#34 - Brooks Half Marathon - Race Shirt Collection

Oh, bad weather we're having outside right now, and the iPod absolutely despise low-light photography, so grainy picture of my bib number then.

But hey - at least I can... divulge... about... sigh, there is no upside to this. The days (and weeks) leading up to the big race, my first HM for 2013, is getting worse by every turn. Here's a handy list:

1. Left leg - Achilles tendon; aches every time I wake up in the morning. Three weeks.
2. Right leg - Medial tibial stress; has improved by Monday actually, but a run around the track on Sunday Morning brought it up once again.

Which brought me to a rather unusual conclusion: the track hates me.

"Psst! Hey, rubber bead no.11387! I know this guy. Let's break his leg. It will be fun."

Bear with me on this one for a while, but I've been putting in three hours of intermediary training over the span of four days, on road, and I've had a relatively pain-free run. Read through that sentence again - I said on road.

But once I start jogging (yes, jogging) slowly (yes, slowly) on the track (yes, the track), it's "Hello, Mr. Cripple" once again.

It might just be the running track at Seksyen 15 that is actively trying to hurt me, I don't know, because the other running track in the Bangi area that I know of is at UKM. And, oh boy, does it look terrible. The muscles and tendons in my both legs are already brittle enough that it shatters every time I shudder, looking at the shape of the surface of the track.

It's dark - very sinister.

Huh, so Google Image reckons this album is 'dark and sinister'

So, to anyone out there reading this, if you happen to run pass by a guy in bright orange singlet whose run is getting slower, and possibly grimacing in unbridled pain and frustration in equal parts, and bearing the bib number of A10339, say hi.

Don't tap on the shoulder - I might dislocate it.

Oh my, even typing out this entry is killing my fingers and giving my eyes arthritis.

Batter-fried squid! Now I'm having gout as well!

In other development, after two weeks of being away, the housemate is finally home. So, we had a little celebration last night at the Ana Ikan Bakar Petai restaurant. We had ikan pari bakar petai, sotong goreng tepung, kailan goreng ikan masin, and tomyam campur ayam & daging.

Sounds delicious, right?

But in all seriousness, I still don't see what's the big fuss with Ana Ikan Bakar Petai. I mean, this place never fail to attract a huge crowd even when it's the middle of the month. There will always be a long queue. The price is pretty reasonable, and the food is okay - not terrible, not outstanding, but just outside the boundary of 'meh'.

There's nothing to really shout about.

All this feasting, I can only wish if it could help me with the actual race next weekend. Because by the look of how things are unfolding with my legs right now, to even finish the race is a miracle.

I can sort of imagine the shame when all the ladies takes a look at my trophy and go: "Wait - is that all?"

Damn.

#33 - Foals 'Inhaler', and Holy Fuck It's Awesome

Yes - totally awesome. New album Holy Fire is out now. Permission to say "Holy Fuck!" again.

#32 - Best of 2012 in Music, Part 4

One is a dreamy, indie pop-tastic record that leaves you breathless...

The other has Jana Hunter as the lead

Sometimes I can't really tell the two apart, but then that's just me. Beach House makes beautiful music that you listen to while driving in a Ford Cortina down the Corso Francia, in the 70's, in the summer, with the sun glistening over the blue water of the Riviera, you get the imagery. It's deliciously marvelous. Lower Dens on the other hand, influenced largely by the presence of Jana Hunter I suspect, is intriguing and unusual and quirky. Like that video clip to that mind-boggling song by Odd Future.

Well, kind of.

*Next up in the Best of 2012 in Music entry would be an honorary list of best songs I've listened to through the entire 2012.

#31 - Newton MV2

Ooohh... it's the fabled green box you have been dreaming of

So, you have successfully bought yourself a pair of Newton shoes. It's a call for celebration - and it's totally understandable. All that months of limiting yourself to daily food expenditure of only RM5, of starving yourself from all that delicious, delicious food - trust me, anyone else in your situation would have done the same thing. This is just like losing your virginity for the first time.

It has to put a stupid smile on your face.

Now, I can see that the blue label on the side of the box that says MV2. That's the name of the shoe model I believe. Boy, it would be really embarrassing if you mispronounce it as "EM-VEE-TWO", err just so you know.

But I really like it that they even go on to point out that the name actually stands for 'Mass x Velocity2' - it sounds very science-y, very serious, so they must really know their shit. Which I don't - my understanding of physics is nothing more than knowing Sir Isaac's moment of eureka.

You sir have just bought this piece of engineering - running engineering - marvel.

"Peeking through the slight opening of the green box, the masterful MV2 previews itself to its' admiring master/owner..."

Oh, isn't she a delight? I know she is, because have just you splashed your entire savings, the one that you have been working on for the entire 2012, on this one.

She is the winner in your heart - this I know for sure.

Oh wait - what is this little brown envelope inside the shoe box?

Oh look, it's an added heel insert!

I know this - I've read about it in their website. They say moving to a zero drop shoes can take some time getting used to, so they included this additional heel inserts just in case you need some adjustment. How thoughtful of them.

You see, they too have thought about you, you lucky bastard, the owner of this masterpiece of a shoe.

So here we are - exciting (running) days are awaiting ahead. As usual, let's do a stock-take of your other shoes to determine what purpose will this shoe serve. I'm sure you have thoroughly thought this one out or else you won't be breaking your bank on this pair of investment now, isn't it?

Heh heh... uh, here we go:

1) Saucony Powergrid Triumph 9 - former race day shoe, now no longer needed
2) adidas adizero XT - trail run shoes, for all trail run purposes, still good for another 100km or so
3) On Cloudsurfer - current race day shoe, still good for another 200 - 300km
4) Puma Faas 250 - current training shoe, from doing sprints to medium-long distance runs, still good for another 200km or more

So by the looks of it, I think you could use another pair of training shoes, specifically for medium-long to long distance runs. Hang on a minute...

So, you're going to be using the Newton MV2 for training? That's too grand. It's like having Aston Martin Vanquish, Lotus Elise, and Audi S4 in your garage, and you decide to only use the S4 for the occasional Sunday drive, while the Elise for the short trips to sundry shops and wet markets, and the Vanquish for the daily trip down the PLUS highway. It's wrong - it's morally wrong and unacceptable.

Plus, this is a RM499 shoe. It is way more expensive than both of your Cloudsurfer and Faas 250, which both was bought at discounted price, and they definitely don't come with additional heel insert.

Well, yeah, apart from the Cloudsurfer, which came with an extra pair of shoestrings. But it sure isn't going to help with any if-applicable adjustment that might come with the usage of the shoe. It's an expensive shoe, made immaculately precise to be an ultra-light, super-fast racing flat that will fly you to the finishing line.

I'm sorry... say what? You... bought this shoe at a discounted price as well? And it's only RM199? You mean you didn't break your bank for this shoe? Ah, you've got to be kidding me man. I've been.. I've been showering you with all that praises... for nothing? I thought you really have just pulled off a valiant, manly sacrifice of spending your entire life savings on a really expensive pair of running shoes.

And it turns out that you actually didn't. Fuck you, man.

#30 - Activity calendar for March & April 2013

#1 - 27 days to go
When: March 3, 2013

What: Brooks Half Marathon
Where: Stadium Bukit Jalil
Who: Brooks (I suppose?)
Why: 21km run - my first HM for 2013; the next would definitely be SCKLM

#2 - 6 days later
When: March 9 & 10, 2013

What: Raptor Watch 2013
Where: PNB Ilham Resort, Tanjung Tuan, Port Dickson
Who: Malaysian Nature Society & Melaka state government
Why: Nature guide - I will be one of the guides for the Nature Walk; we also have Marine Walk, if you're into aquamarine thing. We have loads of activities for all ages, nature lovers and regular Johns and Janes. If you're interested in joining as a volunteer, click here.

#3 - 27 days after BHM
When: March 31, 2013

What: MAKNA Founder's Run
Where: Padang Merbuk, KL
Who: The Malaysia's Cancer Council
Why: 12km run - it's the housemate's second running race. Race info and registration is over here.

# 4 - 13 days after MFR
When: April 14, 2013

What: Kuala Lumpur 10k Road Race
Where: Padang Merbuk, KL
Who: Cadence Project Services (Wow. I knew.) - My Race Online is a partner
Why: 10km run - the housemate's third running race, and it's nice once in a while to break away from HM