A Quick Snap

Tame and Lovely...



Just wanna share this interesting picture! This rapid snapshot taken on my way back to hostel after therapy class. I was in a public bus, sitting alone at the back and felt kinda sleepy until I saw these herds of goats! I quickly took out my handphone and managed to take a shot before the bus left far.. luckily the snap is still ok =)
Actually, it is not too difficult to see herds of ruminants such as cattles and sheeps in this town, but rarely you can find them around the town area.

Well, let's count how many of them... 13 in total ^^ (Don't count the one on standing, he is the owner =P) Small herd but I was attracted by their colours, especially the only brown ones. Look at them, how tame and lovely are they! They're not only be 'friendly' to human and vehicles, but also they seem to know how cross the road, without instruction from their owner! Look left and right, then go... well, maybe these goats somehow learn something from human world in their daily routes =)

I've just discovered this! look at this white goat standing in the middle of the herd... do you see something? lol! look down... shitting?? hehe, I'm not so sure tho =P

Any idea how old are these goats? Here are some datas of their life span:
-- For Does (adult female) = 11-12 years average age, but... usually the death in does is kidding related. Does that are "retired" from breeding period around age 10 live longer... up to 16-18 years. But some can live up to 24 years.

-- Wethers (castrated ram) = 11-16 years average age

-- Bucks (adult males) = 8-10 average age - bucks usually live shorter lives than does and wethers due to the stresses of going into rut each year.


Kinda short life span if compared with human, but from the view of life expectancy ratio between male and female, it's the same that female always live longer than male.
Highest life expectancy (age) recorded in human is 76:83 (male:female), which is from Japanese nation as well as in Australia, while the lowest average expectancy lifespan found in Zambia, which is only 36:36 (omg, this is shocking! average 36 years..just imagine if we were born here...) In industrialized countries like Russia, it is relatively low in men:women, which is 57:70.

Just my sharing =D Have a nice day~

Bad Moon Rising

2Moons... Big Patch effective on 31 March 2008!




Ya, this is the latest update of 2Moons, the game which I've been playing for few months since last year. 'Bad Moon Rising' (BMR) is the patch we're waiting since last year december, and it finally comes true after few delays!
This is the biggest patch ever in 2Moons. The patch includes many updates and new changes. Here's the latest release news from Game Master in the forum:


___From The Historian

We have a lot to cover..
To all the new people and those of you strting fresh, you will find a number of changes to helpyou get started in game. Not only have the low level quests been reworked, the Maze of Newbies has been modified and you will find a new creature, the Akris, that will really help you get going.

Additionally there are now little bonuses when you meet milestone levels.
First start downloading!
Lvl 10
Megenta Candy

Lvl 20
Super Magic Health Potion – Mini Pack
Red Lollipop


Lvl 30
Fortress Map [rabble]
Cyan Candy

Lvl 40
Super Noble Health Potion – Mini Pack
Blue Lollipop

Lvl 50
Fortress Map [fear]
Portal Scroll 10

Lvl 60:
Super Divine Health Potion – Mini Pack
Experienced Battle 3
Red Heart
Blue Heart

So what else is new? Well the Cash Shop got a few new things:

Mounts just got better. It used to be a 28% boots to your speed but now it is 32% and of course there is a new mount.
The old cash shop mounts can now be upgraded, so go see the stable master in-game!
Don't fret if you don't want to purchase a mount from the cash shop you can always get one in-game with dil. Unless you want the new mount... for that you will have to collect some feathers, though none of these have as good of a speed boost as the cash shop mounts.

So we know it is a pain to stoop down and pick up all the goodies that the mobs drop.. and maybe you are really just after divine items. Well with teh help of a little pet you never have to worry about it again.

First you purchase an egg, once cracked the pet will stick with you for a month. Once the month is complete it will go back in to its shell to recover some strength. Man can those pets sleep! You will have to purchase a bell to wake them out of their shells, but the bells are a lot cheaper than the initial egg.

We have 2 new maps for you..

First up the Aquirai Ruins. For those of you near level 131 prepare yourselves for a harsh map.

Here is a a peek of the layout, you will have to get there and explore for yourself.

Your greatest challenge will be the Immortal. He only spawns once every 24 hours and should prove to be a trial for the greatest of our warriors. Don't think that he will be your only challenge though there are many new creatures to get through before you see him.

The Space of Pilgrimage.
You will need to work with the Incar knights to help build the Tower of Hope by donating supplies. Once it is open you will need to move through the Aquirai Ruins.

There're New Weapons and Armors too!

The skills are coming too.. look around at the major MMO sites.. you might find details out there.. soon... very soon.


Finally.. there are significant changes coming to the server side to help with the issues we've been seeing in game. Along with these changes will be a zero tolerance policy for Hackers and Bottters. If you are caught, you will be banned with no chance of ever getting the account back. You've been warned.

___ Approved by The Historian

Ha! What a big info from GM! I like all particularly the last sentences which claimed to have 0 tolerance policy for hackers and botters. I think this is the main hope for me and many other real legit players out there, to whether continue or leave the game. Hackers and botters are now most serious problems in this game. But unlike certain MMORPG I played before, Admin here cares much about what players say. I hope there's no more hackers along with implementation of this Big Patch!

well, I think most of the 2Moons fan have gotten this latest release right? Downloading link is available now in the forum. Check it out =)

Have fun!

I'm Sick...

I'm not feeling well these few days. Started from 2 days ago, I've this feeling that I gonna sick soon. Mild sore-throat and coughing are always 2 main symptoms before I fall sick. I hate sore-throat, it is so irritating that causes you not only hard to speak, but also difficult to eat and drink. I still remember that kind of burning, excruciating pain in the throat. I know this from past experience, and therefore without any hesitation I took 4 tablets of Vit.C supplement that day. As predicted, these symptoms alleviated next morning, and totally subsided on that day itself.

Thought that it was over, but when I wake up yesterday morning, other few symptoms came. I've suffered from nasal obstruction, sneezing and slightly dizziness. I didn't really care of it as I was rushing for psychiatry class. In the class, watery nasal secretion making me hard to pay full attention. Just right after case-history section with patient, my eyes felt so irritated when I looked at the sunlight reflected through the window. I couldn't control tears from running down, omg...I felt so uncomfortable with these lacrimation and epiphora. [Photophobia]

The symptoms worsen last night and I experienced heaviness of the head and eyes, fatigue and loss to concentration to do anything includes updating my blog and preparing for credit-test of psychiatry tomorrow. I knew it won't come out with something good if I tried and forced myself to finish all these works in this situation. So, right after my care-history assignment was done, I quickly jumped into my bed. Nasal obstruction just made me so hard to breathe and it became better only after application of decongestant ointment.

Today, I'm still suffering from all these symptoms, but a little bit better than yesterday. Photophobia still killing my eyes and sneezing is just terrible. Thank God that I passed my credit-test smoothly, even without any preparation! I was so scared of oral part, which I've to answer the questions given right on the spot. Ah! everything is over now! Just feel nice.. =)

All these while I continue to take vitamin supplements, especially Vit.C. It really helps a lot in fast recovery if you're experiencing the above-mentioned symptoms. And it prevents sore-throat effectively, 100% proven as I've this experience in past 5 years. But do remember to take it once you feel something wrong with your throat, before the pain appears.

Well, here is what I've concluded to have better and clearer view of this illness:

Symptoms: Nasal Obstruction, Feeling of dryness in the throat, sneezing, watery nasal secretion, epiphora (watery of the eyes, caused by photophobia), slight rhinolalia clause (abnormal speech attributable to nasal obstruction), dizziness, slight headache, fatigue.

Self-diagnosis - Rhinitis (Should be of viral origin - rhinovirus most probably)

Treatment - In my opinion, bed rest and vitamin supplements are the best treatment. Other methods consist of symptomatic treatment includes decongestant nasal drops to temporarily relieve unpleasant feeling.
Some people might use antibiotics at the very beginning of the illness, in order to get rid of all symptoms. Actually, this is not a smart way to do. You should give time to let your body to produce enough immunity to resolve it. This is the most natural and healthy way to deal with disease. However, it doesn't apply to all the cases, especially if you've fever, urgent seeking for doctor is the best way. In this case, Antibiotics are given only when there's secondary bacterial infection.

In normal course, it should be recovered within 1 week. But I believe it takes shorter course for me =D
I'm not sure about others, but every year I fall sick 2 times since I stay in this country 5 years ago. It happens in between season changes - from autumn to Winter ; from winter to spring. Most probably due to great fluctuation of temperature, low air humidity, strong cold wind and other factors which lead to decreased immune system of body. It seems hardly for me to avoid it, unless staying all the time at hostel without going out but that's impossible.

Take care everyone, especially those who staying in areas where season changing is taking place now.
Have a great day! Stay Blessed!

Improve Your Blog Stats

Dexie, has sent me message informing to improve our Blog Stats for the blogs. Thanks Dexie for the tag! =D

So here it is.

Start Copy Here:

I have randomly selected 5 of you below to be tagged and I hope that you will similarly publish this post in your blog. You have to tag 5 other bloggers and just keep adding on to the list. (Do not replace, just keep on adding! Yes let’s hope a long list!) It’s real easy! Tag others and see your Technorati Authority increase exponentially!

The benefits of Viral Linking:-
One of the fastest ways to see your Technorati Authority explode!-Increase your Google PageRank fast-Attract large volume of new traffic to your site-Build your community-Make new friends!

And these are the people who already took part on this tag:Blognation, Pinoytek, Reyna, Bluep, Kotsengkuba, Buraot, Iris, Banco De Reyna, Mitch, Tatapilla, HappyMum, Mommy's Little Corner, A Simple Life, moms.... check nyo, Denz Techtronics, Denz Recreational, Sweet Lullaby, Buzzing Around, Beckoning Destiny, Loving Living and Laughing, Elite Space, [next insert here]...

End Copy Here-

I'm now passing this to Breezy, Zhoe Wynz, WongHongWeng, ShooHao, and xiaoxue.

Take care all! have a great day!

Phobia

Do you ever have a strong fear of something? I'm sure all of us have experienced this term many times, if not at least once in our lifetime.

Phobia means a strong, irrational fear of something that actually poses little or no actual danger. It is a type of anxiety disorder and has now becomes very common in our society. I've came across this term just few days ago when I read about neurotic stress-related disorders. There're many terms denoting types of fear, but most of them are rarely seen, or even never been case-reported before.

There're few phobias that are very common among all of us. Here is the list of them:

1. Agoraphobia -- Fear of open spaces or of being in crowded, public places like markets. It is the cause of 60% of all phobic patients. Over 2/3 are female. Some of them may abuse alcohol or drugs in a effort to overcome their phobia.

2. Social phobia -- Fear of scrutiny by other people in comparatively small groups ( as opposed to crowds), leading to avoidance of social situations. It occurs in 3-4% of general population and average age of onset is 20-35 years old.

3. Specific phobias -- a.k.a isolated phobias. It is restricted to highly specific situations such as proximity to particular animals, heights, thunder, flying, blood, etc. I believe almost all of us have certain specific phobia. As for me, I've phobia toward specific insect, well, not gonna to tell what is it, or otherwise my groupmates will surely give 'something' surprise to me =P
I've found few interesting terms in this category as follow:

Phobia -------- Object of fear
Acrophobia -- Fear of Heights
Algophobia -- Fear of Pain
Achluophobia -- Fear of Darkness
Alliumphobia -- Fear of Garlic (too bad, garlic is so essential. Read more -here)
Elurophobia -- Fear of Cats
Anuptaphobia -- Fear of staying single
Arachnophobia -- Fear of Spider
Claustrophobia -- Fear of Closed spaces
Ichthyophobia -- Fear of Fish
Metathesiophobia -- Fear of changes
Myrmecophobia -- Fear of Ants
Xenophobia -- Fear of strangers or foreigners
Teleophobia -- Fear of Religious ceremony
Alektorophobia -- Fear of Chicken
Tonitrophobia -- Fear of Thunder
Selaphobia -- Fear of Light flashes
Zoophobia -- Fear of Animals
Obesophobia -- Fear of gaining weight
Logizomechanophobia -- Fear of Computer (?... sound funny)

Well, I found that it is not difficult to construct the term as long as you know Latin language, so there're probably thousands of terms.

Treatment is different in each case but general ones include psychological therapy and medications, such as antidepressants, behavioural therapy, beta-blockers, etc.
Of course not all ppl who fear of something obligatorily require these treatments. Anyway do not hesitate to consult your psychologist if the fear has given you troubles in normal daily life.

Have a nice day. God Bless All!

Psychiatry Cycle

I've 2nd part of psychiatry cycle this week. Although at first this subject looks kinda boring, but some facts about which I've studied so far are really interesting. It is not easy to understand thoroughly the mechanism of mental disorders in human. It is so complex that it involves various fields such as neuroscience, medicine, biology, pharmacology, biochemistry and psychology.

Yesterday I've a chance to meet and interview with mentally-ill patient. Well, he was able to answer some questions normally, while others I've no idea what was he crapping about. I doubt whether if he understood what I'd asked, and seriously I've no clue which answers he gave were correct or maybe he was just bullshitting all the time?

Today we'd a movie clip section about this lady who was sent to hospital due to unexplained episodic seizures. When you see this clip for the first time, you might lol all the way at her behaviour, but once you understand her background and past history, you'll know how much sufferings she'd gone through these while. This world is cruel. she was 29 years old in year 2000. Before this, she was a normal person just like us. After an incidence (failure in relationship with her husband and family, peer pressures, financial difficulties, problem with her studies and baby...etc), she got some degrees of neurosis which she couldn't control it at all. This great impact had destroyed her normal social life as well as her future and everytime when psychiatrist asked her about this point in her past history (this is normal procedure of history-taking before an appropiate treatment can be given), she went in an uncontrolled state of seizures, failing to the ground, crying, shouting, yelling, muscle spasms and weird unsteady gaits. She was then returned to normal after few minutes. But again went into this state once she recalled that incidence.

I would say it's not uncommmon to meet such cases here in Russia. This is probably just a tip of an iceberg and I would say that this lady was lucky to be able to receive treatment after which her condition improved. Everytime when I walked into patients' ward at this department, I see these mentally disordered patients wandering along the corridor without direction and motive...ya, just aimless... you'll never know what they wanted to do next...few same question always appear in my mind - What are they waiting for? how's their future? do they know where are they now? do they know what's going on in their life?? I doubt they can give you even a single appropiate answer...

Some patients have positive result from the treatments given, and they are most probably able to return to normal life. But some patients are just hopeless I'd say, like the one I met past few weeks who is a Down syndrome patient, he is still a young teenager but probably gonna spend his whole life here... doing nothing at all, but eating and hiding all the time in his bed.

Being a nurse or physician here in this department is definitely not an easy job. I admit that I don't have such a great patience and persistence to deal with these patients. I really salute and respect those colleagues who have been serving here for many years. Without great loves, persistence and patience, one just can't take it and serve well in this field.

Finally I just wanna say that we should be grateful for who we are. Be thankful for what we've in our life. If we've a chance to read over the life-story of each and every single person in this world, it's not difficult to find out that we 're actually few lucky and the blessed one, of the billions ppl out there.

God Bless All! Have a nice day! ^^

Garlic and its Facts

I was watching at Global Korea TV channel through satellite few days ago and found this interesting and very useful information about Garlic. Garlic, I'm 100% sure everyone knows about it and it is so often used in daily preparation of meals. But do you realise how much benefits would you get from this small little plant despite of its strong pungent smell?



Garlic has long been known as a herbal wonder drug, with its reputation in folklore for preventing various diseases ranged from common cold flu to grave disease like plague. It was worshipped by the ancient Egyptians, as a snack chewed by Greek Olympian athletes and thought to be 'essential' for keeping vampires at bay!

Garlic brings indisputable benefits not only to our health but also to medical fields nowadays due to its therapeutic effects. Really, it has play an very important role in our life that its uses are just too many to be mentioned so I'll just share its beneficial uses in the following list:

1. Antibacterial effect -- probably the ONLY antibiotic that can actually kill infecting bacteria and at the same time protect the body from the poisons that are causing the infection. The most sensitive bacterium to garlic is the deadly Bacillus anthrax which produces the poison anthrax. Besides that, tuberculosis cases treated with garlic are shown very successfully as the invading organism Mycobacterium tuberculosis is sensitive to several of the sulphur components found in garlic.

2. Natural mosquito repellent

3. Decrease cholesterol level -- Garlic is lipid lowering agent. The largest study so far was conducted in Germany where 261 patients from 30 general practices were given either garlic powder tablets or a placebo. After a 12 week treatment period mean serum cholesterol levels dropped by 12% in the garlic treated group and triglycerides dropped by 17% compared to the placebo group.

4. Impotence -- Believe or not?! Garlic has been known as an aphrodisiac (substance that can arouse sexual desire)! Well, fact is that an enzyme called nitric oxide synthase (NOS) is primarily responsible for the mechanism of erection. Studies have recently shown that garlic in certain forms can stimulate the production of NOS particularly in individuals who have low levels of this enzyme.

5. Circulation -- from a medical point of view it can improve blood circulation significantly.

6. Pregnancy -- Data taken from research carried out by O&G department in Chelsea and Westminster hospital, London, showing that garlic can cut down the risk of pre-eclampsia (high blood pressure and retained protein in urine). It can boost as well the birth-weight of babies destined to be small.

7. Powerful Antioxidant -- Antioxidants help to protect the body against damaging free radicals.

8. Fast cure for common cough and cold

9. Anti-cancer properties

10. Useful in Diabetic patients

11. As a cardioprotective agent

12. Garlic festival? -- yes! Gilroy is a small town in California and for many years now Gilroy and garlic have been synonymous, but it wasn't until Gilroy's annual Garlic Festival began in 1979 did the community embrace the local garlic industry. Today, Gilroy is best known as "The Garlic Capital of the World" and is world renown for its annual Gilroy Garlic Festival where thousands of flock to see, touch and yes, eat garlic.
Garlic however is popular all over America and there are many festivals held during the year - another big event is the Hudson Valley Garlic Festival in Saugerties, New York. At most of these events you will find garlic flavour in virtually everything from wine to soap, ice-cream, candy, meat and cakes!

13. It has synergistic effect with other health food supplements.

And many others! Well, you might wonder what is the component inside the garlic that make it so useful and beneficial. I got this info from TV as well, ya, ALLICIN is the key component of garlic!

I'll share more about Allicin in the coming post. Actually, I wanna share in this post about the way of making a good meal purely from garlic! 3 dishes in a meal, simple and easy And most important of these all 3 dishes, Garlic is the main ingredient! So let's call it as Garlic meal! ^^ Proven delicious and of course the healthy ones! But before all these, I wanna let all know about it benefits and uses, then you'd appreciate it way much more than just its good taste =)

So, do keep tune with following post about which I'm gonna share this recipe.

Have a great day!



By BlueStar

*Sources partly taken from Garlic Information Center, mistral.co.uk.

Easter Celebration

Hi all! Happy Easter All! What are you guys doing in this day? any special celebration?

well, for me I've joined this special easter celebration in 4th hostel cell group. A small, simple and meaningful gathering of multi-racial students from Malaysia, SriLanka, Ghana, Africa, Nigeria, and India. Besides sharing about the real meaning of this Easter Day, we'd section of ice-breaking to introduce each other since most of them are newcomers to this cell-group, including me hehe, my first time here! ^^

It was then followed by series of brain-storming games and creative art drawing of easter's eggs! well, drawing made on an egg is not that easy by the way if you've tried it before. These self-designed easters eggs were then used as gift-exchange as a wish to each others =)

We'd also been served with various delicous finger-licking snacks and cakes. I like the most cheesecakes with fruit-topping, just delicious! (too bad i didnt take a snap on them..) Here is a snapshot of this spagetti which I think is very special, look at its layers and colour...I would call it as 3-layered spagetti =D




Although it wasn't a big celebration like past few years, but i think it was a nice and cool ones, especially celebrating this meaningful day with people from different backgrounds and countries =D


~~ Happy Easter Day to All! ~~

PhotoHunt | Metal

This is my very first time joining PhotoHunt! Thanks all for supports ^^




This is an old bridge which I'd to walk through everyday during early weeks of my semester this year. I'd 2 weeks course of Tuberculosis cycle and this bridge is the only way for me to cross over to the opposite side of the river, where the hospital is situated. It was built for railways and now is nearly abondoned. It's an very adventurous journey and every step has to be very carefully especially during winter time. Have a nice weekend!

Joints Replacement

Today I've seen some new instruments, shown by our teacher in traumatology class. This is first time I ever heard of them, and of coz I've never realize something like these would exist. So amazing to see how experts in this medical field put their efforts to save end-stage patient of poor prognosis of recovery from losing their legs.

These instruments are used only in the last stage of many severe diseases of the femur and knee joints, include osteoarthritis and osteonecrosis and often as a last choice of surgical treatment. Prior to this intervention, there're many other alternative surgical treatments such as core-decompression, bone-grafting, osteotomy, bone resurfacing..etc but once the disease involves joints and causing severe destructing effects on the sockets of articular surfaces, surgical replacement of the affected part is the only effective treatment.

Here are the pic taken in the class.


Stainless-steel hip joint! made of metal and is really hard, just imagine you've this piece of heavy metal inside your body... >.<



Knee Joint replacement parts - Left one is attached to femur bone, while right one to tibial bone.



This shows how they're used in joint replacement therapy.



I was searching for some useful informations and found this -- Pic taken during operation of Knee joint replacement surgery, where those devices are inserted to replace the diseased joint.



X-ray after hip replacement surgery.

Success rate of this surgery is very high, up to 95%. However, some patients suffer from chronic pain after the surgery. It is believed to be result of nerve damage during the operation. Besides this, another most common problem after surgery is dislocation due to man-made prosthetics are smaller than the original joint, the ball can then come out of its socket. Other rare complications include blood clots formation and infections. With this intervention, patient is able to resume his normal lifestyle except for having certain activities such as jogging and high-impact sports.

Just my sharings =D

Make A Wish

I got tagged by Abby. Thanks Abby, I appreciate it! ^^

The “Make A Wish” Meme.




Here are the rules:

1. Think about what it is that you want more than anything, what your heart’s desire and fondest wish is, and what it is that you would wish for if you were to see the above wishing star flame across the night sky.

2. Right click and SAVE the blank graphic above.

3. Use a graphics program of your choice and place your wish on this picture.

So here are my wishes:




Now, I'm tagging LeeChien, dexie, glensgirl, LynnWei, Kang Yong, JohnnyKiu, Elizabeth, simplymama, deepben, Ik, Ling Di, writeshy, and Nederhop vidz.

* Is this 'Make A Wish' tagged to me so coincident?
I've just received a shocking sms from my good friend, one of my groupmates has to fly back home tonight following a heartbroken news about his father has passed away suddenly in this afternoon...i was stunned...
I Pray That My Wishes Come True And May God Bless and Guide him and his family. My deepest condolences to you and your family, take care buddy..

Unexpected Snowing

Many of us here think it's spring season now and have never expect such a heavy fall of snow in the late morning today. For the past 6 years, I've noticed that winter season in this country ended earlier each subsequent year, probably due to global warming? It was normal weather changes if this happens in 2003, but nowadays, it's rarely happen to snow again at this time.

When I was discussing some X-ray films with my groupmates in the ward of traumatology department, snow fall out of sudden giving a surprise to everyone here. Some of us love it, while some worry about the way back to hostel as they didn't bring snow cap with them. In fact, it is quite a far distance from our hostel to this hospital, estimated about 1 hour by taking bus. And we've to bear with this for 2 weeks.

Some words about this hospital... personally, I don't think we can grab to learn much here because its condition is just... terrible. Well, can't expect much as it's kinda a rural area, and therefore the facilities and equipments are not as good as those in the regional hospital. The general condition of this hospital is even worse than what I'd expected before the cycle. Many casualties are hospitalized here because of the newly-built surgical department in the vicinity of hospital area. Overcrowded population, frequent blackout, unrestricted rules and patients' hygienic status making its quality highly doubted. I'll give the most 2 pts out of 10 pts of which 10 is the best.

Back to main topic =P yeah, here are some quick snaps to share with you all ^^


Window view, pic taken 5 minutes after 'discovery' of snowing.


Heavy snow after the class -- taken an hour after the previous pic.




ha! they are my groupmates =p all tried to hide under the only available umbrella, taken while waiting for the bus.


On the way for lunch! however, not all of us joined this, the rest back to hostel. Guess how many of my groupmates have just walked through here? =p




Looks like back to winter again! nice scenery around ^^

Temperature today is about 5-7 C, just nice for me =D

Chinese New Year Concert 2008

Chinese new year(CNY)?? Hehe it seems somehow funny to post this topic at this time as CNY has passed long time ago =p

But it is true that we'd CNY celebration last saturday! Indeed it was a so belated celebration, but all of us as students in Kursk do really appreciate and treasure this concert. It is not easy to have such kind of celebration especially in Russia here because all of us are from foreign lands, and many difficulties ranged from Organising committee selection, approval from university, budgets for each event, financial sponsorship, performances, food, venue, ticket promotion...etc gotta break through before it is finally carried out. At first, it was planned to be held in January but due to semester exam, it had been postponed to February. And again due to majority of students left for winter vacation to other places, it was then rescheduled to March.

CNY celebration '08 was organised by Malaysian CNY committees @ Kursk Malaysian Medical Students' Association (KMSA). There're altogether 19 events include Lion Dance, Martial Art Performance, 'Wu Niang' dance, Acapella performance, bandchestra aka Dragon9, Fan dance, lucky draw and many more.

In my opinion, it was a very successful concert and CNY committes had really done their best to bring to all students here such a great wonderful night. We can see the hardworks of people in each and every single event. Credits and applauses to Wong Choc Ky, organizing chairman of CNY concert 2008. And also special thanks to our financial sponsorship namely Magaram Enterprise, Trans-Russian Company and Datuk Dr. Wong Sai Hou.

Another important thing not forget to mention is although it is this concert wasn't involved purely chinese, but also Malays, Indians, Africans and other different races over the nations! Glad to see that CNY concert this year was held successfully =) Many of my groupmates were involved and they'd a real busy weekend. They are Johnny Kiu (Camera-man of the night), Eddy Su (Usher + Mr. Chinatown of the night --Best chinese traditional dress..wow! kononnya la =P), Kelvin Chong (Backdrop and helpful committe member), and Ik (Usher too? or ticket collector? not so sure hehe =p). Any other of my groupmates involved indirectly? Well, if so, tell me and I'll put your name up! ^^

Here are some snaps from the concert =D


As written on the left banner -- China Town. View during last preparation of the stalls outside the hall before the event started.



View of the concert hall, taken before the opening ceremony. It is newly renovated and can accommodate more than 500 ppl. Many students arrived early to choose a best-view seat.





Lion Dance during opening ceremony. Well.. a kinda small 'lion' but it is really something so special here in Kursk, and I bet that this could be the first 'lion' in Kursk, Russia =) It was brought from Malaysia by a student during this winter holiday. I guess the organizing commitee members are surely much heartened by arrival of this little 'lion'.



Dancing Diva or so-called Wu Niang in chinese. Nice performance brought by a group of enthusiastic chinese and indian students.





Bandchestra-Dragon 9 performance - a cool musical show with all 9 different musical instruments played by 9 'Black Dragons'. So nice are the musics, so cool are the peoples, just fantastic!



Break time! Besides food, there're many stalls set up in 'China Town' to show and demonstrate the chinese traditions. Here twins were showing the correct way to make chinese tea to Dean of foreign students, Prof. Yuri Lyashev, accompanied by our organizing chairman, Mr. Wong Choc Ky (Right)





Guess what they were waiting? yeah, waiting for their names to be written by calligrapher pro! looking around you can easily see that both calligraphy stalls were full of ppl..russians, chinese, indians, malays, africans were all here for their chinese names! Hottest spot during the break.



Introducing the way to use chopsticks! 3 different levels of challenges, from the big-sized meatball, to cabbage slices, and the smallest - nuts! Well, these 2 russians are smart, they managed to grab meatball well in 2nd trial. ^^





Latin dance. Perfect performance brought by 5 couples of students.



Wow! This one is truly not an ordinary band! Formed just 2 months old and has 8 talented members. Before the performance, there was a funny clip about the process of band forming, causing much amusements and laughters from the crowds.
And now guess what song they performed?? ya, once the most famous song -- Kai Bu Liao Kou -- Jay Chou's song! Song performed not by chinese singers but 2 malays!! respect ^^ really a good job!





Agogo dance...just LOL! Can't stop laughing by looking at these funniest dancers, especially they're all your friends! Look at their dresses and the way they dance =D deafening applause from audience, excellent job!
Well, to those who might not know what agogo means, it is actually from words GO-GO, dance was originated in the early 1960s and one of whose meanings is "power of going, energy, vigor".


The whole concert lasts for 4 hours+, bringing to all the students here a joyous and wonderful night. =)

Just Feel Nice After All....

Hi ALL! First of all, sorry for not updating my blog since 11 March. I was too busy with shifting all my stuffs into a new renovated room.

Well, if you've read my previous posts about hostel renovation, then you'd know what's happening here to my room. Not gonna explain more but just to share with you some pics about this change as I've promised to. (Care to to know in detail? read this and also this one)

I was homeless for about 1 week, staying in friend's room with almost all my belongings in another storeroom, except my computer and important documents.
Pics say it all...


Everything is moved away from the wall and covered with clothes.


Wall before drilling.



Wall after filling. The room was so dusty and dirty, I couldnt even breath without mask... just suffocating... >.<



Another view. The drilled drain is running up and down to all sockets in the room.



The corridor is full of bags, tables,..etc, some students just put their stuffs here left unguarded.



Cable renovation involves all rooms in this 9-storeyed students' hostel. It was built in 1970s and designed chiefly for low-cost residence. As it turned into students' hostel in the end of last century, it is now no longer able to supply adequate electricity.



New wall paper covered the damaged part of the wall. All at own expense. I spent hours to finish pasting all damaged parts... so tiring, and it's really not an easy job =s



And finally, I've settled down in this small lovely room =) Spent up to 2 days to clear the dust, clean and rearrange everything here. I slept for only 3 hours on the first day of cleaning =(
Dust is the main problem, vacuum the floor is just simply not enough to clear it, coz it sticks everywhere on the wall, ceiling, window,...etc. Most of the time used up for cleaning the dust.



Cleaning every single little thing, includes my CPU interior!



And now, I've it back =) My gaming, blogging, surfing, movie.... entertainment corner! ^^



My study corner =)












Well, is time to rest now, need a good sleep...so sleepy and really exhausted after all these. Thank God for my recent cycles are not that hectic, and for now I'm having traumatology cycle, not busy at all just the hospital is located too far away from my hostel, 1 hour taking bus >.<
Anyway, feel happy and contented after everything is over and knowing that no more blackout would happen again after this renovation ^^

Rules of FOUR

This tagg is given to me by my friend in blogging Noel. Thanks a lot buddy, i really appreciate it! ^^


RULES OF FOUR Here It is...
4 jobs I have had:A promoter, A seller, a student and and a tuition teacher.

4 movies I watched over and over:Die Hard, Rush Hour, Kung Fu, Hitman

4 shows I watch: Superman, Cartoon Network, Black sheep, Guess

4 places I have been: Berlin, Prague, Dubai, Moscow ( there're more for all i believe =p )

4 people who email me: Game alerts, forum alerts, Google groups & of coz my dear friends...=)

4 favorite things to eat: Sushi, MacDonalds, Pizza & Jelly

4 places I would rather be: Wellington, Berlin, Borneo , sydney

4 things I look forward to this year: good result in my studies , More Blessings to come, Healthy Body & mind, and Success in all my plans!


Now Im tagging lynnwei, EddySu, umdenosdois, Johnny, Ik, liza, A Blessed Life, Abby, +*+ julia +*+, hannah, curryegg, ester, Green Bali, and sexymom.

New cycle

New cycle starts today - Pyschiatry. It's branch of medicine dealing with mental disorder and its treatment. 'Psych' in Greek word means soul and mind while 'iatros' means healer.

Well, what come first to your mind when you see this word 'Psychiatry'?
It is actually different medical branch from psychology but both of these departments are placed in the same block in most of the countries due to close inter-relationship with each other.

Flipping through the notes, I found some interesting topics - Disorder of Intelligence (IQ), Personality disorders, Sleep disorders, Mood disorders, Eating disorders, Schizophrenia...etc. All of these topics are somehow new to me and different from what I've studied in the past...sound interesting, hope it's not boring concepts of mentality like the one in Psychology =p

Online Games Abbreviations

If you are an online-gamer, I'm sure these short-forms listed below are not a strange abbreviations for you. I've exposed myself in many different games for many years and I've concluded these most common abbreviations used in the world of a gamer. Not to blah about anything, just wanna share with you my own gaming experience. Maybe some of you use these short-forms too often in daily sms, or you've gotten familiar with them because of peer interation around you. But I'm sure not all of these terms you've seen unless you've been such a hardcore gamer like me =P
Well, I've spent much time engrossed mostly in MMORPG games (Silkroad Online, 9Dragons, 2Moons, etc) I've shared it in the early post, and if you're still new about it and wanna get to know more about facts of online games, click here.

Some most commonly used abbr.

asap - as soon as possible
afk - away from keyboard
brb - be right back
brt - be right there
bb - bye bye
cu - see you
cq - commision quest
dp - dungeon party
gl - good luck
glhf - good luck have fun
gm - good morning
GM - Game Master
Gl - Guild leader
gn - good night
gtg - got to go
Imao - laugh my ass out
L1 - Lane 1
L2 - Lane 2
LFP - Looking For Party
LFM - Looking For Members
LFG - Looking For Guild
lol - laugh out loud
np - no problem
nth - nothing
nvm - nevermind
omg - oh my god
omfg - oh my ****ing god
omw - on my way
pls - please
pt - party
pwlvl - powerlevel
ss - screenshot
stfu - shut the **** up
sry - sorry
ty - thank you
ttyl - talk to you later
wtf - what the ****
wth - what the hell
WTB - Want To Buy
WTS - Want To Sell
yw - you're welcome

**** are vulgar forms, I believe you know what they are =P

* Thanks to Eddy for giving me some of these information =)

Sushi Day!

Today I'm really bloated with different kinds of sushi! =) They are really delicious and tasty, and worthy at the same time the price is much more cheaper than that selling outside. Thumb up to those students who prepare it!
In conjuction with MyGame! winter07 price giving ceremony, our Malaysian Students' Association (MSA) has organised such a event called 'Jom Kita makan-makan'. There are about 8 foodstalls of which different kinds of food are sold. There're nasi lemak, nasi campur, various kinds of cakes, egg sambal, indian food, drinks, and of coz my favourite sushi =)
Actually I didnt know what kind of food they're selling before I went there. Thought of going there to receive medal of MyGames! winter07 for 1st runner up in ping pong men's double. The hall was crowded with mostly international students and some russians were there to join the event as well. Such event is seldom seen here but good response from students showing it is a success and worthy to hold it more often =)


I like this one very much! Sushi with prawn, seaweed, cucumber,etc covered superficially by.. hmm should be fish eggs =P


Each set of this costs 160 Rub. This guy bought 5 sets!


Different colours of sushi made of different ingredients, taste very good! =P


Another new tray of green sushi. Previous one sold off in 10 min!

Women's Day

It's 8th March today -- a special day to all women out there.
HAPPY WOMEN'S DAY to all! ^^


*---Woman is the companion of man, gifted with equal mental capacity ---*

Athlete's Foot

What? Athlete's foot?? sound nice is the term but when one comes to understand what exactly it is, you'll be freaked out of it =p
No doubt, this term indicates a medical pathology. Its medical term is tinea pedis, a fungal infection which is very common in tropical and subtropical countries, especially in the summer and the monssonn than in the winter. Men are more frequently affected than women.

What is the causes?
The body normally hosts a variety of microorganisms, including bacteria and fungi. Some of these are useful to the body. And others may, under certain conditions, multiply rapidly and cause infections. Athlete's foot occurs when a particular type of fungus grows and multiplies in your feer (especially between your toes) or less commonly, your hands. These fungi thrive in warm and moist areas. Your risk for getting athlete's foot increases if you:
-Wear closed shoes, especially if they are plastic-lined.
- Keep your feet wet for prolonged periods of time
- Sweat a lot
- Develop a minor skin or nail injury
- Athlete's foot is contagious, and can be passes through direct contact, or contact with items such as shoes, stockings and shower or pool surfaces.
Athlete's foot is a communucable disease. It can be transmitted from person to person in moist environments where people walk barefoot, such as showers, bath houses, and locker rooms. It can be transmitted by sharing footwear with an infected person, or less commonly, by sharing towels with an infected person.

How does it look like?
Lesions may appear as isolated vesiculo-pustules, or bullae, or as patches of erythema and oedema with a scattering of vesicles and pustules, the vesicles may develop into ulcers. Oozing is slight. It is accompanied by intense itching and burning. Secondary infection results in pain, lymphangitis and regional lymphadenitis. This variety has the appearance of an eczematoid or pompholyx eruption. Auto- sensitization produces an ide eruption (which resembles dyshidrosis from which it must be differentiated) on the palms of hands, and, may be, the, other parts of the body as well.

How does it diagnose?
Although athlete's foot can usually be diagnosed by visual inspection of the skin, the diagnosis should always include direct microscopy of a potassium hydroxide preparation (known as a KOH test) at the start of treatment to rule out other possible causes, such as eczema or psoriasis. A KOH preparation is performed on skin scrapings from the affected area. The KOH preparation has an excellent positive predictive value, but occasionally false negative results may be obtained, especially if treatment with an anti-fungal medication has already begun.

What is the best treatment available?
Over-the-counter antifungal powders or creams can help control the infection. These generally contain miconazole, clotrimazole, or tolnaftate. Continue using the medicine for 1 - 2 weeks after the infection has cleared from your feet to prevent the infection from returning.

In addition:
- Keep your feet clean and dry, especially between your toes.
- Wash your feet thoroughly with soap and water and dry the area very carefully and completely. Try to do this at least twice a day.
- Wear clean, cotton socks and change your socks and shoes as often as necessary to keep your feet dry.
Athlete's foot almost always responds well to self-care, although it may come back.
Severe, ongoing infections that don't respond to 2 - 4 weeks of self-care, and frequently recurring athlete's foot, may require further treatment by your health care provider. Stronger, prescription antifungal medications may be needed. These include topical medicines, like ketoconazole or terbinafine, and pills. Antibiotics may be necessary to treat secondary bacterial infections that occur in addition to the fungus (for example, from scratching).

Last but not least, Prevention is better than cure =)
To prevent it, it is important to
--> Dry your feet thoroughly after bathing or swimming.
--> Wear sandals or flip-flops at a public shower or pool.
--> Change your socks often to keep your feet dry. This should be done at least once a day.
--> Use antifungal or drying powders to prevent athlete's foot if you are susceptible to getting it, or you frequent areas where athlete's foot fungus is common (like public showers).
--> Wear shoes that are well ventilated and, preferably, made of natural material such as leather. It may help to alternate shoes each day, so they can dry completely between wearings. Avoid plastic-lined shoes.

Stay healthy. The groundwork of all happiness is healthy! =)

Hostel renovation

Boom! It was Wednesday yesterday and I love this day not only because that my dermatology cycle has ended but also there's an multiple experience event in the game that I've been playing for nearly 5 months. I was kinda tired after coming back from clinical pharmacology lecture. When I reached my room, there's no power supply in my room as usual, due to the cable renovation, as I mentioned in the previous post. Electricity will be on normally at 8-9pm and at that meanwhile, I went to have my dinner in friend's room.
Right after dinner before I reach my room, I saw hostel dean was standing near staircase, and she told me that my room got to be ready for renovation by tomorrow. I was like..wth..before this she told me my room will be done in next week, and now she said tomorrow... damnit, I was in the mood of game and now I got to sacrifice the time to occupy myself with this matter. My friends next door had quarrels with hostel dean and it is all about this stupid ever idea of renovation. I visited few rooms where renovation has been done, and omg...I really got a shock -- scene not better than that after 2nd-world war, all dirty dusty stuffy... I couldn't stand it, wondering how the host gonna clean this mess up.
I spent nearly 5 hours to move all my belongings to a designated vacant room, and those of no great valuable things I left them in the room, covered by big white clothes provided by hostel admin. I moved 2 of my computers and important documents to friend's room...finished everything at 2.18am =S
How sad I can no longer access to internet anymore until the renovation is thoroughly done. Thanks to Esther who allow me to compose and publish this post =) Hopefully everything gonna over soon...

Online Games

Just wonder what online games have you ever try before? For myself, I started to expose myself to online games since about 10 years ago. Still remember the first game I played is first-person shooter game, then had been addicted to Neopets for quite a long time before my interest shifted to real-time strategy games. And now I've get myself into Massively mutliplayer online games, which I think is the most popular and the best kind of game I've ever seen. Personally, I like to play MMORPG (Massively multiplayer online role-playing game), but there're also many of my friends playing MMORTS (MMO-real-time strategy) and MMOFPS(MMO_ first-person shooter) games. Others which are gaining more popular nowadays include MMODG(MMO-rhythom games), MMOMG(MMO-manager games), MMOR(MMO-racing games), MMOTG(MMO-tycoon game), MMOSG(MMO-Sports games), etc.
Online games has became popular since late 1990s and its population has increased dramatically in 2000s. Here are top 10 gaming industry facts that prove no doubts that online game has became one of the most important activity in a person's pastime.

TOP 10 INDUSTRY FACTS:
1. US computer and video game software sales grew six percent in 2007 to $9.5 billion – more than tripling industry software sales since 1996.
2. Sixty-seven percent of American heads of households play computer and video games.
3. The average game player is 33 years old and has been playing games for 12 years.
4. The average age of the most frequent game buyer is 38 years old. In 2007, 92 percent of computer game buyers and 80 percent of console game buyers were over the age of 18.
5. Eighty-five percent of all games sold in 2007 were rated "E" for Everyone, "T" for Teen, or "E10+" for Everyone 10+.
6. Eighty-six percent of game players under the age of 18 report that they get their parents’ permission when renting or buying games, and 91 percent say their parents are present when they buy games.
7. Thirty-six percent of American parents say they play computer and video games. Further, 80 percent of gamer parents say they play video games with their kids. Sixty-six percent feel that playing games has brought their families closer together.
8. Thirty-eight percent of all game players are women. In fact, women over the age of 18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (31%) than boys age 17 or younger (20%).
9. In 2007, 24 percent of Americans over the age of 50 played video games, an increase from nine percent in 1999.
10. Forty-nine percent of game players say they play games online one or more hours per week. In addition, 34 percent of heads of households play games on a wireless device, such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20 percent in 2002.

Some interesting facts I found in gamers player data researches in US showing that the average adult woman plays games 7.4 hours per week. The average adult man plays 7.6 hours per week. Though males spend more time playing than do females, the gender/time gap has narrowed significantly. Whereas in 2003, males spent an average of 18 more minutes a day playing games than did their female counterparts, in 2004 they spent ony six minutes more each day doing so. Females spend an average of two hours more per week playing games now than they did a year ago.

So what about you? =)

Another renovation...

Argh...just hate to know something gonna happen to my room again. I'm staying in this old students' hostel for years. Recently, there's a series of renovations carried out from room to room thoroughly and blackout happened so many times in past few weeks until this week when it finally get stabilised. Before I can enjoy this happy moment, another renovation is carried out! well, it is also not about something good, but installation of new eletrical cable. Ya, it sounds good, but I dont feel that way as I know how they're going to do it.
We, residents of 9th floor are the first batch of such 'project' and we're asked to shift all our belongings away from the wall because they're going to drill a drain in the wall to put the new cable inside. This is crazy! My room is packed and full of stuff (it's 3-ppl room but large enough to accomodate only 2 persons), no way for me to move all things from the wall unless to bring them out from my room.
It is just a very bad idea to drill the wall for cable installation, as it will not only destroy wall paper but also make the room stufft and dusty. For this matter we'd a discussion with hostel dean and gave our opinion to fix the new electric cable On the wall (covered with palstic pipe) instead of In the wall (in drilled drain), this is obviously easy, less time-consuming, energy and manpower save, and most importantis bringing less affection to our normal students' life here. But they insist to go on their way, which I really can't see any good reason they're doing so except maybe... save up a little penny on plastic or pvp cable pipe? >.<
The worst thing is we've no idea how long it will take to finish the whole installation. Every installation of each single unit requires shutdown of power supply of the whole floor and just imagine, there're 10 units in each floor...1 unit a day = 10 days no power supply... WTH can you do within this time?! However, thank God for what they've promised to resume electricity at night.
Well, today is the first day of this 'big project', I've taken few pic of each room and will share with you all the changes of before-and-after the installation.
5th hostel ppl are lucky no renovation is needed since it is a new building, I think i'll spend more time there now rather than going back own room doing nothing in the dark =(

Tang Yuen

It is also known as glutinous rice ball. Tang yuen is usually eaten only on special occassions like the Winter Solstice (Dong Zhi) and on weddings.
Neither both when I eat this, just simply an idea of having different kind of dinner. Ya, I've tang yuen and green bean soup for my dinner today..simple,easy and nice! =D I bought this packet of glutinous rice flour in Moscow during winter break and this rice flour might be too common to get in your place, but you'll never find one in Kursk. That's why make it so precious =p
No special recipe used, just simply add adequate water to the rice flour, then make it into round oval shape and put them one by one into a rapidly boiling water. Stir few times to prevent sticking together, and after 5-6 min when you see them floating, it is ready to be served. You can either serve it in soup or with grinded groundnut+sugar, like what I used to do =)
Actually there are many ways of making various kinds of delicious and colourful tang yuen (like pork filled tanh yuen, black sesame seed tang yuen, black sesame soup, etc) the one i made is the simplest plain tang yuen =p


Tang yuen mixed with grinded nuts, believe me it's nice! ^^


Full and bloated after eating, although not so well-mixed, but it tastes great =)


Colourful tang yuen soup











-Late post-

Moscow

What do you think about life in Moscow?
Something might be just hard to believe until you really experience it. According to the latest cost-of-living survey from Mercer Consulting, Moscow now ranks as the world's most expensive city, edging out Tokyo, which held the No. 1 spot for four straight years. Can you imagine that..A luxury two-bedroom in Moscow now rents for $4,000 a month; a CD costs $24.83, and an international newspaper, $6.30, according to Mercer. By comparison, a fast food meal with a burger is a steal at $4.80.

I myself really experience how expensive it is during this trip to Moscow. Well, let's compare the bus fare. In Kursk, it costs 7 rub most but in Moscow, cheapest is 20 rub. Tram fare in Kursk costs 6 rubs while in Moscow 25 Rub. I'd this most terrible experience - do you think how much does it cost to develop 5 passport-sized photos? In Malaysia, instant photo costs around Rm10 or less(which is about 70Rub), but here in Moscow, guess what, it costs 450 Rub! (~Rm 65) I feel like money flows out from my pocket faster than any other thing else here =s

I'd my 3 meals all in MacDonald since it's the cheapest fast food you can get here. Wanna share few pictures taken during the trip.


Malaysian Embassy frontview



Huge German Embassy building with nice japanese decoration around the compound there.



Pic taken in one of the most beautiful shopping complex in Kievskaya, Moscow.