I got a soap dish but I ain't got no soap
I got a hope chest, but I ain't got no hope
I got a mouse trap but no mouse
I got a household, but no house
I got the no soap, no hope, no mouse, no house blues

lysander_cat and I replaced the broken shower head yesterday, which means that the only thing outstanding on my list of things that should get done around the house is climbing up on the roof and smearing goop.

In the evening, I put on my dorky padded trousers, and went to pick up satharn. We went out to the park, arriving ridiculously early again. Other people started showing up, and posadnik_ivan was kind enough to critique my armor... this was the first time I'd worn it, and it does need a couple of alterations.

(The elbow cups need padding, which I have; the gorget needs to be padded, which, again, I have; the vambraces need to be pared down about an inch; the demi-gauntlets need reshaping so I can get my hands into sword hilts) and raventhourne offered to loan me a heater shield.

After I'd armored up, I got inspected by a couple of folks, and then went out into the practice field with Ivan. He started teaching me, and I was interested and eager to learn what he had to teach. Then he encouraged me to be active, and we moved in circles, with me throwing blows, being very active... it probably didn't last very long, less than a minute, all told, but I got out of breath, and then just couldn't catch it back.

Ivan was very gracious, reminding me that I had been in a desk job for a while, that I'd just come back from a cooler climate, that I was essentially wearing a winter coat (the gambeson under my armor) in a Tucson summer evening, and so on.

None the less, I felt soft and small for being the first one off the battlefield. Still, I had to get the helmet off, or vomit, so I chose getting the helmet off. When I came off the field, I took off my gambeson, and immediately felt cold. raventhourne gave me some good advice, that I should wait ten or fifteen minutes before taking off the gambeson; that I should bring a clean, dry t-shirt to change into once I'd started cooling off.

So, it turns out that not only am I old, fat, and slow, I'm also soft and weak.

My goal for next week is to be the second one off the practice field.

I need to get a bicycle, and start working on my wind. Of course, that brings us back to the fact that I desperately need a job....