Last night I had the best sleep in I don’t know how many years. I slept for just about 10 hours. That is unheard of for me.
I average about 6 hours a night. Even though I go to bed at about 8.30 I’m usually not asleep until about 10 or 11 and then I wake quite a few times during the night and get out of bed at 5.
Poor sleep last week
It must have been the really interesting week I’ve had and all that goes into hosting a meeting with delegates from around the world. Sleep has not been the best quality during the week, and Friday at the hospital was also full on. I had a marvellous afternoon with some scholars who wanted to know more about what happens in a microbiology laboratory. In fact, one of them was a colleague from my main job and she’s also the person who inspired me to start my podcast, viz., Medical Fun Facts.
After such a good sleep, I sprang out of bed, did the shopping and then enjoyed a nice walk around Lake Ginninderra.
photographs of Lake Ginninderra
HDR of Lake Ginninderra
Cow grazing near Lake Ginninderra
Herbicide treatment on Lake Ginninderra
Bird feeding Lake Ginninderra. I think feeding bread should be discouraged. It’s not healthy for the birds.
Public art on Lake Ginninderra
Lake Ginninderra HDR
Daylight saving ends tonight
I just realised this is a bonus weekend too. Daylight saving ends tonight. Yipee! I’m not a fan. We should be like Queensland in Canberra and stay on Australian Eastern Standard Time.
It will be good to be back in the same time zone as my daughters. Telephone calls and text messaging will be much easier.
Sleep will be something I hope to improve upon over winter. It is so important, I wish I did it better.
How do you sleep?
Are you a good sleeper? How many hours do you sleep? Are you a morning person like me or a night owl? Feel free to leave a comment.
This is an embarrassing story of racism that caused me to feel some shame.
A distinguished scholar tells me a story of racism in Australia
I’m embarrassed as an Australian
I was embarrassed as a Queenslander
You should read Mabel Kwong’s blog
This week I had the privilege to be involved in a multi-day meeting of experts in a field I feel quite passionate about. These experts came from many different countries. We also had a very distinguished guest. A man from USA, a full professor from a prestigious university, a man who is quite brilliant with a special knack to take very complex cutting edge scientific concepts and translate them into strategic policy for global consideration. He has the ear of senior decision makers in USA and the confidence of scientific giants.
An awkward conversation
He approached me during a break and we had this conversation…
“Gary, can I tell you a story?”
“Sure Fred*”
“I was in Sydney on a train, seated next to a window. A couple, a man and a woman got on, the woman sat next to me and her partner sat in the seat in front. I don’t think she really noticed me when she sat down.”
“Boarding behind them were a crowd of tourists from China. “There are too many of them in our country!””
Fred turned to the woman and politely said, “Ma’am, would you prefer me to move so you can sit next to your partner?”
The man turned around and said, “No, it’s okay.”
The woman sneered at Fred, “You don’t speak like them, but your accent is different.”
“Yes Ma’am, I’m American.”
“But you look like them.”
“Yes, Ma’am, I’m American born Chinese.”
The woman huffed.
Fred told me that after a while he could chat with the woman’s husband and found out they were from Brisbane. It turns out Fred’s assistant is from Brisbane so fortunately, he didn’t feel this woman was a typical example of a person from Brisbane.
Fred asked me if this was common in Australia.
Embarrassment Plus!
I was so embarrassed. I was embarrassed as an Australian that Fred had to experience this. I was embarrassed as a Queenslander, that people from my hometown had insulted Fred. Fred is well spoken and while I’m not a linguist, I guess his accent is more northeast USA in origin. Fred is also about ten years’ senior to me, so not old, but a mature man who has aged well.
We chatted for a while and we discovered our upbringing had similarities. At primary (or elementary) school, we both suffered at the hands of bullies. Usually, older boys who would pick on us. There were also high school experiences. Like when a history master told my class that the ‘Japs’ didn’t fly at night because they couldn’t see that well. The inference being that slant eyed oriental fighter pilots were somehow disabled by their almond eyes.
Fred and I pondered the current state of affairs in terms of global politics. I make it a policy of my writing not to comment on politics, suffice to say, the attitudes of people to others who look different and speak a different language appear to be more pronounced of late.
Fred’s a good bloke, I look forward to reading more of his published work.
Mabel Kwong
As I write this I’m reminded of a blogger friend from Melbourne. Mabel Kwong writes about her experiences as an Australian born Chinese. Like me, she’s an ABC. Fred also knows himself as an ABC although American born Chinese.
Mabel’s blog posts are always well thought out, considered and heartfelt pieces. If you like good writing and want to learn what it’s like for a young woman with a Chinese background growing up in Australia and Malaysia, please subscribe to Mabel’s blog.
Do people still see me this way?
So, I took this selfie and want to know, when you see me is it the Chinese that stands out? I’d prefer it was the multiple chins, although that does pose that funny but still racist joke about being called Dr Chin 😜 Given how much I eat, I’m surprised I don’t have more ‘chins’.
I’ve also recorded this so for those who haven’t heard my voice on my Yummy Lummy YouTube videos#, you can hear my accent. The audio widget is at the top of this post or you can hear it on iTunes too.
*Not his real name. I won’t reveal his name or the nature of the meeting because it is work related. I am conscious not to discuss the details of my work on social media.
From time to time I ponder the names people assign their children. We all know people who have given their children what we might consider a strange name that the parents think is wonderful. You know, like Richard Head. Why would you consider Melaena, though?
I’ve known a few children and at least one adult who are known as Melaena. I don’t mind if there is a slight variation in spelling like Meleana or Melina. The variations are important, and it’s so much better if the second letter is “a” or “i” rather than “e”.
Why does it matter?
Well, the prefix mel- is important. Think of the following words:
Melancholy has a dark sense to it and could come from ‘black bile’.
Melanesia stems from “the islands inhabited by blacks”.
Melanin is a black pigment found in animal bodies.
These words stem from the Greek melas (Genitive melanos) which means black or a dirty colour.
So do you know what melaena means?
I remember learning about melaena in third-year medical school and then I had my first clinical experience as a fourth-year student in the wards. Melaena is black tarry stool which is the result of faeces containing partly digested blood. This happens because of internal hæmorrhage usually high in the gastrointestinal tract like in the stomach or by consuming (orally) lots of blood.
In gastroenterology wards, in the old days when gastric and duodenal ulcers were common and bleeding ulcers were difficult to control, you would have a few patients from time to time quite unwell and their bedpans would contain melaena. The smell was quite offensive. It’s a smell you don’t forget.
It’s for this reason that Melaena is not a name for your daughter.
Have you come across anyone named Melaena? Do you know anyone with an unfortunate name?
Do you like listening to podcasts? I spend quite a few hours every week as I’m walking around a lake or driving to and from work listening to podcasts. My taste in podcasts ranges from those about blogging to photography, interesting facts, humour and technology. I also host a podcast (which I’ll mention at the bottom).
Star Trek connection
One podcast which I got onto as a result of listening to a few Star Trek podcasts is Mouthy Broadcast.
The hosts
Lauren, Jennie and Peter are the regular hosts, although in the past there have been many others. The show drops on Tuesdays (USA time) and runs for anything between 30 minutes to an hour. There’s a reason it drops on Tuesdays, you’ll need to listen to find out.
Two important points
Now I should probably mention two points up front. I’m writing about this podcast as part of a competition I have no hope of winning but I just want to see if they’d consider sending a prize to Canberra, Australia. The second point is that this podcast is what is known as EXPLICIT. It’s NSFW. If you don’t know what that means then you probably shouldn’t listen. There’s a good amount of swearing, a reasonable amount of blasphemy (although I know some people would argue that there is no such thing as a reasonable amount of blasphemy), and the profanities that come from the mouths of the ladies would shock your mother. There’s usually at least one reference to masturbation and I have a sneaking suspicion that Peter is a secret sounder. Lauren also has a thing for sandwiches and fellatio while Jennie likes Dr Who and Star Trek. That said, I think to be a host you must at least like Star Wars and be a geeky nerd like that.
More about the hosts
Lauren and Jennie live in the north-east around Virginia and Peter is from Florida. They often have guests including some bloke named Ben and recently there was a really cool bloke who spoke as Mark Twain. The hosts also welcome you sending them a voice recording with a message, whether it be feedback or some story you think they may like.
If you have a ribald sense of humour and can appreciate an exploration into some very funny, albeit coarse and vulgar topics then Mouthy Broadcast is for you.
They also like to play music during a break. I fast forward through the music because it’s not to my taste. You might like it.
Exactly my friends, when you’re at an all-day work meeting with guests and someone brings out cakes and biscuits, guess what? They’re calorie-free. No calories!
Sarcasm Tags
Now should I add “sarcasm tags” to a post like this? It’s a pity there’s not sarcasm code for HTML I reckon.
So that should code as:
<sarcasm>Exactly my friends, when you’re at an all-day work meeting with guests and someone brings out cakes and biscuits, guess what? They’re calorie-free. No calories!</sarcasm>
Of Course There are bloody calories!
I mean of course that piece of cake has calories, it’s full of them and given you’re sitting on your arse all day and the only muscles being exercised are those controlling your eyelids. Then there are the biscuits and the ‘healthy’ wraps containing cured meats and sugary salty sauces.
So I spent today in a meeting. It was a good meeting. I ate biscuits, I ate cake and I ate a salami wrap.
The ACT Government has obliged shopping centre supermarkets to attach locks and chains to shopping trolleys in an effort to prevent people from leaving trolleys in inappropriate areas like sidewalks outside of apartment blocks, in lakes and other public areas.
There may well be a reduction in abandoned trolleys around Canberra, but it’s not complete. Every day I still see them left unattended and long distances from supermarkets.
We live in the 21st century, there must be better ways.
What is the collective noun for shopping trolleys?
The weather in Canberra today was surprisingly good. It wasn’t cold and it wasn’t too warm. It was overcast with a hint of humidity. My skin didn’t feel too dry. It was the sort of day that I would have expected a lot of people to be out walking around Lake Ginninderra.
Barren playgrounds
Instead, it was pretty barren. I saw a few familiar faces, the regulars who I see when I’m on a morning walk.
More often than not, the play areas are occupied with children and their parents. Today, though, the playground and the climbing equipment were bare.
Empty playground on Lake Ginninderra
Hard rubbish
Even in a city like Canberra, people just dump old furniture on the sidewalk assuming someone will take it and keep it, or the city council authorities will pick it up for disposal. When that happens, taxpayers and rates payers end up footing the bill.
I this was a nice juxtaposition, though. You can attend an inspection and have a sit-down and discussion while you’re at it.
A couch on the sidewalk while you buy an apartment
Hairy melons
Do you like your melons hairy? The mind boggles. I’m not sure I want to eat a hairy melon! 😳😂🤣
Hairy melons
My short story
Last week, I mentioned I was thinking about writing a short story. I’ve started. That’s about all I can say.
As I walked around Lake Ginninderra this morning I pondered a thought about a short story I thought I might write.
From time to time I mentally jot down ideas for works of fiction. I’ve never written a short story before but I follow enough blogs to admire people who can and do write short works of fiction. Whether I can or not is another thing altogether. I’ve never thought of myself as a good writer. I think I do a satisfactory job for my work, but creative writing is not something I feel comfortable with.
I’m not sure when I’ll make a start or when it might be finished, but I know the trigger for the story and I’m fleshing it out in my mind.
For now, enjoy a couple of photographs I shot this morning. I used a Sony α7ii with a 24–240 mm variable aperture lens. Each photograph represents three frames at three different exposures. I used Adobe Lightroom and Aurora HDR software to merge the images and edit them. I hope you like them.
Buoys on Yerra Beach, Lake GinninderraLake Ginninderra from the south-east Ginninderra Drive bridge. HDR post processing.
Crushing salmonellosis is probably not a great headline for the National Capital
Crushing salmonellosis is nothing for Canberra to be proud of but I was surprised when I looked at the figures today for salmonellosis notifications per 100,000 population by state and territory in Australia.
Salmonellosis rates in Australia PER 100,000 for each state and territory (Friday 2017-03-10)
National notifiable diseases surveillance system
You can find the information on the website for the national notifiable diseases surveillance system. Anyone can access the information, you can search by disease by year or jurisdiction and by numbers or rate per 100,000 population.
Is infection by Salmonella a big deal?
Most people who get infected have some sort of gastroenteritis, mainly diarrhoea with lower abdominal pain and sometimes fever. You certainly don’t feel well but most people will recover without treatment. That’s an important point, most people should NOT be treated, I repeat, should NOT be treated. In reasonably healthy adults, treatment with antimicrobials can prolong the carriage of Salmonella in your gut. It’s not the thing you want to have in your guts for a prolonged time.
There are also some risk groups, namely, people who are immunosuppressed, and people at the extremes of ages, especially infants. In these groups, treatment with antimicrobials is advised. In these susceptible groups, invasive disease including meningitis, bacteræmia and septicæmia can occur with death a distinct possibility.
Therefore, Salmonella infection is a big deal for public health officials. It’s why, such a big deal is made of food safety and hygiene in restaurants and places where food is eaten, especially outdoor events when controlled environmental conditions cannot be guaranteed. Anyone with a permit to sell food must take scrupulous care when preparing food and cook it properly.
Final words
Canberra has recently had some well-reported outbreaks of salmonellosis. The reporting is mandatory and it indicates for Canberra this has been a big deal.
A tweep started an exchange with me about this and I don’t think he appreciated the magnitude of the numbers.
If you’d asked me before I moved to Canberra nearly ten years ago what I thought about public art. I’d have said, “…it’s a bloody waste of taxpayers’ money!”
I had no time for art in any form. I’d never really been interested in it.
I have no education in art and I’ve never read anything about art. I’ve certainly not picked up a book about art.
Woden public art in a couple of forms
Public art in Canberra
The public art in Canberra though grows on you. All you need to do is enter “public art in Canberra” into a search engine and in the image page you’ll see what I mean. The place is replete with so much art work.
I do like “The Fragment” which is the feature in the photograph I’ve shared.
Street art in Canberra
Where I work in Woden, there are a couple of abandoned buildings that are in a state of disrepair. Broken windows, trash, overgrown plants and a reasonable amount of graffiti.
Canberra, like any city has its share of graffiti but it’s not known for it.
This area around Woden has started to get a name for itself and some locals are describing it as Canberra’s ghetto without people.
Final words
I seriously hope someone starts working on these derelict buildings. Canberra is our national capital. Government agencies are situated in neighbouring buildings. We have foreign dignitaries come and visit us in our buildings and they see the mess.
