Laptop! O Laptop!

Assalammualaikum!

:)

Yes! Yes! I hv been rather "dormant" for a reasonably long time.
Not to say I was too busy, or was dry of idea, it was just that I didn't have the "wind" (@ angin @ mood) to write. :p

So, let me just write what I did this weekend. :)
(As if anyone is interested, heh..)

Anyway, those people who know me enough, will know that I've bought a new bright pink TOSHIBA netbook. And my 2 year old ACER laptop was unofficially given to my younger brother.
After less than a year, that ACER laptop was already dying. He's been using it EXTENSIVELY to download anime like Naruto and Bleach. Until one day, there was no screen displayed. We can only use it by connecting it to the tv using cable. And due to my packed schedule, I had no time to look for the "treatment" yet.

And thus, I left it for months in the bag.
Then, couple of months ago, I suddenly remembered it!
And I took it out, tried to do a recovery (I cant reformat bcos I do not have the Vista installation CD).
With the recovery, I successfully incidentally DELETED my brother's collection of anime and his Gua Mulu Expedition pictures. And he was definitely unhappy with me. But, the screen was still blank.

And thus, I left it again in the bag.
Until sometime mid this week, I remembered about it.
And decided to bring it to Low Yat for treatment.
Now, it cannot even be switched on.

So yesterday Saturday 25th Sept 2010, I embarked on a journey to Low Yat with my brother, to search for a possible way to resuscitate my poor laptop.
Initially, I planned to go for on an adventure to Shah Alam, finding a place I've never been to in S.A but due to some reasons, I decided to KIV the trip; re-re-re-considering it.

As we reached Low Yat, both of us were blurr, and I was more so. I've never repaired a laptop there, but I bought my handphone, and repaired it there, and experience told me that most of them there are out to get our money with the lowest service they can give. My motto was: "We are bound to be cheated here, we just have to choose the place that cheat us less.";p

And when one Indian man waved and called us to come into their shop to repair my laptop, I was scared, and more so when I realised the shop was FULL with Indians. They were not Malaysian Indians, they were Indian Indians. Most of them can't speak Malay and spoke only basic English.

I showed my laptop, and told him it can't be switched on. He took out his own electric cable and after connecting it with my laptop, and still can't be switched on, he did an AMAZING thing; diagnosing my laptop; "MOTHERBOARD PROBLEM".
Oh man! I felt like shrieking, he hasnt even investigate ANYTHING, but dared to jump to the most expensive diagnosis! Change motherboard? As far as I know, it'll be better to just buy a new laptop!

So I asked him to check again, and this time, he changed my battery. And it can be switched on! Without the screen though. After connecting it to another monitor in the shop, he diagnosed again, "LCD Monitor Problem". And it'll cost me RM450 to change LCD monitor, with only 1 month warranty. Anyway, I slashed the price to RM300 (which I think can still be slashed). But seriously, that was the first shop I visited, I would want to go other shops as well, and see what price can they offer me. And when I told them I wanted to go other shops, they offered to do another investigation; to see if it's the LCD or the graphic card.

Thus, they cracked open my laptop and then only they made the correct diagnosis, graphic card problem. To change a new graphic card, will cost me RM450 with 2 months warranty, to repair the old graphic card, cost me RM150 without warranty. I chose to ask them to repair the old one, instead of buying a new one. Ugh, fishing out RM450 is painful!

After one hour, they called me saying my laptop was ready.
But it wasn't! I tried to restarting it, but the screen just wont appear. Some times, after many attempts of restarting it, the screen will appear. Thus, I asked them to re-check. After almost an hour, they repaired it. And then now, it can be switched on like normal.

And then, I noticed that my sound device isn't working, the security centre wasn't too. And when I brought that matter to him (by then I was already used to this Indian man that I dont think he's a bad cheater), he tried to do another recovery for me.
But guess what, even my recovery function was corrupted! Basically everything in my laptop were corrupted. And he offered to install a new Windows 7 and some other softwares for me, for RM30. I'll jump into it if it weren't for the RM30. Being desperate, I asked him to proceed and negotiate the price after everything is done. And I spent another 2.5hrs there. In other words, I've berkampung-ed in his shop, and that put my Shah Alam adventure away. I was thinking of going there after this Low Yat trip but by the time he started installing things for me, was already 7.30pm!

At almost 8.30pm, he showed my almost as good as new laptop (I would like to think of that way), with Windows 7 Ultimate and Microsoft Office etc. And I paid only RM100. Heheh... I managed to put up my 10sen face and get cheaper price. Well, I had to pay RM10 for parking though. :(

From what I know, India has a very good computer technology but unfortunately, there aren't enough job opportunities for the graduates there. I believe that was the reason they started coming over here to Malaysia, the prosperous land. There have been an increasing number of Indians opening computer shops, buying, selling and repairing PCs in Low Yat when once this industry was conquered by the Chinese. And these Indians again I state, are not from Malaysia, they are from India. Well, I dont mind as long as they do not pose any threat to us, it's good to have more experts in repairing computers over here. :)

Breaking Fast

Errk, the post title sounded like "Breaking Dawn". But nevermind. :p

To me, breaking fast after a whole day of fasting especially in Ramadhan is not only a blessing, but is also an event, a memory which I cherished so much that I'll always want to celebrate it with my family, and the people I love. It had become a meal that I look forward for, not just to eat but as a family gathering. A daily blessed, sweet family gathering.

At home, we practise eating together, as in having dinners usually, (as almost everyone is home then) together on one table. And breaking fast together is an even more anticipated moment. When I was smaller, I used to sit in front of the TV with my siblings, and each of us will have our own glass of water in hand. As soon as the Azan heard, we recited Doa and drink, together. It was almost like a game to us, doing it synchronously. After that we will all rush to the dining table for real meal. Now, we don't sit with glasses in our hands anymore but rather just rush to the dining table once the Azan is heard. But it is still fun.

Makan! Makan! :)

The dishes are always good, Alhamdulillah. And this one whole month of Ramadhan is the only time we will have sweet drinks everyday without fail. During normal dinners, all of us drink only plain water, unless either one of us felt extra hardworking and decided to make us a drink or, my mother instructed us to. :p
It is a celebration, yes it is. Breaking fast with beloved ones to me, is a daily celebration which I'll never get bored of.

Celebrating our success of refraining ourselves from doing certain things for one whole day, with family is truly a blessing. I regard breaking fast highly, not for the eating part but for the being TOGETHER part. And another family tradition is, we will go to relatives' houses for break fast. And we will all bring our own dishes. It's not exactly like a potluck, the host will prepare the main dish, drinks etc. Guests will bring whatever they wanna bring; fruits, desert, ice creams, cakes, whatever they can grab from their houses, or supermarket, just as a matter of courtesy. It's okay not to bring anything at all but, it feels better when other people eat what we brought.

Years ago, we had this Grand Break Fast with my 3 uncles and they decided to eat in an Arab restaurant. :) What an experience! Imagine little kids (3 uncles with 4 kids each) running around, adults catching up with each other, roaring into laughters. My my, I love events like that. Though we do once in a while eat together, breaking fast somehow made it all sweeter. :)

And so, last week was our Grand Break Fast for this year. Even my uncle from Kuantan is coming, and this time we're holding it in my first uncle's hse in KL. I really anticipated it, I miss my little cousins, my aunts, and the laughters that erupted whenever they start chatting. But my class ends at 6.30pm! Grr.. To get into KL at that hour will be a frustrating experience! I don't really mind the traffic if it was any other day but, on a fasting day? On the day I want to hear the Azan with family and rush out of fun to the dining table?

Lucky enough, class ended slightly earlier, around 6pm and I ran for my life to the parking space. I'd have driven like mad if it weren't for the traffic. How fast can you go when there are millions other cars on the road with you? Ok,I was exaggerating but still, I want to be there as fast as I can. I wanna help setting up the table with aunties. I wanna see the tired faces of my uncle. And most of all, I want to be there when the Azan starts. (Ok,for those who do not know, an azan i.e call for prayers at dusk marks the end of the fasting day).

Fortunately, I drove a Kelisa, a Malaysian version of Mr Bean's car and that made it easier for me to go between bigger cars. And when there was a police car, with sirens on forcing other drivers to give way for them, for a split second of my life I swear I had that terrible urge of following behind the police car so that I can be in the faster lane. But I didn't. I was afraid the police might scold me (hah, I can already imagine the police stopping me at the roadside and nag at me :p) or if the police suddenly brake, I'm sure I will bang their bumper. So, I decided to be that good driver, abiding the law of the road. :p

Bumble Bee run! Run! I need to reach my uncle's house asap!

At 7.00pm, I was still stucked in the traffic in Maluri Cheras. I really really wished my car can suddenly have wings, spread them out and fly me! Or even tranforming into a BumbleBee for 15mins is enough.

I called my mum to tell her I was still on the road, and I can hear my uncles' voices from the background, they were all asking which route did I take and where am I. Not only that, I even hear the screams and laughters of the little cousins, which made me feel awfully miserable in the car, alone.

And approximately 20 mins later, when I heard the azan from the radio in the car, I felt so sad that I almost cry. I was so disappointed, not only I can't break fast with the people I love, I don't even have any food to break fast with in the car. By then, the coast was already clear and I sped to the house. Lucky enough, my arrival was celebrated and it sort of compensated for the awfulness I felt. My uncle sang selawat as I walked into the house, and my mother gave me her glass of water to drink, aunties saying "Pity you, pity you...". (be assured, I did not really cry)

But of course, there's always the rainbow after a rain. The happiness of spending hours with family had successfully displace the sourness I felt in the car, just like aspirin displacing bilirubin from plasma protein. Oh crap, lame joke!

We are one BIG Happy Family
:)
♥

And yes, I really would like to break fast with all the people I love &hearts in this world, family or friends.
:)

-AkMaR-
Thursday 2nd Sept 2010
9.17am