The 1st Week of surgery:
I really enjoyed the last week at NUH surgery, urology dept. The team I was attached to was really willing to teach, and all the doctors were especially approachable. Despite seeing the housemen work really hard, the sense of closeness between the team was palpable.
I especially like the clinic where we were allowed to interview new patients and attempt to make a diagnosis; that really put the stress on but was an enjoyable learning experience at the same time.
I'm still not used to the tutorial system - unlike csfc there are no fixed topics for tutorials. So what I get out of the tutorial depends on what patients I choose to clerk. It's going to take a bit of effort keeping track of what I know and what I don't know...
There were 2 days in which I could leave at 3+pm. Thought that was a reasonable time for me to get some rest for the next day!
So uro might be on my list of nice specialties.
And the weekend that followed..
..was rather uneventful except for julia's party. I especially enjoyed the video; wonder what mine would look like if I made one..
There was excellent durian cake as well. Certainly comparable to any store bought cake! If Julia wasn't going to be a doctor she could certainly bake!
For some reason I'm glad there's lectures tmr (:
28 June 2009
27 June 2009
"Thump thump" goes the feet. The heart pounds, and I begin panting as I make my way down the pedestrian street.
I am not alone. Secondary school students, foreign workers, local executives traverse the path. Those heading towards me watch for a second as I go past them, the others walking away from me turn their heads around for a glance at the one who makes the footsteps.
I am not daunted. Instead, I redouble my pace, ignoring these curious stares. I intersperse my breaths with my steps into a comfortable rhythm, ignoring the fatigue that is gradually building in my legs. My heart rate increases, my breathing increases in depth and speed. But I tell myself, "I am not tired."
I continue running.
Up and down the street I go. I overtake an middle-aged lady going the same way, only much slower. I reach the end of the path, then make a U-turn to run past her once more. I hope she is not annoyed.
Eventually I finish, sweating, smelly and panting hard. I know my legs will ache, and when I reach home, I may have to wait for the shower.
But the run was worth it.
I am not alone. Secondary school students, foreign workers, local executives traverse the path. Those heading towards me watch for a second as I go past them, the others walking away from me turn their heads around for a glance at the one who makes the footsteps.
I am not daunted. Instead, I redouble my pace, ignoring these curious stares. I intersperse my breaths with my steps into a comfortable rhythm, ignoring the fatigue that is gradually building in my legs. My heart rate increases, my breathing increases in depth and speed. But I tell myself, "I am not tired."
I continue running.
Up and down the street I go. I overtake an middle-aged lady going the same way, only much slower. I reach the end of the path, then make a U-turn to run past her once more. I hope she is not annoyed.
Eventually I finish, sweating, smelly and panting hard. I know my legs will ache, and when I reach home, I may have to wait for the shower.
But the run was worth it.
16 June 2009
The Driving Test... Revisited!
I was pretty nerve-racked during my driving test. Firstly, I started off rather badly at the slope, where I revved the engine but neglected to release the clutch, resulting in a slight but rather embarrassing slip backwards.
Afterwards during my parallel parking, I actually over-reversed after the pole was sighted in my right wing mirror. I had to perform an additional reverse manoeuvre. Worst of all, I was reprimanded when I pronounced my successful completion of parallel parking, because I had not pulled the handbrake and put the gear into neutral. When the tester tapped on his PDA, in my mind I was wondering, "Is he checking the scoresheet?"
All this, I thought, didn't bode well for my test.
Still, I pressed on, completing the S course, crank course and vertical parking in quick succession. All this while my tester continued tapping on his PDA.
I was pretty sure I had failed by the time I left the circuit, and what I was thinking at that time was, "What the heck, I give it my best shot anyway" And compared to the narrow confines of the circuit, the roads were truly a breath of fresh air.
I turned left out of the circuit, crossed the junction, turned left into a small road, turned left out into eunos link, then turned right and headed back into the test centre without much incident, except for changing lanes too abruptly and neglecting to change up gear when I accelerated. (Just once!)
As I waited for my test results, I couldn't help but notice my tester placing some sheet of paper under the "pass" basket. And when he sat down before me to explain my mistakes, all I could focus on was the scoresheet placed upside-down before me. My score seemed to be 10.. the tester congratulated me.. I couldn't believe myself.. I had actually passed my driving test!
At that moment, I was the happiest man in Ubi.
Afterwards during my parallel parking, I actually over-reversed after the pole was sighted in my right wing mirror. I had to perform an additional reverse manoeuvre. Worst of all, I was reprimanded when I pronounced my successful completion of parallel parking, because I had not pulled the handbrake and put the gear into neutral. When the tester tapped on his PDA, in my mind I was wondering, "Is he checking the scoresheet?"
All this, I thought, didn't bode well for my test.
Still, I pressed on, completing the S course, crank course and vertical parking in quick succession. All this while my tester continued tapping on his PDA.
I was pretty sure I had failed by the time I left the circuit, and what I was thinking at that time was, "What the heck, I give it my best shot anyway" And compared to the narrow confines of the circuit, the roads were truly a breath of fresh air.
I turned left out of the circuit, crossed the junction, turned left into a small road, turned left out into eunos link, then turned right and headed back into the test centre without much incident, except for changing lanes too abruptly and neglecting to change up gear when I accelerated. (Just once!)
As I waited for my test results, I couldn't help but notice my tester placing some sheet of paper under the "pass" basket. And when he sat down before me to explain my mistakes, all I could focus on was the scoresheet placed upside-down before me. My score seemed to be 10.. the tester congratulated me.. I couldn't believe myself.. I had actually passed my driving test!
At that moment, I was the happiest man in Ubi.
04 June 2009
Driving Home a Point
Today my driving instructor did it again..
"嘉逸, 驾车是不可以想的，驾车的人都没有头脑的。驾车只需要反应。。。"
My instinctive response was to agree wholeheartedly. But the reason I have to think is still because I'm unsure of using the clutch.
After countless lessons, I still get jerky beginnings and problems controlling my speed. Of course, I've improved a lot since I begun learning, but having these problems are certainly not reassuring one week before my test. And there's also the matter of judgement. Blame my slow reflexes for not reacting when the road is clear for me to change lane.
If there's one take home message from today's lesson, it's that driving's more about reacting than about thinking.
Update: I passed my driving test on 12/6/2009 with 10 points! :D:D:D
"嘉逸, 驾车是不可以想的，驾车的人都没有头脑的。驾车只需要反应。。。"
My instinctive response was to agree wholeheartedly. But the reason I have to think is still because I'm unsure of using the clutch.
After countless lessons, I still get jerky beginnings and problems controlling my speed. Of course, I've improved a lot since I begun learning, but having these problems are certainly not reassuring one week before my test. And there's also the matter of judgement. Blame my slow reflexes for not reacting when the road is clear for me to change lane.
If there's one take home message from today's lesson, it's that driving's more about reacting than about thinking.
Update: I passed my driving test on 12/6/2009 with 10 points! :D:D:D
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