ISO oh ISO!

So, what had happened today was...

I arrived late at work today but luckily there was no hassle to get the 'signature of approval' from the authority because Kak Aishah was nearby checking on the punch cards.
" Sorry, lewat..."
"Yong bukan ada anak yang From 5 ke?"
"Ada...tengah sibuk isi borang..." and that's the end of a very brief but friendly conversation from the head of mathematics  department.

Then, I waited for Halimah to go for breakfast in the car.
"K.Yong, Timbalan Pengarah nak jumpa...(pulak...with a sigh..)
I told her that I will wait for her until she's done with her bussiness. about half an hour later she arrived so off we went to Cafe C for breakfast.

But, that is not the most interesting that had happened to me today..
The most interesting thing that had happened to me today occurred around 2 pm just now.

"kak Yong ada tak?" I heard a sweet voice just outside my cubicle. Then, the person appeared right in front of my table. Murniwati, the counselor.

"Yes, ada apa-apa yang perlu dibantu?" I asked her without any doubt in my mind. i thought she was asking for 'somebody' from my unit.

"K.Yong. Saya nak 'audit' K.Yong....ISO.." she was really careful with her words.
(HAAA? Apa? nak audit aku? Habislah...) I said to myself.
"Takpe. KYong jangan takut...Nak audit biasa2 je..Buku attendance adatak?"
"Buku attendance? What do you mean? Kertas attendance adalah...(Silap cakap ke aku ni?)
"Kertas pun takpe lah...Kat mana ya?"
"Dalam file ni..." So, I opened the file that I JUST received today due to lateness.
Murniwati looked at the attendance curiously..
"Students K.Yong takde yang absent ya? penuh semua"
"Ada..tapi tak kerap (hehehe)"
"K. Yong tak isi dalam MIS ke?"
"Computer saya baru baik dalam sebulan. Boleh check dengan Ina Technician kalau tak percaya."
"Attendance ni tak ikut format la KYong..."
"Ya ke? I transfer directly dari MIS.
Then, she showed me a piece of paper that had a format of the students' attendance sheet.
"oo...lebih kurang je ni. Cuma nama lecturer nd kelas I tolak tepi.."
"Betul K.Yong. Nanti K.Yong ubah ya?" she said sweetly...
"Insyallah..."

Then, she wrote something on her paper. Apalah agaknya yang dia report...
So, finally, the ISO Team had the chance to audit me. And, fortunately, I was poised and calm.
TAK SANGKA!
:))

Law Kana Bai Nan Na

TV Al Hijrah   has become one of my favourite channels since I first watched Ustaz Don on television during the Prophet's (SAW) week last month. And there is one particular song that I began to love every time it is played on TV. Other than the soothing sound of the tune, I also found  the lyrics to be so beautifully written. Here's the song....

*Saya sangatlah terkesan bila mendengar lagu ini..

As of Today...

Today is another 'kalut' day for me. i had only one class but I still find less time to unwind. Early in the moring, as I arrived at the office, I had to face the computer and key in the students' marks. Then came my neighbour, Mila who had just finished her class. A few minutes later came Mr D, my other neighbour.

" Kak Yong, do you know where to get a good clinic in Jitra which can perform....( 'toot!')

At Tibroni? I told him

"Where is Tibroni?"

Near Maybank. I told him again...(tersedak aku, si D ni aih...)
"I went there already but the clinic only perform during school holidays and its fully booked now." he sighed.
Sometimes I wonder if Mr D would one day be a Muslim because he is sometimes sound like a Malay man.
"I know a clinic in Changlun which can perform that thing but they said that the doc who perform it do it in the traditional way." Suddenly, appeared Mdm M out of nowhere.
"Haa? Pakai pisau ka? Matilah aku kalau macam ni..." Mr D said panickly.
We all laughed real hard when heard that. Yeah, this friend of mine is so frank and funny..:)

Later, more of my friends came to my cubicle. Talking, eating and gossiping. Suddenly, I realised that it's almost 12 o'clock. It's time to fetch Masyitah from school. So, I had to key in the RKMS to seek permission to leave the college for a while...And my class had to be 'gone'  because of that. I had hoped the students used the hour to practise their sketch.

So, I drove my car back to Jitra. After fetching Masyitah from school, I stopped at the 'gerai nasi' to buy some 'tapau' dishes. Najihah had requested for a break of cooking for the second time in 2 days. Later, in an hour I was already at the college once again..trying very hard to complete the data as I had to pop in DKK4 for the musical sketch competition. I am the Coordinator for the Students' programme.

 Umar and the gang...

Ramainya manusia sampai kena duduk atas lantai!

Mak ooi! It was really exhausting. But I know I had to give some moral support to my students who were participating in the competition. And, I was not disappointed as both of my groups had put up a really good performance. I enjoyed it very much. Somehow, they had made my day although it was a bit later of the day. I hope they would win any of the three prizes.

At 3.30pm, I had to rush back again...going to a kenduri kahwin this time with my husband and Masyitah. We reached the 'pengantin's' house around 4.30. After that we went home but not for long. I had to take my daughter to the clinic for "umrah's immunisation". Amirah, my second daughter will be accompanying her grandma (my MIL) to Mecca.

Finally, we reached home nearly at 7pm after the running here and there. That's the end of today's story. Pheww!!!

Wassalam.

Unhappy promotion

The most awaited news had finally arrived yesterday. Everyone got promoted but some had to leave KMK if they want to get the 'perks'. So, it was not really a good news to some of my friends including Mdm H. She will be transferring to Gambang, Pahang very soon. There were actually 4 lecturers from my unit who will go to the same place, in one week time. I didn't really know how to react at first but I knew that I'm going to miss her a lot. She has been a very good and understanding friend to me. We  share almost all stories that we have. Sometimes we also share our 'secrets.' There are things that we talked that we do not share with many people. And, those type of things I share with Mdm H.

Mdm H is many many years younger than me but we had chemistry like some good friends have. We clicked. We always had our lunch and breakfast at work but sometimes we were joined with other friends who we regarded as the same 'clan' as we are. My place has always been the 'port' for many occasions and talks and she is one of the frequent visitors besides Naza, Dhana, Mila, Liza and others. I'm very sure that I will definitely miss her presence when she's gone to Gambang. Today, when she came to see me we both burst into tears before I could even try to console her. I never really thought that I could be witnessing  the same thing after Rifae broke the same news to me last year. I'm not prepared to face the same thing again but I knew I had to face it just as bravely as they did.

Frequent activities done at my place....:)

Makan-makan

Belanja makan...

Jual Kuih raya...

Display jam... (orang kaya aloq staq...:) )

Ironically, when mostly everyone was saddened by the news, there were a few of my friends were quite in joy. Probably they think they need a break from all the mess in the college and start a new life somewhere else. I wouldn't know what to do actually if I were to be put in the that position. U get the promotion which means that you get the increments, more money but you have to be separated from your family due to so called 'duty'.

I have to salute Mr R who confidently took out his pen from his pocket after he received the letter of promotion from the Deputy Director.

"Saya ada tanggungjawab yang lebih berat di sini. Isteri saya sakit. Anak-anak perlukan bimbingan saya. Rezeki ada di mana-mana selagi kita usaha. Apa yang ada dah mencukupi. I don't think I need anything else but my family." said Mr R as he cancelled out the 'setuju' option which showed that he would remain staying in Kedah without being promoted.

So far, I've been blessed for not having to make any 'critical' decision like my friends. I got promoted twice and still remain working in KMK. But if one day, I were to be tested with the same 'task' I told myself that wherever I go, I should not be going alone...at least, one of my children should go with me because it's so hard for me not to be with them for more than a few days. Nevermind the headaches sometimes as long as I can feel the presence of their body around me.

Semua ibu rasa macam tu agaknya...

Talking about Women's Day, I would like to thank my late mom for bringing me into this world and for molding me into what I am today...To my maternal grandmother who had given me the total love and care that any grandchild would love to get...my aunts whom many had passed away..(Mak Ndak, Mak Ngah, Wah, Mak Yang, Mak Uda...) thank you for being so caring and loving...My childhood years with all of you shall always be cherished and remembered.

I still have a few women in my life to live for though....My Sisters...who have been an integral part of me...who never fail to help me when I need them..who listen and advise and who just simply be a sister to me...thank you for always be there for me.

And, when talking about my sisters, it will always bring back to another important person in my life...MY FATHER.

"Abah, Yong tak dapat balik minggu ni. Anak-anak sekolah walaupun cuti sekolah." 

I dared not tell my father that I actually have to accompany my husband to his cousin's  wedding besides visiting his hometown. In addition to that it was only two weeks the last time I visited my father.

"Yake? Jumaat tak boleh? Satu hari je..."
It really broke my heart when he said that. I coudn't bear hearing him begging  me like that. It's the first time.

Then, I told him that one of my sisters would come and see him this Monday.
"Banyak hari lagi tu..." he sighed.
Yeah, only 3 more days. Today is Thursday.

"Abah makan apa hari ni?"

"Makan lauk dalam tin la...sedap juga..Lauk yang Yong masak tu dah lama habis"

Adoi!! That was embarassing.
Later, I told him that I will try my best to see him next week.

"Takpelah Yong, Abah nak sambung baca Quran..."

We salammed each other and hung up..

Phew!!! That was tough (and sad).

Is that always the case when talking to men (compared to women) ? Hmmm....

It's Women's Day today but how many women can actually celebrate the day? I heard one of the DJs on the radio today who thanked his mom and sisters, aunts and friends (girls) whom he said to have made his life contented and fulfilled.

"And my wife too.." that were his last words before he went off the air.

Wow, at last! Ingat juga dia pada wife dia...

So, to all women in the world whether you are lucky or not, here's a song for you...

SMILE! :)

My Update Status

I read this article in Yahoo today which I found interesting and amusing... :)

Facebook used to be a source of amusement and happiness—why else would 483 million people check in daily? But if you find your news feed to be more of a bummer with each passing day, you’re not alone.

In a study presented at the recent Society for Personality and Social Psychology meeting, researchers asked a sample group of Facebook users between the ages of 18 and 65 to read some of their friends’ status updates. Afterward, those Facebook users rated their lives as much less satisfying than people who didn’t check their news feed first.

The reason: Much of how we judge our success in life is based on how we stack up against our peers. “The problem is that Facebook gives us a limited view of our friends’ lives, and that view tends to be unrealistically positive,” says study author Dilney Goncalves, Ph.D., a professor at IE Business School in Madrid. As a result, you subconsciously start to believe that everyone is living a cooler, more exciting life than you are. This effect is magnified when you don’t know your “friend” personally because your perception of his or her life is based exclusively on a (somewhat bogus) Facebook profile. And make no mistake: Perception is everything in social media—find out what Your Facebook Picture Says About You.

The more friends you have, Goncalves adds, the more likely you are to spend your day enviously reading about someone’s paradise vacation, new girlfriend, or job promotion. The study also revealed that having 354 Facebook friends seemed to be the tipping point after which people were increasingly less happy with their lives.

Goncalves recommends unsubscribing from your most prolific braggarts and fine-tuning your news feed. You can choose to read all updates from a friend, downgrade to a smaller portion of their updates, or view only what Mark Zuckerberg’s voodoo determines to be their “most important” posts.

Another option: Cut ties with excess acquaintances to reduce your stream to best buds only. That means your dentist, your freshman year hall-mate, and your overbearing ex all get the ax. After you’ve reached a comfortable count, “learning about the success of your closest friends can actually make you happier,” Goncalves says. If that still doesn’t put a smile on your face, try these instant mood-lifters:

1. Cook Dinner

Dinner may be the easiest way to improve your mood. Two-thirds of people say a good meal in a calm environment is a major source of happiness, according to the Journal of Happiness Studies. Avoid the burger-land franchises. "Fast-food restaurants are depressing places," says Christopher Peterson, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of Michigan. "Even the people who work there are demoralized." Check out Restaurant Meals, Made Awesome to learn how to make your favorite restaurant dishes at home—cheaper, healthier, and tastier!

2. Send Fewer Texts

According to the Journal of Applied Social Psychology, text message addicts are less satisfied with their lives than people who use conventional communications. Instant messaging isn't as good at building the strong relationships that sustain happiness, says Melanie Green, Ph.D., a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina. Even e-mail is better. And, of course, face-to-face communication is best.

3. Find Some Green

Dutch researchers found that city dwellers living near parks and gardens were 25 percent less likely to be diagnosed with depression than those with nary a patch of grass in sight. Study author Jolanda Maas, Ph.D., says that frequent exposure to nature may help people recover from stress and mental fatigue.

4. Buy Experiences, Not Things

Instead of "having," focus on "doing." Investing money in experiences makes people happier than buying material possessions can, according to the journal Review of General Psychology. The thrill of a big purchase fades, but the social relationships built during an adventure endure.

5. Give Thanks—Literally

Gratitude is a huge predictor of happiness, and showing it verbally makes a big difference. "It changes your mindset," says Peterson. "We take the good for granted, but if the bad is all we pay attention to, life is going to be a very grim business." However, saying thank you boosts mood by making you more aware of good things in life. And it has a sustained effect if you say it on a regular basis. On a related note: Thanks, Mom! For everything.

Reflection

There are times that we need to be reminded over and over again that we are not perfect. There are still a lot of things that we need to learn from the world and its inhabitants. Many times we didn't realize that we do make mistakes that could be harmful to our self and others. And when recognize them, the only way ( I think, at least...) is to accept the fact that we had made the mistakes and we must brush away the EGO (a  small word that has a big impact on us) far far away from us. Sorry is another way to reduce the burden of the heavy heart...Well, easy said than done, right? But, It has to be done in order to get back to the ground.

Tomorrow is the birthday of my youngest daughter, Masyitah. I gave her the name because I  wanted her to own the 'value' and 'traits' of  "Masyitah" the maid of Asiah who was the wife of Fir'aun. My daughter is the brightest child in the family...so, I assume she does not need much help from me when she does her homework. She is also independent and very eloquent with her words..But, now , I begin to wonder especially when she's so 'good' at giving out her reasons when she talks to me...did I give her too much freedom to express her feeling? Or was I being irresponsible to her as to compare to her older sisters and brother? I don't know but I think I have to accept the criticism held my older children that I have loosely paid attention on their sister that sometimes when she justify her opinions, she sounds a little bit rude. She can be so bold and blunt!


Hmm..I wish my mom is here to give her wisdom talk...That's one thing that I really miss her despite some differences of opinion we had between us. I never say back to her when she advised me. I always think that whatever she said is true although sometimes she did sound a little bit ridiculous.

"Cuba peluk cium anak2 tu selalu, Yong...Mak jarang nampak kamu cium anak-anak kamu."

Of course I do hugs and kiss my children, but not in front of my mom all the time. And I do more openly nowadays even with my son.  I can feel that they also like to do the same thing to me.

There is nothing in this world that could describe how I love my children  and value the presence of my family. They made me feel 'somebody' although they made me 'mad' sometimes. I could not imagine a life without them because they are  so much alive. I notice that the 'missing' feeling will always creep in everytime they left the house to further their study.

Now, did I sound a little bit emotional? I guess so...but, does it hurt to express any emotions?

 "For a creative writer possession of the "truth" is less important than emotional sincerity" (George Orwell).

Good Night!