Update

Macam malas nak update pasal anjing lagi. Dah tulis separuh tapi tak habis lagi. I'll find time to complete it then I'll post the entry ya folks!

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Latest update:

1. Thanks to my two very good buddies, I finally got accepted by the graduate school at Auckland University. I should start applying for the scholarship now, but my heart is not into it. Boohoo.

2. I failed an interview recently :(. The advertised position was for an IT project management lecturer but when I turned up for the interview, they told me they were looking for a networking lecturer. I was quite confident about acing the interview when I stepped out of the room but later I've realized that I went on and on about my experience in project management instead of networking. It's like my head and mouth were programmed and I was not able to deter my mind to talk about my experience in networking. Rasa bodoh gile ok :(

3. Lepas tau failed interview terus depress gile dan rasa macam nak apply keje kat Nando's je.

4. I've got a new pet. Her name's Chloe. She's like the most adorable pet ever - sweet, smart and petite. Just like me. Ha ha. Will blog about her later.

5. I completed Wilton cake's decoration course 1 last week. Stress makcik tau buat icing, tapi seronok gile hokeh! Habis duit banyak gile sbb beli tools, equipments, and also because I had to bake a cake for every single session. Nasib la makcik keje, tak sampai hati nak mintak duit laki hokeh (gile untung jaha kawen ngan guwe). But it was worth it I tell ya! Check out the photos ;)

It's Chocolate Mud Cake with Ganache

I made those flowers, can you believe it?!

Chocolate chip cupcakes

Flowers, bear heads and roses ;)

A birthday cake for Salwa's 7th birthday. You're an oldie baby!

Choc cake, again ;)

Salwa sniffing her cake. Kena paksa okeh. Kucing kurang cerdik tatau org buat kek utk dia :(

Baiklah tuan-tuan dan puan-puan, cita-cita saya mulai sekarang ialah untuk menjadi seorang baker ye!

Adios for now!

Dogs in Islam

I wasn't a dog person. Once, in Madrid, I shifted house the very first day I arrived because the landlord has got a yorkshire terrier. I did not know about it initially because I was communicating with her via email while I was in Greece and it never occurred to me to ask if she has got a canine friend.

Anyway, I remember that my parents were there with me and the moment that lady opened the door, the dog (Ricky) came jumping on me. My mom and dad wasn't happy about it and they've asked me to talk nicely to the lady and asked if it would be OK to not live there. Thank god she was cool about it, and the best part was that, I've got a friend who volunteered to stay there to replace me, so, problem solved!

There's a bunch of yorkshire terrier in Madrid. It's like the most common household pet. I was not fond of them because the thought of having to samak (the act of cleaning 7 times, one with earth) really turned me off. I usually try to avoid having any contact with them, though I tried my best to not look as if I was running away from them. Don't want people to start thinking that Muslims are dog haters. My mom, whenever encountered with a dog, would happily take a detour sampai badan senget2 haha.

I never really studied them or put any interest because as far as I know, Islam forbids us to touch dogs. There's lots of different opinions. Some say you can't touch them at all, some say you can touch them when they're dry, some say you can touch them when they're wet (but you have to be wet as well), while some say you only have to samak if you touch their saliva. There were so many opinions from different ulama's and I just thought hey, I better take the safest way by avoiding them at all cost.

I remember one time when I was in Helkidiki, Greece travelling with Bou and Mike. We saw a tiny baby yorkshire terrier by the road. She was probably lost or were left there by her owner, which was really a sad thing because she was the size of my palm. I remember I had this really strong urge to touch her to comfort her but of course I did not do so, fearing that I had to samak. Come to think of it, what's so difficult about that? I wish I had done so because she was so happy rolling about when Bou touched her. I wish I had studied more about Islam and dogs when I was there but unfortunately out of my ignorance and I guess stubbornness (thinking that I had sufficient knowledge about the hukum already) , I did not.

I remember being in awe when I see people with their dogs. Ricky, for example, has got his photos all over the house. One time, the owner travelled to New York and brought Ricky with her all the way. His ticket was the same price with hers (or probably more, can't remember). What a person would do for a dog!

My perception about dogs changed after I got married. Hubby loves all animals, including dogs. Whenever we encountered dogs, he would pat them on the head and rub their body. He always talks about how intelligent dogs are, and how they are truly men's best friend. He often talks about the benefits of having dogs as pets - how they enrich our lives due to their loyalty and increase our health. Do you guys know that very few dog owners ever had heart attacks? Dogs are so therapeutic that some hospitals are using them in their wards to ease patients, while some schools are using them to help kids learn how to read. Not to mention, guide dogs that are used to help the blinds. Pretty amazing, don't you think?

I was at first quite skeptical about my husband touching dogs, and I questioned him a lot about this. He told me it's OK, dogs are not dirty, they are one of god's wonderful creatures that are brought forward on earth to assist us humans. But I was in doubt because my husband, being a person that he is, has his own mind about a whole lot of stuff. For example, he thinks it's all right to jamak our prayers if we do not have time due to work commitment for example, and it is OK for him to touch me after he takes his wudhu', as long as it does not involve sexual desires. Those were pretty hard to sink in because as far as I'm concerned, we are only allowed to jamak if we are a musafir, that is, if we are travelling more than 90 kilometers. As far as touching me after taking his wudhu', it doesn't make any sense at all because it contradicts what I have been taught since I was a little girl. He keeps telling me to think more logically and to use my brain instead of taking whatever it is that is being taught by my ustazs/ustazahs. He told me to put things in contexts and not restrain myself with what is being said by the ulama' because being human, they might be wrong after all. Ho told me to try to picture the prophet and imagine what he would do or say being in the same situation. He told me to read not just the Quran, but the Bible to understand things thoroughly instead of listening and following what other people were saying.

Funny that after some research, I found out that yes, what he said was all true. You may jamak if you have time constraint which has been agreed by all ulama' worldwide, and yes, Malaysian's ulama' has recently agreed (last year if I am not mistaken) that if you touch your husband/wife after you've taken your wudhu', your wudhu' would still be intact.

One thing I learned when I was in Spain was that history is what people want you to believe. History may or may not be true, it all depends on the person who told the story. Why do I say that? Long story, all boils down to my interest back then of finding out about Franco, the ruler who shaped Spain's history. Senang cite macam ni la, contohnya, if you support BN, you'd say all good things about them and you'd trash PAS, DAP and PKR right? But, if you support the so-called people's coalition, it'd be the other way round, betul tak? But which one is the villain? BN or Pakatan Rakyat? Well, it would very much depend on which sides you are on, right? Get what I mean?

Now, what has that got to do with my story? Punya panjang lebar bercerita hehe. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've learned something valuable here too, after I got married. That is, to never easily judge people and think bad of them just because they don't do things similar to how you do it or how the rest of the world do it. Who knows, that person may have more intelligence and sense than the rest of us, combined.

To be continued...

Baby

People have been asking me if I'm pregnant.

What's with being married and pregnancy? It's like everybody expects you to have a bun in the oven right after your marriage.

I don't tell everyone that I was planning for the whole year.

Simply coz I think Malay people just don't get it.

I can imagine the expression on their face if I do tell them.

"What? Why do you do that? Do you know that if you plan you might not get one? It's better not to plan the first one, you know!"

Yes, that is exactly the kind of comment that people would give if I do tell them that I am planning to NOT have a baby, yet.

Why do I plan?

Simply coz I need to get something done first. Only a few good friends know what 'that' thing is ;)

In the end, it's going to be for the baby. Or rather, babies ;)

I am comfortable with just being the two of us, though sometimes I envy those with kids.

But at the same time, I also have this urge to stay this way so I can travel to Argentina and Peru. (Eh plan apa plak ni? Haha)

Isn't that kind of selfish?

Will I be fit to be a mom if I'm selfish?

But then again, it has always been a dilemma for a woman, kan?

Sebelum kawen orang tanya bila nak kawen. Bila dah kawen orang tanya bila nak ada anak. Bila dah ada anak orang tanya bila nak tambah anak.

Never ending story, kan?

Jadi kesimpulannya, to hell with what people say. Live your life coz it looks like they don't (sbb tu sempat jaga tepi kain orang haha)

I just wish that when we are both ready to start trying, Allah akan permudahkan jalan dan memberi rezki yang terbaik untuk kami berdua.

Amin.

Hari merapu sedunia

Hari ni nak merapu macam-macam sebab bosan takde arah hidup.

So anyway I am writing this while making lunch. It's gonna be mushroom with salmon spiral pasta (coz I'm out of the normal pasta). The recipe? Senang aje.

Dice half an onion

Slice 8 fresh mushrooms

Slice some salmon (patut guna tuna tapi takde)

Fresh milk + Margarine (coz I don't have cream and coz butter has got more fat than margerine)

Sautee the onion till yellow. Masukkan sliced mushrooms and again, sautee till the color darkens. Then, masukkan sliced salmon. Lps tu masukkan susu (arghhhh fresh milk dah habis terpaksa substitute dgn susu soya. Apsal seme bende takdek dlm fridge ni???). Masukkan a tablespoon of margerine.

Finally, season with salt and pepper.

I have no idea how this is going to turn out coz I'm just kinda using whatever that is available in the fridge (Soy milk??????)

Eh eh lupa letak chicken stock. OK girls, a dash of chicken stock ok?!

Lps ni sy akan bgtau verdict sedap ke tak. ngeh ngeh. Gosh harunya tukang masak.

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On another note, mari kita listkan resolutions pada tahun ini...

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.

.

.

.

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Malas lah.

Simply coz I never stick to it and it goes out the window on the very first day itself.

Mari kita tengok pencapaian resolutions tahun lps:

1. Learn spanish - nada

2. Learn how to read notes and play keyboard - I can read notes and play simple child songs. I'm too lazy when it comes to practicing, and sticking to one thing for a long time.

3. Start a Permanent head Damage - I prepared a 4 page proposal and managed to get 2 kind soul to supervise my work. I was struggling to get referees as they specifically wanted academic referees, plus I was kinda lazy too haha. Last2 mintak tlg 2 org sahabat yg baik hati, so hopefully by end of this month dapat green light. It took me 6 whole months nak carik referees, pemalas ke tak?

4. A good scholarship - tak start pon lagi. The last doctoral scholarship for the school ended last december. Eh apsal pemalas sgt nie???

5. A part time job - I only wanted something simple which doesn't use much of my brain contohnya waitress ke, salesgirl ke. Sbb konon nak buat #4 above kan? Last2 dpt jadik tutor ajar bdk diploma sbb takde orang nak amik muka nie jadik salesgirl haha. Enjoying the teaching part tremendously but hating my work mates. Gaji per hour pon best. Alhamdulillah.

6. Brush up on swimming and play more sports - I can swim a good distance nowadays and have confidence keeping afloat while standing, which I was struggling to do for many, many years. Lepas ni nak practice free style plak sampai terer! I am also training for tennis (thank you mr husband for being patient with me).

7. Lose 6 kg for good - Hari tu dah kurusssss dahhhhh. 47 kg you. Pastu sbb dah kurus makan mentakedarah lupa diri pastu gemok balik. Hello 50 kg.

8. Cut down on sugar, carb and fat. Eat more greens and 5 servings of fruits per day - As I've said, hari tu dah kurus, tapi sekarang gemok blk. Need I say more? But then again, I do take more fruits and greens nowadays thanks to my husband yang suka paksa saya makan.

9. Drink lotsa water - this one is the hardest to do sbb tak pernah rasa dahaga. How ah?

10. Read, listen and watch more - I definitely watch more documentaries and good movies nowadays as we subscribed to Fatso, so I can get any kind of movie, as much as I want, unlimited. I'm still struggling to keep the reading momentum on. I am more selective on what I read nowadays, the only problem is I never actually finish them. I really want to re-live the enjoyment of reading a good book like how I used to when I was in school. I can read all night long with a torch in my hand sebab takut mak nampak tak tido2 sbb esok nak sekolah haha. And I can read something that I like over and over again. I think I've read The Client by John Grisham 6 kali kot. I want to re-live the passion for reading again coz it's good to enjoy something and to be smart!

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Saya baru dpt tahu yg Stephen Fry adalah seorang gay. Not that I have anything against gays.

p/s: By the way, Elton John dah dapat baby. Surrogate rasanya. I think it's sick and irresponsible. It's still ok for 2 consulting men to get married but to adopt a child? Come on, have some mercy on the kid! Tak ke budak tu confuse nanti pasal family institution?

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I've just booked Milly's Kitchen baking class. Ye, saya dah bertukar menjadi seorang yang rajin memasak selepas kahwin kah kah. Funny aye how your status changes you. Ops Sex and the City cakap tak elok cakap psl status or label - single/married/divorcee coz in the end, you are what you are. I totally second that.

I am also planning to enroll in Wilton Basic Cake Decoration. It's super cheap, going for NZD 130 for 4 x 2 hours session. Kat Malaysia RM 780 hokeh! Jadi bila blk Malaysia saya nak jadik cake decorator dan baker and jugak instructor. Boleh?

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I am still struggling with my career. Bukan struggle carik kerja, tapi struggle nak kerja apa. Haha. To be honest I stoppped looking for a job ever since I started teaching. I better start looking seriously now that new year has come.

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Ok la people. That's too much rambling already for today. Till next time. Love ya!

Tim

We had a quite dinner with Tim today. Tim was our neighbor at Carolina Place and now that we've shifted, we invited him over to our place. There's something about Tim that just gets to us. He lives by himself, he doesn't talk much and he's always alone. Tim lost his job a while ago so he's always at home. He lives on the second floor and he likes to lay down flat in front of his door. Sometimes I see him walking to the pump station to get a bottle of milk, doesn't look like he eats much. Sometimes I see him taking a shower at the pool club, maybe coz it's free and it saves him from paying the heating bill. It does get pretty costly during winter over here. One day he dropped by to ask for hubby's help to carry a TV he found at the dumpster, too bad it was broken when they tested it. That was the day we knew he hasn't even got a TV at home.

The next day, hubby bought a TV. He did not told Tim it was from him, he said it was from a friend who wanted to get rid of it. Tim was over the moon when he saw pictures coming on the TV. He was so happy and he was going on and on about it for a couple of weeks. Such a sweet guy he is. I asked hubby what's inside his house. I did not mean to be nosey, I just wanted to know how he lives and if he was living OK. Has he got a bed? Does it look like he's cooking and eating well? Hubby says his bedroom is empty accept for a chair, he's got a couple of sofa in his living room and his kitchen looked unused, except for a couple of tea bags that was lying around on his kitchen bench.

That night hubby told me something that reminded me of why I fell in love with him in the first place. He said 'Berdosa kita membiarkan jiran kita lapar sedangkan kita tahu dia dalam kesusahan'. The next day, we invited him for dinner.

The first time he came over he did not even eat much. I know lots of people who would stuff as much food as they can just coz it's free. But Tim was not like that. He took whatever he wanted, which was not much by the way. He even declined dessert just coz he's shy and polite. He did not talk much, and he wanted to go back as soon as he's done.

Today, he's much more relaxed. He talked a lot, he was not rushing to get back home, and it felt like he was truly enjoying it.

Tim reminded me to be thankful for all the things that I have. For the roof on top of my head, the food on the table and the ride that gets me places.

Thank you God for all the rezqi yang Engkau limpahkan kepada kami. Amin.

Turkish bread

I am posting this recipe to record a simple Turkish bread recipe that I found online. I tried making this today but has mistakenly put more water than I should. Still, the bread turned out pretty good except that I couldn't make indents as the dough was pretty sticky. Better luck next time!


Turkish Bread
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Mix all the ingredients and place in the bread maker:

350ml Water
1/3 cup olive oil
4 cups Plain Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 1/2 tsp Yeast (soak in warm water for 15 minutes before mixing)

Set your machine off making your dough. Mine takes 1.25 hours in the machine on dough setting.

Then divide it into three balls and roll each out into a rectangle 35cm x 15cm. Make indents in the bread using your knuckles. Wash with an egg wash (1 egg and 2 tsp water beaten together) and sprinkle with sesame seeds or nigella seeds. Set aside in a warm place to rise for 20 minutes.

Bake each on a lightly greased tray at 220 degrees Celsius or 10 - 12 minutes

Ngeng...ngeng...ngeng macam nyamuk

I teach part-time so I go crazy the rest of the hours when I am not. Salwa keeps me insane during those hours, thank god for that. I talk to her in kitty voice coz she's a cat but my husband says I shouldn't coz it drives him crazy. For god's sake, she is the only amusement that I have when I am at home, alone. Sometimes I pretend as if I am her mommy and she is my little baby girl.

Gosh those free hours really do make me go insane.

Teaching is tiring. A session of lecture or lab really worked me up. I'd usually slump myself on the sofa when I get back home, try hard not to sleep but would end up snoozing for at least an hour. I have no complaint for that. It's OK, because teaching is never boring, it's always engaging.

So at least that confirms the fact that I am not lazy. I used to think that I was a lazy bum coz I used to drag myself to work everyday. But that was different - that was working behind a desk 8 hours a day pretending to be busy, or sitting in a meeting pretending as if I cared. There's no such thing here, accept for pretending to be smart when you are bombarded with questions that you are clueless about.

Hubby is encouraging me to get an IT job coz it's more promising. My heart sinks at the thought of it and I just wish I'd never have to go back to office work. But I do know that sitting around playing with my cat will not do me any good. If only I can get a full time teaching schedule, that would be awesome.

On another note, my cat has some sort of a yo-yo diet going on. One day she's fat, another day she's slim like a model. She loves sitting on top of me as if she's light like feather. I have never actually weigh her, bet she's at least 2.5 kilos. I sleep on the left side of the bed, and so does she. She sleeps right next to me every single night, always aiming for my left arm *cough* pit *cough*. Whenever I sleep on my tummy, she gets confuse coz it means my left hand is in the middle of the bed and she doesn't like that.

Silly cat.

I think she's bright for a cat. If only there's an IQ tests going on among cats I think she'd easily ace it. Oh, and she can act too. For example, she likes to greet me whenever I get home. I can usually hear her running from the room towards the door, but the moment I open the door she'd sit still or stretch herself, pretending as if she doesn't care. I wonder who taught her that, or why she is acting that way.

I have lots to tell about Salwa, but I won't bore you non-cat lovers about my silly cat's tales.

Signing off for now, with love.