More on Apak

As in my earlier posting, I wrote that Apak was a teacher .. yup, and he was indeed a good and dedicated teacher. Apart from being a teacher, Apak also did a part time job - which would later turned out to be his almost full time job!!! - he loved fishing.

He would normally go fishing at almost every used tin mine pools at Batu Gajah area late evening (after school) ... he used fishing net and a sampan ... he made his own sampan.The next morning - very early in the morning - he would checked and hauled the net and later sold the fish at the nearby Batu Gajah or Ipoh wet market..

It puzzled and amazed me of how Apak could end up doing this part time job & he did it till almost the end of his life!!! Mak told me that at first it was just a hobby but later it became sort of like an extra income to support the family.

I remember an incident when Apak's car - a very old second hand car - somehow or rather made a rude dash into a mining pool. Apparently he forgot the hand brake on that particular day. Apak insisted on the car being salvaged whereas Mak kept on saying it's not worth it... If you asked me I would agree with Mak hands down at that point of time. It's an old junk anyway ...

But not to Apak.... He insisted & insisted... He managed to get help from the "kampung best divers" to salvage the car ... It took them 2 days to finally salvaged the car using a crane... Mak was her usual self saying that it's not worth it but just let Apak be .... I could still remember Apak was smiling with his eyes flickering when the car was pulled out from the mining pool...

Years later when I was in my teens only did I know why Apak was so persistent in salvaging that old junk... It turned out that Apak had bought Mak a gold bangles @ 4 bangles @ and he kept them in his car dashboard!!!! No wonder ....

On that day he not only managed to salvage the old junk but I would say he managed to salvage his "pride" and of course Mak's love ...

What happened to the car? It was sent to the workshop and never made a return to any of the roads in Ipoh!!!!

Till my next posting ....