JR 137

I sweat quite a bit. Never had any eye issues. But now that I’ve read this, it’s going to be one problem after another I’d say wear a headband. I should probably wear one too. Maybe a wristband too, and use that to wipe your face instead of your sleeve. There’s a reason why a lot of pro athletes wear them, especially basketball. I typically wipe my forehead with my hands and wipe it on my pants. Saying that out loud makes me think a bit Headband and/or wristbands. And wash them after every class IMO.

Congratulations!

Welcome aboard!

I'd say it's a little of both. Belts work well to help the instructor know generally where each student is at a glance. But, as a former school teacher, I can say a good teacher should know generally where each of his students is without that physical reminder. If he can't remember that without a belt, he has too many students and each one most likely isn't getting the attention they deserve. Belts are also usefully as extrinsic motivation tools. Even though intrinsic motivation (the motivation that comes from inside of us) is much better and more sought after than extrinsic motivation (the motivation that comes from external things like belts), it can be harder to sustain intrinsic motivation-- especially for kids. So it can be a powerful motivational tool for them. It's also a way of teaching them to set and work for smaller goals. For adults, we can set goals based on performance-- "learn this kata" or "develop more power in my basic straight punch". But those types of goals are a bit abstract for kids, so "get to yellow belt" is something they can wrap their heads around a little easier. I know my school uses more belts for kids than they do for adults for this reason. Adults have five belts before Shodan. Kids have ten including three levels of junior black. It breaks down the goals into smaller chunks for them and keeps them motivated. Basically what I'm saying is there's nothing wrong with belts. There's been a trend lately of people dismissing belts as useless or even harmful because they are extrinsic vs intrinsic motivators and some schools have misused the belt system to make more money. But really they're a very useful tool for motivation and goal setting and helpful for both the instructors and the students. Very well said. They’re good at marking progress for the individual. They’re an outward reminder in a sense. I’ve got my old belts in a drawer next to some clothes that I rarely wear (stuff to wear when shoveling snow, fixing the car, etc.). I guess it’s just the most convenient place they happened to end up in. But when I see them, I think back when I was wearing them. My old white belt and my old black belt stick out the most in my mind. Remembering walking in for the first time and remembering the most physically demanding thing I’ve ever done for my shodan test are great memories. And a lot of stuff in between. Sometimes that physical reminder helps reflect better than anything else can.

I was helping run a brown belt test for the teenage group one time. The head of our organization (my previous organization) was 6th dan. When the test was over he was talking about rank and what does it really mean and all that stuff, especially since they were nearing black belt. He had one kid take off his belt and wear his 6th dan belt. He had him do a kata in front of everyone while wearing it. He asked “what’s the difference between when he was wearing his brown belt and when he was wearing a 6th dan belt?” Then he said “I can promote you all to my rank right now. I can promote you even higher if I want to. But what are you going to do with it, wave it in someone’s face? Do you think that’s going to scare people off? Do you think it’s going to get you any respect? Is it going to get you anything at all?” He finished with “while yes it’s more than ‘just another belt’ at the end of the day, it’s just another belt. You’ve got to genuinely make it more than that; no one else do that for you.” The kids were old enough to get what he was saying. That one stuck with me more than just about anything else.

They’re not any traditional kata that I’ve ever seen. They appear to be kata most likely developed by someone within that specific organization/school. That’s most likely why you’re not finding anything about them beyond videos made/posted by that school. There’s nothing wrong with that if you know why they teach them and you’re ok with their reasons. If you’re looking for traditional kata, I’m quite sure this isn’t what you’re looking for. I’ve got no problem with kata developed by someone recently. Our founder has made a few of his own. They’re in line with everything else we do and don’t seem like something thrown together just to look cool. They’re not my favorite kata and I could just as easily do without them and/or replace them with traditional kata, but I enjoy one or two of them that I know. We do far more traditional kata (as in number of kata) than just the ones developed by our founder. The traditional ones we do are popular ones found elsewhere and are very close to Kyokushin’s version of them.

The population of NYC, Long Island and Westchester county is approximately 17 million and some change. That’s pretty much the entire Metro NYC area. The total population of New York State is 19.5 million. So the rest of NYS or “upstate New York is about 2.5 million, with a little over a million in the Albany region. Yeah, the NYC area runs the show. New York is the oddest place in a way - everyone wants to be left alone and do what they want. Yet, they want to tell everyone else what to do. So much so that they’ve got to push laws and regulations for everything. I’ve never been able to comprehend this. Outside of metro NYC and in some ways Albany, the rest of NY is completely different. The weapons that are banned are just ludicrous. Nunchucku? Seriously? Why ban a switchblade or “butterfly” knife when the blade length of a folding or fixed blade knife of the same length is perfectly legal to carry? Complete nonsense. The only reason is the same as why nunchucku were banned - fear and sensationalism. Criminals in movies flick switchblades and ninjas and other criminals do the crazy butterfly knife show when wielding it. Using common sense, a fixed blade knife would be quicker and more practical for a criminal. Brass knuckles? A baseball bat would be far more dangerous. See movies for the ban. Collapsible batons? No clue why. Genuinely bad people like gang members and muggers are carrying illegal guns. Far less so knives. These people don’t care about the laws, so if they thought nunchucku, batons and brass knuckles were great weapons, they’d carry them. They’re not not carrying them because they’re banned and hard to find; they’re not carrying them because they’re not practical for them. Yet they’re banned because criminals will use them. Sure, that’s logical.

Congratulations to your son. Is it just me, or are we somehow more proud and it’s more special when our kids do something than when we do it? My happiest day in karate was the first time I tied my daughter’s belt on and she walked onto the floor for her first class. I’ve got countless great memories (and many more on the way) of stuff I’ve done in the dojo, but they all pale in comparison. Again, congratulations to both of you!

Another new trailer

I remember his stint with Tennessee; he turned the program around in a hurry, too. He's got Auburn headed in the right direction. And Charles Barkley is stoked about it! So, my Final Four was Duke, Gonzaga, Tennessee, and UNC. So my bracket is toast. I’ve (I guess you could call it) kinda hung out with him twice. Coaches get together during a tournament in Nashville and I think it was Nassau Bahamas for an exhibition between Div 1 teams vs some international teams. He’s the same guy you see on TV. Charismatic and genuine. I’ve seen quite a few of them be completely different people when the cameras aren’t on. Of all the big name Div 1 coaches I’ve met, he and Rick Majerus did the best job of balancing making sure the players are focused and being realistic about them being college students and allowing them their freedom to be like everyone else on campus. Rick Majerus was in the Atlantic 10 at St Louis when I was working basketball in the A-10. Great coach, and a great guy whenever I spoke with him.

Yup. And Brad Pitt’s reply was genius. I haven’t laughed like that in a while.

Because I ran out of characters I’ve met Bruce Pearl behind the scenes and few times. Great guy who’s exactly like he comes off on TV. I’m rooting for him even though he knocked off UNC. If it was anyone, I’m glad it was him.

I thought I had a solid final 4 and championship. Then Auburn impressed everyone and took away my Tar Heels. Then Texas Tech knocked off Michigan. I had Michigan vs Michigan State (Michigan State winning), and UNC vs Virginia, with UNC winning it all.

Patrick How com u post <280 wrds? U betr then us or somthin? Im just tryin a sav space here

Gr8 post Bob. C U L8R

Pretty sure it’s because of guys like you and me

I really, really want to see Dutch make an appearance. He’s by far the guy I loved to hate the most.

He’s definitely got his Jesse impression down. Very funny!

Everyone’s got their strengths and weaknesses. And anyone with any common sense knows you teach and/or deal with different ages groups differently. This isn’t a MA thing, this is an everything thing. I don’t know if the guy or guys in question are good or bad at what they do. But if they’re talking and dealing with everyone the same way, regardless of age, then I’m going to go out on a limb and say they’re not very effective across the board. You can teach someone how to teach, but you can’t teach them a personality. And personality is 90% of teaching, give or take a bit IMO.

Edited due to confusion... I took Buffalo on one sheet and Texas Tech on the other. I need Oregon and Houston to win to have 14 out of 16 in the Sweet 16 correct. Marquette and Buffalo are my only two misses in my original bracket. My second bracket will be 12 out of 16 regardless of the final two games tonight. Oregon’s dominating Irvine right now. I’m surprised the score is as close as it is, even though Oregon’s up by 12 at the half. I need Oregon and Houston to win to have 14 out of 16 right for the Sweet 16. Marquette and Kansas State going out in the first round hurt me. I didn’t have either one going to the Elite 8, so I’m sitting better than I could’ve been.

UCF lost a true heartbreaker. Down one, final possession, and a tough layup goes in and out of the basket. Teammate gets an offensive rebound, and rolls around inside the basket and doesn’t fall. One of those games that it’s truly unfortunate someone had to lose. Duke played well and deserved the win, but they know they got lucky. Another win on my sheet. I was rooting for UCF even though I was betting against them. Would’ve loved to see them pull off that upset.

No one fills out brackets? Heresy! Or did everyone throw out their sheets on Saturday? I’ve got 2... First round 25-7 on one and 24-8 on the other. Second round - zero losses on either sheet so far. Although UCF is giving Duke a run for their money. Tied at 57 with under 10 minutes to play. As a UNC fan, I’ll take a Duke loss any day, even if it costs me a game or two on my sheet

I saw that one after looking into the Title one. It seems quite easy to do one out of PVC. Only 2 issues: 1. I’d need some sort of bearing to allow the arm to spin smoothly and freely. Think fidget spinner vs two pieces of PVC pipe rubbing against each other. 2. PVC pipe might be a bit too light for the arm. Not enough mass means not enough momentum. Maybe not though. Going to try to rig something up. I just need some time. Have you used one before?

How are your brackets holding up? Marquette, Syracuse, and just now K-State losing didn’t do me any favors. Other than those, I’m sitting pretty nice. For the time being

Happy birthday, Liam. You and my now 6 year old daughter share the same birthday, so I guess I’ll always remember yours