The past weekend was a long-weekend in Singapore, because of two ethnic holidays in succession: Deepavali (Hindu) and Hari Raya Puasa (Islam).

I decided to catch up on some exercise by rollerblading at East Coast Park. This is a long stretch of beach with a fairly long bike track (about 20km 1-way) hugging the coastline. Here is a couple of observations I made while on the move.

I saw an old man (mid-50’s?) practising skating backward. Although the movements might not have been very elegant or flowing, it really got me thinking: if someone who is in the ‘frail’ bracket can attempt something different and willing to take some risks, why can’t we, the younger folks, do the same?

It was a rather wet weekend at times – it is the rainy season in Singapore right now. Skating in the drizzle – not recommended by the way, because of the potential damage done to the wheels – was somewhat like looking out a car in the rain, while wearing a wet T-shirt and with the window open: foggy, damp and windy.