These couple of weeks I have been putting up my updates late by a day. The reason for this is of course I have so many other much more interesting things to occupy my time with! But then again, it doesn't really matter coz looking at my website statistics, there are only like a handful of people who actually visit it every week. So there. 

Anyway, time flies. What a cliché. But its true! My 2 weeks of Emergency Medicine rotation at RMH has gone by. And I will be starting Psychiatry rotation next. Hurray. 6 weeks of listening to fantastic stories of people who have superpowers or think that they are Jesus Christ. Boy, I can't wait. The other more depressing thought though is that in another 2 weeks HY will have to leave me. So far, the past 4 weeks with her around has been the most happiest of my time in Melbourne. At least for me. There's been a couple of times where there's been a little friction but hey, I think we're not doing too bad leh! I hope. 

I was going to talk about my time in the ED in the past 2 weeks but hey, can I be bothered? Do you care? Its not like I'm so in love with medicine right? But one thing to point out is the simply fantastic feeling of experiencing REAL medicine again after the past 10 weeks of the more "community"-based type of medicine. By that I mean seeing patients who presents with acute medical/surgical problems who won't be able to be cured even if they go see a physio 10000 times! (no offense to allied health people!) Oh, and I got to do suturing! On some dude's knee. Haha! That was cool! My hands were shaking non-stop! 

I had baked beans for breakfast this morning and I'm reminded again why that is a bad idea. Very bad idea especially when windows are kept closed in this cold cold weather. 

I'm back again on the blog! 3rd week into my long adventure in Melbourne and into cold and freezing weather as well. Actually time just disappears to goodness-knows-where, especially now that elective has started and everyday just passes by travelling from home to hospital, to home, and occasionally to the supermart for midnight shopping, to Big Daddy's for a yummy pizza or exploring the wonders of having an oven at home finally! 

Well, a few words on my long-awaited experience as an overseas student.. hmm.. amidst the excitement also brings with it the dread of walking to class every morning in the cold freezing winds that makes your teeth chatter and your legs shiver; the palpitations when having to join strangers for tutorials; the wish that you've got better acoustic function to catch the variety of slangs that float around in this metropolitan continent; the awkwardness of trying to make intelligent conversation when all that u can manage are just "ok", "thanks", "I see", "mmm.." or training up the facial muscles to keep a constant smile on so that u won't appear as too "dao" (in Hokkien, meaning unfriendly). Of course, not forgetting the desperation when you're lost and alone and late! and the list goes on.. haha, doesn't sound too good, does it? Ok, actually it's not all that bad either. The people over here are kinda friendly and all you gotta do is stow away that shyness of yours and ASK! I'm still trying to get used to that. Well, don't be amused at how a vocal person like me back home can find myself in this situation of shyness.. I can lose my tongue in front of strangers you know? :p

Enough said of that. Oh yeah, something I mustn't forget to tell everyone! I witnessed a HAIL today for the 1st time in my 23 pathetic years! OH WOW! haha, ok ok, i think I'm acting a little "Suah Ku" here (Hokkien word meaning exclaiming over something kinda common), but I was truly amazed when the pin-head sized ice just rained down out of the sky! By the way, we just came back from Federation Square where the Vesak Day funfair with lotsa delicious foods and game stalls was in full swing. Well, too bad it was a rainy, hail-y, thundery day, if not things would have been much more fun!

Alrighty, that's all for now. Want to here more about my adventures and misadventures? Stay tuned at www.medicalmediocrity.tk! 

Oops..that's being a bit too thick-skinned, isn't it? :p

PS: Sorry for the late update. I just got back to civilization and needed some time to put my life back in order.

Finally! The rural rotation is over! Four weeks spent in country Victoria is truly a refreshing and unique experience. By refreshing I mean totally slack and by unique I mean bored-to-tears unique. So you know what I mean eh? Anyway, to give it some credit, there has been some enjoyable parts. Like the 2 weeks community placement at the rural town of Numurkah, population 3300. The other perk to doing this rural rotation is the significant amount of living expenses saved! At Numurkah we had all our meals covered. Then there's the savings in electricity, water, etc etc! Simply fantastic! Of course the downside is that I wasn't able to work as many shifts as I could if I had been in Melbourne. But I think I'm getting my priorities all wrong. The last time I checked, I think I'm really here as a student to study and shouldn't that be where I should put my focus on? Yeah right. As if there aren't any other worries to concern me. 

Recently I have come to notice the increasing frequency of the topic of internship popping up in my conversations with my fellow classmates. Everytime I see someone and have a chat with him/her it would almost invariably lead to the big question: where are you going to do your internship next year? Through situations like these, I realised how fortunate I am to have someplace to go do my internship. Of course I should explain that for international students like myself, there are highly limited places for us to undertake our internship here in Melbourne and Victoria and also Australia in general. Everyone seemed to be racking their brains hard and trying to explore all the options they have. They have been attending information sessions here and there, all of which I have not shown up since I operate on the assumption that I will be going back to Singapore. Although like I said, its good that I have someplace to go, I am beginning to feel rather strangulated in terms of the "choice" I have regarding my internship. Every now and then I think about how things would be like I if too like my classmates, can choose to stay here and work. The appeal of that scenario being able to work in an environment where I am used to, having trained in that same healthcare system. Also, having the familiarity of the various doctors whom I know (although that doesn't work both ways...). The fixed hours of work and overtime pay. Oh.. how perfect would that be...

But I should know better, really. First of all, its difficult to get a position in the hospital that you would like to work in (local students have priority). Secondly, I have National Service commitments after my internship (have to get back the $75K bond!). Thirdly, why would I wanna work here? I have not a single relative or family here! If you know me well, you'll know that I'm not the independent kind of person who can live and work alone in a far away place by himself. I need the support that only family can provide. Ultimately, home is where the heart is... so there.

However, Singapore's not a bed of roses either. Long working hours, rigid systems and policy, plenty of boot-licking to do, etc etc. So it's easy to see why thinking about working here is so appealing. I guess I just want to have the "liberty" of being able to make a choice about where I want to work instead of getting that feeling that I'm forced to go back.

PS: Have you seen the bonus strip posted on Tues here?

It's Friday again! Time for a new blog! Haf u guys been waiting the whole nite for this new strip? :p okok, first I should introduce myself. I'm supposed to be the mysterious HY blogging for john this week cos' he's jus too lazy! haha.. ok, maybe we should forgive him today cos' he's really tired out from all the mountain-climbing. Yup, abit about our adventures today.. early this morning, we set off as a huge group of 11 adventurers in a convoy of 3 cars for the famous Wilson Promontory, known for its mesmerizing scenery and white sands that did not turn out to be quite as white. After a long journey of 3 hours that almost gave us sacral sores, and 230km stretch of narrow winding roads putting us on the edge of our seats, we arrived at our destination. Spent the afternoon exploring the heavenly picnic bay in the cold freezing wind and then our adventurous mind got us into conquering Mt. Oberon which is like 500m high! Gosh, call me unfit or blame it on the postprandial full stomach, the climb up was excruciating! Well, can't deny it's fun though.. but I guess the breathtaking view at the summit is well-worth the effort! To join us in our adventures, look here!

Alrighty..so much for a day out with our beloved frens and their families! :)

This is the 27th strip already. It's been like half a year or so since MM first came about, and being a die-hard fan of johnicology comic, I'll say that the author certainly deserves a round of APPLAUSE!!!! How about a standing ovation as well?? :p WOOhOO! 

Think I'll stop here for this week.  It's been an honour to be writing a blog here! Thanks mite!

It's my official one week long Easter holidays and I am literally bored to tears. I'm so bored I have been watching meteor garden... again! I have been sleeping 12 hours on average nightly and stoning my days away. My day begins at around noon time and ends at about 3am in the morning. On Sunday I worked 10.5 hours over 2 shifts. Isn't always like that? Just when I thought that I won't be able to work this weekend they call me up last minute. Its a good thing, I'm not complaining. I'm glad in fact otherwise I would have been poorer and more depressed than I already am. 

Not getting anywhere with my project and essay assignment. The latter being due this Friday. HY's arriving later tonight but I haven't got any plans for her yet. Everything just look too damn expensive. Probably just stay at home everyday and eat mee goreng. Classic student life eh? 

Oh, you must check out Same Difference by Derek Kirk. A most brilliant piece of webcomic I have ever come across so far!

Nothing like a earlier kick start to the 1 week Easter break! Yeh! Managed to get back to Melbourne on Tuesdays night. We were originally scheduled for three days of attachment to the Shepparton Rural Health Team but turns out that they have only got 1 day's worth of activities happening for us to take part in. So that's why we got to pack up our bags and head back home to Melbourne so early! The downside to this is that we have got a 1000 word essay due next friday on the utilization of allied health services. And that's on top of our half an hour presentation that we have to prepare for the last day of this rural rotation!

Since I got back, I have been doing nothing but sitting in front of my desk playing around with my comics and surfing that net for so long that I think I'm going to get a couple of DVTs! But it's been good. Drawn a couple of strips which I think I may put up as bonus strips over next week. Stay tuned!

Have a good 1 week break everyone (at least for the people over here in Melbourne)!

I am back! Earlier than stated. Even thou the magical spell that turned my hands into jelly was supposed to last till next week, I managed to break free of its grasp! How did I do it? Well, after going to the rural country for 2 whole weeks, my bullshitting powers received an exponential increase! 

Let me fill you in a little. Two weeks ago, my RAPP rotation ended and my 4 weeks rural country rotation commenced. So I packed my bags, hopped into a friend's car, drove 3 hours along the highway at 120km/hr, and safely reached Shepparton, a regional town of about 30,000 people, I think. From there, we went to a town of 3300 people called Numurkah for a 2 week placement. The community over there is mainly farming-based, and  surprisingly has quite decent services like banks, supermarkets, doctors, etc. The residents are predominantly Anglo-Saxons. An elderly population too. So there we went, two young Asians sprouting a head of jet-black hair, charged into this peaceful little town and guess what? Everyone there is just so nice! They welcomed us whole-heartedly, showed us around town, supplied us with free meals, and boy did they seem eager to have us come back to work in the future. 

And that's when the bombshell dropped. 

Its clear beyond any doubts to everyone that the chances of us ever going back to a rural town like that to work is as good as the opposition party beating the PAP (in Singapore)! Yet the fact that all the townsfolk still treat us so damn nice makes us feel so bad! We go there and take up their precious resources all in return for nothing! Even worse is that when they ask you to come to rural to work, you have to put on a poker face and say "oh yeah, we will consider it". 

But I still haven't explain why my BS powers are at an all-time high. You see, at the end of the 2 week placement at Numurkah, we have to be assessed. This involves sitting down and talking to this nurse (BMI>30) and trying to convey to her the impression that we have achieved the objectives. That's a 1 hour session of 100% untainted BS each! So as you can see, how can my BS powers not be improved?

As a Singaporean urbanite who has been breed around concrete, its scary to be out there in the open... feel so isolated... so abandoned... 

Till next week....

I'll be back! Soon. If you really miss me, go read the past strips. Start here! 

Haven't got anything to talk about since my last post, which was yesterday (bonus mid-week strip!). Anyway, that orange triangle thing in the last panel is credited to my anaesthesia supervisor, when I was doing a report on the topic. He said that's what one of his colleagues reported after having tried ketamine (an anaesthetic agent). Or so he claims. I'm doubtful as to whether this colleague of his exists. 

Ended my week in Palliative Care. The patient whom I clerked had metastatic breast cancer. The most scary bit about her history is how fast it spreaded. Gosh, even with all the screening we have got in place, some will slip through, no matter what. Most tragic indeed. 

Ok, I got to get back to my TV now. They are showing re-run of Predator! 

This week I'm doing Palliative Care at the Peter Macallum Cancer Institute, located at the eastern fringe of the city, about 20 minutes bike ride away. Every morning we meet with one of the consultants there and present our cases which we each clerked on Monday. Hmmm... the last time i presented a case... was about 9 months ago? Haha. A total disgrace man. The doctor actually fell asleep while i was presenting. Can you believe that? 

Last weekend was a long one. We had labour day (public holiday) here in Aust. I actually thought I'll look forward to that but turns out it was so painfully boring that I ended up sleeping through more than half of the weekend. Been sleeping so much. Not good. But what else is there to do? Anyway... Have 1 last week next week on psychiatry of old age and after that its off to Shepparton, a 3 hour drive away, for my rural rotation! 4 weeks! Looks like more sleeping is in order... 

I apologize for the very medical intensive aspects of this week's strip! In essence, the parasympathetics are a branch of your nervous system which control the process of urination. Hesitancy is the symptom of having difficulty with starting your urination, or micturation. It usual occurs in the context of elderly men with enlarged prostate glands. What entails next will be in the next strip! Which I will put up very soon. It's my 2nd bonus strip I supposed. Watch out for it this coming tuesday!

How time flies! Its March already! 4 weeks of rehab and aged care rotation gone past like that. Scary, as usual. Isn't it simply amazing how one's mood can fluctuate from a day to day and week to week basis?  

Melbourne's caught in the middle of a heat wave this week. We have had 3 days of freakingly hot weather. The forecast for the next few days are for cooler days. But I'll be keeping my fingers crossed. The worst part about the heat is that my productivity takes a sky diving dip. Can't go anywhere, don't feel like doing anything that will generate excess bodily heat, and just wanna sit around in the shade and have the fan on and stone away. Oh please oh please let the cooler days come and stay for good!

Just had the best prawn noodles in melbourne.. hmmmm.... 

This week I discovered the bad side to posting my thoughts online. Your family sees them!!! Oh well, what the heck, I don't care. I mean, I have no problems with them knowing about my situation. It's just that you have to subsequently try and convince them that what you have written about is really only solely about that particular moment in time and does not implicate the future...which may see a change for the better. Or worse. Haha. 

Anyway, this week I have managed to do a couple of shifts at work (oh, did i mentioned that I have commenced a job as a kitchen hand last week? Job description: 2 words- wash everything). I think I'm getting increasingly adapted to the physical demands of the job. Which is good. Good in terms of a means of exercise for me as well. One of the perks of this job is that you get to finish up all the untouched leftovers... hmmm... yummy sushi... 

Am into my 3rd week of RAPP now. How do you confront humanity's mortality? You don't I guess. One learns to deal with it. How you do that is a matter of individual choice. All that frailty, weakness, dependency, helplessness.... very hard to swallow indeed. Like what Danny said... it leaves you with a heavy heart to go home with everyday. But we do the best we can. I guess. 

Warning: Completely Random Ramblings below:

Doritos corn chips on sale at Coles. Only $1.68 per 230g pack. Offer ends this Sunday I think. Am back to playing Rise of Nations. I love my palm Tungsten E. It kicks ass! Listening to Jason's mp3 - Jay Chou's Qing Tian. And finally:

<picture of tree>

and... bet you never seen this before: 

PC in a milk crate. 　

This week sees the beginning of a few strips that will actually have some vague sense of continuity! Gasp! That implies a certain amount of thought put into creating MM! Is that possible? Evidence of higher intelligence in me? Shocking!

I can't believe I actually broke down just the other day, simply from sitting around for too long and having nothing to do and too much to think about in my head. It was overwhelming. Times like that I seem to be able to understand the justification for psychiatry as a legitimate branch of medicine.  

I have started work last weekend. It's satisfying. I just hope that my intentions for doing so are appreciated over at the other end. 

Till the next update next week, take care everybody. 

 13th Feb 2004 Friday - Strip 18

What can I say? I'm back! After a 2 month long hibernation from doodling with comics, I've been bitten by the drawing bug again! More like boredom really. For those of you who actually will notice the difference, I welcome you back warmly. A bit late but, what the heck,... Merry Xmas, Happy New Year, and Chinese New Year! 

Actually I did came up with the script for about 4 or 5 strips during my holidays. However, they never materialise due to unfavourable conditions while I was back home in Singapore. Just to raise a couple of examples, there was the impossible humidity, the constipated computer, and the ring-a-labourer service of which I was the only employee, among many others still. Really, I have come to realise, that drawing webcomics is an activity that can only be undertaken while I'm in Melbourne, by myself alone, driven by sheer boredom and overdose of computer games. And of course, a streak of inspirational creativity. 

My holidays in Singapore has been the most frantic one ever! So much has happened, in such a compressed period of time. I dunno where to start. But I suppose I'll have to say at least something about my elective. That's right, the 4 week piece of undigested and desiccated nutritional substance. Because I have done the exact same thing a year ago (on an informal basis), there was no sense of novelty to make me feel excited about it at all! It was a drag. From Serangoon MRT station to Outram Park station in the morning and from Outram Park back to Serangoon by lunchtime daily. 

Am currently doing my RAPP (Rehabilitation, Aged Care, Psychiatry of old age, Palliative care) rotation. It's been quite slack. It's good. Slack is good. Losing your brains is not.

I will be updating MM every Saturday from now on again. But no promises.