Women's open mat weekend

I was in Richmond this past weekend for the women's open mat at Andrew's academy. Chrissy got an unofficial count of 31 women who attended, including at least 4 purple belts (Jennie, Nyjiah, me, another one I didn't get to meet but who looked really tough) who trained and one who couldn't because she's busy gestating the first of her next generation of grapplers (Marie, who took a bunch of pictures). I'm sure I came the farthest, but there were ladies from all over Maryland, all over Virginia, DC, Philly, and I think even a North Carolinian or two.

Andrew's regular Saturday class started at noon, when we got to train with some guys (I went with Vince, Tommy, Andrew, and JB, all of whom are super fun!), and then at 2 we slowly pushed them out. At any given time there were always a bunch of chicks rolling, but there were also a bunch of chicks talking. Marie (the pregnant purple) commented about how the opportunity to TALK with women who train was as important as actually being able to train with them. I couldn't agree more.

Even though I was blabbing with the best of them, I estimate that I got in about 2 and a half or 3 solid hours of rolling, all told. So then about 10 sweaty, smelly, starving chicks made our way to a steak place where I did justice to a half-pound burger with caramelized onions and bleu cheese. But true to my Zone leanings, I had the veggies (no butter) instead of fries. And then we went back to the Linzys to hang out and act silly. (My way of acting silly was to grade papers and spill a big glass of red wine on the carpet. Thank God for Wine Out.)

Another cool thing is that Sean, a Burdo blue belt, who made a documentary about BJJ in Richmond, interviewed me for his sequel (speaking of blabbing). The guys interviewed me on Fri night after I had been rolling for a little while. I thought I looked pretty unkempt, but Sean said, "It's too bad you don't look like you've been rolling." They asked me questions about how I got into BJJ, what it does for me, what it's like to be a woman who trains, my thoughts on women grapplers, etc. I have been thinking about all of these things a lot, throughout my journey but especially lately, so I had plenty to say. Thank God also for the cutting room floor. That should be ready in March, Sean said.

Yesterday was a lazy day with brunch and napping, and then I got back to LA late late in the evening. Back to the routine. The busy, busy routine. I have been thinking a lot about my routine and how it has become kind of a grind. That's exactly what I wanted to get away from when I left Chicago, so I am thinking about ways to get back to having more time to live mindfully.