Jiu-Jitsu

I've been thinking for awhile of expanding my training program beyond weightlifting and cardio machines. It's not that there's anything wrong with that kind of training program, but I felt like it was time to do something which would combine a workout with learning new skills. Since I started regularly watching MMA matches, I've become increasingly interested in Brazilian jiu-jitsu , so I thought I might like to try it.

I searched online for places around Pittsburgh that offered classes, and found Steel City Martial Arts . I've now been taking classes for 3 weeks, and it's great, both as a workout and a discipline. After the first class I participated in, I was so sore that I could barely move, but my condition has improved with each class, and I've enjoyed learning the strategy behind the matches I've seen on TV. Sensei Achille and all of the students at Steel City have been very helpful and encouraging.

I posted a picture of myself wearing my new KF Fighter gi on Flickr.

Thrifting

The weekend before last, I had the opportunity to go "thrifting" for the first time. This involves going to a number of thrift stores back-to-back in search of new clothes. I wanted to find some new shirts and pants, since I'm always getting ribbed at work about how baggy my clothes are. (My clothes were baggy to begin with, and then I lost 40 pounds .)

My guides to the world of thrifting were Cathy and Peter, who are seasoned vets at the game, and have more fashion sense than I. We started off at Peter's house and headed over to Pamela's for breakfast. I had never been there before, so I was glad to go, since Pamela's is one of those places where you must eat at least once if you want to call yourself a true Pittsburgher.

Filled with delicious strawberry hotcakes, we made our way to the first thrift store on the circuit, the Red, White, and Blue Thrift Store . This place had tons of clothes. Alas, there were no dressing rooms, and I didn't feel comfortable buying pants without trying them on. Peter helped me find a nice Patagonia short-sleeved button down shirt, though.

The next stop was the Salvation Army thrift store on the South Side. I found a couple of button down shirts and a pair of yellow dress pants. Peter warned me that, due to their color, the yellow pants were a "limited use item", but they were only 50 cents, so I bought them anyway.

The final stop on our tour was the Goodwill thrift store on Carson Street. While we were there, Cathy threw a pair of blue jeans over the dressing room door and told me to try them on. I did, and Cathy said she liked the fit, so I decided to buy them. I didn't realize until I was out of the dressing room that they were actually women's jeans. I suppose it doesn't really matter, but I would have never tried them on if I had gone to the store alone, so I'm glad Cathy was there to pick them out.

All told, I got 4 short-sleeved button down shirts, a pair of dress pants, a pair of jeans, and 2 pairs of shorts for under $25. Since I'm pretty cheap when it comes to clothing, I remarked to Peter and Cathy that I might start buying all of my clothes at thrift stores, which elicited a horrified response. According to them, that would be taking things a bit too far. I'm afraid they may have unleashed a monster. :-)