Contra Mestre Careba of Capoeira Gerais, friends and students.
Two days until my first school dance. I had already begged my mom for new shoes and a matching shirt to go with them. All of my friends were going to meet at my house before the dance to splash on some of my dad’s favorite cologne. The girls at the dance wouldn’t stand a chance against my dad’s cologne. It was a limited edition Old Spice that was sold at the corner pharmacy. All the planning was done and then my friend Juan dropped a bomb on all of us. Juan asked, “what if they try to kiss us?” We all looked at each other and though we lied about it daily in the school yard, we all knew the truth; none of us had ever kissed a girl. I am not sure if it was Tony or Michael who said it first, but one of them stated their big brother practiced on a piece of fruit and it made him a great kisser. Not wanting to let the girls down we pooled our money and after school bought a green melon. There we sat on a bench in the park making out with that melon. People walked by and stared, but we didn’t mind, we couldn’t let all those girls down. That dance came and went. We never did get a kiss at that dance and Juan the one that gave us all that “great” idea, found out he was allergic to honey dew melons.
My friend who introduced me to capoeira gave me a used berimbau many years ago. It is always there for me to practice on when I need too. The problem is there are other instruments that are used in capoeira. Sure, a pandeiro (tamborine) isn’t that expensive, but an atabaque is really hard to find at a reasonable price. Then I saw it, my mestre was using old plastic paint containers as practice instruments for the children’s class. These containers when held between the legs act as a nice surface to practice rhythms with your hands. With a little imagination smaller and varied shaped containers can even act as a pandeiros. Once again I am “kissing the melon”; only this time they are empty plastic containers.
Superbuff - You do not need a expensive gym or equipment to get a great total body workout. Running and walking are two of the best and free ways to burn calories. Instead of weights, look towards household items like cans and vacuum cleaners to add resistance to your squats and lunges. The good old push is a great upper body conditioner and is also free of charge. Want to work your abs, just find a melon or another similar object and perform crunches while holding it to your chest.
-Juan I am sorry for hitting your back so hard, I thought you were choking on a gumball. I didn’t know your throat was swelling shut from the melon bro.
