The Reader

High-tech waitress

She took the orders from me using palm-based PDA. As soon as she entered the order, a message is sent to the kichen wirelessly. I have been a palm pda user since 1998 and this is my first experience. After a few minutes, a waiter send me a wrong dish to my table! So much for the high-tech, but I think it is a good tool. The only thing is that the waiter must be trained to deliver the right dish to the right person.

PS: For the latest blog on palm pda,please visit Nazley's blog.

No smoking

Yesterday, while I was at Cafe Uno(attending Malaysian Bookcrossers Meet Up),Amcorp Mall,in PJ I saw an enforcement officer went straight to the smoker in the restaurant and told her about the No Smoking rules in shopping complex. The lady was speechless when the officer just took the cigarrette from her! I saw a lot of people got booked yesterday.

Most restaurants have No Smoking signs, and yet some customers just couldn't care less.In one big shopping complex,even the 'jaga'( guards) smoke! And that makes me speechless!

I read some where that the government is spending RM 50 m anti-smoking campaign. IMHO, without adequate enforcement, it is will like Cintailah Sungai Kita campaign. The rivers get dirty everyday:-(

Last night, I took my family to dinner for my son's birthday at GE Mall.My dear wife got a shock looking at two teenage girls smoking their heart out just five metres away from our table!

Kuliah Subuh( Subuh lecture)

The teacher who has been giving lecture at our surau for the last 20 years. He is Prof. Dr Haji Hashim Minhat.

...and here are the students who tried harder not to miss his lecture. The only lacking is the presence of younger audience. This morning we listened to a topic of why we need to do our ibadah to Allah swt. One of the twelve reasons is it is our personal obligation as a servant( the created) to his Master( the Creater).

Comfortable shoes

I always look for comfortable shoes either for business or leisure wear. The above cost about RM 250 per pair. I have yet to select which one? Most of the time, I prefer just to wear sandals as reflected in the mirror.

I have written two notes on shoes.One was about a friend who buys onlyGucci shoes;and the other when someone stole my shoes.

Any suggestion for comfortable shoes?

Du'a

Many a time, we only du'a to Allah swt when we have problems or in some forms of troubles. Let's read this Hadith from The Messenger of Allah:

"Whoever would be pleased to have Allah responds to him during hardship and disaster should make much du'a in times of ease". (al-Tarmidhi)

Supplication(du'a) to Allah is ordered by Him and He promises response:

"Call upon me;I will answer you." (Surah al-Ghafir 40:60)

May I quote Umm Muhamad in his book Realities of Faith:

Du'a is encouraged not only in formal prayers(salah) but at any other time one is inclined to it. It is an important form of worship and is evidence of one's belief in the power and the ability of Almighty.It is an open line of communication between the servant and his Lord.; and by its constant practice,awareness of Him is sustained,and one joins the ranks of:

"...the men and women who remember Allah often".(Surah al-ahzab 33:35)

Du'a is a cause.

National Storytelling Congress

In conjunction with the National Reading Month next month, a congress on the above will be held at Hotel Renaissance ,Kuala lumpur on 2nd of July,2004. Registeration is RM 150 per person. For detail,please check it at Life & Times of NST to-day.

What interests me the title of the congress and the power of stories. I only listen to stories when I was small. When I grow up, the only way to know more stories is to read books. If my memory is right, this is the first time we Malaysians are having a NATIONAL CONGRESS on storytelling! Anyway, I think it is good-better late than never.

A few years back, I created a website using geocities to collect and archive stories but it never really takes off.The website is here if you wish to read about it.
I also have uploaded a few articles on reading.

Reading is cool...Let's spread the reading virus to whoever you meet.

PS:

Here are TEN reasons why stories are powerful.

Haze,again?

Below is the latest news taken from the Star Online. I blogged about haze in September 1997-the worst I had ever experience when I have to use a mask! And now , we are having it again. Have we ever learn anything from experience? I wish we all had; but on the contrary, many never learn from experience. That is the reason why history repeats itself.In many aspects of our life(moral, water etc), when it comes to quality, we have more downhill than uphill. The 'downhill' is easier alternative because it follows the gravity( i.e our nafs)-we just don't have to do anything about it. The 'uphill' is more difficult because we have to do something about it.

In one water seminar I attended on IRBM(Intergrated River Basin Management) a few years ago,the DG of Dept of Environment told us that we have all the laws and regulations to protect our environment, but what we are lacking is the enforcement. In the case of the haze that is affecting us now, the source is in Kalimantan,Indonesia. If we fail to enforce compliance of environmental laws in our own country, then what else we can say about our neighbours?

The Star Online > Latest

Tuesday, June 22, 2004 Haze: Air quality worsening

Update from The Star News Desk

PETALING JAYA: The air quality over the whole of the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia is showing signs of worsening in the wake of the hot and dry weather and increased cross border pollution.

Department of Environment (DoE) Director General Rosnani Ibarahim said in a statement Tuesday that the number of hotspots had increased to 254 today from 84 on Sunday.

Rosnani said the air quality in five areas of the peninsula is unhealthy, while it is moderate in 43 areas and good in two places. Four spots in the Klang Valley Gombak, Klang, Shah Alam and Petaling Jaya are showing deterioration.

© 1995-2003 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D)

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

To all fathers out there,may I wish you all:

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Palmx BTM June,2004

Thanks to those who took time to attend the above gathering of Palmx Users Group. The meeting took place at our usual place-KL Sentral Starbuck. A few of us brought our own notebook/iBook because now we can access wi-fi from TM Net located at Kenny Rogers restaurant. The meeting lasts until about 7:00pm. My parking cost me RM 11.80. Next time, I will take ERL;-)

My thanks to everyone who had never failed to make the meeting as enjoyable and beneficial for everyone. As BTM suggested, we beam, we talk and we 'makan':-) Everyone is invited to talk about their latest discovery/problems in using palm pda. More photos here.And here.

If you own a palm pda, don't miss the next BTM. It will be announced at our palmx forum.

Delayed prayers

In one Hadith narrated by Ibn Mas'ud: " I asked the Messenger of Allah:What deed is most loved by Allah? He replied,"To offer each prayer as soon as it is due". I aske him,Then what? He said,"Treating one parents with honour and respect." I asked him,"Then what? He said," Jihad for the sake of Allah".( Bukhari and Muslim)

If we look back in the last 7 days,how many of our daily prayers that we have done as soon as it is due? Just count the number of subuh prayers that were done just a few minutes before the sun rises? How many dhuhor and 'asar prayers were done just before the next prayer is due?

"As soon as it due" is interpreted by one ulama that we must pray not later than 24 minutes when it is due in order to get the fadilat of early prayers. This guide is neglected by many of us when we are at work or at play. One of the way is to fix our prayer times in our daily diary,and all other activities should be done before or after the time allocated for prayers.

From my personal experience, I only put work matters in my personal diary and not many things relating to ibadah and other family matters especially regarding our parents and silaturrahim among friends and relatives. It is not too late to change if we have not done that. Better still if we put that in our electronic pda/personal computer because it will reminds us of the events and To Do items via alarms.

It is easily said than done, but we must try harder to pray early.