CG, I'm sure you'd do fine. I saw tourneys as a way to see how my training measured up in a "live" situation. But, like any parent, I was way more nervous watching my daughter compete than for myself. :eek:

Sparring was a big part of our dojo structure, so it was no big deal for tourneys. Everyone wore head, hand/foot gear (women also wore chest padding).

So, if you opt out of going against an opponent, how will you earn the black belt? You've come so far. You've got to finish this off, right? lol

Yes, there's head gear, foot gear, and all kinds of padding, it's just that it's just padding. Still, there are exposed body parts, and one round-kick to the head, and guess what?... I don't want to experience that, nor do I want to give it to someone else. I'm all for sparring, but in my experience with my sensei, the tournaments are so much more different, and much more involved. I've been at it for almost 7-years, and it works great for working out and staying in shape.

I can still get my black belt when that time comes. Fighting an opponent is only one part of earning a black belt in his dojo. The other part is breaking two bricks with one piece of wood. He prefers both, but gives the option of opting-out of the fighting. The bricks and wood are mandatory. I know when that time comes, I'll be nervous about that alone. But fighting someone? Uh, uh, no way.

Would scrapbooking be considered a talent? lol

Absolutely. You have to have an eye for design to do that.

I can tie a maraschino cherry stem into a knot with my teeth. Yep.

I don't so much now but I used to do a lot of creating writing. I have won a couple of poetry contests and one of my pieces won a national competition in college.

And it's not a skill per se but my long-term memory is pretty awesome. It's close to what would be called a "photographic memory" though some debate if that's actually a thing or not. My job at B&N was awesome because I remembered where just about every book was. I haven't worked there in years and still remember Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance was in the last row, 2nd bay to the left, 3rd shelf from the bottom.

It also came in handy during intake for Delta-- I got my line name from being able to master history. If I was asked any information, I could spit it verbatim and tell you the page number where I found it. I'm a bit of a Hermione Granger in that way...sounding like I swallowed a book. :o

I have completed all of the RAD Vocational (professional) ballet exams, save for Solo Seal!

I am fluent in Latin, and have a basis in Old Irish, and have read Harry Potter in Latin.

I have a weirdly good memory for specific details, so the history thing makes sense :)

I can walk on my hands for a long time. To take in account my age, I shouldn't be doing this.

I have won awards for hula hooping. (And it's a great waist-whittler.)

But I think my doberman has the best talent ... she poops directly into a plastic bag!
(People on the street STARE when she does this. Taught her the 1st week I got her.)

I am really great at reading out loud and making a story come alive. Seriously. I've read Harry Potter out loud twice, when my youngest and oldest were each in kindergarten 7 years apart. (Usually we get to the second book in the series when they are starting first grade and they quickly tire of having to wait for Mama, so they pick up the book and read it themselves.) I read Hamlet out loud to all three of my kids a couple of years ago, and even the pre-schooler was enthralled.

I love volunteering at my kids' school when they have parents in to read out loud, but rarely get the chance. I read a chapter of "The Sky Inside" to my daughter's 4th grader classmates last year. The next time I visited the classroom, one of the kids told me that their class kept all three copies of that book checked out of the school library for a month because they wanted to hear the rest of the story. That made my heart sing!

Most people know that I enjoy cooking and I'm wicked good at it (especially Indian cooking). What most people don't know is that I'm also really good at baking. I can make a nice flaky pie crust, savory or sweet. And my challah ... I seldom bake challah, but when I do, it comes out perfectly. I recently learned how to braid a six-braid challah. It was nummy. :)