First Cut

Today at Wakaba.

Sahla sensei + other senior at Wakaba weren't there, so there is no formal teaching... On the Second half of the Iaido/Jodo class, 5 of us just go for Seitei #1-12, with ME LEADING THE CLASS... what the hell...???

The day was HOT and by that I meant when I did To-rei at the beginning of the class I was already sweating crazily.

Kata was a bit--- hmmm --- The beginners are struggling with #4. Yes I wanted to do all the way to #7, but no good senpai around to do it with me. Argh.

Was "forced" to go with the beginners class doing footwork and suburi -- yes I feel like a beginner as Miyamura was leading the class, and I was just "part of the group".

Not much energy left but --- I still have the adult mawari-keiko to deal with!!!

My kendo went a bit too "bendy" recently. I blame it to my eye sight, which is getting worse day by day... Basically I always tilt my head to the left!! Hence all my cuts went a bit too much to the left side, or that I am using too much right arm power. I spend a lot of my focus twisting my head back to the right. So unnatural to me, but that is the right thing to do now.

There is a trick about cutting kote -- that your right foot stamp slightly to the middle-left, passing the shinai in the opponent's center. It worked n-th time today I GOT THE FIRST CUT (Sho-dachi).

Maybe I am just too paranoid to have a conspiracy theory about people not fighting serious against me. When they see me standing opposite them, they will just thing "Ah, Jenny, Whatever". So they relax and let ME cut them.

I tried a lot of things I wanted to improve today, like the plain kote, kote-men, harai-kote/men, and gyaku-dou. Only the Kote on the FIRST CUT works brilliantly, while everything else was so like random hitting. Sho-dachi is just plain and straight, and it feels great at the point of impact. But then after the class when I reflect on it, it's like I am only hitting them by suprise, not particularly great cut afterall...

Gibson and Ogawa told me not to go on the right side too much (I KNOW, goddamnit!) either too much right hand or my cuts are coming from the right side. Also my harai or nidan-waza should go a little bit more forward (mind the distance). So really. Nothing impressive, even though I did 2 cool kote-men agaisnt both of them.

Took 2 breaks during the mawari-keiko. I was really looking forward not to drop out in the middle of the rotation. But it was just too hot. Maybe if I wasn't doing Iaido before hand, then I'd stay longer. That or I am just making up my excuse. Arrrgh.

I really have to stop going bendy and keep my bacl straight, especially after the kote in kote-men.