Ya Rahman Ya Rahim

Keghairahan mengiringi anak ku dengan puasa & doa di musim peperiksaan ini telah membuat ku engkar kepada perintah Mu ya Allah... dan ku pohon ampun & belas ehsan Mu terhadap kealpaan ku ini.

I completely overlooked the fact that today is the 13th of zulhijjah, the last day of tasyrik. all i thought about was providing spiritual support to AH on the days that she'd be sitting for a paper - today its biology 1, 2 & Amali. it wasnt until i overheard a group of friends talking that i realised what i had done.


Tasyrik - 11, 12 & 13 Zulhijjah

I had fasted on a day declared haram for fasting!!

Guilty & frustrated beyond measure i immediately texted golfman, an instinctual response. then i broke my fast. the time was almost 6pm.

I really must be more careful about these things.

Tears in my eyes

.. and contrary to what you're thinking, it had nothing to do with my beloved ;)

Cikgu was going about the house looking a lot like a lost puppy, sangap beyond measure that his gamemates (namely AI & AH) were both unavailable for a 'killing spree' - AI had gone to klcc to celebrate a friend's birthday (and probably another round of new moon) while AH had gone back to her books (both biology & manga, with a stress on the manga).


AI's ongoing obsession with the fanged ones


AH's fascination with mangas - currently dengeki daisy

When the boys decided to pool together their resources for an xbox 360, cikgu was the one who'd forked up the major portion of the share. and whenever he is home, his time is spent holed up in their room nuking anything that moved. gaming is a passion, an all time stress buster.

Pitying the poor sod, i halfheartedly offered to play (or at least try to bcos for the record, i didnt even know how the controller works) fully expecting him to laugh & decline. well, i must've underestimated his level of desperation bcos he suddenly got all excited and agreed lol.

[My dear Lord.. what had i gotten myself into *bangs head on wall*]

Before i knew it we were well on the way of getting me my own personalized avatar (abe i'll be making one for u too k lol) which turned out pretty cute lol. then he left me to fiddle around with the controller just so i'd get the 'feel' of things. i started with simple stuff like zuma (which i found rather thereupatic), feeding frenzy (i dont think i find getting fat, even as a fish, much fun), and mission something or other.

Then we tried a real coop game together - fable 2. its slow paced and kind to the sluggish responses of a first timer makcik lol. but it wasnt for me. too fairytale-ish.

So we tried another game, assault heroes, and 5 seconds into the game we both knew we'd be having a whale of a time after all!!!!


My initiation to mindless frenzied shooting ;D

OMG it had me laughing so hard tears came to my eyes.. which weasnt a good thing bcos i couldnt see where i was going or what i was shooting!!! but we were screaming away at the funny tanks and even funnier arab tribe swarming the beach (arabs? forget about being rationale lol).

Hehehe.. its a long ways yet for me to proceed beyond the arcade level but who knows, one of these days you'll see me gunning zombies yet ;)

[See abe.. the things i do w/out you around ekekekeh!!]

Di ambang Eid

As in 2006, golfman will not be home for eid. a sad & dismal state of affairs but unavoidable nevertheless. such is the nature of his work, such are the sacrifices that must be made.


Qurban in Turkmenistan, 2006.

Salam Aidil Adha from all of us here sayang.. mwaaah3x



Surah Al-Ankabut, ayat 1 - 3:

الم (1) أَحَسِبَ النَّاسُ أَنْ يُتْرَكُوا أَنْ يَقُولُوا آَمَنَّا وَهُمْ لاَ يُفْتَنُونَ (2) وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ (3)

Alif, Lam, Mim. Adakah manusia menyangka bahawa mereka akan dibiarkan begitu sahaja untuk mereka berkata; "Kami telah beriman"? Dan sesungguhnya kami telah menguji orang-orang yang sebelum mereka. Maka sesungguhnya Allah mengetahui orang-orang yang benar dan mengetahui juga orang-orang yang berdusta.

And to one & all Selamat Menyambut Hari Raya Aidil Adha.. semoga kita menghayati pengorbanan yang di lalui Nabi Ibrahim alaihisalam and his immense & unwavering faith in the will of the AlMighty.

Yang berkait & bertaut

Isnt it funny how a certain thought can sometimes trigger a chain of other thoughts that suddenly becomes an avalanche of information or ideas?

The barbed repartee between mak & AH at the breakfast table today suddenly reminded me of my long departed grandma. maktok hailed from the pearl of the orient and unlike mak & AH, my granny and i shared a good relationship. just as mak is living with me now, she too lived together with mak. she was in fact more of a mother to me than mak ever was.. she was my confidant, my mentor, my tempat mengadu. and i remember whenever i was sad or unhappy, she would entertain me with the most colourful recollections of her bangsawan days.. those times when she was with the troupe for the dances & plays, and the people that she had met.


Maktok Yah, 1975


Me flanked by my Maktok & Mak Ngah while Mak is on the other side, 1965

[is that how i got this love for dance & movement perhaps?]

Which then got me thinking about my paternal side and how abah's family is largely an unknown entity to me. he took off in his teens due to family differences and later, our nomadic life with the army only added to the rift. theres this huge void bcos i never had the opportunity to really get to know my N9 relatives. in fact there are uncles, aunties, cousins out there who i only know by sight but not by name or vice versa; not to mention the nieces & nephews that i hardly know. which is actually acutely embarasssing, not to mention depressing as well.

Bcos as they say blood is thicker than water and family is family. and as i get older i find myself thinking about it more and more.


My paternal grandfather Hj Hamid of Kuala Pilah, N9.. my youngest bro dug this up from the depths of his 'pandora box'.


The Kuala Pilah clan circa 1940's.. i am told we have minangkabau roots.

I remember vaguely a certain book that my Tok Hamid had written about our family lineage and also my late abah's pride in his father's painstaking effort in putting it together for the benefit of the younger generation. now if only i can recall the whereabouts of that copy. maybe i can look it up with my aunty.

I suddenly have this niggling desire to know more.

Day 3

Just one paper today and its the weekend break yay!!!


AH's teman setia while she studies lol

Abe - cikgu's back and the comforting sound of our children's laughter is washing away my blues :D good luck with the exhibition k, luvya!!


Workout Log
AM - 4k/30min/TSA ... hah, chased away some of my demons and my heart is so much lighter ;)
PM - Aerobics Masalla/70mins/NRG

Another long day

2nd day and its another tight schedule for AH.



But at least tomorrow there'll just be EST thank god. that'll give her some breathing space (and me, some peace of mind..anak yang exam mama yang stress lol).

Last night i tried out a new fitness place in seksyen 7. ooh its been there for quite awhile.. but its new to me :) a ladies only fitness centre and its ok i guess, nothing fancy but suits the purpose. we had a 30 mins aerobics segment followed by 30 mins strengthening & toning. RM10 for a 1-hour workout.. not bad. maybe i'll stick around.

Before this, i was going to aerobic classes at the stadium but although its nearer to my place, that route to seksyen 13 has a tendency to clog up with the evening traffic so i stopped going. there's also another option nearer to home, the akuatik/msn group, but i found out their time just wasnt flexible enough.

I can always sweat it out at the KSAS gym but it gets pretty lonely being on my own so much thus this need for some 'pack' action lol.

And to family & friends who are waiting anxiously for the release of the UPSR results today.. insyallah ok tu & congrats in advance :D


Workout Log
Wed - PM/60 mins aerobics/NRG

Lunchbreak

I've been going over to the school canteen these past two days just to be with AH. bcos of the packed schedule, she didnt want to come home for lunch so, as they say, 'if muhammed wont come to the mountain, the mountain will come to muhammed' lol

Yesterday i bought her & her bf's younger bro nasi bungkus, dadeh, popias, fresh papaya & drinks. today her bf's elder sis insisted that its their turn to bring lunch packs and she did. but just to add to everything, i also bought egg tarts, pies & puffs from baker's cottage. so its been a merry little gathering for our little group & hopefully merry enough to provide some respite for the anxious kiddoes.

ICT teacher, AH, bf's bro & bf .

Other students having quiet discussions over lunch.

Sejarah teacher giving out pointers & a last minute peptalk.

Dua recitation just before leaving for the exam hall.

p.s. not to worry too much abe, our daro's doing fine.. doakan je byk2 ;)

SPM 2009 - Day 1

My baby's first day.. here's hoping she'll keep her cool.

To all the rest who will also be sitting for their SPM... good luck & God bless, semoga cemerlang :)

Smokin' hot

It was a very muted popping sound that woke me up. a little disoriented i thought it was part of a dream. but just to make sure, i flicked the curtains aside for a cursory look, half expecting to see nothing but the black nite staring back at me.

But not this time. bcos this time there was a raging fire outside my window. the time was 4.27am.

As i watched incredulously, there were more popping sounds and even in the safety of my room, i automatically braced myself. it was a natural response, i was starting to feel a little scared. what the hell was burning out there?

Running downstairs i knocked on AI's door. my son wasnt asleep even though it was 4 in the morning (sheesh the vampire generation). after another look, we both agreed that it was probably the neighbour's car and decided to go out for a better view.

There was nobody around even though the fire was now high enough to reach the power lines. just when i was about to run back and start making calls, the police arrived. help was on the way, thank god.

My greatest fear was the possibility of a bigger explosion. one that involved the gas tank or something.

The bomba team arrived not long after that and managed to put the fire out in no time. alhamdulillah.


The scene outside my house.


The fire finally doused by the firemen.

By then there was a small gathering of neighbours and we were all wondering the same thing, how on earth did the fire start?

Did the car self ignite? was that even possible?

Could it have been a short circuit of sorts? I've heard of a citroen doing that but a savvy?

They did find suspicious looking bottles at the scene so could it have been foul play?

Why would anyone do such a thing? what could've been the motive?

All the csi wannabes (me included) were a-buzz with questions. when something unexpected & unexplainable happens, the need to know is strong in all of us.

Bcos whatever happens to others can so easily happen to us.

But there definitely wasnt going to be any answers this morning. that would've to wait until our able policemen & their team of experts start investigating. we'll just leave it to the professionals.

Haaish.. now that the excitement's over, pening la pulok ;)

2 days to D-day

SPM starts on the 18th.

And AH is starting to show some signs of anxiety. its only natural i guess but i do hope she's not going to let it take over completely. she'll need a cool head on her shoulders.

You can do it la yang :)

Terhibur

.. dengan gelagat anak2 :)


Kiddoes a couple of years back.

Having all the kids home is always such a joy.. sekejap kamceng, sekejap gaduh, sekejap ngendeng, sekejap ngutuk lol. macam2 ada, ngalahkan astro.

Cikgu's home at the request of a close friend. he's leaving for haj this 18th and wanted to lepak & bermanja (read: lawan xbox sampai pagi) with the cikgu before he leaves. the thing with the 'niner' kids, they're extremely close bcos they grew up together from primary school up to secondary school. this is made possible bcos srk seksyen 9 & smk seksyen 9 was once part of the 'sinar' school concept where both primary & secondary schools are built in the same compound.



And not only are the students close, so are the moms!! 11 years is a long time & we get to watch the kids blossom right before our very eyes. in many cases, it also involves siblings and that time frame is extended accordingly. take the case of AH's bf & us for example.. his eldest sister and AF used to be form-mates. he & AI go way back to primary school and AH is the same age as his bro. they are all niners and we're talking about a time span of more than 18 years!

Anyway, with the cikgu home the house tend to resemble a mini cyber cafe lol. friends come and go and theres never a quiet moment. AI's buddies on the other hand, are a little less rowdy but they're seldom around bcos they prefer going out to the movies & mall-hopping. but its still an overpoweringly male zone.. but at least this weekend AH has her cousins over for a sleepover so that sorta balances things out a bit lol.

Saturday saw me attending a cousin's doa selamat.. she's also going for haj. bcos i hadnt the faintest idea where her new house is, cikgu installed the garmin thingy on my nokia so that i could use the gps. mmg jadi senang except that when its in the annoying "recalculating.. recalculating" mode you just hafta be patient lol. the tazkirah was ok, the food was overflowing and in the end, i turned into an 'ular sawa' tergolek kekenyangan lol. mana taknye, dah la badan penat lari 8k pagi tu, ni pulak makan sekenyang2 nye ekekeh!!

Too lazy to even think of cooking for the bunch of ravenous kids waiting for me at home, i took the easy way out by stopping at kfc & pizza hut. hah, senang cerita ;)

Sunday morning saw more of the same. knowing the kids would be late getting up, i took my time at the tasik. after the usual 40 plus mins of aerobics at the dataran, i opted for a 4k run just to increase my mileage. seronok lari on sunday, you get to see a lot of fresh new faces along with the regulars but be mindful of young children who can unexpectedly get in your way. i almost fell once bcos of such a thing.

Making a quick stopover at tesco's, i had enough stuff to feed a small army hehehe. on the menu today - fish curry, grilled kambing, mixed vege & eggs.

Heh.. there's bread & goober just in case anyone wanted breakfast. otherwise theres just brunch lol :D

So if i can settle AF's stuff as quickly as i can.. then i can just as quickly settle down to a good book.

Aaaaah.. weekends. why do they have to end? ;p


Workout Log
Sat - 8k/55mins/TSA
Sun - Med pace aerobics/40mins/DSA & 4k/30mins/TSA

Another week goes by

.. without you.



Its tough. sometimes it takes everything i have just to go on.

And i'm not just talking about the responsibilities. i hate it that i'm growing old without you.. i also hate it that in your absence, the DIVA is turning all of us looney with her endless drama!!

Tak larat la yang.

"I dont like to sleep alone..

Stay with me... dont go.
Talk with me for just a while,

So much of you to get to know. "


(pic courtesy of ezzal.com)

The lyrics of the oldie kept reverberating in my head as i slowly took in the figure on the bill. its certainly an all time high and has, without doubt, beaten all the previous figures straight to hell.

Current amount: RM711.67!!!

I dont know about you but here in my little corner of the world, its considered quite a substantial chunk of RMs. and our's isnt even that big a household!!

My electricity bill used to be around RM 300+ with the 3 airconds (me, the kids & mak) but after the new tarrif & the addition of another aircond, it jumped to around RM500+

I thought that was bad enough but now?!! sheesh, this is actually a whole lot of juice.

The problem with us is (me, the kids.. and golfman too), we all dont like to sleep alone. yup, we really dont. we're stuck with this very bad habit of letting the idiot box stare at us while we sleep.

To start with we sleep with the lights on. me bcos i like to read myself to sleep and golfman bcos he has this rather weird notion that mosquitoes will devour him the moment we switch off the lights. then we moved on to having the idiot box in our room and with astro around, its round the clock thrillers & documentaries for me and sports & golf channel for him. unfortunately, most of the time we end up providing 'entertainment' for the idiot box by way of oh-so-melodious snoring & beyond hilarious posturing lol.

The idiot box is always there, its undemanding presence comforting somehow. so in the end, even without each other, we never sleep alone.

The same goes with the children bcos we're both guilty of passing the habit on to them. they dont sleep alone either.. its either the tv or laptop or both.

[errm.. i sure hope we're not going to die of radiation]

And even with the bill rocketing sky high, i dont quite foresee any immediate changes in the near future.

Aah well. i guess we'll deal with it when we deal with it.

[Adeh, pening.. pening]


" No i dont like to sleep alone
No one does... do you? "

Abe - glad you made it to tashkent safe & sound. call me kolot if u must but i dont really trust those caspian airlines. take care k and kalau terserempak R sampaikan salam pada aranam :)
AF - so its actually bdr muadzam ek? ma dok ingat hutan endau rompin mane ntah hehehe. so good luck with the petanque tournament, hope ur kids do well :D
AI - all the very best with your last paper & hopefully the horror of last nite will NOT repeat itself.. otherwise gemok la kita asyik telan kek hik hik!!
AH - hope you're enjoying 2012.. but its back to the books for you after that k ;)

Latest update:

Guess what came in with today's mail?

Woo hooo!! didnt know adidas was going to send out additional certs for people who made the KOTR's qualifying time,. and to think i almost missed it by 5 secs hehehe. quite a boost for someone who came home dragging her feet ;)

Doesnt take much to make this makcik happy now does it lol!

Peace of mind

Itulah yang di idam2kan oleh semua.. but its so frigging elusive!!

When you think you finally have it all together, wham, something happens and you're back to being a cork in the bathtub. eh no, tak cukup turbulence.. cork in a flooded storm drain.



Busy work schedules, datelines, the many demands & expectations.. all play a part in stressing us out. mana ada peace of mind kalau terkejar sana terkejar sini, nak buat tu nak buat ni. in the end takde satu pun yang betul2 beres kan? but it's not so much about the 'busy-ness' of our lives sebenarnya. i have seen people who remain calm & serene although surrounded by chaos & mayhem.

So what is it then? what gives us peace of mind?

Susah la nak jawab sebab selalunya kita akan kaitkan dengan whats important to us. when the important things are ok, we're ok and so we are at peace. and its different things for different people so it can be rather subjective. but for most of us its having a loving family, a good job, a healthy body, a happy life.

Of course the ultimate peace of mind is the inner peace of the chosen few but thats taking it to another level altogether (ya Allah jadikan lah aku diantara mereka yang soleh & beriman). suffice to say many of us are still struggling to achieve even some semblance of peace.

A couple of nites ago an anak buah called me for a pow-wow. i was actually half expecting to hear from him bcos the family grapevine had long been a-buzz with the problems plaguing his family. i've been keeping mum about it bcos i know from experience that advice is useless unless people ask for it. only then will they be receptive to ideas & opinion.

The poor guy is beyond serabut. everyone in his family seem to be having issues and its all coming together to make his life a living hell. member pulak baru je kawin so nak la some peace & quiet.

To start with his elder brother is going through a very bad patch, both at work & at home. the family business is going to the dogs and the bro's marriage has reached the point of 'retak menanti belah'. unfortunately, instead of facing the music & coming up with a new game plan, he has taken the easy way out by seeking a temporary diversion.. one in the form of a soft pliable body & flaming red lips.

Aduhai, thats almost as good as taking a gun to his head!!

Now everything is exploding around him.. the wife's anger, the parent's despair, the bro's disappointment, the sister's bewilderment.

To add to the chaos, his mom hasnt been home, except for change of clothing & other necessities, for quite sometime now. a few months ago she lost a beloved sister to an unexpected illness and since she belongs to a very close-knit family, they're still gathered together to mourn the sister's passing. unfortunately, his mom's prolong absence is making them feel rather abandoned, especially his dad who is now left to face the mounting problems alone.

And they too have a daughter.. anak bongsu perempuan tunggal, just like AH. and also like AH, she will be sitting for her spm next week. sadly, in all of this madness, nobody seem to give a rats ass about it.

Except this 2nd brother, the one who's worried sick about his family, who actually admits theres not much he can do bcos he's been unjustly accused of wanting to 'bolot semua harta abah' by his desperado of a brother, the one who keeps running away to that soft pliable body. and who's spoiling for a fight.

Abel & Cain.

*shudder*

"Aunty what to do?"

*sigh*

Susah.. its so complicated, i dont even know where to start.

But what i do know is, abang tetap abang. avoid being confrontational. if he has refused your help, just leave him be, let him settle his own mess. have a word with your mom but be very gentle with her when you remind her where her duty lies. rescue your little sister & spare her some love & attention, she'll need all the support she can get in the weeks to come. be there for your dad so that he knows he can depend on you when he needs to.

Perbanyakan doa and have faith that everything happens for a reason and that only HE knows whats best for each one of us.

Semoga terlerai segala kekusutan. insyallah the day will come when you will have peace of mind.

Kapow!!

Hehehe.. take that and that and that you stooopid virus you!!!!



I did it. i subdued the 'M' bug.. at least for today.

Even though the heat of the morning sun (panas awal sekarang) threatened to melt my very resolve i went ahead and did it anyway.

Yay :D

I know.. you're thinking 'kecoh ah makcik ni' kan kan? but when you're a makcik with joints creaking here & there and muscles just waiting for the chance to ache on you, you'd understand why i'm so excited over something other people can achieve without even trying lol.

In fact i sometimes feel like spontaneously combusting just like incubus hehehe..



I'm working hard to find my way back after the post-raya mess. even though its the same old 4k, getting back on track can be quite a challenge when you've been slacking like me. and running can be pretty lonely. thats why i turn to people like haza & OS for a little online comraderie.

Now haza or the running mom is something else. she's one hell of a spunky lady that one. she's a makcik & she runs marathons!! goes without saying she's my all time inspiration.. but not just bcos of her accomplishments, no. its her grit & tenacity that gets me. it isnt easy for her either but she keeps slogging on (click here & you'll see what i mean). go haza!!

Anyway, the rest of you come join me la.. i sure could use some company ;)

There's also something on my mind thats troubling me to no end. but more about that later.

Abe - ma dah layan daro abe tu sebaik mungkin.. hopefully ok la kot. doakan.
AF - have a safe trip to rompin & keep me updated k!!
AI - tsk tsk tsk.. and i thought i was the only one getting by w/out a single wink. kan ada 2 more papers? must've some shut eye la dude bcos you DONT want a meltdown during exams.
AH - just another week to D-day.. hang loose now :)


Workout Log
AM - 4km/27mins/TSA

Dry spells

When it comes to my running, i seem to be going through a lot of dry spells lately.



Its actually a curious phenomenon because running makes me feel good. i've long established the fact that running 1. calms my restlessness 2. regulates my otherwise varocious appetite 3. allows me to be in tune with my body 4. generally makes me happier.

So now why would i want to skip something thats obviously good for me?

Hmmmm. i've thought about it long & hard.

It cant be the 'evil saboteur' out to destroy me once again bcos last i remember, i'd left her locked & shackled in the deepest dungeons of my soul. so its probably the M virus, which can be just as deadly. once we've been hit by the 'malas' bug, the only option is.. total annihilation!!! destroy it or it'll suck the very life force out of you and leave you incapacitated & helpless.

I cant allow that to happen now can i?

So, i'm gathering all my resources, all the weaponry in my arsenal and declaring an all out war ;)

To the death of the 'M' bug!!!!

[haish... terlebih excited la pulak ekekekeh]

Theatrics aside, it IS a serious matter. 'malas' will be the death of me if i dont do something.. and so, to get the 'canon ball' rolling, i now dedicate the rest of november to operation 'counter strike'!! short term target - fitter by december ;D

After making sure i had flushed out every pore on my body (with stinky sweat what else? lol) by maximising the aerobic moves of the rather flabby instructor (as an instructor how could he allow himself to be so out of shape?), i made a beeline for the tasik and hit a slow but steady 4km run.

A great way to start my day eh ;)

Life is good so lets keep it that way JT!!

Sometime after lunch, AH & I decided we both needed a break (i was doing some reading while she was going thru past year papers or something) so i suggested a visit to the hairdresser. somehow the idea of some pampering was getting more appealing by the minute lol. plus the fact that its been a long hot afternoon and nothing seeps at my energy faster than heat & humidity.

And the outcome? it was time & money well spent :)

Relaxed & refreshed we were ready for the world!! hehehe.. nah, just my MIL bcos it was then time for my weekly visit. mek is just a seksyen away, where she resides at her own apartment with 2 of my SILs. between the brothers they have tried to divide the responsibility of caring for their mom equally. golfman's part is taking care of groceries and making sure a day doesnt go by w/out food on the table. with golfman away that responsibility is now mine.

Mek loves fast food lol so apart from my weekly grocery stops, i drop in whenever i can with little offerings of burgers & nuggets & kfc's. a niece would've already prepared lunch before leaving for her shift but mek sometimes get bored with the usual fare and welcomes the change. i guess i would too if i was old and tired and stuck at home like her. not that we havent asked her out for outings, shes just not up to going places anymore.. but that doesnt mean that she doesnt miss it. so we do what we can to cheer her up.

It remained a hot day and when it was time to leave we both cringed at the thought of getting back into the car.

Thankfully no more excursions was necessary. once home we stayed home and fortunately mak was also quiet and at peace with her lot. we could then retire to the cool calmness of my room.

Lepak time, yay ;)


Workout Log
AM - aerobic/40mins/DSA
AM - 4km/30mins/TSA

All about echa

Today is a day dedicated to AH.. dari celik mata sampai ke malam. and as a show of support from me as well as from her abah, i took leave from work.



Its AH's graduation day. yes, these days you see F5 graduation ceremonies everywhere.. unlike my time when high school was simply, just another chapter that we went through. this will actually be the 3rd graduation i've attended here at smk s9 bcos all my children are 'niners' as they like to call themselves. and with a couple of years between each ceremony the changes are quite obvious.

During AF's time it was very much simpler i.e. there were no robes or fancy rituals.. the students were individually called onto the stage & handed their graduation & leaving school certs. but that didnt make it any less meaningful for the students or the parents bcos the commitment showed by the teachers were both sincere & heartfelt. then came AI's turn. by now the robes were in place and the ceremony more elaborate but thankfully, the happy smiling faces remained just as innocent, just as hopeful.

Today the school outdid itself. there was a point in time when i wasnt sure where i was lol!! the children were indeed replendescent in deep red but the teachers & dignitaries made quite an entrance when they walked into the hall in a slow procession, complete in robe & mortar board!!

From then on the ceremony was a mini replica of a university graduation. taken to such extremes, i'm not quite sure how i really feel about the whole thing.


From the onset, parents were warned NOT to take pics during the ceremony bcos a photographer had been specifically engaged for that purpose.

AH went on stage twice. she was also the recipient of anugerah lencana kecemerlangan perak (7As/6As) for her achievement in the spm trials. a little regretful perhaps that she didnt push herself hard enough to get the gold.

Its ok darling.. spm nanti pulun habis2an :D


AH's class - 5 sc. 1, 2009


AH with Mahen (who is hunching down to AH's height lol) & Ananth - obviously children dont care squat about colour or anything else, thank god.


My sweetie pie :)


AH with BF, who also happens to be a friend of AI's


.. and with BF's mom & bro, who also happens to be a friend of AH's (aaah.. its rather complicated lol)


These little notes were handed out to each student after the ceremony. listed were qualities found most prominent by fellow classmates.

AH had a running nose when she woke up this morning but by mid afternoon it developed into a fever. although her temperature wasnt that high, she was tired enough to completely conk out after the graduation. i let her rest because later in the day the school had scheduled a solat hajat & yasin session at the school surau. both students & parents were invited. so with her sound asleep, i took the opportunity to bake some cookies.. cookies that could be shared with her friends at the surau.


Kids love cookies so i made them a huge batch lol

AH left for the surau around 5.30pm because there was a motivational ceramah slotted for the students. parents were expected to be there for the solat maghrib & isya berjemaah followed by yassin & solat hajat. all in all, the turn out wasnt too shabby.. although it goes without saying that its mostly the usual faces that you see at the PIBG meetings or the other school related functions.


After the solat jemaah & yassin, it was time to ask for the cikgu's forgiveness & blessings


Downstairs there was moreh waiting.. and with it a bunch of giddy teenagers lol.

By the time it was over, AH was craving for something hot & something cold..huh?! without wasting any time we made our way to the loving it place.. heheh McD was my best bet for the something hot & something cold request lol. boy for someone who's sick & stressed out, my lil gal can certainly eat hehehe ;)

We finally made our way home, stuffed & ready to just climb into bed & zzZZZZzzzzz :D


Congratulations baby.. and good luck from both mama & abah!!

Prefects nite 09

Prior to the graduation, AH attented the last of her prefects dinner.





She became a prefect in her first year. following in the footsteps of her brother AI, AH's reasoning was simple.. she didnt want to be out done by her bro, no way. if he could collect all those certs so could she lol

Earlier she was assigned to buy momentoes for the treachers attending the function. flowers would just wilt & die so she came up with teddy's-on-a-stick :)



Cute little buggers arent they lol?!!

For the past couple of days she & her friends had been practising on a song to be performed by the F5 seniors.. AH was to provide accompaniment by playing the guitar.




As spm candidates, they would soon be leaving all of this behind and of course with the laughter & excitement there was also a little sadness.. after all they'd been together helping each other out in carrying out their duties, sometimes appreciated often misunderstood. overall AH reports that the dinner was a little subdued bcos the headmistress isnt really the type to let her 'hair down'.. dare i say she's a party pooper?

Surprisingly AH was nominated the best dressed girl, shocking her to no end. to suit the red & black theme, little did they realise that she was wearing an old kimono, one she'd had since she was 10 and which is now short enough to become a jacket lol!! it was probably the black leather boots that cinched the deal ;)


A cute coin box for being best dressed.

It actually ended rather early and i was there to pick her up before 11pm.

Another chapter closed. prefect duty ends today for the F5s.


p.s. Abe, sorry it took a while but here's the update on our daro as promised :D