Just because you can see straight doesn't mean you aren't drunk....

was what I was telling people when I arrived to set up the floor at Edmonds Community College for our bout. I had a sore back on Wednesday and Thursday morning I couldn't get out of bed because of horrible back spasms - which I had never had - and a pain that was so intense I could hardly breath. I called off work and got the earliest possible doctor's appointment. She said it wasn't a bad injury (pulled muscle) but that my body was over reacting. Will I be about to play in my bout on Saturday? Oh sure, it's going to take a few days - what is today? Wednesday? No, Thursday. Oh, I doubt it. You'll feel better by Monday. But I need to feel better by Saturday....I got a muscle relaxer and went home to bed. Begging my back to just relax. Thursday's practice was sitting on the side lines and getting very excited about our upcoming bout.

Friday I scheduled a massage - which felt great - kind of -they thought I was nuts to think of playing this weekend. (But it was our first travel team bout! I had to be there!) My friends at Fast Girls Skates thought I was nuts and knew what I needed to do. Star TaRiot, another skater on the Travel Team, who was also injured thought I was making the right decisions. It was injury with poor timing - an overused back that had recently helped a friend move furniture, set up bleachers for the Bellingham Betties bout, moved boxes at work, it was exertion 201 that happened to come this week.I called our captain and told her to pull me from the lineup. I couldn't guarantee that I would feel good enough to play. And I didn't want a pulled muscle to become a torn muscle. It felt bad which my rough tears on my way to our travel team potluck revealed.

Saturday I felt great. But it was a cautious great - which is how I decided that "just because you can see straight doesn't mean you're sober." Just because I can walk with out incredible pain doesn't mean I can take a hit and get up from it. Doesn't mean I can turn and see the skater behind me. I left my skates at home and headed to the bout to set up the floor and get this bout going.

And it was an incredible evening - even as a spectator. Our teams all did so well! Our travel team had only practice together for 12 hours - and though we got creamed - we did our best to hold our own. CarnEvil had been broken up (like all other teams) into Blue and Black and it was the first bout for many of our skaters. Everyone did so incredibly well. It was sold out! It was so exciting to be a part of such a fun and exciting movement of rollerderby. I was so proud, even without my skates on.

And today is proof that just because you can see straight doesn't mean you don't have a hangover (not from drinking too much but from drinking without eating after working all day to set up the bout...ooops.) And I made the right decision.