Some people really can't wait

If you were on the road during the last few days or so during the Aidilfitri holidays, it is most likely that you were caught in a traffic jam somehow, somewhere.

On the second day of hari raya, we traveled from Johor Bahru to Mersing, on the old Federal Route 3. We got stuck in a horrendous jam near Taman Saujana up to the junction of Kulai road, before Kota Tinggi town. It took us 45 minutes to move a distance of about 3.5 km. The design of the road junction at Taman Saujana also didn't help because two lanes from the secondary road merged with the single lane on the trunk road. Add to this, many drivers also used the road shoulder as an additional lane.... so you have four lanes of traffic squeezing into one. Classic bottleneck.

I simply can't understand why people overtake on the left using the road shoulder. Why can't these people have the patience to wait in line like the rest of us? There are even some drivers who `curi jalan' on the road shoulder of the other side and drive contra to the flow! Crazy jerks.

Whenever I see reckless people like these, I would remark to my kids, `Tengok tu. Dah tak tahan sangat nak buang air agaknya...' Except that the actual word I used for `buang air' is too crude to be printed.

After dishonest people, queue-jumpers are perhaps the type of people that I hate most.

Update 01 Dec 2021 : No security issues with this post

Of seeking forgiveness and renewing ties

The beauty of Eid-ul Fitri celebrations is that it allows you to visit elder relatives during a specific period. Otherwise, for whatever reason, most of us would find it difficult or even awkward to visit our grandparents, aunts or uncles if we do not have any specific reason to do so.

Aidilfitri gives us the opportunity to meet up, catch up on the latest stories and renew ties. The food, cookies and refreshments are just an aside from the main objective of the occasion. At the end of the visit, we salam and kiss the hands of our elders while asking them to forgive us for any transgressions that we may have done. The seeking of forgiveness from your senior relatives can be very poignant moments, accompanied almost always by hugs and tears... especially when your elder says, `Entah jumpa lagi tak kita ni tahun depan, ya?'.

My Aidilfitri for this year was spent with my parents in Singapore but the celebrations were held at my sister's house in Bukit Panjang. My sister had actually moved into her house some time back but she only managed to furnish it recently. She had asked our parents and my family to spend the Hari Raya at her home for the first time and we duly obliged. Sort of a house-warming and hari raya two-in-one deal.

The morning feast for Hari Raya consisted of our traditional lontong accompanied by sambal goreng, sambal kacang, ayam masak merah, daging goreng chili and serunding kelapa. We had to make do with the instant nasi himpit because my sister didn't have time to get the real coconut leaves to make ketupat.

The day was filled with visits by my cousins from both sides of the Causeway. Some of the cousins I have not met for a number of years. I got to meet some new nephews and nieces for the first time too.

Many of the visiting relatives complimented my sister and her husband on their beautiful home. They had spent a lot of time getting their house nicely decorated so the compliments were very encouraging. It was a joyous day indeed.

The following days of hari raya were spent back at my wife's kampong in Mersing. I'll post about it next, I hope. Need to take some rest now and prepare to get back to work tomorrow.

Update 08.11.2021 : A few of the those in the pictures are no longer here. My brother Azhar Bin Isma Yatim, my father Isma Yatim Bin Hj Ramli and my cousin Noraini Bt Rohani, have all departed. My sister and her first husband have divorced many years ago. She has since remarried. So the house mentioned in this post is all but a memory.

Salam Aidilfitri

Ketupat palas serunding daging,
Nasi dagang ikan tenggiri,
Hidangan enak dari pantai timur.
Buat sahabatku di alam blogging,
Salam ukhuwah di Aidilfitri,
Semuga berkekalan sepanjang umur.

Maaf zahir dan batin dari Oldstock dan famili.

Ar Raudah Mosque in Bukit Batok, Singapore where I'll be performing my Aidilfitri prayers, insyaallah.

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To all my blogger friends and everyone who has kindly dropped by, I wish you Happy Holidays. Watch what you eat, okay? Stay cool and see you after the break.

To tide you over until the next post, the following is the first part of my attempt at writing fiction. Just a short story that was first written years ago but re-discovered recently on an old 3.5" floppy. Luckily the file was still intact. Although written some time back, the story is still a work in progress (how's that for procrastinating, huh?).

A BINGO STRAIGHT TO THE HEART (Part 1)

It had been a very trying day. The drizzle that began early that morning further compounded the inevitable traffic jam in Kuala Lumpur on a late Saturday afternoon. My spirits weren’t particularly high that day; it hadn’t been for the past few weeks. There were problems at work and my car’s air-conditioning chose a nice time to run out of gas. Bummer.

I was in the lift lobby of the Ampang Puteri Specialist Hospital, waiting for the elevator to take me up to the 3rd floor where my father was being warded. The lift seemed to take ages to arrive, as things are wont to be whenever you are in a hurry. I had not noticed the tall gentleman standing a few feet behind me when he spoke.

“Assalamualaikum. Sorry… but are you Junainah?”

I turned my head, slightly surprised to see a smartly dressed young man who somehow knew my name.

“Alaikum-salam. Yes, I am.” I replied. The young man’s face does not look familiar to me, but then again, I’m poor at remembering faces.

“You studied at Sheffield Hallam University about 5 years ago, I believe. I don’t think you remember me but I was at your house once in the winter of 1990,” he said. I was searching my memory bank when he continued, “We played Scrabble that day, together with Aida and your housemates. I’m Johari, Aida’s classmate, or former classmate I should say.”

The mention of the Scrabble game suddenly brought the memories flooding back. Of course, now I remember! How can I ever forget that day; it had been a day of many `firsts’….

Update 08.11.2021 : Perhaps it is time for me to complete this short story...

End of hijacking saga

NST online reported that MISC has successfully negotiated the release of its tanker Bunga Melati Lima, from Somali pirates who hijacked the ship exactly a month ago. The paper also carried an article about the relief felt by families of two of the crew -> The best Raya gift, say families.

One of the crew of Bunga Melati Lima, Rizal Shah Bin Abdul Jabar, is a nephew of mine. Rizal's mother, Puan Fauziah Salleh, is my cousin. I'm happy for my cousin that her son has been released. Alhamdulillah.

It was reported that negotiations for the other ship, Bunga Melati Dua, is still ongoing. Let us all pray for the successful release of this ship and the safe return of all the crew.

Update 08.11.2021 : The link to the NST online article has expired and is now removed.

Approaching the end of Ramadhan 1429AH

Today is the 27th day of fasting. There are only three days left to go before we leave this holy month of Ramadhan and end our compulsory fasting for this year.

There are many from amongst us who would be sad with the passing of this month. We would miss the bountiful rewards that the Almighty reserves for His faithful servants only in this month. Perhaps there are some who rue the missed opportunity to do good deeds on Lailatul Qadr, the Night of Power that is better than a thousand months. Others would miss the state of being calm and patient that the ritual of fasting is meant to inculcate.

At the same time, I guess there would be many people who would not be missing Ramadhan. They need not worry anymore about sneaking a bite, sipping a drink or puffing a cigarette behind closed doors. May Allah have pity on these types of people.

So how was my Ramadhan for this year? Alhamdulillah, praise be to the Almighty... it has been very fulfilling so far. I have been relatively healthy... the gastric problems that I experienced earlier in the year did not resurface. Things at work, although busy, were all under control. I had to travel to the Head Office only twice this month so most times iftar and sahur were together with my family.

And yes, I would be missing Ramadhan very much. Apart from the religious rituals, I would miss one of the most lively events that happen only during the fasting month, the Ramadhan Bazaar. For a food aficionado like me, the enormous range and variety of food and drinks that you can find at these bazaars are mind-boggling. Dishes from other regions that are not normally available at other times, can now be found at the bazaars. For example, the east-coast dish of nasi kerabu and nasi dagang can be found sold at many stalls here in Johor Bahru. There is this one stall at the bazaar near my home that sells Penang Char Kuetiaw (the Bukit Mertajam version). There are of course, the normal Johor favourites such as lontong kering, nasi beriani, nasi ambang, asma rojak, mee rebus, sup tulang merah, murtabak etc. etc. etc. It is very tempting to try all at once.

Asma rojak at bazar ramadhan Bandar Baru Uda

The range that's available is so huge that I can choose one dish for each day of breaking fast, and when the whole 30 days of fasting is up, there would still be many dishes that I have not tasted. But of course, that was not what I did. In the first week, I sort of experimented by trying the options available and once I found a few stalls that sold tasty food that I liked, I just stick to those few.

Bandung soda, another Johor speciality drink

In our house, the drink that is more or less compulsory to have at iftar is Air Kathira. This particular drink only surfaces during Ramadhan (well actually, some drink stalls sell so-called air kathira throughout the year but these are tasteless). The most famous air kathira in Johor Bahru is called Kathira Abu Bakar. Many news articles have been written about it. However, a new contender has emerged since last Ramadhan to challenge Abu Bakar's top position. It's called Kathira Urip, and I have been a loyal customer since last year.

Air kathira (also spelled khatira or katira) is a cool drink made with evaporated milk, pandan-flavoured syrup, kathira gum, biji selasih and buah kembang semangkuk. Some versions of this drink also include grass jelly (cincau), raisins and shredded dates. The kathira gum is a tree extract and comes in powder form. It is mainly produced in India. You probably know that biji selasih are called basil seeds in English. I found out from a friend of a friend on Facebook that buah semangkuk is called malva nuts in English. Malva nuts (see pic below) come mainly from Thailand.

Air kathira is a delicious drink. I cannot describe the taste. What puzzles me is why Abu Bakar and Urip only sell their drink during the fasting month? I have googled and found a recipe for this drink so that I can try to make one myself.

In a few days, I bid farewell to the holy month that is full of trials, temptations and rewards. May Allah be graceful enough to grant me the time to meet the next Ramadhan.

Update 08.11.2021 : This post is one of the very few that does not have page security issues.