How I define Friday night.

Remember how I said I tend to fall asleep in the middle of a movie here? Well I did it again. It's Friday night and I'm all eager for a solitary movie night (read: pathetic). I've watched two episodes How I Met Your Mother Season 9 earlier so I might as well watch another movie.

And to make things even more amusing, the movie is also Salt. Yes, talk about Angelina Jolie fan.

I caught the movie on TV CatchUp, an app on iPad that lets you watch TV for free. An iPad movie in bed? Yes please.

Only, yes, again, to fall asleep. Halfway through the movie.

Jolie in my bed

This time, though, I believe it's not my attention span of a goldfish. It's just my bedtime, and I am one little creature of habit, as cliche as it may seem. Staying awake past my bedtime is one thing that I really struggle with, although waking up later than usual is very much appreciated.

Last weekend was a hectic one. Spent my last four-day weekend by hopping on a plane to Belfast. And having said that, of course, we bought the next-day-flight as early as 6.45am. Came back last Tuesday, so technically I have only been here in Leicester four days at most, but my feet are already itching for another travelling plan. Imagine, one super hectic full of love weekend at one point, and a solitary Ben and Jerry's weekend at another. Hence the Angelina Jolie in my bed.

Speaking of, Tsara's here! And Adam has got his car so yaaay no more taxi trips back and forth to the airport! Except that, it is that car that we went for a McD drive thru one night with the housemates -- I am still deeply ashamed by it. My faith is easily shakened by food! Grr.

Meanwhile..

Pipi dah makin beso.

Same old tired lonely place.

This is going to be more of a ramble than a legit post.

I'm reaaaaaaally tired. Today started okay. We had some clinical examination practice in the morning which I already dreaded, but we had a very cool clinical demonstrator so it actually turned out pretty good. Then we had Neuro for the rest of the afternoon and that was when the horror really started.

Okay first, look, who run out their lecture up until 45 minutes? It was supposed to be for an hour but we had it for almost two hours! To make things worse, we were actually going through stuff that we already went through last week in our tutorial!!

Alright maybe I'm just tired and I make a big fuss out of this and it doesn't help that Neuro is not really something that I fancy (but then I don't fancy many things in Medicine so yeah). It's only Wednesday and I already thought I just had the worst day of the week.

But then tomorrow's another GP session so things can be worse, who knows D:

Here in Leicester, we start our day at about 2pm finishing at 5pm on most days. So whenever we have something in the morning, we would moan and make a big deal out of it. It's unfair because many other universities have their classes from 9am-5pm every day without fail. Call us ungrateful bunch of spoilt kids huh.

Worst of all, I can't download the iOS 7 for whatever reasons I AM SERIOUSLY GETTING THE 5S.

Oh well I'm hitting the bed early tonight (screw tomorrow's GP!) and hope that we don't get difficult patients. In my dreams, of course.

Noight!

Where is home, again?

The other day there's this family who came to Leicester to register the daughter at the uni. Back in Malaysia, they live in Bandar Tun Hussein Onn, Cheras. I'm no expert when it comes to locations and such. But Bandar Tun Hussein Onn sounds strangely familiar so I asked if it's the one with the Carrefour and Tutti Frutti and Mc Donalds (because they are the only ones that I know around the area, since we sometimes went to Tutti Frutti after tarawih last Ramadhan bahahah). Apparently I got the right place.

Me: Uncle, kat situ ada tasik kan?

Uncle: Haa ye lah tu. Kenapa, you tau area situ ke?

Me: Oh takde, my mom baru beli rumah kat situ. 

It's actually my mom in law. But sometimes I simply refer her as Umi or my mom to keep it simple. But then the awkward moment began..

Uncle: Really? Your mom beli rumah yang mana?

Me: The one yang baru siap tu. Yang empat tingkat tu, area apa tah. 

Uncle: That townhouse tu kan? I see. Ala uncle hari hari tengok area situ, our house facing the lake too. Haa lepas ni berjiran lah kita kan.

Me: (start gelabah) Eh aaaa berjiran. Aah. Hehee.

Uncle: So sekarang ni rumah kat mana?

So the awkward moment was finally there. When people ask where do I live it's almost a reflex action to reply with "Taman Melati". But now, which mom am I referring to?

Me: Err KL.. Eh tak, sekarang rumah dekat Seri Kembangan, area Mines.

Uncle: Eh bukan tadi cakap duduk KL ke? Haa takpelah, sekarang dah berjiran bla bla..

Gosh of course everyone knows Seri Kembangan is actually in Selangor! The thing is I'm not really from Selangor, and PV8 Taman Melati is obviously Kuala Lumpur.

It was even more awkward on my half (konflik dalaman) because earlier on that uncle was asking about my father as he's from Kedah. Of course I was telling him about my Ayah! (though actually my dad in law is from Kedah too haha) Small world huh.

I'm just glad that topic ended there, or else.. God knows how was I going to explain. Not that I didn't want to let them know that I'm married (sooner or later the daughter will find out anyway), I just feel that it's unnecessary given the situation. Also, it's always very amusing to see people's reaction when they find out themselves, really. (evil grin)

The familiar sight of home

Medicinal movie.

Being the nerd me, I have always preferred reading as compared to watching movies. The attention span of a goldfish of mine tends to drive me asleep when I watch movies on laptop or sometimes even on TV. And just in case you're wondering, no, it never happened while in the cinema, except a few minor occasions of midnight movies. On a side note, you should probably know that I am good at sleeping at random places or events, even in the karaoke box, or in the LRT back in KL, while STANDING. Guess I just found something that I am good at, heh. 

Anyway, there was one time last summer when I really wanted to watch Salt because I haven't seen it in a while and why not, it was a good movie. Well at least I thought so. 

We caught the movie on HBO twice, which on both occasions, predictably, I fell asleep. I made a mental note and even told Adam at the beginning of the movie that I reeeeeally wanted to watch the whole movie! So much determination for something that you can download for free huh. But then.. I failed miserably by sleeping peacefully on the couch. As expected. I mean, seriouslyy??!?

But there's one thing that I would definitely go for a movie - clinical examinations. Never in a thousand years do I want to read them up.

Also, I have to shamelessly admit that this is my first time using the CD player on the MacBook Pro. Finally it came to a good use. Pfft.

Here's to a hiccupped four-day weekend!

Life was simpler when Apple and Blackberry were just fruits.

Last weekend I bought a set of Apple EarPods at Victoria Square to replace the one that I left in Malaysia. How could someone leave their earphones, I knoooww, silly me. It was Sunday, and the store was packed with people. What I was particularly impressed with was their payment system. The staff asked me to download Apple Store app and scan the barcode of the item I was purchasing. The payment was deducted from my debit card linked to my iTunes account (which was unfortunate because I wanted to use another card). Anyway, the whole process was sleek and not to mention, very high tech-ish! So if you already have the app on your phone, simply scan the barcode, they'll ask you to confirm your debit card, and voila, the item is yours! You don't even have to report to any cashier, or staff or whatever. It was my first time using such facility anyway so you can expect me to be a little too excited needless to say hahaha!

They even sent the electronic receipt to my phone, which can be viewed in the app.

I'm not sure if Apple Malaysia or rather, the Machines have done this. But if they do, I must say I am well impressed. (and please, pardon me for my jakun-ness lol)

Then quite recently I found a way to control my MacBook using my iPhone. At first I discovered an app from Apple that can control iTunes from other Apple devices (iPhone, iPod, iPad). It is called Remote. The setup is very easy and straightforward. Best of all, it's completely free! The 'remote' can also be connected to several iTunes library from other devices, even a PC I assume, though I am yet to try it. Well Adam's iTunes doesn't really suit my earbuds so I guess I'll never figure that one out.

The app brings up iTunes library on the device you're controlling it with. Except that when you play any music, it plays from the iTunes library that you control, and in my case, from my MacBook Pro. Both devices, however, have to be connected to WiFi - pretty much like how iCloud and Photo Stream work.

I guess this Remote app will be most useful on lazy days where I want to play music from my laptop without having to get up to the work desk. And of course, sleepy nights too!

Connecting to the iTunes library on my MacBook

You can add more iTunes library if you wish

It brings up the usual iTunes interface, so it's pretty straightforward to control

As if it's not impressive enough, I discover another app to control a MacBook as it is from the iPhone, complete with trackpad and keyboard. It's called Hippo Remote.

The Lite version is free, but there's a more advanced paid version, if you wish

Like I said, it's free! I hardly pay for apps anyway. Talk about having impressive gadgets but refuses to pay for apps, heh.

Unlike Remote app, you'll need to download the Hippo Remote on both phone and laptop, in order for them to be synchronised. I was initially put off by the fact that I have to download stuff on the laptop. But curiosity got the better of me, so I downloaded the app anyway. To my pleasant surprise, the setup was very simple!

You'll need to choose a mutual password to be used on both the laptop and the iPhone and connect them

This app serves exactly like a keyboard and a trackpad on the MacBook. Except that now you have them on your iPhone. 

It really is, literally, controlling the MacBook from your iPhone. Just one downside, a Macbook Pro 13" isn't really that big, and you can hardly see the cursor from far if you decide to use your iPhone to control it. So honestly it's a bit useless when it comes to serious browsing. I can only think of one occasion where this app might come handy - when watching movies from afar. You can pause, play, fast forward etc using your phone so you don't have to get up from the cosy couch to do it. And that if you watch it from your couch or bed, and given the screen size of 13'', I honestly doubt it. Probably those with a large screen or monitor will appreciate it better than I do.

I particularly like the function that they make available on the iPhone trackpad. Scrolling with two fingers works just the same, and right click with double tap too, although I think it would be more comfortable on iPad given the screen size.

I'm not exactly a gadget freak, but things like these often impress me. Just that one thing struck me. Earlier today the Speck case for my MacBook Pro arrived in the mail. Too bad I found it rather poorly fitted, so I decided to return it straightaway. Mind you, Speck cases aren't cheap. I've had one of those cases from eBay, and it didn't last as long as I wish. It left me with another question - should I buy another Speck and see if I'm lucky that it fits, or just play along with those from eBay and replace it when the time comes.

I haven't got the answer yet, but one thing for sure - if my laptop is not a MacBook Pro, I'm pretty sure I won't have to answer this question. I used to have a HP Pavillion, and it worked just as fine as it was, without any cases whatsoever.

Oh well, they say life was simpler when Apple and Blackberry were just fruits. Can't complain much!