MERDEKA!

MERDEKA!
MERDEKA!

Yesterday was the 53rd Merdeka Celebration for Malaysians.

For the first time the celebration was done indoors at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil. Perhaps taking into consideration it was the fasting month of Ramadhan, the organizing committee decided as such.

The usual Merdeka Day Parade was not included in the programme this time around making the celebration the shortest ever in mad redo1's memory. But still, he was right there in front of the TV watching the historic event unfolded via the live telecast on TV3 anchored by Ally Iskandar and Ahmad Fidtrie.

Then off he went to dreamland.

In the afternoon mad redo1 and Linda went to see AKS#1 at her hostel. Her mother had busied herself in the kitchen while mad redo1 was sleeping, preparing the food to bring to our beloved AKS and it was quite a reward seeing the smile on her face.

Then on our way home we met with a usual scene on holidays or weekends.

The damned rempits were at it again!

Well, from the actions they were displaying to the onlookers it made my idea of having a legal place for them to carry out such activities sound more sensible by the day. Unfortunately under the current climate I do not see anyone willing to champion this cause due to the amount of money needed.

But still it is something worthwhile to ponder on while chewing the roti telur on the eve of the next Merdeka Day.

HAPPY MERDEKA DAY, MALAYSIA!

...

Reunion...

...at Three Junction

It was a few days ago when mad redo1 received a sms from Nizam asking him to join him for an Iftar in conjunction with the re-surfacing of Azlan Zahari Zahid or better known among the SMSD circle as Lan BJ.

The date was set for Monday 23-08-2010.

mad redo1 has no problem with the date and happily agreed.

The day arrived and mad redo1 picked Nizam up at his home with his trusty Mortimer. Nobody else was around and we decided to stroll around the Chabang Tiga Ramadhan Bazaar looking for delicacies for the Iftar.

Then a call from Eskay announcing her arrival and the three of us proceeded with the shopping for kueh. Nizam and mad redo1 then bumped into a former schoolmate from primary school, Mat Arif who was shopping with her son. He still maintain his boyish looks even though his eleven year old son is already at the same height as him.

After the completion of the shopping Nizam called BJ and it turned out that he was sleeping in his car while waiting for us. Both Nizam and mad redo1 'reprimanded' him for not calling us earlier as either one of us could provide a better environment to rest his bums.

Then Abu Hasmadi arrived and followed a short while later by Narihas and the loves of her life. Not much later Hilmi showed up with his entourage which should bode well for the future of the bowling sports in Terengganu.

With everybody was in place, the reminiscing began interjected with a few current issues especially the firecracker tragedy which occurred less than a kilometre from the place where we were having our Iftar.

Credit to Nizam for his choice of meals and much thanks to Eskay for being a good hostess. It was good to be among friends again and hopefully there will be more similar events in the future.

...

Blessed Month...

...Returns.

For many Muslims, the departure of Ramadhan entails great sorrow in their heart as they do not know whether they will be alive when the next one comes. Thus for mad redo1, he must be very grateful that Ramadhan has arrived again in his life.

The completion of the Tarawikh prayers at the Al-Taqwa Mosque in Durian Burung should see him cleansed of all sins as one of the benefits to perform the prayers. However, as much as he likes to think that he is sinless, much of it will be in the hand of Allah as He is the one who will determine the quality of 'ibadah' each Muslim performs during the Holy Month.

Then just after midnight the sky opens up and it is really cats and dogs for a while. For many that will be regarded as a sign that the fasting month will be a great month with rewards in abundance for those who care to seek for it.

Perhaps the month should be seen as a springboard for those who care to change their life.

It is not easy for one who rarely goes to the mosque for prayers to maintain their commitment for the whole of Ramadhan. But having done that many would return to their old ways when they just could continue for the coming months.

The same applies to mad redo1. As much as he tries to maintain the momentum from Ramadhan, he will be back to his old ways.

But this time, could it be any different?


...

The Celebration...

...Begins.

It is sad when we have to good-bye to someone or something dear to us. Unfortunately that what mad redo1 has to do when his 'pekebende' was deemed as an attack site due to some malware attaching themselves to it. They were back-ups to the pages but somehow when it was not meant to be then there was nothing you can do.

We just finished the blessed month of Ramadhan and Aidil-Fitri is upon us now.

These are the days of celebration with the children are the most likely to benefit with a pocketful of 'duit raya' by the end of the third day. For adults who are still children at heart, putting on the newly bought 'raya' clothes in the morning of 'Aidil-Fitri' certainly make the heart flutter a bit.

The joy for mad redo1 certainly began early when Arsenal won their encounter against Wigan Athletic 4-0 at the Emirates. Thomas Vermaelen is certainly winning the hearts of many Gooners with his brace. The first when he beat Chris Kirkland with a thumpinng header from a corner, which in a way was quite expected from a defender.

But his second was pure class when he played a one-two with Manu Eboue before side-footing the ball into the top corner with Kirkland completely beaten. It was a good day too for Eboue who had a nightmare in the corresponding fixture last season. His error strewn performance after coming on as a substitute saw himself being substituted towards the end of the match. 

This time around, the Ivorian player got his name on the scoresheet when his touch took the ball away from Kirkland and into the back of the net after Eduardo's second attempt came his way. The Croazilian first attempt was pushed by Kirkland to the post.

There was some concern when Cesc Fabregas limped heavily towards the end of the match but that did not stop him from scoring the fourth when Nicklas Bendtner served the ball on the plate for his skipper to beat Kirkland at the near post. Robin van Persie's persistence played a hugh part in the goal.

Winning gives you the feel good feeling and together with Aidil-Fitri celebration mad redo1 is certainly hoping it is going to be an auspicious start to his new pages.

It is good to be back.

...