Email blogging

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Sofie
Date: Fri, Apr 17, 2009 at 9:04 PM
Subject: Email blogging
To: Lutfi, Arshana, Sitot, Mun, Ann, Yati, Nurul, Hajar

Assalamualaikum.. How is everyone? Harapnya semua sihat-sihat dan happy-happy.. Akak sihat, just really missing you guys.. Last night for the first time in three weeks, akak dapat peluang jenguk internet. I figured, if I don't start keeping in touch with you people soon, I'm gonna miss out on more than just the demise of Pojan's infamous blog.. (-_-) Maaf akak diamkan diri beberapa minggu ni. I know some of you tried to call (Pojan, Ati & Ann, thanks for the call and SMS! ^-^) tapi malangnya ofis akak tak condusif untuk line maxis. Nak ada line kena ke letak hp kat tingkap.. Maklum la hutan. For those waiting for me on blog or YM, it's going to take a while. FRIM ada policy against entertainment during work hours. Blog sites, youtube and YM off limits.. They really know how to effectively isolate their staff from the rest of the world... ^-^ It's also one of those embarrassing reasons why I'm blogging on email... please bear with me! But to tell you the truth, I don't have much time for blogs or YM. Dari hari pertama tak habis-habis dengan meeting (7), workshop (2), kursus latihan (2) dan assignments (4). multi-tasking skill tak payah cakap. Nasib baik women are born to do it. Tiap-tiap hari akak punch out lepas maghrib.. Itu baru tugasan in-house (dalaman). 20-23 april dekat kuala selangor masuk mangrove plots; 30 april meeting dengan press, buat demo harp trap & biopsi sampling; 10-15 mei dekat hutan simpan Pasoh untuk latihan teknikal ngan jabatan hutan (GIS, GPS, compass, mapping); 18-31 mei masuk gunung angsi 2 minggu tangkap kelawar; awal Jun gi forest complex belum temenggor untuk site and plot investigation. Seterusnya belum ada tarikh lagi, but the list goes on and on... Cuti-cuti Malaysia without the cuti.. But I'm happy.. ^^ Dekat sini atmosphere dia lain sikit dari suasana akademik. People are actually knowledgeable and research methods sangat mantap. But they have high expectations of you, and they have no time for that saya budak baru belajar excuse. My supervisor keeps reminding me that she hired me because I can achieve things. So, the words I'm trying should never come out my mouth. I should be better than that. Hari pertama briefing dah dapat beberapa amaran: 1). Punctuality 2). Individuality. 3). Never staying in the pantry area for more than 5 minutes. 4). No cliques. 5). Work smart with excellent results. Haish.. I hope everyone else is having a good time too. - Mun ngan sitot, apa cer? Mun, da dapat ke IELTs score? - Shana, dah dapat dah beskalnya? Ah, nanti tak susah lagi nak jalan cross campus ;) - Luppi, how do you rate the answers to that questionaire you got on your blog? I can't believe no one got A.. Are you really that hard to figure out....? ;p - Nurul, nanti klu ada trip ke Tganu akak bagitau ek.. nak makan ban tuna nurul.. sedap! - Ati, I've been hoping to spare some time for GA, but right now that's not possible.. hope you're doing ok so far.. Ooh, environmental law! ;) Ann, i wish you could come to FRIM too. Keje memang banyak, tapi somehow stress free! ^^ - Pojan... sorry haritu tak dapat jawab call. I need your new number tho. And bro, what happened to your blog? sedih sangat BTV da RIP.. - Anyone got isma's email address n phone number? I'd like it please! Er, she's still pregnant.... right? So, that's all for now.. I'm sure that's more than enough updates. I'm afraid I won't be in contact for sometime since outstation work starts from next week onwards. But if you need to reach me, email's the best way for now. I'll let you know my office number as soon as I get my own fixed line.. ngehehe! Make du'a for me ya, and I'll make du'a for you too.. Salam, Kak Sofie

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--
Nurhidayati Binti Abd Aziz
Postgraduate Student,
Master of Environmental Management
University of New South Wales, Australia

Dedicated to All my BTB Friends!

Yes, we rock babe! :)

Hope is a Tangible Thing!

Email 1 (Formal enquiry)

Dear Dr,

I hope you’re doing well. If you don’t mind, I have something I’d like to discuss with you.

I’ve been accepted for FRIM’s RAship Scheme and placed under the Zoology unit. My research area involves molecular studies of bats, and one of the project outcomes would be the formation of a barcode database of bat species, particularly from peninsular Malaysia’s Virgin Jungle Reserves (VJRs) where the samples are collected. The scheme will fully sponsor me for MSc at any university in Malaysia, including Sabah and Sawarak. My research project is funded by FRIM and GEF.

I’m currently looking for supervisors and a place to attach to for MSc, and Unimas is my first choice. Among the many Malaysian universities I’ve researched, Unimas has a broad range of expertise in zoology, and I’ve found the environment and academic community to be very positive and conducive to my needs (these insights I’ve gained through encouragements from Dr. Is, Br. Kamarul, and my involvements with e-ruai zoology).

The problem is that my overseer in FRIM seems to have reservations about Unimas. I’m not sure what her concerns are, but she asked me to look into Univ. Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) and UKM instead. I’ve been to these campuses – I’ve visited UMT on several occasions and I’m currently finishing my RAship tenure in UKM. All I can say is that I do not prefer to be attached to either of these institutions at this point.

Dr, please advise on how I should go about finding a supervisor in Unimas for my project (if it’s at all possible, I’d love to work with you!). And if it’s not too much trouble, could I have a copy of your CV? I’d like to bring a strong case before FRIM and justify my reasons for choosing Unimas. My biggest concern is convincing my overseer. If she agrees, then everything else should fall into place.

Do tell me what you think. I’m sorry to be so much trouble. Thank you, and hope to hear from you soon.

Warmest regards,

Sofie

Reply 1

Dear Sofie;

It's been very political.. If they (your supervisors) don't like UNIMAS then just follow their their wish because its more important that you get the MSc.

This is the 2nd known case of FRIM not in favour of UNIMAS.

I could help remotely by reading your proposal & papers. salam

Email 2 (Panic attack)

Hi Dr,

Your message made me sad, because I am honestly really interested in doing my MSc in UNIMAS.

FRIM does not have a problem with me being attached to UNIMAS. It's my supervisor. Initially she agrees that you are an expert in the zoology field, particularly bats. However, she later advised me against you when one of her academic supervisors expressed a less than favorable opinion of you.

Bottomline, molecular research isn't something simple (at least not to me). I need guidance so that I can learn well and contribute something useful. You are well aware of our universities' position in molecular research, and you're also aware of politics regarding UNIMAS. I don't know anything about politics. I'm just a student looking to find the best education. And though that may sound naive, I am the type to fight for what I think is best for me, and right now that is UNIMAS.

Please help me! salam, sofie

Response

20 or so emails came into the author's mailbox the following morning, all from various lecturers and experts in UNIMAS, giving their enthusiastic encouragements as well as thoughts and feedback regarding possible research areas to work on.

The author was moved to tears.

Reply 2

So you see, we care so much about you and waiting for your reply...

Look Who's On The Bike!

Ada aksi professional tak? :p

Meriahkan lagi~ (^_^)

Wah! Meriah!~ Huhu.

Ingat nak update blog sniri. Tetiba ternampak blog ni. Dulu selalu bukak sunyi sepi je. Ingat ni pun takde update la. Lagipun sejak cuti blogging hari tu dah lama tak bukak blog kawan2. Rupa-rupanya dah banyak ketinggalan. Ampun maaf dipinta~ Huhu :p

Ok, a lil update!

Hidup sedikit sukar akhir-akhir ini. Tapi hari-hari esok macam makin sukar je... Nurul pun macam dah stress je. Tiap-tiap hari buat tudung gaya bibi indon. Muahaha. Tugas utama kat sini kena jaga kelas amali dan kena buat lab research. Tapi ni macam banyak sibuk dengan benda-benda lain je. Newsletter la website la pegi ladang la. Kelas amali tu terjaga la, tapi research tersangkut-sangkut sikit. Tu pun nasib baik amali tu ada beberapa orang lagi rakan sekerja. Pastu nak kena gi kenduri kawin lagi. Minggu ni saja dah ada 3 kenduri~ Petang semalam pun ponteng kerja pegi kenduri. Huhu. Sabtu ni plak our old classmate masa matrik azrul zabidi kawin kat penang. Tu pun ada 2 orang kawan lagi on the same day. Huh, can't please everyone~

Yep, sukar la nak puaskan semua orang. Nak puaskan diri sendiri lagi. Kerja ni pun nak kena puaskan ramai pihak. Everybody wants result. Tapi nak tak nak kena buat jugak. Bunyi macam stress je kan? Haha. Takde la stress sangat. Ntah, as always, in the end things are not as bad as u thought it'd be. Lagipun waktu kerja tak strict sangat. Dan tak perlu menempuhi traffic jam macam kat KL! Pegi kerja paling-paling lama pun 10 minit je. Sila jeles! Haha. And of course, everybody here is nice, so I really can't complain much. It's nice to be here! (^_^) I'm sure I'm on the right track, I'm just not sure whether I'm at the right pace. Macam biasa la, suka bertangguh, siapkan kerja last minute. Ni pun banyak kerja bertimbun tertangguh. Nak siapkan on weekends, tiap2 hujung minggu pulak takde kat umah. Anyhow, gotta speed things up a bit, I guess. Kerja!~ Kerja!~ Cuma takut nanti tak disambung kontrak je :p Hahaha. Nauzubillah~

Okay, that's all for now, guys. Oh, btw, nurul sekarang makin keji dan poyo. Muahahahaha :D

Tag Gambar

As tagged by CST, kilang memproses manisan di http://janganbersedih.blogspot.com, the 6th picture in the 6th folder.

Anyway, this is Aminah Zulfa (named after her paternal grandmother) doing some reading session with her aunt. She is my second niece and an absolute apple of my eye. I still remember looking after her when she was a wee toddler, as her mom had to go to a seminar or something. I practically looked after her 9/5 (when her dad was out to work), giving her milk, putting on the Einstein CD to make her sleep, and played with her. And my wasn't she a pleasure to behold.

She has grown now, almost catching up to her big sister Aqilah Auni, apparently a tad wilder now too (she likes to just collapse on the floor if she doesn't get what she wants, and she could give you a slap if she thinks you deserve it :p).

But yes, it's the big smile and those sparkly eyes which tug my heart every time. My favorite moment with her? Just when she wakes up from sleep and as she searches the room and she catches your eyes, she will give you the widest, the warmest, and the most beautiful smile you feel like you could melt right away. Seriously, I think it's my two nieces who taught me how to love again, with my whole heart.

Another year older!

Happy Birthday Ann!

Happy Belated Birthday K.Sofie and Sitot!