who's the lucky one

today, we didnt have regular clinic, instead we attended a PAFP(philippine academy of family physicians) post-graduate course at a nearby hotel.

the first speaker was dr edwin tomas, one of the most prominent cardiologists in town and our big boss while i was in training, who lectured about hypertension and the better medications for this illness. the second topic was given by a young dermatologist(dr valenzuela-hipe) who reminded us about the adage that: "we find only what we're looking for, and we recognize only what we know".(or something to that effect) i would say that's very appropriate when we're talking about skin diseases and infections, where the clinical eye is imperative.

dr richie yusay,a urologist, also gave a refresher on urinary tract infections.

then we had another doctor talk about PPARs(dont ask me about them...i tuned out 2 minutes into his drone). in college, we had to take education units, and one of the things they pounded into us were the Do's and Dont's of giving a lecture(like never to crowd text on audio-visual slides...and to never just drone on in a monotonous voice). lets just say, he did a lot of donts during his timeslot. it also didnt help that he wasnt exactly presenting scientific evidence supporting his "product"(or maybe he did..and i wasnt listening,lol!), i just heard a lot of testimonials instead. and then, shirley found out that a 2-months worth (of the coffee he was touting) cost P27,000! sheeesh. the coffee reportedly gave him the energy to get by on a mere 3 hours of sleep: what, did it have shabu or coke in it?!

the DH has coined a name for stuff like these: "Sikmat and Kibit". goodluck trying 2 ask an ilonggo-speaking friend to explain those terms to you! those words have no english translations as far as i know! anyway, enough of that.like i said, i tuned that out.

 our lunch was a break-out session where 3 psychiatrists moderated separate batches. ours was led by dr mae de luzurriaga, and her experience was invaluable. she said the main thrust of her college was to de-stigmatize not only her specialty but also depression. she reiterated that both the physician and the general population should be made aware that depression was a medical illness, and should be and can be treated medically! dialogue along the lines of: "you have depression? what have you got to be depressed over? your problems are nothing! you just have to snap out of it!" should NEVER pass the lips of a medical provider,ever! now you know. :)

 the afternoon session was a yoga demo where my MIL and a couple of the other organizers joined in stretching, inhaling, exhaling. then after all that, she quipped into the mike, "all i can say is that its painful to the legs, and waist and back! so much for the "energizing and invigorating" plug, huh Ma? in fairness, it must have been hard to try something new like yoga, and to have a whole session hall look on while you reach, and hold,and balance, and pose. thats more stressful than relaxing, i would say. but you did great Ma...there's always arlene(my SIL)to guide you through all that, should you want to pursue your yoga-gig. :)





to cap the day's activities, the finale was a raffle draw! a 21-inch flatron tv was the grand prize, with a rice-cooker, flat-iron, samsonite travel pillows, and a couple other goodies too.



and no, i didnt win a thing! except for cat russel of http://studiopaisleycat.blogspot.com (who emailed to say id won a treat[an offer to help me pimp my blog] after i posted a comment on her blog)...i have never won at these things: cakesales from grade school, doorprizes at seminars, or raffles from allover, even the traditional black-jack games during christmas at my IL's! once i attended a luncheon for an alumni foundation, and there were 10 of us at our table. all nine of them got a give-away, but not me, waiiil! yes, that's how unlucky i am!





but! the biggest BUT is that im lucky in other, more important, things! im lucky in love, nach! im married to my best friend, altho back in college, i hated his guts (especially when he shaved his head)! mush-alert: im gonna wax poetic now, so you'd better stop reading if you havent the stomach,LOL!



he's my rock, cheerleader, defender, helping hand, constant companion, sharer of dreams, pillow mate.we bring out the best in each other(98% of the time, at least! the other times, we become brats,lol!). because of him, i became a domestic-diva-wannabe. i took up sewing, so i could make not just my own clothes, but our beddings, curtains, tablecloths, table napkins, christmas stockings, gift pouches, blinds for our garage,even a skirt for the bathroom sink! it sure proves useful when he snags a pant-leg, or needs a kimono belt shortened, or when he wants to convert his gi-pants into gi-shorts,lol! i learned how to cook, even bake, because i knew he enjoys good food. lucky for me, he's so easy to cook for. i bought stacks of cookbooks and magazines so i could hunt for recipes to try out. even collected all the herbs i could find, so if a recipe called for it, id have it on hand. even went through a cookbook of pasta sauces that he had gotten me. can you tell that im fairly obsessive when i put my mind to something? LOL!



so there, i want the world to know that i consider myself lucky, among other blessings, but specially with my choice of mate! sure, it would be nice to win the occasional prize or give-away...but when i come home empty-handed, its so much easier to receive a tight hug, a nuzzle, and a kiss from my mate!
 
i promised the mate i was gonna watch a dvd with him tonight...so gotta go! a bientot!