Judo begins

I had my first beginner Judo class. While it was just exercise, demonstrations, and practice breakfalls, it was nonetheless a reminder of mortality. It has been a long time since I have done pushups or situps, especially in 20-repetition sets between other exercises. Furthermore, some of the Judo-specific warmups are both unfamiliar and challenging. In the first session, we got as far as practicing straight-back breakfalls and the preliminaries to O-goshi.

I’m confident that I never thought about my dissertation, or even climate change activism, during the 90-minute class.

Author: Milan

In the spring of 2005, I graduated from the University of British Columbia with a degree in International Relations and a general focus in the area of environmental politics. In the fall of 2005, I began reading for an M.Phil in IR at Wadham College, Oxford. Outside school, I am very interested in photography, writing, and the outdoors. I am writing this blog to keep in touch with friends and family around the world, provide a more personal view of graduate student life in Oxford, and pass on some lessons I've learned here. View all posts by Milan