Friday, 29-Oct-2004 6:50 PM

Hello, you guys call us Bananas, remember?

My internet connection has been non-existant the past few days and I was dying without it! I can't believe how much I depend on the internet. Sigh, that's so sad.

Monday night one of the fourth year students had their entrance exam and chose to do it on a new patient that was scheduled to see me. That meant I had to sit in there with the student, the patient and the examiner (our clinic supervisor). The student took sooooo long to do his history taking and examination - it was killing me, especially because I was starving. The patient was a super tall chinese guy who was having trouble understanding some of the questions. One time, the student asked the patient 'do you notice if you're more yellow than normal?' I wanted to burst out laughing but thank goodness I only made one short sound. It was just killing me! After that, the student stood the patient right in front of me to do his structural analysis and being the great height that he was, his pelvis was right in front of my face and his fly was open! Man was I glad when it was over.

I just ran 3km and didn't break a sweat! That's good for me since I haven't run in forever and I'm currently as fit as a bear in hibernation.

Sunday, 24-Oct-2004 4:32 PM

The Board Exam.

Yesterday feels like forever ago. I was SO nervous the day before the Board exam. Pacing around like a chicken without its head. Getting very little sleep. We were scheduled three students at a time and had to wait in the radiology lab as though we were about to be executed (again - because this is the 4th competency exam). I was trying to run through a last minute shoulder routine, praying that I wouldn't get a patient with shoulder problems while doing the 'anterior instability test' on myself. Of course I had to get the supervisor that nobody wanted and he sure did hammer me with questions. I started a few minutes after everyone else because there was no paper supplied in my room and one of the supervisors wasn't even in the room. The patient was a nice lady who I later realised was Mr Nice's patient! I'm sure I've taken her file out before when I was on reception duty. Now I wish I'd read it or glanced at the front cover to see if there were any red flags or major complications that she had. I took so long to take her history that I rushed through the physical examination part - it felt like I practically threw her head in every direction known to man (okay, I didn't really do that because hey, I don't want to be sued later for malpractice :P). I think I may have even poked her face a little too hard with the needle when I was testing her skin sensation. Sorry! Partway through the physical examination I was having difficulty trying to stand behind her because the benches were pushed against each other (my exam was actually being done in the skills room) and the supervisor said 'you might want to use THIS bench' and he points to the one that was all nicely set up ready for me to use. The other supervisor had been sitting on it the whole time though and he quickly jumped off. That irritated me a little because had that supervisor not been using it to park his ass on, I would've known to use it :P So it made me look like an idiot when it really wasn't my fault.

There was a point in time during the history taking where I asked the patient how things were at home (to determine pyschosocial status) and she looked like she was about to cry. She told me both her parents died this year and that hit me like a speeding truck. I was expecting complicated symptoms and signs, not depressing personal lives. Her mother had died from ulcerative colitis - which she said was expected. However the shock came the following day when her father 'dropped dead in her arms'. She said that was completely unexpected and the family had a hard time dealing with it. Her eyes welled up. Then my eyes welled up and I thought I was going to lose it.

She had mid cervical pain that was running up to the back of her occiput and from there to the front of her head. She also had pain behind the eye. I freaked out immediately thinking it was something major, like a tumor because of the eye thing. I'm pretty sure I misdiagnosed it as a facet synovitis with associated common migraines instead of a cluster headache or whatever it may have been. I was just trying to sound confident with my decision because hey, I had to choose something and stick by it. After the history and physical exam, you're left in the room by yourself for ten minutes to look at xrays and I guess calm yourself down:P After that you're 'interviewed' for 15 minutes. Basically you sit behind the desk like a target board and let the two supervisors take aim at you. After they shoot a million holes through you all your dignity is leaking out onto the floor and you're left feeling pretty stupid.

I waited for T to finish his exam and then we went for lunch at the mall. We must have talked for half an hour about how we went before realising that we hadn't even gotten our food yet. I'm glad it's over. I'm extremely glad now that I'm not scheduled to do mine next week. I think hearing everyone's stories about how they went this week would just freak me out.

When I came home, I was determined to waste the day away but ten minutes into it, exhaustion hit me and I slept for about 4 hours! I was awoken by a message on my phone by my friend asking me if I wanted to watch a movie. Ended up rushing out of the house, picking her up and eating caramel popcorn for my dinner in the cinema. We watched Wimbledon (okay okay stop rolling them eyes at me :P) which was okay. I don't need mindboggling movies to be entertained :D

And hey! last but not least, I checked my US Board Exam results after I got home and I'm surprisingly happy with how I went! :D

Wednesday, 20-Oct-2004 10:35 PM

Eating brazil nuts is like eating wood. I was in the library and my stomach was grumbling. I didn't have a choice, even my nails weren't available for chewing as they had someone else's sweat embedded in them from dirty gloves used in boxercise. At that point I just had to pretend those brazil nuts were some kind of expensive chocolate. What's worse is I had to suck on the damn things until I could chew into it without making a sound =/

Tuesday, 19-Oct-2004 11:22 PM

Busy, busy me.

Argh, too busy to complain about the things that are bothering me. My board exam is this Saturday and I've been having regular panic attacks. I can actually feel my heart beating irregularly, it's scary. One random patient, two supervisors, not enough time and xrays to view. I'm not a fan of being watched :( I hope it all goes well. So until then, I'll hold off on me exploding about crazy drivers who cut in front of me, my sister, brother etc. Hopefully by next week, I'll have forgotten all about the little things. I'm sure there will be something new to complain about however. You know me :P

Sunday, 17-Oct-2004 11:02 PM

Observation and the Markets

I can't believe the weekend is gone already. I spent Saturday morning getting lost in curvy roads and too many one-way streets before getting to this chiropractor's clinic half an hour late to start my observation. Grr! Thank goodness he's my tutor and a great guy and didn't harp on me about it. I love his clinic. I love his CA, who he happens to be engaged to. They make the perfect couple, the perfect team. I'm honestly jealous. I can't remember the last time I looked at a couple, how they interacted and wanted it for my very self. The two of them renovated the place together with the help of some friends in just three weekends. They also planned their wedding in TWO days. Goodness!

The highlight of my day was when this little boy was scheduled in. The chiro had asked me if I had seen the boy and I said not really (because he was running around) and he said 'go out and have a look at him!'. Confused, I did as he said. When I walked out, I saw the boy being carried by his dad. He was the cutest little thing!

'Aww' I said.

And then the dad turned his face to look at me.

Holyshit, I thought. Good thing I didn't say that :P

'OH' was all that came out my mouth. It struck me who I was looking at and I suddenly felt like I had no right to be awwing at his son. It almost felt like I was insulting royalty or something.

It was great though, I got to observe as his son was being treated and how great a dad he was. When it was time for them to leave, his son, who is about 3, walked up to me so I bent down. I'm not exactly the best with kids and I had no idea why he'd even come near me since I basically stood near the wall the whole time he was there and tried to be invisible. He put his arms around my neck, leaned in slowly and gave me a big ole wet kiss on the cheek. Ahh! Made my day! It's not often I get kissed by such cute boys ;)

The other great part of the day was that my brother and sister decided to try their luck at getting a stall at Glebe Markets. They got there at 5am to line up for a casual stall and ended up getting one at 9am. I went there toward the end of the day to see how they were going. While they were packing up, this girl came and had a look at the bags and I made one comment and she bought one of the bags straight away. Hah! I should be a saleslady! Maybe they'll try again next weekend. If you see them, buy something! :D

Friday, 15-Oct-2004 5:16 PM

Nutritious meals for one.

You know, it worries me when I find one cockroach leg on the floor and there is no cockroach body in sight. Then it just plain grosses me out when I feed the cats and only Emmy is eating and Boston just sits there looking at me as if to say he's already eaten.

So for punishment, I dressed him up!

Hah! Just kidding. He asked to borrow my purse (and I hadn't even used it yet! Tags still attached and everything. That boy :P ). I got it from my cousin for my bday.

Notice the paw placement in the pic below!

Tuesday, 12-Oct-2004 11:52 PM

You search, I supply.

In my effort to keep up with my habit of procastinating, I thought I'd amuse myself by looking at the searches that led some crazy people to my site.

Here are the stranger ones :

# cute guys with pucker butts

# fiesta durian condom

# in highschool guys want boobs

# indian aunties armpits

# knee his balls

# your buttcrack is showing

haha :D

Monday, 11-Oct-2004 0:19 AM

I know this is terrible thinking but sometimes when I'm down, I wish things were looking down for everyone else too :(

Saturday, 09-Oct-2004 4:32 PM

The hardest part about graduating this year is that I haven't made up my mind completely about what exactly it is I want. It made for a very tough morning today when I tried to bring it up with Salami. We'd planned all along for me to move over there but it's getting so difficult. I have to put in a lot more work to pass exams to go there and to do the whole immigration thing (which makes it that much harder when you're not even a citizen of this country, let alone the one you want to go to). It would be much easier for me if he came here and I know he says he's considered it but I think his idea of considering it lasts 2 minutes. He reckons it would be harder for him to move here because he's already got things, got a job etc and still has work exams to pass. Getting a job here would be a 'downgrade' for him. Downgrade!? Man does that make my insides start to boil - I wonder if he realises that LIVING there would be a downgrade for me. Living in Sydney is like sleeping on new satin sheets everynight. It's just a luxury to live here. The weather is superb. The landscape is beautiful. The variety and quality of the food is great. The fresh seafood at hand is something I take advantage of. Even the variety of people here make this place so nice. What would I do without my vegemite and easy access to instant noodles? Where else can I go where people yell out 'Tomatos cheap! Two dollar two dollar two dollar!'

Things aren't looking all that great for the moment. And it's all because I can't decide if I want to give up my paradise here =(

So you know what that means....retail therapy.

I met my sister and cousins in Glebe for lunch and checked out the markets there. So many nice things to get and if it weren't for accidentally leaving my wallet at home (good thing sis was there to save my ass for lunch!), I would've bought a few things. My sister lent me some money which I never intended on using, except to get some groceries but now I'm home, with no groceries and one skirt and a cute top. Sigh, I'm terrible. But I do feel better =I It weighs out, doesn't it?? =/

Friday, 08-Oct-2004 11:07 PM

I just got back from a cervical workshop! How cool am I on a Friday night :P

Last weekend the weather was so nice to us, my sister wanted to eat lunch somewhere outside so we headed into the city and then came across the South American Festival at Darling Harbour! It was really good. We ended up eating lunch there on the grass and watching the dancers from different parts of South America perform. When the Cuban dancers came out, I almost felt like I was in a strip club! That lady was shaking her booty like there was no tomorrow. Plus she was wearing a g-string so we could see every detail of each shake :P

We had tasty churros and another thing which I forgot but it looked just like a big fat sausage sandwich :)

This chinese lady above reminded me of my mom. The weather must have got to her because she was sitting there with her handbag sitting on her head, completely hands free!

Okay, now it's time for my midnight snack and some late night tv! :D

Tuesday, 05-Oct-2004 9:09 PM

A belated thank you to all you girls for wishing me a happy birthday! :D :D Plus Sue-Ann, whom I don't have a web address for !

I had originally tried to get an image of oreo cookies (since I know how much Almondites likes them!) but I couldn't find what I was looking for and it kind of freaked me out to find this.

Monday, 04-Oct-2004 11:53 PM

Uni starts again tomorrow and I've hit the blues once again. I always seem to get like this the day before and I will clean the house frantically and only when it's time to sleep will I casually check that I've actually completed the two assignments that are due tomorrow. Ugh! I thought I had completed this particular one last week and to my disappointment, I hadn't exactly finished it so I was scrambling tonight to get everything done. Today must have been the most productive day I've had during the entire two weeks break. I managed to vacuum the entire house! Tiled floors as well - I'm throwing the broom out now that I've realised it's easier to just vacuum the kitchen. I washed the dishes, did three loads of laundry, exercised my abs, got through half a lecture on tape, cooked lunch and dinner, cleaned half my room, iron and fold two loads of laundry, bathed Boston, attempted to bathe Emmy, pick up my friend from the airport and her dog as well, dropped her home, caught some of Sex and the City, showered, and completed that darn assignment due tomorrow! Hey! I even got to talk to Salami for 2.5 hours. I sure do miss him. He's in New Jersey for a four day seminar. Staying at the Sheraton! His company pays for everything, room service as well! Sigh, and I'm eating fried rice for three meals in a row because that's all I can cook :(

Somehow I'm still depressed. I would do all that housework again if it meant I didn't have to go to uni anymore !

Sunday, 03-Oct-2004 4:58 PM

Boston's new fascination:

BAGS & BOXES!

This little nut sure loves small, confined spaces. My sister recently got a new phone and they sent it to the house in a rather small box (about 1/8th the size of the one below) and it was standing up on it's side - Boston tried to squeeze himself into it. He was even scooting sideways into it and when we walked near him, he acted as though he was completely invisible, when half his fat ass didn't even fit in the box!

His latest craze is paper bags.

The first time I discovered this, I was genuinely looking for him around my room. See, there's so much junk all over my room, he could've been part of it and I wouldn't have spotted him for a good five minutes unless he moved.

Where oh where could the dear boy be??

PEEKABOO!

The funniest part was that he wouldn't get out of the bag, so I actually lifted it right up and walked over to where my sister was and said I had a gift for her :D

Saturday, 02-Oct-2004 0:18 AM

Repeating myself..

So my birthday came and went and I actually really had a great time this year. Like I said before, every other year I haven't been in the mood to celebrate and it really didn't make a difference to me whether I spent my birthday at home in front of the tv or out having dinner.

This year I celebrated it over different days with family and friends.

I had a joint celebration with Karen and then we went out to celebrate hers alone by drinking way too much in Newtown. Ahem, notice the red faces. I just met that girl on the right that night - she ate my chips!! It was supposed to be my dinner :(

I don't remember all that much from that night except that we tried to catch the train from Newtown back into the city and the train had stopped for a good length of time before heading right back to Newtown! We'd hit the last stop and had been waiting there without realising all that time. No wonder we were the only ones on the train :P

I'm glad my ass isn't up there!

Friday, 01-Oct-2004 9:43 AM

And I'm baaaack.

For some reason our internet service provider haven't been charging us for the past 3 years or so. We didn't realise it either until they found out two months ago. So now we're on a plan and it always runs out a week before the end of the month! Grrr, it kills me. I can't live without the internet. I even had to drive to uni to use it :(

Holy crap! It's the first of October already!? No! Does anyone know when daylight savings is?