A Bleak Gawai?????

I know I am among a few who are already thinking what a bleak Gawai the Ibans are going to have this year especially those of us who are relying on rubber,pepper,oil palm & padi as a means of livelihood. The rain & the flood have brought much hardship to the people affected by the floods. I doubt if there is any padi left to harvest for those who planted padi some months ago because around this time of the year the padi are supposedly ready for harvesting. The rain stops rubber tappers to milk the rubber trees. When the price of rubber shot to an amazing high,pepper planters abandoned their pepper gardens because the fertilizers were expensive & so they concentrated on tapping rubber. It is also not a pretty picture for those who are into the oil palm business. My cousin told me scenes in and around the oil palm plantations where buah sawit were left to rot because the roads were impossible for the hilux or whatever vehicle to drive through.
Come rain or shine,still we have to be thankful & grateful to the Lord Our God.

some photos of the landslide...

Crane benong lifting kereta Honda (on the left)

...sinu endar meda bala mindah ke anak keresa. It seems there is no end to the rain and there is no end yet to stop worrying that there might be the possibility of yet another landslide & that more houses would be buried with the mud that comes from high up in the hill. The houses ke kena tanah runtuh nya nadai ngadang rumah sida iya tau tak kena laban nya jauh di depan. Nya me nasib siko-siko.

All of St. Joseph....

Caesar Shim,Jennifer Yap,Muk,Ai Geok,Kenny Goh aka Janet Ho's husband & Richard Koh aka Ai Geok's husband.

Imperial Hotel in-house band entertaining the crowd.

It was a good idea to organise a gathering during the CNY hols for most Miri people would come back from afar. Here you see us, who used to be in the same class from Form 1 -Form 4.

Caesar Shim, who's currently working in Angola.( I have to go to Angola to work so as to be able to pay for my children's education overseas. What to do!! ANGOLA??? Not bad lah,money is good. Would love to work in Miri but where?)

Janet Ho is currently following her husband Kenny Goh,who has his OWN company in Dallas,Texas.

Janet: My son,Gabriel is away in college in Seattle;he's 18 yrs old now.

Ai Geok: I have 7 children & by God's grace He has provided to our every need,ko Ai Geok.

Richard does not have to go to Angola or Dallas to work. God will provide,ko iya. (sob..sob...sob...aku ninga iya nyebut nya..truly being contented with what they have...a doctor,an air stewardess,oil & gas technician & 4 more children still studying)

Muk: I'm ashamed of myself..so bladi uncontented..more..more..give me more.

Jennifer: I'm still single;happy with the status. See,it hasn't killed me,not being married.

Muk: Ya,I know what you mean Jennifer. You don't have any stress lines like us,your married friends. You are better off being single.

Half Centurians posing....Caesar & Janet have just turned 50 in January.

Ai Geok,Jennifer & I are still 49 yrs old.

Bishop Anthony Lee receiving donations from the YBs totalling RM100,000/- to start the ball rolling..

Tossing of Yee Sang

Jennifer Yap,Muk,Ai Geok

David Shim,Ida Ho,daughter & Julia Shim

Mr. & Mrs. Vincent Teo & the Shim sisters

Audrey,if you are reading this blog in Penang..this photo of Rose is specially taken for you. I know how much you miss her.

Mary Francis & Irene Chu aka Irene Cox

Raymond him & Marina Tan at the reception desk

The dinner was in aid of the new St. Joseph's Primary School which is to be relocated to an area in Lopeng.

St. Joseph's Brass Band getting ready at the lobby of Imperial Hotel

...a voice is resounding promptly respond to your duty sweet call

....Answer you all for the trumpets are calling your matters proclaiming her watch word to all
....Forward your children dear ever with heart sincere

...Render with joy to your matter her due..

If you're a Josephian you would know how to sing this song..
Love & Serve your motto's still bearing
If you used to be a student of St. Joseph's School in Miri,you are called to take that money that is in your pocket to build the new St. Joseph's Primary School which will be relocated to a site near the Miri General Hospital. And it is the hope of the building committee to see the school ready to be used by 2011.

According to Bishop Anthony Lee, the money is already there..it's just a matter of taking it out of your pocket.

If there's none in your pocket.......I don't know what to say.

enda betah...

Nico Langgie, Daphnie Maie, Erica Sudan, Gavin Man & Jill Sudan

... rindu meda bala bonding over satay enggau buah limau di malam.

Bisi urang madah bisi ninga bala enggai entu makai buah limau datai ari menua cina laban bekau earthquake suba,bangkai maioh nadai di temu.........leaving it to your imagination.

Enggi aku kada enda 20kg dah di empa,aorh manis endar.

Ni,bisi tanah runtuh baru dinga aku.......

Photos courtesy of Miri Community.Net.

Kring..kring...ring...munyi tipon. "Ni,nama gaga nuan? Nico udah pulai ke KL? Nama bisi tanah runtuh baru dinga aku. Ba depan Grand Palace..ba Kpg Lereng Bukit...bla..bla..,"ko mak aku.

"Pia mak. Meda tv aku nganti Nico tipon,bisi delay flight sida tadi."ko aku.

Nya meh pama diri ke 'connection' tudah mak aku. Bisi urang tipon asoh iya madah ke bisi tanah runtuh. Aku alu surfed net ngiga berita ba Uchukeling. Aku sigi ka nemu..tiap kali aku mansa tempat nya dia aku madah asoh apai Jill pengirau ati meda utai dia. Tumu pagi tadi tak enda ngetu ngetu ujan..naka iya ka ari ke ujan..tak penapat inat munyi ko bala. Mua ari endang nganti ke labuh..tu ujan baru malam lagi.

"Bisi balat begoyang bilun kita tadi,'co,ko aku nanya Nico". "Nadai mi,ko Nico."

Puji Tuhan. (Anak aku Nico baru mulai kediri ke Melaka;1 semester ba Miri ditu training ba law firm. Nya meh munyi ko indai Maie,enda betah endar di tinggal ke anak sekula ba alai bukai. taja pan enda jauh ba menua tasik) Ka "renga" laban....

Had it not been....

Lawyers of the same feathers flocking together......
Osart,Dulles,John Trang,Edward & Angking.


Edward's neighbours

Edward's wife in pink (partly hidden) getting the food ready.

Food was good;catering done by the aunties of his staff.

Money do indeed grow on trees..well at least at Edward's house. His wife plants many pots of the above plants. Some friends swear that the healthy state of the plants(plenty of green leaves/leafy) indicates the 'health' of one's bank account. My plants of that kind dah lama layu & mati. Looking at the way Edward & wife handed out the angpows to the kids just now more or less said/confirmed it all......that every leaf on all the pots(countless pots..I kid you not) is $$$$$$. ....ka ching!!!

....if it had not been for the flood in Kanowit,Edward & family would still be in Kanowit & CNY gathering at their place would be a week later. Edward aka cina kanowit as he always calls himself is very much a kampung boy not only at heart. He goes back to Kanowit whenever he can especially during CNY but this year he decided to give it a miss in view of the flood. Since it's the 3rd day of CNY & also a good day to share the "plentiful harvest"/untung of 2008, he & his wife invited their friends,neighbours & staff to their home. His friends,staff & neighbours juga untung dapat free makan. My..I had so much food...

Dani pagi.....

Di beri fund manager ba counter tutu buah limau with numbers..6 numbers.

Nasi Lemak ba kedai kopi melayu enda jauh ari S'pore Furniture.

...rendang daging & masak hitam. Nyamai sepi aku...semina sambal bisi ka pedas mimit.

.

..ari panas udah nya tebubuh ga ujan. Gari di jembi pan nyau basah baru.

...ngiga alai makai. Biasalah enda nyamai breakfast ba rumah. Nyamai agi kopi ba kedai kopi.

....nama utai di empa? Makai nasi lemak?? makai roti canai??

....makai nasi lemak aja. Asi bedau mansau...2nd round berapi... asi enda cukup,maioh urang take away.

...kenyang. (* *)..window shopping ngagai Parkson.

....maioh urang nuchi mata kia. Kedai bisi diri udah buka.