Remedy to a Plight

Sunday, 17th February, 2008. The Business Project groups of Aura, Faizun, Camaraderie and 743 Masterpiece lend a hand in helping the family of Hj Siawang Hj Salleh at STKRJ (Skim Tanah Kurnia Rakyat Jati) Mata-Mata Gadong. It was a social responsibility organized by the 4 groups led by myself to assist Hj Siawang in cleaning up the compound and contributing basic necessities.

Hj Siawang Hj Salleh, a 66 year old military retiree, has lived in his house for over 10 years. He relied on his pension of $700 but that isn't merely enough to support his family of 22, which includes his 2 wives, children, sons-in-law and grandchildren. His older children are jobless and only a few of his younger children and grandchildren go to school. Furthermore, his house is not big enough to accommodate all his family.

We've managed to collect as much as $300 dollars or more to purchase basic necessities such as rice, mineral water, cooking oil, sugar, salt, instant noodles, eggs and canned foods which was then contributed to Hj Siawang on the day of the Social Responsibility event at his residence. Some of the others even contributed old belongings such as used clothes and toys for the children and grandchildren.

The activity started at 9.00 AM. Camps were set up and chairs and tables were prepared. We cleaned up the front yard right after a few opening speeches and remarks. The bottles piled up in front of Hj Siawang's house were all placed in plastic bags to be rearranged to a more convenient location. Grasses were cut, shrub of leaves were brought down to make room for a clearer compound, rubbishes were disposed and burned, and food were prepared on the table.

The Social Responsibility Event has been a success, and it's really great to see the family filled with joy after receiving our help. Tears run down Hj Siawang's eyes as we read the doa. From that moment I knew that, no matter how hard my life is right now, there are others out there like Hj Siawang who is experiencing an even more complicated life.

'Share your wealth', that was the message that we have all learned from that day. We learned a great deal in organizing this kind of activity and hopefully we will all do the same in the future. I encouraged those participated to open their eyes and be part of what it's like to be in the situation of Hj Siawang and his family, even for just a day. Most importantly, it doesn't matter who we donate and contribute to as long as it comes straight from the sincerest of heart, or in Brunei terms, "Sedakah ani inda payah bekira, yang penting ikhlas."

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved in this activity. It was more than I have expected. Never has there been students taking such initiatives to organize such an activity to help those who are really in dire need. It has been a remarkably meaningful event.

Big thanks to Hj Mohd Amni for providing the camps, Aura and Camaraderie for making an effort in buying the basic necessities for the purpose of contribution, the members of Faizun for providing the food for the committee, Siti Aisyah for bringing in the press, Marianni for her wonderful punch juice, Amir for coming down to the venue and taking some nice photos (and posting up a blog about this event), Arif for all his help to assist me in carrying the contributions that early morning, Sir Iswandi, Ms Hazwani and Ms Liza for attending and contributing some food for the table as well, Dash for bringing in and contributing the most used items, and all the rest which I haven't mentioned earlier, Thank you all for lending a hand in the cleaning campaign and the contributions. Your support are highly appreciated. Indeed, it was more than I've actually expected.

Our contributions; more than expected

Special thanks goes to our advisor of the programme as well as my good old friend Hj Mohd Khairul Anwar for all his help and advice in making this activity a success, and also to Pengiran Hj Mohammad bin Pg Hj Ludin for his guidance and making this event possible.

For those interested to contribute to Hj Siawang Hj Salleh may do so by visiting his residence at No 81, Lot 41, Simpang 207-3-16, StKRJ Kg Mata-Mata Gadong, BE1918, Brunei Darussalam.

More Photos From The Social Responsibility

My speech

Mask off, mask on

Hard at work


These kittens watched as we were doing our chores

Taking opportunities for group shots


The grandchildren watched our activities

Menabas


Found a gecko on my thigh

Burning the leaves

Special appearance by Amir

More food for the kids

Lining up to shake hands with the family members

A great team effort

An Opportunity Arises

It has been a really busy week. I just received a project to conduct an exciting event. I will post all related news and updates on my project activities here throughout the preparations and share with you all this exciting event that will really blow your minds. Hopefully all goes well. Your support will be highly appreciated.

Double The Size

Well, what a surprise. Apple has just recently announced its new line of higher capacity iPod Touch. Previously limited up to 16 GB upon its release last year, the new Touch now comes in 32 GB. Also, they even increased the size of the iPhone up to 16 GB now.

What do you know. If I didn't buy my 80 GB iPod Video in the first place, I would be considering this one right now. 32 GB is pretty neat for my songs collection, which has already reached a total 20 GB. But to think about it, that number would definitely increase in time, and that would make a 32 GB obsolete in no time. I guess I should just wait until at least an 80 GB iPod Touch is made available, then I'll pass my current iPod to my brother.

When the iPod Touch was announced last year, I was mesmerized by the fact that the multi-touch interface has been adapted into an iPod, but they've announced that a little too late. 2 months before the announcement I've already purchased an 80 GB iPod Video Black. Sigh. But I realized at that time that a 16 GB iPod is ridiculously insufficient for my ever-growing library, so I decided to stick with what I had.

I still love my iPod, regardless.

Am I Up For It?

Let's recap. 3 more months until my days in the Business School will finally be over. But I gotta get through the exams first. Things are getting tougher than I expected, particularly on my statistics which I struggled the most.

If I get through this very well, I could give that scholarship application a shot. Of course, I have to ensure my total aggregate points meet the requirements. But is this really what I wanna do for my next step? One part of me says I should stay and consider getting a job right away, because seriously, it's not at all fun earning $255 a month these past couple of years. Even now, I can't hardly move. There are things that I wanna get, but all are restrained because of the more important things I have to focus on, e.g. transport, food, the basic stuff.

Sigh. I'm just this close in getting to the point where I can finally earn something, and have the luxury to get access to what I wanna do, what I wanna get and where I wanna be. However, I've made a promise to myself to keep on studying despite my age. Even to the point of getting a degree, that's also my dream. But being at this age where I have to really start living, it's tough to survive. Let's just hope that this Diploma I'm getting right now is really worth it.

Besides, studying in UK is tough as well. But hey, everything is tough, it's life. There will be a point in time when I really made that a reality. Maybe I should focus on what's happening right now, and see where things will be heading for me.

On The List

For those who haven't found out yet, my weblog has been listed at the Blogging Nation since December of last year, so you could actually spot my site name in the personal category and click from there to reach here.

Longing For a Macbook

I want one... *sigh*

The End of The Cafe Culture

As far as we all know, the only 'entertainment' in Brunei are late-night cafes, restaurants and eateries. Figures, since eating is Brunei's number one pastime anyway. The so-called 'Cafe Culture' in Brunei has continued to grow over the past decade, with the young adults hanging out in Gadong, Kiulap and Bandar to enjoy a midnight snack and coffee while surfing the net through their laptops, smoke, chat with friends and watch football matches on the widescreen TV.

Sadly, this 'Cafe Culture' will no longer exist in our quiet and peaceful land. It is learned that at a meeting held by the relevant authorities in November last year it has decided that all restaurants, cafes and eateries will have to be closed by 12 midnight. 12 midnight? Doesn't that feel like that's a little too early? This is so absurd.

I don't have a wireless connection at home (yet), and I usually drove to the nearest cafe with wi-fi and surf the net on my laptop there along with a nice hot cup of tea. That's like the only time I could unwind myself. Now it seems like I'm gonna have to stay in my room all night and play solitaire before bed. That sucks big time!

I think that this new rule will do tremendous damage to the economy and to the image of the country. We are going backwards. I hate going backwards. This new rule is making us going backwards. What's the point of all the years of promoting SME's in Brunei? What's the point of me taking up a course in the business school? My enthusiasm in business is dimmed by these ridiculous restrictions.

So where do we go if we wanna do our assignments at night? What about the football fans who wish to watch football late at night with their friends (that's really gonna upset them). Can we still buy nasi katok in the middle of the night when we're hungry? And why the hell are gyms closed at 9pm? Who's going to the gym between Maghrib and Isyaq? Who's going to the gym during the day when most of the customers are at work?

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Wanna hear Johnny Depp sing? Turns out he's a fantastic singer. I was mesmerized by his talents when he belted out a few ballads throughout this film. Oh wait, the whole casts sing.

I love Tim Burton's work since Edward Scissorhands in 1990. The collaboration between Burton and Depp has always been a wonderful experience that resulted to a successful flicks e.g. Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Corpse Bride. Now, they're back with this awesome take on a classic musical film.

This movie isn't really for everyone, mind you. There are gory scenes of decapitation that may give quite a bit of a shock, unless if you think of it as an art form, like me (bwhahhahaha!!!). But overall, you'll enjoy this film because its also delightfully funny, and has a strong cast of stars singing their hearts out, they're really sweet to watch. And hey, it's a Tim Burton film, with Johnny Depp in it. What's there not to like?

Death of Australia's Finest

Finally, I've managed to return to blogging again. I had a terrible diarrhea last week, but thankfully it's all over. By the time I recovered last Sunday, I knew I should start watching over what I eat. Perhaps I should consider Fine Dining.

So many things happened last week. Ex-president Soeharto died pretty recently after months of being hospitalized. And then there was another death earlier last week, and it was a shocker in the Entertainment industry. Heath Ledger, best known for playing as the gay cowboy in the sleeper hit 'Brokeback Mountain', died in his apartment in New York. He was found dead after a reported accidental overdose. He was 28.

Heath Ledger in 'Brokeback Mountain'

It's a tragic loss for this young Australian actor. I have seen his potential in several of his movies, beginning in '10 Things I Hate About You' back in 1999. He had just recently completed his role as The Joker for the next Batman Flick. 'The Dark Knight' is currently in post production with the trailers already rolling in, and we see Ledger as The Joker and what looked like a promising feat of this talented young actor as one of the most awesome villains in Gotham.

Heath Ledger as The Joker in 'The Dark Knight'

Clearly, when I watched the trailers, my anticipation didn't actually go to Christian Bale as the dark knight, but more towards Heath Ledger as the new Joker. Sadly, his tragic death somehow affected my perception towards this upcoming film, because of Ledger's potrayal as Joker that looks very deranged and freaky, kinda ironic for a recent tragedy.

Here are several of his notable work over the past decade:

Rest In Peace
Heath Ledger
1979 - 2008

Bad Weekend

I feel like shit. It must have been something I ate yesterday at the canteen. It seems that I'm suffering from food poisoning or diarrhea, I dunno. I feel weak and restless thanks to constant urges to go to the toilet. I gotta see a doctor. :S