2011 summarized

How was year 2011 to you on a scale of 0 (downright terrible) to 10 (superbly fantastic)?

4. I gotta admit it, this year sucks. Although I am grateful for all the good things that happened this year, and I am generally *still a positive person. It just that the year 2011 had posed additional challenges to me. Good riddance~!

Monthly Highlights

January – remembered nothing significant about it. Oh yeah, Joey accepted Christ

February – celebrated Chinese New Year at the White House of Tampin

March – remembered nothing significant about it

April – Sat for MJDF Part 1 exam and flunk it…

May – Did my first ORIF. Derrick accepted Christ. Soo Ee baptism

June – flew home to surprise my mom. Tendered my resignation from civil service

July – remembered nothing significant about it

August – remembered nothing significant about it

September – Officially resigned from government service. New Zealand! Job hunting

October – Locum around. Kinda carefree lifestyle. Hope Ipoh found a new home

November – Locum around (not so much of a highlight, huh), went to Kuching for Hope Malaysian National Convention. Watched STOMP

December – Life Game 2.0, say my goodbyes, moved back to Kota Kinabalu. Job search again.

My my…. 2011 flew by.

Resolution for year 2012?

probably make sure that 2012 is a better one

Happy things in year 2011 that I am grateful for

Superbly awesome friends like Siew Leng, Jacy, Ernest, Samson, Meena. Superbly awesome family.

Most luxurious experience in 2011

To be able to visit and chill in Jeff’s Wine Cellar at The Banjaran, Tambun

Dinner at Indulgence. Can’t really overly Indulge when you have to check the tabs =) but good food, really

Other luxurious experiences includes Hot Spring and Spa at Franz Josef, New Zealand and Tambun Hot Spring

First experiences in life which happened in 2011

Tandem sky dive. Location : New Zealand. OH YEAH~!

Witnessed an autopsy. Location : Mortuary, Hospital Ipoh. Oh Eeee….

Bought and used a Groupon offer. Oh duh.

Watched a STOMP show. Location : Plenary, KLCC. Weee !

Adventurous Experiences

Sky diving at New Zealand (ok, am I beginning to repeat myself)

Gua Tempurung cave exploration with dental friends from Penang

Motor Treasure Hunt organized by MDA Northern Zone. We won second prize (without like, trying too hard)

Co pioneered an L4D2 gang with Jacy

Spent a crazeee day at Sunway Lagoon~ fun and sweet

Surprises of 2011

Memek Yin birthday celebration

A surprised pack of Famous Amos cookies, almost brought tears to my eyes. Simple as that

Best food Offer

Ate RM90 worth of Sakae Sushi for free. All points claim. Kakaka !!

This is a pretty random post. But… Here’s a toast to HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012~~ Pray that God will lead and a fruitful year to come. And happy days =) Amen

Dementor’s Kiss

Maybe the ability to adapt with moving cheese diminish with age.

I remember Slim River is a really small town with coupla rows of business, literally difficult to find food, minimal activities thus bedtime used to be around 10pm. I remember feeling quite excited when I first posted there, I would wake up to really great fresh air and felt like singing ‘Sound of Music.’ Slim River was more than 2 years ago.

Kota Kinabalu is a totally different place. Lotsa food choices, buildings and cars everywhere, activities round the clock if you want it. Today is the first day of doing nothingness, and I felt depressed already. For the umpteenth time, I asked myself ‘What did I sign up for?’ But nobody is responsible for my decisions and my life except my own. Probably this is the time of transition. Or the time of settling down. Trying to swing a momentum.

I was wondering since KK was a definite better place than Slim River, why  was I able to adapt to Slim River rather easily? Yeah, then again, Slim River offered me a steady 8 to 5 job. Having nothing to kick start any engine now, or having stalled plan is just sucking the life out of me. It is like I forgot how to be happy. Cholerics need to get their hands busy. I have a great family here, but they have their own things to do. And again, I am left with no friends.

Joy to the World (Malay)

I went for a Combined Bilingual Christmas service this morning, English + Malay. Eventho the songs we sang was in different languages, this is the day I have this heartfelt thanks and I just wanna worship the Lord.

Hai dunia bersukalah
Tuhanmu t’lah datang
Hai sambutlah Raja Surga
Alam nyanyi riang, alam nyanyi riang
Alam, alam, nyanyi riang

Hai dunia bersukalah
Rajamu nobatkan
Bukit, padang, gunung, lembah
Gemakan pujian, gemakan pujian
Gema, gemakan pujian

Dosa tak lagi berdaya
Dukapun ‘kan lenyap
Anug’rah-Nya melimpahlah
Gentarlah kuasa g’lap,
Gentarlah kuasa g’lap,
Gentar, gentarlah kuasa g’lap

Kini bertahta Almasih
Dengan sejahtera
Perintah-Nya penuh kasih
Mari sembah Dia,
Mari sembah Dia,
Mari, mari sembah Dia

And this is ‘We Wish you a Merry Christmas’ in kadazan lingo.

Kotobian da Tadau Krismas
Kotobian da Tadau Krismas
Kotobian da Tadau Krismas
Om Toun Vagu
Atatamis kou no
Doid nombo nopo
Kotobian do Tadau Krismas
Om Toun Vagu

Thank you, Jesus. and Happy Birthday =)

First locum at Kota Kinabalu

Like most firsts, this one strikes a ‘gan jeong’ note in me too. I ironed my shirt, went to bed early, prayed for God’s guidance, woke up early, etc.

Although I haven’t found a semi permanent job to start in January, I certainly didn’t expect a surprising fast locum job offer. Day #3 after I touched down KK.

I took out my notebook (shamefully called a lil revenue book) which i routinely record my locum jobs, flipped to the next empty page and wrote the date today plus the location. 23 December 2011

Then I flipped a page forward and noticed the last entry was 24 November 2011

Whaaat? My hands stopped earning money for a month flat ?!?! A month already? After 24th Nov, I went to Kuching for Hope Malaysia National Convention, then I spent about a week to settle my Ipoh house and say the goodbyes (poorly), spent few more days at Kampar for LifeGame 2.0, spent a really fruitful and enjoyable week at Penang doing the exact kind of dentistry work i love and gave up. I mean surgery of course. I tagged i-can’t-name-her-in-case-i-get-her-into-legal-trouble for on call, and I caught myself really feeling excited when I saw a deep gruesome laceration wound over the face =.=

There goes my month.

Sigh…

Well, locum at Kota Kinabalu is no different from elsewhere. Private practice IS private practice. You decided the best treatment and render them to these patients who trusted you, and you be responsible for what was done. Only here in KK, I earned twice the money for half the number of patients.

What’s my career plan? I honestly don’t know.

But I have a lil vision. Grace Dental Group. Dad gave the weirdest look, as in why I named it after mom. To me, Grace is more than just that. It gotta start with one Grace Dental Clinic somewhere sometime. I envision it to be larger than.. Tew Dental! Hahaha, look who’s talking. Someone who wasn’t working for the past one month. Laugh with me, Dream with me, Realize it with me.

Taxi driver

Never thought that I can flag a taxi driver in Tesco who is willing to send me to LCCT. I have a flight to catch and 4 baggage to tend to. I thank God I found this amusing driver, and he charges really fairly. Peter sent me to Tesco and shifted my bags into the taxi before he went off for his work duties.

‘Itu adik ka? Kenapa dia tak hantar airport? Ada kereta tapi tak mau hantar?’

‘Oh, dia kerja la. Takde masa.’

‘Aiya, isi minyak RM20 saja, boleh sampai balik airport. Yalar, lunch time 1 jam saja, nanti pergi sini sana, kena buang kerja.’

—-

‘Pergi mana?’

‘Balik Sabah.’

‘Kampung sana ka?’

‘Ya.’

‘Balik holiday ka?’

‘Balik cari kerja.’

‘Ooo… balik kampung, tanam jagung.’

—-

‘Sabah ada shopping mall besar?’

‘Ada, macam Midvalley pun ada.’

‘Tempat-tempat mahal, kalau pergi, mesti kena bawa duit. Kalau takde duit, bawa boyfriend.’

O gosh…..

Shofar

Maybe it’s age factor, I developed interest towards weird and exotic stuff. And I bought a Shofar from Hope Kuching store =)

Well, of course, it’s not just some weird and exotic stuff. Shofar has significant spiritual meaning behind it. When Hope Kuching was praying for the MNC, God gave an image of Shofar to Ps Dennis and He taught him how to blow it. So, Shofar appears in the XtraOrdinary logo, during heart preparation session, and etc.

Found online : When you buy a shofar, please remember that since the shofar comes from an actual real, live animal, there may be some particles of sinew, muscle or bone left inside the shofar which may cause certain odor…

Spiritual significance of Shofar

1. Repentance. Eg Abraham and Isaac and ram. When Abraham was willing to sacrifice Isaac, God provided a ram. The blast of a shofar is to remind us God’s forgiveness and lead us back to repentance.

2. Procession and start of war. Eg Joshua and the wall of Jericho. Joshua 6:4. Judges 3:27

3. Proclaiming God’s kingship

4. Announce important days. Eg Leviticus 23, 24, 25:9. There were ‘Day of blowing’ and ‘Memorial of blowing’, for Day of Atonement, Passover, Jubilee Year

5. Musical instrument. Eg David’s band. Ps 150:3

Another sentence found online. Well, after everybody attempted to have a blast and all sorts of weird noises came out (or to some, just wind or none at all). Being a Ba’al T’qiah (shofar sounder) is an honor…”The one who blows the shofar on Rosh Hashanah . . . should likewise be learned in the Torah and shall be God-fearing; the best man available. Then again, brothers and sisters, you are the royal priesthood, God’s chosen generation. 1 Peter 2:9

Road kill

I was doing 110 km/h on the road, and that was the speed limit.

When I saw from the left wind screen, a feathery black and dark brown, about the size of a basketball, chicken-like thingy flying and attempting to cross the road.

I didn’t have time to react. I just hoped, at the back of my head, that the chicken flew high enough to avoid colliding a mean machine with a kerb weight of 1210kg speeding at 110km/h.

Then I heard a loud sickening thud. I can’t see the chicken anywhere.

The car literally felt nothing, the only evidence was slight greasey stain top of my wind shield and the rear-view mirror got knocked askew. The impact was likened to a child vs fast moving truck.

I felt bad although I believe it’s not my fault. Had the chicken not committed suicide, it would have served the tummies of a few hungry people.

Sigh…

Resignation of a U44

The alarm rang like usual. Indicating it’s time to wake up, get ready, and get to work! But not for today. I hit snooze and continue sleeping. Or more like attempted to. Because I stirred once a while, being all too used to wake up in a routine and headed to clock in. Finally, I decided to just wake up la (bladder tak tahan liao).

8.30am. The air, the surroundings and everything is just the same. But I felt different. The first tune that came to me was Turn your eyes upon Jesus. I felt free and without responsibilities, and there was this excitement of NOT knowing what lies ahead. I haven’t plan that far and it seems to irk many people, who won’t settle for my answer ‘I dunno. I reaaaly dunno.’ And keep asking and quick to give suggestions.

Yes, this day onwards. I am no longer an official Malaysian civil servant. Putrajaya had confirmed it.

If I was just leaving Slim River, I would be so happy. But to leave Hospital Ipoh, the department of my passion was done with heavy steps and heavy hearts. Time crawls in Slim River. Time flies in OS, Hosp Ipoh. It was 1 year and 6 months.

——–

Yesterday, the clinic threw a farewell high tea party for me. Like DSA Afni said ‘Kita meraikan Dr Soo meninggalkan kita’. Food and place was fantastic. But nothing like the people… fellow officers were there, FYDOS came, specialists graced it, DSAs and Sisters came, PPK and trainee students and dear PT Vijaya also came. Friends from Paediatric department also joined us.
The funny part was Dr Rabindar and Dr Meena took me out earlier that day to choose my own gifts for me. I was surprised at the total budget, almost humbled. And I must say, these ladies did a great job in finding me gifts. I surely appreciate the gifts.

Because one day I reheat my dinner using clinic’s microwave.

Pinky is the name.

Having high-tea at Tower Regency Hotel was like having dinner for me. Their food layout and choicest was amazing and really worth the RM18/pax. Dr Yuen gave a word or two. And they made me give a farewell speech. I spoke gibberish which I dun remember now, and the clinic yet presented me with an amazing gift. A gift to keep and cherish in your heart. I understand this was a dear FYDO’s effort. With a fairy drawing on a make- shift suture box.

Every message in it was as classical and personified as the colleague and associate that I worked with, regardless how simple it was. DSA Sarlina would doodle, Dr Rabindar put her stamping chop on it, Dr Yuen told me to pass up my homework, etc etc etc, some with nicely cut borders, some included wax work. One particularly humbling piece was from a staff I blasted a few days ago, she cut a heart shape piece of paper for me and wrote there From Ibu.

I had enjoyed working in hospital Ipoh, especially in this field of Oral Surgery which I loved since 3rd year as a student. Everyday is exciting. And we are always that close to touching human’s life. I am not going to cry there and then, but this is certainly a job that I will miss in the future.

Dr Rabindar was funny. She wanted to leave already, so she stood up from 2 chairs of my left to say goodbye. I stood and have her a hug. She moved to my right hand side, sat down, grabbed a tissue and dabbed her eyes.

I returned home, with my car loaded with big items (microwave and lamp, see plus the files and books from hospital). I’m gonna love the lamp so much. I held a lot of stuff in my hand as I fumbled the keys to open the house door. One of the item I was holding was the suture box. Then it dawned on me… This is it. I can’t even believe this is real. There were tears in my eyes, which quickly disappeared when my housemate came out to help me with the door.

———

A break.
Probably a break will do me good. Sharpen the saw, they said.
I had been wondering the whole day, how is clinic? How’s Meena coping without me? How’s Menaka handling the RR1? But then I have holidays to plan too.
“I hope you enjoyed your last day as a government servant. You’re full-time God’s servant.” Said Eunice, housemate. Woah~~ So I am.
Here closed another chapter of my life. With love and sweet memories.

Raya of Meaning

It’s a working Monday. Then Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday would be public holiday. Malaysia is a great country with many holidays. As expected, the morning streets are quiet and hospital parking, for once, was so pleasant.
I am doing trauma this week. And I hope in my heart, somehow, there is no newly warded patient over the weekend. But there is. A patient whose motorbike skidded and rammed a divider. And I hope, somehow, the patient is not a malay, otherwise she had to spend her raya in the hospital. Oh, but she is. Did I mention the patient is a female?

Siti (not her real name) and her younger brother were treading the trunk road from Kulim to Kelantan. On a motorbike. Regular Malaysians. I believe all they had in mind, was the spirit of holiday and Raya, heading home for a reunion with their family. When an accident happened.

I went to the ward early morning. Siti is 22 years young, slender, with straight long hair, swollen face, abrasion and cuts on the face which were cleaned. She was lying on the bed in the green shirt, which is the same as every warded patient is wearing. Her mom, in baju kurung and tudung, slender as Siti, was seated beside Siti. Puan could be younger than my mom, but the look in her eyes added years to her face. When Puan saw us, she stood up and I looked at her and said “Selamat Pagi, puan.” Greeting is important. Do not be surprised in government settings, when the doctors go to see the patients, they will flip the charts, look at the files, check the x-rays, discuss something among themselves, document the progress or order more tests, check the patient and forget to speak to the family. Puan bravely nodded back.

I assessed Siti and I told them “If can, I’d like to discharge you today so that you can make it in time for Raya tomorrow. But first, we have to make sure that you are totally fit to go home. Is that ok?” I told them to come to my clinic for treatment the same morning.

In clinic, Siti, like all my patients, sat on my treatment chair. I looked closely, she got clear light brown eyes, which are pretty. On hindsight, I don’t think that’s contact lenses. Why would a hospital patient bother to be pretty in the ward after a disfiguring accident?

Rubini, my colleague, asked me “How bad is it? Her mom is crying on the phone…”
I replied “Not very bad, actually. She might not even need any surgery.”

I started to check and treat Siti accordingly while Puan stood in front of Siti and watch. Suddenly, tears were coming from Siti’s eyes. I lifted my hands from her face and gently patted her shoulder. I am sure my hands did not cause her pain, the pain came from the heart. I know I am nobody to say “It’s OK, it’s not that bad. Don’t worry” and all that nonsense. Perhaps it’s not right to say things when I myself do not understand the pain they are going through, it’s like adding salt to a wound. But then again, as their treating doctor, I am in the position to say something reassuring and comforting. Forget about what is right or wrong.

“It’s OK Siti. Everything will be OK.” Then I realized what actually triggered Siti to cry. She saw Puan crying in front of her. Puan began to sob uncontrollably.

It’s the eve of Raya. Her daughter is warded with an injured shoulder and disfigured face. Her son is in another hospital of another state, with broken limbs. What intended to be a joyous reunion became a tragedy. What pains a mother most is probably not the greatest physical pain she would ever have to bear, but to actually see her children hurt and in pain.

Puan’s heart broke because of Siti.
Siti’s heart broke because of Puan.
That’s family love, if you ask me.

At that moment, I myself almost cannot hold back my own tears. (almost la). I grabbed some tissue and handed them to Puan, who poured out her heartache to us. I did say something in return, trying to bring comfort, but I guess it made not much sense at that situation. A pat on the back may mean more.

I went back to treating Siti. “Siti, demi mak dan keluarga, Siti kena tabah ya…”
She nodded.

Selamat Hari Raya to all Muslims who are not able to be at home with your family.

Show Off aje

The clinic is awfully different at night. The place I go to work daily just feels so foreign at night =)
Anyways, tired sia.