The thing about gatherings....

TTOT Family 2009

Today, the wife and I attended a Ikatan Anak Rantau Perak gathering in Shah Alam. Well, apart from listening to the latest development that're taking place in our kampung halaman, we were there to meet my wife's cousin and show our support during this trying times. We have not met him as yet. Unfortunately, he could not make it as his MIL passed away the evening before. Takziah and Al-Fatihah.

Anyway, the gathering went well, I think. A few VVIPS were in attendance to update us on the latest development back home. And it's good to see so many anak-anak Perak coming together like that. Unfortunately, we did not take any photo at the event.

Speaking of gathering, here are some of the pictures taken during the TTOT family gathering that we attended a week ago.

The grand backdrop.. didn't realise that they are going to do it this huge

View of the dewan from the top

Ayah Lah, being the eldest member of the family that day, was given the honour to officiate the ceremony. Looking on are Ayah Midi, and the co-chairman of the gathering Mak Nah and Ayah Chu

Mak meeting her cousins (from left Wan Kiah, Mak Tam, Mak and Mak Nah) in the VVIP waiting room.

At the green registration desk... Arissa and Asma helping out Yan and Melah ....

... While Safia helps me out at the media desk (which we share with the Yellow registration desk -- see Kak Chor and Abang Hisham checking their team in)

One of the highlights of the day...the slide presentation on Tok Talib and Opah Tekah family history.. presented by my brother Chor and assisted by Safia.

And of course, the two of us Chor's family (minus Adam yang pergi mana tah dgn Azam) and my family (minus me yang amik this pix)

The event's committe members

Good company and of course good food ... that day. Memang sedap the food and then there's three huge trays of nasi kambing mendi yang amat amat delicious.

Sisters Asma and AliaBefore the event, we had tahlil prayers, led by these three fine gentlemen. They look mighty familiar to me. Laaa, mat In Team rupanya.

Tok Talib and Opah Tekah had 5 kids. In order to differentiate the many family members that day, all were required to wear specific colours representing their family (except of course me and my family... as I wasn't paying attention as usual and thus we were among the few who came devoid of the right colour - much to the chagrin of my family hehehe)

Red - Anak- cucu Opah Ami (Daughter number 3) and Tok Jabbar

Yellow - Anak-cucu Opah Chu Tun (youngest daughter) and Tok Tasi

Purple - anak-cucu Tok Hashim (second son) and Opah Meriam
Blue - Anak cucu Tok Man (son no 4) and Opah Nik

Green - anak cucu Opah Sapiah (yang sulong) and Tok Yusof. And we belong here.

Pictures are basically mine and except a few which are stolen from Nadia Che Safri, Normi Suffian and Nazlinda Abdullah's Facebook.

Introducing Opah Tekah!

When I was small, we used to visit my paternal grandparents in Lahat near Ipoh (which was about 45 minutes away from home in Temoh) almost every week. And more often than not, my almarhum bapak would dropped in on my great grandmother (my Moyang)'s place in Kota Baru (near Gopeng, Perak) which was along the way to Lahat anyway.

I don't have that much of a memory of Opah Moyang (or affectionately known as Opah Tekah among her grandchildren including my Mak) except that she had the whitest hair ever. But one thing I remember though was that she's a gentle lady (which I'm sure those who have had the previlege of knowing her up close and personal would agree in a heartbeat).

Opah Tekah had a long life. She passed on in 1971 (when I was 7 years old) at the age of 102. She (real name Halijah Panglima Perang Uda Lahid) was married to her second cousin Talib Sulaiman and together they have six children. The oldest was Sapiah, my Opah Temoh. Other children were Hashim (Tok Ngah), Ni Khadijah (Opah Ami), Tan Sri Osman (Tok Man) and Halimaton (Opah Chu).

Interestingly both Tok Talib and Opah Tekah were direct descendants of Saiyid Hussain Al Faradz, said to be the official religious teacher to the first Sultan of Perak. Saiyid Husain Al Faradz, in turn, is said to be the 37th generation of Saidina Hussain r.a, beloved grandson of Prophet Muhammad SAW. Alhamdulillah!

And last Sunday, a family gathering of “Keluarga Tok Talib dan Opah Tekah” was held for the first time in Bukit Damansara. The gathering, the brainchild of one of the grandsons Datuk Seri Yunus Mohd Tasi (Ayah Chu) was organized to bring together the surviving members of “Keluarga Tok Talib dan Opah Tekah” to get to know each other and to reinforce their family ties. About 500 members of the family attended the event.

It was humbling to see so many relatives, many of whom I met for the first time and many I have not met in a longest time. A pictorial entry on the Perjumpaan Keluarga will follow suit... soon.

25

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you.So here goes...

1. I am an obese. As if you don’t notice right?
2. Growing up I wanted to be an Olympic Champion in gymnastics and 100 metres dash.
3. Then I discovered Oscar and I dreamed of becoming the Best Actor instead.
4. I don’t have a fond memory of my school years. Nothing exciting ever happened.
5. Except perhaps when I was in Form 6 where I hold so many positions in many school clubs and associations. I was a chairman for GPMS (school chapter), vice chairman for BM club, Secretary for Persatuan Agama Islam, treasurer for the school's librarians and the form six society as well as being on the committee for several others. No wonder my result was nothing to shout about.
6. I own more kain pelikat than trousers
7. I like Domino’s Pizza
8. I don’t sing and can’t sing. Never did like karaoke session.
9. I procrastinate religiously
10. I normally read two or three books simultaneously. One will usually be by the bedside, another in living hall and another one I carry to work. So I get confused rather often.

11. Naturally, I lurrveeee “kedai buku’.

12. Being in a stationery store (or at least a stationery section of a store) is very calming.
13. I’ve been writing about IT for most of my professional life but I’m utterly useless when it comes technical stuff.
14. I think I’m a skillful liar. I’ve used most of the lies in the book.
15. When in doubt, I let it be. I’m not really a curious person.
16. My late father and my mother are second cousins.
17. I’ve met all four of my grandparents. Except for my paternal grandmother (who died when I was already working in 1992), the other three passed on when I was seven years old. But I remember them all.
18. I hate Melodi, that TV programme
20. I like taking the LRTs
21. My daughters call me “Bapak”
22. I resolve to bring my family to Hawaii. Been there twice and simply love love love love that place!
23. Favourite food is ayam rendang by my wife.
24. I don’t do EPL.
25. Umrah, Haji and Al-Aqsa … in that order.

Mari Membaca: Karangan Terbaik UPSR 2007

Life has been somewhat trying these past few weeks and I need something to cheer me up. And as if on cue..... this morning Majidah sent this note to my Facebook. Apparently this 'masterpiece" is making its round in emails. But it is damn hilarious, so I'm posting it here too. Have a good laugh... read on

Pagi itu pagi minggu. Cuaca cukup sejuk sehingga mencapai takat suhu beku. Sebab itu saya tidak mandi pagi sebab air kolah jadi air batu dan air paip tidak mahu keluar sebab beku di dalam batang paip. Pagi itu saya bersarapan dengan keluarga di dalam unggun api kerana tidak tahan sejuk. Selepas itu emak saya mengajak saya menemaninya ke pasar. Tetapi saya tidak mahu.

Selepas emak menikam perut saya berkali-kali dengan garfu barulah saya bersetuju untuk mengikutnya. Kami berjalan sejauh 120 kilometer kerana pasar itu letaknya 128 kilometer dari rumah. Lagi 8 kilometer nak sampai pasar saya ternampak sebuah lori kontena meluru dengan laju dari arah belakang.

Dia melanggar emak saya. Emak saya tercampak ke dalam gaung. Dia menjerit “Adoi!”. Lepas itu emak saya naik semula dan mengejar lori tersebut. Saya pun turut berlari di belakang emak saya kerana takut emak saya melanggar lori itu pula. Pemandu lori itu nampak kami mengejarnya. Dia pun memecut lebih laju iaitu sama dengan kelajuan cahaya. Kami pula terpaksa mengejar dengan lebih laju iaitu sama dengan dua kali ganda kelajuan cahaya. Emak saya dapat menerajang tayar depan lori itu. Lori itu terbabas dan melanggar pembahagi jalan lalu bertembung dengan sebuah feri. Feri itu terbelah dua.

Penumpang feri itu yang seramai 100 orang semuanya mati. Pemandu feri itu sangat marah. Dia pun bertukar menjadi Ultraman dan memfire pemandu lori. Pemandu lori menekan butang khas di dalam lori dia..lori itu bertukar menjadi robot Transformer. Mereka bergaduh di udara. Emak saya tidak puas hati. Dia pun terus menyewa sebuah helikopter di Genting Highlands dan terus ke tempat kemalangan. Dia melanggar pemandu feri yang telah bertukar menjadi Ultraman itu.

Pemandu feri itu terkejut dan terus bertukar menjadi pemandu feri semula lalu terhempas ke jalanraya. Pemandu feri itu pecah. Pemandu lori sangat takut melihat kejadian itu. Dia meminta maaf dari emak saya. Dia menghulurkan tangan ingin bersalam. Tetapi emak saya masih marah. Dia menyendengkan helikopternya dan mengerat tangan pemandu lori itu dengan kipas helikopter. Pemandu lori itu menjerit “Adoi..!” dan jatuh ke bumi. Emak saya menghantar helikopter itu ke Genting Highlands. Bila dia balik ke tempat kejadian, dia terus memukul pemandu lori itu dengan beg tangannya sambil memarahi pemandu lori itu di dalam bahasa Inggeris.

Pemandu lori itu tidak dapat menjawab sebab emak saya cakap orang putih. Lalu pemandu lori itu mati. Tidak lama kemudian kereta polis pun sampai. Dia membuat lapuran ke ibu pejabatnya tentang kemalangan ngeri itu. Semua anggota polis di pejabat polis itu terperanjat lalu mati. Orang ramai mengerumuni tempat kejadian kerana ingin mengetahui apa yang telah terjadi. Polis yang bertugas cuba menyuraikan orang ramai lalu dia menjerit menggunakan pembesar suara. Orang ramai terperanjat dan semuanya mati.

Selepas itu emak saya mengajak saya ke pasar untuk mengelak lebih ramai lagi yang akan mati. Di pasar, emak saya menceritakan kejadian itu kepada penjual daging. Penjual daging dan peniaga-peniaga berhampiran yang mendengar cerita itu semuanya terkejut dan mati. Saya dan emak saya terus berlari balik ke rumah. Kerana terlalu penat sebaik saja sampai di rumah kami pun mati. Itulah kemalangan yang paling ngeri yang pernah saya lihat sebelum saya mati.

Bisnes Dari Dapur

Pada kesempatan kali ini saya ingin berkongsi satu berita yang baru saya kutip dari Internet. Ini satu berita menarik baik bagi mereka yang sudah berniaga atau ingin mempunyai bisnes dari rumah.

Menurut satu hasil kaji selidik yang dijalankan oleh RSA di United Kingdom, bisnes-bisnes dari rumah tidak mengalami kesan kemerosotan ekonomi dunia seteruk syarikat-syarikat yang lebih besar.

Malahan tujuh daripada sepuluh tuan punya bisnes dari rumah yang ditemuramah masih percaya bahawa mereka akan dapat mengembangkan bisnes mereka atau setidak-tidaknya ‘maintain’ keupayaan bisnes yang sedia ada sekarang.

Aaron Devitt, yang merupakan pengarah di RSA, dipetik sebagai berkata bahawa bisnes dari rumah adalah merupakan satu-satunya sektor ekonomi yang tetap merekodkan kemajuan di dalam suasana ekonomi dunia tidak menentu kini dan juga optimistik mempunyai masa depan yang cerah.

Pasti ini satu berita yang amat memberangsangkan, bukan begitu? Kami percaya trend sebegini juga berlaku di tanah air kita.

Jadi saya kira inilah masanya anda mengambil peluang untuk memulakan bisnes dari rumah. Anda boleh menjadikan dapur anda sebagai permulaan perniagaan anda. Banyak peluang yang terdapat di dapur anda yang boleh anda terokai untuk mendapatkan wang. Jangan terlepas pandang akan peluang-peluang bisnes hanya dari dapur anda. Jadikan dapur sebagai lubuk duit anda.

Bagi mereka yang masih ragu-ragu atau bimbang bagaimana untuk memulakan bisnes dari dapur, jangan risau, isteri saya Azian Hasan telah mengumpul pengalaman yang dikutip selama 15 tahun dan membukukannya. Kini anda boleh dapatkan segala panduan memulakan bisnes dan peluang bisnes dari dapur melalui www.duniadapur.com.