Kung Fu Castles

Today we went to a Castle, and walking through the halls I felt very Kung Fu-ish for some reason. In that I wanted to do Kung Fu in a smaller space.

Now some people would then say, "Oh then you should do Win Chun." Well what I end up doing is my own Kung Fu but just focus on the shorter techniques and shortening the longer ones. It got me thinking about how important it is to adapt to your surroundings. So you should never be saying that you don't have enough space or an improper practice space. Of course if I had money... I would probably build myself a freaking Castle like this Mercer guy did (more to come on that later) or maybe a large Condo or something that makes money... but since I do not have that sort of money... what's wrong with my house and the sidewalk?
 I mean the park is actually the best. But I feel like the reason those shorter styles developed was to adapt to the environment. I mean there is a sword style that is meant to be practiced under a table.

Maybe I should start working on these fun aspects of the Martial Arts with adults and not just Noah. It's just that they can't be performed, or don't look good when performed. But who cares?

Practical Reasons Naked Kung Fu

I've heard of people doing Naked Yoga. I actually often do Kung Fu without clothes on for several reasons... and they are going to seem really bizarre but they actually make sense.

The first reason is actually to dry off after a shower, especially if it is cold and there is nobody to hand you a towel.. or not quickly enough.

There is actually a white crane technique that my Sifu had encouraged us to try after a shower, to, like a crane (though more likely you've seen a dog do this) try to shake dry. That power of shaking dry and be used to produce power to strike or to create space when  some one is trying to grab you. Again, it also warms you up, sort of like over exaggerated shivering on purpose.

The Fukienese White Crane does this a lot. I enjoyed doing these shorter technques in the bathroom because I knew that pows and cups might mean I would hit the wall or pump into something.

Another reason to practice naked is a form of laziness. If you get clothing all sweaty, then you will have to wash that clothing. If you just get all sweaty and then towel off then you save resources washing clothes.

I know these are not the answers one expected with this title... but that is the point.

This second reason is not usually an issue.. but since we are traveling, I sport of had a limited supply of clothing and ended up doing some basics in front of the mirror naked.

But part of it was to observe my body. I had felt like I was getting heavier and weighed myself. I am about 185, which according to doctors would be overweight. 175 was my high school weight. Most doctors would say i could go down to 165 or even 160 for my height.

I did notice some chunk so I wanted to see what I looked like doing basics.


When doing basics, you don't exactly suck your stomach in the way people trying to look thinner do. But you do flex and the visual look is similar.

Anyway I used to prefer teaching people with their shirt tucked in because there is aspects of the posture and alignment that is difficult to see.

Practicing naked I noticed details in positioning of my thighs and calves that I wouldn't have looked at before. Even though i don't practice Kung Fu that much I would still say you can definitely tell by the proportions of my body that it does Kung Fu and that it has adapted to do Kung Fu. I certainly don't look like a long distance runner or a swimmer.

I was just surprised because I had noticed that my stance seemed weaker recently or needed work (in fact I wrote about this) But looking in the mirror I'm just saying that despite being lax... it is still obvious that my body has done Kung Fu seriously for over a decade. Over two decades if you count my childhood playtime training.

I thought of the Romans and the Greeks doing sports naked. It's not really a Han tradition at all. But it would be interesting to take that approach to Kung Fu as well.

Noah Kung Fu King

Noah was walking down the streets of Brooklyn today in his little red Chinese Jacket that Grace bought him. He (or rather I) had forgotten to pack his jacket. Luckily unpacking I found a fall jacket tucked away in the car and as it turns out it is only 50 degrees. But for his moment strutting down the street like a combination of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, and Stephen Chow in... any movie where he wears a super Chinese Jacket unbuttoned Sik Sun (King of Chef's.. er eating?)  eating a lollipop in red and gold silk, it was worth it.

We got some video of us eating Yunnan noodles and we just got siu lap. Brooklyn's Chinatown is so full of energy and is less judgmental than Manhattan. My Jeans and a hoodie were not as out of place as I usually seem to be in New York. The outdoor markets seemed more fresh, more inviting.

I got Noah to do the next Sup Ji move for the 100 day Kung Fu Challange, right there on the street. That got some smiles.  BTW the streets are a lot wider so it doesn't feel like you are going to lose your children.

It was a lot of fun! Videos to come.

The Contract

A lot of brothers fight. It's natural I hear. I wouldn't know because I am an only child. But Noah and Jonah have an added aspect to their relationship which perhaps presents a conflict of interest. You see, Jonah is actually Noah's lawyer. What I mean by this is Noah cannot defend himself with words at all. But when Jonah is asked to defend him... for say stealing candy and eating it, he will ask questions like, "Well did you see him eat the candy actually?" And often will negotiate a lighter sentence for Noah.

But what if Noah's crime is against Jonah?

Noah hit Jonah and for punishment Mommy had wanted Noah to write out what he did. But he just wouldn't do it. So Jonah wrote up a contract for Noah.

It read something like, "I will not hit Dai Dai. I will stop hitting Dai Dai. If I don't stop hitting dai dai I will not get any test. And I will stop being angry." Their followed several marking that looked like "g"s but apparently were actually "o"s and were there simply to demonstrate to Noah how to write an "o" properly.

Then there was a line where Noah had to sign his name... which he did trusting fully in Jonah's ethics.

I'm just saying brothers fight and that is normal. But I think this is not, and also extremely hilarious, which is why I feel compelled to write it down before I forget.

Kung Fu 100 day Magis Challenge

The above Video is day 3 but I will put day one and day two below  as well.

I am drawing from the 100 day transformation...which would be more about a work out.. a serious one at that. Following along with these videos is not that much of a work out. I suppose Day Three is the closest thing to what a physical transformation would be like. You do those basics, 100 each, for 100 days, so 800 basics (because you have to do the walking) and at the end you should have a sufficient base to start doing Kung Fu. But Day 4 is actually going to be new techniques. So this 100 days is more mental At the end you will have learned all the techniques of a form and possibly be able to do that form. I also show who each small section of the form can be used like a basic training technique or a style of fighting on it's own. It would be fun to know if anyone actually manages to learn the form from this video. And perhaps to see them perform these exercises as well. I guess you can tag a friend that always wanted to learn Kung Fu but never had the time or something and then show yourself doing the exercises and if you can, at the end, do the whole form.  Most people tell me it's basically impossible to learn Kung Fu this way. But I think learning basic moves a piece at a time, shouldn't be to hard.  

On Wushu Dance

Well I am learning this form online  to teach to little kids.

At first I actually injured my arm because I tried to put power into the moves.


Here is my anti-Wushu rant. But also a traditional form which I adapted to be used in a similar way. ie. The kids can follow along and not move their feet. I guess this would be useful for adults too who like doing a bunch of techniques but don't have the space. I actually started practicing like this when I broke my foot. I still want to practice techniques from the forms but I wasn't really mobile. I could walk but  not much. But back then I wasn't doing it for performance so I freestyled it. I remember doing Luk Lik stuff an developing new ways to do them. My Sifu commented that I had broken through my understanding of the Tiger Crane double set. In our style the Tiger and the Crane become one animal. And there is another hidden animal in there as well. You won't see that break through in the video below. This is a rant that is defending why I teach children the way I do... but writing about it just reminded me.

The point is, that breakthrough in understanding partially came about due to breaking my foot. My arm is slightly injured now... but as you can see I can still do regular Kung Fu in this video no problem. I realized if I don't use any power at all.. like Linghu Chung, and forget all my Kung Fu and just put the random techniques forced upon me in the video by putting my hands down first and treating them as what they are, separated random techniques, and using the duqu gau geem technique of Fong ching Yerng, a la "Proud Smiling Wanderer" (Siu ngo Gong Wu) then I can memorize this form and just do it. 

Violin Lessons

Part of this video really shows the problem of the traffic around Forrest Hills T station. I had to turn off the camera to cross because it was so dangerous. But yeah, if there is something that politicians should really be pushing to fix with all their efforts, it should be this. Grace actually Tweeterd to Matt O'Malley about it and some aide ended up telling her to call the construction company.

You know what? that's actually the job of the politicians, to put pressure to make their district better. Not going around ribbon cutting or putting up cigarette butt dispensers in JP, where frankly I haven't noticed the cigarette butts to be much of a problem. 

I am going to start documenting what I can of my children's life more. Mostly because I actually find a lot of what they do entertaining. More so than when they do Kung Fu. The stuff that they do that normally would be edited out is actually the stuff that is funniest. Come to think of it. Today they were late for school. But getting the whole process down of why they were late is pretty funny. I mean I have the Go Pro. Why not use it?

Also, this other stuff that is relevant to the community comes up. Like traffic problems... and also, where you can go to get violin lessons. Her web site is here. 

Here is Noah's part of the lesson. 

The Jau fau yup mau of modernization

You know we tend to think that if the majority of people start going in one direction that there must be something right about that and to not follow would mean to be left behind. To fall behind the times.

I tend not to do that but the one time I really tried I have injured myself.


I do traditional Kung Fu. Yes I started off with Wushu... but in order to teach some kids I tried to learn this performance set online. It's a form made for kids. It's dumbed down as it were. It's supposed to be easy. The problem is the moves don't flow together.  A kid will get up there and just flail his and her arms out and hyper extend and end up fine, more or less, because of their rubbery constitution.

But if I get up there there has to be some sort of power behind the moves, otherwise what is the point of me doing it.

Tried to do the whole duk gu Gau heem thing of any technique should work... but you know what? They managed somehow to put perfectly good techniques together in a timed sequence to music that makes absolutely no sense. I Tried to make sense of them and the power and the foot work and the result is I pulled something in my elbow.

I remember my father always having to crack his elbow while reading his newspaper. An occupational hazard of restaurant work or something. Now I'm going to have that problem except it was because I tried to modernize my teaching methods.

Shoot the thing is, My wheels on the bus Kung Fu might look really silly and sound childish. But I could totally use all those techniques in a streetfight in that order. exactly as I do them in the form. In fact they are more practical in the way I teach them than some of the traditional forms because they are more raw. But Now if I ever had to do that it would have to be with one hand because I hurt my elbow trying to learn chidren's Kung Fu off of Youtube. Fantastic.

Look. Just because everyone is eating McDonald's doesn't mean it's better.  

I think it's important that I tried. But now that I have managed to injure myself, I think it's important that I stop.

Rooster Eagle Phoenix Firebird dance

I resumed making this eagle I had started over the summer. And when I found out that the coming year is going to be the year of the rooster I was tempted to  turn it that way. But I realized I could only use a rooster for this Chinese New Year. But I could use an eagle for many things. But if the Eagle was a fire eagle.... people would interpret it as a rooster anyway.

Part of the idea was converting all of the Kung Fu to dance like movements that were a) simple b) possible to be practiced internally. In fact this morning when I woke up and started doing exercises with metal swrods and Noah was with me, I switched over to Tai Chi slowness with Lion Heads. After all those ar ethe muscles Noah really has to develop.


And then I was thinking about swords and how they are cool... but imply violence and remembered my Eagle costume idea. The swords would be wings, and vice versa.

I made a Dragon that works like a Spear and a Dragon that works like a Dai Do or Ax and the swords can also get the Chuen Pow Cup Motions in there.

In my mind they were always for children and beginners. And intro to Kung Fu. Or a way to perform without necessarily performing something inherently violent.

Recently I have been teaching the fighting forms more openly and I'm not sure that this stuff I made up is necessarily easier though. Especially since kids tend to be real rough with the creations and I would rather they be rough like that with something I did not spend days to make.

Opening

I am teaching a bunch of students the opening.

So I thought I would reshare this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2Of7jcVlRU


But I think I should make a new video with the go pro

Vision of a Kung Fu School

People often ask me, actually students of mine often ask me, if I will one day open a Kung Fu school. This post is not to rant or complain about how difficult that is, but rather to live in a fantasy and describe what my vision for a Kung Fu school would actually be. There are many reasons why even if I hit the lottery, this would not be the best way to go about doing this. I am only writing about what I thought of doing since I lived in a Kung Fu school and how mine would look like.


1) The House.

Bam! you have a big house. There is space to Kung Fu and the basement has mats and you can throw each other around etc. It is structurally sound. The yard is big. Maybe there is stuff to hit. Punching bags or tires or whatever. Truth is, that doesn't really matter. For my Kung Fu you actually don't need equipment at all except drums Lion heads, sticks and swords, which all cost way less than a house and in truth, all of this can be adapted. In terms of Kung Fu I can teach outside in the park. The house is more of a center of operation.

2) The core group.

The house has to make money. One way would be membership fees. I was thinking $100-$300 a month. Which is high.... but you could sleep in the house. So this would be a commitment to a Shaolin-esque lifestyle. And part of the requirement would be that even if you are some sort of billionaire... you would have to get a job and pay for tuition with that job. Or I should say income. If you are able to create your own job then you have to teach the others how or whatever. The point is, it's not like this is college. I would want the students to both practice Kung Fu and continue their career or whatever. The way they fit it in is they are living in a school. No way they can't fit in 1-3 hours a day easily, of some sort of training. The schedule would not be rigid, as I would expect to have different types of career choices. In fact I would want that. Some people with a 9-5. But some people working graveyard shift.


So it would almost be like the Ninja turtles or whatever that just like a lot of Lion Dance clients expect, at any given moment you have a whole team  (a small team) of hardcore performers that could do a lion dance no matter how awkward the time. Drums can be practiced quietly on pads. Kung Fu doesn't have to be loud. So soundproof walls is cool, but not necessary. Nobody would get their own room. This would be hardcore sleeping on the floor type of living. I would only expect a person to sign up for this one or two years tops. Maybe five. Then they would move on with their life.

3) Outside students

These group of hardcore students could teach classes in the surrounding community. Preferably for pay, but if they wanted to volunteer, whatever. We could also offer classes for a nominal fee to the typical Kung Fu student type that goes to work and then comes in for a lesson. These classes could be affordable. I won't say free because if they really can't afford a nominal fee, then they should use their time to find work instead of learning Kung Fu.  Maybe there is free Tai Chi for the elderly or something.. but again that could be in the park nearby or whatever. Anyway, this is the normal school. Perhaps what would be best is to charge normal rates but to have promotional classes now and again.


4) School and after school

The house could also have a school. Like a summer camp or day care. That would have to be done by the book of course. Perhaps teachers get free Kung Fu lessons, or are required to learn Kung Fu.

And then you have after school. This stuff would make the most money. Because of all this going on, the core members would be few and a very specific type of person that would be willing to pay to basically be teaching all the time 24/7 But the idea would be that that would be a phase to move through in life.


5) Replication

Then similar houses could be established in all cities and locations that are cool. So that members could travel all over the world staying at these houses. Secret codes would be employed.

6)Shoot for the stars
What would be really and truly bad ass would be if core members found real ways to make money, like Founding Google or Facebook, or even smaller businesses, and then a small space on the campus or Hotel or whatever it is you own is set aside as a Kung Fu School.

7) Back to earth

Even before the internet, you could totally have this network of Kung Fu schools without owning anything, simply by using parks and community spaces. So it isn't the money. It is the people interested in learning.

And technically couldn't everyone learn from a website? From Youtube videos? I mean especially the really simple stuff? I have put out videos for free. Nobody watched them hardly... but they are out there. Th thing is there are a ton of such videos out there. But anyway, if you people wanted to learn my Kung Fu, they could totally start with that. And then they could come to me, or any master or any mentor and pick up a little. It's not the same... but this shows that what you pay for in a school is not the Kung Fu itself. I have heard of people hurting themselves learning Kung Fu alone... but people hurt themselves at schools where they pay too.

So really what you pay for in a school is not so much the instruction (unless you actually want to be really good) I mean it is the instruction but it is the social aspect of the instruction. After all if it was really about fighting, you would simply join the military. They have said structure and more, especially in the United States, the most powerful military in the world.


If it is just about health, then you can go for walks and eat right.

If it is just about spirituality you can just meditate.



I'm not trying to be self defeatist. I'm just saying yes I have a vision for a school. But also I have a vision for a "school" in the old sense of the word, like a school of thought that does not necessarily require brick and mortar. But Brick and mortar would be cool. In Boston. that coolness costs some serious $$$$.

Horse stance outside

I usually think of "outside" practice and "inside" practice. Usually these terms refer to the secrecy of the arts you are practicing. That is not what I'm talking about. i don't have a gym per se so there are things you can do outside (running, jumping,  stick swinging, full on forms) that you may not want to do in the playroom that used to be a living room and is therefore structurally unsound.


Of course when I teach children we end up doing a lot of "outside" inside but slowly and carefully. There is also the problem of bringing your swords and sticks outside and what people may think of that. So I often do the swords inside, again slowly and carefully.

But push ups, basics, and standing still in horse stance are all good for inside. But today, due to fatigue, or a sense that my structure needs to be tended to in order to prevent injury when I do the more complicated forms, standing still in horse stance and even standing basics was part of my outdoor routine. Not only this, but I really felt like I was tired and could not do everything I set out to do. I mean I could have pushed it...but I am going to opt for practicing more often, maybe throughout the day, instead of trying to push it all in one go, possibly injuring myself.

Also, whenever I do basics in the house, and start sweating, Grace will complain.

It feels good to do some simple horse stance and Kung Fu outside, in the sun, with the eagles and Hawks flying over head. Even if I only get to a few of them.  And in a way that's all you need. Yes of course I danced around and did complicated forms and Tai Chi and walked around the pond as well.

But as I did the basic stuff I realized that even if I'm not going to make the kids do 2 hours of horse stance...and even if I introduce a lot of material to make it more fun... there needs to be at least part of the class that is just horse stance.. and correct them on that somewhat strictly.

and then those standing basics, even if you only do a few, have to do it and correct them. And then everything esle, whatever they can do. You open up a path for students, and encourage them to take it, coaxing them with stories and entertainment. But you still have to introduce the idea of the hard practice, even if you can't force them to do it.

The Force and the Eightfold Path: Speech Action Thought

I was thinking today that I am going to start focusing more on the eight fold path. But instead of focusing on "right speech" and "right thought" I think I am just going to be mindful of speech, thought, action, intention, practice, livelihood, view, concentration... hold on let me check what they are again.

Well I think I really think of speech, thought, action. So my eightfold path is a trinity. Which is convenient because I am more Christian culturally. Another Buddhist Trinity I like is Past, Present and Future.


And then I like to think of things in terms of the Physical and the Spiritual.

So here is my Eight fold path, or Eight things to think about.

Speech, Thought, Action.

Past, Present, Future

Spirit and Body.


Now I'm going with being mindful about these things instead of being "right." First of all, I guess I don't always know what is right and it is not necessarily how I make decisions. Whether something is right.

I don't feel like it is a sin to do something "wrong."  But to even have thoughts that are hyped up and frothing at the mouth. Like massive amounts of anger or even joy... insanity... I won;t say insanity is a sin. But you have to have control or at least limits. If your thoughts are completely all over the place all of the time, your done.

And the same goes with speech and actions. Actually actions that are out of control can potentially get you locked up. And speech and get you in trouble or at least sued. That's our society's rules.

But what I am going for is to try and put effort even into speech and definitely action. Basically when i do something... to know what I am doing.

To do it right.

More than to do the right thing.


I was thinking about the Force and the Jedi thing, which though fictional, draws on Buddhism, and also Christianity. But I was thinking about how I don't think that the dark side is bad per se.
I mean in the movie yes. But actually you need a balance. The Dark side is another means of using the force. Ideally you would want to use the dark and the light side of the force. And to struggle and resist the dark side is actually making it stronger. Instead you need to just have it all flow evenly and use the one or the other depending on the situation but to take ownership of both.