Have a good life in Australia…

Assalamualaikum...

Last night, I went to KLIA to say goodbye to my one and only good female friend in this world. Together with 2 friends, we arrived at KLIA at 9 p.m. and have about half an hour to chat and taking pictures before she went through the departure gate with her husband, who would accompany her for 3 years there while she continued her study in PhD.

I still remember for the most part last night, I just became an observer and felt content to just listen to the others talking and laughing to each other. My mind wandered around for a little while before out of a sudden it brought me back a few years back, to some good old memories… and of course, to some bad old memories too. (Forgive me if I choose to keep them for myself for they contained my deepest secret and private thought).

My friend Mas; as I know her, is the toughest and smartest young lady I’ve ever met in my life (once again forgive me because I haven’t had so many lady friends, as I am a very… very shy person when it comes to women). I remember when we were working together in a project called e-PMIUM a couple years back. She was brilliant as she was aggressive and as the director of the project, I can truly said, that her contribution has definitely be an asset to us and enough to make a difference on the project. Her ‘no-nonsense ness’ (is the word correct?) attitude with undeniable passion and focus on what she did, proved to be the elements of her successes, whether in life or in work.

All in all, I just want to wish her, to have a very good life there while continue to achieve her dream. In one way or another, she actually inspired me to become a better person and to achieve greatness in this life...

Adios Mas, or should I start to call her Dr Mas?!

Let's Exercise...

This last month of 2007 is a very enjoyable month for me. As it edging towards the end and 2008 starting to gloom ahead, i cannot help but wonder what a year i have had in this soon-to-end 2007!

But please bear with me for a while. This time, i just want to talk about one particular thing: EXERCISE.

2007 mark a major change in my way of life, especially in terms of diet and health control. Just so you know, i arrived in 2007 as a rather slim young man after being fat for almost 6 good years before. So, you can imagine how excited i am for finally get the result i wanted. True to what people said, being slim (or if better - being fit ) isn't just about health or your look. It also affect your confidence greatly! How you present yourself to others, and even to your own self!!

I still remember the feeling i have when i speak with other people especially those i barely know. I keep thinking about what is their opinion about me that they're keeping inside their head. Are they keep looking at me as a fat boy instead of paying attention to my speech or other good quality in me? and so many others. I know i was a little bit self-conscious when it comes to my appearance and about what people would think of me, but i couldn't help it. And the result is, my self-confidence and self-esteem became very low, and so seldom can i step up or rise on certain occasion that i was in need to...

But all that started to changed when i began to pay attention on my diet and living style. When i started to shed more and more fat off my body, i realize my self-esteem getting stronger and stronger. Looking for a book and tips about diet from famous nutritionist such as Dr. Atkin (famous with his established 'Atkin's Diet') and the others, i started to count my intake of calories as well as starting to exercise...

Exercise... and that bring me back to what i want to talk about here today. As i write this posting, i actually just finished playing Badminton with my house mates and a good friend of mine. Well, i wish i could say that i was really good in playing badminton, but as the accurate word to say about my skill is 'just moderate', i found myself fully enjoy this game, and can't get enough of it. I can play for hours until my muscles got crammed, and still i want to play it again that very evening or tomorrow morning.

The same goes to Tennis. Or maybe i can say, even more than that. Even with constant frustration and upsets for failing to execute the beautiful shots that i always saw on TV (if there's an excuse, i would say that tennis is way, way harder than badminton, especially the one without basic of tennis: like me) i still want to play it. No matter what, i want to go out there and keep trying to hit the ball as hard as i can, and as 'in' as i able to!

And lately, my 'resumes' of exercise just getting wider. The latest entry on that list is Basketball. Once again, i am no expert, but through sheer determination and interest, i am more than able to hold on my own when facing my other more experienced friends. God, it's hard, but who can blame me for wanting to try. And now, the latest 'venture' of exercise that i have in mind is Table tennis, and i know i won't have to wait long for that to happen... as long as i keep my mind into it.

Okay now, why do i tell you all this? To show that i'm a very active person? Or to brag about my 'limited' talent in sports? Obviously the answer is no, because what i'm trying to tell here - more to myself actually - is that we can do whatever we set our heart and mind to. You don't have to be Lin Dan, or Roger Federer, or Michael Jordan to play those sports. All you need is your will power to do it, and you will find yourself doing it... with much fun and enjoyment that even you yourself will be surprised...

And if that's not enough, just know that you have to do it for your own good, and not to mention for your health too. As for me, i know that i am more 'kaki bangku' than what i want to admit, so that's why i opted to play on my strength rather than on my weakness. Furthermore, i just learn somewhere that sometimes we have to try many things until we find our true 'niche' in this life.

So, be it in sports, businesses, or other things in our life, don't afraid to try and take the risk. Because somehow, somewhere, we will finally find what we are really looking for...

English Literate...?

Assalamualaikum...

This is my posting at Seven Heroes blog... (without editing, sorry!) Enjoy while read it.

Today is a 'comeback day' for me to write in this blog after almost half a year absent now. Looking at the good writings of my dear friends in this house prompted me to post something in here even though i have no idea what to write about at this very minute...

Then, after pondering quietly for a while, i decided to write about the latest event, or more accurately, the newest excitement in our house: The emergence of English literate conscience among us; which still in it's early stage, but getting noticed and gaining interest by the time nevertheless...

As for now, i could say that nobody in his/her right mind will deny that English literate is very important in our lives. Put aside the notion that english language was coming from 'Barat', english is 'bahasa penjajah', or even english 'bukannya bahasa Syurga!', we have to agree that English is one of the important factors in our daily need.

The modern world now needs people with good/excellent skills of english. It's not because english is the best language in this world, because it is NOT! But, we happened to live in the age of modernization that happened to be championed by the Americans and Europeans! The Westerners!

Face the facts! We, Muslims always being downgraded because of our lack of empowerment in English language. Can't we see, that the Chinese and Indian changed their language from english to their 'pelat malay' as soon as they realized they are talking to Malay people, the Muslims?! Sometimes i wonder if they also looked down at us with pity in their eyes. What to say? poor Muslims, cannot even said one proper sentence in english!

It's time you know, for us to change. The chinese and indian in Malaysia are very lucky. They will at least armed with 3 languages ( their own, malay, english ) when they venture into their adulthood, looking for jobs or opening their own businesses. But we Muslims; we arrived at our adulthood world with only 1 and a half language ( malay and a very bad english ) hoping to land a good job with a good paycheck, without even realized we are being laughed and becoming jokes behind our back...!

So my friends, what do you say? We can do this! We can be good if we want to! We can compete with the others if we realized our weaknesses and try to mend it in the best way possible. Ask yourself and you will find the answers deep inside you. If you don't want to do it for you, do it for ISLAM!

AidanZ

After so... looong.....!

Assalamualaikum...

Well, it has been a long time since i last post anything here, emm, 5 months and a half to be exact!

And if you think that is not enough, i even forgot about the username of this blog and my username for gmail account! Only after a vigorous search and several upset remarks that came out from my mouth while conducting the search, i got both the username and without further delay, straightaway use it to write in this column...

A lot of things has happened to me in the last 5 month. Things that altered my life and even my perspective of life itself! While i wouldn't say that everything is good and being favorable to me, i would say i have learned more about life in these 5 months than in my whole life before.

The truth is, it's not like i didn't learn anything before. But while i did learn something new everyday, i never opened my eyes fully and wholly toward the real depth and meaning behind it. In short, it's like studying all over again, only this time with real feelings and with.. well... reality!

And i for one, am very grateful to Allah for His blesses in me, and for allowing me to learn and embrace all the changes around me with open heart and clear mind...

That's all for now, and i truly hope this 'starting-again-thing' would be resolute for me this time!!