On the way to a wedding

Sunday 27th May was supposed to be a day trip to Kulai which was about 3 hrs drive from Shah Alam to celebrate the wedding of my ex student. At 10.30 am on the south bound NS Highway we were involved in 6 car bumper to bumper collision. Our CRV must have a good braking system because my husband managed to brake in time not to hit the Mercedes in front but the taxi behind us could not do the same. The crashing sound was terrible. It was like we were relieved that our CRV stopped in time but we were also bracing for the back collision at the same time. The sound was terrible and I was screaming like "OH NO! MY CAR!" So there we were........6 cars in a row but the last managed to run off after knocking the taxi behind us.

The cause of this accident was the first car, a black Proton Wira rented by 2 Pakistanis or Bangladeshis. The driver said the car system suddenly jammed but later they changed the story and told the police that the car in front was so slow so they slowed down and the white Honda Accord at the back hit them because the Korean driver was going too fast. There were 3 Malay girls, passengers in the Honda Accord and they were going to a friend's wedding in Ledang. The Accord was hit from behind by a Mercedes driven by a Chinese guy. His Mercs was lucky because our CRV managed to break in time. But my poor cute CRV was hit in her behind by the Proton taxi driven by an Indonesian driver with a red IC. And his taxi was also hit from behind but that last car quickly fled the scene. This happened in the fast lane so we all drove to the emergency lane quickly. But the taxi had to be pushed because it cannot be driven at all.

Come to think of it, this accident involved 5 different races, different nationalities. There were no fights, arguments or screaming incidents except when  the the Mercedes driver used a four letter word............ Anyway we all went to make reports at the Seremban 2 police station and we gave a ride to the taxi driver.

After the reports were settled we were determined to still drive to Kulai. It was already 1.30pm. Along the way I heard this unsettling vibrations from the exhaust pipe and I became so worried. We stopped and checked, saw the bumper was hanging lower than before. And the exhaust pipe was looking quite loose. Finally at the Air Keroh Interchange I decided to turn back. So we head back to Shah Alam around 3 pm.

SO kesian Fairus Tabiee, tak dapatlah saya sama-sama meraikan hari bahagia you dan isteri.

Anyway all the best and we pray for everlasting happiness to Fairus and his wife.

Progress Presentation

I sat and listened to 8 presentations, 2 of which are from Phd candidates. The progress is on-going, most in their 3rd semester. There were questions raised. Mainly about the problem statement of the research. Most were not problem statement per se but are the problems revolving around the subject from other readings and books which are supposed to be part of the background study. In the book "The Craft of Research" by Booth, Colomb & Williams 2008, there is no mention of a problem statement but there is a lengthy discussion on conceptual problem. It says that "...............in academic research, a conceptual problem arises when we simply do not understand something about the world as well as we like. We solve a conceptual problem not by doing something to change the world but answering a question that helps us understand it better" (p. 53). And also "...in an academic research, a problem is something we seek out, even invent if we have to" (p. 54).

Sticky Notes

My sticky notes in the office computer's desk top. Yessssss so convenient.

BUT look at numbers!!!!!! Tomorrow morning there's studio from 8.30am till noon BUT I have to be a panel member to assess a progress presentation by the masters and Phd candidates at the Post Graduate Centre at the same time. Its a good thing my studio partner is Assoc. Prof. Hanafi who can give and take, we work well together. And in the afternoon its the degree students turn to present their dissertation proposals. I was given to read about 8 or 9 proposals and only 1 was found to be OK. AND I also have a late doctor's appointment around 4 pm. So these sticky notes will have to patiently wait for my further actions.

My Special Shoot

Just saw this tiny shoot sprouting from the pot. Somehow its a good sign for me. Yesterday I almost blew my top in class. Hate to rewind the incident. But when I came back to my room I accidentally saw this lovely sight.

So little shoot, you showed me that after a really bad incident, there's always something good happening to make us feel better.