Dragon's Class

Today when I walked into Dragon's class I was greeted with, "Hello Mr. Adam. Hi Mr. Adam....' Over and over. I think the kids got a little lecture from their behavior last week. That didn't stop me from doing one of my own though.
"We are going to learn the Kung Fu rules. Kwai gui." and then the rest was in Cantonese. If you see Sifu bow. If you want to call me a name, it is Sifu, Adam Sifu, or Sifu Adam. And make sure you bow when you do so. Now I have told you the rules, so you know them. If you broke the rules before.. you didn't know them. But now you do know the rules. So breaking them is a different matter. One of the teachers helpers followed up again in Cantonese after I translated into English.
Then we started out with Basics, instead of wheels on the bus. Counting in Cantonese, then Mandarin, then Taishanese. No English. They all speak English already. When they get to this class, they are already completely Americans in the way they think and speak. 10 basics each, then a new section of a form or what I like to call a kiddie form. Lion Dance, individual Kung Fu, and then we ended with Wheels on the bus and slow Kung Fu.
A lot more girls volunteered and the teacher's helper commented, "The more they do it the better they get." It's true. It seemed like they actually understood what they were doing now.
At the end of class it was goodbye Sifu Adam, and praise was given by the teacher for giving polite goodbyes.

Apana Chang and Charlie Chan

Apana Chang is the real man who Charlie Chan is loosely based on. I say loosely because Apana Chang is so bad ass that you simply have to read more about him to know what I am talking about. A real American  Hawaiian Cowboy, and a police detective, he carried around a bullwhip instead of a gun and wore a Panama hat. I think Indiana Jones was also based on a Charlie Chan Chang Apana Combo made white.
There have been many Charlie Chan movies, and now a bunch of Ip Man and Wong Fei Hung movies. There needs to be an Apana Chang movie. First of all you wouldn't even have to make anything up for at least the first one. Where to make Wong Fei Hung, Ip Man's, and Fok Yun Gap's lives more exciting, all sorts of fictitious events have to be created, Apana Chang has well documented bad assery in newspapers. And if you ever did want to make stuff up, Sun Yat Sen was in Honolulu around the same time as Apana.
The movie could be (like I heard Iron Man 3 was) a joint U.S. China production. Apana Chang (marketed as the original Charlie Chan) has plenty of fans already in the U.S. All the old Charlie Chan fans will be curious and plus a Kung Fu Western, Hawaii movie... it will make it in the U.S. Plus it will be easily Marketable in China. After reading a novel where Apana popped up as a minor character
I had to find out more about him and so I borrowed a book from the Library.

Yuante Huang's "Charlie Chan The untold story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous with American History" This book ends up being about a lot more than Apana Chang and Charlie Chan. It's about Chinatowns in general, Chinese and yellowface actors, Fu Manchu and Sax Rohmer, Hollywood, Anna May Wong, basically it is about Chinese America and also the "colored" America because talking about Yellowface, you have to talk about blackface. And the history of Hawaii involves a lot of racial political tension  And there is a bit about the author himself.
If there is such a thing as Chinese street cred Yuante Huang has it. He was one of the Chinese students protesting at Tianamen square but his parents tricked him into coming home before the big crackdown on the pretense that his mother was gravely ill. He immigrated to Alabama where despite his education he had to open up a Chinese Take Out joint to earn a living. Later he would become a Harvard professor. If anyone knows about the different walks of life of a Chinese American I think it's him.

Anyway Yuante Huang's book is a must read for Chinese Americans or anyone interested in Chinese American culture, or American Culture really.

Dunkin Donuts vs. Chinese Bakeries

Chinese Bakeries, the kind where you get baos and a coffee are not only cheaper than Dunkin Donuts, the system of the place is just more efficient. I just got an egg sandwich at a Dunkin Donuts and there was no line, but it still took quite a long time to finally get my sandwich. There were two women doing back up and two at the register. I've seen two women serve like 20 customers at a bao place within that time. Are Chinese workers in general better  at making change in high stress situations? Maybe but actually Dunkin Donuts has the fancy machines that make change for you. The difference is the baos are already made. The donuts are already made too but the sandwiches are made to order (sort of.) If I am looking for something healthy and fresh, I don't go to dunkin donuts.
It got me thinking again how the Chinese Bakery should be able start a competitive chain if it was marketed differently. Fist of all, there is too much variety for Americans. Which means there is too much possibility of Asian girls rediscovering their Chineseness in college to look at all the options and ask what is inside each one oblivious to the line of pissed of Pau Paus behind them trying to get an order of like 50 baos to bring to their Mah Jong clique. And for all that explaining and cultural exchange the bakery gets $2.00 at the most out of them. For that kind of service, the bakery should just run an after hours workshop where the college kids learn to make a bao or something and pay for it as an adult education class.
Four or Five types of Baos. Maybe 10 at the most. Big ass combo pictures just like Dunkin Donuts. You need some cool names like Big Mac too, except asian it up. That doesn't mean say it Chinese. It means follow Kung Fu panda's example with DRagon Warrior Size. Or more like Kung Fu Baos, Samurai Baos, Ninja Baos, Monk's Bao for vegetarian Hung Dao baos. Or if you want to stay more Culturally authentic.. Mo Chung and Mo dai long baos. Pictures of said heroes and shortening of names required.

Then there's the drinks. Bakeries hardly ever push their drinks, unless it is the Pearl Milk Tea and other variants whose craze is really over and plus those things got really sucky when they started just being powder.

There needs to be a new craze. And call me crazy but  I definitely believe that Lerng Cha, whn marketed properly, can actually take of in America. Too bitter? Please, isn't coffee bitter? Do plenty of Americans, especially women, not pound drinks either for or to the great detriment of their health despite the fact that they hate the taste of it?

Ha gu cho needs to be sold as Haiku Grass. But it's not Japanese. So what, fortune cookies are and Chinese people sell them.

The concoctions of Lerng Cha cocktails I make should be called Gwai Lo's nightmare... daring them to drink it. Actually since not everyone knows that term, that's how it would be written in Chinese. In English it would say Gringo's nightmare. We're not Spanish? Who cares! Whites get that kind of thing mixed up all the time and Grino is a term they are more comfortable with. Plus it will double dare them to drink it. And if some super yeet hei fat dude drinks that stuff when his nose is all bleeding and he feels the cooling healthful effect. He will be back for more despite the bitter taste. In fact, Lerng Cha will become the Nicorette or patch for people trying to stop drinking Coffee or Caffeine in general.

Kung Fu Progress

Today it was just two families, including me at the playgroup. But actually this is easier to handle. I ran through a different segment of sup ji with them. Jonah didn't really follow along that much. I guess nothing had been able to surpass the Kung Fu wheels on the bus so far. I guess I have to somehow turn the itsy bitsy spider into Kung Fu moves.
Oh BTW, lat Friday, the kids in the Dragons class decided to call me Michael. Michael is another white guy who floats between classrooms as a helper. The week before they had done the same but I could tell this week that instead of making an honest mistake, they were just teasing me by purposefully calling me the name of another White Guy. I considered teasing them back but decided it might scar them. Then after class they kept going with it and to tell the truth it started to piss me off. Mainly because they are too young to throttle or yell at. But also because of the situation in general. I was always the smaller white kid in a predominantly Chinese class, or Chinese group, or neighborhoos, or Hispanic and Black Class, or Hispanic and Black group or neighborhood. Until I went to camp one year and found myself in a predominantly white group. And realized that even though I pretty much looked white, somehow I was culturally different. Even my white side of the family is culturally different than Summer Camp white or Prep school white. I think the main difference is predominant groups act like THE GROUP or THE MAN or THE MAJORITY and starts doing things that individuals in that group wouldn't normally do.
My point is, I was minority white for most of my life child sized life and didn't discover the power of my whiteness until I went to Hong Kong. But actually most white people do not know the power of whiteness and being only half white, I do. Usually I tend to side with the under dog. I'm teaching kids in Chinatown Kung FU not just for cultural reasons. It's for confidence and racial reasons too. I make sure the kids do their own little performance by themselves and teach them to speak up ad raise their hands first and fight for what they want. Because culturally they are taught the opposite and I have found that Americans don't value meekness or humility at all. Especially false modesty and all the things Chinese kids are either taught to do, or just pick up culturally.
So to then have these kids start teasing me, when I already went through all that from their age, up through Chinese school and again when I switched from Weekday Kwong Kow to Sunday Kwong Kow, is both annoying and funny. Because one day all of those kids are going to be the minority either in a classroom or a workplace or on the street. And when why should I feel sorry for them when they are abused when they are abusing the guy who is coming in to teach Kung Fu to them for free?
I considered stopping the class. Why should I give them the moves an confidence to protect themselves? Maybe I should just allow them to be stepped on as punishment but allowing them to continue with the fake Kung Fu they already learned elsewhere. Shoot, Noah and Jonah haven't really been participating that much. Well see how I feel on Friday.

Zoo Trip

Memorial Day was a big Zoo day apparently. Usually when we go it isn't that crowded. But this time I had trouble finding Noah on the big playground a couple times. A guess animals are cool unless there is a playground. And Playgrounds are cool, unless there are rides. But it's all fairly cheap. We are members so we go pretty often and don't feel the need to see everything. There were some new cranes there so we went over to them and started "Hok HAWWWK! HaWWWWWk" ing and Noah said, "Just lik ethe Kung Fu bus Baba!" And then on to the next thing. We ran into some friends, which was cool. But the kids were so all over the place (when I say the kids I mean our kids) that there was only time for a few words. I think Noah wasn't use to seeing them out of the context of a birthday party or barbecue and seemed confused.
The Giraffes are out, which I think was the most impressive thing we saw. The lion was asleep. The tigers was asleep.
I actually bothered to read the caption for the Tigers this time. I guess they were bought, undercover, from private owners. Apparently there are 5-7,000 tigers in the U.S. owned as pets. Most of them are mixed breeds. I don't know exactly what that means. Different breeds of Tigers? Lion Tigers? House cat tigers? Can you do that?
That does seem kind of crazy though. It's not like you can walk your tiger. What do you feed it?
We didn't bother with the Gorillas this time mainly because we didn't want to go inside a building. We only planned on staying for two hours.
I gotta say the Zoo, the Aquarium, Children's Museum. These places are pretty awesome. I mean even for an adult. It's better to hang out there than to go hang out at the mall. Why didn't I ever hang out at these places as an adolescent? What do I care about whether it is cool or not?  I guess I'd seen it already who wants to pay just to go to something they've already seen? Unless you have kids and it's a vacation like excursion. I feel that rather than closing my life from a lot of things, having kids has opened my life to a lot of things that I would never consider doing as a person without kids.

Salem Witches

I had never been to the witch museum in Salem before. We thought it would be something cool for the kids. Plus a friend of ours, from Taiwan, wanted to see the Chinese House at the Peabody Essex museum. Well I guess the presentation at the museum good. Not that I saw much of it. Jonah started freaking out almost immediately. For some reason I thought it was more of a museum and less of a show. Being in there it slowly began to dawn on me though that technically I am a witch. The book of spells was a bunch of herbs much like lerng cha, or ha gu cho that I boil when I have Yeet hai or over heating. These teas are called cooling teas. Basically the Chinese traditions, which in their modern forms are pretty harmless and also very cool are pagan, just like Christmas and Easter have pagan ancestries too. Of course that's not why the 19 people were hung. They weren't even really pagans. But I'm sure there were people around who were. But whatever that doesn't warrant killing them. So the Salem witch trials is usually held up as an example of Justice getting out of hand. The truth is, even today, if you are convicted, it is very hard to "unconvict" you even with DNA evidence proving you are innocent. I think the origins of a lot stuff that is stupid about our society today is can be seen in what happened in Salem.
But....
They was a lot of stupid stuff Pagan's used to do too. I only found this out recently but I think even in the MIng Dynasty, when they built a bridge in China, they would sacrifice a boy and a girl at either end to make sure the bridge would work. The virgin boy and girl often seen depicted in paintings for good luck and new year, so cute and happy, and the characters of these too put together creates the word for good. I new that. But I didn't know about the darker history of human sacrifice. In my mind human sacrifice and superstition happened in China's early history like Qin Dynasty, but I didn't realize that villages in the Qing Dynasty sometimes still practiced it. I mean during executions, they would use the criminal as a sacrifice, but that just seems practical, and I think even in the "Enlightened West" executions have some of that sacrifice to Odin type ceremony left over.. especially hangings.

Well I guess Noah sat calmly through the whole thing. Then we played in the children's discovery section of the PEM, got bored of that and had the kids pictures taken as warlocks. Jonah fell asleep mid pictures. It was a good day for it, being all misty and mysterious and all.

Jook Sing, Am I Chinese or American?

Yesterday I went to a BCNC workshop about raising bilingual children. It was in Mandarin again. Everyone was supposed to share about their first experiences outside of their native language. I thought I wouldn't share because my native language was English but people seemed curious so I did tell a little story about my Dad beating me and me not understanding what it was for and trying to get out of it by using Chinese but it not working. My group thought it was pretty funny.

Later on the parents started to share and ask questions about how they should answer their kids. Saying that their older children, who are more Americanized, are now always asking them if they are Chinese or American. And that all the nephews and kids that they've raised all understand Chinese, but refuse to speak it and what are they supposed to do about this etc. I just kept quiet because this didn't apply to the white guy. But then I looked around the room and realized that I was also the only Jook Sing, even if I was only half Jook Sing. And essentially these parents were asking questions that I could answer. Their kids, were still kids and were also THEIR kids so they might not be forthcoming about some language issues, But I am an adult and not related to them. I could answer their question so I raised my hand and told the presenter in English that I just wanted to say something to the parents. (in Cantonese)

"So I am Jook Sing... so I just want to late you know from the Jook Sing point of view why they might not speak to you in Chinese." heads nodded, "Now.. even right now as I talk in Chinese as I speak to you I speak as a child would speak because my Chinese isn't good enough. As an adult, or older child, why would someone want to put themselves in the weaker position? Say if I wanted to argue or yell at you, I wouldn't be able to argue or yell that well, but you would so you would have the advantage. So what do I do? I will switch to the language where I have the advantage and where you are disadvantaged.. English." They started laughing and nodding, "Just hear me out for a second.. if you want to have your kids feel comfortable speaking Chinese. then when they get something wrong or don't speak it don't be like, you're so stupid or acall them Ngau Jook Sing and all that'" and now I searched for examples, "Now I never had these experiences at my home because my mother was American.. but" I looked around the room and met eyes with some people that knew me pretty well. Let's just say I didn't have these experiences with blood relations, but pretty much I have been yelled at plenty in Chinese and had to try to explain myself without being able to. They started cracking up at my examples. Then I searched for some other ones I could be more specific about, I thought of adult Jook Sing's coming into the bank when I was a teller, "Now for insatnce when I worked out the bank, and a Jook Sing came in and saw a teller who was born in China, they would immediately speak in English and speak very quickly so that the teller would be flustered and squirm and they would enjoy it. Why? That teller didn't do anything to them. But they are taking revenge on their parents and grandparents for making them squirm when they could not respond or understand in Chinese." They were cracking up at that one but I searched for an experience of my own, "Or like when I went back to Hong Kong and tried to.."

"bargain?" someone piped in.

"That's right bargain... Failure..." laughing, "So from then on I only used English to bargain or talk about price. Because that way they were in a weaker position and would have to squirm painfully trying to find English words," and now they were laughing at my expressions because clearly I had enjoyed having the upper hand and watching the other person suffer.

But needless to say, basically at that moment they could have an insight into their kids minds, because in some ways (though not all because my mother spoke to me in English) I was their kids, or at least understood their thinking.

At the end the director shared some of her stories. She was not Jook SIng but actually born in HK but came over very young. And they were very interested in hearing from her too. Like, "So what would you have wanted your parents to do differently?" In other words, "How do we as parents do it right? Learn from others mistakes or hardships?" 

Most of my issues in this area were different from the other parents. I wasn't interested so much in "preserving the native tongue and culture." Because I see me and Grace's native culture and language as being American. But we would like to maintain a  connection with our ancestral language and culture, which is Chinese 75% for my kids. And just for educational and business reasons I would want them to learn Mandarin even  though that is not my language at all.

20 hours

I saw this TED speech that talked about the first 20 hours of learning a skill, and how if practiced efficiently through deconstructing the skill, that all it takes to be decent/mediocre at said skill and that 10,000 hours is the number to become expert/sifu at a skill.

That sounds about right.

If you do an hour a day, that's 20 days. Around a month.
It makes me want to start a group/class that only lasts for a month. Probably for middle school aged kids. Yes, a Kung Fu class. The after school program across from Woo Ching White Crane, stopped because the college kids who run it are already out. Then the summer program picks up again in July. Obviously I am a little late and frankly too busy to start this now.. this year, but it made me think. Maybe the school could slip in and provide Kung Fu for those same kids, maybe in the same classrooms, still for free, for just a month. In that month they should be able to learn enough to be decent. Which means they could theoretically practice on their own (until next year) or with each other, plus they would have some ingrained basics and even sections of forms that they could have in their body.

Another good use of a month of practice everyday would be right around Chinese New Year season. Offer a lion dance, drumming, and basic Kung Fu class (or maybe the Kung Fu would just be a warm up) everyday for an hour for about a month. Then the end celebration of the skill is you do the Chinatown Parade. If we get lion dances before that that conflict with the class, obviously part of your training becomes helping out at said performances. Truth is you can learn gong and cymbals in like 15 minutes unless you have absolutely no sense of rhythm wahtsoever. Sos what's that like mid January to Mid February?

WHat's great about the class being over in a month is the people don't have to make such a commitment. To choose between doing this or that. Plus when it finishes, it's not like they quit. The class ended. And then they walk away with that skill. They could probably come back next year or to other events without doing the class again. Then again since the class is only a month. Maybe they will come back again next year, for just a month, and possibly build on what they already know.

Attention...it is illegal to assault an MBTA official...

Is anyone else tired of these announcements? Now, granted, most of the MBTA officials I see on a regular basis are nice. There's the lady at Stony that always says good morning, some other heavy set guys that always say hello, people that smile at Noah and say he's cute. The train operators usually wave to my kids which gets them all excited. Indeed there is one guy, who usually does the Friday afternoon rush hour, who is the man. All his announcements are positive in a radio smooth voice with encouragements not to let anyone get you down etc etc.

But!

These announcements which are stating the law, which is common knowledge and obvious, that you can't hit MBTA officials, tick me off. So the head of the MBTA decided that's where the money should be spent, filling our ear's with announcements that the MBTA cares about our safety and that "We will find you, arrest you and prosecute you." Why don't they make us do loyalty dances and proclaim 10,000 years and 10,000 years and wan wan sui, of "service" to us too?

Bastards. (The people at the top, with the big salaries and decisions to make. Not the T employees)

Why don't they give radio voice, and the lady at Stony Brook a freaking promotion and have them do a tutorial for all employees on how to be cheerful and happy and to make sure they keep everyone riding the T as upbeat as possible.

In Japan there's sharply dressed folks who bow to everyone that gets on the subway. Which makes everyone who gets on feel like royalty. Which means they will probably more productive, which means the economy and city life in general is better.

Bowing is not American culture but there's nothing wrong with smiles and waves, God bless you's and have a great Day. Again, some people do that, but if everyone did it it would be even better

You know what else they have in Japan? A guy to push everyone into the subway to make space for more people getting on the train. You know how many times I have to not get on the train with my double stroller because it is "too crowded" even though I can see a ton of space further in the car where people don't move? It's not there fault. They are iphoning or texting or e-reading. But they would move of you hired a burly man or woman with courtesy training to push them all in. Then eventually they would get used to it and move in themselves. Don't have to pay that burly person much. Minimum wage would probably do. I'm sure plenty of people would want the job too. Could be a part time thing for College kids. Maybe even get interns to do it for free.

Final peeve,
By saying that it is illegal and they will arrest you if you put your hands on an MBTA official, driver, worker, it implies that they really will do it for them, but that if you a mere citizen, someone who pays your fare and taxes and therefore all of their salaries, is struck.....yeah they'll do go through the usual procedure.

45 minute Chinese Culture Experience

Intro: Hi kids and parents. My name is Adam, the Kung Fu Dad, and we're going to have some Kung Fu and Meditating fun today. Let's warm up our bodies first with a breathing Exercise

Warm up time!
Sitting Chi Gung
Stretches and power moves and then back to sitting
Sitting Wheels on the Kung Fu Bus.

Lion Dance Time!
Standing. Lion head moves without Lion head
Everyone sit.
Take turns doing the lion head and Choi chiang drum gong and cymbals..


Kung Fu time!
Basics (real quick 4 or five each)
Sup Ji segment.
Everyone sits back down.
One at a time individual Kung Fu. Cymbals and gongs (perhaps other musical instruments like shakers are passed out. I play drum. Demonstrate first.
Everyone sit back again. Then do Slow Kung Fu to relax. (Chuet san cuen segment, three times or so.)


Arts and Crafts Time!
Get helpers to pass out paper pieces of cardboard and brushes and some cups of water. (just a little bit of water in each cup) also pencils, crayons and markers. Also pass out examples of Chinese Characters and flowers, flowers, birds, bamboo they can copy with water as practice
Demonstrate how parents can paint with water with their kids. demo on one side of easel with water. The Zen Chaan buddhist circle, lines numbers words. Flip over demonstrate on other side with ink. Don't pass out ink to kids, just mention you are doing it with ink for visual purposes and that once the parents have deemed the child able to use ink at home they can. Sketch out drawing with pencil and then ink it.
Now pass out cardboard sticks.
Pretend Dragon boat journey with Mang Long gau gong Bruce Lee song. Go through a story you make up with the kids.
Let's make a Dragon head! Draw a dragon head, tape it to the cardboard, tape that to the cardboard stick
Does everyone have a dragon head? Okay pass back any materials you don't want. If you want to keep your brush, give it to your grown up to hold on to.

Dragon Dance Time!
Start by doing it sitting. singing the drum beat. adults can play the beat.
Then standing. Then moving

Story time!
The story of the Lion Dance (Nian) kids can act out story.
Long ago there was a misbehaved monster named Nian etc... the good monster Nian can be a teacher or mother and just takes him back instead of killing or beating him.

Music Time!
Musical seats with the Yuan. (Explanation of the parts of the Yuan) Then with the Gao Hu. Same thing. Kids can try the Yuan.

Kung Fu Tag or Kung Fu dance with the Yuan. When stopped children have to sit and do the breathing exercise. Music istruments away.

Game Time
Monkey King Game
Yi er san sh wu lie chi, wo de pang yau jai na Li?
Push hands, pushing, siu ming siu ming siu siu ming.
Sword fighting with noodles or foam sticks. Chee do.
Gu choki Pa in horse stance
Finish children's section

Brief self defense applications for parents and training tips.

Conclusion
Again my name is Adam, the Kung Fu Dad, I do birthdays follow me on Twitter @AdamKungFuDad

Jonah's Birthday Party

We had Jonah's birthday party this weekend, with Wayne Potash coming to sing. The part was partially Jonah' birthday and partially Grace's graduation party, so we had Grace's friends and their kids and then we tried to have Jonah's friends. I thought it would be kind of messed up if we had all Noah's friends come. But who is Jonah's friends? We had some kids from his playgroup, and some kids that he knew from the playground. (sort of Noah's friends but also Jonah's friends.) They liked the singing and games that Wayne Potash provided. Jonah was more into it than you would think. I'm not sure he really understood the whole gifts thing. Noah understood that they sort of weren't his gifts, which pissed him off, even though technically he was the one playing with them. And the older kids, Grace's friends kids, were sometimes cool but totally dominated the whole gift opening thing. Well there was a lot of Jonah crying (Happy Birthday!) and Noah really blew out the candles, but I think Jonah did have fun too.
I was also thinking.. Wayne Potash makes a killing. Well not a killing but a living for sure. Wouldn't it be great if I could do some sort of Kung Fu lion dance thing for Birthdays? I think I could.
The thing about the real lion dance though, is that the money is not enough because you need a minimum of 5 people to do a traditional lion dance performance.
And I guess I had been focusing all my energy into things like classes, where you get the kids to progress. But apparently birthdays and other performances like that are where it's at. Especially if you could pull it off by yourself. Grace said I should just use my family. I think it would be better though if Noah and Jonah could come and help out, or just watch, or just hang out, but not be an essential part of the performance in case they needed or felt like doing something else that day.
Maybe if I pooled all my talents, like playing chinese music, lion dance, drumming, kung fu and maybe some calligraphy writing or something, drawing some animals or bamboo, I could sell myself as a sort of Chinese Cultural theme all in one. But the main thing is to be able to get all the kids to pay attention for at least 45 minutes, so they can be entertained and the parents get a rest. I guess the bonus is they are absorbing cultures and skills too. I guess I just have to write down the material I already have and organize it.

African Drumming

A couple of nights ago I went to a talent show at my old middle school. One of the talents was a group of kids learning African drumming as a class. The teacher looked familiar both from around the neighborhood and from Curious George (which sometimes does little pieces with school children around JP)
I have heard that the time signature for some African drum beats can be really complicated. The Lion Dance beat is very simple.. on purpose. The beats send signals and is meant to follow as well as direct the lion head. Historically these drums might have also directed battles as well.
The beats of the African drums that night, some from the Igbo and other Nigerian cultures, were difficult to follow even when I found they were in 4-4. There was a pausing sense to it that went into another part of the consciousness. In fact I kind of felt like it tapped into a part of the brain near the top of your head. I've heard some of these drums can be used for Shamanistic purposes. Well I suppose any drums could be used for that purpose but there was a hint of that (I felt) in these songs which were celebratory dances.
There is Chinese music like this too, but I usually think of the Guzheng, especially in those very classic songs usually with words like "drunken" in their titles. But  there is something about it being on a drum, and a drum that is struck with the hand instead of a stick... like it is closer to home.

At the Kung Fu school one day we were having a discussion of buying drums from China (the school having just bought one) the cost, the process, shipping... and One of Sifu's friends, not a lion dancer or drummer, but still a guy from China, was like, "Don't they have drums they make here? Why can't you just use a Western drum?" That question is absurd to someone who does traditional lion dance, the type where you carry on the tradition and need to have your ceremony and equipment just so.
But if it isn't absurd to a civilian(who still does Kung Fu)  who is from rural China, then why should it be absurd for a half white half chinese AMERICAN, who is already going in a different direction in terms of teaching Kung Fu to kids.
Many times when teaching inner city kids, I found that they could already drum. But to learn the simple Chinese Lion Dance drum beats was difficult for some reason.  Now if I start to have more students I think it is good to show them the traditional way, just so that they know it. But if we get enough people to one day do an event or join a parade, why stress about making them learn the "proper" way to drum, on a "proper" drum. Just use any drum... especially for Kung Fu. In fact I think it would be really interesting to do forms to some of the African drum beats I heard a few days ago.

Lion Dance in the morning

Not every kid can say that they just came from a lion dance when they arrive at school. But Noah can. Of course in order to get to the Federation performance at Hei La Moon, right when it was starting I had to wear Jonah in a back pack, and since for some reason, today out of all days, Noah did not feel like running, I had to put Noah on my shoulders. And since we didn't leave as early as I would have liked, I had to run. Okay not run, jog, okay not jog. Some form of movement that was slightly faster than walking. I'm not gonna pretend it was easy. My kids don't weigh that much but I could definitely feel the weight. My legs got a work out. I guess if I did that everyday, I would pretty much be in excellent shape.
Anyway, we stepped into Hei La Moon and right at that moment drums started sounding.. downstairs. I went down just in time and Noah got to watch Lion Dance. I'm not really sue if Jonah watched it or not. I turned to the side so that if he wished to look, he would have been able to.
It was like a simulation of a lion dance for me. I saw it, I heard it, and in a way I felt it because I was tired from carrying the kids and trying to run... or move run-ishly.
Well that was pretty good. Got to school almost on time too.

Symbol

 I've been working and reworking the symbol that I will put on a T-shirt. And this weekend I scrapped what I had and have decided on a picture of Noah and Jonah riding on a flying crane. The picture looks more like the cover of a children's book than a symbol of badassery (like the other ones were attempting to be. I still have another symbol of a crane in a fighting stance. All these pictures are done in black ink with Chinese brushes. The funny think is the pictures I made were the practice pictures, the test ones to make before I made the real one. But after I drew the first one, I had trouble recreating it, even through tracing. Either because the ink had gotten to watery or my concentration was lost, I just wasn't able to make a picture as good as the first one, on my scrap piece of paper. A distant cousin/friend of mine majored in Graphic Design and she's going to help me get the image on a computer as a high quality file that I can actually use to send to one of these T-shirt making companies to work with. My Si Hing from Chicago also happens to know someone who has one of those same such T-shirt making companies so after I get this image I'll probably see if i can use that company.
I'm pretty excited about my new symbol. I just feel like it matches what I am doing more. The hand positions of Noah and Jonah are meditation poses and they have cute anime like happy faces. It's just closer to what my classes are about. But even when I start to teach older students I think my classes will still be about this return to youthful thinking and happiness. That crane represents much more about my growing outlook and style of teaching as well as practicing of Kung Fu. The other symbol is good too though. Like a crane sentinel. The adult side of the practice. To protect the children if necessary. Plus I like that it is a few simple strokes with a brush. In fact, it is even more simple that the actual character for crane in Chinese. (That's pretty easy though because the crane character is pretty complicated. Though it comes close I think in number of strokes, to the character for bird.)
Today's class was pretty cool. I've been trying to do something a little different each week, while having somethings that we do every week. That hill has ended up being great. I started doing charging up the hill using different stances, and it is quite a work out. Not really too hard for kids, because in the end the kids will just run up and laugh or collapse laughing. The mothers were getting a work out though and so did I. The hill is a great training tool, as well as a sort of barrier. Sort of. The kids all keep going up it. But it is also good for my Kung Fu that I have to then sprint up a hill to get them.

Kung Fu retreat

This weekend a Si Hing from Chicago was visiting the Kung Fu school. This meant that Grace gave me permission to do a whole day of Kung Fu. This turned out to be half a day, but still I haven't done that much Kung Fu, uninterrupted. I practiced to the point where, even though I felt like I could keep going, from past experience I knew that I should probably take a break to prevent injuries or just overdoing it. At this point I meditated. Meditating after practicing to this point is really great. Immediately I felt my body revitalizing itself. Much more than if I were to say, just sit on the couch. I mentally even decided to run through some of the forms I hadn't gotten a chance to do physically. It was actually pretty difficult in a way. Visualizing yourself doing a stick form is in some ways harder than just getting up and doing it. It's easier to get lost. Or if you lose focus, since the form is only being done in your mind, you totally lose the whole thing. Whereas if you lose focus during a physical form you might just end up doing the whole thing on autopilot. Of course it is easier to injure yourself when you are fatigued and doing complicated motions on autopilot. After a little mediation I felt refreshed again and did a few more forms. I started to realize that I used to practice a lot. Maybe even too much.
I also realized that if you practice or do anything with that kind of focus... i.e. doing it, and then when taking your breaks, meditating and running through it mentally, you will probably improve at a very fast rate. Whereas if you just practice by going to a class and getting it over with, almost having the Kung Fu or yoga or piano practice being done to you, how good can you get?
I remember watching a few documentaries on circuses on PBS. They did one in China, one in New England, and then one in Mexico. Now the kids in China were good. They did amazingly difficult things in there practices and classes. Of course there was a lot of crying and scolding, and lecturing by now overweight instructors, about diet, and practice. The kid were getting injured and generally looked unhappy, and during their breaks they were playing cheap video games on watches, and cellphones. They were talented and everyone was forced to be a certain level. But when they performed the show seemed cheesy, and lacking. Not in the maneuvers, but the general spirit of the thing. It made you wonder whether all the torture was worth it.
The New England Smirkus, had mostly older kids. But they were all good too. They were pushed but not forced. If they couldn't hack it they were out. They only chose out of the top. They worked really hard but it was different. Seemed fun even though it was extremely rigorous and difficult. What's more is the older kids, in their free time, would talk and joke about their acts and talk about improving upon and creating new acts to perform. They were into what they did. A lot of those kids went on to Cirque du Soleil, but a lot also ended up going to places like MIT.  The circus kids in China seemed to have education as part of the camp too. The family circus in Mexico had kids that could barely read, and those kids seemed to really envy normal kids who went to school, and then got to be free for the rest of the day. They were always working. Setting up, breaking down, practicing. And they didn't really want it.
Now I didn't see all the acts exactly next to each other. But the Smirkus kids didn't seem inferior at all.

Kung Fu is similarly a physical skill. It can be taught to you, but ultimately the skills and improvement have to come from you. You can be taught how to train, but you have to be into it. If you are in Shaolin Temple practicing 12 hours a day but your heart isn't in it, you will be good. Alright. Adequate. You will be able to do some pretty cool moves. But ultimately when you throw a basic punch, people who know will see that you are lacking, despite the splits and back flips.

Charles Ramsay, Gong Gu jai, Storytellers

I saw a lot of stuff on my facebook from old teachers regarding the Charles Ramsay phenomenon, which was really a side story the Amanda Berry story. I saw various clips, read articles, listened to conversations and arguments about race, and also there was the story from the Hispanic man who says he got there first.
Here's my take. First of all, I do kind of care a little whether Ramsay or the other man got there first. But in the end nobody else seems to.
 Charles Ramsay was on the news because he helped, but he became a worldwide sensation because of the flamboyant way in which he is able to tell a story, and also for his mannerisms which make Anderson Cooper look awkward and out of place, and which we are just not used to seeing at a news station. The pauses, the looks, the details which normally wouldn't seem important, but are only important if you are trying to pay attention to the feeling of being in the story, rather than trying to simply find out facts.
Ramsay is a storyteller. The oral kind. Every culture has had them throughout history them, in pubs, tea houses, whorehouses, street corners,  Kung Fu schools, gambling halls, royal courts and villages. They are called storytellers, rappers, teachers, court jesters, stand up comedians, poets, skalds, bards, street performers, purim spielers, bullshitters, and politicians. Usually this oral kind is seen as low class (unless they somehow manage to make a lot of money)

One of my friends is a story teller like this. He happens to be black and has a lot of the same pauses and mannerisms as Ramsay. But usually in conversation, not in his storytelling. As far as being a story teller goes he is one of the best oral ones I know. To the point where I have seen kids begging him and begging him to tell them a story. And when he obliges, he makes the thing up on the spot, and it is fantastic, flamboyant, and full of physical movements. Not everyone can do this. That is why, whether Ramsay's story is 100% true or 90% true or 60% true, the main fact is true. The Amanda Berry was in the house and now she is out. The reason why he has become so famous is not because he was the hero, but because of how told the story. You can be jealous of him, admire him, laugh at him, but in the end, he is famous because of a skill. You can wag your finger at those laughing at him, and thinking racist thoughts, but the story teller, is not necessarily on a pedestal. Shakespeare is on a pedestal now, but was he when he was alive? No. Entertainers were in the same class as prostitutes. Shakespeare uses high language, but he was street, (or river rather) ghetto, low class, famous yes, celebrated yes, but his theater was next to the bear fights. Court Jesters play the fool/ They are laughed at. But they can get away with saying crazy stuff in front of the kind when nobody else can.
Ramsay can get away with saying all sorts of un PC stuff on all these morning shows too that anyone else would get jumped on for. My friend too. Though I tend to call him out on many things because usually are conversations are at my house.

Usually when you meet a story teller in person, whether or Irish, or Black, Latino, or Taishanese, there is some give and take, some shouting at him to get to the F-ing point, to summarize, to stop blowing water to such an extent. Unless the story teller is  himself, an alpha male good at Kung Fu or prone to punching interupters in the face.
Or...
 Unless the whole point of the conversation is not to find out some facts or information, but is about the STORY. Then the story teller is like a skald, or prophet and total attention is given to him (or her), no matter what their status. And if they are good at their story telling then they will be asked to tell it again and again and again.

That's what happened with Ramsay. The truth is everyone wanted to talk to Amanda Berry and the victims, or to find out more about the case. But since non of that was coming out, and because Ramsay told his story so well, with so many layers of it, what he felt at the time, how he felt about living next to such a person, how he can not sleep now just thinking about it, he became his own story.
Maybe the other man not only got there first but also was the one to break down the door. But his story was... boring.  And didn't have the levels of imagining being friends and neighbors with a guy who ends up being worse then some of the witches and demons in medieval fairy tales.
It doesn't mention  the feeling of being duped by such a person, wanting to kill such a person and at the same time knowing that women were trapped in the house next door in a dungeon for that long, everyday while you lived a regular life. The genuine surprise of learning this, the details of dress, food, and the comic relief at the end, a joke playing on race and the absurdity of the situation.
This type of story telling, is not as strong in suit and tie America. It is not absent completely. It usually can only tale place after a couple of beers because to suit and tie America it is a bit improper. It was left behind in Ireland, or lost when Taishanese fluency gave way to English, or your Puritan ancestors looked at all that askance in the first place as the work of the devil and proper people wrote their stories down.
But this type of story telling is a part of mainstream America, at least from my experience. Ramsay isn't a them. He's an us. The other suits of the morning shows are the them.

To stroller or not to stroller

Jonah's breakfast activity today was dumping his blueberries onto the table and then counting them one by one as he put them back into his bowl. He doesn't often get to do this, undisturbed. The difference today was Noah went to school early, with Mommy. Sometimes the two boys wit together for breakfast quite nicely. But then this can quickly turn to some sort of hitting, or pilfering of the younger child's food supply to protests of "Share! Share!" Noah is all about sharing when he has finished his half and there is only Jonah's left. Then he insists that they should share. Of course Jonah will then start crying as slumping himself on the floor. Well... it's not always like that. And it certainly wasn't like that today. Later on, Jonah snuck into one of our visitor's room. She is a Taiwanese friend of Grace's. I heard Jonah learning how to say nose, eyes, ears, etc. in Mandarin. I was wondering how he picked those up so fast. I thought it was do to my reading him this book, a gift from another one of Grace's Taiwanese friends, "My first Hundred Words in Chinese" I guess. Jonah is always touching my nose and saying, Bi zi, and then Bei gau and then laughing. The Cantonese he must have learned from me. It's good to have these things reinforced by several people. Maybe he will actually end up speaking Chinese.
Well then I decided we should have a leisurely walk in the woods. No stroller. In fact, yesterday Jonah refused to sit in the stroller and I ended up picking up Noah without one. I'm not going to pretend that was easy though.
Then Grace calls and told me about a Mayor's coffee hour at the tot lot. I didn't really want to go. But then I did. Carrying Jonah without the stroller. There were free fruit cups and we got a plant. Something for Jonah and Grace respectively. But other than that, it was a normal day at the tot lot. Then rain started and I carried Jonah home while jogging. The because of the weight of Jonah (not that heavy but it makes a difference) I sank down and did more of a horse stance thing walking thing. We had to stop often because Jonah wanted to run. I guess if my kids ran at the same speed as each other, or stayed together, or could be completely trusted not to go into the street, or to stop at driveways, the stroller would be unnecessary now. But, because they are not any of those things, the stroller makes things simpler emotionally.

Playing with sticks.

Class was almost as big as a real class today. In fact it was bigger than my mission park class. Three Mothers who I knew were coming and their children, plus another mother who happened to be just passing by with her daughter. The main problem today was it the heat. And it was difficult to stay in the shade, or even to stay together because everyone wanted to run up and down the hill. Which is why we mostly did Kung Fu moves up and down the hill sprints. Once with hands, the second time with dragons. At the end the four year old boy (I have known everyone in the class, who planned to show up for a while) hit me playfully with a stick. I thought, "Oh know now it's over. No more Kung Fu will be allowed." I don't think his mother is of that mindset though but I'm just paranoid after  the Stars class experience. But of course it is my responsibility even as 15 minute Sifu to explain he can't hit people, even me, with sticks, because he could hurt someone. The truth is he wasn't trying to hurt me, it's just that the stick was not cardboard but wood. And the way he swung it, was gentle on purpose, and hit my backpack or the side of the leg softly, on purpose. It's just how it looks. I'm sure in his mind he is trying to play, and since I know Kung Fu I am perfect to play with. Also I forgot to do the whole cardboard stick fighting thing I had planned to do, and I often do stick stuff with Noah and Jonah, with wooden sticks. But those are my kids so that's okay.
I guess I have to do the explanation of when it's okay to do stick fighting and when it's not. I.e. with cardboard sticks after we bow to each other and still going slow and being careful. They will all be on one team and I will be the bad guy. No stick fighting each other. I know children have grown up for millenia stick fighting each other. But just not in my class. Card board, slow motion, and only hitting me, is how it will be. Then bow again to indicate it is over and now no longer socially appropriate to hit me. They still might get hurt. Like Jonah could get hit in the eye, or someone could get overzealous and hit his own team mate with a back swing. Which is why I haven't been doing it. I did it when there was just Jonah and the first boy. But now that there's more kids that would be more difficult. And would require more explanation. The best is just using those foam sticks which you can't possibly hurt anyone with.

Wake Up the earth

Yesterday we went to the wake up the earth fest. I considered bringing at least the small lion head down there but the truth is it was better that we didn't We have been in a lot of parades, and I have decided that watching one can be more fun, when you have small children. For some reason the festival follows the Chinese Calendar for themes. I.e. this year was the year of the snake. (hardly anyone in the parade is asian so I guess it's just because) One thing that Noah loved so much but was so simple was this station with a bunch of drums made out of various forms of pots tubs pans, spring water bottles (the big kind) and people just came over and played whatever they wanted.
When I taught at the Mission Park RTH summer camp the Chinese Drum was one of the more popular parts of my class. I realize that most people know how to drum, in one form or another. And even those that have no sense of rhythm or time enjoy banging on a drum nonetheless. The Lion/Dragon dance team that I have been envisioning will definitely work better in JP if I just let go a lot of the rules and practices for the way I was trained. For instance, I've been thinking about raising money for a drum. But if people just made there own drums, out of recycling, and a ton of them, that would create quite a loud noise. And most likely, if they were allowed to play whatever you would get some sort of rhythm some sort of song, even if it was not the original lion dance beat.
Last year Spontaneous Celebrations even made a sort of Dragon. Well I already have a sort of lion head and I have those home made little dragon heads. It takes a lot of practice to get people to be able to perform a traditional lion dance or a traditional dragon dance. But to just do something, takes practically know practice at all. Kids can figure out on their own how to do something.

Well we ate some food, the kids played in the playground while various bands played their music, and it wa awesomeness. I can't think of another time when you would be allowed to play in a playground while listening to a band. We stayed for longer then I felt like we stayed and were worn out.

T.H. White's "The Once and Future King"-Chivalry

My mom handed this book to me in my adolescence, while I was going through my "find my chinese half" phase which lasted for about ten years. Because of the thickness of the book, I put it to the side. I found it again in a pile of used books and still did not buy it. Only recently have I started reading a copy borrowed from the library. One of the first things I wondered once I got to the part where Arthur was about to invent chivalry was whether Reggie Wong had ever read this book and whether it was this book that made him name his volleyball team the Knights. I had always thought it strange that Hung Mun people would use the Western version of a Knight in shining armor for their namesake and symbol. I thought it was just a translation of the Chinese Hero, but then the icon is of a western knight. If I am right about this book influencing the name of the volleyball team then it is easier to understand what Reggie was trying to do by using that name, trying to use Might for Right etc.

I'm almost finished with the book now and I'm almost certain  to the point where I want to ask someone that grew up with him if he read this book. If he were still alive, even though I didn't know him that well, I would definitely ask him. The main thing is the whole laying out of what Chivalry is supposed to be, the theory of the round table etc. Of taking the innate human nature to want to go around and hacking at each other and using it for something positive.
I suppose that's what sports and even Kung Fu is about in general, sort of. But the fact that the name Knights is used for a Chinese volleyball team is striking and I feel like the something behind it that is more than just a cool sounding name is this book. Why not the Dragons, or Tigers for instance?

There are similarities to Chivalry and Yi Hei, but there are also a lot of differences. I used to think Chivalry is holding doors open for women. But hearing T.H. White's version of it was kind of eye opening.
Now this is not my favorite book. In fact if you are any parts Irish, White's meta-narrative will probably rub you the wrong way but still, it is interesting to read about it. (I definitely prefer Bernard Cornwall's version of the Arthurian legend.) But I did enjoy White's book too, even if it is racist. (the n word is even used which is weird because almost everyone is white. I didn't think racism of that sort had been invented yet seeing as how White people were Saxons and Normans etc.) The book was written in the 1940's and references modern events constantly. From that time period's perspective, it isn't racist at all I guess. Still it's weird that the n word should even come up even if it is just in passing. That word has nothing to do with the story. Maybe it was to show that even the heroes were not all that enlightened? I don't know.
White seems to argue that Arthur created law and that's why the British are civilized and why they have gone around civilizing other people by force. Sort of like a Imperial apologist. But he simultaneously makes an argument for how our civilization is very much like the middle ages. Well more similar than different. As far as I can see, we are now much more like the time before Arthur in White's book, the Might is Right as opposed to Chivalry, except that the Kings and Baron's are Big Businesses and corporations. Instead of the idea of Chivalry, there is the idea of Philanthropy and people like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet seem to be the champions of that. But there's no Round Table. Well instead of Oaths there are Pledges by this rich people to  donate most of their wealth etc.  In any case I've basically realized that the Arthur legend is the Three Kingdoms of the the British. So it's pretty important to understanding how they think of themselves. And since our law is derived from theirs, it's pretty much how Americans think of themselves too. Perhaps subconsciously because even if we haven't all read versions of the legend the ideas are all up in our culture whether it is stories about knights, cowboys, or sports.