my own race...

I always look forward to weekends but I have never been so glad that this past week was over. It has been a while since work has been this crazy. Gone are the days when I was able to go out for a tea break in the afternoon. Now, my movements outside of the office was limited to just lunch time. Honestly, I get quite stressed out at the office these days. But thankfully, I have been able to deal with stress well and to leave all that stress behind when I leave the office. I am amazed that I can actually do that now. I have become totally heartless about work these days. Yes, I vent sometimes to one of my colleagues and over a few drinks with my friends after work but other than that, I hardly think about it. There is more to life than just work - I have other things to think about ... like my running.

On Saturday morning, despite the lack of sleep this past week, I woke up at 5am with my goal to run 20km for the first time since I started running (or jogging sometimes) eight months ago. Geared up with my Nike Fit Dry running outfit, my fuel belt and my iPod, complete with a play list containing heart-pumping music to get me going, I was eager to run the distance. I set off at 5.35am. We have not seen the sun on the island for days now but the condition yesterday was perfect for my first 20km run - it was a very cool morning. I was not even worried if it was going to rain. If it had been hot, I wouldn't mind it at all - it would have been more of a challenge. As usual, the first 15 minutes were daunting but once I broke my first sweat, I was in a trance and I ran and ran. The next thing I know, I was nearing the end of my route.

I completed the route in 2 hours and 30 minutes. Not bad I thought, considering that when I ran 17km previously, I completed the route in 2 hours and 15 minutes. After a cold shower, a hearty breakfast and watched some tele, I took an hour's nap to catch up on the sleep I've lost this past week. By the time lunchtime was over, I was full of energy and spent the entire afternoon doing things that I have neglected this last couple of weeks. And today, after a good night's sleep, I feel really good. I love this feeling - I think I am addicted to it!

365 days later....

This week marks my first year in this job. I could not believe that I lasted a year in this place, what with the ups and downs… well, mostly downs, considering the frustrations I face here almost at a regular basis. That is why I could not believe that I lasted this long. Shows you that I have persevered and my tolerance level has gone up. Thank you to the years of experience working with the most prestigious MNCs and the less than perfect organisations. The two extremes have helped me a lot.

What surprises me this morning (after that ovation points I received last month) was when I received an automated e-mail signed off by the Senior VP in the States, thanking me for the year of service. Now, that's a first! In all my working life, I have never received this sort acknowledgement for your anniversary with the company after just a year. Normally, you would get an acknowledgement after 3 or 5 years and longer. I know it is only an automated e-mail but the words lay out in there, makes you feel like you belong and that you have contributed so much (even though you know the opposite is true):

"Today, you achieved a great accomplishment in your career - 1 year of dedicated service to this company.

Your performance throughout the last year has been instrumental to accomplishing our vision of becoming the service provider for the enterprises worldwide.

I appreciate your contribution to our business and I am proud of your dedication and hard work. You may print a certificate by clicking Years of Service Certificate. Thank you for your service."

It is funny that the word career was used. I have a thing about that word when it comes down to my job - it not anywhere near my work life vocabulary. I read those words and thought that they were so fake. Yet, I feel appreciated knowing that this organisation takes effort to do this to every employee even though they don’t even know who you are. So, I accepted this e-mail with a little bit of pride - just a teeny weeny bit, ok? Also, I think it is time to have a chat with the boss to see if there is a possibility of, you know, $$ increase.

I was at the pantry this morning when a colleague walked in. Somehow we got to talking about how long we’ve been here and found that we joined in the same month. So we decided to celebrate – we are going for a nice lunch tomorrow and I am sure there will be some moments of us bitching about this place. Ha ha. Oh well, that is what work life is about. There is always something negative to say about your organization. When you go on a day with your job without a single complain, now that would be a day when I sit frozen in the office.

something about this song...

This is song about infidelity. It reminded me of another song about infidelity - Atlantic Starr's Secret Lovers. Ok, so despite the theme of the song, something about this song that makes me want to listen to it over and over again. This is a song that you would put in your playlist of slow tunes for the late night, winding down with a glass of wine and stare out the window. Hhhhmmm...

i ran - the stats...

The official results are in!
For the Passion Run which I have participated last Sunday, that is.

I finished at 303rd place out of 608 other runners in the Women's Open Category.

I reached the 5km mark in 34 minutes and 43 seconds.

I crossed the finish line in 1 hour, 11 minutes and 54 seconds.

In my last competitive race, I crossed the finish line in 1 hour, 28 minutes and 44 seconds. I have made an improvement of 17 minutes and 10 seconds from 7 months ago.

Still, I am an average runner but hey, at least I crossed the finish line in good shape. Here's to better results in my next competitive race!

i ran...

Early this morning, I ran my first competitive run of 2007 - the Saucony 100 Plus Passion Run 2007 at East Coast. This is also my first competitive run since participating in the 10k run during the Standard Chartered Marathon in December last year. And man, the heat was on...literally!

The sun was shining and the weather was beautiful at the beach this morning. However, yours truly seems to be vampire-like when it comes down to running. I am so used to running at dawn and be done before the temperature heats up. So, the sun and the heat was not something I am used to when running this morning, where the start time was at 8am (my usual running hour is 5.30am). I was a little unprepared in facing the run in the sun and was at some point, became dehydrated.

It was a minor setback. I gave my best and wanted to finish this run without stopping to walk (I stopped to walk quite a bit last December). I also gave myself a target to finish this race in an hour. So, I finished the run without stopping but based on my watch, I finished the run in 1 hour and 12 minutes. It was about 17 minutes faster than the 10k run in 2006, but we will have also to wait for the official result from my running chip for my actual finishing time. I am a little disappointed that I did not finish the run in an hour. Well, I guess I am an average runner, who just began running regularly 8 months ago. An improvement in time of 17 minutes from my previous competitive run is a good accomplishment for a novice runner. A seasoned runner can finish this 10k run in 40 minutes or less, which impresses me much! I still have a long way to go and also, taking my age into consideration.

All in all, it was a good run. Competitive runs like this give myself something to look forward to. It is also a good way to prevent me from giving up my regular running - my dose of cardiovascular exercise. I got myself a nice tan after the run and later, I rewarded myself with a healthy toasted Subway sandwich and two cookies - oatmeal raisin and chocolate chip - washed down with an extra cold barley drink. I am still determined to finish my next competitive run in an hour. Whether I achieved it or not, it will be another story. Lets see.

Happy Birthday, Liz!