Monday, March 2, 2009

Boredom and A Moment of Geeky Excitement

Absolutely nothing has gone on today. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. Nichevo. No patients, no meetings, no paperwork. My only task is preparing for tomorrow's groups, and that will take about 10 minutes. It's so boring here, in fact, that I actually welcomed a conversation with our new chaplain in which she tried to sell me on a gig at a medical center closer to Nashville. I don't think I can make it work (too much time requirement, considering I'm already working 40 hours a week), but being thought of as a good choice was nice.

Not as good was the "how great I art" conversation that another therapist subjected me to. Really, when people begin a statement with "I'm not trying to blow my own horn, but ..." the beatings really need to commence!

So today is a dull one, to be certain. But there was one small gimmer of a thrill that occurred during my wanderings through cyberspace.

I haven't spoken of my history of swordsmanship in quite some time, mainly for the reason that I don't do it anymore. There simply are no nearby places for me to fence - either European or Kendo, I've done both - so I don't. Sad, but true. I still get emails from my old group in Virginia, and every so often I feel the pangs that come with memories of buckling my swash and wiping the floor with some kid who fancies himself Inigo Montoya.

So today I came across a new DVD entitled Reclaiming the Blade. It's a documentary into how swords still affect modern culture, even though we don't carry them around and use them anymore (sadly!). It stars Viggo Mortensen and is narrated by John Rhys-Davies. I've watched the trailer, and it looks absolutely awesome. Mostly it deals with stage combat, but there are segments that involve historians and re-enactors who wish to either recapture or document the martial arts of the historical eras that involved sword combat.

Needless to say, this is going on my "I want" list. Advance shipments are going out on March 30th, with iTunes download available the same day. Regular DVD sales begin May 5th.

As an added, geek, bonus, the website can connect you with local fight clubs. I checked into it, and now realize just what those odd looking people are doing in the park with those foam covered sticks! And no, I don't plan on joining them anytime soon!

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