en Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:10:53 GMT Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:26:23 GMT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss vBlogetin aw_forums@aikiweb.com aw_forums@aikiweb.com Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:26:23 GMT Well I haven't posted for a while, just been showing up and training (when work and health allow ). On the whole it's been good and I'm feeling like I am moving much more smoothly again, and learning

We had our house Shidoin Peter Brown Sensei down last month to teach a course at our dojo which went really well and I learned loads from him. He emphasised that unless you are taking uke's balance, then you haven't distracted his mind sufficiently, as the goal is to get him to switch from thinking about attacking you to thinking about staying upright I thought that was really cool and an excellent way of thinking about Aikido!

I also taught a class when Sensei was away in Japan in November, and after that realised that I don't need to be nervous about teaching (which just came from not having done any for ages!). Now Sensei wants me to teach when he can't make it, along with our 1st kyu student

In preparation I have been mentally noting the things our students have difficulty with, common errors, and any weak points, so that I can tackle these in my next class. Sometimes it helps to have a different teacher occasionally, as they may explain something in a way that a student suddenly understands, having struggled with it before. I certainly found that true for me when our 1st kyu student taught a class and helped me loads

Just to make sure I get the timings right, I still prefer to write down what to teach and how long to allow for each activity, as I'm not used to doing it regularly so don't have it down naturally yet! It's probably not a bad idea to have a few lesson plans in hand so I can teach a class on the spur of the moment if required ]]> ruthmc Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:16:13 GMT Hi everyone

In my blogs I am going to attempt to keep a true record of how my training is going with aikido I will give you the Good, The Bad, And the Ugly of it all, and also any personal insight‘s I might have along the way.

I have been training for about a 8 weeks or so give or take I did a few lessons before Christmas, after Christmas break the latter part of Jan I got stuck into training, at first I felt like a lump of lead I could not really understand the movements my hands where every where my feet totally deserting me, and I kept thinking please don’t let anyone notice lol how could they not notice duh, but all I got from the club was just real honest to goodness help.

This really helped with my confidence just people helping everyone out which felt really nice no one is sniggering behind anyone’s back’s. So with my new found positive energy I went for it at the start of every class we do ukemi at every possible angle which is a bit daunting when I could only go forwards at one point, we have even had other aikidōka come and join in the class only to be shocked when we started doing ukemi’s backwards etc, so my sensie always says don’t do it unless you really want to the idea behind it is you can take a fall from any angle or position, at the moment I am the only newbie that is even attempting to do a backward ukemi this Sunday I managed to do it correctly a small triumph for me.

At the end of my Sunday lesson I asked help of a very nice girl she is only 16 and really good at aikido, I have started to learn the 31 jo kata my sensie believes that though using jo and bokken early on will help with other aspects of aikido and I tend to agree there is no reason to wait until 3rd kyu and onwards to learn to use a weapon I found with my jo kata my movement as improved also I am having a greater understanding of my center which is after all important, this in turn as improved my ikkyo.

I have noticed my other newbie students doing Ikkyo and we were all doing it wrong for the life of me I could not understand how my teacher was making this look so easy
So I struggled for a bit then I remembered what sensie was saying keep your center I found if I kept my center and use my movement as one I was doing what he was doing, so what I mean is keep my center to the other student move arms and feet as one bingo I had it better, the other student was in the correct position is arm and shoulder nicely rolled I was in control no power just pure technique.

Anyway must dash
I am wishing everyone well in their Aikido training

Regards
Phil]]> Phil Ingram Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:54:07 GMT *names have been removed to protect the anonymity of the individuals involved.

my dojo was affiliated with a small, independent federation for some decades. however, in recent years, the shihan increasingly receded his involvement due to his age and failing health. unfortunately, there was no strong and clear leader to take his position and continue the federation in the long-run.

at any rate, things moved along, and my dojo took the decision to affiliate with another group last year. the change was bittersweet as the new group was far bigger and had many experienced and good aikidoka. their energy and focus are great, and it has been a good transition overall.

although i only trained for a couple of years under the old federation, it still pained me nonetheless to deal with the shift especially since i had developed a degree to respect and loyalty to my first teachers and school. the positives of the change did not alter the fact that it still hurt to feel like i abandoned my 'grandfather' (the shihan) and my 'uncle' (one of the sensei that didn't re-affiliate).

for the sake of having more training opportunities as well my reluctance to let go, i travel double the distance that i normally do to the other dojo (run by the 'uncle') to train once a week. unfortunately, the class size there is tiny, and there is barely anyone there i can train with. we spend more time laying the mats and talking than actually training. being a sweat-monster that sheds a least a liter or two per training session, i barely perspire at all when i train at this dojo. one of the few things i truly cherish while i'm there though is when the shihan drops by every once in a while and shares a few personal anecdotes or techniques.

it's starting to become more of a struggle to go week after week. i don't know if my time and energy is being well spent... but yet, i'm still very reluctant to give up going there...

why do i continue to go?

a few things come to mind - loyalty. not wanting to disappoint. wishing to honour my roots. hoping to glean any wisdom when the shihan appears. learning different perspectives of aikido.

yet my heart is filled with doubts. should i persevere and hope that my efforts will pay off (in whatever shape or form), or am i just not able to let go due to misplaced loyalty?

my aiki-heart is clouded.]]> osaya Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:36:21 GMT I passed 1st Kyu. I feel like I've climbed up this huge steep hill, the mudansha hill. Towering over me is the yudansha moutain with its various sub-peaks.

It's odd because numerically speaking most of my gradings are done, I've passed six and there are only four more. It feels kinda good to think that until I realise that the space between gradings just got huge.

I don't really feel like I've achieved anything so much as I've brought something to a close. Ikkyu is over. Shodan has begun. I've not reached anything, I've just passed a spot on the road.
Feels like I'm staring shodan in the face actually; it's not some distant thing over the other side of 1st kyu, it's my next destination.
It could be only a year away which, considering I've been attempting 1st kyu for three years, isn't very long.

It doesn't feel like it means anything though, grades are transient, I pass though them they define nothing about me or my practice, they're more like sign posts on the road I'm walking along. Actually shodan isn't my next destination, it's the next section of road that I'll be traveling on. It's like turning off one road and onto another.]]> Ketsan Sun, 07 Feb 2010 22:34:05 GMT Training has been going well as of lately. It seems like sensei is busy getting several people ready for testing. I'm sure someone will be testing for 5th kyu soon, there are about four of us who may be testing for 4th kyu soon and he is busy getting someone else ready for 1st kyu. For a while we were doing nothing but advanced techniques. Tons of stuff that was way over my head and haven't done. I was working on hanmi handachi and kata-shomen attacks. It was fun to work on these things because I felt absolutely no pressure. However, for the past week, things have been dropped back from fourth gear to first gear. What a joy it has been. Sometimes it is so nice to slow down and be able to work on something more familiar.

Last week was a lovely week of the return to the familiar or at least techniques that are more in my range. Sensei has put a strong emphasis on nikyo and sankyo lately. We worked on them from suwariwaza with attacks from: katadori, shomenuchi, yokomenuchi and kata-shomen. We also worked on them from hanmi handachi as well. Then we finally worked on the two techniques standing. It was a nice blend of training based for us about to test for 4th kyu but also helped the guy about to test for 1st kyu. Obviously, hanmi handachi and kata-shomen attacks aren't on a 4th kyu test.

There was also an entire class based on kokyuho. We worked on it from katadori (ai and gyaku), shomenuchi, yokomenuchi, ryotedori and morotedori. It was nice to work one the one technique and be able to see the similarities between all the attacks. The main thing that I need to work on with this technique is making it more three dimensional. I have a tendency to keep flat as I do the technique instead of having this lovely rising and falling appearance. I know what I am supposed to do and I know how it is supposed to feel, but I just haven't been able to make it muscle memory yet. It comes and goes. I was told during the class that I am too nice. He told me that I actually had to punch with some intent to uke's face and that uke would move. Okay, so the next time I did it, I punched (not terribly hard, but with intent). Uke did not move… and I punched him. Uhm.... this is not helping me. I don't want to hit someone and him not moving isn't helping me get over my not wanting to hit someone fear. When they say things like that to me, it always makes me stop and think. I used to be an aggressive person. I went from that to miss passive. What happened?

Saturday sensei had us work on some ikkyo, shihonage, kotegaeshi, iriminage and he emphasized the importance of kokyu and had us work on building it by doing hand exercises while standing, as well as working on it from suwariwaza kokyuho. At one point, he had me sit in seiza in front of him. He had me put the blade of my hand and my forearms on his chest and told me to push. I pushed and pushed and he would lean in and knock me over. Finally, it occurred to me that I needed to sink into my hips. As soon as I did that, I could easily push him over. He told me that sinking into the hips and having the pressure go through my spine into the floor was the secret for suwariwaza ryotedori kokyuho, as well as lots of other techniques. For quite some time, sensei had us work on suwariwaza kokyuho with each other. I’m still missing something along the way, but I’m sure I will figure it out in time.

Another change in the dojo is the addition of the penny jar. After a bunch of “I’m sorry” statements in the dojo, sensei has decided that we are going to have to get this out of our system. Every time someone says “I’m sorry.” a penny must be put in the jar. Even if an “I’m sorry” is truly warranted, a penny will be put in the jar. Sensei implemented this penny jar on Thursday. I added two pennies that day and on Saturday I had to add two more pennies. At one point in class on Saturday I said “I’m sorry.” and when I realized it, I said “Darn it… I owe a penny.” Sensei heard me and said if that I say that too many times after I am sorry, I am going to have to put a nickel in the jar along with a penny. After class I asked sensei if I could go up into the dojo to add my pennies. He asked me how many I had to put in and I told him two. Sensei was surprised to learn that we have put in about the same amount of pennies. So far, sensei and I are the only two putting pennies in the jar, but I am sure more people will add over time as well. My husband will definitely be adding pennies to the jar because he says it all the time as well. In fact, I am proud that I have only added four pennies. I almost said it to sensei when he was using me to demonstrate something (he was uke). I knocked him down and as I moved in, my knee and his elbow somehow banged together. As I opened my mouth to apologize, I realized my error and shut my mouth. Instead, sensei apologized to me. We just simply smiled at each other as he admonished himself and said he’d have to add a penny to the jar.

After class, we all stood downstairs and chatted for a bit. Our after training chit chat sessions are always one of the best things about Saturday training. It is during these sessions that I often get to hear Chiba sensei stories, talk about training, reminiscing about the past, talking about sake and beer, t-shirts and any other topic that happens to pop into our heads. It is strange how a bunch of random strangers have grown into something that is more like a family. Sensei brought up that one of the female yudansha that used to train has been talking about coming back, but hasn’t come yet. I told him that I wouldn’t know what to do if I had to share the dressing room (as I’m accustomed to having it ALL to myself). For some reason, female students are few and far between at our dojo. There were a few girls when I started and a few joined after me, but I’m the only one left (on a regular basis- one lives in CA and one is in college). I’m not sure if that is a good or bad thing, but I can say that I love my dojo and I love training with the guys. I don’t mind that I’m the only female working on the mat!]]> ninjaqutie Sat, 06 Feb 2010 23:55:32 GMT First, I passed. For those into belt colors, that means I'm still a white belt. I'll be posting the video (which I have not seen yet) later today.

[Update: Here's the video.]

I wasn't worried about passing, though. I was more interested in doing well. Or at least doing my best.

I did OK. Only one or two brain cramps on techniques, and I didn't shut down during jiyuwaza. A few minor "D'oh!" moments, but nothing horrid.

On the good side, I knew the names of everything, and the basics of how each technique went. Watching the 4th kyu test (the next one I'll have to take) I realized that I know those names and techniques, too, basically. And even a lot of the ones on the 3rd kyu test. I felt reasonably relaxed and present, and was able to breathe and focus pretty well.

On the room-for-improvement side... I really felt like something was missing, like I was "demonstrating how the techniques go" instead of *doing* the techniques. Like kind of half-singing a song to get across what the lyrics are, as opposed to really putting it out there like you mean to be heard. It felt half-hearted, uncommitted, low energy... something like that. When I sat back down in the line afterward, while watching the others, I knew I hadn't done my best, but I didn't know why. I wished I could've had a second chance, to get up there and do it like I had intended to do it. "Darn it. That wasn't how I meant to do that!" Oh well.

An interesting life lesson there... How often do I - do we - start out with the intention to really knock one out of the park, and then fade into "wait, that's not how I meant to do that" territory? Not for lack of skill, but from some momentary lethargy or lack of focus. Or maybe it's fear of trying, really whole-heartedly Going For It, and falling flat anyway.

I didn't knock it out of the park. I'm not proud of how I did, from a performance standpoint. But on the whole I'm OK with it. It was diagnostic, revealing. I know now where I stand. My perception of how I did on the test was consistent with the feedback I got. Sensei said it seemed like I was "being careful." I'm sure I was. I usually am a little tentative, a little light (not soft), and uncommitted, when practicing. Going through the motions.

The reason I've been conscious of for that is that I'm not sure of the technique - not sure I'm doing it right - and that I'm afraid that if I do it wrong I'll hurt my partner (particularly on things where one could bend joints in unnatural ways). I have also felt a general need to refrain from being forceful. I am reasonably strong, and it's easy for me to slip into using strength to try to "make" a technique work. I am more comfortable with more powerful technique (on both sides of the partnership). It's more familiar, and more fun. But I've been careful to try to keep that turned way down, to focus on finesse over force. Maybe, with some basic competency now, I can judiciously and correctly incorporate power into my Aikido.

Another reason I've just seen today is that you can't "really" fail if you aren't "really" trying. It's time to start really trying; doing Aikido like I mean it, all the time. By that I don't mean being stronger, harder, and more forceful with people. Just committed, honest, and real. Really strike. Really feel the energy. Really take Uke's balance. Really do the pin. Really throw them. And if that means making some blunders and looking like a goof along the way, so be it.

New goal: Do it "the way I meant to do it" every time. Really.]]> Linda Eskin Sat, 06 Feb 2010 05:01:09 GMT Apparently I'm grading on sunday. "You'll be turning up for your grading." Then in the car on the way home I got the further diktat, "No drinking until after the grading."

Disaster. Weekend ruined. End. Of. The. Universe.

So I've made do with a (dry) theatre trip to see Anna Karenina and am now watching The Karate Kid Part Three.

I'd like to quote from Dave Lowry at this point, "When his master Ittosai was off on one of his many journeys in search of worthwhile opponents (or dallying with a variety of the mistresses he kept, in search of something perhaps even more worthwhile), Kofujita practiced under the school's seniormost student, Ono Tadaaki."

How do I honestly feel about my 5th attempt at 1st kyu? Not happy. Pass or fail, not happy. There is a certain young lady I was hoping to be out drinking with on saturday night. I know this may come across as lack of dedication or wrong attitude to keiko or something. I disagree.
Going when you want to go is not dedication. Going when you don't want to go is dedication.

I've done zero prep for this grading. Sensei doesn't know what, if anything, is wrong. The feeling at the moment is that it's going to be the ukes that decide it. If I can get someone who can handle "young man's Aikido" then I'll be ok. Likely as not I wont. I've told everyone from my dojo that on no account are they even to get on the mat, never mind take ukemi for me. I want to see how seriously my grading's being taken i.e. if there's even a realisation that there is a 1st kyu grading.

My main concern is getting it over with so I can get round to Sarah's ASAP. If I have a look around and I don't think the ukemi provided is up to scratch I'll take advantage of that and withdraw from the grading.
I'm not going through the nonsense of "failing" a grading again because my Aikido wasn't fast, hard and brutal when my uke is twice my age and has knee, back, elbow, neck and stamnina issues.
I definately don't want Richard on the mat, the guy has athsma and heart problems and last time they wanted me to basically beat him up. And he was my only uke.

My secondary concern is avoiding the teachers course. It's meant for fukushidoin and shidoin, not random 2nd kyus who happen to be there. I don't want to go through the usual nonsense of having to take ukemi for all five people in my group and then teach a technique and then have to take a grading.

I bet my grading gets used as a teaching exercise.....again. Then everyone will rush to deny they had anything to do with it. Offically NO-ONE took the descision to fail me last time. Everyone denied they even had a say in it.

I think actually I'm just resentful that I have to take the grading. I have better things to do. I'm resentful that something is expected of me. On Sunday morning I have to be bright and full of pep, enthusiastic for the grading. I then have to perform far better than average because I'm young and I come from a "good dojo" not one of these "run of the mill dojos." Fifth time around, it feels false, I mean I actually have to pretend I care about the result.

I don't know. I do what I'm told. Sensei says grade, I grade.

Supposedly "This is no girly rum."]]> Ketsan Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:07:07 GMT My exam for 5th kyu is Saturday morning - tomorrow. When I first started working with my mentor a month ago we began with a sort of diagnostic run-through of the exam. I knew all the technique names, and basically what they were. There was plenty of room for correction and refinement, but I wasn't completely lost. I felt like I was on a pretty good trajectory for being ready by exam day.

Then in mid-January I did a seminar, which was great fun, and a tremendous experience. I loved it, but it was exhausting, and dumped a whole lot of new information into my little 6th-kyu brain.

The next couple of weeks were difficult all around, and left my confidence a bit battered. I couldn't seem to do anything right in class. Friends on Facebook were commenting that my Aikido posts had been negative lately.

I accumulated a dozen or so small injuries and ailments - a jammed thumb, a knee that didn't like to bend, sore shoulders and neck muscles, a stomped foot, assorted bruises and tight muscles, etc. I found myself stiff and guarded. Lingering symptoms from a cold in December returned, and my breathing was getting clogged up during class. One night I must have been dehydrated, and whited out (and sat right back down) when I stood up quickly from seiza.

Last Wednesday I had the worst bout of vertigo since starting Aikido. The world was spinning. I felt seasick and was tipping over and falling into things. Feeling grounded isn't even a possibility in that state.

Vertigo also causes a cognitive hit, from all that brain CPU being used just to navigate in the world, I guess. It's like the brain fog that rolls in when one has a cold. When I worked with my mentor last Friday, terminology I had down solid a month ago was lost in the fog. Techniques I've done well enough a hundred times were incomprehensible. I felt overwhelmed by how much I had left to learn.

There were other little things. Work seemed to be a morass of interruptions, distractions, and conflicting priorities. I couldn't seem to get caught up on chores at home. One night a car easily going 100 mph very nearly rear-ended me on the freeway. The universe was not being kind.

Then on Sunday I participated in one of Sensei's "In Focus" workshops, this time on ukemi. These workshops push us a bit. They are always revealing, and usually fun. While some of the exercises in this one were indeed fun, on the whole the experience was, for me, profoundly discouraging. The toes on my stomped foot were numb. I'd rolled funny on one shoulder, so my whole arm hurt and my fingers were tingling. I was told, and could see in the video, what I was doing wrong, but couldn't feel it. It felt right, but wasn't. Without accurate perceptions how can one make corrections? I'd had a similar experience, where I could not grasp *how* to learn something else in the past, and in that case I just give up entirely. So running into this particular personal brick wall was hard. Giving up Aikido is not an option, but I couldn't see my way around the wall. A very perceptive fellow student gave me a bit of a pep talk (or a kick in the butt), but it was still a difficult day.

Less than a week to my test, and it felt like my Aikido, barely held together with duct tape and baling twine on a good day, was falling apart. Sunday night my status on Facebook said "Linda Eskin is looking for the lesson, hard."

By Monday morning I decided I had to dig myself out of my rut. I remembered to take my allergy meds so I could breathe. I drank plenty of water, and walked at lunch. I stocked up on Gatorade and bananas to keep dehydration and muscle spasms at bay. I skipped going to the dojo to stay home to rest and heal, and to really study. I watched videos of each technique, reviewed my old descriptions of each, and wrote out new ones. When anything wasn't clear, I noted that, so I could ask about it.

On Tuesday I visualized the whole test over and over. As I fed Rainy and the donkeys I heard the words Sensei will say, let myself be aware of the little crowd of parents there to watch their kids' tests, felt what the cool blue mat will feel like, smelled how the mid-morning air will smell when it comes in across the little stream out behind the dojo, and heard the birds singing in the reeds. I saw and felt each technique in picture-perfect detail. I ran through it again as I got ready for work. Once more while I walked at lunch. And again as I drove to the dojo.

Tuesday night I did both classes. We reviewed all the techniques I was having trouble with, and did some great work on jiyuwaza. After class I got to practice with my mentor and with my fellow 5th Kyu candidate. We both did the whole test, plus jiyuwaza with each other. We got video of everything, and posted it so we could review it during the week. I felt so much better! Not quite ready, but confident that I could be ready by Saturday. Back on track!

Wednesday was another day off from classes. I iced and rested the ouchy parts, studied and visualized the techniques, and went out to dinner with my dear husband, Michael. Ended the day feeling more settled.

Yesterday morning, Thursday, I put together a playlist of positive, high-energy music that I love, and listened to that while driving. In the middle of a long day of meetings at work I managed to get outdoors once, sit quietly, and do the whole test again. The weapons class in the evening was very calming and reassuring. I may not be any better at weapons than at anything else, but I find them easier to comprehend. So weapons classes generally leave me feeling like I might have a bit of a clue about this stuff. I stayed late to watch some of the advanced class, write some notes and be sure I had all my questions down to ask my mentor on Friday. The class was doing some really interesting work on feeling shared energy and going with it. I'm very glad I stayed. I left feeling quietly excited, happy, and very grateful to be able to train with Sensei and my dojo mates.

Tonight is a 90-minute class with Sensei, and then a full run-through of the exam with my mentor. I'm really looking forward to both. All I have to do tomorrow is show up, relax, breathe, and have fun. ]]> Linda Eskin 'B' at any one time, then 'A' wins; and vice-versa. thus, if you were training within these parameters, you would try your continuously increase the value of these factors, or in some cases, trying to maintain it. however, the problem starts because eventually there will be someone who is bigger, stronger, faster... and yes, simply younger. whatever we do, we cannot fight the effect of age... in aikido however, i reckon that it doesn't work the same way 'mathematically'. i propose that rather than it being a game of addition and subtraction, it becomes a matter of multiplication. e.g. 'C' attacks 'D' (aikidoka) = [C] x [D] = [strength+speed+skills+...] x [aiki ability+...] usually an aikido beginner would normally get whooped by 'C', because they are not only using the wrong formula (i.e. fighting the wrong fight), but also that the value of the 'aiki ability' is still paradoxically too large (using too much strength, forcing the technique etc.), causing 'C' to overwhelm 'D' if 'D' tries to fight 'C' by simple subtraction. however, as the aikidoka improves, and the finesse and the ability to 'blend' increases and so forth, the value of 'aiki ability' becomes so small, and the end value of 'C' x 'D' becomes smaller and smaller as the 'aiki ability' becomes nearer and nearer to zero (e.g. 100 x 2 = 200; 100 x 0.2 = 20; 100 x 0.02 = 2; 100 x 0.002 = 0.2...) i propose that when takemusu aiki occurs, at that very moment, the value of 'D' becomes nought, and the sum value becomes null (i.e. n x 0 = 0) - and everyone is suddenly one with the universe. :rolleyes:]]> Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:56:19 GMT i'm elaborating out-loud on a random idea i had about aikido as compared to other MAs:-

in the stereotypical fighting arts, it's usually a game of addition and subtraction. hypothetically, if fighter 'A' goes against fighter 'B', we can simply calculate all the factors involved within each fighter and see which sum comes up bigger.

e.g.
'A' vs. 'B'
= [A] - [b]
= [strength+speed+skills+...] - [strength+speed+skills+...]

if 'A' > 'B' at any one time, then 'A' wins; and vice-versa.

thus, if you were training within these parameters, you would try your continuously increase the value of these factors, or in some cases, trying to maintain it. however, the problem starts because eventually there will be someone who is bigger, stronger, faster... and yes, simply younger. whatever we do, we cannot fight the effect of age...


in aikido however, i reckon that it doesn't work the same way 'mathematically'. i propose that rather than it being a game of addition and subtraction, it becomes a matter of multiplication.

e.g.
'C' attacks 'D' (aikidoka)
= [C] x [D]
= [strength+speed+skills+...] x [aiki ability+...]

usually an aikido beginner would normally get whooped by 'C', because they are not only using the wrong formula (i.e. fighting the wrong fight), but also that the value of the 'aiki ability' is still paradoxically too large (using too much strength, forcing the technique etc.), causing 'C' to overwhelm 'D' if 'D' tries to fight 'C' by simple subtraction.

however, as the aikidoka improves, and the finesse and the ability to 'blend' increases and so forth, the value of 'aiki ability' becomes so small, and the end value of 'C' x 'D' becomes smaller and smaller as the 'aiki ability' becomes nearer and nearer to zero (e.g. 100 x 2 = 200; 100 x 0.2 = 20; 100 x 0.02 = 2; 100 x 0.002 = 0.2...)

i propose that when takemusu aiki occurs, at that very moment, the value of 'D' becomes nought, and the sum value becomes null (i.e. n x 0 = 0) - and everyone is suddenly one with the universe. ]]> osaya Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:48:35 GMT i was initially daunted about setting up an aikiblog after reading some of the ones here, but recently was inspired by one which was succinct, simple to read and very... 'real'.

it's given me confidence to think that i don't have to try too hard, but to simply be me when i write here.

i love talking and writing about aikido, but it would appear that my regular (external) blog is seldom an appropriate place for it due to the target audience... in fact, that always whinge that aikido is all i talk about. LOL.

oh well, looks like i've found me a little niche then eh? ]]> osaya Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:45:04 GMT I've been lucky enough to partner some of the very experienced guys in the dojo and some of the not so experienced. It helps me train each time as each person teaches me something different.

With the very experienced and senior guys, I learn subtleties I would often have not grasped without their help. Often my grip can be wrong without my realising it as the sensei pointed out about my executing a movement to grasp one end of the bokken without locking myself in in the next move.

Or I'm not moving out from the centre although I think I am. I learned the last session that I need for yokomen kotegaishi that I need to initiate the first movement exactly as I would do for the basic body movement.

Or that I'm using strength when I think I'm using technique. And how to change it so I rely more or technique.

What I appreciate most though is their sense of control. And I guess that is one of the distinguishing marks of the more experienced practitioners: the ability to control without or causing minimal damage and with minimal effort. It's never been an art about how hard or how fast but an exercise in self control and in controlling one's opponent.

I'm glad they've helped me take these steps out.]]> CatSienna Wed, 03 Feb 2010 01:22:33 GMT Not much to tell... Same old same old.....but agin I have the relzation that your brin is a powerfull thing I had a really good day on monday and went to class expecting to do decent. however, it was not relly, I belive it was becaeu well , a few events happend with some people, that may have only been 4 on the sacale of 1-10. The point being I thinking I was not focosed, hence I was ither in a haz or I was sure I was going to fail, jsut a felling. However, when I have just assumed I was going to do well I usley did. Intresting, I knwo it now if I can just get my head to shut up more, I would be greet. Unfostuly, after 14 years of schhooling teaching you think and this is so and not trust your gut , well thats going to be heard. I also obserbed taht if you jacknifts on wiifit and then do some 360 in Aikido calss your abbs relly hurt.]]> trademark8806 Sun, 31 Jan 2010 02:36:21 GMT Today class went well. I actuly felt like i may have goton a litte bit of what was going on and some parts were even fun. In the frist part we did alot of punching the person and then back falling. The other person throw you by pusing your neck or grabing your back and a new one going under your arm and grabing the wrist, then throwing you back. I was happy beacuse mostly I did not put my hands back when I did a back fall. Yay me! Then the second half we worked with boken. I kinda staring to finaly know boken cotta one. I then not sure what the next one we worked on was, but I knwo I don't know it really well. I ened up geting correced on making an agressive face , or should I say lack there of. The person whom I was working with siad it confuse people when you are not agress enoff, or don't focouse on the power enoff. Espely when youi have a wepon in your hand. The wepon says I am going to attack and if your face dose not say that then it's confuseing. Wich I get, just was not relly constios that I was not , nore that it was SO inportent. I aprently do not hit hard enoff, so I worked on hiting a sorwd that was held by my partner. I kinda am afreind to not hurnt the other parson but , I gess I have to trust my self enoff that I am not going hurt the other person and I control my self well enoff. Then we worked on something taht we were suposed to work on in the first place. wich somehow I ened up hiting my head I not entrly sure if I did or the other person, but I kinda hurt. Then agin my ulsey most sentive part is my head, I seroly have the tenderest head in the world. Pontails hurt after awhile. It passed , partener deced to partice open had so we worked on 6th que requriments. Then we did demonstaration, I kinda faild. I messed up what we worked on 5 mints ago. Oh well I trying. I staring to know more tearms and movements. I lurning to know my boday enoff to know what it will do and wont. Oh an intristing observation, made by sisay when you atack with a sward the feet come along with it naturaly, so we should focose on the power of the strik , not so much the feet. I gess that goes with the fact that you are lurning to be intune with yourself and others. I hope to beable to tune into others someday. Mabby this will help with social cuse as well. who knows. Sad I fainaly string to get some things and I will be leavign this dojo for school in the fall. Oh, well. Tahnks for reading and sharing your thoughts.]]> trademark8806 Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:56:31 GMT The more I read the more I feel compelled to post. Then I read some more and begin to feel unsettled. Now I just don't think I should post all! There are so many seriously experienced and knowledgable folks here that it seems rude to consider posting.

The more I train the more I realize I have very little understanding of what I'm striving after. What I knew and did last year seems confused now. Two years ago I was just wrong. More than two years ago I'm embarassed that I was even seen in public doing that stuff - much less posting about it!

For me this last year has proven that shodan really is just the beginning. I've barely scratched the surface ... just finding the extent of the surface is tough much less the volume bounded by the surface (keep your fractal commentary to yourself).

Miles to go before I sleep.]]> Rob Watson Wed, 27 Jan 2010 08:53:01 GMT Long time, no blog post! After the recent seminar, circumstances promptly dumped me back into my normal life. Work was busy. The weather was insane, with the most dramatic storms we've seen in years. The power was unreliable for days. Rainy the horse, and the donkeys, have needed extra tending with all the rain and muck. And after one 6-hour power failure our refrigerator broke for good, which meant an evening throwing out everything, and filling an ice chest with enough to get by on. It's been like camping in our own house. On top of that, I've been training all I can, because my 5th kyu test is coming up a week from Saturday.

Now work is settled back into a good steady pace. The rain is coming down more gently. The new fridge arrives tomorrow, and we're making a restocking run in the evening. Training for my test is proceeding apace. Almost back to a normal routine.

For the past week I've been wanting to post something to sum up my experience of the Aikido Bridge Friendship Seminar. It was such a long, intense, diverse, and new experience it's hard to know where to begin, so I'll start at the end.

I've lived in San Diego County all my life. It's a lovely place. People from all over come here for vacations. Whenever I've flown back into San Diego on a commercial flight there have been people visibly and vocally excited about coming here, many for the first time. "Yay! We're in San Diego!!!" It doesn't matter where I've been, what I've seen, what I've been doing, when I come back here I have that same feeling. It's not only that it's familiar and comfortable, it's really a beautiful, rich, amazing part of the world. I'm very lucky to live here, and happy to be home.

Coming back to my own dojo after the seminar, which actually was my vacation, was a similar experience. I feel so fortunate to have a great "home" to return to. Tonight's classes just reinforced that feeling once again. I'm very lucky to live here, and happy to be home.

The seminar was the first Aikido training I'd done outside of events with my own dojo. The facility was lovely, and the event (in its 4th year, I believe?) was well-run. Thank you again, to Jeff Sodeman Sensei and everyone at Jiai Aikido who made the seminar possible. Everyone I met was friendly, helpful, and serious about training.

The teachers were amazing, of course, kind, often funny, and very generous about connecting with students at all levels. I had the privilege of working with each of them several times, and tried my best to stay present and really get what I was feeling. Ikeda Sensei was like grabbing a cloud - just nothing to hold onto. It seems that the wonder of this stuff working never grows old for him. Several times he allowed that "It's weird!" Many of Doran Sensei's techniques included what I think of as the kind of misdirection used by magicians. He often taught with a very charming sense of mischief. On the last day I and another white belt (just there for that day, I think) were trying to work out the details of some seemingly impossible technique, when Tissier Sensei stopped to offer us a few words of encouragement. Such a gracious man.

I've never done anything so physically and mentally intense, for so long, before. I was very glad for all the Aikido classes I'd been doing, the walking at lunch, the time on the elliptical trainer, and heavy yard work. I came home utterly exhausted (but exhilarated) each night. I had told my husband, Michael, to basically consider me to be "out of town" for the duration; to make his own plans for the evenings. That was a good call. I had just enough energy left to throw my dogi in the wash, feed the critters, shower, eat something, set the alarm clock, and collapse into bed.

I cannot come close to remembering everything we covered in those 5 days. I certainly can't describe it with any accuracy. Here are some of the impressions that particularly struck me:

Tissier Sensei - Emphasized economy of motion. His speed was incredible. There were techniques he demonstrated "slowly" and some parts where just blurs, they happened so fast. He also worked with us on looking where we were going (for instance, to a point on the floor, and not at Uke's hand). This point really stuck with me for two reasons. First, it made an immediate, clear improvement in the feel of the technique when I did it. Second, it's very familiar from horseback riding - jumping in particular. You don't stare down at a jump as you're going over it, you're already looking to the next one. Your attention (or intention, really) on the next jump naturally helps guide you and your horse to it - it's palpable. And the effect is the same in Aikido.

Ikeda Sensei - Taking Uke's balance at the first touch. Subtle, internal waves. Giving the impression of something to grab, but nothing being there. I was able to see little glimmers of this working, like seeing the shadow of a fish in dark water. I caught a glimpse. I know it's there, somewhere.

Doran Sensei - Lots of very sensible techniques, presented in clearly-explained chunks I could mostly manage to understand. I got it about the train coming, and getting off the track. I got it about catching the shomen strike like catching a fish on a hook. I got it about using atemi to get Uke to take their own balance, so you don't have to.

These things were just moments. An image here or phrase there that was able to snatch up and tuck into my memory as they flew past in a hurricane of information for 5 days. There were also the guest instructors, and dozens of training partners, and new friends, who I learned so much from. It was a pretty mind-blowing experience. I'm already looking forward to going again next year.]]> Linda Eskin