Friday, 12 June 2009
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Just another day at the office...
We lounged on the cool surface of the mat, our breathing no longer labored but our clothing still drenched in sweat. Our conversation was light, breezy; laughter came easily in the euphoric afterglow of an evening spent pushing ourselves to exhaustion. It didn’t bother me that exhaustion came much sooner than it used to, or that my role in the evening’s exercises was solely that of the instructor—my days of active participation are well behind me now—it just felt good to be in the gym, with like-minded people, killing time waiting for Eddie and Richard to return from the hospital.
Eddie’s shoulder had gone wrong during a sparring session with Dakota, and Richard had driven him to the emergency room. It might surprise the reader to find that Rob and I were able to joke in such a relaxed manner while awaiting word on the extent of Eddie’s injury, but one has to realize that is simply the nature of a fight gym: people get hurt. It’s not a question of if; it’s a question of when. The laws of probability being what they are, the math catches up with everyone eventually, and what looked to our experienced-bordering-on-jaded eyes like a simple shoulder dislocation was actually pretty good news…as injuries go, that’s not bad at all.
So it wasn’t that we didn’t care; we did, as a matter of fact, and that’s why we were still in the gym, more than two hours after closing, waiting for Eddie and Richard to come back. It’s just that we knew it could have been much worse, and as such didn’t let it get us down.
“We probably should have followed Eddie out the door,” said Rob, upon realizing that neither of us had a key, and that one of us could theoretically end up waiting all night for Eddie to get back and lock up.
“No big deal.” I answered. “It’s not like this is the first time we’ve ever been mat-rats.” A mat-rat, for the uninitiated, is a guy who isn’t working out but hangs out on the mat and socializes. Some people use it as a derogatory term, but I don’t. Surfers spend all their time between waves lounging on the beach; I just look at the mat as the grappler’s beach.
“This is totally different,” came Rob’s mock protest. Then, quieter: “It’s a different mat.” A good laugh was had.
Not long after that, Richard and Eddie returned, Eddie newly-accessorized with a stylish sling and in good spirits. Nothing was broken, and the gym’s diagnosis-by-consensus had been accurate: dislocation. For an injured man with a visit to the orthopaedist in his near future, Eddie wasn’t all that worried: he’d once competed in a state wrestling tournament with a dislocated shoulder, so he wasn’t particularly stressed over the idea of coaching with one.
Just another day at the office…
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Comments (12)
I always wanted to join a dojo or fight gym. If I didn't go become a nerd I probably would be doing professional MMA by now (or have just joined the military and sought special forces green beret). Oh well, I will just have to long for it as I read nerdy stuff and dream of being paid to punch someone in the face haha
@bryangoodrich - I found time to be a nerd and fight...you can too! (That's my recruitment pitch. LOL)
You'd actually be surprised how many guys in the gym are, apart from the talent for mangling the human body with strikes and submission holds, total nerds. Books, movies, comics, college classes, philosophy...these are all frequent topics of discussion.
@mysterylad - yeah, I know. I just have had a lot on my plate for awhile, and no money to spend on said stuff. I'm just trying to focus on getting back in shape after graduating now, and before grad school starts. If after my one-year master program things are going well, and I'm still in shape, I'll probably try and get into some martial arts.
@bryangoodrich - I hear you...it's a pricey hobby. We're actually quite reasonably priced (it's only $70 a month for our MMA program), but that's reflective of the region we live in: The same program--taught by a boxing coach with several titles and a jiu-jitsu black belt--would run double that in bigger cities. I hope you find the time someday! Even if you don't dive into the full MMA experience, you're never too old to start jiu-jitsu.
huh. this is a side i would have never guessed, really. cool. i think. scary if you are a lil' wimpy girl like me. heh.
@mysterylad - Yeah, there's some places around here that charge around 60-90 I can join, but I'm very jewish. I didn't like my 24 hour fitness membership for being $29, so I got a Costco 2yr 24 membership for 300 making it average out to $12.5 a month! That, I can happily put to use (and am this summer. I'm sor as hell right now!). There's some rock climbing gym and martial art studio gym combos in the Sacramento area, but I lack time and transportation to get around that much (lots of sprawl here). If I could find myself a cheap one close to home, it would be awesome. I fear it will just have to wait until after grad school, though. In the mean time, I'll just work on getting fit again, running marathons and traithlons and train on my own or with friends until I can find a good dojo to join.
Sounds like a blast. I loved the winded-from-flying-jump-kicks feeling as a kid. Nowadays, an hour jumping around with my guitar is high impact enough.
@MooncatBlue - I imagine you're not the only one surprised; I came to Xanga having pretty much hung up my gloves; only recently did I figure out that I could continue teaching without sparring. During the time I wasn't involved in the scene, I was a little depressed about it...hence, fighting isn't a subject I've talked about much in this space.
When I was a wee lad, I heard the term "Renaissance Man," and decided that's what I wanted to be when I grew up. So I've spent every day since then attempting to master every esoteric skill I can possibly master, which includes fighting. The combative arts are, for me, an emotional and intellectual high every bit as compelling as music, art, literature, or film.
@mysterylad - well then... i find you to be ridiculously well rounded. Actually I have to admit I am having an inspired moment over the way you put that. It's good to prove either/ or to be fallacy. Not enough people do. Including myself.
@MooncatBlue - Aw, shucks...
Here's what I don't know - I don't know anyone you just wrote about. You brought me into your world for a moment, and as I just wrote in my comment to your last post, get humping on writing, and living life.For the two minutes it took me to read and respond, I spent several hours with you in that gym - waiting. That's talent.
Side bar, your honor. Look! Rennaissance man, in a complex and specialized society people are prone to do their job, then come home and zone out - actually numb and dumb out. There's an effeing book in there hiding. I think of the small book by Winston Churchill, Painting as a pastime. That book helped change my perspective on life. Your involvements balance work, family and interestsin ways that can be instructional and inspiring to others without a hint of being a How To book, or a purposefullu inspiration book in some spiritual sense. It need only be honest and genuine.
Take everyone of your friends and have them tell a story about something they've done or experienced in their life; especially the old folks - grandparents and the like. Write a poem or a song about that; them. There may be a separate challenge, if you have to switch up on your preferred musical genre to accomplish the task.
Ok. Enough. Time to clean the cat's litter box.