Thursday, January 29, 2009


Encouragement


Was examining this patient when this HO was taking blood..

HO: Are you all year 5s?

Me: No, year 4s.

HO: (after pausing a while) M4s? Then what are you all doing here?

Me: Oh, we doing our medicine reposting.

HO: (pauses again, thoughtful) Actually, do you feel bad about it har?

Me: Actually, yea, a bit..

HO: Dun worry la, in the long run it doesn't matter. I have a classmate who also did reposting, but in the end he was the valedictorian for my batch.

Of course I know he is referring to the legendary Tan Chee Hsien, who failed his M3 medicine posting, yet got double distinction for both medicine and surgery, obtaining MBBS Honours in the end.

偶像. There is still hope for me...

posted by nwxiang at 10:25 PM | 0 comments


Wednesday, January 28, 2009


Stigmatised


First day of the posting and already morale is low.

I made mistakes, and it's time to pay for them.

I shall pick up the pieces of my shattered confidence and put them back together again.

posted by nwxiang at 5:52 PM | 0 comments


Tuesday, January 27, 2009


RGK: How to hold SLR (and prosumer) cameras


For the uninitiated, RGK = Random General Knowledge, coined by the King of RGK, Yikang..

Anyway, I feel it is my duty to educate the general population about how to properly hold SLR (single lens reflex) type cameras and other cameras of similar builds (eg. prosumer class cameras) During this day and age, there is a high chance that one day you may be passed an intimidating, professional-looking camera to help take a photo (if it hasn't happened to you already), so hopefully I can help you in situations like this.

Another reason for writing this is this (sort of disturbing) trend I'm noticing - people hold SLRs like compacts!!! My relatives, my friends, the guy in the restaurant, the random guy on the streets - they all try to balance the weight of the camera using only their thumb and index finger!!! Not sure if its due to the widespread availability of compact cameras nowadays. I look on in part-horror and part-amusement everytime someone does that with my camera. Here's how not to hold a SLR:



Here's how to hold one (thanks to leonard for being my unwitting model..haha):

Marina Barrage-001

For the guys who went to army, hold it like you hold a rifle. Right hand on the grip and index on the shutter release. Left hand balancing the barrel of the lens. The weight of the camera should be resting mainly on the left hand, although this might be of personal preference (some balance the weight more on the right).

Here's another pic to reinforce that. Ivy is holding a prosumer class camera. Built similarly to SLRs, it should be held in a similar fashion.

Marina Barrage-010

She looks happy. Because she knows she is holding the camera correctly. =P

Another embarrassing thing people do with SLRs is that they look blankly at the LCD screen, puzzled that it is off. Then they proceed to ask you if the camera is on...

Due to the construction of the Single Lens Reflex mechanism, SLRs, unlike compacts, do not project the image onto the LCD constantly. (you can wiki the mechanism if you are interested. its quite simple to understand) There is this new-fangled technology called "Live-view" on some SLRs that enable the LCD to function like in compacts, but most of them do not work very well (takes a lot longer to focus)

So raise the camera up to your face. Locate the viewfinder (it is a glass window above the shiny LCD screen). Press your master eye to the viewfinder until the rubber bung around the viewfinder fits snugly around your eye (or if you are wearing glasses, your glasses). You should be able to see a very clear view through the viewfinder. Your nose should be pressed against the camera body now. Dun worry, your friend is not going to blame you for getting oil onto his expensive camera if you take a good photo.

Look at what Leonard is doing above. You cannot see his face when he is taking a photo. That is the mark of pro-ness. =P

I shall not go on to elaborate on how to take a photo. Your friend should have set the camera settings properly (eg. auto mode) if he knows that you know nuts about photography.

Hope this post will save lots from embarrassment. Have a nice day =)

posted by nwxiang at 10:19 PM | 0 comments


Friday, January 23, 2009


(One of ) my worst nightmare came true


Posted to some crappy hospital for med reposting. Probably get a better revision if I do a med posting ON MY OWN. TMD.

WHY DON'T THEY BLOODY LEARN?? Why do they post the SAME NUMBER of people to hospitals of DIFFERING SIZE?? This is so unfair. AH gets 9 while SGH and TTSH also get 9 each???!?!? What sort of sloppy administrative work is this?? Maybe I should just quit and join the other med sch. My education is being compromised.

posted by nwxiang at 12:03 PM | 0 comments


Tuesday, January 20, 2009


Photo-synthesis


So many photos.. so little time...

Managed to process the kelong photos in just over a day... almost 400 of them...

Still have 200++ from other outings..

Stay-tuned for photo galore at Optic Chiasma (please be patient..)

posted by nwxiang at 12:49 AM | 0 comments


Saturday, January 17, 2009


Go Kelong lohh


Yayyy

posted by nwxiang at 9:05 AM | 0 comments


Wednesday, January 14, 2009


Reformasi


Got back my NX8800GTS (they actually replaced it with a new card). Acquired 2 x 500GB HDDs. The formating and restructuring of my file systems shall begin tonight..

posted by nwxiang at 7:24 PM | 0 comments


Finally


Tomorrow, I shall no longer wake up at 6am. I shall wake up at 10am instead.

And I shall be happy, relieved, and relaxed.

At least for a short while.. =D

posted by nwxiang at 1:49 AM | 0 comments


Monday, January 12, 2009


Almost...


...free

For the past 3 weeks, we have been stuck in the library, arriving when it's dark and leaving when it's dark, easily clocking over 10 hours per day. Every day except Sundays and public holidays, we would study, study and study some more.. Straight out of 24 weeks of intensive clinical postings, with at most a 1 week break somewhere amidst.

We whine, we complain, we swear, we lose our tempers, we pull our hairs with frustration and desperation. Yet everyday, every one of us would wake up and face the battle again.

For this is the path we have chosen.

And at 11.30am tomorrow, we shall be free of duty, of responsibility, of intensive mental work-outs, of mangled sleep-wake cycles, of stress-induced ailments (cough, rhinitis, eczema, gastritis, diarrhoea, back aches, neck aches, insanity etc..)...

At least, for a while..

posted by nwxiang at 9:21 PM | 0 comments


Sunday, January 11, 2009


来了...


The night always seems the darkest before dawn... hang on in there everyone...

posted by nwxiang at 9:13 PM | 0 comments


Thursday, January 08, 2009


Anoikis


If you have no friends, you dies... lolz

posted by nwxiang at 10:11 PM | 0 comments


Monday, January 05, 2009


Angsty


Dunno why today I'm so irritable. Maybe's the gastritis... =P I shall be more 冷静 tomorrow. And more productive.

posted by nwxiang at 10:09 PM | 0 comments


Friday, January 02, 2009


Identified


Was talking so loud about ulcerative colitis and Crohn's with qiantai in the MRT that we were identified by a junior to be med students... lol.

posted by nwxiang at 10:21 PM | 0 comments