China Memories

Its been three weeks since we got back from China, but I still got a HIGH from the experience! It was very successful, we had lots of fun. Athough Chinese food in China is so disappointing. But that's a minor glitch I have to live with. Otherwise, the whole experience is really great. Read on...


WE WON 2 SILVERS and 3 GOLD DIPLOMAS!! We weren't hoping to get a silver medal in 2 categories at all. We were good...well, er...I suppose...well, I guess were good. We were happy with our performances in the qualifying and olympic round. But of course, it wasn't PERFECT-perfect, you know. We had an occasional flat note here and there. But we were hoping that the fast tempo of the piece "I Cannot Dance, O Lord" by Kernis was enough to stun the judges. Silver is good. If we got a gold one, I think the jury is deaf. If we were the champion in that category, I say that they are all retarded. Mentally and audally. So, silver is good.



WE MET OTHER CHOIRS. Most notable are the Kamer Choir from Latvia, Bartok Male Choir from Hungary and the choir from the Medical University of Gdansk. The latter sang us Venikhi in the fastest way possible. I was wowed. Tongue action extreme. Well, we met other pinoy choirs and it was a nice feeling to wave the Philippine Flag with them during the awarding ceremonies. No Filipino choir went unnoticed. Everyone won a medal and diploma.


LOST IN TRANSLATION moment. Exploring the island was great. Gulangyu island is like a big Amazing Race trail. I usually get off on my own. I like that. Exploring places by myself and talking to people who doesn't understand a thing from what I am saying. I feel like Scarlett Johansen. Really.

SHOPPING. Bought cheap speakers for my iPod, some souvenirs and of course, clothes. They have great discounts! Too bad we had only a day for shopping. And the Chinese think I'm handsome! Wow. I could be a movie star in the place, wallow myself in millions of yen so I can buy cheap electronics and tads of clothes. Salespersons often tell me: "You are very handsome." Instant answer: "Thank you! Can you give me discount?" Well, it might be some marketing ploy....but I can be wrong. Maybe Chinese people are honest.

Shopping high. Singing high. Traveling high. Sounds like a Rexona commercial. Lousy writing for a lousy day. I hope everyone is doing well!

Back into the Blogosphere

Hmmm...nice to smell that air again. Well, kids, the monster is back!! It's been two months since I dumped blogging in my list of hobbies. But since some people are asking me to update Monster's Ink, I decided to make this entry today. Yeah, I exist to please.

In a few hours, I'll be leaving for China. Our choral group, The UP MedChoir will be competing against other choirs from different countries in the Mixed Chamber and Musica Sacra categories. They hooked me up again for this one because they are in need of basses. I agreed to do it cause it will be a nice opportunity for travel and I want to experience how it feels like to take part in an international choral competition. That's why I am having this sort of adrenaline rush right now and I need a vent to unleash this energy.

In all intents and purposes, guys, I hope we'll win. And we have a big chance. The Euroeans love Philippine Choirs (we sing with our hearts) and we brought along tough pieces that I'm sure will wow the audience. Don't worry, I'll spill in the next few days.

I'm gonna miss a lot of people when I leave. But hell, its just one week. I'll try to make some serious shopping and intense bargaining to conceal the loneliness. Haha. What an excuse! Well, I trained my credit card to sit still, roll over and not to bark on the merchandise. Hopefully, it will remain to be obedient. Mantra for the week: Credit cards are like dogs, they should be on a tight leash. (THAT is PURELY mine. I made that up myself. Copyright protected. Pendong. Kalas. No erase.)

UPDATES in MY LIFE (that doesn't really matter to anyone):
1. Backlog books: 30. I'm getting tired of reading Coehlo. 11 Minutes was nice but the rest of his books are so-so. Millie just gave me Blink by Malcolm Gladwell, so, that makes it 31.

2. Songs in iPod: 4465. I just added Bituing Walang Ningning. Original version. Sharon Cuneta and the 80s-inspired-twangy orchestration. I was surprised it was in the net. Now I can slap anyone and scream "Copycat!".

3. Most recent movie: Superman. I just saw High School Musical on DVD. I swear, the lead actor is gay. He knows how to sing, dance, play basketball, act...pretty much everything. Well, that is gay.

Go MedChoir!!

Leaving Unattached

Galera was such a hell hole last weekend. Busloads of tourists flocked to the white beach for the long weekend.

We arrived at the Batangas City pier at around 8:30 am. That was our reward following a successful elbow match with fellow passengers in the Kamuning bus terminal. But no! The next available boat was at 11am. So, we have to stay in the terminal for two hours. Phew! We end up staring at our beat up feet and throwing jokes while sipping lukewarm coke. Well, it ended up well, since we have to wait for Rupert until the very LAST second. I already gave up on him: it was almost boarding time but he's still a kilometer away caught in traffic. Then, I almost made my first step on the wooden plank when he called me up and joyfully declared "We're here". Some things never change. Rupert never made it early, I swear. I skipped the sermon that day; its his birthday after all and that is the reason why we were going to Galera. So Rupert and June joined us: Richard, Chuck, Momon, Jofer and me. The Fellowship was complete.

Finding a place was pure anguish as well. We ended up in an Undone Concrete house which is pretty cozy in the rural sense. Before that, we were offered Rickety Shanty and Mug-Me Please No-Lock House. I immediately said no. Undone Concrete House is better...my baby will be safe from lurking bandits. Undone Concrete House is the typical house I always see in the province: linoleum floors, poor paint job but very airy and spacious. Thank God it has running water. Despite its imperfections, we liked it. Undone Concrete House rules!! We settled in at 4pm. I'm glad that we had a good lunch before we go a-house hunting. Everyone's spirits and tempers were still in check.

We went at around 7pm to have dinner. What followed, of course, is our usual galera agenda: two rounds of Mindoro sling (the signature drink of the beach), dancing on the floor, drink some more, rest on the beach with or without puking, laying on the sand. At 2 am we called it a successful night out. I was drunk. And happy.

The next day we had a nice, long brunch. We went out of the Undone Concrete House at around 10am and stayed at Lenly's for several house while we wait for our banca. We transferred to another bar when the waitresses started giving us an evil eye. We already ordered everything that interests us in the menu (the Rossti was marvelous!) but we kept our table because we don't want to get fried by the afternoon sun. I got a henna tattoo on my right deltoid while Momon got one on his hand. It was my first time to get one. I had a patient who had a severe hypersensitivity to henna which really got inflamed when I saw her. I have skin asthma so, I was trying to avoid henna for the longest time. Well, I got it anyway and I'm still smiling right now. Astig, man.
We got home at 12mn. The boat John Clea was 2 hours delayed! If he were alive that night, he could have choked on his dinner. Our curses traveled with the waves and to his stinking neck.

Best thing I got when I got back from galera is this shot and finally, attached.

My new baby

SWEET. I just got a new iPod last month. Thanks to my good friend who just came back from the states. I got the newest one, the one pictured on the left, the G5 iPod -- ultimo gwapito!! He's such a baby. Can't live without him.

I need scourging: I told myself not to sell my soul to Bill Gates and to the rest of the iPod devotees, but here I am, sporting white earphones with sand on my feet. (Yes, I'm still in Boracay). I was pretty happy with my boo (my Creative Zen XT), but it had a major hard disk problem (and fried all my USB ports in the process) and I had to send it to the states for repairs. It got well and was discharged after, with a $25 hospital bill, but my friend sent it via regular mail to the Philippines. FYI, that's no-no in the realm of postal service. So far, my friend mailed it last December and up to this date, I still think it lies between customs limbo and hands of its second hand owner. Shiiit, man. I used to ADORE that brick of metal .

After three days of agony, I finally succumbed in getting an iPod. After nights of thinking it would mean endless spending on add-ons, accessories and the oh-so-fantabulous Altec Lansing speakers that I have been drooling for the longest time. At the end, I still chose an iPod over the newest one from Creative. I dunno if its the dumbest idea ever.

At first it was an utter disappointment: the LCD is eating up the battery (only 4 hours usage with the LCD on), I can't play videos (m still figuring how this thing can play Cross Country and Arabesque) and I can't bookmark my KAPLAN lecture mp3s. Dang. But then, I tried to bring it down to the essential: play my music. As long as it can store 30 CDs of Broadway and 27 CDs of choral albums, I am happy. I recently found out that setting the LCD timer to 2 seconds extends the battery life. Now, I am content with it.

The Zen was a great jukebox, I can say. I remember having it in a wine and cheese party with the oldies in New York. I jacked it up in the TV, set my playlist to groove tunes and in two snaps away, we were drunk, singing I Want It That Way in our most grandiose bravado.

I am looking forward to those moments with this one. Hopefully, I can soon adjust to its shortcomings and nurture a long and lasting relationship with it.

Same goes to my REAL baby, which is entirely a different story.

Blogghoppin'

I was blog hopping today. Just to pass the time and to take my mind off more important things. I was looking at other doctor's blogs. Most of them has interesting things to say about their patients/cases/rounds. But I find it uninteresting at all. Well, I think there's more to write in this world than my professional life. Ha! I don't have a professional life in the first place. I'm back to being a bum again and in career limbo. Just great. Seems to you, my dear reader, that this man has major issues in life. You are definitely RIGHT.

Well, there are some blogs which questions LOVE and other intangible nouns that I don't feel like discussing in my own blog. I do want to sound very Milan Kundera-ish and just want this to be a straight-forward, bullshit-free write-up.

Going through a fellow MD's blog led me to another MD blog. I stalked him through friendster and saw that he had been travelling in Europe, learned 3 languages and wants to serve the barrios before going to WHO...thats simply great. Sorry, I don't want to be caught stalking so I'm not posting the link to his friendster page here. But from the looks of it, we both share the same passion on things: travelling and serving the community. Hmm...I wish I could know him. I admire people who has guts and unwary of their future. It turned up great for him. I wish I could do the same.

It's Been A While Since My Last Post 2

In line with upcoming sequels of movies, I decided to name this entry such. Kudos to Pirates of the Carribean 2, Final Destination 3, X-men 3 and yes, Spiderman 3 which will be due on 2007.

Bora duty was great. I had a lot of interesting cases. Census: we had 3 TIAs (is it a fad nowadays?-how come everybody is getting a minor stroke?), a difficult (read: stubborn) patient who underwent fasciotomy and later on flown to Angeles for a 2nd debridement, and we had a dose of interesting cases as well: one case of Henoch-Schonlein purpura and a case of hydatidiform mole. Don't ask me "What the hell is that?". I bet there's a Google or Yahoo search bar on your browser. Copy, hit enter and read away. (Sorry I'm too lazy to discuss anything.)

I'm undergoing a major career venture as this moment. Yes, I'm doing the scramble. It will be another half hour before I get really fired up for this process. I have to contact programs in the states and ask if they have available slots. If they like me and my credentials...hopefully, they will hire me. Obviously, its not an easy job. I was up until 5am yesterday. Hoping that someone will respond to my applications...so far, nada. Nevertheless, I'm not really discouraged....it's actually exciting. Well, it doesn't matter for me if I get a program or not. Well, it would be really NICE to get into one and doubly nice if I get into pediatrics. But, I know where I stand. I'm like a bystander trying to walk into the red carpet on an Oscar night...

But who knows? Its worth the try. Even if it means grabbing the producers of Crash by the hair for running off with the Best Picture Oscar. I abhor that moment. (I bet you get the picture)

Still, I have several career options up my sleeve. It's a matter of choosing the best to fit my lifestyle,...well, yes, my lifestyle and...er, I guess that's it. I was prepared to shun my party lifestyle and work like Hercules and his Seven Labors in the States, and now that fate isn't on my side, better yet to do what I want to do. I guess that's fair.

It isn't exactly PARTY lifestyle. That means sex, drugs and alcohol. No, I never do drugs.

Wish me all the friggin' luck, if you may.

It's been a while since my last post

After a vacation in Boracay, I immersed myself with work this month. Duty-off-duty-off-duty-duty-off had been the tempo of my weeks and its corresponding variations. I was blessed with a lot of opportunities this month and I didn't hesitate to grab it. But I need to work more. Oh, by the way...

KUNG HEI FAT CHOI!

I met a Chinese friend two weeks back and he's giving me feng shui advice ever since. If you give feng shui advice two years ago, I could've shrugged my shoulders in your face and walk off. But, after being devoid of luck during the past year, I am open to anything right now--any advice that would make my life and my career a step better than what it is today.

So I followed most of his advice. I changed my sheets, pillow covers yesterday. I bought new set of pantulog clothes: sandos, boxers--the works. He also gave me a flowerhorn fish which is supposedly lucky. (Which reminds me, I have to clean the aquarium and transfer the goldfishes to another tank). Then, I had Annie, my co-duty last thursday, cut a short lock of hair from the back--which also meant getting rid of my bad luck in the past year. Honestly, I was getting obsessed with the whole thing. Here's more...

I was born in the Year of the Snake. So far, what they say about snake people is that they are short tempered, sly and moody. They are also deep thinkers and intellectual. Pretty much true. It's a good year for snake people and that's what's really important. So, rejoice fellow serpents! May Slytherin be with us.
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Did you watch the Australian Open finals?? Gosh, it was so AMAZING! The match between Federer and Baghdatis is one heck of a game! Baghdatis came literally from nowhere (well, he's from Cyprus), but he can sure kick ass!! Too bad I missed the last half. I had to go to church. I was hoping I could catch a replay tonight on Star World. No luck. Catch it if you can...I tell you the first two sets are the best. Read my friend's write-up about it here.

That's his picture right there. This was taken when he beat Roddick in the semi finals. Can you believe the guy is just TWENTY years old? And he has too much hair in that 6'0 frame. Not one of his best pictures, either. Looks like he wants a banana....

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Honestly, I am not entirely in the writing mood during the past two weeks. I was hoping I could submit a few articles for a writing job but I had to put it to a rest. All the stress from being a doctor is killing the artist in me. Ha ha. Too much drama in that statement. As I was saying, It has been an intense month. Fortunately, I'll be off to Boracay for a set of duties next week. I'll be back on the 13th. For now, sayonara.

Happy New Year

I hate resolutions. Those are meant to be broken. Well, just for the heck of it, here are my resolutions for 2006:

1. Try to stay "healthy". Well, that means I'll be going back to the gym again. I went to Bora with friends right? I hated my pictures. Kadiri. I was super payat. I haven't been eating much kasi and I was avoiding rice the whole time. I think I should increase my caloric intake.

2. Spend less time in front of the computer. Well, the reason for this one is connected to my "stay healthy" slogan for this year. Spend less time sitting down and use my free time to be active again.

3. Save up. I never learned how to save my money. I am not a big spender on anything but I do eat a lot, thats where all my money goes down. Not to mention the beauty products, spa treatments and other recreational items I purchase because I feel "stressed". But wait, it IS a stressful job after all!! It's just the anti-stress-or doesn't come free NOR cheap. Hmmm...it's never too late to learn a new skill. I will do that.

4. Quit smoking. That wretched habit. When I took a survey amongst my friends about the single most redundant resolution they have promised, sweared to for years but never did make it was to quit cold turkey. Hard to kick, I agree. But some of my friends did it. Well, there's just ONE friend that I can think of who quit cold turkey from 2 packs a day to zero. ZEEROW. He's a lawyer and I guess he has the same dose of stress as I do. I will TRY to do the same.

Drop me a line to support me in my anti-smoke campaign for myself. You will be my inspiration. Just click on comments right there on your right and fire away.

Post christmas in Bora

Bora was a blast!! I was star struck all the time. Models everywhere. We pigged out in every meal we had and we drank till morning. Actually, everyone was surprised that I went to Bora again. My friend S told me, "Considering how many time you've been there this year, why dont you consider moving there?" WHY NOT? What a great thought. But, what will I do there? I can't practice there. Nah. No can do. Sayang, I coud've gone there while studying for my MLEs. Haay.

Went to Bora with my high school barkada. Annie was hilarious the whole time. Michelle finally had the guts to wear a bikini and wowed us by standing on her toes after drinking 15 shots. Deng got cranky than ever. Reia enjoyed boy watching the whole time. Rus, meanwhile, got a date and got lucky two nights in a row.

I, on the other hand, had the best time in Mandala Spa . It was relaxing and rejuvinating at the same time. Now, I feel I have the energy to work again and to do stuff head on. On the contrary, I wasn't lucky during the three nights. Not that I was looking for it, all kaplastikan aside, but it's a nice christmas bonus. I met a pair of straight guys in the boat and I was hanging out with them the whole time. I had a great conversation with some new Austrian friends. I got to play frisbee pa in the sand with my New Found Friends. Anyway, the NFF are not a couple....C went to Bora to meet his girlfriend, while he tagged M along. Both were interesting, I must say and I had fun tagging along too.

Reia gave me a pair of Rip Curl slippers for Xmas and I LOVE it to pieces!! Woohoo!! So far, best gift I had this season. Thanks Reia!! Love you to bits.