Sunday, September 30, 2007

Al-Fatihah: Abahku pergi menyahut seruan Ilahi


Abahku yang dikasihi, Haji Abdul Munim bin Haji Mohd Zain telah kembali ke rahmatullah pada hari Ahad, 23 Ramadhan 1428, bersamaan 23 September 2007, jam 930 pagi di Hospital Daerah kuala kangsar. Menurut doktor sebab kematiannya adalah "Acute Myocardial Infarction" atau dalam bahasa mudahnya "heart attack". It happens in 5 minutes time span after few days admitted to hospital atas sebab kencing berdarah. Wallahu a'lam.

Unfortunately only my mum was there during the final moment. It was unexpected moment as he was well in conversation few minutes before.

Al-Marhum berusia 69 tahun, kurang sehari dari hari lahirnya yang ke-70 yang jatuh pada 24 September 2007.

2 tahun yang lalu, almarhum telah mengalami kemalangan jalanraya di bukit berapit dalam perjalanan pulang dari Taiping setelah membeli buah durian untuk cucu-cucu yang dikasihinya. Al-Marhum yang mengalami mild stroke dalam kemalangan tersebut turut patah tulang di bahagian yang menyambungkan peha dan pinggul.

Tidak lama selepas kemalangan tersebut, al-marhum terpaksa menerima rawatan dialysis akibat kegagalan buah pinggangnya. Masalah buah pinggang ini turut disumbangkan oleh penyakit diabetic dan high blood yang di alaminya sebelum ini. Al-marhum seterusnya telah menerima rawatan dialysis selama hampir setahun setengah.

Di kesempatan ini, saya ingin mengucapkan ribuan terimakasih kepada semua yang telah menghantar mesej takziah. Al-marhum telah dikebumikan pada jam 5.00 petang hari yang sama di Kg Lalang, Pdg Rengas Perak, tempat bersemadi ibu bapa dan kaum kerabatnya yang mendahuluinya sebelum ini.

Friday, September 21, 2007

Mini Reunion Series 2: UK Resort, Batang Kali


31 Ogos 2007 - Samdol, Syed Amir dan gua kali ini meneruskan pengembaraan ke Batang Kali, Selangor. Rais tak dapat menyertai. Kali ini kami menjejaki sebuah lagi jeram yang sungguh mendamaikan.

Lokasinya tidak jauh dari Kuala Lumpur, perjalanan melalui Jalan Batu Caves - Sg Tua - Ulu Yam. Mengambil masa sekitar 1 jam pemanduan. Sebaik sahaja sampai ke pekan Ulu Yam Baru, ambil simpang ke kanan selepas balai Polis. Lebih kurang 2km melalui jalan kampung akhirnya kami tiba ke sebuah dusun "eksklusif" yang mempunyai kemudahan pondok-pondok kecil untuk berkelah yang dibina di tebing sungai yang dijaga bersih dan cantik.

Pondok kecil satu katil di kenakan bayaran RM50. Buah-buahan dari dusun tersebut pula bole diambil oleh penyewa sebagai pakej sewaan. Durian, langsat, dokong, rambutan dan sebagainya ada di tanam disini.

Tempatnya sangat sesuai untuk kanak-kanak kerana sungainya yang sederhana dalam dan terkawal. Kalau budak mandi sehari suntuk pun ok sebab persekitarannya terselindung dari bahang mentari. Anak teman kalu bawak mandi kelaut, mesti sunburn macam udang kena bakar sebab bila turun ke pantai . Jadi lokasi sebegini lebih baik bagi kanak-kanak yang sukar dikawal.

So petang tu kita pun mula mengeluarkan ration yang dibawak masing-masing dari rumah. Masing-masing keluarga ada giliran memasak dengan menu tersendiri.

Macam-macam ada. Petang tu kita ber - bbq - ayam, ikan dan sayuran. Makanan memang banyak. Budak-budak yang kesejukan yang kelaparan menghabiskan makanan yang disediakan. Semua tak nak naik ke darat bila dah masuk kedalam sungai. Tak kira le anak sape.

Malam tu teman tak tidur kat situ sebab ada urusan. Tinggallah Syed Amir dan Samdol. Besoknya teman dapat tahu, Syed Amir pun terpaksa balik sebab anak perempuan bongsunya mula menunjukkan petanda untuk mengamok tengah malam. Maka tinggallah Samdol dan Yan sekeluarga. Pukul 1.00pm keesokkannya barulah diaorang balik.

Gambar tak de sebab lupa bawak kamera.

Selepas puasa (Oktober), kita dah merancang mengembara ke Pulau Sayak, Kuala Muda pulak..Penakan dan Shamnan dah ready nak sambut kita. Moh kita jadi nelayan bersama Penakan...!! Sapa yang berminat bagi tau le kat Syed Amir, Samdol atau teman.

Lepas ni kita akan organize Umrah plak..jeng..jeng

US still insist for war although IAEA already cleared IRAN


Bush Administration War Plans directed against Iran

Global Research, September 16, 2007

Quoting official sources, the Western media is now confirming, rather belatedly, that the Bush Administration's war plans directed against Iran are "for real" and should be taken seriously.

"Punitive bombings" directed against Tehran could be launched within the next few months.

The diplomatic mode has been switched off: The Pentagon is said to be "taking steps to ensure military confrontation with Iran" because diplomatic initiatives have allegedly failed to reach a solution.

These diabolical statements come within barely a couple of weeks following the release of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report. The later confirms unequivocally that Iran's nuclear program is of a civilian nature and that Iran has neither the intention nor the capabilities to develop nuclear weapons:

Article IV (1): These modalities cover all remaining issues and the Agency [meaning IAEA] confirmed that there are no other remaining issues and ambiguities regarding Iran's past nuclear program and activities.

Article IV (3): The Agency's delegation is of the view that the agreement on the above issues shall further promote the efficiency of the implementation of safeguards in Iran and its ability to conclude the exclusive peaceful nature of the Iran's nuclear activities.

Article IV (4): The Agency has been able to verify the non-diversion of the declared nuclear materials at the enrichment facilities in Iran and has therefore concluded that it remains in peaceful use. (IAEA Report, italics added)

At the same token, the IAEA report is a slap in the face for Washington. It confirms the lack of legitimacy and criminal nature of US foreign policy as well as Washington's resolve to violate international law:

"The Bush administration’s abrupt dismissal of last Thursday’s IAEA report is one more sign that Washington has no interest in a diplomatic resolution to its confrontation with Tehran. Following Bush’s bellicose denunciations of Iran last week, the US has reiterated its intention to push for tougher UN sanctions against Tehran this month." (Peter Symond, Global Research, September 2007)

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Ramadhan 2007: Bulan Berkat atau Bulan Bala ?


Salam,

Terimakasih Sdr Amir. Semalam teman terima SMS yang sangat indah maknanya dari beliau. Sudah pasti beliau turut menghantar kepada yang lain. Mesejnya berbunyi seperti berikut:

"Marhaban Ya Ramadhan. Ya Allah, di bulan yang penuh berokah, Rahmat dan Maghfirah ini, Kau berkatilah saudaraku yang baik ini. Limpahkan Rezqi Mu padanya, bahagiakan ia dan keluarganya. Mudahkan urusannya, terimalah ibadahnya, serta ampunilah segala dosanya. Selamat menunaikan ibadah Puasa. dari Amir Hamzah."

Begitu jugak saudara Basharuddin. Terimakasih diucapkan kerana turut menghantar mesej kebaikan dan peringatan.

Teman juga ingin mendoakan agar semua ahli X manjung dapat menjalani ibadah puasa dengan kualiti yang lebih baik berbanding Ramadhan 2006.

Marilah kita berdiskusi di ruang maya ini mengenai Ramadhan 2007, dengan mengingati sesama kita agar keberkatannya benar-benar tercapai. dan bukannya menjadi bulan yang mendatangkan bala akibat amalan-amalan kebiasaan kita yang bertentangan dengan semangat Ramadhan yang sebenarnya. Wallahua'lam.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Isu babi menjelang Pilihan Raya

Emm..tadi tengok babi yang gemuk2 kat Melaka NTV7 memang mengingatkan teman kepada satu artikel berkenaan babi from bible point of view.

FRU pun tak berani nak belasah perternak babi yang berdegil dan memang sah telah melanggar peraturan perternakan. Pencemaran jangan cakap le. MCA, DAP, Gerakan (dan pemimpin Keadilan Cina) bersatu turun padang defend habis-habisan. Ketua Menteri Melaka pun dah bagi press statement "pening isu UMNO vs MCA pasal babi nih.."

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Part 2: How to reduce blood sugar levels by understanding glycogen storage and body fat

In part one of this article, we talked about how eating refined carbohydrates or processed sugars is a lot like putting jet fuel in the gas tank of your Toyota -- it burns up the engine and causes permanent damage. When a human body maintains high levels of blood sugar, permanent damage may also sustained. Here, we'll look at how the body tries to protect itself from the ravaging effects of high blood sugar.

Starting off, recognize that there are serious consequences for having high blood sugar coursing through your veins. Your body knows this, and if your blood sugar reaches unsafe heights, your body immediately goes to work to lower that blood sugar back to normal levels. There are also ways that you can manipulate your own blood sugar levels through activities:

There are really two things that you can do as a human being to lower this blood sugar once it's spiked. First, you can burn it off by using it to contract your muscles -- so if you happen to be running a marathon at the same moment that you drank a soft drink, then the marathon effort will probably counteract the high blood sugar effect of the soft drink.

In fact, high sugar foods are really only appropriate for people who are exercising several hours a day (and who have the metabolism to burn off these sugars). Even myself -- I engage in cardiovascular exercise on a regular basis, often biking 10 miles a day, and even I don't eat the quantities of sugar that our children are eating these days in public schools. In fact, I don't eat any sugar at all, but I eat fruits and other natural forms of complex sugars in order to give me energy for my workouts. But for most people, they're not working out at all, and thus there's really no reason to eat sugars in the first place.

Getting back to the main point here, let's suppose you're not exercising at the moment, you're eating dessert sitting at a table. So the body has to do something else, and this is where the answer to your question really comes into play. In order to remove sugar from your bloodstream, your body has a mechanism by which it can force your muscles cells to open up and accept blood sugar, then to convert that blood sugar to a stored form of energy called glycogen.

The conversion of blood sugar to glycogen, of course, involves the liver, and it is a rather complicated physiological function that I'm not going to explain in detail. The short, simple version is that your muscles (and liver) absorbs this blood sugar and store it for use at a later time. So your body has a sort of gas tank where it can store a certain amount of sugar energy and use it later.

But just like in your Toyota Corolla, your body's gas tank can get full. When it's full, it means you have all the glycogen in your system that you can store. Once your glycogen levels have reached their peak, your body has one more strategy for reducing the blood sugar in your bloodstream.

The second strategy

Before I reveal this, it's important to note that most people walk around 24 hours a day with their glycogen levels already maxed out. Most people never get to a low level of glycogen because they're not on a carbohydrate-controlled diet. Accordingly, the vast majority of people, when they consume refined carbohydrates, are going to be in a physiological state where circulating blood sugar gets quickly converted into stored body fat.

This is the last strategy the body can use to remove blood sugar from the bloodstream. This process also involves the liver, and it essentially converts the sugars into fatty acids, then stores them in the fat cells around your body.

That was a long-winded way to answer your question, but the answer is, yes, sugar can be converted into body fat, but it is not the first strategy that your body uses to lower your blood sugar. If you're exercising, that will help lower blood sugar levels automatically, or if your glycogen levels are low, your body will first try to store glycogen. But again, most people are not exercising, and their glycogen levels are already topped out, so when they consume sugars, they are directly promoting the creation of body fat.

In the third part of this article, we'll talk about how dietary sugars cause adult-onset diabetes, and we'll present strategies for both preventing and reversing diabetes.

Mini Reunion Series: Air Terjun Gabai, Hulu Langat

4 dan 5 Ogos yang lalu - Samjo, Syed Amir, Rais dan teman berkhemah di puncak air terjun gabai. Samjo yang 50:50 nak pergi masa tu sebab baru keluar hospital, tetap bersemangat memikul cabaran "menakluk" air terjun gabai walaupun kepala pening-pening lalat. Akhirnya setelah berehat dipuncak Gabai, nampaknya beliau lebih bertenaga.

Berkumpul dimasjid batu 14 hulu langat sekitar 4.30 petang, kami menuanikan solah asar berjamaah dan bertolak ke lokasi dituju dalam 2 jam kemudian. Sampai di kaki air terjun Gabai sekitar jam 6.30 petang.

Sambil memunggah keluar barang ada nyonya di kaki Gabai yang sedang duduk nak merendamkan kaki menyapa "wa..angkat mantat besat wo" (bawa bantal besar ke?), sebab ada salah sorang dari kami bawa bantal baik punya..macam bukan nak pergi camping je..

Kemudian pikul barang naik bukit lebih kurang sejam, kami sampai ke tapak perkhemahan. Stelah mendirikan khemah kami memasak. Hentam sajalah..biasalah Syed Amir jadi Chef..aku pun dah tak ingat apa yang dimakan..

Alhamdulillah malam tu yang gelap awalnya, dihiasi bulan yang agak terang kemudiannya. jadi kami tidor in the open air..khemah hanya jadi tempat isi barang sahaja. Sambil baring, berbual, makan apa sahaja ala kadar dan minum kopi air garam...sampai terlena..kami tidur berbumbungkan langit..sejuk jangat cakap la...

Gambar nanti sat akan di upload setelah di tapis oleh pihak berkuasa...bersambung

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Part 1: The real story about sugar, does it turn into body fat, how does it affect health?

Dear friends,

In view of alarming increase of diabetic patient at the age of 40, the article below might help us to think about ourselves.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

http://www.newstarget.com/002038.html

In explaining this subject to many people over a period of several years, I found the most useful metaphor to be that of an automobile engine. Let's take a Toyota Corolla, one of the most popular cars on the street today. The Toyota Corolla has an engine that's designed to burn a certain type of fuel. That fuel, gasoline, has a certain flash point and a given output of power per gallon of gasoline. There are other fuels that power other types of vehicles -- for example, jets run on a high-octane petroleum product that has far more energy per gallon than automobile gasoline. Diesel fuel, on the other hand, burns more slowly.

So you have different types of fuels for different vehicles. Most people understand the idea that if you took your Toyota Corolla, drove it down to the airport, and filled it up on jet fuel, you wouldn't get a faster Toyota Corolla. Instead, you would get a critically damaged Toyota Corolla engine, because the fuel would burn too hot, too fast, and it would overpower the design of the engine. In fact, you probably wouldn't drive more than 10 miles before the engine burned up, and you would have to overhaul the entire engine in order to drive your car again.

This is sort of what goes on when it comes to the human digestive system and sugars. The human digestive system was designed to consume foods that are readily available in the natural surrounding environment. These foods can be compared to certain types of fuels because each food releases energy at a given rate during digestion (primarily based on fiber and fructose content).

As an example, let's take a look at an apple. It contains fiber, vitamins and minerals, and lots of carbohydrates. The carbohydrates are the fuel. But the carbohydrates are bound up in the fiber of the apple so that it takes your body a fair amount of time and effort to release those carbohydrates and convert them into fuel. So you could call the apple a medium-burning carbohydrate, or in medical terms, it has a lower glycemic index than straight sugar.

But if you take straight sugar, that is, refined white sugar, which is something that does not occur naturally in the environment, and you put that in your mouth, then your body converts that into blood sugar very rapidly. It's like pouring jet fuel down your throat. This is the same as filling up your Toyota gas tank with jet fuel and trying to drive away. When you eat sugar you consume soft drinks -- which are even worse because they are liquid sugar -- you are trying to run your metabolic engine on jet fuel, and the human metabolic engine was not designed to run on jet fuel.

So what happens? When you first consume any sort of refined sugars or refined carbohydrates (like white flour), the digestion process begins immediately -- in fact, it begins even before you swallow the foods. There are digestive enzymes in your saliva that go to work on these sugars and start converting them into blood sugar, even before they hit your stomach. Once they're in your stomach, they are mixed with acidic digestive juices and physically churned through stomach muscle contractions so that it creates a liquid paste. This liquid, sugary paste is then very easily absorbed through the intestinal walls, causing a rapid spike in blood sugar levels.

So your blood sugar, which might have been around 80 or 90 before you drank the soft drink or ate that candy bar, now suddenly starts spiking up to 150 or 200, or perhaps even higher. This creates an emergency situation in your body. High blood sugar is very dangerous for human beings. If it is allowed to continue, it will cause symptoms that are more classically known as diabetic neuropathy, which means the nerves that feed various limbs in your body (feet, mostly) start to die. Diabetics who maintain high blood sugar over a long period of time often have to have their feet amputated because the nerves in their feet are wasting away.