in the not-too-distant past, i saw an advertisement on the bus that went something like...

when was the last time you did something for the first time.

and my answer to that... just yesterday! for the first time, i spent the night in a hospital AND had a (very minor) operation. how exciting, huh! when my fever got as high as 39.5 degree celsius, there was no reason not to look for the doctor anymore. so off i went to Alexandra Hospital A&E Clinic, hoping to obtain some miracle drug to ease the suffering. if only things were that simple. the doctor decided that the lump on my back, which appeared approximately the same time my fever did, had to be removed surgically, so i was warded alongside many elderlies. i didn't see anyone who wasn't at least twice my age.

for general anaesthetic, you have to fast for 6 hours. so we can only do the operation for you around 4 - 7am, Dr Lee (it's a he) said. alright, so i laid down to sleep for a couple of hours before the first operation of my life. a few moments later, i had a rude awakening by a certain Dr Poon.

are you afraid of pain? 'cause if we use local anaesthetic, we can do the operation asap. it'll just be painful when you take the anaesthetic jabs.

in front of a pretty doctor, i couldn't bring myself to 'yes, i'm afraid of pain', so i said 'nah, i'm quite alright with pain'. but damn did those 2 jabs hurt, like hell.

to be continued... on a later date. i'm off to do something. :P