The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards

The last book that I've read was The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards. I hate secrets and this book is all about keeping a big secret.

Naddie's View on The Memory Keeper's Daughter

This is a very good book. Not a very fast paced but it glued you to its pages until the end because you just dont know what's going to happen next.

It's about Dr David Henry and his decision to separate his own twins (a boy & a girl) at birth because the baby girl has down sindrome. He did this with no one's knowledge except his nurse, to whom he gave the baby girl to send to an orphanage. However, the nurse later decided to keep the baby girl. And the rest of the book develop on the effects of Dr Henry's decision to himself & his family (his wife & his son) and also on the lives of the nurse and Dr Henry's separated daughter.

It can be easily understood why Dr Henry did what he did. His little sister was also sick and died. He was saving his wife from the pain of seeing their sick daughter. Plus, this story was set in the 60's, which i believe people have issues of acceptance imperfection.

All in all, this book shows that how one's decision can affect many people and how sharing your problems with other people will not only help you but other people too.

p/s: This book has also been turned into a made for TV movie.

-- I donated 350 ml of my blood --

This happened yesterday. DD Health Day. There were talks, health screening and lotsa other health related stuff, but of course i was only interested in the blood donation :)

I've been doing this once a year, every year since 2004. it started as a group activity. Other people like to hang out, see a movie, bowling etc etc. We (the lords) like doing that too, but we donated blood when we get a chance. If one of us knows that there'll be a blood donation drive, then she'll get the whole group excited about it and make our boyfriends excited bout it too. hoho~


I remembered my high school biology teacher told me that it's good to donate blood, so that your body will generate new blood cells. And it keeps you thin :) I dont know how true this is, i have never been interested in biology, but it's good and it keeps you thin. So i'm in!!! :)

There's nothing much to it really. First you have to fill in a form. Basically they want to know if you are fit to donate. Then they checked you blood pressure to make sure that ur BP is ok, not high not low and then they take ur blood sample to know your blood type (I'm a B!!!)

Then you wait for your turn to donate.

When it's your turn, you lie down on the chair and the nurse will give you a round thingy (see below) for you to hold. I think this is so that the nurse can easily identify and see your blood vessels. It helps if you have a "preferred hand side" either your left hand or your right where the blood vessel is easier to be seen. Then wait summore....

Then the nurse come back to you to insert a kinda big needle into the 'chosen' blood vessel. Usually, i turned away at this time. The pain is very minimal at you feel it only when the needle is inserted. After that full stream blood flow!!!!

I think it took about 30 minutes for my 350 ml pint to be completely filled up. It varies between people. Some people never get it filled up. I've seen two occasions when nurse just take the pint (barely full) and told the donater "that's all". Maybe there is a time limit or something...

Then you'll get this!!! Tarraaa~

After that, the needle will be removed and you are given a few minutes to rest (so that you body can adjust to the blood loss i guess). Cause some people might feel dizzy, or feel like they are fainting. Then they'll give you something to eat :)

Then i'll walk away from the blood donation drive place feeling good & proud that i have give something back to the human race and with a small scar on my hands where the needle has been. hoho~

-- Make that call already!!!! --

I hate making phone calls. Official phone calls, phone calls to family member i'm not close with, phone calls to landlords in search of my future apartment. Hmm...

I postponed a work related phone call that i was supposed to make yesterday to this morning for reasons that even i am not sure why. After an e-mail from my boss asking for updates, with a heavy heart i made that call.

Blah...blah...blah...In just over 2 minutes the call was over and we get the kickstart of a discussion. And suddenly i am enthusiastic to do the job again. I met people, discuss and get profiles to do a preliminary analysis to generate Facilities Options Case 1.04 for Bokor Phase 3 Optimized EOR Scheme.

I'm still pretty much alive n kickin after that call. So what's with the initial hesitation to make that call? Lack of confidence? Or i'm just not in the mood? Hmm...

-- Why I'm Not a Doctor --

Because...

1. I dont like knowing what's inside my body.


2. I figure out if you dont know that u r not well, u'll feel good. Sometime u r not sick, u r just sick in ur mind.


3. I like things like this!!!! A feat of engineering!!!!

-- Bored & Energetic Today --

Dah lame sangat2 x update this. Why? Because that's me. That's all i can say~ Tapi disebabkan boredom yang teramat sangat, so i change my blog a bit la. Tukar layout, tukar colour. Just to keep me occupied a bit. Lala~ Hopefully after this, lagi la bersemangat nak blabber and write non-sense kat cni.

Lagi pun, suddenly yesterday my significant other (that's my husband) cakap "update2 la blog you tu". hoho~ sebenarnye die pon malas nak update blog sendiri. kes kes kes. sayang, jgn marah ek, coz u know u love me! hahahaha~

To spice thing up a lil bit, below is my current wallpaper for my PC at office. my fave family picture from my reception yang telah diedit (or di mess-upkan) oleh diriku sendiri. Cam filem dolu2 la plak. Ehe~

Naddie-licious signing out!!

-- Harga Minyak Turun Lagi --

Well, harga runcit petrol was further reduced from RM 2.45/liter to RM 2.30/liter (RM 0.15/liter reduction). Heard the good news this morning on the radio and i am happy (who's not??).

What i wish to happen next is that the price of all the goods (example: groceries & staple everyday stuff) is to go down too. Because the reason given to the general public when they increase their price is because the fuel price is going up. Not anymore!!! hahaha~

rajin bekerja

This is my workstation at the new office.
Picture taken by my colleague amet (makaseh2)
Edited by me using picnik.
Nie bukan gambar posing2 ya. I was so absorbed in my work, checking how much Bokor Phase 3 would cost :) expensive wooo the stuff in oil and gas industry.

My Office on the Move

copying stuff..

Our project team is moving into another building that is about 5-mins-walk+1-lrt-station+10-mins-walk away from our current place. This will be my second office move, first one when i was assigned to this project and i moved from KLCC to Empire Tower. That was a breeze because i baru je kerja for about 2 months at that time. Not so much clutter and baggage (and with that comes responsibility) to carry. Tp skrang is a different story. After working in the project for over a year, moving from Empire Tower to Rohas Perkasa takes some planning.



My packing planning and implementation started only this Monday (25 August 2008). Here are some what-you-should-do-before-you-move things I have picked up:

1. Pack your stuff into boxes - some people dump, i organize my stuff into four boxes (project documents in files, project documents loose, drawings, personal & active items)
   - i do this so that when i unpack, i dont have to geladah through all the four boxes to find stuff, especially the active files. Take note that even though i'm moving, work goes on as usual. Hey, this is business!!


2. Take down ur pictures!!! - and wuteva else u stick on ur walls, CPU, monitor frame and etc. (i love sticking stuff onto surfaces, it's like a huge collage and very expressive of oneself)


3. Copy the stuff in ur PC - the obvious is the stuff in my documents. Dont forget about the less obvious ones tho, like on your desktop or in your server (coz u thought nanti-nantilah baru copy, last2 luper). And dont forget to delete them from ur PC especially highly confidential stuff and very scandalous personal pictures for example. Hehe~


4. The lil things that make you, you - your mug in the pantry, ur shoes (always have at least 3 pairs at the office, plus a fair of comfy slippers), jacket/sweater/selimut/bantal/comforter and other things la..


5. Important Note: DONT FORGET ABOUT THE CURRENT ASSIGNMENTS THAT YOU ARE DOING. ye la. mana la tau, cbok2 buat keje tersave la plak kat PC kat office lama. haha~ pastu pindah office. Pastu next week kalut2 carik x jumpe. haha :) mana nak jumpe save kat tempat lain, carik kat tempat lain.. hoho


6. Anything Else??

Today is my final day here. Tomorrow the movers will angkat all the stuff. I do hope that i dont forget anything..

Hantaran for Nikah on 11 July 2008

All the hantaran from the bride (me) to the groom (my husband)

Some of my friends asked me to upload the pics of my hantaran (from me to my husband), maybe derang nak idea for their own wedding kot. Well, i've uploaded the pics below (sweet things arent they?). Many thanks to Kak Cida of djariartz who has helped come up with the concepts, ideas and of course the real things la.

Djariartz can be contacted at:

• Website : http://www.djariartz.com/
• E-mail : djariartz@yahoo.com
• Hp (Kak Cida) : 016 - 905 8532

Sireh Junjung

I picked this one cause its modern looking and sweet.

Simply put on the dulang

Tafsir & Sejadah
I bought the tafsir and sejadah especially.
The white tray with carvings is rented from djariartz. The fresh flowers decorations at the side and also the dulang covers are from djariartz.

Perfume Set

The perfume is Polo Blue.
The cage (i always wanted my hantaran to be in cages) and everything else is by djariartz.

Ring

The ring is platinum (cause muslim men cant wear gold) and engraved.

Everything else is by djariartz.

Shirt & Tie

Purple shirt and matching tie. The brand is obvious. We bought this at Metrojaya Times Square. As above, everything else is by djariartz.

Cake

Cake was also ordered by Kak Cida of djariartz. My mom and sister went to have a look at the shop and loved it. Kak Cida ordered it for us and beautifully decorated it.
Chocolates
I chose Patchi mainly because the chocolates are individually wrapped. Kak Cida advised me if i wanted to openly display the chocolates, get individually wrapped ones. If not, maybe you can put the chocs in a transparent box or something. Everything else is by djariartz.

Jelly in various fruits shapes

I am not sure if this is exclusive to djariartz, but the idea is sure refreshing. Basically those are jelly in fruit shapes (pretty much translates to the fact that the banana taste the same as the watermelon & you cant drink the coconut!!) Everything is by djariartz.

Bunga Rampai

Bunga rampai is inside the grand boxes. Bungai rampai is mainly shredded pandan leaves and you mix it with lotsa other flowers (aku pun x sure bunga ape), but it sure smells lovely. It's associated with malay weddings, cukur jambul, etc., etc. In other words, I've run out of ideas for hantaran plus ibu insist we have bunga rampai. No purpose, just ikut adat kot.

Anyway, Kak Cida bought the bekas for us and decorate it in the white tray matching with the rest of the hantaran.

Accessories

Hankerchief, belt, wallet and cufflinks. None of them has been worn by Iz (my husband la). Haha~



Arrangement and deco by djariartz




It was nice to have djariartz coming up with the idea and finally the hantaran itself. Kedai derang pon dekat je to my house, and they are flexible so that i can come at night to discuss stuff (pasal aku kerja disiang hari). I still am very impressed with the results, cause they are exactly how i wanted it.

Next time citer pasal pelamin plak.

Playing for Pizza - John Grisham

I've been reading John Grisham's novel since i was in high school, when i was in form 2 i think. He introduced me into US legal world. But Playing for Pizza has nothing to do with the legal world.

This can be considered as a short novel, anyone can easily finish it in a day (but it took me over a month, i think). I am not gonne give a synopsis on this book, you can google it if you want and you'll get lotsa returns.

What i want to say is that, Playing for Pizza prove that sometimes when you feel that your life sucks and you are at an all time low, it just might be a new beginning & a new oppurtunity for you. That life is so much more meaningful and fulfilling when u r doing something you love for the people you love and make you feel like u r a part of the family even when u r far away from home.

for the synopsis you can go to: http://www.randomhouse.com/doubleday/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780385525008
or just google it!! :)

[08.08.08]

Special date today!!! 08.08.08
Apart from the Beijing Olympics, i know that lotsa people are getting hitched today.
Today being Friday and all. Friday is the penghulu (chief) of days for Muslims, so most people want to get married on Friday. And with such memorable date, that's a plus already.

Well, congratulations to the grooms & best wishes to the brides who chooses to make 08.08.08 their special date & day :)

More interesting stuff on 08.08.08
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080805/lf_nm_life/olympics_weddings_dc

you may kiss the bride

-- you may kiss the bride --

this is my favourite picture from my majlis pernikahan (solemnization). the first time i really look at this pic, and i think only one word can describe it, bliss.

this is as close as you can get to "you may kiss the bride" here. :)

now that the anger has gone

i was mad at my senior at the office yesterday. he told me that "You didnt handle this one well" while shaking his head. He got this signature u-r-wrong head shake that really bugs me (plus make me feel that i AM wrong).

what did i do wrong? i'm still a junior engineer (my senior told me that "refer to someone in areas that i am not technically capable", i was offended a lil bit by that), so i did refer to someone in solving this particular problem. It's just that HE was not that person, and HE hates the guts of the person i referred to. And HE has been eyeing that particular problem closely since the beginning cause he claims that he knows that IT will go wrong.

so i think maybe he wasnt just mad at me cause i "didnt handle this one well". i'd like to believe that some office politics were involved.

but me being me, i came to this office screaming "Good Morning" to him. he has yet to tease me about being newly weds today tho. he has been doing that since i return from my leave. so it's still weird. the anger has gone, but the memory of the "assault" remains...

everything I

I’d like to think that I am an independent, ass-kicking girl.

However, who I really am is defined purely by perception. How others see me and how I see myself. Because sometimes, you just don’t know yourself.

I believe in the freedom of speech and I also believe that everybody has a right to their opinions & decisions. Good or bad, that is another topic altogether.

With that in mind, I expect people to respect my decisions. Should they think otherwise, then educate me. Don’t scold or blame me for my lack of judgment. Be tough, cause I tend to be stubborn and naturally, I hate changes.

It took about 24 years to be exactly who I am right this moment. Another day may just age me, but another journey might enlighten me.

originally i blogged at...

http://naddie-anuar.blogs.friendster.com/my_blog/

Go to that link if you are interested to know what I've doodle about before.
Some people might call it non-sense, but i call it ideas & views.

And by the way, welcome to my new blog.