Spring and Missing in the Air

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I simply have to write about today. I woke up and saw on TV that the temperature today will be between 8 to 12 degrees Celsius. It’s going to be a lovely day. And it is. For the first time in about three months, I walked to the office. All I needed was my jacket. Through the park, passed by the medical school, through Tiki Bazaar, through the bus depot, by the old stadium and in eighteen minutes I was at the office. Lovely, the weather is going to get warmer and warmer. I took a look at some bicycles yesterday and I guess I’m gonna buy one. All we need is to get to the mountains south of the city and I guess there is nothing like the mountains for mountain bikes!! Got one kaki already - Meor the new finance guy is a cycling buff. Me, I’m anything to get my mind off being far away from home buff. I have started buying motorbike magazines, getting ready for the day when I finally get back home and I could finally afford a big bike. Plus the fact that Lina dropped her condition that she gets her swimming pool before I get my bike. So sweet of her. Well, I did offer her a new stove (accepted but no time to buy), a new refrigerator (don’t need a new one), a freezer (she’ll think about it), a real good expensive handbag (accepted but we have not gone out for it, she has to pick one that she really likes, I am not going to spend a fortune on something that she might even remotely not like!!), offered to buy her a watch (she has two already, she really doesn’t need another one), microwave (we’ll use the current one, it’s still good), still owe her two bottles of perfume for the one that I took from her (no one here will know it’s a women’s perfume, I was in a rush) and a Nissan Xtrail or Honda CRV (no, her Myvi is fine). Acah aje tu, I know that she’d decline the car. Wei, I didn’t spend seventeen years with her and not not learn anything about her lah….

First thing I did was to call home. Nazzim is back from school. Lina picked her up this morning and got her friend Adibah’s help to pick Sofia up from her school. What are friends for, isn’t it?

I miss home. I miss Lina. I miss the children. I still have the same lousy feeling whenever I have to get back here. That dreaded feeling. My last trip home last week was the shortest. I left this place on Friday evening, arrived home at 3.30 pm Saturday afternoon and by Wednesday night I was on the way back through Abu Dhabi. The flight to Abu Dhabi was seven hours long but I didn’t even feel it. I was sulking. The eight-hour wait at Abu Dhabi airport for my connecting flight was long. I punished myself by not checking into a hotel, which I could have done, but I just sat there at the airport, sulking again. But I had a gang of Filipino, Indian and Burmese porters to amuse myself. God, how I wish my life is as uncomplicated as theirs. I am going to miss a few of the children’s growing up years. When Nazzim was a month or so short of his second birthday, I went offshore for about two weeks and when I came home Lina and him was already doing this charade that I am sure all of us are familiar with……

“Sayang mama tak?”, she’d ask.

“Sayaaang…..”, he’d say.

“Banyak mana?”

“Banyak langiiiit…..”

“Sampai mana?”

“Sampai hatiiii……”

“Mana langit?”

“Atash langit…..” (he’d point up towards the sky and that is not a typo)

“Mana hati?”

“Inshide hati….” (he’d point to his chest and that is not a typo either)

I sure hope this posting is worth it.

And oh, it’s football time today. The email is out. Should be good. We haven’t played in about three months or so.

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Suffering Leysa

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Leysa is our language teacher. Our suffering language teacher. While there are hardcore addicts in the drug world, there are hardcore students in our language class. Pelajar-pelajar tegar. We who never give up. We hope neither will Leysa. Now, Leysa is young and "cun", now for you non-Melayus our there, it is pronounced "choon", rhyming with boon. It means she's a doll. At least that's what I think it means. That is not the reason I am a pelajar tegar. I swear. Just like the song. How "cun"? Like Liza Minelli without the overbite. That's how "cun" she is. Comel, trust me.....

All through the "u minya nyiest" and "u tebya nyiest", she is patient. After the second month, she could not understand how we could be so so benak.

"My previous group of students especially Azwari and Kamal were very good. I don't know what is wrong with the four of you."

She means Mior, Hafiz, Maharip and me. Now you know why I hate Azwari and Kamal. But wei, Leysa wei, I know why they are good. Walking dictionary one maaahhhhh...... I roped in Amin who just reported for duty but he usually chickens out just before each lesson. I like the way she says our name. Of course mine especially.

"Miyooorrrr....."
"Hafffeeeezzzzz........."
"Maharrrreeeeppppp.........."
And of course mine........

I know the basics. The good morning (dobre utra), how are you (kagzilla), fine (normano), good (horasho), bad (plaho), yes (da), no (nyet), not bad (ni ploho), young girl (jarushka), pretty (krasivaya), pretty young girl (krasivaya jarushka), and old lady (babushka). Then there is how much (skolka), where (gde), when (kagda), who (kto) and why (pachimu). One is ajhin, two is dva, three is tri, four is chetierri, five is pietz, six is sheish, seven is siem, eight is vorsiem, nine is jay vit and ten is jay sit. Twenty is dvat nat sat, thirty is trit nat sat but forty is sorok. Wei, macam mana boleh jadi sorok? From chetierri (four) to sorok (forty)? No one has been able to give me a satisfactory answer.

Spasiba is thank you and spasiba balshoi is thank you very much, from the word balshoi. Which means big.

Ah well, I'll practise and surprise Leysa one day. And make her suffer less.

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