So, here we are, without further honey dew... (you see, I am trying to be funny here, though it doesn't work all the time)
......let's go to the details of what's inside my bag.
Happiest news: I bought a new bag! It's Loius Feraud Paris - I don't even know what brand it is, but it's good - I love it to the max. The feeling to it is just... eccentric, and I have yet to see anyone using this bag - it's not a well-known brand for sure. For some reason I love it like that.
I got this bag as a reward for myself - for being who I am. (whatever, I just bought a bag, full stop)
The front zipper is interesting. It's huge.
The whole texture of this bag makes me believe that the contents will be safe from water, dust, visibility, nosy people (because it's dark inside, and it's rather deep...which makes it dark and deep.), and of course from a simple slash of the pen knife - which is normally done by the shallow minds...you know, those people who are too lazy to work, and are always looking for shortcuts to get what is not theirs. Shame on you, thieves. Shame on you.
The strap is pretty tough looking too. It also feels like it will not be easily cut through - of course I could be wrong, because there are many samurais out there which are seriously sharp.
Oh... another thing! I can use it as a handbag, or a backpack purse. Ngiahahahaha. I'm loving it!
This is the back of the bag - It's always a plus to have a little zipper at the back, even though my current phone is too big to fit in there. This little zipper will always be the nearest to my body - it gets to feel my body heat the most. I'm not saying that I should hatch an egg in there - I'm just letting you know that I would probably keep my notes in there - so that you can't steal it from me. Hey only kidding!
This is the inside of the bag. Not as deep as dark in this picture, and definitely not as mysterious or as interesting as I had put it earlier, but whatever. This is only a picture. You may come to me and ask to have a peek inside it, to feel how deep and dark it is. To my useless defense, this picture was taken with flash - giving it some brightness and hopes for the future. I had to use the flash. Our house is dark - but not deep. It's just dark and cozy - just the way we like it.
Moving on to the contents.
Here, you may see that I have a whole load of things. And I also know what catches your eyes first. It's the word "Adultery" there, isn't it? Seriously, this is one of the books with a very misleading title. The book is filled with innocent phrases and lessons. It is also educational. Now that I know in Switzerland, people are known as unfriendly but they actually do talk to each other in the buses. Amazing, is it not? Initially I was quite embarrassed to read this book in the open because it looks like a full-swing sex book, but it's really not. There's no detail in making love, even. It's not dirty - not at all. The author who got really famous because of his Al Chemist really did try to put in an effort in making us feel like we are cheating (adventurous in that sense), but it really isn't working. Well, apart from the meaningful lines the author puts in, there really isn't much which intrigues me. I need to finish it anyway - I'm already half way through! I need to get the alchemist, since there had been many praises about that book. This is the challenge these authors need to face. They write a really good book, and their good book is compared to all the others written by them. I feel sorry for them, but I don't feel for them. Duh, I don't have a book published, at all. Not even close. Ha, Ha, Ha.
Gosh I spent so many lines about the book.
Okay, for the Muslims, they will immediately recognize what this is - it's my prayer mat. It's only for the Sujud - the part where my forehead and my nose need to touch the "ground" or the prayer mat. That's why I only need to have the small one. I know it's supposedly irrelevant, but it's for hygiene purposes. I use the Shoebag (clean one, of course, from a hotel in Ho Chi Minh City) to keep my praying mat and the praying veil - the top one, because I can easily get any bottom one at any praying room.
I am indeed a sinner, and I know I can't ever be perfect - I will keep sinning (Please no...) but I am trying to improve, to have my sins reduced - to be forgiven.
You know, before I was a Muslim, I criticized people whom I had known to pray 5 times a day - but acted like barbarians... I used to say this: What's the point praying if they know that they are going to sin again? What are they trying to prove?
Until I am a Muslim myself - then I know that Muslims pray because:
1.) It's the command of Allah - who are we to argue that?
2.) Faith needs to be constantly renewed all the time
3.) We need to ask for forgiveness all the time... all the time. Whether our sins are forgiven or not, that's entirely up to Allah S.W.T.
One of the reasons I got the bag was that it is big enough for me to fit this essential in.
This book was a gift from my dear husband, before I got married to him. I was already a Muslim then, but a new one. It was in year 2012 that he bought me this book. I remember the year because I remember my 2 cute ex-colleagues ( one guy and one girl - they were in one of my best memories in my previous company, and that year, we were in a fast track program in becoming young managers. Not that young - I meant junior in position ) were sort of arguing what I should have been doing.
Guy: Sepatutnya, bukan baca yang ni dulu. (You're not supposed to read this first).
Girl : Biarlah dia baca ..... (Let her be.. let her read it first)
Guy: Yang ni bukan basic...( This is not the basic step )
Girl : Tau... tp jangan la halang dia baca yang ni... ( I know it's not, but don't restrain her from reading whichever she wants first )
Okay, the guy was implying that I should have gone into the basic understanding of Fardhu Ain first - to understand what Islam is all about first. But I was clueless as to what he meant, of course. I thought this book was supposed to be simple for me. It was in English, and it was easy to bring around. But back then when I tried reading this book, I still couldn't understand it. I guess the guy was right. His name was Helmi. My other ex-colleague was Aishah. I miss them. I miss the past, where I could have so much fun without being judged as not being serious. I mean, as we grow older, we are naturally expected to be just as responsible, just as serious as how adults are supposed to be, and to be as serious as we are supposedly supposed to be. With the bunch in my previous years, we could laugh as hard as we wanted because we were still young and we were only trying to climb the ladder to be among the middle top.
Anyway, I had then left this book at the shelf until recently when I picked it up and tried reading it again. Now that I understand the basics...gosh, it is a super good book with great contents - it contains translation of Al- Fatihah, and because of this book, I was able to memorize what Al- Fatihah meant. Before this I tried searching the meaning on the web ( of course I meant Google ), and even copied them down, but I just could not have it stuck in my head. Now I have memorized almost what every line means.
May Allah bless my dear husband for getting me that book. Such a small book but the cost is RM 18.90. We got it at Borders at the Curve, Damansara. In the evening. I remember so much! Hehehe.
Now this precious wallet is a gift from my Mother In Law. I just call her Mak. She got this from Australia in December 2013. She said it was on sale, so it was crazy cheap, but I don't care. I love it!!!! I'm quite fond of this Texas brand - it's like a dream come true when I got it from Mak. This thing looks really tough - it still looks new for some reason, and there is no way I am getting another purse. It looks like I can use this wallet until the end of time.
Okay, I have a calculator inside my bag. I need to have one.
I am not a natural calculator. Some people can just count in their head - out loud or not... and get the answer. I guess the most I can count inside my head is 8 - 2 = 6. Nah, just kidding, but I am humble that way. Kidding again.
To be very honest with you, and with myself, this device which had been given to me by an ex-colleague in 2012, has been with me ever since, and it has done me such a good...deal. I use it to calculate my loans, imaginary money, salary, over time claims... age (yea, you read it right)... and whatever that is needed to be calculated. When percentage is involved, I am dead. You can only stare into my eyes like they're the black hole. I'd be totally lost like GPS Signal Lost on repeat.
My adorable friend (Keen Keen) , whom I had recently met during our breakfasting get-together asked me, "WHY do you need a calculator in your bag? You have a calculator in your phone, right?" I was a little flabbergasted in the question - because it's like asking a person..."Why do you have a notebook in your bag, when you can just write down every note in your phone."
Oh well, it was a good question because it made me question myself too. I wanted to say: I love keyboards - but that would make me sound like a lunatic - even though I didn't mind it, because we were all lunatics. Hahahahaha. So, the more practical and logical answer would be - Just in case my phone dies. But, oh well, I don't think I even got to the answer part before the topic changed.
How I miss my friends!
Next is this cute bunch of keys to paradise. I love how the colorful key head holders are. I got them really cheap from the ever so famous Mr. DIY. Go get yourself one! It's a very convenient thing to have, and it adds no weight. Of course it does at some point, but the functionality really overwhelms the very little weight.
1.) It's colorful, so it's quite easy to find, even inside the deep and dark handbag.
2.) The rubber is easy to feel, especially when I can't see inside the deep and dark handbag.
3.) Your hands / fingers won't hurt when you twist the keys to open doors or locks.
Seriously. Go get one! It's less than RM5. (I can't remember the exact price)
LIP ITEMS
These are for my lips. The longest stick (Megastick- Wet and Wild) called the Balm Stain, is just cool. It's given to me by my best friend 2 months ago, and I have been using it ever since.
The sphere thing is a lip moisturizer. Extremely cute. Smells good too, you know?
The silver colored one is just a wrongly bought lipstick from Silky Girl.
SKIN ITEMS
Next come these items. I love them.
The Cocoa Butter Oil by Palmer has helped me during my chicken pox in 2010, therefore it's kind of like my savior to my skin. If you'd like to see how I had looked like during the chicken pox time, please leave a comment. Just kidding. No one reads this. This blog is just so forever alone, but I love it that way.
And the BB Cream or the BB Stick is just great for every day use, though I only use it when I remember to use it.
The Enchanteur is a great product - I love the smell. I wanted to get the Mon Amie, but it was not the turn for the batch to arrive, as told by the Guardian salesgirl. I got this lotion for just RM1 because it's the smallest you can find on the planet. It's supposed to be given for free as a sample, but everything just needs to be charged somehow.
This one is my mirror. It was given to me by my husband...He won this during one of his training back at work in 2014. I think it's the most convenient mirror I have ever had in my entire life. Oh well, the size is just nice, and it's not heavy at all.
These are just - you know what they are for.
That 4Fingers wet tissues are probably never going to be used, unless I'm somewhere in the jungle, or after eating a messy burger in the middle of the desert. It holds simple but sweet memory for me. I got it from the restaurant in Singapore, when I went to visit my best friend, Julie. My husband was (and is) just so nice to let me go to Singapore on my own.
Tissue is such an important thing to carry around. Forget the feminism or whatever you call it. Think about the practicality of it. It's super useful in ALL situations.
CLEANING ITEMS
From top, clockwise.
1.) Shampoo - but it acts as my cleaning agent, just in case I need to wash my hands, or my legs...
2.) Soaps - back then we used to go unexpected road trips. When we did so, we sometimes went too far (location), so during the night when we needed to crash somewhere with the lowest expenditure ever (a super cheap motel without soap for shower, or at the R&R). Here's the history of the soap - it just becomes a habit.
3.) Toothbrush - rather convenient, don't you think?
4.) Gel Sugi (or the miswak gel)
EYE ITEMS
For my eyes - Honestly, I SELDOM, almost never use any of these. The Maybelline mascara is waterproof - I can only conveniently wear mascara when I am on my menses (which means I will be excused from praying). Otherwise it's a mess and it's a trouble for me to take them off my eyelashes. I don't know how many minutes will be needed. When I do it too harshly, I tend to peel off my own eyelashes. They are already almost non-existent, man!
The eyeliner from Silky Girl is a disaster. I don't really know why I still have them. I guess this blog will help me to stop buying Silky Girl eyeliner. It's not costly, it's true, but the quality comes with the price. I would still buy the lip products though.
The colorful stickpins are for my shawl - just in case I wear a shawl, which is almost quite rare. The small bag was a souvenir from a manager back in my previous company, many years back. If I am not wrong, I got it back in 2011. Janet is her name, but she has probably forgotten that she had given those souvenirs. It's just my appreciation. It's practical and useful.
The other two are sewing kits I got from random hotels. They are pretty useful. Just in case I have a hole and I have the time and place to do my stitching.
The transparent bag contains Disprin, a type of aspirin which served me really well when I had my menstrual pain back before my miscarriage in Oct 2014. Weird, after the miscarriage, I have no more menstrual pain. The small packaging also contains plasters in different shapes and sizes. Next to it is my lighter. I got that lighter back in 2013, and it has been with me ever since. I don't smoke. The other item is a candle. Just when I was taking picture of this, my husband asked me the same question as what you're probably thinking of now: Why do you need a candle in your bag? I didn't even look at him. I just answered: "We'll never know, dear. We'll never know". And of course, there's a glow-stick/flashlight/whistle with me.
Apocalypse could happen any time. These things may help in the first hour.
These items keep me sane. Yes, they may change every year.... but I need pages and pages and pages to write down my frustrations and my dreams and my goals and everything! Pens and notebooks. The black one is for almost everything, whereas the colorful one is for merely journal-like entries.These things cannot leave my side , NEVER! Nungka! I just love them so much. So much.
Next is this. Well, I used to have long nails and I used to decorate my nails. Not in an expensive way, but the interest was there. Now that I've been advised to keep my nails short for hygiene purposes which is also easier for Wuduk (cleansing before prayer), I have been carrying this with me wherever and whenever (unless I go out for a late night movie). This is by far the best nail-clipper I have gotten myself. The best. The key-chain is from my best friend. She got it from Barcelona. I love the colors. It also helps me to locate my nail-clipper.
This is supposedly a small coin pouch, when we bought Julie's product. I don't really have to remember the year of everything that is bought, but I think this one goes way back in 2012. I use it for my earpiece. Yes, this metal thing adds weight to my bag, but it's easy to use. I won't need it all the time - I mostly need it when I am in the bus (to the airport), or in the plane (to go back to my hometown, or for travelling or whatever)...
Just one of the sweets that I would not mind chewing if I need mint. It has chocolate inside. I guess Dynamite means something.
This red pouch is used to store all my lip, eye, skin, cleaning items. It's also used to store my nail clippers. And candle. And lighter.
Last but not least, my pair of socks. I need these for various reasons. You can think of them, I'm sure. And of course these are clean!
Not in picture : PHONE, and its charger.
I can't believe I have actually made a post about this, though I am probably the one and only person who would read this over and over again. Hahahaha.
Okay, FYI, or FMI (for my info), these things are just basic things inside my bag - they are with me almost all the time, especially during work days. But if I were to add in EVERY ITEM for my work days, I have to tell you that I have missed out my work laptop, the adapter, the pencil case, my work tag, my work diary,.... etc....
I have tried my very best in ensuring that my bag contains only the needed things - but I can't. I need all of these inside my bag. ALL.
Love ya, things inside my bag. Please take care of yourselves well.
