SWAYING ON A HAMMOCK

Recently, my brother in-law came down from Kuala Terengganu, specifically to deliver four hammocks, made of fishing nets.

One of the hammocks is hanged from the mango tree and the other end on the fence. The kids are worried of the red ants but I had no problem sleeping on the hammock in the afternoon.

The wind gushing on your face and the swaying swing add to the sheer pleasure.

The other three are still in the storeroom. Don't know what to do with them yet

BUKIT SENTOSA...THE DARK AGE

We bought this beautiful piece of property at only RM200,000. There was practically nothing around the neighbourhood, except for some mini markets.

I remember leaving the house around 7pm one evening after some do it yourself job and it was like 10pm already. I thought to myself, was this a mistake?

But then, a police station is located about 500 metres away and a primary school, SKBB, was already in place.

Gradually, over the years, a wet market came into operation, followed by 7-11. Several mini markets, run by foreigners (I think) started mushrooming, operating 24-7.

There are now three petrol stations, two Esso and a Petronas,. You could see a perpetual queue at all the pumps, indicating there should be other stations as well.

Then two years later, the news we had been waiting for. A Tesco hypermarket was to be built in Bukit Beruntung, just a few kilometres away from our neighbourhood.

It turned out to be hoax. It was a hyper store to cater for all Tesco outlets in the North. We felt betrayed.

But then, Tesco, and Majlis Daerah Hulu Langat, sensing our anger, decided to build a hypermarket, believe it or not, a walking distance from my house.

It is being built and almost completed. It is rumoured that it is to be officially opened before Puasa month.

Suddenly, the property prices went skyhigh. My house, after renovation could easily fetch half a million now.

But that does not mean a thing to us as we are not keen to sell it off, even if it went up to RM1 million. simply because, if this house is worth that much, a terrace house in KL would have cost another half a million more.

But we can expect some congestion at the entrance.

Food outlets have sprung like mushrooms and recently, a police training centre (PULAPOL) has taken over Kolej Aman.

But the roads remain dark at night. However, the road where I live is as bright as day, at least for a few hundred-metre stretch.

We decided to sacrifice RM10 each month to pay for the street light.

HOME SWEET HOME

A little bit about the house. It was originally a modest three-room single storey bungalow which both of us fell in love with as soon as we set eyes on it in 1997.

We were house hunting and houses in the city centre were not within our grasp due to escalating prices.

We decided to buy a house which was not even under construction in Sungai Buaya, not far from the present spot. On paper, it looked nice, a four room corner lot terrace house with ample garden.

But then, the project did not take off, and after much hassle, we got back our money. As we scouted for a house with some land around it, we stumbled onto this house and immediately confirmed our purchase.

In less than two months, we were in it. First, we installed some fittings in the kitchen and the master bedroom.

But then over the years, as another bundle of joy was added in the family, there was no room for our maid.

A minor renovation was made to accommodate this.

In less than two years, with some extra money in hand, we went for a kill. A massive renovation, but still could not include outdoor renovations. If one enters the front gate, the house looks dull. The cement at the car porch is not tiled giving it a rugged look.

But it is enough to provide each and every one of the three kids a room for themselves, plus a cybercafe where two desktops are placed on long tables.

The master bathroom is moved to the other side giving it a more spacious family room and the second bathroom was done up quite nicely.

My second favourite spot is the family room where a two-seater and a three-seater are placed. In the middle, we lay down a queen size mattress. Sometimes, we sleep in the family room which is also an AV room.

The guest room is converted into a small office home office sort of place. I am planning to get a nice comfy folding bed for the guest to sleep on. If there is a large convoy of guests, they would have to put up in the youngest daughter's room, which is actually always messy.

More about the haven later....

POTTED PLANTS HERE AND THERE

POTTED PLANTS

(From top right, clockwise): When I first brought it home, it was almost dying, but I nurtured it with fertiliser and it has given out beautiful roses since then: It looks like cactus but it has no thorns, growing in abundance at the front porch: Another unknown species (at least to me) but I bought it anyway: a bougainvillea by the roof. The rooftop garden can be scorching hot during the day, so I installed a pipe from the water tank to make it easier for me to water the plants. There are times when my youngest daughter Rin and I would playfully splash each other in the evening, much to the amusement of neighbours

MY PRIDE AND MY JOY

The rooftop garden seen from below the mango tree (top, right)

A set of concrete tea table and stools bought for only RM100 from a supplier based in Kelantan. He was supposed to deliver several sets to a school but could not accept cheques. A teacher told him to come around to our residential area and in less than 30 minutes, managed to sell all five sets (top, left)

BAD'S HAVEN

I dedicate this blog to my haven....my home, somewhere in Bukit Sentosa, a sleepy hollow, some 40 minutes drive from Kuala Lumpur. I have spent quite a lot (both money and time) to make sure I come home to a place without head (and heart) ache.

It may not be a Balinese garden or a contemporary one...it is built according to my taste, with what little budget I have.

I take pride in mowing the garden every 10 days or so. In fact, I save RM50 a month, an amount I would have to fork out to pay a gardener to do the job, once a month.

With a capital of RM300 for a handheld grasscutter, I consider it an exercise. I may have to fork out another RM1K later for a push mower. The old one gave up after 12 years but the Australian made product gave me joy.

Last year, I spent nearly RM80K for a massive renovation, mostly interior, adding three more rooms in addition to the four room I already have.

This is to accommodate my three children, a maid, a guest room (which is also a small workplace for me) and a room I called CC (cybercafe) where my children utilise daily.

The room leads to the garden, a backyard with a small patio. Initially, there was a set of tea table but I later moved it under a tent which I bought cheap.

A mini mango tree adorns the left side of the garden with a row of potted plants at the other side.

Above the new wing is a 13ft by 40 ft rooftop garden, my hideout in the evening.

Still relatively empty, except for a set of concrete tea table and stools and a few potted plants.

My one-year old grass cutter. Bigger than me, some say....but

A small section is used to store a water tank and the satellite dish.