All Great Writers Start Their Stories Bravely...

Saw this caption when DH and I had dinner at The Apartment in KLCC last Friday....Friday is usually our night out...ni terlebih night outlah dah terboyot ni....by the way the last check up with Dr Ashar showed that we might have another boy, alhamdulillah!

Coming back to the caption, I dont really understand what it really means, is it that writers start writing bravely, or their stories they wrote show how brave the stories that they have through in their lives....doenst matter...actually this whole blogging thing was initiated by DH and my daughter...I might seem very chatty, bising sana bising sini, leter orang sana leter orang sini (esp those network guys)...kat office aje, at home my children contol me...I like to thing of myself as rather a private person...nak ceghita apa kat orang semua...then DH had this idea that I should put all the recipies that I cook in my blog, hence Kitchen Guardian...

Days and years passed by, I had Hajar and with the lack of time (excuse je)and Kitchen Guardian remained so so....until recently sometime in November 2008 I met this lady who is a freelance writer with a few local magazine during a meeting for us all to take up an editing job (for me, on the sidelah) and she started telling me of her story and how she started to write...she started when her family economy was not gloomy and her husband's income was not enough to go round...and now, she said she works based on the hours that she commands and the writing/editing job that she wishes to do. She also whispered to me that her monthly income is in the 5 figure amount, wow!! I'd love to do that, work at your own time and get that kind of income, she also assured me that there arent many accomplished local writers, and she encouraged me to write, in fact ever since my first encounter with her, she has been referring jobs of that nature to me...only to be turned down by me due to my time constraint. Well, I thought rezeki orang, but then again I also have this thing about working at home and for the last few years have been thinking hard about this, but didnt know how or where to start....

I got the editing job, my first assignment was to edit a book of about 250 pages for this private college, which cheque have just came in recently, woohoo, alhamdulillah. Am working on another book, this time about 400+ pages...most of the RM will go to my tabung haji....hmm think it's all your goals, what you tell yourself and your nawaitu, self affirmation...hence, why I have started writing again in Kitchen Guardian. I still have a long way to go when it comes to creative writing because I was trained to write facts (sebenarqnya i realise now I am happier if I can spend the whole day in the market, supermarket and in the kitchen)...facts yang now dah jadi boring, tiap tiap hari baca contracts, comment contracts and create contracts....

Haq and Yani...My Story

Oh...how do I begin this love story....

Sometime in 1984 after prime news, on RTM tv I watched this final debate held amongst all the sekolah berasrama penuh... I cannot miss this beacuse I also took part in the same competition, but our team from Sekolah Menengah Tuanku Syed Putra lost in the preliminary rounds....this second English debater from Sekolah Menegah Datuk Abd Razak...I couln't remember his name then, quite short with David Arumugam like hair but the bushy was a bit smaller...went..."Well, well, well...." and went on with his intro and rebuttal...it was Pertandingan Pidato Piala Perdana Menteri! Hmm, berlagaknya budak ni, I thought! Anyway, they won the competition!!

About a couple of years passed and it was my first day in my brand new adventure into college-hood in KPP/ITM, where I was supposed to complete my Alevels and do an English course on the side. It was the then shophouses where Giant Kelana Jaya is now...mind you then in late 1985 it was the beginning or recession in Malaysia, so there were many empty premises for the govenrment to help fill...hence our college. My class was called N8, it was not the last class, however, it was more of a "rojak" class, with mixture of students...ada this guy very alim but very clever from Kolej Islam Kelang, there was Yong from my previous school, there was this mek kelate Marhan, Shahriman the corky until now...but close friends with me and DH until now...and others...I waited and waited for any lecturer to arrive...but none came, as it was only our first day...but at around 11ish, this boy from the debate team opened the door of our class...he was to join our class!! Oh no.....

He was soft spoken, very very clever, but my thought of him being sombong...is somewhat true...he loves to boast whenever he finishes his work in class and I think he was aslo one of the lecturer's pet...podah!

Days passed, we went on doing our courses smoothly, and of courses, sambil-sambil belajar, there were romance...nolah not that standard (macam orang putih pulak)...love blooming, mushrooming amongts the boys and the girls...what do you expectlah kan at that age!!! And of course moi also felt the same...but moi sudah crushlah dengan itu budak yang moi kata dia sangat sombong, ha ha, padan muka jatuh atas batang hidung sendiri...

At the same time moi was close to this girl whose parents live in S'pore, but she lived in KL with her aunt and uncle....oklah to fast forward naik intercity 225...Shida confessed to me that she had a crush on that boy yang moi also have a crush on.....no way...how can she for him, inadequate to my standard...sometimes one have to think highly of oneself, like for this situation....I don't consider myself a go getter in the truest sense, but this moment, this opportunity I thought I'd go for it...One day, during break, I ajak the boy to this spot (now it where CIMB is!).....I told him I had a crush on him, better now, before the other girl grabs his attention (or did she? I don't carelah)He didn't utter a word, neither did he seemed terkejut, but he looked flattered though!

We finished our Alevels, of course after we were on talking terms like classmates, he did not show his feelings towards me...ada ke any? But that was irrelevant, I just had to tell him how I felt about him.

We flew to UK right after we finished our Alevels, the majority had to do their first year here. He went to Nottingham Uni, I went to Aberystwyth, we kept in close contact, he told everyone that we had a platonic relationship, I felt otherwise, tak pelah, what matters is how I felt towards him. Because I was disappointed I had to study in Aber instead of Queen Mary (thanks JPA for swopping), I am a constant figure in Notts, except for final year, where I stayed put in Aber an did all the studying that I had to do to get a decent degree...I was beginning to love Aber then! My Law in Nutshells were my contant companion during my travel from Aber to Notts....no...I am a capable lawyer now, ha ha!!

We came back, he started chambering in JB, a firm where he is still keeping partnership even after the owner passed away recently. I was lecturing in a private college in JB then....fast forward, skip skip...one day while I went visiting him in Batu Pahat at my the MIL's house...we were browsing wedding rings and engagement rings, and his mom spotted us...she just asked us when were getting engaged, all that... I looked at him because all this years after my confession, his feelings according to him towards me were just platonic....He said ok, we went out to get a gold band and we discussed the engagement day, etc etc....

Actually moi have to confess that had he not decided on that very day when his mom asked him, I was going to call it quits on him, not that I had any other guy, but I thought it was too long a wait already and my life had to go on.....of course during our days in uni, there were a few guys who were interested in me, but I had only eyees and feelings for him...

So, we tied the knot in 1993, packed two suitcases and lived on our own until today...and the platonic relationship bacame titanic, we are now expecting baby no. 6...Think, if we got married way back in uni, we would have a dozen no of kids:)