important lesson that i learnt in melb: wear sunscreen.
melbourne sun, singapore sun. not the same.
in singapore you can suntan for 2 straight hours under the sun, and all you become is a pathetic shade of brown.
in melb you don't even need to consciously suntan. you could just be walking around under the sun for half an hour. and you turn red. pronto.
eeeks. i think my skin got fried. it feels tingly and it stings upon contact with water. arrrrrgh.

sometimes, when i think of the old life (ie. my life in singapore back then) versus the new life (ie. my life in melb now), i get a little sad. i wasn't exactly the happiest person back then, but i can say that for now i'm smiling more, feeling more blessed, and being more thankful. somehow i can't help feeling that singapore was my dreary mousehole, and melbourne was my escape paradise. so when i think i about flying home for the summer, i become increasingly ambivalent. i want sososo much to see my family and friends whom i've missed so badly, and yet i know i don't want to go back to the old life.
i think i've changed a lot since coming to melb. i've become less pessimistic and more upbeat about life in general. yet i've become less hardworking, and also less disciplined. i'm much happier here, but sometimes i find myself in disarray all too often. is that good or bad?
the feeling is odd. i remember how i had to pull myself away from the old life with much difficulty- leaving behind all the relationships that i'd built up, coming to a strange new land in search of an education. now that everything has fallen nicely into place, and how i'm relishing my new life, i can't help but think that my family and friends back home have moved on without me, and it seems a little daunting to try and fit myself into the old life again.
i suppose this is merely my escape paradise.
home, is still home, after all.

*

i think i am getting a bit out of hand. i'm missing so much school. voluntarily. this is bad this is bad. :/

i just witnessed the worst birthday sabotage ever.
imagine a guy coming home from the movies, only to be ambushed, blindfolded, manhandled and made to don a bra (complete with 2 oranges) and a nightie and pink girly underwear and lipstick and being made to pose for photographs with the saboteurs. and also being powdered from head to toe with sodium bicarb and drenched with lemon soda.
so now i know women are not the most venomous creatures in the world after all. hehe :p
anyhoos. HAPPY BIRTHDAY C******!! (name withheld to salvage his reputation) :)

can anyone tell me what monster's ball is about?
it seems like one very disjointed movie with random bits of x-rated scenes inserted here and there. i wonder what makes it "the best film of the year". haha :p

phew. exams, no wait, exam is over.
yippeedoodledoo!
must have been the hardest one i've done so far.
i don't understand these monash people.
first they set questions that we can't answer, and then they don't give us back our scripts, or go through the paper.
then they set the same questions (word for word) in another exam.
yeah, so they got us. we can't do the stupid questions.
point is, i dunno what's the point.
i feel like i'm not learning anything at all.
so i can keep getting the same questions wrong, but i dunno where i went wrong. what is the logic in this. i don't know. ask monash.
but yeah. no more studying- until at least the day after tomorrow .
i'm as free as a bird! :)
can't wait to spend some quality time with my friends. :):):)

cheery el is back!
all she needed was her knight in shining armour.
:)

why do i always have to go and mess things up.
:(

there was a huge blackout just now. and i was thinking in my heart, "ohgosh what will i do? i have an exam tomorrow!"

after what seemed like 2 hours the power got restored. so i have light to study with now.

but the real blackout is not in my room. it's happening in my heart. it's the worst kind of blackout, where you can't see and grope about in darkness and keep shouting but no one comes. and i'm thinking now, "ohgosh what have i done? what will i do without you?"

i'm sorry i reallyreally am..please forgive me :(

my (not very funny) joke!

background info: joan and kai play the violin. i can't play any musical instrument. sob.

joan to kai: "how do you play a vibrato on a G-string?"
el: "i know i know!"
joan: "how?"
el: "err you shake your ass?"

joan and kai: "wahh.. bad joke."
el: :(

update.

i have somehow managed to finish 2 boxes of shapes and tiny teddies.
all gone! :( [i feel kinda sick now. aaaackgahhhbleaaahhh]
i think studying really consumes a considerable amount of energy.
at the rate i'm eating, i should go join some food-eating contest, i'd be sure to win some prize.
confirm plus chop.

ok, will make this short. since i have an exam on tuesday.
examfrenzy is reducing me to a bundle of nerves.
i'm also increasingly ravenous, having already wolfed down 2/3 of my tiny teddies and shapes biscuits (that i bought just today).
in an attempt to free myself of distractions, i shut off my mobile phone, went on an MSN-fast and reduced my internet surfing time.
seems to be working well, except that i get uberlonely sometimes.
i'm torn between wishing for tuesday to come slower or for tuesday to come faster. torn between having extra time to study versus decreasing my agony.
ohhhh the inevitable woes of student life.

today, i laughed so hard until i cried, thanks to miss joaniechong (who also goes by the name of chongster).

on pity:
"i pity people most when they are eating. cos they're so absorbed in their food and then that's when they are most vulnerable to attack."

on her ambition and the future:
"i'm a dynamo fan!!"

"i want to be a housewive next time and take care of all my kids!"

"i can't wait to get pregnant!"

"i want to be pregnant with twins but i don't want to give birth, or get married."

"my dream guy will drop from the sky and fall nicely onto my lap."

10 minutes before lecture:
"hurry up! keep your books into your bags. we must start walking to the lecture theatre now! HURRY UP LAH!"

there you have it-- classic joan. :p

isn't it amazing, that it only takes special people in my life to make my world perfect.
sometimes i feel like i have to pinch myself to make sure i'm not dreaming.
i'll cherish every moment. for sure.



We lift our hearts to Him
He is the reason that we sing
Hallelujah

johnson.


it's been a great six months, and you've been comic relief, yet so encouraging to me all this while. sad to see you go but happy for your newfound life in sydney. God bless :)

and these are the moments
i thank God that i'm alive
and these are the moments
i'll remember all my life

i've found all i've waited for
and i could not ask for more.

:)

sometimes i do wonder if i'll ever have a happy ending.
like the ones depicted in those jay chou lovesongs.
i need a lot of lovin'.

STRESS is evil :(

am starting to feel the pressure, what with the coming midsem exams and assignments due. but the motivation to do well is coming on stronger. think i'm going back to my RJ muggerdom days. :/

from sher's blog!

Your Aura is Blue Your Personality: Your natural warmth and intuition nurtures those around you. You are accepting and always follow your heart. You in Love: Relationships are your top priority, and this includes love. You are most happy when you are serious with someone. Your Career: You need to help others in your job to feel satistifed. You would be a great nurse, psychologist, or counselor.

i feel as though my body is falling to pieces. yet my heart is beating stronger than ever. celebration is in spite of, not because of. :)

i like care-bears!
especially laugh-alot-bear, since we seem to have the same silly and giggly personality.

it's too cute i need to get a laugh-alot-bear so that i can hug it to sleep and dream happy dreams! :)

church was good, lunch was nice, the company was great.
i am happy :)

to-do list.

1. finish assignment
2. QT
3. upload new songs into zen micro
4. tae-bo/gym
5. shop for groceries
6. make anat notes
7. email people
8. pre-readings for next week
9. vacuum room

good luck to me!

my dad likes to surprise-call me to make sure i don't go gallivanting at night. so today i received an SMS from my mum.


"Dad will be calling you tonight before midnight so be on stand-by! pretend you don't know and act surprised. Bye!"


my mum is HOW ubercute. :)))

it feels great to receive. but it feels so much better to give.
no doubt i love being loved; but i love loving more.


i am irritated. people who put spoilers on their blog deserve to be boxed by a punching telescope. >:(

i tried to stay awake, but i fell asleep and woke up intermittently. i like dr presnell, but mental state examination isn't exactly the most interesting subject.

so dr presnell asked the class, "without looking at the clock, how long has this tute been going on?" since everyone already saw the clock, except me, i was forced to venture a guess. so i said "uhh 1 hr 20 minutes?"

then he said, "oh well, it's pretty close i suppose! we've been bored for an hour and 10 minutes, haven't we?" and winks at me with a smile. hahaha. another reason why i like dr presnell.

*

so many people turned up in red and white! makes me so ashamed because i didn't. but i argued that red+white makes pink! fair enough right?

disarray.
it's the one and only day i get to start school late.
i could have used the time to do something productive.
but here i am, bumming my a** off.
uber meaningless.
i could go on finding excuses for myself.
and try to mask the lame-ness.
but i know i'm weak la.
if my dad knew, he would say
"you either fix it or deal with it."

happy birthday singapore!
omgosh i can't even remember how old my country is.

it's one of those days. i wake up with a bad feeling.
sometimes i don't even want to wake up. gahhhhh.



i don't know where we are going now
i don't know where we are going now
so take a look at me now

despite being completely unprepared for my first dissection class today, i had a wonderful learning experience. we learnt about the shoulder (scapula, clavicle, humerus and muscles of the rotator cuff) and had a surprisingly nice time cutting up our cadaver's shoulder. today's session allowed me to have a great hands-on experience in dissection and i learnt that cutting through all those layers of skin and fats and connective tissue is an extremely tiring job! anyways, the bottomline is, i really do love anatomy! i find it so intriguing and practical, and i suppose it's one of the reasons why i chose to do medicine. the human body is such an amazing creation indeed, and i feel so privileged to be able to explore it in great detail. plus watching medical shows like HOUSE M.D. only serves to remind me that i'm really going to love and enjoy medicine! :)))

my brother

(oops! sorry for the obscene gesture. i tried to blur it out but i guess it still shows. :/)

i have a funny relationship with my brother. he used to be my bestfriend when we were young, even though i never told him this. i used to bully him and tower over him. but over the years, things changed when he grew up, stronger and bigger (but i remained the taller one) and became the bully instead. so then i became the one who would be shoved to the wall and do his bidding. i hated his guts and attitude problem and constant swearing. he hated my obsession with academia and perfection and my indiscriminate spending. but we shared many things in common- music, fashion, books and the works. as we became more preoccupied with our separate lives, we drifted apart. the only time we got to really talk was late at night, before we closed our eyes and succumbed to sleep. i remember how hurt i was when he came to the airport late to see me off, i remember how i made him suffer 5 stitches on his forehead when we were kids. still, despite all the fights that we've had. i can safely say that there is no love lost. my brother is the one person who knows me inside out, knows about the skeletons in my closet and knows all my flaws and imperfections. i'd never really thought about how much i missed him until today. when we had a longlong talk over the phone about shiznits and general exam woes. it's weird that he sounds polite over the phone, that he did not once boast about his achievements, that he did not attempt to put me down. maybe my brother has changed. for the better i suppose! i'm really proud of my brother and i don't mean to sound like some braggart but my brother isn't just some himbo macho canoeist. he's part of this scholar program in school and knows how to appreciate books like The Alchemist. he also has a great voice and sings relatively well and is SUPER FUNNY. (ok do i already sound like a groupie? heh :]) i mean, if this gay guy in his class thinks he's cute, all the above i've said has to be true, right? :p

nothing like some sisterly love. HOR? :)


i downloaded some songs on my brother's recommendations! i love it when i have new groovy tunes to put on repeat mode. :]
wake me when september ends :: greenday
dakota :: stereophonics
feel good inc :: gorillaz
wouldn't it be nice :: beach boys
funfunfun :: beach boys
kokomo :: beach boys

things i do to occupy myself
i would do anything. anythinganythinganything except hit the books. :/

THREE NAMES YOU GO BY:
1. eleanor
2. el
3. lena

THREE SCREEN NAMES YOU HAVE HAD:
1. eleanor
2. el
3. bum

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:
1. height! :)
2. eyes
3. shoulders

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS YOU DON'T LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:
1. funny vampire teeth.. haha
2. hair (which looks like hay)
3. excess adipose tissue (ever since coming to melbourne) :(

THREE PARTS OF YOUR HERITAGE:
1. dimsum
2. chicken soup
3. beef noodles

THREE THINGS THAT SCARE YOU:
1. spiritual death
2. growing old alone and unloved
3. becoming obese

THREE OF YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS:
1. fruits
2. moisturiser
3. water

THREE THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW:
1. green tee
2. jeans
3. hair band

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE BANDS OR MUSICAL ARTISTS:
1. goo goo dolls
2. maroon5
3. david tao

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS:
1. who am i
2. here is gone
3. the hardest thing

THREE THINGS YOU WANT IN A RELATIONSHIP:
1. trust
2. love and affection
3. humour (lots of it!) :p

TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE (in no particular order):
1. i am a nerd.
2. i love reading my textbook of medical physiology.
3. i can't lie for nuts.

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS ABOUT THE PREFERRED SEX THAT APPEAL TO YOU:
1. nice eyes
2. charming smile
3. muscular defined arms

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES:
1. shopping
2. reading
3. bumming

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO REALLY BADLY RIGHT NOW:
1. cuddle my littlest brother
2. see my family
3. kiss the guy of my dreams.. haha :p

THREE CAREERS YOU'RE CONSIDERING/YOU'VE CONSIDERED:
1. paediatrician
2. foodchain entrepreuner :)
3. crime scene investigator

PLACES YOU WANT TO GO ON VACATION:
1. paris
2. rome
3. south africa

THREE KID'S NAMES YOU LIKE:
1. james
2. holly
3. alethea

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE:
1. bring people to Christ
2. climb a mountain
3. win a Nobel prize

THREE WAYS THAT YOU ARE STEREOTYPICALLY A BOY:
1. i make bad jokes.
2. i play lots of sports.
3. i think jessica alba is hot.

THREE WAYS THAT YOU ARE STEREOTYPICALLY A GIRL:
1. i read trashy novels.
2. i love shopping.
3. i cry at sad movies.

THREE MALE CELEB CRUSHES:
1. johnny depp
2. edison chen
3. takeshi kaneshiro

THREE PEOPLE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE TAKE THIS QUIZ NOW:
1. you
2. you
3. and you!

inverloch!

i'll let the pictures do the talking.

this is where we stayed. inverloch holiday park!


this is what we did. visited a dairy factory, pretended to be a paraplegic, and explored the beautiful beaches of inverloch. :)


windblown hair.


our many failed attempts to capture a jump. then finally, success!


i must say i was really impressed by what i saw in inverloch. they had really nice and new hospitals and the most amazing thing about them hospitals is that they had no resident doctor! as hannah put it, it was a humbling experience indeed, which made me realise the importance of teamwork in healthcare delivery. it got a little boring at night with no entertainment (save for telly) but i must say it was a pretty awesome experience. oh and who can forget the gazillion cows and sheep and green pastures! plus getting interviewed by 3 different local papers was also an exciting affair! :)

i am back i am back i am back!!
rural was really great (will write about it in greater detail later), but it's even greater to be home! the feeling of seeing familiar faces and buildings and cars and buses and shops. indescribable happiness. :)))
oh man. this is the freakiest thing that has happened to me ever since i came to ozzie. while getting ready to go out, i accidentally hit my head on the side of my wardrobe. it must have been quite a hard hit, because i think i staggered for awhile before i lost my balance, fell over and blacked out. i only realised what happened when i woke up all of a sudden to find myself on the floor in an awkward position. so now i have this bump on my head and i am a little dazed, but otherwise i feel fine. robin thinks i may have a blood clot but i think i am physically ok. at least the pain has eased and i'm not giddy anymore, so i guess i'll be alright.

just before i leave

will take off in a few hours time! i do so dread to leave but i know once i get over the leaving part, i'll be having a good time (i hope). 6 days isn't a long time but when you have good ol' pals to miss it will surely seem far longer than that. take care my dear friends.. i miss y'all already. :(