thank-yous to krystal and ning and wh, whose messages kept me company through much of the night (i was DAMN lonely at 4am though after wh went to sleep. BLEH.)
to wai jia and everyone in the area whom we unintentionally woke up or kept awake because we were too noisy-- whoops! sorry sorry once a year only laaaa.
to mum, who drove out to fetch my sister but also came to keep me company for a while and laugh at me for looking like a homeless vagrant-- and at my sister for looking like a ghost-- and then called again at 4-ish am to make sure i was alive and awake-- thanks :):)
to every runner who had to deal with the agony of my area's steps-- sorry!! i felt SO bad even though it wasn't my fault. but i just felt bad anyway.
and to every single runner who smiled back or said thank you or waved or flashed a thumbs up or a V-sign-- you guys rock, because just one smile could mean so very much to me-- esp at 1 or 2 am when i was feeling damn tired of smiling and couldn't even muster up the energy to cheer properly.
to the ones who started running after i cheered them on-- thank you for making me feel like i was of some use.
to the runners-- ESPECIALLY the 84k ones-- who could still find the strength to crack a joke or laugh at my earrings or or take a photo or make conversation or ask for an escalator (HAHA): YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING and you TOTALLY made my night. i am completely in awe of the strength of the human spirit that resides in you. i will never understand what makes a person able to hobble down steps, calf and thigh muscles swollen grotesquely and face twisted in a rictus of pain, say a grateful, smiley "thanks" in response to my words and then start running again.
it was incredible. yesterday-- today morning-- i witnessed truly the passion of and for the run in all its excruciating glory, as well as the sheer determination of the human spirit and body. my relationship with running is a vapid schoolgirl crush compared to the full-blown torrid love-and-life-and-death affairs these people have got going. and it's amazing how many people, in something which needs so much mental power and concentration on their own bodies and will to drive themselves forward, still spare the time to think of others and to consider other people-- including stupid road marshals waving merrily and not even close to being able to understand how painful the whole journey was. i saw people whose calf muscles had swollen so disproportionately that one leg was half again as big as the other-- and this was with 19km to go on their second round.
i had a soft spot for all the 84k runners because it was them that i could feel most acutely for, and they were also the ones i looked out for most of the night becuase they would be making a second round and i would be able to see them again hehh. they definitely got my most genuine smiles because i was genuinely glad to see them. plus! they were the cheeriest of all-- i love the caucasian guy in blue who ran past really fast and warbled merrily to me "still gonna make it in timeeee" on his first round. he was quiet on his second though-- just flashed me a tired smile, but i was so glad to see him again. and he was still running-- the steps just hobbled him for a little. i'm not sure if the guy in red and black who complimented me on my smile and actually called back "worth a second look(loop?)" actually came back again. i'm pretty sure the guy who took a pic with me didn't :(. sigh.
and the one who said "wah at night still wear earrings ah!" actually recognised me when he came back on his second round! the moment he saw me-- when he was at the top of the steps-- he said "earrings!!". very very very amused.
i think a lot of the women from 84k didn't make it to my end for the second round... too many that i didn't see again. damn sad. but for the ones who continued-- oh gosh. RESPECT. seriously. i am so so so inspired. plus the couples who went through 84k together-- the kind of support and companionship they provided for each other; the wife who cycled alongside her husband doing 84k, bananas and supplies on hand for him (she stopped on the second round to ask me if they were in top 10-- DEFINITELY. he was uber fast); or the daughter who came and waited, decked out in running gear, to run with her dad for the last 19 k or so of the 84k, or the woman who waited for her daughter from 8pm onwards just so she could say hi, or the son who drove out and waited at kembangan with baby oil and piping hot macs coffee for his dad-- the emotion inherent in that was wonderful. i can't even describe it properly.
42k people also. i really appreciate the people who met my eyes and smiled back or said thanks-- or the damn seh ones who nodded and smiled/flashed a sign and then started running! or the poks who said "wahhh ok you're my motivation" then sprinted for 10m and then started walking again. FAIL. but what a funny fail. hahaha :D their spirit and joie de vivre and -- de run? haha-- breathtaking. i didn't see amardeep and 2 of my uncles who were supposed to be running 42k though! sadded. but nizam did see me and said hi-- i was so stunned to see him although i was looking out for him that for a moment i couldn't reply and by the time i did it was too late to cheer him on. :(((( joel apparently ran also.
my hands feel damn weird typing this cos they're still kinda swollen :( clapped too much or something and now i can't make a fist properly haha and YES they swelled: i couldn't get my ring off this morning!
there was only one unpleasant incident the whole night, but i'm not going to talk about it here. ask me if you want i may tell you. hur. oh and something really stupidly funny also i got hit on by the security guard. wth!!!! while i was dozing off somemore!?!
by the wayyyyyyyy. runners are hot. heee so many eye candies flashed in front of me that i think my eyes have got diabetes. hehehehehe.
i must start running again!!
reading krystal's blog i realise it HAS been ages since i properly dressed up and went out to play. i'm getting used to living in elasticised waistbands and oversized tees (rarr dance rarr). hehhh. NI hurry up come back. xf's return is like next year (sort of) and too long to hanker after for the time being so i shall think of ni's instead.
AND! xf sent me this.
:D
ok off to ellen's! thanks to michelle for taking my call early this morning when i was seriously desperate ahhhh.
i've got to focus my attention
these hands are too shaky to hold
hunger hurts but starving works when it costs too much to love