Lovely lovely film. Mathew Goode as Charles Ryder is amazing and you could really feel his pain and numbness. I had no idea Andrew Davies was screenwriter. I love his works with Jane Austen adaptations. The music for the film, performed by the BBC philharmonic orchestra is also beautiful. I love it. Listen to Sebastian below.

After watching this, I’m really looking forward to read the novel. I am sure the novel would be infinitely better (its always the case). Only in books can one peak into the minds of the characters.
I tried reading the novel before but it wasn’t an easy read. Perhaps now with a rough idea of what to expect. I’ll be able to better understand their perspectives.

Matthew Goode, Ben Whishaw, Haley Atwell, Emma Thompson, Michael Gambon

Being 21 was all good and exciting. I’m not sure about 22. It just so happens that this is the year where pretty much everyone turns 21 so we’re looking at crazy parties every weekend (not really) and speeches (both embarrassing and not). There were 3 going on simultaneously yesterday which one would be insane to navigate through. But it was all fun and good. As I was listening to Mel’s parents giving a speech to all of us (they ALWAYS say they’ll keep it short but parents can go on forever when it comes to their kids right?), it struck me suddenly that I did not remember having my mom giving a speech on mine (ie. divulging all my past embarrassing moments to all and sundry, how difficult I was, how I turned out great in the end (to her credit), and how happy she is to now wash her hands of me). Something to that effect anyway. Granted, it would be the longest 10 minutes one will have to endure but it seems to be the accepted custom here. I’ve never been to many (any???) proper 21st before this so I couldn’t really judge.

*****
Different note: I couldn’t help noticing during my weekly hospital clinics that there seem to be no asians / indians etc patients at the wards. It was all filled with Caucasians. So where do the rest go???

and I really can’t stand how Australia always stress that they are one of the developed countries when they have such high prevalence rates of diseases that are commonly seen in developing countries. I do not think adding ‘except in aboriginal communities’ warrants as an acceptable excuse. It just like them to do things their way. With all the demographic studies and epidemiology studies conducted, you’ll find ‘Australians’ in one category showing very little disease prevalence and then, you see beside the graph, this tall bar skyrocketing up , labeled ‘Indigenous groups’. O_O So then everyone goes off happily announcing that they are on par with the developed countries that have successfully eradicated some particular disease and sadly, for those unfortunate developing countries (who of course have sub-standard health care), they still have to struggle with these infectious diseases that are so easily preventable in the first place. Hello? What happened to ‘We are all australians, this land belongs to all of us bla bla bla??’. That’s a blind spot if there ever was one. Seriously, if one were to put these 2 groups in together, it would give them some serious health issues to reconsider. Oh, and to hear these people talk about migrants and how to treat these patients!!! How they have traveled overseas and brought light to these people…. All those condescending, patronising talks. As if foreigners were incapable of normal mental processing. Give me patience.

*****
Rant over. I was just getting it out of my system. We’re going over a few cases with similar problems right now hence all these venting. I’ve been sitting on this for a few days now and so it all came pouring out just now and I’m pretty sure it didn’t come out well. Not as good as if I were to spend time restructuring my whole argument but no matter. I’m not wanting to say too much in case I get kicked out of the country or something. =P (overly drastic I think) I shall leave them to their problems and deal with mine first.

New word. What do you reckon that means? I am learning something in anthropology after all =).

I’m reading again… back to the classics. Lovely descriptions of the countryside, afternoon tea, morning walks and cousinly affections. The law never changes.
It would be nice to be able to sit down with a mug of hot chocolate and just dissolve into a good story. (dissolve???)

Frankenstein was something good to contemplate about.

the weather will oblige. Soon.

Nothing of consequence of course.

I was walking down the slope towards the Rotunda and the sun was just setting, making the whole scene in front of me burn orange and yellow. Jazz music wafted over, people dressed to the nines milling about, champagne flute in hand, laughing, conversing, dancing to the tunes. Welcome to Jazz Night. =) Twilight comes and goes and we dance under the moonlight.

I’m not entirely sure how this blogging thing started but I do remember starting a blog back when I was in Form 3 (le sigh, a moment for the good ol’ days). It was initially a platform for me to practise my html and webdesign skills. It was my ultimate hoby. The blogging part was just an aside, a space for me to fill. I remember coming back from school and writing about the stuff that happened in school, what I will be doing next etc. I posted pictures but was soon irritated by the troublesome need of transfering the pics from the camera to the computer and then uploading them (still am actually).

Blogger was the only tool available then for those who were just starting out. It was free (most importantly) but users had to put up with bland layouts that were non-customisable, limited formating and almost none of the cool widgets that one can find with any blogging tool now.

I moved on to B2 by cafelog after finding some kind soul over the internet who was willing to host me for free (bless her). I now had a more free reign with my layout and CSS was the new thing to use. I have no idea how much it has evolved now but I’m pretty sure whatever I’ve learned from last time is now close to obsolete. =P

I confess I wasn’t a religious blogger. My blogging habits were erratic and therefore I’ve lost touch with most of my readers. I endeavoured to blog about a wider variety of subjects in order to be able to blog more frequently. However, it didn’t really work out. Researching a subject takes time and I quickly realised that I do not want to commit to that. I am after all just a small time blogger. I am not aiming for readership. What I am doing is just plain writing. Even if it is just a short paragraph. At least I am leaving a mark of sorts (albeit a digital and very uncertain one) that allows me to look back and reminiscent, reflect and remember. Looking at the dates in my archive, this blog is now close to 3 - 4 years old. I may not be regular, but I am certainly persevering on.

That being so, I am rather missing the feel of having a solid book that I can hold in my hands. A proper sturdy, bound notebook that I can scribble in with coloured pens, or doodle whenever my mind wanders. I want to have freedom when I jot down my musings, not let myself be confined to just lines of words in a page. What about some random post - its? Or the stub of a ticket from some extra memorable play? How shall these be ‘pasted’ onto my blog? Would a detailed description of a flower be better than one I am able to press and keep between the leaves of my book?

Maybe it is time that I revisit the joy of proper memory keeping. Pen shall fly across pages instead while my fingers dance across the keyboard no more. I ask for a respite.

Boat racing. The major attraction of the night. Like seriously. The 6th years were trying to intimidate the 1st years with all the hoods and fire. Imagine this with the lights off. I had flash.

It’s that time of the year again, when the first year med students get their ‘initiation’ into the med school, observing and finding out for themselves these long standing traditions that define the medical students and sometimes make them a laughing stock of the uni (scratch the last bit).

Med camp 09 - The Big Top is held at Dzintari Camp this year, near victor harbour and as usual, the senior all make their own way up to the camp on the 2nd night to join in the festivities and party. =P This year, like the last, was freezing cold so I came prepared with sleeping bag and jacket. =) The DJ however was Not Good this year. Such a let down, the dance floor wasn’t even full and people were leaving the hall for the cold winds instead. The bar closed early as well and everyone just ended up hanging out in the fields.

I’m still recovering from last night. I had a relatively alcohol free night, only had fruit juice and I think the other was punch. Haha… that was before we congregated at Shaad’s car and he opened his trunk to reveal his prizes. -_-” I tried the Bacardi 151 with coke. Tasted so bad, I didn’t even finish it in the end. I just googled the Bacardi and found out that that thing is 75.5% alcohol. -_-” I think this explains the numb feeling of my brain right now. Or maybe it was the lack of sleep. I dunno. But if I knew what Bacardi 151 was before yesterday, I definitely wouldn’t want to touch that. I can’t believe these guys were drinking it straight from the bottle!!! That thing is so flammable it even has its own flame arrester installed.

believe it or not, this was the only pic I’ve taken of me. =P I just couldn’t be bothered taking my camera out.

This is Romain - after he got high on beer and whatever Shaad gave him. He decided to climb a tree and refused to come down after that.

I still have so many assignments to do before Tuesday’s clinical….

It is fun when one meets a lecturer who is truly passionate about their field of study. They start to prance about the hall around their lectern with wild gesticulations punctuated with hearty laughs and all.

Anthropology lecture today. I am still trying to adjust to non-science lectures which are so different from science lectures!!! I was just sitting there listening to all these stories about the lecturer’s fieldwork experiences and people around me were scribbling furiously in their notepads!!! Whereas there is me who have no inkling whatsoever which bits are important and which are for entertainment. They must have somehow managed to listen to his ramblings, distill the information (hidden of of course) within and note them down all at the same time. =P I am starting to fill so out of place. >.<

ON a completely random note, I need a doctor’s bag. Someone get me one!!! Please!!!

*Anthropology: the study of cultures (this is meant in a broad context so anything from shepherding practices in Scotland to Asian driving habits and Balinese cock fighting etc by observing and participating in these activities. It kept popping into my head during the lecture that I am, in a way, doing my own study. I am learning about normal uni life by experiencing first hand the lectures and tutorial practises of these people. And believe you me, I’m about as comfortable as a duck in a cow field right now.

The things bloggers are willing to go through in order to get interesting stuff to post on our blogs…. O_O I, for example, signed up for a Short Story Writing elective this year and today I got my first taste of the lecture and the tutorial. I wasn’t expecting lots of things believe you me. I thought it will be a casual rock up to the lecture thing today but no… I walked in to a full lecture theater. Brimming with students and I found myself reduced to sitting on the steps for the duration of the lecture. -_-” The lecturer launched head on into what SS was about and dragged up a number of Russian, French, English names which I profess sound about as familiar to me as Greek. O_O I could mentally picture myself breaking out into a cold sweat (in reality, the hall was getting too warm). All I recognised were Edgar Alan Poe and Guy de Maupassant and these were only a vague ‘yeah, I think I’ve read something of theirs before’. I was literally a science student being plucked out of her comfort zone and dumped unceremoniously into an arts lecture because nothing made sense to me at all!! Haha… I now understand why some people cannot stand us talking about our coursework outside of classes. It is NOT a nice situation to be in. My apologies. Maybe I should start backpedaling a little and figure out what have i got myself into before I go into shock. Should I really go on with this course? A nice change of scenery it is but they have a reading list that includes at least 2 SS a week. I basically just signed myself up to 2 of the most bookish course in the uni - Med and SS. Shows what a bright person I am. Mr Bean wouldn’t make such a blunder.

And then I realised that I have a tute immediately after the lecture. Woo wee…. Great timetable planning there. I decided that I have to see this through and so I made my way to the tute room situated in a totally unknown region to me. PArt of the reason why I was adamant in picking an elective outside my faculty was to actually get the opportunity to move around the uni a little. My past 2 years have basically revolved around the med school and the dissecting lab. =P So anyway, the tute did not reach your nightmare threshold level and at the start I was filled to the brim with apprehension but it slowly trickled away as the tutor started talking and giving us ideas and feedback on how to write SS. She was enthusiastic but quite open to whatever opinions we had and I was really glad that I didn’t have to face some fanatical person with a rigid no-joke ‘you must follow the textbook’ writing style. I begin to see the effects of too much TV as I was mentally stereotyping my tutor before meeting her. You know, the tutor who is so absorbed in their own works that they find it criminal we should be taking other courses seriously at all. I confess I was a little disappointed with the students though. I was really hoping to see gathered around me a bunch of artsy people with quirky clothes and personalities. I mean. Aren’t arts students more free and easy ‘we shall worry later’ kind of people?? Instead, there were 2 computer science students, a law student and some others I tuned out after that. No weird and wild hairdo, piercings etc. =( I believe I’ve seen way more colourful characters in Medschool and in my year alone. Seriously!! Can’t let other people outshine you on what is supposed to be your forte!!! Closest thing was a guy who had his hair dyed black like an emo but he wasn’t deck out in the full emo gear. Maybe today wasn’t the day. =P Another was a mature aged student who looked like he just walked in from a construction site. O_O Boots, and tattoos and beard and tan and all… But he was the most enthusiastic student of all and really had quite a good flair for writing. =)

We did lots of writing during the 2 hours. Spontaneous writing that included everything from the person beside you to what do you think you can taste in the room (ahh… drew a blank there). When we had to describe using our sense of smell… I suddenly smelt tobacco. O_O in a tute room???? Next to me, the guy was rolling his own cigarette. Ahh…. maybe they ARE arts students after all. =P

* No I’m not implying that arts students smoke. Just that you know, there is some spirit after all.

** Whoever made the remark that medicine students have a lot of reading to do better do a double take. Arts students probably read twice as much (they just don’t need to remember all of it). I also signed up for Anthropology and we have 5 hour reading materials every week. O_O