Looking back ..

finisher of 42.195km, a newborn marathoner .. simpLy euphoric!

More than just it ..

In the wee hours of the morning when everyone were enjoying sweet dreams, I woke up from sLeep, bathed, had a hot cereaL drink and set off. Out in the neighbourhood, a coupLe of Lights were on at some bLocks and for once you know .. this is the day, where runners gather. This is the day, where marathoners wiLL be born.

My best friend and I, we were one. We started together weLL. We ran as one .. but unfortunateLy He for once, became weak. At times when I persevered, He toLd me sorts ; it is Long way .. you cannot do it .. your knee is sore .. your cramps are coming up .. you need a break .. sLow down ..

On the other hand, I saw a caucasian coupLe standing by the barricades, cLapping the runners on. They cLapped as one .. at Marina South .. at East Coast .. throughout, they were there for you. And I bet they are great peopLe .. with them, I fought against Him. I waLked, took breaks, but I did not give up .. coming 5km to the end, I starved Him from a banana and water and toLd Him to have them onLy at the end of it.

So, hoLding a cup of 100-PLus on one hand and a banana on the other, and amidst the enthusiastic cheers from the crowd, I crossed the Finish Line with my best friend, Me.

There is Spiderman and Catwoman too! They were Ladies in their fifties. The inspiration characters of the day wiLL go to the woman who ran dragging a tyre tied to her waist .. and the oLd uncLe in his seventies of whom I ran the Last 200m aLongside with ..

The tyre-dragging woman had one message open to aLL .. itz something to do with recycLing. WhiLe the oLd man do not have any, he made sure I read an unsent signaL to aLL the younger runners who finished behind him. I said "weLL done, sir!" He panted, smiLed and forced a soft "thank you .." At the Finish Line, i saLuted him, and shook his hand. No, the honour wasnt his, it was mine. Some others acknowLedged his accompLishment through the same gesture.

So you see it ain juz a marathon .. this is the run for humanity.

你不曾发觉
你总是用右手牵着我　
但是心却跳动在左边
你和我之间的遥远　
永远隔着亲切　
爱少的可怜 ...

Beach, Babes and (yet another) Burfday

The Sentosa affair was great; the high five of us turning out on the beach yet being overshadowed by the typicaL hunks and babes.

SurprisingLy, the goLf-cart of the Beach Babes & Hunks contest approached us! Okie .. I guess the two young Ladies needed a mixture of the best and the worst just Like aLL reaLity shows. Thus, I grabbed two scapegoats out of my boys to sign up ..

The Sun was beautifuL .. juz Like the curvy bodies scattered aLL around. Babes, Like I aLways say, is Like TV MobiLe - "Itz Everywhere".

EnjoyabLe fun tanning and frisbie with babe-watching. Datz it for the Sentosa affair.

Late noon, parted ways with the rest and headed for Suntec to coLLect the Long-awaited, for the event-of-the-year, the race pack for the Singapore Marathon 2006! In exactLy a week, the adrenaLine wiLL rush .. as 30,000 other peopLe wiLL run aLongside me.

Adidas sure is creative. If you guys have been sharp enough, notice the adverts on the marathon with thousands of reasons to run .. two of which impressed me being "I've aLways Luv guys chasing me .." and the other, "I've put it off Long enough .." The Latter showed the picture of a man kneeLing, proposing to his girL right at the finish Line ..

What is my reason to run? WeLL, first and foremost, to shut some peopLe (who think I'm crazy to run) up. I wiLL compLete the course. SecondLy, I want those behind me to catch me if they can ..

Confident eh! Nahh .. my primary objective, is juz to finish the marathon.

Next up was Last minute present-shopping and attending yet another burfday bash at Pasir Ris.

Siqi turns 21 ..

WeiLin brought her 1-haLf year oLd daughter aLong. Her name is Qiqi .. she sees a boy, greeted him "kor kor" .. she sees Siqi's Dad, greeted him "uncLe" .. she sees me .. siLence.

.. I'm stiLL curious about that siLence ..

TiL then, I wiLL be back again.

from Left - Me, Renee, CaroL, Mic, Benson and Gwen.


Burfday Babe and FamiLy

Renee's Day

Juz days after a LittLe ceLebration for Joanne .. Renee's BIG 21 was up on this day @ The Princess's PLace.

UntiL today as I revisited the house where I came once before earLier in March did I reaLise how much these peeps brought to my finaL semester in PoLy .. we stuck together, scraped tests and projects (as aLways) and shared Lotsa Laughter .. it was no wonder the burfday princess was exhiLarated at the sight of our presence and gave us a teddy hug each!

UntiL today, I started missing the good oLd days .. thank you, my "Monday to Saturday" (Renee, CaroL, Gwen, MicheLLe, May and HazeL) ..

HiLton's very own ..


The Team, with Groom


Groom, going bonkers


The March ..


Our tabLe of frenz


I, with Leon .. we beLong to different worLds


The earLy birds

JingLes, sparks, Lights.

The best things are happening to me .. but why so Late!

To the Legendary MaLays of Sengkang who made me reaLise what beautifuL footbaLL is about, thank you.

To Mr. WiLLiam who has juz "bought one getting many free" in time to come .. congrats, and thank you too, for bringing up The Team you beLieved in, and for seeing The Team grow throughout these years.

A "paparazzi" news update on a great guy of The Team : someone is recentLy attached .. from my heart, I am happy for you.

I foresee a spLendid pooL of exciting events to come before my departure to somewhere new ..

For aLL you guys out there, dun juz pLain think of doing something, make it happen.

10th November - When Two Become One

Ask me .. and I wiLL teLL you everything that happened on this day ..

Ask me about the nightmare wisdom teeth extraction this day that ignited a sore that I had to endure ..

Ask me about WiLLiam & Irene 's BIG DAY @ HiLton HoteL that ended in a fairytaLe ..

Ask me about having to admire whiLe the rest are fucking enjoying the cuisine at the wedding banquet .. and being unabLe to smiLe at the camera (not that I dun wanna smiLe ok?) ..

Ask me about the Hyatt HoteL incident at 3a.m amidst the dim Light by window, a siLhoeutte of a "Live sex" (itz true, and they cant stop shaking for thirty minutes at the open window!) .. as seen by the few of us guys across the road at the bus stop ..

Ask me about the cab driver which keep Laughing to himseLf with the four of us in the cab amused and for Yongren, sheLLshocked and worried, being the Last man to aLight from the unusuaL journey home.

I wiLL teLL you every singLe detaiL on this speciaL day ..

Last Christmas

Taken in December 2005. Does this picture Look famiLiar?

(hint : Look 2 posts down ...)

S.I.C.K

The Team went into a match which ended in a victory .. to the French expats. Sick of my performance in footbaLL these days .. from a pLayer of potentiaL, to a good pLayer, and now not even worthy of fairLy good.

Where'd the spark gone to? Everything is going Left .. not right that is.

FootbaLL aside. The product from OSIM, iGaLLop, is more or Less Like my footbaLL. It is by far a joke .. or you can caLL it the Sex Toy of the Century. Saw it at the roadshow in WoodLands with the promoters on it and the onLy picture that comes to mind is the exercise on bed.

OSIM - OnLy Sex In Mind ..

It sure wouLd be a great acquisition for former U.S President BiLL CLinton, but definiteLy not his successor the Bush guy. That guy is far more interested in bombs, oiL, 9/11, excuses and of coz Saddam Hussein.

Bush owns the Last Laugh now, as verdict has finaLLy come to hang the former Iraqi Leader.

Then again .. does anyone give a damn?

Sorry Im feeLing sick ... S.I.C.K.

To commemorate this day, it did not take me Long to decide which was the scariest picture out of those I have searched ..

Anyway Happy HaLLoween's!

A rare free weekday to catch the show @ The Cathay ..

Inspiring.

Ends pLacing a question wide open .. wouLd you give up ur own Life to save another when situation occurs?

No one wouLd.

Not unLess you are the coast guard or fireman. ProfessionaLism we caLL it, but it takes more than just that to make these a profession.

I caLL it sacrifice for pure humanity.

Great Eastern Woman's 10km Run

My Sunday's pLans were shifted to accomodate for Mummy Khing's emergency caLL-up to work at the adidas roadshow, which means no swim or Man Utd vs. LiverpooL in the evening in exchange for a LittLe over fifty bucks. Venue @ MiLLenia WaLk. Event - the coLLection of race packs for the participants of the run.

However, the roadshow experience was one to remember. Met the Legends of adidas PPs with Miko, EtheL and Sharin, aLL of whom were ex-adidas coLLeagues there for the two-day event. Now, there's not even a need to arrange for catching-up sessions aLready!

ALso knew some Great Eastern peeps there to introduce their products, thus aLLowing myseLf to know that industry much better for it couLd be my future job. But again, probabLy wouLd be a matter-of-surviving job for a guy Like me when you see that these women are born with good Looks and a sweet Lip. They fetch at Least $2k, depending on performance, and their quaLifications are not the Least reLated to the industry! Margaret, 22, major in Accountancy .. AsiLa, 25, major in I.T .. Jasmine, 23, major in Engineering .. and they are aLL getting $2k++ for a job which they never had to study for.

ALright, Letz just face it .. sex seLLs. FemaLe financiaL advisers are basicaLLy attracting market of aLL sizes. Women feeL more comfortabLe to communicate with women themseLves on their needs, and men, needLess to say ..

But it wouLd be a great chaLLenge shouLd I take the route of this industry. StiLL, going back to retaiLing with adidas is very much in my mind.

Last but not Least, sporty women are so god damn attractive ..

As I opened the door to my home .. surprise was that my Dad was right there on the sofa, on a Saturday morning. I had just served my regimentaL duty at Tekong isLand over the night ..

And so I asked him .. "ehh Dad, you never work today ah?"

He said .. "ehh, you do duty untiL dunnoe what day is today ah?"

Then I reaLised .. itz DeepavaLi. If you transLate to Mandarin, its 你爸骂你 a.k.a Your Dad scoLd you.

.. so ironic. Anyway Happy DeepavaLi to aLL indians out there nameLy PritpaL, Prit and PaL.

Missing Paris ..

A short stay of two weeks in Europe back in May, it was untiL recentLy that I reaLise I was there .. aLright EiffeL, I missed you. The next time, I assure to come with the right person and save you from giving the Loner comfort every singLe day back then. Between now and then tiL we meet again, stay in one piece ..

F.R.I.E.N.D.S

"Do we really really need frens in our lives?
But the problem is do we need them?
Seriously we came by on this earth alone and left behind everything alone as well.
After the end of the journey, we too; never keep them by our side.
As such, will my conclusion be right?
Or was I swayed yet again by the confusion?"

*copyright extract from a sweet but rude Lady's bLog*

The miLLion doLLar question has a priceLess answer ..

We NEED frenz.

You know you are reduced to nothing without them. You know you cant do without them ..

They are the spices of your Life .. bitter sweet, hot and coLd, they make up who you are and wiLL be.

ALright I onLy have an answer but to see beyond the answer, you gotta Look at frenz with the answer and probabLy you wiLL agree with me.

Or maybe the debate's gonna be on soon between you and me. I am prepared ..

True frenz wiLL not give u their wings but teach you how to fLy .. they wiLL not give you attention but watch over you from far .. they may not be abLe to give you much advice but Lend you a ear which may be spoiLt from proLonged hearing of whining!

WorLd of the Unknown

First, the decision of my overseas posting .. *drum roLLs*

.. I am seLected (subjected to medicaL) ....

ALright nothing surprising. In anyway, I appreciate that some of the cLosest peopLe to me, objected. To name a few, Mom, Guo Ann, Jaz .. Yes I wouLd be missed right? ALways knew it ..

But, Like I aLways say, to Live, you gotta Live Life to itz fuLLest, or eLse what can you teLL ur chiLdren what you have done or seen and experienced? Or your grandchiLdren when they come into your Life one day? No man .. I want them to see me as a coLourfuL Dad or Grandad, juz Like how I see mine ..

Grandpa's been bedridden for two years now I think ..

When I was LittLe about four or five, he was an enthusiastic and joviaL man, a cook and a short-stint as a coffeeshop owner in Hougang Avenue 8. Those days, every morning, we wouLd go down for a bowL of porridge and hot MiLo (iced one was disaLLowed due to my chiLdhood asthma) downstairs. Ask anyone in the neighbourhood, and they wouLd teLL u about this Loudspeaker who cant seem to keep his voLume down. When I went to Primary SchooL, he retired permanentLy .. and every day he wouLd bring me to schooL. As Mom was working, I had resided at Grandpa's pLace for most of my primary schooL days. You couLd say I was the Luckiest grandson those days .. everyday having great food for Lunch and dinner, those Hainanese-styLe soup which you wiLL never get to taste outside. I did not understand what warmth my grandparents gave me as a notorious young boy. Took everything for granted and untiL when Grandma was gone in secondary schooL things changed. Grandpa became quieter by the days, months and years.

Maybe that was why I Lost my academic exceLLence after that. I was top five for five years and scored 231 in PSLE. Secondary schooL onwards was a disaster .. poor grades Led me to arts stream in secondary three and then I sLept for two years before fLunking my O's scoring a 28 pointer and earning a year back in schooL. ALthough I finaLLy got into PoLytechnic the foLLowing year in Business, resuLts were either scraped through, or red in coLour. Thus, took four years for an average piece of DipLoma with fucked up grades.

WeLL that was aLmost two decades in aLL. Last weekend I visited my Aunt's for dinner. Grandpa was in bed. Greeted him, toLd him,

"Gong, I am Ah Long .. Ah Long ah .."

Staring at me, I gave up hope thinking he couLd recognise the current me in G.I Joe hairstyLe .. but then he mumbLed,

"I know .."

Geez, my Grandpa's stiLL strong!

.. Jaz been reminding me of him and urging me to forgo the overseas attachment. I had second thoughts for once, but not anymore.

StiLL, I Love him and respect him in my heart aLL the time, for without this man, I probabLy wouLd not have been abLe to see the worLd, the unknown.

I have to go ..

8th December ; that wouLd be the day ..

When Im Gone

Come December, the guy that has brought you fun, Laughter, anger, sorrow or any form of Life entertainment, wiLL no Longer be avaiLabLe for your service.

Not for the next one year ..

It wouLd be good in a personaL perception, for Leaving this isLand wouLd give me ampLe space and fresh air.

SadLy, Im gonna Leave behind everything, and by the time one year's up, everything's gonna change. It wouLd be better, I think ..

Too earLy to ponder the unecessary. Monday is judgement day .. whether or not they post me to Taiwan, fingers crossed.

Juz Let me go La .. haha.

Wake Me Up When September Ends

Summer has come and past .. The innocent can never Last ..

Today is so much a wonderfuL day to be - ChiLdren's Day .. SheiLey's burfday .. and some day to remember ..

As the TotaL Defence beLL rung at noon sharp (as it did on the first of every month), a tinge of freshness overcame me. So soothing, I wished it couLd Last an eternity.

Great things to foLLow maybe? HopefuLLy so. ShaLL keep my fingers crossed.


P.S : Happy burfday to you, dear 学妹 .. 终于度过了teenage 的日子了！