December 2009
16 posts
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Coming Back After a Holiday
Our dojo is closed over major holiday weekends. Over the Thanksgiving break there were no classes Thursday through Sunday.
I went to class Wednesday night (unusual, for me), and tonight (I would normally have waited until Tuesday). Still, 4 days away seems like an awfully long time.
I noticed something interesting in both of the classes tonight, I think. We were having fun, and laughing like we...
November 2009
26 posts
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“Aikido is obviously an art form that is expressed through the body, which gets...”
– Dave Goldberg Sensei, from his blog post “The Case for More Body Awareness”
There is so much of value just in this one post from October that it’s worth reading again from time to time. And if you haven’t been following Sensei’s blog, here’s your chance to start.
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Gratitude
Aikido has been the primary focus of my thoughts and activities this year. Studying and practicing Aikido has changed my life for the better in many ways. This Thanksgiving I am particularly grateful for everyone I’ve met so far along this path. Here are a few who come to mind:
My parents, for enrolling me in a YMCA summer Judo program in third grade. In addition to being a fun...
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Scanning the Instruments
When flying a plane, one thing a pilot does, to be sure things are working correctly, on course, and safe, is to frequently scan the instruments. Check the altitude, check the heading, check the airspeed, etc. Look around for traffic, communicate if needed… Check the altitude, check the heading, check the airspeed, and so on. Scanning the instruments lets you detect little problems quickly,...
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Whew! (day 16 of 16)
This is a quick post about today’s classes. Tomorrow I’ll put down some thoughts about the whole 16 days.
There were 2 classes today: Weapons, and open hand.
In the weapons class we did the first 10 jo suburi. I think I’d done them all before, but at any rate none were a mystery, so I was able to focus on doing them correctly. I need to work on my timing. I was coming in ahead...
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TGIF (day 15 of 16)
This has been a very busy running-full-out kind of week at work. For some it’s been a pretty rough time. Everyone was quite ready to get started on the weekend this afternoon. For me it’s been mostly fun - the kind of work I enjoy, just lots of it, on tight deadlines. My body has had enough of sitting at a desk and using a trackball, even though I did get out for a quick walk at lunch....
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Hard Day, Fun Weapons Class
Day 14 of 16. Today at work was harsh. Plowed through work all day long, and then an hour before I had to leave, I realized there was a huge chunk more that had to be done. If my day were randori, I’d let myself end up in the middle, and all the attackers were on me. I haven’t been out walking for 2 days, and my legs felt like achy blocks of concrete. My left shoulder has been bugging...
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How Not To Do It
One of the woes of having the privilege to train under a teacher with an unflinching commitment to his students growth as Aikidoists is that the feedback sometimes stings.
Last night, in spite of my intention to go to class tonight, I stayed up to the wee hours to watch a meteor shower. That was stupid. Tonight, not having had enough sleep, I went to class anyway. That was arrogant and selfish.
...
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Day 9 of 16: End of a Great Week
Today, Saturday, wrapped up the first week of my 16 day Personal Aikido Intensive. I’m delighted and relieved to be able to say I’ve been having an awesome time, and am excited about having another full week ahead.
Next week I’ll be in classes Monday through Saturday. M, W, & Sat. are two-class days. That’s 9 classes, 5 of which will be with Sensei. This past week...
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It's a Lot Like Line Dancing
I’m going to try to keep this brief, because come hell or high water I am going to get 8 hours’ sleep tonight.
Have you read the two diaries that make their way around the Internet every so often? One is by a cat, and one is by a dog. The cat reports the horrors of his captivity, while the dog is excited about everything that happens, all day long:
8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite...
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A Much Better Day
I sure didn’t get everything perfect today, but I did a lot better. 5-1/2 hours of sleep instead of 4, and actual meals (big, hearty salads), meant more energy. Last night’s bath, plus a few sessions with ice packs, had everything feeling better today. More water, less coffee, more focused.
Not perfect… Still not enough sleep. I didn’t eat or drink enough this afternoon....
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A Little More Freedom
There is class on Monday (day 4 of 16), but because of a prior commitment I won’t be there. So no training notes for day 4. It’s the only day I’ll be missing class.
Instead, I offer this, about my recent experience of trying to write a little information about my background:
Leaving Some Things Behind
I started to explain who I Have been throughout the years
Justify my...
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Working Hard, Playing Hard
This is day one of my 15-day personal Aikido Intensive. Tonight included lots to think about - refining some well-known techniques and exploring some new ones. Awesome class. After a very challenging week at work (at lot of which was engaging and rewarding, but still…), I really needed it, too.
Several of the techniques we worked on involved falling or rolling - quite a lot of it. I had...
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My own 2-week Aikido Intensive
Thanks to a happy fluke in my calendar, my next two weeks will be my own personal Aikido Intensive. It means being at work an hour early (and I am not a morning person). I’ll have to kick butt on caring for Rainy and the donkeys, and on doing my strengthening exercises in the mornings and evenings. But I know it will be well worth it. It’s also going to be a particularly intense time...
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“Create each day anew by clothing yourself with heaven and earth, bathing...”
– Morihei Ueshiba (O Sensei), from The Art of Peace, translated and edited by John Stevens
[A month ago I would’ve thought of this as some lovely idealistic vision, but it’s becoming my real daily experience.]
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“coffee and music
missy meows around my feet
the hunter’s moon sets”
– Linda Eskin At the beginning of a month of stepped-up training & goals.
Astronomy note: The Hunter’s moon is the full moon after the Harvest Moon. Full moons set near dawn.