3rd september 2005 has not ended yet for me after the run. we were instructed to be at serdang hospital by 2pm, and little did i know then how serious they were! there were people who turned up after 2pm and was sent home! for not being punctual!
i was all awake and fresh on my way back after the run. we stopped for coffee and i got home after 11am. i showered, got dressed and left for serdang hospital, which i had to find. and of course, on the road i miss the exit to the hospital and had to take extra time to turn back, and i got there a few minutes before 2pm! the hospital lobby was crowded with the participants, all in their seats, writing up an application form. then, we were taken to a lecture hall for a briefing. and this is when my first encounter with dr. zul happens. he's colonel dr. zul now. first expression you get upon being face to face with dr zul is, 'do not mess with this guy!' we've come a long way since that day, dr zul and i.
i take my seat and dr zul starts his introduction, about the program and what we ll be getting into and a little background on the evaluation process, firstly, a basic medical exam that will be conducted after the brief. during the brief, he tells us that one of the important requirement is good eye sight, and thats when a lot of the participants became annoyed. one of the guys, he had a high powered glasses on, stood up and asked the most obvious question. in that case, what about us who wear glasses? at that point, dr zul glanced at all of us, and said, those of you who wear glasses, please stand. there were more than 10 of them who stood up at his request. and dr zul says, everyone, give them a big round of applause for trying! as the applause died, he said, sorry guys, but thanks for coming. and you hear the frustrated groans from the faces with the glasses. they were not sent home immediately for the requirement is not a perfect 20/20. and guess what, i wear glasses. i am short-sighted and was prescribed back in 2000! i hate glasses, therefore i dont use them at all. most of the time, i dont need them. so, there i was, in that lecture hall, thinking the eye test will be the end of it.
what follows is a series of medical tests. full body check, for which i had to strip, stomach, breasts, neck, arms and legs. blood pressure, urine sample, height and weight, and blood test. i managed to say hello to some of the guys seated next to me while waiting for the eye test. i was told that only 3 girls made it, and i see the chinese girl there with us and she has contacts on, and obviously, was very nervous about the eye test. so were the guys with the glasses. i told this guy next to me that i have impaired vision as well. i was then called in for the test and to my pleasant surprise, i had no trouble at all in calling out all the numbers and alphabets on the board on the wall! as i read it, the examiner told me to remove my lenses. i took out my glasses from my bag for him to see and said i dont use lenses. i remember coming out of that room happy. mostly, for completing the day without passing out or screaming! after completing all the tests, on my way to the cafeteria, i ran into dr zul. i said hello, and asked about the third girl, whom i didnt see at all. he simply said, she didnt turn up, and walked away. i met a couple more guys at the cafetaria, chatted some over coffee, and left the hospital after 5pm.
two down, a hundred more to go! i didnt have a clue of what is to come next, what to expect or how to prepare myself. how does one prepare for medical tests? i decided then to take it one day at a time, and went home to celebrate completing the day! i was very proud of myself for passing the physical test, because that was all me and my effort. i was not worried even a tad bit of the medical tests, because there was nothing i could do to change the results. if my urine showed an infection, i was out. if my blood results came out positive for cancer or hiv, i was out. if my short sightedness was a problem, i was out. but, worrying about the results wasnt going to change it. one day at a time.
my blog has received it's first comment. and a positive one at that. thank you, malar. keep reading!
Monday, November 27, 2006
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
and i ran ...
i ve told you i passed my physical test, now let me tell you everything i went thru to pass.
i get a mail from angkasa about the physical test exactly a month before the actual date of test, 3rd sept 2005. i listed myself under subang for location. the run was held in 4 different states in malaysia, including kuching. i had a month to ensure i could pass the test. first of all, how fast do i have to run to complete 3.5 kms under 20 minutes? i jogged everyday for about 6 months at one time. the problem with me is, actually its a weakness of mine, i get bored easy! no matter what it is, i cant do the same stuff for long. at interviews, i actually tell the interviewer exactly this when they ask me to state my weaknesses. the same goes for exercise routines. whatever routine, i get bored of it! i want excitement, fun and drive in whatever i have to do. six months is all i could do with jogging about 4 kms everyday after work, around my apartment blocks. back in 1999, while working in kulim at showa aluminum, i used to work out in my room for an hour after work, every single day for 3 years. nothing strenous, i used a heavy porcelain dog as weights, 400 jumps with jack and 200 sit-ups. i hate running, but after i started my jog routine, it has become addictive. i would feel lousy and uneasy of i dont jog for a day. kumar and johnny, colleagues from teknion, who lived at the same apartment block used to laugh at me when i jog in the rain! in front of everybody at our office cafetaria! didnt bother me, because as far as i am concerned, if i had to jog, i had to jog! in order to achieve my timing, i zero-ed my speedometer in my satria and drove it one full round of my apartment blocks, my exact jog route. and the meter showed 0.6 kms. and we all know speedometers are not that accurate, but i had to go with it. so, i ran six rounds and timed myself. the first day, i ran as fast as i could and i finished 6 rounds, approximately 3.6 kms in 24 minutes! and i told myself, no way i could pass this test! everyday after work i ran six rounds for almost a month and the best time i made was 20 minutes! of all my days in that 1 long year of the selection, i have to say that 1 month was the most worrisome time! i couldnt sleep at nights thinking about it. this is where mohan comes in. at this point i have to mention mohan, in another paragraph, of course.
mohan is the guy who's been there for me and with me for ten years now, always there with his undying love and support. since august 1996 till this day, and more to come, he's seen me thru my ups and downs, thick and thin, laughter and tears, joy and grief, my best and worst moods and days. everyone who knows me knows him. and my family adores him, most of all, my grandma! it aint a very long paragraph, but i guess i've said what he is to me.
so, mohan got tired of me worrying everyday about how fast, or slow, i was progressing. we go out and get ourselves a cheap stop-watch, and he comes downstairs and stands around at the parking lot and time my every round! and a couple of days before 3rd sept, and i wonder why we didnt think of this before, we drive to the stadium in klang town which has a 400-meter track and train there. and one day before the run, my time was 19 minutes and 15 seconds! there was nothing more i could do but go to bed that night hoping tomorrow would go well! the part that bothered me the most was the thought, if i couldnt pass a simple physical test, how did i have the cheek to enrol myself in a race to become an astronaut! darn disturbing thought, wouldnt you say!
the day arrives! the registration starts at 5 am, so, i rise from bed before 4am, get ready and drive to subang air force base. of course, mohan went with me. that day, he stood at the parking lot and waited for 4 hours until the whole ordeal was over!
there were so many people that morning! despite many tables and staffs registering everyone, passing out numbers, t-shirts and caps, answering everyone's various questions, the process took more than 2 hours. at last when i thought it was about to start, they tell us to walk to the start point, which was like a good 10 minutes walk from the registration spot. i walked alone, had to leave mohan behind, along with many others, some chatting away, some quiet. i dont believe people are so friendly so darn early in the morning on a day we're about to run to proof ourselves! dont get me wrong, i am all for friendliness, but i am never a morning-person and i was carrying too much stress that morning to make small talks! all i wanted at that point was for the run to be over! after we reach the small stadium where the start point is, we were asked to spread out on the field, and then they bring out the dj!! it was the most frustrating moment! i mean, the dj was a very good touch, i give you that, but as i said, i was under stress and nothing looked good to me at that point! the dj was good though and he went on and on trying to cheer everyone up and lighten the mood and make it enjoyable by going around and asking anyone he could get or eager enough to talk to him, why did they wanna become an astronaut! i hid from him the best i could! by the time they brought out the staffs to start the warm-up workouts, the sun was out! finally, thank heavens, they get us out of the stadium and showed us the start line, and it was almost 8am! they had the gals in front and men above 40 behind the gals and then the rest. it was a narrow path, so we had to make long lines. finally, the gun goes off, and off we go! i realised how tired i was the minute i started running. the next thing that happened was the able-bodied men who were lined behind us were all banging onto me left and right trying to speed up!! i was pissed off at this point! for heavens sake people, i wasnt slow, i had a pace to follow! its three and a half kms, you know! not a 100-metres dash! i ignored everyone and i ran. the further i ran, the more people were falling behind. and to my surprise, some of them stopped after 200 metres and started to walk! as i said, i ignored everyone else and concentrated on my pace and breathing. and as if it wasnt hard enough, the route actually had slopes! upward! i looked at my cheap stop-watch and kept at my pace. it was getting harder by the minute to run, with all the excitement and a time to keep. and then i hear the irritating voice of the dj screaming, here we have our winner, the astronaut! someone had actually finished, and i could see the finish line, from a distance! i curse under my breath with whatever strength i could muster at that point and picked up my speed. i ran, panting by then, passing a few people thinking i could do this, i have to! before i reach the end of the route, i hear the dj shouting, where are the women? i need a gal here at the finish line, c'mon gals! and i ran up the slope to the finish point while tumbling into a few people in front of me who had to stop at the finish point to collect a small numbered piece of paper indicating we've finished on time. and i get my piece of blue paper that says 59 and i was done! i stop, catch my breath and think, oh my god, i did it! and the next thing i did was almost walk away to find mohan. i didnt catch the time when i finished but i think it was 18 minutes plus. i felt so good at that point, as all the tension eased out of me. then those who finished on time went over to a table and reported for the record. after we waited out for everyone to finish, we were all asked to sit in the stadium and were given breakfast, fried noodle and hot tea. i drank the tea, no thanks to the fried noodle! couple of the officials came out and called out each of the numbers and gave us a piece of paper containing a map on directions to hospital serdang, which was where we were supposed to be at 2pm that afternoon for a basic medical exam. we also did some warm-down workouts, before the fried noodle, of course. in the middle of the warm-down, the dj suddenly calls out for number 1500, please come forward. that was my angkasawan number, 1500, and it came a long way with me after that day. when i stepped up to the dj, he told me i was requested to step outside to meet a reporter. i did, and few of them, plus photographers came up to me for an interview. apparently, i was the first woman to finish! of course, i didnt knew that till they told me. i answered their questions, posed for a couple of photos, thinking how awful i looked at that point and went back inside. finally, they announced we were done, and i walked back to where mohan was waiting. it was almost 10am. when i ran up to mohan and told him i did it, i passed, he smiled and said, i know you would.
that afternoon was another story altogether ...
i get a mail from angkasa about the physical test exactly a month before the actual date of test, 3rd sept 2005. i listed myself under subang for location. the run was held in 4 different states in malaysia, including kuching. i had a month to ensure i could pass the test. first of all, how fast do i have to run to complete 3.5 kms under 20 minutes? i jogged everyday for about 6 months at one time. the problem with me is, actually its a weakness of mine, i get bored easy! no matter what it is, i cant do the same stuff for long. at interviews, i actually tell the interviewer exactly this when they ask me to state my weaknesses. the same goes for exercise routines. whatever routine, i get bored of it! i want excitement, fun and drive in whatever i have to do. six months is all i could do with jogging about 4 kms everyday after work, around my apartment blocks. back in 1999, while working in kulim at showa aluminum, i used to work out in my room for an hour after work, every single day for 3 years. nothing strenous, i used a heavy porcelain dog as weights, 400 jumps with jack and 200 sit-ups. i hate running, but after i started my jog routine, it has become addictive. i would feel lousy and uneasy of i dont jog for a day. kumar and johnny, colleagues from teknion, who lived at the same apartment block used to laugh at me when i jog in the rain! in front of everybody at our office cafetaria! didnt bother me, because as far as i am concerned, if i had to jog, i had to jog! in order to achieve my timing, i zero-ed my speedometer in my satria and drove it one full round of my apartment blocks, my exact jog route. and the meter showed 0.6 kms. and we all know speedometers are not that accurate, but i had to go with it. so, i ran six rounds and timed myself. the first day, i ran as fast as i could and i finished 6 rounds, approximately 3.6 kms in 24 minutes! and i told myself, no way i could pass this test! everyday after work i ran six rounds for almost a month and the best time i made was 20 minutes! of all my days in that 1 long year of the selection, i have to say that 1 month was the most worrisome time! i couldnt sleep at nights thinking about it. this is where mohan comes in. at this point i have to mention mohan, in another paragraph, of course.
mohan is the guy who's been there for me and with me for ten years now, always there with his undying love and support. since august 1996 till this day, and more to come, he's seen me thru my ups and downs, thick and thin, laughter and tears, joy and grief, my best and worst moods and days. everyone who knows me knows him. and my family adores him, most of all, my grandma! it aint a very long paragraph, but i guess i've said what he is to me.
so, mohan got tired of me worrying everyday about how fast, or slow, i was progressing. we go out and get ourselves a cheap stop-watch, and he comes downstairs and stands around at the parking lot and time my every round! and a couple of days before 3rd sept, and i wonder why we didnt think of this before, we drive to the stadium in klang town which has a 400-meter track and train there. and one day before the run, my time was 19 minutes and 15 seconds! there was nothing more i could do but go to bed that night hoping tomorrow would go well! the part that bothered me the most was the thought, if i couldnt pass a simple physical test, how did i have the cheek to enrol myself in a race to become an astronaut! darn disturbing thought, wouldnt you say!
the day arrives! the registration starts at 5 am, so, i rise from bed before 4am, get ready and drive to subang air force base. of course, mohan went with me. that day, he stood at the parking lot and waited for 4 hours until the whole ordeal was over!
there were so many people that morning! despite many tables and staffs registering everyone, passing out numbers, t-shirts and caps, answering everyone's various questions, the process took more than 2 hours. at last when i thought it was about to start, they tell us to walk to the start point, which was like a good 10 minutes walk from the registration spot. i walked alone, had to leave mohan behind, along with many others, some chatting away, some quiet. i dont believe people are so friendly so darn early in the morning on a day we're about to run to proof ourselves! dont get me wrong, i am all for friendliness, but i am never a morning-person and i was carrying too much stress that morning to make small talks! all i wanted at that point was for the run to be over! after we reach the small stadium where the start point is, we were asked to spread out on the field, and then they bring out the dj!! it was the most frustrating moment! i mean, the dj was a very good touch, i give you that, but as i said, i was under stress and nothing looked good to me at that point! the dj was good though and he went on and on trying to cheer everyone up and lighten the mood and make it enjoyable by going around and asking anyone he could get or eager enough to talk to him, why did they wanna become an astronaut! i hid from him the best i could! by the time they brought out the staffs to start the warm-up workouts, the sun was out! finally, thank heavens, they get us out of the stadium and showed us the start line, and it was almost 8am! they had the gals in front and men above 40 behind the gals and then the rest. it was a narrow path, so we had to make long lines. finally, the gun goes off, and off we go! i realised how tired i was the minute i started running. the next thing that happened was the able-bodied men who were lined behind us were all banging onto me left and right trying to speed up!! i was pissed off at this point! for heavens sake people, i wasnt slow, i had a pace to follow! its three and a half kms, you know! not a 100-metres dash! i ignored everyone and i ran. the further i ran, the more people were falling behind. and to my surprise, some of them stopped after 200 metres and started to walk! as i said, i ignored everyone else and concentrated on my pace and breathing. and as if it wasnt hard enough, the route actually had slopes! upward! i looked at my cheap stop-watch and kept at my pace. it was getting harder by the minute to run, with all the excitement and a time to keep. and then i hear the irritating voice of the dj screaming, here we have our winner, the astronaut! someone had actually finished, and i could see the finish line, from a distance! i curse under my breath with whatever strength i could muster at that point and picked up my speed. i ran, panting by then, passing a few people thinking i could do this, i have to! before i reach the end of the route, i hear the dj shouting, where are the women? i need a gal here at the finish line, c'mon gals! and i ran up the slope to the finish point while tumbling into a few people in front of me who had to stop at the finish point to collect a small numbered piece of paper indicating we've finished on time. and i get my piece of blue paper that says 59 and i was done! i stop, catch my breath and think, oh my god, i did it! and the next thing i did was almost walk away to find mohan. i didnt catch the time when i finished but i think it was 18 minutes plus. i felt so good at that point, as all the tension eased out of me. then those who finished on time went over to a table and reported for the record. after we waited out for everyone to finish, we were all asked to sit in the stadium and were given breakfast, fried noodle and hot tea. i drank the tea, no thanks to the fried noodle! couple of the officials came out and called out each of the numbers and gave us a piece of paper containing a map on directions to hospital serdang, which was where we were supposed to be at 2pm that afternoon for a basic medical exam. we also did some warm-down workouts, before the fried noodle, of course. in the middle of the warm-down, the dj suddenly calls out for number 1500, please come forward. that was my angkasawan number, 1500, and it came a long way with me after that day. when i stepped up to the dj, he told me i was requested to step outside to meet a reporter. i did, and few of them, plus photographers came up to me for an interview. apparently, i was the first woman to finish! of course, i didnt knew that till they told me. i answered their questions, posed for a couple of photos, thinking how awful i looked at that point and went back inside. finally, they announced we were done, and i walked back to where mohan was waiting. it was almost 10am. when i ran up to mohan and told him i did it, i passed, he smiled and said, i know you would.
that afternoon was another story altogether ...
Sunday, November 19, 2006
the mail comes
after TWO years, one fine day at office in teknion, i receive a mail from angkasa. being too caught up with getting some quality issue solved for a particularly fussy customer, i glance thru the mail and go on with my chores. i must have thought it was another mail from angkasa wanting me to verify some info in the registration form. after maybe 2 or 3 days, i casually sit down and read thru the mail, and found out that it was a request to attend a physical test!! i was shortlisted for the space program which i registered for 2 years ago! my first reaction was to shout out to kamahraj, asking if he has received anything similar. and he says no. he's the first person to hear about this piece of news. and get this, the physical test is to run (oh, no, did they say run?) 3.5 kms (as if running 3.5 kms is not enough) under 20 minutes! first time i was thankful for all the jogs i went for!
here, i need to go back a little in my life to write about my paranoia and how it began. i was skinny and fine during most of my teenage life. i pass my spm, and i go to a co-ed school, from st anne's convent to sek men badlishah, all these memorable places are still located in a small town called kelang lama in kulim. do not ask me what it was, it might be too personal to mention here, that made me go from skinny to 'gundek'! yep, that was my nickname at the age of 19! its a cruel world out there! let me enlighten you, gundek is very crude tamil for fatty! oh, how you wish i would post some picture of me to show what gundek means here! oh, ya, you wish! and the older i grew, the bigger i got. i stood tall among my friends, not the tallest, but definitely tall and plus the fatty tissues, it wasnt a pretty sight, the bulges at mid-abdomen seen clearly in that white top and white skirt they made us wear all thru out form 6! ugh! but my personality never wavered, so i still got invitations to become someone's girlfriend! i was friendly, that was all. i wasnt slutty nor sexy, never knew how to be neither, back then and now! one of my many curses. but i was always friendly, to anyone and everyone. back then, i was out of any school teams, therefore had no exercise whatsoever. and then stpm results gets out and my life was downhill from there. not being able to get into a varsity with 3 principles, my dad comes in to rescue. he gets me out of kulim and my grandma's house, and puts me with him and my mom in penang. i grew up with grandparents and aunts, and had all the freedom. not to mention a little bit spoilt, being the first grand daughter and niece and all. my dad was very strict on me back then and we didnt have a good relationship. we had lots of fights in that one year i lived with him trying to get thru another year of stpm. but i thank him for every fight we had then, for it had shaped me for the future. and then i pass my stpm at han chiang high school in penang in year 1991. then comes the happiest day of my dad's life, i get accepted to university of malaya in 1992 intake, for a bachelor of science degree course. my dad packs my bag, drives me to um and leaves me at the entrance of third college of um. and before leaving he says to me, i have brought you to this place, now its up to you to make something out of your life. i will always remember that moment! the reason i stayed fat is all we did in campus was eat and sleep. oh yes, of course, and go for classes. at the end of my studies, i stood at 65 kgs on the weighing scale. upon leaving campus and finding a job, i met this wonderful guy, mahesh, who helps me by teaching me ways to lose weight and stay fit. for which i am forever thankful, mahesh! the diet was two slices of bread with polyunsaturated margarine and a cup of milo-o for breakfast, an apple and soya milk for lunch and again, two slices of bread with polyunsaturated margarine and milo-o for dinner. plus, an hour of exercise every evening, sit-ups, jumping jacks, stretching and 15-minutes jog. and that, ladies, is how i went from 65 kgs to 58 kgs in couple of months. kids, please do not try this diet without the consent of an adult. and this diet could only be followed for a month, the most, at one time. upon losing all that weight, i was obsessed! my paranoia begins. and i weigh 53 kgs now, but still paranoid. my friends tell me i have issues! since that day, i have not stopped working our or watching what i eat.
thus ends the story of how i could possibly make that run of 3.5 kms under 20 minutes and pass my physical test!
here, i need to go back a little in my life to write about my paranoia and how it began. i was skinny and fine during most of my teenage life. i pass my spm, and i go to a co-ed school, from st anne's convent to sek men badlishah, all these memorable places are still located in a small town called kelang lama in kulim. do not ask me what it was, it might be too personal to mention here, that made me go from skinny to 'gundek'! yep, that was my nickname at the age of 19! its a cruel world out there! let me enlighten you, gundek is very crude tamil for fatty! oh, how you wish i would post some picture of me to show what gundek means here! oh, ya, you wish! and the older i grew, the bigger i got. i stood tall among my friends, not the tallest, but definitely tall and plus the fatty tissues, it wasnt a pretty sight, the bulges at mid-abdomen seen clearly in that white top and white skirt they made us wear all thru out form 6! ugh! but my personality never wavered, so i still got invitations to become someone's girlfriend! i was friendly, that was all. i wasnt slutty nor sexy, never knew how to be neither, back then and now! one of my many curses. but i was always friendly, to anyone and everyone. back then, i was out of any school teams, therefore had no exercise whatsoever. and then stpm results gets out and my life was downhill from there. not being able to get into a varsity with 3 principles, my dad comes in to rescue. he gets me out of kulim and my grandma's house, and puts me with him and my mom in penang. i grew up with grandparents and aunts, and had all the freedom. not to mention a little bit spoilt, being the first grand daughter and niece and all. my dad was very strict on me back then and we didnt have a good relationship. we had lots of fights in that one year i lived with him trying to get thru another year of stpm. but i thank him for every fight we had then, for it had shaped me for the future. and then i pass my stpm at han chiang high school in penang in year 1991. then comes the happiest day of my dad's life, i get accepted to university of malaya in 1992 intake, for a bachelor of science degree course. my dad packs my bag, drives me to um and leaves me at the entrance of third college of um. and before leaving he says to me, i have brought you to this place, now its up to you to make something out of your life. i will always remember that moment! the reason i stayed fat is all we did in campus was eat and sleep. oh yes, of course, and go for classes. at the end of my studies, i stood at 65 kgs on the weighing scale. upon leaving campus and finding a job, i met this wonderful guy, mahesh, who helps me by teaching me ways to lose weight and stay fit. for which i am forever thankful, mahesh! the diet was two slices of bread with polyunsaturated margarine and a cup of milo-o for breakfast, an apple and soya milk for lunch and again, two slices of bread with polyunsaturated margarine and milo-o for dinner. plus, an hour of exercise every evening, sit-ups, jumping jacks, stretching and 15-minutes jog. and that, ladies, is how i went from 65 kgs to 58 kgs in couple of months. kids, please do not try this diet without the consent of an adult. and this diet could only be followed for a month, the most, at one time. upon losing all that weight, i was obsessed! my paranoia begins. and i weigh 53 kgs now, but still paranoid. my friends tell me i have issues! since that day, i have not stopped working our or watching what i eat.
thus ends the story of how i could possibly make that run of 3.5 kms under 20 minutes and pass my physical test!
Saturday, November 18, 2006
and then ...
the day i signed up for the space program, i get a call from my brother, visva, from home in kulim, kedah, telling me about the space program! my brother and i were very close growing up, we still are, although he's now married, with two adorable kids and all. we grew up watching star wars and getting all excited about luke skywalker and tiny hairy creatures! so, i told him i've beaten him to it and has already signed up. he says, good, get as many certs as you can out of it! i bet he didnt imagine the kinds of 'certs' i actually got out of it!
and of course, i told my dad about it too. and as always, he said, go ahead and try! my dad, my biggest supporter and fan, thats the way he is. the most liberated dad i've ever come across. my friends would vouch for that too! i thank him for everything i've achieved and who i've become today. thank you simply doesnt cut it, dad! you are, ultimately, the best!
first few weeks, i checked for mails from angkasa everyday. as days and months went by without a note, i went on with my life. quality engineer, with couple of technicians, and a bunch of quality issues with the making of many office furnitures. and the company of my colleagues! the best co-workers i've ever had in my ten years of adult working experience. they took the term co-workers way over its limits, and to this day, we're still close. let me just say, they wouldnt throw a party without me!
as you can see, i almost forgot about the space program as 2003 ended, and then 2004 ended. had an amazing vacation for two weeks in june 2004 in new zealand, middle earth and the land of the hobbits! new zeland is definitely in my recommend-to-all-to-visit country! simply enchanting.
i'm getting to it, people.
and of course, i told my dad about it too. and as always, he said, go ahead and try! my dad, my biggest supporter and fan, thats the way he is. the most liberated dad i've ever come across. my friends would vouch for that too! i thank him for everything i've achieved and who i've become today. thank you simply doesnt cut it, dad! you are, ultimately, the best!
first few weeks, i checked for mails from angkasa everyday. as days and months went by without a note, i went on with my life. quality engineer, with couple of technicians, and a bunch of quality issues with the making of many office furnitures. and the company of my colleagues! the best co-workers i've ever had in my ten years of adult working experience. they took the term co-workers way over its limits, and to this day, we're still close. let me just say, they wouldnt throw a party without me!
as you can see, i almost forgot about the space program as 2003 ended, and then 2004 ended. had an amazing vacation for two weeks in june 2004 in new zealand, middle earth and the land of the hobbits! new zeland is definitely in my recommend-to-all-to-visit country! simply enchanting.
i'm getting to it, people.
Friday, November 17, 2006
first blog, first post!
now, that was easy! creating a blog, i mean. many requested i do that to share my life changing experience, if you can call it that. so, here i am. having created a blog, or have google create it for me. i hereby post my first message.
shall i start from 2nd march 1971 (fateful day i was born), or shall i just start with the day i registered online eagerly for a chance of a lifetime of being chosen as an astronaut.
those were the days i proudly tell kamahraj, my dear colleague and friend at teknion furniture systems, that i do not read the newspapers for there's too much violence and bad news all over them that i do not wish to enlighten myself with. and he tells me to grow up. one of those days in the office, kamahraj tells me of this search for the first malaysian astronaut announced by our prime minister. and i ask him, what do i have to do? he says, lets go online and find out. and the rest is history!
we enrolled by giving our particulars, very few, such as age, race, education qualification and job. i got excited about it and told zaidi and nazif and probably got them to enrol as well! i think it was zaidi, our process engineer.
for the next week, we checked the website for any info, but all we got was how many thousands have enrolled themselves. kamahraj and i were probably the five thousandth two hundreth somethings...
and the numbers kept rising by the minute. very enthuasistic malaysians! very inspiring!
i had no idea what i was getting into, if i qualified to be an astronaut (if i qualified to be an astronaut?!) thats a laugh! who gets to wonder that at the age of 32? out of no where! thats how this program started for me. a dream! and today, it stays a dream ...
shall i start from 2nd march 1971 (fateful day i was born), or shall i just start with the day i registered online eagerly for a chance of a lifetime of being chosen as an astronaut.
those were the days i proudly tell kamahraj, my dear colleague and friend at teknion furniture systems, that i do not read the newspapers for there's too much violence and bad news all over them that i do not wish to enlighten myself with. and he tells me to grow up. one of those days in the office, kamahraj tells me of this search for the first malaysian astronaut announced by our prime minister. and i ask him, what do i have to do? he says, lets go online and find out. and the rest is history!
we enrolled by giving our particulars, very few, such as age, race, education qualification and job. i got excited about it and told zaidi and nazif and probably got them to enrol as well! i think it was zaidi, our process engineer.
for the next week, we checked the website for any info, but all we got was how many thousands have enrolled themselves. kamahraj and i were probably the five thousandth two hundreth somethings...
and the numbers kept rising by the minute. very enthuasistic malaysians! very inspiring!
i had no idea what i was getting into, if i qualified to be an astronaut (if i qualified to be an astronaut?!) thats a laugh! who gets to wonder that at the age of 32? out of no where! thats how this program started for me. a dream! and today, it stays a dream ...
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