This year wasn't as bad as the previous ones. I actually walked through Geylang a few times towards the end; to buy food, browse through baju raya, beli sampul, blah blah. Actually I prefer shopping in pasar Geylang itself to shopping at the Bazaar Geylang. I know where the best bargains are (I think) so I go straight there, instead of trying to bargain the price down at the bazaar where shopkeepers are trying their best to make ends meet due to the exorbitant rental.

Like yesterday, I walked around, trying to find a yam/purplish tudung to go along with his baju. I stopped at this shop in bazaar after seeing a yam tudung, but I enquired about a black one instead (duh!). It cost $18 & I asked what type of tudung it was. Apparently it was called tudung bawal. I thought it was quite hilarious (not to mention unglamourous, I wouldn't want to wear a fish on my head, no way). Anyway, I bargained & the lowest they could let it go was at $15.

Later I asked the girl to show me the yam/purplish tudung. She did, and to my surprise, that tudung cost $38! Instantly the brain said, No No No! In the end, I walked out of the shop buying neither (kalau AH ada, sure dah mengamuk seh).

I loitered inside pasar Geylang, where I saw many more tudung bawals selling for $10! See the price difference?

I didn't buy the tudung after all, I just bought a kerongsang which I tot looked more expensive than it cost. Even the salesgirl couldn't believe it was that cheap (oi, not $1 lah...more than that).

Then I walked out & tengok2 kuih. Wanted to get Nana this kuih M & Ms but they didn't have new stock. I didn't want to buy the one with squashed M & Ms. I also bought baulu gulung but it was for $12, not $10.
Takpe lah, kasi orang pasar Geylang tu untung lebih sikit :p Kalau hari2 dapat customer macam Nani, boleh gulung tikar.



Lucky it was still early yesterday when I went downstairs, if not, I'd have raided the foodstalls. Actually you need to know which stalls to buy from. I've found the best ayam percik stall. It's infront of the carpark where they unload the fish (yeah, that's why sedap lemak berkrim, heheh) & you can spot the seller dipping those ayam percik into satay sauce. At $1 per wing, it's soooo worth it!

Best burger ramly? Heard it's infront of the Galaxy. Yum yum.

The best keropok lekor has got to be the one at the bazaar in the perkampungan Geylang serai. Really good - crispy on the outside, soft in the inside. We bought $2 worth of keropok lekor the other night.

Well all this food will be gone on Thursday morning. Then all's left of Geylang will be rubbish, planks of wood and canvass. Not a pretty sight at all. Lucky our estate doesn't face Geylang itself. If not, nak raya pon takde mood seh.

So apa yang ada pada Geylang eh? Is it a shopping paradise? Or just the fun of being amidst the crowd? The people watching? The bargaining? The 100% halal market? I also dunno lah, having been an orang Geylang for the past 20 years. I guess I'll only know the answer when I no longer stay in Geylang anymore.

Lias sms-ed on Friday, saying snippets of our wedding video were up on multiply.

I'd never really been into all these wedding videos, photoshoots & all. We didn't even engage a proper videographer for the wedding. Didn't have time to look at the snippets till yesterday, at Kakak's place.

For a moment, I felt like I was transported back to 14.8.05. I remembered the light breeze I'd felt that day, the atmosphere at home - the guests were not too noisy, it was just nice. I remembered saying little prayers in my heart, hoping all would go well. I remembered being surprised at the sense of calmness I felt when the ijab-kabul was said, thanking Allah for it.

I remembered how my family came up to the dais to take a snapshot with us; how our guests wished us all the best, how I could hold back tears when I salamed my own parents but went slightly red-eyed when I saw his mom wish him well.

I remembered that tingle I felt when it finally dawned on me that this person, a stranger to me 5 yrs ago, was the one I'd fallen in love with, and chosen to be a part of me.

And the songs Lias chose to go along in the videos...so nicely chosen (except dance with me, that one never my favourite :p), I especially like Heaven (they remade the bryan adam's song) Never really paid much attention to that song before, but it just sounded so appropriate. Thinking about our younger years...

....

It's rare for me to still be up at this hour. I think I'm missing AH.

AH's flying off in a few hours time. He's taking a nap now; he's been running around since morning - changing SGD into baht, getting his tie from BB, helping me take stuff from BB...visiting his granny...all last minute stuff done less than 10 hrs before he goes off.

If his habit is doing things at the 11th hour, mine is being late. I tend to pack lots of stuff, and mis-estimating the time I've got left. This habit needs to go.

I'm baking almond toffee bar, hopefully will be done before Zuhur coz we're going to the airport after that.

I pray AH will be back safely on the eve of Eid. Coz I'm definitely looking forward to this year's Eid.

The hubby's praying terawikh, while the wife is typing out a blog entry right behind him. Heheh, well wifey's got a valid reason. It's red-letter day again, the 2nd one this Ramadhan.

So the Eid is a few days' away...I've finally managed to get my baju raya. It's black though, not blue or yam as planned. As I was amidst the last minute shoppers at Joo Chiat Complex just now, it baffled me how I could not find even one baju I really liked. How could that be possible? I muttered Bismillah repeatedly & prayed hard I'd find something I liked by today. And alhamdulillah, I found one, at Pasar Geylang itself. And better still, AH liked it too.

Kuih raya? Belum habis buat lagi. Blur me made kuih sarang semut without remembering I'd ordered kuih sarang semut from someone a month ago! Nana said my kuih tasted better but the ones I ordered looked better. Oh well. Makan dua-dua sekali lah, senang :p

A bit tired now. Think I'll take a nap while I wait till he finishes watching soccer. Then we can head back home to sleep.

I've been thru some really sticky, panicky situations for the past year, but as I thought about them, I realised that I've been really lucky with them, many times over.

Just like today, when I thot I'd be done for yet another time for something which has yet to be completed. Then someone came along & offered a solution.

Or like the other time, when I figured I'd be dead meat for not having carried out something quite important, I was saved as no one picked that point up.

Over the years, I've been lucky too. Like when I was 14, and someone pushed me off the slippery rock at this river in Perth, someone managed to pull me back to safety as I was embarrasingly bobbing up & down in the clear waters.

Or the time where I managed to abseil safely just when I thought I'd never make it & would have my grazed knees remind me forever about my failure.

I don't know what I have done to deserve this, but alhamdulillah I feel sheltered.

But for now I really hope I can submit this report on time. I *really* don't want to come in on Monday.

I've been trying to self-medicate since last Monday. Must be the bad aircon - kept me sneezing non-stop. Every night, I popped in some decondine, then off to bed, only to sneeze non-stop again each time I step into the airconditioned cube.

Friday was the worst, it just dripped & dripped & dripped. The 15 min nap I took in the cube just didn't help.

Sat & Sun were fine, until night came, coz that was when it'd start to drip again.

This morning, after sahur, that was it, I decided. I need to rest today. I need a rest from everything.

So after rescheduling 6 appointments, I went off to see the Doc, and slept the whole afternoon away. Still drippy now. Still don't feel well enough for work tomorrow, but I haven't got a choice. With 3 cases to present in 1 day, MC or no MC, I must go to work.

Amidst sneezes.
...

Just now, someone gave a salam outside the door. I thought it was someone giving lauk but it was the brother's friend, asking to borrow a soccer ball. I conveniently told him that the brother was sleeping & I had no clue where he put the ball. Told him to come back tomorrow. The moment I shut the windows, Nana sniggered & pointed right below where I was standing....the ball was just there. Oh well.

Less than 2 weeks to go before Syawal. Here are some tips on how you can get to do your not-so-last minute shopping, and at the end of it, emerge out of Bazaar Geylang, or any area in Geylang Serai in 1 piece.

1. Stroll along, holding hands with at least 3 family members while window shopping at Bazaar Geylang.

2. When stepping into the bake-stuff shop at Haig Road, rope in your son, your husband, your mother & whichever relative you think deserves it. Get them to hold the basket & follow you from behind so it's easy for you to deposit your shopping materials.

3. SMS profusely when you are walking. No need to look at what you step, coz rest assured, you'll have the right of way.

4. To avoid the human traffic jam, come early, say around 4 am & wait by the roadside. The moment you see the carpet-sellers peek for sunlight, rush in. The sellers are all awake & are ready to market their goods.

5. Wear something skimpy. It gets really hot in there.

6. Stop & pause for as long as you want when you spot a dress you like. Better still, stand in the middle of the aisle & point to the thing that caught your eye.

7. When you're trying to get across from Geylang to Joo Chiat Complex, just dash through. Ignore frustrated drivers who have been unable to inch forward for the last 13 minutes. (This works especially well after buka, around 8-ish pm).

8. If you're too tired or lazy to walk, hop in your car, get your brother, sister or hubby or wife, to park at the side of Geylang Serai while you hunt for that one thing that you really need. Take as long as you want. The world can wait while your family car obstructs traffic.

9. If you really need to, bring a stroller/pram & push it around while your toddler trots along infront of you. Better still, get your toddler to navigate her/his pram.

10. If you've carried out tips 1-9, and you still get bumped into, or see signs of not getting out of Geylang in 1 piece, turn to yr side, or behind & tell off the person you see. Best line to say, "Main langgar oraaaangggg ajeeeee eh??!!"

These tips are also applicable if you decide to explore Geylang on the eve of Hari Raya, at your own risk.

there is simply not enough time to complete my daily work

there is so much more I can do for my clients, but am not doing

a report churning machine these days; last week I generated 6 reports, today, I churned out 2 reports, and tonight, am about to type out another report. My body is going hot & cold already, especially with the 4 days I've missed from attending training.

my passion at work, needs to be rekindled. It's about time. I love this job, I can do more. Yes, I can do more.

If only I had more time...

Fizzzz...Fiz....remember you tagged me to type out 3 random facts about myself?
Hehe, parah eh, dah nak dekat 2 bulan baru I buat (kena buat research dulu lah kat library).

Here goes :p

1. I passed my driving test after my 3rd attempt. The first one was a wreck, the second one was a breeze but I failed on the spot just 2 minutes drive from the centre coz I was in 2 minds about turning right at a junction. Tsk.

2. When I was a teen, I used to shave my armpits & leg hair using my dad's shaver. Now, I use AH's. Haha, kidding (But...there was this one time...)

3. I can type really fast. Faster than writing. Oh well, maybe all bloggers have this ability. I think my typing speed is more than 75 words per minute.

OK, off for some field work now. This weekend, balik BB, jadi orang West side pulak.
Enjoy yr weekend :)

Let's hope I get thru fasting today :p, insya-Allah!

Almost every blog's talking about this being the first time breaking fast as a wife, last time breaking fast as a fiancee, blah blah blah.

Well, today was the first time I had sahur with him as a wife, hehehe, he must've been amused at the noise level we're capable of generating at 4.45 am. But I must say, I think he has been a good son/grandson/bro-in-law - he just joins in the laughter or sometimes, just look straight towards my family member (as if processing their behaviours).

Actually this is not the first time I've sahured with him. Coz remember? We were housemates for 3 yrs and we actually sahured together for the last 2 yrs (2001 & 2002). 2nd yr was a bit odd, coz by the beginning of summer, we were moving out of the place at Cashel Way & the 3 female housemates dah balik SG, so the house was virtually empty (save for his TV which was apparently as dear to him as me at that time). No fridge, no nothing. We had bread for sahur almost daily. Nasib baik kita balik S'pore a few days later.

In 2002, we were with Misba at Broadway. Since it was summer during Ramadhan, we had to get up really early, like at 3 am for sahur coz sunrise was around 3.30 pm. Then puasa, puasa...thru'out exams.... buka-ing daily around 6-ish or 7-ish pm. Ramadhan at Broadway was quite fun, coz we had iftar with our friends almost daily, as it was the exam period. Initially I was quite worried about fasting during exams period, especially it was so hot & sometimes we had stray flies in the exam halls. But alhamdulillah, it all went alright (we passed & managed to get jobs, hehe).

It has been a good day so far, and I'm looking forward to 7 pm today...when...yeah you know... the first time I'll be buka-ing as his wife.

Alhamdulillah, I feel so blessed today.

I pray this will be a wonderful start to many more blessings ahead this Ramadhan.

It's rainy, weather's just nice & things are just falling into place this morning (just when I thought they weren't. That's why, never underestimate what lies ahead).

I'm on course today & yesterday. Let's just say I've never stayed more awake in any course than in yesterday's. Let me share a story with you. The story of a bag of potatoes.

Once, there was a teacher who got her students to bring some potatoes to school. Each potato represented how much you hate someone. So those kids brought potatoes in varying amounts - some brought 1, some brought 2, some brought 5, some brought 10...okay you get the idea.

The teacher told them to carry the bag of potatoes everyday for a whole week. At first the kids were happy & excited, telling each other that they have more potatoes, which they can use to hit the pple they didn't like.

But after a few days, the potatoes became rotten & got quite heavy & the kids began to dread carrying the potatoes.

I'm sure you smart pple can guess the moral of the story. I can't be too sure, but I believe many of us do bear grudges & carry some hatred towards others inside of us. But if we go on carrying them for long, they'll grow heavy on us & will affect us quite a lot.

Since this is Ramadhan, what better time can there be to let go of our potatoes, most of them quite rotten by now already. Start with a clean slate....I'm sure we'll feel lighter - free from all ill-feelings.

Like they say, to err is human, to forgive is divine.

Salam Ramadhan to Herda, Fiz, Kak Yati, Tea, Mahd & Esra, and other blog lurkers to me :)

Spent the night @BB yesterday & went to work from there.
My throat is a bit funny now & just now my nose was runny, dunno if it was too cold, or perhaps it's simply my body acting up.

I hope I won't get too ill though, coz it's Ramadhan in a few days' time. Although I won't be fasting for at least the first 2 days...I still want to get well soon.

Today'll be a long one. I hope I get through it well.

Like the show yesterday, always do your best everyday. I'll try.