IIUM Pharmacy 101: "Novice Researchers Programme"- Research Project 1

In my previous post, I had explained some important parts about the subject 'Literature Search' which is offered to Pharmacy students of IIUM. 

In this post, I'm going to continue to Part 2 on the self-named IIUM Pharmacy's "Novice Researchers Programme", (because it really exposed you to the world of research and researchers) this time about the subject 'Research Project 1'. 

Research Project 1 

How to Register for this Subject 

The subject 'Literature Search' is a prerequisite for 'Research Project 1 and 2'. It means that, if you feel like doing cool research works in the laboratories, you are required to undergo the arduous tasks of collecting data and information in Literature Search first. You could not simply just go to the supervisor and tell him/her "I want to take Research Project. Please give me anything to work on". 

This is because your Research Project 1 and 2 are based on the findings of your Literature Search. Once you had fully understood everything about your research title after intense months of gathering facts and figures in Literature Search, you can now proceed to your Research Project 1.

What exactly is Research Project 1?

Research Project 1 is where you have to do the practical parts of the research. In simple words, you're gonna have to work in the laboratories, doing experiments by following the experimental procedures you had prepared in your research proposal (Literature Search). 

The Process

To continue your research works by doing research project, naturally you should go to your LS supervisor as she already knows about your research and could help you with it. 

Again you should discuss with her about the experimental procedures, what apparatus/materials/chemicals that should be used, when should you begin, when to use the laboratory, that kind of thing. 

You had to fill in a form to request for the apparatus/materials/chemicals from the Science Officer of your respective department. Chemicals are hard to obtain. I had to wait for a looonggg time for 'n-Hexane' to be available but later on Dr A said that we can use Petroleum Ether instead *headpalm*. 

I did my research on this particular plant for LS. But unfortunately, the plant could not be obtained and Dr A suggested that we used another plant instead. So, I used that plant as a subject for my Research Project. Different plant with the same purpose of study -to investigate the potential antimicrobial activity of this plant by using the Checkerboard Assay Method (google it). 

The Challenges

Being an undergraduate Pharmacy student cum Research Project candidate is very challenging. We had classes everyday from 8 am to 5 pm. It was almost impossible to squeeze in 'Lab works' to your timetable.Most labs are not opened during the weekend, unless there are Masters students working in the lab. 

Plus, the 'dedicated' Pakcik Guard wouldn't give you the key to your lab even if you obtained permission from the lecturer, just because of the very fact that you're just an undergraduate student and that it's against the rules to give lab keys to you immature people. PREPOSTEROUS! 

In fact, I remember the very time when I walked under the hot scorching sun from my mahallah to the Kulliyyah, only to find out that it was closed ( public holiday and I didn't realize it *banghead*). I called the Pakcik guard and he went to the Kulliyyah. I asked for the lab key from him and he requested for my matric card. Then he said that undergraduate students are not allowed to have the access to the lab even after I told him that Dr A gave me the permission to use the lab. 

I got so angry and disappointed that I almost cried under the hot scorching sun on my way back to the Mahallah. *dramatic much?* 

So most of us went to the laboratory during recess (10-10.30 am) or during lunch break (1-2pm). Some of us had the 'privilege' to stay in the lab until night time, depending on which lab you are using. 

Due to these reasons (lack of time, undergrads not allowed to use the lab on weekend), 90% of us did not manage to complete our research projects on that particular semester. Thus, we obtained the status 'IP' which means 'In Progress' for this subject. 

The First Semester 

I had to to extract this plant. I cleaned it, dried it using the oven, grind it into powder form, dissolve it with solvents (Petroleum Ether and Propanone) for 3 days to obtain the chemical constituents responsible for the antimicrobial activity. After 3 days, I had to filter it using the gravitational filtration method and further concentrate it using the Rotary Evaporator machine (Rotavapor).

Rotary Evaporator (image googled) 

Back then, there was only ONE Rotavapor available in the whole of Kulliyyah of Pharmacy. That rotavapor is not in Dr A's lab. Instead, it was in Dr T's lab. So I had to ask for Dr T's permission to use the rotavapor at his lab. And in the lab, there was a postgraduate student using that one rotavapor, so we're gonna have to share it, don't we? But the postgraduate students there (Sis P and Bro A) were very helpful. They taught me how to use the rotavapor- there are various settings such as temperature, rotational speed, pressure, etc. They even gave me the key to the lab! How very thoughtful! 

So yes, I had to juggle between  the huge number of assignments, quizzes, hospital attachments, co-curricular activities (compulsory!) with having to go up to the lab to do lab works.

May I enlighten you that I used 2 types of plants and that for each one of them, I'm gonna have to dissolve them in 2 different solvents and extract them 3 times for every 3 days. In short, I had to do a total of 6 extractions. Mind you that it took a lot of time for me to carry out the filtration and evaporation methods. I carried out the filtration method in Dr A's lab and that I had to walk up the stairs to the next level to use the rotavapor. 

I later realized that I couldn't carry out the next step of my research project at such a short time period. which is the determination of antimicrobial effects (synergistic/antagonistic/additive) using the Checkerboard Assay. So, yours truly had to postpone her research project and to continue it the following semester. 

The Second Semester

It was the first semester of my final year, and I was quite ready to continue with my research project *researcher's mode ON* 

I was then greeted with two news: Good one and Bad one. 

The Good News: Dr A said that I only need 4 days to finish my research project

The Bad News: 4 CONSECUTIVE days 

I could only laugh. There is no way that a Pharmacy student could have one free day, let alone, FOUR free days? I had the option to stay in UIA during the midbreak but it was dangerous, to stay alone in the block, a woman like me who is vulnerable to many sorts dangers, LOL.

Actually, it was possible to have four free consecutive days. The Revision Period. Well, I had no choice. 

I had to spend 4 days in the lab to complete my research project. I was in constant agony when I mixed the Nutrient Broth agar with the distilled water. I was worried that I could never manage to finish studying for the final exams when I inoculated the bloody MRSA into that nutrient broth agar. I need to maintain/increase my CGPA! 

The worse had happened. My MRSA refused to 'wake up'. My MRSA was in a dormant state, probably dead. No bacteria, no checkerboard assay, no results, no discussion. No research. 

I was very disappointed. I was very tired, both emotionally and physically, having to wake up early in the morning, walked to the kulliyyah, spent the day there until Maghrib, and returned back to the Mahallah. I could not even get a good night sleep fretting about the results of my experiment. 

And so, Dr A, in all her kindness, had contacted a friend of hers from Kulliyyah of Science. So, I had to drive there (borrowed F's car) to obtain the MRSA from her. 

Alas, the MRSA lived! *prostrate to the ground* 

The 3rd day, I had to carry out 2 experiments. 

1. Determination of Microbial Inhibitory Concentration

2. Checkerboard Assay. 

There were in total, 6 microtitle plates. 

I hurt my hand pipetting chemicals and bacteria into those tiny microtitre wells. Hundreds of microtitre wells! I spent almost 5 hours doing this. Everything had to be precise and accurate!!!

Then an accident happened. When covering those plates with the plate covers, the chemicals+bacteria that I had meticulously pipetted into each well spilled out when the plate came into contact with the cover geddit?  (Not entirely my fault because I had followed the instructions that said to transfer 20 microlitres of MRSA into the well containing 180 microlitres of antibiotic/extract which in total makes up 200 microlitres of mixture. Too much!!) Oh mann... it means that my plates got contaminated. Grrr... by that time, I was already too tired and frustrated to care. Whatever la. As long as I finished this. PLUS, I really need to study for my final exams!

So, I did not get the desired results. :((

I told Dr A about this. This ever-concerned lady was more worried of me not having enough time to study for finals rather than the result of the research project. *touched*. She said that it was okay. She said that 'Buat Research ni kena tabah'. You have to be mentally strong. 

Lab works done! It's like 90% of the burden had been lifted off my shoulders. I then had to prepare a 15-20 pages report on my experimental findings. Report? No problem. Nothing could be compared to stressful life of doinh lab works! 

The Fruit of Success

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the results. I got an A minus!! Alhamdulillah! I had expected a C! Hahaha.

It looks like Dr A graded me based on my efforts, rather than the results. I'm an inexperienced undergraduate student, after all. :P

Plus, I carried out all the experimental procedures on my own, with the occasional helps from the science officer and lab assistants. :) 

An Advice from the so-called expert that is ME

Take Research Project at your own risk. You might spend the whole semester regretting your decision of taking this subject. I did, at some points. You should be prepared mentally, emotionally and physically. Not everyone could stand the pressure of having to complete your research works while juggling with the everyday tasks of a Pharmacy student. 

But all in all, it is worth the effort.Having a very kind and understanding supervisor really helps you to go through the dark days of Research Project 1.

But it seems like I never learned my lesson, haven't I? I decided to continue to plunge myself deeper into the world of misery by taking Research Project 2 ! 

On my next post, I'm going to further expose the dark truth beneath the subject 'Research Project 2'. Stay tuned! 

IIUM Pharmacy 101: "Novice Researchers Programme" - Literature Search

IIUM's Pharmacy Programme is a bit different from the ones in other universities. Apart from having to take university required courses such as 'Study Circle/Halaqah', 'Tilawah' and Arabic Language (for the direct intake), among others, we also do not have a Final Research Project course. Aww man! 

Do not fret, as for those who yearn to become the next Alexander Fleming or harbour the wish to win a Nobel Prize in Medicine/Chemistry someday, there are several elective subjects pertaining to research works that you could take when doing Pharmacy in IIUM. 

Those elective subjects are Literature Search, Research Project 1 and Research Project 2. In this post, I'm going to talk about the first step of doing research. The Literature Search. 

 Literature Search 

What is it all about? 
Known as LS by the students and lecturers, this 2 credit-hours subject is usually offered to the 3rd year Pharmacy students of IIUM, although there is a small number of 2nd year students taking this subject. 

True to its name, Literature Search is a subject whereby you are required to gather facts and information related to your research scope from the literature. Scientific literature which include books,  journals or articles in their printed forms where you could find at the library, or digital forms from reliable online databases such as sciencedirect.com and Cochrane Library, among others.

No, wikipedia is not classified under reliable online scientific databases.

So, how do you begin? 

First of all, you have to find a lecturer who is willing to take you as his/her research student. But the choice of lecturers also depends on which field of Pharmacy study that you are interested in. If you're interested in drug design and developments, then choose a lecturer from the Pharmaceutical Technology department. If the very mention of the subject 'chemistry' and handling dangerous chemicals intrigue you, then you should find a lecturer from the Pharmaceutical Chemistry to be your LS supervisor. 

Note: There are 4 departments in Kulliyyah of Pharmacy; the Pharmacy Practice Department, Pharmaceutical Chemistry Department, Pharmaceutical Technology Department and also Basic Medical Sciences Department. 

Different lecturers from different departments have their own research projects/studies. It is rare that you get to create your own research titles as these lecturers would usually assign their own research topics for you to do more research on. I mean, come on. We are only undergraduate students. Literature Search serves as a platform, a stepping stone towards preparing for the high level of research studies (Masters/Doctorate). For now, let's just regard ourselves as 'Research Assistants' to the lecturers. Moreover,you could get the chance to propose your own unique, brand new research topic when you do your Masters/Doctorate studies. :)

But sometimes, the lecturers let you create your own Research Topic. Like I said, it depends on the lecturers.

There is also the 'luck' of having a certain sort of lecturers, if you know what I mean. I am very fortunate to have Dr A from the Pharmaceutical Chemistry Department as my LS supervisor as she is the kindest and most understanding supervisor ever!

Dr A specializes in Herbal Plants and Herbal Medicine. So, I had given the task to do research about this particular plant which has a potential anti-microbial activity woohoo!!! Alexander Fleming woohoo! 

It is not that easy of course. You couldn't just search any remotely related facts and twist them to your own likings.

The Process
Doing LS is super hard. You have a supervisor, all right. But don't expect he/she to constantly monitor your progress or performance, no way. You are a university student man! No more spoon-feeding just like when you were at school/foundation studies. You have to create your own framework, hypothesis and the contents, you have to read and comprehend every single information that you have found, and that you have to constantly book for appointments with your supervisor throughout the semester to discuss on your findings and progress. Gahh... It's like a mini thesis. Undergraduate level.

And in that thesis, you are also required to make a research proposal to test your hypothesis. This is no mere proposal of 'I propose that a study should be conducted to investigate the effect of this onto that'.

Rather, a research proposal comes in the form of creating your own experimental procedures, complete with materials, apparatus, chemicals and such. And that you have to present your proposal at the end of the semester in front of other lecturers that there is absolutely no chance of you crapping and making your own facts there. THEY.WILL.KNOW.

With 8 other core subjects under your belt, plus the agony of having to complete another research paper  for the semester (core course), more than 50% of my classmates had dropped this subject in the middle of the semester.I do remember that it was the busiest semester throughout my 4 years of study there.

I had persevered throughout the semester, with a lot of sleepless nights. I did not sleep at all the day before the presentation (not a single minute of sleeping) and on the day itself, I was a bit loony, cranky, delirious, and I couldn't think straight, LOL.

The Fruit of Success 
Alas, all the hard works and sleepless nights had paid off for I had obtained a Solid A for this subject, Alhamdulillah! Well actually, it's not that hard to obtain a solid A for this subject. Many of my friends got A for this. It depends on your lecturers, and also your efforts of course. 

In my next post, I'm going to talk about Step 2 of the IIUM Pharmacy's 'Novice Researchers Programme': Research Project 1 

Malaysia's First Nobel (Peace) Prize Laureate

Taken from The Star Online, August 24, 2014. 

PETALING JAYA: All that Mohd Nasarudin Mohd Yusof wanted to do after moving to The Hague, Netherlands, and joining the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) three years ago, was to make Malaysia proud of his service there.

Never did the 52-year-old retired Malaysian Armed Forces personnel dream that he would get a chance to fly the Jalur Gemilang high with a Nobel Peace Prize 2013 award for his work at the intergovernmental organisation that ensures member countries adhere to the Chemical Weapons Convention, which prohibits the use of chemical weapons and requires their destruction.

“When you work overseas, no matter how small it (your work) is, you are carrying your country’s flag,” said Nasarudin.

He hopes his team’s win will spur young Malaysians to achieve the country’s dream of winning the Nobel Prize in other cultural and/or scientific advances.

“I did not win the Nobel prize for individual achievement. I received it with my organisation, for the whole team’s work,” said the chemical weapons and munition specialist.

The Nobel Peace Prize to the OPCW consisted of a medal, a diploma and a cash prize of about 900,000 euro (RM3.77mil).

Nasarudin said it was difficult initially for him to decide to relocate to the Netherlands.

“Such opportunities only come once in a lifetime though, so I decided to grab it,” said the retired lieutenant-colonel.

Malaysia’s multicultural society makes it easy for Nasarudin to get acclimatised to the different cultures of the Dutch.

He said he also got help from other Malaysians – of all backgrounds – in The Hague, including a colleague from Malaysia who holds a Permanent Resident status in Britain.

“She had already surrendered her Malaysian citizenship, but I suppose it’s true what they say – once a Malaysian always a Malaysian.”

His experience abroad had also made him appreciate Malaysia more, said Nasarudin.

To those contemplating leaving Malaysia for work or studies, Nasarudin advises them to just go for it.

“It will not make you any less Malaysian. Good opportunities only come once in your lifetime, so don’t waste the chance. That working experience will be valuable in life.”

Nasarudin said the Merdeka celebrations this year would be poignant for the Malaysian community in the Netherlands as the Malaysian spirit there had grown stronger after the MH17 tragedy.

He hopes all Malaysians can learn from this tragedy and stay united from wherever they are.

For now, Nasarudin will continue to try and do Malaysia proud from afar.

“I cannot come back yet because there is no work in Malaysia for my specialisation.

“I can contribute more if I stay in The Hague although I really miss the Malaysian weather,” he quipped.

Now, what's my take on this?
This what I call a real 'Achievement Unlocked!'

I feel extremely happy and proud of this. Finally, Malaysia has its own Nobel Prize Winner!
What's with the number of tragedies that had befallen our country, the never-ending tumultuous political scenarios, the rise of social decadence among Malaysian youths, the lack of Gold Medals achieved by our contingent this recent Commonwealth Games, the abysmal performance shown by some our athletes and the football players, plus, many other things that do not put Malaysia in a good spot,  this is definitely something akin to a miraculous balm that soothes our aching hearts.

I love Malaysia. There are many things that I am dissatisfied about this country, there are several incidents that make me embarrassed to be a Malaysian (sadly), but above all that, I am still a Malaysian. I was born and bred here, and I love this country.
There were times when I wonder why can't we be like other developed Asian countries like Japan and Korea, of which both of them had gloriously and rapidly rose towards the top after the end of the World War II. Now why couldn't Malaysia achieve the same outstanding feat?

I shall refrain from making any politically-provoking statements here. Although some of the politicians are not that smart, and that they do not contribute significantly towards the socio and economic developments of Malaysia, as they are only harping about who should become the leader, and when will the current government be replaced by oh-so-brilliant-leaders-of-the-highest-calibre, we, as the citizens must take charge to make our country be in the limelight for good reasons.

The core factor towards doing this is by having the Malaysian spirit, the spirit of patriotism. Whatever we are doing, we must do it for our country. Forget the incessant-childish-fights of the people above, we must work hard for our people. The single bit that we contributed to our country might bring upon significant effects and bring our beloved country to a good light. Wherever we go, we bring the Malaysian spirit with us. We shall make our country proud, to make other citizens to be proud to bear the Malaysian citizenship.

When we're working; as for me, when I'm working at the hospital later on, I must strive to give the best service to the people. I must work hard to uphold the integrity of a good health professional. Someday, I wanted there to be a statement uttered by someone that 'Malaysia's health professionals are among the best in the world, not just in terms of medical capabilities, but also in terms of attitudes towards each other and towards the patients'.

Sure, there is a lack of infrastructures for us Malaysians to further develop our potentials here.
For that, we might leave Malaysia for a while, (just like this Nobel Laureate), but we must constantly instil the Malaysian spirit in our hearts, so that we will return to Malaysia, and work hard towards developing our country.

Let the political leaders quarrel and fight like little children. It takes a very long time for some policies to be changed and carried out, and with them existing in our political scenario, it's hard to see our country to progress into a developed country in a short time period. Sure, they are needed somehow but yet, sometimes we could not depend on them too much. We must move on and create our own opportunities.

Nobuta wo Produce Drama Review

A #recycled post, originally written and posted on 27th of May 2009.
Just to remind myself that this is one of the best J-Dramas I have ever watched, and to tell the rest of the world that this is one of the best J-Dramas ever existed. :P

Assalamualaikum and hello all. :)

I was a J-Dramas fanatic back then. It's not like I stopped watching any of them anymore. It is more to, limiting the intake of J-Dramas, haha.But really, those who intended to watch at least ONE Japanese Dramas throughout their whole life should watch this particular drama. Nobuta wo Produce.

Blogged on the 27th of May 2009, Wednesday at 11.33 a.m

Nobuta wo Produce is the most inspirational, warm, touching Japanese Drama I've ever watched. And it's not an exaggeration if I do claim that it is the most inspirational, warm, heart rending, touching, moving DRAMA I've ever seen. It is the BEST Japanese Drama I've ever set my eyes to to date. It's even BETTER than Hana Yori Dango and Hana Kimi. And this is the first ever drama that I ever shed my tears for.

It is not a love story, nor is it about scandals and conspiracy. Unlike Malay dramas, it isn't about those guys who left their wives, have mistresses, social issues and all those gibberish talks about businesses. Unlike Indonesian dramas too, it is not about irrelevant fairy stuffs, where the stereotyped plots are the ones showing the scandals and arguments over the rights of inheritance, evil stepmothers with heavy make ups and nor does it showcased the phony acts of crying and moaning each time something bad happened.

It is more than that. It is a complete series, compactly packed in just a 10 episodes drama. It is a series about friendship, overcoming obstacles, being what you what you want to be and being true to yourself.

Nobuta wo Produce tells about the main protagonist, Shuuji Kiritani (Kamenashi Kazuya) who is a popular guy at school who dates a girl he doesn't even like just to maintain his popularity. He is always the one whom everyone seeks helps from, as he is the one who emphasizes on pleasing others, putting others ahead of himself without realising that he is not being true to himself.

Another guy, Akira Kusano (Yamapi) is a loony guy who got high over 'bean' milk (soya bean). He is an outcast in his class but he doesn't really care about all those absurd popularity-clamouring stuffs, as long as he is happy himself. He has a very jovial characteristics that can be shown by his weird yet funny laughter. He is the son of a company's president who refused to take over the company. Shuuji is constantly irritated with Akira's behaviour.

Then comes Kotani Nobuko (Maki Horikita), an extremely shy, timid girl who has no confidence at all towards herself due to the impact of being rejected by her stepfather when she was young. This in turn, results to a series of constant bullying, of which she received and patiently endured since kindergarten until now.

Shuuji who can't bear to see Kotani being bullied, made a plan with the unlikely Akira, of which they vowed to spend their youth wisely by doing something that they will be proud of when they grow up. And so, a friendship is slowly formed between the three different characters who are unlikely to be friends if not given such circumstances. They made a project ' Nobuta wo Produce'. That is, producing Nobuta (Kotani's nickname) to become the most popular girl at school.

Shuuji who gave too much priority over his popularity, secretly helped his new made friends and pretending that nothing ever happened. He was afraid that his popularity will be diminished if they (the students) were to find out that he was hanging out with the two most unpopular students at school. While they were determined to execute each plans accordingly, there will be someone, someone that is unknown until later on, someone that always destroy every plans that were carried out to make Nobuta popular.Shuuji later realised that he can show his true self instead of pretending to be a Mr. Nice Guy when he was with Akira and Nobuta. He feels that he is most comfortable being with both of them. An unfortunate event occurred where Shuuji lost his popularity and is being ostracised in class. No one believes him except for Akira and Nobuta, who will always believe him no matter what.
Akira had developed feelings towards Nobuta but forget all about it later on as he realised that he will not make Nobuta happy. Nobuta on the other hand, secretly shows a liking towards Shuuji.

The main antagonist who destroyed all their plans earlier on is now being discovered. She is Aoi-san, a girl that is also Kotani's first friend. She hated seeing the three of them together and in order to break the three of them apart, she used various despicable methods. 

 But, none of them are able to break apart such strong relationship that is tightly intact. She finally realised her mistake and everything is coming back to normal. It seems like their 'Nobuta project' is slowly becoming successful as Nobuta is slowly gaining popularity.

Until, Shuuji discovered that his dad had to be transferred to the other side of Japan, of which he has to follow through. This comes one of the most heart wrenching part. The whole class bid him farewell but he had his eyes only towards Nobuta and Akira who were standing at the back.

" Everything in life is a game. Those who stopped in the middle and couldn't continue are idiots,"

Shuuji started his new life in a totally different environment.

"We can live our lives wherever we are,".

And when he started introducing himself, he saw something surprising. Someone who was standing at the back of the class. Apparently, Akira decided to transfer to the same school the day before, just so he can be with Shuuji, his best friend. And when Shuuji asked what will happen to Nobuta when both of them are not there with her, Akira said that Nobuta told him that she will be fine. She might be crying for the first three days but she will go through it all.

At the same time, Nobuta was with Mariko- Shuuji's popular ex girlfriend. She has forged a new relationship with her and is now able to carve a smile on her face.

Shuuji and Akira were at the seaside when Shuuji looked up at the sky and say " Somewhere
beneath the same sky, Nobuta is there,"

In class, she saw the empty seats left by Shuuji and Akira. She went up to the top floor, the place where the trio spent their time together before, creating plans and agendas in producing her, the new Nobuta. She looked at the sky and say " I can now smile," and she smiled.

Shuuji looked at the sky and said to Akira " Hey, can you see the sky smiling at us?"

" We can live our lives wherever we are,"

This is the most unforgettable drama about friendship that I've ever watched. And I couldn't suppress my happiness when this critically acclaimed drama won many awards.

47th Television Drama Academy Awards Japan

Best Drama: Nobuta wo Produce
Best actor : Kamenashi Kazuya (Shuuji Kiritani)
Best supporting actress: Maki Horikita ( Kotani Nobuko)
Best Director: Iwamoto Hitoshi( Nobuta wo Produce)
Best Scriptwriter: Kizara Izumi (Nobuta wo Produce)
Best Musical Arrangement: Nobuta wo Produce

I would highly recommend you to watch this drama. 
The message is effectively conveyed (at least that is what I thought). You want to prevent bullying, you want to instil confidence in students, you want them to be good people when they graduated from school, this is the way to convey the messages. You want to prevent social issues, you don't go and produce movies such as 'Bohsia' or 'Rempit'. ( A confession: I watched Bohsia, boohoo).

Please produce something that is close to the teenagers' hearts. Something that made them realised that they are missing something important in their lives. Something important like family, friends and the joys of being youths. 

As for me, I want to grow up being 'abnormal'. Hoho, don't get me wrong. Meaning, I do not stick to the status quo and I do not want to forever go on with the flow. So what's the big deal if you can't score 4 flat or even 3.5 above for every exams? They are important, of course, but don't devote yourself too much towards such slavery. This is our youth. Enjoy it. =)

My verdict: 10 out of 5 stars. :P. It IS, the BEST Japanese Drama I've ever watched.

The end.

The Fear of Cliches

When I decided to resume blogging after 4 months of hiatus, I kind of promised myself to constantly blog at least once in 2 days. 

I haven't been blogging for 5 days now, LOL. 

I had been drafting several posts on different topics, but I couldn't manage to finish writing them. 

Speaking of writing, I had involved myself in a constant struggle of rewriting and finishing my novel. T___T

Almost everyone dreamed of writing his or her first novel. And almost everyone attempted to do it, but only some managed to finish it, while a few lucky ones got their works published. 

As for me, when I first started writing it, and that when I eventually finished the first draft , I was convinced that my ideas are good, that it is something new that had not been written by anyone before. I had this dream that this story that I'm about to tell could bring about a fresh flavour to our existing palate of fictional genres. 

But after some time, I started to doubt my own ideas, and my capability as a story-teller. The story that I'm about to tell is a bit cliched at some parts, and I couldn't think of anything else other than to painstakingly develop that 'cliched' parts into something less cliche. 

I am afraid that I will be heavily criticized for using the cliched, stereotypical elements in my stories. After much frustration, I decided that I have had enough. I leaned against my seat, staring blankly at my laptop screen, trying to clear my head off these tangles. I later realized that I am the harshest critic of my own writings. I tried to reset the whole story, to write and rewrite it back. I got tired of editing. I had spent 2 whole years of rewriting and editing because I wasn't satisfied with what I've written, and I never managed to finish writing it. It was the fear of using cliches that stopped me from going further. 

I have later ran out of ideas on what to make the story not too cliched. This later leads to a major writer's block. I must accept the fact that sometimes, cliche elements are needed as a pathway for the things that are going to happen. Or else it wouldn't make sense. Unless you're writing a fantasy novel of course, then even the most unusual things are acceptable. 

For this, I tell myself that the ideas I had gained for my first draft are good enough. They are the freshest ones, the first-borns that could be nurtured and molded to become something even better.

I decided not to be too harsh on myself. Stop rewriting new plots.  Focus on the existing ones, and develop further from there. I must create something good with what I have, instead of thinking of possible plots with what I do not have-the base to start with. Stop thinking of headache and stress-inducing complicated plots. I am not on that level yet. I am not writing with the purpose of winning the Man Booker Prize. Not yet. I should go easy on myself. Go with the flow. 

Most importantly,  I must write to please myself. Writing is supposed to be a source of escapism, and to bring into the picture the nonexistent people who would taunt and criticise me, would spoil the beauty of writing and the shatter the walls of this glass cave that I had confined myself in. Now why would I be sitting in a glass cave? So that I could look outside, and derive ideas for my stories of course (does this even make sense? Hahaha). 

All right. I must get back to my writing! 

P/S I cooked Telur Masak Kicap a few days ago. It tasted edible but didn't quite satisfy my tastebuds. The thing is,  I think it tasted the same like other Telur Masak Kicap I've eaten before. I don't know. I just don't develop a liking towards my own cooking. I'd often hold some prejudices against foods I cooked myself. It's like, I had warned my brain that my cooking would taste not-so-masterchefly. Oh man, how la like this? T__T I should stop being too harsh on myself!

The Rude Sellers of Silk Street

A #throwback post

Not so smooth and silky street of Silk Street, Beijing. 

Even before we landed in Beijing, we had read stuffs about the notorious sellers of Silk Street, Beijing.
Silk Street is a so-called shopping paradise where they sell mostly fake designer items at exorbitant prices, conning some-clueless-shopaholic-aunties into believing that those items are... *gasp* original!

Silk Street was once a street (duh!) lined with shops and stalls. Those shops and stalls were later grouped into the same shopping-complex-like building with the popular name still retained.

(image googled)

This the-worst-shopping-place-on-Earth consisted of several storeys, each classified into different departments; bags/luggages, arts/crafts, shoes, etc.

Our tour-guide gave us about 2 hours to shop in Silk Street. This is so unfair! They only gave us an hour to climb the Great Wall and TWO hours to SHOP? Of course, the tour guide must have received some commissions from the Silk Street financial/profit board or something... *glares*

Some of my friends really loved shopping, they just loved the feeling of haggling for the best prices, and to bargain for stuffs that they wanted.

Yours truly on the other hand, knows nothing about that.

Once we entered the warm, heated ambiance of this palace of swindlers , we split into different ways.

Syau my trusted comrade was with me. I told her that I wanted to look for fake imitation Kipling bags. LOL. I should make a blog post about my imitation Kipling bags collection. This backpack is from Thailand, while this sling bag is from China...this pencil case...

An original Kipling bag costs as much as RM400. Okay bye...T__T
Is there any psychological study about people who love to buy imitations instead of the originals? Well, you don't need any psychological study for that. It's simple. You don't have money to buy the freaking expensive originals. So you can just be contented with possessing the imitations. xD

Each Kipling bag comes with its own Monkey charm (with their own names) and those Kipling monkeys are just so cute!!! Did you know that the brand 'Kipling' is inspired by Rudyard Kipling and his famous novel 'The Jungle Book'?

Okay fine. I will buy the original Kipling one day. I WILL! At least one! Chanel? Prada? What are those?  :P

I digress.

Syau and I held to each other closely as we embarked into this unknown sinister realm of scary sellers.

Each shop is placed in a small glass shop cubicle. Well, it's pretty small but there are so many shops. Those sellers were just standing outside their shops, calling for us to come into their shops.

I saw a Kipling bag through the glass of this first shop that we saw. The owner of the shop, a seemingly friendly Chinese woman in her mid to late twenties saw me doing that and asked me to come in.

BAD DECISION SARAH. ABORT MISSION.ABORT-

Too late. I had been enticed to enter her shop. She asked me
"What do you want?"

"It's okay, I'm just looking at it," pointing to one Kipling bag.

She then took that Kipling bag. I then asked her nervously

"Is there any other colours?"

She brought out more Kipling bags of assorted colours, but not quite what I was looking for. Besides, it was just my first shop!

I then asked her (*headpalm*) "How much is it?"

She took out her calculator and began pressing the buttons "It's *insert price, can't remember*"

Well actually, I really wanted to get out from there. That woman was creeping me out.

I looked at those bags and said to her "It's okay. I'm just looking around,"

Not so fast. She tugged my coat really hard and said "Tell me how much you want!"

"It's okay!!" I said, trying to release myself from her.

She pressed her calculator again and said "What about this?"

"I really don't want. I'm sorry!"

I was about to go out again. She tugged my coat harder. Syau looked scared and her already pale face turned paler.

The woman looked at me straight in the eyes and with her dangerous voice, she asked

"Faster tell me, how much do you want?"

She ended up giving me a quite good price for the bag but by then I was too terrified by her. I was scared of her all right, but I was more scared of losing my money. :P

Plus, no one could force me to do something I don't want to (except my parents).

I pulled my coat away from her and said "IT'S OKAY! I DON'T WANT!" bringing Syau with me out of that hell-of-a-shop.

She then screamed "YOU ARE VERY RUDE MY FRIEND!" (seriously, who's your friend? Are you demented or something?)

to which I screamed back "NO! YOU ARE RUDE!!" and I stormed off to somewhere else.

Both of us were looking pale. Clearly, we felt traumatized by the whole incident. If this were to happen in Malaysia, it will go viral and the owner would be forced to apologize to us. xD

We looked at different shops. Syau wanted to buy a handbag. So she went to this shop and asked the owner how much does that particular handbag cost?

The owner: *Insert price*
Syau: Oh, I don't have enough money
The owner: How much do you have?
Syau: *insert amount of money*
The owner: You're crazy! Get out!  and she chased Syau off the shop.

I went to different shops to look for the Kipling bags. I entered this particular shop and asked a guy

Me: How much is this?
That guy: *insert price*
Me: Too expensive! How about *insert price*?
That guy: Are you crazy?
Me: No I'm not!
That guy: This is Kipling okay!
Me: This is fake Kipling! Not original! *dush!*
That guy: *shook his head and went somewhere else, ignoring me*

So lastly I managed to get a blue Kipling bag for the price of 100 yuan. RM50. I could have bargained for a lower price but I was too mentally and emotionally exhausted. I'm a Ravenclaw, it's in my nature to stay away from conflicts! It's an acceptable price anyway because I saw the same Kipling bag being sold in a shop located next to our hotel for RM100+. I can vouch that it's a fake Kipling bag. I know how to differentiate between original and fake Kipling bags. I've made my research. Thus when buying Kipling bags, I'd make a minor inspection to ensure that the bag that I'm going to buy has a small degree of 'imitation' to it. HAHA.

Another thing is that, you should always give those sellers the exact amount of money when you're purchasing something from them. Those crooks are notorious for giving back the changes to the customers in the form of fake bank notes. *shudder*.

Syau offered to hold the bag for me, clutching it close to her chest because she said she felt vulnerable and wanted some protection, LOL. I took out my trusted pepper spray, ready to spray it to any rude sellers in case they refused to let me out from their shops. We didn't enter any other clothing shops since then. We were still in a state of trauma.

We just walked around. Another 1 and a half hour to be spent there! Our buses were locked so we could not sit in the bus. It was too cold outside so we had no choice but to stay inside this prison.

Suddenly, we heard somebody shouting in Mandarin. And we saw a drama being unfolded in front of us.

A middle-aged Chinese woman was pushing off a Middle-Eastern couple out of her shop and shouting at them in Mandarin.

The couple looked confused and they just walked off.

We met some guys in our class and they told us of their 'haggling and bargaining experiences'.
Some of the dialogues uttered by those rude sellers:

"You are crazy!" (been there, done that)
" Your mind is crazy!"
"You should go to hospital!" (LOL)

Then Syau and I went on to join some of our female classmates, watching them bargaining and haggling for the perfect prices. They were awesome!

Alas, the hellish and unbearable 2 hours were finally over. We entered our bus and everyone kept on complaining about the rude sellers of Silk Street. We couldn't complain nor vent our feelings on facebook or twitter because the Chinese government banned those websites, LOL, so we just let our feelings out to each other. Haha.

There are other funny and unforgettable shopping experiences in other shopping places in Beijing. One that involves a literal game of tug and war between my friends and the persistent seller, another of which involves my friends devising a brilliant strategy whereby a large group of them (about 10 in a group) would go to the seller of each shop, demanding low (not that low) prices for the items they wanted, and if the seller refused to give them that price, they will move to another shop. The seller would then be forced to accept the price stated for if not, they would lose a large number of customers. Genius eh?

It was late afternoon on our second last day there. We were sleeping in the bus when it turned to a corner and stopped. We woke up and looked outside. To our surprise, the tour guide brought us to that prison again!

"Silk Street?!! Not again!!" we cried out in dismay. This time around, I just spent my time at a cafe with some of my friends, sipping hot chocolate. In fact, most of us waited outside the Silk Street rather than to wait inside. The freezing temperature outside was definitely easier to be dealt with rather than facing those rude sellers of Silk Street.

I hate Silk Street. THE END.

My First Skiing Experience

A #throwback post

Skiing......

Instead of getting to try it at the Swiss Alps or somewhere with real snow, my first skiing experience took place in China, with man-made snow, hahahaha also can laaaa....

Back then in January, it was in winter in Beijing all right, but it wasn't snowing, unfortunately. The temperature did drop until negative 8 degrees Celsius, thus the weather was freaking cold but not cold enough for the snow to fall onto the Land of the Dragons.

My comrades and I were brought to the Snow World located in the suburbs of Beijing, to experience being in a 'snowy-environment' for the first time (for most of us, yours truly included) and also to play with the snow!!

The Snow World offered several activities which include Snow Sliding, where you just slide down the snow using the buoyant-tyre thingy, and snow...something....To tell the truth I forgot other activities they offered there because those are so childish-like and insignificant. :P

 I wanted to try something exhilarating!

Which comes in one word....

SKIING!!!

Whenever I heard the word 'skiing', my mind would instantly relate it with Prince William and the Royal Family, who spent their holidays skiing in Klosters, Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) who attempted skiing for the first time, and Michael Schumacher who had been in coma for several months after a skiing accident.

AWESOME!!!

Once we reached there, we were advised to leave our belongings in the bus as we had to pay for the lockers if we want to bring them with us. I don't trust the lockers there anyway.

Sehelai sepinggang 

There were a lot of Chinese guys sitting on the benches on our right side when we came in and, upon seeing us, they began to stand up, following and cornering us. We were feeling rather nervous and bewildered.

We paid for the skiing fees which is 200 yuan per hour. 200 yuan = RM100. As soon as we collected our skiing boots, each of the Chinese men began to follow each one of us. Just like the yellow DIGI Mascots, those guys would follow you wherever you may go! 

Allow me to recall my experience with one of them. 

He was young, quite tall, rather cute and he spoke in broken but understandable English. From the moment I left the counter with my skiing boots, he had 'marked' me and began to follow me everywhere I go. He even acted like a concerned, true gentleman, taking the liberty to choose for me my ski and poles that are suitable for me, even helping me to fix my boots to the ski.

Skiing equipment 101

"Okay?" he asked as he adjusted the bindings.

"Okay!" I replied, hoping that he will leave me alone. 

To no avail, with me struggling to walk each step with my ski and poles, he kept on following me.

I silently said "Go away! I'm not interested in you!" How perasan.

He then faced me and he was grinning as he said this,

"100 yuan! 100 yuan!"

I was baffled. Far from being interested in me, he was very much interested in my money. *facepalm*. (of course I'm joking about him interested in me, duh! I knew all along he just wanted my money).

Apparently, this guy is one of the skiing coaches there and he kept on pestering me to 'appoint' him as my skiing coach. And that I have to pay him. -_____-

I kept on replying 'Bu, xie xie ni," "No, thank you!" "No, it's okay!!" "I don't want!" but he just wouldn't give up!

I went ahead, ignoring him. As I entered the skiing park, I soon found myself being mesmerized with and enamoured by this magnificent place! Snow world! Snow heaven! So beautiful!!! It was my first time being in a snowy-environment okay. A little bit of jakun-ness is acceptable hohoho..

The breathtaking view of man-made skiing slopes

I took the 'skiing escalator' up to the skiing slope (It's not that high as it was just a beginner's skiing place) and Mr-Cute-Skiing-Coach followed me, incessantly bothering me that I could not concentrate on looking at the beautiful views around me. It wasn't just me, all of my friends were experiencing the same 'predicament', though the so-called skiing coaches mostly targeted women/girls rather than the guys.

My skiing comrades all smiling, clearly unaware of the fate that lies upon them. 

Alas, I had arrived at the top of the skiing slope. As the winter wind blew hard against me, I gripped both poles,all ready to accelerate down the slope.

I pushed myself and what happened next was beyond my expectations. No wonder Natasha Richardson died after suffering a head injury following a skiing accident. No wonder Michael Schumacher fell into a coma.

Skiing is not at all easy. The snow is slippery and once you started skiing, it is not easy to stop yourself midway.

I was skiing down so fast and it was hard to control my speed by using the poles. I kept on poking the snow with them, trying to create some frictional forces to slow me down. 

And....plunkkkk!Dush! Kaboom! I fell down on my back. It was rather embarrassing.

It was pretty much like this

Right after I fell down, many others followed suit, each with their own distinctive and rather comical styles. 

The skiing coach guy went down the slope to help me. It was hard to get up by yourself because the skis are long and you were in the middle of a reclining land thus you could slip and slide down the moment you begin to stand up. 

He kept on saying "You pay me... no fall," Yeahh right! As if I'm gonna fall for that!
I saw some of my friends successfully skied down the slope without the help of any so-called skiing coach. It takes patience and perseverance! Plus, I know that I'm not that someone who is blessed with the luck of getting everything right the first time I attempted something.

I muttered the same words "No thank you, no thank you" "Help me please!". I got up with his help and we walked to the starting point again. And the second time I did, I fell down again. Arghhh it was SO FRUSTRATING!!!  

He helped me up and again, he tried his luck to offer himself as my skiing coach. Again I declined and he went off trying to find other potential clients. Bye-bye Mr Cute-Skiing-Coach! :((

The third time I tried, I fell down again. This time there was no one to help me. Feeling helpless, I looked around me and saw a professional-looking Chinese guy effortlessly skiing down. To him, I pleaded 'Can you help me?". He stopped midway ( I tell you, only professional skiiers could stop in the middle of the slope) and he gave me his hand. I pulled myself up and as expected, I began to slide down the slope. The guy almost slipped and I cried out 'Thank you!!!' as I skiied down, finally knowing how to control my speed.

I'm positive that I looked like this when I was skiing

The fourth time I did it, it was a success! The key is to bend your knees, bringing your body forward instead of backward (to prevent yourself from falling at your back) and to keep on poking the snow, as frequently as you could to reduce your skiing speed and before you know it, you managed to steer yourself to any direction you choose when you are skiing, like a PRO!

Like this guy here.

Oh well...Maybe I was exaggerating

I did it the fifth time, and the sixth! Achievement unlocked! YES!!! Take that, Mr Cute-Skiing-Coach!!! *smug*

The whole falling while skiing thing? It wasn't just me. So many people there had fallen down the slope when they were skiing. A friend of mine got stuck in the middle of the slope for about 15 minutes because there was no one to help her!

As I mentioned earlier, it was difficult to stand up with your skis on, nor is it easy to remove your skiing boots from the skis. Thus, another friend of mine who fell down while skiing just removed her feet from the skiing boots, carried the skis (with the boots attached) and the poles and she just walked to the top of the slope on the ice-cold snow only with her socks on.

We had a very great time there. One hour definitely was not enough. I regretted that I did not try the intermediate skiing slope. Dx. Next time I must try it! With real snow! In Switzerland! LOL. 7 months later oh man I missed skiing so much *sobs*

All in all, skiing is such a wonderful experience. I can now get to tell others that I had tried skiing and I know how to ski! *feeling proud *

If you haven't tried skiing, then you should do it!! GO GO GO!!! :D

Pictures taken from my Class Trip Facebook Group and Mr Googly Google Goo...

Climbing the Great World of China

A #throwback post

Presenting,

One of the 7 Wonders of the World, 

THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA!!!

This magnificent edifice is actually a series of forts constructed as early as from the 7th  century BC. They were eventually being joined together to form a very long fort known as the Great Wall of China.

This historical site is located at the Northern border of China/Mongolia and it took about an hour by bus to get there from Beijing.

Nicole, our Beijing-born tour guide showed us the terrains of mountain and hills on our right side when we were about to reach to the Badaling section of the Great Wall. The Great Wall is so massive and soo long that there were several entries located at different locations of the wall. Ours was the Badaling entrance.

We took a class picture in front of the Great Wall and we were ready to hop about and race to the top!

Raced to the top? Yeah rightt...

The flight of stairs was sooo steep and uneven. Don't you dare to look behind you once you climbed further up if you suffer from acrophobia.

It was a very strenuous journey up there. I am not an athlete, I do not possess incredible stamina, my lung function test result shows that my lung function is not normal (I have allergy since I was a kid which is one of the predisposing factors of asthma but no Alhamdulillah I don't have asthma). In short, I'm not someone you would expect to climb the Great Wall all the way to the top. 

But I had determination, and that was one thing that kept me going. 

How did I do it? I climbed slowly, gripping the metal railing on my left tightly, and I exhaled and inhaled as frequently as I could to get more oxygen and to expel the carbon dioxide accumulated in my body. Plus with higher altitude, the atmospheric pressure gets higher and less oxygen is available. 

It was also so freaking cold, and you shivered uncontrollably when the cold winter wind constantly blew towards you when you're climbing. But it was good, in a way. You did not get sweaty. But some of my friends suffered blocked nose and there was blood coming out but it was coagulated due to the immense cold.

While climbing, we noticed some of the Chinese locals muttering 'Malai-siya', 'Malai-siya' when they passed by us. 

There were several stations, and we stopped to take pictures at each station. The athletes in our class raced to the top with ease while us the not-so-much of an athlete people climbed it slowly, step by step.

As I climbed, I began to recall some of the things I have learned and read about the Great Wall of China. It was built by Shih Huang Ti, the first Emperor of China. Millions of people had died when building the Great Wall and they were just buried at the construction site. Thus, the Great Wall of China has a notorious name which is 'The Longest Cemetery in the World'.

And then, we saw our class banner being flapped and fluttered from one of the stations. Yaay!

On my way up there,  I was thinking of the Disney movie Mulan. How on Earth could the soldiers ran up and down the tower while fighting Shang Yu and his men? And oh, the beacons they lighted to ask for help were available at each tower station.

We had passed about 3 to 4 stations. Most of my friends had stopped climbing even from the first station and with each station we reached. 

I climbed faster than some of them and when I stopped by to get a rest and enjoying the picturesque views of the nature from the Great Wall, Syau had just arrived and she was shocked

"Sarah, you're so fast!"

I grinned "Unbelievable huh?". Syau is our Squash Queen aka an athlete.

 2 guys in my class were behind me and when they saw me, they jokingly  asked "Eh, macam mana Sarah boleh naik sampai sini?" (How could you climb until here?) I just dismissed them and continued climbing.

I climbed with another guy and a girl, both from my class and each time I continued to take one more step, the guy would pant and ask "Nak naik lagi ke Sarah?" and I was like "Of course!". He stopped climbing soon after. hahaha. 

Then, we reached a station. Someone in our class came out of it and ushered us girls into the station,

Oh wow... it was a souvenir shop! Several of my classmates were already there and waiting for the old man (how on Earth did he manage to climb up there everyday?) to carve our names to the..

Guess what?

MEDALS!!!!

But of course, nothing is free in this world. Pay for the medals we must. It was 30 yuan (RM15) for a medal. You can opt not to buy it though.

This is to certify that Sarah Kushairi had 'successfully' climbed the Great Wall of China on the 17th of January 2014. 

We were so elated!!!

The journey downwards was more excruciating. You later realized that your legs hurt when you went down each step. 

The buses were waiting for us and once we stepped inside, we were greeted by a hero's welcome by our classmates. XD

My only regret was that the time given was very short (only for one hour mana cukup!) and that it was approaching dusk and the surrounding got darker.

(Plus a friend of mine sensed there was a dark, sinister feeling creeping up on her.. longest cemetery in the world, remember?)

I wish I could go there again, climbing as far and as high as I could (I doubt I could do so in just one day, the Great Wall is about almost 9 freaking thousands kilometres! @__@) from morning till noon. Insya Allah. I'm gonna have to learn Mandarin laa...

I'm grateful to be given the opportunity to climb the Great Wall at a young age, when I am still full of drive and energy, hahahaha..So, do it when you're still young and energetic!! GO GO GO!!!

Disclaimers: Pictures are from my collection, my roommate Adiba's and our class trip's Facebook group.

Footnotes: 

Long before the first tragedy of MH370 had befallen Malaysia in March 2014, life was good, at least for me and my friends. 

We went to Beijing 2 months before the incident, in January 2014. It was during the Winter season. 

Thus, when the news struck us 2 months later, we were incredulous, each of us thinking 

"It could have been us"

and we (read: me) would imagine the headlines of the newspapers and news networks around the world saying "56 Pharmacy students were in the plane" or "Lebih 50 orang pelajar Farmasi UIA hilang bersama pesawat MH370"

Well, we took Air Asia because it was cheaper, LOL. But it could have happened to us. About 10 of us who went to the trip took MAS (because lambat beli tiket Air Asia thus MAS tickets got cheaper, unbelievable huh?) and it could have happened to them. *shudder*. What's more, they took the MH360 plane to Beijing. Not MH370, but close. One of the crews that served them at that time could have been the same ones who disappeared with MH370. 

Now now. Talking about this incident still saddens me. Let's pray that the truth will be unveiled one day, insya Allah. #prayforMH370