sensei8

UPDATE: This morning, January 13, 2022, I went to my Oncologist appointment at 8:30am. Since the end of the Americas Care Act has ended, my co-pay for the office visit is $20; not bad. Dr. Goodman and I spoke for about 15 minutes, he gets right to the point. He asked me if I went to get the X-Rays of my mid-back, and I informed him that I did that the very day that he wrote out the referral. He indicates that he's still not received them back as of yet. He asked me if I went to the hospital that's part of the medical center that his practice resides. and I told him "No". The hospital doesn't except my insurance. The hospital sent me to another Image Center that's a stone's throw away from the hospital, however, that Image Center doesn't accept my insurance either. I was then directed to another Image Center a few miles away from the second choice, of which, they did accept my insurance...three times a charm. Dr. Goodman asked me the name of that Image center, and I drew a big fat blank, and I wasn't smart enough to get their business card, nor was I wise enough to keep the proof of the visit; I misplaced the darn thing. Dr. Goodman says that there's only three places that he sends patients to, so he'll become Sherlock Holmes and track down the X-Rays, and he'll call me with the results. I told him that my mid-back has its moments from a scale of 0-10, pain wise, and that the Chiropractor is still on the burner, pending the X-Ray results. My PSA (Prostate-specific antigen) dropped once again. It's gone down from 0.12 to 0.09!! Our goal is to reach 0.01, and then to maintain that through management. Dr. Goodman tells me that we can still wait until June for Radiation Therapy Treatments. However, he says that the sooner, the better. The type of Radiation Therapy Treatments is called Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), yeah, a mouth full, for sure. My understanding about IMRT is that it's far from being affordable, can be painful, and can cause secondary cancer...not what I wanted to hear, nor read. Without insurance, IMRT can cost near 60K...pain can be from being readjusted while on the table and from the machine itself...the secondary cancer scares me the most. One cancer is enough, in the name of Jesus!! My next appointment with Dr. Goodman is March 3, 2022 at 1pm. My next appointment for my Eligard shot is April 8, 2022 at 1pm. Afterwards, I went to the Financial Department to see if my Financial Assistance for my Eligard shot has been renewed for another year. Now some disheartening news about my Eligard shot. I was NOT RENEWED for the providers financial assistance. No Patient was. The provider, after all of the paperwork was submitted to the provider, the provider closed the window. The window might reopen when fundings are provided. The closed window might be due to the fear of another pandemic purge, where lockdown and the like might be implemented once again nationwide. Who knows why?!??!! The Financial Department at the Comprehensive Cancer Center will keep a close eye on the situation daily. If the window opens, then we'll be contacted. I will check in with that department in 7 weeks when I see Dr. Goodman. How am I going to continue my treatments every 4 months without the blessing for the Financial Assistance? I guess I won't. Money before treatments. Once again, Eligard now costs over $15,000 per shot. I wept in the office of the Financial Manager.

As a patch, what size do you have in mind? Our Shindokan shield is 4-inch; not to small, not too big. My avatar here at KF IS the Shindokan Shield. I do like your design overall. The diamonds play tricks with my eyes, whereas, if the diamonds on the east were switched, were the solid red and the open were switched. Perhaps that's the OCD in me.

I do believe that Yoga can help practitioners center themselves with all that's involved with learning the MA. Plus, the many other benefits that Yoga can provide, i.e., stress relief, reducing inflammation, relieve anxiety, and improve health for one's heart. If you have a bad lower back, Yoga can help with pain. The MA needs other things to improve the engine that drives the MA. Recharge with Yoga, if that's what's needed. A lot of us in the MA will perform Zazen/Mokuso, seated meditation, before and after class, so why not Yoga as well; Yoga can be the standing meditation; both beneficial.

Thank you so very much; it means everything to me, RW!! Now and forever!!

Pinan sets because I'm an Okinawan practitioner. However, I'm very well versed in the Heian sets, and between those two, my preference is Pinan over Heian because of the more uprightness of their stances. I'm also very well versed in the Gekisai sets as well; quite similar stances of Pinan. I primarily teach the Pinan sets, but on occasion, I've also taught the Heian and Gekisai sets, whereas I train in them more than I teach them; depends on where I am and whomever asks.

I hope that whatever decision(s) you make, benefits all concerned in this matter. Assuming can get everyone involved in this matter a heap load of headaches in so many ways. Be smart and keep your head above water.

Yep. 1944-45 saw the passing of masters like Motobu, Funakoshi (Gigo), Hanashiro, Tokuda, and Kyan. A couple of them never got to really formalize their knowledge into a “style”, yet their students did. The 'founder of Shotokan' never developed a style ? gspell68 is referring to Gichin Funakoshi's son, Gigo, and not Gichin himself.

I think Master Ken just might have issues with a many of things found in the link you shared with us. Like you, I too, would've chosen different applications, but, to each their own. I did get a chuckle out of it, thanks, Zaine.

A few things come to my mind. We're not doctors, for the most part, and we're not THEIR doctor. We're not the parents. They're students. We're owners/CI of our MA school. What I'd consider is to speak to my attorney first about this issue in order to find out what are my rights and obligations according to the law. As owner/CI, our first responsibility is to the business, myself, and my Student Body. One wrong thing can spell the end in a blink of an eye. I'd tread slowly and carefully, and as it's already been mentioned, it's your school, and you've the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason(s). Now, the devil in me says to tell the father that this is my decision, and if the father can't abide by them, then there's the door...in a professional way.

I'd like to repeat some of what Patrick spoke about in the OP... This is as equally important as any donations; either are greatly appreciated as well as needed. I thank each and everyone here at KF across the board. This fight is far from being over; I will beat the survival rate, God willing!!

Congrats, ramymensa; very well deserved!!

No!! Martial Arts without contact is akin to a swimming pool without water; empty. Contact allows one to experience 'IT', whatever 'IT' might be in one's MA. However, a car is a car even if I never drive it in order to experience driving it; I can't deny that what I'm looking at is a car. I can appreciate the car's overall expression, yet, if all I do is look at it, then I'm missing out on experiencing its effectiveness, its ergonomic subtleness. If I don't drive the car, I might as well just get rid of it or take the tires off the car because it's not being applied as it should be. Same thing to the MA. In Shindokan, we can't train in it without ever experiencing its effectiveness. Of course, during drills and/or solo training, there's little to no contact since that time is geared towards learning something new, of which, afterwards, contact is a very key element to training. How do I even know what that car can or can't do unless I experience its abilities for myself?? I first have to become intimate with the car by sitting in it, and by handling its many features. This is akin to drilling in the MA. Now that I've become far more familiar with the car, now, it's time to experience it. Taking it slow at first to get use to the feel of it, and then gradually, take it on the open highway for its full experience and effectiveness. Yet at the very same time, to not being reckless because the car must be respected, and if the cars power and effectiveness isn't respected, it'll reach up and smack you right upside your head. The brakes and accelerator pedals and the turn signals and the mirrors are all vital elements to handle the car from point 'A' to point 'B' safely, and the most important element in handling this beast if common-sense. Same thing in the MA, common-sense must be embraced. In the MA, common-sense are our brakes and accelerator pedals, turn signals, and mirrors; know how to use them before your opponent smacks you right upside your noggin. Drive and train safely, but contact IS a vital important element to training in the MA, if not, then swimming on dry land might be truer words after all. Imho!!

Once again, if I may... I didn't know Karate went anywhere where it had to make a comeback. Recently I read that at present, around 100 million people on five continents and 192 countries practice karate. Sounds pretty viable to me, still. Marketing drives the horse, and sometimes the horse can't be led to water to say it's soul.

This topic, for me, is a difficult one to discuss. In the past, I never faced the unnerving possibility of being away from the MA in any shape, time, way, and/or form. That was then, this is now. These past 18 months, cancer has affected me in many ways, MA wise. My cancer has metastasized to my T4 and T12. This has greatly diminished my ability to transition to my right side. Difficult to walk often times, and now my mid-back, where my T12 is located, hurts quite a lot to move, taking a deep breath, cough, and/or laugh. 18 months ago, the Urologist who gave me my cancer diagnoses, was surprised that I was walking. Now, 15 months later, walking tasks me severely. The time is around the corner, that I must walk away from the floor permanently. I pray not, but that's for another time to discuss. There may not be a time where I can come back to the floor. This isn't my choice, but the fight that I fight might have to make that choice for me. I still train as often as I can. The good news is that the gym I attend has an elevator. Walking up and down stairs is doable, but good grief, it's very slow going in both directions. Just think, I use to go up and down 50 flights of stairs for a warm-up not too long ago. Certain things I can't do much anymore at the gym, like, pushing/pulling a weighted sled and the Stairmaster. Often times I feel so worthless, as a man, husband, father, and as a MAist but I still fight, and will continue to fight. The MA floor is sacred ground to me. Experiencing that which this topic is discussion is very new to me, and that which is the unknown to me, scares me to no end. The old adage speaks about getting back on the horse, and I respect that, and try my most darn to do so. More importantly, 7 times down, 8 times up...for me now more than ever...that proverb is my proof is on the floor!!

Welcome to KF, gspell68; glad that you're here!! Points to be considered concerning the fists alignments and the like.

The best marketing tool is YOU!! Believe in oneself is Marketing 101. There's no soundproof marketing tool because the targets change as often as wind direction. Books and the like have flooded our industry as frequent as a thought that comes and goes. Please don't misunderstand me. there are several solid marketing how-to books and tools. Those tools don't answer every question and/or concern that a MA school owner/CI faces on a daily basis. Yet, those books and/or tools do one thing or another...work or they don't work, but what they might do consistently is birth an idea/thought, and at that moment, that which one's searching for arrives in the form of the core basis of one's MA school. Trial and error are the corner stone of any business, and yes, your MA school IS a business. Any business must be cared for daily with the same drive and energy that the CI puts forward whenever he/she is on the floor. The only bad idea is the one not tried!! My primary marketing tool was always me. Of course, I had the knowledge and experience of Shindokan as well as how to teach, but how to run a MA school from A to Z was another thing. I had a minimum of an idea about how to run a business, and that was ok, but not enough. The hard knock life of running a business requires some of the most difficult lessons that I ever learned, and I did learn, but at an expense. The whole adage of Location, Location, Location are very true words, but so is Rent, Utilities, and Waste Management. I was fortunate enough to learn from my Soke and Dai-Soke, other than Shindokan, was that any school of the MA IS a business first, and foremost. Yes, my school of the MA is operated inside of a dojo, but the building isn't the dojo because it's a business. If I've an overhead, than my dojo is the crucial part of my business. Advertising is hit and miss, as well as it can be quite expensive to all get out. My two primary tools of marketing for over 40 years have always been word of mouth and flyers; and my P&L will show my business very viable. Either can make you or break you in a blink of an eye. Bad word of mouth will hit you where you live, and a bad flyer will find some trash can or floor faster than a speeding bullet. Trial and error...over and over and over until the proper formula of success is ever found. Discouraging in running a business?? Absolutely!! Japanese proverb, Nana korobi ya oki...7 times down, 8 times up...or something more familiar...If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. If the answer to marketing is found in a book, then go with that book. If the answer to marketing is found in trial and error, then go with that. If the answer to marketing is found by taking advice from whomever, then go for it. Wherever the answer to marketing comes from, the embrace it. One last thing, CHANGE IS INEVITABLE exclusively in business and marketing. What works today, doesn't mean that it'll work tomorrow. Excellent customer service is key to attracting and keeping customers, and your students ARE customers, because the CI's job is to get prospective customers to come to the door, and many times, customer service piques their interest. Hang in there!!

Congrats to Hollie and Ashley on their wedding!! Reminds me of the Carpenters song...We've Only Just Begun...only great days ahead for you both!!

What I've seen so far of Season 4 hasn't disappointed me whatsoever. I love how the writers, and all bring the episodes to a raging boil, wanted more and more!!

Thank you, Ramona and Patrick, so very much!! I’ll be forever thankful to all of you for being by my side in the toughest days of my life. You are all the most loyal that I have ever met. Everyone here and afar have helped me to get through this difficult, but yet blessed time, and I will be forever humbled by your kindness. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!!

Thank you, Brian!! To you and everyone here at KF, I too, would like to wish all, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Hopefully things are better in your county and the several others; sounded crazy for sure. There's never a dull moment as a LEO, huh!? Be safe, my friend!!

I sincerely believe that this runs rampant in every MA, or in anything where human beings are being taught anything by other human beings. Patience is a very vital element for being a teacher, and for those teachers that lack patience, the most promising students are given far better attention than those students that struggle. Without patience, there is no effective and quality of learning whatsoever. The bad thing is that this type of teacher sticks out like a sore thumb, and if that type of teacher isn't made accountable for their actions, then not just the selected few, but the entire Student Body suffers. Struggling students are of the same value as a talented and gifted student and should be treated equally across the board. Perhaps it goes beyond the lack of patience, if so, then said impatient teacher is just not a good teacher at all. Lacking teaching skills can be hidden behind the gifted and talented students, whereas flaws of the teacher can be readily seen. It's sad to witness and it's even worse to just stand by and do nothing at all. Teachers forget that all if their students are the perfect representation of themselves. Proof is on the floor!!

Feel free to take whatever energy I am not using in making a resolution and apply it to that, Bob! I would also love to see you cancer free in 2022!Thank you so very much, Zaine; means everything to me and my family!! Unfortunately, stage 4 prostate cancer isn't curable. Yet, the prognosis is hopeful in that I'll die of something else, but not prostate cancer, according from my doctors. The immediate goal is for remission, partial or complete. It's all up to God!!

I believe that wanting to start from scratch after a real long time away from the floor is the honorable thing to do. Any CI worth their salt would acknowledge it respectfully. For anyone else aren't in agreement need to remember that you don't need their approval, just their respect of your decision.

To put my cancer in remission!!