ours

This is the last post of 2011 on being me..

Just something to complete this post ^_^

So I'm back in Nottingham and my term starts on my birthdate in the first month of 2012.

But for now, I'm gonna write about about something that has taken place a few days ago.

I went to PMS (Perhimpunan Musim Sejuk) aka Winter Gathering in Loch Lomond, Scotland that took place at a mansion which I had went to 2 years ago in 2009. 

That place brings back a lot of memories..so many that I kept having flashbacks over and over again.

Masterchef PMS 2011

Well anyway, prior to the event, I heard that I might be assigned to become a facilitator.


And I'm like..

"Asyik jadi facilitator je. Nak jadi benda lain pulak"

Truly, I've become facilitators like...I don't know, 5 times? That's enough for me.

So yeah, I made a request to Afif to become a member of the cooking team and I got the job, hehe.


I was probably influenced by a former murabbi whom said,

"best apa jadi team dapur, dapat berukhuwah" 

And truly, it was a really enjoyable and wonderful experience. Honestly, I didn't even feel stressed when I was in the kitchen. Sleep-deprived, tired, exhausted and wanna lie down on the sofa upstairs - YES! 


But stressed, under pressure? NOT AT ALL :D

Maybe because I have been doing Microbiology for one whole semester already.

Maybe because it's something that I really want to do and take pleasure in doing.

Sure, I didn't have the time to listen to all the speakers of the event. Well, that's the sacrifice that you have to do in order to become a member of the kitchen. I have to make do with the recordings instead, inshaAllah.

And I don't even get to chat much with the other people I care but I had the time to get to know more of those hovering in the kitchen. Of course, most of them are from Southampton, there's one from Manchester and another from London (ex-Surrey).

I enjoyed every moment of it. My favourite tasks include tasting (which me and Syak gladly add more sugar into the cooking when Anas was upstairs. Sorry Anas but I know he doesn't read my blog, hehehe), preparing entrée and making a service for all the dining sessions & of course, my specialty - plating! Apparently, my plating skills were critically acclaimed, alhamdulillah and even got a picture of my dish (it was actually a tray :P) taken by one the speakers. Too bad I didn't bring my EOS 550D into the kitchen.

I'm glad that my former murabbi influenced my decision to go for this position. It was funny to hear my team members (who are also my roommates for PMS) conversing in Kedahan slang during the whole time in the kitchen, lol!

It was really fun. And I'm gonna miss cooking with them.


I even found someone who would call me by the name, Wafi =)

Ski, the 2nd attempt


Yesterday, I went for some skiing at CairnGorm Mountain, Aviemore.


The last time I went skiing was in PMS 2009 and it wasn't really on a mountain. We skied on a hill since there was a snowstorm on the mountains at that time.

Syak meredah ribut

Well, if there was a snowstorm in 2009, then what was that yesterday??

Fahmi menikmati kesegaran salji

I always thought that skiing was more of a fun activity but now, I have to say that it's more of a test of your physical endurance and willpower. To climb uphill with 4 ski gears can be really challenging. Carrying all those gears while running around in deep snow..I felt like I was in a war during winter. It was exciting! But indubitably exhaustive! 

Hanif, one of my models on the mountain

I kept lying on the snow as I was tired from all the cooking but mostly because I enjoyed doing it, haha. Thankfully, Fahmi Ruzaidi accompanied me in lying down, ihik2. Remided me of the time when I went skiing 2 years ago and lied down with Choki2 although the weather was much friendlier at that time. Anyways, I'm so going for snowboard next time. At least, you only have to carry one gear instead of 4, hahaha.

The Mansion

Apart from that, the mansion itself brings a lot of memories. I kept seeing glimpses of my first murabbi in various  corners of the place. I also saw scenes from the past involving me with the people I care. It's interesting really when Allah gives you a beautiful mind that can recall sentimental events in the past. I just hope that I can put it to good use. 


When I was having these glimpses from the past, it reminded me of a tweet I made once upon a time.

This place really brings back a lot of memories. Surely, I am forever grateful to have met him in KMB. I know..I haven't really talked to him for quite some time. That's okay, I remember him in my doa, inshaAllah.


The people I care


I know we didn't spend that much time but I know you're cool with that. I know that we at least talked or smiled or winked or punched on the shoulder or trying to make me jealous of the things that I already did :P (seriously, most of the things that you've talked about Edinburgh's Camera Obscura are some of which I've experienced in Malaysia including the vortex. But I would go there for the 3D pictures since that's the thing that attracted me the most, hehe) or hugged me when I was shivering in the cold during Subuh or even sat on top of me and read about weird drug names while I was lying on the sofa trying to get some rest from the kitchen duties ;P


I would have written all about you in this post but I think I'm just going to write them down in my journal. 


Until then, these memories are mine; these memories are ours...

hello cold world

You know, I've been patient for this entire semester...
(This post will be filled with pictures from the lab to avoid stress. The funny thing is, the pictures are the source of my stress :P)

March 2011 - I chose 5 homebases (categories) for my future. This will determine my happiness in Sem 5.

May 2011 - The revelation of the homebases. I got my 3rd choice. Not that bad right? But well, I only like my Top 2 - Psychiatry & Immunology.

The aftermath was disastrous. I tried to hide my frustration with a smile. I emailed the homebase that I wanted but of course, they said "No". I changed my blog's name (this and a list of other reasons led to the change of the name). I couldn't focus on my studies. The result? My result for Sem 4 was quite average but I am forever grateful to pass FBN (Functional Behavioural Neuroscience) and CLS (Clinical Laboratory Sciences II).

It was a really tough period. I thought that was it. Foolish of me to think so. It wasn't even Sem 5 at that time.

I'm really not fond of working with carcinogenic substances

That's my spot in the lab with those plates on the table. Look outside - it's already dark -_-"

Sem 5 began and I became a Year 3 student in June along with my other colleagues. I chose the best supervisor in my opinion and alhamdulillah, I got her, Dr Kim. She's like the Top Microbiologist and very motherly as well.

My project? Errr, it's the source of my stress, my behaviour, my feelings, my writings, my work, my life for the past several months -_-"

It's very demanding, very rigorous, very challenging and not for the faint-hearted. 

Doing electrophoresis like a boss

Microbiology brings out the dark side in me that I'm not proud of. But along the way, I turned over a new leaf. Thanks to Allah for sending me the people in the process ^^. 

But of course, that doesn't mean I'll be stress-free. It's Microbiology we're talking about here. And you will have no idea unless you're actually doing it. So please don't judge me.

I have to wear this shield to protect my vision from UV rays (which are also carcinogenic)

Ultra-violet light

I would put my gels on this platform to cut it in darkness

Microbiology brings out the worst in you. I'm unfortunately a victim in this case. So, if you wanna know how your friend truly is, send them to a Microbiology lab for at least 11 weeks and you'll see who they really are.

I can happily say that it has finally ended. I mean I've suffered enough. Alhamdulillah, I've escaped the treacherous lab. You know, the only thing that I enjoyed were the people. My supervisors are awesome, the people working in the lab are very helpful & understanding. 

I mean, I'm in there for only 3 months. Bayangkan orang yang buat PhD dlm Microbiology..

:O

That's 3/4 years! But guess what, there's a clear distinction between me & them. 

They love Microbiology. 

I don't.

And we discovered this cool machine on the very last day of my labwork and it's sooooo cool. The guy in the photo is my lab supervisor, Esteban and he's funny. I like making jokes with him and he'd always laugh.

I can't deny that I like doing this the most. It needs to be perfect everytime. Imperfection will lead to failure and most of the time, I succeeded in doing protein gel electrophoresis.

The PCR machine. I rocked when I'm doing PCR too.

Microbiology labwork can be quite antisocial. I know I'm introvert but do you remember? I want to become an extrovert. I love working with people. That's why I'm aiming for Psychiatry. In addition, perasaan stress, tertekan ni semua mungkin tak berlaku di kalangan mereka yang memang suka Microbiology ie Hosni. (He was sleeping when I began writing this post and he's already on his holiday since this Wednesday. Plus, it's his 1st choice and he's promoting it to others. Don't let other people suffer, please!).

This is a table-top centrifuge (like in CSI)

And this is a bigger centrifuge

And we would colour up the gels with my favourite colour - blue and let it shake on this rocker

A close friend of mine said "Kenapa nak pergi lab selalu? Tak boleh ke kalau tak pergi?"

Well, memang boleh. Tapi kalau tak pergi, siapa yang nak buat project tu? I mean my supervisors are awesome. They never made me stay late or forced me to come on weekends or do anything that is against my wishes. Everything that has happened was because of my own decisions.

I hate this stuff cause it's toxic

These are one of the many solutions that I prepared, see the name Wafi? I hope that it can be used by other people when I leave for good.

It's true actually. Like...if you have to do something that you know is right but you don't do it because of your nafs. Then, that's bad. Cause you know you should do it but you don't just because you don't feel like doing it? Allah would be very disappointed. 

I went to the lab as early as 7 am and my latest time of leaving the lab was 9.05 pm. I am appalled at my own efforts! Seriously! But what drives me? It's simply because of You.

I am finally free :')


6.32 pm and 23rd Dec marked the time when I escaped from the lab.

It's the place where I hang my labcoat & today, I threw my labcoat into the bin (literally) :D

Feels hazardous when I need to turn on the UV light

Now, I can happily say (or type) this sentence borrowed from someone popular, smile, smile, wink, wink:

"Gua takkan respect sama lu selagi tak kerja kat lab Microbiology"

Haha, just kidding! I always wanted to say that but I don't really have anything to fit into the final part :D

This lab is always this dark and if I'm the earliest or the latest, this is the usual sight in this place of torture

I kept my E.coli in here

Dah habis..you don't know how it feels like. That's why you may think of me making it a big deal; cause truly, it is a big deal. It's freedom and I can't describe this feeling in words~

The place where you can get all you want

This thing is cool. It's called the sonicator and I need to wear ear protection whenever I use it. It causes cell destruction via the production of sound waves.

Bilik PhD, tempat lepak aku dengan supervisor: Esteban and Dina. Yeap, aku tau password dia, ihik2.

If you ever faced something like this, something that you have no control over, something you cannot get out of; try to make the best of everything. Remember, it's just a phase.  Get back up and fight those monsters (in my case, it's Pseudomonas aeruginosa). Thankfully for me, it's just 11 weeks, alhamdulillah.


If you really know me, I'm a planner. I plan for my future. Most of the things that I'm doing right now have been planned a long time ago. (Most ye, not all).


I planned a lot of things for this semester but they all got reorganized and reconsidered ever since I found out the bad news in May. Things didn't go as planned..


Cause apparently, Allah has a better plan by giving me this dreadful homebase for an entire freaking semester. I did not love it but I tried my best to make everything worthwhile. I learned various techniques and discovered gadgets that I've always seen on CSI. I even went to the Dark Room (the room for photography) which apparently, bacteria love their photos to be taken too. Gedik giler bacteria ni!


Remember, it's not the way you planned it but it's how you make it happen...

the beautiful occupation

I am just done with one of my 2 essay exams of the year!

It feels like this huge weight impeding upon me has been lifted and I can breathe a lot better, alhamdulillah. I have to say, that it was really nerve-racking during the days prior to the exam today. MBP - Molecular Bacterial Pathogenicity is now over!

Bring on III! 

III - Innate Immunity and the Immunopathology of Inflammation is actually an optional module that I chose during the end of my second year. It's sort of like my way to overcome one of my past denials - not getting my Top 2 choices of homebase. At least, I can still learn my favourite topic - Immunology!

So technically, I should perform better, right?

InshaAllah ;)

For now, I just want to share with you the blogpost that landed me a new job with The University of Nottingham. I am now a Student Blogger and my job is to write about my life at UoN for once a week..which is cool cause I like writing, so this is like a dream job for me. Hopefully I will become a Student Blogger for a long time, inshaAllah.

Well, I only post on Sundays and you can always check my blog on the UoN blogs under Student Life. Oh, there are 4 Student Bloggers and we all use the same blog. So, don't get mixed up.

For now, enjoy this post that I've sent for my job application on 11/10/11...while I suffer another week of strenuous studying for the last exam of this semester 

My Blogpost for the Position of Student Blogger

It’s my 3rd year in Nottingham and it’s the year to make it or break it! After going through my first 2 years getting average results, I believe it’s time for me to take things seriously and try to get the best result that I can get. I’m currently working in a lab for my third year project and if everything goes well, I’ll be graduating in winter 2012. I am really grateful to be a Medical student in Nottingham. Doing the double degree programme means I’ll be graduating twice! And not all Medical students in the UK get this special chance.  

Besides, I’m near to completion of my Nottingham Advantage Award (NAA). I’ve chosen the third and final module which will begin this Thursday. The first 2 modules, Student Associates Scheme and becoming a researcher at Nottingham University Samworth Academy (NUSA) were definitely the highlights of my 2nd year. I can’t believe it’s going to end soon. I truly cherish the times I had with the children in the previous semester.  

I had a great time undertaking the award. If all goes well, I would be able to attend the Annual Celebration Event at Trent Building. If I remember well; last year, the party was definitely genteel.  

Although I am almost done with the Award, I’m presently waiting for a reply from Barnado’s, a leading children’s charity in the UK regarding a volunteering project which I’m thinking of doing. The previous two NAA modules might probably influence my decision in undertaking this volunteering work.

 This was the card made by the children during my last day as a Student Associate at Portland Primary School, Bilborough. I really miss them.

Oh yeah, I also have to finalize the schedule for BOOM (Blooming out of Mediocrity) Camp, an event organized by IKRAM, a Malaysian students organization throughout the UK and Ireland. Since I was given the trust to become the project manager for this camp, I really want to make everything perfect. It’s essentially a camp for freshers from Malaysia which will be held next week in Newark. We’ll be playing some cave maze, climbing, our own version of The Amazing Race and barbeque party. I just can’t wait for some fun in the air. Hope everything goes smooth. 

By the way, did you go to Goose Fair last week? The annual fun fair just ended a few days ago. If you didn’t get the chance, that’s alright. You can go again next year. It’s really exciting to go on the rides and feel a rush of adrenaline during the cold dark night. Plus, Goose Fair is one of the events that are only held in Nottingham.

 Goose Fair, Nottingham 

Ok, got to go now. I’m meeting my supervisor at 10 am...