Sho mo nai!

Time for a change, and the change is good.

Have I mentioned that I'm pretty much done with judo? We haven't practiced more than twice since August. There have only really been two members of the club for the longest time now, and the other member, Tom, wants to take more time for the novel he is writing. And as you ought to know from the previous four or so posts, I am a social animal. So the tiny tiny club of two of us and an instructor, while great for getting me to develop unusually fast in some respects, did little for maintaining my motivation.

I've decided to go for the second level anyways (thanks, Dad).

But what has me excited now is jujitsu. Jujitsu (/Jujutsu) is the Brazilian variation of judo. Judo focuses a lot on throwing, jujitsu focuses a lot on grappling on the ground. I've done two classes so far, and as of next week they will let me start sparring. There are two classes a week, but I can only really ever make it to the Wednesday one because the other is on Sunday when we usually have church or bible study. Nonetheless, it seems like there are usually four to ten people there on Wednesdays, and a couple of people near my hight and or over my weight. So yay for balance! This really is the next logical step for me. Judo has made me comfortable with a lot of the stuff that comes up already in jujitsu, and more than that, has given me the vocabulary necessary to understand instruction and corrections.

It's a pair of blue belts who conduct the class, though apparently there is a purple belt who does the sunday classes. What made me sure that this class was for me was when the main blue belt, Matsuda-san said while demonstrating holds and counters, "Don't think of it as a martial art. It's a game." Surely jujitsu isn't a sport in the way judo is. But there certainly are those strategy and tactics elements that make games fun. You can't play a fight, but you can play a game. I like to play. It's time for a change, and the change is good.

posted by Fletcher @ 5:14 p.m.