The 6th Blog Of CLICmas
From Monday 13 to Friday 24 December, CLIC will feature a different guest blog each day - The 12 Blogs Of CLICmas, in fact! Here is the sixth...
Hello, my name is Geoff and I work for CLIC.
My job is to talk to local authorities and tell them all about the wonderful benefits of having a local CLIC site, overseen and supported by a young people’s editorial group.
It’s a funny old time of year at our house, I have a very special role: I pay for the presents, put up the Christmas lights - including the ones on the roof - play Santa on Christmas Eve, and run my five daughters, four grandchildren and demanding wife around in Dad's taxi!
All this is normal. Most dads have the same duties, but on top of that I am part of a team that helps to train local mixed martial arts athletes (sometimes known as cage fighters).
Now there’s not much call for cage fighting at Christmas, so naturally our fighters let their hair down a bit (those that don’t have shaved heads that is). So each Christmas I have guilty fighters asking me about how they can cut their weight for the New Year after over indulging.
I may also become the appropriate adult when some of our young fighters find themselves locked up in the cells overnight arrested for whatever, and they can’t remember why they are in jail.
This involves the local police calling me at some unearthly hour and telling me that Joe ('The Machine') Evans (name changed to protect the little darling) is locked up and can I come in to the local nick because he doesn’t want to bother Mum and Dad at Christmas.
I have random members of the public, usually young men, asking me how they can get involved and when they can have their first chance in the cage, usually when I’m on a mission to try and buy Christmas presents.
I always get asked by die-hard fighters if they can use the gym on Christmas Day. Inevitably I end up being the only one there because they don’t turn up - or turn up with uncle Dave full of Xmas pud and cheap sherry, who thinks he can spend his Xmas afternoon going five rounds with his fit, young nephew.
The nephew, of course, who has a left hook that will send uncle Dave to the North Pole and back!
So, while you are enjoying your turkey, think of me and our MMA team. Have a great Christmas, remember your friends and family, and think of those poor fighters dieting, running and hitting the gym whilst you are comfortable on your sofas watching The Wizard Of Oz again!
Merry Christmas everybody, I hope you enjoy my choice of a Christmas song for you [see video]!
