Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Adha

To all Muslims around the world, Happy Eid ul-Adha.

As any other festivities, we are one day late. Brunei celebrates Eid ul-Adha on Saturday, way to late than in Makkah or Mina where they went to Ukuf on Thursday. Anyway, its going to be different for us this year. For donkey years we never celebrated Eid ul-Adha as much and intense as Eid Fitri except going to the Masjid to perform the Eid ul-Adha prayer and that was it. Even the whole of Brunei there were never any actual celebrations except maybe for those who have family performing the Hajj, they gather around the house and do thanksgiving ceremony with relatives. And of course who do the deeds of slaughtering the animals for Ibadah Korban will gather around the designated places to distribute the meat to the needy, friends or family. We don’t have all those this year but we intend to stretch it a bit further by doing an open house for family.

Its going to be Saturday night. My brother invited us for his own open house at lunch so we take the night spot. So its going to be fun for family to have two houses to feast on.

And I am going to cook these dishes

Black pepper beef
Chicken Kieve
Fish curry
Vege –still under negotiation with hubby lol
Fried Mussles
Macaroni cheese

And for dessert:
Tiramisu
Curry puff (this one I bought)

I think that’s about it. And its going to be busy Saturday for me. I am looking forward to all the cooking although I am feeling so tired and beat these days. My shoulder is killing me and I have this dull feeling on top of my head for a long time.

And below is the pictures of Masjidil Haram in Makkah yesterday at Isyak prayers (curi from PDKM blog hehe). Look at all those people! Very beautiful and makes me miss Makkah so much. Labbai Qallah WalaLabbaiq...

New Moon

Ok here is the deal. The second series of the Twilight series, New Moon is now on at the cinemas. And here I am contemplating whether to go and see the movie not? Shall I or shall I not? Guess what? It’s the hottest film this week, all around the world. And I am excited about this movie?? A teenage movie that is. I know it’s a movie for the younger generations and I feel I don’t really fit. I mean, whats up with the Vampire???!! And the story is about these two teenagers (one human and vampire the other) who fell in love. I don’t know what the New Moon have in the mix though but I am sure it will still be along the same line.

So I did this. I watched the first movie, “Twilight”. Not at the cinema since the movie was aired a year ago but on our living room. My girl urged me to watch the first movie first, that’s what I did, last Sunday night. I had a low expectation and I even prepared myself for a little dissapointments. So I just watched it merely to accompany her since the movie started at 10pm on our tv. But I kind of liked it. Its unique and different. I haven’t watched a vampire movie for a long long time, maybe since Brad Pitt became one, ages ago……. Doesn’t that show how old I am??? lol

Aahh.. Twilight.. At least I knew what to expect. I knew the scene will be dull and gloomy. The casts (the vampire especially) will be pale, white and ghoulish. I mean that’s how people did vampire movies right? and I was correct. But the storyline was kind of nice. How this girl was brave enough to confront her vampire friend and tried to find out as much as possible about this friend, until they fell in love. And I didn’t even know vampire don’t sleep or eat. There were also some elements of profound illogical aspect to it, like, since when do they sparkle in the sunlight? But its sure is interesting to watch and it could be fun to learn a little bit more about all these mystical creatures.

I have seen so many reviews about NM. Is it good or better then Twilight? It has good reviews so far, for those who were crazy about Twilight should definitely watch NM. But if you haven’t watched Twilight then maybe you shouldnt go and see NM. You may be at lost and suffer the consequences of living in the dark (no pun intended!) for the whole durations of the movie, so to speak.

So what about me? Should I be there amongst the youngsters and do all the oooooohhhhhh and Aaaaaaahhhhhhhh, lol, my girl thought Edward was cute though.

Now, if I want to be honest with myself, I would have to ask these questions. Am I a recently committed “Twilighter” who would definitely plunk down some cash to go and see the movie or maybe I am still sitting on the "Twilight" fence, unsure whether to go or not. Well still havent got the answer….

So should I watch Edward and Bella again? My girl is certainly interested.

Congratulations!

This post is especially dedicated to my beloved daughter who was just promoted to Form 5Sc2 for 2010. A big congratulations for pulling through. Now that you are in Form 5 (where did all the time go???), I guess you need to triple your effort to get good grades in your GCSE. I would expect you to study even harder and aim high. For now, you have done great, being 6th in class is not so bad and as usual I am so ever proud of you.

As usual too, you will always be in my prayers, day and night. May Allah bless you with His abundance of Rahmah and Hidayah. Looking forward to your next accomplishments in the near future...

Mommy loves you always and forever.

2012

OMG.. Have you seen this movie? What will happen in 2012? Mayan calendar predicted the world will come to an end on 21st Dec 2012 and that’s the whole story! I never seen so many destructions in one movie. I was so beat and tired after watching it. Gave me breathlessness and dizzy head with the magnitude of devastations and ruins this move has! I must say this is not exactly my kind of movie. I don’t usually go for it but hubby insisted we should go and watch it. With all the fuss this movie has I’ve decided to go for it for and witnessed the world went down lol. What a sad sad story. Although it has a happy ending for some people (which movie hasn’t?). But I have to admit I was pretty impressed with what the cameras and computers could do these days. The disaster seemed so real.

My girl was quiet for the whole duration, I kept on looking at her and asked her how she was doing. I was worried she might not enjoy the movie but she said she was ok. Maybe she was as overwhelmed as me but she usually didn’t say anything. For some reasons, a few people went in and out of the theatre throughout the duration of the movie. I wondered why? Was it they couldn’t stand the capacity of the sounds and camera tricks? I dunno. But this movie will make you tired for sure. Well it did for me, since its not my cup of tea. For those who used to watch violent movie, this may be just a piece of cake!

There were a lot of people in the cinema yesterday. Never seen as many people there for a while, I didn’t know why people were interested to see it. Good publicity? Or what? I even noticed very unfamiliar looking people there too. I mean those who never went to a cinema, the goody goody people, the aunties and uncles, if you know what I mean. Wasn’t that awesome? What this movie could do to attract viewers? Then something struck me. Was it because this movie is about end of the world? The world doomsday? And there was even emails flying around for a while about this? That’s yet to be proven and as a Muslim we do not know when that is although it sure will happen.

It was a long movie though. 2 ½ hrs in total, an epic adventure for the movie goers and I didn’t even realize the time. The movie started around 4pm and earlier hubby wanted to see the sunset after that and took some good photos but it finished way too late at around 6.30pm when it was aleady dark and raining lol. So scapped the idea and went for dinner at the Thai Restaurant instead.

Phew… what a Sunday.

That Bruneian girl

Today my post is dedicated for our first Bruneian ever to ski in the South Pole and Antarctica, she is a 25 year old lady named Era and currently has started the expedition with the rest of the 8 women from around the world which make up the Kaspersky Commonwealth Antarctic Expedition team. What a shame that there isnt enough local coverage on her courage and journey. Considering what she is about to accomplish. The rest of the ladies selected are from Cyprus, Ghana, India, Singapore, New Zealand, Jamaica and the UK. The adventure will take 40 days after gruesome training and they will cover an area of over 900 km across Antarctica. Isnt that amazing?

I don’t know how she was selected, as I mentioned there was not enough coverage of her achievement prior to the expedition. What a girl! Imagine being in the South Pole blizzards and snow with temperature below –30C. Not everyone wants to do it even given the chance. Its not an easy challenge, it will test her endurance and her self perseverance and willpower. Mind over matters. Important aspect for being strong.

The expedition is to mark the 60th anniversary of the Commonwealth and the aims are to demonstrate the intercultural understanding and exchange while at the same time highlighting the achievements of women across the world.

I will follow her journey through here, for me its very exciting and challenging. Wish I could be there and see Antarctica for myself since I love snow so much! Hehehe. I don’t mind being in the snow actually. Although I MAY change my mind if I ever was in Antarctica, it can be a rude wake up call for me! lol.

I don’t wish my girl to go through the same ordeal though. Well, but if she is interested then that’s a different story. But looking at how challenging this expedition will be its not for the soft hearted. Maybe Era is the strong one, then its ok. I am hoping she will do Brunei proud, So good luck. You go girl!

Here is the link to read more of their adventure.

http://www.kasperskycommonwealthexpedition.com/index.cfm

And lastly here is our pictures when we went skiing in the snow at Mt Coronet, New Zealand. Only for a short one day. Imagine being in the snow for 40 days.

The Beach

Pictures taken while we were on the beach. More pictures on our Photography blog.

Mission Accomplished

Another weekend. Of course bz. Busy with family is always nice. No complains whatsoever. Fun fun fun. And proud proud proud. My girl got her SSSRU certificate on Saturday for her ugama final year exam last year. And she was getting Grade 1. She knew her result almost a year ago and as tradition would have it, she and the rest of the schools in Brunei only get her cert a year later. Emm… wonder why it took so long to produce the certificates?? Are we not in the cyber and IT prowess these days? Where we could do printing of certificates in a blink of an eye??? Sigh… I guess some people are still at the lowest end of the IT civilizations. Anyway, we were all excited again, the same excitement when she first knew her result. It’s a good result. Grade 1, the best result anyone could ask for. After all the hardwork, and with PMB on the same year (2008) it was really tough on her. But she managed to pull through, and even prouder she got Grade 1. Her PMB result was not too bad either, and she is now in a science stream class. The best result ever. So congratulations Ayang. You always make your mom and dad proud. Keep up the good work and looking forward for more achievements in your life.

We went to JPD in the morning and tendered a new number for the car. Didn’t know it was so easy. But then its not done yet since the officer who was in charged was away on leave. And we had to come back and pay and get the number on Monday. WTF?? Didnt get it. Wasn’t there supposed to be a relief? To make things or businesses run smoothly? To make customers happy? Since your motto is At your service???? blah blah blah.. Anyway. I just don’t understand how it works. That’s all.

We went for a jog at Damuan in the evening. The place was packed and its good to see that everyone looked after their health. The jog or brisk walk for me lasted half an hour only but it’s a good half and hour, at least we accomplished it today.. Outside with fresh air (is it fresh?? Lol) . Not like the past few weeks where I did my exercise at home using a DVD! Hubby suffered some strain muscles, lol. For being out of sync with his own body for a while. Too bad. Think we need to do this more often.

Sunday we went out to the beach and took some good pictures with our Nikon. The weather was so hot and we were sweating like crazy. But the beach was lovely. Havent been there for a long time and its good to see the beach was well taken care of. It had a facelift and everything looks new and organized. Its good to see the ocean in a clear day. Its lovely.

After the beach we went to look for BSP virtual office. It was tucked away at the corner of these new rows of shops. Although it was not difficult to find. But it was kind of isolated, the rows of shops were not occupied yet except for some so it looked like a ghost town. And the office were not that big, with rows of tables with desktops. Like in a library. Side by side, of course no privacy except for the dividers in between the tables. Not even a phone is available. So I guess if we were to work there, would have to make do with the MSN or emails. We couldn’t even find the toilets or were we not looking? lol. I think the office are not fully finished yet. The 1st floor was not done. Its not ready so I guess there were still a lot to do. But ground floor are available to use. So I think I will work there on Tuesday and see how I feel.

Pictures coming soon!

The missing piece

I've always been an ardent fan of the US reality show, "Jon & Kate Plus 8". I even blogged it a few months back when they were still together. I always admire Kate for being a tough woman, raising her twins and sextuplets. But there were times when I reality pity Jon for being treated like a child. Sometimes I dont agree the way Kate handled the situation when it came to her husband. She looked down on him, berated him and didnt fully respect him as a person, more so as a husband. In the end, looked what happened to them. I am sure Jon was really pissed off, he was embarassed for being treated like the ninth child. How could she? You dont just shout at your husband in the grocery store or keep interrupting him when he said and corrected his grammar, things like that. As if he was a child. Of course people has certain degree of patience and tolerance. I think Jon has came to his senses and told himself enough is enough.

And now they are parting ways. And in a nasty ways too.

I still follow their stories. Not a happy one but more on the bad sides of things, like their ugly divorce and how Jon paraded with his new girlfriends. And how sad and upset Kate is. It is profoundly sad. I cant imagine the magnitude of her unhappiness and its there for all to see on TV. And starting Nov, there wont be anymore Jon & Kate plus 8. Its over. I know they are stopping the show because the situation has become nasty. Pity them.

I am sure Kate didnt expect this to happen. But Jon is a man. I wouldnt expect their relationship to last looking at the way Kate treated him. Its all come to a sad ending. These days I dont see Kate smiling again. And according to her the kids is now affected by the divorce too.

Although on our tv, they are still a couple, but of course not for long. We are still on a previous series and even then Jon doesnt even look happy. And always Kate berated him. How sad.

I still support Kate. Never mind she doesnt know it. I support her because she is a mom. A good mom at that. A good mom who wants the best for her children. She still there for the kids, while Jon goes out and enjoys his new found freedom as a single dad. For me, Kate's mistake was how she handled her husband. And the amount of time she was away promoting her books. And how she didnt appreciate what Jon had done. Although I know Kate still loves him, she said so herself. She said she will never get married again. Its not easy to forget someone you loved for 10 years.

And looks like Kate is the one who suffers now, just look at this video which I copied from one of the US magazine website. I want to keep this video here for my safe keeping. So I can watch it over and over again, a proof on how sad it is to lose someone.

I dont know what happened next so I will keep on googling them for sure. I want to know what happen to those precious children. At the end of the day, I am sure everyone agrees all that matters are the children, and what is best for them.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Living proof of miracles

This is my childhood friend with her husband. I hope you don’t mind me publishing you in my blog darling ;-)

And this is her featured from Brunei news.

http://news.brunei.fm/2009/10/31/living-proof-of-miracles/

She is a cancer survivor, have been fighting cancer since 2005. She is a member of Brunei breast cancer support group and has been very active these days.

I am so glad she is now in remission, and able to enjoy her life again. Although I was not there when she had all her chemo, I know she has gone through a lot. Our parents are neighbours and her mom and my mom used to talk about her struggle. Its so sad. I didn’t know all about her sufferings until much later. And when I knew, I was not sure where my place was. I didn’t know how to offer help or support. All I did was to pray to Allah, may Allah spare her from further ailments and illness. I am thinking about her all the time but at the same time I dont want to appear too pushy, I sure didn’t know what to do. I didnt have enough experience in dealing with such a tragedy I guess but of course I am thinking about her all the time. And contacted her as and when just to hear her news.

We used to play around at our Kampong when we were kids, we went to school together and ended up working for the same company. So I basically know her all my life. She is such a sweet lady, very humble and friendly. I adore her, she lights up when she enters a room, full of life and that’s what I love about her.

So girlfriend, here is wishing you the very best in life. You are such an inspiration, I salute you for being such a strong model to our society. It goes to the rest of your gang as well.

MJ This Is It Movie

Man oh man!!!! We watched MJ This Is It the movie last night and it was simply brilliant! What a performer. During all the rehersals, he was a picture of health, very thorough and a perfectionist. He didnt look sick but very energetic, calm and happy. He was in a top physical condition and we couldnt believe that he was already gone. Just like that.

He’s also sharp, creative and very involved in all the rehersals. His perfectionistic control over the show was really evident and it clearly showed how much he was in control. He also appeared to be friendly with everyone and very good at showing people on what he wanted. He told his musicians to repeat musical phrases until a certain feeling was achieved, he said like “You gotta let it simmer … bathe it in the moonlight”, if they did mistake he said, "Thats why we have rehersals, things like that. He didnt even look 50 when he danced with all his dancers which I believe was a lot younger than himself. Well, except maybe his face who looked very ghoulish sometimes but thats what he was.

There is no denying of his greatness. Everyone says so. The world is amazed with the film, like this one review from the US tabloid.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_13658854?source=searchles

A true performer, gifted and original. The music and entertainment world was at loss now that he is gone.

Ok, some pictures from last night at the Empire.

Then I received this

From a nice colleague friend, aaaawwww.....

God did not intend for us to be all rich, beautiful, or great alone; but he does intend for us all to be friends


HAPPY GIRLFRIEND'S DAY!If you get this more than once - you are blessed with friends.


Happy Girlfriend's Day! Good times are even better when they're shared.

A good long talk can cure almost anything.


Everyone needs someone with whom to share her secrets.

Listening is just as important as talking.

An understanding friend is better than a therapist;
And cheaper too!

Laughter makes the world a happier place.
Friends are like wine; they get better with age.


Sometimes you just need a shoulder to cry on.
Great minds think alike, especially when they are female!


When it comes to "bonding," females do it better.


YOU ARE NEVER TOO OLD FOR SLUMBER PARTIES!!!!
It's important to make time to do "girl things."

Calories don't count when you are having lunch with your girlfriends.


GEMS MAY BE PRECIOUS,

BUT FRIENDSHIP IS PRICELESS!!!!!

PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO

ALL OF YOUR GIRLFRIENDSincluding the one that sent it to you....

Thank You

Crap!

Some people are not born to be a leader. That’s all I can say. Feeling so pissed off right now I could kill someone.

So not in the mood to document this but what the heck. You see this boss of ours in the office, well he is acting actually since the incumbent left more than 6 months ago. But now there seems to be someone new taking over, but not official yet. So this so called acting boss didn't want to sign my application for virtual office. A little bit on this, BSP just launched our very own virtual office. It is what it is. Office away from the office so to speak. You don’t have to come to work every day but just come to the virtual office since we have all the computers, and network to stay connected with our colleagues in Seria. Its cool isn’t it. So I apply for it. Since I’ve been traveling to Seria for the past 10 years or so. I know this will ease a lot of my burden. Reduce my risks on the road every day and I would have some quality of life in the end. But this boss didn’t feel he has the right to sign off my application since he is no longer “the boss”. He said he needed to check with the Manager first. But hey… you are who you are until its official. And he said he didn’t want to be in trouble. For what? For allowing me to work there whereas its already in the system and approved by top management and even advertised on line? Its just formality, for heaven's sake. WTF man????? I feel you don’t deserve to be there and lead people. You lack integrity, compassion and empathy to be a good leader. That’s what you are. And you might as well go where you come from.

My cup of coffee

Today started rather slowly. Wished my 3rd brother happy birthday for his 36th birthday today, wish him the best of everything in life. May Allah bless you and your family. In a way, I feel closer to him since we are basically on the same boat. He invited us for dinner at his home tonight so I look forward to that with family. Hope it wont be raining tonight ;-)

Nothing much going on, except I had another presentation to do with the HP management. As usual it went well. I didn’t feel nervous or anything of that sort anymore, its just work. And it was all over in less than half an hour. Bought packed lunch today since hubby was busy with work too. So had my lunch in the office and I had cravings for coffee all of a sudden. I don’t know where it all come from, I feel I just need a cup. So I asked our tea lady to get me one cup of hot water. I have to ask from her since we are not allowed to go to the kitchen, (company policy, nothing personal, more to HSE requirements and nothing else). And make my own cup of coffee on my table from my pre-packed 3 in 1 we bought in NZ. You wont believe this…, I still have that box of Mocha Coffee we bought while we were on holiday. In June. It’s a very nice coffee and we don’t have that brand here in Brunei so we bought a few packs last time. I brought one pack to the office since it was so nice but I don’t drink it all these time since I am cutting down on my caffeine so I still have it in my drawer. Rather have it there in my drawer on standby actually, when this kind of situation persists and when my cravings knock on my door so this is what I would do. Grab it and have a cup, after 4 months!!

It feels like heaven, it always does. Coffee is wonderful. Hot or cold. I just love coffee but haven’t had one full cup for a very long time, except occasional sip from hubby’s coffee if he offers me, lol. Or on our occasional visits to The Coffee Bean in the office and I ordered the ever so nice caramel blended ice, but it does have 500 calories in it! WTF.

So that’s it, I enjoy it while it lasts. No more coffee for me until I don’t know when. And the tea lady wont have to worry about me asking for another cup. I don’t usually ask for anything from her except for my occasional white tea at 7.00 in the morning. By right I should get 3 cups of drinks per day in the office, like everyone else, but I’ve been trying to cut down on my sugar and caffeine intake for the past year or so, I stick to water for now and for later too (may be).

Oh I am happy today to hear my girl is doing well with her exam. She told me exam was ok so I hope she will get good result too. I know she has done her best so its all up to her to gain that spot again. I will pray for her to do well of course.

So Ayang, if you read this. You can have a free afternoon today and enjoy whatever you do until tomorrow, Saturday is still another exam day right?? Don’t forget tonight we will go and visit Uda for his birthday ;-)

A Touching Story

I hijacked this story from another blog. I love reading it, its really beautiful and a gentle reminder on how important family is and how we should spend time with our loved ones and remember to look after them.

Read on...

Four years ago, an accident took my beloved wife away and very often I wonder, how does my wife, feel right now? She must be feeling extremely sad for leaving a husband who is incapable to taking care of the house and the kid 'cos that is the exact feeling that I have, as I feel that I have failed to provide for the physical and emotional needs of my child, and failed to be the dad and mum for my child.

There was one particular day, when I had an emergency at work. Hence, I had to leave home whilst my child was still sleeping. So thinking that there was still rice leftovers, I hastily cooked an egg and left after informing my sleepy child.With the double roles, I am often exhausted at work as well as when I am home. So after a long day, I came home, totally drained of all energy. So with just a brief hug and kiss for my child, I went straight into the room, skipping dinner. However, when I jumped into my bed with intention of just having a well-deserved sleep, all i heard and felt was broken porcelain and warm liquid! I flipped open my blanket, and there lies the source of the 'problem'... a broken bowl with instant noodles and a mess on the bedsheet and blanket!Boy, was I mad! I was so furious that I took a clothes hanger, charged straight at my child who was happily playing with his toy, and give him a good spanking!

He merely cried but not asking for mercy, except a short explanation:"Dad, I was hungry and there wasn't anymore leftover rice. But you were not back yet, hence I wanted to cook some instant noodles. But I remembered you reminding me not to touch or use the gas stove without any adults around, hence I turned on the shower and used the hot water from the bathroom to cook the noodles. One is for you and the other is for me. However, I was afraid that the noodles will turn cold, so I hid it under the blanket to keep it warm till you return. But I forgot to remind you 'cos I was playing with my toys...I am sorry Dad..."At that moment, tears were star ti ng to run down my cheeks...but I didn't want my son to see his dad crying so I dashed into the bathroom and cried with the shower head on to mask my cries.

After that episode, I went towards my son to give him a tight hug and applied medication on him, while coaxing him to sleep. Then, it was to me to clear up the mess on the bed. When everything was done and well past midnight, I passed my son's room, and saw that he was still crying, not from the pain on his little buttock, but from looking at the photograph of his beloved mummy.A year has passed since the episode, I have tried, in this period, to focus on giving him both the love of his dad and mum, and to attend to most of his needs. And soon, he is turning seven, and will be graduating from kindergarten. Fortunately, the incident did not leave a lasting impression on his childhood memories and he is still happily growing up.

However, not so long ago, I hit my boy again, with much regret. This time, his kindergarten teacher called, informing me of my son's absence from school. I took off early from work and went home, expecting him to explain. But he wasn't to be found, so I went around our house, calling out his name and eventually found him outside a stationery shop, happily playing computer games. I was fuming, brought him home and whack the hell out of him. He did not retaliate, except to say, 'I am sorry, Dad'. But after much probing, I realized that it was a 'Talent Show' organized by his school and the invite is for every student's mummy. And that was the reason for his absence as he has no mummy.....Few days after the caning, my son came home to tell me, the kindergarten has recently taught him how to read and write.

Since then, he has kept to himself and stayed in his room to practise his writing, which I am sure, would make my wife proud, if she was still around 'cos he makes me proud too!Time passes by very quickly, and soon another year has passed. It's winter, and its Christmas time. Everywhere the christmas spirit is in every passer-by...Christmas carols and frantic shoppers....but alas, my son got into another trouble. When I was about to knock off from the day's work, the post office called. Due to the peak season, the postmaster was also on an edgy mood. He called to tell me that my son has attempted to post several letters with no addressee.

Although I did make a promise never to hit my son again, I couldn't help but to hit him as I feel that this child of mine is really beyond control. Once again, as before, he apologized, 'I'm sorry, Dad' and no additional reason to explain. I pushed him towards a corner, went to the post office to collect the letters with no addressee and came home, and angrily questioned my son on his prank, during this timeof the year.His answer, amidst his sobbing, was : The letters were for Mummy. My eyes grew teary, but I tried to control my emotions and continued to ask him: " But why did u post so many letters, at one time?"

My son's reply was: " I have been writing to mummy for a long time, but each time I reach out for the post box, it was too high for me, hence I was not able to post the letters. But recently, when I went back to the postbox, I could reach it and so I sent it all at once..."After hearing this, I was lost. Lost at not knowing what to do, what to say....I told my son, " Son, mummy is in heaven, so in future, if you have anything to tell her, just read the letter and it will reach mummy. My son, on hearing this, was much pacified and calm, and soon after, he was sleeping soundly.

On promising that I will read the letters on his behalf, I brought the letters outside and started reading. And one of the letters broke my heart....

Dear Mummy,I miss you so much! To day, there was a 'Talent Show' in school, and the school invited all mothers for the show. But you are not around, so I did not want to participate as well. I did not tell Dad about it as I was afraid that Dad would start to cry and miss you all over again. Dad went around looking for me, but in order to hide my sadness, I sat in front of the computer and started playing games at one of the shops. Dad was furious, and he couldnt help it but scolded and hit me, but I did not tell him the real reason. Mummy, every day I see Dad missing you and whenever he think of you, he is so sad and often hide and cry in his room. I think we both miss you very very much. Too much for our own good I think. But Mummy, I am starting to forget your face. Can you please appear in my dreams so that I can see your face and remember you? I heard that if you fall asleep with the photograph of the person whom you miss, you will see the person in your dreams. But mummy, why havent you appear?After reading the letter, I can't stop sobbing. 'cos I can never replace the irreplaceable gap left behind by my wife....

For the females with children:
Don't spend so much time at work. If you cannot finish the work, it must be some kind of problems within the company, and it is not your sole problem. Feedback to your boss. Endless over time may not necessary be the answer to the problem. Take care of your health so that you can treasure and take care of your little precious.

For the married men:
Drink less, smoke less, cos nothing can replace your good health, not even business nor clients.Try thinking this way, are you able to work till your clients are totally dependent on you? or your boss is totally dependent on you? In this society, no one is indispensable.Take care of your health, so that you can take care of your little precious and your loved ones.

For those singles out there:
Beauty lies in loving yourself first. With confidence and loving yourself, you will see the beauty in other things around you. You will be able to work better and happier. Don't let your health be affected by your work or your boss, so nothing matters more than your well being.

A quiet weekend

Its quiet for a change, after the last few weekends where we were so busy with too much chaos, in a nice way of course. But not without the highlight of today's event. Hubby and I went to JPD after our usual weekend breakfast and tried to find out more about tendering for a number for our new car. We were not familiar with it but we were thinking of taking a "nicer to look at" number for the car. But the number we wanted were not out for tender yet so we just need to go back to JPD next week and see what we can do.

Had to go to the insurance company as well and renew the insurance for our Rexton which is due this month. Went with the new car of course but I am just so pissed with the condition of our road. They are really filthy with muds and debris. Especially so when it rains, which it does today and the new car was covered with mud. I cant wait for the road renovation to be finished which I think few months to go yet, sigh!

Apart from that, its been low pace. I am reading a book titled "Sun at Midnight" this week and hoping to get it done by next. As always I enjoy the story line. I learned new things every time I read a new book and thats what I love about reading. This book is about a trip to Antarctica. About self preseverence and determination. And it has its own share of romance which I always like to read in a book. And I am hoping to encounter an happy ending soon.

I am thinking of baking a Blueberry cheesecake tomorrow. I have the recipe and itching to try it out. But when I think about it, if I bake one, then we need to eat and finish it. And you all know how rich and fattening a cheesecake can be. I am so not in the mood to eat the whole acuan of cheesecake, definitely way too much. So I decided against it until I can bring the cake over somewhere and share it with family. So keep that on hold for now.

My girl is busy with her studies these days. Her final exam is on monday and she spents most of her time in her room and be stressful. Dont like that very much and I am worried about her. But I am sure she will cope just fine, just like she did every time. She made me promise we WILL NOT go out tomorrow, lol. She said she needs to concentrate and rather be home and revise than out wondering at the mall or somewhere else. So we gotta do that. I know this exam is important so will try our best to comply to her, for a change lol.