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Post-run

Wanted to blog about the run earlier but I wasn't in the right mood to do so.

Anyhows, other than the crazy jam at the entrance to East Coast Park, ugly tanlines (damnit!) and the err, rather empty goodie bag, everything was good! Everything was much better than expected. :)

I usually run in the comfort of the gym, in the evenings, or early in the morning before the neighbourhood stirs. I've tried running at around 7ish - 8am once and I felt like dying. I was positive that the heat was getting to me and slowing me down, hence I covered a measly 1.6km and called it a day.

So I was a little apprehensive about the run as the category I'm participating in, flags off at 8am. But thank goodness the weather wasn't that bad and some parts of the route was shaded by the trees :)

I'm actually quite happy that I made it through without slowing down into a walk, and I completed the run in 1hr 8mins 52 secs (on my iPod)! I set myself a target of 1hr 10 mins and I did it! :) The best part, my legs weren't even aching! *I spoke too soon because about half the day later, fatigue set in and my legs... they weren't mine anymore* I texted my sis and K to inform them I'm done and I'll be at the massage booth. =D

Lesson learnt: It's really important to apply sunscreen even if you think one hour in the early morning sun won't kill you. And half marathon? Bring it on... =D

six-word story of the day:
do or die, there's no try.

I've been having mood swings for about a week or so now.

Honestly speaking, I'm not counting down to my departure for Brisbane. Everytime I think about it, I can feel a panic attack coming on. So... I'm putting off thinking about it.

I'm touched by my cousin giving us a dinner treat (2 weeks back if I'm not wrong?) when he knew that my sister and I were going over to Australia to further our studies. I'm heartened that my uncle's throwing us a farewell party in our honour. I'm taken aback by the big angbao they gave us that night. I get irritated when people ask me questions that I don't have the answers to, and I snapped at them (I'm sorry). I get a headache when my mum starts to inform me about all things related to $$$ and how she can't make up her mind whether to follow us to Australia or not (she changes her mind every few days). :( I'm feeling a whole multitude of emotions and I'm trying to... not let it overwhelm me but I don't think I'm coping very well.

So people, don't ask me anything about Brisbane if you can. I'll share in due time when I have a confirmed answer.

Intimidated,
My fear gripes me by the throat.
What now, fight or flight?

Art is never finished, only abandoned.

When I first saw that there was a dome of Leonardo Da Vinci's exhibition erected outside Science Centre, it triggered my curiosity to check it out. After watching the interview with Pascal Cotte (the inventor of Lumiere Technology who revealed the original colours of Leonardo's Mona Lisa masterpiece) on Channel News Asia, it further confirmed my thoughts that this exhibition is not one to be missed.

Previously what I knew of Leonardo is that he's the father of flight and my knowledge of his works was restricted to Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Virgin of the Rocks and the Virtruvian Man, but he accomplished way more than that. He was an artist-scientist-anatomist-strategist-engineer-inventor (prolly one of the first people who held multi-hyphenated titles haha!) and the exhibition was a showcase of his brilliance. He's touted as the world's first modern mind and I think he had developed both his left and right brain really well.

There were highly-detailed drawings of the human anatomy, interactive stations to try out, life-size replicas of his inventions on display and this is just the tip of the ice-berg.

The highlight of the whole exhibition for me would be the secrets of Mona Lisa. Using modern photographic technology, Pascal Cotte was able to (virtually) restore the painting to its former glory. And what can I say, the original art piece is stunning. :)

There are 25 secrets of the Mona Lisa and I'm leaving you with one:
When you look at the portrait, she isn't actually gazing at you but behind you (no matter if you move right or left).

Intrigued? Go take a look for yourself, this is the best $15 spent :)

Sometimes I wonder why I attach expectations to people, knowing that I'm just setting myself up for disappointment.

I saw this article this morning, and I have to say proposing marriage over the phone is not ok by me.

If you were to propose to the love of your life, wouldn't you want to see the sparkle in her eyes, watch her face morph from shock into jubilation as you pop the question? You can't really read her expression from her text messages, can you?

Since young, I've always fantasized about how the dream marriage proposal would be like. Every fantasy different from the other, but this is how my ideal proposal would be:

We would be lying on our backs, star-gazing on this island known to me as my paradise on earth, and we would be having one of our very long talks where he would just look me in the eye and casually pop the question. No getting down on one knee, no champagne, nothing fancy.

I think I'll be the happiest person at that moment, with sounds of waves crashing onto shore, breeze caressing my skin, and having fingers intertwined with my soulmate's, who has a promise to keep for the rest of his life.

[edit] Ominous signs were abundant before I took my test. A black cat crossed my path as I made my way to the bus-stop, my bus left just when I reached the bus stop, the skies looked dark and threatening (even drizzled a little), I struck the kerb and nearly knocked down a cyclist during my warm-up test (!!!).

But thank God, I was assigned to a different test route albeit it's still the Teck Whye/ Choa Chu Kang area and I had a nice tester, the nicest amongst the three. :)

After the test, I thought I failed once again because the length of my mistakes on my test slip seemed as long as my previous test slip! He went on and on, telling me that I have to be a careful driver and I was lost in my fog of gloom... until he said, "Okay lah, I let you pass" and I couldn't believe it!! =D I was so happy that I thanked him and immediately went out to take my queue number before watching the graduation video.

I only looked through my test slip while I was waiting to go into the briefing room, and guess what? I wasn't marked down for failure to check blind spots. I guess tying up my hair helps... ;) And no, I didn't wear a short skirt haha!
[/edit]

I passed my driving test, like finally!!!
WOOHOOOOOOOO

Very unmotivated to blog these days :(

Applied for my student visa some time last week, and I'll be going for my medical check-up on Thursday. It still feels surreal to me. Last year I applied for placement in uni and got it, didn't feel like it's really happening. I submitted the bank draft and offer letter recently, and it still doesn't feel like I'm really going over yet. I think, only when I've settled my accomodation and air ticket then it will really hit me in the face.

Anyway, I've checked out Amore Living at Tampines 1 last week and I tell you, I love it there! :) I love the spaciousness of the gym and how treadmills are facing the ceiling-to-floor windows. I love how they have cups and water dispensers for all to use (very good for people who forget to bring their water bottles like me!). Most of all, I love the fact that they have a pool! =D
If I were to rank my top 3 branches, it would be:
1) Amore Living (Tampines 1)
2) Jurong Point branch
3) Park Mall branch

And my membership is ending early June, so I'm gonna make the best out of it while it lasts!

I went to the library recently to borrow books, and I managed to grab 2 of Jodi Picoult's! :) I've finished Keeping Faith and this is another favourite book of mine.

Okay, very bored signing out!