BODY PARTS TALKING TO EACH OTHER (THEMSELVES) ABOUT THE DAILY 15KM WALK

Brain: Attention Body! This is an announcement. Get ready for our daily 15 kilometer (km) walk in 10 minutes. Another 15km walk. Ye-e-e-aa-a-a. We can do this!

Body Muscle: Come on, everybody. It is time to move it!

Fats Stomach: No, we can’t. Why is he torturing us? We have rights too, you know. With all this unfair exertion through these long, brisk walks; our fats community is diminishing and getting smaller.

Brain: That’s the idea. Your excess is unhealthy for the rest of us in Alan’s body.

Left Leg: My calf is aching from this everyday 15km brisk walk.

Right Leg: So is mine. What’s with this everyday 15km walk, anyway?

Chief Body shape: It’s all your fault Fats Stomach. You keep getting bigger and bigger, and heavier; too.

Fats Stomach: No, its not my fault! It’s that sultry Miss Budsy Tasty’s fault. Practically the smallest amongst all of us, but the cause of all this painful, exercise routine.

Miss Budsy Tasty: I provide pleasure.

Fats Stomach: Can one of you make good friends with Welson Scales? If someone could short-circuit his electric weighing system, he can “freestyle” the results and “extend the truth” when this body is being weighed. Show a lower reading. Then, we won’t have to go through this torturous 15km drills.

Body Muscle: That’s not going to be of help in the long run. We need to be healthy.

Right Leg: The sole of my foot hurts, too; after every 15km walk. It would be lovely if I can be pampered by being put in a foot tub filled with warm water and nice smelling scents; then be treated to a foot reflexology and massage after that. How nice if I am treated to this after each walk.

Left Leg: I’m with you, Right Leg. Hmmm… We are beginning to sound like “Bananas in Pyjamas”, that Australian children’s show of over 10 years ago. They referred to each other as “B1 and B2” and their pyjamas had “B1″ and B2” on them, too. Remember their song?:

Bananas in Pyjamas

Are coming down the stairs

Bananas in Pyjamas

Are coming down in Pairs

Bananas in Pyjamas

Are chasing teddy bears

Cause on Tuesdays

They all try to Catch them unawares

Right Leg and the rest of the body joined in to this catchy song. Everyone remembered the song well…

Right Leg: Bear in the Great Blue House was another fun show. We had to watch these shows when Alan always watched them with his daughter, Laura; spending time with her. Now, she’s all grown up, in university.

Fast Stomach: All this talk about bananas is making me hungry.

Brain: Let’s go. The sun does look like it is scorching hot. We will walk down the end of the road, then walk along the fence which is lined by trees. They will provide a bit of shade from the sun. Mr. Sam Sung Smartwatch; start timing our walk. Common body, let’s put some stride into our walk and pick up the pace.

Right Leg: Left Leg, these new shoes are quite chic, They are comfortable, too. These are the latest Adidas Kampung which Alan bought at a small village near Mt Kinabalu. That was the highest mountain we climbed. I think Brain and the muscles clan have a conspiracy going, subjecting the rest of us “body” to strenuous outdoor activity.

Chief Body shape: Hurry it along, Left and Right Feet. Get us out of the sun and under the shady trees.

“We are hurrying as fast we can”, said Left Leg and Right Leg together.

After more than an hour walking, Mr. Sam Sung Smartwatch gives an update it had gathered on the walk so far.

Mr. Sam Sung Smartwatch: You have been walking at an average pace of 10 minutes 35 seconds per kilometer. Your average heartrate is 108 beats per minute. The time taken to complete the 15 kilometer distance is estimated to be 2 hours 44 minutes.

Brain: That is a good pace we are keeping up to. We have slightly over 6 kilometers more to go. Just over an hour to go. Bodyparts, you guys are doing a great job. Everyone is still energetic. Perhaps, with the exception of Fats Stomach, who is looking rather pale but toned down and a bit more lean. You can do it Fats stomach.

Fats Stomach: Thanks for the encouragement, Brain. I will keep up with the rest of the body.

At 4.25pm, Alan completed the 15km walk. His whole body was glad, including Body Muscle though it tried to act macho. “We can go on for another 10 kilometers, no sweat”; it said. Alan’s body was a bit tired but glad it had done its daily workout to keep fit and healthy.

I’m so hungry that I can have a large helping of nasi kandar to fill me up, said Fats Stomach. Miss Budsy Tasty immediately created the taste pangs for nasi kandar and sent the message up to the brain.

Brain: We just came back from a long tiring and brisk walk to stay fit and healthy and now you want to indulge in this food and put us right back to square 1 before our walk?

Chief Body Shape: Are you guys crazy? The thought of Penang Nasi kandar and a large “tambah lagi”…Let’s go.

Notes:

Miss Budsy Tasty: Taste buds

Welson Scales: Weighing scales

“Nasi Kandar” is defined as boiled white rice placed inside a wooden basket and carried on the shoulder using a pole. The rice is served with a variety of pairing dishes that are ususally fried, curried or boiled….http://www.ifrj.upm.edu.my . You would be hard pressed to find nasi kandar served this way these days. Today, Nasi Kandar is commonly found in restaurants.

Tambah lagiin Malay for “add more”

In memory of Nigel who loved Malaysian food, including Nasi Kandar. We miss his jokes, too.