Author: Shawn

I am a practitioner of the martial arts and student of the Buddhist faith. I have been a Type 1 Diabetic since I was 4 years old and have been fighting the uphill battle it includes ever since. I enjoy fitness and health and looking for new ways to improve both, as well as examining the many questions of life. Although I have no formal medical training, I have amassed a wealth of knowledge regarding health, Diabetes, martial arts as well as Buddhism and philosophy. My goal is to share this information with the world, and perhaps provide some sarcastic humour along the way. Welcome!

Facts To Go Up In Smoke…

It’s not exactly a hidden secret that I enjoy an occasional cigar during my downtime. In fact, in recent months I’ve seen my “enjoyment” go from an occasional once or twice a month indulgence to a couple of times a week. Although it doesn’t particularly rank high on the list of things that are good for you, having the ability to sit quietly and enjoy a decent cigar provides a number of mental and relaxation benefits for me, the likes of which I haven’t encountered elsewhere in any easy way. Unlike meditation, sitting with a nice cigar allows for interruptions, such as kids asking questions or performing other tasks.

So where do cigars come from? According to a blog post I recently read, “Historians generally believe that the cigar was invented by the ancient Mayans, who would wrap the tobacco in a palm or a plantain leaf and smoke it.” The post goes on to explain that a Mayan pot from the 10th century has an image depicting a man smoking a cigar. You can check out the blog post here (hopefully the link works). the bottom line is that a cigar is considered a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco, which is usually sealed up at one end.

There are several different blends, sizes and brands of cigar, ranging from a variety of different places across the world. Although most sources will cite specific places and brands as being top quality and the Cadillac of cigars, but I’ve come to realize that for the purposes of relaxing, size, brand and style of cigar is completely up to the user. One doesn’t need to spend an absolute fortune on a cigar in order to enjoy the relaxation that comes from smoking one. For example, my favourite cigar is the Casa Magna Gran Toro cigar from Nicaragua. It retails at $16.99 and is the most expensive end of cigars that I enjoy.

If you’re cheaper than I am, you can usually find comparable examples for about ten dollars. Although that’s only a little cheaper than an average six-pack from your local liquor store, it’s important to bear in mind that unless you’re an unruly teenager striking out against one’s parents, you don’t get drunk more than once a weekend, so the safe bet is you likely wouldn’t be having more than one cigar a weekend. And since it can take well over an hour to properly enjoy a cigar until its end, you’re good to go. Granted, the big difference is there’s less of a stigma against sitting outside during daylight hours smoking a cigar than there would be against sitting outside during daylight hours hammering back a drink. But I digress…

So, what does enjoying a cigar entail? Well, the first step would be to pick one out. There are plenty of sites that will explain to you how to properly pick out a cigar and much like the fact that I wouldn’t presume to explain to you the quality of wine, I won’t try and tell you what cigars you should buy. Although I enjoy both, I’m an expert of neither, so you can look into how to properly pick out a quality cigar on your own. But once you’ve picked your cigar, you’ll likely need to cut the closed end. For this, you’ll need a good single-edged cutter. Trimming the closed end to expose a smooth, flat circle is important because this is where you’ll draw from.

Take it from me and spend the few dollars to purchase a reasonable cigar cutter. I once tried to cut a cigar using a pair of scissors and it did not go well. This is because the pressure of the scissors will cause the outer wrapping to not only buckle and tear but the scissors will likely damage the glue holding the outer binding and your cigar will likely come apart while you’re trying to smoke it. Then, you light the tip, preferably with wooden matches to avoid souring the cigar with a modern lighter. You don’t want to set the cigar in fire. Rather, you want to slowly turn the cigar slowly and allow the tip to burn lightly and evenly.

A cigar is meant to be enjoyed slowly and pleasantly, puffing and taking the smoke into the cheeks and exhaling lightly. You want to avoid inhaling into the lungs, since they’re significantly stronger than cigarettes and will irritate your lungs to no end. And smoking it too quickly will usually cause you to become nauseous and feel sick. A cigar is meant to be slowly enjoyed and savoured. If you want something fast, do shots. That shit is quick. Look at me, encouraging all sorts of vices…

Last but not least, enjoying a cigar is a very particular form of relaxation and is pretty niche, meaning that very few people will usually enjoy along with you. Most certainly, it’s something that’s extremely hard to enjoy around folks who don’t partake of them, as well. Personally, I keep a chair and table inside my garage and enjoy them by myself during the warmer months of the year. Either way, vices are to be enjoyed minimally or sparingly and cigar smoking is no different. ☯️

Let’s Get Corny…

My wife and I like finding activities for the boys to do, on weekends. Normally, we stick to conventional things like going to a play structure, indoor or out, or spending a couple of hours at a swimming pool or splash pad. The weather is slowly turning colder to the point where hanging out at the splash pad is less than ideal and even outdoor play structures are only comfortable during the afternoon when it’s a touch warmer.

This last weekend, we decided to try something a bit different and visited a corn maze. Our initial impression was that the boys had never been, although apparently Nathan has been to one with his uncle at some point (according to him). But we found one just outside Regina and decided it would be an interesting activity for this weekend, The weather was a bit on the cooler side, so we dressed accordingly.

I was pretty taken aback by how full the parking lot was when we arrived on site. They had a grassy parking area that was almost completely full of cars, yet there were no visible lines anywhere. I paid the admission and the first thing we came upon was the bus cut-out pictured above. The boys immediately ran to it to get inside, which was hilarious considering there was. Bouncy house, castle arch and other attractions nearby.

We’d found the maze entrance and made our way inside. It was quaint and reasonably large. Once we were inside, I was surprised by how hot it became. We all started shedding our sweatshirts before we got to the end of it. Although it was kind of cool, I have to confess that besides walking about, there wasn’t much of a draw to it. The boys were given lollipops by some kind of corn princess at the entrance and had they not gotten something sugary, I’m inclined to think they probably would have gotten bored pretty quick.

When we came out, we waited in line for our turn at a hay ride, which took us all around the maze and through a small forested patch. It was pretty cool and I think the boys enjoyed it. The clothing we wore still has some stray hay pieces on it. It was nice to get out into the fresh air and see something new. It was a good experience for the boys and we discussed going back before they close up for the season.

When we were done with the hay ride, the boys wanted to play on this massive thing called a jumping pillow. Basically, it’s a massive, single-piece bouncy-house that’s shaped like an actual pillow. The result of it being one-piece is that the entire thing shakes and moves violently every time ANY of the kids jump. The result is Nathan had loads of fun. My two-year old Alex did NOT. He never managed to get higher than the base, since he couldn’t gain his footing and couldn’t jump.

Despite the occasional attempts of help by his older brother, Alexander just couldn’t make his way up the bouncy pad. I could see that he was getting frustrated. Any attempts at having him get off the pad were met with resistance but I noticed a small kiddie train I could put him on that he’d likely enjoy. He pitched an absolute fit when I took him out of there but I would expect no less. Once he was on the kiddie train and it started driving away, he was fie and enjoying himself.

As is the case with almost every outing we’ve gone on, both boys sulked, cried and argued at our departure, but we had been there for a couple of hours and tried almost everything. It was definitely a good experience for the boys and something different from our usual habits. We’ll definitely be going back and next time we’ll bring cash, since everything inside is cash-based, once you’re past the gate. ☯️

Cowardly, Or Smart?

I think that at some point, we’ve all had someone who has done us wrong in the course of our life. In some cases, the wrong was severe enough to alter the very course of our existence and make us wonder what, if anything, we’d do if we had this person standing in front of us and we had the opportunity to do something. I had such an opportunity, last week. And I found myself contemplating my next move. Several scenarios played out in my head as I calculated potential outcomes and whether they were ultimately worth it or not. Ultimately, I walked away before this person could even see me. Cowardly, or smart?

Picture this: you’re questioned and asked about something that you deny. The questioner tells you it’s done there and they won’t take it further. And then they do. What follows is almost three years of a hellish version of what you recognize as life while you try and put the pieces back together. You walk away and reassemble the pieces to forge a new identity for yourself. You give up who you were; not just a job but the very fabric of your existence and who you saw yourself as. The result is a temporary slip in a world of smoke and alcohol, surviving rather than living. You watch, as the world takes apart the very profession you grew to love and thought defined you.

And all of sudden, out of the blue and on a random day when you were expecting anything but, you see the person who started it all. And this person, the one who crippled your previous career, harmed your family life and endangered the future of your children is just walking along casually, enjoying their day and making the most of some down time. You stand there, frozen, contemplating what you should do next. Should you approach and finally say your peace? Perhaps show that you came out stronger and better than when you went in? I finally snapped out of it, long enough to walk away…

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. I don’t need this person to know that I’ve carried on. I don’t need them to know that I’ve evolved and have gone on to do better things. I know I have and my family knows I have, and that’s really all I need in order to find my peace. Anger, hatred, bitterness… These are the things that bring further suffering in one’s life and in case some of y”all haven’t been reading my stuff in recent years, the elimination of suffering is kind of my jam. At some point, we need to learnt o let go of the pain and difficulties we’ve faced, especially if we’ve fought our way through and came out better. I often wondered what would happened if I faced this person and now I know. There isn’t a cowardly bone in my body. I simply realize that they aren’t worth my time and thoughts. ☯️

No Rest For The Wickedly Sick…

It’s been something of a difficult week for me, having gotten sick late last week and having whatever evil typhoid infecting my body carry into this weekend. I pride myself on not being the type of guy who does “man flu,” meaning I’m not the type to complain about not feeling well as a general rule. But even I can only take so much and sometimes an illness will put me down just as easily as the next person. It rather sucks, especially since I JUST started karate the week before last and missed all of this week due to illness. Not to mention I have my eye injections, this coming Monday. If I don’t heal up and feel better by Monday, I get to experience the shitty feeling of being sick WHILE getting needles jabbed into my eyes. Ah, life…

It usually seems that no matter the type of illness, one always seems convinced they could handle ANYTHING else. For example, if one has a stomach flu and is throwing up, they’d usually be inclined to say they wished it was anything other than a stomach flu. One gets a sinus cold where one is stuffed up and has difficulty breathing, one will be convinced they’d manage fine if they could just breathe and were sick with ANYTHING else. Illness, not that any version of it is fun, is a bit like always wanting what you can’t have. For me, the biggest pet peeve is being unable to sleep. I can’t sleep worth a damn at the best of times, between Diabetes, PTSD and nightmares. Add coughing into the mix and it’s simply a recipe for poor recovery.

Imagine having a dry, rasping cough and being unable to control when it hits. And no, before everyone jumps to conclusions, it isn’t COVID-19. Not every cough or sinus problem is COVID-19. But all bitterness aside, you feel like shit, you take some meds and nasal spray and lie down gingerly in bed with the hopes of getting some sleep in order to allow your body to recuperate from whatever illness is plaguing you. You just start to slip into a state of sleep when you feel that familiar itch at the back of your throat. You swallow in vain, hoping the minimal saliva will help prevent you from hacking up a lung, but to no avail. You end up hacking and retching, barely able to catch your breath. It only lasts about twenty seconds but the damage is done; you’re now awake and have to work towards trying to sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat and cry.

This has been my reality for the past week. I’ve woken up most mornings this week with dark, sunken and bloodshot eyes. As is the standard definition of ironic, I usually wake at a point where I was soundly asleep and likely could have slept for hours, had I not needed to get up for work. Such is life. I stumbled through my week, getting my work done and running the necessary errands, happy in the fact that I don’t have to operate heavy machinery and even happy that I no longer have to carry a firearm, otherwise I might have a problem. Given that it’s been over a week I should likely get checked. But given the current state of Canada’s health system and wait times, I likely have time to crawl into my grave and pull the dirt on top of myself before I’d see someone and get effective treatment.

So bad has it been that despite the fact I intended to get home from work yesterday evening and enjoy a beer and a cigar to relax at the end of my week, I was outside for fifteen minutes before coming back inside and retreating to my bed. Maybe I’m making it seem dramatic but I want to illustrate that whatever this is, is more than just a casual case of the sniffles. Couple that with the fact that my blood sugars have been all over the place and my meals have been sporadic and there should be plenty to talk about in a month and a half, at my next endocrinologist appointment. But i digress…

The big problem is that sleep is not cumulative. It’d be a lot cooler if it was… (cue Matthew McConaughey voice, if you know, you know!) Imagine having a day off and sleeping for a full 24 hours and not having to sleep for the next three days??? Imagine the productivity and things you’d get done? It’d be cool, but the damage caused by lack of sleep can’t be made up later on. Lack of sleep will cause blood pressure issues, headaches, fluctuating blood sugars and poor concentration and cognitive reflexes. None of that is good when you wander the adult world.

The fact that I’m rambling should tell you just how ill I am. I’m sure I’ll recover. Everyone recovers from illness. Until they don’t. But if I post tomorrow, I guess that means I’m on my way. I make fun, but as I get older I recognize that my body’s ability to recover is becoming less and less effective. Of course, my grandfather lived until his late 90’s, having survived every illness under the stars, including cancer. My father’s spine is slowly degenerating and he’s still fighting like and angry warhorse; emphasis on the angry. I’ll keep y’all posted. ☯️

Either Way, It’s Not A Game…

Karate has a rich history, running back hundreds of years (thousands, if you subscribe to the theory of where it originated). I’ve often considered myself blessed to be part of that history in my own little way, even if karate and the martial arts are sometimes poorly viewed or badly portrayed through various channels. Movies and television certainly do the art no favours, and watching a tournament can be quite deceiving as well, since there’s a big difference between karate as a sport and karate as an art.

So, which one is better? At their very core, the easy answer is neither one is better than than the other. They both suit their purpose, they both have benefits and they both have disadvantages. It’s important to be able to recognize the pros and cons and acknowledged them, as well as hold them up against what your ultimate goals may be. Otherwise you may find yourself caught by surprise at what you learn and experience during your time in the dojo.

Let’s take sports karate for example… To clarify, I refer to sports karate as a style that trains primarily for competition, display purposes and to score points against an opponent. There’s nothing specifically wrong with this type of karate, provided you aren’t training with them for the art aspect or to use it in a real fight scenario. You’ll still learn, you’ll still develop and if tournaments are your thing, it’ll be right up your alley.

The issue comes from trying to use it for self-defence. If you ever find yourself in a real fight scenario, stepping in and delivering a strike and stepping out because you’ve scored a point likely won’t work on the street. I say “likely” because a kick is a kick and a punch is a punch, right? There’s a good chance that if done properly, you may stop your respective threat despite the training you’re doing. But sports karate may not give you the comprehensive toolbox you need to address the very real obstacles you’ll face in life.

If you study karate as an art, you’ll likely learn more comprehensively from a style standpoint but you may be lacking some of the hands-on contact that you would get from fighting in tournaments. Punching bags don’t hit back and “no contact” sparring matches will likely result in the practitioner never knowing what it feels like to have an impact on a hard surface or against another living target. Not only could that be dangerous but unlike what one may see in the movies, attempting flowery, complicated techniques in a real-life scenario will likely get you creamed.

That’s why it’s important to know what you’re after when training in karate or the martial arts and recognize the pros and cons. Although neither did inherently bad, it’s important to ensure it aligns with what your overall goals may be. And don’t be afraid to dip your toes in the pond to get some of the skills your style may not provide. For example, my style doesn’t do a great deal of floor work or grappling, making it ideal for me to occasionally practice with Judo or Jiu Jitsu in order to better complement my martial art’s toolbox. Food for thought…☯️

Your Style = Your Way Of Life

I’ve written on several occasions about how one’s martial arts style needs to be more than walking into the nearest dojo and training with whomever they find, there. Although not the original intention, there are hundreds of different styles currently practiced throughout the world and each one of them has its own specific nuances and techniques that have the potential to suit one person more than the next. Choosing a style of martial arts to commit years of one’s life to, can be a lengthy process involving more trial and error than most people are willing to work through.

But the importance of finding a style that suits the practitioner is important enough that it took me almost five years to land on a style that suited me, worked for me and fit my my overall goals. Not everyone is willing to do this. For many if not most, once they decide they want to train in the martial arts they’ll look up the closest dojo within their community and walk into it. This can be detrimental to that person’s journey since, if that style doesn’t suit them, they’ll walk away disappointed and if their community happens NOT to have another dojo, they’ll likely assume martial arts simply isn’t for them.

For example, even the people who know me likely didn’t know that I hold an orange belt in Hap Ki Do or that I studied Judo and Kendo for a number of years prior to joining karate. It wasn’t UNTIL I joined karate that I came to terms with what I was looking for and what suited me. Leaving those previous dojos was difficult, especially since I was climbing the belt process in Hap Ki Do, but since my main goal was my overall health and not my ranking, it didn’t matter. And I have no regrets.

My point and the point of today’s post, is that students will come and students will go. It can be difficult to see a student with solid potential start training within your dojo, only to quit and walk away. Sometimes it happens for the silliest and most frivolous reasons. Sometimes, it’s pride. But almost universally, it comes down to two categories: behavioural or technical. And now, I’m going to share the story of a student from each category.

Behavioural
We are not the sum of our behaviours. This can be a difficult lesson to learn, especially for a Sensei. When one becomes a teacher and takes it upon themselves to train others, it has to be through the lens that every person is different will not only learn differently but will likely behave differently. This should be common sense but in an art where discipline and obedience are key to learning the style, this can be a difficult pill to swallow. This is where a student that I’ll simply call “John” comes in…

I met John when i was still a white belt myself, albeit just a kyu or two shy of achieving green belt. He was younger than I was and quite brash and carried a significant chip on his shoulder. He acted out and behaved like a little shit within the dojo, often farting, causing distractions and teasing other students. Despite all of those things, he showed an affinity to karate and began learning quickly. He gained skill to the point that in only a couple of short years, our sparring matches saw us almost even matched and until I fractured my rib earlier this year, is the one responsible for the only time in my life that I’ve broken a bone. But I digress…

As John grew from a young boy into a young man and began to come into his own, he started to close the gap in rank with me and the promise of getting some green on his belt became a real possibility. Until he allowed his behaviour to trickle onto Sensei. During a rather heated sparring match with Sensei, John made some verbal comment that was more than Sensei would stomach. He delivered a single blow that sent John sprawling to the floor. Although he had been training to block, absorb or deflect such impacts for years, John walked out of the dojo feigning pain and lack of breath and went home. His pride had been wounded.

Now this situation has been hotly discussed on two fronts: The first being, John should have learned the lesson, returned to the dojo and continued training through the lens of having learned something important. The second that Sensei should have been more tolerant and SPOKEN to John about his behaviour and he shouldn’t have struck him. I fall under the former category. If you’re foolish enough to start mouthing off at me during a sparring match, I’ll likely bury my big toe in your spleen as well. But i once again digress…

John never came back to karate. Ever. Which was heart-breaking because he had significant potential and would likely be well on his way to being an instructor himself, by now. To this day, I believe he still regrets having never stuck with it and I genuinely believe that although Sensei’s rigidity could have softened, it’s John’s pride that prevented him from making his way back and achieving his goals. true story.

Technical
My technical example takes the story above and demonstrates the total opposite. I used to train/teach a younger student that I’ll simply name “Donny.” Donny was a teenager and by most views, was a respecting and appreciative student of the way. He had a keen interest in the martial arts and was hungry to learn. He followed all direction and instruction and was always pleasant to train with. Realistically, he simply wasn’t very good. I need t be clear on what I mean by this, since everyone’s level and skill is subjective. Learning and properly mastering techniques and forms did not come easily.

Despite this level of skill, which could have improved over time, Donny had no patience and began questioning when he would climb in rank. Although this was a question that many students had, it was somewhat rare to hear it from one who consistently required correction on material he had been practicing for years. The effect was that Donny began to realize he wouldn’t climb in rank, which caused impatience to rear its ugly head. As most of you know, impatience has no place in the proper learning of karate, although it tends to peak its head out more than it should.

The end result is that Donny left karate and joined a local Tae Kwon Do school. In my teens and my 20’s, I spoke a lot of smack against TKD but as I’ve grown older and wiser (please hold the comments) I’ve come to recognize that it’s a substantial style with a lot of fantastic history and techniques. It simply sin’s for me. For Donny, however, it held the promise of what he was ACTUALLY looking for: ranking. It took very little time to realize that he was climbing the almighty belt ladder and was happier than a proverbial pig in shit.

Within a few short years, Donny held a black belt and was beaming with pride. Traditional martial arts won’t allow you to reach such a skill level or belt rank that quickly as one simply can’t absorb all the material necessary to get there in so short a time but hey! Good for him! Hopefully that belt also holds up his pants… I sound a bit bitter and in fact, I am. I firmly believe that the skill is more important than the belt and if Donny had stuck it out and put the time in, he would have improved and grown exponentially. But if all he wanted was the prestige of a black belt around his waist, so be it.

The thing to recall about the martial arts is that it isn’t a sport that you play for a few key years then walk away from. It’s a life-long journey and commitment, requiring sacrifice and occasional disappointment. But those things can also be used to fuel one’s forge to keep the hunger alive and train towards one’s ultimate goals. It’s gotta come from you. Although I would never want someone in my dojo who doesn’t want to be there, these two stories reflect the student losses that have stuck with me. Sometimes it’s hard to watch someone with potential walk away. But everyone has their own journey to complete. ☯️

The Older I Get…

Life has a strange way of making one ride a very particular curve. When we’re young, we get to experience a lot of really exciting firsts… It all starts with one’s first steps, first words and first using the potty (you know who you are!). As one gets older, a batch of new firsts blesses one’s life; first time driving a car, first time kissing a girl, first time getting a paid job. For some, we could even include the first time enjoying a cold beer, first time living on one’s own and first time taking steps towards adulthood. But as we reach adulthood, we hit a lull in that curve that has all the firsts come to an end and life begins to cash out the debt.

“The Older I Get, The More Things I Gotta Leave Behind. That’s Life.”

– Rocky Balboa

As we get older, all of those firsts begin to seem like a distant memory in the rearview mirror. In fact, everything seems to fade to black; old friends become old memories, all those exciting firsts step aside for the realities of life. We even reach the point where loved ones begin to leave us behind for whatever comes next. Y’all know what I’m talking about. It can be a difficult part of life to navigate, especially if one isn’t prepared or it. it can make life seem pretty bleak and leave one wondering what the point of it all may be.

In the past couple of years, life has hit everybody pretty hard. The pandemic changed everybody, and even the ones who don’t seem to believe it changed everyone were affected. For myself, significant life-altering decisions have been made in the past two years; choices I likely wouldn’t have made if the pandemic hadn’t come along. Since I’ve written about some of those changes ad nauseam and this post isn’t about that, i won’t get into those changes but rather, I’ll focus on the changes I’ve seen most recently.

Back at the beginning of August, I travelled out east to visit my folks. Although I should have been greeted the way I have for the past four decades, with a family pleased to see me, I was met with silence. With most trips involving so many back-to-back visits with friends and family that i barely had time to breathe, I came home to family with no time and the ones who did, made no time for me even when they could. And that was WITH my two adorable children, my wife and my mother in law adding to the pleasant ambiance.

It was a strange change to the dynamic of my life. I think that to some extent, my family and friends back home were always a bit of a safety net. Somehow, I could make my way through life and accomplish my goals with the knowledge that even though we had thousands of kilometres between us, they were a universal constant that brought balance to the universe. The most recent incident where for the first time in almost 40 years, Sensei made no time for me over the few days I was home was the nail that drive the message home. And home became the operative word, since the east coast was no longer a place that I could as such.

For the better part of a month, I’ve made my peace with the possibility that I’m just being a little over-sensitive about the entire thing. But I recently realized that it isn’t a matter of over-sensitivity; it’s simply the natural progression of life. I think there’s an old saying about repeating the same actions over and over but expecting a different result. Life doesn’t remain the same and only a fool would assume that there will never any change. The key is to accept those changes and see them for what they are; a different branch in the path of one’s overall journey.

When one takes the time to open one’s eyes and take a look around, there are plenty of firsts remaining to be had. My children will go through all of the joy and firsts in life that I did and I get to be there for it. The only difference is that I get the additional happiness of seeing the joy in their eyes as they experience it all for the first time. It isn’t about what one has lost. It’s about working towards what can still be lived. And experienced. Food for thought… ☯️

A Chilly Reminder…

It’s somewhat difficult to believe that the summer season is already starting to dwindle… Just last week, we actually had a frost warning for the early morning hours in Regina. A little bit hard to believe, since we’ve spent the majority of our time fighting through laboured breathing brought on by extreme heat just a week or two prior. We’ve had some warmer days since, obviously. But the vestiges of summer are starting to disappear, with the evenings coming on earlier and a colder chill on the morning air reminding us that fall will soon be upon us.

With the change in weather comes a change to one’s body chemistry and a propensity for catching colds and all sorts of other fun stuff. As a Type-1 Diabetic, I often harp that just about everything affects my health and my blood sugar levels and an overall change in weather is no exception. As tends to happen at least twice a year when the weather changes to an extreme, I recently caught a pretty nasty illness that saw me bed-ridden whenever I wasn’t actively doing chores or working.

Getting sick definitely sucks and speaking personally, I’ve been through enough in my life without having to deal with every little bug that floats by. Unfortunately, such choices are not up to us and none of us are immune to the effects of changing weather (see what I did there?). That’s why it’s important to continue to work towards the betterment of one’s health and make sure that smart choices are taken.

Ensuring that one is properly hydrated is the first step towards those smart choices. Good hydration not only helps maintain good blood sugar levels but it helps with all sorts of other things as well, such as blood pressure, immune system and also helps to keep your heart from working harder when pumping blood. Keeping the heart happy is kind of a good thing from a, you know, staying alive standpoint. I’m definitely guilty of this since the majority of my fluid intake (at least in the mornings) are in the form of caffeine.

Eating a healthy diet is also very important as one needs all the food groups and a proper balance of vitamins, nutrients and minerals are required to ensure a strong immune system and over all health. This can be difficult, especially if you do shift work, have little or no time for meal prep or somehow manage to have fresh produce go bad before you actually have a chance to consume it. Given that the cost of everything is going up these days, spending that much money on stuff can seem redundant if all one does is toss it out.

Last but not least is exercise. It’s no secret that exercise can be an integral and important part of one’s weekly and even daily routine. It’s pretty hard to focus on exercise when one is sick and honestly, if you’re feeling like a bag of smashed ass, it may not be the time to start trying to beat your personal push-up record or breaking a heavy sweat. You could end up doing more damage than good, compromising your immune system and making it take longer to heal. On the flip side, sitting idle for long days on end isn’t the greatest, either. The idea is to find that “sweet spot” where you do something to keep your blood flow going and prevent undoing any of the progress you may have been making before getting sick.

Getting sick sucks but there’s no way to avoid it completely, so taking steps to mitigate the effects and the damage are important. Naturally, one can’t go running to the ER for every batch of sniffles (especially nowadays!) so if you get ill, you should prepare for a few days of fighting through it at home. If you see that it’s been well over a week and you’re still ill with no signs of getting better, you may want to consult your doctor or medical practitioner as it could be a sign of something that will need a push in getting over. ☯️

Silence Is Golden: A Review…

There’s no debating that life gets pretty noisy. Between the hustle and bustle of the outside world AND the hustle and bustle within one’s own household, finding a few moments of silence can be daunting. That being said, there are other ways to find a moment of silence besides loading up and physically leaving your house. Bluetooth listening devices are all the rage and in fact, have been for quite a number of years. While Bluetooth used to refer to a single-eared device used to answer one’s phone, it’s become a standard means of connecting devices without cables and wires.

Wireless, Bluetooth earbuds are all the rage at the moment, with Air pods being the expected standard when using such devices with one’s phones. My workplace actually gifted their staff a pair of Bluetooth earbuds last Christmas but I quickly discovered that the shape of my ears wouldn’t accommodate the earbuds. I tried buying a set of generic ear buds to see if it was maybe the specific set, to no avail. It seems that jamming something into my ear doesn’t work for me. Go figure. I noticed months ago that one of my valued colleagues invested in a set of Bluetooth headphones, which allow for a better level of comfort and is supported by the head instead of trying to stay inside the ear.

I think I belong on GQ… Thoughts?

I decided that it might be worth looking into. I examined several sets from different brands until I landed on the pair I’m wearing in the photo above. Between the several retail locations I stopped at and all the brands I looked at, I started getting a little flustered. There are a LOT of different headphones out there. I was trying to balance price, quality and functionality, since I knew these would cost a small fortune no matter where I went. A few years ago, i purchase a small JBL Bluetooth speaker that has a carabiner on it, allowing to be hung or attached in various places. I absolutely LOVE that speaker and frequently use it when working out and cleaning. Since I was familiar and comfortable with JBL, I figured that was a great way to go.

I landed on a set of headphones, model JBL LIVE660NC. I purchased them because they were on special, came from a brand name I trusted and boasted a noise-cancelling function. Once I charged them up and got them tethered to my phone, I discovered that on top of ambient noise cancellation, it also allowed for sound and track control, answering phone calls and the noise cancellation is trippy. I mean, I can put the headphones on and hear my own breathing in my ears. I turn the headphones on and the sound of my breathing disappears. It’s quite weird but it’s a good thing. It allows for things in my environment to be blocked out so I can focus on either meditation, exercise or whatever.

If you can get your hands on a pair of these headphones, I would highly recommend it. It can be useful in the workplace, during exercise and even just during typical, household chores. It’s also an effective way of getting some white noise in your ears to help calm oneself and improve one’s overall mental and physical health. Go grab yourself a set, you won’t regret it. ☯️

The Modernization Of Martial Arts…

Martial arts is old. Very old. Like, worse than Mr. Burns or Professor Farnsworth old (if you know, you know). For that reason, it’s pretty hard to “modernize” martial arts and still keep it traditional. The world’s sensitivities and the onslaught of snowflakes in the past decades, coupled with how everyone gets offended at the smallest things these days, also poses a challenge for the martial arts teacher who still tries to teach the art in the manner that it was intended.

That being said and I’ve written about this before, it’s a bit like riding a razor’s edge in order to find that balance between teaching in a traditional manner and trying to navigate the modern world’s sensibilities. If some things are changed or taken away, it will effectively destroy the spirit in which many of these styles were founded, which ultimately means you aren’t ACTUALLY learning the style; you’re learning some watered-down bullshit meant to accommodate the student I stress of passing on the teachings. And that’s never a good thing.

So if we shouldn’t alter our teachings in order to keep up with the times, is there ANYTHING that can be done to modernize martial arts? Some would argue that no, there isn’t. However, a touch of enlightened thinking should tell any genuine practitioner of a traditional art that where there’s a will, there’s a way. here are some things that modern dojos can do to step into the 21st century without compromising the quality and traditions of their style:

1. Allow Water in the Dojo: Most dojos consider food and drink a hill worth dying on within the walls of their environment. And I totally get that. in fact, I spent my entire childhood seeing Sensei toss people out fro bringing in their coffee while watching their kids. I’ve always understood the food part; a karate dojo is not the environment to be wolfing down your Big Mac while people are trying to train. But given the benefits to fitness and the maintenance of health that proper hydration provides, allowing students to bring a water bottle into class can go a long way towards helping to keep students moving, which brings me to my next point…

2. Take Breaks: I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of this one but I have enough of an open mind to see the benefit behind it. Most traditional instructors will argue that once you bow in for the class, you don’t need, nor should you take a break until the class concludes and you bow out. I’ve always agreed with that concept, since part of point (besides learning karate) is to get a workout in. It’s hard to do that if you’re constantly stopping. That being said, even the most die-hard fitness buffs will take rest periods between sets, so why shouldn’t a karate practitioner?

3. Call in Sick or Injured: Sensei used to have a concept that even if you were injured, you could still train. Although that’s true in some respects, one needs to be mindful of one’s body and injuries and how they can be accommodated in a limited fashion. For example, if you have a sprained wrist, there’s nothing wrong with doing kick drills, practising forms, etc. But you should avoid crushing out push-ups and striking techniques until the wrist has healed. Anything is always something more than nothing, right? But if you have an illness and aren’t feeling well, sometimes it’s not only better to stay home so you don’t share your typhoid with the entire dojo, your body will sometimes require a reasonable healing period to prevent being out of the game for longer than necessary.

This is a pretty short list, if I’m being honest. The truth of the matter is if you want to learn karate, you need to be willing to learn it as it’s taught. If you don’t like or you aren’t satisfied with what’s being taught or how it is done, maybe karate isn’t the right place for you. Part of the responsibility is totally on the practitioner’s shoulders. If you don’t want something traditional and authentic, there are plenty of sports, hobbies and fitness options out there that may accommodate a person a bit better. ☯️