When Death Came From The Sea
What does 135,000 look like?
Friday, December 31, 2004
In Cash, Not Kind
More about the Dec 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake/tsunami here.
Photos Packs 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (Source: Neowin; Hosted at Cryptome.org; contain graphic images)
The sky over here has been crying almost non-stop for the past few days and nights, probably over the death toll, which is now 125,000 and counting.
Many kind hearted souls around the world are taking action by sending stuffs they don't need to the various collection centres around the country.
But many of the relief agencies like Red Cross, SPH(Singapore Press Holdings) are now saying, if you really want to help, contribute in cash, not kind.
The Singapore Red Cross began its policy of collecting cash only after the 1999 Turkey earthquake after receiving tonnes of items 40 days late, which were not suitable or needed at that time. It had taken more than a month to collect, sort, pack and ship.
Not only does it take time, effort, and money for all the logistics involved. If the supplies turn out to be useless to the victims, it also cost time, effort, and money to dispose of what will be tonnes of garbage. So instead of helping, our kind efforts could end up as big headaches for those already busy people.
In short, to help, cash is best.
You can read more about in-kind donations at charitywatch.org, or just flip the local papers to read about what the victims really need.
God have mercy on our souls.
Singapore Government website: Crisis & Emergencies
Google's tsunami relief and resources links
Photos Packs 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (Source: Neowin; Hosted at Cryptome.org; contain graphic images)
The sky over here has been crying almost non-stop for the past few days and nights, probably over the death toll, which is now 125,000 and counting.
Many kind hearted souls around the world are taking action by sending stuffs they don't need to the various collection centres around the country.
But many of the relief agencies like Red Cross, SPH(Singapore Press Holdings) are now saying, if you really want to help, contribute in cash, not kind.
The Singapore Red Cross began its policy of collecting cash only after the 1999 Turkey earthquake after receiving tonnes of items 40 days late, which were not suitable or needed at that time. It had taken more than a month to collect, sort, pack and ship.
Not only does it take time, effort, and money for all the logistics involved. If the supplies turn out to be useless to the victims, it also cost time, effort, and money to dispose of what will be tonnes of garbage. So instead of helping, our kind efforts could end up as big headaches for those already busy people.
In short, to help, cash is best.
You can read more about in-kind donations at charitywatch.org, or just flip the local papers to read about what the victims really need.
God have mercy on our souls.
Singapore Government website: Crisis & Emergencies
Google's tsunami relief and resources links
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
What is a tsunami?
With the death toll as of now at 66,000 and rising, it's really a very depressing and unforgettable way to mark the end of the year 2004.
What makes a tsunami so deadly?
In deep water, the energy of a tsunami is constant, a function of its height and speed. Thus, as the wave approaches land, its height increases while its speed decreases. A tsunami has a very long wave length (in the order of 100 km), which makes it act as a shallow-water wave. Since the speed of a shallow-water wave is, where g is the gravitational acceleration and d is the water depth, a tsunami in the open ocean can obtain a speed of about 700 km/h. While in deep water a person at the surface of the water would probably not even notice, but the wave can increase to a height of 30 m and more as it approaches the coastline and compresses.
More about it's definition here.
I could be wrong, but, from the above description, it seems that by the time anyone's able to guess that a tsunami is about to hit them, it may already be too late to really run very far.
Given that a tsunami travels at about 200 m/s in the open ocean (yes, that's 200 metres per second, although it starts losing speed but gaining height as it hits the shore), and a bullet fired from a weapon, depending on the bullet's shape, calibre, and various other factors, flies at about 180 - 1500 m/s... well you can imagine the rest...when a wall of water hits you at speed, not much difference from flying into a concrete wall...
Just when you think things cannot get any scarier, there is the megatsunami...
The forces of nature are formidable indeed.
More about the Dec 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake/tsunami here.
Decided to recce a possible running route from work back to home. This road runs parrallel to the MRT line all the way from Kranji to Yishun. Used the odometer from outside TECH Semiconductor and it shows about 10km travelled upon reaching Yishun. Double checked using the route calculator from Streetdirectory.com and it's about right. The bad thing is that there are just too many traffic lights and junctions along the way.
Sunday, December 26, 2004
MR25 ultra
I'm at work right now, so this will be a quick one.
At this moment, CT and TLR is at MR running the MR25 ultra.
CT just called me about 45 minutes ago upon completing her 1st round. I sent her there in the morning, a bit late, she started around 0710hrs. She also took the wrong route, which is about 2km longer!
Each round is about 11km.
One more round and she would have already overtaken what I did yesterday. Cool huh?
Furthermore, the terrain is much more difficult, off-road with lots of slopes.
As of now, she still has about 9.5 hours to achieve her goal of above 50km.
All the best Ct & TLR!
UPDATE: It is now about 2210hr. The run is over. CT is already in bed now. She told me she felt her calf muscle 'jump' when walking back to the endpt. I suspect an acute muscle tear. She's sort of limping right now, and she mentioned getting punk grrl over tomorrow to help her run errands. Fed her with painkillers and vitamin C, E, and Omega3. And apply an ice-pack to the pain. Look out for her blog update tomorrow!
At this moment, CT and TLR is at MR running the MR25 ultra.
CT just called me about 45 minutes ago upon completing her 1st round. I sent her there in the morning, a bit late, she started around 0710hrs. She also took the wrong route, which is about 2km longer!
Each round is about 11km.
One more round and she would have already overtaken what I did yesterday. Cool huh?
Furthermore, the terrain is much more difficult, off-road with lots of slopes.
As of now, she still has about 9.5 hours to achieve her goal of above 50km.
All the best Ct & TLR!
UPDATE: It is now about 2210hr. The run is over. CT is already in bed now. She told me she felt her calf muscle 'jump' when walking back to the endpt. I suspect an acute muscle tear. She's sort of limping right now, and she mentioned getting punk grrl over tomorrow to help her run errands. Fed her with painkillers and vitamin C, E, and Omega3. And apply an ice-pack to the pain. Look out for her blog update tomorrow!
Saturday, December 25, 2004
Christmas 2004 Morning Run, Yishun~Orchard
Christmas 2004 route : Yishun to Orchard
Finished work on Christmas Eve morning. Went for a very quick and short run with CT towards SAFRA for a swim. Wanted to test my Adidas ClimaCool Adventure shoes without any socks. Mistake! Got blisters on my right foot as a result. But it wasn't too bad.
Slept from afternoon till around midnight, while CT has punkgrrl for company. When CT woke me up, they were already waiting for me with Lamp Chop, salad, baked potatoes, and grape juice on the table, complete with candles for 'effect'.
After 'dinner', they turned in around 3am, while I surf around for a while.
Very soon, I got restless. I needed to get my ass off the bench. I needed to hit the road.
So, being as silent as I possibly can, I packed my hydra-pack, mobile, and wallet. Nike cap to keep my fringe off of my face, NB singlet, adidas tights and shorts, short socks to go with my NB900 shoes. Time to test them on hard roads. No music player for me, me no like thing dangling out of ear when running. Let me hear the sound of nature, and traffic, of course.
Started running at about 5:35am. This is the hardest part. To get out of Yishun itself seems to take forever. The long stretch of Avenue 2 plus Lentor Avenue is a long straight flat road, so luckily for me, it was quite easy to clear. I ran at a very very slow pace because I was hoping to conserve energy and see how far I can go. I sipped about a mouthful of water every 10 to 15 minutes and also when I have to stop for a while at traffic lights to keep myself hydrated and cool.
By the time I hit the Yio Chu Kang Road Junction, it was already about 6:20am, about 6.5km from my start point, that's about 45mins. Yishun done, time to tackle Ang Mo Kio.
Passed YCK MRT and Anderson Junior College without much difficulty as the road was level. But after that, there was about 700 to 800 metres of inclination of about 10 to 15 degrees. And towards the end of the down-slope, I had to walk, my left ankle and right knee was starting to hurt. I would later find out to my dismay that the whole stretch of this road all the way up to Marymount Road would follow this pattern, up down up down.
Took me about 20minutes to run through Ang Mo Kio and Bishan Park and hit Marymount Road. There were parts of up and down slopes when I was forced to walk. It's about 6:40am, getting brighter. My breathing was already pretty steady and relaxed, but my left ankle and right knee was starting to take center-stage.
Marymount Road was worse. Because of part of it being the Braddel Road flyover, there was a rather steep inclination of about 20degrees towards it. I was really struggling, and I was about to cross the road and run over to MacRitchie Reservoir Park and call it a day. But then I know that Thomson Road is just round the corner and from then on, Orchard Road is not too far away. So I persevered, hit Thomson Road, and head for the Mobil petrol kiosk (marked X on map) to get myself a Pocari Sweat and a Snickers bar for 'breakfast'. It was about 7am. I took my time to finish up the Snickers and the Sweat, and at the same time massage my knees and calf. Then I realized that I'm feeling cold! I rested too long, about 20minutes. The idling plus the cold drink and the morning breeze are cooling down my body temperature too fast and I know that's not good if I want to continue running.
So quickly, I picked myself up and started off again. OUCH! My right knee! PAIN! I know I need to get my body warmed up quick. So I started to walk briskly. After about 10minutes and a few tries, I can start jogging again without too much pain. 7:35am.
By about 7:45, I was at the junction between Novena MRT and the Revenue House. I know I'm near. Thomson Road done, time to do Newton Road.
Midway through Newton Road, my right thigh muscle started to feel a bit tight. I could sense a cramp coming, my hips were begining to ache. I started to walk and tried prevent the cramp from taking place. I was thinking to myself, "that's it, I'm gonna have to end my run at Newton MRT". Then this middle age chinese guy came running from behind me. We looked at each other and he waved and wished me a Merry Christmas and ran past me. I waved back and said the same. Suddenly, my right thigh seemed fine, and the energy from the Snickers and Pocari started working. I break into a run and tried to follow the man's pace, but then he turned right whereas I'm heading straight.
Within minutes, I'm already at Newton MRT. My limbs felt like they were about to break. But I can already smell Orchard Road from where I was, I'm not about to come all the way here just to stop at the door!
I pressed on and finally saw Mr. Ronald McDonald sitting outside Pacific Plaza. 8am. I sat down, took off my cap, and took a picture of us. Then I crossed over to Wheelock place and gave CT a wake up call before having my breakfast at Mac. The 3 of us then met up and proceeded to Sentosa for some fun in the sun.
That's it. 2.5 hours of pain and pleasure. About 16.6 km. That's not even a half-marathon! I'm taking way too much time to complete that distance! Hopefully, I can get my injuries sorted and improve on my timing in future.
This run also confirmed a few things for me,
- Stamina/endurance aside, physical strength and condition is just as, if not more, important
- Mental strength is essential in order to push your body to do more
- A little encouragement from fellow runners works wonders
- Some planning and strategy is good
- Lie to yourself a little if it helps
- Pocari Sweat is nice (no gas!)
- Singapore is really tiny!
I think what helped me to push myself to run through the pain barrier and finish my objective here is that before I started, I alread got the whole route mapped in my mind. Divided into sections, they became many mini targets and were much easier to accomplish, rather than a straight point A to point B.
Everytime I felt like quiting, I'll tell myself to at least finish this section of the run. But when I reach that target, I'll tell myself that the next destination is not too far away and quite easy to complete. In my mind, I also try to visualize the section to be shorter than it actually is.
My next run will hopefully be less painful, and I hope to reach Sentosa. With luck, my joints will recover and get stronger, and I can work towards the marathon next year.
Pocari Sweat! With this, at least I can force a smile.
Need some more energy, fast!
Reached the endpt finally at Borders
Thursday, December 23, 2004
Burn some rubber, slowly but surely
I have been lazy. My posts are getting shorter and updates, less frequent. But working 5 nights straight can be quite tiring. But since I'll be free again tomorrow morning, I shall be a bit long winded here. (Well maybe not as much so as some of my fellow bloggers
)
Tonight I'm covering for my colleague Wilson so he can go back to his home town and celebrate Christmas. I can't wait for my off days to come. The sun, sea, and sand are calling out to me! And I feel the need to run, badly!
I use to be the one who will go out for a run on a whim. Now, ct seems to have caught the running fever. She's been running, with or without my company, farther and farther each time. In fact, she runs very poorly when I'm with her, coz according to her, my presence gives her too much pressure! And her pace and stamina has improved by leaps and bounds.
Looking at her now, you'd never guess that she has asthma and used to 'run' like a granny with a hilarious 'baby step'.
Now? Boy, she's doing 10km ~ 12km runs on her own just coz she wants to! Although her pace is slower than mine, she is doing longer distances than I ever did, at a rather steady pace. I don't remember doing any 10km before... I think my furthest was about 8km.
Right now, she's preparing herself for the Ultrarun this coming Sunday. It's no chicken feat, you have to do so by first finishing what would be a marathon, it only becomes an ultra once you pass the 50km mark, according to Sukaimi.
This run is different, and better in a sense that you only run as much as you can, as fast or slow as you like to, within 12 hours. You can rest, eat, or drink when you feel like it. I wish I can join her, but I have to work on that day. Maybe it's a good thing, not having me around to pressure her. I'll support her in mind and in spirit!
I asked her how far she thinks she can cover in 12 hours? Her guesstimation based on her trial run yesterday morning is about 44km. But she's hoping to push herself a little bit more to hit the 50km mark. You get a free T-shirt and you would have just ran an ultra instead of 'just' a marathon! A mere 6km more, go go go!
So how did a sickly, pessimistic, asthmatic girl become so super in less than a year?
I believe the turning point was when she joined me in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge. Ever since then, she never looked back. I am so happy and so proud of her!
Now, I can't wait for the night to past. I need to hit the road, burn some rubber, and see how far I can go.
)
Tonight I'm covering for my colleague Wilson so he can go back to his home town and celebrate Christmas. I can't wait for my off days to come. The sun, sea, and sand are calling out to me! And I feel the need to run, badly!
I use to be the one who will go out for a run on a whim. Now, ct seems to have caught the running fever. She's been running, with or without my company, farther and farther each time. In fact, she runs very poorly when I'm with her, coz according to her, my presence gives her too much pressure! And her pace and stamina has improved by leaps and bounds.
Looking at her now, you'd never guess that she has asthma and used to 'run' like a granny with a hilarious 'baby step'.
Now? Boy, she's doing 10km ~ 12km runs on her own just coz she wants to! Although her pace is slower than mine, she is doing longer distances than I ever did, at a rather steady pace. I don't remember doing any 10km before... I think my furthest was about 8km.
Right now, she's preparing herself for the Ultrarun this coming Sunday. It's no chicken feat, you have to do so by first finishing what would be a marathon, it only becomes an ultra once you pass the 50km mark, according to Sukaimi.
This run is different, and better in a sense that you only run as much as you can, as fast or slow as you like to, within 12 hours. You can rest, eat, or drink when you feel like it. I wish I can join her, but I have to work on that day. Maybe it's a good thing, not having me around to pressure her. I'll support her in mind and in spirit!
I asked her how far she thinks she can cover in 12 hours? Her guesstimation based on her trial run yesterday morning is about 44km. But she's hoping to push herself a little bit more to hit the 50km mark. You get a free T-shirt and you would have just ran an ultra instead of 'just' a marathon! A mere 6km more, go go go!
So how did a sickly, pessimistic, asthmatic girl become so super in less than a year?
I believe the turning point was when she joined me in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge. Ever since then, she never looked back. I am so happy and so proud of her!
Now, I can't wait for the night to past. I need to hit the road, burn some rubber, and see how far I can go.
Sunday, December 19, 2004
Shiny Happy People
Went to McRitchie Reservoir again this morning. Just wanted to do some light exercise and laze about, maybe continue reading Fish! while lying down on the grass. The weather was perfect, the breeze blowing gently, the 'mood' is in the air. After a few minutes of stretching, the itch got to us. 'Let's run', says CT. And off we went.
After a morning's worth of trekking yesterday, we decided not to stress our tired legs too much this time, choosing to run on the wooden planks that our Gahment erected along the perimeter of the reservoir. Other than having to slow down and avoid the people strolling abreast each other, this route is much much more easier to run. No up and down slopes, no rocky and muddy terrain, no risk of slipping on some loose rocks.
Halfway through the route, there were a few monkeys sitting around, enjoying the view. On my way back, I passed by them again, and saw this cute little one lying down while the other 2 groomed him. They were so adorable that I can't help but stop to take a picture of them. And they did well to maintain their pose even as I moved up close. Say 'Konica!'.
After our short run, which I'm guesstimating to be about 3 plus to 4km give/take, we lepak and read the books we brought along with us by the water while waiting for Sukaimi to finish his expedition to the hidden Japanese shrine/temple with his MR25 buddies. There was a family near us, reading the papers and discussing about the news, and this man and I believe his brother was trying to teach the daughter how to fly kite, but it seems like it ended with just the two of them having all the fun while the girl just watched. I dunno why but I really enjoyed being surrounded by the peace and harmony of it all.
We just talked to Sukaimi yesterday about a 'running boom' happening right now. Yeah, noticed that too. Even before we got to know him, ct n myself joined my company in the JP Morgan and Chase corporate run, the turnout was so overwhelming that it exceeded their expectations. They don't have enough certificates and t-shirts for the runners and had to send them out later by mail or by other means.
And now I look around me, there are groups and individuals running everywhere. Mother and daughter, father and son, friends and colleagues, girlfriend and boyfriend, fit hunks and hot babes, they're everywhere. You know they enjoy what they're doing, coz you can see the 'glow' on their faces. Shiny happy people holding hands...
relakzing
Trekking fun
It was everything we hoped for. Fair, breezy weather in the 1st half, downpour in the later part of the morning. Sukaimi has a nice write-up here. I'll let the pictures do the talking, go here.
CT making our poor frens doing the 'jump' again
Joggers everywhere...
Crazy horse at it again, the uncle must be thinking 'siow si bo?'
As you can see from my facial expression...I'm rather used to it oredi...
CT making our poor frens doing the 'jump' again
Joggers everywhere...
Crazy horse at it again, the uncle must be thinking 'siow si bo?'
As you can see from my facial expression...I'm rather used to it oredi...
Thursday, December 16, 2004
Casshern...
After scanning through the latest trailers at Apple's QuickTime trailers site, I just realized that there are so many good movies coming soon.
Casshern is now showing at Cathay Cineplexes. Just watched the trailer, and it looks good. Some mixed reviews from IMDb users, but I'll watch it anyway. Got to have the soundtrack and the DVD too!
Fight evil while listening to heavy metal mp3
wow...
Casshern is now showing at Cathay Cineplexes. Just watched the trailer, and it looks good. Some mixed reviews from IMDb users, but I'll watch it anyway. Got to have the soundtrack and the DVD too!
Fight evil while listening to heavy metal mp3
wow...
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Finish whatcha started
Wanna know how to achieve inner peace?
Easy. Just make sure you finish what you started. Do it, it works.
Talk about finishing what you started, my dear bro TLR and I talked about trekking through the Mandai forest with the girls, namely fd n ct, who knows, maybe pg too? I'm thinking of asking 5d, LS, n maybe mt too! The more the merrier. TLR already has the day's plan all worked out, so I'm only left with the simple task of executing it. Sounds like fun. God willing, we'll finish the whole thing by afternoon coz my mum is expecting me to bring her to watch my long lost cousin in concert in the evening. I don't really listen much to local chinese music but then my mum already hinted very strongly that I should ferry her there, plus it's a good chance for me to see my cousin again, so...
Ah, but I digress.
I'm sooo looking forward to the trek. Should be a walk in the park (albeit a long one). I've never seen the trail before so it's good that I check it out before attempting to cycle or run the same route in the near future.
After tonight, I'm off for 4 days, so I'll be catching Wesley Snipes in Blade Trinity later while ct n Elliot watch Bridget Jones clowning around with those two blokes. Nah... I'd rather watch Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy and their bitter sweet love stories.
Right now, I'm dog tired. I'm out.
Easy. Just make sure you finish what you started. Do it, it works.
Talk about finishing what you started, my dear bro TLR and I talked about trekking through the Mandai forest with the girls, namely fd n ct, who knows, maybe pg too? I'm thinking of asking 5d, LS, n maybe mt too! The more the merrier. TLR already has the day's plan all worked out, so I'm only left with the simple task of executing it. Sounds like fun. God willing, we'll finish the whole thing by afternoon coz my mum is expecting me to bring her to watch my long lost cousin in concert in the evening. I don't really listen much to local chinese music but then my mum already hinted very strongly that I should ferry her there, plus it's a good chance for me to see my cousin again, so...
Ah, but I digress.
I'm sooo looking forward to the trek. Should be a walk in the park (albeit a long one). I've never seen the trail before so it's good that I check it out before attempting to cycle or run the same route in the near future.
After tonight, I'm off for 4 days, so I'll be catching Wesley Snipes in Blade Trinity later while ct n Elliot watch Bridget Jones clowning around with those two blokes. Nah... I'd rather watch Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy and their bitter sweet love stories.
Right now, I'm dog tired. I'm out.
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Dawson vs Hayek vs Kruger
Watched a few movies in the past few days.
1st up was Alexander. I read so much about his exploits in children's story books when I was a small boy, didn't know that he was gay till I watched the movie! Of course, we don't expect kid's story books to delve into issues of sexual preferences, so I can't blame them. Like many of Oliver Stone's films, I left the cinema a bit confused and thoughtful at the same time. This guy here almost conquered the entire known world during his time, drove and stretched his weary men to their limits, and achieve all that he did when he was only... well... around my age now!
I don't know why some reviewers and journalists are comparing this film with Troy, as they are quite different. Troy has lots of action and battle sequences. But Alexander has more drama and talking scenes showing us the growing tension between Alexander and his mother, father, his men, and his lovers (Rosario Dawson! What a babe!). So being quite different, I can't say it's better or worse than Troy. Maybe it's the script, and the way the story was laid out. In typical Stone fashion, complicated. *
Next up, After the Sunset, starring Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek! Lovely.
Very much like The Thomas Crown Affair, but with Salma Hayek!
Now go and catch Salma Hayek cavorting au naturel with Mr.Bond on the beach. *
Then there was National Treasure, which I've been looking forward to. Diane Kruger, who was Helen of Troy in Troy, is the female lead here.
After a slightly slow start, the story shifts into the higher gears and from then on, it's a rollercoaster ride. Although in the end, it turned out to be more Indiana Jones instead of going back to really try to make sense of what all those mystical symbols and what not are supposed to mean, overall, I think it's quite an enjoyable movie. *
Got my new High Sierra Wet Hydration Pack in preparation for our planned trek through the Mandai/Bukit Timah forest with Sukaimi, which, according to him, should be about 21km +/-.
1st up was Alexander. I read so much about his exploits in children's story books when I was a small boy, didn't know that he was gay till I watched the movie! Of course, we don't expect kid's story books to delve into issues of sexual preferences, so I can't blame them. Like many of Oliver Stone's films, I left the cinema a bit confused and thoughtful at the same time. This guy here almost conquered the entire known world during his time, drove and stretched his weary men to their limits, and achieve all that he did when he was only... well... around my age now!
I don't know why some reviewers and journalists are comparing this film with Troy, as they are quite different. Troy has lots of action and battle sequences. But Alexander has more drama and talking scenes showing us the growing tension between Alexander and his mother, father, his men, and his lovers (Rosario Dawson! What a babe!). So being quite different, I can't say it's better or worse than Troy. Maybe it's the script, and the way the story was laid out. In typical Stone fashion, complicated. *
Next up, After the Sunset, starring Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek! Lovely.
Very much like The Thomas Crown Affair, but with Salma Hayek!
Now go and catch Salma Hayek cavorting au naturel with Mr.Bond on the beach. *
Then there was National Treasure, which I've been looking forward to. Diane Kruger, who was Helen of Troy in Troy, is the female lead here.
After a slightly slow start, the story shifts into the higher gears and from then on, it's a rollercoaster ride. Although in the end, it turned out to be more Indiana Jones instead of going back to really try to make sense of what all those mystical symbols and what not are supposed to mean, overall, I think it's quite an enjoyable movie. *
Got my new High Sierra Wet Hydration Pack in preparation for our planned trek through the Mandai/Bukit Timah forest with Sukaimi, which, according to him, should be about 21km +/-.
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Morning Run
Went for a short run at McRitchie Reservoir this morning. I tried to keep my pace constant throughout, but on our way back, I was panting like a dog! I really need to build up my stamina and strength. The up and down slopes were killing me. And I only ran about 5km or less.
But the shoe turned out alright, able to help me regain the grip after almost slipping on some loose gravel. And it didn't feel too hot or heavy either.
We were talking about running the inner route in future, which stretches about 11km at least, not sure if it's a round trip so it could be more. It should lead us all the way to the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve pass some lakes, reservoirs, and jungle trail. Sounds like fun.
But the shoe turned out alright, able to help me regain the grip after almost slipping on some loose gravel. And it didn't feel too hot or heavy either.
We were talking about running the inner route in future, which stretches about 11km at least, not sure if it's a round trip so it could be more. It should lead us all the way to the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve pass some lakes, reservoirs, and jungle trail. Sounds like fun.
New Balance 900
Finally got the running shoe that I 'need' today, cos I couldn't find what I wanted anywhere.
After some swimming, sun and sand at Sentosa with CT & our little punk grrl, we went shoe hunting at Bugis Junction.
Adidas has a sale on with 30% off most items. But after trying out a few pairs of trail and road shoes, I find them all too snug, especially from the heel to midfoot area. Apparently, this is an Adidas trait, and, after googling around, the Running Times website did mention that Adidas shoes do have a narrower fit. I have a rather low arch- almost totally flat-footed, plus I over-pronate moderately, and just standing with those shoes on, I can already feel the arch support pushing hard against my feet. And, in a long or hard run, that means PAIN. That's just too bad cos they looked really nice plus I think they make the most well ventilated shoes, and with 30% off, they're a steal. Mmm, I wonder why is it that my Adidas ClimaCool Banshee Adventure shoes doesn't give me these problems.
So I moved on to World of Sports and finally tried out the New Balance 900. And man, what a difference in comfort! The shoe is very light, rather wide with a low center of gravity(which also means slightly less insole cushioning compared to the Adidas), the arch is not high like the Adidas yet gives just enough support and comfort, forefoot feels extremely flexible, and it comes with spongy 'sausage' like laces which looks nice and makes it difficult for the laces to loosen on its own. The dark blue, grey, white, and yellow also complement each other nicely. Bought them at $127, 30% off the list price. I'm very happy with my purchase. I'll be meeting Sukaimi tomorrow at McRitchie Reservoir to try them out. The route I'll be running is a mix of mud, gravel, and road, which I believe the not too conservative outsole tread pattern should cope well.
just what I needed is now mine, this is the exactly the colour I ended up with.
Here's an overview and some reviews.
Here's some other useful info I found at the Running Times Shoe Guide 2004 site.
Short reviews of the shoes I need and want.
Useful list of reviews and recommendations of Manufacturer and models based on pronation factor.
Road shoes vs Trail shoes explained.
After some swimming, sun and sand at Sentosa with CT & our little punk grrl, we went shoe hunting at Bugis Junction.
Adidas has a sale on with 30% off most items. But after trying out a few pairs of trail and road shoes, I find them all too snug, especially from the heel to midfoot area. Apparently, this is an Adidas trait, and, after googling around, the Running Times website did mention that Adidas shoes do have a narrower fit. I have a rather low arch- almost totally flat-footed, plus I over-pronate moderately, and just standing with those shoes on, I can already feel the arch support pushing hard against my feet. And, in a long or hard run, that means PAIN. That's just too bad cos they looked really nice plus I think they make the most well ventilated shoes, and with 30% off, they're a steal. Mmm, I wonder why is it that my Adidas ClimaCool Banshee Adventure shoes doesn't give me these problems.
So I moved on to World of Sports and finally tried out the New Balance 900. And man, what a difference in comfort! The shoe is very light, rather wide with a low center of gravity(which also means slightly less insole cushioning compared to the Adidas), the arch is not high like the Adidas yet gives just enough support and comfort, forefoot feels extremely flexible, and it comes with spongy 'sausage' like laces which looks nice and makes it difficult for the laces to loosen on its own. The dark blue, grey, white, and yellow also complement each other nicely. Bought them at $127, 30% off the list price. I'm very happy with my purchase. I'll be meeting Sukaimi tomorrow at McRitchie Reservoir to try them out. The route I'll be running is a mix of mud, gravel, and road, which I believe the not too conservative outsole tread pattern should cope well.
just what I needed is now mine, this is the exactly the colour I ended up with.
Here's an overview and some reviews.
Here's some other useful info I found at the Running Times Shoe Guide 2004 site.
Short reviews of the shoes I need and want.
Useful list of reviews and recommendations of Manufacturer and models based on pronation factor.
Road shoes vs Trail shoes explained.
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Make Love Not SPAM
Are you sick and tired of SPAM? (Unsolicited Commercial Mass Email or simply Junk Mail) Feel like letting them have a taste of their own medicine?
Well, if you got bandwidth to spare, or, better still, if you are subscribed to broadband with unlimited access or bandwidth, you can now help fight SPAM more aggressively!
If enough people download and use this screensaver, it will help 'waste' the bandwidth of those sites selling products advertised through SPAM, making it expensive for them to operate.
I downloaded the screensaver and installed it. Nice animation, showing the names of the sites being 'hit' and various other info like their geographical location. Runs as a screensaver when my computer is idling, zero performance hit. Finally a screensaver that does something. (I'm not too much for helping SETI look for ET)
Check out the site and download the thing over at makeLOVEnotSPAM... as reported by BBC.
[EDIT]: Apparently, some time after this posting, the site got hacked, displaying a message written by the hacker(s). At the moment, the site is still down. If you want the file, just send me an email. Just click on the 'email me' button near the bottom part of the sidebar.
Smart Bombs... Away!
Well, if you got bandwidth to spare, or, better still, if you are subscribed to broadband with unlimited access or bandwidth, you can now help fight SPAM more aggressively!
Internet portal Lycos has made a screensaver that endlessly requests data from
sites that sell the goods and services mentioned in spam e-mail.
"Every single user will contribute three to four megabytes per day," he said, "about one MP3 file."
If enough people download and use this screensaver, it will help 'waste' the bandwidth of those sites selling products advertised through SPAM, making it expensive for them to operate.
I downloaded the screensaver and installed it. Nice animation, showing the names of the sites being 'hit' and various other info like their geographical location. Runs as a screensaver when my computer is idling, zero performance hit. Finally a screensaver that does something. (I'm not too much for helping SETI look for ET)
Check out the site and download the thing over at makeLOVEnotSPAM... as reported by BBC.
[EDIT]: Apparently, some time after this posting, the site got hacked, displaying a message written by the hacker(s). At the moment, the site is still down. If you want the file, just send me an email. Just click on the 'email me' button near the bottom part of the sidebar.
Smart Bombs... Away!
National Treasure
I'm really looking forward to this movie, along with Immortal. All these mystical stuff are really so facinating.
After watching the trailers of National Treasure, it really makes me wonder why the 1 dollar bill has the pyramid plus the all-seeing-eye, etc. Then I chance upon this entry which describes in detail what it all means. Now I know! Be sure to read the comments as well.
Somehow, after reading about the US note, it reminds me of the presidents of the US, past to present, which reminds me of... this?
After watching the trailers of National Treasure, it really makes me wonder why the 1 dollar bill has the pyramid plus the all-seeing-eye, etc. Then I chance upon this entry which describes in detail what it all means. Now I know! Be sure to read the comments as well.
Somehow, after reading about the US note, it reminds me of the presidents of the US, past to present, which reminds me of... this?
Monday, November 29, 2004
Fogging a fluey fish out of water
ARGGHH...
I think I'm ill. A flu-bug must have bitten me. But better the flu-bug than the mosquitofly thing that spread the deadly dengue. Yes, no thanks to the rainy weather giving them mosquitoflies nice places to breed, the gahment here is trying it's darndest best to nip it in the butt. Spot checks, fogging, and what not.
I actually wanted to soak myself in chlorine to kill my flu-germs-bacteria-things at the SAFRA 'country club' just now, but found out when I reached there that they open late at 11am on Mondays. My guess is that they are doing their weekly clean-up after Sunday, the family day, where all those uncles, aunties, and their young ones relax themselves in the pool and help neutralize the chlorine level with some specially formulated ammonia...
So now, instead of me relaxing in a chlorinated jacuzzi, I'm holed up inside my home while those 'storm-troopers' are fogging the whole neighbourhood. They are right outside my door even as I type this, my cats are scrambling for cover, frightened by their stun-guns. This is the first time I see them go round fogging all the flats, floor by floor, instead of just the ground level. Has the situation gone that bad?
I think this fogging is gonna take me down sooner than killing those commando mosquitoes. I'd die a happier man soaking in that chlorinated jacuzzi, give me the ammonia anytime...
I think I'm ill. A flu-bug must have bitten me. But better the flu-bug than the mosquitofly thing that spread the deadly dengue. Yes, no thanks to the rainy weather giving them mosquitoflies nice places to breed, the gahment here is trying it's darndest best to nip it in the butt. Spot checks, fogging, and what not.
I actually wanted to soak myself in chlorine to kill my flu-germs-bacteria-things at the SAFRA 'country club' just now, but found out when I reached there that they open late at 11am on Mondays. My guess is that they are doing their weekly clean-up after Sunday, the family day, where all those uncles, aunties, and their young ones relax themselves in the pool and help neutralize the chlorine level with some specially formulated ammonia...
So now, instead of me relaxing in a chlorinated jacuzzi, I'm holed up inside my home while those 'storm-troopers' are fogging the whole neighbourhood. They are right outside my door even as I type this, my cats are scrambling for cover, frightened by their stun-guns. This is the first time I see them go round fogging all the flats, floor by floor, instead of just the ground level. Has the situation gone that bad?
I think this fogging is gonna take me down sooner than killing those commando mosquitoes. I'd die a happier man soaking in that chlorinated jacuzzi, give me the ammonia anytime...
![[picture]](http://photos1.blogger.com/img/237/2390/1024/beached.jpg)
Sunday, November 28, 2004
Friday, November 26, 2004
Daewoo on ma hands
Saw the Hollywood remake of Taxi yesterday. It's your typical feel-good comedy. Jimmy Fallon was pretty funny in an off-beat goofy kinda way. And some scenes were so hilarious, with Queen Latifah goofing around with Jim. It doesn't come close to the original French masterpiece by Luc Besson, but it has it's moments.
Don't really like the girls though. What are they flaunting? Skin and bones? And some parts, they are suddenly speaking English among themselves?
Anyway, if you got nothing else to do and want to have a good laugh, the show is alright.
Oh, and if you got a Daewoo car, you've got to catch this movie!
Note: From this post on, I'm not gonna openly rate the movies I watch, cos one man's meat is another's poison, I don't want my liking or disliking of a show to cloud anyone's judgement before they watch the movie. Many a times, after reading bad reviews about a movie, I went on to watch it anyway and I tend to disagree with the reviewer's opinion. So if you are really interested in how I rate them, just hold your mouse pointer over the *
Don't really like the girls though. What are they flaunting? Skin and bones? And some parts, they are suddenly speaking English among themselves?
Anyway, if you got nothing else to do and want to have a good laugh, the show is alright.
Oh, and if you got a Daewoo car, you've got to catch this movie!
Note: From this post on, I'm not gonna openly rate the movies I watch, cos one man's meat is another's poison, I don't want my liking or disliking of a show to cloud anyone's judgement before they watch the movie. Many a times, after reading bad reviews about a movie, I went on to watch it anyway and I tend to disagree with the reviewer's opinion. So if you are really interested in how I rate them, just hold your mouse pointer over the *
Thursday, November 25, 2004
Happy Week
This past week or so has been the best I've ever had in a while.
Watched some great movies, I'm enjoying a good week at work, and now I'm having another 4 days break. Yahoo!
CT is busy getting herself involved in running and stuff and daring to do things without the need to have me around, like the Mizuno Wave 10km run she just did. Check out some pics they took of her. I think she's Edward Scissors-hand's sister or something...
I just love it when I see my dear enjoying life and having fun. Hope she'll keep it going even when school starts next year. Healthy body=healthy mind=attractive person!
Ok! Time to get back to some running and swimming! And movies, of course!
If things go as planned, I should be going for a morning swim later and hopefully a movie. My colleague said Bride and Prejudice was horrible, so I think I'll give it a miss. Maybe I'll go for Taxi instead. Can't wait for Immortal to screen...
Watched some great movies, I'm enjoying a good week at work, and now I'm having another 4 days break. Yahoo!
CT is busy getting herself involved in running and stuff and daring to do things without the need to have me around, like the Mizuno Wave 10km run she just did. Check out some pics they took of her. I think she's Edward Scissors-hand's sister or something...
I just love it when I see my dear enjoying life and having fun. Hope she'll keep it going even when school starts next year. Healthy body=healthy mind=attractive person!
Ok! Time to get back to some running and swimming! And movies, of course!
If things go as planned, I should be going for a morning swim later and hopefully a movie. My colleague said Bride and Prejudice was horrible, so I think I'll give it a miss. Maybe I'll go for Taxi instead. Can't wait for Immortal to screen...
Saturday, November 20, 2004
Grateful
Are you grateful to be alive?
Are you thankful for what you have? Or are you too concern about what you think you need, what you think you should have, or simply with what you want?
Are you abusing the time you have in your hands? Are you abusing yourself, and those who love you? Spending too much time with your earthly possessions, and so much effort in persuing them?
What if you were told right now that you have only a day left to live? 24 hours, maybe less.
What would you do? How would you choose to spend your remaining hours?
Are you thankful for what you have? Or are you too concern about what you think you need, what you think you should have, or simply with what you want?
Are you abusing the time you have in your hands? Are you abusing yourself, and those who love you? Spending too much time with your earthly possessions, and so much effort in persuing them?
What if you were told right now that you have only a day left to live? 24 hours, maybe less.
What would you do? How would you choose to spend your remaining hours?
Saw
Went to see Saw just now.
Saw the movie, that is.
Erm... pardon my poor Ingrish. I try again. I just finished watching the movie titled Saw.
This is some great movie making. For something that's shot in just 18 days, with no need for expensive special effects or some over-paid super-idols to carry the movie or some big name director to call the shots, this is the kind of movie that's worth my time and dime! 9/10.
Saw 2 has been announced. And Alexandra Bokyun Chun is such a babe.
Halfway through the movie, 2 men in blue came in to frisk the theater with their flashlights. A few minutes later, another 2 came in to join them. I made sure that my cadbury bar which I smuggled in was hidden well out of sight, just in case. Nah, maybe they're just looking for a big rat, must be.
Music discovery alert: From FIFA2005 soundtrack~ "Take Your Mama" by Scissor Sisters, best song of the lot. "Augen Auf!" by Oomph!, Rammstein soundalike but nice song anyhuay. "Brooklyn is Burning" by Head Automatica, feet tapping muzak!
Next Up: Birth, Taxi, Aishwarya Rai... oops, I mean to say... Bride and Prejudice
Saw the movie, that is.
Erm... pardon my poor Ingrish. I try again. I just finished watching the movie titled Saw.
This is some great movie making. For something that's shot in just 18 days, with no need for expensive special effects or some over-paid super-idols to carry the movie or some big name director to call the shots, this is the kind of movie that's worth my time and dime! 9/10.
Saw 2 has been announced. And Alexandra Bokyun Chun is such a babe.
Halfway through the movie, 2 men in blue came in to frisk the theater with their flashlights. A few minutes later, another 2 came in to join them. I made sure that my cadbury bar which I smuggled in was hidden well out of sight, just in case. Nah, maybe they're just looking for a big rat, must be.
Music discovery alert: From FIFA2005 soundtrack~ "Take Your Mama" by Scissor Sisters, best song of the lot. "Augen Auf!" by Oomph!, Rammstein soundalike but nice song anyhuay. "Brooklyn is Burning" by Head Automatica, feet tapping muzak!
Next Up: Birth, Taxi, Aishwarya Rai... oops, I mean to say... Bride and Prejudice
Friday, November 19, 2004
Oh no, another dive accident...
Reminds me of 2 close calls I had on my dive trips at Batam Indonesia and the Rainbow Warrior wreck in New Zealand.
My dive buddy was, who else, my dear ct.
In Batam, halfway throught the dive, at about 12 meters deep, I looked away for a moment and the next thing I know, she was no longer beside me. Visibility was poor but I managed to spot her about 3 meters above me, ascending leisurely. I tried to catch her attention by waving frantically, but she was looking up, where she was heading. I tried shouting at her, but underwater with a SCUBA mouthpiece in my mouth, only God can hear me. I tried to catch up with her, but rapid ascensions are a definite no no in SCUBA diving.
When we surfaced, I asked her why she didn't stick with her buddy like how we were trained, she said she couldn't see me. But how do you explain that I can see you ascending? I think she just felt uncomfortable and scared and wanted to ascend. That's ok, very normal, and to discontinue the dive is correct. But the proper way to do it is to inform your buddy and ascend together. No matter what, never break the buddy system!
In New Zealand, we were exploring the famous wreck of Greenpeace's ill fated Rainbow Warrior wreck. Visibility was good, but the current was rather strong and water at the surface was choppy. Plus at 18 meters deep, the water was quite cold. This time, ct stuck well to my side, and I made sure that I'm always holding on to her. But I ended up having to pull her through the current all the time cos she got tired pretty quickly. Very soon, I find that I'm getting tired too and my oxygen was being used up almost twice as fast as compared to her's. I signalled to her that we should cut short our dive and ascend. She was already too tired to swim and I'm running out of oxygen fast due to all the extra 'work' of pulling her weight. It was thrilling, but the danger was real.
We need more dive hours to gain more experience. But dive accidents can happen to even the most seasoned divers. And when it does happen, it is often fatal.
The NE monsoon is almost over, anyone care for some S.C.U.B.A diving?
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Another Perfect Day
In line with how IMDB rates the movies, I will from now on rate movies I watched on a scale of 10.
Just came back from The Incredibles, and I must say, what a fantastic show! Great plot, funny and interesting characters, superb animation by the incredible talents at Pixar, and some amazing voice acting that really fleshed out each of the characters' personalities. A wonderful joyride not to be missed. Better than Antz, A Bug's Life, and Finding Nemo, and probably on par with Ice Age, losing only in the tear-jerking department. 9.5/10 for exceeding my expectation. Would have been a perfect 10 if not for shows like LOTR, Matrix, and 5th Element.
And Lido 1 remains the undisputed KING of all cinema halls in Singapore. THX baby! Although GV's excellent online booking system will eat Shaw's for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Oh, and throw in Supper, too. Yeah, it's that bad.
Also went to watch The Forgotten yesterday. The story had potential, but I felt the trailers gave away too much. Hard as I try, I could not help but correctly guessed what the fuss was all about. But I still find it rather entertaining in some ways, although the terrible sound system at GV Bishan Hall 2, the drilling noise from the renovation works, and giggly/chatty/restless teenage school kids almost made me wanna leave the hall. But I stay focused on the reasonably gripping storyline instead and in the end... oh, I'm not gonna spoil it for you. Watchable, but very soon you'll forget lah. 6.5/10.
Oh, my dearest little sis has quietly put up her blogz, check out Zephyr & In Loving Memory in my Blogroll!
Now I need to get a good rest. Slept at 4am this morning for about 3 hours and went for a run at East Coast Park, yeah, I feel great!
On the way there, the Class95 DJs were talking about what we Singaporeans think about the quality of life here, and whether we're happy about it. Well, take away the high expectations and the pressure we receive at work, I would say I'm pretty happy with it. Like what the Flying Dutchman said, right now, he wouldn't trade it for anywhere else in the world!
This I agree.
Take this morning for example. Nice sunny weekday morning, the locals as well as the expats, both male and female, were either having a nice stroll, jogging, walking their dogs, in-line-skating (usually referred to as Rollerblading), and cycling. They were having the time of their life! Just like I was!
After my little run, had breakfast at McDowell's, sent our nephew back home, took a shower at his place, join my colleagues for lunch at The Rice Table (didn't like the service that much), catch a movie, walk around Orchard Road. Almost a perfect day. Well it's just that when I'm back at work, I have to really focus, deal with the pressure, and know that I'm doing it so that I can look forward to yet another perfect day...
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Women of Substance
Was googling around the web while listening to Kevin's mishmashed(in my icq profile, I once stated that I speak some Yiddish, well there you go, don't ask me how and where I learned it coz I donch know) playlist when this rich voice suddenly broke the monotony. The song is In The Glade, sung by... Milla Jovovich?! That model/actress and... singer?
Just to be sure, I googled up her name and, indeed, the song was sung by her, and there's many more! I was already pretty impressed by her performance in The Fifth Element, one of the many movies she acted in. I know she is this beautiful Revlon model. And now, she is a singer/songwriter, too.
She just became the most talented model in my little red book.
Oh, and I just found out from Miyagi's blog that, besides Hossan Leong, he seems to be old buds with Steph Song too... what the.... this chow-corprer... maybe I should ask him if he knows my DJ/songwriter/singer cousin who goes by the monicker Jiujian, or Q-Ken (believe me, his real name sounds alot nicer), kinda lost touch with him for years now. Oh, but I did asked if he's friend with Amy Cheng, my biggest fan
Just to be sure, I googled up her name and, indeed, the song was sung by her, and there's many more! I was already pretty impressed by her performance in The Fifth Element, one of the many movies she acted in. I know she is this beautiful Revlon model. And now, she is a singer/songwriter, too.
She just became the most talented model in my little red book.
Oh, and I just found out from Miyagi's blog that, besides Hossan Leong, he seems to be old buds with Steph Song too... what the.... this chow-corprer... maybe I should ask him if he knows my DJ/songwriter/singer cousin who goes by the monicker Jiujian, or Q-Ken (believe me, his real name sounds alot nicer), kinda lost touch with him for years now. Oh, but I did asked if he's friend with Amy Cheng, my biggest fan
Thursday, November 04, 2004
Faster! Faster!
Went for a run with ct yesterday before breaking fast, feeling inspired by Sukaimi of the roadburners. Sharon de Costa from The Straits Times actually contacted Sukaimi, wanting to feature the roadburners' blog in a weekly column like what they did for Miyagi's, but for reasons best known to himself, he turned it down.
We planned out a 5 km route and started the run at about 6:10pm. That should give us more than enough time for a very slow jog, just in time for us to cool down and break fast.
As I've laid off running for more than a month, I decided to jog at ct's pace, also taking into consideration that this is the first time I'm running while fasting. About 2km into the run, I was beginning to feel pain in both my knees, but I told myself that as long as the pain is not too unbearable, I will not stop. Then ct suddenly slowed down and showed me the 'V' sign. Turned out it's not for 'victory' but for 'wanna pee'. Alamak, why didn't do it when I reminded her so before we started off 10 minutes ago? 500 metres later, I waited for her for about 5 minutes outside SAFRA country club, trying not to let my body cool down too much.
She contemplated taking a shortcut. I told her to go ahead, but then still find her jogging slowly behind me. For the next 2.5km, I was able to pick up my pace after my heart rate and body temperature went up again.
Quite happy that after a long layoff, I was still able to finish the run with just some minor pain in the knees. I started very slowly and was still able to almost sprint the last 100 metres without feeling too tired or breathless. I think ct picked up her pace too towards the end, coming in only a few minutes later. But then 35 minutes to run 5 km is rather slow, we need to improve on our pace! Let's see, for myself, my personal best timing for 2.4km was 9min 21sec. So, for 5km, I should be doing it in about 20 to 25 minutes.
That means given 35 minutes, I should have ran another 2.5km more!
We planned out a 5 km route and started the run at about 6:10pm. That should give us more than enough time for a very slow jog, just in time for us to cool down and break fast.
As I've laid off running for more than a month, I decided to jog at ct's pace, also taking into consideration that this is the first time I'm running while fasting. About 2km into the run, I was beginning to feel pain in both my knees, but I told myself that as long as the pain is not too unbearable, I will not stop. Then ct suddenly slowed down and showed me the 'V' sign. Turned out it's not for 'victory' but for 'wanna pee'. Alamak, why didn't do it when I reminded her so before we started off 10 minutes ago? 500 metres later, I waited for her for about 5 minutes outside SAFRA country club, trying not to let my body cool down too much.
She contemplated taking a shortcut. I told her to go ahead, but then still find her jogging slowly behind me. For the next 2.5km, I was able to pick up my pace after my heart rate and body temperature went up again.
Quite happy that after a long layoff, I was still able to finish the run with just some minor pain in the knees. I started very slowly and was still able to almost sprint the last 100 metres without feeling too tired or breathless. I think ct picked up her pace too towards the end, coming in only a few minutes later. But then 35 minutes to run 5 km is rather slow, we need to improve on our pace! Let's see, for myself, my personal best timing for 2.4km was 9min 21sec. So, for 5km, I should be doing it in about 20 to 25 minutes.
That means given 35 minutes, I should have ran another 2.5km more!
Sunday, October 24, 2004
three words
Sat through about 2 hours worth of Wong Kar Wai's 2046. It was raining outside, the cinema's air-conditioning was on full blast, and my knees were in pain.
It's a very slow paced and deep movie about relationships. And my interpretation of it can be summed up in three words; fate, timing, choice.
Reminds me of a time when I was in an active friendship/relationship with a few girlfriends. But at the end of the day, I had to make a choice, and in the process, break a few hearts. Granted, Wong's movies are not for everyone, you either love it or hate it, so I could be biased when I give it a 8/10.
Should have put on my longjohns, would have enjoyed the show much better.
It's a very slow paced and deep movie about relationships. And my interpretation of it can be summed up in three words; fate, timing, choice.
Reminds me of a time when I was in an active friendship/relationship with a few girlfriends. But at the end of the day, I had to make a choice, and in the process, break a few hearts. Granted, Wong's movies are not for everyone, you either love it or hate it, so I could be biased when I give it a 8/10.
Should have put on my longjohns, would have enjoyed the show much better.
Friday, October 22, 2004
When Animals Attack
Yesterday, Cookie, a cat I gave to my sis Serene, was put to death, by my own decision.
"So what do you want to do with it?" The pet handler asked.
My heart almost stopped, but I had to make the call, I can't risk having such a powerful and unpredictable tomcat staying with 3 old folks anymore.
"Put it to sleep..."
Siti cried, my sis cried on the line when she heard it from me. But we all know it was inevitable.
Whatever happened took place so fast that I'm not sure if I got it all down correctly.
After ferrying my grandma and mum to the dentist, we decided to drop by their place for awhile. Cookie, as usual, greeted us with some whining and grumbling, as if to chide us for being away so long. We all know that he must have missed Serene, who got married and moved out about 6 months ago. I played with it for a few minutes before settling down to read the papers. Cookie then went over to Siti smell her feet, then her bermudas, then her blouse. We know he can pick up our own cat's scent coz Allie, my fat cat, has been sleeping on it for the past day or so. But this is not the first time so it's nothing unusual.
Siti and mum then decided to look at some stuff in Serene's vacated room. Next I know, Siti was calling out, Kevin Help! Kevin Help! Cookie is biting me!
I got up and walked over to the room, thinking that the cat is probably playing with her, but what I saw next shocked me.
My mum was running away from Cookie, after being badly scratched on the leg by him when she tried to stop it from biting Siti. The cat chased after my mum and pounced on her, clinging on to her right arm with it's razor sharp claws, scratching and biting her at the same time. She flung it to the floor in pain. Immediately, I tried to lift it up by the fold of skin behind it's neck and shoulders with my left hand, as this method is known to relax cats. But, apparently, this cat has forgotten how to relax. It spun around forcefully, biting and scratching my wrist, causing my grip on him to loosen. Then it pounced on me, this time clinging on to my right arm and sinking it's fangs into it. I now know that this is no longer the Cookie we knew and so loved, it has lost it's mind. I thought of flinging the cat out the 14th floor window but couldn't make myself do it, having watched it come out of it's mother's womb right up to this day, 7 years later, so instead, I just bit my lip and bear with the pain, grabbed it by it's torso, and pushed it, back first, into a pile of junk, at the same time shouting at Siti and mum to get out of the room.
At that moment, the cat went berserk, clawing away at my right hand viciously. The pain got to me again as I quickly released the cat. It jumped out of the rubble and started to approach me again. I told my mum to remain still as I retreated slowly out of the room with Siti behind me. I shut the door behind it so that my mum is isolated. But now I'm being cornered by it, every sound and movement from us was deemed threatening. My concern now is for my wife hiding behind me, and my grandma, cooking up a storm in the kitchen, oblivious to the severity of the situation. I tried shouting at her to unlock the door and gate and lock herself in her room but, being partially deaf, she couldn't hear me. I guess ignorance truly is bliss! She later saw us cowering in the corner and even tried making some noise and calling the cat! I used the universal hand signal to tell her to keep quiet and to shut herself in the room. But she didn't get it.
After about 15 minutes of standing motionless in the corner, Siti called 999 using her mobile. The operator must have thought we were joking, but she said a despatch is on the way anyway.
I then shouted at my grandma to switch off the TV, and then told her to leave the gates unlocked for the police and shut herself in the room. Hearing the word police finally made her realize that we were facing a dangerous beast now. She finally did as I said.
After another 15 minutes, the police finally arrived. 2 men in blue. I told them to grab a few big towels as they managed to distract the cat. Cookie then started to turn his attention to the newly arrived strangers and started to move slowly towards them. Quickly, I asked Siti to get in the room to find me a towel. She got me a big, quilted blanket. Even better. Slowly, we closed in on Cookie and cornered him into the toilet. The cop tried to capture the cat with the blanket but after about 15 minutes, they too gave up. Without the right equipment, it was just too strong and risky for us to do it safely.
After a few phone calls, I got a number from the SPCA, and they gave me the number to a guy named Francis, a professional pet-handler/problem-solver. He laughed at first upon hearing that the police were involved but said that he will be here anyway, with the proper equipment, I reminded him.
Half an hour later, this tall specky guy came, with a pvc pipe with nylon loops at both ends and a cage in his hands. According to him, he's been doing this for 15 years, so he should have seen it all.
The loop was slowly manoeuvred around Cookie, who was at this time screaming loudly at this new threat and pooing uncontrollably out of fear and desperation, and with a quick tug at the other end, choke-held the cat around it's neck. It's attempt to scratch the pvc pole and to break itself free were in vain. Francis quickly stuff the cat into the cage. It was over in about 5 minutes.
He said that in his 15 years, he's never seen a domesticated house cat gone so crazy like this. Must have been due to the pent-up sexual urge over the past 7 years, noting that it wasn't neutered. Maybe it's trying to protect it's owner's room from unfamiliar people with other cat's scent on our body. He said that this is a very dominant tomcat, judging from it's ferocity and its bulky and round head, and it will probably kill the other male strays in the neighbourhood had it been let loose. Then he asked me the dreaded question.
With a lump in my throat, I told him my painful decision, and said our last goodbyes to Cookie...
Damage assessment. I have mostly lacerated wounds mostly caused by the cat clinging onto my arm and tearing away with it's hind legs, plus a few puncture wounds from it's fangs. Some minor cuts and bruises on my legs and knees when I struggled to hold it down.
Mum was worse off. Cookie took a chunk of her skin off her arm, about the size of two 10 cent coins, and we can see the flesh and the fats from the gaping wound. Took 5 stitches to patch it up. Her right leg also has a few scratches about 5 to 8cm long.
$80 for Francis, $20 for SPCA to put Cookie to sleep, $135 for patching us up. But money was the last thing on my mind then... poor Cookie...
On my way back from the clinic, my car also ran over a bird. So I guess that's 2 lives I've ended now in just one day...
Rest in Peace, Cookie...
Monday, October 18, 2004
oh, I forgot
ManU held again, that's 2 draws at home and 3 away now...
Liverpool fought back from 2 goals down to win 2-4...
Charlton and Newcastle practised hitting the woodwork and shooting at the guys on the line...
Everton's season still going strong...
Middlesborough getting stronger season by season...
Chelsea finally got beaten...
Arsenal gunning for record 50 wins...
come what may, there's always time for sports and stuff, now back to being depressed...
Liverpool fought back from 2 goals down to win 2-4...
Charlton and Newcastle practised hitting the woodwork and shooting at the guys on the line...
Everton's season still going strong...
Middlesborough getting stronger season by season...
Chelsea finally got beaten...
Arsenal gunning for record 50 wins...
come what may, there's always time for sports and stuff, now back to being depressed...
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Watz Happening
Quite a few things happened in the past few days. And I've had many mood swings, much like what the ladies call PMS, haha.
I've been having 2 repetitive dreams for the past few. One is a nightmare, the other one sweet as honey.
In the nightmare, I have this very cute and adorable kitten whom I've grown to love. But it has this malady or curse that will turned it into a humongous, gargantuan monster with green eyes and veins popping out all over the place every once in a blue moon. I fought it bravely, but it was a tough fight. Coz I know this monster was actually the very cuddly kitten, so how can I kill it? I was trying my best to buy enough time so that this monster will somehow turn back to the kitten, and maybe I can find a cure for what ails it. I will try forever, or die trying.
Sometimes, I can almost understand why some people chose to stay single, and some turn gay or lez.
Well as for the sweet dream.... It's xxx rated and really too explicit to put up here la... I'll leave it to your imagination, muahahahaha.
Sometimes, I don't understand how people can stay single without a soul mate, or turn gay or lez.
I'm also very glad that I've met a bunch of fellow sports-lovers, and ran into an old friend.
It started out when someone named Sukaimi of the roadburners left a msg on my wife's blog. Followed the url and found out that they are actually a group of healthy living and fun loving runners who just love to run. Check them out! Its amazing, the feats that they have accomplished, like the 120km round Sg island run, its unbelievable! Next year, I'll join them for sure. We've exchanged contacts and agreed to take part in some team events, soon. I'm a waterboy, can help in the swimming part, I'll leave the real hard-work of running to them, the elite, haha.
Also, from the roadburners blog, saw Wendy's blog. She is a cyclist and loves to participate in cycling events. Since she's Malaccan, her melayu is very cim. I think my CT will gain much when she gets to know Wendy, can improve her pidgen bahasa melayu(baku, malaysia, whatever!), heheh. She's been bugging me to get us a pair of bicycles for years after she gave her's away and mine got stolen, but, due to a lack of 'motivation', I've not done so.
Leonard-me-Ken-ChinWeeRemember Ken, he was the mastermind behind the 'distraction' for my guitaring deficiencies during a talent-time competition, and the lead-guitarist from my 2nd band! We've lost touch for a few years now, but we ran into him yesterday evening at PS. He's still very much into writing his own stuff now with his current band, and took part in competitions like Asian Beat and even got into the semi-finals! Good for you Ken. He even asked out of courtesy if I'm willing to play drums for him again should his drummer have problems. Heheh, sure Ken, anytime. Double pedal, paradiddle, even sing, just like old times, no problemo!
So, battling monster, sexy dreams (or izit real?), the sporting vibes are back, the musical contacts surface again... it's gonna be exciting!
I've been having 2 repetitive dreams for the past few. One is a nightmare, the other one sweet as honey.
In the nightmare, I have this very cute and adorable kitten whom I've grown to love. But it has this malady or curse that will turned it into a humongous, gargantuan monster with green eyes and veins popping out all over the place every once in a blue moon. I fought it bravely, but it was a tough fight. Coz I know this monster was actually the very cuddly kitten, so how can I kill it? I was trying my best to buy enough time so that this monster will somehow turn back to the kitten, and maybe I can find a cure for what ails it. I will try forever, or die trying.
Sometimes, I can almost understand why some people chose to stay single, and some turn gay or lez.
Well as for the sweet dream.... It's xxx rated and really too explicit to put up here la... I'll leave it to your imagination, muahahahaha.
Sometimes, I don't understand how people can stay single without a soul mate, or turn gay or lez.
I'm also very glad that I've met a bunch of fellow sports-lovers, and ran into an old friend.
It started out when someone named Sukaimi of the roadburners left a msg on my wife's blog. Followed the url and found out that they are actually a group of healthy living and fun loving runners who just love to run. Check them out! Its amazing, the feats that they have accomplished, like the 120km round Sg island run, its unbelievable! Next year, I'll join them for sure. We've exchanged contacts and agreed to take part in some team events, soon. I'm a waterboy, can help in the swimming part, I'll leave the real hard-work of running to them, the elite, haha.
Also, from the roadburners blog, saw Wendy's blog. She is a cyclist and loves to participate in cycling events. Since she's Malaccan, her melayu is very cim. I think my CT will gain much when she gets to know Wendy, can improve her pidgen bahasa melayu(baku, malaysia, whatever!), heheh. She's been bugging me to get us a pair of bicycles for years after she gave her's away and mine got stolen, but, due to a lack of 'motivation', I've not done so.
Leonard-me-Ken-ChinWee
So, battling monster, sexy dreams (or izit real?), the sporting vibes are back, the musical contacts surface again... it's gonna be exciting!
Thursday, October 14, 2004
Shut Up, Kevin!
Sometimes, I should've just kept my mouth shut, or my hands tied, in this case. In an email convo with Sukaimi, I mentioned in passing my affinity to swimming. Next I know, he was telling me that he needs a swimmer to join him in either a biathlon or triathlon relay event, closing the sentence with "can you kev?"
If you can see me now, you will probably think that I'm a flea infested ape or something. Cos my whole body is itching for such a challenge. And all the scratching in the world won't help.
Can I?
I can't answer that, yet.
But, shall I? Will I?
Yes! Yes!
I almost signed up for this year's event on my own, but thought better of it, cos I know my weakness is in running, and, without devoting any time at all into training, I am just lying to myself.
I used to swim almost everyday. Zero impact, whole body workout, no sweat, low cost. Just lovely.
And I had once cycled from Farrer Road (borrowed a friend's wobbly bicycle there) to West Coast Road to meet my friend Mansur, then together we pedalled over to East Coast Park for a BBQ party, then its back to West Coast with him, before riding alone back to Farrer again to return the bike. I cycled on the road with an unsteady bike, young, fearless, but foolish.
But comes to running, I've lost alot of my endurance. Even short distance, the best I could ever muster for 2.4km was in my NS Army BMT days, at 9mins21secs. Nowhere near good. Moreover, with my sore left toe and loose knees now, no way I can do it.
So now the ball is in my court. Registration closes in 2 days. Event takes place in 16 days time. Swim 800metres only. Sentosa some-more.
Can you Kev?
(just shut up and do it, kev)
If you can see me now, you will probably think that I'm a flea infested ape or something. Cos my whole body is itching for such a challenge. And all the scratching in the world won't help.
Can I?
I can't answer that, yet.
But, shall I? Will I?
Yes! Yes!
I almost signed up for this year's event on my own, but thought better of it, cos I know my weakness is in running, and, without devoting any time at all into training, I am just lying to myself.
I used to swim almost everyday. Zero impact, whole body workout, no sweat, low cost. Just lovely.
And I had once cycled from Farrer Road (borrowed a friend's wobbly bicycle there) to West Coast Road to meet my friend Mansur, then together we pedalled over to East Coast Park for a BBQ party, then its back to West Coast with him, before riding alone back to Farrer again to return the bike. I cycled on the road with an unsteady bike, young, fearless, but foolish.
But comes to running, I've lost alot of my endurance. Even short distance, the best I could ever muster for 2.4km was in my NS Army BMT days, at 9mins21secs. Nowhere near good. Moreover, with my sore left toe and loose knees now, no way I can do it.
So now the ball is in my court. Registration closes in 2 days. Event takes place in 16 days time. Swim 800metres only. Sentosa some-more.
Can you Kev?
(just shut up and do it, kev)
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
Roadburners
Just made contact with one of the Roadburners, Sukaimi. Very humble guy, and in my book, that's Cool, with a capital C.
He invited me to join him on another 10km run, this time at MacRitchie Reservoir. Thank you, bro, but I'm not sure man.
Let's see. In the past few months or so, what have I (not) accomplished?
He invited me to join him on another 10km run, this time at MacRitchie Reservoir. Thank you, bro, but I'm not sure man.
Let's see. In the past few months or so, what have I (not) accomplished?
- April: The JP Morgan run, I really pushed myself. A pity I forgot to time myself properly for the 5.6km run cos from the time the air-horn blared, I spent about 10 good minutes trying to get to the starting point proper. There were just too many 'fun walkers'. I guesstimated my time to be about 30 mins or so of running time. That's not too bad for 5.6km of hop-scotching and zig-zagging through those walkers, strolling abreast their friends and blocking the way of those serious runners. My hips and ankles felt like burning from all the lateral stress.
- May: The New Paper Big Walk was much better. It was about 7km plus, down from the 10km or so due to the big hole at Nicol Highway. We completed it in about 45 to 50 mins, no jog or run, just very brisk walking. But my hips and ankles are still feeling abit sore from the JPM run, well at least my knee was ok.
- Aug: Nike Run. Decided to give it a miss.
- Sept: Terry Fox Run. I couldn't even make it. Work. At least I am represented by CT.
- Sept: Sheares' Bridge Run and Army Half Marathon. Planned to run the 12km even though I know I'm working that night. At the 4km mark halfway up the slope of the highway, my knee, right instead of left, felt loose. Pain. Decided to run 5km only. The remaining 1km plus or so was the longest I ever took to do 1km. My body is weak, my mind, feeble. I have let my friends, family, and myself down. I almost felt like performing the harakiri.
- Oct: Singapore-Johor 2nd link run. Signed up for it, but, damn, why must all the runs be organized on Sundays, which I work? If I were to take leave for each of these runs throughout the year, there won't be enough of them! So I decided to give it a miss again. Different event, same excuses. Work, poor conditioning, blah blah and blah.
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
Superman flies again
A true fighting spirit, a Hero, his spirit can now finally fly free, forever, away from the wheelchair, those life support systems, and that cruel thing called FATE. I'm glad, but not without a tinge of sadness...
You fought a good fight, and lived a life worth remembering. You will live on in my world as Superman. Thank You Christopher Reeve. Thank You Superman, for all the great memories. Au revoir.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
Can't sleep well? Well, start by sleeping less!
I just read about someone wondering about having more hours in a day.
Well, may I suggest that, like me, he starts off by sleeping less! Some experts believe that it is actually beneficial for those suffering from insomnia. And my own personal experience tells me that it will improve the quality of your slumber, especially if you are a light sleeper who can hear an ant sneeze in your bathroom even while asleep.
Of late, I've been turning in early in the morning, anything from 3am to 7am. But I slept so well that I can't hear the phone ring, my SMS alerts, door-bells, my cats wrestling, my neighbour's dogs barking, and no dreams or nightmares. I wake up after no more than 7 hours of almost being in a state of hibernation, where all my senses are fully rested and refreshed, and finding myself able to last longer and do more.
When it comes to sleep, its not the quantity, but the quality that counts.
Oh, talk about sleep, it's time to wake her up. Another long day for her. Mmm, breakfast at McDonald's! Sounds good...
Well, may I suggest that, like me, he starts off by sleeping less! Some experts believe that it is actually beneficial for those suffering from insomnia. And my own personal experience tells me that it will improve the quality of your slumber, especially if you are a light sleeper who can hear an ant sneeze in your bathroom even while asleep.
Of late, I've been turning in early in the morning, anything from 3am to 7am. But I slept so well that I can't hear the phone ring, my SMS alerts, door-bells, my cats wrestling, my neighbour's dogs barking, and no dreams or nightmares. I wake up after no more than 7 hours of almost being in a state of hibernation, where all my senses are fully rested and refreshed, and finding myself able to last longer and do more.
When it comes to sleep, its not the quantity, but the quality that counts.
Oh, talk about sleep, it's time to wake her up. Another long day for her. Mmm, breakfast at McDonald's! Sounds good...
24hrs Swenson's
Ya, in my dreams, that is. It's past midnight and I'm thinking about ice-cream? After sending 'fresh grad' Azlina to Sengkang and 'lucky girl' Lulu back to her posh River Valley Condo, it's already close to 1am. What ice-cream? 7-11 have la.
But after seeing her tackle the super-long Q and standing whole day, must bring her somewhere to makan. So we ended up at the Prata place at Thomson Road. It was rather packed, so no choice, park the car abit further. This 2 Prata shop side-by-side, but how come one so bloody packed, while the other one like, ok only har? Never mind, we'll come on a weekday to try the packed one next week.
After we're done, we know why. The food is not bad, but its nothing fantastic also, that means... the packed one must be damn bloody good, right!? OK, next week, die-die must try!
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