Happy Birthday to Me: Looking Ahead at My 33rd Year

Yesterday I watched the UFC fights with my all my coaches and a couple of my students and for the first time as I watched, I felt nervous. As each pair of competitors entered the ring, I had a felt it at the pit of my stomach. Midway through the fights, I realized why.

I was recently told that I would likely be doing my first professional MMA fight within the next couple of weeks. There are two events that are on the table, one on Nov. 21 in Red Deer, Alberta and one at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington on Nov. 29. So as I watched the fighters, I was imagining stepping into the ring myself. It is finally going to happen and it's starting to sink in. I'm no longer going to be separated from the violent competition I've been watching on TV over the past year, I'm going be in it, taking the hits and dishing them out while another woman does the same.

I would have mentioned it on here sooner, but I wanted to wait until closer to the event in case it didn't work out. There have been a lot of false starts this year that never materialized. That just how it goes. In fact, there is still a chance that things could get cancelled at the last minute, so until my flight to Red Deer gets booked, don't go and buy a ticket in hopes of seeing me fight.

I turned 32 this past Thursday. In taking stock of the last year, I realized it had been a long one. There had been a lot of ups and downs. I was laid off from my job at the end of February. And though I didn't end up starting my pro MMA career in the spring, I did managed to get a flexible job that allowed me to continue my training. Then when I just got comfortable in that new job, I was laid off again, just this past Tuesday. It was essentially a 2-person marketing consultancy and the bad economy hit the company hard.

So now I'm back where I was in February, though I'm not as thrown by it this time. With 2 fights on the horizon, I definitely have something to focus on and look forward to. But outside of training, I've also amassed a lot of useful portfolio pieces over the last 6 months so I'm confident it won't take me long to find work. If I had my way, I'd get a few sponsorships for my pro-MMA career, then I could just do freelance work on the side.

Hey, you never know.

While the last year of my life has had it downs, it has also had its ups. My dojo is thriving and I was able to develop a second instructor, allowing me to expand my classes. I even found someone who will worry about me as I step into the ring while watching through his fingers.

Like Randy Couture, I don't feel like age is catching up on me. While the results of his match against Brock Lesnar were disappointing (don't get me started on Lesnar... he so didn't deserve to be the one to defeat Randy... it should have been Fedor Emelianenko... sorry, I digress...), he is truly making the most of his life, still competently entering the octagon at the age of 45.

I feel lucky and excited to start off my 33rd year with a bang. I plan to make the best of it. And if you can make it to one of my fights, come by and say hi afterwards. :)