With Winter Camp fast approaching I thought that this might be a good time to share with you the best surprise that I experienced from my last test.

As usual my anxiety level began to rise as test time drew nearer. When we were called out onto the mat to test I was very nervous. As the test progressed I began to relax. First we had the ki tests, then we had the technique demonstrations and finally we had our freestyle.

Freestyle has always been a concern for me because of my wind or lack of it. As if being old and fat were not enough I take a medication that makes it difficult for me to perform under exertion for a long period of time. I have found that if I remain calm and centered it really helps my breathing.

I was testing for first kyu that meant that I had four attackers to deal with on this part of the test. When my attackers lined up I realized that they included one current member of our dojo, one former dojo member who now practices in another part of the country and two people who I had seen it camp but didn't know.

Before the freestyle began I was understandably very nervous. Once I bowed and then began moving and throwing the strangest feeling came over me. To my surprise I felt as if I was being attacked by my friends! The longer the test went on the more I enjoyed it and the more fun I was having. When Sensei ended the test the first feeling I had was not one of relief as I had expected but disappointment because I was having so much fun, relief was a very close second however.

Now when I think about my next test the feelings of anxiety and nervousness are there but also there's a great anticipation. Testing is my time to show what I can do and have fun doing it. My advice to anyone testing either here at home or at camp is to work hard in order to get ready but relax this is your chance to show what you can do and have fun doing! If you're very very lucky you'll discover that you're being attacked by your friends and then you can relax and enjoy it.

Q. Where can you find an aikido class that includes 13 highly energetic, enthusiastic orange belts?

A. In the RIT wrestling room on Wednesdays at 8 pm.

In the past weeks, I have visited both the Monday and Wednesday night RIT classes that Shawn Birmingham and Brett Porter teach. It has been a totally delightful experience and I strongly encourage everyone to fit a visit to one of these classes into their schedule. Each class has over 20 students in it and they are all interested in learning. They love to have new people to practice with, regardless of rank. They are totally into aikido. A group of the orange belts stayed after Wednesday night to do a rondori using all the techniques they could think of against tskui --- they came up with 13!

Classes are held Monday at 7 pm and Wednesday at 8 pm in the wrestling room on the lower floor of the building with the ice rink. You can park in the lot in front of the building next to the outdoor track. As you are looking at the campus, the building is to the left of the visitor information center and the right of the sports facility where students work out. Anyone can enter the building, no ID is needed.

If you go, you will recognize some familiar faces - Steve Perino helps out in most classes and a number of the orange belts as well as their one blue belt, Jonathan Piersa, are coming up more and more to practice in the city dojo. But, you had better hurry and get over there in February if you want to experience that sea of orange belts. I understand a number of students will be moving up to blue belt come spring.

If you would like to check with Shawn or Brett before you go (they will have a quarter break in early March I believe), you can call them at 742-2463 (Shawn) or 224-9472 (Brett).

P.S. I will be out of the dojo for the rest of February. I am not sick or injured but on a trip to India for the charitable organization whose Board I am on. I shall miss all of you and look forward to being back on the mat with you on February 27.

It all started quite innocently and this is how I remember it. You may want to check with Anna as her version may be a little different but I'm sure it will include the same good laugh and a fun cartoon ad...

Saturday morning class was just about over and Judy Sensei called out, "Hai! Kokyu dosa!" Anna was my current practice partner so we bowed to each other, found a good spot on the mat, and settled down to some serious kokyu dosa practice. After all we were practicing a martial art and this was serious business or so we thought. What happened next turned out to be a little more art than martial.

I offered, Anna gripped, I kept my shoulders down, and poof! over went Anna just a little to easily. I said something jokingly like, "Hey! Get back here, no fair! No self-throwing ukes allowed!" Well, there was something about the phrase "self-throwing ukes" that set us both off. For the next five minutes or so we traded back and forth…

"No ukes were hurt in the making…"
"Now available with Kung Fu grip!"
"Order before midnight tonight…"
"Complete with different color belts!"
"Fully pose able!"

It was one of those totally ridiculous things where you feed off of each others silliness and just can't seem to stop laughing. We were laughing so hard that our sides hurt and our eyes began to tear up. Such serious martial artists!

Judy Sensei called, "Hai!" just in time to save us from our own silliness. Anna and I quickly regained our composure, bowed to each other and hustled back to the line to bow out with the rest of dojo mates. And so ended the "self-throwing uke" incident or so I thought. A few days later Anna brought showed me the cartoon ad you see on the right.

We are blessed today with a huge selection of martial arts books available to us. While organized martial arts systems have existed for well over a thousand years, not much had been published about them until about one hundred years ago. Randy F. Nelson and Katherine C. Whitaker's book The Martial Arts: An Annotated Bibliography which was published in 1988 and was comprehensive at the time, has only about 1400 listings, many of which are references to magazine articles. But since that time there has been an explosion in the number of martial arts books published.

Given the plethora of literature available, I am often surprised by how little some people know of the martial arts outside of their own school. They seem to assume that all schools do things the same way. Every martial arts school is different. Everyone's journey on the martial arts path is different. Through martial arts autobiographies, you can read about other people's experiences in their own words. This gives you a greater perspective, and allows you to appreciate the similarities and the differences in your own journey on the martial path.

Here is a sampling of interesting books to start your armchair martial arts journey. I have tried to include a variety. All of the books listed are in print at the time of this writing. The books are ordered by author's name. For even more books, check out my book Martial Arts Biographies-An Annotated Bibliography.

Jackie Chan - I am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action
Jackie Chan describes growing up in a Peking Opera school, as pretty much an indentured slave. A lot of his training would be considered child abuse in the United States. The book details Chan's starting out in the movies as a stuntman, and on to his eventually starring in dozens of movies.

Norbert Donnelly - Dojo! The Hard Way, The Only Way
The books describes the rough and tumble world of karate in America during the 1960's, as Donnelly learns Isshinryu karate. This autobiography follows the author from the day he started learning karate, until the end of the book when he is a 6th Dan. (Available through author's website at www.isshinryu.com)

Gichin Funakoshi - Karate-Do: My Way of Life
Autobiography of Funakoshi, who through perseverance, brought karate from Okinawa to Japan, from where it spread throughout the world. He describes how he trained under masters Azato and Itosu. He also tells how he based his life on the philosophy of karate-do. A classic book in martial arts literature.

George Leonard - The Way of Aikido: Life Lessons from an American Sensei
Author describes how he begins his study of Aikido under Robert Nadeau. As he progresses, he begins to use centering, and blending in his life.

BK Loren - The Way of the River: Adventures and Meditations of a Woman Martial Artist
At eleven years old, her military family moves to California where she meets an old Chinese man who becomes her teacher as she starts to learn Nan Quan Shao-Lin Boxing. At sixteen her family moves to Colorado. She starts training at a kung-fu/karate dojo where she gets her black belt in about a year. She goes on to teach self-defense classes.

Dave Lowry - Autumn Lightning: The Education of an American Samurai
Growing up in the suburbs, the author becomes the student of a Japanese neighbor, and learns kenjutsu. There is a lot of history of the Samurai, and kenjutsu in old Japan mixed in with the autobiographical stuff. The kenjutsu described in Lowry's books is the old style koryu kenjutsu, as opposed to the new kendo, and iaido styles. He describes how he was taught to sit, eat, and even go to the bathroom in Samurai fashion.

CW Nicol - Moving Zen: One Man's Journey to the Heart of Karate
Nicol goes to Japan to learn karate. After exploring the various major styles, he decides to study Shotokan karate. The book goes on to describe his karate training in Japan during the 1960's to achieving his black belt.

Chuck Norris - Against All Odds: My Story
Norris learns Tang Soo Do while stationed in Korea. Later in the book he describes winning various tournaments in the U.S., and then starting his own schools. He goes on to star in many movies. Some of his interactions with Bruce Lee, and Ed Parker, and even Elvis Presley are described in the book.

Jens Pulver - Little Evil: One Ultimate Fighter's Rise to the Top
Pulver is brutally honest in telling his story. The story starts with his abusive drunk father sticking a shotgun in young Jen's mouth threatening to kill him. The book follows his involvement in wrestling from boys club to college. His life gets messy, and he drops out of college. Eventually he manages to pull things together. He gets involved in mixed martial arts. The book follows him from the Shamrock training camp to the Miletich training camp to his winning the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), and then defending his title.

Jack Sabat - Zen and the Art of Street Fighting: True Battles of a Modern Day Warrior
Sabat starts learning Kenpo karate while stationed on an aircraft carrier during the Vietnam War. He is exposed to other styles while in various ports. The book skips forward to his being back home in the U.S., and furthering his karate training, and eventually opening up his own dojo. He skips over large segments of time, which might have been interesting, and makes a reference to a teacher of questionable credentials, but doesn't go into detail. Reading about the author's style of dojo, he reminds me of John Kreese from the Karate Kid movie.

Mark Salzman - Lost In Place: Growing Up In Suburbia
Salzman tells of his growing up in the suburbs in the 1970's watching Kung Fu on TV, and Bruce Lee movies. He practices his TV learned kung fu in his Connecticut basement wearing black dyed pajamas, and a bald wig, until he finally starts taking kung fu from a real teacher. Salzman has a great sense of humor in his writing.

Robert Twigger - Angry White Pyjamas: A Scrawny Oxford Poet Takes Lessons from the Tokyo Riot Police
Twigger while living in Japan decides to take Aikido with his roommates. He ends up studying Yoshinkan Aikido in the special, much more intense Riot Police program where endurance and survival are stressed.

Peter Uhlmann - Flowing the Tai Chi Way: A Voyage of Discovery by a Tai Chi Master and His Student
The author and his wife meet Tai Chi Master Henry Wang in Taiwan and begin to study Tai Chi. Upon returning to Canada, they open the way for Henry to emigrate to Canada. Author goes on to become a senior student.

Test Prep Classes - Saturday, February 4 and 25 at 11:00 am, Thursday, February 9 and 16 at 8:00 pm, and Thursday, March 2 at 8:00 pm
Black Belt Class - Monday, February 27 at 8:00 pm
Winter Camp - March 10 - 12 - Lawrenceville, NJ - Registration forms now available
Summer Camp - July 13 - July 16 - Villa Nova, PA - Watch the bulletin board for more details!

The purpose of training is to tighten up the slack, toughen the body, and polish the spirit.
~ O Sensei