Dancing Buttacupp

What happens when you wake up one morning and discovered that you are missing RM 120k from your savings account?

Pre-2008 financial crisis ok.

Naturally, you start questioning how the cash disappeared. Did they bank go bankrupt? Did you accidentally telegraphically transfer (TT) it to a stranger? Were you robbed and you forgot about it? Was your wallet stolen and you glued your pin number on your bank card?

How in the world…?!!

Well, if you are over 70, and naturally forgetful, you may choose one of the above. You may have passed your bank card with the pin number in a piece of paper in an envelope, left it in your room, for your children to assist you to get some cash for you.

What you never suspected, that the hired-help that has been taking care of you for a decade, dutifully cooks you healthy low fat, low sugar, low-everything meals, gives your daily insulin shots, the one who tends and cares for you when you are sick…would steal from you.

Yes.

My grandmother lost at least RM 120k in one year.

Her maid took from RM10k to RM30k a month for the past year.

She found the card one day with the pin number in an envelope…and I guess…had an evil light bulb moment.

She took it around 12-1 p.m. several days a month, at several bank branches. That is the time when my grandma has her routine afternoon naps.

My mom discovered my grandma’s bank balance to be too low. She immediately suspected something being amiss. She quietly requested the full withdrawal transaction from the bank, and noticed clearly the pattern in timing, and the hot spots the perpetrator used. She lodged a police report, and with sheer dedication went to each bank branch to acquire their CCTV videos.

In most of the clips, we see an unidentified man withdrawing money that ties back to the bank reports. Then, in one or 2 slip ups, we see him handing the money to female with a hand bag.

We publish the photos and surrender them to the police as evidence.

After having sufficient evidence, the police came to my grandmother’s residence and arrested the help. The help was so defiant and confident that she will not get caught.

The remaining police officers searched her room and coniscated  3 handphones, an address book, and many pictures of the family.

Pictures were taken so that the alleged perpetrator may not get in touch with any  ’kongsi gelap’ by buying them off with RM5k to finish off a family she may have a personal vendetta against.

After a few days of intense questioning, the help confessed to stealing the money. They nabbed the unidentified guy and he confessed to being paid RM200 each time he withdrew money.

Now she will be brought to court. If she confesses to being guilty, she may serve 7 years in prison. If she suddenly changes her plea, then there may be a court case.

We cannot recover the money because she doesn’t have a bank account. For all we know, she may own assets in Indonesia and is a millionaire.

What we are concerned here is my grandma’s mental health. She became depressed when she discovered it was her help, whom she trusted.

Also, we pray that Allah keep parang gangs or any baddies away from our family.

We’re grateful there isnt’ any physical injury to anyone due to this whole affair.

I’m particularly proud of my mom for getting the investigation done all by herself.

May Allah bless and protect us.

-asma wan signing off-

After 7 months of planning, problems after problems, the much awaited holiday finally arrived.

We managed to cover these areas in 10 days (inclusive of travelling time):

1st Day: Istanbul

Visited a hill accessible by cable cars overlooking Istanbul.

Walked down along the tombs of scholars and learned men.

Visited Eyup Sultan where we saw the foot prints of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

Visited Mini Aturk, a theme park which showcases all of Turkey’s historical, religious (biblical) and natural (biological) attractions. 

2nd and 3rd Day: Cappadocia (Goreme)

Visited churches, forgotten cities and Kaymakli underground cities in the central Anatolian region. 50 years ago, Turkish people still lived in their cave homes until the earthquake in the 50s forced them to vacate into residential areas. Underground cities were built as a hiding place from invading foreign and local forces. Now I know how Osama managed to escape capture!

4th Day: Pamukkale, Denizli

After 2 bus changes, we were kidnapped by a hotel operator; an effort to lure us to stay in his hotel. After discovering we were only in Denizli for a day trip, he sent us to our temporary waiting hostel. He’s actually a nice old man, who was shocked that we had planned our trip solely from the internet. We advised him to start advertising online to attract tourists, and to minimize effort from err….early morning kidnappings :p

At Pamukkale, we visited the Travertines, which are natural hot springs. These springs were once open to the locals, but now closed for preservation. Here we also marvelled at the Roman ruins i.e. collusseum, etc.

5th and 6th day: Prienne, Miletus, Dydima and Ephesus (Selcuk)

It is here that we became friends with the hostel owners Jimmy, Juju and Baba. We had so much fun visiting Prienne with the Temple of Athena, Miletus for its grand collusseum, gladiator cells (cages), corridors, Roman hamams (baths), and roman senate council! Then we moved on to Dydima and interacted with Apollo the Sun God and pranced around with Pegasus at the Temple of Apollo. We pretended to be DKNY models and tried to act out the ‘letters’ at Prienne, and even ran around restricted areas in Dydima. Shame!

We visited a site which is believed to be Virgin Mary’s final resting place before she passed. It is a spiritual place for our Christian friends, and I lit a candle out of respect with positive thoughts. Vima left a prayer on the wall, while Swan and I tested the water from the fountain. It is such a beautiful place.

Swan and Vima tried the Selcuk Hamam, while Farrah and I went around Selcuk chatting with shop owners who invited us in for apple tea (a usual custom for the Turks). We also met a lovely dondurma seller (ice-cream) who was so taken in by our erm…’muhibbah/majmuk-ness’ (unity). He told us of his dream in business, and prayed for our success and well being.

7th-10th: Istanbul

We visited Aghia Sophia (Church of Wisdom) and marvelled at how Ottomans preserved the church and innovated it into a mosque. The uniqueness of this mosque is you can see the assimilation of Christian and Islamic influences from different eras. You see the paintings of Jesus and his apostles, Angel Gabriel, Virgin Mary, yet you also see the names of the Muslim Prophets, a library, a place for ablution, etc. It is breathtaking!

Then we walked over to the Blue Mosque, which was then a private mosques for the Ottoman rulers. I had the opportunity to pray there twice, which was a magical experience for me. The mosque was truly a beauty.

After that, we had 2 hours to kill before Iftar, so we dashed over to the infamous Grand Bazaar. We only browsed because we were warned that prices here are steep and only experienced hagglers should purchase from the Grand Bazaar. It is truly a buyuk (big) bazaar, with so many corridors that we go lost! Every turn and every stall we passed, sellers would attract us to their goods. It was very overwhelming that Farrah and I felt nauseus, and wanted out! Ok, so I am not very fond of crowded places.

The next day we visited Topkapi Palace and the Harem. Here we saw many biblical artifacts such as Moses’s cane used to split the Red Sea, Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) turban, strands from his beard, his sword, the keys to the Ka’aba, the Sahabah’s swords, etc. It was such a special moment for me.

Later we walked over to the Basilica Cistern, an underground water reservoir built by the Romans. Such a marvellous invention indeed! Of course now I want to go to Granada, Spain and see the Muslims’ invention there!

For Iftar we had dondurma (actually we had it at least thrice in Turkey). Farrah left Turkey early to head off to Switzerland before arriving in London, which leaves Vima. Swan and I to discover other parts of Istanbul.

On last 2 days, we visited Yusha Hill where I read a prayer for Nabi Yusha (not among the 25 Prophets), and brother Yusuf and sister Zuleikha took us driving along the Bosphorus, Marmara and Black Sea! We did not manage to see the Spice bazaar, but we met some nice sisters from Hayrat Fund. They were so intrigued with Vima and Swan because some of them have never seen a real Chinese and Indian! They were so friendly, hospitable and kind that we felt so bad to leave them so soon..but leave them we must.

The next day we walked around and went for the infamous Chamberlitas Hamam. A typical Turkish hamam comprise of washing, scrubbing and a massage. This was the most unforgettable experience ever! The hamams are separated for males and females…and erm, this is my first experience with…porn. The masseurs were either topless or nude! I was relieved to not be wearing my glasses but still I think I nearly went blind. Worse, those who went for the hamam had to erm…go topless in front of other females! Gosh, thankfully Swan, Vima and I were far apart. I couldn’t look at them if any of them saw me and vice versa! Of course we had such a big laugh afterwards.

All in all, Turkey has definitely a special place in my heart. Not only does she have many historical and biblical attractions, but the people that we met are by far the friendliest, most hospitable and kindest on this planet. Kalah orang Malaysia.

Similar to other European nations, most Turkish people do not speak English. Even so, they strive to make you understand, and are so dedicated and go out of their way in helping you that you are often left speechless.

For schizzle.

Definitely saving up to go there again, win a trip or work there! This is the first time I felt sad leaving a country I visited …

Day/Date: Saturday, July 26th 2008.

Event: An-Najjah Open Day

Venue: No 3, Jln Kent 2, Off Jln Maktab, KL

Let me introduce an orphanage i.e. An-Najjah. The inhabitors of an-Najjah are school boys from the ages of 10-17. They are either orphans or new converts from aboriginal families.

They are only males here because the focus is to educate them into being good responsible and successful Muslim men to lead the family and society.

The Open Day showcased one of the boy’s talents of batik painting which he frames and sells.

                                                                                               We support an-Najjah being pro-active in procuring funds for their establishment without waiting for handouts.

Apart from that, they also rare their own fish. Aren’t they self-sufficient?

Other than that, there was a health check up booth, refleksology, food, clothes, accessories, and health products  being sold. Most profits were donated for An-Najjah. PEMADAM also opened a booth to educate youngsters on the dangers of drugs. The best part was there was even an ice-cream truck that gave out free ice-cream!

This is my second effort this year with An-Najjah. The concerned Muslims of Surau Shell KL, PD, and other friends (from other companies) donated RM 2k to sponsor 12 months of taekwondo classes. The first session we sponsored RM 2k to buy taekwondo attire for the boys. We felt that it is good if they can get the required training to stimulate a healthy mind and body.

For the 2nd occasion, we decided to donate book shelves and books and create a mini resource center to inculcate the love of books and knowledge. We raised roughly RM 800 and spent RM 600 for new books and games, while the remaider was donated to An-Najjah. We also received book donations from various people.

What amazed me was when we handed over the books one boy was so excited that he was going through the books. I asked him,

‘Adik suka membace ke?’

‘Suka’.

‘Adik, akak ada bawa banyak buku…ada yg baru dan ada yg terpakai tapi pasti semuanya best utk dibaca. Kami ada bawa games juga.’

He was so excited he quickly followed me to the boxes.

When we awarded the boxes of books and the cash donations, we saw how happy the President was and the children. We told the founder, Pn Aminah who that we not only value academic education, but reading and playing. She agreed.

Some of the books donated are Chicken Soup for the Soul, Goosebumps, Charlotte’s web, classics, dictionaries, tafseer and many more.

We bought about 35 books and 5 games. Some of them are shown below:

 

We didn’t limit the books to fiction because we wanted the children to explore their interests. If they loved photography, architecture, cooking, taekwondo, etc…they can pursue it as a career.

The pictures of An-Najjah above are courtesy of Mynie (Siti Malini Mat).

You can visit their website: http://an-najjah.org/

To me, the smiles and laughter were priceless. I was truly happy to be a part of them.

So, if you want to challenge them to a game of Saidina, Sahibba or read with them….make a date with an-Najjah today!

asma wan signing off

I went grocery shopping at a hypermarket at Alamanda Putrajaya. Recently I noticed at the fresh vegetable section especially for onions, chillies, etc  goods are not fresh … at all.

They separate the loose goods into an area, and the supposed-ly more fresh goods are already bundled in a sack. To my amazement, both goods are …not fresh! I was picking onions from the ready-packed section and found them to be old, bruised,even ‘watery’ which can only mean that it has gone bad. Simply, they are selling rotten goods.

Now, this is an international establishment. Even if consumers’ pockets are smaller from the rising cost of living does not mean they are allowed to sell rotten goods. They may sell at further discounted rates to finish stock, but not sell rotten goods as their ONLY stock. Worse, consumers should not accept it.

But wait…Malaysians do!

I was boiling and quickly highlighted that my mother and I should complain. As I surveyed the market, everyone just chose to buy the rotten goods. Maybe they thought that this is the quality we get for buying cheap onions, or chilly, or whatever.

Ibu then talked to the sales girl, which directed us to the manager. We informed them of our concenrs and disappointment. Then, they changed the batch!

Due to this, I have realized that some times hypermarkets actually do some disservice to the consumers. I usually buy vegetables and other stuff from the local neighborhood sundry shop or the kedai runcit because they are generally fresh. However, they don’t have the goods we some times can find at larger hypermarkets.

From now on, I’ll buy my fresh produce and veggies at the runcit, the tinned stuff at the hypermarkets, and others I’ll find else where.

Point to note:

^When canned or packed goods are cheap, check the expiry date. It may have expired or may be very close to expiring.

^When fresh goods are cheap, they may be rotten. If the rottens are the only available vegetable for choice, don’t accept them. Talk to the management and complain. They will do something about it. Customers are always right!

^Let’s support the local runcit industries.

Asma wan signing off

Color: Yellow

Song: Say- One Republic

Quote: "On no soul doth Allah Place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns…. (a portion of al-Baqarah: 286)

On top of all the pressures piling up at work, so swiftly, so discreetly, so forcefully did 4 additional challenges present itself. 3 occured on the same day within 3 hours while the fourth on the next day.

In that instant, all of the strength and support you normally provide your friends and loved ones go out the door. You find yourself incapable of breathing. You struggle to make sense of it all, and to advise your own little self.

The room seems to grow smaller.

Darker.

Colder.

Work stops.

Time stands still.

These words flash across your mind.

" You are a strong person," so a friend says.

" You are a hero," so another friend believes.

Somehow this week I wasn’t all of the above. It was at that moment that I realized I have a problem.

My heart is misplaced.

My heart is non-functional.

I discovered that I seem to un-knowingly touch the lives of others. I am flattered, honored and still surprised that the little unintentional acts have any meaning to others.

The only heart I can’t seem to reach is my own.

Now I’m searching for a cure. I need it. I realize that I am ill. I am sick. I need to be human again.

What is the cure? I hope I can find it.

Somehow the song sort of gives an indication.

Trying this out since I was tagged by Azita. First-timer so excuse the boring bits.

7 random facts about me:

1. I am not a window shopping person. I go shopping with a purpose. For example: I’ll go shopping if I need to stock up on toiletry supplies, shoes are worn out, birthday presents, etc. Yes, some of my friends hate bringing me around. Haha

2. I have been told I have a weird-insincere-sounding laugh. Perlu dengar dulu la. Haha

3. I stopped playing competitive sports since I was 12, but enjoy outdoor activities and leisure sports. I’m the only member of the Wan siblings that goes camping, swimming, jungle trekking, plays a few sports for fun, bowling, foosball-ing, etc.

4. I have no artistic bone in my body. I can’t sing, play instruments or dance to save my life. Sisters, Farrah, Wati and Azita can attest to this Farrah taught me the simplest traditional Malay dance and it took me a while to get the hang of it. I think she was very patient and struggled not to get mad at me :p

5. I began writing poems and stories at 15 to express my feelings. I joined debate at 15 because I was into causes, global and local issues.

6. I love animals and the environment. I am against cruelty to animals. I actively support environmental conservation. I am not a vegetarian though. When I was younger, I used to own fish, cats, birds, a turtle, and a hamster. In PD, Wati and I almost ran over a puppy. It was alone and motherless. We actually made traffic stop at the entrance to the PD Shell refinery because we wanted to save the pup who almost got crushed by a lorry tanker. I still get teased endlessly by Wati for wanting to keep and rare the pup by following the Hanafi school of thought which allows the raring of dogs. Ok ok stop laughing.

7. I have a tendency to fall down at public places. So beware! I am a HSSE case/law suit waiting to happen! Let me share some of my most memorable experiences:

a) Falling off a chair and landing on my back on the hard floor at McD, Subang Parade in 6th grade during the lunch crowd

b) Slipped, did a 180 degree turn, and fell on my back at the entrance of Carrefour Subang in highschool on a rainy day- having an audience who were trying to get shelter

c) Fell down on my butt on a sidewalk in KL near Bukit Bintang during go home traffic in 2006

d) Tripped and fell on my back at the Shell Kareoke Room, Sports Club PD. Thank God there was only Farrah to laugh at me

7 things that scare me:
1. Going to Hell.

2. Farrah (bukan nama sebenar- haha) when she gets angry after discovering I have ‘forgotten’ to eat :p Kalah my sister Murni or my mom getting mad at me. At the end of the day, I know she cares…

3. Having in-laws that are too demanding. Alhamdulillah so far my family have been blessed with good in-laws. Just heard scary stories from other people is all. You know who you are! Still keeping the faith

4. My offspring going against the Legacy and hereditary principles. It’s such a challenging world now!(Ooops, belum ada apa2 lagi pun dah takut. ish ish)

5. Betrayal. I’ve had some of the worst. It has shaped me be who I am today.

6. Failing:  at work, education, family, community and the environment even though I know it is part of growth..part of life.

7. Losing my loved ones. I don’t easily get attached. When I do, it’s forever. Even though I am emotionally retarded and slow, it hurts more when you lose someone special. A family member, a friend, a companion.

7 random music at the moment (in no particular order):

1. Unfold- Marie Digby

2. See You When You Get There- Coolio

3. Take Me There- Blackstreet Feat Mya

4. Eve, the Apple of My Eye- BelleX

5. al-I’Tiroof- Haddad Alwi

6. Somewhere Over the Rainbow- Jason Castro’s version

7. Beautiful in My Eyes- Joshua Kadison

7 things I treasure the most (material things): This is hard ‘cos I don’t have a lot of material things..and I don’t really care for them. Here goes:
1. My handphone- connection to loved ones

2. My MP3 player- I am a music person & don’t realy watch TV. Songs soothe and inspire me.

3. My Panasonic Lumix compact camera- There are still undiscovered beauty !

4. My books! and a good library- I’m a nerd and proud of it :p

5. My car eventhough it doesn’t have fancy seats, a CD player, or those cool gadgets. I love it anyway!

6. Internet? Reasons are self-explanatory

7. On-line banking! This is very useful in KL. Makes me miss PD more though.

7 "first time" things I ever did:

1. Learn to dance- refer to Random things above

2. First time I tried my hand at kareoke was at Shell PD’s Managemt Team Away Day for a teambuilding event in 2006. Gosh, that was embarassing. Dah la kena buat sketsa Kuch Kuch Hota Hai! I was fish out of water. Hope there aren’t any videos of it…

3. Was a flood victim in PD. Refer to previous entries

4. I accidentally caused a false alarm at my office by opening the wrong door. This caused all the guards to run around looking for the culprit. I actually confessed to the guards 5 min later (after they stopped running around).

5. Going on road trips without my family happened when I started working. Independence is schweeet!

6. I watched American Pie at age 25 in PD after being forced by Wati and the girls. I fell asleep during the movie!

7. Went on a tour of a a crude oil ship in 2007! Chatted with the captain and co-captain. That was awesome!Thanks to Wati for making it happen.

7 people to do this (random and no particular order):

1. Annabelle

2. Mawar

3. Aman

4. Aqi

5. Melor

6. Azmir Razwan aka Fowler

7. kak Berq

XoXo

Asma wan signing off

Many of my friends have asked me in the past few months about:

• my whereabouts,
• some enquired on the change in my voice–>kononnya jadi lebih dalam! (really? didn’t really notice that),
• the downward shift in my weight, and
• subdued comical antics (seriously?!)

Let me release Garfield out of the bag. Haha.

Frankly, these 2 months have tested my mental, physical, emotional and spiritual strength. Professional, personal, health and financial trials have been hitting me left, right, front and center since April. Yes, these 2 months I was someone else. i was not always on my best behavior.

At the end of the day, I addressed each trial by putting them in their respective places. At least, I tried to regardless of the consequences.

Of course, some trials require more time, so I spend a little more time arriving at my resolution.  Those may have been the times when my friends caught me at the wrong time, hence exposing my darker side, unlike how they normally see me. Not at my best behavior.

In those dark hours my companions are His Legacy, al-Ghazali, Rumi, family, friends and don’t forget Google (Ha! It’s true).

It forced me to re-inspect myself, my realities, my community and environment. I did a SWOT on myself. Sheesh, that clearly spells out conflict of interests. :p Oh well.

It was these experiences which made me realize:

• that my belief in the good in people has many times caused me insufferable pain, but i learned once more to trust even if to be badly crushed again. I will continue with the action of trusting, but will improve the process
• even when i am at my lowest, there are others who are suffering even more. it doesn’t kill to be kind even when you’re down. i will continue to try
• work isn’t the only thing to measure greatness and neither is your employer
• age isn’t the only measure of greatness. knowledge, and wisdom are…and how you utilize these 2 things
• i am allowed to misbehave as long as i do not infringe on the rights of others. i guess this means i can misbehave responsibly? haha
• some people will only see the Darth Vader in you, but i will continue to do good anyway
• some people may hate you, but there are those that love you for the good, the not-so-good and the in-between. those people have to stand up and you need to open your friggin eyes is all
• i can’t buy health even if i am Bill Gates. it’s not a level playing field for you in terms of health, but who cares? Prove them wrong.

These experiences taught me that my head and heart have not wandered far from my benchmark. I have allowed myself to be human. Though there is pain, I am still trying to improve because that is part of my growth.

These experiences are ….

my saving grace.

P/s: vote for barack obama…haha (saja je)

8  colleagues-cum-friends set out on an adventure to Gopeng, Perak. 

We stayed at Adeline’s Lodge, a village with quaint aboriginal-designed huts.  The hut functions as a dorm. The ladies slept in the main room, while the men slept in the hall way. 

Our schedule was tight. Upon arrival, we were served with delicious lunch cooked specifically for our team. The food is fresh and tasty. Once our other friends arrived, we changed clothes and set out to go white water rafting. 

Being my first white water rafting experience, I made sure I listened and made mental notes to the safety briefing. When we departed, it already began to rain. That could only mean that the river currents would be stronger.

We went up and down the river, our raft getting caught in between rocks more often than others, and when we were supposed to stop for a short ’swimming break’, our guide named King, pushed me into the river intentionally (or else I would never jump hehe). With the lifejacket and helmet fully fastened, the current brought me along for a nice ride. I had so much fun until…I saw a large rock looming ahead of me. How was I to maneuvre myself or break? There are no breaks or steering wheels! Obviously, I hit the rock.

The next swimming stop, Wati and I casually jumped in, but to our amazement, the current was quite strong (or we are quite light!) that it dragged us away. We were moving so fast that we were separated from the group, so much so that our guide King had to throw the yellow rope bag. We quickly remembered the safety briefing, and held on tight to the yellow rope and King pulled us back to safety.

All together now…’Aww..’

As we went along the river (it was a 2.50 hour trip), we had a few big rapids to conquer. On one of the big ones, Wati accidentally fell into the river…and she was quickly pulled out by King. Then, at the next rapid, I fell out of the raft and into the river. Again, King pulled me out effortlessly. We realized we were the day’s damsels in distress and King was officially our HERO Other groups didn’t have any ‘man overboard’ but ours.

When we returned to our camp site, we discovered that there was no water for the whole day. Cold and starving, there was only 1 place where there was running water. Thankfully, the bathing place was covered to shield prying eyes. In order to save time, Wati, Swan and I decided to bathe together…eventhough neither of us brought sarong for bathing purposes. It was quite hilarious as one of us went topless, the other bottomless, and one had her swimsuit on. All 3 of us had to close our eyes while bathing..drastic times call for draastic measures :p

Day 2

The next day we went water abseiling. This means we had to slide down from a 50 meter waterfall using ropes. Hmm…

I was 3rd to go down after Wan Jye and Wati. As I was moving down the waterfall, I slipped and swung from left to the middle part of the waterfall. I was supposed to stand up on my own, but the water was so strong it kept pulling me down/back. I was literally drinking the water as it hit my face and suffocating from lack of air. Then, the guide ‘Apek’ (his actual nickname ok), extended his hand. He almost lost his balance too but he was supported by 2 ropes; one tied to a strong tree branch while the other was tied to Swan. I had to surrender my left hand, then my right hand before he pulled me up. It was like a scene in the movies where the police tries to rescue someone from falling off the building. Either the person survives or dies.

After that ordeal, I decided to complete the abseiling and went down. Alhamdulillah, no drama there

Having tried water abseiling gives you such an adrenaline rush. Wati, Swan and I decided to have another go at it- AGAIN. Apparently, we were the only ones who repeated as the rest were too tired.

The second time down I did better, but towards the end the water was still quite forcefull, and managed to make me lose balance, causing me to swing (AGAIN) from left to right before settling back in the middle. Kinda looked liked Tarzan in training..hehehe.

It was the 2nd experience which made me feel really cold and hungry. According to Swan and Wati, it was then that I began to shake and turn blue. Ok, so I skipped breakfast ‘cos I was still full from yesterday’s dinner. It won’t happen again, pwomise

When we got back there still wasn’t any water so Wati, Swan and I repeated our 3-some activity. This time we were prepared and wore bikinis to avoid unwanted nudity/porn.

To sum it up, it was a great weekend I will always remember. Of course, I had the neck, shoulder and backpain as souvenirs.

Here are some pictures:

     

If you haven’t tried, you should! And check out Adeline’s website, I highly recommend it! It’s loads of fun, no regrets

Asma wan signing off

Election fever is at its peak. Tensions are flaring, emotions are escalating, and rumor mongering provides much entertainment.

My modus operandi for my second general election is simple: I vote based on the candidate and not the party.

To many, that statement is ridiculous, and basically, unconventional.

Hey, I am unconventional. I am eccentric.

My reasons: I vote for truth and justice. If the ruling party does something good, I applaud it. If the ruling party has a bad policy, I criticize it. Same goes for Opposition parties. I don’t legitimize illegal activities/policies just because I support that person or party.

A candidate is the person we select to represent our concerns, and will be our voice. If you choose a candidate not knowing his/her background but just the general party, how sure are you that he will represent you sincerely and wholeheartedly? For instance, we have:

• the case of the Municipal Council in Shah Alam who built his mansion illegally,
• the Malaccan Customs Mgr that closed one eye to illegal activities,
• while a Minister in Prime Minister’s office thinks suing parents who’s children are murdered is a good reminder to other parents to be watchful of their children when their children’s death itself is already a strong reminder..must you threaten to sue them when clearly they are suffering enough?
• the same Minister in the Prime Minister’s office is too proud and smug by stating on globally aired Interview on al-Jazeera that the Government is perfect and there is nothing to improve
• What’s worse, is action is not taken on these individuals when we are striving to have a clean and efficient government (especially the first 2 cases)
• I watched on TV how when Malaysians congregate peacefully to submit a memorandum of their concerns, they are subjected to tear gas and water canons. They did not thrown stones at the police, nor did they cause a ruckus to the city. The Government say they listen, but why are they afraid of a piece of paper? Tear gas will only create misunderstanding among the local community, and invite bad media coverage to the global community. Can’t we just accept the memorandum, read it, debate it and make a decision and stick to the decision?
• Scrapping indellible ink at the 11th hour:  C’mon, what happened to previous ‘promises’ and commitments? Empty and broken promises do not resonate well with the people. Shame on you, EC.
• MPs in Parliament debating why Siti Nurhaliza married an older man because her action will cause women to reject younger men. What?!! There are other pressing issues to discuss and Siti’s personal life becomes a topic?!!
• When candidates call for debates and debates are rejected with the reasons that Malaysians are not Westerners and Malaysians don’t debate. Dear hopeful MPs, Malaysians DO want debates. We are speaking up, but you are not listening. You should listen. We are the YouTube generation
• Hijab should not be forced on Muslim women. They must willingly and wholeheartedly don the hijab because THEY want to. It’s a personal choice.

Honestly, I do not want these individuals representing me, or any Malaysians.

When I pay income taxes:

I want the tax to be distributed to Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah Sarawak regardless who ‘rules’ the state. Taxes are paid to the national government, so all Malaysians should enjoy free education, infrastructure, and basic amenities. Kelantanese, Sabahans and Sarawakians are Malaysians and deserve what is their right. Btw, education in Malaysia isn’t free. We have to buy or our text books, and materials. In other countries, text books and notebooks are provided by the school. This is because the tax payers’ money REALLY goes to the education sector.

Petronas Royalties should be distributed to the rakyat and not just at selected states or ruling-party states.

Zakat that goes to Baitul Mal should be given to individuals based on merit and need.

In a nutshell, Malaysia’s income which makes the Government’s spending (scholarships, infrastructure, etc) are really coming from Malaysians. Malaysians put Malaysians through to universities.

Yes, some friends ridicule me for this stand, while others respect my choice. To each his own values. We should agree to disagree.

The Subang Jaya constituency is very interesting. We have individuals from all walks of life competing. I did my research with the assistance of concerned citizens:

Kelana Jaya Parliamentary

• Lee Hwa Beng (MCA)
• Loh Gwo Burne (PKR)
• Billi Lim (IND)

Subang Jaya

• Hannah Yeoh (DAP)
• Ong Chong Swen (MCA)

I had to read blogs, manifestos, watch videos of these individuals to convince me of my vote.

For the parliamentary seat, we have a candidate who shot the Lingam video, and a passionate independent and the Subang Jaya incumbent. It’s a close and clean fight. Subang Jayans respect one another. You don’t see a SEPUTEH scene here

Subang Jaya seat is one to watch.

I will select a leader that is not afraid to be questioned, to stand up for truth and justice, to speak for the people in Parliament without fearing of ‘breaking ranks’, respects Malaysians for their beliefs and principles and deliver on their promises once elected.

You’ll see me in Subang Jaya tomorrow. To all who are voting, your vote determines our future.

Selamat Mengundi!

Asma Wan signing off

Just like to share a first time experience with blood donation.

History
Previous attempts were quickly denied since undergrad days because I was either on my period, or I did not meet the 45kg criteria.
Then when I joined SRC I finally met the 45kg criteria to later be disappointed again because I have low-blood pressure.

Present
Yesterday after lunch, I went to check my blood pressure. She confirmed that I passed the blood pressure criteria. I told the Dr that I meet the weight criteris, but she didn’t believe me. To convince the Dr that I was a healthy 49/50 kg, I had to step on the weighing scale. Then, I told her that I also have ’shortness of breath’. She said as long as I don’t have it often it would be ok.

So they drew blood out from me. The nurses noticed how slowly the blood flow was, and felt that it was because I was a first-time donor. One by one other people completed their donation, rest period and eating period and here my blood flow is still….flowing AND the packet isn’t quite full.

Suddenly, I started to shiver uncontrollably, and breathe like a woman in her lamaze class. I told the nurse that I was shivering all over, and they noticed that my fingers were turning blue. Apparently they claimed the color from my face and lips were fading.

Everyone was afraid that I was going to faint.

Just as they wanted to deploy help, the packet was full. Them nurses covered me up in a blanket, and gave me…something which I stared at with suspicion….glucose water to drink. I was aching to get out of the contraption and return to work, but was forced by them nurses to sleep.

What took others 20-30 mins, took me a whopping hour to finish the blood donation. All I knew was afterwards I needed food as I was shivering, feverish, numb and tired.

After a few hours, I checked my donator log book, and realized they categorized me as type ‘B’. Then I stopped. In SRC, they categorized me as ‘AB’. What the……

Need to get confirmation so nobody gets a blimmin transfusion from my blood!

Overall, the process was exciting and I’m glad that I did it. I’ve been wanting to donate for a very long time.

Finally!

-Asma wan signing off-