Though I found all the videos interesting, I'm going to reflect on the video "Ahli" since its about a topic that is close to the heart.

Before I proceed, I hope discriminating (or maybe being critical is better and less harsh) towards my own race does not make me a racist. And, I hope I do not offend anyone, malay or otherwise.

From the video, we can see some of the common misconceptions of the malays. I found myself agreeing to almost all the issues raised. From retrenchment to laziness to teenagers with skimpy clothes.

I remember my parents telling me to work extra hard when I was younger. The reason was that us, malays, were deemed as lazy, or just laid back. My father even has an analogy. Melayu(Malay) could actually be interpreted as me-layu, which means "to wither".  

(Yes, sometimes parents could impart the wrong ideas.)

So, I had this mentality to work harder to prove my worth. Somehow, I came to believe that my malay counterparts were really lazy. I had no malay classmates since the bulk of malay friends were at the "lower end" classes.

This is when I started to look down on my own race. Here are a few things that used to come to my mind when I thought of my own race:

EM3. playing truant. fighting. lazy. lowly educated. nuisance. Normal Tech. gangsters. hopeless. always causing troubles. rowdy.

The response to every problem; "What to do. Malay what. What else to expect."

However, as I mature, I realise that I should not generalise. Not everyone are what we perceive them to be. For example, there may be some malays who still do not give priority to education, but there is an increasing number who realise the importance of it and are achieving excellent results. This can be seen from the increasing number of malay graduate in local universities.

Personally, I think the video accurately reflects how we, malays, typically think. We complain about the problems we face. And, that is just what most of us would do. Simply, complaining. In short, its all talk and no action. We might be too laid back to even help ourselves in difficult situations.

For instance, in the video, the men were talking about one of their problems which is retrenchment and the difficulty in finding a job. The man was was retrenched ended up using his retrenchment money for a luxurious plasma tv. He did try to ask help from organisations who offered to provide classes to upgrade himself. However, he rejected their offer as he sees upgrading as a waste of time. Clearly, the man did not give his best in finding a new job. From this, I also realise that we, malays, tend to put the blame for the problems on anyone but ourselves.

With this, I hope to remove the labels and misconceptions of all races by educating the students and helping them understand the different problems faced by different racial groups. I am sure that other races have their own fair share of misconceptions too. (Maybe some of you would like to share them?) This could be challenging as students might not be matured enough to understand, Nonetheless, we should at least try to educate them not to generalise. We, teachers, can also bring up this topic for discussion to allow students to have an insight on the different challenges their friends may face.

I feel that we should start off with a blank slate and not be judgemental towards our students. It is important to take note that race is not the only factor, but the religion, family values and upbringing of the students do contribute to the child's personalities and traits. Hence, it is important for us to treat each students equally, regardless of race or background.

Moreover, knowing and understanding the misconceptions students face, we can also help to change their mindset and motivate them to strive, not be chained by the negative connotations. Besides that, it would be good to help students find the root of the problems faced and find possible solutions instead of letting them dwell on the problems.

Lastly, I think we should believe in our students. When we believe they can succeed, they will succeed.

with that, I shall end my reflection. (:
see u tmr!

f a i z

Jo umr se hum nay bhar paya wo samnay laaye detay hain

Daman main hay musht e khaak e jigar, saaghar main hay khoon e hasrat e mae'

Lo hum ne daaman jhar dia, lo jaam ultaaey detay hain

*** From "Dast e tahe Sang" ***

taqobalallahumina waminkum minal aidzin wal faidzin...

mohon maaf lahir dan batin...

Maaf, faiz belum beristri dan berpacar kok...hahahaha

skrang ni baru kul 5:50 pagi

aku baru je abis sahur

hari ni hari paling penting utk diri aku dan wife aku....selepas hari penikahan kami sebab nye

insyallah hari ni anak pertama aku akan di lahir kan

9 bulan tunggu punya tunggu ...akhirnye saat yg istimewa ni pun muncul gak...

macam2 perasaan yg aku rase skrang...gumbira,risau,gementar,panik , nak terkucil pun

kul 10pagi nanti baru wife aku masuk wad....harap semuanye berjalan dengan lancar

smlm mase g jumpa doctor utk checkup biasa....doc kata baby dah ready nak kuar.

doc tanya aku....ni nak bersalin hari ni ke esok?

aku kata esok la pasal mak mertua aku dah booked nak buka puasa kat legend hotel...nak kasi can wife aku makan puas2....pasni kena pantang...

mase kat legend mlm tadi ...wife aku x berapa lalu sangat nak makan walaupun selera nye nak makan semua...semuanye pasal contraction yg dah mula terasa ...sian dia nak jalan pun skit2....

tido tadi pun wife aku x berapa lena ....asyik sakit je....

dia x le puasa ari ni...so jap lagi kena la dia breakfast....nak kasi tenaga ....kalau x nanti x larat nak meneran...

walaupun aku x rase camne sakit nye org bersalin ,tapi cukup la ....citer2 yg aku dapat dari mak aku,makmertua aku, kak ipar aku....sakit nye tuhan je yg tau ...

ape yg aku leh buat ...sentiasa ade bersama wife aku...dan berdoa yg terbaik utk wife ngan anak aku....

insyallah baby aku girl....dari pemerhatian aku semasa baby aku ni dalam perut.....memang lasak...berpusing2 sampai berbonjol2 perut wife aku....

name plak aku dah shortlist kan 2 name

Nor Fatin Kamila ( pilihan aku)

Nor fatin Aina ( pilihan wife aku)

skrang ni ngah berentap la....nak ikut pilihan siapa...

tapi aku rase 90% pilihan aku menang...hahhahahah biasa la ...isteri kena ikut ckp suami....jgn marah yee yyang

ok la doakan utk wife ngan anak aku....ye

assalammualaikum

Lekin yeh Mukhtasar si mulaaqat kam nahi...

While talking with Igadevil the other day, we came to the conclusion that Kamen Rider Kiva is shaping up to be Kamen Rider Faiz all over again...but is that really so?

R5 Central's going to be coming out with a Summer Wrap-up episode and with it, the long-awaited halfway point review for Kamen Rider Kiva. Before that, I'm going to put myself through something of a challenge: Watch every episode of Kamen Rider Faiz all the way up to the halfway mark (around 25 or so) and then watch Kiva up to the same point. The idea is to try and see if Iga and I are truly right or if we're just a bunch of cranky old fans.

What will aid me in this is my trusty "Inoue Cliche Checklist" that is being made up now. Among the things to watch for:

"Female Rider Backfire"
"The Really F*cking Obvious Plot Point That Should Have Been Spotted Right Away But Won't Be Found Out Until The Near End Of The Series"
"The Appearance of the Uber-Ass"

...and so on. The hope is that the list will help prove my case and make the podcast all the more entertaining. I will also keep you guys here on J-ACE up to date with the progress, with a final entry once I'm done. Stay tuned!

The party was held at the always amazing Peperoni's; the subject of a comparison with another Italian eatery here and basically, I invited those people whom I thought affected me most in my time back in Singapore. Some people had other commitments, and some people just didn't show. All of which is perfectly understandable because after all is said, there were several parties that night *mine was probably like the last one to be planned and executed* and Friday nights are well... Friday nights. I was just happy that thosewho DID show up, brought with each and everyone of them something special to the table.

I speak of these people here because they brought me so much joy on this wondrous day. This, my 20th birthday. But that is not to say I don't appreciate those of you out there who make my life so much better for even knowing I exist. For I learn and I breathe through all of you, all of you pizza loving, let's-go-out-for-prata-@-3-ing, random plurking/twittering, blogging, tech-loving, singing, dancing, kissing, hugging, all of you have my these two years of my life in Singapore more than I could have bargained for; more than I could ask for, and more then just friends, you've become my family. My family that comprises, family by blood, family by school, by internet, by interest, by blog/fb/twitter/plurk, family that draws me in precisely because of your varied quirks and points of interest. Because without y'all, I'd just be a lonely bugger sitting on my sofa, typing a blog post!

I had my cousins, Nicole, Shin and Xiang, who were first to arrive, on time, as always, unlike me, and were a riot at the table. Who have known me through all this time and probably could never believe that I've a crew of friends who are so outrageous and yet so fantastic at the same time.

I had Jeremy. Who brought Cake and his own brand of wit.

I had Daniel, Aaron and Jane. Each I've known from my secondary school days and are ever so near and dear to my heart because they know me well enough to let me burn out my energy, before making me see how silly I'm being or how I should just chill and stop worrying, and have stuck with me through all this time, well spent or otherwise.

I had Farinelli, dear Fari, whose lack of hair and surfeit of wit has given me cause to smile so often. His is a sense of humour that is infectious and occassionally inappropriate. Just like me so no wonder he's such a pal.

I had Justin, whose care and often need for care, has given me hope in the glories of a multi-coloured life! He also brought cake and his delightfully caustic sense of humour.

I had Joel. Joel with his humour and his gentle presence. His ability to entertain and be entertained, all the while offering a quip and a smile. Joel who I know will miss and be missed the most.

I had Victoria. Who travelled the furthest. Who's been amazing with her kindness and her boundless ability to care for me. Whose simple words and actions mean ever so much and whose words I never remember but she's most willing to remind.

I had Marina, who helped me through trial by Internet, and taught me some lessons about living I never expected to learn. Whose ready smile and willing demeanor have showed me the way forward to living my life on the virtual and real world and maybe even find my love someday in the most unexpected places.

I had Yushaa, with her grace and poise. Elina and Amin, Such a gorgeous couple. Faiz, whose grasp on women never quite got past the, well. Nevermind. And dear Phoebe, who embraces Salsa, who dances and is ever ready to listen and be a friend.

I had Weixian, with his modest bearing and soft spoken ways that belies a ready smile and sleepy head.

I had Hisham, Who put me through tequila and lemon and I emerged, loving it. I'll miss his special brand of humour and I think I'll miss his belly the most.

And last, but most definately not the least, Wan Jin. Who I met under the most interesting circumstances, and will remember for instilling in me at least SOME sort of sporting pretention and who can most certainly out-eat me on any day!

PS. I understand that there were some people who I didn't invite. I didn't forget you. I just want to, you know, *winks* get to know you better, and you don't get to know someone like you better at a big party like this. You take this special someone out to dinner, where you wine and dine'er. And afterwards... who knows. One might be persuaded to...

Put on my LP of Jason Mraz's newest Album?
Talk about some well seasoned burgers?
Discuss world politics?
Drink a bottle or two of well aged, over oaked, Californian Merlot *WLTV FTW*

Who knows. I'm always ready and available to try something new :)

Sebelum benar-benar mengeluarkan isi kepala, tidak ada niat lain kenapa saya posting tentang si Faiz ini selain hanya bikin semacam milestone buat Faiz sehingga kalo dia sudah bisa baca tulis dan sudah bisa buka blog ibunya, dia bisa baca apa yang pernah ibunya tulis tentang dia.

Jujur saya ngga punya bekal yang cukup bagaimana merawat anak, jadi waktu si Faiz lahir 2 tahun yang lalu saya cukup kesulitan. Satu hal yang saya ingat sekali, ketika pulang dari rumah sakit bersalin, saya harus mulai merawat dia berdua dengan suami. Dan sayangnya dirumah sakit ngga diajarkan bagaimana cara mandiin bayi, bedong bayi dkk, tololnya saya juga sih ngga minta diajarin sama suster walhasil ketika kita sampe rumah bingung sendiri. Hari pertama dirumah, saya terkaget-kaget ngeliat tali pusatnya si Faiz yang belom puput, untung masih ada kakak dirumah yang masih bisa mandiin tapi besoknya dia sudah harus balik ke jakarta karena sudah lebih dari 2 minggu nemenin saya sampai melahirkan. Bnatuan kedua datang, ibu mertua, tapi ternyata beliau sudah lupa bagaimana caranya mandiin bayi dan ngga berani juga. Akhirnya saya dan suami sepakat memanggil suster dari rumah sakit untuk datang setiap pagi dan mengajarkan saya apa yang perlu saya pelajari, dan setiap sore saya lakukan sendiri semua ritual pagi yang dilakukan si suster sampai seminggu penuh seperti itu dan selanjutnya saya lakukan semuanya sendiri.

Dan ternyata waktu cepat sekali lewatnya karena rasanya baru kemarin dia bisa tengkurap diumur 1.5 bulan tapi ngga bisa balikin lagi badannya, ketika lelah dia bakalan merengek minta di balikin badannya. Pertama kali dia demam tinggi sampai > 39°C ketika dia umur tepat 5 bulan dan ternyata dia mau tumbuh gigi, dua gigi seri bawah tengah muncul. Rasanya baru kemarin juga ketika kita ketawa ngeliat dia kelelahan karena baru bisa merangkak di umur 7 bulan, waktu jidatnya benjol disana sini karena maksa banget mau bisa jalan diumur 11 bulan sampe jatoh-jatoh karena liat mbak khansa-nya keponakanku yang sudah lancar jalan kesana kemari padahal beda umurnya hanya 2 bulan.

Sekarang Faiz udah 2 tahun beratnya 11.5 kg & tingginya 88 cm, sudah bisa apa aja sih Faiz?  Alhamdulillah banyak.... :)

1. Ini yang bikin ibunya happy berat, mahir nendang bola :)

Tapi pake kaki kiri.. ya si Faiz ini cenderung ke-kiri, apa-apa kiri duluan yang respon. Waktu dulu pertama tangannya bisa genggam, bisa pegang mainan, semua tangan kiri duluan yang mahir. Tapi katanya orang-orang ngga papa supaya otak kiri dan otak kanannya seimbang (?) Dan sekarang kalo nendang pake kaki kiri hasilnya jauh, keras dan mantap kalo nendang pake kaki kanan pilihannya 3: ngga kena bolanya, kena tapi pelan atau si Faiz jatoh karena ngga bisa jaga keseimbangan :)

2. Sudah hafal A - Z, a - z, 1 - 20 (bahasa prancis), huruf hijaiyah alif - ya

Semuanya berawal dari puzzle, waktu Faiz umur 18 bulan, kita main ke toko buku dan ada puzzle one piece berbentuk alphabet A - Z. Waktu awal-awal dia hanya suka bongkar puzzlenya trs disusun berderet-deret sampe panjang di karpet, masang lagi ke buku puzzle itu tugas ibunya. Akhirnya saya coba pake cara ini: setiap kita mau pasang puzzle saya akan bilang ke Faiz, "Faiz ambilin ibu huruf A, ketika dia salah saya akan bilang bukan yang itu tapi yang ini, dst" Begitu terus tiap hari dan hasilnya bulan April kemarin dia bisa A - Z, bukan hanya sekedar hafal tapi dia memang mengerti betul bentuk hurufnya, sampai ada teman yang iseng ngetest nanyain si Faiz A - Z tapi diacak dan dia bisa jawab semuanya :)

Terus saya belikan puzzle yang sama tapi versi angka 1 - 10, karena cuma sedikit Faiz justru lebih cepat bisa 1 - 10  daripada ABC.

Ayahnya beliin dia puzzle a - z yang versi huruf kecil, pertama-tama dia kebingungan tapi sebentar aja dia langsung mengerti polanya kalo itu sama saja A - Z. Sayangnya kita orang tuanya sempat ketipu, kita pikir dia benar-benar sudah ngerti a- z ternyata dia hafal aja, ketika kita tanya acak dia langsung mati kutu. Akhirnya saya coba metode yang sama seperti A - Z, ngga nyampe sebulan dia sudah hafal karena sebelumnya dia sudah bisa melafalkan A - Z.

Waktu dia sudah bisa A -Z, 1 - 10, a- z, dia mulai malas mainan puzzle kalopun dia mainan paling cuma sebentar aja mungkin karena dia ngerasa sudah bisa jadi kurang tantangan. Akhirnya iseng-iseng saya cobain nulis huruf hijaiyah dari alif - ya di kertas A4 dan saya tempel di tembok, berhasil juga, tiap hari dia minta dibacain. Dan sekarang di sudah hafal semuanya biarpun di acak dia tetap tau itu huruf apa. Dan saya tulis juga angka 1 - 20 pake pensil warna di kertas A4 terus saya tempel ditembok, tiap hari minta dibacain dan dia ikutin pelafalan (bhs prancis) saya, sekarang alhamdulillah sudah bisa juga.

Sebagai catatan, saya ngga pernah memaksa dia untuk belajar itu semua, tapi dia memang suka sekali sama buku dan yang berbau tulis-menulis atau menggambar. Jadi dia sendiri yang membuat saya menarik pola aktivitas yang dia suka, ketika di rumah baby sitternya selama saya dikantor, dia akan main terus, mainan apa aja yang ada disana. Tapi ketika dirumah malam hari bersama saya, requestnya hanya main bola, menulis/ membaca dan main puzzle. Kalau weekend karena waktunya panjang, dia pasti request lebih banyak, ntah main sepeda, main bola, main lego, mobil-mobilan dll

3. Sudah hafal doa mau tidur

Faiz kesulitan melafalkan bismillahirrohmanirrohim, yang lancar jaya: bismika Allah huma ahya amut, dan ini yang paling kencang amiiiiinnnn sambil ngusap mukanya :)

Dan kalo disuruh baca doa, pasti yang keluar doa mau tidur biarpun dia mau makan tetep yang dibaca doa mau tidur, mau apapun pokoknya versi Faiz yang namanya doa ya doa mau tidur itu :)

4. Sudah bisa menyebutkan namanya lengkapnya sendiri 3 kata Faiz Azmi Irwan, nama ibunya, nama ayahnya, nama tantenya, nama teman-temannya dan nama orang-orang yang sudah dia kenal baik (e.g teman-teman ayah dan ibunya).

Suatu kali saya iseng ngasi tau dia nomor bis yang lewat rumah kita, rumah baby sitternya dan yang lewat rumah teman-temannya. Dan dia hafal dong, sekarang misalnya kalo ngeliat bis apapun ada nomor 2-nya dia langsung bilang, "ibu numero deux (2), rumah kiki (baby sitternya)" :)

5. Sudah banyak kosakata makanan, hewan plus bunyinya (sapi = moo, kucing = meong, dll), buah, sayur mayur, alat transportasi, pakaian, warna

Semuanya campur- campur bahasa prancis dan indonesia. Ada cerita tentang salahsatu alat transportasi yaitu kereta, si Faiz taunya kereta itu train dan berwarna rouge (=merah) hingga suatu hari distasiun, saya bilang kita mau naik kereta, dia bilang, "non, pas kereta, train". Kira-kira maksut si Faiz, "bukan, bukan kereta, train". Saya bilang lagi,"nak, kereta itu = train, c'est la meme chose" (sama aja). Dia tetep keukeuh, sambil nunjuk kereta yang warnanya merah, dia bilang gini, "train rouge", trs dia nunjuk lagi kereta lain yang ngga berwarna merah sambil bilang,"itu kereta". Well oke deh Faiz, ntar juga ngerti deh kalo train = kereta apapun warnyanya ... :)

6. Suka banget mainan puzzle

Mungkin awalnya karena puzzle ABC itu, setelah itu saya coba kasih dia puzzle 4 pieces dengan gambar contoh, ketika dia sudah bisa saya cari lagi yang 9 pieces. Sekarang dia sudah bisa puzzle 12 pieces tanpa gambar reference. Yang sekarang masih in progress puzzle 16 pieces tanpa gambar reference.

Saya melihat puzzle ini banyak manfaatnya untuk membantu cara dia berpikir dalam menyelesaikan masalah tapi yang sedikit mengganjal hati saya adalah Faiz ini jadi terstruktur sekali kaya misalnya ketika dia main puzzle ABC, dia akan mulai dari Z lanjut ke Y, X, W dst atau jika dia mulai dari A, maka berikutnya harus B, C, D dst. Ngga mau lagi dia seperti awal-awal dulu, dia menemukan huruf apapun itu yang dia pasang tapi sekarang semuanya harus rapi dan urut.

7. Sudah mulai mengerti yang namanya mewarnai ngga boleh keluar garis

Dirumah baby sitternya, dalam seminggu itu ternyata ada beberapa kali sesi mewarnai, yah seperti yang bisa kita duga pasti hasilnya benang kusut aja kertas mewarnai si Faiz plus baju & tangan coreng moreng kena spidol. Tapi sekarang dia mulai ngerti, memang ngga seperti anak-anak yang sudah bisa mewarnai dengan baik dan bagus, yang penting dia ngerti kalo mewarnai ngga boleh keluar dari garis gambarnya. Walhasil sekarang kalo mewarnai sapi misalnya dia hanya mewarnai dibagian tengah aja, jadi warnanya ngumpul di perutnya si sapi :)

8. Untuk sehari-hari sudah bisa ditanya dan menjawab apa yang dia mau seperti misalnya mau makan apa, mau pakai baju yang mana, mau main apa, mau nonton apa, etc Dan sudah bisa disuruh-suruh, ambilkan sapu, taruh gelas dimeja, kasih buku ke ayah etc

Selain hal-hal yang dia bisa, ada juga hal-hal yang menurut saya sebagai ibunya masih kurang seperti:

1. belum bisa lepas dari pampers

kalau pup dia sudah bisa bilang, "ibu, mau kaka (=pup) WC". Tapi kalo pipis belom bisa, jadi masih cari cara supaya dia juga bisa bilang ketika mau pipis...

2. ngga mau langsung interaksi dengan anak-anak yang dia ngga kenal baik

setiap ada kumpul-kumpul dengan teman-teman disini biasanya keluarga dibawa, Faiz ini ngga tertarik sama sekali main sama anak-anak lain, memang yang seumuran hanya ada 1 orang yang lain jauh lebih besar tapi mendekat aja dia ngga mau. Dia lebih milih duduk dekat ibunya atau main bola ditaman itu juga minta ditemenin ibunya. Sesekali aja aja di beberapa kesempatan dia mau main sama mereka tapi lebih sering ngga maunya. Sementara kalo dirumah baby sitternya dia main aja sama semua yang ada disitu, walaupun ada anak yang baru dia kenal mau aja dia main. Dan ketika teman-teman main kerumah saya, Faiz mau main sama anak-anak lain.

3. Dia lebih senang mengalah, nangis atau mengadu kalo mainannya di rebut

Dirumah baby sitternya, Faiz itu anak yang paling kecil, yang lain 3 thn ke atas. Jadi baby sitternya sepertinya selalu belain si Faiz akibatnya gini deh. Kalo mainannya direbut, kalo moodnya lagi enak dia ngomel sama temennya atau ngalah, mood lagi ngga enak ngadu ke baby sitter atau langsung nangis. Sayangnya frekuensi mengalah, ngadu atau nangis lebih sering daripada ngomel sama temannya....

4. Susah diajarin nyanyi

Lagu andalan si Faiz adalah lagu abc, yang lainnya ngga jelas... :)

5. Ini yang paling berat, susah banget disapih....

Saya rasa pencapaiannya di usia yang baru 2 thn sudah luar biasa membahagiakan saya, apa yang belum dia bisa akan kita usahakan sama-sama.

Ibu sayang Faiz....