Spa Shopping Spree

So last night Ida and I went to CaVeNzI to select some furniture for the spa center. Ida was on "chummy chummy" terms with one of the salesman there, as she had bought most of her home furniture there also. As a result, we got quite a discount for the following items:

1. 2+3 sofa, for the manicure and pedicure/waiting area.
2. 3 coat hangers, to hang the bathrobes and for clients to hang their clothes.
3. 1 divider, to separate the waiting area and the activity/prayer room.
4. 7 shelf shoe rack, for clients to place their shoes and take the slippers before entering the spa.
5. 1 long wall mirror, dunno where to place yet but most probably in the activity/prayer room.

All in all, RM2+++ je. OKlah kot..now just to buy a few stuff for the pantry area and the office. Itu, kat Giant/Tesco?Carrefore je pun ok.

Tomorrow we'll be shopping for the jacuzzi, sauna and other "major" items for the spa. Hopefully we can get good discounts. It's been a a daunting process, researching all the items because this is our hard earned money we're using to buy all of these stuff. We're also looking for a nearby apartment for our staff, teh nearest so far is Koi Tropika. So if anyone knows of an apartment to let in Koi Tropika, please let us know. Thanks.

Also thanks to all my friends and family members who have shown tremendous support for the spa so far. I've received emails and sms's asking for vouchers for friends and officemates. You guys are the greatest.

Wanted: Photographers and Designers for IREE Touch

Sorry I haven't updated in quite some time. Been super busy, if not with work, then with work related to my new spa. Actually I don't like to call it a spa coz what we've got planned for it is so much more. We're IREE Touch, Post Natal Home Care Services, Wellness & Beauty Care.

A mouthful, right?

Anyway, Ida and myself have been meeting up everyday, talking about our business plan, our treatment packages, checking out beauty spa suppliers, surveying furniture, meeting with contractors, etc. It's been hectic but fun at the same time. I've been getting only 4 hours of sleep since Monday but hopefully it's only until our center opens.

Anyway, we're looking for people/designers to help us with our promotional materials, such as flyers, website and such.

As we have NO BUDGET to pay cash for these services, what we can offer is the following:
1. Free membership to IREE Touch, valid for 2 years.
2. 2 x Rejuvenating Full Body Massage (Free) worth RM160
3. 2 x Foot Reflexology (Free) worth RM90
4. 2 x Pedicure and Manicure + Henna (Free) worth RM120
5. 2 x Whitening and Hydrating Facial (Free) worth RM100

The above mentioned treatments can be taken at IREE Touch or at the comfort of your own home.

Any takers? Let me know kay? Can also email me at alongsj@yahoo.com. Thank you.

Come All and Rejuvenate

Dear Internet,

Yesterday was the start of a new beginning for me. I have decided to take a giant leap (with the blessing of beloved hubby) and take up partnership in my friend's health and beauty spa called IREE Touch. It's something I'm very interested in, actually can see myself contributing towards and perhaps..oh what a very big PERHAPS, doing full time after my contract with my company ends 2010.

As for now, the spa offers a range of services such as listed below:

1. Rejuvenating Full Body Massage (1 hour)
Normal Price: RM80.00
Discounted Price: RM50.00

2. Full Body Reflexology (1 hour)
Normal Price: RM90.00
Discounted Price: 50.00

3. Foot Reflexology (45 min)
Normal Price: RM45.00
Discounted Price: RM35.00

4. Pedicure & Manicure + Henna
Normal Price: RM60.00
Discounted Price: RM40.00

5. Whitening & Hydrating Facial
Normal Price: RM50.00
Discounted Price: RM30.00

We also provide post natal home care services, package customized according to the client's needs.

As our spa is undergoing renovation (the big launch shall be announced soon, insya'allah!!), we provide the abovementioned services at the comfort of the client's home. Just contact me at alongsj@yahoo.com or my partner, Ida Rafidah at 012-281 6016 to set an appointment. For those who live outside of the Puchong area, some transportation fee may be added on.

What can I say about this big leap I'm taking? For one thing, I just can't stop thinking about it. And in such a good way. In my heart I feel that this could only mean more positive things in life, insya'allah. Thanks so much to my friend for having the trust in welcoming me as her partner.

Why is Good Help So Hard to Find?

My maid is a dofus.

She's been with us for 4 months plus now and she's just as hopeless as the first day she arrived.

Cooking = hopeless. Unless I specifically spell out the menu of the day, the kids would either eat fried chicken or fried fish. Or fried chicken. Or fried fish. With vege. Vege soup. If she's really not in the mood, then just eggs. Bloodyhell!! Even with the teachings of my MIL (for months now), her menu is still the same. Even the girls, who are not picky eaters, are starting to complain. Boringlah bu, balik2 makan benda sama je.

I don't think it's because she can't cook. She has 2 grown kids already, come on lah. When I asked her whether she cooked for her family back home, she said "ada, tapi tak sedap." Masya'allah, from there we can see her reluctance to learn.

Relationship with the girls = strained. I don't want to boast, but my kids are pretty friendly. And they have manners. But with my maid, it's like the kids can just sense that she doesn't really like them. When I asked her if she had ever taken care of kids before (she claimed to have worked in Saudi for 5 years), she said, "saya jaga rumah saja."

Housecleaning = average. She claims she's only 40 years old, but then she admitted to my MIL that she had menopause a few years back. I suspect she's more like 47-48. She sweeps and mops the house every morning but that's pretty much it. I have to tell her to clean the windows, or clean the glass surfaces. Her dishwashing skills are also sub par; so many times have I found spoons and forks still greasy. Even my dad, who normally never complains, complained about his favorite cup still having coffee stains at the bottom. Sigh..kata pandai jaga rumah, takkan basuh pinggan pun nak ajar kot.

And today she did yet another stupid thing. She locked herself out of her room and couldn't find the key.

Luckily none of the girls were inside the room but Dania had to get ready for her Kafa school and all her clothes were inside my maid's room. I had to rush back home during lunch, despite having told my maid where to find the keys to the room.

When I got home, I found the key and turn the lock. Door = open.

"Oooo, putarnya ke kanan, Saya putar ke kiri."

Geramnya aku!!!!!

I don't think I can stand a year with my maid, what more 2 years. I've got to send her back soon and get a replacement. Ala, more money in the wind but what to do.

Takkan anak2 aku nak makan fried chicken manjang.

Trip to Kota Kinabalu - Day 3

Before this gets really stale, I better write down what we did on our last day in KK.

Day 3 started late. We overslept. Breakfast was gobbled up in a hurry because we had planned to visit the Sabah zoo, better known as Lok Kawi Wildlife Park. Dania had demanded to see the rhinoceros and hippo, though I seriously doubted we would.

We checked out from the resort at around 9.30am. Unlike our check-in experience, checking out was a breeze. We bid goodbye to the beautiful resort with a slightly heavy heart.

Getting to the zoo took almost 40 minutes. If you're coming from city center, head towards the airport and then keep going straight. Follow the signs saying "Lok Kawi" and soon you'll be seeing signboards that point the way to the zoo. The inner roads were kind of bumpy and we miss the entrance to the zoo once. Fortunately we hadn't gone far up the road so turning back just took us a few minutes.

The parking is quite far from the entrance which is kind of silly, so hubby dropped us off while he went to park the car. I bought the tickets (RM10 for adults, RM5 for children 3 and above) and then we entered.

It was already 10.30am by the time we got to the zoo so the weather was ultra hot. Before long, each of us were sweating bullets. I had my jeans on which made the whole visit a bit unbearable. There were not a lot of animals to look at, maybe a lot of them were taking a nap.

We did get to see some great elephants. They were so cute. One elephant came up real close and if you reached out your hand, you could juuuussttt touch the tip of his trunk. It was phenomenal.

We saw the orang utans but unfortunately we didn't get to see any up close, unlike what was advertised. We saw the usual animals you see in a zoo but unfortunately for Dania, we didn’t see any rhinos and hippos.

An hour later, the weather had gotten too hot to handle, so we headed back to the exit. While hubby went to get the car, the kids and I stopped at the souvenir shop to buy some fridge magnets.

From teh zoo, we headed straight to Terminal 1 to send back the car. Our flight was at 2pm so we had to be at Terminal 2 by at least 1pm. Fortunately traffic was ok and we made it to the airport in good time. After checking in, we spent a few minutes touring the airport and buying some much needed drinks.

Everyone was poofed thanks to the zoo trip so we all slept on the flight home. Fortunately we got a whole row of seats to ourselves so the kids were able to lie down and get comfortable.

We arrived at LCCT at around 4.30pm. Ibu was already waiting for us so we then headed back to my parents' home for dinner.

What did I think about Lok Kawi Wildlife Park? Eh. Oklah I suppose but it was just too hot for us to enjoy the animals. We probably should have started our trip much earlier. The elephants were wonderful but other than that, I think our visit to the Sunway Petting zoo was much nicer and educational.

Overall, we all had a great time in KK. I wished we could have stayed longer, maybe we could have enjoyed the city center more. We didn't even have time to buy any prawns! Oh well, maybe next time.

ps: can't upload any pictures yet so I'll edit this post later.

Car of the Future?

This is just so wrong on so many levels.

I am speechless.

Mid Life Crisis

I recieved this in my inbox from one of my colleagues. Made me chuckle. Hope you enjoy it.

***************************************************************************
When I was married 25 years, I took a look at my wife one day and said,

"Honey, 25 years ago we had a cheap apartment, a cheap car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a 10-inch black and white TV, but I got to sleep every night with a hot 25-year-old blonde."

"Now we have a $500,000 home, a $45,000 car, nice big bed and plasma screen TV, but I’m sleeping with a 50-year-old woman. It seems to methat you are not holding up your side of things."

My wife is a very reasonable woman.

She told me to go out & find a hot 25-year-old blonde, and she would make sure that I would once again be living in a cheap apartment, driving a cheap car, sleeping on a sofa bed and watching a 10-inch black and white TV.

Aren't older women great? They really know how to solve your mid-life crisis.

What Goes Around, Come Around

Today I found out my previous maid agent had passed away a few days back. She had cancer.

For those of you who can't remember, this was the agent who put me through this hell with her lying and scheming.

When I heard the news, that very bad part inside my head said all kinds of unnice things.

Then I remembered, death waits for no one.

There may be someone out there who has similar thoughts about me.

I hope not. Nothing would be worst than having people hate you till the day you die.

I'm taking this as a lesson; if you do bad things to people, takyah tunggu lama, Allah balas dengan cash sekarang!!

Whatever it is, I'm not that cold hearted.

Al-fatihah to my previous maid agent.

&%$#@*&^

Frustrated.

Don't want to think about it.

Reminders everywhere.

Yeah, congrats to you guys. I am not jealous.

If I get it...whatever.

If I don't....what else is new.

Auto pilot mode dude...auto pilot.

Overheard on the ERL

"Baby, remember the new computer game Mommy bought for you yesterday? The shopkeeper said it's not compatible with the computer so Mommy will buy you a new computer, ok?"

FYI, based on the rest of the conversation, I deduce that "Baby" is approximately 5-6 years old.

Huh...