From charlyoaks@HOTMAIL.COM Wed May 27 11:52:23 1998
Date: Mon, 25 May 1998 13:47:46 PDT
From: Charles Oaks
Reply-To: Aikido List
To: AIKIDO-L@LISTS.PSU.EDU
Subject: aikido-list seminar review
Aikido-List seminar.
What a delightful event!
Where to start?
I was able to meet many of the listjin finally. No one looked like
what I expected. Everyone acted much better than I expected. I think
everyone had a great time.
Sorry I missed all the afterhours parties. Someone else can tell about
those.
All the Sensei were impressive. Their martial prowess honed from their
years of mat time and study, their wisdom earned from hard work and
painful experience, their humor and capability to not take themselves
seriously, but their ruthless dedication to this strange and wonderful
practice was humbling to a dabbler like myself. Especially when I saw
two of the Sensei had serious medical problems and came anyway and
taught us so much.
I'm not going to review the Sensei's teachings, in a throw-by-throw way.
I can tell those of you who did not come it was.........
.............it was:
- fun
- surprising
- hard to duplicate and frustrating to try (yeah, all Aikido is this
way)
- amusing to hilarious at times
- disturbing and uncomfortable at other times
- damn near religiously solemn on occasion
- enlightening
Hiroki(?) Izumi Sensei also showed up and taught a quick, funny,
high-speed, low-drag class that tickled me no end. I've been wanting
to meet this Rocky since one of his students, who'd been sidelined
from Aikido for 5 years from a severe auto wreck, restarted his
practice with our dojo. I heard many Rocky stories from Shannon. I
wasn't disappointed.
Some quick images.
- Jim Baker, Janet Rosen and Cady doing Three Stooges Aikido,
followed by Jim doing some weird New York Tai Chi with obscene
gestures.
- Aaron Clark's ukemi not only for his father, but also Hooker
Sensei and Izumi Sensei and Gordon Sensei.
- Simcox Sensei floating.
- Escobar Sensei "Uke is not trash."
- Hooker Sensei having a stand-in for his group photo.
- Gordon Sensei's kneel on the hands kokyu-ho.
- Clark Sensei's "grab my finger" throw (not what you think).
- Izumi Sensei's "Queen of England Aikido is good.
Beavis and Butthead Cornholio Aikido is Bad."
To those of you missed it: too bad. It was beyond words.
To those who were there: it was great to meet you all.
Let's do this again!
Charly Oaks
College Station, Texas
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