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Gentle Strength

October 15, 2002 by Enida

As of today, dah masuk dua bulan ngam-ngam we have been calling this Arbour Lake apartment our home (away from home). Do I miss our house in Muscat? Hmmm, kinda. It’s the comfort of being surrounded by your own things, more than anything. Your belongings. Quello è tutto.


This week started today, Tuesday. T’was a long weekend – Thanksgiving. I sure gave many thanx to Be for his effort to stay away from his office. We went for a drive yesterday…to

Frank, Blairmore, Coleman, Crowsnest Pass, passing Black Diamond, and even to Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump!



It was fun. I truly felt ‘enriched’ in so many ways, to have the opportunity to tengok dunia. The Prairie, the foothills and the mountains. Needless to mention the farmlands and pinelands and the snow lah kan! Every time I see new things…God’s work, I keep thinking of how much I am going to miss it all when I am gone.


Grateful I am, for what life has given me. For where life has taken me. I used to look back at those painful years, still feeling that I was the manusia paling malang dalam dunia. I wept for the woman I once was, embraced her and pujuk her hati yang lara. Ewah!

And because I did that, I am a stronger person today. Like I told you, I can even fly now! (Don’t believe everything you read…silly!) I still cry when I need to. No qualm about crying. And no pride to say sorry when I know I am wrong. My strength lies in the recognition that I am human and God has a bigger plan for me.

See what those gorgeous mountain views and fresh air have done to my brain? Eeeek! Philosophical pulak!

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Winter Boots On

October 11, 2002 by Enida

Hoy! It is still snowing out there today, and the temperature dropped to minus 7 last night. If you did take a peek at the pictures I took yesterday from our Arbour Lake apartment window…imagine lah today, it is tripple or even perhaps quadruple as bad!


Be went to work in his winter boots today. Huah huah huah! Ya know what he said after the mooch-mooch-I-love-views before he left for work this morning? “I hate Canada!” Awwww! Here, snow is known to fall not only in winter, but any season…with no reason.

I might be homesick like anything, but hmmm…I can’t say I hate this place. O Canada!

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A Day Like Today

October 10, 2002 by Enida

Brrrrr! It’s snowing again in the middle of Autumn. It is prettyful, don’t get me wrong. And I am not complaining. But I am hoping that the weather would cheer up a bit and gimme a chance to go for my road test. Urghh!


It does get kinda bright and serene around our apartment on a snowy day like today. And cosi-cosi…I should just sit back and enjoy my tummy while sipping on MILO

… in front of the fireplace, kan?



Silly me!

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MY-CA Visa

October 6, 2002 by Enida


OTTAWA, September 23, 2002 — The Honourable Denis Coderre, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, announced today that citizens of Malaysia will require a Canadian temporary resident visa to travel to Canada as of 00:01 EDT, September 24, 2002.

As a rule, all visitors to Canada require a visa, except citizens of countries where an exemption has been granted. Visa requirements and exemptions are reviewed on an active and ongoing basis.

“Many factors are considered in making decisions to lift visa exemptions,” said Minister Coderre. “It is essential to maintain the integrity of Canada’s immigration program, while continuing to facilitate the entry of legitimate travellers.”

The decision to lift the visa exemption was made because the Malaysian passport and passport issuing system are vulnerable to abuse.

Citizens of Malaysia can apply for a temporary resident visa at any Canadian visa office abroad. To meet the demand for temporary resident visas, a visa section will be open at the Canadian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur on September 24, 2002. A grace period ending at 23:59 EDT, September 25, 2002, will be given to travellers who are in transit.

“We remain committed to providing quality service to facilitate the entry of business representatives, students, tourists and other legitimate travellers from Malaysia and all other countries,” said Minister Coderre.

People who travel to Canada regularly, such as business people, may choose to apply for long-term, multiple-entry visas. As of September 24, 2002, citizens of Malaysia who wish to study temporarily in Canada will be able to apply for student permits at the Canadian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur, a service previously offered in Singapore. Citizens of Malaysia who wish to work temporarily in Canada will be able to apply for a work permit at the Canadian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur in early 2003. Until then, this service will continue to be offered at the Canadian High Commission in Singapore. Services for processing applications for permanent resident status will remain in Singapore.

Since December 2001, the results of ongoing reviews have led to lifting visa exemptions for Dominica, Grenada, Hungary, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Zimbabwe and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The gobloque dialogue should read:
“Oooh! Takutnyer kat Malaysians semua, because they are known for ‘harboring’ Al-Qaeda and terrorists! Oooh! Kita kasik jer ler alasan that ‘…Malaysian passport and passport issuing system are vulnerable to abuse.’ Abis citer.”

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Not Meant To Be

October 3, 2002 by Enida

Some people are just not meant to be…

YOURS.


Never Meant To Be

I thought of you today,
The way I often do.
Recalling tender moments,
Of the love I shared with you.

Sometimes you visit me,
In my dreams late at night,
Then you disappear,
With the early morning light.

It wasn’t angry words,
That drove us apart.
It wasn’t lack of caring,
Or a sudden change of heart.

I suppose there are some things
That are never meant to be.
This seems the only answer,
That makes sense to me.

Circumstance, destiny,
Some might call it fate.
The chance to share my life with you,
Simply came to late.

Now time has slipped away,
Days have turned to years.
And now it’s much to late,
For regrets and lonely tears.

So, where ever life has taken you,
We’re never far apart.
For I’ll always have your memory,
Hidden safely within my heart.
By:
Carinbama2

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Teenage Whore

October 2, 2002 by Enida

I was shocked to hear the song “Teenage Whore” sung by Courtney Love played on Radio MMU on October 2, 2002 at 02:51! I thought my ears were playing tricks on me. I searched for the lyrics to see if it wasn’t what I was hearing. Unfortunately, I was so very wrong.


Teenage Whore
Pretty On the Inside

When I was a teenage whore
My mother asked me, she said, “Baby, what for?
I give you plenty, why do you want more?
Baby, why are you a teenage whore?”
I said, “I feel so alone and I, I wish I could die
“I’ve seen the things you put me through and I, I wish I could die”
When I was a teenage whore
The rain came down like it never did before
I paid good money not to be ignored
Then why am I a teenage whore?
I’ve seen your repulsion
And it looks real good on you
Denying what…what what you put me through

…of my house…get out of my house!
Get out of my house…get out of my house!
When I was a teenage whore
My mother asked me, she said, “Baby, what for?
I give you plenty, why do you want more?
Baby, why are you a teenage whore?”

I’ve seen your repulsion
And it looks real good on you
I don’t want to live what you had…
you have put me through
I wanted that shirt and I, I wanted those pants
It’s all the lying put me through and I
I never…whoa!

Hmmm…lagu cenggini tak kena gam pulak ek? Or because it was aired at the wee hour of night, tak de saper dengor, kira cincai lah. Ke? Hmmm…kompius!

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The MILO Memory

September 30, 2002 by Enida

As a child, I used to like MILO so much. I still do. Not as much…but still do. But back then, it was always about sharing. Getting a little today, so there’s a little for others. About berjimat. Getting a little today for a little again the day after. Milo was a reward. A treasure. Not just a drink. It was also ‘food’ for those tea-times when there wasn’t enough flour for mom to make any kueh.


When I got my first biasiswa, the first thing I bought was a BIG can of MILO. I didn’t drink it. I ate it. I ate it like I was going to stop breathing the next minute. I ate it ’til I dropped (and that was after ‘dropping’ half a can of MILO-like droppings lah of course!) I had Milo that day like I never did before, and like I was never going to, again. I had enough MILO to last me for a lifetime. Or two! Talk about deprivation and balas dendam, eh?

My childhood was not an unhappy one. But there were a lot of things that I was kinda deprived of. Things that I didn’t ask for…because I knew it wasn’t easy for Mom and Dad. I remember how Mom had to make bubur nasi for weeks because we didn’t have enough rice to have the regular solid nasi.

Dad was in Sabah for a year – on duty. We got to see him once every three months in the form of mailed Money/Postal Order. The cue for an early day the next day – off to the post office, Supermarket Larut & Matang and a satay treat. Hoyehh! We shied away from Kedai Pak Usop and Kedai Cik Milah for a few weeks, at least.

But even then, MILO never really made it to our shopping list. There were other things. Many other things to consider. Like our school books and stuff. We sisters never ran short of pencils and papers, that’s for sure. We grew up fine and dandy Milo-less. Mom’s bubur nasi was always with a little bit of this and a little bit of that. And with lots and lots of nutrition.


Once in a while I find myself looking and craving for MILO. I mean the REAL Milo. Malaysian MILO, not Jamaican or European MILO which tend to be too creamy and coco’ey. And don’t even suggest Ovaltine to me, puh-leeease! When I was in Oman, I was lucky to have Esther and Philomina who stocked up cans and cans of MILO for their kids but ended up donating those MILOs to me. Those kids didn’t know what they were missing!

But here in Calgary, I have yet to find Malaysian MILO. Not at T&T, nor it is sold at Center St. Market. Arrgghh! I however bought two 500g cans when I was in Toronto. I had to have my small luggage bag checked-in because it was a little too heavy for me to usung as a cabin piece. I packed two 500g cans of MILO all the way back to Calgary from Toronto. Demi MILO, kugagahi jua!

So for now I am good for another week or two (just finished my first can of MILO this morning). I told you I still like Milo. No I don’t eat MILO anymore. I drink it now, savoring every sip and gulp. And every now and again, more than I miss MILO, I miss Mom’s bubur nasi. I miss Mom. And that…is more than anything.

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Breaks the Fast

September 29, 2002 by Enida

Hey, I am online on a Sunday? Strange eh?


Here I am, at Be’s office (using Haithem’s terminal) to write an entry to my C’est Enida. How bizarre, how bizarre, how bizarre! Takde, hari ni Be heret saya gi opis (yep, it’s Sunday, all right). It was a long week for Be and a longer one is coming. So, might as well just spend some quiet time in each other’s sight while doing our own thing.

Done updating my

Vedere jap tadi and now nak citer sket about Breaks The Fast where we had our brunch this morning. Not many know about this cafe, or so I thought before I saw the big line-up on its stairs! It was my second time there (first was on new year’s morning, 2000) with Be and Hani.


Rupanya it has become one of the busiest breaky cafes I have ever seen in my whole life, I tell you! 3 years ago, it was a god-forsaken place. Dah ler located on the second floor of a god-forsaken block terceruk kat celah ntah mana-mana. Well, I am not complaining just because I had to wait for 20 minutes to be seated. No lah. The food is healthily yummy and the service is amazingly speedy.

More than anything, I am happy that Breaks The Fast is still in business. Don’t get me wrong. But when you are hungry, and you think you have the most brilliant idea, i.e. to go to a quiet place where you can get great food sekelip mata (kalah I Dream of Genie) ketinggg! Only to find that your idea wasn’t so brilliant after all…grrrrrr!

I swear I could almost hear my own stomach growling – as though coming from speakers as big as 3 portable loos macam M.Nasir punya concert kat UKM dulu. Nah kau!

You would growl too if it happens to you. Tat tat taraa ta!

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To The Moon and Back

September 27, 2002 by Enida

Chewah! Rajin pulak lately ni saya mengomail. I am still so enlivened by my new HTML breakthrough. Padahal other people have been to the moon and back with the knowledge. Haiiyya, late-bloomer me!


As soon as I opened my eyes this morning, Be asked me to look outside. We’ve been sleeping with the blinds wide open these two three nights – the night light is just so soothing. So what did I see tuan-tuan dan puan-puan di luar jendela sana?

FROST!!!

No! Not Mr. Frost himself. It was, what I later learned from my true Calgarian hubby, HOARFROST. Like what Robert Frost mentioned in one or two of his poems. ‘Hoar’ frost, yes. I thought fall has just begun. Welcome to Calgary, said my Be.

So it’s gonna be minus one Celcius today. So be it. Good thing I just had good hot and spicy Malaysian supper last night to keep me somehow ‘warm’ from the inside. Ha! Yep, Sayur Masak Belacan and Kurma Ayam at the Malaysian Restaurant. The one and only in Calgary.

Siap berdessertkan pisang goreng lagi, jangan jeless! I did make some bubur kacang the other night. But haven’t touched it yet. Been krazie-bizie this last three four days. Been lazie pun iye jugak. But hey…I got things done, didn’t I?

Called mom last night. She sounded tired. Plenty of happy news, though. My only lil sis is graduating this weekend. Well, she actually graduated last year but the Convocation baru nak buat ujung minggu ni. Talking about waiting, eh?

One of my younger brothers is getting engaged May next year. Hoyeh! Wish I could jump up and down for him. Shall email him purrty soon here. Promise! And both: the same sis and bro are buying a car purrrrrrrdee soon. Lek eleh, big deal!

Of course it is! It really is a young family. We are just starting out on our own, ya see. Well, my elder sister and I did that about 5-6 years earlier. But still, to have more and more duckies turning into soaring eagles…is splenderific!

Oh, just spoke with my lil sis on the phone here a few minutes ago. She has received the convocation gift I got her (online shopping lah, how else?) She is overwhelmingly happy and I am overwhelmingly impressed with this

SurfPewter. Exceptionally speedy service; packaging, communication, delivery and all!


So far memang tak ada masalah online shopping dengan Malaysian Online companies. That’s why I raved on earlier, saper kata advanced countries je pandai berbisness? Ingat kesah my Snuggle Suit in

P.O. Box Allergy entry tak? Nak tau what happened?


Kensellll! They have utterly and completely murdered my pucuk!

Ha ah. Diorang dah kensel my order and refunded me. Now if you go to

Blair.com, tak leh nak beli satu hapah pun dah because they simply don’t ship outside the U.S. I thought, now that I am residing in Canada, kotnyer boleh ler re-order the Snuggle Suit. But zapp! Wrong. To them, Canada is a foreign country. Too bloody bad. No business with outsiders, thank you very much!


Ah well. Let them be that way. It may be frosty, cold and bitter here now. But does it kill me? Na ah. Tak de snuggle suit, gebor ada, fireplace ada. Pendek kata, no worries munyer lah. Eh, I should get me and my baby-belly into the shower. Kang cleaners datang I am still in my jammy. Malu dong malu dong ah.

p.s.I just had a big mug of Malaysian MILO tadi. I should tell you one bitter-sweet story pasal MILO ni soon. I could laugh my tears and cry my laughter off everytime I think of it. Funny when we think about where life has taken us, kan?

Got a ticket to the moon and back, anyone?

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Drive Me Nutty

September 26, 2002 by Enida

Before I went on and on and on, dan lagi dan lagi dan lagi macam Eveready Heavy Duty Malaysian TV-ad zaman 80’an dulu tu, I should inform you that I have updated a few pages on Casa Mia. I also added a new page spesyel untuk Il Mio Bambino. Take a peek ek?


It was a good day yesterday. Remember what happened to me on

Friday September the 13th? Now, yesterday just rubbed the malas-nak-ingat experience clean, I tell you. Yeah, Be made a few phone calls to The Canadian Immigration while I was in Toronto. And yeah, they promised to look into it.


So we received a phone call on Tuesday. Cik Lisa cakap, eh…tak de masalah patutnya, Encik Be. You are a resident and so is your wife. No question kenapa Enida tak leh amik Canadian Driver’s License lah eh. Meh sini saya quote kan Undang-Undang Perlembagaan nya yang menyatakan Enida boleh amik lesen.

Nah kau! So mana satu nak dengor ni kan? Anyway, yesterday I decided to brave through the aggravation again at

The Plates. Guess what? The staff on duty was totaly a different lot. Maka Be and I pakat to play dumb. Padahal we were prepared to show these people with the Undang-Undang Section sekian-sekian nombor perenggan, as quoted by Cik Lisa.


Encik Rick selamba je memproses my documents, no questions asked! And I sat for my Knowledge Test, passed it, went for the eye-test, and voila! I am now a proud holder of Class 7 Canadian License. Tak ler boleh memandu sengsorang yet. But soon! I am planning to go for the road test by end of next week.

So? So macam mana? Where did it go wrong initially? Who was the bottle-neck really? Was the previous lot of staff at The Plates too fussy? Was the lot with Encik Rick’s shift sloppy? Or was it the Canadian Immigration yang banyak sangat birokrasi?

I am sooo NOT complaining!

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