First Time.

It was so nice of my colleagues to have had a little birthday celebration for me, well, along with my boss. Something I never had in the 4 years of working life. Quite sad ah haha. Guess it's really important to have a strong support system at work. It gives that weird reassurance that work can be fun if you're at the right place, at the right time.

Thanks for this colleagues. I truly deeply appreciate it.

Curious.

Is it just me or that I have come to realize that everyone is turning into everyone else? Everyone's singing the same song and humming the same tune. It seems that being different is cool. Being different represents a unique self. But when everyone tries to be 'different' by trying to look like everyone else BUT forgot about their ownself, what's left in yourself?

Fashion is addictive, that's something highly indisputable - even I am myself caught in that beautiful stigma. Everyone wants to be stylish, everyone wants to be updated with current trends and everyone wants to look (and possibly feel) good about themselves. Who doesn't? But when everyone tries to look like everyone else, what ever happened to originality?

In essence, how we are as a human being is not perceived a hundred percent via the way we dress or how updated we are with the fashion du jour. It's okay if we want to be fashionable or be seen as a fashionista, just as long as you are original, be grounded and stick true to yourself. Whatever it is, fashionista should be a reputation earned, not a self-proclaimed title.

And the weirdest thing about fashion is that, sometimes those with tons of money have no fashion sense at all. Because they want to look like everybody else, they just falter. Heck they care about whether looking good in it or not, as long as they're wearing the same thing like everybody else is. But usually it is those who don't have much, have the highest fashion sense because it's obvious that less is more.

I guess the saying less is more is applicable to all sorts of things. In this kind, less trying to be someone else and more of being yourself is far better. Beauty is skin deep and beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, not the tapered pants or romper that you're wearing ;)

Okay, I think I'm writing crap here. Haha. Chalo!

Of Friends & Strangers.

This post is specially dedicated to the people who have been loyal to my blog - my blog followers, silent readers, silent readers who eventually became err .. not so silent anymore hehe, my nemesis (s) - at least (and I hope they're the only) two of them that I know of haha, my friends, family and you, yes YOU for reading this now. I don't think I have ever written or thanked you personally for being such faithful readers. I hereby acknowledge your presence officially :) thank you so much for poppin in!

Honestly, the real reason of me blogging started off with ... nothing. I just wanted to express my thoughts somewhere since I stopped writing diaries when I was ... say 12 maybe? Hence, wanted to make the blog as an alternative to my diary cum daily journal.

However, I understand that blogging isn't supposed to be a daily journal - although more often than not, most people including me, tend to write along those lines. But then I realized that if it was to make up as a replacement to my daily journal, that would be laborious on my part since it needs constant updates. And knowing myself too well, I'm faced with writer's block every now and then. I write only when I'm inspired.

Therefore, I began blogging simply to share - my thoughts, views, info(s), buys, you name it.. in essence, it's all about sharing. Some of you have realized that (you know who you are, thank you for your kind emails) and some of course, don't. Some claimed that I sugar coat my life as if I live my life in bubble gum, cotton candy wonderland based on my blog posts and when these accusations occur, I make no time to justify because it's such a waste of time. Instead, I make them as my personal reminder that I can never please everybody, but my own self. I think I may have said this once yonks ago and I'm going to say it again - that what you read here is what I chose for you to read. I believe in keeping some things personal and some things are just not meant to be said.

Anyhoos.

Apparently my stat counts provide me with such incredible infos that I myself went eye popping to see that I've got people reading my blog all the way from England, USA, Aussie, Canada, Ireland, Brunei, Indonesia, Egypt and Korea, apart from Malaysia. Amazing right? I never knew I had people reading OB&W from across the world. Whoever you are, thank you so much for making time to read my (in)significant thoughts :) I'm beyond grateful to have you lounging on this space *smile* I'm considered nothing as compared to other renowned bloggers but I'm grateful, grateful for what I have here. Again, thank you.

I hope to inspire and be inspired in future years to come, insya Allah. Let us share with one another of what good we can share and leave out all the negativities aside but embrace them for they are our actual 'checks and balances'. Without them, you will never be a better you (only if you approach the matter positively).

Again, thank you for reading OB&W. I welcome you, old and new readers, from the bottom of my heart.

Money Matters.

Off late, my mind is always busy thinking about money .. and making more money. It's like that's the first thing I'd think about right after getting ready to work, something I'd think about during work (like shoosh ... no money ... I want to buy that top [re: online blog shops] lol), and something I'd think about ... regardless of time!

I know it might give you the impression that I'm penny-less. Well, sometimes I can be, like ... right about now maybe? Haha. Usually I'm broke or almost broke when I have an extra agenda in that particular month. For instance, if I'm traveling in that month or should any emergencies occur.

You see, it's not like money is everything to me and you've got to believe that. I'm neither the kind of a person who'd marry a guy just for money sake nor I am the kind that wants money just to fulfill my desires of buying all possible clothes, branded items in the whole wide world. I stand strong on to believing that money serves for all kind of purposes.

But it would be a total lie if I'd say I'm not interested with designer items like Chanel (number one, always), LV, Prada, Longchamp, Gucci, Marc Jacobs, Bimba & Lola, Ferragamo, Chloe, ohh you name it. Of course I do, I'm a woman in every sense and (normal) women dig these things. On top of that, women can never have enough bags, shoes and clothes. There's never enough little black dresses or shoes of every kind - pumps, strappy heels, wedges, oxfords, flats, peep toes, open toes,so many more. It's just women nature, I guess. For me, I'm all for practicality. I've got to have shoes that's right for every occasion *excuses hehe*

Okay hold up, hold up. This isn't about shoes, clothes etc. This will be in another post someday. Lol.

Back on money.

As I said, I firmly believe that money serves for all kind of purposes. At present, I'm thinking more into how to make extra money and investing because not only that I have quite a long list of fixed and committed expenses, I would like to contribute more into my savings. Fyi, I pay for my own car (thank god it's going to be over in about 2 years time), insurances, my PTPTN, my telephone bill, credit card bills, broadband, a few others and soon .. my own house. Yeap, that's right. I bought a house already (!!!) Alhamdulillah. We are in the midst of choosing the best financier at the moment. If you have any suggestions or recommendations, kindly share them with me. I'd be happy to hear some feedbacks :))

So yeah, at the end of the day - and 'day' meaning 'on the same day as the day my pay cheque is transacted' - the amount of money left will be just a wee bit for me to keep for rainy days, petrol, toll and food with such a minimum amount left for one of the basic ingredients of happiness ie. shopping! And you know how tempting online blogshops can be right? (Don't get me started on this one now)

I know, quite pening right but if I don't start investing in properties now, I may never buy anyways. Now, the price of houses can be quite ridiculously expensive and might just put your dream of buying a house to halt but the one that we bought is syukur alhamdulillah, quite reasonable for an end lot simply because on top of the 7% discount for Bumiputras, we are also entitled for an additional 3% discount for being civil servants. Yay times ten!

Besides that, surrounding myself around my FILs who are very much business oriented just influences me to become one too. I have considerably three business plans in my mind already just waiting to execute it. When, you ask? That's the thing. To take the first step ain't difficult on this one. All I've got to have first is ... my capital.

Gaji, bila nak masuk niiiiiiiiiiii?! Hehe.

Soon you shall see. It's nothing big or spectacular and I'm an avid believer of humble beginnings, bigger endings (I hope so, insya Allah). So just watch this space.

In the mean time, I swear .. waiting for the 25th October to arrive feels like the longest time ever!

Ps: Try checking out one of my best friends' blog on PhD. No, not the one with Doctorate. The other one. It's a good read. Well said, Shi. Thank you for reminding me of the things that are more important and worthy of my time. See girls, you are who you mix with. Alhamdulillah, my peeps are awesome :) Click here to read further.

Being Human.

The hardest thing about being human is trying to be the better person, all the time. But I believe with good friends and loving family who'd motivate you into that direction, you'll do just fine.

Sabar itu separuh daripada iman. Iman kata sabar nanti boleh beli Chanel. Haha. Byee :)

Accusations.

Whatever people accuse or say about you ... just keep calm and stay classy.

That's all.

Merdeka, Malaysia.

All these while, we have been celebrating Merdeka as an occasion to go out and hang out with friends or family. We will either be having a barbeque at home or lounging at the Curve, doing practically the same old thing - just enjoying each other's company.

But after having learned the history of the Constitution and the emergence of our independence day in greater depth, i.e. the trials and tribulations that our forefathers fought to achieve what we have today re: "freedom", and after watching 1957 Hati Malaya, I no longer feel that celebrating Merdeka like the abovementioned is appropriate. The substance of celebrating is of greatest importance, not celebrating by its literal meaning. We celebrate to appreciate what these warriors have fought for us.

Maybe I grew out of that or just maybe I'm an old soul inside, but honestly, do you think that that is the best way to celebrate merdeka?

Today, thanks to them and the Prime Ministers that follow suit, we live in this country peacefully, with food to eat, clothes to wear, roof to shelter, roads to move about and so much more. There is hardly any domination, tyranny, subjugation or anything to that effect that restricts our movement and liberty to live. We are forever indebted to these incredible figures.

Imagine being in the shoes of the people who had to go through the periods of 1941 - 1957. The Japan annexation and the British domination. The mass bloodshed and tears that our great grandfathers experienced. I don't think we can ever envision what they were feeling, living in fear and fury.

So this year, I am more proud than ever for being a Malaysian citizen, more grateful to be living in this wonderful country that accepts, and not detest, people of all races, creed and religion. Malaysia is a magnificient place to call home.

Therefore, I'd like to wish Malaysia, happy 53rd birthday. May you be blessed by Allah always and may you thrive to become the best in all that are worth fighting for. Merdeka!

* Forgive me if I may have sounded too serious, I think ageing is slowly catching up on me. Lol.

Eight.

Eight more days. And seven is just a few minutes away. Counting days can be quite nerve wrecking and exciting at the same time.

Guess what did I do today?

I did my first bridal spa treatment!! And I swear you have no idea as to how excited I am or sound like since computers are tone deaf! It was effin amazing! I can't wait for the next session to come and be all pampered, loved and indulged. This is PURE BLISS!

I don't wanna be telling what I did or where I'm doing it but you'll find out sooner or later (but some of you might have known already so let's play along here guys thanks hehe). I wish to share them with you only after the whole works are done, of which I have my reasons for doing as such.

So after 3 and a half hours of spa, my best friends Ems and Mel picked me up and we headed to Chic Nail Spa at Bangsar Village II to join some others for obvious reasons. I must say that the ambiance is, not was, marvs. But the service? Not really. I guess it's safe to say that people go there in hoping to prove themselves right of the parlour's reputation of being pretty, parisian chic interior concept and indeed, they are right. However it's a sad thing to discover that their service was pretty bad. It was practically impersonal. I don't understand why they rushed their customers (maybe because we're nobodys) to choose the massage lotion in a jiffy. Dah la banyak. To top to that, some of my friends who did french manicure were not satisfied with the outcome. Was it just us experiencing that or you went through the same?

Had late lunch at Marco's Pizza at BV I (please try the Penne Marchiata) and headed home and took a nap. About 7ish, Mel, Ems and Sakey took me to Midvalley to get stuff for Bilik Pengantin deco. Yay, one more thing settled! Thanks girls.

It's half past one and I'm supposed to be asleep now (apparently my masseuse said that one of two problems that I have is 'lacking of sleep') Therefore, I guess I better go now.

Early morning and three things on my To Do List tomorrow. Be(ar) with me. Lol.

Just A Phase.

I don't know why I'm so emotional nowadays.
When I look at my dad's pictures, I can cry instantly.
When I look at how hard my mom is working, I get all teary.
When my aunty and uncle bought me a pearl set as a wedding gift, I cried my hearts out.
When I got a Parker Pen from my future father in law, I felt happy but sad at the same time.
When I look at the faces who are helping me with the wedding, I try to refrain myself from shedding tears.
When I look at the good times I had with my bestfriends, my cousins, my friends, my unimates even simple silly stuff like an old man crossing the road, I get all emotional.
What's going on with me?
This is so not me.

Please tell me that this is just a phase that I'm going through.

Let's Go Back To The Basics.

google.com

You know, being sincerely sorry or apologetic for the inconvenient things that we've done to others makes a difference. People nowadays forget the importance of apologizing. At this juncture, we prove inadvertently to the older generation that we are what they think we are. Rude, selfish, ignorant, self-centred, a total opposite of the well-mannered. I know generalizing is an understated moral offence and I have always been a believer of non-generalizing, but what can a small voice like me do to change one's, if not more, behaviour from rude to polite, selfish to empathetic moreover apologetic? And no, I'm not saying that I'm the person with the best traits around.

In that sense, I'd just like to say that I'm sorry I may have overestimated the numbers of your brain cells. Oh, I'm sorry I just said that.

So apologize people. Less squabble is always better.

Sometimes...

...I wish I was born in the 60s.

No need photo editing, no need the re-creation of vintage dresses, fashion and suitcases. No need wigs.

Everything is original.

*this picture was taken in 2008 during one of our inter-class cheerleading competition practice and yes, those are two pom poms on my head :)*

Customer is ALWAYS KING!

I've never dealt with someone so ignorant, who's business senses are even worse than those garbage in the trash bins waiting to be recycled. Maybe the garbage in the bins are even smarter than this person that I'm dealing, or dealt with so to speak.

You see, mom wants to give out yassins to those who will attend our akad nikah ceremony. Suddenly this particular blog commented on my chatbox giving a link to hers. So I clicked and saw quite nice yassins and eventually emailed them for a quotation on 20th March 2010.

Chronology of this uncalled for drama goes like this.

20.3.2010: Emailed for quotation. Waited for their reply and she (I assume it was a she) emailed me with this amount:

"300 unit- RM4(harga termasuk yaasin + pocket envelope)
RM3 (tanpa pocket envelope)"

21.3.2010: I asked them as to how does their envelope looks like and she asked ME to refer to her blog. Bukan dia sebagai offeror yang supply me with the info(s). Fine, and so I did.

22.3.2010: I asked for the revised quotation again since at the beginning I asked for 300 pieces then I changed to just 250 pieces.

24.3.2010: Still no reply from them. I emailed them AGAIN for the quotation. Only then she replied, but this time giving me a different price as per quotation dated 20.3.2010. She said,

"Hi..
For 250-RM4.20 (yaasin) + RM1 (custom made pocket envelope)
tq"

So that means RM5.20 for a piece of surah yassin la kan? RM1.20 is a lot of difference isn't it?

Then she added,

"I just realized I typed it wrong...never shud email when the baby is sitting on the lap!
For 300-RM4(Yassin) + rm1 (envelope)
For 250- RM4.20 (yaasin) + rm1 (envelope)
For 200 - RM4.50(yaasin) + rm1(envelope)
Sorry for the miscommunication...."

What kind of a reason is that, NEVER SHOULD EMAIL WHEN THE BABY IS SITTING ON THE LAP??? Tak kelakar wei. Tak kelakar and tak cute langsung!!

I on the other hand who was trying my best to not be annoyed with such reasons, then replied..

"Really you didn't notice? Dah lama jugak kita ber email tau :) - can you sense the sarcasm there?
I decided based on that quotation. How? :("

and further sent another email to her saying...

"Hmm I nakk ... Tp boleh tak dpt discount? For 250pcs yassin + envelope round figure rm5 each?"

Then she replied,

":( tu ler..human error...luckily that my baby is not disturbing me at the moment.
Hmm..so macam mana? well, it's up to you dear..the choice is yours..
nak amik 200 or 300..with envelopes kan? "

See those words - "LUCKILY THAT MY BABY IS NOT DISTURBING ME AT THE MOMENT". LAGI TAK KELAKAR!

Still 24.3.2010. Now this reply,

"Well...I baru tanya my husband...and he said OK lah..
By the way, do you have anything else that you want to print s.a. wedding cards, tags, paperbags..u name it."

Daku dengan penuh baik hati, replied with this,

"Yay! Alhamdullilah thank you! :) so rm5 each. Total rm1250 right? how do we go about now? U will come up with the design as per my details then if everything okay baru I bank in 50% kan?
I'd also like to ask how much do you charge to print for:
A) thank you tags for 650pcs design A
B) thank you tags for 650pcs design B
C) message card for 350pcs postcard size
Thanks!"

26.3.2010: I sent them an email.

"So macam mana ya? When can I see the artwork so I can bank in the deposit?

Thanks."

26.3.2010 @ 1.37pm: She replied with..

"Tonite yer.. :)"

Okay I waited.

I got the first design only with the letterings of Surah Yassin (in Jawi) on 26.3.2010 @ 7.16pm. with this email:

"Hi...
For inlay dalam...u nak letak apa? usually org letak nama parents like
terima kasih daripada etc..."

27.3.2010: I replied dengan excitedness (menyesal excited) saying..

"Yay!
1. Tapi perkataan "Sempena" tu memang ada is it?
2. Hot stamping metallic pink okay.
3. Inlay dalam tu ada sample gambar tak so I can think of the words to be put in.
Thank you!"

At this point, the design was only the letterings of Surah Yassin. No artwork whatsoever.

27.3.2010 @ 3.28pm: She replied..

"bhgn dlm up to client actually."terima kasìh dr x n y serta
keluarga","sempena walimatul urus x n y" etc .yg sempena tu if x nk
ltk pun xpe.up to u."

And sent me the sample picture that I asked for at 9.27pm on the same day.

So on 28.3.2010, I replied,

"Okay got it already.
So okay, here goes.
1. Cover : as per earlier discussion which is -
a) Hot stamp metallic pink
b) Nama pengantin: ZAZNURIAH & HASHLEY
c) Tarikh: 5hb June 2010 / 22 Jamadilakhir 1431H

2. Inlay : seperti dalam gambar sample dan tambahan details are as such -Ikhlas Daripada
Datuk Ibrahim Thamby Chik & Datin Zaharah Dato' Jelani dan Keluarga

Okay, so can I see the final mock up Yassin and the quotation please?
Thanks."

29.3.2010: She emailed me with the cover but this time WITH THE ARTWORK I NEVER KNEW THAT IT EXISTED AND WHICH THEY CAN DO...

"Salam,
Harga RM5.00 x 250.00 = RM1250.00
*Harga termasuk sarung.
Tq."

29.3.2010: I replied..

"Salam.
Thanks for the design, they're lovely.
However, for the cover right, you ada buat 4 corners of the flower kan? I nak 2 je: top right corner & bottom left corner.
Is that possible?
Thanks."

Her reply on the same day was.. "Boleh :)" and emailed me the amended version of the design.

So I said,

"Okay. Better :) Confirm as per discussed.

So how do we go about now? Am supposed to bank in 50% right? Can I have your account number and details please?

How long will you take to get them ready?

Thanks."

Then on 31.3.2010: I sent an enquiry email stating:

"Dear, the mail below refers.

Could you please direct me as to the procedures from here? Thanks.

Oh just wondering, if that bunga tu guna bunga ikut gambar yang I attach boleh ke? Btw can I have your number please? Senang sikit nak communicate if emails lambat :)

Please reply to this email and the email below. Thanks."

Boleh tak MINTAK TOLONG DIA REPLY? Business apa ni?

So here, instead of replying via email. She texted me and said "Boleh tapi tak sesuai".

I said, "Tak sesuai ke tak boleh?"

She replied, "Boleh tapi I've been criticized for being to western (westernize la - English k.o?) with that kind of flower. Tak kena dengan concept Islam"

Saya dengan annoyed yang nak meletup replied, (not precise words but strong words are clearly remembered) "Really, honestly I feel sorry for those who judge one's iman and faith on the flowers on the cover of a Yassin. Those who have that perception are close minded people. It's like as good as saying, orang pakai tudung baik dan orang tak pakai tudung jahat. Tak semesti bukan?"

Someone got chickened out or insulted wtf and did not reply. I waited and eventually feeling bad for giving a complete stranger my two cents. In fact, I sent her an sms the next morning apologizing for being too blunt.

But guess what, that person instead, sent me this email and together with the design as per my request:

"Hello,
Here's the account number:
MAYBANK 16xx34xx16xx H BIN A H
TQ"

Wtf? I didn't confirm ANYTHING! But I still remained calm and replied with this on 5.4.2010:

"Salam.

I went through the pictures and I was thinking kita go ahead with your design la k? Senang you nak buat and simple. So I attach balik the picture yang you buat tu.

Therefore:

- Your design

- Metallic Pink

- 250 pieces

- RM5.00 each

Once I have banked in the 50% deposit, I'll email you. Thank you.

Regards,
Zaza."

Then the miraculous blog owner replied with:

"Salam
As stated in the blog, we charge rm25 for any artwork done.So, the grand total amount would be as below :-
Yaasin -250 x rm5 = rm1250
Artwork(Design given by client)= rm25
Grand total: rm1275
*postage rate will be known on the day of the delivery.
The yaasin will be printed as soon as we receive the 50% deposit.
Have a nice day!
TQ"

Immediately I replied with:

"Oh initially I didn't ask for any artwork, you came up with one. So I assumed rm5 was all inclusive.
I suggest u be clear step by step so people won't get mixed up.
In that case, I only want to stick with rm5 for each yassin + envelope. No need artwork.
Please take note, thank you."

6.4.2010: She emailed, saying...

"Hi
Do read the blog . I assumed you have read it. Anyway, the other clients had no problem with this at all.
All printers charge any artwork given by their client.We do not charge any artwork that is already done by us. For the sample that you had given us,we had to charge it coz our designer wasted his time + energy doing it for you and you yourself sounded as though you didn't want the design that we had normally use.(as posted in our blog)
Since you haven't given the deposit, you can still cancel it.The choice is yours.

Thank you."

So on 8.4.2010, I replied:

"Salam.

God knows how difficult is it to deal with you.
First of all, I remember I had to frequently ask you for quotation or artwork even to the extent of emailing twice just to get a response from you.

Secondly, at the very beginning you gave me a vast difference of price from RM4 with envelope to RM5 with envelope on the basis of your baby was on your lap therefore you were in a mess at that time. Having relied on your RM4 offer, I vouched in for an order. After I repeatedly ask for quotation from 20th March to 24th March, you "suddenly" realized that you got the numbers wrong and decided to change hencewith. I kept silent and since I still want the Yassin, I proceeded even though I was already puzzled and trying hard to not be annoyed with your reason because in business dealings, regardless of whether it is online or offline, there is this such thing as Business Communication. Clearly you are lacking in that area.

Thirdly, I remember correctly and if you want the facts, I asked for the artwork from you twice. I am the offeree and you are the offeror but I have to ask from you twice. Not you promptly alert me on it. And I also remember correctly, I just asked for the Yassin letterings, never did I know that you are able to do the kerawang/bunga on the cover of Yassin. Fyi, you posted a picture of the kerawang yassin only on the 27th. I placed an order from the 20th. So when you emailed me the artwork of which YOU created with the flowers, I myself was stunned. I only had the impression that you will do the cover based on the last design dated 20th March. Refer to your blog. And only then I asked whether is it okay to change the flower to some other design and your answer was, "Boleh but tak sesuai dengan yassin.." so I assumed that you will not do it and the story of you being criticized for the flower goes on.

I then waited for your text reply for two days from my last sms reply but to no avail. Suddenly you texted me asking for payment and emailed me the cover of the yassin WITH the design that I asked. In any way where does respect and humility lie in the sms? You don't just sms your customer OUT OF THE BLUE asking for payment when none is confirmed.

And yes I did ask (for the design) but you never said you WILL do the design. You just said it was tak sesuai and did not reply my sms at all. I was not informed that you will do it. You just did it anyways. But still, I kept quiet and when I take a look at it, I then emailed you to just proceed with your kind of flower. Suddenly you mentioned an extra charge of RM25. Okay FIRST OF ALL, I HAVE NO IDEA that you can put flowers on the cover of the yassin and second of all, I never did ask you to waste your designer's precious time if I knew that you will do it anyway. What about me wasting my 18 days from 20th March to 8th April?

Thank god I havent made any payment just as yet. It'll be a whole lot of mess if it did. Thanks so much for your precious time "wasted" on me. I suggest you improve on your kind of replies to a more professional level and perhaps take a good read on Contract Law. You'll then improve on your business.

And by the way, I've paid you RM25 for the precious design. You may wish to reply or not but I don't think we'll go any further from here.

Thank you very much for your time.

Salam."

So at 6.17 pm she replied,

"Zaza,
Miscommunication happens..shit happens.
Anyway, have a nice wedding!
TQ"

Followed by another email at 6.19pm:

"Salam
Pls give me your Maybank acct coz I do not want to accept rm25 after all the commotions.
TQ"

And another on 9.4.2010:

"Salam
Pls give me your Maybank acct coz I do not want to accept rm25 after all the commotions.
TQ"

10.4.2010:

"Salam
I'm still waiting for the acct no. If I do not receive any email from you, I will post it out next week.
TQ"

Of which I finally replied to this looney saying:

"What is it that you want to post out?"

She replied,

"RM25..
I will not accept the money.
Any proposed designed given by client other than ours should be charged a min of rm25( IF the client decided not to go ahead with the design)
In your case, you cancelled the design..so RM25 is applicable. If you have decided to go with it, we will not charge you for the design.
Since your Yaasin orders has been cancelled, I do not want to take rm25.Consider halal.
TQ"

I don't understand why I'm still replying to this woman who is incomprehensible of simple English.

"Look, I've made payment based on your own words. Again, I suggest you be clear step by step, think and scrutinize every word before you say something because your own words will be interpreted and work against you (see: contra proferentum rule).
So please stop emailing me in this manner. I've made my payment. Consider that halal. I do not wish to have any communications with you at all from now.
Thank you."

10.4.2010 @ 1.18pm: She emailed again after being so stupid to not understand the words, "I DO NOT WISH TO HAVE ANY COMMUNICATIONS WITH YOU AT ALL FROM NOW" saying..

"Ok I will post the money since you do not want to give me your account no."

Of which I replied 2 minutes later saying:

"I suggest you go donate the money to the blind, deaf and mute.
I do not want the money.
Thank you."

I can't believe it myself. Such a rude earthling. Ignorance of their own nature of terms and conditions moreover simple manners. Semoga berjaya lah dengan business anda.

Dears,
Know what you're doing. Regardless of anything. Jangan bagi chance untuk orang memperbodohkan anda. Tapi exception in this case. Nak buat macam mana kan kalau orang tak faham bahasa! No matter what, customer is always right! Tak caya pergi Google lah. Kalau tak jumpa lagi sah memang anda menjadikan diri anda ignorant.

Allah tak menjadikan manusia dilahirkan bodoh. Kebodohan boleh berubah menjadi bijak sekiranya seseorang itu berusaha dan berikhtiar untuk memperbaiki diri.

Wallahuallam.

Godspeed.

Was it weheartit.com?

Pretty much sums up my life at the moment. Wtv.

I need some happy pills pronto.

A Little Thing Or Two.

I have learned that being honest means you're not living a lie. It will take us far, far beyond our comprehensible thinking. But by being honest means we might lose the number of friends that we have and an increased number of people disliking us. I guess it's okay to have only two of friends in the world but these friends would tell you the things that you need to hear and will not jeopardize your friendship, rather than to have 1001 friends only to use you as a stepping stone to something. Life is a living lesson. I have come to a point where being honest to what I feel and reacting to my emotions fairly puts me at ease in that I do not have to go through feeling guilty of saying/feeling negative things to another but react in the total opposite - all sweet, nice but pretentious. I'm not afraid of disagreeing. I embrace encounters for then we learn from one another. Act accordingly. Be honest to yourself. At the end of the day, what matters is we'd want to be around the people who would tell us the right thing, to take the right path, even if doing the right thing will hurt us bad. I guess, the saying "Honesty is the best policy" was not passed for nothing. It was meant for something good.

Oh well, let Allah enlighten me. He knows best.

Long Weekend Part Un.

One thing good about December 2009 is the long weekends we have, isn't it? I know I'm late at updating but hey, blogging is not and must not be our new found virtual obligation. I don't blog everyday to tell the world what is going on in my life just like how some people misconstrued the purpose of blogging. It's just something that I do every now and then as and when I feel like it and plus, whatever the contents of the blog that were posted were up to my likings and preferences, hence the higher number of happy bits and pieces. I don't sugarcoat my life, please get that right. I've been through far worse than anyone of you (might) have so please stop judging me based on my blog. Shame on you, well no one in particular, I cakap je awal-awal so jangan sapa-sapa terasa. It was meant to nobody. It's purely an immaturish doing of you to judge a person based on a blog right? Whatever I wrote here is what I chose for you to read. Not otherwise.

See, this is one of the reasons why I'm starting to despise the world wide web. Either you know too much or you know too much. Ironic isn't it? We are all turning into stalkers by our own definitions - be it good or bad, it isn't healthy for sure. Social networking pages are fun but every so often I believe that they are root to all evils, just like alcohol. Mind you, I don't drink but when people get pissed drunk they do stupid stuff that they might prolly regret the rest of their lives later. See? The world is going nuts I tell you. I attempted to shut down my Facebook account more than once, did deactivate my Myspace and Twitter, and only Friendster remains unharmed for purposes of contacts, solely. I deactivated my Myspace simply because there were too many memorabilias that were unbearable for me to shoulder and Twitter because seriously I don't see the need of having more than one "status update" for the entire world to know and also, less one space for drama. Go figure.

Okay side track gila ni. Haha. Coming back to the long December weekend, the first one started off with a Thai Massage I had with Liza Melati (fondly known as Kak Liza - my colleague, partner in crime, confidante from the office) at Thai Odyssey, OU. I finally made use of the birthday voucher that Aimi got for me as one of my bday presents from her and boyy, I feel revived, literally, although I had three pressure points that need to be taken care of now.

Rejuvenation. Period. Oh, Google.com.

Yennywayss, being that our pay cheque was just cashed in 2 days before, we dined at Chillis next and shopped as hell at Cotton On. I purchased 2 cardigans, 1 cropped top and 1 lace collared leotard top. Two words: PUAS HATI. I haven't shopped for a long time, well if you consider 2 months is long lah. Dispersed about 5 and headed home to rest before Mel's and Adeq's bday dinner at Delicious, Marc Residence.

macaroons & red velvs. yums.

That weekend too was Wanie and Nik's wedding reception that Hash and I attended. She was beautiful in the truest sense of the word I couldn't stop gazing at her. Nik must be very happy aye? Hehe. I'm very happy for you both :) Congratulations!

Stunning kan?

Wait up for the coming weekend, err..I mean last weekend's update!

Let Me Pour My Heart Out, Finally.

In response to the immediate post on Aidiladha, I received an email that really moved me. It was from a person I have yet to meet, have yet to know in person, an angel in human form, stating below (if I may..):

"2. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you Selamat hari raya Aidiladha. Hope it is not too late ah. hehe. Read you recent post and i have one thing to say dear, be patient Zaza. HE loves the patient one, hun. "then, when u've taken a decision put your trust in Allah. For Allah loves those who put trust in Him"
(3:159)

3. I have been in your shoes before. I have done a lot of mistakes before and I am ashamed with what I have done. But when I started to change and move on with my life, there are people who cannot accept it. They wanted to see me doing the same things all over again as they wanted me to repeat the same mistakes. These people are just envy with what you have in life. And the moment you decided to become good, they hate to see us move on with our life because they are not brave enough to take the new route that we have chosen. Sometimes kelakar kan dorang ni. Ada masa nak tulis pasal kita. All in all, I have been through a lot and thanks to my strong support system (the family) who are with me all the way during my dark days until now. And I have a strong feeling that you do share the same thing and I think far more perfect than me. Sabar banyak2 k dearie. That is just to show how pathetic and loser they are. Jeles la tu sebenarnye. hehe"

At least I know there are still in existence some pretty decent frengers on earth. I know I'm right when I said that.

Come to think of it, it's been a year, prolly more since I've been experiencing these drama ramas. I'm tired. I'm seriously exhausted and I think I have had enough. To one extent, surrendering is the best option. I know I'm not a person who usually gives up and I should be able to fight this again to my last breath since I've been battling this fight some yonks ago, but I honestly think there are so much more to think about. My family, my family's health, the good people surrounding me, my fiance and his family, my wedding, my upcoming marriage, my girlfriends whom I have been missing so much, and most importantly, my life and my own well being. Yes, I think this is final. I'm about to mean every single word I say.

Ever since I have been with the Fiance, he keeps on reminding (and sometimes scolding) me about my "subtle" and "subjective" responses (or you can say, small retaliations) to a certain, certain blog(s) particularly, this, this and that person. We both argued, argued real bad because he believed in "ignorance is bliss" and I was an avid believer of "aware, so beware" and I guess that was my best defence mechanism I've put forward so far. At the end of the day, and exactly today, I feel defeated by my own words. I shall stop. Stop and drop every filth, negative vibes. I should have listened to them. It's best not to know. From today onwards, please be informed that I will not lay even a finger or leave a foot print in your spheres anymore. I am done. We are done. I give up on you. I just want to grow out, not up, grow out of this whole thing. Penat la astaghfirullahaldzim, masyallah tabarakallah. I can honestly feel the extreme exhaustion. It drains me inside out.

From this moment on, I will neither care nor ponder even a second about those in despise of me. I am not bothered to find out as to the reasons or causes for such hate, neither will I care about what you will think of me. I can assure you that I will not meddle or come in between any of you anymore so you can put your restless soul at ease and I can put my tired soul to rest. I will not hesitate that for once and I am serious about this. Enough is enough.

I'm sorry that I may have caused you and you and you heartache and pain for reasons I may or may not know of. For every humiliation, suffering or agony that were felt, I'm sorry, it is my sincerest apologies. Likewise, I forgive you too, for every ill will intentions and ugly words you've chanted upon me, I humbly pray to God to let Him deal with you for I will disconnect with you in entirety.

I've said it all. Thank you Email Sender for you have finally opened up my eyes that it is about time to put this to a stop. It is a shame and embarrassing to have retaliated to any of it for "abyssus abyssum invocat". Thank you to You too for doing and feeling such things of me because you have unintentionally given me a wake up call to put up my white flag to this worthless war. Thank you so much and I mean that wholeheartedly, no malice intentions coupled with. Therefore, I would now like to repeat and draw your attention to the excerpts from The Quran that the angel who emailed me cited for me, "when you've taken a decision put your trust in Allah. For Allah loves those who put trust in Him" (3:159) From today onwards, I will do exactly that.

Without further a due and if I am of no further assistance to this blogpost on confession, I conclude my submission. The confessor pleads its case.

Aidiladha.

I hope it's not too late for me to wish you a wonderful Salam Aidiladha & maaf zahir dan batin. For all the wrongs that I may have done, I'm truly sorry. For your info, Aidiladha has never been that meriah occasion in our family like Aidilfitri but I believe that we shouldn't overlook into the real reason of celebrating this event. I guess it's safe to say that it's all about sacrifices. I'm not a pious preacher, I admit but I remember Allah all the time, even if my solat tak lengkap 5 waktu sehari. It seems that some crazy wankers seem to criticise me for remembering Him all the time. Itu pun dijadikan cerita. Astaghfirullah, I'm so worthy of their time that they make time to blog, talk, b*tch about me. Most importantly, make time for me. Haha. Takpelah, just maybe, they haven't gone through the biggest tests from Allah in their lives. Life's too short, so let them say what they want to say and let's pretend that I give a hoots and leave it at that shall we? I guess that's one of my sacrifices kot. Sabar dan tabah daripada PHDs (go figure). Anyways, selamat hari raya haji! I wonder when will be my rezeki to perform my haj? But before that kena improve on my religious duties lah. Doa-doakan please. Amin :)

By the way, I've been uploading my engagement photos since last night and still am actually. It's been hours mind you, and I'm still not done. Seriously penat nak pilih which pictures to put and which will not. Banyak sangat! I'm really happy with the pictures, storybook album and printed pictures that Ariff Aris has done. Especially the storybook album. I honestly believe that he and Khalidah did an excellent job and took their photography to the next level. Kudos to you both. Thank you so much!

Gotta continue uploading and getting ready for some wedding majiggys. Later xx

Of Work And Play.

So far work's been pretty good. Office has always been a brill. Comfortable room, awesome colleagues, nice and multiracial bosses, okay sudah sudah. Jangan suka, nanti duka. Haha. I've got quite a handful on my desk at the moment but still bearable, with much time to watch movies, go for holiday, wedding/window/online shopping, etcetera etcetera. Good things don't last, good things don't last. So whatever you do, live life to the fullest and don't fret over small things like what's new, hip and happening. There's more to life than meets the eye.

You know, being a civil servant comes with a "civil" responsibility. I hate wait, I rarely hate. I feel sorry for the people who have such a close minded perception of working with the government. Statements like, "Alahh..you gomen senang..balik awal..kerja senang.." Well hello Mister, it isn't that simple as what you think it is. Please do not stereo type things. People who generalize or stereotype things have no sense of brain creativity, really. Not all people in the service are like that. I don't deny that there are some who conform and confirm to that "acknowledgement" and who I am to disagree otherwise if you've had personal encounters.

However, I beg to differ on two areas.

One: working with the Chambers is easy peasy.
Two: "you duduk Research baca buku je lah?"

What the hell. Sangat bimbo. Yes, bimbo tak kira lelaki atau perempuan and specifically directing to the people who have a legal background. Tak buat research ke?

This is my attempt not to justify but to clarify this generalized misconception. Chambers is part of the goverment. So is the judiciary. Big deal? Yes, big deal. We serve the government, we advice the government, our responsibility is to ensure safety and security of the government. Therefore whatever we do, we have to do it thoroughly and we cannot afford to make mistakes. We strive our best. In fact, it would be such a huge embarassment if we didn't do our work up to their expectations. We send our advices and opinions to somebodys not just anybodys. See how big that responsibility is? But to err is human. We are all human. You can't expect us to perform beyond our living capacity. We do work at 150% at times, sometimes all the time, but there are also times that we get to play :) C'mon, all work and no play makes Jane a dull girl. The masses who have this idea of "working with Chambers is easy" please go stand in the middle of the road and get yourself knocked down by a lorry, please? Get this right. Chambers is exactly like a firm, only bigger, in fact, the biggest law firm in Malaysia but we are wholly government. Whoever disagree, please go shove your cute asses to The Man himself. I'm sure he'll give you one gooood "flying" kiss. We work equally hard but the only difference is we tend to go back earlier than those who are not with the service.

And excuse me ladies and gentlemen, people in Research do NOT just read books. We do everything under the sun. You name it. But to your loss, we aren't allowed to disclose the nature of our work and will have to leave out on the details of our job because whatever we do is strictly P&C. Nothing is not P&C. Therefore, I suggest you come for the interview with us and let AG hear yourself up. Let's see what he has to say about you wanting to join His division.

Okay enough rants. Happy thoughts coming your way :)

We work. Work a lot. Work hard. But we also play hard. Laugh hard. Just recently we had our Bowling Tournament at Alamanda, Putrajaya (yes the one and only) organized by Atong and it was so much fun. Now we know that RD has quite a number of potential bowlers now. Bring on the inter-div competition yo! Hehe.

Sorry if I may have gone a little bit far but they are all my humble opinions. We are all adults, shouldn't we take constructive criticisms constructively?

Reading Stint.

How la to go back home ni? It's raining cats and dogs in Putrajaya now. Hmm.

Over the last week's weekdays from Monday to Thursday, I managed to ganti all the remaining puasa qada' syukur alhamdullilah, legaaa! And on one of the days that I was fasting, I followed my senior officers to Alamanda since they wanted to have lunch there - but no, I didn't tag along to shop ladies, I wanted to go to MPH to purchase birthday cards for my mom, yayi and augusties and ended up purchasing not two but 5 cards! I miss getting cards, short notes, memos, letters, love letters (Hash really is good in this one haha) like what we had during school years. So yeah, during that one hour stint in MPH selecting cards, I managed to take a de tour at the fiction and biography sections and soon realized that I haven't been reading a lot like how I used to back then in uni days and especially back during teenagehood! Right now, even if I managed to read some, I would either end up reading quarter way, or worse, purchase the book but read none! How ignorant is that?

I told myself that's it, I'm going to start reading again pronto, one book a month. That's not too bad, isn't it?, being that to juggle work and leisure, and reading at the same time, realistic kottt. The next thing I did when I got home was to pick up a book from parent's "mini library" and grabbed 'Tuesdays with Morrie' by Mitch Albom. Have always wanted to read 'em and am now quarterly on it.

Therefore, moral of the story is, one: reading must be made a habit for reading broaden one's horizons; and two: there is no such thing as 'no time', you have to MAKE time.

A Protean of Things.

First and foremost, happy (belated) bday Ya! One more day and you'll be back for us to celebrate (again) together! *kiss kiss*

Secondly, remember once I wrote about weddings? Last Sunday, I attended my lecturer's wedding at Sheraton Subang with Hash. We were the only students invited to the reception at the hotel being that my lecturer asked me for help to get better rates as I am related to one of the big people from Sheraton. And so I did get him a profoundly better rate (I think?), hence the invite - perhaps out of courtesy or perhaps as a matter of pure appreciation and sincerity. Anyways that's not the story. I'd like to draw your attention now to my two cents worth.

Weddings should be personal, between family, akins and friends; howsoever you define and choose who exactly is 'family, akins and friends'. Some may include relatives that are not closely related but equally close as if he or she is your first immediate family. On the other hand, some may define 'friends' to include best friends, close friends, good friends, friends, colleagues, lecturers and teachers who became good friends, acquaintances, high school friends, primary or even kindy friends. But some others would prolly conclude that 'friends' mean 'real friends' and that leads me to the issue here is whether we must invite every single human being that we know. If you'd ask me about 5 years ago, I'd probably say 'yes' to that question, but if you were to ask me at this instance, the answer is 'nope, that's right, no.' The rule of thumb is, invite those whom you feel are sufficiently sincere and worthy of your invitation. One should not invite just about any Peter and Jane.

Islam preaches moderation, therefore, shouldn't we all live by it? There's absolutely nothing wrong in organizing a huge grande wedding but please do ensure that the 'accessories' of the weddings go in moderation too. For instance, do you really need plenty cultural dances or band singing to different genres of music session after session? The answer would be a matter of own's preference though. However, I beg to differ. My answer would be 'nay', one dance is enough, no need concert-like wedding. You waste people's time, seriously.

When you have VVIPs, it is impossible to evade from a giant dutiful word - 'Protocol' and in my (in)significant view, I do not disagree on that. We pay our utmost respect to them, but respect earned must be respect given. Therefore, my humble request is please do not come fashionably (and painfully) late? Not only you make us, the early birds and punctual guests to starve, but also make us cringe as the next day is the least favourable day of the week. I suggest that the committee in charge be extra careful on this - chehh silap silap sendiri buat macam ni kat orang nanti. Nauzubillah.

I apologize if I may have spoken up more than I should but these points are reminders for me for my own wedding (someday hehe). I wouldn't want my guests to starve, cringe or be unappreciative of what I have to offer. Saya nak wedding saya semua orang gembira, pendek dan sangat manis aka joyfully short and super sweet. Hehe.