Stories from my kitchen - 1

To go or not to go – a dilemma



Dedication: This post is specially dedicated to SK and KTS – you guys are now global pipeliners! And to all Malaysian expatriates out there.

“Hujan emas di negeri orang,
hujan batu di negeri sendiri”

By the end of the month (June) two of my ex-colleagues, who are both pipeline engineers, will have left the country and landed in a foreign land. One will be going to the Middle East and another to Europe. Their overseas adventure will be temporary as I believe they never intend to permanently live in those countries. Theirs is merely a journey for new opportunities to learn, experience different culture and of course much better pay! They will join many Malaysians before them who have stepped out of their comfort zone into unfamiliar life in a faraway land.

Both of them, and the majority of people I know who have left the country, are in oil and gas industry. No doubt it is doing very well these days because of the high oil price. More fields need to be developed and more crude oil needs to be extracted. Everybody is thirsty for oil, but China and India, driven by the need to power their industrialisation, are sipping up more and more barrels by the day. While supply of this fossil energy is limited, the demand seems to be endless. Crisis in Iran and Iraq, both being major oil producers, pushes the price even higher. But not all is gloomy. My friends in Petronas are all smiles. Only yesterday Petronas announced record pre-tax profits of RM76 billion on the back of strong oil price. With another 6 months bonus (hopefully), my dear Petronas friends, that new Honda Accord is no longer beyond your reach!

If you look at the recruitment section of popular newspapers, there has not been a week without job advertisements for posts in the Middle East. Some of them even go on recruitment roadshow here in Malaysia to attract experienced people to join their company. I am not sure why they need to look east this time around. Traditionally they would naturally seek help from the West to help extract their oil. Maybe because of fear of terrorism, more Mat Salehs find it less attractive there, and we are more than willing to fill the vacuum.

But not all is “brain drain”. In the current age of globalisation, Malaysia, like other countries, has seen a lot of foreigners coming in to seek better opportunity and life in this country too. Millions of workers arrive on our shores to work on our plantations, factories, petrol stations and our own homes. This phenomenon has been widely discussed in the media partly because of the increase in crime rate and social problems brought in by the flood of immigrants, and probably not less, by the misterious dissaperance of stray cats and dogs on our streets! What is less discussed is the fact that this country is also host to about 100,000 expatriates from developed countries who work at senior positions in our banks, hotels, IT companies, engineering and other high-tech industries. Within the company I work for, more than half of the staff are expatriates. As part of a global oil and gas giant, most of them are here on a 3 to 4 year assignment, and will move on to a new location after that period. But to Malaysia’s credit, a recent survey in Expatriate Lifestyle magazine reported that they are staying here for longer period and many actually buy houses under the Malaysia My Second Home incentives. With average income of about RM32,000 per month, and insatiable appetite for Malaysian food, sand, sun (and sex?), their contribution to our economy is not insignificant.

All those wonderful stories about fat salaries, overseas vacations, big cars, nice house and the all glamourous expat life sometimes make me ask myself why I am still here. My RM salary will never be able to buy that kind of luxury. Not that I have never been enticed into it before. A few years ago I was asked by an engineering manager of a Middle East petroleum company whether I would like to be considered for a position at his company. I said I would give it a thought but after considering potential inconveniences to my family and other matters I decided to decline the offer. I guess I am too confortable in my current life. I am afraid to take the plunge into uncertainty. I don’t deny the opportunity for better life that is available there. I wish my friends and all those who have taken up the challenge best of luck. I am sure they will come back with invaluable skills for the future of Malaysia. As for me, I am comfortable here. Yes my current job offers less money and the KL traffic gives me stress. I agree our schools could be better and our society needs to be more equitable. I can tell you I hate paying expensive tolls or putting up with rampant corruption. Our government officials need to do more and our politicians suck. But, despite all the imperfections, I am still here because it's the only place that I can call home.


Kajang
30 June 2007

Iklan Makanan Ringan di TV diharamkan

Saya amat mengalu-alukan keputusan kabinet untuk mengharamkan sepenuhnya iklan makanan segera seperti Maggi, Mamee, KFC, McD dan yang sejenis dengannya di kaca TV. Sebagaimana iklan rokok dan arak sebelumnya, saya berpendapat ianya memang keputusan yang tepat. Kepentingan kesihatan rakyat Malaysia perlu mengatasi keuntungan syarikat-syarikat TV dan juga syarikat makanan ringan berkenaan. Statistik kementerian kesihatan menunjukkan peningkatan masalah kesihatan yang berkaitan dengan pemakanan kurang sihat di kalangan golongan muda di negara ini. Malah saya berharap kerajaan bertindak lebih tegas lagi dengan menaikkan cukai terhadap makanan tersebut untuk membendung gejala peningkatan jualan makanan segera yang merosakkan kesihatan itu.

Suatu ketika dahulu kita lihat bahawa syarikat rokok menguasai stadium sukan kita dengan menaja acara-acara sukan besar. Kebimbangan bahawa sukan Malaysia akan merosot disebabkan kehilangan sumber kewangan nampaknya tidak berasas kerana sukan kita memang sentiasa di tempat tercorot pun!

Namun usaha untuk menggalakkan orang Malaysia mengamalkan pemakanan sihat tidak perlu terhenti setakat pengharaman iklan makanan segera sahaja. Budaya makan di luar di mana kita dihidangkan dengan serbuk perisa MSG, garam dan gula yang berlebihan juga perlu dikikis.

23-6-2007

Book Review: "I am Muslim" by Dina Zaman

I like reading slim books that I can finish before I lose interest in it. And this 236-page book fits well with the definition of a slim book. It’s been on the local non-fiction best seller list for quite a while. The author is a well known writer on the news website Malaysiakini.com. The book is not exactly a continuous story but instead a collection of previous writings by the author which have been rearranged under different chapters with different themes. It is obvious from the writings that the author is a liberal muslim. She was educated in the UK and had been to many places around the world as she followed her diplomat father but somehow could still relate with her hometown in Terengganu. I think her upbringing inevitably shaped her worldview and liberal interpretation of Islam. Generally, people tend to be more liberal when they mix with people of various cultures.

She writes on various dilemmas faced by modern urban muslims trying to fit in with modern secular life. As a journalist she is not afraid to spend time in a different community in order to find out about their belief and practices. She has been able to juggle her seemingly contradictory lives pretty well. She spent a month with a zikir group in Indonesia (Nursyifa) to purify her soul, hung out with gay friends in KL and talked openly about it, consulted her local ustaz on religious matters and, being Malay, also sought the help of a shaman (bomoh). There are also pieces about her struggle to grasp the meaning of life after her divorce.

If you are looking for guidance on Islamic law or way of life, this book is definitely not a source. It is just a Muslim woman’s personal experience of seeing Islam through her own Western-educated liberal thinking and trying to make sense of the society in which she lives.

"I am Muslim" is published by Silverfishbooks and priced at RM30.00

Kajang
23 June 2007

You are still my Wira

(Read a story about a man's love affair with his car)

Our love affair started in a Proton showroom somewhere in Selayang back in December 1997. It was a particularly disastrous year for the rest of the country. Malaysia was choking with thick haze, the worst environmental problem that this country had ever faced. Our ringgit was tumbling down into what was going to be the worst financial disaster as well. With the help from somebody who had connections, we were officially engaged three months earlier after I beat some other prospective buyers in a normally 6 month long waiting list. Your lot was that popular back then. Your more curvy sisters, the Gen2 and the Savvy, and your more muscular brother, the Waja, were not yet born. They painted you blue, not because I couldn’t differentiate red and green but because blue was my favourite colour. We started our life together on the first day of Ramadan that year. It was the first time I entered the world of mobility.

Just over a month later, we greeted the coming of my other life partner, somebody who would occupy the front passenger seat for most of your working life. You were witness to some of our romantic times together as newly wed couple. I was on top of the world. I had a brand new car and new wife too! What else could a man want? Friends joked about the similarities and differences of a new car and new wife. One said I needed to treat both of them gently. One I paid cash while the other was on a loan. I was told to avoid going into potholes with one but not the other! And whatever they said, truly I enjoyed both.

Exactly one year later you faithfully took my wife and me home through the jungles of Pahang and Kelantan while the baby inside her could pop out any moment along the way. She wanted to deliver our first baby with family members around and you safely delivered us home. We celebrated the third member of my own family, somebody who would be occupying one of your seats at the back. No complain from you and you kept performing like new. I took you to a Proton service centre for regular check-ups. Just the normal lube and filter change. I complained about them charging too much but I knew I had to go to them because you were still under warrantee. You clocked more than 20,000 km in the first year, a distance far enough to go around the world. Your water pump started making abnormal noises but you were perfect again after I was forced to replace it. You drank very little – a 30 ringgit fuel would take us from Kajang to Pasir Mas. Of course as you get older, you drink even more. Now you need 60 ringgit worth of fuel to go the same distance. But I know it’s not just because you drink more, it’s also because fuel price has increased a lot in 10 years.

Because of my lack of driving experience, you had a number of bruises and a few near misses in the first few years of you life, but so far you have spared me from any bruises. I got your broken bumpers and dent mudguard replaced, repainted and you became spotless again. The roof started to show signs of blisters after a couple of years. Over the years it corroded even more and I had to replace it. That was the time I decided to change your colour. It was time to give you new clothes I thought. But underneath I know you are still you.

Three years after you came into the family you proved to be useful again. I will never forget taking my ailing mother from Pasir Mas to Kajang to spend her last days with me. I also remember how well you performed when we trailed the ambulance from Kajang to Pasir Mas bringing my mother home when she was gravely ill and wanted to breathe her last in her own home. Though she is no longer here, I am sure she enjoyed the ride taking her to places that she had never been the whole of her life. The family went to Melaka to see Hang Tuah, to Pangkor and Port Dickson for holidays, to KLCC to see the tallest twin towers in the world. I could see how appreciative she was going to these places after spending nearly 50 years of her life in rural Kelantan.

Over the years I have been tempted to dump you for a new one. There are so many attractive new prospects in the market with various easy payment schemes. The temptation is always there. Probably something that can carry more people as my family has grown in number and size. Perhaps something more comfortable from the MPV species. But every time that thought comes up, I look back at how faithful you have served me and my family and I quickly find reasons to still keep you in my garage.

I admit I have not been a good owner. I am not the man who spends two hours every Sunday morning caressing his car. I am sure you will understand that I’ve got other more important things to do. Sometimes you go for months without bathing, left in the hot sun to bake yourself or soaking wet in the afternoon thunderstorm. But you should know by now our relationship is based on a simple motto: you are here to serve me, not the other way around. They say the average Malaysian changes their car every four to five years. Our relationship has survived twice that long because you have become so sentimental to me. We grow old together. I have raised my family with your help. You make me feel guilty to dump you for something new.

Yesterday I went to the JPJ office to officially cancel the ownership claim from my previous employer who had financed the loan. I know I have fully repaid the loan two and a half years ago but I kept postponing the trip to JPJ until yesterday. They put a stamp on your registration certificate and now you are officially my Wira. I don’t know how much longer can I keep you in the face of so much temptation out there. But for now at least, after almost 10 years, you are still my Wira.


Kajang
9 June 2007.

Four Weddings and A Funeral

I remember this expression as a popular British romantic comedy movie in the early 90s starring Hugh Grant. It was hugely popular in the UK around 1994 and if I am right it was the movie that established Hugh Grant as the best romantic comedy hero that Britain has ever produced.

This time around, the school holiday season was greeted with wedding invitations from friends and relatives. The first wedding I attended was that of a friend who works at the engineering consultancy company where I used to work in KL. I must say that the wedding invitation came as a surprise for me as I did not expect him to get married that early. But then according to him “the call has come” (sudah sampai seru). It was on Sunday so it was a breeze to get to central KL where it was held. The ceremony was accompanied with the beating of kompang and later followed by a live band playing songs from the 60s.

Later in the evening I was again attending a wedding of an old friend. This one was a rather grand one as it was held at a golf club in a KL sub-urb. It was the first time I attended such a grand wedding ceremony. I did not know the way to the place so I decided to get a lift from a friend who also got invited. Five of us who attended the same university as the groom were seated around the same table. It was quite an experience since some of us had not met since we left the university. Twelve years of stories to catch up in a space of about 2 hours. Not so much to catch up with the groom though as he was busy with the bersanding ceremony. But never mind, instead we were entertained with jokes and pantuns from a very well known TV presenter, Wardina Safiyah who was the MC and happens to be a student of the groom. My friend, the groom who is now an architect with his own practice, has chosen one of his own workers, as his wife. I knew him as the most hardworking and committed student during his university days. With that kind of passion in his craft, I am sure one day he will be a very successful architect and businessman. I wish both of them the best of partnership.

Fast forward six days later, I was back in my kampong attending the wedding of my cousin. She is the daughter of my uncle who had played host to my brother’s wedding a year ago. I felt that I was very much indebted to my uncle’s family as he had acted as “our parents” in all matters that needed presence of family elders since my parents’ death. The daughter had also helped baby sit my children for 3 months before I got a maid. So it was a kind of obligation for me to be home for the occasion. Fortunately, my wife’s leave was approved and the whole family could travel up to our home village for a few days.

The wedding was held in full Kelantanese tradition (plus a bit of Thai influence as we were in Pasir Mas!). The kompang and live band of KL is not the taste here. Instead the couple was greeted by a performance of silat cantik followed by tomoi (Thai boxing) complete with traditional musicians playing gendang (goat skin drums), gedombak, serunai (flute) and gong. I thought this was the time to meet all my relatives in one place all within one day! And I did meet most of them that day. One that I also met was my mother’s cousin who invited me to her son’s wedding the day after. So off I went to the fourth wedding in a space of one week! I couldn’t escape it as I was personally invited by the Mak Cik herself.

The next morning I got an SMS from a friend informing me of his grandmother’s death. Unlike weddings, one can never plan to attend a funeral. But it’s something that must happen when the time comes. I knew my friend’s grandmother as a rice trader in Pasar Pasir Mas. Until a few years ago, when she became ill due to old age, I used to buy rice from her before my trip back to Kajang. The rice from Pasir Mas, which mostly comes from across the border, is special not only because it’s cheaper but also because it tastes better. Her passing symbolises the passing of one generation of Pasir Mas woman traders from the scene. No doubt, new generation of Kelantanese woman traders are already hard at work. Life must go on. From Allah we came, to Allah we Return.

Kajang
8 June 2007