Recently...

This time I’m going to write about things that happen to me recently.

Again it will be fully loaded with some pictures. After this I guess I won’t put so many pictures anymore. Just in the mood for snapping pictures or else… hardly snap anything.

Recently my colleague Linda went to Pet Shop and I told her before if she goes to Tobby Pet Shop let me know as I wanted to buy milk and cat food. So she called me telling me that she was there and wanted to buy those items for me. I agreed as the cat food at home almost empty. I never let them try the milk but after reading Ej’s blog, I wanted to give them a try. The result was great… they like it!

The cat food

The milk...

She loves it!

Instead of put some pictures of the cat foods, I want to put some cat pictures too. I was so excited to snap their pictures after reading Maurica’s blog about her little cute Phoebe. Linda bought a kitten recently too and she kept sending me some pictures of her new kitten :) Cute aite?

She is not in the mood... flu


Time to sleep... na na na...


"It is warm here do you know?"

I love my teeth!

Miss me?


He he so cute!


Short and chubby :P

Twinkle twinkle little star!

Ok I guess the heat of the election has gone. It was awesome when I wrote about the election and peoples were rushing in my blog. I purposely click the print screen button of this picture :) Not my intention to brag about this but it made me smile.


I wrote about my job description had changed here. I was so busy with works until I had to take them home. But it was okay as I love challenge. It was not okay when it took away my blogging and reading time! Haha.

At work...

At home... hu hu...

Lately, weddings were everywhere. People always take chance when there are school holidays. So I was invited to so many weddings and sorry for those who I couldn’t make it. I’m so sorry… I hope those who married recently will be blessed and last for the whole life.

Simple wedding but great :)

Cute eh? It was "hantaran" from my family

My friend's wedding

I was chosen to attend a course. Stress Management Course. What do you think? Lol. Guess the boss know who to choose? I learnt a lot of thing at the course and yes as usual I guess not everybody understands why they attend a course and always get negative pictures about it. I guess some people just prefer to be uneducated than educated. I wonder why in this developing country there are still many people prefer the latter one. Sigh. This course not only taught us about how to feel relief and release your stress but also about foods for your health and foods that could help you rid of your tense. Do you know that eggs are good even no harm for you to eat them everyday! Only 5% cholesterol absorbed by the foods and 95% is produced by your liver! Haha! So guys… enjoy your eggs! :) I love the mind therapy. She used a very soft music… very relax and calm and use our imagination while we closed our eyes tight. It worked! I got 3 cds of good music (produced by nature sounds like rain, jungle and birds) but no idea where I put them! I will keep searching…

The brochure...

She is a good psychotherapist & hypnotherapist!

Lol, he realized that I wanted to snap his picture!


Parking there... hehe this really release my tension!

And for the conclusion, these were what I ate recently…! Enjoy guys…

An apple a day...


Opposite Sri Malaysia Hotel...


Grape skin are good... same benefit as wine!


Homemade? Ha ha ha...

Muahahaha to Nurin... I know you are craving for this!

Till later!

P/s: Happy fasting to all Muslims :)

Puteri's Birthday (1 year old)

Warning! This post will be fully loaded with pictures.

Let start from Tuesday. Yes, here in Penang we had a public holiday. Cool isn’t it? It was a public holiday given by our Chief Minister YB Lim Guan Eng because of the Permatang Pauh’s election. I’m smiling now… :)

Peoples headed to Permatang Pauh but my family and I went to QueensBay Mall.

As soon as we reached there, we went straight to search for Puteri’s present. Why I said I love Lim Guan Eng? I didn’t have much time and when he gave us this public holiday, all of us could buy her a present and plan for her party as well!

After few hours with few considerations, these were the presents:

We brought these presents to another floor to wrap them (notice that my present was not from the same shop, so I bought and wrapped it at Borders). We managed to snap a picture while waiting the unfriendly stuff wrapping the presents.

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On Wednesday, we made a surprise party for her. Bought some KFC and her favorite whip potatoes. Nurul’s mother in law bought Secret Recipe’s cake (Chocolate Indulgence! My Favorite! Hehe). She was so happy to see many peoples around which it was the first time happens at their new house. She laughed, crawled and smiled all the time. When it was time for her to blow and cut the cake. She was so happy. She laughed and looked at everybody in the house which made me smiled and happy to see she acted that way.

She went ecstasy when it was time to unwrapped the presents.

After few hours stayed there, we went home. I hope she had a good time! :)

Till later...

Our Lovely Parliament

Wow! Don't you think these videos are great?

Permatang Pauh Election [Part 3]

A supporter with a mask of Anwar Ibrahim, an opposition figure running in a by-election in a district in Malaysia’s north.

By THOMAS FULLER

Published: August 26, 2008

GEORGE TOWN, Malaysia — Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of Malaysia’s opposition, easily defeated his opponent from the country’s ruling coalition in a closely watched by-election on Tuesday, making a return to Parliament after a decade-long absence.

Official results from Malaysia’s election commission showed Mr. Anwar winning about two-thirds of the vote in his home district of Permatang Pauh, in northern Penang State, despite heavy campaigning by senior officials from the country’s longstanding governing coalition.

Mr. Anwar won 31,195 votes compared with 15,524 for the government candidate, Arif Shah Omar Shah, amid a high voter turnout of 81 percent.

The victory makes it theoretically possible for Mr. Anwar to carry out his promise to win over enough members of the coalition by mid-September, to form his own government and become prime minister.

“We are entering Parliament with a clear agenda and they should wake up with the stark realities of the day,” Mr. Anwar said Tuesday, referring to the governing coalition.

It is a triumphant return for the 61-year-old politician, who first rose to prominence as a student radical in the 1970s, was elected to Parliament and held the post of deputy prime minister before being dismissed from government and jailed for sodomy and corruption in highly politicized trials.

For the first time since independence from Britain in 1957, Malaysia has two almost equally powerful opposing political forces in Parliament with two very different visions for the country’s future.

The National Front coalition, which previously enjoyed negligible opposition during five decades in power, long justified its authoritarian policies of detention without trial, bans on student involvement in politics and control over the media, among other measures, as the will of the people, who consistently gave it landslide victories.

But that argument is now much less persuasive to many Malaysians. Mr. Anwar’s allies took control of some of the wealthiest states in the country in March elections, including Penang, which is home to both Mr. Anwar and Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Mr. Anwar’s plans have been complicated by an upcoming sodomy trial stemming from fresh allegations by a former campaign aide. The case does not appear to have hurt his standing among voters — a large majority of Malaysians surveyed in recent opinion polls believe the charges are politically motivated. Mr. Anwar was sentenced to nine years in prison for sodomy a decade ago but the conviction was overturned by the country’s highest court.

Mr. Anwar’s platform calls for abolishing or scaling back Malaysia’s most draconian laws and ending the system of ethnic preferences for the majority Malays. His wide margin of victory on Tuesday was a significant boost for those plans, analysts say, because Mr. Anwar retained support among Malays despite his pledge to undo some of their privileges.

Mr. Anwar and his allies have also said they would make the handing out of government contracts more transparent than the system of no-bid contracts that is common today.

“One of the things that has held this country back is the issue of corruption — resources are not being distributed in a way that is fair to the vast majority of people,” said Bridget Welsh, a Malaysian politics specialist at the School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins University in Washington.

“What you’re seeing now is the rise of the voice of people wanting change for a broader constituency than just the elite.”

Mr. Anwar and his allies need at least 30 more seats in Parliament to unseat the governing coalition, a promise they say they will carry out by Sept. 16.

Tricia Yeoh, director of the Center for Public Policy Studies, said she believed there was enough infighting and disaffection within the governing party that these defections were feasible. But Anwar’s opposition movement is still young and its unity could fray if it moves too quickly into power, she said.

“I do think they have sufficient numbers,” Ms. Yeoh said of Anwar and his allies. “The issue is whether it’s the best and most strategic move for him now.”

Mr. Anwar leads a loose grouping of opposition parties that have clashed over whether Malaysia should be considered an Islamic state.

Although a majority of Malaysians are Muslim and Islam is the official religion in Malaysia, the country also has large Chinese and Indian minorities, among other ethnic groups.

Mr. Anwar must also reckon with a deeply entrenched elite that has a vested interest in the continuation of the current ethnic-based political system.

Malaysia’s urban upper class, Ms. Yeoh said, “is still a bit skeptical on how Anwar will be able to deliver.”

(Source: NYTimes)

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P/s: Yay! We win...!!! Ops...

Permatang Pauh Election [Part 2]

BERITA

Bas pengundi Hantu Ditahan
-yusmar@perawi-permatangpauh.com

Terkini : 3 buah bas dipercayai membawa "Pengundi Hantu" BN ,salah satu daripadanya bernombor pendaftaran MAA 6678 ditahan di salah sebuah Highway di seberang Jaya, oleh para petugas Pakatan Rakyat.

Lebih mengejutkan lagi apabila Dato'Seri Anwar Ibrahim sendiri naik ke atas bas tersebut.

Kini 3 buah bas "Pengundi Hantu" ditahan dan berada dibalai Polis Seberang Jaya, untuk siasatan selanjutnya.

Menurut pemandu bas tersebut, bas-bas ini datang dari Melaka.Kesemuanya menggunakan plat pendaftaran Pahang,Melaka dan Kuala-Lumpur.

Salah sebuah bas tersebut didapati didaftarkan pada alamat bangunan UMNO Melaka.

(Source: PermatangPauh.com)

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P/s: OMG! What is this???

Permatang Pauh Election [Part 1]

Penang is still with the election fever. Tsunami came once to Penang but politic tsunami came twice including this time.

You can refer to Joseph and Farah’s blog for more information about this election. I didn’t go there and don’t want to go there today too as I don’t want to get stuck in the heavy traffic. In case you don’t know, traffic jam is number one in my dislike list :)

I don’t go, so I don’t have any photo regarding the election. About 2pm it rained here but stopped 15 minutes later. I hope the rain won’t stop the voter from going out and be responsible. Even one vote count! :)

Two days ago I was shock when the Live Traffic Feed showed so many peoples from Malaysiakini.com came in. I browsed the website and found out this:

I smiled. At least I could share some information even though the source wasn’t from me.

Yesterday, when I was in hurry driving from KOMTAR to my office I saw a bus full of policemen. I wonder where they were going. My wild guess was to the election place as I never see a police bus around in Penang. It was my first time.

It has been so long since our PM talked about politic matter and now I didn’t hear much about this election from him too. Hopefully the will meet soon… August 29 in parliament :)


Till later.

P/s: Going out to buy present for my niece!

By-election: Public holiday for Penang

PENANG: The state government has declared a public holiday on Tuesday “to ensure a full turnout of voters for the critical Permatang Pauh by-election”, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said.

He said in a statement that Penang had been mulling over the matter since the Elections Commission fixed the day, a working day, as the polling day “in defiance of public opinion that the move will reduce voter turnout.”

“Clearly reducing the voter turnout will affect the election results as it may be seen as favouring one party over the other,” he said.

He said this sentiment was further reinforced by the announcement by Education Director-General Datuk Alimuddin Mohd Dom that all government schools in Permatang Pauh would be given a special holiday on the day.

“Moreover, this special holiday need not be replaced which means it is an additional free holiday.

He said the latest act by the Federal government clearly showed that the Permatang Pauh by-election was no ordinary by-election but had crucial national significance with wide national implications.

“This is due to the participation of (PKR de facto leader) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his attempt to return to Parliament and make a bid for federal power as the alternative Prime Minister,” he said.

(Source: The Star)

P/s: I love Lim Guan Eng! Yay!

Car service

Yesterday, I have no plan. Yes no plan at all. No wedding, no outing. So I took my car to the workshop for service. Car service is not a waste of money since it involves with your life. Imagine driving at 80km/h and all in sudden you can’t stop your car at the traffic light? Hey! Don’t laugh as it happen to my dad’s friend months ago!

Since then, I always drive carefully imagine that something might happen. Maybe the tyre gets flat while I drive. Brake not functioning in sudden. Clutch not working and so on… running in my mind when I start to press fuel paddle to increase the speed. We never know…

I am very particular with my car even though I know it’s an old car. 8 years old. Yes bought it in 2000. It is a small sporty car that has so many memories between us. Love it anyway… even though it grows older same like me. I won’t sell it even though someday I might get a new car. To those who keep asking me about selling this car… I am so sorry that I can’t afford to do so. Some even offered me higher price than a car retailer could offers. Sorry guys… you can offer your price again in case I’m gone. Not with my corpse of course, but with my family.

Back to the topic, yes I took my car to the workshop. My lovely foreman named Ah Guan always gives me a good price and good service. He is very old but the work equal to a young man. In fact his work is way better than the young ones!

The workshop named Ah Beng Workshop and the location is hidden from other workshops around. Even my colleague was satisfied with his work and the cheap price. Poor colleague, he bought a new brand car… Wira Aeroback to be exact and the quality is rubbish! Within few months problems occurred. The dashboard locker fell and couldn’t lock it up, the seat at the back just pulled out by itself, he lower the window and couldn’t close it anymore and so many other problems happen and the recent one was oil licking. He went to EON who supposes to know what is happening since their company were the one responsible for the problems (didn’t they have quality check (QC) first?) but they couldn’t handle it. They said everything was fine but it happens again. He took the car for the second time, nothing changed. Lastly, he took the car to this workshop and problem solved. See?

Here where Ah Guan’s workshop located:

For some treatments and repairs yesterday, he charged me RM190.00. I was shock about the price as I heard so many noises on my car. But then I was upset as there were some major repair needs to be done. Changing my absorber and timing belt which will cost me about RM600! Damn. Some peoples say “Don’t drive a car if you can’t afford”. So, I bear the consequences. See Ah Guan again next Saturday…

Till later.

9:51pm -- Just get back from wedding… tired.

First time meeting blogger

I met a blogger called Suituapui on Thursday night. Actually we planned to eat dinner together but sadly I couldn’t make it and only available for supper. So sorry Suituapui!

There was another blogger who went together with me to meet our friendly blogger from Sibu (Suituapui is from Sibu in case you don’t know) -- Joseph another Penang’s blogger.

Suituapui stayed one night at Cititel Hotel so we decided to sit, drink and chat at the Indian Muslim’s restaurant (Jaya) just opposite the hotel. I did ask him whether he wants to eat or not since Penang is very famous with its foods but he wanted to have a drink. In my mind I wanted to take him to Kapitan’s Tandoori but maybe next time? I hope you will come again to Penang and if possible in weekend so that I have more time to take you around.

We talked a lot about foods, works and blogs of course. That is what blogger do! It was nice to meet other blogger instead of meeting only in cyber world. We stayed about 1 hour and a half and we moved. Joseph and I had to go back since we work the next day (Friday) and Suituapui needed some rest too as he needs to be at the airport at 5am!

I was very excited as it was my first experience meeting blogger. Hopefully I can meet more blogger in the future

Oh okay... the picture is not centered. So Joseph said...

"Can you see him?"... thanks to Jaya's waiter

Till later.

Happy Independence Day

Boom! I hear something explode loud. I run to the safest place I know… yes to our base, where we are hiding all this while. I can’t control my breathing properly. It’s hard and my heart is beating fast. Maybe from the running or maybe because I’m so terrify now. I don’t know. I can’t even think properly now. My mind puzzled.

I turn right and left to see whether my family members are in good condition. Yes, they are fine with the neighbors. I don’t have watch to look at but they are eating some boiled tapioca with shredded coconut. I look down on the ground. I am sad…Sad to look at what is happening to us… to our country now. War is very painful. I walk slowly… haggard… starving… with watery eyes. I sit at one of the corner. Boom! Again… the sound of bomb yells out loud outside. We can hear it clearly. I cry.

“Faisal…!” I hear mom is calling my name. My head is heavy. Oh it is a dream! Thanks God. I hug my mom and smile. She just thinks it’s another weird day for me… to wake up in a smile and yell before that.

The dream was really scary and maybe because I think too much about ungrateful citizens we have nowadays and some bunch of brainless youth who involved with illegal motorbike racing. What a shame to our country. Maybe we have gone so far… perhaps too far until we forget how hard too achieve our independence last time?

Do you still remember the effort for independence was spearheaded by Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, who led a delegation of ministers and political leaders of Malaya in negotiations with the British in London for Merdeka, or independence along with the first president of the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) Tun Dato Sir Tan Cheng Lock and fifth President of Malaysian Indian Congress Tun V.T. Sambanthan. Once it became increasingly clear that the Communist threat posed during the Malayan Emergency was petering out, agreement was reached on February 8, 1956, for Malaya to gain independence from the British Empire. However, for a number of logistical and administrative reasons, it was decided that the official proclamation of independence would only be made the next year, on August 31, 1957, at Stadium Merdeka (Independence Stadium), in Kuala Lumpur.

Do you still remember The Federation of Malaysia, comprising the States of Malaya, North Borneo (later renamed Sabah), Sarawak and Singapore was to be officially declared on the date August 31, 1963, on the 6th anniversary of Malayan independence. However, it was postponed to September 16, 1963, mainly due to Indonesian and the Philippines' opposition to the formation of Malaysia. Nevertheless, North Borneo and Singapore declared sovereignty on August 31, 1963. Indonesian opposition later escalated to a military conflict.

Indonesia considered Malaysia as a new form of colonization on the provinces of Sarawak and Sabah in the island of Borneo (bordering Kalimantan, Indonesia), which they laid claim on. To assure Indonesia that Malaysia was not a form of neo-colonialism, a referendum, organized by the United Nations, and the Cobbold Commission, led by Lord Cobbold, were formed to determine whether the people of Sabah and Sarawak wished to join Malaysia. Their eventual findings which indicated substantial support for Malaysia among the peoples of Sabah and Sarawak, cleared the way for the final proclamation of Malaysia.

The formation of the Federation of Malaysia was then announced on September 16, 1963 as Malaysia Day. The Independence Day celebration is still held on August 31, the original independence date of Malaya. However, this has caused some minor discontent among East Malaysians in particular since it has been argued that celebrating the national day on August 31 is too Malaya-centric.

Do you still remember when Malaya celebrated its first Independence Day, new hotels were built everywhere in Kuala Lumpur to accommodate the huge foreign delegation invited by the Government of the Federation of Malaya to witness the historical day.
The historical event was captured by Malayan Film Unit, below are the recorded arrival of the guest of honour.

Upon arriving at the Sungei Besi Airport, the guests of honour were welcomed by the British High Commissioner in Malaya, Sir Donald Charles MacGillivray and Lady MacGillivray, the First Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaya, Tuanku Abdul Rahman accompanied by the Raja Permaisuri Agong and the first Prime Minister of Malaya, Tunku Abdul Rahman.

I won’t elaborate about what happen during Japanese conquer too. If you know some oldies around you, kindly ask them. I bet you will be frightened till death.

Let forget our skin color, race, religion and culture that differentiate between one to another. Let us vanish the boundary and live in a happy country… our lovely country Malaysia.

Happy Independence Day! 31/8/2008





p/s: I write about it now instead of on the exact day because this celebration should be celebrated in this whole month... in fact the whole year.

Too late to apologize

Daniel could see from far that the traffic light is still green. He pushed the paddle as much as he could to increase the speed. He didn’t want to be late. He knew that the red light would take a long time to turn green again since the settlement there is so pack. He was lucky that the road was pretty empty. The traffic light turned yellow. His heart thumped faster wishing he could make it.

3 meters from the line, the traffic light turned red. He was worry and his mind puzzled. Should he stop? Or keep on moving? “Ah! I should not brake drastically”. He kept the speed and didn’t care much about the traffic light.

Priiittt!!! It came from whistle sound. A traffic police wanted him to stop the car. Daniel stopped his car quite far and grumbling in his heart. He looked at the side mirror and saw a face which is so familiar.

Oh he is Allister Mc Kenzie Adams! His good friend when he was in secondary school. He felt relief. He opened the door and raised his hand with a smile.

“Hey Ally! How are you? Long times no see… it was long time ago when I saw you last at your wedding.”

“I’m fine thanks”. Allister didn’t smile back.

“Man! I was in hurry. My wife is waiting for me at home”

“Oh really?” Allister replied in doubt.

“Yeah pal… today is my wife’s birthday. She has prepared everything together with the kids. For sure I can’t be late. Friends are waiting for me too.”

“I understand. But I have been watching you for quite some times and you did the same fault at the same junction for few times.”

Daniel wanted to change his strategy.

“So, do you want to summon me? Actually the traffic light wasn’t red when I reach at the junction. It was yellow.” It was a good excuse given by Daniel.

“Okay. I saw it clear. Please give me your identification card and your driving license.”

Daniel was so frustrated and slowly passed Allister his identification card and driving license. Walked back to his car and closed the door tight while Allister was writing something on his book. After few minutes, Allister knocked his car window. Daniel looked at Allister’s face with a frown to show his frustration.

Lower his window… very little.

“Ah! Just an inch is enough for him to pass me the summon ticket.” His heart murmured madly. He took the summon ticket.

Without a word Allister went back to where he was to observe the traffic.

Daniel was shock. Yes, he got his identification card and the driving license back for sure... but with a note. His mind puzzled. “Why doesn’t he gives me a summon ticket instead of a note? Is this a joke?” he spoke to himself.

He read the note hurriedly.

“Daniel…

I bet you know I got a beautiful wife and a very cute daughter. Sadly, they are gone.

They were hit by a driver that didn’t obey the traffic light at this junction. Yes the same junction.

The driver was in jail for 3 months. Now he is free to see his wife and his 3 kids again.

And I was alone… as my family has gone. I live in sorrow after that incident. They won’t come back to me… not anymore.

I tried to forgive the driver for so many times. But it was just too hard.

This time it happens to you… my good friend. I’m so sad.

Be careful when driving Niel” –Ally-

Daniel was speechless. He opened the door and searched for Ally but he was too late. Ally wasn’t there anymore.

He drove his car slowly with a lot of things playing in his mind hoping that Ally will forgive him.

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Till later.

15/8/2008 - Sound of silence...

Conversation with God

One day, a baby was complete to be born in the world.

The baby asked God: “Angels told me that you will send me down but how could I survive there? I am so small and weak.”

God replied: “I have chosen an angel for you who will take care of you there”

The baby asked again: “But here in heaven all I have to do are singing, playing and laughing… this is more than enough for me to be happy”

God: “The angel will sing and smile for you everyday. You will feel her love deeply and be happier than ever”

Baby: “How could I understand them when I don’t even understand their language?”

God: “The angel will teach you with the loveliest language you ever heard with patience and heed. She will teach you how to communicate”

Baby: “What should I do when I need to communicate with you?”

God: “She will teach you how to pray”

Baby: “I heard that there are so many bad peoples in the world, who will keep me safe?”

God: “She will keep you safe no matter what even with her own life”

Baby: “I am sure I will be so upset because I can’t see you anymore…”

God: “She will tell you about Me and will teach you how will you come back to me even though the truth is I am always be with you”

At that time, heaven was in silence and peace. The voice of the earth can be heard… and the baby murmur: “God, if I go now, can you tell me the angel’s name?”

God: “You will call her MOTHER.”



"We have enjoined on man kindness to His parents: In pain did His mother bear him, and In pain did she give Him birth. the carrying of the (child) to His weaning is (A period of) thirty months. at length, when He reaches the age of full strength and attains forty years, He says, "O My Lord! grant me that I may be grateful for Thy favour which Thou has bestowed upon me, and upon both My parents, and that I may work righteousness such As Thou mayest approve; and be gracious to me In My issue. truly have I turned to Thee and truly do I bow (to thee) In Islam" (Al Ahqaaf 46:15)


Till later.

9/8/2008 - Looking at the sun in dawn.

Bookmarks

When I reached home from office I was so happy to see there is a letter for me in my post box. I had a big smile on my face.

I rushed into my house with my briefcase on my right hand and the envelope on my left. I read at the back of the envelope, writer's full name and address (hey I did not know you are from Sabah!). But I could tell that it was from someone who I knew through blogsphere by looking at the self-made stamp. A cute orange starfish!

It was a good guess. I got 3 bookmarks from mangosteenskin! I always adore her art since the first time I read her blog. She is such a good artist and her art touches my heart. Now I’m using those 3 bookmarks on 3 books I recently read -- Landlord Property by Azizi Ali, Buffettology by Mary Buffett and Lahirnya Seorang Jutawan by Azizi Ali.

These are the bookmarks:



Thanks a lot mangosteenskin for the beautiful bookmarks. Now I’m thinking of something for a reply :)



Till later.

8/8/2008 - in a deep silence night.

Financial Problem Free

Yes I’m talking about money again and again. I never say that money is the root of happiness but without money can you get happiness? If yes, prove to me please?

I see my environment. I see my work place. I see my family. I see my blogger. I see friend. I see colleague. It is the same problem – money. Even though it is not about the whole community but it’s about 90% of the community facing the same problem called financial problem. Why I choose this title instead of Financial Freedom? Financial Freedom is different. Financial Freedom is when you are not afraid of losing job or not working where money works for you. Let say you have so many houses and the rental income give you a positive cash flow, when you losing your job you still alive and can survive with the income you get from rental. Get what I mean?

When we say financial problem, a lot of people get it wrong. Many people think if you are rich you are out of the financial problem circle. The answer is wrong. Doesn’t matter how much money you earn, but if you are a big spender you will face the same problem like any others too.

Here I want to discuss about this thing with you. Exchange ideas and tips too if possible.


1. Live below our mean

How many of you live below your mean? Live below your mean here means that you do not spend based on how much you earn or you can afford. Let say you earn RM1,000 monthly. You are not suppose to use up the whole RM1,000 without put aside some saving and investment. Investment here does not mean those investments like stock and others; you can simply put some amount of your money in ASB or ASN for your future. Remember, to be a financial problem free… you must at least have saving of 6 months of your salary. So it’s good for our rainy days. You never know something might happen and you have zero amount of money in your bank! I see most people in Malaysia use up all money and wait for the next salary money. What if all in sudden you fall sick and need some amount of money? What you can do? Borrow from the bank as personal loan? Borrow from family? Borrow from a friend? What if they are facing the same problem like you too and the bank just simply doesn’t approve your loan application? You’re dead my friend. So, try to reduce your monthly expenditure by write down your budget in a log book starting with the money you earn as your debit and money that your spend as your credit. Using a log book as your budget plan is the best way to see your cash flow. I know you can’t do it drastically but you can reduce it slowly. When you want to buy some things, put them in a list on a piece of paper and decide whether it’s necessary or necessity. Buy only necessary thing. There is no such thing as you have to pamper yourself after a hard work. Remember, when you have enough money and saving… you can enjoy yourself more without worrying at night before sleep that something bad might happen or it’s your down side of a life wheel. Do this and you will see your life is bright.


2. Do not use credit card

This is another thing that I always mention to my family and my friends. Credit card is the method for you to bring more debt into your life. It’s simple, don’t buy if you can’t afford. If you can afford why use credit card? Pay cash. Actually, I can’t say that using credit card is a bad thing to do. Only those who are discipline can use it. This does not mean you use credit card and waiting for the end of the month to pay the debt. You need to be honest to yourself and pay the amount that you spent last week in this week. That mean by spending your credit this week, you must be sure that you can pay the amount next week. By doing this, you already put aside some amount of money for credit card. Some of my friends feel weird that I never use credit card. I know bring some big amount of money is risky but I just simply don’t use credit card. The least I can do is to make debit card. You know what is debit card don’t you? It’s exactly like prepaid system for your cell phone. You pay before use. It’s safe and you don’t have to worry about any payment in the end of the month. Warren Buffet, the richest man on earth never use credit card. Why do you think you need it anyway? I was bad to my mom by breaking all her credit cards into pieces and left one for the petrol usage only. Actually I love her so much and I want her to be financial free when she retires. I don’t have certification on finance but I could help you with some advice on how you can save some money and have a financial problem free life.


3. Buy asset instead of liability

I see many Malaysian are crazy of car. Even some of my friends and colleagues prefer to buy a car rather than a house. Weird isn’t it? It’s totally weird. Remember, houses never depreciate and if it happens you can count by fingers. What about liability? Let’s take good example – a car. You buy a car this year and you want to sell it next year, do you think the price will gain and you get some profit? No, you don’t. But house will gain money and profit for you. It’s ok for you to buy a car after you already own a house. I know car is important in our life since there is no good public transports network. So, car is the safest vehicle at this moment. I was so shock when I found out my colleague changed her mind from buying a house with me and bought a car. I did advise her but she still stick to her own choice, buying a car. I hope she won’t regret with her decision since I know the price for house in Malaysia will increase more very soon. Oh by the way… do you know that sometimes liability can turn into asset when they make money for you. Let me give some examples for you. Let say you buy a car and you turn that car into a taxi, this car make money for you. So, it becomes your asset now. Another example is you buy a laptop for your business purpose. The laptop is not an asset anymore even though the price won’t gain any money when you sell but it already gives you some amount of money for your business by using it. These are good liabilities. Many people buying a house for rent using their own preference such as spacious and beautiful marbles. That is ok if you buy a house for you to live but it’s otherwise if you buy a house to rent. The location and the rental price are the only thing you need to consider before buying a house for rent. I see some mistakes made by some of my colleagues and friends. I shut my mouth for not being nosy. But if they ask my opinion, I have a bunch of them to share. I’m not a genius in this real estate business but I read a lot about it and exchange ideas with some friends who are already involved in this business for 10 years or more.


4. Diversify

To diversify you need to be creative. You need to work hard in order to be free financial problem unless you have great deal of salary. Work hard in here does not mean you have to work hard for your company. For many companies, do they pay you extra if you work hard for them? I know some companies do but can be counted by fingers. Your company gain profit but you gain nothing. Work hard here means you cannot be lazy. I like this quote:

“Laziness travels so slowly that poverty soon overtakes him.” –Benjamin Franklin-

I know many people out there want more income but how hard have they tried? Planning this and that without doing it is just a waste of time. It’s like daydreaming of you becoming a prince and when you are awake, you are just an average person who has nothing special but debt around. To get more income, you need to work hard (unless you are IT genius and you gain money by online business, but how many people can do it?). You need to diversify. Let say, you work from 8am-5pm. What can you do after work? You can bake some pizza and sell or simply on your laptop and build a website for people. Both make money. Both give you extra income. The more creative you are… the more income you get.


5. Business

Remember, you can’t be rich by working to a company or get highest qualification. The key is business. Do you think all people who own a private jet working with people? Do you think the richest man on earth work with people’s company? Do you think people that drive BMW and Mercedes normally those who work with people’s company? Some yes… but most people don’t. They own a company and they run business. The more business you are involved, the more income you get. To get or own more business you need to be creative like the 4th tip. Like me, yes I work with people and I do my part to save money for my rainy days and yes I will end up quitting with my job now and own a business. That is my promise to my body and soul. I keep praying to God and I hope I will be blessed.

"90% of wealth is from sources of business" -Prophet Muhammad S.A.W-

P/s: I have a link for you in case you still have doubt about how to clear your debt and be financial problem free. Click here.

Till later.