many thanks to my bout of dengue i'm living out the high life now man. that's right, treated to a 2 wk long hiatus from school, checked into good ol' nuh for a weekend stay in class B2 (the class with no airconditioning and no tv and unidentified food objects that they actually expect us to eat) ward 64 bed 46 (6446! buy 4d!) though some might argue that it wasn't a proper whole 2 wks cuz nuh is school- mel's joke, hur hur. lounging around in my reclining fully ergonomic spacebed/OSIM inspired hospital bed right next to the window, come noontime i'd be drenched in pools of bright cheery sunlight and my own sweat, enjoying sweeping vistas of chalky grey tiled buildings and occasional squawks of a crow.
with nurses at my disposal, acceding to my every request, all with the simple touch of a button by my bed.

oh! and the drip! 0.9% sodium chloride solution
which they drained into my poor punctured cephalic vein
the memory of which will torment me for a very very very long time.

i'll always remember

..crying and crying and crying and feeling so extremely sorry for myself after they jabbed me for the iv. wrongly the first time round i might add, when they poked a valve in my vein, which kinked the needle, which the year 5 proudly brandished after half killing me, adding "that's why you gotta learn anatomy!" obviously she didn't learn hers very well. and calling lor then calling ange then calling jac to cry and sob some more. until the nurse came round and asked me sympathetically how come i didn't have a companion? at that question i shrugged tearily and buried my head in my mogu cushion and chastised myself for being such a cry baby. but it did hurt okay!

..the doctors and nurses laughing at me when i complained and agonised over being poked like a pincushion and the backflow of blood in the iv tubing "aren't you a medical student! and you're scared of blood! how can you be more scared than your patients! bahahhah" and quizzing me on the properties of dengue "so i see you have notes! *big smile* tell me about dengue!" argh cut the med student crap already man i'm still scared and it still hurts okay! and i'm only year one, waddahell do i know!

..the poor old lady who cried every night like a baby in the bed opposite me, all alone without any visitors, i wanted to give her the sunflower yunde gave me only it had withered from being fried in the sun without any water and its petals were dropping like flies

..making friends with brenda the other girl in the ward when the sweet girl walked to the other side of the ward to give me an apple

..walking down the long hallway to piss in the still of the night at 2.46 am, my lone figure plus that of my faithful drip being dragged along casting silhouettes on the hospital floor, past wards of poor patients, some deep in slumber others quietly stifling their cries of pain and loneliness, past the nurses on night duty at the reception counter, and feeling brave and proud cuz now that i've been to hospital i can do anything in the world.

and thank you so much to all the sweethearts who visited me in the hospital and at home :) lorry my family charmain yunde jac ange mel del fuqiang qinyong zhongkai jess teri hsien sirui and van who actually visited the old woman who took over my bed after i discharged but thanks so much anyway sweetie. and for all the concerned smses and calls!

and if everyone would be so nice as to shout out "this is for charmaine!" at any mosquito that flies by their way and follow that with a loud resounding piak! i'd be oh so appreciative and much obliged. thanks friends!