My state of mind

Sometimes I get confused. I get confused with myself.

I use to think I am an understanding person. I use to think I am selfless and do things for the right reasons. And when I do things that I feel compromise other peoples feelings I feel absolutely sick inside. Sick that I may have made the person sad, sick that I may have hurt the person's feeling, sick that I may have turned into a selfish self-centred jerk.

When I feel like this I feel down. Absolutely down. I can't explain why but when I feel like this I get chest pains, numbing headaches and I find it difficult to sleep. And this can go on for days.

Right now I am just hoping this feeling would go away.

Standing or sitting?

I have always been baffled by 'toilet seat' battle of the sexes.

In the western movies it is such a huge deal if a man forgets to put the seats down after using the toilet. Nah, I am not on the men's side. I just cannot comprehend the issue. An issue (according to the numerous movies I see) is so huge that it can cause a crack in even the strongest relationship.

I would be more concerned if he did not raise the seat before peeing. I mean all of us know that men suck at hitting the target. Even with an area of 1 feet in diameter (and the aiming from distance of just half a feet away) many would fail thus the splash around the toilet rim or seat (if it's not up). What would irritate me is the inability of some species to just wash the seats/rim if that happens.

And what is the big deal in putting down the toilet seat? It only takes less than a second to do so. I mean if it's up put it down and if it's down just sit. It is not often that you'll go to the toilet in such urgency that you can't take that 0.5 second to put down the seat. And even if the seat is down, in such grave situation, I doubt you'll even have the time to remove your undies. Worse scenario, you will just pee a bit in your panties, and if a wet underwear grosses you out just remove it and walk around commando style. Such a liberating experience.

Lankayan Memories

Imperial shrimp - found on the undersurface of a sea cucumber

Valen my ass

In five more days couples are going to celebrate Valentine's Day. This is one event in the year where rose growers will triple their profit perhaps surpassing the whole year sale (maybe I am exaggerating here). But anyway, it is this time of the year where boyfriends scratch their heads and dig deep into their pockets to plan the perfect Valentine. In some relationship, the outcome of this day can break or make the relationship.

Personally, I am no believer in one day just to show your affection to your loved one. I believe one should cherish his or her loved ones every single day that they have together. What does one day mean if the whole year you do not show the affection and the love you feel in your heart?

Valentine's day is just a conspiracy to make people feel guilty for not 'caring' for their 'loved' ones. It is a way to make people part with their money in order to show their 'love'. It is the same concept with parents who shower their children with expensive gifts but refuse to spend any time with them.

But then, not many people especially women think like me. Many would lament on how the significant other did not spend enough or even forgot about this so called 'special' day. And some would gasp and stare in awe when their girlfriends or colleagues receive that beautiful bouquet of red roses or expensive box of chocolates and think "Ah...why is he not like that?"

With such disatisfaction in ones heart the auspicious day would then turn into emotional blood bath. I wonder if that is how St Valentine wanted to be remembered, the one who initiate lovers to part?

Monkey Business

The Emergency Room

The good ol' days

Location: A&E Department, Government Hospital in Malaysia

The medical officer just started his graveyard shift at 12 midnight. There are two of them on duty at night. He prays for a quiet night. Past few days have been absolutely crazy. The two officers just cannot cope with the amount of motor-vehicle accidents and the number of polytrauma patients that they generate. And it is not just that, it is usually in the middle of the night that family members bring their ill relatives. Relatives who had been ill for many many days, who were so weak that they are at the verge of collapsing. AND it is usually at night that the family cannot stand the patients' constant moaning and grunting because it is depriving them of a good night's sleep.

Today it is his turn to see the cold or minor cases. He sat at his table. Ahhh..... 15 yellow cards. He bets that 8 are those with minor cough and cold who suddenly decide that they cannot live with it another second more; three or four with stomach ache after binging so much during dinner; and an idiotic one or two who cannot sleep and want to find out why is that so.

Slowly he reach out to press the number zero...five..one...

"Ting.... kosong...lima...satu... Bilik Dua". The mechanical female voice rings out loudly across the waiting room.

The door opened. In came a neurotic looking Chinese lady. She walked normally towards him. He gave a sigh and a bored smile. He gestured her to sit.

"Good morning" *yawn* "What is your problem?" *yawn*

"Ah...good morning doctor... I have no problem, I just want to know if there is anything wrong with me?"

"Uh...duh?? I am so sorry, do you have a cough?"

"No..no..no...doctor... I am fine lorrr.... I just want to check if I am ok,. You know to see if I have high sugar or high blood or anything bad"

He feels his sleepiness just went away. If he understands it correctly, this bloody idiot want a full medical check-up at....he glanced over the wall clock,,,what??? 12.05 am???

He said calmly " I am so sorry, I only treat emergencies middle of the night. If you want to check whether you're Ok or not you need to come to the Outpatient Department tomorrow morning, during office hours"

"Aiyoh doctor, I cannot come lorrr during office hours I got business to run. I want you to check me now"

He shook his head in disbelief and reached out for a referral form. He pushed the form into the patient's hand. " You can go see the doctor anytime between 8am to 5pm, Mondays to Fridays", then he gave her this 'get out of my sight look'.

The attendant, sensing his irritation, quickly ushered the lady out and told her directions to the outpatient department. The lady, angry that she spent 2 hours waiting for nothing and paying RM 1, protested. But by then, she caught a glimpse of the doctor's frowning face and decided to go quietly.

"ting... kosong...lima...dua....Bilik Dua"

A kid, his mom and thirteen motorcycles

About a year or two ago someone in the Government suggested that parents be held liable if their children are caught illegally driving a vehicle. This was due to a spate of fatal or almost fatal accidents involving minor. But then, after while, the issue died a natural death.

After 7 months in Pahang, I realize this issue needs to be re-addressed. Parents here (especially in the estates and Felda) are purposely being ignorant and stupid.

Today, tops it all.

A 12 year old boy was admitted to the ward following fall from HIS motorcycle and he sustained a huge gash over his knee which brought him to me. After treatment has been instituted I decided to do my ‘preventive medicine’ responsibility and ask the boy bout his ‘joyride’. His ever concerned mom was there and she told me to pull his ears and reprimand him for riding carelessly and hurting himself.

I was curious. Where did the boy get the bike? Whose bike is it? Was he being extra mischievous and stole the key from the parents?

I was not at all prepared to hear the answer. Actually, I was stunned.

Mom nonchalantly told us that there were a total of 13 motorcycles in her house. One for each kid. The youngest, a 7 year old has a ‘motor kapchai’. And she went on, they can ONLY use them (the bikes) on the village road; to the shops, to school and to the surau NOT to the main roads or highway. It is convenient for her and her hubby as they don’t have to ‘worry’ bout the kids.

Hmmm…fascinating! It shows that the standard of living in the FELDA have actually improved. Man, they can afford THIRTEEN motorcycles. Doesn’t matter if it’s 2nd hand, they would at least costs RM2000, minimum. How I wished I had the vision to be a Felda settler, no need to study and work so hard, just collect money at the end of the month. Really! Nowadays, FELDA hires foreign workers to work at the palm-oil estate.

Anyway, back to the THIRTEEN motorcycles and under-aged motorbike riding, I wonder, if the son had died of an intracranial bleed or intra-abdominal injuries would the mother still think the same? I felt a very strong urge to tug the parents ears and give them a lecture on being responsible parents.

There are reasons why there is a minimum age limit get a driving or motorcycle license. Knowing the young, the age limit should be raised. Young people are brash, impatient and their judgment have not yet developed and thus more prone to accidents. And when you are young, you will always think ‘I still have a long life ahead of me’; or ‘it would never happen to me’.

I have been there, felt that but perhaps not done that.

It is all written on the day you were born

Tried this Facebook application called " What Your Birthdate Means" and this is my results.

"You're full of charisma and dynamicity and you are possibly headed to being famous. You have a charming persona and you are at ease even with strangers. You usually find your way with most people and situations. You are a good speaker and tend to persuade people with your speaking and writing. You are loving and affectionate, but you might be afraid of commitment.

Your greatest strength is: Your charm

Your greatest weakness is: Your extreme manipulation tactics

Your lucky color is: Indigo"

Whoa, I am charismatic, dynamic and charming. And I am going to be famous. Lets hope it it not because I am a extra in some illicit videos *wink*.

I guess it must be my charms then that bowled over a woman. And I can blame it all on my birthday. It was already written in my future and since I am SO CHARMING that male and female alike find me irresistible.

Ah, 2008 sure has a lot more in store for me then. :)

TAGGED

I've been tagged by Ardy.

The Rules:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. List eight (8) random facts about yourself.
3. Tag eight people at the end of this post and list their names.
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving them a comment on their blogs.

List eight (8) random facts about myself:
1. I was born at 1320 hours in Queen's Mother Hospital in Glasgow


2. When I was four I used to sing "waa wee waaa...pukul sebelas" whenever I hear the clock chimes

3. When I was 15, I wore my jeans 24/7 except when I go to school

4. Being a klutz since small, I have worn two left shoes to school. This happened as I do not wear them when getting into the car but just grab any shoes and wear them later (and being scared of mom I just wear them pretending it was the right shoe)

5. I had my first kiss at the age of 16, it was so sloppy and wet

6. I don't get angry, I get even : In Form 6 I was told by my class monitor that only the girls are in-charge of cleaning and beautifying the class. I did exactly that; A class of 24 boys and 4 girls had pink curtains, pink table cloths, pink flowers , pink notice boards.... :)

7. I hate to iron my clothes, I send all my work clothes to the laundry for ironing

8. The only cake I crave for is cheesecake

Now, I would like to tag the followings:
Flowerskies
NajiBEST
Lily
Guile
Hazyr
ahhh cannot get 8 people laaaaaa

Confused sexuality

I am not homophobic. I have known people who are gay and are great friends with them. I respect their choices and I do not hold it against them.

However, it does not mean I am liberal in my sexual orientation. I am straight, very straight. I like men, I love men, I enjoy being in the company of men and no amount of seducing by a hot sexy babe can change that.

So when a woman approaches me in a manner I felt was sexual, I cringe. I feel disgusted, I feel nauseated. I used to think I would feel honored if I managed to attract women but then, now it has happened it doesn’t feel that way.

A woman at work has been calling and sending me text messages wanting to get to know me. Initially she was anoynomous, she first approached me via text messages a few months back and I wrongly assumed that it was a man bothering me. I did my ‘ignore-and-do not answer’ method of brushing aside such unwanted advanced and it was quiet till past two weeks.

However, I guess her being exasperated at my silence she became bold. The woman. asked one of my medical officers to formally introduce us and thus my current situation. It is too embarrassing to put in detail. Suffice to say, if I didn’t know it was a woman I would think that a man was trying to woo me. Perhaps I misunderstood and the woman genuinely wants to be my friend. However, being a ‘relationship expert’ makes me certain that the language used in the communication is not based on pure unconditional friendship.

It crossed my mind to ask which part of me attracted a lesbian? Is it because of my tomboyish nature, thus being a 50% male? Or is it because I have big boobs? I reckon if I was a real lesbian I would go for those hot curvaceous bootylicious and ‘boobylicious’ South American women instead of a butch or ‘penkid’. Thus brings me to another question: if I was in such a relationship, an I the male or the female of the relationship?

Now, the reality is the woman asked me out for dinner tonight.

And facts are, ONE: she has mentioned twice she likes me and TWO: twice mentioned she misses me. Ah crap, it is really disgusting!

My close friends find this absolutely funny, a few of them were rolling on the ground when I told them of my predicament. Some were curious which part of me attracted a lesbian, others volunteered to buy me an artificial penis in order for me to satisfy my ‘partner’… euwwww. And ALL the guys wanted me to get the woman naked and take photos of her, perverts!!!!

Well, if it happened to one of you guys I too would have joined in and roll on the ground, so I have to admit this is one hilarious scenario. But for now, my brain is on over-time thinking of how to get myself out of this mess. Any ideas?

Start of the Diving Year

Tomorrow at 1400 hours I will be boarding Airasia flight to Sandakan. It will be my first diving trip this year. I have decided to start early as I have not many commitments compared to 2007. Last year, I managed to squeeze in just over fifty dives, not bad considering the season started only in May for me.

The plan is to stay overnight in Sandakan and then head over to Lankayan Island the next morning. Then it will be diving, diving and diving for the next four days. My aim for this trip is to practice underwater photography as I have just purchased my new camera. Sadly this setup not yet has a strobe, but we will see how it turns out.

So friends, forgive me if I don't update in the next few days. I will be busy indulging in my first love.

LAST POST FOR 2007

1. How has 2007 been for you in a nutshell?
Good

2. Apart from your family members, name one person who has made you happy in 2007.
Ardy

3. Do you feel you are better off, or worse off, in 2007 than you were in 2006?
Better off, don’t have to study anymore!!!!!!!!

4. Where was the best holiday trip for you in 2007?
So many good holidays: It all started in May – my Redang-Perhentian week-long diving trip, Tulamben Bali with Saliha, Kaz, Wanie and Amir in July, Cambodia Siam Reap 10 year overdue trip finally Sembilan Island Seahorse Hunting LOB in December.

5. Name two positive things that you have achieved in 2007
I have succeeded in not studying anymore
I did my Rescue Diver Course


6. Name the best movie you saw in 2007.
Transformers (robots in disguise)

7. Name five friends that you have made in 2007.
Ardy, Guile, Ryzah, Salwa, Spena.

8. What New Year’s resolution for 2007 that you have not achieved?
I don’t make new year’s resolutions

9. What would your New Year’s resolution for 2008 be?
Please read No 8

10. Name 3 people you would like to tag.
Ardy, Guile, Floweryskies

What lies ahead

2008 will be reveal itself in 3 hours. As usual, I never make any plans for New Year's Eve, and this year I will be holding the fort in Temerloh. I can never recall any year that I joined the celebrations. I am not really into partying and I hate crowds, well, people may say I am an anti social person, most probably they are right.

2007 have been a good year for me and my family. There were incidents that we all wanted to forget but generally it has been good.

The first five months was uneventful except me slogging for exams, luckily I scraped through.

My sister got married in July, a first in the family. I guess some people may say...."ah finally"... Anyway, Shafuan is a nice guy and is now known as my mom and dad's 'MY SON'.

Work wise, I got posted to Temerloh. It is a new experience working far away from the civilization I know (there is no cinemas or bowling alley you know)...However, it is a good training ground with the massive traumas that occur along the east coast highway.

Diving has been good this year although the season started only in May for me. I did a Redang-Perhentian week-long marathon and I met new buddies along the way. I finally did and completed my Rescue Course and FINALLY got to see the common seahorse. We capped the end of the season by playing Uno underwater in Pulau Sembilan.

And in case anyone is interested to know, yes I am seeing someone special.

And she call herself a lecturer?

It was the last day of the exams. Everyone was pretty nervous. It was the dreaded viva-voce. Three examiners grilling one candidate at a time. Thinking of it made my heart jump a beat, "what if I am asked something I do not know?". Ahhhh....I felt inadequate, but then here goes nothing. A whole year of slogging, something should have sunk in.

Suddenly, someone called out my name. I looked up, so did the other five there. She signaled to me to come out. I smiled and immediately rose from my seat. I followed her out to the hall, there she was chatting excitedly, as usual I can't really recall but it was irrelavant. And then she said "Lynn, please do better, you need to pull up your marks". I was stunned. In my mind a one question came up, 'did I fare badly in the other papers?'

I immediately questioned her "What do you mean? Did I fail the previous papers?"

"Oh!" "No, Lynn, I didn't mean that, I am just saying that you need to score in the viva". At that point I found her irritating. I was pissed. By uttering that sentence to me, she threw me completely off balance. I immediately excused myself.

I went back into the holding room. The others looked as I rejoined them. They saw that something had happened, I lost my composure. The cool (but secretly nervous) person is no longer there. It was fifteen minutes to 10. That was when we need to enter the examination hall.

I sat there breathing deeply, negative thoughts crept into my mind. I had to tell myself over and over again "You know this, have faith.... have faith".

And as we walked to our stations her voice keep playing on and on in my mind "....you need to pull up your marks.....". Damn her! Damn her!Damn her

Dying wish

"What ever they do, please do not allow them to cut my leg"

That is a dying man's wish. He has been suffering for the past 3 weeks that started with a wound over his heel. Initially he brushed it off, "ah...it will heal by itself" but then gradually it got worse,; painful, foul smelling and discharging pus. He was too scared to go to the hospital, he has heard so much about the doctors there; the fearsome ones, the ones so happy to chop off people's legs.

For the past 5 years he had suffered from diabetes, he has not been taking his medications regularly. He figured, he should not be dependent on drugs; so if he felt weak he'll take a tablet or two but usually he felt fine. "Ah, the doctor must be mistaken, I am not like any other patients, I am not sick,"; that was what he had told himself over the years. And not only that, when it comes to eating he ate like there was no tomorrow.

As the years gone by his health slowly turned bad. His sight was not as good as before, the ophthalmologist told him that he had retinopathy, complications of the long standing chemical abuse of his body. The sugars have caused all this. And about 6 months ago his physician warned him, without proper diet and medications his kidneys may soon shutdown and he would require regular dialysis.

With all this warning signs he still continued as he wishes. His wife and children tried to help him adhere to the no sugar diet but then he gets absolutely pissed off and angry with them. To him, they are becoming an agent of the doctors to stop him from enjoying what is good in life.

Back the present day, his leg do not seemed so good. It has become more smelly and he can see the patchy bluish discoloration of the skin. And, the pain is unbearable. He has not been able to sleep the past three nights.

His wife is so worried. He is not well, very not well. She sees the change in him. He is so weak and at times, she felt he is not coherent. His fever has been persistent this past two days and his appetite is poor. She tried coaxing him to go to the hospital but he has been adamant. But today, finally, he agreed. She guessed that the pain is now so unbearable.

She took him to the ER. The medical assistant took his pressure and temperature. Immediately he was whisked into the Red Zone, the critical zone. Then what she saw was a flurry of movements. He was rested on the trolley, a doctor came and aked a brief summary of events, his medical illness....ah she can't remember. Blood was taken from his left arm and then after a few minutes lines were dangling from his arms.

Another doctor came, he looked more senior and respectful; he had this worried look on his face. The doctor summoned the wife and explained to her and the patient that he has gas gangrene of the leg. He explained that the infection is very severe and that it is causing 'blood poisoning' or sepsis. Without prompt and proper care he may die. The doctors will do the best for him but they need to sort out and eradicate the source of infection.

He heard the dreaded words coming out of the doctor's mouth, "sir, we have to amputate your leg to save your life". He felt his world spinning, he should not have come. Bravely he said no. Not in a million years, and not if his life depended on it.

She was standing by his side when the frenzy of movements around them started. The nurses and doctors asked her to step aside. More fluids and drugs are being pumped into him. He looked more dazed. Someone came by and told her that his pressure is very weak, it is due to the overwheming sepsis. The doctors need to support his body, they need to put him on a ventilator while the infection is being sorted out. He was then wheeled to the ICU.

She had to wait outside, it was a long wait. She prayed and prayed. Hopefully he will be all right. After half an hour an aide called her to inside the ICU. She was escorted to his bedside. There he laid, a tube sticking out his mouth connected to a machine. He was asleep.

The doctors came and talked to her. Explained that his life is in a precarious position. He may die. They are going to do their best to support his bodily functions, to stabilise him. However, once he is stable they need to remove the source of the infection; without surgery, without amputation, they fear that they can't do anything much to save his life.

Now since he can't make the decision and consent to the surgery she has to. She has to make the decision. But then, how much she loves him, how much she fears losing him she still remembers what he said. His wish. His wish to be whole, and life and in death. Painfully she decides, no!

As his wife, she is the guardian of his wish of his will. And painfully she watches him slip away.

dont have a cow man

EIMG_0703
Originally uploaded by divechiefkaz

Wonderful photos of a cowfish taken by my dear friend Kaz.

Ramblings

One of my dear friends is in a dilemma. She has just passed out as a medical specialist recently and she immediately reported for duty at Putrajaya. She filled in the necessary forms and she stated her desire to stay and serve in the Klang Valley. Her reasons are simple: her family is here, she has a 4 year old beautiful and smart girl who needs her mommy ;and hubby is in the private sector and thus cannot relocate. However, knowing all this, the Ministry decides to post her to Ipoh. Yeah, Ipoh is not that far away but then it’s still a 2 hours’ drive. And thus she appealed. She appealed to the Ministry and she also tried explaining to her ‘future’ boss in Ipoh hoping to get some support.

But then little does she know that this high ranking senior Government officer, a Dato’ dislikes female doctors. She was given a tongue lashing on how he hates women becoming doctors and specialists, on how they are never as dedicated as men, and on how family interests interferes with work. Well, perhaps he is upset that his anticipated lesser workload is not materializing. Perhaps, he was upset about something else and this just added on to his irritated mind. Perhaps.

Anyway, I wonder, if this Dato’s wife get posted elsewhere to work what will he do? Will he kiss her on the forehead and give her his blessings or will he immediately get the DG over the phone and pull some fibre-optic cables to keep her put by his side? Or will he give her the ultimatum, “your family or your career?”

Being a ‘career woman’ is never easy. And worst still, is being a mother, a wife and a working person. In the past, women are expected to live at home taking care of the family and household being THE HOUSEWIFE. In the modern age and world, being a housewife is a luxury, a position that many of us are envious of, for this current time it is never enough to sustain or maintain a family with a single person’s pay. Well, we are talking about the common people here, not some rich bloke with a bottomless pit of cash.

Nowadays women working are not related to women’s lib. Majority of us have no choice. We did not burn our bras and decided that we must work to piss off all the chauvinistic male egos. Nowadays it is not a choice, working is a necessity.

But then, still women are wives and mothers first. It is natural to majority of women to feel that ‘Family Comes First’. To some employers, that makes women workers a liability. They say women do not have the commitment to the job like men do, they do not have the drive to succeed; there will always be sick kids, whining husbands coming in front of the job priority. Well, is that bad? In the employers’ narrow point of view perhaps yes. But let us look at the globally picture.

A society is made up of individuals, male and females. Majority make up small social and support units called families and thus, congregation of families makes the society. Theoretically, a society may compose of individuals without affiliation with anyone, but without families but then what kind of society would that be, hmmm….New Yorkers perhaps? And, it is a well known fact that individuals without familial support succumb to mental illness more commonly compared to those with strong familial base. Therefore, a woman’s contribution to the well-being of the society has always be understated and overlooked.

Back to the Ministry of Health, annually doctors get posted all over the country. It is inevitable. Medical service is needed everywhere but the posting of personnel is a complicated thing. Only if you have friends or relatives in high places that you may get to stay in the Hotspots. The people involved in assigning the postings are never compassionate, they do not care. What matters to them is on paper they have done their job, they do not care about the applicant’s history and family, all they care about is putting a name in an empty slot. Sometimes that is good but sometimes it is not. And when it comes to family matters then most of it is not. Yeah, true that many people misuses the family issue to stay put where they are BUT not everyone.

When another of my friend’s tried getting a transfer from Penang to Klang as his parents were ill; his mom had cancer and his dad dementia, he was told “Family or parents health is NOT a STRONG reason to get a transfer”. Uh duh? What happened to the ‘Masyarakat Penyayang’ concept? How can we become a caring society if we are not allowed to look after out aging ones? And how do you expect doctors to show compassion for other people’s parents if they are not allowed to show compassion and care to their own flesh and blood. Caring for other start from within the family, it is not a trait that can be learnt or acquired; it lies deep within us from the years of training by our family.

And therefore, who can blame a doctor if he or she decides that their family matters the most and thus quit the government service to be there for them. Isn’t it a better idea to keep doctors in the service and get them to do work wherever they are? But then, the Ministry do not care; as the staffs in-charge usually say “Ala doctor, resign aje la kalau tak suka, berlambak orang nak pangkat ni” (translation: if you don’t like it just resign, there are a lot of people vying for this post)…. Little do they know (or they refuse to acknowledge) there are actually an acute shortage of doctors and specialist in the public sector in this country.

Almost Perfect

I close my eyes and lay there imagining.

There was nothing else was there. Nothing else in my mind. Only me and my thoughts.

My senses were taking in all that they could. My ears can hear clearly the sounds of waves hitting the shore, the monsoon making it full of energy,full of fury.

And then, there was the gentle sensation of the wind blowing into my face and hair. It was such a wonderful feeling. Felt like someone was caressing my face, gently touching it....

And occasionally when the sun makes a peek-a-boo through the trees shining as bright as it can, my skin felt a tinge of pain, just slight... It was as if the sun was urging me to get up and enjoy the heat.

I lay there for nearly an hour or two , dozing off now and then. I dreamt I was in paradise... and perhaps for that moment I was... Oh how I wish I can lay there at the beach forever..

It was such a perfect afternoon... well, it was almost perfect.

SOS.... what is happening?

Communication of up-to-date information in a time of disaster is very crucial. It is the upmost importance for those affected, the people who are helping them and also to relay the extent of the disaster to the outside world.

In the modern world of telecommunications, there are various medias available for transmission of information to the masses. Television, radio, internet are amongst the most commonly accessed by the people. The first to are more readily available and accessible to the common people and therefore, should be the main source of information distribution.

Where am I getting to with all this?

For the past week, many states in Malaysia have been affected by heavy rain and floods. The situation is not as usual, yearly there are floods during the monsoon but this year it has been heavier and more severe. In the Pahang state, at one point nearly 28000 people were displaced. Some areas, like Jerantut and Bera were totally cut off when the main roads went under water. The whole state was put under red-alert when the Metrological Department predicts more rain to come.

For the layman like me, this means ‘impending’ disaster (to some in the relief centres it is already a disaster). And for us who are stuck but not yet displaced, hour-by-hour information on the situation is really important but are we getting any? For such a large scale problem the distribution of relevant information is sorely lacking. Apart from the 5 to 10 minute news on the local channels broadcasted at the usual Prime Time News nothing else was communicated. Some higher authority may argue, go to the local Flood Disaster Command Centre to get your up to date information. Well, that is beside the point.

This country has been gearing up its people to become a developed nation. It prides itself in having successfully organized the Commonwealth Games, the CHOGM meetings etc. How can one nation become a developed nation if basic communication and information dispersion cannot be achieved? What happened to the national TV, the ‘Saluran Inforia Anda’? Maybe, they only strive to give accurate and updated Entertainment Information to the masses.

RTM’s Client Charter taken from its website said:

“We pledge to ensure the standard of broadcasting is of the highest quality, in line with the government's policies and aspirations, to cater to the varied tastes of the society through: Up to date information ;programmes that are informative and educational; high quality entertainment programmes and to instill good values”

The channels (including the private stations) should have contingency plans on methods of information dispersion when such a disaster occurs. One just needs to have a continuous information tab at the bottom of the screen to display the latest news. They can do it for the elections so why not for this? This is their social obligation. Stop talking crap about giving rice to people or entertaining orphans during hari raya. This is supposed to be their forte, and thus their responsibility to the people and the Nation.

But then, perhaps I got it all wrong. Perhaps, since this situation occurred in Kelantan, Pahang and Johor where most of the affected are neither well-to-do nor educated, then it is not worth reporting. I guess only if it happens in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur or Shah Alam where the educated, rich and powerful societies are residing then it warrants round the clock up-to-date information.

Looking just at this aspect, are we on the right track to becoming a developed nation?

First Hand Experience - Flood Update

A lot of people did not know what to do. No one can leave the district, well, almost no one. So idiotic and bored people like me went out to survey (or as the news put it 'pantau') the situation

Sue and I was brave (or stupid) enough to get 1st hand experience of the flood. My heart stopped when I realised the car was wading through nearly a foot high flood water. And I nearly died of a heart attack when the Four Wheel infront stopped midway. We were lucky we nothing happened. I guess i need to get myself a Four wheel next time.



Floating Town of Mentakab

Note that the water level is up to half of the 1st storey. Pasaraya YT really was literallly going under



Sampan at center of Mentakab Town... an alternative mode of transport. I wonder where do these people keep their 'sampans' when it's not flooding.

NOTE: ALL PHOTOS WERE TAKEN ON 14th December 2007 between 2030H to 2230H