One day affair in MSU
Unknown
I received a phone call from a friend, Haniza Harun (Za), some time ago. Both of us were in the same class during matriculation and we enrolled in the same course during the university days. We were very close then, however in recent years we rarely meet or speak to each other due to work commitments so the phone call was a pleasant surprise call me. However, the phone call was not just a friendly chat. Ada hajat rupanya. She is currently working in Management and Science University (MSU) and has just been appointed as Deputy Dean... Wow... Ain't that cool... Kawanku seorang Timbalan Dekan thumbs up. On behalf of the faculty, she would like to appoint me as an external assessor for one of the programs in the faculty. Yikes!!! surprise External assessor??? I don't even assess myself sometimes....Not to mention I broke some rules too... So boleh ke? Layak ke? Since the request was from an old friend, I thought, why not. Can test the water also... dengan harapan air yang diuji tak de buaya...big grin


So, a date was set for me to pay a visit to MSU. It was located in Shah Alam. An area that's quite alien to me alien. I can easily get myself lost in that area. Luckily a map was provided in the MSU's website. Quite a straight forward map. However, not satisfied, I obtained further directions from another ex-course mate, Asma Harun. And I think I was ready to 'redah je'...



So I made my way to MSU via Jalan Kuching through Federal Highway. Except for the traffic congestion along Jalan Kuching, the rest of the journey was uneventful. The map proved to be very reliable. I left home about 7.30 am and reached MSU 8.40 am. Pheww...whew! I know there are better and faster highways but I rather not venture into those highways. Lagi sesat barat kot nanti... And Haniza, upon knowing the roads that I took, she jokingly said...'Primitifnya kau...ikut jalan tu...' ha ha...laughing 



Anyhow, I settled down in the meeting room and started going through the curriculum content. Files and files of themat wits' end. Really, I can withstand teaching for a few hours but I hate matters related to documentation. May look simple but sometimes consume a lot of your time. Siapa la yang brilliant sangat fikirkan fail kursus, COPPA, COPPIA, APPA dan ntah segala macam lagi... BTW, don't be intimidated by the sight of the files. I was assigned to only half of those files.





Most of the time, I was alone in the meeting room and things tend to be boring and the cool draft from the air-cond made me yawn yawn. The documents are equivalent to bedtime stories, I tell you... And, I was supplied with loads of food drooling. Mujur iman kuat...winking






 
Then it was noon. For lunch, I met the Dean, who is a Datuk. He's a jovial guy and loves to joke. So, I felt comfortably at ease with him. We were joined by 2 other staff members other than Za. The Dean took us to a Thai restaurant and he ordered a lunch set which consist of white rice, tom yam (of course), chicken, squids, fish and dessert. My hands were itching to reach for my camera and snap a few photos of what we ate but was refrained by my control cool and control cun attitude...cool Kalau dengan Za je, for sure dah snap gambar.

After lunch, I interviewed a few of the academic staffs and as expected, they gave marvellous comments regarding their work and facilities there. Ye la... takkan nak ludah dlm periuk nasi sendiri kann...tongue I did not get the chance to interview the students which I look forward to actually. It will be very interesting to listen to what the students had to say regarding the curriculum. But they were not around. Apparently they extended (illegally) their CNY holidays...waiting

At the end of the day, after having tea (makan lagi...) and after receiving a token of appreciation, I headed home. I was advised by Za to take NKVE which will eventually lead me to DUKE. So I take her advice because I anticipated massive traffic congestion should I follow the same route which I used earlier in the morning. So after getting the directions from Za and feeling very confident, I went on my way.

After a few minutes of driving and entering a some kind of highway which I thought was NKVE, my confidence changed to panicnail biting. Because I saw buntings hanging from the lamp posts along the road which boast of Guthrie Highway and there's palm oil plantation alongside the road and I started to feel that I was driving away from civilization and the city center of Kuala Lumpur. I debated against stopping by the roadside and call Za because I know she got a meeting to attend and I hate to bother her. So I drove on, barely confident that the road will bring me to Duta Toll Plaza which I'm supposed to arrived at.

Then I reached a toll plaza. It was not the Duta but Elmina. What a foreign name. Wiki told me that it's the name of an oil palm estate. But I drove on trying to gather back my confidence and not to panic. Just when I wanted to gave up and find an exit to u-turn, I saw a signboard pointing to Kuala Lumpur. Wow... that was just like a light at the end of a long tunnel. So feeling confident all over again, I continued. But then when the signboards are all pointing to Kuala Selangor, Rawang, Sungai Buloh which actually deviate from Kuala Lumpur, the panic ebbed in again. Amidst the panic, once again I reached a toll plaza. It can't be Duta since I know the surroundings of Jalan Duta. This toll plaza is located in a middle of nowhere and no buildings on the side road. The name showed it is Lagong Toll Plaza. What!! Where the hell is this Lagong place? Tak pernah dengar pun. Takkan dah masuk negeri Perak kot... (I later found out from Wiki that it is a small town in Selangor).

Once again I thought I was doomed. I was like going up north when I was supposed to go south to Kuala Lumpur. The signboards are all pointing to the north-bound areas, Sungai Buloh, Rawang and Ipoh. Just when I decided, 'That's it!!' time out I'm going to exit the highway via Rawang and try to find my way back to Kuala Lumpur from there, the light at the end of the tunnel came again. Kuala Lumpur, the signboard says. And the rest was a breeze. More signboards with Kuala Lumpur were seen and I did reach Duta Toll Plaza and I did go into DUKE highway. And I reached home safely, Alhamdulillah, in 45 minutes. Phew...whew!. am I bad or am I bad in this direction thing... sheeshh... But at least lesser time than the morning journey... cheh... nak sedapkan hati konon...tongue
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1 Response
  1. Unknown Says:
    August 20, 2021 at 8:12 PM

    For some unknown reason, stumbled upon this blog. Read it to the end though.. (things i do during lockdown.. sigh)


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