Sensei’s Blog

Further to my post on koryu legitimacy and folks claiming to be or opining about soke and headmasters and whatnot. I have been having multiple discussions with very senior folks for the last few months who have expressed a large desire to simply practice and get out of all these concerns, claims and counterclaims of … Continue reading Just Practice – August 14, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

I had a rather interesting dream last night. Was talking to a friend or a student, not sure which, but they were working on their doctorate and I was sort of thinking that I should be doing that too. Then I realized that I was almost 60 and it was too late to make a … Continue reading Economics for Budo – August 12, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

Just recovering with a large dark roast at my local cafe in Calgary (a Starbucks, I'm in the suburbs) taking an inventory of all my aches and pains. My forearms took a beating this weekend after three days of practice (always feels like four since we drive from Calgary to Edmonton for a class and … Continue reading Nothing to say – 11 Aug 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

People confuse organizations with arts, but there is a good reason for that. Large growth is easiest with a good organization.A budo doesn't need an organization, at least one beyond the dojo level. If there is a teacher and students, that's enough to carry on and even to grow the art. An organization, on the … Continue reading Growth – August 6, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

I was just asked about Iaido judging scorecards, what they look like, how they are used, pass-fail, out of ten. So here is the situation as we do it in the CKF and as I approach judging.First, if it's kyu gradings, only 1kyu has any sort of assessment from the CKF. Grades of 2kyu and … Continue reading Judging Scorecards – August 3, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

Karate Session Runs: Tuesday 23 Sep 2014 - Saturday 13 Dec 2014 Iaido/Jodo Session Runs: Sunday 28 Sep 2014 Sunday 14 Dec 2014  Fall Registration Dates:      Members:  Friday 08 Aug 2014 at 6am Non-Members:  Friday 05 Sep 2014 at 7am Karate 13+ Tuesday and Thursday 730pm-930pm Saturday 230pm - 430pm Karate 7 - 12 … Continue reading YMCA Fall Registration Begins

Martial arts techniques are physical movements and are amenable to motion capture, video, books, diagrams, notes, dance notation, and just about anything else you can use to capture physical movement. It would not be hard to preserve the shape of any practice.In a more complicated aspect, the martial arts are also lots of stuff beyond … Continue reading Serious About Koryu? – July 27, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

Volume, Volume...In the last couple of days I may have had a tone that suggested that it isn't a good thing to start your own club (as in "if you can't listen to your sensei and think you know more than he does, go teach and stop bothering him") but teaching on your own isn't … Continue reading How Do We Do It, How Do We Do It – July 23, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

I mentioned that sometimes you just have to admit to yourself that it's time to leave the dojo and start your own class. Some figure this process is inevitable and is a result of "shu ha ri" the way we learn budo.It's not inevitable, and shu ha ri (keep break leave) is not a suggestion … Continue reading When to leave (shu ha ri) – July 22, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan

Recently I've realized that folks don't understand how the grading system in the kendo federation works. I've explained this before but new folks come in and other folks don't bother to question their assumptions from other arts.First, a kendo federation grade doesn't always come from Japan. You won't have a ZNKR grade unless you get … Continue reading The Way It Works – July 20, 2014, Kim Taylor, Renshi, CI Sei Do Kai Guelph ON, Nanadan