sensei8

In addition... KF User Guidelines #2 states... "While member post count has meaning, it should not be taken too seriously." While the context of that guideline rings true, the exceptions is the quality of the posts; that is the same for Alex's posts. Again...Congrats Alex!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

Welcome to KF!!!!!!!!

I wish you luck with your grading...you'll be fine. Just relax, have fun, and let the grading take care of itself.

That's AWESOME!! Congrats to both of you and YES, well deserved!!

Life is a series of fails and successes...the MA is nothing different. It's how we respond to them that makes us whom we are in either one.

04/18/2013.... Ran 5 classes, mostly 5th kyu students, and then I was conducting my daily duties as Kaicho late into the night.

1> There's only 24 hours in a day and I have to sleep. 2> Advertising/marketing

First of all...Welcome to KF!! Treat the girls and the boys and the men and the women THE SAME...they're karatekas...nothing more and nothing less!! Delve out your discipline accordingly and consistent. Don't favor the girls over the boys concerning anything. The girls giggle...don't excuse them from doing it because they're just girls. No! If you don't want the girls, or anyone for that matter of fact, giggling and the like, inform them but do it in a professional manner. As far as the boy in your second problem, delve out consistent discipline to him as well. If the things he does aren't suppose to be done, i.e. playing with his belt or with his feet, then address it but remember to be professional. Don't shout when you're disciplining. Shouting is for cadence and the like, or for cheering one on during kumite. Shouting as a discipline tool isn't how instructors are suppose to be because we influence our students and we don't want to provide negative anything. There's a right way and a wrong way, and we instructor had better know the difference before we want to teach. Him being a different person while he's in private lessons is more than likely because you've got his undivided attention, it's just you and him, and he's no reason to "act" up.

I'm 55, and if 33 is over the hill, sheech, I've both feet in my grave already. Only thing I need now is to just lie down. I wish I was 33 again...ah, what a time that was!!

I concur with mal103, and in addition, I might take notice of how the competitors gi and belt are; but that's only to see if it's clean and wrinkle-free and to see if the gi top was put on correctly and that the belt is tied. Only get one chance to make that first impression across the board.

Congrats to you Alex!! I've always enjoyed your posts across the board. You're knowledge is well received from the KF members without any reservation. You've earned my respect, and that's for sure!!

Never assume anything, especially when it comes to rank, bring the white belt and go from there. The sensei will see within mere moments what he/she needs to see, and then, you'll find out what belt's appropriate. Good luck...hang in there!!

Yes...very cool stuff, and I too thank you for sharing it. Question: How do you think it would do against BJJ/MMA and the like?

Excuse me for asking this...have you asked your Sensei? I ask because the different viewpoints of any said Bunkai of any said Kata run a very wide gambit of its possibilities. I could say it's an escape release or I could say that it's a block [but I don't teach it that it is] or I could say that it's a way to do this or that. Ask your Sensei!!

Forward is bad enough, but backwards is nearly, at first, a nightmare, but quite invaluable to a karateka because it ensures that the karateka KNOWS the kata inside and outside, and that alone is a great teaching tool. I love it!! When I do it for the students right from their first glance at said kata, they're thinking..."OMG...I've got to do that?" Well...Yes you do, and you'll love it too.

Possibly "Practical" is nothing more than a "brand" to attract the consumer...possibly. After all, there are many, many ways to attract the consumer to take at least a peek.

Good luck with your Shodan, and the old saying says...Anything that good is worth waiting for!! 27 years for Shodan might shock a many MAists but I think that, with what you've posted, you've not allowed the breaks to break your spirit.

What I see is what it's like for Greg, our Kancho, and I when we're engaged with each other during sparring and the like; greatly intense. No, we're not even like this with anyone else on the floor, just with each other. We've both known each other for 50 years, and we've trained together for almost 49 years. We've always been this intense with each other and we wouldn't want it any other way.

The Unsu technique in the beginning was EXCELLENT...thanks for sharing the video...SUPREME!!

Way to go...3rd place is quite a respectful way to finish in Kumite/Kata. Be as proud of yourself as I'm sure your instructor is of you...AWESOME and CONGRATS!!

I thank each one of you...your words and expressions are heart felt!!

English/Japanese

For what it's worth... Karate is like a iron chain and it goes "wang". Gung-Fu is like a iron chain with a bar attached to it and it goes "wang"...and it hurts.~Bruce Lee I don't agree with this totally because, first, I'm a karateka, and I believe that karate goes "wang"...and it hurts...too! I'm sure that Gung-Fu hurts too, and I'm sure that many other styles of the MA goes "wang"...and they hurt too.