calling mommy - phones for the golden aged

i was asked by the tea lady while making instant coffee in the office
pantry, to assist her with her brand new handphone.

now here's the scenario:
she's no techie
she speaks and understands Malay only
she's using prepaid
the phone is supplied by her daughter
purpose of the phone: to get connected with her daughter (rather, her
daughter to connect with her - usual stuff: asking about health, her
welfare, emergencies)

by 'no techie', i mean:
she's not technology-savvy
she's intimidated by electronic gadgets - easier to say no to learn
about the complex features of the gadget
can basically live without such gadgets

reflecting upon the local trend of handphone connectivity provider (maxis,
celcom, digi, etc.), they focus upon the young ones.
look at their ads and promotions.
i can't really remember a package that is tailored to suit the elderly and
the non-techies.
or a handphone with simple enough features to fit her needs, for that sake.

connectivity have to go in tandem: the hardware (the phone) and the
connectivity package (postpaid, prepaid).
in the case of the tea lady, her problem rests much upon the hardware. the
handphone.

getting back on her circumstances, she needs a handphone that would be:
simple, straightforward to use
having very minimal features
user-friendly GUI with large iconic menu - and without trails of
submenus: they'll get lost at the bottom of the menu, and panicking to
get back to where they started off

in short - something that resembles a public phone, or a house phone.
they'll be very comfortable with that.
to make calls: pick up, hear the dial tone, and press the numbers.
once finished talking, put it down.
to receive calls: pick up the phone, and speak.
simple. hassle-free.

to sony-ericsson, nokia, motorola, and the likes:
if you like my idea (in whole or in part), we can discuss further about
this, including my royalties.

Mars, Venus

I went to a warehouse sale in Petaling Jaya last two weeks and bought a
book there (yes, they sold books).
A few titles caught my attention. Initially I got hold of them (Tuesdays
With Morrie, Dale Carnegie's title - forgotten), but then I resolved to
buying this book:
Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by John Gray, PhD.

I've seen the book every time I browse any good bookshop. It must be good.
But then again, perhaps it might be cliché as well. I don't really like
clichés.
As it was sold at RM28, I decided to get it and have a read.
The first chapter is enlightening. How simple the behaviours of Martians
and Venusians are!

If I hadn't be so ignorant all these years, I would have read the book and
save unwanted bad feelings towards the opposite sex (or win their hearts).
This applies especially to my beloved wife.
Now I'm up to chapter 3, and would continue on, insyaAllah.

I encourage you to take up that book, and have a read - at least chapter 1
(you'll want to read chapter 2 after that, believe me).

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.

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

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.

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)

lesson learnt: don't judge a departmental store by its facade

naza had always wanted to go to The Store Jalan Tebrau. i had never registered any interest on it because from the outside it looked rather uninteresting.
we went out to shop for small things and intended to go to carrefour jalan tebrau.
it was raining and there was a massive traffic jam leading to carrefour.
along jalan tebrau towards jb city, however, traffic was miraculously smooth. we saw The Store up ahead - our only option. and naza was smiling endlessly.
so in we went. there was not many cars on the parking area. and not many people around in the store itself. the concept of jalan tebrau's outlet is rather like a hypermarket - emulating giant and carrefour. there are various outlets on the way to the supermarket and departmental store proper.
what i like best was the vegetable section - for its hydroponics. green leaves come alive! ready to be cut and weighed.
there's ample selection of things. and i think, whatever you want, they would surely have it. being a departmental store, it doesn't stock many choices. but yes, they have things that you're looking for.
then there was the bakery. naza and i bought a loaf of cheese bread, potato buns (cheaper and better than elsewhere), and hot milo (for me), teh tarik (for naza - of course).
we sat there and enjoyed dipping those bread and buns. blissful...
so, lesson learnt this time - you have to somehow experience things before judging it. and much to my astonishment, this one was a good experience.

wooden shophouse in Pekan en route to Kuantan. it has a verandah, much like a normal malay kampung house. and it looks like new, although it might have been around for decades.

passing by quite town Pekan, Pahang. i love these old wooden shophouses. that old car passing by adds quite a nostalgic feeling.

east coast trip

back from the east coast trip yesterday.

it was a long drive, but not that tiring. i enjoyed the scenery and more so because we pass through places that we never been to.
no highways, albeit the journey was enjoyable.
not like the usual rides, Naza was awake most of the time accompanying me.

we went to cherating, kuala terengganu and kuala rompin.
i enjoyed cherating and kuala terengganu.
took quite a number of photos. my digital camera is still on repair, so i borrowed Rawani's Nikon Coolpix E3200. quite a good camera.

it was not a destination-to-destination journey. rather, it was a stop-and-go ride. en route to cherating, i stopped for a while at Pekan and took some photos. then to cherating and check in at the hotel.

the next day, check out of hotel and to kuala terengganu. on the way we stopped at chukai (kemaman) and had coffee. i was wondering what chukai had to offer. and, at the crossroad, i saw the red letterings of 'kedai kopi hai peng' on a building. i quickly find an exit and went on to the parking bay. and so, i treated naza coffee with kaya toast.

i'm stopping now, and would continue on later, with photos.

A much delayed honeymoon

Saturday 8th. April is Sultan of Johor's birthday.
A holiday for the state of Johor.
And, Tuesday is Maulid-ur-Rasul - Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) birthday.
I had applied for an annual leave for Monday.
Hence, a 4-day long weekend. I and Naza planned for a trip to the east coast. On my job trip to Kuantan last February, I wished to go to Cherating with her some day. And, this long holiday would be it, insyaAllah.
We'd cover Cherating, Kuala Terengganu and Rompin, hopefully.
Booked the hotel rooms, and can't wait to drive up there.

moi, etudiant

i was rummaging through old cds and came across this one.
i remember a few things about it.
it was taken in 1998 while i was studying in The University of Manchester.
was taken by my classmate Rudy using his SLR. good, quality photo.
scanned by Zul with his brand new scanner (quite rare, those times).
i was young. and handsome. and slim. those are 501 jeans. quite loose eh.
those nike acg shoes that i bought a few weeks after arrived in Manchester. had to leave them in Mancs because they were totally worn out and there was not enough space left in my shipping cartons.
was a sleepy saturday - not much traffic.
i miss those days.

need i say more?

masjid pasir pelangi, johor bahru.

the sultan of johor's emblem on the gates of masjid pasir pelangi in johor bahru.