Cooking up with Syahmi

So, we already heard about GST commencing in next year, I started to think about budgetting and cost cutting and these include of my daily meals. I mean I can eat anything that is halal, cheap and mengenyangkan. Sedap atau tak sedap itu belakang kira.

So I came up with this idea of preparing a nasi kosong and a plain soup macam moi or nasi air for the weekends. Based on my experience, having nasi dengan kuah banjir is mudah mengenyangkan.

Well, masak nasi kosong was the easiest part even though saya selalu gagal dapatkan nasi yang betul-betul sedang-sedang lembutnya. The result was either too keras or too lembik. But it's okay this time since I was going to mix it with the plain soup.

Preparing the soup was challengging. I made a tom yam soup using the instant paste that I bought from 99 Speedmarket, nearby my house. And high five to me because I managed to save money. Earlier, I wanted to buy the paste dekat Giant hypermarket but then I hesitated sebab tak sure which ones yang provide the cheaper price. Selalunya Giant's is a bit expensive for normal price. But then I opted for 99 Speedmarket. Hurrah! Memang murah betul. Dekat pula tu dengan rumah.

Okay, so all the ingredients dah ada, then I prepared the dish. Dekat kitchen tu saya perasan the shallots and onions dah nak buruk, so I add to the mixture. And slices of frankfurters. And together with eggs. Well, I never saw people put frankfurters nor eggs in their tom yam until I made mine. Sebab saya takut telur tu pun memburuk kalau dibiarkan lama dalam peti ais.

Jadi lepas siap masak saya campurkan nasi tu dengan kuah tom yam. Kemudian saya rasa.

Good Lord! It was a stupid decision to put the eggs because it tasted like plastic.

I ended up eating Maggie curry that night. Tssk. There goes my idea of budgetting.

To the hell with GST. Sob..sob...

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You're so fresh to death and sick as cancer

Assalamualaikum all.

It would be great to be here again. My life was a bit challenging recently as Mak was admitted to hospital but now she's in a good condition. I'm very grateful for everything I've had here in this world. Thanks Lord. I won't ask for more.

Okay, maybe I just want to request one good soul mate just to accompany me through the life.

And a property.

Well, anyway, I was just finished watching 'The Fault in Our Stars.' One of the best movie I assure you. Go on and see it yourself. Based on a novel with the same title, this story was about Hazel who suffered from cancer and was forced to join this social meeting and there she met Gus, and then love happened between them. A little bit of romantic moments here and there (with their 'Okay...okay' thing.) Pergi ke Amsterdam dan berjumpa dengan penulis kegemaran diorang tapi hampa sebab the writer was really a douche-pants.

Bukan cerita gay. It's just that Hazel has a boyish hair cut

Lepas tu saya perasan cerita ni sampai dua jam lebih which I thought was quite long for a teen movie. I was just waiting bila Hazel will die of cancer but then it was a twisted ending. I enjoyed the story much. The movie (and the novel itself I expect) is full with beautiful quotes. Haven't read the novel yet but I already downloaded it to my phone.

And past few weeks ago saya tengok filem yang hampir sama 'Now is Good' lakonan Dakota Fanning sebagai Tessa dan Jeremy Irvine sebagai Adam. Tessa got cancer, being rebel and whatnot and she has her own wishlist to accomplish before she died. The emotional is strong there. Sedih sikit cerita ni. Haha. Kesat-kesat air mata bila tengok bapa Tessa menangis.

Oh, I should mention here the place yang Adam bawa Tessa lepak-lepak tu is very blissful. I'm dying to go there! (sambil tulis dalam wishlist sebelum diri sendiri mati)

Gambar menghadap laut takde pulak -_-"

And I'm addicted with the opening song even though dulu pernah dengar tapi rasa macam tak sedap tapi sekarang tiap kali pergi kerja mesti humming lagu ni.

Hazel and Gus and Tessa and Adam are the examples of great love story with a tragic ending. I wish mine is not even it's actually more likely (but not because of the cancer, of course.)

Love truly hurts.

Make Art Every Day

I'm currently reading 'Evil Plans' by Hugh Macleod of gapingvoid.com. It said here, "Make Art Every Day" and by that he didn't mean paint and literature but skill. Your inner natural skill which you should develop. The potential is already there. You just have to hone it. Make it a profit / benefit to your good self and others.

Come on people, be creative! Unleashed your... urm, whatever in you that you have inside.

So I start with this 'little thingy' which I shall share here when the right time has come. Please pray for my persistence because I get boring really quickly.

Last but not lease, "Inspire and be inspired".

Yours faithfully,
Syahmi Makaroni.    

(Image credits: Hugh Macleod himself)

Please don't do these anymore

1. You look to everyone else for the answers only you can give yourself. – For much of our lives – especially at the beginning – we get told what do, how to think, what looks good, what “success” is, etc.  You don’t have to buy into any of it anymore.  Feel free to peel back the layers.  Think for yourself.  Listen to your Self.  Break the mold.  When you stop doing what everybody else wants you to do and start following your own intuition, you will find exactly what you are looking for.

2. You let others make you feel guilty for living your life. – As long as you’re not hurting anyone else, keep living your life YOUR way.  Sometimes we get lost in trying to live for someone else, trying to meet their expectations, and doing things just to impress them.  Take a moment and think about it.  Are you doing things because you truly believe in them?  Remember your own goals.  Live, do and love so that you are happy, because when it comes down to it, relationships can end in an instant, but you will live with yourself for the rest of your life.

3. You allow toxic people to get the best of you. – You don’t ever have to feel guilty about removing toxic people from your life.  It doesn’t matter whether someone is a relative, romantic interest, colleague, childhood friend or a new acquaintance.  You don’t have to make room for people who cause you pain or make you feel small.  It’s one thing if a person owns up to their behavior and makes an effort to change.  But if a person disregards your feelings, ignores your boundaries and continues to treat you in a harmful way, they need to go.  (Read Toxic People.)

4. You are part of the drama circle. – How would your life be different if you walked away from drama, gossip and verbal defamation?  Let today be the day you speak only about the good you know of other people and encourage others to do the same.  Those that refuse to support you CAN be ignored by you.  It’s as simple as that.  Incredible things happen when you distance yourself from negativity and those who create it.  Don’t get caught up in drama.  Just walk on by.

5. You assign negative intent to other people’s actions. – Another driver cut you off in traffic.  Your friend never texted you back.  Your colleague went to lunch without you.  Everyone can find a reason to be offended on a daily basis.  So what caused you to be offended?  You assigned negative intent to these otherwise innocent actions.  You took it as a personal insult – a slap in the face.  Don’t do this to yourself.  Don’t take things personally.  Don’t assign negative intent to the unintentional actions of others.  Let today be the day you look for the good in everyone you meet.

6. You are too worried that people will steal what you have. – Let this be your wake-up call, especially if you’re an artist, writer, entrepreneur or creative type: There is always more to be gained from sharing knowledge than from hoarding it.  Don’t worry about people stealing your work; worry about the moment they stop.  Be honest, helpful and undeniably good at what you do.  No clever marketing scheme, social media buzzword, or competitor can be a substitute for that, ever.  Whenever people want what you have, regardless of the circumstances, you’re doing it right.

7. You’re trying to compete with everyone else. – If you compete with everyone else, you will become bitter.  If you compete with a previous version of yourself, you will become better.  It’s as simple as that.

8. You have been too much of a taker. – One way to deal with stress and loss is to immerse yourself in doing good for others.  Volunteer.  Get involved in life.  It doesn’t even have to be a big, structured event.  Say a kind word.  Encourage someone nearby.  Pay a visit to someone who is alone.  Get away from your self-preoccupation for a while.  When it comes down to it, there are two types of people in this world.  There are givers and there are takers.  Givers are happy.  Takers are still unhappily wondering what’s in it for them.

9. You focus on popularity over effectiveness. – Seek respect, not attention.  It lasts longer and it’s far more useful in the end.  Do things and build things that make a lasting difference.  And above all, never confuse popularity with effectiveness.  Being popular means you’re liked for a while.  Being effective means you’ve made a difference.

10. You keep cutting corners and taking the easy way out. – Do what is right, not what is easy.  And do the right thing even if no one else will ever know.  Why?  Because YOU will know.

11. You focus on every point in time other than now. – You can’t change yesterday, but you can ruin today by worrying about tomorrow.  Be present.  Tomorrow will reveal itself exactly as it should, just as yesterday already has.

12. You are stuck on your mistakes. – It’s important that we forgive ourselves for making mistakes.  We need to learn from our errors and move forward.  Make a pact with yourself today to not be defined by your past.  Sometimes the greatest thing to come out of all your hard work isn’t what you get for it, but what you learn from it.  A happy, successful life, after all, is not a life absent of problems, but one that’s been able to rise above them.  (Angel and I discuss this in detail in the “Adversity” chapter of 1,000 Little Things Happy, Successful People Do Differently.)

13. You have an “all or nothing” mentality. – There’s no such thing as perfect success, just as there’s no such thing as perfect failure.  This is why labeling things in extremes – all or nothing – success or failure – is an exercise in futility.  What does exist, however, is a continuous series of imperfect moments filled with infinite possibilities and opportunities.  Appreciate the grey area between the extremes – the journey – the experiences.  And above all, never let success get to your head or failure get to your heart.

14. You expect life to always be happy. – The world can be a difficult place.  You may experience suffering, heartbreak and loss.  These circumstances can take a toll on your happiness, but do not lose hope.  Think about the Yin and Yang in Chinese philosophy, which states that opposite forces are often interconnected.  In suffering, you can find great strength, in heartbreak you can find resilience, and in loss you can find a renewed appreciation for life.  Life is always Yin and Yang.  Opposites are interdependent and interconnected.  You can’t completely shield yourself from sadness without also shielding yourself from happiness.

15. You keep thinking about worst-case scenarios. - Sometimes your mind unnecessarily wrestles with events that aren’t even remotely likely.  Your sore throat is life threatening.  Your lost driver’s license fell into the hands of a miscreant looking to steal your identity.  Negativity like this only breeds more negativity.  It’s a happiness riptide.  It will carry you away from shore, and if you don’t swim away it will pull you under.  The bottom line is that you can see the world through a lens of doubt and despair or hope and excitement.  It’s your choice.  Either way, you will someday arrive at the same destination.  The only question is: Do you want to arrive with a frown or a smile?

16. You’re letting loss devour you. – Sometimes you have to work at happiness.  Some hurdles in life are too difficult to clear simply by adopting a positive mindset.  Do you need to forgive someone?  Do you need to let go of a failed relationship?  Do you need to come to terms with the death of a loved one?  Life is full of loss.  But, in a sense, true happiness would not be possible without it.  It helps us appreciate the good times.  It helps us grow.  If you’re struggling to see the light, you’re not alone.  Find someone who understands and talk to them.  Reach out for support.  Don’t let loss devour you.  (Read Second Firsts.)

17. You avoid facing the truth. – The truth does not cease to exist when it is ignored.  You cannot find peace by avoiding things.  You have to feel it to heal it.  Bring your fears and weaknesses front and center and shine a blazing spotlight on them.  Because the only way out is through.  The pain of facing the truth is SO worth it in the long run, I swear.

18. You put off making decisions. – Bad decisions are almost always better than no decisions at all.  Indecisiveness just delays, while bad decisions teach us to yield better ones.  In the end, we most often regret the chances we didn’t take, the relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited too long to make.

YOUR TURN…

As you know, when we stop doing the wrong things and start doing the right things, life gets easier.  It just makes sense.  So how have you been making your life harder than it has to be?   What can you do today to simplify things?  Leave a comment below and let us know.

Credits: Written by Marc Chernoff of Marc and Angel Hack Life, where this was originally featured. 

Sunnah

Amalan Harian Yang Perlu Dijaga Secara Istiqamah:

1. Solat Tahajud di waktu ¾ malam sekurang-kurangnya 2 rakaat & solat sunat Witir sekurang-kurangnya 1 rakaat sebelum masuk waktu Subuh- Tahajjud merupakan jalan orang-orang yang soleh, amalan para Nabi dan Wali-wali Allah yang terdahulu. Jangan ditinggalkan.

2. Selepas Subuh, zikir 300pagi {100x [tasbih,tahmid dan takbir], 100x selawat & 100x istighfar}. Zikir sangat penting kerana semasa kedatangan DAJJAL hanya zikir sebagai sumber makanan dan minuman. Hanya orang yang benar-benar jaga zikir shj mempunyai sumber makanan dan minuman pada waktu itu. Selainnya akan mengikut DAJJAL untuk mendapat makanan dan minuman.

3. Kemudian bacalah surah Yasin- Allah janji segala hajatnya pada hari itu akan dipenuhi.

4. Kemudian selepas 26 min naik matahari, solat sunat Isyraq 4 rakaat- Allah janji akan menolong kamu menyempurnakan segala urusanmu pada hari itu.

5. Kemudian solat sunat Dhuha, boleh dilakukan bermula 20 minit selapas Isyraq (di antara jam 8-12 tghari). Nabi SAW bersabda: “Sesiapa mengerjakan solat Dhuha 2 rakaat, dia tidak tergolong di dalam golongan orang-orang yg lalai dan lupa.” Solat Dhuha juga memudahkan urusan dan memberkati rezeki.

6. Selepas solat Zohor, bacalah surah Ar-Rahman- Nabi SAW bersabda: “Segala sesuatu itu mempunyai mempelai, dan mempelai bagi Al-Quran adalah surah Ar-Rahman.” Surah Ar-Rahman menanam sifat syukur di dalam hati atas nikmat-nikmat Allah dan dengan amalan membaca Surah Ar-Rahman juga sangat baik untuk meningkatkan kecerdasan otak.

7. Selepas solat fardhu Asar, zikir 300 petang, {100x [tasbih,tahmid dan takbir], 100x selawat & 100x istighfar}

8. Kemudian baca Surah An-Naba’ – Nabi SAW bersabda: “ Jika kamu tahu fadhilat dan besarnya pahala membaca surah An-Naba’, maka kamu akan berhenti daripada tugas-tugas kamu, lalu mempelajari surah tersebut dan mendekatkan diri kepada Allah dengan membacanya. Sesungguhnya Allah akan mengampunkan dosa-dosa mereka yang mengamalkan membacanya selain dosa syirik.”

9. Selepas solat Maghrib, solat sunat Auwabin-Allah janji akan memberi keampunan terhadap dosa-dosa melainkan dosa syirik kepadaNya.

10. Kemudian bacalah surah Al-Waqiah-Allah janji sesiapa yang istiqamah mengamalkannya pada setiap malam, kebuluran & kemiskinan tidak akan menemuinya.

11. Selepas Isya’ bacalah surah Al-Mulk-Allah janji akan memelihara daripada azab kubur. Nabi SAW tidak akan tidur selagi tidak membaca surah Al-Mulk dan surah As-Sajdah.

12. Setiap malam bacalah Ayatul Kursi dan “Amanar-Rasul” hingga habis. Sangat-sangat penting untuk melindung diri daripada pengaruh syaitan dan kejahatan

13. Sebelum tidur, solat sunat Taubat dan tidur beradab seperti mana Nabi SAW tunjuk ajar.

14. Setiap malam apabila hendak tidur, Muhasabah diri, pohonlah keampunanmu kpd Allah diatas dosa-dosa dan bagi setiap amalan yang baik, nyatakan kesyukuranmu kepada Allah.

15. Sebelum tidur fikirkan dan renunglah(muqarabah) juga mengenai mati dan peristiwa-peristiwa selepas maut. Muqaraba adalah perlu untuk membentuk sifat Taqwa.

16. Setiap hari bacalah al-Quran (Tilawatul Quran) walaupun hanya satu ‘ain’. Latihan tilawah sangat memberi kesan kepada hati. Hati yang tidak ada al-Quran seumpama hati yang mati. Pembacaan Al-Quran janganlah ditinggalkan. Hak Al-Quran adalh perlu dikatamkan dua kali setiap tahun.

17. Setiap pagi Jumaat bacalah surah Al-Kahfi, kalau tak mampu habiskan seluruh surah, bacalah seberapa banyak yang boleh- Allah janji ‘cahaya’ di hari kiamat dan diampunkannya diantara dua Jumaat. Nabi SAW bersabda: ‘Sesiapa membaca surah Al-Kahfi pada hari Jumaat, maka bersinarlah cahaya drpd bawah kakinya hingga ke langit.’

18. Hendaklah hati & lidah sentiasa sibuk dengan berzikir didalam apa jua kegiatan sama ada berjalan, duduk atau bekerja. Berzikirlah ‘Lailahailallah’ sebagai amalan tetap dan berkekalan.

19. Puasa sunat Isnin & Khamis, juga puasa sunat pada hari-hari yang digalakkan dalam Islam. Untuk puasa-puasa sunat, mintalah keizinan daripada suami-suami kamu.

20. Cubalah sedaya-upaya berada dalam keadaan berwuduk

posted from Bloggeroid

Lay back

A novel and Norah Jones' to occupy the end of my weekends. Hopefully tomorrow will be smooth and better.

posted from Bloggeroid

How would you know if she's meant for you?

He: Regarding your question, "How do I know if a girl is meant for me?" I suppose for me God confirmed it to me over and over and over again that xxxxxx (his wife) was the one for me. I don't know if He makes it so clear in every relationship, but I would certainly think that with marriage, it would be something worth waiting patiently for that one woman who you just know has to be from God... or at least someone you love enough that you would be willing to go thru hell with her, as there will always be those tough periods in any relationship where things are hard, where you don't FEEL in love. I've learned love isn't always about feelings... but it's often a commitment to do what's best for the other person more than what's best for yourself, even when you don't feel like it. If you don't feel like you can go thru hell with a woman without ever giving up on her, then either that woman is not the right woman for you, or you're just not ready for a relationship. And of course, this woman should feel the same way about you, and be able to make that same commitment. I hope you find that woman, Syahmi!!! So what do you look for in a woman?

Me: (Holy crap! What should I reply?! I don't even have a clue.)

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Good Day, Mate! Day 1 (Part 2)

Hi. I'm back again. Tak habis lagi cerita pasal trip to Melbourne in which happened past seven months ago. Hebat sangat dah kalau boleh recall every bits of moment there. Hihi.

 Okay, back to the picture. Akak Besa' and her husband Abang Yin sambut kitorang kat exit departure hall and not to forget their lovely little daughter Sara. She was four last year. She was sad when we met her sebab her cousin already went back to Malaysia. She was a bit resistant to us earlier but lama-lama tu dah okey dah. 

Keluar airport je mulut terus berasap-asap bila bercakap. It's freaking cool after the rain. We shot to my sister's residence by cab tapi dah lupa nama the street which my sister lives. Hehe. I could tell that the scenery along the way tu biasa-biasa je mungkin sebab lalu expressway. Domestic building architecture pun quite similar with the ones in those international home design or property mags. It's just that the weather that made us felt something different. And that's made me missed Malaysia too. The atmosphere there was a bit... erm... how should I put this. Gloomy and slow? Maybe because it was going to be winter.

And because I love to see sun very much. I love the feel of hotness. Even my foreign teacher agreed with me. She's fond of Malaysia because of the weather. The dense of sun ray. And hence she made her decision to move out from Lebanon and works in Malaysia. Ceh, baru berapa minit kat Melbourne dah rindu Malaysia. Aparra.

Akak Besa's home is a townhouse of four floors. Opposite hers is an Australian lady's. On top of hers is Middle Easterner's. The Australian lady was not quite friendly which I believe not all Australians are like that. Mungkin sebab faktor usia. Hehe. Dia andartu. So Abang Yin said they only speak with the Middle Easterners je. Well, only outsiders know outsiders.

The first thing we did when we arrived was having our Australian lunch. Abang Yin cooked  a special curry elephant fish with rice. Well, okay, it was Australian-ish as he said we can't get the fish in Malaysia. The fish texture was like ikan pari. Tulang dia lembut. Other than that, he prepared spicy pasta for us and we ate them for the whole four days. Ulang-ulang panaskan semua makanan tu hehe. Hari kelima baru makan makanan baru. And he said he had to be careful when cooking because of the odours released. Austalians tak suka bau yang kuat. Jadi terpaksa tutup tingkap kalau nak masak asam laksa. 

At 12.00 PM, all the guys prepared for Friday prayer. Here, they arranged a two sessions of Friday prayer - one is at 12.30 PM and another one is at 1.30 PM sebab Australia bukan negara Islam. So they came out with this for flexibility. Usually the lunch hour for working people starts at 1.00 PM, hence, the additional Friday prayer session. The sermon is in Arabic language for the first session whilst English for the second one.

After finishing the prayer, we went back to home and helped the family did the laundry. Masa nak jemur tu jari rasa sejuk sangat sebab pegang baju basah. I thought it was about 13 degree? 

Then we took times looking around the residence. Rumah dekat sana cantik-cantik tapi selalunya satu tingkat. And the best part was I can see Melbourne city just outside from my sister's house as the house is located at hillside. Along the time, every morning I stood there silently and enjoyed this picturesque scenery. Masyaallah cantik sangat. And in the morning also I could see many air hot balloons from the city. Tak faham kenapa pukul 7.00 pagi dah ada orang lepaskan belon panas tu. Hehe.

In the afternoon, we went to Myer and David Jones at Swanstons St. for shopping. Reached there by train and we used the Myki card. Lebih kurang macam Touch N' Go. The train macam KTM punya but the door is manual, you have to pull to open. 

Walaupun pergi bulan enam tapi tetap ada sale, maybe sebab it was the Queen Day. Kat sini saya tak beli barang cuma Abang Yin je mencari iPhone baru sebab abang dia pesan. Dekat sini pukul 5.00 petang dah macam pukul 8.00 malam kat Malaysia bila musim sejuk. Sebab tu kot rasa tak seronok. Macam tak puas sangat nak berjalan waktu siang sebab rasa sekejap sangat. Pukul 9.00 malam banyak kedai dah tutup. So it was not happening let alone it was weekday. Lepas kerja semua nak balik rumah.

Oh, now I remember. There was a fascinating fire display at Southbank, Yarra River near Crown Casino. It was a breath taking performance by...err...  the big pillars. Fire came out from the pillars in rhythm. I wonder if there's a misfortune bird that flied on the pillar and kappishhh... became a grilled bird?

Enjoy this vid!