Dearest all,
Remember, recently I promised to those yang wanting to get to know The Talented Tukang Taip 2005 a lil'bit more, of an interview with TT, himself? :) Well, finally, after like a week dia dah reply (can't blame TT - he memang busy pun. Thank God he took like only one week jer, buatnye dia busy one month? Nanges ok!) So anyways, he replied to me on Tuesday early morning kot. And so here it is. The answers TT dah jawab to my questions via email.

NOTE: Sorry I couldn't go lebih personal dari ini sbb TT and me agreed that I takkan involvekan something too personal - kalau tidak, he said "Things I can answer, I'll answer. Things I can't, I'll just leave 'em..." And knowing ME, mana suke my questions ditinggal2kan gittu jer. SO I took the liberty to bebetul THINK carefully soalan2 yang tidak akan menyentapkan dia becoz if he does sentap, he'll leave those questions unanswered. So akan nampak la like very the incomplete. So I decided to be very on-the-line jer. Tannak tooooo personal. Kalau nak tooooo personal, gi la tanye dia personally. Ehehehehe.

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From: "Hazman Halid" (xxxxxx@xxx.us)
To: "Nurlea Laurielle Lai Lee Abdullah" (lea_laurielle@yahoo.com)
Subject: RE: Questions
Date: Tue, 19 Apr 2005 01:29:22 +0800

Hi Lea :-D

Here are the answers.

Hazman

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1.How would you like to introduce yourself to my blog readers? Briefly.
I'm just another ordinary guy who blends right into any LRT crowd. :-)


2.What do you do currently?
I architect and write computer software for my clients. I'm a freelancer, but my clients include corporate giants. I took a break from the corporate world since late last year, after being frustrated with the local work climate. Found out that the only way to survive was to try to make it out on my own. So far the returns have made it worthwhile, while teaching me to be brave when confronted with the risks in life.

3.Do you have any hobbies?
I have little leisure time left out of my busy life to afford a stable hobby. But when I do, I love traveling. I like going to beaches. The salty smell of sea air, the sound of crashing waves, the sight of an endless ocean, and the wind blowing all over your body -- the feeling is indescribable.

I've also acquired a new passion for blogging lately. I started to blog last February. Blogging helped me to release some of the frustrations in going through my divorce during its earlier months. I erased my first blog and recreated a new blog late February -- as what you see these days. I didn't realize how many people were coming to my blog until one day, I tried
putting a page counter. Seeing 250 hits a day (from an assumption of, maybe, 10) really took me by surprise.


4.Do you do sports?
I used to bowl competitively when I was in school and during my early college years. I represented the state in a couple of tournaments and won a few medals. But I stopped after I started getting busy with studies. I don't play any sports these days, but I do make a point to work out in the gym a few times a week.

5.Describe your best quality and your worst quality?
My clients and peers consider my talents to be exceptional in my line of work -- I need to be, to stay competitive and win projects. My worst quality is probably the lack of discipline to have a structured profession and life.I need freedom in order to thrive.

6.Name 5 things you cannot live without?
1 - My cellphone
2 - My scooter or car
3 - Accessibility to the internet
4 - Money (obviously)
5 - My laptop

7.You've spent nearly 10 years abroad. What was it like? Personal wise and work wise?
I was alternating between Canada, Malaysia and the US during those years, writing software for various companies.

I was out there with my family, so it wasn't that bad. All those years were a journey of self-discovery. I did spend a lot of time looking deep within myself and digging out answers that were previously unanswered. I discovered what makes me angry, happy, frustrated, and the events in my past that shaped me to be what I became.

Professionally, I adapted to be competitive at an international level. The exposure to a more rigorous software development environment earned me a technical advantage upon returning here. Sadly, due of the uniqueness of the local IT landscape, I found myself overqualified for most technical positions here and the US/Canadian experience actually worked _against_
me in seeking a job.

8.Do you handle q/a columns anywhere? Or do you plan to have one? We know you're good in IT. Would you share your knowledge and experiences?
Actually, to say that I'm good in IT is generalizing it because IT is a very wide area. I am very focused in software development, and even in that, I only do Microsoft-based solutions. It's probably more accurate to say I am good in Microsoft software development.

I did answer questions in the past, between 1998 and 2002. From the US, I had actually been answering on average 30 questions a day in sembang.com, bincang.net, mind.com.my and ittutor.net (long before I became famous for a different reason LOL). The people who asked me were college students and local programmers, and it's paying off because I'm now getting
assignment calls from these same people because they trust my abilities.

Due to time constrains these days, I only give professional consultations, but if I feel I can afford the time in the future, I may start a column in my blog to answer software development questions like before.

9.Personal question. As we know, you're a divorcee. Are you with anyone now? A simple yes or no.
Yes I am. :-)

10.You're a dad, a father, a papa. what's it like to be one?
It feels good to be loved and to be able to love. The kids are a good source of fun for me, and they keep me young because I play with them a lot. Now that they're growing bigger, the relationship gradually takes a different shape because they're able to carry more intelligent conversations.

Having kids also aid in understanding my own self. The behavior we see in the kids is the essence of what we really are. Ahmad inherits my sense of humor, my mischief, my inability to sit down. Nuri inherits my impatience, intelligence and creativity. Anees inherits her mom's feminity. I see all that in the kids.


11.When you got your first child, how was it like?
I was nervous -- like any new dad -- in that labor room. I was in that room all along, from start to end. I finished all the paper towels, wiping clean that stuff that spilled on the bed, and the nurses scolded me. The sight of Nuri coming out was indescribable. After they finished wrapping her, I sat by her cot and she looked at me, and I swear I saw her winking. I felt proud of having my own daughter and kept coming to the display window to see her among the other babies.

12.What were your preparations to become a dad?
Well, the first thing I did was selling off my big bike and buying a Kancil. I bought lots of diapers way ahead of time just so I could get used to buying them. It felt different buying these things for the first time.

13.How would you describe your relationship with your kids?
Most of the time, I'm one of them. I play with them, talk like them, tickle them and ask them about their favorite things. I encourage them to think for themselves and grow in their own direction, as long as they're doing well in school. I'm not perfectionist about their school scores, but when I hear them getting upwards of 90% in their school tests, it's all good enough for me. I don't want to push them too hard like many parents here like to do.I'd rather they have a balanced, rich life than be a school robot. I try not to have to be an authoritarian unless I have to. They already have their mother for that, so the yin and yang works, I think.


14.Would you agree that by being strict and firm, you would be in total control of your kids? Would that be advisable? Or do you have your own ways to control them i.e. teaching them the ways of life?
I do not want to have total control on them, because it will only make them dependent on me when it comes to making decisions. And what will happen when I'm no longer around? I would rather train them in other ways -- such as giving them an exposure to international cultures that help give a head start in opening up their mind, and then take it from there. I do give
advice if they ask me (if I think my advice would be crappy, I don't), and I do monitor their behavior among themselves and tell them if they're crossing each other's border.

15.Is it hard to be a single-dad?
Fortunately, after some adjustments to the divorced life, the mom and I have arrived at a friendly relationship, and we are able to share our custody of the kids without getting into a tug-o-war. Sometimes when I think about it, with the burdens of being married off my back, being single allows me to max out on my energy toward the kids and give them a totally positive and affectionate experience when they're around their father. I also have
my mother and the maid to care for them whenever I can't be around.

16.What would your word of advice be to those who eagerly wants to have kids?
Be financially stable first, because not having it could be a source of fights later on. Have only the number of kids that you're willing to spend time on. It's not hard to make babies, but fulfilling your responsibilities for them is.

17.Lastly, should there be anyone interested to contact you, maybe they wanna ask some IT related stuffs or about 'becoming-a-single-dad' or what not, how can they reach you? Any page, or email add or something?

They can send me an email at tukangtaip@gmail.com. I do not answer questions individually (unless it can be made short, sweet and impersonal), but if there's something I can answer publicly in my blog, I'll do so. (TT's blog URL is http://tukangtaip2005.blogspot.com)

Thank you so much for your time!
My pleasure, Lea!