Friday, April 28, 2006

Back On Track, With A Little Help

You think you know your own family and friends, until the days pass and while you sit alone, attend to your own concerns, then you realise there's something absent in your own contemplation. Perhaps the people you know you know well and care about believe in what they want to, ie. that no news is the best news. Or subscribe to that Asian excuse of minding one's own business and non-interference. It's about giving one another privacy. It may be true, or just a plain excuse for being inapt in knowing one and balancing another. For the most part, and giving the benefit of doubt, you accept the burden on your own shoulder and bare it hard on your own back. It's your own life, and how you make it, who cares... Like the parable of the Good Samaritan seem to appeal to everyone's good conscience: the passer-bys all kept to their own business, surely, and it took a generous and spirited soul to know when to care and cross the road to make the difference. I am surprised at the wonderful concern a few strangers have shown me, in my long absence from work and struggle to get busy with employment and earning a real living. They call at my door, pick up the phone to check if I need anything, and most surprisingly, one even went to far as to get the Town Council and the Community Development Council to see if anything could be done to help me with work assistance or otherwise. I was stumped with the degree of fervour, enthusiasm and genuine passion these people have about caring for those who are struggling. Surprisingly, my own family and once close friends are mostly "absent" from any sensitivity to my situation. Within this time, I find those who are peripheral to my life turning up and helping me with referrals and the occasional "how are you doing" SMS. And, of course some very dear and long-time friends whom I have confided my state of mind and current difficult situation with. I am amazed at the degree of care and concern they have all put up, which seriously, requires a bit of earnest effort. Some are making eager effort to refer me to recruitment agents, forward prospective work advertisements and references to me, etc. Diligently, too, I take these up and do make the every effort to seek out and apply for jobs, and at the same time, try and secure some part-time work that will help with some revenue. Meanwhile, there are the aggravated cut-backs and almost destitute state one has to contrive to live with. The silence is not as dreadful. Once in a while, you think about what really is this situation going to lead to. But ultimately, it's your mental strength and intelligence that has to work things out, empty stomach or not. I've definitely gained from losing all that extra weight! And of course, I also learnt alot more about what life should really be about, or in other words, what it should be a lot less about. What am I really pursuing? The best thing is that I no longer fear death in any way. Seriously. Nothing morbid. It's morbid for those who have more fear and I think they stand to "die many times before their time". Courage is about survival, despite a sense of abandonment and loneliness. Courage is also about accepting the humility of help that strangers who come by, offer. It's so weird. I started out to train my body towards endurance for triathlons etc. But in the end, the endurance I found myself learning was all about the human spirit, and its great capacity to care, as well as the sadness that people very near you can even overlook your presence and teach you that in this world, the needy - poor, desperate, sick, imprisoned etc. - are an invisible population those who are busy with opportunity and business have happily got their backs turned towards. Yes, I am back on track, with help from friends. And as for my own being and dignity - it's taken a beating of sorts, and like all penitential flagellations, it's about depriving oneself gratitiously of pleasure so that in the long run, gratification is greater.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Butterfly Parade

Was a wee late in the morning when I decided to kick up some dust and hit the trails. Under the noon day sun, it sometimes worry me that I may not have hydrated enough. But some nutrient juice before donning the shoes and gear is a good idea and this time, it worked well. I got to good speed without any shortness of breadth, and took the slopes without any break of pace. At the stream before the Petai Hut, the army boys were in training and a couple of them were like girls in the dirt when water from the stream got into their boots! I finished in good time, got a drink from the water fountain at the Park Office and sauntered back to the Fitness Area to work out my thining upper body. Obviously I've lost a great deal of mass since, and the general lethargy and lack of power training is taking its toil. As I was sitting under the 2 pm sun, basking in its heat, I met R. Ong and Chung Pheng, who were both armed with macro-zoom lenses. They were part of the Butterfly Pals community in Singapore (check out: www.b-pals.com) and were shooting for their gallery. It was fascinating, what they could tell me about the 381 or 280+ species of butterflies in Singapore, their breeding habits and lifecyle. More fascinating was when they showed me their shots, and described to me what they captured: butterflies "puddling" or drinking from shallow water pools, that these "pee" or urinate, how they mate and how to locate some of the common species. We talked about the host plants, and moths, the frailty of the parks, and the general neglect from the over-stimulated trails from increased visitors, which bring the incidence of carelessness to unprecedented highs. After my discourse with them, I could pick up the presence of these wonderful, delicate insects significantly better, and felt so much more for them and their fragile world. There is more to read up on and to observe, and this adds much to my sense of being part of the great surprise of nature in my own backyard. (Images here are from the Butterfly Pals website.)

Friday, April 21, 2006

Dean's Conquest - Duathlon '06

Just met up with Dean Chee Yong Peng today, who's now working with Singapore Island Country Club. He's been a great inspiration and help the past year when I got into this love affair with multi-sport events, and for a while we would hit Bishan Pool together in the mornings to work on our freestyle drills. These are a few shots of him going at it again, this time at the Duathlon event on 26 February 2006. He's definitely enjoying it this time, as the photos attest, but he's always been colour-coordinated and camera-ready! In fact, for one of the earlier races (in 2005), you actually see him looking at the camera and smiling for it! So much for the earnest effort the sport saps out of you when you are painfully experiencing palsy, cramps, stitches or spot pains! Well, he's definitely a great fun bloke to train with, and I've missed all that fun. It's also great to see that he's all adorned in SALOMON speed racing tights and top, and safety helmet, too! Nothing like a great brand fan... But quality speaks for itself. Thanks, Dean, and for dropping the adidas trunks back my place this morning!

Saturday, April 08, 2006

Life At Large, Springtime in the Forest

Friday, 7 April 2006 I got to enjoy more drills at the pool this afternoon, albeit for a short while before the weather hinted at a change, and the lanes got all clogged up with other swimmers. I must be a relatively undistinctive swimmer in the pool, because, as with other days and numerous similar occasions, after I get into the pool and take the lane, immediately it seems it gets crowded around me - or am I simply claustrophobic? In any case, when I got in at 12.30 pm, it was just after the pool was cleaned and the lanes were empty, except for the two on the extreme ends. I took lane Four, and after my drill laps, the two lanes on either side were taken up by two swimmers and another two more squeezed in between. But a few other lanes were "empty". Under water, these other swimmers seemed to be trying to match my pace or tail me. Anyway, it was fun to break free and show off. I am feeling terrific, and I think opening up the new bottle of Nescafe Matinal coffee from Brazil certainly has brought back some zest into this life. After the swim, at 2 pm I rushed home to meet the gas man who came to collect the empty 12.7 kg tank and give me my balance deposit back. He seemed very polite and I offered him my Technogas twin cooker with hose and regulator. He was thrilled and amazed that I was giving it away, heartily took it with a surprised look, and ceremoniously mumbled to me craddling the cooker in his arms that he would like to give it to his sister. He was pretty taken by the gift. I am just glad that it got into good and needy hands. It made me feel really happy. By 4 pm, I felt perky enough, and with the incessant drilling becoming slightly intermitten, I simply needed to get out of the house. The coffee certainly looped well within my bloodstream, and I slipped on my shoes and debated for a while which route I would take. In the end, it was the familiar that called out to me and I ran the 10 km route. After the ranger's office (4.5km mark), I slowed down, and this time, as the sky above grew grey and the air became heavy with coolness and moisture, the forest took on another character. Because I was strolling now, the first thing which struck me were the myriad voices of the many species, birds and insects. Animals were strutting beneath the canopy leaving only hints of their presence by the rustle of leaves and twigs. You can feel the fullness of life. Then, as my eyes adjusted to the verdant foliage, I began to notice that the shrubs and crawlers were in bloom, with some clusters of flowers already wilting, and green and black berries hanging at the ends with busy worker ends all about the twigs. Further down as I approached the Golf Trail, after Jelutong Tower, there was a small bridge to cross. Just three meters on to the boardwalk of the Golf Trial, I stopped short on my tracks. I could hear the monitor lizards splashing in pools of water that have flooded at the base of the trees just a couple of meters away from the track. But the sound of water was still constant, like a bubbling and gushing of sorts. I walked back to the bridge and noted that the water there was stagnant. So, how come there was this gushing noise? I stood still and slowly let my eyes adjust to the dark shade beneath the trees and foilage. It looked like a swamp, except... just as the lizard splashed away, there was a spot where there was at least three spouts of water gushing in bubbly ripples in the swamp water! I have discovered a spring. But being alone and weary of the animals within the swampy spot, I decided not to scout. It was sufficient to have a clear visual confirmation that it was a genuine spring, although it could be a small seasonal spring. There was no steam, which indicated that the source was from the water table and definitely subterranean as the surface was was stagnant. That was specifically how I noticed it, if not it would have been drowned by other noise. I waited if another runner or hiker might come by and support me with this find, but after five minutes or so, it seemed better to move on and record this here. I have also reported the find via the National Parks Board website. As I passed the Singapore Island Country Club trail, I found the wild parasitic species of orchids in bloom with the lovely white flowers drooping over the cluster of thin long leaves that formed generous crowns on the trees. Along the water's edge, I was surprised to see some creepers with their vine type foilage in bloom, with their six-point calyxes forming stars with beautiful white floral bulbs in the middle. I stared at all these for a while, taking notice that the water surface was almost flat, reflecting the greens and the forest treescapes like a mirror. Shoals of fish created spots of ripples, and because there was no wind and the water was flat, the sky grey, it was possible to see all these. As I looked around the water's edge, it became apparent to me that the creepers were proliferated on the embankment and its flowers were everywhere to be seen. A few sad-faced joggers went by, and I thought it was sadder that they missed all these. As I rounded the golf course, I came to some of the larger trees on the water's edge. What I thought were swifts were like finches, or really tiny and angular-shaped sparrows. A few sat on the topmost branch of this tree, which was for the most part, without leaves. Then I noticed one, no two small kingfishers, while a large yellowbird flew across. Then more of these finch-like birds came and sat on the topmost branches, and I counted ten altogether. Twelve birds, in total. All the while, the glory and beauty of what I was seeing was making me say over and over in my heart, "All nature praise you, O God." And at that moment, I realised how real the miracle of Francis of Assisi preaching praise to the birds must have been. It happened in such a special way, that I knew this experience I witnessed was a small gift to affirm my atomic faith. As I passed on to the dam at the last part of this trail, I could see a large fish escorted by a shoal of fishes. I really mean that this fish was LARGE, about a metre in length and of wide girth. I stood for a long time on the dam to admire the behaviour of the shoal as they came towards me, literally, facing me with their eyes and bodies were all turned towards me, upwards, and as I raised my hand, I was quietly in awe and praise. Then they all simultaneously turned and darted to a side. This went on for a while, and with all my experience as a diver, I must say that marine fish certainly did not behave like their freshwater counterparts! I was stunned. I ran the final leg back to the water fountain at the Park Office at MacRitchie Hill, and sauntered back to Braddell where I finished off with a set of slow, polished chin-ups. The day was turning to dusk and light was falling. There was just so much flowers in the trees, shrubs and vines, with buds, fruit and berries all in bloom. It was a geniune uplifting experience and I felt completely refreshed. When I got home and bathed, I found an SMS from a friend Kelvin in Scotland on my mobile. Then shortly after a member of the Town Council called at my door. It was one of those social visits to the poor and destitute, and I was very appreciative of his company and kind words. Well, Spring is here, and already with the Jewish Passover starting on Wednesday evening in the coming week, we can safely say that the Winter may yet be over. I can't wait!

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Drills at Lars, and on Thorpe!

The drills worked very well.

First, the forward hand glide, to meet for a split second before pull... definitely works to slow down the stroke.

Then, there is the elbow. Getting higher on pull, with S-stroke works to reduce the shoulder strain. And this is terrific!

Can't manage the breadths on draw both sides still. That will be next?

Next will be the forward head raise on interval, left breadth draw, and maybe pull-buoy. But that might be really ambitious!!!

The best part of Finch's work is that clarity of the advice given. Total Immersion is great practice when you are dedicated to a coach and water time. But I am totally on my own for this and will have to pace myself and see what works and how comfortable I am.

The thing about Thorpe is precisely what the researchers say: slower and fewer strokes can be more efficient. Also, for better streamlining, to wear trunks one size smaller. Whew, there was a crammed house all 2 km, man!

But the best was that I could swim so much SLOWER and glide through the lap without feeling the draw strain and breadthless exertion! I totally worship Lars Conrad for his style and physique, and Ian Thorpe for that incredible efficiency! Can't wait to get back in... but it will have to wait till after the next few days, no thanks to errands and stuff!

Monday, April 03, 2006

Try, At Last, Triathlon!

Picked up a couple of books on the sport, which was timely and greatly refreshing. It was nice to read Scott Tinley, whose first books on the sport I bought while in Hawaii back in 1987, and it was sometime in 1985 when I first thought about how cool the sport seemed. But it will be Mark Finch's book with Scott Tinley's generous account of Dave Scott and Mark Allen which really inspires and got all the heat back into my bones again. I read through the drills again, and will have to go through the detailed preparation chapters to pick out those great insights. The other book, "Starting Out Triathlon" by Paul Huddle and Roch Frey that has incredible tips in very concise and readable format. Of course, I finally got into the sport last year, and made it within top ten of my category for the Olympic Duathlon in my very first attempt, even at a Long Slow Pace. Because you can only be a "newbie" once, I can't say that this is all completely new. But I only did the Half Standard Triathlon, and even then, got disqualified because of a miscount on the bike leg. What I would love to achieve this year is doing well as a newbie for the Olympic Standard, which I was prepared for last year but missed the race registration. Reading it all afresh is a terrific thing to do, too. You gain a better understanding when you have the experience in the pocket. Now, I bought and given away a few triathlon books, so that explains why I have had to get these books again in my hands for re-read and re-contemplation. Of course the pictures inspire, but the best part is finding out that some of the basic exercises eg. chin-ups, training concepts eg. transition exercises, correct use of jargon, and use of accessories like pull buoys etc. are precisely recommended because they do work. Perhaps I read it before but until you get a great deal more experience speaking with the real Ironmen and enthusiasts, listening to their tips and applying them at your next training session, and working some things our yourself, then you realise that you may have missed out a lot from the first read. Nutrition for me is probably now the most critical, as I haven't been too good about my diet as a way of life, and habit, to put it mildly! Anyway, this is the week to start making it all come on back together again. I miss my training partner, really. There are fantastic comments Mike Finch makes about starting out, and one of the first things he says is that it is important to get a training partner to inspire you and motivate you to get out of bed and sweat it out with him, because it also takes out the drudgery of training, while if he's perfect, sets the bar high enough for the both of you to push each other and become excellent in the sport. So, at least that part of my own experience is vindicated, and you can't ever be too grateful when you have had a great partner when starting out as I did back then. But now, it's a solo trip, and all those beer talk about friendship and support, well, is a heap of cheap talk mates give each other. Can't wait for the week ahead to see how my commitment goes. The weather has turned and we get the regular afternoon Sumatras now, which bring in alot of thunder and lightning, and bursts of monsoon showers daily. Well, better to be weather proof. That's the theory. But this sort of humidity gets straight to the bones and before you know it, you are down nursing a horrid flu or rhinitis of sorts.