Like you, I spend a lot of time sitting around in my pants, staring into the terrifying blankness of my own existence and contemplating the pointlessness of everything. To ameliorate the hollowness and despair, I like to self-medicate through existential crises with a potent combination of Doritos, temazepam and a carefully choreographed programme of intense masturbation. Weird thing is, since turning 30, I’m shitting breezeblocks as I increasingly Guantanamo myself with thoughts of my own mortality. It’s like the Woody Allen joke about terrible food: life relentlessly sucks a big donkey’s dick, but you still want more of it.

So I’ve set about trying to prolongue my exposure to all the gaping emptiness that inevitably awaits. I’ve started to exercise. I’ve started to run. It’s my girlfriend’s idea (self-pitying onanism isn’t ‘proper’ exercise, apparently). In many ways, it’s a good idea. I’ll get to enjoy the forthcoming apocalypse from my own portable throne, because my knees will be completely bojangled.

Anyway, I’m quite getting into it. We’re planning a 10k run in the New Year, together, like the sickeningly in-love middle-class Guildford couple we are. I’ve even got a watch that tracks my route with GPS and then gets cross at me for being slower than I was yesterday, encouraging a fierce and unhealthy rivalry with my younger, fitter self. I can currently run 5k in 22 minutes. Whoopee for me.

I was thinking about blogging about running and how I’m progressing but I’m not really sure what there is to say. Haruki Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running sounds interesting, but I’m put off by the possibility of wading through another 400 pages of whimsical surrealism where running is probably an extended metaphor for the trials and tribulations faced by overweight talking barnacles. So I’m not going to read that. Instead, I’ll just nick the idea from the title.  Here’s a list of some of the things that go through my brain when I’m moving at speeds that make me indiscernible to the human eye…

 1) Crikey, these pants are tight. Is everything tucked in? Feels a bit breezy down there.

2) Was he looking at my groin?

3) Is it me or is this hill steeper than yesterday?

4) Lace is undone. Fuck.

5) Legs ache.

6) Better check watch.

7) 1 min 30. Approximately 25 left to go. Fuck.

8) Legs really ache. Can’t…breathe.

9) I could just walk home now. Nobody would ever know.

10) Jade Goody did a marathon without practising. Maybe training for a 10k is overkill? The atmosphere of the occasion will get me through.

11) Jade Goody is dead.

12) Jade Goody didn’t die of running.

13) I’m not sure what the moral of Jade Goody is in this context.

14) Need a wee.

15) Legs hurt.

16) Watch check. 10 minutes 40. Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

17) Fuck the fuck out of my fucking way, dildo dog.

18) “No. No really. No worries. Yes, he’s a lovely dog isn’t he? Ahhhhh. He’s a lovely dog. You’re lovely dog aren’t you? Lovely dog.”

19) Legs hurt. Arms hurt. Feet hurt. Back hurts. Neck hurts. Can’t breathe. Snot. Pouring. Down. Face. Sweaty. Smell. Like. Raccoon’s. Vagina.

20) Hot girl! Hot girl!

21) Did she notice me?

22) Yes.

23) Shit.

24) 5 minutes to go. Step it up.

25) Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

26) Think the pain away. Think the pain away. Think the pain away.

27) Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

28) Did I leave the gas on?

29) What’s the name of that thing where you press your balls against a window to make them look like vacuum-packed chicken?

30) Pancaking?

31) No, that’s something else isn’t it?

32) Was I being offensive at that party last night?

33) Yes.

34) I shouldn’t be allowed to speak.

35) Uh, was that some shit?

36) Yes.

37) Is this over yet?

38) Nearly.

39) Oh, you’ve already stopped.

40) LOSER!

This summer I took my first try at “running”. The first time around was pretty successful. I went on my own, and with a bit of walking here and there I ended up with a distance of 10km. Then came the two Fun-Runs I went on with my friend S. (no schedule or routine whatsoever). Both times we smoked doobies and one time even got poutines… we distanced decently both times, but there was just something that felt a little counterproductive about the fun we had. They were definitely fun, but I realized I really can’t seem to do the discipline thing, at least not for working out.

So lately I have been feeling extra lazy, and the autumn weather got me craving some outdoors-ness. After many tries I got A’s old iPod to work, and then I was motivated to head out. By the end of the the run I had developed a small blister on the bottom of my foot, and the iPod died at about 40 minutes into The Twelfth Hour, a mix by The Twelves, the grooviest duo south of the border, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Luckily I was close to done my run and was more motivated to run because of lack of music. Like I said I’m no runner, but really this mix is perfect, the bpm keeps you going and the mix is smooooooth as buttah!

I distanced 10km, and probably won’t go for a run for another 4 or 5 months, I’m sooo sore today, I never remember to stretch! These will now be called Health Check Runs, just making sure all the bad foods, partying & general laziness haven’t completely depleted my body and lungs. It probably doesn’t actually mean anything, and I am in fact super unhealthy, but it’ll give me peace of mind for a few more months!

http://www.myspace.com/thetwelves

Hands down one of my top 10 favourite Musicians, check ‘em if you know what’s good for ya! (Click the Twelfth Hour in the artcile above to download their mix from mediafire!)

Oh and here’s a bonus, good tunes nevurr die! YOA (The Twelves Remix) – Theatre of Disco

WEDNESDAY

Schoolies planning with Liz, Neha and Jenny. Figured out  food plans. =) Went to a food place, ordered some food then camped out there for several hours cos they had TABLES. xD Later, went to the poster shop in Newtown. It’s so cool – giant posters everywhere!

So, came home and was suddenly extremely tired. You see, for quite a few days, I’ve had afternoon naps at like 5/6pm till 10/11pm or something. Such bad sleeping habits! D= So instead, turned on the computer cos the bright glary screen always makes me less tired for some reason.

Later, RAN to Jane’s house and back again to fetch my belongings. Thanks Kate and Jane. Haha, twas the first time I excersiced in months.

Cannot believe I won’t be staying until Sunday afternoon with the rest of you spiddle-crew. Have fun without me! Do not miss my presence too much.

Ok. That is all.

Btw, Kate, WHY do you have SO MANY photos of me looking/doing weird things?! =O

Give up smoking

Quite obvious really but if you want to dramatically improve your health then you need to quit smoking. You will lower the chances of developing cancer, heart disease, lung disease and death and if that’s not good enough…food will taste better, you’ll smell fresh and you won’t harm others around you with your second-hand smoke! So what’s stopping you? Visit your GP for help – they can talk you through the process of quitting and can prescribe you nicotine replacement therapy if required.

Alternatively visit the following NHS website for more advice:

http://smokefree.nhs.uk/

Cut down your alcohol intake

Occasional drinking is fine, so long as you stay within your limits. Ideally men should drink no more than 3 – 4 units (on a regular basis) a day whereas women should drink no more than 2 – 3 units per day. A glass of wine is typically 1.5 – 3 units, depending on the size of the glass and strength of the wine. A pint of beer is around 2.8 – 3 units. Men should try and stick to 21 units per week, whereas women should stick to 14 units. Cutting down your alcohol intake will lower your chances of liver disease and may make you sleep better. Your skin and eyes will become brighter and you’re likely to lose weight. Alcohol affects your body’s absorption of vitamins and also reduces cardio-vascular fitness and muscle growth. So if you want to improve your general health – drink less.

Learn the benefits of healthy food

Many of us eat when we’re hungry and don’t really think about what we’re putting into our mouths, but the purpose of food isn’t to just fill our bellies. Food provides us with vital vitamins and energy and helps us to grow and stay healthy. One of the best ways to become healthy is to educate and familiarise ourselves with food: the body is like a machine which requires healthy fuel to make it run efficiently. Try and eat your five portions of fruit and veg a day, don’t load your body with fatty foods, but above all have fun with your diet – a healthy balance equals a healthy mind.

Take up regular exercise

If you want to immediately feel good about yourself then get out there and release those endorphins! Try going for a brisk walk for a minimum of 20 mins x 3 times per week, then when you get used to this swap walking for a light jog, swim or a bike ride. Not only will this make you look better but you’ll also be brimming with confidence and have a healthy mind.

Take time out to meditate

Long term stress can suppress our immune system, which can then potentially lead to mental and physical illness. Take time to wind-down at the end of the day and relax. Try yoga or meditation – just a few minutes of deep breathing exercises a day can greatly reduce stress levels.

Visit here to try meditation for yourself:

www.learningmeditation.com

Woke up at 9.30am. Quickly changed into my training gear, put my jogging shoes on and headed out for a 30min jog/walk. Felt good to run off some tension and feel the stress of the week past go away – if not completely, but at least lessen.

Stopped by the corner shop on the way home  to pick up some Sunday papers – only to see the cover of Now or new! – with Claire from Steps (not the biggest celeb out there) having  ballooned in size again (shows that a personal trainer and TV programme about fighting the bulge doesn’t always help..). So I stood there, in front of the magazines, feeling good about myself. If only for a minute or two. But it did feel good.

Went home had a quick shower, then some hummus with bread and carrot sticks for lunch, and felt ready to get on with my to-do list of the day. And it was only midday by then. A much better start to the day than Saturday, when I woke up truly feeling the rosé of the night before.

Haven’t weighed myself for about a week so will be interesting to see what damage has been done (birthday celebrations, with wine and cake…). Invested in a Slendertone ab-belt just now, so will be eagerly awaiting Mr Postman this coming week!

Run for Hope Singapore “09

East Coast Park

4km

28m 36s

07:07 min/km

8.41 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/singapore/421125886385656834

Sportypal: http://www.sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/95296

Supplementary Exercises:

Chin-up: 1 X 7

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector – Pasir Ris Park *Updated*

6.43km

48m 52s

07:35 min/km

7.90 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/singapore/863125889463951218

SportyPal: http://www.sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/95527

Notes:

Once you choose hope, anything’s possible. – Christopher Reeve

While other countries hold the annual Terry Fox Run to commemorate the selfless endeavour of a fine young lad from Canada, here in the sunny island (for today that is) of Singapore, the event has taken over a new name since a few years back.

While the name has changed, the mission is still the same. It is to raise fund for the National Cancer Centre Research Fund under the care of the National Cancer Centre Singapore. The money collected will be used in the research to eventually find a cure for the dreaded cancer one day.

Coming from a family whose paternal grandfather passed away after suffering from intestinal cancer and an auntie who braved all odds to overcome her ovarian cancer, this is but a small contribution that I can give so one day no more will have to agonise the terrible pain that comes with this disease.

I still can’t forget the tortured look on my yayi’s countenance as the cancer cells wrecked havoc in his body and the only way to numb the pain was by administering him with morphine. His was at the last stage or Stage 4; the cancer cells  have spread out and took control over other part of his body. In other words, he didn’t have much time on this earth. We could see he was in constant agony but he still tried to maintain a calm outlook until it was unbearable anymore. And as much as my heart sank when his soul finally left him, part of me was blissful that he finally could rest in peace.

May Allah bless his soul.

I miss you yayi.

p/s: Planned to run the 10km route but after managing just 2 hrs of sleep the previous night, chose to do the 4km run instead. According to my gps it was 3.3km so I ran another 700m on my own. Will be doing the remaining 6km this afternoon.

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector

3.71km

32m 08s

08:39 min/km

6.93 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/tampines/289125881034124709

SportyPal: http://www.sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/94892

Supplementary Exercises:

Chin-up: 1 X 8

Plank: 1 X 60secs, 1 X 50secs, 1 X 40secs

Notes:

An easy run under the drizzle tonight as I will be running 10km tomorrow as part of the Run for Hope ‘09 charity run. Hopefully the sky will be clear or I don’t mind if the heaven opens up but not too large.

Lately, the number of runners along my usual running haunt has dried up in inverse proportion to the amount of rain coming down. Even the number of cyclists has dwindled and that means I’m usually running all alone. On some lucky occasions, there’ll be another lone runner treading along the route.

Hopefully, these runners will come out of their coccoons soon or my run can get pretty boring. Unless I go and find another partner to run wih. A person of another gender will be great.

Hehe!

Any applicants?

Walkway at Abernathy Park

Abernathy Park. located just west of Davison Middle School, has been growing and offering more and more things to do over the past several years. There are a couple of ball fields, a Playscape for the little ones, sand volleyball, basketball courts, tennis courts, a wooden trailway, asphalt trailway, a sledding hill and a skate park. I’m not sure if all of these are “officially” part of Abernathy Park, but they are all in the same area. It’s a big playground for the whole family–and the dog!

My favorite time to walk through the park is early Sunday mornings with my dog, Ellie. I’ve met quite a few nice folks while walking through the park. Part of the wooden walkway passes over a wetland area that seems to breed mosquitoes, which was ok as long as we remembered to bring our most potent bug spray. The city finally invested in a mosquito sprayer and started treating the area and it made a huge difference.

There’s a nice big sledding hill with steps built into it (made of old railroad ties). I haven’t personally been sledding down it yet, but have tried my hand at running up the hill. It’s a workout! It’s a good spot to watch the sunset or take in the beauty of the park and the sounds of people enjoying the outdoors. There’s a view of the skatepark from the hill–watching the kids try their luck and skill is not for the faint of heart!

Try out the park if you haven’t yet! If the snow is already flying by the time you read this, it’s not too late! The trails are great for cross-country skiing.

J’ai redémarre le footing. Ah c’est dur dur!!

I’m gonna make this post short, I am exhausted today. Couldn’t sleep last night and now I am a wreck. Star and I are having a day off today…

Yesterday we had our riding lesson with Mike and it was really cool once again.
Mike wanted to make us work on a new exercise this week but we never managed to get there. I was supposed to trot Star on a circle and again she didn’t want to trot on the left. She was so against it that she was backing up and backing up. It must have lasted 10 minutes with me trying to make her go forward and her backing up or turning in circles. It was getting ridiculous. So Mike sat on her and obviously she quickly respected him more. I asked Mike to remove his spurs (as I don’t have any, I thought it would be more fair) and Star got a bit more difficult straight away. But Mike is not the kind to let Star have one of her little tantrums. He worked with her on circles on the left for a while and then i got back in the saddle.

My goal for the next week is to make Star trot on the left rein. We were getting better at it this week but yesterday she just did not want to do it anymore! Punk! as Marion would say.

I think I’m gonna try to ride her with the hackamore at the weekend and see if it makes a difference (last time it didn’t) and also to work on our level 2 freestyle skills and patterns, as I’d like to audition for it before Xmas.

Aki ismer, az tudja, hogy imádom a diadémokat. Eddig sajnos még nem volt sajátom, de végre kaptam egyet Életem 1. diadémja be kell majd még szereznem egypárat Imádom, olyan szép *.*  Reggel a tiarám örömére csináltam képeket is

Még jó, hogy nem volt 1. órám így ráértem   A 2. órámon kikaptam a fizika témazárómat, ami 5ös lett *.* 5ös fizikából? *.* Nem kicsit voltam meglepődve Ráadásul csak 1 pontott vesztettem Drakulálok magamnak xD Jah xD igen, a garatulálok helyett mostanában mindig drakulálokot mondok, szóval ez nem elírás xD Kicsit őrült, de ez van xD Majd a 3. órám untán bejelentették, hogy elmarad az utolsó kettő Hurrááááá!!! Szóval ma volt egy angolom, egy fizikám és egy jogom -.-” amit végig mesélt a tanár xD szóval a jogról szó sem esett rajt xD

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector

4.88km

39m 12s

08:00 min/km

7.40 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/singapore/-singapore/872235299493

Supplementary Exercises:

Chin-up: 1 X 8

Plank: 1 X 60secs, 1 X 50secs, 1 X 40secs

Notes:

Wowee!

It feels real good to be out running in the rain again. In the days of past, I would surely have chosen to just hibernate at home; letting laziness to take over. Hopefully this positive change will continue in the days, months and years to come.

Like a wise old nenek once said, “It’s not about you doing it. It’s about you wanting it.”

Thanks nenek.

Minden társadalom kifejlesztette saját meggyőződés, kódexek, szabályok és szertartások annak érdekében, hogy tájékoztassa tagjait a produktív, rendszeres és sikeres együttműködés, javára az egész csoport. A tendencia kialakítása igen változatos nyelvek, értékek, hitek és hagyományok jellemző minden emberi civilizáció és fontos jegye az emberiség, mint faj. A nemzeti büszkeség, a hit és az őshonos etnikai identitás bizony néha elfajult a feszültségek és konfliktusok azonban folklór-, vám-és mítoszok, hogy minden törzs, klán vagy országban váltott ki, van egy kiemelkedő történelmi szerepe az inspiráció és a koordináció minden emberi csoportok és általános, időtlen művészi értéke, mint a szépség forrása, archetípusok, szórakoztató és hivatkozások. Valójában még a mai világban a globalizáció és az internet tapasztalatok felélesztéséhez helyi gyökerei és a nemzeti büszkeség és békés kereskedelmi formában, mint például az olimpiai kihívást jelent, zenei slágerek és Etnikai éttermek.

References: conservatives, socialism, catholicism, folk, historic, genre, feminist, republican, democrat, society, govern, mormons, presbyterian, episcopal, catholic, christianity, concepts, cultural, elderly, ethnic,

Más szóval, miután számos emberi csoportok ok arra, hogy jól érzik magukat, és keményen dolgozni az egész ki a történelem, a modern piaci látjuk, hogy a tanokat, hagyományokat, mitológiák és folklór még mindig kiváló forrása az ötletek, báj és a szerencséjét. Vannak, más szóval, egy egyedi erőforrás, hogy csak az örökösöknek egy adott kultúra vagy civilizáció képes teljes mértékben kifejezni a modern formákat, mint a divat, a konyha, a zene vagy mozi. Annak érdekében, hogy szuggesztív olvasmányok az emberi kultúra és az emberi tanokat, azt ajánljuk, hogy egyes webhelyek szentelt társadalmi csoportok, szakmai számok, kulturális mozgások, a politikai pártok és a vallási eszmék. Ez a projekt kb ideológiák, Law-rendszerek, a humán és Örökségünk kezeli http://www.thenew.com és http://www.euroserve.cn (a http://www.esw3.eu dns szolgáltatások).

References: romancatholic, romantic, weddingdresses, weddingdress, weddinginvitations, buddha, buddhism, methodist, protestant, spiritualism, catholicchurch, judaism, islam, myth, newage, pagan, church, relationships, muslims

Well, not really. Today was another rough day at the high school. All I wanted to do was come home, lie down, and ponder my next move… including having a Wachusett Blueberry Beer. Luckily, before I pulled my shoes off, my wife told me that we needed to take a family Power Walk. That’s just what I needed. A 10-minute power walk to get my mind off the crazy angst of the high school teenagers.

We put our sneakers on, got the baby in her stroller, and did an intense power walk through the neighborhood. No running, no wogging (walk/jog), and no time limit. It just happened to be the ideal length of time. The stroller added some resistance while pushing the carriage (which is perfect for new parents trying to work the upper body). Up hills, cutting corners, etc… my body felt it from head to toe and it freed me from the pressures of the day. I feel good, I feel empowered. I Am ready to face another day at the high school.

I spent the whole afternoon with Star today and it was good.
I went there early, after lunch (I’d already been there early in the morning to turn her out obviously). I had booked the school at 3pm so I wanted to have plenty of time to get her ready (she’s always very muddy when I take her out of the field), groom her, saddle her and ride at least 1 hour.

When I arrived, there was only one other lady who owns 2 horses and she’s very nice. She was cleaning her pony at the stable and her other horse was calling from the field as he hates being away from his field friend.
I prepared all my stuff and went to the field to get Star.
As usual, when she saw me, she came towards me. At the moment I was going to put the halter on, the horse who was left alone in his field, took off and started to canter around the field so Star spooked and took off as well. She spent the next 10 minutes galloping around, bucking, rearing, sliding in the mud. I let her do, there was nothing else I could do.
Then I saw the lady who was bringing back the pony so I thought everything was going to be fine as the lonely horse would finally settle down and so would Star.
Well, she opened the field gate and the lonely horse escaped! He started to canter around the yard so I ran to the entrance gate and shut it, just to make sure he wasn’t going to escape the yard. Then I ran to help the poor lady. She put her pony in his field and then didn’t know what to do to catch her loose horse. After a while, he started to eat the grass just next to his field entrance so I told her she could now put him back in but she was scared, she didn’t want to go near him. I told her I didn’t mind doing it but she said she didn’t want me to. She took a bucket of grains and lured him into the field.
That whole story made me lose all my time, I was a bit pissed off!

So when I arrived in the school, it was 3.15pm
Again, Star and I worked on Mike’s training program and she did so well. She gave me a real nice jog, such a good girl! It was so much more comfortable than her usual crazy trot!
And now she agrees to turn left! It’s not perfect but at least she does it. We are getting there!
I am very satisfied, I can see we are improving, which is good!
We stayed in the school until 4 and then the next horse came in. I let star cool down and then we went back to the barn. I originally wanted to play with her on the ground afterwards but my time got stolen by the other people so I had to give up that idea. It was a good riding session though!

Star was such a good partner today. I mean she is most of the time but some days, she is so nice with me. Today was one of those days.

Tonight, I put her in her stable and all the other horses were still out. Only one of them was supposed to go in, but only later and I was worried Star may get nervous of being on her own in the big barn. Well she was not. Actually she even called me from her field at 6pm as I usually bring her in earlier and she got impatient!
I stayed with her and she was looking at me and playing with my hair or my clothes, and eating her hay. She looked very relaxed. There is one thing I am sure of, our herd of 2 works really well. Sometimes I even think Star prefers to be with me than with the other horses. How lucky am I!

And sorry no photos as promised, maybe at the weekend. I went there alone so couldn’t take myself in photo…

Possibly my most hated feeling in the world. With me anything can set them off…I have a nervous dispostition! Feeling uneasy about something you have to do, worrying, going somewhere you don’t want to,exams, stress, uneasieness. It;s different for everybdy yet the feeling is the same. That uneasy fluttering that slowly but uncomfortably escalates into full blown nausea.  There’s no clear cut method to get rid of them, but here are 5 ways of dealing with themm in your day to day life. These techniques could also be used to deal with feelings of stress and anxiety.

1. Close your eyes and take deep breaths. If you’re religious, say a prayer, hope to something, tell yourself that things will be okay: somehting positive. The positive affirmations along with the increased oxygen flow to your head may help improve the feeling.

2.Have something bland to eat and chew on it for a long time. I find plain crackers or oatcakes help. Obviously if the feeling has progressed to nausea, this step isn’t a good idea!

3.Try very very hard not to do anything to progress the feeling. If it’s a thought, try really hard not to think it! Distract yourself with a song or mantra. This sounds easy but by no means is. Hang in there though!

4.Try dealing with whatever it is that’s bothering you. If it’s work worries, go and do some of the said work, even if you’ve been procrastinating for a long time! If it’s performance butterflies, then the above steps should work. Dealing with the problem is the best way of making ti go away!

5.If you can, get some exercise. If you’ve not got long, try jogging on the spot for a minute or two. If you have longer, try and do half and hour-one hour’s running or swimming.

5.

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector – Pasir Ris Park

6.46km

54m 34s

08:26 min/km

7.11 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/singapore/380125846749312125

SportyPal: http://www.sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/92456

Notes:

And as the monsoon starts its annual assault on this tiny island, it never fails to bring along with it the cold wave and the accompanying torrential downpour. The deadly combination of these factors plus the omnipresent lazy bug in my body system, resulted in defaulting two of my regular runs on Saturday and Sunday.

And to make things worse, I was suddenly overcome with a binge fever. I was not too sure why this occur but I think the non-activity days from Friday till Monday caused my body to just shut down and resisted any attempts of participating in any sweat-inducing activities.

In simple Malay terms, my body simply naik lemak.

Well luckily I was not totally tempted to sell my soul to the Dark Side, as I finally had a run just now.

Initially, I had cycled to the Park Connector at around 6.30pm, but a deluge of rain spoiled my plan. I returned home to perform my dusk prayer and voices in my head was insinuating that the rainstorm was an omen for me to just hang up my shoes and lay in bed while enjoying the cold session. There’s always tomorrow morning, afternoon or Thursday even. You get my drift.

Alas, though I had already positioned myself cosily in front of my computer anticipating a few hours of web surfing until my pillows come a-calling, I suddenly had this sudden urge to just put on my shoes and go for a run in the rain. I can’t deny that the blog entries of both Running Mom and Kooky Kash, retelling their adventures of singing running in the rain, had also played a major part in this. If they can do it, so can I.

Yeah!

Thanks!

p/s: The park lights snaking into Pasir Ris Park failed to light up, causing the run to be in the dark with the ambient lights from the nearby Downtown East to illuminate the path. A series of cackles from a pair of unseen geese, was clearly audible and if I’m not wrong there is no geese that I know of in Pasir Park and according to the Malay old wives’ tales, their apparent appearance mean there’s the infamous Cik Pon in disguise.

Hmm…

Toe in the Water

“I used my body in different ways without really thinking about it and it has definitely helped my confidence. It was really great to feel like you are achieving something together.”

Danny, Royal Signals

I want you to know about the tri-service charity initiative TOE IN THE WATER and the important work it is doing to help servicemen and women who have sustained often traumatic injuries to move beyond their disability and be re-inspired by life through sailing

The aim of TOE IN THE WATER is to provide competitive sailing to injured servicemen and women as an extension of their rehabilitation at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Unit, Headley Court and thereby

• re-inspire them to see beyond their injuries
• challenge them to re-engage both physically and mentally; taking them beyond their own and others expectations
• assist them to re-integrate by finding a meaningful working and living environment following a profound injury

Sailing is a mentally challenging and physically adventurous sport which provides a unique environment for the injured to compete on equal terms with their able bodied contemporaries.

As a charity, TOE IN THE WATER receives no statutory funding and is relying entirely on voluntary contributions from individuals, trusts and companies. This year, the Heart of England Offshore Cruising Association (HOEOCA) has adopted TOE IN THE WATER as its recognised charity. By making a contribution we recognise the sacrifice these men and women have made and provide practical help toward their recovery. We shall be doing our best to raise funds.

The video below explains a little more.

Click on the highlighted text to link to the website

Mondays, as a general rule, are not training days for me. I find that Mondays are already overbooked and either not getting my workout in or jumping through hoops just to get to it makes it not worth the stress. So, I start my workout week on Tuesdays, and love weekend workouts the most (most people’s Monday is my Friday…as the week progresses, I get more and more focused, I suppose). But, here’s a workout for you Monday Maniacs out there who want something to get your engine going…

Go through the following rotation twice, then end with 5:00 easy jogging:
10:00 easy treadmill jogging
20 reps lateral dumbbell raises (can be performed sitting as shown or standing)
20 reps box step-ups (holding db in each hand, alternating step-ups on a step or bench about shin to knee level)
20 reps overhead dumbbell press

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector

4.21km

32m 11s

07:38 min/km

7.84 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/sg/tampines/756125805462413436

SportyPal: http://www.sportypal.com/Workouts/Details/89356

Notes:

Great run just now.

No cramps.

Glue Huffer

Have a bite of my apple

you depraved lord of the paperbag

Take a deep breath and feel my voice

State wide lawn mower blade

Quick sharp false teeth

backwards knowledge

Fingerprints and loose leaf mints

Pacifier and a candy mire

Pardon interuptions

But pain leads to consumption

A lactose intolerent

Passive aggressive in parliament

Shot with a bow and arrow

Crossbow too much to care for

Lick face

Displace

All the commoners love to hear the wind blow

Behind their back they love to watch the seeds sow

Glue Huffers Unite!

Sign away the morning Night!

Glue Huffers Unite!

Pine away the thoughtless Sight!

I do not know about you, but I tend to be goal oriented. Some people are very good at the daily grind but never stop to look up.

Not me. I need to know where I am going, how I plan to get there and when I will finish.

I am a runner. I am not a fast runner or a natural runner, nor am I terribly fond of running. In fact, I sometimes hate running.

I run regularly only if I know what my specific goal is: I need to lose 5 pounds (okay, 10 lbs.), or I want to be in better shape for ski season, or I am training for a specific race,  a 10K or ½ marathon. Once I know what the goal is, I mark up a calendar with a plan and doggedly stick to it. If I don’t have a goal in mind, I very quickly turn into a sloth.

Goals are important. The great philosopher Yogi Berra once said – a couple of times (!), “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.” I wholeheartedly agree. “Goals are dreams with deadlines,” as one wrote [Diana Hunt]. “Specific goals are the fuel in the furnace for achievement,” claims another [Brian Tracy].

There are various ways to think about the goal of the Christian life: you can think of the goal as perfection: Jesus teaches us to be perfect or godly as your Heavenly Father is perfect and godly.

Sometimes, it seems that the goal of the Christian life is to love perfectly: to love God with your whole heart, soul, mind, spirit and to love your neighbors, as you love yourself, for God is love.

BUT one really good and – I think – very neglected way that Scripture encourages us to think of the goal of the Christian life is … Heaven – that’s where we are headed, that’s where we want to be at the end. We all are running to return to Paradise, to get back the Garden, to join or rejoin all of the saints of God, the children of light, who have lived this life in faith and now enjoy the company of angels, singing around the throne of God, “Holy, Holy, Holy!” Paul writes that the goal of the prize in the Christian life is our heavenly calling. Paradise awaits us at the finish line.

You must keep your eyes on that goal, that prize.

Christians of past ages thought about Heaven too much – even at the exclusion of life here on earth or the neglect of justice and righteousness. Certainly, it is wrong to neglect life on earth: “Thy kingdom come on earth, as it is in Heaven,” we pray. But I do not believe modern Christians think enough about Heaven, Paradise, The Garden. I myself think it is important to emphasize the existential. But, if there is no resurrection, as Paul declared, Christians of all people are to be most pitied.

Do you have a vision of “the finish line”?

How are you going to get there?

- a modified excerpt from my 2009 All Saints Day sermon

Yesterday, I had a great ride with Star. We worked on what we learned with Mike last week and she did much better than usual, I was very proud.
When I asked her to jog, again she went way too fast, always trying to accelerate and go into a canter. I kept on going for a long time but it was so uncomfortable. My bum’s in pain!
I managed to get her into a nice trot but again a bit too fast, so I decided I would try cantering. And we had so much fun! We did several laps at high speed and it felt really good.
She apparently likes to canter on the right lead but not at all on the left, so when I tried to do it on the other side, it got really messy!
We also did some amazing stops. Whispering a “whoa” is enough for her to stop dead in her track. So cool!

Today, I wasn’t feeling at my best and the weather was very ugly so I decided to do a ground play session with her instead and it turned into a nightmare. At first, she played with the big ball and seemed to be having a great time. then she tried to climb anything she could find (the mounting block, jumping blocks, bars, anything)!
But when I started to ask for her to go in a certain direction (ie pointing), she blew up, started to gallop as if her life depended on it and did gallop flat around me, at the end of the rope, for what seemed an eternity! I was trying to stop her or at least slow her down but nothing worked. I was bracing myself to avoid flying away at the end of the rope. I started to feel exhausted and my head was spinning. I managed to get to the fence and thought that making her face the fence would stop her but instead she did a crazy stop in front of the fence, pulled back and went back in the other direction! When she finally stopped, she looked at me, licked her lips and came towards me, head down, as if nothing had happened. Smoke was coming out of her body and her nostrils were huge and her breathing really fast.
I’ll stick to riding for now. Ground work seems to be a bit out of control at the moment and I am not enjoying it at all!

Tampines – Pasir Ris Park Connector

4.88km

39m 11s

08:00 min/km

7.56 km/hr

Mapmyrun: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/singapore/-singapore/872235299493

Notes:

Feels so good running when the weather is as cool as the cucumber in my fridge. It threatened to pour in the afternoon but luckily it held up.

Alhamdulillah.

Anyway, I stuck to a slow pace just now so as not to summon the cramps. It went very well initially but the run up along the overhead bridge induced that minute feeling of the lower left leg muscles tightening. Luckily (the 2nd for the night), it never blew up into a major cramp. A quick stretch while waiting at the traffic crossing helped a lot. And another quick shake near the end prevented the yucky feeling whenever the dreaded cramp attacked.

Alhamdulillah.