Cheshire♒Oaks...

Jumpa pics ni dalam hard disk. As usual, sayang nak delete begitu sahaja. So before delete, abadikan dulu dalam blog.

Dalam bas.

Brunch. Masa sejuk, makan donut & minum kopi panas adalah amat melegakan.

Deretan kedai.

Cheshire 0aks adalah factory 0utlet yang berdekatan dengan Liverpool. Tapi tak lah dekat sangat. Rasanya adalah dalam 1 jam menaiki bas. Bila sebut FO, kita mesti terbayang barangan branded yg dijual pada harga yg lebih murah. Sama lah kat sini... boleh lah tahan murah... tapi kalau dah harga asal mahal giler, murah pun still mahal gak ;-). So, aku takde lah shopping sangat... tak ingat pun beli apa. Maklumlah cerita 2 tahun yang lalu :P. Tapi tengok member2 lain, macam2 gak depa beli.

Tapi kat sini tak ada lah designer boutique macam LV, Prada etc. So, tak lah menarik sangat... hiks.

On ramblings and reminiscences

Somehow the recent 5-nights course reminds me to the MSc program. The ordeal (studying, presenting & submitting a report) is quite similar but the pressure is different. During the MSc, I took it as a challenge, but during the course, I felt somewhat fedup. The point is, the environment & the people are different.

Some people do think that others are their competitors rather than comrades & take it very seriously. Some people do believe that they couldn't compete on their own, but need some 'advantages'. Some people do feel that if the chances are equal, they are going to lose.
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Well, reminiscing about the days during the MSc program...

Lecture notes. 7 files with different colors indicate 7 subjects per semester. The source of stress.

Bila stress - makan. Sebab ni lah tak kurus-kurus. Naik lagi ada... =P

Having 2 sets of burger for a lunch/dinner with a wide range of appertizers & dessert dishes was normal.

My healthy breakfast & meal between meals.

Recess. Sambil menguyah anything yg available dlm fridge, layan online TV...

or these...

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As for me, I believe in a hard but smart work.

I had been smart but didn't work hard enough. My bad.

Tara Liverpool!

12:30pm UK time.

I'm on the train to Manchester Airport rite now. Tomorrow I'll have my iftar in Msia, insyaAllah. Even though I can't wait to get back home, but I have a confession to make...

Indeed.

Eh, lupa nak letak tajuk.

Takde assignment, takde keje, takde benda nak study. Alangkah indahnya! Jangan jeles kepada kawan2 yg masih belajar. Your time will come, insyaAllah.

Nothing specific to write but there's so much time to kill. So mari kita ber'random'...

☑ Notice my header? No need to eloborate more. MODE: RAYA (read makan sedap2).

☑ Semalam pegi bank. Really need to be patient with bank service here. Actually I wasn't planning to close my account bcos I do hv feeling that closing bank account here won't be simple.

Dipendekkn cerita, I told the officer that I want to withdraw all my money, but when being asked whether I want to close my account, I simply answered yes.

So my bank account is closed but I'll only get my money on Wednesday morning! She said actually it needs 1 week to close an account & take the remaining balance. But since my flight will be on Wednesday afternoon, so the soonest that I can get my balance is on the morning.

Kad aku pun diambil & dilipat. Aku pun kuar bank. Suddenly it hit me. I don't have much money left. I don't have bank cards, my account is already closed. So I went into the bank again & told the officer my situation. I managed to withdraw £200 with the officer's authorization.

Pelik kan. See... they managed to let me take MY £200 with their authorization after my account is closed. So why not the rest of the balance? But don't be worry for me. I'm sure I'll get the rest of my money on Wednesday morning. Somehow I guess they just enjoy complicate things.

Cerita pasal bank jer dah boleh jd 1 post.

☑ Tak tau lah kenapa baggage penuh & berat. ~22kg la ni. Ingatkan dah pos barang 2 kotak besar, kurang dah barang yg nak bawak balik naik kapal terbang. Hilang mood nak shopping bila pikir takut terlebih berat. Sekarang ni pun dah lebih 20kg. Tension. Tapi hati masih meronta-ronta nak shopping. Oh yer, balik guna economy class yek. No business class macam masa pegi.

Malam tadi, cuba repacking. Timbang dgn tangan apa yg berat sgt tu. Pindahkan ke backpack. Fikir apa lagi benda yg boleh dibuang. Apa pun, kalau nak shopping, hari ni lah hari terakhir but still I haven't make up my mind. Tu yg masih ada kt bilik ni. Kalau tak, dah ke city centre gi shopping.

☑ Atas galakan Mas, aku dah katam 2 anime - Fruits Basket & Ouran HSHC. Memang best dua2 anime ni. Kelakar. For me FB kelakar in a cute way. Ouran plak kelakar in a crazy way. One thing, aku kurang feel kalau tgk yg english dubbed. Lebih suka tengok with english subtitle sebab suka dgr diorang cakap Jepun. Kawaii.

☑ Bilik hotel ni sebenarnya dah book lebih kurang 2 bulan yang lalu. Book single suite room. Sekali masuk, ada 1 queen bed & 1 single bed. Memang tak sangka sebab bilik ni murah. Yg penting ada wifi & lokasi strategik. Tengah2 antara dept & city centre. Biasanya kalau dari bilik dulu pun kalau nak gi city, memang lalu hotel ni. So kawasan hotel ni tak lah asing.

☑ Semalam pegi dept gak. Amik recommendation letter from my supervisor. Walaupun tak de lah terpikir nak buat PhD dlm masa terdekat ni, tapi mintak jer lah recommendation letter.

Ok lah enough with the randomness. I think I want to go to the city now. Kalau tak shopping, cuci mata pun jd lah.

Sama tapi tak serupa

Hi, I'm at a hotel rite now. Bermalas-malasan. Nothing specific to do. TV ada, tp siaran takde. Tak komplen pun sebab ingatkan takkan rasa boring macam ni sebab ada internet. Esok lah komplen. Checked out from the uni accommodation hall ~12pm. Gi hotel, nasib baik dapat check in terus. Lega dapat merehatkan diri dengan tenang.

Sebab dah boring, mari kita bercerita. Ni ceritanya...

Semalam berbuka puasa di rumah supervisor aku. Yeap, my supervisor is a muslim, from Iran. Sebelum ni aku pun tak pasti sama ada dia muslim yg mengamalkan atau tidak sebab tak pernah bg salam & dia tak pegi solat Jumaat, dr apa yg aku nmpk lah. I was surprise when he invited me for iftar. Wlupun dlm kepala rasa ralat, tapi takkan nak tolak plak kan.

Ke rumah orang Iran & berbuka puasa bersama merupakan pengalaman yang mengejutkan. Kawan aku dari Arab Saudi ada bagitau pasal depa ni. Tapi ingatkan tak semua mcm yg dikatakannya. Yerlah, mungkin kerana nila setitik rosak susu sebelanga. Tapi rupanya apa yg diberitahunya itu benar. So tak lah terkejut sangat. Nasib baik. Kalau tak, mesti muka cuak.

Masa untuk berbuka puasa bagi depa bukan waktu Maghrib, tapi lebih kurang 1/2 jam selepas Maghrib. Sah2 dah gelap kat luar tu. Tak tau lah kalendar/jadual apa depa pakai. Aku ada 2 jadual waktu solat yg dikeluarkn oleh Islamic societies kt sini & 1 rujuk internet. Waktu maghrib paling lewat pun ~7:45pm. Ni pukul ~8:15pm baru sibuk nak berbuka. Menurut kawan Arab aku tu, depa tunggu bintang kuar baru buka puasa. Yer lah kot.

Kita selalu dengar pasal sunni & syiah. Apa yg aku faham depa ni fahaman syiah, sedangkan kita fahaman sunni. Yerlah kita berpandukan pada al-Quran & sunnah. Apa pun, baru aku nmpk yg 2 fahaman ni memang lain.

Dekorasi rumah dia pun memeranjatkan aku. Depa tak kisah letak objek manusia dan haiwan sebagai perhiasan. Hiasan rumah dia ala2 egyptian. Patung Great Sphinx of Giza pun ada. Sebab tu aku kata macam Egypt. Ditambah plak dgn lukisan orang yang ntah lah. Btw, depa ni Parsi. So tu lah kot pengaruh Persian.

He did talk about lailatul qadr & quran. Agak pelik sebenarnya. We know the same thing & we believe in the same God. But we have different understanding. Tapi kitorang takde bercakap pasal fahaman. Bagi aku, fahaman diorang salah. Tapi bagi depa plak, mungkin fahaman kita yg salah. Kalau bercakap, mungkin boleh gaduh.

Aku rasa supervisor aku tak tau yg aku, orang Msia tak sama fahaman dgn depa. Dia tak pernah sampai ke rantau ni. Negara Brunei pun macam dia tak penah dengar. Mungkin agak sedikit self-obsess di situ. Dia ingat kan orang Arab jer kot yg fahaman lain dengan depa. Menurut kawan Arab aku, orang Arab & orang Parsi memang tak ngam sebab isu ni lah.

Pengalaman ni buat aku hilang respek sikit kat depa. Dulu, aku penah terima emel memuji presiden Iran. Nampak begitu humble walaupun seorang presiden. Solat di tepi jalan. Tapi depa lain rupanya.

If you are not practising the religion, maybe you don't get the hidayah yet. However, if you are practising it, but in a different way? Patutlah sesama Islam pun kita berperang.

Panjang plak pos aku ni. Apa pun, supervisor aku & family dia amat lah baik. Isteri dia siap pelawa aku utk tinggal di rumah depa sampai aku balik instead of menginap kat hotel. Siap cakap yg dia tak ajak2 ayam. She really means it. Bungkuskan aku untuk makan sahur sekali.

Adakah mereka akan melayan aku dgn baik kalau tau aku fahaman lain? Hmm... ntah lah. Berat sungguh masalah fahaman ni sbnrnya.

Aku nak cakap lebih2 pun tak paham sgt. Ini dari pengalaman aku jer. Apa pun aku tersangat lah yakinnya kita patut berbuka puasa waktu Maghrib & jangan melewatkan berbuka puasa.

Memang kita sama agama, tapi somehow tak serupa. Sekian cerita kali ini.

I know that somehow I work better under pressure, but...

BUT... (memang sengaja ulang 'but' 2X)

don't ever wait until the last minute to complete a job!

Penat. I am. Really.

Last week, I've been pushing myself to work extra harder. I only realized that I was running out of time on Friday 28/8. Stupid me. I didn't put into plan the time taken for proofreading and hard-binding.

So, that's it. The plan then is just keep working. I had to ignore the backache that the period given me. Even, I wasn't fasting, I just ate muffins for the whole day. Giler lah... & I swear to myself I wont ever procrastinating. Really I did. I think I have learned my lesson.

Alhamdulillah, it ends well anw. Somehow, I do work better, or at least work well under pressure, to be exact under crunch time. I managed to send it to proofreading section by section and did the hard-binding with nice embossed lettering on the cover while most of the students just did it at the library with a blank cover.

Today, I submit the thesis. Horray! Wait, I still have an oral presentation to undergo.

But knowing myself, I know I'll repeat this mistake again. & when I'm in the middle of the crisis, I'll regret for putting myself in that situation & promise all over again not to procrastinate next time.

Simply me.

However, I'll try to change this time. This post is a reminder to me how I've been suffering because of the last minute work. Indeed. I have suffered.

I'll start by preparing the presentation and packing my stuff seriously now. Btw, the oral presentation and collection date for my boxes will be on this Friday. I'll seriously looking for troubles if I don't start both of the tasks right away.

So, here I am, thinking which one I should do rite now, preparing the presentation or packing my stuff.

Puasa@UK: Hari 9

Hari ni buat eksperimen masak mee goreng seafood sebab dah boring makan nasi. Takde cili boh. Guna kicap & serbuk cili jer. Hasilnya...

Hiks, tak teringat nak amik gambar.

Rasanya... boleh lah. Lebih sedap dr yg dijangkakan. Serius. Ingatkn tak boleh jamah langsung. Cuma masin sikit. Terlebih taruk kicap.

Kata dah boring makan nasi, tapi lepas Zohor tadi gi Tesco boleh plak beli beras 1kg. Walaupun beras sekarang dah nak abis, patutnya beli jer lah 500g sbb tinggal 2 minggu jer lagi. Nampak gayanya sebab nak abiskan 1kg beras tu, terpaksa gak lah makan nasi hari2. Memburukkan lagi keadaan, rupanya aku ada beli 500g beras pada satu masa dahulu. Jd skrg aku ada 1.5kg beras utk dihabiskn dalam masa 2 minggu. Mungkin bleh offer kat kengkawan yg nak beli beras. Lelong, lelong beras basmati 1kg!

Mungkin aku kene rancang menu berbuka puasa selama 2 minggu ni utk elakkan pembaziran dgn membeli bahan konon nak masak, pastu masaknya benda lain, di samping abiskan segala stok yg ada. Macam byk je stok makanan aku. Byk gak lah. Cereal ada 2 kotak. Tapi takde mood dah nak makan cereal & susu, walaupun utk sahur. Memang dah stop beli susu pun. Nampak gayanya cereal tu bakal jd snek, kunyah2 gitu jer lah. Daging burger plak rasanya ada 16 ketul lg. Tu bila plak aku nak makan. Isk, rosak program diet.

Ni lah akibatnya orang yg konon2 jarang ke kedai, so sekali beli tu, beli byk sekali. Tu lah tak kurus sebab tak putus2 makanan.

Teringin gak nak masak dua tiga jenis lauk & jemput member berbukak posa sekali. Tapi keadaan tidak mengizinkan. La ni masak ala kadar je, bukak posa pastu sambung siapkan tesis.

Tadi dengar PM kita berucap kat radio sempena kemerdekaan yg ke-52 tahun. Rasa macam dengar tazkirah kat radio IKIM plak. Tapi, tapi aku tak dengar radio IKIM waktu malam gini. Dengar waktu siang jer. Maklum lah bulan puasa, insaf sikit.

Selamat Hari Merdeka! 2 minggu lagi aku juga akan merdeka drp program MSc ni, insyaAllah.

Serius lah, dah boring makan nasi. Kalau makan nasi dengan lauk ketam ke, sambal kerang ke, masak lemak perut ke, baru ada selera. :-P

Puasa@UK: Hari 1

UK pun mula posa hari Sabtu. Member aku bgtau ada argument yg kata mula hari Jumaat. Klu Msia raya hari Ahad 20/9 & aku start posa kat sini hari Jumaat, maknanya 31 hari lah aku posa! So aku yakin hari Sabtu. Hiks. Memang hari Sabtu lah.

~2am sahur makan chocolate muffin & burger. Lepas subuh ~4:30am baru tido. Bangun pagi pukul 10, cuci muka, terus kuar ke porter's lodge, check kotak dah sampai ke belum. Tak sampai lagi rupanya. So xtvt packing masih belum bermula.

Pastu surfing internet, surfing internet & akhirnya settle down dgn Big Brother 11 (BB11) kat YouTube. Best gak BB ni... (waktu2 mcm ni mmg semuanya best. Distraction). Macam The Sims. Semua peserta duduk satu rumah.

Sambil tengok BB11, draft ASM chart for the Verilog program. Baru perasan ada yang tak kene & dapat idea mcm mana nak design edge triggering.

Cadangnya nak tido kejap sebab malam nanti stay up lg. Layan BB11 punya pasal, langsung tak tido. Pukul 6:40pm baru terhegeh-hegeh nak mandi. Hehee, bangun pagi td tak mandi pun.

7:15pm kuar gi Tesco beli juice & muffin. Baru terasa penat. Actually tak penat, cuma rasa lemah. Jalan pun separa zombie sambil terbayang juadah buka posa di Msia. Tapi dlm byk2 makanan di Msia, ntah camna aku bleh terbayang nasi goreng sardin.

Member jemput bukak posa kat umah dia. So lepas gi Tesco, terus ke rumah member. Pukul 8:30pm bukak posa. Alhamdulillah, walaupun tak makan nasi, makan bubur & kuih muih jer macam samosa, still kenyang (giler). Rupanya orang Arab ni depa tak bukak posa makan nasi. Eh, tetiba terbayang plak samosa daging tu. Sedap.

Hari ni sahur makan biskut 3 keping jer. Tu pun klu ikutkn tak lah sahur sbb makan ~12am, sambil layan BB11. Ingat nak masak Maggie ker utk sahur, tapi masih kenyang. Kalau tiap2 hari macam ni, mmg pasti menjadi program TBL aku.

Ermm... nak makan apa utk bukak posa hari ni yek.

End of An Affair

6 tahun!

Yer, 6 tahun kami bersama. Akhirnya, dengan berat hati aku mengucapkan selamat tinggal...

kepada...

walletku!

Ahaksss.

Isk, 6 tahun aku gunakan wallet yg sama. Wallet tu pun masih elok, masih boleh dipakai. Nak kata boring pun tidak.

Cuma tetiba terbuka hati nak beli wallet baru. Bukan satu, tapi dua!

Ni lah akibatnya kalau hobi suka window shopping. Tak banyak, sikit pun tershopping gak.

Lebih kurang sebulan yg lepas, aku ke John^Lewis. Tetiba ternampak wallet ni.

Memang berkenan dgn design & saiznya yg kecil. Aku ni tak suka pakai wallet yg besar & gemuk. Kaler merah ada satu je, terus lah beli sebab dah berkenan.

Tapi, boleh plak sayang nak pakai. Sayang juga nak stop gunakn yg lama. So simpan je wallet baru dlm laci.

Kemudian, 2 minggu yg lepas aku ke Deben^hams pula. Nampak wallet ni terus jatuh hati.

Walaupun saiz dia agak besar bg aku, suka giler dgn design dia. Ada 2 compartment berzip. Boleh asingkn syiling kpd 2 bhgn, senang nak mncari masa bayar. Kat UK ni byk sgt duit syiling - £2, £1, 50p, 20p, 10p, 5p, 2p & 1p.

Kali ni takde sayang2 dah. Balik bilik terus tukar wallet.

Well, skrg syiling dah tak byk terkumpul mcm dulu sbb dah tak terkial2 nak mencari especially 2p & 1p.

So now, my wallet is purple in color!

A Sweet Escape

It's a wonderful sunny day...

And nobody cries.
There's only butterflies bees.

P/s: Hati, tak mau sedih2 dah ok. ;-)

Keberangkatan Mas & Yam ke Liverpool

Apasal malas sangat nak buat apa2 ni? Nak update blog pun malas. Layan movie jer rajin. Baru lepas abis tengok Knocked^Up. Eh silap. Tak abis lagi. Turned out, citer yang diupload tu tak sampai abis. Rasanya tinggal 5 - 10 minit jer lagi. Kira tengok movie tergantung lah ni. Tengah try link yg lain plak. Hopefully, kali ni dapat full. Tapi nak menunggu abis download tu, mau berjam gak.

Ok, celoteh di atas takde kena mengena dgn tajuk.

Alhamdulillah, Mas & Yam selamat sampai ke Liverpool pada petang Sabtu 25/7. Depa naik train dari London Euston pukul 2:07pm. Aku check kat internet, dijangka sampai pukul 5:15pm. Pukul 4:30pm, Mas call kata dah sampai plak. So, aku pun tergesa2 bersiap & gi train station.

Makan di Nando's, our colleague yg tinggal di Stoke belanja. Rezeki. Kebetulan dia telefon in the morning, kata nak jumpa.

Jalan2 di Liverpool One, kedai semua dah tutup. So, terus ke Anfield. Yer pertama kali aku ke Anfield. Naik bas nombor 17, tunggu di bus stop nombor 6 di Queen Square. Catatan untuk diri sendiri.

Rupanya senang je nak pegi Anfield. Bas betul2 berhenti depan stadium. Teringat kat JD. Rasa sedih & terkilan plak sebab tak gi Anfield dgn D. Maklum lah masa tu masih bengap lagi. Really sorry D.

Tapi Anfield pun dah tutup. Yer lah, dah pukul 7 lebih.

Balik ke city centre pukul 8 lebih, tapi masih terang. So ke Albert Dock amik gambar.

Esoknya, pagi2 berjalan kaki, I showed them my dept & UoL landmark. Kemudian ke Beatles Story di Albert Dock. Tempat ni dah semakin kecik berbanding masa aku datang dulu. Lepas Cavern Club, pulang headset terus habis. Takde dah imej atau tulisan besar yang cantik di dinding. Susah lah nak describe. Check this post out... tempat gambar2 belah kiri tu, dah takde dah.

Rupa2 nya la ni ada satu lagi cawangan Beatles Story kat Pier Head. Masuk guna tiket yang sama. Tapi kitorang tak sempat pegi.

Oh yer, the weather wasn't welcoming. Keluar bilik dlm hujan & almost sepanjang hari Ahad tu hujan. That's UK anw.

Next, we went to Anfield again. Lawat muzium & membeli belah. Balik semula ke city centre, had lunch & did a quick shopping.

Balik bilik, depa kemas barang. Pukul 4:30pm, I sent them away by taxi to catch 5:01pm train to Manchester Airport.

To Mas & Yam, thanx a lot for coming. You guys have made my day! Sorry yek di mana2 yg kurang.

Perkhidmatan Percuma!!!

Byk sbnrnya benda yg aku nak tulis. Tapi... macam biasalah kan, aku kan bz. Nak approve komen pun amik masa berhari-hari.

Ok, 2 bulan lagi aku nak balik. Yeehaaaa!!! I'll be back for good. Even graduation day on Dec 8 pun aku takkan attend. Wah, macam pasti giler bunyinya kan. Tapi mmg takde hati langsung nak attend walaupun tiket pergi balik KL-London AirAsia RM2k jer.

Sabtu lepas aku gi shopping. Ingat nak gi Manchester, tapi bila sampai city, nmpk ada sale. So decided shopping kat Liverpool ni jer lah. Ingat nak beli handbag, tp takde pun yg berkenan. Beli sepasang kasut kat Clarks...

& 6 helai 'tudung' Tie Racks.

Clarks tu after 50% discount dapat lah ~£25. Tudung Tie Racks tu plak after sale £3 jer satu. La ni, kalau shopping pun aku fokus kpd office attire. Maklum lah, 2 bulan lg nak kene masuk keje balik. Huwaaaaaa...

Tetiba aku rasa nak offer diri menjadi personal shopper... atau pembeli-belah peribadi. Yes, I'm willing to be your personal shopper for free!

Saya sudi membelikan anda apa2 yg anda nak beli di UK ni, khasnya di Liverpool. Selain Clarks & Tie Racks, nak tau apa yg ada di Liverpool, check website ni.

Ok lah, aku citer skit apa yg ada kt Liverpool ni. Aku rasa tak byk yg ada kat Liverpool ni. Jgn berangan lah nak beli designer handbags or shoes. Aku berangan gak, tapi takde kat sini. Nak tau brand handbag apa yg ada kat sini, boleh lah check website Debenhams. Actually aku ni bukan lah personal shopper yg baik sbb aku sendiri jarang shopping. Kalau ada permintaan, akan diusahakan. Tapi tak janji ok.

Ahad, keesokkan harinya aku gi Manchester. Ingat nak jenguk designer handbag kat Selfridges. Tapi takde sale plak. Rasa kecik diri bila tengok 1 handbag harga beribu pound. Dah takde sale, lalu jer lah. Segan nak belek lebih2. Tak beli apa2 pun. Mood shopping mati sebab tak nampak pun perkataan SALE.

Dah sampai Manchester, rugi plak kalau nak balik gitu je. End up tengok Transformers 2 in IMAX. Kat Liverpool takde IMAX theater. Saja nak cuba apa yg bestnya IMAX ni. Rupanya IMAX ni pakai giant screen. Sebelum start citer, beriyer2 intro pasal IMAX ni. Crystal clear image, digitized... siap they call it 'experience' not just watching movie. Tapi tak clear mana pun gambar dia. Macam pakai projektor gak, cuma zoom. Tak tau lah IMAX tipu ke atau Odeon kat Manchester ni yg tipu. Yg pasti skrin dia mmg besar giler. Aku rasa ada 4 kali ganda or more drp normal screen. Sampai susah nak fokus especially tang robot tu bergaduh. Not for me. Aku lebih selesa tengok skrin normal jer. Tapi kalau betul the image is crystal clear, maybe the experience would be better. Nasib baik citer best, so kali kedua pun layan.


Oh yer, balik kepada perkhidmatan percuma yg ditawarkan, selain membeli apa yg ada di Liverpool ni, saya juga sudi membeli-belah secara online utk anda. Kalau ada benda yg berkenan cthnya di eBay atau Amazon, tp shipping only in UK, saya boleh tolong belikan.

Ok kawan2, just tell me so ok kalau nak aku tolong belikan apa2. Aku tau yg masuk blog aku ni pun member2 aku jer, tu yg berani menawarkan perkhidmatan percuma ni. Kalau benda tu sikit, aku boleh lah selit sekali dgn barang2 aku. Tapi kalau dah byk, kene lah charge lebih utk shipping.

The drawback is barang2 tu hanya akan sampai di Msia bersama dgn barang2 aku 6-8 minggu setelah aku balik. So, bulan 10 baru sampai. InsyaAllah. Kalau tak sampai, aku tak bertanggungjawab.

Esok, kalau ada progress in my project in the morning, I might go to the city after lunch to treat myself. Sbnrnya agak jemu dah dgn Liverpool city ni, tapi nak buat camna, ni lah antara cara menghiburkan diri di sini. Tengok perkataan SALE pun dah terhibur. Oh yer, maybe boleh tengok Harry Potter kat wayang.

P/s: Aku ada kelima-lima DVD Harry Potter yg dibeli di sini. Aku bukannya minat sgt Harry Potter ni. Yg ke-5 tu pun aku miss tgk kat wayang. Of course lah ori, mana nak dpt yg baik-punya kat sini. I know the DVD sold here is region 2, so might be incompatible with my home theater. Takpe, boleh layan guna laptop. Nampak sgt aku boring kat sini kan. Heheee.

Friday Refreshment

Somehow the weather here has changed. It isn't hot anymore. After experiencing the hot weather, I've decided that I prefer the cold one, so I welcome the coldness. We're back with the jackets now. The heater that had stop functioning during the summer, now is working. Pelik gak cuaca kat sini. Adakah musim panas dah berakhir? I'm not sure. Tapi siang masih panjang. Maghrib is around at 9:30pm.

I had a quite long discussion with my supervisor. Yay, I don't have to buy the components now. Just connect the inputs directly to the F.P.G.A. It seems like I've wasted my time looking for them on Farnell website this week, but it's ok. Just like my supervisor said, we might proceed with that later.

Another thing that makes me so relief is I have an option to build the GUI with VB instead of VC++. The program that I expert most. Heheee. There's no VB software in the PC, but he told me that he has the CD & will bring it on Monday. Now, I can focus more on F.P.G.A itself. Two things in mind - the processor & USB controller. It's just a 12-weeks project. So, I'm looking for the easiest (& the best) solution to execute the project.

Seperti biasa, supervisor aku akan turun lab untuk check kitorang. He's very helpful actually tapi merimaskan pada masa yang sama. So, I won't let that bother me. Cuma, aku rasa adalah tidak profesional bila dia turun lab selepas tengahari, tengok student lain takde, dia tanya aku adakah diorang datang pagi tadi. Ask them directly when you meet them. Don't ask others.

Setelah perbincangan tamat, aku pun meringankan mulut bertanya pasal keputusan peperiksaan. As I already known, it's still confidential. However...

Him: I could tell you one thing. You're the 2nd one in your group.
Me: (Blur)
Him: The 1st one is J*har... do you know him?
Me: Yes... (of course I know him! Dia memang terer. Budak ni dapat biasiswa ARM. Dia takde kat UoL la ni sebab dia buat MSc projek kat ARM company.)
Him: So, he's the 1st & you're the 2nd one.
Me: But I want to know my marks.
Him: I think this is good enough.

Sempat gak lah dia 'memberi nasihat' betapa penting projek ni sebab ianya 1/3 daripada jumlah kredit, so it'll certainly affect the average mark & the rating. Aku dah tak kisah pasal kedudukan di dalam kelas sejak darjah 6. Yang penting adalah keputusan peperiksaan UPSR dan seterusnya. I'm not competitive. I just hope to get a good result for myself, never meant to be better than others. Memang tak layak jadi ahli sukan, ahli perniagaan dan ahli politik. Ahli muzik pun tak layak sebab tak reti main muzik. Btw, there are only 8 or 10 students in Microelectronics group. Agaknya kalau campur dengan group Telecommunication yang memang ramai, tak tau lah aku nombor berapa.

However, the info makes me feel good indeed & more curious. Does it mean that I got good marks in the exams :-)? Or is't just bcos I have done well enough in the fully coursework subjects :-(? We'll see, maybe next week... or the week after next week.

Oh yer, T-shirt yang D order dah sampai. Cepat kan. Order hari Rabu, hari Jumaat dah sampai.

Ok, that's all the story about Friday the 5th.

Where have all the flowers gone?

No more flowers in Liverpool. Rasanya mcm sekejap sangat musim bunga. Sekarang dah musim panas.

Masa musim bunga. Sejuk gak masa ni tapi dah start malas pakai jeket walaupun bawak. Sekarang pokok ni cuma berdaun hijau je. Bunga putih tu dah takde.

Suhu sekarang lebih 20 darjah Celcius. Gi kuar dah tak payah bawak jeket. Semalam hari yg terpanas aku rasa sepanjang berada di sini. Tapi camna pun tak lah sepanas Msia.

Tadi siang gi shopping. Hampir semua kedai baju kat Liverpool One kitorang masuk. Hmm... the Crocs isn't super-comfortable. My legs were tired & achy. Mungkin bukan salah Crocs, mungkin kaki aku yang bermasalah. Atau mungkin normal untuk 5 jam shopping. Standing & walking for 5 hours.

However I only bought 2 red blouses, 1 from Zara & 1 from New Look. I also bought placemats from John Lewis. Placemats tu untuk meja makan kat umah aku kat Msia. Kat sini aku mana ada meja makan.

Pastu ter-masuk pulak kedai buku dalam St John. The paperbacks are so cheap. 3 for GBP5. I bought 3 Sidney Sheldon's book. I have read 2 of them but I'd like to read again. One of them is "The Sands of Time". I really want to re-read this book & almost buy it from eBay but I thought I'll wait until I finish reading Dan Brown's. Lucky me.

I have finished reading "Da Vinci Code" (check my previous post). Somehow I'm not really satisfied with the ending. But I couldn't think of a better one though. There are a few parts that I feel quite lame. Overall, the story is great & the idea is brilliant. However I think Dan Brown's isn't really my cup of tea. Or maybe treasure hunting story that isn't my cup of tea. I'll read the other Dan Brown's book after I finish reading "The Sands of Time".

I really want to buy a pair of red wedges. Should I buy the one from Clarks, I'm thinking. Or should I go for another shopping spree just for a pair of red wedges? To distract myself, I should continue reading the book now.

What Am I Doing Now

Exam dah abis. I should move on to dissertation mode & meet my supervisor. But I still can't let go the sleep mode. It's so enjoyable. Too lazy to start the project. Time is running out. I know. Btw, yesterday is Bank Holiday. I think it's ok to take one which is today, two or four days off. Hehee. For sure, I'll start next week.

Sebelum abis exam, aku memang dah plan nak buat apa lepas exam... relax i.e. renovate this blog, read novels & watch movie on internet.

Well as you can see now, I've renovated my blog. The theme is simple & minimal. So, the background is meant to be white & the header is deliberately to be just that. Not that I'm too lazy to create a new fancy header.

I have finished reading "Where Are You Now". It's a fast-moving thriller. I was hooked rite away & spent the rest of the day reading the book. Yesterday, I started to read "All You Need Is Love" but I'm not in the mood to read a love story now. I need to read something that's 'more-intelligent'.

Today I went to WH Smith & bought Dan Brown's novels...

and

Maybe I should buy "Angles & Demons" but I don't like the title & "Digital Fortress" sounds more interesting.

Yesterday, I tried watching "Da Vinci Code" on internet but I don't like the part the bad albino guy tortured himself so I stopped. That was when I decided I should read the book instead.

I did watch something on internet. Guess what, I watched "Idola Kecil" at TV9.com! All the 10 episodes & grand finale. Actually I don't like the idea of kids entering singing competition. They're kids, they should be exposed to something more educational but hey I'm not their parents. However, they're so sweet & genuine... & they can actually sing. I could see that those kids are smart. They can memorize the lyrics & dance step, sing in tune, follow instructions & most of all they have confidence. I'm impressed.

Now, I'm going to lie on the bed, continue reading "Da Vinci Code" & feel 'intelligent'. Ahhh... how relaxing.

Hi. I'm updating this blog to tell you that I'm still alive...

... so 'alive' indeed.

Isnin, April 27:
- Hantar asg terakhir IC. Yay! Berakhir satu penderitaan. No more Cadence. No more drawing layout unless I get paid for it.

Spring break terpaksa dikorbankan utk menyiapkan asg ni.

JK flip-flop = 38 transistor. Buruk giler aku lukis layout ni. Tak koser nak lukis semula. Tu belum lagi tgk layout counter aku yg mengandungi 176 transistor. Bayangkan jer lah kehodohannya.

- Mula buat asg Digital System. Looks like the lab hours that have been spent doing IC now been replaced with doing Verilog.

Rabu, April 29:
- Complete the lab work for Microprocessor. Tinggal siapkan report jer.

Neat? Not enough. Ada yg litar dia lg kemas drp ni. Sungguh berseni jari jemari menyambung jumper.

- "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" release hari ni. Work without play doesn't pay. Take a break. Beli roti di Sansbury & makan sbg lunch dlm wayang. Great movie. Aku suka. Rugi kalau tak tengok! D, gi ajak Ayoi tgk k. Aku rasa best sgt mungkin sbb aku skeptikal sblm tgk. Ingatkan mcm X-Men yg sblm2 ni. Tak pun sbb dpt peluang release tension.

Selasa, May 5:
- Digital Systems class test. Actually aku cuma baca 1 handout jer utk test ni, tu pun sebelum tido. 10%, rasa mcm tak berbaloi nak study bersungguh2 sdgkn byk lg benda lain nak baca utk exam. Hasilnya 1 soalan aku tak dpt jwb langsung... hmmm hilang 2 markah. Yg lain tu tak tentu lg lah.

- Siap Executive Summary. Submit to proofreading website. Asg ni under subjek research skills, jadi BI yg baik amat dititikberatkan. Bagus website ni, aku puas hati lah dgn hasil pembetulan depa. GBP6.00 utk 1000 patah perkataan.

Rabu, May 6:
- Hantar report Microprocessor. Yay! 2 down, 2 to go.

Khamis, May 7:
- Hantar Executive Summary. Yay! 3 down, just 1 to go.

- Ada kelas dr 9 - 10am. Habis kelas pukul 10 sampai 5 ptg, duduk kt lab, siapkn asg utk Digital System. Tekad mcm mana pun hari ni akan save whatever waveform yg dpt kat oscillocope & proceed with the report. Datang period lah plak, sakit belakang dibuatnya. Dah lah mlm tadi tak brp boleh tido.

- Balik bilik, makan cereal sbg alas perut & terus tido.

- Pukul 8pm start buat report. Tido pukul 5 pagi. Gigih siapkan report sbb due date esok. Kerana kesibukan exam yg akan bermula minggu depan, ramai student yg abaikn asg ni atau plan anta lmbt. 15% melayang klu tak anta, 5% per day akan dipotong klu anta lmbt. No exam for this module. Kalau ikut hati, aku pun rasa taknak buat asg ni sbb mmg takde masa nak pikir lebih2, design ke, apa ke. Nasib baik lah lecturer module ni supervisor aku. Nak jaga reputasi punya pasal, terpaksa lah gigihkn diri buat jugak. Tu pun aku buat seringkasnya, janji siap... kira basic system je.

Jumaat, May 8:
- 9:30am bangun pagi, tambah yg mana patut dlm report. Pukul 11:30am, gi hantar. YAY! The last asg. Phew... rasa ringan sgt dah takde beban asg. Sebab excited sgt nak hantar asg terakhir ni, lupa plak ada kelas terakhir pukul 1. Nak balik bilik malas. Lepak kat Costa, minum Mocha. Dalam kelas, mintak kertas & pinjam pen drp member. Kelas 1 jam, jd almost 2 jam. Tu pun tak sempat nak cover semua soalan past year exams.

Sabtu, May 9:
- No more asg. Seriously, rasa best sgt. Sekarang boleh tumpukan sepenuh masa untuk exam. Hari ni 11am - 4pm & 8 - 10:30pm lepak kat library. Byknya benda nak hafal. Takpe, 2 minggu jer camni.

Aku pada hari ini, di luar accommodation hall, sebelum gi library dgn semangat utk belajar yg membuak-buak :-P. Shrug kaler hitam tu aku beli kat eBay minggu lepas. Masa mula2 dpt aku mcm tak puas hati sbb material dia nipis sgt. Tapi bila pakai, rasa selesa. So mlm tadi aku beli lagi, kaler putih plak.

See ya next 2 weeks ok. Nantikan bermulanya episod baru aku sbg pelajar.
Until then, take care.

Back to the life that I hope would be over soon...

... but at the same time, I hope I can stop the time so that I have more time to finish all the assignments & study for the exams.

I'd love to blog all about the trip & my short stay at home but I don't have enough time to write a long post now. I'd say that it was the best vacation. 6 days might be short & for some people it doesn't worth 14 hours flight, but for me it was one of the best experiences. If I'm rich, I wouldn't mind do it again. The journey is nothing compare to being at home sweet home.

Kepada kawan2 yg aku tak sempat jumpa & contact, sorry yek.

Only 7 weeks left for 4 assignments, 1 class test & 3 exams. I guess this will be the last post for now until May 22, when the exam is over. Please pray for my success ok.

Coming home to the same old Malaysia but new PM

When this post is published, I'm in the flight. It's 2:05pm UK time. It'll be 7 hours journey from Manchester to Dubai, 3 hour transit at Dubai & another 7 hours journey to KLIA.

A week from now, on the same day I'll be back to Liverpool to the life that sometimes resembles a nightmare. It's ok, just another 6 months to go. Btw, the pressure of assignments and exams will be ended in less than 2 months from now. Oh how this thing can simply change my mood from excited to nervous.

Ok, try to get the excited mood back... imagine the rendang kerang that will be cooked by Mak.
.
.
.
Ermmm... so delicious.
It works! Now, I'm really excited. :-D

"Suffer, you must." Sorry Master Yoda. Ahad ni orang balik kampung!

However, instead of return back on April 26, I'll return on April 12. Dapat balik kampung seminggu jer. Kalau ikutkan 6 hari sebab aku sampai Msia April 6. Takper lah. Janji balik. I need this break to recharge my brain cells.

I think this is the win-win decision. Aku still boleh study for the exams dlm flight & kat umah kan (cita-cita besar). Pastu balik, sambung study and siapkan assignment. Hopefully, my brain cells will work better since really I need every single of them to work hard for the exams. No excuse ok. Apa taknya, aku ada 2 paper dalam masa 1 hari. Selang sehari sebelum tu aku ada 1 paper.

Now the challenge is not just trying to understand & memorize all the notes, but also to manage the time very wisely. Seperti kata kerani kat ofis, you have to suffer. Tapi bukan semua student have the same exam time table. It's regarding to our optional & major module. I think we who take the optional module & somehow major in Microelectronics instead of Telecommunication are very unlucky this semester. Komplen pun tak guna kan. So, just start studying hard & get over it.

With the assignments queueing to be submitted & the coming exams, the program really gives me nerve. Luckily, I don't suffer from migrain or any sickness like fever. Alhamdulillah. Hopefully I'll remain healthy until the end of the program.

Wah, I can't believe it that I'll be in Msia next week. InsyaAllah.

Tapi, sape nak jaga pokok bunga aku ni???

Pokok bunga yg dibeli lebih kurang 2 minggu yg lalu sebagai pengubat lara kononnya sebab masa tu rasa tak dapat balik.
Sesaper nak amik pic ni jadi wallpaper, silakan.

Lebih kurang 1 jam

Post ni takde kene mengena dengan Earth Hour yer. However for those yg participate in supporting the Earth Hour, aku tujukan lagu ni - 'Mother Earth' by Within Temptation. Kat sini mcm takde apa2 pun. Aku tau pasal Earth Hour ni pun sebab layan Diari AF hari2 (sambil makan atau buat assignment yer).

Malam tadi, tengah sedap layan Julia Juli kat TV9.com, tetiba tengok jam dah pukul 2am. Rasa macam baru jer pukul 12am, so aku expect pukul 1. Camna boleh tetiba pukul 2 lak ni. Apa pun, kene tido. Kalau tak, ada yg bangun pukul 12pm esok. So aku pun tido lah. Sebelum tido, check hp dulu... tengok2 ada notification... bgtau yg jam dah diubah ikut daylight saving. Isk... patut lah tetiba dah pukul 2. Forward 1 hour rupanya. Tapi laptop ni tak notify apa2 plak. Nasib baik hp aku kira canggih, automatic change the time & ada notification.

Terbeliak sekejap mata tengok waktu Maghrib pukul 7:42pm. Pocket Islam yg aku install dalam hp aku ni pun bijak gak. Terus niat nak ganti posa hari ni. Yay, tinggal sehari jer lagi! Kalau boleh taknak lah ganti posa bukak pukul 8 lebih kan. Kalau posa bulan Ramadhan tu dah memang tak boleh buat apa.

Ok itu citer kehilangan 1 jam.

Bulan Oktober masa 1 hour backward, tak rasa apa2 plak. Tapi masa tu memang aku tau & ingat. Bila pukul 12am, ok I got another hour of 12am. Hmmm... extra 1 hour... hmmm... ok.

Tu lah dia, masa ni tak pernah cukup. Lebih 1 jam tak rasa apa2, kurang 1 jam terasa plak. Paling best kalau dapat hentikan masa macam puteri2 kayangan dalam Julia Juli tu. Hehee... aku abis layan 15 episod weekend ni. So far citer ni belum menyakitkan hati aku lg & kelakar gak, jadi tak sabar nak tengok episod seterusnya.

Btw, tomorrow is the moment of truth. Esok, jadual periksa kuar. So, I can decide when shall I go home. Kalau boleh, tak nak pikir sgt pasal balik ni. Pening kepala tau (ditambah rasa sedih & frust). So tengok lah camna nanti. Kalau ada rezeki dari segi masa, insyaAllah I'll go home. Otherwise, aku redha (kalau aku meraung sorang2 dalam bilik ni, bukan ada sesiapa tau pun). Yg penting, masa takkan berhenti. InsyaAllah, bulan 9 nanti I'll be back for good.