Fitness First

I'll start off with a bit of history.  We bumped into this raffle promo in future park mall last February and upon presentation of receipts we acquired that day we were given a chance to pick 9 coupons to determine our prizes. Surprise..surprise! we got a wall clock, pillow, piggybank, cash worth 100 baht, juice, 2 free movie passes and the highlight was 2 free memberships in Fitness First!! So blessed to have them all at once.  We didn't spare much time, thinking that opportunity may knock only once so we signed up right away for a year program.

Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays are my schedule for exercise. I intend to do it regularly knowing that the very key to shape up is consistency as what Tom Venuto in his book Burn the Fat and Feed the Muscle suggests. 

I love going to the gym and feel the beat of hip-hop, jazz, funk, Latin and groove to the rhythm as I loose myself in my favorite body jam class.  I'm no good with dancing but somehow I consider this as gratifying cure to my belly problem.  Another form of exercise that I fondly enjoy, which comes second to bj is body balance.  It's a program influenced by the classic principle of Yoga and Tai Chi. My third fave is body combat which is a fantastic mix of martial arts and kick boxing exercise.  After a couple of months I noticed that when my period arrives my abdominal pain have significantly reduced and my morning habit had become more frequent than ever.

Aside from this, health and money wise (if our schedules won't allow) me and Tony does the alternative brisk walk within our comfort.  Here in a very relaxing environment of AIT.

As a challenge, i leave this simple note for you.

You can't hire someone else to do your pushups for you. –Jim Rohn 

hope

Photo: taken inside AITs soccer field 

I was riding the bicycle yesterday and saw a strange looking bird wandering inside the football field of AIT.  Good thing my camera was with me so I stopped and took a shot of it.  I like this photo so I decided to do some make over in Adobe Photoshop and added some bible quotes on it to make it more beautiful.

Happy Mother’s Day!!!

i’m posting here a poem by Jane Taylor which was shared to me by my buddy Therese
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 My Mother

Who fed me from her gentle breast
 And hushed me in her arms to rest,
 And on my cheek sweet kisses prest?

  When sleep forsook my open eye,
 Who was it sung sweet lullaby
 And rocked me that I should not cry?

 Who sat and watched my infant head
 When sleeping in my cradle bed,
 And tears of sweet affection shed?

When pain and sickness made me cry,
Who gazed upon my heavy eye
And wept, for fear that I should die>

 Who ran to help me when I fell
 And would some pretty story tell,
 Or kiss the part to make it well?

 Who taught my infant lips to pray,
 To love God’s holy word and day,
And walk in wisdom’s pleasant way?

 And can I never cease to be
 Affectionate and kind to thee
Who wast so very kind to me, –

  Oh no, the thought I cannot bear;
 And if God please my life to spare
 I hope I shall reward thy care,

  When thou art feeble, old and gray,
My healthy arm shall be thy stay,
 ANd I will soothe thy pains away,

 And when I see thee hang thy head
 ‘Twill be my turn to watch thy bed,
And tears of sweet affection shed, –

   My mother

Do not let your hearts be afraid

Complete freedom from fear is one of those things we owe wholly to our Lord.  To be afraid is to do him a double injury.  First, it is to forget him, to forget that he is with us, that he loves us, and is himself almighty, and second it is to fail to bend to his will.  If we shape our will to his, as everything that happens is either willed or allowed by him, we shall find joy in whatever happens, and shall never be disturbed or afraid.

  So then, we should have the faith that banishes all fear.  Beside us, face to face with us, within us, we have our Lord Jesus, our God whose love for us is infinite, who is himself almighty, who has told us to seek for the kingdom of God and that everything else will be given us.  In that blessed and omnipotent company, we must go straight along the path of the greatest perfection, certain that nothing will happen to us that we cannot use as a source of the greatest good for his glory and the sanctification of ourselves and others, and that everything that happens is either willed or permitted by him, and that therefore, far from lying under the shadow of fear, we have only to say, “Whatever happens – God be praised!” praying that he will arrange everything not in accordance with our ideas, but for his greater glory.  We should never forget the two axioms: “Jesus is with me” and “Whatever happens, happens by the will of God.”

Source: Magnificat’s Meditation of the Day by Venerable Charles de Foucauld, contemplative and mystic.

P.S. - i’m keeping a copy in this site to remind me to be more optimistic in life. thanks for my contact in multiply who shared this.

Durian in Thailand

" Eating durian is addictive =) It’s extraordinarily delicious!" I expect others to disagree with this statement. But never with taste connoisseurs like me? kidding =) For sure people who’d say it’s disgusting are the ones who haven’t savored it at all.

Durian or Thurien in thai is highly regarded as the King of Tropical Fruits in Thailand. Popular for its strong & pungeant smell when ripe.

Yesterday we decided to do a little marketing in Taladtai [thai market]. After filliing the small plastic with broccoli, carrots, asparagus and some beans we went for a walk near the fruit stallls. While waiting for friends to finish buying some meat products. My eyes were delighted to notice my favorite fruit in abundance. I was salivating to see the MonThong [golden pillow] variety of durian in season. Other varieties are Chanee, Kanyao and Kradumthong. I like feasting on it while it’s still crunchy and about to turn ripe. Before, I could never really imagine myself eating such antibiotic flavored fruit. But surprisingly after overcoming my fears of odd tales, it has become part of my shopping list.

Fresh and ready to eat costs around 2 to 5 $ per kilo depending on season. As you can see in the picture, i bought that for just 60 baht.

Another product that I normally give as presents are Durian Chips. By the taste, you can’t tell  it’s made out of durian coz it doesn’t smell like one. In comparison it tastes even better than fried sweet potatoes. Moreso, i could say "it is a fried icecream!"