Shopping spree

Yesterday was Sunday, i couldn't wake up for church, woke up at 11am. Went to Taj Manjarun for a buffet lunch with Caryn. Then we went to watch movie (One Missed Call). It's a stupid typical Japanese style ghost movie, and the ending didn't bring any sense at all. In fact, the whole movie has no meaning, except some chilling moments that make up jump from the seat. Then, we went to shop for cloths. She bought some cheap Salwa cloths, and i bought a Van Heusen white long sleeve shirt, a Van Heusen informal long pants, and 2 cheap Peter England short sleeve formals. I'm now super lack of formal shirts and pants, i always wear t-shirts to classes and posting, plus some of my tight fitting formal pants that i taylored last year is now unzippable (i'm a man with a belly now, damn). Since JPA just banked in money few days back, it's time to shop till my wallet drop. In 1 day time i spent 4000 rupees on shirts, ouch!! It's my first time stepping into Van Heusen shop, and i fell in love with it instantly. Though the shirts are all expensives, but for that kind of design and comfort, i think it's worth it.

Today, the Logitech Alto Express laptop stand that i bought online few days ago arrived. I'm happy. That day when i was surfing the net, i stumbled upon this laptop stand and thought it was good. Then after some research, i think it is essential for a laptop to have an external keyboard n mouse, plus a stand to elevate the height of the screen. Why? So that you'll have a healthier work place or gaming ground. Just imagine a laptop is so small, the screen is so low, and the user has to bend his back, his neck, and strain his eyes to look down at the small screen and the hand has to stretch up and in front to reach the super small keyboard, what a hard and bad posture, plus the user need to be in this wrong posture for long hours. All this can cause what we called working-place-syndrome such as tendonitis, arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, neck pain, back pain, dizziness, lethargy, insufficient blood circulation, eyes strains and shoulder pain. There're so many working class ppl and students nowadays suffering from all these, just that they did not realise and ignores them. However, these are not minor problem as sooner or later, the problems can become chronic and when turn older, everything comes out together and get severe. So, what we need to do now is to use our computer ergonomically by setting up an appropriate computer work station. Here, i have some very important points of using the computer in an ergonomic ways (click on the pic to enlarge).
"Let all of us work simultaneously towards a healthier working life style by using our computer ergonomically.." by Dr. Kelvin Liu

Transform

Just came back from Horse Face Hill Station, Kudremukh for a Youth Camp on 5th, 6th and 7th April. The theme of the camp is Romans 12:2 "Transform". Almost everyone from my international cell group went. At first all of us are quite reluctant to go, but due to our Pastor's constant encouragement (or i should call "pestering"?), we signed up for it.


Early morning at 5.45 am, i miraculously woke up (i'd never woke up that early in my life, plus i slept at 2 that night), and went to wait for the bus at the church. We took 2.5 hours to reach Kudremukh, and saw already many ppl are there, and about half the number from New Life Church in Bangalore. We got divided into 10 groups, took home cooked breakfast over there, then the worship and sermons sessions straight away started. On the first day, i couldn't get used to the whole thing, was damn too tired as the sessions runs continuously without break till 11pm, crazy, and basically i was sleeping through all the messages. The place that we sleep in is super lousy, only 4 walls and a super thin mattress, with a lamp and fan and limited water supply (only 8 hours water per day), plus 12 person stay in a dorm, sharing 1 and only toilet, zz. The food provided are all home cooked by the New Life church members there, we have to eat with hands and wash the dishes ourselves. The first night i cant well oso, cz the weather is too cold.


2nd day i woke up headache and nauseatic, so all sessions slept off too, zzz, until in the late afternoon of outdoor game time. There are altogether 10 stations of crazy games, and we ran, laughed, shouted, drenched, and sweat. It was real tiring but fun. That's the first time i got to know the group members in my team. Then at night sessions continued, but i was able to concentrate more already. The second night i slept more soundly and was the latest to wake up in the whole house.


On 3rd day, everyone was more "committed" and fired up as it was the last day. We had a spirit-filled long sessions where the pastor we invited prayed and laid hands and God was moving in the hall and performed many miracles and gave out lots of power and blessings. I was kinda 'scared' bout this kind of thing, ppl shouting and crying, and in the end i succumbed. In general, the camp was a big success and everyone enjoyed and being transformed and fired up for God. But all these are only the beginning, it all depends how we live in the secular world. At 6pm. we all went back to Mangalore heavy hearted. The bus is just super super packed, as half the ppl had to stand. But throughout the 3 hours journey , we were singing and shouting and having fun, and time seems to passed fast. At last, at 9.30, i reached my hostel which suddenly seems like heaven to me, with AC and nice bed, ahhh, time to have a long long sleep to compensate the tiresome mind and jaded body.


Few main things i learn from the camp:

• NO One Can Defeat Me, when the holy spirit is with me!!! Live a victorious life!!

• Set your TONGUE to the right directions, you're defeated because of the words that came out from your mouth, your tongue is like ammunition for Jesus to shoot at Satan.

• Nature of sin, Do Not make provision for temptations in the mind. Therefore CONFESS your sin to each other & PRAY for each other so that you may be HEALED. The prayer of a RIGHTEOUS ma is powerful and effective. James 5:16

• Living spiritually in the urban lanscape: Keep your cool, endure hardship, do the work of evangelist, discharge all the duties of ministry. 2 Tim 4:5

M.I.C.K.E.Y M.O.U.S.E

It'd been a long long time since i last posted. I came back to India on 25th Jan, 10 days later than the actual date the school started. It was a great time of holiday having the chance to spend time with my family members, plus Chee Kang is back too. He was back on the 21st, but this careless bro of mine stupidly dunno guided by what spirit went to the AirAsia station, and missed the domestic flight to Kuantan, so he have to come back the 2nd day by bus, swt.. At last i have someone to talk to bout tech geeks, compare our iPod, handsets, exchange games, songs, and played Pro Evo together (though i got trashed by him in all matches). At last, after a one month long holiday, i came back to Mangalore for my 3rd year of MBBS.



I bought a lot of new stuffs back to India. On the 1st day i went to school, everything on my body are brand new. I bought a new brown Nicole leather school bag, new Body Glove pencil case, new Umbro football boots, new Dr. Cardin leather shoe, new Dell XPS laptop, new Logitech gamepad, new games like Bioshock, FEAR, Half Life Orange Box, new Snails Original pants, and few shirts. This time, my luggage is only 25kg, including lots of Caryn's stuffs, cz we posted a 17kg parcel through ship and i'd put most of my dried foods and 3-in-1 drinks into the parcel, so the weight this time is lighter than expected.


I'm finally in 3rd year!! This new semester is just too too free, everyday we have only maximum 2 hours class, posting every morning as usual, and some unimportant posting in the afternoon which can choose to neglect them, hehe. But sadly, i failed my Pharmacology paper in my 2nd year finals, and have to carry over and retake it in around June. Throughout this one month of my 3rd year, i'm just too too free cz there too little classes and exams are all too far ahead. Basically, all i'd done in my room is playing lots of games (finished Bioshock, awesome game! Went for a local Dota tournament feeling that we could pawn any Indians and win the prizes but got fucked totally in 2 games, aiks). I played lots of football as well -almost every evening, as the interclass competition is coming very near. This time, my skills improved, i understand the game better, and less injury prone compare to last year. I'm gonna continue playing football though the year to make up all my free time. Besides, i played some guitar as well, cz i'm gonna perform with my friends on Dental Week interclass program. In addition, i picked up the chinese chess board which had been long abandoned, and played regularly with Cheng Yeow. Also, i started to follow some Hong Kong drama by internet streaming.

This year is the year of Mouse!! It's my year. As usual, we celebrated chinese new year over here. However, this year is quite a small-scaled and less fun compare to last year's. This time we had reunion dinner at Hao Hao. First sad thing is that there is much less people who joined us as the dental students are all having exams; secondly, the amount of food is just too less, and none of us had enough. Anyway, the most important thing of CNY is that everyone can come together and have fun. At night, Cheng Yeow and i went to friend's apartment to gamble as 2 of my friends from Manipal came over. I won around Rs600 this year, hehe. We played till 4am, and we climbed through the apartment wall and came back to hostel.

I'm 23 years old already!! My birthday was on 12th Feb. At 12am, my friends in my hostel gave me a simple surprise party, which i appreciated a lot. Thanks Caryn for organizing so much for this and bought me a cake. Luckily, there were no eggs for my head this year, hehe. Then at night, all the chinese friends celebrated with me in Pizza Hut again. 4 days later, when Caryn finished her exam, she celebrated with me alone again and gave me a treat at The Village Restaurant. Thanks. I've got 2 more shirts as my bday party from my friends (omg, my wardrobe is just so full of shirts now). But the best present i got is from Caryn. She gave me a nice leather guitar strap and a whole set of guitar string. She also bought me a Guy Laroche super cool wallet when i first reached India. She gave me 2 birthday cards as well. You're the best!! So so appreciate all that you've done :)
I'd celebrated Valentine's Day too. I treated Caryn for a special dinner at Taj Manjarun, then i gave her a Nao porcelaine of ballerina baby, a bouquet of red and white roses, and a card. She gave me a lovely card as well.

Ok, it's time to sleep. Tomorrow have to wake up at 6.30 am for football practice, as the match is on Monday. Good night.

That's What Friends Are For

I just came back from Genting and KL trip with a bunch of my old schoolmates (primary school classmate!)

On the 9th Jan, Yik Han, Alvin n me took bus to PJ to meet up at Lip Kuan's house. When we reached his house, Eng Chwan and Shi Hao are already there. Then after we packed lightly, we departed by taxi to One Utama and took Genting bus up to skyway station, then took skyway up to the city of entertainment.
Firstly, we went to the casino de Genting. We entered both Monte Carlo and Starworld. It is our first time going in because the last time we all came here was 3 years ago-when we were still too young to enter. But now, i entered straight without any block from the guard while all my friends kena everytime, haha, maybe they see my white hair n thought i'm old, or maybe i have a more matured attitude and style, hehe.. The casino is nice, and i was standing there trying to find out which type of gambling has the highest probability to win, but in the end i never even bet 1 ringgit cause to me it's simply not worth it and the money in my wallet is very very tight, i would rather spend it on something else. Except Alvin won a mini jackpot, all my other friends lost.
This time, we couldn't play any indoor games cz it's all under maintenance. At night, we all chatted, eat snacks and drank beer in the room. Next day after we checked out from First World Hotel, we went to play the outdoors games.. But half way playing, the rain started pouring down, and we are forced to stop playing and go down the hill. While goin down by skyway, the most exciting moment happened. It was raining really heavily, and there's lightning and thunder. Half way through the journey down hill, the skyway just stopped, and it feels like falling every time it stopped cz the tension of the wire is loosened. This happened many many times and all 6 of us were so scared and prayed hard, but thank God we arrived safely in the end.

We then took bus and stopped at 1U. We had KFC as dinner and then ate 龟苓膏 to reduce the heat. Then we all went to sleep at Lip Kuan's place.

Next day, we went to Jogoya at Star Hill for lunch. When i stepped into the place, i was like, OMG!! This place is just awesome!! The food, the design, the environment, it's just unbelievable. I walked around the buffet line and get lost, haha. I don't know what to eat, all things are just so expensive and high class and many of them i'd never eat before. There's fresh oyster, salmon, prawns, sushi, octopus, mussels, clams etc. There's also all kind of soups, and you can take your own choice of fresh seafood to be stir fried, deep fried, etc etc. For drinks, there're very nice thailand coconut, all kind of fresh fruit juice, teas, coffee etc etc. Deserts there are Baskin Robins, Hagen Das, all kind of fruits, cheese cakes, cookies, mochi, 龟苓膏, puding, strawberry with choc coatings.. Argh, i cant name all. We stayed there for 4 hours, and ate like mad. However, i cant stand the taste of clams, so after i ate mussels and oyster, i puked. Aiks. But at the end of the feast, my stomach is so so round and feel satisfied. Yummy. Everything we ate are well worth, or exceeded the RM78 per head. I personally drank 4 coconut, plus i actually quietly pour another 4 into my bottle, hehe.
Then we went to Pavilion for a walk. Star Hill is for high high class people to shop (minimum watch i can find there is RM10000), and Pavilion which just opened recently is for medium high class people (minimum watch cost RM1000). We cant afford to buy a single thing there, but wait, in 20 years time, i hope i'm a regular customer of this place, not to mention Star Hill first. :)
Later we went to LowYat Plaza. I bought a RM69 Logitech Dual Action gamepad for gaming, mainly for PES, and also helped Caryn to buy Samsung G600. Woot.. Later at night, we went to play Dota at SS2 and ate supper there before goin home.

The next day, me, Yik Han and Alvin came back Kuantan by bus. Eng Chwan and Shi Hao went back to their college. And so, we departed. It was kinda sad to say goodbye cz i hardly even meet them in a year, and Yik Han had been 2.5 years since he last came back fr US. However, i hope that our friendship shall last forever.

Memory Almost Full

Today is Christmas Eve, and in the noon after lunch, a courier lorry came to my door and delivered me my Dell XPS 1530!! What a christmas present.. However, it wasn't really a Christmas present as i bought it myself.

"The story goes like this.... back in India... in my room...."

I was in front of my 2.5 years old Acer TravelMate WLMi 4102 with 512 MB RAM, 64MB ATI Radeon x700 display card, 60GB HD, and Intel Centrino 1.73Ghz. I was clicking very fast on my mouse to open many programs at one time, then the whole things got jammed up and all the MEMORY are FULLY used up. As a heavy user, I open many programs at one time like iTunes, Windows Live Messenger, Windows Live Mail, Rainlendar, Yahoo widgets, Firefox with 10 tabs on, Windows Media Player, Sothink iPod converter etc. All these are essential programs for me to on almost all the time but the memory of my laptop just couldn't handle my needs, and mind you that i had not included any gaming needs yet. Then when i rest my palm on the keyboard, it was super HOT; plus when i turn off my A/C, the NOISE of the laptop can really flood the whole room. Besides, i have to constantly DELETE my files as 60GB means really nothing to me, and i find my D: is always full and C: is only few GB free. After bout 6 months having all these same frustrating experience everyday, many a times i was tempted to search for the best laptop on market through the net.

Then one day when i was surfing on Malaysia Dell website, i accidentally saw the promotion of the KL PC Fair being available on the web too. After i looked more closely, i just cant help but thank god and shout out joyfully--the promotion is just too too good and cheap. I can actually get the same laptop with RM800 cheaper! I quickly contacted my dad and begged him to lend me his credit card so that i can purchase it before the promotion ends (in 3 days time). Of course, as expected, he wouldn't allow and come out with all kind of reasonings and his business theories. But i persisted and explain to both my parents as well as i can, trying to persuade them that i will pay my dad back and sell off my old Acer. Finally, on the last day, my dad agreed and told me his credit card number. Thank you so much, dad!! So, i made the purchase last minute and mailed the company to send me the item to my house as fast as possible as i won't be in malaysia for too long.

Besides, before i came back Malaysia, i listed my Acer laptop on eBay India for 5 days to sell. At the end of the 5 days, the highest bid i got is Rs20700 (RM1700), and i had settled everything and courier it to the buyer before i leave Mangalore. It was really really good price for an old Acer laptop like mine. It is supposed to cost at most RM1000 only, hehe, i feel damn proud selling it at such high price to some Indian noob. :P

So today, after only 12 days (on 24th Dec), i received the item, which is considered super fast (the actual date was to be 4th of Jan). It was a big box containing Dell XPS 1530 specially configured by me to have the best specs i can get. The specs are as below:

• Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 2.2GHz
• 2GB DDR2-667 RAM
• NVIDIA GeForce Go 8600M GT with 256MB GDDR3
• 200GB Hard disk (7200rpm)
• Slot-loading dual-layer DVD±RW drive
• 15.4-inch WXGA (1280 x 800) CCFL glossy screen
• Ethernet, 802.11a/g/n (Intel 4965), Bluetooth option
• Integrated 2.0 megapixel webcam
• HDMI, VGA, S-Video, Firewire/1394, three USB 2.0 ports, integrated media reader (MS, SD, xD), fingerprint reader
• Media Center remote located in ExpressCard slot
• Windows Vista Home Premium
• Weight merely 2kg

I am really satisfied with the specs, and this specs can be considered as one of the best you can ever get on the laptop market today, even for the next 6 months. The box comes with many free gifts:

1. a nice black Dell laptop sleeve
2. 2 Creative in-ear earphone EP-630 (they accidentally gave me 2, woohoo, and the earphone is the same as the one i got for my iPod baby 2 months ago that cost me RM80)
3. 1 nice Dell polish cloth
4. all the system DVDs including Windows, 15month McAfee Anti Virus, Dell Media Direct, drivers (so that i wont have problem reformatting my laptop next time)
5. a nice Dell diary book pouch which can put CDs and pen and notebooks in it

It also came with one Belkin Messenger Laptop bag that i bought together with the laptop, which is super light and look very stylish.

The whole thing cost me RM4500, which is considered very cheap as the ori price is RM5300, plus if you choose a HP with same spec, it cost RM6000+, an Asus cost RM 7000, an Apple Mac Book Pro cost RM8000, and a Sony Vaio of same specs cost RM9000. Why pay more when you can get the same thing much cheaper?

The first thing i do with the new laptop is to experience the WOW of Vista, and try very hard to tweak it myself so that it runs as fast as it can, without leeching any extra resources. Then, i installed all the essential programs, and run them all at once. I am really pleased that everything runs super smooth and fast and i can multi-task without a single hesitation. The overall performance is much better than my precious laptop. I can now do other stuffs while scanning virus and burning DVD.

After that, i installed my newly bought original Half Life Orange Box (cost me only Rs 820/RM70 on eBay, damn cheap), and the game runs super smooth and the graphic is super sleek at highest configuration of everything. Then i installed Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 and set it to highest quality image, and it looks like crisp! I was so pleased with it's performance in gaming as well. These 2 games is enough to occupy my holiday.

The keyboard feel very durable and nice to type on. The temperature of the laptop is super low, i can't feel heat at all even though my palm is actually resting on the high-speed hard disk. There's not a single noise coming out from it. The touch sensitive buttons are really nice to press and the overall design is really good. It is fully black and silver, and the laptop is very thin and weight only 2kg, wow!! The remote control also works like magic, and now i can fulfill my dream of controlling everything on my bed.

I know many people hates Windows Vista, saying that it is slow and hard to use. But after tweaking it myself and using it for sometime, i think i'm getting more in love with it. The ease of using it is just superb. Everything looks easier to understand now! In addition, after one year of development by softwares and hardware manufacturers since it was launched, almost all major products are already fully compatible with Vista and the graphic performance is already at the same par with XP.

I got 2 christmas present this year. One is like this Dell XPS that i bought for myself, the other one is the lovely polo shirt that Caryn gave me. I really love this laptop, and hopefully it can serve me well without problem for at least the next 3 years.

Anyway, a Merry Christmas everyone!!

The Lion Sleeps Tonight

I went to Singapore for a 4 days 3 nights trip once i reached Malaysia. I reached my homeland on the 19th Dec, and on 20th itself i went to the Lion's den (Singa=Lion) with my parents, lil bro, grandpa n grandma and my small mischievous 9 year-old-cousin. We departed in the morning and reached Johor at 1pm. Then dad's friend came to bring us for lunch at one shopping complex. After that, we crossed the custom and entered Singapore.

The last time i came here was 5 years old, and i don't remember a thing of this small neighboring country of Malaysia . We went to find my father's sister, and i was shocked to see she's actually 20 years older than my dad, and they were born by different mother,zzz. All hail my grandfather :) My cousins are actually 20 years older than me, and i was being called "uncle 舅舅" by my cousins sons, swt.. Now my grandpa has altogether 3 wives, and now the Liu's descendants are distributed all over the world including India, England, China, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, wow..

We stayed at my aunt's house. Though i don't like that kind of typical flat's design and lifestyle of Singapore houses (as in lifts, no independent parking spaces, no private land for playing and trees) we were thankful that our my 姑姑 let us occupy the whole house to fit 7 of us and save the expensive hotel money. On that night, we went to see the beautiful Orchard Road full of super nice Christmas decorations and programs. The street was full of people and on both sides of the streets are all high class and big shopping complexes with their own unique decorations.. However, i cant do any shopping because everything need to x2.3 for any price tags i looked at plus i din bring any money back from India. The whole place is fully lit and it was really eye catching.

Then the next day we spent the whole day at Sentosa Island. We played many of the games ie Luge & Skyride, Cineblast and visited lots of attractions like Underwater World, Images of Singapore, Merlion etc. However, when we were watching our last program - Songs of The Sea, the rain started pouring and everyone ran for their life.

Then on the 3rd day, we went to China Town to meet up with my dad's second elder 'sister' of the same dad. We went around 牛车水 (China Town) to see the super typical chinese shops and chinese cultures. Then we went to Esplanade- the Singapore's theater on the bay. At night, my cousin sister's husband treated all of us to eat Penang buffet. All kinds of Penang food can be found there for you to eat all you can. We had some great time for fellowship and suddenly getting to know many "unknown relatives".

It was a tiring trip as we walked a lot and traveled by buses and MRT only, but it was nice to get to know those long lost relatives and refresh my Singapore experience again. Though i can't buy anything, it was still a very descent trip.

It's Time

It's exactly 7 days before my II MBBS University Final Exam starts.. I still have a lot to cover.. I need speed and at the same time memory.. Time is too short to cover everything.. I don't know how.. Only God knows.. May God bless me, grant me more wisdom and knowledge, take away every single distraction from me, give me the lightning speed to go through the chapters and at the same time strengthen my memory and expand my brain capacity.. 2nd years's stuffs are just too much and too hard.. I hope i can pass all and go into 3rd year and relax...

My exam finishes on 20th of Dec, and i'm going back Malaysia on the 19th, cz i think my batch will finish the practicals before the last date, and i bought an earlier ticket.. I wanna enjoy my holiday fully and not worry bout my results.. I'll be in Malaysia for 1 month plus till the 25th of Jan.. Supposed to come back on 15th, but i extended myself cz i wanna wait for my bro CK to come back from Tasmania on 21st of Jan.. We'd not met each other for 1 whole year, and i hope we'll have some quality and fun time together.. And i hope to spend time with all my long-lost friends back home.. Miss you guys..

Ok, it's time to study again.. Time is coming real fast.. Shit.. Please pray for me.. Signing off here.. Bye

Let It Rock (ver 2.0)

iPod Classic 80GB: Rs 11500

Belkin iPod Brushed Metal - Clear Acrylic Casing: Rs 900

Medical Textbooks: Rs 3000

Music experience while studying in library: PRICELESS!

I bought a black 80GB iPod Classic last week from eBay India. I bought it much cheaper than the market price (Rs. 13400). I had been dreaming for an iPod for almost half a year, but i was very unimpressed by the previous 5.5 generation one (too low battery life, less space, finger prints), so i waited and waited and waited till Steve Job announced the latest models of iPod in the beginning of Spetember. At first, I was really impressed by iPod Touch - a touch screen ipod with 3.5 inch display plus Wifi and Safari internet browser, it is basically an iPhone without the calling functions. It was so so cool cz it is exactly what i was waiting for for the past 6 months, but in the end, after much consideration, i think the iPod Touch carries too little space (16GB can't even fit my 17GB big music collection, not to say movies and photos), and it attracts finger prints like hell, which is one of the most troublesome issue u can get with such a nice and cool gadget. I opted for iPod Classic instead, which had improved quite much from its predecessor. It now has 2 times longer battery life, thinner, scratch prove front body, and all new interface. Decisions? What decisions? It is absolutely a no-brainer for me to get the iPod Classic. People might ask me why not get an iPod nano which had improved so so much with video function? My answer is very simple: "iPod nano is for women; iPod Classic is for men - a true classic never gets outdated"


Why would i want an iPod? First and the most important of all, my music collection! I am very very particular on my music collections, i don't simply add whatever music i stumbled upon or whatever so called good and popular musics or chart toppers. My music collection is 5 years old already, and through these years it went through many improvements, additions, deletions, fine tuning, tagging etc, till today's 17GB of mostly rock, christians, oldies, plus some pop, jazz, country and instrumental. Every single of my songs are tagged properly with correct song names, artists, album name, album art, and lyrics. If one fine day, my laptop broke down and all my music and pictures are irretrievable, i can really die. But with an iPod which acts as a backup of my iTunes library, i'll have no worry. Besides, since i'm now going to library almost everyday, this iPod simply become a very good companion. Whenever you're alone on a long trip, music and entertainment is always there.


That's what most people do with their iPod - listening to music. But using iPod to listen to music actually is only using 50% of the functions of iPod, never mind most of the people don't organize their music properly with album art and lyrics. I personally put my pictures, music videos, tv shows, movies, podcast, audiobook, notes and games into my iPod, to make sure my iPod is serving me to the most, value for every single paisa i pay for it. I have an iTunes account (thanx to CK), and with it i can watch Podcast for free, get nice album art, buy extra games for my iPod and download one free song every week. Without an iTunes account, your iTunes is like without a limb.

Enough for internal functions, how about externally? iPod is still very fragile, though now with a scratch prove front body, but the back shinning mirror side still get scratched super easily, as well as the 2.5" screen. To counter this, i bought a high quality transparent protector for it, both at the back and the screen, plus a Belkin super cool looking and durable casing. In addition, i also bought a Apple iPod Power Adapter from eBay as well so i can charge it any where i go, in case a computer is not available. All these accessories are not cheap at all, but my principle always tells me to get one of the best item around with the cheapest price possible. So i still saved quite a lot in the end.

Taking a super cool and slim gadget in my pocket; listening to music every where i go; watch Grey's Anatomy when i'm too free; view some Podcast of Happy Tree Friends for a disgusted laugh; listening to bible Audiobook while reading my bible, watch some nice short films by Pixar; flip through those captured memories on the photos; play some games when i feel bored; view memo or to-do-list as useful reminder; backup my important files when i need to reformat my laptop.... "An iPod in hand keep the boredom away"


Earphone
My Apple iPod Earphone juz spoil 4 days back.. I was like, what the hell, i just bought the ipod for like 2 weeks n the earphone that came with the box spoil n i dun even remember anything i did, maybe it had a slight drop, or maybe it can't sustain my volume etc.. Whatever it is, i went back home to check online and found 8 out of 10 pppl complaint bout the Apple earphone.. Many ppl might think the white earphone look damn cool n it is a real gem.. Tell u what, the truth is, the earphone they provided is something like a RM5 earphone u get in pasar malam, bad sound, spoil super easily n expensive.. Your iPod can produce much much better sound than what is emitted from the Apple earphone.. So my solution is- hunt a new earphone.. After i researched online for some time, n got to understand all the technical terms.. I found out of all the high-class earphones like Sennheiser, Shure, Etymotic, Bose, V-Moda, Logitech, Creative etc, n was shocked to see that a real good one cost RM4000, a normal good one with high performance cost RM400, n those RM 100 one can basically throw away after few months.. Swt. So i went to eBay India again and checked the most expensive earphone available there, and i am stuck with only one choice: Creatve EP-630. It cost me Rs. 820 (RM 70):It's an in-ear ear bud, noise isolating, high frequency range, nice bass sound, gold-plated jack, and ergonomic design.. I checked the review for the earphone and it has high rating, good feedback, it's the second best Creative earphone and with cheap price.. So i bought it without thinking twice and it juz arrived today.. The earphone fit right into my ear canal n it's like blasting the music straight into my brain, produce clear sound with nice bass, n i cant hear the noisy Indian traffic with the earphone on, good!! I was happy with the performance and it definitely sounds better and louder than the stupid Apple iPod earphone.. Besides, it is black in color, which suites my black iPod really well..
I just personally tested the difference between my new Creative EP-630 n Apple earphone, it was like, what the heck, the Apple's quality is not even 50% of the Creative's- so much softer, can't hear the base, n can't hear the words properly, very blur.. Then i tested another in-ear earphone that came with my Sony Ericsson W810i, the bass is loud, but the treble is soft, n the words are blur.. So, if you're really serious bout music, throw away the Apple's n get a new good earphone. And in addition, make sure ur mp3 files are at least 192bps, better to be 320 kbps, chuck the lowsy 128kbps ones, cz they really make a difference to the quality of sound..

What i use:

• iTunes 7.5 (to me it is the best program for arranging my music library, WMP sux)
• iTunes Online Store Australia (For free songs, album art and podcast, buy games)
• iTunes Companion Yahoo widget (for free album art, lyrics, album name, track listing)
• SoThink iPod Video Converter (very fast and good quality, can convert any file types to mpeg4)
  
• mininova (for searching illegal illegal musics, movies, tv shows, audiobook, music videos :P)
• uTorrent (for downloading illegal musics, movies, tv shows, audiobook, music videos)
• Airtel internet connection 512 kbps (for fast download speed)
• http://www.ilounge.com (For in depth tutorial and just anything you need to know on iPod)
• http://www.apple.com (I'm a big big fan of Apple products)

p/s: for people in Malaysia, 1 ringgit = 12 rupee, so u juz divide the prices by 12, n judge the cost youself.

Shh..i'm the pirate for Sothink Ipod Video Converter
username: SeVeN / FFF
key: 000017-AKY297-AGEQWM-TEAVBF-4AGHQA-N050Z7-ZBNP4Z-BFGFQ5-K158P5-N99QB1

For opening a free iTunes account:
http://forums.mactalk.com.au/20/45826-how-get-us-itunes-account-free.html

Yer Blues!

You asking me how was it?
I don't know, I don't know
You asking me will i get through?
I don't know, i don't know..

Beetles bite my throat, silver hammer banging on my head,
Feel so self destruct, feel like i'm hearing bell from hell

Something in the pages needed to be knew,
Memory almost full,
I'm drowned inside this sick body,
Waiting to be rescued, but nothing worked.

All my troubles seems so near,
Now it looks that they're here to stay for another month,
My speed is low, my mind is blown,
Now i'm half the man i'm used to be.
Shit........

Time goes on, life goes on,
But i'm still stuck in this disease,
Pages never flip, but times ticked me by like a clip.

Why we had to go through all these hell?
I don't know i don't know.
Why we need all these thought control?
I don't know, i don't know.

Hey, teachers, leave us kids alone!!!
We don't need no examinations, we don't need no life control,
All i wanna do is to break free,
But reality entangles me in this shit!!

Weapon of Choice

I just got a new mouse- Logitech Gaming-Grade MX 518. I got it from India Ebay for Rs 1750(RM 160), which is very reasonable for a good mouse (even though in Msia it is sold for RM130 only). It just arrived yday after 4 days of my payment through bank transfer. Many ppl might think why spend so much on a mouse when u can get one for Rm10? Well, let me explain, a good computer input like keyboard n mice are very very important!

Nowadays working place hazard is a very important issue. Diseases like Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, tendinitis, backache etc is very common in many ppl. People sit in office for hours pressing their keyboard n mice to do work, some ppl use them for hours of extreme gaming, so it's actually a very good investment as a good mice n keyboard can actually last longer than ur computer, so it's actually like "once-and-for-all".

Last week i had pain n numbness on my right wrist, and there's big swelling and my hand feel super weak to do anything. It is not the 1st time i got this kind of prob, it had happened once a while, sometimes due to wrong position when i was sleeping; overstretched my wrist in sports or too much gaming at home. I spent around RM150 on all the X-ray, blood test, MRI scan, wrist band n drugs to find out that i was suffering from tendisynovitis of right wrist(swt!!). So out of frustration, i decided to hunt for a new and good mouse. i surfed through many websites to find out how to chose a mouse and which brand is the best. So these are my conclusions:

Here are some tips on mousing:

1. the shape must be ergonomic to fit ur right/left hand comfortably
2. large enough to fit the whole palm n without flexing or extending ur palm
3. mouse should be free moving + move the mouse using ur elbow as pivot, not the wrist
4. do not compress ur wrist on the table, and do not use a wrist rest cz it only give more compression n restrict circulation
5. ur forearm should be straight when u sit n move the mouse, n the wrist should be straight too
6. it's best to be positioned around the Numpad of ur keyboard

Ref: http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/ergonomics/office/mouse/mouse_selection.html http://ergo.human.cornell.edu/cumousetips.html

After some times of research, i'd mark on a few:
Logitech VX Revolution Wireless Notebook Mouse (RM 275)
Logitech V450 Wireless Notebook Mouse (RM160)
Logitech MX518 corded gaming mouse

So now my next verdict: wired or wireless? In the end, i'm 100% gonna stick to wired, why?

• much cheaper
• no battery headache
• no interference with other wavelength
• no lagging or slowing down (which is the main criteria as a gamer)
• i do not travel along with my notebook

So in the end, i'd decided on Logitech MX518 corded gaming mouse, which i'm very pleased with

• very beautiful design
  
• very comfortable size n shape
• very smooth with it's high quality optical, even without laser technology
• with 6 customizable buttons, which i find extremely useful (i expect one day i'll be so used to the thumb buttons till cant live without them)
• can change the sensitivity on the go, which help me adjust to diff situations
• 1800dpi sensitivity
  

In the end, you might ask why i neglect Microsoft n Razer? First of all, i only trust Logitech cz Microsoft hardware is kinda disappointing. Secondly, even though Razer does produce very good gaming mouse, but MX518 is proven to be better than Razer Viper and Razer Diamondback, while other models are damn expensive. MX518 even though is not as 'high-class' as other Logitech gaming mouse like G5, G7, but it's the best of it's kind with very cheap price. Highly recommended. You can really own people with this weapon in gaming. Though nowadays i don't play game as much as last time, but it's still a good choice for everyday use.

Holiday (apparently)

Been long since i last posted, am not free (apparently) and kinda bored, so there was nothing significant to write about. We're now on "holiday", but not a free holiday, or i would say in another word- study break (swt). My 3rd sessionals exam is just 2 weeks away now. Shit, still many things to cover. I like the feeling of not going to school and stay at home studying, BUT, whenever there's too much time for me, i tend to 'waste' them. Procrastination! So basically, i'm still in deep shit in my preparation. I need to pass all subjects this time cz my previous 2 sessionals are really badly done.

Now i only have posting in th morning, Medicine posting, in the shitty government hospital again. It supposed to have started 2 days, but i'd not attended one yet, cz i overslept. My last Psychiatry posting always start at 10.30, but now it starts at 9, swt, cant wake up for both days. Tmr gonna go.

My mind already cant help thinking of the 80GB Ipod Classic i want to buy during holiday; my trip to Singapore; plus all the shoes n shirts n computer peripherals etc. I really miss home cz it'd been 10 months since i was back there. But now, what most important is my exam. I have to pass all the papers in order to enjoy my holiday. Ok ok, it's time to study again. So long..

Room For Squares

A new sem has started, n i've bought many new stuffs for my room, n oso for myself. I'm now in my 5th semester, and my university exam is on November, scheisse! Now, i have bought:
NEW:

1. 80L Videocon fridge
2. 2 foot x 5 foot specially made mirror
3. 5 new fishes-Red Zebra (my old blue fish named Stevie died after 11 months of survivor in my room, which can be considered a super good record)
4. mobile phone k810i, which i bought in Germany for only €160, n i'm lovin it!
5. Marshall 10W guitar amp, which sound so much nicer than my previous Kustom
   

These are the pictures of the 4 corners of my room, which is taken by my k810i in total darkness. Judge the quality by yourselves, to me it's the best camera phone around, hehe..





Last but not least, my new hair cut (credit to Liew) n hair color (thanx to Caryn) :-)


Many things are new, but one thing that had not changed in this sem is my subjects:

• Deadly Pathology
• Confusing Pharmacology
• Shitty Microbiology
• n Bloody Forensic Medicine

My 2nd year last 2 n half years, n i can't wait to get rid of all these nightmares, argh!!! Sessional exam is just 1 month away, n Uni exam is just 2 months away, damn!! Can't wait for 3rd year, which is so so free (if only i pass my 2nd year smoothly)
Ok, it's time to study again, which i hardly see any progress, every diseases look the same, every drugs sound the same, every microb appear the same, damn!
Maybe later Dota again with my juniors in TV room(yeah, at least some Indians who play Dota, usshh, time to bully them)

Cleanin Out My Closet

I just cleaned up my wardrobe, book rack, study table, wooden door. They are inhabited by fungus, molds!! I hate all those things, they were all around my room. Even though i clean my room every single week, but those white or greenish or black cotton like or powder-like organisms still hide somewhere at the very corner unseen, n during this stupid monsoon season, it reproduced so so much, argh!!! I had to climb and crouch every where and use detergent n then Dettol to wipe off all the disgusting microorganisms. Had to cover my mouth n nose with cloth to prevent fungal infection. Was kept on cursing Indian weather and environment while cleaning up my room. So dirty n dusty n moisty! Even after you wiped your laptop in the morning, by evening you can already see a layer of dust on the keyboard again. Shit! Look at this pictures of the white molds on top of my book rack.


I hate this monsoon weather, it rained too much, almost all the time. If it is not monsoon, it'll be hot like oven, crazy weather. Now, it is so hard to dry my cloths; so hard to wake up from sleep; n so hard to go out to the streets. I hate India even more after i came back from Europe. The road conditions is juz super super bad. Roads full of muds n water n stones n holes. Those stupid Indian contractors always 'eat' government money: they take the money themselves n use little material to make the roads, which cannot even last for 3 months. When u step outside, one car will come speeding and then drive through the puddle of mud right beside u n "Splash!", scheisse!! You are full of mud already!

Hate the dogs here as well. It is now 12am n suddenly few dogs just started to fight on the street n make scary n loud noises, shit! All the uncivilized Indian dogs, cannot compare to Europe dogs at all. I think the price to keep a dog in Europe is equivalent to feeding 100 indians already, damn!

I hate India. Even though i'd been here for 2 yrs plus, but still, i hate this country, hate the
conservatives thinking of the people (cz i was jacked by one professor for not tuck in my shirt, duh, go fuck yourself la, as if i care!) I'm pissed with many things here still. I think even after 5 years, i will still hate India. Such a dirty, uncivilized, conservative, unhealthy country, ceh! i can't stand to do my intern here, i wanna go back malaysia no matter what the course, cz i hate the local language as well..