I'm supposed to be at work right now but my back is bugging me. I broke my back almost 7 years ago for those that don't already know. So sometimes my back muscles get really tense and I need to focus on stretching and resting for a couple days.
Anyways, I would like to tell you a bit about our Sigung Nelson Chan and his Kwoon (club) in Toronto. Since we got here we have been there to visit 4 times. Our Sigung has been training in Wing Chun for over 40 years. He learned it from his Sifu Moy Yat and Moy Yat learned it from Yip Man. Sigung learned the Hong Kong version, which is the original version. It is very cool to have found a lineage of Wing Chun that is so pure and effective. My Sifu prayed to find a good Wing Chun instructor and I searched for one, guess we both got what we were looking for. Other than getting to meet our Sigung at his Kwoon, we also get to meet his other students, which are part of our Wing Chun family. Each time we go we become closer with them which is very cool, and each time we go back we are all a little bit better, so we get to see each other's growth. Our Wing Chun Uncle, or our Sibok, Louis has taught me a few things that are hugely important in my understanding of the System. It's not that my Sifu didn't teach me these things, but sometimes just the way something is explained from another point of view allows it to sink in better.
The last visit we had to Sigung's was May 29th. This visit was different because we were going there for a special seminar about Wing Chun history and the inner secrets of Wing Chun. It was pretty interesting and what we learned sinks in more and more each day. The seminar was done by our Sigung's Wing Chun brother, Moy 2. He is called Moy 2 because he was the first person in the U.S. to learn Wing Chun from Moy Yat. There are many versions to the story of where Wing Chun came from, but what we learned at this seminar makes more sense than the others. Moy 2 has done a great deal of research about Wing Chun history and the truths about Wing Chun, so I tend to believe what he shared with us. One point I will share about what I learned is that Wing Chun was invented by a woman. This has always been hard to believe for men because women don't tend to be the fighting type. Where Wing Chun was invented was in a place called Li Jiang. In this place 300 years ago was a culture wherein women were the dominant sex, so basically they were the ones doing the construction, the fighting, the farting and the burping. I added the last 2 but you know what I mean. They were still physically built the same way but the women were the aggressors and had created an intelligent "martial art" or "fighting system" that required little strength to be very powerful and useful.
After class we got back to Kitchener and went to our friend's house for a barbecue with a bunch of us from class. We have been there a few times now and we have fun every time. They have a kick-ass barbecue set up on their deck and the rest of the backyard is a pool. They also set up the TV on the back deck and we watched UFC. Good times for sure. We have had quite a few good nights with these two, in fact we went to Montreal with them to go to UFC. We went to the one where Lyoto Machida got knocked out. I will tell you more about our trip there in another post.
Self Defence
Martial Arts
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Fellowship
Heritage Martial Arts
Monday, June 7, 2010
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Well it has been a while since my last post, just didn't feel like writing I guess. We are getting closer to the next part of our journey. The plans have changed drastically but we like the changes. Instead of bhiking the rest of the way across Canada we are going to drive our Jeep. Tara doesn't really want to bike the highway anymore, which I completely understand. Both our knees felt it and we don't want to do anymore damage to our bodies just to prove something. We biked almost 2500km to get here and we're pretty proud of that. We have also decided that we are going to come back here for another year of training. We love Wing Chun and need to learn more. Since I'm going to teach it someday we feel this is the best thing to do. I like to say I'm here going to school, which is exactly what I'm doing.
Our friends Dana and Jen are going to drive the Jeep to us. Dana is fixing it up for me, since it's not ready for long distance driving. They should be here close to the end of June. Then we will be leaving for a two month trip. We are not exactly sure where we are going, we like to just go where we feel. The only plans are to go to the islands and explore whatever we meet up with in between. We are bringing the bikes for day rides and we are planning on biking all around P.E.I.. Before we leave though I'm going to try and tell you a bit more about our Kitchener experience. It will take a few posts but I'll try my best get all the details in.
As you know when we got here we were only going to stay for a week of intense training, 26 hours of class and privates to be exact. Then it turned into "We will stay for the month." Now it has been eight months and we are very happy we stayed. The city itself is okay, a city is a city to me. What we love so much about this place is our reason for being here and the friends that we have made. Every single one of them is amazing, some have become closer friends then others but they are all still great. I won't point out the ones that are closer but I will write down as many names as I can think of right now. Dan, Dan, and Dan, yes 3 Dan's. There was 4th but we haven't seen him in a while. Malcom, Rick, Bob, Phil, Yuri, Alex, Brock, Onno, Ray, Mauricio, Jeannette, Ken, Brian, Ferrah, Larry, Tim, Darren, Paul, Anya, Bill, James, Katie, and of course Sifu Chuck. These are our friends from the club, there are more but I can't remember everyone right now. The friends I've made at work are amazing as well. I work at Shoppers Drug Mart as a Merchandiser and I quite enjoy my job. My friends names are Angela, Julie, Luke, Kelly, Jesse, Alana, Pat, Boza, Nina, Gordanna, Trevor, Andreea, Fallen, Amanda, Melissa, Bethany, Paul, and Ben my boss. Again there are more but can't remember everyone right now. Just mention a few more, Kate, Vicki, and Sharron. They are wives of a few of the guys and two are good friends with Tara.
The main things we do here are train, live, and. Heavy on the live and train, and we love it. We bike, walk and bus everywhere we go, unless we get a ride from someone. It is a completely different world being on the side of the road biking then being on the road in a vehicle. It's funny how such a simple shift can change the world which you experience. Since we walk and bike everywhere we are in the best shape of our lives, I'm sure all the training has something to do with it as well. It is an adventure every time we go anywhere. They are not big adventures but they are more of an adventure then when you drive. The winter was so mild this year that biking was always an option.
The way we spend money has has been another change since we started our journey. Instead of buying things, we have been buying a lot of experiences. We are constantly doing something, from training, traveling to just going out on the town. We don't go to big clubs but we do go to a lot of Restaurants and Pub's. There are many nice places to go to in downtown Waterloo; Kitchener too, but the best are in Waterloo. In my last post I mentioned that we went to Arizona, which was a great time. We rented Harley's for 2 days and the rides were awesome. The desert is so very beautiful. We have gone to Toronto a few times to train with our Sigung, which I will go into more detail later. I just got back from a trip home, which again I will go into more detail later.
We have experienced so much in this past year. It is really very amazing and I wouldn't have wanted to do anything else. The thought of, 'what if we had stayed in Fort McMurray', gives me a sick feeling to my stomach. To think of not experiencing everything we have is just too much. I even had a dream the other night that we had moved back to Fort McMurray. As soon as a I realised that we were there I started to cry, I was so sad that we had left Kitchener prematurely. Then I woke up and everything was okay again. It's going to be nice to continue writing about Kitchener in more detail before we go.
I hope you are all enjoying hearing about our experiences, because we are having a great time doing it.
Our friends Dana and Jen are going to drive the Jeep to us. Dana is fixing it up for me, since it's not ready for long distance driving. They should be here close to the end of June. Then we will be leaving for a two month trip. We are not exactly sure where we are going, we like to just go where we feel. The only plans are to go to the islands and explore whatever we meet up with in between. We are bringing the bikes for day rides and we are planning on biking all around P.E.I.. Before we leave though I'm going to try and tell you a bit more about our Kitchener experience. It will take a few posts but I'll try my best get all the details in.
As you know when we got here we were only going to stay for a week of intense training, 26 hours of class and privates to be exact. Then it turned into "We will stay for the month." Now it has been eight months and we are very happy we stayed. The city itself is okay, a city is a city to me. What we love so much about this place is our reason for being here and the friends that we have made. Every single one of them is amazing, some have become closer friends then others but they are all still great. I won't point out the ones that are closer but I will write down as many names as I can think of right now. Dan, Dan, and Dan, yes 3 Dan's. There was 4th but we haven't seen him in a while. Malcom, Rick, Bob, Phil, Yuri, Alex, Brock, Onno, Ray, Mauricio, Jeannette, Ken, Brian, Ferrah, Larry, Tim, Darren, Paul, Anya, Bill, James, Katie, and of course Sifu Chuck. These are our friends from the club, there are more but I can't remember everyone right now. The friends I've made at work are amazing as well. I work at Shoppers Drug Mart as a Merchandiser and I quite enjoy my job. My friends names are Angela, Julie, Luke, Kelly, Jesse, Alana, Pat, Boza, Nina, Gordanna, Trevor, Andreea, Fallen, Amanda, Melissa, Bethany, Paul, and Ben my boss. Again there are more but can't remember everyone right now. Just mention a few more, Kate, Vicki, and Sharron. They are wives of a few of the guys and two are good friends with Tara.
The main things we do here are train, live, and. Heavy on the live and train, and we love it. We bike, walk and bus everywhere we go, unless we get a ride from someone. It is a completely different world being on the side of the road biking then being on the road in a vehicle. It's funny how such a simple shift can change the world which you experience. Since we walk and bike everywhere we are in the best shape of our lives, I'm sure all the training has something to do with it as well. It is an adventure every time we go anywhere. They are not big adventures but they are more of an adventure then when you drive. The winter was so mild this year that biking was always an option.
The way we spend money has has been another change since we started our journey. Instead of buying things, we have been buying a lot of experiences. We are constantly doing something, from training, traveling to just going out on the town. We don't go to big clubs but we do go to a lot of Restaurants and Pub's. There are many nice places to go to in downtown Waterloo; Kitchener too, but the best are in Waterloo. In my last post I mentioned that we went to Arizona, which was a great time. We rented Harley's for 2 days and the rides were awesome. The desert is so very beautiful. We have gone to Toronto a few times to train with our Sigung, which I will go into more detail later. I just got back from a trip home, which again I will go into more detail later.
We have experienced so much in this past year. It is really very amazing and I wouldn't have wanted to do anything else. The thought of, 'what if we had stayed in Fort McMurray', gives me a sick feeling to my stomach. To think of not experiencing everything we have is just too much. I even had a dream the other night that we had moved back to Fort McMurray. As soon as a I realised that we were there I started to cry, I was so sad that we had left Kitchener prematurely. Then I woke up and everything was okay again. It's going to be nice to continue writing about Kitchener in more detail before we go.
I hope you are all enjoying hearing about our experiences, because we are having a great time doing it.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Hello everyone. I hope all of your holidays were great and that it didn't cost more then you could afford. Christmas is the most expensive time of the year.
I have a couple of exciting things to mention. I have recently started teaching Self Defence again. I am teaching at Heritage Martial Arts and Fitness Centre at 3310 King Street East in Kitchener. It's the same place that we are training in Wing Chun. Beyond the teaching part it's really awesome because now I can go there and train any time I want. I will be having a 2 hour session every weekend. Not sure of the time and day exactly because there is a lot of filming going on this month. I am also able to teach during the day throughout the week for anyone that can make it. I have also had a few things changed with my website. The main thing that I changed is the web page address, it is http://www.realworldselfdefence.ca/. It is also the name of my company "Realworld Self Defence".
Another super-awesome thing that has happened occurred just last night. During class our Sifu surprised me and Tara with our grading. He started by making us workout harder then everyone else. At first I thought he was mad at us for something, but it still wasn't making any sense. I figured it out when we were about a quarter of the way through the testing. We were so surprised because we were originally expecting to get tested at the end of February. Sifu said he figured we were ready so he just decided to grade us. By the way, we both passed! We're so F'n excited. This also means that we get to have an extra 2 months of training at level 2, which is the Chum Kiu level. It usually takes a year of training before you get tested, but because we go to every single class we got tested sooner. Sifu figured out that within the 3 months that we have been training we have put in a year and half worth of regular class participation. I also train outside of class so I have been putting a lot of hours into this.
Just to finish up with exciting stuff, we are going to Arizona for a week to see Tara's parents and her Uncle. They are there for a 6 week vacation. They have rented a trailer so we get to stay there for free and they even payed for half of our flights. It should be a good time and it will be nice to see them again.
I have a couple of exciting things to mention. I have recently started teaching Self Defence again. I am teaching at Heritage Martial Arts and Fitness Centre at 3310 King Street East in Kitchener. It's the same place that we are training in Wing Chun. Beyond the teaching part it's really awesome because now I can go there and train any time I want. I will be having a 2 hour session every weekend. Not sure of the time and day exactly because there is a lot of filming going on this month. I am also able to teach during the day throughout the week for anyone that can make it. I have also had a few things changed with my website. The main thing that I changed is the web page address, it is http://www.realworldselfdefence.ca/. It is also the name of my company "Realworld Self Defence".
Another super-awesome thing that has happened occurred just last night. During class our Sifu surprised me and Tara with our grading. He started by making us workout harder then everyone else. At first I thought he was mad at us for something, but it still wasn't making any sense. I figured it out when we were about a quarter of the way through the testing. We were so surprised because we were originally expecting to get tested at the end of February. Sifu said he figured we were ready so he just decided to grade us. By the way, we both passed! We're so F'n excited. This also means that we get to have an extra 2 months of training at level 2, which is the Chum Kiu level. It usually takes a year of training before you get tested, but because we go to every single class we got tested sooner. Sifu figured out that within the 3 months that we have been training we have put in a year and half worth of regular class participation. I also train outside of class so I have been putting a lot of hours into this.
Just to finish up with exciting stuff, we are going to Arizona for a week to see Tara's parents and her Uncle. They are there for a 6 week vacation. They have rented a trailer so we get to stay there for free and they even payed for half of our flights. It should be a good time and it will be nice to see them again.
Martial Arts
Self Defence
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Fellow Ship
Heritage Martial Arts
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Hey there all. I just wanted to say that I watched that video I mentioned in the last post and wow. That is a must see, a must see by all. Please people we must educate ourselves before we are all under a world government that is only interested in one thing and that is control. Control of every aspect of our lives. In the video it tells alot about this subject. Of course it is still up to you whether or not you want to believe it but you still should atleast watch it.
Wouldn't you want to know if Hitler was on his way, I know I would. Get ready the world is changing right before our eyes. The truth about what is realing going on around us is coming out, so very exciting.
One more thing the link for prison planet is actually www.prisonplanet.tv. The other one is still good but this is the one I meant to write. Talk to you later.
Also the links on the end of the blogs are so I can help my Sifu and my Sensei get more business and not necessarily because they believe in the same things I do. They are there own people and they probably haven't even read my blog yet.
Self Defense
Martial Arts
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Association
Wouldn't you want to know if Hitler was on his way, I know I would. Get ready the world is changing right before our eyes. The truth about what is realing going on around us is coming out, so very exciting.
One more thing the link for prison planet is actually www.prisonplanet.tv. The other one is still good but this is the one I meant to write. Talk to you later.
Also the links on the end of the blogs are so I can help my Sifu and my Sensei get more business and not necessarily because they believe in the same things I do. They are there own people and they probably haven't even read my blog yet.
Self Defense
Martial Arts
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Association
Monday, November 30, 2009
I just did some reading and I also watched some videos. I need to read further but I feel I need to give some links so you guys can check this stuff out aswell. Go to infowars.com, prisonplanet.com. Go on youtube and search for climate-gate. There are some videos by Alex Jones. Alex Jones is a good man that is trying to bring the truth out into the public. There is a link to his movie after part 2 of the videos. I haven't watched it yet but will be tomorrow. Please educate yourselves before it is to late.
Yes we need to take care of our planet but the lies that are being told to us is wrong and the reasons for it is wrong. Make up your own mind when you do your research but atleast you will have the truth to make your decision over and not a lie.
The main thing I wanted you all to check out was the climate gate stuff, but of course there is much more to read on those sights so don't stop keep going.
Yes we need to take care of our planet but the lies that are being told to us is wrong and the reasons for it is wrong. Make up your own mind when you do your research but atleast you will have the truth to make your decision over and not a lie.
The main thing I wanted you all to check out was the climate gate stuff, but of course there is much more to read on those sights so don't stop keep going.
Hello everyone, how many is everyone? I have no idea. Well I have something exciting to write about this time. We went on another adventure/ journey. We went to Ecuador for a week and it was amazing. I will give as much detail as I can about the trip from start to finish but well have to leave some more personal things out.
We left Kitchener on the 15th at about 12 noon. We took the bus to Toronto, then to Ontario and then to Montreal. We had booked our flight from Montreal about a month before we got to Kitchener cause we had still been planning on living in Montreal. The bus rides took a total of 12 hours to get to Montreal. When we got to Montreal we got dropped off at the airport at about 1:30am and had to wait till 6:30am for our flight to Miami. This would have been ok if there were some comfy chairs or benches to lay on but there wasn't. The best we found were hard marble-looking benches which could have been mistaken for coffee tables. While we were there I also drank the first cup of coffee since about 2001. After our 3 hour flight to Miami we had a 6 hour stop over. Then we had about a 3 hour flight into Quito, Ecuador, which took us to about 9:30pm. So we had been traveling for about 32 to 33 hours straight, yes we were pretty tired. When we were coming in to land it was so awesome cause Quito is right in the mountians. It was night-time so the city lights were on. I think Fort McMurray looks beautiful at night when you are driving down Beaconhill, but that doesn't even compare to what Quito looks like at night. There are about 2 million people in Quito so there are so many lights, and they follow the sides of mountains and go over hills; they looked like a blanket of lights drapped over the hills.
The hotel we stayed at was a Radisson, and it was probably the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. When we got to our room there were 2 desserts waiting for us.
I have never had that happen before. The only down fall of the rooms was that the 2 beds were twin beds, so sleeping was quite cramped. The next morning we got picked up at the hotel by 2 buses and we were off to the hacienda.
The bus ride was close to 2 hours long. The scenery was amazing, so many hills and mountains. The roads were winding all through the mountain range. Even the rock faces were amazing. They were so different in the way the rock layers seemed to twist into one another. I can't fully explain the beauty of Ecuador so I won't even try, but we did take a lot of pictures. When our main computer gets here we will have many pics to put up since this computer doesn't seem to want to.
Now the reason for the trip to Ecuador wasn't for the beautiful scenery, it was actually for a ceremony. A Shaman type ceremony. We were there for 4 nights and we did 3 nights of a very special plant medicine. I'm not going to say what it was but it refills the DMT levels in the brain. I'm not saying what it was cause I feel that I shouldn't. I will tell you the purpose of it though. The plant medicine we took can do many things such as heal you physically, and show you Celestial worlds and hell worlds. What it mainly does is show you your inner worlds and your inner lights and darknesses. It shows you your shadow self and shadow traits. There are so many levels to this process. For example, we all have demons inside of us, on us and around us. Yes demons/negative energies do exsist and they do affect us at all times. While on the medicine you purge and when you do you are actually purging dark energies out of your body. When you purge it feels like there is a lot of substance coming out when actually there isn't much coming out at all, it is mainly energy. It helps to clean the demons from your insides. I guess I will say what it is that we did so you can do some research on this stuff. I fully believe that most people can get a lot out of taking it. But don't take it on your own. It's best to take it with people that know what they are doing and that have proccessed their shadows. That part is most important. Ayahuasca is a very powerful medicine and teacher and should only be done with experienced people. Aya can take you to places that you may not be able to understand and the energies that are flying around the room can be very powerful. I'll finish with saying that it helped me out a lot with what it taught me and the lessons will continue for many months. I am so grateful for what I have learned from that experince and will do my very best to better myself and to proccess my darkness so that it will not be in control of me, but rather that I will be in control of it.
Besides the ceremonies the people and the place were so wonderful and beautiful. The people that come to these ceremonies are very brave, as it takes a lot of bravery to really look at yourself. To not lie to yourself but to admit that, yes I am dark and I do have these bad traits, and I am willing to see them for what they are and to face them-head on and to work on myself and come out on top no matter what it takes, is really the desired end result. So Aya isn't about getting high, it's about learning and self-realization.
Anyways the trip was amazing and I would recommened it to all.
The trip back was about the same as the way there, other then the fact that we stayed at a hostel in Montreal. We got back to Kitchener on Monday the 23rd, and we were happy to be home. The trip was very tiring. One last thing to mention about the ceremonies was that you couldn't eat or drink 4 hours before and the ceremony lasted from 7pm to 2am. You could eatafterwards, but you usually didn't feel like it. There was breakfast served every morning but we never made it to breakfast so we repeatedly fasted for 24 hours, only eating once per day.
Hope you enjoyed this post. I won't be reading it over for mistakes so I'm sure there will be a lot.
(Jun.6/10: I just got around to editing this one and adding a few pictures...hopefully there'll be even fewer mistakes now! -Tara)
Martial Arts
Self Defense
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Fellowship
We left Kitchener on the 15th at about 12 noon. We took the bus to Toronto, then to Ontario and then to Montreal. We had booked our flight from Montreal about a month before we got to Kitchener cause we had still been planning on living in Montreal. The bus rides took a total of 12 hours to get to Montreal. When we got to Montreal we got dropped off at the airport at about 1:30am and had to wait till 6:30am for our flight to Miami. This would have been ok if there were some comfy chairs or benches to lay on but there wasn't. The best we found were hard marble-looking benches which could have been mistaken for coffee tables. While we were there I also drank the first cup of coffee since about 2001. After our 3 hour flight to Miami we had a 6 hour stop over. Then we had about a 3 hour flight into Quito, Ecuador, which took us to about 9:30pm. So we had been traveling for about 32 to 33 hours straight, yes we were pretty tired. When we were coming in to land it was so awesome cause Quito is right in the mountians. It was night-time so the city lights were on. I think Fort McMurray looks beautiful at night when you are driving down Beaconhill, but that doesn't even compare to what Quito looks like at night. There are about 2 million people in Quito so there are so many lights, and they follow the sides of mountains and go over hills; they looked like a blanket of lights drapped over the hills.
The hotel we stayed at was a Radisson, and it was probably the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. When we got to our room there were 2 desserts waiting for us.
I have never had that happen before. The only down fall of the rooms was that the 2 beds were twin beds, so sleeping was quite cramped. The next morning we got picked up at the hotel by 2 buses and we were off to the hacienda.
The bus ride was close to 2 hours long. The scenery was amazing, so many hills and mountains. The roads were winding all through the mountain range. Even the rock faces were amazing. They were so different in the way the rock layers seemed to twist into one another. I can't fully explain the beauty of Ecuador so I won't even try, but we did take a lot of pictures. When our main computer gets here we will have many pics to put up since this computer doesn't seem to want to.
Now the reason for the trip to Ecuador wasn't for the beautiful scenery, it was actually for a ceremony. A Shaman type ceremony. We were there for 4 nights and we did 3 nights of a very special plant medicine. I'm not going to say what it was but it refills the DMT levels in the brain. I'm not saying what it was cause I feel that I shouldn't. I will tell you the purpose of it though. The plant medicine we took can do many things such as heal you physically, and show you Celestial worlds and hell worlds. What it mainly does is show you your inner worlds and your inner lights and darknesses. It shows you your shadow self and shadow traits. There are so many levels to this process. For example, we all have demons inside of us, on us and around us. Yes demons/negative energies do exsist and they do affect us at all times. While on the medicine you purge and when you do you are actually purging dark energies out of your body. When you purge it feels like there is a lot of substance coming out when actually there isn't much coming out at all, it is mainly energy. It helps to clean the demons from your insides. I guess I will say what it is that we did so you can do some research on this stuff. I fully believe that most people can get a lot out of taking it. But don't take it on your own. It's best to take it with people that know what they are doing and that have proccessed their shadows. That part is most important. Ayahuasca is a very powerful medicine and teacher and should only be done with experienced people. Aya can take you to places that you may not be able to understand and the energies that are flying around the room can be very powerful. I'll finish with saying that it helped me out a lot with what it taught me and the lessons will continue for many months. I am so grateful for what I have learned from that experince and will do my very best to better myself and to proccess my darkness so that it will not be in control of me, but rather that I will be in control of it.
Besides the ceremonies the people and the place were so wonderful and beautiful. The people that come to these ceremonies are very brave, as it takes a lot of bravery to really look at yourself. To not lie to yourself but to admit that, yes I am dark and I do have these bad traits, and I am willing to see them for what they are and to face them-head on and to work on myself and come out on top no matter what it takes, is really the desired end result. So Aya isn't about getting high, it's about learning and self-realization.
Anyways the trip was amazing and I would recommened it to all.
The trip back was about the same as the way there, other then the fact that we stayed at a hostel in Montreal. We got back to Kitchener on Monday the 23rd, and we were happy to be home. The trip was very tiring. One last thing to mention about the ceremonies was that you couldn't eat or drink 4 hours before and the ceremony lasted from 7pm to 2am. You could eatafterwards, but you usually didn't feel like it. There was breakfast served every morning but we never made it to breakfast so we repeatedly fasted for 24 hours, only eating once per day.
Hope you enjoyed this post. I won't be reading it over for mistakes so I'm sure there will be a lot.
(Jun.6/10: I just got around to editing this one and adding a few pictures...hopefully there'll be even fewer mistakes now! -Tara)
Martial Arts
Self Defense
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
Canadian Wing Chun Fellowship
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Hello everyone, I hope all is well with all of you. Well we are now moved into our new apartment. It's kind of weird having our own place again, and nice as well. It has been 6 months now since we had our own place. It's pretty weird to think about what we did the last few months, very surreal. A big part of the reason for our trip was so we could learn to appreciate the little things in life. For example a home, which it has done/ Our place is not that great but it feels like a beautiful castle. It's like going from a trailer to a mansion, but ours was from a tent/hotel to a 2-bedroom apartment.
I must recommend this type of journey we went on to everyone. It doesn't have to be biking 2300km but it should be something that you have always wanted to do but never thought it was possible. A lot of the time we don't believe doing crazy things are possible because the people around us make us feel like we should do what they are doing, because its safer. We can't blame those closest to us because it's not their fault. If we allow them to convince us, then we are actually to blame. Let's look at me, I left a good job and a nice house to walk then bike half way across Canada, just because I wanted to do something outside of the blah-blah day-to-day. Now I am training in Wing Chun 3 days a week and Jeet Kune Do once a week,and working part-time. Compared to the money I was making before, this doesn't compare, but what I have been able to experience and what I get to do on a daily basis is worth more than money. I'm sure I'm not explaining it very well but I just know that I have never been happier and never felt stronger.
By stronger I do not just mean physical, it is also mentally and spiritually. We are so much more capable to deal with stress and our confidence in ourselves has sky-rocketed. We don't need other's acceptance like we once did. Sure we still appreciate it but now we are happy just knowing that we have the power to do exactly what we want because in our souls we are free. Well, at least as free as we have ever felt. It's like the first day of summer holidays but everyday, all day. You might not realize it but many people are affraid of freedom. I know it sounds weird but you might be one of those people without realizing it. If you want to know if you are or not, just think about leaving your job and your home right now to go do whatever it is that you want to do and then just let the free unhindered life that's coming your way to unfold. Sounds good to me, how does it feel to you?
I guess I'll talk a little bit about our training. It is going quite well, our Sifu says we are picking things up faster then most. This might sound like bragging but things like this have always come easy to me. I didn't do very well in school except for Phys Ed so I know what it is that I am good at. When I was young and in school I felt that I couldn't keep up, not because I was stupid but because I had no interest. My talents were of a physical nature and I didn't have an outlet that people saw as a way to make money or get a job. Well I guess there was hockey and baseball but I didn't have enough interest. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I wish there was a different way to go through school then the one way that there is. If your not extremely smart or gifted then you just have to go through the school system the way it is given. Think about how much better school could be if you actually got to pick what you wanted to learn, even if you changed your mind 3 times a year. I would have kept learning about dinosaurs and outerspace, gym class would have been twice a day. Just from that which would have been my first choices I would have grown so much quicker and wider. Once a child knows it is their choice, their interest and ability to learn sky-rockets. Then studying and homework would be a plessure instead of a chore. I will stop with one more thing, think of all the people without a good education and then think what they could have been had they been able to make the decision in the beginning. I know for a fact that we all had those kids in our class that goofed off and would rather skip class then show up. Why did they do this? They did this because they were stronger then the rest of us, they didn't want to conform they just wanted the chance to express themselves fully but they couldn't because there wasn't anywhere for them to do that. Now they have shitty jobs and are looked down on by others that decided that I want a good job so I will do what is expected of me. I'm not putting these people down for doing well in school but why not look at the other people in this world that were missed and show them a little bit of love and appreciation. Whoops went a little off topic there.
Just what we have learned in one month amazes me. My skill level is much higher and my understanding of martial arts has done the same. It is so cool to learn how the structures of the Wing Chun movements can be so powerful, deceivingly powerful. You really don't need to be that strong to defeat a stronger opponent. The art of Wing Chun is said to be created by a women. I believe this because it is so practical and because of its yin nature. You don't face force with force, and even the punching works opposite to most arts. You pull back more then anything with one arm creating a great deal of outward force with the other. I am writing a lot of notes so soon I will be able to explain what it is that I am learning much better. It sure is fun though, I sure enjoy the training but of course am looking forward to being really good at the art. Also I am not just learning it to know it, I am learning it so I can someday teach it. I figure if I can teach the arts I love, then I will have the time to train the rest of my life instead of wasting my time working at a job that takes me away from what I love.
I hope this blog has not become boring. I will get better at writing my thoughts down so be patient, and your comments are appreciated too.
Martial Arts
Self Defense
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
I must recommend this type of journey we went on to everyone. It doesn't have to be biking 2300km but it should be something that you have always wanted to do but never thought it was possible. A lot of the time we don't believe doing crazy things are possible because the people around us make us feel like we should do what they are doing, because its safer. We can't blame those closest to us because it's not their fault. If we allow them to convince us, then we are actually to blame. Let's look at me, I left a good job and a nice house to walk then bike half way across Canada, just because I wanted to do something outside of the blah-blah day-to-day. Now I am training in Wing Chun 3 days a week and Jeet Kune Do once a week,and working part-time. Compared to the money I was making before, this doesn't compare, but what I have been able to experience and what I get to do on a daily basis is worth more than money. I'm sure I'm not explaining it very well but I just know that I have never been happier and never felt stronger.
By stronger I do not just mean physical, it is also mentally and spiritually. We are so much more capable to deal with stress and our confidence in ourselves has sky-rocketed. We don't need other's acceptance like we once did. Sure we still appreciate it but now we are happy just knowing that we have the power to do exactly what we want because in our souls we are free. Well, at least as free as we have ever felt. It's like the first day of summer holidays but everyday, all day. You might not realize it but many people are affraid of freedom. I know it sounds weird but you might be one of those people without realizing it. If you want to know if you are or not, just think about leaving your job and your home right now to go do whatever it is that you want to do and then just let the free unhindered life that's coming your way to unfold. Sounds good to me, how does it feel to you?
I guess I'll talk a little bit about our training. It is going quite well, our Sifu says we are picking things up faster then most. This might sound like bragging but things like this have always come easy to me. I didn't do very well in school except for Phys Ed so I know what it is that I am good at. When I was young and in school I felt that I couldn't keep up, not because I was stupid but because I had no interest. My talents were of a physical nature and I didn't have an outlet that people saw as a way to make money or get a job. Well I guess there was hockey and baseball but I didn't have enough interest. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I wish there was a different way to go through school then the one way that there is. If your not extremely smart or gifted then you just have to go through the school system the way it is given. Think about how much better school could be if you actually got to pick what you wanted to learn, even if you changed your mind 3 times a year. I would have kept learning about dinosaurs and outerspace, gym class would have been twice a day. Just from that which would have been my first choices I would have grown so much quicker and wider. Once a child knows it is their choice, their interest and ability to learn sky-rockets. Then studying and homework would be a plessure instead of a chore. I will stop with one more thing, think of all the people without a good education and then think what they could have been had they been able to make the decision in the beginning. I know for a fact that we all had those kids in our class that goofed off and would rather skip class then show up. Why did they do this? They did this because they were stronger then the rest of us, they didn't want to conform they just wanted the chance to express themselves fully but they couldn't because there wasn't anywhere for them to do that. Now they have shitty jobs and are looked down on by others that decided that I want a good job so I will do what is expected of me. I'm not putting these people down for doing well in school but why not look at the other people in this world that were missed and show them a little bit of love and appreciation. Whoops went a little off topic there.
Just what we have learned in one month amazes me. My skill level is much higher and my understanding of martial arts has done the same. It is so cool to learn how the structures of the Wing Chun movements can be so powerful, deceivingly powerful. You really don't need to be that strong to defeat a stronger opponent. The art of Wing Chun is said to be created by a women. I believe this because it is so practical and because of its yin nature. You don't face force with force, and even the punching works opposite to most arts. You pull back more then anything with one arm creating a great deal of outward force with the other. I am writing a lot of notes so soon I will be able to explain what it is that I am learning much better. It sure is fun though, I sure enjoy the training but of course am looking forward to being really good at the art. Also I am not just learning it to know it, I am learning it so I can someday teach it. I figure if I can teach the arts I love, then I will have the time to train the rest of my life instead of wasting my time working at a job that takes me away from what I love.
I hope this blog has not become boring. I will get better at writing my thoughts down so be patient, and your comments are appreciated too.
Martial Arts
Self Defense
Joe Self Defense
The Self Defense Company
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