Do you think I'm slightly obsessed by my upcoming belt test? I've run through a couple of forms today at work, that's how obsessed I am!! LOL! I'm ready for it, I tell you that! I'd like to get it done TODAY! I'm not ready for it but...that would be the thing for me.
I had to send an email to Miss A's PE teacher. I told her that I wasn't fighting her battles, but that she's been the brunt of some verbal abuse (and sock throwing) in the locker room. Junior High girls are MEAN! First they told her that she "dresses weird" because she doesn't wear high fashion clothes. I'm NOT dressing her up as a BS Wanna Be. I'm sorry, but that isn't gonna fly. I'd much rather see her wearing jeans and tee shirts. If the other girls don't like it, too flipping bad! They have no right to call her names...well, yeah, I guess they do, but...I don't want her to have that stigma. If the coach can't get the girls under control, Miss A is going to have to bite her tongue a lot. I just can't stand that they're treating her like they are. I wish I could do something but I had a few people at work jump up and tell me to let her fight her own battles.
I HOPE that I've done some good for her.
Lunch is over for me so I have to go answer the phones again. The fun never ends.
Friday, September 14, 2007
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Pretest is over
I've finished my pretesting so I'm ready for next Friday. He looked at my list of breaks and said that he thought I may have an issue with the Axe kick. An Axe kick is where you raise your leg up over a board, then bring it down sharply and go through the board with your heel first. A knife hand break is where you break a board with the 'blade' of your hand (that's the outside part of your hand). I am perfectly capable of doing both of those breaks. I have all the confidence in the world that I WILL make my breaks.
Mr. M told me last night that I need to *believe* that I am capable of doing my forms. I have an assignment for the next several days--I'm supposed to look at myself in the mirror and tell myself, "I am a GREAT martial artist!" I started out by telling my cat this morning that I was a great martial artist. He was not impressed.
Mr. M told me last night that I need to *believe* that I am capable of doing my forms. I have an assignment for the next several days--I'm supposed to look at myself in the mirror and tell myself, "I am a GREAT martial artist!" I started out by telling my cat this morning that I was a great martial artist. He was not impressed.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
School picture
I am on a roll today with the posts! I have posted more today than I normally do. Must be just because I've been at lunch.
Anyway...here are some pictures because I don't share very often.
9 days
The test is only 9 days away. Today I have to decide what I'm going to break boards with and then write it on an index card. I have to give my instructor my index card tonight when I pre-test on my forms. I think I'm going to do a front snap kick, elbow break, an axe kick and a side kick. I'm THINKING about a ridge hand break as well. Either that or an inverted knife hand. I have to find out if it's allowed. I just used my boss as a guinea pig for an inverted knife chop. Hmmmm.
I think I'll just send a quick email to Mr. M and ask him if those are okay. I think I'll do the front snap kick last as it's most impressive after all the others. We shall see. I'm gonna be sooo tired...
I think I'll just send a quick email to Mr. M and ask him if those are okay. I think I'll do the front snap kick last as it's most impressive after all the others. We shall see. I'm gonna be sooo tired...
Aidan is working my last nerve. I love him dearly, but...Yesterday I got called to pick him up from school early. He apparently provoked another kid into spitting on him by calling him names. The other child is in Ms. Beaver's class and from what Aidan told me, other kids were calling him "Beaver". Aidan jumped right in but carried it too far. He and the other child don't like each other anyway, so when he poked the guy in the chest, he retaliated by spitting at him.
Okay, so that earned him a "lonely lunch". THEN...I found out that he also spelled out a word that begins with sixth letter of the alphabet. WHERE he picked it up, *I* have no clue! He SAYS he saw it on the Internet, on a website that was "Sonic vs. Mario". My best friend hasn't heard of that and she asked her 17 year old son about it. I don't allow him to watch movies or television shows that are higher than TV-G. Sometimes PG (as in Harry Potter) but it's all dependent on what I think he can handle.
Anyway, the language was the last straw. The school called me and told me to pick him up yesterday, so I left work early and he left school early. I introduced him to a bar of Zest soap for the word. He calmly repeated the word to me and told me it was "bad word number eight." I was shocked. I try to keep my language under control at home. I know that children are great parrots and can repeat *anything* you don't want them to say.
And, poor Amanda is getting left behind in the shuffle because her brother's acting up. I now have to get with her and give her a lot more attention because I don't want her to suffer for his behavior. I found out today that she has 12 assignments due this week. She's already lost out on one of them. She took a 0 on it because it wasn't turned in. I don't know about the rest of her assignments. That's something we're going to work on today. I'll get her started on that when she gets home from school and again when she gets home from Martial Arts.
Right now I'm feeling like I'm failing at being a mom. I don't want either of my kids to fail and to that end, I have to work harder at being there for them. I just don't know how to get it into the little boy's head that school is not a big joke. His teachers all said that he's very smart but he's learning to manipulate the system. I hope that the mouthful of soap helped to enforce that I want him to THINK about his behavior.
With Amanda, I know that she's also very smart and that she can do the work, but she's got to have an example of organization laid out in front of her. I want her to be a very successful 7th grader.
Okay, so that earned him a "lonely lunch". THEN...I found out that he also spelled out a word that begins with sixth letter of the alphabet. WHERE he picked it up, *I* have no clue! He SAYS he saw it on the Internet, on a website that was "Sonic vs. Mario". My best friend hasn't heard of that and she asked her 17 year old son about it. I don't allow him to watch movies or television shows that are higher than TV-G. Sometimes PG (as in Harry Potter) but it's all dependent on what I think he can handle.
Anyway, the language was the last straw. The school called me and told me to pick him up yesterday, so I left work early and he left school early.
And, poor Amanda is getting left behind in the shuffle because her brother's acting up. I now have to get with her and give her a lot more attention because I don't want her to suffer for his behavior. I found out today that she has 12 assignments due this week. She's already lost out on one of them. She took a 0 on it because it wasn't turned in. I don't know about the rest of her assignments. That's something we're going to work on today. I'll get her started on that when she gets home from school and again when she gets home from Martial Arts.
Right now I'm feeling like I'm failing at being a mom. I don't want either of my kids to fail and to that end, I have to work harder at being there for them.
With Amanda, I know that she's also very smart and that she can do the work, but she's got to have an example of organization laid out in front of her. I want her to be a very successful 7th grader.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
12 days away
The Black Belt test is only 12 days away. Am I ready? That's debatable. I know my forms and as long as I do NOT look at the kids around me and just go with what I know (including getting lots of practice on Nahainchi Cho Dan this week so that my transitions are proper!!!), I should be okay. I've got to review my one steps, but that's not that much of a problem. I only need to know 1-12 on those. We have sparring AND we have the dreaded Ho Sin Sul (self defense!). I am NOT too comfortable with the Ho Sin Sul, but I'll deal with it. I've got this week and most of next week to practice. I really don't want to spar. I have this horrible habit of laughing and giggling like a fool whenever I start sparring with someone. That has GOT to stop! I'll feel like an idiot in my sparring gear (first time I've worn it!)
We haven't been practicing the bong forms, so I won't be doing that at the test. Mr. M is going to have us do technique (for an hour!!!), 100 jumping jacks (yuuuuuuck!!!) and a minute's worth of push ups. I can do one minute of pushups! I did 38 of them in a minute today. I know, it's a pitiful number but...Mr. M says that for my age, it's acceptable. If I push it, I can build up on that number before the test.
When we did the jumping jacks in class, we all counted up to 50, then he had us stop and start again. We counted 1-9 and everyone yelled 10, then up, with everyone joining in on the even numbers (10, 20, 30, 40, 50). It looks good, sounds good and it's going to be that way. He said that when the counting stops, you stop. Period. Don't keep jumping. Hey, I'm all for that!!
We went over some basic technique. I'm standing in between two kids and there will be another taller young man right behind me. I have to make absolutely sure I do NOT kick that kid in front of me in the back! It won't be a good thing to do. LOL!!
I pre-test on Wednesday. Have to know all of my forms, my one steps and my Ho Sin Sul. This is to make sure that I really WILL be ready. Mr. M tells me he's not worried about me, but *I* am worried about me! I shouldn't be, but I am. I've had dreams where Kwan Jang Nim St. James has been grading me, looking at my forms and technique and then stops the test to ask WHY I'm in the test! I realize that he won't do that, but it was a dream.
I'm pre-testing on Wednesday. My partner is a young lady named Holly. She'll come in and pre-test with me on my Ho Sin Sul and one steps. Once we've done those, he'll let us know if we're definitely testing on the 21st. If we can get past the pre-test, it'll be a downhill slide. I have to remember to take myself off to the black belt class on Thursday because it was a good thing to go to. I may start adding that into my regime. I have to be up at the school on Thursday for the Young Warriors class so I may as well just stay to work on the black belt class as well.
We haven't been practicing the bong forms, so I won't be doing that at the test. Mr. M is going to have us do technique (for an hour!!!), 100 jumping jacks (yuuuuuuck!!!) and a minute's worth of push ups. I can do one minute of pushups! I did 38 of them in a minute today. I know, it's a pitiful number but...Mr. M says that for my age, it's acceptable. If I push it, I can build up on that number before the test.
When we did the jumping jacks in class, we all counted up to 50, then he had us stop and start again. We counted 1-9 and everyone yelled 10, then up, with everyone joining in on the even numbers (10, 20, 30, 40, 50). It looks good, sounds good and it's going to be that way. He said that when the counting stops, you stop. Period. Don't keep jumping. Hey, I'm all for that!!
We went over some basic technique. I'm standing in between two kids and there will be another taller young man right behind me. I have to make absolutely sure I do NOT kick that kid in front of me in the back! It won't be a good thing to do. LOL!!
I pre-test on Wednesday. Have to know all of my forms, my one steps and my Ho Sin Sul. This is to make sure that I really WILL be ready. Mr. M tells me he's not worried about me, but *I* am worried about me! I shouldn't be, but I am. I've had dreams where Kwan Jang Nim St. James has been grading me, looking at my forms and technique and then stops the test to ask WHY I'm in the test! I realize that he won't do that, but it was a dream.
I'm pre-testing on Wednesday. My partner is a young lady named Holly. She'll come in and pre-test with me on my Ho Sin Sul and one steps. Once we've done those, he'll let us know if we're definitely testing on the 21st. If we can get past the pre-test, it'll be a downhill slide. I have to remember to take myself off to the black belt class on Thursday because it was a good thing to go to. I may start adding that into my regime. I have to be up at the school on Thursday for the Young Warriors class so I may as well just stay to work on the black belt class as well.
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