Akma, one of my best friends, called me a few weeks ago and asked me for my address. When I told Mr. A about it, he said most probably she would mail some lingerie she ordered from the US just for me (she has a brother studying there). LOL. Such wishful thinking! Anyway, whatever she wanted to mail me came last week.
It came in a very normal looking envelope and didn’t look suspicious at all. Inside, there were a bunch of A5 papers (pullouts from an organiser) with a note attached:
Salam,
Tgh aku kemas2 laci kat office, tetiba terjumpe compilation msg2 kau dulu (and yes.. aku mmg takde keje tul dulu2) =) Enjoy! Hope you’ll like it.
I started reading…
Smiling…
Laughing!
There they were, text messages from me to her documented and haunting! Those messages were texted in 2004, about five years ago. Five years ago, when I was still Wani Kembara (because I used to drive a Kembara; I was and am not the outdoorsy type).
I graduated from Uniten in 2003. Looking back I didn’t think 2003 was a good year for me. Most friends easily got good jobs because of their good CGPA. I on the other hand got a job at a very small company where I was the only employee who did everything from calling clients to dispatching letters. At the same time I was really heartbroken (got “dumped” around July). I was lost in every way.
I quit my job after a few months. Still heartbroken, I spent most of my days feeling depressed. Towards the end of December, I got an offer letter for Kursus Perguruan Lepasan Ijazah (KPLI), in TESL (Menengah) at Maktab Perguruan Temenggong Ibrahim (MPTI), JB. With nothing better to do, I guess that was my calling. So off I went…
horror!!! hideous giler!!! bilik aku atas skali, ujung skali, blakang skali! burok plak tu! toilet toksah cite aa.. ceiling lobang2, kepale shower xde, nasib baik air laju ngan sejuk. roommate aku melayu, mak org, org jb, dok seminggu je. nx week dok sorang la aku! & e nightmare continues. -26 Jan 2004, 1.02 p.m.
korang… sedih..! mak pak aku dh blk dh. roommate xde. aku still xleh nk terima hakikat aku dok johor sethn. dhla aku x kenal sape pon kt mktb ni. period 1st day lk tuh. sakit jiwa la aku camni. ni aku nk g mandi ni.. wash away all my tears and fears ;( - 26 Jan 2004, 3.18 p.m.
26 Jan 2004 was the first day. Orientation week sort of went like this:
aku dah jumpe 3 mamat yg agak ensem. 2 amek catering. sorang math sek ren. aku target yg amik cat tu sorang. skali die angkat tgn bile pensyarah tanye sape dh kawin.. ceh, tensen. smlm susah nk lelap. mate bulat je. tido 2 jm lebih je. ngantuk! 27 Jan 2004 10.10 a.m.
kelas (sini pgl opsyen) aku ade 17 org (shj!). pompuan 14 laki 3. yg single aku (sorang!) ngan bbdk laki tu. pompuan sume dah kawin ngan ade anak xcept sorang tp dh btunang. aku plg muda. sume org buat aku cam budak kecik. kalo aku x makan, kena marah sket. lapo dieorg sua roti krim kt aku. maklumla ibu2 sume.. - 28 Jan 2004, 2.04 p.m.
bodohhh! tau x aku tjatuh dpn bdk math yg cute tu. arghh horror! die siap cakap Allahuakhbar plak tu! bongeks! mintak2 la die x nampak muka aku sbb jatuh dlm gelap =p - 29 Jan 2004, 10.16 p.m.
drama group aku menang no 1! – 29 Jan 2004, 10.15 p.m.
I was never an active student neither during my school days nor during university. But in MPTI, I became one of the chairmen for our Jawatankuasa Perwakilan Pelajar (JPP). I was the Pengerusi Penerbitan. Proudly, I can say that I had produced the 2004 yearbook for MPTI.
korang..! hr ni hr pertama aku sbg ajk jpp. aku pengerusi biro penerbitan. tp x rasmi lg. jumaat ni penyerahan kuasa informal. rasmi nnt buat dlm dwn dpn sume org – 10 Feb 2004, 2.56 p.m.
Anyway, most of the time I still feel lonely but I guess I was beginning to get back on my feet.
waaa!! i miss my friends back home! ;o( 4 Mar 2004, 10.58 a.m.
waaa i feel like crying!! i don’t have any wan-g* here 2 run 2. my car is my only sanctuary. uwaaa! – 4 Mar 2004, 10.58 a.m.
akma, apela cite ko ni? senyap sunyi jeh. x rindu ke kt aku? wish that e 4 of us r hanging out together now. can talk2 & gossip2. haha. – 23 May 2004, 9.16 p.m.
*Wan-G is my aunt who lives in Kajang. Her home was my sanctuary back when I was studying in Uniten.
MPTI was also the place where I met Mr. A. We got close because we were always working with each other as he was also one of the JPPs. And he was always looking out for me since I was the youngest in JPP and he’s the oldest.
i just got my first rose ever.. (fr a guy la weh) – 23 May 2004, 11.39 p.m.
korang- korang.. aku dh jd gf orang =) – 23 Jul 2004, 9.30 p.m.
I got an A- for my practicum. I almost deserved an A but I didn’t come up with enough ABM (alat bantu mengajar) but anyway I knew I did well =)
hi korang. hr ni pmntauan aku dpt 17 mrkh penuh out of 21 criteria. highest tkt ni. mentor commented “well cut to b a teacher” & “should do well in ur career”. – 14 Sept 2004, 1.23 p.m.
Mr. A and I knew we were going to marry each other so in the same year we got engaged. We got engaged on 27th Nov 2004.
hi korg! bosan x bkeje? aku pn tgh bosan. tgh kursus kuliah sjrh msia. ngantuk aku. hr ni 1hb dh. sronoknye! – 1 Nov 2003, 11.03 a.m.
But not without any challenges.
korg! isk smlm aku br tau yg sorg mamat yg aku minat giler ni (sblum aku bcinta) minat kt aku gak. 25 mins 2 late tul la. tgugat aku dgr smlm. ni la drh manis. – 8 Nov 2004, 2.25 p.m.
LOL. 2004 turned out to be a good year – love-wise. I had a lot of attentions that year (showed me how important it is to be myself).
That mamat who had a crush on me (who I also had a crush on) was a sweet-looking Kelantanese. We met on his first day at the college. He was from a 3rd batch or something. Later, I always sent my regards (kirim salam) anonymously to him through my best JPP buddy there. He never did kirim salam back to me (the anonymous admirer or so I thought - somehow he knew I was later told).
But whenever we bumped into each other he would always try to make up conversations with me or if not he would plainly stare at me. And once he gave me (he named me his Gadis Misteri; and later his "girlfriend") some green apples through my best buddy (who eventually became his buddy too).
I finally knew he also had a crush on me when I received a sajak from him (passed to me by our buddy). I don’t remember much of it as it was too metaphoric but I think some of the lines meant something about how he was glad that he got to know me even as just-friends. How nice =)
Guess that heartbroken girl could also be a heartbreaker.
Those good old days… How I wish I can relive them *wink*
PS: Akma, you are definitely my BFF.
PSS: Sadly, I don’t have any pictures from MPTI to be included here. I think I have some pictures but I don’t know where there are now.
PSS: Not all the text messages are included here. Some are just plain silly and some too private that Mr. A surely will kill me if he got to know LOL.
When I was pregnant with Kakak, I always imagine her as a friendly and smiling baby. I was told that we should always imagine good things when we are pregnant so the baby would come out “perfect”. Kakak was really a friendly smiling baby. She was an easygoing baby. Not afraid of strangers at all (well, except male strangers). It got to a point that I worry someone would easily take her away from me.
My absolute favourite picture of Kakak smiling. She's around 5 to 6 months in this pic.
Adik, on the other hand is my unsociable baby. He’s only comfortable with his ibu, ayah and our maid. He does get along with relatives after spending some time with them but he really dislikes strangers.
Last week, we went to a kenduri cukur jambul at a neighbour’s house and as we reached the front gate of the house he stoically turned back and walked home! Ok, he managed to take only a few steps but I totally knew where he was heading. I scooped him up and gave him to Mr. A. Still he managed to walk home. This time with his Ayah following. (They went home just for a while and Mr. A had to let Adik ride pillion on his motorcycle to make Adik go to the kenduri).
At the kenduri, Adik played all by himself. He only sat next to me and no one else. He walked around our neighbour’s house as if no one was there. He seemed couldn’t care less.
I must admit I didn’t imagine Adik as “anything” when I was pregnant with him. I was too busy teaching and reprimanding students back then. Is it my fault or is it because he spends all his life cooped up in his own home? Hmm…
PS: Kakak went to a babysitter’s from the age of 2 months and until she was 1 year 3 months old.
Of course as a wife I dream about wearing beautiful lingerie for Mr. A but it is hard for me to buy plus size lingerie locally. Yes, I know there are local websites that sell these things but some of them are so distasteful that I see no credibility in trusting the seller. And still you have to admit that there aren’t that many choices for plus size lingerie from those local websites.
Anyway, I’m so happy because I’ve found out a very good friend of mine from my alma mater entertains custom orders of stuff from the US! Just tell her what you want (and you have to be exact), she’ll find out whether she can get it or not and give you a quote. If she can get it and you confirm the order (plus transfer the payment), she’ll order whatever-it-is right away! Visit her at her website (Beauty Corner). She also has another website for ready stock items (Beauty Bazaar).
BTW, my favourite websites that carry plus size lingerie are Hips and Curves and Frederick’s of Hollywood.
PS: She can get all the lingerie I ordered, yay!
Tell me that's not beautiful ;) BTW, I didn't order this one. Too expensive LOL.
I’d definitely submit an entry (or entries) for CIMB Foundation MyCause Photography Contest. Other than the chances of winning cash (thousands of them) for yourself, you can also win RM100 000 for a cause you believe in be it community development, sports or education. You have the power to empower others to build better lives.
Here's how to participate. Find yourself a worthy cause and snap a picture of it. Register for the competition and give your cause a title and write a description about it. Upload your photo and you're done! Don't worry much about writing the description as entries will be scored on the photo (80%) and description 20%. So get your camera shooting or at least tell a friend =)
And actually you don’t have to be a pro. Students can also submit entries and the school with the highest submission will win RM10 000! Hurry, the closing date is 31st July 2009.
However, kakak is still not really talking well. It would sound some sort like this;
Kakak: Wan ne?
Ibu: Wan kat kampung.
Kakak: Kakak nak* gi apung / kapung.
Ibu: Ok, nanti kite balik kampung k.
*you can’t actually hear the consonant there and this is the most understandable conversation I can have with her.
Furthermore, she sometimes purposely talks like she’s not a big girl yet. Buat-buat manja. And then she’ll throw a tantrum when we cannot understand her *sigh*
And don’t get me started on Adik. He’s already 1 year 8 months old and all he can say is Ayah. In fact he calls each and every one of us Ayah. If I ask him, “Kakak mane?” he’ll go, “Ayah…” And once when I was away for two nights he went to my closet, held one of my baju kurung and called, “Ayah…” LOL
I can’t even remember Adik’s cooing.
Anyway, Kakak and Adik can understand instructions and use gestures well. I had read this one article in NST that said young children who can use gestures well will easily acquire a variety of vocabularies as opposed to those who don't. So there’s nothing to worry about I guess =)
PS: Wan is their maternal grandmother.
Do you love to save? I know I do and you know what? Money is not the only thing we can save. DiGi is trying to raise RM150k for charity in 30 days (ending the end of this month) and you have the power to help. Just go to LoveToSave website; select the organization you want to help (either as a group or individual); verify your email and you’re done! With your click DiGi will donate RM5 to the organization you pick. So why not?
Mine was for Malaysian Council for Child Welfare (MKKM). If you want to help this organization just click the banner below.
PS: I learnt about this from a friend's blog (nizbila.com)
Anugerah Guru Cemerlang (Excellent Teacher Award)
Anugerah Guru Penyayang (Loving Teacher Award)
Anugerah Guru Kreatif (Creative Teacher Award)
Anugerah Guru Inovatif (Inovative Teacher Award)
Anugerah Guru Berdedikasi (Dedicated Teacher Award)
Although I didn’t win any of the awards, I am so happy that I was one of Excellent Teacher Award nominees (voted by the students). Wonder if my parents would be proud of my really small achievement…
I love Ugly Betty. The show always makes me laugh. I watched Yo Soy Betty La Fea as an undergrad student. Although it was not one of my favourite shows, I tried not to miss it. With what I call a “Desperado Disease” back then, I love stories with an ugly heroine. I feel there’s a touch of reality somewhat even if the story is not.
June 1, 2009
Got on the plane at 11.30 a.m. We flew business class. Working with the government in Sabah (or Sarawak) means your family gets to fly home for free at least once a year. This time around Mr. A applied for the free flight so our ticket would fly us to Alor Setar as the free flight will send you to the state you were born in. (Mr. A was born in Kulim, Kedah). We cancel the flight from KLIA to Kedah thus we somewhat get a free upgrade to business class (blessing no. 1).
Anyway, we had our tickets reissued since I wanted to have my endometrial biopsy ASAP. On the phone with one of MAS hotline officer, I was told that we need to pay RM30 for each reissued ticket. (Fine, here’s RM120). But when we went to collect our tickets before the flight the officer in charge at KK’s MAS ticketing counter looked puzzled when I wanted to hand him the money and told me to just go check-in. RM120 saved! (Blessing no. 2).
Golden Lounge in KKIA was small but we got to eat for free and drink café latte all we wanted. Truly comfortable and quiet it got embarrassing when you have these two little brats. So we ended lepaking in the Golden Lounge surau until it was time to board the plane LOL.
As usual, Adik would cry his head off before take-off. Actually it was his nap time. Strangely he wanted to sit on my lap (instead of his father’s like he always did) and he dozed off as soon as he got comfy (we weren’t even flying yet). Kakak was on her best behavior. Playing by herself and eating well. (Blessing no. 3).
Arriving and after collecting our bags at the designated carousel we were surprised with “door gifts” handed out by MAS reps. Each of us got one even Adik! (Blessing no. 4).
June 2, 2009
I had my endometrial biopsy today. Ugh hated that I had to spread my legs in front of strangers (or anybody else for that matter; except for Mr. A I guess haha). The gynecologist was witty thank God. I got myself scanned from the inside. Even without the biopsy result she could tell me that I was fine. There were no visible image of any malignant or polyp. I was so relieved and happy. Didn’t mind the RM640 that we had to fork out.
After the visit to the hospital, I went textile-shopping with a good friend of mine Am. She’s an expert on textile-shopping. She’s my unofficial consultant! Got all the kain baju raya my family and I needed. Thanx Am! You’re the best (in pilih kain la haha).
PS: The result of the biopsy will be mailed.June 3, 2009
Went to visit our new house with our back door neighbour. She had asked us to share the cost of a new stretch of (brick) fence (we share) and we agreed. Pleasant lady from Penang she was. Talkative but not nosy.
Our beautiful neighbourhood.
After that we went shopping in Mid Valley.
June 4, 2009
Morning – Went to visit a maternal cousin of mine who just gave birth to a baby boy (o God can’t remember the baby’s name!). She looks so healthy. And lucky she breastfeeding didn’t hurt! Felt a little bit down remembering my painful experience *sigh*.
Evening – Went to Kiah’s house to collect Kakak 3rd birthday present. Kiah bought it at a Mattel warehouse sale. I accidentally knock down a glass full of water and Kakak had an “accident”. Great. Anyway, I like talking to Kiah. She’s my buddy in the not-so-perfect-mum department haha. No inferiority whatever when with her. Noted.
June 5, 2009
Went shopping in Subang Parade in the morning. Saw a lot of rich people there. Subang Parade has become somewhat exclusive. Thank God that Uncle Lim’s had that JAKIM halal sticker. Was getting really envious when Fidah blogs about eating there. I so miss the Teh C Special! Yum!
After that, we went visit my good-in-keeping-dark-secret friend Shah and her baby girl, Aleeya Zulaikha. Barely a month, I can see that she has her mother’s big eyes.
We had a special dinner that night. Everyone was there (Ayah, Mak, Abang, Ezal and Dilah). Adik seemed to be fond with his Ayahlong. So sweet.
PS: Forgot to take a picture of Ika.
June 6, 2009
But the good news was we were given free buffet dinner that night. Two nights (out of three planned) free stay (first night at another hotel). And we were upgraded to the Club Level without any extra charge (for the one-night rate we gladly had to pay)! Club Level means you get access to a lounge with free food and free drinks almost 24 hours. How lucky we were! We saved nearly RM530! (Blessing no. 5).
The big yellow plastic plates!
PS: Went to KB for a wedding and of course we did some shopping! For the first time ever I blew RM145 for a tudung bawal akhbar with a really beautiful sulam and Swarovski crystals. I usually buy the RM25 – RM35 range of tudung bawal. I fell in love with the tudung the first time I saw it.
June 7, 2009
Mr. A's 37th birthday. Happy Birthday Sayang!
June 9, 2009
At the in-laws in Perak for three nights.
June 12, 2009
On the way back to Shah Alam, we stopped at Tronoh to visit Ezal (my younger brother who’s taking a postgraduate course in UTP). Went sightseeing on his campus ground. Damn UTP is beautiful. Note: Must send my kids there. By the way, being there reminded me of those sweet rebellious gatal time LOL.
In front of the library.
June 13, 2009
Last day in holiday-heaven (a.k.a. weight-loss-hell).
PS: Got the biopsy result. No presence of anything not-right shall I say. Alhamdulillah...
June 14, 2009
We flew home. It’s true you know when people say home is where the heart is =)
