If I could speak

I have just completed the third exploration well in a three well sequence. The results as they say - are mixed but yours truly will have 2 to 4 wells to be drilled for the rest of this year, hopefully with better success insyaallah. On the agenda there are two areas to be developed and later to go on production. Have to resort to the similar trick for this entry, again thanks to Zubia Kiran. This entry I would like to dedicate to all mothers, aunties and especially to one of my blogger friend whom I have yet to meet, Cikgu R.A.S.


If I could speak, here's what I would say
Happy in your arms, I want to stay.
I am your gift, and you are mine too!
Let love bond together, both me and you.

Lets enjoy this time, right here, right now.
Don't let a schedule furrow your brow.
Right now is the time, for me to hold,
When you're less busy, I'll be too old.

Snuggle me tenderly, close to your chest
It is here next to you, I am, at my best.
Your rhythmic breathing and beating heart,
Contentment, and comfort, to me impart.

To see you, smell you, assured by your voice,
All, wonderfully simple, yet help me rejoice.
A cuddle, a kiss, some playful fun and frolic,
Can banish a mood, and prevent nasty colic.

Hold me, hug me, please show me your day
You'll be sharing your love, in a marvelous way.
My learning is best when perched at your side
With arms as my classroom and you as my guide.

Please hold me up high, so I might see
All the many wonders, surrounding me.
With time spent close, as you socialize,
My mind expands and clearly I vocalize!

When you work, walk or take a short trip
With me safely balanced, upon your hip
My muscle tone and self esteem are greater,
I'll be walking much sooner, rather than later.

When we are in 'touch', it reduces our stress
We are happiest then, and worry much less.
Safe in your arms, dispels all my fears.
My beaming smiles, replace anxious tears.

To dream of our future is significant too,
And I know a career is important to you.
When I am older, then we'll join in the race
We'll be more able, to keep up the pace.

Right now, what I know, as certain and right
Is that you are my sun, the source of my light.
I don't need many things, expensive or new.
What I need is your love, your time and you.

Have a good day.

Childhood doesn't wait

I was fiddling too much with many ideas that I want to post on my blog that I realised I will not find them good enough for my discerning readers with the limited time I have at my disposal.. As always I look back into many e mail I kept for emergency. Then I read an e mail from Zubia Kiran, a friend from one of my e-mail groups, a good entry on chilhood.
I always find children fascinating and I love to befriend them especially those cuddly one..
Here is the whole content of Zubia's e mail.. uploaded wholesome.. (many thank to Zubia for allowing me to post it)

Childhood doesn't wait

I was sitting on a bench
while in a nearby mall,
When I noticed a young mother
with two children who were small.


The youngest one was whining,
"Pick me up," I heard him beg
but the mother's face grew angry
as the child clung to her leg.


"Don't hang on to me," she shouted
as she pushed his hands away,
I wish I'd had the courage
to go up to her and say...


"The time will come too quickly
when those little arms that tug,
Won't ask for you to hold them
or won't freely give a hug.


"The day will sneak up subtly
just as it did with me,
When you can't recall the last time
that your child sat on your knee.


"Like those sacred, pre-dawn feedings
when we cherished time alone
Our babies grow and leave behind
those special times we've known.

"So when your child comes to you
with a book that you can share,
Or asks that you would tuck him in
and help him say his prayer...

"When he comes to sit and chat
or would like to take a walk,
Before you answer that you can't
`cause there's no time to talk.

"Remember what all parents learn
so many times too late,
That years go by too quickly
and that childhood doesn't wait.

"Take every opportunity,
if one should slip away
Reach hard to get it back again,
don't wait another day."

I watched that mother walk away
her children followed near,
I hope she'll pick them up
before her chances disappear...

~Unknown~

Save Money

I was surprised when I was informed by my friend about his exploit today.. He wanted to buy a book and went online to check on local bookstores.. one rather very famous bookstore in KL do not have it and will order for him. As you can see below he will receive the book 3 weeks from the day he place his order and the book will cost him RM 501.23.


He then thought maybe he should check on Amazon.com site to see whether he can order the same book and get it cheaper. Below is the result oh his effort.

Putting USD 10 for postage and the total cost would be USD 82.01, conversion to Malaysian Ringgit using current rate would made him some RM 250.00 poorer should he proceed to order from Amazon.com and the book will reach him in 3 weeks.

You can see that you can order two books from amazon.com for the price of one book should you get it from local bookstore.. Hopefully my bloggers friends can find this entry useful for their future purchases.

At first, I wanted to post the above two pictures and called this entry as Wordless Wednesday.. but then I guess I am not that fashionable.. being a country bumpkin.. so they say ;)

Have a good day.

Story from the past

Tomorrow will be the Maulidurrasul, birthday of Prophet Muhammad, the last Messenger.. I would like to write down a story from my grandfather on the subject of “taking care of parents” as told to me my mum.

The Holy Quran says,"Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him, and that you be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor." - Surah Al Isra (17:23).

Abu Hurairah, a companion of the holy Prophet, has said that "a person is indeed disgraced, who does not earn Paradise by caring for his parents during the life time and old age of his/her parents".

In the Holy Quran, Muslims have been urged to pray for the salvation of their parents as shown in the following verse: "And say, My Lord, Have mercy on both of them as they cared for me when I was little".

We normally go to PokDe Renek sundry shop in Kampong Pulau Ketam half an hour before sunset and would reach his shop just a few minute from sunset after a leisurely walk on a small sandy pathway. There was a 100m stretch, between Duyong Besar and the bridge that demarcated Kampung Duyong Besar and Kampung Pulau Ketam, that we have to walk in between thick undergrowths.

PokDe Renek would normally closed his shop at sunset after he has finished dealing with the customer who came before us.. He would close his shop before attending to our need.. I guessed he did not want us to be embarrassed as we were taking a loan for our food items and perhaps set precedence for other village folks some of whom were equally poor.

We would have finished our “purchase” some 15 minutes after sunset and would rushed back to our grandfather’s house in Kampung Duyong Besar, where we were allocated a room there. Granpa was known as Che’ Him Tukang (carpenter), Che’ Him Cermin (mirror/glass) as his house has the most glass pane windows on the island) and Che’ Him jangok (smartly dressed) as he “selit” his sarong like the ladies do as opposed to kilas, the way the men used to wear the sarong).

To the outsiders, my father did not fare too badly as we stayed in a big house.. but for the fact that my father work for pittance as an apprentice carpenter. There were times that we pay our zakat fitrah in the evening of Aidilfitri as opposed to a day before.. as money collected during Aidilfitri by my siblings will be used to pay the tithe.. I believed for most of my childhood, our family was qualified recipient for Zakat but was not considered as we stayed in a big grandpa's place.. but my mum did recalled that we have received zakat once when our close neighbour became an Amil (a person qualified to collect zakat fo the Government).

Ah too much intro.. my apology.

On one of those trips back from PokDe Renek sundry shop.. we stopped to take a breather at a big tree stump.. I remembered very well that particular evening.. my mother has my sister (four years my junior) on her “dukung sisi” (carrying my sister on her side) and a basket in her other hand grip... I was about six then..

She recounted my Grandpa story from that old tree stump. There was an old man that has lost his spouse and his ability to walk for quite some time. He has many children that could not keep their father in their houses for long without having some nagging and perhaps harsh words from their spouses.. So the children keep on shifting their father from house to house taking turns to take care of “the old man”.

Picture from Uncle Google..
As there was no other way to carry an old man in the old day except to put him on your back.. one of the old man son did just that and has to stop at a tree stump to take a breather after carrying his father for some distance.

The father told the son “I used to stop at the this same tree stump when I carried your grandpa to your uncle’s place”
“Why do you have to carry grandpa to uncle’s place” queried the son
“Ah your late mother was not happy to have your grandpa with us for a short duration of time” the father replied.
The son immediately lifted the father and carried him back to his place instead of carrying him to his sibling’s place. When queried by his unhappy spouse, the son said “I do not want to repeat my father’s previous actions and my children to follow my footstep “..
Have a nice weekend to all and have Happy MauludurRasul and a nice long weekend to my Malaysian readers ;))

Light-hearted day

I felt light-hearted this morning.. partly due to the fact that my better half has served ketupat pulut goreng (fried "glutinous rice in palas leaf") and serunding daging (meat floss bought from our Puan Zafar in Kerteh) for breakfast this morning. She has been toiling with daun palas since yesterday afternoon preparing our family favourite Trengganu fare.. ah never mind the cholesterol ;)

By the way, I heard from my Taiping friend today.. that Perak also have the same ketupat..

On reaching the office, I noticed a good friend (that I missed his presence :)) has came back to office after 3 weeks leave. We have a briefing on the drilling progress, then came the good news, our hydrocarbon gas sample has been analyzed and the corrosive carbon dioxide content found to be well below 10% . We expect that ample volume of gas that can be produced.. augurs well for our country’s electricity suppliers ;).
You probably have read that some of them have threaten to increase the electricity cost/tariff if we cannot meet their gas demand ;((

We will conduct some test soon and hopefully we can call it a day in 10 days time.

Like Ninot said.. It is time to smell the flowers.

P.s. The highlight of the day ..I contacted Ninot and we have a good chat .. and chatting with fellow blogger always make me more than light-hearted ;)

Have a good weekend..