KarateEd

I'm in!

Welcome to KF!

Welcome to KF, pknox!

Welcome to KF, JayeMeekoh!

Yeah, I remember your user name, KamasandSais. Welcome back!

Welcome to KF, joesteph! I am a history teacher myself, though just substituting at the moment.

Welcome to KF, TexasMike!

Welcome to KF, eagle-ace!

Welcome back, boyo1991!

Welcome to KF, humble monk!

BlackSilver, Good stuff, ya'll looked sharp! BB of C, Entertaining vids, I liked the sound effects

Is there netting or some other sort of retaining device around the field to keep the ball from landing in the water when it goes out of bounds?

Perhaps I am thinking more of a disregard for the fear of death when it comes time to act. The fear is present but it isn't allowed take hold and direct one's actions. Anywho, it would seem that a warrior also has to pursue some sort of training and that this training prepares the person to deal with the possibility of facing an extraordinary, life-threatening situation. I would define a warrior as someone who continuously trains the mind, body, and spirit to deal with potentially life threating situations, and do so with a disregard for his/her own personal safety, if necessary. I have a few questions. Is it required for a person to consistently face severe or life threatening danger in order to be considered a warrior? Consider two people whose training is exactly the same, yet one consistently faces life-threatening situations and the other faces just one or two such situations in his entire life. Is the first one a warrior and the second not?

I disagree. I think that it is a prerequisite to being a warrior. Does that mean that one can only be considered a warrior once he has completely conquered the fear of death? No, but the pursuit of that goal is necessary to become a warrior. For example, a great race car driver doesn't have to win every race he ever enters to be considered great, but he won't be labeled "great" if he doesn't pursue that goal. Yet he still goes. Why? I don't think the fireman says to himself "I have no fear of death, I'm going in," instead he has been trained to perform a certain way in particular conditions and he acts on his training. However, the flip side to his training is that he acts in a manner contrary to an untrained person's sense of self preservation. Essentially, he is acting without the fear of death. Is hoping to attain no fear of death the only requirement for a warrior? I don't think it is, though I believe it plays a major role. I was rereading what Karateka_latino said, and I agree, that, as MA practitioners, "We try to develop a "warrior-like" mind set that's going to help us in our personal lives." BTW, good topic bushido_man!

If I was going to use a generic term I would say "coke."

When it comes to what constitutes a warrior I think of the phrase "the way of the warrior is death." Not that the warrior trains to die, hopes to die, or dreams of some fantastical, Hollywood movie-style expiration, but that the warrior trains so as not to fear death. As tallgeese said, this includes facing the fact that "someone might try to kill you today." I feel as though I need to flesh out this response a bit more, but for the sake of brevity and my bedtime, I'll stop...for now.

I wish I could have gotten my hands on a few of those Tiffany-style/stained glass lighting fixtures that used to hang over each table and booth.

Looking forward to Chuck and Pushing Daisies

Congratulations tori!

You might want to check into the following things when evaluating an MA school. 1) I always look for friendly instructors and for students to introduce themselves to me, but I wouldn't let shy students make or break a school if you like the instructor. The instructor simply may not teach students to greet visitors in such a way. 2) You might want to ask about rank progression. If it seems that the school rushes students along to a high rank you might be weary of the quality of that school. What is too quick? If they say you can be a black belt in 2 years, IMHO this is too quick and is minimizing the importance of quality instruction and maximizing revenue earnings (e.g. more frequent tests = more frequent testing fees). 3) Ask about the instructors MA experience/background. You want to make sure that the instructor is well versed in the MA in which he is instructing. 4) Make sure to watch the class and evaluate the students. Do they look sharp or are they going through training half-hearted, barely breaking a sweat? Do they show respect to the instructor and other students? Evaluate how the instructor responds to the above mentioned scenarios. Does he ignore substandard performance/respect or does he correct it? How does he correct it, constructively or destructively? As for fees, I am uncertain what is a reasonable rate. I pay $25 a month with my current organization, but I understand that this is the exception, not the norm. A lot of schools in the U.S. want to sign you to a contract for a period of time or up to a particular rank. I've never really cared for the contract idea. Hope this helps.

Patrick, I'll try this when I get a chance. Thanks.

I run XP, but my dad has Vista on one of his computers. Like Shotokan-kez said, I have trouble doing certain things in Vista because I am expecting it to function just like XP, which it doesn't. Vista does annoy you to death with all the question-asking, but, as others have said, that feature can be disabled, though I don't know how. Also, I have found that the new version of Word, which was installed on some computers at my school just before I graduated, is hard to use. You have to relearn what functions are under which menu. It seems that the logic behind some of the changes in the menus was flawed.

Welcome to KF I like to run for a minimum of thirty minutes as I believe, considering the information that I have heard over the years, it is good for the cardiovascular system (and your stamina) to run for at least that long. However, I run 3 days a week, not everyday. 30 minutes equals about 4 miles for me. I usually try to "sprint" the last few tenths of a mile of my run. I once read the Bruce Lee would vary the intensity of his runs. He would sprint off and on while he ran. Anyone else ever here this? Of course, others may argue that 20 minutes is sufficient for your cardiovascular system, and it very well may be. Also, if your going to be running regularly don't skimp on running shoes and buy cheap-o's. Try to find the best shoe for the best price. Buying last years models usually adds up to about a $20 savings or more, but you have to take whatever color they have in stock. My stretching scheme includes most of the leg stretches that I use for MA. I do focus a little more on the calves and quads.

I am the only one I know of in my family that has consistently been involved in MA and attained a BB. My dad trained for a year or so back when I first started in TSD. I had a cousin that studied Yoshikai for a few years around the same time I was studying TSD. It has been 20 years since either of them have practiced, as far as I know.

Congratulations GMac!