DAY 211

Mar 31

1) So finally, we had our Anatomy Card Signing today. To be frank, I didn't prepare much for it, instead focusing on the Histology Quiz due next Tuesday. At least, I did spend the previous day revising all of the previous lectures. That would have to suffice I guess...

2) Card Signing started at 2.00pm. Essentially, it is an oral exam where the examiner asks you questions about whatever you have studied on that region, and you don't have much time to think. Grades are divided between an A, B or C. Some examiners choose to use "+" and "-" to further separate the grades. So today, we got Dr. Farrell for our group. What I didn't expect was for him to ask us about the lower limb - this was supposed to have been covered in the previous test.

3) When it came to my turn, he asked me a lot on the lower limb, the muscles, vasculature etc. It took me all my effort to remember what some of these structures were called, and I kept confusing names up. Fortunately, I still managed to pull through, and felt really happy when I saw the "A" next to my name. To be honest, I feel there's an element of luck involved in getting good grades, as I remember toiling for days on my first card signing and still ending up with a B.

4) The rest of the day had me in the library, taking a nice (albeit short) break in the afternoon. Woke up from a short nap and started studying for the Histology Quiz. In the evening, my friends and I met up at the Coffee Doc, to prepare for tomorrow's event - the MMII Time Bomb event, at Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute. My friends and I are in charge of facilitating some sessions throughout the event, so there's plenty to discuss and coordinate among ourselves. Hopefully everything goes smooth sailing, and the event turns out to be a great success!

5) That has been the gist of my day. Hopefully you enjoyed reading about it. I'll be ending on this note. Thanks for reading as always, and have a great weekend. Cheers!

A very sunny day at St. Stephen's Green Shopping Centre ^^

Pasta carbonara for lunch today

DAY 210

Mar 30

1) Today has been much of the same as the previous days. I got up early as usual, had my breakfast, before packing up to go to the library. For some reason, the library is more packed than usual. Perhaps due to tomorrow's Card Signing? Today was all about anatomy in preparation for the test.

2) Morning passed soon enough, and it was afternoon. I went over to my friend's apartment, where many of us were practising for Card Signing. So we shared as much information as we could with each other, and in two hours we had covered many chapters. That left me feeling a bit more confident, and a bit better prepared haha.

3) In the evening, I was at it again, busy studying for pretty much the rest of the night. I did take some breaks off though, to relax and unwind. Exam periods may not be the most exciting times of my life, but they definitely are important. Hopefully that's enough motivation to keep me going. That sums up my day today, and thanks for reading as always. Have a great day, cheers!

That's a College Ball ticket ^^

(In the end, I decided not to go since none of my close friends were going - I sold the tic)

So I decided to cook yesterday night...

And here's my food for the rest of the week :)

Pasta carbonara

DAY 209

Mar 29

1) Today has been a long day for me. I woke up early, had my breakfast, before proceeding to the library like I always do. Literally spent the whole morning studying away, covering the Histology section which is worth so many marks.

2) During the afternoon, I had a short nap to clear my head, and woke up feeling refreshed. Time for another round of studying. It's amazing how everything except studying becomes interesting when you study for long periods of time. Either that or it's just me. Anyway, I went again to Dunnes to buy some ingredients for cooking. I'm planning to cook some pasta tonight, to last me throughout the week.

3) Today's weather was amazing. Finally, it was really WARM, as in you-can-walk-outside-with-just-a-T-shirt warm. Unfortunately, rain is predicted in the following days to come. But if the weather remains as fine as it is, I'm definitely not complaining haha. Spent the rest of the day trying to study, which is not easy when your brain is saturated with info. I have to go home a bit earlier to cook, and perhaps do my laundry. So I'll end on this note. Thanks for reading as always, and have a great day. Cheers!

Dunnes Stores today :D

Breakfast as usual

Slightly skewed apple ^^

DAY 208

Mar 28

1) Today has been a long day for me. As it was anatomy today, I made it a point not miss any lectures. Anatomy lecture was followed by our anatomy practicals immediately after. We learnt a lot today from our surgeon prosector, Mr. B. E. Lane, retired Consultant General and Gastrointestinal Surgeon at Beaumont and Conolly Hospitals.

2) In the afternoon, I stayed back as we had our first tutorial on Evidence Based Medicine, which will become one of our main modules next semester. I find it interesting that we are covering all aspects of medicine, from the actual "meat" of the subject, to the other no less important aspects of medicine. I was also in a bit of a dilemma as I didn't know we needed to know our passport number today for our "Garda Vetting" session.

3) Thankfully, after a long time searching, coupled with a bit of ingenuity, I managed to find out my passport number from one of my old emails. Problem solved, then. "Garda Vetting" comprised a form which we had to fill in if we wanted to be given clearance to do our clinical component at the teaching hospitals. Luckily, everything went smoothly from then on, and we finished our lessons.

4) I returned to the library, where I've spent the rest of the day. Later that day, I went to Dunnes to do some grocery shopping, in preparation of my cooking tomorrow. Card signing this Friday, Time Bomb event this Saturday, and Histology Quiz next Tuesday. Then a brief respite before the final exams, starting end of next month. Time is passing so fast, sometimes I wonder how I'm coping with all this haha. One step at a time, I'd say. Anyway, that's the end of my blog today, and thanks for reading. Cheers!

Horse-drawn carriages are not an uncommon sight in Dublin ^^

National Garda Bureau form

Fried Rice for lunch

DAY 207

Mar 27

1) Today has been another beautiful day for me - at the library. Granted, exams are fast approaching so there really is not much left to do other than study for the end-of-semester exams. I only recently found out that our Histology quiz is worth a LOT more than I expected - it's 15% for REGUB, 10% for GIHEP and 5% for FUN2! And the best part; I've barely started touching it...

2) My afternoon and would be spent covering as much as I could, but it isn't easy considering we have Anatomy card signing just four days before our histology. Card signing is only worth 2.5%, so being the rational person that I am, I decided to take a gamble and NOT study for it until the very last minute. Hopefully that gamble pays off, and it's not like I have a choice otherwise.

3) In the evening, there was a talk organised by the RCSI Cardiovascular Society, called Life of A Cardiologist. RCSI's very own Dr. Dermot Kenny was presenting, so I had to attend. Presentation started at 7.00pm at the Albert Lecture Theatre, and was followed by a cheese and wine reception. A very interesting speech indeed, where we learnt a bit more on why he chose cardiology as a specialty, how he went about it, and his research on ischemic heart disease. I thoroughly appreciate the myriad opportunities we get to attend such talks, as they will ultimately be our guide to choosing our postgraduate options.

4) Afterwards, it was back to the library, where I spent a short time studying, before calling it a day. Packed my stuff up, and headed straight home. That caps the end of my day, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Have a great day, cheers!

Dr. Dermot Kenny's lecture, on how he came from medical student to professor XD

Dr. Dermot Kenny,

Professor of Cardiovascular Biology

DAY 206

Mar 26

1) Today has been a day of much study, and not much else XD. We had to turn our clocks one hour forward due to daylight savings, which meant I got one hour less sleep! Woke up still groggy, and packed up my stuff to go to the library.

2) Studied the morning away, before taking a short break for lunch in the Mercer Cafe. Came back to take a short afternoon nap, before waking up feeling all refreshed. I continued studying for a bit, then Jason and I walked to Trinity College Dublin, for our run through of the first MMII event - "Time Bomb". I'm in charge of the 'debates' segment as well as forensic games.

3) Meeting lasted for around three hours, at which point I walked back with my friend Aser. Today's weather was a little breezy but much better than a couple of days back. Anyway, I had my dinner back here, before continuing to study for the rest of the night. We have Card-Signing 2 in five days, and just four days later is our Histology Quiz. That's the end of my day, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Thanks and have a nice day, cheers!

Trinity College Dublin

One of the rooms to be used

The Stanley Quek Lecture Theatre

DAY 205

Mar 25

1) Today has been a really enjoyable day. I woke up extra early today as I was going to Phoenix Park! Now, I've gone to Phoenix Park many times before (the last time was when I visited the Dublin Zoo) but today's event was a bit more special - we were going to volunteer for the Purple Run event, in conjunction with Down Syndrome awareness. So off I went and took bus 46A, which brought me right to Phoenix Park gate.

2) The only problem is Phoenix Park is HUGE! It took me close to an hour of walking(!) to reach our meeting point, even with the map provided by the event organisers. Thankfully, it was a lovely day, full of sunshine and warmth; a far cry from the gloomy, wintry setting just a couple of days back. I met up with some other volunteers, almost all of which were from UCD. Then I was assigned for the distribution of T-shirts and registration, and we worked together as a team.

3) For over an hour, we worked non-stop has hordes of participants came to sign up and grab a free T-shirt. We were soon out of stock for most sizes, which was rather unfortunate. Finally, we finished our stock, and by this time the first runners were returning from their 5km course. We cheered the winner of the event, a young boy who did it in a blistering 18 minutes! The rest of the pack weren't far behind, and it was indeed heartwarming to see families, mothers pushing their strollers, toddlers, the elderly - generally people from all walks of life came to take part in this very special event.

4) The last part of our volunteering involved dishing out food and beverages to the now tired competitors. We took lots of pics of the event, as well as group photos for remembrance. Then it was time to pack up, and we helped load all the extra stuff into the van, to be brought back. The event finished at around 2pm. Overall, it was helped by the marvellous weather; sunny and cool in equal measure, and perfect for a leisurely stroll. I found out I was the sole volunteer from RCSI; everyone else was from UCD haha. Anyway, all of us walked back to the bus station, and I alighted at the city centre, where I walked to the library as usual.

5) I've been in the library for the rest of the day, and I had a nice chat with my parents during lunch. It didn't matter that I couldn't hear a word they were saying - we managed a way around that XD. Took a short nap in the afternoon, and I continued my studying in the evening. All in all, a day very well spent. I guess the weather influences me more than I think. But jokes aside, volunteering for this sort of events really helps give purpose in my life, and seeing the cheerful look on people's faces for a simple gesture is truly worth it in my opinion. And on that note, I shall end my blog here today, Thanks for reading as always, and have a great day. Cheers!

Group photo with all the volunteers! ^^

Finally I found this place...

Our stand, where we gave away free T-shirts for those who signed up :)

The turnout this year was great, at just over 1200 participants!

My crew and I, manning the station together ^^

The overall champion, coming home in just over 18 minutes - a phenomenal time!

Even photographers need to pose :)

Group pic with the other volunteers 

(most of which I had already met in the previous event, the bag packing event at Dunnes Stores)

Yes, that is a defocus image of a Smarties chocolate bar

Thanks to everyone who volunteered today, this event was a complete success ^^

DAY 204

Mar 24

1) Today has been an awesome day! For most of us PMCSA members, there was only one thing in our minds; International Night 2017! So much so that we skipped the first part of anatomy lessons today in order to practice one last time at the venue itself - the Olympia Theatre. Still, we made sure to go for the Anatomy practicals after that, as Card Signing is next week XD

2) We came back in the afternoon to do another run through and to size up the competition haha. It's friendly competition anyway, from CIMSA (the Canadian Society), PIBS (Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka) and many others. It was really fun seeing everyone bring a part of their culture and identity on stage.

3) Fast forward to the evening, and it was the moment of truth. The event started at around 7.30pm, with none other than our performance! Everyone went out there, and gave it our absolute best! It was over in less than 15 minutes. All that hard work and effort, condensed into that 15 minutes of fame. Then came the surprise... the other teams were taking extremely long to finish; on average they took around half an hour to almost 45 minutes! This allowed them the opportunity to showcase a lot more songs.

4) After about an hour and a half, we finally reached a brief intermission. Then it was time for the next half, performances from the Irish Society, MESA (Middle East Student's Association) and CAS (Caribbean-African Society). Every single performance was of the highest calibre, and simply astonishing considering we are all medical students with tonnes of assignments and exams to worry about. Anyway, after the last performance, the judges were given some time to decide on the winners.

5) Finally, the results were out. And we came in third place! I won't lie, it was a bittersweet victory for us as most of us thought our performance was worthy of the top two. But I suppose that's just how things are. It's still a great achievement though. Second place went to CAS and the overall champions were PIBS! Truly a night to remember, and personally I was extremely satisfied with our team's performance. I really felt we gave it our best and we can only get better from this. That's the end of my day today, and thanks for reading. Have a great day, cheers!

Olympia Theatre

Our final brief by Ms Tanya

Empty seats, soon to be filled in the evening

From l-r: Kuhan, Khee Heng, Zi Yan, me

Pre-performance selfie ^^

The Canadian Students Society (CIMSA) in action!

The traditional hula dance

The eventual winners - PIBS!

The final performance of the night and second place winners - the Caribbean-African Society (CAS)!