In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch, be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Thank you Grampa.

these are the rattlings in my head.

Dusty

Bully proof

November is bullyproofing month at Sidekicks.
What are you doing to prevent bullying? Watching on the sidelines, or trying to put a stop to it...Take a stand, dont be a spectator...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWJut7KQhI4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j6YA03hm4k

Stuffed

So now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, i can tell you one thing for sure...i got more stuffed than the turkey!! Turkey and all its trimmings is one of my favorite meals, so at Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter and any other turkey eatin holidays, i eat and eat and eat...pretty sure i put on about 10 lbs in one weekend. :)
However, my ramblings today have nothing to do with turkey, they are more about giving thanks. Each Thanksgiving gives me the time to reflect on just how lucky i am. Every year for thanksgiving we go up to my wife's parents cottage for three or four days and get a chance for a Little down time. The stretch from labour day to Thanksgiving is our busiest time of year and we go non stop during those 5 or 6 weeks. Spend the weekend with our family, some good quality time together and not really think about work. It gives me the chance to reflect on what i am thankful for. I have a wonderful family, loving wife, great staff, awesome friends, i get paid to do what i love, so i am very thankful. I will never take for granted what i have because i know it can all be taken away in the blink of an eye.We spend one weekend a year giving thanks for what we have. Maybe we should be giving thanks on a daily basis? What are you thankful for?

just the ramblings in my head...

Dusty

words of wisdom

Grandmaster Timmerman sent out an email the other day. i asked him if i could repost it. Being at the age he is, being in the martial arts for as long as he has been, he calls it as he sees it. i liked this email, so i asked him if i could repost it. He will be at our school this weekend to put on a seminar.

"I am contacting you all today to share with you some of my personal thoughts about martial arts and what a black belt means to me. With so many new black belts on deck since our Gathering of Grand Masters event, tests, and promotion ceremony, it is as good a time as any to touch on this subject. Perhaps I am wrong, or perhaps I am simply an idealist; but, to me having a black belt around your waist should have more meaning than a simple tool to keep your Dobok tied up or your pants from falling down. To me, having earned a black belt should have much more meaning than that, and I hope it does to you as well. Perhaps you spent most of your time in martial arts in another association or school, and thing were different where you were raised. So, this message is for higher ranking NKMAA members as well.

For many, HONOR is a word that is not quite understood, and honor should be something that is synonymous with a black belt. If it is not, you have missed some of the most important martial art lessons that were (or should have been) given. Simple thing like respecting your parents, elders, the property of others, and the law of the land should now come natural to you, and if it is not yet... strive to MAKE it important to you. In the old days it came natural to respect elders, and we were glad to give up our seat to a lady or to someone older. We would gladly open the door for others, and it made us feel good to see a smile on the face of someone we just treated with such a simple but kind gesture.

Giving your word or making a promise did not require a contract drawn up by someone else... it was sufficient to shake on it, and we could TRUST you to keep it. It was a natural thing for us to check on family or our neighbours to see if they required some help, and we did not have our hand out to accept payment for a kind gesture. It was sufficient to KNOW your neighbour would some day be there for you. Kids did not expect to get paid for doing chores, and they did not whine whenever they had to pitch in. None of us EVER expected the government to bail us out whenever we screwed up, and we most certainly did not expect them to bail out corporations with OUR money. The fact is that CEOs making bad decisions should expect to get FIRED instead of collecting shameful performance bonuses of millions.

How did it ever come to this? Well, it came to this the moment we allowed ourselves to accept money for every little thing we did or did NOT do. Welfare became an acceptable way of earning a living. The government gave us money for having kids we could not afford to have, and our kids threatened us they would leave home or sue us whenever we handed out discipline. In fact, some government agency probably gives them money to offset how badly parents treat their kids. We ALLOWED government agencies to tell us what we could and could not do in terms of dealing with our kids, and our kids soon learned how to "get away" with things they KNEW were wrong.

It is my sincere hope that somewhere along the way of earning a black belt, YOU learned a bit about being a good citizen, friend, neighbour, and family member. I most certainly hope that you have learned that respect is a very valuable thing to give or to get, and I truly like to believe that your word is something we all can count on. If not, perhaps this is a good time to start. To be sure, we can't change the world overnight; BUT, we CAN make sure that we are there whenever family or friends need us. We CAN make sure that when we make a promise, we will follow up whatever stands in the way. IF we do our little part as black belts, it won't be long before people will once again see that black belts ARE special. Gone will be the day when a black belt can be bought or be given to those who have not earned the right to wear it.

In NKMAA, a black belt's WORD should be his or her bond, and a promise is as good as gold. As an NKMAA black belt you WILL see how you can be the best you can be at home, at school, at work, or in our Dojangs. We never browbeat people into doing things they are unable to do; however, we DO expect our Black Belts and their students to TRY hard to support NKMAA events. If you do NOT do your best to support an event YOUR association or "extended NKMAA family" members put on, how much do you think they will support you in your hour of need? Remember what I said about your neighbour being there for you if you helped him... the same holds true for your NKMAA extended family. We are like brothers, and we do our best to be there. Surely we will NEVER give empty promises, as YOUR black belt is nothing more than what YOU make of it."

the ramblings in my Masters head...:)

Dusty

Use the force!!!

I have been teaching the martial arts in one form or another now for over 23 years.
i have seen a lot and dealt with every different scenario possible. Over the years, there has always been one particular "mind set" or phrase that has irked me. it happened again and now i want to rant!!
I could never force my child to >>>insert whatever here<<<<.
I have never understood that. Here is where this comes from.
Over the years i have watched many students quit the martial arts. and i am fine with that. Martial arts is not for everyone. some people quit at white belt, some at yellow, some at blue...and i am ok with that. Its when they quit at black stripe. There are 6 names that pop into my head over the years that have quit at this level. and every parent has given me the exact same response...i dont want to force them...
im sorry, but sometimes, we need to force children to do things. That is called parenting. Children are children and dont always make smart decisions...that is why they are children and it is our job to guide them...When a child is at black stripe, there are a lot of different thoughts going through their head...self doubt, scared, cant do it...every person that is on our black belt wall of fame wanted to quit. i am pretty sure i had the dont quit stay focused talk with every one that is up there. It is natural for a child to want to quit when the going gets tough. what i dont think is right is when the parent lets them. not this close to a huge accomplishemt. To me, it is like running the Boston Marathon and quitting 100 feet from the finish line. Your goal is in sight, you can see it, you can taste it, but you quit anyways...
to get to black stripe, it takes a minimum of 4 years of training, a lot of blood, sweat and tears, and thousands of dollars. It is not an easy road, but the rewards are well worth it. Part of the reward is the overcoming of the challenge to get there.
When a parent allows a child to quit something because it is tough, boring, too easy, whatever reason a self doubting child will give, they are setting a scary precedent. Relationship is not working out? get a divorce? School is tough? quit. Dont like the mundane tasks of my job? quit...children do what they know and the adult they become is based on their experiences as a child.
i know what i am using as an example is extreme, but to me, there isnt much difference. Getting a black belt is a huuuge accomplishment.
and for me, its not about the money, as someone so politely tried to point out to me once...i have put a lot of work into the student and developed a relationship with them. i look at a lot of the children at Sidekicks as my children...and then feel very helpless when that person wants to quit, because i know that at the end of the day, i wont get any say in it.
If your child was to say i dont want to brush my teeth anymore...or eat my broccoli, or go to school or whatever, think about how you react...and then maybe next time you can use the force...
Am i off base? maybe some parents can chime in and let me know their thoughts...

Just the ramblings in my head...

All done pt 2!!

We took a quick break, long enough to refuel and change our clothes, then we went into techniques. Every kick and hand strike in our curriculum, done on both sides of the body, 10 times each. Then came weapons. All weapons patterns done two times. I had a few little memory hiccups, got stuck in an akward position while doing a back roll, but felt good otherwise.
Then came board breaking. I did a 4 board back kick, 3 level, 3 board spinning hook kick, jumping front split kick on two boards and one board jumping double front kick. Everything felt great! Then i got a little cocky and tried a 3 board punch. That one didnt go.
We broke for lunch. The local restaurant up the road catered it. I stuck with my trail mix and carb gellies.
We resumed again two hours later at the Hall. We did a quick warm up before going in to patterns. We were split into two groups. Hard style patterns in one rom (tkd, Tang Soo Do, etc) and soft style forms in the other room (hapkido).
I started at white belt with about 10 other people. I got to about brown belt in hapkido (around 10 patterns, each done in two different directions)before Grandmaster grabbed me and had me switch over to TKD forms in the other room. i did the 13 from 1st degree black belt to 6th degree with only one little problem. One pattern in particular, Moon Moo, gave me some problems. Needed 4 restarts to nail the stoopid thing!
then back to the other room for Ho Shin Sool techniques (self defense) Started at white belt again and went all the way up to 3rd degree black belt. Around 300 techniques in total. Then we were done.We started at 6am, finished around 4pm. Lond day. Felt great about my test. We went out and had a celebration dinner. Mr. Young tested along side me the whole time. He did awesome too!!
Saturday was reserved for the Grandmaster seminars. Everyone that came up to watch our test took part in the seminars. Grandmasters from all over the world. Myself and Mr. Young spent the day in the hotel hot tub rfesting our sore muscles. Saturday night was the belt presentation. I was presented my 6th degree black belt in Taekwon Do, my 3rd degree black belt in Kong Shin Bup Hapkido and my grappling instructors certificate. Mr. Young was presented with his 4th degree black belt in Tkd and his instructors grappling certificate. We were presented in front of a large panel of Grandmasters. There was Grandmaster Michael DeAlba, a 9th degree bb from Southern California, Grandmaster Ken McKenzie, a 9th degree from New Jersey, Grandmaster Rudy Timmerman, Grandmaster Geoff Booth, an 8th degree bb from australia, Grandmaster Jimm McMurray, an 8th degree from Texas, Grandmaster Serge Baubil, a 9th degree bb from Quebec and Chiefmaster Marlin Sims, a 7th degree bb from Geirgia, as well as a room full of Masters and Chief Masters. It was witnessed by many students from Sidekicks who made the journey up to watch.
One last big thing, the whole point of this weekend was to celebrate my instrcutors 70th birthday, 60 year in the martial arts and to put on a huge gathering of martial art talent. Grandmaster Rudy Timmerman also passed down the art of Kong Shin Bup hapkido to my good friend Chief Master Kevin Janisse, an amazing martial artist and someone who lives and breathes what we preach. It was an honour to be a part of it. The table of grandmasters pledged to support Chief Master Janisse and fully support this handing down. This doesnt mean that Gm Timmerman is quitting, it just means that he is preparing CM Janisse for when he finally moves on from the art, either by choice or by his passing.
It was a whirlwind of a weekend! I want to thank everyone that came up to partake and support my Grandmaster, a huge thank you to my wonderful wife for allowing me to disappear for days at a time to train, my partners Cam Hux and Graham Abell, as they allowed me to put a hurt on them numerous times over the past little while, and of course Mr. Young for taking this journey with me. We have been at this a long time my friend...and it aint over yet!!
if there is anyone i missed, thank you...you were all au huge help and your support means everything to me.
pics to follow on facebook.

these are the ramblings in my very sore and tired head...

All done!! Pt 1

Well, its been many years in the making. And now it is done. Myself and Mr. Young got our promotions. We worked our butts off and were put through the ringer. I am now a 6th degree black belt in Taekwon do, known as senior master and a 3rd degree black belt in kong shin bup hapkido. Mr. Young is now a 4th degree black belt in Taekwon Do, known as an assistant master.
Here is a rundown of how the weekend and the test went. Photos will be posted on our facebook page once i have gone through them.
I arrived Wednesday evening and got checked into my hotel. I tracked down Grandmaster Timmerman at his house as i had nothing better to do and wanted some company. Master Geoff Booth from Australia had just arrived at his house as well, so we hung out and then went back in to town for dinner. As we got situated for dinner, Master Ott (the keynote speaker) from Washington state joined us, along with his assistants, and we also had Master Zach Woon, his wife Claire and a few from their group from the United Kingdom join us. Master Troy Trudeau from Tennessee sat with us as well. We all had fun catching up and discussing the events to come.
Thursday for most of the day, i spent it in my hotel room, running through material and resting. i was to head down and sit on the masters panel for the grading Thursday night. This was the 'easier" of the two testings. I was to bring Master Booth with me as he was going to sit in as well. As i went to his room to pick him up, he informed me that Grandmaster Ken McKenzie of New Jersey (The heir apparent for Sin Moo hapkido) had arrived and was going to follow my truck as he didnt know where to go.

After a quick detour by another hotel to pick up another Master from California, we arrived at GM Timmerman's school. The temperature in the school was already into the 30's and he doesnt have a/c. There were so many high ranking masters and grandmasters there already, that i got bumped off the testing panel. As i 5th degree black belt, i got bumped, that should tell you the level of how many people were there. The test started, and as i watched, Mr. Young, Cam Hux and Graham Abell (my uke's for my test) arrived. We watched for a bit as roughly 20 stuydents went through their paces in the "easier" test. I put easier in hyphens because it was not easier. By the time we had left, the temps was in the mid 40's and numerous people had passed out already. It was insanely hot! They definitely had it tougher.
The way GM Timmerman does his ranking, if you test in the easier test, you get the ranking of Kuk Sool Won, or Kuk Sool hapkido. If you successfully test on the tougher test, you get the ranking of Kong Shin Bup hapkido, which is known worldwide as a really tough style of hapkido to achieve.
I met up with our group and had dinner and then went to bed early to stare at the ceiling for 5 hours. I slept for about 2 hours, before waking up at 3am, waiting for the alarm to go off at 4:45. It finally went off, and we all assembled at the lake for 6am. The sun wasnt even up yet, but there was about 50 people assembled and ready to go in.
At 6am on the dot, we trudged out to chest deep water and did all sort of kicking techniques for 30 minutes. It was tough work, but fun. Every other time we had to go in the water for our test, it has been November and frozen!! This time the water was much warmer.
We then were led by Rick Tischer, a former boot camp instructor up the road for a 5km run. We ran in a double line formation singing a cadence. It was a blast. He came up with some awesome songs. Did you know that his gramma is 93 and does push ups just like me? :)
We arrived back at GM Timmermans property and started into the obstacle course. The first thing was the wall. Master Kevin Janisse went up first. He is about 130 pounds and made of muscle. He pulled me up the 15 foot wall, and then the two of us together then proceeded to help and pull over 30 people over the wall. my arms were cooked!!
Then came the peg board. This is everyone nightmare from high school gym. I got about 2 pegs up before my arms gave out. Pulling up so many people took any strength i had left. I then had to climb a 20 foot rope and touch the top. Once again, no strength left, so i used a bit of the boards in the wall to climb.
We then had to walk the log for balance, fall off mor ethan three times and you fail. talk about pressure!!
Walk the high wire, leap frog through tires, carry a log around on your shoulders in a group, do sit ups with the log, roll a telephone pole around in a push up position and then run the trail, which is about a km there and back.
End of pt 1

The time is now!!

My test is here!!
It is time to put up what i've got...time to leave it all out on the floor. i preach about giving your all and then some, giving it 110%, well, now its time to put up or shut up. I have been training for this very moment for over 32 years...32 years, 8 weeks and a couple of days to be exact...
I plan on coming back one rank higher, making my students proud, the way they always make me proud...
See you on the other side...a little bit sore (ok a lot), alway more humbled...and one day closer to where ever this path is taking me...

These are the ramblings in my head...
Dusty

Kong Shin Bup

Kong Shin Bup is the style of hapkido that we teach at Sidekicks.What it translates to in english is basically the empty cup principle. What that means in hapkido is more 'the empty mind' principle. now we can all joke about how we in hapkido have empy heads, and its kind of true...but what i like is the empty mind principle. what that means to us is to empty our mind before dealing with an attacker. It helps us to stay focused on the task at hand and only have one single thought in our head.
now how can we apply that thinking to normal life?
what we can do is to clear our thoughts of misconceptions...dont prejudge something or someone...have an open attitude towards life...little adjustments in our sub concious can make a whole world of difference...how often have you started to say something and then someone will cut you off half way through the sentence saying, no that wont work...they dont have an open mind attitude...open up your mid and be amazed at how much easier life will seem.

These are the ramblings in my head.

Dusty

Why?

If someone sets you back, do you push forward, or stay where they put you? Those of us that push forward, rise above the pack. Jimmy Banks is a good example of that. He tested for black belt back at the beginning of June. He had a few things that i was not totally happy with and told him and his parents that i was not fully comfortable promoting him to black belt. He could have quit then and there. But he didnt. He made the effort to improve on what i had said needed to be improved. and has now asked to finish off his test this Saturday. So Jimmy, i am now impressed. The test was not the run, or whatever else was asked of you. The test was a test of will and determination. and regardless of what you show me on Saturday, you have now passed and i am impressed.
So my question to you is,
do you quit or push forward?

These are the ramblings in my head.
Dusty

heat wave!!!

I dont know about you, but i am loving this weather right now...there is nothing better than walking out your door and feeling the sweat bead up under your clothes instantly. i think i am averaging 4 showers a day right now!!!
Each night, around 10 or 11, i like to go for a 5km run. With this kind of weather, it is still around 25 to 27 degrees at that time. I am soaked when i am done, but man do i feel like i accomplished something.
on the other hand, when i sleep, it needs to be deathly cold! air conditioning cranked to the max. i am the person who in the dead of winter, will sleep on top of the covers with the window wide open.
i remember last year going to Las Vegas for a martial arts convention and sharing a room with poor Mr. Young. We are polar opposites when it comes to sleeping comfort.
The hotels in Vegas have air conditioning down to an art form. It gets so hot out there, that they like for you to think it is somewhere in the arctic. when you sleep in a hotel room there, you can see your breath. I remember putting the ac as low as it could go and sleeping on top of the covers and looking over at Mr. Young and he was under 12 blankets in his thermal underwear!!
what does this have to do with anything?
Absolutely squat...just the ramblings of someone who has done one too many pushups tonight...:)

I am Canadian

Yesterday was Canada Day. And it was awesome. i love seeing 5000 people all stand and sing our national anthem when its not a baseball game. going to the fireworks at the waterfront last night gave me the chance to see it again.
As a Canadian, there are a lot of different cultures that make up our country. Multi culturism is what makes this country so great. So many different cultures coming together to form an awesome country. I am Canadian. And very proud of it. I was born on the right coast, have lived on the left coast (almost - Alberta!!), and now reside right smack in the middle. I am proud of what this country has to offer and what this country has offered in the past. On the world stage, we are known as peacekeepers, and i like that. My heart swells with pride when i hear that. My country is known worldwide as a country that helps to keep the peace. Our neighbours to the south of us are a fiercely proud country. Their national pride is tough to beat. With July 4th coming up this weekend, i also want to say i am proud to be a North american.
Happy Canada Day and Happy fourth of July.
What makes you proud to be Canadian? Or North American? Or American (for my southern friends)?

Reading

Every week i try my best to read at least one book that will improve my business or self, and one book that will let my mind go to mush...:)
i find myself coming back again and again to a book i read last summer. It was written by Malcolm Gladwell, called "Outliers"
He also wrote another more well known book called 'the tipping point' which i have also read.
What brings me back to outliers is a portion in the book referencing schools in north america and schools in the orient. The comparison between the two was mind blowing. Basically, the children in the orient (Japan and Korea to be exact) spend a lot more time in school, studying and practising, then their North american counterparts do. And because of that, the stats show that the oriental schooling fairs way better than the North american version.
In the book, the author sampled a school in New York that was experimenting with the same attitudes and procedures that they do over there. A typical day in the school life of one of these children is starting school at 6:30 am (not taking in to consideration the travel time getting there) , they would go to school until around 6pm, be given on average 3 to 4 hours of homework per night. They would also do a half day on Saturdays. They would get two weeks off during the summer, and one week off at Christmas and that was it. Every child that attended this school placed in the 95th percentile for their age group when it came to marks. There was, as you can imagine, a huge waiting list to get into this school as every child that graduated, went on to schools like MIT, Harvard and other very prestigious schools. These are all loose quotes and stats, but the point i am trying to make is that maybe we need to take a look at how things are done in our culture. Our children take 9 weeks off during the summer (check in to the reason why they get this time off, the reason is outdated)two weeks at Christmas and another week for March Break. Many parents i have talked to want this break for their kids, so that they can 'be kids'. I am not saying i agree or disagree with this belief, i just want people to question why, just a little.
The thought behind the book was that it takes houndreds of thousands of hours to perfect something, as well as having the right chances and everything fall into place at the right time. Maybe we should be looking at how we can affect this situation for our children. We only want the best for them, right?
Read the book...its a neat read.

http://www.gladwell.com/outliers/index.html

These are the rattlings in my head,
Dusty

Comfort zone

Since we are having our spring black belt grading this weekend, i thought now would be a good time to discuss what makes us tick.
Do be able to do what we do, you have to have a certain mind set.Going for black belt and beyond is not for everyone. Many people start the martial arts, but only a handful stick through it to black belt.
I think the stats are something like out of every one hundred that start the martial arts, only 1 will get to black belt. and out of that, if you have a hundred black belts, only one will become a master and continue on teaching and passing their knowledge. The math may not add up, but basically it is every good martial arts instructor is one in a million.

A couple of poems from a well known martial arts writer, Karen Eden. The first one puts the black belt thinking into perspective.
The second one explains why we keep going.

"I am a martial artist." I see through different eyes. I see a bigger picture when others see grey skies. Though many can't conceive it, I stand...facing the wind. My bravery, not from fighting, but from my strength within. I am a martial artist. I'll walk the extra mile. Not because I have to, but because it's worth my while. I know that I am different, when I stand on a crowded street. I know the fullness of winning, I've tasted the cup of defeat. I am a martial artist. They say I walk with ease. Though trained for bodily harm, my intentions are for peace. The world may come and go, but a different path I'll choose. A path I will not stray from, no matter, win or lose.
-Karen Eden

and:

Master

The higher I climbed, the more humbled I became.
The more I learned, the more I realized how little I knew.
They call me "Master." What I have truly mastered.
is a deep understanding of what it means to never quit.

-Karen Eden

Good luck to everyone testing this weekend.

These are the ramblings in my head.
Dusty

Challenge

Last week i had the pleasure of attending a conference/workshop on youth at risk - working in the violence and gang culture.
It was a very eye opening experience. there were three key note speakers, each one as good as the next. The first was a gang and violence expert, very analytical and numbers and statistics. The second was raw emotion. Darrell Scott, his daughter was the first person killed at the Columbine high school shooting. the third was very amusing. the speaker had many learning disabilities, adult adhd, etc, but overcame all to become one of the top clinical psychologists in North america.
It was the second speaker, Darrell Scott that really got me. It was a very emotional presentation. He took his daughters tragedy and turned it into a worldwide phenomenon that has now affected and helped hundreds of thousands of kids worldwide.
His daughters name was Rachel. He created a program called Rachel's challenge. The gist of it is Rachel felt that if every person that she came in contact with could do one nice thing for one other person, be kind and compassionate, it would start a chain reaction. She wrote about this just before she was murdered. (rachelschallenge.org)
She wrote herself a code of conduct that she tried to live by and as she was a 17 year old girl, the words that came from her were beyond astounding. It is a shame knowing that they two that killed her were the examples of what she was trying to change.
The presentation from her father was a very raw and emotional talk. A lot of his presentation was done through news reports happening the day of and interviews. It really got to me.
I want to put forth the same challenge to everyone who reads this, whether you are a student or sidekicks member, or just someone who enjoys reading my ramblings.
Look for the good in people. Accept everyone with a smile, no matter what they are like. Be kind. Always. Have compassion and be honest.
If we all try that little bit more, maybe we can change things, prevent tragedies and start a chain reaction of our own.

These are the ramblings in my head.
Dusty

Dumbfounded

My post this week probably wont make me many friends, but i have to vent.
"I could never make my child do something they didnt want to do".
read that sentence and think about how it makes you feel. Have you ever thought it? Said it? done it?
I have heard it about 5 times in the last two weeks. And i am dumbfounded!
Remember, this is just my opinion and thats all, and opinions are like certain body parts...we all have them and sometimes they stink.
Hearing that statement makes my blood boil. i feel that that statement is one of the worst things a parent could ever do. I cant make my child do something they dont want to do. argh!
to fill you in on the last time i heard it, it was from a parent of a student whose membership was ending and the child didnt like the 'discipline' in the class. The mother was not going to renew the membership because her daughter didnt like the fact that when she goofed around, she got in trouble. I explained that it was all part of the program, and just like everything else in life, when you break the rules, there are consequences.
This is all part of our program and that this child needs a little discipline in life and the response i got back was 'my child doesnt like that and i could never force them to do something they dont want to do'.
When did a 5 year old start dictating the rules in life?
This is a realy bad precedent to set. So when your child comes to you and says i dont want to brush my teeth, you cave in? my homework is too hard, i dont want to do it. ok thats fine. things get tough. we quit. things get hard, oh well. and we wonder why as adults, they cant last with anything. Please check out the divorce rate and the average timespan at a job to see what i am talking about.
Our society is an instant gratification society. I believe the 'me' generation is now having kids.
Like i said, probably not a popular post, but i had to get it off my chest.
Just the ramblings in my head,
Dusty

Fitness

One of my requirements for my testing this summer is fitness. Grandmaster Timmerman believes in having everyone push themselves to their limits and beyond when it comes to fitness requirements. If you can do 100 situps, he wants 150, run a mile in 5 minutes, he wants 4.
As i am now 5 months out from my test, i have added a few new workouts to my regimine. One of them is increasing my pushup and burpee capabilities. I hate burpees with a passion, as do most normal people, so because of that hatred, i dont really do them.
I found a neat website that can help you increase your pushup amount in 6 weeks and i have been following this routine for my pushups since mid December and it has increased the amount i can do. I am now trying it for burpees to see if it has the same desired effect.
Check it out and give it a try if you want to get better at push ups.
http://hundredpushups.com/

These are the rattlings in my head,
Dusty

Poking fun

As a Canadian, we need to have a unique sense of humour.For anyone that watched the closing ceremonies to the olympics last night, you would definately know what i am talking about. For the past 17 days we have celebrated everything that is Canadian and then last night, wow, Prime minister William Shatner helped start us down the road to hilarity.
i think to be able to survive life, we need to be able to laugh at ourselves a little. Now, i know coming from me, that sounds weird because i take things very seriously, but for those that do know me, i have a very warped sense of humour.I tend to do things to amuse myself, which usually results in everyone around me not laughing. Dont know why. :)
Being able to deal with 100's of kids every day, i think we have to be able to laugh. or we would all go insane! Or drink heavily. one or the other.
Love a little, laugh a little, live a lot. Life only comes around once.

These are the ramblings in my head.

Injuries

I have been blessed most of my life when it comes to injuries.I have done some very heavy duty training and other than breaking some bones or pulled muscles, nothing to serious. I had minor surgery on both my hips (one when i was 17 - bone spur removal, the other in my early 20s i was at a tourney in California and had a complete detachment of my hip flexor)
I broke my foot and toe rather badly sparring with my old fighting instructor. I threw a kick as he dropped his elbow. It drove my toe back into my foot. Broke the toe on both sides of the knuckle and fractured my foot.
Broken all of my fingers and toes, broken nose twice (thanks Peter) fractured ribs, stitches, bottle to the back of the head, broken beer bottle taken to my forearm, cut off the end of my finger, but none of these have kept me out of action longer than a few weeks.
I hurt my back about a month ago at the gym. I was on an inverted squat machine. I was pressing some weight (nothing outrageous) and felt a pop,and over the next couple of days it got more and more painful. so i laid of the weights but kept running and doing my other training. I thought it was getting better, but a week ago, i had a reoccurence and all i can say is that i am frustrated. I am trying to get ready for my testing this summer and i have been working hard at my fitness levels and taking a month off almost feels like i ham right back at the beginning again. I have had a great training program that i have been following and because of this stoopid injury...i just wanna...i dont know...bitch and complain...wah!!

Proud to be Canadian

After watching the olympics all weekend, i am definately in sport overload heaven right now. I am usually not a big sport watching person, but with the olympics being on, it gives me the chance to get a dose of everything. Hockey, snowboard, downhill skiing, moguls, figure skating, curling, luge, speed skating, i am getting my fill of all of it. I have watched Canada win medals, and lose medals, and, after seeing so many glorious moments, and so many that have moved me, all i can say is i am glad to, no, proud to be Canadian!!
These atheletes have put so much time and effort into something they love and the way they have conducted themselves, they have made me so proud.
for me, seeing the mogul skier winning gold and then going over and higging his brother who has cerebral palsy and has been his inspiration is my gold medal moment so far.
What has been yours?

Stepping out

So as i figure out how this blog works, i see that other people can comment on what i write. I highly encourage people to put their thoughts in.
So here is my first queston to everyone. I mentioned in my previous post about leaving your comfort zone. As a martial artist, i am alway out of comfort zone because i like to push the envelope a little to see what i can do. My question, then, is, what do you do to step outside of your comfort zone? You dont have to b a martial artist or even refer to martial arts to answer this. I want to hear what people do to step out of their comfort zone, even if just a little bit.

These are my ramblings,
Dusty

Comfort zone

This summer, I will be testing for my 6th dahn in Taekwon Do, as well as my 3rd dahn in Hapkido. It will mark my 32 years involved in the martial arts. 6th Dahn will give me the title of Senior master. I don’t like to refer to myself as master, it is a title that my instructor bestowed on me after my 5th dahn test in 2005. My 5th dahn test was brutal. This one will be even tougher. I will be testing under a panel of 9th dahn Grand masters who will be coming from all over the world to sit in on this testing. There will also be my fellow students and seniors testing. There are two others going for 6th dahn with me. One going for 7th dahn and one going for 8th dahn. Due to the enormity of this test, we have been told to expect and train for the most brutal of tests. My instructor (Grandmaster Rudy Timmerman) believes in old school training. This means that the training and testing he does resemble what was done back in the 60’s and 70’s It was a lot different then. My training regimen right now consists of about 4 hours per day, 6 days per week. I will amp that up at the 6 month mark (end of February). To give you an idea as to what I have to do:
An outdoor military style obstacle course
An hour long warm up with the most brutal of exercises
33 empty hand forms, each one done 4 times
11 weapons forms
417 different self defense techniques
Multiple board breaks
My 5th dahn test lasted from 10 am until 1am with a couple of breaks in between. This one will most definitely be longer.

We have over 30 students from Sidekicks coming up that weekend to watch, witness and take part in the festivities.

Now you must be wondering, why I choose to do this. I am not the young man I used to be, I have a family, a very successful and busy business. Why do this.
It is about stepping outside of your comfort zone. Plain and simple. I thrive on challenge and adversity. Being able to step outside your comfort zone and succeed is what reminds me of what life is about. Try it sometime. It is exhilarating!
These are my ramblings…
Dusty