After months of procrastination, I finally awoke early and dragged my sorry lonesome ass to MacRitchie, determined to check Rifle Range off my 2019 list.
Plodded into the trails and immediately started regretting the pastries I’d been stuffing myself silly with the past 3 months… When all of a sudden, BAM! I was greeted by a HUGE green barricade at the entrance of Rifle Range, and a MASSIVE slope to boot. I stood there dumbfounded. I knew there were alternative routes…. I just didn’t know how to go about them……
Hyperventilated up the slope and arrived at the entrance of Treetop Walk looking like Chewbacca’s buttock.
“Excuse me, is this the way to Rifle Range?” I asked a pleasant looking elderly uncle.
“I’m not sure but this is the way to Treetop Walk! HAHA!!” Pleasant Uncle replied with a hearty laugh while pointing to the sign saying “Treetop Walk”.
Roll eyeballs…. but hey, it’s Christmas season…. Let it go… Let it go…
“Excuse me, are you headed to Rifle Range? Can I join you?” A sweet feminine voice rang out.
I turned around to see a smiling petite lady decked in running gear.
“The usual entrance is blocked and I’m not sure how to go. If you don’t mind, we can go together?” She quipped.
“Ummm…. I wouldn’t mind company but I am very blur one you know…? Like cannot underestimate that kind one you know? You sure you want to follow me into the unknown?”
“Nevermind la! We run together sure can” came the cheery reply.
Okaaayy lorrr…. if you insist…..
So, the first thing I did was to run back down to the blocked entrance… Well… Just to confirm that it’s blocked… I did NOT expect her to run down with me…. The look on her face when I exclaimed “Aiyah, it’s really blocked. No choice la have to run back up to Treetop Walk”… was… indescribable.
By the time we reached back upslope, her face was pale, contorted and looked anything but cheery. I half expected her to mutate into She-Hulk and smash the living daylights out of me.
After another hour of running, I finally saw the familiar “Water IC Point” (as the army boys would describe). I whooped for joy and shouted “EHH!! RIFLE RANGE! RIFLE RANGE!”
The look on Miss Petite’s face clearly indicated she thought I was mentally deranged.
After we cleared Rifle Range 2 hours later, we were hungry and tired and running in silence.
“You got eat breakfast before the run or not?” I asked in an attempt to make small talk.
“No”
“Huh? Then you not hungry ah?”
Silence
“Wah… Another 1 hr to go before we finish.”
Silence.
I think this unnecessary conversation more or less ended any chance of friendship I had with her.
We ran on in silence until the SICC, when suddenly said “You run ahead. I cannot already. I know how to go. Will finish this myself.”
“Huh…. You sure? I can walk with you one ley.”
“NO NEED NO NEED!! I WALK BY MYSELF.”
Oops…….
So I bade her goodbye, avoided looking her direction and headed back on my own. That was the last I saw of Miss Petite.
Often, it’s not the fault of Sotongs that they constantly irritate or annoy people. In self defense, we really have the kindest of souls and the most willing of hearts to help others. It’s just that our thought processes often differ from the common man and that causes us to bang headlong into unforseen disasters.
Hopefully, 1 day I will get the chance to make amends to Miss Petite.
Ramblings of an Iron Sotong
Written by Elise
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