Diary Ramadan Akmal 2014 : Reminiscing The Old Days

Wow. We are entering the final days of Ramadan. It felt as if it was just yesterday i was blabbering to wifey not to pack too many stuffs to go back to Alor Star for our first day of Ramadan. Owh yeah. I am married. This year marks my first Ramadan as someone's husband. And excitedly waiting for our first baby due in September. A lot of good things happened over the year until now. Eventhough some of it are not so good, but knowing that you will have your own miracle does some funny trick to your mind believing that everything is just fine. 

Suddenly all of the sudden, i flashback myself to few years ago. One of nice memories of Ramadan. I wrote it in this very blog. Now i do think that having a blog is not such a bad idea. Some memories are forgotten at the back of our mind but it need that small trigger to refresh it all back as if it just happened. It was my entry on Wednesday, 9 September 2009. Gosh it was 5 years ago. We were not yet 5 years older. We were in our 20s. Hahaha. And this pic. It was the good old days.

Everyone in the pic was still single (with exception of Fatly whois now happily living in New York). I am trying to remember who my gf was during that time. Owh yeah now i remember. I bet my bff Fara remembers her too. For all the wrong reason. Hahaha. This was the hang out group. The gals and the boys. It was one of those memory. All we have left of the memory was a pic to remind us of how we used to be. 

With the exception of Zetty (now my officemate) and Fara (my personal confidante in the times of need) i hardly meet the others any more. The last time i met Meran was before he went on for his honey moon early this year. Zul Azri was during his wedding day earlier this year. Accidentally bumped into Cherrie few months back in Ayer @ 8. Adrian is now happily married and continuing his studies in the states and i was his best man during his important day with Ainul Maria. They are blessed with one cute boy. I never seen Leen since 2011 but we do keep in touch over the social media. Totally lost contact with Andy. Still very much very close to Zaimee as we hang out from time to time (in fact i just got back from iftar with him and his wife Tina). Arep has been a great host to me during my honeymoon to The Hague end of last year and insya Allah i will meet him again perhaps this year end or next year. Everyone are scattered around the globe. Zetty will be starting her new role in Jakarta after Aidilfitri and perhaps i will also be assuming a new role after the baby is born in yet to be decided location. Wow. What a comparison to 5 years ago. Ramadan this year is totally different than Ramadan 5 years ago. 

Ramadan. It is and always be the great month. When the gates of heaven is opened widely to bless us. Needless to say, I am blessed with everything that has been bestowed upon me by the almighty and looks forward for the many incredible days to come. Especially next Ramadan when i will celebrate it as a father if god wills it. I pray that we all will have more Ramadan in our life and one day in the future we all will group once again and take pic with the exact same pose but with crinkles added. Hahaha.

AW

Friends and Colleagues

"There’s a difference between friends and people you talk to at work. You know that, right?”

I will never forget those words...Ady told me once too often...but it taught me an important lesson about colleagues vs. friends...it’s easy to mistake one for the other, especially given the fact that you spend more time with colleagues...like minimum of 8 hours a day and that make is 40 hours a week...in school, making friends is as simple as walking over to the class next door and borrowing a textbook...after study years, however, there are no such opportunities because you might be too busy to go out and meet new people, the tendency is to target your coworkers...it makes sense...after all, they might be the only people you know that are your age or within the same generation, and you see them for eight hours every day...sometimes maybe more depending how much time you spend at work...

While many people use work as a springboard for building strong friendships outside the office, I wouldn’t assume your colleagues are your new best friends just because you take your coffee breaks together...Ady was right—there are differences between friends who will be there for you through life’s tough times and people you hang out with while you happen to be stuck in the same building...you can spare yourself disappointment later on by noting the differences between colleagues and real friends...here are some questions to ask yourself:

•   If your colleague left the company or the same building you happened to work with, would you still be in touch with your colleague in a year?

•   If you had a personal emergency, would you consider asking your colleagues for help?

•   Do you hang out with your colleagues outside the office? (Weekday lunch, happy hour, and business trips don’t count.)

•   Have you met your colleagues' significant other? What about your colleagues' friends outside the office?

•   If your colleague received the promotion and praises, would you be genuinely happy for your colleague?

•   If you ran into your colleagues in the grocery store, would you be able to talk for 10 minutes without mentioning work?

•   Have you seen where your colleague lives?

•   Do you and your colleague have anything in common besides your age and your job?

If you answered yes to most of these questions, you might have found yourself a real friend at work...take care of this relationship by making a concerted effort to spend time with your colleague outside the office...you and your colleague should also avoid working together too closely...its like the same principle of not living with close friends, being in business with them can sometimes be disastrous...whether we like it or not, people can behave differently when money, power, and careers are at stake...suppose you and your colleague pair up for a high-profile work project...your colleague could be the kindest, most generous person in the world after quitting time, but your colleague might take all the credit and do none of the work...you don’t want to put yourself in a situation where you must choose between your friendship and your career...

If you’re lucky enough, someone you meet at work could turn into a friend for life...it happened to me...when i first came to Kuala Lumpur, i don't know that many people...my colleagues were the ones i hang out with after office hour...now i am already working in a different field and still keep in touch with all of them (thanks to social media) and attended my wedding few months ago...same goes to the ones that i met in my old office...we went out and have dinner from time to time...talk nonsense about anything and everything without mentioning work...also not to be forgotten...those who are in the same service as i am...we had been through thick and thin over the years...from then we kinda figure out who are our colleagues and who are the real friends...to top it all, i was the best man to three of my colleagues turn real friends, during their wedding...

How about my office now...well...that goes back to what Ady had warned me since i first started the working life in 2006...differentiate between colleagues and friends...then i will be able to draw the thin line and have better days ahead...i still take his advice seriously...because it is true...when it comes to career, money and power...people can just be an angel to you and turn into a cunning fallen angels when you are out of the radius...i guess that all of us have the same feeling...if only the blades are visible, we will be surprised to see how bad our backs turn out to be from the excessive bleeding...hahaha...whatever it is...i count myself lucky to have real friends around me...may this friendship last forever...

A.W.

---

Conversation Between Single Guys During Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day...kitorang tak sambut...sebagai umat islam dan menghormati fatwa yang telah dikeluarkan...jadi blasah aja la gi keluar minum minum dengan kengkawan yang masih single mingle nieh...

Semua pon umoq dah lebih 30 tahun...ada kerja...ada keta...ada moto...ada savings...tapi...tak kawin-kawin lagi...aishhh...si 'A' tu sampai mak kat kampung dah tolong cari dah...sebab dia pon dah give up dah nak cari sendiri...bukan tak dapat...tapi bila dah planning nak go further ajer...ada aje ilham baru yang Allah bagi buat memang tak jadi...

Si 'B' plak...kerja hebat...terbang sana sini...girlfriend tak putus...tapi memang tak cukup masa untuk kenal dengan girlfriend sendiri...so dia pon jadi was-was...ntah la...

Si 'C' plak...pernah bertunang...putus...sebab...tetiba aje family pompuan tu meroyan sebab kata si 'c' tak cukup standard...nak hambik ko sekarang...si 'C' dah abis masters tengah sambung PhD plak...pastu tetiba la plak family ex-tunang tu nak berbaik baik balik...yang ex-tunang tu lepas putus...terus family dia kawinkan dengan anak orang kaya mana ntah...tak sampai 3 tahun dah cerai...tak der jodoh kot...tapi of coz si 'C' pon ngak mau lah...hello...tetiba ajer nak balik...apekehal itu ex-tunang...

Si 'D' punya citer plak...si pompuan tu suh dia tunggu sampai pompuan tu abis PhD dia tahun ni...pastu baru diskus...wachaaaa...aku sangat kagum dengan kecekalan si 'D'...ntah ntah nanti pompuan tu pon tak jadi dengan dia...takpon letak hantaran RM30,000...sebab dah ada PhD katanya...errrr...

Si 'E' plak...citer ala ala telenovela skit...pompuan yang dia nak tu nak kat orang lain...tapi at the same time pompuan tu pon taknak lepaskan si 'E'...konon teman tapi mesra...tapi si 'E' ni still mengharap...and pompuan tu pon tau yang si 'E' ni syok kat dia sebab si 'E' pernah bagitau...tapi kena reject mentah-mentah...pastu dok mencari si 'E' bila dia bergaduh dengan bf dia...wadehek...kitorang geram gak dengan pompuan itu...sila la bust off sahaja...jangan la dok bagi harapan palsu itu...si 'E' ni pon satu...dah kena nasi kang kuasa dua kot...ntah bila la mau sedar nieh...doa saja...

Si 'F' ni lagi satu...dia tak mencari...orang cari dia...pastu dia terima saja...then dia pon memang cam sangat praktikal dan straightforward...takde masa nak moshi moshi romantiko de amor nieh...pompuan tak dapat cukup attention blah ler...pernah sekali ada pompuan ni merajuk dengan dia...seminggu lebih tak kol...dia buat dek ajer...fokus ke kerja katanya...errrrr...sekarang ni...dia in relationship with a girl who like to have all the space he has been giving her...sangat sesuai dua orang nieh...tapi kawin...ntah ler...

Aku? nothing interesting...kalau ada orang mau ada la...

Kitorang bersembang punya bersembang sampai dah lupa nak dekat kul 2 pagi...demmm...semua pon kerja the next day...mampuih la mata panda nanti...then we went on our separate ways back home...

Tapi terngiang-ngiang lagi kat telinga aku pasal our friends and family's comment about our so-called single status (kalau tak kawin lagi kira single walaupun dah ada gf)...semua orang dok cakap yang kitorang nie memilih sangat...salahhhhhh tu...based on our conversation yesterday...kitorang agreed that...bukannya kitorang nie memilih...tapi...orang lain tu yang tak memilih kitorang...

Hahaha...moga-moga ada la yang memilih kitorang nieh...ahahaha...demmm...cheap plak rasanya...hahaha...

AW

Wadahek ~ What The Hague!

My badminton buddies has their own theory...which is ridiculous to think of...about how i end up going to The Hague the other day...

Katanya sebab aku suka sangat sebut wadahek (which was loosely based on what the heck)...which kalau dienglishkan jadi ler What The Hague...or loosely sound like it...so depa kata la its like a prayer on daily basis at the back of my sub-concious mind...

wadahek wadahek wadahek what the hek what the hek what the hek sampai last last jadi what the hague...

Kelakar betul la memember aku nieh...itu pon boleh jadi modal...lepas ni aku nak kena ubah la plak my often used phrase...ermmm...apa plak eh...wadewellington? hahaha...tak sedappp...biaq pi lah...guna aja la my often used phrase...

What The Hague!

ps: dah selamat pergi dan pulang pon...amin...

FSOM

My Best Friend's Wedding - Puan Mala

Our friendship is kinda funny...hehehe...at least of how it started...

We are in the same service...we were in the same batch during our 6 months course...she's my senior per say...but we are of the same age...we never spoke to each other during that 6 months course...first of all we were never in the same 'sidang'...but we were both in the same dance group as well as archery group...but well...the will has it that we never spoke to each other...but she kept remind me that she used to say hi and i just replied hi...and that's it...ermmm...i am a shy person la...hahaha...

Then...months after we finished with our 6 months course...never spoke to each other still...but i came across her blog...interesting read i might say...i left few comments and she replied...and that was how it started...from leaving comments on each other's blog...then we basically went for a coffee...it happens that we can get along so well...its funny how few simple words in blog can do what 6 months course didn't...its ironic...but that is just how we ended up being very good friends...

To Puan Malahayati

Congratulations on your wedding...may your married life will be a blissful one and filled with love and laughter until ever after...but still i want to have permission from your beloved hubby to bbm you from time to time just to rant and rave as usual...hehehe...

As for mine...ermmm...lets see how it goes shall we...hehehe...

FSOM