Earth Hour 2011

Where will you be?

Me and my kids will be joining WWF celebrating Earth Hour at Sunway Pyramid tonight. Kids will be part of the Tree Theatre Group performing during the one hour lights off. I think we are on at 8.50 pm. Khadra, Khaleeq and Khaleeda are the Kecak-kecak kids. :) Sayang tough, can't tape them coz I'll be behind screen - handling one of the lights for the wayang kulit show. Kids can't wait. It'll be fun.

-dillz blogging out-

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

No Plastic Bag Every Saturday

Did you know that the state of Selangor has implemented 'No Plastic Day' on every Saturday ? What it means is that if you go shopping in the state of Selangor on any given Saturday, you will not be handed plastic bag(s) to carry your goods. If any plastic bag is needed, then you might be charged a minimal sum for it. So bagus, right? My response to that is, "About freaking time!" :)

For me, personally, I have been lugging my very own reusable bags since like a year ago. I have evolved from the bulky , fold-unfriendly green bags (and the blue cooler bags) from Village Grocer, as evident below:

To the eco-friendly, easy to fold and chuck into your handbag RuMe bags ( got it from Tiny Tapir, of course. :) ) I got two Medium bags in the Fall in NY 5th Ave and Spring in NY 5th Ave designs.

Picture from : here

Jangan marah ya dong! Jessica Alba spotted using the exact same design that I have - Fall in NY 5th Avenue. Sungguh precious! :) Hahahahaha ( Dasar perempuan kiasu. Tak nak kalah! Asyik nak pakai beg celebrity pakai aje. )

The plus point for me is that they are easily rolled to be chucked into my handbag. Three RuME bags can be rolled together too. So it gets me prepared for groceries shopping at any time at all. I normally use one bag for the wet stuff - chicken, sausages, vitagen, etc and the other for the dry stuff. To complement the two, I also have a indigo-coloured fabric netting bag to chuck all the other groceries in. So far they have been adequate and have served me well. Of courselah, when you buy pampers or boxes of tissues or big bottles of Softlan, no need to use the baglah! Just carry it loose. Kalau tak berapa banyak beg nak guna???

As taken from the RuMe website, by incorporating RuMe Bags into our everyday lives, we can do our part in reducing the estimated:

• 17 billion gallons of oil used annually to produce plastic bags
• 100 billion plastic bags Americans throw away after a single use
• And save more than a million birds and 100,000 marine mammals and sea turtles that die every year from eating or getting entangled in plastic

Wah! We can help the environment so very much by just bringing our own bags to do groceries. It doesn't matter if it RuMe or Jawi. (Lame joke, haha) As long as you STOP using the plastic bag for shopping.

Masih tak teruja? Go on. You know you want to already. Stop using that plastic bag already. Bring.Your.Own reusable bags. It's trendy and it helps the Earth!

If you feel like you'd like to increase the stylo factor, then please meet the "Mother of all Eco-friendly Shopping Bag" as dubbed by the Manilla Fashion Observer - Longchamps Le Pliage shopping tote.

Pictures from : here , here and here.

The medium size with Long Handle retails at RM530, y'all. Adoiiiiai!

Sekarang baru teruja, kan?
hihihihihi

-dillz blogging out-

On My Day Off

Updated! 7:00am the next morning

We ended up at the al-Rawsha Restaurant, Jalan Damai. (Read KOG's review on al-Rawsha)Rupa-rupanya we have been there before last fasting month. The kids already had their dinner prior, so they were busying themselves at the little playground they had. We picked a table nearby to keep an eye on them.

The food was great! We had chicken and lamb mandy (Yes, KOG, the receipt still said it was lamp mandy. :)) as well as some grilled whole chicken and humous. The serving was plentiful and the taste? Hmm.. Hmm.. Hmm.. Goooood!

Was so tired after the day adventure, everybody went home a happy camper. I was so tired, I opted sleep over report writing during my early morning session. ;)

********

Updated! 7:00pm

Finished my Pagi Morning Round with accomplishments of 66.7%. Started out kinda late so I did not get to the 'grooming' part. Already bought 5 movie tickets for Hannah Montana for the 1:45pm show at GSC, Mid Valley so I had to drop that visit to Saluga's. :( No matter, I was thinking that I could quietly slip that agenda back in the evening phase. All is not lost yet!

Anyhoots, saw quite some interesting kains at Mak Anjang's so I bought a few. Thought I could use them for Raya as well as for work and kenduris. It's been quite a while since I made any baju kurungs. Then I went to do my marketing and came back with a trolley full of good stuff. Abang yang tak bernama tersebut is seen pushing my loot back to the car. Notice the green bag and blue chiller bag? Yes, I am completely off plastic bags for marketing now. We reuse! (Must practice what I preach!)

Next, into my Afternoon Evening Round. First up was the Hannah Montana movie. (Picture credit: here)

Since we were running late, no Chili's. Only hot dogs and pop corns and Cheezels during the movie. Movie itself is sangat best, ok?Tolong pergi tengok.

Yes, even abang-abang and bapak-bapak pun would find it pretty entertaining. A lot of nice songs in between. There's even a shoe-fighting scene with Tyra Banks that you would not want to miss. Taylor Swift also sang one song. (I sooo like that girl. You know, that Love Story song is by her..) I also liked the line dancing for that "Do the Ho-down""Hoe-down Throwdown" song. (Not sure what it's called. Will check and rectify later*Updated*) Sangat comel. They have a little more of that at the ending credits too. Please wait for that!

Had some girlie fun a little later. Bought some hairbands, slingbag and bangles. Miss T is on sale! Then we made a move to Bangsar Village 2. Khadra and Teyta had their nails done for RM10 each! (Check it out at Glitters on the top most floor) I had the chance to squeeze myself a new dress for the Saturday night ball (Uuuu.. So posh!) and the much needed grooming. Hah! Finally! I am no longer hairy where I am not supposed to be! Yee-ha!

Have to zoom along now, our dinner is awaiting! Need to get myself and the kids ready! Stay tuned to know where!

******

Original post: 9:34am

Promised Khadra that I would take her to the Hannah Montana movie with her friends (bukan ramai pun - it's just her cousin Nelysa and their friend Harissa) as part of her birthday treat. So, tidak boleh tidak, I took leave today to make good with the promise. *Disclaimer untuk tengok Hannah Montana, sebenarnya. hihihi*

Since the day is long, here I am setting out the plan for the day. Roughly, it would go something like this:

Pagi Morning Round: Make a stop at Mak Anjang's shop to check out some new kain that came in (KIV untuk raya tak tahu tahun bila) and to pick up Khaleeq's mended baju melayu for this year's Raya. Then off to groceries to stock up on the kitchen inventories and maybe a quick dash to Saluga's for a much needed grooming. (You wouldn't want to know the specifics, I tell ya)

Afternoon Evening Round: Pick up Nelysa from Ziezi and meet Harissa and mom at Chili's Mid Valley for lunch. Then off to the movie show at 1:45pm. Maybe, jalan-jalan for a while around Mid Valley after that coz Ziezi said there's a good sale at Miss T. (and maybe some other places) You know, just some good girlie fun!

Malam Night Round: Want to take out my MIL to dinner. Tak tau lagi kat mana, a good Arab restaurant maybe - somewhere in KL. (KOG, need help here!)

Will probably update in phase by phase stage. Watch this space!

-dillz blogging out-

In Darkness and In Light

Date? 28 March 2009
Day? Saturday
Time? 8:30pm till 9:30pm

It was Earth Hour and we decided to turn off the lights in our home and take a more scenic route to my mom's house. The side-tracking got us to Menara TM (so proud of you, baybeh!), the top of Jalan Bukit Pantai (to catch a glimpse of KLCC and Menara KL), onto SPRINT highway and then LDP all the way to Puchong.

It's good to see all the major buildings turning off their lights for Earth Hour - we made a stop near Menara TM to catch it on our DSLR. Hubster got quite some good shots of it. (*Updated!*) We also tried to capture KLCC and Menara KL from a distance but the camera failed us; it was that dark! :)

Good job guys.. It's a start..

Alrighty then, one night is done, everybody (or so) turned off their lights for an hour. So, what next? While waiting for Earth Hour 2010, I was just wondering what else I could do to help save Mother Earth and found some Tips to Save the Earth as below:

1.Turn off your light: As my mom and dad always says, "Tutup lampu tu..." Ikut cakap orang tua, kay.. They know what they are talking about.. There's also those energy saving lights that are more expensive to buy, but in the long run can save you some bucks and save the Earth some life! If I could recall correctly, Maya Karin gave out the Osram energy saving lightbulbs as a trinket for her Malaysian wedding reception. How cool is that?

My mom-in-law, on the other hand, goes one better. She literally switches off every single equipment in the house that utilizes electricity everytime she leaves the house for a short visit to her children's place. (short = minimum of overnight stay) Yes, even the refridgerator is not spared. So, sweet, kan?

2. Running faucet: Everyone can do this coz it's soooo easy. You just need to be concious about it. Just turn off the running faucet when you brush your teeth or when you are lathering the soap for your facial wash. Apparently, if you leave the water running for two minutes, you waste up to ten gallons of water.

3. Carry cloth shopping bags: I remember those green bags to be only RM1.00 when they first introduced them some 2/3 years ago. Now, they are selling at RM3.50 (or more) but that's not the point here. The point is, when you use your cloth shopping bag, there is less and less need to produce the plastic shopping bags that are non-biodegradable. Non-biodegradable = BAD for the Earth.

4. Recycle: This is an old song to sing. "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.. It's easy to do..." Everyone knows that we can recycle paper, plastics, glass and aluminium. Thing is, it is such a chore to do, to separate your trash and stuff. Then, we'd have to pick it up ourselves to the nearest recycling centre. If it's too much for you to do, start small.. I am starting with my non-trash - my old magazines and oooooold newspaper.... There's a recycling campaign going on at the office and the first batch will be sent on 3rd of April 2009. Plus, every kg of recycleable item will be worth some sen. I might as well get some money doing it, eh?

Will leave you with a little video snippet of our night ride.. So, how did your night go?



-dillz blogging out-

It's Time to Switch OFF the Lights..

Have you guys heard of Earth Hour? Have any idea what it all means? I don't either, well, not really.. The little info that I have gathered from listening to the radio or watching the idiot box only tells me that it'll be cool to turn off the lights on Saturday, 28th March 2009 for sixty-minutes (i.e. 8:30pm till 9:30pm) After all, the celebrities are doing it...

To gain more insight and the what-to-dos, my first stop was at:
http://www.earthhour.org.my/main.php

The local celebrities featured in the Malaysian Earth Hour page include Sarimah Ibrahim, Sheeby Singh, Karam Singh Walia, Yasmin Ahmad, Syarifah Amani, Reshmonu, Sarimah Ibrahim, Zainal Abidin, Alex Yoong, Hans Isaac, Sazzy Falak, Aishah Sinclair, Daphne Iking, Susan Lankaster, Lina Teoh, Dafi (of AF fame) and I think I saw a glimpse of our first space-tourist too! What the hey.. I thought I'd join in the fun too, so I signed up instantaneously..

Thing is, this is not just a fun way to spend your weekend, guys. There is a serious agenda behind it. By turning OFF the lights at that specific time, on that specific day in any parts of the world, no matter who you are, you are actually VOTING for Earth. What does that mean, Voting for Earth, you might wonder, right? OK, let me try again..

In 2009, Earth Hour has been transformed into the world's first global election.
Who's contending? You either chose Earth, or you choose Global Warming.
How to vote? Switch off your lights: One vote for Earth. Do nothing, let the lights on as per usual : One vote for Global Warming.
Comprende?

Right, but SO WHAT? WWF is targeting 1 billion votes for Earth, to be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009. The meet is significat as it will determine official government policies to take up action against global warming, replacing the Kyoto Protocol. This is your time to make your voice heard.. Register and sign up at Earth Hour and turn off that light next Saturday! Please, please don't forget to sign up .. Every vote counts..
In preparation, I shall be shopping for some candles... Hmm.. Apa la nak buat dalam gelap ni.. Oh, Oh, Oh.. Just so you know, Menara TM is also pledging their vote. How cool is that? I just hope our society is civilised enough that penyamun penyangak tak take advantage and buat missi merampok besar-besaran masa tu. Please keep your homes secured as we pledge our votes, guys..

Remember;
28th March 2009, 8:30 - 9:30pm. For 60 minutes, switch OFF your lights..
That's all it takes (for a start..)

Earth Hour 2009 by WWF - Sign up for Earth Hour!

-dillz blogging out-