Patrick

11:38am Eastern update: The first 9 years are off the board.

Very kind of you to say, Keith. Thank you for being a part of what makes it great!

Welcome back, nunopicado! Thanks for the update! That's awesome how you've been able to navigate that challenge! Good luck with the promotion. Please let us know how it goes. Patrick

Hello, (Share Your Stories | Post on May 21) On this day, 20 years ago, KarateForums.com launched. What started as a simple conversation between a couple teenagers has become a special community that has made a difference to many people. Through your contributions to this community - the thoughtful way you share your knowledge, the kind manner in which you make newcomers feel welcome, and the spaces you create for others to add their experience - you've touched millions of martial artists around the world. I know because I've seen it, and I've had members tell me. Again, again, again, and again. What does this community mean to you? Please respond to this thread to share or post it here. The last 14 months have illustrated this. Through personal setbacks, we've been here for one another, to offer support and help get through these challenging times. It's hard for me to put into words what this community means to me. When I started it, I was in a totally different place. I was still in high school. I finished high school, grew up, wrote a book, built a career doing what I do here, moved several times across 4 different states, met someone, got engaged, and got married, with all sorts of random moments along the way. I've been building online communities for over 20 years now, and I've helped a lot of people do the same. I've helped hobbyists, nonprofits, small companies, companies you know, Fortune 500s, and more. But no matter who I'm helping, I always draw from the lessons I've learned here. If you've contributed to KarateForums.com, thank you. Thank you for being a part of what makes this community so special. When I talk to people about KarateForums.com and what it makes it great, what I'm most proud of, it's you. I know that sounds cliche, but it's the members of the community that I am proud of. It's the fact that someone in need can come here, and thoughtful people will respond to them with kindness and helpful advice. Don't ever underestimate the impact that one post can have on an individual - or on many of people. Each time you contribute thoughtfully, you impact lives. Sometimes in big ways, sometimes in small ways, but we're always impacting people. To thank individual members is always hard because we have had enough members where I'll always leave some people out. That said, I do want to highlight our current staff, all of whom have been on the team for years (some well over 10)! They have helped to maintain this thing that we all enjoy, and I appreciate all of their support and kindness. Their contributions to the community cannot be overstated. Thank you to Brian/bushido_man96, Danielle/DWx, Noah/Wastelander, Bob/sensei8, Liam/Nidan Melbourne, JR/JR 137, and Mo/mazzybear. I would also like to specifically highlight many of our members who have visited in the last few months and, either recently or in the past, have thoughtfully contributed to our community. Thank you to 333kenshin, advfhorn, Alan Armstrong, ashworth, aurik, bassaiguy, BeefcaketheBarber, Bobd400, Bobfromtekken, Bulltahr, ChpsahoySE, Chucksmanhood, CTTKDKing, Dmitriy, Drillscoach, Fat Cobra, FightingFox, GojuRyu Bahrain, hammer, hawkfish, Himokiri Karate, JazzKicker, jdash, Kanku65, kenpo4life, kenshinkan08, LastKing, Lupin1, Miick 11, mjh1969, monkeygirl, Montana, Nevinyrral, nunopicado, oldtimer, Questor, The Pred, Radagast, ramymensa, Raul Perez, RJCKarate, RW, scohen0300, Shaolin13, SLK59, Spartacus Maximus, sperki, Spodo Komodo, stonecrusher69, tdiedwards, Theochh, tselec, vantheman, Wado Heretic, Wamp, Wayofaswede, wildbourgman, and Zaine! We're going for a low key celebration this year because the time I've been spending on KarateForums.com has been dedicated toward working on an important change for our community that I hope will solidify our next 20 years. It's super positive: Everything that you like about KF, only better. But I am going to talk about that in a separate announcement! At any rate, that's what's on my mind today, as we mark 20 years. I'd love to hear what's on yours, either here or in the stories thread. Thanks for reading. Patrick

Hey all, Since we're celebrating 20 years of KarateForums.com on May 21, that means that there have been 21 calendar years where people have been joining our community. I thought it would be fun to see how many years could be represented in a single day - the day of May 21! To make it interesting, I decided to exclude myself, and officially only count members who contributed to martial arts-related conversations, by posting or starting a thread, e.g. not general chat. Though I'll still keep track of those and add any additional members to the appropriate year, in italic. The first member from that year who posts on May 21 will be listed in bold. If you're reading this, please come back on May 21 and start a martial arts-related thread or make a post! I reached out to a bunch of members to encourage them to post May 21 - some you know, and some may be faces from the past! I'll update this post throughout the day on May 21, to add members who have posted to the calendar year within which they registered! 2001: jdash and Patrick 2002: monkeygirl 2003: The Pred 2004: N/A 2005: Zaine 2006: bushido_man96 2007: Montana and DWx 2008: sensei8 2009: Lupin1 2010: Wastelander 2011: N/A 2012: vantheman 2013: Nidan Melbourne 2014: Wado Heretic and Spartacus Maximus 2015: Bulltahr 2016: aurik 2017: JazzKicker 2018: nunopicado and Fat Cobra 2019: Theochh 2020: SLK59 2021: Questor and Miick 11 I'm excited to see how many years we can manage! Patrick

That's very kind of you, Bob. Thanks for sharing. Patrick

Thanks for those kind words, John! Also, fixed the profile link in the post. Sorry about that. Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. We recognize one member every month as the KarateForums.com Member of the Month for their positive contributions to this community. Our honoree for May is... Zaine for the second time! It's been 9 years, to the month, since the last time Zaine was selected as Member of the Month. So glad to still after you here, making great contributions, after all these years. Thanks, Patrick

Just watched the Yasuke anime on Netflix, and I thought it was great! It's based around the historical figure of the same name, but it's an alternate reality with magic and advanced technology, as the Wikipedia page explains. It's quick - 5 episodes around 30 minutes - and we burned right through it. Definitely gruesome (in an animated form). Lots of swords cutting through warriors! If that sounds like your thing, check it out.

Thank you so much for sharing these stories, Brian, John, The Pred, and Bulltahr! It was really amazing to read them. I appreciate the kind words, but all 4 of you have impacted so many people with your posts here, yourselves, and have helped make the community what it is! Patrick

Hahaha, yeah, that whole period of time is sort of bizarre to me, like it's such a gruesome, violent series of fights. And it's like, well, "John Kreese, what are you gonna do?!"

Hey all, On May 21, KarateForums.com will turn 20 years old. This is an incredible milestone. It is rare that an online community exists, consecutively, for this long. We've been fortunate, as a community, to have so many amazing members over the years. As we cruise toward May 21, we have a number of things planned as part of what will be a lowkey, intimate celebration. We'd like to start with this thread! I'd love to hear your stories about how KarateForums.com has impacted you. How members within this community have helped you or made something better or added enjoyment to your life. What stands out to you? It would be so great to hear your stories, and I know that I and others would love to read them! This is a special place, and it is your experiences and stories that illustrate why that is. Thank you, Patrick

Yeah, the house isn't exactly my style, either, but it does have some features I like. That courtyard, the pool, the windows, and the flooring especially. It's hard though because rival, roaming teenager karate gangs seem intent on breaking those windows, so the upkeep would be substantial.

Watched it last night! I'll admit that I haven't played the arcade games much, if at all (my Mom didn't want me to, haha), but I enjoyed learning a bit about the characters through the movie. Curious to hear what you thought!

Listing and pictures: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/130-Woodlawn-Dr-NE-Marietta-GA-30067/14279378_zpid/ That courtyard is super cool.

Welcome to the community, Bob. Glad to have you. Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. We recognize one member every month as the KarateForums.com Member of the Month for their positive contributions to this community. Our honoree for April is... GojuRyu Bahrain! May will mark 8 years since GojuRyu Bahrain became a member! Thank you for all of your contributions over the years. Thanks, Patrick

Bob and SLK59, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Patrick

Welcome Questor! Glad to have you. Patrick

Sure thing.

Hey all, Hope you had a nice April Fools' Day! Since we've back in the '20s - the 2020s - we decided to take it back to the 1920s and turn KarateForums.com into a sort of speakeasy with a simple point and click adventure and a password that you had to guess to enter the site. If you missed it, no worries! You can check it out here: https://www.karateforums.com/archives/april-fools-day-2021/ Credit to Noah (Wastelander) for the idea and the password. Thanks, Patrick

Okay, we finally finished the season last night, and I was finally able to read this thread now! First, as I was watching this season... I just could not believe the amount of violence that kids were getting away with. Like what is this... the All-Kid War of 2021?! You can't just go around breaking arms and throwing kids through windows?! Someone record some video and bring this to an end! But with that said, the season finale was awesome and well-earned. I finally got the thing I had been wanting for two seasons, the thing that they probably could have got together on long ago and saved a lot of injuries... Daniel and Johnny need to unite to take on a greater evil. So, it was super satisfying to see them do that. Also, for Hawk to finally realize he had become the thing that he despised, even if he did way more then can be fixed with just a simple "I'm sorry." But yes, bring on the unified Miyagi and Eagle Fang dojos. I hope it sticks.

Planning to watch it tonight!

Hey Bob, It's about $234 for two trackers and everything you need to use them.

Wow, it's great that you've managed to avoid COVID! Sorry to hear of these issues though, Scott. Patrick