I had not experienced such a great weekend for so long I almost forgot how to spend it in a lazy-fun way. My weekends are usually mundane, filled with delayed unfinished businesses, stucked alone in my own world and isolated from a social life. So, when Jimi and Aye visited me two days ago, I had never expected that it would turn out so pleasantly hedonistic.

The real reason for their visit was to watch a matinee show of Puteri Gunung Ledang The Musical on Sunday (the second time for me!). But before doing that, we did quite a number of wonderful stuffs – cooking (gulai lemak telur which accidentally turned into scramble eggs), watching amazing DVDs back to back (Brokeback Mountain, Transamerica, Bukak Api, Just Like Heaven), going karaokeing (Aye sang 21 ‘ambitious’ songs), lepaking mindlessly at a mamak stall till 4pm – all were perfect grounds for me to appreciate the blessing of friendship (Aye, you might be a jijik loudmouth, but that's the mark of unforgettable hilarity).

The climax of our hedonistic activities was watching PGLTM. Seated in the second front row with a crystal-clear view of beautiful lips of Tiara Jacquelina singing melodious songs, we were acting like wild children, excited and cheered at dancer’s mesmerising moves, musician’s live intoxicating music, and choir’s harmonious voices. With my friends’ presence, I shared the passionate love of music so unbelievably it made me exhilarated with thrill and ecstasy.

When they were leaving me back to Ipoh, I felt a sudden craving, the unexpected melancholy, the same feeling I used to feel before taking off on the bas express leaving my parents in Kelantan. Yes, I felt it. Not for my family, but for people called friends. And yes Jimi and Aye, I started to miss all the crazy laughter, nonsensical jokes, wild gossips, all the warmth and comfort we had played around all over the weekend. How I truly missed moments like these. How I crazily missed all the insulting remarks we made for the stupid presenters during Anugerah Bintang Popular (fucking bitch, didn’t they?)

Thank you Jimi and Aye, for your kindnesses, for making my weekend a memorable one. One thing for sure, I think my orange t-shirt really makes a true statement about our lives:

If you want to see our female celebrities covered in Islamic tudung, go to my hometown. Even Jawi characters still have their own commercial values in advertisement. Believe me, you won’t see this anywhere in the world.

The music was overwhelming
The song was spectacular
The lyric was awe-inspiring
The voice was heart-rending
The scene was breathtaking
The duet was extraordinary

Puteri Gunung Ledang The Musical was truly musical
Indah melampaui bidadari

Whenever my colleagues look at this nicely-framed picture on my desk, they will typically give such annoying remarks as “Where are you?” or “Is that you?” or even worse “It can’t be you!”. Okay buddies, it was really me, proudly me - a slimmer version of Cekmi where the fat was out of sight. I can’t believe that my physical look has changed so much – the sacred versus the profane.

This is actually one of my favourite family photos. It reminds me of the vanishing world of blessed ignorance, of the time when everything was easy and simple, of the things I took for granted. I remember Kak Lun once commented that I looked so innocent (and naïve too?). Maybe yes. I was a lot different back then. My family had once shaped my personality so fragile I hardly recognize after years of getting lost in the sinned world of urban life.

Before I go on with my laments, let me tell you who is who on the photo. Taken somewhere in 1996 during my eldest brother’s convocation in UPM, the picture shows all my family members except my second sister who was at that time studying in Egypt. Being the only one who ever made it to the foreign lands to study, she was the toughest and most persistent iron lady in the family. This strength provides the fire in the family that keeps burning the sparks of love. Oh, she is still strongly single and available.

Now, standing on the left was my eldest sister, the idol of the family who is now happily arranged in perfect marriage to a perfect husband with four adorable kids. And with her newly-bought house in Kota Bharu, she is the role model of the family I always envy – the kind of anak emak who always follows the tradition of the family with all its dignity and pride.

Next to her is my late mother, who was always mistaken as my other sister in the family (didn’t she look young and pretty?). She was the most excited person on that day, knowing that her first son had made her proud, done his best and received a degree of Binjal dream (my brother was in fact among the pioneers in my kampong to ever enroll in a public university).

In the middle is my brother, the brother who first established the honour of education in the family, which was later followed by two UKM-raised sisters, two UIA-educated products (me included), one Azhar University origin, and one is to be determined – that makes almost all of us proud graduands of various ‘U’. He is also happily arranged in a beautiful marriage to a beautiful Pasir Mas lady, and further completed with two lovable kids. Lecturing in Sabah, he keeps insisting me on pursuing my career there (which, yes, I will consider after getting my master’s degree).

Standing next to my brother is my father with his never-let-go kopiah (I used to have this habit too – that would cost me another long entry). Apparently, he was the coolest figure in the family, but it could get ugly when he shows his bad temper through his subtle gestures and sounds that only my siblings and I could understand (like his famous ‘hissing’ sound).

Oh, next to my father is you-know-who – the black sheep of the family. Hah! Yes, I am the soil of the family who is supposed to be the opposite of my fiery sister. Being number four out of seven siblings, I am always caught in the middle and, to exaggerated extent, abandoned (so four is sei, ek?)

Now, sitting on the right side was my youngest sister, my closest sister. She is merrily doing Laws in UIA, and the fact that we share the same UIA sentiments could be the very reason why we are so ngam. Whenever we are together, we will giggle, laugh, giggle, and laugh hysterically over petty things, as if everything was funny and amusing, as if the world has never warred, as if we share highly classified information, as if we have never been apart for even a day. This ‘girlish’ behaviour sometimes makes people around us irritated and think that we are weirdoes from some alien planets. But, I always enjoy her company.

The smallest brother sitting shyly is the youngest member – the spoilt little brat who will later hopefully gladden the family with his SPM result. Poor brother, he missed a mother’s love at such a tender age. But, he is surely going to make his family proud.

The one with a Kelantanese turban is my grandparents’ brother. His presence takes me back to my root that harmonizes and binds the family ties. And the last person sitting on the left corner is my younger sister, now married to a Law-graduate husband and gifted with a charming son. It is weird to have an adik ipar who is older and more matured than me (If I were a woman, I would have gotten all those langkah bendul gifts.)

Oh, my younger sister’s marriage was arranged too. As the trend shows, all the married couples in my family are blissfully match-made. And it was amazingly successful too. However, my UIA sister and I have plotted that, for the second generation, let us define (and find) our own definition of love, American way (hah!).

And that makes nine of us in the family. Yes, I still have a family.

Mistakes and miscommunication are everywhere. So don’t worry and enjoy these civilized imperfections around the world:

In a launderette:
• Drop your pants here for best results.
• Please remove your clothes when the light goes out.
• We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand.

In a restaurant:
• Special – Chicken $4.00, Beef $5.00, Children $3.00
• Best sandwish in town – Buy three free one.
• Secret Recipe: Special today – no ice cream.
• Our coffee leaves you nothing to hope for.

In a zoo:
• Elephant please stay in your car.
• Please do not feed the animals. If you have suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.
• The river is inhabited by crocodiles. Swimming is prohibited. Survivors will be prosecuted.

In a hospital:
• No children allowed in the maternity ward.
• Specialist in women and other diseases.

In an airline ticket office:
• We take your bags and send them in all directions.

In an office bulding:
• Toilet out of order. Please use floor below.

In advertisement columns:
• Wanted – man to take care of cow that does not smoke.

In a car rental centre:
• Free pick-up and delivery. Try us once, and you’ll never go anywhere again.

In a jewellery shop:
• Out of business. Thanks to our customers.

In a repair shop:
• We can repair anything. (Please knock hard on the door – the bell doesn’t work.)

In a toy shop:
• Doll: Laugh while you throw up.

In antique shop:
• A desk suitable for lady with thick legs and large drawers.

In a swap shop:
• We exchange anything – bicycles, washing machines, etc. Why not bring your wife along and get a wonderful bargain?

Illiterate? Write today for help.

Firstly, congratulations Royal Supplies, one of the companies in my Business Communication classes, for opening up a stall in the Convocation Fiesta in the college. Forget about the seemingly unprofitable business, you guys have made it at last, despite the hardship and financial constraints. Well done! You have passed the test of communication (maybe next time, you should learn more on how to make a yummier, more royal, blended nesloberry).

Meanwhile, the convocation madness was at its heyday during the simulation in the great hall, when everything seemed clumsy. The Program Co-coordinators were completely unprofessional. It was utterly sloppy. And the tension got accumulated during the rehearsal day. Tentative programs seemed to change every second, so did my MC speech – the finalized version was the seventh! Luckily the MC was not on MC.

By the end of the nerve-cracking rehearsal, the Second IIC Convocation Ceremony seemed a long way to go. The state of unpreparedness was obvious in everybody’s nervous faces. At last, as the Head of PC put it, let God decide the success of this convocation ceremony (how easy!). This hardship made me appreciate those event-management teams who effortlessly organize grand events. Not the least are those who handle ‘live’ programmes on TV – Juara Lagu, Akademi Fantasia, and all that jazz. These people are outstanding.

Back to the madness part, it was funny that the second batch Graduation Dinner 2006 was held the night after the rehearsal day and the very night before the real convocation ceremony. One would wonder why on earth this program suddenly intruded in the middle of wild preparation of the convocation. It extremely tested everybody’s patience. Everybody was terribly exhausted, and imagine, if someone sabotaged the food and everybody got food poisoning, the press would happily declare: Graduands Poisoned: 2nd IIC Convocation Ceremony was Cancelled! But alhamdulillah, that almost didn’t happen. Surprisingly, it was a night to remember, a night to ‘bond’.

Themed glittering black and white, the Graduation Dinner was a total blast. I wasn’t properly dressed since I was in a hurry and just grabbed whatever whitish and blackish and glitteriest in my closet. Late for few minutes, who wouldn’t get excited with the red carpet welcome by the beautiful usherette? Sadly, the food was not that impressive – North Indian cuisine with over-cooked dhal, excessively oily curry chicken, half-cooked rice (sabotage attempt?), really cheap ice cream, just to fulfill the requirements I guess.

Despite the lousy foods, one good thing happened. After years of futile trials, especially during family days, I was finally, randomly, chosen as a lucky winner (‘prom king!’) during the luckiest draw ever – thanks to my lucky James-Bond number, 007. The irony is, that is also the last three numbers of my staff ID. What another lucky coincidence! I was later sleeping that night with a funny mixture of extraordinary excitement and killing nervousness.

By the end of the ceremony, it was a miracle. We were two hours in advance of the real tentative program. One thing, it was perfect since it finally ended the excruciating pain so quickly and elegantly. And it was a successful end too, after all the desperate attempts. The other way of looking at it, it reflected the lack of preparation and co-ordination for the unexpected finishing line.

However, the convocation team deserved the biggest round of applause for making the event a reality and a memorable one, in spite of their amateurish skills. It was the day of joyous celebration and everlasting moment for all the beaming graduands. Well done to all graduands! You have made the College proud.

But most importantly, bravo Cekmi, for having Mastered the Ceremony!