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."

Hmmm... food for thought. Not quite sure if I agree with that thing about patronage system though.

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.

[NOTE: Will post more in English from now on for a number of reasons. First, it's for the obvious reason -- I want to write as much as possible in English. Second, is to facilitate the placement of ads in this blog. Apparently, writing in mixed-language confuses the Google ads crawler.]

Anyway, Mick, recently left a comment in his blog, asking if I can recommend a good digital camera at the price range of RM2,000 - RM2,500. I've also promised to post a review on which digital single lens reflect (DSLR) cameras I think would be worth buying.

To tell the truth, I don't quite know. It really depends on the photographic needs of a person.

If super zoom is what is needed, then the model I can think of is -- Sony DSC-H5, Sony DSC-H2 and Canon S3 IS. Either one is a good choice. The optical zoom range is 12x (35mm-420mm).

If you do a lot of low light photography or to capture night scene, then a camera with high ISO capacity is what you need. Fujifilm Finepix F30 is one of the camera which I think one of the best ISO performer. But it's not a zoom camera. The optical zoom is only 3x (36mm-108mm) and it's not a wide-angle camera.

If you want to capture scenery, then a wide-angle camera is necessary. Something that starts with a lens of 28mm or less.

A new model, Fujifilm FinePix S6000fd/S6500fd seemed to be able to do all that. It has a powerful zoom (10.7 optical) (300mm), yet able to capture wider scene (28mm) and at the same time, able to perform reasonably well at high ISO (more opportunities for low-light photography). The problem is, it has no image stabiliser.

So, in the end, it depends on the need. If you want a compact camera, then there's no way it was going to be a super zoom camera. In the end, if it was me, I prefer a super zoom camera with image stabiliser and that bring us back to Sony DSC-H5, Sony DSC-H2 and Canon S3 IS.

Harap reviu di atas dapat membantu. Semua kamera di atas berharga sekitar RM2000 atau kurang.

Image by:
Digital Photography
ReviewHeard that a member of the community is interested to buy an eight-month-old used Olympus SP 500 UZ digital camera. I think, this camera is okay, not impressive but okay.

My problem with this camera would be the absence of an image stabiliser, the ever important feature in the super zoom segment of consumer camera.

But if you ask me if the RM1,000 price tag for the camera is worth the money, I will say, it is.

But if it is me, I am prepared to wait for a little while longer, save a little more money and get myself the real deal -- among them Sony DSC-H5, Sony DSC-H2, Canon S3 IS, Panasonic Lumix FZ7, Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6, Nikon Coolpix H10... you can't go wrong with any of these, that is if super zoom is what you want.

But don't just listen to me. Take a look at what the experts say and make your own conclusion: 1. Digital Photography Review, 2. Steve's Digicams.

Perhaps it's not too early to think about retirement. Although for many of us, it is still a long way to go, there's really no harm if we start thinking about it -- and preparing for it -- from now.

So what is it going to be? Maybe we can devise a plan, or several plans, from now on and start working towards achieving that plan. I think we've got to have Plan A, Plan B and so on, so that when the time comes, we can always have something to fall back on.

Maybe we should think seriously about taking new skills and upgrade ourselves, like pursuing post-graduate courses. Those already with first degree might want to think about pursuing a Master's Degree.

As for me, my plan goes something like this: first, improve my English, then take writing courses and at the same time, further my study maybe on part-time basis. The preparation for that, would kick in once I'm back in Malaysia.

If I live to retirement age, I actually want to do some serious writing and in order to be credible in what I'll be doing, I've got to be able to show some paper qualifications on top of my work-related experience. I'm thinking of various courses, like criminology or maybe Southeast Asian studies or ethnic relations, or war studies... something unique, something strategic.

I know some of us can do it -- that a Master's Degree by the time we reach 45 years of age is not too impossible to achieve.

So, think about it, okay?

Nampaknya hasrat untuk memindahkan blog ke Wordpress dipertimbangkan semula. Nampaknya, Blogger masih blog yang mudah dikendalikan. Dengan ini Blog Masin Asin Community akan kekal di Blogger manakala Masin Asin @ Wordpress akan terus beroperasi untuk meletakkan entry yang dilindungi oleh password.

Dengan ini, kebanyakan artikel dalam Masin Asin @ Wordpress akan ditiadakan supaya tidak bertindih dengan artikel dalam blog ini.

Ruangan Shoutbox juga akan diletakkan semula dalam blog ini supaya ahli komuniti dapat berbual secara ringkas. Untuk makluman selanjutnya, tidak lama lagi Masin Asin Community akan diupgradekan ke Blogger Beta dan akan diberi nama Masin Asin @ Blogger.

Selepas selesai semua isu-isu teknikal, mungkin barulah dapat kembali aktif menulis dalam blog ini. Cheers...

Kira-kira seminggu dari sekarang, blog Masin Asin akan berpindah rumah. Usaha-usaha "membina" rumah itu kini sedang giat dijalankan, walaupun nampaknya ada beberapa masalah teknikal.

Bagi yang berminat untuk melihat-lihat rumah itu yang kini diberi nama "Masin Asin @ Wordpress", bolehlah melihat-lihat dan meninjau-ninjaunya di sini. Komen dan cadangan dialu-alukan.

So, you think you can slug out 50,000 words in 30 days? That's 1,667 words a day. If you think you can, then perhaps it about time you join the annual National Novel Writing Month or the NaNoWriMo from Nov 1 till Nov 30, 2006.

Here's the deal if you want to participate. First, get yourself registered as a NaNoWriMo member. Then once that is done, you can start writing your novel from 12.01am on Nov 1 (United States time) or 12.01am on Nov 2 (Malaysian time). By midnight on Nov 30 (Dec 1 in Malaysia), you stop writing and see if you can come up with at least a 50,000-word novel.

The good thing about NaNoWriMo is that you can write your novel in any languages even though those guys who run the annual novel writing project are based in the US (that's why we followed the US timezone, which is a day behind Malaysia).

There's no monetary prize for the winner. But if you can complete your 50,000-word novel during the period, you win the ultimate -- and priceless -- prize of self-discovery and becoming richer in experience. I've already registered. Will keep you updated on the progress.

In the meantime, those who once said "One day I want to write a novel..." must know that the "One day..." is already coming to you this November. I encourage you to try! Here's the address once again -- www.nanowrimo.org.

Click here. Ah, irama Pinakang, muzik tradisi kaum Momogun Kimaragang. Dulu pernah cuba-cuba belajar monitik do kulintangan tapi tidak sempat graduate. Tapi kalau mengulintangan dengan gitar, boleh juga!

Source: Bank Bunyi, Universiti Malaysia Sabah.

Ketika tengah memandu di tengah-tengah kesesakan teruk di Tambak Johor petang semalam, handphone tiba-tiba bergetar. Ada SMS masuk untuk menyampaikan berita...

Nampaknya, seorang lagi ahli komuniti akan menempuh hari besar. Khabarnya, bulan dua. Hmmm... tengah fikir-fikir sambil tengok-tengok kalendar. Mudah-mudahan semua perancangan berjalan lancar.

I went for a "drive-about" around the city of Singapore yesterday at a time when the island state was hit by a worsening haze situation. I managed to snap some pictures while I was on the wheel and here's one of them.



When the haze season is over, I plan to take another picture of this skyline, for a before-and-after the haze comparison.

Entah betul, entah tidak. Nampak macam betul, nampak macam bukan betul. Anyway, the person who claimed he stumbled on this creature is auctioning the carcass on eBay.

Relations between religion, in particular Christian and Islam, plunged almost to a new low last week after a mid-week remark by Pope Benedict XVI sparked anger and prompted a wave of protests around the Muslim world.

From the Middle East to Southeast Asia, the anger remained unabated over the weekend, with Muslim leaders around the world demanding that the Pope extract the controversial remark and issue a personal apology to the Muslims after he quoted in his speech a 14th century Christian emperor, referring to elements of the Muslim faith as 'evil and inhuman'.

According to the online version of Time magazine on Sept 12:

...in a riveting and provocative university lecture, the Pope explored the philosophical and historical differences between Islam and Christianity — a speech that would become the surprise centerpiece of a five-day visit that many had expected would be mostly just a walk down memory lane. [...]

He went so far as to quote a 14th century Byzantine emperor's hostile view of Islam's founder.

"The emperor comes to speak about the issue of jihad, holy war," the Pope said. "He said, I quote, 'Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.'"

Benedict added "I quote" twice to make it clear these were someone else's words. Nevertheless this reference was undoubtedly the most provocative moment of a provocative lecture. In a sense, explicitly including the Muslim prophet by name, and citing the concept of jihad, was a flashing neon signal to the world that the soft-spoken Pope intends to make himself heard clearly on this defining tension of our times." [Source: Time Online]

The Muslim reacted with anger but a word of "sorry" from the Pope himself on Monday has helped ease the tension although some say sorry was not enough.

Malaysia, the current chair of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), said it "can accept" the expression of regrets form the Pope:

"I think we can accept it and we hope there are no more statements that can anger Muslims," he (Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) told Malaysian journalists covering his working visit in New York for the 61st session of the United Nations General Assembly.

Abdullah said that when he mentioned the controversial papal comments in talks with US President George W. Bush earlier, the American leader responded that he respected Islam and viewed it as a religion of peace.

"When I touched on the matter during our discussions just now, I noted that it sparked intense reactions because the one who uttered it was the Pope himself. The Pope is not just any other person. That's why there has been much anger (on the part of Muslims)." [Source: Bernama)

So, what next? In another report, many Vatican experts in Rome regard the Pope's speech as "a mistake" and may endanger the live of Christians, in particular Catholics, living in Muslim countries.

"The West's relation with Islam is the most delicate issue facing our time. It is precisely for this reason that a religious leader like the pope should be very careful about what he says," Marco Politi, one of Italy's most respected papal watchers told Deutsche Presse Agentur [Source: M & C News]

Know what I think? I think the remark -- and the reactions and the refusal to accept the expression of regrets -- had let loose a much crazier monster in the dynamics of the conflict between the two religions and between the West and Islam.

This new monster, whose claws are much sharper than that of other monsters previously seen, would grow stronger each day as it is constantly being fed by the fiery expression of hatred from both sides.

Creatures like this one thrives on crisis and conspiracy, feeds on the gullible minds of overzealeous preachers and their brethren and spews out new offsprings each day to perpetuate and escalate the conflict and bring the abysmal relations further and further down.

Fortunately, mankind from all religions can still tame the monster if they wanted to -- by sobering up collectively to the reality there can never be a way for the six billion people in the world to embrace one, and only one, religion.

Once that is done, the creature would come of age and shed off some of the sharp claws and spew out less aggressive offsprings.

But that seems to be a lost dream at least on this very date, as angry reactions and expression of war and destruction continues on one side, and the suggestion that the "sorry" word was not really meant to express an apology, on the other.

On one side:

Al-Qaida militants in Iraq vowed war on "worshippers of the cross" and protesters burned a papal effigy yesterday over Pope Benedict's comments on Islam, while Western churchmen and statesmen tried to calm passions.

The statement by an umbrella group led by Iraq's branch of al-Qaida came after the Pontiff said on Sunday he was deeply sorry Muslims had been offended by his use of a medieval quotation on Islam and holy war.

"We tell the worshipper of the cross (the Pope) that you and the West will be defeated, as is the case in Iraq, Afghanistan, Chechnya," said a web statement by the Mujahideen Shura Council. [Source: China Daily]

On the other side:

The Pope's response to the anger his statements sparked in the Muslim world was more offensive than the statements themselves. He apologised not for what he said, but for Muslims' failure to grasp the intended meaning.

That the Pope should have quoted from a Byzantine text on Islam is hardly surprising. The line of continuity between Emanuel Paleologos's conception of Islam -- quoted in the papal speech -- and Benedict's has never been severed.

The massive body of terms, images and narratives on Islam which the church inherited from the middle ages survives intact. There, Islam is depicted as a false creed propagated through violence and promiscuity, with Muhammad as scoundrel, magician, heresiarch, and precursor of the anti-Christ. [Source: Guardian Unlimited]

I fear that the clock has started to tick back to the past -- an anomaly which could trigger a chain of events that would untimately lead to the destruction of the universe's most intelligent creation. Us.