More at ease now

Sitting for two papers already made me feel so much at ease. Three more major papers (English, Physics and Engineering Mathematics) and I'm off to Ipoh. My Moral Studies paper will only be held on the 6th of June. So, I'm going to have some break of my own.

It's hard to imagine that I've already spent one term here in UTP. I must have said this many times before, but January seemed like yesterday. The truth is, soon my exams will finish and my holidays will begin, and before you know it, I'm back in UTP again!

No long blogging for me today, for I've got two papers tomorrow.

New Hairstyle

Oh, I forgot to tell you this. I went to the same barber to have my haircut. I told him the same words that I want the same hairstyle that he did for me before. The barber knows me very well (I'm his regular customer) and he said OK.

So, I took off my spectacles (I couldn't see a thing without them) and just let the barber do his job. I had a feeling that something was amiss. And after 20 minutes of cutting my hair, he said, "Done!" So I took my spectacles and put them on. I was surprised, but I didn't show my expression to the barber:

Fido Dido? My mother thought so. It's taken in my hostel room, through a webcam.

OK, the picture quality isn't what you expect. I took the snapshot of me using my webcam, and yes, it may not be so obvious that I changed my hairstyle but if you were to see me in person, the first thing you'll notice is my hairstyle. My mother even ventured to say that I should spike my hair in such a way that it will look like the hairstyle of Fido Dido. You know Fido Dido, the logo of 7-UP? Yeah, that kind of hairstyle.

Anyway, I seem to quite like this "new" hairstyle so I'll just be happy about it. *Sheesh*

One down, six more to go!

All right, today is the first day of my examination. It's quite a nice experience thinking of the fact that my examination was in the Chancellor Hall. In fact, majority of my examinations will be held in the Chancellor Hall. Only Engineering Mathematics will be in the Main Hall and my Moral Studies paper will be in the Multi-Purpose Hall.

Dear me, it was COLD in the Chancellor Hall! However, I foresaw that it would be cold so I brought along my coat, not a jacket, but a coat (the ones for formal functions)! I didn't bring my jacket along, so I'd had to make do with the coat. I pity those who were freezing in the Chancellor Hall and yet they had no jacket.

The paper today was Thinking Skills, and it wasn't as hard as the July 2004 paper, in my opinion. I had a terrible experience with this subject, because although I fully understand its scope, I can't seem to fare well for this paper. I'd put in a lot of effort in getting my Thinking Skills marks up, but surprisingly some who put in last-minute efforts or those who fool around most of the time can score better than I! Ironic, huh?

Anyway, for Thinking Skills, it's history now. Nevertheless, I did have a good time under Mrs. Ena Bhattharcharyya as my lecturer. Next ahead of me are Chemistry, English, Engineering Mathematics, Physics and Moral Studies! I think I can handle Chemistry, English and Engineering Mathematics quite well, but I still worry about my Physics. I've tried some past-years papers for Physics and they really scare me! Still, it's good in the sense that I'll pay special attention on Physics.

I won't be in UTP for long now. After the exams, my holidays will start immediately. So, I guess I'll leave examinations aside and think about what I'm going to do during the holidays.

The first thing that I'm going to do is to PLAY THE PIANO! Yes, my beloved piano, which I've neglected for the past six months. It's not that I've never played it while studying in UTP; it's just that I never played that often. It's now time to catch up with my skills again! Let's see, what am I going to master during the holidays? These are the pieces which I'm going to master in the six weeks:

1. Chopin - Revolutionary Etude in C minor

2. Chopin - Etude Op. 25 No. 12

3. Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 (just to polish up a bit)

4. Elliot - Idle Impressions

Too many pieces to handle? Well, that is my goal. Besides that, I'm going to work out on my new composition (I've decided that a piano concerto won't be good; I intend to compose a piano concerto using a software, but unfortunately it does not allow me to write more than eight instruments!). Another impressionism piece. It's not my first time composing impressionism pieces, and it will not be the last either.

Now, besides getting in touch with music, I might do some travelling. I've been invited by a friend from Johor Bahru (in fact, two) to go to Singapore for a certain Music Festival (music again?). I do intend to go, if my parents would allow. There, I can also travel around Singapore, which I've not done since 1998. I long to see my cousins and relatives there.

I might be flying to Beijing for summer. I've been to Shanghai, but one of my targetted destinations is Beijing. I really want to step foot on the Forbidden City, the Great Wall of China and many more. If Shanghai was already great enough for me, I would think that Beijing could do better. Well, let's see about it. My parents are at the process of getting the tickets. I hope they can get them as soon as possible before they are sold out!

I think that's all for now. I've just returned from my examination not long ago and I'm feeling hungry now. Well, lunch, here I come!

Information Resource Centre vs Hostel Room

Just as I thought that the Information Resource Centre (IRC), also known as the library, is conducive for students to study during the Study Week, I found my thoughts totally wrong, especially if you choose to study in the IRC at night!

No offence to the librarians in the IRC, but I seriously think that they could do better than to let students having discussion in the library. If they had to discuss, can't they do it in the discussion rooms? Discuss whatever you want and when you're finished, you can come out again. With almost everybody having so-called "quiet" discussions, the Information Resource Centre becomes unconducive and not tranquil enough for people to do revision. In fact, I find my room much quieter and more conducive compared to the IRC to do my studies at night.

No doubt, the IRC would be very quiet in the morning (because everybody stayed up late at night and they become too tired to wake up in the morning). Therefore, starting tomorrow, I've decided to wake up early in the morning to go to the IRC to study. Then, I'll have lunch at Pocket D before continuing my studies there until early evening. That will be the time for me to have a break for about three hours before continuing my revision at night in my room. Of course, I'll have to put my laptop and other things away to avoid distraction (or do I need to?).

In a way, the IRC is much better a place to study compared to my own room. The reason is that if I've any problems that I couldn't solve, I could always run to my lecturers' offices nearby for help. Plus, with all the reference books that I could find, studying in the IRC should be the best place. But once again, if tranquility is absent, the purpose of studying in the IRC is completely defeated.

Another reason that I don't like going to the IRC at night is that you'll be answering people's questions more than you study. I've noticed that people would come with their problems on subjects different from what I'm studying, and I dislike that. For example, people would come to me with Chemistry problems when I'm studying Physics. I totally can't stand that but for once and a while I had to tolerate that. But eventually, this obstructs me from achieving my goal of studying whatever I want. Unwanted pressure is added to me.

Why would people be worried at the week before exams start? If only they'd worried long ago...

Performance

Just as I thought I could sit down in my room to study, there came a telephone call from one of the staff of UTP asking me to perform in Clearwater Sanctuary Golf Resort (unknowingly to them, I am a member there). Perform what, you might ask? The piano, of course! They asked me to play for them during the appreciation dinner for a certain big-shot of PETRONAS.

This person is retiring from PETRONAS (apparently a Datuk), and therefore to appreciate his contributions to PETRONAS and UTP, the management of UTP has decided to give him a dinner. A number of students, including me, were asked to do a performance in Clearwater. Even a number of staff were asked to sing and one actually wrote a sajak for this Datuk. There was a band performance, my performance, four songs delivered by a UTP staff and a lecturer (the lecturer actually sang two French songs!) and a poem recital. Even as one of the performers, I got the privilege to actually join them for dinner. Nevertheless, I had my own dinner before they started theirs. It's been a long time since I had eaten in Clearwater Lakeside Terrace, so I decided to have a try at the Hawaiian Chicken Chop. Hmmm... it's either that they have changed the chef or that chef had actually gone for cooking lessons. It tasted good! (It's also possible that I think it's good because it's been a long time since I ate "good" food.)

In the dinner itself, I'd got the opportunity to get to know certain UTP staff better. I hope this will give me some advantage in my later years in UTP.

Anyway, enough of that already. It's almost the end of the semester, and my break is about to begin (so shall I cheer?), but before that, examinations are coming near, too (so, all the cheering mood is gone now)! It has been quite an eventful semester for me, and it's hard to believe that I'm about to finish my first semester already. The orientation week seemed like yesterday to me. Truly, I never expected that it's almost June. I think it won't be long before I'm going to graduate as a Civil Engineer! The memories of my orientation week in UTP is still fresh.

Therefore, I think it's time that I affirm my lecturers and tutors who have taught me for this semester; they won't be lecturing me anymore after this semester:

1. Pn. Subarna Sivapalan - my English lecturer who has been very understanding while I faced certain serious problems; she actually helped relieved my burden on two of my projects because of certain foreseen cases.
2. Mrs. Ena Bhattharcharyya - my Thinking Skills lecturer who has been a very nice, understanding and funny lecturer. Nobody ever got bored with her lectures because she always injects humour during lectures, in a beneficial manner. Her laughter always makes a laugh.
3. Mr. Pandian M. Vasant - my Engineering Mathematics lecturer (though sometimes was a very effective sedative himself) who has tried his very best to help us understand his subject. He never hesitated to give us a helping hand on assignments or on any problems.
4. Ms. Normawati - my Chemistry lecturer (and tutor) who taught us ten chapters of Chemistry before she had to release my class to Dr. Chandra (a new lecturer). Her way of teaching is very reminiscent of secondary school style of teaching. Nevertheless, her content is easily understood.
5. Mr. Yusni Mohamad - my Moral Studies lecturer who, like Mrs. Ena, never failed to inject humour during lectures.
6. Dr. Saeed ul-Hasan - my Physics lecturer who has drilled us a lot with exercises and problems. He has been a lecturer who can explain everything at the tip of his fingers.
7. Dr. Chandra - my new Chemistry lecturer who had returned from Liverpool recently after completing his PhD there. He was in charge of teaching us the last three chapters of Chemistry.
8. Pn. Nor Fadzlinda - my English tutor who has amused us very much with her experiences and stories during tutorials. At least the class wouldn't be so boring with just exercises from the textbooks.
9. Ms. How Meng Git - my Engineering Mathematics tutor who always asks for volunteers to do questions. She would volunteer to do the questions herself if nobody is willing to take them (normally because they are too difficult for us to solve).
10. Ms. Silvia - my Physics tutor who has been lenient in the due dates for submission of assignments and tutorial answer sheets.

That sums up for the affirmations. I'm tired now, so I guess I'll just log off already.

More relaxed

Have I mentioned to you that I've finished my Thinking Skills Group Project yesterday? I haven't, so I'll relate to you my experience.

This was by far the biggest project that I was involved in. The other assignments or projects were mere written assignments whereby we had to just do some research work over the Internet or encyclopaedias and then get them written in Microsoft Work before printing and compiling them into a book. This time, we were given both written assignment and seminar presentation work.

Sounds hard, right? Well, that was our initial impression of the project. Each group was assigned specific tasks to do, and my group was given two tasks (every group was given two tasks,too; one written task and the other is a seminar presentation). Our first task was regarding the rise of fuel price in our country and its impact to the people. We were suppose to come up with the impact and recommendations to the ministry concerned to minimise or eliminate the impact, using the certain Thinking Tools that were assigned. We were required to use the Other People's Views (OPV), Plus, Minus, Interesting (PMI) and Consider All Factors (CAF) methods to come up with the impacts of fuel price rise before thinking about the recommendations. To find out more about the Thinking Tools, you can search about them through Google. There are many more Thinking Tools to the ones I listed.

That was for our written assignment. For our presentation, we had to become Civil Engineers (so fast?). We were required to design a flood control system (but it was actually a flood detecting system); our task was to design a system that is effective in detecting and notifying nearby residents in case of flood. Therefore, using the Morphology Chart, Selection Matrix (or Pugh Evaluation Matrix) and from our datum and Decomposition, we had to come up with eight (there were eight members in my group) design concepts, and out of that eight, we had to determine which is the best design and what are the improvements that can be made. Eventually, we had chosen one design to use, with certain negative features removed and improved features to replace them. And this is the end-result (don't laugh, OK? I know it might not be what you first thought, but hey! The assessors said that it was a very interesting concept):

The picture might be a bit blur, but it's the best that we could produce. It's drawn by hand, so I don't expect much comments, yeah? Anyway, to describe a bit about our design, first of all, it's a floating sphere made of duralumin; it uses a pressure sensor to detect the pressure of water, it uses automated operation and the alert system is the housing alert system, whereby a siren is located at a strategic location so that the warning can be heard by all residents within that flood-prone area. It's chained to the ground so that it will not float all the way to the surface when the water level rises (the sphere will eventually be submerged in the water when the water level rises). The whole system is powered by hydroelectric. The trasmission of signals? Well, we'll use fibre optics here.

It's rather too long to justify our decision here in this blog entry, but use your knowledge of Physics (we didn't use such advanced Physics in this design), and you may soon understand the reason we chose this concept. Cost is not an important factor in this presentation.

Our presentation lasted for 30 minutes (we were actually allocated 20 minutes) because the assessors seemed to have so many questions to ask us, but we easily answered them all. They first thought that the sphere would float even though the water level rises, and then the pressure sensor will not be able to detect any water pressure, thus rendering the whole concept useless. We countered the question easily by saying that the function of the chain here plays an important role to keep the sphere at a maximum height. Therefore, the length of the chain must be shorter than the height of the river bank, otherwise, the whole concept would be of no practical use, because even when the river overflows, no critical pressure would be detected then. Do you see the reasoning?

It has been a wonderful presentation for a start. We were dressed in our formal attire which impressed our assessors very much. I currently don't have the picture of my group now, but once I have it I'll post it here in my blog. It's just too bad that we couldn't take any pictures of us presenting our work (using Powerpoint slides) in the lecture hall at Pocket D (only the group presenting was allowed to be in the hall; those whose turn had not come were required to wait outside the hall).

Now, with the assignments all done and with the Study Week beginning next week, our schedule has become much more relaxed. Nevertheless, the extra amount of time that we have now has to be put to good use in our studies and revision, because exams are on the 29th of May till the 6th of June (with a few days break in between). Therefore, this isn't the time to fool around anymore!

Happy Mother's Day & Happy Teacher's Day (Returning)

It's past midnight already, and in about ten hours more, I'll be on my way back to university. It has been quite an enjoyable weekend for me in Ipoh, one that I shall treasure.

On Saturday, Kei Fai asked me and seven other ex-5Sc1 clasmates out for a movie in Jaya Jusco. We watched Poseidon (which is reminiscent of the Titanic), had lunch together and went for a game of bowling. I did enjoy myself immensely that day, whereby I met a quite a lot of ex-Michaelians (and also Michaelians who are going for Form 6).

On Sunday, it is widely known that Mother's Day falls on that day. Therefore, I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all mothers out there, single or otherwise, a very Happy Mother's Day. A mother's love cannot be measured; a mother's love is infinite. On this day, I took my parents out for a treat together with my aunt and uncle.

Ah well, today (Monday) will be a day when a lot of students, especially ex-Form 5 students will face a new phase of life. On this day itself, I shall face a new phase of my life. You see, today is the day when Form 6 and Matriculation will begin. Some of my friends have opted for STPM, while some have been chosen for Matriculation. Soon, some of them will leave for TAR College while a couple might go overseas to further their studies elsewhere. Today will be the day when most of us close friends and classmates will be separated, for perhaps a very long time. I just hope that during our class reunion, most of us will be able to make it. A reminder for ex-5Sc1 students of 2005: 1st of May (Labour Day) has been declared as the date for our annual class reunion. I hope you'll remember it!

It is rather sad for me to take note that friends will be distant now, physically. Nevertheless, this is life and life isn't always what you'd want it to be. Still, all I can ask is let us remain in contact, either via telephone, email Friendster, etc. As the only child in the family, friends are what I need most. For me, friends are my "brothers" and "sisters".

Tomorrow, Tuesday, will be the official Teacher's Day. I don't I'll be free to blog after this so I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all teachers a Happy Teacher's Day, and some affirmation to be done to the following teachers:

1. Mr. Louis Rozario Doss - my ever caring, dedicated and hardworking ex-principal of St. Michael's Institution who is now in Ipoh International School as the Principal for the KBSM division. During his service in SMI as Principal, the school has seen a lot of changes in the level of student discipline as well as the development of the school for the better.
   
2. Pn. Leela Devi - my ever loving and caring IT and class teacher for two years (2004 & 2005) who had helped me a lot emotionally and academically. A special thanks to Pn. Leela for letting us use the IT lab to study whenever the classroom becomes unconducive for revision.
   
3. Pn. Sheila Jacinta - my ever smiling and jovial Additional Mathematics teacher who had never hesitated to lend a helping hand in whatever subject she could, be it Additional Mathematics, Modern Mathematics or Chemistry.
4. Mr. Ng Hee Sang - my Physics teacher who is was ever willing to reason out things with you when you are in doubt.
5. Pn. Lim Kooi Wan (Mrs. Chen) - my Mathematics teacher who had kept an attentive eye over my work and ensuring that her students score well for her paper.
6. Ms. Salwana Abdul Rahim - my open-minded English and EST teacher who could accept teasing and talk of sensitive issues without being offended.
7. Pn. Khamsiah Muda - another of my quite open-minded Bahasa Melayu teacher who had drilled us very well in our Malay language.
8. Pn. Thevanei Dass - my helpful and friendly (for those out there who dislike her: she treats me well!) Chemistry teacher who also never hesitated to clear of doubts from her students regarding her subject of Chemistry.
9. Mrs. Yee Chee Yoong (Pn. Chong Sau Han) - my ex-Prefect's Teacher Advisor and accompanying teacher for the National Science Quiz who, together with her husband (Mr. Yee), had been so willing to chauffeur my teammates and I to Kuala Kangsar, Perlis and KL for the quiz. A special thanks to Mrs. Yee for all the information that she had provided us prior to the quiz.
10. Mr. Zulkefli - my funny and comical History teacher who can inject humour every time he came in for class.
11. Ms. Ling Lidi - the teacher who is annually involved with the school drama and who had given me guidelines on how to answer EST questions.

Not forgetting also other teachers whom I did not mention in the list above: Ms. Tan Mee Hoong, Pn. Lee Seok Chean, Pn. Chia Yann Ling, Pn. Tan Eng Sim, (retired) Pn. Shareezah Abdullah, (retired) Mr. Khoo Lai Suan, Pn. Rosenah Mat Johor, (transferred) Cik Haslinda, (retired) Mrs. Tan Khah Chuan, Mr. Woon Fook Sim, En. Tauhid Ahmad, Brother Matthew Bay, Pn. Hanishah, Cik Louis Mary, Mr. Rajan, Mr. Aw Koon Lum, Mr. Khiew Wai Mun, (transferred) Pn. Zalina Basharuddin, Cik Sharifah Yusnita and so on.

Home

No blogging for today. Too much work to do to blog.

My congratulations to those who have secured the JPA (or PSD) Scholarships and PETRONAS Sponsorships. And also good luck to those who are going for their Sixth Form studies!

I'm going home... to study

I've been busy lately with tests and handling up of projects. Next week I'll be having my Thinking Skills project presentation. Examinations are coming near now so I've got to complete my revision quick.

Lately, I haven't been sleeping well. This is perhaps due to my anxiety towards examinations. I've never felt like this before, but maybe because this is a university examination, and I don't know what to expect from it. That's why I'm feeling a bit worried about examinations.

Anyway, life is still as tough, although I must say have been getting more relaxing. Now, I have more time for myself already, as tutorials and laboratories have begun to get less and less. Therefore, I can allocate more time to study.

Today, I'll be going back home, perhaps with a friend. You see, Friday is Wesak Day and the university has also declared it a holiday, and because I have got no more co-curricular activities already on Saturday, therefore I can spend the weekend at home! The best part is this: I have no more tutorials or labs on Monday morning (8.00 a.m. to 10.00 a.m.), and my lecture will start at 12.00 noon, so I can come back to UTP on Monday morning and spend another night (Sunday night) at home! Haha, I'm so longing for home, you think? Not really, but as home is so near now, why not take the opportunity to visit my parents? I have to appreciate the fact that I'm one of the few lucky ones whose university where I'm studying in is so near home. Therefore, make full use of the opportunity I have to go home! Hehe...

I intend to make this post a short one, so I won't write anymore. It's getting late now (1.50 a.m.!) so I'll sign off with a poem:

I've come, I've experienced,
I've struggled, I've survived,
I'm tired, I'm exhausted,
This short break, days numbered five.

Comprende?

A great day, and a surprise

Today, I had my Basic Dance and Movement practical test. Basic Dance and Movement? Yes, I take Basic Dance and Movement for my co-curriculum. In UTP, students are required to take at least one credit hour of co-curriculum. Although the tests and exams will not contribute to the CGPA, nevertheless, it will decided whether you will get a pass for the overall semester or otherwise.

It has been quite a fun dancing. I learnt the Joget, Zapin, Cha Cha and Waltz. Of course, I'm still no professional dancer because it is only Basic Dance and Movement. Still, the foundation of all the dances is important!

The practical test was relatively easy. All of us get to choose the dance that we want to perform. That means that although I have mastered the four dances, I was needed to choose only one. At first, I was inclined to pick Joget, then I changed my mind to Zapin. After a while, I found that Cha Cha was better because then I could demonstrate my creativity. But to my surprise, a lot of people also chose Cha Cha so I debated with myself whether I should "follow the bandwagon".

After a while, I decided to stick to my final choice. Cha Cha it would be! Nevertheless, while there was time to practised, I revised all the four dances. Waltz never struck my mind because it was too easy; I was afraid that the coach will not be so impressed. Hehe...

Anyway, I chose Cha Cha and went in for the test. After I danced, I left for my room. I was hungry and dead tired. Bathed and then had lunch. That was when I'd got to know that China won the Thomas Cup against Denmark.

Then, I came back to my room to read the news online and chat a bit. That was when someone added me into MSN Messenger. I couldn't recognise the email at all but decided to just accept the add request. Then, he chatted with me. He introduced himself as Albert. At first, it didn't ring a bell. He then said that I wrote about him in my blog. Still, it didn't ring the bell. So I asked him in which post did I write about him. He then told me that he's Albert Wong, and immediately I remembered.

Do you remember Albert Wong (now I remember!) whom I wrote about in one of my entries: PSD Rejecting the Application of a Disabled Student? You can click on that title to read the post again. In that post, the links to the newspaper articles are still working.

From the conversation I had with Albert Wong, I got to know that he has secured the PSD Scholarship to do law. Good for him! I wish him and pray for him for all the best! We had quite a wonderful chat, mostly like an interview whereby I became the interviewer, asking him all sorts of questions about his life and his success. Hehe... it was nice nevertheless. A new friend whom I made through my blogging. Haha... he actually ventured into my blog after he searched through the Blogosphere. What an unlikely way to make a new friend, but hey, I made a new one!

Now, I've got to study Physics. I'm going to have my test tomorrow. So, got to do some quick revision. I'll put in another entry later.

Are you a victim?

Are you a victim, or did you deliberately requested for a pirated version of your Operating System (OS)? Do you own a Genuine Windows 98/98SE/ME/2000/XP, or were you given a pirated version of the OS? Well, I doubt if you are a victim, especially when a lot of us couldn't be bothered about getting Genuine Windows. I would say that most of us, if not all, intentionally got an illegal copy of the OS.

Therefore, has your screen appeared as thus:

Click the picture to view an enlarged version. Do you have this "tattoo" as your piracy mark?

Well, I'm definitely not a victim of possessing an illegal copy of Windows XP Home Edition, because I've installed the update and the validation tells me that my copy of Windows is genuine. Please do not think that the picture above was a snapshot of my screen. It was taken from The Star In-Tech.

So, how many of you were affected?

I do agree with Microsoft's move to make an attempt in eradicating piracy issues, especially the move such as this, however if Microsoft insists on us getting genuine copies of the OS, there are a lot of factors that they should consider.

One of them concerns students. As you all know, university students especially need to have a laptop or a computer to do their assignments. Now, these students, although they are given monthly or quarterly allowances, cannot afford more than RM300 (for Windows XP Home Edition) or RM500 (for Windows XP Professional Edition) just for a genuine copy of Windows. This is mainly the reason why so many people opted for pirated version of Windows XP.

If Microsoft wants to ensure zero piracy, then they should perhaps introduce a special price for students. At least they should know that although everybody can own a computer (by getting a computer loan, instalments, etc.), not everybody can afford getting a genuine copy of Windows XP off-hand. The benefit of the students should be given a thought.

Also, if Microsoft wants their users to purchase genuine copy of Windows OS, they should ensure that their OS is of the best quality. There is no point issuing out a new version of Windows if it is full of loop-holes, security vulnerabilities, instability, etc. Downloading and installing update or security patches can be quite a petty task to a lot of users. Therefore, Microsoft should always ensure that its products are of the best quality before they are deemed marketable. Only then will their users be confident in getting a genuine copy of the OS. Otherwise, the thinking will be, "Why should I get a genuine copy of Windows XP when it is just as bad as the pirated ones?"

With this, I rest my case.

Sick!

All right, you may think that I'm just talking nonsense, but truly I'm sick now. Down with fever (38.5°C!), flu, cough and sore throat. This is the worst combination of diseases. I actually had to skip two lectures (Engineering Mathematics and Thinking Skills) and one Physics tutorial because I was feeling too weak to stand, let alone walk. I did inform my friends that I wouldn't be coming, so they knew what to do. Hehe...

You might wonder why haven't I been to the clinic yet? Well, it is true that I should consult a doctor, especially when I can get free treatment in UTP, but it is way too far from my hostel and my legs were wobbly. So, I slept from 10.15 a.m. until 2.30 p.m. Yes, I actually didn't bother about lunch! When I woke up at 2.30 p.m., I decided that I should see the doctor now that I'm strong enough to walk. So, I went to Josiah's room (Josiah is sick, too) and asked him if he had lunch. He gave me a negative reply so I asked him out to have something to eat, and told him that I wanted to go to the clinic. He followed me to Pocket D and we had porridge (well, when one is sick, do you expect him or her to down solid food?). After that, I submitted my Physics assignment (which was overdue, but it is OK as long as I don't submit it at the end of the semester) and both of us went to the UTP Clinic at Pocket C (which is at the other end of the New Academic Complex).

I was surprised when Josiah said that he didn't need to have treatment because he deemed himself fit enough to fight the infection (well, I'm not taking chances; I have a test tomorrow!). I went for the treatment, and the doctor diagnosed me with high fever, cough, flu, etc. So, I was given a Medical Certificate for today and this is the amount of medicine that I was given:

I've got to take all of them. Luckily, it's all free.

I've just had my medicine, and from the picture above, could you imagine how bad my illness was? I tell you the truth, the last thing you would ever want to get is a cold or any other diseases in university.