Snow in Aberdeen

from the living room of my flat this afternoon…

on my way to Somerfield

early morning snow

Exam-Period

Jingle bells are around the corner and just as everyone else is anticipating the moment to host their annual X’mas gathering, I’m anticipating the arrival of the winter Mock. I always wondered why people called it the Mock Exams and to be honest, I can’t seem to derive anything else better than the pure explanation of “an exam of mockery”.

While I’m anxiously waiting for doom’s day to arrive, Aberdeen has somehow transformed into one of those tiny cities with brightly litted street decorations, awaiting to welcome the much soon to arrive jingle spirits. And while everyone else is busy figuring out what chocolates to buy, or who’s daughter might prepare Barbie to a set of cookery, or which sponge cake to order for the 25th night, the Medics are anxious about their flight bookings and train tickets for a short break planned this winter.

Apparently the weather forecast predicts slight shower of snow tomorrow and boy am I excited. Hoping that I don’t forget to recharge the very limited remnant of battery life left in my camera. I know I promised to post pictures but, medical school has indeed got in the way somehow or another. To be honest, really, being a 4th year medic ain’t as cool. Nonetheless, the surroundings does make it a wee bit adaptable and of course, the presence of good company.

The very long awaited arrival of my internet access has finally and permanently arrived in a wee package with a DIY manual. Everything is so advance that I begin to wonder if the actual culprit for the recent financial crisis has anything to do with the fact that I can no longer have a decent conversation with a human being whenever I ring up my O2 phone company. Needless to say, our roles have been replaced by machines.

It’s interesting how the living creates a non-living “creature” to play the ideal role of God’s gift to life. Then again, God did give us brains. So perhaps it was his fault, from the very first place. Maybe we should have been monkeys or elephants, stomping and pounding the grounds of mother earth, never knowing the true meaning of life and what’s it made of.

If that should happen, or rather if that had happened, I wonder if I’ll even be able to blog in the first place? Hmm…

Food for thought indeed.

Nonetheless, I would still like to enjoy what’s left of my life for the moment. And although it can get quite frustrating to have a machine ringing u up as if a real person did, I can still reserve the fact that bigger items like airplanes gets me home to where I want to be this X’mas.

All sweeties, and pressies have all emerged from its closets to fill the anterior exhibitions in the city. That makes me so happy! But reminding myself that as each secone ticks by, and with every respiratory rate I lie here counting in rhythm with my very regular bradycardic beats, my moments to the Mock gets closer.

Wish me plenty of luck as this will be the first Mock in Aberdeen.

Cross your fingers and hope it does not make a “Mock-ery” out of me. 🙂

Merry Christmas, everyone and see you all back home where it’s still… Summer!

Blackmail-er

Ever wondered why some people bother doing the innocently evil things they do? Like sending an sms for a break-up? or sending an email as a notification to fire off their employee? or even, texting someone to let them know that you have plans to lodge an official report against them with an attempt to frame them for scam?

The latter applies to my very interestingly spicy life with much drama and hoo-loos. If I have yet to spice up yours with my overwhelming life incidents, then, spare me another time to fill you in on “creatures of my life”.

It’s amazing how the world was created with just Adam and Eve. Here’s how the real story went:

Adam disliked Eve but he did not dare to say so. So he bitched about her to the snake on the tree. And then, the snake on the tree decided to tell Eve. And Eve got really mad at Adam. So Eve told Adam to eat the forbidden apple on the tree. Of course, the real truth is not as such.

In the real world, Adam and Eve play this very similar role in my very short and unlikely story described above. The reality holds that whoever plays the dominant role somehow claims the right to over-rule the inferior. Why do creatures created by God, of what used to be so pure and genuine turn ugly eventually threatening the life of others?

Well, my very interesting life drama begins here. It was bad enough to have to deal with sudden onset of adult house flies grouping within the kitchen. That drove me insane and I sought much comfort in a can of Wasp/Fly spray. Soon, in 2 weeks the population went into extinction, and my kitchen was back to itself again. As if a child miraculously healed from an episode of plague, my life did not end right then.

The very quiet and seemingly gentle ectopic soul who lived in our living room for 3 months since decided to play a little drama on us. Uninvited relative soon joined and self-claimed my habitat as theirs. Little did they know that some of us actually DO bite, when we have to.

And so, the story turned ugly and they had to be ushered out of my comfort zone. What they did in return was beyond the explanation of “good deed repays with another”. They threatened to take things to the higher authority.

Demanding my house back because of a breach in a contract, simply just means that I have the superior authority to ask someone who is renting a room from me to leave whenever and however I feel like it if he/she should betray the agreement. What this bugger and his bitchy sister did was move out and not return our house keys. They wanted to ensure that before they do return the keys to me, that I repay them the balance of their rental.

So, would that be highly ethical to hold on to someone else’s house keys? And having the right to then go in and out of their crib? Would that not be then termed “invasion of privacy”? Many people do things without having thinking through the actual legality of their actions.

But, bottom line was things had to be settled in a much more harsh manner than I wanted it to. And that was only because some people just don’t know where to draw the line…

End of Inverness Block

it seems like it was just yesterday when my bf and i arrive at this very top end of Scotland on a rainy evening only to find the usual weekend solemn-ness of the caucasian society where everything closes by 5pm. i was not surprised, though. but being as hungry as we were, and having travelled a good 4 hours journey all the way frm grampians Aberdeen, with 4 luggages, 2 nap-sacks, and our very own traditional rice-cooker, we were in deep need of food.

although we were told of the brits very own hypermarket store, Tesco, existence, the city of Inverness was far too wide and vast for any of us to have easily discovered it with just a glance of the magnificant highlands that over-looks the hospital grounds of Raigmore Hospital. but we perservered on and finallly, stretching our exhausted muscles and tendons for another 800m, we arrived at what seemed to me like the 30 mins before closing time havoc at Tesco.

of course, with any hypermarket you manage to wiggle your way through to in the UK, 30 mins before closure offers plenty of good and attractive deals, especially at the hot food counter. but being here in this foreign land for our very first time, we struggled trying to manage our way back for another 800m back to our doctor’s accommodation called Juniper Court. we had along, with ourselves, and our very hyperextended arms, 4 fully loaded groceries bags each. that must have put our muscles into an anaerobic stage.

but, that all happened on our very first day in this land called Inverness. today, after having spent 10 weeks with wet and cold weather that travels down to warm land all the way from the mountains, we are finally heading back to the coasts of Aberdeen. am i looking forward to it? well, not exactly.

despite having much complains and rants throughout my first few weeks up north, i have come to realise that the further you go, the nicer people you seem to meet. and honestly, if it was not for the recurrent episodes of unpleasant encounters with the bus drivers, and the unreliable bus time-tables, then it is indeed not such a bad place to be at all. of course, for me nothing compares to good ol’Aberdeen city.

i do miss Aberdeen a whole lot, mainly cause i enjoy the buzzling and hussling of the city lifestyle. the bus services in Aberdeen are so much more reliable as well, which makes travelling much better and enjoyable too. but most of all, i miss Aberdeen because i enjoy the comfort of my own home. right now, my room is just a place of where i am only allowed to dwell in my own misery. anywhere out of this concised 4 walls of just a single bed, a sink, a wardrobe and a study table, i am very much exposed to the company of my other 2 housemates, my loyal bf, and the rest of the people who resides in Juniper Court.

nonetheless, what i actually do miss most about Inverness is the attention the consultants provide to seekers such as myself. i have gotten the chance to scrub into surgeries like i have never scrubbed in before and enjoy the tremendous efforts and energy i have to dig out from within just to lift an unconcious person’s leg off the table. sounds easy but just you go try lifting a floppy limb.

medicine is just so challenging. but challenges are what makes a topic interesting and nerve wrecking. it is the essense of the adrenaline rush. i get that definately all the time just being in a theatre, or just rubbing my scronie index on an acetabulum. nothing beats surgery!

just one thing i must have right not, right this moment and i am craving immensely for it… i want NASI LEMAK!

so, good bye, so long and farewell to Inverness. until our next meet. 🙂

NASI LEMAK!!!

Battle of Genders

There’s nothing worse than being in an enclosed environment with men who seem to have preying eyes on your confidence. Gone are the days when men get proper education and women were left to meddle through the remaining days of their lives with cookery and sewing. Life is not that simple.

Parents of the new generation post high hopes for both daughters and sons (depending how accurate is their aim). And to think that the society in bigger developed countries would have a different mind set all together, that assumption is definately one not to take advantage of.

I found myself stuck with a rotation on Orthopaedics here. Savouring the past memories of Grey’s Anatomy’s series where their orthopaedic surgeon was none other than Dr. Callie Torres gave me some sense of hope and confidence that someday, I might just be able to manipulate fractured bones or dislocated joints back into place. Needless to say, my confidence has been shattered throughout these past 5 weeks.

Men are indeed confidence preying animals. They prey on innocent, fragile looking creatures like women and they wait for the right time to clench their teeth into them. They are deceiving to look at or even to listen to. As gentlemanly as they seem, they are actually tempering with the emotional state and vulnerability of their prey. And soon when the time is right, they jump in and shatter everything that you have tried building.

Coming from an Asian background, I am not surprised if girls like me are just natural petites. I’m not short, excuse me. I’m just petite. I have skinny, elongated limbs which gives me the ability to hyperextend. And so I have quite a high range of laxity within. Yes. I am small in size. But I’m definately 165cm of height and will never pass off as short!

It was utterly humiliating to be called “short” in front of other women who were evidently shorter than me. What would be worse is to be let down in front of a majority of “The Prey”. I have come to realise that this field of mine is definately not one which is gentle and kind to the female soul. And it has become apparent that men in this field, at all cause, will try to make it a battle ground for women. Where is women’s rights in this?

Today, just as I was embracing my skills in the OT, the anaesthetist made a statement: “Why are there so many women anaesthetists? It’s making it into a cookery.” The fellow surgeon laughed and turned to me shortly later requesting a reply. I couldn’t be bothered with such sexist remark and decided to just go with: “Was that a question? Women? Is that so?”

Another encounter just last week left me pondering about the shallowness of such people existing in this world, in my field. But there are some who are genuinely kind and sincere, such as one I had a discussion with with regards to the topic of possible Mnemonics. I came up with the Carpal bones and at the very corner of our conversation, this guy stepped up after having ears-dropping our topic and for some awkward reason, said: “Carpal bones? Ya. Lunate, Capitate, and oh look! BOOK!”

What is wrong with these people? I don’t think women have lesser ability or capability to be as good as men.

Sigh. Men.

Meaning…

Surgery is a practical procedure carried out with both hands, controlled by a brain, seated beneath a hard skull, of which harvests barely a few strands of fine hair amidst a wide scalp surface. It is the slicing, resecting, and repairing of a magnificant living engine called the human body. This exploration right down to the very core of our biological birth to this life, has brought much alterations and changes to both the physique and the mind and soul of our very existence.

This is… my story of my life, broken down, cut out, and removed for your eyes to read and for your mind to ponder…