D24

I'm sure most Malaysians knew what we are referring to when we mention D24. It is a type of durian that commonly produce in Malaysia not only for local market but also for export. While shopping some groceries at Lakemba Halal Market, a mini market owned by fellow Indonesians, I found the D24 in the freezer section. As a ‘hantu durian’, I was very delighted and bought it to see how it tastes like. You don even have to ‘kopek’ the skin as it was carefully packed in the plastic wrap. What you have to do is just put it in the microwave for a minute and wallah, the durian is ready to be enjoyed. Is was not frustrating at all, the taste and smell was there. Only the thrill of opening the skin that you’ll miss. However, with the price of $8.50 a box, and you will get only 5-6 pieces, I can't really enjoy it until I'm full enough with durian. Well, wait till I'm back in malaysia...

Talking about durian, terms always used to describe a durian are mangkar, kucing tidur, ganja, durian tembaga, and many more. It is always fascinating to learn that people have different terms referring to durian. I always missed my childhood time during the fruit season. We went to dusuns belong to somebody related to the family, but as a kid, who cares. We just want to eat fruits and enjoy mandi sungai or air terjun. It's fun to be a kid though huh!

Before I Started Writing...

It was 11am. The house was so quiet you can hear the clocks ticking with different pace and sound. Suddenly I heard a sound in the living room, like something was moving. I slowly got up from my chair in my room and peek to the front.

I can’t see anything, moved out of the room and stand near the dining table. I saw Aiman’s RC car’s light blinking. Then it started to shake. I looked around, thinking that someone was in the house. Heart was beating faster, adrenalin all over me, ready to fight or flight. The door was closed. Windows closed.

Then suddenly the car moved forward, almost fell down from the shelf. With a drumming heart, I pushed myself to grab the car. The switch was on. I switched it off. Opened the drawer nearby as I was sure the remote control was there, and there it was. What’s happening?

The TV did something similar a few times before. While it was in standby mode, suddenly the voice came out, but not the pictures. It stays a few moments before it went off back. Now I just turn the main switch off if it is not in use. Funny huh, or is it creepy? So did some toys of Aiman. Sometimes when you wake up at night to go to the toilet, the toys make sounds.

I guess it is because of the interference or waves around us that we can’t see. Nothing to be afraid of.

Terlajak perahu boleh diundur...

Saya mulai posting kali ini dengan pantun keadaan semasa,

Terlajak perahu mujur tak karam,
Terlajak kata buruk padahnya,
Terlajak posting boleh dipadam,
Sesen tak guna orang dah baca,
Kalau asyik suka menggodam,
Kita tanggung la tulisan kita,
buat apa baru nak padam,
Ada malu ka?

Cakap pasal perahu, hari Sabtu yang lalu kami tiga beranak melepak di tepi Georges River. Tak ada sebuah perahu pun yang lalu, semua dah diganti dengan bot laju barangkali. Orang asli pun mungkin dah tak pakai perahu lagi.

Dari pagi cuaca amatlah mandom sekali, matahari seperti malas nak menjengah. Bila hampir petang, saya membawa Aiman yang kebosanan di rumah ke tepi Georges River untuk bersiar-siar. Berani budak ini, jalan di tepi tebing sungai tanpa mahu dipegang. Kita yang risau. Aiman kelihatan gembira kerana akhirnya lepas bebas untuk berlari sambil menghirup udara segar. Ramai juga kaki pancing sedang memancing ikan di sepanjang teing sungai. Selepas Aiman puas berlari, kami pun kembali ke rumah.

Two hundred and fifty three

Two hundred and fifty three days more to go before I am MERDEKA, even not fully free as there might be some correction to do subsequently after you submit your thesis.

Looking at the figure, 253 seems not a very long time from now. We celebrate Raya every year, so does Christmas holiday, New Year, and also Ramadan. In most cases we normally feel like ‘aik, rasa baru je sambut posa dah nak posa lagi’, or ‘it’s already new year?”. And 253 days is a lot less than a year. Hmm… I’m sure the time will fly fast and without realizing it I am at the school office, handing over my thesis. Fuh, ‘lega!’. Can’t wait till that moment...

Well that is the joyful ending I am looking forward to, but the road to a happy ending does not always full with happy lovely things, and quite more often than not packed with pricking thorns and sad moments and headache, heartburn and tearing eyes. Sometimes you feel like full of shit, absolute dumb, other times you are the brilliant scientist. Mental block, writer’s block and whatever blocks and barriers they have are all the way down the road, not to mention road blocks. Like it or not, the story plot is quite similar for everyone doing research study. It is like a Hindi film though, you’re somewhat happy in the beginning, than the scenario changes, one after another obstacles come up, and for those who are stronger and fight back, usually the heroes, will win and claim the prize at the end.

So in order to be the hero, I guess I just need to be strong, fight back and go with the flow. With 253 days left, I feel like there are a lot of thing I need to accomplish. Juggling between study and life is not an easy task. I used to think why I can complete my master on time, but this PhD has dragged quite significantly. I assume that I am the same me, but in totally different situation, responsibilities and place. It is like chalk and cheese.

I completely aware that nobody can straight away create a well written piece of writing without starting with a humble paragraph full of mistakes. Keep on moving and don’t stop learning. One presenter did say in a seminar, “Get it written first, then get it right.”

Dear me...

Hunter Valley Gardens

Ahad lepas kami tiga beranak ke Hunter Valley Gardens. Dua jam lebih perjalanan ke utara SYdney, HVG terletak dalam kawasan Newcastle. Berada di tengah-tengah kawasan penanaman anggur atau vineyard, pemandangan sekeliling yang penuh kehijauan dan jauh mata memandang amat menenangkan hati. Kebetulan pada masa ini sedang berlangsung Rose Festival dan musim bunga masih belum habis, keseluruhan kawasan taman penuh dengan bunga-bunga yang pelbagai warna dan bau.

Bertolak sekitar 6 pagi, kami singgah di McD Bankstown membeli kopi dan breakfast McMuffin serta hash brown. Cuaca agak muram pagi itu, doa semoga hujan tidak turun di HVG. Alhamdulillah, walaupun matahari tidak muncul sepenuhnya, namun hujan juga tidak turun. Tiba di HVG sekitar jam 9, kami pusing-pusing sekitar kawasan itu. Semuanya ladang anggur, dan juga winery. Kalau memang dibenarkan, dah lama kami singgah makan di steakhouse yang menggamit-gamit dengan bau daging bbq yang enak.

Takpa sebab bekalan dah ready, semalam lagi dah masak spageti goreng udang besarr. Bila perut dah kenyang, hang mai la apa pun bau tak kisah dah. Penat round satu garden, kami pi ke HVG village, konon nak cari la souvenir, takdak yang menarik.

Komen lawatan:
1. Hunter Valley Gardens memang cantik, dengan lanskap yang pelbagai. Sebab itu dia guna perkataan jama'/plural gardens, sebab dalam HVGs ada banyak tema seperti Rose Garden, StoryBook Garden, Indian Tea Garden dan lain-lain.

2. Bagi mereka yang suka kepada keindahan alam memang sesuai. Musim bunga paling menarik sebab seluruh taman penuh dengan bunga. Rose paling best, hat wangi tak wangi semua ada. Besaq2 gedabak sampai yang haluih2, semua cantik2.

3. Akan tetapi bagi yang lebih suka kepada hutan batu-bata, taman tema, rides, dsb tak payah la pegi. Perjalanan menuju ke HVG ni saja dah tentu membosankan bagi korang. (Nasib baik bini aku suka bunga hihi).

4. For Muslims, bawak bekalan makanan. Jangan harap ada kedai yang jual steak halal, pasta, nasi bAriani batu pahat dsb kat sini. Kebab pun takdak. Nak pekena wine memang sesuai la. Tapi nak belasah sandwich tuna boleh aje.

5. Bagi yang ada kamera DSLR, sesuai untuk menunjukkan bakat tangkap gambar pelbagai pesen. Yang baru beli DSLR, boleh praktis guna teknik-teknik yang berbeza untuk hasilkan gambar yang menarik.

5. Ada satu makcik omputih ni masa kitorg lalu kat area tepat makan pandang tak lepas kat kitorg. Agaknya tempat ulu2 mcm ni jarang org kita masuk kot. Atau adakah aku terlalu hensem?

Destinasi seterusnya..... meja komputer.