Lest I forget...all of Your goodness, the blood You have shed...

Thanks Friendster!

        First, I wanna say thanks to the friendster team for their quick response. Over the past few days I haven't been able to post anything on my blog for some reason. So I sent a message to the friendster team and a day later, it's all fixed!

       The purpose of this post is to thank God, my family, my girlfriend and all my loved ones. My year 1 results were released last friday. I scored 74% overall for my first year. That's much higher than I imagined. Although it was only 1 mark short of a distinction, but I'm truly grateful to everyone who prayed for me, supported me, encouraged me, sms-ed me, called me, tolerated me, and stood by me through my first year at Bond.

        And a great "thank you" to my Lord who brings me through trials & tribulations... allowing me to emerge victorious and stronger than ever before... relying not on my strength, but His alone.

         I'm officially a 2nd year med student :)

BOTAK!!

Hey everyone,

        Last wednesday I shaved my head for the "World's Greatest Shave" to raise funds for the Leukemia Foundation. Doesn't look too bad right?

I wasn't the only one who shaved my head. So did the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine. He promised to shave his head if our faculty managed to raise $1000. And we did!!
        So what else has been happening? Well, nothing much. Not this semester anyway. It's all studies for me because we have a barrier exam at the end of this semester. That means I have to pass this exam if I ever want to be a 2nd year med student.
        Sometimes I look back on my life, and I think...no, I'm sure...that it's only by God's grace that I've gotten this far. I mean, here's this clueless boy fumbling thru life, facing impossible challenges and making so many mistakes along the way...yet somehow I'm still standing! Indeed God has really poured out His grace and mercy upon my life.
        So I wanna encourage anyone who's reading this. Sometimes if you feel lost, just call out and continue to trust in Him. It's only when we're lost that God can really "find" you...if you know what I mean. If we think for 1 sec that we have everything under control, then we have no need for God...and in that situation, even if we're headed somewhere, we may be going the wrong way!
        Anyway, hope all of that made sense. I'm going to sleep now. Take care people!

Breaking radio silence...

Hehe...sorry everyone, for not updating u guys...been rather busy with uni work.

On the 19th of July 2006, I went for the Colours of Asia night at uni. It was organized by the Malaysian Society and Thai Society. There were some fun performances (eg lion dance) and some pretty odd ones as well.

_________________________________________________________________________

Today, I went to the Bond Christian Connection's (BCC) Big Day Out. It was a day long leadership/motivational seminar with time out for some meals and fun at the beach. Here are some pics from the Big Day Out:

Just something a friend drew on my hand...but what it says is so true (that I love Jesus!)

In recent days, I've been spending more time with God. All in all, I just wanna say this...that my God is faithful and HE cares about the little things YOU care about. The next time you pray, do it with all your heart and truly cry out to Him, for He hears your prayers. There is a promise in the Bible from Luke 18 about the persistent widow:

"...pray and not give up (v.1)...(read the parable yourself)...will not God bring justice for His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see to it that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? (v.6-8)"

When we pray, we should claim the promises of God for our lives. The Bible is full of promises, and they are for us to use as a constant reminder to God. Not that God has forgotten us...for He numbers the hairs on our heads...but He desires our fellowship and faith in Him.

Adonai, I just wanna say...thank you!

My room

Finally...I'm actually gonna put up pics of my beloved room =)

So here it is:

This is the lovely view from my room (8th/highest floor):

Gold Coast City from a distance...

The only thing I dislike about my room is the fact that it's right above Don's Tavern (uni bar). The noise level is pretty irritating on Thurs and Fri nights. Well, at least I'm on the highest floor =)

Top view of Don's Tavern during the day

hope u enjoyed the pics. feel free to feel jealous :P

Tutorial Cup!

        Hey all, sorry i haven't updated this blog in a while. been busy with uni work. lectures are becoming ridiculously hard. sigh...maybe i just need to work harder :)
        Anyway, last Thursday we had our tutorial cup. What's that u say?? Well, it's the ultimate tournament that lasts for a few weeks here at Bond Uni. It's so popular that soon everyone will be asking "World Cup?? What's that??". Haha...as u can all see, i'm still sore from Australia losing to Italy. sigh...sucha tragedy...yet life goes on...
       Oh yea, about the tutorial cup. It's an inter-tutorial group competition held among first year med students. Last week, my group "The Kuldip-ians" (named after our tutor-Prof Kuldip Bedi; formerly known as "The Candy Canes") practically destroyed all other groups in the Tug-o-War competition. Woohoo!!And since I was the only med student with enough brains to bring a camera, I became the unofficial photographer for the event. Here are the pics of some of the groups:

The Kuldip-ians; a small rag-tag band, but strong and dominating nonetheless. Our team is led by Stuart. We weren't able to get a uniform in time for last week because Stuart's friend passed away. But this week...we sure will.

G1- This is the all-red, super united squad led by the small but bossy Jeanne. Although they lost to "the Kuldip-ians", they won overall due to team participation and costume. Bleh!

Led by Lipi, the 2nd degree Tae Kwon Do black belt, they are called "Bling it on".

Led by Anthony, this band call themselves the Pink Panthers.

No idea what this team is called. Forgot liao...

The Kuldip-ians showing how it should be done...

This Thursday, however, we'll be playing a different game- Ultimate Relay. So, I'll keep u guys posted on that.

Ugh...can't think of a title...haha!

    Guess what people...i just received my new ANZ card. Woot! It's specially for Bond students and it's very pretty. It has this picture as the background for the card.

    Today, I wanna give a shout out to my family. Coz they are so loving...all of them. My parents read my blog often and the last time they even commented using pris' account. Woot! Just wanna say that all of u are amazing and I am so blessed to be a 'Wong'. =) Oh, and thanks to Josh n pris for sending me that parcel. Really really appreciate it!
    As most of you know my computer finally arrived last week...but u won't believe this...my speakers don't work! Ugh...now I'm in a dilemma coz the place I bought it is pretty far away, and calling on-site warranty may take some time (will try it tomorrow). Sigh...I'm so tempted to just buy new speakers since cheap ones only cost about AUS$20. Imagine, I've had no music for the past 2 weeks. The silence is almost deafening!!
    Oh and guess what else happened...I don't think I've blogged about this yet, but I've moved from the ghettos of Bond Uni into pure luxury! woohooo!! Yea, my room looks like a hotel room, with an ensuite bathroom and all. Thanks mom and dad! Imagine, it's so large I can actually do a backflip! But of course I won't be doing that much...u wanna know why? Because I'm on the top floor of the building overlooking a great view of a beautiful lake and being the nice person that I am, I don't wanna disturb the my neighbours below with 'thumpping' sounds. keke...But just to set the record straight, I'm not a brat like u all must be thinking, esp Ashley. haha! I moved because my neighbour at the place I used to stay parties quite a bit, and it often ends with puke on the bathroom floors and beer on the carpets. Also, they usually go on till about 1am, which is ridiculous.
    Anyways, I gotta go now! so bye bye!

    

First day in medical school

     Hi all! I'm back from medcamp and I officially started classes today. Before I say anything else, I wanna wish my cousin Mei Leng a very Happy 21st Birthday!! May God bless you and lead u in everything u do. And to my dear friend Ashley, all the best for your interview tomorrow. I've been praying for u and I'm sure everyone is too, so you'll do great! :) Love u both heaps!

     Well, medcamp was hosted by the medical students society at Springbrook over the weekend. It was great fun but I'm so glad its over. Haha! It was pretty crazy. For initiation into med school we had to drink this cup of really yucky 'drink' composed of onion juice, onion chunks, vinegar, mayonaise and other disgusting stuff! I literally threw up after my first gulp! Super gross!! And we had people drunk and boys going on nudie runs and all...lol...and just a coupla days back we were given a talk on how doctors were the leaders of tomorrow. Yea right...For me, I just had a few beers and that was it. Social drinking is fine...but getting wasted (killing all those brain cells!) and acting like an idiot is not cool!

    There were good moments at camp though. I made good friends. My roomates were prolly the most 'sane' of the lot and so we had really good conversations getting to know each other and all. And the best part is...a few of them are Christians. One of them actually has parents from Malaysia. Although he lived in Brisbane all his life, but its still good coz he's a pretty strong Christian. He told me he was actually wondering if there were any other Christians in our course, so we became friends right away. Haha! Really really wanna thank God for that.

    Then there was that really nice trip to the waterfall. I'm not exactly sure where Springbrook is but it was in some mountaineous rainforest area. The scenary was amazing, making up for the lousy cabins that we stayed in.

A little rainbow at the base of the waterfall to remind me of God's love and promises...

   

    Today I was at the library and guess what I found...a bookmark with the footprints story on it. In my head I was thinking how true it was in my life. I mean, yea sure I've read it many time before, but how often do we as Christians remember it when we're goin through tough times, rather than always complaining? Anyway here's one version of it for those of u who never read it:

I Had a Dream One night I had a dream I was walking along the beach with my Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, one belonging to me and the other to my Lord. When the last scene of my life shot before me I looked back at the footprints in the sand. There was only on set of footprints. I realized that this was at the lowest and saddest times in my life. This always bothered me and I questioned the Lord about my dilemma. "Lord, you told me when I decided to follow You, You would walk and talk with me all the way. But I'm aware that during the most troublesome times of my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why, when I needed You most, you leave me." He whispered,  "My precious, precious child, I love you and will never leave you never, ever during your times of trial and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints It was then that I carried you." - Margaret Fishback Powers (disclaimer: I'm not particularly sure if she was the original author)

First week at Bond

    Woohoo! I've officially survived my first week at Bond Uni. Orientation week is over, and after medcamp this weekend, I'm all set and ready to study again. Haha! I've been bumming for too long, and if I don't use my brain soon, it will turn to mush!!

    I've officially made more friends and I actually like my tutorial group. Most of the people I've met so far are friendly and pretty helpful. However, I'm about the only Malaysian in my course. There is this other girl that was born in Malaysia, but then moved to Brisbane to live most of her life, so she's quite aussie-fied. The closest to a Malaysian I've met so far was an indonesian who studied in Singapore and moved to Sydney 2 years ago. Oh, but there was this Brunei-an dude though, but he's in another course. So the big question is......where are all the Malaysians??? I haven't met a single one...not in my course or any other for that matter!! hmm...the funny thing is, there is a Malaysian society, so I guess I should be meeting some at the clubs and societies day next Friday.

    Anyway, here are some pics I took before I left sydney and when I just arrived.

with beloved friends at Glebe on my last nite in Sydney...

With my CG leader - Darrel Yap! A good man indeed! (he's one half of Ny-Rel and the pretty pink flamingo next to me in the previous pic is the other half!)

with Eugenie (my really good friend fr Msia-known her since I was 9!!, and my beloved sister khee khee che che)

Josh-illa terrorizing surfer's paradise!!!

    no worries... I arrive to save the day!!

Haha!!! As u can all see from most of the pics...I'm so full af myself. keke...but this is my blog after all, so who else did u expect to see but me??? :P

     Oh there's one person I wanna thank - Allyson (too bad I don't have her pic)!! I'm not sure if you're ever gonna read this, but thanks so much for intro-ing me to your bro and for checking up on me every now and then. Really nice of you. Will chat with you soon yea...if I ever get my computer!

     Well, take care people. My love and prayers to all of you! Bye bye!

Surviving...

      Hello people!! I'm back..woohoo! Well, here's my current situation. I just got my student card, so I finally have internet access in the library. But the computer which I bought last saturday hasn't arrived yet. Apparently one of the technicians broke his rib or something. Sigh...how unlucky. So I have to wait until next week to get it. But I guess I shouldn't complain. The past few days, I've been spending the nights reading my Bible and talking to family and friends. I never thought I'd say this but thank God for 3 (phone service provider). Haha! Nevermind that their customer service is super lousy, but at least the plan is good, and I have reception where I'm living. That's good enough for me.

     My room is not too bad. It doesn't have an ensuite bathroom, but my room is next to the bathroom anyways so its ok. So far I haven't seen anyone around my hallways. I think they prolly haven't come back from hols yet but that means they are old students or they would have to attend orientation. The campus food is much better than expected. I can top up as many times as I want. Haha! and they also serve dessert like fruit, jelly or cake.

     Ok. So enough about me. How's everyone back home? Thanks to everyone who sent me bye bye sms-es and online messages. Really appreciate it. I'm so lucky to have such good friends from church, uni, and capoeira.

     A huge shout out to Josh and Pris for helping me so much for the past few days. I'd still be struggling if not for u both. ARIGATO!!! We took a coupla pics while they were here in GC with me, but I'll only post them up as soon as I get my computer.

     To dad and mom, I miss u both so much! Good luck with the dancing lessons. Teach me when I get back ok? And to Khee Khee n Wai Choong, hope u both are doing well n I miss you too. You should have gotten 3. haha! To all my friends and my 'Family' in Sydney, I hope you guys are studying hard and living passionately for God. I'm trying to make new friends over here, but so far progress has been slow. Maybe tomorrow when we have the orientation day for the med students it'll be much better. Love u guys heaps!

     Oh, and people, if u can, I have a prayer request. I'm feeling a bit sick these few days. Sinus problem again. Giving me headaches and all. I've been taking medication but not feeling much better. So pray yea? Coz prayer is the strongest and best medicine. And if u guys have any prayer requests please lemme know. If not, I'll just be praying very general prayers. Oh btw, when I was coming over I didn't have any pressure pain for the first time ever. Woohoo! So thanks guys for praying for me and all glory to God.

     Well, take care everyone. Thanks for reading. God bless!

Cause I'm leaving, on a jet plane....

    Hey all, the past few days have been really sad for me, as I'm leaving Sydney and moving on into another phase of my life. I just wanna say thanks to all my wonderful friends...thank you for your friendship, inspiration, and readiness to help. I truly appreciate you guys from the bottom of my heart. I wanna say a special thanks to Josh, for all your help the past crazy week.
    Today, I wanna take time out to thank my parents for all the love they've shown me through the past few years until today. The other day my dad said a very sad and true thing...that from this saturday onwards, I'll be living away from home, possibly for a really looooooong time. You see, unless I miraculously get a pre-internship or internship placement in Sydney, I'll probably be living in Gold Coast for the next 7-8 years, studying and then working there. By then I would be 28-29 years old, and it's highly unlikely that I would return to living in my parents' home. So they were kinda sad thinking about that. And I am too...

    But to my parents, I just wanna say I love u both so very very much. Really appreciate all that you've done for me. You know, the malays have a saying. "Syurga terletak di bawah tapak kaki ibu". Literally translating, it means, heaven is under the feet of our mothers. Although, not technically true, but I do know one thing for sure. The Lord honours those who honour their parents. I hope I've been a good son to you both, and not too much of a pain. And I pray that I'll be able to make you both proud when I graduate someday.
    You know, this makes me think about a time 2,000 years ago, when my Father in Heaven had to part with Jesus. The Bible says, a day is like a thousand years to God since He's not bound by time. So, the 33 yrs of Jesus being on earth must have been an eternity to God. And then there was that fateful day on Calvary, where the sin, pain, and suffering of the world was nailed unto God's only Son, Jesus Christ...You know, currently I can't truly imagine the pain felt by God coz I've never been a parent. But maybe my parents can, even if just a lil' bit...
    Well, on the bright side of things...Gold Coast is still in the same country. And I'll be back every couple of months or so. :) *hugz to parents* I really hope I don't cry my eyes out on Sat...sigh...
    Today, I also had my last capoeira class at Sydney Uni. Contra-mestre Nei taught the class. Tough I tell ya...
Thats me training handstand.   

   
   

myself and Contra-mestre Nei

Asuka (sucha cutie!), me, Maracas, Gungfu, n Porto da Barra dude at the acrobatics gymnasium

    Well, goodbye to all my friends in Sydney. Especially my family: Dad n Mom, James n Denise, Josh n Pris, Darrel n Nydia, Aaron n Ashley, and also my cousin Mei Leng (no, she's not single!). Thank you guys for your love, time and patience with me. Gonna miss you all heaps. Also, a big thank you and goodbye to my Connect Group. Keep supporting Daz, and inspiring those around you. The next time I blog, it'll be from Gold Coast. So goodbye to the Black Machine too. That's my comp! I hope nobody accidentally crashes you :) Thanks for reading and God bless!