tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-243096982012-01-15T11:03:25.454+01:00Matters of the minute under the microscope by a junior doctor in Malta. Step lightly: this may explode.Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.comBlogger1001100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-42320720869436379072011-01-05T15:50:00.003+01:002011-01-05T16:38:38.044+01:00

My browser's been directed to an interesting article on the BMJ website regarding the ongoing ascent of the medical Twittersphere. A good introduction to Twitter for the medical professional, or the medically inclined, it deals with what Twitter can do within this sphere, how to get started, and also points you to a number of people worth following.I've been on Twitter for quite sometime now. My

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-83831575688799591932011-01-02T09:45:00.003+01:002011-01-02T10:06:10.714+01:00

In Malta, for a brief period of rest and recuperation, it has been an utmost pleasure to spend Christmas and the New Year with friends and families (in the plural, as then there were two). It has provided time to step away from the daily grind, and allow for some thought and planning for the year ahead.New Year's is an arbitrary day more or less all of us take to think about what we'd like to

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-49423660215538130832010-05-01T20:56:00.004+02:002010-05-01T21:13:14.836+02:00

I'm sat in my living room, munching through a plate of imqarrun (baked pasta, to the non-natives), and surfing the internet before my shift starts this evening.It says a lot that in the run up to the election in the UK, an election in which I have a vote, I devote more reading time to the Maltese blogosphere than the British one. This does not in anyway denigrate the local scene; goodness knows

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-77791012333375679372010-03-12T11:29:00.005+01:002010-03-12T13:08:48.999+01:00

Over the past three months that I've been working in Urology, I've come to grips with the fact that I'm working in a hospital which is separate from the 'main' hospital. It's a small 187-bed hospital which houses ENT, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Urology and a number of MFE wards. The district general, on the other hand, has most of the general medical and surgical wards, and with them, ITU, A&E,

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-50933545151682333002010-02-22T20:34:00.005+01:002010-02-22T20:57:27.124+01:00

It's that time of year when 5th years back home in Malta face the very difficult decision of whether or not to kick off their career in medicine in Malta or elsewhere, namely the UK. By now, all successful applicants to the UKFPO have received their allocated rotas, and presumably have a deadline by which to accept or refute the job offer. I remember it well - I can't believe it's already a year

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-2230403152134493672010-02-21T23:59:00.006+01:002010-02-22T02:01:46.934+01:00

One of my favourite commentators on all things Maltese (and not) made a very poignant observation this morning in his Facebook stream; the national newspaper's editorial has finally made mention of the online fiasco that's been gripping the country for the past few weeks.Whether you admit it or not, it's impossible not to be mesmerized by the goings-on between magistrate and columnist, played out

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-30560046186767839862010-01-14T09:57:00.009+01:002010-01-14T12:55:06.147+01:00

Leafing through my RSS feeder this morning as I do every day, I came across an article published by the online branch of the Insiter. It briefs readers on the latest report issued by KSU's education commission; a report detailing students' feedback on the entire examination experience.The report(.pdf), which can be found online in KSU's document treasure trove, systematically deals with all of

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-62328741939131365182010-01-04T00:33:00.006+01:002010-01-04T01:02:37.293+01:00

I'm sitting up in bed typing this, and I realise that I've already been in Peterborough for a whole month. Time does fly!A quick recap is in order, as my actions round and about the country haven't been catalogued on the blog particularly well. As most of you would have made out, I've moved to the UK to take up life as a doctor. My first four months (staring August 2009) saw me working in

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-71224304340728679562010-01-02T10:35:00.003+01:002010-01-02T10:46:48.348+01:00

A new dawn, a new year and a new decade. There's something refreshing about celebrating a new year - it affords us all a new start if we want one, or at the very least, inspires us to reboot ourselves. It makes us want to put a bit more energy into whatever we're doing, and is thus, essentially, a proverbial 'kick up the backside'.I'm not a firm believer in new year resolutions as such - the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-85758894353461956202009-10-03T17:29:00.004+02:002009-10-03T17:40:19.789+02:00

Came across this poster designed by Franco Rizzo, one of the founders of The Collective, a movement for creativity started a couple of months ago. It sports a motto which should ingrain itself into most students, and particularly the medics.Best of luck to all the 3rd, 4th and 5th year medical students kicking off the new scholastic year. Get out there, speak to patients, doctors and everybody.

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-58682571245346044522009-10-02T18:32:00.004+02:002009-10-02T19:08:05.305+02:00

What a week! I've just come off a series of night duties covering the surgical wards, and my body clock's been thrown for a loop. It's probably not as strenuous as the 36-hour shifts worked by the boys back home in Malta, but it's still quite the experience.The night shift here at Addenbrooke's is quite an interesting one. 3 general surgical wards, an intermediate dependency ward full of very ill

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-40001627064231304522009-09-29T19:41:00.005+02:002009-09-29T19:52:26.091+02:00

Yesterday saw the UKFPO open its arms to the next batch of housemen to patrol the wards in the UK - enrolment is well and truly started.This is an automatic process for most students in the UK, as their medical school often enrols them in the process. What it means for the rest of the world, Malta included, however, is that people now need to start making active decisions about whether or not

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-39988935039941114392009-09-05T13:12:00.003+02:002009-09-05T13:56:17.833+02:00

September's here, and with it the foreboding feeling that school's just around the corner. Here in the UK most kids go back to school over the coming week, and the university Freshers' weeks kick off soon after. Back in Malta, the summer holidays extend to the end of September, and University starts in October. Having said that, it already feels like it's about time to go back to uni - and yet,

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-62622364578841393862009-08-28T14:40:00.002+02:002009-08-28T14:43:44.877+02:00

Starting off as a brand new F1 in one of the major teaching hospitals in East Anglia has proven to be an excellent, if slightly nerve-wracking experience. There's a lot of new things to assimilate, and expectations are high, but at least there's an excellent support system, and you're never really on your own. The first month as a surgical house officer has been a good one.I'd just gotten used to

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-52117080551513070692009-08-26T13:16:00.004+02:002009-08-26T13:39:45.198+02:00

It's been a whole month since I've moved the the UK. The honeymoon period is over, and we've all now been inducted and integrated into the labyrinthine system that is the NHS. We're still the 'new doctors', but at least we're getting a hang of the hospital, how it works, and the people who work within its hallowed walls. It's been a steep learning curve.My first rotation is in the department of

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-47166249458331947132009-08-03T07:33:00.004+02:002009-08-03T07:48:40.671+02:00

I've finally made it to the UK, and one week after the move, I've found a bit of time to sit down to my blog. It's been a madcap week.Tess and I landed in the UK on Sunday, and were given an introduction to the Sunday lazy-life by Tom over in London. It was really great to see a familiar face in a foreign land, especially after the highly-charged emotional farewell at the airport. Relaxing over a

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-36937822347282805882009-07-24T16:20:00.008+02:002009-07-24T16:29:30.284+02:00

An interesting snippet from the letter sent by John Black, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England regarding new hours for doctors. It should be interesting to see how the European Working Time Directive integrates, come the 1st of next month. As you know the College and the vast majority of surgeons believe that a 48 hour week for surgeons in the NHS is a major threat to safe

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-46732451746851105132009-07-23T10:06:00.004+02:002009-07-23T11:17:13.858+02:00

There's currently a healthy debate raging on the MMSA Standing Committee on Medical Education (SCOME) email server about clinical skills. Granted that the discussion is being held solely by students, it still makes interesting reading (members-only access). The gist of it is whether appropriate training in clinical skills is being afforded to students, how it could improve, and when/where it

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-73368439193866815612009-07-18T18:15:00.006+02:002009-07-18T20:53:33.837+02:00

Last Tuesday the Foundation Programme website published the annual report (.pdf) of Applicants vs. Vacancies for the round of applications for FY1 starting August 2009, with comparisons to the previous 2 years. They're worth a look, people who applied last year will find them interesting, but they're essential reading for anyone who's interested in applying for FY1 in the UK this year!There are

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-88002789425299677122009-07-17T09:44:00.011+02:002009-07-17T10:04:51.780+02:00

There's a certain amount of trepidation involved in sitting for your final 5th year exams in June, knowing there's a house officer job waiting for you if you qualify. It's even more anxiety-inducing when you're sitting for your exams in Malta, and the job's waiting for you in the UK. Whether or not you uproot your life and go to live and work in another country is dependent on you getting through

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-60116529766840042662009-07-15T10:41:00.006+02:002009-07-15T11:26:28.751+02:00

So it's official: the proposal for the new curriculum for the pre-clinical segment of the Malta Medical School MD course has been approved to start as a pilot project in October 2009. That's right, this October. The new curriculum is finally on its way.The Senate minutes would no doubt make interesting reading, if they were available for reading, that is. It transpires that the Programme

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-3582381979421639282009-07-08T10:50:00.004+02:002009-07-17T09:03:57.421+02:00

As you can imagine, spending 5 years trudging through the murky mire that is medical school requires the purchase and reading thereof of quite a number of books. True to form, I've picked up a lot of books (especially over the past 3 years), and have been helped considerably by book loans from the Significant Other. And surprisingly, I've read most of them.Unfortunately, that has left my shelves

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-53678636041913643502009-07-05T09:20:00.005+02:002009-07-05T13:33:32.029+02:00

So it is finally here: H1N1 has hit the islands of Malta and Gozo. We've been told that it was a question not of 'if', but of 'when'. Probably, we've actually had H1N1 on the island for quite a while now, Malta being a haven for communicable diseases due to its size and population density, and the fact that people are coming and going, and intermingling with the home-crowd so effectively. But now

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-32963974307614491542009-06-24T17:45:00.006+02:002009-06-24T18:19:56.459+02:00

The latest edition of Academic Medicine has published an interesting article (abstract) relating the characteristics of medical internship with the student's end-performance in final examinations. Unsurprisingly, the overall feel is that the more involved a student is in their clinical attachments, the better they are likely to perform in subsequent assessments. What is interesting is that the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-55625307183834699272009-06-23T09:41:00.004+02:002009-06-23T10:01:00.202+02:00

This post has been a long while in coming, some 5 years in fact, but I'm very happy to say that my undergraduate course at university is now over. I've finished my MD, passed my final exams, and am now on the list for degree conferment in November of this year. As you can imagine, I'm very happy, if not a little relieved.This means, of course, that a significantly long chapter of life is now

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-86052444389368232492009-06-12T13:47:00.006+02:002009-07-17T09:03:57.422+02:00

The writtens are over, and today marked the start of the practical exams (or 'clinicals', as they should be known). We kicked off with Paediatrics, which was a fair exam, I think. The examiners were nice, the kids were even nicer (much to my surprise!) and the photos were crystal clear and unequivocal. Here's hoping the remaining clinicals are just as fair. Hope springs eternal.Meanwhile, this

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-78465177457644296132009-06-02T21:57:00.005+02:002009-06-23T10:09:20.700+02:00

The Curriculum Committee is wrapping up its proposal for the biomedical sciences portion of the MD course at the UoM (read: pre-clinical segment, but that's old-terminology). The Committee is proposing a series of study-units loosely based on the body systems, cutting across previous departmental divisions. Hence, while students will still be getting lessons in anatomy and physiology, they'll be

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-19353419096034135922009-05-24T16:42:00.006+02:002009-05-24T18:36:33.739+02:00

They're finally here. Tomorrow we start our finals. The finals.Best of luck to all with exams coming up.Dizziness, Iman Maleki, Iran

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-79191045768220148062009-05-10T22:50:00.005+02:002009-07-06T21:11:41.338+02:00

Just two weeks to go before the final session of exams kicks off. The end has never been so nigh. You start med school thinking it's going to be a long, long road (and by shots, it has been!), perhaps one with the end so far off in the distance it doesn't bear thinking about. You even start your fifth and final year thinking that the finals are still a distance away.Now, merely a fortnight away

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-38288939330048882182009-04-25T13:55:00.005+02:002009-07-17T09:03:57.423+02:00

Blogging has taken a severe beating in general across the local blogosphere (as documented in J'accuse' latest post), and this blog is no exception. Multiple reasons will account for this, primarily the amount of time I'm spending at hospital, with my books or in bed. Hopefully, this will take a new lease on life in a couple of months, but only time will tell.Meanwhile, while blogging per se is

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-55174856114308402252009-03-29T17:30:00.003+02:002009-07-17T08:23:08.192+02:00

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-15350300855551415632009-02-23T22:42:00.003+01:002009-07-17T09:03:18.743+02:00

The Insiter recently ran this story about lockers for students being non-existent at Mater Dei Hospital. It's been nigh upon the farcical: hearing the admin's excuses for not providing these facilities is stuff of gut-busting humour. Corridors are evidently not wide enough, utilising wide open spaces would apparently provide a 'fire hazard', and use of a deserted canteen would override the reason

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-46210953838161178392009-02-09T22:19:00.003+01:002009-07-17T09:03:18.744+02:00

This has possibly got to be the most preposterous headline the Times has run in quite a while (barring Chiara's hat-trick yesterday, but that's in a league of its own).Relatives are being urged to take care of post-op patients.Now, I'll not go down the lanes the online commentary section is going... management of the hospital, or lack thereof, has been evident from the word 'go'. I'll not even

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-10745858706653457952009-01-13T22:12:00.004+01:002009-07-17T09:03:18.745+02:00

5 months from my finals, and the last thing I should be doing is resurrecting my blog. Well, having said that, this is hardly going to be a resurrection, but a series of very (very) short notes.I was surprised this morning to walk into the Day Surgery Unit, as I do nearly every morning, and find, instead of kindly gentlemen waiting for their herniorraphies, a room full of medical patients. Yes;

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-15584249034107582922008-06-09T10:49:00.004+02:002009-07-17T08:57:28.800+02:00

This blog was carried by the Times of Malta Online on Sunday 8th June, 2008. Comments are welcome either here or on the Times website.--UMASA and the MUT have joined forces in issuing a directive to University and Junior College staff not to hand in results from exams or form a part of an examination board. This news is not going down well with the students.It would essentially mean that

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-72803797799952637822008-06-02T23:13:00.007+02:002009-07-17T08:59:16.581+02:00

Tarmac and sunset, somewhere on the way to Nuorgam. Lapland, Finland, 2007.The exams have started and we're about a third of the way through. Today was possibly the most arduous task of the lot. It was Part I of the Pathology final, and meant scribbling through 15 essays in 3 hours. Not enough time to think, let alone waste time. Left the exam with massive cramp in my right hand and my left

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-57082014222166372252008-05-22T07:58:00.006+02:002009-07-17T08:56:43.543+02:00

Adam@Home - Brian Basset (strip for 20 May, 2008)Really getting close to exam time here - Pharmacology's the starting gun, come Friday, 30th May. It's the beginning of the end, and once that's happened, it's a marathon sprint (?!) to the end - it will all be a bit faster after that. Touch wood, this session of exams will shoot by pain-free. It's a challenging set, including the Pathology final (

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-67920746792263034032008-05-14T16:05:00.005+02:002009-07-17T08:56:08.162+02:00

I think hell may actually have frozen over: the government seems to finally be getting its act together and kick-starting a post-grad training programme for doctors. It's only fair that a press release doesn't disclose any juicy details of what these programmes will contain, but chances are the people running the courses don't actually know that at the moment either. It's a step in the right

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-26527720468039372242008-04-30T23:14:00.007+02:002009-07-23T11:11:22.109+02:00

Had a meeting with the Faculty of Medicine's Curriculum Committee yesterday. It's a committee formed of a number of faculty members (the more interested ones) and a student rep (yours truly), with the aim of reviewing and updating the medical school's curriculum as is fitting.Students will be surprised to find that there actually is a curriculum, let alone a group of people interested in updating

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-33503182772349343322008-04-21T22:16:00.005+02:002009-07-17T09:03:18.746+02:00

Last Thursday's Times of Malta carried a letter penned by a good number of my friends on the situation in a 'bar of note' in St. Julians, vis a vis the breaking of the smoking ban in public places. I'd had a hand in looking it over, and it felt good to see it in print. Not for the narcissist inside me, mind you, but because it's a cause which gets me riled.The smoking ban in public places which

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-28108981060607059612008-04-15T23:06:00.004+02:002009-07-17T08:54:37.622+02:00

The days are longer,But shorter is what they seem.Time tells us to run.Do you agree, disagree, or think this is completely ridiculous? Post a comment.Strampop of the Minute: Dead Man Saloon - Creeper Lagoon

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-44185210629483622612008-04-14T23:48:00.006+02:002009-07-17T09:03:18.747+02:00

Just a quick post this evening at the end of a long day. A bit of insomnia's keeping me up this evening, though touch wood it'll be short lived. I've just put an assignment to rest, ready for printing tomorrow. We medical students don't get all that many assignments, and it says something that the few we do get are all about touchy-feely behavioural science-y stuff. It's usually for the more

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-32071962009199240832008-04-13T15:04:00.003+02:002009-07-17T09:02:44.268+02:00

Quite a bit's been going on since the last post. It's been a while, not because there's been nothing going on, but because I've not had the time nor inclination to sit down and blog. Hence this post, which is supposed to be a 'buy one get three' sort of thing.Easter break's come and gone, and a few good friends who have emigrated came back to Malta for their holidays. Good times were had: we'd

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-89583490985922523452008-03-24T09:26:00.006+01:002009-07-17T09:03:18.748+02:00

It seems like Paul Vincenti's wish has come true, and the whole abortion issue is about to ignite again. Now, I don't want people to come away with the idea that this blog is trying to be controversial, but I'm really happy that international and local events are taking discussion along the routes of this issue, if anything at least to talk about it.The Council of Europe approved a resolution

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-23463823939455268022008-03-14T14:17:00.007+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.271+02:00

Election fever has come and gone, and we now have the results. Some find them desirable, others not so much. Needless to say, people are up in arms questioning why the campaigns didn't go as well as either party would have hoped, and both the incumbent PN government and the MLP are undergoing a change in faces and, hopefully, in the way either does business.Foremost, I'm interested in seeing what

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-64835694467442064582008-03-08T08:52:00.006+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.272+02:00

It's finally here: Saturday's brought around Election Day 2008. This is the culmination of all the electioneering that's been going on for the past 33 days or so. People are on tenterhooks to see what the outcome's going to be. Some are saying it could go either way, others are saying that Bookies will only take bets on the margin by which Labour will win, as if it's some foregone conclusion. I

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-9751718539611122172008-03-04T23:20:00.006+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.273+02:00

While waiting for the fallout from this evening's political broadcasts to hit the blogosphere, I'm still maintaining political radio silence. I'm not the one to canvas for either political party, because I think both large parties have a lot to bring to the table, both in positive ideas as well as excess baggage. Either way, political discussion at this point isn't really about trying to get

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-65231853443857222412008-03-01T18:18:00.004+01:002009-07-17T08:47:29.216+02:00

Am sick to death of hearing about politics (and writing about it myself), so am taking a much needed break. Either way: it's only a week 'til election day... I'm sure the coming 8 days are going to be quite intense.First of all, have knocked together a new header image. A 10 minute experiment with photoshop inbetween reading haematology and gynaecology. I'm quite happy with the result, for an

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-67498831182048039962008-02-27T23:40:00.005+01:002009-07-17T09:03:18.749+02:00

I'm going to start off by saying that I'm quite enjoying this electoral campaign. It's the first general general election when I get to vote (hence the tidal wave of junk mail pouring through my letterbox each day), and the first general election in quite a while where there's no major deciding factor like the EU or argumentative backbenchers et cetera. Hence, we're getting to see the 2 major

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-86518369296448125962008-02-18T21:58:00.007+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.275+02:00

Once in a while I need to take the time to step outside myself and assess my view of the world around me. Usually, this is precipitated by an event which goes against the grain of what I think should have happened; an event which has shaken my belief in my own paradigm on life. Blogging lends itself to expression and exploration, and is a fair medium to let thoughts play out. I might delete this

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-51242151352293850712008-02-13T23:41:00.006+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.276+02:00

A very short entry today to advertise a couple of links.First of all, kudos and hats off to Insite for putting on possibly the only debate in the country which brings together the leaders of the 4 main contending election parties. Sant, Gonzi, Vassallo and Muscat all are hitting Campus next Monday to answer student questions. University students are encouraged to pen any queries on the 'wall' at

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-67477653020523853042008-02-09T16:02:00.001+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.277+02:00

As if anyone had any doubt, it's finally been made official - Malta is in Election mode. You barely need to take two steps from your front door, and the likelihood is that there's Gonzi's pitted mug grinning down at you from one of his newly installed Blue bilboards, or instead some prepubescent ballerina proclaiming a new start from the Reds. Barely a week into the race, and it feels like the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-23228863584657501232008-01-30T19:22:00.001+01:002009-07-17T08:45:09.538+02:00

The January exam session is over. 5 exams spread over 10 days have meant a hectic regimen of exam-study-exam-study with little pause for breath - these times test your stamina as well as your knowledge, to be sure. That being said, the session's passed without too much ado. Any problems encountered in misprinted papers and overtalkative colleagues have been tackled and dealt with. Now, as always,

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-10006591755106132262008-01-22T20:16:00.001+01:002009-07-17T08:39:26.498+02:00

Tomorrow, Neurology. The 'big' one for the January sessions. I'd really love to blog, but nothing but exams will come out. And at the moment, there's a lot of frustration involved with exams, and none of it's got to do with studying, for once. Hence the simplicity of a picture.A picture may be worth a thousand words, but 5 words whispered across an exam room are worth a lifetime of bad

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-16807150629580619422008-01-19T17:26:00.001+01:002009-07-17T08:40:13.877+02:00

Nearly a month has passed since the last blog. Promises of a Christmas update Volume 2 have long since gone unfulfilled and will most likely remain so, such is the fervor of post-Christmas studying for January session exams.In truth, it's not been a terribly stressing period, as the topics at hand are quite interesting, especially Neurology. I'll not go down the road of bitching about exams and

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-18860674192553997002007-12-20T22:06:00.001+01:002009-07-17T08:41:06.605+02:00

The Christmas season is here. I'd sat down to pen a blog on the joys of Christmas spirit, stopped halfway through drafting, only to be pipped to the post by good old André. That's not to say that that should preclude me from writing my own post on the issue, but one would jump to the conclusion that I'm casting about the net for ideas. Not terribly untrue, of course, but it would have been thinly

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-76189987583676458382007-12-16T10:35:00.001+01:002009-07-17T09:03:57.424+02:00

Good old Jacques over at J'accuse (long since removed from my blogroll, but still worth a mention) has taken the initiative to unify Malta bloggers over at a social networking site. People who blog in or about Malta are invited, of course, to sign up here. How useful this will be is debatable, but it will provide subscribers with another source of potential readership.Courtesy of said website,

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-40512781065756974412007-12-01T15:20:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:44:16.024+02:00

First of all, I'll start this off by thanking all those who sent their well wishes for the exams, both on the blog and off it. I'm happy to say that the tests passed without incident, and (touch wood) they should have gone well. Obviously, the only way to be sure of that is once the results come out. Have pegged a hotlink to eSims on my Firefox userbar as a result, and it'll be getting ample

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-64312507550894097892007-11-25T22:18:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:44:03.593+02:00

They're here again, these beeding exams. After a long weekend of work, I really can't wait to get them started. Tomorrow morning, at 9am, it's Forensic Medicine. Then it's the run up to Public Health.Chances are there'll be another post just before then (as I really can't be bothered to be studying all the way to 4am before an exam... I don't believe it's as productive as Red Bull would have us

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-33416816288305049942007-11-19T23:09:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:43:26.986+02:00

It's been a busy couple of days. Not to say that it's not been a busy 2 months since getting back to Malta and gearing up for a jam-packed fourth year, but I'm very happy to say that I've finally hit 5th gear. The beauty of it all is that once you're careering along at sound-speed, all other things around you seem to be caught up in the velocity and speed up as well. Thankfully, I'm not the only

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-55303590627212250722007-11-12T21:56:00.002+01:002009-07-17T09:02:44.278+02:00

I'm taking a break from policy-bashing for this blog, despite there being ample material in the Fenech-Farrugia standoff which seems to be gripping the country. Focus, in these trying times, shifts from the macrocosmic to the microcosmic, or more specifically, to those issues which affect the individual more acutely. By these times, I mean exams, and by issues, well, yes, that's the point of the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-28802422665157627762007-11-01T21:54:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:28:40.319+02:00

This blogpost will, in all earnest, start off in a futile attempt to address the new working conditions put forward in a proposal by the government, which have been agreed to by the MAM. However, and I type this again, in all earnest, I fear it will be written without the fervor it deserves, primarily because it's been discussed to death already, and also because frankly it's not really up for

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-44060299888965798242007-10-29T19:51:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:27:59.329+02:00

The matter of the minute for most of the medical staff at St. Luke's, as well as the sector of the student population that actually cares, is the proposed reform in the working conditions for doctors in Malta (those working in the NHS, at any rate).The proposals have been leaked to di-ve.com, and at face value (or rather, taking into account what's been proposed, and assuming there are the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-71204747080650562202007-10-16T22:38:00.002+02:002009-06-23T11:26:49.128+02:00

In following the furore on campus re: car congestion and the joys of not finding parking, this article managed to land itself in my browser:Park and Ride system at the University of Hertfordshire.Yes, it's cost them £4.5million, but chances are that in Malta it would be able to service both the university and the new hospital. A better, long-term solution than shifting around the blue, yellow and

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-5209320595817197062007-10-12T21:40:00.002+02:002009-06-23T11:26:06.619+02:00

MMSA's TRD weekend's here, and I've decided to give it a miss. A travesty, I know. Had you told me you were missing TRD way back when I was in first year, I would have thought you were nuts, and even more so in second year. There was something special about TRD - it was never really about the sessions, though they were interesting enough, truth be told. It wasn't even about the Parties - you

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-78610517671301710352007-10-09T22:16:00.002+02:002009-07-23T11:15:38.165+02:00

Hot off the press is that the Faculty is now looking to be involved in the whole Medical School from Ireland issue, and so it should be too. Whether or not the RCSI open a branch in Malta, Medical students of the UoM medical school should still be safeguarded, and offered the highest quality clinical exposure. Thus, the faculty has promised to take the common concerns with it to any meetings/

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-4702625968821323102007-10-04T18:56:00.001+02:002009-06-23T11:24:31.737+02:00

Back from the exchange in Finland, and jumping straight into work. I'd love to go on and on about how fantastic the whole experience was, and it was, but that will have to be said at some other time. At the moment there are pressing issues. No peace for the wicked, it's said.Anyway, at time of blogging, there's an interesting issue sweeping through the hallowed halls of the UoM medical school. It

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-30485561630141208642007-07-08T12:16:00.001+02:002009-06-23T11:23:46.888+02:00

This blog seems to be stuttering along at the pace of a post a week. It barely feels like 7 days since my previous post, such is the breakneck speed at which this week has progressed. I'm not one to complain about living life in the fast lane, however we all need a few minutes' break once in a while. And this, as the saying goes, is it.What a week.It's my first week back at work as a Teacher of

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-15905793401849929782007-06-27T12:24:00.001+02:002009-06-23T11:15:37.278+02:00

I'd seen something similar to this on a blog somewhere about 4 months or so ago, and I'd been meaning to get round to compiling a list of my own. Now, with a few minutes to spare, I'm going to get down to it. Note that I don't usually subscribe to internet memes, but this one inevitably piqued my interest.Things I Don't Quite Like, or How to Irritate Your Local Paul - Volume I.1. The heat.

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-35374425473746206562007-06-24T10:38:00.002+02:002009-07-17T09:00:43.181+02:00

A week's passed since my last blog. And what a week it's been! You'd think that what with it being summer, the blog would turn more prolific. The truth is that blogs explode when you're not supposed to be writing them, while when you actually can put aside some time to post, you realise you'd much rather be out living the dream rather than posting about how you're planning to live it.Thus this

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-72553470523204765112007-06-14T22:17:00.002+02:002009-07-17T09:03:18.750+02:00

Bored stiff of pathology and rather tired to say the least, I sit down at this blog's input interface , this time sans comic, to bring you a short commentary on something which irritates me. Nothing better to fuel the fire of critique and lambasting than pure annoyance.And it's not even the exams that stoke my ire. It's that mother of all debts, that wonderous white elephant that is to become

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-69633240448755564232007-06-10T10:14:00.002+02:002009-07-17T09:01:19.570+02:00

An oh-so-aptly timed comic from Bill Amend's Foxtrot. One week and a day. One week and a day. One week and a day. (repeat ad nauseam)A week of pathology left, and then that much awaited moment of inertia. It's coming, and it's coming fast.Strampop of the Minute: Pink Bullet - The Shins

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-33053721513063538292007-06-07T13:59:00.003+02:002009-07-17T09:03:18.751+02:00

An interesting set of photos have surfaced on the (predominantly Labour-leaning) maltastar.com website detailing the extent of damage caused to the Hospital by Monday's rains.It's a veritable shame that this didn't happen on the opening day itself - perhaps it would have received a bit more coverage. Not that there's anything particularly scandalous about this story; it's just that the concept of

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1663353923705740752007-06-04T14:20:00.001+02:002009-07-17T09:01:19.571+02:00

A week down the line, and I finally find time and mood to sit down and type out a blog for the online repository that is this site. 8 days since my previous post, and what a particular set of days it has been!8 days into the exams, and already two have been dispatched. Surgery on Monday, and Pharmacology on Friday. As with all exams, I exited the hall feeling I could have done better, but overall

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-89793080130206707542007-05-27T18:03:00.003+02:002009-07-17T09:01:19.572+02:00

This is dedicated to all those with exams.I hope this treatise finds you in good health. I write this on the eve of the beginning of the end: tomorrow sees me sitting for my Surgery exam, the first of five such exams. As I am sure you are acutely aware, these times are testing even for the best of us: exams come and take their considerable toll on our mental health, social life and general

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-16428728660511634462007-05-22T22:40:00.004+02:002009-07-17T09:00:26.730+02:00

Today was something of a marvellous day!Having slept at the reasonable hour of 23.15 the night before, I was lucky to still be in bed at the humane hour of 8am this morning. Savouring the lack of lectures, I lazed about in bed for another two hours, catching up on the latest Silva spy novel. Deciding that I'd spent enough time lounging, I made my way downstairs to the kitchen, leisurely

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-31079360916732415422007-05-19T11:03:00.003+02:002009-07-17T09:02:44.279+02:00

An interesting idea, n'est-ce pas? O! the things we could do.A big shout out to Sohmer and the team over at LICD.Strampop of the minute: Push the Button - Teapacks

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-57083822010119548652007-05-16T23:26:00.001+02:002009-06-23T10:47:38.234+02:00

Well... it's official - exam season is here!Not that this is a particularly groundbreaking statement, mind you. We've all been griping about the exams, some since September, some since March (and the questionably lucky few only since the dawn of May), and we've been getting on with our studies in the run up to the exams. But now it's official not because the timetable's come out, but because

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-77322292989980827412007-05-11T01:03:00.001+02:002009-06-23T10:44:52.368+02:00

I've been meaning to get to this blog for a few days now. Each study-break, no matter how short, has managed to provide me with something tiny or non to blog about. Alas, said breaks are usually quite short, making typing something out which is even remotely presentable a non-option. Hence my tiny googlepad on my homepage is gathering little snippets of my life and otherwise which may one day

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-13861867804969166842007-05-04T09:48:00.001+02:002009-06-23T10:44:24.587+02:00

Strampop of the minute: Are you in? - Incubus

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-80825164364953076572007-05-04T00:05:00.001+02:002009-06-23T10:43:33.374+02:00

It's past midnight, and I'm still up at my desk reading about joints and bones. I told myself I'd just do another hour's worth, then get myself to bed. Alas, 'twas not to be. Not that rheumatology is particularly interesting, mind you, to warrant staying up 'just to see what happens next'. Medicine textbooks are anything but your average page-turner. A horror story, definitely, but by no stretch

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-47523529937828444262007-05-01T15:51:00.001+02:002009-06-23T10:40:09.918+02:00

Aah, the wonderful musty smell of neglect. It's been nigh on a month since I've last posted something on this little slice of internet I call my blog. And with good reason too. Firstly, I've been way to busy with studying and secondly, as a result of that I've not been up to all that much that merits blogging about.It's a bit odd though: generally the more I get to studying, the more I try to

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-14529189356644569252007-04-05T21:57:00.001+02:002009-07-17T09:02:44.281+02:00

As a quantity of readers will know, Malta is preparing for a grand migration. I speak, of course, of the move from current national hospital St. Luke's (SLH) to the planned glories of Mater Dei Hospital (MDH). This is set to start on the 1st of July, and is forecast to be over and done with, and more or less complete by the beginning of November. Watch me quiver with anticipation...Make no bones

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-81227051384394344502007-03-06T23:54:00.001+01:002009-06-20T19:08:49.066+02:00

I came across this darling cartoon on one of my many study breaks today. Look at it, give it some thought, and you should find yourself harkening back to the simpler days when mysteries of HPV, renal cell carcinoma and geneology charts were things bare mention would have you screened for autism. You return to the days when you begged your parents to tell you that little piggy story, the one where

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-37709069005880126942007-02-27T15:32:00.002+01:002009-07-17T08:59:49.731+02:00

Malta shows Iran the Finger. Iran cannot retaliate.Stories from these two countries tell of men accused of robbery. The Maltese man loses four years of his life. The Iranian loses four fingers.Malta's not that bad after all, eh?On the other hand (no pun intended), which one learnt his lesson best?A short post today... must study must study must study...*repeat ad nauseaum*Strampop of the Minute:

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-12383801954882624852007-02-24T16:53:00.001+01:002009-05-23T14:02:03.480+02:00

Today's post comes not out of spite, nor of necessity to vent. I would merely like to post some references to parts of a debate born in the Medical School, but which has been taken to the papers in a move not thoroughly understood by anyone but the perpetrator himself. I talk, of course, of the new Student Code that the University of Malta Medical School has adopted.I'll not go into the details

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1170801432565365622007-02-06T23:12:00.001+01:002009-05-23T14:01:23.574+02:00

A number of Photos to show what I've been up to since the summer.At the moment, study is a big part of my life. Balancing work between ward rounds, clinical exposure and book-learnin' is not an easy task. Am trying hard to make sitting at my desk a none-too-tedious affair. Here is the desk. It is a shambles. Such is life.A photo taken on campus just after getting back from the States. One of the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1170006686985545412007-01-28T18:43:00.001+01:002009-05-23T13:59:38.049+02:00

It's been a while since I've updated this blog. I've toyed with the idea a number of times, but truth be told I've not been bored enough to sit down for 10 minutes to type it up. It goes without saying that as May exams approach, this blog should be more prolific.'Til then, a little something I stumbled across in a GTalk conversation with a friend of mine:-Life without sound is life tied to the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1155757948036420722006-08-16T21:51:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:59:05.754+02:00

Am currently at large in the States, working in a laboratory.See the chronicles of it here.The post will be with you sporadically, meanwhile. Keep tuned.

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1153048293297369832006-07-16T12:32:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:58:37.457+02:00

This post is long overdue.Plenty's been happening since the last post, and truth be told, I've been more interested in doing things worth blogging about than actually blogging about them. Still, it's a Sunday morning, and there is now ample time to sit down and pour out some thoughts onto the web.First off: the Waters Concert. Oh my. What a show. Fantastic music put through its paces by nothing

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1151868893615352562006-07-02T21:19:00.002+02:002009-07-17T08:42:27.938+02:00

It's a Sunday evening, and I've just gotten home from an afternoon out. Downstairs, my father is stoking the BBQ set, sending tantalising whiffs of cooking pork upstairs, whiffs that tell me my blog will have to wait while I enjoy supper. By my nose's calculations, however, I make that there are about 5 minutes left 'til supper. On I go.Like I said, I'm just back in from being out. I'd been

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1151145816369694382006-06-24T12:05:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:55:59.037+02:00

After a considerable hiatus, the post is back with a vengeance. Understandably, the exam period's taken a toll on my creative abilities (not to mention temporal allotment), and so it is now, at the end of a month's-worth of exams that I actually sit down and put fingertip to keyboard. So much to say, so little energy to type.Waking up this morning and not having to sit at your desk to gaze into

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1148135494451906342006-05-20T15:59:00.002+02:002009-05-23T13:55:10.243+02:00

This comes to you ater a morning (and early afternoon) of dealing with non-stop anatomy. Breaking only for rapid-fire discussions with the parents, back from Gibraltar, and to wolf down lunch, I am now pretty much exhausted by all this anatomese, and am taking a well deserved break to pump up the Post.Well, I can't help it, but I'm going to have to talk about the Eurovision. I'm sorry, honestly.

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1146868118324468122006-05-05T23:36:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:54:23.112+02:00

My attention's been brought to an activity being promoted in the good old state of Texas: it appears that today, May 5th, is in fact No Pants Day, or as non-Amerifolk would have it, No Trousers Day. The point of it all escapes me entirely, but I have exams to study for, and I appreciate that there are some other poor sods out there who need some reprive from the constraints of their desks;

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1146432753470336362006-04-30T22:45:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:53:14.865+02:00

Sunday evening. The house has assumed its night-time state: all is quiet save for some jangling rising up from the kitchen below, indicating that my mother is still battling with the pots and pans, and the rustle of my father getting into his pyjamas from the room next door. My brother gives off some gentle grunts, mid-dream. My room is arguably the loudest one, what with the incessant rattle of

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1145307893941044562006-04-17T20:55:00.003+02:002009-05-23T13:52:38.555+02:00

After an hiatus of a week or so, the Post is here.Along with (in theory) 12,000 other poor sods, this blog's protagonist has been busy hitting the books in preparation for finals this June. Anatomy and Physiology have proven to be particularly gruelling, though I'll be honest and say that Pathology wasn't as bad as people have made it out to be. True that I haven't managed to rein in every last

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1144098607476474132006-04-03T22:41:00.001+02:002009-05-23T13:48:51.193+02:00

They've come and gone. MMSA elections are over, and we're presented with a brand new Executive-elect. Out with the old and in with the new. Safe to say that there are only two members from the old board on the new board. Well... two and a half, but I don't count.Is this a good thing? We hear cries; calls for 'fresh blood', 'new faces'. Vibrant new ideas are lobbied, old codgers spending too much

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1143266219551785942006-03-25T06:15:00.003+01:002009-05-23T13:48:11.818+02:00

Saturday is here. Finally.Not only is it the weekend; end to a week of projects, of seminars and of formal meetings, but it is also THE weekend: the weekend when MMSA hosts its annual ball.Oh yes. It's time for the medics to party.Before you 'surf' off and think that this dude is off on a trip of self-praise, ego stroking and medic appraisal, stop, do not pass go, and definitely do not collect

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1142982413940091032006-03-21T23:02:00.001+01:002009-05-23T13:46:01.507+02:00

A moment's silence for the last cow of pure Maltese lineage.Thanks.Yesterday presented me with a very pleasant surprise. I logged on to my blog to find not one, but 4 comments. For a humble beginner, I was quite pleased. Alas, it took me such a while to get off the floor in my state of surprise that I had little time left to follow up the previous blog with further explanation. Hence it (the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24309698.post-1142702471264839042006-03-18T17:51:00.001+01:002009-05-23T13:45:20.509+02:00

Well, it's finally happened. We've been struck off the list.No idea what I'm talking about? I'm not really surprised.Il-magistrat, Chalee (from Chalee's Soapbox) and myself have been working hard over the past five days to ingrain a new word onto wikipedia. This new word, it must be said, is not something we came up with on the spur of the moment. It is not the product of infantile musings, the

Pawluhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01586219113371977795noreply@blogger.com7