Is It Just Me?

I think it is really hard for someone who works in the hospital to not be paranoid.

It seems like everything and anything can go wrong.
If you think the newspaper is scary, you should try sitting in the A+E for a day and see the cases that come in.

Once a guy was admitted because the grass-cutter's blade disloged from the grass cutter and hit him right at the neck cutting some major vessels.

An accident at the pisang goreng stall and two people were badly burnt after the hot oil spilt on them.

You think keeping pets are safe? A kid came once after being bitten by her cat (can't blame the cat though - she pulled it's tail).

Many come with spine fractures after falling off trees.
Almost everyday you see people coming in with fractures after a motorbike accident.
Some come with hip fractures after a fall at home.
I saw a couple of young boys who had radius/ulna fractures after falling down while playing football.

Pregnancy - even worse!! Most people would say it is a normal, physiological thing, nothing is supposed to go wrong. But think of how many things can go wrong during the pregancy, during delivery and also post-delivery! Pregnancy can be complicated by diabetes and hypertension (even in those who previously have no co-morbids). Many have anemia. Some have low lying placenta. Normal delivery and Caesarean section are both equally scary when you think of all the problems that can arise. Very, very rarely, there are even cases of maternal deaths!!

At work, you see so many lives changing in a matter of seconds.
One accident - and some lose a limb or get paralysed for life.
A headache which turned out to be a bleed in the brain - sometimes affecting even young people.
A fall which caused a spinal injury.

Hence, I think it is justified for us to be paranoid, to worry about everything.
When I see someone cutting grass, I go out of my way just to avoid them.
If I get headaches frequently, I wonder if I should go for a CT brain.
Someone complaints of constipation - maybe it is colon cancer?
I see motorbike riders and try to stay far away from them - they are so vulnerable!!
I think about the times when we used to climb up the rambutan tree at our house and thank my luck for not falling and breaking my neck.
Pregnancy, I don't want to even think about!

Life is scary, huh!

Life Is Good

Relief - that is what I feel. At least for now. My presentation is over and now I can relax...until it is time to study for my assessment which is next month. The only problem is, next month is not really that far away, and I have a couple of 'events' coming up so I guess time is not really on my side.

But then again, I don't think more time will make much of a difference. The more time one has (or at least I have) the more one procrastinates, right?

Life has been good recently. I have been enjoying myself in Anaesth. It is not just that the working hours are shorter, but I actually enjoy myself at work. I don't dread going to work like when I was in....let's just say another department. I don't have to review patients or take blood from a patient millions of times or set branulas that keep on 'bunking' and I don't have to put up with crap from other people around me. Almost all the MOs are very friendly, and even the specialist too.

Here is what I go through everyday - go to work, prepare drugs and then the patient comes in for op. Put the patient under and just monitor the patient till the op is over and then reverse the patient and send him or her out. I don't have to see the patient's family and answer questions (the worst part is when a patient has 10 relatives who all insist on approaching you one a time to as the same question). I don't have to review the patient (I know I've told that already - goes on to show how much I really hate reviewing patients). I don't have to do discharges. I don't have to do many other mundane ward work.

Life is good.

Although I do get irritated with some patients - chronic pain patients. They come under anaesthesiology as well and I was posted in the Acute Pain Service for 2 weeks and had to see these patients in the clinic. They come to the clinic and complain of pain everywhere. Some are genuine, but most of them...I don't know. Maybe their pain is real, or maybe it is just psychological. But then when a patient says that her headache gets better when she takes her gastritis pill, don't you think something is wrong? And if someone tells you they play the piano for 14 hours each day and does 3600 repetition of some exercise in the gym - would you believe them? How about a husband who complaints of pain but is allergic to all the painkillers in the world whose wife is also a pain clinic patient and is ALSO allergic to all the painkillers in the world? The best part - their child is SO allergic to prawn that she develops some allergic reaction if their neighbour cooks prawn and they can smeel it. *Sigh* To believe or not to believe...

Anyway, there is no real purpose for this post. It's just that I think I have been ignoring my blog for so long..probably because I am having long dinners and by the time I come back I am too lazy to write and the people to blame are my dinner buddies...typical human - always put the blame on someone else.

I will try my best though, to write more often....if I can think of things to write. :)

Mercedes Benz- Malaysian made?

Spotted in Ipoh recently..

10 minute presentation

I am supposed to do a presentation on Fink's hypoxia - something I have never even heard of before.

Usually, when I don't know something, I rely on Wikipedia to help me understand it first before reading other websites for more info.

But, all Wiki had to say about this topic was this :
The Fink effect, also known as "diffusion anoxia", "diffusion hypoxia",or the "third gas effect", is a factor that influences the Po2 (oxygen saturation) of alveolar gas. When soluble gases are breathed in (e.g. nitrous oxide, N2O) large quantities can be dissolved in body fluids rapidly. This can lead to a temporary increase in the concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the alveolus, causing an increase in their respective partial pressures.

The effect is named for Bernard Raymond Fink (1914–2000), whose 1955 paper first explained it. When a patient is recovering from N2O anaesthesia, large quantities of this gas cross from the blood into the alveolus (down its concentration gradient) and so for a short period of time, the O2 and CO2 in the alveolus are diluted by this gas. This could potentially cause the partial pressure of oxygen to decrease and could temporarily lead to hypoxia. The decrease in CO2 could also potentiate this effect as ventilation would be suppressed, leading to potential hypoxaemia. Nonetheless, this effect would only last a couple of minutes and hypoxia can be avoided by increasing the fractional inspired oxygen concentration when recovering from N2O anaesthesia.

I don't understand what Wiki is trying to say and other websites don't have much info as well.

How am I going to do my presentation?

How slow would I have to read what Wiki said in order to stretch the presentation to 10 minutes?

Clean - for now

KTM started a new train service recently - the ECT.
I don't know what ECT stands for - tried googling for it but couldn't find it - maybe it stands for extra-cepat-train or electric-current-train.
(I did a mistake!! It is ETS - electric train service. No wonder I couldn't find the information I was looking for...got it confused with ECT -electroconsulvise therapy)..:P

Anyway, I took the train last weekend, Ipoh to KL and back from Seremban.

It was quite a comfortable ride.
Compared to the KTM commuter, there was more leg space and was cleaner (since it IS newer).
I didn't see any cockroaches running around (yes, I have seen them in the KTM commuter) so the ECT gets one point for that.
I am not sure about the toilet though - I have a policy against toilets in public transports - never go unless desperate.

They had people walking around (steward-like) offering assistance to those who needed them. One guy even put our bags up in the overhead compartment and brought it down when we reached KL. They were all polite and pointed out that they have a power socket near every row of seat that one can use while on the train. Now I can watch movies on my laptop on the way back home! The train that I took from Seremban to Ipoh even announced the stations before and when we arrived at the stations!

The airconditioning was super-cold. I really don't get it - we are Malaysians, not Alaskan. Do we need the air-conditioning to be so cold? I understand if it is the operating theaters, but why must offices and shopping complexes and shops and trains and buses be so freaking cold? Can't they just regulate the temperature to that the users don't have to shiver or bring jackets around?

There was a TV where a video (which was replayed and replayed throughout the journey) showed how the whole ECT idea was realized (I think). The video showed a train in Korea which could go up to 300kmph!! Imagine that, going from Ipoh to KL in less than an hour! I do hope the TV will show a different video or a movie next time though, there is only so many times one can watch a bunch of Malaysians looking at trains.

Oh...using the ECT, it takes about 2 hours to go from Ipoh to KL and 3 hours from Ipoh to Seremban - that is an hour of difference from the KTM commuter. They have a few express trains that stop in 4 or 5 stations only and a few others that stop in about 10 stations, which means that they don't stop in all the stations like the KTM commuter. The maximum speed as I know so far is 150kmph (the driver had to catch up on time since we were slightly delayed in KL).

The price, for now - RM30 to KL (KTM commuter is RM12 and RM22 for economy and 2nd class respectively) and RM38 to Seremban.

If you ask me, to and from KL, I don't mind the 1 hour difference if the price is more than doubled. But then if you prefer comfort, then the ECT is definitely the better choice. For my parents, I would take the ECT as they need the leg space; me, I put my leg up most of the journey so it doens't really matter.

For the ride to Seremban and back, definitely the ECT is better. Otherwise, you would have to take train from and towards Singapore which is ALWAYS delayed. And the price difference is not that much as well.

The current price is the promotional price - I have no idea what the price is going to be like after this. Hopefully it won't be too expensive or I have to stop going back home so often (and risk my parents forgetting that they have another daughter beside Phoebe).

Here are a few photos of the train - see how clean it is and look at how much more spacious it is compared to the commuter (if you have been in the KTM commuter)

Where Are The Flags?

It's the 23rd of August.
Just 8 more days for Merdeka.
It doesn't seem like it though.

Here is what I remember of Merdeka Day a few years back.
The Jalur Gemilang everywhere - in front of all shops and in (or on) almost all vehicles. Some flew the flag in front of their houses, some decorated their whole car/van/lorry with flags.

Now, I just see a few pathetic flags aound the padang, and it takes me a while to remember that they are there because it is the Merdeka month.
What happened to all the elaborate Merdeka day celebration?

I am not going to point my finger at anyone though.
I have not done anything and nor am I going to do anything to mark the day.
To me, it's just another holiday, another excuse to wake up late (if I am not working), as it is for most of Malaysians.
I don't even stay awake for countdown anymore - I used to because they had good programmes on TV.

When I was younger, I used to wake up early on the day itself to watch the parade. Now, I don't have a TV in my room, and even if I do, I doubt that I would do as I did previously.

It's not that I love the country any lesser than I did before, but somehow the spirit is no more there.
Why - I am not sure. But from the looks of things, it doens't seem like anyone is in the Merdeka spirit anymore.
What went wrong?

Bob's Big Mistake

Bob works hard at the office but spends two nights each week bowling, and plays golf every Saturday.

His wife thinks he's pushing himself too hard, so for his birthday she takes him to a local strip club.

The doorman at the club greets them and says, 'Hey, Bob! How ya doin?'

His wife is puzzled and asks if he's been to this club before.

'Oh no,' says Bob. 'He's in my bowling league.

When they are seated, a waitress asks Bob if he'd like his usual and brings over a Budweiser.His wife is becoming increasingly uncomfortable and says, 'How did she know that you drink Budweiser?''

I recognize her, she's the waitress from the golf club.I always have a Bud at the end of the 1st nine, honey.'

A stripper then comes over to their table, throws her arms around Bob, starts to rub herself all over him and says, 'Hi Bobby. Want your usual table dance, big boy?'

Bob's wife, now furious, grabs her purse and storms out of the club.

Bob follows and spots her getting into a cab.Before she can slam the door, he jumps in beside her.Bob tries desperately to explain how the stripper must have mistaken him for someone else, but his wife is having none of it .

She is screaming at him at the top of her lungs, calling him every 4 letter word in the book.The cabby turns around and says,'Geez Bob, you picked up a real bitch this time.'

Bob's funeral will be on Saturday and all are invited .

Ice Cold

Day one in anaesthesiology.
It was quite an interesting day.

First I was in GOT where MO D tried to input lots and lots of information into my brain (of which I hope at least some entered), and then I followed another MO for premed (pre-operative evaluation) and then I tagged with another MO in OOT during which he tried to give me more useful information.

Too much information + too slow a brain = blur.
Guess I need a bit more time.

But you know what, I am enjoying it.
For the first time after a long, long time, I am actually looking forward to going to work tomorrow!!

Maybe it's the MOs and specialists who are super nice.
Maybe it's the absence of daily ward work and reviews.
Whatever the reason, I hope this feeling stays.

The only thing I don't like is the cold!! The OT is freezing. Maybe I ought to get my winter clothes or my thermals and some socks! Must definitely remember to bring some long sleeves to wear in OT after this.

Dog Or Goat?

Having a pet is like having a very mischevious cute kid.
I was home for holidays last weekend and I got to see first hand how naughty Phoebe can be.

Phoebe has a few toys of her own - a plastic bone, a collection of strings and a ball.
But for some reason, when she is let out of the house, she looks for new 'toys' - leaves and sticks and flower pots. Once she gets it, she would chew and chew on it, like she has not been fed for days!

Here's what happened yesterday :

I found Phoebe chewing on a piece of stick. I somehow managed to get the stick from her and threw it somewhere else.

She was then given her toys to choose from.

But Phoebe 'ditched' all her toys and went exploring.

And found a piece of pipe and refused to let it go until dinnertime (I have no idea why the pipe was there in the first place).

And today, the object of fascination was coconuts.

We had a few coconuts at home, given by cousin S.

Phoebe decided that they were new toys and picked them up from inside the house and carried them all the way to the garden to play with them.

Initially one was enough, but once it was all chewed up, she decided that she wanted more and got another one.

And I thought goats ate everything..

Surgery

Another department over with.

5 down, 1 more to go.

The last 4 months passed by very quickly that I didn't even realize the time flying by.
Surgery was an interesting experience.

It was a very 'teaching' department.

Weekly Surgical department activities.

Monday : Houseman teaching.

Tuesday : Lunch and drug talk

Wednesday : Mortality and Morbidity

Thurs : Pre op assessment and sometimes MO teaching

Friday : Breakfast + journal club/MO teaching/grandward rounds/department meeting

Everyone who goes through Surgery will also go through the suturing workshop where the MOs specialists and even consultants teach housemen how to suture properly. There aren't many places that the HOD teaches Housemen how to suture, right?

I guess what I'm trying to say is, it's a very activity oriented department.

Previously they have had family days and other outdoor activities but then I didn't have the chance for those (came in at the wrong time).

I did have fun in the department, although there were some things that I didn't like about it..as I said before, colleagues are the most important thing in making your working life fun.

I will be joining Anaesth next Monday. I don't really know what to look forward too, all I know is that it is going to be cold (because I think we will be in the OT most of the time). Time to dig out all my long sleeves..

For Kicks?

I went for a movie last night. I don't usually watch movies on weekdays, but I was on leave yesterday and woke up late so I didn't really mind sleeping late.

It was a Tamil movie, Thilalangkadi (I still don't know what it means because Bala doesn't know the meaning as well). 10 of us went for the movie but I think only 2 of us stayed awake for the whole movie. I am rather proud to say that I am one of the 2.

I went for the movie for 2 reasons:
1. The hero is Jeyam Ravi - his movies so far have been quite OK, so I don't mind watching his movies (there are some actors whose movie I REFUSE to watch even if I am given a free ticket).
2. Those who have gone for the movie said that it was a good watch.

I can't stand the movie!!
It wasn't a bad movie, but it wasn't good either.
Mr. S said that he didn't even realize the time passing, but I felt that the movie was going on and on and all I wanted was for the movie to end.

There are some similarities between this movie and Santosh Subramaniam - in this movie he is acting crazy, and in Santosh Subramaniam, the heroine is the crazy one. And I don't like both the movies (although if you ask my parents, they would say that Santosh Subramaniam is a very nice movie).

Some parts of the movie was not bad, there was even a part or 2 where I laughed out loud (and you have to trust me on this one- I am not the kind who laughs out loud). My favourite part was when Prabu goes to the police station. But for the most part, I just found the acting irritating and the jokes lame. Like most Tamil movies, the plot is predictable and there are many unanswerable questions (like how did he manage to run away from 4 policemen whose guns are all directed right at him). Plus, if he is really such a nice person, how come he felt no regret when cars blew up (and I assume people got injured or died) because of him?

I didn't enjoy the songs as well - maybe I've grown too old and cannot enjoy the current generation songs anymore..*gasp*..have I become my parents?

I guess you could put it this way - go for the movie without expectations and you will like it. Just enjoy the jokes and (for those who can stand him [I can't]) Vadiveloo. There is no complex story line, just humor from the beginning till the end. But go there hoping to catch a great movie - you will be disappointed.

Phoebe The Labrador

We have a new addition in our house, Phoebe.



Now, let me clarify something. I am not a big fan of pets and I didn't actually agree to having a labrador in the house. But then, I am not living at home, and I am not the one who is going to be doing the taking care, so I guess I can't complain.

I am actually quite afraid of dogs...not Togo and Tagar and Gamby of course (although I still cannot bear for them to jump on me), so I was rather nervous about meeting Phoebe for the first time last weekend.

I bought her a new bowl, a toy and a treat as a bribe, hoping she won't bark at me or bite me. What happened was, she took the toy and the treat and then ran away from me.

I don't understand, is she afraid of me? This is the first time a dog is running away from me instead of vice versa. I tried the whole weekend to get into her good books, but for some reason she kept running away or barking at me. Although she runs to me when I give her treats. I guess she needs more time to get used to strangers (just like me!).

I must say, she is rather well trained. She does her bussiness only outside the house, and never in the house or her cage (which is inside the house) even overnight. She knows that she can only have her food and drinks inside the cage. She knows that when we go out she has to get into the cage and never causes a fuss.

I am rather surprised though - I never thought that my Mom would allow a dog into the house, free to run in and out. She is SO attached to the puppy, it's like a proud Mother with a newborn baby. In fact, everytime I talk to my mother nowadays, she will be telling this and that story about Phoebe. When we go out anywhere, all my Mom want's to do is get back home so that Phoebe won't be lonely. 26 years, and I never knew Mom loved animals so much..

Well, I didn't have time to take pictures with Phoebe the last time I was back, mainly because she was too busy running away from me. Here are some shots of her when she first joined the family.

a rare moment - Phoebe standing still enough to be photographed


"Hmm..what am I supposed to do with this?"

"Doesn't taste that good, though"

p/s I have no idea what happened to the tennis ball; it wasn't anywhere in sight when I went back.

Myths About India

I went for a short trip to India, or more accurately Chennai, recently. No, it wasn't a sight seeing trip, nor was it a temple trip. I went there for my friend's wedding.

I have heard many stories about India - too many in fact.
The stories have made me not want to go to India.
I was actually afraid of going to India because of all the things people have planted in my head.
Now that I have gone and experienced India myself, let me clarify a few things that have been said about India.

1. India is very dirty.
It is as dirty as Malaysia is. I don't think we have a right to comment on others regarding this issue.

2. You get diarrhoea if you eat their food, drink their water.
Let me tell you something, as far as I know, out of the 6 of us Malaysians who went to India together, none of us had any gastroenteritis. We had food at hotels and restaurants, we had bottled water, we had their tea and we had bajji (which they fried at the seaside) and we survived. So guess that is not true as well.

3. There are beggars everywhere and they will all rush and come ask money from you.
Throughout my stay, I saw only 1 beggar I think. Try walking aroung KL for a day and tell me how many you saw.

4. It is hot and dusty.
It is dusty, yes, but then that is because of the lack of rain. But to say it is hot, we don't exactly live in the Artic, you know..

5. Many times, I have heard stories of how the people in India 'relieve' themselves everywhere and everywhere.
NOT TRUE! (At least, I didn't see any)

6. Pickpockets are everywhere.
Once again, please look at your own backs*** before you talk about others.

7. It's noisy.
This I agree. Horns blaring everywhere! But I guess that is their style of driving.

8. You have to wear sarees/punjabi suits wherever you go or people will be staring at you.
I wore jeans EVERYWHERE. The girls there wear jeans as well. No big deal.

9. Shopping in India is good.
It's not just good, it is INCREDIBLE!! Never in my life have I shopped like that. I practically had to tear myself away from the shops. The punjabi suits and sarees are so cheap and beautiful..and the variety they have is AMAZING!!

10. When you shop there, the people will try to cheat you.
I am not much of a bargaining person, so I went to all fixed price shops, and I think I got a good deal. If you are so afraid of getting cheated, just go to such shops.

I can't think of anymore things..but here's what I am trying to say, India is not at all that bad. I never thought I would say this, but I WILL go to India again. For sight seeing and for shopping. Or maybe I should say for SHOPPING and for sight seeing. And to see my friends there (who are such gems and took care of us like children when we were there)

I will put up another post with pictures and more details of my trip - don't have any pictures with me right now.

Dinnertime

You would think that after a month of not writing anything, I would have loads of interesting things to tell. You are wrong.

My day to day life has now SO monotonous that the days have just blended to one another and I can't tell a Monday from a Friday.

Here's how a typical day goes - wake up-go to work-review patients-rounds with MO-rounds with specialist-do ward work-lunch-pm review-ward work-go back home-go for dinner-back home-bathe/go online/read story book-sleep.

This is a daily routine. The only spark of excitement in my life is dinner.

I now have permanent dinner mates, all of us housemen, which means that our topic of conversation is about the specialists, MOs, housemen and cases that we saw that day at work. And to imagine, that is the most exciting part of my day..

Here's the thing. In the morning, you go to work feeling neutral (not happy, not sad, not angry). But throughout the course of the day, things change.

Most of the days, things go wrong. In fact, I come back almost everyday, angry about something. Maybe it's just me (or maybe it's not). But I have to say, I am quite glad that I am getting out of this department soon (hopefully I don't get extended). It's not the work, it's just the people that I have to work with that I can't stand. What is the use of having 20 people to drive a car if no one is willing to offer to drive it or if they can't be bothered to properly learn how to drive it?

There were also days that I came back smiling. Days when it felt like nothing in the world can make me feel bad. However, such days were rare.

I am getting out of the topic though. All I'm trying to say is, good days or bad days, one needs to pour their heart out to someone, and who else better to talk to that those who know all the characters in the stories? Right?

So that's why our dinner topics are such a bore. In fact, it's not just our dinner topics. It's our all the time topic, whether we meet in the hospital or out of the hospital. It got so bad, till KR complained that that is the only thing we talk about and he is bored of it.

I guess I am lucky. I have people around me who actually care for me. Who buy for me dinner whenever I am oncall because the oncall food sucks. I have people who listen to me when I complain, who look at me and in one glance know that I am unhappy about something. I am lucky because I have managed to find myself a few true friends, who really care about me.

A year ago, I used to eat dinner alone everyday, with a storybook to keep me company. Nowadays, I hardly have time to read my storybook because I spend that time having dinner and talking stories. Maybe that is one of the reason of my inactivity here..Can't blame a girl if she's too busy talking to write, right?

Why does the lab need a telephone?

Lab results play an important role in diagnosing and managing a patient.

Sometimes, results are needed as fast as possible to decide on the treatment of a patient.

Most of the time, we trace the results through the computer (in wards where they are available or downstairs at the lab itself). Sometimes, however, we have to call the lab, eg when we are in a hurry (as not all the wards has this tracing facility) or when the system is down.

Most of the time, when you call the lab, either the call goes unasnwered or it is engaged.

This is what I saw when I went down to the lab today.

In case you can't see it clearly, I've zoomed in the photo for you.

And this isn't the first time that I've seen the phone like this..

Can I Be Half Of What She Is?

She is one of a kind.

She carried me wherever she went without complaining for 9 months.

Then, she attended to me day and night, losing sleep to fullfil all my needs and whims.

She would scold the door if I walked into the door, she would hit the floor if I tripped and fell. She held me when I cried after I fell and never once has she said - I'm busy, go find someone else to cry to.

She cooked for me, then fed me and at the same time, she would be telling me stories or singing to me to keep me entertained.

She taught me everything that one should know - how to hold a cup, how to walk, how to dress myself, how to feed myself. Not only that, she taught me how to read and write and count, my very first teacher.

She went back to work once I was older, but never once did she say that she can't do her duty because she was working.

She would wake up by 5am, mix drinks for breakfast (I was never a breakfast person) cook for lunch and sweep the house before going to work. She woke me up each morning, and when I was younger, tied my hair for me before I went to school. After coming home from work (which would be about 6pm) she would wash the clothes and fold/iron the clothes and sometimes even cook for dinner!

Sunday was her only day off, and even on that day, she would be doing housework from morning till the evening. My brother and I had school on Sunday (Friday was our weekend), and Sunday was the only day I would not eat at the school canteen - I knew she would be cooking something special!

Every year, when I left for Russia, she would vow that she wouldn't cry at the airport, and every year she doesn't keep the word. She even cried when I made a surprise visit back home during one of my winter holidays. Until now, she would be sad whenever I have to come back to Ipoh after a visit back home, even though it is just 3 hours away.

Even now, when I am 26, I am still her baby - whenever I go home she cooks my favourite food, she washes my clothes and even irons them even though I tell her not to. She even calls me EVERY MORNING to make sure that I wake up in time for work - yes, even during the weekends when she can sleep in late.

I know that I can't become half the mother she is.

I know that nothing I can do can make me repay whatever she did for me.

I just hope that I do nothing to disappoint her.

Happy Mother's Day, Amma!

(this post is a day early because I am oncall tomorrow)

Worth A Visit

The thing about Ipoh is, there is nothing much to do when you are not working.

The only places that you can go to is:
- Jusco - too crowded, no parking
- Parade - too many school children
- D.R Park
And that's it.

If you don't mind travelling a little bit further, then maybe you could go for a visit to Kellie's Castle (which was what I did), but honestly, don't waste your time and petrol going there.


Willing to travel further still? Then maybe you can go to Penang or Taiping. But then if it's just for a day's trip, is it worth it?

But then, not too long ago, I discovered another place in Ipoh worth visiting - Gunung Lang.

It is located at the Kuala Kangsar Road and you can reach the place easily just by following the signboards.

I am not going to say much about the place, you can see the photos for yourself.

you can take a boat ride to the other side for a small fee - more things to see on the other side of the lake

wish I am young enough to play

the main attraction, a man-made waterfall

you can feed the fishes (and monkeys) or just enjoy the scenery..

Unfortunately, we (KR and I) went there quite late, about 6 pm and couldn't take the 'boat' ride to the other side of the lake, so we couldn't see what was there. But from what I surfed on the

net, there are more things to see on the other side, so I will definitely go back there again.

Sex Education

I don't know how many times the issue of sex education has been brought up and been discussed in Malaysia. But then that is typical of how things are done here, isn't it? Discuss and discuss and discuss and end up with no conclusion?



I don't understand what's the big deal anyway.
Are you afraid that if have this subject, kids will be exposed to sex too early on?
If you are, then you must be living under a coconut shell.
All one needs to do is watch the TV, read the newspaper - the word sex is everywhere..if a parent doesn't explain it to their children, then their friends will.


Primary school children know what is sex.
What they don't know is STDs and unwanted pregnancies.



So many teenagers life has been spoiled by them getting 'knocked up'.
Yes, you can point a finger at them - it is their fault.
But who doens't make mistakes?
Why is it that they have to pay so dearly?
Even worse - sometimes, the baby is just abandoned, left to die..
All this could have been prevented, if only they knew how.

Yes, premarital sex is bad, is evil bla, bla, bla.
But so is lying. Are you telling me that you have never told a lie?

What I'm trying to say is this - people make choices.
They decide how to lead their life.
If they choose to take drugs, to drink alcohol, to have sex..there is nothing much you can do to stop them. But one should know the consequence of the choices that they make.

Telling someone "No, you shouldn't do that because I said no" is not a good way to do things.
I read a story once where the girl (Katy) wanted to play on the swing, but her Aunt told her not to. Katy was not told why she couldn't do it because the Aunt thinks that a child should listen to whatever an older person says. Katy decided to ignore what her Aunt said and played on the swing. Unfortunately, the swing had not been fixed properly yet and it snapped, and Katy feel and became paralyzed. If only her Aunt had told her why she shouldn't play with the swing, do you think Katy would have done it? Unlikely.

It is the same in reality. Why is it so hard for us to tell people why they should or shouldn't do something? If someone told you to not do something, wouldn't you want to know why?

I read this article earlier today, quite an interesting read, but I found this paragraph quite funny/illogical:
In Islam, there are guidelines why boys and girls need to be separated as they grow older – from separate blankets, beds, bedrooms and schools. I think it is in the best interest of the students that we should look into separate girls and boys secondary schools.
Obviously, the western concept of co-education and the freedom of modern lifestyles have contributed to the moral decay in some of our children.

Will this really solve the problem? So, how long should you separate boys and girls? Until they get married? And after that? Are they allowed to meet anyone else of a different gender?

How about outside of school? Do we segregate them as well? Tuitions, shopping complexes, parties?

Separating boys and girls is not going to give you any results, trust me.
I honestly don't think it would make any difference at all.
All one can do is give them the choices and let them decide.

Surgery

It's my 2nd week in Surgery.
So far, I would say that it is going on OK - not great, not wonderful, but not bad either.

What makes Surgery more bearable than Medical?
My ward mates.
Now, I don't dread going to work anymore.
I don't feel depressed anymore.
See, colleagues are really important in determining how hateful or enjoyable your job is.

It is weird how each department functions differently.
The way they manage patients is different.
Are we supposed to ask the MOs why it is different? Or are we just supposed to continue with their plan?
Sometimes, we are even afraid to ask the questions that we want to ask, what if we sound too stupid?

Well, anyway, so far surgery has been OK..lesser people dying compared to Medical...
Hopefully the next 4 months will pass by without any problems..

Here is something I got over the mail..

The following 3 examples of TURTLES, FROGS and THE PRETTY LADY will teach us some lessons. Enjoy reading the same and do ponder over them. We learn a lot through our experiences in life

The Turtles
A turtle family decided to go on a picnic. The turtles, being naturally slow about things, took seven years to prepare for their outing.

Finally the turtle family left home looking for a suitable place. During the second year of their journey they found a place ideal for them at last! For about six months they cleaned the area, unpacked the picnic basket, and completed the arrangements. Then they discovered they had forgotten the salt. A picnic without salt would be a disaster, they all agreed.

After a lengthy discussion, the youngest turtle was chosen to retrieve the salt from home. Although he was the fastest of the slow moving turtles, thelittle turtle whined, cried, and wobbled in his shell. He agreed to go on one condition: that no one would eat until he returned. The family consented and the little turtle left.

Three years passed and the little turtle had not returned. Five years...six years... then on the seventh year of his absence, the oldest turtle could nolonger contain his hunger. He announced that he was going to eat and begun to unwrap a sandwich. At that point the little turtle suddenly popped out from behind a tree shouting, 'See! I knew you wouldn't wait. Now I am not going to go get the salt.'

[Some of us waste our time waiting for people to live up to our expectations. We are so concerned about what others are doing that we do not do anythingourselves.]

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The Frogs

A farmer came into town and asked the owner of a restaurant if he could use a million frog legs.

The restaurant owner was shocked and asked the man where he could get so many frog legs!

The farmer replied, 'There is a pond near my house that is full of frogs - millions of them. They all croak all night long and they are about to make me crazy!' So the restaurant owner and the farmer made an agreement that the farmer would deliver frogs to the restaurant, five hundred at a time for the nextseveral weeks.

The first week, the farmer returned to the restaurant looking rather sheepish, with two scrawny little frogs. The restaurant owner said, 'Well.... where areall the frogs?' The farmer said, 'I was mistaken. There were only these two frogs in the pond. But they sure were making a lot of noise!'

[ Next time you hear somebody criticizing or making fun of you, remember, it's probably just a couple of noisy frogs. Also remember that problems always seem bigger in the dark. Have you ever laid in your bed at night worrying about things which seem almost overwhelming like a million frogs croaking? Chances are pretty good that when the morning comes, and you take a closer look, you'll wonder what all the fuss was about.]

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The Pretty Lady

Once upon a time a big monk and a little monk were traveling together. They came to the bank of a river and found the bridge was damaged. They had to wade across the river. There was a pretty lady who was stuck at the damaged bridge and couldn't cross the river.

The big monk offered to carry her across the river on his back. The lady accepted. The little monk was shocked by the move of the big monk. ' How can big brother carry a lady when we are supposed to avoid all intimacy with females?' thought the little monk.

But he kept quiet... The big monkcarried the lady across the river and the small monk followed unhappily. When they crossed the river, the big monk let the lady down and they parted ways with her.

All along the way for several miles, the little monk was very unhappy with the act of the big monk. He was making up all kinds of accusations about big monk in his head. This got him madder and madder. But he still kept quiet.. And the big monk had no inclination to explain his situation.

Finally, at a rest point many hours later, the little monk could not stand it any further, he burst out angrily at the big monk. 'How can you claim yourself adevout monk, when you seize the first opportunity to touch a female, especially when she is very pretty? All your teachings to me make you a big hypocrite.

The big monk looked surprised and said, 'I put down the pretty lady at the river bank many hours ago, how come you are still carrying her along?'

[This very old Chinese Zen story reflects the thinking of many people today. We encounter many unpleasant things in our life, they irritate us and they make us angry. Sometimes, they cause us a lot of hurt, sometimes they cause us to be bitter or jealous ..
But like the little monk, we are not willing to let them go away. We keep on carrying the baggage of the 'pretty lady' with us. We let them keep on coming back to hurt us, make us angry, make us bitter and cause us a lot of agony.
Why? Simply because we are not willing to put down or let go of the baggage of the 'pretty lady'. We should let go of the pretty lady immediately after crossing the river. This will immediately remove all our agonies. There is no need to be further hurt by the unpleasant event after it is over.]

6 days

6 days of holidays...6 days of doing nothing but eating and sleeping. 6 days of thinking what the next department is going to be like.

Here are some e mails I received that I hope you will enjoy as much as I did..

___________________________________________________________

LIFESUPPORT

Last night my mom and I were sitting in the living room talking about the many things of life. In-between, we talked about the idea of living or dying.

I said to her, ' Mom, never let me live in a vegetative state, totally dependent on machines and liquids from a bottle. If you see me in that state I want you to disconnect all the contraptions that are keeping me alive, I'd much rather die'.

Then my mom got up from the sofa with this real look of admiration towards me and proceeded to disconnect the TV, the Cable, the Dish, the DVD, the Computer, the Cell Phone, the IPod, and the Xbox, and then went to the fridge and threw away all my beer!

I almost died!

________________________________________________________________

I AM THANKFUL:

-FOR THE WIFE WHO SAYS IT'S HOT DOGS TONIGHT, BECAUSE SHE IS HOME WITH ME, AND NOT OUT WITH SOMEONE ELSE.

-FOR THE HUSBAND WHO IS ON THE SOFA BEING A COUCH POTATO, BECAUSE HE IS HOME WITH ME AND NOT OUT AT THE BARS.

-FOR THE TEENAGER WHO IS COMPLAINING ABOUT DOING DISHES BECAUSE IT MEANS SHE IS AT HOME, NOT ON THE STREETS.

-FOR THE TAXES I PAY BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM EMPLOYED .

-FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS.

-FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT.

-FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM OUT IN THE SUNSHINE

-FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING, WINDOWS THAT NEED CLEANING, AND GUTTERS THAT NEED FIXING BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE A HOME .

-FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING I HEAR ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT BECAUSE IT MEANS WE HAVE FREEDOM OF SPEECH. .

-FOR THE PARKING SPOT I FIND AT THE FAR END OF THE PARKING LOT BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM CAPABLE OF WALKING AND I HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH TRANSPORTATION .

-FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM WARM.

-FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH WHO SINGS OFF KEY BECAUSE IT MEANS I CAN HEAR.

-FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE CLOTHES TO WEAR.

-FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES AT THE END OF THE DAY BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE BEEN CAPABLE OF WORKING HARD.

-FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS BECAUSE IT MEANS I AM ALIVE.

AND FINALLY, FOR TOO MUCH E-MAIL BECAUSE IT MEANS I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE THINKING OF ME.

More Things To Shop For

It's the first day of my end-posting holiday.
And this is what I did today.

I have thought of doing it for quite some time, but then have always been afraid to do it because of my allergic rhinitis - what if it gets worse? But my ENT doctor gave me the thumbs up, and I thought that it's about time I get my nose pierced.

It was more painful than what I expected it to be.

The lady just sprayed on some anaesthetic, used some sharp thingy to pierce through the skin and then pushed the nose-stud in. OUCH!

But I finally did it.
Now I get to buy more jewellery.

:)

Regret

Last week, there were a bunch of JPA scholars going around the hospital. All these kids (yes, kids) want to become doctors.

I wish I could have told them what they were getting into.
I wanted to shout at them and tell then to go find something else to do..anything but become a doctor. (For some reason, I was feeling really, really low that week)

The problem is, they come in the morning when we are busy doing our rounds - time when we rush from one patient to another and have no time to waste. Why can't they come later if they really want to know what it is like? I actually told one of them to come back later around lunch time, but sadly no one turned up.

In between patients, I managed to ask one of the kids - "why do you want to become a doctor?"
His reply (like it was taken straight out of a text book) - "I want to serve the nation".
Then go become a soldier or policeman or fireman la!

Why did I want to become a doctor?
I don't really know.
I thought it would be exciting - something new everyday.
How wrong I was.
The same patients day in and day out. Review and take blood and review and take blood.
Where is the excitement?
Maybe that is why I enjoyed the labor room - it was really a happening place..

Sometimes I really regret the choices that I have made.
But then I can't help but wonder if I would be feeling the same way had I done something else with my life.
If only I could rewind and re-live my life..would I have chosen this profession?

Come to think of it, how many people can actually say that they really enjoy doing what they are doing?
Maybe what I am feeling is a normal thing..maybe it is just a passing feeling...hopefully I can find something that I would like doing, something that will make me feel excited instead of dread..

One thing I am sure about though..don't do medicine. Go do something else.
As it is, there are too many of us around.
If you are going to do medicine and graduate in a few years time, there just might not be any work available for you...then you are stuck because there is nothing else you can do, no where else you can work (private hospitals are not going to take you when you are a fresh grad with no experience..)

Think hard..don't make the same mistake I think I did..

How To Make A Woman Happy

Remember yesterday's post? Turns out, I didn't have to make a decision.

I went and checked the list today, and I am going to surgery next. Someone made the decision, and I don't have to crack my head thinking whether or not I am doing the right thing.

Here is something I received in my mail the other day.............

_________________________________________________________________
It's not difficult to make a woman happy.

A man only needs to be:

1. a friend

2. a companion

3. a lover

4. a brother

5. a father

6. a master

7. a chef

8. an electrician

9. a carpenter

10. a plumber

11. a mechanic

12. a decorator

13. a stylist

14. a sexologist

15. a gynecologist

16. a psychologist

17. a pest exterminator

18. a psychiatrist

19. a healer

20. a good listener

21. an organizer

22. a good father

23. very clean

24. sympathetic

25. athletic

26. warm

27. attentive

28. gallant

29. intelligent

30. funny

31. creative

32. tender

33. strong

34. understanding

35. tolerant

36. prudent

37. ambitious

38. capable

39. courageous

40. determined

41. true

42. dependable

43. passionate

44. compassionate

WITHOUT FORGETTING TO:

45. give her compliments regularly

46. love shopping

47. be honest

48. be very rich

49 not stress her out

50. not look at other girls

AND AT THE SAME TIME, YOU MUST ALSO:

51. give her lots of attention, but expect little yourself

52.. give her lots of time, especially time for herself

53. give her lots of space, never worrying about where she goes

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT:

54. Never to forget:* birthdays* anniversaries* arrangements she makes

HOW TO MAKE A MAN HAPPY

1. Show up naked

2. Bring alcohol

HELP!

I am SO confused.

Here I am - in my 4th posting going on to my 5th.
I am left with Surgical and A+E.
All my close friends are going to surgical, so obviously that is where I would want to go to.

Last Friday, I was told that I will be going to Anaesth with 14 others, none of whom I am really close with.
I was supposed to go to A+E, but since they are too full, half of us are going to be put in Anaesth.

Here's the thing.
If I go to Anaesth now and then surgical later, I would be alone, with no close friends. Since working with non-friends are no fun as what I am experiencing right now, I am tempted to try to change my next posting to surgical.

But then, I also would like to try on Anaesth. As I have mentioned before, I have actually considered going into Anaesth after I finish my housemanship, so this would be a good exposure. And I am afraid that if I let this chance pass me by, I won't get to know whether or not I really enjoy being in Anaesth. (Plus, as a good friend told me, I can make new friends)

However, missing A+E is also a loss. A+E is a whole different world. You see patient who are in need of urgent help, you learn how to treat acute patients, where every minute really makes a difference. (Patients are usually stabilized in the A+E before being sent to the wards)
If I go to Anaesth, then I would miss the A+E training.

So, now you see why I confused?
What should I do?
What would you do?

A Short Story From Long Ago

A long time ago, my Aunt bought 2 sarees - one for herself, and one for my Mom.

She was wondering which one to give to my Mom, and told us (me and my cousins) that she liked saree A more than B.

She ended up giving my Mom saree A.

I asked her why she did that; why didn't she keep the saree that she liked for herself?

Her answer was " You should always give people something that you would really want/like for yourself".

I don't know why I remembered this story today - just thought it is worth sharing.

A Good Joke

A drunk man who smelled like beer sat down on a subway next to a priest.
The man's tie was stained, his face was plastered with red lipstick, and
a half-empty bottle of gin was sticking out of his torn coat pocket.

He opened his newspaper and began reading.

After a few minutes the man turned to the priest and asked, 'Say Father, what causes arthritis?'

The priest replies, 'My Son, it's caused by loose living, being with cheap, wicked women, too much alcohol, contempt for your fellow man, sleeping around with prostitutes and lack of a bath.'

The drunk muttered in response, 'Well, I'll be damned, ' then returned to his paper.

The priest, thinking about what he had said, nudged the man and apologized. 'I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to come on so strong. How long have you had arthritis?'

The drunk answered, 'I don't have it, Father. I was just reading here that the Pope does.'

My Name Is Khan

I do not have a favourite actor or actress.

However, there are some actors or actresses whose movies I would refuse to watch because I just can't stand their acting and there are times where I watch a particular movie because of who is acting.

The only reason I went to the cinema to watch My Name Is Khan is because of Shah Rukh Khan.

I have always liked his movies for two reasons - because he is a really good actor and because his movies are mostly feel good movies, with lots of jokes.

I was cheated.

The movie was not at all funny.
It is not a feel good movie.

In fact, it is a sad movie - S.U said she cried twice while watching the movie and would have cried a third time if only she had not been distracted with something else while Dhar said she cried continuously during the movie.

I LOVED the movie.

It is not at all what I expected it to be.

There were no stupid fighting scenes.

Everyone acted brilliantly.

Kajol looked LOVELY.

The story was beautiful.

The whole thing was very well done.

I wonder why it's not playing in TGV and GSC Ipoh - I watched it in the Lotus cinema.

I am not going to spoil the movie for you by telling you the story - you have to watch it for yourself.

What is the point of this whole post?

GO WATCH 'MY NAME IS KHAN'!

I will be watching it again, soon.

The Working World

Dear future Housemen,

There are some things I think you should know before you start your new life in the hospital. All of it is actually just basic common sense, but my friends and I have seen one too many HOs who seem to lack in these areas.

First of all, you have to be aware of the fact that the profession you chose is not an easy one. You will be getting scoldings from you specialists, your MOs, sometimes you colleagues and even your patients. You will have to work 7 days a week, 7am to 5pm (at least) and you will have to do oncalls. If you think that you cannot handle these, then please just quit before you start.

You are just a housemen. You are nothing. Nothing you do is actually going to save a patients life - if a patient is really ill, it is usually the MO and specialist who will do the saving. You are just a pawn. You do what they tell you to do. You just HELP. All you are expected to do is to not kill a patient, to not make a patient's condition worse.

So, please, don't be arrogant. Don't think that just because you graduated you are to be looked up upon. The title 'Doctor' is nothing, unless you have your work to prove yourself.

Just think about it this way - if your parents are unwell, will you treat them yourself or take them to the specialist? The day you think you can treat your parents yourself without feeling inadequate, then be arrogant, be snobbish, be whatever you want. But as long as you think you would like the opinion of someone else for your parents, try to be a bit more humble.

The MOs and specialists may scold you sometimes - usually it is your fault, something you did wrong. When they do so, try to look remorseful, try to be sorry, DO NOT ANSWER BACK!! Most of the time, they are right. They have years and years of experience. If you think you are right, say so properly, politely, and they will listen. If you are wrong, just say sorry - is that so hard to do?

Your colleagues will be the ones teaching/guiding you during your early days. Be nice to them. If they are telling you something, LISTEN! DO NOT answer back to them, talk to them sarcastically, because trust me, they will just stop teaching you stuff, and you are the one who will regret it later. Even once you are senior housemen, you will need your colleagues, because you will not know everything, you cannot do everything. Work is about teamwork, and your team is your colleagues.

Please be proactive. If you want to learn to set a branula, then whenever there is a branula to set, volunteer to set it, to try. Don't keep quiet and wait for people to offer to teach you. The same goes for any other procedures - ask your friends to teach you. If you don't ask, then you will never know. Why would anyone want to answer a question before it is asked?

Please try not to take unplanned leaves. Yes, I know you used to bunk classes whenever you felt like it, I did it too - but absences in classes never affected anyone else. When you are working in a ward with other people, each person matters, the workload differs. You may think that one person is not going to make much of a difference, but imagine if 2 or 3 people in the ward think the same way? Who is then supposed to do the work? Nobody is denying you leave - just plan your leave earlier. Yes, you can fall sick, you can have an emergency - no one is stopping you then, but then if you take emergency leave 2-3 times a month, obviously no one will like it.

The thing is, once you give someone a bad impression, it stays that way for a LONG time. Because people talk. Housemen, MOs, specialists, it makes no difference - they will all talk behind your back. And once you spoil your name this way, people will be extra mean to you, extra unhelpful and they would rather you not be in you ward, because then that ward won't have a good team.

One more thing, I'm sure that you have heard of the phrase 'the customer is always right'. Patients are your customers. Be nice. Yes, they can be irritating, they can be rude, but try to be nicer to them - they are just worried. If you don't think you can be polite to them, then get your friend to talk to them. Don't say things that you will regret later, because patients have be known to complain about doctors too - and this will go into your record, which is unerasable, no matter how good you turn out to be later.

I am not saying that everyone is bad. Most of the housemen are OK, but there are a few that even we Housemen cannot 'tahan', I wonder how the MOs and specialists feel.

Please dear future doctors, don't make people hate you.

A Reason To Be Happy

In a way, today felt like Deepavali.

Finally, our ward received a new stock of syringes and gloves etc.

In the beginning, we lacked sterile gloves.

Then non-sterile gloves.

For the past few days, you would be lucky if you can find any gloves at all!!

It has been more than a month since we had 10cc syringe.

Let me tell you why you need 10cc syringe.

When a patient is admitted to the ward, here are a few basic investigations:

1. FBC - 2cc

2. RP/LFT - 1cc

3. RBS - 1 to 2 cc

4. PT/INR - 2cc

Which comes to 7 cc.

So, how do you use a 5cc syringe to take the blood?

2 choices - prick the patient twice, or you use a 5cc syringe and take the blood and then remove the syringe from the needle and in place put in another syringe (don't take the needle off from the patient). The first way, the patient will hate you, the 2nd way, you are at a risk of needle prick injury - so, which would you choose?

Branulas are hard to get too - someone made the wrong orders and certain wards have this horrible branula which is SO hard to use!

Tegaderm - another almost extinct thing - nowadays we just use plaster.

Thankfully, today we received our stock.

I really felt happy to see the PPK pushing the trolly full of stuff today.

Anyway, quote of the day, by Dr. LYF - "Only 2 things in life is certain - death and income tax".

The Wedding Test

A story from a forwarded mail :

I was a very happy person. My wonderful girlfriend and I had been dating for over a year, and so we decided to get married. There was only one little thing bothering me…...It was her beautiful younger sister.

My prospective sister-in-law was twenty-two, wore very tight miniskirts, and generally was bra-less. She would regularly bend down when she was near me, and I always got more than a nice view. It had to be deliberate, because she never did it when she was near anyone else.

One day her 'little' sister called and asked me to come over to check the wedding invitations. She was alone when I arrived, and she whispered to me that she had feelings and desires for me that she couldn't overcome. She told me that she wanted me just once before I got married and committed my life to her sister.

Well, I was in total shock, and couldn't say a word. She said, 'I'm going upstairs to my bedroom, and if you want one last wild fling,
just come up and get me.'

I was stunned and frozen in shock as I watched her go up the stairs. I stood there for a moment, then turned and made a beeline straight to the front door. I opened the door, and headed straight towards my car. Lo and behold, my entire future family was standing outside, all clapping!

With tears in his eyes, my future father-in-law hugged me and said, 'We are very happy that you have passed our little test. We couldn't ask for a better man for our daughter. Welcome to the family.'

And the moral of this story is:

Always keep your condoms in your car.

Age Is Just A Number

Perks of reaching 50 or being over 60 and heading towards 70!

01. Kidnappers are not very interested in you.

02. In a hostage situation you are likely to be released first.

03. No one expects you to run-- anywhere.

04. People call at 9 pm and ask, did I wake you?

05. People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.

06. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.

07. Things you buy now won't wear out.

08. You can eat supper at 4 pm.

09. You can live without sex but not your glasses.

10. You get into heated arguments about pension plans.

11. You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.

12. You quit trying to hold your stomach in no matter who walks into the room.

13. You sing along with elevator music.

14. Your eyes won't get much worse.

15. Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to pay off.

16. Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service..

17. Your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't remember them either.

18. Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.

19. You can't remember who sent you this list.

AND TRY TO ALWAYS REMEMBER ...

Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

(I really like the advice given..:))

How 2009 Ended

2009 ended with me watching 2 good movies.

I was really, really impressed with Avatar.

I went there with high expectations (because KV couldn't stop talking about it after watching it) and the movie was actually better that I expected!

The animation was really good. It's like being transported to another world!

I just wish I had the chance to watch it in 3D.

The Princess and The Frog was also a good watch.

I watch cartoon movies for 1 reason only - to enjoy the jokes.

The movies that top my favourite cartoon-movie are Shrek (1 and 2, didn't watch 3 I think) and The Emperor's New Groove.

The Princess and The Frog couldn't match these movies, but it was definitely better than some of the other cartoon-movies that came out last year.

___________________________________________________________

I also read a few good books.

You really should try reading Jodi Picoult - somehow, I get SO hooked up with her books once I start reading them. The stories are really issues that will make you think, will make you wonder what you would do in that kind of situation, and will make you wish that you never have to make decisions as hard as that.

Am currently reading Between The Assassinations by Aravind Adiga - something different, something interesting. It centers around the lifes of really poor Indians in India.

Reread Life of Pi by Yann Martel - this time, I paid more attention to the story as I already know what the ending is (am not going to tell you about it); appreciate the book more this time around.

Also read the first two books of the twilight series - didn't find it very addictive as I already know the story (almost the same as the movie), but it's a nice story to read and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series (am going to make sure that I don't watch the movie first).

_________________________________________________________

Do you guys remember a few years back, there was a period of time where buses kept meeting in accidents and all night buses were cancelled? I wonder when the rules were changed and buses were allowed to operate at night.

And recently, after the bus accident nearby Ipoh, once again the issue was brought up - to not let buses travel at night.

But then, that issue didn't last long and bus rides are still going on as usual.

How about the seatbelt rule - is it still on?

I wonder what's the problem with Malaysia and rules.. we make them, we break them, then we remake them when there is trouble again.

What the &%@# are we trying to do?

Why do we have to wait for something to go wrong before we take action?

_________________________________________________________

Also, it seems like someone brought up the issue about housemen (again) in the newspaper.

I don't know who started it or why - but then there is one group telling we are overworked, getting scolded bla, bla, bla..while another group who thinks that we are too pampered.

The way I see it - the non-doctors, non-nurses think that it is impossible for a person to work for more that 24 hours and function. They think that everyone needs rest, the labour law should be followed, etc. Parents of housemen would also feel pity for their children - it's natural - all parents want their child to come back home and chill talk to them rather than immediately fall asleep, right?

On the other hand, MOs and specialists have gone through worse times - times where they had less than half the number the housemen that we have now, times where they have to handle more things and get less pay. Do you expect them to sympatise on you? They used to do 15 calls a month, and now you are complaining because you have 6 calls a month? Doesn't make sense if we complain, right?

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Anyway, 2010 is here and I am *gasp* 26!

Actually, it makes no difference to me.

20, 26 - age is just a number, right?

But I still can't take it when my nephews or nieces call me Aunty - just makes me feel ancient..I'm not that old, am I?

Somehow, the years have passed by so fast.

Sometimes, I feel like time just flew after I completed my SPM.

I don't make new year resolutions because I know that I would never be able to stick to them.

Somehow, when something becomes a necessity, it is harder to do it.

For instance - when I was younger, I used to beg my Mum to let me iron the clothes- it just looked like so much fun.

But then, once I was older and was expected to do the ironing - it just became a chore, something I didn't like to do.

Weird, huh..

Well, am oncall tomorrow - actually looking forward to it 'cos am oncall with a really, really nice MO. :)

My New 'Toy'

Recently, I have had a problem with my laptop.
I couldn't use it 'normally'. The screen has to be tilted to a certain position to be used.
If I am lucky, then it can be used at a 60 degree angle, but usually it can only be used in an angle of about 45 degree.
Trust me, that is a really uncomfortable and painful way of using a laptop.

So, finally, I decided to get a new laptop.
After all, I have been using the laptop for about 8 years now, the CD player has been non-functioning for like forever and I only have limited memory in the laptop.

So, after a couple of calls to my 'computer consultant' I settled on DELL Inspiron.
I ordered it online and it arrived yesterday!!
Unfortunately, I am just too lazy to upload a picture - it's just a black laptop after all..:P

However, I just feel like my laptop is too empty.
I think I have to save all my photos from all the CDs I have and my old laptop plus put in a few movies and songs - only then it will feel really mine.
For now I am too lazy to do any of the above - some other time lah!

Anyway, here is a video that was sent to me recently. Check it out - it's really quite worth a watch.

Reading Is Better Than Watching

Many people wonder why I like to read story books.
Some think that reading a story book is a waste of time - time that can be used going out somewhere or watching a movie.

But I don't see it that way.
A good book is anytime better that a good movie.

Both movies and books bring you to another place, another world, into another person's life.
But a story book keeps you there longer.
You feel what the characters are feeling.
You see things from the characters point of view, instead of the cameraman's point of view.
You get more insight on each character.

Sometimes, when I think of a scene, I just can't remember whether the scene was in a movie I watched on in a book I read. So, who is to say that watching a movie is better than reading a book?

When watching a movie, you have to imagine what the character is thinking.
When reading a book, you have to imagine what the scene is like.
For me, I would prefer to be in the characters head - it is more personal that way.

Granted, reading takes up time.
Finishing a decent book would take at least a few hours of non-stop reading.
But to me, it is worth it.
I finish each (good) book feeling contented.
You will too, if you find a book that you really like.