Tomorrow is ANZAC Day. I've been to two Dawn Services since I finished High School, neither in Australia. Tomorrow, I'm not going to a Dawn Service. However, I am going to walk the final 30km of the Kokoda Challenge Course (and then another 10km back to the car), so I'm pretty sure that the ANZACs will be on my mind. Preparations have been sort of winding up for the last few days; prior to writing this I've been reading my Red Cross Manual about Snake Bites, as Ant mentioned today that in one of the sections there's a snake warning and gaiters are advised(!) Kick-off will be just before 8am, and we're expected to be back in Brissy around 5.30pm.

Which will be just in time to re-claim the Beer Pong crown! <>

Also this week, I've really delved into some more painting. I finished the only piece I've spent more than an hour on yesterday. I re-drew/painted it from a photo I took a couple of years ago; the whole 'panels'/'double canvas' was and idea from my sister. Anyhoosers, here's the completed work;

Okay, let's try that again; 1) Living in a different mix of people inspires and affects the music you listen to. 2) For pretty open-minded people, this seems to go both ways. 3) Every now and then it's important to take stock of the music you're actually listening to and work out if it makes you feel good, (I'm pretty well certain that constant death metal can make you pretty unhappy). 4) Hence, I'm due for an iPod review in the next seven days. I plan to cut the depressive, overly soulful stuff and replace it with upbeat, inspiring stuff. Huzzah!

Okay, so this is the first time I've actually had to really think about what I'm going to spew onto this. With reference to my previous post, the actual goal is that I'm going to write on either Wednesday or Thursday each week. That'll work nicely with my timetable and other events.

Which brings me to my other suggestion from last Thursday; more about me. I thought that I'd add one last fact to sort of round it all off, that is, what you need to know about me. I am a Medical Student, or as some of the course coordinators call it a 'Doctor-In-Training'. The latter of these terms seems a bit odd to me, for several reasons;

Firstly, the 'In Training' bit outweighs the 'Doctor' bit, which is good, as there's no way that med students should be let loose on patients. Secondly, I think that this term sounds quite vocational, which isn't really that far from the truth. However, as some may agree, the 'in training' part tends to detract from the academic aspect of the qualification.

Conversely, the term 'Medical Student' should imply a bucketload of booksmarts, but not one iota of practicality. This is further aggravated by the term 'student' which has become so diffuse that it is frequently used to describe primary school kids (they were always pupils, back in the day), and, thanks to Te Wangana O Aoteoroa, some bouncers-in-training. Hmmm.

I'm at a loss about which of these terms is more appropriate, as well as the context for the correct use of the term 'student'. Generally, I think the term should be reserved for tertiary academic courses mostly at Universities. I appreciate that this attitude is a bit high and mighty, and I'm still in search of a reasonable term to describe persons learning knowledge and skills in a non-university, non-trade-based environment. I do like the term trainee, which would be differentiated nicely from an apprentice and a student. Also, the trainee part would come first, such as a trainee bookkeeper vs an apprentice electrician vs a law student. Right then, I'm clearly rambling.

Here's the photo for today; it's all about the back-light, really. The guitar ain't mine; it's my flatmate's; and he's quite musical. It makes for pretty mellow evenings, having a wee sing-along with the rest of the team; including a bongo player and two guitarists. Sometimes they give me an egg-shaker.

Big Blue is the standard book for Uni this year, and whilst it's not particularly well written, all the information's there. I mean all of it. Last year's book of choice was Big Red. There are a few other also rans that, well, without them you'd flounder but probably pass. You would, however, be crap at the job. They are along the lines of the Drug Book, the General Book and the Cards. My personal favourite addition to this list is the Kid's Book. Until today, it was my newest, too. Today, after a solid 3 months wait, my new version of HPIM arrived. It's in two volumes and has a CD and is bright and shiny an' all.

But back to today; I sank my teeth into Big Blue. I chewed through a whole chapter and actually made some quite constructive notes, which will be genuinely helpful tomorrow when we discuss in class. Hooray. Right then, photos (the real reason I've just rambled for two and a half paragraphs);

The first was taken last night at sunset. Ironically, tonight the camera was nowhere to be seen and the red and dusky pink clouds were amazing. As in, etched in my memory amazing. Meantime, the pic shows the bushes across the street and the distant light.

This second image was taken after dusk, at the other end of my house. It's the kitchen window, which reminds me a lot of the house that I grew up in, which had several lead-light windows. Few were this bright and cheery, however, this window also echoes another window at my brother's place, particularly for its 'above sink' placement and early morning warmth. The context I went for here was actually to light the way to the entry, with a hint of what's inside.

So, next time I'm here, I might mention a little bit more about me. Because keeping it all so damned secretive is not only stupidly hard, it means that sometimes this all lacks a bit of context. I also plan to clarify an earlier goal. Huzzah! Until then...

Still, being sick is a pain in the arse. You cop out on things you'd normally be champing at the bit to do; for example, today was Wednesday. The once-a-week chance to follow around a pro and they show and tell a bunch of really hand hints that the books won't teach you. Being sick is bad for Wednesday, because if you cough, splutter and sneeze on someone who's already really sick... well, things could turn pear-shaped.

Also, it's put a bit of a hold on the training. I flagged the sprinting stuff last night, and I'm in little shape to do anything other than type and stare at the computer/TV screen. However, this has lead to catching up on Scrubs episodes. By catch up, I mean watch the entire third series; and I'll probably watch season 4 tomorrow.

Back in the real world, my wonderful girlfriend lent me her camera, and it's a wee bit better than the 'camera' I've previously used for all those pictures- a Nokia cellphone. This one has a wee bit more kick, and it means that I can try before I buy one of my own. So, today's photos were taken by a real camera, not a phone.

The first photo is rocketing up my 'favourite photo' charts; it's a pair of scissors I bought in Vietnam last November for a friend to cut my hair. The scissors are sitting on the reverse side of my doona. That's a quilt/duvet for non-Aussie speakers.

The second photo is the disco ball that came with my house. It hangs over the back veranda, below the cream beams and corrugated iron. I snapped it moving, because it's persona suggests the potential for parties, chaos and excitement, but it's setting is so serene and relaxing.

Finally, yesterday I 'caught up' with one of my best friends. It was online, unfortunately, rather than by phone, or in person. What I'm getting to with this is that everyone has friends that are truly friends, and they're not always in contact with them. The important thing is not just to think about all the great times you've had together and then reminisce at the next big event, it's that a quick call or four-line email, or whatever, makes a huge difference. It lets them know that you exist. That you think about them. Everyone needs to be thought about.

So, I've signed up for something that promises to be a huge challenge; I'm in a team for an Adventure Race called the 'Kokoda Challenge'. I've never done anything like this before, in fact, at primary school, I was 'morally' opposed to running the 700m, because it seemed a ridiculously long way. Fair enough, my general fitness has improved remarkably since I made those comments about 18 years ago, but, crikey, it's an intimidating ask;

In other news, Monday is Advance Life Support Day. This differs from the Basic Life support that you learn on the First Aid courses in that it's a bit more hardcore, like putting tubes down tracheas and giving drugs and the like. Pretty exciting stuff, really. Other people who've sample this particular class reckon that you'll be at least 2 years out of Uni before you're running this kind of situation, but hey, it's important stuff to know early. It's so different to history taking and ethics skills and pathology knowledge that you'd want it to be reflex by the time you're in charge, I reckon.

In fact, that's part of the whole learning process; when you're 8, you watch adults driving and think; "No sweat, that looks pretty easy.", that is, you don't know that you don't know. Then at 15, you get behind the wheel and think "I've got no idea about this.", you suddenly know that you don't know. A few months later, with some lessons under the belt you're thinking "... and the clutch goes in, and change gear, release slowly...", and you know that you know how to drive. Finally, after a couple of years on the roads, you're cruising along thinking; "This weekend I'm going to the Coast, and then on Monday I'm at Herston..." and driving couldn't be further from your consciousness, well, you don't know that you know. This isn't to say that you're lazy, it's just that the notion of changing gears and getting the clutch right, well, it's automatic. I think that many things can be like that, like writing a well structured essay, or shooting a basketball...

I guess for me it's going to be walking bloody long distances, in a few short months :)

Finally, the two photos. One is my duck Oz; what a star. Oz is actually a green duck. He likes long swims in the bath and enjoys squeaking when he's squeezed. His yellow brother Frank, died a horrible death when he was decapitated by a dog called Odessa. The names come from this guy. The second photo was taken at about 10pm at Sunshine Beach, with the help of JK, in his post-swim state.

Anyhoo, I've managed to hit the road for a break in the last few days, up to the Sunny Coast and down to Sydney; these two photos pretty well encapsulate the travels.

Firstly, this is taken at Sunshine Beach. The whole experience was a sublime opportunity to relax with good friends. As per usual, a slightly nerdy air was invoked in passages, but hey, it's a vocational course. Best of all were the chances to contemplate +/- fresh air.


Secondly, this is me at Sydney Airport. Today was a whirlwind/lightning tour and a good chance to catch up with family, young and much older. It was quite relieving to see that, by and large, my family is happy, healthy and doin' well! It also gave me a good insight into the notion that 'sushi trains' can actually be quite classy, after previously having this concept obliterated by the good folks in Toowong. The image is more channeling that trance-like state that comes with being 'In Transit', especially when there's more waiting time than flying time.


As you may have guessed by now; I'm not totally au fait with the pictorial self-exposure that goes with most blogs. That's in part due to the desire to keep just a wee bit untraceable, but also because I'm likely, at some point, to make bitchy comments about what people wear. Deal with it. So, I'm slowly getting to my thought of the day, though, and that is; Can one have the skills of wit and charm without simultaneously having equal ability to create cutting, nasty insults in a flash?

Mastocytes are important immune cells. When stimulated by antigen, chemokines or other immunological cells and mediators, they release their own powerful immune complexes, including histamine, prostaglandins and other vasodilators, which signal to other organs, including the brain. The local blood vessels dilate and other cells move into the area. In turn, these cells activate and pump immune signals around the body. Thus, once a mast cell has degranulated, it is active and firing. It's letting the body know what's going on.

Finally, this is a rhyme I put together a while ago;

Matzoh on Lime

[tick tick tick]
Hassidics walkin', in old J-town,
Faces fixed in a whacked out frown.
Don't be down, just turn it round,
Smile at those men like a circus clown! [elephant trumpets]
Between two nations, that don't eat pork,
A thin, fine line, the snipers walk
Just need to talk (though some men balk)
Been twenty plus years since they fought Norfolk.
But U S A is stuck in Iraq,
Local power they seem to lack.
Take the flack, and bring it back,
Look at Judea, about to crack! [whip sound]

Stop! bouncing bombs up on that line,
Between to nations, who ain't sublime.
We will find peace, we just. need. time.

[tick tick tick]
The middle east, ain't goin well,
anger and tension, they always swell.
When Yasser fell, there tolled a bell,
the holy land won't be turnin' to hell!
Before my airbus, I got full fleece.
Guantanmo captives, they refuse to release.
Now if you please, we must decrease
a soldier's power to police the peace!
Taking meetings, up in the air,
With George and Condy, the new odd-pair,
don't despair, the will is there,
Peaceful solutions and diplomatic flair.

Stop! bouncing bombs up on that line,
Between to nations, who ain't sublime.
We will find peace, we just. need. time.
[tick tick tick]