I was crossing the street to get to our meeting place when the MMDA directing the traffice suddenly signaled the vehicles to start. I was then stuck in the middle of the road while I waited for the stop signal so that I can cross to the other side. While waiting, a car suddenly slowed down in front of me and the driver lowered his window and winked at me. I was stupefied! What a maniac! Yikes! It gave me the creeps.
Since Monday I’ve been in DAP for training on project management. It’s been around three years since I’ve been to the building. While I was walking from the road to the building I felt like I never left. The scenery was almost the same. The building has undergone a facelift and I saw that they have installed ramps for wheelchairs to be friendlier to the physically handicapped. After the first day session I decided to visit my former officemates. When I got to our floor, it was under renovation. After asking around, I finally got to the right floor. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the new office. It was decorated in contemporary furniture with the cubicles colored orange and off-white. It looked spacious and very bright unlike before when the cubicles were made of wood. Nothing really remains the same but the improvements were very welcome.
A friend was telling about how she and some friends joined a run-for-a-cause. They finished a 5 kilometer run in 45 minutes. Being an ignorant, I was prepared to be impressed but she told me it was a very slow time. She had so much fun that she was thinking of joining again in the near future and breaking their “record”. I told her she had to practice in the meantime. She said she plans to exercise using the treadmill available in their condominium building. Instead of treadmill, perhaps she can try ellipticals because I heard that you can exercise at a gentler rate but burn the same amount of calories. Well it does not matter what equipment she chooses as long as she uses them regularly to increase her speed and stamina.
During the first few days of our stay in KDI School, I used to go to the gym with my friends. I mainly used the treadmill to walk then jog. I remembered how easily I lose my breath if I jog so what I do is walk first then jog for 10 minutes then go back to walking. I was amazed how my friend Deki could run on the treadmill for more than 30 minutes without flagging. I guess she has more stamina and stronger lungs than me. Now that I’m back in my country, I go jogging with my officemates twice a week after office hours. It takes us about 45 minutes to walk and jog around the UP oval. It feels great after. I just hope that it will be a permanent exercise.
Summer is fast approaching. People, especially the students, are making full use of the outdoor furniture available on campus. You can see groups of students congregating in the different benches and some picnic tables to enjoy the cool and mild weather. It is so different during winter where you can only see the students as they hurry from one building to another in order to get out of the bitter cold as soon as possible. But now that it is sunny and warm, everybody is outside enjoying the fresh air and warm sunlight. I am sure it would be another case when it gets to hot already.
While walking on our way to Namsan Cable Car Station from Myongdong Subway, we passed two men arguing and gesturing to the parked cars. They were speaking Korean so we did not really know what they were arguing about or if they arguing at all. We just assumed that maybe one guy bumped the other guy’s car while trying to park. If that is the case then I just hope that both of them have car insurance so that they would not have problems in case some repairs are needed. I remember once during IBC class, our professor mentioned something about Korean car insurance but I cannot remember it already. It had something to do with him being rear ended by a car once. He did not suffer from any major injury or what but he was urged to stay in the hospital for two weeks so that he will be paid by the insurance company of the guy who rear ended him. He was climbing walls just after a week so he did not finish the two weeks. I think he just got paid for the damages or something, a lot less amount than if he completed the two weeks.
Construction work is one of the most hazardous jobs. Construction workers handle heavy equipment and materials. Depending on the project, they may be assigned to work on the 60th floor of a high rise building or build a flyover or bridge with just a safety belt and narrow scaffolding that keeps them from falling to their deaths. Before, construction companies were not so concerned with investing in safety equipment for their workers. There were a lot of accidents in work sites that resulted in severe disabilities to death for some of their workers. The advent of regulations and standardization bodies have cut down considerably on work related accidents because companies are more conscious of the safety of their workers and pedestrians affected by the company’s projects. Nowadays, construction companies strive for zero accidents in their construction sites and put up protective barriers to minimize accidents caused by falling debris to passersby.
This morning I was up earlier than usual. I wanted to be at the office by 7am. It was raining when I left the house. It’s very hard for me when it’s raining because I have to get tissue for my running nose while holding a wet umbrella. Anyway, when I got off Ligaya I saw a perfect rainbow arc. It was like a colorful bridge arcing over the sky. I stopped for a few seconds to admire it. I really wished I brought my camera with me. I also saw another rainbow on my way home but it was not as perfect as this morning’s.
MBT shoes are a revolutionary concept based on the theory that the instability of soft ground alleviates backache. Swiss engineer Karl Müller invented the Massai Barefoot Technology to make soft natural ground available to people who have to walk on hard surfaces. The specialized sole is what differentiates MBT from other shoes. The sole makes it possible to feel like your walking on a sandy beach or mossy ground and it gives that natural instability that increases muscle activity. By just wearing MBT shoes your body is exercised already.
Yesterday I was doing my best not to be late for work. Fate was smiling at me. Commuting was a breeze. I immediately flagged down an almost empty Megamall FX and did not wait for a Quiapo jeepney just to be sure I will be able to get to work early. Since traffic was smooth we arrived at Tektite with 20 minutes to spare. I was debating whether to walk the distance from Tektite to our office (around 10 minutes walk) or stay in the FX as it wound its way around Megamall and getting off at Medical Plaze, which is nearer our office. I decided to walk because I was afraid that the FX would get caught in traffic somewhere along the route and I did not relish being the last to get off, which is often the case. When I got off the FX I looked at its plate number to see if I will encounter in my walk. Sure enough, when I got to Medical Plaza I saw it stop in front of me while a passenger got off. Waaahhh. I could have saved myself the trouble of walking, on the other hand, it was a much needed exercise. At least I was not late for work.
