my first 10K run
Written on a Sunday afternoon on the third weekend of the month of March, in the year 2025, somewhere south of Manila.
I have completed my first ever 10K run at a 7:46 per kilometer pace (!!)
I couldn’t believe that things worked out this well for me this Sunday morning - beautiful 5 AM weather, a bit of wind, my nasal airways are as clear as the gradient sky. No wardrobe malfunctions, distractions or assholes on the road to disrupt my first few kilometers. I planned my route the night before and had a water drinking session some 2 hours before bed then ate a few bites of salty fish and water again before the run.
I was so excited for this run that I may have lost some half hour tossing and turning in bed. Though even if I didn’t I’d only really have 5 hours of sleep (please don’t try this at home). I know this is unhealthy, but I was so locked in, I woke up before my alarm and wasn’t sleepy at all. For some reason, my body clock works with my honest desires and waking up has never been a difficult affair for things that I actually want to do. There were roadblocks I wasn’t aware of when I got there and the city oval was closed, but I pivoted and changed pieces of my route. My goal was to conclude the run at the market near r’s house, where I planned to buy her buko juice (coconut water). A buko cost 35 PHP each, which is a drastic drop from Manila prices that average around 50 PHP. At this point, I was still catching my breath and I was pretty sure someone could slap me and I would not feel it. I finished my water bottle after buying (also a new character that I incorporated in this run, as I was used to just drinking a lot before and after) then sat on a bench to fully cool down and take pictures. It still wasn’t that hot and I waited for my activity on Strava to upload just so I could verify my pace - I felt that I was so slow, but there it was, the number 7 and the 10.02 KM. It brings me so much joy that I get to do all this.
I mostly only do 1 activity per week since the first month of 2024, with my distance usually around 3-5K. I go on walks sometimes, but I think they do very little in improving my endurance. My first 4K run activity my pace was nearing the 9th minute mark per kilometer. So. I feel so very proud of myself and I wanted to record this milestone here ^^ I am so excited to find out and explore what else this means for me after finding out I can do something like this.
It is also my highlight of this weekend! I missed my previous week of an update, no excuses here, just want to share now that it was a pretty chill weekend and week overall.
Previous week happenings
- Securing flight tickets to Hanoi :’)
- We have a new stove, finally! Spent a lot of time cooking and going to the market. My first attempt at a chicken adobo went well.
- Tried a new cafe near our apartment in the city for their matcha and waffle sandwiches. The place was quite small and they sold imported products that were displayed all over, giving a Ghibli aesthetic. We didn’t expect the price though… But r said the matcha felt more authentic than the others and it was a spontaneous morning outing that made my day so early :)
To kick off this weekend early, I travelled back to my parents’ house on Thursday night to accompany my brother. My parents will be on an out of town trip (their first one without their children - hopefully a first of many) and I drove them to the tour organizer’s pick up point.
The following day, I still had work so before leaving the house I first made sure my brother had something to eat for the whole day. After my shift, I took the shuttle out of the city again, then I met up with g at a budget ramen place near my parents’ house. g is actually one of my mom’s siblings. I grew up with her babysitting me, when I got older I realized she’s more than an aunt to me, as she’s also my friend. We mostly talked about her previous toxic relationship. She reported to me how she got it out, and though knowing she’s far from healed, I felt very happy that she took the first step to cut the guy off. The ramen place sold bowls for less than 200 PHP btw. It is far from authentic but it has been a comfort food source for us through the years, which seemed fitting to our conversation. It was also where me and r had our first dinner date more than 5 years ago.
By Saturday, I got up early to prepare to go to my university for the awarding of a literary & art contest where r was a finalist in the digital illustration category (!!) I don’t know how she does it. If you must know, she already has a lot on her plate because of her thesis but she still managed to sneak the time in creating a piece for the event. The pieces were judged by a well known local cartoonist in our country, which made it all the more competitive. I was so happy to be there to support her and watch as it was announced that her piece took first place. I was just in awe the whole time. I could write essays praising how amazing this woman is, but for brevity, I just want to say I am so proud of my girlfriend.
After having lunch, r went off to a convention with her friends and I went back south again to meet up with my friend, d. I met d in high school and it has been too long since we last saw each other, so a few weeks ago we picked a coffee shop and decided we’d meet there. When he arrived he immediately told me I am a fully fledged corpo slave because of my outfit. I am truthfully unable to disagree. I had an iced Spanish latte again and we ordered fries and some club sandwiches. Our conversation mostly jumped from life happenings after graduation, as we went to different universities but roughly the same programs. As it turns out only 4 of his blockmates graduated including him. There used to be 40 in the class, then it was down to a single digit. There is some tragedy here because despite the obstacle of completing college requirements, he also told me how underemployment has become the next step for all 4 of them because of how tough the IT job market is in our country everywhere right now. A lot of people say it’s a numbers game and I believe that a little bit. More applications mean more chances of landing, but It is diabolical how landing a job depends on whether you were in the right place and the right time to see the right ad - then, up until then, no job will ever be a dream and compromises will have to be made. This whole topic reminds me of a scene from Abbott Elementary:
Mr Johnson: Just drive rideshare.
Gregory: I have a master’s degree in education, so I think I may be a little overqualified.
Mr Johnson: Do you need money?
Gregory: ...Yes
Mr Johnson: Sounds like you’re qualified...
That’s everything from the latest weekend. I have been spacing out a lot lately because of me thinking so much about what to put in my portfolio / my professional website. I don’t really have many projects to begin with. Motherfucking Website seems to be quite a philosophy that I want to incorporate. I feel the same way about this the way I used to do about this blog. Every other portfolio I’ve looked at, I just think: whoa, this is about a wholly unique person. Then I imagine what’s mine gonna look like and it’s not giving that. It is as if it is impossible to feel original because I am very used to myself. It would do me so much better if I stop chasing the feeling of being unique. I want to remind myself there is no need because, without any effort, I already am...
PS: I've added a little bit of styling to make the text justified only for this post as a test run. Please feel free to tell me your thoughts ^^
20 Mar, 2025