東京マラゾーンへ行きます！

 

Hi! Once again, it's been a long break since the last update! Well, the work + school + family combination is really taking a toil on me, especially when the assignments started to pour in during the transition of the terms. I made the mistake of being over ambitious and took too many modules this semester, clearing a total of 27 units instead of the normal 20. Still, I'm glad to have gone through it, although I still have 2 upcoming papers consisting of a very nostalgic maths paper which reminded me of my lack of effort during secondary school. :(

I've also signed up for 3 runs in October, starting with the Mizuno Wave Run, followed by the New Balance Real Run, and finally the Nike City Race. All of them are only 10km, so it's not really marathon training. And speaking of marathons, the good news is that I've been selected for the Tokyo Marathon 2011! I heard the application exceeded the slots by 10 fold, and I'm feeling really lucky to be able to participate!

I'm not really a good runner, but I pride myself in being able to complete the events. So, I've started collecting the medals and have already gotten 8 this year. I try to attend the events which gives out at least a running tee and a medal. Of course, there are some exceptions, such as the Nike Run, which actually gave us a happy meal toy which I detested.

For now, I'm just concentrating on the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. I haven't really started anything longer than 10km, and I'll really need to step up the regime within this 3 weeks. Good thing at least is that the working pace in the office is relatively slow this time of the month, and I can afford to dedicate more time to getting in shape. For the Tokyo run, I'll have to invest some money in getting the right gear, since the climate is going to be quite cold, from what I've asked from my Twitter friends thus far. Kinda worried but I guess the excitement outweighs the anxiety.

Well, although it's still exam season I still went again and got myself a new PS3 replacement, since my last one was busted and it's my main DVD/Bluray player. The main reason I got it was because I wanted to play the new Naruto game, and I even got the collector edition just for the DLC. I then realised that the DLC could be manually unlocked, albeit taking a longer time. Well, at least there's the cool box art and limited edition numbered artwork. I'm actually aiming to get the PS Camera and the PS Move set once I clear my papers. 

Got quite a bit of my back logged stuff this week as well, including some Kamen Rider OOO stuff. So far, the series has been great, and the plot definitely one of the more interesting ones in recent history. I also got my MG Kamen Rider W figure, which I've also completed in one siting. Wish I had more time for the PG Gundam kit which is still sitting in my room. Rena's been a fan of the new Kamen Rider series too, evident from her screams of "henshin" during the transformation sequences. Such as the one here:

While we prepare ourselves for the trip next Feb, there's a lot of things to consider about especially when it's Rena's first trip overseas. I'll have to get the details right and to plan for a suitable itinerary that's not too tiring for her..... and us. I'll also need to pick up the race kit, attend the race expo, and try to meet up with some friends I've made through Twitter. That will certainly be the highlight, and I hope to meet as many of them as possible. Until the next update, I'll be cramming for my papers, and taking a break every now and then by getting a few online fights on the Naruto game. Till next time, ja!

レナ：僕の戦隊と仮面ライダー仲間～

Wow, this must be the longest break I've ever taken in my blogging history since 2006. I must apologise for the lack of updates here, although I've still been quite active on Facebook and Twitter. The pace of work coupled with my part time studies have really taken a toil on my personal space and free time, so much so that I've not even had the chance to play some of the new PS3 games. Additionally, September's been really nasty to me. I'll explain more. Work's been hectic in September, with multiple tasks to be accomplished and I'd even have to go on a shift system which totally destroyed my biological clock. And school work wasn't that kind as well, I was over ambitious and took too many modules for this Semester. Although I've cleared everything so far, it was taxing during the overlapping weeks between term 1 and 2. I'm just glad I got everything submitted on time.

I've also been really down on luck the entire month. Small incidents aside, in this particular month my phone got water damaged and I had to get it replaced, my PS3 got the red light of death and I've yet to get a new one, my Adidas jacket which I've bought in Tokyo got lost some where, and all 3 of us in the family took turns to get fever. Rena had gastric flu and we spent several hours in the hospital to get her attended to by the doctor. She vomitted quite a bit, even in the hospital itself. It was really saddening watching her like that since she was obviously scared and we had to try our best to distract her. Thankfully, she got better since taking the medication and was soon on the road to recovery. After that, it was Mabel's turn to fall sick though. At least all 3 of us are well now, and hopefully October's a healthy month!

I've went for the AHM a few weeks ago, and it was my 10th consecutive run for me! At such, I wanted to go even though I was actually still recovering from flu and didn't feel very well. I ran amidst coughs and thankfully reached the end line, although I didn't beat my timing last year. I was slower by around 5 minutes, but I tell myself it's because of the flu. Yeah that's right. Anyways, I have 3 more runs in October: The Mizuno Wave Run, The New Balance Real Run, and the Nike City Run. Collected my race kit for the Mizuno run via my neighbour Ryan, as you can see above. I like their bags. For the amount we've paid, it wasn't too bad getting the running tee and the bag year after year. Here you can see even Rena's trying to make away with the bag, which she subsequently tried to fit all her toys inside.

Some of you might already know that my wife's now doing her online cookie making site full time. I helped her with the logo design and the website, which was done in one sitting and I ought to find some time to have it improved. In the mean time, do feel free to check out http://www.cookielittle.blogspot.com/. For friends from Facebook and Twitter, I promise to make her give you a discount and I can personally do a delivery for you as well. Basically, she gives a service to provide gifts for all occasions, such as birthdays, anniversaries, and all other celebrations. Here are some pictures we took:

Although the cookies look like they've been covered and coated in sugar, they are not sweet at all. Through feedback from customers, she was made it taste less sweet, so that it's actually healthier as well. There are multiple designs to choose from as well.

 So for those we have an upcoming event and is thinking about getting door gifts for your guests, this might be a perfect way for you to give a customised present, either to children or grown ups alike. You can choose from many designs, even thouse not shown (for various copyright issues), and change the text on the cookies. Feel free to ask me for more details as well!  

Since Kamen Rider W ended, I've been looking forward to Kamen Ride OOO (Ozu). So far 4 episodes have been released, and I must say that the current plot and premise is very promising! The story is certainly a very unique one, and the bonds between the lead characters are very interesting as well. Rena's been watching it too, though she's been scared by the kaijin on more than one occasion. Still, she likes the main characters as well as the very melodic henshin sequences. Check out one of the clips here:

Right, before ending off, it's been a while since I recommended any songs. Although I've been listening to a lot of Kpop recently such as SNSD, 4minute and KARA, I'll wait till the next update before giving them a full feature. So for now, just one very lively song from Mano Erina (真野恵里菜), called 元気者で行こう！which translates to "Let's go cheerfully!". Until the next update, ja!

Rena & The Goseigers Part 2

More pictures of Rena and her Goseiger stuff at home! Ever since she began to watch the show I've got for her a few items, namely the 5 Goseiger figures, Gosei Knight, and also the Tensouder. Well, I would have gotten the figures for myself since I collect them, but the Tensouder is definitely for Rena! :)