The Housewife Bum

Really.

There's so much I want to say and share but I'm not sure where to start. I may go crazy and start talking to myself, but I thought, what the heck, might as well 'talk' here and pretend you're listening. :)

It's 2 weeks since I'm here and you can say that I'm enjoying my life as a housewife bum at the moment. The hubby wakes up and makes coffee and breakfast for himself and of course there's some for me when I wake up. He goes off to work while I wake up whenever I'm ready. Bliss, eh? :D

Sadly, my complexion has drastically deteriorated and I'm staying off coffee for a while. Boo hoo!

Should there be a need to leave the house (which I make sure I do, because daily fresh air is good), the outfit of the day is dependent on the temperature for the day. Usually it's a long sleeve thermal top with a t-shirt over it and jeans, and a jacket. Gloves are optional, depending on how windy it is. Socks and trainers to complete the outfit, as it is more comfortable for that 10-minute walk.

I honestly don't know how I'll be able to be a fashionista with my mismatched clothing. Sigh. I've been trying to observe the fashion over here and well, it looks like a season for boots. And my boots are still on the way via sea freight. 

I was quite colour coordinated for my You Yangs Trail Run but because it could be a bit windy at times, I kept my thin jacket on. Hmmfh. If I was climatised enough, maybe I would have discarded the jacket. Maybe.

The dinner menu is my responsibility. It's mostly Chinese cooking as the ingredients are cheaper this way. So far I've cooked sweet and sour chicken, turkey sausage spaghetti, stir fried seafood glass noodles, ABC soup, and stir fried vegetables to complete the meal. 

Oh, and braised Vegemite chicken! :D

Not very photogenic, sorry.

You Yangs 50 50 Trail Run - Race Report

Pre-race thoughts

All I wanted to do was to finish it in 8.5 8 7.5 7 hours tops, but YB discouraged me from setting a target (even before we signed up for it). I was adamant for a target as I knew that without setting a target, I would lack the desire to push myself to run hard.

With SCKLM postponed until September, my training during the remainder of June and early July became awry. Trail running was only on weekends so during the weekdays, I'd run hill reps with music blasting in my ears to blur out the monotony of the workout, and hoping that it would be just enough for this race.

Dinner the night before.

Sunday, 22nd July 2013 - Race Day

Waking up at 530am and getting out of the warm bed was very very hard. Why did it have to be so cold? Brrr.

Driving through Melbourne city towards the direction of Geelong.

It was a long drive to the You Yangs that morning, even if I wasn't the one driving. I was trying very hard to stay awake!

Compression wear was to keep me warm.
Photo courtesy of YB.

It was chilly (and I hate really dislike chilly and cold) so there I was, looking severely overdressed amongst the serious looking runners. 

We were blessed with clear blue skies, a contrast to the wet and gloomy Melbourne the day before. But you can never be too sure about the sudden change of weather!

Had to use the loo and found it to be an environmentally friendly one.
*holds nose*

The 50KM runners being briefed before the start of the race.

The eager beavers waiting to run - it's warmer to keep on moving than standing still at one spot!

Onwards To A New Chapter

When I read a book and reach a chapter of immense suspense, depending on my mood, I'd either stop and put it aside to continue it later, or bulldoze through, eager to devour the outcome.

When I watch a movie with thrilling suspense, I'd hide behind my hands or cushion, not wanting to jump out of my skin and wait for that scary scene to pass.

  

With regards to uprooting myself to another country, I have people often ask me, "Are you excited yet? You're starting a whole new adventure over there!"

And they ask with such vigour and excitement in their voice that my lacklustre reply tends to dampen their mood. 

"Yeah..." is all I can usually say.

My horoscope says that I am an adventurous person, but I believe I can only be adventurous when I am with the right company, or when I'm in the right mood - which I think can be a very rare occasion.

*shrug*

 I'm not a risk taker.

Unless it involves climbing a tree!

Years ago when I first completed my SPM, it was time to apply for college courses and to see the world. It was my parents (more like my mum) who did all the research and finally decided on my college to attend for A'levels. 

I was terrified.

I was terrified of leaving home and leaving the comfort of family life to live in the big world of KL.

As I laid in my bed at night weeks before my impending departure, I could only pray that I died in my sleep.

Just so I wouldn't have to face that scary new chapter of Life.

Well, that didn't happen and so I was forced to attend college.

(And no, at that time, it never occurred to me that my family would be devastated.)

Every time I come to a close of a chapter to start another one, I get cold feet and flail around like a drowning chicken. (Do chickens drown?)

I hate job applications and interviews. I hate resigning from a job in order to apply for a new one. I hated all the uncertainties which did not bode well for my lack of self-esteem.

(I shouldn't be putting this here, should I? I need to start job hunting soon!)

I am not a Carpe Diem (Seize The Day) sort of person. I prefer to lie back and watch the world go by (with a good book and some chocolate in bed) and only wake up to see the world when I'm good and ready.

By then, it would be mid-afternoon and I would berate myself for wasting the entire morning away!

And so happens that I've been doing that for the past few weeks in a panic frenzy. I've got just a bit more packing and shipping to do before I am forced to say adios, sayonara, farewell, to what has been my comfort zone for the past 10 years or so.

I'd better get packing before I really lose more time...

Tell me, how do you guys become so brave? Some say that it is out of the necessity of the situation that forces one to stand tall and face the challenges and obstacles ahead.

Ah, I hate growing up.



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Ooh, hey!

I just cleared my drawer and came across a notepad with quotable quotes. *roll eyes* Don't you just love how you tend to come across some positivity when you don't want them at all? :)

"Sometimes you must do the thing you cannot do." - Marathon, done.

"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing." - Turn me into Tom Sawyer, then!

"The greatest test of of courage on earth is to bear defeat without losing heart." - Tell me after a few pints.

"Our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task, will determine its successful outcome." - My usual approach in the office, I suppose.

"Our attitude is not determined by circumstances but by how we respond to circumstances." - Agree, but soooooo hard to remember!

"A positive attitude makes a long and difficult journey easy." - Okay okay, I get it.

"Your life is a reflection of your attitude. If you change your thinking, you change your life." - Okayyyy, I agree.

"Your problem is not your problem. Your attitude - how you handle your problem - is your problem." - What a tongue twister. Reluctantly I agree.

----------------------------------------------------

As an ultimate procrastinator, I can't even print my boarding pass. The printer decided to go haywire on me. Grrrrr

And looks like I'll have to pay for some excess baggage. Why do I have so much crap to bring along with me?!

Salomon S-Lab Kuala Selangor Jamboree Trail Run 2013 - Race Report

Almost 6KM into the race...

The runners ahead of me stopped abruptly, puzzled. Some turned around and headed towards my direction. I heard mutterings of, "U-turn, turn back! Wrong way!" amidst the confusion.

Was it a joke, I wondered.

I soon spotted the lead veteran men coming back and KA waving to us to turn around and head back. It then dawned to me that it was NOT, no, not a joke.

Fek.

The top female runners were turning back as well and so was the entire herd of runners ahead of me. Shoved around, I had to snap out of my reverie and forced myself to turn back.

But it was too late.

I had already lost the momentum.

What a mouthful!

The route

The route was generally a flat one. It was tarmac for the first 1.2KM as we ran through a housing area before we hit a dirt road wide enough to fit the length of a 2-tonne lorry. (Waitaminute, how long is a 2-tonne lorry???) At KM3.2 we arrived at the entrance to the Kuala Selangor Nature Park. Thereafter, we moved on to a dirt and gravel path just wide enough for a car to drive through. At KM4, we hit a T-intersection where everyone turned left, which apparently was the wrong route. So with the wrong route taken, it was an additional 3.7KM.

Turning back and hitting the T-intersection, we headed on straight where we should have turned right instead. Passed by a soon-drying up swamp/marsh land/dunno. We came out at the park entrance and on tarmac, we headed straight towards a flight of stairs leading to the lighthouse and that was approximately KM9.4 at this juncture.

It was a crawl going up the stairs and as I was with Foo, we chatted amicably. Some runners chose to climb up the slope instead of taking the stairs.

At the top, we ran on the road circling the lighthouse. The view from the top was not too bad and there were plenty of black macaques (not sure of their species). Everyone was doing the touristy thing of taking photos of their surroundings. Foo offered to snap my pic with the lighthouse but I refused!

Upon completing the loop, it was back at the junction (facing the stairs) and retracing our steps to the start/finish line.

With about 500m to the finish line, there were 2 Bomba (Fire Brigade) personnel holding up the hose, providing a shower for the runners to run through.

Out of the 12.5KM captured on my Garmin, it was only 5.5KM on trail. The rest was on tarmac.

I estimated it to be 30-70 or 40-60 of trail-road, so I'm not that far off.
Cut off the wrong route and you may see the 30-70 ratio.

You didn't read the above paragraphs, did you? :D

Caversham Wildlife Park, Perth

OMG! I still have some pictures of my trip to Perth in May 2012! Oops!

I love wildlife parks so much more better than zoos. The reason being, the animals are free to roam and you are given an opportunity to interact with them. Well, if you want to. :)

If you rent a car in Australia, you will have a better opportunity to visit places out of the cities (Melbourne, Perth, etc) and there are so many places you can visit even just for a day trip.

Caversham Wildlife Park is about an hour from Perth. Or an hour and a half, I don't remember.

Kookaburra looking handsome and all.

Bear paw prints to follow.

We arrived at about lunch time and thankfully it wasn't too warm or chilly. There were plenty of school kids around, probably on a field trip from school.

With plenty of birds to look at (I'm not fond of birds), the owls were amazing. There were various species to view. This one is known as the barn owl, if I'm not wrong.

Their black spots reminded me of poppy seeds on a bagel or bread. O.O

This white kangaroo is so fuzzy! I couldn't help but to think it was Roger Rabbit, with its bushy eyebrows.

Random Snaps in Melbourne

I thought hard about making this a non-running post but since I have nothing much besides thoughts of running in my head, this is the best that I can do. :D

As you know, I spent the last week in April in Melbourne and came back just in time for the General Elections on 5th May. 

Note: This post is picture heavy!

Taken in Centro Box Hill

We were buying a cup of coffee for our mid afternoon snack. Tried 2 macarons and for the life of me I don't remember which one!

Hasn't the macaron craze died down? I see plenty of bakeries in KL (and anywhere in Malaysia) selling not-up-to-par macarons and it irks me to bits. The perfect macaron must have a smooth shell and not so bubbly and not uber-diabetic sweet. :P

But I'm no pro!

Near Flinders' Station.

Horse carriage rides are available for tourists to wander around town. I absolutely loved the horse and would have treated it to an apple, if I had one in hand! :D

But I bet its owner may charge me a fee for that, ha! He needs to make a living, innit.

The seagull made me laugh when he landed on the Captain's head.

We had lunch in a Vietnamese (fusion) place called Rice Paper. He had some ... erm, broth thingy.

Paper lanterns rock!!

As usual, I opted for the vermicelli dish. It was just OK.