Countdown 181 Days: A month of Fundraising

October 21st.

That was the day I started posting about me being in I4K and started all sorts of fundraising activities. I did not keep track of the amount of people I talked to about I4K, but if I were to put a figure, I would say 100, at least. 

Last Sunday, I made a post on facebook about this guy, Jacob. People like him makes everyone's life more wonderful, makes the world more colorful and beautiful.

I start to lose count of the amount of touching-and-thankful moments in my life, but I remember every of you, in my heart. Because of I4K, I learn to appreciate-I appreciate every kind word, support, donation, and smile I got from everyone. I have never imagined myself being here, talking to people randomly, asking for donation, explaining so many things (in English), and getting support from so many people. 

Before I was officially accepted into I4K, to fund-raise such a huge amount of money is my biggest concern. Quite a number of people I talked to think that the hardest thing is about the physical strength. But for me, it's different, I'm more worried about not getting donations. :3

Undeniably, weekly training is indeed very intense for me. I used to play sports a lot, but nothing could compare to the physical training in I4K. For me, training is on Sunday and Wednesday. Sunday's is a two-hour-weekend training. Every Monday and Tuesday, I just feel like I couldn't move at all-my quadriceps, calves, butt. and abs are so sore. Every single step I take, my muscles hurt so much; every time I sneeze/laugh, my abs hurt so much; every time I try to bend down/squat down, or even just sit down, every single piece of my muscles hurt. Before my muscles fully recover, next training session approached. Heh but I'm not writing to complain, just for sharing purposes. :D

Nothing could compare to the torture that every patient (not only cancer patients, but people who have any disease in general) experiences. No one is stronger than them who fight every single second to stay alive. 

It has been only a month, and I am more than halfway through my fundraising goal. Just in case you guys are wondering, I am currently at $1919.97. :)  Even after I touch my goal, I will still continue to ask for donations. I mean, the more, the better, isn't it? :) I am more than touched to have received support from every of you guys who have been so supportive towards me, and also towards the team. You have no idea how much I appreciate your support and effort in making our mission a successful one. I (we) will continue to work harder on both individual level and team level. 

Also, I want to thank Z-group for being so supportive towards me. I'm like a baby in Z-group, cause I'm the youngest in term of age and qualification. haha. Thank you Professor Zimmerman, brothers, and sisters from Z-group, for making me feel like home. You guys are definitely one of the best groups of people I have here in the UofI. Thanks! :') 

I sincerely thank all of you, who have helped and supported me all the way. For all the good deeds that you've done, only God could repay you. I wish you kind-hearted people to have the best that you could ever wish for, because life is beautiful because of you, ANGELS. :')

I wanna specially thank Far East, Z-group, Jacob, Heng, Sam, Tee, Zhong Xiang, and Uncle Cravings (Uncle Sze Toh) for the huge amount of donation. Also Siang Kee, Chee Hau didi, Yinan, Fifi, Tina, Yong Wei, Yi Yi, SinFang, Pave, Wen Lin, Cheng Han, Munish, Marcus, Hang King, Nithya, Pika, Kevin, Syahir, Jawai, Wen Xuan, Syaza, Wei Ping, Hui Jun, Yen Ming, Sally, Chee Hoe, Suffian, Andrea, Adrian, Dav, Fara, and Patti for your kind donation! Last but not least, I wanna thank VVVVVVIP Encik Tan Kit Siang for supporting me always! :D 

P.S: Sorry that I did not update for quite some time, cause I was caught up with other chores. Also, I will be going on a volunteering trip by ASB tomorrow! See you guys soon! Once again, thank you! <3

P.P.S: Also, I'm addicted to this song recently! Zayn Malik OMGGGG :D Chose this version because the full MV is too long. This acoustic version is nicer! :D

~Without your strong support, I am nothing. Jane is nothing. 

Countdown 188 Days: Never stop trying!

188 days, the number "188" reminds me of the donation I got from this close friend yesterday. This guy, Heng Wen Kai, donated $88.88. Damn I owe you so much.. Just a quick update, My personal fundraising has achieved more than $1500 in less than a month! I could not be more thankful than having each and every of you in my life. Without any of you, I am nothing. You guys are truly amazing! :')

P/S: the $0.88 comes from Heng! :'D

When I first talked to Heng about this, he's very excited for me. I remember he said that, "I'm very rich. I will surely help you." But I'm very confident he ain't that rich, he just wants to help me. He's the guy that will go all out to support his friends, in my case, both mentally and financially. I'm really thankful for that :') Also because of him (and Tee), I planned on organizing a similar biking trip in Malaysia as soon as I graduate and get home, which is... in 1.5-year time. Time flies. :/

A year ago, I came to the UofI, finding that it's so hard for me to fit in. I have never been in an environment with 100% of English usage. It's just... so hard. After two semesters in the UofI, I tell myself, I want to make a difference. I want to push myself. I have to get out of the comfort zone that's set by myself. 

So I applied to work in Organic Chemistry lab last summer, Z-group is the place that I feel the safest and most comfortable in. I feel so blessed to have them Z-group members and Professor Zimmerman. Also, I signed up for a few RSO-s on quad day 2014. It's time to get out of my shell, I told myself. So I signed up for Rotaract Club,Illini 4000, Volunteer Illini Project, Illini Mentor Program, and Tzu Ching. If you realize, those organizations focus on volunteering work. I have always been wanting to get involved in community service/volunteering, because I never had the chance to do volunteering work when I was home. In the end, I settled for only Rotaract Club and Illini 4000. 

The more I found out about Illini 4000, the more I admire the team. I spent about two weeks drafting my application essay, and finally when I got an email from Tory on October 5th, I cried. At that moment, I honestly could not believe that I made it to the team. 

The one and only concern that I had about joining this team was the minimum fundraising amount of $3500. I have never done fundrasing event before-not even $35, and now I have to do $3500?! I have been so worried about this. For locals, it's easier to ask for donation from high school friends/teachers, relatives, parents' colleague, friends' parents, etc. While for me? With a currency exchange rate of $1=RM3.33, how do I get people in Malaysia to donate to me? 

You know there's a quote saying, " If you wanna achieve something impossible, you have to do something impossible" ? It's no longer a choice for me whether to ask for donation or not. I spend quite a lot of time walking everywhere, enter every shop/restaurant that I see, and just introduce myself and ask for donation. There are a lot of people ignored me, and those really pulled me back. At times, I'm just like, I can't do this, it's impossible for me to raise enough money. The next day I wake up, I just grab my purple paper file with personal letters, documents, etc in it, and continue to ask around. As soon as my first biggest donation came in, it was $1000 from Far East grocery, I felt a huge relief. I'm just like, "it finally paid off." This has really boosted my confidence. 

Today, again I did something I thought I will never do in my life. I basically just walk the whole RAL, reaching out for professors and graduate students. I'm also thankful that Julio keeps encouraging me, and always say "JUST GO". I really appreciate people who actually listen to what I say, and ask questions, at least I know that my message is conveyed. Sometimes I just got really discouraged by people who didn't even look at me while I was explaining things, also people who just kinda like walked away and ignored me. For that, I really appreciate people who let me know how amazing am I doing, how amazing my team is, or how great our mission is. Honestly my biggest fear is that I don't speak good English, and I wouldn't want my words to be ambiguous. If only I can speak better English, I will never fear asking around. It really takes a whole lot of courage.

Despite the setbacks that I have, I am truly grateful for having support from many of you. I believe that towards the end of this project, I will have learned and grown up a lot. It's definitely a very valuable learning experience.

I still believe, as long as I don't give up, nothing can bring me down.


~ Be bold. Be sincere. Be optimistic. Believe. 

Countdown 191 Days: Thanks for the encouragement! :')

Looking at the amount of blog post I make, I think you should know that I'm kinda free right now. Yes, indeed. I will be free until Thanksgiving break, but it'll be a roller coaster ride all over again right after Thanksgiving.

Since I'm free, I decided to start to my fundraising project again this morning. It's so hard to get everything started again-it's so hard to talk to people. :3 I have started asking around since morning and no one seems to be interested in this project. C'mon man...

Later in the evening, I decided to drop by RAL to inform Z-group members about this I4K project. I'm really touched seeing everyone being so supportive ! :') Honestly, Z-group feels like home. This is the first group of people I knew in UofI, and not a second I regret joining this lab. Everyone there is like my brother/sister, giving me inspiration, guidance, advice, support, and this has definitely shaped me into a better person. 1.5 years left, I'll definitely cherish this limited amount of time. :') 

Later at night, I took saferide home. Apparently I am very close to one of the Saferide drivers, Auntie Lin. She has been fetching me home since my first semester here. She's like a mom to me. I have not seen her for quite some time, so I asked her what had happened. She has a terrible migraine that has been giving her a lot of troubles, I hope she'll be fine though... :/ 

So when I hopped on the van, the first thing she asked was, "What did you do last weekend? Did you have fun?" 

"Yes... kinda." 

"So what did you do?"

"I went for training." I actually didn't want her to donate because she has helped me a lot, and I don't want to ... put a burden on her. :3

"What kind of training is that?"

So I gave her my personal letter and explained to her about Illini 4000, and told her what we did/do/will be doing. 

She replied, "So you now have a group of friends right?" 

"We'll  eventually be close friends. It was hard for me to actually talk to people when I first got here. I'm lost. I don't want to risk my results, so I ended up studying a lot and not socialize much." 

"I know. Which is why every time I wait the Union, hoping that I could see you every day. I want to talk to you, and want you to talk to me too. If you realize, I have been helping you since long time ago."

"You know what? Actually I knew it. And I'm really thankful for that, Auntie Lin. I think I'm getting better now. However, sometimes I think it's kinda awkward-I don't know what to talk about."

"Good to hear that. You know, just chat. Just get to know each other better." 

Before I get off the van, she said, " It takes a lot of courage to do this (the ride and maybe socializing too? ) I'm really proud of you! So, I wanna support you for this project and how could I do that?"

I showed her the links, but she said she doesn't know how to use a computer. One second later,  she said, "I'll figure out how. I wanna support you." 

With that, we bid goodbye, and hopefully I'll see her tomorrow night. She's the reason I take the 9pm and 10pm saferide, or else she won't be driving the South direction van, and I wouldn't be able to see her. 

Just when I thought that today I wouldn't be able to even get people to engage in what I am talking, I met Z-group people and Auntie Lin. You guys have no idea how much has that helped me-to boost my confidence. I couldn't ask for more. I just know that being able to study here, and being able to meet you guys, it's FATE. God has granted me with so many nice people around, people who bring me up when I'm down, people who unconditionally support me, people who want me to success. I don't know what I could do to repay all the good deeds/words I received. 

You guys are the sunshine of my life. Once again, thank you so much sunshine-s.  :')


~The only way I could thank you, is by being a better person, and pass on the good deeds that you guys have done for me. 

Countdown 192 Days: Things are changing

It's funny how things change over time. I used to think that I want to be real good in badminton, swimming, running, and ice skating, but eventually I turn out to be a cyclist now. Well, honestly I have never seen this coming. I went for training for the sports I mentioned above, but I have never mastered one. Reasons? I didn't have the chance and time to brush up my skills.

Over the summer, I went for workout twice a week, swimming once a week, and occasional yoga practices (on an average of once per week). I liked that kind of life. Warm weather, less burden on academics, and I get to sweat so much. 

I have certain preferences while doing sports. Lol. I like to swim at outdoor pool; I like to play badminton at a warm court; I like to play basketball outdoor; I like to jog/run outdoor; I also like to do sports in the evening rather than in the morning. Heh personal preferences :P 

Yesterday was the second weekend training. As usual we started off with a 10-minute-jog, then stretching and we were divided into 3 groups. 

Group 1:

-In squats position, pass around a 15 (or 18?) lbs weight

-push ups x15

-lunges jump: in lunges position, jump, switch legs, repeat x15

-in push-up position, palms on the ground, legs are in running position (tuck in, kick out) x15

-repeat once more

Group 2:

-side crunches: body and legs forming V-shape, hands touch left side of ground, then right side x15

-forward plank for 1 min

-Side plank for 45 seconds each side

-Cycling in the air (forward & backward cycling): body and legs forming V-shape, then cycle in the air

-forward plank for 1 min

-Side planks for 30 secs each side

Group 3: 
*only toes are on the side of the cushion, not the whole feet*

-jumping box (low): stand with your toes, stand flat x20

-jumping box (medium): left leg up on the box (again, only the toes touching the side, the rest of your foot should be in the air), right leg up on the box, then 90 degrees up in the air; switch. x20

-jumping box (high): with both legs, jump onto the box, land on your toes, jump back down, land on your toes. x15

Finally, it ended with a 10-minute run and stretching for cool down.

This morning I woke up to aches on my body again. My calf, abs, chest, arm, ache so much that even if I wave "hi", it hurts my chest; I couldn't even push/pull the doors. Every step I take hurts my calves and quadriceps. :3 Ugh I need to work harder to get my muscle strength back. Btw, I did planking at home this morning, and successfully did a 2-minute-forward plank! YAY ACHIEVEMENT! Gonna aim for a 5-minute one next week! :D

P/S: Sorry for the late blog post. I have been having exams, events, meetings, and training for the past week. Didn't really have time to write about things that happen. :/

Also found an abs/core workout video here that might be helpful for those who want to do it on your own. 

~When you're doing something you're really passionate about, that's the time you're enjoying life. 

Countdown 197 Days: Midweek Training

Temperature right now: 7 degree C

It was quite warm this morning through afternoon. It always gets cold after sunset, which is like...5pm. Hate that. I feel so unsafe walking in the dark. 

As usual, woke up at 9.10am this morning (it was supposed to be 8am, but I got too tired and slept in a little later), then as usual again, rush for class. I know it's a very bad habit for not having breakfast; I know it's not good for health; I know it's not good for growth; I know if I do it for the next 2 days I'll get gastritis again; I know... but I would trade everything just for a few more seconds of sleep time. :3 Okay, I shall try to change this habit. I will try. 

After class at 11am, I hopped on the next bus and got home to get my food heated up. I couldn't decide which is better-buy food (save time), or heat up the leftovers (save money), but eventually I went with the save money plan. I reached home at about 11.10am, cook rice, and caught the next bus to go back to campus. Plan works, I reached the lab exactly at 12pm. YAY. #efficient

Then I stayed in the lab until 5.40pm, then left for I4K training at ARC. Midweek training is only an hour long. We started off with 20 minutes of jogging, but we didn't actually make it 20 minutes-it was about 17 minutes only. I was fast-jogging with Sarah, we jogged like 9 laps non-stop on the track. Everyone stopped after (our) 8th lap, but Sarah asked if we want to push it through one more lap, I'm like, "Why not?" So we did 9 laps YAY. It has been soooooooo long since I last ran a marathon. The last time was probably the time in INTEC, and it was only 4 km? or 5 km? I don't remember lol. Anyways, to me, it feels like an achievement to be able to get back in shape, to be able to do something that has long gone, in this case, marathon I guess? The reason why I stopped running because it's cold here. I hate indoor tracks, and hate not being able to sweat if I jog outdoor under the cold weather. 

After the 17 minutes jog, we did some basic stretching, for like... 10 minutes, then we actually started biking! Not the real bike, but the stationary bike, close enough. :P So we biked for another 20 minutes. The first 5 minutes was awful, but everything was slowly getting better as time passes. By the time I walked out of ARC, I felt like every steps I take, I was going to fall. The sore in my muscles.....I don't know how my legs are gonna be when I wake up tomorrow. GBL. God Bless Legs.

I went back to lab after training-with my stinky clothes. When I reached the lab, the doors are all locked. Legs pain + cold wind = FML. I totally forgot that I will not be able to enter the building after hours. I though of a smart plan, why not I enter through Noyes and take the underground pathway? It's kinda scary to walk there at night (and also in the morning, basically anytime), but I would rather be scared than to stay outside. When I got to the "secret pathway", the door was locked too. So I called Julio for help lol. But few minutes before he arrived, there's a guy came out from the building, then I'm like, "You just saved my life". 

So I went back to lab, stayed there to study a bit for my exam, then Julio offered to teach me NMR. Never say no to free lessons! Thanks Julio! After that I settled my reaction stuffs and rushed towards the 10 pm saferide. It's always nice to have Auntie Lin to send me home, cause I'm used to having her as the person saying goodbye to me when I reach home. :) 

So here I am now, eating my late-dinner, typing this blog, and waiting for TKS to wake up. Apparently he was waiting for me to get home since 9pm so we could skype, but he fell asleep. Celaka ni. 

It has been a long day, and it'll be a long day tomorrow. 

~Never lose hope, never lose faith. Keep believing, keep working. 

Countdown 199 Days （倒數199天）:心情分享

久違的中文字，久違的華語。

我依然清晰地記得10月5日的那封郵件。收到郵件的那一刻，我竟然哭了。也不知道爲啥會哭，或許是因爲自己太過期待加入這大家庭，而等了將近2個星期，才終于收到郵件。激動的心情，久久無法釋懷。直到今天爲止，所有的事情、事物與心情，仍歷歷在目。

不知道哪來的勇氣與衝動，讓我毫不猶豫地參加了這團隊。的確有很多顧慮，很擔心課業趕不上、睡眠不足、還有擔心很多的東西都不能勝任。最擔心的莫過於籌款的事。我不善于表達，説服力也只是一般，但我保證我有一顆最真誠的心。不管多麽的辛苦，我也不會放棄，一定會拼了命地把事情做好。

當我收到Far East那麽大的款項，那一刻，我的心已經在流淚了。心中有說不出的感動、感激與感恩。我不知道我前世修來的什麽福，讓我能夠遇到這麽善良與慷慨的一家人。我真的由衷地祝福他們一家人萬事順利、身體健康、生意興隆。這份情，我一輩子都會擺放在心裏面。當然，全部幫過我的人、支持我的人，我也是很感激。

言歸正傳，這一次呢，我決定豁出去了。坦白說，我其實滿熱愛運動，可是就從來沒有很認真地把日常運動帶到另一個境界。這一次，我告訴自己，再不瘋狂就老了。我知道很多人會說，“你是瘋了嗎？4500 miles？ 72 天？騎著腳踏車？確定嗎？" 我想說，我很堅決。有什麽負面評語儘管往我扔，我已經築了一道很高很大的隱形墻，所以我是不會被任何東西左右的。過程雖然是辛苦了些，但想著受惠的人，心里頓時就什麽都不怕了。

最近很多事都不是很順利，東西全都計劃好了，但沒有一個東西好像順著計劃走。結果呢，搞得生活一團糟的感覺。如果有很多事情做，但全部都按照計劃走，那至少還不會那麽亂；最怕的就是，計劃將近完美，但事實上有很多其他的因素，搞得我的計劃好像一堆廢物了。也不知道是不是天氣變冷的關係，所有東西好像一夜之間改變了許多。忙來忙去結果什麽也沒搞好，真的氣死我了。

現在只想時間快點過，還有希望想處理的事，統統都讓我順順利利地完成。也希望，所有的活動不要再撞時間了。最後，也希望能有多點時間補充睡眠。

好期待Thankgiving Break 的到來。至少我能夠從這掐死人的生活松一口氣，吸入一些新鮮的氧氣，好讓我的身體能夠繼續操作。


~不經一番寒徹骨，怎得梅花撲鼻香
~吃得苦中苦，方爲人上人
~只要是自己想要的，就一定要堅持完成；過程越苦，成果越甜。

Countdown 200 Days: First weekend training!

I got kinda excited when I see a whole number e.g. 200. Lol I have no idea why

So today was our first weekend training!
We gathered at the place where people play badminton, and started our training soon after. We started off with track running, at the upper floor of ARC. Ran for about 4 rounds as warm up. After that, we went back down to the badminton court and did stretching.

As we stretched, we chatted a little, and have this name-remembering game. I might be good at it just now, but I don't think I could really match those names to faces the next time I see them again. Hah I suck at remembering names. But, I guess as time proceeds, I'll get better at remembering everyone's name.

We were divided into 2 groups--one with Ashley, another with Marissa. We did the Agility Ladder Drills with Ashley. Found a cool website about this here, we did only 4 of the most basic ones, cause it's really tiring. :3 Then we switched to Marissa, and did the following:

1. Jump and Jack
2. With a line in the middle (as reference), jump from left to right repetitively, starting with both legs, then left leg only, and right leg only.
3. In pumping position, use only both hands to support your body, start kicking in and out.It feels like you're running on the ground and in the pumping position.

Found a good website regarding jumping workouts too here.


We had a short break after that, and then we were divided into 4-person groups. This is when the training starts to get real tough. What we did was:

1. Jumping left hand and right leg up, then right hand and left leg up. Jump for about 400 meters (?) This is more of coordination, lol sometimes I get confused and have left hand/left leg or right hand/right leg up at the same time.. which is kinda awkward.
2. Crab walks. In squatting position, put both of your palms on the ground, and start hopping sideways.
3. Wheelbarrow (A partner is needed for this). Your partner will be lifting your legs up, and you'll be "walking" with your palms.

After that we got back together, and this time focus more on abs workout:
1. Plank
2. Side Plank (support with only one arm)
3. Lie down on the floor, raise your legs up straight and high in the air, a person will be pushing your legs in any directions, and you'll have to make sure that when the legs do down, they don't touch the ground--reach like 1 or 2 inches above ground, and you'll have to pull your legs back up.
4. and some.

I can't remember clearly, but I guess you could google up or search in youtube the basic abs workout. Also, if you think I missed out biking, no, we didn't do any biking yet.

I might be missing out quite a bit of the things we did, however that's basically it. I feel that it's a little intense for me since I have stopped working out (and all exercises) since early August. 3 months damnnnn. Gotta get back in shape! Two hours felt like 2 years lol.

Well that's it. I'm so hungry now haha :3

~Nothing comes easily. Work your ass out and just wait patiently for the results. The harder you work, the better the result is.

Countdown 201 Days: Fundraising in Progress

It's has been about 2 weeks since I started spreading around on what I am currently doing. It has been so tough for me to juggle between classes, work, and events. For the past two weeks, I have been leaving home as early as 9am, and got back earliest by 11pm. And.. that's just for classes and work, not including extra time for exam preps. For every hour I have, I start listing down people (individuals and businesses) I need to contact, things I need to prepare beforehand, and how to talk. I don't speak super good English and it sometimes makes me so hard to even brave myself to talk to people.

When I talk to small companies, the most probable things they will say is that they don't have enough fund; while for bigger companies, they need you to help them promote their restaurants/bars/shops, and they will give certain percentage of the money they earn in a particular amount of hours. For example, Panda express wants us to fix a date and time, lets say November 1st, 12pm to 3pm. They will make flyers, and we'll need to distribute it to people. When people dine in/take out (bringing in the flyers) within that 3 hours, 20% of the money that they earn in that 3 hours, will go to us. A whole lot of rules to follow. But, I guess it's okay since we can re-apply every 4 weeks. :)

Have been reaching out to so many people--friends, workers, managers, bosses, etc, it's definitely not easy, but I would say it's a good experience. This is probably my first time trying to fund-raise such huge amount of money, and also my first time speaking formal English to so many Americans. I felt like a robot because I have been repeating the similar thing over and over again. Anyways, I am really taking this to build myself into a more versatile person. First step is always the hardest, thus I am not giving up--not now, not ever!

All in all, I appreciate people who helped me out, and appreciate people who ignored me. LOL. Honestly, it's completely voluntary and if you don't want to donate, can you just say something like, "No, I don't think I wanna donate, because_______." rather than leave me hanging--neither a Yes, nor a No? I just don't know if I should ask for the second time..? I'm not sure if you have received my message but you forgot to donate, or you don't want to donate, or you wanna donate later? Just give me a Yes or a No, I just don't want to bug you forever and be the annoying person that everyone hates. Also, if anyone would like to let me know the most common reasons you don't want to donate, I would definitely like to know, this could probably help me to adjust the way that I am accustomed to fund-raise. Also, for people who say, "I'm very poor", just be honest, how poor are you? I hope you could read my previous post as well. I know the owner of Far East, a small family business, is definitely not that rich too (compared to other big companies like County Market, McD, Panda, Expresso Royale, Starbucks, etc). However I wanna say they are the kindest. :')

Thank you people who have helped me (the team and patients) out and supported us! Really, every little things mean so much to us! Thanks guys! Also if you happen to read this, drop me a message of your word of encouragement at xyphang93@yahoo.com. Anyone, any words, and photos, anything! And..... you'll be featured in my blog! :D

Full team training is starting tomorrow! Stay tuned for more posts! :D Thanks! xx


~People who helped, if not have been helpless, must've been the most empathetic ones.