Reading between the lines, my heart just sank thinking of the wonderful days with one of my loveliest best friends, Baby Windu Mustika, who currently resides in Dubai.My mind drifted back to the bubbly Indonesian lass that was always there when I needed some girly cheering.

At the same time, I thought of the penguin feet, Fenny Theresia who never knew the word shame. I could still hear her screams, “VUT must be win” across the football field. Over the years her English improved and with a twang of an Oz accent. In fact, Fen and I were laughing over coffee just simply but reminiscing the moments in college, this time last year in Bali.

Then there was Radzman who was the cool dude in college who had everything figured out. Man, who was my other partner in crime, was the one who brought Halmi and I together, 9 years ago. Thanks, Man!

My mind then focused on Izmir who currently resides in Sacramento, the ladies man with a smooth charmer and the neighbour who just be just there when you need help on fun!. Not forgetting the Malaysian version of Chandler of FRIENDS, Ayie who currently reside in London, another jester of mine. Also Azmah, the lovely petite girl who was continuously quenching her eyes cutely in college and yes girl will meet you up before you fly off to Perth.

And to the rest of you all around the world namely Eva in Leceister, Ganesh in Dublin, Nora, Roza and Ween in Melbourne, Mark Rotella in Waterbury,CT and Farah Merican in London, please keep in touch. I am dying to hear some news from you.

Realising how far my mind had drifted, I just smiled to think time has flown. We are no more the childish teenagers who felt the world owed us a favour. We are now full-fledge grown ups that have thousand and one things running through our minds. Challenging as it may seem but it is all inevitable. I believe we all should stay foolish yet stay hungry so we eventually connect the dots in our lives

“Once upon a time, in the heavenly kingdom of Kayangan there lived two princesses, Santubong and Sejinjang who were in fact inseparable sisters. Santubong and Sejinjang were very beautiful and were much sought after by handsome suitors from all over the earth including the Crown Prince, who fell in love with both of them and announced his attention to wed both sisters. However, both princesses refused to be joint wives resulted, them banished to earth and turned into to mountains, which is known today as Mount Santubong and Mount Sejinjang. Because of this infamous legend, Mount Santubong became of one the most visited places and more tourists came year after year.” I listened carefully to Bob, our informative chirpy tour guide who brought us from the Sarawak Cultural Village, the Orang Utan Sanctuary and finally to Santubong.
The minute I stepped foot on Damai Beach , I knew this is exactly where I wanted to be. The majestic Mt Santubong starts off as a tiny anthill in the distance and rapidly dominates the skyline, which is magnificent to my eyes. Being by the foot of the mountains feeling the oceanic breeze massaging my face is just perfect. It feels good to leave my worries and stressful regime back home for now. I am on holiday, I kept reminding myself. There is nothing to rush except enjoying every single minute of luxurious time I have compared to back home. I am always bogged down with endless projects and this week will be different. I want to be free and relaxed so dressed in my beach wear, I marched happily down to the shoreline with my beach bag filled with a towel, shades and a book in hand.
Wow, the sky is so magnificent. From my beatle shades, the cloudy patterns and the sunshine just enhanced the sky and I found art just looming as if the horizon was the canvas of God's creation. I looked around and saw the Europeans just enjoying the view as much as I was, or you could say even more – lazily sun tanning with their favourite books in their hands just never wanting for the moment to have to end.
But the day was slowly ending as dusk was about to set in and at quarter before 6.Something that does not happen everyday in Peninsular Malaysia. But, come to think of it is so much better than having the sun go down at 9.00 pm on the Australian hot summer days.
A few hours after, it was time for dinner. The food was amazingly delicious, coming from two people who practically went across the country to the hilly long Iban houses duringt the day.Exageration, you might say, but it felt hell of lot like it! The mouth-watering Laksa Sarawak, the juicy fresh grilled fish with Sarawakian sambal belacan was excellent combination. However, the slow service was not as good as the food. I felt the service was a little too slow in my standards so we left a comment on our disappointment of the service so the next time we revisit Santubong, the service level would improved, hopefully.
Nevertheless, my disappointment on dinner vanished as I discovered the gym the next day. It was a mini bungalow covered with long clear glass. From the inside, I could see the greeneries, the oceans of the South China Sea and the magnificent view of the mountains. I was actually inspired to make my workout better than back home. Though the gym had basic equipments, it was remarkably cozy with the shady plants all around. I enjoyed my workout so much I was pumping the irons and pushing up my cardio to the next level twice a day. I even had a gym buddy, who shared my views as much .Later on, I felt reenergised, as the true meaning of the word!
Feeling reenergised was not enough for my other half. He thought I deserved some pampering so he suggested a beach massage will electrify the senses of the body. And yes, he was darn right about it. As we walked towards a spacious pergola hut, we noticed the massage deck was nicely arranged with flower petals, massage oil and scented candles. It was arranged by partners in crime masseuse, Esther & Tuya, who were bubbly as ever. What we didn’t realised was they had magical hands that people came all the way from Maldives and Germany just to experience their pampering massages. We felt very pleased with their work complementing with the rhythmic ocean washing the sandy beach just made us totally hypnotised by the calmness of the air.
Before we knew it, our 1-hour beach massage ended, Halmi and I agreed that, it felt as if heavy pounds of stress, worries and negative vibes were extracted from our system. Whoaa!! It was better than the Bali spa we had before. I remembered Awin mentioning a good massage comes from a good masseuse. But for me, it was the sweetness of santubong that made our massage, our stay and our first cultured visit to Kuching an experience of a lifetime.

I waited by the phone, patiently. God knows what went through my mind at that moment. Feeling lethargic, sick and uneasy, I knew I had to go through this challenging moments of my life - a phone interview by the company I dreamt all my life. The moment of truth came and gone.

The minute I hung up the phone, I knew I could have done better. I knew instantly, I failed flat on the floor. My answers were not at all up to my expectation. I knew I made a blunder. I spoke too fast, I swallowed my words and most of all I said without thinking.To make matters worst, my nervousness and my fever did not subsided. I kept thinking of the days spent reading and studying was thrown out the drain in a blink of an eye. Realising how I took things for granted.

To be honest, I have never spent so much time on this dream company which I fantasized year after year. I had high hopes and dreams to brand myself sky high just as how this dream company has established itself. But after days of post mortem, I become to realised I was not ready to mark myself as high as it is.

I could hear my little heart telling me, we all learned from our mistakes. Take this as a challenge and learn from it. Come to think of it, I am very blessed to realise what was my real weaknesses. And it’s high time I acknowledged it, rather than hide it .I need to be bold and confident to turn it into a strength and work on it diligently.

Deep down inside, I know I would still be able to reach for the stars. And I will do whatever to get me there. Give it time and space, I will be back to claim what I deserve. I will not give up and will be back confidently with a vengeance!

An email from the Application Management for Ireland, UK and Africa in Shell Manchester brought hopes and dreams for me. I applied for an employment in Shell Europe a week before celebrating the new year, 2007.

After 3 restless months, I finally received a reply regarding my application. It explained that the massive amount of recruitment that came in was the main reason they have not called me for an interview yet. They have yet to schedule for a appointmnent slot as yet. it just brought a smile to my hopeful face.

I could not help but to psychoanalyse the situation. Why would there shortlist on 21 Dec 2006 after 3 days receiving my application, unless they really want to know what I could offer to them. I was really on cloud nine when I received 2 emails regarding my application. Maybe, they really want me to be prepared for this interview and ask all kinds of questions which may be out of this world.

My hopes are getting somewhere; I could hear me talking at heart. My hubby was more than supportive when I told him the news. It was a drastic change in the last 2 years, when he was firmed that I was just wasting my time with focusing on Shell. And that email really made my whole year so colourful. I know there is nothing solid yet, but I really feel that something really positive is coming my way. Whatever it is, I feel so blessed that He hears my prayers.

Well, whatever it is, its time to get ready to be happy again. I need the drive to nail this job and help this family to greater heights. For starters, I need to be equipped with shield and army and win this war. Like Papa says, knowledge is never a loss. So, what you waiting for, go do your research and make sure you win with victory, insya Allah.

Good Luck, Nizie! You can do it, girl.

When work pressure begins to control your life, you will begin to realized how you’re starting to miss the moments of living. I am feeling it already.

It’s a hot sunny Monday after, approximately half past four in the most hazardous heat in Kuala Lumpur, it is insanely 40 degrees in temperature, which is one of the hottest time during summer in the land down under. Literally, the global warming has come attacking our lives as well.

I am sitting at this miserable workstation, staring at the screen hoping I would do something else then this endless project management that seems to extend its maturity of time. I am looking outside the window, distracted by a cup of hot mocha in my hand and noticed how bright the sun shining through the transparent clear glass that brings back to my world.

My world seems rather dull at this moment in time. Beauty of this industry has lost all its charms. Everything seems familiar and routine. After awhile one task after the other, is something you can predict the outcome. When I reevaluate what went wrong, I know that my attitude towards work can do wonders. Not that, I have not tried, I have. But every single time, I try and gather the effort just to realize the more I should exit myself.

Every single morning, I dread to wake up from bed and every single night I wish that morning never comes. But when it comes to weekend, I look forward on Friday evening simply because I know the weekend is here to stay. And when Monday come, it goes back to square one. Now, while gathering my thoughts, there must be away to start cherishing the learning moments at work. I need to do something that makes me feel good about myself and stir up the spirit in me, again.

Deep down inside, I know what I am looking for..

The unpredictable recurring natural disaster events at different geographical areas in the world should be our focus to ponder upon. My parents in-law, who has just returned from an adventurous vacation from the Alps in Switzerland, were very concerned over the absence of the mass snow presence of the elevation highlands, which is obviously melting the land ice away.

It is obvious now that this environmental issue on global warming is truly a global warning to us. The disruption of people’s lives is inevitable especially evidences from the Katrina Hurricane in the US, the Tsunami in South East Asia especially in Thailand and Indonesia to the recent floods in southern Malaysia in Johore.

These tragedies is happening simultaneously, one after the other. The main reason behind this misfortune is obviously caused by us, “homo sapiens”. Albert Einstein mentioned during his time that, our technology has exceeded our humanity. This is true in this case, when a big majority of the world’s scientist claimed that the global warning “propaganda” is just a plot created by environmentalist, and it is hindering the advancements of science and technology.

Isn’t it obvious, with the rising of sea level, decrease in the pH of the oceans due to increased level of carbon dioxides, ozone depletion and increased intensity and frequency of extreme weather events that we are now living is in a danger zone, due to our own ignorance to the environment?

I for one believe we have to act fast, collectively. We all know how to protect the environment, but action speaks louder than words. Both the government and the public have to co-operate to make this work. It always saddens me when I see trees having to make way for concrete buildings. I live in Damansara Indah Resort Homes and I see new development coming up by greedy businessmen who are balding our hills and land.

As for us, ordinary citizens, every one of us can play some part in making contributions to the environment, no matter how small it is. Stop open burning, and start recycling. Always remember that our rivers are not house for solid or liquid wastes, which you could all see how pathetic it is in our country. (And its Visit Malaysia Year 2007, man!.) The next time you want to take the trip to the grocery store two blocks away, drop the car keys and take a walk. (I do that). Car-pool and use public transportations to reduce the discharge of carbon monoxide into the air. Sure, some of these can be inconvenient, but it’s a small price to pay, for the sake of our environment.

The recent events of heart-wrenching ny strike as a lesson for humankind for meddling with Mother Nature. I fear that one day, our children will not be able to see the world as we saw it today; blues skies and green land. If we do not drop our lackadaisical attitude towards this issue, we will ultimately, one day live in a contaminated world where chaos will reign, and mankind will suffer, as a result of our own action. So, folks, is it obvious the global warming issues is a global warning to us?

Welcoming the brand new year of 2007 is a big thing to most of us. Some of us go all out to celebrate outside KL in the hopes that it would be better than the last. Lucky for us, the traffic in KL was surprisingly clear and the whether were absolutely fabulous, windy breezy just like the Melbourne whether.

The beginning day of the New Year was splendid for me. Halmi, Aunty Jah and I took advantage to indulge ourselves as kings and queens at the most talked about restaurant Jogoya, situated in Starhill, @ “Relish Level” on the 3rd floor of the new revamped Starhill Gallery. Its enormous of 30,000 square feet of space covered all the Japanese delicious cuisine and many more. I could hear my tummy growling for hunger as we walked in to this cozy atmosphere with the aura of scented food. I looked around and the juicy 200 mouth-watering dishes were making us go crazy. It was impossible for us to try each and every dish, so we opt for dishes which were hard to come by like the superb juicy lemon, fresh oyster with a zing of hot spices. I think I had 5 plates of just oysters. It was out of this world. The blended spicy but sour dish just leaved a great sensation of satisfaction.

Not to mention, the California Maki coupled with the cold appetizers of winkles of chilli sauce, wakame seaweed and cold cha so noodles, just made my day. Yumm-mie I tell you! It is a Japanese food haven for us and what away to celebrate the New Year. Appealing, satisfying,happy and healthy! So, if you love Japanese food especially fresh seafood, head over to this place as it won't disappoint you. Be prepared though to camp out at the place for almost two to three hours to get your money's worth.

Its Jogoya.It’s worth it!

In a matter of days, we will bid good bye to another an extraordinary year- 2006. I shall remember this year as a challenging year for me. I would not say it has been neither a bed of roses for me, nor a death in the water. But it has been more of a mixture of the extremes.

For the last 356 days, there were alot of happenings but the most significant are layed down in this blog.I was hoping I would go somewhere out of my daily life patterns which I did! on our wedding anniversary. My hopelessly romantic other half brought me to paradise for 5 fabulous days in beautiful Bali, which was the grooviest getaway I had in a long time. The getaway seemed so perfect after 4 tireless years to fulfilling my daily commitments in building my so –called career. Remarkably, the breath of fresh air was absolutely an eye opener on how I viewed life.

On another note, when there are good times, there are also some bad. 2006 was the turning point of my life where so many confusing things happened. I guess I was getting to know myself and the environment better. And of course, i fell once in awhile and there wasa time I was at a low point of my life until I got to know my complicated soul-mate neighbour who was there for me when I needed a shoulder to cry on. She made me see the true facts of life which some has encountered and other will encounter soon. Don’t get me wrong my hubby is wonderful too.I love him to bits but there are times in your life, you need a person with the same sex to talk to just like I have my comfy sisterly neighbour. Love thy neighbour, huh!

Towards the end of 2006, I find it very peculiar that I feel something beautiful is in stall for me Feeling excited too. To complement this wonderful feeling, a good friend sent these lovely words of encouragement “Walk your path one step at a time. Keep your head up, and cast your dreams to the stars. Keep your belief in yourself and walk into your new journey. You will find it magnificent, spectacular, and beyond your wildest imaginings.". And that is exactly what I shall embark this enormous adventure of the 2 double 07. With this in mind, no wonder I feel motivated, energized and ready to rule to world with this positive energy which God knows where it came from. Probably it has been here all this while. It was just hidden behind the mask of sorrows, so now its time to turn into a new leaf and wear the mask of Zorro. The inspiring and electifying feeling is in the air! Im lovin’ it already. Cheers to 007!