Spektrum

Assalamualaikum,

Dah masuk malam ke-23 dah. Cepat betul masa berjalan rasanya kan. Kerja di Kelantan memang agak sibuk, ditambah dengan komitmen akademik dan keluarga pula yang agak jauh dari sini.

Dalam perjalanan balik tadi, saya singgah di 7 Eleven untuk membeli roti. Ya, roti. Saya sekadar ambil roti 4 keping untuk sahur. Agak janggal sahur dengan roti sahaja, tetapi saya dah belajar untuk tahan puasa dengan roti je. Lama lama biasa je.

Tapi ada 2 benda yg betul2 tarik perhatian saya malam ni.

Pertama, masjid di Kubang Kerian masih lagi penuh. Sesuatu yang agak sukar untuk kita jumpa dalam konteks Malaysia. Waktu-waktu berharga kebiasaannya rakyat Malaysia suka membeli belah. Tetapi rakyat di Kubang Kerian masih memilih untuk ke masjid. Sejuk mata memandang kan..

Tapi bila nak sampai di 7 Eleven, sibuk juga orang shopping2 kt kawasan Kbg Kerian ni. Kubang Kerian ni antara kawasan paling sibuk kt Kelantan, sebab kawasan universiti dan banyak bank2, kedai2 makan dan kemudahan kat sini.

Macam di sini ada 2 spektrum gaya manusia. Yang mencuri perhatian ialah masjid yang masih penuh.

Walaupun bidaah tetap berlaku di majoriti masjid2 malaysia masa bulan puasa ni, sekurang2 nya masjid tetap penuh.

Esok hujung minggu yang saya akan spend di sini. Nak buat apa ya?

assalamualaikum

Buka Puasa

assalamualaikum

This is going to be a short one.

We had a buka puasa a Perdana Resort, located at Pantai Cahaya Bulan.

This is a place I last visited probaby 20 years ago. It did bring back some memories though.

Despite the short time available, it was a well spent one.

Hopefully more to come.

Gotta go. Esok on call. Nak rehat sekejap.

till next time,

assalamualaikum

Kelantan

Assalamualaikum

Tomorrow is the 28th day of June, and soon July will follow suit. Time hasn't move neither fast nor too slow for me. Living day by day, counting hours when work will finish and what to eat for dinner. Lol!

Time to get serious. If I may ask, how would you describe Kelantan?

Many would say Kelantan is the Serambi of Mekah. I do not know what is Serambi is English.

Having lived here in 1999-2000,  I have seen a lot of changes. Back in the older days, we did not too many sky scrappers. Not that there are too many, but the differences are pretty prominent. From my point of view, at least.

There are things that remain status quo. For example, the airport remains the same. Pantai Timur is the same old Pantai Timur. BSN remains the old BSN.

1 thing that is closely associated with Kelantan is the ruling of PAS. During the days of the late TGNA, he brought a lot of changes to the state. They still carry the Islamic image wherever they go.

Now that he is gone, do you still see Islam when you come to Kelantan.

Cleanliness is a big issue here. People throw away things here on to the roadside. Restaurants are full with flies. Potholes are easily found and to make things uglier, here in Kubang Kerian, you see people placing their garbage bins right outside the restaurants. It is not a pleasant sight, and it when it rains, it stinks. Yet you still see people streaming to their restaurants.

Many other things I want to higlight here, but perhaps next time.

The photo above does not represent Kelantan, at all.

Despite all these, Kelantan remains a special state to me. I want to see Kelantan one day becomes a respected state, where everyone look at you and see Islam.

till next time,
assalamualaikum

Dreaming no more

Assalamualaikum

I am now back in Kubang Kerian, and not everyone knows my name here(Joey, in case you didn't know).

I thanked Allah for the opportunity given to me in the past few days. It was such a wonderful feeling to be reunited with the family I love. I couldn't have asked for more.

Allah works in mysterious way, doesn't He? Friday morning, as my wife was preparing for work, I went to the bed to sleep next to my daughter. As soon as she woke up, she stared at me, and started smiling for at least 20 minutes. It was like a girl who hasn't met her beloved for ages.

That feeling was mutual. I felt the same way. What is magical is how a 22 month old baby able to demonstrate such feeling.

Not to forget, is the excitement of meeting wife again. We never really went out though. We drove up to KL on Friday, came back to Melaka on Saturday and here I am now in Kelantan on Sunday.

Although I have the experience working in Friday-Saturday weekend in Kedah before, it felt as if I was travelling to different worlds. Melaka was calm and quiet, and upon reaching Kubang Kerian, everyone was busy with work.

Tomorrow is on call day. I hope it will be a peaceful one. I have not had a productive Ramadhan yet so far.

till next time,
assalamualaikum

Cancer

Assalamualaikum

How do I start this?

Entering 32 years old, I have seen a lot in my short career. After deciding to pursue Paediatrics, I realised that anything can happen to anyone.

1 thing that reallky touches my heart is cancer. Life isn't as simple as descibed by textbooks. Imagine, you get told by a doctor that the final answer to your illness in cancer. Even as a doctor, I don't think anyone can accept that well.

Nothing is worse when the patient is your own flesh and blood.

I just started onocology posting. I see this everyday. I have to say I'm impressed to see how patient the parents are deal with these illnesses.

I pray to Allah to make life easier for them.

till next time,
assalamualaikum

Puasa

Assalamualaikum

In the name of Allah the Most Gracious the Most Merciful

So, Ramadhan is only 3 days away. Insyaallah, we'll be showered with the grace of Ramadhan, a month that only comes once in a Hijr calendar.

As for me, this is the first time I'll be celebrating it alone, since 2011 perhaps. I was unmarried, hence that easier life. The challenge is different this time. Yeah yeah, family is far away. Lol! This time around my housemates are all non Muslims.

I just bought my own microwave 2 days ago. I've been hunting for a mini bar, but it has yet to bear fruit. These will be kept in my room only. Since I do not cook, I feel mini bar will suffice. Coming back from work, I'll get everything ready for break fast and the leftovers are kept for sahur.

On top of that, the responsibilities that I carry as a post graduate student cum medical doctor, I have to learn how to utilise time wisely in Ramadhan. I suppose it's not going to be easy. At night, kena study lagi kan?

Anyway, I have booked my flight home this Thursday. Though the estimated time of arrival is 10pm, who cares?

Home baby, homeeeeee............

till next time,
assalamualaikum

See you again

Assalamualaikum

My 1st entry from Kubang Kerian! How's everyone doing?

I actually tried blogging earlier, but life has been rather hectic here. Not in terms of workload, because I feel Melaka is busier. Living an academic life, trying to meet the standard is not easy. I am no longer doing MO call. Registrar is one level higher, and Peter Parker couldn't be more right.

Great power comes with great responsibilities.

I come back home at close to 6 pm on average. I now try to make it a routine to jog for a good 30 minutes 2-3 times per week. Thanks to this regime, I had to say goodbye to my 10 year old futsal shoes. As a result, I had to fork out RM150 today to get a new pair.


If I haven't told, yeah, I am renting a room here. It costs Rm300, not inclusive of the utility bills. It sucks to be away from the loved ones. My wife, I got to say thanks to her. Without her support, I wouldn't be here. She's pregnant, and she has to take care of our beloved princess.

Gosh, I miss them very much.

Truth be told, tears were flowing freely the day I had to say goodbye to them. My daughter wouldn't let me go. It's like telepathic, she flexed her head forward so I would kiss her forehead.

Skype isn't equivalent to reality, but that is the closest I can get here. How could anyone not melt when she touched my face on her Ipad. Papa misses you too, love.

Tomorrow the third week of my USM life resumes. I hated the fact I was on call yesterday. I am post call today, and had to make use of all the time I had to complete things. It does not matter how tired I am, life goes on tomorrow.

Doctors do not need any rest. Useless to bring this issue up again, the seniors had it worse last time. So they say, no?

 I dedicate this song to my beloved family. Thanks to mama, late papa, all my siblings and friends too.

Pray hard that I'll make it through.

How can we not talk about family when family's all that we got?
Everything I went through you were standing there by my side
And now you gon' be with me for the last ride

I pray that this is the last ride I have to do it alone.

I miss all of you.

Till I see all of you again.
Salam

The Last Goodbye

Assalamualaikum

Goodbye is never easy, right?

We witnessed for the last time Steven Gerrard in Liverpool shirt last night. It still breaks my heart to even think Liverpool is now playing without him.

He has been the spine of the team for years. Superstars come and go, but he has remained loyal to the Liverpool crest. He carried the team and won countless games on his own. His leadership qualities are second to none. He hadn't won many trophies as he would have liked, but he remains a hero nevertheless. 

Despite all the sentiments, we Liverpool fans do not place high hopes for next season. The current squad lacks leadership and winning mentalities. 

Next season will be ours. Haha. It never fails to tickle your funny bones right?

Till next time,

Assalamualaikum

Cuci kereta

Assalamualaikum

It is Friday and I am not at work today. I need to clear all annual leave days before leaving for USM.

I still have 4 more working days in Melaka. They had a farewell party for us last week. Of all 3, I did not receive any present, yet.

Saying goodbye is always difficult, isn't it? As much as I hate that, I fear more the start of the journey in USM. Knowledge-wise, I am probably at par with current batch of undergraduate medical students.

I plan to complete a few more tasks on the list today. Cuci kereta is almost done. Next, to get my DVD writer fixed. Following that is to go to Astro.

Only 1 thing not sorted is the destination for holiday next week. Our last vacation before leaving for USM. I may not show much emotion, but I am going to miss wifey and daughter a lot.

Car is almost ready.

Till next time,
Assalamualaikum

Lub dub lub dub

Assalamualaikum

I am now back in the hospital again. The kind of life that we go through, that we actually spend more time at workplace, rather than home.

I found out Blogger mobile is less flexible, in my previous entry. You can't resize n relocate the photo. The options for other things are limited too.

Gotta go and save lives.

Will be back again,
Assalamualaikum

On call

Assalamualaikum

Blogging from my phone now. So tech savvy kan?

On call has been relatively peaceful so far. There is a long way to go still though. It's a long weekend, and here I am spending time with patients.

It's difficult being in a public hospital setting. Everyone's fighting for long weekend, e.g. Labour day friday, weekend and wesak day on monday. No annual leave will be deducted. It's a bit unfair for those who have to work because they won't get any replacement off days.

But we chose to be in this line, didn't we?

Although I will miss Kelantan football match tonight, and Liverpool QPR as well, there is something that I am looking forward to tomorrow morning.

It's PacMan vs Mayweather, people!!

A couple of hours of short nap afterwards before I get myself ready for the next on call.

Sigh.

Perhaps I should get myself prepared for rounds tonight first, before I start thinking of the next one.

Pray for me a good call!!

Adios,
Assalamualaikum

Menghitung detik

Assalamualaikum

Let's start with the most cliche way. Sorry for keeping the blog hiatus. It's a combination of all, time, laziness, idea and commitment that is keeping me busy.

My wife is asleep, right next to me. In less than a month's time, I will be alone in Kelantan. Everyday is about completing the day, counting the hours to fly home again so that I can be with my wife and daughter.

What makes it harder is that my wife is pregnant with our second child. The moments when she will need help the most are the times when I won't be able to be there.

Well, the journey that I am taking is the completion of second half of my studies. It is certainly going to be extremely difficult, and having no family members around is not going to make it any easier.

I haven't found a place to stay yet. Kelantan, despite being known as a poor state socioeconomically, things are rather expensive here. Studio apartment can cost you RM1000 the cheapest. Ain't kidding bro, you can check it on Mudah.my

You may wonder why am I not taking my family along. It is not as easy as you think. To secure a place in Kota Bharu as a medical officer is not easy. Hence,  if she gets somewhere else far, she may as well stay wherever she is now. I can't afford to ask her to go on unpaid leave. Economically it is not viable. She just bought a new car, still paying for her house in Melaka and she also provides some money to her mother monthly. I, on the other hand, have a car and house to pay, ASB and lots of other things too.

It's going to be a challengin time ahead. Puasa will also start in June. Buka puasa alone, sahur alone, and the same routine repeats everyday, till the day I get to go the airport to fly home.

Where is home now? Melaka or KL?

It doesn't matter. What matters is Ohana. Ohana means family, and I am going to miss them so much when the time finally comes.

I hope I can start blogging on regular basis again. Time consuming really, but I get to say what I want to say, and I like that.

till next time,
assalamualaikum