Can We Trust?

"A smile could change a life," Healing by Sami Yusuf.

A conversation with Puan S after lunch at her house somewhere in Sydney, Australia inspired this post.

A pretty obvious thing about Australia and Australians in Sydney is that people here have very high levels of trust. Not only do they trust their friends (because you're supposed to be able to trust your friends), they trust their customers and even complete strangers.

Again, let's look at the obvious first. Most of their houses don't have actual fences around their property. Even those that do have fences make it just way too easy for any burglar to climb over them. So they are obviously not worried about any burglar-ing going on. Even their doors and windows aren't fitted with any grilles. Compare this to the houses in our country. Different, no?

Now on to my experiences. At a local park (there are a lot of parks here in Sydney), friends come to have a game of soccer. They leave everything on the park bench and go play. No need for a friend to stay back and look after their bags. Phones can even be left on the park benches for all to see, but at the end of the game, they'll still be there. Now I ask you, how often does that happen in Malaysia?

How about their customers? Here are two examples. One of the buttons on one of my friends' (Afifi) phone was defective. He did not do anything to cause this (at least, not that he knew of). It just didn't work, for some reason. At this point, he had had this phone for about one and a half months. And it was an i-phone. So he took the phone to the local Apple Centre in hopes of it getting fixed. When he showed the phone to one of the staff members there, the phone was replaced with a new one right away, no questions asked, no fee paid. Needless to say, he left the store all smiles.

Second example, given by Puan S. Her daughter's phone (Blackberry, if I'm not mistaken) fell out of her pocket while at the beach. The phone fell into the water. So they brought the phone to the local centre and explained what had happened. The phone was replaced with a new one, free of charge.

Can I get a "wow" for both of the situations above? Imagine them happening in Malaysia. Imagine.

We're an Islamic country. This is a Westernized country. Why does it seem the other way round in this aspect?

I refrain from condemning the situation in our country. I just need you, the readers, to stop and think for a while. Is this the situation in our country? If not, then can this be the situation in our country?

Happy thinking! May peace be upon you.

Cheers!

Scouting Canberra

"Give me truth to my conviction," There's No Solution by Sum 41.

Mission: Scout the capital city of Australia, Canberra and report back to home base.

So the team, cleverly disguised as 60 international university students on a visit-while-learn trip to the country's capital city, embarked on the journey at 0700 hours. The two buses that they used further strengthened their facade.

The trip from "their university" took 3-and-a-half hours. Most of the that time was spent by the team to meditate on the mission at hand.

Those who took some time to rest from their meditations took the opportunity to observe the landscape and terrain of the land throughout the journey.

The agents noticed that the land was bare with very few natural resources. Not knowing if this was positive or negative, they kept their feelings about this situation to themselves.

Their first stop in Canberra was the National Museum of Australia. The objective of visiting this particular location was to carry out an extensive research on the history and legacy of the people of the country and to dig up any information about any weaknesses they had that would be useful in future missions.

We had to work very hard in acting like tourists.

The data collected are as follows (click on the pictures to enlarge):

They have a laughing floor on which they like to roll on, and which acts as a leader to them

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Their surveillance system is far more advanced than ours. They have satellite dishes and everything.

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They came up with the Pokemon character, Sharpedo:

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They recruit lizards instead of eating them.

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Their Toyotas are very much still primitive and look like they contribute a lot to the worldwide greenhouse gas emissions.

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They are gravely ignorant about their fauna. Take the platypus above for example. They seem to think that it lays eggs.

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.End of museum data.

The agents then proceeded to scout the Australian House of Parliament, the most key of venues in the whole country. They show their lack of concern towards the safety of their leaders by allowing "tourists" like us to go in and out of the building as we please.

The scene outside the house.

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I had to do my share of being a "tourist".

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The House of Parliament data is as follows:

A picture of the House of Representatives in a sitting. We went on a non-sitting day. Unfortunately.

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We sat, however. The seats were comfortable enough.

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A big golden stick. Probably their main weapon against assassins. *giggles

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Portraits of past speakers. Our mission was made easier.

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Pinkish area. Apparently the Senate area too.

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.End of Parliament data.

We left Canberra with a lot of useful data that will be sent to home base. May they be pleased with the data that we have collected.

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This post was meant to be funny. Please laugh.

Love from Australia,

May peace be upon you.

Cheers!

Perlukah? Kenapakah?

"You're looking like you're low on energy," It's Hard To Get Around The Wind by Alex Turner.

Alamak, Anak Pak Man tulis bahasa sekali lagi. Awatnya ceq? Saja, suka-suka. Buruk-buruk pun saya punya penulisan bahasa ni, saya tetap nak tulis. Kalau anda dan anda tak faham, saya minta maaf lah awal-awal. I'm sorry.

Pertama sekali, saya nak mungucapkan terima kasih kepada semua orang yang sokong saya dan pertahan saya selama ini. Saya sangat menghargai semuanya, serius.

Now on to the beef.

Saya dok perhati lah kan, bila ada orang Melayu ni buat benda yang tak berapa nak elok (macam video haters yang dok femes tapi kena remove dah lani tu), orang Melayu lain macam cepat ja nak tegur (terutamanya dalam alam maya). Itu saya puji. Betul, teguran-teguran itu sangat perlu untuk mengingatkan orang yang mungkin terlupa akan apa itu kebaikan atau nilai-nilai murni seperti yang diajar oleh cikgu-cikgu kita di sekolah dulu. Bagus betul orang-orang yang berani menegur ni. Lebih baik ialah orang yang menegur secara berhikmah. Sangat saya hormat.

Akan tetapi, akan ada banyak lah jugak ayat-ayat yang macam ni diperkatakan:

"Macam ni lah Melayu! Orang sendiri nak naik ja kira nak dengki!"

"Melayu kira nak dengki ja! Tak leh ka nak hepi atas kejayaan orang lain?"

"Sampai bila Melayu nak maju kalau macam ni perangai?"

Dan semua ayat ni akan dikeluarkan oleh orang-orang Melayu sendiri.

Kenapa?

Saya tengok ras-ras lain, ramai ja yang buat benda yang menunjukkan yang mereka kurang terpelajar, tapi tadak pulak depa nak komen "Ni la orang puteh! Budak baru nak naik pun terus kondem!" Kalau ada pun, akan dicop racist oleh orang mereka sendiri.

They don't like using race in their criticism. Why do we do it?

Sebelum ada sesiapa yang kata saya membuat kenyataan yang berunsur membenci kaum saya sendiri dan dilabel pembelot bangsa, saya cuma ingin menerangkan yang apa yang saya luahkan di sini ialah soalan. Bukan pendapat. Saya tak kata teruk, saya tak kata bodoh, saya tak kata apa. Saya cuma menanyakan soalan.

Perlukah melibatkan kaum dalam teguran-teguran kita? Jika ya, kenapa? Jika tidak, kenapa orang guna?

Kenapa orang selalu associate "Melayu" dengan nilai yang negatif seperti selalu lambat, malas, dengki dan riak? Kenapa ada kenyataan-kenyataan yang seperti berikut:

"A: Kata nak jumpak pukoi 2.30, lani dah pukoi 3.30 dah, takdak sapa pun lagi ni..

B: Biasalaa, janji Melayu.."

"A: Kalau ada orang baru nak jadi femes ja, truih ramai yang dok ngata macam-macam..

B: Biasalaa, Melayu.."

"A: Dulu dia ok ja ngan aku, tapi sejak dapat kawen ngan artis tu, dah tak tegoq dah member lama macam kita neh..

B: Melayu kan? Biasalaa.."

What you need to understand here is that selalunya, both A dan B adalah sesama Melayu jugak.

Perlukah? Kenapakah?

I would love to hear your comments on this. And please good people, jangan dok komen "Biasalaa, Melayu.." Please, I don't need that.

May peace be upon you.

Cheers!

You&metube

"If only you could see.." A Lunatic's Lament by Alesana.

Looks like it's an update, after so long. I don't know why, but I've been avoiding my blog a lot lately. I haven't felt like writing for a very long time. I kind of miss it, the will to write. I want to want to write again. Sooner rather than later.

But this will just be a modified re-post of a message/rant I sent through Facebook to one of my friends regarding a topic that's been on my mind recently.

About Luthfi, it's not a competition. Never was, and never will be..

I bet THAT caught your attention, right? *winks

Ehem. But that's not what I'll be discussing here. If I discussed that, i'd sound like a whiny little sissy replying to all the Youtube commenters. I'll leave that in the world of Youtube. But I will still talk about a Youtube-related topic, and that is the sudden increase in the number of Malaysians doing vlogs.

Bear with me people. If you don't want to, then please close this tab. Pretty please with a cherry on top?

Courtesy of fastcompany.com

This "trend" has brought a smile to my face. My dream of seeing the group AYAM (Angkatan Youtubers Anak Malaysia) come to fruition wasn't too far-fetched after all. Of course, it's still just in my head, but if it somehow comes true one day, I'd definitely join.

But of course, as with anything I consume through my eyes and ears, I expect quality. What use is a group with an awesome name if the content in it was just bleagh. (Sorry, no word popped in my head there, just bleagh) We need quality stuff being done in order to be taken seriously (by ourselves more than anyone else). If all we did was just lip-sync in front of the camera to our favourite tunes, then all we'd get is a group of people who are super-talented at not singing. And you tell me if that's productive. You tell me.

And the content that anyone wants to bring forward shouldn't be restricted to only blabbing in front of the camera (like my feeble attempts at being funny). Malaysia could have our very own MysteryGuitarMan (JejakaGitarMisteri maybe?) with cool video effects, or Julian Smith with funny-as-hell skits and stuff, or DaveDays who makes kick-butt song covers using his own instruments and stuff. Just out and out video-makers who make videos about anything. That would definitely be awesome. And hey, if the community is strong enough, Malaysia could even be a country eligible for Partnering. That would definitely be the day. *sigh

"Why do you sigh anakpakman?"

I ish shorta shad.

"Why anakpakman?"

Because I have a feeling that all this hype will turn out to be just that. Hype. And hype has a short lifespan. Like the hype/trend of Goth that swept the nation a few years back. Do you remember? Everyone wearing bundle pasar malam blazers and black make-up carrying umbrellas with holes in them. That lasted what? 3 months maybe? That deserved to die. This deserves to be propagated.

For that to happen, Malaysians need to be open to this new wave of Youtubers. People who have uploaded their first videos should not receive any hate mail. It's their first outing, so of course there are going to be flaws. Nobody gets off to a perfect start. And nobody ever gets perfect either. So dissin' should be strictly prohibited to the first 5 videos (at least).

And please, stay away from comments like "mencapap giler kawan nie!" or "nampak sangat nak cuba jadi mcm matluthfi, tapi sucks!" People please! They have a right to express themselves and not be compared to better-established video-makers! I definitely dislike it (and disagree) when a person says I'm like Nigahiga or RayWilliamJohnson or Shane Dawson or whatever. I'm not them, nor am I trying to be like them. I love their videos, I subscribe to 'em, but I'd feel better if people didn't say those things. Mostly because I think they're too awesome to be compared to little old young me. And also because i feel like I'm nothing like them in my videos. So compliment, but don't compare. (But I have to admit, I was very much like MysteryGuitarMan talking to the camera in my first video. Hands. Everywhere. Just needed glasses.)

In the world of expressive art (speaking in a very sophisticated artsy-schmartsy tone of voice here) everyone needs time to find their identity. You can't be your own kind of artist just after you've composed only one song, or painted only one painting, or written only one poem. That's the rule. And although there are exceptions, the rule still applies. I am looking for myself too through practice and more videos. I'm not saying I'm the best of examples, but I can only refer to my own situation at present.

As for exposure, we need to give people time. Not everyone can be an overnight sensation and gain a thousand subscribers just from one video. I know I am one of the very lucky ones chosen by Allah to be presented to a very wide audience. Alhamdulillah. Most people will gain that exposure through perseverance and good networking. And that takes time. We need to give people that time to be recognised, to gain recognition. And to do that, we simply cannot shoot a person down as soon as that person makes their first video.

"That was a long explanation anakpakman."

Yeah, I know, sorry if you felt bored reading all that. But I think I made my point clear. Did I?

May peace be upon you.

Cheers!

Salam Australia (Mana blagak pon tajuk entry)

"Dalam kepekatan malam," Sentiasa Ada by Hujan.

Hello again to all of you. Yes you. And you too. And who could forget, you.

Just an update post. Nothing much.

This is very late, but I have arrived safely in Sydney, Australia. My seniors over here have been treating my cohort like family. They've been very thorough in orientating us over here. No significant problems have risen because of their awesomeness in taking care of us these first few weeks.

It is currently the first week of lectures and I have had a little taste of what the lectures over here are going to be like, and I'm liking it so far. The lecturers have been great, and they have succeeded in making me eager to learn.

There are some pictures of my exploits around here in my phone, but I haven't come round to uploading them yet. Once I do, I think I'll make a little "picture post" just for funsies.

I have also registered myself in the university rugby team and have gone for my first training session. It was okay, but after a whole semester of not playing any rugby, I'm a definitely more than a little rusty.

And now I even read in my head in an Australian accent. I don't know if this is good or bad.

Thanks to all of you who have been wishing me well. May Allah bless all of you.

InsyaAllah, I will be picking up where I left off on "By The Water" soon, so watch out for updates on that.

I guess that's all for now. My eyes keep closing and my head keeps nodding, signalling something I'm not quite sure what.

May peace be upon you.

Cheers!

Last Blog Post From Malaysia For 2 Years

"I'll pretend that I'm a man for now," Faith by Seven Collar T-shirt.

Dangit! I soo knew what I wanted to write before I clicked "new post"! The second I clicked it, I spaz out!

*Five minutes pass.

Now I remember!

Ehem.

Looks like I won't be able to finish my mini-project before going off after all. And I was so determined to finish it in time at the beginning of it too! Haiz. -_-"

But seriously, distraction could hardly come in a better form. Thank you to everyone who has been reading my blog, watching my videos, asking me questions in Formspring, liking my facebook fan page, commenting nice things about me, spreading my videos/articles over the internet, and subscribing to/following my vlog/blog! I really appreciate it all, really, and that's and understatement. I can't thanks all of you enough! Just love all of you! ^-^

May peace be upon all of you.

Cheers!

By The Water #6

"When you finally get to love somebody," It's Gonna Be Me by N'Sync.

Click here for previous episode

***

Credits to iproperty.com.my

"Tilt it a little to the right. No, I mean the other right," and with that, Aliff gave a "what?" face to his wife, to which Nur laughed to. "Come on, you get what I mean," Aliff couldn't help laughing along with his wife, albeit while shaking his head. That laugh is just too amazing. That face is just too cute. Never thought hanging up a picture could bring out a laugh. "Okay, just nice."

They moved into a new house together after four days of being married. The house wasn't too small, but nothing luxurious either. Just an average one-storey semi-detached house near the city. The rent was reasonable and it wasn't too far away from the city. And the area's surau was in walking distance. They were content.

They spent most of the day unloading their things from the moving lorry, and it was now nearing sunset. There were still several boxes left to unpack, left stacked in the corner of the living room. Nur decided to call it a day and went to hit the shower. Aliff smiled back and told her to go on ahead. He still had some things to fish out of his boxes, mainly clean clothes.

He went to the box stacks and started looking for a box labelled "Clothes". He removed a small box on the top of a stack and read the label, "Nur's". His curiosity got the better of him and he opened the box after checking that his wife wasn't in the room.

In the box, he found among other things, a picture of a small Nur. She didn't seem like she was even old enough to walk yet, and holding her was a smiling woman who looked very much like Nur, not her mother that he met during the wedding. In another picture, Nur was wearing her school uniform and it looked as if it was her first day of school. Nur wasn't smiling, but she was cute nonetheless. Sandwiching her in the picture were her late father and the same smiling woman who held her in the picture of her as a baby. Her late father wasn't smiling though.

Another picture showed a teenage Nur, still wearing a school uniform, still alongside her late father, but this time with her mother that Aliff met at the wedding. Everyone except Nur was smiling. Aliff was confused now. He stared at the three pictures.

"What are you looking at?" Nur came into the room fresh out of the shower to find her husband staring at some pictures.

"Who's this?" Aliff asked, his face asking a thousand more questions.

Nur covered her mouth. Oh no. "You looked into my box?" said Nur on the verge of tears.

Upon seeing his wife's reaction, Aliff went straight to her and put his arms around her. "Why? What's the matter?"

Nur's arms acted as a barrier between her husband's body and hers, but she didn't push away. She couldn't push her tears away either.

They stood there like that for a few minutes with Aliff stroking his wife's hair gently with one hand and holding the pictures with the other hand whose arm was around Nur.

***

May peace be upon you.

Cheers!