fists o' fury

... my wonderfully inaccurate Karatedo nickname from my training partner. My fight record of 1-1-3 (W-L-T) doesn't seem to agree with that designation.

Everyone should take a martial arts class at some point in their lives (preferably during University). My rational is: 1) You're old enough to know that you won't be learning how to break bricks and smash boards with your hands... that's what sledge-hammers are for. 2) You're young enough that this stuff may come in handy.

I've been fortunate enough in my life to have not been in too many situations where my personal safety has been at risk. For those times that I have been, Matt and Chris have been around (thankfully). Reality though, is that at some point you may need to fight or run. It's hard to predict what I would have done a year ago, but I think it's safe to say that my odds of getting out of a bad situation are a lot better now. Simple things like being able to identify when a situation is going bad are a lot clearer since I've actually been in a situation where someone wants to kick--my--ass. Forget the referee... when someone comes at you with fists cocked, it doesn't matter that you are wearing a helmet, and that there are people around to keep things under control.

This guy wants to hurt me.

After the first few fights you stop panicking. My sensei says that once you advance beyond the basics, 80% of fighting becomes a mental challenge. It's like playing chess while someone's throwing punches at you. Bobby Fisher... you ain't gonna make it in this ring. And talk about instant feedback! You make a dumb-ass mental mistake while playing Risk, then boohoo. You get cracked in the head, you learn a lot faster.