Perfect weather and perfect day

Welcome sunshine! It was a nice day today, as usual we are working, though i didnt do much anyway. Come lunch time its time to look for where to have lunch today. After so many years away from home working, we are always running out of ideas on where to go for lunch and KB is not a big place and not so many restaurant to choose from.

And my girl has started her school holiday at home, a little bit early than the rest of the students since she has just finished her PMB exam yesterday. Well, not quite a holiday yet, she has her ugama exam to look forward to Nov and she has to attend the classes in the afternoon still. So its only morning school holiday...

Now the countdown begins for the PMB result! When will that be? Dont know, maybe within the next month or so? As a mother i am hoping for the best. Nothing we could do right now except pray everything will turn out OK. I am hoping Ayang will get through the exam with flying colours. Thats all a mother could wish for.

Anyway, i think i've gained about 5 kg today. Its eating and more eating. Hubby and i decided to have lunch at Kate's, Wisma Yakin. This place is awesome, nice food good ambience. Full house today, lucky we came a bit early and the restaurant was still empty. It was full by the time our food arrived.

Our favourite menu at the restaurant is the mushroom soup and the garlic bread. Yummy... You should try it. Just simply dip the garlic bread into the soup, you wont regret it. Perfect.

This is hubby's meal. Sirlion steak and it only cost $17.00. Not bad! See if you could get that kind of price here in Bandar!

I opted for my usual meal, the chicken chop. I always tend to order this dish, i dont know why. Well may be i am not the adventurous type when it comes to food? Yes thats it!

And another eating out at dinner! This time with my parents, they came over to give us more durian thailand from their home compound and we ended up having dinner at the closest restaurant to our house (less than 5 mins by car, how is that?). Enjoyed the food here too. The restaurant is called Khaz Corner but it was situated right at the corner of my Kampong. Nah... i just made that up!!!

I should be thinking about reducing my food intake but what the heck, it simply means i dont have to cook tonight, yea...!!!

My high calorie dinner, chicken chop again!!!!!!!!!!!!!! When will i get sick of this dish? What about never?

Here is my girl with my parents, while waiting to be served.

My girl with her cup of tea. I must admit the Teh Tarik was awesome!!!

So thats my day today. Nice huh.

Water everywhere!

Definitely the start of the monsoon season, otherwise why there were so much rain for the past few days. In fact the rain didnt stop pouring for 12 hours since this morning. And look what happen to our area.

The weekend started off brilliantly. We went to have dinner at Excapade Sushi in Kiulap, our fav japanese restaurant. Enjoyed the food as usual. Then the next night we went to watch High School Musical 3. Ayang is crazy about this disney movie, since the HSM 1 then HSM 2 and now HSM 3. So exam or not she has to go! Alot of people at the Empire cinema for the 7.00pm show but we were there at 5.30pm so its not too bad.

Saturday night was when the rain started, non-stop and its flooded again. Very serious condition.

This is the house along side the road leading to our house. Photo taken around 4.00pm when the rain stopped at last.


This is our road, full of water. Only the 4 wheel can get through. The normal cars didnt dare to attempt it. Might as well because it got stuck!

The fire brigade was busy helping the resident to pump out the water from their homes. These people stay in the lowest area of our kampong, so unlucky. Every time it rains heavily, they have to endure the muddy and slimy water in their homes. The firemen did a good job in helping.

Photo of our neighbours' houses. Theirs were the most affected usually. I dont know why maybe their houses were built slightly lower? Dont know.

The water at our front porch. It was really not so bad, the water was up to our first stair only, the cars were ok but i was still a nervous wreck.

This was our small back yard. Full of water and the plant pots were drowned in the flood!

Please no more rain, dont want the water to get into the house. It would be disaster.

Finish the drain already, its flooding here (again)!

Where did all the water come from? The rain today was really heavy here in our kampong. Look at this before and after picture.

The drain construction is still going on but today its raining so heavy again. This is what it looked like if the weather is fine.

Before...

This is after the heavy rain today. Can you tell the difference? We seriously need that drain finished, up and running or shall i say flowing? We are desperate and its very stressful to be in this condition.

After...

Another rainy day

Its a long journey home today because of the heavy rain all the way from Seria to Bandar. It took me almost 2 hours to reach home whereby on normal days it only takes about 1 hr 15 mins. The traffic was super slow, i know everyone was cautious with the condition and its amazing and so rare that i didnt encounter any accident! Thats a first in a long time hehehe.

This rain started in the afternoon in Seria and with a few short hours the whole Seria is under water for a few centimeters! This is the road along the Seria town, very prone area i must say.


On one of the stretch of road along Tutong near Sinaut. Its flood every where!


Look at the angry sky. This is along Lumut Bypass, the rain wasnt that bad in this area but i can see i am about to enter heavy rain region.

How is the exam?

Ayang is half way through her exam. A few more days to go and its all over. Looks like she is doing ok. She told me so far so good, not really had any problem with any of the questions. I am so happy to hear that, i am hoping she will do well. I am praying for her success and her dream to join a science stream will come true. Such an important moment for her and i am counting on her to do well. I know she is a sensible girl and she knows what she is doing. I hope all her hard work and effort will pay off. Insha Allah.

Durian Thailand - Made in Brunei

This durian is planted and bred in Brunei, at my parent's house compound in Lambak. We enjoyed this durian for free a few days ago infact for the past few years and the taste is just amazing. I think 20% sweeter than the ones you could find at the supermarket. Very juicy, soft and sweet. Those sold in the supermarkets are not as sweet, sometimes the flesh is a bit hard but this one is the best! There arent so many this type of durian planted locally and my parents are the lucky few who has a few trees and bear fruits. Everyone in the family and relatives has taken their shares and the fruits come every year without fail maybe for the past 10 years, and it has become a tradition for my parents to give the durian away for the whole family to enjoy. Sometimes there are 20 to 30 durians per season but we never get bored with it. So far so good. Hope the trees will be around for many more years to come. You know how much this durian costs in the supermarket....

Hari Raya is over!

Well.. not quiet. We still have some invitations or "open house" to go to this weekend. We have one tomorrow which i doubt we would go and another on sunday to my bro's house. Hari Raya is no more definitely for Ayang since her exam has already started yesterday. I am glad she is really serious about this exam. She is so sensible she reads her books all the time! But she said she had some difficulties with the paper yesterday but i am hoping she will get through with flying colours. The exam will be for another 10 days and she is going to have a tough week next week. Its study study study and exam exam exam. In fact that applies to all the students, not only her so its stressful time for the children and parents too. Well, the parents may be more stressful than the children i bet!

I guess all is definitely back to normal now. Hari Raya and the month of Shawal is more than 2 weeks already. The moon proves it!! And look how full and how bright the moon is early in the morning. Took this picture when we were on our way to work at around 6.00 in the morning. We enjoyed the journey to work during this time it seemed the moon was accompanying us. It was really lovely..

But our happiness was short lived as usual when we came to this unavoidable traffic jam, road block and road constructions every where especially near the Seria/KB area. Its such a headache and this is what we had to endure every day! Oh thats an accident by the way and the towing truck was there to tow the car.

Another lovely picture i want to add. The rainbow at dusk at our house. It rains almost every night now but on this day it hasnt rain but the rainbow had came out and showed its beautiful colours. The world we live in is simply stunning. And its all Allah creation, Alhamdulilah.

The sun...

Picked up Ayang from school today since its saturday, and right after she got in told me they saw the sun phenomenon today. We both looked up and it was still there. So i clicked on my camera and here it is. Not very rare occurance these days, i've seen it before but not sure what its called, there is a name for it of course. I might just need to look it up..

No more flood (hopefully)

The big drain is currently being constructed at our junction. We stay in a flood prone area so hopefully by having this drain, there wont be any more flood. Its about time the government look into this matter the people who stay here has suffered enough.

Back to normal.

Life has gone back to normal after Ramadan and Hari Raya. Reached home at least by 5.30pm every day dead tired and exhausted, as usual. We enjoyed working hours during Ramadan where we finished off work at 1.00pm and reached home by 2.30pm. Lots of time to go around, shop or just chilled. But not now, its almost night time by the time we reached home. Not very nice. The traffic on the road was bad too, its like this every day. And the 4 days off for Hari Raya was a blessing too, though my Hari Raya celebration this year was short lived but still not having to go to work and face the gruelling drive was just fantastic.

Well, considering everything is back to normal, another issue is looming. Ayang PMB exam is like 6 days away? Where did all the time go? The exam is almost here and it is so imminent. I just wish Ayang all the best. I told her time and time again, exam is all about her. I can only advise and guide her but she is really on her own this time! The exam is only once off and she needs to do it well because there wont be a second chance. If she screw up then thats it. Repeating the exam is not an option, not if you waste one year of your life where you have been given a chance now. Hope she understands...

I am beat as usual. I need my downtime and watch Friends tonight. And both Ayang and myself look forward to watching our fav tv show, the Amazing Race Asia session 3. We both enjoy it so much and cant wait to see how the teams perform tonight. This is the 5th episode and we wonder who will be eliminated next or this will be no elimination round? Lets the suspense rolls.... Love it! And arent I a good and considerate mother or what? I dont deprieve Ayang from watching tv because i know hard work and no play is not good too.

Anyway my chilled time is here. Time for me to sit back and relax until a new day tomorrow. The driving today as usual was tiring in itself. And for the umpth time i met with an accident again today, twice! But the 2nd accident looked a bit odd and i didnt know how it happened and how the trailer ended up like it did. Here is the picture to prove it. And i was lucky to be on the other side of the road, the traffic from Bandar to the Katimahar road was jam packed. Its truly amazing how an accident beside the road could cause such a massive traffic jam. I wonder.

Traffic jam from Bandar, thats a long queue to Jalan Katimahar.

Hari Raya with candles....

How would you feel to celebrate Hari Raya in the dark? Well... thats what happened to some people! These pics were taken at my bro's house when we went to visit them, its a black-out and the electricity went missing until we left.

Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir & Batin

Alhamdulilah, its Hari Raya again. Its all good, in the morning, we went for Sunat Hari Raya at Sengkurong Masjid. Reached the Masjid at around 7.00 am but the Masjid was already packed with people. We parked the car a bit far and alhamdulilah although there were so many people already we did manage to get a good spot at the Masjid. There were not so many women but men were overflowed and they even overtook the women's area, which was ok since there were less women did the praying anyway.

Next we went to Lambak and greeted our family overthere, took photos and sought forgiveness from everyone. The mood was really joyous although Hj Madi was not there since he was working. We ate breakfast or was it lunch? It was really heavy, so no its not breakfast! Thats my mom tradition to prepare all the good food for us to feast on. Ayang was happy to be there as always and we did have a good time. Then off we went to KB to visit the inlaws. Another meal and i was really worried i would gained back the weight that i lost during Ramadan. Its not easy to lose weight especially at my age and even if i lost 1 kg that was really an achievement! Anyway after the meal we went to the cemetery to visit my husband's late mom who passed away in 2005. We read AlFatihah and poured the Air Asah-Asahan on the grave. It was really sombre. There were lots of people there too. Its good that we remembered those who are not with us any longer. Kind of remind us our time will come too someday.

We continued visiting in the early evening although it rained quite heavily. Alhamdulilah, basically we had covered all the "Mandatory" houses so to speak. We were yet to visit my brothers houses but we'll have to do that some other time since hubby wont be around for the next few days....

Let's the countdown begins....

3 days to go before Hari Raya!! As i said time fly by so quickly for some of us. We are on the 27th day of the fasting month. Everybody can feel is already, where ever you go you can already feel the heat. The anticipation is simply out of this world. The big shops, the malls and supermarkets are gearing up for the celebration. Raya songs are every where. Even when i switch on the radio or turn on the tv, raya programme are inline already waiting to be aired come the time. Its really is great.

Do i look forward to Hari Raya? Of course i am, we all are. In fact every muslim are, its the celebration for every muslim for successfully completing the one month of fasting where there were so many challenges and obstacles. Its the time to be merry and celebrate with family and friends. Its when we have lots of good food on the tables, delicacies and special dishes which are not remotely visible on other days. The once in a year kueh and cookies. Its also the time for the children to pockets lots of money. Parents and relatives become very generous to the children. I remember when Ayang was smaller she used to get at least $100 for the Hari Raya. She is excited of course, thats the same every year. Although she is now getting bigger and no longer a child but the anticipation is still the same.

But this year i think she will not be as happy since the Hari Raya is clouded a bit with the imminent arrival of her big exam PMB two weeks into Shawal. She plans to celebrate Hari Raya moderately since she still have lots to study. Poor girl. But i hope she still have a lovely time nevertheless. Afterall she hasnt taken even a day off. She fasts everyday for the past 27 days even when when she is feeling a bit under the weather. She had a slight fever yesterday with a temp of 38.2 but she insisted she finished the day and only took her medicines during sungkai. I am so proud of her and she deserves a good pat at the back and a joyful Hari Raya.

Who is this man?

We dont know who this man is. Apparently he is always around sitting in the shade he built himself at the end of the road to our house. He sits behind the tall grass behind him where he flatten a bit. He was just sitting there like waiting for someone. On some days he sit for a while then he get up and cut the grasses along the road with his own hands and a small parang. He looked like someone who has no home or even family.

We have seen him a few times and yesterday it happened that i brought my camera thus these shots. He was sitting then got up and cut the grass. Thats all he did then he left. Who is he? And what is he doing there? He uses his bicycle to move around. He doesnt look wild, agitated or domineering. He looks like someone grandfather but with no home. Is the bicycle his only possession? I wish someone would take notice of him. Does he need help in any way?

Where did all the time go?

The 18th day of fasting. How time flies. Ramadan is now in its 3rd week and soon it will over. The holy month will no longer be with us but its time to be merry for Hari Raya soon. Ayang hasnt taken any day off. Just like last year and i am so proud. We embrace the month with "Syukur Alhamdulilah" for all the good things that we are given. We break the fast moderately. We havent gone and eaten out yet, except to celebrate my brother and my father's birthday on two occassions. Some days we dont even bought anything from the "Gerai Ramadan".

I've even tried my own culinary skills. I've cooked one new recipe last night. Its called Chicken Kiev. Its so delicious and we love it so much i even cooked it for 2 days straight for Sungkai. Its not a typical malay dish (as from the name) it might originate from the western country. I didnt cook it in the open stove but i baked it. It really was yummy! My husband joked that we should open a restaurant with that kind of menu. Yeah why dont we!

The recipe goes like this:
Chicken breast
Butter
Parsley
Garlic
Lemon juice

Mix these ingrediets on top of the chicken breast and roll the chicken breast tight. Use a toothpick to hold it tight.

For the outer layer, mix bread crumb, black pepper and salt with milk and eggs. Dip the chicken breast into the milk and roll it in the bread crumb. Then bake it in the oven.

There it is...