It's that time of the year...

Shaitan woke me up at a little after 5am this morning (I came to conclusion it was that time because I usually wake up at that time to wake Su up for school). The puny little fart said:"Hey, don't need to pray Subhr ah?". As far as I can remember, I replied,"Wait. Must pray, but not now. Too tired and sleepy". I fell backt to sleep again. My sleep was interupted by a couple of calls but i woke up fully at about 930 something I guess. I didn't do my Subhr. I had to Kadak it with my Zohr. How stupid can I get? At about 1215pm, I told myself I'll wash up and do my Subhr just before Zohr. I really regret it now. I've sinned. Forgive me O Allah! I am not worthy to receive You, but just say the word, and I shall be healed (this is a catholic prayer before the sharing of communion).

That's that. Now, I always get a little (ok... alot) depressed during this time of the year. Turning 32 wouldn't be such a bug deal if people didn't remember it ya?! But Alhamdulilah, I've had so many people calling me today that I had to charge my cell phone battery twice (either that or it's power capacity;s getting low).

First call of the day was from Ferhat, my business counterpart from Jakarta. At 8am, it does seem that he realises that it's a little early to call me up (I usually wake up much much later). Next, had a couple of calls from the banks. Then Rosli called to check up on me to see how my new job was (was supposed to start this week, but there was some clarification needed on my medical background). We both chattedv and moved on to the topic of bikes. His Minister of Home Affairs (literally) does not permit her dutiful citizen to ride a crotch rocket. Poor dude... Was a really fun conversation. Then Shashi called. His wife is pregnant again! Yeah! Then Jobson called. Hooray! We made a plan to visit him this Sunday, Insya Allah. Oh, Pak Joraimi called too! Out of the blue to see how I was! Alhamdulilah!

On a normal day, my phone calls come maily from Su. Today, I had so many well wishes from people who remember my birthday - Kim Puay & Sarah. Alhamdulilah! You can say that after 31 years, today is the most memoriable one I've ever had!

To kill my boredom, I decided to take a bus down to JB. Boarded 966 to Woodlands Interchange, then 950 to Checkpoint. The journey took a little more than an hour. Not crowded. So it was all right. Didn't spend much time there as it was raining. Made a bee line back to JB's immigration. Cannot tell you how horrbile the condition is there during peak hour of about 530pm! The diesel fumes from the buses are a killer! Never go there on peak hours, I made a mental note.

While I was waiting for 950, this Malaysian chinese girl called out to me "Hello, hello". It's been a very long while since anyone addressed my by that, so naturally, the first 200 "Hellos" were pretty much wasted on me. When I did turn to her, she asked me in Bahasa Melayu if I had small change for RM10. The funny thing was that she was beside me for a goood 10 minutes before she asked me anything. I replied in my almost perfect english that did she want to change the money with me in coins or notes, cos I only had notes. She didn't understand. She seemed to get a clearer idea when I translated my reply to mandarin (I love being able to speak different languages!). Well, I did not have RM1 x 10 notes, so I asked how much she needed. She said RM1. I gave it to her. No biggie. Alhamdulilah! He gave me a chance to do a god deed.

The wait was so damm long for 950. Asked a SMRT bus guy whether I would get a rebate if I took 170 to Woodlands checkpoint and switched to 950 later. He said Yes! Yippee!!! Was faster than a speeding bullet meandering through the crowd. Wasn't about to let the 170 that was 50 meters in front of me disappear into the sea of "Bas Kilang". No way! I'm Singaporean! Don't leave me here! Checked my EZ card at Admiralty station. The guy was spot on! Yeah! Crossed the road and had a short wait before 966 arrived.

Came back from JB straight to Su's place. Did Ashr, Sunnat Hajat and Maghrib before proceeding to Sukhanthala's. Dinner was fantastic with Fish Head Curry, Salad, Hot Plate Tou Fu & of course, tea & coffee (I had masala coffee). Wonderful! Alhamdulilah! Su's mother paid! Yeah! Although we took a few pics, they all turned out pretty nice! Alhamdulilah!

Went across to the "$3 for $10" shop, but not before noticing an accident across the street where a renegade taxi decided to head straight for a coffee shop. It injured 5 people. Heard from one of the guys there that one guy having coffee had both his legs broken. Looking at the damage to the coffee shop, it's no surprise. The taxi was lodge between two pillars of the corner shop. Sigh... wishing them a speedy recovery.

Before we went to Mustafa center, I walked passed Masid Angulia. The strength of the pull of a Thursday night was too strong to resist. I had to pray inside there! Alhamdulilah! The place was packed with my brothers listening to at least 5 different groups of teachers in different languages! Alhamdulilah! Bangladeshis, Singaporeans, Indians... how more United Nations could this get?! Geographically, I am pretty sure these countries (other than Singapore with it's non-participative policies) would be trigger happy to find the nationality within an arm's length. But here, the environment, although noisy, with each group trying to make themselves heard (they're nojt competing, just that it's really noisy!), was really great! I had no problem concentrating on my prayers where normally I would get distracted at the slightest whiff. Alhamdulilah!

Tell you all something. I started out writing this blog somewhat being a little depressed with the aging part of life. But looking through my keystrokes, things are not as bad as I think it is. Alhamdulilah! Subahan Allah! Insya Allah, more days of these would come.

jahwsl
0147
24th Nov 06'