NIA: Neat, but not for me

Often willing to try new things, I was interested enough when my wife read the description of a new class at the Brambelton Center put on by Parks and Rec. NIA, she read, stands for Non-Impact Aerobics and is a mix of yoga, dance, and martial arts. While I dance the same or less than your average guy in his 30s (which means not too much), the yoga and martial arts intrigued me.

Sure, I figured it would prove a little female-heavy, based on the description. But when I showed up at the Brambelton Center Monday night, I discovered I was the ONLY dude in the mix, not to mention the youngest.

Minutes later, while flapping my arms around like a drunken monkey, listening to the latest CD from Rainforest Cafe, I understood the demographic perfectly. I belonged there about as much as I belong in the YWCA or the WNBA.

I hung in there for about half an hour, pulling moves like "clean the cobwebs", "catch the ball", and "carry the pale" with a reservation not lost on the instructor. Quickly, she came after me to shoo me from my back corner of the room, and managed to coral me right out the door and into the Teen Center. Much more comfortable there.

I waited for my wife on the other side of the wall, still hearing the shouts and ululations and feeling immensely thankful I wasn't the one expected to make them.

My wife liked it, and did really well, despite perpetually sneaking glances my way to make sure I hadn't chewed my wrist open or faked a heart attack to get out of there.

After class, a woman dabbing herself with a towel said: "You're a brave man." I told her I didn't feel too brave, having left in the middle of it. "Men try it every now and then," she said. "None have ever made it through a whole class."

Feeling a little better about ranking completely average among my intrepid brethren who've attempted NIA, I went home feeling only a little sillier than when I'd gotten there.

Yard Saling: Our Annual Sale

It's that time of year: time to clear out the basement of leftover stuff, gather bits of unimportant items about the house, and have our own yard sale.

The other side of the fence is nothing new, since we have a sale once a year, and sometimes one that goes for two weekends. I try hard to follow my own advice and make my signs big and plentiful, my prices reasonable, and have lots of change and a positive attitude.

Saturday began around 6am, with people arriving about 630am as the signs went up. I placed stickers on as many items as possible, hurriedly getting as many items from the cardboard boxes onto the huge computer tables so no one had to (or would) route through the boxes willy nilly.

As expected, my media sold well: books, DVDs, and VHS (the latter only slightly so). I refused the inevitable early-on bulk buyer who wanted all the DVDs at a bargain in hopes of getting more in the long run.

Alas, Saturday ended with filing a police report when a woman who had lingered about the DVDs for an hour and a half we later found had been pulling the disks from the cases and stuffing them into her one DVD purchase. Not sure how an hour and a half of anyone's time is worth $10 in DVDs at the price of one's dignity and character as well, but perhaps she'll be blessed with a few flat tires and halitosis for some time. Karma is a funny thing.

Sunday skirted the potential thunderstorms, though always a slower yard sale-ing day on the Bible Belt. It ended fairly well, with only a few boxes heading to Goodwill and a stop at Deb's Lemonade to round out an exhausting but pleasant weekend of downsizing.

What advice might I have for others having their sales? While my Spanish is awful, I sealed one sale by employing what little I know. Other times, a tepid buyer came through with a little friendly banter.

So be nice, familiar, and remember what that not everyone is the same as you'll be when going to sales, but almost all (save my DVD snatcher) are good people just looking for a little distraction and a few bargains.