All Those Ippons...

Last week I was spend the Saturday resting my left ankle. I still have no idea what's the cause...

Anyhow, the Iaido practice was fine. Spending the first hour self-evaluating all the Seitei, spying on the Jodo class, plus doing the 4 kihon with Lukas (he fixed my moving tsuba!). The second hour was like, first half Seitei #1-12 (me leading... how strange). Then the second half Sahla came over from the beginner's half and teaches... FIVE MSR kata!! All so nuts... especially the 270-degree knee spin... and Sahla sensei does it waaay too fast... uhmm before I didn't know, but now I have to agree with the rest of the Iaido people that Sahla has such "flair"...

Yes I was back there teaching Kendo Kata #1 to a beginner again.
... and become a motodachi for the kendo beginners' session. I quite like it now, after Honda Sensei said being a good motodachi will help your kendo.

Then there goes the Wakaba mawari-geiko. It's difficult to fight people who don't cut clean and with poor zanshin... Sometimes it's beginners, but some are from the Nidan group... It's just less enjoyable fighting these people, nothing personal.

One round I had was with one of the Koyama brothers (aged 8-9!!). Wasn't going to destroy them, but when the keiko finished I did get to tell him, "5 of your Men I really like. Well done!"

Something strange is happening... because despite I hurt my other ankle (!), I scored a few of the Sho-dachi (the first cut), against a lot of the seniors!!! This is the second time I fought Sahla (the first time being last Sep at Imperial -- which my lungs was exhausted and I was made to run around...) Maybe this time he is tired or whatever. But my Sho-dachi was like, get up from sonkyo, kiai, KOTE-----!!! When I get to tai-atari he was still in complete shock!!

After the practice his comment was, "aaaah Jenny, maybe you don't realize it, but you can be very good ...blah blah blah." Uhmm nah I don't realize anything, apart from that I feel he is quite annoyed by that particular Ippon...

My left wrist was hurt yesterday. I can't grip properly... and my right ankle is in pain.. argh. When I fought Eddy I switched into JODAN -- just to change the force of power to the other side of my body. I find my katate-kote pops really well, when I do it in the way Chiba sensei taught at the last IKET. Although I attempt switching into left-foot-forward stance, it was proven to be a failure as the power is terribly imbalanced...

The last fight I fought Gibson, who feels like in Jodan. No one wins a clean sho-dachi (phew), but I find it difficult to block Men... probably forgot to take seigan... Miserably missed 4 tsuki, though one of the migi-kote-men I did was brilliant -- but tenouchi went a bit crap after the Men.... uhmm all those bad habits are showing when I am tired.

This is the day Ideguchi-san left. I missed his fight (too many people queuing anyway), but I saw him fighting the Koyama brothers -- 2 vs 1!! Just fun.

Just when I thought I am not going to stay in the pub after 10pm --- everybody went for a meal afterwards!!! Went home at 2am which isn't too bad as it wasn't as cold as the weeks before, and also my stomach is filled.