June 16, 2006

Talked to Darin today, my friend from training who is a brown belt. When he lived in Chicago, we trained together with the Carlsons. He and his wife Linh took a trip last year that's similar to the one I'm taking: they drove around the country, mostly out west, and Darin trained BJJ everywhere he could. When they were done, they moved back to their native Kentucky and he started his own academy, called The Submit Pit. I love this name! He and Linh are the first stop on my trip, so I called him to touch base and make sure he was expecting me. Here is how the first part of the conversation went:

Me: Hey, Darin, it's Val.

Darin (said in best Kentucky twang): Valerie Worthington! You fuckin' blueblood!*

Me: Yeah, right.

Darin: Are you sure you should be talking to me? Maybe you should be talking to a Rockefeller or a fuckin' Rothschild instead.

For what should be obvious reasons, I can't wait to see Darin!

*A little background: My full name is Valerie Lynn Worthington. It's pretty English sounding, and throughout my life, people have given me crap for it (like my friend Ken, who always calls me "Valerie Worthington of the Pennington Worthingtons." Pennington is my home town and unfortunately also sounds kind of English), or have assumed that I'm a snob or descended from royalty. But then they get to know me and realize how hilarious that is.