Mixed Feeling

What a day. I left off'ice early to go to the MBPJ counter to fuss about a summon notice I received recently.

1. I didnt receive any summon for any parking offences in the said location in SS26
2. I have no idea where SS26 is
3. They got my car number right but car type wrong (Waja instead of Spectra)
4. They got my road tax number wrong

I sped to Menara MBPJ at 4.30 aiming to reach there before they close at 4.45. Could not find any parking after searching for 15 mins..detoured to Pejabat MBPJ across the street which closes at 5.00. Thank god I found parking pretty quickly but I had to walk a few minutes to the other building - donno why goverment buildings are so far apart..so much land meh!

I reached the counter at 4.55 and proceed to the queueing machine to get a number. Believe it or not the office is packed. Apparently, it's the last day to pay Quit Rent...as usual la..Malaysians. At the queueing machine I had 5 option buttons to press..kiasu me pressed 2 options. One is to 'membayar', the other one to 'merayu'. The 'merayu' counter is very free so my turn came pretty quickly. The counter clerk was relatively 'sing mook'..before I can finish all my points..she clicked on the system to check. Canggih..they have onsite photos as proof - it's a Waja indeed with WJG6263 plate. Obviously SALAH. Problem solved...printed a letter to 'batal' the notice. DONE.

I was done by 5.15..didnt go back to office but I went to the MPH warehouse sale instead. Huge sale man...all the books books and books. Felt kind of small. An attendant offered me a box to fill in my purchases - I declined. I did start reading again but not to the extend that I need a box yet. Bought 3 novels fro $30. Cheap?

At 6 ish I proceed to the gym to meet my new trainer. Decided to sign up with him cos he is the first person in the last 10 years to notice my hidden physical problems. He claimed he can help to re-adjust as he specialises in rehabilitation and sports medicine. Signed up for 25 sessions - $95 per session. Spent my first session today walking on treadmill for 30 mins and 'stryding' machine for 20 mins. And the rest on strecthing. He said he wants me to do more cardio first wor..to clear toxins wor.

After working out....found some smses and missed call. One from client about some minor stuff - so kan cheong meh?? One form my cousin who said that one of my aunty fell and hurt herself seriously. Damn.... Spoked to her when I got home. She seriously injured some bones in her shoulder, palm and knee but refused a cast. So..she is at home, cant work, in pain. Her husband and daughter has to go to work. She will be home alone with her other daughter who is retarded
unfortunately. Pity...what can I do to help..

What a day...

End Day Saga ..Continued

Thanks for tuning in..here's the conclusion:

FREN: Boss MC.....We tot he kena stroke
FREN: He was in the hosp until 10 pm........didnt admit him, discharged n went home
FREN: He got "VERTIGO" wor
W SL: the travelling sicknees??
FREN: Vertigo = Yee sui pat phing hang (Ear Water Not Balance)
W SL: oic
FREN: But yday the way he collapsed, betul betul macam STROKE
W SL: tats why i asked u if he stil alive
FREN: Did u knw that my boss collapse at the lift lobby
FREN: Our office is on the 49th floor.....so we need to take 2 lift....Fr 1-38 and transist fr 38-49
W SL: no lo
W SL: u jus said.he collapsed
FREN: He took the lift dwn to 38 and collpase on the 38 lobby
W SL: LOL
W SL: he fat or not?
FREN: Yupe...Fat...and Short
FREN: B4 he collapse, they were even chatting on each other weight
W SL: oh dear
FREN: The guard who brought the paramedic to us told my colleagues, tis one is 2nd case for tis YR
FREN: The "farnee" security guard even said Wahh....compared to the opp buidling, our record good....Only 2....Theirs is 8!!
W SL: sick building syndrome ka?
FREN: No......Most cases were HEART ATTACK
FREN: Juz read ur blog....
FREN: Nobody comment......
FREN: Must b shocked....dunno wat to write
FREN: Plz insert a comment for me, "He's alive and resting at home" Means.............No Boss for the Wk!! Yippy!!!!!!!
W SL: i tot of posting this whole chat session..but scared..u kena tangkap..after u r boss read how.
W SL: u said he is short n fat wor
FREN: My boss doesnt know wat is BLOG
FREN: Furthermore he himself admitted he is short n fat...
W SL: ok la..if u say so
FREN: I not the scary cat type la
FREN: Summore ur blog u feature me as FREN

End day saga..

As I was wondering what I should write to celebrate yet another end day....something happened. See below..chats with my cyber colleague:

Fren: MY BOSS JUZ COLLAPSED in office!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fren: I got a scared of my life!!!
W SL: HUH
W SL: which one..the one u always gaduh with?
Fren: Yes
W SL: wat happened??
W SL: heart attack?
Fren: I so buzy calling doctor and ambulance
W SL: is he alive?
Fren: Initially he told me he dizzy...so I juz passed him my fong yau
Fren: I shy to rub for him...so ask my male colleague to do
Fren: Then suddenly he ran to the dusbin n vomitted
Fren: BRB

To be continued...

..

Here's something from a friend who insisted that I put up in my blog:

Wife is like a TV. Girlfriend is like handphone.
At home watch TV. Go out bring h/p.
No money sell TV. Got money change h/p.
Sometimes enjoy TV but most of the time play with h/p.
TV free for life but....
h/p, if you don't pay,
services will be terminated....!

...

Almost all friends and relatives I met during CNY claimed that I have lost some weight. That's good news to me. I jokingly told them that I requested for liposuction as well during the ops :D Personally, I don't see much difference in myself - may be a slightly smaller tummy without the cysts. I weighed myself at the gym yesterday - proven that I didn't shed too much in weight, probably about 2 kg at most. While I am determined to keep this condition (if not improve) I am also quite sure that I will re-gain the weight (and tummy) fairly easily and quickly too.

That's why I was at the gym yesterday. Firstly to stay active to minimise the side effects of the monthly injections and secondly to stay healthy and thirdly to stay as fit as possible for as long as I can. I only did light workout yesterday (even lighter than my usual already light routines) because I still feel some slight muscle discomfort around the ops area. Co-incidentally, there was a totally new team of personal trainers (PTs) at the gym doing their rounds. Two of them noticed that I wasn't working out correctly and corrected me and we started about chatting how long I have been a member. They were surprised that I have been a member for so long but still not very familiar with the equipments. Apparently, they are on a mission to find out why we are so afraid to consult PTs and as a result ended up visiting the gym less regularly - well the reasons are pretty obvious - "cos we don't want to pay for a PT"

After a brief chat, one of them offered me a few free trial sessions just to guide me through the equipments and to brief me what I should do more and less according to my goals and objectives. Just about time isn't it...hope he will give me more reasons and motivativation to stay fit. I am meeting him this Saturday.

As usual I always feel good after working out. Since I am on leave today - I decided to go for a swim at my friend's condo. She can't join me (monthly inconvenience) but her 3 yr old daughter was delighted to join me. Again, dare not exert myself too much but it was fun and refreshing.

Unfortunately, I 'was not allowed' to go home after that! I was dragged to a go visiting with them - I suspect they wanted to matchmake me with their unmarried friend *frown*. Ended up visiting 2 houses until past 5pm. They even tried to get me to have dinner with them...ai yaa I was dead tired by then. A bit too much hanging out with a family with 2 young kids who occasionally whined for attention.

I managed to wriggle out of the house eventhough my friend's dad really wanted me stay for dinner. So...here I am safe back home. Appreciated their sincerity...but I don't think I will enjoy the dinner.

*YAWN* Am dead tired now..back to work tomorrow.

Back to Reality

I am back at work today after 18 days away from work! The past 18 days was like a dream - in hospital, in out OT in hospital, out hospital, home rest doing nothing , CNY...and bliiing - am back here again back to my normal routine.

Woke up tis morning and automatically switched back to my normal routines that I hv not done for the past 18 days e.g. waking up at 7.30!, making coffee( did not do that at all for the last 18 days), morning strecth exercise (didn't to that too), had my breakfast biscuit with coffee, bath, hop into car, drove to work (almost forgotten my way to work), parked my car at the 7th floor of the multi level carpark. Remembered to bring my parking tag but left the office access card pulak.

I have just finished clearing my mailbox..thankfully there's nothing urgent to attend to. I also just realised that I still have 14 leave days to clear by Mar - shall I take the next 2 days off ah??

Sigh...it's almost end Feb..CNY just breezed thru without much excitement. My trip in Mar is cancelled...I need some excitement to perk me up man. If not..how am I going to get thru 2007.

Speaking of CNY...it went by just like previous years for me. 1st day visiting to key relatives. Only different is that I decided to join some friends on 2nd day instead of spending with ol man (was with him so many days ma during MC days). 

Special Dinner Guest

Recently we discovered that we have an additional dinner guest on our dinner table at home. Let me introduce you to this special little guy. It will wait patiently under the lazy susan and sneaks out to eat whenever it sees leftovers dropped on the table.

Protege

I went to watch this movie yesterday. Mainly because I like the casts and there has been non-stop preview on TV for the last few weeks. FL and concluded that there is nothing to shout about except for the good performance all the main characters Andy Lau, Daniel Wu, Anita Yuen, etc. The plots are pretty slow with very little action scenes unlike previous HK movie of the same nature.

Nevertheless, the intended message driven by the movie is clear and probably something to for us to think about. It's all about the mindset of the drug trafficker (& his family) and the victims. Andy Lau (the trafficker) said that it is not his fault...he is just a business man....he supplies when there is demand. If they wanna ruin their lives using drugs ...it's their own fault.
Demand & Supply theory konon-nya.

No surprises in the movie, but i enjoyed watching my favourite actors/ actresses though. Happy Chinese Year Everyone!!!

Doctor A

He he..I am back. As Cowie said..I very free indeed. Am going out tomorrow so you won't hear from me tomorrow. My discussion with Cowie prompted me to write about dear Doctor A. Ok..how do I start this...*scatching head*

Remember I was choosing between Doc A and Doc B?? Well, I think I made the right choice by choosing Doc A.

As a child I hated going to clinics, my mom said I will start screaming my head off even before I reach the gate/ door of the hospital/clinic. Mom always said..."Thank God you don't get sick often." Unfortunately, I was forced to have more interactions with doctors after I reach 20 y.o. Some complicated medical history which I don't want to talk about now. So...for the last 10 yrs or so I have seen many MOs, GPs, Physicians, Neurologists and lastly Gynaes.

Sometime last year I came across a good GP..nice old Doctor Yong at Klinik Segambut. Peace of mind - I've been in search of a good GP all my life.

Now I have Doctor Wong (Doctor A) *grin*.

He is really nice wan la. At the clinic he doesn't seem to be in a rush. Unlike most doctors who doesnt have time to listen to you or asked you to go back read the internet instead *rolling my eyes*. Two of my other friends was under him when they delivered their babies, as MK rightfully pointed out..he has excellent bedside manners. He always tells you first before touching you. And he will do it very gently. For example...I was shivering cold when I returned from the OT, although he was abit amused, he didnt take thgs for granted. Instead of examining me straight away with his cold hands and statescope..he rubbed his hands together first before touching me. So much 'empathy' right? And he apologised after applying a jab. Nice man hor.

But he is married la. Darn...
Anyone looking for a gynae? I highly recommend Dr A!

Faults Faults

Several failed attempts to the 'M' bank to trace my credt card application status had triggered me to write this. I tried once in the morning and was put on hold for 5 mins without any response...all I hear was .."sorry..all our executives are still busy". A while ago I remembered that I still have not receive my redemption item from the H Bank, so I called to check. Within 1 minute I had a respond and was attended to very swiftly. The call ended within 5 mins...this is what efficiency is all about. I followed with another call to the M Bank...failed again...no response..their executives are always busy.

This brings me to my awful experience discharging from the P Hospital on the 7th of Feb. They started to process at 5pm. Since I am using an insurance medical card, I was warned that it will take some time. We waited and waited (at the ward)..but they keep telling us that it's under process. Only at 7ish I was told that the insurance co. have yet to approve my case, I decided to call my insurance agent then. First thing he asked was.."why didnt you call me earlier" - I didnt know how to react to that question.

Agent called back within minutes to say that the ins. co. is waiting for some documents - an imaging scan and a blood test result. I did not have any imaging done nor blood test, the ward nurse only sent over a blood test result that was done much earlier during diagnosis stage.

We later clarified that there wasnt any imaging and the only lab investigation ordered will only have results in 1 week's time. Later, (by agent) I was told that my bill was as high as $18k..and they are seeking approval from higher authority - that will take about 30 mins. It was past 8pm by then.

Throughout the whole process, it involved the ward nurses, myself, my agent, the hospital billing dept, and the insurance co. staff. It was so frustating that nobody in the hospital could tell me or help me straighten things up. I have to rely on my agent to get info..and seek frther clarification from the ward nurse and the ward nurse had to call her colleague at the billings dept. You see the ridiculous process...??

Alas...at 9pm I was told to go down to the A&E to make some additional $40+ ,...the nurse ward had no idea what that was all about. Fortunately..the ward nurse was sane enough for not insisting that I return to ward to get my medication after payment - she sent a trainee nurse to go with me.

So...there I was..with fresh wounds from the procedure & occassional post surgical diaghram ache (as a result of CO2 gases used during the ops - I was told)....I walked all the way to the A&E and welcomed by ..."we didnt receive any info from billing dept" from the A&E nurses!!

By..was I fuming by then. I told them I have not ate anything since 3pm, I am tired and hungry now...can I just leave. They gave me an unsymphatetic "no". Minutes later...the billings clerk arrived with her file and bags (ready to go home) and demanded that I pay another $41. When we asked further..what is the chargs about...she called the insurance co. and passed the phone to me. The $41 is for sanitary towels and the DVD...I questioned why ?? I ended up having to wait another few mins and later the ins. staff asked for the hospital staff. When I looked up...the billing clerk has gone home!!

The ins. staff...spent another 5-10 mins with the cashier to reverse the sanitary towel charge. Means I only have to pay for the DVD. I wanted to just pay and leave but they won't let me go until their system says $20 instead of $41. Well...they are fortunate that both my brother and I hav in-born gentically high level of patience.

I told my doc about this...and he apologised. He added that the hospital has some ISO certification whereby admission & discharge should be done withina specific time.

As Cowie will probably say...may be it's me...I wasn't fierce enough.

Endometriosis

I have to make some clarifications...I guess I have not been clear or rather...I didnt want to go into too much details earlier. Now I see the need...especially after having to repeat myself to different individuals so many times. I also see a need to share this knowledge as I see a lot of friends (women) particularly are still ignorant about endometriosis. I was one. More than a yr ago a gynae told me that I hv this disease and suggested that I go on a 6 monthly medication. He didn't explain much but asked me to go read a website - which I glanced thru briefly. Ok.....I was ignorant. Here's a brief explanation about the disease from Wikipedia:

Endometriosis is a common medical condition affecting an estimated 89 million women of reproductive age around the world. In endometriosis, the tissue (endometrium) which lines the uterus is found growing outside the uterus, within other areas of the body. Normally, the endometrium is shed each month during the menstrual cycle; however, in endometriosis, the misplaced endometrium is usually unable to exit the body. The endometriotic tissues still detach and bleed, but the result is far different: internal bleeding, degenerated blood and tissue shedding, inflammation of the surrounding areas, and formation of scar tissue may result. In addition, depending on the location of the growths, interference with the normal function of the bowel, bladder, small intestines and other organs within the pelvic cavity can occur. In very rare cases, endometriosis has also been found in the skin, the lungs, the diaphragm, and even the brain.

A major symptom of endometriosis is pain, mostly in the lower abdomen, lower back, and pelvic area. The amount of pain a woman feels is not necessarily related to the extent or stage (1 through 4) of endometriosis. Some women will have little or no pain despite having extensive endometriosis affecting large areas or endometriosis with scarring. On the other hand, women may have severe pain even though they have only a few small areas of endometriosis.

Well...I don't remember reading that? I only remember opting to stop medication to see 'what happen next'. Well..nothing happened! The pain stopped! So I carried on with my life la.

Until recently, I decided to go check it out again (after noticing some abnormalities). I saw two gynaes and both give me very clear explanation of the complications...and because they can see very clearly now that there are 2 cysts in me...there were no reason for me to refuse treatment.

I was also advised to take a blood test (CA125) to rule out / in chances on cancer. And the test result came back quite high which gave everyone a scare. The doctors then told me that the chances of cancer is low though (1-2%) but this does indicate that I may have a serious endometriosis problem in me. So...that gave me more reason to go ahead with the surgery.

So...I paid RM10, 245.80 for the procedure which required 1.5 days in the hospital to find out that I have severe endometriosis. By right - I should have experienced tremendous pain...no idea why I didn't. Thank god I was sensitive enough to notice the spotting..if not there would have been more complications. The doctor spent almost 3 hours trying to fix the damages and clean up as much as he can.

Physically, I am fine now. Recovering very well..laparoscopy is a great invention...they can do so much with just three small holes. As for treatment, I have to undergo some 6 monthly jab to help the organs heal (supposely). And ..will see what happens next.

Lastly...to clear some confusion out there...I do not have cancer (yet).

..

I created an 'uproar' at my sister's house last night when I annouced that I am going for tai ci (6 days after the laparoscopy). Well..they think that I should 'rest' and tai ci is too soon and is strenous and may cause some internal complications. As for me...I don't mean to get everyone all worried but I really needed to do something or else I will go crazy.

My happiness index has nose-dived in the past 2 days (altho it was a weekend) because of the injection, the extremely hot weather, the 'dis-connectivity to the net', the boredom, etc. I have not been sleeping well....and there isnt' really much to do around the house in day time when the weather is so scorching hot. Well..the doctor warned that I will feel uncomfortable (ala menopause syndrome) after the injection. And the thought about having to go thru this for 6 months is not a welcoming one.

When the weather cooled down a bit last evening..I tried taking the dog out for a short walk. It was a good slow walk but not enough..I stil felt very restless and somewhat blue. Yoga at the gym will be too strenous so I decided to give tai ci a try since most of the movements are 'stationery'...no strecthing or jumping.

I know very well indeed that their objections are truly based on care and love. I didnt want to explain further cos I didnt want to end up all emotional and teary. So..I jus left the house alone since sis is not planning to go. She offered that I can go NY shopping with them instead...but I declined..Ineeded more than that. Tai ci or any such activity helps greatly to fine tune the mind and the body - it's different from walking around in the park / mall.

I indeed felt so much better after the session...I was relaxed and surprisingly I felt sleepy! I woke up smiling this morning cos I had a good sleep. Woke up and drove to brother's hse to get this NB and breakfast..and I am stil happy now cos I can blog today.

Well..I am not very sick but I do understand a bit now how it is like. Being all alone...with nothing to do..there's nothing to thk about except self pity. A lot of people thk that by providing medical care, room to rest, financial support, etc is great and sufficient. Well..these are tangibles and necessities. I do believe strongly that we should be sensitive to emotional and intangible needs. It's very difficult to put into words...it's just emotional I guess.

See?

WK warned me not to do this but I decided to go ahead :p This is not for those with 'weak stomach'...here are some pictures that I captured from the DVD...I shall limit to 3-4 shots..tell me if you can guess which organs they are?



















A glipmse of the OT & that's the tunnel where the camera travels through into the target destination
























Those are the 2 tiny tools that the skillful doc had to work with for 2 +hours....and that's how these 2 tiny thing went all over my 'inside' - no wonder it hurts.
























After an hour...these chunks were 'dismantled' and he is now struggling to get it out of me. Can u see the 2cm tube on the left - he had to change to this cos the earlier tube couldnt fit the chunk in !!



Well...that's about it I am going to show. Of course there a lot more..the procedure took almost 3 hours. For those who are interested...I can show u the whole 2 hr dvd for a small fee :D

I am Back.

HI.. I am back. Ya..survived the surgery, 2 days hospital stay, some pain, ..and here i am connected again!

I hav so much to write about..but am a bit tired now. Do not know where to start too. Oh ya..I spent the last 2 hours watching the DVD of the procedure...looking at wat the doc did inside me. Amazing how meticulous the doc had to be....working with 2 tiny tools and a camera for almost 3 hours. My dad and I had a 'good' time trying to figure out which are the respective organs and which are the 'unwanted' stuff. And watching how he struggled to pull out the 'unwanteds' using such a tiny tube...also the patience he had in slowly 'burning' away evey little inch he wants to get rid of.

Ok ok..I won't go into more details. Am going to take some rest now..wondering if the doc has taken away more than he should. By the way....the hospital bill is $10K++..thank god I have insurance!

Surfing from a Tyre Shop

HI..you won't believe this...I ma surfing from a michelin tyre shop. I am on leave today to settle some personal stuff b4 the ops tomorrow. SOmeone recommended me to this Michlin shop in Tmn Megah ..since I am here and I am done with my other more important errands....I decided to drop by and checked this shop out. It is indeed a profesional Michelin outlet...there were proper cubicles for us to drive in (like petrol kiosk)...I was given a form to register myself as a new customer. There were informative safety banners about checking suspension, brakes , etc. Most importantly, I am sitting in an air conditioned room - blogging away!

The mechanic just popped in a while ago telling me that one of my brake is a little out and one of my absorber is also a little out. I asked if it is it is urgent to change..if not i will wait until it has totally worn out. He said .."Well..the red warning sign did not appear" I decided to wait.

BUT..he popped in again just now saying that he detected a leak in the absorber. SIgh..if I don't change no point checking alignment now. Overall..compared to other shops that I have been to..I was not pressured to change anything..they just inform me..and leave it to me. SO far..I feel quite ok with the service. However....can't help being paranoid..about being cheated or conned.

My purpose of coming here is to solve my alignement problem...I changed to brand new michelin tyres afew mths ago..the prev shop claimed that I have to change the camber screws too (RM45 each x 4) if not..the alignment will keep going off and my tyres will be screwed by 9 mths!

so..I am here to get a second opinon :D

sigh..not so good news again

Got a call from TC today...not so good news again. TC is a happy happy gal..and she just announced that she is planning her marriage tis year. But..she is not too happy now..cos the docs has discovered a serious medical problem with her mom. Suspected to be the scary big 'C'.

Few mths back..she had mentioned that her mom has not been well...but series of checks didn't find anything wrong with her until recently....

Sigh...hope everything will be alright *pray*