Pieces of Me

Meme cos I'm bored

1. Name one person who made you laugh last night.
The Rock in Game Plan

2. What were you doing at 0800?
Putting on my mascara and rush out to work

3. What were you doing 30 minutes ago?
Enjoying lunch - ikan keli goreng sambal.. yumm...

4. What happened to you in 2006?
Good and bad things. Most importantly, I met my husband, Azmel and he proposed to me that year.

5. What was the last thing you said out loud?
"Bloody hell"

6. How many beverages did you have today?
1 mug of nescafe O. And a bit of water

7. What color is your hairbrush?
Black

8. What was the last thing you paid for?
RM3.50 for my nasi and ikan keli goreng with sayur kacang

9. Where were you last night?
I went to SS2 pasar malam with Gwen and tasted the nicest ice-cream goreng ever!

10. What color is your front door?
Off-white

11. Where do you keep your change?
In my big 9west wallet, in the small purses that you get when buying 9west handbags, and in a coin purse in my car..

12. What's the weather like today?
Not sure, but I think it was pleasent this morning

13. What's the best ice-cream flavor?
Can I vote for best ice cream instead? Moo on stick and Moo cookie sandwich. To die for.

14. What excites you?
New things to do... and moo moo ice cream! yummy!

15. Do you want to cut your hair?
No, I want to keep it longer..

16. Are you over the age of 25?
Yes and loving it

17. Do you talk a lot?
I think I talk just the right amount..

18. Do you watch the O.C.?
No. I never finished even 1 episode. Don't get what it's all about.

19. Do you know anyone named Steven?
Yes..a few

20. Do you make up your own words?
Yes..especially with fer-fer, fish-fish, mama. They are the best lot to invent new words with.

21. Are you a jealous person?
Yes but I hide it well. Can't help it. I'm quite territorial.

22. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter 'A'.
Azmel.. hehehe.. he's my friend too u know.

23. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter 'K'.
Khushwant..

24. Who's the first person on your received call list?
Yesterday was my boss, today is my husband..

25. What does the last text message you received say?
So efficient woman! :)

26. Do you chew on your straw?
Nope. It's disgusting. Can taste the plastic la.

27. Do you have curly hair?
Yes, but I haven't seen the curls since year 2000. Rebonded since.

28. Where's the next place you're going to?
After work? It will be home. :) Or maybe stop by Cold Storage to get some stuff.

29. Who's the rudest person in your life?
Someone la. Better not name names.

30. What was the last thing you ate?
Nasi with ikan keli and sayur (how come i keep repeating this ah?)

31. Will you get married in the future?
Alerady married ler. :)

32. What's the best movie you've seen in the past 2 weeks?
American Gangster - damn scared of Denzel Washington.

33. Is there anyone you like right now?
Of course la. I like my friends a whole lot. And I love my husband.

34. When was the last time you did the dishes?
Sunday night after cooking. My husband did the dishes last night. hehehe.. He helps me clean up. :)

35. Are you currently depressed?
Definitely not

36. Did you cry today?
No reason for me to cry.

37. Why did you answer and post this?
Because I am bored after lunch and needed a break from writing management paper.

38. Tag 5 people who would do this survey.
Whoever wants to do it, do lah.

New Year 2008 is approaching fast

my god! i just realized this post is only 2 posts away from the previous new year update. hahaha! See how lazy I have been huh?

Well, since my last birthday update, these are what I have been up to:
a) Aug 07 -  Got  married on Aug 17 and had receptions on Aug 18 & 19
b) Aug 07 -  Went for a short honeymoon at Pangkor Laut - awesome time! After coming back from honeymoon, we  moved into our rented apartment in Damansara Perdana to start our new life together.. :)
c) Sep 07 - Resigned from Citibank in September after much thought and decided that I will have a better life when I leave Citi. I will miss my dear friends at Citi though. No more buying stuff together from 5th floor la..
d) Oct 07 - Joined Scomi Engineering Berhad. Got myself a promotion and a pay rise. Hell yeah, non banking environment rocks! I can breathe better now! woo hoo!
e) Nov 07 - Attended millions of open houses and ate like a pig. My good friend, Diana also got hitched in Nov. Congrats woman!
f) Dec 07 - Went back to Kelantan to celebrate raya haji, and for my husband to exprience Kelantan lifestyle first hand. He loved the food, adores my family.. but he wasn't keen of the houses and landscaping there. Hehehe..

And to usher in 2008, I have invited my close friends to join us at our home and watch fireworks from our balcony.

So year 2007 has been great. I hope 2008 will be better, with more love, happiness, prosperity and success for us, and our loved ones.

HAPPY 2008!

The big three - oh!

I have just turned 30 years old. Alot of women fear of turning 30, thinking that their lives are about to end. Somehow, I don't get that. Why worry turning 30?

Having lived for 3 decades, instead of looking back at my boo-boos, let me instead count my blessings:
1- I have a wonderful family - Abah, Mak, Kak Nomi, Abg Fairis, Kak Ju, Abg Hasmat, Ashraf, Ina & Fairuz..and my adorable nieces and nephews; Farah, Nawal, Hazman, Hazim, Haikal, Farhan, Umar, Ammar, Nasya...

2- I have a boyfriend & soon-to-be husband Azmel, whom I love dearly. Baby, thank you for putting up with my crap. Thank you for being my everything. I look forward to wonderful & happy years to come, living our lives together. Love you lots!

3- I have wonderful friends - friends from school, college, university, ex-office and current office, friends I know from my other friends, friends that I know recently and have become fast friends instantly. You know who you are, dear friends. :)

4- I have a job - well, I can't say that my job is truly wonderful, but I do like what I do. I wished they'd pay me more, but hey, when you look at the unemployment rate now, I thank my lucky stars that I at least have a decent job.. and this decent job allows me to splurge on handbags, shoes and what nots. However, I am still looking for options...greener grass elsewhere..different environment...etc..

5- I am educated - I completed school in flying colours, went to uni and graduated. Much to my parents dismay, I have yet to decide if I want to start doing my master's degree. I seem to enjoy my life so much right now. The thought of having to spend my weekends diving deep in books, writing up a thesis, etc sounds so.....NOT ME! Weekends in Arifah's dictionary = resting, sleeping in, cook up a storm, eat, play cards, play mahjong (if my i can learn it from my friends), watching DVD, shopping, cuddling on the sofa.... so, how? I am however, very thankful that I did graduate.

I must say that I have lived a relatively full life. I can't say my life was a breeze, it has its ups and downs, but it made me who I am today. I had a happy & happening childhood, a fun & adventerous teenage years, a fulfilling and colourful young-adult lives. As I grow older, I do hope I grow wiser. And most of all, I hope to age gracefully, accompanied by laughters of family & friends around me.

Happy 30th Birthday!

Tag! I'm it!

Alahai.. After so many months not updating, Fina tagged me to do a meme. Layers of it!

Layer One: On the Outside

Name: Arifah, Pah, Cik Pah, Ah Fah
Birthdate: July baby and a Leo
Current status: Soon to be married.. :)
Eye color: Dark brown
Hair Color: Dark brown.. Now with some highlights..
Righty or Lefty: Righty...

Layer Two: On the Inside

My heritage: Sumatran, Thai, and a hint of Punjabi..
My fears: Losing the ones I love.. and katak pisang.. geli ok!!!!
My perfect pizza: Thin crust, loads of cheese, with sauteed chicken, fresh tomato and mushroom pieces.. my own recipe..
My Weaknesses: I can be selfish.. Opinionated.. Impatient when people are so "duh"! (I made a colleague cried la.. twice!)


Layer Three: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

My thoughts first thing when I wake up: Emmm... can I sleep some more?
My most missed memory: I have so many.. I cherish them all..

Layer Four: My picks

Pepsi or Coke: Coke
Mc Donald's or Burger King: Burger King (the meat is better..yummy!)
Single or Group Dates: Single.. more personal
Adidas or Nike: Nike
Tea or Nestea: I don't like both. How?
Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate
Cappucino or Coffee: Coffee.. black with 2 sugar..

Layer Five: Do I

Smoke: hehehe..
Curse: when needed, but not in front of children.
Take a shower: Of course la. You think I am smelly ah?
Have a crush: YES! I still have a crush on HK actor/singer Andy Lau.. since I was 13. Ok, go ahead and laugh..
Think I've Been In love: Of course.. who hasn't?
Go to school: Yes.. only up to degree.. macam malas jer nak buat Masters.
Want to get married: Yes.. I'd like to share a life with Azmel..grow old together..
Believe in myself: Of course..but sometimes I need reassurance from close friends and families.
Think I'm a health freak: No.. I love my meat too much. I love to eat and I don't exercise. A health freak would see me as a nightmare..

Layer Six: In the past month

Drank alcohol: what's alcohol?
Gone to the mall: yes.. I just went to one yesterday..
Been on stage: Not in the last month.. I'm not a performer or anything..
Eaten Sushi: Definitely.. Sushi, Sashimi, Edamami, tempura, dan sebagainya... yummy!
Dyed your hair: Of course la.. need some touch up though..

Layer Seven: Have I ever

Played a stripping game: hehehe... yes.. someone else got stripped. HAHAHAHHA!
Changed who I am to fit in: I used to, but not anymore. Why change yourself for others? 

Layer Eight:
Age I am hoping to be married: not more than 25.. HAHAHAHA! I'm way off by 5 years..

Layer Nine: What was I doing

1 min ago: Eating nasi lemak
1 hour ago: Sleeping still
4.5 hours ago: Still sleeping..
1 month ago: it was April Fool's day.. El did an April fool to me & Azmel.. ceh!!
1 year ago: I haven't met Azmel yet..

Layer Ten: Finish The Sentence

I love: to cook for my loved ones..
I hate: to use the word "hate".. hate is such a strong word...
I hide: my feelings & opinion if I think it's going to hurt someone's feelings
I need: coffee before I can start my day.. I get headaches and my eyes get heavy if I don't take it in the morning...

Layer Eleven: Tag 5 people
whoever wants to do it.. just do it la..

Happy New Year!

Ushering in 2007 was totally different from my previous celebration.. it all started when I found out that New Year's eve falls on Aidil Adha. And so I adjusted my travelling plans, so as to be around at home on the 31st.

Trip to Bali (22nd Dec to 25th Dec 06)

We planned to go to Bali all the way in Sept06. Booked our tickets at a reasonably cheap price (thanks AirAsia!) to stay at Sanur Beach Plaza. It's a 4-star hotel and it met our expectation when we arrived in the afternoon. Lobby was simple with Balinese decor, the pool was amazing and the room was comfortable. They could use a bigger bathroom though.. hehehhe... So, after unpacking and taking a nap, we decided to head for Kuta for breakfast. We walked from Sentro all the way round to Legian. Man, my feet was about to give way! Didn't buy anything in Kuta, didn't go clubbing in Kuta, didn't party, didn't take any photos. We just walked and did some sightseeing, before having dinner at The Wave.

The next day, we went for Barong show, Tanah Lot, the limestone park (the one with the huge Garuda statue), Dreamland, Padang Padang beach and Uluwatu to visit the temple and watch the Kechak dance. As usual, with all the climbing and walking, I was wishing for a foot massage by the end of the day. We ended our 2nd day in Bali with a nice seafood dinner at Jimbaran.

The 3rd day was our shopping day. We went to Denpasar for some kebaya, Sukawati for some t-shirts and parios, and Ubud for other things. Never-ever buy anything from Kuta as the prices there are tourist prices. Of course, we stopped by at Kintamani to see the volcanoes and take photos.

On our final day in Bali, we went to Sanur beach for a short walk & breakfast. We then head back to the hotel for a swim in the marvellous pool. We packed, checked out and said our goodbyes.

I must say what we did would be similar to all first-timers to Bali. But we skipped the whole partying scene as we intend to relax, enjoy the culture and see places. Hence, we would like to go back to Bali to visit more places. I'd like to thank Pak Yudha for taking us around. He's been a great host. Thanks to Zetty too for recommending him.

New Year's Eve

Can't say that I celebrated with a blast. My day started with celebrating Aidil Adha. Azmel then came for a visit. And we went to his cousin's place for Raya. Met his cousins, aunts, uncle and his grandmother. And then we went to his house to visit his parents. His mom made some killer Soto Daging. The sambal kicap is to die for! We then adjourned to visit Sharon, since she sprained her ankle. Alyssa, Sharon's daughter was so happy to get a pair of sandals from Bali. Then only we went to Dayan's place for a small get together to usher in 2007. I was dozing off at around 1030pm. I was so tired from walking around the whole day. They woke me up just in time for the countdown. Sounds so "blah" right? But I do know that I wouldn't want to do anything different that what I did.. well, maybe try to be awake la hoh.. hehehehe..

To my sayang and my friends,
Have a great 2007!

 

yeah, i know i have been lazy...

alrighty.. I have been a tad lazy to update my blog.. let me see, so may things have happened over the past few months.. so i am just gonna post some pics - with captions.. just to sum up what have I been up to... Here it goes...

1- My office did a Deepa-Raya decor contest.. we dressed up.. and I wore a saree.. That's me with Chooi Peng, doing the muhibbah thing... A Malay & a chinese wearing traditional Indian costume. 2 - Went back to Kelantan for Raya & for my cousins' weddings. Here is my pic with my grand-aunty, Tok Da. She looks so much like my late granma, Wo.. 3- My cousin Hakim, got engaged.. Here we are with my soon to be cousin-in-law, Siti.. Congrats to you both! 4- Lina finally came back from UK.. We had great fun catching up during raya open house. Pictured here are us at Yanti's open house do..  5- Went back to Kedah (my mom's side) for another cousin's wedding.. Pictured here with my sister, the wonderful co-pilot.. heheh.. yeah, right... hehehhe..  6- Then came our annual dinner.. God, we are so vain.. here are the rest of the pics.. hehehehe.. I'm so lazy to write.. but I can't wait to go to Bali.. Leaving on Friday.. YAHOO!!!!!!!!

hehehe.. last photo has nothing to do with annual dinner, but my nephew Farhan, is just too darn cute to be left out.. cheerios peeps!

Guess they were right all this while...

courtesy of Fudge dearie, I tried this face-celebrity-look-a-like thingy.. and here is the result...

well, my old uni mates thought I looked like her in MI-2.. Darn it, it should have been me acting with Tom Cruise.. hehehehe...

Tomorrow is another working day.. and next week, RAYA! YAHOO!
Have a good one y'all!

Jungle story - huffing and puffing...

ok peeps.. I know I haven't been updating as often as I should.. been busy meeting up with people, attending dinners and going out before Ramadhan starts. And now that Ramadhan is here, everything slows down, even my "dating" sessions with my dear boyfriend..

so, here I am writing about my experience at Taman Negara. Our journey started from the office. I car-pooled with Mr Ten, Agnes and Poey Boon. Our journey started around 11am and we arrived at the Rainforest Resort in Taman Negara by 230pm. 3 1/2 hours to Taman Negara? Well, I guess Ten was driving extra fast, trying to catch up with the other group that left before us. The Rainforest Resort is not bad at all. Well, it isn't exactly an exotic, asian-themed, wooden resort (it was more like single story linked houses.. hehehe.. ), but it was comfortable. I think it was a 3-star resort and it is pretty new. So, on the day we got there, we already have a Night Jungle walk session planned. The girls prepared themselves by spraying tonnes of insect repellant on their skin, and Bygone on their shoes. When they walked out from their rooms, the whole corridor smelt like emmm... insect repellant factory? HAHAHAH!

My group (with the managers from Telesales) was the last one to walk into the jungle. The sounds of insects and animals at night were incredible, although inter-laced with some screaming from the groups in front of us.. hehehe.. We saw a tree snake, a couple of deers and a couple of bugs. There were too many people doing the jungle walk that night, hence very little things to see. Guess the people scared the animals away. It was hot and humid though. I was actually relieved that we finally got back to the resort. Once we got there, the Telesales team went for a durian-makan-ing session. We took the durians out from the truck and ate it straight away, under the street light. After that, I spent some time with the bosses for some drinks and gambling. Won a bit of money too that night. Woo Hoo!!

And so the next day, we went for Jungle trekking and made our way to the canopy walkway. Oh god! I have never felt so tortured, ok? My legs were gonna give up on me. My thighs were killing me. I was sweating and having trouble to catch my breath. At times like these, I really regretted not going to the gym and all that. SIGH! But, no matter how tired I was, I still wanted to finish the walk, I still wanted to join in the fun.. and I still wanna look good, even when I sweat! HAHAHAH! what a vain-pot I am!

The canopy walkway offered a spectacular view from above. The jungle trekking offered calming scenes for the eyes (green everywhere... ) We then made our way back to the resort, had lunch and changed into shorts and t-shirts for our next activity - Rapid shooting!

Yup, the name Rapid shooting sounded scary, but it was nothing. It was just us, sitting on a small speed boat, going up river and being drenched, soaked from head to toe when another boat passed ours. The guides splashed water on us on purpose. Some of us lost their cameras, phones and PDAs, all destroyed by river water (guess they didn't wrapped it properly with plastic bags).. Luckily, mine survived. We also stopped by at an Orang Asli settlement on the river bank. Saw how they made fire, how they made darts for the blow pipe, and saw some of us attempted to use the blow pipes. I bought a mini blow pipe, complete with a set of darts (for decor purpose only.. well, maybe I can use it to punish someone for being nasty?? hmmmm.... ) On the way back, we stopped by for a swim at a nice spot by the river when suddenly, it rained like mad. All of us quickly jumped back into the boats to head home. The boat ride home wasn't pleasent at all as the rain was hitting our faces hard. But we all safely got back to the resort. Rested for a while and we had a barbeque that night. After the bbq, some of us went for karaoke, some of them got really drunk, and some just went straight to bed, exhausted from the activities during the day.

On sunday morning, our last day at Taman Negara, we went to Lata Berkoh. We went on a calming boat ride towards the waterfall area. It was simply amazing. One of us had an accident there. He got carried away by the strong current. But thankfully, he is safe and still working at Citibank.. hehehe.. After the waterfall trip, we all went back, packed our stuff, had lunch and made our way back home. We also had a mishap on the way home. Ten's car tyre was punctured when he hit a hole on the road. Luckily, the JB team's car was behind ours, so they lend a hand to help us change the tyre. In no time, we were back on the road again, making our way back safely to our beloved city of Kuala Lumpur.......

Well, spending 3 days surrounded by a "jungle" reminded me of the schooling times, when I used to go camping with the Scouts team and the Adventurer's Club in Kuala Berang. I love being in the nature, but I guess I have to be more fit to survive. I'd like to thank our guides, Awang, Haris and Sabri (to name a few) for showing us a good time there (though I doubt they read this..) I strongly recommend a trip to Taman Negara for all of you out there.. Really, it's not as bad as you think :) Here are some photos from the trip.. Enjoy!

photo guide:
1- durian time
2- me with Telesales team
3- at the canopy walkway
4- with the guides, Sabri and Awang
5- while trekking
6- on the hanging bridge
7- briefing at org asli settlement
8- blow pipe demo
9- karaoke session
10- at lata berkoh
11- view from lata berkoh
12- view at Sg Tembeling jetty
13- the boat for river crossing

Merdeka & Genting Trippollomundo

How I celebrated Merdeka 2006

Well, I actually had a few invites to celebrate our country's 49th independence day.. It was either to spend the eve with Nina & hubby at Darby Park facing KLCC.. or to chill out with my citi-buddies at Bisik.. or to hang out with Cool-Mom at Bodega. By 4pm, Azmel and I decided to hang out with Nina & Ali at Darby Park. It was too close for comfort. The traffic killed our mood to go anywhere else. It was, I thought, the best decision we made for that day. And so, by 6pm, Nina & Ali came over to my office, and we made our way to KLCC to buy some food & drinks for the party. Taking the LRT was a big HEADACHE! Never have I seen the train so packed with people, that they have to create lanes for people queueing up. GOD! Lucky we were not driving anywhere else. Massive traffic everywhere.

We had our dinner and made our way back to Darby Park. Ali's friends were there, including the host James. We could see KLCC from the balcony, including the concert with big screen tvs and all. We could hear the songs clearly. We could see the fireworks from Bukit Bintang. The fireworks at KLCC were awesome! We had a lot of fun! Thanks Nina for inviting us :)  

How I spent the Merdeka weekend

We went to Genting with my citi-buddies, nanbens & nanbees. After all the planning, Ben & Mae were not able to join us. Their daughter, Isabelle had the chicken pox. Darn it! Was looking forward to spend some time with Belle and Sarah. We reached Genting on Friday afternoon. Checked into our apartment (a creepy and dodgy apartment.. I swear I won't stay there anymore!!) after getting our keys from the apartment's "office" (it was actually a mini-mart, where the office was the mini-mart cashier counter!! sheesh!!) All this was made up by the cool, fresh air from the highlands and great company. We made nasi lemak for breakfast on Saturday morning. Went on a few rides (the flying coaster is a must try!) and we end our rides by going on the vertical shot. It was foggy and even rained a few times, but all of us had fun. Went back to the apartment by 4pm, took a nap and prepared for our steamboat dinner. Everyone was full to the brim by the end of the night.

Sunday morning was a sombre one as everyone was packing to leave. We will sure miss our time at Genting (but not the apartment). For lunch, Amraj took us to this curry house near Sentul. The fish head curry is to die for, and it is so cheap! We had alot of food for lunch, that we could not finish and had to tapau some back home. Hmmm.. I think I have gained a few pounds. Makan aje memanjang! Sigh!! So our next trippollomundo will be to Tapah / Cameron Highlands, or down south to JB / Singapore. This should take place somewhere in November. Best nyer pergi cuti-cuti Malaysia :)

Dear Heart...

Dear Heart,

Please brace yourself for what I am about to tell you.

I'm sure that you are well aware of what happened last night. He surprised me. With a bunch of red roses to properly ask me to be his girlfriend. It sure did sweep me off my feet. The roses he picked, arranged and wrapped all by himself sure put a huge smile on my face, and made me giggle like a school girl for a good 15 minutes. People at the restaurant must have thought I was crazy.

Well, he fits the criteria of a person that I have always wanted. A huge plus point is that our fathers know each other well, and even went to the same school. He adores me, he spoils me, he is sweet, we share the same friends, know the same people and we enjoy doing things together.

I know that over the past one year, I have managed to build a wall around you. All I am asking from you now is to create a door for him to find. He already has the key and he already has found you. He just needs to find the door, unlock it and make his way in.

Make sure the way to the door is well-lit, ok? I don't want him to get lost while finding the door. And I'd like the door to have his name on it, so that he'll know it is meant for him.

So to you, my dear heart, I thank you in advance for doing this for me. And I thank you for being strong for me. I thank you for having the patience in tolerating my wants, my needs, and my blunders that may have caused you to hurt. I really didn't mean to hurt you, dear Heart. I truly hope that this new man in my life will not hurt you. I know that you are not as strong as you used to be, and I will try my very best to look out for you.

Yours Sincerely,
Owner of Dear Heart