Seman & Munah

These are the names of the new kittens I have in Jitra.

Yes, saya pejuang nama-nama klasik melayu. huhu..

But because I still don't have the heart to name my own kids with such names, the kittens are my victims!

I think, within the standards of longkang-born kittens, they are extremeeeeellly cute!!!

Too bad I can only see them during holidays.

And so far, every time I saw them, they doubled in size!!

Ok you know I can forever ramble about these feline beings, so let these photos speak for themselves aye?

The end of a chapter and the beginning of another...

Yes, it's over.

I can now say goodbye to my Masters studies in UM with utmost relief and pride.

I am lying, however, if I say that there're no uncertainties at all in my life now.

Yeah, I have completed my Masters studies, in the sense that I don't need to go to classes anymore and sit for any freakin' exams.

But I am VERY VERY worried about my grade for my last paper this semester and the status of my research project that I'd submitted last month.

My last paper turned out to be very challenging. It looked simple in the beginning, and that's why I registered for it. As weeks went by, there were so many concepts that I needed to remember and understand, all of which were foreign to me, unfortunately.

This was especially difficult for me since Linguistics isn't my cuppa, nor is it my forte. I can justify, ramble, and bluff all sorts of crap for my education-based and psychology-based papers but for Descriptive Linguistics: nahhhh!!!

Thank God I survived the assignments. My worry now is the exam paper I sat for last Thursday. I was so surprised to see that there were so mannnnnyyy things that we were required to write in order to answer each question. I was running out of time and I didn't get to check my answers. *sigh*.. Dunno la how it'll turn out to be. I hope the grade won't negatively affect my overall CGPA.

I don't want to have any regrets anymore this time around.

My research project is another thing that is bugging me. Yeah, I'd submitted it.

but I myself question the quality of my work which was completed only within 3 months, motivated merely by my plan to get married this December. I was also told that my second examiner is a very strict lecturer. Urgh... I hope my grade for my RP also won't negatively affect my CGPA.

All of this madness, coupled with the two part-time jobs had turned me into a very very tired superwoman. Amazingly, I managed to fulfill all that was required from me despite the vicious time constraints.

This explains why this blog was abandoned for almost 2 months!

At first, I regretted taking up the part-time teaching positions. But now, upon reflection, I have no regrets. I had fun teaching and learning from my students.

The new teaching experiences in overwhelmingly diverse environments have definitely enriched my overall perspective about teaching and life in general. Will blog specifically about my experiences teaching in the two IPTS soon. hehe.

Another uncertainty is surely "What should I do next year??"

I hope I will get the most suitable teaching position next year in an IPTA. I don't want to keep changing workplaces from time to time. I hope I will get to work right away at an institution that suits my vision and personality.

The other chapter?? some of u may wonder.

Of course it's my wedding.

You can track down my bridezilla journey on my wedding blog, if you want.hehehe.

MARRIAGE...

To be frank, this is the most exciting and worrying chapter of my life now.

I'm waiting for it to begin.

and unlike most novels and fairy tales, I hope mine won't have an ending.

May my story continue to put a gigantic smile on my face and the ones I love.

Walimatul Urus

Assalamualaikum W.B.T.

Walimatul Urus

A wedding invitation to Saiful Izwan & Norazrin's wedding.

You are cordially invited to celebrate our BIG day.

Your attendance will be considered the biggest wedding gifts for us. ;)

Jemput datang memeriahkan majlis kami berdua.

Cheers!

Salam,

Saiful Izwan Zainal & Norazrin

P/S- For a bigger and clearer view of the card and most importantly the details, please click on the thumbnails. Thanks.

Disappointed

It's not that I'm not grateful with what i have...

Seriously, alhamdulillah for everything that is bestowed upon me...

BUT, I was hoping I could spend my last raya, before getting married, in a more meaningful way...

Instead, I ended up having to follow someone else's plans... and that someone does not even deserve to celebrate raya in the first place. *HUGE sigh*

I am also 'forbidden' from visiting the few relatives that are closest to me...

Imagine not getting to see your closest aunts, grandmother/s, grandfather/s (ni memang dh takder) even during Eid, even though they are just THERE!!!

I miss my secondary school years.

Though Raya then wasn't exciting either (well, it has never been), at least I could feel a hint of Raya mood: visiting the relatives i know and like to hangout with, dapat main bunga api, dapat duit raya, etc...

I am just disappointed. That's all.

I hope next raya, as a wife (insy Allah...), will be a lot more joyous.

*sigh*

Maaf Zahir Batin everyone...

salam ghaya!!!

salam ghaya everyone!

would like to say sorry for all my wrongdoings. and sorry if whatever that i've written on my blogs so far has offended any of you.

maaf zahir batin.

regards,

Azrin

When 'youth' is a disadvantage...

"How could 'youth' and 'beauty' be a disadvantage??" asked one of my 'experienced' colleagues to me one day.

Well in my case, youthful looking appearance IS indeed a disadvantage.. especially that I am involved in the teaching profession.

"How old are you, Azrin?"

"Erm...25..."

"What??? I thought you were 17!!!"

"Heheh.. I thought so..."

"Oh you get that a lot?"

"ALL the time..."

This is a very2 typical conversation that i would have with people that I have just known.

Examples: When i was 23, I was thought to be an SPM-leaver who's waiting for my SPM results when i was taking my driving lessons, often di-ngorat by obviously hormone-raging school teenagers (rasa terhina ok...), and being asked by Wellington bus drivers: "children or adult"?? before paying the bus fare.

To name a few

No matter how much makeup i have applied, no matter how formal i try tool like.. I still look like a girl who has just reached her puberty!!! Tell me what else i can do!!!

And in the teaching profession, this is definitely a disadvantage. It is harder for me to earn the respect of my students, since all that they see is that 'i am just one of them'.

I have to actually search high and low for the ways to ensure that the students acknowledge the 'gap' between us..I need to put extra effort to prove that I am the teacher, and I am serious with whatever that I am doing. *sigh*

Last week, I had one student in the college i'm currently teaching coming to me and asking:

"Are you really the teacher???, my friend said you are his teacher. I don't believe him.!!."

"Yes, i am..." *smile*

I can see the shock in his face.

Seriously, Do i really look THAT young???

I am all worried about my pre-mature wrinkles, but still i look young in the eyes of others...?

Perhaps, i will only come to appreciate this 'gift' when I'm 40.

For now... I don't know what I can do anymore to make myself look mature and teacher-ish.I have makeup, i put my hair down, I wear formal clothes, i wear traditional clothes too, I wear high heels.... i use womanly bags too..waaaaaa...

But my baby-face and small frame make all of the above pointless...

Still, I am grateful to Allah for everything that is bestowed upon me.

At least, credit card promoters in the mall won't even bother to distribute their pamphlets to me, what more to persuade me into their strategic trap!

;)

Ciao

Another bimbo moment...

Have you ever driven through a toll plaza with NO MONEY AT ALL??? Not even a handy TOUCH & GO card???

Of course I had...

You know lah how dramatised my life can be...

Last Friday, I went to The Curve: first to get a set of questionnaires from my UM friend (Thanks Chad!). We ended up having a long chat while waiting for Zira to come by.

He then joined both of us for a BIG BIG dinner! When i said BIG, i meant HUGE!!! Seriously it was makan busattt!!!, perhaps exactly like or beyond Zira's imagination!!! She had been anticipating a good meal for months!

Italliannies is definitely recommended for BIG eaters...heheh..Thanks Chad for recommending... and Thanks Zira for the treat! ;)

I didn't even manage to finish up my meal (when Azrin could not retain her 'clean-plate-club' status, there's definitely something too right or too wrong about the meal..hehe). Well, surely in this case, it's waaayyy tooo right! Awesome fish, it's just that the portion was toooo generous..macam untuk makan 4 org je...huhu

Then it was time to go back home. Kena konvoi dengan Zira, coz she did not know the route to my new home.

Dengan penuh bergaya kami memandu seiringan...

Yang terindah, however, hanyalah sementara...

Reality hit us big time at the toll plaza...

Zira headed for the Touch N Go lane.. and I drove towards the 'Tunai' lane...

Dengan penuh bergaya, diriku meraba2 di dalam bag dengan pnuh relaksnya, searching for my purse, macam biasa.. Kena bayar 2 hinggit neh...

Cold sweat started to emerge as I couldn't find it... WTH???

Panik tahap asbestos dh ni..dlm hati mnyumpah2... mana lak pi purse ni... mamat jaga toll tu dh sengeh2 kambeng dh tgk aku gabra...

There was a car behind me.. I quickly pressed the hazard light, indicating: "Get lost!!! Switch to another lane... I'm having one of my typical bimbo moments here... You don't need to witness it!" huhu...

He switched to another 'Tunai' lane..alhamdulillah... sib bek tak banyak keta...dh malam kan...

mesti dalam hati dia: "apa la minah nii, dah xde duit jangan la lalu highway... apalaaaa"

Ok, mamat tadi tak abih2 lagi tersengeh2...

It was the perfect time to switch on my "muka sposen" mode.

"adikkkk, mintak maaap sgt2..akak tertinggal pursee... serius takde duit langsung ni... macamana yerr???"

At that moment, it finally occurred to me that I left my purse in Zira's car earlier.. So I called Zira right away to verify the matter...

Alhamdulillah it's in her car..But Zira dah terlepas ke mana2 dah..

I was still stuck there with NO Money.. NO Nothing!!

*Dalam hati: "biar btull..apa aku nk kena gadai niii...waaaaa!!!"*

"Adikkk, purse akak dalam keta kawan akak...camana ni?? betul akak tak tipu...."

With poise, the young man said: "Takpe kak...saya buatkan resit kat akak..Nanti akak datang bayar balik dalam masa seminggu yer..."

"Oh boleh ekk??"

"Boleh kak...jangan risau..." he smiled....

Phewww... nasib baiikkkkkk...

After the man prepared the receipt for me... he then asked:

"Akak dari Kedah yerr??" *insert wajah extra peramah here*

"Hrmm..ha ah..."

"Ouhhhh, kat mana yer???"

*dalam hati aku: peramah nya plak mamat ni..sah dia bosan gila malam2 ni...*

"Kat Jitra..."

"Ouhh..."

"Ni resit...make sure bayar nanti ek, tak perlu malam ni..."

"OK, trima kasih yer dik..."


Phewwww.lepasssss gakkk... rasa berdebar tak habih lagi...rs geram pn ada dgn masalah pelupa aku yg makin menjadi2... tapi rasa nk tergelak pun ada...

Mesti mamat tu ingat aku ni minah kampung dr kedah yg first time datang KL terkedek2 and blur2 takder duit tapi gatai nk lalu Sprint highway... Dengan sticker 'P' yg aku tak reti nak cabut2, surely the whole drama there looked even moreeee pathetic... Gadis kampung kedah yang xde duit nk bayar tol and sesat kat kl blur2 bwk keta sbb baru dpt lesen..huhuhuhu

I always end up having to face stupid encounters like this because of my absent-mindedness... which is not normal and not cute at all at this age... *sigh*

Zira dh drive jalan lain.. and i was following a different route...

We met up in Bangsar, and konvoi again from there back to PJ...

phew... a journey that should take at most 30 mins, ended up to be more than 1 hour.. we arrived home at almost 12am...

Gila laaahhh...

Malu2... haishhh...

Another stupid story to add to my collection of stupid stories yang wajib diceritakan kepada anak cucu sebagai bahan gelak guling2 berzaman2 lamanya...

ciao...

A good way of venting...

What's with the new job?? , some may ask...

Most of u know that I have been working part-time in one IPTS for about 3 weeks now.

Actually there was a lil bit of drama before I started.

I was told that I would be getting 8 hours of teaching in a week.

When calculated, I should be getting enough money to cover my daily expenses and support some of my wedding preparations.

I was contented.

Then a week before I actually started, tukar pulak... They said they could only give me 3 hours per week...

Hancur luluh lah hati ini (chewah)... Budget lari!!!!!!!!!! kalo x smpai 700 pn sbulan, sadis la.. xeven lps utk mnda basic as makan+minyak+sewa. Takyah cakap la pasal kawin!!

In utmost desperation and an emotional and dissatisfied state-of-mind, I emailed my resume to two other colleges. I was determined to get more money, through other doors.

I was not even sure of the email addresses... I didn't know anyone in those colleges.. Main hentam je...

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Then after 2 weeks of teaching, I feel... It's ok.. 3 jam pun 3 jam lah... ada hikmah kotttt...

Suddenly last Friday, I received a call from one of the colleges that I emailed earlier... inviting me to attend a job interview on Tuesday.

"Are you still interested in the job??"

In an uncertain tone, I answered, " Yes, I am.."

As I hung up the phone, i was thinking: "What have I done????"

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I attended the interview last Tuesday.

It was brief and not that intimidating. I am not sure if it was really that simple, or I might have just attended too many job interviews recently that I've become accustomed to such a situation.

But my heart dropped a bit when i saw a printed copy of the email that I sent to the college in the hands of the interviewer...

Gosh!! It occurred to me then that it was one hell of a serious letter: it was regarded as an official job application letter and I didn't even realise it!

Today, I got to know that I got the job!!!!

Something that started just as a way of venting my anger turns out to be something real... and money-making!!! hahahaha..

Alhamdulillah.... (rezeki orang nk kawin ke??)

No more drama after this pls.....

Kalah Membeli, Menang Memakai....

Is that proverb correct? hahahah...

Tak reti guna nk guna gak.. gatai!

OK, direct to the point. I just want to list down the things that i had bought that are worth every penny! No regrets at all. I just wish I could buy more of them! hahaha.. Here's the list (am gonna update this regularly, if needed)

1. My Compaq Laptop.
--Meskipun ia tidak dijaga dngan baik, it still serves its purpose. I regret not taking care of it better..

2. My Canon DigiCam
--fuhhh.. banyak berjasa ni... it has been capturing all my moments since Wellington days, and it's still working fine!

3. My Spade black dress.
--it's like THE dress!! can be worn on its own or with leggings. It's CREASE-FREE, it's sooo flattering, it's pretty decent for some meeting-the-in-laws sessions, it's super comfy, it doesn't show sweat marks, and i bought it when it was on 70% discount!!! So it's just rm 40++. It couldn't be better!

4. My rm 5 IKEA wall clock.
--It's cheap, I haven't replaced the batteries since December last year, and it's still ticking!!!)

5. My Hyppo pants
-- only my close Ipbarian girls would know which pair of pants i'm referring to. My mom was the one who bought it. I used to have friends hugging my feet just to feel the texture of the pants.hahaha... It's called the Hyppo pants because its texture is similar to Iz's Hyppotamus teddybear before! huhuhu... it's so comfy and it's sooo baggy, which is perfect for a good night sleep. I used to have two of them, but i left the other one at one of the Backpackers in Nelson, NZ. Cis! The only minus point is that, the pants make my butt look twice as big. Seriously!

6. My humble Sony Erricsson cellphone.
--Despite my klutzy nature, being thrown and whatnot on a daily basis, it's still alive, alhamdulillah.

7. My PENSONIC TV.
--the price is ok, it displays quality pictures, and it saves me from boredom every single day!

8. My Laura Mercier Glosstick.
-- It's one of the nicest lipsticks i possess. I love the shade (Rosewater). Will definitely buy it again , despite the price.

9. Loreal Beauty Tubes Mascara
-- It's soo easy to be removed, i.e. just use water! So boleh pakai mascara kalo boleh smayang skalipun! weeee!

10. My BROTHER printer model DCP 135C
-- It's like the DREAM printer for me! 4 in 1 function, and it's so easy to use! Easier than Canon's similar version, which my mom bought for my Jitra house. The quality is unbeatable and rarely shows tantrums. It has been one of my best mates since the beginning of my Masters studies. Also, i bought it in Lowyat together with the ink package (4 large bottles of ink and tiruan punya catridges). The whole package is soooo worth it!!! Tak habis2 the ink lagi ok? Yang kaler still x bukak2 the large bottles lg, and yg black pun ada lagi quarter. I print like one mad girl tau! sooo this is just miraculous.... Dah lbih stahun dh ni xperlu2 beli ink lagi! loveee it!


11. The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
-- I bought the one with the CD-ROM together. I rarely use the thick dictionary, but i use the CD-ROM on a daily basis on this laptop. Senang gila! And it's OXFORD!! Not just any random unreliable online dictionaries you come across.
12. My 4GB Kingston pendrive
-- oh it's my life for now... smua file pnting2 disimpan dlm ni... all pics, some movies, etc.

OKkk, tak ingat dah... will update later whenever new things come to mind.

Ciao.

First week of teaching...

It has been okkkk so far.

I was given an intermediate class, so I'm happy about it.
Teaching students with too low / too high English language proficiency is challenging and extra2 stressful.

The students are all fresh from school, all about 18 years of age. They are all scholars from the ICPU (Canadian Pre-U Programme), but they are all from diverse courses (which is a headache coz it's difficult to inform anything to everybody when there are no classes). So i suppose they'll go to Canada if they fulfill all the necessary requirements.

The class is very2 active... and by that, I mean some of them are toooo chatty and they can't sit at one place at a time. They love to move around and distract me with irrelevant questions and stupid jokes. The Chinese boys especially are very2 talkative. The Malay boys ala2 malu2 kambeng kunun... and the girls are all prim and proper and not tooo active (as expected...). but they are all sweet and obedient.

So far, I think i can manage it, although some kept insisting on leaving early, and 1-2 students were testing my patience by sleeping in the class, and whatnot. I think i'm gonna split the Chinese boys' group next week, coz it's just tooo noisy when they are all together.

I don't know how well i can handle this, but i think I can survive these 2 months of teaching and prepare them for their IELTS exam.

Why do i always have to prepare students for big exams that i have never even taken myself and never ever seen, for that matter???

In UiTM before, i was preparing them for MUET. until now i dunno how MUET is like. hahaha....

and now, IELTS. I still dunno how the hell it's like either.

sabaq je laaa...

wish me luck for the upcoming weekszzz of teaching.

ciao