Pak Idrus's Blog

Cengal is the hardest tropical wood in the Malayan forest. In most traditional Malay house the Cengal timber are use for the main structure that are subjected to the elements. Other hard wood like Resah are use as well. For interior Meranti are use. Cengal timber would outlasted the lifetime and could be use again and again for hundreds of years. The above image is that of the fence of my patio that are subjected to the elements of the tropical weather; the harsh rains and the hot and humid weather throughout the years.  I got.these fence done by craftsman from Petani who brought the timber too. They were doing the Cengal flooring at our  eldest daughter's house and I took the opportunity to get them do the fence at my house. I dream of living in a traditional Malay house so I did some renovations to my terres house in Ampang Jaya by adding some aspects of tradition like the Serambi as well. Here I  did the works myself. Since its  not subjected to the el...

After breakfast I sat at the Serambi to while my time away. With Kenet sitting on my lap I just let my thoughts run wild. It just rain and the Serambi is cool. Nice!. In between surfing the net on my Smartphone I read a few pages of Rumi's. Sufism always enriches my understanding of life. At this age; I am now 80 years old I am taking things easy. In Sya Allah come the 17th of this August I would be 81. Alhamdulillah my health is as good for my age. I still love to read and always enjoyed my meals. Of course I get tired and felt sleepy from time to time for age is catching up. I would then take a break. There is nothing to rush but to enjoy every minutes of the time that I had been blessed. The image on this posting is part of my own woodwork. I had always enjoyed doing creative things with woods.  Have a nice day.

I love gardening. It has been a passion of mine since I was a kid. So when I retired I decided to turn the front of my patio into a little garden of my own. It just a small one but it has everything that a garden should have. So as to create an ecosystem that would attract the little animals and insect to the garden I had grown some trees including a bamboo bush which turns a part of the garden into a little jungle.To attract birds and small animals like squirrel and civet cat I hang a tray of food so that it would come from time to time to eat. The first thing in the morning I would put an assorted of foods like banana, apples and bread in the tray. Now I could watch the birds and the squirrels come and go to enjoy its meals. At time civet cat would come too. Now it is normal to see these birds and small animals come and go throughout the days to enjoy the food there oblivious of us watching it.  Have a nice day.

We have a small Flat TV hanging on the wall at the kitchen. It has been a permanent feature in the kitchen. The TV is on all the times when my spouse is in the kitchen, sort of a 'kawan' to her while she is there doing the cooking. As usual this morning October 1,2019 she switch on the TV there but there was no programs displayed on any channels except a notice saying that it now need sort of a decoder or a VHF aerial to be able to function as usual. There has been warning from the relevant authority about the change from Analog to Digital but I thought that TV could just pick up the signal as usual since its already connected to a VHF aerial. This TV is on its own and not connected like the other two TVs in the house that use Astro decoder. It looks like I had to get the decoder or a new TV for the Kitchen. So this morning I took an e-hailing taxi to Low Yat Plaza in the city, a mall that got everything on computer and related products. On arrival at the mall I had breakfas...

Yes, I am talking about rice, our staple food. That we cannot do without. It is our basic that we take daily. From breakfast to dinner and at time during teatimes where we had traditional cakes made of rice. Goreng Pisang [fried banana] cannot be Goreng Pisang without been coated with the rice flour. It would not taste as good with other flour. At time we just took this commodity for granted, as though that it is always there when we need it. That is why in the Malay culture it is a sin to throw even a single grain of this wonder grain call Rice. It must be given due respect for it has been the staple food of Asian for centuries. In fact, that's what made the Asian race resilience all the centuries. Another aspect that should be known about rice is that it does not take much doing to get it cooked and ready to eat. Whereas for wheat, it takes many processes before it could be eaten. In rice what one got to do is to wash it and steam cooks it. And Voila! In mere fifteen ...

Not always one gets to buy this Giant Prawn that we call Udang Galah. The other day at the Datuk Keramat wet market I bought a kilo of Udang Galah. I could not find the English name for it except that it a big Prawn like a Lobster but not a Lobster This time It cost RM40 a kilo. It can be as expensive as RM70 per kilo. Anyway, I do not care so much about the price, what is important is that I get to buy it from time to time. And that day at the normal stall that I use to buy Prawn I saw the Udang Galah; and since the size is just right I bought a kilo. Then the next day my spouse cook it the way I like it; my favorite Masak Lemak Kuning. I had it for lunch and dinner as well; it does make a wonderful meal indeed.  Have a nice day.

I walk into the kitchen and saw this. It the creation of my spouse. She love interior decoration and from time to time shows her true creative mind. Loved it.  Have a nice day.

Our house faces west thus the sun rises at the back  of the house. At time the bright sunlight would shown  through into the kitchen  as seen  in the image  above.  It  does made our kitchen colorful. Have a nice day.

Was hospitalized for a while  and now recuperating at home. Would be  back.  Have a nice day.

I saw this copper bowl in a discontinued products section of an outlet and bought it without much thoughts.  I am like that, when I like something I just buy it and knew that it would find a place in my home.  It eventually did on this simple table at the dinning section of the house. It looks elegant isn't it! It is a work of art, one of a kind. A work of beauty is a joy forever.  Have a nice day.

This month being Ramadan and that the Eid Fitri fall on the July 17 Government officers and Pensioners get paid on July 8th. This month we get an extra of RM250, half of the special payment that the government officers get this month. I have no complain since my pension is good. Both my spouse and I are pensioner thus both of us get a monthly pension. With no debt and the kids are on their own the pension are all ours to spend. Since getting the payment early this month I decided to pay all my Utilities bills, Astro, Unifi and other monthly bills which amount to almost one thousand ringgit early as well. This will avoid me from using the money on other things and would burst my monthly budget. Without that one thousand ringgit the house would not run. That mean every months one thousand ringgit is gone before paying for the food and other needs like new clothing and travel.  I am lucky that I have no debt and that my car and house are fully paid. T...

After the recent minor repair to the ceiling of the front part of the house I decided to redo the Serambi [patio] and now this is how it look.  Have a nice day.

A house need regular maintenance so that it always in good condition. At time minor renovation had to be done like replacing old woodwork that had worn out or rots. Paint do fade as years goes by so to keep the house in a proper way minor repairs here and there had to be done. Otherwise one had to go for major repair and that would cost lots of money. So it is better to maintain the house and keep it clean and tidy all the time. One of the major problem is termite and it not that easy to get rid of it. Only vigilant and proper maintenance could get rid of it. So as not to have to incur a heavy cost of up keeping of the house I do take care of regular maintenance and minor repair from time to time. This time the ceiling and woodwork had to be replaced and repair as well painted again. For this purpose I got an Indonesian worker who live nearby to do the works. So far he has done a relative good job of the minor repair to the ceiling.  Have a nice day.

After I retired in 1990 I decided to do some renovation to my house in Ampang Jaya. It just a small house that I bought in 1974 which at that time is considered as very far away from the city centre of Kuala Lumpur. Only one road lead to this place in Ulu Kelang and that is the Ampang Road and the Ulu Kelang Road. To get there we take the road call Jalan Kolam Air Lama [Old Reservoir Road]. Now it is just five minutes away from the KLCC. I was happy to get that house and there our kids grows and now they too live in their own home in the vicinity as well. On the renovation works I wanted the house to be different with a touch of the Kampong [village] look thus I decided to do a Malay style patio or Serambi. For the major works I got a contractor who managed to translate my imagination into reality. Some of the woodwork I did it myself.  It is now my favourite place to sit down and while the times away. When friends comes a visiting they ...