69. A DISTURBING NUMBER

Due to the lack of updates, people have been asking.. "Do you still blog?". I do! This semester has been sucking the living soul outta me. And it's true when I say that I'm busy, even if I've said it a hundred times; I don't cry wolf! But I have to say, hardwork pays off! You get what you deserve, and of course, don't get what you don't. There's no easy way out!

Finals are coming up in less than a month's time. Yes, my fingers are motioning closer to the panic button. Thank goodness the assessments aren't 100% exam based; I'm pretty much screwed if they were. But still, examinations are never meant to be taken lightly! Ahh, but of course, it is what awaits us after the exams that we're all looking forward to.. Summer break! My flight ticket's finally firmed, and I shall be returning to hot and humid Malaysia on December 1! Yes how I miss the consistent temperatures from home. Soon, soon...

OJA's parents-in-law were in Perth last week, and invited Jin and I for dinner at the Burswood Entertainment Complex. It's something like Genting, minus the family themepark. Yea yea, you get it, casino business' turf. Anyhoos, we entered this room with elegant interior, 5 casino tables, 2 dining tables, and tasteful furnishing . Holy, it's like what we see in movies; Exclusive gambling room where high rollers wage their bets the numbers just ring in your ears. Jin gave me a nudge and I looked over to see his head shaking, eyes widened, and jaws hanging. Geezers, it just amazes me how casinos operate. They provide full facilities in there to avoid the players from having to leave! The dinner was nice (Chinese!), but I think it was better the last time I dined there with them. We also had some wagyu beef, and in my opinion, I don't see what's there to boast about. 300 dollars for a piece of beef no bigger than my palm, it's a rip-off! OK I have big hands, but still.. And the thing is, I didn't even like it! Blehh, overrated Japanese cows!

At the moment I'm trying to shape up before I return home, so I'm doing my very best to eat right and work out those bigger muscles. Tofu has been my latest bestie! It's my major source of protein, seeing that I've been reducing on meat lately. Not fish though; I'll never not eat fish! Meow.. Nah don't worry, I won't turn vegetarian! I love meat too much; just not for the time being. I still eat fish, eggs, and dairy products anyway. Last week, I put some mixed raw nuts and sunflower and pumpkin seeds into a container and brought it to class. My friends laughed saying that I brought bird-food, but all ended up stealing bits from me and eventually finished it! Huhhh....

Talking about fish, I made my own sashimi again yesterday! I felt Japanese, so I was a little gung-ho for dinner; Miso soup, chawan mushi, and green tea! My first time making chawan mushi! It didn't have the usual chicken, shrimp, and mushroom filling though. But it turned out nice, just with egg and broth! So nice, I made it again for breakfast today! LOL~ I think that most japanese food is (relatively) healthy. Tempura's a different story. But yeah, I remember reading a website which promoted the advantages of eating raw foods. Hence why the raw nuts in my food container. I'm turning into a health freak again! That's coz I know that I'll just pig out the entire 2 months when I'm at home! Home; here i comeeeee! Soon, soon...

Was sitting in the living room watching Futurama the other day, and hell it was SO SAD, I almost cried! If you laugh to Futurama's antics, are a dog lover, and want to emo over a 20 minute program, then look for the episode 'Jurassic Bark' of Futurama! I know, the title is a little dodgy, but it got nominated for an Emmy Award! Anyway, I'm gonna make a synopsis.. To share the sadness. Hahahah..

***Futurama: Jurassic Bark Spoiler***

Okay, I'm gonna make an assumption that you at least know what's Futurama about. So it starts off with Fry, in the year 3000, going to a museum exhibiting a pizza place, which turns out to be the exact pizzeria he worked at (as a delivery boy) before he got frozen. He finds his dog, Seymour, fossilised on display in the museum and tries to steal it but gets kicked out by security. He protests to get the dog fossil and after 3 days, the museum gives it to him. The professor said he is able to clone Seymour and Fry becomes ecstatic. His best friend is coming back to life, making Bender jealous. Throughout the episode, there are numerous flashbacks, like when Fry met Seymour, the times they spent together, and how Seymour went around looking for Fry after he went missing. During the cloning process, Bender gets so upset about losing Fry as his best friend that he threw the fossil of Seymour into a pit of lava. Fry is mighty upset and hates Bender. Professor said that the fossil is made of dolomite, so it is not instantly destroyed by the lava. Bender feels bad, claims that he's 40% dolomite and dives in to rescue the fossil, successfully. When genetic material is extracted, the cloning machine indicates that the dog died at the age of 15 years (the common life-span of a dog). Fry is shocked and says that he only had the dog for 3 years, meaning that the dog lived on even after Fry went missing. He destroys the cloning machine, then tells everyone that he'll never forget Seymour, but his dog has forgotten him a long long time ago. Then the last scene, a flashback: Seymour is sitting outside the pizzeria waiting for Fry (Fry asked him to wait for him there until he returned). A sad song plays: I Will Wait Forever by Connie Francis. Seasons keep changing, Seymour keeps waiting and gets older. He then lies down, rests his head on its paw, and close its eyes......

*****End of Spoiler*****

Wooh.. Isn't the ending just friggin' sad? They made a mighty good choice selecting that song to accompany the final scene! It hit me right in the heart and formed a lump in my throat! Dogs.. They truly are man's best friend....

Yes, so I've talked about food and dogs.. So to even things out, I just HAVE to talk about my vet dissection lab! Hahah.. Last lab session, we were given a cow's limb. Mimi and I shared a specimen, and she accidentally cut herself with the scalpel while trying to fit the blade into the handle. OMG ouchies.. Yes, scalpel blades fresh out of the sterile foil is Super-Sharp! An effortless drag of the blade across our fragile skin will send blood oozing out in a neat line. And so.. our first task was to skin the specimen. It isn't as hard as it sound, but I felt like a butcher. In fact, the lab itself smelled like an abattoir. After skinning the limb, we had to look for the 3 tendons, and.. remove it. At this point, people started cutting into the veins, squirting blood all over as they did. Elaine, who was beside me, moved the limb in such a way that it somehow squirted blood over her lab-coat. Wicked.. Anyway, we just made whole lot of observations with a hands-on experience on dissection. We finished, cleaned-up, and as we were leaving the lab, we had to walk through the preparation lab, which always has this blue opaque curtain drawn from one end to the other, shielding away 'bout three quarters of the room. Hey, you can't blame a group of first-year science students to be curious, right? Right! And so.. We took a deep breath, gathered our strength, and opened the curtain! Faces started to twist and we all got rather grossed out as we stood there, staring in disbelief at this..

Picture complimentary of Elaine.

Ugh.. I don't know where did they get it from. Probably from the nearby vet clinic. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt that it died of some kind of disease and they want to run an autopsy on it. Poor thing...

Anyway, just 3 more weeks of classes, another week of study break, and the finals are here! The worst of assignments and reports are over. What's left is a management case analysis group presentation, and a group case analysis report which is like 30 pages long; both are due on the last week of the semester. Group and teamwork are fun, but only if you find the right people to be in your team. Yes, there's a difference between 'groups' and 'teams'. It bites you in the @$ when you do all the work and your team members just leach off your marks. Finding the right team members isn't an easy task at all, and that's why I prefer to work alone.. Of course, I do admit that management's a nice change for me, someone who has always worked alone; as one of the keys to good management is to be able to work in teams or groups. There is no "I" in 'TEAM'..

But there's an I in VIN! Muahahahhahaa..