Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Putting USSD to the test.

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Putting USSD to the test.

    So I'm going try something silly here, something mildly hilarious, and hopefully I won't endanger my immortal soul. I'm going to take a class at USSD. I'm not going to pay for it, they offer one free class. There's a place near my house apparently, and so I'm going to engage in a crazed experiment, and take a class at USSD for fun during my upcoming vacation. Anyone who's in LA and wants to join in can come, it'll be good for a laugh and we can get drunk afterwards, and maybe beforehand too.

    I'll give a full report after I try it out.
    Show me a man who has forgotten words, so that I can have a word with him.

  • #2
    You did something silly.

    You put this in the wrong category. I'm moving it, lol...
    Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

    "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

    (more comments in my User Profile)
    russbo.com


    Comment


    • #3
      LOL..

      Well, just make sure you write it up for us....

      A guy over at KFM forums just wrote up about his trip to a Shaolin Do school.
      practice wu de

      Comment


      • #4
        Sounds good DDJ, when were you planning on going, maybe I'll join you. I've gone to one of their Mcdojos before, and it's always been a enjoyable experience in a weird, twisted, and sick way.
        "For some reason I'm in a good mood today. I haven't left the house yet, though. "

        "fa hui, you make buddhism sexy." -Zachsan

        "Friends don't let friends do Taekwondo." -Nancy Reagan

        Comment


        • #5
          man, i just want to train with wookiees. if there's no wookiees, count me out.

          Comment


          • #6
            Let's see.... I've got finals till a week from this friday, and after that I'm on vacation for two weeks. So, anytime during that period is opened, except sunday mornings, and a random 3 day trip to mexico at some point. What's good for your schedule fa hui?
            Show me a man who has forgotten words, so that I can have a word with him.

            Comment


            • #7
              Anytime basically in July, except the week of the 19th. I have jury duty that week. Why don't you just email me and we'll talk about it from there, cool?
              "For some reason I'm in a good mood today. I haven't left the house yet, though. "

              "fa hui, you make buddhism sexy." -Zachsan

              "Friends don't let friends do Taekwondo." -Nancy Reagan

              Comment


              • #8
                It was a beautiful day outside, sunny, light breeze, birds singing in the trees and cars humming and whizzing by along the streets.

                As I approached 11th and Broadway I felt the unmistakable sensation of a bowel movement brewing. No problem, I was early and had plenty of time to use the bathroom before my free lesson at USSD began.

                There was a plastic, punching bag style dummy sitting outside the door. But they'd neglected to weigh the base down with water or sand. I poked it lightly and it fell over. After returning it to an upright position I ventured inside. The place felt like an office building. It was cool, clean, and had a sterilized sensation to it. It smelled like air conditioner and cleaning products.

                After I used their bathroom I returned to speak with the head instructor. I had made the mistake of betraying my intentions to another instructor when I scheduled this free class, because he was a nice fellow and he had asked. I made it clear that I was looking for a job, and not looking for a place to pay hard earned money for training. He asked what martial arts experience I had that could merit my involvement in their organization, and I explained that I had a great deal to share in terms of grappling, joint manipulations, and qigong. They asked how long I'd been practicing martial arts, and I told them the truth yet again. Almost 14 years now, the majority of my young life.

                I realized quickly that I was doing something mildly insane. I was attempting to introduce something fluid, dynamic, and alive into a staticly structured organization which had no interest in change or flow. But i was sure that this would be a fruitful experience, that if I could merely walk in with an open heart, express myself and listen to the expression of other selves, then all would go well. Even if they couldn't help me out, they'd do their best to put me in touch with someone who could. Or so I thought.

                So I sat down with head instructor of the dojo, and we talked. We had a rather intense conversation about the martial arts in general, about his views, about what ussd had to offer me. He talked in depth about the importance of tradition, and structure, and how it could be very detrimental to a martial artist's training for him to study several different styles over the years. It was a conversational interaction of yin and yang. He stressed the hard, so I stressed the soft. He talked about structure, I reminded him of the importance of amorphousness. He talked about how vital lineage was, I respectfully declined to mention that sometimes traditions must be broken.

                He talked of the importance of masters, I mentioned the importance of mastering yourself.

                He told me that I was an individual who seemed to know to much for my own good. That I knew so much philosophy as to be detrimental to my training. I said that might well be true, but that curse has been laid on many men before me. After all, didn't things go fine in Eden until people ate from the tree of knowledge? I've always beleived that if I understood the training principle and theory, they would greatly enrich my practice, and allow me to make much more progress than would otherwise be possible.

                We agreed that giving me a free lesson in "shaolin kempo" would be pretty useless. I had already built a different foundation than the sort they were constructing for they're students.

                He looked as if he really wanted me to beleive his point of view. I would listen to it, objectively understand what he meant, and then return to my own view of things, content to listen with an open heart. But I didn't beleive his words. He asked me why I thought the Abbot of shaolin temple had such a good relationship with ussd. He showed me a picture of Demasco with the Yongxin. I pointed out as kindly as possible that the relationship was political. Of course the abbot would want to start a good relationship with a major corporation which is intent on increasing proliferation and demand upon the teachings of the temple, however bastardized they may be.

                I beleive my words were a bit gentler then that however, and it was enough to explain the political nature of the relationship to him. The look on his face was quite interesting when I explained that if it hadn't been USSD, it would have been any other large corporate union of martial arts schools, because that's what the abbot needed in the U.S.

                He explained how I needed to focus on one style and one master in order to get "there". Because I wasn't "there", but he was "there". He had his own dojo, I did not. I neglected to mention to him that perhaps "there" is a road and not a dojo, and perhaps I was "there" and he couldn't see my way from the windows of his office.

                We parted company on good terms, and I learned from the encounter that if one is to develop their own style, it is vital to remember that the gongfu does not belong to you. It is not your creation. It has existed longer than you have in this incarnation, and we are but a conduit for the manefestation of the martial arts.
                Show me a man who has forgotten words, so that I can have a word with him.

                Comment


                • #9
                  I study Shaolin Kempo Karate, and alot of people in the school have studied other martial arts. There was a guy who had studied fencing, he was pretty good. Other people have studyied tai kwon do, other kali.

                  I can understand what he was saying to the point, I don't think someone knows what they are doing with a weapon till they have studied a few years. Sure they might win a fight, with a few basic things but they are taking a chance.

                  one thing too, is that he may not know you. He may think you are pretty good, but he doesn't know how you would teach the class. Insurance costs alot for injuries.

                  You may want to offer to teach a class gong fu class. He may think you want to start teaching shaolin kempo right off. I dont' know, I wasn't there. Just some thoughts on the matter.

                  What i'm curious to know, is what do you think the different base is?
                  http://www.blogger.com/profile/16155538

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Well, I simply offered to assist teaching classes, in terms of qigong and other excercises approved by the instuctor, in addition, being someone who is flexible and can take falls well, I would be good for demonstrating techniques in class. This is what I told him I had to offer.

                    The different base I spoke of is more mental than anything else. I'll save you the trouble of attempting to describe how I think, and the even more difficult task of explaining the thoughts of this red-faced man who looked like he suffered from liver fire.
                    Show me a man who has forgotten words, so that I can have a word with him.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      They're talking about lineage?

                      Is lineage something that shoujld be altered or added to?
                      Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                      "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                      (more comments in my User Profile)
                      russbo.com


                      Comment


                      • #12
                        it's perfectly OK to alter or add to lineage, as long as you're a wookiee.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          They're talking about lineage?
                          Same thing I was thinking...lol
                          practice wu de

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Yes, comically enough they stress the importance of concrete (or fraudelently well documented) lineage.

                            Frankly I've always been one to question and break tradition, but still value it heavily if I can understand it. I think there's a value to the evolution of things as well as a value for tradition.
                            Show me a man who has forgotten words, so that I can have a word with him.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              the tradition always was evolution, something that a lot of traditional MA students today tend to disregard.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X