Cinema, Cinema, Cinema

I had no idea that 2012 is SO popular until I tried getting tickets for it.

I tried on the 21st...no luck.

I tried on the 22nd...no tickets available.

Frustrated, we decided to go for Christmas Carol instead.
I was really looking forward to the movie because of Jim Carrey..but in the end, came out from the movie rather disappointed.
You would already know how the story ends right from the beginning of the movie!

Back to 2012 - I thought, that after about 3 weeks, the tickets would be a little bit easier to get.

I thought wrong.

Last Saturday, I went to get tickets at 12pm, and the only tickets available was at 12.30am, that too, the front 2 rows.
Since Rajiv and KR were already in Ipoh, we decided to just get the 2nd row seats and go for the movie.
(Best part, I was oncall on Sunday.)

I have to admit - the special effects was cool. They must have really worked hard to get it to be the way it is.
But then, the story is kind of predictable. Someone realized that the end of the world was near. Plans were made to ensure the continuity of the species. Disaster struck. Plan worked.

Someone at the cinema commented that they could have just bought a CD and watched it at home. I don't agree. Movies with special effects like this should be watched in a cinema. Only then it will be properly appreciated.

My next movie on my list-of-movies-I-want-to-watch is The Princess and The Frog. Waiting for it to be released. Hope the tickets won't be as hard to get as 2012 (I still don't get what the big fuss is about).

Before You Get Married

I received this via e mail the other day...I think it is a good one, which every guy should read..:)

Tomorrow you may get a working woman, but you should marry her with these facts as well.

Here is a girl, who is as much educated as you are;
Who is earning almost as much as you do;

One, who has dreams and aspirations just as
you have because she is as human as you are;

One, who has never entered the kitchen in her life just like you or your Sister haven't, as she was busy in studies and competing in a system that gives no special concession to girls for their culinary achievements

One, who has lived and loved her parents & brothers & sisters, almost as much as you do for 20-25 years of her life;

One, who has bravely agreed to leave behind all that, her home, people who love her, to adopt your home, your family, your ways and even your family name.

One, who is somehow expected to be a master-chef from day #1, while you sleep oblivious to her predicament in her new circumstances, environment and that kitchen

One, who is expected to make the tea, first thing in the morning and cook food at the end of the day, even if she is as tired as you are, maybe more and yet never ever expected to complain; to be a servant, a cook, a mother,
a wife, even if she doesn't want to; and is learning just like you are as to what you want from her; and is clumsy and sloppy at times and knows that you won't like it if she is too demanding, or if she learns faster than you.

One, who has her own set of friends, and that includes boys and even men at her workplace too, those, who she knows from school days and yet is willing to put all that on the back-burners to avoid your irrational jealousy, unnecessary competition and your inherent insecurities.

Yes, she can drink and dance just as well as you can, but won't, simply because you won't like it, even though you say otherwise.

One, who can be late from work once in a while when deadlines, just like yours, are to be met.

One, who is doing her level best and wants to make this most important relationship in her entire life a grand success, if you just help her some and trust her;

One, who just wants one thing from you, as you are the only one she knows in your entire house - your unstinted support, your sensitivities and most importantly - your understanding, or love, if you may call it.

But not many guys understand this......

Please appreciate "HER"

Handle With Care

For the past 2 days, something has been bugging me.
It made me lose few hours of my sleep last night.
I was wishing that time would move slower just so that I could have more time.

I was reading a book - Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult.
This is the 2nd book of hers that I'm reading, the first being My Sister's Keeper.

The story is about a girl who was born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta - brittle bone disease. Basically, her bone can break anytime, anywhere. A small hit, a slight bump, a slip, even reaching out to something can cause a fracture.

She was diagnosed in-utero, and so her parents and the doctors were prepared for it when she was born. In fact, she already had fractures even when she was in her mother's womb.

She lived with her parents and elder sister.

A visit to Disneyland and a fracture somehow led them to a lawyer's office where the idea of sueing their obstetrician (and best friend) for wrongful birth was put into their head - basically they were going to sue the obstetrician because she did not give them the choice of terminating the pregnancy when they could.

Her parents and sister loved her very much. But they had financial problems and the Mom thought that if they were to sue and were to win, they would have enough money to let the child live a comfortable live, something they were not able to give right now. But it would mean that they will have to say that they wished their child would never have been born.

Mom wanted to sue, Dad didn't.
So Mom sued, and Dad supported the opposing side.
They even wanted to get a divorce.

In the midst of all this, her elder sister had her own problems. She wasn't jealous of the 'heroine', but she did feel left out, after all, she herself is a child. She had her own problems - she lost her best friend, she became bulimic, she started cutting herself.

How would all this end?
Read the book for yourself.
It is really, truly a good read.
Although I didn't particularly like the ending.
Like I said for My Sister's Keeper - too abrupt and end.
And after My Sister's Keeper, this one was a little predictable.

I would definitely try another one of her books just because the way it was written was so good! But I really hope the ending would be something different.

She's Married!

A good friend of mine got married last weekend.
She was my group-mate from Russia, and I had been planning to go for her wedding ever since I heard about it.

There are a few reasons I wanted to go for the wedding.
1. She is my friend, and she is getting married (duh!)
2. I had leave that I could spare.
3. I knew that if I went for the wedding, I would be meeting my other friends as well.

And I did all 3!

Not all of my friends were there, some were tagging and some couldn't take leave. But I had friends who came all the way from JB and Kedah for the wedding!

I think all of us had a good time just chatting and catching up. We were one of the few who sat at the table even after finishing eating.

I didn't realize up to then how comfortable I felt with these people, friends I 'acquired' in Russia.

They are people I had lived with for 6 years.
They have seen me in my pajamas (which is basically what I wear in my room whether sleeping or not).
They probably have seen me asleep.
They have seen me sick.
(Of course they have seen me awake and healthy as well)

We have gone for classes together.
Gone for picnics together.
Made fun of lecturers together.
Celebrated birthdays together.
Cooked and eaten together.
We have even ponteng classes together!

These were the people I saw everyday, day in, day out for 10 months in a year.
We may not have been the closest of friends, but we were more than just friends. Something more or less like family.

And now, we work in different hospitals in Malaysia.
It's been more than a year since I've seen them.
And yet, I still feel close to them.
Still feel that I can talk to them freely.
I don't know how to explain how I felt that day, how I feel today.
I miss them, that much I know.

My Arm Still Hurts....A Little

Not too long back, H1N1 was one of the many hot topics we had.
Nowadays, you rarely hear about H1N1.

However, I have heard of people talking about the 2nd wave of H1N1, more 'deadly' than the previous virus.
True or not, I have no idea.

But then, our hospitals now already have the H1N1 vaccine in stock.
And it is free for us, health personnels.

I will be finishing O&G soon.
I will be going to either medical, A&E or surgical.
I am hoping that I will go into medical.
If so, I would be meeting many patients who might be having the so called 2nd wave of H1N1.

Although I think H1N1 is over-rated, but there is no harm in getting a vaccine, right?
So, that is what I did.
I got myself the vaccine last Friday.

However, there is one vaccine that I have not decided whether or not to take.
The HPV vaccine.

HPV is basically a sexually transmitted infection, which in the female population can cause cervical cancer.
The vaccine is actually quite a recent discovery, but is said to be protective against the cancer.

Yes, I really think it is a good vaccine, as in, it is quite beneficial.
But it costs RM200 per dose, and one has to put 3 doses which comes to a total of RM600!!

RM600!
Which is why I am still thinking whether or not to get the vaccine for myself.
Do I really need it? :P

Sleeping Like A Pig!

I was done with my assessment last week.
I did my OT list last week.
I prepared for my presentation last week and presented it last Tuesday.
I had only 2 calls in the last week.
But it's been a week since my last post.

Why?

Because I was busy with my story book..
The Girl Next Door by Elizabeth Noble.

It is about the lives of the tenants of an apartment building in New York.

I like the book mainly for 2 reasons.

1. The story is about the lives of many different people, so there are many different stories, not just one character, one issue. It's like many small stories in one book.

2. The book is written in such a way, where you get to be in each of the characters head. In each chapter, there are many sub-chapters, where the story is told from different point of views. Since I always like snooping into other people's head, of course I would enjoy the book!

Nowadays, I am taking quite long to finish reading my books because I tend to sleep very early every day. I am no more willing to compromise on my sleep to read, unlike the times when I was still studying. I remember sitting up till 4am just to finish reading a story book, when I had to go to school the next day.
(This is where I am supposed to say "those were the days", but I won't, because I think that makes me sound old!)

Well, things change. Priorities change. Life goes on. Right?
Right.

I Do, I Do, I Do

I love reading.

Sometimes, I am in the mood for something funny and light. A book that I know will have a happy ending and will leave me in a good mood.
Sometimes, I prefer to read something more serious, more heartfelt.

When I want a feel-good book, I usually go for the 'little black dress' collection.
I don't even bother reading the summary at the back of the book most of the time.
If the cover looks nice, then I buy it, because I know that the story will be nice.

So, that is why I bought 'I Do, I Do, I Do'.
I started reading it a few days ago.

Starting to read a new book is always interesting.
You never know what to expect.
There are many ways a story can go.
You have to read at least a few chapters before you get the flow of the story and get engrossed in it.
Which is why you usually get addicted to books only after reading it for quite some time.

Halfway through this book, I decided that I didn't like it.
It had way too much description.
There was not much drama.
There was not much story.

I'll give you an example.
At one point, the heroine wanted to buy a bike.
She went to the person selling the bike.
The guy told her to go for a test ride.
She took the bike.
They described the whole route she took, the things she saw.
She reached another small town.
She felt thirsty.
She took the bike and rode to a shop.
She bought a drink.
She had the drink.
She rode all the way back to the owner.
She thanked the owner.
She walked back home.
(All these things were told in detail, constituting to almost a whole chapter!)

I could have summarized the whole thing in 2 sentence.
"She wanted to buy the bike and so she approached the owner. She took the bike for a test ride and after that, went back home."
Does this change anything in how you would understand the story? NO!!

Well, anyway, I've finished the book now and moved on to my next book.
Hope this one will be better (am reading something more serious this time around).

All In A Day's Work

2 things happened at work today which I would like to share here.

Story 1

There are some cases which are done in elective OTs. For these cases, dates are given in advance, so the patient can prepare and just get admitted 1 or 2 days before their op. They would usually see the anaesthetist prior to the op.

About 2 weeks ago, Dr. Z gave me the list for 16th of this month, and told me to call all the patients scheduled for op that day and pre-pone the cases to another date because Dr. A who is supposed to be doing the op won't be around.

There were 3 names on the list.
1 could not be contacted.
My friend,L, managed to contact one of the people on the list.
And I managed to contact one of the people on the list.
L documented in all the tickets regarding the change of dates.

The patient I contacted said that she was in another state and had some family matters and so would prefer to postpone the op.
I got her a new date and called her back and gave her the new date.

Today, I received a call from Dr. Z regarding the patient that I called.
The patient came for a routine check up at our clinic today and claimed that no one called her, and she did not know that the date has been changed.

So, I went down to the clinic myself.
She was talking in a loud voice, angrily, demanding to know who was it that said that she has been informed.
I told her that it was me.

She turned to me and said, "Excuse me, but not one called me..."
I didn't let her finish (sensing that she would probably never finish talking) and said "I called you, and you said you were in ...... because ........)

She stopped talking.
Dr. Z got a call asking him to go to the OT and he took the chance and escaped.
The lady started mumbling something about mixing up this and that and finally said that she thought it was the dental doctor calling her about her dental appointment.
(I remember clearly, telling her that I was calling her regarding her O&G surgery, but I just let it pass).

She was finally given a new date, but up to the end, she did not admit that she did a mistake and she did not apologize for raising her voice - she said that she had a miscommunication with me and that was it. At one point, she was basically trying to blame me, saying I did not clearly say that I called regarding her O&G surgery.

ARGH!!

Story 2

A lady was referred from the A&E.

Single, 19 year old.
Fainted somewhere.
BP in A&E was low.

Came to the ward, BP was normal.
But she seemed to be lethargic.
Able to answer questions though.

When her mother was not around, we asked about her sexual history, and she admitted to having sexual intercouse last month - never had sex prior to that.
Said her last period was last month.
That history, combined with the fact that her urine test was positive for pregnancy and that she has left sided abdominal pain, we thought of ectopic pregnancy, naturally.

Then, we saw the A&E notes, and they suspected an abruptio placenta, with a pregnancy of about 32 weeks.
We were shocked.
What?
We palpated the stomach - 2 of us did- nope, can't feel the uterus.

Specialist came for rounds at the same time - bring the scan machine, he said.
He scanned.
It was a pregnancy of about 34 weeks.

The MO laughed at us.
"How do you guys take history?"
"How do you guys examine the abdomen"

Embarassing.
Yet, funny.
Patient was eventually sent to the labour room.
(she still insisted that she had her menses last month)
Haih....

Thoughts To Ponder

1. If time doesn't wait for you, don't worry! Just remove the damn battery from the clock and Enjoy life!

2. Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are a good person is like expecting the lion not to attack you because you are a vegetarian. Think about it.

3. Beauty isn't measured by outer appearance and what clothes we wear, but what we are inside. So, try going out naked tomorrow and see the admiration!

4. Don't walk as if you rule the world, walk as if you don't care who rules the world! That's called Attitude! Keep on rocking!

5. Every lady hopes that her daughter will marry a better man than she did and is convinced that her son will never find a wife as good as his father did!

6. He was a good man. He never smoked, drank had no affair. When he died, the insurance company refused the claim. They said, he who never lived, cannot die!

8. So many options for suicide: Poison, sleeping pills, hanging, jumping from a building, lying on train tracks, but we choose Marriage, slow but sure!

9. Only 20 percent boys have brains, rests have girlfriends!

10. All desirable things in life are either illegal, banned, expensive or married to someone else!

11. Drinking is our biggest enemy- Jawaharlal Nehru
We should learn to love our enemies- Mahatma Gandhi
Now, whom to follow and which one to choose?

12. 10% of road accidents are due to drunken driving. Which means - it a logical statement that 90% of accidents are due to driving without drinking!!

What Would Your Choice Be?

Ever since I started O&G, one thing has been running through my mind - for Caesarean or for SVD (vaginal delivery).

No, it's not like I am planning to get pregnant anytime soon.
But then, seeing pregnant women everyday, I can't help but wonder what I would choose were I the one pregnant.

SVD is of course the better choice - it is the natural way, and it is how it is meant to be.
But then, it is also associated with a lot of pain - some say equivalent to 'shitting out a watermelon'.
Sometimes, I see ladies in so much pain, and I wonder if that is what I want.
Although, some of the staff nurses (who have given birth) said that the pain is all in the mind.

Of course, there is the choice of epidural.
Painless birth.
Labor can take the whole day long, and you won't feel a thing.

But then, if it is your first child, and you don't feel pain, you just don't know how to push and when to push.
Which is why quite a number of primigravidas (first time pregnant women) tend to go into poor progress. When a labor is in poor progress, there are 2 choices - for forceps/vacuum or to go for caesar.

Then let's talk about vacuum/forceps delivery - big episiotomy wound, possible 'marks' on the baby's face. If you fail vacuum/forceps, then you go for Caesar.

Oh, that reminds me - if you choose SVD, then you have to have an episiotomy done, especially if it is your 1st delivery. Extra pain.

Now, let's talk about Caesarean section.

You will be under spinal/general anaesthesia.
No pain during the op.
But then there will be pain after the op.

Recovery time is longer.
Possibility of operative complication - injury to bladder, ureters, colon.
Possibility of post-op complication - infection.
What if something goes wrong intra op?
There is also an increase of risk for placenta previa or placenta accreta/increta/percreta during your subsequent pregnancies.

But then, think about it - if you choose SVD, and then let's say you go into poor progress,or if there is fetal distress and eventually you have to go for C-section, then it is double the pain and suffering. Right?

My friend said that you should at least give SVD a try first.
If it really doesn't work out, then too bad.

Most of the MOs and specialist would say go for SVD.
But there are still some who say they would elect for Caesar.
You see how confusing life is?

So, which would you choose?

I Did It!

Yesterday I went for a party - the Perak MMA (Malaysian Medical Association) Night (I don't know what is the proper name for the event).

I didn't really know what to wear, but since it was a formal function, I decided to tie a saree.

Now, I call myself an Indian, but I have never ever tied a saree for myself before.
I know how to do it, as in I know you go this way and you do this, but have never tied it for myself, and have no confidence whatsoever in tying it for myself.

So, I asked my room-mate to help me with the trying.
She said OK, but she had a wedding to attend on the same day, in KL, in the afternoon.
Fine with me, the function doesn't start till 7pm anyway.

Yesterday, after work, I had an ultrasound scan teaching, and so I only came back at around 4pm. Since I had the time, I thought - why not just try to tie it myself. Then my room mate can concentrate on getting ready herself.

And so, I tried, and tried and tried.

At 5pm, I gave up and tried calling another friend of mine - she was asleep and did not pick up the phone. Then, I tried another friend, who was at the saloon and so couldnt' help me.

Choiceless (my room mate was delayed in KL) and frustrated, I removed the saree and decided to give it another go.

This time, I somewhat managed to get something that remotely resembles a saree.

I guess it was OK, since it did not fall off even when we were on the dance floor.

Not bad for a first timer..:P

The 'product' of my hard work

Quote of the day - maybe a man will only learn how to swim when he is drowning..