Randomosity

[tarigwaemir]

Lowell House on the Feast of St. Sidonius

The madness is starting all over again! blind_go, round two, sign up here. We've added a couple of twists: short!fic (100-1000 words), with up to five submissions from each author. We're also trying to put together a theme list as a community activity, so even if you don't plan on writing (and even if you do plan on writing), please give us theme suggestions here.

In other news, I went to kendo practice tonight (I usually skip Tuesday practices) because there was no practice this past weekend, and there'll probably be no practice this Saturday. I would like to say something like, "Yeah, kendo's a drug, and I need to get my fix," but actually it's more like, "Ahhh, I haven't practiced in over a week, I'm going to fall out of shape again, ahhh!"

Of course, I still need to finish my paper. Yes, the one due tomorrow. Well, at least I'm on an endorphin high from practice. ^_^ I'm doing something weird with my arms again, and I keep hitting men-gane so I still need to focus on extending more, but I feel like I've gotten over some sort of mental stumbling block. Not sure if it actually shows in my form though, since my fumikomi still sucks. Although I'm not landing on my heel or lifting my knee as much as before. There were abominably few veterans at practice today (only Brian and Jon, plus Kofi as the supervising alumnus), but I guess that's not too surprising. I was pleased to get a chance to hit kote...but was not so pleased to realize that I kept hitting off-target and forgot how to make a proper large swing. Sigh. ;_; (Debana-kote is my favorite waza, you see, although I don't try it very often anymore and have gotten rather bad at it.)

I had something to say...oh right. So, the following may just end up being one of those "null set posts" but I've been amusing myself by trying to come up with kendo analogies for each of the Chinese philosophers we've read so far.

Kongzi (a.k.a. Confucius) - There are no set rules to becoming good at kendo; one can only hope to know how to respond to one's opponent in any situation. Hence, practice suburi and kata with flawless rei to attain the proper frame of mind to gaining such intuition.
Mozi - Suburi and kata are useless and a waste of time. Analyze each situation and find the opening that is to your advantage. If you think strategically, then there will be a clear winner in every match.
Mengzi (a.k.a. Mencius) - Everyone has the capacity for great kendo; it just needs to be cultivated. Relax, stop thinking so much, and go with your instincts.
Laozi - Use your opponent's strength and energy against them, exhausting them and waiting to make your attack until they lose center. Find the path of least resistance. (A very feminine style of kendo, come to think of it.)
Zhuangzi - Always be in motion, ready to adapt to changing situations. Use renzoku waza. Distinctions of rank are meaningless; there is only the kendo between you and your opponent.
Xunzi - Everyone sucks at kendo. You can only try to become good by practicing intensely and listening to your sensei. (After I came up with this one, I realized that it basically sums up Ken's approach to kendo.)
Han Feizi - Stop thinking about form, just try to kill your opponent as efficiently as possible. You must be able to anticipate your opponent's attacks without giving away your own.

I had more to babble about, but paper-writing calls.

Yours &c.

Comments

[ladydaera.livejournal.com]

Ooh... and the last one sounds a bit like Dave.

[troisroyaumes]

Hey, you're right! Although Dave does care a lot about form, I think. By the way, I got your postcard in the mail today! It was such a nice surprise! Thank you, and of course I'll have to visit you in Cali. <3

I plan on writing back to you as soon as I finish this paper...which I should really return to now, instead of wasting time on the Internet like this. >_<;;

[ladydaera.livejournal.com]

Yay! I'm glad it got there safely.
You're right about Dave. It's just that the "kill your enemies!" idea just shouted Dave to me. :-D
Hope the paper was fruitful.

[klio911.livejournal.com]

hmm, these are interesting. my faves are mengzi and zhuangzi. i actually strongly believe the mengzi one...with the added note that great kendo and match-winning kendo are two entirely separate things (something that we know, but often gets lost along the way). zhuangzi...yeah, i like this because lack of motion is one of my big problems right now.

as for that being a feminine kind of kendo...i guess true? but not the way i wanna play, hells nah. ;D

[troisroyaumes]

Hee, well, Mengzi and Zhuangzi are my favorites out of the philosophers we've read so far, so I might have unconsciously given them nicer-sounding analogies.

Just to give a basis for the analogies, Mengzi believes that human nature is fundamentally good and that we can become moral human beings by cultivating this innate goodness within ourselves. Zhuangzi believes that everything is always changing; hence we should not place too much importance on distinctions (social or otherwise). To be happy, we need to become flexible and adapt to changing circumstances. ^_^

The "feminine style" comment was a little tongue-in-cheek on my part because Laozi goes on and on about how yin can defeat yang. XD;;