Start...Ready...GO!

1/1/2009
Start of a new year and another oldies favourite (well at least my favourite :) ). Merril Bainbridge - Mouth. Until now they still plays this song on Mix.FM and after some hard long research, I found out that it was published in 1996; that is what, 12 years ago? The same age of my car. Anyway, please enjoy it:

Welcoming 2009 and 1430 Hijrah...

MeiLan :)
Selamat Menyambut Awal Muharram, tahun Hijrah 1430. Happy New Year to all. Either its the new year according to Islamic calendar or the Georgian's, don't lose yourself out there. And please drive safely if you are planning to balik kampung or get out of town for a nice holiday. I know many of you will be taking your first ever annual leave for 2009 on Friday, I am too :D

Season's Greetings...

ANIP
I'm a bit late, but I guess it's never too late to offer my best wishes to all who celebrate it. Merry Christmas everyone. Here's a little something that is festive and put that little bit of smile on your lips :)

Not so Oldies...

ANIP
Hmmm, lama jugak tak update blog ni. I admit I got entangle in something a bit complicated (and still am) but rest assured, I am still myself and continue being so. Just that time restraint and the launch of a few games cut my blogging time (hey after all, I blog when I got nothing to do, don't we all :D). Anyway, just to fill in December, here's some more oldies song for your entertainment dear visitors.

The Verve Pipe - The Freshman. I got this song from an acquintance's ringtone and somehow knew it was familiar. When properly listened to, I remembered that this song used to be in an advertisement or something. Betul ke? Err, tolong betulkan kalau salah ok? :P

Satu lagi nih dari Everclear, which brought you the wonderful, wonderful Wonderful song, which I still enjoy until today. I think I've saw the videoclip of this song back a long, long time ago and try to search for it but I forgot that Youtube will have any videos that your heart desires :) Presenting; Everclear - AM Radio:

Ramblings on 21.11.2008...

Almost 20 days since I last posted here. Interesting. Thats 2 article overdue right? Nevermind :)

Anyway, I was a little bit busy. Ya, audit MAMPU baru jer berlalu dan ibupejabat JKR Selangor menjadi kucar-kacir. Semalam pun aku bergerak pulang ke rumah dalam pukul 9 pm; aku dan superior aku, satu rekod di JKR Selangor. Rekod keseluruhan yang masih belum dipecahkan masih dipegang oleh Galeri Petronas, di mana aku pernah balik dalam pukul 10 pm. But JKR Selangor and Galeri Petronas is two different thing. At the Galeri, my bosses always go home late; its like an everyday ritual for them. But here at JKR Selangor, by 5.30 pm, the offices will be empty. Truly empty at 6 pm and abandoned by 6.30 pm. Downright creepy by 9 pm (Ok, that was an overstatement, honestly I still see a few cars and bikes at the parking lot. There must be a few souls that went home late that day, later than us)

Nasib baik ler part ICT dalam audit MAMPU tersangat sedikit, hanya menyumbangkan sekitar 0.6 mata untuk keseluruhan. Its a good thing that the coordinator of the audit promised the auditors that all the relevant documents will be sent to them by Friday, so we managed to alter a few documents that needs altering and hence, balik rumah lambat :P. Insyaallah, everything will be good, now we can truly focused on what we were brought here in the first place; membudayakan ICT di JKR Selangor. I hope by the time we left this place, it will be ICT friendly.

Saw the latest James Bond movie about 2 weeks ago, it was quite good; more or less like the last one and I kinda like the sequel ideas. It gave the premise a continuity and yes, I much more prefered this brand new Bond over the Bonds of old. Kurang skit womanising dan lebih sifat kemanusiaan. Gadget juga kurang ditonjolkan. Finally a Bond that we all can relate to. Keep it up Mr Producer of James Bond movie :)

Relationship wise, I can safely say that I finally see landmass over the horizon. But viewed through a powerful binocular that can see 50,000 miles away :P Anyway, things like this, its better to be slow and steady. And I am nowhere reaching near my targeted wealth accumulation, not yet. Insyaallah when I do, then its time to start thinking serious things...

Gavin Rossdale?...

To all of you who are TV series junkies, I think you remember this theme song:

This is the full song:

Ya, Gavin Rossdale, penyanyi utama kumpulan Bush a.k.a suami kepada Gwen Stefani menyanyikan lagu tema untuk cerita series Drive yang berjangka hayat pendek ni (4 episod jer, tak tipu). He has produced a new single; Love Remains The Same. Good song.

Takers...

ANIP

Aku tak tau apasal, tapi aku memang kurang gemar dengan orang yang suka ambil kesempatan. Maaf, bukan sahaja kurang gemar, tapi meluat. Being friendly with someone just to take advantage is also a no-no in my TENETS OF AL. It is just as bad. And I realize that I don't have to feel guilty if I refuse politely to do any favors (which I probably should be doing a long time ago). Sepanjang 26 tahun yang pendek yang aku lalui dalam hidup ni, ada juga aku terserempak dengan mereka-mereka yang boleh dikategorikan sebagai tukang ambil kesempatan. Modus operandinya pelbagai, dari cara-cara yang tersirat tapi tersurat kepada terus-terang lagi nyata.

Tersirat tapi tersurat lebih mengutamakan membina satu perhubungan yang agak rapat dengan aku sebelum tembelang sebenar pecah. Cara ini dapat menuai favors secara lebih berkesan lagi sebelum aku dapat mengesan dan memulakan penolakan secara halus. Cara terus-terang lagi nyata lebih direct dan blunt, membuatkan darah aku mendidih lagi cepat, tapi kerosakan tidak banyak dan lebih terkawal. Ini kerana aku dapat mengesan dengan serta-merta dan seperti biasa, penolakan secara halus akan dilakukan atau penolakan direct dan penuh dengan sinis (bergantung kepada situasi :)).

Why oh why that we humans tend to take advantage at every turn, can't we just do something voluntarily in turn, without rewards without interests, just give some helping hands and in the end, it's in our best interests. Don't you feel happy and fullfiled just to be able to help people? Its ok if they don't know it but anyways God knows. That my friend, is the true meaning of being an unsung hero.

I really don't understand human behaviors :(

I present you; a poem...

ANIP

I was always wondering,
Isn't YM good enough,
Do we have to also give a ring,
Gee, it's quite tough.

I'm kinda slow but sure,
I like to know, to talk, to see,
The way for me to see that you're pure,
Not just some wanna-be.

I admit that I am just at start,
5 months will not make me king,
But you have to know that this is life in part,
Tomorrow we know not what might bring.

Probably I'm like Dexter,

Just minus the killing part,

Society has never undestand me better,

Social for me it's never an art.

Anyways I think I'll end it here,

It's 5 am already and I'm sleepy,

To understand me is to get close to me; dear,

I am not joking, really :)

My Gaming Rig...

ANIP

Just bought meself a new gaming rig. Athlon X2 6000 3 Ghz with a whopping 4 Gb's of RAM and Nvdia  9800 GT graphics. So far I am satisfied with this configuration, just imagine I can play World of Warcraft while running Neverwinter Nights 2 and at the same time browsing internet and listening to songs through Winamp. I love multiple cores technology. And not to forget the 19' inch Samsung LCD display. Sori ler kepada member-member kepala gaming dengan ICTs sebab tak bagitau awal-awal. Saja jer buat suprise. 

Suprise! :)

The price...lets just say if this is a deal that  I made with the Devil, he may have to cry..in the end...:P

Jem, jem, jem, trafic jams...

Mengalami jem yang agak teruk dalam perjalanan balik tadi (keluar dari tempat kerja pukul 6 sampai rumah 8 pm). Ya, kepada sesiapa yang hendak tahu, aku selalu menggunakan Elite Highway pergi dan balik dari kerja. Dari Putrajaya > Elite Highway > Tol Ebor Selatan (sebelum ni dikenali sebagai Tol Batu 3 sebab keluar dekat kawasan Batu 3) > Federal Highway > Shah Alam (melalui overbridge sebelah SACC). Dari Shah Alam pula, keluar dari Bangunan SUK ke either roundabout dekat Kelab Shah Alam atau overbridge sebelah SACC > Federal Highway > overbridge naik ke Batu 3 > Elite Highway (sekali lagi melalui Tol Ebor Selatan) > Putrajaya. So, anyone who bears a grudge with me can wait in ambush with a sniper rifle near those routes or just plant a remote IED :P.

Anyway, just wandering. Why is it every rainy days, there is always traffic jams? Pelik dan ajaib aku. Not to mention countless accidents and wait, this is a good one; kereta rosak! Fine, tak pelik bila tengah-tengah hujan tapi kenapa dekat traffic light atau simpang-simpang or paling syok, jalan 2 lane atau 1 lane. Peh, nikmat menunggu jem reda dalam kereta sambil pasang MP3 kuat-kuat. Face it, bila lagi selalu kita dapat meluangkan masa bersendirian dalam kereta dengan kaki sakit menekan pedal sambil ditemani lagu-lagu yang berulang-ulang atau selection lagu-lagu yang tiba-tiba menjadi bosan di stesen radio? Bila lagi? Betul tak?

I don't understand Malaysian drivers. We speed up when required to be slow and slowed down when speediness is important. We Malaysians are truly gifted with the ability to interpret something simple into a reverse psychological complicated matters. If this is a sign of mutation, then I hope that my not yet manifested power is the ability to understand women better :D.

To all, drive carefully this raining season ok?

Runaways...

Aku baru jer diperkenalkan dengan satu lagi komik Marvel di bawah tulisan Brian K. Vaughan, seorang si botak yang merupakan penulis komik Marvel yang tersohor (pelik dan lucu apabila kebanyakan penulis komik barat tersohor botak-botak belaka, kecuali, well, Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore and maybe a lot more). 

The title of the comic is Runaways, one of the quite latest works of Brian and presenting a unique prespective to the Marvel  superheroes world. It is about a group of juvenile superheroes whose parent; suprise or no suprise, were supervillains who named themselves "Pride". It started when these kids were hauled  to a once a year gathering by their parents. Actually these "gatherings" were sacrificial ceremonies to achieve the reborn of the world (world destruction), To cut it short, they discovered what their parents were up to, team up and along the way regain their "superhero powers" as they embark on the adventure to stop their parents from destroying the world.

Aku tengok konsep komik nih agak refreshing di mana anak-anak supervillains membuat keputusan tak nak ikut jejak langkah parents diorang dan instead menggunakan kuasa diorang untuk kebaikan. Pada aku, ada 2 underlaying themes pada series awal-awal komik ini. Satu, sejahat-jahat seseorang itu, anak-anak diorang tetap sayang. So kids, sedangkan supervillains sayangkan anak-anak diorang, takkan ibu bapa kita tak sayangkan kita. Diorang selalu marah-marah tu sebab sayang :P. 

And 2nd, which is the most important; is that the choice you make determines who you are and these choices make your destiny and fate. True, seperti kata westerners "fate has been written in the beginning" dengan ayat Al-Quran bahawa "qada' dan qadar dah ditentukan" tapi kita juga yang berusaha untuk menentukan nasib kita. Berusaha dulu barulah bertawakal atau berserah. Life is full of endless possibilities.

Well folks, thats all about Runaways that I can think of right now. Macam biasa, anda boleh melayari Wikipedia untuk mengetahui cerita selanjutnya, siap dengan spoilernya sekali. Anyway, let me end this article with this piece of self created wise saying:

In the end, it's your choice that will decide who you're going to be...

Long time no posting, makes for nothing interesting...

ANIP
Almost a month without any postings? That's not good by this new blog standard. I promise myself that I would at least once a week write a posting that at least reached the length and standard of my first article here. Tapi kita ni cuma manusia, so macam biasa ler kadang-kadang kerja jadi macam hangat-hangat taik ayam walaupun untuk sementara waktu. Memandangkan dah 5 hari kita masuk bulan Syawal, aku ingin ucapkan Salam Aidilfitri kepada semua kawan-kawan muslim dan muslimin dan Selamat Bercuti kepada semua yang bukan muslim. Oppps, cuti dah habis. Besok masuk keje balik :P. Anyway its better late than never right? I mean the wishing part...

Let me gather my thoughts and write a better article next.

P.S- Owh and Betty Banafe just got another plus point for speaking Javanese in the Raya drama Nak Pulang Tak Pulang (betul ka ini tajuk??) :D

Anwar Ibrahim = Bulls**tter. Period.

26-9-13-1

Sept 23 deadline for 'showdown'

KUALA LUMPUR: With his promise to form a new government on Sept 16 broken, opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim now wants Parliament to meet within five days for a vote of no confidence.

Anwar yesterday called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to convene an emergency session of Parliament by Sept 23.

Calling it the "final showdown", he said it would allow him to prove, once and for all, that the opposition had the support of more than 31 MPs from BN to make up the minimum 112 seats needed for a majority and to form the new government.

"We have told him (Abdullah) that we have the numbers. If he does not believe me, then convene an emergency sitting," Anwar said at the Parti Keadilan Rakyat headquarters.

Abdullah had challenged him to name the BN MPs who had purportedly agreed to cross over to Pakatan Rakyat by Malaysia Day.
When Sept 16 passed without incident, Anwar still insisted he had the required number of BN defectors to topple the government and said he was holding off because he wanted a "smooth transition".

He has, so far, not named a single one of them. Now he is playing for time by demanding a meeting of Parliament to table a motion of no confidence against Abdullah, which is certain to be turned down.

He said a letter signed by him, the DAP's Lim Kit Siang and Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, had been sent to the prime minister to request him to convene Parliament by next Tuesday.

Asked why the PR alliance could not wait until Oct 13 when Parliament reconvenes, he said:

"State of flux, volatility, ISA arrests, economic collapse, switching cabinet portfolios midstream, uncertainty in Umno supreme council meetings. How long can you wait?"

He claimed he had met fund managers in the region, representing over US$1 trillion (RM3.4 trillion) in capital, who were ready to invest in the country when the Pakatan Rakyat took over the government.

-Sept 23 Deadline for "showdown", New Straits Times, 20 September 2008

Comments:

What a bullshit. Enough of this already. If the rakyat still fall for his tricks after the 16 September furor, then I am indeed worried about our political situation. Please, I beg you all. Don't be so gullible as to be tricked again by this irresponsible man.

External Article: Promises and Patience / Janji dan Kesabaran

26-9-13-1
This is a very interesting article. Aku setuju sangat dengan Dr Amran Kasimin yang telah menulis rencana ini. Pendek kata, sepatutnya cukuplah dengan agama yang memainkan peranan membentuk sahsiah seorang muslim yang akhirnya akan membentuk akidah dan sikapnya secara umum. Tetapi, kemungkinannya ada banyak possibilities yang menyebabkan seorang muslim itu bersikap yang kadang-kadang bercanggah dengan ajaran Islam itu sendiri atau sunah Rasul. Teruskan membaca untuk mengetahui dengan lebih lanjut:

Janji dan kesabaran

SOALAN: Sebenarnya, saya rasa serba salah hendak meluahkan perasaan dan pengalaman ini, tetapi akhirnya saya mengambil keputusan bertanya di ruangan ini. Saya telah ke Mekah, untuk haji juga umrah sebanyak lima kali. Banyak masalah ketika beribadah sebagai tetamu Allah, di mana kita disuruh untuk bersabar. Tetapi kesabaran itu lahir dari yang sebahagian besarnya seumpama disengajakan, yang sepatutnya tidak berlaku. Hukum agama supaya bersabar, Allah beserta orang yang sabar itu dijadikan batu pengalas untuk terus menerus melakukan kecuaian, lalai dan untuk kepentingan diri sendiri.

Dan baru-baru ini saya dijanjikan tempat tinggal di hotel empat bintang di Mekah ketika mengerjakan umrah. Setibanya di Mekah, saya ditempatkan di hotel yang tidak ada nama. Kita jadi serba salah, tetapi tetap bersabar. Kita sabar dan faham banyak hotel dirobohkan tetapi keadaan ini tidak sewajarnya dijadikan alasan untuk menaikkan kos, pada hal khidmatnya berunsur penipuan dan kita masih tetap disuruh bersabar.

– Kembara, KK

JAWAPAN: Pengalaman saudara memang ada kebenarannya. Walaupun hukum ‘sabar’ itu diperalatkan untuk menutup kelemahan, menaikkan kos atau keuntungan lebih, tetapi nampaknya jalan lain seumpama tidak ada, kecuali sabar. Biar apa latar belakang yang menyebabkan berlaku masalah, Allah tetap bersama orang yang sabar. Tidak kira masalah itu dibuat kerana kecuaian, disengajakan atau memang sesuatu yang mendatang tidak dapat dielakkan.

Dalam satu perjalanan menunaikan umrah, kapal terbang yang kami naiki selamat terus ke Madinah. Setelah turun, kumpulan kami menunggu bas untuk ke hotel hampir tiga jam. Berdasarkan pengalaman lepas ketidaktepatan masa ketika di tempat seperti ini sesuatu yang biasa. Banyak faktor menyebabkan berlaku masalah ini. Malah ketika bas sudah sedia menunggu pun, masa untuk bertolak selalunya memakan masa lebih dari satu jam.

Bas sampai. Setelah lebih tiga jam menunggu, saya berazam kali ini untuk beribadah sebaik mungkin, jangan menyakiti hati orang lain, jangan bertengkar. Tetapi setelah berada lebih tiga jam, rasa bosan itu menguasai pemikiran.

Saya menghampiri seorang lelaki muda yang turun dari bas, bertanyakan kenapa bas lambat. Beliau menjelaskan kapal terbang dari Malaysia lambat. Pihak yang mengurus pengangkutan tidak diberitahu. Bas menunggu sebelum ini tetapi balik apabila kapal terbang lambat. Apa yang berlaku bukan salahnya.

Memang benar kapal terbang terlambat. Saya tidak terfikir pihak berkenaan tidak memberitahu kelewatan tersebut. Saya tidak memanjangkan pertengkaran dengan lelaki ini. Dalam apa keadaan pun, kami telah menunggu lebih tiga jam. Bas sudah di depan mata, biarpun jemaah belum masuk dalam bas.

Akhirnya lelaki ini terus berbual sementara menunggu semua beg dimasukkan dalam bas dan penumpang berada di tempat duduk. Saya hendakkan lelaki yang kelihatan baik itu bersifat jujur, sebagai seorang Islam dan arif tentang hukum. Saya mahu tahu kenapa bas lambat. Dengan senyum dan muka selamba, beliau menjelaskan, sebenarnya dia tertidur. Perkara biasa penduduk tempatan tidur waktu tengah hari.

Satu petang saya membeli jubah yang sederhana harganya selepas sembahyang Asar dari sebuah kedai, tidak jauh dari Masjidil Haram. Penjual jubah menjelaskan kalau jubah tidak sesuai, kecil atau besar, ia boleh ditukar. Dia sedia menerimanya seperti biasa dengan senang hati. Setelah mencubanya, jubah ini terlalu besar, tidak sesuai.

Esoknya, selepas sembahyang Subuh, saya ke hotel mengambil jubah dan menuju ke kedai berkenaan. Penjual ini tidak mahu menukar jubah biarpun dia mengakui jubah itu dibeli di kedainya.

Kalau hendak menukar dengan jubah lain, saya kena datang hari berikutnya kerana penjual yang menjual jubah pada saya akan ada hari itu. Dia tidak boleh menukarnya kerana jubah tersebut bukan dibeli daripadanya.

Saya menjelaskan yang saya tidak dapat menunggu hingga esok kerana hendak ke Madinah. Penjual itu tetap tidak mahu menukar jubah lain, menyebabkan berlaku pertengkaran. Akhirnya saya berkata: ‘‘Tak apa. Jubah ini bukan mahal sangat, saudara ambil,’’ sambil menambah “lakin haram ‘alaik.” Saya tidak tahu, sama ada penjual ini marah kerana “haram ‘alaik” atau kerana sifatnya yang kasar, jubah tadi dicampaknya ke atas jalan raya.

Menggeleng

Saya menapak keluar menggeleng kepala. Inilah kali pertama dalam hidup saya membeli baju, berhampiran dengan Masjidil Haram, dilempar keluar di atas jalan raya. Sesuatu yang tidak pernah terfikir dalam pemikiran, itupun masih tetap disuruh bersabar. Dan Allah tetap bersama orang yang sabar.

Bila saya kenang-kenang apa yang berlaku, saya teringat satu peristiwa ketika belajar di Aberdeen Scotland. Ketika berada di sebuah kedai yang pernah saya masuk, perempuan separuh umur menyapa, “you come again!” Senyumnya meleret panjang. “Yes if you don’t mind!” Jawab saya ringkas. “Yes, yes please come ini”. Penjual di kaunter hadapan mudah mengenali kami sekeluarga biarpun kami baru kali kedua ke kedai itu.

Aberdeen kota kecil. Kedatangan kami suami isteri dan tiga anak termasuk seorang anak kecil adalah sesuatu yang agak luar biasa kerana bilangan kami dianggap ramai. Orang Scotish mempunyai seorang dua anak sahaja.

Saya tertarik kepada deretan gelas yang begitu cantik. Di sebelah kanan ditulis harga 30 paun, manakala di barisan lain, harga 50 paun. Saya perhatikan gelasnya sama tidak ada beza, yang berbeza hanya harganya.

Saya bertanyakan kenapa harga berbeza. Beliau menjawab, yang murah itu stok lama, yang mahal itu stok baru. Saya menjelaskan yang saya mahukan stok lama. Beliau menjawab “up to yor sir, you are welcome!” Sambil membungkus dengan surat khabar tebal, penjual ini merendah diri, beliau hanya pekerja dan menunaikan hak pengguna.

Ketika keluar dari kedai, saya terfikir, alangkah baiknya kalau setiap orang bersifat jujur dan ikhlas, tidak menyusahkan orang. Yang penting ialah peniaga-peniaga di Malaysia perlu mengikut contoh pekedai ini.

Di Malaysia kerajaan baru berura-ura menaikkan gaji, harga barangan sudah naik pada esok harinya. Apabila harga minyak naik, segala-galanya naik melambung, menyebabkan nilai wang rendah. Berlaku sorok menyorok barang keperluan bagi mengaut untung. Itupun kena sabar, pengguna kena sabar kerana kesabaran itu bukan mesti berada di Mekah. Sorok menyorok ini pun merupakan masalah yang disengajakan.

Beberapa hari sebelum balik ke Malaysia, saya masuk ke sebuah kedai terletak betul-betul di tepi Masjididl Haram. Kedai ini penuh dengan al-Quran, kitab-kitab agama dan lain-lain. Penjualnya bukan penduduk asli tempatan tetapi bahasa Arabnya begitu fasih.

Setelah mengambil tiga buah kitab, saya menghulurkan 200 rial. Lelaki itu mengambil wang tersebut, lalu mengambil dompetnya seperti mengeluar dan mengira wang dalam dompet. Lebih kurang 10 minit berbuat demikian, saya minta baki dan dia memulangkan 75 rial, pada hal harga tiga buku, 25 rial.

Saya pasti wang yang saya hulurkan ialah 200 rial. Dia tetap berkeras menyatakan saya hanya memberi 100 rial, kalau tidak percaya boleh periksa beg duitnya yang masih di tangan. Dia bersumpah hanya menerima 100 rial bukan 200 rial seperti yang didakwa.

Apa patut saya buat apabila berhadapan masalah atau fenomena seperti ini? Tidak ada benda boleh buat, kecuali sabar. Lelaki yang melempar jubah saya ke jalan raya memberi amaran akan memanggil polis kalau saya berkasar. Saya akan dimasukkan ke dalam jel, akhirnya tidak dapat pergi ke Madinah.

Saya selalu terfikir, bahawa apa yang saudara luahkan di sini ada kebenarannya. Tetapi persoalan yang selalu ada dalam benak kepala saya, bagaimanakah seorang Islam, yang berpuluh tahun tinggal di Mekah, berdasarkan pertuturannya seperti penduduk tempatan, kedainya menjual kitab-kitab, kitab mukjizat baginda SAW, iaitu al-Quran, kedainya di di tepi Masjidil Haram, masjid yang disanjung oleh semua umat Islam, berhampiran dengan Kaabah, boleh menipu seorang saudara sesama Islam yang menjadi tetamu Allah.

Terfikir dalam pemikiran saya, bahawa maklumat atau pengetahuan agama sahaja tidak mencukupi untuk membentuk kemuliaan diri seseorang.

Pada pengamatan kasar, apa kurangnya pengetahuan agama bagi seorang yang fasih berbahasa Arab, tinggal berhampiran Masjidil Haram, menjual al-Quran, kitab agama, tinggal di tempat suci tetapi masih menipu biarpun hanya 100 rial. Berani bersumpah dengan menyebut nama Allah dan Rasul.

Berbanding dengan perempuan separuh umur yang menjual kristal, bersifat jujur, menjual harga yang terlalu berbeza pada benda yang sama. Sekiranya penjual ini mahu meletakkan harga kristal berkenaan sama, ia boleh melakukan tanpa dapat dikesan atau disedari adanya penipuan.

Syahsiah

Rupa-rupanya pengetahuan agama semata-mata tidak berupaya membentuk manusia bersikap jujur. Selain pengetahuan agama, syahsiah seseorang akan terbentuk oleh masyarakat yang bertamadun di mana ia hidup atau berada. Saya pernah membuat temu janji untuk ke klinik melalui telefon di Aberdeen, Scotland. Kakitangan klinik berkenaan meminta saya datang pukul 3 petang, biarpun pada asalnya saya minta untuk datang pukul 9 pagi. Lima minit sebelum 3 petang, pintu masih tertutup rapat. Pintu bangunan mesti ditutup sentiasa, kerana musim sejuk. Tepat pukul 3 petang, pintu dibuka. Seorang jururawat keluar, “Mr. Kasimin!” “Yes” saya menjawab. “Come in please!” sambil membongkok badannya tanda hormat, ia meminta saya masuk.

Saya benar-benar kagum dan bangga kerana segala-galanya berjalan baik. Saya mengambil kesimpulan bahawa apabila seseorang itu dapat menepati janjinya, janji bertemu, mesyuarat, menunaikan hutang atau janji kekasih kepada kekasihnya, maka urusan lainnya akan berjalan dengan mudah, kerana kelakuan seseorang itu adalah pancaran atau gambaran tingkah lakunya.

Fenomena ini berbeza dengan pengurus bas yang memberi alasan kelewatan penerbangan yang tiba di Madinah, menyebabkan bas yang bakal membawa jemaah ke hotel lewat lebih tiga jam. Kerana sifat takutkan Allah masih tersemat dalam jiwa, akhirnya dia mengaku bas lewat kerana dia tertidur. Tabiat semula jadi penduduk tempatan tidur ketika panas terik di atas kepala.

-Dr. Amran Kasimin, Janji dan Kesabaran, Mingguan Malaysia, 31/8/2008

Permatang Pauh aftermath...

26-9-13-1
It is as the Blues Gang song - Apo nak dikato. Anwar dah menang pilihanraya kecil Permatang Pauh. But it was as predicted, he will win with plus-minus the same majority as his wife won early this year. Kepada semua penyokong BN; sabarlah. Perjuangan memang macam ni. Benda yang susah nak dapat, bila dah dapat dan kenang-kenang balik, akan terasa lebih manis. Aku percaya kita akan sapu bersih semua kerusi DUN dengan Parlimen pada PRU-13 jika kena cara. Yang penting, jangan cepat mengaku kalah.

Which reminds me, this morning a friend send me this text sms:

"Najib/albar/ariffshah/umno tu lembu ke? =p"

Which I replied:

"Entah? Naper pulak?"

And of course, he did not replied. This my friend, is the mentality of a typical, die-hard and extremist PKR fan. Come on lah dude, umur ko dah 26. Mature la skit kalo nak berpolitik pon. Name callings are for kids. Masa bebudak dulu bole ler. Sekarang dah tua, buat ler cara orang nak berfamili dah :P. Anyway my prayers are with him so that one day he will see the errors of his way.

Updates: 26/8/2008

26-9-13-1
Whew. I'm still reeling from the event that inspired Entahlah dude and Entahlah dude strikes back (which by the way, still happening as we speak or in this case; write and read :)). But, whatever it is: when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. Accuse me of being reading too much manga lately, but I'm going to take that all with a smile and stubbornness that knows no borders, like Naruto or Luffy from One Piece :P. I will keep trying :)

Lets leave Loveland for the moment and switch back to Malaysian politics. Today, there will be the vote for Permatang Pauh by election. Anwar vs Arif. And another contender but he's more like a small fish. Can be ignored I suppose? As you read from newspapers, blogs, hearsay and all, this is a clear David versus Goliath fights. Anwar's wife, Azizah won the constituent last election, with a majority of 13,000++ votes against her rival. Naturally, this constituent was Anwar's stronghold when he was in UMNO so it is understandable that his wife can hold on for more than 10 years. So Arif and the BN machineries will have a tough fight ahead of him and I wish him a lot of luck. Make us proud old boy :)

So we got another week to Ramadan; the fasting month. The hunger, the thirst, the traffic jams when all are rushing to go back home early to prepare for open-fast, the congested Pasar Ramadans, the tarawikh prayers nightly with family and the morehs after tarawikh. Yup, I'm starting to enjoy Ramadan more than Eid celebration, especially when the latter involves giving money instead of being at the receiving end. Sigh. This happens when you are in the working world; all grown up. Kids, don't grow up please. Or at least grow up slowly. Life is simpler when you are just a kid...

Entahlah dude strikes back...

Feeling a bit down today and damn confuse as well. Hmmm, konpius tuh dari beberapa minggu yang lepas, tapi down tuh ari nih. Ni la akibatnya kalo minatkan gula. Banyak pulak semut-semut lain yang datang menghurung. Anyway apa-apa pon down hari nih aku sedar agak pointless. Just male hormon taking charge kot. Hormon tak balance sangat ari nih kot :P.

Kepada 26-9-13-1, I am not a fool rushing in. Your friendship is more important than any lovestruck feeling so I will not be hasty. My method is still the same. From friendship, the feeling of love I believe will grow slowly. If you're reading this, please give me a chance to prove myself. Wait for just a little while so that I may build up myself. Yela orang baru keje proper, what do you expect? Again if you're reading this, please give me any hint. I know I am sometimes a little bit blur. Anyway, please wait ok? (Cis, mcm ada org gelak jer kat belakang tuh. Cis :P)

Aku sedar pon yg method aku selama nih agak slow and unconventional. I am comfortable with using a YM or any IM to strike conversation. I am not comfy on calling anyone, except for people that I am really close to. I even prefer using SMS than calling. But behind all that lies the reason that I believe, that I am being thoughtful. Aku kurang gemar dan aku percaya yang orang kurang gemar dpt call or strike phone conversation malam2 buta. Except if their love ones calling. And tu yang aku tak sure tuh. So I hope we have an understanding.

P.S- Kepada member2 gamers, otaku militari & politikus skalian, jangan risau. Walaupun 1-2 posts kebelakangan nih agak beremosi dan jiwang, tp rakan anda ini tetap seorang gamers yang minat hal2 militari & politik dlm dan luar negeri. Percayalah. Dia akan kembali :)

P.S II - Please treat this posting as a "luahan rasa hati". One must understand, being me is like being an unofficial counselor. Keje aku adalah mendengar rintihan2 hati member sampaikan bila time aku, maybe aku kena jumpa real kaunselor kot, kekeke...

Entahlah dude...

26-9-13-1
Hmmm, agak sibuk sikit 1-2 minggu ni. Audit datang dan pergi. Minggu lepas Anugerah Khidmat Cemerlang SUK. Memang kena "grill" dengan ahli-ahli panel. Well, what do you expect? Dalam masa 3 bulan, dari JKR Selangor yang hanya ada Jawatankuasa Keselamatan ICT yang macam hidup tak hidup dengan technical support oleh vendor, sekarang dah ada Unit ICT sendiri walaupun secara tak official. Lepas tu lepaskan aduan JKR kat kitorang. Assign sorang staff tetap hampir pencen yang kedatangan macam biskut. Tetap dua orang jugak yang bole buat kerja. Memang masak ler. Besok(hari ni) pulak ada bengkel STAR Rating oleh bahagian Pasukan Petugas Khas; expect more grillling. Macamana pun, benda ni kena amik positif, at least by Oktober kitorang dah boleh ready untuk audit dari MAMPU pulak. That's the most important. Apa-apa pon, kerja macam biasa ler kot. Lepas tu tunggu gaji hujung bulan. Lumrah kehidupan makan gaji :)

1-2 minggu ni jugak tak keruan sikit. Excited ada, confuse pon ada. Memang kat setiap tempat kerja baru atau tempat study baru macam ni. Ada harapan untuk dapat tapi lepas tu macam ada orang nak masuk potong line jugak. Pasal tuh macam malas jer dengan competition nih. It can be dirty and always frusfrating. Orang dah kahwin nak cerai patut carik janda/duda jugak. Bagi ler peluang kat orang muda yang takde apa-apa nih :P. Anyway, tu rezeki masing-masing. I'm not complaining even though I felt like it. Buat-buat bodo jer ler buat masa sekarang nih. Berusaha setakat yang mampu jer ler, I guess. Lumrah kehidupan...

P.S- Memang bahasa pasar habis aku nih :P...

A History of Violence anyone?

26-9-13-1


Started downloading the movie; A History of Violence yesterday. Today, arrived home from work, immediately collapsed on my bunk. Woke up at 9, realized that I missed Asar and Maghrib, took a shower and started playing the movie. You thought I was writing about my day today right? Heheh, no. Just want to say that this movie which were screened 3 years ago was quite good. I've heard about it when it was released, but never knew it was adapted from a graphic novel (comic as some prefer to call it :)) of the same title back then. Last weekend I watched the Mummy movie (which was just ok) and stumble upon the name Maria Bello. Did a little research in the net about the actress, and walla, out came A History of Violence. It was a good movie, the pace was not too slow or fast, the drama and action (read: violence) was balanced and the storyline made sense. Anyway just want to share what I thought of it.

Someday I'll be Saturday Night...

26-9-13-1

A song from Bon Jovi's Crossroads album. Whenever I feel down and out of luck, I will play this song. Reminds me of 2003 as well. Call me sentimental, but that's the way I am...

Seriously...

ZIMA
I just had a conversation with a friend who started working a few months ago:

Ronin: Apa citer ko terbaru? Ada apa2 yg interesting?

Mat Awang: You mean #######? Awesome!

Ronin: ic...

Now for a few months whenever I chat him up in the YM, typically that's how our conversation would start. Welcome to the working world mate!

Seriously...

Updates: 26/7/2008

ZIMA
Politically all is quiet for now. Except for the "alternative newspapers and web portals" (read: slander news; take it or leave it :p) the front page of all major newspaper in Malaysia seems to revert back to news before the Anwar Sodomy Investigations with the actual investigation is still going on but that seems not to garner the attention of newsmen all over the country (well, not yet anyway). Either its the calm before the storm or the storm is in its calm mode, as long as the Altantuyaa and Anwar cases haven't been resolved it is going to brew for quite a while.

Meanwhile day by day the Bar Council seems to shed its neutrality and going on along the opposition's highway. One advise to them: Members that have political leanings to either side should stop being a member and join the political parties. I don't understand much but the impression seems to be that the Bar Council should be neutral as it represents the lawyers all over and lawyers shouldn't take sides professionally accept then they are involved in their cases. I don't care if in personal they favor one political party or another, but if you are in your lawyer professionalism mode, please refrain from issuing political statements. It's misleading and give all lawyers bad impression.

For fuel users out there, this might be a good news: Hydrofuel. From what I've read and heard, the hydrofuel concept is the addition of water in fuel to assist in more efficient burning. Using a powerful sonic wave emitter, water is split to it's molecular level ie. hydrogen and oxygen which will then be used in the combustion process. It is touted to save fuel consumption by 50%. Because it is still new and the explanation is still unclear (or I haven't read as much as I thought :P) for starters have a look at the company's website that's developing the system in Malaysia: Hydrogen Fuel Industries (M)

All and all everything seems to be quite so far, but you'll never know...Just wait and see :)...

Thinking about...

zima
New workplace, new target...Ah, that's typical of me. Persoalannya adakah aku patut ambil langkah lain dari yang sebelum ini atau buat benda yang sama jer? Sebelum nih memang definitely tak jadi walaupun ada jugak ler perkembangan; but at least better, much better than anything before. Maybe apa yang aku tunggu sekarang adalah signal yang clear supaya aku boleh mulakan langkah seterusnya. Or should I start practice aggressive approach right now? Seeing how passive approach or no approach at all that I practiced all this while didn't yield any results...

Well, the moment to get serious will be in about 2 years time so it's quite a dilemma...

The Malaysian Social Contract

ZIMA
I've always been a firm believer of the Malaysian Social Contract agreed by our forefathers before independence. I've said this and I will never stop saying such:

"The Malays have been here for thousand of years as we are the people of this land here. We're as legitimate as the Indians to India or Chinese to China. Therefore we have no basis to abolish the supremacy of the Malay rules and with this responsibility, we will try our best to be fair to other races and religion and will try to keep this country as harmonious and multicultural as possible. To all skeptics out there, you won't be able to find another fair country like Malaysia"

For those who still don't understand what I am trying to convey here or the concept the Malaysian Social contract, here's an excellent explanation by the ex-PM of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, which by the way, inspired this short article.

Why I am what I am today, politically...

ZIMA

I used to be someone who has very little interest in politics. In fact, I don't even care about the elections and even though I was very interested in history (reading from books not learning from teachers mind you. And more to international history than local mind you again :)) my interest is more to historical warfare, battles and such, never for the numerous politic articles in the book.

Then came the year 1998. It was the year where Malaysia hosted the Commonwealth Games (I was touched by songs inspired by the games, I kid you not! :P), a Proton Perdana entered our life (ok, that was a little on the personal side but I remembered many moments of 1998 because of that car) and the most famous; the sacking of Anwar Ibrahim; Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister and touted by the West as the next Man of South East Asia.

A short historical summary on Anwar Ibrahim. He was an MCKK student, more to the Islamist activist side. There were many issues championed by him and he cause quite a ruckus to the government of the day by his activity as he was the stauch supporter of the People Power Movement (no doubt influenced by his admiration of the Philippines People Power Movement). All is well for Anwar Ibrahim, for some thought that he will be the champion of this kind of movement and lead the oppositions to the end. The inevitable happens. He was recruited into UMNO by Dr. Mahathir (Dr. M) and jump ranks at astonishing speed and retain the post of Deputy Prime Minister at the tender age of 50 (+ -). I still remember an Asiaweek article about his private life (everyday jobs, family life) and to tell you the truth, I used to respect the man. Here is a young Malaysian leader who has attained the rank of DPM and was both respected by the West and adored by the Islamic nations for his moderate Islamic ways.

But again, all is not well for Anwar Ibrahim. He was sacked by Dr. M (the man who literally brought him up politically) under the account of corruptions and sodomy. It all began when a man decided to write a book called "50 Reasons Why Anwar Cannot Be Prime Minister". Anwar used his power to obtained an injunction to stop the sale of the books and this resulted in the public (to entice people to buy certain products, try banning them :P). Police reports were made against him, investigations started and the rest is history. At first, I believe that he was innocent, but his later actions made me think twice and stick with my stand, until today.

Back to my political activeness, the Anwar Ibrahim case made me what I've become today; politically. Some friend who dubbed themselves Islamist was very vocal in their support for Anwar Ibrahim and against Dr. M and the government. At first, I didn't care at all. Support Anwar and hate the government for all I care. Do what your heart tells you but leave me alone. Then it started. Friends questioned my political belief. Trying to argue with me about the current political issues and on why I supported the government. At first I stave them off as gentle as I can. Every taunts I answered as nicely as possible and try to reasons as positive as I can. However, something in me snapped. If this is the way they wanted, I would fight fire by fire rather than by water. I started to be as sarcastic as I can when arguing and I not only defended myself, but start attacking as well.

And this continues until today, where so far I have "waged war" in Yahoo! groups, other blogs, Facebook and even Friendster. But come to think of it, many of my posting of opinions and writings were intended to defend the action of the governments and merely to counter unproven accusations that I felt harmful. After all, people are susceptible to hearsays and many tends to believe what they heard or read wholeheartedly news that come from unproven resources and many, too many of the accusations against the government have no basis or credibility.

This I believe has became the basis of my fight; to educate and open up people mind so that they will not accept anything that they heard or read without first investigating the sources or the true story.

The Best Damn Thing...

AL


Avril Lavigne's latest catchy single. Enjoy :)

Desktop refreshner...

AL

In light of Edz's posting here, I also did some modification to my desktop. Now take a guess. Is this a Vista or some other abomination? Thanks Edz, you've revitalized my desktop. And Rexx too, for giving me the idea of the wallpaper auto-changer.

P.S- Alamak, kantoi lagu...:P

Notes - The topmost image is what my desktop looks like now. I'm using Google Desktop and Stardock. Niceee...

Change begins with me...

This is the latest FOMCA battlecry in wake of the price increase. And I agree wholeheartedly. Why when the price increase must we blame the government when in fact they are just cutting subsidies; the bane of modern society.

We have always been so excited about freedom so why can't we be free of subsidies? No, I'm not suggesting that we cut the subsidies alltogether but we must have the resilience and be independent, be ready when the time for the subsidies to be abolished (that means somewhere in the future). As Wacko Jacko always sang (Michael Jackson for them in the dark :)) :

"I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
And No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself,
And Then Make A Change"

Read more about the article that inspired this very short article.

Cerita Arguing...

Arguing. Man, I hate arguing. I really do. I really hate it that it even defines me, the man that I've became now. A dude that doesn't argue and if I do, usually it won't last long as I will take note and give weak acknowledgment to any counter arguments that I've received, believing that there's a small truth to them even as I scrambled home and researching more about the subject of the argument in the cyberspace.

But in reality, if I argue, I want to win(Ok, I am like everybody else. Unique :P). I just hate to spoil a perfect day by arguments, and in the end, everyone leave for home with a bitter taste in their mouth and a cloudy mind. For people who don't know what I'm like at home, I like to argue a lot, people. Yes I do. Just ask my mom or my sister. My dad even. From my deductions, if you fall into arguments with family members, it is easier to recover and mend relations. With friends, usually arguments will turn into a stand off, or worse, an insults throwing competition and to later stages will bring you to strained relations, more so if you're arguing with people who couldn't keep their emotions in check (By the way to detect people who has let their emotions do their arguing, just take a deep look at their eyes. They will try their very best to evade your stares. Really I am not kidding)

That is why, although I am a person who likes to argue in my family circle, will avoid arguing with friends or co-worker. Even though as some people said that they don't take heart of the arguments or will not let emotions cloud their mind up, they actually do! So people, better safe than sorry...

One more thing I want to touch is talking big. Or in what I like to call it in Malay; Cerita K**e. Ok, there are two understanding of Cerita K**e. One is a lie and that lie made into a big exaggeration and is public understanding of Cerita K**e and another kind is the true story but exaggerated to a portion until you feel exhausted from restraining yourself from saying something smart that probably...no, most definitely will stop the story teller from continuing his/her Cerita K**e.

Please people, I am tired of hearing grand tales that's too good to be true. Remember, I am your friend! It is understandable if you are trying to impress a stranger or a girl but again, I am your friend. And a dude. I will never be impressed by grand stories. No, I do not want to discourage my friends from telling me stories or their adventures ever again but I do hope that they tell me the real, true stories. Without embellishments or exaggeration. Remember, to gain respects from your dudes or dudettes, don't exaggerate your stories into Cerita K**e, ok?

Fuel...

Fuel. My first posting in this brand new blog and I write about fuel. These few days fuel is a hot topics for Malaysian. No need to guess, but for the uninitiated, fuel price in Malaysia has gone up (well, well, what a surprise! Says them in Singapore, Thailand and a few others moderately and modern nations). From RM1.92 to RM2.70++. People will compare me with a broken record for saying this but...the price is still low people! But first, for those using vulgar words cursing me when they read this posting by this part, well, the same vulgar words to you back. I don't force you to read my blog posts so if you can't use the brain-containing-skull God has given you to think like a scholar and a gentleman, the Home browser button is up there; give it a push and it will magically take you away from this seems-to-be-offensive-blog-to-you.

Ok, continuing to fuel, I have friends who drives a smaller engine capacity car than me and yet cursing and bitching like there's no tomorrow. Funny thing that they seems to earn a lot more than me. Hmmm...Anyway, for them there is one advice from this humble person to them: "Start planning on buying an electric car or at least a hybrid ones". Fuel price is rising and looking at the depleting oil reserves, it will never go down. Jangan ler nak bermimpi kalo tukar government bole turunkan harga minyak. What do you expect? That they will give the first 20 litre of fuel for free every month? In your dreams, thank you.

So, instead of screaming vulgarity to those who likes to, I purpose some..ah...solutions for those who feels that the increase of fuel price has taken quite a toll on their pockets, wallets or purses. (Or you can be cool like me, absorb the hikes and still pay my study loans, give some to my mum, divide some for savings, spend some on a shopping and even go out once a week for movies or fooling around :P) Ok, here goes:

1) Be creative, go for public transports. It's a little hard to swallow but people who uses public transports everyday are some of the most creative and resourceful that I've met during my era of using buses and trains to work. They can predict accurately which buses or trains arrives at what time (given that the current state of public transport services in Malaysia), take an alternative route and still arrives at places of destination at the same time using other routes, sleep soundly and arrived fresh even when its a 5 minutes journey ride. Not to mention its good for you who doesn't exercise much; all the walking and pushing is good workout plus you can train to blunt out your smelling senses, especially if there's any foreigners who smelt a little on the strong side in a packed buses/trains on a hot, humid day. And another plus side to those who feels strongly about the environment; types who likes to go green, rejoice, for that you have contribute less carbon monoxides by going for public transport. And not to mention its much, much more cheaper plus you get to have your own driver; albeit sharing him/her with all who rides with you :)

2) For those of you stubborns and can still can take the hikes with head held high, one advice: Don't be a show offs. Showing off on roads has more bad to it than good. It's dangerous, people will definitely won't be impress by your antics, you will be looked down upon and it takes toll on your fuel. Showing off means pressing the accelerator and pressing it harder means more fuel be needed to power up your car quickly and more fuel means more money down the drain. Why can't everyone drive gently without showing off? At least do that on a freeway or get involved in motor racing, much more satisfying or at least be a gamer, spend a little on good gaming rig complete with racing game accessories and you will have a great time showing off, in a game that is highly competitive and driven by showing off, but you won't offend people, at least not on the road :)

3) Change to a smaller engine capacity car. I would suggest a Perodua Kelisa but because they only got second hands of that car now, try your luck on Myvi or Savvy. Average performance cars, quite comfy not to mention spacious and it saves fuel. Imagine spending below RM70 a week on fuel to and back from work. And please practice point number 2 while you are at it. Tak guna jugak kalo keter jenis save fuel tapi cara pemanduan out...Support lar kereta tempatan dey! :P

So folks, thats some of the alternatives that I can think off for you to save fuel during this hard times. Also I would like to propose to the government to implement fuel subsidy by differentiating salaries so that people (notice that I use the word people humbly, without any political motives :P) will feel not feel the burden too much and blame the government less than before. Maybe its hard to implement for a start but later it will be very beneficial as do all good things tend to be...Happy Driving...and refuelling...