Fierce...fierce fight!! (part II)

I finally managed to get myself inside Mydin Mall yesterday...Not bad, not bad at all...What I liked the most, like every other Mydin Stores, they aired the Azan when the times come. Prices, very competitive to be compared with the neighbouring Giant's. There are lots of other stores as well. Baby boutique ada, textiles shops (highly suspecting the stores are branches from the stores in Jalan TAR). Mobile phone shops, computer shop, ada indoor playground, RASA food court (yang macam kat Alamanda, Putrajaya tu), florist, mag store, pharmacy, kedai jamu, KFC, restoran nasi kandar etc etc. Parking indoor (as opposed to Giant's outdoor), trolley baru-very easy to maneuver (tak macam Giant punya-dah la susah nak tolak, bising, and I selalu kena electrostatic charge when touching the trolley while putting in stuffs)...Kira ok la...That is why I was there again for lunch (dan lain-lain) just now...hehe....The Mydin store itself is not bad..Dah ada fresh market pun..Kalau tak nampak Mydin staffs wearing unifoms with big prints of MYDIN, sure rasa macam kat Tesco ke Carrefour ke Giant ke etc..Their normal stuffs like tudung, barang-barang sembahyang/haji, decorations etc tu memang ada lah. And there is a small corner selling books macam kat bookstores tu. Kira memang a very good alternative lah. I think that is why Giant is getting really, really nervous.

This morning albeit my way to my office, I saw that a new big signboard had been erected in Giant's compound, facing traffic coming from the main road (Jalan Kewajipan). It stated something like this: FREE PARKING FOR GIANT CUSTOMERS ONLY. OTHERS, PARKING FEE IS RM10 PER ENTRY. PAY AT EXIT. PLEASE PRODUCE YOUR GIANT RECEIPT AT EXIT.

My first impression, whaddaheck? So, now I need to show them proof that I am a customer? If not I need to pay RM10? Damn expensive! Parking spaces kat KL pun tak mahal camtu. It just showed that you are afraid, not a 'gentleman' and insincere with your customers! I have been frequenting this particular Giant eversince I started working in this area (end 2001)and never had I need to proof that I was their customer. What if the customer had misplaced the receipt? Do they need to find another parking space, go inside Giant once again and buy something else so that they do not need to pay the ridiculous fee of RM10 for an open-air parking space? Damn fools!!!

I was discussing this matter with Y this morning and he also felt the same way that I do. We thought, why couldn't they be open-minded and fight fairly like Carrefour, Subang, which is next to Subang Parade and Subang Commuter Station? People parking in their premises not necessarily are their customers. Some people park there and walk over to Subang Parade, or worse, use the Commuter to go somewhere else! They had never post this type of regulations?

Apa daaa... Been in the business for so long pun tak boleh fikir rationally...

And I think I have become their WAS customer....

Fierce...fierce fight!!

The long awaited Mydin Mall near my office has finally opened!! During the first few days (up to today) the jam had been undescribable. And, the fight from the neighbouring Giant had been enormous! I observed a new facelift (new paints etc), restructuring the ample parking spaces (siap tar baru nih!), new advertisement at the billboards etc etc...There are security guards everywhere, from both superstores, guarding their respective parking lots, so that customers from the other mall do not park there and walk over to the neighbouring mall to shop/dine etc..And today, I saw a new billboard has been mounted on the rooftop of Giant bearing a BIG Giant signboard, unconsciuosly (or is it?) covering a bit of the Mydin Mall signboard on top of their building if you are coming from the main road.

Healthy fight? For consumer like me and you, it sure looks like one... We have better choices (and hopefully better pricing)...Already planning to hit the new mall this afternoon...Yeehaa!!!!

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Note: The visit never materialized because it was soooooo jam-packed until I couldn't even get into their parking area! I guest the review of Mydin Mall has got to wait lah...

Reminiscence....

I went back to Sony Bangi after a couple of years' absence, somewhere last week. It used to be my 'playground' aka my gold mine eversince I started working...And I stopped going there for almost 3 years until last week...

Stepping into the compound, I was swept by a distant memory and surprisingly, I felt a bit sad by it. Although it happened many years back, it seemed like only yesterday. This is the place where I met M for the first time over 4 years back...

He was accompanying my client from the same department for our business discussion. Never thought that he got something else in mind after that. I never really paid any attention until he contacted me a few times after that meeting.

The friendship sort of bloomed after he moved to another company. I was at the verge of splitting up with arwah Z at that point of time, and M seemed the perfect cause at that moment.

It never really worked out the way that I had wanted. M was two-timing his fiancee, with me! His fiancee worked outside of KL, so he needed someone to 'fill in the absence' Damn him! And I fell into the trap.

I cursed him after he admitted his fault.. Of course, I was too consumed by rage! I moved on, never really let hurt halt my journey to find other love (or loves..hehe) Until one day, I received a call from M, begging for forgiveness. Turned out that life had not been so smooth for him after our separation... Maybe co-incidence or maybe he really was cursed..hehe..

He said he was in and out of jobs for quite some time, and his wedding date was fast approaching... With no luck in finding a good job, he was not prepared materially for his wedding. So happened that he got a job interview the week after that conversation, and maybe he really thought that he had done me wrong, and I haven't forgiven him although I had moved on (memang pun), so he called to ask for forgiveness.

And who was I not to forgive him? Sedangkan Nabi SAW ampunkan umat and sedangkan Allah ampunkan dosa hamba-hambaNya... Although he had hurled me into 'hell' with what he had done, as a hamba yang hina di sisiNya, I forgave him...

Co-incidence again, or not, he got the job! And a very good offer also! All problems settled, and we became good friends again.. And he really DID make the efforts to show that he regretted his wrongdoings... Enjoyed his friendship (and all others that came with it..hehe...) until I got married and he got a baby girl.. I told him that my Hubby despised him, which made him sad because he still wanted to be my friend after my marriage... Well, unlike him, I am devoted to my family (not to say that he is not- but men will always be men~ they do stray away sometimes..or most of the times...)

We haven't been talking for quite a long time already... Wonder how is he doing now... Boleh je kalau nak keep in touch, but on second thought, both of us have our own lives now... So, this may be the best way out...

Nevertheless, a visit to Sony triggered all the memories....

Sunday outing...

We took baby Daniel for an outing yesterday.. It was already about 4pm when we started from the house. First visit was to Low Yat Plaza because I wanted to buy a HP iPAQ RW6828 as a belated birthday present for Hubby..Initially Hubby wanted to leave Baby Daniel behind because he didn't want the hassle of bringing him along..(O' ye of little faith!) The fact that he didn't know was, Baby Daniel has always been an angel whenever we (myself alone or with any other family members) brought him out for outings...He would be too busy observing the new environment around him rather than become a nuisance/monster etc...

After that, I wanted to go and see Pooh Adventure Fest in MidValley... Sajalah, walaupun Daniel bukannya tahu nak main-main ke apa kat sana...Biasalah...Mummy yang terlebih excited. Clever Hubby took a very long and winding road to get there, and we finally reached there at around 8.30pm. Pastu nak cleanup Baby Daniel lah (ape la Low Yat toilets semua in renovation process), nak makan lah... By that time, Daniel has got a little bit cranky already, as a result of sleepy-but-don't-want-to-sleep-yet...He refused to be confined in his stroller already, resulting in both of us taking turns to carry his 8.1kg body around MidValley...hehe...

By the time we got to the exhibition hall, it was about to close already. But there were still lots of parents and kids around... I bought a new suit for Daniel (again?)... Wanted to linger on, but Hubby had already made a looooooong face and Daniel was about to throw his tantrums already, so regretfully, I had to follow suit...Kecian Mummy...We should have gone to the fest earlier and RW6828 should have waited!!

Anyway B, the RW6828 came with a price... I hope you would honor your promises!! If not, I have the full authority to take it back!!! Muahahahahaha!!!

A visit to the paediatrician...

Took baby Daniel to Klinik Adek in Shah Alam yesterday morning...Dr A tak ada la pulak sebab pergi umrah. Daniel was due for his fifth months' immunization (Hib and Polio Dos 3). Bulan depan Hepatitis B pulak.

My baby now weighs 8.1 kg! Don't really feel the weight now though (agaknya arm's muscles dah well-trained to support his weight) And he is 0.69 meters tall. My baby has grown well despite tak dapat breastmilk for as much as he should. According to Dr Z, he is on the upper region of his growth chart, but has not yet reached obesity range... Alhamdulillah...

Anyway he has a lot of rashes bugging him currently, especially in the neck area. We tried applying many stuffs unsuccessfully. The paed asked us to try using aqueos cream pulak. Cari kat My Baby boutique takde...Kat Guardian pun takde... Ended up using J&J Baby Cream. Mak kata macam berkesan, at least the skin didn't appear as red and dry as before. So, see how lah.

Baby Daniel didn't cry as much as I expected when the needle was stuck inside his yummy thigh...Phuh! Lega... Just for about 20 seconds and he was okay...That's my boy!! Brave and strong...hehe...Just hope that he wouldn't catch the fever like the last time he got immunized.

"I PREFER THIS TO THAT!!!"

I brought baby Daniel shopping at Plaza Alam Sentral with his Nenek and Acik last Saturday...Mak and Ija wanted to buy stuffs for Ija's impending marriage. We went in at about 6pm and came out of the plaza at 10pm..hehe...Shopping tak hengatt ni!! Sampai sesat la sebab we entered using The Store's entrance from the parking lot, and when we wanted to come out, that entrance had already been closed... Turun naik lif and escalators a couple of times barula jumpa kereta balik... Moral of the story: Finish your shopping before the stores close..hehe...

Anyway, while his Nenek and Acik were browsing through some handicrafts to buy for her hantaran, I pushed baby Daniel around in his stroller...Since they were taking a long time to decide on the purchase, I steered Daniel to the toys section...Saja la nak tengok-tengok kalau ada toys yang boleh diangkut balik..Kan Mummy yang terlebih excited with baby toys? I found a colourful, soft ball at one corner, so I threw it inside Daniel's stroller. He looked closely at the ball and began fidgeting with it with his small hands.

Then I found another colourful ball with slightly cheaper price. Thought I wanted to buy that one lah since Daniel bukannya tahu ball tu murah ke mahal kan? Baru je I was about to switch the ball, Daniel suddenly cried. Alamak! Takkan dia nak bola yang first tu? So, I experimented with him: I gave him back the first ball and he suddenly quieted down. Hmm... I thought again....I took a third ball, this time only single coloured and got something like short torns (not sharp) and switched it with the first ball. He cried again!!

Sah!! He knew how to choose already!! I was amazed that my 5-month old baby has already had his preferences... Nasib baik lah this time ball je...Harga murah pulak tu... Next time I tak tahu lah apa pulak yang dia nak...Bahaya ni!!

I told Mak and Ija about the scenario and they were also stumped. At the Cashier, Daniel again threw his tantrums when I took his ball to be scanned by the Cashier. Adus anak Mummy ni.... When he got his ball back, dengan muka selamba he played with the ball like nothing had happened...Hai...sabar je lah...

Toilet story...

The 'free' lunch buffet at Armada (2nd day) proved to be a BIG mistake... By 9 something that night, the toilet-episode started....Adui laaa... I thought it was because of the LEMON treatment that I did... Campur-campur semua adala dalam 6 kali jumpa Dr Tan. Everytime I woke up for Baby Daniel's feeds, sure kena masuk punya... By the time it was off to work time, I think there was zero thing inside my tummy to be flushed out lah...

Pikir punya pikir, I suspected that it must have been the hotel food. To confirm my suspicion, I asked Y and ML how did they fare the night before. Y went 3 times, a few hours after the buffet and ML went once but very long and terrible one....ML asked her brother and a friend to join the lunch as well, and she said her brother went 3 times until had to see Dr and her friend went for 'uncountable' times...hehe... A from Penang office also joined us since he came to the office before we went to the hotel, and according to ML, A also went a few times.....In short, everybody regretted joining the lunch buffet...Kononnya lunch free, tapi kena bayar Dr punya consultation fees la pulak...hehe....

ML complained to the hotel staff, and was asked to write an official complain letter...She said she would do it for the sake of us...Something went wrong lah that day, because the first day I went, everything was ok....

kenapa malas eh?

I still haven't started on the report that is long overdue... And I do not have other things to do...Dah la 2 hari straight lunch buffet kat Armada Hotel company bayo....Aduss...Apesal malas ni?

Posted the letter to INTAN requesting to postpone my PTD Assessment Program...Tatau la dapat ke tidak...Kalau tak dapat, bye bye la PTD...Nak buat camno...Family comes first kan..

Macam-macam adooo...

I have a report due for my Boss(es), but I am sooooooooo lazy!!!! Dah la ngantuk, kat luar plak mendung selepas hujan....Tidur kalu memang la beshh!!

Daniel was over-energized la semalam. He hardly slept throughout the day, and by the time everybody had already dozed off around 1.30am, dia still dok gelak-gelak lagi...Pastu bila orang semua tak larat nak layan dia lagi, dia nangis pulak kuat-kuat sampai semua orang kena bangun sebab nak tidurkan dia....sabo je la anakku sayang ni.....

We went to visit my cousin who had given birth to a baby girl tu....She was so small!! 3kg je at birth, but she is definitely tall. Ibu dia kata susah jugak nak keluarkan cik adik sorang ni, given the fact that Abang-abang dia yang berdua tu cuma 2kg somethings je at birth. Memang la Dr Zamri cakap hari tu, subsequent babies sepatutnya bigger and heavier than the previous ones. Tu yang buat I fikir juta-juta kali for my next baby tu... Kalau dah Daniel 4kg, yang seterusnya?? Makes me shiver....

AF Final...

I didn't manage to catch the final concert because I attended Intan's wedding that night. Had I watched it, sure frust habis. I know Faizal got better chance of winning, but then, Farhan should at least get the second place... Ala mamat yang AFMASUK tu tak sesuai la...Like I said earlier, jadi Senario wannabe boleh la...

Anyway, Intan's wedding was great... Protocol tak yah cakap lah...I pity the MC, penat dia nak baca all the titles of every Somebody who attended. Main VVIP were the Sultan of Selangor and Yamtuan Besar Negeri Sembilan and Tengku Ampuan. The list of kerabats went on and on and on...hehe....

Met a few high school gang that night- Melly and Hubby, Huda, Figette and BF, Ida and Hubby, Suz-n and Hubby, Fara, Ija, Ina Yati, Ina Alias, Ghose, Syara...sapa lagi I missed out ye? Hubby couldn't make it on the last minute...Demam la pulak...So, as usual, I went alone...huhu...Saw Zetty, too (Intan's twin sister and her cute but garang daughter..hehe....)

Time nak ambik gambar dengan pengantin, the queue was helplessly long...Maklumla kerabat ramai kan? But, we managed to take the photos after all...But clever me, lupa la pulak nak bawak kamera...Photographer tu siap cakap "Hai, nak ambik gambar budak-budak tadika lagi senang dari ambik gambar you all tau!" chis...sabo je la...He was referring to the difficulty to arrange we all supaya muat atas pelamin tu...hehe...

Anyway, Selamat Pengantin Baru dear....May Allah bless your union and kekal bahagia ke akhir hayat...Amin....

sakit pinggang...tak de mood...

Auntie sudah datang (early pulak tu), so off went my cheerful mood. Finished some office work (itu pun ala kadar je), went to the bank to pay off hutang lapuk...keke..pastu pegi Giant beli baja ta*k kambing...sabau je la....RM3 u'ols! Berharga sungguh najis haiwan tersebut.. Actually it was for Daniel's orchid (which was the present from Auntie Aty the day I delivered him)... It has grown well... Tapi belum berbunga...So, Mak asked me to put fertilizers...Tanya kat Tauke tu, yang generic punya baja dah habis, tapi the one that I finally bought pun quite popular amongst orchid lovers...Tak tau la kalau kena kelentong...I'll just have to try it out lah...

The main incoming/outgoing road to/from my office has forever been congested at all times. Well, we got Summit Square there, and we also got Giant Hypermarket, Courts Mammoth, Furniture World (ke apa nama dia?)and a recently opened Pasaraya Borong called Koi Hai Seng (or something like that). There are 2 groups of shoplots/shopoffices here, a result of neighbouring residential areas (Subang Mewah and Subang Permai).

As if that is not congested enough, HELLO to the grand MYDIN MALL!!! Mind you, it is reported to be the largest of all Mydin's supermarkets/hypermarts in Malaysia! And it is located in between Giant and Courts Mammoth...It should be officially opened sometime soon... Sekarang tengah mencantikkan the new building and the surrounding area, and I think they are loading the goods. It won't only house the Mydin hypermarket, but also other stores as well. Ala-ala shopping complex la...Tak tau la who are the tenants to-be...

I just couldn't imagine how worse the jam coming to or going out of office going to be after this...Haiyoh!!! Mengerikan!!!

On other note, my cousin delivered a baby girl at 1.39 pm today. Her third, weighing 3kg at DEMC... Complete dah la....1st and 2nd lelaki (yang tengah lasak sekarang)....Congrats, sis!

something worth sharing...

I came across this centre while driving just now. Maahad Tahfiz Anak Yatim Darul Fuqaha in Sg Merab, Bangi. Walking distance from Maktab Perguruan Islam. Officially opened in Feb 2004 and currently housed about 30 something orphans (all boys) aged in the range of 3 to 14 years old.

Well, the orphans are trained untuk hafal Al-Quran everyday, starting around 4am every morning. Academics sessions are in the afternoon. Malam pun ada hafazan training lagi. Basically, they are there to memorize the Holy Book lah.

Currently the management is planning to buy a 2-acre land to build a 'Kompleks Ilmu Darul Fuqaha' consisting of the ophans' hostel, Maahad Tahfiz, Pondok Ilmu Warga Emas, Pusat Perlindungan Ibu Tunggal, akademi pengajian ilmu Islam and Kolej Tahfiz & Pengajian Islam. They need RM1mil for this purpose (RM20/sqft). Donations can be made to DANA PEMBANGUNAN DARUL FUQAHA (Bank Islam Account No 12029010045684)

I tried to surf their website www.darulfuqaha.com, but the account has been suspended. For more info, please contact 03-8926 7762 or mobile 013-362 1236.

A short visit to the centre tadi, I saw a few young kids in school uniforms around the area. Rasa sebak pulak thinking of them orphans (and very thankful that I still have my parents around). Teringat kat baby Daniel la...Macam-macam rasa ada..

So, anybody rasa nak donate tu, contact la diorang. No, they didn't ask me to promote/ask for donation, just rasa terbuka hati nak share this bit of info with my friends who are reading this blog. InsyaAllah besar pahala u'ols... Dahla sedekah ke anak yatim, pastu diorang belajar hafal Quran.. Sikit sebanyak tempias gak pahala diorang tu kat u'ols.. Kalau nak harapkan kita sendiri hafal Quran, memang susah la sikit, ye tak?

Mixed emotions....

I had hoped to receive the letter from SPA regarding my PTD Assessment Programme details last week, but it did not come in. I have been meaning to check on the website for any updates, but asyik lah terlupa. So, when CKay buzzed me with the question on the programme details, I immediately check out SPS's website.

There it was!! The details were there... I need to check-in on Sept 1, 2006 at INTENGAH...Masin betul mulut Mak... She said, "Entah-entah kamu kena daftar masa majlis Ija nanti." Memang betul kata dia...sebab my sis' akad nikah would be on the Sept 1, 2006 followed by the reception at our place the next day and terus majlis pihak lelaki the day after. So how? I'm torn... One part of me really wanted to try the programme, and hopefully I would pass the tests there. Self-satisfaction for me.. But, on the other hand, if I go, I would miss the big events. Which one is more important? Aiyoh, pening! pening!!

Tengah-tengah pening fikir pasal this matter, I got a surprise call from someone far away. Some One's Mother... Some One who once had a special place inside my heart. I was really surprised to receive the call! She sounded the same- just like years before when I used to communicate with her a lot. Talking to her brought tears to my eyes. Suddenly all the memories came flooding back into my mind...

She asked why I never come to visit her and Pakcik? How could I? I would surely break down there.. I had thought to visit some time back, not long after He passed away, but in the end, I didn't believe I could control myself, thus I cancelled the plan. I thought Pakcik and Makcik have forgotten about me the moment He and I parted ways, but I was wrong.

I asked Makcik why she and Pakcik never attended my wedding (I did send the invitation to them although He was not around anymore at that time) Makcik said, it was too painful for them to attend my wedding, remembering the old days when He and I were still an item... That was why they never made it....

She promised to meet me if she comes to visit her other son in the future. She also asked me to visit them whenever I go up North. She also informed me that Tok left only 40 days after He left...I was saddened by this new piece of information...

And though a few years have passed by, the memories never really left me... Everytime I'm reminded of Him, I felt sad and a bit guilty.. But, the good thing about it was, I saw clearly of Allah's plan... Only HIM the Almighty knows what's installed for us in the future, and HE created the paths so nicely until we reach the end of our journey... Along the way, there would be thorns, happiness and sadness, but they were all necessary for us to reach the end goal that HE had determined for us...That surely strengthened my faith in Qada' and Qadar...