Wish upon a star *

Coffee

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 06:05:00 +0000

I am a big fan of coffee. I like a cup of hot drinks to go with my meals, and most often than not, coffee is the choice to go. Doesn't matter if it is local coffee, white coffee, instant coffee or freshly brewed coffee, I like them all. Prefer to go with milk, rarely black. I am not a caffeine addict, I don't drink to keep awake (I sleep like a baby even after consuming coffee).

At cafes, I go with Flat White.
At coffee shop, I have kopi-c.
At home, I take 3-in-1 white coffee.
Cycling pitstop, I choose kopi-peng.
Starbucks, urm, Americano because I think their cappuccino and latte is not good.

Kopi-peng!

Few months ago as Covid-19 came and changed our lives, I've been staying home a lot. And I know how bad 3-in-1 white coffees are, loaded with sugar and many other substance that is not good for health. Being jobless, I have also cut away 'angmoh' coffee which can cost between RM10 to 12/cup.
Latte, Flat white, Cappucino is categorised as 'angmoh' coffee :)

'Angmoh' coffee

Considered the option of making my own 'angmoh' coffee at home, but the investment is high to make a good cup of coffee. You need an espresso machine, grinder, milk frother and a whole lot of other tools that comes with it. Talked to a friend and he advise to invest in a good one rather than buying the brand-less cheap version off online platform like Lazada/Shopee/Taobao. He said it makes a difference a good machine vs a cheap machine.

That's how instant coffee gets into my radar. It's easy to make, just put 2 teaspoon into a glass, add hot water and milk. Walaaa, a fragrant cup of coffee! I can opt not to add sugar, so to me, it doesn't seem as bad as 3-in-1 coffee. And most importantly, for someone as lazy as me, it's easy to prepare.

Then the curiosity in me start thinking.
What exactly is instant coffee?
How is it different from 3-in-1 coffee or 'angmoh' coffee?
Is it unhealthy to drink instant coffee?

As usual, Google has the answer. Google always have the answer. Welcome to the world of Internet.

From what I read, which is not a lot, just a couple of articles, instant coffee has about the same benefit as freshly brewed coffee in terms of vitamins. Different article give different answers, I don't know which is more true than the other unless I read research paper. I am health-conscious but not to the extend of reading research paper just to find out if instant coffee is bad for you....it's beyond me, and too boring **yawn

Summary of my finding (as I understands it):

Caffeine content in instant coffee may be less than regular coffee. I don't drink coffee because of it's caffeine content anyway, so I can accept that
There are 2x amount of acrylamide - a type of chemical formed when coffee bean are roasted that may increase risk of cancer and harmful to the nervous system. Well, I think this one I can accept too because it's not like I drink 3 cups of coffee a day. Only a cup a day, or every other day. I can take that sort of risk
The process of making instant coffee is brilliant (human are very smart creature). It involves more of a physics process rather than chemical process. I believe chemical process would be more harmful as it introduce unnatural product into the process

All in all, anything that involves less process is better. However, beggars can't be chooser. For now, I will live with instant coffee until when I can invest in a good 'angmoh' coffee machine.

The sources that contribute to my conclusion:
https://www.mashed.com/218519/the-real-reason-you-shouldnt-drink-instant-coffee/
https://www.mashed.com/213334/the-untold-truth-of-instant-coffee/
https://coach.nine.com.au/diet/instant-vs-ground-coffee-health-benefits/7fd0c0ca-f50d-4b4f-93c5-1d58c054a34a

Resume

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 06:56:00 +0000

When was the last time you update your resume?

Today I was digging through my laptop, folders in the clouds as well as hard disks and pendrives looking for the most updated resume I have. I can't remember when was the last time I updated mine. The most recent one that I manage to find was dated 2007. That was over 13 years ago! Wow

This must be the one I used for my first job. I have been a loyal employee. Why did I say that? Since I graduated from Uni, I have only had employment at 1 company. I worked for a MNC for almost 8 years. After that I run own business for the next 5 years. That basically sums up my working life.

After the end of the business, I have been at a cross-road, still are. A bit lost at what to do next. It's too early for retirement. I have lost most if not all, the technical knowledge required for an engineering position. I am not interested in managerial position, am more of a technical kind of person. So what kind of job can I do? Most importantly, the job must be something that I would wake up every morning eager to start the day at work and not dread waking up every morning. To make it worse, the world is grappling with the horrid Covid-19 virus and we have not seen the end of it after more than 6 months.

So much has changed since my 2007 resume. Time to prepare an updated version to look for a suitable job.

Personal Fitness

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Tue, 16 Jun 2020 02:44:00 +0000

Fitness - the condition of being physically fit

I did a run on the morning of the first day of MCO, 18 March 2020. That time, definition and activity restricted during MCO was not clearly spelled out. Only later that I found out jogging was a prohibited activity under MCO.

During 3 months of MCO, I only manage some simple floor exercise, usually last between 20 to 30 mins. No running, no cycling at all.

55 days later, on 12 May 2020, I did my first run after the lockdown. It was only 5km and it felt like forever. I had to stop to walk twice. 5km used to be short and easy, but it's a different story all together when one is not fit.

It took me 13 runs over the course of 1 month to build back a basic form of fitness. I am very happy to say that I can now run 8km without going breathless, and without the feeling of wanting to stop to walk. I am actually enjoying the run. Over this past 1 month, I have covered 84km with 13 runs. That's an average of 6.46 km each session. The shortest run being 5km, and the longest being 10km.

Fitness requires commitment. It takes consistent cardio workout to maintain. 2 weeks of inactivity is all it takes for it to go away. Then you have to start from zero again to build the fitness back to what you used to have.

I enjoy the feeling of being fit. I want to be able to go out and do outdoor activities and able to enjoy the process. Without fitness, it'll be a torture. The focus then would be to get it over with to end the suffer, than to enjoy the outdoor.

Profile description updated

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Tue, 14 Apr 2020 07:22:00 +0000

My profile description has been around since many years ago. It's time for an update.

For sentimental reason, I'd want to keep the old description as a post.

"What am I doing here? Oh sorry, I forgot...so wat were u you saying juz now? I'm Dory remember? Forgetful

Seriously, I'm not like any ordinary girl. I don't like shopping. I like adventurous activity like hiking, biking, kayaking, swimming and lepaking..haha!

I wish to travel the world one day. I also wish to learn piano, to get a diving license and to own a BMW. So far, I've achieved one of my wishes, which is to get a full B license. :)

Don't you agree I'm adventurous?"

Interest:
"Spending money, travelling, stamp and first day cover collecting, tamiya cars and motors and ships as well, sleeping, reading and watching TV, jigsaw puzzle."

Fav movies:
"All of Disney's production movie, A walk to remember"

Fav books:
"Harry Potter, Mystery type books."

Back to random ranting

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 07:09:00 +0000

Hello my little blog space! I have missed you. Did you miss me?

It has been more than 3 years since I last pen words here.

Some how the world wide web has changed into a big dangerous world. I have learned that it is unsafe to share personal opinion about anything at all. It may get my ass into trouble; including jail term, lock-up, or even unwanted stalker (though that's not very likely seeing I am just a random person in this world of 7.5 billion people), but anyway...there's still small possibility of this happening. So that's why I stopped sharing and that includes posting on Facebook.

What's prompts me to be back now?

Boredom! Definitely.

I am in the N-th day of Movement Control Order (MCO). Lost count what day it is already. Hmm, it's been 3 weeks I haven't step out of the house gate. Oh wait! It's been 4 weeks! Oh my, time sure flies. So yay! It's been 4 weeks. It's the 2nd last day of the 2nd phase of MCO, 1 Apr - 14 Apr.

I think the days are passing alright for me. Here's a general activity of my daily MCO days:

I wake up around 10-ish in the morning. I would continue to lie in bed following up on Whatsapp msg, scroll a bit of FB, get some updates on my online games. When I am done with the morning update, half an hour would have passed. Usually it would be almost 11am when I am down for breakfast.

After breakfast I read some news and catch up on online games. I played 2 games; Toy Blast and Clash of Clans (CoC). Been on CoC for 3 or 4 years now. Am on TH13 (the highest available level townhall at the moment). I know, I am a loyal follower ;-)

The afternoon is spent on reading the news, watching movie/series/YouTube rotating between the sofa and bed until 5pm. That's when time would just fly-by.

I'd try to do some floor exercise at 5pm. Usually half and hour of sweating and half and hour of resting. 6pm is shower time. 6.30pm dinner time. 8pm news until 9pm. At night, I'd either watch a movie or something...

At midnight, my brain would start to get active and starting to think about things. Sometimes it's past memories, sometimes is the future about work, and income and customers and all those things that would stress me out. And then I would lie in bed and not able to fall asleep. I'd sleep eventually, but way past my intended bed time. Sometimes only falling asleep at 2 or 3am. I know it's not healthy, am trying to get over it. Still working on it.

So that's how a typical day for me during MCO.

Phase 3 of MCO is starting in 2 days time. It'll be another 2 weeks of extended lockup life. I am getting used to this, and I am, in a way enjoying it. As long as I don't think about the coming days after MCO, I am spared the panic and unrest.

I am doing my part to #stayathome

Midlife Crisis

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Wed, 25 Oct 2017 13:14:00 +0000

At the mention of midlife crisis, first thought that comes to my mind are men and their fancy sports car. Actually there are a lot more to midlife crisis than just buying sports car. It's a term to describe the transition and adjustment that a person goes through during their mid-years.

I had my 'midlife' crisis moment back in 2010. I was at a point in life where I feel very bored with life, with work and seems like I don't have anything to look forward to anymore. At that time, the decision I made was to quit my job for NZ Working Visa program. That was a huge decision to make because I took a risk and leave a stable job for the unknown future.

Fortunately, during the submission of my resignation letter, my manager offer me a position in the company when I complete the working visa program 6 months down the road. That means I won't be jobless when I return. Yay!

Not sure if it was such a good news anyway. 6 months later, I return to work in the same corporate world environment. I survived another 2 years before the same feeling came back to haunt me. The same bored and tired-of-my-job feeling. And so, in 2014, I made another big decision to change the course of my life. I quit my job to start my own business with a friend, my best friend.

Time flies very quickly, and we were in the 3rd year of business, almost touching 4th year. It has been 3 fruitful years for us. Our company and business has grown so much from what it used to be. However, another crisis came looming.

I started to ask question that I myself are unable to answer:

Where am I heading after this?
What is it that I am trying to achieve?
What if I can afford to buy my dream car now? Where do I want to go in it? Who would go with me?

I think this time, the midlife crisis is for real. I am reaching mid-years of my life for sure. I hope I could overcome this midlife crisis again like how I did before this. Keep fighting!

Bitten by the Hiking Bug

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sat, 30 Jul 2016 09:43:00 +0000

It has been awhile since I was in an inactive mode. I stopped running all together, and I do short bike ride only on occasional non-working Sunday. You may ask why? Lazyyyy...

I started exercising in the first place because I love to eat, and to eat and not to gain weight, I had to burn it off. That's what motivates me to exercise the most. For the past 2 - 3 years, I have been able to maintain the same weight while at the same time enjoying all my favorite food. Then at one point, I stopped exercising for a short period of time because of work but noticed that I didn't put on weight. Of course when I stop working out, I had to control food intake when not exercising but I still occasionally get to eat the food that I love. If I can maintain the same weight without exercising, then why do I bother exercising, right?! I get lazier and lazier, skip one day after another, and that's it, I stopped exercising all together.

Sometimes when I eat more, I do get that kind of guilty feeling and tend to hold back on food but it doesn't get me started on exercising again. Not until recently when I went hiking with Bins and Chins.

We hike up Penang Hill starting from Moon Gate up to "no. 5", which is all stairs.

It was a cloudy day that morning, Georgetown was under low-lying thick clouds

Then continue on trail to "no. 84" and out to the tar road. From there, went into the trail again and out near the tram's middle station. From then on it was cement road all the way to the top station. We were a bit lost at that point not too sure which direction to go but anyway, in our uncertainty we manage to get to the top. Lucky for us, cloudy morning didn't turn into rainy morning. It was nice and cloudy all the way. We took the tram down. It was RM5 for one-way ticket for Malaysian. Funny thing is, the ticket counter is at the foothill, so we can only buy our ticket when we reach the foothill. We need the ticket to exit the foothill station, that's how the system works. Remember to bring MyKad, else it would cost you RM15.

A group shot before taking the tram down

Hiking done! Reward? Koay chap at Air Itam market.

Just the next day after this hike on Sat, parents are going for hiking in Cameron Highlands on a trail called 'Huang Shan' or Yellow Pass with their hiking members. I had initially passed because I had to work on Sun and work is in Penang. It just doesn't make sense to go back Taiping on Fri, hike on Sat and back to Penang on Sat itself. Somehow after Penang Hill hike with Chins and Bins, I feel like I wanted to do the Cameron one too! And so I did!

We drove from Taiping in the morning after breakfast arriving at the start of the trail almost 10am.

Getting ready for the hike

I was quite under prepared for this hike not knowing exactly how far it was or how long it will take, or even what kind of terrain we will go through. I just wore a sleeveless running jersey, a pair or running shorts and Altra trail shoes. Mum told me we will be out of the trail by 2pm. Yeah, right...

Just not long after we went into the trail, this guy who is supposed to lead the hike found that he is quite lost himself. Not really certain where he should be heading when we hit a split in the trail. One part of the trail has been cordoned off with hazard tape but seems to go uphill, another trail went downhill and seems to have old marker left by other hikers. He is quite certain the last time he came (about 5 years ago!) the trail doesn't go downhill...

Hesitation, discussion, idle waiting...after about 15-30mins of that, sis took out her handphone and decided to take charge which of course I fully support because, what's the point driving all the way here and standing around doing nothing? Our purpose here is to hike, so regardless of which trail we choose, as long as we go in and come out the same way, we achieved our purpose. Some members brought shredded paper and was creating a paper trail along the way we came in, that's good enough to make sure we can find our way out later.

Taking charge, looking for direction with Google Map!

Fortunately for us, our RedOne line can still use Google Map. Using the Google Map directional blue dot and referencing it to where we wanted to go, we charge on to where we think is the right way. To further convince that our way is the right way, it was quite a clear trail and there were markings along the way. The guy still think we were not going the wrong way as he still don't think downhill is the right way to go...haiz.

It was a challenging trail I would say. We went downhill, uphill, and the terrain keep changing. The forest were full of thorny creepy plants that would poke and scratch hiker on their clothes and skin. They would catch you by surprise as you brush pass them. Terribly dangerous plants. After 2.5hrs of hike, we reach the highest point of the hike.

Group photo at the highest point of the hike

Some decided to turn back here, the rest kept going hoping to reach Yellow Pass. We set the cut-off time of 1.30pm. If we don't reach Yellow Pass by then, we will have to turn back anyhow considering the amount of time needed to get out of the trail before dark.

Not long after the split, it started to rain. It was even harder to hike wearing poncho. The poncho block part of our view, and it keep getting hooked on the tree roots jutting out from the ground. I was wet inside from sweat and outside from the rain. It was much tougher to hike at this point, and it slows us down. At 1.30pm, we were still not at Yellow Pass. Very disappointed indeed.

This was the view when we got out of the trail. It is the same place where I took the photo "Selamat Datang ke Cameron Highlands" above

By the time we came out of the trail, it was 4pm. We were in the trail for 6hrs! Much longer than expected. I was so hungry when I came out. After some cleaning up, we went to Ipoh for dinner then after that back to Taiping. After shower, I pack up and make my way back to Penang. It was almost 12am when I was ready for bed. And my alarm the next day was 2am, for work timing the Penang Run in Seberang Perai. Tiring day indeed.

The week following that, I searched high and low for someone to hike with on coming Sat morning to no avail. Until finally, Melvin hook me up with another group of his students who will be hiking Penang Hill. The hike starts at the foothill of Penang Hill in Air Itam very near to the tram station. I have never hike from here before, it is interesting to discover new hiking road.

It was all the way very narrow cement road, quite steep at certain sections. There was only 1 short trail section, the rest was all cement. Today's weather was superbly beautiful, full of sunshine even though we are in the rainy season lately.

The view from the mid way point. Clear sky, can even see Penang Bridge and mainland from here

We had a midway stop along the way to refuel. I had a banana here.

This is where we stop to refuel. It has toilet facility too

Total walking time was less than 2hrs although total time including break was 2hr+. I can't be too sure also because I forgot to start my watch at the start.

Tree with osteoporosis problem?

Again, we took the tram down. This time, the group was much smarter to buy their ticket first before starting the hike. Tickets bought before 9am is cheaper at RM3 one-way (vs. RM5 one-way). I had an enjoyable hike today, and get to know new friends. One of them is from Taiping too! (though no longer reside in Taiping)

Let's see if I can keep the hiking interest going...

Let's keep fit!

2015 Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sat, 19 Dec 2015 10:05:00 +0000

It's the end of the year again (so fast...). Time to sit down and think back what had happen in the past 11+ months...or what is left in my memory of it.

First of all, 2015 is the year where I am 100% self-employed. Quit my "steel-plate" rice bowl in April 2014. Since then, I have been working full force, I work all the time; I work week day, and I work weekend. I do occasionally take some off time on Monday and Tuesday. I am everything in the company; from Director and CFO making decisions, to Customer Relations, to Accountant and IT personnel, to Purchaser, to kuli and driver. Everything "bao ka liao". There are some things that I like to do more than other, but at the end of the day, I have to be involved in all the job scope.

I am happy that the company has grown in the past year, even though it is still only a 2-staff company. It has been a busy year for us. It has been at times, the 2 of us got so frustrated for being too busy. Maybe it is the mindset from the environment we are brought up in, "Chinese" mindset, that you don't push away business when they came knocking. Perhaps for those that grow-up in more chillout environment would just reject business if they think they have hit their personal target of that month, or that year.

Despite the busy work schedule, I manage to squeeze in some travel throughout the year. Well, I didn't willingly sign-up for those travels because in my opinion, I am too busy for holiday. It is my business partner that pulls me along on those travel. I think I am not capable to time an event without her around anyway, so if she's not around I can't do much also. So I went along with her plans.

Early of the year I went on a 1-week holiday and ran the Tokyo Marathon. I ran to my Personal Best of 4 hr 38 mins despite the over distance course of 43.23km shown on my watch. It was quite an enjoyable run as the whole of 43km route, it was lined with people cheering and spectating.

Happy to complete the run in 4hr 38mins, my fastest marathon time to date

Tokyo was freezing cold in that time of the year, brrrr! Quite a lot of rain too! It was also a busy work period because it was the preparation week towards Malaysia Women Marathon (MWM). Even while we were away, we still make the effort to check email occasionally.

In July, I join a group of friends to hike the volcanic mountain called Rinjani in Lombok, a smaller island near Bali. It is a 4D3N hiking trip, involving a lot of nature like camping, peeing and shitting in the natural environment and no shower facilities.

The group

It is by far my most luxurious camping trip ever. Our only task is to walk/hike...lol!

Our spacious tent shared 2 person

The porters carry our heavy stuff, we only carry what we need on us like water, snack and perhaps a jacket. When we reach destination of the day, the tent were already setup by the porters which walk ahead of us, they also cook and prepare food for us, and they build us toilet tent and dig hole in the toilet tent for our businesses. Haha.

Simple yet very tasty meal prepared by our porters

Rinjani is at quite a high elevation and therefore it can be cold and windy. I feel ok when walking, but if we were to stop for a while, I would start to feel cold. On the day when we were supposed to summit the peak, it was exceptionally windy. The wind even collapse one of our tent that night, the poor porters had to fix the tent in the middle of the night. Our guide decided that it was not safe for us to summit the peak and we get to sleep in that morning. We were sad for that, it makes the hike incomplete not able to even try. In a way, I was glad we don't have to do it because the hike to the peak looked really tough, at the same time, I felt like it was such a waste I don't get take on the challenge.

On the third day where we camp, there is a hot spring nearby, there's where we get our first shower of the trip!

Spectacular view of Segara Anak lake from the top

After the hike, we stayed back a few days to enjoy Lombok beach.

The Rinjani holiday also clashes with one of the event we were supposed to timed. Fortunately, Elliot was available that weekend to help out. Young talented fella he is, with a great interest in timing. It is a lost to our company that he decided to leave Malaysia back to the UK for good. Else, we would be looking at more partnership in the future.

To wrap up the holiday of the year 2015, I went on a 2-week Europe tour. This is the first time I am stepping into Europe region. It's not the best time of the year to visit Europe because few months before that, our dear Malaysia currency drop to it's lowest value against all other foreign currency. Well, no choice, flight ticket bought, accommodation booked, the trip has to go on. The trip started with Amsterdam Marathon! I think this could just be my most under-trained marathon ever. Glad I still manage to complete it under 5hours.

Painful to run due to under-train condition. It also doesn't help that it drizzles all the way from the start to finish

I enjoyed Amsterdam very much in terms of the people and the atmosphere, I love that most people there uses bicycle as their mode of transport, it's so convenient. I don't like that Amsterdam is so cold and gloomy. Our supplier from MyLaps who based out of Netherlands said that the weather is cloudy and wet most time of the year. That's quite depressing. After the marathon, I make the trip to the windmills area of Zaanse Schans about 16km away from Amsterdam, cycling.

Enjoying ride to Zaanse Schans for the windmills

From Amsterdam, I made my way to small quaint town of Bruges. I love the building architecture. Bruges used to be an important city in the olden days. It is now a tourist attraction.

Shophouses in Bruges

From Bruges, it's a train ride away to Brussels. The city of Brussels is very dirty in my opinion, there are shit all over the street and it is littered with rubbish. The street smell nasty in certain places too...

Most people in Brussels don't speak English. However, Brussels street is filled with many street art to be discover on foot. Like all other European city, there are many churches to explore. From Brussels, it is yet another train ride to the city of Paris.

There are many things to see and do in Paris. Museums, church, art gallery, castle, and many many more for to explore. I spend the most days in Paris because of that, and walk my legs off too! In terms of food, there are a lot of great food to try as well.

The city of Paris, with magnificent Eiffel Tower in the background

The last city of my Europe Trip is London. I like that in London, museums and art galleries are free admission. They do collect donation and sell souvenirs to collect fund to maintain the place. Food in London is great as well, from street food to Indian Restaurant, there are many varieties to choose from.

Spectre premieres tonight! 26 Oct in London (sorry date too small on the bus)

Bike commuting to work is quite popular in London as well, but the bicycle here are more high-end, mostly racing bike. In Amsterdam, they uses single-speed bike like those my grandfather used to go to the kopitiam with. The roads in London are very busy, and there are so many big double-decker buses. I would find it rather scary to bike in London.

In front of Buckingham Palace, with hoards of other tourist

2 week felt like a really long holiday. At the end of the trip, I longed to go back to work already. Workaholic? Yea, I think you got that right.

Europe, I would say, is not my kind of holiday destination. European countries are so full of history, I am too overwhelm with a few hundred years of history, artist and paintings and churches. That said, it doesn't mean that I don't enjoy Europe. Amsterdam, Bruges, Brussels, Paris, London, I truly enjoyed what all these cities have to offer. I enjoy just walking on the street, looking at locals going through their daily life and just taking in the sight and sound of the city.

Year 2015 sounds like a great year in a glance. There are ups and downs of course, as life always do, but I am glad that what is in memory are more of the good ones than the bad ones. But then again, bad ones I don't share :-P

2 more week to welcome year 2016. I am going to start off 2016 with the NZ gang in SC's hometown of Batu Pahat. Let's toast to a better year ahead! Cheers...!

Vacation, worth it?

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 08 Oct 2015 16:08:00 +0000

Sometimes I do wonder why people wants to go on vacation.

Before the trip, you have to either rush like mad to finish off all your task on hand or passed it down to co-worker (if there is one for you to pass over).

After the trip, you have to come back to more work, catch back up to what you have missed when you were away, read a lot of emails that you have missed while away.

Maybe one should consider going on a virtual vacation instead. With Internet, it is possible to "travel" the world just by sitting in front of the computer. Google Map has street view, you get to see 360 view of anywhere just by dropping the little yellow man. You can read a lot of reviews and other people's experience by blog surfing. You can learn all the history of a place by reading articles in Wiki and TripAdvisor. Best of all, no worries of exchange rate and no budget worry about.

This is the modern world.

Haze and the weekend

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sun, 04 Oct 2015 15:39:00 +0000

It's the weekend again.

We have an event to time on Sat, albeit a small one of less than 600 runners. It's just a 10km run, so we should be able to wrap up pretty early. The run was flagged off at 6:30am with just one outside checkpoint.

There was a bit of haze in the morning, I'd think it is quite a bad haze to be running 10km competitively. If it was me who had signed up, I'd really be on the fence whether to run or not. After all, registration fee had been paid. Anyway, true enough, we manage to wrap up everything before 9.30am.

As always, after completing an event we always reward ourselves with a hearty meal. We went for western breakfast at Macallum Connoisseurs. I opt for the Connoisseur's Breakfast which consist of a sausage, 2 pcs of bacon, salad with passion fruit dressing, poached eggs, 2 slices of bread with avocado spread and my favourite of all, portobello mushroom! No coffee for me because I was trying to cut down expenses saving money for the up-coming Europe Trip. Save RM10 :P

Verdict: Portobello mushroom is the best. Huge and juicy in its original taste. Perfect! The salad is nice as well, I especially love the passion fruit dressing. It is unique. The passion fruit taste really nice and refreshing. The poached eggs were very well done as well. On the other hand, the rest on the plate are only so-so. The sausage and the bacon are tasty, but they were too salty, The avocado spread were not original, they added something that makes it very sour, not to my liking. I'd prefer avocado in it's original form with just some pepper and salt. The toasted bread were too hard.

All in all, it was a filling breakfast at RM25.

Connoisseur's Breakfast

Then it was back home to get a much needed nap. I only managed a 3 hr sleep the night before. As I step out of shower and look out the window, the haze has suddenly become so much more worse than in the morning. "Oh no, there goes my LSD plan tomorrow morning". I am supposed to run my one and only 30km LSD in preparation for Amsterdam Marathon.

Can't see much of the condo in the distance, and the hills are totally out of sight

When I woke up at 3pm, the haze condition only becomes worse. I decided to stay indoor and eat whatever I can find in my kitchen, which is just maggi mee and some biscuits. And I found out that the gas of my stove has reach its end of life. I'll just have to settle for coffee and biscuit then. I spent the rest of my day in bed, alternating between COC and FB on phone and reading Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl. This book belongs to Leang, she borrowed me few years back and I still haven't flip a single page! Since I am most likely going to visit Anne Frank's house in Amsterdam, I think it'd be nice to start with the book.

And so my Sat and Sun were spent mostly on the bed. Haze condition didn't improve any bit. I was not inspired to go out at all. I had maggi mee in the morning, went out to QB for lunch with Liza and Kenneth, and spent the rest of Sun again in bed. And I still haven't finish the book....

Of wine and dine...

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Tue, 29 Sep 2015 01:27:00 +0000

Perfectly done, melt in your mouth pork belly

It started out as a nice dinner; fine dining with wine and good food. Then the story that I took it badly, I can't help but felt truly disappointed by it. And so, the night didn't end as well as it started...

Another half marathon

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sun, 20 Sep 2015 16:13:00 +0000

It's been awhile since I last wrote a post here, 13 months, that's how long it has been. A lot has change since then. I am no longer an engineer. I am not working in corporate world anymore. I am not writing so much anymore. I think I should start collecting memories again, life and experience came and went too fast. I need to slow it down and enjoy it more. So here I am today, trying to start penning again.

So, I have a full marathon race coming soon in 1 month time. I have not been running enough to complete 42km comfortably; i.e. I am under train for this marathon. I have lost my motivation in running. My longest distance so far is 19.5km, prior to this was 15km. Because of that, I sign up for a half marathon to encourage myself to cover longer distance. I haven't been running half marathon races for awhile now, so it is kinda exciting to be running one.

Chin Chin found us a half marathon, it was the Fire Fighter Cyberjaya Night Half Marathon. Wei Koon was also interested so all 3 of us signed up. We travel to KL on Sat morning in Wei Koon's comfy little Jazz. Chin Chin has a pacer photo shoot and pacer briefing in Mid Valley that same day, so we hang out in Mid Valley until her thing is over at 3pm. Then we had a short rest in her sibling's house before driving to Cyberjaya for the run, starting at 8pm. Visibility was not great, but it didn't look too bad. Haze haze haze :(

A fallen tanker on the highway causing traffic jam, near Bukit Merah

My plan for this run? Run it like a LSD. No racing. Cap at a usual easy LSD pace of 6:25 to 6:40 mins/km. At the start line we met Hui Sung, fast runner from Penang. I wasn't feeling well then, I don't know why, perhaps nervous? Even with a LSD plan in mind, I am still quite kiasu. Can't finish too slow...I have a reputation to keep...haha. 2hr 30mins is the max time I gave myself. Cannot be slower than that.

So off we go at 8pm sharp. The first km was hard to run at my own pace. Everyone around me ran so fast! My watch was showing a sub 6mins pace. I can't possibly maintain that kind of pace for 21km. NO way, slow down! It's hard to slow down when people around are running so fast. You just kind of go with the flow. I manage a 6:11 mins/km average in the first km. I keep reminding myself to slow down. The road was very dark too, no street lamp at all. There were lamp post but all not working. After a while, I got into my own comfortable pace maintaining between 6:20 to 6:30.

At the first water station, I saw people crouching on the ground helping themselves with drinks, there were no tables and I don't see water. Only 1.5l bottles of 100 plus. I decided to skip that water station even though I felt quite thirsty. A few km more, I started to see people walking. Haiz, can't understand why people would want to sign up for a running event and start walking after 5km. What's the point? Should just save the RM70 and walk in nearby park. Not far after the 5km mark, our 21km route merge with 10km and I was regretting not taking a sip at the first water station. With the 10km merging in, I am quite sure water is going to run low in the coming water station if the first one is so badly managed.

True enough at the 2nd water station, I heard the volunteer said they are low on water but they have 100 plus. He didn't even pour the water into cup, but holding a 1.5l bottle of water. I take that bottle from him (and surprisingly he hand it to me) and pour some water into my mouth. Pass it back to him after that and continue my journey.

The 21km route was kind of rolling. The climb was long though not very steep, but it was still taxing on my under-trained legs. The distance went by very slowly. At 12km water station, I decided to take a gel. At that point I was still feeling alright. I was over-taking people. There wasn't very many women in sight, so no one for me to chase after. At 15km, we pass by the Lim Kok Wing University. Only 6km to go, I told myself. Can't wait for this to be over, my body was starting to get really tired. I am not breathing hard and not short of breath, just my legs and body tired. Signs of under training. There was a malay lady 200m ahead of me. I make her my target and push on. Slope over slope we had to overcome.

At 3km to finish, I was surprised by a small size lady coming from behind me running strong overtaking me. Right after that came a hill! Hill was never my forte, the distance between this lady and the malay lady got further and further away. I took a deep breath, re-strategise my steps (switching to small step but higher cadence, read that it is better for uphill run). The Malay lady also slowed down and was overtaken by small size lady. I was getting close to her too. I continue to trail behind both of these lady refusing to let go. Ahhh! Finally it was downhill. I pick up my pace, overtake the malay lady and chase after small size lady. 1km to finish, I was just right behind her...and then I was running side by side with her. We pace together for awhile, until when I see the finish line ahead, I give all I have left and pick up my pace. Speeding to the finish line, I can feel the cramp on my left calf and inner thigh of right leg. It was just a few hundreds meter to go, I pushed to the finish line and yes! Made it and was given a 9th placing finish tag! Wow, surprise surprise. I was very happy with myself. 2hr 12mins was my time which average out to 6:22mins/km pace.

Turns out all 3 of us also get placing. Chin Chin got 3rd place and Wei Koon at 10th. We stayed for prize presentation ceremony at 11pm. More good news at prize presentation. I got upgraded to 8th place and Wei Koon at 9th, not sure what happen there but it's good news so I am not complaining. Both of us got a plaque, and Chin Chin had more. She get cash prize RM500 as well as a box of KT Tape. All 3 of us didn't go home empty handed ;)

From Penang: Hui Sung 1st place Women Senior, Wei Koon 9th Men Senior, Chin Chin 3rd Women Open, me at 8th Women Open

Stinky as hell, we stop by Jejantas Sungai Buloh for a quick shower, then head straight back to Penang. Arrived in Penang at about 3:30am.

Whew! What a long and tiring day, but satisfying... :)

This and a finisher is what I get for landing in 8th placing

Are You Blind? The Embarrassing Truth About Malaysians

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 11:23:00 +0000

How can our country get any nearer to being a develop nation if its people are not opening up their mind? Instead of moving forward, I feel as if we have been stagnant for the past 10 years or worst still, we may actually be moving backwards. Technology may have made its way into Malaysia, but all of these advancement does not mean anything when the mindset of our people were confined within what they believe is correct. So many of my friends have left the country and are residing elsewhere. Some have even given up their citizenship, all disappointed and has loosen hope towards our ruling government.

I hope to live to see a better Malaysia. I love my country. 57 years gone, there are still a lot to be done... Selamat Menyambut Hari Kemerdekaan!

First experience with Penang Run Series

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sun, 13 Oct 2013 11:17:00 +0000

I ran the Penang Run Series today. Penang Run Series is an interesting concept whereby the series consist of 4 half marathon distance races with different route each time. All the races are point-to-point, meaning the start and end point is a different place. By the end of the 4 races, participants would have covered around Penang Island on foot. The 4 races are 2 to 3 months apart.

Today I ran the third series taking me from Sg Pinang in Balik Pulau to Teluk Bahang. It was a tough route as it brings us up the Balik Pulau hill; 5km of continuous uphill. The Nine Emperor God Festival is often associated with rain. True enough to the Chinese belief, the rain started the night before as I was going to bed. When I woke up at 2sth, it was still pouring. When I leave the house at 3.30am, it was still raining!

When I reach Tg Bungah, the rain has slowed to a drizzle. After meeting up with Sam, Gary and AL, we continue in a car to have our car park in Teluk Bahang where the end point is. Gary is the driver. At the time when we leave the car to board the bus, it wasn't raining anymore. We board the bus, and after about 35mins or so, we reach the start point at Sg Pinang. It was 5am. Queued half an hour for toilet and by the time I am done with toilet, I feel the droplets of rain again. The rain was on and off for next half and hour and amazing enough, the rain stopped as we're queuing up at the start line. At 6am sharp, the start gun went off. So was the rain. It was as if the gun broke a hole in the sky and the rain just poured down on the poor runners who are already cold. Instead of starting the run, I ran into the shed for cover.

Before the start (with Boon Wee, Paris and their friend)

Many other runners did the same thing, they hide in shelter hoping the rain would once again stop. It continues to rain cats and dogs not showing any signs of slowing down. 2 mins past before I decided to go for it. Run in the rain, wooohooo!!

Within seconds, my shoes were soak. It was all the way running in the rain. At some point it does slowed to a drizzle, but never for long. It was cold at the beginning, but I warmed up after awhile and it doesn't bother me anymore after that. Whenever I feel thirsty, I just need to close my mouth and swallow. I can feel the fresh water in my mouth already. I choke on water when the rain was too heavy, too much water going into the mouth...hilarious.

It was a really fun run for me thanks to the rain. Enjoyed the route up Balik Pulau. I've bike there often enough, but this is the first time I am going up this road on foot. On the downhill slope - 4.5km of downhill - many people overtook me. You would have think going downhill is effortless and easy, not for me. I was going downhill at almost 7mins pace. I ran the flats faster than my downhill. I had to stop to stretch a couple of times going downhill when I feel my right knee tightening up.

The view was beautiful at Teluk Bahang Dam. We had to run into the dam and u-turn out. It was very windy there. It was another 2km to the finishing line. Went down that slope from the dam to butterfly farm, pass Escape Themepark and there it is, the school which serves as the finishing point. It was not raining anymore at that point. I finish in 2hr 22mins.

It stopped raining when I finish (with Paris who finish in 2hr 12mins)

Took 2 cups of Vico, a couple of photos and splash...there it goes again! Everybody run for cover. Some just don't care anymore. The rain continues on in full mode for the next 2hrs. The performance, and prize presentation ceremony still had to go on, all while the rain is pouring. I don't think anybody can hear what the MC was saying because of the noise coming from the zink roof where we're taking cover.

We stayed until 10 plus in the morning, cold and wet. Car was parked quite far away. Had to walk under the rain to get to the car. The WW gang gathered and enjoyed the superbly tasty Roti Jala near the Teluk Bahang roundabout. Sharing our run stories, and of our friends result in Melbourne who also just completed the Melbourne Marathon.

It was a very well organized event despite the rain. I am glad I decided to run it...

Cheers to running!

Feb 2013: A chill out month

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 16:18:00 +0000

Feb was a short month but a sweet one. Only 28 days in this month, out of that which I took 2 weeks off from work in separate occasion.

First of all it was Chinese New Year. I took a week off from work where my whole family went for a Road Trip to Koh Samui. We were being adventurous; not truly familiar with the road and can't speak or read Thai , we venture across the Thai border with a map and a borrowed GPS unit. Koh Samui is very far from Taiping, ~600km away. Because it was a free and easy Road Trip, we actually take our time with the drive stopping by cafes when tired with sitting in the car. We also stop by one of the bigger town along the way for a visit and photos. And since it was a bit late when we're done, we spent a night there in Nakhon Si Thammarat. Early the next day we drove to Don Sak to board the ferry over to Koh Samui.

Ferry from Don Sak to Koh Samui, quite similar to Penang ferry but their passenger deck upstairs is air-conditioned

I miss out on school mate gathering again this year as I was away in Koh Samui.
I miss the gathering last year too, being away in New Zealand.
Most of my school mates by now has either gotten married or had babies already. But I am still being a baby myself. But it's ok, I prefer being a baby than making babies anyway.

After a full week off from work, I was back at work for 3 days and I was off again for another week for HK & Macau trip on top of HK Marathon. Weeee....how fun! If only I can do that every month...

Other than a holiday month, it's also a month of spending spree. I bought a new phone (in replacement of my lost iPhone 4S) and bought a new running watch.

Loving my new gadget more each day

Some photo sharing follows... :)

First time dining in a Michelin-starred restaurant. Robuchon au Dome was located on the top of The Grand Lisboa Hotel, at level 43. I get to sit facing the glass window, it was amazing food with a view. Perfect! (although a bit hazy lar...). This is also my first experience with heated toilet seat and automated toilet seat cover. OK, I admit I am a frog under coconut shell, but those automated things are so cool :-D

Waiting for food to be serve

View of Macau from level 43

"This is where I was..."

Strolling along the UNESCO Heritage trail, you know you're in the UNESCO Heritage zone when you see wavy black and white tiles

Senado Square with Chinese Lantern decorations

SCHKM 2013

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 15:46:00 +0000

Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon is my 5th marathon so far.

As with all my other marathons, I train for it not wanting to suffer or get injured during the 42.195km run. Running marathon is not something that I will take lightly. Even with 2 months training, I still find it very tough to complete, it will always always involved some sort of pain...no matter how hard you train. (I am saying this as a normal human being, Kenyans are super human...they seems to be born to run so 42km is nothing to them)

Anyway, 2 months prior to event day I have started training. Bought a new pair of running shoes on the New Year (new year gift to meself) and from then I started my marathon training in it. I actually do not have that many weekends to train for LSD (Long Slow Distance), juz 6 weekends. So I started my first weekend with 21km LSD, the next one 23km, 25km, 21km, 30km, 25km...and that's it, 6 weeks homework done! I felt really tortured during that 6 weeks...I dreaded weekend during those times. I was so glad when it was all over.

Huge SCHKM poster on the wall in one of the MTR station in HK

And so, CNY week flew past and it is time for Hong Kong. Time to get the marathon over and done with. I was expecting HK weather to be colder but the few days before the marathon when I was there, temperature hover around 19C to 22C. It was cool but wasn't cold.

I was traveling with Chin Chin, both of us running the full marathon. Our race bib collection date is on Saturday and collection is in Victoria Park in HK Island. Few months before today, we received a letter that state our registration information and collection date and time.

Banner directing us to the collection tent

Victoria Park is quite a big park. Many people were running around the park that morning. I was also tempted to do a short run to warm up the legs, but I didn't have running clothes with me at that time. Bummer...should have pack it in my bag :(

On top of that, I was having problem with my legs on Sat because walk too much the day before. We joined Gim May and gang for makanthon and shopathon on Fri evening. Because we wanted to makan along the way, we walked 3 MTR stations instead of riding it. Bad decision. Woke up feeling some sort of pain on my left hamstring. I am quite sure it is not phantom aches or imaginary pain.

Got my runners pack and happy! The bag will also be use as a check-in baggage during marathon day

We were looking out for other familiar faces at collection area but didn't bump into anyone else. Whatsapp Gim May and gang and nobody responded to us (there's free wifi in Victoria Park provided by HK Gov). So we left the collection place headed for a carbo load lunch, and the plan is to go back to rest early and hope my poor leg will feel better the next day.

Here's what's in the bag for a marathon that cost HKD300; a bib, a baggage plastic bag, a technical T-shirt, a runner's guidebook, a statistic book showing you information about SCHKM (price money, number of runners for past few years, sponsors, etc etc)

We were all staying in Tsim Sha Tsui where the marathon start point is located. Gim May and gang manage to book a guesthouse closer to the startline, where as our guesthouse is one MTR station away.

On race day, I woke up feeling nervous (as like all other race day). Get ready, had breakfast, unload waste (hehe) and took the MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui station. It was cold and windy that morning. I had my disposable raincoat on to keep warm.

Tey always has his camera handy

We walk towards baggage deposit area, there was a long row of trucks waiting for us. My truck was no. 47, so I actually had to walk quite a bit to the last few trucks. Submitted baggage, we slowly make our way towards the start line. There's so many people everywhere. From the brochure, it mention that there were 72,000 runners sign up in total. 13,000 people signed up for full marathon category alone. Organizer even have to split full marathon runners into 2 different group, the faster group started at 6:40am, while the slower group starts at 7:10am. Well, me, of course, belongs to the 7:10am group :-)

I was quite far back from the start line because I had to go queue up for toilet. It was so cold that morning that I had to go more often than usual. Before the start, 2 MC were talking in Cantonese...poor angmoh-s would be so lost don't know what they are talking about. Throughout the race, all announcements and cheering were in Cantonese. Not very foreigner friendly lor...

We were let off on the dot at 7:10am (according to my watch which were sync to GPS time). One or two km after the start, we leave behind Tsim Sha Tsui's concrete forest and reach an open area, both side of the road were slope with little trees. That little piece of green slope becomes peeing ground for many guys. So many of them started running to the side of the road and mark their territory, LOL. It's a sight to behold.

Km4 is the first water station. I was quite thirsty at that point so I ran towards the water station. There were really so many people that I had to stop completely not able to move forward at all. I learnt later that actually, water station in HK Marathon stretches 500m or more (about 10 tables) so there's no worries about missing water stops. After the first water station, I got smarter. For the following water station, I usually skip the first few tables and let the crowd thin out a bit then only I run to the table to grab water.

Full marathon runners run across 3 bridges and 3 tunnels; Stonecutters Bridge, Tsing Ma Bridge, Ting Kau Bridge, Nam Wan Tunnel, Cheung Tsing Tunnel and Harbour Tunnel.

On the first bridge, Stonecutters Bridge is where the port is located, I think. Because there were a lot of those containers and those metal thingy I see near Penang Port. This is where I saw the first accident. Opposite the road where runners coming back, saw this old man lying by the side of the road with blood on his face and he seems unconscious. I am guessing he fall face first on the road. There were people helping him.

After the first bridge we went into a tunnel to pass this hill very similar to the Ipoh tunnel. It suddenly felt very warm but nothing too uncomfortable. My pace automatically increased to 6 mins/km pace because of the sudden absence of wind and I was running at the same effort. Never underestimate the power of wind, it can tires you down. The wind had been strong that day, running on the bridges was tough...so I am quite happy to be in the tunnel away from wind.

Coming out from the tunnel, we continue on to Tsing Ma Bridge and u-turn at one point. We get to see who's ahead of us and say hi to familiar faces; only if they heard me calling them, sigh, runners with earbuds stuck in their ears. Back to the start of the Tsing Ma Bridge we make a sharp turn onto the last bridge called Ting Kau Bridge. As we were reaching the sharp turn, I saw a 2nd accident happen just in front of me. This guy, I believe having tired legs, just trip and fell knee first on the rough tar road. Ouch! I heard the sound of skins scraping the road...it sounds really really painful. As it was downhill that time, we had a bit of momentum on us so with a fall, for sure the scrap would be real bad.

It was about 18km at this point. I wasn't enjoying the view anymore because it is just bridge, water and a lot of roads. I started to feel the pain on my skin at underarm (brushing of skin on arm with jersey) and my chest (brushing of skin with sports bra). No thanks to the new bottle of Body Glide that doesn't prevent chaffing. My old bottle works really well for me but this new one doesn't work :(

I stop at the First Aid tent to get a plaster from them. Stick it to where it pains and continue on. Plaster helps on the chest, but the underarm one wouldn't stick. It was really uncomfortable and painful. Ran into the 2nd Tunnel and again, my pace improve to low 6 mins/km pace. It was around km26 coming out of the tunnel. I am looking forward to the Harbour Tunnel linking Kowloon to Hong Kong Island as I remember that it will be km 31 when we enter it, which is also very close to finish line. At this point, I can't wait for the marathon to be over. Everywhere is in pain!

Doing some calculations in my head along this boring 6km, it seems that I will still meet my target finish time of 4hr 40mins. I am pretty happy with the thought of that. Boring...until came the Harbour Tunnel. Steep down into the tunnel (~20m below sea level), 2km in the tunnel and 500m very very steep climb back up. 500m to climb from 25m below sea level to 5m above sea level, after been running 34km. That is like a super duper tough feat. If that is not tough enough, after coming out from the tunnel, we have to run up a ramp, some sort like a flyover some more. Arghhh, I slow to almost a walking pace.

Coming down the ramp, we ran along Victoria Harbour towards Victoria Park where the finishing line awaits. At this point, the marathon and half marathon route were already joined together so there were really a lot of people. At some parts, it was really tough to run as there were many people slowed down to walk already. I was really tired and in pain. I saw my 4:40 goal slowly slipping away. I wanted to run faster, push harder but there's just no more energy in me to do so. Pain and tired is the only thing in mind, and of course the disappointment of not meeting my targeted goal. Regardless, I still have hope to better my previous Personal Best.

I kept running (or what it seems like running to me) with a very heavy feet, dodging people along the way.

And there it was, the sign that says last km to the finishing line. Wow, that must have been the longest ever 1km I have ever ran...

Zoom! and I did it. I cross the finish line at 4hr 45mins. 2 mins better than my previous Marathon time. Yay!

Boo! that I missed my goal by 5mins :-(

We were urge to keep moving forward as not to block the finishing line. Walk along...and just right ahead, I saw Chin Chin. She finished a min ahead of me. As we continue walking, this guy standing beside us suddenly collapse on the floor. He had some sort of seizure. First aid-er quickly rushed to his help. As we walk along we were passed goody bag and finisher medal. In the end, reached our baggage collection area. Collection was fast, I just need to go back to my truck number and they can find my bag very quickly.

Look at the amount of people; Background: skyline of Hong Kong

Overall, it was a very well organize event seeing that there are 72,000 runners. Volunteers are cheerful and helpful. Temperature was cooling at around 20C. The problem is the overwhelm amount of people, the many 'hills' that I have to climb (bridges and flyovers), the windy condition and the crowded road.

I ran from 7am to 12pm. Got a very clear tan line of my running jersey on my shoulders. I didn't put sunblock.

Look dry right? If in Malaysia, I sure wet from head to toe (still can manage a little smile although I am very much in pain)

And that ends a very long story of my fifth marathon experience.

p/s: sorry no photo from the run. I am serious runner, no carry camera to run :-P

Jan 2013

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 13:58:00 +0000

Ended 2012 with a 180km Interstate cycling event, the Malakoff Interstate Fellowship Ride.

Started 2013 with a 80km Round Penang Island fellowship ride on the same event.

Been doing this for the past few years, which means I haven't been doing New Year countdown for a while. Oh right, I skip a year of Malakoff Ride as I was in New Zealand. New Year countdown in Nelson wasn't very happening anyway, but it was great memories that all of us gathered together at the same place on this day of 31 Dec 2011; Lie Yee, Chin Chin, Samantha Loke, Sue Cing and Jie Min.

~## Back to Jan 2013 ##~

This January is a month of running for me, lots and lots of running as I am in the midst of marathon training. I am training for Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon which is happening on 24 Feb. Every weekend of Jan is spend on running, one weekend longer than the previous.

Started with 20km on weekend #1, then 23km on weekend #2, followed by 25km on weekend #3.

I started Mandarin class. Sign up for Standard 3 class. Attend class every Monday and Wednesday. Surviving well. Many retirees in my class. Always overheard them talking about holiday trip; London, Scandinavian countries, Europe, Cruise. I jealous :(

Week #2
PD department teambuilding. One word, el cheapo. This team building consist of different challenges that all teams have to complete before the real team building day. And then on the real team building day (half day off on a work day), we have some light activities and refreshment (snacks only, not even lunch provided). Because of this team building, I received an email from a fellow colleague who scolded me for being inconsiderate because I voice out my disappointment on FB. No doubt I have fun on the team building day, but can't deny that I am still truly disappointed.

Weekend #3
This is the weekend of Penang Urban Triathlon organized by Chin Chin, her first sprint triathlon event. It was a busy busy weekend for me because I am kaypoh and been helping here and there. On Sat, help out on the race pack collection, and on Sunday, I was a volunteer helping with medal distribution. It was a fun event and there were many new triathlete participated. Happy that the event was a successful one despite first time organizing it. Many participants have nice things to say about it.

Weekend #4
Remember Penang Run 2013? The run full of controversy and has a fair share of publicity on newspaper. First, the Indians were protesting saying organizers inconsiderate to set the date on Thaipusam, then BN slam Pg State Gov for banning the use of name 'Penang' in event...haiz, In the end, I also confuse with what is the real issue and not sure what to believe because newspaper are not something you should believe in. Regardless, I think politicians should just leave running event alone. We are there to run and not to be involved in some fight.

I sign-up for this run. And ran my 17km route. Came back and found that I lost my iPhone and a bunch of cash. Some idiot forced open my motorbike box and took away my beloved phone (and money) but kind enough to leave my personal documents, ATM and credit cards in place. Worst of all, I do not set password to my phone, did not backup data in the phone and did not activate 'Find my iPhone' function. It was a real lost cause, there's no way I can get my phone back. Feel so insecure having all my personal information out there, not knowing whose hand it fall into; my photos, notes, calendar, smses...OMG!

Can only hope whoever got the phone, clear all the memories away without looking through it. Can't imagine what some people will do with it.

The week that follows, I survived with a Sony Ericsson phone.
Missing my phone
Feeling down and helpless
Feel so disconnected from the world
Still hunting around for a new phone...

A packed weekend

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 16:26:00 +0000

I had a packed weekend.

Saturday

On Sat is Ben Swee's Running Clinic in the morning starting at 7.30am. I am back to running now after many months of break due to injury, and this is my 2nd week back. I am taking a conservative approach in my come back, don't want to rush into it and get injured again. Today I plan to do a 8km jog in Botanical Garden before the running clinic which will be in Youth Park. I started at 6.37am (7mins late causing me only able to finish 7.55km).

The running clinic was organized by My Triathlon Shop, which officially open one day before on Fri 10 Aug. They sell Inov8 brand of shoes and at this running clinic, they have trial shoes for participants to try on throughout the duration of the clinic. I tried a pair of Road-X 255. It is a minimalist shoe, very little cushioning making my feet very close to the ground. That's the 'IN' thing in the running world now, minimalist shoes. Read Born To Run and I assure you, you'd be able to catch up to that hype.

All right, so after marking attendance (we were pre-registered) and putting on new shoes, the running clinic started by us running a few rounds around the Youth Park field. Then we go back to the stage area and was shown some dynamic stretching from hands to legs. Arm swing, leg swinging, bending on the hip, star jump and...er, that is all I can remember for now. Then off again to another few rounds of running. After that we were ushered off to the field for more strengthening exercises.

Stretching, which I think can tell from the photo I am not doing a good job :P

Lunges, many different way of it; static lunges, jumping lunges, moving-forward-lunges...by the time we are done with lunges I must have done a hundred times of it on each leg. Squats, also did many many times of it, static as well as moving squats. Running by lifting knee up high, butt-kicking run, hop + squat both legs, and single leg hop. Basically we were ask to do all sorts of leg exercises, it was very tiring and I sweat non-stop throughout.

When we're done, we went back to the stage area and was served Hammer Heed, it an electrolyte drink of strawberry flavor. The taste was quite mild and quite nice to drink. And most importantly, it was cold drink...very refreshing after such tough exercise. Next we moved on to stretching. Sitting down on the floor bending the waist, lying down strengthening the core, a couple of minutes of plank followed by side plank. And many other stretches that I think I have now forgotten. Sigh~

At the end of it, I was tired and hungry as it was near to 11am already. And I have been out running since 6.30 in the morning! Lastly was lucky draw. There was some Hammer products to give away, some socks and water bottles all sponsored by My Triathlon Shop. I was one of the lucky ones to win a pack of Hammer gel and Hammer Heed melon flavor. Am going to try them out one of these training days :)

Me, presented with my lucky draw prize from My Triathlon Shop taukeh soh on the far right and Mei Ling, a kind helper for this clinic in the middle

In the afternoon, I went into office to work for about 3hrs+. Been really busy at work and have a lot of things left to do. I had to left work even when I didn't finish with it because at night is i-Run 2nd Anniversary Dinner at Red Rock Restaurant on Macallister Rd in town. Car pool with Miow and Chin. There's plenty of lucky draw prizes for the night as well, contributed by the runners. From electrical appliances to sports equipment like shoes, cycling jersey, recovery drinks (sponsored by me and Chin Chin) and cash prizes. Dinner was a bit crazy as alcohol was involved. I was sober throughout. Didn't do much socializing, just sit at the table and eat eat EAT!

Sunday

Woke up to a lot of muscle soreness on inner thigh, buttocks and abs. All thanks to Ben Swee's running clinic exercises the day before. That tells me one thing, that many parts of my muscles are not activated in running, I have to find ways to strengthen and build up these muscles. I plan to dedicate a day out of a week to do the exercises shown during the clinic. Body movement today is a bit slow with all the pain around, but I am happy with the pain...haha, yea, I think I am sick. Like to torture myself and will be very happy to get muscle pain. No training for me today, sleep-in day.

I eventually wake up at 8 something and got into office to work a little. Had my breakfast in the office too. Free coffee ma...haha. Left at 11am to attend 2nd day of Ben Swee's training talk. Today's topic is nutrition, training plan and transitioning to barefoot running. Quite an informative talk on the training plan. Break for lunch at 1pm, and continued with another topic by Samuel, covering about barefoot running and how to slowly transition to it without getting injured. I left half way to attend MPSP Green Run volunteer meeting.

I volunteered to help with Andrew's running event, MPSP Green Run to be held on 26 Aug. Meeting is at Youth Park at 2pm. I was assigned to the start/finishing line team. Was briefed on the running route, and some information about the event. Then our own small team have a discussion on what to do on event day and task assignment. The meeting was done by 4pm. The running clinic is still on-going so I head back there and was in time for the Q&A-win-a-prize session. I didn't win any prize though, coz I don't know how to answer the question they asked...haha, been missing a whole big chunk of the talk.

After the talk, I tag along when Chin Chin bring Yee Hua and Ben Swee for a short tour of Penang Heritage zone sculpture + mural. We walked around Armenian St, Cannon St, Acheh St and then moving on to the Tan Jetty and Chew Jetty. Of course, stopping for some street food when we see it.

Fish ball, pork ball, roti bak kua and many other food on sticks

When we're done touring Georgetown, it is starting to get dark and we drop Ben and Yee Hua to Ocean Green Restaurant where they'll be having dinner with their friends. Heard this place serve good seafood...**saliva dripping

We went to get our own dinner after dropping them and basically that ends my very packed weekend. And no, I am not going to wake up at 4am to watch Olympic closing ceremony.

A start to a great week

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 03:40:00 +0000

Today is the start of school again after 2 weeks of break. Parents will need to go back to their routine of fetching kids to/from school and traffic will fall back to following school time.

Monday has been my swim day at CRC for the past 2 months. After all these time, I am still entering the pool as a guest paying RM5.30 per entry. I am a regular there already. The lifeguard, the security and the parking attendant knows me and always greet me with a friendly smiley face, cheers me up after my battle on the road with rush hour drivers. The lifeguard, Mr Lim is very helpful. He is always happy to share swim tips with many people in the pool. He observed and timed how long people takes to swim 50m.

Lately, I've been getting free advise from Mr Lim and I try to correct my problem based on his feedback. Today, I am happy to say that I swim my fastest lap in 3 years (I only start to record my swim time 3 years ago)

At dinner, I was intro to Yiruma, a South Korean internationally known pianist (which I don't know until being mentioned in the dinner, paiseh :P). And the instant I listen to his music, I love it. I spend the night listening to a few other songs before giving-in to slumberland.

I still keep this must-do-before-I-die-thing. I want to learn to play piano one day.

This song is on the top of my list but definitely not the only one:

Another favourite:

On top of that, I am so looking forward to team building tomorrow. Finally get my wish come true to an outdoor team building and not only going to a fancy place to have lunch. For the past few years, that was what we have been doing with our team building budget, eat eat eat and eat. What to do? Boss fancy eating and don't fancy doing anything else at all so usually we will just go to an expensive place and have lunch and then back to work for the rest of the day. Now that I am in a different team under a different boss, things finally changed. In conjunction with durian season, we will head to a durian orchard to have durian + other local fruits lunch and after that do some short hike around the orchard. Follow by a visit to nearby beach in Balik Pulau. Sounds fun rite? I hope it will turn out as fun as it sounds.

Another thing to look forward to is the wine and dine Italian dinner on Wednesday.

It will be an interesting week...I know it!

Time is gold

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 07 Jun 2012 17:28:00 +0000

Time flies too fast, it is scary to acknowledge that it has been 6 months since the new year was here.

It went by so fast that I couldn't seem to keep track of what I have done in the past few months. I vividly remember doing quite a lot of cycling in the weekends, that Thu always comes too soon and before you know, it is Fri and with another blink, weekend has past. Have I not utilizing my time efficiently? Should I slow down the pace and start to notice and appreciate what is around me? How?

I feel as if I always have no time, to the point that I take note of where my minutes were spent. At home, like how it takes me 3 mins from the moment I step out of the door until when I get to my car (lock house door, taking lift, walking), at work it took me 3 mins to take me from my cubicle to my motorbike. Maybe this is what people called "living life to the fullest".

I guess I should start being active with this blog again. Then when I look back at it, I know what is it that has occupied my time.

Cycling back to hometown

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:48:00 +0000

Date: 14-15 Apr 2012 (Sat/Sun)

As part of PCC Interstate 2012 training, I decided to cycle from Penang to Taiping and back the next day. I sent out invitation to some of the cycling kaki few weeks before hoping to get some company into doing this together. Due to everybody's busy schedule, in the end only Ewe Cheong joined me. And Chin Chin was so kind to offer support in car in case we encounter technical problems with our bike and also help to carry water, plus our clothes and basic things.

Ewe Cheong and I started our adventure in Bayan Lepas and we cycle to Penang Ferry Terminal. It was a beautiful Sat morning. I think we were very lucky as for the past 3 days, it has been raining in the morning. However, it was a very humid day.

The crew in this adventure (left-to-right): Ewe Cheong, Chin, and myself posing in front of the kastam building opposite ferry terminal

Took us 20 mins to reach Ferry Terminal from my house. Ah Miow is so nice, she purposely come to Ferry terminal to bid us goodbye and wishes us a safe ride to Taiping.

The sky at that time while we were on the ferry. Quality not bad at all. Taken from my new iPhone :)

At around 7.45am, we started from Butterworth Ferry Terminal. Taking the trunk road towards Taiping, we pass Bukit Tengah, Bukit Minyak, Simpang Ampat, Sungai Jawi, Nibong Tebal, Parit Buntar, Bagan Serai and lastly Kamunting.

We make a stop in Nibong Tebal for breakfast. Nibong Tebal is almost half way point of our ride. The first half of it was not very pleasant because there was a lot of traffic lights and the road was very dusty from road construction.

The journey after that was much better, there were less lorries, less traffic lights, road is flat and is much wider than previous roads. The only problem is strong headwind.

Next stop we make is the small town of Bagan Serai. Stop by this small kedai kopi to buy water. The uncle and aunty operating the shop was amazed when told where we were going. It was getting really hot by then, and I was really exhausted already. Another 25km+ to reach Taiping. Pheww...

Meet up with our support car 10km down from Bagan Serai and make another quick stop to further refill water then it was all the way to Taiping. I was all burnt out and keep feeling that left calf of mine twitching, warning that a cramp is coming. I have to ask Ewe Cheong to slow down and I drafted behind him from then onwards till we reach Econsave in Kamunting. We had another short break at Econsave before ending the ride at my mother's shop another 3km away.

More than happy to reach Econsave Kamunting

Switching to car, I drove Ewe Cheong and Chin Chin to Larut Matang foodcourt for lunch then send them to hotel to shower. I book them into Cherry Inn which cost about RM30 per person for a night stay.

In the evening, I brought Ewe Cheong and Chin to Sepetang for curry mee. It was only so-so. Not as good as people claim it to be.

Foreground is curry mee and background is laksa

The first railway in Malaya was built here

The next morning, we repeat the same route heading back to Penang. This time I am more tired than the day before. Legs felt heavy but I am determined to do it. Off we go at 7.30am.

We make the same stop as the day before, in Bagan Serai which is about 30km from our start point. 2nd stop was another 20km away which is not far before the town of Nibong Tebal. This time we stop for dim sum breakfast. The place was totally crowded and they keep running out of food. We had to wait for quite a while. Ewe Cheong and I, pushing our bike towards the restaurant and in our cycling clothes, had to endure people's curious look. I can't remember the restaurant's name, dim sum was not very good.

By the time we're done and ready to continue our journey, it was starting to get hot. My legs totally felt like jelly despite the food. That's what un-fit means. By then, we've only done about 50km. Less than 30km to reach Butterworth!

I need another stop when we were somewhere near Bkt Minyak. It was getting so hot and I was really tired. And this was 20km away from where we last stop. Sitting in the petrol station, I wanted to wrap up the ride and get into the support car already. I really wanted to end it so badly. The feeling of giving up is terrible I tell you, I am so reluctant to end it but at the same time was so tired. Checking the map, it seems to me it was just another 10km+ to go before we reach Butterworth. Hrmm...

After some thinking, I decided to die die also go for it. Ewe Cheong at that time was still strong, but he was very easy going, he let me decide. My decision was to ride until Butterworth and end there. We will both get onto the support car and cross into Penang Island coz it will save us more money...hehe. Our options are 2 bike + 1 car go onto ferry separately (cost RM9.80) vs. 1 car cross the bridge with 2 bikes in the car (cost RM5.60).

In the end, I manage to tahan till Butterworth before I call it a day and hop into support car ending the day's workout. In total, Ewe Cheong and I did 88.3km + 78.4km = 166.7km in 2 days.

It's a good start to my new bike, and a good start to PCC Interstate training. Thanks Ewe Cheong for the ride company and Chin Chin for the support. You guys rock!

Day 1 workout data: http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/113455993
Day 2 workout data: http://www.mapmyrun.com/workout/113809207
*Go to Splits and Graphs tab for map and km-by-km info

Flash back...Motueka

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:38:00 +0000

A friend shared a link on Abel Tasman National Park in Facebook today. Although I can easily guess what the article would say, I can't resist the urge to click on the link and prove myself right.

When I read the article which is about the beautiful Abel Tasman coastal national park, sweet memories of my time in Motueka came flooding back. I have enjoyed my 4 weeks stay in that small little town which is the gateway to Abel Tasman. Motueka is the nearest town to the famous national park where hiker/tourist can stock up their grocery and get their gears ready for some hiking, camping and kayaking.

Dipping my feet in the clear water of Abel Tasman National Park. The water is so cold that it is not fun to dip at all...brrr

I was in Motueka working for Talley's, a company that pack and sell frozen seafood. I work as a mussel opener, one of the toughest job I've tried in NZ. Why? 3.4km-walk to work at 5.15am, standing at work for the next 8hrs with 15mins break in between, constantly missing the mussel and cut my palm, rushing to fit in eating and toilet break within that short 15mins break.

Me in work attire, with white overall, gumboots and earmuff

Compare to my job now; I travel effortlessly to work (no sweat), I get to sit in an ergonomically-designed chair in the whole duration of work hour, flexible lunch hour that spans 1hr long! Wow...it's heaven and hell difference leh...

These are all part and parcel of life, and I am very glad I had the opportunity to experience it.
NZ experience has teaches me to appreciate what I already have in life...

Best pie in New Zealand (so far...)

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 02:04:00 +0000

I've been in NZ for 5 months now. Let me share with you this: meat pie is in the list of popular food in NZ.

Before I come to NZ, when someone mention pie I'd think of something sweet and it fits into my dessert list. In NZ, pie is not so much a dessert but appetizer or snack or even lunch. Pies are easily and widely available, sold in supermarkets, bakery as well as superette (NZ term of convenience store).

I've had my fair share of pies while traveling New Zealand. And so far, the best pie that I've ever had had to be the one in Thames, Coromandel Peninsular. "Food For Thought" is the name of the shop. Other than award-winning pies, they also serve cakes, coffee and breakfast food but it's the pies that they are really famous for.

One of the award-winning pie, mince and cheese

Can't wait to eat!

Be sure to pay this shop a visit if you're in the small lovely town of Thames, previously a gold mining town.

Goodbye Mr Vitus

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 14:37:00 +0000

Thanks to Wei Koon for lending me Mr Vitus, I've been able to do many cycling activities. It was my first experience with a good road bike. I am returning it to Wei Koon now before leaving to New Zealand.

I had a road bike before during secondary school time, and it was a blue metal bike with the shape of a road bike. I love that old bike, until it starts to get rusty on the handlebar even though I make sure I dry it well after each wash. Parents sold it away after I left to Uni.

Vitus was with me for almost 2 years; 1 year 8 months to be exact. It is truly a good bike and it fits me perfectly. Unfortunately, Wei Koon has no intention to sell it, if not I would love to buy it.

Vitus and I, we've been through so much...

Malakoff Interstate Ride, 31 Dec 2009/1 Jan 2010

Starting my first ever cycling event with Vitus together with hundreds other cyclist

Powerman Sprint, 2010. 5.5k Run - 32k bike - 5k run

At transition area

Malakoff Interstate Ride, 31 Dec 2010/1 Jan 2011

Camera effect make it looks like I am going really fast...haha

Kenyir Olympic Distance Triathlon, April 2011

Biking under the rain is fun but scary when the brake doesn't work

PCC Interstate Ride, Raub-Cameron Highlands-Bkt Merah-Lumut, 456km, 29 Apr - 1 May 2011

Climbing up the long and tough gradient of Cameron Highlands

Century Ride Ipoh 160km, 17 July 2011

With Poh Seng at the finishing line

PD Olympic Distance Triathlon, 24 July 2011

40km cycling in the Olympic Distance tri

Thank you for the experience, Vitus! You're the best bike I've had so far...

I'll be traveling...

noreply@blogger.com (LieWei) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 07:34:00 +0000

I have always love to travel from a young age.

I wish to travel the world one day. So far, I think I'm making good progress...

Starting Aug, I will be backpacking in New Zealand traveling under the working holiday visa.

I am very excited at the same time anxious about the uncertainties that may happen there.

Things at work has a 360degree change. Initially worried about my financial situation upon return, but now I think this has been resolved...i think lar...things are still not firm yet.

Another 3 days to last day. Then Port Dickson Triathlon in the weekend. Then it is packing time.

Can I fit everything in a 50 + 10 litre backpack? *Scratch head