Up up and away!

I'm generally not a morning person. No matter how hard I try to reset my body clock. So if I wake up at my own will at 7am, something big's about to happen on that day.

For me yesterday, that big thing was Jump Street. I'd planned to go with 3 of my primary schoolmates and a friend from high school and I had been excited about it for daysss. I picked out my outfit the night before, packed my essentials in an old bag (handbag's too pretty for Jump Street), and tried to coax myself to sleep (excitement kept me up till almost 2am). I felt sooo much like a kid.

On normal days, if I had to wake up at 7am I'd go in the shower with only one eye open. But yesterday I woke up before my alarm went off and showered straight away, already excited to start my day. I took just a short time to get ready – okay la fine, I didn't have to dress up and do my makeup (but to be frank I did neaten up my eyebrows a bit haha) – and then drove to Najat's house 'cause we were all carpooling with her to PJ.

It was quite confusing to find the place but we got there not long after it had just opened, so not many people were there yet. We started jumping at the main court first and I was bouncing here and there and everywhere like a frog. Oh my God. It was sooo much fun and after a while I felt like I was floating in the air. Farah was just jumping calmly and doing her thing while Najat & Nana tried to do jumping jacks on the trampoline which was so funny to watch. It wasn't long before everyone pancit and after all of us have caught our breath, we headed off to the dodgeball court.

Utter chaos, I tell you. I could only sempat to grab a ball before I bounced (literally) away while screaming sebab takut kena attack. I just survived one round of dodgeball after which I surrendered and sat outside the court to see my girl friends getting attacked by Adib. Man, I wish I had popcorn.

Then we headed to the foam pit section. I saw one of the referees doing a flip there and I thought it might be fun to try. Adib jumped first, did a flip and then fell flat on the cube sponges. Farah decided there and then that she wasn't going in because getting out of the foam wouldn't be easy. It looked pretty easy to me, so I tried to give it a shot. I jumped forever on the trampoline and when I thought I'd gathered enough courage to do a flip, I launched myself off the platform and tried to roll myself into a ball.......

but I chickened out as soon as my body curled forward and I flailed in the air before landing face first and went missing amidst the sea of sponges. Not the prettiest sight. Nana tried too and her fate was the same as mine. Unfortunately. Hahahaha. Then I tried to jump a second time with Najat (I refused to jump forward at first and the referee was like "Do you want me to push you?!" which obviously made me scream) but both of us just landed pathetically in the pit and had to dig our way out of the sponges. What a bunch of losers. Hahaha.

Needless to say, by the end of it we were all exhausted and hungry from all the frogging around. Nevertheless it was such great fun and a really nice break from all the makeup, heels, malls, brunches and everything else that we always do to hang out. Besides, the place lets you unleash your inner toddler for a legit reason and I don't see why it's not a good idea. And you only need to pay RM20 (plus RM4.50 if you don't already have the socks). I think it's a brilliant idea. Anyway, time for photos!

So much love for these people, it's crazy.

Relationship talk

"You takda anyone ke sekarang ni?"
"Tak cari boyfriend mat salleh?"
"Dah ada boyfriend ke belum?"

FAQ when you're in your twenties. My answer is the same every time, "No, I don't want a relationship right now."

Here's why. Aside from it being haram, I've got a lot of other reasons why I really don't want a boyfriend. Some may disagree with me, and that's fine. People have different priorities in life, and having a boyfriend/girlfriend may be one of the prime concerns for some people. It's not for me.

I've only ever been in one relationship before. It was nice while it lasted but very painful when it ended. I was heartbroken for quite a long time and ever since then I think I'd slowly built a wall around myself. People kept asking me when I was going to meet someone new, but that was the last thing that I wanted to do. Why would I recover from a heartbreak only to set myself up for another one? Of course I can't completely protect myself from getting hurt, but as much as I can help it, I will.

I don't know why people stay in a relationship if they don't see it ending in marriage. Why bother, then? Why do you waste your time? You go to places, you have songs for each other, you give each other gifts and collect mementos from dates. You take beautiful pictures with your arms around each other. Maybe, just maybe, one day you break up. The places that you love remind you of your ex. You've got songs you can't listen to because now they hold another meaning. You own things that he gave you, but you can't possibly throw away. Like that Michael Kors watch he gave you for your birthday. Or the bracelet that he bought for you as an anniversary present. You love this particular picture of when you went on a roadtrip, or a concert, but the picture has him in it.

I don't know, maybe it's not like that for everyone. Maybe I'm just the sentimental type. Maybe I'm a bit too pessimistic about relationships. Maybe I'm sensitive about a lot things. Maybe.

Someone once told me, "If a man is serious and sincere about being with you, he will come knocking at the door to see your parents, not you." Basically this means that if a man likes you, he will see your parents first and ask for your hand in marriage. He will do it the right way. Instead of doing the norm nowadays – asking you out and 'proposing' to you to be his girlfriend – he will meet your parents, ask for their blessing and permission to be with their daughter, and thus implicitly make a vow to them that he will take care of you. A man like this knows his responsibilities. He is aware that if something were to happen, he knows whom he has to answer to.

Too conservative? Probably, but I think it's beautiful. It upholds the status of a woman and shows how precious she is. It gives you security and assurance about a man's sincere intentions if he really does that. It affirms how much he values you.

If you've watched Pride and Prejudice (starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen), you'd know that this was a common practice even among the non-Muslims in the olden days. I think it's such a shame that this custom is mostly lost with time. If you haven't watched the movie yet, for crying out loud, please download it now and watch it. 

People would argue that it's necessary to really, really know the person that you're going to marry. How can you marry a person you've just known for 6 months? A year? 2 years?

Sure, I agree that it's absolutely imperative to know if you're marrying Mr. Right. But that doesn't mean that you have to be with him for a certain duration of time before you're allowed to tie the knot. There's no rule for this. You can be with someone for 10 years before getting married and still get a divorce somewhere down the road. Or, you can marry someone you've only known for barely a year and still have a long, happy married life.

The blessing is not in the number of years you've had together pre-marriage. This is what I believe. This is what I hold on to. So it's okay that some aunties seem to think that it's 'now or never' in the relationship department. If love doesn't come now, it will come later, insyaAllah – and when it does come a-knocking, I'd want to keep it halal.

Ergo, if you ask me why I'm single, I will tell you quite simply: "Because no one has masuk meminang yet."

..... Not that I'll marry the first person who proposes.

It's Eid!

I'm well aware that more than a week has passed since the first of Syawal but if you're a Malaysian, you would know that Malaysians make full use of the whole month to celebrate Eid. So I'd like to take advantage of this and wish everyone (however little audience this blog has) Eid Mubarak! Or as we're more accustomed to, Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri! 

I want to susun my sepuluh jari and ampun maaf zahir & batin for all of my wrongdoings, be it intentional/unintentional. For all the hurtful and offensive comments that so easily rolled off my tongue. The insensitive scoffs at your honest opinions. The jokes I made that you laughed at, but deep down, stung a little bit. The way I sometimes come off as egoistic and arrogant. The times I accidentally stepped on your foot without saying sorry. The times I forgot my manners. The times I'd possibly focused on pleasing another person at the expense of your feelings. The way I sometimes forget my priorities. The times when I took your food when you were really just offering me to be polite. The times when I wouldn't let you have my food. The moments when I forgot how to act like a normal humanbeing. The instances when I embarrassed you in public. And everything else that has ever hurt you or wounded your pride in any way. Minta ampun!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Raya with your families and friends! I just looove Raya because of all the colours and the food (!!!) and just the atmosphere and togetherness that we see in this month. Hopefully none of you have gained back the kilos that you lost during Ramadhan :p but hey ease up a bit on the diet, it's not everyday that we get to eat Raya food!

Anyway, I hope all of you made full use of your time with your loved ones. As cliche as it sounds, and as hard as it can be at times, we should treasure & cherish the people around us before it's too late. Eid Mubarak again from me and my family! Taqabbal Allahu minkum! Love lots!