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Haunted By Goldish
Sep. 15th, 2012 05:46 pmToday one of our white belts, who is probably 5 or 6, came off the mats with his arms outstretched. I think he was going for water, but I asked him if he had been turned into a zombie, and he said yes. Then, when I asked him and his sister if they were ready for their yellow belt test (in two weeks) she said yes, and he said he was scared. When I asked why he was scared, though...
"Because I'm haunted."
"You're... haunted?"
"Uh-huh." He then proceeded to tell me about how one of their fish died, and then another of their fish died, but the old granddaddy fish was still alive, and he was afraid that in the night the fish skeletons rose up and got out of the room and went to the dojang.
Or... something.
I kind of lost track somewhere in the middle, but I'm pretty sure it didn't make any sense to start with. Whatever the case, it was kind of hilarious.
And don't worry. I did inform Master Paul that the dojang might be haunted by fish. *g*
Personally, though, I'd prefer fish to the 3"+ house centipede that decided to appear on the wall at the end of class the other week. It managed to get away before we could kill it, the attempt being made only after a long conversation about whose responsibility the actual killing of Jurassic-Sized Bugs was. It has, thankfully, not been seen since.
Lastly, a few things that I have noticed this week in the dojang that really should Go Without Saying but apparently don't.
1. Cut your nails. This is actually in the student handbook as one of the rules. Keep your fingernails and toenails short. Because seriously? You are practicing a sport that involves your hands and feet coming in close contact with other people. One of the other adult women... the only other adult woman, I should say... has really long nails, and nearly gouged my face practicing self-defense yesterday. I hope that Master Paul actually says something to her about it, because it's really not safe, and it's right there in writing.
2. Wash your dobok.
Let me repeat that one, in case you somehow missed it. WASH YOUR DOBOK. Especially if you sweat a lot. I will be the first to admit that I do not wash mine after every class, but it gets washed after every 2-3 uses, and more frequently if I think it needs it.
Like if it gets a visible mark on it. For example, if you do an elbow strike to the part of the heavy bag with the big red logo on it, some of the paint tends to transfer itself to your sleeve. I learned that the hard way. And when that happens, and you don't wash your dobok, the red mark is still there TWO WEEKS LATER, and just as vivid as ever so it's OBVIOUS that you haven't washed it.
Oh, and also? You start to smell.
Like, as in bad enough that someone else occupying the space where you just were can still smell you.
We won't even discuss the unpleasantness of having to practice such moves as side headlock and rear choke with such a person. I'll leave it to your imagination.
"Because I'm haunted."
"You're... haunted?"
"Uh-huh." He then proceeded to tell me about how one of their fish died, and then another of their fish died, but the old granddaddy fish was still alive, and he was afraid that in the night the fish skeletons rose up and got out of the room and went to the dojang.
Or... something.
I kind of lost track somewhere in the middle, but I'm pretty sure it didn't make any sense to start with. Whatever the case, it was kind of hilarious.
And don't worry. I did inform Master Paul that the dojang might be haunted by fish. *g*
Personally, though, I'd prefer fish to the 3"+ house centipede that decided to appear on the wall at the end of class the other week. It managed to get away before we could kill it, the attempt being made only after a long conversation about whose responsibility the actual killing of Jurassic-Sized Bugs was. It has, thankfully, not been seen since.
Lastly, a few things that I have noticed this week in the dojang that really should Go Without Saying but apparently don't.
1. Cut your nails. This is actually in the student handbook as one of the rules. Keep your fingernails and toenails short. Because seriously? You are practicing a sport that involves your hands and feet coming in close contact with other people. One of the other adult women... the only other adult woman, I should say... has really long nails, and nearly gouged my face practicing self-defense yesterday. I hope that Master Paul actually says something to her about it, because it's really not safe, and it's right there in writing.
2. Wash your dobok.
Let me repeat that one, in case you somehow missed it. WASH YOUR DOBOK. Especially if you sweat a lot. I will be the first to admit that I do not wash mine after every class, but it gets washed after every 2-3 uses, and more frequently if I think it needs it.
Like if it gets a visible mark on it. For example, if you do an elbow strike to the part of the heavy bag with the big red logo on it, some of the paint tends to transfer itself to your sleeve. I learned that the hard way. And when that happens, and you don't wash your dobok, the red mark is still there TWO WEEKS LATER, and just as vivid as ever so it's OBVIOUS that you haven't washed it.
Oh, and also? You start to smell.
Like, as in bad enough that someone else occupying the space where you just were can still smell you.
We won't even discuss the unpleasantness of having to practice such moves as side headlock and rear choke with such a person. I'll leave it to your imagination.