Pasar malam
We went to the pasar malam in Azza’s car since it’s already repaired. The air-conditioning was nonfunctioning so we had to send it to the workshop last Monday. We acquired the assistance of the ever baik pakcik Husni to help us pick a good workshop. That’s when I got to watch a glimpse of MULAN 2 in their Previa with khadijah, omar and hassan while azza and pakcik was busy dealing with the mechanics. Nanti nak pinjam lah.
Back to the present. At the pasar malam, despite considerations for my tight budget, I just had to buy the delicious bubur pulut hitam since it’s been quite some time since I’d had some. The keropok lekor wasn’t that necessary but the tau fu fah and soya drink were must-buys. All this plus my nasi kerabu with peparu dinner. Do I eat a lot, or do I eat a lot? Heh…
Good news from the JPA
Ayah called yesterday. He said my scholarship application finally came through, Alhamdulillah. A load off my shoulder.
Feline faeces
Urgh… I can’t stand the stench in the toilet. It reeks of feline faeces. Every time I go, I have to hold my breath. The cat suke hati je left its droppings under the sink yesterday night. Gerrram betul. All I’m afraid of is getting Toxoplasma gondii infection if the faeces is left there for several days.
Tongue twisters
Studying microbio and parasito is really making me paranoid and skeptical of the cleanliness of my hands and possessions and also hyperaware of hygiene. On the other hand, it’s absolutely fantastic how these microorganisms, as minute and tiny as they are, can cause fatal diseases in man and animals. Just to mention a few of the numerous tongue-twisting names of these bacteria and parasites that I have to memorize this block;
• The common malaria-causing agents; Plasmodium falciparum and its friends the P.ovale, P. malariae, P.vivax (all carried by the female Anopheles mosquito)
• The Trypanasoma Gambiense and T.rhodiense which causes the African sleeping sickness transmitted by the tsetse fly (prounounced as SET SI) of the Glossina species ( this is how we remember it- the very sexy fly wearing lip gloss makes people fall asleep- it isn’t very sexy actually coz under the microscope it’s quite hairy…hehe)
• The lovely soil-transmitted helminthes including; earthworms aka Ascaris lumbricoides, the Necator Americanus which despite its name is found abundantly in Malaysia (they’re the hookworms that we get if we don’t wear our shoes), the Ancylostoma duedenale (another hookworm), the Trichuris tricuria (whipworms), and the Strongyloides stercoralis.
• Don’t get me started on the filarial-causing nematodes covering the Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi, Brugia pahangi and Brugia timuri. Yup, in 1904 Dr Daniels found the parasite in Malaysia and called it Brugia malayi while in 1920 Dr Brug found microfilariae and the adult forms in pahang thus the name Brugia pahangi. (bangga gak lah belajar kat pahang nih…there’s a parasite named after it and everyone has to learn about it… bes jugak lah pahang nih).
• The other filaria include Onchocerca volvulus, Acanthocheilonema perstans (try pronouncing that 3x), Mansonella ozzardi and Loa loa (the name sounds nice but don’t be fooled, they can migrate to the eyes and make u blind)
• The larva migrans; cutaneous ones-Ancylostoma canium and Uncineria (infect dogs), and A.ceylanium (infect cats), visceral ones-Toxocara canis (of dogs)and T.cati (of cats), Angiostrongylus cantonensis (found in raw snails and crabs and causes meningitis if the worm migrates to the brain), Gnathostoma spinigerum (found in raw, marinated fish- don’t forget to cook ur fish well), Trichinella spiralis (you get from eating pork), Capillaria philippinensis (yup. Founded in the Philippines), and Dracunculus mediensis (which penetrates the feet when you dip it in water causing blisters and abscess).
Now, isn’t my paranoia justified? I should think so.
Ok, I have to get back to my revising for Monday’s minitest.
22.05
24/12/04
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