Wednesday, August 24, 2005

Eat the Rich.

Once in a while, I will get my grubby hands on a book to read.

Recently, Makan Guru passed me a book entitled "Eat the Rich" by P.J. O'Rouke.

The book is hilarous, with all it's jibes at economists and political leaders, coupled with it's self depreciating humour.

Excerpt:

"This is how economics is understood after two semesters at most colleges:

1. There are a lot of graphs.
2. I'd better memorize them
3. Or get last year's test.

And this is how economics is understood after three drinks at most bars:

1. There are only so many things in the world, and somebody is taking my share.
2. All payment for work is underpayment.
3. All business is crime.
A. Retailers are thieves
B. Wholesalers are pimps.
C. Manufacturers are slave drivers
4. All wealth is the result of criminal conspiracy among
A. Jews.
B. Japanese.
C. Pirates in neckties on Wall Street."

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Selfishness

"Well, thanks for taking care and feeding me this weekend. Come to London, and I will take care of you there, mate," Cousin M said.

"No problem. Y'know, I extend my friendship to you, much as I extend it to everyone else. And some abuse it. Sometimes, it does not pay to be nice. And some even miscontrue my friendliness as romantic interest," I reflected bitterly.

"You're like me then, being friendly to everyone, and accomodating everyone. You know what, you gotta be selfish sometimes. After you please everyone else,from friends, to your family, you will feel unhappy. Because you don't do things for yourself," he replied, before continuing "And that is why I am on this trip. This 3 year holiday trip."

And it suddenly hit me why I have been feeling so restless lately;

That in accomodating others, I have shortchanged myself.
That in fulfilling society's expectations, I have shortchanged myself.
That in fulfilling my promise on his deathbed, I have shortchanged myself; I suppressed my wanderlust.
That in fulfilling my family responsibilities, I have shortchanged myself; I gaveher up.

But now, the responsibilities and promise has been fulfilled. Now, it's time to think of what I really wanna do, which is the hardest part, and making that decision to change.

Saturday, August 20, 2005

Cousin from Australia

Met up with long lost cousin from down under during the weekend. It's interesting that even after 15 years of not keeping in contact, we could still hit it off well.

From our meeting, I discovered that:

1. Maybe the ability to spout crap/nonsense/rubbish is genetic after all. He spews as much nonsense me.

2. That I am not so kantang after all.

3. That his thinking, and philosophical beliefs is so similar to mine. Our thinking is radical, and goes against conventional wisdom.

4. That we are marriage phobic. Don't ever mention that word to us. It is vulgar.

5. That we have very abused livers. Whilst I have stopped killing my liver drinking heavily much earlier, his still goes on.

6. That we are both left handed.

7. That both of us would like to travel, and see the world. Whilst he is realising his dream, now, I have yet to see mine materialize.

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

Prayer

Lord, please give me the strength to:

Forgive the self righteous friend who went ahead to chase her, despite knowing full well that I liked her when I introduced her.

Rebuild and maintain my lapsed emotional discipline, and continue to be her intellectual whore very close friend, despite my wanting to cut off the 10 year friendship. Seeing her tear just melts my heart.

Thank you, Lord, for:

Revealing who my true friends are; Miss Ex Co Lindy Hop instructor turned good friend, thanks for being there, and just listening to me spout rubbish; Tripleperiod, who called and offered a listening ear; and MakanGuru, who offered to buy me a beer. For every dark clouds there are silver linings.


Sometimes, people disappoint me so much, I think I'm just gonna get a dog instead.
Now, where are the addresses for the dog farms?

Monday, August 15, 2005

Tired.

These two weeks have been emotional roller coaster ride.

Tired, angry, hurt, and I vow, never to trust anyone again. My ex long time drinking buddy that go married has been right after all. You can trust your friends with secrets, money, and any other things, but with girls, you can never trust.

As he used to tell me, "Do not introduce any of the girls that you are interested to me. And do not introduce your girlfriend to me either. If you are attached, tell me, and show me who she is, so that I will avoid her, and will not pick her up if I see her anywhere else".

Sighs. Brother J, I used to digress and disagree with you on this matter. But you have been right, as usual. You and your many observations, have been right on so many occasions.

Time to concentrate on the career switch and the MBA plans that I have been telling you about.

Sunday, August 14, 2005

Dumb Asses part 1,098,066

Had a call this morning at 5.30am.

"UMB, my office computer is not working,come down now!", the stupid German growled.

"Can you tell me what happened?", I asked.

"I don't know, the computer is not working, the fax is not working, everything is not working, you come down?", he barked.

"Sure, give me 45 mins, will be down there", I answered.

15 minutes later, when I got dressed and called him back, it turned out that he did not turn on the main supply switch. But yet, the e-mail was not working. So, off to the client's office I went.

"The e-mail's fault lies in the US", I told him after troubleshooting the problem.

"No, no, it must be something wrong with the office, you go and check your computers thoroughly", he insisted.

Nah Beh, I hate it when people doubt ability, especially people more stupid than I am, and know less than me. And so, I had to make a show of calling my tech guys up, and checking up all the IT equipment. In the end, I asked him to call the IT support guys in US to check. Turned out that they had a scheduled server upgrade, and e-mail was supposed to be down for the day. And no one was informed.

KNNCCB! Fucking waste of my time. But then again, I get paid to take all this crap. Just so to support my vices.

I think I need to change my line of work. Fast, before stupidity overdose kills my remaining brain cells.

Thursday, August 11, 2005

And another person added to the stupidity list.

First was the dumb indian IT manager who does not even know how to create a user in Windows 2000 Server.

Then, it was his gullible Norwegian boss who believed every lies he spun.

Now, it's the loud growling gorilla gutteral German who cannot articulate himself clearly, and does not even knows what he wants.

Sighs. My tolerance for morons has increased tenfold ever since joining the IT profession.

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Cost of LASIK

Pre-LASIK Consultation for suitability: $179

Standard Zyoptix treatment (with intralase):
1. Right eye (inclusive of refractive test and medicine): $2,318.7
2. Left eye (inclusive of repeat visit): $ 2,337.95

Post-LASIK Consultation:
1. 1st visit: $50.67 inclusive of medicine
2. 2nd visit: $43

Total cost: $4,929.32

Convenience of not worrying about having to remove contact lenses and dry eyes after a good nights shag drinking: Priceless.

Monday, August 08, 2005

Several considerations for LASIK

Before I went for LASIK, and chose TTSH to go through the operation, there were several considerations that I took note of:


1. Type of hobbies that I will be involved in after the operation

From what I understood, LASIK is not suitable for people involved with high contact sports. I used to do muaythai kickboxing, and chinese martial arts (which involves a lot of breaking bricks, and getting your body smashed with sticks). It was only after I had given up these sports, that I began to even consider the option of LASIK.


2. Alternatives.

Technologies:
Right now, there are alternatives to LASIK. There is Wavefront LASIK,Epi-Lasik, LASEK, and Pseudo Accommodative Cornea (PAC). Technologies are always evolving. And there is a choice between using the mirokeratome or Intralase to create the corneal flap. Research on the internet, it has a wealth of information. Plus, you might want to find out what type of laser machine that each LASIK centres have, and if they are FDA approved.

3. LASIK Centres:

There were a few considerations before I chose TTSH:

In Singapore:

Tan Tock Seng Hospital: The first centre in Singapore to introduce Intralase. Plus at that time, they were the only using it. Intralase is considered a safer procedure and it cuts up less of the cornea to create the flap. This is particularly useful for people with high myopia, as more cornea needs to be cut. The service level there is good. Plus, a colleague recommended me the eye surgeon there. They were the first to bring down the price of LASIK, which prompted other LASIK centres to do the same.

Singapore National Eye Centre: If I am not mistaken, they use LADARvision which was supposedly the first machine to be able to do wavefront. (Correct me if I am wrong). I did not consider them at all, as the machines they used were not advanced; the size of lasers used were not small not enough to even treat a highly myopic person like me.

In Malaysia:

Vista: Vista uses the Bausch & Lomb's Zyoptix 100 as their main LASIK machine. Plus, they were the first to introduce Intralase in the region. At one point in time last year, their machines were the latest, and I was seriously considering them for LASIK. But, a price comparison between them and TTSH were on par. Because they were using the Zyoptix 100, they would be able to treat my high myopia.

Optimax: By far the most popular choice amongst Malaysians/Singaporeans. Stepping into their clinics, they have these folders where they have hundreds of letters written by clients who were impressed by the level of service. Plus, they have several centres in Malaysia, Johor Bahru, Penang, and KL, to mention a few. They offer several options to correcting vision; LASEK and LASIK. But because the LASIK machines that were used to correct the eye were Nidek 5000 and they only offered the microkeratome early this year, they could not treat my myopia. The only recourse is to do LASEK, which I did not want because it is a new procedure (and I thought, unproven). And, the recovery is much longer and troublesome compared to LASIK. Also, they are now introducing Pseudo Accommodative Cornea (PAC).


4. Costs.
I was deliberating between Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Thailand is definitely out for me, because it is too far away. Plus, the costs of travelling there, and going back for check up would be very troublesome.

Prices for Vista, and Optimax could be found on their website. They have periodic promotions ( and even tie ups with credit card companies) as compared to the LASIK centres in Singapore, so I would not be putting them up. Bear in mind that their prices are inclusive of follow up consultation. The practice in Singapore is slightly different; if you were to go for the treatment, you only pay for the treatment. Any other follow up consultation is chargeable.

You might also need to factor in hotel stay, transport to KL, if you are doing a cost comparison.

5. Final Words.
In considering which LASIK centre to go to, my main consideration was not cost, but the surgeon and the type of machine used. I would akin this to taking a flight, where the doctor is the pilot, and the type of machines used is the plane.

You will need a combination of an experienced pilot, plus a good plane in order to have smooth and successful flight. Plus, the longer the distance flown (higher myopia), only certain planes can go the distance without needing stopovers.

Well, to those who is thinking of doing LASIK, I would highly recommend it. Happy LASIK shopping!

Friday, August 05, 2005

And another reason why I will never be able to get a gf

And another reason why girls treat me like an intellectual whore I will never be able to get a gf.

A recent SMS conversation:

Me: So wanna meet for lunch tomorrow?

A: Tomorrow... I'll try go gym see got energy or not.. Eat fat eat fat .. Sigh.

Me: Like that .. i'm fatter fatter fatter, just go blade blade blade

A: Keke .. well the society's tolerance 4 male's girth is much higher than 4 females. U r fine just the way u r :)

Me: With the exception of a girth of a certain man's anatomy, I don't think society is that tolerant either.

A: Er .. the head? :)

Me: Only the head in between the legs, and not in between the shoulders.

A: Aarghh... UMB!

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Why?

Because, there is a beautiful connection, despite the interests disparity.

Because, we could have endless conversation, and not run out of topics.

Because, our dates makes me wanting for more.

Because, you have affected me in ways I thought not possible.

Because, I have not felt this way for a long time.

LASIK Operation


Entrance
Originally uploaded by urbanmalebitch.




After much research on the LASIK centers available in Singapore and Malaysia, I have decided to stick to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, for two reasons:

1)They have the latest LASIK equipment available, the other being Vista
2)The eye surgeon, Dr. Lee Hong Ming, was highly recommended by an ex colleague.

And so on Thursday, I sat outside TTSH, waiting for my turn to be operated on. You can tell that the center is doing well, from the furnishings. Got even free internet access. Complete with iMacs.


iMac
Originally uploaded by urbanmalebitch.



First stop, to the refraction test room. To test if my eyesight has deteriorated. A sweet and pretty optician tested my eyesight. Which of course, made it harder for me to concentrate on the refractive test. With such pretty optician, how to concentrate? Anyone guy with perfect eyesight also have problem, see letters wait all become figures. Liddat how?

Waited for about half an hour, before I was called in to the operating theatre.

Nurses put a series of anaesthetic eyedrops . The eye doc was brimming with confidence and was all smiles. Too confident in fact, that I felt uneasy. But then again, he has a huge reputation. Waiting queue for other doctors, 2 weeks. For him, it’s at least 1 month.

From the holding area, I saw the sight saviour machines. A million dollar Intralase machine and Bausch & Lomb’s Zyoptix 100.


Operating theatre
Originally uploaded by urbanmalebitch.



A closer shot of the intralase machine.


intralase machine
Originally uploaded by urbanmalebitch.



First my eyelids were plastered wide open. A spring like device was used hold the eyelids apart. A suction device was attached to the eyeball. It created a pressure on the eyeball, somewhat like a mini vacuum cleaner sucking onto a pingpong ball. All while I’m still conscious, seeing it right in from of my eye.

The Intralase machine’s laser was then extended down to the eye. With me fully conscious.

“I am going to create a flap in your cornea now”

“Pressure On”

And I saw a host of octagonal yellow lights lighting up

“Counting down , 50 seconds”

And I still saw the same host of octagonal yellow lights.

“5 more seconds”

And the pressure was still on. I felt nothing at all.

“Pressure Off”

And thus, the cornea was cut to create a flap. Painless.

“There are no bubbles formed during the flap creation. We will now proceed with the LASIK”

The bed shifted, and I am now in full view of the Zyoptix 100 machine. I saw a series of green lights and red lights emitting from the machine.

The doctor then used a device to flip up the flap, and all of a sudden, my vision was blurred.

“Concentrate on the red blinking lights, not the red one. Remember, stay still, and do not talk”

He held my forehead down tightly against the headrest, whilst I gazed intently at the series of red blinking lights.

“The laser is in position now. Phase 1 of operation now begins”

Keeping still, I continued staring at the blinking red lights, as instructed.

“5 more seconds remaining, begin of Phase 2”

The operation was done in 5 phases, and it took only about 40 seconds.

“Congratulations, the operation is successful.”

He flipped back the cut flap. And my vision cleared up instantly. I could see the world around me.

A tiny brush was then used to wipe and seal the flap back in. He then applied some sort of a lotion on the cornea. It was a pretty strange sensation, as you could see him wiping away at your cornea, very much like the petrol station guy wiping the windscreen whilst you are in the driver’s seat.

I had a photo taken during the post check up 20 mins after the operation.


Dr Lee Hong Ming
Originally uploaded by urbanmalebitch.




Vision? I felt like I was in dreamland, with halos surrounding objects. Two days later, after much rest, it improved tremendously. The last time I tested, it was 6/6.