Uphill

The past week was a real uphill climb with a few days approaching the board meeting, we were nowhere near any of the requirements we had to do. As the days flew in, we started to slowly tick off items in our to do list and looks in a good position to finish on time. I guess persistence does take you places and as long as you hang in there, the solutions will come in and those things that don't seem to have meaning will eventually make sense.

The uphill climb is not yet over but at least we did make strides towards the finish line. It was tough and things are bound to get tougher but I'll always take a difficult life over a life not lived. I'm just glad I can take another long weekend off without being bothered by the pressures of work. I'm surprised though that I'm no longer built for those long lasting overtimes anymore. Funny that I get more drained having an hour or two of extra hours at work compared to running a 5 to 10 kilometers run.

I'm about a month doing regular training runs and this week was my light recovery week but I also had to endure a tough speed session last Friday. I was fully exhausted after my speed session but that's the whole purpose of it - to try to run at the maximum pace I can and I'm sure It's gonna be worth all that effort. I felt like floating and seeing stars after the speed session. I also had my first shot an an uphill run in Baguio City and it was difficult running uphill (or upmountain???) combined with the blistering cold climate. I still can't believe how my mileage during my run was creeping up so slow considering I felt that I've probably covered half of the city already. The cold weather has it ways to make the climb a lot more difficult.

Apart from the uphill week, I'm just glad I'm in my hometown for Halloween weekend. I love the weather in this part of the world and of course, the warmth of family and the familiarity of home. Even if I'm more of a visitor now in my hometown, I still enjoy and treasure each visit I have here even at times, I just end up stuck in our sofa in my sleepy cold weather mode. This time though I'm now squeezing in the exercise in my lazy boy routine.

No excuses... I've managed to combine the workouts with work and time with family and friends and a lot of travel in between. It's just a matter of knowing the essentials - the things and the individuals that would make the world mean nothing without having it. I'm looking forward to so many things once I get past the hectic board meeting schedule, I do get to spread my wings again and get back to the finer side.

Life is not always a uphill climb but it is in those struggling climb that you get to appreciate the view from the top and the ease of a downhill trek. Bad days are there to make good times matter.

10 for 10

I've officially ran my 10th race and it's my first time to enter as a 10K runner.

I'm really happy to transition to 10K and the speed should be OK for now but I'm still a long way of going sub 1 hour. That's a goal and that's gonna keep me trying and training harder. I really can't wait for my next 10K race to beat my current record and it's gonna be in two weeks. My hard headed nature had me register in a run on the same day of my flight for our next board meeting but before that I might be able to get a shot to train in the mountainous terrain of my hometown for the all Soul's day weekend. Training has been quite exciting as you don't only chase the time, you have to be in sync with the weather. Running against time and rain.

Thanks to the long weekend. I get a chance to rest up my tired and weary muscles. Wait, I forgot I have tons to do. Oh well, I'm leaving that for tomorrow's worries. I'm starting to ran out of solutions and with the way things are patience is next to go so I'm really taking the day to recharge and relax. Tomorrow's gonna be a difficult day so I'll leave it at that. That's the thing about work, some days you get appreciated... some days credit is grabbed from under your nose... some days you feel satisfied... some days you get pissed... but at the end of the day, it's just work.

There's more to life than work... work... work... It's an excellent diversion but it's not everything. That's the way I try to keep things. Franc at work is definitely different to Franc at play. The thin line we have to draw to keep our sanity in check. A balance is always needed and managing time is always a mystery as it runs opposite to our desires. When awaiting it, it ticks at snail pace... When fighting against it, it ticks at rocket pace. I guess, you'll need the other diversions especially when you're always going against the tide and trying to make things right or else you end up being burnt out.

The tides haven't turned maybe it's time to set my sail towards a new direction... That has been my brain-thought for quite some time but as I said, today's a break so that thought is tomorrow's burden. Everything will unfold at the right time and circumstances... =>

Out of Sync... Out of my Mind...

Out of Sync... That's how I started my day with the odds once again being stacked against me and the problems seemingly endless. I guess some people are paid big bucks just to make my life miserable. How exciting can that be??? I'm really low on motivation and energy when it comes to work. That's the problem when you are so passionate with what you do when you lose track, it takes so much to be back in sync.

Which riddle will make sense in the end. Just a few weeks going to the board meeting and several holidays in between. That's a ticking clock buzzing every now and then. I always had the thought that one day my luck will run out and there'll be some problems that I won't solve and seven years after I'm still able to get past whatever came. The charm of working with what you got is that you never really ran short of resources.

So where does that leave me... I hate to admit it but a part of me is stuck in the past and another part is overwhelmed with the present so that leaves the future to hand of uncertainty. I'd take that on the thought that the biggest blessing that comes in are those that we never expected. One thing I know right now is that I have a welcome diversion and takes a lot of my free time but the effects have been great.

I'm on the 3rd week of my running training and I've been logging kilometers non-stop. Thanks to GPS technology that comes with my iPhone, I'm able to trace the route and monitor the distance via the GPS. How to balance things out and how to fit the tight training routine is something I get to deal with day by day. Sometimes, even when the time is free, I'd also have the weather to worry about but so far, except for missing 3K yesterday, I've been able to stick to the training schedule.

The results, I'm probably still running just slightly better but the main difference is that I'm not struggling in finishing the run. I know if I do the training right I can run faster and more relaxed and a lot trimmer. The first challenge is this weekend, to complete my first 10K run. 10K for my 10th race. Now I'm really excited but that would be after several additional white hairs and additional wrinkles trying to solve the key items I have to deal with this week.

Oh well, I hope I was a billionaire... Oh that's just me with an LSS. I wanna be a billionaire, so fxxkin' bad... Haha... But that thought would definitely drive me Out of my mind...

7

Upon finishing my scheduled 7K in my running training, it dawned to me that during this day 7 years ago, I started in what seemed like a roller coaster ride that has its ups and downs. Maybe not really downs since most of the time its always an uphill climb but there are times really that I'm hating every bit of what I'm doing. The culture... The overly competitive people that are threatened by young achievers... The seemingly unending supply of problems to be remedied and so on...

On the flip side of the coin, I do love the challenging role I have. I do enjoy that I've been able to diversify my skill sets through the years and I am still handling complex and highly technical and innovative matters. Getting the ins and out of the ever-changing standards... Raising big-time funds even at difficult times... Managing unlimited issues and problems... Those are the challenges I get past day to day and at the same time, I'd like to count those as milestones. Yet somehow, I may have outgrown my purpose vis-a-vis to the direction of the Company. It's about time to have a 7-month plan to switching to maybe a different ride... That topic, I leave for the moment.

I'm now officially banning lazy weekends. I have my time filled with running training with my 4-times a week running schedule. So I'm now trying to avoid lazing around during weekends which is really my normal mode. I'm a natural sloth. I'm getting used to this lifestyle and loving the fact that I'm losing weight though I do have to tone done some area a bit but I'll get there. As for running, I also have along way to go but it's a good thing that I am now increasing the distance I am covering from the usual 5K runs. I need to push my efforts further... 10k in a few weeks.

It's board meeting time again in a few weeks and that keeps me worried. Still tons of things to do... Annoyances to take... and puzzles to unravel... I'm still wondering though why the board meeting should be held Sunday - Monday when they could have it on Monday - Tuesday... Hello... There's such a thing we call weekends. I was really hoping that I could find a way to participate in a run on the 6th.... Oh well, I won't worry further as it's been like kryptonite draining my energy. There's always a reason to smile and if you can't find one, it just means you are not looking hard enough...

7 years seemed so fast so maybe in 7 months or 7 weeks or 7 days, things will change. That's the wonder in this journey, Nothing is certain... The strings of fate is free to pull its own surprises... =>

Thoughtless Thoughts: It's the people who are not afraid to disagree that makes the difference.

Wasted Time

I feel that I'm wasting my time on some vicious cycle. Somehow, no matter how much you fix certain problems, they always find ways to mess things up leading you back to square one or even worse, stuck steps backward. I'm not really afraid of what the future holds but somehow going over some cycles are already getting sickening and it feels like wasted time. So leads me to the question until when should I go through the routine???

Oh well, that's what happens when I go on this thinking spells. I end up stressing my mind so much on the value of time but I guess you just have to go through the motions and take whatever life brings and you'll realize that there's always a topside in any scenario. It's funny how I whine when the going gets tough and get bored when there's nothing to fix. I guess, I'm made for those intense moments and my heart beats best when the stakes are high. Of course, I just hope that some naysayers be a part of the solution for a change.

Speaking of heart, I'm still in awe at the 3-point dagger that took out the Tamaraws. The heart of the champion. 3 Peat for the Blue Eagles and I'll be joining the bonfire later after running training. It'll be more intense training for me as I shoot to move up to 10k in a few weeks. Sometimes, I do feel that I'm a full time runner and a part time employee with the time and effort I've been investing in running but of course, I do need to work to finance my being a run-a-holic. Besides muscle pain and a trimmer waist, the satisfaction of crossing the finish line is one of things I get from running.

It's a tiring weekend spent less than a day in Baguio to attend my cousin's wedding. It was a cold day spent with the warmth of family. Sleep a little, eat a lot, drink a little and eat whatever is available (it was a food-tripping day...=>). I did get a heart warming piece of advice from the one who officiated the wedding. "Love people for who they are and not for who we want them to be unless they do accept the change themselves." It's the part of love being unconditional. It does bode well to any relationship in as much as we should allow people to leave their own unique memory prints in the parchment of life. Sometimes, if we don't see past people's faults, we may miss out that their virtues maybe the one thing we are looking for.

It's good to start with a nice thought and the rest will follow... =>