Happy birthday, MM

Happy birthday The Malay Mail.
This would be the second year I am not among the Malay Mailers to celebrate the auspicious day.
But Dec 14 will always be on my mind.
Today, I sent SMSes to Rocky, Muzli and Yushaimi to wish them happy (1)13th birthday. And also to Pearl who earlier told me to check out the centrespread which carried the Abdullah Ang pages.
Thanks for the wonderful 20 years.

MM is free

Funny, really. I was excited when the invite from The Malay Mail to the free newspaper's relaunch party last Wednesday.
Maybe more excited than some of the Malay Mailers themselves.
And to see my friends at the party made the 53-km trip to Bangsar Shopping Complex worthwhile.
I was lost initially. No familiar faces, except for a few. Then, they trickled in. And there we were, like the good ol' days except for the missing mugs in my left hand, just Coke.
And surprise! Surprise! Yushaimi was also on Coke. Muzli promised to be a good boy. He behaved! Jad was naughtier and so was Kak Eda. The executive editors, including Irwan, behaved.
Yusri was there and so was Saiful. Pearl, Haresh, Moose, Kalbana, Dawn, Ayu, Elsen, Joe, Joyce....they were all there.
Met Datuk Ibrahim Nor too.
After three hours mingling among the crowd, I left with a goodie bag, consisting of a Nano charger and a diary.
Too bad, the charger is not compatible with my Palm Pro....
Good luck guys! May MM become the most powerful newspaper.......after NST!

New laptop or new phone?

Just about anyone I know is getting or already acquired the latest smartphones. Even Pingsu, the sub-editor on NSTOnline desk is a proud owner of the new IPhone 3Gs, constantly sharing knowledge with our boss, Lokman.
Fauziah is a proud owner of Nokia N97 while Shahrul of Emedia is perpetually on Facebook, thanks to his Blackberry which he got it cheap during Umno General Assembly.
Too cheap that I told him I wouldn't want to be seen with one.
His colleague, Shida owns an OmniaII, a Samsung PDA.
BHOnline staff are flashing their IPhones while NSTOnline had just submitted the requirement for next year's budget.
Me? Am still using the Palm Pro. It has been over a year and yet it is still serving me well.
Even my Dell Inspiron laptop is almost dying. My Palm is still going strong. Can't be anywhere without it. In case, there is an update on Facebook or an important email from the office.
All the excuses to be with my Palm. She sleeps with me. Wake up in the morning and the first thing I do is to check www.nst.com.my. Just not to get overlapping stories when I am in the office.
Then it is Facebook before slowly getting out of bed.
Do I really need a new PDA, smartphone or whatever they call it nowadays? With the latest getting cheaper by the day, I am tempted. But my Palm is serving me well. Holding on to temptation.
But what I really do need now is a new laptop. My Dell's screen is getting hazier and it is only just beyond a year old.

So long, Ibu

My auntie, one of two surviving ones, passed away in Kemaman on Wednesday night after several months without solid food due to old age.
Kalsom bte Hassan, 80 (at least that's what appeared on her MyKad)was a healthy woman until last July when she was admitted to Kuantan Hospital for treatment. Since then, she lost her appetite and will and kept herself in bed most of the time.
Ibu, as she is affectionately known to everyone, had requested to take care of my little sister, Yam after two of her own passed away at a very tender age.
Yam took great care of my Wak Ngah and Ibu for as long as we remembered, just how the couple had taken care of her all these years.
Wak Ngah passed away about seven years ago when we were in JB and since we had just gone back to KL for Syakirin's wedding decided to give it a miss.
But not this time. Together with Norlida, Kak Wai and Kak Tah, we embarked on a journey to Kemaman to visit Yam and family.
We managed to have a last look at Ibu and made it back to KL after filling the car with satar, keropok lekoq and sotong.
The last time I met Ibu was in April and somehow forgot to bid her goodbye as we left Yam's house.
Last month, we were supposed to drive down to Kemaman but was called off as Norlida was not feeling well.
And just two days before she passed away, we made plans to travel to Kemaman to visit her during the weekends. But God has made his decision.
So long, Ibu. Songs about you will play on everytime Mother's Day is around the corner.

MMMM...,MAYBE I'LL DROP BY SOMEDAY

Met Rocky the other day in Balai Berita's Newscafe. He asked why I was not seen in MM office.
Then I realised I have not been visiting them since I left the company in late July last year, except to return my tag and parking coupon a week later.
I am in close contact with several reporters via Facebook and SMS but somehow never thought I would be missed.
But then Yushaimi whom I met at his open house last Saturday said no matter where I work, I am still Badrolhisham Bidin of The Malay Mail.
Maybe, I will drop by on Tuesday to see hello....

OPENING HOUSES INSTEAD OF LAZING IN THE PD SUN

Thank You Izwan. You are doing great in Port Dickson! Now, I can enjoy my Hari Raya and attend open houses.
Last Saturday, we visited my second cousin, Kak Manja and her family in Sungai Buloh Country Resort. Happy to see her mom, Mak Yok, looking healthy as ever. We had mee bandung and Abang Syed made coffee specially for me.
Later, we visited Yushaimi and family who also opened his house for friends and relatives in Sunway Damansara.
Too bloated to enjoy the laksa but I had some satay. Met old friends like Yani and Yusri there. My children blended well with his daughter, Iman.
The previous week, we attended Mimi/Nizam's open house in Petaling Jaya. Met Shook and his family. Could not recognise Amirul as he is much taller and bigger than both parents combined.
We then stopped over at Chawan in bangsar for supper where we met Datuk Hishamuddin Aun who was having coffee with some friends.
During the day, we visited Rahman, a Bank Islam manager who is staying in the neighbourhood.
Next weekend? We want to attend a wedding in Keramat. And later, we might make our rounds to my siblings' houses.
Am working on Sunday as there is an NSTLive session for Bagan Pinang by-election. I am moderating as Izwan should be busy running around in PD.

Wonderful Raya, I must say

It was a beautiful Raya. We hosted a family gathering on the first day and everyone came...well almost. Dolah did not turn up, saying he was not feeling well. Yam and family could not make it as they were taking care of Ibu whose health deteriorates. Fahmi was in NZ, working.
But everyone else came. Abang, Kak Tah, Kak Wai, Shidah...it was like a mini open house, with free flow of ketupat, rendang and the likes.
Kak Tah and family left early, Shidah came a little later but they stayed until dinner.
In between, Fria (the Indonesian neighbour) and her kids came for lunch while Sankar arrived with his son for dinner.
When Nasha unwrapped the fireworks, Kak Wai decided to stay until dinner with Azli practically begging her to do so.
The weather was good.

The second day went on just fine with us joining Kak Tah and Kak Wai back to Muar. It was a slow day with only Kak Ha in Parit Sakai's house and Mak Mah's house a little livelier.
For lunch, we went to Tanjung Ketapang for kepala ikan mayong masak asam pedas and the most awaited moment arrived after that.
We visited the Muar house in Sungai Abong and although some parts were not in good condition, it looked just like the good old days.
We decided to pull our resources to bring back the glory days, in time for next year's Raya.
Before continuing our journey back to KL after a whirlwind tour, all of us stopped over in malacca to visit Abah who opted to stay back (while the rest balik kampung) to greet us.
tiring...but beautiful Raya, I must say!

MY LIFE IN MANIK URAI

When I was assigned to cover the Manik Urai by-election early this month by then Executive Editor Lee Ah Chai, I had mixed feelings.
While the prospect of being in Kelantan the first time made me excited, I was in two minds about leaving my family behind.
My youngest child is so attached to me that without me by her side, she would have sleepless nights.
But the responsibility outweighed everything and I made arrangement to go to Kelantan with the ESS.
Almost everyone I know warned me of the hostility of Kelantanese who seem to hate outsiders.
My wife even advised me against driving to Manik Urai, saying "kalau sayangkan kereta, jangan drive. The roads there are terrible. My friends said so."
I then opted to fly to Kota Baru and rent a car for me to move around.
I was to be the only KLite representative, doing nothing except filling in the nst.com.my and manage a blog.
And another major assignment would be to make sure NSTLive for both the nomination day and election run smoothly.
Then, two days before flying off, Shuhada, a sweet looking NST reporter approached me and said she was assigned to be in Manik Urai. We were to be on the same flight and I offered to drive her to Kuala Krai.
Upon reaching KB airport, both of us were not sure what to expect in Manik Urai but the friendly Kota Baru office staff somehow soothed us.
And the food at a nearby restaurant was not sweet at all, except maybe for the sambal belacan.
We drove on and finally found out motel at Dataran Damar, hidden behind a furniture shop.
I was in Room 1, to be shared with Firdaus whole Shuhada got the next room. What we saw was a pleasant surprise really.
Firstly, the air-condition and secondly, the water heater! Wow! First problem solved.
And the second plesant surprise for the day...my roommate has decided to travel up and down Kota Baru - Kuala Krai daily and I got the room to myself.
I thought a follow-up on this would be nice, but then, by-elections come and go. So, on with life...

HOSPITAL@MY SECOND HOME

I am writing this blog from the hospital bed in Ampang Puteri Specialist Hospital. No! No! It's not me. It's my youngest who is sick and with all the new viruses flying around, you can't never be too sure.
The good doctor said it is due to her enlarged tonsil, but I am not about to take it easy.
I am a relatively healthy person. Was hospitalised for a day a long time ago for suspected dengue but insisted on going home the next day.
But my children are asthmatic and so does my wife. They are fast turning APSH as their second home. But the two older kids are all right now. My youngest and my wife are still going in and out of hospital.
Most of the time, I would be slogging in the office as they stay in the wards. I don't take leave unless it was so urgent.
But something happened early last year that made me relook at things closely. My father is a healthy 84 year-old man who moves around frequently on his motorcycle.
He mows the relatively big garden (kampung house) twice a month and sometimes helps his neighbours with the chore.
Early last year however, he met with an accident, knocking into a young cyclist on his way to the surau.
He broke his leg and suffered bruises all over and was admitted to the Malacca GH.
As a former policeman who took bullets from communists and involved in several gunfights, Bidin bin Manaf withstood the pain gallantly.
It was during the regime change at MM and I casually told the editors I wanted to take a day off to visit the old man.
But I was the main contributor to the new MM and was to write the front-page report with Darshini.
It was not easy to take a day off but I never expected to have my request rejected. After all, my father was in the hospital and my siblings reported that he was in a bad shape.
I was to take my family to Malacca GH and my children were all anxious about the visit.
The rejection was a bitter pill to swallow but I continued working the following days and was later told my father was discharged several days later.
I was then promised several days off after the launch of the new MM.
Again, I felt betrayed when the annual leave form I submitted almost immediately after I was given the assurance, was missing. No one in the MM remembered signing the form and someone was actually sent to the Human Resources Department to confirm it.
20 years in the MM and they thought I was lying about the annual leave request.
During the trying times, the call from NST CEO (then) came and after weighing the pros and cons, decided to make the big leap.
As for my father, he is still going strong and despite the bitter memory, still goes around on his Honda Cub and mowing the garden. Thank God for that...

REMEMBERING THE JB WONDERFUL TEAM

After a looong rest, I am back. This is prompted by changes at The Malay Mail and NST. Rocky, the man who introduced MM to Johor and Penang, is back at the helm and my instant thought was MM is going to rock again.
I still have copies of circulation reports I received every evening from the Johor circulation department.
They are faxed copies of the progress and are fading fast. But I am holding on to these documents to prove that Johoreans actually appreciate the tabloid and want it back.
The increase in circulation on a daily basis was evident. Stories from Sam Cheong on the Wong Ah Fook veteran prostitutes, the easily available blue movies from a certain shopping complex...
The whole team was wonderful. Harny, Baiyah, Ash, Neville, Amran the pixman. Our foes to be beaten were The Star and believe it or not...the Penang MM team, led by Muzli. I would tell the reporters to get front-pages worth the national level, and not just the Southern edition.
It was at first not easy to leave the family back in KL. And it was not an easy task convincing them to join me in JB. The kids finally relented but only for a year.
To keep us together, I made that promise. I could not have lasted another month without them and hence the promise, hoping that they would forget KL easily.
The older two kids were Ok. Perling Mall was a walking distance from home. School was a stone throw away and we adopted a stray dog which would send and pick my children from school daily.
Brownie was more a cat than a dog, and it was actually due to the food I gave him daily.
I fed him and another pussydog with cat food and they grew up, probably thinking they were actually cats.
Once in a while, I would take the kids to Danga Bay, supper at MSuites, the various shopping complexes in town.
Johor Zoo was our favourite. We visited the inmates almost weekly. My wife made friends with lots of friendly Johoreans and we thought it would be forever.
But then, rumours started circulating NST was going tabloid and wanted to take over the MM market in Johor.
During a casual phone conversation with Rocky one day, the cool editor joked that MM would have to go broadsheet if NST decided to go tabloid.
But we continued working hard.
The rumours somehow were forgotten as we opened another branch in Malacca. I was there. Sam was appointed staff correspondent and we stayed there for two days for the launch.
Until one day, Yushaimi had to be the bearer of the dreaded news.
MM in JB would have to be disbanded but those who opted to stay put would have to report to NST.
There was no need to go into details how we all, except for one, felt. But it was like someone putting a huge rock on your head.
We went home early that day. No mood. Told my wife who said it would not be easy to convince her employer to bring her back to KL.
Amran whose wife is in the circulation department and Baiyah whose hubby was BH bureau chief reluctantly stayed back.
Dreaded the thought of breaking the news to the kids but then I realised, my promise to them was going to come true. It was almost a year since the day we moved in.
Athira and Shahrul were actually dancing when I broke the news. They could not forget the old neighbourhood in Bukit Sentosa, Rawang, counting the days to one year.
As for me, there was no choice. I wanted to return to KL office as soon as possible.
No way I was going to NST.
I actually made the "one-year" promise to my mum. Looking back, it was a blessing in disguise. I would not have been able to stay by her side when she drew her last breath.
My kids are happy to be back in KL but would insist on an annual trip to JB.
Never thought I would someday work for NST. Thought it would be MM forever, but then....