2012

Jan-Jun

Jul-Dec

 

Sekelip Mata

2012 Diary


Three of a Kind: Anak Di Riba, Ayam Di Kepuk, Itik Di Air

Dated 2012 Jul 4 Wed 14 Shakban 1433H

A case I could not comprehend in any other way, as in many more. It was not there anymore when I hastily reached for the matter. The cosy office, professionally-looked tellars, relaxing atmosphere. Where is it now? Oh no! That's all you could come up with the notice to alert the passengers? Perhaps it was much argued, on arrival as it was, or on departure. What? Have you reach the shuttle state like MCR-LON? No, you haven't yet.


Before, now, upstair. Found it after a couple of enquiries. What! Not for C-ticket holders.

I hope this is just a temporary measure. It should be much better than that. This is in our own home, not in the foreign land. Or it is that one day all would be dealt with at the check-in counter?



Mengubat Rindu Dendam - I Missed You So Much

Dated 2012 Jul 17 Tue 27 Shakban 1433H

The last time I smelled and tasted the sweet of its bitterness was more than twenty-four months ago. In the tragic year 2010. Since then I had been missing it. And missed it so much. I felt like I smell its sounds of splashing, and pounding every night. And had its wiggling between my fingers to free itself. We had fun and frolic day and night. One time, next time. And another, and another ....

Duyung jetty, for the first time. Compared to that of Kg Batin where I used to dock, this is new, built to a marina specs, but soon those fishing boats will be asked to go to give away to them. The liner, the owner said was built in Merang by the local, was the lucky survival of the old celebrated Terengganu boat-making with modern input, ferries student to Bidong for the sea-going survival hands-on. I jumped-in into, to re-visit Bidong, after many years since my own was tolled by the fate.

Leaving Kuala Terengganu, viewing back, very different from those days when the locals had to watch for the safe exit, and re-entry, almost every day. The red pilot light on the left on re-entering, and the green on the right.

Bidong Darat is looking on in envy, it has to wait for another ten years perhaps to have that many visitors, but for sure of different kind.

Bidong (Laut) a majestic, so far seen as undisturbed, guarding its sister Karah, welcoming my re-visit, but both were very nervous.

I used to fish here, and anchored, sometimes rushed to this bay for safe hide from the torrential storm, and spent the night too. Some 'extra-terrestial' gears had apparently been landed, and anchored, and their perimeter is charted to warn.

Landing at the most westerly beach, two more are easterly, all facing the mainland.

Landed, ferry-ed by a coaster with the liner anchored a distance away, deep enough to prevent demage to the corals. And roaming the site, a research station, comfortably accomodative for ca 50, electricity from a generator, water from the hill or ground-well, HP trans-cieving from Merang, but the food supply had to be carried from the land for the intended days of stay. And left after an hr of reminescing. Gelok is visible behind Bidong, more nervous seeing Redang nearby.

A welcome-back by calm muara, after ca 1 hr cruise at ca 20 knots. And docked, and done in an unusually brisk trip of coolling off.

Ramadan 1433H is very visible in the horizon, the third one, approaching fast like one could see the parading monsoon clouds from the endless beach in daytime. I kept on searching and contemplating for the souls of post-shawal 1433H that would come, which would be in Sep, however autum they might be. And things popping up in many pieces, many were in the form of small jig-saw pieces for a very big fateful picture, impossible to wait to complete to start piecing together to their place of destiny.



Ramadan 1433H

Dated 2012 Jul 26 Thu 6 Ramadan 1433H

Ramadan 1433H arrived, 2012 Jul 21 Sat, and as noted by every one, was the third time without Azizah. We managed well the second one last year, a bit limping though, about which we learned a lot from the first one the year before. As always, Ramadan came with many meanings and perceptions, and differenly to different people, even to closely related people. At worst, Ramadan is a time cyclo-index.


Making up for the leave, and a sea-wards hop over Tok Jembal, the once no-man lands, to KUL to begin the Ramadan with children.

A typical meal while in TGG. A gathering in a mosque to take the advantage of Ramadan mercifulness, but deswelled greatly to normalcy at the ninth rakaat. Each of them came to the mosque in Ramadan for their own reason.

In Ramadan durian goes by auction instead of by kilos, but coconut boomed. And better accomplished early what's due, at least to the anticipation of the proactive initiative.

Anything that could be distilled off from Ramadan. Roasted mutton in BBB, unavailable during non-ramadan. The word ORGANIC appeared to have diversified its definition, next online would be NANO-ORGANIC, NANO-FOOD, NANONUTRI-xxx, and anything at all. And the office pantry in PTM KGB TGG, is getting more and more important than ever.

One luck striked, just half an hr before the time. And two hr before another hop back to KUL.


The August Moon Veiled by the Hazy Sky

Dated 2012 Aug 9 Thu 20 Ramadan 1433H

Two-third of Ramadan had passed, and it was over one third of August. The full moon of August was five days ago. It was not bright though, not even showing in view over the bridge of Nerus river. The hazy sky over the east coast diffused the bright moon light to a mere slightly litted eastern sky of the late evening of the full moon night, fortunately not rainy. It had been sporadic torrential rain in the past few days.

Sixty years ago in Aug like now, I was just fifteen months old. Perhaps I had just began to toddle. I could imagine I tried instintively very hard to get up every time I fall down. Then, unlikely that I could have talked, but tried expressively very hard with every acquired means including sounds of non-words to spit over what I wanted, or un-wanted. My mother had never failed in providing what I wanted because a mother always understand her child's needs. The needs natural children could not reciprocate until they realised only when they themselves are in similar needs.

I was fortunate, during this Ramadan, all my TGG-KUL to-and-fro were by hopping, except the last one, which was deliberated.

The last Ramadan in Aug was in 1979, when we were in the last leg of preparation to go to England for a leave for a doctorate in Salford, Manchester. While in England, the Aug moon, when it came, in the post-Ramadan, was always bright. And in the following summer, we noted that we were very much blessed in Aug the year before.

It would take thirty three more Ramadan to have an Aug moon in it again. By then perhaps it does not matter, the moon is bright or veiled.



Ending Ramadan 1433H/2012M

Dated 2012 Aug 17 Fri 28 Ramadan 1433H


The ubiquitous clause that had been de-spirited over time, "Dengan Ingatan Setulus Ikhlas, Mohon Ampun dan Maaf, Lahir dan Batin". "Ikhlas" is an adj - sincere, "tulus" is quantitatively a complete amount of "ikhlas". "Ingatan" is a noun. And with that a human asks a wholesome, physical or non-physical, forgiveness from his/her fellow human in this blessful month of Ramadan. Indeed, the dead spirit was the most powerful human covalency.

The last leg of Ramadan frolic, 2012 Aug 15 Wed 26 Ramadan 1433H, in Felda Residence, Balik Bukit, before KUL drv the next day, to concede to Shawal. The occasion which was deferred from 2012 Aug 9 Thu 20 Ramadan 1433H, arranged to be in Primula.

YearRamadan days

1421H/2000M30
1422H/2001M29
1423H/2002M30
1424H/2003M29
1425H/2004M30
1426H/2005M29
1427H/2006M30
1428H/2007M30
1429H/2008M30
1430H/2009M29
1431H/2010M30
1432H/2011M29
1433H/2012M29
1434H/2013M29

Ramadan 1433H/2013M was 29 days. As was last year, and the year 1430H/2009. The rest from 1427H/2006M were 30 days. And before that it was a quite nice alternating since the new third millenium. And the calenders has always been right since the new millenium, or perhaps before that, before sighting. If so then Ramadan 1434H/2013 next year would also be 29 days. 1434H Ramadan 29 would be 2013 Aug 7 Wed.

Shawal is relatively a "local" affair. It is thus righteously to be unstarred in the calender, unnecessitated for a sighting. Unlike 10 Zulhijjah, which is international which spans over twenty-four time zones, it has an ample buffer of ten days for correction in case a sighting is necessary.

The KUL solo drive in Perdana had called for an unprecedented endurance. The weather was fine, the traffic was dilute, in both directions, and less antagonising, but the sporadic exhaustiveness was critical indeed, sometimes it was like hanging by a thin thread. The yet-to-be-accomplished-toll-h/way Bukit Besi-Jabor route was not better than a narrow potholed single carriage way, but the vicinity of the imfamous bends had been resurfaced to a smooth ride of unsplitted momentum, the only change that had taken place since I began frequenting it from 2007 Aug, and once in 2008 Ramadan end of a drizzling evening, met a near misadventure at the bends, in a C200 of Dr Abdullah with him behind the wheel. Come Shawal, every one prays for next year Ramadan.



Shawal 1433H/2012M Sine Laughter

Dated 2012 Aug 19 Sun 1 Shawal 1433H

Eve of Shawal 2012/1433H
The Morning of Shawal 2012/1433H

To most, Shawal means "going home", and one is going to wherever it could be called a home, in which there is someone to go to, without whom it sine going home.

To the rest it means an annual break, extendable, but arduous, from a month of Ramadan chorus, be in it or not, among the series of annual breaks. Big cities, such as KUL, enjoys a Shawal break too when a large fraction of its dwellers opted for mass exodus. A break from having to man-made life-support the millions with billions of activities, virtually 24-7, including millions of descended dwellers. And a break from having to provide the life support system. And a break from having to absorb the effluent of smokes, toxin, non-edible carbon compounds, the inorganics, etc. KUL had always been looking forward for a break like Shawal, more than its dwellers. Shawal break meant a lot more to KUL than to its dwellers. KUL really enjoyed Shawal break. After Shawal, KUL regained its freshness. Conversely the dwellers needed to recover, some take more than a month, the whole Shawal, from the break for the post-Ramadan, in order to resume their chorus. Unfortunately, unlike its dwellers, KUL does not have the luxury of many Shawaloid breaks in a year, and thus could not be enjoying as much.

Some nevertheless undeniably retrospected Shawal for reflection on things that they had been through. Anything at all. As this evergreen, digitally preserved in the voice of then young Kartina Dahari tens of years ago.

Terkenang-kenang wajah mu, 
     dengan rupa yang manis
Terbayang senyuman mu di mata ku, 
     rasa hati ku sedih
Terbayang-bayang wajah mu, 
     yang tak dapat ku lupa
Tapi sayang hanya sepintas lalu 
     seperti dipermainkan saja

BBB is less deserted compared to when we first spent Shawal here in 1983 (Jul 12 Tue) because then our #3son was only four days old and was still in Pantai, KUL. Then, by default, we would 'go home' for Shawal to where we came from in TGG, unless, with very reasonable reasons. In fact we did not 'go home' three more times when our #5daughter, #6son, and #8son arrived in 1989, 1992, and 2000 respectively. #7Son arrived in 1995 Aug, and was out of Eid range.

Currently most of those who then were 'going home' for Shawal are 'at home' already where they are. Like we are. Sg Merab then was practically areas of deserted rubber or oil palm small orchards, and relatively inhabited other than the settling pioneers, in mind-set to sell their lands to the new dwellers who came with the growth of the so-called Bangi Academia, and some to be re-possessed for the supporting set-up.

In exactly twenty-six months, through three Ramadan and Shawal, the dependents kiddies learned a lot of the living skills in their mother absence, at home, around home, in the very diverse situations, for themselves, and among themselves, to keep going on. And absorbing the fact as preserved somewhere else:


Selagi Hidup Belum Sudah, Aku Akan Terus Melangkah
Ku Yakin Rahmat Buatku, Di Hadapan Menunggu

Twenty four hours of Shawal 1433/2012M passed on in Sg Merab home, sine laughter, visiting, or visited. It was a torrential rain in the evening, thunderous, and lightening, replacing the bright cool morning, and hazy afternoon. Closing the day-light faster, to give us the moonlightless night entirely for ourselves to go on to tomorrow and every day after tomorrow. Until, perhaps, next Shawal.



Four In Two In One

Dated 2012 Aug 25 Sat 7 Shawal 1433H


Apakah yang telah berlaku kepada bahasa kita sekarang? Apakah yang telah belaku kepada penguasa bahasa kita? Yes, I mean in both lingoes. Perhaps "Sifu Lantai" or "Gedebir Lantai" is more approriate.

One pic showing two objects containing four physical things plus one conceptual virtue. While on non-visiting during Shawal break, I made this observation, after acquiring them for the bath floor of my room. Had a close look. And the mind spinned, and kept on spinning, endlessly.

And it occurs in my memory my Lingo Master taught me when I was both a pupil in school and an undergraduate and postgraduate in universities, both local and oversea, that: LANGUAGE IS DYNAMIC. That was the explanation for the difference between what they then taught compared to those published many decades before, and compared to say British english and American english, and other races english. Excluding the pronounciation of course. There was no wrong spelling or grammar. They were just dynamism.

In spite of being a valedictorian during my study days, I never scored an A in my language. My answer scripts was massed up with a lot of spelling mistakes, and grammar errors. I onced spelled "Exident" for "Accident" for a passage in one of my final exam, and the whole of my thesis was stained with "temprature" for "temperature". Azizah's mother "Chek" was corrected for me with "Cheque". One of our PR officer name was "Teh Xxxx", and every time my letter to her passed the IT machine, it was corrected for me as "The Xxxx". And my translation was always commented as too straight forward, because I tried not become an editor, or an interpreter, or in constrain to become an analyser, or a re-composer.

And yes! The true era of LANGUAGE IS DYNAMIC eventually arrived. The era of BLOG, in which spelling, grammar, even language is not taken into matter. What matters is only the idea. Be it in words, rightly or wrongly spelt, picture, graphic, figures, etc, etc. I was once commented for incurring a lot of errors in my english in my writing which irked him to itching every part of his body when I said thank goodness, my mother never taught me a word of english. Then! Yes, language is admittedly about what the contemporary mass usually heard and understand which in contrary would cause a misunderstand. And a misunderstand means a disaster.


Then Present Into Current Future

Dated 2012 Aug 28 Tue 10 Shawal 1433H

The imprint dated 2003 Nov 28. A quick googling returned Fri 4 Shawal 1424H. A mere nine hijri years ago. Perhaps from my Minolta, or Asahi Pentax, both film-type instant, the remnants of my KBSM surplus. The former though was burglarized last year, 2010 Jun 5 Sat wee hr, in the same abode. And finally the Minolta remaining object itself, Jun 18 Fri.

All that left were images, including the Minolta, which once framed the mortal living moments of both subjects and objects, into dissipating images in memory of some, if not all.



A New Turn

Dated 2012 Sep 3 Mon 16 Shawal 1433H

And with several sharp bends. Sep 2012, mid-Shawal 1433, arrived. And waiting, was inadvertently a new turn infront of us, to go through. Univ new session commenced Sep 3 Mon (Sep 2 Sun in TGG was a working day) with the registration of new intake. This was the second year the degree programme commences in Sep replacing the Jul, even though the Dip intake was still in Jun. After a week of "suai-kenal", the new comers joined the senior for the chorus of academia, Sep 9 Sun.

CB was one of the freshman in UniSZA's Faculty of Informatic, for his next phase after KMS in Banting. The alternative we have been contemplating so much ever since he was about to end his KMS. Strategic, but not to our most desired though. He is now five hundreds km away from home, but less than a km from me. The former fact carried more impact than the latter. Ever since he finished in KMS in April, he had been very handy at home, which was amplified a great deal by his free-hand on WIRA, shouldering at least half of what were on Alya. And more than half of whatever chorus at home were on his shoulder. And had always been whenever he's home, especially before he went to KMS in 2010 May, and had been his mother's helping hand, a lot.


A remnant of such bends, modernised, and fortified. Negotiating three sharp bends for only ca a quarter of the displacement.

With him five hundreds km away, a turn is taking place at home, more or less templating my being away from 2007 Aug. A lot of bends in the turn. Anticipating a ditto, Alya would have to single-handedly manage Asri who is two weeks away from his crucial UPSR, a kind of accomplishing their mother's unfinished job. The former in turn commenced her seventh sem, scheduled lightly loaded, but time-wise very methodical. And the same turn and bend for SB, who is about eighty days away from his more crucial SPM, but rather remotely in ASIS hostel. It would be Dec when he could start his, but then both with Asri, at home. Early 2013 would be a break for him to contribute.

Come 2013, many anecdotes would germinate out because of the bends in the new turn, some of which may grow into a new trump. Tembila factor may emerge prominent.

I remembered the bends on top of Bukit Tinggi of Bentong Hills in the 1960-70's, a series of ascending-descending bends leading and leaving to-and-fro Genting Sempah that every one had to pass from Bentong to KUL and vice versa, in single pile both ways, be it on motorbike, commuter bus, taxis, timber lorry, cargo hauler, private car, anything which carries over the hill range. The catch of the day was that a bend is negotiated before ending the previous bend, making a jaggernaut occupied two adjacent bends at one time, and others had no choice but to give away. No two opposite vehicles were willing to pass the same bend at the same time, and there was always a water way, sometimes a short and narrow bridge, below a concave bend. And deep gorges along side all bends, concave or convex. The tips of giant trees that grow in the slope of the gorges were still below the bends. They were very dangerous indeed, such as one near-misadventure that we experienced in 1977, September 21 Wed 7 Shawal. I guessed we were saved by the fate to the destiny. The same bends which I first encountered ten years before, in 1967 which I proudly taled my buddies in Padang Midin, TGG when I left them for SAS.



The Waltz of Farewell

Dated 2012 Sep 11 Tue 24 Shawal 1433H


The EIGHT alumni of SRKJ2 BBBangi. Each had spent six years in the 'monastry' learning Reading, wRiting, aRithmatic (3R) with lots of love for the teachers to whom they never forget what I always told them of what my teachers told me: once a teacher, a teacher for life.
LEFT (pic dated 1986 - clock-wise from left): #3 (1989 Dec - 1995), #2 (1987-1992), #1 (1985-1990), #4 (1991 Dec - 1997).
RIGHT (pic dated 2001- clock-wise from top): #5 (1995 Dec - 2001), #6 (1999-2004), #8 (2007-2012), #7 (2002-2007).

Farewell to Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan, Jalan 2, Bandar Baru Bangi, Selangor, 2012, Sep 11, with lots of love to the teachers, and many happy returns, berhutang budi sepanjang hayat. A street in Bandar Baru Bangi to be remembered for a very long time to come, perhaps by several generations.
CheGu Nasir, the legendary teacher of Sek Rendah Kebangsaan Jalan 2, BBB. He incidentally was also a key teacher in the sister school, Sek Rendah Agama. He retired before the third millenium year, and settled in the vicinity of the school. He is remembered by the early pupils of the school, every pupil, no exception, as much as he himself remembered the school at the early stage. CheGu Nasir is a teacher for life, a teacher of every pupil. Collection of TITIAN the archive that bonds the Alumni together, and to the Alma Mater. Their eterninity mortalised the pupils memory in the school.

The first beat of tenor was 1985 Jan, precisely Jan 2 Wed 10 R Akhir 1405H, ca 28 years ago when I checked-in our #1daughter in Year 1 primary, which also marked our next phase of trial of life, i.e., life with schooling children. Eleven days before our #4son arrived.


The first to a long non-stop waltz, 1985 Jan.

The last waltz, 2012 Sep.

Which was the UPSR 2012, Sep 11-13 Tue-Thu, which was the only one Azizah missed, which otherwise she would have perfectly prepared it, the way she did to all the previous seven. Nonetheless, this last waltz would last forever. With that we bid farewell to the school. The path and the places may or may not be repeated by them, but for sure the great cycle is.

The school was the only school available school in town, there was no secondary school yet. Then it was a walking distance from where we stayed. A rented house which we dwelled since returning from England in 1983 Mar. The school was ca 4 years old, opened in 1981 May 4. The town was then perhaps only ten percent of what it is today. Every matter was young then, UKM (started 1978), its staff, the houses, except perhaps the oil palm trees which were going to be replaced anyway. A few grocers with minimum stock. No petrol pump, government office, market or even the mosque. UKM itself had no mosque in 1978 when it started its session in May.

It's unforgivable if mention is not made to the 'sister' SRA BBBangi in which each alumni spent equally six years throughout the second half the schooling days, every day. The school complemented the other half of the kids education. The actual education was actually taking place more in this school. In the former, they learned to read and write, and to count, and to a little extent to reason. The last waltz in the latter was in the week beginning Sep 24 Mon with Asri's sitting in the congener UP-SRA, like his seven elder brothers and sisters.


The afternoon school started in Jln 1/3G, a semi-D house, loaned by PKNS, organised by the Residence Council, sharing with the sister kindergaten in the morning. Then it moved to Jalan Kemajuan when the entity was integrated with the State Religious Council. Here the school established itself. Then when the Council made the school Integrasi, it moved, in separation, to Jln 6, adopting the Federal Dept. It stood on its own, survived by the return to the Residence Council, even with new uniform colour, with the support of the parents, mechanised by the extraordinarily dedicated teachers whose deeds were gauged independent of the figure of salary.

Very proud to be educated in Sek Rendah Kebangsaan Jalan 2, and Sek Rendah Agama, of Bandar Baru Bangi. Grown up to become men and women, and covalencing the eternal bonds of Alumni - Alma Mater.


Untitled

Dated 2012 Oct 1 Mon 15 Z-Kaedah 1433H

These are among the things children would do to their parents that the parents won't do to their children. And in contrary below it, among the things parents would do for their children that the children won't do for their parents. There are many more. And many of them are so ubiquitous. Natural!

Whenever I was given a microphone to say something infront of students, in whatever events, my theme was always the same: "Place your parents above you no matter how bad they are. And once a teacher, a teacher for life no matter who they are" - the former I learned from my teacher when I was in the school, and the latter from my parents before I went to stay in the school hostel.

My theme is emphasised by religions of the world which, unacknowledged, actually had kept human civilisation uninterrupted. Sans religion human being are mere machines, getting more sophisticated by the day, and civilisation is just an instrument, getting more multitasking by the year. Machines rot over time, even become obsolete before they began to rot, and the enveloping instruments mulfunction faster than the machines in them rot.



 

Dated 2012 Oct 17 Wed 1 Z-Hijjah 1433H

But I remembered, last time, they said it was the amout of money that one handles, that are not necessarily, most of the times, his, and rarely hers.

Is such a change of so glaringly physical so un-quantitatively determined? Well, at least, perhaps heisenbergically?

Don't youngsters get stresses too?

And what about the ubiquitous age?

Male, female biochemical differences?

How about blondes who get stressed since in youngster, and aged?

Well, people get stress from the moment he/she arrived at the minute he/she has to get out through a very narrow and tricky orifice, to the very second the doc announce dead. Stresses are the driving force of changes. Physically or non-physically. If one subscribes to the faith that human being is merely a biochemical machine, then non-physical output is actually a result of some kind of physical differential. And vice-sersa, which is very noticeable, and scientifically quantifiable. Otherwise it should be that a non-physical entity, not yet fully comprehensible by human quantification, is paired with a physical, i.e., a matter by scientific definition, quantity which then undergo changes in accordance to a certain equilibrium, reversibly and infinitesimally. The pair disintegrates the moment the equilibrium is catastropically disturbed by changes on either component of the pair. Grey hair phenomenon is just an infinitesimal element in the equilibrium. If the former is the case it is reversible.



A Same Different of Raya Haji

Dated 2012 Oct 26 Fri 10 Z-Hijjah 1433H

It was Raya Haji, and it was in ASIS Jalan Yaacob Latiff, ex-SAS Jalan Cheras, with SB, who was bracing for his SPM in ten days time. Ironically, in the third millenium, equipped with all opportunities, the school had not changed, as I used to have it here, more than forty years ago, during the time of sans everything, in 1967 (1386H) Mar 22 Wed, 1968 (1387/88H) Mar 9 Sat (1387H), and 1970 (1389/90H) Feb 16 Mon (1389H), except in 1969 Feb 27 Thu (1388H), it was in TGG beacuse I was waiting for the SPM result to resume my Lower Six in Apr.

Those days a large fraction of the pupils came from rural areas of all corners of the peninsular, as remote as two-days-journey away, such as those from parts of Johore that has to travel via Singapore, and those from parts of Kelantan that could only travel by colonial rail. They were unable to go home for the celebration because of that travelling difficulties. For that when festive dates arrived in school terms, the school organised the celebration to make up for the missing home celebration. Those who came from nearby locations and could make for the celebration with their own family at home were encouraged by the school to do so. Going home to the family is returning to heaven. Those days the school knew exactly the meaning of celebration at home with the family, unlike current schools which somehow had simplified the meaning of education from substantiating living skills into a simple grade scoring frenzy. Thus a simple arithmatic of the fact that a large fraction of today's pupils come from 'local' areas who could go home and return to the hostel within a mere 24 hr, could not be comprehended by the school.

As I always contended, conceptually the schools, especially boarding schools, have not changed with time since as long as I could remember from my timid boy time. In fact, they stepped back-ward twice the number of steps the new anvancement had provided. The schools rhodeo-ed the technological advancement to recede twice the speed of otherwice a progression for both the school and the pupils. Teaching profession is fast becoming a discarded profession, making the teachers hate their job, making the pupils hate their teachers, making the schools hate their pupils, making the parents hate the schools, and the cycle knotted with the schools hate the parents.



Bracing for the Monsoon

Dated 2012 Nov 3 Sat 18 Z-Hijjah 1433H


 

 
It would take a filmaking to recreate the beauty of monsoon here. We had different kind of funs when monsoon comes. The days when monsoon was always welcomed. We always looked forward for the monsoon to come, then keep on looking forward for the next monsoon. Perhaps it was like the matsallehses looking forward for the summer, or for the winter. The monsoon which was thought to be a Sandy-evil by the 'foreighners', had brought a lot of progressive changes into this part of the world. A lot of water meant a very merry lives keep on springing.
This year in Nov, monsoon started in the west coast of Peninsular.
In TGG the monsoon started rather sleezily, and it may remain so.


A Flashing November

Dated 2012 Nov 30 Fri 16 Muharram 1434H

While bracing for monsoon, Nov transgressed swiftly. Sandwiching piles of date-lined tasks and consignments. It started with Nov 1-3 MHKULTGG home weekend to-and-fro, to catch SB's smayang hajat in ASIS, in support for his SPM which was due from Nov 5 Mon, for the whole Nov. The place was my alma mater, but had been spiritually 'destroyed' to nihil with its renaming to ASIS in 2003, and the soul of SAS was transplanted in a new body in Putrajaya, then in 2005 re-branded as SSAS. Since then SAS Jln Cheras Kuala Lumpur, as it was known, ceased itself. What a pity!

And back in TGG, Nov 6 Tue, DONE the matter with ASB. It was quite a yo-yo too at the bar. Couldn't imagine the yo-yo-ing oscillation in making its fund leaving the premise. Rakyat-wise ASB does not spit off. It only swallows, unlike banks which swallows like a python, and spits like a lizard.

Followed by Nov 8-17, a rather long love affair in KUL, while the Univ was in its mid-sem 1 break of 2012/13. A hop on KPM MH to KUL, and CB on me, to steer the MatriQ in Grand Continental, off Jln Raja Laut, KUL, on the outskirt of once KUL's spot-mark Chow Kit. Very close to once similarly infamous Lorong Hj Taib. A week in the confinement of the lowest possible decent congregation place. It was tiring, exhausted by the deoxygenated rimas-ness of the place. But it was fun, meeting a lot of old acquaintances and acquainted several new one.

Overseered by Azliza, in my first acquaintance with her since taking over from Fauziah and Qamarul, who had moved to KMS, joining Anita, and Rosna, and was subordinated by Dr Rosenani, Pn Che Sofiah of USM, PM Dr Noor Kartini of UM, PM Wan Yaacob of UKM, Dr Kartini Ahmad UPSI who was new to me said she is an acquaintance of Prof Manaf while she was in UPM, Dr Nor Azowa of UPM, PM Dr Azli Sulaiman and Pn Khatijah of UTM. Co-steered with Prof Wan Aini of UTM who was subordinated by eight others, Prof Dr Yatimah UM, Dr Jumaat Salimon UKM, Cik Hjh Rabiah USM, PM Dr Razak Ali UTM, Pn Che Su USM, PM Dr Halim UPM, Dr Siti Mariam UPM, En Manoharan USM, who eventually could not make because he met an accident in Sg Petani on the way to here. (Dr Jumat turned up late on Sun night). Three other groups were also in sitting, but the size of one-sixteenth of my PST, and they were Prof Rosiyah, and Prof Zanariah of UM, Dr Mohamad Abu Bakar of USM, and Dr Ibrahim of UPM. And countless number of attendees who knew me either before in a group, or because of having taken my Chem while I was in UKM. During my forward speech, as always, my favourite theme was the noble-ness of being a teacher. And I made some changes during the KP-KKP coordination briefing from that routinely done, and more in the pipe line when the next opportunity knocks.


An honour of being accompanied in my bedroom, on the night of Nov 18 Sun. She knew that I was alone for many hrs already, and that she knew that I knew she was in my company. She showed up, in a domesticated gesture, in case I was worrying about the frolicking noises. Not sure which of them that introduced themselves on similar night May 12 Sat.

And a very rude reply to the home-welcoming greeting in Batu 6, Nov 23 Fri wee hr.

A DRV TGG, Nov 16 Sat, taking WIRA back to TGG which had been in KUL since Apr for CB to manage his little brother after his KMS while waiting for the next phase of move. The piece arrived in one piece, still with a superb deliverance. A senate on Sun, 57/2012, which may have some significance to some. And official visit of TNCA to FPB the following day, ca nine months after he first set in. By night fall of the Mon, CB helped taking to LTSM to hop to KUL for a matter the next day, for TNCA in KPT on something KPT wants to contribute for the agro-national.

Back to TGG Nov 21, to chair the Fac Mngmt Meeting in preparation, at the Fac level, for the UniSZA 4th degree conferement. The day after which was a rather free day. Took CB to assist in the matter-yet-to-accomplish at BSN. Initial inquiry in one at Batu 6 branch, took us to the bigger outlet in Air Jernih KTGG, but at the terminal hr of the day of the weekday Thu, it was only half done.

Followed by another rare weekend Fri in TGG, with CB, in Tok Jembal, and the noon in the new masjid Tok Jembal for the first time. Which made a miss the Nov 24 occasion of MAHA invitation opening ceremony in MAEPS Serdang to represent VC which I asked Dr Jamil to accompalish, rather impromtu. I always waited for such occasion in case an opportunity knocks to meet the MAEPS CEO, Datuk Mohd Ariff Othman who was my SAS-ian buddy in 1969, who Dr Jamil said he acquainted very well when they were both in MARDI. I last met him perhaps in UPM's convocation festival, Serdang in 1972, when he was in his final stage of dip course.

The week from Nov 25 Sun rolled with a visit by Prof Wan Ishak of UPM to assess an MSc-PhD conversion. A DRV to KTGG, and the matter with BSN was done, ASB likewise, but unnaturally friendlier because the tellaress was a kusza-ian, 1991-dip-grad. A sense of relief prevailed. Grabbed that floating moment to scribble the idea on the possibility of materialising a sanctum in Besut, in Gong Berangan, Kerandang, in a small 'kampung pingitan' called Tempinis, a few km from Tembila, the permanent home of UniSZA's FPB, together with a few other faculties, for sure FIT and FTM, in which CB and I were in, respectively.

Nov 28-30, hopping on MH TGG-KUL-TGG again. Initially it was for the Thu roadshow meeting for the compilation of Agrologist Act, in Agriculture Institute, Serdang, but when being told that it was deferred to next year Jan, I hopped by flexing my own muscle. The MH KUL was never that delay, never before reaching home at mid-night by hopping. Nov 30, the return MH TGG hop to catch the full dress rehearsal of UniSZA Convocation ceremony, to find out that I missed it because it was actually in the morning. Nonetheless it was followed, at night, by the pre-convo Royal Dinner in Primula. SB, who had just begun being an alumnus of ASIS, after his SPM end Nov 27 Tue, was tagged. And Asri too, to free up Alya for her last leg of FYP matters. CB anchored in TGG. But monsoonic weather in TGG had diluted the fun of Pesta Konvokesyen Nov 29 Fri to close Dec 3 Mon, even though it was not very much more than just a pasar malam, as in all other Univ convocation.

And Nov 2012 was hoisted off, seamlessly into Dec, in the beginning of which was UniSZA 4th degree conferement ceremony, done this year in the indoor stadium in Gong Badak near the airport. DABS was under heavy rennovation, plus the construction of a sister hall. JPP's speed was something like 3650 days a year, and thus ten quantums of time behind other's schedule. JPP is notoriously known here as the only PTj whose outputs are always a time-independent, and never a quality-dependent. And ironically, those never bothered them even a bit.



An Autum in December

Dated 2012 Dec 12 Wed 28 Muharram 1434H


Captured by Nurhana, Dec 2 Sun 1037, in Dewan Bankuet, Indoor Stadium, Gong Badak, after FPB grads degree were confered by NC Dato' Alias, in my IXUS. It may have some significance later.

In autum, "daun-daun berguguran". Come Jan a very short winter may follow. Big trees do so to hibernate for the impending winter. In the spring in Feb new leaves would grow out from the twigs on the branches. The branches that harboured the fallen leaves, fall to the ground, and rot. And lives continue in the great cycle of life.

Small plants had produced the seeds already in the summer before the autum come, and had fallen to the ground to absorb water, or had been taken far away already by the dispersing agents in preparation to germinate and grow in the next spring into new lives.

Come 2013 Feb, I would have completed four years of being behind the wheel, stearing the faculty, already in the water, passed on by Prof Manaf, through meandering flow to the estuary, and eventually to the open sea, from the shore to the non-charted infinite horizon. Faculty had passed the Level-1 Primary. I had taxi-ed it into a take-off speed by having both programmes, BAgricBiotech JPA-recognised and BAnimP&H MQA-accredited for the graduates to be employed, a farm very receptive for further self-supportive development, and a research tradition set up for a sustainable propagation. Perhaps it's high time to get the baton passed on, like it was in 2009 Feb.

I expressed the anticipation, Dec 4 Tue, in my mail to the staff, by unauthored instantaneous key words "laut lepas", upon completion of the 4th degree conferment, which was held in the indoor stadium of Kompleks Stadium Gong Badak because DABS was heavily rennovated plus a contruction of a sister multipurpose banquet hall. During which the pioneer BAnimP&H received their scrolls with the programme had the MQA-accredited, officially since last week. And thus complementing those BAgricBiotech since 2010.

The impending true came with the msg delivered, personally, Dec 5 Wed in the evening just before I log-out after making the day in the office in PTM, KGB. I was not sure the true form, but knowing the source, it was not impossible that much had been decorated on arrival, and was in a very different form when it was first bleeped out.

Nonetheless in UPM, Dec 6 Thu, a new agro-pace began to gather momentum for career-colleagues to re-frolic. Prof Dr Nasir, Prof Dr Dzol, and newly acquainted Prof Dr Abdul Shukor, the new Agri Dean, all from UPM Serdang. And Prof Dr Japar of UPMKB. A continuation from last Nov 20 sitting in KPT Putrajaya. A slight detour from recent update gathering in UMT Jul 16-17. It was not excluded that one of the sitting would need UniSZA to host it, and its going to be bigger than before, one such 2010 May 4-5 Tue-Wed in Palm Garden Putrajaya, which climaxed the series of sittings that included in Bintulu 2010 Jan 17, and Kota Kinabalu, 2010 Mar 28, because it included also agencies from other ministries which harbour Agri-interest, in manpower training, or agri-output. And could be several times.

Weather-wise, early Dec was warmer, brighter, less wet. Rarely a downfall, but frequent sporadic drizzling, blue sky with patches of still white clouds, but less breezy. Had not been to the beach lately on day time to see how the waves were doing, but their night howling of pounding the beach is unheard of these days. Instead, timely, there were several deswelling sounds of thundering turbo reversing jet of the landing airplanes, and a while later stronger pushing sounds of their taking-off.

Note: Whichever way, format, or style to write, it's 121212. Cf 111111, and 101010, both had alerted the ICT interest for showing off purposes only.



The Band Has One Last Song to Play

Dated 2012 Dec 31 Mon 17 Safar 1434H

It was in Sek Men Keb BBBangi, later more familiarly known as Sek Men Jalan 2 when more Sec Schools were built in BBB, the alma mater of Rubaini for two weeks before checking in Sek Men Agama Selangor (SMAS) in Kajang in 1991, and Muzani for his complete secondary school, 1998-2003, and Alya for her lower secondary school 2002-2005 before moving to Sek Men Sains Seri Puteri (SESERI) for her upper Sec School.

The school was opened in 1985 as the first Sec School during primitive Bandar Baru Bangi, two years later than its neighbouring Primary congener Sek Ren Jalan 2, the full alma mater to all my children, like that of Sek Keb Bukit Tunggal in TGG to all my bothers and sisters.

Asri checked-in in the school today, in F1 (Amanah), to begin his next phase of trial of life. The school would officially start 2013 Jan 2 Wed, and he would be in a mood very different from that of when he stepped-in the first day of Primary. He said he did not need me to stay close every day, the way he needed his mother from day one 2007 Jan 3 Wed 1427 D'Hijjah 13, for the solid year.

This year cohort is the second batch of Lower Secondary with PMR abolished. The evaluation is replaced with PBS (Penilaian Berasaskan Sekolah), an on-line (to KPM data-base) practically daily assesement, to be cummulated at the end of third year. 2015 end for Asri.




2012

Jan-Jun

Jul-Dec

 

Sekelip Mata

2012 Diary