My Way of Living [Search results for thankful] 

There is so much that we take for granted in life, no matter how thankful, and in the moment we might try to be. But there are moments of total clarity happening all the time, although it might just have to be a quiet, a chance for us to gather it all together to let the moment shine through.
Chaos, noise, interference, jobs, errands, pain, and situations beyond our control, darkness falling sooner, dinner being later.

It’s hard to hear the quiet voice inside our hearts.
I heard it today, and for that I am grateful.
Walking through the countryside, gazing across the empty fields of the neighbouring farms.
The open land undulating with pockets of trees, that are gradually losing their leaves.
Walking free of the towering fir trees that group together around our houses, like birds perched on branches.
Shielding us from summer sun, but lapping up any winter light.
They are surprisingly dense when seen from afar, as if dropped from the sky like cake batter on the floor, smeared below the mountains, scraped from the fields.
Autumn’s thick clouds transformed By the sun into a fine mist, shrouding the dark indented valleys of the mountains that hover over our houses. A leftover summer scarf that will soon be packed away.
My lungs breathed in the faintest scent of wood smoke floating on the damp, sun warmed air. The stronger pungent smell of manure scooped from barns and spread on fields, washed away with the October rain. The latest cleanout of the chicken barn could be scented downwind, mixed with what the cows did outside while waiting to be fed.

It made me grateful that I could walk in such a peaceful and beautiful place, smell the scents of farming. Knowing that come spring they would be busy in the fields again producing food for our tables.
Thankful that I can walk, happy that I woke up today, alive, and with happy feelings.
Glad that I can feel the warmth of the sun on my face as I tipped it towards the sky.
Feel it warm my legs, and my hands where it softly struck.
And as I walked I realized just how thrilled I was to hear the sound of a breeze rustling the remaining stubborn leaves in the almost bare tree branches. Gathering up the sound of the “I’m not leaving quite yet” chickadee singing it’s heart out, in melodious tune with the other birds near the bull rushes.
The swooping wings of a Raven, with it’s guttural clucking echoed off of the land. Chuckling as it passed overhead, a quiet shadow of dark feathers. It makes me wish I could record it to play for you. When a Raven passes overhead, the sheer strength of it’s long wings, the beat of air passing through feathers makes you turn your head upwards and search the sky. And then there is the chuckle, not a call, but a complaint I think, for Ravens seem to always be unhappy, moving from one tree to another.
I passed the red barn, the subject of so much of my photographic journeys in all seasons, glad to know that across the road was the farmer that we bought our free range eggs from.

The metallic jingling of keys in my pocket that kept tune to my steps, are used to unlock a door to a home filled with love, and comfort. A husband who helps out more then his share, and is glad to do it. I’m grateful for his help, and comfort.
I am also glad that our house is habituated by a slightly manipulative cat, who meows continuously for food, but will still allow head rubs, and tummy tickles when he is in a good mood, and if there are treaties involved.
For a furry bundle of noisy grumbles, and early morning wakeup calls, I am thankful because for so many years we lived in places that would not allow us the joy of sharing our life with one. Just remind me that after the next 4 am wakeup call, OK?
Today I am grateful, for life, for sun, for living our dream in a place where family is near, and living in the land that is close to my heart. So I am asking, today what are you grateful for? I’m inspired today by the amazing words of her Face Book postings from Carolynn atA Glowing Ember, and the beautifully written blog posts of Laura from I’m so vintage.
Their posts, along with yours make me grateful that I am a blogger.
For all the good words, and kind comments that everyone leaves, I thank you.
Should you be so inclined, please click on the share buttons below, it would be much appreciated.And double PPS? I forgot that the sponsored post will be published on Monday, November 17th, not today as I’m so mixed up that I mistakenly told you the wrong date, please look for it then.

After living all of my life in a rainy climate, I now realize that we took it for granted that it would rain about oh, 25 days out of each month. Except for a scorching hot, two week period in July/August when we begged it to end. Now here is something I never thought I would hear myself saying. After a long three and a half months, I can now say, I am thankful you are here, to the rain.

It doesn’t rain up here like on the coast, well duh, you might say, but when you are living in the middle of a drought, I guess it makes it that much more real.

I am thankful that the rain is washing down the scent of Fall weed and feed, from those neighbours that use a lawn care service in the country, [why is this needed] the dust in the fields, the coating of dirt off of the trees.

We did a bit of our fall clean up yesterday, and of course Boo was in there like a dirty shirt, loving the rustle of the leaves, as they fell. You’ve not watched a kitty, until you’ve seen them track a leaf as it falls from a tree, not knowing if they want to pounce or run. I’ve moved some plants, and was shocked at how dry they are deep down, I see a lot of watering in my days ahead. The little rain that we will get is very welcome, and hopefully we will get more before the snow falls. The promised frost hasn’t come, and it was a hard goodbye to say to most of the annuals, but they are starting to perish in the cool temps, it was their time to go.

I would like to announce the winner of the Goose Creek Candle draw, is… Vicki from Life in a empty nest. Send me a email so I can pass on the info to Goose Creek. Congrats Vicki. So to all a Happy Sunday…

Ever wake up one morning and find yourself declaring it a new week, and being very thankful the previous week is over. Not just the day, the entire week. I just had one like that.
And when I woke up yesterday morning I was ever so glad to see a Monday morning.
A new start, a new chance to do it all over again. It all started last Sunday night, and it continued on, each day just slightly more challenging, and finally ended up with our condo recovering from a overflowing drain next door.
The dehumidifier is still humming away, as I write this, and it’s driving me batty, but I know it won’t be for much longer. And I know that this is a new week, a new day, it’s a new chance. And I am thankful.

Holidays are so full of expectations, and thoughts of perfection, that sometimes they just can’t live up to the dream, and the resulting crash can be painful unless you learn to let it be what it’s going to be. It’s easy to get carried away with the plans, and preparations so much that you lose sight of the real meaning behind the seasons we celebrate.

Finding something that you are thankful for, and a bit of gratitude can make it a great day. Whatever this season to means to you, I wish you a day that you dream of, a wonderful time of joy, and peaceful surroundings.

I know that it sounds more like a Christmas wish, but for so many people this is the start of such a season of busyness, buying, and preparing that I thought I should just slip it in there. So take a moment to reflect on what you have versus what you need, buy local whenever possible, and buying handmade does more good then you know.

If you are out there shopping, please make sure to give the sales representatives the biggest smile, and a thank you. I’ve been there for so many years, working the holidays, missing the family dinners, tired and ran off of my feet. A smile,, and nice greeting from a customer goes a very long way to making a day more pleasurable, believe me.

Happy Thanksgiving a day early…

It never ceases to amaze me how we bloggers have this magical ability to pull something out of nothing.
Such as:
Creating a blog post out of a inspired sentence, or experience that comes from…
A conversation

That you might be having with someone.
[Check out the great photo that Stephanie used a cool app on, with gorgeous results.]
A experience
And this all happens just in time, when you realized.
That yes, you should have been thinking about writing this post waaaay before the last minute.
But you were
Puttering in the garden, taking down the beans, drying the sunflowers for the birds.
Enjoying the flower’s last blooming hurrah before the first frost.
And maybe.
You should have been blogging
Instead of walking in the glorious sunshine down country roads with your beloved.
Taking time to refresh your creativity.
Wondering if the sheep will be out in the field.
And are there to be more cows in the red barn before the winter?
Discussing whether or not the caterpillar’s wide stripe means a hard winter.
Does a squished by a vehicle caterpillar mean that the stripe is wider, and thus a harder winter?

Maybe a post evolves from a experience
Of dashing out of the house alone, in the early morning to take photos of fog patches that linger on the river.
Catching the only moment of sun breaking through the clouds, bathing the mountain in light for the entire day.
Score!
Despite feeling uncomfortable being out there alone on the river walk path.
Wondering if it was a good idea.
One eye on your truck with your wallet locked inside, and one hand firmly hanging onto your “much to expensive to replace” camera.
Hoping the that little town that you have travelled to next to yours was really safer at this time of morning than you thought it might be.
Wishing that you had brought your husband along instead of going off on a whim.
And being thankful that there was another person, who also was female striding towards you.
After all the unseen threats couldn’t take you both on, could they?

Making new friends
With her, while walking beside the gorgeous river and discussing it’s reputation for nature, and safety.
Only to realize just how vulnerable you felt once again when you had to turn back, retrace your steps, now alone passing that man staring into the magnificent river vista.
Despite his dog being beyond friendly, you still felt uncomfortable. He was so silent, and stern.
The area has less then a stellar reputation that early in the morning.

But the views, the clouds, the mountains, the wild geese, and the ducks trying out their landing gear on the river.
The absolute beauty of being able to see as far as your eyes could strain.
The clouds, the sky, the glow from the hidden sun.
Took only your breath away.
And for that you were thankful.

Many thanks to all of you who take the time to read my blog posts, and to those who also leave a comment, even more thanks! I truly appreciate your time spent doing so.
A tip, a tip!
I’m just wondering if anyone else has encountered the jiggling, vibrating sidebars that seem to be happening to a few Blogger blogs… and thought I would share a solution that I found online.
If you use Chrome as your browser, you might have this problem also.
It may be the Google follower’s widget causing the problem, apparently it can be fixed by moving your follower’s button down lower on your sidebar.
As a reader a quick fix to stop the vibrations would be to zoom in or out to a different setting… say 110% or even 90%. That seemed to work for me if I am reading a blog with a vibrating sidebar.
And one more bit…
If you have a Blogger blog could you please check that the list of blogs shown in your profile has your most current blog at the top?
We are all so pressed for time, if you are a new commenter we might not know which blog is the one to read and comment on.
Also for those who use a Google+ profile for your Blogger blog, please consider putting the link to your blog in a extremely visual place, maybe even more then once… less clicks for us = more views, and comments for you.

Another storm lashes at the windows, the cat stirs in his sleep, restless dreams, quiet fur.
Feathers fly, snow falls, hail come from the sky, thunder roars, lightening flashes, and we are powerless.
Birds flock to the feeders, suet, and seed poured, and placed with fear it’s not enough to last the night.
Mornings awaken to coffee, and a fresh coating of white, shadows of small tracks, deer, pheasants, quail quilt the batting left behind.
Eagles in the trees always watching, keening. Observant, at all times hungry and opportunistic, watch your back.
Winter is hard.

So why should we be thankful for it?
If all we encountered was good weather, would we learn to appreciate endless sun, perfect days of glowing light.
We need winter to act as a contrast to the warm spring days, sun reflected in a pearled glow from inside a soft petal, the buzz of a bee the song it sings of spring.
Winter is there to keep us in check, to give us a moment to think, to reflect. To wear heavy clothes, while trying to keep warm, remembering what sun feels like on bare skin, instead of wool scratching, and chaffing.
Snow is needed for the fields, desperate moisture to start the summer cycle of growth, to harvest. To feed streams, to soothe fish, to replenish the rivers.
To continue the circle of birth, and death in nature, and man.

Without winter how would we learn to appreciate the taste of a red, sun ripened, home grown strawberry instead of a refrigerated, trucked in winter replacement? How would children know the sublime texture of a just picked grown from seed tomato, compared to the greenhouse plastic moulded conveyer belt driven pale replicas we are given during the cold.
Would fresh berries dusky with bloom, gently slipped from the prickly branch of the vine taste as good, if we were not forced to eat winter spray painted pieces of shredded paper that passed for fruit?
I don’t think so.

So blow wind, and fly snow, winter may be long, it may be harsh.
During this time of year we may struggle to find something beautiful to say about you, but winter you have your place.
Your time is soon to end, and for that we will be thankful.
But we also understand what your role in the circular seasons is, and how grateful we should be that you are here to help us enjoy the other times of softness, warmth, and growth.
The harder you blow, the more snow you drop on us, the colder it gets, the more beautiful the first spring stirrings are.
And for that, we thank you.

Being able to sit down to eat a meal after so many months of pain is… Well, totally wonderful. Indescribable.
I hurt my back last summer, something went the wrong way, my back went the other, and I herniated a disk. L5, low down…it was pressing on the sciatic nerve that goes all the way to your toes. Yes it was a very big ouch.

Not nice at all.
I don't suggest it.
Apparently I was one of the unlucky 5% of people who require surgery.
And it affected my ability to blog, there were months when it was difficult to get near the computer. Because I couldn't sit, I would stand at my drafting desk, write a sentence on the laptop, pace out the pain, and go back.
There were times when I thought I might have to give up blogging.
To distract myself, I decided to research a move to Word Press, and go ahead with the name change that had been in the works for ages. What else can you do?

And then a cancellation call came from the hospital.
The surgery was last Tuesday, while I am glad it's over, I still can't believe it.
I'm very thankful.There were a lot of prayers said. And answered.
I'm also thankful that you've stuck with me through what has been a erratic 7 month adventure.
It's been a long road.
I'm looking towards the future, I've got some interesting things for you, and for the future of this blog as soon as I am healed.
Lets see where our blogging journey's takes us.
PS: Thinking spring, and sending warm up wishes to all.

When we bought this house we had it inspected.it was the middle of January, and bitter cold so there was no way we could try out any of the irrigation system.
The inspector told us that the water pressure was low, but it might be due to a few things, or it might be from something else.

Guess what it turned out to be… of course.
So last fall we had the water line repaired, and yes it was really expensive. But worth every drop in the end.
We have no idea why the previous owners didn’t do something about what was a noticeable problem, they ignored the fact that the water dripped out of the shower, and also into the earth. What a waste of a precious resource, there isn’t enough water up here as it is. The late autumn repair tore up a wide strip of lawn between the towering fir trees, and the house, made a great big mess, but who cared, it was fixed. Right after that it snowed, and froze so nothing more could be done until spring. As soon as the snow started to recede, [was that only a month or so ago], I was out there raking the frozen ground trying to fix it up.
Over winter it seems that any rocks the guys try to hide underground were spit up with abandon. The earth may laugh in flowers, but it giggles in boulders. Lot’s and lots of them.

What do you do with lots of rocks? You could make a pile of boulders, try to hide them under the fir trees, line gardens with them, or build a dry stream rock garden.
So that’s what we did, it’s a work in progress, but it’s going to be really nice.
My husband, he of great strength, moved the larger rocks, toiled in the soil, and shovelled the load of river rock into place.
Am I thankful for his help, you bet, he’s amazing!
Early yesterday morning the dump truck arrived with top soil, and dropped it on the driveway then we started the fun part. The rocks were easy to place, but the soil is the bones of the garden.
Our neighbour decided we were having too much fun and helped out, the weather was cool, and beautiful. Perfect day for building a new garden. I kept teasing the fisherman in him, asking if he saw any fish yet.
It’s so exciting to look out the windows and not see the bare gash of earth that adorned the front yard for so long, but a soon to grow into it’s self, garden with rocks that will be beautiful in time.

Mostly dry shade, it’s also a hot/cold climate here, plants need to be hardy. I’ve been keeping a running list of plants that will do well under there, gathered from reading garden bloggers suggestions for great plants. Looking for those with minimum upkeep, and even less water, the ones that will survive our hot summers and cold winters.
Life hands you lemonade occasionally, and sometimes the earth giggles in boulders, and water lines get eroded… there isn’t much else you can do but shrug your shoulders.
And build a dry stream with your rocks.

Ola friends and readers! Once again, I'd like to thank you for all the support you have been giving this site. I still get amazed at how far we have gone, and that the site is still actually up and running. Obviously, I couldn't have done that without your support. Anyway, we all know it ain't easy to maintain a blog, more or so that a lot of my articles are feature length. Combine that with a hectic dayjob, some semblance of a training program and that more or less equates into article backlog. Admittedly, I'm behind by several articles now, and I hate stale news as much as you guys.

So with that in mind, today we're launching the very first edition of Gingerbreadtalk! I know it sounds kitschy but you can only append so many words to "Gingerbread" (note to self, think of a better name before the next public enterprise). It's going to be a simple, blunt and straightforward weekly update on all things running and multisport. I highly encourage you to comment and put in your two cents on whatever topic is pertinent for the week. Also planning to revive that Gingerbreadcast thing we used to do, wait up for more fun interviews.

Most creative title of the year nominee right here. Ulk.

So without further ado, here's the week that was :

• If you're keeping tabs on the community and are on some form of social media, you've probably come across my recent campaign at Powerman Malaysia. The race is a long distance duathlon comprised of an 11k run, a 64k bike and a 10k run after, and stands as the only qualifier for the World Duathlon Championships in Switzerland. I was there along with several members of our national team. With only ultramarathoner Abby as my support , we had to withstand a plethora of mechanical, logistical and physical challenges to even make it to the start line. I seriously underestimated the difficulty of putting the whole thing together, but hey, isn't that what makes the experience all the more meaningful? Stricken with severe cramps and with sleep deprivation kicking in, I finished the race in an off-form 4:24:52. Given all the crap we had to go through though, I was just thankful to have made it to the start line, much less finish with some semblance of decency.Thanks for all your greetings of support! Wait up for my full article on it, should make for a very interesting story. Also, thanks to Jinoe and Que for finally putting me on the Takbo.ph front page! Finally made it after all these years haha :P
  

With national team mainstays Evelio Javier and Carlo Pedregosa

• Congratulations to all those who successfully completed the NY Marathon this, including Rio, Jaymie/TBR, Jay, and Endure Multisport pal Joy. I'l probably never do Boston unless I maintain my current fitness level until I'm 80 years old, so NYC is probably the most realistic on my bucket list of marathons. Now, all I have to do is figure out that proof of financial capability thing, get out those land titles and wish that I get lucky with the lottery :)
  

One day... ..

• Congratulations to the new rockstars (clever huh) who conquered the Tri United Half-Ironman distance triathlon at White Rock, Subic. Back when Ironman 70.3 didn't have a franchise yet in the country, this was probably the most anticipated triathlon event every season. Now that all the hype goes to Camsur, the vets and purists still regard WRT as more enjoyable, and even tougher in terms of level of difficulty. Hopefully I'll get my shot next year. Swim swim swim.

Looks like fun...

After a presscon last week, was touching base with some old friends when I was suddenly reminded of something that I had long tried to forget already - what the crap ever happened to Run Radio? For those who have been around long enough, after Jaymie and Jay hosted Season 1 on NU 107, myself and the irrepressible Bards Bathan of Banana Running fame were supposed to take over for Season 2. Series of meetings, series of delays, a "primer" of some sort, a magazine presser, series of more meetings and more delays. An after- election launch was the last I heard of it. Natalo na si Gibo, nagsara na NU, wala pa din. And I guess that was that. So much for my one real shot at fame. Boo hoo. Think of all the what if's. Sigh. Haunts me to this day. Smirk.

Epic fail.

• Congratulations to all new minted ultramarathoners who successfully completed Sir Jovie aka the Bald Runner aka BR's T2N or Tagaytay to Nasugbu 50k jaunt. I took a peek at the results and was floored that there were 159 finishers of the race, a good number of which I had known since they were newbie runners angling for a 21k. Level up! When I did my first 50k, Ian Alacar's Botak gig, I think there were less than 50 people there and it was a big deal to hit 50k. Props to BR for promulgating ultra running in the country, and it seems the market is responding with rapid traction.

• I haven't taken out my bike from the box. I wonder if it's still in one piece? Shudder. Props to the guys and gals at Bikezilla in Ortigas for helping me out and giving me a crash course in assembling/disassembling it. Even if I sucked out, at least I had enough knowledge to actually put it together.
  

• Missed a Pacquiao fight for the first time in years, fell on the same timeframe as my duathlon. Got to watch the entire thing on those illicit YouTube uploads that are taken down after an hour for copyright infringement. Catching them is much akin catching lightning in a bottle. KJ naman kasi pfft.
  

• Those KOTR race cards were hilarious, a glitch somewhere in the timing thing and everything was off the charts!

TPB bro Mark just officially set a new world record

• Speaking of ultramarathons... ... I finally got my BDM 151 ticket! And so did Abby! Thank you BR for the vote of confidence, it's an honor. Now the question is, can I somehow garner the time and commitment to train for it, given the multitude of things on my plate now. Decisions decisions. Hmmmm... ...

Can we do this all over again?

• Good luck to all those running Run United (which has a shockingly fancy 32k, good job) and the Milo provincial qualifiers this weekend. There's also the Animo Run and a run in Ateneo. Which side are you on? Till next week folks!

Tomorrow is our one year anniversary. A few days ago my beloved turned to me and said, it’s almost our first anniversary… my mind roamed frantically. Was it a romantic anniversary, the day we met, the day we first dated, the day… did I forget something? One year ago we slept the last night in our little condo, Boo terrified by the lack of furniture and the noise the bare echoing walls made lurked under the blow up bed all night.

Little did he know what a adventure he was in for, sharing his life with two dogs on the farm, and then another move into a great big forever house with his very own territory to roam in.

His life has changed so much for the better, and so has ours. Dreams do come true, we know that, sometimes they change a little, well a lot along the way, but they are still the dreams that you dream.

I am thankful that we were transplanted up here when we were. My family has gone through a pretty stressful year, there’s been cancer, illnesses, laughs and love.

I would rather be here to share it with my family then down on the coast, aching to be with them. Those five hours of driving have kept us too far away, and I don’t know how we would have dealt with it without being here.

Now we live where we only once dreamed of being… It’s been a year in more ways than one.

When we moved up here last winter, and I nearly froze in the –20 C weather, [apparently it wasn’t as cold as usual] they kept telling me, just wait for summer. All this spring, as the mercurial minded menopausal Mother Nature gave us one barely sunny day, then a cold shivering rainy day, they kept telling me, wait for summer. “Oh just you wait, they said,” it’s going to warm up here so fast and stay so hot, you will wish for winter all over again. Don’t you just love how people grandstand? Actually they weren’t kidding. They were right. And now it’s hot, hotter then winter, hotter then the coast ever was in May, and it’s not even summer yet. It’s easily topping 30C [very hot] one day, and the next it’s cold again. How’s a body to figure this out? And this isn’t even hot yet… oh let me whine, please!

On Mother’s Day we had my parents over for dinner, our house is cool for them. It was HOT outside, and knowing they would be cold during the dinner inside we left all the windows and doors open to warm it up. Bad mistake, at least for us. They were still cold, it was 28 C outside, [hot], and we sweated all night. And then at 5 am the furnace came on. Yes the furnace, because it’s on a programmable thermostat. And apparently it thought it was cold in here, wish it had done that during the winter when it really was cold in here.

The other night during a blissfully breezy evening as we sat outside on the porch on Eagle watch so the Boo could wander the backyard unawares, there was a visitor. All of the backyards in the neighbourhood are chain linked fenced, and I am becoming more and more thankful for that, because we didn’t know until the next night that the visitor was a raccoon when my husband saw the brown bandit taking it’s sweet time. A very big, fat, and totally comfortable strolling in the gathering dusk, raccoon. So now we have Eagle watch during the day, and Raccoon watch during the evening hours, and a furnace that thinks it should come on at 5 am to “warm up the house” when it’s still reeling over the previous day’s heat.

Add in our grown adult neighbours that think the streets are perfect for their rather loud motorcycles to race up and down all weekend afternoons, regardless that this is a rural subdivision with children biking on the streets. They are the ones with the weed strewn front lawn, and here I am worried about a few dandelions in my lawn? Sound carries here against the mountains, and we get to enjoy the ripping loud muffler-less motorcycles as they parade up and down our streets in groups. Mind you, these are 40 something adults, not teenagers.

Makes me think I should go and program their thermostats, and let the raccoon loose in their yard, that’ll teach them. Ah the bliss of living in the country subdivision.

Let us spend our lives chasing the tiny moments of grace…
The nightly moment when my husband comes into the office, tea pot clinking on mug, his gift to me a steaming cup of green tea… our ritual while I blog on.

Frost covered grass, and a soft glow of light coming over the morning mountains, jet streams so seldom seen here zigging across the sky.
The second before you click the button, and grab the shot.
Places that call your heart home.

Black and white cat toes kneading the warm fuzzy blanket, fur finally at rest.
The last call of the birds as the night draws up the blankets around the trees.
Moments of grace, that make me so thankful that I am alive.

Let us spend our lives chasing the tiny moments of grace, that hide in borrowed breaths, stolen glances, and the last instance before smiling lips come to rest. Tyler Knott Gregson Now share with us your tiny moments of grace. Happy Sunday.

We have had our fair share of laughs on this site, as that's what most of our material on here aims to do. But it would be hard to goof around after the tempestuous events of the past 24 hours. Tropical Storm Ketsana, more popularly known in local parlance as Ondoy ( yeah, go figure) breezed through the country and pumped in a month's worth of rainfall in a mere 12 hours .

Not a pretty sight. Wait, is that a bus half- submerged?
And while a good majority of the populace escaped relatively unscathed, the aftermath left a lot of our friends, family and acquaintances in dire straits. Friends losing homes, vehicles, appliances to the deluge. I would like to think we are a tight-knit running community when push comes to shove, no matter how fractured we may be at times. So I'll be featuring some of the altruistic calls for relief spread throughout our running community.

Bald Runner's Team Hardcore To Run For Andoy Victims

As taken from ultraman extraordinaire Jonel aka Bugobugo's Facebook entry :
Team hardcore will make ENDURUNS 4.5.5 and the Laguna 200k relay a fund-raising activity for the victims of Ondoy.

For every kilometer we will run (250 kilometers) for October(Milo/QCIM/Subic42, Adidas21) and november (PIM42, Timex21) and the Laguna200(each runner does 40k),we ask that you donate 1 peso per kilometer. A collection booth will be set up sa Octoberun sa Sunday at the ROX parking lot. Thank you.

So there. Worthwhile cause, and our resident hardcore ultramen will do the heavy lifting for you. Kudos to Gigi aka The Fit Mommy for the breaking news.

Second Wind As A Hub For Relief Goods

First read this on Timmy aka The Kenkoy Runner's blog. Then I realized Hector of Second Wind emailed me the same thing. I should really check my mail more often. I'm just sorta sick of being bombarded with "YOU WON LOTTERY" emails. Anyway, here's Hector's announcement :

Greetings friends in the running community.

In light of the typhoon that has left most of us emotionally drained, we would like to encourage the running / multi-sport community to pitch in and help out.

Kindly help us spread the word that we are extending help to our friends who were affected by the typhoon ondoy. Lets maximize however we can help, announcements in your blog, multiply, tweeter, or your status in facebook will be greatly appreciated.

Secondwind will be accepting donations:

- blankets

- singlets, jerseys or shirts

- old footwear

- food

- other items that can still be used

we will be accepting until Thursday (end of day) and will donate to ateneo thru Neville Manaois, PUR team principal, secondwind teammate and ateneo professor. Volunteers to pack and help transfer goods on Friday will be most welcome.

Maraming salamat in advance sa lahat ng tulong na maaari niyong mabigay.

Salamat.

So everyone, do help Hector, Neville, and Mickey, some of the nicest guys I have ever met, in this noble pursuit of theirs. Remember, deadline is on Thursday, and any volunteers on Friday would be awesome.

Helping out our Takbo.ph Friends

Okay, this is a bit more personal for me because two of my good friends from Takbo.ph were severely affected by this calamity.
Story #1 : Cherry, better known by her handle Chelly had her house completely submerged, lost everything, and she had to seek refuge for several hours at the roof of her neighbor's house just to survive. As I write this, we're not even sure if she is already safe as we lost contact already. We can only imagine how traumatic and harrowing this experience could have been for her. Support of any kind would be most welcome to a fellow running denizen subjected to the punishing forces of nature.
Story # 2: Edu, or Ed as I fondly call him, is another one of our board regulars in bad shape right now. Floods swept away his house, and last we heard he was hanging on for dear life at a bedspacer room at the back of his house. We eventually lost contact so we have absolutely no idea what happened to him. We are all hoping and praying for the best.

If you want to help out, just check out the thread started out by humanitarian good guy Rico/Sheer Will.

So if you're thinking " Hmmmm why should I help, too bad life sucks bad break boo hoo ", let me remind you of the thin line between disaster and safety :

Because a bad break here, a weird touch of circumstance there, and you never know what could happen... .

So everyone - be thankful that we are all in one piece, and let's give a helping hand to our comrades who desperately need support right now.

Again it is All Hallows Eve, and you are thankful that you have a choice about whether or not to eat Corned Beef. It is something that you now decline. Too many bad childhood memories.

The air is crisp, the night dark as you escort the group of children from mini mansion, to extraordinary over sized suburban dream. A group that includes your niece and nephew, along with assorted cousins. You reflect on how much Halloween has changed since you went out as a child. Your black pointed witch's hat, and long skirt, may disguise you, and allow you the fun of dressing up again, but it hinders your ability to keep up with the kids, once again. You don't dare let them out of your sight, not even for a second. Although there are three adults, you are all carefully watching for cars, strangers, and bad candy. "Do not eat anything until we get home and we can check the candy", the wicked witch next to you, the one who is your sister chants. Her long purple hair asssuming a livid color under the streetlights. "It was never like this when we were kids," remarks the other black coated, pointy shoed, hag. "Our parents could let us run free all night, we always came home." "Times change, and besides this is the last year we can let them out, from now on it is all indoor parties, and vetted treats." it is just not safe here any longer.
As you run from house to house trying to keep up, you realize that each year there are less and less children on the street, but the proportion of candy given out has increased. Now most children run up to the door, scream"trick or treat," grab the candy and run, the hapless homeowner left holding the bag so to speak. Smashed pumpkins litter the street, victims of vandalism, and lack of decent candy. But the kids that are in your group are too excited to care. They are outside in the dark, running around, and making a Halloween memory of their own.

As I glanced anxiously at my 305, the grim reality was sinking in. Unless I pull of an Usain Bolt, there was absolutely no way I would be hitting my goal. I need to leave everything out there. Right here. No tomorrows. A final push, one last heave for glory netted a 4:53 final lap... .

And I missed it by 15 seconds. Damn.

Thank God for Google Images

But wait, we're getting ahead of ourselves. It all started on a stormy Saturday night at Glorietta 4 ... .

GBM: Miss, may I register for the 10k? Thank you.
ECO-Dash Counter Girl : Eto po. 300 lang.
GBM: Hmmm. Where's the singlet?
EDCG: Ay, naubos na po, nung Sunday pa.
GBM: Aaah, ok.

(walks away, opens race packet, goes back)

GBM: Miss, why do you have two bibs? That is quite... unconventional .
EDCG: Ay Sir, ung isa para sa harap, ung isa sa likod. First time niyo ho ba?
GBM: Uh... . It's actua..
EDCG: Okay lang ho, kaya ninyo yan, basta hinga malalim lang.Nauso na nga yang ranning na yan eh. Nga pala sir, rain or shine yan tuloy!

So for 300 bucks I ended up with 2 race bibs, a bit of a weird conversation... . and that was pretty much it. Not that it actually matters - I heard a lot of gripes about its "minimalist" design - but I was hoping to get more bang out of my 300 bucks. Internet legend Tito Caloy was supposed to grace us with his presence, but was apparently caught up deep in training for the San Mig National Drinking Finals. So I went out on a dreary Sunday morning, in hopeful anticipation of the great unknown, what with so many intangibles put into play.

"Secret" Training
If you have been following this blog from time to time, then you're probably aware of my well-chronicled struggles against the menace that is ITBS.

Gone for good?
Forced to drastically cut down mileage , I put in a couple of duds at some of our recent races. I was already thinking, Am i done ? Is that it for me? Visions of a surgically repaired Samboy Lim and Shaun Livingston looking like ghosts of their old selves haunted me. What if I'll never regain my old form? Through the thankful intervention of a higher power, I have been running relatively pain free for the past several weeks. That's when I decided to flat out just go for out it. Serious training for two weeks, harder than I ever trained before. I was going to secretly target a sub-50 time for this race, if I fail I could just say I was "pacing" someone. So what did I do exactly?

If I told you, then it wouldn't be a secret anymore, right? :) :p

The Case of the Missing Ipod

In an extremely weird twist of fate, I lost my beloved iPod the day I learned that my quest for that elusive Master's degree was finally over. Ahh. My life seems to be in bittersweet symphony right now. But what should I do? I find it extremely hard to run without music, I seem to be grossed out by my own snarly breathing.

Will give dog for ipod
Thankfully, I found a weird-looking Mp3 player lying around the house, the type you could get for 500 bucks at the mall. 256 mb, no song randomizer, weird shape. Sold! At this point, I would have brought a Walkman to the race if need be.

If you ever ran with one of these, thanks for visiting my blog Master!

The Race Itself

Okay, let's be practical. Due to the nature of this belated post, by now you should have already read a plethora of blog entries outlining how drenched we were, how there was a lack of marshals along Bayani, et.al. Obviously, I won't go there - your time is more precious than mine. Instead, let's go straight to the crux of the matter, punctuated by the precise songs blaring from my cheapo Mp3 player in homage to my newly departed and dearly beloved Ipod.

Kilometer 1 - Dreamgirls Theme (not a word)

Jesus Christ and Mary it sure is cold! I don't think I have ever started a race at this temp, it's even colder than when we did Botak Baguio. Oh shoot , crappy Mp3 player auto adjusts its volume everytime you turn it off. It's .. it's not loud enough! I still hear my own breathing! Crap. Where do they make this thing anyway? Rain is pouring down pretty bad, I don't have time to get it out of my hydrobelt. Yes it's that pathetic I need to squeeze it into my hydrobelt. Opening pace is at 4:29, think I could have gone faster but the rain is slowing me down. Just passed a runner who is complaining about the rain audibly. Hmmm, chess isn't so bad once you get used to it.

All you got to do is dream...

Kilometer 2-3 - Do You Believe In Magic - Loving Spoonful

So I got out of the bane of all runners this side of town in one piece. The Kalayaan Flyover was my first major hurdle, and I did a 4:44/5:03 on it, first time I ever hit a sub-5 split on it. People walking all around me. Yes, it does get the best of you. Given that 82.67% of all Sunday race routes pass through this point, I'm guessing it doesnt have too many fans.Much like an untamed beast in the wilderness, oftentimes you can but just hope and pray you live to tell the tale. Relatively unscathed, I come flying downslope. Current total pace is at 4:45. So far so good.

Yup, never heard of em' either

Kilometer 5 - VST & Co. - Sumayaw Sumunod

Wow, these drivers are crabby! You woulwd think that they'd be more relaxed on a Sunday morning. The honking was reminiscent of Edsa Dos. Unfortunately, seems that we're the subjects of their profanity-laced tirades. They should go to the Kanye West School of Charm.

It's just like rush hour traffic, only on a Sunday. Why so angry?

Completed the halfway point at 23:48, that may just possibly be my best 5k split ever. Route reminds me of my Globe Run for Home debacle. Is this my day of vindication?

Sumabay sa mga bagong tugtugin ngayon... .

Kilometer 7-8 - Eraserheads - Huwag Kang Matakot

As much as I would like to imbibe the E-heads spirit on this, the pressure was so intense it was hard not to be. The homeward bound Kalayaan Flyover won this round, dropping me to a 5:22/5:34 split, breaking both my body and spirit. The pressure was getting to me , and I was starting to panic inside. Total pace had dropped to an even 5:00, which meant that I would be missing my target. More panic. I need to make up time. But I'm zapped out. Must... soldier... on. Just 2k more... ...

One of their last albums before calling it quits

Kilometer 9-10. Amy Winehouse - Rehab.
They say that running is just as much mental as physical, sometimes even more. I completely agree, 100%. Here I was , on the cusp of beating one of my biggest running goals, and I was doing a completely chokejob. Mentally, I was messed up. I was freaking out and panicking. Prematurely celebrating, I was even thinking of a title for the blog post already. Physically, I was spent. Blatant lack of training. A quick, anxious glance at the 305 showed 45:00 with a little over a kilometer to go. Running on fumes, a blatant attempt to let it all hang out was hatched.

However, the grim reality was sinking in. Unless I pull of an Usain Bolt, there was absolutely no way I would be hitting my goal. More panic. I need to leave everything out there. Right here. No tomorrows. A final push, one last heave for glory... .

And I missed it by 15 seconds. Damn.

Gut-wrenching. I broke down mentally that last two kilometers. Got caught up in the moment so to speak. Wasn't able to deliver. On the precipice of success, I blinked. And in that nanosecond, I missed the bus. At the highest echelons of all sports, this is what separates the men from the boys. The winners from the pretenders. It's that requisite mental toughness designed to take you to the next level.

I think I need to go to rehab after this

Overall, it was a bittersweet moment. I still set a new 10k PR at 50:14, lopping of a minute and a half from my pre-injury best. Was a tremendous day for Takbo.ph denizens Sam, Vicky, and Argo as they all set new records on their 21k times. Tremendous improvement. Keep up the good work guys!

PR people with podium gal Carins

John Lloyd an d... Luis?
In retrospect, this race taught me a lot about myself. Getting so near, only to falter in the end inspires me to do even better next time around. To quote William Ernest Henley, "my head is bl oody, but unb owed". Indeed, we all live to run another day.

And sometimes, in the greater scheme of things

That's all that really matters.

Editor's Note : Results just came in, wanted to add that this performance was good enough for 26th place amongst 532 runners in the category, my best finish ever :P

It’s probably going to happen in every bloggers life.
A time when you commit a blogging mistake, maybe break a unspoken rule.
A blogging no-no, you might have realized it, or maybe you didn’t.
Let’s just start by saying that maybe you didn’t post for a while.
Or you posted so sporadically that everyone forgot you were actually a blogger, and it lasted for longer than many of your readers were willing to wait, and they wandered off to other blogs, and stopped checking to see if you were there anymore.
And now you would like them to come back, but you don’t know how to go about it.

Or maybe you stopped engaging, and commenting on their blogs, you didn’t answer questions, and you didn’t reply to queries, even from your best blogging friends.
You literally dropped off the face of the blogging world.
There are things that you can do to fix it, all is not lost.
And most likely your blogging friends will understand.
They are a pretty cool bunch, and they know that life does sometimes get in the way no matter how much we might want to blog.
They will also tell you that blogging is supposed to be fun, not stressful.
You might try sending them cupcakes, and ask them to drop by for tea and a bit of blog post reading.
Or you could start by visiting their blogs again, let them know that you have reappeared, and would love to see them once again.
It happens, bloggers come, and go, change formats, ideas, themes, they will understand.
I’m sure that the village it takes to write a blog knows you well enough to withstand the latest storm.
Your dedication towards having visited, commented, and engaged with everyone in a real and authentic way throughout your blogging history will bring them back.
All the while building long term lasting friendships from those who read your blog.
Because every once in a while you’re going to break a blogging rule, spoken, or unspoken.
It’s life, and life is like that.
And when you do, you are going to need those blogging friendships even more.
So make sure you have built your village well, spent time crafting great content if you enjoy writing, taking good quality images, or choosing ones that you have permission to use.
Build those villages, and when life makes it harder to blog, let your blogging friends know I’m sure that they will understand.
And if you have any suggestions to help ease the pain of breaking a blogging rule be sure to leave them in your comments. So my blogging friends, here’s the deal.
I’ve read your blog, you’ve read mine.
We’ve exchanged comments, visited each other’s online world. We’ve been building our friendships and getting to know each other for a little while now, you know who I am, and I know who you all are and how thankful I am that I’ve got to connect with you.
But lately things in my life have been taking over making it harder to write a post, and even more difficult to visit your blogs and return comments.
I’ve tried cutting back on my posting, I’m down to twice a week, and I still can’t keep up with visiting all of you, I need to post, I need to blog, and it’s such a part of my life.
I know not returning comments is a huge blogging mistake.
And that was one rule that I have always tried to make sure I didn’t break.

I’m sorry, but right now I just can’t do it all, and I feel so badly about this.
As a blogger who writes about how it takes a village to write a blog, it isn’t easy to have to say that.
Because I can’t make it to everyone’s blog to visit right now.
I’ve tried.
And I am asking you to understand, and to keep visiting, to stay as a member of my village while I weather this storm, it’s not permanent.
I’ll be posting, and trying to keep up with visiting as much as I can.
Because it takes a village to write a blog, and without you, there is no point to blogging.
Jane

Weather is a great metaphor for life — sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and there's nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella. ~Terri Guillemets
Weather or not? According to a few people interviewed on the local news the other night, we are having a terrible summer here on the West Coast. A horrific, catastrophic out of proportion to the season kind of wind, and rain, and nightmare summer. “Oh really?” People, it’s just a bit of rain! There are no floods here, no houses floating through towns as they are carried away from weeping families who have finally reached safe ground only to see their life swept away. That’s happening somewhere else. Consider yourself blessed that all you need to deal with is a little rain. There are no drought parched fields, with dusty, cough causing, get in your very pores dirt that coats everything. Someone else is dealing with that right now. Normal, or not This is just a almost normal West Coast summer. Yes, we had a bit of rain yesterday, we really have not had that much. Sure we have had some gloomy days, some even cool days. And yes, I know it’s summer, the time we wait all wet winter for, but it’s simply just a bit of rain… consider yourself blessed that’s all it is. Be thankful, or else! And in between there are beautiful, warm sunny days that should be even more special to us. And if you don’t appreciate them, I am sure there are people suffering through heat, and flooding that would be more then happy to trade if they could.
This is my opinion, so sorry if you don’t agree, but frankly, I am tired of the complaining done by all of us. This is what it is, make the most of it. Life is like the weather, see the quote above…

So it’s thunderstorm season here, and if you are anything like me at all, those are the kind of storms that belong on the weather network, not in your very own backyard. And no where near your garden, call me chicken, but our house has lots of windows… made of glass… hail breaks glass, thunder is loud, and lightening is going to try and find me no matter where I hide in the basement.
See that quivering mound under the layer of blankets downstairs, Boo is looking at it, and wondering what it is. That’s me… well the chicken part of me… the only slightly braver part of me is actually trying not to scream at every wall shaking, window rattling lurch of the house. After all, someone’s got to pretend this is normal. Um… not!

The skies opened, literally dumped 3/4 inch hail on everything… it felt like winter all over again, except the humidity was so unusually high. It’s no wonder my seeds never came up, no wonder the streets were overflowing with debris. And the Hosta’s… oh my poor babies.

Too late to go outside, I could only cower in the doorway and cry… it felt like I was being punished for admiring those gorgeous green leaves when I first got back home. Take that the hail pellets seemed to say, “see I told you a gardeners pride goeth before a hail storm, you were so proud of those leaves.”
There was no time to set up a garden umbrella, not a second to throw a sheet over them… they suffered… the entire garden is damaged. The lovely Gingko, the tiny red Japanese Maple, the new Cercis… the daisy buds not yet even opened. The leaves on the roses, speckled, the hosta torn, and tattered. Drooping, sagging, shattered, and pitted.

But that’s the good news.
We were not flooded out of our house, and home. We still have a fully intact house, unlike many other areas in BC, and Alberta. Our vehicles were not found floating down the street in a sea of mud, our walls have no high water mark that will never go away despite numerous coats of paint.
We have a home, we have our lawn, our trees, our vehicles. And for that I am thankful.
Because hail hath no fury… and mud knows no limitations, water will always flow to the lowest point.
So take my Hosta’s, tear my leaves, rattle my windows… I am strong enough to go through this, maybe just maybe the furious weather will be a little kinder to someone somewhere else, because some of it’s anger is spread about here first.
I can only hope, and my Hosta’s are a small sacrifice to pay if that is true. My heart goes out to all of those affected by the recent storms, we can only hope that you are soon back in your own homes, safe and sound again.

Look for the next Muddy Boot Dreams posts to appear Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next little while. And thanks so much for reading and commenting.

Some days you just don't have it.

As my previous post stated, I was harassed to death last week. Zero mileage. Didn't run at all. Still in iffy recovery from Botak Ultra. But me being me, I just had to take a swipe at it. A shot at a 21k PR on a chip-timed raced cutting through Ayala was way too juicy for me to resist. Just had to. Recipe for Disaster? Let's see how this morning's proceedings unfolded.

Not today GBM.

Pre- Race, 4:30 am

GBM : Tito, wake up!
Tito Caloy : Gising na ako!
GBM: Seriously?
Tito Caloy : Eh di pa ako natutulog!
GBM: Why would you do that? We have a race!
Tito Caloy : Ang ganda nung palabas sa Cinema One alangya yung kay Richard, Eskapo! Di ako natulog eh!
GBM:!!! Ugh, see you in ten.
Tito Caloy : Ayos cge ipapakita ko sayo ung bagong sapatos ko Adidas running na running ang dating! 6 tawsan bili ko!
GBM : !!!

He'd rather sleep in the car

Km 1 - 10 . Great things start from small beginnings?

When we got to the starting line, the race was just minutes away from starting. The rowdy gang helped fuel the electric atmosphere, the looming excitement of an actual chip-timed race bursting through the seams. It was funny really, because you saw people sprinting, then stopping, at the mat.

I though I had the strategy down pat. But I was wrong. Obviously, barely running in the two weeks prior took its toll. Also, something I read in BR's blog was nagging at me as I was racing through the first 10 kilometers. After an ultra, you will definitely lose some speed. You need to get back to tempo training. Well, not only have I NOT done any tempo training. In fact I haven't run at all. So logically, it's going to turn out pretty badly. My wind wasn't there. But it still wasn't half bad though.

At the 5k mark, I registered 25:32. At the 10k mark, slight fade at 55:30 but pace was still in contention for my goals. I'm at least 4 minutes off my usual 10k pace but I was thinking (or at least trying to convince myself) that I was merely "pacing". Since when did a positive splitter "pace" the first half of the race though? Still, I felt I could hang on. Seeing the rest of the team on the initial loop had me thinking I'm doing decently. I thought I was on the way to a good day... .

10k - 14k. Disaster strikes.

At the 10k mark I'm starting to slow down. Oh no. But not a major dropoff. Noticeable. Come Kalayaan flyover , my "vaunted" incline skills had deserted me. Then I realized it has been nearly a month since I have hit the St. Martin slopes. So much for that. Still, I felt I could ride the fade. Second wind would push me through. Just get me past the Kalayaan flyover and I'll take care of it in the flats.
Then IT happened. At the 14k mark, I stopped for some 100 Plus on the water station, then sprinted away. The abrupt start/stop brought about a searing pain on the side of my knee that was too great too ignore. I tried to run it off, but I couldn't put any weight on it. I tried walking it off, the pain was just exacerbated. I tried stopping and stretching. It went from bad to worse. My pace had dropped down to 7/km now. Oh no. This ain't happening. We are doing so well. Just 7 k more to a new PR! My pace was down to a 5:45 now. Still salveagable. But the pain. Oh the pain. Add to this the mental strain of people passing you. So many people. I had to stop. Walk. Ouch. More ouch. When Takbo.ph rookie and Jumbo Liempo friend Pio overtook me, I was both happy for him and panicking inside. My hard earned lead was slipping away. Big Time. I saw main man Bong Z, slimmed-down Timmy and monster Ed pass me. When rookie/nice guy James paced with me for a while, and when I couldn't even sustain what felt was an 8/km pace and he had to leave me behind, I knew that was a veritable death knell. As I entered the inclines of Bayani Road, a site of successes past, a former sanctuary turned Death Valley.

I can't run anymore. Dammit. I want to cry. But then that would affect my macho image. Arrgh. I want to run! I can't! Everyone's asking what the crap happened to me. Rod and Carlo just passed me. Ain't it great when you have friends who show genuine concern for you? But argh. I'll try to run again... ARGH ouch ouch. I can't. Sob. This sucks. I want ... to... quit? =,(

The spectre of my first ever DNF was very much real. The pain was pretty significant at this point. Each attempt to try and gut it out ended up bringing more pain. At least the last 5k of Botak ultra I was still able to run. This... . I simply couldn't. Add to this the strain of everyone passing my sorry carcass. Let me let you in on a little secret. I hate being passed. It gets to me. I'm a competitive guy, not just in running. But here, I was crumbling amidst the throes of my own mortality. It's hard to express in words the combined feeling of frustration, disappointment, exhaustion and pain that I was going through. It's barely 14k and change. How the heck can I get to the finish line when I can barely even walk anymore?

14k-21k. A friend in need... . is a friend indeed.

As I was losing hope exponentially by the minute, I was suddenly witness to the fact that life's little blessings come when you least expect it. As I had completely given up hope, along came training/pace buddy/carpool mate Bong Yu. He saw me struggling. Told him I wanted to quit. He could have left me, he has his own race to run. But in the spirit of friendship and supreme sacrifice, he told me he would keep me company! Unthinkable! You would sacrifice your race for me? Yeah why not, I'm still in recovery from Milo 42k anyway.
Oh man. I was overwhelmed. Bong encouraged me to just keep my head high. There are other races. Stop trying to run, what will you achieve? It ain't even worth it. You don't have to keep on proving yourself over and over again. You need a break anyway. Stand straight when there are girls passing by so that you keep your poise and still look macho. Maybe they'll think we're 8 minute pacers or something. Ran into a real pacer, Second Wind proprietor/running sage Hector who stopped and gave me some advice on the injury along with some words of encouragement.

The 7k trek to the line was painful. The encouragement and light conversation made me feel so much better. Everyone was passing us at this point. Even Mary Genie passed us. We found it amusing that she was ahead of Tito Caloy, Coach and Neil . Good ol' Tito Caloy was gloating over the first ever time he would get ahead of me in a race. Okay maybe not. But he was genuinely concerned. Didn't matter anymore. I was good. Happy that a friend was actually there for me. As the sun was beating down, a 15/km walk pace told me that we would cover a mere 3k in 45 mins. Eek. As we neared the finish line, the rest of the Takbo.ph boys helped us pace the final km for added support. It looked like a scene from the Beat It video as we were approaching the finish line.

Now that's what you call team support!

Couldn't have done it without this guy.

As racuous cheers from the Takbo.ph gallery met two fallen gladiators, I couldn't help but wonder that in spite of my worst-ever finish, in spite of having to suffer the ignominy of walking the last 7k and limping through the finish line, I was actually happy. Happy that I didn't DNF when it was the easiest choice I could have ever made.Happy to see that in actuality, the spirit of friendship trumps the spirit of competitiveness when circumstances call for it. Lessons will be learnt from this race, and while my injury is showing blatant signs of ITBS I am hopeful for a strong comeback. I am truly thankful for being blessed with good friends who keep on popping up at an opportune time and help me get through. One day I'll make it up to you guys.
Some days you just don't have it.

But on some days... .

It doesn't really matter at all.

Tito Caloy Quote of the Day:

"Habang tumatakbo ako meron kaming dalawang chiks na nakasalubong sabay sabi 'Hi Tito Caloy'! Ayos diba? Kahit di ko kakilala nag hi na din ako eh!"- On enjoying the trappings of newfound internet fame
Philippine Blog Awards Verification Code : PBA09r4qqo72

Saturday night, we [well, some of us] experienced a sensation that we had moved up here to avoid. A 7.7 magnitude earthquake that shook the coast of British Columbia, near Vancouver Island, the third largest ever recorded in this area, and triggered a Tsunami warning across the ocean. Only problem it was felt up here also, over 900 miles away. It was strong enough to sway the chandies on the ceiling at our neighbours house, their little dog unsettled, and barking. Have you ever been through a earthquake? Did the buildings move, any damage?

It happened around 8:00 pm Saturday night, I was starting to relax on the couch while my nephew showed us his photos which are amazing, the couch was comfy, and warm, dinner was good, and I just drifted off. I think I fell asleep for a minute, we all missed it completely, and found out about it today.

I’m glad we missed the rumbling, since we moved from the coast to get away from those worries… we were always aware of the possibilities of the earth shaking, and have gone through a few ourselves. When we lived in the condo by the ocean, those kind of things worried me in the middle of the night. It’s not something to take lightly, and that’s why we decided to move to the Okanagan, and not the Vancouver Island area.

It was reported on the news that this was larger then the ones that destroyed parts of Haiti, and New Zealand, but because it happened in a relatively isolated area no one was hurt. It also was a different plate then the South Coast fault that they are keeping a watch on, and for that we are thankful, because that area is highly populated, it would be a disaster.

With hurricane Sandy bearing down on the other side of the country, we realize just how fortunate those on the West Coast are to have gone through this, and had little or no repercussions… my thoughts and prayers go out to those who are going through the hurricane.