An Island Adventure...: Cats

Caveat: Ngomelan panjang ahead. Be warned. You’re not supposed /obliged to say or think anything in reply. But I do appreciate your comments! Muah2!

It’s that time of the year again!!! *Sigh*

This Saturday is the start of Convo week. The 1st day (& morning session only) of convocation is extra special coz those graduates get to receive their scrolls from the Yamt*an Besar himself who is the Chanc*llor of U*M. The rest of the sessions – bukan Yamt*an lah – maybe the Lax*mana (apsal ntah guna ejaan ni pdhal Laksa-dari-mana lagi best!), pro-chanc*llors & lain2 org besar berjawatan. So, utk phd FEP –ikut nasib gak lah like this year turn depa dpt 1st morning session ni.

Citer psl convo ni – it’s quite tiring really + penat & boring giler nak tunggu either luar or dalam dewan tu (unless it’s your turn on stage lah kan) – crowded & either too hot (outside) or too cold (inside) ok! Previous years, I did celebrate kawan2 senior (but younger) yg konvo – posing2 amik gambar & kasi hadiah (pening weh nak pikir!) etc.

So this year, ada quite a few lah my geng yg konvo – depa dah kasitau awal2 ni nak booking (marked my calendar as I’m the VIP of the celebration) hehehehe…

But I feel like ‘kureng amat2 nak celebrate’ coz..
A. Myself belum pun submit thesis – perasan byk keje ok!
B. Supposedly konvo sekali (very sedeyyy!) dgn depa ni coz we ols took same papers mah! *Sob2*
C. Sure terserempak dgn para prof: Owh, you’re still here!!! *sakitjiwodennanti& mananaklari*
D. Simply not in the mood. Stress. Whatever.

(Tahun depan pun belum tentu lagi naik stage. Nah, that’s not important at all – a none issue. I’m already thinking of doing thing alone – all by myself & quietly!)

Even ‘adik’ u*m pun msg recently: Saya konvo 9 ogos. Tak nak dtg ke?

Alahai kesian la pulak….yelah..other than family members sape lagi yg nak dtg meraikan (phd is a lonely business bukan macam undergrad yg beramai2 itu)? Esp klu family jauh nun kat p*nang! And then, the day itself kira macam ada popularity contest gak according to how many friends & family that surround you with flowers & presents galore..

Another thing, if my adik’s mak & kak are around – how am I going to be introduced? Kawan? Kakak? Rakan sekerja? Takutnya disalah anggap!!

Thank God, my sis already booked my time since the last 2 weeks – am supposed to babysit her kids during the next weekend. I guess, my dilemma solved! Tapi, agak2nya kecik ati tak?

So smses send out:
"Salam tahniah. Hajat hati (ikhlas really!?) mmg nak raikan kwn2 yg konvo tp 8-10hb tu dah ada date lain lak kat S’ban (quite a distance considering petrol & toll charges, some more with kids in tow) nun. Sori.."

Nobody bothers to reply. Hmmm….apakah?

Pastu nak citer pasal ‘having 2 house is like having 2 wifes’- an analogy ye!

Antara bangi & kajang ‘homes’ & my 2 friends – B & V

The other day, me & B had a dinner date. The arrangement was such that I picked her up direct from the house after maghrib. Considering that I had my prayer in the faculty (quite a distance) before driving off to pick her up, I sorta expected that by 8pm she’ll be ready! So, I drove in a couple of minutes late (almost-punctual is my forte! Not like some ppl e.g. ada org tu yg berjanji nak jumpa kul 9 di klia tp kul 8 masih di ampang & baru bangun - Gulp! As if I’m going to forget?) & honked! Once…and then twice!
Then only I noticed her msg – she gonna be late. Thus, I waited inside the car with the engine running- no problem, i thought.

How wrong! She was so mad – she got into the car after some time – I was making small talk & she’s like - replying to the window screen??! Ok lah lagi…Then we got to the mamak’s restaurant, ordered as usual & started to talk. Then only I noticed her tone of voice – strained & she kept looking to the side! Now I know she’s mad at me!!! Merajuk lah tu…

Note: If you’re my friend, don’t you ever, ever show your muka-44 in front of me! If you’re not happy with anything, tell me straight to my face! I can take almost anything! Er, except harsh criticism, scolding, etc.

When I met my bro for handing over his portion of buah2an dr kampong recently – I told him the above story since I need to explain anyway why some days I’m in bangi & the other in kajang (note to family & friends – if you want to meet me nowadays, ONLY by appointment ya). I said, “Leceh rupanya ada dua rumah ni!” You know what he said, “Ha, mcm tu lah abang rasa!” FYI, he’s married with 2 wifes! LOL

Interframe: No lesb*anism involved at all in any aspect of this story. If that’s on your mind, shoooh2!!

Leading single (or not-so-single) lifes, I understand that we, staying-alone females, tend to crave attention – to be listened at. When I go home every day, I get to listen to this:

Eh, ngko dengar la citer aku dulu! OR You ni, dengar la citer i!

Maybe not so much of them but more like problem of me – I like to barge in the middle of the story telling – anything goes from office gossips to family squabbles. In defence, all I could say is that, if I were to wait until the end of the session, I’ll lost whatever that I’ve in mind whether it’s comparison-stories, suggestions, or comments! Anyway, don’t expect me to listen to you silently….you can label me whatever you want – like to talk ke, byk mulut ke…I can’t simply keep quiet, much more to shut my mouth!

Advert: BTW, just because you gave me money doesn’t mean that you own me or my time or my profusely-sweating hardwork! (nothings to do with the above story yo!). I deserve so much more! *satuluahanperasaan*

Huh! Ok, let’s continue.

I think I’m being rather good now at switching roles between The Houses. On the one hand, I’m the M’am Besar (Me as Ibuk) with a bibik (who cook wonderful dishes according to my taste) at my disposal…hehehe. And on the other hand, there’re two makciks (old ladies) – well, that’s our endearings name-calling if you wanna know! – who burn the midnight oils together! (Well, a half truth if not too much of an exaggeration…)

Now that they’re getting to know me better – we’re starting to make advance planning so that I know which weekend & which house that my presence is being valued the most- at least for the whole August!

In terms of household chores, I try to do my parts - at least looking after myself. After all, as mentioned by V – even in Islam – after 3 days, I’m no longer a mere guess in the respective house! Say, I use my own personal bathroom different from theirs so I clean it up from time to time. Now, B even asked my permission to use my bathroom which is in HER house!

As ‘man of the house’ (providing security & peace of mind – hic!), I offer advices/reminder such as: don’t forget to defrost! Your fridge is no longer cooling efficiently! And do remember to bring up the same matter in both homes. And the jokes now is how many economists and/or accountant it takes to defrost a fridge? And after how long? Er, maybe just buy a new one? Hahah!

Nobody is the ever the same. Thus, one is a lover of the furry animals while another is totally abhorrent of the idea that the neighbour’s pets dare to pass by & pissed in her porch!

Now, isn’t the right time!

Well, this is regarding another match-making attempt. Please, I’m not interested in the young ones. 30yo!!! A minor improvement from 29yo I guess but I’m old enough to mother them (if not smother) ok! With the current ongoing race-towards-the-finishing-line (that sounds SOOO much better!) I couldn’t afford to get distracted- sorry! And the process of getting to know guys who don’t know what they want yet – what a waste of my time! Well, maybe next year…. (gotta keep my ‘doors’ open you see!)

This is dedicated to Ibu & Hatice. Seriously.

(BTW enuf of my previous morbid thots.)

It's a jest! But we never know la kan kot2 masin mulut pulak...

Pre-bbq meet, Ibu wrote:
p/s Peringatan kepada yg ada anak2 lelaki - itu Hatice, anak Simah, ibu dah booked! hehehehhh..

During the meet as observed by simah:
hatice spent the day at ibu chasing her cats...trying to hold them unsuccessfully except for one time which left her frustrated but occupied...

Later in Penang: "Hatice for example has the chance to play with the cats n the kittens for her every waking moments...."

Conclusion: Auntie rad think, "How appropriate!!" hehehe...

To my regret, only now I realized how few pix were actually taken that day. Ala, rad malu2 kucing kononnya...I didn't have proper pix of hatice & baddin, the cats, the ibu&ayah's new spanky abode & kids (wawawa..I dare not asked the details..less I got envious), mama rizq's whole family, the actual bbq-ed items, etc.

The few pix that were taken are really worth it esp when it involved moments like these (dengan izin ye):

Once again, thanks to Ibu&Ayah & family, Simah, Halil (for his 'perseverance')& kids, mama rizq & family & my fren-wani (for accompanying me): What a great time it was last Saturday!