A battle to keep fit

I signed up for Standard Chartered half-marathon 6 months ago. Standard Chartered half-marathon is now 6 days away. When I completed my 3rd full marathon, I told myself never to do such torturous events onto myself. (At that point in time, I was beginning to lose my exercise regime that I have consistently maintained over the years.) I wondered what came into my mind when I decided to sign up for it again. Maybe a half-marathon isn't as torturous as a full one. Now that I have not even jogged 3km for at least 3 months, I figured that it will be not just a physical race, but a mental one too.

Here are 6 reasons why I think I can do it:

1. I want to complete my 1st half marathon.

2. I want to lose 1 inch off my ever-increasing waist.

3. I want to lose 1 pound from my ever-increasing weight.

4. I want to look 1 year younger than before - with this big dose of exercise.

5. I want to look fit and slim at the start of my 30s.

6. I want to kickstart my exercise regime with my wife-to-be. 

Dinner for Schmucks - Is it just dinner?

'Dinner for Schmucks' is a 2010 screwball comedy film that manages to lighten my mood with its hilarious actions. When Tim Conrad was invited by his work superiors to a dinner they host to celebrate the idiocy of their guests, he questioned if he should attend - 'Should he attend such a nonsensical function? Does it affect his promotion? What do the bosses think of him? Can he find an idiot to attend as his friend?' Just as he was stuck in the dilemma, he coincidentally befriended a man (Barry Speck) who would be that perfect guest.

I asked - how far would one go to achieve his promotion & climb up the corporate ladder? Yes, I figured one would have to work hard. Taking the question further, (i) would one go beyond the scope of work to attend/host personal events? (ii) would one sacrifice his friend in order to impress his boss? (iii) would one make a fool out of himself in order to make his superiors laugh?

I question my commitment at work. I feel that my level of motivation at work has grown because I have grown to love this job. But I know that this is still this invisible line separating work from my personal life. I don't mix these 2 matters together. Maybe it is an Asian culture, maybe my colleagues are also practising it, or maybe I am just not ready to go beyond sharing too much details with them.

I shouldn't question myself too much. Let me just focus on my job.

'Robin Hood' in those days

In this fictitious yet seemingly true movie, John was coronated as the King, after his brother, King Richard, died in the war. King John was an arrogant and selfish leader who showed no remorse to his poor Kingdom and demanded harsh taxes to be collected. He sent Sir Godfrey off to the North with the task of 'raising revenue'. As Sir Godfrey uses this Royal Decree to stir up enough unrest, he shouts loudly to the villagers - 'In the name of King John, PAY or BURN'.

Life must have been harsh those days. Their grains were being taxed and survival became a daily battle. The poor got poorer whilst the royal kingdom continued to bask in the takings from the poor. Life must have been bitterly unfair too.

I am just thankful that we live in fair society led by upright officials. The poor do not have to pay taxes whilst the rest of the society pay their fair share of taxes according to their financial status. The poor are on financial assistance schemes whilst the rich are encouraged to donate their earnings. There is no need for a 'Robin' in today's society. The problem though is - I am neither rich nor poor - so what can I do?

Romance in Letters to Juliet

I watched 'Letters to Juliet' on board the Emirates flight back home. I figured I wouldn't mind watching it again. Afterall, I had earlier bought the VCD with plans to watch it together with my fiancee. Indeed, I would love to watch it again, as tears rolled down my eyes during the course of the movie.

Sophie believed in true love and has volunteered to assist Claire to find her long-lost love. A scene from the movie involved Charlie questioning her, as Claire had discovered that her long-lost love could possibly be dead. The dispute led to the battle of REALISM vs ROMANTICISM, as Sophie wasn't able to find true love in her personal love life.

We believe in finding true love. Some believe it more than others. For some, their belief ends in story books; for others, they applied it into reality. When romantism gets mixed up in the mortal world, how much efforts are we willing to put in to find true love? How far would we go to get that perfect love?

      Whilst I have found my true love, I wonder how far people will go in search for their true love. Indeed, when your letters to Juliet have been answered, you will ensure that you have your own fairy tale ending.

The Deathly Hallows

I watched 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1'. In fact, I think I could have watched almost, if not all, of the Harry Potter movies, without reading a single Harry Potter book. I'm definitely not a Daniel Radcliffe fan. I watched those movies, because those are blockbusters that people watched and talked about. Thus, to be frank, now that the movie series is coming to an end, I'm still not sure why tens of millions of people are crazy over Harry Potter.

Nevertheless, the story was 'brave' enough to poach death as part of its plot. It's a creepy subject to talk about, thus it was left to Xenophilius Lovegood, a new character in the story, to talk about it. A story within a story, Mr. Lovegood teaches Harry, Hermione and Ron about the Deathly Hallows at the Lovegood house. The three Peverell Brothers had escaped death and were each granted an item - an invincible Elder Wand, a Resurrecting Stone, and an Invisibility Cloak. They possessed these items, which eventually led to their death.

If death was to knock at my door, I am not sure what wish I would like to have (or what item I like to possess). In fact, I would not want anything. For if it comes, I must go. But what if I am not ready for it? Well, the truth is I guess I will never be ready for it. Maybe that is why I live life with a mantra - 'Seize the day as if it's your last.'

Back-dating my posts - Australia

How far can people backdate their posts? 1 week? 1 month? I can do it all the way back to 2 years ago. I refer to my post on 02 Sep 2008 where I mentioned I would share all travel experience on my blog. But I failed. Either my memory failed me or procastination had the better of me. Thankfully, I was packing my room. Lying there were some filenotes and research that accompanied me for my 15-day Australian trip.

It was a free-and-easy trip that was filled with personal accomplishment for many reasons. One of which was the spontaneity of my decisions. The only planned itinerary was that I would fly into Sydney and depart back to Singapore from Adelaide. So sudden it was that I bought my Virgin Blue air ticket in an Internet cafe in Sydney and departed for Tasmania the next day.

Below is my short note written in 22-08-2008: "The time is now 2.40pm. I am waiting for the coach to leave Hobart to Devonport via Launceston. The distance is about 300km and that would require 3 hr 50 mins. It was definitely further than what I thought. Afterall, I expected only a short bus ride from Hobart to catch the ferry. But the island of Tasmania is definitely big. I have underestimated it, planning only a 3-nights stay on this mysterious island. Now that I know this island a little better, it makes me excited to come here once again to explore what I have yet to see. Maybe I can consider driving round the island, exploring the mystic charms of Launceston, Bruny Island, Port Arthur and Peppermint Bay."