Promotions

From SIDE CONTROL's training blog:
" Four new black belts! Casey, Lance, Doug and Alex all got their faixa pretas on Saturday, which was pretty incredible. Bree and Dex earned their blue belts. Benny and Pat got promoted to purple. Nate and Clint both got brown belts. "

Wow. Gracie Barra Seattle is packed with black belts! And a fifth female colored belt. I would have loved to have been able to see those folks get promoted instead of being at work this weekend! Gotta earn the rent, though.

Lindsey's class.... I rolled with Lindsey for just a few minutes while the ladies were changing. It had been FOREVER since I'd done any BJJ.... I hoped that I still remembered what to do! I think I did fairly well, though. Lindsey seemed pleased; said that I was staying nice and tight. I seemed to be analyzing a little better than I usually do; although Lindsey tends to not go 100mph, which helps me in that respect. I feel a bit less of the usual panicked urgency that I feel when rolling with a lot of the men. Anyway, I was consciously trying to foil whatever he was setting up, even if I had no idea what he was setting up. If he reached for a pantleg grip, I yanked the leg out of reach; if he placed his foot inside my knee, I immediately moved my knee to the outside. I imagine that if I did that sort of thing on an extremely consistent basis without really having a good grasp on what the opponent had in mind, a smart opponent would be able to start baiting me into putting myself into bad positions. For now, though, it's an interesting strategy to play with.

Once class actually began, we did some basic triangle stuff; armbar from triangle setup- underhook the opponent's outside-the-triangle arm, hold it in both hands above the elbow, brace it on the side of your head and pull to your centerline to lock the elbow. I found the lock easier to get if I turned my hips over into it as well.

Then we had one person sitting, while the other tried to use ankle-cuff grips to put the first person on her back and pass. The women that I worked with are not doing half bad- I don't know if they'd survive the jungle of a regular class (yet), but some of them are even getting nice hip-ups into the triangles, as well as struggling hard enough that I had a challenge to triangle them.


Then on to kung fu.

We did a couple of reps of Leopard Fist, including a full-speed one. Then some chi gek. Once again I had cause to curse the extreme shortness of my legs. I had to keep hopping in closer. However, my opponents seemed to be having a little difficulty maintaining proper hooking-foot position on my stubby legs, so it went both ways. My excellent balance does help me a lot in this exercise. After MM and I had worked on this together for a while, we started improvising a bit once one of us managed to get the knee kicked out. Of course we eventually ended up on the floor. Everyone gathered around to watch. I got his back and tried to RNC, but he got his chin down. I think I could have had him anyway, with that or something else- except that I was wearing fuzzy gloves (my hands were cold!) and I couldn't get any decent grips.

After that exchange, I was sweating, so I got rid of the gloves- and the next time we went to the ground, it went a bit better. Again, everyone stopped their chi gek and gathered around to watch. I got stuck in MM's closed guard, but luckily he doesn't know how to do a triangle! I had to work a while, but eventually I was able to pass to top half guard. Then he goonswept me (that's my new term for a "sweep" that is all muscle/weight and no technique). I can't blame MM, since he knows no BJJ. At that point I was in bottom half guard. SK said, "Oh, you're finished.... you'll never get out of Kitsune's half guard." I said, "Yeah, but we're not doing sport BJJ- we're free-sparring, and he is now on top where he can gouge my eyes out or crush my trachea." So I conceded the battle. SK told me that he'd noticed that MM was huffing and puffing really bad, and that I didn't seem to be breathing hard. So that's good. It was fun, anyway. Since JB hasn't been to kung fu in a very long time, I haven't had any spontaneous BJJ in there. I don't want to incite BJJ with SK because of his injured wrist, and JM just seems to have such fragile health and physicality lately that I hesitate to jump her without a checkin first. (In fact, she sat out half the class tonight with dizziness and stomach pains.)

Note to self.... e-mail SK and JM and tell them that they are not allowed to teach MM how to do a triangle!

A little Wing Chun. Person 1- 3 cycling sun-punches to chest. Person 2- pak sau to parry the first, rebound the back of the wrist over to parry the second (I know there's a name for that, but I can't recall), and rebound into a willow palm to the chest (which you must land before person 1 lands the 3rd sun punch- that will take all the power out of it even if you don't parry that last one). I was working with SK. I asked a couple of times if this was okay on his bad wrist, and he insisted it was, although he did not want to do the parrying sequence on his right side. On one random rep, he didn't parry at all, and I rapid-fire sun-punched him three times. He does that sometimes just to make sure I 1)have range, and 2)am not doing sissy strikes. It annoys me a bit, because sometimes I wind up hitting him hard and feeling bad about it. This time, I had perfect range and my strikes were light but not sissy. He said, "Hit me harder,' I said, "No." "Please?" "No, I am not going to hit you hard." A few more verbal rounds of that, and then we negotiated for me to sun-punch the heavy bag instead so that he could satisfy himself that I could hit hard enough.

I was focussing hard on the rebounding, and seemed to be getting that after a few tries. I still need to work on my chronic tendency to parry way too far- I never can seem to trust that I've diverted the strike enough and am safe. This shows up everywhere, but most obviously in Wing Chun because the extreme close range makes me all twitchy and panicky.

Also, my recurrent and extremely frustrating boobilage problems persist. I find it ironic that Wing Chun- a style purported to have been developed by and for a woman- is built upon elbow positions that are almost impossible when you are- well, built. I can't drop my elbows enough, and bringing very-close-range cycling strikes up on the centerline is a topographical challenge. Then you have to try to explain to your male teachers that no, your biceps are NOT going to press any closer to your torso without surgical intervention; that's as good as it's ever gonna get, sorry dude. I do not like being a girl on Wing Chun nights.

Then we worked on that thrice-cursed sweep some more. I have learned that a large part of my problem is that the Iron Broom type sweeps that I worked on a lot in the past (and got whipped into decent shape, if I may say so) are a WHOLLY DIFFERENT TYPE OF SWEEP than these things. You'd think a sweep would be a sweep; well, heck no, that would be way too easy. The iron brooms involve throwing your upper body powerfully to the side and down, chest and shoulders first- communing intimately with the ground, and then torquing the rest of your body through. By contrast, this Snake style sweep- while you are squatting on the ground- doesn't feel like you are *merging* with the ground. It's not hard and mean and fully-committed; it's breezy and swirly. The center of gravity, the body motion, the foot postitions, the origin of momentum, the angles of the torso to the ground and the torso to your legs and the legs to one another- EVERYTHING- is different. Once I grokked that, I was able to stop trying to stubbornly force this sweep into my previous experience of sweeps, and view it as a brand new technique.
I can do it now, although I was secretly skeptical that it could possibly be effective. After iron brooms, these feel weak and puny. SK had us put on padded shinguards and practice on each other. I was surprised and gratified to see that I really could knock JM down with a Snake style sweep. By that time, my knees were whining, "Gahhhhh- no more sweeps" but it was so much fun to knock JM down that I had to do a bunch more. She complained that my targeting was unbearably precise and cracking on the exact same spot on her leg every single time. I replied, "Oh- How unlike me!!" and we both laughed.

Then she got paybacks. Even through two shinpads, the sweep HURT! I'm glad I wasn't working with MM or Nemesis, who were sweeping much harder and for many more reps than JM did.

After that, a little Kiu Two. JM and I repped the "flurry" sequence a bunch of times on each other. I need to focus on making that ton sau in part A nice and clean, and on not lifting my elbow too much on the cross press in part B. Otherwise it seems not half bad. We did a few reps of the entire form as well.

Next semester will be Tiger and Crane, and we will be working on the Tiger Versus Crane form, so I want to practice that a bit and hopefully transcribe it beforehand. I have CM's (the Tiger Master) notes on the form, as well, so that would be another good thing to look over. Most of the kicks are supposed to be arial, which we have not been doing- but I am looking forward to incorporating those. Lots of good cardio, too- one rep of TvC leaves you puffing even if you're NOT doing flying kicks, so protracted work on the form is quite a workout.

MM is a genius. He is working on multiple experimental technical engineering projects for the military and NASA. He brings a similar level of gray matter to philosophical discussions... casually dropping random mind-bombs of profound- yet often bizarre- musings that make everyone stop, double-take, and try to change gears to catch up. During the end-of-class talk over this week's section of the Tao Te Ching, he threw out a typical one of those, and there followed a typical long moment of silence while we stared at him. I broke it with, "It's so interesting to have you back!" And everyone cracked up.

The Tao Te Ching discussion moved from what constitutes "greatness".... to what people strive for in life....to evolution......to how lazy and spoiled- and thus overweight and inactive- people are in today's world.....to the Zombie Apocalypse.

(pic- Carlos, in the blue gi)

Northern Mantis bo form

Apologies to those BJJ-only folks who have not yet expired from boredom.... I hope to have some actual BJJ to blog about tomorrow.



+Northern Mantis Bo form

Begin standing straight, looking left, bo horizontal at left knee, right hand over heart

Step rt foot out into horse, bring bo out from leg slightly, Rt hand Mantis hook sweeps down and out to almost horizontal

Cat stance left toe in front, torso facing west. Rt hand warding at forehead, palm out

Both hands grasp dao, shift into hill-climbing stance (left foot in front), low horiz block to high horiz block.

Bring bo back to low horiz position, Step rt foot into hc stance, low horiz. bo strike to the rt

Step left foot into hc stance, lo horiz bo strike to left

Step rt foot into hc stance, high horiz bo strike to rt

Step left foot into hc stance, high horiz bo strike to left

Bring bo in front vertically, top end tipped slightly to the left and back. and bottom end almost to ground. Rt foot snap kick, let foot fall into rt hc stance and push bo out slightly to block/strike.

Turn 180 degrees, now you are facing east in a left hc stance. Bring bottom end of bo up and over as you turn, do overhead smash- now you are holding it horizontally at hip level on your left side.

Step fwd with rt foot into hc stance, bring rear end of bo up and over in overhead smash to end horizontal at hip level on the right side.

Plant front end of bo almost to ground outside of left foot, it is now held vertically in front with the top end tipped slightly rt. Snap kick left foot.

Touch left foot back down just long enough to do a big backward skip, ending in a very low back stance with left leg straight in front. Bottom end of bo circles up and over to strike downward in front of you.

Stand back up into hc stance (left foot in front), bo held vertically with top end tipped slightly rt and back. Push bo outward slightly in block/strike.

Scoop bottom bo end back and then up to top vertical (tipped sl left) as you lift rt knee and step slightly out into a rt hc stance. Push bo out in strike/block

Scoop bottom bo end back and then up to top vertical (tipped sl rt) as you lift left knee and step slightly out into a lft hc stance. Push bo out in strike/block

Turn to a west-facing horse. Bottom end of bo comes up and over to strike down in a horizontal overhead smash to the rt at waist level.

Pull left hand and far tip of bo in to strike in a horiz strike to the front with the opposite end. The bo is now in front of your hip.

Turn to the left in a north-facing hc stance. Bring the far tip of the bo up and over to strike down in a horiz overhead smash north at waist level.

Pull rt hand and far tip of bo in to strike horiz to the front with the opposite end. The bo is now in front of your hip.

Step left foot west to hc stance, lift far end of bo curving front, up and then down to stab at ground just outside of left foot. Top end of bo angled slightly right and back.

Loop bottom end of bo in a violent small circle ankle-to-knee to the left as you settle into north-facing horse with bo horiz at waist level

Cross rt foot behind left in a scissor as you stab the left end of the bo in an upward diagonal.

Switch grip of left hand from overhand to underhand.

Step rt foot back out into a hc stance, left leg straight and weight on rt, as you slam the far end of the bo almost to the ground.

Step rt foot west in hc stance, swing bo horiz to strike left waist level. Far end pointing forward.

Step left foot fwd in hc stance, swing bo horiz to strike rt waist level. Far end pointing forward.

DO NOT STEP, swing bo up to strike brow level left. Far end pointing forward.

Step rt foot fwd into hc stance, swing bo horiz to strike brow level rt. Far end pointing fwd.

Step lft foot fwd into hc stance, swing bo horiz to strike brow level left. Far end pointing fwd.

Dip front end of bo fwd, down, and around, then spin a second time, to end parallel with body behind rt arm, held in rt hand. Straight punch left arm at chest level.

Grasp bo with left hand at hip (both hands are now on the bo), circle lower end up, rt and around as you step with rt foot to turn south into a horse. Bo ends up horizontal at hip level.

Big skip to your left (east) to land in an hc stance rt foot in front, facing west. The end of the bo to the west makes a BIG counterclockwise circle, then stabs diagonally upward.

Turn 180 degrees to face east, hc stance with left foot fwd. Bo comes up and over in an overhead smash to end horiz at waist level, at left hip, tip pointing forward.

Step rt foot fwd to a hc stance, back end of bo comes up and over in a horiz overhead smash.

Step lft foot fwd into a hc stance, back end of bo comes up and over in a horiz overhead smash.

Dip front end of bo fwd, down, and around, then spin a second time, to end parallel with body behind rt arm, held in rt hand. Straight punch left arm at chest level.

Grasp bo with left hand at hip (both hands are now on the bo), circle lower end up, rt and around as you step with rt foot to turn north into a horse. Bo ends up horizontal at hip level.

Big skip to your left (west) to land in an hc stance rt foot in front, facing east. The end of the bo to the east makes a BIG counterclockwise circle, then stabs diagonally upward.

Dip the far end of the bo down to the ground, circle it to the right and then up and over to end held in the rt hand only, vertical behind your arm. Weight shifts to left foot as bo comes forward, then back to rt foot as bo goes behind arm and do a straight punch left hand chest level. End facing north, hc stance with left leg straight.

left hand grabs bo at hip (now both hands are on the bo), pulls low end to high as you straighten up and put feet together. Bo is now vertical in front of you, left of your centerline. Left hand is on top and elbow is out.

Salute: top end of bo dips forward and down in one complete spin and you switch bo to vertical behind your right arm. Left arm at chest, blade hand, thumb inward. Slight bow.

(pic- Rodrigo)

My elbow is F'ed up... but I can still do some forms and drills.

I couldn't go to Gracie's this morning. Nor Cindy's tonight. I'm really unhappy, with all the classes I'm missing this month. But that elbow... you know how it feels when you smack your funny bone? It feels like that every time I tap the spot, even very lightly- sharp flash of pain and then my arm goes numb for a second. I think there's a hematoma swelling that's pressing right on the ulnar nerve. That jammed finger on the other side is still not wanting to bend, either. Both injuries will probably be fine in a day or two, but I decided that it would be foolhardy to try to roll today, with that bad elbow hitting the mat every ten seconds, and getting it armbarred... especially as it is Competition Training day. I should have jow'ed the elbow as soon as I got home, but it hadn't seemed like a big deal at the time. It's worse today than it was yesterday.

I still went to my kung fu private, figuring that as long as I didn't do any elbow strikes on a real target, I could still do forms and stuff. SK had his brace off for the first time. He's planning to go back to work on Wednesday. Bummer for me- that means we probably can't do any more of these sessions.

There was no space available at the Community Center, so we had to work outside. That was fine for the first hour, but then the sun went down (around 3pm, good grief) and it started to get reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally cold. My fingers were like icicles.

We worked on the White Dragon stances:

Fighting stance- the warding hand at the brow has the fingertips pointed toward the relevant direction (where the enemy is). I hadn't been absolutely certain it wasn't the other way around.

Ready stance- The wrist and hand of the other arm make a flat plane- no wrist flexion. The elbow of that hand makes about a 45-degree angle- sharper than I have been tending to make it. Make sure the elbow is dropped.

Guard/blocking stance- this was the one I couldn't remember. If your enemy is at right- right flat palm guarding groin, left is across your chest and guarding right jaw. Again- arm and hand are in a straight plane, no wrist flexion.


Then Snake Dao (aka "Angry Snake Defending Its Lair")

The recurring theme for today's Snake dao lesson is DO NOT BEND AT THE WRIST.

I got into position, and SK looked at me quizzically...
"Oh, yeah, I forgot- you only know bits and pieces of the form."
(eagerly)"We could remedy that!"
"No."

Drat.

He did end up giving me one miniscule bit (only one move) that connected the two pieces that I know.

Begin in high horse with body facing east, left hand in low relaxed guard near left hip, dao held horizontally at right hip with point north and blade down.

Right foot crosses in FRONT of left in scissor stance. Press dao north almost to extention of arms, vertical, hilt up and blade north. Brace dull edge with left palm (making a right angle).

Unwind 360 degrees to your left, taking an extra step fwd with left foot, ending facing north in front stance with left foot fwd. Dao wraps around your head vertically (point down), then circles widely all the way around body as you turn, ending in a horizontal cut to north at waist level. The blade tip is facing almost front. DO NOT BEND THE WRIST. Left hard is warding at left temple, palm out.

Hop slightly back into cat with left toe fwd. Torso now facing north. Left hand relaxed guard at waist level. Bring dao up to horizontal brow level, point facing west, blade facing out to catch strike aimed at head. Push with the flat palm of the left hand as if you were pushing the corpse off your sword.

Hop slightly forward, still in cat with left toe fwd. left hand comes to brace right forearm as you pommel-strike to opponent's left lower rib area.

Immediately bounce into 360 spin to the right. Left knee comes up FIRST to block. Both arms cross at brow during spin (don't cover eyes). End in front stance, right foot fwd, facing north. Both arms come sweeping back down and out to low diagonal positions. Blade tip pointing almost forward. Do not overextend arms back. DO NOT BEND AT THE WRIST.

Draw rt knee up and across your body to block. Pull dao hilt to left cheek (make sure head is guarded), point forward, blade outward, and brace base of hilt with left flat palm. Stab forward on a slightly upward trajectory almost to extention, as you go back into a forward stance rt foot in front. Thrust *as* you put the foot down, and the thrust should be completed as the rear leg straightens.

Draw dao back to brow height horizontally, blade up, point forward to block strike at head. Cross right foot behind left and fall back into scissor stance (no pause here, but make sure that pose fully happens), then one more step into a very deep back stance (rt foot fwd). As you go down, circle the dao left, down, then back up in a backhanded uppercut strike. The strike should be as high as possible, point upward- but the torso remains erect (no bending over).

Then Kiu Two. Working even more on getting the Snake strikes extended, trying to not mix up parts A and B... this is most difficult during the flurry of exchanging Snake strikes in the end sequnce, as both A Snake and B Snake begin with a right Snake strike and then a left one. It syncs up because one of them is two beats behind the other, but it does make it confusing to remember which one you are doing.

The last time we learned a two-person form, we learned all of part A and THEN all of part B. This time we learned a bit of each in every lesson, so that we could better see how they fit together. It was an experiment... I had feared that it might lead me to mixing up the two parts, and that fear was realized. But it did make it easier to understand the applications, so it's not just a bunch of rote choreography. So either method has its good and bad points.

I just couldn't seem to get the rhythm of the part A "flurry" sequence, and finally asked in frustration, "Does it seem like I'm putting an extra curlique in there or something??!?" SK started laughing and said yes, I was trying to insert a more advanced version that I had not been taught yet. The extra circle made sense in an energetic flow pattern- and according to SK, if I was a Snake stylist using this technique in an actual practical application, that's how it would be done. I find it very cool and gratifying when that spontaneously happens! But right NOW, it's frustrating because it's messing me up!!!!!

Note- do NOT bend the knee on the 360-degree spin in either side of the form.

I managed to figure out that in part A, the reason I keep forgetting to tip the hips over and do the kick sideways like I'm supposed to be doing it is that I'm anticipating the next move too much. I have to go in the opposite direction next, so my instinctual brain is thinking, "why waste all that time and energy turning the hips over the the left when you'll immediately have to twist right again??" Figuring out WHY I'm wanting to do a move wrong is a good step towards breaking the habit.

Then we went over the Tiger drills again- but I was staring to lose focus by then, plus I was getting really cold.... so I wasn't doing very well either mentally or physically. SK was able to figure out an application for one of CC's Tiger drill techniques that I couldn't even remember, which made me feel lame- but that's why he's the teacher, huh? (Not to make me feel lame- to be able to see apps for things he hasn't even been taught.)

Notes-

Do not get sloppy with the width of the back and front stances. Make them wide.

the kick in #8 (the elbow and hammer-fist one) is a ball-of-the-foot thrusty kick to the inside of the thigh, not a standard snap kick. Likewise the kick in #7 (the one with the two claws and then the groin slap).

Do not hunch the shoulder in #1 (the one with the scoop-and-claw)

Do not yank SK to the ground by his injured wrist (oopsie).

#3 (the one with the Crane's neck strike)- the circles are going INWARD. You are parrying a high strike and catching a low kick with the SAME HAND. The rearmost one. Then the Crane's neck is the FORWARD hand.

#5 (the one with the reap)- The clotheslining arm is in a hammer fist. The right is in a claw to hold the opponent's arm. Don't let the hip turn out and circle the kick around. It comes straight through.

#7 (the one with the two claws and groin slap)- make sure you grab the armlock ABOVE the opponent's elbow.

#8 (the one with the two elbows and hammer fist)- When you do the headlock, ideally you have the opponent bent over frontways at this point- although it will work if he's bent over backward as well.


(pic- Shawn)

"Now touch your knees to your ankles...."

Thursday lunchtime no-gi at Cindy's.

I am losing patience with my poor sleep patterns and resorted to an antihistimine sleep aid last night. I was still trying to shake off some of the side effects as class began. I told Cindy that I hadn't trained in a week, and she said, "Oh, you're gonna hate me today...." It's never a good sign when you get threats like that to begin a class.

All positional training today. Started with the positional flow drill. I'm getting more comfortable with this, although that pesky arm in the way when I try to go from north-south to scarf still trips me up. I focussed on doing good backsits, since I've fumbled at those.

Then side control- bottom person, try to replace full guard or sweep- top person, don't let them. I was working with Cindy. I felt somewhat okay about my performance on top, but I seem pathetically inept on the bottom.

Then we worked some closed guard and open guard positional training. For some of it, we were only allowed to use our legs, not our hands. Other times, we had to hold some balled-up ace bandages in our hands so that we could use our arms but could not grasp.

I was getting frustrated with the exercise of trying to pass guard while standing, on a seated opponent. I tend to lunge in on them and end up in top half guard- but of course Cindy and Lamont are skilled enough that I ended up in full guard instead. Cindy wants me to run around and around the seated person until I can feint and get both of my legs past hir outside knee on one side. I wasn't doing too well at that, especially on Lamont, whose legs are long enough that I was practically running laps around the dojo and getting really tired and frustrated. If I tried to do this on someone like Carlos, with his long, long, long legs, I'd have to take a bus.

It was good to get back in the gym, though. a week was way too long away.

Came out of class with a really sore right elbow- must have cracked it on something/someone.... and a very sore left index finger (smushed on Lamont's knee while I was trying to pass his open guard). I guess it's good to start getting caught up on having missed a week's worth of injuries!




Later.............




Thursday kung fu. Nemesis wasn't there, which is unusual enough that I was a bit worried- especially as he hadn't texted anyone to say he wasn't showing up. I asked JM to text him during the break and verify that he was alive. Fortunately we got a response by the end of class. He just wasn't feeling well and had decided to skip.

MM was there- it was a surprise! He is in town for a month.

We started with some of the three-minutes-continuous-striking-against-the-pad routine. I had to hold the pad for MM, which was kind of painful. Not as bad as Nemesis! But afterward, my sore elbow was whining. I should've held the pad with the other arm.

I am still feeling awkward with keeping the flow going. Obviously needs more practice.

Some Sil Lum Tao. MM has learned a version from someone at his school back east. He repped with us since it was similar enough- but different enough that I asked him to demo it for us so that we could watch. His version has straight punches instead of sun fists, and there is generally less wrist-twistiness. Also no axe-hand section. Other than that, it looks mostly similar.

Then JM and I went into the lobby and worked on Kiu Two, while SK worked with MM on something else since MM doesn't know the form. JM and I repped section A several times and then section B several times, and by the time SK came out to look, I only had one decent sweep left in me. Then, it was "Your first sweep looked pretty good, but after that..." Yeah, I know. I only have about 5 good ones in me before my knees start hurting too badly to do them correctly.

The same problems persist- I am not extending the Snake strikes enough nor continuing the energy through the series. SK did comment that I wasn't popping up on my toes any more. Good. Another thing- I am still bending over at the waist during the double Snake strike at the end.

Then we did it a few times together. We had to do many reps of the flurry-of-Snake-strikes sequence... it feels pretty different with each different person you try it with, and JM is much shorter in both height and arm length than SK- so it was an adjustment. We agreed at the end that the motions are all there, and all the parries were parrying, but we don't really have a good Snakey flow yet.

Next: chi sau. It's been a while since we've worked on this. I ran into the familiar problem, though- the same one that crops up in chi sau, Dragon, and BJJ. All ideally involve melding with your opponent's energy and using it against hir. I find it difficult to key in to my opponent's energy and still keep sight of the fact that s/he is my OPPONENT. The dropping of psychic barriers does not mesh well with the basic intent of trying to kill each other. Not at the level I'm presently at, anyway. I expect (hope) this mystery will unravel itself at some future point of proficiency/experience.

In this case, I was percieving the spot of energy at the balance point and it was skating playfully around JUST within reach....where I thought, "If I can trance just a tad deeper, I can really latch on to that, and then I'll know everything he's going to do a moment before he does it" but to go a tad deeper, I would have had to let go of the awareness that at any moment, this person may try to clobber me- and also, I was supposed to be mindful of opportunities to clobber HIM. Tantalizing.... frustrating....

After a while I asked SK if we could switch arms- my shoulders and arms get tired VERY swiftly doing these exercises, because I'm so tense. He replied, "Err- no." and held up his plastic-splinted right wrist. Oops. Forgot.

Eventually switched to JM. Whoo boy- if anyone is more tense than me, it's her. As soon as our wrists touched, it felt like she was putting a ton of pressure to the outside. It seemed like I should be able to duck under/over it and hit her very easily, but it wasn't working as well as I expected. So I consciously began to push AGAINST her a bit, towards the inside... thinking that would make her push back even harder and *then* I'd be able to pop out and around. I figured our general knee-jerk competitiveness against each other might work for me in this case... ((grin)) That worked a little at first, but she caught on to my game pretty quick- she is no dummy. So I switched my focus back to trying to track the little shiny energy spot, even though that meant zoning out enough to let her whump me in the belly several times.

Individual forms practice. I did some Five Animals In the Mirror, which I was happy to see was almost as comfortable as the original version. Then some Little Red Dragon In the Mirror and Leopard Three In the Mirror, which were not quite so smooth. I worked on the kinks a little in both. Then a little Bung Bo Kuen In the Mirror, which is still in mid working stages. I've got in transcribed to about the middle, and there are still a few kinks in that part. The last part of the form is going to be the worst to work out the mirror version.

On the way home, SK and I were talking about language barriers between teachers and students. I was telling him the funny story about the time Professor Carlos couldn't come up with an acceptable verbal substitute for the term "ass", and he told me about the time when his Bagua teacher instructed him to "touch your knees to your ankles". Ha ha! I wonder how many years you have to train bagua before you gain the ability to touch your knees to your ankles. That's quite an impressive trick.

(pic- Nick, Fred, Pat, Lindsey, and Jeff, the first five people from bottom left up to the bald guy (Jeff)... I don't know who the three in the back are.)

Obsessively transcribing forms, since I can't go to the gym

Kiu Two. I also transcribed the pieces I know of the Snake Dao form, but I believe I'm missing a chunk. Running through it micro-fu style at work with a pencil just doesn't cut it.... but I'm hoping it'll come back as soon as I get an actual dao in my hand. Need to do that before Friday, because I want to work on that with SK- along with reviewing Kiu Two, which is why I'm also looking over my notes from our last Kiu Two clinic (so I won't be making the same dumb mistakes). I should come up with at least one more thing to work on with him, and it can't be Frolic, 'cause he doesn't know that form. Tiger Versus Crane would be good, since he had mentioned that as one of the things the class will be revisiting next quarter. I actually have CM's notes on Tiger Versus Crane- will have to look them over and see if they are intelligible or if I'll need to translate them into Kitsune-speak.



+Kiu Two

Snake A:

Begin standing stright, hands in chamber.

Left straight punch chest level.

Drop into back stance, right foot fwd. Left hand into Snake fist, draw back along your left cheek and then stab forward at bladder level as your weight shifts to right foot (fwd stance).

Cross left foot in front of right into scissor stance, left hand palm out warding left temple (firm right angle at elbow), right arm wraps inward at chest and ends palm-in at shoulder level (bent elbow). Your torso is now facing east.

Step rt foot back and then left foot back into a cat stance (rt toe fwd) facing south. Rt Snake hand circles out, left at chest level, down to left hip, then back up. Left Snake hand rises up under it to a standard double Snake guard (rt Snake on top)

Tip weight onto rt toe just long enough to do a little hop fwd and land on left foot. Gently hook opponent's forearm with rt Snake, flexing outward at wrist.

Snappy thrust kick with heel at opponent's rear knee. Immediately set right foot down beside your left foot, in a T stance with your toe turned outward.

Bring left foot up in a powerful diagonal kick across your body, ankle flexed to catch and pull along the opponent's leg. Continue the crescent kick as you turn 360 to the right. End in a cat stance (r toe fwd) and standard double Snake guard, right Snake on top.

Sweep with left leg. Continue 360.

"Unscrew" up into a front stance (rt foot in front). Double Crane necks upward to brow level to block opponent's strike.

Both hands curve down and out to block, and end palm-heels outward at hips.

Right Snake strike crossbody to throat area, left Snake strike crossbody to hip area. Be sure the Snake not in use is still up in guard.

Hop back slightly into a cat stance, rt toe in front. Rt pak sau at waist level.

Bring rt foot back into a cat stance (left toe fwd), bring right fisted hand to right hip and left palm to cover it in standard Snake salute.

Continued standard Snake salute: Step forward again with right foot to straight stand, both hands above head, right one fisted. Circle them back down to chamber. Tow medium out-and-up-to-in circles to press at belt level palm down.


Snake B:

Begin standing straight, arms loose at sides.

Left foot step into fwd stance, standard double Snake guard (left on top) circles up and blocks/strikes neck level.

Little hop as right knee comes up and across to block belly. Set down in a high horse facing west. Double Snake guard (now the right is on top). As youset foot down, Rt Snake strikes and left guards armpit.

Left foot steps behind right into a wide scissor stance. Left hand palm out warding left temple (firm right angle at elbow), right elbow to ceiling, hand down, palm to rear (another firm right angle at elbow).

Step back and turn south into a cat stance (rt toe fwd). Rt Snake hand circles out, left at chest level, down to left hip, then back up. Left Snake hand rises up under it to a standard double Snake guard (rt Snake on top)

As opponent kicks at your knee, You draw right knee up and then do a quick snappy thrust kick to HIR knee. Let the leg rebound immediately. Do not set the foot down.

Opponent's leg will catch your ankle and spin you 360 degrees to your left. Let it continue into a left out-to-in crescent kick. End in a cat stance, left toe fwd. Let the Snake hands circle around and end in a standard double Snake guard, left Snake on top.

Hop back onto left foot to avoid the sweep. Right knee pulls up and around to guard belly.

Step rt foot forward into a very DEEP lunge. Do not set knee on the ground and do not lift the left heel up. Circle elbows horizontally outside-to-inside and then straight through to a double Snake strike to bladder. Do not duck head nor bend torso too much.

Hop back upright onto left foot, right knee coming up and around to block opponent's thrust to bladder.

Drop back down into forward stance (rt foot forward). Rt Snake strike throat, left Snake strike cross-body to waist level, then rt Snake catches strike at rt shoulder, circles back and then thrusts forward at solar plex level and turns at the last moment into a slight bong sau (palm right). Left Snake is in low guard beneath it.

Left axe-hand little-finger-side palm heel bridges hard crossways across your rt forearm and Snake-strikes for opponent's opposite hip.

Right palm curves across body to press block to left hip. Left hand chambers.

Right Snake chambers, left Snake strike crossbody to opponent's opposite hip area.

Bring rt foot back into a cat stance (left toe fwd), bring right fisted hand to right hip and left palm to cover it in standard Snake salute.

Continued standard Snake salute: Step forward again with right foot to straight stand, both hands above head, right one fisted. Circle them back down to chamber. Tow medium out-and-up-to-in circles to press at belt level palm down.

I miss the mat

Last Thursday evening till this coming Thursday morning. Halfway through a long, MA-less week stretching like a bleak section of the Sahara. My body feels so weird without its fix.

I've got two classes planned for Thursday and THREE for Friday, though!



+Frolic of the Five Animals:

Start standing straight

Step fwd (left foot first), both arms circle out-to-in and press palm down at chest level. Fingertip to fingertip.

Hop back into cat stance (left foot in front), both arms BIG circles in-to-out (crossing in front) to end in White Crane guard with Crane's beak hands

Left HIGH snap kick with heel to the chin. (alternative- you can use the ball of the foot if you must- but try to accomplish the heel.)

Step fwd (left foot first), both arms BIG circle in-to-out, meet in front at head level, double Crane's beaks with wrists inward.

Rt hand stays here but turns to a fist with thumb up. Left arm, big down-to-up circle to land with palm flat atop fist

Bring hands (in same formation) to rt hip. Left foot, low thrust kick with the outside of the foot. Rechamber.

Slide left foot from your right foot along the ground outward to the left till you are in a very low bow and arrow (left leg straight).

Shift weight to left foot as you do a rising block over head with left arm and bring right fist straight across horizontally. Step through with right foot and turn 180. You are now facing south in a very low horse with left hand chambered and Right fisted arm horizontal.

Keeping the same stance, double Tiger claw fornt punch straight out at chest level.

Bring both hands straight down to hips in double Crane's beaks to the rear
Double inside-out Tiger claw circle blocks, then another double Tiger claw front punch staright out at chest level.

Chamber left hand, shift into bow and arrow (left leg straight), right hand does a Crane's beak strike with the back of the wrist, diagonally up.
Twist 180 degrees to face north again, in low horse with back bent over, left fist straight out to the left as groin strike

Skip to the left, ending in a linear bow and arrow stance with left leg straight. Left hand circles out, up, then down to ground (face plant)

Turn left, step the right foot up to meet the left and stand up straight.

Left hand out front chest level with palm down. Right arm swing up underneath to strike the palm with the right Crane's beak, back of the wrist.

Flying snap kick with ball of right foot (prep with the left). End in a forward stance with rt foot in front. Double blade-handed guard, palms facing each other inward, right hand in front, left hand at right elbow.

Turn 180 into a seven stars stance with left foot forward, do a little skip and end in same stance. Parry at forehead with back of left wrist, hook at eye level with right Mantis hand, then push left blade hand forward at face level, little finger side frontward. (keep the elbow up on that hooking Mantis arm) Repeat parry, hook and skip two more times.

Left snap kick.

Turn 180 to the right, leading with a right elbow strike. Reach up with both hands (right on top) and grab the opponent's arm. Yank it down and do a right knee strike at the same time.

Step down with right foot, Right flat-palmed big circular Dragon block up and to the outside.

Left foot step with left flat-palmed big circular Dragon block up and to the INSIDE. (They are going in the same direction). As you do this circle, turn 180 to your right and sink into a very low cat stance with the left foot fwd. At the same time, left hand comes up from left hip and right hand does a big clawing circle up-and-in . Your Tiger claw hands end palm-heels together, right on top, at solar plex level.

Hands trade orientations in a twist-lock motion. Now left hand goes to left hip with Crane's beak palm up and pointing outward from the hip.
Right hand does a big clawing circle up-and-in and ends in a Tiger claw (palm out) at right temple.

Left large circular Dragon parry up-and-out as you move more upright and shift weight to left foot. Right large circular Dragon parry up-and-in (they are going the same direction) as you step with right foot and TWIST 360 to the left. End with a left back-of-the-forearm parry across the face (then chamber it) and a right knife-hand strike forward. You are in a bow-and-arrow stance with the left foot forward.

Right snap kick, slapping shin with left hand.

Twist violently 180 to the right, landing in a high horse, bringing the left elbow around in a looping curve to slap into the right hand.

Double backfists waist level

Bring right arm looping across and over to do a "wipe-off" style wrist release on the left wrist. CONTINUE THIS ENERGY LOOP into a flying 360 degree crescent kick turning to the left. Land in a bow-and-arrow stance with the left foot forward, torso twisted so that the left shoulder is toward the ground. Both fisted arms are just above the head, punching to the front.

Step back with left foot into scissor stance.

Snap kick with heel of rt foot and straight punch left hand.

Step down with rt foot and turn 180 to the left. Bring both hands curving down and out across body in "smoothing the skirt" motion. Snap kick left foot.

Circle both hands around each other at chest level. like a Tiger rolling block, only with blade hands (palms down). At the same time, do a little skip forward and end in a seven starts stance, left foot forward. The right hand is doing a press block at waist level, left hand at chest, palm inward.

Bring left foot forward and through to sink into a very deep back stance with left foot forward. Bring left hammer fist around in a big curve as you go- left, up, down, and up into a groin strike as you sink into the stance.

Stand up, cover head with left arm and bring to chamber, straight punch right hand.

Inside-to-outside crescent kick rt leg, slapping shin with rt hand, as you turn 180 to the right, ending in a front stance with rt foot forward. Cover head with rt arm and return to chamber. Straight punch left hand.

Step forward with left foot into a cat stance, left toe fwd. Reach up with both hands palm in at brow level as if grasping an energy ball.

Shift weight to left toe just long enough to hop backward into another cat stance (a low one) with left foot forward. At the same time, bring the energy ball down and "break" it on your left knee.

End in low cat, left toe fwd, blade-hand guard at chest level, left hand in front.

(pic- Pat, the Great Panda)

Tiger dills

Kung fu was cancelled today. For some reason, the staff left early and we were locked out of the dojo.

It was slow last night at work, so I spent way too much company time reconstructing MA notes.



TIGER DRILLS:

***Beginning in front stance:
----------------------------
+Tiger 1 (scoop and claw)

Begin in front stance, left foot forward, left Tiger claw straight forward and right claw guarding groin.

Lean slightly forward and press right palm to inside of left knee to block groin kick. Make sure thumb is tucked and fingers point down.

(You may then circle that right arm up to your shoulder if you can catch the foot with it. Make sure the hand gets all the way up to the shoulder.)

(You may also strike forward (Tiger front punch to face) and rake down with the left claws.)

-------------------------------------------------
+Tiger 2 (with wrapping choke)

Begin in fwd stance with left foot fwd. Left Tiger claws straight fwd, Rt claws guarding groin

Cross rt foot behind left in *wide* scissor stance. Grab opponent's striking arm with right claws. Crook left elbow around hir neck.

Unwind and either hip throw the opponent or thrust hir forcefully to the ground using both arms. Now you are in a forward stance facing north again with the right foot forward.

Left left arm circle in front of you and chamber at left hip, palm up. Right arm makes a small inward circle and strikes stright down with Tiger claws upon fallen opponent.

------------------------------------------------------------
+Tiger 3 (low Crane’s neck strike)

Begin in Rt front stance, Rt Tiger claw straight forward, left Tiger claw guarding groin

Left claw circles outward, eyes to waist

Step back with Rt foot into left front stance; at the same time, right claw circles outward

Repeat 3 steps

Step back with Rt foot to face east in horse stance. Left circling claw changes to a Crane's beak at apex and strikes downward at groin level.

Turn north again into left front stance, strike fwd with left Tiger claw. Chamber left.

Switch arms to do the next rep.

---------------------------------------------------
+Tiger 4 (back kick)

Begin in left front stance, left Tiger claw straight forward, right Tiger claw guarding groin

Shift into back stance (left foot still fwd). Rt claw circles out, up and around to guard forehead. Lft claw circles in, down and around to guard groin. You are still looking north orver left shoulder.

Turn 180, looking north over rt shoulder. Left claw circles around and in to guard face (palm against left cheek). Right claw circles around to gaud groin. Rt foot back kick. Toe down.

Continue circle back around to face north. Continue both arm circles so that you are now in a rt front stance with rt Tiger claw out front and left guarding groin. Truncate the right arm circle and have it coming straight through horizontally if you want a fwd Tiger claw strike instead of an arcing-down rake. A horizontal rake is also valid.

------------------
***Beginning in cat stance
--------------------------------
+Tiger 5 (reap)

Start in cat stance, left foot fwd. Left Tiger claws beside jaw, right claws guarding groin palm out and fingers down.

Turn to the right, straighten left arm and sweep it backward to clothesline the throat

At the same time, kick left leg forward to reap. Straight leg, diagonal kick.

(alternate version, Craig's intro: use the left claws to grab incoming striking hand and push it downward, turn to the LEFT and do the reap that way.)


***Beginning in straight standup.
-----------------------
+Tiger 6 (against armored spearman)
Hong Tiger drill:

Step fwd in front rt lunge.

At the same time, block spear at left with tiger forearm block.

Make sure the block circles over your face first.

Simultaneously, spear hand strike palm down to throat.

Follow with palm-heel to chin (not much drawback)

Hook double eagle claws into eyes, pull back to left side in big circle. Throw down.

Smaller circle, two tiger claws straight down from shoulders into fallen enemy. (still in front lunge- back leg straight)

-------------------------------
****Beginning in back stance:
--------------------------------
+Tiger 7 (two claws and groin slap)

Begin in back stance, left foot in front. Left Tiger claws straight forward, Rt claw guards groin.

(Alternate beginning- you can begin in cat stance, rt foot fwd, rt Tiger claw at jaw (this claw is not *quite* facing the opponent), left Tiger claw guarding groin palm out and fingers downward.

Bring both claws up and circle to the right at eye level, catching and parrying a strike. Hold that arm there with rt claw.

(alternative-left hand Black Crane parry and then catch the striking limb with right claws)

Shift into high horse. With left claw, rake to the left face level, then downward face level.

Palm-heel (fingers down) to groin.

Right snap kick to groin
Turn to south while wrapping left arm over top of the opponent's captured arm.

Pull left arm towards your own throat, palm in, and pull opponent's arm down with your right hand. Make sure you have the lock ABOVE hir elbow and that you are standing right up against hir. Arch shoulders back to armbar.

(Alternate ending after groin kick: step back into a back stance with rt foot fwrd, right Tiger claw forward, left guarding groin.)

---------------------------------------------
+Tiger 8 (2 elbows and hammer fist)

Begin in back stance, rt foot fwd. Rt Tiger claw fwd, left Tiger claw guarding groin.

Step fwd with left foot & turn east into high horse. Horizontal rake face level with left claws. Chamber rt.

Left elbow strike to head level. Rechamber. Left hammer fist to same target. Rechamber.

Left arm circles to left & down to chamber- capturing head in headlock. At the same time, Turn body forward and sink into cat stance with left foot fwd.

Snap kick left foot.

Step back facing west into back stance with rt foot forward. Right Tiger claw fwd, left claw guarding groin.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
+Tiger 9 (drop and side kick)

Begin in back stance, left foot forward. Left Tiger claws forward, right claws guarding groin.

As opponent kicks at your forward leg, let it collapse as you turn right to south and kneel with left knee on ground.

(alternative- you may choose to drop onto your right thigh instead of kneeling)

You are now looking at the opponent over your right shoulder.

Side kick with your right foot. Little-toe side of foot facing up. Bring leg stright through, no curve.

Turn north again and kneel with your right knee up and one Tiger claw at jaw level, the other guarding groin with palm out and fingers down.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

***Beginning in horse:
---------------------------------
+Tiger 10 (circular wrist release)

Begin in horse, arms down at sides and slightly out. Tiger claws facing ground.

Use rt arm to do a "wipe off" wrist release on left wrist. Left arm does
two complete back-to-front circles at the shoulder.

Kneel on RIGHT knee. Both claws complete circle #3 and strike down at waist level.

Hands on ground. Low back kick with left foot, then rechanber and high side kick.

Rechamber and do a low BACK sweep 180 degrees. Body turns all the way to south.

End on both knees facing south, double Tiger claw strike down waist level.

(pic- Dex and Dave)