Dr Yasir Qadhi - Tafseer Surah Al Kahf Youtube Playlist

http://bit.ly/DYQ-AlKahf

The link above directs you to the Youtube playlist of Dr Yasir Qadhi's tafseer series on Surah Al Kahf.

It is a series of 21 sessions on video, spanning from 14 to 26 minutes each. Have a go at the first lesson which contains a very good introduction.

Let's get familiar with Surah Al Kahf and make it a habit to read it every Friday from now on and be istiqamah insyaAllah.

Also, to memorize the first 10 verses of the surah (this serves as a reminder to self).

May we all be rewarded, and saved from the fitnah of Dajjal insyaAllah.

Thank you to Norizzuddin for introducing me to Dr Yasir Qadhi.

JazakAllahu khairan katsira.

Dewey the Library Cat

His full name is Dewey Readmore Books, very apt for a library cat, adopted by staff at the Spencer Public Library, in a small town of Spencer, Iowa.

A chat with Nassim over teh tarik after last Friday's night ride in Larkin, triggered my bookstore visit yesterday. It's been a while since I read a novel, so I'm hunting for one to read.

I was in MPH City Square Johor Bahru browsing for a Crichton's Pirates Latitudes. They only have it in hardcover (read: expensive), so I guess I'll just have to wait for the paperback version. I picked up one of Azizi Ali's book on property investment, looked at the backcovers of all books Toyota management (because they are all plastic-wrapped), while holding Umar in arms. Man, he's getting heavier day by day. Naza took care of selecting the children's educational books, and the payment at the counter (of course, with my $).

I lingered at the non-fiction (Albom, et. al.), and I saw Dewey posing innocently to the camera on the book cover. The backcover stated his full name (yes, this one's also was wrapped in plastic), and I'm hooked just by reading his name. So, I brought his story home as well. A true story would be much better than a novel if it involves cats, I think. Paulo Coelho (probably The Zahir) just have to wait until next month to reside on my bookshelf.

A quick research this morning returned the links scattered in this entry. Interesting, indeed. Especially for an ex-librarian (in MBS Sentul), book lover, and feline adorer in me.

Up to this point, I'm only at the first chapter. I'll continue reading during lunchtimes. Meanwhile, have a load on Dewey's photos in Spencer Library's website. He's also on Facebook, by the way.

photo credit goes to Spencer Public Library

Al Insyirah

Bismillahirrahmaanirrahiim

Al Insyirah
Bukankah Kami telah melapangkan untukmu dadamu?,
Dan Kami telah menghilangkan dari padamu bebanmu,
Yang memberatkan punggungmu?
Dan Kami tinggikan bagimu sebutan (nama)mu.
Kerana sesungguhnya sesudah kesulitan itu ada kemudahan,
Sesungguhnya sesudah kesulitan itu ada kemudahan.
Maka apabila kamu telah selesai (dari sesuatu urusan), kerjakanlah dengan sungguh-sungguh (urusan) yang lain,
Dan hanya kepada Tuhanmulah hendaknya kamu berharap.

Surah 94, Al-Quran Kareem

Norzah the writer

He's an old hand when it comes to writing. Only this morning I discovered that he's been blogging since 2007.

He's my uncle, by way that his wife is Ibu's cousin. A retired government servant, I have high respect upon him. I still remember that morning while at the neighbourhood mamak shop buying things that Ibu asked me to buy. I caught a glimpse of his face on the front page of a newspaper (memory not so fantastic, can't recall which newspaper). I was only 9 at that time, and buying a newspaper was never in my shopping list. I bought that paper (instead of the usual Kiki chewing gums), for Uncle's face was on the front page giving his thoughts on something, as a somebody from MAMPU.

I guess he's one of my role models (also his wife, Aunty Bong) when I was growing up. You know, a kampung boy (and girl) who went to further their studies in universities overseas, hold high ranks in government, successful, makes folks at home proud. Drives a Volvo. That sort of thing.
Only very much later I found out that he's an avid writer. He gave me a thick novel as a gift when I visited him after I graduated. A Malay novel that he wrote - Saga.

As a tribute, I put his blog link in my blogroll. Love to read your thoughts, Uncle.

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:

• http://www.bondon.com/sunscreen_song.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wear_Sunscreen

=====================

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.

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.

begitulah acuannya

Seronok sekarang ni perhatikan perangai anak-anak.
Banyak yang sama macam mak dan ayah diorang.
Tapi bila tang perangai yang tak berapa bagus tu, jadi risau jugak :P
Masa tu kena lah muhasabah diri.

Agaknya itulah satu lagi rahmat Allah bagi kat ibubapa melalui anak-anak.

Semoga kita semua terus berusaha untuk menjadi manusia terbaik, insyaAllah.

lower your taxes, give away books

April is nearing the end. Are you being a good Malaysian? Have you filed in your tax forms?

Among other things, we can lower our taxes - or at least get back our pre-paid PCBs, by buying books (and magazines). You can get tax deduction by claiming up to RM1,000 expenditure on books and magazines. That's a big sum, and could lower by quite an amount from your taxable income. When it comes to taxes, a ringgit is a hefty sum, isn't it?

Even if you don't enjoy reading books, once in a while you'd buy a copy or two of magazines to kill time while waiting for someone, school books for your children, yada yada yada...

Or, you could buy books as gifts. C'mon, you do give away presents to someone, right? While it may be nice to buy those small things your loved ones have been hinting on you all-year, giving away books would work for you, too. It's a win-win thingy. You'll not only enrich someone's life (great people reads, and leads), you'll also be doing yourself a favour. Everyone would be happy, because of you.

Err... here's a list of books that I want this year. Well, at least one of them.

http://www.bike-maintenance.com/maintenance-books.htm

Make my day. Save the receipt(s) for next April (and make your day, then).

How Fast Can Your Fingers Dance?

If you could send SMSes without having to look at the keypad of your handphone, kudos! That's a skill that many are still trying to learn, and not all could master. I am one of that many. However, it's only using one thumb. So, not an all-fingers-dancing there.

Touch Typing (TT) is an essential skill modern people should have. It uses all your fingers. Well, I'm using only nine - my right hand thumb is spared from the keyboard dance. Most of us who work in the office would have a computer on our desks. The means of communicating with the computer is via the mouse and the keyboard.

There are many associated health risks related to the usage of these two. Essentials for our work, we can't do without them. The risks can be minimised, by taking steps to make better the ergonomics. The physical design aspect is one of them. Another step that we could take is to minimise the nodding movement while typing. That is, to minimise the eye (and head) movement when we have to glance at the keyboard every now and then to make sure that we're hitting on the correct keys. With TT, this is minimised, or eliminated altogether (if you're an expert).

Reduced health risks aside, it is much more convenient to TT. Lunchtime is a lights-off period in my office. So, the ability to TT is essential if one is to send emails (not work related, of course...) or chat online during that period.

Old school Autocad users are familiar with TT, but not to the full extent. Give them a mouse to work with, they'd prefer a QWERTY keyboard instead. After all, the numbers are still on the keyboard, right?

That being said, TT also includes the ability to key in numbers without looking at the keypad. By the way, that set of numbers to the right of a full-sized keyboard is called a keypad.

I could only TT at about 45 words per minute (WPM) at accuracy above 90%. However, throw in symbols in the sentences or words to be typed, my accuracy (or speed) would drop a lot.
I learnt how to TT when I was 15, using my cousin Azizi's PC. Those days, the OS was MS-DOS (no, I'm not old), so the graphics was not as awesome as nowadays. Still the essence is the same. After finishing school, while my friends were attending driving classes, I sat at home learning TT on my brother Amri's PC (Windows based already by this). Four hours a day, for three weeks, I finished the basic lessons - not that hard, eh? Well, the PC was not with captivating computer games(solitaire, pacman) that I could play with, so I took the challenge of TT.

The intention was for me to be able to type efficiently, knowing that I would have to hand out reports and assignments for college and university. So, I started 'early' learning how to TT to prepare for that, and I guess I set the goal right back then.

The only bad thing about being able to TT is that my eyes would stay fixed on the computer monitor for a long period of time. Oh, and me learning to TT and forgoing the driving lessons, that's another story.

Google for 'touch typing' (or here), and you'll get enough help to get started. There are many sites offering free online tutoring. Have fun, and may your fingers dance gracefully, and faster.

jemput makan?

While having his nasi lemak in the office one morning, a colleague invited:
"Makan?" ("Eat?")
It's a shortened question for "come and join me with my meal".

It is a courtesy invitation, practiced by Asians. We politely offer to share our meals with others. This is so as not to be rude, enjoying the sumptuous meal alone while others would be left watching enviously and trying hard to ignore the tantalizing aroma floating around the area shared by those around.

This courtesy is practised almost anywhere, even with strangers. If you're on a bus for a long journey and about to enjoy your food, it is deemed to be normal (and somewhat expected) for you to extend this courtesy to the person seated next to you. Even if it's just a plain slice of bread. It's the thought that counts.

Almost all the time, this 'obligatory' courteous invitation will be welcomed with a smile (absent all the while before that), and replied with one of these stock answers:
"Silakan",
"No thank you, enjoy your [whatever]",
"Bismillah" (I like/prefer this one),
"Eh, takpe, takpe",
and et cetera.

I said 'almost', because sometimes I'd like to tease my friends (and strangers) with this unexpected answer:
"OK, leave some for me that chicken wing and the ice cream", while rolling my sleeves up.

That begs a question:
Do we offer our food to be shared with others around because of mere courtesy, adab berbudi bahasa, making it as cliché; or doing it out of pure sincerity and kind thoughts?

During college years, a close friend of mine usually would enjoy his food by himself quietly, and never would offer the courtesy to people around. His take on it is that he wants to eat it all for himself (food on his plate is just enough for himself), and would never be a hypocrite. I agree with him on this.

There's a hadeeth about sharing your food:
"Food for two is enough for three, while food for three is enough for four"
(Abu Hurairah r.a.)

Rest assured, I'll always be sincere while being courteous whenever I ask you to join me with my meal. Though I'll keep mum if I'm only a spoonful away from finishing my [whatever].

be the boss?

Anyone would be perplexed whenever I tell them that I don't have any desire to be a boss, head of department or the like.

I would ask them back why would anyone want to be a boss. The common and usual answer would be 'better salary'. Ahh... the very reason why people are busting their delicate bottoms everyday at their workplace.

$.
Not just $, but $ if you're the boss.

Yes, it is bigger but not necessarily always. Once a former boss of mine said that it is also not unusual for bosses having lower wages than their subordinates. This of course depends on the industry and the line of work. You don't have to be in the management ladder in order to have a big salary. For technical companies, if you have the right technical competency, your salary would be upscaled accordingly. Unfortunately for me, my company doesn't have that. Thus the only path to have better salary is to be the boss.

Does it have to be that way? The boss is the leader, period. That's how companies would flourish, and people get better. When people wants to be the leader because of the $ factor, things could go ugly. Corrupt politicians are examples. Naturally, a leader is a leader not because of the benefits for himself. He should be focusing on others, beyond self. Improving the lives of others, for example. Hence making the $ factor not the prime motivation, rather downgraded only as a side benefit.

You would always also hear bosses say that 'money is not everything'. Well, if you already have tons of it, and that's completely another topic altogether.

Linkin Park now playing in your nearest masjid

Or it could be Metallica, or P. Ramlee, or whatever mp3 tunes that you have set for your ring tones.

C'mon, people.
If you have those ring tones, please switch your phones to silent mode if you don't want to switch the phone off. It is rather annoying, what with the fact that it is actually rude to have music in play while the Khatib is giving his sermon during Jumaat.

On the other hand, may I suggest that you discard your mp3 ring tones and stick to the normal, boring old standard ring tone. That is, if you're the kind of people who always forget to switch off your phones before entering surau or masjid.

Afraid To Write

I sent an email to my loved one, just the other day
It’s sad communication has evolved this way.
We use so many words but have so little to relay
as angels scribble down every letter that we say.
All the viral attachments sent and passionate insults we vent
It’s easy to be arrogant behind user passwords we invent.
But on the day the scrolls are laid, with every word and deed displayed,
when we read our accounts, I know, for one, I’ll be afraid.

That day I’ll be so afraid to read,
every harsh word that I’ve spoken - and every time I have lied.
I’ll be obliged to admit,
I’ll be obliged to submit
Will I have strength owning up to each deed I’ve tried to hide?
Oh Allah, I’m so afraid to read.

An excerpt from Dawud Wharnsby Ali's song Afraid To Read.

If ever I wrote in here or any other digital media, please forgive me if I offended you in any way.

Lyrics above copyright owner DWA.
Cut and paste from here.

strive to do it right

I noticed that the quote box on my blog frame changes every time the page reloads.
Here's one that caught my attention:

If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?

My previous company has this too:

Do it right, the first time

in sync

Ever had this?
While you're thinking of something (sometimes something obvious to the situation, sometimes irrelevant), your spouse would utter about the same thing that's running in your mind.

Here's what happened to Naza and I recently:
Something obvious:
I was driving on PLUS towards JB and was thinking that it would be nice if we could get a better car (bigger and better in every aspect). Moments later she said about how it would be nice to have a better car for driving to work and travelling. And so we discussed about it.

Something not so obvious:
I was thinking about treating Naza for a spa session in KL last week as a birthday gift. It turned out that she had a hair spa session for herself around that time in JB while I was in KL (she didn't tell me about this). Well, the spa in KL is quite expensive, but I kept thinking about it (didn't tell her too). Last night she said that she wants to have a body spa session at the same place she went to in JB. I told her about my thoughts of treating her for the KL spa.

Our minds in sync? I guess so.
This has been reported by a few (married) friends.
Truth is, the matrimonial bond is not just on paper or merely vows exchanged. Somehow our minds are exclusively connected.
A very special bond shared between only Naza and I.

For the spa, I'll gladly pay for it as her birthday gift - much cheaper than in KL, plus she likes the place.

being thankful

Muslims would say alhamdulillah to show that they are being thankful to Allah. Whereas the Arabic meaning of alhamdulillah is 'all praise to Allah', it conveys thankfulness while at the same time praising Him for the things bestowed upon the person uttering it.

Being thankful can be viewed as an aspect of positive thinking.
My wife doesn't cook for me, but she mops the floor (and take care of the kids and I, drives herself to work, help me support the family, etc.). Alhamdulillah, I am thankful for that.
My kids are hyperactive and most of the times uncontrollable - they are creative and goes out of the box. Alhamdulillah, and I am sure they would grow and be good people some day.
My work doesn't pay as much, but there are lots of valuable knowledge that i could pick up everywhere. Alhamdulillah, I know that in life, knowledge pays much better than salary.
Looking at myself, I am thankful that I'm blissfully normal.
Alhamdulillah.

I attended a teambuilding course with MESB a few years ago at Rompin, Pahang. the instructor is a psychiatrist, and he talked to us about being thankful and the effect of it to our brain (endocrine system).

The opposite of being thankful is self-pity. Avoid this. It is as sure as being negative. Much worse, it makes you feel miserable. And if it is a habit, your life would go to a downward spiral into a state where no one else can help you - being miserable all your life, all the time.
Examples of self-pity: of course i cannot afford a car, my salary is too small. My salary is too small because the company i'm working for is stingy. And it can go on and on and on.
Not too difficult to find the negative side of things, really.

Being thankful would trigger the release of endorphin. The effect is a high feeling (as taking morphine). At least, the physical element of morphine and endorphin is the same.
Other ways to trigger endorphin release is by exercising - just when we are breaking sweat. That's why some people would feel uneasy if they don't get their dose (not exercising). For some, they crave to exercise. Same thing to me, either way.
However, endorphin release through exercising gives only temporary effect.
To have a longer lasting effect of this feel good hormone is to simply be thankful.
It's quite easy really to do it, once we start practicing to be grateful of what we already have.

From Al Quran Kareem, Surah Ibrahim Verse 7:

And remember! your Lord caused to be declared (publicly): "If ye are grateful, I will add more (favours) unto you But if ye show ingratitude, truly My punishment is terrible indeed."

So let's be thankful (grateful), for Allah will add more favours to us insyaAllah.
Have a constant dose of endorphin.

don't judge a book by its cover

It's a cliché, i know.
However, it is very true.
Especially when it comes to relationship and interaction between human beings (and other living things).

I experienced this many times throughout my life so far.
I learnt how not to judge another person based solely on his appearances, especially upon the first impression.
It is rather unfair for that person, you judging him only by the first display of his personality towards you.
Perhaps during that particular time a normally cheerful lad was going through a bad time, thus him being a bit grouchy.
It takes some time for us to know other people, their (actual) behavior and personality.
This involves in doing some work together, being in a team in a particular project, usrah, homeroom, etc., etc.

If we give enough time for others to portray themselves as what they really are, while we're being open about it, chances are that our first impression on them would be totally flawed. Most of the times we would be ashamed of ourselves to think negatively about others. Some actually say that it takes one to know one. So, if you tend to have negative adjectives to describe strangers, be careful. You may be looking in a mirror, and see the bad part of yourself.
Heck, that actually is a great way to know about ourselves, then.

There were many pleasant people I get to know with - after I forced myself to give them that chance, permitting them to show me their true colours and who they really are.
These people, interestingly, are the kinds that others would label as 'self-centered', 'proud', 'unfriendly', 'geeky', and other negative adjectives others freely stamp upon them.
Of course, there are those weird people around us. They have their own stories. Find out about it and you'll be amazed how they look at the world in a whole different point of view - but that's another story.

A friend told me that I looked solemn and pious, 'nak dekat pon takut...'.
Well, what can I say. The adjectives that we have about ourselves usually are very different from what others may have.
Their judgment. Anyway, I tend to portray myself differently to certain people.

See also: http://akmalhizam.blogspot.com/2006/12/lesson-learnt-dont-judge-departmental.html

be brave

Do what you feel in your heart to be right - for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884 - 1962)

Very often, the general public would always have something to say about things that happen around them, including your acts.
The best thing to do is to have your own justification.
For Muslims, we have Al-Quran and As-Sunnah as our guidance. We can have our justifications based on these two.

The story of an old man, a child and a donkey illustrates this point very nicely. Whatever they do, people in the village that they pass by would always have their comments. Not one act is the right one.
It is up to them to decide which is the right one - for them. And, to ignore whatever remarks or comments from others. For they would themselves know that is the best possible thing to do, in their circumstances.

go ahead, overtake me

If you're a driver behind me and driving recklessly, go ahead and overtake me.
Just because you're a few seconds late than I was on the road, you were driving like mad and feel the need to go in front of my car, and others too.
My elder brother Amri has this to say: If you'd like to be in front of me, be a few seconds earlier than I did.
Plain simple.

I really love it when a hurrying car behind overtakes only to find that he's behind a red traffic light.
Such a fool.

I'm a defensive driver. Ah Teck (of Masai's Pusat Memandu Berjaya) taught me so.
I've been in situations where saving a few seconds only meant wasting a few hours (or days) and tons of money.
The very thing to do is to go out and drive to the destination earlier that it should be.
That way, you won't be in a hurry. Simply enjoying the ride.

So yeah, if you want to have an accident of yours, go have it elsewhere. Not with me.
Go ahead, overtake me. I'm cruising just fine.

what are you looking at/for II (cycling)

i'm very much into cycling nowadays.
because of that, i think, everything i see is about bicycles.
i noticed that i my head would turn whenever i see a pedaling machine, whatever kind it is.
this scares me a bit.

on the other hand, i think, cycling is picking up pace in Malaysia.
a few days ago, a newspaper covered about Bernard Chandran. It was also highlighted that one of his passion is cycling. the fact that he owns a rm24k bike is another thing, though. the main thing is that people takes up cycling. doesn't matter if it is for weekend foray offroad, or riding to work.

well, in the topic of celebrity cyclist:
there are three more i know of:
azlee senario, the comedian (owns a bicycle shop in tambun, perak).
riezman khuzaimi, the actor (also selling bike parts online).
haliza misbun (rides mountain bike, as well as roller blading, etc.).

well, i'd like to think that cycling is picking up pace and as a guy said it: it makes sense as an alternative transport.
obvious benefit to your health, and wealth.
read more here:
www.kelolo.blogspot.com
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2007/6/13/central/17949987&sec=central