End of 3rd year

Relief and joy rushes through every single cell of my body, for I AM FREEEEEEE...

I'm done with studying day and night, insomnia, and diarrhoeas. I've been studying for TOO MANY YEARS. Am utterly sick and tired of it. YUCKS.

I must say, this exam season was beyond happening!
Professional Skills 3: Pharmacy Law & Dispensing was supposed to be on the 18th, my first paper. As I was about to step through my door, a friend told me that the EXAMINATION WAS CANCELLED, due to SYSTEM FAILURE. It's an online exam that requires the use of computers you see. To make things worse, it was postponed to most unbelievable date ever, 27th MAY, between 2 other papers of mine on 26th and 28th. GG liao.

Studying my lecture handouts and my ugly handwritten notes for DGT. People who are considering Pharmacy should take a good look at these babies. My bread and butter.

22th MAY, was my next paper, Diseases and Goals of Treatment, an Open 1 Book Test. You think it's easy? Think again. In some questions, you need to write 4 points, to earn 1 mark. We were given 3 hours to complete 100% worth of questions. And yet, somehow we ended up pretty shocked that 3 hours was just about enough time! Must be the book flipping...

26th MAY, Toxicology. Choose 2 questions from 5, each worth 50 marks. We had only 1 hour. I wrote and wrote and wrote for my dear life, from the first second till the last. Seriously how can you write 100 points within 60 minutes? This was a shocker paper as well. For the past 5 years, they ALWAYS had a "poisoning" question, until this year. Nice la, give everyone a heart attack.

27th MAY, the postponed Law paper. Did I mention mention it was a Open 2 books, and 4 handouts test? But get this, the passing mark is 60%. For every wrong answer you get -0.5%, yes a freaking NEGATIVE mark. So annoying. 1 and a half hours of True/False questions, 50% chances of getting it wrong, I was scared out of my wits.

Past Year Questions, 1 question = 100%.

28th MAY, Quality in Medicine Design and Usage. Now this is the most abandoned module in the entire year, as in, no one bothers to revise for it much. I guess I've underestimated it, it is a wicked one indeed. The format was, choose 1 question out of 3, the question is worth 100 marks. Tell me, how do you answer a 100% question? It is absolutely insane!

So that's a brief summary of my exams this semester. You thought Year 3 MPharm was easy aye? Think again.

Oh, now that I've officially finished my exams, I AM NOW A FINAL YEAR MPHARM STUDENT !!! I'm updating my template right there to show Year 4 =) -----> Go see!

Yes I am bragging. I've waited 3 years, lost so much hair, lost so much time to get there. It's the least that I deserve, bragging rights!

Special thanks to EeHow who helped me return my library books, and made me roast duck! Best meal I had in weeks!

To save time, I had resorted to salads, and smoked fish, or day old food. Salads are raw, and need no cooking haha! Smoked fishes are flavoured on its own, they only need heating up, or else I'll cook a few days worth of food in one go, and heat them in portions over the course of several days. Things I go through for my course. Sigh.

penis penis penis

So I've been told I have under 18s reading my blog, and that I had better control my writing. But the thing is, I don't think there's anything wrong with it!

Among the more recent entries labeled as "inappropriate content", they are "Tofu Penis" and "The One with the Humping Turtle Video". However I'd like to highlight that both entries were inspired with content from U rated channels, The Star Online, and YouTube, respectively. These are readily available to them kids anyway. Besides, I don't think there's anything inappropriate about them! Call them Sex Education. In my time, it was called Sains Tingkatan 3 Bab 1.

It is nothing to be ashamed about. If anything, in the course of my profession I will have to discuss more 'disgusting' things with my patients! Emergency contraception, impotency and usage of Viagra and others, if required. As long as it's part of a mature conversation, it's alright!

For example,
Penis is a noun. Every other person on earth has it. Your dad has it. Your brother, boyfriend, grandfather and cousins have it. It's like saying every one has EYES. It's not a word that you should be ashamed of.

If you're not mature enough to handle this, you really need to go away and grow up some more. Stop bugging my family about it. I'm legally an adult, and these are my decisions. Besides I don't think I'm setting an awful example here.

My parents have no problem with it.
I'm completing my Masters in a years time.
I haven't done anything illegal.
I'm working over summer, probably earning more than your parents.
I go to church
I am a qualified first aider
I am a registered organ/blood donor in M'sia and UK.
I am 21.

I may not be excellent but I definitely don't see anything too terrible with myself really. In fact, these are things that young kids could actually learn from me.

If a little bit of drinking helps me achieve more, why not?
It's not illegal. In fact, there's a hormesis relationship with alcohol, meaning alcohol within limits are actually BENEFICIAL for your health.

Would you have kept the alcohol from me, if you knew that I wouldn't cope with stress as well without it?

Try being away from home for a year, dealing with a stressful Masters degree, having test/exams throughout your semester, and still have a load of exams at the end of the semester. Not to mention, summer job applications, post-graduation job applications, house hunting and such. Let's see how stressed will you get, smarty pants.

Bottom line, vices in moderation works in MY favour. As long as there are maturity and sensibility in judgements, I don't see anything wrong in drinking alcohol and saying the word PENIS.

Lazy Post of YouTube videos

As most of you may have realised, my SPRING exams are here to haunt me again =( Expect less regular posting. As if I haven't been posting poorly already. BAH. Revision and stress started over 2 months ago, hence the poor postings.

Cue: Exam "Semangat" Song

Sent to me via Live Messenger by Big Bird, who received it from someone else.

Anyway, more YouTube to keep you all occupied while I'm gone.
(No new humping turtle video this time around, I think they've all gotten shy and went into hiding.)

1) Check out JUMBAFUND. *click*

In case you don't know who KevJumba is, it's time you do!
KevJumba is a prominent YouTube Comedian from the States. The amount of subscribers he has is legendary, he now endorses clothes, and also has his own website. His main channel can be found HERE.

Right now, KevJumba started a new channel to raise funds for charity. For every view, YouTube will contribute towards his account, and 100% of the profits will be going to charity. I feel strongly supportive of this, so I'm promoting it, especially to mean people who are in need of some good karma.

2) If you haven't caught the Britain's Got Talent 2009 bug, allow me to infect you. It's way cooler than Swine Flu.

It's extremely amusing, and they've got a whole variety of acts from miming to knitting to magic shows to stand up comedy, aside from the good old singing and dancing. You think you've seen all the crazy people on American Idol? Wait till you see this. *click*

3) My new favourite channel, COMMUNITY CHANNEL.

Natalie Tran is ethnic Vietnamese, born in Australia. You gotta love her humour, poking fun of stupid things we do everyday. Maturity is required to fully understand her videos. Small kids, go away. Come back when you've grown some armpit hair.

4) America's Next Top Model Cycle 12 (2009)

The name says it all. I have just watched the finale last night and I'm pretty disappointed with Tyra's choice of a winner. But hey, it still makes good TV. Young girls definitely have something to learn through this. It's not all glamour and beauty you see. CLICK.

This should be enough to keep you all occupied. I promise the next post is going to be something BIG. Don't say I didn't warn ya.

nasi lemak + arthritis index

I'm not motivated to study at all. So here I am wasting some time, hoping that the guilt will kick in and make me a better person. Thanks to my friends, I managed to get hold of Nasi Lemak!

Dang-Dang-Dang-Dang!!!
Mempersembahkan... Nasi Lemak Nottingham!
Lebih hebat dari mamak punye Nasi Goreng USA!
Sedap tu, harga £2 boleh dapat paha goreng, 1/8 telur, 1/50 timun, beberapa biji kacang, sedikit nasi santan, dengan 2 sudu kecil sambal bawang.
Kat Malaysia jual berapa? RM1.50 kut...
Tapi takpe, perut aku mau jugak.

Sekian, terima kasih kerana cuba membaca bahasa saya yang teramat teruk.

Another problem that I'm struggling with, is my closest friend fiend, back ache.
On some days, it just gets especially bad! And today was unfortunately one of those days. The moment I woke up, I didn't want to get out of my bed at all! It feels like my back couldn't support me. Until I saw the above!

Apparently, IngChang claims that this website gives a more accurate weather forecast than BBC, so I've been trying it out. The arthritic index for today is "EXTREME". And then I wonder, if my back pain is related to it at all. If anything I do have a family member current suffering from arthritis, only that he's 52, not 20 =.="

Weather does have an effect on arthritic pain, I've heard people say it, I've read reports talking about it. It sucks to think that I might be feeling it =(

I'll wait and see...

Free-Free-Expensive

This weekend was slightly more uplifting for the mood!

Having only 1 precious week left to my exams, I'm preparing myself for isolation and revision. I don't cope very well with distractions you see =P

I had a FREE fringe trim at Zullo and Holland, as promised with my haircut. Walk-in anytime + 15 minutes was all it took! No need for appointments, no need for amateur toilet attempts! I had Sue for my trim because my stylist was busy, but she was just ok. My preference still goes to Shireen, my stylist =P Next Gaga-inspired fringe trim after exams, heh heh heh. Free what?!

And then, I also enjoyed a FREE eye sight test at Dollond and Aitchison (D&A). All it took was an appointment made online at their website! They called me the very next day to confirm my appointment, and also called the day before to remind me of my appointment. With my NUS card, I get to enjoy the test for FREE! Wee...~! Goodness me, their tests were PRO-stuff! I had no idea what they were doing, but my Opthalmologist Charlotte was checking the back of my eye, the health of my eye, my eye sight, and even did a contact lens assessment! Definitely not your ordinary amateurish eye check in Malaysia.


The results? No myopic or astigmatism increment in both eyes for my glasses. However, my contact lens power has changed. I wondered how that happened, but I truly have been experiencing some trouble with my lenses. D&A offers contact lens by post, which is quite an awesome programme. Essentially, they will mail your contacts lens + fresh lens solution + fresh lens case to your door every month, being on the programme also includes free eye tests and big discounts off glasses/sunglasses. I might consider the programme, but it would cost me £20/ month, for the contact lenses that suits me. Gotta consider carefully. £20 is a lot of money!

That was just Saturday. On Sunday, I travelled to Oxford!


It was an essential trip to get my accommodation in Oxford settled, for I have not got time to worry about it after this. But it was unfortunate that it costs a whopping £48 for a return train ticket Nottingham-Oxford! Don't even get me started on the bus, it costs £50! Thank goodness I have got a 16-25 Railcard that took £16 off the £48 pricetag straightaway, leaving me just only £32.10 poorer =(

To make things worse, it was impossible to get a direct route to Oxford on that day. I ended up with the following route.

Nottingham -(train)- Birmingham -(train)- Banbury -(bus)- Oxford
10:23 13:55

and my return route was supposed to be,

Oxford -(bus)- Banbury -(train)- Birmingham -(train)- Leicester -(train)- Nottingham
16:53 19:51



BUT THEN!
There was a Birmingham-Nottingham direct train that was delayed for 15 minutes at Birmingham. I ran for my life, caught it, and managed to reach Nottingham at 19:05 instead! YAY ME! *claps*

It was expensive, but fruitful! I did manage to visit an accommodation, and we've both agreed to a tenancy agreement. I will now be staying with a family, at a price which is similar to what I'm paying in Nottingham. Awesome! I finished what I went there to do.

Butt is flat. Mood is stressed. Stomach is hungry. Body is tired. Exams are coming. Study now.

Kthx4readingbye.

Depression & Alcohol

It took me a couple of shots to realise how depressed I was.

Sometimes, we need a wake up call every now and then. For me it's become quite a routine, to put on a facade after every wash of my face in the morning. Looking in the mirror, hoping to see a face that is not troubled by the thoughts in my mind.

I get upset easily. I really really do. You think you've seen it, but you really haven't.

Just because, no one really gives a damn if you're upset, and they can only "be nice" for so long. They all want to be around happy people. Why do you think humans invented Antidepressants, and not Antieuphorias?

Unfortunately, this world requires you to have "it". Not got "it" ? Fake "it", or face medication as society forces you to conform with their ridiculously imaginative ideals.

All the itty bitty bits and pieces get bottled up, and the pressure builds. At the same time, the inhibitions get stronger. It only takes some alcohol to start deactivating my inhibitions, liberating my emotions.

And then, it's like the theory of the shaken champagne bottle. Once you release the pressure, it spills out uncontrollably even before you can think of closing it. When all the pressure has been released, everything slows down leaving you a sparkling volume of champagne that sits obediently in the bottle until you decide to pour it out.

I hope the analogy made sense.

Alcohol, as a known depressant, somewhat liberates me. Confusingly contradictory? Me too. For something that some strive to avoid, I now have a newfound respect for it. Of course, there is always the quote:

"Poison is in everything, and no thing is without poison. The dosage makes it either a poison or a remedy. " Paracelsus.

At the moment, I'm just trying to cope with life, one bit at a time.
And hopefully, drinking one sip at a time too.