Twelve months... and I missed June and July

What can I say for myself?

Nothing. I really have nothing to blog about. Life is pretty much routine now.

Even updating status in Facebook becomes less and less frequent now.

This blog will be abandoned for a while.

There goes this year's resolution.

Daa...

Eleven players each side, but what's the point?

Islam is supposed to be a simple enough religion for all. Somehow, some people - mostly Muslims (and scholars) tend to make it seems so complicated that many tend to back away from it.

AFAIK, in order for you to become a Muslim, you only need to comply with the five pillars - Profess the Shahadah (declaration that there is no other god but Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger), pray five times a day, fast during Ramadhan, pay the Zakat (a portion of your money to help the poor, or for charity), and performing the Haj (pilgrimage to Mekah) if you have the capability and resources. A few Muslim sect believe that the fifth pillar is Jihad (holy struggle), based on certain dalil (reasonings based on Quran and hadith).

When you become a Muslim, you have to be a Mukmin (man of faith) as well, by believing in the six pillars of faith - Believe in Him (Allah), believe in His Archangels, believe in His Books, believe in His prophets and messengers, believe in the End of Days (aka Judgement Day) and believe in Qada' and Qadar (His Decree and the Destiny He has set).

Islam becomes complicated when people start to ask how and why to the most tedious and trivial things.

The prophet Muhammad gave the simplest answer for the "how". Just follow his lead and refer to the Quran and his sunnah (habit or usual practice). The sunnah is naratted through Hadith (reports, stories or statement made by the people who live in the prophet's era). When in doubt, consult someone who have better knowledge than you.

For the "why", there are those which the Quran and Hadith give specific answers and reasonings to, while there are some which we need to think for ourselves. However, when you can't find or think of any other answer, Islam has already provide the generic answer (which some critics calls the 'escape' answer) - that is "it is Allah's Will", so, "sami' na wa atho' na" (we hear and we obey).

However, the simplicity does not mean we can be simplistic. We need to always seek knowledge and if somehow we found something to be so complicated, go back to the basic. Always remember the five pillars of Islam and the six pillars of Faith.

Ten is the sum of the digits in my age

When I started blogging, I was only 23, and I was bored. I had to channel that boredom into something productive.

Now, I'm 28, but I'm still bored. I'm already 'productive', so I blog less.


Unlike some people I know, I really don't have any clever opinions to write about. My life story is boring (that's why I'm bored) and I find it hard to write something argumentative because I would end up counter-arguing my own arguments. If I did write something argumentative, either the entry become too long (which no one will read ~ tl:dr) or it will not be written at all (because the points become pointless).

However, I still like to challenge other people's opinion through argumentative comments. Not that I want them to accept the points I'm putting forth, or trying to put down their opinion, or to win the argument; I just want to see how they think, or how they really see it, or how they build up the opinion in the first place or how strongly they will hold on to their opinion.


Before I started blogging, I was actually not this way. I would usually argue because I disagree with the other person's opinion. I was usually either defensive or offensive, never really open or 'agreeing to disagree'. My main goal was always to win the argument. If I failed to win the argument, I would definitely hold on to my opinion and try my best to show how the other person's view is 'wrong' or flawed.

I believe employment, married life and fatherhood changed me. When I entered these different phases in life, my behavior, how I think, how I react, my emotional control, somehow changed. I'm listening or reading more now than I'm talking or writing. I seek to understand rather than making judgement. I prefer calm discussion over heated argument. I try to be more objective instead of becoming emotional. I usually find the positive side of things instead of lingering to the negative thoughts.

Of course, there are still times when I don't want to listen, when I argue, I become judgemental and when I'm emotional, but the frequency is much lower compared to years ago.


I believe I'm maturing. I'm still not matured, as maturity is an on-going process as long as the brain is still functioning and able to learn new things. Maturity stops when we are in our dotage or when our mental capacity starts declining. Maturity paused when we are clinging to our past and not willing to change our ways.

Let's move on. Press the play button.

Nine months, and a baby will be born.

This month lack of entry (as if I've been actively posting) is probably due to:

1. Ulam Project.
2. I'm getting old.

Thank you.

Eight tilted ninety degrees is infinity.

I was looking for some ideas on what to write in this blog when I saw the dusty Dale Carnegie’s ‘Speak More Effectively’ booklet lying on my desk. I got that booklet after attending his High Impact Presentation workshop three years ago. I picked it up and began to read.

Carnegie offered some very good public speaking tips, which I believe can be applied in blog-writing. Basically, he suggested that we write ‘something that we have earned the right to talk about through study and experience’, and ‘that we are excited about’ and ‘we are eager to tell our readers’.

I can only think of one thing.

Sex!

HA HA HA.

Then again, with the on-going debate about the appropriateness of sex education, I guess I have to think of something else.

Hmm… berguling-guling?

Seven days in a week.

Keeping this blog alive requires ideas, determinations and free times. Out of these elements, I only have one, which is some free times which I rather spent on other things besides blogging like... erm... a lot.

Blogging used to be fun when not many people were doing it. When it was just a tool to tell your story and opinions to the world, and make new friends in the process. Somehow, the fun in blogging seems to fade away when people start using it as a marketing tool, a political propaganda machines, to spread half-baked doomsday theory, to copy paste hoax and spam emails, or worst, copy paste other people's blog content without giving credit to the originator.

Thousands (or is it millions?) of new blogs appears everyday on the web. Most of them are the types I've mentioned earlier, while some are just vain teenagers wanting to get some attention from the world. Often, these attention-seekers lack respect to others, have little sense of responsibility on their writing and almost no shame to disclose very private and intimate details of their life. Obviously, telling people about your bra size, or sex life or posting your pictures with a lot of cleavage will invite more hits and increase traffic to your blog -but I feel like slapping these people who later complained about being stalked, sexually harrased or getting too many spams in their mailbox.

There are too many perverts, sexual predators, MLM millionaire wannabes, and immature brats on the net nowadays that it is no longer a fun place for socially-retarded people like me to socialize. Even Facebook is slowly becoming what blogs have become now.

Well, things evolved and becomes more complex everyday. Sometimes, I missed the old days when life is a little bit simpler and more fun.

Six Pillars.

If they can issue capital sentence on drug dealers/ traffickers, why not do the same to drug addicts? The supply will cease if the demand cease, won't it?

Talking about the death penalty, corruption should be in the list of crimes deserving this punishment as well. Corruption effects more people in more than one way. It can slow down development, endangers life, destroy businesses and lead to more corruptions and crimes. The perpetrator is more deserving to go the gallows compared to anyone else, don't you think?

Some people argue that death penalty is against human right, cruel, have no place in developed society yada yada yada. I wonder if these people have ever talked to the victims, or the people effected by the crime or become one of them themselves?

Yes, the will to forgive is truly what differentiate a human from another, but try talking about forgiveness after being punched on the nose or after getting poked in the eye by someone or after you find your partner doing it with someone else.

It is human nature to see wrong-doings being justly punished. It is also human nature to show mercy. But when one is so consumed with rage or hatred or greed or lust or overwhelmed with sadness or grief, is the desire to be just or being merciful still there?

I wonder, how do lawmakers, juries and judges sleep at night?