Friday, January 12, 2007

Science and Islam Exhibition - KL Convention Center, 8-14 January 2007

I went to the exhibition yesterday.
3 hours was not enough (for me). Was there until it closes at 10pm.

Small exhibition, but of high distinction.
great place, great knowledge, great presentation - and those great Islamic
scholars inventions top it all.
personally, it is a top notch presentation. must've costed MOSTI a lot.

As an engineer, I was very intrigued with the high quality working wooden
mechanical models on display. And there were many, many interesting
inventions by a Muslim mechanical engineer - Al Jaziri, in the forms of
water fountains, irrigation pumps, etc. Aesthetically pleasing, as well as
doing the job very well.
For chemistry buffs, there's a video presentation on lustre process
(ceramic), and a lot about distillation.
A lot on astrology, geography (mapping/cartography, exploration),
mathematics, modern medicine, military science.
Also a booth on Program Angkasawan - getting to know what exactly the
program is. No batu seremban on display, though.

pity that not many are interested in attending it. perhaps it costs next to
nothing to get inside the exhibition.
they give out souvenirs, by the way:
pens, memo pad, poster calendar, bookmarks (with lucky draw stub - prizes:
hamper, thumbdrive, handphones, laptop, plasma tv. i missed 2 digits
yesterday for winning a handphone).

Dato' Jamaluddin Jarjis (JJ) was there for quite a while browsing through
to see how things are going on. He's quite deligthed that many young ones
(IPT students) taking their time attending the exhibition. He chatted and
pointed out why the exhibition is organized, and brought to Malaysia from
Frankfurt (UN's request to have the same exhibition was rejected, btw).
I had the opportunity to thank him for working out on this exhibition as
well.

It will end in KL Conv Ctr on Sunday (there'll be lucky draw for plasma tv
that day). After that, they'll move to National Science Centre - a bit far
from city center.
I urge all of us to attend the exhibition. Not to be missed.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

a hobby long-forgotten

while waiting for the bus to JB last friday, i browsed thru a magazine
store in Bukit Bintang Plaza.
in the past-issues section, i saw a very interesting needlework magazine.

cross stitching.

it has been years since i last did any.
the particular magazine (british publication) is quite good, in many
aspects - contents, x-stitch designs, and useful information - especially
for beginners.
it was a pity i couldn't locate any craft shop that night. for surely i'll
be having my supply of threads, needles and the cloth to start work upon
during the weekend.

my parents taught me how to x-stitch when i was a teenager. in fact, i did
sign up for x-stitching class in mrsm for my elective course credit hours.
and being the only guy in class. asked the Pn. Toriah if i can be excused
from attending the classes, with the condition that i would submit my work
(quite big, compared to others) completed in time.
nowadays ayah spends his time at home doing x-stitch in his room in
senawang.

i asked my brother Amri where in KL i could find x-stitching materials. so
yesterday i went to Macy in KL - petaling street-kotaraya-puduraya area -
in front of former Rex cinema. they've got all i need, except for 4 threads
of different colours that i need. anyway, with 20+ threads (8m each), it
would take some time before i even need those 4 to work with.

the price of those threads has gone up now though - RM1.20 per skein. so,
if you do get a present in the form of a x-stitch work, do appreciate it.
the workpiece consists not only the expensive materials (count the colours,
multiply RM1.20), but also time, dedication and meticulous attention to
perfection by the person doing it.

i like x-stitching because it challenges my patience - something i'm short
of. it requires attention to detail, and dedication to perfection - traits
needed by my day job. end of the project, there's an eternity of reward to
have the finished hard work mounted on the wall.

i guess from now on, there's only one place to find me during lunch hours
in KL - sitting in my room, stitching for the full hour.

xxxxx
akmal hizam
xxxxx

Friday, January 05, 2007

The Secret of Success

This was given by Samhanin, my sis-in-law.

The Secret of Success
1. Ask Determine the end results that you want. Focus only in
the end results
2. Believe Believe strongly, do affirmation – in preset tense and must
have passion. Act on your plans.
3. Receive Believe that the end result is already happening now even
though it's not there, no matter how impossible it may seem, have faith and
trust (berserah).
for more - visit www.thesecret.tv


My addition:
In Napoleon Hill's 'Think And Grow Rich', he wrote that 'desire' is the
most important thing in achieving what you want. It's the first
pre-requisite that you should have, and have it strongly.
Covey says in his '7 Habits' that you have to 'Begin With The End In
Mind'. Picture what the outcome is before you start working on it. Like
an architect having those blueprints and conceptual renderings on
computers, before the actual building is worked upon.
In Islam, you should have a niat (niyyah) - telling yourself what you
wanted to do, before doing something. Especially, when it comes to a
specific ibadah. Above all, it should be for the sake of Allah.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

test email blogger with photo attached.

this is a test for writing my blog using email. with photo as attachment.
if it's here, that's even better. yay!

(See attached file: DSCN2484.JPG)