Are You Gonna Go My Way

Following the Gaza crisis which started in Ramadan, there have been talks of late of boycotting products from certain companies owned/controlled by Jews and Americans (who clearly support Israel in the crisis). And of course there have been divided opinions as to whether a boycott is necessary or even effective, what objects it could achieve and so on and so forth.

It’s up to an individual if s/he chooses to boycott any one company or not. Personally, as you may already know, I have been boycotting McDonald’s, Levi’s and a few other American brands since 2001 when the US invaded Iraq (I hate Coach and Michael Kors bags and don’t patronise Star*ucks). Alhamdulillah, thus far, I don’t feel my life any deprived, any less enriching or poorer in these 13 years than before my personal boycott. To me, it’s just a small sacrifice on my part compared to the hardship suffered by the Iraqis and others affected by the US’ policies of invasion and politics against the Afghans, Iranians, Iraqis, Palestinians etc. I can only hope that my small (insignificant to some) acts can be likened to the little bird which helped Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) (I have blogged about this before but thought I’d reproduce it here):

The story about the little bird, the fire and Prophet Ibrahim: When Prophet Ibrahim [peace be upon him] was thrown into a fire that filled up two valleys by the evil ruler Namrod, some birds were flying overhead. Some of the larger birds saw this little bird that kept on flying to the ocean to scoop up some water, bring the water in its tiny beak and then flying back to drop the water onto the fire. After seeing the small bird going back and forth a few times, the larger birds made fun of it and asked him why he was doing that, as such tiny drops of water could not possibly put out such a large fire. The small bird replied that it wanted to do its share so that on the Day of Judgement it could go before Allah with a clear conscience, because on the Day of Judgement, God would ask him what he did when Ibrahim was in the fire, and he wanted to be able to answer that he did everything within his ability to extinguish the fire. Wallahu’alam.

I share you with the following quote again: ‘I am only one. But still, I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.’ ~Edward Everett Hale

Do what you think is right by your conscience and personal principles. If you want to boycott, do it in a respectable and admirable way. No need to insult and offend those who still choose to patronise the establishment or the employees. We are all given brains and faculties by God anyway. If you don’t want to boycott, it’s your choice and preference. But it’s a small sacrifice and surely your personal comfort is not worth more than the hardship suffered by those affected? It’s jihad in a way anyway. Even the little bird could play its part in the fight against evil, gifted as it was with a clear conscience. Can we say the same about ourselves? Or are we still intent on being selfish and refuse to think beyond ourselves? 

Throwback Thursday 24072014

I woke up for the match – it was the final match after all and Germany were playing – and wasn’t disappointed (I could do without the extra time though). Well done DFB!

July, July

Wow, it has been some time since my last post. The World Cup had begun and ended with its share of dramas and Ramadan had commenced too. I was not looking forward to the World Cup at all – I didn’t like the idea of Brazil hosting the tournament. I don’t like Brazilian football and have never supported Brazil in any World Cup. So this was the first World Cup which games I never bothered getting up for (I used to get up for my football vigils in previous editions of World Cup and Euro tournaments). The only two or three matches I watched involved Germany of course which I’ve been supporting since way back when and even then, I slept through the alarm and didn’t catch two of their matches. And after years of supporting them, I was only too happy when they won. It had been a long time since their last win.

As usual, I was not looking forward to Ramadan (or rather the sacrifice of an hour of sleep) but once it’s here, I’m fine. The hectic month I call it where I try to squeeze as much as I can into limited hours. Besides the usual non-Ramadan routine and chores, most of us rise earlier for our pre-dawn meal and try squeeze in more ibadah. I’m trying to finish reciting the Quran as usual, insyaAllah and alhamdulillah I’m on track there. Reading takes a backseat in this month but I try to squeeze in where possible. Come to think of it, I’m not sure which I look less forward to between Ramadan and Syawal. I hate that Syawal has become too commercialised and that most people think that it’s ok to celebrate Eid for a month just because they fast a month in Ramadan. And I especially hate that there are those who still don’t repent and spread even more fitnah in Ramadan.

Then there was the MH17 tragedy last week. I must confess that there have been times on my way to work when I spot planes flying too low (in my opinion) when I wonder ‘What if this plane blows up? What happens if it crashes?’ (yes, I have morbid thoughts so sue me). And to think that one was actually shot down... I felt speechless with numb and shock. So soon after MH370 too. But it’s not going to deter me from flying and travelling. When my time comes, I would die anywhere anytime anyhow anyway.

I wanted to travel somewhere around my birthday and I’m one of those who don’t think Ramadan hinders travelling, I’ve never let Ramadan stop me from travelling that is, but the thought of braving the crowd at the airports (originating and destination airports) on my outbound and return trip wasn’t appealing and besides the World Cup was ending and I wanted to watch the final few matches if I could. But I did manage a day trip to Ipoh and had a sauna time along its heritage trail.

And now Syawal is almost upon us... I have never been one to go all out and celebrate Eid like there’s no tomorrow. There has always been something that dampens my Eid experience, be it brothers who suddenly descend after long periods of absence and silence like the prodigal sons, annoying sisters-in-law and irritating extended nieces and nephews. It’s a back-breaking effort trying to get the house into order before, during AND after Eid and it doesn’t help that Abah is oblivious to the mess he leaves behind and the effort I take to clear the mess. 

I still miss Mummy and wonder if I will ever stop missing her. Probably not ever. Yes, I know life goes on and I must go on living – she would want me to – but it still hurts at times.

  

I have been thinking again of late of making a will and getting my worldly affairs in order. In truth, I’ve been thinking of this for the past 7-8 years (yes and still haven’t done anything about it!). Asked C in mid-June if she had any suggestions and a few days later, a lady from Amanah Raya called me. Went to see her last Friday to see my options and insyaAllah I will make up my mind and get it done soon.

I have also been busy researching some destinations and insyaAllah will be stepping on those soils soon (and not so soon) insyaAllah.

No More ‘I Love You’s’

Let me just state what’s on my mind now. Yes, I wanted us to re-sign Cesc because come on, he’s still one of the best midfielders in the world and I’d rather him play with us than with any of our rivals. And face it, a lot of clubs would be salivating at the thought of signing him. No club would rationally pass up the opportunity to sign him up and even if we still disagree on how he left and how he engineered that move, I still would have him back. After all, we all knew he wanted to leave and play for his boyhood club and anyone given the opportunity to play for that club - especially if he’s been a lifelong supporter of it - would not pass up the opportunity. There was the opportunity to play with the annoying Xavi, Iniesta and Messi versus the choice of continued stagnation with the likes of Song, Eboue, Arshavin and Bendtner. If he went somewhere else, he would in all likelihood improve that team. I doubted if he would have been in the way of any one player’s development and besides, we also have a few ageing players ourselves.

So it was with some shock when Cesc confirmed last night that he has signed for Chelshit. I haven’t totally been living under a rock, I did know of Chelshit’s interest but didn’t think what I feared would turn out to be true. And yes I hate the idea of him signing for that classless club and playing under Maureen.

But what would Cesc have done? We didn’t want him back. He’s no longer wanted at FCB. At his age, only just 27, should he just stop playing? Of course not. He’s a footballer, playing football is his career, and surely he would not cut short his career because we didn’t want him back.

I don’t want to doubt Wenger’s decision not to bring Cesc back whatever his reason is and I doubt it was because he has some grudge against Cesc. I accept that Wenger is more informed about the situation and has given it a lot of rational thought. His decisions may seem bizarre at times but I do not doubt that he makes them at what he thinks is in the best interest of Arsenal. I’m not saying I’m happy, I’m not saying I accept Cesc playing for Chelshit but I accept that Wenger would be in a better position to make informed decision that I am. Perhaps Wenger thinks it’s not the right time for Cesc to return, perhaps he thinks Cesc would benefit more from playing at another club (before he returns. Yes, even after all that’s happened, I guess I’m still hopeful that he’ll return), perhaps perhaps perhaps.

And besides, I think Cesc is somewhat to blame. He should not have left like how and when he did (yes, I understand why he wanted to leave but I still think he shouldn’t have left when he did). I also think that his current partner is somewhat to blame. OK, I confess, I hate her. I never thought she’s a good influence on him at all.

Goodbye Cesc. I’m sorry that I’m not noble enough to wish you good luck at your new club. I have unfollowed you from twitter and removed you from this blog’s wallpaper because I don’t follow Chelshit players and I won’t have one on my blog wallpaper. You already broke my heart when you left three years ago and you can’t hurt me anymore, not after I took so long to get over you. I rang my munchkin nephew this morning to tell him about it and he said, ‘You were the one who liked him.’ I said, ‘Yes. That was then.’ He then added, ‘It’s OK. We still have Ozil.’ ‘And Ramsey,’ I agreed.

And now, what the heck am I going to do with the jerseys with Cesc’s name on them??? 

~~~~~~~

Ramsey signed for us today back in 2008.

The Best Laid Scheme Of Mice And Men (Or Rather, Me)

There were times while planning for my trip and just prior to departure when I wondered if I was meant to proceed with my trip. There were events or things happening beyond my control that directly or indirectly affected my trip and made me wonder if there was a meaning behind it all. Was I meant to take this journey? Should I take this as God’s sign that I should not proceed? That was why I wasn’t altogether confident that the trip would go ahead.

There was the severe drought lasting months where Klang Valley was badly affected, so bad that we had a water rationing. It was mighty inconvenient but I understood why it had to be done. (I just wish more people will learn from history. This happened back in 1998. And yet, we are still wasteful when it comes to resources. We don’t appreciate God-given resources such as water. We waste it as we please because hey, after all, we pay for it, right. Wrong). And because I was at work, Abah had to refill those pails and containers with water. I got worried when the water rationing was extended. I didn’t foresee this problem when I bought the ticket of course.

Then there were the rescheduled matches. I had planned on attending the Arsenal-Newcastle match and was not pleased when it was rescheduled to Monday from Saturday. I didn’t want to spend extra days in London when I could be elsewhere on Monday. I could not confirm my plans until I could confirm if I was going to any home match and I couldn’t confirm that if the match fixtures kept being changed. The notice about the rescheduled Arsenal-Newcastle match came out in March with ample time for me to change my plans (yes, at that point, I still hadn’t bought any intra-Europe flights). But I wasn’t happy when I learnt late on 14 April – after I had bought my intra-Europe flight tickets - that the Arsenal-WBA match was also rescheduled. In my anger, I sent an email to Arsenal demanding a refund, not expecting anyone to read it (surely they get hundreds of emails a day?) and when I calmed down and rationalised that I could change my flight (at a cost of course) and did exactly that, I found that Arsenal had taken steps to refund me my match ticket... the agony part wasn’t fun at all. Good thing it all worked out in the end: I didn’t change the flight yet again and I managed to get a ticket via Ticket Exchange. And oh yeah, I managed to bunk with my MBA classmate for the unplanned additional night in London.

My iPhone acted up in the afternoon of my supposed departure. The WiFi option had greyed out and I couldn’t get it right no matter how many times I switched the phone off, reset network settings and even turned on Do Not Disturb. This lasted throughout my trip which meant that while I was carrying an iPhone, it wasn’t functioning as a smartphone.

Then there was the flight delay out of KUL which affected my next subsequent flight and schedule in Sicily. I had to really do a whirlwind tour of Ragusa as a result but thankfully, I managed to cover most of the sites with a lot of gasping, huffing, puffing and panting, but of course.

But just like after backpacking all over Europe (where I hauled 15 kg on my back for a month and returned tanned and dark all over except for my neck upwards), I will do it all over again in a heartbeat.

The Best Laid Scheme Of Mice And Men (Or Rather, Me): Part V

Friday, 9 May 2014

I woke up feeling a little under the weather. Guess it was from being rained on since Wednesday. I looked out the window and groaned when I saw it was raining. Oh no! I had a late breakfast and checked out at 11. I was more or less done with exploring downtown and wasn’t in a hurry and besides, it was raining anyway.

I was walking leisurely when I saw bus no. 2 bound for the airport so I went to check a few bus stops to see its route. This would mean I needn’t go all the way to the bus station and go through the train station which was under renovation (plus carry my bag down the stairs into the station). I could instead catch the bus from a bus stop near to my pension. Great!

I spent about 90 minutes wandering around before returning to the pension. It rained again just as I was leaving for the bus stop. The bus came after 10 minutes and we reached the airport half an hour later.

I was told to remove my scarf at the security check but told the woman that I was a Muslim. She consulted her colleague and they both showed me to a room and I removed my scarf for them to check. Yeah, because of course I looked like I could strap kilograms of dynamite on myself and blow things up.

We landed at Stansted Airport on time and I was the first to clear immigration (one advantage of not being a British or from any EU countries). I went to perform prayers before making my way to the bus terminal. My shuttle arrived early and left before the scheduled time. We reached Baker Street at 8 pm and I crossed Marylebone Road to get the bus to my hotel. I was there for all of two minutes when an elderly Pakistani came over to talk to me. He said he was a doctor and for lack of a better reply, I responded, ‘Oh, good for you.’ He asked where I was staying, if I had plans that evening and look, hey, he happened to be free that evening so would I like to have dinner with him? I just about managed to stop my jaw from dropping at this. Wow, what a confident man. I can never summon up the courage to chat up a stranger let alone invite him for a meal a couple of minutes into the conversation! And then I wondered why I attracted all these strange men. I thanked him as politely as I could and thank God my bus arrived shortly after.

After checking into my hotel, I went out to get groceries and dinner. I’d stayed at the hotel a few times and this was the first time that I had WiFi connection, not to mention a big room (the biggest room I’d stayed in in the hotel). The WiFi connection was quite slow though but hey better that than nothing, I guess.

Saturday, 10 May 2014

It rained early this morning and the morning started of grey and gloomy. Today was to be a leisurely day, no rush whatsoever. I’d planned to walk quite a bit today and after breakfast, I walked to Knightsbridge via Hyde Park. It was a pleasant stroll and there were quite a few people in Hyde Park, walking their babies, walking their dogs, playing catch with their dogs, playing football, even practising walking on a rope tied between two trees. I went into Harrods and even went up to the Pradasphere exhibition. After Harrods, I walked out to Piccadilly Circus, up to Leicester Square, Chinatown then Oxford Street. The weather started going crazy and it started raining heavily when I was at Oxford Street. Sought refuge in The Plaza and had a baked potato while waiting out the rain. After that, I walked up and down the street, going in and out of stores, diverting into Bond Street and out again (I even went into the LV flagship store but didn’t enter Chanel). But nothing, nothing caught my fancy at all. I walked all the way down to Primark and if anything, the frenzied shoppers in there put me off even more.

It started to pour again so we crowded back into Primark for shelter. I saw a bus which would pass Bayswater so I ran after it. Was finally back in the room after 6 pm. That was 8 hours of walking done today.

Sunday, 11 May 2014

Had a leisurely start to the day. I wanted to leave early but got a message for a mate back in KL whom I helped to buy her Neverfull so ended up leaving the hotel at 12:30. I took the tube to Finsbury Park as I wanted to check out the Arsenal store there (the Armoury was closed for refurbishment) but I left disappointed. There are many halal restaurants within the vicinity of the tube station so I had lunch at a chicken shop – the owner is a Gooner and had the club flag draped over his TV. After lunch, I walked to the stadium. The (box?) office was opened and I renewed my membership (it cost £39 now, an increase of £3). Popped into The Arsenal Store Highbury House but found it similarly disappointing so I left empty-handed. I walked around the stadium before making my way to the Royal Oak entrance for the screening of the Norwich City-Arsenal match. We didn’t play well in the first half, almost complacent in fact (because we had secured fourth place). I even overheard someone behind me moan that even Spuds were scoring. So we were so happy when Rambo scored and the minutes later, Jenks scored his first goal for the club.

I returned back to the hotel and stayed in.

Monday, 12 May 2014

I checked out after 10 this morning and took a bus to Oxford Street. Last-minute shopping and all because I couldn’t find anything from either Arsenal stores! I returned back to Bayswater and sat in Whiteley’s for a while. It rained just as I was returning to the hotel to get my bags and didn’t stop raining when I left at 18:30 for Heathrow. I was lucky there was no hardly any queue at Heathrow (maybe everyone else had dropped off their bags much earlier).

We took off on time and I stayed up until after supper was served. It got cold after a while, despite me turning off the vent above me. The lady next to me even took her hoodie and gloves (!) from her cabin bag.

Tuesday, 13 May 2014

We landed at KLIA at 17:35. KLIA2 had opened while I was away so there were a lot of people in the KLIA Express train. I got home two hours after touching down and set out to unpack after sorting out the kitchen.

Will there be another trip to the Grove next year? I’m reluctant to leave dad alone but I know I need a long break from the office.

The Best Laid Scheme Of Mice And Men (Or Rather, Me): Part IV

Monday, 5 May 2014

STN-BRQ

I got up and performed prayers at 3 and settled back down in my seat. At 5, I got up and left the prayer room. Joined the bag drop off queue. My line had to be the slowest of them all of course. Bought some sandwich for early breakfast before clearing security.

Our flight took off on time and I slept for 90 minutes. We landed at Brno at 10:30 and after collecting my bag, I went to change money, just enough to buy a bus ticket with some change for a meal and my room. The bus came at 11:07 and took 20 minutes to get to the train station. I walked up to find my hostel at Minoritská and after pressing the bell many times, followed a postwoman into the building. Located the hostel and the owners had arrived by then.

After depositing my bag and paying for my room, I stayed for a bit for prayers before checking out the city. Brno is the second largest city in the Czech Republic but it was nowhere as big as Praha. Armed with a map I took at the airport, I went to explore the city. There are many beautiful buildings in the city. I noticed some gypsies at the station (when I went to find out the train times to my next destination) and lots of stalls selling kebab (not sure if they were halal). I did find a halal kebab stall - I asked - and a bio-organic restaurant. There are quite a few Oriental restaurants in the city centre too.

I returned to my room to check how much of the local currency I would need before going out again to change. I then went back to the train station and bought a train ticket for my next destination. As I’d covered quite a bit of the city, I decided to take the first train out the next morning, departing at 07:20.

Dinner was had at the bio-organic restaurant, Rebio Sun at Provozovna Orli 26. It served organic vegetarian food and I wanted to sample what they had to offer.

Most of the shops close at 6 pm so by 7, the city was half-dead. I returned to my room to rest.

Tuesday, 6 May 2014

Woke up for morning prayers and got ready to leave. Left at 7 (of course I would have a tummy upset just before I left!) and walked to the station. After asking at the customer service for the platform, I made my way there and got on the train. The train left Brno at 07:20 sharp and we made our way into the Czech countryside, stopping at the occasional town station. We passed small towns, winding rivers, forests with towering pine trees, fields of rapeseeds, lakes... The Czech Republic is really beautiful. The train was barely full, more empty than full in fact so I sat down comfortably and watched the landscape and time pass by.

We arrived at České Budějovice at 1147. I got down the train and asked for directions to the bus station. If you leave the station, turn to your left and you see Mercury Centrum. Walk down the underpass to Mercury Centrum and the bus station is on the second floor.

I took the 1220 bus ran by Student Agency to Český Krumlov. It cost me 40 Kc. The journey took about 35 minutes. At Český Krumlov, I got down at the second (final bus stop) and walked to my hostel. It’s all cobble streets and oh how I hate them! Fortunately, the view helped.

I reached the hostel at 1330 (it was because I stopped every few metres to take in the view) and checked in. Paid for my room (250 Kc/night or €10) and after prayers and a light meal, went out to explore. I walked through the narrow winding streets, checked out alleys and finally went across to the castle. At first I was reluctant to, thinking I should save it for the next day but when I passed and saw it was still opened, I thought why not now and went in. I even went to the castle garden (nothing much, no flowers in bloom yet) before making my way out.

After buying souvenirs from a shop near the castle, I made my way back to the hostel, stopping at two supermarkets (both ran by Asians, the second ran by Vietnamese) on the way to pick provisions.

Wednesday, 7 May 2014

I was woken up by my fellow hostellers who came back after 2 am. Woke up myself shortly after for morning prayers before going back to sleep. When I woke up at 8, it was grey and dull outside. I thought it was because the sun hadn’t broken through but when I checked, I was surprised to find it was drizzling! Well, well, well. What a good thing I decided to push myself and explore the town the day before including the castle for the lighting today would be poor for sure.

I left after 10 and make my way to the town square. A few brave souls were there. I asked for the bus timetable to České Budějovice from the tourist information office and decided to take the 12:00 bus there. I left the tourist office and wandered around, looking for crystal jewellery. The Czech Republic produces fine crystal products including jewellery, porcelain crockery, wooden items and glass products. I ended up at the shop where I bought magnets the day before and the Bulgarian shopkeeper told me he’d give me 10% discount on everything. I asked if I could pay in Euros, he said yes. Told him I’d be back later in the day and left.

I hurried back to my room to get some Euros and walked to the bus station. I reached the bus station in time to board the bus to České Budějovice. This time, the fare only cost me 32 Kc (the Student Agency bus would cost 40 Kc).

We reached a wet České Budějovice 40 minutes later and I walked to the town centre. It started raining again when I was half-way there. I stopped at the tourist information office to get a town map before exploring it. The weather however wasn’t at all encouraging and dampened my spirits slightly. It didn’t take long to finish the compact town centre. Before leaving, I went around the massive town square.

I stopped at a Doner Kebab restaurant I saw earlier and had a vegetarian tortilla falafel. The Muslim chap working there couldn’t confirm if the meat was halal (he knew they obtained it from Germany) so to be safe, I ordered vegetarian. I surprised myself by finishing the whole thing.

I returned to Mercury Centrum and waited for my 15:55 bus back to Český Krumlov. I stopped at the first bus stop and walked to the souvenir shop to buy crystal necklaces before returning to my room. I stayed in the rest of the evening.

Thursday, 8 May 2014

I couldn’t sleep after morning prayers and only dozed off after 4. Woke again at 06:30 and got ready. Had breakfast and carried my suitcase down the perilous staircase. I had ordered a passage on CK Shuttle. It cost 800 Kc or €32. I had paid a deposit earlier and had to pay 500 Kc in balance. We left after 8 as the Japanese girl who rode with me thought she left her coin purse at her hotel and we went back for her to get it. Turned out it was in her bag all along...

We drove winding country roads passing the Vltava, lakes, fields, pine forests and towns and crossed into Austria 45 minutes after we left. It was cloudy with the occasional drizzle. We stopped at BP pump station at some R&R before continuing on and reached Salzburg at 1030. Not bad. The journey time was supposed to be about 3 hours.

I went to study the airport bus timetable at the bus station before making my way to my hotel.

After checking in and paying for my room, I studied the city map while having a snack. I left at 12:05 and walked to the downtown area. It was alternately drizzling and dry and I didn’t really enjoy it. And besides, after Český Krumlov, I found Salzburg a tad underwhelming and disappointing. And everything was so darn expensive. I left at around 5 and walked back to my pension. I ventured again at 7 pm and guess what, the sun was out in full force then. Walked to a nearby supermarket and bought some food for dinner.

To be continued