Hello winter!

The last time I remembered myself feeling cold and numb  like I was being stuck deep inside a freezer was when we visited Melbourne for a family vacation in 2012. It was only April, the snow queen was still fast asleep, but the island down under has already felt the impact of the cold weather. Heaters have to be turned on 24/7 whenever we were indoor, else mom would start her lecture on how we should be grateful that we are born and raised in a moderate weather of Malaysia. Of course at the end of every lecture came the common question of when we are going back to Kuala Lumpur.

*wink-wink*

So last year, when Mr.Hubby and I decided to go to Hong Kong and Shenzhen for Disneyland and shopping experience, we warned mom that the weather there can be as nasty as Melbourne's. Indeed we were right, for the weather was all wet and windy. And mom definitely made the right decision not to follow us there, or I could have produced a 100-page guide on how to survive 'cold lectures'. Hong Kong was not as cold as Melbourne, yet the strong winds that blew persistently chilled us to the bones. Nevertheless, the children were happy, so we forgot all about coldness.

And now here in Riyadh, the weather has changed itself from being fiercely hot in August when I first stepped on this land to a chilling December. Yup, there's no snow in winter for Riyadh, but the coldness here at times can be similar to a winter in Leicester. Oh! I do miss the city!

One good thing about winter in Riyadh is the colourful blooms that emerge almost immediately everywhere and turned the city alive. Here I find flowers that I have never seen before and they are all very beautiful!

When I first saw this strange flowers from far, I thought that the gardeners are planting cauliflowers around the university! Unfortunately, they are not cauliflowers....

I don't know why but every time I look at this flowers, it reminds me of pomegranates....

It's hard to really concentrate and observe if there is any bees troop close by, but I do believe this is the best time of the year they get busy with pollination.

People take advantage to stroll along the park, some joining their children in a ball game or two. And the best moment I'd be looking forward everyday is when I could snuggle comfortably in a blanket in front of the TV, watching good movie alone after the children have gone to bed.

 That reminds me of a student's advise this morning at the office...

"Doctor, you need to buy a winter abaya, seriously. The one that you have could not warm you up in winter. You will freeze."

I looked down at my abaya and only realised that the girl was right.

Should I go shopping?

Sending friends off to hajj

Two days ago my husband and I went to the King Khalid Grand Masjid at Umm Al Hamam to see the Malaysian pilgrims residing in Riyadh depart for Makkah to perform hajj. Whilst the atmosphere was filled with joy, love, excitement and eagerness, I can't deny that deep inside me my heart felt heavy and empty. I have longed to be at the Masjidil Haram once again to devote myself to my Creator. Unfortunately the opportunity is hard to grab, considering I have just arrived in this country for only a month. So close, yet too far away.... but I am grateful.

I have sinned, yet Allah loves me still.
I have forgotten, yet Allah constantly reminds me.
I have gone astray, yet Allah leads me to the right path again.
Too much love shower from Him, alhamdulillah. It was His love that brought me here in the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia.

May Allah make it easy for all the pilgrims who are now gathering in Arafah. May Allah grant them good health, strengths and determinations to continue their worships. And may Allah return them safely to their families after their long journeys. Ameen.

My turn will come, insyaAllah. Until then, I'll work extra hard to strengthen my imaan and keep making lots of duas to Allah the Almighty. May He grant my wishes. Ameen.

KSA's National Day celebration

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia celebrates its National Day today.  This means a day off from the university. There were so many things to settle before I leave the office last night. Alhamdulillah, I have managed to finish almost 90% of the administrative works piled up on the desk before signing off for the day.

Earlier, we had a mini celebration situated at the lobby of the main building where students and staff joined together to organise various activities in conjunction with the National Day. There were booths providing varieties of fantastic local foods (which names I don't know and I am still learning to identify them), a booth offering a service to draw beautiful designs on the palm using henna (there must be a specific name for it but at the moment I can't find it), the university also provided drawing blocks, water colour paints, beads, glitter dusts, glue, scissors and other drawing accessories for anyone who wish to express their happiness and excitement through the work of art.

At the lobby entrance, two beautiful ladies served the Arabic coffee and dates to visitors. Tasbihs, national flags, cup cakes and 'pop cakes' (tiny cake covered in icing sugar attached to a stick that looks like a lollipop) were also distributed as souveniers. MasyaAllah, this was an interesting event that took me a step closer to learn the Arabic culture. I enjoyed my day.


And oh! By the way... for my dear friends and blog readers who had not known of the big news...my family and I have moved to Saudi Arabia and now we live in Riyadh. I took the offer to work at the Prince Sultan University, College for Women. I am now an assistant professor attached to the department of Accounting, College of Business and Administration. Alhamdulillah, we have been here since 28th August 2014 and we are happily adjusting our routines at the new place. The children are going to an international school just four blocks away from our apartment. At the moment my husband is converting himself to become a house-husband and he likes the idea of quickly settling all house chores including cooking meals in the morning so that he can have more time for his internet thingy and tv and friends in the second half of the day.

 Like I said earlier, all of us enjoy living in Riyadh. Alhamdulillah...

Prime Minister's press statement on MH370

24 March, 2014

This evening I was briefed by representatives from the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB). They informed me that Inmarsat, the UK company that provided the satellite data which indicated the northern and southern corridors, has been performing further calculations on the data. Using a type of analysis never before used in an investigation of this sort, they have been able to shed more light on MH370’s flight path.

Based on their new analysis, Inmarsat and the AAIB have concluded that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.

This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites. It is therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.

We will be holding a press conference tomorrow with further details. In the meantime, we wanted to inform you of this new development at the earliest opportunity. We share this information out of a commitment to openness and respect for the families, two principles which have guided this investigation.

Malaysia Airlines have already spoken to the families of the passengers and crew to inform them of this development. For them, the past few weeks have been heartbreaking; I know this news must be harder still. I urge the media to respect their privacy, and to allow them the space they need at this difficult time.

ENDS

Oh MH370... what ever happened to you? 

How come such a big plane simply vanish just like that?
AllahuAkhbar

Only Allah the Almighty knows it

Oh Allah...

Please mend my broken heart

For it shattered into million pieces
Blown by wind to the ocean so deep
Where all hopes lie within

MH370, please come back...

I recite this ayah everyday when I leave home for work. And I have strong faith in Allah, for it is indeed undeniable that my life is in His hands. 

The mysterious disappearance of a Malaysian aircraft MH370 Kuala Lumpur - Beijing has entered the tenth day. Regardless of all the speculations made by many parties on the beings of the plane, I kept praying that it had not crashed anywhere, be it on land or in the sea. May it landed safely somewhere and that the passengers and the crew members are still alive.

Please come home, MH370. We eagerly, but patiently, wait for you.

Can someone help me?

I kept wondering why my mobile phone has been so slow in responds lately. It takes several seconds before the required application appeared on the screen, which is turning to become very annoying to me, because it used to pop up instantly. This should not happen to a Samsung Galaxy Note II, ya?

Then I saw that the picture gallery was loaded with over 700 pictures from the blog alone. Not to mention other folders full of pictures sourced from whatsapp conversations, screenshots, videos and the ones I snapped myself with the camera.

Thinking that I might have overloaded the phone with too many pictures, I started to transfer some valuable pics and delete the rest I think not important. SO I DELETED ALL THE PICTURES IN THE PHONE. Never had I thought that the pictures in my blog will be wiped out as well because the accounts are synced in my phone!

I lost all the pictures in my blog! OMG! OMG! Where's the panic button when I need one?

Can someone help me retrieve back my pictures for the blog?

I am feeling like crying now...

Mr. Billu Barber

Muhammad Aiman has always hated to visit the barber. This is evidenced from his curly-murly hair all long-grown and blondish.

The first time we took him for a trim, he cried hysterically when the barber started to cut his hair.

The second time we took him to meet our friendly Mr. Barber, he started crying when we entered the shop.

The third time we decided he needs a hair cut, Aiman started to cry the moment he saw the shop building from very far away...lol.

Perhaps Mr. Billu Barber should disguise himself as Spiderman, paint the wall bright and colourful so that it looks like the Hi-5 studio and put candy bowls by the window to attract toddlers like Aiman to come and have a hair cut. With mind at peace, of course...

Well, it has always been an adventurous trip, as usual.

Contradicting statement...?

This is taken from my LinkedIn account.

Statement before I add someone into my professional network.....

If I ask you to join my LinkedIn network it is because we share colleagues or a similar group interest. I also may see that you have interest in hearing about new career opportunities or we may have worked together in the past. LinkedIn is a professional network and my intentions are for professional use. If you do not wish to join my network just hit the "Ignore" button. By clicking on the "I don't know them" button causes restrictions on my account and just limits my ability to connect with others that would benefit from my Automotive Manufacturing Opportunities. Thank you.

Few hours later, he sent me this message...

Hello Angel...

I noticed your profile on this site and you sparked an interest to me. If you have a chance, look at my profile and let me know if you would like to continue communicating.I am interested in finding true love,a woman that has a big heart,ready for a serious and honest long term relationship,a woman that believes in a one man,one woman kind of relationship,a woman that has true moral, cultural and family values i saw your profile and it caught my attention and i like to know more about you.                                                                                   
Please send me your email address and phone number so i can add you to my messenger. You seem like a very lovely person.i would love to keep communication with you. Do you have an email account, that we could communicate through..

Please let me know if you do.

A new day has come

2014 is here.

I would like to wish all readers A Happy and Prosperous New Year. May we achieve our dreams this year. I mean,  ALL OF OUR DREAMS!!!   Ameen.

I anticipate that this is going to be a very busy year for our family, considering that Irfan and Irdina are going to sit for important exams in schools and that my applications for 2014 research grant at the university have recently been approved for two independent projects.

So, darlings, surrender all your gadgets to mommy and let's start the knowledge seeking process immediately!  ;-)