Granny Moment: Back Pain

I love early morning walks during Friday. Most people stay in bed late on Fridays. Thursday is party night in this part of the world.

There's no traffic on Friday mornings. At 6 am, the park is almost empty...well, almost. There's a small group of guys playing basketball. A couple of yogis and some mommies with their babies enjoying the early morning sun.

The weather was perfect last Friday. It wasn't humid and there's a slight cold breeze. So perfect that we were able to go around the park 5 times. That would be 6 kilometers more or less.  Perfect!

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However, today is a different thing altogether.

I have been feeling this dull pain on my lower back for quite some time now. I'm  convinced its because of my bed. I didn't really do anything about the back pain then. I have a really high tolerance for pain. I pierced my own earlobe, that's something.

Today I almost cried. Because I can't walk properly. I can't stand up without feeling excruciating pain, like getting kicked in the nuts...(I heard that's painful...) I can't even lift my laptop. =(

What's happening to me? I have to get better!!

#27 Defeat King Koopa!

photo source: www.wikepedia.org

If you are an "80's" kid, you definitely know King Koopa/Bowser. He's the king of the "koopas". Those turtle-like creatures in the Super Mario game. If I'm not mistaken, Super Mario 1 was released sometime in 1985.

I think I'm the only person left who hasn't defeated this evil king. I don't want to die knowing that I wasn't able to finish the most wonderful game ever invented. In fairness to me, we didn't own a Nintendo Family Computer back then. We go over to our friends house and play till its time for bed.

photo source: www.wikipedia.org

I never really finished the darn thing. I have friends who can finish the game in 10 minutes. GAAAH!!
Right now, I'm stuck at level 5-4. I'm such a loser! HAHA!!

p.s. - This game really brings back memories. Love it to bits!!

Movie Marathon: Lord of the Rings Trilogy - CHECK!

photo credit: wikipedia.org

I know it's not as exciting as bungee jumping or as challenging as running an actual marathon but sitting through 558 minutes of awesomeness should still count for something. I've watched the movies separately when they came out in 2001, 2002 and 2003 but I really can't remember much of the story.

I'm not really a fan of LOTR but I know a lot of people who just can't get enough of it. Maybe this is what Harry Potter for me is LOTR for them. Also, Mindy (of MindyTV) posted this on her FB wall:

So I decided to give it a go one more time. And this time I watched it one after the other. So with chips and soda ready, my cousin, my "bitter" half and I watched Frodo and the gang. I have to admit, I enjoyed it. Not just the movie but the conversations that I we had while watching the trilogy.

First thing I noticed is Frodo's "sex" face. I mean, must he always have that "look".

And of course, the Frodo and Sam issue came out again. It really does seem they were more than just "bros".

Cousin: Frodo Baggins and Sam Milby (???) will travel together... blah blah...
Me: SAM MILBY???? 


A: This is the longest out of the three.... The Return of the Ring.
Me: Return of the RING??? "Naka sangla ba yun??"

Cousin: The Engs will help them fight the OKS.
Me: ENTS and ORCs!!

On top of that, I kept shouting "expecto patronum" and  "stupefy" everytime they get attacked. (duh!)

This is what happens when you watch movies the whole night. We started at 11 pm. Slept at 6 am next day. Took 3 hour break because we just can't keep our eyes open anymore. We continued watching at around 11 am and finished at 4 pm.

And this is not even the extended version!!

I'm just glad that I'm done.

#1 Skydive

When I started doing my list, I just wrote down things I wanted to do. Without thinking about the details, I just wrote them one by one.

Take Skydiving for example. I have no freakin' idea where I'll be doing this or how much it would cost. I just wrote it down because I wanted to do it. Thinking about it now, it seems unrealistic. I am so clueless about these things! So I started googling.

I literally fell to the floor when I found out that there is a facility here in Dubai. (duh!) And the fees are quite reasonable too!! Here's a clip from Skydive Dubai website:

AMAZING!

This is definitely happening!

Though technically I am still within their weight limit... I won't take any chances. So this will have to wait for a while but definitely happening!!

#14 Learn to play an Instrument

My parents have always wanted me and my siblings to learn the piano. I remember having private lessons every afternoon. I remember that my teacher was a strict lady. And she came whenever it's cartoon time or my friends start playing piko and patintero. I also remembered that she scolded me a lot for swinging my legs. Her lessons, however, I never remembered.

For the life of me, I never learned to play. I have always been tone deaf and out of tune. Unlike my sister who can play by ear, I can not "hear" the music when I play. It's as if my mind and my ear are not connected.

My sister and my brother, they both can sing...beautifully. Very talented and I'm proud of them. As wise people say, God is fair. They have all the talent and I got the looks. HAHAHA!!

Anyway, I decided to put this on my list. I want to learn to play an instrument. I gave piano a shot and I think I'll leave that to Mozart and Beethoven. This time I want to learn the guitar.

I have asked many friends to teach me. Even my brother attempted to teach me. In my defense, I did learn one song. "Leaving on a Jet Plane" which has 4 chords (I think... duh).

So, lemme get to buying a guitar and start practicing. I won't cross this out until I can really really play properly. God bless me...


p.s. I still need to complete my list. This is harder than I thought! Have any ideas? Suggestions? Please let me know!

#15 Portrait

I do not photograph well. That's a fact. My face, head and body won't coordinate so I gave up and just make goofy faces whenever I have my picture taken. I can never pull off a "sexy" shot or a serious face.

Maybe I'm just being overly critical of myself. Maybe not. Maybe I just need to get over my insecurities and go for it. So there, I'm listing it down. I want a portrait of myself framed and hung.

I want it classy and vintage.

Maybe dress up like those in the Elizabethan era.

Ok, this is Queen Elizabeth I, so maybe not. But it surely would be fun to do the RED QUEEN. =D

 

I'd be happy to do something classy and modern.

Or maybe something seductive like this. (Of course that would be after I've lost like a gazillion pounds!)

Anything as long as its beautifully done. Calling my photographer friends!!

*photos not mine, credits to owners*

Inspiration : Ben Davis

No words required for this entry. It's just simply inspiring.
Follow Ben's journey here: www.Bendoeslife.com

Mt. Pulag : the dream

I have always wanted to hike up a mountain. It has been always on my list. Ever since.  Before, I was too young and my parents won't let me. Then, I got caught up with other things. So now I have to do this.

Early this year, my brother went on journey. He needed to do some soul searching and this is where found solace, even if its just for a while:

Mount Pulag (or sometimes Mount Pulog) is the second highest mountain in the Philippines. It is Luzon’s highest peak at 2,922 meters above sea level.

Depending on the trail, a climb may take 1–4 days, with the easiest being the Ambangeg trail. The difficulty level of the climb ranges from 3 to 7 out of 9 in the local classification system. No special equipment is required for the climb

And this is why I want to conquer Mt. Pulag. And I am going to do this with my brother, hopefully.


*source: wikipedia*

(Speed) Walk in the Park - The Details

I prepared my ipod playlist.
Set my alarm.
Got ready before 6 AM.
I was able to get hold of Mark at around 0630. I'll let it pass coz it was his birthday that day.

Mark and I after 5 kilometers.

All sweaty and flushed. I love it!

It was a great start. We agreed to do this every Friday morning. Oh, that's Mark's serious face. You should see him when he's goofing around. HILARIOUS! *Photos taken from my camera phone*

More good news. It seems I've found my training partner. I just found out that one of the guys in the office actually run marathons and stuff. He agreed to help me out. First things first, he's gonna help me with my shoe hunt. Then he'll take me to their leader his group of runner friends.

As you can see from my current state, I don't think I'll be prepared for the Dubai Marathon in January. But I'm so psyched to know that there are other marathons going on all year round. Me so happy!!

So, let me get some ZZZzzz's. I have to adjust my body clock and form new sleeping habits.

(Speed) Walk in the Park

I'll be starting my day tomorrow with speed walking. I figured that I have to really prepare myself if I want to join any marathon. I'll be taking it slowly, no need to rush my body.  For the past 8 years, I was happy with just staying at home and watch TV after work. This must stop. I. Have. To. Get. Fit!

So tomorrow, I'll be heading to the park near our place.

The park is characterized with a large water area as the total area of the pond stretches to 80,000 square metres, which represents 54.4% of the total area of the park.

photo credit: http://imresolt.blogspot.com

Yeah, there's a huge pond in the middle of this park. It's HUGE! Good for early morning walks. It also has basketball and tennis courts.

I finally convinced someone to come with me. Mark, you and I have a date tomorrow! Expect your phone to ring before 6 AM!

Excuse me while I sync my ipod. =D

Getting Started

I'm getting so overwhelmed with my list! I don't know where to start.
It's making me think about lots of things, making me worry. And to think I'm not even done with the list!

Can I do this?
Can I afford all of these?!

Breathe in... breathe out.

Ok, let's take it one by one. I started checking out local activities I can do here in Dubai (yes, I'm in Dubai just in case you don't know yet). I found out that there is a marathon every January and it's a big thing apparently. I didn't know that!

I checked out their website: www.dubaimarathon.org. Seems I can join the fun with a small fee. But seeing the competition, I'm beginning to chicken out! I mean these people are runners. Real runners. While I, on the other hand, can't get myself to speed-walk. The only marathon I know are TV Marathons. (Probably why I look like a big-ass couch now!)

I don't even own running shoes. There was a time in my life that I'd wear nothing but rubber shoes. I run, walk, sleep with my rubber shoes. Now, all I have are my flip flops and a couple of pumps. Gaaah!!

Breathe in.. breathe out...

First things first. I should get myself some decent running shoes. Any suggestions? Are there specific types that I should be aware of? I should buy this soon so I can start training and do the marathon and then I'll do the triathlon....well, that's IF I survive.

The hunt for running shoes starts now!

I'm doing it!

I've lists of things I want to do, a lot!
I did some things that were not even on my list but they should have.
I did things that were not on the list and thank God they weren't!

But most of the things in my list remains uncrossed.
Because life happened.
Because I somehow forgot who I am and who I wanted to be.
Because I badly wanted to fit in someone else's life.

A couple of days ago, I stumbled upon The 30 Before 30 Project blog. I haven't really finished reading the whole thing but just reading Celine's backstory, I found myself nodding and agreeing to every word she said. This inspired me to do my own list. again.

Join me. Encourage me. I need it!