Random Rambles of Lotfi

That 's our girl (extreme right) , obviously nervous We were privileged to get seats to the preview of LAT Sebuah Muzikal on Tuesday night, a day before it opens for the public.Our third child, Khairin has always been interested in dancing and singing but she has always been shy to perform in front of an audience. It was not until lately that she developed the courage to do so. I think watching GLEE has a lot to do with this change. When I found out through Christina (Mrs Afdlin) FB wall that Tall Order is having an open audition for kids for the musical, i asked her if she wants to try. Amazingly, she said yes immediately but not without asking what she has to do at the audition. And I told her, they will probably ask her to sing or dance a bit and she asked if it will be in a big group and not wanting to scare her, said I don't think so. And I was not surprised, on the morning of the audition she said, she doesn't want to go after all. So I told her I was goin...

The miracle isn't that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start." -John Bingham, running speaker and writer And, yes that's how exactly what I tell myself before each race that I crazily registered for. It's not about coming out tops. At my age, where each surge of physical activities will cause at least a week constant soreness, coming out tops is the least of my concern. I  registered  for the Bareno Run as far back as last year .having regular emails sent reminding you of upcoming runs helped. So I registered for the 10km right after I completed the 12km Malakoff  in November. I thought better to register when I'm still hot on the heels from Malakoff and when I have not had the chance to ask around about the route. So register I did, not just for Bareno but also for The Energizer Night Race in April. Crazy old woman! And on top of my own registration I also registered for hubs. Y'know, I started running on...

"I love it here but I'd rather be somewhere else..."

This is one of my favorite 2010 songs, besides many others,  of course...There's something so sad but yet so hopeful about it. I love how Chester's voice simply comes out so, longingly, so hopeful on this one...sigh...This will set the mood for today... This is not the end This is not the beginning Just a voice like a riot Rocking every revision But you listen to the tone And the violent rhythm Though the words sound steady Something emptys within em We say yeah With fists flying up in the air Like we’re holding onto something that’s invisible there Cuz we’re living at the mercy of the pain and the fear Until we dead it forget it Let it all disappear Waiting for the end to come Wishing I had strenght to stand This is not what I had planned It’s out of my control Flying at the speed of light Thoughts were spinning in my head So many things were left unsaid It’s hard to let you go I know w...

2nd week into the new year..so how has it been to everyone? I didn't make a resolution to update this like, everyday, so this is a good start. I made a deliberate effort to somehow welcome 2011 differently, not that there was anything remotely wrong with how we did it in the recent years. We've done city hotel stays before watching the fireworks from the 15th floor of Impiana KLCC, we've taken the opportunity to make a trip to Singapore at least 2 years in a row, even if it was a few days before the new year and there were countless "stay at home, watch fireworks from the front gate" which was cool as well, at least it worked for us.. fussy lot we're not.. G ENTING Having spent the Xmas weekend in Genting with the kids, the week before convinced us me that ok, enough spending...seriously Genting can be quite a spent, especially with food. But our stay at The Club Room was very pleasant and my ride on the Space Shot (the only ride I have the guts  ...

I love shopping!! Have always do. I've been known among friends to be the unofficial sale directory...but over the years I have somehow sober up and would only spend when absolutely necessary as opposed to a few years back where I buy on impulse, especially during sales. It was no surprise when I gave away stuff that I didn't even wear or had only worn once or twice, recently. Shopping, really is an instant gratification. I love the feeling of using / touching/ smelling new stuff that I just acquired. Lame, I know..but that's my fact of life. As with other things,  I'd rather take this positively. It shows me for who I am, someone who seize the day, carpe diem! and for that cest la vie! Like Imran say it, "that's the way I roll"...After all, life is short..But then it also explains why I find it hard holding on to money, which comes back to bite me in the butt at the most critical of time.. Haish but that's another story.. Running, on the other ...

Looks like I have to increase the dosage of the glucosamine chondroithin supplement these few weeks. After the 10.10.10 Nike Run which was real fun to do with the sea of people and a week later, the Mizuno Wave Run where I struggled  to complete the 12km route of hills after walking for about 3km from the parking lot to the UPM stadium, November passed without any races... Well, I did sign up for the Terry Fox run but we decided to go to Penang and get fat..so that's that! The last two Sundays, I ran longer distance with TSB who took me to the Hartamas loop and last week we ran from Bukit Aman. I must say, I ran better with company. And surprisingly, the nagging discomfort on my knees before the long runs seems to have subsided. Is it the pills or the run? Either way, I'm thankful.. I have signed up for 2 races in December. The TIBI Run will be on the 11th, while Malakoff  Run is the week after that on the 19th. 7km & 12km respectively. And I'm getting butt...

I must start remembering the stuff that Zaim asked us out of the blue...sometimes I'm not sure what goes on in that lil brain of his..and sometimes we don't even know how to answer him.. Yesterday he was asking "matahari tu pergi mana??". Eh?? Apa nak jawab ek? Tak faham soklan lah..so we go all out trying to explain about how the earth moves and how nite becomes day..and he responded with "tak faham lah" And a while later, he asked while looking at the clock in the car.."kalau semua jam dalam dunia ni salah, macamana kita nak tau jam pukul berapa..??" And we went on to explain that the tv, radio and a lot of other places where we can check the time from. Aisyah started wanting to explain about telling the time using the sun but stopped mid sentence perhaps remembering that we are talking to a 7 year old here..hehehe.. Zaim...Zaim...tsk, tsk, tsk....he keeps us on our toes..

I was in that sea of  9000 plus luminescent green/yellow, panting, plodding, walking, heaving but mostly running...again just to finish the race and also to ensure the calories from the lamb mandiy rice that I had at Al Diaffah was well spent...hahaha...it was the perfect way to mark the date.. top 2 photos taken from @NikeMy twitpics

As much as I hate to admit that I am now scared shit for my son Imran who will be sitting for his PMR tomorrow, I have to say I am. I really don't know what's going on in his head and how he's feeling about the exams but I sure hope that Allah S.W.T will at least give him the mercy of not panicking in the exam hall and trying his very best to answer the papers. One person panicking for him is enough.. Imran, mama ayah trust you will try your best and we will always pray for you... Now, excuse me while I try to sleep my worries away..

Ini bukan kuih tart Mak... On this 33rd day of Ramadan, with us applying for Raya leave in the office I reminiscence my Raya of yesteryears. As a kid, Raya is always something I look forward to. Raya will mark some of the significant events for me for the year. Among others, Raya means: 1. We get new clothes...usually a pair of the traditional garb and 2 sets of the others, perhaps a dress and later when I'm older, my preferred pants and tops. 2. We shopped in Singapore for Raya...the advantage of living in JB. The whole family, all 8 of us will cramped into Abah's Peugeot and pepagi buta will cross the border and will not be back home selagi kedai tak tutup. One year we discovered a Japanese department store, Yokoso which actually opens 24-7...Parah!! Mak would buy her curtains, cushion covers, chair backs, all cheap-cheap from Sungei Road at that time...I remember traipsing CK Tang looking at dresses and pinggan mangkuk..And after all the shopping is done, we would...

Yesterday morning, hubs received a text to say that a mutual friend of ours has passed on. Allahyarham Abdul Kadir bin Daim was 33 years old and he passed away from cancer of the brain. I was there the week of the diagnose of the cancer and later before his first operation to remove the tumor. He was calm perhaps not knowing the seriousness of his illness. That was the last time we met, in his hospital room in SDMC about less than a year ago. After that he moved back to his mum's place and apparently his condition worsen after the series of chemo. Arwah, extreme right..somehow always in the background (pix courtesy of Zaid's fb) I was not that close to him. I met him through another friend and we met occasionally. Kadir was a reserved person but that doesn't stopped me from shamelessly asking him for an invitation to his home after knowing that he is a really good cook. The first time, dinner was in another friend's home, but Arwah did all the cooking. I can st...

Today is the 12th day of Ramadan. Today also marked 9 days since my maid, Ana went on MC. She was about 5 months pregnant last week, when she complained that she has been feeling very tired so she asked for her weekend break last weekend. I told her to check the condition with a doctor. Last Sunday, when she called me she was in tears saying that the foetus has somehow lost its life in her uterus and she has to go through the D&C procedure. When she first told me she was pregnant a few months earlier, I was quite surprised coz I know that they were not planning for one, after all her husband has grown up children and she herself has a son from their previous marriage. But I guess, you can't plan these things and after her decision to stop working and then deciding to give birth here, I sort of got myself psyched to welcome a baby into our home. But alas, we can only plan. So we are left to fend for ourselves. Lucky that it's Ramadan and the kids don't eat durin...

The gang, most have left while a few others remain but this constant meet up keeps the friendship fresh... Lyn opening her present Great to be meeting up with friends. We have been delaying Lynn's birthday meet up. Lynn moved to Sepang, which made arrangements to meet up a bit difficult to coordinate but today (yesterday) we finally did. My homies...these guys are almost like brothers to me.. We had good food in Madam Kwan's, great laughter and shared a lot of stories. Most of us has since left MPB and only 3 are still there, nevertheless I guess we have made a silent pact to ourselves to keep this friendship going.What better way than to celebrate each other's birthday, for a lack of better excuse... After dinner I meet up with hubs and the kids for dessert at Whisk. Their Red velvet cake and cafe latte was the perfect end to dinner. Till the next meet up...i await in anticipation.. Thanks for the friendship guys...