In Medicine Hat

This past week I have been in Medicine Hat for work, and won’t be back until the middle of next week. Up for 19 hours consistently through the week I am being forced to multi-task. I have:

-Brushed my teeth while completing situps (Not recommended and neither is shaving)

-Performed portions of Lau Gar in the shower

-Held a horse stance while pumping gas

-Completed pushups in a hard hat and cover-alls

-Taped a print out of Mastery on my clip board.

-Taken out several pillow targets with my bokken.

What this lacks is mindful practice of Kung Fu, but for this week, it is better than nothing.

vince.krebs.blogspot.ca

What Does it Mean to Start

Strange to say but starting something is even more important than doing it. As hard as the snake year challenges are (both team and personal), we have already done the hardest part, just by starting.

The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”― John Bingham, No Need for Speed: A Beginner’s Guide to the Joy of Running

So far, my year is off to a good start (in my humble opinion). I am managing to keep up physically, making progress on my personal goals, and excited about mastering my weapon. However, no matter what happens this year… success, failure, or otherwise… I am already proud of myself.

Just.

For.

Starting.

Stable is Good

It's been one year since Dennis has been diagnosed with COPD. Last year this time he was operating with a 30% lung exchange capacity caused by inflammation. Reason for the inflammation is still unknown but there are suspects (his parents were HEAVY chain smokers). Dennis has had breathing issues all of his life whereby when he gets over-exerted, he gets lightheaded (think strangulation) instead of the usual gasping for air and quick recovery. His recovery isn't so quick. He breathes in air, but the air isn't getting into the lung tissues to be exchanged. So for a year he's been on 2 inhalers (one for inflammation reduction, one for mucus removal), we've moved the birds into another room, added supporting supplements into the diet, removed gluten and pretty much all dairy from his diet, and I have started practicing energy medicine on him. One year later Dennis' lungs have improved into the low end of the normal range. We, including the lung specialist, are all happy.  The strength of Dennis' inhalers have been reduced and we continue on doing what we are doing. Dennis feels his lungs have returned to where they were before, taking time to recover and not like a super athlete. His cardio capability has improved granted on a much lower incline than a normal person, but there is improvement and that is the important thing.

I will continue energy medicine techniques on Dennis because why not? Even though energy medicine is new to the Western world, it's not new at all and what I am practicing is cutting edge. This last week Dennis told me he tasted and smelled old tobacco smoke which to me says that stuff is moving and being released. This is a good thing. What has been apparent for Dennis since I started energy medicine on him is that he is able to park his butt and do his course instead of finding every excuse not to. Plus he has been sticking to his training and recording his numbers rather than relying on his good looks and charming personality to carry him through. This too is good.

As for me, I have been gradually increasing my pushups so I don't re-tighten my muscles to where they were before. It seems that I have anchored in and am progressing forward with purpose, clarity and ease. This is good. I am excited to be working with my broadsword again and have partnered it with my steel fan to design a new form. I have my ideas, now to bring them to life.

Since starting my energy course my days have become more clear and more purposeful and things just get done. My photo studio and new editing program are ready to rock and after ironing out the glitches (including cleaning the lenses and finding out that my viewfinder has a focus dial), so am I with taking pictures of my current stock and listing in my Etsy shop. Can't sell if they are in the box and no one knows about it. I had this goal last year, but this year it's definitely in action. This is good. I am also looking at email and other distractions with "what requires my immediate attention?" and "is this a time waster?" approach. This is also good.

I do have a list, but my list is short and very focused. I have my lessons to practice and my training to do both in Kung Fu and in energy medicine. A purpose with a plan and a plan with a purpose. This too is very good. So just like in "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" that I am now reading, onward I continue with my journey. As a side note, the point he makes about the road suddenly disappearing and ending up in a farmer's back yard, yep, been there except we were with our 5th wheel and the road on the GPS suddenly disappeared. The farmer laughed and motioned us to carry on through the yard to the road.

Here is a picture of one of my pieces taken in my new photo studio and edited with my new software, Lightroom 4.3. Yes, I am happy.


Sherri Donohue
Hot Torch, Room Full of Glass, and a Kung Fu Kwoon

Did I Choose Correctly?

I have to admit to myself that I am quite awkward when it comes to using a weapon. My chosen weapon this year is the Jian, the Chinese straight sword. I have always been fascinated by the sword, and the Jian has always been one of my favorites. When I watch a martial artist performing a form or a set of movements with the Jian I can’t help but admire the flow and deftness that they handle the blade with. I have to say that when I am practicing with my sword I may as well be stabbing or swinging around a club for all the flow I have with the use of this new weapon. Although I am aware that with any new thing a person picks up, it will take time to become proficient in the use of it, and in time I will also develop flow and proficiency in the Jian.

Where am I? What am I doing?

good day

Hello everybody nothing much happen to me today other than i just really enjoyed my whole day. It is like i took control this day and I was really aware of everything that i did. I started with sleeping in then i ate some fruit and some left overs. I spent a little time with my mom. The i went to kung fu as this was the cherry on top for me. Not a crazy day but a nice day. Then i watched an episode of King of the Nerds; while doing my last 100 push ups and sit ups for the day. I guess  it just feels nice once in awhile to not be responsible for anything for a day. Today was a perfect kung fu day for me. Other than this that is all i have to say for now, except for this.....


244 Lbs

Sihing Langner

Cool thing I found

Found this link on a blog site from one of the students at the school where Brandi & Mel are studying and it has a huge message.

THIS VIDEO WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE.

No matter what it is you're doing as a living, this video makes sense to your life.

Do you even desire?
www.doyoueven.com

Oi.

In a recent post I mentioned that I'm going to try to focus my blog more on my own training. Here's my first attempt.

Despite the fact that I love our classes and I love training with everyone, I still feel awkward performing. I know that classes are not performances, but working on my form with so many people in the room is, to me, along the same line. It's not anxiety, public performances don't make me nervous (maybe a little), they make me self conscious. Yes, I know these feelings are in the same family, but they're not the same to me. And yes, I am fully aware that every other individual in the room is in the exact same boat, but it doesn't change the problem. If I'm working on something at home and Nick walks in the room, I stop. If I'm working on spear or stick or spade in my yard and someone drives by I stop. If there is another soul within sight and I'm working on my own thing, I stop. I have a block that I'm trying very hard to work past, but its big. It's why so few of you have ever seen me working on my own stuff, and its why I don't go to open training. I know I won't get much accomplished. I don't mind getting feedback (although asking for it is hard) but its like I'm scared someone will see my thought process. I'd rather people see the end result first, I guess to make sure it's acceptable before I'm judged on how I got there.

Such a bad mentality, I know. The whole point of the I Ho Chuan is to pursue mastery publicly, for the benefit of myself and the school. But oi, its rough. Doesn't matter how many words of encouragement I hear, I have this issue. And it sucks.

http://dogsthinking.blogspot.ca/

I hate titles

Lots to think about this past week- I've never been very good at getting my thoughts down into words though. 

I've been trying to focus on getting to know my curriculum techniques better by working on one for a few weeks. It's funny how you think you know a technique and then you realize all this other stuff you've been missing, all the nuances, kind of like the difference between "twinkle twinkle" and a symphony. Definitely not at the symphony yet, but I'm excited about the progress. 

I'm a month away from the final exams of my last semester of school! Even though it's so close it feels never ending a bit, it's hard to imagine being done. I'm trying to have the mentality that all I have to do is put in the effort and the results will be there. 

Because I'm in school, I work a lot of Saturdays- I've never worked weekends before and I am missing the Saturday training. I'm hoping to work less weekends and get more weekend training in. 

I also have to remember to copy my blog posts to the I Ho Chuan group site- I forgot last week.

I'm hoping that the Friday classes will only go uphill for me as last Friday- very first class, the very first time I swing my cane around- I hit Sifu Brinker with it. The worst has happened, it can only get better right? Happy training everyone.

Sifu Andrea Prince

andnowlikeyoumeanit.blogspot.ca

http://umpteenmonkeystyping.blogspot.ca

Not Much

At this point I am at quite a loss for words. Lots going on this last little while and many things on my plate. I don't want to fall into the same groove as last year of not blogging because I have nothing to say or I don't feel anything is revelant. Any type of word or communication to the team is revelant and is the bare minimum requirement. I can say the energy was high in the kwoon last friday and a huge assortment of weapons which should make for some pretty cool weapon forms and fight choreography. It was also really cool to see some new and some familiar faces this year. I look forward to training with you all. I also look forward to training and preparing for grading this year.
Brian Chervenka

New Weapon

The weapon I've chosen to learn for this years I Ho Chaun class is the Chinese straight sword (Jian). I picked up my sword last Friday from the stock at Silent River and was delighted by the quality of the weapon. It seems pretty sturdy overall and is surprisingly heavy. The blade is fairly stiff and doesn't bend easily, giving the weapon a very solid feel. No Wushu floppiness here. As some of of you might be able to guess, I'm not a fan of light floppy Wushu. A sentiment that is reflected in my Kwan Dao usage. It's also very pretty with engraving on the blade that reminds me of the Green Destiny.

I'm excited, giddy even, to have something new to learn. I suspect a steep learning curve, its a lot different from what I'm used to. For the last couple of years I've pretty much stuck to two handed long weapons. I've done a bit of reading and watched some videos to try and get an idea of the basics. I've also been playing with it on and off throughout the weekend and I can tell I'm in for sore wrists and forearms. It is pretty tiring to swing around only using the one hand. From what I've seen I think the weapon is all about the footwork and body rotations.

Just the presence of my new toy sitting on my dresser has been enough to keep me excited all weekend. I'd be holding it constantly if I couldn't resist the urge to draw it and fool around every five minutes. If anyone out there has any knowledge they can share with me about the weapon I'd appreciate it.

Since I was so awful at journaling last year I'm very determined to not repeat my mistakes. This is an important entry for me since it is the first I've made this year and I am going to try hard to make it a Sunday routine. I give permission to everyone to give me hell if  my journaling starts to slide.

Sifu Jesse Wetter

http://liveforeverordieintheattempt.blogspot.ca/

Hate being sick

This weekend was supposed to be a restful weekend for the family. It’s been a wild few weeks and a much needed rest was welcome. Well after passing the flu bug from kid to parent to kid to parent I guess it’s my turn to be ill. Not the best weekend but at least was able to hang around the house with the family and just catch our breath. Nice to be clipping along with all my requirements (I don’t even call them that anymore – just my lifestyle) and such. Was nice to see everyone out for our first class and see what the year will bring, the kwoon sure gets small in a hurry though. Going to cut this one short today, not feeling that good so will have more next week.

Sifu Bryant
My Blog

Commitment and Placebos

I am sitting here in my bathrobe at 6 PM, heating pad on my back and a fresh box of Kleenex at my side. I have a head cold and am still recovering from a small back injury. What does it have to do with Kung Fu? Not a thing, other than I decided to meet my commitment to blog weekly, and Sunday is my blog day.

 However, in a related theme, I have been looking at the Placebo effect and its relationship to our health. The main thing I discovered in my reading is that “things that can be measured” have the lowest placebo effect by %, and those “things that can only be felt” like pain, had the highest success rate with Placebos. Hey, wait, there is a Kung Fu tie in here, as Chi is something that is felt, not measured.

Conventional western medicine wants to discount anything that they do not have a machine to measure it with, as set forth in the unwritten rules of the religion of Progress. What is this religion of Progress? It is the belief that things are getting better and better, in a lineal fashion, and the proof is in the machines and inventions that we are continuously improving, which are in turn intended to improve life as we know it. In other regions that do not have this bias, many other things are possible. People that believe that we have a life force or Chi, will also be inclined to believe in energy medicine, Reiki, and maybe, on the opposite end, Voodoo.  These beliefs can cause their brains to reinterpret pain signals as not as severe, lift depression and other effects.

So is the real definition of the “placebo effect” more properly stated as “we don’t have a machine that can measure that”, and the self interested person will look at their body as more than “just a machine” and entertain the possibility that there is more to this than a western world view will admit?

Disclaimer, my wife has been training in energy medicine, and practicing on me. I am still working on sensing my Chi, and am a regular reader of the Archdruid Report, and have his introductory book on Druidism, but have not put in the work required to become a Druid. I also regularly see a Chiropractor and Massage therapist, and try Acupuncture when it seems appropriate. At the same time, I am seeing a lung specialist and am on western type drugs for my breathing condition.

Dennis Donohue

1000 RAK's

One of my favorite I Ho Chuan requirements is that of 1000 Random Acts of Kindness.  When a person initially looks at that number it can seem impossible and a real feat to try to even come close to.  At the beginning of last year, I really struggled with writing down my acts of kindness.  I felt a little like maybe I was puffing myself up, bragging about what I’ve done and how wonderful I am (even though it was just written in my own journal).  Opening the door for someone or running after the neighbor’s dog for them or even just taking the time to say hello and chat to a lonely neighbor; these were things that I have always just done.  They are things that seem only to be common courtesy, deceit and helpful.  They never seemed like anything out of the ordinary. 

This past week I received an email from someone who was at the banquet, and who was “intrigued” with the idea of 1000 RAK.  They questioned how it was possible to reach 1000!  Got me thinking about how this requirement has changed how I feel about doing and recording my RAK’s.   Nobody has to ever search for opportunities, they are all around us.  What I found is that I started seeking out the opportunities and jumping on them, not to ‘rack up RAK numbers’, but because I saw the difference they made for the people around me and because I felt good after.  I also became more aware of the ‘missed ones.’  The ones that would have held me up an extra 5 minutes or those that would have pushed me a little beyond my comfort zone.  I always, without fail ended up thinking about these ‘missed ones’ and felt disappointed in myself that I didn’t take the time or take that step.   I learned for the next time!  There have been times when my offer of help has not been received well, like a lady who was loading a carpet cleaner into her trunk and was offended when I asked if I could help (maybe she thought I was calling her a whimp).    However, I truly believe that even those who may not take an act of kindness well initially, may well have some seed planted that might change how they feel next time and may even encourage them to pass it on to someone else when the opportunity presents itself. 

In a world that sometimes seems selfish and chaotic, it is refreshing to see that there are people out there who care, people who will take the time, people who will help, people who truly are making a difference!

Alana Regier

http://alanaregier.blogspot.ca

 

 

 

 

first month check in

Nearing the end of the first month and I already feel a bit behind the eight ball on some of my challenges. Push ups and sit ups are where they should be but I am not getting enough forms in. I will have to devote more of my time when I am home on break to doing my forms. Speaking about forms I have been playing around a lot with a pair of sai's that I picked up and am slowly piecing together a form for them. Keeping them out where I can see them means that I play with them more. Aside from the forms my kung fu based goals are all on track it is more so my school and life related goals that are kind of suffering. This past week I have spent a fair a mount of time re-organizing my living space so now I have significantly more room to train inside. I also got outside and went hiking a couple times this week. One day was really nice and sunny the other day was pouring rain. My kilometers are probably one of the most positively impacted goals since moving to Vancouver. Without having to depend on a car I walk more, averaging roughly 10km a day. So lots of room for improvement but as long as I can keep tracking everyday and maintain awareness of what needs to be done I'll be able to keep on top of things.

No need for costumes

Purim is a holiday where everyone (but mostly kids) are putting costumes and pretending to be something else. Similar to Halloween but without the scary factor. Being at the first I Ho Chuan class I felt like everyone were dressed up as warriors, each one with his own weapon. That was pretty cool. All of us practicing our weapons and trying to make sure we are not getting hit or hitting someone else.

I think the moral of dressing up in Purim is that you are doing it because you don't want people to see who you really are. And then when the bad guys were gone you didn't need to hide it any more.

We are pretending to be warriors. I can already see that in few months we won't have to hide anymore and our costume will become who we are - Kung Fu fighters.

http://csillag-stars.blogspot.com/2013/02/no-need-for-custumes.html

Captain's Blog, Stardate 2013.02.24, U.S.S. Enterprise - Soreness gah + NEW PROJECT! nom nom nom nom

WeeeeAhhhhhWaaaaaaOoooooo

So my numbers for my requirements aren't great, well, so far they're abysmal. I took a while to get started, and now that I'm moving, I'm not at all close to being as capable as I used to be and know I can be, so the numbers are building rather slowly, gap between where I am and where I should be is building quickly. BUT,  the rate at which I am falling behind is slowing ever so slightly. I figure I should put it out of my mind where I could/should/would be and just keep moving, and hopefully the numbers will take care of themselves. I hope. If I don't stop and keep going then I should get ever closer to my goal. So I'm just going to ignore all the naysayers in my head and just move. Like in Nemo. "Just keep swimming" 

If I'm wrong and I should be shaking with fear, then I can freeze in fear and anxiety later. That does me no good now, and dwelling on how far I am does not get me any closer. If I can only do 30 P/U in a row for now, then that what I will do, and as long as I continue to do them, 40, 50, 60, and maybe one day even 100 would come in it's own time.

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So here's the plan, I finally finished one of the books that I have been sputtering through for the past year. Luckily, this is one of my requirements to do so. Unfortunately, I also said that I need to understand these instead of just mowing through them. So in order to do this I have to read them again and as I come to certain quotes, excerpts, ideas, etc in the book I will highlight them and do a blog post on it discussing what I think of it and some such. It may be one post for a chapter, or some chapters will have many many posts, either way, it will work as it shall. As I do so, I feel that it would be greatly encouraging if you nice folks in cyberspace would care to comment and respond to these and let me know what you think about that particular section, and see if we can't all learn a bit by seeing things in a different light.

Maybe if it irks me enough along the way I'll even throw in a few posts here and there with sections of another thought exploration "thingy" that I'm working on. It is uber annoying at times for me to keep that topic out of other topics even if it seems so pervasive in everything, and I just want to get it all down and out! But that would be a long long long long long blog post. Another day I suppose.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have push ups that await me, as I have an elephant to eat. nom nom.

Richard Leung

http://amadmanspursuitofclarity.blogspot.ca/

Slow Start

Only a couple of weeks into the I Ho Chuan and I am falling behind on my numbers already. I guess I thought they would do themselves , so I feel like I am failing already. A little pressure is how I work best but if this keeps up it will be virtually impossible to catch up and we've only just begun.
My solution : Work harder and don't give up. Practice practice practice.

On a more positive note Friday nights attendance and the excitement towards the Snake teams year was more than a little motivating. Really looking forward to the next class and I will remember to bring my weapon.

Scott Fuhr

Weapons weapons everywhere

This week was a very cool start to the Snake year. We had full attendance on Friday! Too cool! I forgot how small the training hall can seem when we're all swinging those weapons--take your life in your hands to leave your staked out spot to hit the biffy! Lots of cool weapons this year and lots of enthusiasm. I can't wait to see what we can do to top last year:) Open training was really awesome too--a few of us Sihings started going through some of the curriculum together--found some holes for sure. But it was awesome to learn together, no pressure. Sometimes in class it feels abit like being in a fishbowl, Sifus prowling like cats around us. I know its to help!! Just intimidating sometimes. (Betcha didnt know how intimidating you are:) ). Having returning teammates is a strong start too--we are comfortable with each other already and I think its helping us reach out to those that are new as well. I think this is going to be a very memorable year as far as the team goes--not that each year hasnt, but I look forward to this one reaching new heights. Something different I did for my requirements this year too, was to include some goals that are one time achieving--like a goal of savings, rolling my kayak (on purpose--and getting it back up)to complement the steady number ones. I like checking things off the list--this way I can do some of that before the year is up, I'm hoping. Gives me some fun things to look forward to, without being constantly working on them. Hope it works!

The new start

Hello, well the new I Ho Chaun has finally started officially. I cannot believe how many new weapons that we have this year. Also i am doing the twin hooks this year and i was surprised to find out that there will be three other people that will be doing the same thing as me, i can't wait. I would of listed all the new weapons that i have never seen silent river kung fu used before, but i can't really spell out the proper names or i do not know them, but i will say one The Broom. This year we will all face new challenges, failures, success and we will do it together. We just have to remember to ask for help when we need it. Feed ourselves some humble pie and ask someone, or get the courage to ask someone if you are like me and have some social phobias. But i have learned to conquer so many of my social phobias thanks to the I ho chuan team last year. I still have a lot to go in conquering my fears, but performing at the banquet did more good for me then hurting me. I just watch the video that was posted and astonished that i even was able to go on stage that night. after words i felt 100 times better, all the pressure and stomach twisting i was feeling that night all went away to a ting of my sai's hitting Sifu Masterson's  sai's. For me it was the announcing of the end of our dragon year, but at the same time a chime for our next year of the snake; the year i was born and the year i will be training even harder than last year. Also i am extremely thankful for being in a place like our kung fu and surrounding myself with people who i know that will make this year even more awesome than last year, which is pretty awesome.
This last entry is going to be hard for me, but i said i would do it for my personal requirements.

 249 Lbs

This would be my weight I will publicly be posting this info on all my blogs, because i believe this will help me realize what weight i am at and to keep me responsible and accountable for my action in the goal to lose 40lbs. Oh god this is hard, but i must do it here goes nothing.


Sihing Langner

"Scars" are "Tattoo's" with a better story

As I'm into week two of my I Ho Chuan requirements I'm finding the openings in my timeframe of how to fit in my forms, pushups, sit ups, plus my additional requirements; whether it be first thing out of bed in the morning, continuing when I have a moment at work during lunch or coffee break and/or throughout the day, it seems to be a combination of timing mixed with moments of availability. One of my requirements is to go swimming once a week and this is made more interesting since I don't know how to swim. Being that it's a small world, Sifu Leitz sister is a lifeguard at the pool and during my imitation of the Titanic's last moments, she asked "how was I doing"? Cough, sputter, gurgle, "I'm trying to figure out this swimming thing"!!! She said, "At least your floating, that's a start" and yes it was, lets start with the floating and get the breathing, the balance and the movements as time goes by. After a couple of trips down the water slide and a soak in the hot pool it was time to go. In the change room I started talking with a young man next to me and I couldn't help but notice the scars across his abdomen and chest; they were huge and ran the full width of his body and there was still a waterproof covering with a tube still in his chest, wow. Well, me being me I had to ask. He said that he was born with a defect in his intestines that they had formed into each other and the only way to repair it at the time was to remove the whole lower intestine and since he's unable to digest food he is fed through a tube. At the time they said he wasn't supposed to make a year so they did what they felt necessary and here he was 23 years later! "You sure showed them" didn't you (and I think in the back of my mind I visualized giving the Grim Reaper the finger)!! He said not many people knew of his condition as he didn't let this stop him in any way with the things he wanted to do in his life. He talked about in the near future getting a transplant and getting to eat real food like everyone else. We shook hands, introduced ourselves and wished each other well in whatever lay ahead for each of us, wow what a story!! As I finished off my night at Famoso with an appetizer followed by soup and a sandwich I savoured every bite. I looked up at the big screen televisions and saw some MMA advertising and thought "whatever", tonight, I think I met "a real fighter". Robert. http://sihingtymchuk.blogspot.ca/

Hi! Bye!

Hey all, quick not to say I'm still around, super busy at work and will post something more substantial over the weekend. Quick kudo's to everyone involved in the banquet, congrats to Sifu Robinson, Sifu Regier, Sifu's Stoddart, Masterson & Wonsiak and Sihing Langner. We're all still alive! Yay!

http://dogsthinking.blogspot.ca/

Leaders or Lemmings?

I have green hair, a purple jumpsuit, and seem to be 2 dimensional.  I am following a large group of individuals that look exactly like me.  We walk, and continue to walk in unison.  The guy behind nor in front knows why we are walking.  Up ahead is a cliff, and at the bottom is a wavy lake of doomish liquid.  The first of the group steps off the cliff and falls.  Nope;  can’t swim and soon disappears into the bubbling mass.  The next in the group follows the previous and steps off the ledge.  Nope; Also not a swimmer. 

LEMMINGS. 

Here I am trapped in a computer game popular in the early nineties.  I continue to walk to the edge of the cliff.  One lemming after another falls from the cliff, my turn is coming, but wait! The mastermind sits in front of the screen, takes a big sip from a slurpy and moves the mouse so the arrow hovers over the lemming in front of me.  With a swift click of a button the lemming in front is converted to a ‘builder’ and begins laying out a path of bricks in front of us.  Hooray, me and my fellow lemmings are saved!

The black belt ceremony and Chinese New Year banquet was bitter sweet.  For much of the year I was out of town and unable to be a part of the various demo’s that went on through the year.  The lack of public performance exposure, teamed with jumping into a big demonstration with individuals I was connected with only through blog posts was frightening.  But just when my fate seemed destined for a large fall into a bubbling mass of ooze, out came the unexpected leadership within the group.  This is what you can’t recognize in a team when you are mostly absent. It was awesome to see how the development of the I Ho Chuan team through the year caused leadership to manifest in people you would expect, and others you would not.  I am really anxious to see the Snake team this year grow from the experience and can’t wait to see leaders rise from lemmings

vincekrebs.blogspot.com

On the Road Again

First of all, the New Year's Banquet was a fabulous event. Big kudos goes out to every one involved from setup to performing to teardown. Big congrats goes out to all of the candidates (black belt and degree) for accomplishing a great feat. Plus I want to congratulate Sihing Langner for Student of the Year as it was a very well deserved award.

Now back to my post. I guess for me, it's not on the road again, but on the road still as it's the 4th time in the UBBT now I Ho Chuan for me. However if we are talking about the personal development road, it's a great many years longer. I like to call the road the road of Mastery.

Note that I am saying "of" Mastery not "to" as there is really no such final destination. Yes there is a point to which we can say we mastered, but shortly therein, there's always a discovery of how to do or be better, more conscious, more productive, more efficient, more whatever. To me Mastery isn't a final way, it's an evolution as there are many, many layers and nuances. Plus "master" one area of life, let's apply it to another to bring that part up to a better way of being.

The area of my life that I find the toughest to "put out there" is my creativity yet it's the area that is me down to the core. This is where I really draw on the principles of Mastery and the tools I have learned via Kung Fu to take the steps (and the courage needed) to journey down the road. Luckily I have a support team who will gladly encourage, voice/nag, and even give a swift "kick" to help me stick to moving forward and I am very grateful for them and their encouragement. Over the past few days I have become much more clear on what I want and have made a plan to focus on. The plan is simple and it's a plan. The "how" details are on a need to know basis.

So here I go continuing my journey on Mastery Road with all that it entails. It's the Year of the Snake, I suspect this section of the road to be windy, have lots of scenery, but at the same time have a lot of reward.

Sherri Donohue
Hot Torch, Room Full of Glass, and a Kung Fu Kwoon

Disconnecting

One of my challenges this year is to “disconnect” for one day a week: no TV, no radio,  no iphone, no computer. I have two words to describe this challenge: LOVE IT!

• Hardest part: breaking the thoughtless habit.
• Most pathetic part: breaking the addiction and letting go of the feeling that I am missing something.
• Best part: breaking the boredom and trying to figure out what to do with all that free time I usually waste “connected to technology”.

So, from Friday sunset till Saturday sunset, don’t try to reach me via technology. I plan to be busy…

http://sharidactyl.wordpress.com/

In the zone

I have been thinking about my performance at the tiger challenge.  I know the form Mu Long Kwoon, I practiced like crazy so I was at that place where I could run through the form without thinking about it.  Sure I’m nervous but I’ve been doing kungfu and dance performances in an effort to overcome that and it is better.   Now after messing up I am again dreading the next time I have to perform ... so I’ve gone back, not forward, after this experience. 

I didn’t give myself enough room, the form is big and although I started and was in the zone so to speak I quickly ran out of space and almost into the judges.  That wierded me out and I popped mentally out of that no thinking just doing frame of mind into an ‘oh my god now what’ moment.  For me when I ‘plink’ out of the zone like that I’m not aware of where I am in the sequence of the form.   Maybe that makes me weird but its how it works for me.  Parts of many of the longer forms have repeat movements and sequences so it can be scary when you lose your focus on the doing, just going with the flow, and realize you have no idea where in the sequence you are.   What maybe I should have done at that point is some move that would have allowed me a moment to regroup mentally and get back into that doing frame of mind.  What I did do however, is just grab a similar section of the form and go from there.  I never did get back into the ‘zone’ so feeling panicked, awkward and embarrassed that I just messed up and that it is probably reflected in the movement of the form I just sort of stumbled to the end. 

Its not realistic to expect the surroundings/conditions/preplanning to be perfect everytime.  Especially when performing at a lot of different locations like we do in the I Ho Chuan.  So how does a person prepare and stay in that zone even when things go awry?  How do you get that doing frame of mind to stand against outside distractions/influences?  Do I have poor focus?  Should a person prepare an emergency response / Hail Mary sequence to save the day?  Should I stay out of the doing not thinking zone when performing?  If that’s even possible? Am I just weird?  Insights would be appreciated.

Faster!

Everyone wants to know how I like the new hair cut or they want to know why I did it. To me it’s only hair and no matter how bad it looks or you seem to think it looks, it will grow back. Sifu Stoddart was incredibly brave to do this and so was Sifu Ryback. I decided to do it to offer support to those two and so they wouldn’t be on stage alone. We are a big family at Silent River Kung Fu and family supports each other. Sherri, you did a great job and overall, it was an awesome experience. Sifu Brinker was right, I do feel faster now. Kevin Lindstrom

Life is precious. Don’t waste it.

This is a hard one for me to post, as I am a very closed person when it comes to anything personal and especially to anything I have strong emotional attachments to.

On February 11^th my father was taken to the hospital after suffering a stroke, apparently he had suffered a number of mini strokes called Transient Ischemic Attack or TIA for short.

I would like to apologize to the I Ho Chuan team for my lack focus in the first week of being part of the team and also to the students out in Onoway and everyone at the Stony Plain Kwoon. I’ve tried to stay in the moment and maintain my focus in what I am doing so as not to let the people around me down, but I’ve been finding it difficult and fear I may not have met expectations lately. I know I have not met my expectations.

Where am I? What am I doing?

2 Days Later

I have to admit that I came home Saturday night on a little bit of a high (no I didn’t wear my belt over my jammies to bed).  I thought I would for sure sleep like a baby.  Instead I was wide awake until after 2:00am.  When I finally did dose off, I woke up dreaming Kempo and nunchuks.  I can’t believe the year is over!

After spending so many hours practicing and juggling schedules the last year,  I have more moments of calm and will have less grill cheese sandwiches and cereal with yogurt and fruit for supper on the run (I don’t care to see another grill cheese for quite some time).  It’s feeling a little strange to plan my week and realize that I have a few extra hours that I haven’t had for a while, time to get some projects done that I have gotten a little behind on and to spend some needed time with my family.

So now I think I can officially say it is a new year and time to attack my new challenges and goals and to start back to zero on my numbers.  This year is going to be great!  I’d like to thank everyone who was a part of Saturday night and to all who helped to make it a wonderful night for a lot of people (myself included). 

 Thanks everyone!

Alana Regier

http://alanaregier.blogspot.ca

 

Chinese New Year celebration!

This past Saturday was our annual Silent River Kung Fu Chinese New Year’s celebration.  It was an amazing night!  This was the very first time I saw a black belt promotion (didn’t go to last years and the year before there weren’t any promotions) and it was amazing!  The room went almost silent and I think I was holding my breath and didn’t blink the whole time.  That whole time I was thinking to myself that that will be me in a few years; I started to visualize myself kneeling in front of Sifu Brinker and Mast McDonald as well as all of the other Sifu’s and my family.  The road to black belt has been a lot of ups and downs and there will be many more.  However I think the most important thing for me is to visualize the goal and start to see myself in the same place that our two newest black belts were on Saturday night.  

 I am more energized than I have been in a long time just watching the demos put on by both black belts and the I HO Chuan dragon team.  I am part of the Snake Team and I can’t wait to get started!  I can’t wait to be part of the lion dance, can’t wait to perform publicly and contribute to the SRKF family!  It is going to be a great year and we have one of the strongest teams ever!

Congratulations to our two newest black belts Sifu Robinson and Sifu Alana Regier.  You both are amazing and you did an incredible job this past Saturday!

Ian Repay

Student of Silent River Kung Fu

Stony Plain, Alberta.

Follow my journey @ ianrepay.blogspot.com

untitled

So I just wanted to start off by saying congratulations to this years black belt candidates. I am sad that I missed seeing the ceremony I heard it was awesome. Second I wanted to say hello to the Snake team.

Things here have just settled down. I had my portfolio submission school on friday at 4:00pm which I got in just in time. It only took a couple all nighters and tons of last minute changes but all in all I am really proud of the finished package the printing looked great and I hand made the book out of birch so it looks really nice but was a lot of work and a bit of a learning experience.

Unfortunately kung fu was a bit of a bare minimum over the last week which is not a great way to start the year and I will be playing some catch-up same with some of my school projects that are coming up due after this week. I did record myself doing my form as a piece for my portfolio. I now understand why it is recommended. Recording yourself allows you to objectively critique your form. Personally I was able to pick up several things that I need to work on in my forms even though I shot it as a silhouette. I can also tell you that soft sand is not the best place to do your forms even if it looks great in video. 

 Sihing Janzen

http://umpteenmonkeystyping.blogspot.ca

Fear

WOW! What inspiring performances and speeches. It makes me wonder I have not taken the opportunity to sign up for the UBBT until this year , but really , I know. I was afraid , it is a big commitment that requires a lot of focus and determination , not procrastination or complacency.  

Dragon team, take a bow

Another year, another black belt ceremony....and they just get better everytime. Part of it, I think, is the closer I get to blackbelt the more I've spent time with those who are promoting, so I have more reasons to celebrate their achievements. Also I've always connected more with people when we are involved in some kind of task--setting up, doing demos, and cleaning up certainly falls into those categories! Being on the dragon team is definitely the highlight--if you have stage fright (as most of us do) its a way to be on stage with 8 of your teammates and going way too fast to think about the crowd. You're more concerned with whiplash--at least at the tail end, or falling off the stage or perhaps conking a lion or buddha with your piece of the dragon.(Think clubbing baby seals..)Doing the weapon demos was great for another reason too--I've always liked to see forms and weapons done by the blackbelts--I like to see with lots of practice, what I'm learning could and hopefully will look like. With those weapon demos I hope we inspired any belt to think about what they can achieve also. That being said, I dont want to see my spear for a very loooooong time!

Captain's Blog, Stardate 2013.02.17, U.S.S. Enterprise - Happy thoughts and how to keep thoughts happy, and some not as happy stuff.

Happy stuff:

Whoa. The Chinese new year banquet performance was incredible. I really liked the fight choreography, and the lion/dragon dance performances. Nothing like seeing something done so well to have a goal to aspire to.

 I find though, the personal speeches resonated with me the most. It provides something to think about when you hear about the very human struggles of the people you see around the kwoon, whom until now, in your mind seem perfect. It never seemed apparent, nor did it really occur to me that maybe other people have felt of would feel as I do at times in this journey. Which now that I say it seems rather obvious, but when you look up to the leaders in our kwoon, it's hard to imagine that they might have struggles as well. I find that this could really help us connect with each other better, if we would just be more open, and be more receptive perhaps. I guess moving forward I think I would do well to listen and watch more.

Last note on this though, I thought it was really cool how quickly everything was cleaned up after when everyone lent a hand. One minute it was all there, and the next everything was neatly put away. That really speaks volumes to what can be accomplished with a team. Again, seems obvious, but it's a tad different to be right there to see it.

How to keep thoughts happy:

I have heard many times that the way to move forward, is to be patient, and pick a few things to focus on, and do those, once you have done those, then choose a few new ones, and so on and so forth. I'll be honest and say that I did not understand this for a long time. I used to look at everything I learned, and voraciously attack everything, giving very little thought to focus, and just push as hard as possible, in a rushed and ravenous fashion.

I think I have found but one reason why I should take this advice. I found that after a period of time, when you try to do everything, you only marginally improve, because you only have limited resources. This is acceptable for a while but at some point it'll creep into your mind to consider how much time and effort you consistently put forth, and yet you do not see a commensurate increase in performance.

Which is one of the reasons why I now feel that it is imperative to focus on no more than just a few things at a time. This way, you can track, and see your progress, when it isn't spread out over so many things, and it ends up being constant positive reinforcement to keep on going. Otherwise, it is difficult to sustain substantial efforts when it is difficult to see your progress.

I guess this is another thing pertaining to patience, which I feel like I keep finding, and losing, and finding, and losing. I'm starting to feel like I'm repeating myself already. What if I really am just constantly finding and losing the same things over and over? Have I not been learning the lessons before but just thinking I did? Am I just repeatedly lying to myself? I don't know, but I probably will get back to this in a future blog post.

Not as happy thoughts:

This is going to be another post about my knee. I recently went to the doctor, as my previous "strain injury" seems to have come back. After my doctor passionately berated me for what felt like an hour and me quietly listening, he told me that it might be a bit more involved, and that I should wait for another MRI. After more "advice" from my doc, he set forth more restrictions which include: knee brace and orthotics, or else no training! Not sure what to think. This is uber frustrating, because I am almost useless with my left side. So with my right knee in a brace it's going to hinder my leg cannons a great deal. Either I should stop kicking, or learn to kick with my left side. Then again, I should focus on what I CAN do and not on the CAN'Ts. I know this and yet it doesn't make it easy.
/rant

Richard "BroHammer" Leung
http://amadmanspursuitofclarity.blogspot.ca

Moving with purpose

A new year and a new team is now beginning to take shape and we all should have an optimistic outlook on the near future. I myself am looking forward to this year like many to view the year of the dragon in the rear view mirror and push on to the year of the snake. This past year personally was full of huge highs and some terrible lows. To me that is just life, take what you’re dealt and do the most you can with it. I really am excited for the New Year and to see what this team becomes. Like I said before, out of all the requirements and training classes, the Dragon dance team seemed to have brought the best out of us all and bring us all that much closer together – who’d have thought…. These past two weeks I have seen my fair share of personal turmoil and the first thing I would have said years ago would be to hope that this year goes smoothly. Now it doesn’t matter, no matter what this year brings I will be able to adapt and persevere through all that is thrown my way. The past two weeks every time I was feeling stressed, angry and discouraged I still made it out to our classes and practises. It hit me that no matter what happens in the world around me my second home is at Silent River. I watched as everyone worked together smiling, socialising and knew this was the best place to be. You can’t pick your family for the most part, but you can pick who you spend time with and this is the best place to be. I couldn’t imagine anywhere else or with any other people that are leaders, friends and family.
Sifu Bryant
My Blog

Angry Worms, Sparring, Back Health and Kung Fu

This Blog post is about how I went from excellent back health to sitting in a chair with my mother-in-laws heating pad, hopefully anyone reading this can avoid this fate.  It all started when I needed to move one of my vermiculture bins to get at the one below it. The upper bin had shrunk to about 2/3 full as the worms had eaten their food, so I didn’t think it would be too heavy. I had Sherri lift the other end of the bin, as I did know it would be somewhat heavy and awkward. The plan was to use my right hand and lift the bin away from the corner, while Sherri lifted the open end, moving it far enough forward that I could get both hands on it. We did the lift, but I felt something in my back “give” as we did so. The rest of the lift and the worm feeding went as planned, and I moved the bins away from the corner before lifting (with both hands) the top bin back in place. The next morning (Saturday) my back was a bit stiff, but not too bad, and Tai Chi class felt like it helped. I took some muscle relaxants and sat in the Hot tub that night and Sunday, and things were getting better.  Sunday was official Chinese new years, and I took it easy, only doing 600 modified push-ups and crunches before  calling it a night. Monday night was sparring class, and the already weakened/aggravated muscles rebelled, pulling my sacrum out of place. Tuesday I was in the Chiropractors, Wednesday I missed class, and Thursday combined massage therapy and chiropractic treatments finally put it back in place. Friday was the first day since Tuesday that I could walk upright without pain, but extended sitting at work was still uncomfortable. Saturday I helped with the silent auction, loading/unloading material, helping with setting up and supervising during the event. Despite being very careful, the hours spent standing up on concrete had their toll, and today I am again babying my back. Tuesday I have another chiropractic appointment so I hope to be able to be mobile for Wednesday’s class. I am a walking warning though about pushing too hard on injured parts, and taking longer than the fastest recovery because of that. I am going to be working on “cane” form for I Ho Chuan, but may need to add in a “walker” form as well.

Dennis Donohue