Tough Mudder Melbourne

What a crazy weekend! I had Tough Mudder with my rugby mates on Saturday.

This video captures the fun pretty well.

It was a 20 km obstacle course, designed by British Special Forces troops. I signed up on an impulse, then thinking I would probably drop dead even before we finished the half way mark. But we all did it in 3 hours, woots! Now my body is aching. I rather feel like a princess who needs a good pampering, which isn't going to happen since I'm the emergency and critical care rotation. Hectic sleeping hours for this week. Tough Mudder is tough, but staying awake at uni is tougher :D

Boyfriend D

I met D about 2 months ago through Grindr. We chatted and messaged for a week before I invited him for a drink at my place. To be frank, I didn't plan anything other than having a good beer talk and getting to know each other better. It somehow progressed from sitting on a coach watching Aussie Open drinking Fat Yak to some activities and cuddling. We had a midnight snack and he stayed over night.

Spoon me, please

We talked about how did we ended in bed - I blamed him for starting the kiss while he blamed me for seducing him. He said that inviting a gay guy over for a drink is a recipe for something to happen, and how naive I was, lol. A week later, we went cycling along Capital City Trail and had a brunch out at St. Ali. As we got to know each other more, we found that we have a fair number of things in common - coffee, wine, cycling, fine arts, classical music, and Cooking! At first, I thought he is a local, but it turned out he is a Kiwi. So I got him to make some good lamb roast. I have to admit seeing a guy wearing an apron is a big turn-on :) We talked a lot about relationship and how it should be constructed, as he wasn't ready for a relationship and I never dated a guy before.

Then we decided to make it official and made the date that we're actually a couple. So far everything has been great. I still remember there was time when I almost gave up the hope of having a boyfriend, and just date women instead. My mates now start pestering me about when they get to meet the lucky guy. They are a nosy funny bunch, aren't they?

Coming out to high school besties

I just had a housewarming for my high school close friends on St. Patrick's day.  They were away when I threw the first housewarming party a while back, so this one was for them. There were four of us that are quite close and still in Melbourne - a few others have moved elsewhere, and the contact sort of fades. I have been thinking about this for ages, but could not bring it up at all even though one of them had asked me if I'm gay previously. Well, I shot off "Nah" quickly without hesitation then explaining how my uni life keeps me busy from finding a girl- the best defence is a quick answer that sounds genuine, isn't it? However, she even said she's okay if I am, despite me saying "Nah". Girls are usually pretty good at this stuff, eh?

To my high school mates, at last

S, A and B are my high school friends. We have known each other for roughly 7 years. They were all invited, but B got an emergency work call and S came a bit later with her boyfriend. After having some Mojito that I made, we sat leisurely listening to my heart-felt iPod playlist. The night was good and homey. I had my courage up, but could not find the right timing. Right after they left my place, I decided that I wouldn't want to keep it away from them anymore, so I texted S, A, and B saying that I have a boyfriend. Even though B didn't come to the housewarming, I wanted everyone in the circle to be on the same page.

The summary of their response is as followed:

S: She said "Congrats" and told me that she is very happy for me. Then she wanted me to tell her about my boyfriend D. She tried to stalk him on Facebook, but couldn't see much, so she asked me a photo. I obliged and her reply was " So cute! Well done, GVP :D" She also said that I have a lot of questions to answer her now.

A: He went "OoOoo, how come you didn't mention it earlier?" After that, he said that this doesn't change anything, and that we're still good friends. He also asked me to leave some time to hang out and for playing tennis with him too.

B: "Have a glass of wine for a new lol. I support you!" Then he said that he was sorry because he couldn't come to the party, and I can explain everything to him later when we catch up.

Although, they felt a bit upset that most of my vet mates have been told before them, everything went well. I feel a tad guilty for not having told them in person, but at least they all know now. They warned me that we will be having a long coffee/dinner with an interrogation session soon, haha.  Pretty soon, they will be asking me to drag my boyfriend D for our brunch out. It's a huge weight off my shoulders and another big step. The next would be my family at the end of this year once I finished uni and become financially independent.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I don't think I have ever mentioned that my groupmate Z and I have a thing for English and Irish. And we are a big fan of bands like Celtic Thunder and Celtic Woman. We both aim to do further study and specialise in UK in the near future.

Green!

Well, he was busy studying, so I went out with my boyfriend D for an Irish lunch. Oppps, I just realised I haven't done a post dedicated to D yet - that is to be followed soon, I guess :) We decided to pope into The Elephant & Wheelbarrow Pub in the city. Everyone in the pub was wearing green except us, haha. There was a special Irish menu. I had Guiness pork sausages and a pint of Guiness while D went for a steak pie. And I got a Guiness St. Patrick's Day hat. The meal was great and the plates were clean. Then we were contemplating if we should have some sweet bites afterwards.

We heard someone playing a bagpipe as well. It could have gotten more Irish if there were kilts and a bit of folksongs :)

Life, study milestone and Turtle

It felt like only yesterday when I received an offer letter from the vet school. Oh, how much time has passed. Passing through the first year as a naive science student, then having a little family dramatic turmoil which was related to parental disapproval of studying to be a vet. It led to a gap year away from uni, and spending solid quality time at home with parents.

After all these years of studying abroad, and only getting to see them once or twice a year for a short period, my parents were like strangers to me. It took me by surprise when I actually realised this fact. Perhaps, the feeling is not dissimilar catching up with your lost long close friends. Something remain nostalgically the same, but some change with time. Now I'm getting really for some quality time at home with family, and maybe coming out to them is about due at the end of this year after graduation.

Finally, I have reached the promised year of lecture-free. Relaxing as it may sound, it has turned out to be rather mentally and physically draining in a different way compared to attending 8 lectures in a day. We have been rotating through different aspects of veterinary medicine each week - general practice, small animal medicine, anaesthesia, small animal, diagnostic imaging ie. radiology, pathology woot!, production animal ie. sheep, cows, alpacas, critical care and emergency medicine, and public health, etc. Also not to mentioned self-organised extramural placements in veterinary practices, and a 6500 words literature review to be submitted for journal publication. Sometimes, life can be uncertain, but I'm pretty sure that I will be having a holiday-free year, Gahhhh. Many of us have adopted to survive on a weekly basis due to information overload, the steep learning curve and sleep deprivation.

Clinical-wise, I have done bits of everything including castrations, spaying, and seen lots of blood and gore. That's alright til I went for dairy farm visits on a stormy Melbournian weather. We did pregnancy testing on 80 cows ie. shoving one whole arm up the cow's rectum. The weather was being unfriendly, and we were soaked as well as got pooed on our face, because some cows decided to shoot some organic projectile to us. Large animal vet - Nah, I'm sure it's not my thing.

Not the one I saw, but similar clinical presentation

My highlight as a veterinary pathologist wannabe was figuring how to humanely euthanise a run-over turtle. After consulting a book on exotic pet medicine and website (have a look for pictures and more detail if you're curious), I proceeded through the steps. It was rather brutal visually, but at least pain was minimal. Then I took every opportunity to learn from the dead, therefore a post-mortem examination was performed, and it was the right decision to euthanise the turtle since its pelvis was broken in pieces, in addition to cracks and fistulas (holes) in its carapace, which exposed the organs to the environment. It's similar to having holes in the tummy, and the intestines poke out to say a greeting. The turtle was beyond the stage that it could be saved.

Another way to swiftly kill an turtle is blunt trauma to the head, especially if it is found in the middle of no where and can't be transported to a vet - find a big boulder (bigger than the turtle's head obviously) and smash the head forcefully. This is even more barbaric to see, but it is more humane than leaving the turtle to dry off and die in heat. The method was recommended by a wildlife research fellow.

Anyway, it is quite scary that I am going to be a vet in roughly 8 months! Where has my time gone?

Food and my coming out

One thing I really enjoy is cooking. What could be better than putting classical music on and humming around in the kitchen, while making some yummy munchies, especially on a lazy Sunday. I can't appear more like a domesticated househusband with an apron and cake whisk, lol.

Jamie mentioned on one of his shows about how good food brings people together. It is about sharing the love and joy. I couldn't agree more when I heard him. Watch his show sometimes reminds of my first ever coming out. The drama unfolded on one Friday night when we had a vet student BBQ chill-out. We were drinking and enjoying the night. Then two of my female friends pried me away from the crowd, then they blurbed out an unexpected question.

One bite of the ice cream would have prepared me better :D

Friend B: Anyway, we have something to ask you.....
Friend A: Are you gay?

I was caught off guard, and mumbled awkwardly while they were eager for an answer.

Me: Mmmm...Ummm... I... I'm not sure, but think I'm bi.
Friend A: Aha! That makes a lot of sense now.
Friend B: Right, I knew it. That explains all why you're so good at cooking and fashion.
Friend A: Also you are like our talkable version of Melbourne food guide book. Hey, that means you can let your gay side go wild, and cook more. I'm expecting more good food from you from now on, and more cocktail parties at yours.
Friend A & B: We are getting you drunk tonight!
Me: Oh, right, ok...

Their responses left me speechless. It went too well. I guess if they don't accept my sexuality, they won't get to taste my cooking anymore, haha. Anyway, they then proceeded to drown me with alchohol, and I had no recollection of how I got home the next morning. Later on, I told them that I'm definitely gay once I have gained more confidence.

Trying a hand on rugby

Over the years, I had come up with a promise to myself that I would do at least one crazy thing/ something out of my comfort zone every year. Last year thing was giving rugby a go. The year before was surfing and snowboarding, and before that was coffee making and bartending. Team sport has never been my thing, as well as getting physical, so I decided to throw away my shyness and introvert ego, and joined Melbourne Chargers. It is a gay rugby team in Melbourne. By the ways, the team is raising a fund to compete in the Bingham Cup 2012 in Manchester, and they are selling a calendar if you're interested.

The joy of contact sport :)

So far I have been to several trainings, and it has definitely pushed my limit. The training is roughly 2 hours, and I am knackered at the end of every training. Also it looks like I have found my 2012 resolutions: doing a "nude" calendar to fund raise for veterinary student graduation dinner, and doing the Tough Mudder course at the end of March. Nothing relates to rugby, but to fitness and physique, I suppose. The nude calendar has became a vet tradition, since most of us (the final year students) are too broke to afford the dinner ticket. We will be revealing our body with an artistic twist for our own good cause, except the private bit/bits will be covered by things like dogs, cats, sheep, horses, turtles, stethoscopes, x-ray films, wool, etc. Well... I'm hoping to pick up a good six-pack before the calendar photo shoots.

Not only my fitness has improved, I have gotten more comfy with my sexuality, and gained a confidence boost. I was surprised that I can be slightly homophobic sometimes, despite being gay myself. This perhaps would have arisen from years of self-compartmentalisation and suppression. Sometimes I feel like there are so many gay stereotypes. It is a good change to see gay guys in a masculine environment, breaking free from the stereotypes. Though there are some good gay jokes throwing around the circle.