Friday, April 30, 2010

The Magical Sleeping Beauty

Korg nak tgk magic x? Haa ni dia...



Apa yg magicnya kan? Tu gmbr Aisyah tido aje... Well, kalo perhati betul2, dia tido kaki ke arah bantal. Maknanya dah berpusing 180 degrees tu drpd asal. How she does that without me getting awake is a mystery. Pastu dtg balik lg half an hour, dah mcm ni plak.




I bet all of your kids or the kids you know pon pandai buat magic sebegini hehehehe. Kids. They have the best quality of sleep yg bisa membuatkan adults yg x cukup jam tido jeles kan?

Oh well, at least when they sleep well, we sleep well. God knows what an effort it is to stay patiently awake by them when they don't or can't sleep. Good news is, it's Bank Holiday here on Monday, and I assume the whole of M'sia is also off on Monday for Labours Day kan? We could all do with a three day weekend. Hip hip hooray!

May all of us be blessed with a good and well-deserved rest this weekend then, Amin :)


Thursday, April 29, 2010

A Must Have Book For PhDers

Hari ni aku decided utk ditched segala pelan kesihatan aku. No more Iron Supplement, no more Detoxing Tea and no more Slimatee. Pastu tido kasi cukup 9 jam. Best2. Bkn apa, tp sejak amik benda2 tu, hajatnya nak improve health and immune system plus nak la kurus sket2 in the process , tp duk asyik rasa lesu and berat2 kepala jek. Sampai nak wat kerja pon x de smgt langsung sbb konsentrasi mmg terjejas teruk. Alhamdulillah, aku stop ni dah rasa back to my old self, tp selsema nya tetap ada la. Tp at least bole fokus buat kerja sbb sakit kepala dah x de. Mmg org kata kalo buat detox kdg side efek dia sakit kepala la, buang air kerap la, tp kena sabar and istiqomah. Tp aku ni stop mid-way, failure sungguh, x tau la ok ke x. Ye la, dah berhari2 gini, sampai kerja x jalan, x tahan aku beb.

Anyway, dtg2 je lab hari pada pkl 1 tghari ni nmpk sign yg mengatakan satu floor dlm bgnan aku tuh akan ditutup at 4 pm bcoz of electrical work. Hok aloh, org baru nak buat kerja, dia nak shut down satu floor plak. Anyway, determined to make the most of it, aku niat nak lepak aje la library. Bkn aku x biasa pon kat library tuh. Sbb nya faham sgt dah kalo balik umah tu, mintak mahap la nak ngadap kerja lagi ye dok? Ngadap Tuan Puteri Tuanku Aisyah Nurzahirah je lah jawabnya. Habis produktif pon Tuanku akan tido atas riba la jawabnya, satu tgn menaip, satu tgn memangku dia, satu breast tersumbat kat mulut tuan puteri kecik tu sampai la tertido betul . Olololo.. kesian plak tgk dia tido mcm dlm gmbr ni.




Tp skali tuh masuk library, ya Rabbi, ramainya org. Oh, aku terlupa plak budak2 undergrad semua ni study week, yakni minggu dpn start exam. Apa daa terlupa, padahal hujung minggu ni ada jemputan majlis doa selamat untuk adik2 undergrad di Plymouth yg nak periksa. Susahnya nak cari kerusi kosong. Ye la, kat bhgian open2 tuh, semua dah penuh, budak2 undergrads ni duduk ikut geng masing2 la kot, ala2 study group la tuh. Aku ingat kalo booking bilik karel mcm aku biasa buat pon x guna, mesti penuh jgk. So jenuh la aku pergi up, down, and looked around, sampai jumpa 3 bilik ni - Casual Study Room, Quiet Study Room & Silent Study Room. Apa beza plak silent ngan quiet ni, heran betul. Apa pon, nmpk drpd luar mcm Bilik Quiet tu penuh, Bilik Silent tu plak kosong, so try nak masuk, tp ternmpk sign yg mengatakan - No Handphones, No Food, No Drinks AND NO LAPTOPS. Aiyo.. utk silent kena betul2 diam rupanya. Klik, klik, klik menaip x dibenarkan. And siap suruh minimize kan ruffling through the notes lg tuh. Waduh2, ini mcm kalu bernafas pon takut. Tp nak buat mcm mana Bilik Quiet dah penuh. So dlm termangu2 kat luar tu, ada nmpk sorg budak kluar drpd bilik Quiet, meaning konfem ada seat kosong la kan. Aku pon apa lagi, zasss terus masuk n claim aku punya spot. Ye... begitu happening skali library. I'd thought I'd never see the day. Syukur seat nya best plak tu, ada view. In actual fact bole nmpk lab aku di seberang sana, yg telah gelap dan dikosongkan ituh. Weh.. rupanya kalo aku solat org bole skodeng dgn jelas skali lah! Baru aku tahu.




Masuk2 tu, wah... it's friggin' hot, and blimmin' hell, it smells in here. Ye la, dah mcm2 org tu kan, tau2 je la. Mula2 risau gak psl idung srott srett aku nih (esok ada appointment ngan GP - yeay!), tp bila duduk x lama tu dgr bersambung2 je org srott srett gak. Hehe. Pastu lebih memalukan drpd bunyi srott srett itu adalah bunyi keronchong dlm perut plak. Yennadey, nasib baik ada pisang ngan air mineral aku bwk bekal (walaupon detox ku telah kecundang di tgh jalan, bab mkn masih cuba ikut pelan asal, kurangkan nasik and bykkan buah. Crisps and cookies jgn sekali). Masa2 ni la appreciate sgt my very personal space kat Lab Computer Music itu.




Nasib x masuk bilik Silent kalo x kebulur aku sbb x leh mkn. Anyway, duk dlm bilik Quiet ni pon awal2 td org sebelah dok jeling2 gak, sbb aku menaip2 apa semua. Apa leh buat, mmg kerjanya coding kan. Aku tgk rata2 budak lain membawa nota printouts dan dgn poyo nya mengulangkaji. Wah terkenang semasa muda2 dulu. Untung wat PhD x de exams gitu hahahah *gelak suka hati x hengat dunia*




After awhile, aku rehat japs and started baca buku yg direkomen oleh Al, kawan lab aku nih. Utk pengetahuan, semua, Al ni dah nak siap writing thesis dia dah, and this is his SECOND PhD, yet he reads this book like it's his second Bible. Beliau menyuruh aku check out and read buku ni cpt2, bcoz it got him through the first PhD. Wah,... kalo sampai buat PhD kali kedua pon baca buku ni jgk, it must be really good now, isn't it?

So aku pon start la baca buku nih, alang2 otak dah lemau nak wat programming di kala ptg hari ni kan, AND I got really engrossed. In about one and a half hour of speed reading, dpt lah khatam. Aku mmg x nak linger lama2 baca light reading nih, but aku perlu menyuntik kembali smgt perjuangan dalam diri dan memperbetulkan niat kenapa aku buat PhD ni, sbb tu gigih aku baca from cover to cover. Insya Allah lps ni dah kembali tegak on track, dan even if ada jg bibit2 kemalasan dalam diri nih, aku dah paham kenapa. It's the Second-Year Syndrom. Ha.. nak tahu lebih lanjut kena la baca sendiri ehehehe... Aku mmg further recommend la kat kengkawan lain, especially yg tgh wat PhD la. Tajuk buku tu ialah 'How to Get A PhD: A Handbook for Students and Their Supervisors', by Phillips & Pugh. Ni muka dpn dia (tp yg more recent version ada gmbr lain - hok kawan aku tuh cover lain).




Meh aku share sket la point2 dia yg aku rasa menarik, kira ala2 teaser la ek (x leh wat byk2 kang kena saman aku psl copyright plak):

On Feelings & Challenges in PhD:
* Goal posts are continually being moved!
* Isolation, e.g. 'I work alone in lab. Full of people, all research students, all working alone', or 'Most of the communication in the lab is artificial'
* Postgraduates must realize that determination and application, rather than brilliance are needed for a PhD - go get it!
* Overcoming culture shocks for overseas students - language, reserves, accommodation, financial problems, climatic differences, ill health, worries about families back home, etc <--- sgt2 betul. badan aku tgh culture shock kah, climatic differences and ill health manjang nih?


On How NOT to get a PhD

* The first method to not getting a PhD is to not wanting a PhD. You must WANT a PhD bad enough, to the point that you have to answer, "Why am I doing this fruitless job?", "Why have I inflicted this on my family?"
* Overestimating the nature of PhD e.g leave the Nobel prize-winning, paradigm-shifting research for AFTER your PhD
* Underestimating the nature of PhD, e.g. research means finding good questions as well as good answers
* Taking a new responsibility before finishing e.g writing up demands the most concentrated effort of the whole process - extremely demanding test of professional competence, and to really demonstrate that you are WORTH a PhD!


On Kenapa Aku Mandom Aje:

* fed-up, confused, stuck - getting nowhere syndrom
* 'just churning the results, plodding on, no challenge'
* 'doing the mechanical things just go on' <--- ye coding x abes2 ni naik muak dah rasa, tgk pon x sudi, blerghhh!
* BUT a SV remarked, 'during the next six months he'll get through this sticky patch and the results should just pour out' <---- aku berdoa bersungguh2 that this is true!


But point paling aku suka (altho yikes, menakutkan):

* Three years will appear like a long time to finish one job at the beginning. Beware of this illusion. If you trust it and behave accordingly, you will be in deep trouble by the end of it


Dan mcm2 lg la. Yg part technical2 tu aku skip la kat sini, mcm mana nak tulis thesis, apa proses2 dia, how to do reaserch, how to manage SV, tu semua kalo nak tahu kena baca la ye. Wajib la bg kredit authors yg penat2 tulis. It's a very good read, especially if you seem like you're on a hiatus for awhile like me. Atau mmg sengaja malas nak buat kerja tu kan, make yourself look busy productive and grab a copy. 161 muka surat aje. Guna taktik speed reading mcm aku ckp hari tu, in no time lah leh finish. Enjoy and Happy PhDing! ;)


Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Frustrated or Inspired?


Moment of frustration kah coreng2 gini? Salah calculate kah?

Bkn. Ni namanya moment of inspiration. FOR MY DAUGHTER lah tp.

Aisyah lately ni berbakat dlm kaler mengaler, so harus jaga2. Kalo x, jadi mcm ni.
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Very fetching kan laptop Ibu dia ;)



Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Caca Marba

Entry ni caca marba, tp layan je la ye....



Budi Bahasa Budaya Bangsa




Gmbr ni aku amik pkl 8.56 pagi dpn Barclays Bank kat town. Bkn la menarik sgt pon, tp saja terpesona dgn budi bahasa rakyat negara org nih. Bank bukak pkl 9 pg sharp, makanya before that diorg dah pakat2 BERATUR kat luar. Bkn nya berkegar2 mencari ruang utk memotong org di depan yg fokus ke lain. Bagus kan? Sini mmg first come, first serve, x payah gaduh2, striaghtforward, x de sapa tertindas, x de sapa marah2 pagi buta. Bkn apa, teringat byk kes2 beratur tp kena potong line masa kat Msia hari tu. Paling ingat masa kat CIMB Muar, senario yg sama, Hubs tgh bawak my FIL (his Dad), pg2 betul before pkl 9, nak bukak bank akaun. Kitaorg org nombor 2 tercongok kat situ, tp bcoz my FIL terserempak ngan kwn dia, dia duk blkg sket and x la duduk jadi jaga kat pintu tu. Pastu x semena ada pakcik lg satu ni ngendeng2, mendekatkan diri dgn pintu. Spt yg dijangka, bukak je pintu, terus pakcik tu meluru amik nombor giliran. Dgn x bersalahnya ok. Muka maintain selamba. Mmg dpt no 1 la pakcik tu. Keji betul. Bila rakyat negara kita nak berbudi bahasa mcm kat neg org ni ek?



Trauma


Hari ni fire alarm berbunyi plak kat Uni. Mungkin drill, mungkin betul. Sbb masih trauma dgn isu kebakaran tempohari, maka aku sorg je yg sibuk2 bungkus laptop kuar lab. Mana la tahu betul kan?



Morocco

Dalam lab ada budak undergrad drpd France buat work placement utk 2 bulan. Bila ditanya dgn lebih lanjut, baru tahu rupanya dia Moroccan. So best la jgk ada geng Islam sorg lg dlm lab. Tolong2 dia sket2 psl kat mana kedai daging halal, kedai kebab halal, masjid dsb nya. Tp x leh tolong2 lebih sbb dia lelaki. Hehe..



Selsema

Badan masih penat2 dan kahak n mukus hidung ni segan2 plak nak pergi. Aiseh. Sudahnya booking appointment ngan GP hari Jumaat ni. Harap2 Dr bole prescribe ubat yg bagus. Yg dok makan ni dah x berkesan, mcm mkn gula2 je agaknya. Kalo dpt prescription jadilah spt hari ini dalam sejarah, sbb sejak duk UK x pernah dpt ubat prescription yg free. Asyik2 kena beli kat farmasi, even after dah jumpa Dr pon sbb dia malas nak sign kan prescription sheet tu la. Kedekut.


Cancellation

Terpaksa la kansel workshop 'Impact Factor' yg aku dah signed up hari tu. Mmg nak gi sgt2, siap nama aku masuk waiting list tu utk workshop ni tp tegar je tunggu. Sbb nak tahu apa yg penting sgt tu psl impact factor in publication. Tp sbb dah bertindan dgn appointment Dr, plus x nak la srot sret dlm workshop, wat malu je. And session dia from 10 pg – 4 ptg. On a Friday. Nuh-uh. Mmg x ideal.... Maybe peluang aku lain kali la kot, Insya Allah.


Healthy Eating

Masih dlm fasa mkn healthy food. Nasi mkn ikut portion yg smaller, and bila lapar mkn buah. Minum air byk2 n before bed minum herbal tea. Dah x rasa pelik dah skang.


Election

Bkn nak cerita psl kat Hulu Langat tuh, yg tu dah lps. Ni psl UK Governmental Election this May. Aku n Hubs dah register dah, u ols... hehehe... Mari la mari, mari mengundi, mari la buat undi rosak , tunaikan lah kewajipan, pada negara org... Kitaorg dah tau dah undi sapa - sama ada Labour, Conservative atau Liberal Democrats. Sengit oooo tahun ni. Tp apa pon, undi itu rahsia okeh? Hehehe


Bank Holiday

Buat pelan lebih kurg utk K Haz and family nak dtg dari Nottingham hari Ahad ni. Mungkin round2 kawasan sini je kot sbb diorg nak gi Stonehenge before singgah sini, and esoknya diorg nak jalan2 Cornwall plak. Kalo cuaca mengizinkan, nak wat breakfast picnic kat The Hoe the morning before they leave tuh. Insya Allah la kan...


Pesanan dari penaja



Gambar eksiden smlm kat Mutley. Antara pedestrian dgn kereta sport. Moral of the story: Jgn melintas selagi x hijau. Ingat, anda adalah timun shj wahai pejalan kaki.

Mmg caca marba betu entry nih. I told you so.



Monday, April 26, 2010

Shopping for School Is So Cool!

What does it mean when you go to get your child from your babysitter's house which you have left her for more than 3 hours already, only to have her crying her heart out bcoz she isn't ready to go home? What does it mean when your child gets cranky and restless in the evening that she starts acting up? Or when you take her out shopping, she will wave and greet (and sometimes hug) other kids her age by saying, "Baby! Baby!", excitedly and repeatedly? And as if that wasn't enough, she would go around following the trail of this other mother pushing a girl her age in the stroller, just so that she could smile to the little girl, in a manner that appear very much like a stalker?

Adeh.. ni namanya dah ready nak berkawan. Maknanya, mmg nak kena hantar nursery dah. So last week, my and Hubs have decided to send Aisyah to nursery soon. We went nursery-hunting, then decided on this nursery. Cdg nya nak hntr once or twice a week aje, amik half day for a start, just utk dia mingle ngan budak2 her age. Untung2 dpt speed up her speech skills. Borang registration and start up pack dah diberi, so ptg td around 4 pm, I met Hubs and Aisyah in town from Uni to do a little bit of shopping for Aisyah in preparation for her big day.

Items yg nursery telah listkan mesti ada adalah spt yg tersenarai di bawah:

1. Sun block
2. Sun hat
3. A change of clothes
4. Diapers
5. Wet wipes
6. Blanket
7. Tooth brush
8. Tooth paste
9. Sunglasses
10. Bepanthen (Diaper Rash cream)


Tp as usual, kitaorg ada jg terbeli bbrp item lain. Almaklum lah, baju2 Aisyah dah byk yg kecik plus x kan la nak hantar dia gi nursery pakai baju2 basahan dia yg kebanyakannya ada tomato-sauce stain hehe. So beli la jg beberapa psg seluar, baju T, tights, undershirt. Jg beli kasut kerana yg ada skang telah ketat. She is now officially a size 5 utk kanak2 mengikut standard UK, woot woot! Yg baju tido (babygro) tu x pasti sbb apa beli, tp sbb sale kot, GBP2 je, mana bole resist!



Catch of the day. Sorry gambar kelabu. Kamera HP sahaja, dan lampu rumah x bukak plak. I am a genius!
(Dalam gambar: seluar 2 psg, baju T 3 psg, tights 6 psg, sun hat, sunglasses, undershirt 7 psg, and a pink babygro. Tiada dlm gmbr: Diapers and wet wipes)


Berus gigi dan ubat gigi. Ada byk btg dah kat umah tp gosok je malas Aisyah ni nak kena babap ni , tp nak masuk school kan, beli baru la jg.


"You can call me Shades".


"You want a piece of me?"
(Sun hat from Mothercare. Sunglasses from Primark)


Test drive spek mata hitam dgn Ayah dkt bawah sinaran mentari, bersama deruan angin Plymouth


Kasut saiz 5. Ada lampu liplap kat atas tu (yg nmpk cam bintik2 tu), menyala everytime hentak kaki or berjalan, tp x mampu nak dicapture oleh kamera HP kodi ku sbb shutter speed amat lah slow. So you just gotta take my words je lah eh?
(Shoes from Sports World, jenama Barbie. Tights shown in picture are sold separately. The adult's brown shoe as seen in pic is also not included. Heh).


Insya Allah preparation dah ready. Tinggal nak beli sippy cup lg satu, tertinggal drpd list plak. Betul la kata2 org yg dah byk sekolahkan anak, byk belanjanya. Bkn pikir yuran aje, tp baju, aksesori dsbnya. Tu nasib baik lom ada uniform atau kos alatulis dan buku2 kan, dan baru anak satu. Tp x pe, demi ilmu anak. Harap2 Aisyah terus dpt sesuaikan diri dan enjoy and feel happier la lps ni.

Sakit lutut. Akibat kuat shopping.


Sunday, April 25, 2010

Better? Getting There

Alhamdulillah I feel much better now; both mentally and physically. Mentally, bcoz last Friday gi jumpa SV and owed up to him yg mmg x sempat bin x mampu nk siapkan artikel tu in due time utk submit to this one particular conference we were gunning for. Syukur dia memahami; almaklum lah dgn jetlagnya, anak x sihatnya, then diri sendiri x sihatnya, then rumah sebelah terbakarnya, mcm2 lah... But we are still continuing with the paper, utk submit to some other equally good conference, Insya Allah... Lega rasanya, otak dan hati. Rasa betul2 smgt nk start balik research, kalo x rasa tertekan dan x bole think clearly pon. Now it's like getting back the gift of unblocked nose setelah sekian lama selsema.

If only I could say the same for my nose yg masih lg kejap tersumbat kejap OK. Apa pon, tetap bersyukur kerana dah x runny dan berair spt awal2 hari tu. Demam pon dah baik, cuma kdg2 ada rasa penat2. Di atas advice kawan2 (Yzma, Che Fadh), serta kwn2 kerja, aku pon gi cari supplement kat kedai herba Rickard Lanes kat town ari tuh.

Ingat kan nak cari ginseng, or ada jg org rekomen Evening Primose and also Zinc + Vit C, tp bila borak2 dgn herbalist dia, dia advice suh amik Liquid Iron. Agak thorough jg sesi diagnosis dia, dia tanya psl lifestyle, am I vegetarian? do I eat meat? Mcm mana and byk mana mkn sayur, fruit and fibre, and whether or not I was anaemic (dia syak aku anaemic, which I wouldn't be surprised if so, sbb anaemia ni selalu on and off dgn aku, an on going battle, depending on berapa byk aku mkn sayur, most of the time baik dgn sendiri bila up balik secara paksa vege intake :P). Dia ckp punca byk letih2 badan is x cukup iron, and produk yg dia suggest ni cover mcm2, all from nature, from carrot, to nettel, to blackcurrent, to oranges, etc. Mula2 nak amik in capsule je (nak bypass rasa yg pelik di lidah), tp herbalist tu ckp lg, kalo nak suh body absorb better (read: sbb anda x mkn sayur sgt), baik amik liquid So in the end, ni aku beli. Plus side dia ialah, it's 100% made from natural and no artificial flavours or preservatives, plus sesuai utk breastfeedding and expecting mothers. So far so good :)






Plus sedikit influenced by Che Fadh punya smgt men-detox-kan badan, aku pon beli la jgk Detoxing Green Tea nih. Ada citrus flavour sket2, tp still x brp nak lalu la minum. Aku kalo teh herba ni payah yg amat nak telan. Tp lepas habis se-mug, dlm sejam lps tu rasa pening2 sket kat kepala. Normal ke ek? Brp lama side efek nih?




Pastu on Friday itu hari jgk ada berborak ngan Shue psl weight issues. Bkn solely sbb vanity aje, but also health issues like heart-related diseases la, stroke la (nauzubillahi min zalik), all which points back to lifestyle and excessive eating. Aku mmg tiba2 jadi cautious plak sbb mmg lately melantak abis2an x pikir byk. Ntah tiba2 (ye ke?) je rasa mcm badan ni dah membelon plak. X tau la kalo2 yg mkn sakan kat Msia tu baru jadi lemak kat badan ke apa kan, but something must be done. Al-konon nya nak beli this shake tau, tp si Shue telah memberikan hujah2 mengapa ianya payah nak berjaya, and better stick to controlled eating portion and exercize, much to Hubs' liking sbb Hubs adalah sgt2 anti dgn weight losing product yg aku slalu talk about taking, tp x pernah2 amik sbb pada beliau semuanya adalah fad, grrr...! Me being a solehah wife x pernah la cuba beli curi2 takut lain jadinya, plus I was breastfeeding Aisyah full-time jgk, so susah la. Now that I'm thinking of weaning her, dah bole la slow2, sbb dah x leh nak pakai alasan I burn 500 cals a day coz I breastfeed my child huhu... So anyway, nak bgtau, I bought this. Minum sebelum tido. Jg rasa x sedap. Tgk la mcm mana... Kalo x jadi jgn la ketawa eh hehehehe....




Memandangkan hari ni Sunday, rehat2 je, made grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast, sambil2 had a video conferencing session ngan my parents, later we caught up on housework. Did three loads of laundry, jemur kain, then sental dapur masak (oven) and the kitchen counter. Ni pon ada baju sebakul nak lipat, nanti2 la dulu. For lunch masak lauk kegemaran Hubs sket, kari kepala ikan. Pakai kepala ikan cod, ye ikan yg hanyir yg org amik oil extract buat Haliborange tuh. Hmm.. rupa mcm dah ok, tp x rasa mamak la. Ada tips utk improvement?




Then ptg sket terasa nak bake something so I made kek pisang. Tolak markah sket sbb merekah kat atas tu, tp as far as baking goes, ni antara outcome yg paling molek hasil air tgn aku, and the taste is not bad either.






I'm so not a baking person. X suka baking sbb kena exact measurement and all, dan memandangkan aku x de scale, maka susah la nak bake. But smlm aku gi beli ni, a Measuring Cup yg bole measure almost all dry things that needed baking, from flour, to rice, to sultanas, to sugar, etc, using just this one cup. Ada dlm oz, English pint, US pint, dan jg metric. No more timbang menimbang dah lps ni. Bye2 messy scales. Tinggal tuang bhn2 kering ikut measurement tertentu dlm cup tu, terus voila. I am one happy bunny..






Ok lah nak gi prepare lauk lunch esok plak. Hopefully tomorrow dah betul2 rasa back to normal in terms of health and work :)

Thursday, April 22, 2010

The Price of Spring


Spring is here and it is beautiful, BUT...

I am still feeling under the weather, not a 100% fit, hence x masuk2 gak la lab today. I dunno, I just feel it is so selfish to go to the lab when you know full well you're carrying germs with you. Kesian mereka yg pulun nak siapkan writing tesis, x psl2 selesema gak diorg nnt...

Got an email drpd Sv tanya apa cerrr dgn my article yg patutnya kena submit esok? X tau nak jawab apa sebab x dpt nak produce apa. Hampa... Nasib sempat calling2 Che Fadh and dia kasi peransang n smgt, makanya x la rasa depress sgt...

At least I am feeling better now even if still not lab material...

BUT...

Sat ni nmpk mata si Aisyah mcm jadi pinkish and watery sket. Is it Conjuctivitis? Sakit mata kah? Aduh... that is highly contagious, so apakah lps ni kena stay umah lg seminggu? Hrp2 just allergy to pollen, but who knows?

Tu lah dia harga musim spring yg terkenal sbg musim yg paling menarik ini. Tolong doakan agar kesihatan kami skeluarga terpelihara ye. At this mo, aku mcm x berapa bermaya dah ... It feels like one after another...

Oh Tuhan, sesungguhnya sakit itu penghapus dosa, maka ampun kan la dosa Hamba Mu ni... Astaghfiullah al azim... berikan lah kami sekeluarga kesihatan yg berpjgan, jauhkan la kami drpd penyakit berjangkit, dan kurniakan lah aku kekuatan dan kesabaran utk menghadapi segalanya...




Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Bullets on the Goods & the Bads

Still unwell, so bullet points aje.

1. Masih x sihat. Demam dah xde, tp selsema still remains at large for both me n Hubs. Cue tissue papers please!

2. Still x gi lab. No progress whatsoever in that department.

3. My facial skin is dry x hengat dunia, mcm mengelupas pon ye. Very disgusting. Plus the skin of my nose is raw from sapu hingus dgn tissue. Kena sound dgn Azrinudin suh pakai losyen jgn tinggal2, nnt jd mcm dia sampai kena treat dgn UV light x psl2 dpt tanned skin sblm summer nanti (jg kes sbb balik bercuti di Msia si Azri nih). Terus I insaf.

4. Cut my hair today sbb psycho kalo rambut pjg = serabut = demam lmbt baik. Been meaning to do it di Msia, sbb kat Plymouth mahal n xde single sex hair salon, tp x sempat. So this is my 2nd time potong rambut sendiri dpn cermin hehe. Even if it hadn't cure the cold, my head certainly feels lighter. Every woman should try cutting their own hair at least once. Very gratifying.

5. Aisyah finally suka mkn cereal dgn fresh milk. Selama ni dia mkn cereal ratah sahaja, sbb x suka susu lembu itu. But tonight dia slurrppp susu tu bertambah2. Harapnya dia dah geng la dgn susu lembu tu, almaklumlah umur dia dah nak 2 tahun, x lama nak stop dah BF, kena la cari alternative lain utk kalsium, sob sob. Utk mengelakkan confusion, panggil susu lembu itu 'Milk', sbb I made a mistake tanya dia, 'Aisyah nak susu (tambah)?', and dia geleng, tp tunjuk dapur (meaning dia nak fresh milk dlm fridge, bkn breastmilk). Hehe, sorry, masalah terminology Ibu nih.

6. Nyaris terbagi Aisyah cheese stick yg x halal. Diperbuat dgn gruyere cheese (biasanya halal je) tp yg ni tertulis 'made from calf rennet'. Alhamdulillah x sempat masuk mulut dia lg, tp dia dah genggam kat tgn. Terus ada adegan ala2 Batu belah Batu bertangkup, yg mana si Pekan tu tetap la nak telur tembakul yg org x bg mkn itu. Boy, she remembers. Substitute dgn benda lain pon x nak, nak yg tu la jgkkkkkkkkk....

7. Alhamdulilah Aisyah dah sihat. She's having a whale of a time dikelilingi and dimanjakan Ibu dan Ayah yg x sihat.Tgk aje lah gelagat dia kat bawah ni. Jelas happy ek?



Keep the Doas coming ye?


Only Aisyah

Just Aisyah #1
Evidence Aisyah x suka mandi. I wasn't lying kan? How leh?




Just Aisyah #2
Tp dlm rebel2 pon, ada byk jg time mencuit hati. Like when she 'served' me tea okeh. Dia guna plastic watering can dia yg kecik and gelas plastik kat dapur then pura2 tuang air kat Ibu, siap bgtau, "Air, air" sambil sua gelas ke mulut Ibu yg tgh melopong tgk new series of House kat telly. Totally a heart melting moment....


Just Aisyah #3
I was busy lipat kain baju yg menggunung, and Aisyah sibuk nak tolong. So I gave her a simple task, which was to put clothes into different piles; Aisyah, Ayah, Ibu. To my surprise dia faham, and she started to pick up one item of clothing at a time and declared it, "Aisyah!", or "Ayah!", or "Ibu!". Betul plak tu. Maknanya dia tahu n very observant. Hinggakan sepentot Hubs pon dia dgn konfiden declared, "Ayah!". Okeeeeeiiiii....... (Hubs x pernah dress or undress dpn dia pon, honest!)

Tiba2 Aisyah terjumpa a piece of clothing yg sgt familiar bg nya. Dia pon angkat item tersebut dgn tingginya ke atas, dan menjerit, "Shu shu".

Yup, you've guessed it. It was my BRA. Mana x kenal, berapa kali sehari dia selak mencari seteguk susu hehe. Bijak eh?


Sunday, April 18, 2010

Burnt

Oh, this has got nothing to do with my last entry about the fire next door that happened last Friday, but I'm referring to me and Hubs, who are worn out and in my case, have burnt most of my midnight oil already, trying to get everything in order after our 3-week break in M'sia.

God, with Aisyah already hitting the 'Terrible Two' stage, mmg suka sgt la dia merengek2, dan melalak2, kemudian tunjuk perasaan. Nak mandi struggle, dah sudah mandi, nak berenti mandi struggle, nak pakai baju struggle... sanggup tu lari2 around the house naked x nak pakai lampin punya pasal. Pastu Hubs reported that skang when I am at school, Aisyah akan menangis sometimes up to 2 hours just 'looking for Mummy'. And she's uber quick on her toes as well, budak itu. She'd messed up one corner, and just as you get out the hoover to clean up that corner, she'd already be half way through her next 'project'. Mcm mana x worn out? *scratching my head*

X tahu la dia nak adjust lps balik Msia ke, dia sakit nak tumbuh gigi ke, dia dah masuk umur 2 tahun ke, but between her buat2 babak air mata and her actual sickness yg menyebabkan dia berjaga mlm (ada 2, 3 mlm jg jaga from 1 am - 4 am, merengek2 x nak tido), both of us skang kena mcm flu symptoms, but rasanya sbb masing2 exhausted je. It had only been a week since we've arrived, tp maybe we're trying too hard to make it seem like semua dah in place kot. Apa x nya, the groceries needed to be shopped, the clothes needed to be washed, hung and folded, tiap2 kali waktu mkn kena masak, and then clean after. We arrived on Saturday after travelling non-stop for more than 24 hours straight, then on Monday both me and Hubs dah masuk kerja like normal. Mlm2 berjaga sbb Aisyah kurg sihat plak. And for me, ada time2 kena sleep late and wake up at 3.30 am just to finish my testing. My ass is soooo on the line, sbb ada satu paper kena finish before end of next week, but I have yet to obtain a significant result. Mmg it was due la for me utk jatuh sakit huhu...

Ok la, I need rest. Mata berair2 and panas, hidung plak gatal, and suara serak2. Same goes for Hubs. Doa kan kitoarg cpt sembuh ye....



Friday, April 16, 2010

A Fire Next Door

Bgn pagi td rasa cam malas2 nak gi lab, walhal kerja byk. Tp apa bole buat sbb mengantuk sgt, si Aisyah smlm berjaga from 1.30 pg - 4 pg, mungkin sakit nak tumbuh gigi geraham lg kot. So hari ni start the day dgn penuh kemalasan and kelewatan.

Anyway, lps dah masakkan lunch around 11 am, Aisyah mintak nak mkn so bg la dia mkn. Habis mkn, aku n Hubs bg2 kan lah chores sbb kejap lg Hubs nak gi solat Jumaat, and afterwards aku nak chow ke lab la. I let Hubs mandikan Aisyah, while I myself kemas2 tempat mkn Aisyah yg bersepah2 dgn spaghetti bolognaise tu in the living room.

Whilst I was picking up strewn food across the floor, tiba2 terbau mcm hangit dari luar rumah. Instinctively, terus selak langsir luar tingkap, and nmpk org ramai2 kerumun kat luar, and I saw this:




Percaya x, bole2 aku ingat org sembur asap utk nyamuk aedes? Sah2 kat UK x de nyamuk ntah kenapa bole teringat mcm tu plak. Tp after a couple of seconds baru la terdetik, eh kebakaran lah! Terus cpt2 bgtau Hubs yg masa tu tgh nak pakaikan Aisyah baju. Hubs jengok kat luar and immediately said, 'Call 999, call 999!'. X sempat nak call dah dgr siren bomba kat luar. Now we knew it was serious bcoz bkn ada satu, tp TIGA fire trucks kat luar rumah dah. Hubs terus bungkus Aisyah dgn 2 tuala mandi, and before diaorg bergegas keluar rumah he told me to grab my lappy and our passports. And that was all I managed to take with me, along with our camera. And jg switched off most of the electrical appliances dlm living room tu.


Mmg wajar panic jg sbb rumah yg terbakar tu adalah betul2 rumah sebelah okei? And we live in make-shift flats, yg mana some parts of the house diperbuat drpd kayu aje blocking one house from the next. Sometimes org ketawa or berbual kat rumah sebelah pon bole dgr. Rumah English yg lama2 la katakan. So bayangkan lah what a close call it was!


When I went out the door I was greeted by the sight of this:











Api x nmpk daripada luar, tp asap tebal ya amat menjulang2, berderu2 keluar dprd tingkap umah sebelah. Mmg terbatuk2 jg nak keluar. Angin hari ni plak bertiup menghala ke arah our house. But I guess that worked in our favour la jgk, sbb nya cpt dpt bau asap. Syukur angin x cukup kuat utk merebak ke flat kitaorg.

Sedih tgk rumah yg terbakar tu, sbb tu rumah Shannon dan emaknya. Si Shannon ni baru umur 11 tahun, dan mmg biasa bertandang umah kitaorg, main ngan Aisyah la, kdg2 dtg mkn dsb nya. Dua beranak masa tu mmg dah nangis2 tersedu sedan dah, aku n Hubs yg menengok x tahu nak buat apa, tgk dari jauh aje lah. Neighbours keliling rumah semua dah kerumun, dgn anjing2 peliharaan semua keluar atas jalan raya dpn rumah dah. Pasukan bomba bekerja keras memadamkan api. Polis 2, 3 bijik kereta dok jaga lalu lintas. Paramedics dok menenangkan kelaurga Shannon yg mmg dah terduduk in shock dah masa tu. Syukur jg tiada casualty.




Tgk aje la si Aisyah x sempat berbaju mahu pon berpampers. Hari ni plak sedikit windy berbanding smlm, so aku mmg risaukan dia jgk. Aku amik gmbr curi2, sbb ada org poyo suh put the camera away. X tahu ke aku nak jadi Peter Parker ni, silap2 leh jual foto kat suratkhabar. Dia x tahu aku blogger tegar tuh huh ;P


Dlm lebih kurg setengah jam tercegat2 kat luar, nmpk mcm asap pon dah x de, so aku tanya dah bole masuk belom, and one of the firefighters said that we needed to wait a bit more utk clearkan asap. Ni dia alat ala2 kipas khemah pengantin yg diorg gunakan utk speed it up. Yg gmbr selebihnya tu bila everything dah reda.






Masa masuk balik dlm rumah, mmg ada bau asap la, and our fire alarm was ringing non-stop (dia hanya set off bila kitaorg dah keluar, masa kitaorg mula2 keluar td x bunyi lg). Bukak tingkap apa semua, check2 tgk rumah, Alhamdulillah, x de apa2 kerosakan. X lama lps tu Hubs pon bersiap2 pergi masjid utk Solat Jumaat, dan ni aku pon siap2kan Aisyah kasi tido. Ni pon aku tgk police ada lg kat luar rumah, mungkin amik eye witness nya report. Sekeliling area rumah kitaorg ada psg tali tape 'Police - Do Not Cross'.

Aku bersyukur sgt sbb rumah kitaorg x terlibat sama. Dgn duduk di perantauan org ni, x leh imagine mcm mana. Ni baru pengalaman sket ni, tp tu pon aku dpt la idea mcm mana bole panic nya kalo terlibat dlm kebakaran. Masa mula2 bukak pintu flat utk keluar tu, asap punya tebal, rasa mcm nak lari masuk balik dlm rumah. So mmg logik la bila kita tgk cerita mcm Rescue 911 ke, ada je org yg x nak let go atau keluar cpt2 utk diselamatkan, even bila bomba dah hulur2 tgn or tali dsb nya, sbb pada masa dan ketika itu mmg body kita tgh go through fight or flight situation. Satu lg, sbb asap tebal masa bukak pintu, I really wasn't sure Hubs dgn Aisyah dah kuar ke belum, bila jerit2 x de jawab plak, tgk luar x nmpk apa or sapa2, nmpk asap je. Last2 tgk kasut Hubs, mcm dah x de, so baru la tahan nafas, lalu melepasi asap tebal tu, dan bila kat luar baru la nmpk Hubs. Smokes do funny things to your vision, not to mention your lungs and head too.

Apapon, mmg pantas ahli bomba tu dtg and buat kerja diorg. Masa aku mula2 tgk luar tu org ramai2 baru mula sedar ada fire kot, sbb nmpk org ramai2 jiran sebelah menyebelah baru sibuk2 keluar and berkumpul kat laman dpn. Cerita sebenar punca kebakaran tu tidak lah aku ketahui, aku rasa mcm kepochi lak kang tiba2 gi tanya, org dah la tgk panic2 and upset kan. Tggu la, nanti esok lusa ke aku tanya pakcik umah bawah ni ke cerita sebenar. Aku jg bersyukur benda ni jadi sblm Hubs gi masjid, andai aku tgh duk sorg jaga Aisyah, mahu aku hyperventilate sorg2 x pun terus histeria! Lagikan nak pakai tudung and masukkan laptop dan passports pon aku dah terketar2 td... Syukur pada mu ya Allah!

Di sini aku nak ambil peluang utk bgtau readers semua agar berhati2 ketika memasak or when handling electrical appliances. Also, if you can afford it, take some form of home insurance, that covers at least accidents like these or even theft. Mmg benda kalo nak berlaku, akan berlaku jgk, but at least mungkin bole meringankan sket beban kalo dah terjadi tu. Even with a really tight budget, we have a very basic home insurance plan (GBP 13 a month), and bila tgk kejadian hari ni, mmg rasa akan terus stick with it la!

And another thing, a fire alarm is definitely worth investing in (kat sini wajib ada setiap rumah, it's the law), as it is even more important than a burglar alarm I think. Just imagine if I hadn't looked out the window, say we had still been asleep td, not knowing yg rumah sebelah tgh terbakar, would anyone have come and search for us? Mungkin tidak. Sbb nya firefighters semua kalut memadamkan api. If dah melarat ke rumah sebelah, mungkin baru diorg dtg cari ada x penghuni. But what if it's too late? So dgn ada nya fire alarm ni, insya Allah, when it rings, you'll have some time to escape. Ntah la, semua tu kerja Allah, kita sama2 la berdoa agar musibah sebegini dijauhkan.

Stay safe everyone! Nmpknya mmg x ke lab la ini hari...