First Football Game

Assalamualaykum

Life has been bussyyyyy, and the saddest part is I didn't even have time to skype with my family and best friends since I was working on the last two weekends.
I miss home a lot, I must say :(

However, I have something to share here and it might be outdated if I post it too late

So, here is the thing: 

I went to the stadium and watched football game, for my very first time!

I know, it has been a year, and sekarang baru nak tengok football? 

My answer is simple: 

"Sekarang baru ada budget nak tengok. Last year baru sampai, poket kering."

Yes, being a buckeye, memang tak sah lah kalau tak tengok football because I think football is the only thing that made this small town alive

But the worse part was, OSU kalah pulak in my first game lol

Tapi tak kisahlah, first one will always special

Lagi lagi bila tengok game dengan suhu 4 degree celcius and dress up tak kena

Balik tengok game pulak kena rush pergi kerja terus, nice one though

And despite those facts, it was pretty interesting as I automatically jumped when Buckeyes finally had their touchdown hahahaha

I am still learning to understand this complicated game, but I guess I am doing pretty good

These are the pictures during the game day

Enjoyyy :)

Ohio State punya band. Mantappppp!

They formed O-h-i-o. Comel sangat! Macam semut!

Again O-H-I-O and cheerleaders (if only you can see them)

Merahhhhhhhh in our stadium, The Shoe 

Player football yang kalau dalam cite omputeh tu hot hot belaka

Singkat

Assalamualaykum..
Secara amnya, sejak balik rumah, nak bukak laptop pun malas
Sindrom nak meluangkan masa dengan family maybe
Or maybe sindrom enjoy tengok tv flat screen dan besar #sigh
Secara overall, cuti ni sangat singkat tapi cukup bermakna
Tinggal 2 hari 1 malam je lagi
InsyaAllah akan bertolak balik hari Jumaat ni, yakni Hari Malaysia
Lepas ni tak dapatlah nak bermanja-manja dengan ibu and adik adik setiap hari sobss
Juga tak dapatlah nak text and call sahabat-sahabat selalu macam sebulan ni tsk
I wish America is not 15000 km away from Malaysia, I really do

Anyway, Happy Birthday Malaysia!

First Week

Alhamdulillah, life has been pretty good
I don't think I've got any jet lag, I wake up and sleep according to GMT +8 times
I receive visitors almost everyday and many people call me budak amerika lol
I bake biskut raya everyday - so much tiring
My sisters are very delighted to play my ipod touch - not too bad
I met my fabulous and terrific friends on my second day at home - it was indeed a bless

Anyway rasa rindu jugak pada Columbus, no doubt
Pre-raya OSU 2011. My favorite one, so nak buat gedabak.

Ramadan Mubarak

Assalamualaykum

Hari ni hari ke 2 berpuasa.

Alhamdulillah Allah bagi kekuatan untuk bertahan hampir 16 jam. :)

As you know, this is my first Ramadan here in USA.

Sebenarnya dari sebelum start Ramadan lagi aku dah terasa the excitement.

Sebab ada pak cik arab ni cerita keadaan Columbus time Ramadan.

Dan hari tu bila pergi masjid nak taraweeh on the first day.

Aku terkesima bila masuk je masjid kena peluk dengan sisters MSA sambil wish Ramadan.

Semua orang dekat masjid tu pun macamtu

Wishing each other semoga dapat Ramadan yang terbaik.

"Ramadan Mubarak Inshaallah!"

"Ramadan Kareem sister!"

"Alhamdulillah Ramadan is here!"

I was amazed.

Sini takde bazaar Ramadan.

Takde jugak lagu raya bekumandang di radio tempatan.

Tapi ada 'all the best wishes' for Ramadan.

Itu pun cukup buat aku rasa takde kurangnya puasa dekat negara minoriti Islam ni.
Bahkan lebih besar maknanya bila difikirkan balik.

Cita-cita dan usaha mencapai Ramadan terbaik itu yang penting, Inshaallah.

Ramadhan Mubarak everyone!

My Sunny Summer

Assalamualaykum

Summer has been pretty rough here in Columbus
I must admit that sometimes I feel like having headache because of the heat
This is my first summer and frankly speaking, I never thought that summer could be this hot
Once it used to feel like 110 degree Fahrenheit which is about 44 degree Celcius!
Added with the fact that my room here doesn't have air conditioner, only Allah knows how did I survive those few extreme days

However, summer is not too bad, seriously
I spent many days working so that I can get extra money (as well as free air conditioning)
I also explored Columbus a lot
And yes, it is A LOT cheaper because most of the places I went are free admission, or if they don't, I get discounted price as I bought the tickets at our Ohio Union
Columbus is not San Francisco, Chicago or NYC, but it is not too bad as this is my first time having chance to explore where I have been living for 10 months!

Just few shots of interesting places in Columbus Ohio
Okay now nak perasan tourist guide xD

1. Hayden Falls
It is just a small 30-40 feet waterfall with a creek. When I first saw the waterfall, I couldn't say anything else other than Subhanallah and Mashaallah. It is amazing, don't you think so? Somehow, it looks kind of magical for me. It is small yet extremely beautiful. :)

2. Alum Creek State Park

One of my colleagues said that it is a beach while another one said it is just a pool of water with a dam. lol. But clearly, I am in Ohio, there are no beaches here. This place is perfect for a picnic during a windy day and if only you put your sunscreen on. I had the best picnic here with fellow Malaysians. :)

3. Columbus Park of Roses

I visited this place around July which I think is quite late because the roses were too bloomed. Is this the right word? Sorry taktau haha. Senang cerita macam dah tua sikit roses dia. I hope I can go there next year a bit earlier because I prefer roses when they just start to bloom. However this place is colorful and smell soooooo nice! Admission is free and it is very near to my house. Recommended!

4. Columbus Zoo and Aquarium

It is huge. I like the landscape a lot. It looks modern compare the one I had been in San Diego. However the heat makes my trip to be tiresome. One interesting fact about Columbus Zoo is the zoo is divided into continents and thus made it to be more educational because I got many information as they present the animals that way. The zoo is pretty clean too. If you wanna go there, bring at least a bottle of water because you will need it. Among all my pictures, I like this Grizzly Bear very much. Adorable isn't? :D

5. Franklin Conservatory Park

It is an indoor park that have many attraction in it. It has many parks that exhibit butterfly, bonsai, palm, and also replica on type of forests in the world, from rain forest to desert. Again, they divide it very clearly hence made me to gain a lot of knowledge. From the review I read, the most attractive attraction in the park is the butterfly park but honestly, I find it quite frustrating because the butterflies are too 'wild'. They fly everywhere soooo actively and it is hard to have a closer look on them.

And now I wanna present the best place I went this summer, Indian Run Falls.

(cuba translate directly, if only you get what I mean xD)

Okay sebab yang ni best sangat, nak describe dalam bm lah. sungai ni panjang and ada banyak air terjun kecil-kecil in almost every twenty feet. park ni macam dekat kawasan berbukit sikit and ada if you go along the path, you will find many viewpoints. tempat dia cantik, ada ramai jugak budak-budak mandi, and I feel like in Malaysia. Tiba-tiba rindu sungai Jahang dekat Gopeng. :')

The End of Magic

I am back from watching Harry Potter and all I can say is I can't believe that it has ended
Seriously, what in my mind was like...
Alaaa lepas ni takde dah excitement nak tunggu next movie!

Ten years watching Harry Potter has changed me a lot
Especially in my way viewing family, friendship, school, and hardship in life
I mean, even ada orang kata magical stuffs ni merepek la, merbahaya untuk kanak-kanak la, untuk aku masing-masing ada nilai yang positif and negatif. Semua benda dekat dunia ada. Logiknya, kalau ada boleh berfikir dengan waras and tahu hidup ini bertujuan, takdenya harmful. Entertainment is entertainment and life is real. Good entertainment makes a wonderful memory. Same goes with fairy tales though.

Tengok Harry Potter ni sebenarnya bagi kesan yang lain sikit sebab he is about my age, so maybe feel tu lebih kot. I don't know perasan je ke ape ke. Anyway, I enjoy watching everyone growing up in the movie and that made me realize that me too has grown up! Paling best tengok Hermione membesar jadi perempuan cun melecun made me think, bestnya dia muda muda dah banyak duit. Tengok Harry dengan Ron rasa, err I prefer their 'smaller' version, masa kecik lagi comel haha. But I also cannot wait to see how they are going to survive in the post-potter world. Will they continuously shine?

Oh yeah. One month to go and I will be home! :)

Start balik boleh?

First of all, rasa dah lama betul tak menulis dekat sini. 

Secondly, Summer quarter is here! Panas betul kadang-kadang, tapi takpe, mengajar untuk lebih bersyukur. Kalau sejuk sangat nak complain jugak. Baik belajar bersyukur, lagi bagus. 

Lastly, sebab quarter summer yang agak ringan dan kurang beban ni, InsyaAllah nak buat hobi baru. Hehe. Okay correction, sambung balik hobi yang dah berzaman ditinggalkan yang akhirnya menyebabkan skill bahasa jadi kurang mantap.

Reading.

Sebenarnya idea nak sambung membaca ni disebabkan dua perkara.

1. Lima minggu ni aku amik subjeck teater. Jadi seminggu kena habiskan satu novel. Ahh. Time baca first and second novel, aku rasa macam, ehhh tak boleh jadi ni, lambat gila baca. Mana pergi skill membaca dulu? Tap sebenarnya okay je kot. Mana taknya, aku kena baca novel Shakespeare and Sophocles. Memang membawa kepada lenalah. Kali ni untuk third week, dah lebih smooth. Mungkin juga sebab minggu ni novel moden. Takde bahasa yang klasik lagi kompleks. 

2. Kerja. Yeapp rasanya aku tak pernah bagitau lagi dekat sini. Dah Hampir 3 bulan lebih aku kerja part time dekat hotel di Ohio State. Yang buat aku sangat tertarik, setiap kali aku masuk bilik guest, mesti ada buku dekat side table, tak pun reading table. Paling kurang mesti ada sebuah, never fail! Kalau tak dekat 3 4 buah. Normal sangat orang dekat sini dengan buku kan?

Bila tengok buku-buku dekat hotel tu selalu teringat seorang yang aku kenal. He is ayah. Kalau kami holiday, dia mesti bawak buku satu beg untuk dia baca. Even kadang-kadang geram sebab buku dia ambil space boot kereta, tapi redha je lah sebab itulah ayah :')

Ohh nak habaq sikit. Dulu aku suka gila membaca start umur 6 tahun. Waktu tu pak cik aku bagi buku 5 Penyiasat. Alaa terjemahan Enid Blyton. Lepas tu aku memang macam gila dengan buku macamtu, semua siri aku beli. Seingat aku, last sekali waktu aku darjah 3, aku ada dekat 60 buku siri penyiasatan. Bila aku besar sikit, aku mula baca buku Enid Blyton version English pulak. Up sikit hehe.

Then masuk sekolah menengah, effect duduk asrama, aku mula berjinak-jinak dengan novel karangkraf, which tak sampai setahun pun aku kekal. Tak bolehlah, awal-awal okay, tapi lepas 5 6 novel, aku sedar yang sweet love story definitely not my type. Hehe

Then seingat aku last sekali lepas pmr aku mula suka novel kemanusiaan and sejarah. Kebanyakan time tu memang aku baca novel perang. Ingat lagi novel favorite aku War Trash. Violent huh? Haha. Tapi entah bila aku mula malas nak membaca. Rasanya sejak ada laptop kot. Even dua tahun aku duduk dekat Intec dengan kaki baca novel, berapa biji je buku aku baca sepanjang dua tahun tu. Ruginya fikir balik.

Bila cakap dengan kawan kerja aku, dulu aku suka sangat membaca tapi bila dah sibuk baca buku akademik, aku pun tinggalkan hobi membaca, jawapan dia buat aku terfikir. Dia kata rasanya aku belum jumpa lagi bahan bacaan yang boleh buat aku suka membaca untuk masa sekarang.

"You have to start searching and you will definitely enjoy reading again!"