After a last minute cancellation by 'my company' to JB to collect my biscuits, I decided to drive down alone, for it would be quicker that way. So at 6am yesterday, I jumped into the viva, and hit the road. All along the way I would sing my lungs outs, it's one way of venting out negative energies, you see. When no one is around, it does not matter if I was out of tune or singing the wrong lyrics or making up new ones. Or screaming or screaching.(and...there was alot of reasons to get that way for) By the time I reached JB, I was healthier.
Adi and I collected the biscuits in Kulaijaya, went to Maklong's house, gave her some for blessing, then to Gee's house, delivered her order, then back again to Adi's house to rest and talk to the old folks. Allah had given me a good share of old ladies in my life for Adi's mum and I chatted happily.
At 4.00 I hit the road home . Drive, sing, drive, sing until the sun went down and my energy to sing went down too . Time to do some zikir, listen to the Islamic channel, hear some sound advices, listen to Quran and be more sober, emm...how I should have been from the very beginning. (tau, takpe)
At 9.00pm I reached Abang's house to deliver his biscuits. Spent the night there because I was exhausted.
At 9.00am today, sent biscuits to Aziz's house, Kak Ros's house and Bahiah's house. Less and less biscuits in the car.
I hope everyone like these biscuits. Adi and Kak Timah are selling them too. It started from me bugging Adi for tarts. So she bought one bottle for me and posted to Shah Alam. It arrived in crumbs beyond recognition. The post office people must have made a football out of my parcel. Then Adi bought replacement. And more and more until the three of us decided to sell tarts and other biscuits this hari raya.
This tag line came up, 'Jangan menyusahkan orang, jual kueh tart' when we were sharing the throes being single parents and would like to prove we are far from being burdensome to people around us.
That is how we ended up selling biscuits this year.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Pakistan flood
Mimi told me her lecturer said, helping someone is like giving way to a vehicle on the road. Another time you need to cut in, another vehicle will give way, but not the vehicle you gave way to, for it would be far on it's way (excuse the many 'ways' here for coherence) That's why when we help someone, he might not be the one returning our help but help would come from another person.
It is said that as long as we help another person, Allah swt will always help us.
What is happening to our mother earth? My heart had just recovered from watching the Haiti earthquake aftermaths, now I watch Pakistan hit by the horrendous floods. Yesterday's news showed the seas and rivers joined up and flowed into the lands, submerging everything in its way. How the waters raised and where did all this water come from? Millions of people's lives and livelihood destroyed. Millions and counting.
How long would it take to put their lives back together again? How much money would they need? How would they be living through all this? We see them fighting and hitting each other for food. Scraping fallen grains on the ground. The victims getting sick and ill. My heart bleeds again. It is like a smaller version of the floods during Prophet Noh as, don't you think?
In this holy month of Ramadhan lets do our bit and donate to them what we can spare. For every donation or sedeqah for the cause of Allah, Allah will double in folds.
Firman Allah :
Perumpamaan orang-orang yang menafkahkan hartanya di jalan Allah adalah serupa dengan sebutir benih yang menumbuhkan tujuh butir, pada tiap-tiap butir, seratus biji. Allah melipat gandakan (ganjaran) bagi siapa yang Dia kehendaki. Dan Allah Maha Luas (kurnianya) lagi Maha Mengetahui. (Surah Albaqarah ayat 261)
Allah also grants the doas of those who fast. Let us doa for them for survival, strength, and sustainance. Amin ya Rob.
It is said that as long as we help another person, Allah swt will always help us.
What is happening to our mother earth? My heart had just recovered from watching the Haiti earthquake aftermaths, now I watch Pakistan hit by the horrendous floods. Yesterday's news showed the seas and rivers joined up and flowed into the lands, submerging everything in its way. How the waters raised and where did all this water come from? Millions of people's lives and livelihood destroyed. Millions and counting.
How long would it take to put their lives back together again? How much money would they need? How would they be living through all this? We see them fighting and hitting each other for food. Scraping fallen grains on the ground. The victims getting sick and ill. My heart bleeds again. It is like a smaller version of the floods during Prophet Noh as, don't you think?
In this holy month of Ramadhan lets do our bit and donate to them what we can spare. For every donation or sedeqah for the cause of Allah, Allah will double in folds.
Firman Allah :
Perumpamaan orang-orang yang menafkahkan hartanya di jalan Allah adalah serupa dengan sebutir benih yang menumbuhkan tujuh butir, pada tiap-tiap butir, seratus biji. Allah melipat gandakan (ganjaran) bagi siapa yang Dia kehendaki. Dan Allah Maha Luas (kurnianya) lagi Maha Mengetahui. (Surah Albaqarah ayat 261)
Allah also grants the doas of those who fast. Let us doa for them for survival, strength, and sustainance. Amin ya Rob.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
QOROH
A COW!!!!! Ain't it wonderful???Alhamdulillah.... I wanted a pony for ecotherapy but got a cow instead. Awesome. Quite the same, four legs, tail, hooves, eat grass, (but 'smellier') and of course, more realistic, where would I get a pony.
It's name is Qoroh. Short for Baqoroh, which means cow in arabic.
Of course there is a story behind this but lets just say, it is a gesture to help a loved one.
A COW!!!
Second act - part 3
Who would want to clean cupboards instead of doing really fun things like.... emm...I don't know... haven't been doing fun things. But...doing work around the house does bring some fulfillment. Fun and fulfillment, arent they the same?
More ideas on how to save.
1. Do not buy mineral or drinking water. Put boiled drinking water from home in a good container and bring along with us.
2. Pack food. Sandwiches, fried rice, potato chips. Cook rice, fry an omellete, drizzle soy sause and there you go, you have your lunch.
3.Buy less imported goods or food. Go local, cheaper
4. Budget to spend only RM15 per day on food (more than enough, it used to be RM10, you can do wonders with RM15). Should we overspend today, cut tomorrow's ration. Adjust our spending to that amount. If we buy 1 chicken, go for cheap vegetables like cabbage, spinach, green mustard.
5. Things we can sew ourselves. Curtains, skirts, table cloth, table mats, pillow cases, bedsheets. Find clothes we don't wear because the buttons or zips came off or torn stitches or need alterations and mend them. Its easier than you think. Do it while chatting with a friend.
6. Spruce up what we have. Beauty is when things are clean, not neccessarily new.
More ideas on how to save.
1. Do not buy mineral or drinking water. Put boiled drinking water from home in a good container and bring along with us.
2. Pack food. Sandwiches, fried rice, potato chips. Cook rice, fry an omellete, drizzle soy sause and there you go, you have your lunch.
3.Buy less imported goods or food. Go local, cheaper
4. Budget to spend only RM15 per day on food (more than enough, it used to be RM10, you can do wonders with RM15). Should we overspend today, cut tomorrow's ration. Adjust our spending to that amount. If we buy 1 chicken, go for cheap vegetables like cabbage, spinach, green mustard.
5. Things we can sew ourselves. Curtains, skirts, table cloth, table mats, pillow cases, bedsheets. Find clothes we don't wear because the buttons or zips came off or torn stitches or need alterations and mend them. Its easier than you think. Do it while chatting with a friend.
6. Spruce up what we have. Beauty is when things are clean, not neccessarily new.
With all these great plans which are easier written than done, we should help those in hardship and dire needs like the flood victims in Pakistan. If you have successfully saved some money from doing all this, maybe you can send some to them? Here is the account no. Maybank 514271339000.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Second act - part 2
When you read on the net about people moving out from your big houses to live in small houses, or see corporate people started planting vegetables and rearing chickens, it sort of leaves you worried. Is this real? Then on Oprah I saw people being laid off work that immediately changed their place in society, from high-class to middle class, from middle to poor, from celebrity to layman. Would that happen to us too? Then comes the floods in Pakistan and China, the earthquakes (this is getting depressing).
So rule no 1 - live within your means.
2. Buy smaller fish to eat. Cut what we eat and cook in size and portions. Not too small. We still need nutrients. Air Asia menu size portion looks small but sufficient, no?
3. Go and buy at the cheapest place, like here in Shah Alam, Tesco offers good prices.
4. Eat in (Sorry Dellizze regulars)
5. Save electricity, water and fuel (ok, no more fan for cats)
6. Less entertainment. Turn out and clean your cupboards instead. Kitchen cupboards too. Do gardening. Share my love for edible gardens. (not that I have one) Learn new recipes. Cheap but good fun like go walking with a friend. Take up a new inexpensive hobby. Have pets. Keep fishes. Sit with the family. Join the library. Learn a new language. Sew own clothes.
7. Deposit slowly but surely. Fill up piggy banks with the loose change. Invest for those who know where to invest. For those who doesn't know, do it the old fashion way, keep it anywhere really safe in the house.
8. Always pay our zakat and give sedeqah for these two will clean and increase our rezeki.
So rule no 1 - live within your means.
2. Buy smaller fish to eat. Cut what we eat and cook in size and portions. Not too small. We still need nutrients. Air Asia menu size portion looks small but sufficient, no?
3. Go and buy at the cheapest place, like here in Shah Alam, Tesco offers good prices.
4. Eat in (Sorry Dellizze regulars)
5. Save electricity, water and fuel (ok, no more fan for cats)
6. Less entertainment. Turn out and clean your cupboards instead. Kitchen cupboards too. Do gardening. Share my love for edible gardens. (not that I have one) Learn new recipes. Cheap but good fun like go walking with a friend. Take up a new inexpensive hobby. Have pets. Keep fishes. Sit with the family. Join the library. Learn a new language. Sew own clothes.
7. Deposit slowly but surely. Fill up piggy banks with the loose change. Invest for those who know where to invest. For those who doesn't know, do it the old fashion way, keep it anywhere really safe in the house.
8. Always pay our zakat and give sedeqah for these two will clean and increase our rezeki.
Second act
I hope I comprehended right what second act means when I read about people in the USA who took a turning in their lives to scale down drastically or to purposely live down in order to save themselves from the economic gloom. They leave their expensive lifestyles to a much more basic and simple lifestyle to cut cost before the cost cut them.
In a sense I was very fortunate to have lived frugally last time , when I had learnt the value of money so now my second act is more or less my first act. Even when our ministers try to convince us the economic gloom in US and Britain will not come here, I am not convinced because the trikle down effect happens all the time.
Even now when the girls had grown and have their salaries and scholarship, the hardship still stays in my heart, engraved forever. I remember when every dollar is stretched to the moon and every penny counts.
I just wish to emphasise in my blog today the importance of being penny-wise during these times. We should not be stingy but should stop the unneccessary spending. Scale down, save up. Shine up old stuff. Buy less new stuff. Save for rainy days because rainy days seems to be everywhere.
Lets save. Caiyok Caiyok
In a sense I was very fortunate to have lived frugally last time , when I had learnt the value of money so now my second act is more or less my first act. Even when our ministers try to convince us the economic gloom in US and Britain will not come here, I am not convinced because the trikle down effect happens all the time.
Even now when the girls had grown and have their salaries and scholarship, the hardship still stays in my heart, engraved forever. I remember when every dollar is stretched to the moon and every penny counts.
I just wish to emphasise in my blog today the importance of being penny-wise during these times. We should not be stingy but should stop the unneccessary spending. Scale down, save up. Shine up old stuff. Buy less new stuff. Save for rainy days because rainy days seems to be everywhere.
Lets save. Caiyok Caiyok
Saturday, August 21, 2010
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