Old Day

I think I should plan myself a typical retirement day.

As an early riser, I should try and get moving early. Being awake and just sitting wastes the day. I want to run every day, so I should get going. Likely it could be done before 7am.

Helen gets up later than me, so my run won't interfere with anything of hers.

A little recovery time might be nice. After that, a bike ride to town for a cup of coffee someplace would fit nicely. Back home and it still isn't lunchtime.

Helen has a bike, too. I don't know if she'll want to have any coffee-shop time.

Naps will attack me, and I will accept them.

Helen is a fabulous musician, and is eager to join the other retired musicians in their various weekday sessions and gigs.

In the evening it will be martial arts time for me, and more music for Helen.

Jiu-Jitsu nights start at 6pm. For Blue Belts it ends two hours later. Even with a half hour drive each way it doesn't create a late night.

On Karate nights, we currently go from 7:30 to 9pm. This is later than I like. Maybe we'll be able to get something earlier. I'd love 6-7:30pm instead or something closer to it.

This, of course, is an at-home day. Days travelling will have quite a different face altogether.

Madness

In recent years Apple hasn't been a computer company. They've been a fix-broken-industry company.

First was the iPod. There were already lots of mp3 players out there. They were all painful to use. The only music you could put on them was that you made yourself from cds, or got bootleg off the internet. The iPods were a joy to use, and now music is either legally available online for free, or you pay a nominal fee to purchase it. The purchase procedure couldn't be easier.

Next was the iPhone. Blackberry was dominant back then and had the only product that could laughingly be called a smart phone. The iPhone is easy to use, and magnificent in design. Now cell carriers have to carry dozens of smart phone models just to be competitive, and have to offer varied subscription plans. The success of the iPhone has since been copied by Android and Windowsphone.

The iPad seems to be a giant iPod or iPhone, but it isn't. It is a new way to use the internet, and to view and create content.

People think that Apple will go after the TV/Cable industry next. Perhaps, but that's not where I want them to go.

I want the iBike. Bikes today are a lot like computers or cell phones a few years ago. They are tricky, finicky, and need constant tinkering. They are quite ridiculous contraptions, and I say this as a bike rider.

I want Apple to make one that doesn't need constant mechanical fiddling. As a non-mechanical person mine goes to the shop several times a year.

Bike defenders say that they are mechanical beasts and that things wear out. Our Toyota Prius has been in the shop about once a year for servicing, and has never had a problem. My bike goes in maybe 3 times a year. My car has never had a problem of any kind. My bike has many. My car has many more moving parts, and is subject to much higher stresses. It even has engines and stuff that never fail. On the bike I am the engine.

There are things about bikes I'll never understand. Today I went to take my new folding bike for a spin. The tires were a little low, so I got out my bike pump. I've had many bikes in my life and many cars. They have all had many tires that were similar in only one way. They all had matching tire valves. My new folding bike does not. What the hell is that?

I have three pumps in my home, but they all fit "normal" valves. We even have two bikes made by the same company. They both have normal valves. This is crap.

Come on, Apple. Bring order to the madness.

Tests and Jaw

Yesterday started well, got even better, and then ended weird.

At the morning Jiu-Jitsu class, two of us recorded our second test section, and Dan re-did his first. Even if mine gets rejected for too many mistakes, it was wonderful training.

In the afternoon, I was in the opposite role. I was the examiner, not the candidate. Three members of the Karate club were testing for their next belt. I tried to make it all seem formal and serious without being overly intimidating. Don't know how well that went, but all three passed easily.

A fabulous day.

About 7pm I had a nap attack me in my chair. I really enjoy these on the weekend and just go with the flow. Awake again in about 30 minutes, with a sore jaw.

I've been punched quite a few times over the years, and it felt very similar. The problem is, nobody had hit me. Before the nap, I was fine, afterwards not. I can't imagine my wife clocked me without my waking up.

The only explanation is that I had suffered one of those mysterious old person injuries. You know, "hurt my back sitting in a deck chair," or, "wrenched my hip last night in bed." I hate any version of this type of thing. It's Father Time pointing a finger and laughing hysterically.

Would it go away? Would it get worse?

I woke up this morning feeling better, and started thinking about any mistakes I might have made during my test the previous day. An insignificant detail surfaced.

While practising, Dan's knee whacked me in the chin. That was it. No mystery. Like many bumps, the soreness took a while to show up. It wasn't an old guy thing at all.

It was a kneed in the face kinda thing.

Lady Blue

Today there were 3 White Belts at the morning class. We are all doing the Blue Belt test for the next few weeks. Along with us was one Blue Belt who couldn't train due to a physical thing (he gave advice and later ran the camera), and another Blue Belt named Koko.

She took us through reviewing the next part of the exam. She, and the three of us, kept swapping partners and did the sequence three times.

One of the other White Belts had to do an earlier test part over. He did that next.

When we test, we are always paired with a Blue Belt. They've done it zillions of times and make the best opponents. Koko, the Blue belt, was Daniel's adversary.

Next, Cody did today's piece of the exam. Koko was the partner again.

I went last, doing today's test piece with Koko.

Daniel chose not to do the new exam section today. If he had, Koko would have been the partner again.

She put in a ton of work today helping us out.

Without he4, we would have been sunk.

Long testing

So here I am, all eager to complete my Blue Belt exam. Around here we video one section each Saturday, so it all takes 5 weeks.

That's the goal. The problem is our instructor is going to be away on one of those Saturdays, moving it all back a week. This pushes the last test day onto a weekend I cannot attend, moving it back for me yet another week.

My new total looked like being 7 weeks.

Good news arrived. Our instructor passed responsibility for today's testing and recording to some of his senior students. He'll still review the recorded results later, but it's a brilliant idea. If it doesn't work out, we just do it again. It also loads responsibility on others, forcing them to expand.

This moves the last week of the test off of the weekend I can't attend. From 7 weeks, I'm back to 5.

Then it’s continuing to train as a White Belt while waiting for the results. Sort of a limbo.

Three of us started our tests at the same time. Assuming we all finish at the same time we will be waiting together. It would seriously stink if anybody failed.

I am looking forward to more advanced training. The first thing the Blue Belts learn are the counters to all the moves they learned as White Belts. I find that very interesting.

And I’m hoping I can start a tradition of going for coffee after class.

Hot Stuff

Today the temperature outside was 11 degrees Celsius. I used to be able to change the thermostat in my classroom, but now it's locked at 22.

When I got to work at about 7:30 this morning, the room was already over 23.

I opened the only two tiny opening windows, and propped fans into the opening.

This happens every year at about this time. The entire second floor at my school cooks, my room in particular.

Even with the fans, and it only being 11 degrees out, my room hit 25 degrees by the end of the day. In Fahrenheit that sentence would read 52 degrees out, and my room getting to 77.

Can you imagine what happens when it actually gets hot out? Last year I think it topped out a bit above 30 degrees (86 Fahrenheit).

Schools in places that get that hot tend to have air conditioning to keep the heat away from school kids trying to learn. We don't.

Attempts have been made to fix the situation, but nothing has changed.

I wear shorts and a t-shirt to work and pretend I'm in Miami or Vegas. Kids coming from normal temperatures in the rest of the school simply melt in my room. I feel for them. How can they concentrate?

Lucky me. I'm in there for every class, and only get out at lunchtime.

Choke 'em

Tonight we were working on triangle chokes. That's where you grab your opponent's neck and one of his arms with your legs. You then use your leg and his own arm to cut off the blood to his brain and he taps out. Either that or he takes a nap.

It is very difficult to perform, and there are several variations to work through.

I was happy when I found out it was triangle tonight, as it's one of the techniques I considered myself weak in.

So off we went. It turned out I spent most of the time teaching my partners how to do it. I guess I knew triangle better than I thought.

At one point, the instructor had the person acting as the opponent do everything possible to make the technique not work. When it was my turn, my opponent went nuts.

When this happens, you are supposed to maintain a controlling position, relax, and let him burn himself out. He thrashed, couldn't get away, and I just took it easy. When he pooped out, I applied the choke in a non-standard way in a very non-standard position.

He made funny noises, and tapped.

I guess it might actually be one of my best techniques.

Checkerboard

161 boxes to check. The Jiu-Jitsu White Belt card can be intimidating for new people.

69 boxes there, 80 there, and 12 over here.

Some nights get you one check, and some get you two.

That's a lot of training nights in any case.

I've counted them, and kept track of them, and predicted them.

Couple of weeks ago I finished one category. Last night I finished another. I have once column left with boxes in it to get checked off.

I have just five boxes left. By bedtime, it will be only four.

It will soon be done and retired.

If I pass my exam into the advanced class I will receive a new card.

It has even more boxes on it than the first one.

Oh, well.

Private Lessons

Tonight is my very last private lesson in Jiu-Jitsu. Altogether I've done 15 of them since September.

They have made a huge difference.

They helped me qualify early to attend the Saturday classes, and helped with my general progress.

If I hadn't done private classes, I would have only completed 51 Combatives classes and 5 Reflex sessions by now. As it stands, I've done 64 Combatives and 12 Reflex classes. I would be nowhere near ready to test without the private training.

I started testing last Saturday.

My instructor for the private classes is named Sterling. He does a very good job of demonstrating and explaining everything, and then has allowed me to practise on him again, and again, and again. He is both a Jiu-Jitsu Blue Belt and a Black Belt in Hapkido.

Now when I train, it is to get myself polished up for testing. I am also reviewing the test technique sequences over and over. I need to be ready whenever the instructor finds enough time for me to perform and record a test section.

I've never enjoyed testing in any form, and want it all over with.

Then I get to go to the fancy class and get squished new and wonderful ways.

Vacation

My wife and I have the best summer vacations around. As teachers, we get July and August off of work.

We try to squeeze the most out of all that time. This summer is a good example. It includes, camping, a music festival, visiting family, visiting friends, and a cruise. Squeezed amongst the parts is time spent enjoying our home.

It is all fun, but hectic.

It will be our last such summer. By the time the next one rolls around, I'll be retired. We will still travel as much, or even more, but can do it off-season.

In the summer of 2013, we will be at home much, much more. There might be a couple of small, short trips, but nothing big.

Summertime in Sechelt is fabulous, and we will finally start being here to enjoy it.

We'll put bigger vacations into the chillier part of the year. I can't tell you how many times we've been in Vegas or Miami in August and almost croaked from the heat. Either of those places would be very sweet in say, November.

Especially for less money.

Fashion

B. J. Penn is one of the legends of the UFC. He likes to wear white shorts with a Black Belt stitched on. It doesn't flop around and can never come undone, but it looks kinda right.

Several martial arts places sell these kinds of shorts now. I have bought some.

They also make them with Blue Belts stitched on. I have a pair of these, too.

Once in a while our Blue Belt class doesn’t wear gis. It is called a no-gi class, and they tend to wear mma-style shorts with t-shirts or rash guards up top.

When start attending these sessions, I’ll have the snazziest shorts. I will wear my pair with the built-in Blue Belt.

I just have to figure out a cool shirt to go with them.

Purpose

Sparring looks like fighting, but it isn’t. It is a controlled, restrained version of fighting.

Most people start out scared of sparring, and their ease grows over time. Until this happen they simply cannot do it well.

The problem is, some people start to feel too comfortable. This is also a problem.

Let’s say somebody is new to sparring, and tense. They hop forward and throw a round kick just to be doing something. That is just fine.

Let’s say somebody else has been sparring a lot, and is totally comfortable. They hop forward and throw a round kick just to be doing something. This is very, very bad.

A person who is at home in sparring should act as if they were in a real fight. Would you just hop up in a real fight and throw a round kick? Why?

The kick will not land if the adversary knows anything at all. So there you are, on one leg, wide open for no reason.

If there is a plan, this is fine. For a middle-skill person, it can be a brain plan. For a high-level person is should be automatic.

The kick could be to draw the opponent’s defense out of line. How do you take advantage of it? Perhaps a reverse punch. What comes after the punch? In any case, there can be absolutely no pause between the techniques. It must be an explosion of movement.

Let’s also assume that the opponent survives every technique of the assault. What next? Sparring is wonderful training for this as the opponent always survives. After executing this explosion of technique one must get out of range again instantly. Either that, or take the adversary to the ground. No stopping within danger range.

It may sound rude, but you never give him a chance.

Just like fighting.

Saturday testing

Three of us have started our Jiu-Jitsu Blue Belt exams. There are four precise technique drill sets to get through, and one set of sparring. Five parts altogether.

On Saturday we all completed one of the drill sets. The action was recorded in video form and was put aside to be sent to HQ once everything is done.

Now that we've started, I want to get it all done. As testing is normally only done at the Saturday class, it should take four more weeks.

Next week, the instructor is away. OK, it will take five weeks. Unfortunately I will miss Saturday in five weeks. OK, it will take me six weeks.

Assuming, of course, that the videos are good enough when the instructor reviews them. Each one not up to snuff could add another week.

It is possible to do more than one set on a Saturday, but that would be pushing pretty hard. I can't see that happening if we are all there. Maybe one or two guys could do it. Bigger groups move slower, and the actual recording takes considerable time. The practise and the testing all have to be squeezed into one hour.

An hour can be a very tiny piece of time. We can't stay late as there is a Blue Belt class right after ours.

I will continue my regular training, and increase my test technique reviews. I want to be ready if any time pops up when a test part can be done, or if two can be done on any given Saturday.

The good news is that even if it all takes me six more weeks it will still only be June 2nd. This leaves four more Saturdays for retakes before the end of June.

That's my goal. Done and uploaded to HQ by the end of June.

It makes Karate tests seem simple in comparison.

And nobody sits on your chest.

YearFromNow

So where would I like my Karate club to be one year from now?

Hopefully, we'll have enough people to afford adding a third training session per week. Two is really not enough.

It would be nice if there were a dozen or so members. This provides a good group feeling, and means there is enough money for a few extras.

I don't want to teach a kids' class, but perhaps someone else in the club will take that on. That's too much like work for me.

A big hope is that the current members are all still there. This would mean there would be one solid Brown Belt, and three people preparing to take their first Brown exams. With a crew like that, I'd feel no guilt taking time off to travel with my lovely wife. We'll perhaps be doing that shortly after the Karate people take their Brown tests.

That sounds cunningly planned, but it isn't.

One down

It's official now. My Jiu-Jitsu Blue Belt exam has begun.

There were four White Belts at the Saturday class. This included myself, and the two guys next farthest in their training.

The instructor announced that we were starting the test drills and videoing them. The 4th guy isn't close to testing, but he got to go along for the ride.

We spent about half an hour going over the test segment we were doing out of the five. It was the "standing technique" part.

Then the testing started. I went first. A mistake right off the bat, so we restarted. The instructor said it looked good.

Then the other two guys took their turns. Both also had to restart at least once, but looked pretty good.

The instructor will look over the recordings with an eagle eye in the next few years and decide if they need to be redone. If not, we are all 1/5 done our exam.

Four parts left to go.

Check obsession

The record card for a Gracie Jiu-Jitsu White Belt has lots of little boxes to check off with training.

There are 80 of one kind, 12 of the next, and 69 of another.

I've already completed the 80, and will finish the dozen next Saturday. The remaining six holes in the 69 will take exactly three weeks to complete.

My card is soon to be retired.

The cards are a good idea. They help insure that a student has actually trained in all the parts of the curriculum before they try and change levels.

There is a different, more complicated card for the Blue Belts, but basically the same thing.

The instructor is not concerned that I totally finish my White card before my exam starts. Let's assume I'm done in a month. Call it the end of May.

It has been my hope to get my Blue Belt by the end of June, as I might not be able to train in July or August at all.

I might actually be able to train as a Blue Belt for a month before my summer shutdown.

There might be a few check marks on my card.

Cool.

Dozen

My new Karate club is a different one for me.

First I should say, whenever I've run a club before the priority was always searching out new students. Newspaper ads, posters and that sort of thing.

With the new club there was no advertising. I knew that three people wanted to train with me. I notified a total of 5 people about the new club, and ended up with 4 students.

For the spring, that was enough.

Now I've been contacted by a former student who wants join and to bring her two teen daughters along.

That could mean a new total of 7 students. I would have been content with the original three.

I consider this a smashing success. September is usually the main time for students to join up. I don't know why, but it's true.

In the size of hall we are renting, a dozen students would be a full house. That is also a really good number for providing individualized instruction.

If we have four to seven people now it will be easy to reach a dozen in September.

It has been very easy so far.

I credit Facebook.

Ache

I ran too far on the weekend wearing my tippy-toe shoes.

Usually when I overdo something I feel it in my muscles two days later. Most people feel it the very next day but I've always been a little different. What I usually get is maybe a little stiffness the first day, but the deadly deadly feeling comes on day two.

So there I was finishing my run and both my calves were pretty darn tired. A better way to describe it would be minor agony.

The next day I was as stiff in the legs as I have ever been before. Knowing my body I was a bit concerned about what would hit me on day two.

Day two was worse; much worse; much, much worse. Stairs were very, very bad things.

It's now the day after that and I'm okay. I can still feel my calves. They whine at me a little, but I'm okay.

On the weekend I'll probably run again. I'm just hoping I don't go through exactly the same thing. I don't mind a little resistance from my body but this was crazy.

Suffering just to run is a very bad idea.

Last Stripe

The end of my time as a White Belt in Jiu-Jitsu got closer tonight.

I was awarded my 4th and final stripe for my belt. The instructor also looked over my record card, and said I'll be starting my promotion test soon. Technically I have a few classes left to complete, but it's up to him when my exam can start.

There are a couple of test sections that I am ready for, and a couple I am not. Perhaps we'll do those ones first, while I'm still training a bit more for the other parts.
I hope this is how it goes as it means I have over two months to complete the test before summer. Likely the recordings could all be sent to HQ for final evaluation before the end of May. It takes a week or two to get results, so news of the decision regarding promotion would be back before summer, too. This would be a bonus.

I'd be happy to just get it all done, recorded, and sent off before July. Finding out the result as well would be very nice.

If I pass, I think it will be the fastest anyone has earned a Blue Belt at my local club. I will also be the oldest person to earn a Gracie Blue Belt in all of Canada.

Then it's on to the advanced class to learn even sneakier ways to choke and squish my friends.

Stiff

Today I'm pretty old.

I did a run yesterday barefoot style. My calf muscles really felt it, and this morning they were trying to kill me.

I was glad it was raining heavily, creating an excuse for me not to ride my bike to work. Stairs have been a challenge all day.

No Jiu-Jitsu today, just a Karate class. I can make it work fine for the hour and a half of training, but then will go back into shuffle mode.

I'll run again on the weekend, and my legs will punish me less. They will have given up and will let me do what I want.

Bodies do this. They do it more if they are old ones.

There is no rain predicted for tomorrow, so I'll be biking.

No excuse available.

Paper

Have you seen the text books kids haul around these days?

Let's have a high school kid with homework in 4 subjects; Math, English, Physics and Biology. Three of those texts are monsters, and the English book likely a novel. The accompanying binders seem weightless in comparison.

Would you like to haul that back and forth on the bus? I wouldn't.

Teachers are often old fashioned, and some decry the arrival of e-readers and such. I contend that they are necessary.

All those texts, and more, can be fit into an e-reader whose weight is measured in grams. Aha, you say. What about all the accompanying binders? Are they not also vital for a proper education even if the physical textbooks are not?

There have been kids using laptops for years for taking notes. Not a separate one for every subject. Just one. This year I've had an explosion of iPad toting note takers. I even have a few who are able to keep notes on their phones or iPods. I was sceptical at first, but it's true. I have tried to catch them doing other things, and have failed. It's the kids with the devices hidden away that you have to watch.

If the text situation ever becomes flexible enough, a student could carry an iPad which holds all their textbooks as well as all their notes. From a stuffed and heavy backpack, a kid walks out with a tiny electronic device.

Thing aren't really there yet, but it's coming really soon.

The paper addicts should try and get used to the idea.

Run

Off for a run in my weird, almost-not-there shoes. They make me run a little tippy-toed.

My left calf didn't like it right away, but I kept going.

Up the hill and over the creek. One kilometre. All is fine and no signs of any cars. This is not strange for our country roads early on a Sunday. Onto the long road.

Two kilometre mark. Still no cars. I pass cows and horse in their fields. Some watch me, and some don't. The road fades to gravel. Three kilometres.

The gravel and the new shoes do not get along. The sharp stones dig in, and are too numerous to avoid. I turn east, still on gravel.

No cars on the gravel either. At four kilometres I turn into the tree and onto dirt paths. This is much better going. I pass several dog walkers in the trees. Five kilometres. Out of the trees and it's six kilometres.

Back on pavement amongst houses. Where are the cars? I reach the downhill with the stunning, blue-skied ocean vista. Seven kilometres. I turn for home. Eight.

Finally a car goes by. Over the creek. Nine kilometres and I'm home.

My left calf is still unhappy, and not really exhausted. My right calf has decided to match the attitude of its twin.

Overall, I feel normal enough. No joint aches or pains, just my protesting calves.

The new shoes are fine, as was my run.

Saturday class

Saturday morning Jiu-Jitsu class is great.

I'm an early riser, so it's no problem getting ready. On the road before 8:30 for the 9am start.

The class is a little more advanced than the evening sessions, and the groups are very small and much more focused. Finished at 10.

So I head home. I can do errands along the way, but many businesses are not open yet. Too early for an early lunch. Usually I just drive on through.

Back home a little after 10:30. Many people haven't done anything more ambitious than a cup of coffee. My wife is often still in her jammies.

Not a bit of Saturday really used up.

New Shoes

Barefoot running is the latest fad. They say it is a more natural way to do it. It is also really hard on the feet.

Imagine giving it a try, and stepping on some broken glass, or even some crushed gravel.

The newest variation is barefoot running shoes. Quite a contradiction in terms, but actually a good idea. They fit close to the feet, provide no cushioning or support, and yet act as a super tough layer of skin. They even have separate compartments for each toe.

This has been intriguing me for a while. Last Saturday I bought a pair. They say you should start with short runs as this kind of running is so different. I cranked out a few kilometres that day. My calves found it quite a challenge.

I didn’t get another chance on that weekend, and have been too busy since. Maybe tomorrow I’ll get the new booties on the road again. I’d like to take them on a normal distance run. Maybe 8-10 km. That should let me know how my body likes running this way.

Job

This is an important time of year for High School teachers. It is the time when the school schedule for next year is figured out. We find out what our jobs will be like next year.

So far, my position will be fine. I will be teaching 6 classes of Social Studies and 1 of Computers. These are both my areas of expertise. This is good.

In my career I've taught both of these subjects, and Science, and Math, and English. I am not a Science, Math, or English teacher.

I am happy as can be for next year. It will be a good last year of teaching. I'd hate to have a crappy assignment for my pre-retirement year.

My assignment is a good one mostly due to my tons of seniority. It is painful to see young teachers waiting year after year hoping to get a full time position. They say they aren't circling me like a herd of buzzards, but they are. My full-time job will be a real gem for somebody to inherit.

Keep in mind, that when I call them young teachers it's a relative term. People in their 40s are still struggling. Every year they lay off about 75% of all our teaching staff. I have only been exempt for a couple of years, and I'm almost retired.

It can be good to be old.

MonthToGo

It is April 10th today, and that's a special day in my Jiu-Jitsu schedule. As of this moment, I have 11 more Combatives (evening) classes and 4 more Reflex (Saturday) classes to go before I can test. I will be ready one month from today.

The Reflex classes are no problem. I have two private lessons booked for those, and have 4 Saturdays coming in the next month. I will exceed the minimum.

There will be one private lesson devoted to Combatives, leaving 10 to go through at the rate of two per week. They will reach completion May 10th.

This all will get me to the minimum requirement. Like most martial arts it all hinges on permission by the instructor. He is very supportive of my maniac pace and I'm sure he'll let me start the test as soon as sensible.

They say the test takes about a month to complete. For each segment, usually one gets all ready by going through the sequence a number of times with a partner. Then it is done for real and recorded as a video. If it all goes well, the instructor reviews it again later. If it is still considered good enough it is saved to be sent off to Gracie HQ with all the other segments for actual grading.

There are five sections to the exam. The longest is 23 techniques, and the shortest is 14. All are very physically demanding and each section must be completed in less than five minutes.

I hope I get some pity points for being old...

Supplement

I love my Karate training, and Jiu-Jitsu as well.

Both are wonderful, and self contained. What would I add to my training if I could?

Well, I've always been interested in the art of the Japanese sword. One summer I trained in Iaido, and found it wonderful. There is none around here.

In Jiu-Jitsu we're always getting dumped. I'd really like to have an opportunity to work on falls. We do a little about that, but really nothing like enough. I understand the principals intellectually, but need about a hundred hours of drill to make it automatic.

I don't need to add much to my training. I currently attend 5 classes a week. Soon it will increase to 8, and then maybe even to 9 in the fall.

Would I honestly attend a couple more so I could train in Iaido? Probably not, even if the times did not conflict. Perhaps it's a good thing that it isn't available so I don't have to think about it.

There isn't a class that offers fall training. I could work on that alone, but I won't. I could do a few private lessons in Jiu-Jitsu and have the focus be on break falls, but I won't. Other stuff is more fun and intellectually interesting.

A lot of people do other forms of exercise to supplement their training. I ride bikes and run.

I am starting to try out some weird, barefoot running shoes. It is a misnomer, as shoes are involved but they are really just thin, tough skins to protect the foot. The wearer has to run in the same way as a barefoot runner.

I've been out once semi-barefoot and have noticed a big difference. One has to run without impacting the heal at all. The calves have to work much, much harder. I predict a significant increase in leg strength. This assumes that my flat feet are up to going support-less. We shall see.

Rolling

There is one thing missing from low-level Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. The White Belts never roll.

Roll is the term used to denote two people sparring. Nothing is pre-determined. Each person tries to apply techniques on the other. It is friendly enough, but if you are not careful you'll end up in a joint lock or a choke. When this happens you tap and start over.

Rolling let's you know how you're doing when things get become a little more real.

Today there were 7 Blue Belts present at the White Belt class. We did our normal training, but the instructor saved a bit of time at the end of the session. He then paired us off with the Blue Belts. We then rolled.

We were with our partners for two minutes, and then switched. I got partnered with the instructor, a big guy named Corey, and Madeline. I was the odd man out once and was responsible for watching the time. During the timing I got to watch people grappling. I saw most of the White Belts getting repeatedly caught in armbars and chokes.

We could do what we wanted, which means mostly what we have trained in. The Blue Belts used all of that, plus the stuff they learn in the advanced classes. They often roll in the advanced class. We never do.

It was fun.

I certainly never successfully applied a submission on any of my Blue partners, but am pleased they didn't get me either.

The first thing new Blue Belts learn in the advanced class is how to counter everything they learned as White Belts. This put us at quite a disadvantage.

I also noticed that a lot of the White Belts sort of froze and couldn't figure out what to do. This didn't happen to me. Some also seemed to burn ten times more energy than they should. Nerves, I suppose. I didn't do that either as it is a lesson I learned in wrestling.

I think I did OK.

I look forward to doing it again sometime.

Slowdown

I finally got around to doing the math on a prediction as to when I will reach higher Belts in Jiu-Jitsu.

There are two routes a person can go. One is training in a satellite school. The other is going to the main location in California.

Let's assume a satellite school. You can earn a Blue Belt in about a year, and add a stripe onto the Blue Belt in about another year. After that, things get stuck. The materials are not yet available for schools to train you beyond that. The Blue Belt's second stripe course material seems to be about half complete.

Let's now go to the main school. They can train you all the way up. The problem is they only allow a test every six months. At that rate the fastest a Belt can be earned is 2.5 years. That makes the road to Black will take 7.5 years or more after one has earned a Blue Belt.

The funny thing is that this is predicated on a student training about 3 times a week. It is quite possible to train there 11 times a week, but this does not let you test any faster.

For myself both routes make timely rank progression impossible. I'll get as far as my first stripe on a Blue Belt and have to wait for the course materials to become available for each subsequent level.

In a way it is a good thing as it will put an end to any desire to pursue rank.

I'll just have to plug along and have fun.

EasterAndGreen

Easter will be here this weekend.

The Karate Club will lose the Saturday class, as will the Jiu-Jitsu folks. I'm secretly glad about Jiu-Jitsu, as I can't be there anyhow. Don't want anybody catching up to me. Is that wrong?

I'm glad in another way, as the next Jiu-Jitsu Saturday is supposed to cover the test's second part. It's the hardest, and I'd hate to miss it. With the class cancelled, we'll just do it the next week.

It's funny. Now that I'm a Sensei again I have become two martial arts people.

In Jiu-Jitsu I interpret all the training as being about me. How am I doing? Will I be ready for my test? When will I test? There are other people, but they are responsible for themselves. I'm not.

In Karate things are just the opposite. It isn't about me at all. I was concerned about my students being ready for their tests. They are rising to the challenge. They are on it. I am the helper.

I can see them all wearing Green Belts before July.

Being a Green Belt is cool. It's the first rank where if you count creatively you can pretend you are halfway to Black Belt. It isn't really true, but it almost is.

I'm proud to be able to help them.

Monday

The Karate Club is going to be tiny for a while. Saturday was fine, but it was only me and two students. Kinda extra tiny.

Tonight, everybody was there. It is still small. There was me, and a Brown Belt, and three lower ranks students. Dropping by to be supportive was Dallas Grieve.

He's the instructor at the nearby Roberts Creek Karate Club. Tonight he was just a guy in the line.

I did some of the same explaining I did on Saturday. Told people that we are a Karate-for-everybody club. We modify for health issues, and injuries, and age. This is our niche.

So off we went drilling testing techniques. Betsy, our Brown Belt, did remarkably well. She has a few health issues and hasn't been in class in well over a decade. She remembered most of the techniques, including several Katas.

After class Dallas said he enjoyed himself. He never gets to be just a guy-in-the-line. He also has never trained in Shotokan Kata and found it very interesting. His style is Shito-Ryu, which is very similar. Similar, but not identical.

We chatted quite a bit after class. He's sure a nice guy.

We are off to train the brains out of our low Belts. They have tests coming. All are talented, and close to ready already.

They just need a bit of polishing.

What Day?

It isn't easy to schedule training for a Karate Club.

Weeks have 7 days, but it isn't as simple as that. Certain days and times just don't draw the crowds.

I've trained on Sundays as part of a big Karate Club. A small core of folks loves it and show up frequently. Most of the group just never attends Sunday. Sundays have to be counted out as a primary training day.

Friday is much the same. A small core finds it great, but most don't

That leaves the other 4 evenings, and Saturday.

The original club I started in had regular Saturday morning classes. I was part of that group for a decade. I've also known other clubs with Saturday sessions. It works well.

Right now, my personal timetable is a little tight.

I am busy two evenings a week, and Saturday mornings, and as I'm the Karate Club's Sensei that matters.

We are trying a Saturday afternoon class. So far it's working. We also train Monday evening.

Only Wednesdays remain open on my dance card. If our club flourishes, we'll likely get a Wednesday evening session going, too.

But is this fair to the club members? An instructor always has to be present, and there is only one of me. Can I really commit to being there?

I know I can't commit to July or August, so have already made it clear the club shuts down in those months.

I will become inconsistent once my wife and I retire. We want to travel.

By the time that happens, the Karate Club should have a healthy crop of Brown Belts. That is a fine rank for assistant instructors. If Helen and I take off to Europe for a month there would be no problem leaving a Brown Belt in charge for a while. A year after that they will be Black Belts and the problem is totally solved.

You see, I've been thinking. This new club is not being started all willy-nilly.