Blog Feed: The Live Oak Dojo Blog

Studying with Ohno Sensei in Seattle

Published on 2011-10-06 13:12:00

I had never been to Seattle until I was invited by Ohno Sensei. Seattle was a nice place, different from Columbus, Ga. I guess what makes Seattle so special for me is that she lives there.I spent three weeks there being trained by her. It was very fantastic!She taught me how to dance Japanese traditional dance, singing and playing the Shamisen.Each sesion begain and ended in a bow.Her energy level was never ending and I was so tired at the end of each day.To help compensate her for all the lesso [..] > read more

Quitting the Dojo

Published on 2011-10-06 12:06:00

After you have been training at a Dojo and you decide you want to quit for some reason , there are two ways to do this , the graceful and dignified way and the ungraceful and undignified way. Here are some examples of the graceful and dignified way to quit:No. 1 Go to the Dojo tell your Sensei why you want to quit , then thank him for training you.Now here are some examples of the ungraceful and undignified way.No. 1 Quit dont come to the Dojo and do not say a word about it to your sensei .No. 2 [..] > read more

黒帯び Kuro Obi (Black Belt)

Published on 2011-09-06 09:48:00

I remember when my Sensei awarded me a Black Belt. I was very suprised because I thought to receive it would mean I was a great fighter with powerful skills. So I was kind of in a shock because I knew I did not have great skills and had no powerful skills! It was a joke? Guess not because the next week I was wearing a black belt. Wow!The reason why is that in Japan, a black belt is a basic mark of distinction of a member of the Dojo that has developed enough basic skill that will allow him to ge [..] > read more

Year End Dojo Cleaning

Published on 2010-12-25 07:49:00

Your last class of the year has come and the new year is right around the corner. In our Dojo back in Japan I was asked to come and help clean up the Dojo to prepare it for the next year,I gladly accepted.When I got to the Dojo there were students fr > read more

AARUGHA or OOH-RAH ! Marines Spirited War Cry

Published on 2010-11-26 10:26:00

The OOH-RAH , the spirited USA Marine war cry is used as a sign of enthusiasm and uplifting one self.The origins, I read , come from the World War Two submarine diving Klaxon which made the sound AARUGHA just before if dove under the sea.I have > read more

先生　Sensei

Published on 2010-07-05 15:23:00

After I got permission to teach martial arts from my Sensei, I came back to my home town and opened a Dojo and began teaching. The students would ask me what they could call me. Some of them would ask me, shall we call you Sensei? , I could not > read more

Every thing is Kata 形

Published on 2010-04-12 16:19:00

When I begain learning Taichi, my Sensei would show me the form and then ask me to repeat it.I would try , but it was difficult to do. My legs would wobble from the pressure of trying to keep low and I would loose my balance and stumble. So at > read more

Seven Principles to Live By

Published on 2010-04-11 13:12:00

Gi : The right decision, taken with equanamity,the right attitude,the truth. When we must die, we must die. Rectitude.Yu : Bravery,tinged with heroism.Jin : Universal love, benevolence toward mankind; compassionRei : Right action a most assential qua > read more

Is your martial arts training working for you?

Published on 2010-03-18 16:27:22

One of the reasons that I keep teaching martial arts is because of all of the benefits that I have received from my training. What benefits?Well the most apparent would be self defense and health.Lets take a look at self defense. Are you sure that yo > read more

Mars the Roman God of War and MMA

Published on 2010-03-11 13:46:00

Mars, the Roman God of war ,(fourth planet from the sun),shines with the color red resembling blood, very appropriate for the God of war.He is characterized as a god who took savage delight in slaughter, and the hordes of slain upon the battlefield w > read more

Hanami　花見　Flower Viewing

Published on 2010-03-10 07:06:00

Hanami　花見　Flower ViewingI always look forward to the arrival of Spring. I love all of the young green sprouts and shoots. Watching the young sprigs develop into bigger leaves. Bulging flower blossoms on the stem of a tree or bush just pressin > read more

UFC and Hitting Below the Belt!

Published on 2010-03-04 13:45:00

I new the UFC had rules but I did not know there were 31 of them. I would say more like 19 of them truly relate to physical fighting technique, e.g., striking certain areas and throwing over the ropes etc… I guess spitting on some one and cursing a > read more

UFC and Mixed Martial Arts

Published on 2010-03-03 13:08:00

I often get phone calls from people who have watched the MMA or UFC fights and they ask me if I teach that kind of stuff. I tell them no. But, actually I do teach a lot of hand to hand combat. A whole lot more than what they are going to find in a cl > read more

Laughable Determination

Published on 2010-03-02 13:35:00

After discharging from the Navy in 1983 I decided to stay in Japan and live with my wife who was Japanese.Just to stay in Japan you have to apply for a visa. In my case I needed a residential visa. To apply , you must have a doctors report on the con > read more