Tae Kwon D'oh!

******* The internet connection has been down in my apartment for the last week, coinciding with my school vacation.  Couple this with the fact that I was just too lazy and unmotivated to go to a PC Bang and you have the fact that the next few posts will be a little out of date.  But I figure, what the hell, it's not like it's crucial life or death stuff I'm churning out here, a few days here or there makes no odds.  ********

Last Friday, the 29th, I had my belt test for moving from White to Yellow (level 1 to level 2).  I should have taken this test at the end of June, but had to bow out because of my gammy ankle.  I therefore missed a lot of classes at the end of last month and the begining of this one, so I was feeling ridiculously and needlessly nervous about the whole thing.  So in order to get my ass in gear I actually went to Tae Kwon Do four times the week before last.

Monday night was fine, just the usual and it felt good to be back in the routine of it.  Wednesday night was really enjoyable.  It was M's last night (this was not the enjoyable part!)  so she tested for Yellow.  After class we all sat on the floor, eating watermelon and shooting the breeze.  It was a great chance for us two foreign girls to have a nice, quiet chat with the Korean women.  When attempting to conduct a conversation in broken English and shattered Korea, the last thing you need is a lot of background noise.  We started with the traditional 'How old are you?'  to get our Confucian hierarchy sorted out and what not.  I got a flattering double-take when I confessed to being 33.  I do love those moments!  TKD Bride's eyes bugged out. 

"Chincha?!" (really)

"Chincha.  My 34th birthday is next Wednesday.  I'm your Unni."  (older sister)

Great laughter allround at that.

Randomly enough, as we were leaving our Kwan Jam Nim gave us all boxed towels.  Really nice, thick ones they were too!

So far so good.  It was Thursday night that was the real killer.

My third workout that week, my second night in a row and my muscles were begining to protest.  I held my own though and was feeling quietly pleased with myself.

Can you say 'false sense of security'?

15 minutes before the end of class we get a visit from another dojang (studio).  Thirty of the feckers - and every last one of them was a blinkin' black belt!

"You want us to spar with these guys?"

"Mwuh??!!"

In vain did I plead my lowly white belt status.

I actually held my own when it came to the sparring.  I mean, my punches and kicks were obviously no where near black belt material, but I didn't embarass myself either.

That all changed when we got to the intense exercise bit.

Hmmm, least said soonest mended.

Let's just say that I got a lot of use out of the phrase, "Chincha pigonayo!" (really tired)

Towards the end of the session Lush was doing a 'high round house kick' ( I love that I actually know what that is!) and managed to rip half the nail from her big toe off the sparring pad.  Thankfully BlackBelt Unni is both a 4th level Black Belt AND a mother and therefore has extensive first aid experience.

Being a true sucker for punishment, and as I already said, nervous about my belt test, I even showed up for class on Friday!

Good thing I did, too, as only two other students showed up:  TKD Bride and TKD Girl (she's only 10 and I wish I could do Form One as well as she does!)

I was the only Waygookin but that didn't matter for a second.  We had great fun that night, especially when we got to 'push kick' the hell out of our Kwan Jan Nim!

Asah!!

I had a regular class again the following Tuesday and then on Friday we had our belt test.  New Jersey and I were the only Whites and we were first up.  Like a complete dufus, I had forgotten that I would need to count to ten in Korean and could only manage as far a six without severe prompting. 

On the bright side, for the first time ever, I got to break a piece of wood with my foot!  Go me!!

In the words of my friend Trudy, it was 'More mercy than justice', but I am now the proud possessor of a Yellow Belt!

And just in case there was any danger of me losing interest in TKD, we got to watch the Black Belts go through their Forms and then do some sparring.  Wowsa!  Just think - five or six short years and I'll be almost as good as they are - hmmm, that sounded more inspiring in my head.

Fighting!!