lordtariel

Thought this was great... http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=005oO0&tag=

Most of the jians do, some of them are rigid and slightly heavier. A skilled practitioner could make the sword bend into the joints of armor. A lot of the stuff you do with a rapier could be pulled off with a jian, but that's not how they were used. My only experience with the straightsword is through tai chi and some experimentation with friends so I'm not necessarily an expert on the weapon. I've seen flexible daos, but I'm pretty sure they are only wushu weapons.

A Jian(also called a gim or taichi sword or straightsword) has a long thin blade(about 28-30 inches long) and is razor sharp for the first third, moderately sharp for the second third and blunt for the final third. As it is a very thin blade, you can't block with it. It's more of a slashing and piercing weapon. http://www.casiberia.com/cas/images/products/SH2008A.jpg A Dao(also called a chineese broadsword or sabre) has a single edged curving blade similar to a falchion or a scimitar. It's more of a chopping weapon. http://www.wle.com/media/ANT002.jpg (I badly want one of these, it's an antique and wle.com sells them for more money than I can afford )

I've seen the occasional martial arts summer camp for kids, but what about for the grownups? I could really go for a week or even just a weekend long retreat for nothing but training. Anyone know of any karate retreats on the west coast? Preferably in southern washington/oregon/northern califorina? Anyone have any experience with them?

For kids that aren't getting it, it opens up a good opportunity for older students(not necessarily just sempais) to help out. As I progressed in tai chi, my instructor began to rely more and more on my assistance during classes. At first I resented it as it took time out of my studing with the advanced group to have to help with the beginner group. I kind of felt like he was sluffing some of his work onto me, but eventually my view began to shift. By helping students that were having problems, I was learning quite a bit about some of the starting forms, was beginning to better articulate instructions, and felt a sense of accomplishment when they started to get it. I realized that it was actually part of my responsibility as a senior student to help out when it was needed. Guess what I'm trying to say is that both students benifit when one helps the other. It also allows you to move through the lessons more efficiently as the whole class doesn't have to be held up while you work with one student. It also prepares them for when they do become a senior student to help out. As for the student that doesn't want to be there, I've never had to deal with that issue so I'd probably not be much help there. My sugguestions would follow what most everyone else has already said.

I have two gis. One of them is my tournament\demo gi which has our org patch on it (AAU requires a plain white gi with only the AAU patch on the breast to compete in tournaments) The other is my workout gi which has absolutly nothing on it. Don't really feel the need for all the fancy decorations.

Lots of practice like everyone says, but also slow it down and break out each move. Make sure you've got each technique completed and have performed it correctly before you move to the next one in the sequence. Do it enough and speed will follow.

I started doing them around 7th kyu. We were doing them more as exercise drills rather than putting them to practical use though.

I've thought about the concept, but would think the actual execution of that pairing might be a bit difficult as there is differences in blade length, width, style and weight. Wonder what weapon you would use in your off hand...

A Shirasaya was essentially a holder for a blade that was not going to be used for a while. They were not intended for actual combat.

It's got lots of purposes, one of which is for ballance. By sweeping your advancing foot by your rooted foot you gain a moment of stability before advancing. It makes it a bit harder to sweep you.

Congrats!

A probably perverse devotion to discipline, hard work, and pain.

You may want to consider as your third paragraph where you think martial arts are heading in the future. Other people's advice is quite pertinant. Just get up and do something different for a while.

We always do 3-5 minutes before class to clear our heads. That's the main reason I meditate. The monkey mind is strong in this one.

There's nothing wrong with mixing techniques, but I'd like to argue that by jumping from art to art, you never truly gain an understanding of any of them.

I think the media has to take some of the blame with the expectations of new students about the uber-awsome technique enhancing black belt. Most people don't realize that having a black belt simply means you've got a basic handle on all the stuff you need to start your martial arts training, not that you're instantly a master of whatever system you are in. I remember when I started Judo(USJF) how dissapointed I was that there was only four belt colors(White-Green-Brown-Black) and it would probably take 1-1/2 years to even get to green. On the positive side, I wasn't spending months obsessing about when I was going to get my next belt. I feel there's really nothing wrong with the idea of a two/three belt system A strip of fabric doesn't necessarily mean anything except to help a new student figure out who he can ask a question to. There's nothing wrong with being proud that you got your black belt, it is a great achievment, just don't let it go to your head.

I know the weather itself wouldn't cause illness, but would colder temperature reduce the bodies effectiveness at warding off illness?

No, just an honorable fighter

My girl loves the victorian and edwardian style rings with all the filligree work. I'm having a hard time trying to find one where I live. I found a website that does reproductions of them, but I'm really looking for a vintage piece. Problem is they usually are 3 times the price.

Cheese and Mushroom... Eazy on the sauce...

http://www3.baylor.edu/BUKarate/video.html This place has some videos. I know the shu shi katas and these appear to be pretty good. I don't know if I'd recommend the place for learning the katas, but it's a pretty good reference.

Thought the straightsword was the scholar's weapon...

It really depends on the opponent. If you're facing a beginner, they may not know what to do when their opponent is reversed like that. They'll have to change their stance before they do anything. For the first five months or so I was like that since most of our drills were done with same leg facing forward. If someone switched stances I didn't know what to do unless I switched as well. I've been forcing myself to learn to fight from different stances to deal with this issue.

Every other day I try to do about 30-1:30 of practice. On the side of that I'm always randomly working on blocking, steping, kicking, striking or whatever else I feel like. Drives my girlfriend nuts when we're wandering down a store and I'm practicing block-step or something.