The Little Indian Princess

once upon a time, in a faraway land, there lived an evil queen named Queen Mig Iggy the IV. Mig Iggy hated spicy food. she decapitated hundreds of her cooks for adding cili padi to her lauk. she hated spices too. she banned all mamak restaurant from her kingdom for not complying with the rules and regulations.


"what's all this curry?! i clearly state that roti canai can only be eaten with sugar! sugar, i say!" and "off with his head!" she was so cruel that she always smiles when passing sentences. she also ordered all chilli sauce to be confiscated from spinneys and lulu hypermart; leaving only tomato ketchup on the shelves.

the mexican eatery Chillis was also adviced to change its name to Tomatoes.


meanwhile, a pheasant boy name kahfi tried to tell the other kampung folks that the queen's actions were wrong, and the sanctity of cili padi should be saved! unfortunately the adults were too scared to do anything for fear of being sentenced under ISA, (the Internal Sambal Act).

kahfi vowed to do something about this grave situation. he refused to grow up in a world where nasi lemak is eaten with marinara sauce, rendang tastes sweet while sambal belacan is just a picture you see in a museum of ancient history!

kahfi then started his journey to find someone who can help him fight the evil queen Mig Iggy. he trudged across the land and arrived at a neigbouring kingdom called Popadom. the kingdom of Popadom was governed by a great and humble King Radha with his beautiful wife Queen Sreeja. the royal couple just had a pretty daughter, Princess Rajsree.

princess rajsree was a cute little indian princess who enjoyed evening walks by the river while collecting bunga kuntum. she also loved wearing earrings and anklets.


kahfi and princess rajsree instantly became good friends. kahfi told the princess all about the evil deeds of his queen. princess rajsree was very angry. the kingdom of Popadom was known as the kingdom of spices. the rakyat there all loved spicy food. as princess of Popadom, she must stop the queen's evil plan to banish all sambal and spices from this world!

princess rajsree's eyes twinkled. she believed that babies have a way to look at an adult with their dooey eye and the adult would immediately be under their spell.

"we have to join forces, kahfi! it is the only way! if my single stare can get me milk all the time, imagine what it would do if both of us do it!" the little indian princess said, in a thick indian accent.

"hey, yeah! mine too!" kahfi agreed.

"let's go then!"


so kahfi and rajsree went to the queen and demanded that she stopped all this tak-makan-pedas nonsense at once. the queen laughed like rosnah mat aris on prozac and ordered the guards to throw them into the dungeon where they would be forced to watch movies by razak mohaideen over and over and over again. that's worse than the gas chambers!

"now, kahfi! it's now or never!" said princess rajsree. the two determined kids stared at the queen with their super-adorable eyes until the evil queen turned mushy with their awesome cuteness.

"i......can't......look......away.....! awwwww......." with that the evil queen was vanquished.


she turned into a law-abiding citizen who would scold people who uses handphone while driving and cries when they don't use signal when turning at a junction. currently she can be seen blogging somewhere around dubai marina.

the kingdom was at peace, thanks to the little indian princess. the rakyat was so thankful that the pheasant boy kahfi was made king. King Kahfi's father, mr. khairul was made prime minister of Popadom. in history, he was named 'bapak kepedasan' for bringing up a boy who saved their kingdom from the sambal-hating queen.

they lived happily ever after.

the end.

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disclaimer: i really tak tahan pedas but i can't imagine nasi lemak without sambal. i love roti canai with curry. i absolutely adore chillis. and i can't get enough of indian/mamak food. just to clear that up. *smile*

mr. khairul's staff radha had a child-naming ceremony at home for their second kid, and celebrated it with a vege makan-makan at one of the hotels in bur dubai. congrats for the newborn! rahul, take care of your baby sister, okay?

afterwards we went to central perk, mirdiff (kak linda, wanted to call you but it was already nearing 10pm kang ngamuk pulak kaco kak linda hihi). mr. khairul had a meeting with a doc based in abu dhabi. he's a malaysian, yet i am pleasantly shocked to see that his name card bears the eagle emblem...

man!

Jalan-Jalan JBR With Kahfi

this is a letter from kahfi to his atuk.


dear atuk,

hi atuk. how was korea? did you get a tissue or stirrer for mak?

it's me kahfi.
today is sunday. bapak is working today.
but yesterday was saturday. bapak was not working yesterday.

so bapak, mak, abang and i went jalan-jalan at JBR.

what is JBR, you might ask. or you might not, but i will tell you, atuk. i know you know many things. but maybe i know this one.

JBR is Jumeirah Beach Residence. hah, now you know too, atuk!

JBR is a long stretch of apartments facing the beach. some also faces the marina, and our apartment. the apartments are at the top, while the cafes and restaurants are at the ground floor. this part is called 'the walk'. i'm sure mak has told you about 'the walk'.


JBRs are tall buildings and there are a lot of them! so there are many stores too! we went to a part of it which has some clothing stores, with brands i can't even pronounce. well, in my defense, i can't pronounce most words. ok, i can't pronounce any words except maybe 'goo'.

we also went to saks fifth avenue which is rachel's 'mothership' - rachel is the one in f.r.i.e.n.d.s lah atuk.

atuk, if you look at the pictures, that is how JBR looks like from the stores area. the apartment buildings surrounds the area and if you take the lift down, you will get to 'the walk'. so if you live in JBR, you can just go down and buy some new shoes!


i don't care much about the stores, atuk. i enjoyed the scenery because, let's face it, lying down all day in the stroller wouldn't get me much choice but to look at the sky. but i did see the fountains too. there is also a generous portion of grassy sections but abang was too tired to run around. he just sat in his stroller too.

but atuk, i will tell you what else i see. there are a lot of benches so atuk you don't have to worry if you got tired after a long walk along JBR. i know you might be tired as there tons of stores, cafes and makan places here! if you don't want to sit on the benches, we could go to krispy kreme to get some doughnuts. abang would love that.

he can eat 3 doughnuts in a row.

ok atuk, got to go. i hope this letter will make you want to come to dubai real quick because i haven't seen you since i came. when you come i will show you around more because this part where we went to is just a small part of JBR. JBR is a huge place lah atuk!

send my hugs and kisses to all my aunties, okay?

love always,
your 6th grandchild, kahfi

My IKEA Book Rack

here is my long-awaited IKEA book rack! i've been wanting this since forever! not any other victorian or modern ziggy zag book rack, but this particular one. and i finally got it! yay! now i have a new place for all my books!

hey, i'm a book bug - read here!

one fine day, mr. khairul just as-a-matter-of-factly said, jom ikea. beli book rack. just like that. it's these little surprises that makes him so huggable!

so we went and bought. IKEA's real cool - everything sort off packed flattened out, customers can just dunk 'em at the back of the car and assemble them at home! no need delivery and unnecessary charges!

mr khairul did everything. he (and khaleef) read the manual and started placing things together. i just watched. helped when asked to. and made snacks. when it's done it's the most beautiful book rack there ever was... (that is, before i can get my floor to ceiling book rack).

tada!

ha ha. my attempt to be creative. i put three items on the book rack. the japanese fan was a wedding present from mr. khairul's former japanese boss. it comes in a crisp box with japanese writings and a wooden stand for the fan.

the metal plate thingy in the middle is a lifetime calendar where you can twist and turn the date/month/year discs on the plate to match the present time. i can't remember whether mr khairul got it from bahrain or qatar. and the bonsai is also a wedding gift from one of abah's former associates.

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my terry pratchetts and stephen kings make up more than a box. and few more have to be placed at the back! sorry, guys!

what's that? pfft! of course i color co-ordinate my books!

* * *

see? color co-ordinate, people!


books to remind me where i've been, where i am and where i'm gonna be. some collected from my days as a reluctant UIA student...other than being compelled to take arabic, my electives consist of subjects from studies of fiqh to science of hadith!

notice my beloved central perk mug! i got it on my first week here in dubai, when mr khairul brought me to a 'special' place he's been bragging about even before i go to dubai.

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khaleef's little, teeny tiny books. and his dr. seuss! i love dr. seuss! also there are my fav comics - 'calvin and hobbes' and 'the far side' - never fail to fix any doldrums..

* * *

books that remind me of what i love best - language. words. art. in whichever order. (syida you have got to get me a book as thick as your roald dahl to fill the space when i return the book to you!)

* * *

on a dark and stormy night, with only the key-hole candle light illuminating the little corner of the house - a good scary book is perfect to be devoured...ha! ha! ha! (that's supposed to be a spooky laugh, just for your information.)

* * *

my jeffrey archers! dan lain-lain...man, i love my books! i've got a few more books to take out from their boxy dungeon - and placed in this nice book rack along with their peers.

books are meant to be read! and i LOVE to discuss books, so if you've read anything interesting please drop me a line! you know i even had a fantasy (ha jangan pikir bukan-bukan) of browsing books alone at a bookstore, when a complete stranger browsed together and ask me whether i've read so and so books and we started talking...(yawn! tu mr khairul la tu!) haha! just a girly fantasy...

ok, now shoo off, excuse me while i get back to my agatha christie...

*thanks, honey for the book rack. love you bunches!

Book Binding

i bought 3 books. i am so so so happy. mr. khairul bought me *books* and i love him bunches for that! i always tell him, "you're so lucky your wife doesn't ask for jewellery. doesn't ask for the latest on the LV shelves. doesn't ask for the new fragrance or make-up line. she asks for books. oh, and bookracks."

he just wears that silly grin that he does only when he's with me.

before you think i'm lavishing on books, it was a 'pick 3 books for the price of 2' thingy at ibn batutta mall's borders. i'm always looking for good bargain on books, that's why i love payless bookstore and the novel hut back in ipoh where i get very cheap 2nd hand books in decent condition.

now what did i buy?

* * *

i never read any of his full-fledge novels, and having liked his short stories, i myself wonder why i won't pick up any of his novels. anyone a fan? any difference between his short stories and longer ones? maybe the fact that he's known as a drama author that threw me off. not a fan of family conflict and drama. got enough of that in real life...

jeffrey archer is an english author, also interestingly, an ex-politician. man, imagine dr. m got down to writing fictional stories...archer's short stories are fantastic, a tad draggy at times but still a gem. most engaging of all is of course the smashing endings of his short stories; unexpected - fans of roald dahl's adult short stories would like his style.

i now have all of his short stories collection except for 'cat o nine tales'. geram!

* * *

i love short stories. easy on the eyes and time. i can read 10 good stories with the amount of time spent to read one whole book. i'm glad i found this collection.

if you love to read, you definitely should've read any of the 80 agatha christie's crime novels, even if it's just that one single book. she's the 'queen of crime'! i often wonder how a demure, plain-looking little ol lady like her was able to conjure such intricate plots of crime and solutions!

i wish i had found one collection of hercule poirot's stories instead, but miss marple is an equally fascinating character. hercule poirot, of course is the grand super-sleuth with the egg-shape head, while miss marple is the seemingly unassuming old spinster, who always manages to solve crime by referring to similar incidents in her quiet little hometown which she acutely observes.

it's been so long since i read agatha christie, so i'm giving this one the time of day first.

* * *

it's not easy to find pratchett's book at the 'sale' or 'buy 3 for the price of 2' section so i grabbed this book just because it has his name on it. i didn't even bother to read the synopsis at the back. even before deciding to buy the books, i kept it tightly in my arms. takut orang lain ambik!

i LOVE terry pratchett's work. i'm no fan of science fiction stories, but terry pratchett is too hillarious to stay away from. sounds corny but when i need cheering up written-word-wise, any of pratchett's work would do the trick. here are some interesting facts about the man.

• sir terry pratchett is an english fantasy, science fiction author
• best known for his popular and long-running 'discworld' series of comic fantasy novels - discworld ni macam our world but with trolls, dwarfs, vampires and werewolves. imagine police force diorang is called 'city watch' and the police comprise of these 'creatures'
  
• there are no chapters in his books, the story just goes on and on
• discworld novels often include a modern innovation and its introduction to the world's medieval setting, such as a public police force (Guards! Guards!), cinema (Moving Pictures), investigative journalism (The Truth), or modern banking (Making Money)
• practhett suka pakai topi koboi kaler hitam
  
• in 2007, pratchett was diagnosed with a very rare form of early-onset alzheimer's disease, in which areas at the back of the brain begin to shrink and shrivel
• pratchett is a trustee for the orangutan foundation UK as one of pratchett's most popular fictional characters, the librarian of the unseen university's library, is an orangutan
• pratchett was knighted in 2008

here is my fav pratchett's quotation, taken from my fav pratchett's book:

There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who, when presented with a glass that is exactly half full, say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!

~The Truth

the boys are asleep, and i don't have a reading light. i'm using the tv. i hope i don't need glasses by the time i'm done...

Tidbits II

what is new this week?

cu with grandnephew and grandniece khaleef and cuya

ini pakcik saya.

yesterday was my uncle's birthday. he turns 45 i think. i call him cu. he's my mak's youngest brother. he's a fun guy, cool dude and he can speak japanese! (tak tau le dah berkarat)

so happy birthday, cu! bila nak datang dubai?

* * *

back in malaysia, we stayed at an apartment with the most generous carpark space ever. it's so spacious that khaleef played ball there every other weekend, especially on a saturday, while waiting for mr. khairul to come home after work.

how time passed. back then, khaleef played with a huge air-filled beach ball - which is ironic coz the bigger he grows, the smaller the ball is.

that's why i'm glad that at our current apartment, we still have a spacious area overlooking the marina to hang out at, and for khaleef to continue his football madness.

at times when the weather is right, the sun peeks just a little bit over the clouds, the boats out and the wind sings, it's pure bliss! just me and the boys, waiting for the ol man to come home...

* * *

...and when i am not looking...

* * *

...or when kahfi is not looking!

i have got to get him into school very very soon!

Borak Sama Abah Lagi

abah is going to korea tomorrow with umi. as part of his round-the-world trip. haha. (joke adik-beradik) he'll fly vietnam airline since it's cheaper. so go check out vietname airline if you wanna see korea. had a chat with the big guy yesterday...

abah (with his backpack - ever the prepared traveller) and grandkid khaleef on the boat-buffet-ride across dubai creek

Abah: sunday abah pegi seoul frm ipoh to klia
migiys: how long will u be in korea
Abah: sunday to sunday, 7 days
Abah: stop over 1 nite in saigon. abah dah pegi saigon dulu. mainly shopping
migiys: ooooo
Abah: seoul lots to see
Abah: sakura blooming now
Abah: also theme parks
Abah: and mbc studio winter sonata
Abah: famous love series
migiys: yup, didn't see it
migiys: but syima, azi suka la citer tu
Abah: they preserve the parks, the houses

abah said he was hoping to catch some of the cast members or when they shoot a scene. and take pictures with them. abah? hihi.

Abah: now still cold 7 c, spring, seoul is still cold despite spring
Abah: also everland macam disneyland juga, as big
migiys: korea ade everland? i'll google
Abah: ye
Abah: like disney
Abah: half day may b try the rides
migiys: ooooo
Abah: given 5 free tickets
migiys: abah got 5 free tickets?
migiys: entry?
migiys: ke for rides?
Umi and Abah: inclusive of tour cost
migiys: ooooo

bla bla bla. yada yada yada.
sembang anak and abah. macam-macam lagi.

i really miss travelling with him. with my sisters. the trip to dubai in '05 was quite funny as it was only abah and 4 girls - and what a luck - he had to accompany his girls to buy kain of all things - so off we went from one shop to another checking out kain while abah sat and watched, only to be sought out when it came to payment...which we really really appreciate!

i'm really lucky to have abah who doesn't mind spending for our travels, letting his daughters tengok negeri orang and see the world. as corny as this may sound, the memory and experience are testimony of our trips. period.

(ok. and some fridge magnets!)

so nice to hear him going where the wind takes him. living his life full. embracing the world yet always remembering the hereafter.

wishing abah bon voyage and as usual, i just need tissues and stirrers from korea, ok!

something in korean language, for you to polish up on before going...

• 오모! - (omo!) this one has no particular meaning...more like a word you utter when you are surprised. maybe it's like 'fuyyo' or 'wah'!
• 안녕하세요 - (annyong haseyo) hello
• 안녕히 가세요 - (annyong kasayo) goodbye
• 감사합니다. - (kamsahamnida) thank you
• 맛있어요 - (mashi soryo) delicious

have fun and take care!

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speaking of travels and journeys, i'm waiting for love to return home from qatar and bahrain...

Good Luck PM Najib!

hmm. not me to write about politics. so this posting is not about politics. it's not! it's about a humble rakyat sharing her feelings about her country getting a new prime minister. the much talked-about change is in the air. a little, but it's a start.


Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was sworn in as Malaysia's 6th Prime Minister earlier this morning, succeeding Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

it was a historical moment as he is the son of our 2nd prime minister, Tun Abdul Razak. father and son, both prime ministers! i hope he will make his father proud by changing the face of malaysia amidst this economic turmoil and political instability.




datuk seri najib took his oath of office before Yang di Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin at Istana Negara, attended by many including former prime minister tun dr mahathir and his wife.

i like what datuk kadir jasin wrote in his blog about datuk seri najib taking over from paklah at this most trying time for malaysia. big job! big responsibility! big hope! hope he's able to turn things around!

"Tidak seperti Abdullah yang mengambil alih ketika ekonomi teguh dan politik negara stabil, Mohd Najib mewarisi ekonomi yang lemah dan politik yang kucar-kacir.

Kalau Mohd Najib berjaya menstabilkan ekonomi, mengurangkan kesan kemelesetan ke atas rakyat jelata dan mengembalikan kewarasan politik, dia akan dikenang sebagai penyelamat.

Tidak ada Perdana Menteri sebelum ini yang mengambil alih pemerintahan dalam suasana yang serba tidak kena seperti yang akan terbeban di atas bahu Mohd Najib."

- from datuk a. kadir jasin's blog

datuk seri najib cites "One Malaysia. People First. Performance Now." at the end of his maiden speech as the 6th prime minister. in spite of what fugly things said about him, i say give him the chance to walk the talk.

to me he might not be as influential and charismatic as dr. m, or a fierce orator as anwar, having the grace of pak lah nor the wisdom of nik aziz but i hope he steps up and prove his worth, and not let the rakyat down.

"Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak takes over as captain of the nation when the seas are choppy and the weather stormy, but being a decisive and effective leader, he should be given a chance to prove his mettle."

~ the star online

not enough has been written about change. regaining the rakyat's trust. strengthening the government's credibility. datuk seri najib has a lot of fixing up to do! probably starting from within...

to pak lah, or tun lah now - we say thank you for the five years of service and let him have his rest. we will miss your warm presence and infectious smile. at least he is gentleman enough to resign and admit his weaknesses, which not many of the present leaders are willing to do. read about how i met tun lah in dubai, here.

good luck, datuk seri najib. as rakyat i send my doa, may you govern the country with honesty, high integrity and stay true to your promise : people first. performance now.

visit his blog 1malaysia.