Funny that it feels somewhat similar from the other side of the process.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Bass Ackwards
Hah! I finally cleared Kusanku. Last night was my first lesson on Sunsu (or Suansu, depending whose pronunciation/spelling you go for). This will be my second-to-last empty hand kata, with only Sanchin left to learn. Sensei says he will also start teaching me Tokumine no Kun (bo kata) now, though he intends to start by showing me individual moves first, rather than teaching front-to-back.
I'm kind of tempted to ask him if he can teach it to me back-to-front, to test out a little theory of mine. The rule of thumb in dog training is that you start with the last thing first, so that the animal is always working from the least well known stuff towards stuff it knows better. In theory it should work the same way with human learning. I've done it succesfully with piano music and with memorizing text. With piano music it is frustrating, but it works exceptionally well. It forces me to break the piece up more, and since the end of the practice section is generally the end of the piece, it doesn't reward half-assing things past the point I'm working on. I'm a good sight-reader, so the temptation to do this is strong if I'm working from the front. Generally if I can make myself work back-to-front, the learning process is neither faster nor slower, but when I get to the point of doing the whole piece, my technical playing is much stronger. Whereas if I'm going front-to-back my playing tends to stall out at the "sounds good to a layman" stage.
However, most people aren't used to learning (or teaching) back-to-front. I've tried teaching that way once or twice, and the immediate reaction is "Man, that's weird!" and a shutdown by the student. They're just too weirded out to pay proper attention. Only one of our current students thinks it sounds interesting, but she's learning simultaneously as her two sons and teaching them all the same kata from different ends would likely be counter-productive to their home practice, since they use each other for memory-checking. She did memorize the karate creed using back-to-front, and reported that it worked well.
I am tempted to ask Sensei if he's willing to try teaching Tokumine no Kun back-to-front. I'm the only one learning it right now, and he's generally pretty open to alternative teaching ideas. We'll have to see. After all, he was originally going to teach me Kusanku and Kusanku Sai simultaneously, but after the first couple of classes, it never really happened again - so it may turn out to be moot.
Sensei thinks he's found us an indoor place to go. We'd be renting space from a Jazzercise studio. Advantages: flooring should be good - certainly better than linoleum over concrete. Hours are good. Space is good. Owner will let us advertise, so we have some good opportunity to add some students. Indoors will be very good as the weather moves into high summer. Disadvantages: Cost is higher than Sensei really wanted to pay, meaning he'd have to charge us more than he'd like to, though still only about half of what our prior place charged us. Neighborhood is not bad, but scary enough that the mother of our youngest student (seven), may balk at coming there. Sensei is worried that Sin & Skin, the tatoo parlor next door, may scare her away.
In other news, Rob is currently in Oregon for his first major trip relating to his new position. He's gone until this weekend, whereupon he's home for a week, and then we head for Minnesota for a mini-family reunion (my parents, their kids, spouses and children). After that we're home for a week - and then school starts. It seems like it's been an incredibly short summer, but I'm looking forward to getting back into my normal routine. Trying to fit exercise and writing in around having the children home full-time is a considerable challenge.
Lastly, I'm moving back into proper practicing mode on the piano. I've been hacking around pretty much since we moved from Iowa - I think being music minister there burned me out a little. I'm feeling a little too much of a hacker lately though, so I'm going back to putting in significant daily time on the bench. If I can figure out exactly how, I may see if I can record pieces as I re-add them to my repetoire and post them up here. If I'm feeling especially ambitious, I may even try singing! That would be seriously courting Murphy, however. Despite multiple attempts by several different people, I've never actually been successfully recorded singing. In high school I tried to record a practice session with my teacher, only to have the tape machine go kablooie. In college the choir was doing a professional recording of the Vespers concert so we could sell it for travel funding. The entire recording was fine, except for my solo, wherein the audio engineer, for reasons that will forever remain mysterious, decided to eat a carrot, while standing next to the balcony mike, which he had forgotten to turn off. We had an extra session, specifically for re-recording that section - and the equipment went haywire.
I've successfully made and e-mailed recordings of me speaking, so it's just the singing that's whacked - but if the playing goes well, I may try it anyway.
I'm kind of tempted to ask him if he can teach it to me back-to-front, to test out a little theory of mine. The rule of thumb in dog training is that you start with the last thing first, so that the animal is always working from the least well known stuff towards stuff it knows better. In theory it should work the same way with human learning. I've done it succesfully with piano music and with memorizing text. With piano music it is frustrating, but it works exceptionally well. It forces me to break the piece up more, and since the end of the practice section is generally the end of the piece, it doesn't reward half-assing things past the point I'm working on. I'm a good sight-reader, so the temptation to do this is strong if I'm working from the front. Generally if I can make myself work back-to-front, the learning process is neither faster nor slower, but when I get to the point of doing the whole piece, my technical playing is much stronger. Whereas if I'm going front-to-back my playing tends to stall out at the "sounds good to a layman" stage.
However, most people aren't used to learning (or teaching) back-to-front. I've tried teaching that way once or twice, and the immediate reaction is "Man, that's weird!" and a shutdown by the student. They're just too weirded out to pay proper attention. Only one of our current students thinks it sounds interesting, but she's learning simultaneously as her two sons and teaching them all the same kata from different ends would likely be counter-productive to their home practice, since they use each other for memory-checking. She did memorize the karate creed using back-to-front, and reported that it worked well.
I am tempted to ask Sensei if he's willing to try teaching Tokumine no Kun back-to-front. I'm the only one learning it right now, and he's generally pretty open to alternative teaching ideas. We'll have to see. After all, he was originally going to teach me Kusanku and Kusanku Sai simultaneously, but after the first couple of classes, it never really happened again - so it may turn out to be moot.
Sensei thinks he's found us an indoor place to go. We'd be renting space from a Jazzercise studio. Advantages: flooring should be good - certainly better than linoleum over concrete. Hours are good. Space is good. Owner will let us advertise, so we have some good opportunity to add some students. Indoors will be very good as the weather moves into high summer. Disadvantages: Cost is higher than Sensei really wanted to pay, meaning he'd have to charge us more than he'd like to, though still only about half of what our prior place charged us. Neighborhood is not bad, but scary enough that the mother of our youngest student (seven), may balk at coming there. Sensei is worried that Sin & Skin, the tatoo parlor next door, may scare her away.
In other news, Rob is currently in Oregon for his first major trip relating to his new position. He's gone until this weekend, whereupon he's home for a week, and then we head for Minnesota for a mini-family reunion (my parents, their kids, spouses and children). After that we're home for a week - and then school starts. It seems like it's been an incredibly short summer, but I'm looking forward to getting back into my normal routine. Trying to fit exercise and writing in around having the children home full-time is a considerable challenge.
Lastly, I'm moving back into proper practicing mode on the piano. I've been hacking around pretty much since we moved from Iowa - I think being music minister there burned me out a little. I'm feeling a little too much of a hacker lately though, so I'm going back to putting in significant daily time on the bench. If I can figure out exactly how, I may see if I can record pieces as I re-add them to my repetoire and post them up here. If I'm feeling especially ambitious, I may even try singing! That would be seriously courting Murphy, however. Despite multiple attempts by several different people, I've never actually been successfully recorded singing. In high school I tried to record a practice session with my teacher, only to have the tape machine go kablooie. In college the choir was doing a professional recording of the Vespers concert so we could sell it for travel funding. The entire recording was fine, except for my solo, wherein the audio engineer, for reasons that will forever remain mysterious, decided to eat a carrot, while standing next to the balcony mike, which he had forgotten to turn off. We had an extra session, specifically for re-recording that section - and the equipment went haywire.
I've successfully made and e-mailed recordings of me speaking, so it's just the singing that's whacked - but if the playing goes well, I may try it anyway.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Saturday, July 05, 2008
Teaching Again
We're still in the park. It's beginning to feel pretty normal now. I think I'll miss being outdoors when we find someplace else - though perhaps not once we're well into August!
Sensei cancelled out at the last moment on Wed. and called me to ask if I could teach class. It's the first time I've taught in about six months - ever since Sensei D joined us, he usually takes over when Sensei cannot make it. The last few classes, though, Sensei D hasn't been coming, so I had the ball.
T. had taken a kick in the knee the day before, so we skipped a lot of the prilimary exercises. Between her and me, what we could comfortably to was pretty limited. Her knee is pretty bruised and swollen, but appears to be only bruised. Mine seems generally fine, but has a new and very loud pop (that twinges) on any kind of deep bending. I'm still trying to decide whether it needs more rest, or some stability exercises.
Sensei had been planning on teaching a two-person exercise, one that's very different from anything the intermediate students had seen, very circular with a lot of emphasis on contact, which differs markedly from beginning Isshinryu, which tends to be linear and direct. The exercise comes in two parts, one of which works on its own, while the second interacts with the first (sort of like a two-part round in music). I managed to teach the group part one, and they got the idea fairly quickly, though several of them were still striking rather than flowing. Part two, however, didn't go at all well. Every previous time I've seen this taught, there have been at least two people who knew the exercise. That way the two parts could be shown together. Trying to teach part two without a partner was rather like trying to teach someone how to steal a soccer ball without having anyone who can handle the footwork to steal from.
After that bit of frustration we spent the rest of the class on kata. We had two students back who have been gone several months, so there was much review. For a change the kids were all business - but the two adults kept standing around talking!
All in all, not everything I would have liked, but a reasonably decent class. I really need to brainstorm some ideas for when I teach outdoor classes. My old standby of teaching rolls just doesn't work outdoors.
Sensei cancelled out at the last moment on Wed. and called me to ask if I could teach class. It's the first time I've taught in about six months - ever since Sensei D joined us, he usually takes over when Sensei cannot make it. The last few classes, though, Sensei D hasn't been coming, so I had the ball.
T. had taken a kick in the knee the day before, so we skipped a lot of the prilimary exercises. Between her and me, what we could comfortably to was pretty limited. Her knee is pretty bruised and swollen, but appears to be only bruised. Mine seems generally fine, but has a new and very loud pop (that twinges) on any kind of deep bending. I'm still trying to decide whether it needs more rest, or some stability exercises.
Sensei had been planning on teaching a two-person exercise, one that's very different from anything the intermediate students had seen, very circular with a lot of emphasis on contact, which differs markedly from beginning Isshinryu, which tends to be linear and direct. The exercise comes in two parts, one of which works on its own, while the second interacts with the first (sort of like a two-part round in music). I managed to teach the group part one, and they got the idea fairly quickly, though several of them were still striking rather than flowing. Part two, however, didn't go at all well. Every previous time I've seen this taught, there have been at least two people who knew the exercise. That way the two parts could be shown together. Trying to teach part two without a partner was rather like trying to teach someone how to steal a soccer ball without having anyone who can handle the footwork to steal from.
After that bit of frustration we spent the rest of the class on kata. We had two students back who have been gone several months, so there was much review. For a change the kids were all business - but the two adults kept standing around talking!
All in all, not everything I would have liked, but a reasonably decent class. I really need to brainstorm some ideas for when I teach outdoor classes. My old standby of teaching rolls just doesn't work outdoors.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Books Read: 1st Half of 2008
I've posted some book reviews up before, but this time I thought I'd just do a list of every book I can remember reading so far this year. I'll undoubtedly forget some, but I should get most of them.
1. Curse of Chalion - Lois McMaster-Bujold
2. Paladin of Souls - Lois McMaster-Bujold
3. The Hallowed Hunt - Lois McMaster-Bujold
4. Goblin Quest - Jim C. Hines
5. Goblin Hero - Jim C. Hines
6. Harrowing the Dragon - Patricia A. McKillip (short stories)
7. Genesis Quest - Donald Moffitt
8. Red Seas Under Red Skies - Scott Lynch
9. To The Power of Three - Laura Lippman
10. In Big Trouble - Laura Lippman
11. Blood Child - Octavia Butler (short stories)
12. Dawn - Octavia Butler
13. Imago - Octavia Butler
14. Scardown - Elizabeth Bear
15. Worldwired - Elizabeth Bear
16. Dust - Elizabeth Bear
17. Undertow - Elizabeth Bear
18. Knitting Rules! - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
19. Poems of Color - Wendy Keele
20. Alanna: The First Adventure - Tamora Pierce
21. In the Hand of the Goddess - Tamora Pierce
22. The Woman Who Rides Like a Man - Tamora Pierce
23. Lioness Rampant - Tamora Pierce
24. Old Man's War - John Scalzi
25. The Ghost Brigades - John Scalzi
26. The Last Colony - John Scalzi
27. The Android's Dream - John Scalzi
28. The Wizard's Dilemma - Diane Duane
29. A Wizard Alone - Diane Duane
30. So You Want to be a Wizard - Diane Duane (3-novel omnibus)
31. Karate-do My Way of Life - Gichin Funakoshi
32. Beyond Black Belt - William Duessel
33. One Foot in the Grave - Wm. Mark Simmons
34. The Longevity Diet - Brian M. Delaney
35. Melusine - Sarah Monette
36. The Lightening Thief - Rick Riordan
37. The Chains That You Refuse - Elizabeth Bear (short stories)
38. Passage: The Sharing Knife, book 3 - Lois McMaster-Bujold
39. The Mad Scientist's Club - Bertrand R. Brinley
40. New Amsterdam - Elizabeth Bear
41. Blood Bound - Patricia Briggs
42. Iron Kissed - Patricia Briggs
43. Dragon Bones - Patricia Briggs
44. Steal the Dragon - Patricia Briggs
45.When Demons Walk - Patricia Briggs
46. The Titan's Curse - Rick Riordan
47. Off Armageddon Reef - David Weber
48. Knitting for Anarchists - Anna Zilboorg
49. Mastery - George Leonard
50. Komarr - Lois McMaster-Bujold
51. The Golem's Eye - Johnathan Stroud
52. Ptolemy's Gate - Johnathan Stroud
53. Orca - Stephen Brust
54. Dzur - Stephen Brust
55. For Us, The Living - Robert A. Heinlein
56. The Fire Rose - Mercedes Lackey
57. Crossroads and other tales of Valdemar - Mercedes Lackey, ed. (short stories)
58. Knit Three Ways - Melissa Mathay
59. Grave Peril - Jim Butcher
60. Blood Rites - Jim Butcher
61. Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
62. The Way of Aikido - George Leonard
63. Shards of Honor - Lois McMaster-Bujold (on audio)
64. Barrayar - Lois McMaster-Bujold (on audio)
65. Learner English: A Teacher's Guide to Interference - Michael Swan & Bernard Smith
66. Survey Research Methods - Floyd J. Fowler
67. Blood Lure - Nevada Barr
68. The Cup of Morning Shadows - Rosemary Edghill
69. The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins
70. What Not to Wear - Stacy London & Clinton Kelly
71. Sai - Karate Weapons of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
72. Bo - Karate Weapon of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
73. Tonfa - Karate Weapon of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
It's felt like I haven't gotten much reading time this last six months, but as you can see, that doesn't mean I don't read, just that I slow down some. I know I'm missing some - mostly non-fiction, but at least one fiction book (new author, a werewolf detective, no idea of the book name). With non-fiction, though, I tend to absorb the information without paying too much attention to the author or book title. Which has led in the past to buying multiple copies of the same book because I knew I was interested in the topic, but didn't remember I'd read the specific book. The list also contains some books I read to my kids, and some I read out-loud for a friend doing thesis research.
As you can tell, I read heavily in SF and fantasy, moderately in mystery, and a decent assortment of non-fiction. I usually read more theology stuff than is showing up in this list, but my non-fiction gets read in topical clumps more than my light reading. Right now I'm running heavy in the martial arts, due to impending eligeability for black belt. I really wish our local library had more martial art books - most of them aren't very good, and the library and bookstores have so few of them I can't look them over to see which ones I ought to be ordering. (If anyone has any suggestions for don't miss MA books, please let me know. My personal favorites are Mastery by George Leonard, and Living the Martial Way by Forrest Morgan.) Also, if anyone wants an opinion on any book listed above, just ask and I'll give you a review.
1. Curse of Chalion - Lois McMaster-Bujold
2. Paladin of Souls - Lois McMaster-Bujold
3. The Hallowed Hunt - Lois McMaster-Bujold
4. Goblin Quest - Jim C. Hines
5. Goblin Hero - Jim C. Hines
6. Harrowing the Dragon - Patricia A. McKillip (short stories)
7. Genesis Quest - Donald Moffitt
8. Red Seas Under Red Skies - Scott Lynch
9. To The Power of Three - Laura Lippman
10. In Big Trouble - Laura Lippman
11. Blood Child - Octavia Butler (short stories)
12. Dawn - Octavia Butler
13. Imago - Octavia Butler
14. Scardown - Elizabeth Bear
15. Worldwired - Elizabeth Bear
16. Dust - Elizabeth Bear
17. Undertow - Elizabeth Bear
18. Knitting Rules! - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
19. Poems of Color - Wendy Keele
20. Alanna: The First Adventure - Tamora Pierce
21. In the Hand of the Goddess - Tamora Pierce
22. The Woman Who Rides Like a Man - Tamora Pierce
23. Lioness Rampant - Tamora Pierce
24. Old Man's War - John Scalzi
25. The Ghost Brigades - John Scalzi
26. The Last Colony - John Scalzi
27. The Android's Dream - John Scalzi
28. The Wizard's Dilemma - Diane Duane
29. A Wizard Alone - Diane Duane
30. So You Want to be a Wizard - Diane Duane (3-novel omnibus)
31. Karate-do My Way of Life - Gichin Funakoshi
32. Beyond Black Belt - William Duessel
33. One Foot in the Grave - Wm. Mark Simmons
34. The Longevity Diet - Brian M. Delaney
35. Melusine - Sarah Monette
36. The Lightening Thief - Rick Riordan
37. The Chains That You Refuse - Elizabeth Bear (short stories)
38. Passage: The Sharing Knife, book 3 - Lois McMaster-Bujold
39. The Mad Scientist's Club - Bertrand R. Brinley
40. New Amsterdam - Elizabeth Bear
41. Blood Bound - Patricia Briggs
42. Iron Kissed - Patricia Briggs
43. Dragon Bones - Patricia Briggs
44. Steal the Dragon - Patricia Briggs
45.When Demons Walk - Patricia Briggs
46. The Titan's Curse - Rick Riordan
47. Off Armageddon Reef - David Weber
48. Knitting for Anarchists - Anna Zilboorg
49. Mastery - George Leonard
50. Komarr - Lois McMaster-Bujold
51. The Golem's Eye - Johnathan Stroud
52. Ptolemy's Gate - Johnathan Stroud
53. Orca - Stephen Brust
54. Dzur - Stephen Brust
55. For Us, The Living - Robert A. Heinlein
56. The Fire Rose - Mercedes Lackey
57. Crossroads and other tales of Valdemar - Mercedes Lackey, ed. (short stories)
58. Knit Three Ways - Melissa Mathay
59. Grave Peril - Jim Butcher
60. Blood Rites - Jim Butcher
61. Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
62. The Way of Aikido - George Leonard
63. Shards of Honor - Lois McMaster-Bujold (on audio)
64. Barrayar - Lois McMaster-Bujold (on audio)
65. Learner English: A Teacher's Guide to Interference - Michael Swan & Bernard Smith
66. Survey Research Methods - Floyd J. Fowler
67. Blood Lure - Nevada Barr
68. The Cup of Morning Shadows - Rosemary Edghill
69. The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins
70. What Not to Wear - Stacy London & Clinton Kelly
71. Sai - Karate Weapons of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
72. Bo - Karate Weapon of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
73. Tonfa - Karate Weapon of Self-Defense - Fumio Demura
It's felt like I haven't gotten much reading time this last six months, but as you can see, that doesn't mean I don't read, just that I slow down some. I know I'm missing some - mostly non-fiction, but at least one fiction book (new author, a werewolf detective, no idea of the book name). With non-fiction, though, I tend to absorb the information without paying too much attention to the author or book title. Which has led in the past to buying multiple copies of the same book because I knew I was interested in the topic, but didn't remember I'd read the specific book. The list also contains some books I read to my kids, and some I read out-loud for a friend doing thesis research.
As you can tell, I read heavily in SF and fantasy, moderately in mystery, and a decent assortment of non-fiction. I usually read more theology stuff than is showing up in this list, but my non-fiction gets read in topical clumps more than my light reading. Right now I'm running heavy in the martial arts, due to impending eligeability for black belt. I really wish our local library had more martial art books - most of them aren't very good, and the library and bookstores have so few of them I can't look them over to see which ones I ought to be ordering. (If anyone has any suggestions for don't miss MA books, please let me know. My personal favorites are Mastery by George Leonard, and Living the Martial Way by Forrest Morgan.) Also, if anyone wants an opinion on any book listed above, just ask and I'll give you a review.
Friday, June 27, 2008
I Said "Ow" Too Soon
Because the next night, my knee went crunch.
Ironically, it didn't do this during karate practice, though I did do it at practice. We did mostly kata, which for me means Kusanku (plus review and minor teaching). All that popping up and down for Kusanku, and my knees were fine for all of it. Not even a twinge. Twinges are actually pretty common for me when kneeling all the way down, which happens no fewer than six times in Kusanku.
No. It was sitting down in the car. Opened the door, started to sit and crunch! It took me several tries to get my leg bent enough to get it inside, and driving home was no fun at all (stick shift).
I don't seem to have done anything really problematic to the knee. Today it's sore and swollen, but it functions fine and is perfectly stable. I've broken out the soft brace and ice packs, but don't see a need for the hard brace this time. But between the bruises from Tuesday (mostly forearms) and the limp, I seriously look like an abuse case. Based on past experience it should be fine in about four days. It rather puts the kibosh on Sensei's extra Sunday practice (at least for me), but I should be back in action by the next regularly scheduled class.
But I think I'm going to skip the full kneels for a few classes.
Ironically, it didn't do this during karate practice, though I did do it at practice. We did mostly kata, which for me means Kusanku (plus review and minor teaching). All that popping up and down for Kusanku, and my knees were fine for all of it. Not even a twinge. Twinges are actually pretty common for me when kneeling all the way down, which happens no fewer than six times in Kusanku.
No. It was sitting down in the car. Opened the door, started to sit and crunch! It took me several tries to get my leg bent enough to get it inside, and driving home was no fun at all (stick shift).
I don't seem to have done anything really problematic to the knee. Today it's sore and swollen, but it functions fine and is perfectly stable. I've broken out the soft brace and ice packs, but don't see a need for the hard brace this time. But between the bruises from Tuesday (mostly forearms) and the limp, I seriously look like an abuse case. Based on past experience it should be fine in about four days. It rather puts the kibosh on Sensei's extra Sunday practice (at least for me), but I should be back in action by the next regularly scheduled class.
But I think I'm going to skip the full kneels for a few classes.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Beating on Cindy
Ow.
Sensei has declared that he wants all of us to bring home medals at this fall's Lennox Legacy tournament. (A pretty reasonable goal, since all but a couple of us brought home medals last year.) To this end we have started kumite training at every class - to wit we go on the barrel sequentially every class. On the barrel, in this context, means that you fight the class one person at a time, non-stop. Right now, the first couple of times, he's being nice about it and bowing each person in and out, but eventually he will just holler and the old challenger will run off and the new person run in, so that the person on the barrel will fight continuously.
We've done barrels before, but not every person, every class. Also last time I wasn't a brown belt. It makes a definite difference in how hard people are gunning for me. This morning felt very reminiscent of my days back in Mr. Gabbard's dojo - bruises and/or sore muscles everywhere.
I wasn't thrilled with my performance, but it will do for a start. I pressed Sensei hard enough to get clocked in the jaw (unless he's genuinely fighting to stay in the match, his control is precise). I got knocked on my butt by M, but did a fairly smooth roll-out back to my feet. M is interesting to fight. She's a brown belt, but has been out for a long time. She's one of those people whose style is not at all pretty, but who fights really well. If I'm watching her fight, I can point out a dozen places where her technique needs improvement, but if I'm in the fight I'm too busy getting out of the way! Our blue belt contingent (2 boys and their mom) has improved mightily since last year, and the older boy is starting to hit his major growth. He's nearly my height now, and will be both taller and stronger within the next year, or I'm no judge. Mom is getting over her fear of hitting and being hit. Our purple belts are doing pretty well too. J has always been dangerous (I have footprints on my ribcage), while I needs to learn to be more aggressive, but has good technique.
No work on Kusanku, which is a shame. I'd really like to get it signed off on so I can start with Sunsu or Tokumine no Kun. Ah well.
Sensei has declared that he wants all of us to bring home medals at this fall's Lennox Legacy tournament. (A pretty reasonable goal, since all but a couple of us brought home medals last year.) To this end we have started kumite training at every class - to wit we go on the barrel sequentially every class. On the barrel, in this context, means that you fight the class one person at a time, non-stop. Right now, the first couple of times, he's being nice about it and bowing each person in and out, but eventually he will just holler and the old challenger will run off and the new person run in, so that the person on the barrel will fight continuously.
We've done barrels before, but not every person, every class. Also last time I wasn't a brown belt. It makes a definite difference in how hard people are gunning for me. This morning felt very reminiscent of my days back in Mr. Gabbard's dojo - bruises and/or sore muscles everywhere.
I wasn't thrilled with my performance, but it will do for a start. I pressed Sensei hard enough to get clocked in the jaw (unless he's genuinely fighting to stay in the match, his control is precise). I got knocked on my butt by M, but did a fairly smooth roll-out back to my feet. M is interesting to fight. She's a brown belt, but has been out for a long time. She's one of those people whose style is not at all pretty, but who fights really well. If I'm watching her fight, I can point out a dozen places where her technique needs improvement, but if I'm in the fight I'm too busy getting out of the way! Our blue belt contingent (2 boys and their mom) has improved mightily since last year, and the older boy is starting to hit his major growth. He's nearly my height now, and will be both taller and stronger within the next year, or I'm no judge. Mom is getting over her fear of hitting and being hit. Our purple belts are doing pretty well too. J has always been dangerous (I have footprints on my ribcage), while I needs to learn to be more aggressive, but has good technique.
No work on Kusanku, which is a shame. I'd really like to get it signed off on so I can start with Sunsu or Tokumine no Kun. Ah well.
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