Of 2007

what a year it's been.

it ended off with o&g which, as can be deduced from my previous posts, wasn't a smooth-sailing experience, although i was touched in many other ways. i'm grateful to have finished it (yes, even that write up) and to have seen what i saw. the sixteen-year-old who cried in terror during childbirth while her mother stood three feet away and refused to hold her hand, the unparalleled joy of holding up a new-born for the mother to see for the first time, and of course, the adrenaline rush of the osces. i'll always carry these memories and more, for as long as possible.

at new year's service last year, pastor asked us to bring forth three requests. it's amazing how my three requests, covering different aspects of my life, have led me to where i am now, one year down the road. i have grown, so much so that i had to add a fourth prayer this year, because there's a new part of my life that has just sprung up. isn't it wonderful?

what will 2008 bring? i can't wait.

happy new year!!

Finally!!

it was all because of one three-letter, wrongly-placed tag that my entire sidebar disappeared into nothingness. i can't believe i spent the entire afternoon trying to figure out that out.

oh well.

this layout is the first i've done since...j2. back to html nerdhood! heh. the code's really simple actually (right click on the page and choose "view page source" to see it) but it's a good feeling to have finished it, instead of having just picked a pre-made one from blogger (they seriously need to update their templates!) or blogskins.

would love to have gone on my merry way, but i still have my obs write up to finish. till next time then.

Wha'ts Going On

I spent a whole day on the layout and Blogger now doesn't want to read my code properly?!?!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!

and what must easily be the best christmas song ever composed:

We Are the Reason - David Meece

As little children
We would dream of Christmas morn
And all the gifts and toys we know we’ll find
But we never realised
A Baby born one blessed night
Gave us the greatest gift of our lives

Chorus:
We are the reason that He gave His life
We are the reason He suffered and died
To a world that was lost
He gave all He could give
To show us a reason to live

As the years went by
We learn more about gifts
The giving of ourselves
And what that means
On a dark and cloudy day
A Man hung crying in the rain
Because of love, because of love

Bridge:
I’ve finally found a reason for living
It’s in giving every part of my heart to Him
In all that I do, every word that I say
I’ll be giving my all just for Him, for Him

We are the reason that He gave His life
We are the reason He suffered and died
To a world that was lost
He gave all He could give
To show us a reason to live
He is my reason to live.

Of O&G OSCEs

all i can say is:

you win some ("you've done very well for this station, all i need is just one minor point which you missed!")...

...and you lose some ("all of you are like that, only know how to study in the library").

we-ell, the second examiner had a point. but then again, how is one supposed to learn so much in 7 weeks without holing oneself somewhere to mug?

did pretty well in two stations - pph and microbiology/lab interpretation (of all things!) but literally threw two stations out of the window - aph and post-op management of a tahbso. so does that mean i did ok? haha.

then again, for all the stress and anxiety and madness of my study schedule, i'm grateful that it didn't turn out to be so hard, that the examiners for my circuit were mostly nice and friendly (one even turned it into a mini-tutorial for all of us!) and that it's finally out of the way. woohoo.

3 more papers to go, and then it's par-tayyy!

Of Pre-OSCEs

one day to the osces, and what appears on the first page of the home section? an article on cord prolapse and crash caesars. my stomach did a double flip when i saw it.

it's impossible to finish studying, although some people have declared, "it's only thirty-five topics what!"

as the les miz lyrics go: one more dawn/ one more day/ one day more!

here's a clip of the best musical ever, performed by the original broadway cast at the 1987 tony awards. nothing comes quite as close.

Les Miserables - One Day More

Of Sweet Music

this was the main carol my choir sang in hawaii seven years ago. have never heard of a more wonderful piece of music than this. i can't find any other video; would have liked to view the version sung by the king's college choir, but this choir has done a pretty good job, only that the tenors have trouble reaching the higher notes, and that they sometimes go out of tune. nevertheless i enjoyed listening to it, and it sure brought back tons of memories!! enjoy.

the lyrics are by robert herricks (1591-1674):

What sweeter music can we bring
Than a carol, for to sing
The birth of this our heavenly King?
Awake the voice! Awake the string!

Dark and dull night, fly hence away,
And give the honour to this day
That sees December turned to May.

Why does the chilling winter's morn
Smile, like a field beset with corn?
Or smell like a meadow newly shorn
Thus on the sudden? Come and see
The cause, why things thus fragrant be:

'Tis he is born. whose quickening birth
Gives life and lustre, public mirth,
To heaven and the under-earth.

We see him come, and know him ours,
Who, with his sunshine and his showers,
Turns all the patient ground to flowers.

The darling of the world is come,
And fit it is, we find a room
To welcome him, to welcome him.

The nobler part of all the house here, is the heart.
Which we will give him: and bequeath
This holly, and this ivy wreath.
To do him honour. who's our King,
And Lord of all this revelling.

Of Flights Of Fancy

what i wish i could do right now:

1) sleep for 24 hours
2) buy a guitar and learn how to play it
3) fly off somewhere to sight-see ( taipei, shanghai, hokkaido are at the top of the list)

what i'm supposed to do right now:
1) study
2) study
3) study

what i'll probably do after this - sleep!

and the electives are one big headache. ugh.

Of New Layout

new layout.

needs more editing.

aph, pph, iol, vbac, lscs, pe, pih, gdm, ptl, prom, pprom. argh!

why am i doing this now?

Of What A Difference A Day Makes

it's been one hell of a week. cex, ethics test, long days, and feverish days. and i'm not the only one - even those from other groups have commented how bad this past week has been. and when the week ended, instead of going out partying as we probably deserved, we were either stuck at home mugging for osces or taking turns going on call. yucks.

and may i whine about the ethics test? i honestly don't see how that test was supposed to gauge how ethical we are. it was interesting going through the readings of course, but a one hour essay test without any lectures or discussion? sigh. and if anybody fails...oh, that'll be the most wonderful joke ever.

being able to sleep for seven hours straight made so much of a difference. my fever went down (after five days!!) and my cough got better. urgh, what a time to be sick. oh well. next week shall be better, won't it? and the following week will be osces. it just keeps getting better.