woops. an outdated photo taken last year. the blue-hooded creature lurking nearby the tree is whitney. if i remember right, iza took this photo. pier 39 during thanksgiving/christmas is absolutely brimming with life. ah good times. and good times now too. its so good to be back home for christmas. finally! Merry Christmas, my dear friends in Davis, KL, Spore, Ipoh ,Japan, Paraguay, Korea, Mexico, or wherever you are! Have a joyful one, ya

it has been the support and encouragement of my friends both from Davis & Ipoh that really kept me going!Thanks, guys

I had always known that I'd be a runner. During my high school days, running was always something I did just to keep in shape. I never really tried to race because, truth be told, there were always people telling me that I wouldn't be able to do it. Or, their words translated to mean that. I remember an incident, where a friend, upon learning that I go running in the evenings, said that I would be better off if I didn't run because running causes people to gain weight instead of staying in shape. I mean like, isn't that hilarious?

Anyway, fast forward 7-10 years, and look who's running places compared to those who were on the high-school track team? I've never had the opportunity to represent even my house teams running, simply because they always looked for someone skinnier, taller, or the daughter of the physical ed. teacher.

Nov 2006: US Half Marathon, San Francisco, CA
My first half-marathon (21km) which I had originally planned to do in Nov 2005. Due to workload and the pressure to 'not lose it' during my Junior year, which is the toughest year for students (which is true!!!) in American varsities, I had to let my training bring over to the next year. It was my first race in the US, and I loved every single bit of it! Running across the Golden Gate Bridge and under around the bay, it was the dream run I had always imagined it to be. My time? 2:18. Not bad for starters!

December 2006: California International Marathon, Sacramento, CA
My first marathon (42.195km)! Yay! And it was a blessing indeed, to have been able to train with Whitney for it. Not only were we unprepared for it (we had both strained our muscles 2 weeks prior to the race), but we also finished within 6 hours! I hold dear memories of this race. Finishing time? 5:44.

February 2007: Davis Stampede, Davis, CA
I called this my Birthday run, a gift to myself. Reason was that it was just 2 days before my 23rd birthday. I found myself feeling rather funky with my new haircut, so I figured, why not LOOK funky too? Hence the band and that silly smile plastered on my face! Ha. This was a wonderful race simply because it took us around Davis, the place where I stayed and studied for 4 years! Even though Whit and I would run 6, 10, 15 miles around Davis, this took me on a pretty different route to West Davis. At certain points, I felt like Dorothy in Wizard of Oz because of the golden colored fields and farming land that we ran by. Finishing time - 2:12

June 2007: Rock 'n' Roll Marathon, San Diego, CA
Yay for this one! Ryan, Whit, and I traveled all the way to San Diego and even got stuck in Mexico for a night! Hahaha. As usual, I wasn't 100% prepared for this run, so I was basically praying that I wouldn't get injured. Turns out that God kept us all alive, through the insane San Diego summer heat! You won't be able to see it, but we all got sunburnt badly. I looked like a lobster the next day. This run was really memorable to me because I actually drank half a cup of beer midway! Yes, beer. Um, it was hot, the beer was cool..I gave in. I want to believe that it helped me go on, because after that the race seemed easier, or maybe because being a little drunk takes away the pain a little. LOL. Anyway, this was my last run in the States before I returned, so definitely memorable even if it were not for the beer incident. Finishing time - 5:22

Dec 2007: Standard Chartered International Marathon, Singapore
Now, this is the race that I had trained diligently like a good girl for 4 months! And I am proud of myself for being able to run 33km within 3:45 with pacing. What happened beyond 34 km was out of my control (yea, i was working towards a sub 5 race). Basically, both my quads jammed big time. Like, seriously. I don't really know how it happened, but I suspect that too much Mentholatum and too little salt intake had to do with it. Without Whit around, I guess that I just forgot to down a packet of salt (YUCK!) prior to the race. Hehe. But, nvm. I trained well for it, and I ran it well. What amazed me was that my recovery rate took only 48 hours! Yes, no kidding. I was up and about on my two feet without any pain or aches by Tuesday! And see that guy in red up there? Well, I believe he was a godsend. I was 1 km away from the finish line, glycogen-depleted, lactose-infused muscled and all, when he came by me and said "come on! Let's go! Home run!" And together, we semi-ran/hobbled to the end. Hey man, if you ever happen to chance upon this blog, Thanks! cos i never got to thank you that day. Finishing time - 5:40


Sept 2007: Yuk Choy 6k Charity Run, Tambun, Ipoh
A small race that won me 7th place and RM50. Not much, and not bad, since I found myself among the top 10 women runners in the open category. Time: 33 minutes something secs


Oct 2007: Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) 5k Larian Mesra, Ipoh
Another small race in Ipoh. The medal was lousy. Earned 8th spot in the women's open category and RM50 as well. Haha. What's it with RM50 these days?! Anyway, I liked this 5k because I outran a competitor (somebody who outran me in the Yuk Choy run) at the last 2k. I was even able to run another 5k after the race with Mui. We were like running against the crowd and the police were like, "er" and we were like "sudah habis, sudah habis!" hahaha. Time: 25 minutes something secs

Well, I guess that's it for a recap of the year's running events. It has been a good one, with all the friendships fostered and the useful knowledge reaped. On to a new 2008 I go. New place, new friends, and most of all, new experiences! Woohooo

My all-time favorite cartoonist..with some doggie humor

runners look like shit when they run..

Don't believe me? Well, here's yours truly au natural

And here I am, au natural toobut on my way to 8th placing in Ipoh's Larian Mesra PDRM 2007..

ha. and i always wondered, how ugly could it get

many thanks to Tey for snapping such a high quality pic of me

you can even see them zits on the face

for more ugly running pictures, visit PM Tey's Blog