No Air

If I should die before I wake
It's cause you took my breath away
Oh! Losing you is like living in a world with no air

I'm here alone, didn't wanna leave
My heart won't move it's incomplete
If there was a way that I could make you understand

But how do you expect me to live alone with just me?
'Cause my world revolves around you
It's so hard for me to breathe.

Tell me how I'm supposed to breathe with no air?
Can't live, can't breathe with no air
It's how I feel whenever you ain't there
It's no air, no air

Got me out here in the water so deep
Tell me how you gon breathe without me?
If you ain't here I just can't breathe
It's no air, no air

I walk, I ran, I jump, I flew
Right off the ground to float to you
WIth no gravity to hold me down forreal

But somehow I'm still alive inside
You took my breathe but I survived
I don't how but I don't even care

So how do you expect me to live alone with just me?
'Cause my world revolves around you
It's so hard for me to breathe

No more.

It's no air, no air...

Learning Odd Stuff

In the integrated curriculum of my university, the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) system is considered the leading engine that drives all other modes of learning. The emphasis in PBL is not in the intrigue of diagnosis, but in the opportunities to ask questions about related aspects of biomedical sciences.

What a big bunch of bull!

LOL... PBL is basically a 'mutated' form of tutorial classes, except that without having a lecturer tutoring us... the members of the PBL group (9-11 people) share/teach each other about respective topics or 'Learning Issues' relevant to the patient case and pathology.

Well, I guess some people might say it's a way for the university to save money (while suctioning a lot of fees from us) despite its claim that this will make us 'life-long learners', extremely applicable in the field of medicine, ahem!

Fine by me. I just wanna survive the next 7 semesters (long long time it is) and graduate and get my license and then (insert future plans!) I have been quite lucky to have pretty co-operative and enthusiastic group members, whom some I have never known existed in my batch before this. I cannot say the same about all the facilitators-cum-lecturers though. Good ones, are excruciatingly, hard to come by.

Anyways, it's common ground to have to include The Package while coming up with Learning Issues together (yes, we decide what we want to discuss!). What's the package, one wonders?

The Package usually includes:

1. Anatomy of the (affected) Organs/Systems/Regions
2. Physiology of the above
3. Biochemistry (if any)
4. Pathological aspects
5. Clinical presentations
6. Principles of Treatment and Management
7. Epidemiology and Public Health Aspects
8 (the much-dreaded) Social and Preventive Medicine side... or as we call it here, Behavioural Sciences and Community Medicine

Pretty normal for medical studies right?

Guess what I have to research on (one of them anyway!) for tomorrow's meeting session?

BIOCHEMISTRY OF FLATULENCE!!!

*faints and rolls on the floor like a spring roll*

And I shall leave you, lovable readers of mine, with some worthy quotes, relevant to the issue above!

• The noises commonly associated with flatulence are caused by the vibration of the analsphincter, and not by the buttocks.

• The sound varies depending on the tightness of the sphincter muscle and velocity of the gas being propelled, as well as other factors such as water and body fat.

• Humans are also known to flatulate during sleep, largely due to the relaxed state of body muscles, which results in the average person flatulating about 10-20 times through any given night.

• Nerve endings in the rectum usually enable individuals to distinguish between flatus and feces, although loose stool can confuse the individual, occasionally resulting in accidental defecation.

• In 1998, Chester "Buck" Weimer of Pueblo, Colorado, USA received a patent for the first undergarment that contained a replaceable charcoal filter. The undergarments are air-tight and provide a pocketed escape hole in which a charcoal filter can be inserted.

• Flatulence is often blamed as a significant source of greenhouse gases owing to the erroneous belief that the methane released by livestock is in the flatus.While livestock account for around 20% of global methane emissions, 90 to 95% of that is released by exhaling or burping. This means only 1–2% of global methane emissions come from livestock flatus.

Like, OMG!!!

Give Up

Me has tried uploading pictures to my blog entries for the past 2 days.

No avail.

=(

Retail Therapy Went Awry

Extra! Extra! This just in...

This weekend, I am going to watch the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra in action... at their dewan, of course.

with Carl Davis, as the conductor, performing Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake!!!


But I digress.

I went after lunch to Suria to purchase the tickets (All Hail Student Discount!) and ended up strolling around the mall.

Hmm, planned to splurge on myself now that the exams are over, at least for the next 30 days.
After all the traumatic experiences having had befallen me, retail therapy is much needed. I figured. A simple therapeutic afternoon out, with friends. But well, the budget's ever meagre and limited lah. As per usual.

"I can control myself and spend minimally. Yes I can. Yes. Yes. YESSSS!!!"

Imagine the glee rubbing between my hands when I successfully walked out of Topman and Isetan, empty handed!

And then... (insert) a few other boutiques/shops as well.

Finally, somehow when I was on escalator upwards and upon besighting the big blueeee signboard... I felt an odd sense of apprehension.

It was like, an inner monologue.

"Don't enter the premises ... survive and die another day"

Or something popping out from like, a Harry Potter book.


Or something like, like that.


True enough. I managed to walk out alive, with an extremely lighter wallet! *frowns*

But with theeeesee...

Hmm, not exactly NEW ARRIVALS... But yeah, some new books, some books which I have been wanting to buy for a long time. I don't know what got into me. But I don't usually spend like 400 Malaysian Ringgit on books, at one go! Especially when they are not of the academic-slash-encyclopedia kind.


1. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro (hmm, he looks very young for a 53 year old dude!)

2. SLAM! - Nick Hornby (Haha, I was surprised when I first read his last name as HORNY!!! Shh... Don't tell anyone but the main reason I bought the book was because of the COOL COVER!!!)

3. Thousand Words of Gold - Adeline Yen-Mah (I so totally beyond words, extremely, profoundly, adoringly obssesively LURVE her FALLING LEAVES autobiography!

4. Weight Loss - Upamanyu Chaterjee (err... cos I want the big title to serve as a motivation for me to burn some fat, as well?)



Some medical-related yet non-academic books, just for the heck of it!

5. What I Learned from Medical School (a collection of medical student life stories... I'D LIKE TO LET THE WORLD KNOW THAT I WAS MAINLY COAXED INTO BUYING THIS BOOK!)

6. The Knife Man - Wendy Moore (Blood and Gore and Science... Yummy!)

7. Mortal Lessons: Notes on the Art of Surgery - Richard Selzer (err... the title speaks for itself!)




Now, I have to sustain myself on plain white porridge. More kicap, less pepper! No spring onions please!


Guess this is karma, Another day, another drama...

24

1. Phew!
2. It feels so exhilarating and relieving at the same time that I have succesfully survived my FIRST EVER clinical skills examination!!!
3. And emerged... with a pass, at least, I hope?
4. Mushrooms and parsley mixed together - not really a good idea for a salad.
5. 4 completely vegetarian dishes for dinner... can be kinda nauseating.
6. I spent TWICE the amount of money I have actually planned for today.
7. Yet, I still wanna go shopping... with Topman discount coupons at hand!
8. But I am going to get M to S sizes.
9. I may not fit into those sizes, as of yet.
10. But in due time, with a little perseverance and discipline, I believe.
11. Which reminds me, I love my gym life.
12. The one I kinda abandoned after starting the maniacal disaster that is medical school.
13. Here, I found YOU.
14. And YOU, allocate more space on our gigantic queen size bed for me please? *wink wink*
15. On the verge of falling off, every morning.
16. Oh yeah, back to ME: eat less, binge less (purge more?), stay slim and sexy!
17. Be a HOT Geek!
18. I keep on having some deja vu worthy moments.
19. They remind me of quirky dreams I had not-so-prior to their occurences.
20. Digressing, I wanna watch Stardust!
21. Yes, no... I have not caught that blockbuster on the silver screen as of yet.
22. Sue me, anyone?
23. I am having this incessant calling to hang out with more of my friends with the "alternative sexuality" (my choice, of course)
24. Hmm, and a proper update shall fill this spot within the same amount of hours! [I hope!]

I like November.

I do. I do.

For now... =)