Ellipsis [...]

Another buddy at work leaves the company today, to return to his home country possibly for good. Just over a year ago I was having a hard time understanding his heavily accented English, but after sharing a cramped cubicle for months, we became fast friends, sharing many a good laugh. I remember introducing mee bakso to him at the foodcourt we frequented for lunch, and he liked it so much he ate it for two days in a row. Even after I moved back to the company office, we still had to work with each other closely. Come to think of it, he’s the co-worker I’ve spent the most time speaking to on the phone – ever! Haha. And still we would chatter away whenever we met up at the occassional company function or at team get-togethers.

So many memories.

You will be missed, buddy.

Khidhir’s 3rd birthday fell on Sunday, and we gifted him with a bicycle. Not a tricycle, you understand, but an actual (albeit miniature) bike complete with a basket, a carrier thing at the back & inflatable tyres! The next morning, his mum reported that he was zooming all over the house as soon as he’d gotten the hang of riding it, ringing the bell non-stop & annoying the heck out of his parents. Threats to remove the bell backfired when he simply switched to shouting “Riiinnngggg! Riiinnngggg!” as he flew around on his new mode of transport. Haha. Trust Khidhir to never shut up.

On Monday morning, he leapt (yes, LEAPT) onto my bed while I was still asleep, telling me all about how he sang “Happy Birthday” & blew out candles on his Thomas the Train birthday cake the day before. I asked why he didn’t bring some cake for me, and his reply was that it’s “only for Mummy, Abah & me to eat”. Cheeky little monkey.

It still continually amazes me how effectively bilingual he is, at three years old. By “effectively bilingual”, I don’t just mean that he knows the Malay/English equivalents of most words, but he could relate a story to me in English, and then later tell the same story to my granny in Malay. He knows when to switch languages depending on whom he’s speaking to.

Nowadays, whenever I catch him doing something he’s not supposed to, he’d sneak a look around to make sure his disciplinarian (i.e. my mother) isn’t within hearing distance. Then he’d offer a conspirational “Shhh!” indicating that I shouldn’t tattle on him. Sneaky little monkey.

First day of Eid was so-so. I guess it could be attributed to the fact that I haven’t been in the best of moods these days. I’m finding it hard to get excited over anything. Maybe I’m just getting old.

But still, I treasured the day. After all, when else do we have four generations of family members gathered under one roof. When else can we meet all those relatives we only see once a year. And when else do we get down on our knees & ask for forgiveness from our elders. To me, the best thing about Eid is that it makes you feel thankful for what you have. Family members around you, a roof over your head, a home-cooked feast, new clothes, new furniture & whatnot. As they become part of our normal lives, we take them for granted. I know I do.

Eid Mubarak or Selamat Hari Raya to everyone.

• Just splurged close to US$90 on a couple of DVDs I’ve wanted for months: 즐거운 인생 First Press Limited Edition DVD and 한성별곡 Director’s Cut DVD. Shucks. Where the hell is my self-restraint?! Jannah, you still want that iPhone / iPod Touch, do you?
• Speaking of which, iPhone 3G is landing in exactly 8 days! Oh gosh, if I end up getting one, please let there not be long queues.
• I really need to book a hotel room for the HK trip, soon.
• Why are IM clients on Windows so damn ugly???
• Going Turkish for team dinner tonight & Italian tomorrow with TKGians, woot!
• I swear, replying emails take up more energy than coding. X_x
• StreetDirectory.com has their maps back, yay!

Took half-day leave on Friday & spent a good part of the day engaging in retail therapy with EB as company. I ended up with a relatively small loot consisting of 2 pairs of jeans, a pair of pants & a pair of shoes. The shoes weren’t even the type I planned to get in the first place. I wanted flat dress shoes in black or white, but they were all either too shiny or too common-looking or too uncomfortable or had bows / ribbons on them. (What IS with all the bows & ribbons on ladies shoes?!)
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The other day Khidir was caught biting a classmate in playgroup. Yes, BITING. It wasn’t even the first incident. The first one, a few months ago, involved a different kid. This biting-other-kids business started after he got bitten by a girl in his class. And apparently, said girl is his victim in the latest biting incident! Haha. Blardy amusing, I tell ya.

When I reached home on that fateful day, the little Rugrat was drinking milk with the Nickelodeon channel on in front of him. So I said aloud, pointedly, while walking past: “I heard someone bit his friend in school today.” (That’s exactly what I said, word for word.) Immediately his ears pricked up, and he turned his head in my direction & exclaimed, “Yah! I bite her and she cry!”, sounding as if it was an accomplishment equivalent to solving a 30-piece puzzle for ages five & up. Then he happily popped his bottle back into his mouth & shifted his attention back to the TV while I stood there speechless.

I don’t know how he does it, but at barely three years old, Khidir has developed the skill of shutting people up with his innocent yet unexpectedly smart-alecky retorts. I think his parents need to do something about that mouth of his. He has too much to say about everything. Even last night when I was cooking noodles in the kitchen, he was trying to instruct me on how to fill the pot with water, how to turn on the stove & when to put in the seasoning! Imagine that. I won’t be surprised if he becomes a politician decades from now. Haha!