How I Wished Digital Camera Was Invented Earlier - Precious Memories of Old Photos

30 September 2009, Wednesday (11 Syawal)

Time sure flies.  It's already the last day of September and only 3 months away to another new year.  And before we realised it, it's already the 11th day of Ramadan.

Today, I've decided to sift through the mountains of old, but precious photos that I have been keeping since time immemorial. I wanted to look for and scan my parents' photos before I look at the rest of the thousands of photos in my collection. And while I was going through the photos, I realised the importance and significance of photos. Each photo tells its own story.  Each photo tells us something about a part of history. Each photo captures a special memory, and each photo is precious in its own right.

Imagine the time when people of yesteryears were unable to capture their precious moments as cameras were not invented yet. 

So thanks goes to Alhazen (Ibn Al-Haytham), a great authority on optics in the Middle Ages who lived around 1000AD, who invented the first pinhole camera, (also called the Camera Obscura}.

And later, Louis Daguerre, who was the inventor of the first practical process of photography. In 1829, he formed a partnership with Joseph Nicephore Niepce to improve the process Niepce had developed, in what was termed as the birth of modern photography.

And with the advent of technology, the first digital camera was invented by Eastman Kodak Co. electrical engineer Steven Sasson. Sasson began work on the first digital camera under Kodak. Instead of traditional film, the camera used solid state imagers and a charged coupled device (CCD). In 1978, the work was patented by Sasson and his supervisor, Gareth A. Lloyd.

Kodak did not release the technology to the consumer market until 1991. The Kodak Professional Digital Camera System (DCS) matched a 1.3-megapixel Kodak sensor with a Nikon F3 camera body.

“The thing to remember about the digital revolution in photography is that it changed how we take pictures. The most important aspect of photography, why we take pictures, remains the same. Our memories are our most important possessions, and the job of this or any other technology is to enable us to make these vital parts of our lives easier and even more valuable,” said Sasson.

This statement couldn't ring more true as I looked at the mountains of old photos which I hope to digitalize soon.  I wish Sasoon had invented the digital camera much earlier........

Cough Mixture and Missing Buttons

29 September 2009, Tuesday (10 Syawal)

Today, I received 3 calls from my ex TESOL students (Javad Del Pazir from Iran, Siti Sobiroh from Indonesia, and Anthony Akhigbe from Nigeria), and it made my day. Coupled with these calls, I'm feeling a little better, in fact much better compared to the last 3 days.  My wheezing has eased somewhat and I can breathe a little better with all the medications my doctor have prescribed to me.

Last nite, I was coughing rather severely because I was still wheezing badly.  Despite persistent cajoling from my hubby, I had refused to take the cough mixture because I totally abhor the taste.

I remembered how my mum would force feed me those cough mixtures when I was young. She had to press my nose and force opened my mouth.  And as I grow a little older, she had to bribe me to take those mixtures.  I used to be very sickly when I was young, and that was the only way (bribery...) to force me to take medicines. I used to collect lots of coins from those bribes.......

And as I grow much older and was able to take medicine on my own, I had actually tricked my mum and along the process, cheated myself too, by pouring the cough mixtures down the sink. So, you can imagine my total abhorrence and hate affair with this medicine.  And till today, I'd rather take all the medicines in the world (no matter how bitter) but not the liquid cough mixtures.  Oh, why can't pharmacists invent cough medicines in pills or in tablets form????

And because I'm feeling a little better, I had decided to allocate some time sifting through my husband's closet to see which shirts need mending as he has been complaining incessantly that so many buttons had dropped from his shirts.

So, being a dutiful wife, and with time on my side, I had mended about 9 of his shirts with missing buttons and in fact had taken the trouble to reinforce some buttons which appeared loose.

I did not have such luxury previously as I had been busy with work.  In the past, it was my maid who had done such things.  But today, I feel proud and wonderful that as a wife, I'm able to indulge in such things again.

So dear hubby, from today onwards, I hope not to hear any more whining from you about missing buttons from your shirts. And stop harassing me about the cough mixtures.  No bribes would induce me to take that stinking and disgusting mixtures. Anyway, I  love you sayang.

The Many Faces of Ayah Wan Mahmood on his 86th birthday

28 September 2009, Monday (9 Syawal)

I'm very sure you'll enjoy these pictures (especially the captions) as much as I do.  I had a good laugh when I was putting these pictures together.

And at some point, I cried too as I looked at Ayah's photos, especially of the ones where he broke down.

Ayah, I miss you so very much.

The Many Faces Of Ayah Wan Mahmood On His 86th Birthday Part 1

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The Many Faces Of Ayah Wan Mahmood On His 86th Birthday Part 2

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Emptiness All Around

28 September 2009, Monday (9 Syawal)

Today, my house seems very empty after a week of activity.  Today, it's just me at home.  My husband is back at work after spending a week with me and our kids for Hari Raya.  Ina went back to UTM, Johor yesterday and that adds to my feeling of despondency.

Khairul and Khairi have resumed their classes at the University and school respectively.  And Khairil has gone to Malacca for site visit which is part of his job reckeeing for places to hold events.

So, I'm left all alone at home, nursing my bad flu, cough and wheezing. In fact this is one of the worse wheezing  I've ever suffered.

The wheezing had caused me a sleepless night last night. I had tried to sleep on my cervical chair but my neck hurt terribly. So I decided to prop up several pillows on the bed to enable me to breathe better, but that too, was no better.  So in the end, I had lain flat on my cervical pillow and managed to doze off only around 4:00 a.m.

I'm still wheezing and I hope it'll go away soon.Only people who suffer from asthma and breathing difficulty will know how hard it is to breathe when you have a bout of wheezing.

Ayah's Last Fish Head Curry Meal at Kampong Attap in Pictures

27 September 2009, Sunday (8 Syawal)

 

 

Till Death Do Them Apart

27 September 2009, Sunday (8 Syawal)

It was really poignant and heart wrenching to see my father-in-law who is suffering from dementia holding his wife's hands (my mother in law) as she lay in her death bed, gasping for air a day (17 September 2009) before she passed away (18 September 2009).

 

 

 

 

 

Imagine, these were the hands he had held tenderly when they were younger, when time stood still, when love conquers everything else.

And I recalled that Sunday, 6 September 2009 (3 days before my mother-in-law was hospitalised for urine infection that culminated in her death on 18 September 2009).
 
That day, my husband and I had taken my father-in-law to visit my mother-in-law and sister-in-law, Tini in Bangi. It's really sad that neither my father-in-law nor my mother-in-law recognised each other.

Imagine, they had been married for over 60 years and they used to be so lovey-dovey. And yet that day, there was no flicker of recognition between either of them. He used to hold her hands tenderly when they were crossing roads. He used to gaze lovingly into her eyes. He used to love her deeply. Yet, today they appeared like strangers.

One day, all of us are going that path too (what you call as dementia). And we just do not know when our life will be snuffed out, so before we pop our clogs, make hay while the sun shines.

Nebuliser and Nasi Ikan

26 September 2009, Saturday (7 Syawal)

Today, I had a bout of bad wheezing. My husband had to take me to our family doctor to use the nebuliser as I wasn't getting better despite using the inhalers. It's been a long while since I last used the nebuliser.  All along, my asthma has been very much under control with the inhalers prescribed by HUKM.

But for some strange reason, this time around, the attack was so so sudden and so severe. I have been resting and not doing much.

Later in the evening, my eldest sister, Kak Pah came by with my brother in law, Abang Man to send Nasi Tomato Ikan which she had cooked earlier, despite being ill herself.

Kak Pah, the Nasi Tomato is so good, really yummy and delicious.  THANK YOU so much.

Al-Patani Hari Raya Do@Putrajaya

25 September 2009, Friday (6 Syawal)

Today, the Al-Patani clan organised a Hari Raya do at my eldest sister's house in Putrajaya. It was attended by all the Wan Mahmood siblings including the grand children and great grand children, and was also joined by some relatives and friends.

This time around, Kak Pah decided that we should go potluck. So most of the Wan Mahmood siblings had chipped in with various types of food. And Kak Pah had plenty of help from her siblings, niece, nephew and son.

Hari Raya gathering at Putrajaya on 25 September 2009

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Noraihan, my niece and I decided to contribute Steamboat dish.  I prepared the soup and home made fish ball, stuffed ladies finger and stuffed chillies, whilst Rehan bought all the other stuff for the steam boat (various types of vege, squids, and all the fish cakes).

 

Ocah contributed marinated beef for grilling and potato salad, while Kirah cooked daging masak hitam.  Abang Jen had brought BIG shrimps which were used for both the grilled dish as well as steam boat. Kak Ida had prepared jelly.

 

 

 

And kak Pah, the host had cooked Mee Siam and Kuey Teow, where the latter was cooked on the spot for all the ravenous guests.

 

Thank God, I had prepared beforehand most of the stuff for the steamboat.  Once I reached Putrajaya, all I needed to do was to start cooking the soup with all the ingredients I had prepared earlier.

Just after we left my house in Cheras, I had started to feel like I was coming down with flu and a bad throat. True enough, once I reached Putrajaya, I had started to sneeze and my throat became really bad.

After cooking the soup, I had gone up to lie down as by that time, I had a runny nose and my head was pounding and was feeling feverish.

By the time, I came down to the living room, after maghrib prayers, I also had swollen eyes, which I believed could be attributed to my condition. The flu had really floored me. Suffice to say, the rest of the night was a nightmare for me.

I didn't really pay attention to what was happening around me and wasn't even aware who had arrived.  I was oblivious to the surrounding as I was feeling miserable. It was fortunate that Khairina had taken many shots of the Hari Raya do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just as we were ready to leave the house, Kirah had demanded that I joined in the photo shoot with the Wan Mahmood siblings, so I had acquiesced as it is a rare occasion that everyone is ever present during any of our gatherings.  I must have looked a sight, with my bloated face, swollen eyes, and runny nose.  Thank God, the photos were taken from quite a distance.

 

 

 

 

Soon after the Wan Mahmood siblings/in-laws' photo shoot, my family was one of the first to leave my sister's house as by that time, I had also started to wheeze badly and all I wanted to do was to go to bed and hit the pillow.

I did not salam anyone as I was worried about passing the flu bugs to them, so I quietly left my sister's house and hit home.It was a huge relief to be back home given my condition.

Till we meet again at the next Al-Patani gathering, which I believed will be held at my eldest brother's house (Fusil) in Subang Jaya.