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So... What was your best moment of 2005? Aikido related or otherwise...?
I should have gone to the pub with the guys after Aikido last night. I spend so much time bitching about having no-one to hang out with, no-one to go places with, and when I get invited out I say no thanks. Sheesh! Not my brightest of years 2005.
I had an idea for a between Christmas and New Year Party... The Fight Club Party. Bring your favourite movie fight scene with you and we can all argue over whose is best. Have a muck around in the garden. Defence from twiglet you fiend!! It would be cool. I might canvas people for ieads... (I've never hosted a party before! eep)
and STILL the whole concept of breakfalling over stuff kills me. I knackered my shoulder trying to get over a foam snake of all things. I swore at My which went down well. Way to go with the Christmas spirit Frac.
All in all though 2005 has been a great year on the MA front. When L listed everyone who had graded it was amazing... soooo many of us! A new Dan grade amongst us as well, Rw is such a love! So great of him to invite us all to join him with the Sealed Knot... What with that and a holiday together at Butlin's it's been a busy year. I hope I can be involved in the club's anniversary in 2007.
Two new MA's in one year. I could even have done my first grading in Iaido if I'd been so inclined! 10th kyu apparantly. Yikes, that's a lot of grades to wade through, mind you Den reckoned with a couple of les
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How does Aikido rate as stress relief? I'd say it rates pretty high.
In a normal week I go to Aikido two nights, Kung Fu (now) one night and Climbing and Iaido one night each. That's 5 nights out of 7doing some mad sport or other. they are stress relief for different reasons.
Iaido, for me anyway, requires complete concentration. It's not that I don't concentrate in the others ... but Iaido is so nit picky and precise I really have to be concentrating or I just stand there, one arm in the air, not having a clue which foot goes where next. This provides one form of stress relief, the mental sort.
Kung Fu, with it's partly mental "Ching mai what now?" and partly physical, "we have to do how many sit-ups?"
Aikido, my beloved confusing mix of free flowing movements and utter confusion...
Climbing is the only one that is entirely physical. It's entirely instinctual, I don't have a level I have to be at for any particular grading, there are no hoops I have to jump through and I only learn moves in that someone might shout advice and I try a different way of moving. The simplicity of it is glorious.
Stress relief is what I could really do with right now.. but I can't get to my classes. I have no heating, the academics are wanting 35 books ordered in the Christmas rush for a course that starts in January, I haven't written my chartership nor any christmas cards, I still have a bunch of presents to buy and I have a mortgage meeting (can you smell the fear
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It was the Christmas meal last night. Twenty of us turned up from various places... Including a guy I have never seen... he must go to the Thursday sessions!
2 pints of Cider and I'm anyone's... I am sooooo going to miss this class. I will try and go as often as possible but I'm going to be another 20 odd miles away and a class that finishes at 10pm will mean I arrive home in the middle of the night.
I've looked up the local club in the town I'm moving to and they seem, as Ry said, a bit drippy. It's all Ki development and "dynamic relaxation". say wha? "Dynamic relaxation"? what's that all about then? You mean we actually get to stand up and do stuff...? Crumbs. it might work for some but I'm the impatient type. Make me stand still for too long and I start futtering (pronounced footering by the way, Rd just could not pronounce it last night), that's Glaswegian for fiddling.
Thing is though, I guess that's the next stage anyway... the philosophical angle needs a bit of work, a bit of research, not to mention learning the history. If I want to be in it for the long haul I should know a bit more about it all.
I just don't know that I could handle not doing dynamic Aikido. I might as well take up meditation classes.
Oh well I will enjoy our Yoshinkan/Aikikai/Traditional version of Aikido while it lasts.
Have decided I want Ry and Rn on my desert island as well! How about an Aikido Island that would be good. Them plus the Sealed Knot who I barely kno
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Is it all in the mind? No...but most of it is. As someone, whose name I've forgotten, once said, "whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right".
The destructive power of those little voices that tell you you're not quite good/funny/attractive enough is awesome. They can destroy everything from a breakfall to a relationship. (or should that be the other way round in priority on an Aikido Site!? )
Heading towards my thirties things are getting better. Thanks go to jf for reminding me how lucky I am...
5-ish hours of Aikido on Sunday has lead to me walking a little lop-sidedly... We had the Kai Shin Kai Head Instructor giving our class a private session! Only one guy from Reading turned up; everyone else was Devises Budo. We Rule.
It's nice sometimes to just experiment. I love having a go, adapting and changing things to see how they fit to each circumstance. It was great partnering the guy from Reading as he helped me see that even though you're practising the same initial move (Gakyu), each time Uke can react slightly differently resulting in a different throw or lock. Zed was good fun too EVEN though he poked me in the throat with a Jo.... the fact that it was probably my fault (moving too late) is besides the point!
Last night I nearly came to blows with Sensei because he said I was a typical woman unable to translate move from one side to another. I then threatened him with a slap. I really was NOT in the mood for all that generalisation rubbish. He then practised with someone else for the rest of the night. heee! oops. Ah well, I'm a brittle, short tempered person, far too easy a mark. He should pick S to wind up, she's much more mellow. But then, I guess, where would the fun be. Paddington the Stress Bear.
I have an ambition to go on a Buddhist retreat. I really like the idea of trying meditation in a place designed for that purpose. I need a bit of calm and a bit of focus in my life... I have picked a martial art 2nd only to Tai Chi in term
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