Today was a beautiful haze free day. I decided to go for a 10K run, after 2 over weeks of being cooped up indoors due to the murky unbreathable haze emnating from our neighbour Indonesia's slash and burn concessions which have made the skies above Singapore, Malaysia and much of Sumatra and Kalimantan look like the London 'fog' but not in any way romantic or caused by water condensation.
Indeed the haze is disrupting many Singaporeans' lives outdoors not to mention the extreme discomfort to the old, elderly and people with respiratory problems like asthma and lung infections.
Enough with the grumbling, so today I made a beeline to East Coast Park seafood centre and reached there by 11am. The skies were sunny and clear, the park was devoid of many people, who decided to take more rest at home rather than risk a sudden haze attack whereby the PSI Pollutant Standards Index rises intermittently from the healthy to very unhealthy range in just 3 hours.
Starting off at the (closed) Ski 360 centre, I headed past the East Coast Hawker Centre, Skate Park, Bedok Jetty, Sunset bar and towards the Outward Bound Centre and Go Kart Center in the distance. A cool breeze from the South East was uplifting and I maintained a steady 6 mins 20 secs pace per km. All the way past the Sailing Center, and to the Tanah Merah SAFRA Bungalows where I stopped for about 45 seconds catching the scenery and the fellow brave walkers,runners, cyclists and campers.
For the Record Saturday Sept 26th 2015 ; East Coast Park Seafood Restaurants -
Tanah Merah NSRCC Bungalow Chalets Return
Start Time : 11:03 am ; Finish 12. 07 pm. 45 secs rest ; Total Run Time : 63
minutes 27 secs. Pace : 6 mins 20 secs per km. Distance : 10 KM.
Heading back was more of the same, nice breeze uplifted me, and I had this cool song by Little River Band which was playing in my head, the chorus was especially meaningful : "I know that this sounds selfish, but let me breathe the air !!! "
When even the air that we breathe is not often of good quality, I am thankful to never take life for granted, even the simple things like clean water, fresh air and a safe and sound environment. All these can lost in a short span of time. It is timely that in the near future, with the world economy teetering and China's growth crawling, we have to take stock, hold on the the little that we have, reduce debt and press on with our plans in a conservative way regardless of whatever comes.
Good times will come again, I am sure of it. In the meantime, I have just seized the day and enjoyed a good 10 K run under clear blue skies. What a privilege !!
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