Londontown

Dear all,

As most of you will have realised, I have popped off yet again to London. Saturday was like an oasis of calm, my sister-in-law having arranged a Spa day for us all, having rightly thought we needed a break to soothe our frazzled nerves. Massage, facial and manicure later, I was as bright as a new pin. The manicurist commented that I had nice nails, but I could not get Mr. C to corroborate.

Have gone on a Literary Spree, recent reads including:
Purple Hibiscus - set in Nigeria, with impressively psycho dad in it
My Sister's Keeper - ethical dilemmas galore, cried buckets at end, which Mr C thought was 'sweet'
Brick Lane - have meant to read it forever, and actually quite good now that I have...some confused Bengalis out there.

Now I should focus on my alternative reading list of Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine, BSM Pass Your Theory Test and anything the net yields on von Willebrand's disease.

debate report

oh dear it's been so long since I've blogged I realise none of you actually KNOW about the debate! This very evening I spoke at a BMA Students debate, Manchester vs. Liverpool on the subject of 'Televised Anatomical Dissection : Education or Obscenity?'. I had to introduce in a team of four, and for those who are interested, my speech is reproduced below:


Ladies and gentleman, Chair,

We are here tonight to talk about an issue which cuts to the very core of our society’s values – freedom of choice, free access of information for all, and the boundaries we set on learning. Education or obscenity? Respect or indignity? Art or atrocity?

When we speak of televised anatomy dissection, it is important to define what we mean exactly. Televised anatomy dissection is the dissection of the human body presented factually, to inform and educate, showing respect for all those involved, dead or alive. Anatomy for Beginners, which was screened on Channel 4 could be considered to be an example of the genre. Human bodies were dissected in front of a live audience, based on four themes related to different body systems. What is important to note about the series is that all those whose bodies were used had given their full consent before death, and those in the audience were medical students and people who had themselves agreed to donate their bodies to science after death. All participants were therefore fully aware of what was involved in the programme. Anatomy for Beginners was screened after the watershed, thus preventing inappropriate exposure of young children to the subject matter. In this way, freedom from watching the programme was ensured. Which left those that wanted the freedom to be able to watch to learn from it.

We are not condoning Plastic Surgery Live, cannibalism or programmes on similar subjects masquerading as educational resources. We are simply demonstrating that dissection has a valuable role in teaching the average person, who may not know their pelvis from their patella. How many times have you, as a medical student, had people ask you which side is my heart on? Or where exactly are the kidneys anyway? There is widespread ignorance about the human body and its time something was done to redress the imbalance. Television is an ideal medium of education which reaches all sections of our society.

We believe strongly that all people deserve respect in life and in death. Death is one of the few remaining taboos in our society, not easily faced by any of us. Yet it is the perverse reality that simulated scenes of death and violence are perfectly acceptable to almost all of us. How many here have seen Silence of the Lambs? Then again, sad and distressing as it may be, our television screens often come alive with images of torture, murder, massacre rape. On every news broadcast. At any time. Without warning. Death has many faces on our screens, and while for many of us it is uncomfortable to watch, there is no logic in banning one and allowing all others without question.

Morality is relative – if we chose two people in this room at random, is it really likely that they would agree with each other’s views on moral issues? Abortion, the legalisation of cannabis, euthanasia, even whether to take a twenty pound note you find on the street or hand it in – we each have our own ideas on all these issues and more. If producers avoided clashing with the morality of every single person in Britain, it would result in bland, mindless television. At the same time, controversial issues need to be dealt with sensitively showing respect for those who don’t want to watch things they find offensive.

Televised dissection brings an ancient practice to the modern age. Dissecting the human body is not a new concept, and has played an important part in the education of doctors for centuries. Why then, can this same method of education not be used to educate the lay person about his or her body? If it is acceptable for medical students, why does it stop being acceptable for the public? Professor von Hagens, of Anatomy for Beginners fame, commented that he ‘re-democratises anatomy’. An understanding of the human body is not the exclusive right of the medical profession alone.

Many of those who volunteer to offer their bodies to science do so with high ideals: to continue to benefit society after death. Don’t they benefit society by helping to instruct an entire nation in the mysteries of the human body?


Wonder if anyone read that? Anyway it was good, and got to interrupt and fluster the opposition several times. The esteemed judges decided to say it was a joint win (as though we were kids "Never mind, you BOTH won!"), althought it was CLEAR we had the better argument. I got a box of Quality Street (dammit tune's in my head now) and, having decided to forego the cheese and wine, skipped off back to Stockport.

here comes the bride..

..all short and wide, here comes the groom - and however it goes. I am writing this wearing my be-yoo-tiful wedding clothes (as odd as this may seem). In fact, I did have the intention of not actually taking them off again until after the wedding, but common sense, in the form of concerns about prayer, study and dodging Mr C for three months, prevailed. Does anyone actually know if it is an Old Bengali Custom to not let one's intended see one's garments for the big day? He claims not to be interested, stating (like Provincial Lady's morose spouse Robert) I'm sure you'll look Nice Anyway. I still have battle scars from the last time I wore one of these things, the dupattas are not kind to the skin. Perhaps they should try cashmere, or faux fur, though the effect may be a little eccentric.

Interesting goings-on in the last few weeks, including an extended visit to London, incorporating several trips away from the marital home, to Green Street and Topshop most significantly. As can be read elsewhere in Bikey's warblings, my dear old bosom chums (as Anne would say) paid me a visit, admiring the Famous Five railway (not train) station and the picturesqueness -if that's a word- of Kent. Despite being in reality SE20, and not falling within Kent at all, Mr C likes to keep up the great pretence that we live in the Garden of England. I have yet to pay a visit to Tunbridge Wells, which always sounded like exactly the sort of place I should have been born, 200 years ago. Also, Kent is plentifully supplied with a form of cottage called Oasts with round miniature Hobbit towers called Roundels, and you can actually rent them to stay in! Oh to holiday in a Roundel, what pleasure. Mr C, I know you are reading this.

Lots and lots more to say, but will leave until a time when i am not swathed in yards and yards of heavy silk.

flower fairy

If I were only 2cm high, I would frolic amongst my flowers like a fairy in its bower. That sounds quite Madeleine Basset-ish, but consider my delight on receiving the supply of miniature pink mulberry rosebuds I ordered. I have been playing with them all morning. (For Mr. C's benefit - I also tidied the kitchen and did copious amounts of washing up.)

I have been much occupied with wedding preparations, or at least preparing for the preparations, if you see what I mean. It is very agonising trying to choose between types of ribbon and which direction to have cards folded. Fudge has kindly offered me some tips based on Mrs H's experience - other advice is most welcome. And for those that wish to warn me that marriage is a Mistake and to Consider - I'm afraid your kindly meant intervention is too late.

In other news, I will be having an exam next week, following which I will be going for a jaunt in the country with a few other medic friends, during which we will most likely torment ourselves about how the exam went and discuss duodenal atresia and Huntingdon's chorea, and other topics of interest.