Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Announcing the Arrival of Umar Bin Akmal Hizam

Alhamdulillah, praise and gratitude to Allah swt for His unending blessings bestowed upon us.

About 12 hours ago, at 11:26 am our latest addition to the family has arrived.
Our dear Umar was born via cesarean section, weighing 2.1 kg at Puteri Specialist Hospital, Johor Bahru.

He appeared to be in a surprisingly healthy and normal state, despite being brought in earlier than scheduled. Well, we plan but Allah's plan is greater. Naza is now recovering and resting in the hospital.

I'm a bit tired now, but my heart is filled with happiness. And so I found myself typing out these words for the world to know.

We had pictures of Umar taken by the hospital personnel (thanks very much!), right from his entry to this world, out from the comfort of his mommy's womb. Will be uploaded soon, insyaAllah.

Please welcome, Umar Bin Akmal Hizam.
Let us pray that he grows to be a good Muslim. Ameen.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Sunscreen song

Heard this song this morning on the radio. Been more than 10 years since I last hear it. Some are good advice, the rest, up to you to judge.

It’s actually a newspaper article eventually turned into a song.

Original article (now lyrics) by Mary Schmich of Chicago Tribune.

The quite interesting history of the ‘song’ is here:

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Lyrics:

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of ’97:

Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

setem?

Amri is my elder brother.

Oman is my cousin’s son.



Amri: Oman, bak sini email address.
Oman: Ada tiga. Nak yang mana?
Me: Fuhh… banyak tu…
Amri: Bagi je lah yang mana2 selalu check. Bagi semua pun boleh.
Me: Oman, pernah tengok setem tak?
Oman: Setem? Apa tu?
Me & Amri: duhh…


I hope he knows what a Post Office is. But then again, kids nowadays might think that the PO is now a place for paying bills and other stuff not directly related to sending letters.