Just trying a hand at blogging...

Hello, my name is Luqman Hakim.My mother is not well and not strong enough to add yet another entry in this blog. So, I felt like trying my hand on this blogging thing. I am 9 years old. I have a brother who is 11 years old. He is currently at school. I came back early today as I got my asthma attack at school. So, the teacher sent me back to my granny's house. There I called my Dad who took me to the Clinic where I have a 5-minute nebulizer treatment. Then Dad sent me home.
(Picture shows me caught a fish)

Yet Another Visit .... Part 2

Danish, Aqil & Mia absorbing nature. The first night in the wilderness. Though they have been spending most of what is left of the day in the water and by right they should be tired and sleepy by now, but it seemed like they need a little "used-to". As for Mia, she hardly sleep early - doe not matter where she is.

Early in the first morning, my man was already busy "building" a kitchen shelf for me.



The finished shelf. How proud am I of my man (:-D. As you can see, part of our pots and pans, cooking oil and coconut milk.


Among our ration - we hardly go without honey and of course kicap kipas udang. And more importantly the nursing bottle - you can spot it can't you?

Highlight of the day. My man finally caught the King of the River - seen here happily and proudly holding what else but KELAH! (If I am not mistaken it is called Empurau in Sarawak)




A happy moment like this need to be shared. Father and children happily posing with the "golden" catch. Our day went as smoothly as possible. What with the potential of savouring Kelah the next day. Back when I was still a young child, we never thought that Kelah will be scarce to find. I remembered the days when I followed my brother Zaid fishing. More often than not, we will bring back one or two kelah home. Hence when I first met my husband and he told me about his craze over kelah I was quite dumbfounded. In my heart I was like "Craze over Kelah? Something must be wrong" Little that I know then. Kelah is slowly vanishing from our rivers. However, with the steps taken by the Wildlife Department, serious efforts are being taken to ensure the continuity of Kelah existence. Since last year the Dept had set up a Kelah Sanctuary at Lubuk Pertang some 10 minutes boat ride from Lubuk Kaloi where we set camp. I'll tell you more in the next entry.

Love Thy Neighbour, ... Excuse Me

I was just coming back from sending my daughter to her kindi yesterday when my neighbour straight away blurted out her frustration. Guessed she has been dying to let go off her emotion for there's no "muqaddimah". "I was so fed-up with these cats!" started she. Well, that's enough for me to understand her predicament. We are in the same boat. You see, almost everyday we have to clean our backyard or sometimes our porch area for there's always "something" left behind by the feline society. I do not hate cats - in fact when our previous neighbour left their pregnant cat behind and she gave birth to 4 kittens, I climbed the gate to get to them and to ensure that they have enough blanket, milk and water. I did not take them over to my place as I still hope that the neighbour will come back and collect them. So, for a few days we fed them until one day when both my husband and I came back from work (I was still working at that time), the cat and kittens were gone.

Another occasion was when with two other friends we borrowed a ladder to rescue a kitten from falling down Sg Gombak (that time I was working somewhere in Jalan Melaka). No! I do not hate cats. But I do not dare to have any for a pet for its maintenance could be very high. If I have a choice I would love to own one from the Scottish fold or the Ragdoll or even the Maine Coon breed. Anyway, back to my neighbour. Her next statement was "If I can't stand it anymore I think I will poison them." Oh. OK. If at that moment I agree to her problem-solving, I have a feeling that she will just go ahead and I can almost visualize dead cats scattered all over her backyard.

To be frank, at times when I too can't take it anymore, I have the same thought as she but I do not dare to turn it into practical. So I told her (in my attempt to change her decision) "Sometimes I do wish to do the same but it is not really their fault. I guessed their owners do not have a proper tray for them. So, it doesn't help poisoning the cats - they are not the guilty party. Perhaps, it's the owner who deserved to be poisoned... " She laughed. "Perhaps.." she said. "Anyway, with the better technology, better forensic equipments and better trained forensic officers, we couldn't stand a chance if we do. We do not want to end up behind locked bar, do we?" So, our neighbourhood cats and their owners are saved. But I do hope that cat owners be more responsible.

Source of images : Scottish Fold from www.catsofaustralia.com; Ragdoll from www.catpets.org; Maine Coon from www.mainequilts.org

Errr.... Yet Another Visit Part 1

Call us Crazy if you like. But this is our third trip to Taman Negara Kuala Koh since March 2009. Well, actually the children & I were planning a Father's Day Getaway for my husband. To make a long story short we finally chose to spend time with nature (well, the weather is hot and dry in Shah Alam and cases of H1N1 is increasing in the Klang Valley, so this trip is not just a "getaway" but a "runaway" too!) - at least that's how our 3 days 2 nights "getaway" to Kuala Koh (again!) began.

We left home around 6.30 after performing our Subuh prayer. Though at first we planned to spend only one night in the jungle while the other two at the Chalet, we soon revised our plan. Once we reached Kuala Koh and learned from Mat the Boatman that Lubuk Kaloi is not occupied, we decided to take the boat ride straight away.


Since it was already around 5.30 pm by the time we reached Lubuk Kaloi, my husband & my eldest son, Danish started to unpack our tent equipment to set up tent. While they were doing this I was busy taking out the camping gas and the kettle - I always start our camping with boiling water and preparing tea (or coffee for that matter). Once done, it's time to cook rice (the formula? water has to be one part more than the rice - this never failed us and the rice will always be nicely done). Next, I rummaged our Coleman box while formulating the recipe for dinner in my head. BTW, a peep into our tent? Here it is :

Our Living Room












Our Bedroom













Once we fulfilled 2 out of the 3 basic needs - it's fishing time for my husband & my second son Hakim. As can be seen here, Hakim in his elements, reigning his own fishing kingdom. And if you were wondering what became of my other 3 children, here goes :





Danish and Damia - no fishing enthusiasts but they love being close to nature. They love playing in the water and supposed the Theory of Evolution works, during our stay perhaps they have developed some kind of breathing structures attached to their noses or lungs which enable them to live underwater.


And Aqil... Oh dear... busy "building the dam" for the fish. Well, whenever they caught any small fish, my husband & Hakim released them in the dam-like structure (can be seen behind Aqil) "built' by the three children. And they enjoyed watching the fish swimming - as they realized after their observation, different specie of fish has different movement.


The Dam.












If you look closer, you can see a yellow baung "relaxing" by the rock - if not thinking of an escape route!


Well, at first though I was the one who suggested camping at the Lubuk, I was quite unsure as to whether my children will enjoy it. My husband dismissed the idea in the beginning thinking of safety and a lot of "what ifs... - what if it rains during the night? what if they catch fever, what if they fall sick? etc,... " But that changed once he saw the children's enthusiasm when we reached Lubuk Kaloi. Here, they are free though we still keep an eye on them. Back at home, they are "locked" behind the front and back gates confined to the safety of the house - the older boys have stopped playing badminton or cycling since there were flyers informing parents in our area to always be watchful & not to let our children out of our sight as there was a case of attempted kidnapping in our neighborhood not long ago. Pity the children, back home they do not have anywhere to go. But here, they really let themselves go! During our two night stay in the jungle, they are FREE. I do hope that this area of Taman Negara stay this way - I hope it will not be commercialized. For it is a real Getaway for some of us. Well, wait for my next entry, ya!

Err... Sorry Again...

Saying sorry with bluebells and another "Thank You & I'm Sorry" Bouquet for all of you - followers, fellow bloggers and readers of Life...As It Goes. Very very Sorry for neglecting the blog/blogs for quite some time. Just when I thought I can continue updating there'll always be other things that require my attention. Or other activities that need to be attended to. However, this time, I hope I'll will not stray away for long again. And "A Big Thank You" for continuing your visit. Wait for my new entry ya! On my camping trip.

















(Source of Images : Bluebells from adventuresinscent.co.uk and Bouquet of Roses from ShoppingIndiaTime.com)