Forward Culture

From my memory, it started from forwarding chain letters, then evolved to chain SMSes, and now, chain statuses on social networking site. I do not know why we like to forward messages like these. Of course, it tells us to do good thing but why good thing need to be forceful by threatening the reader that he/she will have bad luck if they do not FORWARD that messages to the others. This is truly absurd and not productive. We just love to copy and paste then forward it to our friends and family members. Have we ever questioned the truth about the messages we FORWARDED to the others? Frankly, when this is happening too often, I became annoyed despite the good message conveyed or rather, FORWARDED.

This Facebook-is-gonna-close type of message is very lame. Have we even asked the founder about the truth of this message? He would be very idiot to close down this social networking site after making millions of dollar out of it. And we, the ignorant user just do our part by hogging the server (which I doubt will have adverse effect of this mass mailing act) and we even make a fool of ourselves by annoying our friends with these spam of bullcrap.

Another piece of joke from our fellow friend. The message is good. In fact, performing the Solat or prayer is compulsory for the moslems. But why this "GOOD THING" is only intended to be forwarded to only 10 moslems? Should the good thing be shared with everybody? I'm not an expert in my religion, but from my knowledge, we can never know when will doomsday (Hari Kiamat) will happen. It is a part of "Perkara-perkara Ghaib" that only Allah knows about it. Ask the ustazs or ustazahs for clarification.

So, I would like to ask everybody to think deeply before we forward anything to the others. We do not want to forward something that is misleading and be blamed for it, right?

Misleading 'Pasar' Language

Admit it, most of us Malaysians tend to mix English with Bahasa Melayu, Mandarin or even Tamil in our daily communication be it written or verbal. I am not a language expert yet a language warrior (pejuang bahasa or whatever you call it) as I am also using this 'pasar' language in my daily communication although I am using proper language when writing in this blog. No matter how 'pasar' your language is, please do not make a fool of yourself by typing or saying something that is misleading from what you are trying to say just because to show that you are also know English. Now, let see the phrases below for example:

Defeat or defect?



While trying new garments at the departmental store

"Takpelah, seluar ni boleh otter nanti" - otter=memerang, it should be ALTER

Come on vs common

"Common la, how can you say like that?" I bet it should write "Come on la"

Untie or auntie?

"Untie, thanks for the present! Luv u muah3!" - mak cik awak ni tali ke? Untie=merungkaikan ikatan (tali dan sebagainya)

Message or massage?

"I've sent u massage, how come u dun get it?" - you should send a hot masseuse instead! :P masseuse=tukang urut (tak kisahlah batin atau pun tak batin)

If you really or unsure in conveying the message using the language, remember we still have our mother tongue and keep our mind open to learn the language and improve. :)

EcoCare Kick Off 2011

Staying in quite quiet places like Kerteh can be so boring sometimes. How you want to fill the weekend can be quite daunting if you, city dwellers are so into busy and 'filling' city life. You won't find malls or shopping complexes in vicinity except the only Mesra Mall.

Deciding to be more productive this weekend, I have decided to join EcoCare 2011 Kick Off program. It is basically cruising along Kerteh River and get to know about the mangrove trees that grow along the muddy Kerteh River. This program is an initiative by my company that I worked for, Optimal collaborating with Malaysia Nature Society (MNS) to conserve and preserve the mangroves in Sungai Kerteh. The objective of this kick off program is to give exposure to the participants about various species of mangroves that grow along the banks of this river. I get to know a lot about mangroves and the importance of mangroves and swampy areas as biodiversity barrier that protect land from being hit directly by big waves from the seas such as tsunamis.

Optimal's CEO was also present to support the EcoCare program

I get to visit the nursery site established by Optimal and MNS for various kind of mangroves and during the 2 hours river cruise, I had received a lot of information from MNS volunteer regarding mangroves. One thing that attracted me is Rhizophora x lamarckii tree that is the only one in Malaysia.

The one and only Rhizophora x lamarckii

As the name imply, the letter 'x' signifies that the tree is a hybrid tree and hence it cannot reproduce due to it's hybrid nature. That is why Sungai Kerteh is very special for conservation and preservation project. There were a lot more to tell, but I'll just leave the pictures do the talking. :)

The mangrove nursery

Cruise along Sungai Kerteh

The participant with The Boss!

Entering the workplace

You've just graduated with flying colours from your college. After months of unemployment, finally you have been offered a job. An offer letter had been sent to you and you've answered the call to take up challenges in working environment. First day at work, you wore the most beautiful (probably new) shirt to the office. Then you've been directed to your own workstation or cube or whatever you call it.

First month of working was probably the most boring moment in your life. Stuck in the middle. You are not yet assigned to any work and yet you cannot fool around in the office. Opening non-related website or chatting with your college day friends in complete secrecy like a fugitive. Heheh. But then, that's the best thing you can do to avoid from sleeping during work hour. The end of first month finally came and you got your first not-so-hard-earned salary.

Your mind suddenly actively thinking what you want to do with your first pay. Some will think on how the money should be set aside for future saving and some may think how should they spend the money to get something that they dream for a long time. But before that, some of us might forget the most important things when earning the first salary. Here I would like to share with you my experience on managing my salary, the basics of it.

1. Income Tax. Do not forget to open up your file for income tax. Do the registration online and get your income tax number. You can do it online here.
2. Employee Provident Fund (EPF). Your company should manage your salary deduction for EPF (KWSP). But you have to open EPF account for yourself. Head to EPF offices nearest to you. Link to EPF website here.
   
3. Zakat. For muslims, it is our obligation to pay zakat for our income. The rate is only 2.5% of your annual income per year. You can pay zakat via salary deduction. Furthermore, you get tax relief for zakat. :) For more info here.
   

I think that's the most basic thing to consider for you monthly salary. Other than that (eg. Tabung Haji saving, trust funds etc.) is up to you. :)