15.4.11

I've been linked!

Well, doyle went and linked my blog, so I guess I'd better actually post something.

We moved! We live in the Mission in San Francisco now, where there are not enough back yards for us to have one, alas. But there are more coffee shops and taquerias than we know what to do with, so I guess it's a trade-off =D

So in addition to nobody's-watching-so-I-can-look-like-a-crazy-person dance parties in my living room, I've also been doing some serious ass-kicking at the gym. Last fall I started Crossfit, which basically uses gymnastics and weightlifting moves to train for the zombie apocalypse. We run around and jump on boxes and do pull-ups1 and push-ups and handstands and throw heavy weights around.

I guess the thing I really like about it is that it reminds me of playing college sports, but without the sexism. Back in college, despite being on a women's team, there were the subtle hints that we weren't as good as the boys (they ate at steakhouses on road trips while we had Denny's; they never passed to us in off-season pick-up games...). At Crossfit, the coaches expect everyone to go hard, we all encourage each other, and nobody's threatened by a woman who can bench press her bodyweight (unless they're competing against each other, of course).

And at the end of the day, I feel like I can kick a little more ass than I could yesterday. I walk a little taller. The soreness in my abs and legs reminds me of how hard I'm working.

They're doing a massive worldwide online competition now, and I threw my hat in. So far, not a week has gone by where I wasn't at least a little lacking in a skill. I made it through the last round by the skin of my teeth, as 20% of the competitors dropped out. But it's pushed me to improve on my skills--double unders, clean and jerk, kipping pull-ups--more than I would have otherwise. And by next year's competition I'll see just how much better I can do.

1. Erm... some of us try to do pull-ups. But I'm getting really close! With kipping at least.