Apart from a few scraps in the playground, my first real encouter with violence happened when I was just a kid.
My friend and I headed into the city center, for the sales with all our Xmas cash. I remember being 'switched on' on the way into the city because we were carrying so much cash.
On the way home with all our new stuff, standing on the train platform at about 4pm, plenty of other people waiting for the train, two older boys were walking past, and then suddenly squared up to us.
'Give us your stuff !'
'What ? '
'Give us your stuff !'
'What ?'
A sharp punch in the chest, 'Give us your fuckin stuff !'
The other boy who had squared up to my mate, who had been standing with his hand slighly cupped, straightened his hand, the thick end of a pool cue slipped from the sleeve of his jacket, which he then swung into the side of my mates' leg.
'What,what do you want our stuff for ?'
You know the scene in Pulp Fiction when Samuel Jackson is talking to the guy and the guy keeps saying 'What ?' it was a bit like that. The brain failing to keep up with all the new information.
Anyway, would like to finish of the story by saying that I applied my Beta-8 core game plan, but after a bit more 'persuasion' from our new friends ended up limping home empty handed.
When told to hit 2 jabs and an elbow to the pads, no problem. Told to jump in the ring and go a few rounds, no problem.
The place where I've always struggled, is the area between the verbal conflict and the conflict, the ability to switch from the mild manner man in the street who helps little old ladies across the street and pays his taxes to the eye gouging street fighter, the gap between the social man to the warring animal has always been the struggle, to throw that pre-emptive stike and raise the game to that next level.
From the street fight analysis DVD, the guy in the pizza shop whos biggest problem was failing to accept, or failing to realise that he was actually in a fight. (Although seeing the size of the womens boyfriend I think I would have been in denial too.)
So from the drunk guy in the street who shouts 'What the fuck are you looking at ? ' to the guy in the pub who say 'Step outside ! ' , the situations which are not so clear cut of when to flip the switch.
So any advice for figuring out the when and the how to flip the switch ?
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