Tales of Interest

I'm welling up with pride

2006-08-28T07:25:00.000+01:00

Kakiseni.com's review of Broken Bridges, co written by Ky-Gan. They seem to like it. I bet he dreamt of this when he was sleeping during Math's tuition.

Nice work! I can't wait to see it.

I love my Treo

2006-08-27T21:05:00.000+01:00

My new Treo 650 arrived on Friday night. I was playing with it all weekend when I was supposed to be working. So far, so good. I had to hard reset it last night after installing some dodgy third party software, but all my data was safe (thank God for frequent hotsyncing). I quite like the OEM software and interface too. I've used my dad's Windows Moblie HP iPAQ before and gave up after a few months. It's now with my sister.

Why Palm OS is better than Windows Mobile: (keep in mind the Treo 650 was released in 2004 and I haven't been able to patch the software to the latest version yet)

#1. It's fast. Although it doesn't multitask this is a blessing in disguise: Since every program you use closes after you open a new one, you don't have to go to the memory page and shut down each application one by one, like you do periodically in Windows Mobile whenever you're low on memory.

#2. The QWERTY keyboard. I've hardly used the stylus over the past few days. I hate styli in general because they are skinny fiddly little things. Also I don't fancy myself as a screen tapping maniac.

#3. The interface. This is pretty much an extension of reason #3. 90% of what you would do can be accomplished within 3 keystrokes. With Windows OS, where you have to tap the screen frantically with the stylus. With the Palm, everything is faster and more effecient.

#4. It's a phone FIRST, and then it's an above-average PDA. Ok it had lag issues when I tried to play a simple 640x480 MPEG-1 file that was 20 seconds long. I don't need a mobile media player in my pocket. It's not that practical and I'm not going to watch episodes of Lost on the bus at 10pm at night with kids in hooded tops and Burberry caps looking over my shoulder.

I also like my new SD card/USB pendrive. Did I mention I got my first paycheck on Friday?

Bored? Malaysian? Read this. It was shamelessly ripped from Moses' blog:
Ah Lek was asked to make a sentence using 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10..Not only did he do it 1 to 10, he did it again from 10 back to 1. This is what he came up with…..
1 day I go 2 climb a 3 outside a house to peep. But the couple saw me, so I panic and 4 down. The
man rushed out and wanted to 5 with me. I ran until I fell 6 and threw up. So I go into 7-eleven
and grabbed some 8 to throw at him. Then I took a 9 and try to stab at him. 10 goodness he run away. 10 I put the 9 back and pay for the 8 and left 7-eleven. Next day I called my boss and told him I was 6. He said 5, tomorrow also no need to come back 4 work. He also asked me to go climb a 3 and jump down. I don’t understand. I am so nice 2 him but I don’t know what he 1..

2.35 am: Oh sweet silence, thou art perfection.

2006-08-20T02:41:00.000+01:00

I'm going to bed.

Someone hand me a sword

2006-08-20T02:24:00.000+01:00

It's 2 am. I have to be up at church at 8.20 tomorrow. My neighbours have been keeping me up for the last few hours with loud music. I sleep pretty well with the music on, and I turn on my stereo to help me sleep. However, I simply cannot fall asleep when only a ceiling and a thick pillow separate my ears from two billion watts of cheesy hip hop and overplayed indie music. So. I rang the police.

They redirected me to Environmental Health, which only opens during office hours. Also, they advised me to keep a record of when those Neanderthals keep me up and to involve other neighbours. Right. A quick blast on OpenOffice later, I've printed out letters to drum up some support from my neighbours. I've also included a guarded warning/appeal just in case the offender reads my 1-page publication. Hopefully he/she (women know how to use stereos too) will read my letter and decide to shut the hell up. For good.

The pen is mightier than the sword, they say. What I need is a sword. I have the sudden urge to shove it up someone's nether regions.

Ban on names

2006-07-31T02:21:00.000+01:00

I may be really late on picking this up, but I just picked this up on one of my RSS feeds.

Quote from BBC News from 'Malaysia outlaws unsuitable names':
"Now names like the Hokkien Chinese Ah Chwar, meaning snake, and Khiow Khoo, meaning hunchback, are being ruled out.
So too are Cantonese monikers Chow Tow, meaning smelly head, and Sor Chai, meaning insane.
Members of Malaysia's Tamil community will be discouraged from using the likes of Karrupusamy (black god), and Malays from trying names like Woti, meaning sexual intercourse."
Full article here.

Finally. I don't agree with everything our beloved government does but this is definitely a step in the right direction. What kind of lousy parent names their child Sor Chai? Anyone who went to school around the same time as I did knows how badly we teased each other. Our own names were dissected and twisted in the most ridiculous ways until around Form One, when everyone ran out of ideas and started using each other's parents' names. If anything I think it's a lot worse now. Well done to whoever thought about this ban.

Word of the day: Woti. It's been a while since I had a BM lesson.

Goodbye student life sob

2006-07-31T01:48:00.001+01:00

So I'm starting work officially this week. I've got all of today to pack before I leave for Blackburn to start work as a FY1 doctor (yes, that's the official job title). I'm still going to be based around Manchester, it's just that I will be spending most of my week in Blackburn.

I'm going to miss student life. However I am looking forward to starting my job, scary as it may be (I've forgotten almost everything I've studied since my exams in May). It's going to be a (nice?) change and should be quite exciting.

Five albums that I've have been listening to a lot:
Live in Paris by Diana Krall
Head Hunters by Herbie Hancock
Aja and Gaucho by Steely Dan
Audio rip from Live in New Orleans DVD by Norah Jones
(I still like heavy rock music, really)

I better get some sleep. My biological clock is completely screwed up after 6 weeks of inactivity and I don't want to start work with a sleep deficit.

How to sing the blues

2006-02-20T05:58:00.000Z

I found this funny, especially the last one. Ware the annoying popups.

Postseason blues

2006-02-18T16:36:00.000Z

So I just got back from a wedding dinner/reception. Spent a long time waiting around for the tea ceremony to begin, but being the first time I've been involved at a tea ceremony at a wedding it was worth it. Also getting to catch up with people was nice, not to mention the money I got for serving tea for a couple of seconds.

Now for some good news: I got a job with a District General Hospital in Blackburn. I'm going to be there for the next two years beginning mid-August, with the small condition that I pass my finals. (Arrgh!) The more I study, the more I realise I need to know and it sometimes scares me that I'm going to be let loose on patients in a few months time. Anyway it's two weeks and a bit before I get back to Manchester so I'm going to enjoy being in Malaysia as much as I can in the midst of stressing about my finals.

I need a new band to fall in love with. It's been too long and I'm getting bored of my music. I still occasionally discover tidbits like Stevie Ray playing some killer slide in the 1982 Montreux performance (which I just heard while typing this), but I need to expand my list of influences. Post some suggestions if you have any. (if anyone reads this apart from Jeanette, that is..)

It's late and church starts at the ungodly (no pun intended) hour of 10am. Sure makes me miss those 11.30am services at Ivy...

2006

2006-01-01T13:40:00.000Z

Happy New Year everyone!

Reorganised my links section and added a more sites to the list.

I'll be in KL for 2 months doing my elective placement. To begin with I really didn't want to end up doing my elective here in Malaysia, but right now I'm looking forward to it. I'm dreading the big city traffic that comes with KL, though. With my lousy sense of direction I'm going to be spending loads of time on the road. Thank God for in-car radios.

I've been eating so much over the past two weeks. By the time I get back to Manchester in March I'll probably be clinically obese. When it comes to food 'cheap is good', but 'cheap AND good' is, well, irresistable. (especially if you're Chinese)

Until I find something worth blogging about...

Another video

2005-12-16T00:09:00.000Z

'Two videos in one day!' I hear you say?.. Yes, I've finally managed to upload this 80mb beast so I hope you like it. Thanks to Jeanette for almost capturing the full song. I really like this one. If Dan let's me know the title I'll post it.

Video

2005-12-15T20:55:00.000Z

I've uploaded one of the videos from the charity event on 12/12/05 and here it is in all its glory. The song is called Promise and it's one of our happier tunes. Apologies for the poor picture quality.

Yet Another Update

2005-12-13T20:17:00.000Z

Played at Jabez Clegg last night for a charity event. I found out only just before the gig that our band's called February Remaining. All the songs we played together were written by singer/songwriter extrodinaire Dan Stirling. It went quite well although we were playing mostly to 15 or so friends and a few other random people. Dan did two songs on his own and I believe one of them was a comedy version of a Nirvana song. Check out the website. (all musical influences are Dan's.. he seems to enjoy referring to himself as 'we')

Thanks to everyone who came to support us, especially to Grace and Jeanette for the videos and to Sam and Dawn for yelling over the music. Thanks also to Dan, Ben, and Steve; it was fun playing with you guys.

Only a few more days before I breathe in the wonderful humid, polluted air of Kuala Lumpur. I can't wait!

Massive post II: The return of the typos

2005-12-09T09:26:00.000Z

Time for a breather between patients. I've been watching this reality programme on TV. I'm not normally sold with them but this one's different. It's called Space Cadets and it's basically a big practical joke on 12 unsuspecting applicants who think they're going to be space tourists. On last night's show they were flown to what they think is a military base in Russia. In reality they were flown from an airport near London, out to the North Sea and round in circles for 4 hours before landing less than a few hundred miles from where they started. They were then put in a Russian helicopter with no windows and flown to a decomissioned army base near Ipswich, where they were greeted by 'Russian soldiers' played by actors. Their 'space flight' will be in a simulator and they've been convinced that they won't experience zero Gs.

This show makes me laugh so much. All this effort and time and money put into a huge practical joke and hopefully a great payoff at the end. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

Massive post

2005-12-09T08:02:00.000Z

Well it's about time.. I haven't posted for ages. Before I've realised it, it's 1 week before I go home for Christmas and there's so much to look forward to. I'm getting in the mood and for those of you who haven't, you're late and here's something to help you along the way. The first link is the best Jingle Bells remix I've ever heard, and the second one's a Christmas lights display that's gotta be seen to be believed.

I'm going to be doing my elective placement in Malaysia duing Jan-Feb 2006. The university thought it wasn't safe for me to go to Aceh so I had to make last minute changes to my plans. I'm looking forward to it, though. The prospect of spending 2 months close to home, family and friends is very appealing, not to mention the food. Man I'm going to be so fat in March.

Dan Stirling is playing at Jabez Clegg on Monday 12th December for a charity event. I'm playing guitar for him and it's been pretty good fun practicing the stuff he's written. If you're free on Monday night pop by to support us. Tickets are 3 quid at the door.

Oops I've gotta be leaving in a few minutes. Time flies.. I'll do a bit more posting later today in between patients.

Week Off: Day 1

2005-10-17T12:08:00.000+01:00

I got the man flu.. weird coz I got the flu jab last Monday. Oh well...

Two games of football on tonight; it'll be the first games I've watched this season so I'm looking forward to it.

Gotta work on my CV. Stupid man flu...

Week off

2005-10-12T11:41:00.000+01:00

I get next week off!

Cure for boredom

2005-10-08T13:44:00.000+01:00

Not really but here's some videos to help.. It's on a couple of guys who do street stunts. I think they've appeared in some ads recently.

check out www.3run.co.uk for more.

Update

2005-10-07T23:21:00.000+01:00

Thought I'd post a short update since it's been quiet here for a while.

I'm finishing up my placement in Bolton next week and doing my next placement... in Bolton again but it's a GP placement so hopefully it'll be a lot less busy. Went to the Ivy Cottage weekend away last weekend (for those who don't know that's the church I go to here). Met this awesome guitarist who busks for a living and even got a guitar lesson from him. I'm a little bit more inspired to practice now.

The Packers are 0-4 this season even with Farve throwing pretty well. That explains why I haven't posted anything about football since the season started. I'm going to cry myself to sleep again tonight. Hope the Saints let us win this week coz we really need it.

Oh yeah Daniel has got a blog.. check it out coz it's fascinating reading.. :P (come on post something) danielting.blogspot.com

Until my next post...

Things that happened this summer..

2005-08-17T11:03:00.000+01:00

1. Went for a family holiday and visited some cool places
2. Realised that most people I know have started working already
3. Dodged falling coconuts
4. Spent some quality time with some quality people
5. Realised that my cousin is a better bassist that I am a guitarist *kicks self for not practicing enough*
6. Visited Gua Tempurung for the 1st time
7. And last but not least found out some pretty big news... i'm bursting with it but you'll have to wait :)

Sorry to hear that Joshua's bike got stolen..
Anyway I'm leaving on Friday for my fifth and final year at university. Please keep me in your prayers. One more year before I have to face the real world...

Ipoh rocks.

Back in Malaysia

2005-08-05T10:30:00.000+01:00

Just got back yesterday and I'll be in KL for a few days. I'm hoping to meet up with all you people in KL within the next few days so expect a call from me soon.

I've missed playing the guitar after 10 days and it's weird coz some days I don't even play it when it's right next to me. I'm off to spend some quality time messing with my E-bow.. (thx again Sam et al). I'll type a long(er) post sometime soon.

For Joshua

2005-07-23T06:32:00.000+01:00

This post is dedicated to Joshua who spends his hours checking my blog to see if there's a new post...

I'm leaving Manchester today for a 10-day family holiday. "Where?" I hear you say. Watch this space like your life depended on it.

I'll be back in Malaysia on the 5th of August; a very special day indeed. "Why?" I hear you say. *slap*

Hapland

2005-05-27T00:36:00.000+01:00

Check this out.

http://www.foon.co.uk/farcade/hapland2/

Merdeka

2005-05-16T23:00:00.000+01:00

Oh yes, I haven't forgotten that cheesy reference used every time an exam was over in ACS.

I just had my final exam of the year. Now I'm free to 1) post meaningful thoughts on this page, 2) play more guitar, 3) finish up watching every single episode and commentary of Futurama, 4) rot in front of my computer. Note that none of the above involves work of any sort.

For those of you interested in what's going on with me here's a tiny update. I'm currently doing a research project, which hopefully will get published in an international publication and help me tremendously with my CV (which doesn't have much on it at the moment). So apart from going through a pile of patients' notes and typing 10,000 words I am quite excited about the last bit of this academic year. Hopefully I'll finish the project way ahead of time and then I'll have some time off. After this stretch it's a week's holiday with my family and I'm back in Ipoh so that my grandma can comment on how much weight I've lost.

Here's to the next 10 weeks.

Stand Up

2005-05-11T11:55:00.000+01:00

Dave Matthews' Band new album Stand Up was released on May 10th. You can listen to the whole album on VH1.com. I don't know if I'll be buying the album. Most of the tracks are completely different from what I love about DMB. Check out Busted Stuff or Before These Crowded Streets instead if you want to listen to a good DMB album. I have to say that Stand Up has a pretty cool looking cover though...

version 2.0

2005-05-11T11:43:00.000+01:00

Welcome to Julian's blog v2.0

May there be many more meaningful posts like this one.