Pressing on...

I've finally done it. I've switched over to Wordpress. Blogger was fine and all, but I think Wordpress is a bit more dynamic. I'm still in the process of importing my Haloscan comments (a pain in the @$$). Anyhow, please update your links accordingly: :-) .

www.fiahmad.com/wordpress/

. PS. My personal website address has also been updated:

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www.fiahmad.com

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A new lease on life...

So Adnan and I signed our 2-year lease for the new apartment yesterday. We're still staying at Waterside Plaza, but we're moving from building 40 to building 20. I would've loved to stay at our current place, but Waterside is increasing the rent by 10%. Our new apartment will have room for a third roomate (whom we're still looking for), so we'll each be paying a less than what we are now. Plus, my new bedroom will be bigger and have a nicer view (the same uptown view from our living room). This includes the East River, Queensborough Bridge/Roosevelt Island, the United Nations, Trump World tower, etc. I'll also be able to see Waterside's plaza, so it'll be pretty nice. In Yankee news, according to Forbes, the value of the New York Yankees now tops $1 billion! They top the Forbes list of Most Valuable Baseball Franchises.

The Yankees' value increased 8 percent to $1.026 billion, the magazine estimated in its May 8 issue, which was released Thursday... ...The Boston Red Sox were pegged with the second-highest value at $617 million, followed by the New York Mets ($604 million), Los Angeles Dodgers ($482 million), Chicago Cubs ($448 million) and Washington Nationals ($440 million). Tampa Bay was last among the 30 teams at $209 million. FoxNews

Steinbrenner is being penalized for success. Having paid $10 million in 1973 for a lousy team, he has leveraged the Yankee brand by creating a regional sports network, raking in $62 million last year, $16 million more than the crosstown Mets took home in cable revenue. The Yanks also got $49 million from sponsors. Despite the stiff league taxes, Steinbrenner's gushing revenues make his team worth $1 billion by our estimate. Steinbrenner and his family own 80% of the franchise. Forbes

No doubt the greatest team in baseball history.

"Remember Sammy Jankis..."

Just got back from the NYU Med library. These lonely, late-night walks back to my apartment are a good time to reflect on what's been happening so far, and what to look forward to in the future. Unfortunately, life has been hell so far...ever since Spring Break ended...and there's not much to look forward to. This Friday we'll have our first Systemic Pathology midterm. This class is the widowmaker; most would agree it's the hardest course in dental school (Pharmacology being the second). It's not even the fact that there's so much material to memorize (like Pharm), but what makes it harder is that you have to integrate all that knowledge and understand how the body's different systems interact with eachother. Exam questions are clinically based, so we have to take what we can from the scenerio and come up with possible etiologies/effects of the disease. But to even get to that point you have to memorize so much. In the movie, Memento, the protagonist suffered from short-term memory loss so he tattooed notes on his body to jog his memory. What a brilliant idea. If I could just tattoo my study notes onto my body, I could remember important facts everytime I'm in front of a mirror, or in the shower, or wherever. Good idea, however unrealistic...Islamically that is. Sigh, duas much appreciated. Inshallah it'll all pay off in the longrun. And the wheel just keeps on turning: (list does not include June...also a Hell month)

• 04.14 System Pathology Exam I
• 04.18 GDS CR I Practical
• 05.05 System Pathology Exam II
• 05.10 GDS CR II Practical
• 05.17 Intro to Patient Care Exam
• 05.22 GDS Restorative Dentistry Practical
• 05.23 Pharmacology Exam II
• 05.26 System Pathology Exam III
• 05.30 HP III Exam, CR I

Simpsons Teaser...

The Simpsons Movie is scheduled to hit theaters in Summer 2007. (Click the image for the teaser.) Apparently, the movie is progressing along very quickly. In September, IGN reported that "the movie is still just in the writing stages." In A March interview with Mancow Radio, Harry Shearer (voice of Ned Flanders, Rev. Lovejoy, Waylon Smithers, et. al.) said that they're already recording dialogue. According to Ain't it Cool News:

He [Shearer] then was asked if the movie would be more edgy to which he said that it pushed the boundaries, but it wasn't going to be an R rated movie. Asked if there was swearing in the movie, he said a little more than normal, but not the characters he voices, since he voices Rev. Lovejoy and Ned Flanders.

As expected, there are a lot of rumors spreading around (probably by the typical "Comic Book Guy" types) about the movie's plot. According to one AICN source: (WARNING! Potential Plot Spoiler!):

In the movie Homer causes an accident at the nuclear power plant - which causes the town’s drinking water to be spoilt. Therefore, Erin Brockovich is guest starring - playing herself. After the incident, Homer gets fired from the plant, and majority of Springfield's citizens move away. There is not going to be a dome built over the town. But, in one scene, when people are trying to figure out what to do at the city hall meeting - Professor Frink suggests a “giant dome” should be built around the town. The dome rumors could've started from that. There will also be cameos by Albert Brooks' previous characters, but I don't know who they are, and I don't know whether he's going to play any bigger part.

Summer 2006...

This is going to be a great summer, moviewise.

Insomnia...

It's close to 4:30 am...I woke up around 45 minutes ago and couldn't fall back asleep. My sleep cycle has been messed up as far back as I can remember, and I can never seem to get it back on track. Nights are reserved for studying, sleep is only allowed when you have breaks in between classes...that is, when you can make it to class. I've tried to get it back on schedule...though I find that Nyquil isn't a good solution. But in the end, exams (I have ALOT coming up...please pray for me) and whatnot always throw it off. Yesterday I got to sleep around 6:30 am...luckily for me it was a late day, so I woke up ~ 1:30. This is not good. I really need to remedy this damn problem.

"When you have insomnia, you're never really asleep. And you're never really awake." - Fight Club

I feel like Edward Norton in Fight Club. No matter what I do, even if I go to bed at a reasonable time, I just can't get to sleep. I just lay there staring up at the ceiling. It takes the average person 7 minutes to fall asleep once they lay down; I can lay there for an hour and a half or more and not feel the slightest bit sleepy. Maybe I need to start my own fight club. Anyhow I'm gonna try to get a couple hours in right now. This morning we'll be performing anaesthetic injections on eachother (for the first time) so I definitely need to be rested for that.

"Tum nahin samjo gi..."

Anyone who thinks they know what true love is but has never seen this film doesn't know what they're talking about.