Tiada apa yang dapat dilakukan selain mengharapkan agar semuanya kembali sejahtera. Petang nanti saya akan cuba mendapatkan penerbangan pulang melalui Johor Baharu untuk melawat ibu yang sakit.

Banyak perkara yang membuat saya gembira bercampur sedih. Gembira kerana dapat bertemu semula dengan ibu bapa dan adik beradik, tidak kurang seorang pun; seperti waktu ketika kita masih kecil.

Sedih kerana keadaan ibu yang kurang sihat. Saya cuma dapat berharap kegembiraan untuk bertemu semula dengan ahli keluarga, akan berakhir dengan satu lagi kegembiraan -- ibu kembali sihat.

Semoga semua kembali sejahtera. Tolonglah, untuk kali ini dan untuk tahun-tahun yang akan datang.

Nampaknya lama sudah blog ini tidak aktif. Kepada ahli-ahli Komuniti Masin Asin yang berkunjung ke sini tetapi tidak mendapat apa-apa artikel terbaru, minta maaflah. Agak sibuk sekarang ini -- sibuk dengan kerja dan sibuk juga kerana saya juga mengendalikan beberapa blog lain.

Begitupun, saya amat gembira dengan inisiatif ahli-ahli komuniti untuk terus berhubung dan berkongsi khabar melalui alam maya. Terbaru adalah klip video ini yang disiarkan dalam blog Mick, yang menyentuh perasaan. Ia disediakan oleh NuarEl. Terima kasih.

Harap-harap mama dan bapa sihat. Walaupun jarang sangat saya telefon di kampung, tiap-tiap hari mereka ada dalam ingatan.

Kami semua ok juga di pulau singa ini. Kadang-kadang ada la lumasu sikit-sikit tapi dalam dua tiga hari sembuhlah tumogom tu selepas makan panganadol (Panadol la tu).

To be continued...

The loop is now almost complete with the addition of another blog from Konong. Blogging at Friendster, Konong says in a latest entry dated Feb 4, "My mind keeps on running with words to be written out.."

Yeah, I know the feeling. But it's okay, it's alright. Words don't always come easy but if you keep on chasing after them, some of the words would eventually grow tired and would have no choice but to let you write them.

Wai, who used to blog in Blogger, is now blogging at Friendster also. The last time I check, Wai wrote about how she wanted to go home, to the place where the heart is. I guess we do wanted to go home to the place where the hearts belong.

So, we are almost there. Almost each of us now has a blog although we need to work a little bit more on updating it.

But it's okay. It doesn't matter where you blog so long as you blog. In fact there are many blog service providers out there where we can blog -- Blogger, Wordpress, Live Journal, Blogsome, Blog-City, 21Publish, X-Blogger, Xanga just to name a few. Keep blogging.

And to brother Lem and Dora, congratulations on the wedding. It still pains me to think that I had not been able to be there on the most important day of your life. Forgive me.

Jacksonian democracy, according to Wikipedia:

"Jacksonian democracy, in contrast to the Jeffersonian era, promoted the strength of the executive branch and the Presidency at the expense of Congressional power, while also seeking to broaden the public's participation in government.

"Jacksonians believed in enfranchising all eligible white males, rather than just the propertied class, and supported the patronage system that enabled politicians to appoint their supporters into administrative offices, arguing that it would lead to increased public participation in politics."

Kepada ahli komuniti Masin Asin yang berminat, DBP sedang menganjurkan pertandingan menulis novel bagi dua kategori -- novel kanak-kanak (sesuai untuk pembaca berumur 10-13 tahun) (15,000 - 50,000 perkataan) dan novel remaja (untuk pembaca berumur 14-18 tahun) (50,000 - 100,000 perkataan).

Selain itu pertandingan itu juga mempunyai kategori khas untuk penulis bukan Melayu. Hadiah yang ditawarkan ialah RM6,000 untuk tempat pertama bagi novel remaja dan RM5,000 untuk novel kanak-kanak. Peserta boleh menghantar maksimum satu penyertaan bagi kedua-dua kategori.

Tarikh tutup 15 Mei. Maklumat lanjut boleh didapat di sini. Selamat menulis!

ENGLISH VERSION: Novel Writing Competition

For members of Masin Asin community who have interests in writing, DBP is organising a novel writing competition which is divided into two categories -- children novel (suitable for readers aged 10-13 years old) (15,000 - 50,000 words) and teen novel (for readers aged 14-18 years old)(50,000 - 100,000 words).

The competition also has a special category for non-Malay writers. Winners for the teen and children novel category will walk off with RM6,000 and RM5,000 respectively. You can submit a maximum of one entry for each category.

Closing date, May 15 2007. More information can be obtained here. All the best.

[NOTE: For the benefit of this blog's international readers (ahem!), English translation to follow, soon]

Terserempak dengan ikan badus. Itulah yang berlaku pada pagi 29 Disember 2006, pagi terakhir saya di kampung. Ketika itu, awal-awal lagi bapa dan ibu turun ke sawah untuk "monusui" atau menabur semula benih padi supaya padi tumbuh sama rata dan tiada ruangan kosong pada sawah.

Melihat mereka bekerja, tergerak hati untuk turut sama. Lagipun sudah lama benar tidak merasai pengalaman di sawah. Seronok rasanya menabur padi. Teringat masa kecil.

Tidak pasti sebenarnya siapa terserempak siapa. Kami terserempak ikan atau ikan terserempak kami.


Apapun, rasanya tentu ikan tu terkejut beruk (hmmm...macam mana translate ni?) melihat kehadiran manusia di tengah-tengah sawah.

Ia cuba menggelongsor antara lumpur untuk melarikan diri tetapi nampaknya, sampai di situlah sahaja riwayatnya.

TRANSLATION: A close encounter with a snakehead fish.. That was precisely what happened on the morning of December 29, 2006, my final day in the village. That Friday morning, my old folks had gone to the paddy field just after sunrise to "monusui" or to scatter rice seedlings over previously planted plots so that the paddy grow in constant density.

Seeing them working, I joined them on the field. It's has been so long since I last worked on a paddy field and I enjoyed every moment of it. Reminds me of my childhood.

I can't say really who encountered who. Was it us who encountered the fish or was it the fish who encountered us.

In any case, I am pretty sure the fish was "terkejut beruked" (shocked, mouth agape like a surprised monkey) upon seeing us in the middle of the paddy field.

It tried to slide away in the mud but couldn't go far. And that was the day the life of the snakehead fish ended.

Here are some of the pics of the flood around Masin Asin on December 28, 2006.

This is the small road leading to the main road from the house in Masin Asin.


Hmm... can't fence flood waters


Hold on... this tsunami will subside soon!


A swollen Sungai Tingkalanon. Underneath is a bridge


Whatever left of the bridge


Bah, tinutup no da'alo ilo ralan


Swallows by the powerline

Thought I need to tell you all that we've safely made it home here in the Lion City at about 1.30 am after a long journey which started in Menggatal, Sabah, at around 6pm. Cuma satu sahaja masalah -- hati tertinggal di kampung.