Corusca

After-Wedding Stuff

by Raquel @ Monday, May 11 2009, in general

People usually do a New Years’ ‘what I want to do this year’ lists, and I did one myself this year, however due to a variety of things I have yet do do much on it.

I have sort of managed to do ‘Read more books and comics’ and ‘Watch more TV shows and animes’, but some of the other points I’ve either not been able to do at all or have failed miserably at so far. :P

Anyway, since there’s a ton of stuff I’ve been postponing due to the wedding planning, I’m going to go crazy here and do the same kind of list but for the ‘after the wedding context’.

So what do I want to achieve after the wedding/honeymoon?

  • Start practicing a martial art. Been thinking of Tai Chi for ages now, but the class schedules are always sucky (need a post laboral or weekend schedule). Recently I found out that it’s easier to find weekend schedules for stuff like Iaido or Kendo than for Tai Chi. I’ll just have to warn the instructor about my bad knee so I don’t frak it up permanently. Leaning toward Iaido. Anyone knows of decent martial arts shops in Lisbon? (found one but the Iaitos there were… let’s say ‘pricey’, and we need to get two of those since kitten is also interested in practicing :p)
  • ‘Hitting it’ on Cookapalooza!. What’s ‘Cookapalooza!’? So far, still a work-in-progress/prototype idea for a cooking group some friends of mine have decided to create and invited me to. I have some ideas for contributions to it which I’ll only mention AFTER I can actually do them. :p The ‘hitting it’ also includes cooking more elaborate stuff, which I’ve rarely done lately because I’ve been so very tired most the time, and I lack the energy to do anything other than basic stuff so we don’t starve.
  • Start having Japanese lessons. Yeah, this one has a minor issue I think. The weekend class schedule of the course I was thinking of attending is probably going to overlapse with the martial arts class. I’ll have to investigate further. The downside? I was thinking of going to a comic book workshop, but that also overlapses with stuff. Decisions, decisions…
  • Revamp Corusca. I’ve been wanting to do it for almost a year now. It’s not just a I-want-to-change-how-it-looks thing. It’s a let’s redo the organization, add some new sections and some other stuff I won’t tell you about right now.
  • Play pen & paper RPGs. Been feeling like playing Dungeons & Dragons on a semi-regular basis for a while now. May opt to look for rotating between hosting events and doing them on a store where one can play for a few hours or something (like we used to on Devir), just so we’re not always stuck inside our house, so to speak. I like varying my surroundings or I end up heading toward depression. :p I’m completely out of the loop regarding these types of stores in the general Lisbon area – since Devir’s large store closed, I have no clue what are the current tabletop/card games/RPG hangout places. Anyone knows?
  • Redecorate -or simply decorate- some parts of our house. The office is most likely getting a cool new desk, and we’re ‘modding’ it. Not a huge mod, a simple, pretty one. The kitchen needs some shelves so we can place some new plants there and host the ones we already have. The hall will probably get a new, discreet bookshelf.  (We need a new bookshelf. So many books, so little book-keeping space… ) And there will be all around framing of pretty images, movie posters and photos, so we hang them in our houses’ bare walls.

I’m probably forgetting something but if I don’t stop writing now, this will turn into a War & Peace-length text. Have a nice week.

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5 Comments for this entry

  • Luís F. Alves
    May 11th, 2009 on 19:31

    Let’s take it easy with the elaborate cooking, shall we? i’ll be starting from scratch, and i’d rather learn the easier stuff first :D

  • Ravhin
    May 11th, 2009 on 19:38

    Practicing Iaido is a great idea (and no I’m not biased, really !! :P ). You don’t need to worry about getting an iaito for a while (I was some 6 months or so just using a bokken), but they will always cost something I personally can’t classify as cheap, but hey it’s a matter of safety.

    The best bargains usually come from international seminars. The sensei don’t bring their own weapons, and the ones they bring to use on the seminar are sold there very cheaply, so it’s a matter of opportunity. Anyway, if you wish I can advise you some stores (net ones forget any physical store in Portugal) or if you come to our dojo we have “other ways” to get quality gear a little cheaper.

    Japanese classes also seem a good idea ;) Universidade Nova (av Berna) has a course one day a week (18:30 – 21:00). The teacher doesn’t push the pace too much, which is nice for people like me who don’t really have the time for too much study. I know a couple of other places but they are not so “worker friendly”. Still if you want some more info just ask, I’ll ask around.

    As for rpg friendly stores in Lisbon… As far as I know there’s not a single one left. Well you may be able to use Homem Azul (at least I think it’s still open), but only if it’s not full of wargamers. I’m not aware of any surviving store.

  • Ravhin
    May 11th, 2009 on 19:50

    Just remembered ! Besides Iaido there is also Jodo, which is tons of fun and probably the softer one on the knees, check it out if it interests you : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frISBSkFJYQ

    Of course the best option is allways Iaido+Jodo ^^

  • Raquel
    May 11th, 2009 on 21:31

    @Luís F. Alves well yes, but we can always try out simple stuff for the ‘novices’ (not that I am any kind of expert), in parallel with slightly more complicated stuff. :)

    @Ravhin Oh, thanks for the information! :) We’re leaning more toward Iaido, because we found a nice schedule for us (we’re only starting in September or so, though), and also because I’m admittedly a major fan of Japanese swords and such. *blushes*

    Anyway, I shall investigate more about both Iaido and Jodo. :) To see if there are any contraindications regarding knee issues (like my dislocated rotula) and if I should take any special precatutions – I’ll probably wear knee pads to protect the knee a bit.

    Too bad about the RPG stores. :\ Would be nice to have another place to play. Bleh.

  • Ravhin
    May 12th, 2009 on 10:21

    The best you have to do is to drop by one day and try a lesson, free of charge ofc . There are better people than me to tell you any precautions with the knees but iaido does stress them allot. Still I know of quite a few people who practice with bad knees, and even when doing examinations they do standing variants of sitting forms, so as long as the sensei are aware of your condition it shouldn’t be a problem.

    About knee pads, we all use them :P well some people don’t but you either need much practice, knees of steel or to be insane.

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