...cycle?

We've got a new routine...instead of my dear happy feet and S having to wait for me on our night walks, I've started to cycle really slowly next to them....or double back for them if i get too far..
It works out great since A now no longer has to wait for me catch up with them...and she loves chasing after me on the bike!! I love that it gives her a great cardio work-out!

Don't have any photos of A chasing after my bike...but here're some photos of A at the dog run last weekend and O with his new friend....

...train for the marathon (week 6)?

I was mad this week. Jogged more than my usual and faster than my usual. Maybe making up for the fact that I will lose 4 days of running next week when we are in Bali. But have to give those legs a break, my calves are aching!

ST's training schedule:

Mon - 35 mins (optional)
Tues - 20 mins
Wed - 45 mins (optional)
Thurs - 20 mins
Fri - Day off
Sat - 20 mins
Sun - 60 mins

My training schedule:

Mon - 35 mins
Tues - 40 mins
Wed - Day off
Thurs - 30 mins
Fri - 35 mins
Sat - Day off
Sun - 60 mins

...train for the marathon (week 5)?

Forgot to update on the training schedule last week, but it was a bad week, in terms of training. I was recovering from the half marathon on Mon and Tue, sick the remaining days, went to Malacca for the weekend... but still managed to squeeze in a run on Sunday. Pray that the sick bug stays away!

ST's training schedule:

Mon - 35 mins (optional)
Tues - 30 mins
Wed - 75 mins (optional)
Thur - 30 mins
Fri - Day off
Sat - 30 mins
Sun - 90 mins

My training schedule:
Mon - Day off
Tue - Day off
Wed - Day off
Thu - Day off
Fri - Day off
Sat - Day off
Sun - 31 mins

... have a Wordless Wednesday

A rough week so far but nothing like some random loveliness and devastatingly stylish eye-candies to chase the blues away. No words. No reason. No curating.

...train for the marathon (week 4) / complete a half marathon?

I jogged, walked and limped my way to another half marathon today. Have completed 4 half-marathons to-date, but my timings have been deteriorated. Not sure if it is because of inadequate training, lack of a running partner (it's quite lonely running alone) or the injury on my ankle and my flat feet which made it rather painful.

Anyway, just glad that I finished it and completed it. At least now I know I can definitely run 18.5 km, now I just need to make up the next 20 km for the marathon in Dec!

ST's training schedule:

Mon - 35 mins (optional)
Tues - 25 mins
Wed - 60 mins (optional)
Thur - 25 mins
Fri - Day off
Sat - 20 mins
Sun - 75 mins

My training schedule (this being my birthday week, training was severely hampered, haha):

Mon - 35 mins
Tues - Day off
Wed - Day off
Thur - Day off
Fri - 30 mins
Sat - Day off
Sun - completed half marathon

...have a taste of Japan in Singapore?

I made a new discovery in Far East Plaza today.

I met a friend for dinner today and after shopping around with little to show for it, we were both famished. My friend then suggested having Japanese food.

"It's supposed to be good....Somewhere on Level 5," she quipped. She was about to call her friend (for the umpteenth time, according to her) to ask about the venue when we noted a queue quietly forming just around the escalator on Level 5.

Understanding that "queue=good food", we figured that there was little to lose and swiftly joined the queue. To our delight, the queue moved quickly and before long, we were greeted warmly by the waitress at the entrance. We were fortunate, because there seemed to be a lot of reservations and we managed to get in only because we promised to finish our food in one hour.

We soon found out that Nanbantei Japanese Restaurant's specialty was Yakitori and decided on a Set B combination and grilled Saba to share. Set B came with sashimi, eight sticks of Yakitori, rice, miso and pickles. Every stick tasted really good - tasty and not too greasy. Personally, I enjoyed the beef, tomato and chicken the most!

Overall, the food was a tad salty, but otherwise yummy. The decor was typical of a Japanese restaurant - small and cozy. The chefs (at least one of them) were Japanese and I particularly liked the part where the entire crew greeted every guest who comes into the restaurant!

Though very different, Nanbantei* reminds me of Gonpachi in Tokyo, which also serves Yakitori. For an hour, I felt I was back in Tokyo. Until I visit Japan again, I guess this will be one of the choices** whenever I need my Yakitori fix! :)



* Nanbantei Japanese Restaurant, Far East Plaza, #05-132.

** I will remember to bring my camera the next time so that there are pictures to show how good the food looked!

...train for the marathon (week 3)?

Am sharing my weekly running schedule, partly as a way to record my training journey towards completing a full marathon for future reference, and partly to share with others who might be interested one day to attempt a full marathon.

This week's training was seriously hampered by my weekend activities, haha. It's Sept, I'm turning 30 and it's time for some serious celebrations. :)

ST's training schedule:

Mon - 30 mins (optional)
Tues - 20 mins
Wed - 30 mins (optional)
Thur - 20 mins
Fri - Day off
Sat - 20 mins
Sun - 30 mins

My training schedule:

Mon - Day off
Tues - Day off
Wed - 22 mins
Thurs - 30 mins
Fri - Day off
Sat - Day off
Sun - Day off

Choose handmade wedding stationery with a vintage flair...

Invites for LOVEFEST have been sent out.   You girls in Singapore might have received it already and all you overseas babes will get it in a few days, I'm sure!  I am not putting photos of it on the blog but instead I have decided to share "the-making-of-the-letterpress-invitation".

Letterpress combines my love of all things vintage and my obsession for beautiful design and typography.  I love the history of and imperfections of old things and the detail and time taken to make common, usually unimpressive things visually rich.  

As a printing technique, letterpress is a form of relief printing where the raised surface of text and images is inked and then pushed onto the paper. The resulting print can leave a deep impression, easily felt and seen on soft paper. Such relief effects were not traditionally desired by commercial and trade printers.  But to me, and many DIY and indie-crafter circles, it is this very character and charm of craft letterpress that makes it undeniably chic.

With some luck and my almost-advanced Google skills, I arrived at this hidden gem of an old printing shop.  Y and I walked in and the atmosphere was magical.  I immediately felt part of a royal history that this old printing process has - the antique machines were on individually fed and the prints were incredibly prepared and finished lovingly.  Paint pots were strewn on the floor and one could no longer tell what colour the original floors were.  I knew in half a heartbeat that this is the perfect place to print the wedding stationery (actually, to print anything!)

A second visit was to check the colour and the final artwork.  No squinting in front of the computer deciphering Pantone colours, mind you.  If was like art school again, paints and pots and mixing galore!  And after we found the perfect warm dove grey, the paint was fed into the machine and the machine began taking on a life of its on, animatedly and wonderfully boisterously dishing out the prints.  

This is where it starts.  The letters in lead - where each lead stump is a single alphabet.  The shop-owner, Zoom, in his charming humour explained which lead stumps and strips are the modern day Microsoft formatting equivalents, i.e. Kerning, paragraph indents, double lined spacings and so on.

This is how it is done!  The master-typesetter, patiently, passionately, a piece at a time.  

The man and his machine - the trusty 'Original Heidelberg'.  This was imported from the States about 2 generations ago.

The master-letterpress crafter mixing the perfect warm dove grey ink for my wedding invite.  We got it at the sixth attempt after some experiment of some Pinks that resemble old Barbie dolls' dresses, Beiges and some Almost-Blacks.

The actual block used to print the invites.  For the design, we said yes to vintage, eclectic, chic fonts and a carnival theme.  And no to anything cute, sweet or just screams bridal. 

 

Looking forward to hear from you when you get the invite.  And do enjoy the little whiff of antique ink and glorious printing imperfection in your hand!