Hey folks - You are all far too kind. I greatly appreciate the wise words, and thanks... My good Doctor, you asked what dojos I worked out with. Obviously, I worked extensively in the Chatan Dojo, since Takamiyagi-Sensei is officially my teacher. But I also was given the opportunity to work in the A...

Howdy folks - Wow!! I just got back from a training stint in Okinawa, and saw nothing of what ya'll are talking about. I was welcomed in each of the dojos that I trained in (admittedly only 3 - though I worked out in each 4 or more times), and treated with much greater respect than I as a small-fry ...

Congradulations!! What a great place, what a great place....to start!!?! I know your pain, and am on the same road. After having the fantastic opportunity to train under Galsheen-Sensei for damn near 5 years, I started my active duty service. In Lubbock, TX, home of damn near nothing. So after resea...

Howdy Folks - Along with my many cross-training thoughts, I firmly believe in balance. Isn't it true that most of us find ourselves running from one end of the see-saw to the other as our training progresses? All is in the balance - which is my favorite thing about our half-hard, half-soft style. Su...

To All - Thanks for the input - lots of great ideas were thrown out, and I really appreciate them all. I do apologize for the late response - Kosovo and a week of computer glitches delayed my response more than good taste calls for!! I am preparing to turn the NAU dojo over to my assistant, as I am ...

This is a plea for help/guidance. And I hate to post and run, but I will be offline for several days doing my Air Force Reserve thing, so please forgive me if I don't get right back on to thank people for their scholarly input... I have several sparring concerns of a personal nature. I seem to have ...

P.S. - I asked my assistant (Jessica Sanchez, daughter of Jessie Sanchez) about Frank as mentioned above. I will be hopefully meeting him, as he is the yondan who is supposed to help me test Jessica (since he was one of her teachers, and is a student of Summers-Sensei). I look forward to it, but hav...

Mike et al. - I work closely with Jessie Chavez, who may indeed me the same as Frank Chavez. Jessie/Jesus/Chewie (he goes by all three, so who knows about Frank?) is an excellent, under-ranked Sandan, whose daughter is my assistant (and the 19 year-old previously mentioned). He (Jessie) works closel...

Holy Smokes!! I thought I was all over it getting "First Responder" certified! Seriously, we as a group ought to decide what we want our instructors certified in as a minimum. Then we can put all kinds of fancy initials behind our names, and look cool to everybody (er - I mean provide a be...

GEM, Bill, JD, et al. - I very much believe testing should simulate some stresses - for a variety of reasons. I am also a BIG fan of cross-training; other styles, even other sports. This shows my UVa roots quite clearly - Bill-Sensei taught me the value of this, after all. Like the tests he brought ...

Wow - this is a heavy set of folks to work with. But I am having similar issues to that of the author of the thread. I am hoping to test a young shodan (age 19) for Nidan, and have written/sent video tapes to Okinawa (being Okikukai, I tend to have less Senior-Seniors around than you lucky NAC folks...

Howdy again, folks!! Its unnusual for me to speak so much on line in a month, but here goes... The yakusoku kumite used in the Okikukai is indeed "simpler" in terms of sequence size and flow required. Not to digress, but I think of our style as having the land of kata, the isle of kumite, ...

Hey, its great to see all this in print!! Although I am by no means an expert, here's how they had me doing it in Takamiyagi - Sensei's dojo last time I was there (almost 2 years ago, though I'm headed back in May) Defender always starts in L sanchin, attacker always in L except for #3,5,9,10 (which...

Hey Folks - Here is my take on a sensitive subject. Not to degrade the importance of personal religious beliefs, but I liken it to other customs within the dojo. For example, I never require that students practice in bare feet. That is their own choice, resulting from the consequences of their own a...

Hey Folks - I've just spent the last two years in school getting certified to teach high school. And each education class promotes one of the "new" ideas about education. But in the end, there are very few honest professional that won't admit the value of BALANCE. As in karate, and really ...