Once upon a time, 35kg ago

This picture was taken back in 1996 when I was working at Mobikom (the now defunct telco company that owned the 018 prefix, where I spent 5 great years of my working life), with my former colleagues Zolida and Ridzwan.
Thanks to akak Zolyd for sharing this pic because she has indirectly inspired me to shed some weight (actually I got the shock of my life when I got on the weighing scale 4 days ago, and THAT was the biggest push factor).
And so we shall see. I shall try to shed that darned 35 kg that accumulated after my pregnancy almost 11 years ago. I will not impose an unrealistic target. No way will I lose all that 35kg in mere months.
It will be a gradual process. Smaller meal portions. Less indulgence. Less snacking.More glasses of water. Start swimming again. Another evolution beckons!

I can do this! Insha Allah :)

Food for the Soul

here's something to reflect on as you retire for the day

	Longing for this world brings about worry and sadness, doing without in this world brings ease to the heart and body.
	The Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW) Good night. May tomorrow be better than today, Insha Allah.

Racun & Penawar | A Prelude to Ramadhan |

Dunia itu racun, zuhud itu penawarnya
Harta itu racun, zakat itu penawarnya.
Perkataan yang sia-sia itu racun, zikir itu penawarnya.
Seluruh umur itu racun, taat itu penawarnya.
Seluruh tahun itu racun, Ramadhan itu penawarnya. (author unknown)

Selamat menunaikan ibadah di bulan Ramadhan. Semoga kalian tidak mempersia-siakan Ramadhan ini yang melimpah-ruah Rahmat dan Barakah dari Allah SWT.

New blog name. New look. New mindset.

Okay.
I decided to use the old space. Changed the URL and blog title plus the cosmetics. Habis cerita.
So korang boleh tengok dan buat perbandingan Nor edisi 2009 dengan Nor versi baru edisi 2011.

Aku guna gambar The Afghan Girl yang sangat ikonik ni kerana aku rasa ekspresinya semacam mencerminkan keperibadian aku. Garang tapi vulnerable (wah!).

Harapnya dengan wajah blog baru akan memberi semangat baru untuk rajin menulis.
Chow chin chow.

Evolusi Ku

Ya betul aku dah lama biarkan blog aku ni bersawang sejak September 2009. Nak post cerita baru pun tak sempat-sempat. Entah. Malas ada. Sibuk pun ada.
Dah banyak peristiwa aku tempuhi dari waktu tu hinggalah sekarang. Salah satunya tahun lepas aku dah jual rumah teres dua tingkatku dan berpindah ke kondo pula. Itu baru satu. Ada banyak lagi tapi itu cerita hari lain.

Sebenarnya peristiwa-peristiwa yang aku lalui sepanjang dua tahun kebelakangan ni banyak mengubah karakter, pemikiran dan persepsi aku. Aku rasa ini disebabkan aku masuk Kelab 40.

Klise yang kerap didengar ialah "Life Begins At 40". Ya, memang klise aku akui. Tapi ada kebenarannya. Depends on how you define LIFE. Bagi aku, kehidupan ini adalah ladang untuk kita semai segala amalan dan ibadah. Hasilnya kita tuai di Akhirat.
Dulu aku tak berfikir macam ni. Yup aku dah banyak berubah.
Anyway, back to LIFE.

Kehidupan juga adalah satu pilihan yang kita buat dan hadapi. Berani buat, harus berani tanggung konsekuennya (ya, "konsekuen" ialah perkataan Bahasa Malaysia ok. Aku dah check dengan DBP). Jika tersilap langkah, akuilah kesalahan itu, mohon maaf, rectify the situation and MOVE FORWARD.

Kehidupan juga mengajar aku mengenal siapa musuh aku sebenarnya. Ha, yang ni aku harus berterimakasih pada penerbit siri video The Arrivals. Sungguh, siri video ni membuka mata aku tentang banyak perkara. Kalau aku perlu huraikan di sini, makan masa berhari-hari pula nanti. Jadi korang tengok sendirilah ok. Dah tengok semua 51 episod, baru kita boleh sembang panjang.

Kehidupan memberikan pengertian yang jauh berbeza sekarang - berbanding dengan perspektif aku setahun yang lepas. Syukur aku sempat lagi bernyawa dan terus belajar tentang erti kehidupan. Sekarang misi aku ialah berusaha memastikan kesejahteraan kehidupan Akhirat aku nanti. Aku bukan orang alim, terlalu banyak khazanah ilmu Allah yang aku masih belum ketahui. Aku bukan maksum, tapi aku cuba lawan nafsu aku untuk memperbetulkan akhlakku untuk menjadi hamba yang lebih baik. Semoga aku tak putus usaha untuk menjadi manusia yang lebih baik dari semalam, dari bulan lepas, dari tahun lepas.
Insha Allah.

The point I'm making here is that I'm a different person now. Dan aku rasa janggal untuk guna ruang blog lama aku. Tengoklah, mungkin aku buka blog baru dan delete blog usang ni. We'll see.

Time flies!

What! Is it the Eid already?

It's sad to leave Ramadhan, especially when you feel you haven't done enough ibadah.

And it's hard to say good bye to Ramadhan when you don't know if you will live long enough to see the next Ramadhan.

On top of that, due to the busy weekends I haven't been getting the Eid preparations done. Now that I'm thinking about it, what is there to prepare? Not much, except that we the offsprings will be helping out at Mak's house tomorrow.

Alamak, Raya also means that I will discover whether my Raya scheduling strategy will make or break! AYIEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!! I truly hope those late nights of strat prep work and months of presentations being shot down and revised all over again will pay off. God, please make it happen for me.

Anyway, last weekend some of us "Feel Good Rebels" visited Tengku Nurul who delivered a bouncing baby girl, Raniya, in July. Aiya, I didnt snap any pics on my phone. But I sempat took pictures of the Mahkamah Jalan Duta building, thanks to Santhana who was with me in my Swift. On our way to Nurul's condo, we passed by the Mahkamah and San spotted weird buntings on the columns of the building. So I made it a point to stop by and take pictures on our way out after visiting Nurul and Raniya. It's just too hilarious not to share! Here you go.

Now, what do you think the government is trying to say here? Is the message directed to the staff or the visitors? Go figure :-)

Okay gotta go now and leave the house for some long outstanding errands with Imran.

BTW. Please make some effort to visit the underprivileged this Raya and extend some help to them, okay. My sis told me in Iran, people rush over to the needy right after solat sunat 'Idul Fitri, to help ease their burden. Isnt it wonderful? Islam really encourages community-living and this is definitely the way to go. Thing is in Malaysia, most people have become too individualistic, self-centred and absorbed in consumerism - so much so that they forget about their social responsibility. And that is really, really sad, folks.

I truly hope that each of us will acknowledge this problem and make an effort to make a difference this time.

Selamat Hari Raya 'IdulFitri!

Have a safe celebration with your loved ones and be careful on the road.

The Joy of Living

..is the Joy of GIVING.
This Ramadhan, I hope you will join me in making a big difference and experience the joy of giving.I'm on a mission to raise donations amounting to RM3,300 to purchase 6 double decker beds (c/w mattresses and pillows) for 12 orphans to sleep comfortably at Rumah Penyayang Hembusan Kasturi located in Batu 3 Jalan Kapar Klang.
I must admit this is a tall order but I have faith that with your help, we can achieve this together.If you're interested to make a big difference, please call or text me at 019.228.3511 before 10 September. We can arrange for either me to collect your donation or for you to transfer your contribution into my MBB account (you need to sms me when the transfer is done and state the amount too because I have to ensure the correct amount when I tally up the donations)
Should you intend for your contribution to be your zakat, please specify the type of zakat (zakat pendapatan or simpanan etc) since I will make the specific akad with the orphanage administrator on your behalf.
Should your require a receipt for your contribution for your tax returns , I can arrange for that too. Just give me your full name and IC no (in addition to your donation ^_^). I'm visiting the orphanage this weekend and will update you on the progress of the donation drive.As of now (Fri 4 Sept 1am), the amount stands at RM1,140. So I have another RM2,160 to collect.
I hope I have your support for a worthy cause.To you who have donated and to you who intend to donate, may Almighty God reward your compassion and generosity with His Love and Blessings.
Have a peaceful and blessed Ramadhan.