Today is the annual New York Open Judo Competition. This year, four teams (U.S., Canada, France, and Germany) will be competing. It'll be a hell of an event, with some world-class players.
Yesterday, a bunch of guys from the German team stopped by the dojo to work out and (very kindly) to give a clinic to the kids. I have to say, they are a great bunch of guys. My great and good friend Gentle Jimmy G. (the guy who makes me seem like Rainbow Brite in comparison) stopped by and we fought like hell for about ten minutes. I had worked a graveyard shift before going to the dojo, he had downed ten pints of Guinness the night before. We were fighting like the big, strong mooks we are, but the Germans were fighing in a very beautiful, clean style. Poor us.
I joked to the administrator of the program:
"So, here we are, with all of these twenty-something German guys in the dojo, and they were so much younger, and better-looking, and they fought so prettily- the real problem is that they're really a genuinely nice bunch of guys..."
"So you can't hate them."
"You took the words right out of my mouth."
I apologize to my straight female and gay male readers for not bringing my camera to the dojo. You'll have to find your pictures of handsome, shirtless German guys with muscular physiques elsewhere. This being the internet, you shan't have any problems.
As an added bonus, I ran into the father of one of my all-time favorite students. I try not to play favorites, but it's so hard not to. I remember how I'd sit cross-legged on the mat refereeing matches between the kids, trying to project a gruff and badass demeanor, and this tiny little sprite would snuggle up to me and rest her dark-tressed head on my arm, totally ruining the effect. She's gotten her masters' degree in art history and is currently interning at a museum. To let you know the high regard in which I hold this young woman, I gave her my copy of this book, figuring it would be interesting reading and a good inspiration for a term paper when she was studying Ancient Greek... now that's saying something! I was so happy to hear that she is excelling.
Writing that last paragraph, it hit me why the attacks on women and women's health issues anger me so much- anyone who seeks to diminish one person diminishes us all. I want to build people up, not tear them down.
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6 comments:
Keep on wrasslin', for peace!
P.S. Thought I'd pass this along.
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So, is judo passé in Japan? All the action centered on the N. Atlantic now?
Looks like they're still in it to win it, M.B.
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Hmmm, no Canadian hotties???
That doesn't surprise me. :) And I prefer a messy fight than a pretty one but, that's just me.
That was a sweet story about your favourite student. There really isn't anything better than a kid snuggled up to you. She saw right through your "bastard routine" eh?
Glad to hear that she is doing well.
((Hugs))
Laura
It's always good to know that there a lot of men out there who don't feel the need to keep girls and women down. One day, I'll write (again) my story about a martial arts instructor who taught some kids in a day care class I had in the afternoons and about how loaded it is when a man says, "Are you gonna let a bunch of girls beat YOU?"
I know you know, big bald bubba, and would not say that. EVER.
Keep on wrasslin', for peace!
Yeah, a million little friendly fights are better than one big hateful one!
So, is judo passé in Japan? All the action centered on the N. Atlantic now?
Oh, no, not at all- it's just that the tournament is now a little smaller, it used to be an individual elimination tournament (with different weight classes, of course) featuring 160 players from all over the globe. For the past couple of years, it's been a smaller team tournament.
Hmmm, no Canadian hotties???
All the Canadian hotties are on my blogroll!
She saw right through your "bastard routine" eh?
I only play a bastard on the Internet, or when I'm in a situation when I want to make clear that I am not to be messed with. It's a pretty handy trick.
It's always good to know that there a lot of men out there who don't feel the need to keep girls and women down. One day, I'll write (again) my story about a martial arts instructor who taught some kids in a day care class I had in the afternoons and about how loaded it is when a man says, "Are you gonna let a bunch of girls beat YOU?"
I always spend some time throwing the kids around so they realize why they need to practice falling, and then I let the kids throw me, so they can develop some self-confidence. I LOVE the idea that an eight year old girl can step off the mat thinking, "I beat that guy!" Much of our day, we have single sex classes, because the kids swim, so it's easier to have them all change in one locker room. After the main multi-sport program ends, we do an hourlong class for all comers. My current best student is female, and I'm happy to say that she's back on the mat after having an appendectomy.
I'm comfortable in my masculinity, so I don't belittle women. Guys who disparage women are weak-willed cowards who feel threatened by them.
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