bat in a birdless village

At my last job, I was chosen as "stretch leader" in a program made to get workers to stretch before they hit the job. Stretching has been proven to reduce injuries, particularly in manufactoring environments, and I tend to believe studies that show that. Anyway about it, safe stretching could not hurt you, only help you in the short and long run. bat

I was watching an episode of Star Trek and got to thinking about the holodeck. In it, characters train for battle simulations or experience things such as being on a boat, playing baseball, or visiting a pub. Martial art classes would be available in a holodeck. So, if someone got their black belt (or equivelant) from a similar computer simulation, would it count or even be respected in the martial arts community? Would it be considered real or equated to the mail in black belt certificates we have now? This is an upcoming possibility of sorts. The Playstation II has its Eye Toy, which translates our body movements in games, such as martial arts fighting games. We aren't there yet, but my question could be an issue one day. bat

I could not pay my instructor when I was in my late teens due to my parents' divorce, so I told him that I would not be able to attend class for a while because I could not pay. He told me that he would not let me quit for that reason and refused payment. From that point it took two years to get my black belt and I never paid in that two years. After black belt, you don't pay anymore. I stuck around and got my black from him. That was a nice thing for him to do since he had to pay rent and electricity at that school. Years later, I ran a school and didn't charge anyone. I am about to reopen a school through my church that will not charge either. It is nice when someone does something like he did, and it is important to help others in similar ways. bat

Something else you may want to ask is if you have to pay a yearly fee to keep the belt certicate current. Many (bad) schools say you have to pay a yearly membership fee and if you don't, they will not recognize your black belt anymore. I guess they think it is like milk and it will go bad.... bat

Last week, Kempo Grandmaster David German passed away. He died of a heart attack following a seminar in Aiken, SC. Details for the funeral can be found at his site: http://www.davidgermankenpoman.com/ I trained for years under one of his 10th dans and stayed in the TAI Karate style even after leaving that teacher. It is sad, but inevitable. My prayers go to his family. bat

About ten years ago, there was a Canadian tournament called "Karate Fights Diabetes." I just checked online and now that tournament is gone. To copy that idea, I made a Yahoo board about eight years ago called "Martial Arts Fights Diabetes." It had about 40 members, but eventually fizzled out. Message boards have a lifetime, depending on the topic, and that one had its life. bat

You are right about that. I have been drinking diet coke since I was ten years old. Regular cola tastes TERRIBLE to me. If you can switch to diet cola for about a month or two, you never will be able to drink regular cola again. To you non-diabetics, if you switch to diet cola permanently, you will take off about 4 pounds and keep it off. In case you didn't know, try the Kroger brand and Wal-Mart brand diet cola. They taste better than Diet Coke or Diet Pepsi and are a good deal cheaper. I found the Kroger brand 20 years ago and think it tastes better than the name brands. My wife prefers the Wal-Mart brand over the name brands. bat

You just hit on what I was going after. I have wondered about the speed of the martial arts spreading. I think if Barton-Wright would have promoted himself better, today we would see three times the amount of schools everyone and just as many more "masters." It also would have affected the creation of styles. We probably would have many more different styles, or at least many more names of styles today. bat

I am 30 years old and have been diabetic since I was ten years old. When I started taking karate at 15, I was wearing an insulin pump. When I turned 18, I went back to three shots a day (of insulin). I still do not have problems with my feet since I have fought to keep my glucose levels in a good range. You should be catious, but keep your glucose in good ranges and you should be allright. Side note: my father never took his insulin and just lost part of one foot and his left eye usage, so be careful. bat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartitsu Read that. In the 1890's, that guy mixed martial arts with boxing and wrestling to make a mixed style. He did what people like Bruce Lee did about 70-80 years before Lee became famous. Martial arts training really didn't become attainable until the 1970's here in the US. How different would things be if he had become famous around 1900 and spread martial arts way back then? bat

That would not prove much. Both Ken Shamrock and Kimo have terrible fight records. Ken's is 26 wins, 10 losses, and 2 draws. Many of those losses were against no-names and all recently. Kimo is at 10, 4, and 1. Neither represent what would be considered today's top fighters. Yes, they may represent old school, as you said, but not top quality. bat

Try looking at https://www.meetup.com That has listings for martial arts meetup training groups in your area. Or you could go there or through your local newspaper and start your own meetup group. bat

If they "hand out belts" as you just stated, then it is a bad style or school. bat

You can buy steel toe sneakers at boot stores and even WalMart. They sell at walmart for about $30 and look like simple white sneakers. I have worn them for several years at my job. If you wear them in public, as I do, they look like normal shoes. Work boots weigh about 5-6 pounds each, so they are far too heavy to consider. In fact, that came up in a karate class that I was teaching last week. The lighter your foot wear, the better. When I was in high school, I wore canvas low cut shoes and deck shoes. The lighter you feet are, the faster you kick and the more kicks you can throw. On the other side, anything with steel toes will slow your kicks down a good bit. Also, street kicks should never go above belt level--that is the cardical rule of street kicking. If you are having problems with this guy, notify someone before you scrap with him. That will cover your butt more than you think. Also, don't fight him if possible. Most of us train in the martial arts, but you can't train for a hidden knife, his buddies attacking with him, or him picking up a trash can lid or stick. There are far too many unknowns in a fight. bat

Check out the Dog Brothers at https://www.dogbrothers.com They have free video clips, info at the site, and books for sale. They are the best at stickfighting. You won't find any better. bat

Check https://www.meetup.com There may be a martial arts meetup group listed there. That would be free and would hook you up with martial artists from different styles. If there isn't one listed, make one. Also, you could use your local newspapers to list a potential meetup group in your area. bat

I will pray for your family as well. I hope that I go at an old age within a week of my wife. Yes, it would be harder on the family, but it's kind of sweet in a way. Still, anytime cancer and suffering is involved, it takes away from the celebration of the end of the life of an older person. bat

Ten years ago, I was in the post office with my wife (we had just gotten married) and I dropped a letter in the slot in the lobby. To make sure it didn't get jammed, I pushed my fingers in to see if I could feel the envelope. My wedding band got stuck and there was a line behind me. I had to let a few people put letters in below that slot while I tried to work my ring finger out. The worst part was my wife was laughing so had that she had that "silent laugh" going. It took a good three or four minutes to get unjammed. I could have choked my wife....except I couldn't reach her. lol bat

I would recommend a 60 pound bag over 80 or 100. At 60, you still have enough resistance to develop power, but not too much to make it easy. Sears had some at good prices, of course if you can get one used, that is always better. As the above poster stated, stay away from canvas. That will rip you bare knuckles up. bat

You should do it, just for the coolness of having school shirts to sell or give away, but you can beat $12 if you shop around. I am a big fan of tshirts in the summer as the uniform top. There is a local shop here that charges $3 per shirt with a minimum of 12 (and a setup fee of about $20 if you use your own logo and not clipart). That deal is for a one color logo on the front of the shirt. Tell me and I will list their website so you can call or email them and see if they will mail you the shirts. It may be worth it. Regardless, shop around. You can beat that. Bat

Hello to everyone here at this board! I am a second degree black belt in American Karate and am based out of Georgia, USA. I am new to this board, but frequently post at other boards. I hope to have good conversations here. Bat