At my uncle's wake in Bulacan listening to A Very Potter Musical while wallowing at the dearth of good reading material since I forgot to bring my copy of the Once and Future King. The only things I have with me are medicine e-books.

Got an unexpected unintended present today, tons of old med books. Looks like I won't be needing to fight with people of library copies of textbooks. Thank the universe for rich relatives.

Excited for summer. Have to keep these things in mind as I cram for the comprehensive exam for March. Trips to Davao and Beijing. National conference. Potential work. Scientific writing workshop. RSO immersion. Org planning.

It's been a crazy December. Hindi na naman ako med student. Napaparami ata ang buwan na hindi ako student. Feeling ko ganito uli sa March. hahaha

barely catching up on the news.

The Morong 43 are free! I don't know why it took PNoy so long. Maybe he wanted to time it with HR day but that's the lamest excuse ever.

wag ka na lang mag-aral sa UP

kung ganito ang paniniwala mo. Sa pagpasok mo sa UP (sa kahit anong paaralan naman) inaako mo ang responsibilidad na tulungan ito makamit ang kanilang bisyon. Hindi na nga hinihingi na maging "excellent" o ma-laude kayo, papasa na lang. Sa mata nga ng marami, binabaan na ang standards para sa iyo tapos di niyo pa pinahahalagahan bagkus (naks, nagamit rin ang bagkus) pinipilit niyo pa iharap na nag-aaral naman kayo sa ibang lugar nga lang; ang edukasyon niyong nakukuha ay walang katumbas na grades ika nga. Problema lang hindi ang edukasyong gusto ng institusyon ng iyong pinanggalingan ang iyong natutunan. Baguhin natin, hindi mo natututunan ang dapat mong nakukuha sana kung kahit minsan manatili ka sa loob ng silid aralan. Aanhin mo ang doktor na hindi marunong manggamot dahil may iba siyang gustong aralin. Eh di sana di ka na nag-enroll. Sayang ang slot. Sayang ang paunti na paunti na resources ng UP. At dahil sa kapabayaan niyo, nawalan kami ng mga lider. Oo, naninisi kami. Sino ba ang kanilang binigo?

Aminin na kasi na may malaking pagkakamali nagawa.

PS Mali ang blue at dilaw. Walang relasyon ang pagiging tibak sa grades. Kung tinatanong siguro ano ba ang ideal na tibak na UP, baka pwede na sagot iyon.

Ayaw ko na. Christmas break na please.

And I really should be updating my blog roll. I think half closed down already and the rest are not posting regularly (once a week).

We won TRP. Yey!

But now I have to:
1. Go to this afternoon thing
2. Study for the Diabetes exam on Monday.
3. Write that ward work paper.
4. Ponder/Worry about our research project that is finished but not really so we're still doing it.
5. Help out my org which is going to have their 1st ever (mini)concert.
6. Prepare for our SGDs, plenary presentations and elective discussions.

Isa kang malaking pasaway. Lantaran pa. Sige ikaw na tama, kala mo naman may susunod sa iyo.

---
So my aunt just arrived from the UK and guess what she brought for me. The Gathering Storm. It was nice of her but unfortunately I had already bought a copy way back in October as an end of the semester gift for myself. What's more sad is that I don't think we can return the book because it looks damaged already. I don't know how it happened but there are some tiny tears and it looked liked that some of the black color of the cover was chipped of. I don't know if I want to laugh, scream or cry. Gaaah!

Maybe I should just sell it on Ebay or something. *sigh*

Wondering what it's going to be like if I decide to quit med school and start dancing seriously or join a Public health organization, doing research or community work.

No duh.

In other news, our research deadline was moved to January. We can do more trials. Uh... yey? We do need it and I really feel good about this research project. We have really good results, we just need to finish it.

I have a new goal in med school. Apparently, the admin and the faculty decided that just having a 2.75 average is not enough to merit entry into the Track B and Track C programs. We now have to be in the top 30% and 20% respectively. I do hope I'm in the top 20%. I really want to focus on a certain field of medicine for internship year. The skills in this field are not taught really well in the other tracks so there.

Of course the problem with this system is that not everyone in the top 20 and 30%  want to get into Tracks B and C. Isn't this a waste of slots?

2 days in to the 2nd semester and I'm ready for my Christmas break.

And due to my Psych elective, I'll probably be missing the UPD lantern parade this year.

Was an AMSEP host this week. Only week I've had less sleep was when I was attending AMSC and there I was able to catch a nap during venue transfers. I really should have talked to the delegates more.

Finally finished with the amoeba trials. We'll just be counting the amoeba and then off to writing the paper. We have good results but we still need to frame it in a way that will make the paper outstanding (albeit all our methodological limitations and design faults). After everything, I really enjoyed doing this research but bench-type research is really not for me.

From Mainstreaming Natural Family Planning:
"On the average, lower-income couples desire more children, but also experience a larger gap between “wanted” and “actual” number of children. From another perspective, government does not need to engage in population control. What is needed is simply to address the needs of couples to arrive at their desired number of children, particularly among couples in the lower economic quintiles."

False dichotomy. One need not choose between population control and addressing the couples' desires. Actually, addressing the couples' desire is a means to attaining population control. And we need the government to engage in control (the better term is management) because the State doesn't have enough of its resources to sustain the current and future population, hence, we have overpopulation. (The Philippine population really needs to stop growing so 2% is not enough.)

The author seems to misinterpret the NDHS findings and falling into the trap of using biased non-generalizable surveys. The most striking is the conclusion that couples not using any form of family planning have no desire of planning their families. Duh? The NDHS found that they're not using any form because maybe they gave up or do not know how. It doesn't mean they don't want to. And two, it is laughable to elevate the findings of your poorly designed biased survey to a nationwide randomized survey such as the NDHS. Any student who knows basic research courses will notice that your sample will be non-representative and thus non-equivalent to the NDHS population. Actually, your survey won't even be representative of all the couples in your diocese.

It is commendable though that they are engaging in a form of extension service that is beyond that of spouting stupid statements like contraception is equal to abortion or that contraceptives are carcinogens. Hopefully, these sessions aren't or won't turn to indocrination sessions on NFP or none at all.

If NFP works for the people who desire to use NFP, why not use it. Just don't go overboard in criticizing other methods, people have the rights to choose their own.

Why am I watching As Told by Ginger episodes on Youtube when I should be:

a. Studying immunology
b. Writing my overdue reports
c.  Making some money
d. Making two new dances

I don't know.

And my glasses are missing again. Looks like the first money I'll earn will go to replacing them.

Ever heard of fatigue? Or prioritization? I have.

The freaking amoeba won't let me enjoy my sembreak. It's a good thing I have groupmates who are really bored at home. If this is how PhD students feel like, at least the one stuck in "wet" laboratories... no thanks! I'd rather not let my happiness be dependent on the growth of cells that I'm planning to kill anyway.

still have no job. I really want to have some sort-of stable income so I could save up for camera equipment, Christmas-related expenses and summer trips.

you sure know how to push people to fatigue. you seem to forget we have other things to do. things we already committed ourselves into months ago. *sigh* fine, I'll find some way to do it.

Finished The Gathering Storm.

Brandon Sarandon brought to the table what we found lacking with Robert Jordan: fast pacing.
Reading this one wasn't too much of a chore unlike the 3 books prior to this one where you find yourself groaning at a new plot twist or sidetrack to a main story branch. I did find myself wondering what is happening in the other branches. I'm really excited to read the Moiraine-Thom-Mat branch in the next books. And I'm very happy that Rand finally gets over his emo/steel/cuendillar phase.

I wish someone will give me the next book for my birthday. =)

Now to look for booksale copies of Asimov's Foundation novels.

Typical.

My last sembreak for the rest of my life will not be spent lounging at home. Instead, it'll be on research, stressful org stuff and some money-making in between.

We shouldn't stoop down to their level. They keep using simple cause and effect models. Epidemiology taught us there are other models. The web and the lever are good ones I think.

And their overpopulation articles are such good demonstrations of straw men and red herrings.