2011

i will be spending new year's eve and the first day of 2011 in singapore.

i have a couple of new year's resolution but the only ones i can share is:

1) i plan on losing 2kgs before April
2)i will NOT go overbudget on my wedding

wishing each and everyone of you a happy new year. may 2011 bring prosperity, health, wealth and wisdom in all of us!

much love,
be'ah xoxo

tabam

please tell me its normal for me to be pissed when someone says i am tabam, on my FIRST day of having my period.

and at a time when i NEED to lose weight for the upcoming wedding.

i minded very much when it wasnt true, apatah lgi now when i myself know that i am gaining weight and my bajus are all getting tighter around the waist.

sigh.

cheer me up.

dum dum dum dum

finally starting to feel like a bride and less of a bridezilla.

4 months to go!!

had my first dress fitting last sunday. it was amazing. the dress is exquisite. i can't find enough words to describe it. and to think the dress isn't even 100% finished yet. hee. Aaliah Asmara is definitely the place to go. take note future brides, since they're new so the price is pretty affordable. catch the designers early before their prices go up!

in that dress, i can happily settle for just nikah and skip bebadak, sanding and ambilan.

i love my dress so much.

much love,
be'ah xoxo

tomorrow is december already?

where did time fly?

i have neglected this blog for a number of reasons, numero uno because what with work and wedding planning, all i want when i get home is to crash down and sleep and not talk and type out my thoughts.

tho it would be a different matter if there was some way i could transform my thoughts into a post without moving a finger hehe.

lets do updates. my parents went away for hajj and they're back, all is well. extra good thing, they are uber sabar and that in turn makes me sabar, so its been a nice productive week.

on to the juicy stuff.

i've managed to settle down on the designs for my akad nikah dress and ambil2an dress. have deposited moeny in order for dresses to go into production. if i want to lose weight, its now or never.

have also confirmed venue for bersanding. will be in a hall and not at home as initially planned. this throws me off balance slightly because i was all pening thinking abt how my pelamin is going to be like, and now that the sanding will be in a hall, i can now be pening over two pelamins.

over this dilemma, google has been my bestfriend. i google every image of pelamins i can think of. pelamin contemporary. pelamin cinderella. pelamin unique. pelamin unik. garden pelamin. forest pelamin. pelamin princess. royal pelamin. pelamin glam.

and thats not counting the googles for pelamin pink, pelamin purple, pelamin green etc.

hehe. thank god for malaysians who have a wide range of pelamins to display on their sites. and all the blogs of malaysian brides-to-be showcasing the pelamins they want.

speaking which, its amaaazing how many malaysians have opened up blogs by virtue of them being a bride to be. sangat detail dgn stress mencari cincin, discussion with tailor on baju nikah, theme colour, jln beli kain for bridesmaids..

but hey, helps me all the same. im just surprised how many of these bride-to-be blogs are by malaysians.

i have gone off on a tangent there. back to the story at hand. have also gotten round to getting kains for my bridesmaids. actually, did not personally get them, got my cousin who went to kl for a holiday to get them for me. i havent seen the kains either cz she just arrived today. but thats one more thing off my list!

and a hundred million ones to go~

much love,
be'ah xoxo

what i am thinking right now

read this at a bridal designer website

'bringing out the woman in you'

so where was the woman in me before?


_________________________________________________

i am still clueless about my colour for ambil-ambilan.

ditto to where to make my jemputan.

ditto to WHERE i'm gonna bersanding.

_________________________________________________

i realised i can't really sit still on the floor. i fidget and squirm to death.

gotta practise for nikah tho. or can i just sit on a chair?

___________________________________________________

why are the good tailors in brunei, the ones who specialises in making baju out of songket brunei, always always last minute?

how does one fit in at least 2 fitting sessions? what if the fit isn't nice and there's no time for fitting? can i get a discount?

___________________________________________________

why are all the good hairstylists male?

____________________________________________________

did you know u need to PAY in order to find out what the colour trend for 2011 is?

go figure. i'm talking about patone.com.

____________________________________________________

make up artist and photographer done. now i'm at lost at to what's next.

____________________________________________________

bridal woes

in case you havent heard, i am getting married.

well, not a big surprise since i've been with him before i got into uni and now that i have a job, it only seems the most natural next-thing-to-do.

the wedding is soon-ish and i shall be wearing lovely vintage lace which was bought by my late grandmother.

the lace is so lovely that it is having arguments with the fashionista in me. lovely (especially VINTAGE!) lace should be allowed to look its gorgeous self on simple cuts and sillhouettes, not complicated pleated drapey designs.

so trying to find a middle ground is a bit of a dilemma. i do want a simple look coz that dress is gonna be with me forever PLUS i plan to wear it (or at the the kain if not the top) for jemputan at istana but i dont want it to be some simple baju kurong, y'know?

i do know what i DONT want tho. i definitely do not want any of those long trains. i want the kain to not drag me.

i dont want to wear the lace from head to toe.

i dont want the dress to be 'kilat-kilat'.

baru baju nie. u havent heard my woes on make-up artist hunting.

maybe next post. toodles!

rabi'a xoxo

luscious lace

"All bridal fabrics are beautiful, but none combine history, craftsmanship, and romance as well as lace. The intricate web of patterns is both coquettishly revealing and demurely concealing for a fitting combination in a wedding dress."

- Marthastewartweddings.com

lace. the quintessential baju nikah fabric. however, i am sane enough to not want to splurge on an $250 per metre fabric and to only wear it for 2hours.

the most special day of my life, yes. but do i want to spend the rest of my marriage bayar hutang? no.

(labih jua eh kain lace sampai behutang~ huhu.)

but u girls know what i mean.

gah. wedding planning is not all fun. or maybe i havent reached the 'fun' part yet. will tell you when i get there.

much love,
Rabi'a xoxo

something to ponder.

apologies versus explanations.

sacrifices. change. adaptations.

all one big huge sigh.

can i get married tomorrow?

lulubils

she's here and gorgeous and i've taken her out and she is ab.so.lute.ly beeeyuuuutifool!

oh, and she underwent a name change too. hehe.

anyway, wave if u see her!

much love,
rabia xoxo

oh Lola!

i have waited and wait and waited and waited.

i was told that she'll come in least tan 3 montsh, MAX 3 months.

its been 4 mths now.

but she will finally finally be here next weeeeeek!

im thinking of changing her name to babylee tho. and call her billie for short. or bilis. hahaha.

lola? billie? bilis?

esuk adi ku birthday party. and i gots netball with officepeeps.

i tink i like netball. as long as they pass me the ball and i catch it and pass it to the right team member, i like it.

speaking of which, i shud be back at the gym by now. crap. i havent been for a week now. will be back by monday.. gotta lose weight forrr the wedding!

much love,
be'ah xoxo

he observes..

something that i myself have never noticed.

bf declared that i am kusut whenever things don't go my way.

how true. and very worrying. gotta take more chill pills then. no doubt about it then, i'll definitely be your typical bridezilla.

for now, imma take a chill pill.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

calling in the big guns

i am officially unfit. going up the stairs make me slightly breatheless when 1 year ago, i'd be running up the stairs and it'll be no problem.

not to mention i used to be THINNER. and i have bingo arms now. eww eww eww!

therefore, i am declaring myself officially on a diet.

no torturing myself obviously, but just the rules i've always followed up till i started work.

• no white bread
• no fast food (mcDs, KFC, express, you name it)
• no milkshakes! just water or green tea whenever i eat out
• and no late meals, latest by 8pm

other than that, dessert is okay!

3kgs to lose in 1 month. at least cits is away so i wont be gorging on her cupcakes anytime soon.

anyone who sees me with a milkshake/white bread/fast food and/or eating late at night is very much welcomed to slap the food away and say i'm fat.

thank you very much for your cooperation.

much love,
rabi'a
xoxo

i forgot

that i had a blog. last post was almost a month ago!

between work, gym and the boyfriend finally back in brunei, updating a blog seems silly.

but herea a few stuff to chew on:

1) im going to singapore again this sunday. for work, of course.
2) i have become dependent on my contact lenses. everything is blurry without them.
3)i will be making a major (and hopefully sound) investment soon.


thats all.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

my first leave

was today, for half a day.

went to work as usual in the morning. went back home for lunch and came back to the office with a throbbing head. like my head was having a disco party without inviting me.

then everybody started saying how red i was.

then the pain got a bit unbearable and knowing that i cant produce QUALITY work, i asked permission to leave. had to go to the clinic to get an official medical cert but yes, today is the day i took my first leave.

anyhoots, 12 days and counting! =D


much love,
rabi'a xoxo

stress?

i never knew you can be stressed without FEELING stressed. i've always thought it matters in how you feel and the body will follow suit, but this week's experience alone have proven otherwise.

but i'll start from the beginning.. say, a month back when my boss was on leave and out of the country.

the night before she started her leave (ie where the next day i'd be alone at the office manning the legal front), i went to the salon to get my usual treatment. During the head massage, my stylist asked 'are u stressed?' to which i replied no but was then told that my 'urat kencang' which meant not only was i stressed, i was super stressed.

but okay, im only 23. and i go to the gym regularly. maybe thats why 'urat kencang'.

so that was the first warning flag. second flag was during a facial. the facialist was massaging my eyes and was saying that my eyes are stressed. okay, i will always have dark circles and eyebags coruetsy of my late nights 7-8 years ago. i shrugged it off. towards the end of the facial, she massaged my shoulders and neck and exclaimed 'you are stressed! this part here is tight!' whilst giving extra pressure to my left shoulder.

okay.. thats twice. and i wasnt feeling stressed. how can you feel stressed in the middle of a hair treatment or facial??

plus the facialist woke me up by her claim that i was stressed. sheesh.

however, the past 2 days were heavy days for me. yes i was feeling stressful. skali baruuutah terasa my left shoulder anie berabis tight. since i finally felt stressed ystrdy and thought i deserved a good massage, i made an impromptu appointment that afternoon for a massage, body scrub and body mask.

and it was soooo good! not wanting to sound cliche, but the whole package really did me good. i feel like new! hee. cliche as that sounds, its true =) i was thinking of releasing stress at the gym, but i thot better of it because krg makin stress.

now lets see how long the after effects of last night's spa treatment lasts me.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

why helloo~

sorry for being MIA. a lot has been going on since i last posted. to summarise:

1) singapore was awesome! couldnt have asked for a better colleague to travel. great shopping, great food and most importantly, learnt a helluva lot and met many nice ppl.

among which, i met THE General Counsel of IAG!! thats like, a pehin in legal circles okay!

2) major projects at the office has recently been done, so the office is slightly calmer now =D

3) i had a day out with nav today, who's back for easter. took her for sushi and then a mani pedi at essensuals. it was good to catch up =)

4) i still havent lost the weight that i gained since work, but i'm gonna come up with a game plan for the office ie whoever is interested in losing weight so that we can do it together.

thats all from the top off my head.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

itty bitty bits

i am leaving for singapore this sunday! work has been slightly hectic because our big boss has just announced that he needs us to finish off certain things before the legal team leaves for singapore.

oh well. nothing not doable.. just.. there goes my weekend =/

on an even more upsetting note....

my boyfriend has left the country for FIVE WEEKS to do a 777 course.

that damn plane better be here this year or this is all just a waste of money and time to train ppl to do triples sevens.

sigh. i am bitter tonite. it hasnt officially sunk in that he's gone. at least i've gone plenty to keep me occupied for this first week ie singapore.

then tomoro theres a spinning class i organised specially for ID. need the exercise after 2 days off from gym AND stuffing myself silly because i wanted to spend as much time with my bf before he leaves and the only thing to do in brunei is eat.

(or watch movies but there wasnt anything we wanted to watch).

loser eh.

10 things

1. i test drived a beetle today. and nope, didnt crash it =p

2. i dont have black shoes for work. who says black shoes are the basics? not in my wardrobe apparently

3. my boss has been on leave and i've been bravely manning the fort. i cant say i'm doing a great job but i'm coping, i guess.

4. i dont depend on my fone. i can go out and realise my fone's at home and dont feel the need to rush back home and get it.

5. i've driven while eating ice-cream in a cone. lesson learnt: walaupun handal driving satu tangan, there are some parts of the road (like the roundabout) where u would need 2 hands to drive.

6. i need to stop buying kain and start sending them to the tailor. my car boot looks like i sell kains with the amount of kains i have stashed in there!

7. i need to stop bali kains for this year. full stop. kain raya pun sudah bebali! haish.

8. my bf will be leaving soon. here comes the long distance again =(

9. i am too stressed to be blessed. eh salah, to blessed to be stressed! =p

10. no im not stressed. are u?

marking my words

the last post's final words were about how retail therapy would be good for me.

well, i not only retailed and therapy-ed but i paid the booking fee for Lola!

(whats Lola? yataaah tu nah nda baca previous posts :p)

anyhoo, she should be arriving in about three months time, by which time i'll be able to cough up more dough to pay a nice round number for deposit.

i guess its less coffee bean and fleur de lys from now on since im gonna save up for Lola AND a wedding.

on the weight update, i've lost 1kilo~

1 (or 2, depending on my muscle mass in the next few weeks) more to go!

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

work and gym

deadly combination! i dont knw how my colleagues do it. i am so knackered by the time i get home. my eating times have all but zonked out. i'm grabbing snacks every now and then and drinking coffee all the time.

a friend said that i'll get used to it once my body adjusts. which is fair enough coz i've only been doing this work-and-gym routine for a week. whats really annoying me is the fact that i havent lost any weight. in fact, i've gained! with my exercise routine back full swing, my appetite has gone up ten-fold and i'm eating more and more. i'm still trying to get round to eating more often but in little amounts. i asked a gym friend today whether she can tell if i've gained. she said its not that obvious but my face is slightly rounder and a tyre has grown on my waist. other than that, i'm good.

its good to know the massive weight gain hasnt reli translated physically. but my fitness level is so pancit now. i cant believe how fit i was 2 months back. i cant even hold a plank pose proper, let alone do a full bodypump class without cheating now and then. to be honest, i tink its all due to not being in abs blitz anymore. i took the class for granted cause i allowed myself to eat anything i want. now without abs blitz, i am doing almost zero abs workout, which pretty much explains the extra padding around my waist =/

my arms havent reach the bingo wings stage tho (THANK GOD!) and i'm slowing gaining strength there. its hard to work out a routine because i finish work at odd hours throughout the week and i've always depended on classes to help me stay motivated. i'm giving myself about 4 weeks to lose the weight i've gained due to work. i am gonna need A LOT of luck there. only ystrdy, i raided the office fridge for ice cream. and also raided the other side's pantry for chocolate!

sigh. i shud keep some healthy snacks at the office yea?

this is a pretty depressing post. but i know i can do it because i've done all this before. its sticking to the plan thats a slight problem. temptations everywhere! i'm gonna cut out cheese, fried stuff and fast food for now. gaah shudn't have gone back to fast food. i was good for so long =(

retail therapy would be good now.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

2 months

2 months anniversary at ID =)

i feel like i'm spending less money this time around because i'm buying less. but theres a catch. the few things i've bought do not come cheap.

like a membership at the gym for 1 year, unlimited. and 2 pairs of shoes.

actually, the shoes were put in for the sake of saying i bought them. but theres a trip to miri this weekend and i havent worked out how much i am budgeting for that... but the gym membership was expensive!

anyway, this meaaaans....

I AM BACK AT THE GYM! BALIK KAMPONG! SWEATS AND KURUS GALORE! SEXY TONED ARMS! NOT SO FLABBY STOMACH AND BEST OF ALLLLL

i can eat watever i want again!

okay to be honest, i havent exactly been dieting since my month-long hiatus from the gym. work is, at its best, challenging; and at its worst, downright stressful. so with that kind of work, and my being the person who eats more during stressful times i tell you it is nearly impossible to stick to a no-chocolate-after-6pm rule. apatah lgi no carbs after 7pm when i only have time for a proper sit down dinner by 7pm earliest.

(dont get me wrong. still love my job hee)

i've promised myself to sign up for the gym as soon as the second paycheck comes but trying to fit in the time to go to the gym and pay up was difficult to fit in between work, chores, socialising and what-have-yous. so when the workmates arranged an impromptu badminton session lastnite at the fitness zone hall, i jumped at it! went back home during lunch to get my gear, took money (did i tell u my building has an atm machine? evil, i know!) and went to the gym straight after work. signed up and when nurul-the-membership-consultant asked me when i'd like my membership to start, i went 'can i start now? like tonite? i have my gym gear in the car'.

talk about enthusiastic. haha but being back at the gym felt soooo good. it wasnt so much the workout tho coz obvs my stamina is teruk now. but i still managed to run a good 20mins on the treadmill so i guess i'm not so pancit. methinks its the weekly tasek-baddy-combo that helped. btu seeing the familiar faces, the equipments, the changing room!

of course it had a slightly novel feel to it coz i was a morning gym bunny and not used to seeing so many ppl at the gym mlm2x. and how ppl actually que before classes. and how difficult it is to get a machine because thres so many ppl.

but hey, something i can work around. met familiar faces (and everyone missed me!) and went on the tanita machine and am horrified to find that my fat mass has doubled in 1 month. my muscle mass? such a sad number. the plan for now is to get myself used to a routine of working out in the evenings after work and then slowly shape up my no-longer-toned-arms back into its former glory.

ah. gym. tomoro morning, first day back with the aunties gang. time to see if the extra weight on the scales shows on my face. coz u knw how ppl who havent seen u in a while will be able to tell better than ppl who see u everyday.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

blessed

when ur mother calls ur boyfren 'a good man' and goes on to say how i'd be a fool to let this one go.

thats a pretty bright green light for you, sayang! =D

love yew!

Her name was Lola~

me and officemates were talking abt names, specifically naming our cars. i was never good at naming inanimate objects.. paling2x pun my huge stuffed cat sja, who i call rory. other than that, its car, laptop, fone etc. recently molly confessed how her car's name is bluetron (because its old and she believes it can turn into a robot) so i got her to name my car.

'ur car's black.. how about that black panther in the jungle book?'

'aku lupa namanya..'

few seconds later.

'bagheera!'

'did u google it?'

'yea i did. bah ur car's name is bagheera coz its black and old and wise'.


old and wise? hahahaha. my car's 9 yrs old sudah plg so okay. and my car is actually pemarah coz dtg balik penyakitnya ie making noises. so after riding in my car once, molly deduced that my car is pemarah (coz it makes noises) so hence it is wise. and old and wise and black equals a 'bagheera'. sherry for short (because i wanted to call it sharokan ie shahrukh khan geddit geddit and sherry for short). so if my car had an identity card, it'll be Bagheera @Sharokan.

anyway, i'm seriously contemplating in buying a car. i have one in mind but we'll see if i actually go through with buying it. i do, however, have a name for it sudah.

its gonna be called 'lulu' OR lola as in her-name-was-lola-she-was-a-showgirl lola.

so which car goes best with lulu/lola?

(lain bah anak anie. kan pilih kereta based on a name. like the car would even care what its called. pfft)

i love the name 'lulu/lola' tho. maybe i shud call the car lulu lola. like a weird nursery rhyme. haha. or lola lulu. definitely gonna get a girly car with that name. bida jua tu if i get.. a dodge and call it lola lulu?


i dont knw. we'll see. i need to find a way to get a car without breaking into my savings.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

Friday equals Sports Day

so how do i fit in gym since i've started work?

i dont.

work has been slightly hectic lately because theres a few tight deadlines but insyaAllah, we'll get there on time. anyhoos, the office is quite good in organising social dos and its been a friday morning ritual to play badminton for 2 hrs (not 2hrs straight okay). followed by a chill sesh at coffee bean hee. balik modal kah nda, basically i do get exercise fitted in somehow, albeit once a week. i walk around alot in the office anyway, lunging files now and then so i guess thats my weights workout for now =)

today was the usual with some interesting twists. ran at tasek with boss. meet boss' fren with a personal trainer who invited us to join the session. did all sorts of planks and lunges right there and then in public. twas different, but oh how i miss having a trainer tell me wat to do! it was an awesome time. i wud've asked for more moves but for the trainer not being my personal trainer, i didnt say anything hehe. she did say to come again next week, so am looking forward to that!

that session made me realise the gymaholic in me is not buried too deep. i'm telling myself to join the gym again next month!

left tasek feeling uber hungry after that unexpected training session, so me and boss opted for a little breakfast b4 badminton. actually, 'little' is an understatement. we had dimsum. so i tink whatever we lost at tasek, we gained back at dynasty haha. we ate so much that we couldnt play terus at badminton, tepaksa rehat skajap. my game was a bit off today anyway. i was handal-er last week (banaaar~).

did ALL that before 12. productive day, ey? and long weekend soon. yayy!

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

Overtime

it is 8.40pm and i am still in the office. i've had back to back meetings all morning and afternoon and now i've only JUST finished my work but i kenot balik because i takut walk to my car seorang hee. so here i am, waiting for my colleagues to abis their work so we can all take the lift and walk together to the parking lot.

i could've done the work at home, but the office environment is better. This way, i won't leave stuff at home or vice versa.

and tomoro morning i am on duty to tembak-tembak people with the temperature thing and stick on 'fever free' stickers on people i barely know. reporting for duty is at 7am.

i am at the office more than i am at home =p

(baik jua bujang masih =p)

thank god i get along with, and actually like the ppl i work with.

now imma think up of what to wear tomoro since everyone will see me, seeing that i'm on duty to essentially check the temperature of the whole building.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

lunchtime shopping

during lunch today, i managed to:

• have lunch (duh!)

• beli DUA PASANG kain at shopaholics mj

• got a chocolate cheesecake from secret recipe for afternoon office snacking.

productive sangat la my lunch today. and i went with my boss, so definitely no fear of coming back to the office late hee. tho it makes me panic slightly at how much i can spend in such a short amount of time.

sigh. still on track for the wedding fund tho. but i tink no more eating out this month except the occasional cofeebean. so if u see me eat out, kana belanja tu!


much love,
rabi'a xoxo

1 month

today marks my one month anniversary since starting at work.

basar sudah ya~ haha =p

had lunch today with fadz and nis (and su who was there in spirit coz she cudnt make it). was suppose to belanja but nis beat me to the bill! padahal i planned the whole lunch thing.. hmpf. made them promise that next time, it'll be on me. hee which is funny coz dulu mesti split and everything and nobody ever argues when someone else belanja!

we were also in our work attire, which added to the whole we-are no-longer-in-high-school vibe. sigh. where did the time go, ey? we've already got a few friends married, with/expecting a baby. but at this moment in time, i can speak for us 3 that we are enjoying our newly acquired status of working singles (in the unmarried sense. of course i' m still with my boyfriend la~) and having that financially stability we've never had ever.

the whole belanja thing creates a nice fuzzy feeling inside, you knw? you are spending money on ppl u care. i reckon i read it somewhere.. a research was done where money does buy happiness but only in the sense that u feel happy when u buy things for/spend on loved ones. which works for me! hee. only recently i got my mother a watch which i've been dying to get her (psl jam nya bida plg jua haha) and now i've finally given her the watch and seeing her reaction mcm..

yayyy~

haha. also, its nice to be able to save up for the *bigplan* and not rely on sponsors or *ahem* boyfriend. who, by the way, has been very very supportive throughout my spending needs and wants in the whole 4 years of our relationship. good thing im not so demanding =p

my social life has been limited since i started work tho (eh wait, what social life?). i cant go to the salon as often as i want or watch movies or GO TO THE GYM as much =(

tomoro will be a busy day tho. we're having a legal unit day out (sounds impressive but the whole unit is just 2 of us. more like a catch-up sesh with a fren haha but i like how legal unit day out sounds). gonna jog at tasek with me boss and maybe minum2x and catch up with the rest of ID at 'baddy' (as my boss puts it) after. also, esuk petang one of the nicest, sincerest and hospitable couples i know are going to be ijab kabul-ed =D alhamdulillah~

is it sad that i'm excited about jogging and going to a wedding? haha. no, pls dont answer.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

Petrol

in the past few mths, my car (or the car i'm using if u wanna be anal about it) has been having minor problems. my dad, the super organised man that he is, has been taking the car in every week for check ups and watever needs to be fixed. sure its no fun when i wake up to go to the gym and find the car gone, but when it comes back, presto, a full tank of petrol!

last friday was the same routine. dad dissapears with car to workshop, comes back with things fixed. the petrol was running especially low by that friday. in such a situation, the car would USUALLY come back with a full tank courtesy of my dad.

but no. when i next used the car, the petrol level was more or less the same.

moral of the story: once u get your first paycheck, u pay ur own petrol!

oh well. good thing the office is only 5 mins away from home.

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

hmmm...

i dont knw what to write. ahaha. just saying hello and that i am alive and well, despite the lack of gym.

oh, i've been feeling tired ever since i started work eventho i clock in at least 7hrs of sleep.. so my mum's diagosed it as mental fatigue and made me take scott's cod liver oil emulsion.

good stuff. but only the orange flavoured one.

i am only 23 and my workload isnt even that heavy. and already i am mentally tired!! i wonder what would happen to me if i didnt like my work.

i'd probably quit the job. hee. mental tiredness aside, my job is all good so scott's emulsion is my new best friend!

much love,
rabi'a xoxo

one week in

of my being an official adult.

actually, i dont know why i keep saying that. after all, ur only as young (or as old) as how u feel. i still feel the same.. but i guess the idea that i am now financially independent makes me feel more adult-y than when i turned 16, 18 or 21. heck, thinking back, 16 is still kanak-kanak. like, anching masih. hahaha

i'm sure ten or maybe even 5 yrs down the line and i'm gonna say the same thing abt being 23 (which i will be in 5 days!). funny how turning 23 isnt bothering me much. i hated turning 20 because i officially lost my 'teen' status. turning 21 was okay because it meant i was legally an adult worldwide (tho how that makes a difference; i dont knw. its not like i go clubbing anyway) and 22 was bearable, as long as nobody shouted happy 22nd birthday as opposed to simply happy birthday. but now the idea of being 23 is just that. i turn 23. full stop. its just an age.

yes, i've becomed those ppl who say age is just a number. i use to think these ppl were in denial of their age. but now i'm one of them.. i'd say, no. it reli is just a number.

moving on.. here i am blathering about age when what i reli wanted to talk about is my job.

i wouldnt say i have a career per se. a career, as how i see it, is a job that fullfills u and become part of who u are. how i see it is that i have a job that pays well; a job which i have enjoyed so far. i love the working environment, i love the people i work with and i find the job interesting and very informative. i've learnt so much in my 1 week at work than my one term at university! but i guess its because at work, i apply the knowledge rather than just regurgitate it on paper.

i know it might be too soon to tell whether i really do love my job, but i can say for sure that i like it. the first couple of days were overwhelming, but this was wholly due to the other legal counsel being on leave. the day she came back, everything was just clear to me. she explained how much i needed to know and stuff that i wasn't expected to know and basically put me at ease. she knew that it was my first job - first job experience ever- and she was okay with that as long as i was willing to learn. i have to say, after 5 consecutive months of doing whatever i wanted, plus another 2 months between final exams and graduation, i was thirsty for knowledge! i feared my brain would fry up or shrink because of the lack of use; not to mention all i did was focus on my physical ie the gym gym gym gym ALL. THE. TIME.

okay i'm not annoyed at myself for being such a shallow person. i still want to go to the gym but i just dont have the freedom to exercise as often as i want. i do go fridays and sundays and i'm hoping to squeeze in another session on tuesday or weds night so that i get at least 3 sessions per week. for now, its just the 2, squeezed at the end of the week. the least i can do is do my sit ups in the morning before brekfast and make sure i eat at 2 hr intervals to keep my metabolism up. the latter not being much of a problem with the amount of food available at the office =D

anyway, before i end this post i would love to wish my dear brother a happy 17th birthday.

also, to my dearly beloved (eseh), a happy 4th anniversary. its amazing how u still make me angau after 4 yrs.

i'll leave it at that =p

much love,
rabi'a
[who will possibly get married in 2011, insyaAllah jika umur panjang dan disampaikan jodoh ;)]

hello 2010!

i am psyched about 2010. loads to look forward to and many improvements and resolutions to put into place. started the new year with a super amazing getaway at empire with fadz and my family. metinks its a good start for 2010 =)

this is gonna be a proper new year post, so its gonna be quite a long one. i'm gonna be starting work (very very) soon so there will obviously be a sharp decline in posts here. fear not 'cause facebook is around =p anyway, because of that, i plan to leave my dear readers with enough to last them till the next post.

2009 was a great year for me. i've discovered my love for pumping weights (there i go again with exercise) and graduated from university. i re-kindled old friendships and made new ones. i had a major fight with the boyfriend but in the end made us stronger as a couple. i came and saw Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. i've reached my one year mark of weight-loss (cause thats when ppl usually relapse). i received a job offer which i am ecstatic about. i've finally met my boyfriend's family and (i believe) they like me. i learnt that i love baking for people. i had a fantastic 22nd birthday thanx to imah and huda and even hazim and padil. i had a super awesome snow fight with my kent gang and i really cherish all the memories of hanging out in the living room, of camping, of partying, of sing-star-ing and even the everyday cooking together rituals i do with my housemates.

i can go on and on about the good stuff. there were down times too. the day i had to cancel my new york trip because of H1N1. those final days before my final year exams.. when all i wanted to do was cry and give up. for that i thank my boyfriend for being there for me and telling me i can get through my degree.. which i did. those days when the major fight i had with said boyfren were the worst. for helping me thru that, to nav and illah i heart u both so so much!

hmm.. okay this is getting to be a thank you post. so while i'm at it, thank you buyai and fadz for my awesome new year's eve.

of best and worsts.. theres stuff that are on a category of its own. like eating chicken liver mousse (never again!), staying up at cits and helping out with a huge wedding order. talking in my half-asleep stupor. eating korean food and barbeque-ing my first chicken. strawberry picking. discovering i love bodycombat and that i hate running (outside or treadmill; same thing). kayakking with fadz and beating james the trainer in the kayak race. having to write in 'unemployed' when filling out forms (not anymore nyahaha). driving myself broke by shopping non-stop at shopaholics mj. discovering that green looks good on me (random eh haha).

are u bored yet? i'm writing all this so i wont forget how amazing 2009 was to me. i emerged out of it with a law degree, more friends and a weird-looking tan. good times!

here's to hoping 2010 is just as kind, if not better.

happy new year, everyone!

much love,
rabi'a
(yes i changed my name hee. pasal rabz is kinda wearing me out. and i'm getting OLD. krg sampai jadi nini rabz lol)

p/s 2 weeks and counting till i turn 23!