PIPEbit

PIPE Kwan Do 1984

Apr 012012

My dad, mom and I took Tae Kwan Do when I was six years old. The year was 1984, the “Karate Kid” debuted in theaters, and tennis was still a popular recreational sport.

My dad was a very competitive guy in ’84 and he had a proper Chuck Norris mustache then. I don’t know the origins of this, but it probably had something to do with his newfound interest in martial arts. Wanting to emulate my dad, but unable to grow facial hair, I suggested we take a class to learn “karate moves”. Eventually, dad found an Italian instructor in the suburbs who knew something about the Korean style of Tae Kwan Do.

I am not sure of mom’s opinion of this. She is the opposite of a competitive athlete and not a big Chuck Norris fan. Still, she took Tae Kwan Do with dad and me and developed the ability to break wooden boards with swift piercing kicks. She was also working full time, writing her doctoral dissertation and managing a household that included me, my dad, and my one-year-old sister, Megan. The three of us put on our uniforms twice a week, practiced forms and boasted when we splintered timber. I learned a little Korean and went so far as to win a medal in a tournament.

Recently, I have been thinking about what would have happened if I continued Tae Kwan Do beyond age six. I probably would have studied Korean in college or spent time in Asia seeking inner truth. I might have turned into one of those kids who start fights in high school or ordered a custom letterman jacket with my dojo’s logo on it. One can only speculate. In the end, my family stopped taking the class because the Italian instructor broke my dad’s ribs during a sparring session. This was in clear violation of the oath. I remember being disappointed that we stopped going to class, that dad got hurt and mom never got to realize her athletic potential or grew to appreciate Chuck Norris. And I never entered another tournament – my path to glory unfulfilled. Disappointment soon vanished when I forgot about martial arts and discovered Star Wars.

After a 27 year hiatus, I decided to reacquaint myself with Tae Kwan Do. After class, I call my dad and we reminisce about the old days. I tell him that my jumping sidekick is improving but is not quite powerful enough to halve anything. Still, the Tae Kwan Do experience has made me realize that it is never too late to learn martial arts, and who knows, after a few years of training and a high enough belt level, maybe my wife will support a Chuck Norris style mustache?

PIPEtism

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Dec 182011

A few years ago I left my job in Pennsylvania and moved to Argentina. Back then, everyone asked me, “why Argentina”? I didn’t speak Spanish or have a professional opportunity there. Somehow, I just knew I had to move. And sometimes foolish decisions lead to stories with happy endings.

I started a blog called PIPEinArgentia about my adventures drinking coffee in Buenos Aires. PIPE stands for “Positioned In Perpetual Exploration”. I explored a little, but mostly I spent my time at this little café on the corner of Humboldt and Santa Fe playing mental chess with a patron called “The Deputy”. He was a guy that operated the register for the café owner once in a while, except that The Deputy was also kind of a super villain. In the end, we became friends.

Then out of nowhere, my life changed. I met Reena, who was taking week’s vacation from her job in Washington, DC. We collided into each other on Humboldt Street. After the collision, I spent all of my time on Skype telling Reena everything I could think of. Without really understanding what was happening, I moved back to the States, found a job in DC, convinced Reena to marry me and finished business school. It has been an amazing ride.

Now, I want to introduce PIPEbit. This is a blog for men in their thirties, men like me coming off of an adventure that launched them into adulthood, into love and responsibility and into watching movies on the sofa with a slanket. The PIPE in PIPEbit has to do with maintaining that sense of adventure, but it’s mostly about getting a little better at things or doing a little good at times. Because when you are in your thirties and you have a beautiful wife and a slanket, it is easy to get cozy in the whole thing. But it is also important to explore…to improve. As I learned from previous adventures, you never really know what will happen unless you try something new.