Khusairi Subki was born in 1987 in Sabah, Borneo. The third in the family, he was the only son of the first batch (the first 4 children). That is why he was nicknamed "boy" but to his friend he is "Kutai". Khusairi was in Sekolah Alam Shah, for 5 years and now in UPM doing mechanical engineering course.
Baby Afifah with sister Asma in Aberdeen, Scotland
Returning to Malaysia in 1993, Fifer and Asma went to the same school in Bangi. They also doing the same course (TESL) in UiTM.
She was born in Kota Bharu while I was in Aberdeen, and the mother and daughter arrived in Scotland only three months later. This is how she looked when she was very small (and how was the look of her young father then
Asma was lucky because she was fortunate to be in many places when I was studying overseas. Early childhood in Aberdeen, Sabah, and then to East Lansing, Michigan, she was exposed to international cultures right from the start.
Asma standing next to Mr Kidds, class teacher in Spartan Village Secondary in East Lansing. To her right is Afifah, her younger sister. Her mom standing on Mr Kidd's left with little Afah and brother Khusairi.
Asma in our Kajang home in late 1990's
She was only 19 years old when we got married in 1982 and then moved to Sabah with me to take a position with now defunct UKM Sabah Campus. From Sabah we moved to Aberdeen, then back to Sabah, to East Lansing, Michigan, and back again to Sabah. We finally settled down in Kajang, Selangor in 1994 when I was asked to come back to UKM Bangi.
My two sons' once in the lifetime chance to shake hands with Sesame Street characters
I took many shots and now deposited in my Picasa Web Album. Check it out, in case your photo is there.
My mother was a famous trader in the town then, selling local delicacies in the wet market. It was a common tradition among Kelantanese that women are their bread-winners. Our lives turn upside down when my mother died when I was only ten, before our new house was completed. Our family migrated to our new home in Kg. Tepi Sungai, a year later. Now part of Tanah Merah municipality, Tepi Sungai was a sleepy riverside settlement along the main trunk road between the town and Kg. Kusial Bharu. Although it was a lot easier to go to school by bus, or bicycle, the lost of my mother necessitate us to work after or before school hours to feed ourselves.
I left my hometown when I was 15 in 1974 to begin a new life in a government boarding school in the Sekolah Menengah Sains Kelantan (now known as Sekolah Menengah Sains Tengku Faris Petra), Pengkalan Chepa. It was a known fact that regimented life in well-staffed and fully-equiped science-based boarding schools change poor kampung kidds into smart students. I was one of them, and I am proud of my SMSK. Two years later, I was selected to do one year pre-university matriculation course in Kuala Lumpur (Sekolah Alam Shah, Cheras). I was excited to be in Kay-El, joining other well-educated, selected Malay elites from all over Malaya.
I spent the next four years in UKM Kampus Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, graduating with the "Sarjana Muda Sains Dengan Kepujian" or B. Sc. Hons degree in Botany in 1982 with a thesis on the ethnobotany of Simaroubaceae family, a group of plants allied to the infamous Tongkat Ali (Eurycoma longifolia). My work on Tongkat Ali cought the attention of my supervisor, Prof A. Latiff. Through his contact with Prof. Ghazally "Charlie" Ismail, then the Dean of Science & Natural Resources faculty, I was offered a post of a Tutor in the newly established UKM Sabah Campus in Kota Kinabalu. Academic Training Scheme brought me and my family to Aberdeen, Scotland for two years for my Masters degree and four years in East Lansing, Michigan for my PhD. In between those years overseas, I served and founded the Herbarium UKMS, until I was transfered back to Bangi campus in December 1994.
In the academic circle, I am known for my botanical works on the Rafflesia, the world's largest flower. The co-discoverer and author of the new species of Rafflesia (R. tengku-adlinii) from Sabah in 1989. It was during those years while I was in Sabah campus, I chaired the Research section of the Sabah Rafflesia Conservation Action Committee, and authored the "Rafflesia: Magnificent Flower of Sabah" book. At the same time I continue my interest in the taxonomy of Annonaceae and Simaroubaceae families.
Being a manager of teaching museum, I was exposed to the Internet publishing even when the TCP/IP was being perfected and promoted in the States. Michigan State University faculties and post-docs were actively involved in the development of the Internet-based teaching and research applications. We were one of the pioneers for biodiversity databases, and continue to lead international networking in this arena. When I came back to Bangi, I was asked by Prof. Noor Embi, then the Dean of Life Sciences, to design, develop and operate the IT Awareness Program in Life Sciences section of UKM. Our IT for Life Sciences courses were oversubscribed every semester, offered 3 semesters a year. There were thousands of students benefited from these courses. Some were even employed in the IT related industries. It was during these period (1994-1998) many science students of UKM came to know me and my ever popular nickname: Pakdin of UKM.
