Once a year MLM (My Lord & Master) travels abroad with his mentor Geordie Paul to sample the delights of an intensive aikido course. They either go to Belgium or France. This year it's France and they will, with a few hundred others, jump about in their white pyjamas and black skirts (see my previous post 'My Boyfriend's Skirt'). MLM is a second dan and, I think, very good. I've seem him do stuff you normally only see in movies - but remember, movie actions scenes are choreographed and what he and his colleagues do is for real.

So I'm left behind {boo hoo} for nearly 2 weeks until they come back laden with duty free wine and whining about each other like an old married couple. They're good mates but after 2 weeks of intensive association they have had enough and end up moaning to me about the other's snoring or flatulence or eating habits.

Had they been to Lesneven this year they'd have been doing the following. It's a clip from the actual course. In this they're practising 'rolling around'. Now you SERIOUSLY need to be able to roll around safely in order to take the falls necessary but an entire room of hundreds of fit people doing nothing but rolling around makes me laugh. It's the ultimate ROFWLMAO: Rolling On the Floor Without Laughing My Ass Off!

But in seriousness here's the Big Daddy O'Sensai showing what he could do at a very advanced age and that's heavy duty. Perhaps it could be said his fellows are giving him a bit of an easy ride in this but there's no doubting his fluidity, ability and the respect he's earned. In his earlier days he had killed people (eek) until going into the 'way of harmony'.

I guess I'll have to keep being an aikido widow for years to come but I'll look forward to seeing how MLM progresses and the benefits he gains (plus he comes back rather taut and fit so I gain too!)