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TGIF

Thank God it’s Friday!! Finally, the end of the week is coming..and it is today! Woooohooo!!

I have been making plans for this weekend. Humm..do housework, watch movie with my son (oh yeah…my hubby is outstationing!!), grocery shopping, etc.
Since the trailer of Toy Story 3 came out, my son has been pushing for it. And he pushed his father for it! So, tomorrow seems like an ideal day to go for quality time with my boy. There is a but though…I have been asked to return to office tomorrow (most likely) to settle some of the office issues. Okayyyy..I have to rearrange all my plans now. Housework – unchecked, grocery shopping – unchecked, movie with my boy – checked and rescheduled to tonight’s show most likely. **Sigh**

I am looking forward to tonight’s event, with little adjustment, I am sure it will be just fine.

Why Toy Story 3? Prince of Persia could become a better option. With Jake Gyllenhaal showing his newly sculptured body, firing actions that keep you guessing and wanting more, I guess it gives value to your money.

But Toy Story 3 offers more than just fighting, romance & picturesque shoots. It offers fun, laughter , family bonding. It’s one happy movie. And the franchise that always betters its sequel. Toy Story 1 is already fun, Toy Story 2 is fun & entertaining, I guess Toy Story 3 is fun, entertaining & much much more! Especially laughter. I missed Woody & Buzz as they showed you that they may be different, but friendship breaks through everything. I heard good reviews so I believe this really worth watching. I hope my son enjoys it too.

Thank God it’s Friday, so I don’t have to wake up tomorrow thinking of what to wear to office. Tomorrow is just a Saturday – the day to relax, rest and revive yourself after days of challenges in the office especially.. Sunday is just leisure - to prepare you for the next week’s journey.

And again, the cycle begins when the clock ticks 12 midnight on Sunday.

Boredom vs Overload

Office was a little bit noisy today. Maybe it’s nearing weekend, that people socializes more than doing work. Taking time off from their focus. It helps to distress and relaxes your eyes from too much staring at the computer screen.

I am freaking bored at the moment. Am still waiting for resolutions for certain issues, thus, nothing much in hand to challenge my level of intelligence now. So what did I do since 9 am this morning? Googling..

Yeah..Google. It’s the fountain of knowledge, rich with information and source to get your questions answered. What did I googled (if there’s such a word) about? From Blackberry to blog widgets, parenting to recipes..anything and everything that crossed my mind. Well, you know…whatever they have in the web, it is ‘Googleable’.

So I read articles about Photoshop mistakes (uhuh..it really is nasty), banned Disney funny pics, nice pictures of overweight girls …and I just keep on going . These are interestingly weird..and real. And helps to kill time too.

In the process, I get myself subscribed to Nuffnang - the blog advertising community. It is great to have a place where people with similar interest meet. Maybe I am a little bit over ambitious, but I do hope to have some income flowing in.

In summary, I was freaking bored today but overloaded with my hush-hush internet activities. It’s decent though, and info-seeking. It’s 2.30 pm now..and I am still on and off the net. This is just a knowledge enhancing process.

Alrighty ... peace to the world.
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Never-ending Life Battle..

Many people, in stages of their lives, battle with issues that unknown to others. Maybe it was too private to share. As for me, I have been battling with weight issues since I was a child. I was never a slim skinny girl, I was always that chubby-cheeked baby. It creeps into my adolescent years and now I am a mother, I am still a full-size, maybe a little too full-sized. Hahahaha..

There might be advantages being a full size, but the cons are more when your size is no longer in control. I have problems getting a right fit for off-the-rack blouses and pants, shoes sometimes had to be custom made. Plus, these items for plussies are exorbitantly expensive – as it caters for special sizes! Oh how that is true..

It was unresolved yearly resolution since dunno when – to shed few kilos and keep on going shedding throughout the years. Result? Nope .. not quite encouraging. I am still the same as I was 5 or 6 years ago..maybe few yoyos of weight up and weight down..never persistent.

So, what makes me decided to be adamant about losing weight ..again & now? Firstly, I am trying for a second baby. Then, generally, my wellbeing. I started to have issues with my knees..they are not as they used to be..strong & sturdy. Not the knees that I can play tennis for an hour or two non-stopped, not the one that bend easily during bowling and obviously not the one that can go down flights of stairs effortlessly. Those knees were the yesterdays. Today, it is a different story.

For the record, I had 4 knee injections - administered as a series of injections into the knee joint, each injection spaced about one week apart. The substance so-called act as “lubricant oil” to the thinning knee cartilage and suppose to help in reducing the pain for at least 6 months to a year. It was indeed helpful and now the next series of injection was so much way overdue. Thinking about the pain whilst taking the injection…unbearable..maybe second to birth delivery.

I also had the ankle joint injection in 2008. The injection was administered under full GA (general anesthetic)and under X-ray control. This helps in reducing the pain due to the sports injury occurred many years back. Now, my ankle is okay but the gravity effect sometimes made it looked swollen. So, once in a while, I had to soak them in warm water to improve the blood circulation.

I do not wish to have that scenario again in my life. It is painful – emotionally & physically.

So, now, I try to cut down my calories. I reduce the intake of my carbos, add on more fibres. Do a little bit of exercises here & there – houseworks, many walks in the park..I just hope it helps in bringing down the kilos.

Hats off to a colleague, Duke , his infamous royalty name to some, who managed to slim down, in less than a year. Super duper slim! I believe it is about discipline & will power – how much you want it. He is keeping himself slim now..and above all healthy. He climbs stairs up & down about 20 – 50 flights in a day…maybe once to the extent of 132 flights!! Talking about perseverance! I pray for such .. maybe my prayers will be answered upon sooner or later.

Lose weight ?! Of course, I want it! Only sometimes those little devils called desires will try to bounce you off from the track. It’s ok .. I am in the midst of battle, which for many years I have been trying to win. Maybe I will win this time..bit by bit..a step at a time..only fools rush in.

Join me in so that we can support each other. Best of all, be healthy together. :)
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Bangkok..The city I used to know

Duty call requires me to go everywhere and anywhere – be it domestically or internationally. I work with one of the largest MNC companies, with diversified industries, currently under the limelight. Most of the time I would drive down to south to attend meetings, trainings and sorts.

Last December & January, I was assigned to go to Bangkok. The first trip was with the other 3 team members and the subsequent ones were with another 6 of them for 3 weeks or so. Stayed in two different hotels.
The very first visit was brief and tight. No time to have fun at all. It was all work, dinner and sleep – not even facebooking. The second trip was much more enjoyable and endurable. And that was the longest for about 2 and half weeks. So that was the chance to explore Bangkok.
We stayed at one of the Ascott chains – Somerset Lakepoint @ Sukhumvit business district. Nice rooms, well, actually it was a serviced apartment. So, it did feels at home – but without the hubby and the kiddy. Well, it was a terrible time too coz I missed them so much. So, what can you say about Bangkok? Congested. Yes – it is. The people are nice? Yes they are. But some are not too. Shopping? Okayyy – one thing for sure haven for those who are addicted to shopping.

We reached Bangkok on Sunday @ about 9pm Thailand. When we reached our hotel, we scurried down along Asoke Road to look for food. We were super starved. The airline food was minimal and did not quite filled up the tummy. We do not wish to walk far so we opted for Subway sandwich.

The next day was hectic. We were doing knowledge transfers sessions at one of the division. The barrier in language really worn you down as you need to understand the processes and at the same time understand any gaps. We pulled through the first day though – tired, lonely at the strange land. Dinner was somewhat seafood – a treat from one of the senior colleague. Then off to bed.

The days after the first were smooth sailing. We fought among team members, made up again and be friends again. We are professionals about it. Obviously, these are the challenges when you work with people – especially people that have different personalities, upbringing and background from your own. But again, an objective is always there, the one that we were focusing on at that moment.

So when we entered the weekend, we loosened up a bit and made plans to explore Bangkok. So, we decided to go to Chatuchak (or Jatujak;
Thai: จตุจักร) weekend market, the largest market in Thailand.

We took a cab and fitted in 5 of us. About 45 mins ride passing 2 toll stations and poof!! we reached Chatuchak. Once we gotten down the cab, we were like super excited kids & hyperventilated with happiness. Yeaahhh! We finally reached the biggest market and bargains are on the way.

We were awed by the many items on displays. We decided to split up and call each other when we thought we are done. We got lost in the market, went through the many sois (lanes) and met the same soi again. Oh boy..we are educating ourselves of how to survive in Bangkok. Nope – we did not call each other after that because we were so much consumed in the shopping mode. We were only done @ 6.30 pm, when our feet alarmed us that it needs some massaging. My damages?? Not that much coz I decided to stay disciplined. Anyway we were in the land of stranger, we might need to be a little bit savvy with our greens. That night, we jam-packed the massage parlour and subscribed to foot massage. Some, to the whole body massage. Yeaaah, it was nice…

We thought weekend was done with Chatuchak. Nope, we went to MBK – Mah Boon Krong. One of the must-go shopping mall in Bangkok. This is no flea market like Chatuchak but a bit on the classy end, with plenty to keep you entertained from casual wear to shoes, bags and mobile phones. We went from floors to floors to see if there are any that captures our attention. Not for me, but yes for my friends. At once I thought she wanted to buy the whole MBK. But the one experience I cannot forget was when we were chased out from one of the stalls as we were comparing the prices and we didn’t buy anything. Oh why oh why we talked in English…Muahahahhahaha..we just rolled our eyes.

The second working week was a replica to the first week. But, we had many more night activities in Bangkok. Hang on there..don’t get super excited. We were decent clans and we didn’t do “that” kind of night activities. We went to Suan Lum Night Bazaar – a haven ideal place for nocturnal shoppers. Again, you have to do the leg work similar like Chatuchak, but slightly nicer and cooler. You can get imitation goods from t-shirts, eyewear, shoes, jewellery (i.e. Tiffany) and many more like Thai crafts. A good area also to get some souvenirs home. Not so much for bargains but you can try your luck if you wish. Food wise, it was pretty expensive here and they use coupon methods. But they have the best mango sticky rice..yummmm!!

The rest of the nights were filled up with facebooking sessions till 1 or 2 am, plus doing the work that we were supposed to do. Calling up my family back home. Ohhhh..forget Skype. I can’t event logged on. We just used up the prepaid that we bought and it is kinda savvy too.

We left Bangkok end of January – tired, miserable of missing our families, super excited coz we were heading home, and many more mixed feelings. Even Suvarnabhumi Airport was not saved from the shopping mode of my friends. A last minute one. .

The Bangkok I know yesterday was different from what I see from the tv today. There was no more Land of Smiles, only blood, pain, tears and death. I may re-visit Bangkok in future, but again future is unpredictable. I just hope that Bangkok will return to peace and be in the smiles again.
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Raising a Genius...

Who? A genius? A boy of mine, who will be turning 6 by Aug 10th. Gladly called himself as Ajan, whom in birth cert as Muhammad Danish Nazhan.

As a Muslim, we are mostly encouraged to name our children with a name that has good meanings. So that his personalities matches the name. My son’s name, by fragment, Muhammad takes after our Prophet’s s.a.w name, means highly honoured and blessed, Danish means highly knowledgeable and Nazhan means away from despicable manners. How I take months to come out with such beautiful name for my son..

He is very inquisitive, talkative, friendly and most of all highly active. When he was born, he was diagnosed suffering from G6PD deficiency. G6PD is one of many enzymes that help the body process carbohydrates and turn them into energy. G6PD also protects red blood cells from potentially harmful byproducts that can accumulate when a person takes certain medications or when the body is fighting an infection. G6PD deficiency is an inherited condition in which the body doesn't have enough of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, or G6PD, which helps red blood cells (RBCs) function normally. This deficiency can cause hemolytic anemia, usually after exposure to certain medications, foods, or even infections.

When I got to know this, I thought it was like a death warrant. Then I educated myself to know more what G6PD deficiency is all about. And now I know with proper precautions, G6PD deficiency should not keep my child from living a healthy, active life.

Last night, when the CSI:NY was about to start, my son was babbling and playing with his toys. And I was out from my shower. To my surprise, he was singing along with the CSI:NY theme song. “Out here in the fields, I fight for my meal”. And I was – where the heck does that come from? Well, it surprises me because I never thought he would pay attention to non-cartoons shows. Secondly, his words, though not quite an exact copy, rhymed very well. Yes, I was proud at that moment..

We watched CSI together. Anyway, it’s one of my favourite show, along with House & the other franchise of CSIs – Miami & Las Vegas. I asked him what he wanna be when he grows up. He said he wanna be a doctor. That was my dream too, but I gave up too soon to reach my dream. Then I told him, in order to achieve that he has to go to school, be good, pay attention and be a nice person. No bullying around, no fooling around. Hummm..he is a kid still..with a voice of his own. He said, if he could not become a doctor, he would at least wanna be Ironman. Okay – creativity seeped in. So I decided to go back watching CSI and let him to watch it along.

But then again I gave it a thought. If I ever stopped his creativity, it would never come back. If I let him lingers with his thought of the impossible, he may be disappointed upon knowing that it would never be real.

How parenting is really challenging. Especially when your kids is an inquisitive factbox and would ask anything about everything anywhere whenever he feels like asking.

That question “Where does baby come from” is yet to come. If it does, sooner or later, I would need to explain with the simplest term, without having to reveal so much. Ohhhh..I may need help then..

Service Charge..?? For real..??

Guess what ?? I started Tuesday off as a Monday. Coz I was on leave yesterday and my first day of work is a Tuesday for this week. And, today is Tuesday blues.

To start off a week, it is just good that we have a good breakfast. So I went to the shop across my office to get the so-called breakfast. I saw one stall in front of a restaurant– preparing roti canai. Looks good, so I ordered one roti telor.

Surprisingly, they don’t allow me to take it as ala carte..have to be ordered by set of one hot drink. I thought of having it with Nescafe..but oopsss..no, just plain tea or coffee. I started to feel uneasy..hey it is not about money. It’s about service. If you do not have some sort of notice board or menu, to list all your whatevers, don’t blame the customers. And I was on the way to go mad already.
Then, I said plain coffee. I went up to the counter to pay up for the set even before it is ready. And poof! I was slapped with RM4.32 – for merely roti telor and a plain coffee. I was staring at the receipt in shocked as the receipt stated “Service Charge – 10%”. And I was – hell – where was the service ??? Again, this is not about the money. It’s service. A service that you as a customer totally deserved. And, this is no service at all. I had to wait for almost 30 minutes for my roti telor, my coffee has gotten cold, and the taste..not the one that could please my tastebud.

What is a service charge? Quoting Datuk Mohd Zain Mohd Dom: “It is not regulated by any government agency, and whether it is legal or otherwise will require study.” Till when? Sometimes, or most of the times, we didn’t even aware that we paid that 10% until we are slapped with the bill. What is that 10% for? Some said because of the services rendered..it will go to the well being of the frontliners. Humm…isn’t it the responsibility of the company to ensure that their staff is being taken care of? Why penalise the customers?

Well, today is just not the day. It sucks from the beginning. But hang on. I will still take a deep breath and affirm that today is passing in seconds and that is only micro situation that I will try not to dwell much in future.

Breatheeee in…..breathe outtttt…fuuuuuuu….
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