Facebook and Gmail chat emoticons

Don’t you just love facebook chat? I know I was pleasantly surprised when I first saw that bottom toolbar, with the little green dot and a list of my online friends. I knew too that that day was my downfall, when facebook will forever be ingrained on my laptop. I can already see that blue bar, with the small white innocent “f” at the top lefthand corner, burnt on to the screen. Ditto for gmail, and the gmail chat.

Imagine then my little delighted yelp of “oooooohhh!” when I discovered the extra chat emoticons for both facebook and gmail. No longer will I be constrained by the standard smiley faces; I now can show my superiority better express myself to my friends by using these hidden emoticons! Hey, we all need our little bit of power and ego boost 🙂

So, with the risk of losing all that hard-gained smugness, I will now share this little bit of info with you, dear readers.

For facebook emoticons, click here. And over here for gmail ones.

Pelajaran di Ramadhan (A Life Lesson)

I received the following story in my inbox a few days ago. I’m not one who usually do “forwards”, but I think this one is not something that should be kept to myself. I do not know whether the events really took place, but the moral of the story does ring true. Apologies to those who do not speak Indonesian/Malay… when I find the time, I will post a translation. It’s long, but definitely worth reading.

“Bermegah-megah telah melalaikan kamu, sampai kamu masuk ke dalam kubur, janganlah begitu karena kelak kamu akan mengetahui, janganlah begitu kelak kamu akan mengetahui akibat dari perbuatanmu dengan pengetahuan yang yakin, niscahya kamu benar-benar akan melihat neraka Jahiim dan sesungguhnya akan melihat dengan ainulyaqin, pada saat itu kamu akan ditanyai tentang kenikmatan yang kamu megah-megahkan di dunia” (At Takatsur)

Bocah aneh menghendaki bercahayanya hati manusia

Bocah itu menjadi pembicaraan di kampung Ketapang. Sudah tiga hari ini ia mondar-mandir keliling kampung. Ia menggoda anak–anak sebayanya, menggoda anak- anak remaja di atasnya, dan bahkan orang-orang tua. Hal ini bagi orang kampung sungguh menyebalkan.

Yah, bagaimana tidak menyebalkan, anak itu menggoda dengan berjalan ke sana ke mari sambil tangan kanannya memegang roti isi daging yang tampak coklat menyala. Sementara tangan kirinya memegang es kelapa, lengkap dengan tetesan air dan butiran-butiran es yang melekat di plastik es tersebut.

Pemandangan tersebut menjadi hal biasa bila orang-orang kampung melihatnya bukan pada bulan puasa! Tapi ini justru terjadi di tengah hari pada bulan puasa! Bulan ketika banyak orang sedang menahan lapar dan haus. Es kelapa dan roti isi daging tentu saja menggoda orang yang melihatnya.

My faith in humanity

My faith in humanity has been restored!! Granted, I’ve always been the eternal optimist, benefit-of-the-doubt sort of girl… But it’s good to know that my natural state of being has its support from the external world.

I have been a big fan of Kiva since a friend introduced me to it. It is basically a lending website, where individuals from across the world can make a direct loan to an entrepreneur (in the developing world) of their choice. So each lender and entrepreneurs have a profile, where the entrepreneur details the amount needed, what it will be used for and the repayment plan. In short, it is the gateway between the hundreds of microfinance NGOs on the field, with the thousands of potential lenders in the world who are sitting comfortably at their house sipping Starbucks coffee (e.g. me and you)!

The good great news is this: Kiva is all loaned-up! Yes, all loans requests have been funded, i.e. the lenders have given full support to the entrepreneurs who are trying to lift themselves out of poverty! Indeed, Kiva is apologizing for the lack of loan requests available as they are being funded very quickly. It seems a lot of people still care… It is a good world 🙂

Ramadhan for kids

My friend introduced me to the wonderful world of Upin and Ipin yesterday, and so I thought I’ll share it with the greater world. Apologies though to those who do not speak Indonesian or Malay, as the show is shown in that language only.

In short, Upin & Ipin tells the story of two brothers as they learn about Ramadhan (the Holy Month for Moslems). The story line, though quite predictable for anyone who is familiar with Ramadhan’s basic tenets, is narrated by the twin brothers in a simple and clear animation style. It is about their first fasting experience for Ramadhan.

Upin and Ipin are bald, big-eyed 5-year-old twins. Upin is the elder of the two, differentiated with a twirl of hair on his head. Ipin is obssessed with fried chicken, and will either be holding one on his hand or dreaming about it.

The two characters are well defined and are very endearing. Their direct questions, (natural) rebellions and learning process create an easy platform for those who wish to learn about Ramadhan and also create some funny moments. I think the creators have really pinned down the average kids’ first encounter with Ramadhan: trying to learn, understand and do it. (From their website, I found that the show has been bought by a Turkish tv channel, so I suppose Upin and Ipin’s story is not unique to the Indo/Malay culture)

For more information, you can visit their website or see their show on YouTube (1st and 2nd episode, here). I have uploaded the 1st and 2nd episode below. You can see YouTube for all other episodes.

Hope you enjoy it!