September 10, 2026 11:49. Oh my goodness. It is raining cats and dogs outside. A torrential storm like you have never seen (most of you). Another word to describe this is a deluge. I will look up the word. There is more than one meaning:1) a severe flood. Used in a sentence: This may be the worst deluge in living memory which was (the Deluge) the biblical Flood (recorded in Genesis and in the Quran. In this instance the second meaning is more apt: a heavy fall of rain.
The deluge did stop: slowly petering out beginning at 11;59; ceasing altogether at 12:26. Therefore it is not the worst flood in history. Nakhooda, the book I am reading determined that the Prophet Nuh AS was the First Nakooda. The supporting evidence begins in this manner: . “Approximately 5,550 years ago, the world witnessed a catastrophic flood that erased entire civilizations.Long before the waters rose, Allah SWT had appointed Prophet Nuh AS to call unmanly that had gone astray through idol worship…..This was the first known act of shirk (associating partners with Allah SWT) in human history. The book continues, in perfect logic, about how the authors came to this conclusion. It then quotes the Quran. “Allah SWT says in the Quran “And build the ark under Our watchful Eyes and Guidance and do not plead with Me for those who have done wrong; surely they are to be drowned.” (Quran- Surah Hud 11:37).
To throw in a little humor I remember a joke, to be told when someone was ignoring the obvious and inevitable. Noah holds out his hand saying: “Looks like a drizzle to me.” One calmly says to someone with their head in the sand (so to speak) “I am reminded of a joke and then you hold out your hand and say: “Hmmm Looks like a drizzle to me.
This confluence of events is extremely unusual to say the very least. But it does go on as you shall see. For one thing, I met a man whose last name was Nakhoodah – spelled with an h. He is, thankfully no longer in my life.
It does not end there. I have a habit of giving people nicknames. This is done to protect their privacy, and sometimes as a joke. This morning was laughing with a man over breakfast at Kenny Hills Bakery. I decided he needed a nickname and suggested the initials GUM. This nickname did not get the necessary approval. He looked at the book I was reading, one focusing on leadership, and suggested that Nakhooda be his nickname. It will forever be his nickname unless another comes to mind. Hahaha. He is a leader, so it fits.
Meanwhile back at the farm. That is a strange expression. It comes from the sold serials, radio dramas, cartoons and comic-strip storytelling where the action would jump from one scene to another. It means essentially while all this exciting or dramatic stuff is happening over here something is going on somewhere else.
I am putting my house in order, so to speak. I emailed my MCERA (Marin County Employee’s Retirement Association) favorite employee.
Me: Hello, Could you please send me a beneficiary form for the insurance program offered by my retirement and a change of address form. At considerable expense I have a ten-year Malaysian visa which makes me MOST happy. This is a blessed country to be living in, particularly during these troubled times. Thank you for all your help during these years. I finally feel at home which is a vast relief and a blessing, Kind Regards
He: Hope you are doing well! Please see attached a beneficiary change for your MCERA account and your Life Insurance. Let me know if you have any questions.
Me: Hearing from you made me SO happy!! I am doing great. Everything seems to be coming together. Malaysia feels like Marin County did when I went to work at the County in 1973 – so long ago. The prosperity, the sense of hope, thinking that the best is yet to come. With my ten year visa (purchased with my MCERA dollars) I am able to live here AND contribute to its growth through charity. Please mention this in a Board meting giving them my profound thanks for their stewardship. My blog continues with great success, because renumeration isn’t necessary because I do not need to make money from it, I am able to speak my mind without catering to public opinion or advertisers. This too is because of MCERA. My charity contributions to Malaysia will be done anonymously – according to the principles of the Islamic faith and sheer common sense. One does not want to be considered a well in the middle of the desert. Hahaha I am so grateful to you personally, MCERA, and my own good luck to have began working for the County of Marin in 1973, then buying back, and never having a ‘break in service’. Pre-nuptial agreements prevented ex-husbands from my retirement money. Hahaha Leave them laughing is my motto. Kind regards and good wishes, Alexis Alaa McBride (Alaa my Muslin name which I do not use for legal purposes.)
Returning to my Malaysia life and times.
Sent a photo to my WhatsAppers, an Arabic lamb dish with the following message.
Me: I went to Haleb, a Penang Arabic Restaurant which was founded in 1985. Just look at some of the food. This was the lamb. I was there with two handsome men.
She: Wow it looks delicious. Since there are two handsome guys, I bet you would have a pretty good appetite.
Me: There is more!! Look!!
I sent nine photos of the delicious dinner. Photos taken by one of the handsome men. The photos will follow the blog.
Me: Please look at the food. You are not gonna see the handsome men. Hahaha
She: Ahhahh..gatekeeping the handsome guys I can see. 🤣Glad you had fun.
Me: I will show you but nobody else. I did sent a note to another friend. The caption on that photo (unseen by readers was This 2 handsome guys. I did respond. “Yes. Those were the guys but who is that woman?? 😂
She: Yeah forget about the men. 🤣🤣
Me: Exactly!! I wrote my friend. “The guys are young enough to be my sons and they are both married. BUT…. I showed this to one of the handsome men and you know what he said???
She: What??? Please tell me.
Me: He said remove the BUT. Oops I might be in trouble again.
She: Hahahaha
I also sent the food photos to my enduring and ascending blog master, Chris.
Me: The food. Thinking of putting the photos on the blog
He: Why not??? Looks great!!
Me: I gotta move into it with style. I am sure I can. Hahahah Will write the blog tomorrow I guess.
He: 👍
Enduring and ascending is a great way to describe my relationship with Chris, my blog master.
Endure synonyms: last, live on, go on, abide remain, stay, survive, bide, tarry.
Ascend synonyms are: elevate, flourish, soar and transcend.
How does this apply to the blog? In the following ways,
- Elevate: To lift my content to a higher, more professional standard.
- Flourish: To grow rapidly and thrive in engagement and readership.
- Soar: To rise quickly and dramatically above your current stats.
- Transcend: To surpass my previous limits and continue to outshine the competition.
Watch Out World. Hahahah
Food photos will follow. I am sure you will salivate. I lived in Saudi Arabia for six months – in addition visiting there for weeks throughout 2022-2023. The food at Habeb was better than anything I ever experienced in KSA, I love Malaysia. The food of all nations is honored, respected, and excels. (Well perhaps not Canadian cuisine as the national dishes are maple syrup and poutine. Hahah) I was born in Canada, my mother not a cook so I took probably hundreds of classes. (Tens anyway). I am a foodie. Go to the blog, four lines on the right side then poke Books I write about a course I took at the Cordon Bleu in Paris.
