Local Martial Arts Masters Hold World Class Seminar to Help Save a Leukemia Patient

If you live in the midwest, more specifically within driving distance of Omaha, Nebraska, there is a martial arts demonstration fundraiser going on this weekend put on by several martial arts masters, my sensei included.  This is open to anyone from any art who would like an opportunity to train with many great martial artists in arts from around the world.  The purpose of this event is to help raise money for a 14 year old boy with leukemia. Besides the martial arts demonstrations, there will be a garage sale and a bake sale.

Here is a message from Greg from the website.

“I have leukemia, a cancer of the blood. I underwent chemotherapy for 2 ½ years starting in May of 2000. I was in remission for fifteen months and then had a relapse. I underwent another 2 ½ years of chemo because a bone marrow donor was not found. I was in remission for 17 months after that chemo; unfortunately, the leukemia relapsed just after Thanksgiving this year 2007. This means that it is very resistant to chemo and is considered VERY HIGH RISK. The best chance for a cure for this disease is a stem-cell or bone marrow transplant. You can learn about Greg at www.greghatchey.com.

Well I’ve found a couple of cord blood units…but read on.

Translated: that means I’ll be in Seattle for awhile (possibly up to a year).

I’m told that the likelihood of finding a match for me is like winning the lottery, but in the last couple of years, they have made some significant advances with cord blood.”

-www.greghatchey.com

Shinai vs Bokken - Why I Chose Shinkendo

Almost 3 years ago, my wife (then fiancee), and I decided we would like to learn Japanese sword.  This desire stemmed from our frequent renting of anime from the local video store.  We became enamored with the stories of feudal Japan, the brave Samurai who fought for honor and their daimyo, and the cool sword moves that are often shown in the movies, such as Kill Bill.  We realized that movies and anime tend to over exaggerate sword technique, but nonetheless we were still interested in learning.  We were feeling that we needed something active to do together, and I, being a former student of Tae Kwon Do, thought martial arts would be the best way to go.  Not only would we be exercising, but we would be learning something new, and learning it together.

Lessons From the Dojo: Commonly Used Japanese

When practicing Japanese martial arts, there are many phrases heard in the dojo. These phrases have meaning, and we use the Japanese instead of English to maintain the tradition of our training.

Before we begin, there are a few annunciations that are commonly misinterpreted. In Japanese there is no R or L sound. In Romanji, or Romanised Japanese, R and L make a D sound. The vowels all have specific sounds that do not change.

A - Ah as in father
E - Eh as in cake
I - Ee as in seek
O - Oh as in low
U - Oo as is lose