Government Projects.. Did you know?

All government projects are plagued with controversies. But that doesn't mean they have to stop those projects. I hope they don't. But I also hope that they don't waste too much money because of corruption. Corruption is a fact of life, especially here in the Philippines. I don't think they'll change overnight but I hope they do in the near future. I've mentioned the word "hope" several times because in reality, the only thing we can do is to HOPE.. and PRAY! (hope and pray that they don't get too greedy and that they'll eventually change)

Anyway, this blog is about some of our government's infrastructure projects and others. I've been curious about them ever since I heard them on the news and read them on the internet.

Did you know? (you probably do)

..that the NAIA Terminal 3 is finally open after 6 years of being put on hold..
..that the Clark-Tarlac part of SCTEx is going to open on July 25, 2008..
..that the LRTA has a lot of projects going on..
..that the Northrail project might still push through despite the controversies..
..that there are other projects that I do not know of.. hehe..

Well, I hope all of these projects finish and hopefully be beneficial for the Filipino people in the long run.

Rush to Infinity run - the Aftermath

This is Mizuno run Part 2! Like the first Mizuno run, this was another memorable run. Let me tell you why..

1. This was my first 15K run and the weather that day was perfect for running.
2. I woke up late (because I couldn't sleep the night before) but managed to arrive several minutes before the 15K was to start. Good thing they did not start on time, otherwise I would've been late... again!
3. I was flagged down by the Bonifacio Security for beating the red light. In my defense, I was in a hurry because I thought I was already late for the 15K. I apologized to the Security and told him that I was late for the run. He then asked for my license and gave me a lecture about how dangerous it was to do what I did. I wasn't really paying attention to what he was saying because I was busy hoping that the run hasn't started. =) Good for me, He let me go with a warning.
4. Water and Rush Fitness water were overflowing this time. There was no shortage at all! Good job! I heard some say that there were few water stations but I think it was just right.
5. I started with a good pace but upon reaching the first 5KM, I started to feel pain on my left knee and left foot. It was the same pain I felt during the MH ATR. I still tried to run but eventually slowed down to a jog. And when the pain became unbearable, I was forced to walk. But even when walking, each step was still painful. I would psyche myself that it was all in the mind and there was really no pain. I kept repeating "no pain, no pain" in my mind. I tried to run again several times and was able to do so for a few minutes but only to end up walking even more. I was so frustrated! I was not tired and I wanted to run but my feet/legs won't let me. =( Add to that the frustration of seeing other runners running passed me.
6. When I crossed the finish line, I tried to look for my finish time and from what I can remember, it was around 1:42:36. But when the official results came out, my time was 2:11:08. Quite a number of runners had that same official time which was odd. If you haven't heard, there's this "technical error" encountered by the race organizers so the finish times were not accurate. Anyway, I'm just happy and thankful that I was able to finish.

Overall, I would say that it was a good run. There are lots of things that could still be improved by the organizers but they still did a good job. It could only get better. The next Mizuno run will be better. =)

I'm still disappointed with myself for taking more walks than running. My feet/legs still hurt but I hope it's nothing serious. A colleague who also ran had a bad knee injury. If I'm not mistaken, I think the doctor told him that he tore his ligament and that he could no longer run until he has surgery. Ouch! I will have my knee checked as well before I participate in another race. I really really hope it's nothing serious. I do not want to give up running.

Men's Health ATR Results are out!

The 2008 Men's Health ATR results are out!

My official time is 1:20:15 for the approximately 12K trail run. I placed 38 in my age group (31-40) and 94 in the Men's ranking. I was the 108th to finish in the overall rankings. Not bad at all considering that I was in pain more than half of the race! Haha..

I am happy with my time. It can only get better next time.. hehe.. Looking forward to the next Men's Health event.. Urbanathlon!!

Rush to Infinity - My 1st 15K Run

I am ready for my first 15-kilometer run. No, I did not prepare for it (typical of me). I'm not being arrogant. I know I need to prepare but I have no excuse. So I hope I can finish the run tomorrow on my target of less than 90 minutes and will not have any injuries or aching muscles afterwards (unlike the back to back runs I had just a few weeks ago wherein my whole body ached and I had to go on a 2-day SL). Bad.. bad..

I just saw the 15K race route and it's the same route as the last Mizuno run. I was hoping it would be a different route since Bayani road is a mess. There are piles of sand & gravel and since it rained today, I'm pretty sure there'll be mud tomorrow.

Anyway, I'm still excited for the run tomorrow. Good news, there's no threat of rain tomorrow even if it rained today according to the GMA flash report. The report said that the rain was caused by the hot weather.

I'm all good.. I have all my stuff ready for tomorrow; singlet, shorts, socks, shoes, ipod, race number. I'm ready to rush to Mizuno infinity run!

The 1st Finsys Payment Run

The run is over, it's now time to collect!

I would say that the Finsys Payment Run was a success! Even if there were only 9 of us who ran, I think we were able to raise a good amount to give to Kythe.

The unofficial sum that we were able to raise is over 20K++!! I will post an update once we get the final amount. Everyone who ran was really surprised and happy with the amount.

Most of us initially targeted to finish only 1-2 laps but I guess the level of energy that day was really high. Everyone ended up going beyond their initial targets with Wa walking (or should I say running) away with the most number of laps (7 laps). Jon was the fastest to finish 1 lap while Roy was the earliest to arrive (although this is being contested by Jon). Haha.. Both Roy and Donn got the most number of pledges (in terms of amount and people that pledged).


That day was really fun, we got to exercise and help those in need at the same time. A big thanks to Tiano for coming up with this idea of having a Finsys fun run. And to Kim, Evadne and Ria SP for helping out.


On behalf of the organizers (naks!), we'd like to thank the Finsys runners (Wa, Jon, Roy, Jack, Alvin T., Nilo, Donn) who woke up early to run. I know it's difficult to get up in the morning so we really appreciate your effort. Thanks to Kabby for assisting during the run and to Ommar for taking those great pictures. You can view the pictures here.

Lastly, we'd like to thank all those who pledged. Your generous contribution will surely help those kids at Kythe.

Till the next Finsys run...

Avenue Q (The Farewell Run) - Don't Miss It!

Tet and I watched the farewell run of Avenue Q at the Carlos P. Romulo auditorium at the RCBC Plaza last Friday and it was a fantastic show! I've always loved watching musicals and I still do. It has been quite some time since the last musical that I watched and I'm glad we watched Avenue Q.

I learned about Avenue Q way before when Anton of Our Awesome Planet blogged about their first run which had Rachel Alejandro as Kate Monster. During that time, I shrugged it off and wasn't really interested to watch a musical that featured puppets. Boy, was i wrong! If I could go back in time, I wished I was able to watch the first run and then watch the farewell run so that I could compare the performances of Rachel Alejandro and Carla Guevara (as Kate Monster on the farewell run). But since I can't, I'd have to say that Carla did a great job and the rest of the cast as well! They were all so good!! There was never a dull moment and all the songs were really good and funny especially the "internet is for porn" number. Haha.. I hope they would sell soundtracks of the Manila show. I would love to hear the songs again.

Thanks to Anton for blogging about this and for selling the tickets. It was really worth it. If you haven't watched this, I would suggest you buy your tickets now. It's really that good! They're only till June 22 before they go to Singapore.

Back to Back Runs this Weekend

I have not posted anything for weeks now. Been really really busy with work lately. =( I'm going to blog about my back to back runs this weekend.

We're organizing our 1st ever (hopefully the start of many more to come) team fun run. It's called the Finsys Payment Run. Finsys is our team in HP and Payment Run is something the Treasury folks do in SAP. Haha..

Anyway, it's a pledged run and all proceeds will be going to kythe. The run will be tomorrow (June 14). The runner turnout is not that many but I hope we would be able to generate a good amount of money to give to kythe.

I'm really happy about this run because it is for a good cause. Thanks to Tiano for coming up with this idea.

Then there's the Men's Health All-terrain race on Sunday. This is one of the runs I really look forward to every year because it is a different challenge on the usual road races. It's still going to be held at Timberland Heights and in time for Father's day.

I already have my race kit and I hope I won't be too tired to run.