31st December. Adieu 2010!

Exactly a year ago, I was at Level 36, The Emerald Co tower, waiting for my turn to be assessed during the structured interview with the Company. The session was quite hard and I thought I was bluffing all the way and I know the panelists know I was bluffing them :-) Alhamdulillah, 3 weeks after that, I got a call from The Co. and I got accepted to join The Emerald Co.

But it didn't turn out to be a smooth sailing all the way. The offer for employment was put under 'conditional' term after the blood test result shows that my cholesterol level is way high, even the doctor said, "You could just one day collapse and die..." Dieting regime starts right away while exercising continues after I ran my first open running contest in Putrajaya, a 7.7km race.

Finally, I got accepted to join The Emerald Co. after I lowered down the cholesterol level to a level which my cardiologist said, "Amazing! What did you do?" Then, the agony of waiting for the offer letter starts. At the other end in Smokey Grey, I've tendered my resignation. It was a very nervous moment when I could only see the 'revised' offer letter 2 days before my last day in Smokey Grey.

It was sad to leave Smokey Grey especially the 'thinkers' team. We were very good as a team. The boss was great. While we hear lots of hanky pankies and gossips with other teams, our team just rock! delivering what is expected by the company while keeping harmony checks. Started the second half of the year with a new workplace and am still there, just been ok-ed for the confirmation of employment :-D

Apart from that, everything went, I could say, in great ways. My health was in the best condition except for one or two times I had fever, that severe hiccups due to allergy to medication and of course the minor foot injuries I'm recuperating now. The recent check-up on my heart functions shows what my cardiologist describes as, "Your heart works extremely well..." Alhamdulillah.

I'm still doing pretty fine in running. Completed 14 races that include 4 half marathon races, and another 3 non-competitive/charity walk/run events. I have also volunteered in a couple of events. You can read all those here. While I can't run for now, I've been taking up swimming classes. By 5th class, I could already swim breaststroke and freestyle the whole pool-length and now will go into butterfly stroke.

Another milestone in life - I've registered for my Masters classes. Will start my first semester next Wednesday. This has been long due and about right time for me to do it but I'm sure it ain't easy peasy.

I think that's pretty much sums up my year. And now I'm at the Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, taking time off, away from the hustle bustle of city, resetting my mind and body in anticipation of a hectic, busy and hopeful a greater year in 2011.

Happy New Year!

Glorious bravehearts - AFF Suzuki Cup Final

Heroes, every single one of them. The bravehearts in blue walked tall after conquering Indonesia in the cauldron of Bung Karno Stadium as skipper Safiq Rahim lifted the AFF Suzuki Cup after completing a 4-2 aggregate victory in Jakarta.

The 2-1 defeat in the second leg did not matter as the job had been done three days earlier in Bukit Jalil as Malaysia celebrated their first title in 14 years of trying in the competition.

Malaysia had entered the second-leg as favourites for the title on the back of a 3-0 lead from the first-leg. However, things could have become tense for the eventual champions if Indonesia's Firman Ultina had managed to convert his 19th minute penalty. Malaysia stopper Khairul Fahmi Che Mat managed to pull off a save and the tie was all but over when Safee Sali scored for the away team - his fifth strike of the tournament.

Egged on by 80,000 supporters, including president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesia had started the stronger of the two sides with Irfan Bachdim going close in the 17th minute.

Referee Peter Green then awarded Indonesia a spot-kick after spotting a handball in the Malaysian penalty area. However, Firman, who was later named the tournament's most valuable player struck a weak shot straight at the keeper. This was to be the story of the first-half as Alfred Riedl's men continued to go close without scoring. Cristian Gonzales was in the thick of action and nearly scored twice before the first-half ended.

Malaysia, with a three-goal cushion backing them up, were content to soak up the pressure and search for counter-attacking opportunities. The tactic paid rich dividends early in the second-half when they gave away possession near the half line.

Norshahrul took advantage of the slip-up to put Safee through. The tournament's leading striker outpaced the Indonesian defence before smashing the ball into the top corner. 1-0 to the away team and a monumental task confronted Firman and his men.
Although they tried gamely, scoring first through Nasuha and then through Ridwan (via a deflection), scoring three more goals proved to be beyond them.

It was a desperately disappointing outcome for the home side - this being the fourth occasion when they had stumbled at the final hurdle. For Malaysia manager K Rajagobal and his charges, it was joy unconfined as they lifted the title for the first time ever.

Another milestone... a tough one rather

Monday marks another milestone of my life. I attended the welcoming session for the postgraduate candidates in the UM. Nothing much happened, except briefing about UM, some statistics shown, about financial, assistance, etc. One of the facts I captured is that there were more than 3,000 applications for this session and they only approved slightly over 1,000 applicants. But, not sure how many actually turn up to register.


Later in the afternoon, we all went separate ways for briefing at specific faculties. And this is when we were briefed about the requirements of each course and for graduation. Man! It is tough to graduate with M.Ec. I can tell you! What with the killer core courses of Advanced Microeconomics and Macroeconomics, Econometrics, research paper. And what with the minimum passing mark of B, then comes the conditional passing mark. Aduuhhh... and while I was targeting to finish in around 3 years, everyone was talking about maximum of 2 years. Damn!

Had a conversation with one of the Deputy Deans after the briefing and she advised me what courses should I take. And even she advised me to take 3 courses, instead of 2 courses I planned to take. So, this morning went to register for classes. Everything went well and I've successfully registered for three classes for my 1st semester - Ekonometrik Gunaan (Applied Econometrics), Makroekomi Lanjutan (Advanced Econometrics) and Public Economics. My classes will be held on Wednesday and Thursday nights and Saturday afternoon.


This is where most, if not all, of my classes will be held. The place where I'll be 'pecah-ing kepala' too for the next two years, at least.

Now, let me enjoy this moment before classes start on 3rd January.

The latest addition - Novena

Sempat ke Kg Teluk Penyamun siang tadi nak melawat Lady Gaga yang baru melahirkan anak betina bulan lepas. Anak tu aku namakan Novena sempena mengambil nama bulan kelahiran dia dan nama shopping complex kat Singapura yang aku asyik dengar-dengar waktu kat sana hari tu.


Seperti biasa Lady Gaga memang nampak anggun dan bergaya dengan tanduk dia walaupun perut ada sikit buncit lepas beranak. Dan Novena pulak, memang comel. Muka macam mak dia. Yang paling aku suka, telinga dia yang macam keras dan mengembang. Hahahah


Pagi tadi jugak first time aku jumpa Blackrose. Blackrose ni kambing gantian kepada Julie selepas they found out Julie ni jantan sebenarnya (adehhh.... tersilap jantina). Dan first time jugak (aku dah lama tak pergi sebenarnya) aku jumpa dengan Lil' Brown, anak kepada Geena yang lahir sebelum raya lepas.


Lil' Brown ni punyalah takut, asyik berkepit je dengan mak dia. Ada sekali tu aku dapat tangkap dia, menjerit dia panggil mak dia, "emmmeeeeekkkkk emmmmeeeekkkkk" hahaha dan happy aku tengok Geena ni ok je menerima Blackrose sebagai anak angkat dia.


Dan jugak, dalam kandang kambing-kambing aku dan abang aku, tuan ladang tu letak pulak sekor kambing jantan. Macho dan hensem je rupanya. Ni kerja tuan ladang nak bagi kambing-kambing kitorang bunting lagi lah ni. Kita lihat siapa yang kena!

Double Trouble

Aku baru tau je pasal konsert DT Penang dengan Sunway tiga minggu lepas. Itu pun lepas aku tukar channel radio ke Sinar FM. Biasanya sekarang ni aku dengar Ikim je kecuali time belajar bahasa arab, baru aku tukar ke channel lain.

Dan kebetulan bila aku dengar promo DT, ada pulak diberitahu sms contest untuk Digi customers. Aku terus hantar sms, dan terus aku dapat reply kata yang aku menang satu tiket ke konsert DT.

So, on Christmas aku pun menyaksikan konsert DT kali kedua, after the first one in Kiara Indoor Arena. Walaupun malam sebelum tu badan aku macam demam semacam je tapi Sabtu aku gagahkan jugak pergi dan ok je macam tak demam dah. Agaknya sebab peluh bergelen kot malam tu.As usual, aku gi dengan bodyguard aku lah si Zam. Des couldn't make it sebab he was on some nationwide tour with his employer.


Overall, memang best kali ni. Better dari the first one in terms of logistics walaupun nak ke Sunway Pyramid tu di hari krismas memang jem macam celaka. But once inside, semua ok. Kitorang dapat position agak depan (dalam digizone area).


Songs choice pun ok walaupun ada lagu-lagu favorite aku takde namely Gadis Misteri, Isabella. Amy dengan Awie pun suara mantap kali ni. Dulu macam tak best sangat. Venue pun best open air, tak terkatup so angin banyak, tak leh basah lencun dengan peluh top to toe. Tapi nasib juga hujan rintik di permulaan tak berpanjangan.


Opening act by Azlan (and The Typewriter) diiringi oleh Sham (original guitarist Wings) dan Hillary (original guitarist Search) pun mantap. Lan nyanyi lagi Intanku Kesepian (click video sini) dan Fantasia Bulan Madu (click >sini).


Overall, aku puas hati, bodyguard aku pun puas hati. Tapi kalau tanya puas ke tak puas, memang lah tak puas. Kalau ada lagi tahun depan, aku pergi lagi. Kalau Awie ke Amy ke dah bertongkat pun, aku tengok juga. Hahahah....

Runners life, at least how we look at it...

Some people ask me, why do I run? Why do I run in races? Why do I pay so much to register to run in races? Why do I have to fork out lots of money for transportation, accommodation cost and registration fees just to get a piece of metal, we called the medal of glory?

This video has been around in Facebook, especially among my running friends, and it's just hilarious. Coincidentally, it has lots of things in common to runners like me, things that you may not understand. Things like why we run before and/or after work, why are we torturing our legs by running in a marathon, why are we 'stupidly' chasing the 'losers' medals' when we already knew that we don't even have the slightest chance to win a race, bla bla bla...

And the best part is... think about running all day at work <-- this is sooo familiar, at least to me hehehe....

Enjoy!


I don't expect everyone to understand why are we doing all those things that look stupid to you but do encourage us or if you can't, just keep quiet and ignore us :-)

Hutang . Stress . Malas

Time for confirmation

Come 31st December 2010, I would have been in the Emerald for almost 6 months. So, it's time to submit the nomination for confirmation to my boss. Had a discussion yesterday, and all went well. He recommended for confirmation and the nomination form is now with the Big Boss who is on a long leave. Barring any unfortunate circumstances, I shall be confirmed in my position sometimes in January. Unfortunately, there'll be no increase in salary.

On another development, I may have to be relocated to the HQ sometimes in February(?!). Now, need to plan on the logistics of coming to work as stationed at the HQ will definitely burn a hole in my pocket, if I'm not careful with my expenses.

Spoilt with many choices

Left and right, front and back, up and down, days and nights.

In a sudden, I'm spoilt with many choices. Not that I was busy looking for them, but they just came along. Ahh... Maybe this is one of the (or maybe the only time) of my life I'm presented with this opportunity.

Let me just leave this entry like this. Only one thing, if I could trade these things that come with money, that'll be better! Heh...

My first #twtup

Attended my first ever #twtup yesterday at A&W PJ. It's cool to meet up with strangers and clicked right away after exchanging name cards twithandle. As soon as twithandles were exchanged, I was scrambling for my BB to search that twithandle and add to the list I'm following. And at times, everybody was busy with his/her mobile device :-)

So, here's the picture...


from left: @norm_noordin, @kruel74, @ruhani_rabin, @ahmemah, @ted1777, yours truly @azrulh, @loveykatz, @shaharzad, @bluecrystaldude, @aidasue, @urasnobucho, @citybasher the organizer of this #twtup, @smellykatemoss and @hasbeemasputra. Taking the picture was @bugbitesandco. Those who already left were @fazasalleh, @sameblackshoes, @jud9e, @cloco, @rekka86 and @kwangchen

Please don't ask me their real name as I only know a few. Itupun sebab their twithandles are the same as their name. Hehehe...

Nice meeting all of you and hopefully will see you all again... I mean, in real life.

The 42km, the Oregon

Last night, I dreamt of going back to Eugene, Oregon. It was so nice. The weather was just in the past few days here in Malaysia, cold morning, sometimes drizzling. And specifically, I went to the bookstore to look for Oregon Ducks' souvenirs. I saw one nice hat priced at USD24 but I thought it was bit expensive and I don't wear much hat these days as compared to student's days.

Then, I was walking around Eugene, so I thought, and when I checked my watch, I already covered 42km distance in 5 hours and 33 minutes. Hmmm... just the night before I was contemplating to click to register for my first full marathon in Sepang. The only things that stopped me from clicking were the qualifying time of 6 hours and the 5 boring laps outside the Sepang F1 circuit.

And later in the morning, saw this video on Facebook and I almost broke into tears, the places are so familiar and close to my heart. I know I miss Eugene, Oregon...

Dengan nafas-Mu

Lagu ni terngiang-ngiang dalam kepala aku seharian. Walaupun aku tak ingat liriknya, tapi melodi dia memang lekat kat kepala aku, especially part akhir. A very nice song, with a very nice lyrics and message.

Izinkan ku ucap kata taubat
Sebelum Kau memanggilku
kembali pada-Mu, menutup waktuku

Izinkan ku serukan nama-Mu
Sebelum nyawa dalam tubuhku
Kau ambil, kembali pada-MU

Karna ku tahu, hanyalah pada diri-Mu
Tempatku mengadu, tempatku mengeluh
Di dalam do’aku

Dan demi nafas yang telah kau hembuskan dalam kehidupanku
Ku berjanji, ku akan menjadi yang terbaik
Menjalankan segala perintah-Mu, menjauhi segala larangan-Mu
adalah sebaris do’a ku untuk-Mu.

Pecah tabung

This is some of the 50 sen coins I collected since, ermmm... I can't remember when. At first, I didn't know what I would do with them but in the end, I decided to open up a CIMB bank account using these coins.

Altogether, add to other coin denominations, they add to almost RM600n which I put in my facebook as 'pecah tabung untuk masuk universiti Januari nanti'. So classy . But to carry those coins to the bank, mak aiiii... Berat bahu memikul!

Post-swim lepak

I had my first swimming class today at Pusat Akuatik Darul Ehsan (PADE) Shah Alam. To my surprise, I was introduced to an instructor who is familiar to me, from the running community, but have not known him personally. I just kept being anonymous as I want to maintain the student-teacher relationship.

But as soon as anothe friend turned up at the pool later and shook hand with me, all broke loose. After the class, the three of us went for post-swim minum and talked about, what else if not running, triathlon, until we ran out of topic and the eldest among the three of us started advising on marriage subject to these two bachelors.


So, there's Abg Ramlan in hat. He's the Ketua Reban for Chap Ayam Runners' Club. He's obviously the eldest among us giving the advice. He took up the swimming lesson to 'repair' his strokes and to swim faster to prepare for Kapas-Marang swim event. The specky one is my swimming instructor, Luvis, who is also a marathoner, did his first marathon in Singapore early this month.

Anyway, had fun with the first lesson, it's all about bubbling and kicking, bubbling and kicking, bubbling and kicking....

View dari bawah kain, literally

We always seen image of the Petronas Twin Towers as a whole building. But, I have a different perspective looking at the Tower, today. It's just like having a sneak up from underneath of someone's sarung or skirt. Just that it's iron. :-)


Venue: Level 36, Tower 1, PETRONAS Twin Tower.

Pokok Ipoh

Venue: Dataran Stesen KTMB, Ipoh

Ipoh Tree (Antiaris toxicarial), also known as pokok upas or pokok epu, is the tree that lend its name to the city of Ipoh. One of the earliest references to this word being used as the name of Ipoh appeared in the book "Perak and the Malays" by J.F. McNair in 1878.

The Ipoh tree produces a poisonous sap that is used by the orang asli fir the darts of their blowpipes.

Auburn, Oregon finally get shot at BCS title

Six years later, the Auburn Tigers finally received their due respect from the BCS. The Oregon Ducks had to wait nine years. Those programs, victims of the BCS system in previous seasons, on Sunday night were officially chosen to compete for national supremacy in the BCS national championship game when the final BCS standings of the season were announced.

The championship game is set for Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz., and it's the second consecutive season the title game will match unbeaten opponents.

SEC champion Auburn (13-0) and Pac-10 winner Oregon (12-0) appeared to be on a collision course to meet for the championship since the last week of October. After Oregon routed UCLA 60-13 on Oct. 21 and Auburn defeated LSU 24-17 on Oct. 23, the Tigers and Ducks took over the top two spots in the BCS standings and have occupied those positions ever since.

While both have been dominant for much of the season, each had to overcome close calls. Auburn rallied from a 24-point deficit to subdue defending national champion Alabama 28-27, while Oregon struggled to a 15-13 victory over California. Chizik said consecutive come-from-behind victories over Clemson and South Carolina in September set the foundation for Auburn's season.

Oregon coach Chip Kelly saw championship potential from his team even earlier. He said he knew this could be a special season during spring practice. "Watching them go through practice every single day. Watching them compete," Kelly said. "They didn't take a play off. They just were focused as a group."


The title game, which figures to defy the old cliche that defense wins championships, matches two of the nation's most explosive offenses. Both are led by first-year starting quarterbacks -- Auburn's Cameron Newton, a junior college transfer who is all but assured of winning the Heisman, and Oregon's Darron Thomas, a sophomore who won the job after '09 starter Jeremiah Masoli was dismissed from the team in the offseason.

Behind Thomas and Heisman-contending running back LaMichael James, who leads the nation in rushing with 1,682 yards, Oregon averages 49.3 points per game, tops in the nation. Thomas has thrown for 2,518 yards and 28 touchdowns, while Newton has thrown for 2,589 yards and 28 touchdowns.

Behind Newton, who also has rushed for 1,409 yards, Auburn averages 42.7 points per game and is the sixth in the nation in scoring. Oregon is fourth in the nation in rushing (303.8 yards) and Auburn is sixth (287.1 yards). Auburn is 11th in the nation in rush defense, while Oregon is 16th.

For Auburn, the appearance in the championship game may ease the pain of 2004. That season, Auburn was undefeated but was denied a chance to play for the national championship. Instead, USC and Oklahoma vied for the title. Oregon also feels it was unfairly shunned in 2001. The Ducks were 10-1, but the BCS championship game instead paired Miami against Nebraska, which didn't even win its division in the Big 12 and had been blown out in its final regular-season game.

Oregon ousts Oregon State for BCS title bid

The Ducks were far from their best Saturday, but as the clear skies turned gray and clouds began to cover Mount Hood off in the distance, Oregon showed its resolve and toughness.

As the third quarter turned to the fourth and AC/DC blared in Reser Stadium, Oregon State's sideline was rocking, its players thinking they just might pull off a monster upset. On their side, Oregon stayed cool -- focused on winning the day. When it was done, and a spot in the BCS national title game was secured, that's when the Ducks finally let loose.


Heisman Trophy contender LaMichael James, Kenjon Barner and the fast-paced Ducks (No. 2 BCS, No. 1 AP) negotiated the last speed bump on the way to Glendale, Ariz., grinding out a 37-20 victory over the Beavers in the Civil War on Saturday. The matchup becomes official Sunday, but there will be no surprises when the final Bowl Championship Series standings come out: Oregon will play Auburn on Jan. 10 for its first national championship.

James ran for 134 yards and two touchdowns while Barner had 133 yards and scored twice for the Ducks (12-0, 9-0 Pac-10), who used some stiff defense in the red zone -- led by Bair and Casey Matthews -- and three interceptions to fend off their feisty rivals.

Not until the fourth quarter did Oregon finally shake free. Barner's 23-yard touchdown run with 12:16 made it 30-13 and James popped through the middle for a 10-yard score with 4:27 left to seal it.


When the clock hit 00:00, James and his teammates bounded over to a corner of the stadium to celebrate with their band, their famous Donald Duck-clone mascot and their fans. The Oregon faithful spilled onto the field and the push up-pumping mascot got swallowed up as he crowd surfed. The party was headed south, 40 miles down Interstate 5 to Eugene.

The Ducks, the Pac-10's new power with their high-speed spread offense, rising star coach Chip Kelly and the wildest uniforms Nike and Oregon alumnus Phil Knight can provide, are relative newcomers among college football's elite. Yet Kelly disdains such big-picture talk about a shift in the football landscape. "Win the day," is his motto -- and there are 37 between now and the national title game.

"We're not going to play a national championship right now, we're going to prepare for one," he said. "But we got to this point by our preparation and we know we're going to have to go to work for the next month to show up on the 10th."

The stakes for the 114th Civil War were higher than for any of the rivalry's previous meetings, with the Ducks assured of a spot in the national title game with a victory. The Beavers? They were simply looking to get to .500 and avoid sitting out the bowl season for the first time since 2001. Oregon State didn't play like a three-touchdown underdog and Oregon never did unleash a wave of big plays, like those that have consumed so many other teams.

For decades, Oregon was a second-class Pac-10 team, too. But in 1994 Rich Brooks led the Ducks to their first Rose Bowl since 1965 and it turned out to be no fluke. Brooks left for the NFL and handed the program off to Mike Bellotti. With Knight helping to fund the cause, the Ducks became a factor in the Pac-10 and probably should have played for a national title with quarterback Joey Harrington after the 2001 season. The BCS numbers didn't work out for the Ducks that season and the window of opportunity in the Pac-10 closed the next season as Southern California began its dominant run.

After the 2008 season, Bellotti stepped aside and Kelly, after just one season as offensive coordinator, was promoted to head coach. The Ducks finally knocked the Trojans off the Pac-10 throne and went the Rose Bowl last season, wrapping up the conference title with a victory in the Civil War.

Now it's on to Glendale, Ariz., for the fashion plates of college football.

Fast Facts
• Oregon ran for 346 yards, 134 from LaMichael James and 133 from Kenjon Barner.
• It would be the Ducks first BCS title game appearance and the Pac-10's first appearance since USC in the 2005 season.
• Oregon is the first Pac-10 team to go undefeated in a nine conference game schedule (since 2006). The Ducks have won at least eight conference games in consecutive years.
• The Ducks have topped the Beavers three straight times, their longest streak since winning four straight from 1994-97.
• Oregon State fell to 2-7 against AP No. 1 teams all-time.

My Green Salad Days in the USA by Hadramie

Pak Syed, or more fondly known as Hadramie, made this special video clip for me and post it on Facebook and twitter. He said he took hafl afternoon to do it - compiling, rearranging pictures and inserting the background music. Memang takde kerja Amie ni.


I'm honored! Thanks, Amie!