Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Over the banister

Watched 'Meet Me in St. Louis,' one of my favourite musicals starred by Judy Garland (just recently purchased the DVD, been watching all the songs over and over...)
The poem below was sung by Esther Smith (Ms. Garland), which I think is beautiful (she did not sing the whole length of it, though...)

::Over the banister::
(Author unknown)

Over the banister leans a face
Tenderly sweet, beguiling
While below with her tender grace
He watches the picture smiling

The light burns dim in the hall below
Nobody sees them standing
Saying 'goodnight' again soft and low
Halfway up to the landing

Nobody only those eyes of brown
Tender and full of meaning
Gaze on the loveliest face in town
Over the banister leaning

Timid and tired with downcast eyes
I wonder why she lingers
After all the goodnights are said?
Somebody holds her fingers

Holds her fingers and draws her down
Suddenly growing bolder
Till her lovely hair lets its masses down
Like a mantle over his shoulder

A question asked
A swift caress
She had fled like a bird from the stairway
But over the banister comes a "yes!"
That brightens the world for him alway.

I just gotta say one last thing. John Truitt in a tux. Wow.

Meanings of the colours of roses


Found this on someone's blog (Yup, I do cilok things from people once in a while, but only if it's interesting, and I never claim other people's writings as my own okay....cewah..defensive la pulak)

Meanings of the colours of roses ---> Important info for guys!
RED stands for love so true,a feeling between just two


WHITE stands for innocent and kind,a person you can never find


YELLOW stands for loyalty and care,a person who is always there


ORANGE stands for great affection,love with pure satisfaction


PEACH stands for thought day and night,I can't get you out of my sight


SWEETHEART YELLOW means I'm sorry,it's only you I will marry


AMBER ORANGE means a deep love,a hand that fits the perfect glove


COLOUR CHAMPAGNE congratulates true love,something that comes from heaven above


PINK stands for a true friend,fun times to share and spend

Ookay...I know the basic colours like red and white and pink...but what's sweetheart yellow? colour champagne? amber orange??

As you can see, flowers would be a waste on me. Give me chocolates with nuts, and I'll be putty in your hands *grins*. Cadbury's fine with me...I'm not all that fussed...

Saturday, June 25, 2005

All is well........

Newsflash!!!

I survived through the week!!!

Didn't sleep the night before Friday (well, kalau tido pun sekejap je) to finish the darn SSM. Printed everything by 12 noon, showered, did some photocopying (we had to submit 2 copies) and by 3.30 p.m. Vasan and I were at St. Bartholomew's Hospital. Without much ceremony, we surrendered the very thing that had made our lives miserable for the past one week.

And it felt so good. Oh yeah, it felt REALLY good.

After that, since we were near to Central London, thought we'd take Oxford Circus. Just to window shop.

Then it started raining. Didn't mind though, coz it's been very hot the past one week, sometimes I felt it was even worse than Malaysia. Mostly because people here have not discovered the miraculous invention called 'air-conditioner'.

Hah. Just kidding. I know asking for air-conditioning in student residence is a little bit much.

Anyway I think the only ones who dread summer are people like me who've had sunshine all our lives. People here actually sit on anywhere there's grass, in the sun. There was someone who was actually sunbathing behind the hospital, in the courtyard. Me? I run for the nearest shade.

Can't wait to go home. 3 weeks to go....(2 weeks to exams! Yikes!)

Anyway, next topic. Went to Sainsbury's yesterday, as I was leaving the checkout counter, I saw this man who actually slapped her daughter, who must be about 7 years old for accidentally stepping onto some shopping items. A proper tight slap.

I was quite stunned. I think I just stood and stared for about half a minute. That girl will remember that slap for the rest of her life. Unless, that wasn't the first time. Or the last.

I thank God that my earliest childhood memories are not of anger nor violence from my parents. My mom, who was very strict with my sisters and me when we were very young, spared us by doing all the scolding when we were at home (if ever the offence committed was at somebody's house, that is). Never in public.

Oh, I do believe that children should be punished when they are naughty; they have to be taught what's right and what's wrong and how to behave. Anyone saw 'Desperate Housewives'? Lynette totally refused to spank her children, and as a result, she had 3 very boisterous sons...quite a horror! Nowadays, I feel parents are a little bit too indulgent with their kids. Imagine going for a kenduri and you see children running and climbing everywhere!! What do their parents do? They just glance at their children, saying "Janganlah buat camtu....Along, jaga adik tu..." and then turn around to continue their conversation with other adults while expecting their ten year-old eldest child to make sure his/her sibling(s) behave. Nevermind that the children run up and down the house, destroying absolutely every electrical+electronic item and dirtying every single furniture. They think they've done their parental duty just by attempting to make their children behave like civilized people instead of hooligans.

To parents who are like this, I have something to say to you : Your children are not fit to be brought into society. Please keep them at home so that the only house they wreck is yours. In thinking that sparing your children from any sort of punishment is an act of love, it also shows that you have no respect for your host because you let your young ones behave less than human in his/her home.

Harsh words, I know. But it's also true.

How in the world did I get from being horrified seeing a man slapping his daughter to being less than happy that parents don't discipline their children?

The former - obviously because I saw it happening before my eyes today. Well, about the latter, it's something that's been pent up for quite a while, suddenly feel like letting it out. Have seen too many children (and parents) acting that way. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely ADORE children, but not the ones who are absolute horrors.

I guess it's easy for me to criticize people, not having children of my own (yet). But surely there's a happy balance between disciplining children and not being too free-handed....

Oh well, those are my thoughts on that subject.

Ah, I forgot. I did say I'd do the hula dance on Oxford Street after I give my SSM workbook in, didn't I?

Sorry. It rained, and I was too tired due to lack of sleep this past week that I went back home after only half an hour. Slept on the bus all the way home.

Maybe next time, okay? *winks*

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

*Sigh.....*

Still labouring over SSM....will finish parts 1-6 today, hopefully, so I can concentrate on Section 7 until Friday (planning to write on 'Photodynamic Therapy in the management of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer')

Ambitious giler. Arrgh.

Lord, give me strength.


After I send it in on Friday, I'm going to celebrate by doing the hula dance in the middle of Oxford Street.

Hah!!

Kidding. I may be stressed, but I'm NOT crazy (yet).

Over and out!

Monday, June 20, 2005

SSM Update

Just a short entry.

SSM update :

1) It's more tedious than I thought

2) Progress? Not 80% as I hoped....but I can't work any faster than what I'm doing now

3) My current state? Agak stressed. I generally don't feel the stress, but my body's physiological process go a bit haywire during times like these (e.g. can't sleep, bloating, craving for chocolate, etc, etc)

4) Procrastination (being a lazy slacker) + perfectionism = me = DISASTER!

--> Isyk, keje selalu delay, ada hati lagi nak buat essay betul2.....

Takpe, takpe, dateline Friday.....

Happy Father's Day

It's Father's Day weekend. At home, we don't usually celebrate it, so I totally forgot about it until I read an article on MSN.com (click here) featuring famous personalities and their thoughts on fatherhood.

Which reminded me of that one very special man in my life. Growing up with my 2 sisters, Abah has always been our hero. When I was younger, Abah was our knight in shining armour, protecting us from the very scary person called Mak (who was so very garang in my opinion, although now that I'm older I know it was for our own good, and now Mak is the person I tell everything to. And just so you know, I plan to be just like her with my children *grins*).

Anyway, back to Abah. One of my earliest childhood memories is that of me greeting Abah at the door when he came back from work, trying to open the grill door using one of my brightly-coloured plastic keys. He was posted to Sabah when I was about 4 years old, he came back to Seremban constantly to see us. And when we finally joined him there a few months later, I remembered arriving at the apartment, our rooms beautifully done, and my sisters and I each had a Donald Duck tabung greeting us on the dressing table with our names written underneath in Abah's handwriting.

Abah is always very calm and collected. I still think he's one of the bravest people I've ever known. The first time I saw him panic was when we were at the theme park in Jakarta, and he accompanied my sisters and I into a haunted house. At that time, it was VERY packed, everyone was shoulder-to-shoulder (well, we were smaller back then, it was more like our faces into people's rear ends). When everyone was pushing to go forward, in the chaos, my youngest sister got separated from us. That was the one time I saw fear in his eyes.

When he got angry (which was and still is, very, very, VERY seldom) he never laid a finger on us. The only time he threatened me with his belt was when I was in Standard 3, when 7 p.m cartoons were more interesting to me than taking my bath. Even then, he just swung the belt in his hand but it never got near me. I saw through it after the second time he tried it on me. Anyway, I DID go and take my bath after he asked me to (a 30-second one during commercials).

When I used to fall asleep watching tv, Abah would carry me to my bed. Sometimes I pretended to be asleep so he would carry me. Until the day I got quite big and so he couldn't carry me anymore. That was when I realized even if I wanted to, I couldn't be his little girl forever.

Being a father to 3 daughters must be quite a challenge. Not that we give him trouble, but a father always worries about his daughters more than he would do sons. Whenever he's worried about something, he wouldn't tell us directly, he sends his emissary (Mak). But when he does say something, you better listen, coz it's quite serious.

Abah has always been proud of his daughters. When my SPM results came out, Mak said that he was so proud that he actually carried a photocopy of my results slip wherever he went. Nevertheless, I know that Abah is proud of us, regardless. Even during the times I felt that I didn't rise up to his expectations (well, mine, actually) he'd always been there to console and encourage.

Being in the profession he is in, people always think that he's a very stern and severe kind of man. It couldn't be further than the truth. It always tickles us to see people at his workplace being so in awe of him. But then, he does have this aura around him that inspires awe in people. He's just a different person with his family. As with the nature of his job, Abah has been transferred to many places. But with the offices he's had, there's something that's always the same : individual pictures of Mak, Along, Yana and me on his planner on his writing table, which means we're the closest to him even when he's working, literally.

Abah, I just want to say 'Happy Father's Day'. I can't ask for a better father than you. And although there will come a time when another man occupies a special place in my life, you will always be my hero.

Saturday, June 18, 2005

Dah habis dah......

Finished my clinical attachment for the 3rd year med course yesterday. Had an OSCE (practical exam) before all if us on the firm were given our grades. The OSCE went okay, I wouldn't say I did VERY well, in fact, some of the things I did were tepuk-dahi-coz-it-was-so-silly kind of things. I couldn't finish the data interpretation station, coz they sort of messed up the timing (it was an informal assessment, after all), and thus I lost quite a few marks for that station.

Sat down with the consultant at the end of it. Had a one-to-one session. Alhamdulillah, despite messing up a few things during the OSCE, it didn't affect my overall grade. In fact, to my surprise, the consultant gave me a merit. I stared at him for about 5 seconds, and he asked me if it was okay. I sort of gave a confused look and mutely nodded.

You see, we were told that out of the 8 students on the firm, they were instructed to give only 10% out of the number merits. Out of the 8, there were 2 Graduate Entry Programme students, who were spectacular (one of them had the ability to make the rest of us feel inadequate most of the time), and the other 3 ppl from my half of the firm were no less impressive (compared to them, I'm quite a lazy slacker).

The consultant said that I was enthusiastic and thus the merit. Hmmmmm....

I won't pretend to feel nor think that I was the most deserving of them all (one other person also got it), but since things turn out this way, I say "Alhamdulillah". God has been very good to me.

Right, firms have finished. Starting oncology lectures next week for 2 weeks, then 1 week study break, and then exams (yikes!!). But after that, I'll be going home!!!

Oh yeah, SSM essay to finish. My resolution is to finish at least 80% of it this weekend, insyaAllah. The reason why I'm stating this is to that I WOULD do it, since it would be quite embarassing for me to report that I didn't do it finally, wouldn't it?

Roger and out!

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Would'cha look at that.......

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I think I've fallen in love.

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

Arrrgh....

Things that are going through my head right now:

1) Bosan...

2) Arrgghh bila nak siap SSM essay ni?? (Camne nak siap? Baru jek start....ada 2 minggu lagi before deadline tapi banyak nak buat...padan muka sendri..)

3) Ehh....cantik gak digital camera 'X' ni...(for the zillionth time....tak paham takpe..inside joke only my sister yang faham)

4) Bosan....bosan!!

5) Bila Naruto manga minggu ni nak keluar? Lambat betul la

6) Azureen mesti comel sekarang kan.....

7) Bosan....bosan...bosan!!

8) Aaaaaaa nak balik!!!

Saturday, June 11, 2005

Something to brighten everyone's mood...(Well...mine, actually)

Still brooding over the whole Pride and Prejudice thing.

Read this one forum regarding the movie, and someone said this :

"Aaaaarrrgggghhhhh the trailer is up! Omg I seriously don't know whether to laugh or cry. The screenplay is just awful, Kiera is really awful, the costumes are awful and a lot of the direction/cinematography/lay out of scenes seems to be taken directly from the BBC version. I'm furious! I think I'm most furious about the script...I knew it would be terrible from reading an interview with writer months and months ago, she sounds like such an idiot. GRRRRRR :("

You see? I'm not alone. It's a worldwide outrage.

Oh well, anyway, my sister sent a link to this site, it's so hilarious! Sure to brighten up your day!! Make sure you have speakers on =)

1) For you gamers out there, click here

2) Love Lord of the Rings? You'll love this one!!!

3) This could happen during your lecture *winks*. Click here

Friday, June 10, 2005

Say it isn't so!!!!!

A couple of hours ago, I received a link from a friend of mine. A trailer for a movie : Pride and Prejudice, starred by Kiera Knightley.

Before going further, I have to establish this fact : Pride and Prejudice tops the list of my favourite books, and is second to none. The only book that comes close is Persuasion, written by the same author. I think that Jane Austen is the best author in the whole wide world.

I discovered P&P when I was in Form 5, and have been addicted to Austen's works ever since. Have read the story cover to cover countless times. I myself have 3 copies of the same book : the Oxford World Classics version (my first one..I scribbled quite a few notes in that book), another copy (hardcover), given as a birthday present by a close friend, and another copy also in hardcover, complete with illustrations.

So obsessed by the book, I started looking for dramatization of it. That was when I discovered BBC's Pride and Prejudice, starred by Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth. Bought the VHS version a few years ago, and now I have the DVD as well. I have to say that to me it was THE BEST dramatization of any novel ever, as it was so faithful to the book. And Jennifer Ehle was the perfect choice for Elizabeth Bennet. Colin Firth IS Mr Darcy, and no one else can play the part.

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Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle as Darcy and Elizabeth in BBC's P&P

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Kiera Knightley and Matthew McFayden as Elizabeth and Darcy


When I heard that there were plans to make P&P into a movie with Kiera Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet, I was quite unhappy. I may have something against her (don't ask me what it is), but speaking on neutral terms, I don't think she has the magnetism to play Elizabeth Bennet.

And so, yes, I was quite unhappy, but when I saw the trailer (you can access to it here) I was VERY upset. They have killed the story, totally. Austen's Pride and Prejudice has many layers to it; the story is like a deep ocean, seemingly calm on the surface but with lots of undercurrents. Every action, every look, even the setting, has significance. The subtlety of the story is where the beauty lies. And the movie just blew everything. For one thing, in the effort to fit the whole story into a two-hour movie, they sacrificed Austen's language and modified the dialogue. And Elizabeth Bennet is hailed as a 'modern woman' (supposedly) ahead of her time. WHAT'S UP with that? In that 2 mins and 27 seconds trailer, it was evident that they changed Elizabeth's character completely. She was a little bit too emotional, like Aishwarya Rai in Bride and Prejudice (an even more appalling adaptation of P&P). The character seemed less mature and less in control of herself.

Matthew McFayden as Mr Darcy? Well, as I said, Colin Firth IS Mr Darcy, and no one else can be. Enough said on that topic.

My biggest grievance against this new movie is that the value of the story, which is one of the greatest classics in English literature, has been 'cheapened' by reducing it to a mere story of 5 sisters in a rage to find rich and handsome husbands, putting aside more important issues so meticulously penned by Jane Austen. As a journalist put it, this movie is part of the production company's genius in 'packaging Englishness for Americans'.

*sigh* Jane Austen will turn in her grave for sure. I, for one, am resolved not to watch it. Can't bear to see the story closest to my heart be torn to pieces.

Yes, this is my assessment of the whole movie based on the trailer. You might say that judgements should not be passed based on first impressions alone (that's what Pride and Prejudice is about, ironically enough). However, in this case, a two-minute trailer told a thousand words.

Thursday, June 09, 2005

A story about first love...

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As a final event before the Malaysian Society Committee members of 2004/2005 retire (yippeee!!), we decided to show the movie 'Sepet'. Everyone's been talking about it. It won a couple of awards. So we wanted to see what the fuss is all about. (Actually, I've seen it beforehand with Vasan, and we thought it would be a good idea to do a screening).

How was it? Well, it's always fun to watch a movie with friends. There were not too many of us, just a cozy number in the small lecture theatre. Although it was my third viewing, I still enjoyed it very much.

There were several issues brought up by Yasmin Ahmad in the story; mostly about racial differences and how love crosses that boundary. After the show, someone commented that there were quite a few controversial things mentioned in the movie. That's true, but it was handled very tactfully that it did not come across as offensive (well, at least I think so). She was just presenting to the audience the facts, nothing more.

The dialogue was witty, it didn't sound unnatural at all. You can actually imagine people in real life saying those lines. There were a couple of scenes, though which I thought was quite daring (I wonder, HOW did they get the 'ok' from the censorship board?). The scenes involving Orked's parents. When the first scene happened, the thing that went through my mind was "Uih....gilalah! Camner boleh lepas babak nih? Isyk..habis hilang ilmu!!"

Hehe. Was traumatized for exactly 30.002 seconds.

I did think though, that Orked's dad was the only sane person in the whole movie. His objections to the boy was reasonable enough. I'm sure no father would want his daughter to be involved with a guy who has made a girl pregnant. Tapi mak dia selamba jek. No doubt la Jason (or Ah Loong) was a really nice guy, but surely any mother wouldn't (or rather, shouldn't) be THAT supportive? If my mom did that, I would think that she's taken leave of her senses. Or her mental faculties have gone a little bit awry.

But, despite saying that, it was a really nice movie. And I can say with a clear conscience that it deserved the awards it received.

Found this on Yasmin Ahmad's (the director) blog (which you can access here) :

"I also wanted “Sepet” to be about first love. First love has always fascinated me because it happens to you at a time when you have not yet learned to lie to yourself. With first love, within five minutes, you accept the other person for everything that they are, warts and all. I believe that our first love is the truest love of all."

At the end of it, she quoted from a poet, Wislawa Szymborska :

“Let the people who never find true love believe that there is no such thing. Their faith will make it easier for them to live and die.”

First love is always wonderful. Things may happen in life, and people may move on and find new love in their lives, but the first will always be unforgettable. You will never forget that one person who unlocked your heart and showed you that the world is indeed a beautiful place, even at its cruelest. That person who makes you realize that life is worth living when you live for someone, with the knowledge that that someone lives for you.

Oooookay, dah mula merepek dah. I'm leaving now. Before that, let's have a bit of poetry, shall we? I can say this for a fact, that EVERYONE - well, almost - who has a blog and had written about Sepet would've included Rabindranath Tagore's poem in their entries (Since he was quoted several times in the movie). In the spirit of rebellion, I beg to differ. This entry is also about first love. Well, this sonnet reminds me of mine.


Is it thy will thy image should keep open
My heavy eyelids to the weary night?
Dost thou desire my slumbers should be broken,
While shadows, like to thee, do mock mysight?
Is it thy spirit that thou send'st from thee
So far from home, into my deeds to pry,
To find out shames and idle hours in me,
The scope and tenour of thy jealousy?
O, no! thy love, though much, is not so great:
It is my love that keeps mine eye awake;
Mine own true love that doth my rest defeat,
To play the watchman ever for thy sake:
For thee watch I whilst thou dost wake else- where,
From me far off, with others all too near

~William Shakespeare : Sonnet 61~

Monday, June 06, 2005

Baby Blues part 2

Seems like I've lots to write about this weekend. That can only mean one thing : I have loads of work to do, and thus trying to avoid doing them by devoting my time on other things e.g. watching movies, online shopping, playing games, blogging etc....

Anyway, baby updates. I'm happy to report that Azureen Sofia bt. Onny Iriawan has grown significantly; horizontally and vertically (esp her cheeks), so my parents said. The wonders of mother's milk. She's more often awake than asleep nowadays, and chooses to socialize with her mother at odd hours; between 12 - 3 am, which is quite hard on my sister since she's already started working again. And so the very sociable person would be surrendered to her grandparents, who more than welcome the intrusion.

And so my parents' lives revolve around the baby. I'm sure my dad's golfing partner has had to find another companion (as my sister puts it) and my mom undoubtedly postpones marking her students' books more than ever.

I got a phone call from Abah yesterday and it went more or less like this :

Abah : Hello sayang, buat apa tu?


Me : Oh, nothing much, just trying to study.....

Abah : Is everything okay with you?


Me : Yup, just fine....

Abah : That's good. Abah tengah dukung Azureen ni....she's SO cute, dah montel dah....


Me : Ooooo....yeke....?


(Sounds of my father interacting with Azureen in the background...goes on for about a minute..)

Abah : Ok, mak nak cakap, I'll pass the phone to her
(More background sounds of interaction with baby)


Mak : Hello sweetie, how's everything with you?

Me : I'm fine, trying to revise for exams..


Mak : Oooo....all the best to you. Make sure you eat properly and take your vitamins. Anyway, Azureen baru habis mandi ni....she's so cute...

(More interaction....could hear my parents calling Azureen by her name several times and the baby responding by cooing).


Mak : Do you want to listen to her? Kejap ye...

(Could hear Azureen's voice clearly over the phone. If she wanted to tell me something like "Mak Ngah, I need a diaper change", it was a futile effort coz I don't understand baby language. Me, on the other hand, was unsure if I was just supposed to listen to her or say something like "Don't keep your mother awake at odd hours. I'll buy you huge toys when I get back")


After a minute or so....

Mak : Okla sayang, tak mau lama2 sangat...you take care of yourself okay, we'll see you in 6 weeks' time...Love you...


Me : I love you too...

At the end of the phone call I got a bit confused. Now, was that a conversation with Azhani Akmar, or Azureen Sofia?

Not that I mind, of course....It is quite amusing. And so nowadays my conversations with my parents are peppered with reports of the baby's progress. When I go home this summer, she will be at the age where she's very friendly with everyone. Can't wait to go home!!

But I'd have to get through exams first. Bummer.

Sunday, June 05, 2005

Relevankah Aku di Hatimu?

Went blog-surfing earlier today. Stumbled upon an e-novel : Relevankah Aku di Hatimu? aka RADHA. Started reading, and I didn't realize how time went by. The story pulled quite a few of my heart strings, and some issues struck several chords within my soul. No malay novel has touched me so. Probably because I can relate to it (but saying that, I don't mean that there are any striking similarities between the story and my own life). *sigh* No matter how hard I try not to be, I'm still quite a 'girl' sometimes.....Can't deny the double 'X' chromosome effect, I suppose...

I must say, for a writer who's around my age, the author writes very well. Her style of writing is unpretentious. Quite refreshing, actually.

Anyone interested in reading it, you can access it from the 'links' section.

Enjoy. I sure did.

Saturday, June 04, 2005

I hate offers

I hate offers. Truly do.

Went to Waterstone's yesterday. They had the '3 for 2' offers, as usual, but this month the selections are awesome! (Which is bad, bad, BAD news for me - and my pocket!)

And thus, I spent three-quarters of an hour deciding between 5 books. The person who worked at the bookstore was very amused seing me in action - I walked up and down the aisles several times, picking up books and then putting them down again and then returning to the same spot as I changed my mind for the gazillionth time. Of course, you can argue that I might as well pick a sixth, so then it would be '6 for 4'. But there were 2 arguments against that; the first being that my bookshelf can't fit anymore books (I had to discard some - well, give it to charity) and secondly I could hear my debit card crying - have been spending quite a bit this month.

In the end I chose Eddings' 'The Treasured One' and Lian Hearn's 'Brilliance of the Moon : Book 3 of the Otori' over Jodi Picoult's 'My Sister's Keeper' and Philippa Gordon's 'The Virgin's Lover'.

I know my sister is gonna flip for not buying the last book. Really sorry Yana, but I DID see that book on sale at a lower price at British Sussex Bookstore. And I will get it for you, I promise.

Nowadays, buying books in the UK (when there are offers) are much cheaper than buying them back home in Malaysia. It's becoming quite an expensive hobby; the book prices are ridiculous! So much for trying to encourage Malaysians to read.

Another company who's getting quite a lot of funding from me for its annual dinner this year is Amazon.co.uk. There are quite a few good bargains online. Of course, I never buy dvds of the latest movies and such. I buy mostly period dramas (e.g. BBC's Pride and Prejudice; ITV's Emma) and musicals e.g My Fair Lady. And if you're patient enough, they'd sell some good movies at low prices. Bought 50 First Dates for 7 quid. (Oh yeah, Robin Hood Extended Version is on offer again!!). Strangely enough, I almost never buy DVDs of movies that I've never seen before. I only buy the ones I know I'd enjoy and watch over and over again.

And so, my DVD collection is also growing. Don't know how I'm gonna pack all of them up when I have to move out from halls this summer.

I gotta stop buying online!! The evils of having internet connection 24/7 in your room! It's a good thing I'm gonna go back home soon!!

(Note to Yana : I've got your 'Chocolat' already! Will post it on Monday ok? *HUGS*)

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

....and what is your name again?

If I ruled the world, I'd make this a law : EVERYONE must wear a nametag, regardless of who you are. You'd be allowed to take it off only when you shower, or when you are 100% sure you would not encounter any new person. That means wearing it even when answering the door.

I'm terrible with names. When I mean terrible, I mean TERRIBLE. I can be introduced to someone, e.g. ; "Hello Hani, my name is Jennifer" and then have a 10-second conversation with her. At the end of ten seconds, after we've parted ways, I'd be like "Hmmm what did she say her name was again? Anna? No....but I'm sure there's the letter 'A' somewhere in the name...."

You see how hopeless I am. And the scenario above is not far from the truth at all.

There's this very friendly Filipino chap who's a porter at the hospital whom I met about 2 months ago. We've bumped into each other almost on a daily basis ever since, and each time he'd say "Hi Hani, how are you?"and I'd just smile back and have a cheerful conversation with him while desperately trying to peek at his ID hung around his neck (which is always backwards, so I can't see it, damn!).

So you can see how terribly embarrassing the whole situation is.

You might think, how on earth am I going to remember my patients' names, being the budding doctor that I am? (hahahah!). Well, you see, so that's where the whole nametag idea comes in handy. Once I see your name, know how it's spelled, you can bet that I'll remember it for a long time. I think my mind remembers names better if I can visualise how they are spelled. Really. I can even remember the names of people whom I went to primary school with. Full names, mind you. And it's because I remember reading their name tags. So it's not a problem when it comes to patients, since they have ID tags on them and their names are always written next to the bed.

So yeah, to make life easier for everybody (especially yours truly!), how about nametag-wearing for a world policy?