sakura
Originally uploaded by renfield
seminar
Strong turnout at the seminar: 40 people, plus Hoshina and Hashimoto and Salty to help teach.
After running through all the basics with the whole group we broke up into four blocks. I got the three 5dans.
I immediately announced "I am going to now ruin your kata", and proceeded to do just that.
We started with a basic mental exercise: for the zagi kata, is the enemy sitting butt on heels, or up on his knees? The difference in distance is about the length of the thighs, and this changes the dynamic significantly. Same thing with where and how you are sitting, too. So for example in shin, assume he is up on his knees, drawing overhead, so attack low, under the exposed right armpit. Same for ren, only he goes low so you go high. Now for sa and yu, you are sitting so he attacks on that line, but as you come up on your knees you actually clear off that line to the side, turn, and attack. Thus sa and yu and just like enyo.
More fun: musogaeshi, ryoguruma, and munazukushi are all the same footwork. Exactly the same.
Say you have your left foot forward, right foot back. Put all the weight on your left foot, then bring your right foot up to be next to your left foot. Simple.
Now do the reverse: both feet together, simply open up the right foot and move it away from the left. That's munazukushi.
Now turn right so that your right foot is forward, left foot back. Face 180 degrees to the left and bring your right foot to your left foot. That's musogaeshi. The fun bit here (the martial artsy stuff) is that the left leg, which is theoretically holding your body weight, is also turning 180 degrees, whilst the right foot moves up to come next to it. Easier said than done. But if you can figure out how to do that, ryoguruma and enyo become simple, and you start to get the difference between koshi-wo mawaru and ireru; you stop turning or rotating through a series of 180 degrees and simple face one way and then the next instant face another way. It is a much more economical way of turning that, if you are not careful, is so easy you end up overturning, especially on the second cut of ryoguruma.
After the seminar we did a quick hanseikai. So great to have Hoshina around, as she never misses anything and has been training forever (years longer than I have.) She pointed out one really key thing: we should standardize on practicing basic cuts for beginners, right foot forward and practicing yose-ashi. No real point in switching between left and right until you figure out those basics.
Expanding on that we decided we'd write up a short list of things all beginners should learn or at least recognize in their first month: kissaki agari and sagari, te-no-uchi, etc. Basic stuff but it's amazing how much things are different between groups.
After running through all the basics with the whole group we broke up into four blocks. I got the three 5dans.
I immediately announced "I am going to now ruin your kata", and proceeded to do just that.
We started with a basic mental exercise: for the zagi kata, is the enemy sitting butt on heels, or up on his knees? The difference in distance is about the length of the thighs, and this changes the dynamic significantly. Same thing with where and how you are sitting, too. So for example in shin, assume he is up on his knees, drawing overhead, so attack low, under the exposed right armpit. Same for ren, only he goes low so you go high. Now for sa and yu, you are sitting so he attacks on that line, but as you come up on your knees you actually clear off that line to the side, turn, and attack. Thus sa and yu and just like enyo.
More fun: musogaeshi, ryoguruma, and munazukushi are all the same footwork. Exactly the same.
Say you have your left foot forward, right foot back. Put all the weight on your left foot, then bring your right foot up to be next to your left foot. Simple.
Now do the reverse: both feet together, simply open up the right foot and move it away from the left. That's munazukushi.
Now turn right so that your right foot is forward, left foot back. Face 180 degrees to the left and bring your right foot to your left foot. That's musogaeshi. The fun bit here (the martial artsy stuff) is that the left leg, which is theoretically holding your body weight, is also turning 180 degrees, whilst the right foot moves up to come next to it. Easier said than done. But if you can figure out how to do that, ryoguruma and enyo become simple, and you start to get the difference between koshi-wo mawaru and ireru; you stop turning or rotating through a series of 180 degrees and simple face one way and then the next instant face another way. It is a much more economical way of turning that, if you are not careful, is so easy you end up overturning, especially on the second cut of ryoguruma.
After the seminar we did a quick hanseikai. So great to have Hoshina around, as she never misses anything and has been training forever (years longer than I have.) She pointed out one really key thing: we should standardize on practicing basic cuts for beginners, right foot forward and practicing yose-ashi. No real point in switching between left and right until you figure out those basics.
Expanding on that we decided we'd write up a short list of things all beginners should learn or at least recognize in their first month: kissaki agari and sagari, te-no-uchi, etc. Basic stuff but it's amazing how much things are different between groups.
stairs and slide
stairs and slide
Originally uploaded by renfield
After Harajuku Ton wanted to ride the slide, so we hit the park in Azabujyuban.
dessert posse
dessert posse
Originally uploaded by renfield
Post-gyoza lunch we enjoyed the reasonably ok weather by having dessert outside at cafe Anniversaire Cafe, where we got to witness two weddings, complete with trumpeter.
But first Tonchan was running up the street with her heavy backpack and lost her balance, doing a beautiful faceplant and making a nice big red bump on her forehead. Being the tough guy that she is though she quickly shook it off and was prepping for her afternoon nap.
She crashed out in my arms so I kept having to get up and go out to the sidewalk so the noise of the wedding procession wouldn't wake her up.
gyoza gang
gyoza gang
Originally uploaded by renfield
Met Newman, Jeremy, Naho, and Mari for lunch in Harajuku: quality gyoza!
fries @ homeworks
fries @ homeworks
Originally uploaded by renfield
Picked up the Ton from daycare, headed back to work to finish off some bits and bobs (and let her finish her icecream), then we headed home to drop off our stuff and got some dinner at Homeworks. She inhaled a few french fries and lotsa ketchup, peed in the toilet like a big girl, got bored, and wanted to go home. So we took most of the fries home for later consumption and headed back. P came home shortly afterward and it was bathtime and then time for bed, after a little Totoro of course.
white sesame tantanmen with roger
white sesame tantanmen with roger
Originally uploaded by renfield
Had lunch with The Roginator over in his part of downtown. He opted for the not-on-the-menu-but-you-can-order-it-if-you-know-what-to-ask-for Peking Duck Rice Bowl. I chose the above pictured stunningly mellow and delicious ramen. Not too spicy, plenty of sesame, good strong noodles: quality!
sword and phone
Got a pretty decent Tuesday evening schedule:
Leave work around 7pm.
Head to Kudan Dojo.
Help out with the cutting session.
Cut some stuff.
Come back to the office before 10pm.
Get on 10pm conference call.
Get really, really hungry.
Ignore hunger.
Walk home.
Shower.
Pajamas.
Call Sakaguchi and be told yes I did in fact forget to put my sword away but he cleaned it and locked it back into the locker for me.
Think about sitting.
Give up.
Sleep.
Tonchan kicks me in the head.
Sleep.
Tonchan pushes me off of my own pillow, steals my pillow.
Tonchan rolls off my pillow.
Steal pillow back from Tonchan.
Sleep.
Leave work around 7pm.
Head to Kudan Dojo.
Help out with the cutting session.
Cut some stuff.
Come back to the office before 10pm.
Get on 10pm conference call.
Get really, really hungry.
Ignore hunger.
Walk home.
Shower.
Pajamas.
Call Sakaguchi and be told yes I did in fact forget to put my sword away but he cleaned it and locked it back into the locker for me.
Think about sitting.
Give up.
Sleep.
Tonchan kicks me in the head.
Sleep.
Tonchan pushes me off of my own pillow, steals my pillow.
Tonchan rolls off my pillow.
Steal pillow back from Tonchan.
Sleep.
crying at the end of totoro
crying at the end of totoro
Originally uploaded by renfield
She watches Tototo at least twice a day, and cries at the end every time because she doesn't want Totoro and the Neko-bus to go away.
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