A new efficiency

It's been a while since I posted, mainly because there wasn't much to post. In fact, there still isn't that much to detail about. http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif

But I'm back in Malaysia for a couple of weeks, sorting things out and hoping it will be all ok in the end. What I am posting about is how efficient things have become in my absence. Everyone extols the wonders of whatever first world country they live in but I've been rather impressed with this country's experience lately.

I needed a new passport as the last one expires in September so off I trundle to the Immigration department expecting massive queues and stupid waiting times. Strangely enough, although there was no power when I got there at about 2, I was done by 4:30pm. And my new passport would be ready tomorrow afternoon. 24 hours for a new passport. Even the application wasn't painful.

Then I had to replace the driver's license that I lost. So off we go to the Department of Road Transport. It's a fair drive away but I walked in, explained what I needed and in my kiasu-ness (please see wikipedia for a definition) punched a number before I filled in a form. Which was totally unnecessary because we didn't need to wait. 5 minutes, RM20 later and I have my replaced driver's license. Yes, I don't drive but I'm guessing it'll come in useful someday. For something. I'm sure.

I'm stunned at how things have improved. There are actual government provided services that work. It's all a matter of paying for it! Welcome to the new third world capitalist government.

A change of status

I was on the train the other day, doing some reading for my new job and when I got up to leave, the woman next to me asked in her nosy American accent if I was still a student.

The natural instinct was to reply yes but it took me about 5 seconds to work it out in my head and I had to mutter a no. She commented that I was doing some heavy duty reading and I assured her it was for my job.

It's very sad that I have to let go of it.

Now, if only I could get the real job to start. But that's another story.

Welcome to my day from hell

How bad can one day get? It's like in the movies, where someone has one streak of bad luck after another and it's quite funny.


Today is the day I get to come back to Oxford to print out my thesis, so it can get bound and I can submit the final copy and get the official confirmation so I can get the work permit.

(No, nothing is ever simple in my life, a thesis submission is never JUST a thesis submission)

We start the day off waking up to the alarm clock and realising I've no idea where the stickers for the CD labels are, mad hunt around the house for them and they are tucked safely in a box yet to be unpacked (oh, there's more to that)

Then off to the train station where there are no trains because a piece of rail broke. Get told to wait so I do. Half an hour later, we get on the train where miraculously it actually stops at somewhere I can change at. Only that I get there 3 minutes to late and the next train isn't for another hour. So I sit and wait, like a well-trained English person now only to find the train has been cancelled due to staff shortage. Excellent.

Thankfully, 10 minutes later, the train is reinstated. Except that I get to my next changing station 3 minutes too late as the last train just left and wait 10 minutes for the next train. The hard part is over, I hear you say.


IT's only just begun....


Arriving in Oxford, I rush to the binders, and get told that even if I rush it in for tomorrow, it won't be ready till Tuesday. FABULOUS.

My addled brain thinks it's certainly possible to print off the copies I need in 2 hours, PLENTY OF TIME.

So...

madly rushing to the lab for THE print. First print run, Word has fucked up some of my formatting so I fix it on the fly and hope for the best but on printing out supposed fixed pages, I find word has actually fucked up the formatting for SOME (but not all) of my captions, automatically renumbering pages as I go along. Course, I didn't realise this until I sent the second copy to print.

So it's now 4:30, I'm tired and just want a fuck off glass of red wine but I'm sat in a cold crappy lab having had a lukewarm pasty and tea that tasted of dishwater for lunch and swearing at word.

You just can't make up a day like this.

So I got carried away...

And haven't started work

BUT

I accepted my job offer. The bright lights of London Town beckons. More updates as and when I know.

This is my month!

Smugness

So I'm feeling a little smug.

I've been shortlisted for another interview. This makes position number 3 in probably about the same number of days.

The problem is now to be still motivated to continue writing job applications as there is this hope that I should just get the first one that I was picked for. That's just wishful thinking. But I believe in the existence of a higher being, that's sort of wishful thinking as well?

*ducks for lightning strike*

Must prepare for thesis viva. Anyone want to cram about innate immunity and the cytokine signalling of haemocytes in Drosophila?

*didn't think so*

I'll be back in a few days.

EEK

what up, crazy kids.

Job interview in the big smoke tomorrow. I have a smokin' hot powerpoint presentation. However, if i don't get it at least it'll be a good excuse to meet some of the people I've been putting off for ages.

Free trip down to London my chaps and chapesses.

WOO HOO

I have a job interview on Friday. Was a bit jittery about getting a job but now I have ONE interview. OK, I may not get it but it's quite a nice affirmation.

Viva exam in 2 weeks, I'm still not ready for it. EEEKKKK, will be ok, need to brush up on a few things.

Been plagued by weird and unusual dreams lately. Think the stress of lack of employment and viva is getting to me. Strangely, the stress has made me lazier rather than motivated to do things that I've put off for a while.

3 weeks to viva

CRAP

how did that happen? :(

All I want to do right now is crawl under a rock and cry. There are no job prospects available and it feels like no one has read anything that I've spent time preparing. This is sort of something similar to the chat I had with Annie yesterday, which I would normally transcribe and have some insightful comment but really all I want to do right now is talk about Drosophila innate immunity, the Toll pathway, cytokine signalling and haematopoiesis. And maybe a bit of phagocytosis or evolutionary adaptation to boot.

There isn't enough time in the day for what I need to do in the next 3 weeks, made even worse by the fact that I still have that stupid ear thing. I can't balance myself properly and the lack of sleep is making it harder for me to adapt to the loss of balance sensing. And a big public thank-you to Mary for her kind and generous offer. :-)

Also, I'll be going home soon, should be nice.

Going into hiding

I've been pretty busy lately doing a whole bunch of stuff that most of you know about, revising the work for my paper, preparing my paper, checking out my thesis (and feeling the horror of the viva coming up) and leaving my room of 2 years. I am crap at moving. I should be really really good at moving by now because I used to move every year. I should really be able to live out of a suitcase with nothing but my laptop and a credit card. But I think I overcompensate for the lack of a home by purchasing things.

Freecycle has had a good week out of me, I've got more things to recycle but it still feels like I own too many things. One day, I shall learn not to buy anything. (This is on the list with being on time, not having a rant every 5 minutes, being sweetness and light before coffee in the morning and others).

Anyways, I am getting a bit stressed about the fact that I don't have a job yet (and for anyone who asks yet again, how hard is it for a PhD to get a job, it's pretty freaking hard! OK?) and I have about a million journal articles (slight over estimation, maybe about 100-150 in reality) to read before I get grilled by 2 of my supposed peers. (HA HA HA). How bad can it be? I have to rewrite my thesis? *gulp*

Hence also explaining why I'm still awake at 2:33am and have to be in the lab at 9am tomorrow. Joy.

Facebook addiction

I am currently addicted to facebook. It's quite spooky. I've found a large number of people that I haven't kept in touch with or I haven't even spoken to in years. It's nice to see how other people are doing.

Facebook rocks.

Merdeka

Merdeka is Malay meaning to be free, independent.

The nation celebrates freedom from colonising forces every year 31 August. But it celebrates the wrong day and the wrong year. The Malay peninsula was freed 31 August 1957 but the whole nation (including Sabah and Sarawak) was only formed 16 Sept 1963. It's a shame that the leaders of the nation doesn't think to rectify their errors.

I've lived abroad now for a lot of years and in the beginning, it was easy to be swayed by the idea that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. It is very easy for minorities to be disillusioned by the farcical notion that is Bangsa Malaysia. There is no such thing, everything in Malaysia is delineated by your race and your religion. Your right to own land, your right to own a business, your right to be educated, your right to choose your religion and even your right to serve your own country.

How can you afford patriotism for a nation that seems not to care about you and chooses to ignore what you can do? But then again, when you are abroad, you don't really truly belong to that country. You are still a foreigner in their land. Each country has their own unique set of problems and they are different. You just have to realise that it's a different way of life.

There are many things wrong with being Malaysian, but there are as many things that are right.
Malaysians are friendly, you'll never be wanting an easy chat or even a smile or a helping hand. The national obsessions keep the country glued together, you'll never find another place in the world when you return home and you realise how lovely all the food smells and tastes. You'll never find a country so industrious in learning about loopholes, there will always be someone on a road side stall selling the latest DVD version of the newest film deemed by the censors too delicate for us to watch. There are never enough prodigious people who will come up with another way to take your money, someone has an idea that will be exploited. And the best of all, it is always acceptable to leave your work for breakfast/tea break/lunch when you need to.

Here are some reasons why I miss Malaysia so much sometimes...










































To be truly free for what we enjoy, we have to accept that we are going to be restricted for other things in our live.

Selamat menyambut Hari Merdeka!

I'm off-balance

I know that is nothing new to those that know me quite well but you'll be glad to know that it's now official. I have an inner ear infection which means that I am not quite fully balanced. Or fully able to balance. It would be a rather pleasing non-drug induced sensation of feeling slightly high or giddy if it wasn't for the fact that I have quite a large number of things that need organising over the next few days.

But I had a great weekend, I spent time with x and it's all going swimmingly. The poor boy had to face a rather large group of people and worrying about me swaying all over the place yesterday when we had a barbeque at the flats. It was good, we had loads of food, lots of drink (of which I had none, due to being off-balanced) and just general chat.

There are some pictures and things that I keep threatening to include but they never somehow make it on this blog. One day, I'll remember.

When I'm more balanced.

Yes yes

Yes, I am still alive, it's been weeks since I blogged but I've been in a lovely state of inertia from finishing thesis. But I am getting my butt into gear and organising things. more pictures up soon.

Been really busy, we went out last night and i may have gotten accidentally drunk.

So will be on the lookout for bacon type things today.

I am done

Thesis ready, just the binding left after one last read to make sure there aren't any obvious fuck-ups.

My supervisor soothed me with the words, "It's fine, they'll ask for minor corrections." and "I am not sure what you are trying to discuss but it's ok"

You know what, I'm not sure what the hell I'm doing as well, but it's over. For now.

And for those that know me, yes, it's ready one day early.

No, I can't believe it either, it's a miracle from God. And if you don't believe in the existance of a higher being, go and buy a lottery ticket.

deleted

When the going gets tough

the tough prepare baked goods.

I baked over the weekend, possibly because it was the most relaxing activity when the weather is crap. Which, unsurprisingly, since I live in Britain, wasn't the greatest.

I made carrot muffins (which in all honesty, were a bit cake like in texture) and the kick-ass peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. For good measure, I made some parmesan biscuits as well.


Taste testers required for above products, to apply, please drop by to collect! I don't actually eat very many of them.

Also had a great girly night in with two gorgeous chicks where we chatted about anything and everything (especially men!!) over a substantial quantity of the loveliest vodka ever invented on this Earth.

Now, the problem is I have a meeting with my supervisor tomorrow about my thesis, the phrase 'lots of changes' were invoked.

Thank God I'll be bribing with cookies and cake.....

Deadline for submission 13 July.

Exhaustion

Hello, this is alice's brain, I'm called Brian

I'm tired tired. Very very tired. I feels like i've been bitch slapped to hell and back.

But it will soon all be over.

13 July is when the thesis goes in, should be fun.

Wish me luck and any prayers are always welcome.





I should also wish to add, there's a whole chapter that's currently unwritten but you know me, work best under fire.

A minor vent

Now, some people will have remembered the exceptional customer service of the Thistle City Barbican where I stayed previously, about 2 months ago.

After a month of emails and complaints, first receiving some silly compensatory plans such as an executive suite and complimentary breakfast, I was finally assured that I would be receiving a refund within 4 weeks.

4 weeks whistle by.

No cheque.

Sent another email only to find out they had accidentally missed out my payment.
Completely unacceptable behaviour by a company that purports itself to be a 4-star hotel.

At some point, I will receive a refund. At some point, I may even hate them less for their ineptness.

A weekend in Holland

Went to visit John where he's back for another course and it was great fun. Very nice to have a break of some description. Airport security is now worse than ever before, I didn't want to check in so I had to pack my toiletries in a clear plastic bag and they had to be less than 100ml.

Got to Schippol and then took a train to Rijswijk, a suburb off the Hague. Friday I went to Delft, and spent a nice day wandering around there.

Started off at the Vermeer Center, learning all about the great Dutch painter, whom I was introduced to by Sarah!


Then walked along to the Old Church, beautiful inside




Then walked around the Pisenhof where it was very very weird. They had old Masters in great grand frames in the same room with a lot of contemporary art. Took me a while to realise there was a theme to each room. There was a room where there was war pictures and there were other modern art installations with a war theme. It amused me for a while, took about 5 or 6 galleries before I stopped laughing at it. Well curated though.



An unusual bench outside the museum

Then walked along to Royal Delft, went along their little tour and learn all about how they make quality high class ceramics. They had "The Night Watch" on tiles, which is remarkably impressive seeing how hard it is to make it!



Then fell in love with what I call my Fish plate, it's gorgeous. Bought it so I am now owner of Royal Delftware. YAY!


Saturday morning, went to Amsterdam with John and visited the Rjiksmuseum, saw the work of the great Dutch masters, it was great!


Then instead of another museum, we decided to go and do the Heineken experience, which was fun and involved drinking beer. I can cope with drinking of beer.





It wasn't me that was being silly!!!

Then we walked around for a bit before dinner

Then went back to the Hague

Sunday was a random chilled out day, which I enjoyed immensely.


We decided we wanted to look for the International War Crimes tribunal, it's just located in a small quiet building and found out there are public galleries for the trials, very exciting.

World Peace Flame next to the European Court of Justice (or something similar to it, if anyone does know, can they please tell me?)



How can anyone not love this place?



Now back to reality of thesis!

Something different

I am ecstatically happy.

It's not my thesis.

Summer has arrived, of a description, the weather has turned from miserable from the past few weeks and it's a beautiful day.

And of course, there's one other reason.
But I can't say anything yet.