work in progress

It has been almost 2 weeks since coming home from Mongolia. I haven't been able to sit down in front of my computer to sort out the hundreds of photographs nor write about my wonderful experience there. For the first week, I was in a state of exhaustion.. i believe i underestimated the toil of manual labour on my body.. i lost 3 kilograms from working 9 to 5 for 5 days and the lack of appetite for the food in Mongolia.. and then there were stacks and stacks of worksheets waiting to be marked.. i gave up the idea of doing AHM knowing fully that my body would simply just shut down at the halfway mark and i'd probably be cramping the rest of the way.. hubs did wake me up at 4:30am but i fell back into slumber in a daze and dreamt that i'd finished the run hahaha! =)

over the next few days i felt a strange aversion to the computer and fried/unhealthy food.. i had no appetite and ate very little, mostly veggies and clear soup.. it was as if i had returned from a detox vacation.. purged my mind, body and soul of life in a cosmopolitan city.. i missed the simple life back in erdenet.. i missed the children.. i missed waking up each morning to hard labour.. eating lunch out of takeaway boxes under a makeshift tent with my teammates.. working beside and getting to know the humble and simple folks whom we were building the houses for.. dragging my tired body back up the stairs to our rooms in the erdenet hotel.. taking a shower and watching the dirty grey water flow into the drain.. blowing out cement bits from my nostrils and washing grime out of my eyes.. exploring erdenet and eating dinner with my teammates whom i have been truly blessed with because they are a really hardworking and funny bunch of people from all walks of life.. falling into bed to rest my sore shoulders and aching body.. sleep never came easier..

what i really didn't expect, was for the mongolian families to embrace us the way they did.. by the end of the 5 days, we had developed a bond and it was hard to say goodbye, knowing that we will never meet again.. the gratitude i saw in their eyes touched my heart.. it was beautiful the mongolian folk song they sang for us.. tears welled in my eyes when my team leader summed up what i believe all 15 of us felt.. the mongolian families were extremely grateful for all the hard work we had put in to help build their houses.. from ground zero to three solid houses with roofs.. leaving the next korean team to help finish with plastering, painting and insulation work.. they were going to have their houses ready before the 45 days it usually takes from start to completion.. however, the intrinsic reward we felt far outweighed their gratitude.. little did they know how much more it meant to us to have been a part of their home-building.. to have been welcomed and embraced and loved by them.. at the farewell meal they cooked specially for us, many of my teammates and i could barely swallow the gamey pieces of horse and goat's meat.. but they had thrown in an array of vegetables just for us.. the singaporeans who enjoy eating veggies and chicken and fish (inconceivable!).. before i left in the van for the last time, i went and hugged as many as i could.. i will always remember them and their simple way of life.. i hope the houses are ready by now and that the families have moved in.. at night i say a prayer for them, and hope that they will always be healthy, well and happy..

by the second day back in singapore, my bowels had jerked back to life with the consumption of large quantities of green leafy veggies and fruits and i was in the loo so often that i was dehydrated.. my weight fell by another 2 kilograms and i knew i would be in trouble come sunday.. went for a trial ride on thursday night and ended up with bad cramping and exhaustion.. i felt like i was gonna let my team down so even with fever raging over the weekend, i took panadol, drank redoxon, ate heaps of fruit and drank lots of electrolytes.. after much prayer, i made it to the start line at the TTT.. we came in 11th out of 12 teams with a pathetic average of 36km/h, but i thank God nevertheless for carrying me on His wings throughout the ride.. OM was totally cool with our poor performance and even thanked me for turning up despite being ill.. we will do better next year! thanks OM, jeff and doc for an enjoyable TTT and my 1st mixed quad attempt! =)


having recovered from fever and diarrhea, i am now down with a throat infection.. but i have faith that i'll recover soon, and be able to train for the TNF run in october.. meanwhile, there's the trifactor OD coming up in a couple of weeks' time.. i told hubs that come next year, i will be taking a step back from being active in races.. i will still run and bike to keep my fitness up.. go for bodypump classes to strengthen my muscles because i know how important it is to be physically fit and strong to continue building houses with Habitat for Humanity.. at the beginning of the year, i remember blogging about how my life in the early thirties was focussed on making my marriage work.. the late thirties was focussed on training for races.. now i know what my life in the forties will be focussed on.. many more house-building trips to Cambodia, Vietnam, India, China and hopefully someday, i will be strong enough to go to Africa.. the number forty has long been universally recognised as an important number and associated with a period of probation, trial and chastisement.. on this Mongolian trip alone i have come away with so many lessons learnt.. i cannot fully express my gratitude for God's mercy and grace.. and great patience with me.. i am looking forward to more challenges ahead.. now, to load a few pictures of the beautiful land of clear blue skies, the people of erdenet and my teammates whom i am proud to have worked with..

10 ladies and 5 gentlemen.. super duper workaholic bunch.. what a riot!


Lugging 25kg bricks all day is a back-breaking job.. but i love it! Heaps better than mixing cement.. i get cement bits up my nostrils, in my hair, on my face.. everywhere lah!


Laying the bricks with cement is like spreading nutella on bread.. except lifting and putting the 25kg brick nicely and neatly and in alignment was a real pain in the *toot toot toot*


Took us a day to get to this height..


By the third day roofs could be erected..


What a thrill to climb onto the roof to do some hammering.. we couldn't resist a photo with the fastest worker on site.. nicknamed speedy gonzales because no one knows his name..


I don't even know what you call this thing.. but it was my best friend for two days.. carried heaps of rocks and stones from hugeass piles outside into the houses to lay the foundation.. i believe i lost my 3kgs repeatedly loading rocks and carrying them into the house and unloading.. ATCHA!!!


We are so proud of the three houses we helped build.. i wish we could have stayed an extra week to finish plastering and painting them..


What a completed house looks like.. a Kodak moment!


Another Kodak moment.. a row of HFH houses..


Lunch is served.. boiled horse innards.. er, thanks but no thanks! i had a hard enough time smiling and nodding at mungku after he gave me a sip of his mongolian tea (salted watery milk from the yak.. i so did not taste tea!) and if you saw the dirty container he used, your stomach would lurch and you'd gag! =P


Waiting for lunchboxes to be delivered with my teammates under the makeshift tent the good Mongolian folks built for us..


The kind sweet folks also built a toilet.. just for us.. awww..


I used it only twice.. my bladder and bowels refused to budge!


Pee the Mongolians way *crickets*


Granny's ger.. she kissed us all on our cheeks on the last day to show us her gratitude.. she was really excited about moving into her new house!


Sodoo's tin house where 8 people live.. she is so grateful and happy to have a new home!


Sodoo trying to explain 'hammer nails into pinewood' to me using a russian/mongolian/english dictionary.. don't ask me how to say it in mongolian.. i am absolutely pathetic at learning the language!


We were told from Day 1 not to touch or play with their dogs.. they are not pets.. they are workers and could possibly be dinner someday.. but we couldn't resist.. a teammate rescued him after hearing him whimper and whine in one of the gers.. we put him into the van and cuddled him and he fell asleep.. awww... mongolian puppy!


Of all the kids, I miss ugenbauer most.. he came round every day with his 'Harlo!' and while helping out tries to learn bits of english.. i call him Tin Tin coz all that's missing is a white miniature schnauzer.. by Day 4 and 5, he responded to Tin Tin more than he did ugenbauer.. i would adopt him in a second!


Oh the kids! The kids! How could you not love them? I bought her a barbie doll in a shop next to the korean restaurant for $2.50 and the smile that lit up her face is priceless!


She chatters on and on, completely oblivious to the fact that i don't speak her language.. she loves my iphone and while we were playing some horsey game with a rope, nature called so she promptly pulled down her underwear and peed all over her shoes.. hmmm.. you gotta love her anyway!


This one eats anything we give her.. i'm serious.. anything!


Oh chubby baby! So cute!!!


Okay i gotta stop! Loading pictures is far more back-breaking than shovelling cement and carrying bricks.. Over and OUT! =)

it's been a crazy couple of weeks since returning from KK.. manic marking to clear stacks and stacks of compos that keep coming in week after week.. felt like a little lab rat scurrying on a wheel.. the blessing in disguise is finding comfort and joy in painful times together with fellow ding dong gals @ city hall starbucks, manic marking together till the wee hours of the morning.. we call these sessions markathons.. mark mark mark.. coffee break.. mark mark mark.. cream cheese and bagel break.. mark mark mark.. seaweed shaker fries break.. mark mark mark.. toilet break.. mark mark mark.. brain malfunction let's call it a night..

tickles me pink to glance over at esther from time to time to catch her staring into space.. hello! earth to esther!
les is super focussed, all wired up and marking furiously.. even when she's smsing away instead of marking, she looks super focussed hahaha! =)
jo wins hands down with a PB of 10 mins per script.. she's so fast we so don't want to sit next to her! =P
grace is our latest addition so our little club is growing.. i'm gonna miss our late-night markathons in mongolia.. not the manic marking of course!

am all packed and ready to go build a house in ulaanbaatar.. it's amazing how God opened doors and made it possible for me to put into action my desire to do something more meaningful with my life.. i've always had that seed of desire but i'm a lazy bum so it took forever for me to get my fat ass moving.. hopefully, this will not be a one-off trip but the beginning of my journey to give back to the world.. i've been blessed in so many ways and have more than what i need.. but there are so many out there who suffer every day and have lost hope.. i know what i can do for now is only little.. but step by step.. little by little.. i think it's super mushy but i want to thank my darling hubby who supports me quietly in the background.. and makes things possible for me..

something else exciting has happened too, thanks to elaine! my TNF partner, aileen, and i have be given Buff headwear and running gear for our upcoming 50K trail running event.. we went down earlier this week to have a look at Buff's new range of products.. i love the flamboyant designs of the running gear and am looking forward to running in them soon.. i also think the multi-functional Buff headwear is super cool! i'm taking one with me to mongolia to brave the cold.. the one used by the funny demo guy below..


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hopefully i'll be able to get a few runs in over the next week.. brought some winter running gear but don't know if running will be possible.. i'm apprehensive about the AHM next sunday but i shall learn from last sunday and just trust in the Lord for His provision.. i will miss 3 rides in total since i'll be back only sat night.. sob sob.. t@ ride last night was painful, especially with a running nose but i'm all stoked to ride TTT in 2 weeks.. this time, i'll be riding in a mixed team so it'll be 3 laps instead of 2.. won't have access to the internet for a week so i hope i don't suffer from withdrawal symptoms hahaha! time to go finish off my marking.. ATCHA! =)

i am drowning in my work.. but i have so much to give thanks for.. i think it's worth spending an hour writing a post for the week that's passed..

almost didn't turn up for my 10K race this morning.. had half a mind to join the t@ guys at 5:30am for a ride instead.. for some strange reason, i haven't been able to get more than two runs in a week since i got back from my little golf holiday.. i've been slack with my running partly because i have so much backlog to clear and also because i'm enjoying the rides more.. recovery is slow after each run and my legs ache even after a couple of days' rest.. "Why don't you just treat it like a 10K tempo training run?" hubs asked when i told him i didn't want to do the race.. i knew deep down inside that it was my pride raging war in my head.. what if i fail to run a sub50? in the end, i went because i knew even though my faith is like a tiny seed, the Lord's providence is greater than the ocean.. the only way i would know is if i went and did the race.. suffice to say, the Lord really carried me through.. i remember reaching the last turning point and telling the Lord 'This last 2.5km belongs to You.. please carry me on wings because my legs are heavy..' at once the clouds covered the sky and the heat from the morning sun lifted.. that spurred me on as i ran the next 1K upslope.. coming down the last 1K stretch, it seemed never-ending.. i could hear the cacophony of voices coming from the finish line but i couldn't see it.. i stared at the ground in front of me and continued to pray for strength.. and then i heard a girl shout 'C'mon!' and then i saw the blue mat.. with a last burst of energy, i crossed the finish line.. 48:03.. thank you, Lord!

when i sat in church later in the morning, the message was about God's providence and how He takes care of all our needs and how we need to simply trust in Him.. of course that brought tears to my eyes.. because i felt truly blessed that He is slowly and painstakingly drawing me closer to Him.. teaching me how to be a better person.. how to live a life that matters.. and all the anger, bitterness and strife i felt over the years have gradually melted away.. okay i am blabbering now so i'll post a picture of my race bib and newtons..



proud of my kawan who attempted her first sprint distance at OSIM on saturday.. you GO girl! and then she hosted a wonderful dinner party in her lovely home.. it was a riot because all present are ding dong gals..



earlier that morning, i had a fabulous ride with my fav orange and blue fellas..



bye bye beef.. see you in 8 weeks.. happy salmon fishing.. we will miss you.. and your 'tattoos'! =)

It only takes a spark to get a fire going
And soon all those around, can warm up in its glowing
That's how it is with God's love
Once you've experienced it, you spread His love to everyone
You want to pass it on..

What a wondrous time is Spring, when all the trees are budding
The birds begin to sing, the flowers start their blooming
That's how it is with God's love once you've experienced it,
You want to sing "It's fresh like spring"
You want to pass it on.. 

I wish for you my friend, this happiness that I've found
You can depend on Him, it matters not where you're bound
I'll shout it from the mountain top - PRAISE GOD
I want the world to know, the Lord of love has come to me
I want to pass it on..

It has been 12 weeks of RCIA classes.. track work has taken a back seat and i have doubts about running a sub50 this sunday.. but no regrets because i've learnt much.. it's been a renewing and refreshing journey.. i am learning more about the roman catholic faith and am delighted to also have discovered new things about hubs along the way.. we never used to be able to really talk and share about our faith but it has been possible these past few months.. words cannot express how glad i am.. last night as i stood up to sing the opening hymn, a big smile grew on my face.. i love this song and the lyrics.. when was the last i sang it? i cannot remember! =)

my first ITT was painful but a good kind of painful.. once i hit the road, it's me, ma bike and the wind.. the 1st stretch was the most tedious.. headwind and eek ork eek ork legs.. no matter how hard i pushed, i couldn't go beyond 30.. after a super slow auntie eek ork turn, i picked up speed coming back.. thank God for the tailwind.. wheeee.. almost caught up to the pink girl before me.. slowed down to manage the sharp turn.. passed the arch and off i went on my 2nd lap.. passed pink girl and then it was another 6km of me, ma bike and the wind.. eek ork eek ork again but @ 32.. prayed for the good Lord to carry me on wings and sang some hymns.. finally reached the turning point YES! but wished i could make the turns in a more kool n stylo milo way.. of course my 'pok keh pok keh' voice screamed 'SLOW DOWN.. dun crash into the kerb!' lol =) pushed my legs hard down the last 6K and kept praying for strength.. flew down the last stretch feeling strong and pumping my legs hard but realised i had to slow down and make one last u-turn to cross under the arch for a finish.. that was a real bummer, the only one in an otherwise thrilling first ITT for me.. finished in 43:45.. 5th behind elvia who was a good two and a half minutes faster! a big CONGRATS to shem who came in 3rd with a 54:25 (3 laps - 36K).. like jon said, it was a painful but good experience and we'll be back to do better in our next ITT.. see you thursday night mate! =)

26/7/2009
~ sun ride (80K - 56K from home to coastal and back + 24K ITT)


three t@ amigos


elvia looks so sleek and strong on the bike..


i look super auntie on the bike.. eek ork eek ork..


shem with a strange eat-my-dust smile..


shem making it look easy.. pow pow pow!

i don't know if it's my diet (too much junk food, not enough fruits & veggies).. lack of sleep (not enough hours a day).. not hydrating enough (sometimes lazy but mostly find it a chore to run to the loo).. too much stress (from managing hyper-active kids and their inability to maintain a proper filing system to never-ending marking) or simply the fact that i'm hitting the big 4-0.. it's taking longer for me to recover from hard rides and runs.. my shoulders and legs are always aching.. and i'm not getting quality workouts like i used to..

thursday t@ ride (65K)
- kept up w d train into raffles marina and out, with roadrunner pulling most of the way.. i remember thinking 'dear Lord! this ride is so so so painful!'.. finally, at the bus-stop before the last roundabout, i pulled out of the train because my heart and body simply couldn't take the stress anymore.. i was heaving and gasping for air.. too too painful.. so i spun lightly and rode the last bit back on my own.. i wish i could trade my lungs, shoulders and legs in for new ones.. seriously..
- beef got hit by a car shortly after he left home.. fortunately, there was no blood and no mess.. he sustained a torn ligament in his left shoulder and his bike is okay.. thank God! i was happy to see him last night in good spirits and had to laugh when he said he'd already gone for a light spin to test his shoulders out.. diehard roadie!
- on my way home, i almost got hit by a car myself as i crossed the main junction @ queensway.. the driver of an SUV turned right very quickly and my heart skipped a beat as i hit the brakes.. for a moment, i was bracing myself for impact and crashing to the ground, something i dread but am familiar with.. fortunately, he stopped in the nick of time and i managed to emerged unscathed except for post-fright heart palpitations.. thank you Lord thank you Lord!

friday long run
- ran from TLL to MR, did one loop before heading to shem's.. took an hour and fifty minutes.. walked the last bit up the steep sunset avenue eek ork eek ork.. am too lazy to check distance on googlemap.. i know i really should go get myself a garmin.. but the lazy ass ain't moving PIAK!
- it's been a long time since i organised a birthday celebration but i had fun doing this one.. because it's for someone dear and sweet, who has been such an inspiration and encouragement.. a great help to me in getting my spiritual life in order.. thanks mel for all your prayers and notes.. i hope you had a great time @ your supposed-to-be-a-surprise-but-we-failed-really-badly Birthday BBQ! =)



sat easy ride (65K)
- supposed to be an easy ride to save my legs for ITT tomorrow but it was no ride in the park.. my body ache so badly i will be needing a massage like.. now..


monkey mates

oh boy was last week a blast and it flew by in a snap! i can't believe our little golf getaway is over and i'm back to the grind and already buried in a mountain of post-holiday marking.. over-stretched my poor old body in training over the weekend and am trying to recover from another bad case of allergy attack.. *inhale deeply*

the 4D3N golf holiday was everything we'd hoped for..

slept a lot..


played golf all day..


ate and ate.. and ate..


the golf courses did not disappoint.. the scenery was beautiful, especially @ dalit, and despite hubs being a far far far better player, we had so much fun on the course.. thanks to hubs' coaching, i'm now much better at teeing off.. love the sound of the PING! and watching the little white ball fly straight down the fairway.. unfortunately, i'm still pretty crap with my irons and totally hopeless on the green.. get in the hole! get in the hole! NAWT!!! i'm so looking forward to our next golf getaway.. akan datang! =)

a big THANK YOU to my kawan for looking after kippy and ginger while we were gone.. YOU DA BEST! =)

flew back thursday morning.. landed in the afternoon.. sayang my naughty kitties.. did a round of laundry and went back to work.. rushed home in time to jump on my bike and head out for the terribly @ddictive ride.. high on endorphins, i rode home feeling fabulous but the moment my head touched the pillow, i KO-ed and got up close to noon on friday.. another manic day of housework, teaching, marking, playing with the kitties.. and before i knew it, saturday morning dawned.. i had overslept and missed my sat morning ride!!! something which has not happened in a long long time.. managed to squeeze in some marking before hauling my ass to MR for the 2 loops i failed to run last week.. unfortunately. my engine never got started.. it was one of the worst runs i've ever done.. feeling exhausted and sick in the stomach, i stopped 10 mins into the 2nd loop.. walked all the way to NIE before hailing a cab home.. slept the afternoon away before dinner with the gals.. it was a hoot, thanks for having us over rebecca! =)



before the appearance of the forever-on-your-hips chocolate fondue, i had to leave.. fortunately, the gals understood my inexplicable need to get up at 5am the next morning for a ride and run! =)

this time round, i set 2 alarm clocks and hopped out of bed before they even rang.. met up with jeff, diesel, pascal and doc at 6am and the ride was so 'chop chop' we finished just before 8am! the air was cool and crisp.. there was hardly any traffic.. i think early morning sunday rides are the way to go! =) took a power nap before heading to east coast with hubs for a run with shem's YF run group and those training for desaru HIM.. managed to do 2 loops of 5K with T3.. she looks so sleek and runs strong even coming off a 90K ride.. got dropped by her after 7Ks.. but she fell back and finished the 10K with auntie eek ork.. hahaha!
thanks for the run, you rawk elvia! =)

almost fell asleep as i sat in the pew waiting for noon service to start but a timely message from God brought tears to my eyes, kept me awake and pensive.. i was reminded not to take Him for granted no matter how busy and hectic my life is.. thanks to the one who keeps my feet on the right path and heart in the right place, the week finished beautifully despite an allergy attack in the afternoon and lotsa sniffling.. i have so much to be thankful for.. praise be to God! =)

14/7/2009
~ treadmill run (5K - 30mins)

15/7/2009
~ treadmill run (6K - 30mins)

16/7/2009
~ t@ ride (65K)

17/7/2009
~ MR run (12K - 1h 25mins)

18/7/2009
~ t@ ride (65K)
~ east coast run (10K)


ginger has recently discovered the joy of chilling in front of the keyboard.. when i went looking for his mei mei, i found her sulking in the bathroom sink.. hahahaha! =)

hubs and i are all packed and ready for our golf holiday in Kota Kinabalu.. one day of rest and relax followed by two glorious days of 18 holes.. never been to KK but the pictures of the golf courses look promising..


Dalit Bay Golf Club

Karambunai Golf Club

when i first learnt that the mountain-climbing trip with the team was a no-go, i was filled with disappointment.. but then again, blackheart had the opportunity of a lifetime to fly to Switzerland for a job interview.. how could we all not be happy and excited for him? besides, shem guru had just embarked on his journey at athlete's circle which is to me, the perfect job for him.. coach shem.. that sounds just about right! so i guess the logical thing was to postpone our trip.. and in the end, everything turned out perfect!

blackheart's got the job *cartwheels* and he'll have to make it up to us with a swiss mountain-climbing trip.. sorry dude but the platter of swiss cheese will not do! ;)


after swiss cheese & wine & TDF @ the teos friday night, it took all the will power i could muster to crawl out of bed at 6 in the morning to get to the t@ ride.. glad i made it because it was another one heck of a ride.. hard but thrilling.. painful but satisfying.. at the LCK bus-stop, we decided to head to binjai for a drink but somewhere along the way, we made a detour and added a rifle range loop for an extra kick.. the moment we turned in i fell back.. the climb was a serious test of my mental strength.. i could hear my joints creaking like a rusty door hinge.. eek ork eek ork.. my odo read 11km/h.. walamak! of course i forgot all that pain cruising back down and added one last lethal kick going up that narrow lane to get to hua guan avenue.. it was all well worth it.. BANZAI!!! =)


big clap on the back for newbie patrick who sucked it in and rode his heart out.. i assured him that it gets better week after week and shared with him the story of D who first appeared looking sleek and fast with his tok gong tattoos but got dropped by chingz and i hahaha! and look at him now.. pow pow wow wow.. i'm pretty darn sure we'll see patrick around a whole lot, now that he's hooked on the pain! ;)

after an owowow massage with linda in the afternoon, i had to take a nap to recharge.. something i haven't done in a long time.. my cell battery is dying on me HELPCH! in the evening i had a sumptuous thai dinner at the golden mile complex with my ding dong gals.. 67 bucks for Tom Yum Seafood, Pineapple Fried Rice, Sambal Kang Kong, Green Curry Chicken, Green Mango Salad, Beef with Basil Leaves.. we ate till we almost popped.. the only downside is being surrounded by seedy thai discos and bars.. and some scary harry humsup eyes.. but for the reasonably-priced authentic yum yum thai dishes, i will so be back.. with a bigger entourage of course.. my kawan made a lovely collage of our fun-filled evening..



with some alcohol in the system, i couldn't make my 7am MR 2 loops date with hubs this morning.. he couldn't either so we postponed it to 9am.. my engine took forever to warm up and after the first loop, i was so dehydrated i decided to cop out and do the MR time trial 5K loop instead.. hubs went on and finished his two loops.. wah! he should run the TNF instead of me hahaha! niam mai.. next week i will finish it.. i chink! ;)

now i'm off to bed.. have an early morning flight to catch.. i'll be back thursday.. in time for t@ ride! LOL =)

11/7/2009
~ t@ ride (70K)

12/7/2009
~ MR run (15.5K - 1h 35min)

to buy, or not to buy.. that is the question..

beef is back from norway HOORAY! =) when his text message came in tuesday morning "hey you don't have to suffer t@ alone anymore.." i couldn't help grinning like a cheshire cat.. can't believe two months have passed! so good to catch up with him and learn more about norway.. sounds like the perfect place for trail running and hiking! sounds also a lot like northern exposure, my favourite tv series in the early 90's! i'd love to go there and eat fresh salmon every day.. mmm..

love tonight's ride even though i couldn't hang on till the end of raffles marina.. was relieved when beef signalled to make an earlier u-turn.. my lungs were hurting and my legs were burning.. no more wed long runs PIAK PIAK PIAK! we managed to catch the train on its way out of raffles marina.. with great persistence, jon finally made the raffles marina loop this week! i'm thrilled and happy for him.. the feeling is uber SHIOK!! jon's stoked to be getting an orange jersey for next week's ride! =)

there was no slowing down after turning out and i hung on for dear life not to get dropped on our way back.. always a thrilling ride.. what'll i do without t@? =)

OM found 26 bucks on the ground at our usual wait-up point ka-ching! on our way to the kopitiam, we morphed into kindergarten kids talking excitedly about our free milo peng.. it was such a big group tonight we had to drag two tables together.. dunno if it's because of the prospect of free milo hahaha! half an hour later.. patrick, who joined us for the first time tonight, realised the 26 bucks belongs to him.. the money had fallen out of his back pocket.. ALAMAK! hahaha.. anyhow, thanks to sting, milo peng was on the house anyway! HEE! plus we were such a big group auntie gave us a jug of tok gong ice barley on the house.. a marvelous way to end thursday night!

my lovely weekend has begun.. BANZAI! =)


t(he) @(wesome) guys


roadrunner should be riding TDF..


well done jon! =)


welcome home beef! =)

9/7/2009
~ t@ ride (63K)

decided to give sunday's MF + southern ridges route another go again this morning since i :
1) was too lazy to run on mon + tues
2) have been pigging out on nutella & bread and junk food in the pantry
3) have signed up for the army half marathon which is less than 6 weeks away

t'was very tempted to skip the vigilante drive bit when i got to kent ridge park.. and then i asked myself "do you have an option when you're out there in the trails during TNF?" the answer is "no" so i ran down the steep slope n trudged up, swinging my arms in a kuniang way.. kept staring at the concrete ground and focussed on the music.. chugga chugga.. the ice cold water from the water cooler at hort park is a lifesaver! AHHHhhh.. this time round, i didn't have to stop at jewel box.. progress! takes me 1:08 to run from my place to the bottom of vigilante drive and the same time to run back.. have no idea how to measure the southern ridges route.. can't find any information on the NParks website.. anyway, i'm guessing it's probably a 20K run.. maybe i should consider getting myself a garmin.. hmmm..

8/7/2009
~ MF/southern ridges run (2hr 15mins)

left newton circus with elvia at 5:40 in the morning.. the earliest ride ever for me.. without a speedo, elvia didn't know how fast she was going so our leisurely ride to F2 carpark turned out to be a pretty fast one! slowed down as i entered the service rd.. couldn't keep up with T3.. my jalopy engine needs to warm up slowly hahaha!

arrived at F2 carpark almost 45 minutes early.. while waiting for the ride to start at 7am, i watched as athletes stream in with their bikes.. very nice to see a big group of cyclists in an array of colourful jerseys gather together for a ride.. decided to do 2 loops of selarang and then ride home.. that'll make almost 100K.. of course my plan flew out the window the moment we hit the coastal stretch.. with shem, elvia and a couple of others pulling the train, we were going at 38km/h.. kept close behind jon and kamal.. did not want to be dropped especially on the hills.. the hills were so tough on the legs.. i could feel the burn.. with co-operation from traffic lights, i managed to stay with the train.. on our way back along coastal, the speed was kept at 38km/h.. what a thrilling and intense ride! after the turn-around for the second loop, i knew my legs couldn't go at the same pace for the hills a second time round so i pulled off at the end of coastal and rode back on my own.. the coastal stretch seems so short when you're drafting a big group going at 38 but it seems like a never-ending road when you're riding alone at 28 hahaha! good decision to turn around because by the time i exited coastal into east coast park, my right foot was threatening to cramp.. got off and smsed hubs.. YAY! he's driving down for a run.. PHEW! i don't have to ride home! rested some more till i saw a flash of green.. chris had finished his 90Ks and was looking as pleased as punch.. quickly hopped on my bike to catch up with him.. he'd drafted a fella who pulled at a constant 38km/h for the full 90Ks.. oh wow! so impressive! kudos to shem and elvia for having finished the 90Ks at the same pace.. and they all did their one-hour run afterwards.. i am FULL of admiration for my superfriends! =) kudos also to HS who's making a good comeback! that's the spirit! =)

5/7/2009
~ coastal/selarang ride (73K)

the darnest thing happened this morning..

5:30am - alarm went off.. hopped outta bed.. stared at eyebags in bathroom mirror.. briefly contemplated going back to sleep.. discarded idea since i know from experience i'd only kick myself later in the morning..

6:00am - mounted bike and headed out.. oops! forgot gloves.. nvm too lazy to go back upstairs..

6:10am - ARGHHHHHHHHHHH!!! i'm riding without a helmet!!! how did that happen? pppfffttt!!! ~_~

6:15am - stopped at road junction and dialled shem's number.. please be home so i can borrow a helmet.. no answer.. made a yewie and rode home..

6:30am - will i still be able to make t@ ride after i get my helmet? errr.. i don't chink so..

good thing there's a YF brick session at east coast tomorrow! heng ah! to make up for my bodoh-ness, i shall join the ironwoman with a hole in her arm and ride to F2 car park from home.. ATCHA!!

not wanting to crawl back into bed and wake hubs, i decided to go for a long run.. time to hit the trails with TNF in 3 months.. signed up with my partner from last year.. with already 3 marathons under her belt this year and more to come, she's a genuine fembot so it wasn't hard to decide on a team name! =)

too lazy to drive to MR, i decided to run the mt faber + southern ridges route.. taking lower delta road, i got to the foot of MF 20 mins later.. running up the steep slope, i couldn't help but remember my first ride up on my garish orange jamis almost two and a half years ago with chingz.. all 3 tries i had to get off and push my bike up, so laupok hahaha! =) running past jewel box, i headed towards the henderson waves bridge.. the view was magnificent - fluffy clouds tinged with a pink hue in the sky.. after the alexandra arch, i ran into hort park for a nice cold drink at the water cooler and then up the slopes to kent ridge park.. it's great to see so many people taking their walks or running along the beautiful southern ridges.. headed down vigilante drive, made a yewie and as i was running back up, i felt a burning sensation in my legs.. looked at my watch.. it'd been an hour and eight minutes and all the uphill running was beginning to take a toll on my poor old legs.. in the end i had to walk up till it was flat before continuing my run.. i better start attacking the hills and running more trails in prep for TNF.. an hour and forty-five minutes into the run, i found myself back at the jewel box, my body crying out to stop.. the similarity between my leg muscles and an old cellphone battery - takes forever to recharge but goes dead before you can finish saying SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPI­ALIDOCIOUS!

with the ominous tingling feeling starting in my calf muscles, i had no choice but to walk it off.. when i finally got home after an hour's walk, i saw a yellow post-it stuck on the front door "I've gone for a run at kent ridge!" alamak! i could have been driven home! should have left a post-it to let hubs know i'd gone running.. pppfffttt! so BODOH today! =P

whenever i'm blogging, kippy would prance around in front of the keyboard.. today she was grooming herself silly and now my mousepad is covered with cat hair.. zzz..


4/7/2009
~ bodoh ride (11K)
~ MF/southern ridges run (1hr 45mins)

up next.. pig out at japanese buffet.. WASABE! =)

in my enthusiasm, i think i overdid it at pump class on monday.. it must have been 8 months or more since i last pumped iron but i forget.. anyhow, to cut the painful story short, woke up tuesday feeling sore all over.. went to see linda wednesday morning and every stroke was excruciating pain x 10.. i was screaming so loudly in my head i was pretty darn sure she heard it all #@$%^&*!?!..

and then i knew how pathetic i was when i had to crab walk my way down the stairs to the basement for an after-work banana beer with my ting tong gals offering their arms for support.. esther's rendition of Nobody saved the day! =)

determined to ride t@, i rubbed deep heat vigorously the night before.. ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch! it was funny watching the kitties squint and retreat whenever they came near my fingers for a sniff.. NEOooooow! hiam hiam!

first thing i did when i woke up thursday morning was to flex my leg muscles.. YES!!! not so painful.. did not have to crab walk.. did not hurt to sit on toilet bowl.. YES!!!

and then sometime after 9pm, after pulling for 20 seconds in raffles marina, i couldn't latch on as roadrunner pulled the t@ train away.. NO!!! we had reached the end of raffles marina so there was no way i could make an earlier turn to join the train again.. NO!!! as the flickering red lights became smaller and smaller, my fear grew.. oh please Lord, keep me safe from wild dogs, cramping and falling off my bike.. it was dark and the only few people walking around were foreign factory workers.. i have never prayed so hard.. and then i saw a huge truck.. and then a voice in my head shouted 'draft the truck!' and so i summoned all my strength and latched onto the huge blue truck.. oh boy, i was going so fast i didn't dare to even look at my speedo.. when we came to a red light, i pulled out and pedalled off as quickly as i could, encouraged by the sight of the blinking red lights ahead.. had to draft the truck a second time before i came close.. but lost them again when i slowed down at the junction coming out of raffles marina.. as i pedalled upslope i begged the Lord to carry me on wings.. my muscles were failing me but my faith kept me going.. the next burst of energy brought me very close to the train at the next traffic junction.. stay red stay red.. as i was approaching, they turned green.. NO!!! hahaha! so painful but challenging!

finally before the last roundabout, OM saw me and slowed down to pull me back.. thank you OM! and thank you Lord for a thrilling albeit painful ride and for keeping all of us safe from harm! they say riding with t@ strengthens the lungs and legs.. i say it strengthens my faith as well! =)

took a leisurely ride back with elvia.. inspirational woman came out to ride with a hole in her arm.. nothing can keep her off her bike! =)

2/7/2009
~ t@ ride (64K)


had a fabulous time at dinner.. good food good company.. baa baa has the best crispy golden brown fries and thick melted cheese atop a juicy beef pattie.. mmm! carbo-loading for my 2nd t@ ride of the week tomorrow morning.. ATCHA!!!

sometimes when the world seems to bear down upon us, it's good to take a step back.. seek refuge in the rock of our salvation.. allow Him to fill our hearts with His peace that transcends all understanding.. in His time, He makes all things beautiful.. it's good to know that in the end, no matter what happens on earth, we have a beautiful eternity to look forward to..

sometimes i lose focus and revert back to the former frame of mind.. denying Christ instead of denying myself.. sometimes i forget the Lord's greatest commandment of all - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and Love your neighbour as yourself." - something will always happen and i'll be given a good jolt and in my own time, i will acknowledge my waywardness..

slowly, i'm beginning to discover that whenever i remember to consider how my actions or words affect those around me and to act or speak accordingly, my path is smooth and straight.. it is when i choose to act selfishly, to do something for my own convenience and ignoring the welfare of others that i find my path crooked and covered with thorn bushes.. it's been a painful but rewarding journey.. and will continue to be so.. there's no turning back and there's no detouring.. i'm just grateful to be given the privilege to be taken on this journey! =)

29/6/2009
~ bodypump (ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch!)
~ treadmill run (6K - 32 mins)

it's 3:15 in the morning and there are two things i know for sure..

1) i won't be able to finish marking every script before i sleep
2) i won't be making the 6am ride

on a brighter note, there are five new things i know for sure about gin gin and kips kips..

1) they love it when i drop ice cubes into their drink bowls..
2) they go bananas over ping pong balls and crushed tracing paper which are a whole lot cheaper than catnip mice..
3) when kips kips is hungry, gin gin does not mess around with her.. she growls and he backs off from the food bowl.. look who's the boss now!
4) they now talk to us through a chorus of meows.. i am beginning to understand cat language
5) i love them more and more each day..

while i'm marking, i've got two pairs of eyes watching..


my ginger tiger


my princess manja

i can't believe the day is almost over.. i need more time!

have a stack of worksheets that has to be marked before class tomorrow and it'll be a miracle if i can get it done before i sleep.. should have marked it thursday night but after t@ ride i had to pick hubs up at the airport and was so exhausted i fell into bed and slept.. should have marked it friday night but after a 20k run with hubs, was so exhausted after dinner i fell into bed and slept.. was gonna get up at six this morning to ride with the team but my legs wouldn't budge..
attended hans & chings wedding - lovely ceremony and mass.. look how beautiful the bride is..



and then it was birthday lunch with greg and gang at the prime society.. as we were walking into the restaurant, i told hubs "not the place for us to dine in since it's dedicated to the upper cut" haw haw!


these amazing wooden bears kept rachel completely occupied while the adults ate and talked..



managed to catch joshua with a cheeky grin.. cuteness!


and then i squeezed in an hour of marking before it was time for evening mass.. was tempted to skip mass to continue my manic marking but am glad i went because i always come out feeling refreshed and filled with peace.. thank you Lord! =)

and then we were off to blackheart's for dinner.. as we were approaching the void deck and i started looking around for the very amusing resident cat who takes the lift from time to time, hubs said something about how he likes all animals - cats, dogs, fish.. and then cracked me up totally with his next line, "i'm not really an animal lover.. i'm an animal don't minder.." HAHAHA!!! hubs sez the darnest things, when i least expect it! LOL =)

okay i really have to finish my marking and get to bed soon.. there's a 6am ride tomorrow.. i so want to ride!!!

25/6/2009
~ t@ ride (65K)

26/6/2009
~ MR/thomson run (20K - 2hrs)

every time i try to blog, kips kips sprawls herself in front of the keyboard and tries to distract me.. with a flip of her tail, i get a fresh dose of cat hair up my nostrils.. ATCHEE!!! ~_~



the sweltering heat is really getting to me.. sunday's run was aborted after 40 minutes.. i hate to abort my runs, especially when i have a route in mind already but it was impossible to stride when the heat is suffocating me.. i felt like puking even when i was walking home.. took me a whole hour to get home even via a shortcut.. i must bring cash with me the next time i go running when the sun is blazing in the sky..

am i the only one or is the heat getting to everyone? i haven't had heat rash since i was a kid but now it's all over my neck.. i am perpetually thirsty and i feel feverish..

tonight i decided to take a slow 1.5K jog to califitness orchard and run on the treadmill.. the heat is THAT bad for me to wanna run on the treadmill.. thought i'd run 5K but the aircon made it possible to do 10K so i'm happy.. now to douse myself in cold water and drink H20 till i'm drunk.. guten nacht! ~_~

21/6/2009
~ aborted run (7K - 40mins)

22/6/2009
~ night run on treadmill (10K - 50mins)

thank God for a lovely morning ride and for keeping us safe! =)
with a nice group of eight, we headed east and despite the hot weather, there was a nice breeze and occasional clouds to bring us some relief.. my legs were aching from last night's run though.. i know i should rest in between t@ and sat morn ride but my backside always gets itchy to squeeze in a run.. PIAK! anyhow, the last 5K was hot hot hot but i had the best motivation in the world to get to Mr Prata.. ice limau and paper thosai!
glad i burnt lotsa calories last night and this morning so i can pig out later at the barbeque.. mmm..

20/6/2009
~ TAD ride (74K)

19/6/2009
~ evening run (15K - 1h 25mins)

now i'm off to see linda for my overdue much-needed massage!

i was really looking forward to hub's company dinner tonight but i really didn't wanna miss t@ again.. fortunately, hubs knew my heart and mind would be in tuas anyway so he looked at my sheepish face and said, 'Go for your ride..' awww.. hubby is da best! =)
this week, i got dropped between the first and second traffic junction.. one step at a time, any progress is good progress HEE! thanks to jon who pulled me to the second junction, i managed to hang on to the second group with OM, pascal, jeff and unknown young man into raffles marina.. without them, i would have turned back at tuas so i'm as happy as a bird! doesn't take much to make me happy huh? LOL =)

motivation for a midday swim = the sweltering suffocating heat! HA!

18/6/2009
~ t@ ride (64K)
~ swim (1K)

16/6/2009
~ midnight run (13.5K - 1hr 15min)

it's been two years since i joined TLL.. and i'm really beginning to love the girls i see at work every week.. i've been wanting to write a post about these awesome individuals but i profess my vocabulary is not rich enough.. each one of them is a woman in her own right.. strong, independent, intelligent, eloquent, matured and honest.. sprinkled generously with quirkiness, wit and humour.. our many wednesday nights of drinks and laughter have given me a chance to know each one better gradually.. and i've been inspired by and learnt much from these younger women whom i am constantly in awe of.. God has blessed me with a bunch of wonderful colleagues, who have become friends over time.. here's to many more late wednesday nights! =)