when LOVE blossomed...

I had a lunch with a friend at NewsCafe. I love that nasi goreng cendawan with omelette.

In between, we talked a lot of things. We talked about life, career, marriage, just like the days of old. He looked astute as he always been, but with a face as if dark shadows hovering upon him. I reckoned, it must have been too personal, lest he kept it very tight inside his heart. Indeed, when the lunch was over, and smoking got in the way, he revealed his best-kept account of his troublesome love life.

"I'm so in love with her. So did she." Who is she?

It was told that he's in love with a beautiful lady, who is married with two children. He, himself is married for five years with two kids too.

"Go on," said I, and he continued.

"We're officemates. We love each other. We slept together. I can't erase our memories... her lips, her caressing, her love, everything." Wow. That's too much to bear.

"Not only that. We sometimes planned to get married and live happily." Uh-oh, this is bad.

He told me that they first met after nearly bumped into each other. Starting by exchanging emails, they moved on to Meebo, and some telephone calls. Bringing themselves closer to each other means they became fast friends. He said that without Meebo-ing each other each day, life would never been complete.

"We used to flirt and tease each other on Meebo. Just that, for fun, without any feelings."

Months apart, they became close friends. They started having meals together, exchanging gifts, notes and goodbyes. They even acknowledged each other at birthdays. With frequent encounters at office, on and off working hours, their friendship bloomed.

Fortunately, none of their spouses knew. He said, "At home, I am a total different. I'm the husband and a father to my kids. I never think of her at home. Ever. When at home, I concentrate on making my family happy."

While I was taking my second Marlboro, he continued, "Maybe our closeness has attracted some gossips... I heard they talked about us, but it's just nothing." The smoke started to fill the air.

The moment of truth came when her husband was outstation. With her child is taken care by his parents, and her incapability to drive, he offered her a drive home. While driving, their began caressing each others' thighs. And he rushed to her breasts, but she bulged. As suppressed desire is mounting, they arrived late at her house. They nearly kissed, but didn't.

After their first 'adventure', the drama seemed to stop. But not for long. While still running on their usual routines, the bosses had them assigned to work on a project at the Philippines. They are required to present a proposal and models of development to be initiated via collaboration. While the initial order was clear, they thought much more than that.

The working trip to Makati City took 3 days and well-prepared. It's not only them in the trip; several others were also in for other business errands. Serving most times at sites and meeting rooms, they somehow managed to find some time "getting close". I mean, while on the bus, they held hands. That's their firsts. And they sat very close, while sometimes she leaned against his shoulder. Grr.

She said, "I want to hold your hands, and want to be your girlfriend. Just us."

He replied, "I always longed to be your boyfriend, nobody knows. We'll keep this to ourselves. My love."

Finishing their work at daytime, night activity of the trip was pretty simple: having dinner and shopping. After all those activities, they went out together for clubbing, and after an hour, they went back to the hotel walking.

"I still remember how cold it was that night," he took a sip, and continued, "I asked if she's cold. She nodded and I quickly wrap her in my arms. We were hugging and when our eyes met, we know somehow we are actually in love. And, under that tree, we shared our first kiss... her pink wet lips was so sweet." Wow.

"Then we walked to the hotel. I told her to come to my room and gave her the access card. Near to the entrance, we walked separately so not to raise any suspicions. She was already in my room when I arrive, we closed the door and start kissing wildly." I bet it's a very hot kiss. I felt sweaty.

"We were fondling and having fun with each other. We got carried away. We undressed, hammering wildly and began making love. Oh, that moment we lost control, we forgot everything: our spouses, our kids, our families. We were in paradise... il paradiso perduto. She is so hot and sexy, a bonus for a married woman with kids. Ah yes, her lingerie... it's La Senza, I think, so pinkish violet and sexy."

He then recounted their sensual, sexual love-making. It's arousing to listen to, but with reminder that they're both married to their spouses, that excitement cooled down. They spent two hours making love like never before. So exhausting that they slept together naked under the blanket till morning.

A day upon returning to KL, he said, people were talking about a possible scandal between them. He denied vehemently, and kept his cool. When she entered the office that day, everything went back to normal, but not without extra spicy stories.

"My other officemates were thinking we are having an affair because she didn't return to her room that night. I told them that nothing happen between us as I was sleeping early that night. I told them that I don't know where she was that night." Presuming everything went back to normal, they usual routines continued.

Alas! he said, as he seemed hard to forget about their relationship. "It's more than a friendship, although we are friends. How can we became friends while in actual we are in love with each other? It's so obvious. After that trip, we couldn't hardly forget what we had there. Even she compared her husband to me, and when I want to make love with my wife the excitement seems to wear off. Her face, her sexy body swerve into my head. Everytime, bro."

"You are married, you do know how it feels to be with your wife. If you put yourself into my shoes, what would you do? We can't bear breaking our secret relationship. She's my lover, and I know she's married. So does her. How about my marriage life? How about my kids? How about me?" as he struck with self-anger. I listened attentively at this, and demanded him to talk more.

"She had a fight with her husband because lack of lovemaking art like I did to her. How guilty is that?"

"I want to be with her, love her and make her my own. But we can't, because we're married. Unless by God willing, someday we will be united. That's my hope."

"I have to be realistic that she's not for me. And I'm not for her. But I'm confused," and with that he asked for my Marlboro. Ceh.

I pitied him, but at the same time I despised it. Love can be cruel sometimes.

In response, I extracted some verses , which concern this matter closely. It's depressing to hear, but not without tidings:

"Loving and desiring for us had, once been ours that never broken.
At this desperate times I need, your love and comfort though you've gone away.

I seek your forgiveness, my love.

We both knows, our destiny lie elsewhere.

Shed not the tears, my love.

I never asked you to remember me as you were, because you're not for me.
Leave not your true love for me, even if I long for your love and desire."

Wonder if I ever plunge into that deep? God knows. Let this be a lesson to all.

Khallas.

Malam Satu Suro... seram ke? Ada Sundel Bolong ke? Tolong fahamkan.

Kalau disebut Malam Satu Suro, secara automatik kita akan terbayang filem seram Indonesia lakonan aktres Suzzanna sebagai Sundel Bolong. Seramlah juga, bila ditonton berseorangan. Tetapi, adakah ramai mengetahui kisah di sebalik malam satu Suro yang kononnya menyeramkan itu?

Dalam kaca mata Islam, bulan Suro atau Muharram (dalam kalendar Jawa) ialah bulan yang mulia, dalam bulan Muharam tersebut berbagai kisah sejarah terjadi seperti selamatnya Nabi Musa as dari kekejaman Fir'aun, selamatnya bahtera Nuh as dan kisah Nabi Yunus as yang juga terselamat keluar dari perut ikan Hiu, serta perkahwinan Rasulullah juga terjadi pada bulan Muharram. Sejarah paling penting yang membawa nama Islam dalam kancah dunia ialah peristiwa Hijrah Rasulullah saw dari Makkah ke Madinah dan menjadi dasar penetapan tahun Hijrah tersebut.

Sayangnya, bulan yang mulia ini telah disalah guna dan disalah ertikan sebahagian besar masyarakat Jawa yang mengaitkan dengan kekeramatan. Mereka lebih mempercayai kalau bulan Suro ialah bulan khusus untuk Nyi Roro Kidul (Ratu Laut Selatan, juga pernah dilakonkan si Suzzanna), bulan perkahwinan diharamkan, keluarnya pontianak, sundel bolong dan pelbagai macam kepercayaan tanpa dasar. Banyak juga ritual bidaah yang menyalahi syariat dilakukan oleh masyarakat Jawa pada malam 1 Suro, ada yang berendam dalam sungai untuk mendapatkan jodoh, bertapa dan mencuci benda-benda yang dianggap keramat.

Inikah yang seharusnya diamalkan oleh masyarakat Islam? Banyak keterangan dalam Qur'an dan Hadith yang memberikan kaifiat dan keistimewaan bulan ini semata-mata keredhaan Allah swt. Perlukah kita menurut sahaja tanpa selidiki makna disebalik keraian seperti yang diamalkan saudara kita di tanah Jawa?

Harus diingatkan betapa besarnya ujian Allah swt terhadap para kekasihNya di bulan itu. Nah, apakah tidak kita hargai pengorbanan dan insafi peristiwa lalu? Apakah kita sudah lengkap sempurna?

Fahamilah betul-betul pengertian bulan Suro itu. Rasanya perkataan Suro itu dipetik dari perkataan "Asyura" iaitu pada 10 Muharram. "Syura" disebut lama-lama jadilah Suro, ikut pelat Jawa. Tak salah menonton filem Malam Satu Suro, tapi jangan cepat melompat ketakutan bilamana bulan Suro disebutkan.

Khallas.

The R-Machine

(The R-Machine logo, with Bandung flower).

Hmm. Now I should talk about my newest addition of machines, the faithful R-Machine. It has been mentioned several times before in here, and I hold to my promise to story a bit about this R-Machine. What is it?

It's a big, long distance scooter named Elegan, manufactured by Modenas. It's been with us for a month a half now, given the newest registration number WRJ 3546. It's black and sleek, and suits my riding style. Mind you, Elegan is more than just a scooter; it's bigger than other local scooters, the biggest I think. It travels at least 50km daily to ride me to work to-and-fro. It's so elegant, hence its namesake and makes me elegant plus stylish, too.

Rite. My riding experience is traced back to my schooldays with that old Yamaha 110SS (my cuzzie's) and my dad's (Suzuki RG, Modenas Kriss). I stopped riding after an accident (Superman-style) during my final year at IIUM Matric... I still remember walking to exam hall with cements enveloping my left leg. That final sem exam. Prayer times were quite uneasy, I had to sit and stretch out my injured leg. How awful. That was the last time... and after years of silence, here I come.

I think that my purchase of a PVC jacket at Bandung in April is a sign that I'll get a bike. Somehow, Abang Mus (aka Orang Muda), a swashbuckling 40-something senior designer in my office has influenced me to get a bike like his... which is that Elegan. Yeah, I dunno... I start asking him everything about his bike and do some research at motor shops and the net. Thee-hee. I even register in auto forums to get more info on Elegan. Quite ambitious, my wife says. Telling my dad about my unsure intention, he smiles and gives me a go-ahead with some assistance... thanks dad, you're the greatest.

After much pondering and uncertainties, I finally make up my mind. That Monday (can't remember the date) me and Abg Mus are lurking at that same motor shop just adjacent to our office. I place my booking and assured of getting my new bike by Friday. Hehehe. It's true, anyway, that Friday proves to be the day I pick up my Elegan. Yahoo! It's always shaky at first, filling up to max (cost me RM 12 when fuel=RM 1.92, now full tank=RM 17) and heavy to ride. My first ride home is so in control, gotta adjust to it. And now, I love this bike.


Hmm. R-Machine. At first, ArtDessei III is the first name in mind, but too many ArtDesseis could give me a lot of headache. Comparing that Elegan to other big bikes, such as Kamen Riders' bikes, I stumble upon the V-Machine, the superbike of Kamen Rider Super-1. Although V-Machine is a Harley, but in honour of the superhero I have decided to call mine's as R-Machine with personalized logo. And sometimes, I don a red scarf and feels so like a Kamen Rider. I risk not to do a henshin (transformation pose) on the bike, otherwise I end up in a drain or at a hospital.

R-Machine... a bike to die for, the official carrier to work and very efficient. If you want to get a scooter, this one is definitely the best. Vroom, vroom!!!

STUNNED. oranje rhapsody, our agony.

Last night was a total mess.

I was expecting a great display of the game. Part of the game was fantastic, but the bigger part was heartbreaking. What is wrong with our Azzurri?

I took time sleeping just enough to see the match on TV. Well, I boasted some by telling that I was off to Berne (just to feel the fun of European atmosphere) and got myself wearing Luca Toni's shirt. Thee-hee. Equipped with snacks, Haji Marlboro and drinks while my wife sleeping, I sat in front of telly as if I was at the stands at Stade de Suisse, Berne.

Of der Nederland, one of Europe's powerful teams, I expected a revenge of defeat in Euro 2000 by Italia. Pretty. The best thing is, both coaches, Marco van Basten of Nederland and Roberto Donadoni of Italia were teammates back in AC Milan in late 80s. No time for down memory lane, boys. Pitting their tactical skills and wit, I believed the Azzurri would make progress and should have been alighted with a win.

But that wasn't the case. Totally stunned.

Der Oranje/Nederland were outclassing the world champions with three goals, neat play, effective tactics, sheer skills, accurate passes and total football. Clearly, Italia played below par. Everything seemed serba tak kena. I failed to understand the Italian approach to the game. Most players are considered veteran; some are over 30s, but playing against a team of mostly young lads, another approach would be better than the originally-planned-but-busted 4-3-3 system.

Without capitano Cannavaro out of injury, the defence were quite shaky. Luckily, Andrea Barzagli and Panucci were good, even the great Zambrotta couldn't work effectively. When Fabio Grosso entered, the defence strengthened a little. Grosso should start earlier.

Midfielders were of pure Milanese: Massimo Ambrosini, Gennaro Gattuso and my great Andrea Pirlo. Simone Perrotta should be in starting XI.

Frontliners: Mauro Camoransei, Antonio di Natale, Luca Toni. Camoranesi's poor display so far, and Toni was overlooked.

Italia cannot just rely on Toni to break the net. Toni is good when he's off-guard and I think Del Piero was inspirational. However, Cassano wan't at his best, he needs to work more on team understanding.

Didn't want to say much about the Oranje, as their best game tell.

What did our supremo Donadoni says?

"When we went 1-0 down things got complicated and for the second we were not quick enough to recover our positions after the corner. We looked strong physically and created a few chances but it wasn't our night. I think the Netherlands played as well as we expected them to. We knew they were capable of creating chances and making life difficult for us and that's what they did but we made mistakes and paid for it. It started badly and ended up worse but this is already history and we need to think about the next game against Romania. We need to recover physically and mentally so we can put things right straight away.

If we're not optimistic we should go off on holiday instead of taking the flight to Zurich. The players need to put this defeat behind them, understand the mistakes we've made. As of tomorrow we'll start working on them so they don't happen again. We were naïve at conceding goals on the counterattack. We took a corner and were not attentive enough afterwards. We didn't defend properly. Obviously in the light of this result, we're happy that France and Romania drew. It's to our advantage but also shows that Romania are a team who'll make it difficult for us."

I haven't check out the Italian sports newspaper, La Gazzetta dello Sport on their opinions of the game. Emm. Nevermind then, just prepare and head to Zurich with aim to win.

Forza Azzurri!

Pabila Sang Kelembai menjadi raja sehari...

Akhirnya, selamat juga Ahmad Fuad @ Sang Kelembai dan isteri, Shila ke alam perkahwinan. Alhamdulillah. Semoga berbahagia sampai ke akhirat.

Sabtu 7 Jun 2008. Asalnya aku dan isteri nak mengajak kengkawan lain ikut sekali dalam ekspedisi ke Kuala Lipis, rumah si Kelembai ni. Alih-alih kami berdua je. Dahlah bangun lambat pagi tu (pagi Sabtu masa paling best menidurkan diri sebagai ganti tak cukup tidur masa hari bekerja). Sempat pula balik ke Rawang sekejap menghantar barang ke rumah mentua, lepas tu terus pecut ke Negeri Gading Emas (Pahang) kira-kira 210 km dari sini.

Aku sudah membuat persediaan untuk ekspedisi sehari ini. Siapalah aku tanpa peta. Dengan bantuan daripada Ujang, aku dah dapat arah ke sana. Pemanduan ke sana macam biasa je. Kami seronok sambil menyanyi-nyanya. Melepasi terowong Genting Sempah, kami mula melawan hujan lebat. Sampailah lepas bandar Bentong, barulah hujan ditinggalkan. Hmm.

Ujang asks to be picked at Raub bus station, which is our next passing town. Aku pun bagitau Ujang supaya tunggu. Dalam beberapa minit lepas itu Ujang hantar SMS suruh jumpa di Lipis terus kerana Raja Azlan "Oldman" dah datang picking him up. Melepasi bandar Raub yang menarik, aku pun teruskan pemanduan dengan isteriku tertidur di sebelah.

Jam sudah pukul 2 petang. Akhirnya sampailah kami ke bandar Kuala Lipis, tetapi rumah Fuad bukanlah di dalam kawasan bandar. Kampung Berchang, lokasi rumahnya terletak di tepian jalan menuju Gua Musang. Hmm. Jenuh aku menelefon Ujang. Jauh jugaklah kampung ni daripada Lipis. Apabila aku perasan signboard "Kampung Berchang", di sebelah kananku ada sebuah rumah besar dihiasi kanopi perkahwinan. So, inilah dia rumah pengantin.

Kedatangan kami disambut oleh my old roomate, Fadil Braew-Braew. Rupa saling tak berubah, cuma rambut panjang lebat macam gondorowo katanya. Dengan membawa hadiah, kami naik ke rumah dan bertemu dengan pasangan raja sehari ini. Fuad sungguh kacak, Shila pun cantik. Elok benarlah kalian. Kami dijemput makan, dan di sana kami bertemu dengan Ujang, Oldman, dan Ajiem. Si Braew-braew pun duduk makan sekali round lagi dengan kami.

Inilah first time in 3 years aku merasa majlis kenduri kampung sebenar. Takde khidmat katering, semuanya dimasak sendiri. Wahh... terujanya aku. Lama sangat tak merasa suasana kampung macam ni. Best betul. Lauk dan masakan superb. Lepas makan-makan borak segala, we all naik ke rumah nak bergambar dengan pengantin yang dah bertukar persalinan. Laa... baru nak ambik gambar. Takpe lah, asalkan ada. Lama jugaklah kami di atas rumah bersembang. And masa tu jugaklah aku terpandang kakak dia yang masih cantik walaupun beranak dua... aku pernah teruja dengan kakak dia masa zaman matrik 9 tahun lepas. Hohoho.

So, usai semua kami pun bertolak pulang ke Lembah Klang. Ujang dan Ajiem terus ke Kuantan, manakala kami yang lain berkonvoi ke KL. Oldman bercadang nak singgah di Lipis untuk lepak-lepak. Kami OK saja. Bukan main lagi lepak-lepak, minum-minum dan bersiar-siar di bandar Siti Nurhaliza ni sampai ke maghrib. Hmm. Bandar yang menarik di petang hari. I like this place.

So, entah macam mana datang gila kami untuk tidak pulang ke KL. Disebabkan tiada pakaian spare, so kami berdua take some time to shop for some clothes. Macam koboi pulak. Dah isi minyak semua, kami meneruskan perjalanan ke Bukit Tinggi-Colmar lepas Isyak.

Punyalah laju si Oldman ni bawak Tiara dia. Si Braew-Braew pulak berkepul-kepul asap rokok dari Mitsubishi Storm dia. Jalannya kurang lebar, trafiknya sekejap OK sekejap slow, so pepandai la kami buat adegan potong-memotong di jalan raya. Sejam lebih kami camni. Mesej diterima untuk menanti di Hentian Lipur Lentang. Punyalah gelap gelita di situ. Aku lead the way to Bukit Tinggi.

Bukit Tinggi @ Colmar Tropicale ialah sebuah pusat peranginan yang tersorok dicelah-celah hutan. Kawasan tu dibina seperti sebuah perkampungan Perancis di pergunungan Alps, lengkap semuanya. Hmm. Dengarnya macam best, tetapi tak berapa best sangat. Aku dan isteri betul-betul macam orang honeymoon... enjoy jalan-jalan sambil tengok show. Kami kelaparan, maka kami dine kat satu restoran yang mana servisnya lousy tapi hidangannya... superb!

Jam menunjukkan pukul 12 malam. Where to stay for a night? Dengan kegilaan, kami memutuskan untuk menyambung adventure ke Genting Highlands. Tiara dan Myvi diparking di R&R Genting Sempah, so kami ke kota keriangan dengan Storm. Macam orang gila betul. Kami sepakat bermalam satu bilik triple, kongsi duit sekali dengan breakfast di First World Hotel. Ada bilik. Selesa dan seronok. Kami bergilir-gilir mandi dan lepas tu bersiar-siar di sekitar plaza. Sejuk menggigit tapi aku buat tak tau je. Aku kelaparan seperti biasa, so aku dan Oldman membedal wantan mee. Balik bilik terus tidur sampai pagi.

Breakfast terlambat bangun, so cepat-cepat kami turun. Lepak dalam bilik, checking out terus berpesta pora di plaza dengan Starbucks, karaoke dan macam-macam lagi. Seronok betul. Disebabkan Braew-Braew ada kerja, so kami pun turun balik ke Genting Sempah where we miss the junction and make a U-turn at Taman Melati! Punyalah jauh, sian B-B.

So tamatlah adventure yang asalnya meraikan Fuad kahwin menjadi frenzy ride around highlands. Kami berdua kepenatan, pening kepala dan terus balik ke rumah tidur, itu pun selepas aku makan KFC di Kepong...

Again, salam bahagia untuk Ahmad Fuad dan Shila di hari perkahwinan mereka. Tahniah!