.
Ikram did so badly in his final exam this year. As expected, he failed his Add.Maths paper again!...and in 3 other subjects!!!!
mama: Ikram, if this is the set of results you are going to get in your actual SPM, how are you going to further your studies? NO amount of money can get you a place in College without you obtaining the minimum qualifying criteria!
Ikram: ZZzzzz......(pretending to be fast asleep after only 2 mins.in the car.)
That night I couldn't help crying due to my severe frustration with Ikram. No! I'm not going to collect his report card and humiliate myself thoroughly infront of his class teacher!!
Dilla, the ever concern Dilla, did some immediate research and networking. She told me that her friend's sister is being tutored by a FIERCE add.Maths teacher and she can now expect an 'A' confidently in her SPM. BUT the catch word is, she has a blazing voice that can be heard from 3 blocks away if she finds out that you do not do the homeworks she gave you to do! I got hold of the phone and keyed in the number instantly.
Mrs. Radha, the teacher, sounded like she is so familiar with the trauma of an agonized mother. She asked the right questions like: 'how bad is your son?????'..instead of, 'Could this be hereditary, from the father's side of the family??????'.....
Mrs.Radha: OK, get him in my intensive class for the next 7 days starting tomorrow and let me assess him from there!
Wow!!Is this for real???
mama: Can you assist his Maths subject, too?
Mrs. Radha: Give me the chance to see his Add Maths capability first, that guy can go mad if I do both now!
mama: It's OK for him to go mad, instead of ME!!!
Ikram protested and screamed that he has no say in his life.'This is school holidays, for God's sake!'
mama: You have been holidaying the entire year, Ikram!!
Ikram stormed into his room, got hold of his Add Maths text book and started glancing at the formulas and the equations......My nightmare has slowly turned into a wonderful dream.
So it was the beginning of a gruelling initiation period for Ikram, 4hours a day for 7days.......Everyday he came back smelling like the incense from Mrs.Radha's home due to the long hours he spent there.
Mrs.Radha later called and told me that Ikram is so clever, he could do ALL the topics without much coaching.
Both his papa and me are perplexed how is it that suddenly he has become so clever? Papa's hypothesis is that possibly Ikram was in a trance due to the incense burnt at Mrs. Radha's house. If that is proven to be a theory, Papa is willing to buy the whole box and burn it under Ikram's table when he sits for his SPM exam next year!
Mrs.Radha: The only reason that he failed his tests is because he lacks practice!
mama: for the entire year I've been telling you, Ikram, for you to excell in Add Maths, you need to practice!!! No compromise! Kenapa bila Mrs.Radha cakap baru Ikram nak ikut?
Ikram: Sebab mama baik, Ikram tak takut!!.......
Well, since he is so frightened of Mrs.Radha, I've enrolled Ikram for the full time tuition starting this friday until his SPM exam next year..
How about that, Ikram??, do you choose to be a 'hero from zero' or 'macho tapi hancor'????.....
.
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Thursday, November 24, 2005
The Aftermath of 'Together gather'
.
The STF74 gathering was a huge success. Betul!!! Not because I was the host, but the warmth and the spirit of friendship that hovered throughout the occassion. It was a peculiar feeling, where status and credentials were cast aside and ALL of us were transformed into giggly remove class girls of 1969!!
Eventhough all of us were educated the same way, in the same environment, the outcome is surprisingly quite varied. In the group, there is a Toh Puan, a Datin, and lots and lots of 'Professors Dr.' so much so that if you throw a currypuff, it would most likely hit someone with that title!
On the other hand, 2 friends who came all the way from the East Coast have dedicated themselves deep into religion. However, still a sport because they do not mind when I went like: Nik, nak tengok muka engkau! When I slide the purdah covering the face, she flashed me a very wide sweet smile,still the same Nik I remember as the school debater of 1973!
The kembar tak siam, Ajam and Mah are still the same cheeky girls, I caught them gossipping about someone's asset at one corner of the house!!!Minon who was lost, arrived sweaty and puffing, bearing 4 BIG containers of very delicious savoury. I'm sorry Minon if I've hurt your feelings in the past, but I still remember how Mrs. Anandan hit you on the head with a sendok and called you 'grumpy pot!!'(you were our class monitor that year!) It was a scandal when later we listed down all the abuses we got from her during the Home Science class and submitted the complaint to the Headmistress. The experience must be very traumatic to most of us and I'm pretty sure that is the contributing factor to our failure to excell in cooking until NOW.I wonder where that 'tight-black-bra-wearing' lady is now, God bless her!
The topics of conversation were of course around family matters, children, place of work etc, I didn't quite get into much discussion as I was busy being a host, making sure there was enough food, drinks and plates for everyone. But I did hear the word 'menopause' being discussed over and over again by various caucus!! Come on people, talk about 'financial instruments' for once, please!!!!!
Rosni from Dubai felt bad about not being able to participate and sent her love through the SMS, and Cik Pah will certainly have enough memories to bring back to Angola, until the next gathering.
Saed the coordinator did a splendid job in getting everyone together and I saw her giving the direction until the very last. Itu lah, orang dah e-mailkan location map, nak bukak e-mail pun tak reti!!!!hei...makcik, makcik!!.....
Anyway, we are supposed to keep our calendar open for July next year, as STF will be celebrating it's 50th anniversary which coincides with our 50th birthdays! (must we be reminded????). Maton asked us:'eh, betul ke aku ni dah nak 50tahun??'..Reality check, Prof, reality check........
Thanks everyone, kalau ada yang terkurang, tersilap, terlepas kata, minta maaf banyak2, Okey?!?....
The STF74 gathering was a huge success. Betul!!! Not because I was the host, but the warmth and the spirit of friendship that hovered throughout the occassion. It was a peculiar feeling, where status and credentials were cast aside and ALL of us were transformed into giggly remove class girls of 1969!!
Eventhough all of us were educated the same way, in the same environment, the outcome is surprisingly quite varied. In the group, there is a Toh Puan, a Datin, and lots and lots of 'Professors Dr.' so much so that if you throw a currypuff, it would most likely hit someone with that title!
On the other hand, 2 friends who came all the way from the East Coast have dedicated themselves deep into religion. However, still a sport because they do not mind when I went like: Nik, nak tengok muka engkau! When I slide the purdah covering the face, she flashed me a very wide sweet smile,still the same Nik I remember as the school debater of 1973!
The kembar tak siam, Ajam and Mah are still the same cheeky girls, I caught them gossipping about someone's asset at one corner of the house!!!Minon who was lost, arrived sweaty and puffing, bearing 4 BIG containers of very delicious savoury. I'm sorry Minon if I've hurt your feelings in the past, but I still remember how Mrs. Anandan hit you on the head with a sendok and called you 'grumpy pot!!'(you were our class monitor that year!) It was a scandal when later we listed down all the abuses we got from her during the Home Science class and submitted the complaint to the Headmistress. The experience must be very traumatic to most of us and I'm pretty sure that is the contributing factor to our failure to excell in cooking until NOW.I wonder where that 'tight-black-bra-wearing' lady is now, God bless her!
The topics of conversation were of course around family matters, children, place of work etc, I didn't quite get into much discussion as I was busy being a host, making sure there was enough food, drinks and plates for everyone. But I did hear the word 'menopause' being discussed over and over again by various caucus!! Come on people, talk about 'financial instruments' for once, please!!!!!
Rosni from Dubai felt bad about not being able to participate and sent her love through the SMS, and Cik Pah will certainly have enough memories to bring back to Angola, until the next gathering.
Saed the coordinator did a splendid job in getting everyone together and I saw her giving the direction until the very last. Itu lah, orang dah e-mailkan location map, nak bukak e-mail pun tak reti!!!!hei...makcik, makcik!!.....
Anyway, we are supposed to keep our calendar open for July next year, as STF will be celebrating it's 50th anniversary which coincides with our 50th birthdays! (must we be reminded????). Maton asked us:'eh, betul ke aku ni dah nak 50tahun??'..Reality check, Prof, reality check........
Thanks everyone, kalau ada yang terkurang, tersilap, terlepas kata, minta maaf banyak2, Okey?!?....
Friday, November 18, 2005
STF74 H/Raya together gather
.
My friends who left school together after SC/MCE in 1974 decided to have a get together bersempena H/Raya. For most, this is the first 'meet again' session after 31 years!!! I have the opportunity to meet some of them earlier and my, have they changed!(in terms of sizes and definitely personalities).
This group represents the success story of the Dasar Ekonomi Baru. We started schooling in 1963 and sat for the special exam to enter residential school in 1968. We were the anak petani, nelayan, polis, askar, cikgu kampong etc from all over Malaysia, very poor malay girls but had the brain and the drive to lead a better life in the future.
Looking back, we were not unlike the lost generation of the Maoris.(Hey, I watched the documentary in National Geographic Channel!) We didn't realise it then, but,I suppose it was for our own good. In the residential school,we were given place to live (read:Dormitory, all lights out at 10pm), food to eat (chicken only on Friday), timetable for studies, class, sports, activities, the timing of which were as precise as the clockwork. Punishments were aplenty (5sen for every malay word spoken! keji lah korang prefects!!!!scholarship kitorang only RM20.00 per month tau!!nak beli pad lagi!) and nobody cared about our shock of being displaced, our feelings and misery ( because we were poor, we were not supposed to be anymore miserable than we already were!), whether we were sad or missing our family in the kampongs. The utmost importance was academic excellence. Period. Teruk lah headmistress masa tu, macam emak tiri dalam film bawang putih bawang merah, err, no, macam Nyonya mansor dalam film Ibu Mertuaku!. Matron pun nak tumpang sekaki tunjuk lagak! Padahal tugas dia untuk jaga makanan and laundry ajer, ni nak sebok jaga kutu orang sama, check kain dalam pakai ke tidak bagai....pervert aper?
After SC/MCE (the current version of SPM), most of us were sent abroad to get professional qualifications. I suppose this was the turning point for some of us, the only opportunity, for once, to think for ourselves as to what to do with our own lives.
The list of attendees to the 'together gather'is very impressive. Amongst us will be heads of local University faculties (award winner osso got! - eh,how come I sound like Wong Ah Beng???), Professors, Doctors, Pharmacist, Lawyers, Architect, Accountants, Teachers, Engineers, Actuarist, Researchers, Government Administrators and businesswomen. At least 3 of them are working grandmothers!!!Ooohh...tidak!!!!Oh ya, forgot to mention, one lady is coming back all the way from Angola to join the carnival. She is working as an expatriate for the Exxon-mobil there and I heard she is bringing back diamonds as H/Raya gifts for all of us!. I told you that we are an impressive group, Malaysia boleh!!
I've offered my house to be the gathering place this Sunday. Hope it has enough space to accomodate 45 professionals who have not met for 31 years.....Welcome Srikandis....
My friends who left school together after SC/MCE in 1974 decided to have a get together bersempena H/Raya. For most, this is the first 'meet again' session after 31 years!!! I have the opportunity to meet some of them earlier and my, have they changed!(in terms of sizes and definitely personalities).
This group represents the success story of the Dasar Ekonomi Baru. We started schooling in 1963 and sat for the special exam to enter residential school in 1968. We were the anak petani, nelayan, polis, askar, cikgu kampong etc from all over Malaysia, very poor malay girls but had the brain and the drive to lead a better life in the future.
Looking back, we were not unlike the lost generation of the Maoris.(Hey, I watched the documentary in National Geographic Channel!) We didn't realise it then, but,I suppose it was for our own good. In the residential school,we were given place to live (read:Dormitory, all lights out at 10pm), food to eat (chicken only on Friday), timetable for studies, class, sports, activities, the timing of which were as precise as the clockwork. Punishments were aplenty (5sen for every malay word spoken! keji lah korang prefects!!!!scholarship kitorang only RM20.00 per month tau!!nak beli pad lagi!) and nobody cared about our shock of being displaced, our feelings and misery ( because we were poor, we were not supposed to be anymore miserable than we already were!), whether we were sad or missing our family in the kampongs. The utmost importance was academic excellence. Period. Teruk lah headmistress masa tu, macam emak tiri dalam film bawang putih bawang merah, err, no, macam Nyonya mansor dalam film Ibu Mertuaku!. Matron pun nak tumpang sekaki tunjuk lagak! Padahal tugas dia untuk jaga makanan and laundry ajer, ni nak sebok jaga kutu orang sama, check kain dalam pakai ke tidak bagai....pervert aper?
After SC/MCE (the current version of SPM), most of us were sent abroad to get professional qualifications. I suppose this was the turning point for some of us, the only opportunity, for once, to think for ourselves as to what to do with our own lives.
The list of attendees to the 'together gather'is very impressive. Amongst us will be heads of local University faculties (award winner osso got! - eh,how come I sound like Wong Ah Beng???), Professors, Doctors, Pharmacist, Lawyers, Architect, Accountants, Teachers, Engineers, Actuarist, Researchers, Government Administrators and businesswomen. At least 3 of them are working grandmothers!!!Ooohh...tidak!!!!Oh ya, forgot to mention, one lady is coming back all the way from Angola to join the carnival. She is working as an expatriate for the Exxon-mobil there and I heard she is bringing back diamonds as H/Raya gifts for all of us!. I told you that we are an impressive group, Malaysia boleh!!
I've offered my house to be the gathering place this Sunday. Hope it has enough space to accomodate 45 professionals who have not met for 31 years.....Welcome Srikandis....
Friday, November 04, 2005
Peace to the world!!!
Imran (13yrs.) and Ikram (16yrs), celebrating the Aidilfitri with their 98yrs old great-grand-mother whilst showing the PEACE sign.
4 Generations gap? What generations gap?? Caya lah Nek Tok!!!!
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