Tuesday, March 20, 2012

THE BEST LITTLE BOOK CLUB IN TOWN

So I bought a new love. The Best Little Book Club in Town is the collection of short tales –of love, passion, mystery, and life –written by various authors. Bought it at Popular Wangsa Walk few days back. I finished the first story, and it hooked me up.

Cute isn't it?
 The first story called Rising written by Naomi Alderman. Here’s my favorite quote:

~It was the dough in particular that she found herself longing for as if it were a lover. Perhaps it was the rhythm, knead-stretch, knead-stretch, that emptied her mind of all thoughts, that meant that when a thought of Pete arose she could pummel it into the dough until it dissipated. Perhaps it was the simplicity of it. 

She had a mixing machine, but she found that she preferred to knead herself.  Plunging her arms into the dough, she thought of the generations, the centuries of people who had made bread like this. Leaving it to rise and prove, she felt a certain nurturing, a sense that everything had its time and order, that nothing needed to be rushed.

Bread is powerful.~

Lovely isn’t it?

P/s I have to put Angry Fat Girls on hold at the moment. The Best Little Book Club in Town is so captivating.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

GAMAT DAN COKLAT


'Nah minyak gamat, buat ubat luka..'
'Boleh ubat luka di hati kah?'
'Errr..sepertinya tidak'
'Oh, jangan bimbang. Hati saya tak terluka sekarang ;)'
 ------------------------


'Syahiza, awak nak pesan apa-apa dari Langkawi?'
'Saya nak coklat t**k'
'Huh?? Kisses? Haippp!'
<Mungkin kite kena tukar, panggil die coklat stupa candi borobudur. Baru sopan.>
----------------------------

P/S Gamat dan Coklat, dua-dua pengubat luka, figuratively dan literally, luka berdarah dan luka di hati. Harapnya tak ada lah yang hatinya terluka ya :)

P/S Thanks Miya chan... Love!

Friday, March 9, 2012

ANGRY FAT GIRLS

One of the things that I don’t like about Kuantan is it doesn’t has book store. Ok it has one, Popular bookstore in Berjaya Megamall, but that’s the only one. A boring one.  A ‘lack of choices’ one. A ‘no variety’ one. Pathetic right? 

I love reading, but lately I don’t really read books. Part of it is because there aren’t many choices in Kuantan. And of course, I became lazier by day. Besides, there are blogs and websites that hooked me up, so I still read, but not books. The last book that I bought is Kisah Para Nabi dan Rasul from MPH The Curve (while I was working in Selayang Hospital). Two stories book store is heaven! Sometimes I don’t even have any intention to buy book, but every time I passed by a book store, I must have the feeling to drop by. Browsing through the books, synopsis, admiring the creative and beautiful book covers (yes I love to judge a book from its cover-not literally), its endless! Tapi buku yang kite nak selalu mahal, so I end up not buying them. I should be less stingy when it comes to buying books right? Hehe. 

The last book that I read is The Firm by John Grisham (it is actually a re-read). Omg I love Grisham’s work. I started reading his novel during matriculation time. They were a lot of his books in the library. Dulu kite selalu pergi library dgn Hum and Ecah (Radio) and Kak Timah, tapi diorang study kite tidur. Lol. I have read The Pelican Brief (in two days –it is so good I can never put it down), The Testament, A time to kill, the firm, the last jury and one or two more that I have forgotten the title. 

Eh apa yang kite nak cerita sebenarnya? Hehe. MPH is having MPH Kuantan book carnival from 9 to 18 March at Zenith Hotel. Weehooo! I went there today (on the very first day, tanak kalah nokss), and spent my whole Friday lunch break there. I even skipped lunch today aha. But it is quite disappointing. The huge discount book (70%) are not organized. They are haywire and mixed. So I have to go through shelf by shelf to detect any good book. Penat tahu tak. Headache. I managed myself to find one anyway. Tadaa..
Stories of 5 women battling with weight issues -true story
Ok i lied when  I said I skipped lunch. A slice of Pandan Layer Cake from Rotiboy, Java Chips Mocha Frap, and a great book. I could live with that. :)
I flipped a few pages, scheme and scan, and grab it. It’s the last copy. 70% so I got it for only rm29. Yea great bargain. There are few more that I wanted so badly but damn I’m on saving mode (for the Jakarta trip –I hope it’s on, and Cameron Highland visit). Buku lain yang kite nak tu tak ada discount pulak tu. Haissshh kecewa betul.

But anyway, I am still happy with the Angry Fat Girls. Cant wait to start read it. Masa kite baru sampai bookfair tu tadi, Ustaz Zahazan ada, promoting his books and giving tazkirah *on other note, saya sangat suka Ustaz Zahazan*. He said that ‘sebaik-baik teman pada zaman ini adalah buku’. I bet kat library sekolah semua orang ada mural tulis ‘Membaca Jambatan Ilmu’, right? Lets make reading a habit peeps! Lets build a lot of knowledge bridges, jangan nak bina masjid je. Hihihi. 

p/s I begged u MPH, pls open an outlet here. Pleaseeee….

Thursday, March 1, 2012

BEING 25 AND HAPPY, AND SOME SERIOUS MATTER :)


I was born on 22 February 1987, 25 years ago. So I hit 25 last week. I have no issue of being 25. 25 is a great number right? My only concern is in my 25 years of life (that’s quarter a century peeps!) is what have I done? What kind of servant have I been to Allah the Almighty. What kind of daughter have I been to my parent? What kind of sister have I been to my siblings, and what kind of friend have I been to my buddies. I just hope and pray that I will change for better everyday. Semoga hari yang mendatang adalah lebih dari hari semalam. Amin. 

But me being 25 is a major concern for a lot of people. Just quoting some of the birthday wishes:

Selamat ulangtahun kelahiran Ija. Cepat2 jemput makan nasik minyak. –yang ni I cakap balik nak makan nasik minyak bila2 pon boleh. Nasi minyak cenderawasih anyone? 

Happy bday Ija. Bile aku nak dapat kad ni? –my answer is kad takde. Pamphlet diet nak?

Haha yang ni best: Ija ko sedar tak ko dah 25? Ko kena start pikir dah pasal masa depan –Haha yang ni Fana yang cakap. Kite cakap balik weh fana ko lagi lah dah 26 tahun ni hihi. Sori eh fana gurau2 saje. 

Wish dari kakak I boleh blah jugak la: Happy bday. Baik ko carik bf cepat nanti abah carikan plak. -I reply 1 perkataan je: noted! Lol. 

Don’t get me wrong, I know those wishes by my dearests doesn’t mean any harm. In fact they are praying for me right? And lately I have quite a number of people offering me to look for someone for me. Alah senang cakap nak carikan kite jodoh la tu. Seriously all these happened when I hit 25. Masa I 22 dulu tak ada orang la pulak nak carikan I suami kan. ;)

But really, if you ask me, when are you getting married. I seriously don’t have the answer. As cliché as it sounds, hanya Allah yang tahu. I tak tahu, Allah saje yang tahu. However just because you don’t know when will your jodoh come, doesn’t mean that you cant pray for it right. So yes, saya hanya berdoa, moga dikurniakan (dan dicepatkan) jodoh yang baik untuk saya. But will it be enough?

No. Of course it’s not enough. We always, always ask for something good to happen to us. But do we strive for it? Do we work accordingly to achieve it? You asked for good result in exam, but do you study hard to deserve it? You pray God to grant you good health, but do u live healthily? Same goes –you pray for the best husband, but have u prepare yourself to be the best wife for your husband? Jangan nak mintak benda baik untuk jadi kat kita saja, kita pon kena jadi baik. What you give you get back aite?

So yes, I am preparing myself. Despite not knowing when my other half will come, I am preparing myself, so that when he comes, I am ready. Saya belajar masak sikit-sikit, belajar bersabar, belajar beradab, belajar tolak ansur, belajar untuk memberi, belajar menyayangi (really Ija??? I know my friends will be like ‘ni cupid angel mana dah panah love arrow kat Ija ni’ lol. Hey just because I am cheeky doesn’t mean I am not lovely haha). Menjahit je saya tak belajar lagi (saya harap siapa pun bakal suami saya, dia tak kisah saya tak pandai menjahit. Everyone has flaws right? =p).

And on top of all that, saya belajar macam mana nak menjadi isteri solehah. Yes fellas we have to learn that as well. Takkan la nanti dah kahwin baru nak belajar. Dari sekarang kita kena belajar, and this will be a continuous learning process. Tinggal lagi mintak semua yg sayang saya, yang tanya bila saya nak kahwin, those that are very concern haisshhh bila la Ija ni nak kahwin , untuk tolong doa sama untuk saya. Doa ramai2 lagi bagus kan?  Who knows one of your doa maqbul, bulan depan I kahwin. ;)

Lastly just quoting someone “Insya Allah, ada rezeki, ada jodoh, ada la..” Right? Yes it sounds cliché, but that is also the most honest answer that I can give to those who are asking. In the meantime, keep on praying peeps. =)

See..I macam Siti, sabar menunggu. :) p/s mula2 kite nak letak lagu ibu2 bapak kasihani aku tu, tapi rase mcm pathetic la pulak kalau letak lagu tu lol.

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

THE LAST DAY OF THE GREAT MONTH

February 29 happened only once in 4 years
Lets cheer for it
So long the 29th day of Febby
Till we meet again 4 years from now
And farewell to you too February, be good
You are such a nice and fantabulous month :)
Have a good life everyone.

OMG he really did whistle hahah. Coolness! One Republic surely is so cool.

~When you're happy like a fool.. Let it take you over
When everything is out..You gotta take it in
Oh this has gotta be the good life~

p/s February 2012 definitely is a great month. My birthday, a memorable and happy weekend, besties wedding, Muhammad Adam (kak aishah's son) was born, Wawa's transfer to Peninsular was approved, and having so many great and tremendous people in my life. Thank you Allah.

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

THE UNUSUAL DAY


Hari ini adalah hari emosi. I feel grumpy all day long. Pantang orang bagi stimulus (though small trigger), kite nak sentap. Ok lets start with where the hell is Gardenia Chocolate Raisin? Cari kat 3 tempat –dua Shell Select, satu 7 Eleven. Semua jual Butterscotch saje. Kempunan la kite nak makan choco raisin. Minggu ni (in conjunction with ‘losing-2-kilos-before-turn-25’ mission) berazam nak breakfast roti saje, that’s why I was looking for choc raisin bread. Tapi tak ape la, jgn layan rasa kecewa, orang lain lapar tak makan kau dapat makan roti butterscotch jadi kena bersyukur. 

Moment sentap yang ke 2 adalah kat Klinik Sekilau. <Oh on another note, kak Aishah dah selamat bersalin on eve 20.2.2012 –february boy leh geng ngan auntie ija>. So I covered Sekilau today. Klinik Sekilau ni ada seorang *cough annoying*nutritionist. Tadi dia passed 2 patients to me, appointment hari ni, but not in dietitian’s appointment book. Obviously those patients are hers. Dia yang buat appointment, lepas tu main pass2 kat kite pulak. The usual me would not mind this, in fact I’ll be delightful. Ye la hari ni patient dalam appointment dietitian tak datang, yang walk in pon tak ada. Tapi hari ni rasa nak kesah, rase nak berkira. Kau kalau tanak jumpa pt tak payah la buat appointment. Marah betul aku. Nasib baik cik dietitian boleh senyum baik comel cute lagi depan pt. Patient tak salah, so kalau kite emo, jangan sampai pt terabai. Oh I could win award dietitian paling sabar macam ni kan? Kan? ;)

Episode sentap seterusnya adalah bile klinik habis. Dah la breakfast roti 2 keping je, haruslah kite rase lapar dan berkejar2 mahu lunch kan? Bile sampai kat parking ada kereta block kereta kite. Tak boleh keluar. T_T. Saya lapar. Masa tu berazam nak marah pemilik kenderaan berkenaan. Sepuluh minit tunggu dia bagaikan setahun. Lapar nak mamp*s masa tu. Tengok2 kereta auntie Chinese rupenye, and she truly apologize. Being a good citizen I am, tak jadi marah. Tak ape lah. Ni pon boleh menang award rakyat Malaysia paling sabar kan? ;)

Dalam sepuluh minit terperangkap dalam kete sendiri (over, I know!), duk fikir nak makan ape. Suddenly remember tak penah pegi lagi Burger king yang baru dibuke di TC. Kuantan dah ade burgerking don’t play2 ha. Lol. So kite pon gagahkan perut yang lapar itu masuk gear satu, dua sampai lima, and way to go to TC oyeah. Haa otw tu ada kereta yg macam haram tukar lane tak bagi signal buat jalan tu macam bapak  die yang punye sikit lagi nak langgar kereta aku. Memang makan hon aku la kan. ‘Woi buta ke tak reti bagi signal ke tu signal kat belah kiri stereng kereta kau tu (signal kete proton belah kiri kan?). Stupid jacka**!’ jerit aku di dalam hati. And people said lady driver are worst, tak bagi signal ape kan. Haa that stupid driver is a guy. Lelaki. Kau ingat badan kau besar aku takut? Ni cik dietitian and Malay citizen yang lapar dan dah cukup banyak bersabar hari ni. Banyak sangat sabar memang boleh jadi hilang sabar la kan..

Ok panjang pulak incident sentap no 3 di atas kan. Next is kat burger king. Ok I tanak amik coke so substitute with milo ice slurp slurp. Imagine kepala dah rasa keenakan kelemakan kemanisan milo ais, sedut je air tu tiba2 rasa lain. Rasa masam. Rasa tak boleh blah. Berani dia bagi aku ice lemon tea?? Aku adalah rakyat Malaysia cum dietitian yang baru hilang sabar selepas banyak bersabar. Biasenye kalau kite dah minum macam tu I will let it be. Biarlah.. Tapi hari ni I nak milo. Milo ok? So kite mintak tukar right away. Budak tu say sorry, I still managed an honest smile (betul memang ikhlas sebab die ikhlas mintak mahap) and say its okay. Cool kan kite? Lol. 

Oh ada satu cerita lagi yang trigger my grumpiness today. Received an sms from a year 3 student, regarding their community dietetic placement. Actually I ada rasa pelik sikit with the students. Year 3 and year 2. And some of the final year students. Masa zaman kite student dulu, I really respect all my teachers –be it academic and non-academic (lecturers and teaching dietitian la tu). And even all the staffs (including admin assistant). I tak akan ‘akak’kan staff. U know, its UIA, so we called the staff sister. And I wonder how the students so selamba called us kak. Its not that I’m so eager for them to call me sister. Like some of the year 4 I did understand because they used to be my junior (though we are not that close and some of them never talk to me pon even our rooms are just near by). Tapi tak pe la kan.. Ini those yang year 2 and year 3, I never knew them before. And last I recall, I tak ada adik masuk UIA (ok yg ni I tried to crack a joke, sile gelak). 

Walaupon kami tak kisah (especially me and Miya la), but it shows your attitude la kan. We are your officer, your teaching dietitian. A little respect wont do any harm, no? I still remember masa I student, kalau nak sms leturer or dietitian, I always start with ‘assalamualaikum (full, not only salam), maaf ganggu sister/brother/doctor’, then baru the mesej. And I never use shortforms. Because I believed that it is one of the way to show my respect to them. They are not my friends, so I chose my words carefully. I don’t know whether it is just me (I sometimes overthink thing), or betul budak2 skrg ni weird sikit. Hmmm…

Haa ada lagi benda jadi hari ni yang buat kite marah sikit, but its not anybody’s fault ; eg I was looking for kak elis two times to submit something but both times she was not around, cari referral form early February untuk buat cencus tapi tak jumpa (nak call kak Aishah die dah masuk labour room pulak hihi) and few other small things. Tapi tak pe la tak penting. 

Tapi ada benda yang cukup kelakar terjadi yang buat kite rase nak gelakkan diri sendiri and cakap tu la kau emo lagi. Tadi lepas shampoo macam biase nak letak conditioner, tapi I pergi tuang shampoo jugak, dah shampoo rambut 2 kali. Lepas tu dah elok2 amik conditioner instead of rambut I pegi tepek kat muka pulak. I was like ‘whats happening to me?’. Gelakkan diri sendiri hahaha. 


Weird thing is I woke up from the right side of the bed today (right as in ‘betul’, bukan ‘kanan’). I feel very motivated waking up this morning. Monday blues? Naaahhh.. Semangat doo gi kerja tadi. Tapi tu la bak kata lirik lagu Hijjaz yang kite suka ~hidup tidak selalunya indah, langit tak selalu cerah, sulam malam tak berbintang, itulah lukisan alam…~ pastu sambung pulak ~dalam diam taburkanlah baktimu,
dalam tenang buangkanlah amarahmu, suburkanlah sifat sabar, di dalam jiwamu itu~. Haa kan bagus kalau dapat buat macam tu. 

So moral of the story, when things start to fall apart, its easy (and normal) for us to get angry and be upset. Tapi sebagai hamba, kita tak boleh lama2 layan rasa marah dan kecewa dan sedih itu. Kalau boleh elakkan terus. Tapi kalau tak boleh elak, jangan biar lama2. Semua benda yang terjadi Allah yang aturkan. Kalau kita asyik nak blame orang, cari salah orang, marah-marah, tak sabar, Tanya balik, kita marah kat siapa sebenarnya? My beloved English teacher Miss Lin pernah cakap, keep on blaming until you cant blame anybody. Akhirnya, kita (sort of) nak tunding jari kat Allah sebab biarkan keadaan jadi macam tu. Astaghfirullah. Hamba macam mana kita ni kalau ada perasaan macam tu? *silent, istighfar*. So lets reflect, banyakkan bersabar. Bukankah sabar itu syurga? ;)

P/S: This is a lengthy post. Tahniah jika anda berjaya baca sampai habis. I memang saja buat panjang2 with no pics at all. So jika kamu berjaya baca sampai habis, kamu memang orang yang sabar. Boleh gang ngan kite hihihi. Kalau tak ada yang baca lagi bagus ini adalah sisi tidak matang saya hihihi lagi sekali.

P/S: Cerita ni berlaku semalam sebenarnya (20.2.2012), tapi tengah2 i type terbuat keje lain pulak hihihi.