Poo scoop

Someone emailed me this sign. So cute!! Apart from being cute though, I think there's truth in it. Dog owners SHOULD pick up after their dogs. It's not fair to have your doggie poo infront of other people's houses and mess their place. Dog owners should invest in a litter scoop. I mean, would you like it if you wake up every morning to find poo right infront of your house?

We need to be fair to our neighbours too.

Cinderella Man

Watched "Cinderella Man" last night with ET and her colleague. It was a good show except that I was really tired and it was a bit slow in the beginning. Thanks to Airwaves chewing gum which kept me awake! As the movie progressed it got more interesting though. It's a real life story about the boxer James Braddock and how he made a comeback to boxing for the sake of his family (The ignoramus that I am, I haven't even heard of him actually..) The movie is set in the Depression era and it really showed how tough life was then, work and food was difficult to come by. Both Crowe and Zellweger played their roles well, and even Crowe shed some pounds for this movie. It was pretty inspiring. I'd give it 3 stars.

Caramel and Jello

Caramel’s at that teething age now…he bites more than just his hide bone. He thinks I am a toy too. No longer the timid pup which I found outside KLPAC, he’s left some scratches on my leg now! An extremely playful pup…he needs some disciplining. I remember when Razor was a pup, he’d bite anything, including my hair if I was lying down on the floor. But he turned out allright.

Today is Day 2 on alkaline water. No effect yet. My fellow Pacesetters are already running their 20km trial run this weekend. I guess I won’t be able to go..my foot feels better but I don’t think it can take the pounding of 20km. I wonder when I’ll be able to run my next marathon. Running is such a great way to lose weight. After 2 -3 weeks of abstinence from long distance running I already feel my thighs are like jello, wobbling from the glutes and creating a tsunami effect down the back of the thighs. Gross. I am beginning to sound like Fatboy!

Today’s exercise diary:
20 min on elliptical machine
25 min on stepper
Squats
Alternate lunges
Push ups
Dumbell row

Food diary:
Breakfast: Coffee and toast
Lunch: crackers and mushroom soup
Dinner: Veal bratwurst, chipolato, sauerkraut and mash

Caramel's first walk

Life is miserable without Yahoo and MSN messengers. Can't seem to send any messages! Drats. Anyway took Caramel for his first walk today. I think he quite enjoyed himself though he didn't explore much. Jenny got me the 2 litre polycarbonate outer space bottle. Finally. I have today consumed 2 litres worth of alkaline water. Don't feel like a Duracell bunny though..

Today's exercise diary
5km outdoor run

Food diary:
Breakfast: toast, 2 eggs, Milo
Lunch: Guava, watermelon, banana and cheese crackers
Teatime: Pineapple juice
Dinner: fried French beans, salted vegetable, black sauce pork, 5 bean soup

Furniture shopping

Took the day off today. Quite productive, started the day with gym as usual. After breakfast, I went for a haircut. I now have the shaggy dog look. Decided to layer my hair as it was getting too heavy. It feels extremely light now!After that, went to Starbucks for a muffin and coffee. Food wasn't the only thing I was enjoying..I spotted a cute window cleaner trying to clean the automatic sliding door. Trotted off to Ikea and bought some "useless" items like wastepaper basket and curtain rail accessories.

After that I went off to the LDP Furniture Mall and finally saw a sofa that I like. I always get sidetracked. Was supposed to look for a bed but found a sofa instead. Anyway Uncle Wong told me to note down the model and price and he will try to bargain for a better price. That man has so many contacts! Since I didn't find a bedframe that I liked, I proceeded to MER and voila! I finally found the bedframe that I like. It comes in a set together with wardrobe, dresser and side table.

Met Clau later at Travellers..which is where she's having her farewell too. Pretty cosy place. Didn't eat as I already had dinner but the menu looked pretty good. Blew more calories on an iced mocha.

Exercise diary:
50 min walk on treadmill
push ups
vertical pec flyes
dumbell shoulder presses

Food diary:
Breakfast: toast and Milo
Lunch: Egg and turkey ham muffin, coffee
Dinner: Fish curry, stir fried loofa, corn soup
Supper: Iced mocha

Stomp

Had the pleasure of watching Stomp this afternoon. It was a brilliant performance, it was amazing to see how innovative they were as they could make music with just anything. From trash cans to match boxes to even newspaper, they were able to create rhythm. They made good use of the entire stage, and it wasnt just a symphony of noise but each piece flowed smoothly to the next. One of the performers even provided comic relief to the show. What was good about it was that it was an interactive perfomance as they got the audience to clap and stomp as well. It's a good test for those who are rhythmically impaired...

A must see for those who love rhythm and percussion.

First visit to the vet

Today was Caramel's first visit to the vet. I came back from lunch and went to check on him. I noticed some 2-3 inch vermicelli strands in his poo....why of course, they were worms. Yucks. I rushed him off to see the vet, it was closing just as I arrived. Dr gave him some medicine for deworming and a shot for scabies. On the way back, he was really manja in the car..he crawled on to my lap while I was driving, and rested his head on my forearm. Later he moved down to the floor and rested his head on my foot before finally lying down on the floor on the passenger side. So cute!

Cookies and Caramel

Caramel and toy bone















Claire and cookie














Little ones are such darlings!Been really tired, haven't had proper sleep the last few nights. Was caught in the massive jam last night..it took me an hour and 40 minutes from my house to Damansara Utama, so I detoured and headed home. Got home just in time to watch Malaysian Idol finals. The 2 finalists did well, but after hearing Jac croon an excerpt of "Gemilang"during an interview, I thought that this year's standard of MI is nowhere near last year's.

Caramel whines less now. He had a good time playing with his toy bone this morning.

Today's exercise diary:
2km walk and 4km run

My foot feels a lot better now.

All ears

Batman ears.

A Place to Call Home

Caramel's found a home! Actually my brother's decided to adopt him, but with me as the co-owner. He's got 2 kids and they are a handful, so I am going to help him to take care of Caramel. I gave Mel a proper bath today..he wasn't very pleased with it..he was yelping away. His fur is clean and nice smelling now! :) When I brought him home on Sunday, he had droopy ears. In a matter of 4 days his ears have become erect now! He's got pretty large ears so it looks aerodynamic!

Had dinner at Saigon Village in Bangsar with some friends yesterday. Food was good..I especially liked the lemongrass chicken. Shopped for a bit at 100 Yen shop. They have a lot of nice knick knacks but I don't know how some of the things work or what they are for because the packaging was all in Japanese.

Ended the day at my favourite place.





















Exercise diary:
outdoor 4.4km run

I Feel Good

I had the privilege of attending the one and only public performance (in Asia) of the "Godfather of Soul" James Brown yesterday night, courtesy of Malay Mail (thanks ET!). At 72 years old, he was still rocking away, though he couldn't perform the usual splits anymore. It was held at Hilton Kuala Lumpur, to celebrate their 1st anniversary. It was a charity even and there were many celebrities present. Although I am not a James Brown fan, I enjoyed it as James and his band delivered a superb show. Great showmanship. The band displayed their brilliant skills, especially the percussionist and drummers. He looked a little tired, but he caught his breath in between numbers when his band played instrumental pieces. At his age, he was still able to do the "running man" dance movement. His 3 back up singers were loud, energetic and hip-shaking. They wore black outfits with cascading tassels which complemented their gyration.

The crowd of course waited eagerly for his famous hit "I Got You (I Feel Good) which he kept until the end of the show. You can read ET's review in Malay Mail.

Animal Maintenance Day

Today was animal maintenance day!
1. Bathed Razor
2. Cleaned Caramel with no rinse formula shampoo
3. Cleaned hamster cage

Phew!!

Dog and Dama

ET invited me on Sunday night to watch Tan Soo Suan and Dama Orchestra perform the tunes of Teresa Teng. For a banana person like me, I quite enjoyed it , though I have to say that the acoustics in KL PAC isn't all that great for musicals. Considering that most of the songs were in Chinese (Mandarin, Hokkien, Cantonese) I was still able to appreciate the music. Of course i didn't know diddly what all the songs were about (mostly love love songs). I could not even understand the Hokkien song, as Taiwanese Hokkien is completely different from Penang Hokkien. The only words I could understand was "bak chang" (dumplings). Soo Suan sang 2 English songs, "Bridge over Troubled water" and "Power of Love" which I thoroughly enjoyed. The orchestra played with precision and passion. Bumped into Mien's parents during the intermission.

After the performance, as ET and I were walking to her car, we spotted 3 little puppies frolicking around the car park. There was one which was white with black spots, another with white fur and the last one with cream coloured fur. We were told that the puppies were recently abandoned and that they havent been fed. Infact there were 3 more other puppies which we did not see (6 pups in total). We had the right mind to take all 3 to SPCA, but where on earth were we going to house all of them? Then I did something whimsical. I took a chance and took one of the puppies (the cream coloured one) home. In the car he had already gained my trust and was sleeping with his head on my forearm. I AM AT THE MOMENT LOOKING FOR AN OWNER TO ADOPT HIM. I've named him Caramel,and I'd really love to keep him but I can't because of Razor. Razor's been the sole dog in my home for the last 11 years and he's not going to be able to adjust to it. I don't want him to feel dejected. I am still looking after Caramel for the time being, but if there are any dog lovers who are willing to adopt him, please let me know.

Here are some pics of Mel:


Caramel's Biodata
Gender: Male
Fur colour: Cream
Eyes: Brown
Age: 2 months

Blessing in Disguise

I guess being immobile on Sunday wasn't too bad. It gave me some quiet time, which I haven't had much of in the last 2 months. I'd just been so busy every Sunday, event after event,having errands to run, etc etc. Being immobile gave me no choice but to stay at home. Was out in the morning, had the pleasure of having dim sum with my family (I am usually rushing off to church, especially if on worship duty). Dad then dropped me off at church for the 9am service. After service, I hung around church for a bit, roping people to join the Christmas Choir. I am rather excited about it myself, as I've never sung in a choir before (save for school choir). Managed to catch up with HL, then later had lunch with some friends. Blew the entire week's calories on bak kut teh.

I attempted running a bit yesterday. Walked about 2 km and ran about 4 km. I would have gone for the PJ Half today if my foot wasn't sore. Well anyway there was a bit of haze this morning (sour grapes..)

Will be meeting ET later to watch the Dama Orchestra.

Curtains

Went to KK's dad's office to choose my curtain fabric. Chose a golden brown curtain with white sheers for my hall, off-white curtain and white sheers for my master bedroom, blue curtain with violet and blue floral designs for my study and guest rooms.

Still haven't got my car back. Immobile on Sunday. ARRGGHH!!!

The black and white of life

Went to pick up my car from Uncle Wong's house today. He sent it to the mechanic's to have it fixed earlier. There was a leak in the radiator which cause my car to overheat last night. Good thing I didn't attempt to drive my car home last night or it would have just burnt and I would have had to send my car for an overhaul. Alas! The car still couldn't start. I am still without a car. What a bummer, to be without a car for the weekend.

On the brigher side, I bumped into a very old friend from school, Malini. I haven't seen her in 15 years. She's got a 4 year old son now.We've decided to have a mini CBN (Convent Bukit Nanas) reunion in the near future. I sms'ed Angel about it and she called me up and we had a good chat. Realised most of my peers are having their second child already. I look forward to this little reunion to see what everyone else has been up to.

Big Sign

What started off as a good day ended up bad.I had the pleasure of having breakfast with CK in a long time since he became a dad. It was great catching up, most people rarely have the time to do so once they become a parent. We had breakfast in this place called Kimi Gallery in Taman Tun. They make REALLY good 3/4 boiled eggs and toasted buns with kaya and butter. CK and I went through some interior books and magazines, thereafter I brought him to take a peek at my condo. Incidentally his brother also lives in the same condo but in a different block. It was also wonderful finding out what's been happening with some of our mutual friends.

Went to work, work was pretty bearable today..not swarmed but busy with the usual routine. After work, I got all excited about going off to pasar malam to get my 2 litre outer space polycarbonate water bottle. Went to pick Ellen. On the way I noticed the temperature gage needle was higher than normal.....it would never exceed half mark usually. But it seemed to be playing tricks on me..sometimes it went up, sometimes it went down. By the time I reached Ellen's place, the needle was almost at "H". So I thought I'd leave the car to cool for a bit while I went to pasar malam. Wasn't in a particularly good mood already as I knew the car was overheating. Anyway, dropped by the water bottle stall, and of all days they didn't sell the 2 litre bottle. No alkaline water for me I guess.

Wasn't sure what to do with the car, but drove it back to Ellen's place. In the short distance that I drove, the temperature had risen quite a bit, so I thought I'd better give it a check. Well what do you know, the coolant was all dried up. I remember sending the car for servicing not too long ago..So anyway, I am incapacitated again...no car. Got the internet working but no car now. Makes one realise how dependent we are on technology. I've left my car at Ellen's place and Uncle Wong's going to help me get it fixed. I feel so handicapped without my trusty little car!

The irony of it was, I have been talking to my Dad the last couple of weeks about getting a new car. And we talked about it again today. My car's been with me for 9 years.I was just telling my Dad that I wasn't sure whether to purchase a new car now or to delay it until next year since my present car isn't, sorry WASN'T giving any problems. And I didn't want to wait until my car started giving me problems.God always gives me signs...and this is a BIG sign for me....time to change car.

Battery water

Jenny's bought a new water filtration system that filters out water into 2 compartments, acid and alkaline water. She's been consuming this alkaline water for the last 2 weeks and she swears it has healed her of her running injuries. Sounds like some kind of battery water to me! Apparently what this alkaline water does is to neutralise all the acid waste buildup in the body. Another lady in the gym with knee problems has been consuming this water as well and she says it's easier for her to walk now. Well since my feet aren't feeling that great, I'm willing to try it. (Desperate times calls for desperate measures) So tomorrow I shall be trotting off to pasar malam to buy those 2 litre outer space polycarbonate water bottles so that Jenny can supply me with the battery water.
Read about the alkaline water.

As for the acid water, it's good for washing the face....keeps one youthful. I'm sold on that!

Today's exercise diary:
40min walk on treadmill
abs crunch

Today's food diary:
Breakfast: toast and Milo
Lunch: cereal bar and coffee
Teatime: 1 cheese cracker
Dinner: Chicken stew with potatoes and carrots, butter bun, chicken soup

Incapacitated

Finally! After 6 days of internet drought, I finally have access again. For some strange reason, my modem suddenly could not be detected by my pc. It wasn't fried at all. Tried to re-install it but to no avail. Took it to the shop and they had problems reinstalling it as well. So I bought a new one...after all it's pretty cheap nowadays.

I guess I am incapacitated in more than 1 way. My plantar fascia isn't getting any better. I wake up in the morning and my feet are awfully stiff. I have stopped running for 1 1/2 weeks now. I guess I am not going to be able to make it to the Singapore marathon as I am way behind my training scehdule. The longest mileage I have reached is 1okm (which was 2 weeks ago) and I only have 2 1/2 months to the run. I guess it's a sign for me to retire from running, hang up my running shoes and just concentrate on my gym routine. After all, I don't have the physique of a runner..infact I have every runner's nightmare: flat feet, broad hips and bunions. Sigh!

Another reason I should give up running is that it makes one go berserk. (Or maybe, it's the other way round..one must be mad enough to run) Read about the drama in Putrajaya run last weekend.

Last night I was at Clau's to help her pack her things. Ended up clearing a number of items for her...took back some crockery, curtains, tablecloth and oh yes! I have an extra coffee plunger now. Great! Now I can make Starbucks coffee for my guests. Harlina popped over with some 100 Plus and Toblerone and we had a nice girly chat. Harlina's moving to Penang soon too. Seems like everybody is going away.

Stars in My Eyes

Hurrah! I am seeing stars! Finally got the stars image on my header. Also literally seeing stars..after going through the source code. It only took a punctuation mark (or the lack of it) to turn everything haywire.

Well I haven't been terribly good with my diet so let's not record my food diary for the last 3 days.Still maintaining my exercise although I didn't run on Tuesday...left plantar fascia acting up again. So I just walked 4.4km. On Wednesday I spent 25 min on treadmill walking and 20 min on stepper.

Found out from Jooti she has several friends who are into running now. One of them happens to be a physiotherapist. Hurrah! It'll be good to know one because my left foot hasn't been behaving and has been causing me a lot of grief. Apparently they have an impression that I am a pro runner when all I am is a wannabe....

Image Overhaul

Haven't been blogging much. Tired from experimenting with the new look! It still needs a bit of finetuning but I managed to retain all my features. It's supposed to have little stars in the background but I don't know how to do it!

All ABout My Dog

Just got back from watching "All About My Dog", a Japanese movie of short tales about man and his relationship with dog. It started off with some hilarious snippets, with short claymation features in between. As the movie progressed, it became more serious, poignant and moving. What I had expected to be a hilarious movie turned out to be a tear jerker. The movie displays the deep emotional ties that a dog owner can have with his dog. It left me crying profusely and the need to go home to just hug my Razor. It also reminded me that dogs are such faithful friends and their loyalty and unconditional love puts us humans to shame.

A MUST WATCH for dog lovers. But be equipped with loads of tissue paper.


Also bought myself a pair of New Balance shoes. I am a die hard Saucony user but due to distributor problems in Malaysia for the moment I have to resort to something else. Saucony is the only brand of shoes which I NEVER get blisters from the first time breaking into the shoes. I tried the New Balance shoes today ( I forgot the model no) and I fell in love with it. So comfortable and broad, they really fit my feet like gloves (?!?). For the first time (after using Saucony for such a long time) I have found something I really like. I am going to save this pair of shoes for the marathon. Also bought a pair of casual heeled slippers.

Rest day today.

Food diary:
Breakfast: Milo and crackers
Lunch: 2 sets of Chicken sandwiches
Dinner: Vietnamese beef noodles, Vietnamese coffee, 2 slices pineapple

Climb Every Mountain

Did a 14km run this morning. Knackered now. I have my feet soaked in warm water with Rosemary oil and having a cup of Rift Valley (bold)blend. I tried my new coffee plunger today which I bought from Ikea. Hurrah! Now I can have strong and bold coffee at home (I don't like Nescafe or those instant coffee)

Nothing much exciting happening lately. Catching up with Mien later. Oh ya...Ellen and I have gathered about 10 people who are interested in Mt KK climb...but all are female! Tony my ex-colleague has volunteered to lead and train us. His training regime is pretty scary. His training includes REAL trekking in places like Gunung Datuk (Rembau), Gunung Nuang (Ulu Langat), Gunung Brinchang (Cameron), Batu Caves etc etc...Here I was thinking that I'll just make do with the stepper and climbing up the stairs in Lake Gardens. At most Batu Caves. I wasn't lying when I said I'm an athlete wannabe.

During my run this morning, I also thought of my favourite positive phrases to motivate me during the run:

1. "Do or do not, there is no try" (Yoda)
2. "Climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow til you find your dream"
3."I'm bursting with energy"
4. "Be bold, be strong, for the Lord your God is with you"

Thinking about my indulgence also pushes me to run.

Exercise diary today:
14km run

Food diary today:
Breakfast: 1 banana, 100 plus, lime juice, 2 sets of steamed bread with kaya and margarine, coffee
Lunch: 2 sets of tuna sandwiches
Dinner: Home made idli with curry chicken

Exercise diary yesterday:
20 min walk on treadmill
15 min on ellyptical machine
10 minute on stepper
push up (narrow and wide)
dumbell row
upright row
shoulder press

Food diary yesterday:
Breakfast: coffee and toast
Lunch: Oats and marmite
Dinner: Pasta Chinese style
Supper: pink guava

Indulgence

Walked 7km yesterday. Nothing much interesting happened yesterday as I worked. The only highlight was visiting Yin May's condo in the evening. Very tastefully done and she has such lavish taste! My place looks so simple and bare in comparison. I really blew it last night. She served my 2 favourite food which I have weakness for and can't resist: satay and ice cream.

Here's what I had last night:
Fried mee hoon
Meatballs
Coleslaw
Fried chicken wings
Curry chicken
Satay
Oreo cheesecake
Mooncake
Ginkgo barley dessert
Jelly
Ice cream
Fruits

DISGUSTING. DISGUSTING. DISGUSTING.

I have to go on a Jenny Lee diet today. (Jenny's a friend of mine who eats oats for breakfast, lunch AND dinner, if you guys think I am disgusting) . Also killed the pavement today with a 6km run.

I have to be more disciplined about my diet. Especially if I need to train for the marathon. Only consolation is that the Oreo cheesecake gave me an extra boost of energy to run faster today.

I'm popping over to Mun Loong's in a while to see his puppies.