Sunday, September 30, 2012

OhMyIdiom (?) Rub Of The Green

Gosh It has been a while since I updated my idiom post. Been busy with stuffs, lots of them hohoh~ Anyway I was reading a post-match comment from a football game of Liverpool against United the other day, and I found this idiom, 'The Rub Of The Green'.

Meaning?
if you have the rub of the green, you have good luck, especially in a sports competition

Example?
- Luis Suarez seemed to be having the rub of the green last night as he scored a hat-trick against Norwich City. WOHOOOO!!! We won 5-2 baby!!


Thursday, September 27, 2012

Chicken Bazooka

What's the number 1 fast food eatery in Liverpool? CHICKEN BAZOOKA. This has been every Bruneian's favorite fast food deli in town. It is one of the places that offers halal foods, the foods taste great and it's cheap!

So yesterday we went to Bazooka. It has been a while since I ate there. We had a £2 lunch box filled with a massive quantity of fries, a piece of fried chicken, a piece of lamb rib and a drink, all for £2! Burpp!


Tuesday, September 25, 2012

First cooked dinner

Microwave food is good. Cooked food is even better!

I haven't cooked a single cuisine since I'm here, thanks to our non-functioning stove that is! I'm itching to cook as these past few days, my housemates and I had only been eating microwaved foods and take-outs.

Then I had an idea, why don't I 'borrow' our friend's stove at the other house and cook there? I really should! So there we went. I called my Bruneian compatriots who lives near to our area and offered myself to cook there. So It was kind of like a random dinner gathering, thankfully they agreed! yaay!

So we planned to cook TomYum Soup and Chinese Fried Rice. Am really excited! It's been a while since I ate good foods!

Ooooh we first went for a grocery shopping at Tesco's nearby. 

Bought 2 fish pies for myself as well, yummy yummy!


Then there's the cooking part. I made the soup and everyone seemed to get all excited and pack themselves up in the small kitchen as if they hadn't seen someone cooking for a long time lol! So they cooked the fried rice and I decided to relax at the living room as I got the TomYum soup done.


 TomYum soup a success! Although the ingredients added are not 'complete'. So I had to compromise.
 Everyone seemed to be busy in the kitchen while I sat down by myself, what a loner~


Thanks to my friends who gladly lent us the house and kitchen! I guess tomorrow will be back to microwaved foods again.. Hopefully by next week the repairman will get all things sorted out so that we could enjoy cooking in our house rather than borrowing others'.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Uni Life Starts!

Been on hiatus for a few days as I had a long, 15 hours of flight from Brunei to the UK last Friday. This is then followed by days of hectic and fatigue as I had to settle down into my new home in Liverpool.

Here I am, Liverpool~

There are still much to do, but hopefully I'll get things sorted out by the end of this week InsyaAllah..

A new chapter for my Final year undergraduate at Uni started yesterday, and it went off with a BANG!! Well.. not literally a Bang.. It rained all day yesterday.. heavy downpour across the midlands.. I guess that itself defines what the weather in the UK is going to be like until next year.

I will update my blog as soon as I got everything all sorted out InsyaAllah.


 Heavy rain got me all soaked up when I walked down to Uni!



Oh, and It's raining again today....

Thursday, September 20, 2012

OhMyIdiom (?) Under The Weather

What does it signify?
- To feel ill or being sick

Example?
- I'm feeling a bit under the weather today, so i won't be able to attend today's lecture (Could also be used as an excuse not to go to work, heh.. heh...)


Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Shopping List

Here's another of my 'wanted' list.

Nike CTR 360 LibrettoIII Turf!!


OhMyIdiom (?) A Dime A Dozen

 'A Dime A Dozen'

What?? : 
Anything that is common / easy to get

Give examples then?? : 
My brother is so confident ahead of his tug-of-war match that he thinks that getting a medal would be A Dime A Dozen.

Nowadays, Getting a good result in A'levels is A Dime A Dozen as there are more quality teachers than before.

Iphone 5, A Dime A Dozen.




Shopping List

I looooove to play games! Had a ps3 console back in Liverpool and an xbox here in Brunei. Every year during september-october-november-december (because these are the times when the 'big hit' games would be released!), I would look for any new coming games to be offered. 

What's my current target? FIFA 13


September 25 2012! It's coming soon!




*Note to self: Refrain self from sleepless nights. Game pun game jua, keraja jangan lupa

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

9gag Gangnam

I got this picture from 9gag. What interests me is the way the information is presented, colorful, simple and cool! Could be an idea for my next presentation..


OhMyIdiom (?) Fly off the handle

Meaning: 

To lose control of yourself & start to scream and shout as a result of uncontrollable anger.

Example:

 Because he stole my 5 cent coin, I was so angry that I was about to fly off the handle and shout like Tarzan. Aaaaaa~~~~ Aaaaa~~~~ Aaaaaaa~~~~






A short second to pray for our parents


Use Your Head (2)

Creative Thinking

To be a creative individual is to be able to see things in a different perspective and to think outside the box. Therefore, harnessing a creative mind is important. Nuff said.

So how can one create a creative brain? well, everyone has a creative brain - I do, you do. The trick is to tap into it. Creativity flourishes best when you can harmonize the right and left sides of your brain. Creative individuals do a number of things that separates their thinking from normal thinking (Buzan 2010). 

'VIASOF' is what you need.

V (The ability to produce 'Volume')
I (Imagination)
A (Association)
S (The ability to think at 'Speed')
O (The ability to think 'Original')
F (Flexibility)

1. The ability to produce Volume

To think fast and then producing it quickly. One could train their brain to think fast, then produce the thoughts in a matter of time. For example, producing a quality essay, or simply by playing chess.




2. Imagination

In creative individuals, their imagination is highly developed. Imagination is the Engine Room for your Brain.

To develop one's imagination, you can daydream actively. If possible ,make those dreams come true. For example, getting a distinction in one of your exams.

Spongebob once quoted, ''You don't need a huge screen tv, you just need Imagination''.


3.Association

The ability to make connections between things, that is Association. A creative brain finds connections between things and then build on those new connections.

Here's an exercise for your brain : 'Think of the similarities between a laptop and a slice of pizza'. Go on, explore!

Here's what i could think of..
- Both are man made
- Both could bring joy to us humans
- They came in different colors
- They can be produced in different countries with different styles/ingredients
- Both came in various sizes
- Both could be bought and sold
- Birthday present? why not!

Okay, so what are your answers? =)




4. Speed Thinking

Creative thinkers think fast! Even while daydreaming, they think fast! fast! fast! fast! fast! fast!

To train speed thinking, simply think of as many uses as you can for any object in one minute, do this daily. InsyaAllah. 

So what are the uses of a laptop? or a chair? or a rubber band? or a piece of paper? Give it a try! One minute, go!





5.Originality

''Be Original lah Bro..'' I still remembered that line when I tried to imitate one of my mate's jokes..
Being Original is to think of ideas that have never been thought of before and is indeed an evidence of creativity. (and do not try to imitate someone's jokes..)

A Good creative brain could think of fresh ideas. So be original.



6. Flexibility

Flexibility is the ability to see things from a different perspective. So, train yourself to see everything from multiple perspectives.

Take for example, a book. Perhaps a normal brain will see things in its default way, i.e the storyline. However, a creative individual can see the book from a different perspective such as its 
economical value,
 the implications to readers,
 is it worth the read,
 its size,
 weight, 
colour,
 perhaps its smell?
 Is it available in different languages? 
Perhaps a good birthday gift?
 Is it suitable for all ages?

 And more...





Hope This helps!! Assalamualaikum







Monday, September 17, 2012

A Trip Down Memory Lane

A fresh new Tuesday, and it's still early in the morning. Yes I woke up early this time, as yesterday had been exhausting, yet highly enjoyable! It all started with a conversation between my partner and I during a meet-up for breakfast.. 'Bah bila ke Seria?' And there we go! a random day out to Seria town and Kuala Belait.

There are four districts in Brunei Darussalam of course. I'm currently living in Tutong district. The place where I really grew up is in Belait district; just a short 45 minutes trip from where I'm residing today. Within Belait district, I have lived in Seria Town (part of Belait), and Kuala Belait (the main town in Belait). Just a little background to share, although most of you have already known this =D.


The School

I studied in Seria ever since I was in primary 1 up until 6. Sekolah Rendah Pengiran Setia Negara Pengiran Mohd Yusof, Lorong Tiga Selatan Seria ('SR PSN Seria' in short).


Picture taken from http://srpsnpmy.blogspot.com/

 Aaahh~ Those wonderful years in primary school. Mom used to teach here and I bet she used to be ashamed of me for being such a bad boy. Yes I'm a bad boy, I once peed in the toilet without flushing! How bad is that! huuuuh~ And yes, being a teacher's son is never easy; once you dropped your marks in a test, you'll get scolded.. 'Nah, main game lagi kau!' . I mean, that was just a simple class test, not a big exam! anyway I still love you mom =D. There are however silver linings behind those 'test fails'; I got to learn from my mistakes and improve from what I lack of.

Other stuffs going on in my primary years were: 

- Getting to be head of class

- Joined Nasyid competition

- Got 2nd place for the inter school's science competition

- Main carah kaki everyday, fun fun fun!

- Took part in a chess competition

- Got scolded...

- Others that were too embarrassing to blog about.


The Hospital


Thanks for helping me take a picture! <3 

This is where I was born, Panaga Health Centre. We took a short stop here on our way to Kuala Belait. Well, there's no need to enter the hospital, but WE HAD TO. WE JUST HAD TO. There's always a consequence if you're having too much to drink.. Well, what better place to empty your bladder if not the hospital where you were born! right? Thanks to the doctors and nurses who helped my mom to ease her misery of getting me out back then, November 1991 to be exact. Thanks!



We visited several other places in Seria and Kuala Belait but didn't get the chance to take pictures of them all mainly due to us just driving past by those places and didn't make a stop. But, here's some that my partner managed to capture.

  This monument in Seria was put up by the Brunei Shell Petroleum to commemorate the Billionth barrel of crude oil produced by them in Brunei.

 To buy this drink is a must for me, whenever I come to Seria. The taste is still the same! after all the years I have 'abandoned' the place. This is soo good!
 Had a quick pit-stop at Sugarbun in Kuala Belait. I have to say, the fish fillet is disappointing, rugi $3 eh

Sunday, September 16, 2012

OhMyIdiom (?) Behind The Eight Ball

Corresponds to : Being in a difficult / dangerous position

For Instance :

 John Terry is now behind the eight ball as he was accused of being a racist towards Anton Ferdinand in last night's game

I'm currently behind the eight ball because i'm chased by a menacing dog right now (and yes, i'm writing while being chased) LOL!


Saturday, September 15, 2012

Mini-doa selamat get together

Assalamualaikum


Mom's a creative, solution-finder type of human being. That's one of her specialties. When it comes to organizing an event in a short period of time with everyone in the family are sort of 'busy' with their everyday lives, mom's the best. 

Actually, this Doa selamat event was planned by mum earlier this week. But as she's rather occupied with her career assignments (Coz she's a workaholic!!), we had to make a little alteration for today's event. So she organized a mini lunch, topping it off with a Doa Selamat especially for me as I'm going to continue my studies in the UK as a final year student Alhamdulillah.

With her trusty sidekick (Our amah), mom and us managed to have a simple, yet meaningful mini lunch-get-together with my Bungsu's family and Nenek from next door. All in all, tummies were satisfied, Doa Selamat went well, and I'm off to sleep! (Tidur Patang, hehehe...)

OhMyIdiom (?) Kick The Habit

Meaning : To stop doing something of a bad habit (smoking, Eating too much, drinking too much, sleeping all day long, etc)

Example: I was told to kick the habit of drinking too much, so that I wont have hangovers during the day's lecture.


Friday, September 14, 2012

Use Your Head (1)

How To Unleash The Power Of Your Mind.

 RECALL

One tends to recall things more at the beginning of a learning period, as well as the end. We tend to recall considerably less in the middle period of learning. Therefore, taking breaks between studying is important.


Having to rest between 20-40 minutes of studying is essential so that recall can be kept high and furthermore to let what we have learned in the last 20-40 minutes to 'sink in' to our brains before starting a new learning period 5-10 minutes later.



REVIEW:

To 'review' is to look back at what we had studied earlier before. One needs to make these reviews to maintain the knowledge gained for a period of time, up until it is stored in our long-term memory. Basically, the new things we learned is stored in our short-term memory. So how are we going to store them to our long-term memory? Simple, REVIEW.

 For example, reviewing what we had studied 10 minutes after an hour of learning will keep the level of recall high for approximately one day, in which the next review should take place, then recall can be retained for a week, and so on.  The graph below explains why.





More To Come InsyaAllah.

OhMyIdiom (?) Silver Lining

Meaning : Something good / positive within an unpleasant situation

Example : There's a Silver lining behind me getting to miss my flight; at least I could stay and enjoy lunch the airport has provided.

              : The Silver lining of getting up late for work is that I had enough sleep.


I know i know, there's no connection between Silver Lining and the Silver surfer, but hey, at least they're both silver! =D


           

Something to motivate our spiritual individuality

WE ALWAYS ASK: Why was I TESTED?

AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "Do men think that they will be left alone saying,'We believe', and that they will not be tested? We did test those before them, and Allah will certainly know those who are true from those who are false." [29:2-3]




2) WE ALWAYS ASK: Why I never get what I wanted?
AL-QURAN ANSWERS: " It is possible that you dislike a thing which is good for you, and that you love a thing, which is bad for you. But Allah knows, while you know not." Surah Al-Baqarah [2:216]




3) WE ALWAYS ASK: Why was I burdened this way?
AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "Allah does not place a burden to a soul greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns." Surah Al-Baqarah [2:286]& " So verily, with every difficulty there is relief: (repeated) Verily, with every difficulty there is relief." Surah Al-Insyirah [94:5-6]




4) WE ALWAYS ASK: Why am I losing hope?
AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "So lose not heart, nor fall into despair: For you will be superior if you are true in Faith." Surah Al-Imran [3:139]




5) WE ALWAYS ASK: How can I face it?

AL-QURAN ANSWERS: " O you who believed! Persevere in patience and constancy; vie in such perseverance; strengthen each other; and fear Allah that you may prosper." Surah Al-Imran[3:200] & "And seek(Allah's) help with patient, perseverance and prayer: It is indeed hard, except to those who bring a humbly submissive (to Allah)." Surah Al-Baqarah [2:45]




6) WE ALWAYS ASK: What do I get from all these?

AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and properties (in exchange) for that they will have the garden (of Paradise)..." Surah At-Taubah [9:111]




7) WE ALWAYS ASK: To whom could I depend?

AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "(Allah) suffice me: there is no god but He: On Him is my trust- He the Lord of the Throne (of Glory) Supreme." Surah At-Taaubah [9:129]




8) WE ALWAYS ASK: But I can't take it anymore!
AL-QURAN ANSWERS: "...and never give up hope of Allah's Soothing Mercy; truly No one despairs of Allah's Soothing Mercy. except Those who have no faith." Surah Yusuf [9:87]& "Despairs not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives All sins for He is Often- Forgiving, Most Merciful." Surah Az-Zumar [39:53]

OhMyIdiom (?) Waiting In The Wings


Meaning: If you're waiting in the wings, you're ready to take over a role or a position when you have the chance to do so.

For example:
  • In politics, there are always plenty of people waiting in the wings ready for a chance to take power.
  • Everybody knows that the chairman's son is waiting in the wings and will take over as soon as his father retires.


*Copy and Paste


LEGO BAG TAG

Got myself a pair of Lego Bag Tag for my upcoming journey to the United Kingdom. Hopefully I'm the only one using these tags for the flight, or there'll be a mix up with identifying my cargo luggage upon arrivals. Phew!


Thursday, September 13, 2012

ART (Apple Rock Times) New Album!


Here's the cover of the new album called 'Roket' by Brunei's local band, Apple Rock Times, or known as ART. The album was officially launched yesterday with CANDAS Records as its pioneer.

I just bought this album tonight and managed to listen to all of their 5 songs. Although I listened to them in brief, I could say that this band have gone into a stage where they are already matured. In comparison with the songs from their previous album, ART had certainly gone into a whole new level with the introduction of Roket. They are back with better music arrangements and profound lyrics. These are the kinds of music that are seldom being heard in our local radio stations, at least in Brunei. This album is truly one of its kind with its good 'indie' music and cunning lyrics.

Then again, i'm no music specialist, but I trust my ears. If it's good, it's good.


Wednesday = Football, Chilling

Yesterday really knocked me out, especially the football session from 4.30 p.m up until the moment where we can't even see who's who on the pitch. Had an enjoyable football session, which is what matters most.



After that, I had the chance to have a catching up session with some of my mates. Didn't have the chance to stare at my laptop as long as i want last night as I need to have a breather for myself.


OhMyIdiom (?) Add Insult To Injury

Meaning: To make a bad situation even worse

Example: Manchester United lost 10-0 to Liverpool during the opening match for the 2012/2013 premier league season, to add insult to injury, their manager Sir Alex Ferguson resigned seconds after the match ended.

LOL!


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Evening birthday celebration

11th September. 
Happy Birthday Mum! Not forgetting my little cousin Abdul Fattah as well!

Let's see.. what would people usually do during their birthday? ooh! Celebrate!

And that's what we did last night. It was mom's idea to go out and have a lovely evening dinner at Jerudong Polo Club, together with my Bungsu's family (since it's his son's birthday as well) and my girl <3. 

We had an enjoyable evening. What makes last night even more enjoyable? We sat next to the poolside! Everything is much better when one is to be seated by the poolside. (well, apart from the splashes produced from the swimmers of course, luckily we had this 'wall' nearby to shield us from any incoming chlorines!)



 Birthday boy, can't wait to get himself all soaked up.




The kids of my two brothers and cousins grabbed this chance to go swimming, and they did. So happy to see their smiling faces, especially the birthday boy's! Looked so eager to dip himself up in the pool. Such a great evening. 

There are no birthday cakes by the way..

JUST THE AMAZING GIFT EVER! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!! =D


Alright alright.. Im kidding.. This one was outside the building where we had our dinner last night. Just wow!


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CONTINUED.

OPPA GANGNAM STYLE!



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