MC for Convocation

I took the responsibility to become the MC (Master of Ceremony) of my university convocation last few weeks. Phewww.. that was an achievement, my personal achievement. I have been appointed by the highest committee members of University Convocation to become the MC, together with my co-host, Mr Fahed.

I want to share a story. I was.. a shy girl. I was a quiet girl when I was in primary and secondary school. Even when I was in my university years, I was among the average students and unpopular. I had a low-self esteem as most of my TESL mates were very good to the extend I was afraid to make mistakes. I had no confidence to talk. I was uncertain whether I should proceed with the course. I doubted my future. However, I am the kind of person who will fight till the finish line, no matter what happens. I would say, things started to change gradually when I began my teaching career in 2007 as a part time / full time lecturer. I traveled to Perak as I thought that was a once in a life time opportunity that I shouldn't miss. In front of the diploma students, I gained my confidence to talk. They listened to what I wanted to say, they understood my lesson. They were my biggest drive. In Perak also, I accidentally joined theater programs, I was one of the advisors in UITM Seri Iskandar theater club named AKSENT along with my best friend, Bayne. I also accidentally.. lol... acted as one the leading roles in a theater called Dejavu Seorang Perempuan, playing an egois intern teacher. I did not win the "Best Actress" title in the theater competition, but that was my turning point to overcome my stage fright / Glossophobia (public speaking phobia). I even did not believe myself that I was performing in front of the theater lovers, almost  a thousand of them. They even gave me a big applause when my name was nominated as the Best Actress. I felt ..... yeahhh.. I am not that bad..lol...

Now, this year is my 10th year in education line as a lecturer. Numbers of lectures, consultations, talks that I have delivered in 10 years. It has become a norm for me to talk in front of people. I even gave a talk to students and participants on how to become a good presenter! Haha.. Just imagine how time can change you! My parents sometimes still have a hard time to believe that I have come this far in my personal achievement. Their shy and quiet daughter was the MC for a convocation haha. Well, honestly, I took the responsibility sincerely, with open heart just to challenge myself more. Alhamdulillah, the ceremony went smoothly and people from different walks of life came to me and congratulate me. There are more people / colleagues / deans who appreciate me now. It was truly an eye-opener. I didn't know whether I did well or not but one thing that I know, I am glad that I could help and contribute to the ceremony. You know what, once upon a time, I was a little girl who was always playing a host in front of a mirror, and now I got the chance to become one. Alhamdulillah. 

So, determination and prayers are the keys. Do not give up for your dreams. We can never tell our future. Just do your best in what ever path that you choose to be. Here are some of the pictures of the rehearsal and the ceremony itself, held in Shah Alam Convention Centre.

 It was 8 pm. All of us were exhausted but determined to make sure the event would go accordingly to the plan.

 my kesayangan

 the Convocation day. I bought a new dress for the event ;p

 pose before the ceremony began

 with my co-host, Fahed. He was the MC for Arabic language while I did in both Malay and English. The script was prepared by ourselves.

The audience

So folks, there is nothing impossible in this world. Dream big and work smart!

Adab seorang Isteri di tempat kerja

It's Friday yooo. I am soo happy. Not only because of Friday means weekend is approaching, but I am so relief because next week is mid-semester break and the mid-term exam on the following week. That means.. no teaching for two weeks. Haha... you know, sometimes we just need a break from your daily routines. So, I really need these 2 weeks. I am not going for vacation though, but I just need a break from teaching. Need to refresh my cerebrum for a while. Wahh cerebrum terus haha..

I went out for a lunch with my soul sisters just now. As usual, we did catch up on stories and updates. So my friend cerita fasal ada student dia macam nak cuba try dia la. Then, how she handled the situation. We shared our stories. We experienced the same circumstances. Because we are educators. It is a normal situation when there are students who are trying to show their feeling for you. Regardless their actual intention. Yes.. it is normal. I am sure most of lecturers/ teachers have met this kind of student, at least once in their teaching career. But, it is a problem when you are not only an educator, but you are also a WIFE. You are married.

When I was a single, non-married lecturer, it was more difficult for me to handle this kind of situation. Because obviously I am not interested at all to have a feeling with my own student. Just.. soo not me. It is difficult because you just do not know what kind of excuses to give to the student that you are not interested in the nicest way. I am the type of person who doesn't like to create negative 'ambiance' between my students and myself. So, I won't be that loud to say "Don't ever text or call me again, or else I will fail you" hahaha.. konon2 nk takut2 kan la. I will just ignore the text, call. Playing ignorance. That was the best thing I could do. At one point, I feel like I wanted to wear a fake 'engagement' or 'wedding' ring. Just to show, I am belong to someone, so please understand, there is a limit between you (a student) and me, a lecturer. Walaupun masa teaching kat UITM dulu, my students semua handsome2 ok. hahahahah. Tapi akak memang tak boleh dik. Akak mmg kena orang yg lagi tua dr akak. 

So, now when I am married with two kids, I feel more secured. I am happy that I have strong reason to avoid this kind of situation. If I notice that there are students who look 'unusual' than ever, haha, I will start show off  my wedding ring, pusing2kan cincin, trying to give the sign "see.. my wedding ring here! Don't even think to cause a mess!!!" kihkih.. 

So, to all wives or future wives out there, these are my advice, adab kita sebagai isteri:

1. Tolongla pakai cincin kahwin tu

Kalau ada cincin tunang, risik pakai je semua. Ia akan lebih menyelamatkan maruah anda sebagai seorang perempuan. So, orang mmg tak berani nk kacau la sebab tahu u adalah isteri orang.

2. Berbual secara serius

Boleh nak melawak2 sometimes, x kisahla dengan colleagues ke students ke.. tapi gunalah intonation suara yg paling macho. Avoid gedik voice. Please la.. Jaga maruah sebagai seorang isteri. I know.. bila bekerja, mmg kita perlu bersosial, berkomunikasi dengan male staff or male students, tapi x payahla ketawa mengekeh2, manja2... jaga maruah u n husband u. Bila u nampak terkawal dalam conversation u, so that orang lelaki x kan mudah tergoda unless u cantik gila la kan. x cakap pun org da teringat kan...

3. Label "saya isteri orang"

Kat my office ni, selain email dan phone, all staff can communicate through lync. Lync ni macam Yahoo Messenger la. Boleh chatting2. I really think it's a cool way to communicate. X payah bangun n pergi ke level2 lain and communicate unless nak hand in document ke apa kan. Sbb tu la lemak makin degil nak berambus hihi. X de exercise hehe. Anyway, tapi bila ada this kind of facility, ada jugak yg ambik kesempatan nak 'borak2 kosong'. I ada jugak received this kind of gangguan masa mula2 kerja dulu. Tapi simple je, jangan melayan. Lantak la die nak kata kita ni sombong ke, perasan bagus ke. Tapi jangan la rude sangat. I punya tips senang je.. Contoh perbualan:

Conversation no 1

Pengacau: Salam.. buat apa tu.. bz ke.. u look like someone yg pernah I kenal (penting ke sampai nk lync???)

Me: Salam.. oh ye ke..sorry jap.. my husband is calling.. (tipu je husband calling..saja nk bgtau I am a wife to someone).

Pengacau (yg x reti bahasa): oh..husband u kejer mana (motif sibuk nak tau)

Me: Oh..he keje biasa je. Ketua Polis kat Bukit Aman. Tapi kami handle business sama2 (sah2 la aku tipu hahahah...tipu sunat demi nk halau pengacau ni).

Pengacau: Ok

Haha.. confirm diam terus. Cubalah cara ni. Lepas tu, I can see that he has more respect on me. Klau jumpa pun cakap fasal kerja n company (dengan intonation yg macho). Kalau u start layan, sebenarnya lelaki ni nak test market je kekadang,  sometimes yg dah berbini tu lagila ..ya Allah..so kita kena firm ok. Tapi x boleh la x reply langsung sbb kita kerja di company yg sama. Just make sure org tahu u ni dah kahwin and proud of it.

Conversation no 2

Si polan yg nak test market (tapi mamat ni aku x boleh kerek sangat sbb mmg satu department.) : Hye Ilyana, my birthday next month. Nanti belanja I birthday cake yg sedap.

Me: Oh sorry.. I dont buy cake for other people except for my husband ;p

Si polan: oh ok

See.. kita kena firm untuk 'patahkan' conversation tu. Kalau colleague itu rapat masukkan emoticon macam ';p' dalam conversation tapi ayat biar tegas.. so he will get the message. Lepas tu he will respect u as a colleague and also as a someone's wife. Trust me.

4. Kalau rasa perlu, selalu ceritakan fasal your husband / kids

 I did this in every class I teach. I want the students to respect me as a matured married woman. And a mother, sometimes. Tell good stories about your husband. But not too much la, nnti org menyampah. Bila rasa macam lain je bebudak ni or colleague ni. At the same time, u are teaching them good moral values. Love your family. They will really respect you. Trust me. Pernah ade satu kes, my student text me through uni portal, telling me that I am pretty hahah.. mmg aku x reply.. but the next day pergi class, first 10 mins terus aku cerita fasal husband and kids.. how I am happy.. how I am lucky to have my husband..hahha.. terus merah padam muka student tu.. dia ingat aku nk reply n say thank u n happily ever after... sorry la keh... So kena pandai handle keh...

5. Kalau dapat hadiah

It's normal for the students to give presents to their fav teachers or lecturers kan... Tapi kalau student yg kasi tu lelaki, apa patut buat? I senang je, I will ask him " Why do you give me this gift? Make sure u give to all your teacher.. or else, people will talk about it" Explain to them that it's not a good idea to give a present to a married teacher. But, yes say thank u anyway. Usually, I will just keep the gifts, dah lama2 rasa nk guna baru I guna. What if ada male colleague belanja cake or food (which x pernah la jadi pada aku), tak rasa bersalah ke makan?? Please la.. just x payah makan atau bg je kat org lain.. Firm ok! Tolongla rasa bersalah pada husband u olls.

Ok..so far tu je la tips how to behave as a working wife hehe... sharing is caring keh.

Ingat lah.. syurga kita pada suami kita. Kerja2 jugak. Tapi mana arah kita. Akhirat bukan? Syurga bukan? Iman kena kuat. Bekerjalah dengan maruah. InsyaAllah, dapat jadi isteri solehah.

Ragam Students

Bismillah..

Rasanya nak kena blog dalam bahasa malaysia sebab macam ada rakan sekerja expatriates yang macam dah terjumpa blog sendu lagi mendu ni. Mana boleh. Haishhh sibuk je hehe

Alhamdulillah...2015 adalah tahun ke 9 aku bergelar pensyarah. Tak pernah u-turn or cuba bidang lain. Mungkin rezeki sentiasa dalam bidang ni. Rugilah tukar kan..pengalaman dah banyak sebagai pensyarah..kalau tukar admin ke...penterjemah ke (bahasa sangat)... jatuhla nilai gaji i olls.

Anyway, sepanjang sembilan tahun ni, sudah 5 institusi pendidikan yang menggunakan khidmat aku (betul ke eja khidmat ni), jadi cuba bayangkan lah dah berapa ribu students yang aku dah ajar and of course dah macam2 jenis students yang aku dapat. Nak nak bila kau ajar subjek English (which all students are required to register regardless which faculties they are from), jadi.. hmm.. tau-tau je lah. Pernah je aku dapat hampir 500 students untuk satu semester. Tak gila tanda essay 500 orang? Silap2 English kau pun jadi broken balik kalau 80% used broken English in their essay.

Marila kita cerita dari mula pengalaman aku mengajar. 4 kali aku jadi lecturer. 1 kali je aku jadi teacher sekolah (sebulan je).. eh pengalaman jugak tu.

1.UiTM Seri Iskandar, Perak.

Satu tahun. My first official job ever. Tak sangka langsung rezeki aku ada sebagai pensyarah bahasa ABP. Masa tu untuk kami yang baru grad dari ijazah ni digelar Pensyarah Part Time / Full Time. Dengan perasaan gamble dan blur ayam betul ke apa aku buat ni, ditemani umi, wan dan adik aku, Myra.. ke Seri Iskandar lah kami. Sangat cepat keputusan dibuat. Excited pun ada. Confuse pun ada. Betul ke aku ni nak jadi lecturer UiTM? Layak ke kak ton? Tapi Kak Ton yakin.. Kak Ton boleh buat. Allah swt dah nak bagi rezeki, buat apa nak tolak. This was the farthest place ever I went to in my life. Nak nangis pun ada. So kat sini, aku ajar students diploma, ajar subjek BEL.. sempatla kutip pengalaman untuk 2 semester. Dah nama uitm, mestila students Bumiputera u olls. Boleh kata semua students aku Melayu lah. Memang sangat best. Walaupun mula2 aku agak segan nak masuk kelas sebab tengok2 anak murid, lebih kurang sebaya je.. Tapi best jugak merasa jadi lecturer muda yang single dan hot (eh????? sory terperasan jap) sampai most of my students memandang aku dengan kekaguman (kahkah). "Miss, mudanya miss jadi lecturer.. Miss... pandainya miss" (Sedangkan UiTM desperate nk lecturer masa tu U olls) hihi..Memang sangat best pengalaman mengajar students diploma uitm dari pelbagai background. The best students ever I had. Rindunyaaaaaa

2. Sri Bestari School, Sri Damansara

Satu bulan. Masa ni sebab tak de kerja sangat. Ok sebelum u olls pk bukan2.. the reason I left uitm perak was because I furthered my master in UM, KL. And lagi satu sebab I homesick gila. Kalau dok KL takdelah jauh sangat balik Kuantan. And yes. Sebab i x rasa i nak jadi orang perak. Too far from my family. Ok..so pindah KL, desperate gila nak kerja, so aku apply la segala kerja and tergerak hati nak walk in hantar CV kat SBS ni sbb depan rumah je alahai...jalan kaki pun boleh. Cantik sangat sekolah ni. It is an international private school. Alhamdulillah.. x sampai seminggu hantar CV, terus dia call I was accepted, tapi start dengan part time dulu, meaning, the pay is based on how many days you work. 100 per day. Ok sangat la kan masa tu? So my students adalah budak2 form 1 and form 2! Ok.. sebenarnya.. aku memang tak yakin nak ajar budak2 sekolah sebab aku ni tak pandai nak garang2, jerit2, suara pun ayu2 gitu hahah sebab tu la aku tak pernah apply kerja kat sekolah. Kalau ada pun sbb no choice. My students juga mostly Chinese. Chinese yang bapak2 diorang bawak Merce or BMW tu..haa yang tu la. Indians ada jugak. Malay pun ada sikit. Fuhhh... English budak2 ni fluent ok! Nervous pulak teacher ni. Takpe. teacher tetap akan control cun dan berlagak pandai..haha. Jadi memang mencabar la ajar bebudak ni.. paling aku frust, lesson yg sepatutnya 40 minit tu kadang2 apa pun tak dapat! yang dapat hanyalah jerit2 marah2 diorang suruh duduk and buat kerja! Adalah satu dua class yang ok tapi aku x rasa adil untuk the students, the school and most importantly untuk the parents. They deserve a better teacher. I can not control their kids in class :( Tapi memang ada students yang baik.. yang suka borak2 ngan aku.. Rindu jugak

3. Unity College International, PJ

Almost a year. Mula2 dapat offer part time je kat sini. Lepas dua minggu they alls contact offered me for a full-time lecturer. Kak Ton apa lagi.. seronok la. Dapat ajar budak besar balik... tak yah jerit2 da dalam kelas. Boleh berlagak macho and control cun balik kihkih. N yang paling best UCI ni sangat dekat dgn UM. Lepas kerja, terus pergi class master. Senang idup. It was a new college so memang banyak lagi yang perlu diimprove masa tu. Kat sini, aku ajar 2 jenis students. First, Nursing students (60) and secondly, international students untuk Intensive Class (10 students). Nursing Students walaupun ramai tapi best sangat ajar bebudak ni. I hope they still remember me and aku enjoy sebab lecturer2 nursing yang lain semua baik2 ngan aku. Nursing students kebanyakannya Melayu, so it reminded me of my uitm student. Lepas rindu. International students pulak ada dari China, Middle Esat, Turky, Korea. Level English diorang sangat low. Memang macam kena pk interesting approach hari2. But, something happened that made me resigning....

4. MSU, Shah Alam

4 tahun. Paling lama setakat ni. Syabas Yana. Sebenarnya, frankly speaking, aku rindukan students MSU aku. Lebih kurang macam students UiTM. Just mereka lebih open dan hmmm daring? hihihi. Manja. yes. manja. Biasalah.. private uni. We serve the students. It's ok. Kak Ton paham. Cakap fasal student Msu, paling banyak Melayu, then Indians, Bumiputeras from Sabah Sarawak and few Chinese. Oh pernah jugak ajar 70 students of Kuwaitis. Students Msu ni tak de la ragam sangat just my advice, whatever it is, try your best to limitkan your relationship with your students. Maksud kak ton...make sure they still consider u as their lecturer.. not a friend. Sebab students MSU mmg sangat friendly.. itulah budaya MSU. That's why diorang ada mentor-mentee program. Tapi aku pulak tak boleh masuk dgn budaya macam tu. Maybe aku ni lebih kepada class-centered lecturer je.. academically.. so..hmmm..tapi 4 tahu u olls! Whatever it is, I do miss my MSU students

5. Current (nama dirahsiakan, kalau pandai cuba teka), Shah Alam

Dah nak masuk 2 tahun. Everything is ok.. super ok except for ... students! haha.. teaching Africans memang kena banyak sabar. Ada jugak from Middle East country. Budaya mereka sangat kasar. Suka berebut. Pergi kelas boleh tak bawak apa2. And for them, attendance tu sangat penting.. tapi tak datang kelas. Bila attendance kosong, marah marah marah and suruh tukar. Tapi dah almost 2 years aku kat sini, aku rasa Alhamdulillah aku masih boleh handle. Kena sangat tenang dan professional. Tapi yang pali aku suka... kebanyakannya very religious. 

Kadang2 aku rindu anak ajar students local, aku akan amik part-time teaching kat uni2 lain. Macam Unisel. Pun best jugak students dia =)

Jadi, kat mana pun tempat kita mengajar, macam mana pun ragam students kita, kita kena kuat and be professional! Itulah satu2 nya kepuasan untuk insan bergelar pengajar.

Pre-Ramadhan pot-luck

Assalamualaikum... here is another backdated post before puasa. Truth is, this is my first time organizing a pot-luck in office. My friends trusted me to organize this pot-luck. Well, I feel so honored and humbled for the trust that they have in me as I am still new in this organization. Not even a year. But Alhamdulillah, all of my colleagues are superb. I love them very much and I know they love me too. By the way, I had no problem to work on this as I only have one extra class during this semester break. 

So, it was an idea, a sudden idea by Kak Bibi... my cubicle-mate. Then, Kak Wa came and of course I miss having pot-luck in office (used to have pot-luck on weekly basis in MSU), thus we came out with the idea to have it before Ramadhan or in other words, to celebrate the arrival of holy month of Ramadhan.

I named it- Pre-Ramadhan Pot-Luck. At first, we decided on the menu and divided the menu into 3 sections; Appetizers, Lauk-Pauk and Desserts. Then, I manually went around few cubicles and asked my colleagues what they would like to bring. After like 10 lists, and the time was getting shorter before everyone went back home, so I emailed them the list. I also emailed them the purpose of the pot-luck, the theme, the do's and dont's..haha. So they had 2 days to get back to me for me to update the latest contribution lists.

Alhamdulillah..everything went smoothly. Everyone was so excited to prepare this and that. I also sent an e-mail to our CFO (Chief Finance Officer), the only female VIP that we have. Oh ya..this pot-luck is only opened to female staff. 

 So.. what did I prepare? Spaghetti Carbonara.. hmm mentang2 baru buat a week before, so ingt la lagi kan caner nk buat..

 photo before eat!! my lovely colleagues..love them so much

Some of the foods...so we divided the meals into 2 phases: breakfast and lunch.

These are meals for breakfast.

 See that home-made Arabic bread? This has been prepared by my colleague from Iran, Ayat. The sauce is made of humus, olive oil and chilli.

 my spaghetti and carbonara.. habis licin x sempat tunggu lunch

 Cheese baked macaroni by Irna, our HR staff, Choc cake by Suhaiza, triffle by Farah

 from right- congo bar by kak wa, serawa durian by Kak Fery and sardine roll by shida (left).

 see that home-made bread in the middle? that is buns with chicken curry filled. yummy! prepared by a colleague from Sudan, Sheraga.

 the theme was black / brown.. with Kak Nurul, Suhaiza and Farah.. This is my lunch group.

 also shu! my very good colleague

 Kak Nurul, myself, Kak faezah & shu at the back, ummi , irna, rafa (from syria) kak bashirah and shraga

 ni geng buat air..kak norli, kak zaida, mimi with kak wa (I called her as ketua rewang)

 Tika's daughter was not feeling well so she followed her mom to the office.. hye umaimah!

 Carrot cake by kak reen and shu

 these were the menu for lunch. Daging kurma (kak bibi), Ginger chicken (ujie), sambal udang (kak faezah(, sambal goreng jawa (kak wa)

with umaimah and kak bibi

 among of the colleagues

till our next pot-luck!

Alhamdulillah.. the event was successful, and the most important thing is it has made the bond and ukhwah between us the sisters were getting closer. InsyaAllah..

Positive change

Ever since I work here, there is one thing that has changed, which I am still in the process of making it more perfect.. slowly..insha Allah. My fashion sense. Yes..my current workplace..it is more Islamic..which I am very happy about..it just that..when I started working here.. I am out of cloth! haha.. Ya la.. I came from a Malay company.. which you know how a normal malay company's dress code right.. So all my attires in the closet were like..hmm..

"nope this one..hmm..oh no..this blouse will get me a warning letter from HR..nope.nope..hwaaa..what should I wear?"

There are certain color and dress codes that need to be followed here. I am aware of this because a day after I accepted the offer to work here, I went through my company's website and the first thing that I was searching at was the dress code. I didn't feel shock or what not. I feel happy. I always have the intention to be a better muslimah.. a proper covered of my aurah. So, I was happy but I was out of ideas on what to wear. Baju kurung will be the safest choice! But all my baju kurungs are in bright colors.. and a lil bit curvy..tu la..diva sangat kan.. so I only have like 2-3 pieces of baju kurung that I could wear. Abaya? I have none! I am not really a big fan of abaya or jubah. Slowly, I am getting more abaya now huh. But my favorite attire will be... a mix and match of a top with cardigan/ blazer and a long skirt. Easy! I have a quite number of long skirts..and long skirts are always looking decent.

I olls kan rajin selfie..so banyakla koleksi gambar haha..see..even though I wear shawls most of the time, but now all my shawls must be wide enough for me to cover that chest area. Selamat tinggal shawl pendek and jarang.

Below, are pictures of me and my colleagues.. These are how some of us look at work. Tutup2 pun comel ape..hehe

Banyakkan gambar with cik kak sorang ni hehe.. why? because I ngan shu ni mmg kaki bergambar kat opis haha

And I am still in the process of adapting this culture when I am out of working commitment. I mean... outing for any events with my family. Please pray for me...Will pray for all the muslimahs too.. insyaAllah

Farewell lunch for my colleague

Last week, we had a minor farewell lunch for our beloved colleague, Ju at Secret Recipe. Actually, we already had the major farewell lunch for her on the day before but I wasn't able to join. So, we planned for a minor one. She's getting married and decided to help her future husband in business. When I first came here, she was one one the warmest colleagues. She is way younger than me and honestly, she is the first wearing properly covered muslimah attire-friend that I have. She is just like other next-door girl. Sweet and lovely. I wish you all the best in marriage, Ju. It is really good knowing you =)

 Ju and Aween

 myself and Kak Nurul

 love u ju!

Ju with her gifts

The reason

Last week, masa jumpa my girlfriends,Mun and Fya, Mun cakap 'tryla mintak kerja at my place..lots of benefits'.. then she explained all the benefits..mmg wow..she is a lecturer now in one of the private colleges in shah alam..in terms of salary, benefits..memang lebih sikit la from what I am having right now. Plus, she is teaching local students (I love teaching local students) while I am teaching international students. I am happy for her. Indeed, her life is more meaningful now. Tak sia2 die bersabar after resigning last year. 

Melihatkan kelebihan yang ada pada her institution compared to mine, I said to Fya.. 'yups, why not we give it a try. Let's send our CV'.. Fya is working with MIDA now in KL. So, I think Mun's place would be the best option as she is staying with her mum in Shah Alam. And she misses teaching so much.

But, now..I guess I just wanna go with the flow. I don't know why kenapa tak terasa sangat nak beralih tempat lagi. Tak de rasa nak hantar CV tempat lain. Beza gaji I dgn Mun pun rm 300. Hmm banyak ke sikit beza tu haha.. Tapi, bila fikir balik, I dah sangat selesa dengan the place that I am working right now. Walaupun ada kekurangan dari segi benefits dan students, but in terms of colleagues, working environment I sangat suka. And I don't think I will get this feeling anywhere else. Mana nak dapat tempat kerja yang separatekan lelaki dan perempuan in different floor. Sangat advantage kalau I ada rezeki dapat baby lagi nanti, boleh pump susu sesuka hati haha. My colleagues sangat baik. Dah lama I x mengumpat, cakap2 belakang, bergosip yg melampau2. But don't misinterpret my colleagues. They are still types yg hu ha hu ha jugak. But ade sedikit perbezaan la compared to my previous places. It's more Islamic. With this kind of surrounding yang kalau u solat lambat pun u rasa malu, this is definitely the best place for me to improve myself as a better Muslimah. Memangla semuanya bergantung pada diri sendiri. Tapi Allah swt dah tempatkan I kat tempat macam ni, apa lagi I nak? I pun tak tahu what will happen in future sbb my current workplace ni owner dia Pak arab, so I am really not sure where this uni is heading to in 5 years time at least. Apa yang boleh I buat, hanyalah berdoa semoga akan sentiasa dimurahkan rezeki. I mmg happy sangat kat sini. Wpun kami belum pindah to our own building (which donno when), n tak la secanggih other unis or colleges, but what matters most is tak de stress, all the tasks given to me are doable (thanks to my 8 years of teaching experience). I rasa sangat relax plak sbb dah biasa kerja teruk masa dekat previous uni dulu. Adala cabaran2 lain macam susah nak communicate dgn pak arab yang their english not that good and international students with macam2 ragam but still, being me, it is nothing to compare with the tasks that I used to do in my previous uni. Yang paling best, my working attire yang sangat sopan. At least I da x pakai tudung singkat2, baju ketat, jarang macam dulu lagi as sopan is the dress code. Most of female colleagues are comfortable wearing abaya or jubah. Lagi bets, pukul 5.30 semua dah get ready nak balik rumah..x de kerja lebih masa macam uni dulu. Terus balik and layan anak2 plak kat rumah.

I dah masuk 30. Kita kerja bukan untuk dunia semata. Untuk kumpul point kat akhirat jugak. So, I yakin tempat ni adalah yang terbaik. Fasal gaji, mmg tak kan pernah cukup. Tapi kalau kita bersyukur insyaAllah Allah swt akan berikan rezeki dalam bentuk yg lain. But at least, I bersyukur sbb gaji I mmg gaji master and lebih banyak from my previous place cuma maybe la tak sebanyak gaji lecturer lain di IPTA yg ade master atau di private uni yg gah mcm di Segi or Taylors. I boleh bagi my MIL yg jaga my kids an amount of money (which pada mulanya she refused to accept sbb die kata macam banyak I bagi) tapi for me itu pun sbnrnya tak cukup kalau nak dikirakan penat lelah my MIL jaga my kids. I boleh bayar kereta, boleh bagi my parent duit more than I gave them when I worked at my previous uni. Just to name a few la...and I skrg sempat saving lagi which dulu I mmg x sempat pun...so Alhamdulillah...gaji I kira macam lebih dari cukup. Cuma antara nak spend ke tak..and I choose to save my money. 

Dan Alhamdulillah, mungkin rezeki kami sekeluarga, my hubby dapat sambung master kat UPM part time and baru saja dinaikkan pangkat from engineer to senior engineer. So gaji die naik....Alhamdulillah..wpun duduk area Selangor ni high maintenance tp Alhamdulillah cukup semuanya wpun x de la mewah...janji hati senang kan...See... Allah swt tetap akan bagi rezeki dlm bentuk yang lain. Rezeki Allah ni luas. Apa lagi yang sy nak? .Alhamdulillah. I just couldn't ask for more.  Sy bersyukur dan akan sentiasa berdoa dimurahkan rezeki.. InsyaAllah

Thus, buat masa ni, I am happy with my current worklife walaupun sederhana tapi sangat happy. Mungkin in future kalau I dah terlalu rindu sangat nak ajar budak locals, I will send my CV ;)

The Challenge

Assalamualaikum...

Ok. when I started my new job here, I rarely post pictures into FB or Instagram compared to my previous workplace. And some of my ex-colleagues asked me, "Kau tak happy kan kerja situ?". I was like " No lah..I am happy. How come you jumped to that conclusion?". Ok kalau sebab I jarang post gambar kat FB or Instagram, banyak sebab:

1. Kat sini jarang and rasanya memang tak de event macam pot luck ke or family day ke teacher's day ke macam kat tempat lama tu. So, usually memang I suka ambil gambar kalau ada event and share kat fb and Insta.
2. Walaupun memang colleagues kat sini pun kaki amik gambar jugak macam I olls hehe tapi mungkin sebab kat sini culture nye memang asyik menghadap komputer (besides, I am the only lecturer among Malay lady staff here), so maybe mereka bz... and banyak lagi kerja nak buat.
3. Lagi satu, I x tau nape macam I rase kalau I post gambar banyak2 fasal kerja nanti my ex-colleagues kecik hati. ntah apa2 kan. entah2, diorg pun dah lupakan I olls. ye lar..masing2 bz ngan life masing2. sedey because we were so close. Tapi I tetap sayang my current colleagues jugak.

To put it in a simpler words, I am happy working here. Seriously. In terms of everything. Friends. Working environment. Alhamdulillah semuanya makin mendekatkan kita pada Allah swt and that was my doa, and will always be. Cuma satuuuuu jer..

Hmmm...students. Tu challenge nya. Bukan semua students. Tapi ada la beberapa. Challenge nya adalah most of my students sama ada same age saya or older. So, respect itu kurang. Ada yang siap ajak lunch and dinner. Saya anggap itu kurang ajar. Walaupun dia cakap intention memang anak appreciate saya as a lecturer, still saya rasa dia rude. Tak perlu u nak buy I lunch or dinner to appreciate me. I told him "There are lot of better ways for you to appreciate your lecturer; you can come early to class everyday, participate in class discussion and do your best in exam" (sbnrnya nak perli dia yang jarang datang class and kalau datang pun, lambat). Tapi still berusaha nak bagitahu intention dia yang memang nak belanja lunch. Ishhh...memang rasa nak lempang je student ni. Dia tak tau ke aku memang aku tak kan kuar with any guys berdua! Even though he is Christian, tapi I am very sure other students (regardless their age and religions) know the limit of topics that could be conversed with their lecturers. Kan? Pastu dia tak tau ke aku ni cinta mati dengan laki aku hahaha...sah sah laki aku paling handsome and awesome kat dunia ni (i know...i know haha).

Tapi, harus diingat ye kak ton2 dan bang ton2 semua, sebagai lecturer, kita harus lah profesional. Jangan bercakap menggunakan emosi. Saya tak suka marah students kerana mereka dah besar. Saya cuma akan bagi jawapan yang profesional dan rationale dan analogy saya kenapa jawapannya tidak. Harap dia faham and will never mention about it. never again.

So, nak cakap. Itu sahaja challenge yang I have to deal with when I work here. Other that this, trust me, I am more than happy and could not ask for more, ya Allah.

Students' compliments

Assalam,
When you become a lecturer, you will always have a second thought when receiving compliments from the students. At the beginning, you will be over the moon but 5 minutes later, you will doubt their sensibility. I was also a student few years ago. All of us used to walk in this so called students-life. Even though you do not like the lecturers/teachers, but you will always smile and saying something nice especially when you are in a conversation with them. True enough?

This year remarks the seventh year my contribution towards teaching line. I graduated from BTESL, UiTM Shah Alam in 2007. I started teaching when I have not even gotten my scroll, in UiTM Seri Iskandar, Perak ( I consider this place as the best place that I've ever worked for) as a part time/full time lecturer, for one meaningful year. I have never stopped teaching since. And the irony part is, teaching was never came into my mind and was never listed onto my list of dream job when I was in schools. I couldn't remember that I did opt TESL as one of the selections in UPU form 13 years ago but my mom could. She said she was the one who asked me to choose TESL and it was my last choice. All I can remember is that, I opted IT courses because I love IT so much, I love the technology, I spent most of my times at home surfing the internet ( I still remember some of my neighbours called me yana-the anti social girl when I was in Form 4 & 5). I just love it. I wanted to take IT courses because I imagined myself in front of the pc / laptop for 24 hours, browsing websites for 24 hours, every single day! See.. that's the way how we used to think. Too selfish. Immature. However, Allah SWT always knows what is the best for us, along with my mom's doas, I have been offered to do TESL.

Along this 7 years, I have learned so many things. I fell. I cried. I smiled. I worked harder. I dreamt. I did not give up. I believe this is the right career for me. In UiTM Seri Iskandar, I used to receive complains from the senior lecturers on my language, my broken-English... It was really embarrassing. But, I took it positively. I kept learning and improving myself. I moved to KL to further my masters while working with a private college in PJ. Then, I couldn't stand my new boss, I quitted. I looked for another teaching job. I accepted the offer from MSU and was serving there for almost 5 years. I disagreed with lots of issues there, I resigned for the second time. I was not happy. Inside and out. And now, Alhamdulillah, I am loving the new place.

I used to receive positive feedbacks from my students about what they love about me. I appreciate that. And it is impossible to please and satisfy each of every students in class. Some of them will love your lesson and some will complain. It is normal. As a lecturer, I take all the compliments as my biggest motivation to deliever well in class and I don't feel upset with negative feedback but it challenges my very self to improve lesson/teaching ( sbnrnye dalam hati mmg terbakoorrrrr je kan hikhik).

Few days ago, one of my students sent a private message through my uni portal jus to say hye and told me how he and his classmates appreciate my lesson and it was very informative. I was so happy (sampai upload kat Instagram kau..kau ade? ;p ). But then, I was thinking maybe it is just him and maybe he just wanted to have a good relationship with me. But today, this morning, after the quiz, I asked them 'how was the quiz? It's really easy cheezy..just like ABC right'...Some of them were smiling with my sarcastic question because the quiz questions were not that easy. Then one of them said something that makes me feel so appreciated "Mam, the questions are not easy. They are difficult. But you had made them easier for us. It is totally not an ABC question. You delivered your lesson well. And that's why we could answer it." Oh.. I was so touched. Now I guess the first student was being really sincere sending me the message. I said to them 'Thank you very much. I am really happy if the lesson's objective is achieved." Then, I ended the class with endless smile =)

Survivor story 1

As the blog's url is misssurvive, I have one survivor story today. I woke up late today...around 6.50 am...usually I wake up at 530..Luckily my husband managed to wake up from our deep slumber and he said 'honey, you're late, rite? my shirt, have u ironed it?' I was like 'ok...blame it to my mobile phone...out of battery' ( so yeah..it was my fault. I didn't charge my phone battery last night). Then I said 'it's ok...u go and take your shower first..i'll settle your shirts, socks, pants everything'. While ironing, i kept thinking about my class which shall start at 830..but I have not prepared the materials yet! which I have promised my students yesterday to have a reading class.

Last night, I told myself, it's ok..I'll wake up early the next morning and go to office early to do the xerox process. But look who's talking!!!! Then.. I was done with ironing and went to take my shower as quick as I can (people know me as a miss-forever-in-a-bathroom). Then I performed my Subuh and quickly running down stairs to kiss my MIL and FIL's hands and headed to office. Duhhhh! It was a bad crawling today from Kota Kemuning toll all the way to LKSA..The route which usually takes only 15 minutes to arrive Section 9, has gotten me 35 minutes today.

I reached office at 8.10 am... and was hoping the photocopy machine will not give me hard time today as it did yesterday. I have 15 minutes left to go to class...I had so many plans in my mind as alternatives if the photocopy machine won't cooperate with me today.

Plan B: Give each student a copy of newspaper cutting (which I bought last month). Risk and disadvantage: they will not have a same text to read. It's going to be out of control. The lesson objective won't be achieved.

Plan C: Bring them to the lab and provide them a link to a website where they can read one particular text. Risk and disadvantage: Most of labs are fulled and occupied at level 14. and I know this lab at level 8 but I am not sure about the condition of the internet connection, the pcs, etc. I need extra time to prepare for it. And I know my students. They will have other better things to do if I let them use the pc- facebook, twitter etc..

Thus, I went to the machine, recited bismillah for few times together with akak cleaner (she always knows I am having this love-hate relationship with the machine) and the miracle begins. It worked! I managed to make copies of the reading text and exercises (around 90 pages in total) in amazingly 3 minutes! I am in love again with the machine! mwah mwah mwah (over plak). Then 8.25 am, without wasting time, I headed to level 14, went to the classroom and of course I was the first to enter (as usual, my students loooveeee to come late to class). I smiled and knew it, I am a survivor.

As a happy ending it may sound, I managed to get a very good piece of reading text and exercise. It is not too difficult, not too easy. They love it. I am sure they did learn so much today on the comprehension, vocabulary, giving solutions and opinions, critical thinking skill and a lil juice of subject verb agreement towards the end. And, most importantly, out of the rush-hour I had this morning, I managed to put on a very comfortable and lovely outfit (in my eyes, at least) ;)

Long Hiatus

Alhamdulillah, it has been two weeks that I am here – working with a new organization, somewhere closer to home (10 mins closer i guess haha), in fact closer to a lot of places that I usually go to, and guess what, it is located inside my favorite mall where I usually hunt for dresses and hijabs!

Allow me to tell you that I am now working with an international university, a Malaysian branch.  specifically is surrounded with Middle East environment which its nature of work seemed more or less the same than what I have done before. The only, perhaps the main difference is that, the areas of English language are confined to a more specific purpose. Oh, and guess what, I am loving it! It has been a long time since I felt happy waking up in the morning to go to work!

Did I mention that I had an agreement with my husband that I ought to find a new job within a month or two post-resigning? Yes, the process begins here.

After I resigned, I listed say, about 10 possible institutions for me to apply. I did it regularly. They included a wide range of organizations – universities (of course), learning centre, editing, you name it. I even applied for some positions via Job Street. But deep in my heart, this place where I’m in right now is the place that I had my interest most. Not only that it is located in Shah Alam (yes this was my primary concern) but also the career progression that I am able to obtain here is wider or greater, in my humble opinion. It required me to apply online, then to show my keen interest in joining this organization, I sent a hard copy resumé coupled with a cover letter. I remembered I sent my application online twice.

The next thing I know, I received a call, asking me to come for an interview for the position that I wanted.  I actually received numbers of calls asking for interview and I did attend all the interviews scheduled and I could declare myself as 'Ratu Interview'. Just imagine, in those 3 months hybernating jobless, I did attend almost 20 interviews haha... and out of that number, I got 3 job offers only haha! but those 3 calls were either for the position that I was not interested in, or it is too far or the pay offered was too low. . So when I finally got ‘that’ call, I was excited yet so nervous.

Then the interview day came.The first interview began before a panel of 2. It was not that formal because they were really looking for a lecturer so particularly they were asking me 'when can I start'. It went well, if I may say, Alhamdulillah. So I was hoping to get through to the next stage.

Little did I know that the second interview was as soon as the following day.  2^nd stage interview was done by an internal management panels. There were 4 of them, one Malay man (the vice academic), the other three men are from Sudan, Iran and Nigeria.  As easy as that, I called them two days after the interview to know the result (being me, i am so impatient type of person) and the hr lady said 'yes, I was about to call you and asking you when can you start?' Then, here I am, already two weeks here, teaching and experiencing new environment with different academic ambience.

I reported duty on 17th September 2013 and so far, I’m loving this place. The place is beautiful, the people here are so friendly, no senior-junior shiz, more respects etc. The work is do-able, though I may have to do a lot of reading still. I’ve never felt this ‘useful’ day in day out for a long time and though it has only been two weeks, I have been exposed to a lot of things.

What do I like about this uni:

1) it's office-hours starts from 8.30 to 5.30. So, i do not really have to crawl in a massive traffic jam as most of working people in Shah Alam go back at 6 pm

2) Honestly, I have always prayed and wanted to become a better muslimah and Alhamdulillah Allah is answering my prayer by placing me here. Here, the dresscode is totally different from what I used to wear in my previous workplace. Here, the working attire is influenced and guided by Middle East Culture. You have to cover your aurat. But, as usual, I'll wear what I feel most comfortable with, I don't really wear abaya, I wear somethings those I used to wear before, but added with inners, wider shawl and a pair of socks! And Alhamdulillah... I hope this will be my attire till jannah :) InsyaAllah

3) I just need to teach, teach, teach and doing a lecturer's works! Full stop. No more admin, event, marketing, outstation, weekend tasks like I used to have. Yippeeee

4) I am teaching proficiency subjects which I feel more competent and confident with.

5) Parking is very easy because usually I reach office very early.

6) Most of the teaching materials are ready. You just need to go to class and teach!

7) Since it is an international university and 60% of people (staff and students) here are foreigners, English is a must. I love it. Definitelly I have to converse using this language and keep improving my accent and structure. Remember, practice makes perfect.

8) So far, I don't really have so many works sto do. Thus, i rarely feel tired when I reach home and I even can entertain my kids up until midnight!

9) I always love my colleagues in previous place and they are like my sisters and can not live without them. However, my new colleagues are the people that are so close to Islam and Alhamdulillah, I am so blessed.

This place challenges me to better myself. I can feel it. Let’s just hope that this feeling will last long cause I may have spoken too soon haha!

New Department

Changes are good. i'll take it positively. Actually, I've heard about the rumor that i'll be transferred to a new department since the first day I came to work after a long break (maternity leave). But again, it was just a rumor that I normally will just play ignorance about it. So, last week the rumor has been clarified by my director in a small meeting. We had a yassin recitation earlier and then he made the announcement. He said that there will be four lecturers who have been selected to move to the new department (Faculty of Business and Management). He said that it is normal here for us to transfer to other departments or faculties. Our centre is just a transit, a platform for us to develop ourselves. Once, we have developed (holding a master's degree, for instance), then we will be asked to transit. Then, he announced the 4 names which are myself, sofia, mun and atiqah. It was a sad moment for all of us since we are so closed to each other. But he said, everybody needs to progress, it is for the sake of our career.

me in the car...

with mun, after yassin recitation

our boss was announcing the news

A gift for me by my centre, due to my master's graduation. Thank you

Doa time...we purposely chose not to held the meeting in our meeting room. Because we feel closer like this.

The not so many gentlemen in my unit

A usual scene in education line, conquered by ladies! yeahhhh

oh yeah, we also had a 'smile campaign' on that day

And this is our Ratu Smile haha

Smile Everybody

A gift by the boss

To my another colleague, Aishah who is also just got her masters

with bestie

with my sunshine

with sengal colleague, Syaza..i am sooo gonna miss her

On the nest day, they had a farewell lunch for us and I couldn't join them as Fahri was admitted..See..some of them were crying

My ladies...love u all