A Tale of an Unfortunate Snake

The story goes… It was a weekend, Saturday to be exact. I was at home and since I was in such a lovely jolly mood to cook, so I decided what the heck! Let’s make Mee Kuah.
So I went to the wet market and got all the ingredients to make my very own Mee Kuah. Since it was a hot sunny day, I decided to make some sweet Longan drink as well. Just to cool off the heat =) So I brought some dried longan as well and rushed back home. I was all so excited and can’t wait to start cooking.

Long story cut short… I was done cooking at around 2pm. I’ve prepared the kuah and was about to make the longan drink la konon. I opened the back door to go and get some pandan leaves and there was it was!!!!

Yup! It was a snake… slimy dying snake lying on the ground right in front of me. Terkejut biawak I tell you. Its head all bloody probably cos it must have had a fight with something, a big huge cat maybe... or someone must have hit it really hard and throw it in our backyard. I suspect it’s the work of our next door ‘botak head’ neighbor. That pakcik is quite a pain I tell you. Not only will he sing loudly at times, but he also like to talk to his chickens. Pelik or not! There was once, I was sweeping the backyard and sambil tue I was talking to my mum who was also standing there. Tiba-tiba this orang tua tak sedar diri started to sing lagu "Hitam manisss.. hitam manis.. yang hitam manis.. pandang tak jemuuu.. pandang tak jemu... oh hitam manisss" Rasa macam nak baling penyapu lidi tue kat muka dia. His house is very filthy and to make situation worse, he rear a lot of chickens and birds. Kalau lalu kat belakang rumah sure boleh bau tahi ayam. uWek!! Anyway, back to the snake story. Aduh! Though the snake looks motionless, but it’s still a wild snake and it’s in my backyard! What should I do?

You can see from the pictures below that the snake appears dead but to our horror, it was still alive and breathing. And I realize that after I took these snaps. Very excited to take picture konon, I took my camera so close to the snake just to take a good shot of it when suddenly its body started to going up and down breathing. Sigh! Nyawa-nyawa ikan la... scary! So, do you think I would still be standing there? Nope! I actually ran inside. But unfortunately, mum was not around that day and only the girls and I were at home. We had no choice but to pull our guts together and went to ‘check out’ the snake again. It was still lying there. So, we took a long stick and poked it. IT MOVED! But it still didn’t try to run away.

Later that evening, that snake eventually died... Poor thing. It was indeed a tragic way for it to die and no one actually knew what happened to it, how it got hurt and how it got there at the first place. It’s just not the right habitat for it to be in. We are afraid of snakes… but we also need to bare in mind, snakes are afraid of us too.

For Eternity

~ For you
I hope you'll find your freedom... For Eternity


Close your eyes so you don't feel them
They don't need to see you cry
I can't promise I will heal you
But if you want to I will try

Sing this summer serenade
The past is done, we've been betrayed… It's true
Some might say the truth will out
But I believe without a doubt … In you

You were there for summer dreaming
And you gave me what I need
And I hope you find your freedom
For eternity
For eternity

Yesterday when we were walking
You talked about your mom and dad
What they did that made you happy
What they did that made you sad

We sat and watched the sun go down
Then picked a star before we lost… The moon
Youth is wasted on the young
Before you know it's come and gone… Too soon

You were there for summer dreaming
And you gave me what I need
And I hope you find your freedom
For eternity
For eternity ... For eternity

Sing this summer serenade…
The past is done, we've been betrayed… It's true
Youth is wasted on the young
Before you know it's come and gone… Too soon

You were there for summer dreaming
And you are a friend indeed
And I hope you find your freedom
For eternity

You were there for summer dreaming
And you are a friend indeed
And I know you find your freedom
Eventually .... For eternity

For eternity

Fight for Survival Camp

OutWit... OutPlay and OutLast

Title says it all babe. Yup! It was indeed a fight for survival when I attended my company’s teambuilding. On the first day itself I was already looking forward for Sunday.. hehe! But in end, I had fun and enjoyed the activities we had. It was surely a pleasurable experience to remember. Well, probably because the recreation park was so beautiful and serene :p

Day 1, Friday 27th June 2008
~ Getting to know

We head off from the office at 4.30pm. Everyone was equally excited and looking forward to check out this place. Norul wanted to drive so Shikin and I just followed her. We were the first to arrive at Nur Bukit Hijau Chalet and it was almost 6pm. We were quite lost cos there was no sight of chalets or the name "Nur Chalets" anywhere. Fortunate enough, we met up with 3 of our trainers who were waiting us...

Mr B
~ The macho but insensitive dude who you don’t want to mess with. (I don’t think I saw him smiling at all)
We greeted the trainers and Mr. B was the macho dude who the first thing he did was to gave us ‘the talk’ about how to throw our “sensitive women thinge” when you’re in the jungle area. Like la we’re a bunch of school girls on a lawatan sambil belajar kan. We just gave him the blank look and none of us said a word. Hehehe… shocked and speechless la! hehe
Well… I’m sure his intention was sincere and and … err.. concern??
Cik S
~ I have no idea why she’s there… but she’s one tough gal at giving instruction to us. “Makan bagi habis… jangan buat tue… buat macam nie”
Lil’ D
~ This dude takes photos. Lots and lots and lots of photos. He’s actually the teambuilding paparazzi. He’s there when you least expected him and will take your picture when you’re not in a cool situation. Snap.. Snap.. Snap.. all the time. I actually felt like a movie star in a jungle. Flash of camera light all the time. Did I mention that he looked like a form 3 schoolboy? Hm…

The rest arrived about half an hour later. Hm... I wonder if Mr B gave them ‘The talk’ he shared with us? Anyway, we were given 2 rolls of toilet paper (???) for each room and also our chalet keys. Getting to the chalets from the hall and dining area was a challenge on its own. It was a long way down a narrow slope road so just imagine what it would be like to walk back up! Terkeluar lidah I tell you. We got a chalet no. 13 (Creepy!... and it was Friday :p ) and when we opened our chalet door, our nightmare became a reality. It was a total disappointment and I wouldn’t recommend anyone to go there. The chalet was not properly maintained at all and there were at least 20 spider webs in the bathroom ceiling… with tiny spidey and dead bugs caught in the web. Just imagine if these baby spiders can crawl into your ear while you’re sleeping. And did I mention the holes on the bathroom ceiling? Some pervert cut holes on the ceiling cos there’s one right where you shower and one where you do your ‘business’. #%&#(!@ punya orang!

~the bedsheet.. very stinky :p


~Don't say a word!


Fuh! apart from the dreadful chalet, the rest of the activity was well organized. And the view outside the chalet was a beautiful sight for sore eyes. There's also a stream right behind our chalet. Here are some pictures I took in the morning.

~ Stream behind our Chalet


~Morning View



We gathered back at the hall at around 8pm for dinner. The food, well… it needs a lot of improvement too. But if we look at it from the teambuilding’s survival point of view, I guess the room condition and food stands up for it. We met with Mr J and Mr E during the “tribal council”… Ala-ala Survivor gitu.
Mr J
~ The head of Tribal Council. The dude who runs the show and decides which tribe stays and which tribe will be eliminated. He really made us feel like we were in the TV ‘Survivor’ show.
Mr E
~ The silent dude but such a sweet guy. He will greet you with a smile and is always polite in even advising you on the games. He actually helped us with a clue. Shss… hehe :p

~Bug's life. We were attacked during dinner on our first night at the tribal hall


Overall, there were 27 of us survivors and we were divided into 5 tribe. We had Ogakor (my team), Pagong, Nakum, Malakal and Jaburu and during our first gathering we made our tribe flags. By the time we finished the 1st tribal meeting it was already pass 11pm. Next day was the actualy challenging day where we will have to outwit, outplay and outlast the other tribes. Now I'm speaking like a true tribal spokesperson. :p

Day 2, Saturday 28th June 2008
~ Tribal chance or surviving

All the survivors gathered at the tribal hall at around 9am for our next challenges. I must say, the games and challenges we faced were exhausting but it was indeed exciting and really accelerates your adrenaline. We were pushed to extend and rushed to complete certain task within the time given. Some of the challenge was unexpected too like when we had to eat some disgusting stuff right in order to end the game. They made us eat raw petai, peria, one whole big packet of asam jawa, a cube of raw belacan (ehew) and cili padi. Some tribes came out with weird ideas of eating the whole thing at a time. They mixed all the things together and started to eat it. Blek!!!

We had our break for a while. Sempat jugak we went back to the chalet to freshen up a bit cos we were really worn out. Not to mention the rumble in my tummy for eating all those stuff. Once we got back, we were given our next set of challenge. Each tribe has to build a hut but first we must find all the items needed to build this hut. But there’s a catch, these items are hidden all over the chalet area and we were required to find these items first using the clues given. We had 2 hours to complete these tasks and so we set off and really pushed ourselves to win. Well, I was quite unhappy too when some of the other tribe played the game unfairly but it was not looked into consideration by the trainers. All they can say was, “It’s a tough and unfair world, get used to it.” Can you argue with that? Sigh!

My tribe did loose and we were the 2nd tribe to be eliminated. Aleh! Cast out pun, you were actually absorbed into the other remaining tribes pulak. So, everyone still remains in the game. Cis!

~Some of the games. Hehe.. the guys showing the LOVE


Day 3, Sunday 29th June 2008
~ The last standing TRIBE

Indeed the last day was the best day of the whole session. Hehe... not just because it's final day of the teambuilding and we all get to go home soon, but we also had some interesting challenges that made us look at how we work in an organization from a different point of view.
In the end, there were only 2 remaining tribe, Malakal and Nakum and when Nakum lost the last challenge and all of us were absorbed into one tribe, the last standing tribe was indeed our company. When we all gathered together holding hands and formed a circle.. I was really touched.
We often forget that we all working together as a tribe in one company. It doesn't matter who you are or what status you are in, when it comes to the importance of the company, we all work together. Even if you play a small part, you are still apart of the team cos participation from each person is very important. Instead of whining and complaining about how other team is performing, we have to take the initiative to improve ourselves and see what we can contribute to the team and the company. I did learn something out of the teambuilding that day.

Finally, the session ended at 1.30pm with but the bus will only come to pick us up at 3pm. So, we grab this opportunity to explore the beautiful wonders of nature around us. I just love the lush green of the forest and the place itself stands beautifully with the waterfalls and streams. It's just wonderful and a cool sight for sore eyes. Got the chance to shot some pictures for rememberance. You will really feel relaxed and at peace. Viv, shikin and I went to dip our legs in the stream. It was so cold and very relaxing. Too bad we didn't get the chance to go for a swim. We boarded the bus at 3pm and bid farewell to Bukit Hijau.






~ Air dia sejuk nyaaa..






We reached Penang at about 5.30pm and once I got home, the first thing i did was to take a long cool shower. I was so worn out and my body was aching. Felt like I was run down by a truck and the pain continued the next day and the day after.. and also the next day.. hehe.

It was a fun memorable experience. If I has to do it all over again... hm.. I probably might :)

Manic Monday

Here we go again. I keep thinking of this song in my head since morning.
Just another manic Monday
Wish that it was Sunday
Cos that’s my fun day
I don’t have to run day
Cos Its just another manic Monday… hu hu hu hooo..

However, I must say... my morning is starting of well actually :p tak lah hectic sangat. Besides, the day is just starting to bloom right.
Anyway, I have a lot of stories to enter in my blog here. There’s this final day of my Alor Setar vacation, my 3 days 2 nights fight for survival at the teambuilding and also a story of an unfortunate dying snake.

Alor Setar & Sg Petani ~ Day 3 (Country road… take me home)

Well, I had another unpleasant night cos I couldn’t sleep. I toss and turned and even tried to cover my head full with a blanket, but it just didn’t work out. It was too cold and I was not sleeping in a proper position that night (I slept on the couch la, what else I can expect… Sob! Sob!) Finally dawn break and I was up earlier then others. Sigh!

Well, that morning we were making plans on how to end our journey in a memorable way. Mak suggested that we go to Tanjung Dawai. For your info, Tanjung Dawai a fishing village located at the mouth of Sungai Merbok, facing the straits of Malacca. It is situated about 20km from Sungai Petani and less than 5km from the historic archeological site of Bujang Valley. If you're coming from the highway, be sure to take the Sungai Lalang north exit of Sungai petani and after the tol, you will reach a cross junction. Go straight and you should be able to see Giant hypermarket on your right (Betul ke nie?.. hehe). The best thing is to follow the signboard that says 'Tanjung Dawai". At least, that's what I did. On the way you will pass by daerah Bedong and Pekan Sembeling. Tanjung Dawai is indeed a must visit place if you want to buy seafood products. It is the best place to buy ‘Belacan’ and other local seafood products such as ikan kering (salted fish), ikan bilis, keropok, lekor… bla bla. You should go to the 2 story market and there you can find a lot of shops for you to choose from but the price and products in all shops are quite similar but reasonable. Nas said the seafood there is so good and it’s a must try whenever you visit Tanjung Dawai. So we all decided to take a drive to Tanjung Dawai on our way back. Besides, it would be great to drive down the old country road and enjoy the view of kampong houses.




Hm… poor Shasha has a little accident that morning while she was riding a cycle around the resort area. She has some deep cuts in her forehead, her elbow, her palm and her hip and my sis had to rush her to a nearby clinic. The doctor gave her some medication and a jab to prevent infection to the wounds. But that didn’t stop us from going to Tanjung Dawai jugak. Hehe… She looks fit enough la and she was excited to go as well. So we checked out from Cinta Sayang Resort at around 12.15pm and head straight to our next destination. It was raining quite heavily all the way. Not to mention the cows and goats crossing the roads like nobody’s business. Tak tengok kereta lalu cross the road suka hati dia jer. Aduh! Hm… dah asal nya lembu, hehehe… biasa la tue and we sure can’t argue on that. Well, thank god we didn’t run over them which we nearly did cos it was raining and we could hardly see the road.

It was still raining when we reached the Tanjung Dawai Market and you can imagine the muddy condition in front of the market. Blek! Still, we still manage to grab quite a lot of stuff there. Too bad it was raining cos it was indeed an inconvenience for people to walk their way in and out of that market. Aku tak sempat nk tangkap gambar la. Hm.. too bad cos it would be cool to post some photos of this place. For those who love to eat siput-siput nie, be sure to stop by the roadside at Pekan Semeling. Banyak jugak orang-orang kampong kat situ menjual pelbagai jenis siput di sepanjang jalan. There are also folks selling jackfruits, pisang goreng, steamed corns and banyak lagi. We stopped to buy some siput lokan and siput Kepah. Well, it was almost 4pm when we got back onto the highway and it was time to head home. By the time we reached our sweet home, it was nearly 5.30pm.

Overall, it was indeed a wonderful journey and a great adventure. It was sure a memorable journey and I really had a great time. I enjoyed myself and looking forward for our next family trip.