The Art of Shoe Shining

I am in the process of writing sponsorship offer letters to financial companies on behalf of the Austin Health 2007 Graduation Dinner Commitee, in the hope that these financial companies will sponsor us good money so that we can afford a luxurious yet subsidized graduation dinner for our bunch of graduating medical students at the end of this year.

And I am struggling.

I have never been a shoe polisher!!

Man, I feel like I want to puke having to do this. Lavishing praise and adornment to companies which I have absolutely no clue about. Words like 'well-established', 'leading company in Australia' etc etc... Feels like I am outright lying....even though these companies may very well be well established and leading companies in Australia....

Then again....hm....what harm can it be if I make others feel good about themselves and yet get the money off them. Not like they're losing out on anything right? They'll still get good exposure amongst us medical graduates...

BUt....sigh... I am fearing for the worst. Is this only a preview of what's yet to come? The endless shoe-polishing in order to get specific gains?

Thieves on the prowl

My friend Siew Suan had her bag stolen yesterday. =(

It all happened when I was walking out of the uni library, about to rush off to teach tuition to a family friend. I saw Siew Suan sitting near the entrance of the library on my way out, and so I hurriedly said a 'Hi' and 'Bye'. But just as I was about to turn my head and walk away, I noticed the sad look on her face. Her eyes were somewhat teary.

My instinct was to mind my own business, and rush off in case I was stuck in peak-hour traffic and was late for tuition.

I stopped and asked if she was ok instead.

BOY was I glad I followed my conscience. She replied with a vigorous shake of her head. And so I asked her story.

"I just came back from my rural clinical placement, and decided that I didn't want to stay home alone on a friday night, so came over to the library to study for a bit. I was barely here for 5 minutes, I put my bag down on the floor in between my legs, and a few minutes later when I reached down to grab my PDA it was missing!!"

"And then I told security, and asked if they could ring my mobile phone so I could locate it, and they didn't seem to care! It was only when I broke down and cried did they start getting off their a**ses....and meanwhile I am sitting here looking at all these people leaving the library with my bag and all my stuff! And I just bought a RM3000 PDA too!! And my house keys, my wallet, credit card, bank card etc etc.... *sobS*..."

I had no idea how to respond. Instinctively I wanted to reassure her and say she's not alone, that many of us have gone through similar bad experiences, that I myself have been robbed at knifepoint, that.....

Stuff instinct. Silence was golden. Wanted to give her a hug, but felt I wasn't a close enough friend of hers for it to be appropriate....

So I decided to cancel my tuition and help her til she was calm.

I found out that she was definitely not the only victim. Hers was the 6th case, there was a 7th 5 minutes after her, and an 8th 10 minutes after the 7th.

Zzzzzz at the security in the library.

I also found out that there were only 2 security guards, and they explained they were working their heads off, and the chief guard even had the guts to put the blame on the victims.

"Next time just keep your belongings close to you. We're not responsible for your losses, you are, and you need to keep them close."

I tried to argue my point.

"With all due respect, how was my friend supposed to keep her bag any closer when it was stolen in between her legs? "

"Keep it on your body"...

WTF man. Talk about avoiding responsiblity. He DID have a point though. But I just hated the way he seemed to be reluctant to address the glaring in adequacies of their security system. 8 cases in a day!?!?

Anyway, I offered to drive Siew Suan home. But as we were walking past the science library where the 8th victim had her stuff, she suddenly decided to check out the bins near the library. And surely enough, her bag was in the bin!! (OMG at women's intuition). In the end she recovered most of her stuff, only lost money and her PDA. The thieves were even nice enough to leave her house keys, credit card etc intact. (Wonder if there is such a thing as thieving etiquette?? "I only steal, i don't commit fraud"??!?)

I suppose it was a bit of a consolation for SS to have recovered her bag+items. She told her bike recently got stolen too while she was away for her rural placements.

Later I offered to shout her dinner as she didn't have cash on her. We called one of her best friends, SeeSiong, and met up with him over dinner. Its amazing what a good meal does to one's mood! She was much more calm and stable after dinner, so i left her with SeeSiong, and went home...

Eventful day...

Please be careful of thieves/snatch thieves ok everyone.

Ignorance is bliss?

Is ignorance really bliss?

Sometimes I am so ambivalent as to whether I am proud to be Malaysian or not. But one thing for sure, we as Malaysians are surely an ignorant bunch of people.

I have been reading on the latest events at the by-election in Ijok, and have yet again stumbled on some injustice done by the government party, people we have supposedly voted into power...

Check out these links to read about them:

Jeff Ooi's blogs on Phantom Voters, Umno Youth Gangsters, and unfair treatment by Police on election talk gatherings

Elizabeth Wong on corrupted Election Commitee, over-the-table vote-buying (whopping RM36 Million!) and more

Lim Kit Siang on BN kiasu-ness and Bribery National

I don't know whether to feel sad because such low practices are actually being conducted, or to feel sad because us ignorant Malaysians are not aware or do not want to be aware of such practices....

High School Friends - Part 2

More high school friends.... =) For part 1 click HERE.

4. Ong Guang Hong

There is only one word to describe this dude: NARCISSISTIC. What he lacks in height, he makes up for with his high self esteem. What's that I just heard you say? "But he's such a shortie!". No fear girls. He takes it all in his stride. Typical responses are as below:

I am the most good-looking doc on earth, so outta my way buddy!

Wo3 shi4 Zhong1 Guo2 Ren2! (I am CHINESE)

But I am a handsome chinese!

Previous pictures too nerdy for you? No sweat, I can be cool too! Imma PUNK!

Want a metrosexual instead? Lookit me now! Don't worry, I'm hot on the outside, but soft on the inside...

Damn it's a tough life being so good looking....

(Don't worry GuangHong, I know you're really a nice guy inside...Just have a good laugh!) =).

5. Chang Chin Sin

This girl is da bomb. When she transferred from KuanCheng Girls School to our class in Form4, she had em boys eyes in the class turning.. Even with the mandatory necklength hairstyle for girls imposed on her by our strict school! But don't be decieved...she is anything but a brainless beauty, she's as smart as a nerd too! (Hang on..or is she a nerd herself?:P)

Why are all those guys staring at me? Eek some of them even have scary smiles on their faces!

Maybe I'll smile back too...

I'm a Japanese wannabe! I heard Andy Lau likes hot Jap chiqs...

Muahahah.....he fell for it! He's mine..ALL MINE...

Whaddaya mean I'm a nerd Jazzi -.- Just cos I dress cute and study hard....Watchout the gangsta in me is gonna whoop yer a**!

6. Lee Hong Wee

He loves girls. He really does!! Sometimes he goes on a bit of a rage though...I wonder why... pent up frustration? =P.

Watchout mi ladies! Hongster is here!

Where are the ladies?!? Imma getting constipated... T_T

(puts wigs on himself and speaks in a girls voice): "Don't worry Hongster, I'm here for you..." Come here mushy mushy, give mama a kiss.."

Oddly enough, that feels SOOOO GOOD!!!

Fine then! If ya'll girls don't appreciate me, I'll use my big long pole for better purposes!

Muahaha...told you I'd do good with mi pole! Got myself a degree with it!

Chancellor: *wink-wink* ya sure did! You free tonight again?

More to come.....

Pee in You Pants

Ok.

Let's face it. We've all pee-ed in our pants. And chances are, when we grow old, we may do it again.

I learnt about incontinence (AGAIN, touched on it while doing my womens health rotation) today. If you're curious, there are 2 main types of incontinence:

1. Stress incontinence

You feel your throat tickling. "Damn, something irritating my throat", you say. You cough.

Uh-oh. Your underwear feels a bit moist.

THAT, it stress incontinence

2. Urge incontinence

You are sitting in a bus. The next stop is 2 hours journey away. You take a sip of Apple Juice, making sure you don't drink too much.

But then it comes. That sensation.

"I GOTTA GO DAMNIT!", you try crossing your legs, you meditate, trying to distract your mind.

Uh-Oh. Your underwear feels moist.

THAT, is urge incontinence.

Of course, one may have BOTH stress and urge incontinence. If you happen to be one of them...my condolences....

But!

Don't worry, there are always good old continence pads available...like this one...

Or, if you fancy a sexier style...

(Disclaimer: Incontinence can often be treated by lifestyle modification, pelvic floor exercises, pharmacological agents, and even surgical intervention. Pads are only used when lifestyle modification and pelvic floor exercises fail to improve continence, and if surgery is deemed unwarranted)

(Discalimer: If you or your relative/friend are suffering from incontinence, do visit your local GP. He will be able to help you.)

(Disclaimer: No incontinence is NOT a joke. The above post was to help increase awareness regarding incontinence, and let the public know that it should not be a shameful problem hidden from everyone.)

Of Botaks and Games

OF BOTAKS....

I am officially a Botak (Baldie) now. Don't ask me why, I just did it.

The hairdressor (pretty one too) commented saying "Its amazing how different one looks after a shave isn't it?" after about 2/3 of my head was shaved. Not sure if she meant that as a compliment or whether she was saying that it was a pity for me to shave. Who cares. You know what's amazing? The amazing part is how when my mind was made up to shave, there was no turning back. All hesitation was just shrugged away.

If only I had such resolve in my studies....I'd be a friggin Dean's list medical student by now...

Me 2 seconds before I walked into the hairdressers...

Me at home after the shave. Notice how the length of my hair is inversely proportional to the width of my smile?

Cheers!

------------------------------------------------------------------------

OF GAMES.....

My older brother, Nigel (ZhongXi) Goh, or Gel as he is more commonly known in the computer gaming world, has yet again made it to the news! This time, he was on the frontpage of The Star's Rage section. Do click on the link to read all about it. His clan, WINDS, also made it to the papers!

He's been a huge influence to me and my younger brother in terms of gaming. When he was still studying in Australia with me, he convinced me to join FiFa Soccer competitions in Australia, including the Australian Cybergames Competition. I've won a few prizes myself, including a PS2 and some cash. (Oops, didn't mean to brag). And so has Francis, my younger brother, he got 3rd in the Malaysian Cybergames 1-2 years ago, and has also been winning substantial amounts of cash and prizes.

WINDS webpage (No.1 Fifa Clan in Malaysia) gets published on The Star

=) Did I make anyone interested in turning competitive gaming into their career? =)

Much Ado Over Blogging

Just came back from Inter-Clinical School Medical Students Sports day. Glad to declare that my clinical school, Austin Clinical School, were overall winners, and winners of basketball and soccer (not sure what happened to netball..wasn't there)

Am totally exhausted from all the sports though. Played from 11am-4pm non stop, alternating between basketball and soccer.

On a seperate note, an interesting article was recommended by Jeff Ooi, which will be relevant to all Malaysian bloggers. Read it here : Much Ado Over Blogging.

High school friends

Friendster is awesum =). In one morning, I have managed to view profiles of 20+ of my high school friends, and added them to my friends list. All this, by viewing the friends lists of the existing friends on my list.

For some reason, I seem to have been left out of the high school friendship loops.... am I not good enough for them?! -.-

Anyway, this post is going to be about some of my more interesting high school friends, not just for your viewing, but also for my nostalgia. =) (Disclaimer: All pictures of my friends were extracted from Friendster, captions are my own)

1. Tan Yeou Jian, and Yap Hui Yee.

2 of my closest friends during high school days, YeouJian is the guy with long hair, HuiYee is the baldie. Used to play heaps of volleyball and basketball together. =). Oh. HuiYee is also known as Bedi Yap to us. No prizes for guessing what his trademark picture is (below)! (do leave your comments and let me know what your guesses are)

Oh we're so COOL!

Need a hand Bedi?

2. Tan Geak Poh

More known as Gepoh (meaning 38 in canto, or busy-body, or nosey), he's also got the nickname of Da-Tou-Wa-Wa (big-head doll). It's true! His head IS BIG! =). That probably explains why he's so smart....He can be quite spontaneous too, doing the randomest stuff...He's got the most bizarre love for studying, he actually finds study interesting, and if not for this contagious attitude of his rubbing off to me when I saw next to him in pre-U, I probably wouldn't have made it to medical school...

Yes I'm the big-headed guy in the left of the picture

Ain't I so cool?

Wow this gadget is great, functions as a 2-in-1 urinal-cum-basin! Ooops did I remember to zip my pants up?

I like it horizontal ladies.. =P I'm sure i zipped my pants up this time, or did I? Oh sh*t! #$^&*@

3. Khoo Ching Soong

Our class monitor in Form 5, this guy is a definite leader. He is a gentleman to the ladies, but to the guys, he's the horniest bastard. =). But he definitely has my respect, he knows when to be serious, and when to play hard.

Ok let's stop with the serious stuff and lemme go backpack to find the ladies already!

Where are the ladies?!?!

Ahhh, finally I find one! Woohoo my lucky day! Lay-off her you two, she's mine!

4. Hiew Litt Pang

Warning! Don't puhway puhway with this fellar. He is a mathematical genius, if ever you speak to him about maths/physics, be prepared to be pwned reAL HARD. Actually, be prepared to be pwned real hard whenever you speak to him. He will probably relate it back to mathematical calculations....

I AM A GENIUS

I challenge you: spot the difference between this picture and the next one

Yep, that's right, it's the hair. See that tuft of hair standing up in the 2nd pic? This is caused by draft coming from the wind. I PREDICTED THAT, the moment I switched the air-conditioner on. Now according to Boyle's law, the displacement of my hair can be calculated by x = 53920+43x^3 /263.2523......also considering the friction of air due to my thick and jagged hair, one must add the friction coefficient into the equation...etc...etc....zzzzz (go figure)

Am falling asleep listening to Litt Pang.... will write more about my high school friends in the future when more inspiration comes.....

(Another disclaimer: If you happened to be featured here or know the people featured here and are insulted by this post, please learn to take life easy and enjoy a good laugh. I'm sure if it were back in high school days you guys would laugh about it with me. I certainly will have no issues with anyone deciding to feature me as a joke. Remember: Laughter is the best medicine)

=)

Cheap tactics?

Oh My Gosh.


I cannot claim to be fully in the know about the Machap by-election, but from
what I've read online so far, I am certainly not impressed.


I usually like starting my media exposure with the mainstream media, and I start by reading thestar.com.my. And, as usual, BN gets all the publicity, while opposition parties get none. Big shots are called in. Our Deputy Prime Minister calls for voters to think about their future and not use emotions to vote, and at the same time, offers 50 chinese families land titles in a Felda land. Our MCA president goes to Machap to listen to the people's woes (wonder why they don't publicize this sort of news when no election is near), whereas our deputy MCA president claims that "the most important thing that Barisan had brought to the people was the fact that they could live peacefully without fear and helped solve any problem they had".


Sounds impressive? Obviously.



But wait.


I noticed that when TheStar reported on Najib giving the 50 chinese families Felda land, it said that these families, together with the Malay settlers there, would form the BARISAN NATIONAL KAMPUNG. Didn't sound right to me, phishy stuff.



At the same time, I saw pictures of the BN election candidate, together with UMNO Youth Chief and Deputy Chief (remember the keris wielding guy and PLah's son-in-law?), and MCA Youth Chief handing over free food to Machap residents. More phishy stuff!! In that link, I also found out that it was illegal under the Election Offenses Act 1954 "food, drink, refreshment or provision, or any money or ticket or other means or device for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any other person to give or refrain from giving his vote ".

Shortly after, BERSIH, a coalition set up to campaign for clean and fair elections in Malaysia (as opposed to the Election Committee which is viewed by many to have failed to be impartial) lodged a police report against those BN leaders claiming foul play and corrupt practices in the Machap election campaign. In this linked article, it was written that our deputy Prime Minister Najib had told the crowd “Ada ubi ada batas, ada budi boleh balas. Kalau nak
balas, balas pada April 12 dan undilah Barisan Nasional (One should repay or return favours when the time is right and the favour should be repaid by voting BN on April 12).” after announcing the allocation of the Felda land to the 50 chinese families.


Cheap tactis man!



BN, surely you don't need to hit under the belt to secure your votes?



Sigh.

Respect

23 years for this:


Split second for this:

Yesterday I learnt a new lesson:

It takes a lifetime to build up respect, but only one instant to lose it all.

=*(

Lasting love

Went to Boxhill Central with my mom yesterday, to get food at the local market. My mom had just come over from Malaysia to 'check on' my younger brother, to make sure he was doing ok in his first year studying overseas. I had never been to BoxHill Central's market before, but I was fascinated.

I saw so many old couples doing their grocery shopping there! Sure, lots of them had their weapons (walking sticks/frames) with them, but I was amazed at how some of them still held hands while trying to walk steadily...

Too bad I didn't take a camera with me, otherwise I'd have taken a few shots. They're a lovely sight! I did manage to find some pictures of old couples online though:

Feel that twinkle in your heart? I get that too.

Maybe it's because deep down everyone of us wants that sort of love. Love that lasts beyond the wrinkles on our skin. Love that lasts beyond our dentures. Love that lasts longer than the time it takes for us to walk to the loo -- when we're 100 years old, that is.

=).

Fact: Women outlive men.

So if you're a lady reader, and you want to be like them lucky ladies in those pictures, you better start looking for younger bois, so your partner won't die before you do....

Haha. My girlfriend is smart. I'm 8 months younger than she is. Guess I stand a chance of living long enough to take her to a romantic restaurant for our 80th anniversary (when we're 100+ years old) and give her a new 'canggih' (awesome) set of dentures as an anniversary gift!

Aw-sum!