Latest musings - Family, work and training.

Below is a picture of the kamidana of my private dojo. I finally finished putting the shelf up. 

It has taken a while because work and family always come first. So when I get the chance, I go out to the dojo and work on the current project. For a while it was the shoe rack. I put together some old shelves, sanded them and painted them. Now I have a shoe rack in the area which will be the genkan eventually. 

I had the shelf for the dojo made for a while but the brackets were being made as a project by a young man at the high school I teach at. They were eventually finished and then had to be stained to match the shelf. Just staining the brackets took a while because the oil-based product needed 24 hours between coats. I would try and get some of the staining done in the evening after work or in the weekend and sometimes it would be two or three days before I could get back at it. 

Once the brackets were done I wanted to buy brass screws (I eventually used zinc gold) to match the colour of the brackets. I had to wait two weekends before I had the chance to get to the local hardware shop. Visitors and family kept me busy until then. I eventually had to tell my wife that I wouldn't be going on the latest family road trip just to get time at home to drill the brackets and shelf to the wall. 

The whole off-mat area is still awaiting my attention. It is functional but the walls need lining and most surfaces need a paint job. The matted space is functional but small things still need some work. I have to decide how I am going to finish the floor space that borders the mats, at the moment the plywood flooring is still exposed 

I'm not complaining, work provides the money for the projects and family comes first. I just accept that things get done in the dojo at a slow plod. As long as I keep making progress I'm not too concerned. 

Training in TSYR continues as always. The core group are still at it and I never tire of it. The Hamilton dojo will be closing for renovations in December and I have said I am happy for the TSYR group to come out and train in Te Miro. I'm looking forward to sharing the space with them. I can practice batto in my own space which is a bonus but I need bodies to work with for most of the shoden curriculum. 

Since Threadgill sensei's last visit to NZ we have been going over the key points he mentioned. I know for myself I need to be less passive in my sword work. We all need to work on smoothing out our unarmed techniques so that they flow more and establish a connection with our partner earlier to get control as quickly as possible. 

It is all good for the mind and body.