Friday prayers.

Sat 18 Jan 2020.

I don't know why I called Hank Thursday, but I did, and we agreed to meet at the  State Mosque after Friday prayers, which was yesterday. He's mostly in Seremban now, and we hadn't met since the PD FMC Group gathering. I said to meet on the mosque's steps, and he said he'll bring Bhajan's book. Hank naturally missed both - the mosque's steps, because he went to the side entrance, and Bhajan's book, because he just plainly forgot about it.

Hank normally goes to the Hussein Mosque in S2. He said he was unimpressed with the "bilal" just now, with the quality of his rendition. I said there is a worse bilal who was off today. I said usually I'm the first jemaah to arrive, around 11.30. To Hank's question I said I just recite prayers and read Surah Kahfi while waiting for the proper prayers to start.

We both agreed about the unbecoming behaviour of some members of the congregation. Not waiting for the main doa after the main prayers, and reciting out too loudly when praying, were two behaviours  that  we both agree irk us. I said those who immediately stand up to do their "sunnat" prayers and refuse to join the imam's supplications are stingy and uncharitable. Those who recite too loudly are "haram" according to the  majority of ulamas.  But I said I console myself by saying at least they bother to come to the mosque.

I kept my promise and took Hank to the regular restaurant I normally go to after  Friday prayers at the State Mosque. I chanced upon this little shop many years ago, when I went to the bank just a few doors away. I found the freshly prepared mee tasteful, and try to make lunch here whenever I could after Friday prayers. The State Mosque is close by.  So this time I ordered mee ladna for the both of us while Hank was busy trying to park his car properly in the parking spot right in front of the restaurant. At the end of our meal Hank said the mee was ok.  As we were having our post-prandial coffee, Terence walked by and I called him, and  he joined us. Terence is a lawyer and his office is close by.

We covered a lot of topics, the three of us.  We asked Terence what he thinks of Lateefa Koya at the MACC. We commented on Malaysian education, now that Mahathir has taken over the ministry. We touched on the fate of pensioners - Hank and I and Terence's mother are all pensioners. We even spoke about Hank's mention of a second spouse, which I discouraged, but Terence kept his counsel. His advice obviously isn't gratis.

We spent more than an hour at the restaurant. Hank had to send me back to the mosque to get my motorcycle. I had picked the tab this time. I said "the next one is yours".

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