relax

You feel the tense, and I feel it too. It has been very stressful this couple of weeks. With homework and assignments pile up on the table, and the tests are just interrupting in the middle. The weekends are entertainment no more. Weekends now mean it is finish-your-homework time. Are there any ways that can release us from this burden?

Yes, there are.

It is essential for us, especially students to have some time to rejuvenate after a full week of classes. Take a nice deep breath before getting back to the study table. Try switch on the television, watch movies, talk shows or even documentaries to some extent. But if these doesn’t satisfy you, get dressed and go to the cinema, then. These may help you cool down or a little while. Relax your soul, pamper yourself. Have a cool ice soda and watch cartoons. An hour would be enough, and then continue the studying again.

Everybody have hobbies. Ranging from active activities such as sports to more passive ones, such as reading novels, hobbies can help you to enjoy yourself. Forget the assignment for a while, put aside the homework, do it later. Ignore studying for some time. Enjoy your hobbies. Go jogging in the park, play football, or even shopping.

Have no reluctance to call your family. They will do best to cool you down. Even a single word from them may et you out from the stress. Have a nice chat. Tell them your difficulties, let it out. Let them lend their ears to your problems. Family understands better most of the time, especially the mothers. If this doesn’t work out, try doing it with your friends.

For those who have partners, I consider you as lucky in this extent. Even by staring at your beloved’s eyes your stress would be flown away. Asking her for a date is one of a good ways to release stress. Share your problems with her, and let her comfort you.

But, or me, the best method is go back to where we come from, Him. Open the Holy Book, recite His message. Loose up your mind. Remember Him always, and bear in mind, He never, and will not forget you. Ask Him for forgiveness for your wrongdoings.

Well, there are a lot of other ways of releasing tension. From screaming out loud in the open space to enjoying a holiday trip, just do whatever you want. Ignore your studies for a while, just le t your study table in a mess, tidy up later. Now, go out. Do your things.

Life is short. So enjoy it while you still can. Peace.

odd

It is odd. It is weird. Yesterday evening my friends and I went to KLCC for our documentary assignment about ‘Cultural Differences’. We went there searching for a few foreigners to be interviewed. Then, I found out that there are some odd and weird customs in their culture. Want to know what? Just keep on reading, guys.

But the first person we interviewed was the taxi driver who drove us from Bandar Utama to our destination, the magnificent Petronas Twin Towers. I do not remember what his name is but he said that he has been driving taxi for four years. Before this he was a journalist for some famous newspaper. Of course, for the whole journey of half an hour, he shared us his story of driving the customers here and there. We were told that he encountered some miscommunication with some of the foreign customers. One of his amusing experiences is that, two Chinese tourists, whom do not know to communicate in English, asked him to drive them to KLCC. What they do to let the taxi driver know their destination is the best part. They use some sort of body language to give the taxi driver a hint of where the place is. The interview with the taxi driver went well, and he also gave a good respond to our questions.

As we arrived at the masterpiece of architecture, we saw a European guy sitting by the water fountain. We approached him and asked whether we can interview him or not. He said yes without any reluctance, and the short interview began. He told us that he is from Czech Republic and came here for a business trip. Then, we asked him the main question, “What do you find different between your culture and Malaysian culture?” So, he said that the Malaysians are friendlier than the Czechs. He always can see the Malaysian smiling around cheerfully greet each other, contrast with his people in Prague, who always looked moody and unfriendly.

Then, we began to quest for Japanese or Koreans, but we couldn’t find any. As we walked there for few hours, a group of Koreans grabbed our attention. We approached them. But, what happened was a bit frustrating. Neither one of them wanted to be interviewed. Maybe it is their culture that they are very shy.

We began to feel exhausted. Yet, we think the material for our documentary is still not enough. We quest for maybe another one foreigner, but we ended up interviewing three person, a lady from England and two men from The Netherlands. What we find odd and weird in their culture is that the Dutch men kissed each other as for their greetings. Isn’t it awkward? Are they gay? Hmm.

To conclude, the day ended very well. Want to know how the Chinese describe the KLCC by body language? Or how the Dutch men kiss each other? Just wait for the documentary that coming to you in March.

kring

Why can’t I wake up early everyday? I just don’t get the reason. I really want to be a living person when the sun rises from the horizon. But why did the sun drag me from one dream to another? Keep me in bed until it shine as brightly as high-beam spotlight.

There are some negative effects of waking up when the sun has been working for hours. First, there will be no breakfast. Instead, we will only have to take brunch, which is breakfast plus lunch. It may save a proportion of our pocket money, but it is not good for our body. We will not have enough energy to go through the hectic day if we don’t take breakfast. Another consequence of late-rising is we will miss the privilege of studying in the morning. Morning is the best time for our brain to absorb what we learn, the best time to study compared to other part of the day. More over, in the morning, our brain is still fresh to work and can be used to its peak potential.

Why did we wake up late? First, it is because we sleep late at night. We prefer to work on our work at night, and to stay up to study. Sometimes we stay awake to watch interesting TV programmes the broadcasted after midnight. For me, to watch football in the morning is okay, because the enthusiasm of watching live football matches is far greater than the repeated one. Haha. I don’t want to condemn watching football because it is one of my hobbies. But, if I watch football that starts at three, and ends at five, I will not sleep after that. I will wait until noon to get myself into bed. Usually like that.

Are there any tips to wake up early in the morning? We can buy a very big alarm clock with a high-pitched bell ring. That will do it, maybe for a short period of time. To wake up early is not about what device we use to wake us up. It is up to ourselves whether to wake up or not.

The day starts at dusk, so should your life.

Sorry for this very short essay. I don’t have any idea what to write about. Hmm.

ball

Malaysia-football mad nation. Is it true? For me, it is absolutely true. People are talking football here and there. Some are willing to buy original replica jerseys, or even pirated ones just to show their support towards their teams. Most Malaysians support teams from the English League, such as the four teams that are so-called the Big Four, which consists of Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and a team that I hate the most. But some prefer teams from other European countries. For instance, Real Madrid and Barcelona from Spain, and AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus from Italy. Sometimes, the jerseys that the football die-hard-fans would have the names of their favourite players printed on their backs. We might see Cristiano Ronaldo buying fish at the morning market, Fabregas selling pirated VCDs, Gerrard selling toys at the night market or Lampard hanging around in One Utama. But that’s not the real them, the people are Malaysians, who just don’t realise how not-so-European-look their face are. Haha.

Every weekend, most men will go to nearby mamak stalls, or even gather with their friends at home in front of the television to watch their favourite teams in action. Don’t be surprise if at three in the morning, you see a lot of people cheering and screaming their heart out in front of the TV. ESPN is a must watch, Astro is obliged to be installed at home. It’s all about the love for the game. Maybe the commentary of the games played sometimes in different language, but one word that everyone will understand, and celebrate, which is, “Goal!” Even if you are a Malay, Chinese or Indian, or even Nepalese, the word ‘goal’ in football means only one thing-victory.

Every evening, people will go the field of any condition, to play out their favourite sport. People with age ranging from 5 to 40 will play their heart out at the field. Skills of Messi, dribbling of Deco, and good goalkeeping ability of Cech, all can be seen performed by the players. Even though they are not as good as the real players, but at least they try. For example, I have a friend who wants to be a freestyler. For those who don’t know what freestyler is, I can tell you it is a person who performs football skills. Some of them may do it as a career. Oops, back to my friend. I think he have the skills, just he still have to do many practices, and he can be like the pros. But the good thing is he doesn’t stop trying, and that’s what most needed, determination.

Adidas, Nike, and Puma. The three biggest sports brands, fulfil the needs of the football players. From the jerseys to the boots, it may cost a person hundreds of Ringgit. To be honest, I bought my football boots for RM150. My mom would nag me about this, but I still keep it away from her knowledge. Haha. Sorry mom. Yet, the big question here, why did I willingly to spend a lot for football. Again I can say that it’s all about the love for the game.

Maybe this post may disturb the people who don’t like football, mostly the girls. But I do find some of the girls that love football as boys do, although some only love to watch the sexy players only. So, whether you like football or not, it’s up to you. It’s your call. My love for sports is towards football. What sports that become your favourite then?

* Here I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to Mr Derick because of the untidy collage my partner and I had done. But we already did a new one and hang it on class' wall. I'm sorry again, sir.

love

What does love mean to you? Is it an emotion? Or it is just a word that just pop out of nowhere? Love can be subjective. It differs from every person’s point of view. Love from a child’s viewpoint, could be the moment that he is feeling secure in his mother’s hug. Love from a teenager’s viewpoint, could be the moment he had his first date. Love from an adult’s viewpoint, could be the moment he spend with his family. Does love evoke the sense of security, or it’s just about lust?

Well, I don’t know much about love. I am just a going-to-be-eighteen-year-old young adult. Do you expect I have a very relevant view about love? I am still prohibited to watch adult-rated movies. Don’t ever think big about my perception about love. You will regret. But this is my viewpoint of something that people called love.

What is love? Love. Love. Love. I think that love just come by itself. When you feel it, you just don’t realize it. It doesn’t going to tell it is coming to you. Do you ever receive a call that sound like this, “Hello, this is LOVE. I’m coming to your life in about..mm..let me check my watch first..about fifteen minutes from now. Is it okay? Or I need to arrange an appointment with you first?” I bet no is your answer, right? If your answer is yes, please find yourself a psychologist, immediately. And don’t come any near to me again. Haha.

Love is not the feeling that only being felt when you are with your girlfriend. Love is also about family, and friends. Then, why do people always relate love to boyfriend-girlfriend relationship? Let’s come out from the box. If I say, “I am in love.” Does it mean I am having a feeling towards a girl? I can say that I am in love with my parents, because they provide me money and shelter ever since the day I was born. I can say that I love this moment of being a single and available person. I also can say that I love every second of being me.

I don’t want to condemn those who are in love. Love makes you more aware of yourself. You will tend to take good care of yourself when you know that you are in someone’s heart. Love also can make people suffer. Many people suffer from love, especially love for money. As a whole, love makes the world go round. And the greatest love of all is from Him, and for Him, the Almighty, the Most Merciful.

Maybe you are wondering why I am writing about love. Does someone have captured my heart? Or I just had a crush with someone? Haha. Naa.. I don’t need any reason to write about love. It is just I don’t know what to write about, and this is what came out from my mind. Now that you have read what I think about love, I want to know yours too. So, what is love to you?

two

Week two in KBU, I have to adapt myself to the AUSMAT year. This year is going to be a very hectic year, full with assignments and homework. I still do not think I am ready enough to encounter 2009, but I have to be. Last year, nineteen out of 96 of my seniors failed to score the required marks for AUSMAT, and for this year, I hope that I am not going to be like them.

I was right, I am right. My prediction about this year is absolutely true. Referring to the course outline given by the lecturers of every subject, there is no doubt that this year will be very tense. I took a deep breath, just to relax myself for a moment, and then I fell asleep. Suddenly, my parents’ hopes appear to wake me up. A sudden impact hit me with a blast. I have to struggle. I don’t want to let my parents down. I will make them proud of having me as their son.

EALD classes. There is some funny moment that I had during the classes. First, I learn a new word that I tangled my tongue to pronounce it, which is ‘onomatopoeia’. When I got home that day, my mouth would be mumbling quietly to perfecting my pronunciation of ‘onomatopoeia’, and I still don’t get it yet. Why there is a word like this? It makes my life a bit miserable. Huh. Secondly, I experienced a very humiliating moment that I don’t want to share with anyone. Only Mud and I knew about this. Haha. I just can say that it is about a word in a novel that sounds unfamiliar to me. No hard feelings, okay?

Week two presented me with a lot of homework to be finished. Yet, I have to take some time to relax. One of the ways to do so is hanging around at the ‘mamak’ stall, where my friends and I usually had our dinner. But, on some occasion, I went there with my family. One Saturday night in a ‘mamak’ stall in Klang, when I was having a very delicious ‘mamak’ delicacy, a group of teenagers caught my sight. There were boys and girls. They were very chaotic and noisy. They were annoying me with their rude act, and their loud voices. Where is your respect, guys? Where is your politeness? Don’t all of you realize that we are Malaysians, and Malaysians doesn’t act like you do! I suddenly lose my appetite, and I didn’t finish my meal. I went home and wondering why they become like that. Aren’t they supposed to be more down-to-earth? Or at least obey the fifth ‘Rukun Negara’, which is “kesopanan dan kesusilaan”, right?

So, that’s about my second week in KBU. How was it? I will rate it as average. There is nothing much happen to my life, except that I am growing older day by day. Haha.

me

All right now. Where to begin? For the first post, I would like to introduce myself. As for Mr. Derrick, we haven’t known each other very well, right? This post will give me the opportunity for me to let you know who I am.

Firstly, of course, my name. As stated in my Mykad, Muhammad Fadli bin Mohd Din is my name. But, my peers addressed me as Fadli, which is shorter and simpler. I also have other nicknames, though. Yet I think to be called Fadli is much better. My mother gave birth to me on 28th February 1991, luckily not the 29th. If so, I will have to celebrate my birthdays once every four years.

Secondly, my family. I consider it as a government cabinet. Want to know why? Well, I assume my father is the Prime Minister, as he is the head of the family. His name is Mohd Din, works for himself, and originated from Kelantan. The Minister of Finance would be my mother. Ras Aninah is her name, and she works as a teacher. Yes, she is the one to control the family’s expenditure. Myself, as I am the oldest of four siblings, would be the Minister of Defence. I am the one to look after my younger sisters, there are three of them. My first sister is Fairuz Afifah. She is the Minister of Religious Matter, or likely to be known as ustazah. There is a reason for this, that is because she studies in a religious school. Next, Nurul Firzana, my second sister. Cooking, cleaning, and doing the chores would be her responsibilities, because she is the Minister of Home Affairs. She is also studying at the same school as her elder sister. Last but not least, my youngest sister, Farah Syafiqah. She is the Minister of Youth and Sports, because she is the youngest and most active person of the family. She will only stop moving if she is sleeping.

Now, about my hometown. It is a rural area, but has very convenient infrastructures. I would tell it is a modern ‘kampung’, which is called Kg. Sg. Udang. What I love the most about this area of living is that the people are very friendly. All person in the neighbourhood know each other well.

Before I enrolled in KBU, I studied in a technical school, Technical Institute of Kuala Lumpur, as a technical science student. The school is located in Bandar Tun Razak, Cheras. I learned a lot in there, not only academically, but also learning how to be a better person. The best part of this school is that the students were not only learned the theoretical knowledge, but also the practical skills. These skills are very important for them in order to prepare themselves for the working life, because the job opportunities are scarce, and skilled workers would be hot prospects for many companies.

So, that’s all I can tell about me. It is just a brief introduction, but from time to time, you will know me better. Oh, before I end my post, I would like to apologise if there are grammatical errors. I know my English level is average. I hope I can improve this year, with the help from my lecturer and friends.

Till next post then, bye for now…