I spoke too soon

Well it all looked so promising. I hadn't seen a cockroach in the apartment for about 2 weeks. And then last night I didn't just see one, I enocuntered two. They were two fat bastards. And they've developed a new strategy to the kamikaze attacks of the past. Now they lie on their backs completely still to trick you into believing them to be dead. Then, when you try to pick them up with some kitchen towel, they suddenly come to life, running up the towel towards you.

Luckily i've always been one step ahead and have taken to spraying any seemingly dead cockroaches I come across with the bug spray. Stupid insects.

Lightning strikes

It seems whenever it rains here (or should that be pours with rain because it doesn't rain moderately) no one dares to venture out. Being someone who likes rain I have no problem doing so which tends to result in stares from those under shelter, as if to say 'what is that crazy man doing?!'

So I was rushing back to the hospital after lunch and it was pouring with rain. Suddenly there was a flash a couple of meters away from me. I didn't initially register what it was but then, very soon after, there was a massive explosion of thunder. I've never had lightning strike so close to me before.

Paediatrics

Last week was spent shadowing in the Paediatric department. This was described by the doctor as being the P.R. department because its like he GP clinics but the doctor has to spend a lot longer with the patients (well the parents) explaining everything. The appointments were mostly for children to have vaccinations, children with asthma or throat infections and children with stomach pains (as a result of bacterial or viral infections). There was the odd different case (for example the girl with bad breath I mentioned in a previous blog entry, a child with oral thrush and a family of 5 who were all ill, 2 of whom had tonsilitis). There was also a little boy with facial paulsy that affected his left side. This meant he couldn't smile on his left side which was pretty sad.

I also got reminded of the importance of a doctor portraying confidence in his diagnosis, even if he isn't 100% sure he is right. Apparently it is quite common for parents to be in denial about their child having certain ailments (for example down syndrome and asthma, asthma being the ailment I witnessed this denial over). Therefore to convince the parents you can't indicate any uncertainty.

Another thing I did while shadowing in the Paediatric department was go on the rounds with the doctor. But theres not much to write about in regards to that.

Drawing

I know, I come all the way to Malaysia with its beautiful scenery and I draw a singer instead. But it is a Malaysian singer (Siti Nurhaliza). So heres the pic:

Groovy toddlers

Today I became that horrible sweaty person that, if you're unlucky, you get stuck next to on the train. I'd been walking so much (and as usual it was hot) so I was really sweaty. And so therefore I probably smelt a bit (although I had put on some odourless deoderant earlier in the day so maybe I didn't).

Unfortunately the train was packed (both times I used it) and again both times I had an unfortunate woman, who just so happened to be as tall as my armpit, ending up positioned staring at none other than my armpit. Neither woman made any indication of there being an unpleasant smell eminating from me but it still made for an uncomfortable situation (I mean who wants someone stuck standing under your armpit).

Anyway, moving on, I took the opportunity to go to another shopping centre that the train stops at. Christmas was well under way there. I couldn't help but smile at the crowd of toddlers grooving away to some non-descript christmas song.

On a negative note I think i've got a CD buying obsession. I've bought more cds here than I have the last year. They are cheaper and you can get Jpop cds here but still I have to stop because I don't think they do a cd shopperholics annonymous.

I have a stalker

When I was walking to the hospital the other morning who should I come across but the scary dog from 'the walk.' And it started to stalk me again.

This time though it didn't bark and was very friendly. And it wouldn't leave me alone. I felt sorry for it because it looked like a stray and it seemed to like me but I didn't want to mislead it into thinking I could look after it or anything becasue I couldn't. So I refrained from stroking it and just carried on walking.

Everytime it got pre-occupied with something along the journey (often chickens which it chased) I would speed up my walk in the hope of losing it. But 5 minutes later I would see a black object moving towards me at great speed. I was getting kind of worried that it would follow me all the way into the hospital.

Luckily near the end of the walk it got pre-occupied barking at another dog and, speeding up my walk, the dog gave up following me.

You Stink!

I was reminded today of how cruel parents can be to their children. A mother came in today with her daughter complaining of her daughters bad breath. She kept going on about how her daughter smelt (the word smelly was said in english at least 10 times) and constantly used the fanning motion by the nose (the one thats universally used to say something smells) when referring to her daughter. She also thought it necessary to go on about how embarrased she was during Hari Raya to take her daughter with her when she went to see all the family members. Poor girl, no wonder she was so shy.

The F word

Today I was being shown how the pharmaceuticals are ordered and dispensed to the different hospital departments. The person showing me this was a woman called Faiza. I was trying to help out by helping her put all the required drugs into the trolley and pushing them to where they were needed. One time after coming back from doing this Faiza was no longer in the drug store room and so I went looking for her. I went down to the office and asked. Heres how the converstion went:

Me: 'do you know where Faiza is?'
Office staff: 'Fadzila.............which Fadzilla?'
Me: 'no, Faiza, have you seen Faiza?'
Office staff: 'Oh Fatima, no shes not here.'
Me: 'Urm, no, have you seen Faiza?'
Office staff: 'Who? Oh, FAIZA! No shes not here.'
Me: 'Oh, ok, well thank you, bye.'

Cockroach newsflash!

I don't want to push my luck or tempt fate but: I NOW DECLARE THIS APPARTMENT A COCKROACH FREE ZONE!

That is to say I haven't encountered a cockroach for a week, the last one being a baby cockroach hiding under the toilet and who is no longer of this world. May it rest in peace.

Chitchats (little lizards) take heed of this blog entry. I am not happy cleaning up your poo in the morning.

Hi to you to Kitty!

I'm loving the replica brand names i've seen here. My favourites so far have been Hi! Kitty and Rocky, the alternative to Pocky.

Circumsitions - Ouch!

The title says it all. Well actually it wasn't that bad. I saw 11 circumsitions and its a pretty quick procedure. Each took on average about 14 minutes. I was able to help out by getting things such as more sterile gloves and pouring some antiseptic liquid into a sterile bowl for each circumsition. I also had to pass the doctor certain things like an instrument that is used to burn away the excess skin. I was surprised that they burnt away the skin rather than cutting it off. I'd seen the burning instrument being used in the other surgical procedures but I guess it makes sense to use it for circumsitions also.

The injection at the beginning of the procedure actually seemed to be the most painful part (that being because of where the needle was injected and that the needle was injecting an anaesthetic, meaning the rest of the procedure couldn't be felt). Most of the boys were very brave and even though clamps, scissors and the burning instrument were being used on such a precious area (the thought of anything burning or cutting me in that area makes me cringe) they lay there quite relaxed.

I say most because one boy (the last circumsition for the day) wasn't so happy about the procedure. As soon as he saw the clamp he completely lost it and was screaming, crying and kicking the doctor away. I personally felt that they couldn't really go ahead with the circumsition then unless they anaesthatised him to the extent that he wasn't awake as, with his kicking and trying to move his body away from the surgical instruments, he was going to end up hurting himself. But being muslim, it was important for the boy to have the circumsition done and thinking it through I realised, not only would it be more expensive for the parents to have him unconscious for the circumsition and they may no be able to afford it, but also it was unnecessary and wasteful for such a minor operation when you could use the local anaesthetic (as they were doing).

So he was going to have to have this circumsition done and therefore I was called on (and a nurse) to hold him down because any sudden movements would be much more painful than the operation. I can't say that was a nice experience. I felt really bad for being an accomplice to causing his fear and pain. A bit of a negative way to end my hospital time for the weekend.

Morning walk

Today I got up at 5am to go to the hospital to see 11 circumsitions. It was a strange and very pleasant walk as it was not hot but not cold and there was a nice breeze. It was also still very dark and empty. I could actually cross the highway straight away rather than waiting the usual 10 minutes for a gap to form in the cars rushing by. Here is a pic: (pic to come as I haven't got my mobile pictures transferring cable thingy with me)

Little boys and their toys

It still surprises me to see little kids riding motorbikes and i've seen it a number of times now, the latest time being today, just as I was walking back from shopping at the massive tescos which opened yesterday about 20 minutes away.

When I say i've seen these kids riding motorbikes I haven't actually seen them riding them on proper busy roads but still, riding a motorbike is dangerous for anyone let alone very young children. They tend to be riding up and down quiet roads (like the back roads I walk home on). Today the boys can't have been older than about 7 and were riding the motorbike around a large grassy area with great skill. In fact just about all of the kids i've seen riding the motorbikes have ridden very well, much better than most of the adults who ride the motorbikes on the main roads. The adults' riding poses a danger to not just themselves, but all others around them.

Big Lizard...............Not Godzilla

Today I haven't been feeling very well. Well actually I haven't felt 100% for a few days now. So I went home a bit early (had half a day). But on the way home today I saw a rather large lizard. I tried to take a picture of it with my mobile but, after I looked away for a second to get my mobile out of my pocket, the lizard had disappeared. I may have been hallucinating because I was feeling pretty crap and it was a very hot 45 minute walk that day but I don't think I was. Anyway I saw a large lizard and then went home and washed some clothes. Thats all I have to say.

Oops! I did it again!

After saying, if I could help it, I wouldn't walk back to the appartment too late, I render that comment invalid only a day later. The walk was very uneventful, so uneventful that I actually found myself disappointed.

Infiltrating my territory

Today I was shocked by the sight of another westerner in the hospital (it was a patient). How dare she trespass on my turf! However she spoke Malay. Therefore its ok as I class her as Malay and so I am still the only Westerner in the hospital who is ignorant of Malay.

Kajang

I remember slagging off Kajang a little, in that I said there was nothing there that really interested me. Well it looks like I explored the wrong part of Kajang as two friends from the hospital showed me not only that there was a train station in Kajang but theres also a shopping centre (well compared to the other ones i've seen here its small, but its a shopping centre nonetheless) and this shopping centre even has a cinema. Then theres also an internet cafe so I may be able to access the internet during the week. However from the appartment its a bit of a trek to Kajang town so I don't know how often I can do so. And I even discovered where the post office is! Oh and a massive tesco opened 20 minutes away from the appartment which means I don't have to carry the food shopping quite so far (before I was having to carry it the whole hour walk from Kajang town). So I now officially declare Kajang cool!

The Sounds of Kajang

I recommend a walk around Kajang at 11.30pm if you want to hear a very unusual orchestra. Theres the bass croaking sound of the frogs (ribbeting one after the other), the wailing of a baby, the sound of cats fighting, the crickets churping away and the solo part by someone playing some very strange instrument very badly (or its just a really horrible sounding instrument).

The Walk

By the time we'd got back to Kajang by bus it was 11.30pm. I still had a 45 minute walk back to the appartment.

So the walk wasn't the easiest to navigate as it was pitch black and I was walking along backstreets without street lamps (or any other source of light). Luckily I know the walk really well now to the extent that I can walk it on autopilot (yeah I discovered this today as, this morning, when I reached the hospital, I realised I couldn't remember the period in between setting out from the appartment and reaching the hospital). So, even with barely any light I could find my way.

There were however a couple of points along the walk where I didn't feel so comfortable. The first was when I was walking along a road that goes through a foresty area. A forest isn't the best place to walk when its pitch black. Then, the first thing you come to when out of the forest is a graveyard. Great. But actually the graveyard was nice and peaceful, truly a place of eternal rest.

As I continued along a road I enjoyed listening to the sounds of Kajang (see next blog entry), that is until I got to this long road with ditches on either side. There, as I walked along, I noticed a man crouching by the side of the road. He stared at me as I walked past. I crossed over to the other side of the road and carried on walking, looking back all the time in case he suddenly rushed to his feet and ran at me brandishing a knife (yeah I have a big imagination).

But the thing that really got my adrenaline glands secreting like mad was a dog. It was barking at me before I could even see it and, as I got nearer and could then see it, it began to growl. I walked a large circle around it, keeping my distance and trying to convince it I wasn't wanting to take its territory. But as I started to walk away it followed me.

It followed me for about 10 minutes. Thank god after a while it got distracted by some discarded food at the roadside (this happened in a residential area just by the highway so there was a street lamp, allowing me to see the food). I didn't really feel like being bitten, let alone contracting rabies (ok it wasn't foaming at the mouth but you never know seeing as it was pretty aggressive).

Overall the walk wasn't so bad but I don't plan on walking back again at midnight when its pitch black again if I can help it.

KLCC

After finishing at the hospital I went by train to KLCC (a large shopping centre in the centre of KL). It was cool to find that I could actually get to the shopping centre from Kajang, even if it does take about an hour to walk there and then the actual train journey is another 45 minutes or so.

It was strange because the train reminded me of the tube in the way it looks (although it travels above ground) and the fact that it was raining outside made it seem even more so like I was in England. However it was freezing on the train, which ruined the affect as everyone knows the London tube is always boiling hot.

I didn't spend that long in KLCC as, by the time I got there, it was quite late. While I was in central KL I decided to see this market on this street which I can't remember the name of. So I walked out the back of KLCC and into this park behind the shopping centre. It was dark and raining but in these conditions KL really shone. It was really beautiful. Here are some pics I took with my mobile:


I took a bus to the market which consisted of stalls where people sold all sorts of fake merchandise. It was completely packed and full of annoying sellers shouting at you to buy their stuff. I managed to barter with one stall owner...........well actually I did it with a few and when they wouldn't lower the price far enough I would say 'fine, i'll go to another stall then!' Then i'd walk away to the sound of them shouting 'no, wait, i'll sell it for 5 ringits! Wait!' but by then they were too late and I would stay true to my word and go to another stall. What a power trip (actually I felt quite cruel but I did get a good quality VCD of a new movie for less than a pound!) I went back to Kajang by bus. The bus had a really old fashioned interior. It was cool, I felt like I was on a bus in the 1950s or something. After the bus journey came the walk.......................

Blood, blood and more blood!

The titles a little misleading. What i'm about to mention isn't as exciting as the title suggests. I briefly went into the little hospital lab (it really is little, its mainly used to do full blood counts and the more serious tests are sent to a much larger lab not too far from the hospital). While I was there I got to find out my blood type by doing a prick test and then I was taught how to operate a machine that calculates the full blood count from a blood sample. I'd been helping get blood samples in the treatment room for weeks, mainly to test for dengue fever, so it was cool to actually try the next stage and carry out a full blood count myself. However Josh I can say that the whole learning how to use a haemocytometer in biology did not come in handy.

Oh and random fact of the day, the lab also has a centrifuge.

The Day After the Open House

The day after the open house, even after getting to sleep in till 10.30am, I still felt tired. As a result I kept doing silly things. I asked my Auntie Tee whether I should put all the remaining dirty dishes in the washing machine rather than washing them up myself. Not surprisingly I was told no, but I would be welcome to put them in the dish washer. Then, when taking some laksa sauce to put on the noodles, I managed to splatter it everywhere. There were more things but, I think due to my tiredness, I can't remember.

The Open House

My Auntie Tee and Uncle Peter held an open house and so I tried to help out as much as I could by doing a few chores around the house. One of the more interesting chores was floating and arranging flower heads in a pot filled with water. Heres my attempt:


Oh and heres a picture of the massive bucket of rice cooked for the open house:


I enjoyed the open house, which went on till after midnight. By the time we started the cleaning and washing up it was after 1am. I had been been trying to help out during the open house by washing up the semingly endless supply of dirty dishes and so by its end I was shattered (though luckily the dishes weren't and to make sure they stayed un-shattered I only washed up a bit more before going to bed).

Rarrrrrrrrrrrr!

When I walk through the town of Kajang I can't help but get pavement rage (road rage but for pedestrians). They hardly seem to have pavements even though Kajang is packed with pedestrians. Also cars just speed past and theres no traffic lights to cross at. Crossing the road becomes a dangerous pursuit and takes forever.

Luckily my pavement rage doesn't manifest in violence, just in me swearing profusely in my head at all the cars that speed past and piss me off.