AidilFitri 1429 H

I woke at 5.00 am and started sending Eid messages to everyone.. I went down and saw Mama surrounded by tablecloth and laces, trying to cram in some last minute decoration for our house.

After I took my bath I realized that I had completely forgotten to put henna on my fingers the night before. So I persuaded Husna to put some on me while I wait for everyone to finish up with their preparation for Solat Sunat Aidilfitri. I only wore a simple black jubah to the masjid. As usual, we just walked to the Masjid. We were there just in time and managed to get a nice cool place to perform our prayers. During khutbah I was up to my usual habit of checking out other people's baju raya. It always amazes me how they can wear their baju raya during prayers because then after the solat the outfit will be crumpled and then because it can get a bit hot during the khutbah, you start to feel a bit stuffy and sweat. Weird..

Anyway, the khutbah ended at about 9.00 am and we made our way back home.. We changed into our raya clothes and had some breakfast (nasi impit, rendang and kuah kacang).. This year we decided not to go to the studio for the family portrait.. So, we had our session for giving "Duit Raya" and some shooting...

As usual, the first place we head to is Gombak.. Nenek is the only grandparent that we have.. Both Abah's parents are gone and I never even met my maternal grandfather.. There, we had another session of giving "Duit Raya"..

Next is Atok Mat's house.. He's Nenek's little brother and lives just a minutes' walk away.. The usual menu there would be the delicious soto..

Then, we headed to Taman Harmoni where a few of our relatives are. We wanted to visit Cik Da because we heard she was sick. Cik Da was the one who took care of me and Zaim after we got back from England. However, we keep missing her that day..

(The three Aimi's being dorky)

That night we went to Nek Long's house in Kota Damansara. Then to Tok Yep's house in Shah Alam.. And finally to Mok Yah's (Abah's little sis) also in Shah Alam.. We got back home at about 2.30am.. Phew!!

(Some pictures we took from Nek Long's house; Abah with the girls and Mama with the boys)

On the second day of Eid we went back to Nenek's house because some relatives from my maternal gradfather's side (Keluarga Jantan) were there. The meehoon hailam was delicious!!

(Me with Zaid and Zaim)

From there we went to Cik Ros's house and Nenek Salmah's; used to be referred as Istana Takeshi. I think we call it Istana Takeshi because the house sits on top of a hill and is filled with crytals. It is one of the coolest house and there are many photo op spots there. But we could only take a few pictures because we were busy looking at old photos of our mom and Nenek. The usual menu here is nasi lemak.

We went to visit our grandfather's and his parent's graves on the third day of Eid. And finally we visited Cik Da. She's doing quite well and even have grandkids now. Cik Da used to take care of me, Zaim and Huda when we were kids but had to stop because she got pregnant. I have some memories of staying at her house. She's a very sweet and caring lady.

The rest of Eid is kind of boring. Not as eventful as one might think. So as my last word, this is Tohoshinki looking sexy for their Five in The Black cover.

MY AYANG...

Today is one of my best friends' birthday. So, this is my special tribute to her.
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During my time spent in IIUM, there was one friend who went through everything with me.. Basically she was there for every major event that I went through in university. We were roommates from the first to the last semester I was in Mahallah Asma' (except for the one time when she didn't take short semester). Astiqamah @ Asti @ Qamah will forever be my Yang..

Right before our debut performance-Get Down!!

If during the days I'm always with Illi, then Qamah is my companion by night. If I was tired after studying, I would lie in her bed so that she can wake me up after I'm a bit rested. I remember one time I had fever, she was the one who took care of me. The first person (outside of my family) to do so. Since she took Law and I was an engineering student, we didn't really run in the same crowd in IIUM. But somehow her friends became mine and vice versa. I was also shown a different world than the technical I was used to my whole life.

During our trip to Pizza Hut with Kak Aini and Kak Fisya

Being her roommate is a bit adventurous because there was never a dull moment. She always had something going on (good and bad). She'd tell me her problems and I'd tell her some funny stories. We've become so close that we had each other's habits down pat. She knows how I like my food and I know that she is not a morning person. She tolerates my singing in the middle of the night even when our other roommates were complaining. Sometimes I find myself doing the thumb flicking thing that she likes to do. Qamah really understands me, which is why I'm totally comfortable with her. Also, I've learnt to appreciate more and see things in a different manner. She really helps me mature as a person. I know I've become a better friend, daughter, sister because of her. Thanks, Yang!!

A picture taken when she came to my house sometime during Eid 2007.

One thing is, I've noticed that she gets discouraged easily and have a wavering sort of self-confidence. I just wish that she saw how great and beautiful she is and how good she makes people around her feel. It's been a while since I last saw her, but we still keep in touch. I hope she'll have a great life and may all happiness be with her.

Our last picture taken together at Kak Fisya's wedding.

I know it's a bit random, but I still want to post a picture of my boys having fun at the Lotte photoshoot. I hope mine and Qamah's friendship stay as strong as ever and no matter where we are, we will always have fun and be thankful of all the good things that we have been blessed with.

AIDILFITRI FAMILY PORTRAITS

Since Syawal is fast approaching, I thought it would be appropriate if I posted our Aidilfitri family portraits. We started taking portraits every Syawal when I was just a little girl. But Mama said after Zaid got sick, there was no time to continue that particular tradition. We started taking portraits again when I was in secondary school (I think..). But it only became something that we just HAD to do until a few years back (circa 2005)...

So every first day of Syawal, we would first perform the Solat Aidilfitri at the local masjid. Next, we would have breakfast , usually nasi impit, rendang and kuah kacang. Then we'll have the salam-salam, where the actual picture taking session begins. This is also where we get (or give) the duit raya. After that it's portrait time!! Usually we would go to the studios that we were familiar with (most are Chinese operated, which is why they're open on Hari Raya) and get our picture taken.. After the portrait is taken care of, then we could properly start our Hari Raya where the first place we head to is my hometown, Gombak.

Below are the portraits that we have taken thus far, according to timeline (I think)...

And as my usual last say, DBSK says SALAM AIDILFITRI!

HOW I FELL IN LOVE WITH DBSK

In conjunction with the release of DBSK's 4th Album, I just felt like sharing this...

I first got to know Dong Bang Shin Ki (DBSK) in 2006, sometime after my industrial training. I was just beginning my korean drama craze and found out that there was this segment in MTV Asia called Asian Takeaway where they'll show two music videos (henceforth shall be shortened to MV) from any Asian artist back to back. The catch is they only show 2 songs every hour.

Initially I was following the segment religiously because I was trying to catch the Perhaps Love MV from the kdrama Goong aka Princess Hours. Since they only show two songs per hour you can imagine how determined I was to see that MV. This segment is also one of the reasons why I was always late for my first 'job' as Research Assistant in UIA. Heh..

Anyway back to the true objective of the story. While I was happily watching the MVs, one MV caught my eye. I thought it was really cool coz it has this really powerful dance and the song suddenly breaks into this interesting bridge that I had never heard before. I didn't really pay much attention to the singers (it was a boyband) but their music was really interesting. The music went from having hard beats to melancholic without jarring the flow of the sound. I forgot about the MV but I guess the uniqueness of the music stayed with me because some time later I heard the same song.. But in a different language!!

At first I was a bit confused because the MV was different too. So I made a mental note of the singer and the song. The display read

Artist: TVFXQ

Song Title: Rising Sun

I had no idea how that could totally change my life. With the name of the artist in mind I did some searching on the Internet. I found out that their name can switch according to region, they are more popularly known as Dong Bang Shin Ki in Korea, as Tohoshinki in Japan and they like to use the name TVXQ (or TVFXQ) when promoting themselves outside of Korea and Japan. I managed to download some of their other songs and was just basically a fan of their music. I found out that I had heard (or saw to be more precise) both versions of Rising Sun, in Korean and Japanese.. Can't really put a finger on which is first..

Edit: At first I wanted to post the videos but for some reason I can't seem to find the Japanese version online. So, here a few screencaps I made of the two MVs.

Korean version: I love the mood of this MV. I made caps of Jaejoong and Changmin because they were the ones that drew my eyes first.

Japanese version: I really loved their looks and energy in this MV. Actually Changmin also looked hot in this version but I made caps of Junsu and Yoochun because they were cute. Haha...

Later I found out that a couple of my friends were also into DBSK and they provided me with some of their performances, videos etc.. )I wasn't really good at finding KPop stuff then).. I got to know the five boys better and slowly fell into their charm.. I'm still falling, actually..

So, basically Rising Sun made me fall in love with DBSK. It is still one of my most favourite track for DBSK, not only because of its nostalgic value but because the song itself never gets old for me. I've listened to the fourth album but none of the songs can top Rising Sun (for me la...). So, to celebrate the fourth album (titled MIROTIC), here's the cover of the album (version A). Till next time...

PERFUMES!!

Mama and Abah just got back from New Zealand last night and they bought each of us a perfume. I think thay just didn't know what to get us. Plus they wanted us to smell nice for Aidilfitri. Haha.. But the thing is I just bought myself ZEN from Shiseido, but I don't mind. The more the merrier, right? It's a good thing that D&G's Light Blue is one of my favourite scents..

Aimi-Light Blue (Dolce & Gabbana)

Zaim-Eternity for Men (Calvin Klein)

Huda-Be Delicious Chamingly Special Edition (DKNY)

Zaid-Cool Water For Woman (Davidoff)

Husna-Believe (Britney Spears)

I did not mistype Zaid's perfume. It really is "For Woman".. Weird but to each his own.. Husna is not loving the Britney Spears perfume so she might be buying another more to her liking. Word is she's getting Paris Hilton's. What's up with this girl and these blondies? Beats me...

Anyway, like I mentioned before I just bought Zen from Shiseido (for RM356.00, wooot!!).. Somehow just got addicted to the smell.. I like refreshing and not the typical fruity sweet scents..

ZEN (Shiseido)

But later this year I might get myself Hypnose from Lancome. I wore it when I was in India and it just takes me back there everytime I take a whiff of that perfume..Well, here's hoping...

Hypnose (Lancome)

DBSK is releasing their fourth album next week!! (screams for a bit)... Two of the tracks has been (intentionally?) leaked: Maze (MIROTIC) which is their title track and HEY! (Don't Bring Me Down) presumably the SMP song of the album. I've been listening to the songs the whole day and all I can say is the wait is pure torture.. I almost drooled when I saw the teaser.. It seriously is torture...

SUDOKU

Taken from Wiki...

The name Sudoku(数独) is short for "数字は独身に限る" which is read, "Sūji wa dokushin ni kagiru", meaning "the numbers must be single", or "the numbers must occur only once".

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudoku)

I started playing Sudoku somewhere in the middle of 2007. It was one of the games provided with my phone at that time (Nokia 7390 L'Amour collection). But I only became truly addicted when I bought a Sudoku book. Last week I bought my fifth and latest Sudoku book even though I haven't finished even one of the previous books.

I don't know why but I only buy Sudoku books by Alan W.S. Tan. So far I've had Volume 4 to 7 and one Super Collection. Maybe I'm just too familiar with the style of the book. Each book has five different sections, starting with beginners, gentle, moderate, challenging and tough. At present I've never attempted a tough puzzle and constantly stuck in the challenging area. But I've always loved a good mental challenge and this definitely keeps me occupied for a few minutes every day.

Almost every weekend you can find me at home listening to music while soving a Sudoku puzzle (I seem to focus only with music which is why if you step into my office there will definitle be some type of music blaring).. Solving Sudoku puzzles also helps me to focus and provide that desperately needed distraction from office matters.

You must never underestimate the addiction power that Sudoku has.. So far two of my closest friends and some of my colleagues have been addicted to the numbers puzzle. Sadly, none of my family members appreciate or had the chance to appreciate the game so I would usually solving the puzzles alone. Not their fault though, I would solve all the Sudoku puzzles in the papers because all my Sudoku books are at my office. Heee... No DBSK, just 2U for now since I couldn't find any pix where the boys are studying...

ODE TO A LOST FRIEND

I had a dream about you..
We were so happy to be with each other..
It felt like nothing ever happened..
I'm sorry that I hurt you..
I feel bad whenever I think about how we ended things..
Still feel rotten to the core when I think of you..
We definitely had something special..
We connected on so many levels..
And you were constantly there..
It's just, I was too unprepared.. Too scared.. Too immature..
Too stupid..
Do you believe that I sometimes look for your face in a crowd?
Even though deep in my heart I know you'll never be there..
I've missed you..
So very much..
But..
We are just too far apart now..
I heard you moved on..
I wish for nothing but happiness for you..
And I pray that somehow you'll find it in your heart..
To forgive me..