look kakak!

Hahaha!

Earth and wallpaper

Earth Hour


It's all about Peace, Love and Lemondrops


The favourite topic of earth hour discussion.

What else is new? :)

a bit of lunch and singing

My team and I thought of getting a bit of singing in in-between our long working hours.
Thought it was going to be a one time thing.
Then found it addictive.
This was our second visit.
Another planned next week.


The Star:
Niza - sampai panjat kerusi.

The Nightingale:
Adesh - excellent voice control.

The Shy:
Shikin - not warmed up yet, right till the end.


The Hungry:
Me - lunch was steak! Yum. When I took the picture, they were still cooking it.

We were missing Nik, down with backache; and the gospel singer Karen.
Karen had to hold the fort whilst we went out to play.
She is our team lead. Had to get the office job done. Haha.
Thanks Karen. We sang Merry Xmas for you. :)

Inks galore

Yup, plenty of 'em.
The thing about fountain pens is that you can fill them up with almost any colour you can think of.
No longer just the black or blue ink of olden days.
Even the basic black or blue comes in numerous hues.
Choices. And all you need is one fountain pen. Just one.
Now, isn't that supporting the environment? :)



These are the scented ones. A novelty and a nice one at that.
The J. Herbin blue smells of lavender, and the Montblancs come in cinnamon and vanilla.



Noodler's ink are just fun to have. The second bottle from the right is the invisible ink.
I love the ink. It writes on clear. You need an ultra violet light to read what's written, which glows in blue. Perfect for secret messages scrawled in between the lines of a normal looking letter. Tried this several times, calling names to the people getting my letter (sorry kakak).



These are travelling inkpots made by Visconti. Great for taking your favourite ink around with you.
And filling up your fountain pens with them is a breeze. Clean results.



So there you have it. My ink collection.
Yes, you may come over to fill up your fountain pen with some. :)

count it!

A reminder to myself.
Count your blessings.
Not your misfortunes.

happy birthday fairuz!

Happy Birthday Fairuz!

suleyman bin abdullah of madinah

i was getting ready for bed last night when my phone rang.
it was not a local call.
it was from my "other" family in madinah during my umrah in 2005.


(l to r: abdullah, mazuin, me, amir)

abdullah owns a shop right outside of masjid nabawi.
he runs his shop with his son suleyman.
by chance i visited his shop after subuh prayers and in a span of 10 minutes, we were family.
just like that.


(suleyman)

suleyman and i keep in touch regularly by sms since then.
and he's getting married on 18th may this year.
so his dad called to invite me formally to the wedding.
says i have to be there as suleyman wanted his other brother, me, at the wedding.
he even offered to send a ticket to madinah.
i'm touched.

i cannot promise i will be there for you brother.
if things work out, insyallah.
my doa and best wishes goes to you.
congratulations!

unmailed letter

i wrote a letter to a friend today.
i didn't use any fancy inks. nor fancy pens.
it was a plain one page letter.
and in it was everything i wanted to say.

i sealed my written words in an envelope.
and addressed it:

To Whom It May Concern.
Wherever you are,
00000 The World.

the gist of of letter?

I am sorry. Truly.

earth hour

You've heard this.
Earth hour.
Lights out.

http://tunku.blogspot.com/2009/03/join-movement.html

Maybe lighting a bonfire during that special hour is not a good idea either.
Burning wood. Added pollution.
Just stay in the dark for once.
It's only an hour.
Cuddle up and tell stories.

they cry, "read me"

By chance, I "leafed" through some interesting reading on the net.
Windows to another person's make-up and psyche.
Granted there are plenty out there.
But real gems are truly rare.

I tread softly.
These are hallowed grounds.
And I am intruding.
But like a kid in a candy store, I can't help it.
I engorge myself and find that I want more.

What struck me most was finding myself reflecting and relating to similar experiences.
The sweetness of life, the pains of living and stumbling over mistakes.
In the great order of things, pains and mistakes are unavoidable.
Through it, comes wisdom.

And I find myself still lacking it...

power up!

i feel like i am a battery.
a rechargeable battery.
once i am powered up, i'm great.
for a spell.
then i'm back again for more.

to my friends,
who make me drop my guard each time i interact with them.
thanks for being my power source.

Journaling part 2

In my quest for the perfect journal, I found that almost everything sold in the stores don't fit my criteria. I'm fussy that way. :)

The leather bound journals are nice and handsome. But what happens when the paper runs out? I'd hate to put the journal away. So, having a refillable journal is definitely a criteria for me. But the overriding concern is the quality of paper when writing with fountain pens. Cheap paper tends to cause the ink to bleed. Ugh!

In the end, I have decided to use the B5 sized paper for journaling. They are large enough for expressive writing and doodling. As for paper quality, the Kokuyo brand are easily available, affordable and excellent for fountain pen usage. Kokuyo also sells a myriad of binders in various thickness. In fact, I'm already using them for note taking in the office. What better way to hide journaling whilst attending a boring meeting. Heh heh.


The binders used at work, with my journal entries hidden in some pages in between.


The actual journal. The entries from "work" easily transferred to this one. :)

Journaling

I should have picked up on it when I read about my kakak starting journaling in several of her handwritten letters to me. Journaling would complement our interest in fountain pens for sure.

I chanced upon an article on Journaling 101 in Pen World magazine and suddenly, things started falling in place.

You see, I am very much an open book but there are times when some feelings, emotions and venting just can't be shared in the "public" eye of a blog. At some point, I was already considering getting a "secret" blog and blogging everything that I want to say in its raw unfiltered form.

However, the responsibility of such writings influencing the "untrained" mind bugged me. A blog by definition, is NOT private. Plus, the essence of the writer does not come through in the electronic form, as much as in the handwritten word.

So I've decided to start journaling. Well, in a way, I was already doing it but I called it rambling and venting. :) And I have several "completed" books of it stashed somewhere.

Ok, I'm going out now to find myself the "perfect" journal.

away

ok. i have been kept away from my usual stuff for a few days now.
what else is new.
that's what happens when work comes a-calling.
and noticed that i've missed lots of stuff! plenty.
and missed my friends and families whom i only communicate with on the net.

Omas Green Arco

The Omas green Arco is the latest addition to my pen collection.
This particular model is no longer in production.
Just my luck, my pen master decided to sell his only piece to me. :)



The only Omas in my collection, this one is a looker.
The barrel has 12 facets and not the usual cylindrical built of other pens.
The celluloid is stunning!
My pictures does not do it justice but you get the picture.

Here's a link to some other pictures of the pen - http://www.nibs.com/OmasCelluloidGreenArco.htm

Strangely enough, I have not inked or used the pen, yet.
The nib is not my usual (this one is fine) so I'm thinking of sending the nib to be grounded to a medium or a stub.
Soon.

in the aftermath

Met up with my best buddy, Syed Mohd Fairuz, today.
A Liverpool fan.
Out celebrating obviously, with that jersey on.
He was my first tutor on Liverpool.

My second tutor is an elusive one.
And I'm sure he's out somewhere celebrating too. :)

Football and rituals

I went through a session of football 101 with a friend last night.
The last time I had such a session was in secondary school.

What I found interesting this time was that football fans have rituals.
That's right.
Rituals that fans go through before their team plays.
And going against those rituals is a jinx to the game.
Oh wow... ;)
Apparently, this is serious stuff. Heh.

These are some of the rituals I learned. Applicable mostly before and during the match:

1) Clap 3 times before the match
2) Wear team jersey
3) Brush teeth
4) Eat steak and wear football socks
5) Wear team jersey and watch the match behind a door
6) Eat only spaghetti before and during the match
7) Wear 3 days old boxers
8) Have a dump before the game
9) Don't read anything in the papers.

I'm sorry. I can't seem to go beyond 9 items. It's tough when I'm holding back from LOL.

Anyway, below is a fan going through the agony of defeat because she jinxed the game by not going through her ritual (item 5 above). When she finally decided to put on the old red jersey, she was just too late.

Liverpool trashed Manchester United 4-1, and on MU's home ground Old Trafford.
Painful. For MU fans. :)



(top left: MU scored, top right: Liverpool scored, bottom left: too tensed, bottom right: making amends)

Photo courtesy of Tunku Izzat.

coming home

I just got an email from my kakak saying that she and family are coming home to KL for a spell!
June 19th, on Malaysian soil.
Yay!
Can't wait. :D

piles of it!

It's a crazy work day today.
Niza is going on leave for 3 days next week.
And she requires 5 (count that, FIVE) people to cover her work for 3 (count that too, THREE) days! Guess who gets the major bulk of it? The way I look at it, Niza is just passionately anal about her work, in a good way. Though still anal. :)

And then there's Nik.
Ever so sweet to his counterpart on the other side of the world.
When asked how the weather was on this side, he just had to say, "...it's gloomy and cloudy...you have to come over as you bring the sunshine with you...!"

*puke-ess maximus*

All in all, it was actually a fun day of work. Because I had a gala time being sarcastic to everyone. :)

By the way, Adesh made me write this. I'm such a push-over. ;)

morning thots

"All of God's gifts to us are blessings. It is our abuse of them that destroys us."

Conway Stewart

I've been watching this brand for quite a while now.
Conway Stewart — British Excellence Since 1905.
This brand has consistently been coming out with new pen models.
Always something interesting.

But I have my eye only on 2 of their fountain pen models.


The Wellington


The Churchill

What makes this brand more exciting is that they offer bespoke service. You have a choice of varied coloured resins and finishings for any model you choose. Not many pen companies offer this service. One up for the British!

I was very close to getting one bespoke Wellington in Oxford Stripe late last year when the exchange rate for the British pound was low. But I held back. Being prudent.

I guess I'll go back to watching again. Conway Stewart will be around anyway.

My Collection 090312

Update on my fountain pen collection.

1) Sailor 1911 large black, chrome trimmed, Concorde nib
2) Sailor 1911 large black, gold trimmed, tombo dragonfly maki-e, Cross nib
3) Sailor 1911 large black ribbed, chrome trimmed, Naginata Togi nib
4) Sailor 1911 large demonstrator, chrome trimmed, medium nib
5) Sailor Sustake, aged bamboo, Naginata Togi Emperor nib
6) Pilot VP Yellow
7) Pilot Fermo Green
8) Pilot Custom 823, gold trimmed, black ends, SE clear demonstrator
9) Pilot dragonfly wings maki-e
10) Danitrio Mikado raw ebonite, soft medium nib
11) Danitrio cum laude brown celluloid
12) Stipula LE Pinocchio #13/881 brown ebonite
13) Stipula Suprema Amber 52 degrees nib
14) Stipula Etruria Ocean Blue
15) Stipula Etruria Alter Ego
16) Aurora 88, black
17) Aurora Optima, burgundy, chrome trimmed
18) Aurora Talentum, black, chrome trimmed
19) Aurora Archivi Storici
20) Delta Dolce Vita Soiree, black
21) Parker Duofold Centennial True Blue LE #608/5000
22) Pelikan Souveran M1000, green
23) Waterman Kultur, blue demonstrator
24) Lamy Safari LE blue
25) Lamy Safari LE lime green
26) Lamy Al Star Silver blue
27) Cross Townsend, chrome
28) Laban Kaiser, pseudo ivory chrome trimming
29) Omas Green Arco *new addition*

In the pipeline:
- Sailor 1911 large yellow, music nib

viva la vida

each time i hear the song "viva la vida" by coldplay, it makes me smile.

haircut, yes?

I feel a haircut coming.
But those who see me on a daily basis have their own thoughts about it.
This is what I think they would say.

Abah: Whatever makes you happy, son.

Mama: Make sure you look tidy. Are you wearing that to work...?

Mazuin: Potong la sikit, messy kat tepi tu.

Maisarah: Your hair is so wavy, hehehhee.

Muhammad: Keep it. I want to see you with long hair.

Aida: You are meant to have longer hair, not like your brothers. Simpan la.

Izzat: My hair is better short.

Karen: No lah, you look better with hair.

Niza: Eee...your hair is all curly and wavy. You know, my daughter...bla, bla, bla...

Adesh: Eh, ok what. Biar aje.

Nik: You look good with whichever hairstyle.

What do I think?
I feel a haircut coming...soon.

morning stroll

After a long period of "avoidance", I decided to go for my morning walk like I used to.

I see the "regulars" are still here.
Some look the same, others have improved physically.
I see new faces, new neighbours.
Walking, jogging and just clapping around the park.

I hear the cranking of cold car engines.
I smell burned petrol, breaking into the freshness of the morning air.

I feel the coolness of the morning dew caressing my skin.
At the same instance, I feel the first kiss of the rising sun on my face.

The sky is clear with a couple of clouds completing the scene.
Birds are singing. Dogs are barking.

And here I am, in my usual colour clashing "sporting" attire.
And ever reliable croc footwear.

I can almost hear my neighbours saying,
"There goes that guy who dresses like a clown with his many coloured squeaking crocs! He's still walking around socks-less."

That's why I love this weather.
I can just get up, get out and go.
No hassle of dressing up for the weather.

Granted I look like a messy clown, but hey, that's me.
No upkeep of appearance required. :)

worry

"There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever."

- Mahatma Gandhi

sunset

 

Sun-kissed Trek

Our trek began on a bright, hot sweltering day.

We prepared ourselves mentally for long the journey ahead.

Through rolling green hills where native citizens on wheel-like contraptions zip by.

With aged trees and growing leaves whispering secrets of the sun.


"One step at a time.

 Follow the paved path ahead.

 Pass the red brick road...", they said.

We were lulled by patches of shades promising respite from the sun.


And got caught by the whipping tentacles of death!

Pretty yellow denizens helped free us, guided by the wise white fingers.

We escaped and chanced upon the corridors of roving shadows. 


Where our shadows came to life!


The shadows provided us food and guided us to the lamp of freedom.


And warned us never to come back...for we have been branded.

We found our ship at last.

And found ourselves...kissed by the sun.

dream state

I was blogging in my head last night.

I really was.

I was on my bed, half-asleep when this "insight" came.

And I blogged it.

In my half-asleep state.

In my head.

It was about...human behaviour?

Yes, that's it. 

My observation on human behaviour.

That's all I remember.

I was half-asleep, remember?

do i have a life?

I had a session with my new boss yesterday and one of the question asked was about my interests outside of work. I found it difficult to answer. So, to save myself, I answered fountain pens and being sarcastic (which I usually am anyway).

A chat with a friend last night brought me back to the same topic though it was presented differently.

I'm beginning to wonder if my life is at all interesting. 

I have never given it much thought really. 

Till now.

What do I do when I get home from work?

First stop is usually to check on emails. And surf for a bit.

Then I start on the books I want to read.

And then...? Nothing really. To bed.

And weekends, I start off again with being on my mac.

Then on with my books.

And write a few letters.

Back to the mac.

Then back to my books.

Snap a few pictures.

And if there are no events planned, that's what I would do the entire day.

Bloody bunkers!! I have a totally dull life!

Absolutely uninteresting.

Nothing to shout about.

Nothing to be proud of.

Nothing to share.

Nothing achieved that contributes back to society (apart from my income tax).

Terribly BORING!

When I get home, I am relaxed.

I am not unhappy in any way.

In fact, I'm contented.

But reflecting back on what I do on a daily basis, how do I respond to the question, "So what are your interests?"

Reading, writing and fountain pens? Ugh! Cliche.

Or, I could lie (not likely) and say mountain climbing (I must be joking) and feeding other people's babies (extremely unlikely) and taking care of my pets (they are all dead anyway).

Oh, I would so NOT be a friend to me...!

hati

Hati,

pujuklah perasaan
jauhi segala kesangsian

Cinta,

walaupun berjauhan
kan ku kenang senyuman
kerinduan ku masih

kepada mu...kekasih

Keranamu Kekasih - PGL