beli kepok lekor. Detour pulak ke Losong, borong kepok. Selain dari yang freshly cooked, beli jugak yang siap goreng and melantak dalam keta, sedap giler! On our way back, it was tea-time, so singgah satu tempat makan bernama 'Lempeng'. Ingatkan nak makan kuih & lempeng, rupanya kat situ depa jual ketupat sotong and all kinds of seafood goreng tepung, yummy! I never thought of having ikan kembung for tea before, have you? Along the way, singgah gerai kecik-kecik tepi jalan, beli jagung bakar la, kacang rebus la.




Sampai balik ke Kuala Abang, tengok makcik tu dah tunggu. Oh, promosi sket la untuk makcik yang baik ni. Namanya Makcik Zaidah, telephone number 09-8451076. Hehehe :-) Murah je sewa satu chalet dari petang sampai malam, tiga puluh hengget je. Apa lagi, masuk chalet, tukar baju, pastu berlari-lari la ke pantai! Peghak betul hahaha!




The current was pretty strong, so takdelah swim sangat. Barulah aku faham maksud 'ombak menggulung'. Selama ni dok tengok ombak kat PD, alahai... ciput je in comparison!




Lepak by the beach was a nice ending to our KT trip. Dah puas berendam & main ombak (sampai senja!), we sat on the rocks and makan jagung, kacang & pauh.







Actually I was a little sad at that time, because it brought back some memories. Masa tengah bertunang & early marriage, we always ended up on the beach in PD on weekends to lepak, sebab he didn't like crowds in malls or lepak at the movies. But no way was I gonna let those memories spoil my day with the gals, hell no!


It's nice getting back together with friends every now and then. Catching up with each other's lives... plus gossips about the rest of the gang haha! I'm sure we'll be doing this again, but sooner than 8 years (like this time) la, insyaAllah.


Thursday, January 08, 2009

NEW YEAR RESOLUTION

I've never really been one for the 'New Year Resolution' thingy. Dulu, like other teens and young adults, memang suka la buat new year resolution ni. Awal tahun semangat berkobar, tapi lepas dua-tiga bulan, hampeh tak ingat pun hehe :-) These days, resolutions are made as and when necessary sajork.


Tapi tahun ni, aku ada buat satu new year resolution. Nothing major or life-changing, no particular quests etc etc.

My new year's resolution is 'senyum'.


7 days into 2009, so far so good la. Sebab in order to 'senyum', I've got to find things to smile about. And people to smile to, or with. And while looking for all these, I'm starting to feel more at ease. And the more relaxed I am, the more cheerful I become.


Hey, is this a cool resolution or what!

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

POCO POCO!

Siapa tak pernah dengar lagu Poco-poco, angkat tangan!

Eh, really ah? Tak pernah dengar lagunya? Namanya pun tak pernah dengar?

Ohhh... aku lupa korang ni semua bukan orang gomen atau ahli Puspanita, dan pastinya korang tak pernah pegi PLKN kan? Hehehe :-)

I first heard about this song a few years back. A colleague attended function Puspanita, balik tu sibuk cerita "awakkk... seronok la menari Poco-poco, Datin X (Pengerusi Puspanita ler tuh) pun join sama tau...". Then, bebudak balik dari kursus (standard ah gomen, kursus induksi la tu), sibuk cerita sal tarian Poco-poco yang sungguh fun and happening. Bila aku tanya, pebenda lagu poco-poco tu? Depa kata, "tatau la, lagu indon gamaknya" Aku minta demo sket camana tarian tu. Semua orang geleng kepala, "tak ingat step la, susah..." Curious... curious...

Then masa aku join gym about 2 years back, ada la plak belajar poco-poco, diselitkan masa aerobik. Wah, emangnya seronok banget! It's a very catchy tune, bila dengar lagu pun, kaki dah mula gerak sendiri heheh...

Just because I have nothing better to do at the moment, aku menggodek youtube, and I managed to find the lyrics :-

Balenggang pata-pata Dancing so energetically
Ngana pe goyang pica-pica You move so friskily
Ngana pe bodi poco... poco Your body is so chubby

Cuma ngana yang kita cinta Only you that I love
Cuma ngana yang kita sayang Only you that I care
Cuma ngana suka bikin pusing But you often make me dizzy

Ngana bilang kita na sayang You said I don't love you
Rasa hati ini malayang jauh I feel that I'm flying far away
Ci Ija... Ci Ija.... Cik Ija... Cik Ija.....

Biar kita ngana pe bayang Though I'm like your shadow
Biar na biking layang-layang Though you make me daydreaming
Cuma ngana yang kita sayang Only you that I love

Isk...isk... manalah aku paham, bahasa indon kan? Then aku terjumpa plak video clip yang ada english translation... Barulah aku tahu, lagu ni asalnya dari Ambon/Maluku, tapi version yang biasa kita dengar ni dinyanyikan dalam bahasa Minahasa/Menado (utara Indonesia).

Lepas tu aku gelak besar baca the english translation haha! Just select the lyrics above, then highlight them, to read the english translation. Have fun, everyone!

Frisky & chubby indeed, hahaha! :-D

View the video here.


Tuesday, January 06, 2009

HAVE A HEART!

I've always maintained in all my previous posts to only write on personal matters, things directly affecting me. My family. My friends. My thoughts. My emotions. My crazy woman rantings (PMS!). My teary self-pity whines. My struggle with weight maintenance! Dan apekebenda lain la yang aku nak tulis sesoker hati aku. Semua ala light-light giteww. Mak tak koser nak buat statement ke, nak endorse opinion ke, takmoh fenin.

However, having read posts in various blogs about the IJN - Sime Darby fiasco, today I decided to include a logo in my sidebar, as a statement of my support for the Save IJN blog campaign. I do believe IJN should be left alone as it is, toksah nak privatise kan just for the sake of lining some people's pockets.

Although I have no personal interest in IJN, yet (alhamduliLlah!), but a recent chat made me realize how important IJN is to the people. It was after a meeting at the office which involved a group of otai who used to work in the agency. They were excitedly discussing the IJN issue, and out of the six of them, three are regular patrons of IJN. Wow, 50% odds? Obviously, these pensioners will be much affected by any move to privatise IJN, when the medical costs may take out a chunk from their meager pensions.

Oh incidentally, I remember someone I know who works in IJN. Some years back, he was head-hunted by hospitals from neighbouring countries. He was offered a similar position but with a double/triple remunerations, and more perks than what he's getting here. His response? "Aku belajar pakai duit rakyat, it's my duty now to serve the rakyat." Now, if that's not dedication enough from an IJN staff, then I don't know what is!

Come, I'm holding out my hands now dear friends. Join me, please support IJN! Silalah kopipes logo itu ke dalam blog anda :-)

Sunday, January 04, 2009

HANTAR-HANTAR-AN

Aku tak faham sungguh pompuan ini, serta mak-bapak pompuan ini :-

(1) Pompuan ni kata, taknak buat majlis atau declare 'bertunang', tapi jemput pihak lelaki 'datang bincang' dan mintak pihak lelaki bawak cincin. Oiiii..... taknak declare bertunang, tapi tak malu pulak mintak cincin? Udah le masa merisik dulu, dah diberi cincin, la ni pun mintak satu lagi cincin (cincin berlian lagi gittew uols... harga dua ribu lebih, tapi ada diskaun... terima kasih Habib Jewels yang buat sale hujung tahun huuuhuuu!), tapi taknak ngaku itu cincin tunang?

(2) Pompuan itu tanya berapa dulang barang hantaran yang pihak lelaki nak bawak, dan pompuan itu pun dah sediakan hantaran balasan. Seriosa la deknon, ada ke, takde ke, majlis bertunang ni? Ahkak kompius abes! Dan tambah kompius, hantaran lelaki 5 dulang, dibalas 8 dulang... err.... kalau hang orang kampung yang faham adat, mesti hang tau yang bilangan dulang hantaran selalunya nombor ganjil, kan?

(3) Mak-bapak pompuan ni, dari awal lagi dah bagitau mak-bapak lelaki itu, hantarannya RM8,000, non-negotiable. Amboi mahainya.... pak hang ni juai anak ka? Harus standard jual kat shopping complex, sebab fixed price, tak boleh tawar-tawar macam kat pasar malam kan? Tapi tengok le keadaan chek oiii.... dua-dua baru kerja 1-2 tahun, mana la banyak kumpul duit lagi? Keje pun biasa-biasa, executive ngan kerani je.

(4) Tapi memandangkan hantaran tinggi, pompuan itu setuju kalau lelaki itu kasik RM5,000 je, dan pompuan itu akan top-up sendiri RM3,000 lagi. Ehhh? Boleh main top-up pulak ye? Kalau gitu, awat tak set aje hantaran RM5,000? Senang citer, mak-bapak lelaki itu pun lega, dan hang sendiri pun tak yah keluaq duit untuk top-up hantaran diri sendiri.

(5) Memula sebut maskahwin ikut rate biasa, tapi bila masa 'majlis bertunang-tapi-taknak declare bertunang' tu, mak-bapak pompuan itu letak harga maskahwin RM1,184. Aik? OKlah walaupun Majlis Agama Negeri hang takdak set harga maskahwin, tapi biaq la lebih-kurang ngan state lain.... paling tinggi Sarawak RM120, paling rendah Pahang & Johor RM22.50. And what's with the wierd (intentional!) 1184 figure? Itu nombor ekor Magnum ke?

Correct me if I'm wrong, OK.

Kalau dah bertunang, kenapa nak sorok? Kan ke elok kalau orang tahu, so takde le jejantz lain yang akan cuba tekel tunang @ bakal bini orang tu kan? Lagipun, dah mintak dan dah dapat cincin berlian, takkan kau sorok cincin tu, mestilah dipakai dan ditunjuk kepada umum kan? Takkan mahu display cincin tapi taknak declare tunang?

Maskahwin = Mahar = Pemberian wajib dari segi syarak, dari suami kepada isteri yang baru dinikahinya, kalau tidak dijelaskan, akan menjadi hutang. Amaun yang ditetapkan oleh majlis agama tu adalah minima, and of course boleh beri lebih dari yang minima tu, sebagai tanda kasih dan penghargaan ikhlas suami kepada isteri.

Wang Hantaran = Pemberian mengikut adat, bukan wajib pada hukum syarak. Biasanya diberi kepada keluarga perempuan, untuk membantu meringankan kos majlis perkahwinan.

Kalau dah begitu hukumnya, yang wajib itu wajiblah, tapi yang tidak wajib tu, biarlah sesuai dengan keadaan semasa dan kemampuan pihak berkenaan. What's the point of setting harga hantaran tinggi, tapi sebenarnya dapat separuh je, dan separuh lagi kena top-up sendiri? The only reason I can see is Ego/Vanity - nak tunjuk kat orang kampung yang walaupun pompuan tu asal dari kampung yang solok dan keje kerani je, tapi dapat 'tangkap' lelaki yang berada. So much for budaya melayu merendah diri - pfffttt!

Mak-bapak pun, pikiaq la sket. Hangpa suka la dapat duit hantaran RM8,000, belanja kenduri hangpa beres. Tapi bakal menantu hangpa tu nanti, balik KL lepaih nikah, kena keluaq duit lagi untuk kenduri belah lelaki. Lepaih tu, keluaq duit cari rumah sewa, keluaq duit lagi beli katil, kerusi meja dapoq tv bagai, keluaq duit lagi bagi nafkah kat anak hang, keluaq duit lagi bayaq kereta, minyak, tol. Berapa sangat la gaji depa kalau dibanding kos sara hidup kat KL?

Jangan sampai dah beranak-pinak, or worse case scenario, sampai bercerai-berai (na'uzubiLlah) tapi loan Bank Rakyat yang diambik masa nak kawin tu, masih tak habis dibayar, isk isk.......

Sampai la ni pun aku masih tak faham pompuan ini, serta mak-bapak pompuan ini.