What do I want to be when I grow up?

I love sketching since I was small (about 4 or 5 years old)! I would sketch on anything where one could sensibly sketch on such as blank papers, exercise books, cupboards, walls, doors...yes, that's what I'm talking about. Something sensible to sketch on. I would just draw anything. And all I like to do is drawing! So, I wanted to be an artist!

When I was in primary school, I upgraded my drawing skill to some designing skill. I like designing buildings. I remembered back in 1991, I drew up a plan of a twin tower with a bridge connecting the two towers. That was many years wayyy back before the Petronas Twin Tower plan was revealed to the public. My idea was stolen!!

Anyway, I enjoyed looking at pictures of hotels with fancy architectural design and I would like to improvise on the design of the hotels. I was especially impressed with the architectural design of Marina Mandarin Hotel in Singapore at that time. So, I wanted to be an architect!

From buildings, I expanded my design skills to toys, cars, and video games. I was obsessed with Transformers at a particular time and I would design new characters I could think of for Transformers. Yes, I also like to conceptualise new design for cars. So, I wanted to be a designer!

Then came secondary school and I have to put aside my favourite hobby for more serious time of studying. I did put full use of my talent on my Art Education from Form 1 to Form 3. By that time, I wanted to be graphic designer after knowing that there is such occupation.

When I was in Form 4, I chose to go the arts stream since I loveeee art. Many people were shocked over my decision as they expect me to choose the science stream. Well, it is a decision that I never regret. Somehow, by now, I began to think pragmatically and I aimed to be an accountant.

But when I was in Form 5, I was told about the advertising industry, for which I have never heard of until that day. So, I wanted to be an advertising creative director! I'd love to design advertisements for everyone to see!

Somehow after SPM, I studied accountancy. It is something that I am not really passionate about. However, I had to pursue accountancy because a design course fees is really really expensive such as in Limkokwing or in The One Academy compared to an accountancy course.

Now, finally after all these years, I have found another field which I am passionate about. The academic research field! So now, I wanted to be an academic researcher!

Would you like to share yours?

Mischievous students

When I was teaching in College XXX (a college where rich spoilt kids like to go), I saw unimaginable things that I thought it only happened in schools.

There was a case where someone or a group of mischievous students threw down wet tissue papers down on someone's car. I'm talking about lots and lots and lots of wet tissue papers. The entire windscreen of that poor fella's car was covered with wet tissue papers. LoL... Well, the victim was a girl. Eyewitnesses claimed that the wet tissue papers were thrown down from a few storeys above.

The parents of that student came to the college to complain to the principal.

With help from eyewitnesses, the college's management staff managed to identify the classroom from where it was thrown. Based on the time and classroom number, the management staff knew the students (of a particular semester of a particular course) who did it, but they are unable to pinpoint exactly who did it. So, case closed.

Eventually, I found out that the students who were in that class at that particular time were my students! I'm not surprise at all. Rich spoilt kids.

There was another incident where someone threw an ice cream with a cone down on someone's car. Could it be the same culprit? Perhaps. I didn't know much about this case because it happened before I joined the college.

College XXX....what a college!

MDR - TB (Report from The Star)

WHO has endorsed a new laboratory equipment that can diagnose multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) within 90 minutes instead of two months.

WHO Stop TB Western Pacific Re­­gio­­nal Office adviser Dr Catharina van Weezenbeek said the simple de­­vice would be able to differentiate MDR-TB from the normal TB infection through genetic changes in the microbacterium.

“Until two years ago, it was difficult to diagnose MDR-TB but last week, WHO endorsed a new laboratory equipment, which is a revolution to TB control,” she told The Star.

Anyway you might ask what is MDR-TB. It is multi drug resistant TB - a pretty pretty dangerous form of TB which is difficult to cure. There is another type - XDR-TB (Extensively drug resistant TB), which there is no cure at all. Bad, bad...

So ladies and gentleman, please be careful.

Why do we study? We study for ourself or for our parents?

That's the question one of my ex-student posed in his facebook account a few months ago.

I feel like slapping myself in the head when I saw that post. Don't you too?

I used to teach in a particular college and I find some of the students there don't deserve to be there. They are in the college just because there parents want them to be there. Some of them are so rich that they do not know the reason why education is important. They just don't seem to be interested in their studies.

There are unfortunate people around who want to further their studies but do not have enough money to study. It is sad to see that there are rich students who don't appreciate that they have a chance to study but yet don't make good use of that opportunity.

I used to teach in two different colleges. One college is like a budget college meant for the poor and the other college which I recently joined is a 'luxury' college where there are a lot of rich students in it. And yes I saw a big difference between the students in these two colleges. The rich students lack discipline and have no interest on their studies. Some of them played with their handphones in the class, some of them didn't even bring their notes/textbooks to class, and some didn't even bother to hand in their assignments.

I don't see such students when I was teaching in the so called budget college. They are very disciplined and studious and I respect those students.

Why do Chinese eat Mandarin oranges? The answer is...

Family Unity/Family Reunion!

Told ya...the answer is very simple and pragmatic. You may want to read my earlier post first.

First of all, one can easily peel off a Mandarin orange unlike a Sunkist orange where you need a knife.

So, the Professor explained that during Chinese New Year, the head of the family will peel off a Mandarin orange and distribute piece by piece to each of his family member (assuming in a big Chinese family setting) in a typical round table. So, it helps to cement a stronger relationship between each other during Chinese New Year. Ultimately, it fosters family unity and togetherness.

The same goes with steamboat and yee sang. It made everyone and each family member far away to come together to enjoy a meal together during Chinese New Year - only once a year. It made sense, doesn't it?

So, it has nothing to do with luck, according to the Professor. Well, I agreed.

Hmm...I think I should have blogged this during the Chinese New Year period to coincide with that celebration instead of now. :)

Why do Chinese eat Mandarin oranges?

I attended a talk once and there was this Professor who posed this question. So, why do Chinese eat Mandarin oranges during Chinese New Year? There was a long pause before someone finally uttered 'good luck' as the answer.

The Professor (who is not a Chinese) replied that 'good luck' is not the actual reason why Chinese eat Mandarin oranges.



I like this question because it made everyone dumbfounded when he said that good luck is not the original reason why Chinese eat Mandarin oranges. I always know that Chinese love following old traditions without knowing the actual reason behind it.

I believe that some unscrupulous businessmen have been telling everyone to buy their mandarin oranges during Chinese New Year for 'good luck'. Indeed, mandarin oranges sound like 'gold' in cantonese.

When the Professor finally revealed the actual reason why Chinese eat Mandarin oranges in the olden days, everyone was surprised. I find the reason to be very logical and very pragmatic.

So, do you think you know why Chinese eat Mandarin oranges during Chinese New Year? No, it is not good luck.

Come back to me once you know the answer. In fact, the reason is just very simple and pragmatic. So think about it.


Perhaps, you can read my blog post here again
http://gabrielgim.blogspot.com/2008/12/philosophy-2.html
'Empty your cup so that it may be filled; become devoid to gain totality' (Bruce Lee from the Tao of Jeet Kune Do)


In another words, it explained that you should...
Erase everything what people have been telling you all these years and you should instead find out the real truth.

So, stay tuned...

Or click here.

Respiratory Disorder - Episode 16

I have finished my fluconazole medication after two weeks and so, it is time to see the doctor again on 5th October 2010.

I reached there at 11am just to take my x-ray and to come back at 2pm. The x-ray was needed to compare with the earlier x-ray I took just two weeks earlier to see whether the fluconazole has cured me. I felt uneasy taking several x-ray in just a couple of weeks. I don't want to be exposed to too many radiation. Well, what to do as such procedure is needed to diagnose me.

I came back at 2pm and as usual she checked my lungs using the stethoscope. The x-ray findings was that there were no different compared to x-ray findings two weeks ago. The fluconazole was not really useful.

So she began asking me whether I'm keen on doing the lung biopsy. I took a few couple of minutes thinking whether I should go for it. So I began imagining of some long long long needle being inserted into my lungs. Hmmmm...okayyy that will be painful.

I decided not to do it as I felt it is rather invasive and there is a risk of bleeding or even pneumothorax after the biopsy. Ok, what is pneumothorax?

It is not going to be a nice experience when your lung collapse

Pneumothorax happens when your lung collapse and you will get severe chest pain and breathing difficulties. When that happens, a tube will have to be inserted into the affected lung to drain away the air leakage. That will require a few days of hospitalisation. Anyway if I were to do the lung biopsy, I need to be hospitalised for one night to let them monitor me after the biopsy...because there is a risk of pneumothorax. It's not safe to return home after the lung biopsy because you never know if you will get it. Not only that, the lung biopsy will be performed guided by a CT scan. This means I will be exposed to radiation again. CT scan radiation is 500 times the radiation of a normal x-ray. Ok, that is even worse.



I decided not to the lung biopsy, yet. But I told the doctor I am willing to take a blood test to check for ANCA (antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies) in my body. So I took the blood test after seeing the doctor. The ANCA blood test was needed to check whether I'm suffering from Wegener granulomatosis, which is a rare disorder. It is not an infection. It is a disorder. What is this Wegener thingy? There will be a lot of info to blog about and I will blog about it in the future.

So, I will be seeing the doctor in two weeks time to know the blood test result. Anyway, the blood test will not be an accurate diagnosis to check for the Wegener disorder. But a positive result can strongly support the diagnosis. However, a negative result does not mean I do not have it. A lung biopsy is still needed to be performed.