Men

.... would always be boys at heart. they just cant resist tinkering with their latest 'toys' or gadgets can they?

Golfman says the car is mine, in fact he even officially handed the keys over to me the moment we got home yesterday.... but we know what that means right?! he was obviously dying to drive it to work so whats a gal to do but to oblige hehehe? and it wasnt until late this evening, after he'd satisfied himself with prying and prodding every nook & cranny, slot & crevice of the engine, body and interior... that i got the chance to test drive it.

Well, not bad. but i'm pretty surprised theres a huge difference in feel between a 5 series and a 3 series. after all its the same make, just a little smaller but its so light rasa macam melayang2 pulak mula2 tu. even the doors are lighter (the car sorta reverberated when i banged it shut being so used to the heavier car lol). of course the pick up is better so its more responsive when speed is needed but i still feel more secure with the other car when taking corners. maybe its just needs getting used to and adjusting. it feels about the same when cruising the highways but i must admit the smaller size is a bonus when squeezing into tight parking lots!!

The kids dubbed their father's 1st beemer bini muda wanda..... maybe this 2nd one could be bini muda wendy hehehe.

Hmmmm... i give him a week (maybe two at most) before his interest starts to wane and i get to claim 'my' car ;)

At long last..

... the wait is finally over *lounging back, wriggling toes & grinning madly*!!!!!

-no more nagging (gawd how i hate nagging) to get everyone ready and in the car before 7am
-no more rushing to beat the jams at 2 hotspots to kelana jaya and the other 2 hotspots back to shah alam.
-no more risking a burst artery (god forbid) for sprinting & punching in towards the very very last few seconds.
-no more nail biting in ultimate frustration because i'm stuck in the car instead of running free hehehe

Yup, we finally went to pick up the 'other' car so we're now back to one each, thank the good lord :)

Bliss bliss bliss !!

I get to claim that period of time, that glorious hour, between 7.10am - 8.10am as my very own yay!!

*still grinning*

Marriages

If you really think about it so many things can go wrong in a marriage..... but then again, so many things can also turn out alright !!! since life's a gamble anyway, for those of you who are hesitating out there, just take the plunge people :)

Today has been all about weddings.

A close relative finally found the right one at 44 and a big congratulations go out to the newly weds. she threw a very quiet & low key kenduri kesyukuran cum wedding reception for family & friends after zohor. indeed she looked every inch the radiant bride even though its been about a week since the nikah ceremony. semoga berbahagia dunia akhirat dan dilimpahi nikmat rahmatNYA.

Later in the day golfman & i were both invited to a pre-wedding meeting, which included a scrumptious dinner (graciously prepared by the tuan rumah herself). one of his golf buddies was marrying off his daughter in 2 weeks time and was putting together family & friends to help out with the ushering duties. the host used to be one of the senior vps so there'll be plenty of oilmen attending. and it came as no surprise that the hubs was appointed one of the 'oilmen usherers' since he'd certainly be in his element.... jgn brtukar jadi p.ramlee's orang minyak dah ler heheh.

Hmmm... rupanya ada jugak jejaka german yang kecik molek ek.

Workout Log
AM/aerobics - 45 mins/medium pace/dataran shah alam
AM/run - 4k/35 mins/tasik

Kecemerlangan

Cemerlang... surely a word that carries with it such high expectations. especially if we jazz it up with a couple of glam words or turn it into the national catch phrase like 'cemerlang, gemilang & terbilang'.

A heavy responsibility to carry.

Especially if you're a kid.

AH's school had a majlis anugerah kecemerlangan pelajar2 PMR & SPM this morning along with the annual PIBG meeting. 68 students went on stage to be personally presented with a pen and certificate by the shah alam mayor himself... which means AH & gang have been lucky enough to meet up with the previous MB and also the mayor over their pmr achievement. the spm recepients were also there looking pretty jubilant over their awards, and at spm level, they truly deserve it. for us malaysians whether we like it or not, spm is one of life's major crossroads.

The thing is what's our perception of the word 'cemerlang'? yes, we all want our kids to be cemerlang but sometimes i think we've all developed a sort of tunnel vision where the word is concerned. perform, perform, perform.... its all about the A's. now who's not proud of having a kid who comes up with straight A's, but at what cost? its ok if they are allowed to play as hard as we want them to work but sometimes, sometimes, we get so carried away that we heartlessly take away all the joy from their lives.

Case in point is AH's new pengetua. she's sooooo into discipline (during her speech she admitted to having majored in psychology but also admits to being a disciplinarian... a word that she actually had trouble pronouncing) she forgets that she's dealing with kids. kids are born full of hope & optimism.... until we heartlessly squash it dead that is. high school is not just a place where they gather knowledge about the world and their surrroundings, its also a place where they discover themselves. they need to interact and come to terms with their limits & boundaries.... and for that we need to accord them with a certain amount of freedom.

Discipline is necessary to maintain a certain level of order and self displine is needed if we want to keep improving ourselves. but like everything else, we should avoid extremes... even when it comes to something as necessary as discipline. teachers can insist on discipline all they want during the course of a school day but it surely doesnt bode well for the students if they're not allowed to let their hair down on certain special occasions like school matches & sportsday?!

Instruction was given that excessive cheering, face markings, related accessories like head gears or arm bands will not be tolerated.... the pengetua had determined that it's all related to 'rowdy behaviour'. ooh come on.... how can one generate motivation and inspiration in the fields through docility & meekness??? how can we produce champions when we put their spirits on a tight leash? and how can we keep the sporting spirit alive with the children when we ourselves are not sporting?

And with so much emphasis placed on academic achievement, surely it also doesnt bode well for the students if their annual ceria-ton (or concert day), an event which is very much looked forward to, might be scraped from the school calendar all in the name of keeping discipline?! sportsday and concertday are 2 events that's a must for any school, be it in shah alam or yokohama.... because thats when the kids get the opportunity to showcase their other talents.

We need to remember its not just about IQ, its also about emotional intelligence & social intelligence.... and a whole lot of other things that completes us as a person.

If we want kecemerlangan from the kids, we really do need to get things into its proper perspective.

Maulidur Rasul

Very very quiet on the home front this morning.... just a bunch of sleeping children (2 semi-adults actually) and extremely pampered kitty cats (theres 3 now thanks to mak & her new found role as catwoman).

I had to miss out on the perarakan maulidur rasul with my gang of officemates but i just couldnt squeeze in the morning practises into my already loaded schedule. it would have been fun being part of the state parade... you would end up quite sweaty & bothered in the sponsored 'costume' but fun nevertheless (a band of old farts goofing about lol).

As usual it was the tasik again for me. i wish i felt more safe & secure running along the roads of shah alam (its home after all) but the dog & monkey incident still haunts me so in the end its always, always, the tasik. it gets pretty boring sometimes making the same loop over and over buuuut.. i hate feeling scared more than i hate the boredom of repetition. theres usually lots of people about no matter the time of day (no dogs or monkeys for sure) and repetition can be rather theurapetic in its own way (or so i keep telling myself hehe).

So unless a running buddy miraculously turns up (i'm not giving up on turning my man into just that person but its gonna take awhile yet lol), its the same old same old.

AF came home late last nite for a nice long weekend break since his friday lectures were cancelled. unfortunately today, on another of his usual kl forays, he banged the avanza against another tiang, yet again (the same spot as before but this time its banged up pretty badly). gawd whats with him and his left side? his judgement really sucks big time.

Weell, accidents do happen i guess but he'll still have to face the music when golfman comes home saturday morning.

AH seems happy enough after her outing to sunway with ainal & gang. there was the F1 school thingy followed by a nice long session of ice skating. thank god she has quite a level head on her shoulders. its actually a blessing she pulled out of that sinking relationship when she did. she probably would've ended up hurting herself even more by letting it drag on. but for a 15 year old to put her foot down and say 'either you love me or you dont', especially to a guy she's been hero worshipping for as long as i can remember.... now that took a lot of guts!!! power to you my darling!! insyallah theres already someone better out there just waiting to be discovered ;)

Now to my other darling who cant be home this time round due to his endless stream of assignments.... ijat sayang, nanti ma cuba jenguk ek when abah comes home. luvya lots missya plenty.

Workout Log
AM/run - 8k/tasik/ forgot all about timing but it must've been pretty slow bcos i wasnt sweating as much as usual. hmmm..

Reminders

Reminder 1.

The January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter lists some of the benefits of 30 minutes of exercise a day:

Lower blood pressure: A reduction of 5 to 10 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) is possible. In some cases, that’s enough to prevent or reduce the need for blood pressure medications.

Improve cholesterol: Exercise often increases the concentration of high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good” cholesterol in the blood), especially when accompanied by weight loss. Exercise also helps reduce triglyceride levels.

Prevent or manage type 2 diabetes: Exercise helps insulin work better, lowering blood sugar. - diabetes is a great concern of mine, very high risk from my paternal side.

Manage weight: Coupling exercise with a healthy diet is the best way to shed fat and maintain a healthier body composition.

Prevent osteoporosis: Exercise may increase bone density and protect against bone mass decline, especially if weight-bearing activities are involved.

Prevent cancer: Exercise has been shown to strengthen the immune system, improve circulation, reduce body fat and speed digestion. Each has a role in preventing cancer, particularly cancers of the colon, prostate, uterine lining and breast. - from my maternal side.

Maintain mental well-being: Exercise may help reduce stress, improve mild-to-moderate depression and anxiety, improve sleep and boost moods.

Increase energy and stamina: A lack of energy often results from inactivity, not age. - hear, hear..... theres hope yet for old farts like me heheh. lets get active people!!!!

Reminder 2.

ScienceDaily (Feb. 9, 2008) — The consequences of quitting exercise may be greater than previously thought, according to a new study from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that determined that the weight gained during an exercise hiatus can be tough to shed when exercise is resumed at a later date.

The study, conducted by Paul Williams of Berkeley Lab’s Life Sciences Division, found that the key to staying trim is to remain active year-round, year-after-year, and to avoid seasonal and irregular exercise patterns. Most of all, don’t quit. Failure to do so may be a contributing factor in the nation’s obesity epidemic. It should prompt people to think twice before taking a break from their exercise regimens, despite the pressures of family and work obligations, or waning motivation.

Using data collected from the National Runners’ Health Study, Williams found that the impacts of increasing and decreasing vigorous exercise aren’t the same among all runners. At distances above 20 miles per week in men and 10 miles per week in women, the pounds gained by running less were about the same as the pounds lost by running more. At these exercise levels, the effects of training and quitting training are comparable, and the weight gains and losses associated with changes in exercise levels are probably reversible.

However, Williams found that people who didn’t run as many miles per week face an uphill battle if they want to lose the pounds accumulated during an exercise hiatus. At these less intense levels, an interruption in exercise produces weight gain that is not lost by simply resuming the same exercise regimen.

“At lower mileages, there is asymmetric weight gain and loss from increasing and decreasing exercise, leading to an expected weight gain from an exercise hiatus,” says Williams. “In other words, if you stop exercising, you don’t get to resume where you left off if you want to lose weight.”

Specifically, Williams compared 17,280 men and 5,970 women who decreased their running distance with 4,632 men and 1,953 women who increased their running distance over a 7.7-year period. He found that runners who decreased their distance from five to zero miles per week gained four times as much weight as those who decreased their distance from 25 to 20 miles per week. He also found that people who started running after an exercise layoff didn’t lose weight until their mileage exceeded 20 miles per week in men, and 10 miles per week in women.

Adeh susah betui laaa.... dah active nak kena keep active pulak tu. but then nobody said keeping fit & healthy was a breeze now did they?

hmmmm its definitely a life long commitment. takpe la mudah2an tak nyusahkan anak2 nanti, insyallah.

Keeping busy

When one is in a troubled state of mind keeping busy is probably one of the best options. dwelling on it will only make things worse so.... busy busy busy. and when one tires of all that running about, sleep isnt too bad a choice either. you conk off and next thing you know... "hey, its another day" ;)

Then of course theres always, always peace & solace in the AlMighty.


Workout Log
AM/run - 4k/35 mins/ tasik

A Week without..

... the man.

Functioning and managing as only half of a complete whole is nothing new but its been awhile. Abe's been home for the past couple of months so it needs some getting used to... again. the good part is, this time its just for a week.. the bad part is, he might be reassigned to the caspian sea for yet another undetermined length of time.

Gawd, how i hate managing alone.

But..... we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

One of the compensations of being left behind is having some space to call my own... which means i get to run in the mornings again and maybe be able to move back to a certain level of consistency. i find that without regular exercise fatigue sets in more easily and i just dont have room for that in my life. not with so many depending on me.... to stay sane, happy, healthy & functioning.


Workout Log
AM/Slow Jog - 4k/40 mins/ tasik

Growth

My heart goes out to my lil girl.

What you did certainly took a lot of guts but he shouldnt be allowed to keep on breaking your heart. and however painful it might be right now, you will overcome this insyallah.

WE will always love you no matter what.

Helpless

As parents it hurts us to no end when we sometimes have to take on the role of a helpless bystander.. while our children battle the challenges that life seems to constantly throw at all of us; challenges that are actually necessary for our growth.

The urge to shield & to protect is sooo strong that sometimes we literally have to force ourselves to step back and not interfere. heck we love them with all our heart & soul... so its only natural that we'd want to intervene when a mistake seems to be in the making. aaaah, how frequently we've interfered with the ready justification of " i did it because i love you"!!

But makan garam dulu doesnt guarantee that we're always right and what is best for us doesnt necessarily mean it would be best for them. sometimes they need to go through the heartache & hardship to become stronger; they need to make the mistakes so that they can learn from it and become better.

Still, knowing all this doesnt make it any easier.

Just understand one thing though, mama's always here for you.. and you.. and you, no matter what. selagi hayat di kandung badan mama akan mendoakan yang terbaik.

Where were you?

" i walked for miles along the beach.. searching endlessly for someone wonderful to step out of the darkness and change my life. it never crossed my mind that the person could be me "
- ANON


i've been soo busy, i've almost lost touch with myself....


Workout Log.
Run/PM - 3km/forgot about keeping time/sect. 9

Big words

".... orchestrating learning opportunities.... "

Management books are interesting tapi kalau the authors tetiba get these 'syiok sendiri' attacks, agak leceh la nak faham. apa salahnya kalau keep it simple and direct but nooooooo.... nampaknya the more berbelit the better. why? baru nampak macam dia pandai kot sebab the masses tak paham.

Sebenarnye simplifying things and making it easily understood lagi challenging, lagi menunjukkan ke'terra'an seseorang tu bukan sebaliknye. if only most writers could understand that, senang hidup.

Golfman pun actually terpengaruh jugak dengan budaya 'lets make it berbelit2' ni (skit2 la). there was this unfinished report that he brought home and although he kept singing about it the whole weekend, tapi tak jugak buat2. i knew he was going to throw in a last minute effort... with me in the equation somehow. sooo when the somewhat unscheduled sweet talking/kissing/caressing started, i couldnt help but laugh. alaaaa trick lama la bang hehehe... quite obviously an udang sebalik mee/ scooter sebalik lori kinda situation, dah tau sangat. Abe weh, tak butter up pun kita tolong jugak la, takkan nak biar Abe bersengkang mata sorang2 kan ;)

So he whips out a couple of management books and shows me some of the important sounding terms that could be used to spice up his report.

Hah?

Iisssh.... toksah nak ikut2 sangat la all the bombastic words my darling. keeping it sweet & simple should be the order of the day. biar ramai yang faham and appreciate what you're trying to get across; not swayed by the 'glamorous' feel tapi bila kaji habuk pun tarak.

Lets just leave that to our dear politicians... after all they've turned it into an artform.


Workout Log
Aerobics/Am - 40 mins/mid to high/dataran shah alam