I’m an on-again, off-again runner and I’ve never competed in a race, so I ponied up the cash and joined the Globe Run for Home race last July 19. It was a charity run to benefit Habitat for Humanity. Read about how I ran the race, and take a look at my official race results!
Crossposted from In My Pocket.
I’m an on-again, off-again runner and I’ve never competed in a race, so I ponied up the cash and joined the Globe Run for Home race, a charity run to benefit Habitat for Humanity. There were 3k, 5k, 10k, and 21k events, but the closest I’d ever gotten to running 10 kilometers was doing 4 rounds on the UP Academic Oval (8.8km). So last Monday I timed myself on the gym treadmill: I clocked my 10km at 54 minutes 31 seconds (split time: 27 minutes and 52 seconds for 5km). I thought, “OK, good enough.”
in my race kit
I was up at 3am this morning getting ready for the race: nutrition, hydration, decoration (LOL! Of course you have to look good while running!). I’d even made a running playlist the night before.
I still underestimated the time I needed to get ready, so I found myself speeding at 90kph on EDSA just to get to Fort before assembly time at 5:15am. I arrived just as the 21k runners set off.
starting line
Since I was all by my lonesome, I had no one to talk to, or take photos with. But you know what? That’s exactly how I like my running: by myself, not trying to catch up to or wait for anyone else.
caught on a stranger’s phone cam
I started pounding pavement with more than 1,000 participants at 5:45am. The sunrise tinted the cirrus clouds red above us, but the air was still cool with dew. Our route led us up and over the flyover from the Fort onto Buendia, crossing Paseo de Roxas and Makati Ave. before looping back on itself at Ayala Ave.
10k route map
Normally the only treads on that flyover are made by tires. Today, I saw the marks of running shoes wet with water and 100-Plus drink on the asphalt. I started running ahead of the 5min30sec/km pacer and steadily increased my speed as I approached the halfway mark. The adrenaline kicked in as I made that U-turn for the long road back to the finish line, and at 1km to go, I started sprinting for it.
There were several digital clocks at the finish line showing the time elapsed for each event. I kept my eyes on the 10k clock as the seconds ticked by, and clocked myself at 52 minutes and 2 seconds at the finish line.
me at the finish line 40 minutes after I crossed it
“Incredible” was ringing in my ears, and it really was incredible. A wave of endorphins surged into my bloodstream as I slowed down, and for the first time I experienced a “runner’s high.” No wonder there are so many recreational runners out there who aren’t in it to win, but just to finish!
I took the photos in this post after my run and stayed around to find out how long it took for the top three runners to finish their 10k. I was aghast when I found out they had sub-45 minute times! Sigh.
Before I made my way to the Fitness First branch in Fort for a shower and steam bath, I popped in at Krispy Kreme for a doughnut and coffee. Apparently I wasn’t the only one with the same idea; other runners were also stuffing their faces as a reward for the morning’s exertions.
making calorie burning futile
Official race results and analyses will be up by July 23. ‘Til next time!
Tags: Globe Run for Home
I got some wonderful stuff over the weekend, and my policy has always been to use new things at the first opportunity. First things first: the Ellana Minerals samples!
Hazelnut Latte and Caramel Latte foundation, Espresso con Panna finishing powder
After moisturizing my face with Olay Total Effects cream, I brushed on a teensy amount of Caramel Latte foundation all over my face — it really does go a long way! I dabbed on some Elianto concealer under my eyes, then matte-fied my entire face with the Espresso con Panna finishing powder. Just to add some color back, I used some beige eyeshadow (two tones) from Clinique, then dusted Nichido Cool Rum and Passionate Red blushes onto my cheekbones. Strawberry lip balm from Nivea finished this barely-there look.
What do you think?
The makeup had to be light because I was stepping out in a sundress I’d bought on sale at Jellybean the previous day. (From 799 pesos, the dress price had been slashed down to 400 pesos Ü) I wore a bandeau bra to conceal some assets, then used the Clinique loot bag I’d picked up from the makeup event two months ago as a handbag. My trusty gold Havaianas completed the laid-back look.
It may have been raining on Monday, but I felt like summer. Ü
Tags: Kikay, Mineral Makeup, Fashion
While my efforts aren’t of Extreme Makeover magnitude, I’ve steadily been fixing up my room. Last month I tossed out a mountain of old clothes I haven’t worn in years and reorganized my closets in an effort that would have made Martha Stewart proud.
Yesterday I gave my room a thorough cleaning and organizing that yielded dust bunnies galore and a stack of empty shoeboxes. After dusting off the tabletops, putting a fresh sheet on the bed, and de-cluttering my dresser, I once again have a tranquil space of my own. The last time I did something of this magnitude was back in 2006! (And what do you know? It was in July as well.)
Voila! I present to you, my sparkling clean room!
No “Before” pics. Those are the stuff of nightmares.
Since I use my room as an office when I write, it’s as though de-cluttering it also de-cluttered my mind. I feel so efficient and creative now!
And speaking of makeovers, look what arrived in the mail:
free samples and catalogue from Ellana Minerals
I ordered some samples from Ellana Minerals on Liz‘s recommendation. It’s just 50 pesos for the shipping and you get two packets of foundation (different shades) and one packet of finishing powder. I can’t wait to try them tomorrow!
Tags: Room Makeover
My birthday was on the 4th of July, but I practically started celebrating it the moment July began, with some shopping. I was looking for a birthday dress and something to wear to the Flippish.com launch at Fiamma on the 2nd. Landmark Department Store at Trinoma always has a wide range of great dresses that don’t tear holes in my wallet. And guess what? My dress made it into Stylebible.ph’s coverage of the party.
I am a very stylish girl. Also this cost less than 500 pesos.
What a nice early birthday gift. But what I didn’t know was that my friends had gotten together and organized a surprise birthday party for me on the 3rd. To distract me, my sister took me shopping and bought me a straw fedora from Mint in Robinsons Galleria.
My birthday cupcakes! Please don’t count them.
Then the next morning my mom took me shopping for the family’s present. We got these lovely funky hi-cut skate shoes from DC Shoes at Res|Toe|Run.
I could walk all day in these.
In all, it was a retail therapy-filled birthday week. I’m happy to be starting another year (yes, I count in birthdays, not in New Year celebrations) with the people I love.
Happy Birthday to me!
Tags: Birthday Shopping, Retail Therapy
Did I tell you about the time a friend put my thoughts and picture into her article in Inquirer? It was about high school valedictorians and where they are now. No, I don’t think I ever mentioned it because when that article was published back in 2007, they printed the wrong photo under my name! (It was the author’s photo instead.) And even when the author told them of their mistake, they never rectified the error. Bah.
I bring this up now because I have an article in the Inquirer today (June 27) on pages C1 and C4. It irks me every time I read it, instead of giving me a sense of pride that I’ve finally been published in a mainstream broadsheet.
Okay, I know we’re all supposed to edit before we send copy to our editor, but they’re supposed to catch the small errors and fix them so that the newspaper maintains its grammar and spelling standards, right? They’re supposed to catch the missing article in this sentence: Add the mix local cosplay communities organizing their own conventions and contests, and you have a cosplay boom in the Philippines. It’s two letters. Sigh.
My biggest disappointment in this article is that I was asked to write a sidebar about places to acquire costumes and other accessories. I did my research and sent a beautifully-formatted document to them that clearly defined section headings and the entries under each section. When the article came out, my two costume-makers had been compacted into one entry and my wig suppliers had been placed under Weapons/Armor! That is just plain wrong, not to mention silly.
When I first was given this assignment, it was because I had knowledge about cosplay and the community and would write about the topic with the respect and intelligence it deserved, instead of a “parachute journalist” coming in from outside. Somewhere along the line towards publication, there was a disconnect between that objective and just getting it all into print.
Oh, Inquirer. I expected more from you. But maybe based on my first experience, I shouldn’t have?
Tags: Philippine Daily Inquirer, Erratum, Cosplay
(Warning: GEEK SPEAK ALERT)
I’ve had Lady Emma (my ASUS eeePC) for a year and three months. I remember being so happy because I’d bought this 701 8G beauty in Macau when all the eeePCs in the Philippines were simple 4Gs.
Since then the times have changed. ASUS has been rolling out higher-capacity eeePCs (like the eeePC 1000 my mom bought) with Windows XP pre-installed on them. I stuck with my eeePC’s out-of-the-box Xandros install though, because all I needed from a notebook was just surfing, chatting, email, and word processing.
And then, it started — the not-so-slow march to obsolescence. Firefox 3.0 came out, and my eeePC didn’t support it. My supposedly virus-proof computer suddenly started sending out spam IMs, forcing me to upgrade Pidgin. This upgrade uninstalled the Sudoku game that came with my eeePC and hit my GIMP installation as well.
This week I tried to view some videos on Facebook. I kept getting prompted to install Flash Player 10 but even if I did, my browser failed to recognize the plugin. This is an unresolvable problem on my stock eeePC Xandros OS, and no hack or workaround I tried would get it to work. That was the last straw.
Wish me luck; I’m junking the stock OS and trying to install CrunchEEE. I hope I don’t brick Lady Emma. Ü
UPDATE: It’s a success! I’m using my new OS now. I just need to reinstall OpenOffice and maybe GIMP, and then I’ll be back to business. *Mandark laugh*
Tags: Asus EEE, Operating System, Do It Yourself, Geek
BodyJam 49 poster
If there’s one thing I look for when I go out to the clubs, it’s the music. It has to be good, otherwise it defeats the purpose of why I went out in the first place: to dance. As long as the DJ has that perfect tempo and bass beat going, my body just follows, no matter what genre is playing. But it’s always great when it’s a song I know and love.
The best thing about BodyJam is that every three months we get new music to move to, and more often than not I find those songs playing in the clubs as well. This is genius, since Jam is being marketed to the club-going set: people who might not necessarily want to get fit in a gym dance class, until they hear the club bangers on the speakers.
More than the past releases, BodyJam 48 is attuned to the current club playlists. I have heard “Closer (Stonebridge Club Remix)”, “Krazy”, and “Where’s Your Head At?” every time I’ve been out dancing, and these songs always make the crowd go through the roof! BodyJam 49 promises to be even better.
The weird thing is most of my participants don’t go to clubs; they are moms who just want to bust a move, and are able to shed their inhibitions only on the gym floor. So they don’t necessarily understand the vibe from the songs on their first go, and it’s my job as an instructor to bring that club atmosphere to the gyms. So for my continuing education, I just go out dancing at the clubs. Ü
I had a chance to work with photographer JayD Ramos and make-up artist Tippy Destacamento last May 2 on their ongoing headshot series BARE. This was the fifth incarnation, themed “Bite”.
They were wonderful to work with — very friendly yet efficient. I love my new headshot!
Whether by design or by accident I’ve always taken the simple approach to skin care. But when I got a chance to check out the Clinique way of doing things, I just had to try it out! Ü Read about my experience on Kikay Exchange: 3 Steps to Great Skin.
…I’ve started to experience my first fine lines under my eyes, dark spots on my face, and dryness and irritation on my forehead. Suddenly a multi-step approach to skin care seems very appealing. But how many steps do you really need? I paid a visit to a special Clinique counter last week to find out.
Tags: Skin Care, Clinique, Kikay Exchange
Follow