Merdeka!!!

Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!!!!!

Alhamdulillah! Hari ini kita rakyat Malaysia menyambut Hari Kemerdekaan yang ke 53 tahun. Rasa sangat bersyukur kerana kita masih merdeka sehingga ke hari ini. Pelbagai kejayaan yang telah rakyat Malaysia kecapi dalam usaha untuk mengharumkan nama negara.

Sebagai anak Malaysia yang dilahirkan di bumi Malaysia ketika negara sudah merdeka, perasaan syukur sentiasa ada dalam diri ini. Sentiasa menghargai segala apa yang telah disediakan oleh kerajaan Malaysia selama ini yang telah banyak membantu saya dari saya kecil sehinggalah dewasa.

Apa pun yang hebat tentang negara luar......saya tetap sayangkan negara saya sendiri. Saya tak dapat nak bayangkan tinggal di negara lain. Kiranya untuk sementara waktu......untuk bercuti....tidak mengapa.....tapi kiranya untuk selamanya....tidak sama sekali.....kerana saya pasti akan amat merindui Malaysia. Orang luar pun sanggup bermastautin di negara kita selama berpuluh-puluh tahun....mengapa pula kita nak tinggalkan Malaysia kan?

Mengapa Malaysia? Kerana masyarakatnya yang berbilang kaum yang dapat hidup dengan aman dan harmoni.....kerana kepelbagaian makanan yang terdapat di sini yang sangat-sangat sedap hehehehe.....kerana pelbagai kemudahan yang telah disediakan kerajaan pada rakyat Malaysia. Pelbagai peluang yang dapat dimanfaatkan oleh kita. Nak tak nak je kan? Kalau rajin usaha....insyaallah.....ada hasilnya.....kalau malas nak usaha....tak kiralah apa jua kerajaan sediakan pada kita, kita tetap tak maju, kerana malas nak usaha. Tepuk dada tanyalah selera. Jangan banyak songeh....jangan banyak mengadu......usaha dulu......usaha bersungguh-sungguh. Tanya diri sendiri, apa yang kita dapat sumbangkan pada negara......jangan asyik nak harapkan bantuan dari kerajaan sahaja. Kita sendiri dapat menolong kiranya kita mahu. Nak seribu daya, tak nak seribu dalih.

Mengimbas kembali zaman kanak-kanak sehinggalah dewasa.......saya dapat lihat terutama di kampung saya sendiri, di Alor Setar sendiri, sudah banyak perubahan telah dilakukan kerajaan. Pelbagai kemajuan yang dapat saya lihat yang memberi kemudahan pada penduduk di sini. Saya rasa sangat bersyukur bila ingatkan semua ni. Anak-anak muda sekarang ni sangat bertuah. Dilahirkan ketika kemudahan telah banyak tersedia buat mereka. Mereka tak lalui apa yang kita lalui dulu. Mereka tidak sedar betapa bertuahnya mereka.

Saya tak nak jadi rakyat Malaysia yang sudah lupakan diri. Saya masih ingat segalanya. Insyaallah, tak akan lupa akan segala jasa baik yang telah diberikan pada saya. :)

Hari ni, 21 Ramadhan 1431 merupakan hari jadi saya yang ke.....hehehehe....malulah pulak nak sebut sini. Tapi ya....hari ni harijadi saya dalam tahun Hijrah. Saya dilahirkan dalam bulan Ramadhan. :) Dalam banyak-banyak bulan.....saya paling suka dan sayang bulan Ramadhan. Tak sangka rupanya saya dilahirkan dalam bulan ini. Saya selalu ingat dan sambut hari jadi saya dalam bulan Ramadhan ni setiap tahun.....jadi dalam setahun, saya akan sambut hari jadi saya dua kali. Sekali dalam bulan Ramadhan dan sekali lagi dalam bulan September. :) Best!

Time out

What a day! I took time off from work today .....I went to visit  my second family in Alor Setar. It's been quite a while since I last had a good chat with any of them. I had fun! I also had a good time playing with my little sister's son Emir. Gosh....I miss him already! Hope to see him again tomorrow as they will be leaving for KL the day after that.

I haven't had time off from work for quite a bit.....so it was nice to hang out and take a break from work for once. I do feel a little guilty not working today coz I know I have orders yet to be done. But I guess whatever I did today......was worth all the guilt in the world...LOL! Nothing beats connecting with family. It's a feel good feeling :)

Hot day

It has been a really really hot day today......from morning till now....even though it's already night time...I can still feel the heat. I got a splitting headache....it's killing me. Took one Active Fast Panadol just now....all because I can't stand the pain already. Trying not to take any since this afternoon but the pain is too unbearable.....so I just had to take one. Hopefully one is enough. 

Don't know why since yesterday.......my body is not feeling too good. Something wrong somewhere I guess. I also got a toothache. Maybe that is one of the reasons I'm not feeling too good. Donno laa.....maybe it's a mix of everything. My feet hurt too. The eczema is killing me as well. Don't know why even though I have been really careful with what I eat, it's still there. There are signs of improvement though. But still....it's painful. I gotta keep working on it curing it fast before Raya comes.

Today is also a holiday for certain states in Malaysia because of Nuzul Quran. Nuzul Quran is a national event to celebrate the revelation of the first verses of the Quran to our Prophet Nabi Muhammad s.a.w on the 17th day in the month of Ramadhan. The Quran was revealed in stages to our Prophet in the period of 23 years. There is no holiday today for us folks in Kedah We still have to work. Me? Well, I don't follow any  public holidays. I make my own holidays hehehe....coz I am my own boss. So I still have to work as long as there are orders from customers. :)

Hope those who were on holiday today had fun on their day of rest. :) Overall....today was a good day nonetheless for me no matter how hot or how painful it was.....I find it so amazing how something as simple as a smile, can make me feel so happy.......it really did. Thank you for smiling again for me. :)

Vegetarian spaghetti

For berbuka today we had vegetarian spaghetti again. It tasted so good yesterday that we made it again today. Plus it's healthy for us too. :) I somehow have adapted to this kinda meal since I lived on my own in KL before. It was something I found quite easy to make and plus it tasted real good. I believe it had something to do with the celery. The celery makes all the difference in taste. Oh ya....not forgetting the carrots. Love them too. No.....not because I was born in the year of the Rabbit ok?? :D

It's almost 12.00 midnight and I'm still wide awake. What a day today was.  A lot has happened that kept  me thinking how words...words can really hurt. Intentionally or unintentionally. Lost for words I am now because of those words......... :(

Bread and butter pudding

What's for berbuka/breaking of fast today???? Yup! You guessed it right! It's bread and butter pudding! :) Yummy! I can't wait to taste it for berbuka today. Home made bread and butter pudding. I used wholemeal bread instead of the white bread. It would taste a little different but at least I know it's better for me. I love eating this with yogurt ....especially strawberry yogurt. Hmmmmm.......oh I can just imagine what it tastes like....hehehehe.....drool...... :D Actually this is what we are having for dessert.....the main meal  for berbuka is vegetarian spaghetti hehehehe....

Fasting is tough......but it's a duty that we all Muslims are used to doing since small. I'm ok with it now after going through it for the past 2 weeks. 2 weeks??? Gosh! How time flies.....I can't believe that it has already been 2 weeks! Usually the first 3 days is the toughest......after that....the body is accustom to the situation.  I'm glad that this year's Ramadhan is a healthy one because of what I've been eating lately for the fasting month. My Mom and I rarely eat anything that's fried anymore. Everything is either baked, steamed, or boiled. Not that we don't take any fat......we do.....except that we just rarely eat anything that's fried, that's all. :). I can see some difference in the way I feel......feel a lot lighter.....and I don't feel any pain at my liver anymore. I used to feel it everyday after eating oily food. 

I'm also trying to drink hot lime juice everyday. I hope to see some good results. I know it's gonna take some time before I can see a huge difference.....but I'm sure there will be in due time. I just need to be patient and be consistent in what I do that's all. Just do it.....and pray for the best. :) 

Melaleuca - Sol-U-Guard Botanical

Dreadful insects begone!! Yup! Once and for all I finally found a way to get rid of those dreadful insects in the house safely. At least now I can be sure that I won't get lung cancer in the process. LOL! Seriously, I've been having this issue for the longest time. Recently a friend of mine introduced me to this company called Melaleuca that sells products that are safe for the home and for the environment too. I immediately fell in love with it. This is the kind of product that I've been searching for all this time. 

One product in particular that I immediately fell in love with is Sol-U-Guard Botanical , it is a miracle product! Yes it is. All this time I've been trying to find a product that can help me kill those cockroaches at home without killing myself in the process and I found one! Yay! You see, I am very sensitive to all those products in the market that claim they can kill ants, mosquitoes and cockroaches. I really can't stand the SMELL. My nose is so sensitive to the smell. I would dread it whenever my Mom uses the product to get rid of those unwanted insects at home. One thing great about Sol-U-Guard is that it does not have an awful smell at all. In fact, it smells just like thyme oil because thyme oil is one of it's ingredients. I tried killing a cockroach recently and amazingly after just a few sprays of it, the cockroach died. Unlike using the common insect spray, the cockroach does not die instantly. It usually hangs around for a while....and some manage to escape. In the process, we have to inhale that awful smell too!! Hate it!!

Sol-U-Guard works just like Dettol does too.....which means it kills 99.9 % germs. In other words, the product kills two birds with one stone. The best part is that it's concentrated. One bottle can be split into two bottles. So I just need to dilute it into the spray bottle and use the diluted one to combat those insects and kill the germs. I get to save my money this way since the product is concentrated. I don't need to use a lot of it as well. That's the best part.

Now......getting rid of those insects is no longer a burden for me. Thank God! :)

nur_eimi Lucky Draw

I stumbled upon this lovely blog today called "NUR EIMI :)" as I was bloghopping and found out that the owner is doing a lucky draw. What moved me to enter it is of course the cool prize that is offered. It's a cook book from our famous Chef Wan! I've never owned his cook books before and have been thinking of getting one for myself someday but never had the chance to go and buy one yet. It would be great if I could win this! A great birthday present for me! hhehehe! :D

I hope I will be picked as the lucky winner! Not only will you be getting the cook book....but you will also be getting 5 pretty Avon raya angpau envelopes. :) Have a look at the photos above of the prizes she's offering. Cool huh? Let's all join up!

It's so easy to join! All you have to do is be a follower of her blog and blog about the lucky draw at your own blog. Do visit her blog to get more details ya!

Click on this link here to enter this lucky draw!
http://nureimi.blogspot.com/2010/07/nureimi-lucky-draw.html

No fear

I'll bet to some people......what I managed to achieve today and conquer today is a small matter.  A very very small matter. But for people like myself, what I did today amazed me. Because it is something I never thought I would be good at again. 

It's amazing what our minds can do to ourselves. How it can control our movements. If we believe we can do something.....we can! And I've proven to myself today that I can! It was not a problem for me to do it before but when my illness got worse, it was a big problem for me.  And I never thought that one day I was going to be able to conquer it. I'm so proud of myself today because I DID IT!!! 

Me and Kenari......just you and me. No sweat. No fear. Alhamdulillah.....thank you Allah for giving me the courage and confidence again when I need it the most.  

Lu Pikir La Sendiri De Movie

I can't believe it. I actually watched this movie at least 4 times! hahaha! Yup.....believe it or not! It was showing on Astro Box-office recently and after watching it once, I just had to watch it again and again. Believe me, if I didn't have anything to do, I would have done it and you know how Astro works right? They would repeat the same movie so many times in a day and they go on showing it a few days. So definitely I get to watch it, but because of work load, I can't do that.:(

Believe me I was so surprise with this story. The way it was told......the music + songs in it.....the lesson to be learn from this movie and many many more good things about this movie.....that got me stuck to my seat till the end of the show. Not forgetting how FUNNY the movie was! Gosh....it's so funny! 

I was surprised by the amazing cast as well. Surprised that there were many famous faces starring in this movie like Amy Search, Harun Salim Bachik, Faizal Tahir, Aziz M. Osman, Vanida Imran and many more. The movie was directed by a lady director! Yup.....Ms. Aminah Rhapor. So cool! She also did the screenplay and script as well! How cool is that?! It's awesome to know that she wrote the script......coz I thought it was brilliant! hehe! The whole movie was fast paced and the screenplay was done so well. I didn't feel bored at all. I usually do with Malay films. But not this one!

It's actually a very simple story. About the struggles of a young man trying to make ends meet....trying to survive doing 2 -3 jobs at one time. How he made it big in the end after going through so much of hardship. There is also a love story....yup, there usually is in Malay films hehehe.....but this one I love because it's not overly done. Love and hate kinda love story hahaha....Good ending though....I love good endings :)

I love all the songs in this movie. But the one I love best is not available on Youtube.....the full version of it that is. It's called "Tak Keseorangan" by L.Danielle. It's a new band from Malaysia. I also love the song from Sofaz called "Ku Janji", songs from Meet Uncle Hussein...... :) All good songs!

Check out the video clips of the movie below where there is that song I love so much! :) And also....favourite scenes from the movie :). Actually there are many favourite scenes from the movie....but I can't be posting all of it here. So, you guys can view them at  Youtube ya! :)

 

2nd day of fasting

Today was fun! I had the chance to drive around a lot to a few places to get some errands done. But the heat really got to me at some point. Especially in the afternoon. It was really really hot! Anyhow, it doesn't matter as I managed to get a lot of work done :).  Thank God, the minute I arrived home, it started to rain......quite heavy too......what a relieve......from the hot sunny day. 

I had a funny experience at the petrol station too! Can't mention about it here coz it's too embarrassing hahahahhaa......but it's something I'll remember for a long long time! :D

Oh yeah....I took my Mom to the clinic again this morning for another check up.......so happy when the doctor said that she's getting better. The both of us went through hell for the past two weeks and getting this news really cheers us up. However, we still have a long way to go as it takes quite sometime to heal completely. Just gotta be patient and follow the rules given by the doctor. Plus, must eat well and avoid all the unnecessary stress. :)

I'm really hoping that I can lose some more weight this fasting month. With my Mom's new diet because of the health issue, I too had to follow whatever she eats. Which is good because we don't eat a lot of food with oil anymore ever since she got sick. I too have stopped taking any chocolate drinks. I can see some difference with the changes I've made so far. Hopefully I get to continue with this new eating habit even after the fasting month.

Busy making Eid cards lately......till late at night. I also continued making cards after "sahur". It's cool and peaceful at that time in the morning. Pretty good time for creating :).

Ramadhan

Beautiful Ramadhan is here....... :)

Today is the first day of the fasting month. I thought I would be fine today since I had some fasting practice last week. But I guess today is different. It's hot too outside. No signs of rain coming down. I can hear my stomach grumbling hehehe......and feeling very weak. But I'm ok. The fact that I can actually blog right now shows that I'm fine......just a little weak, that's all. Usually the first week of fasting is tough. After that, once the body is used to it, all will be ok.

Got some card orders to finish up.....but working at very slow speed. Very very slow speed. Can't seem to move any faster.

During the fasting month, not only do we have to abstain ourselves from drinking and eating from dawn till dusk. But we also have to control our behaviour. Must always be good to others......never ever do anything bad. Need to control what we hear and see too. Watch as well what we say.....avoid saying anything that might hurt others. Anything that distracts us from doing our religious duties during this fasting month. We are also encouraged to do more charity work......just keep on giving what we can.....be it in the form of money or things or whatever service that can help people who are in need. That would be good to do.

Most important......must not forget to pray. No point fasting if we don't pray. This is a reminder for me as well. In short, this is the most special month of all......therefore we must do our best this month to be the best that we can be. It is said that in this month, we should be asking God for what we wish for. Because they say that our wishes are given the utmost priority during this month. I did give it a try last year. And I did get what I asked for. So this year.....I'm giving it another shot. Who knows, God might grant me another one of my wishes :).

Pain, pain, go away...

What a week! So many things happened......my Mom got really sick...then I got sick.....now she's improving, alhamdulillah and so am I. Compared to my Mom.....her health issues is a lot more worse than mine.....mine seem so trivial....hehehe. It's been really tough for the past few days. It's a whole new experience for me. I've never had to deal with anyone who has shingles before. It's a nightmare for those who have had it before. I can see now how terrible this disease can be. A real eye opener for me. 

I'm trying my best to stay patient.....to stay focused on the matter at hand. All I can think of now is how to get my Mom well again. I hope the pain will go away.....don't come again some other day.....just stay away. 

A lot of people have visited us and advised us on the matter. I really appreciate all the help they are giving us. I'm slowly learning about it. Honestly, I thank God that I'm my own boss. I can take leave anytime I want to , in order to take care of my Mom. However, I do have commitments that I have to fulfill. Plans that need to be implemented within the schedule. But for the past few days, all have jumbled up and gone out of track. Now I'm slowly following the plan I've made earlier on and making sure I stay on it.....get the job done in the end.

I'm working on designs for my August giveaway and Raya cards......I already have the ideas......and whenever I get a few minutes off my duty as a nurse......I sneak into my studio and quickly get busy implementing the ideas on paper. I just can't wait to show what I've been up to. But I guess it has to wait for a while before I can update about it in my card blog. I miss creating! 

I miss chatting with my friends too. It's been a while since I last chatted with some of them. :( I hope they won't misunderstand......sometimes work do get in the way of connecting with friends. I don't choose to stay away from friends......I had to sometimes because I need the money to support myself. I am not getting a fixed income like most people. If I don't work, I don't earn anything for the day.  A Malay saying....."Kais pagi makan pagi, kais petang makan petang."

Ever since my Mom got sick, I realised how much she has done all this time for the both of us everyday. Now that she is not able to move around that much, all the duties falls on my shoulders. It was a bit overwhelming at first to be handling all the work in the house and my business, but after a week, I'm starting to get the hang of it. I guess this is a way that God is trying to tell me not to take things for granted. I'm learning a lot from this experience. I don't see it as something that is negative. I see a lot of positive things from this ordeal. He has opened my eyes to a lot of things in life. For that, I am truly grateful. :)

Allergic to propolis

I felt my mouth feel so uncomfortable  for the past two days. Something was wrong. Felt a little feverish as well. I kept thinking what was wrong. In the end I knew........it was another allergic reaction. Urrggghhhhhh.......this time around, it was because of a whitening toothpaste that I bought. It has propolis in it.....which is bees wax. How was I suppose to know that I'm allergic to it? Only after constantly using it for about 1 week or more that I got this problem. My mouth hurt real bad now.

I'm going to have to stop using it.....forever.....coz I hate how I'm feeling now. It sucks real bad. As if I don't have enough health issues already.....and now this????? When will all this nightmare end...... :(

August

I can't believe it's already the 1st of August today......huhuhu......another 5 more months and we'd be entering 2011. Gosh....it's crazy how time flies so fast these days. I can't believe that tomorrow is Monday! Again!

My hands hurt....but I can still type....I can still quill....and can still make cards.....but they hurt still. Overworked I guess. But....the thing is with me.....I just can't stop doing something.....there is always something that I want to do. Something that I want to say.....therefore I gotta type....no other choice. I don't write journals or diaries anymore....so I write what I feel here. Unless it's really private....then as my friend advised me....I shall write it somewhere on paper.....and then burn it. It sure does help. 

There were a few things that happened the past few days that got me thinking. Had deep thoughts. Made me a little quieter than usual. Thinking back on what happened on those past few days, I felt that.....I made the right choice......it was best that I didn't talk much about it.....than say what I was feeling at that moment because I might have said something really stupid and I might have hurt people's feelings unintentionally as well when I'm upset. It's always good to take a break from it and calm myself down. I can think better when I'm calmer.....I can communicate better too. Hey.....don't we all? :)

I hope August will bring good vibes my way......bring in a lot of big smiles too. 

I'm missing something right now......I know what it is.....but unfortunately I can't have it. Not right at this particular moment. Will August bring "it" to me? God willing..... :)