18^th  May 2003: Dreaming

22 years of age and two years till graduation.

    “Everyone, when they are young, knows what their destiny is. At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives. But, as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their destiny.” 

       ---- The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

21^st  May 2003: Part Two

Ok. I've set up some sort of a blog. Many thanks to all who have visited my page/ signed the guest book/ gave me suggestions since its inception  3 days ago. Hope I've managed to interest some of you into returning regularly.

Some people told me my links are hard to find. Haha...they're mostly in the pictures. The first 3 lead you somewhere at least. I'll be creating a music section next.

24^th  May 2003: like a bee

It's been a busy week. Had a double birthday celebrations at Sentosa on Tues. First time in a while that the cg got together. I'm glad for that. Wed was a day at PA surfing. Hmm.... 2 days of intense sun in a row. Not good for my skin. Made up for that on Thurs catching Matrix Reloaded in  Lido.

My music link on this page is finally done! From this music page, you can visit with www.chrispork.com ! My favourite trance site. Go look at his smashing album covers and listen to the streaming trance tracks !

27^th  May 2003: Thats wat i go to skool 4

Yesterday was a totally slack day at Aaron's club. But I got another prospective jc chem tuition assignment......

Yeah...now I have 2 jc chem assignments on hand....going back to my 1st LOVE ! (My fav. subject that is. Sorry, I'm not talking about that kind of love. Not going to infringe on another girl's privacy.)

It's great to be  teaching chem again. All those efforts put in by our various chem tutors [we had so many of them: E-Chan, Yap Penny Elaine, Ms Li, O-Ang (did i miss anyone?); don't know why they kept coming & going.], I'm going to put it to some use !

Song stuck in head: Thats wat I go to skool for  -- Busted (Its REAL funny ! I'm gonna master the guitar tabs)

29^th  May 2003: pigging out

Yesterday was totally gluttony. Resolve never to eat so much ice-cream again. Ice-cream buffet @ Swensen's: thin mint, orange sherbet, mocha almond, yummy raisins, yam, pistachio almond, orange sherbet.

Made up for it with a 15km run >> yeah....

Sigh...Itallians.....always defending. The Champions League finals was a drab affair that had to be concluded with penalties. If only Nedved had played.....

Juventus 2 -- 3 AC Milan (penalties)

Trezeguet (missed)         Serginho
Birindelli                         Seedorf (missed)
Zalayeta (missed)            Kaladze (missed)
Montero (missed)            Nesta
Del Piero                        Shevchenko

01^st  Jun 2003: amazing race

It's a new month. I better resolve to study harder. Letting my brains rot for too long. *resolving*

A new month, a new look. Decided that my former front page was too cluttered. So now, I've dichotomised into a blog page & my homepage. My blog page will contain my current pre-occupations  ------ I'm following the Amazing Race 4 ! *see below*

06^th Jun 2003: transition

I'm not sure when I'll be able to get some good studying done. Have received news that school will begin on 30 Jun. Training in hospitals will be done in full protective gear. *Sigh* I'm getting so used to lazy mornings. Guess I'll warm up my engine with more running. I should attend the Nike running shoe trial at Bishan Park on the 15^th.

And Flash learning would be put on hold as I prepare for school. Some of my cg mates are back packing in Europe right now. Wish them lots of fun.

Tried to unscrew the wheels of my K2 blades. Dang ! 3 of the screws were dead. Should have sent it for maintenance during the warranty. Now I have to pay $ 15 for each wheel. This is so silly. Gotta find some tool from D.I.Y shop to prevent this from recurring.

07^th Jun 2003: Whatever You Want

Haha...A book I bought on a whim. Was out with a couple of old friends when I spotted this at Times.

The cover illustration, a la Jordi Labanda, is cool too. (eh Tan Liwen, very nice???)

Scanned through the book. Language is witty and piquant.

But it's PINK ! (you say??) Nah.....I'm not averse to pink books.

Right. To Bishan Park tomorrow morning. Serious studying from next week.

13^th Jun 2003: oscillating

Dang. I'm still lazing around and wasting time like Garfield. * Snap out x2 !*

Met up with my primary school pal to swim on Tuesday. 12 years already.      * Toast to that *

First time canoeing in Kallang River on Thursday. A capsize drill proved that Swan Lake, Perth, is still a nicer river to canoe in.

Current obsession: Jiang Zu Ping in "Ai Shang Zong Jing Li 2", Taiwan Drama, channel U, 2245 slot. Find her on screen image strangely attractive. Obscure woman. Only fan site is in mandarin.

19^th Jun 2003: religious exercise

Extremely comprehensive religious beliefs quiz.

My top 10 matches:

1. Unitarian Universalism 100%

2. Theravada Buddhism 89%

3. Secular Humanism 85%

4. Neo-Pagan 82%

5. Liberal Quakers 80%

6. Mahayana Buddhism 76%

7. New Age 73%

8. Mainline - Liberal Christian Protestants 66%

9. Taoism - 57%

10. Non-theist 55%

According to the site, Unitarian Universalists have diverse views regarding deity, incarnation, origin of life, after death, evil, salvation and suffering. It is a rojak of atheists (or non-theists), agnostics, Humanists, liberal Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Neo-pagans, etc. On contemporary issues, the stance is to protect the personal right to choose abortion, equality for homosexuals and ladies, secular approach to marriage and divorce, working to end poverty, promoting peace and non-violence, and environmental protection.

For my Christian, Buddhist and Hindu friends who have been wondering what religious amalgam I am, the above is pretty accurate as of 19 Jun 03.

* I'll be departing for Sisters' Island 0830 hrs 22 Jun on a canoeing trip with friends. Will only be contactable earliest 23 Jun late afternoon.

24^th Jun 2003: Sisters' Island

20 odd hours post canoeing. Caught the stars, mosquito bites and sun. Kallang River --> coast, Marina Bay --> East Keppel Fairway -- > southern side of Sentosa --> Sisters' islands. 12km.

Thanks to:

Darren for his paddling tip: I was reminded of it on the way back.
Yanjun for tolerating my zigzag navigation.
Tau Hong for showing me Scorpius, Southern Cross, Crow and the teapot of Sagittarius (which I couldn't make out).
Cheryl for bringing the wonderful dory fish, wings and breakfast.
Yizhi for being the camera man.
Jensen & Clam for the immaculate planning.

Sisters' island are known as Pulau Subar Darat & Pulau Subar Laut. The legend speaks of 2 sisters being drowned in a tragedy.

25^th Jun 2003: Coney Island

I jogged to Kovan station yesterday and took the NEL (North-East Line) to Punggol. From Punggol, a short jog through some old roads and dirt tracks brought me to the sandy northeastern tip of the coast.

Overlooking the straits less than 100m across is Coney Island/ Pulau Serangoon. It has oddly-shaped trees. Exactly like bristles from a toothbrush. Straight and sprightly, unlike the usual roundness of our local fruit trees or the canopy shapes of those at Macritchie reservoir. So unbuilt, so un-Singapore --- the unsullied waters, clean white sands, a white egret and a flock of sparrows. On my return, I chanced upon a guy flying his radio-controlled plane, a photographer checking her equipment and a girl jogging in the opposite direction with very determined strides.

The area of Punggol, after being the laid back farming area for decades, is scheduled for much development: highways, a junior college, 123,000 residential spaces and sports facilities. Coney Island will be turned into a park and activity centre.

When I left, I had to traverse through dirt tracks with gargantuan tyre tracks, hallmark of heavy construction vehicles. Hopefully, the development, reclamation, dredging and all will not be over done.

2^nd Jul 03: there'll never be enough time

School starts tomorrow.

Went windsurfing today with Guang Yang, Kae Jack and Shiling. Glad to let the wind take me away again, after such a long hiatus.

School starts tomorrow.

4^th year already. Must become competent in my knowledge. Handling peoples' lives in 2 years.

I've still got my marathon to train for, tuition to give, music to learn to play, friends and family to spend time with. I really want to do some community service. Really should restart going to Cheshire Home again now that SARS is taking a break.

Shiling said there'll never be enough time to do everything, so one should stop procrastinating and do what feels right.

School starts tomorrow.

Jack also feels the brevity of time. Told Jack that I'll try: 5x/wk ( 3hr/day) of studying, 5x/wk of physical activity, 3x/wk tuition, 1x/wk comm service. Plus random outings with friends.

I've began to compile chemistry questions and answer keys into word documents. Hopefully this will help my students study better. With everything in bytes, it will be easier to track their progress. No more loose sheets.

School starts tomorrow.

6^th Jul 03:

"You tell me, and I forget. You teach    me, and I remember. You involve me, and I learn."
                          --Benjamin Franklin

Had the chance to spend the afternoon watching Shiling coach her trainee at the MINDS (Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore) training & development centre. It was very different from the volunteering experiences I've had. Whatever it is, I'm glad to be volunteering again.

9^th Jul 03: T 3

Watched T 3 today with Aaron, Peiling and Sher Lynn. Must say it is the most humorous of the 3 installments.

Registered for the Nike REAL run 2003. Also slated to run are my running buddies Clive and Jack, and my jc class rep Gham Seng !

I'm gonna love the 10 km route around Sentosa. Especially the beach stretch. Hopefully we get to run on sand. The sound of the surf would be cool.

* Gotta get there real early because the Nike Dri-Fit Tees are only for the first 4000.

15^th Jul 03: letter to ST forum

After reading 2 letters to the ST forum regarding the gay employment issue, the following is what I decided to send over:

* 17^th Jul, ST forum informs me that due to the limited number of letters that can go into print, they are unable to publish mine.

Homosexual behaviour

I refer to the articles “Govt should rethink hiring of gays” by George Lim Heng Chye and Phiroze Abdul Rahman (ST, July 15). Mr. George Lim dismisses that there could be a biological basis for homosexuality and attributes them to the environmental influences of culture, prior sexual abuse and inadequate upbringing. Mr. Phiroze Abdul Rahman ends his article with “…even a tiger will look for a tigress…”

There is much research into the biological basis of homosexuality and homosexual behavior in animals has been reported.

Evidence from family, twin and adoptive studies suggests that genetic factors, along with environmental factors, may influence sexual orientation to some degree. Researchers have identified chromosome Xq28 as having a possible linkage to sexual orientation.^1,2,3  This is equivalent to saying that it is possible for people to be born with homosexual tendencies.

Homosexual behaviour has been widely reported ^4,5 in a variety of animals in the wild and in captive. These range from our close cousins, the primates (pygmy chimpanzee) to birds, insects and the highly intelligent dolphins. One study ⁶ involving fruit flies showed that by manipulating an individual gene, male fruit flies could be made to initiate homosexual courtship. This is interesting as animal behaviour are often determined by survival and procreation instincts. There is no cultural influence.

Much research has to be done. Let us be more tolerant.

Ong Say Yang

1. Hamer, D. H., Hu, S., Magnuson, V. L., Hu, N. & Pattatucci, A. M. L. (1993). A linkage between DNA markers on the X chromosome and male sexual orientation. Science 261, 321–7.

2.  Hu, S. et al. (1995). Linkage between sexual orientation and chromosome Xq28 in males but not in females. Nat. Genet. 11, 248–56.

3.  Rice, G., Anderson, C., Risch, N. & Ebers, G. (1999). Male homosexuality: absence of linkage to microsatellite markers at Xq28. Science 23, 665–7.

4.  Vines, G. (1999). Queer Creatures [editorial]. New Scientist 7 August.

5.  Bruce Bagemihl, PhD (1999) Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity,    publisher:  St. Martin Press, (ISBN 0-312-19239-8).

6.  Zhang, S.-D. & Oswald, W. F. (1995). Misexpression of the white (w) gene triggers male–male courtship in Drosophila. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92, 5525–9.

17^th Jul 03: Run, run ,run.

Hospital posting in pediatrics will start on 28^th July. Learning will go up full steam. I will not be updating so regularly then.

In a way, my last 2 years in med school will be like a marathon, going parallel with the running I do. My running has intensified as I anticipate the Nike run, the AHM and the Singapore Marathon this year.

Hope I still find time to do things meaningful to me.

"I always loved running...it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs."                     

                                       Jesse Owens

"Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you did not do than by the things you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

                  Mark Twain
 

"Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart."

Confucius

26^th Jul 03: Again.

I got high again. At the class gathering at Pet's place. Don't think I spouted any nonsense. Thanks Pet, for the house and your mummy's excellent food; and Boss Sun, for the good humor.
 

Had a good week. End of a month of slack lectures and start of posting. Caught the movies I wanted to: Whale Rider and City of God in the penultimate week. Then had loads of stuff on the last week (in anticipation of busy posting):
Mon -- Weights with Dan ,Chun & Poon ( !! a 1st for Poon !! ),
Tues -- Blading with SQ,
Wed -- Windsurfing with a bunch of med pple, RISK @ Dan's place.
Thurs -- Evening run with Gham Seng @ NTU,
Fri -- Blading with the band guys and Katong Laksa,
Sat -- MYG family day @ Chinese High, and class party at Pet's place.

31^st Jul 03:

Just 3 days into the paediatric posting and I am overwhelmed: children with SLE, kids with cerebral palsy, babies with cyanotic heart disease. So much unattainable potential in each of them. So much for them to bear in the years to come.

" You'll never truly experience life until you've seen it through your patients."

Prof. Evan Lee, renal physician

I heard this a good one year ago, during my foundation clinic posting when Prof. Lee ended a Friday evening tutorial relating experiences. We were all eager to go off then, being a Friday evening. I never expected to remember this.