Black Belt Mama
Site Owner-Editor

I am a 30 something forever 29 year old stay at home mother.  I stay at home with my two daughters: "Big I" who is six years old and "Lil C" who is two years old.

I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in English Writing, Creative Nonfiction. I met my husband my sophomore year, fell in love with him when he let me borrow his laundry detergent, and married him shortly after graduation.

I worked for a small literary journal as an assistant editor, then at Clinique cosmetics (because the pay was better), and then at a graphic design firm as an "Administrative and Marketing Assistant" which is just a fancy name for copy girl, xerox pro, or otherwise just plain old lackey. I was supposed to be a writer, but somehow got the desk where I answered all the phones, filed all the folders, and mostly just retrieved muffins and coffee creamer. I did, however, write a corporate identity manual and an insurance brochure. Zzzzz, Zzzzz. I did learn lots of things while working there though, but mostly how to swallow my pride.

When I got sick of that (a very short time later), I went to Duquesne University where I earned my M.S.Ed. in 11 months, and accumulated so much student loan debt that it’s just plain ridiculous considering I taught high school English for not even two years and then decided my true calling was MommyHood.

I taught 9th grade the first year and was inundated with so many students who had probation officers that my head started spinning. One of my 15 year old students stole his dad’s car, hit another car in a parking lot and then headed for the state border thinking he’d be safe. I also taught some really great kids who will go on to do amazing things.

The following year I taught 10th grade and looped with my 9th graders (the ones who passed, leaving most of the young criminals behind). Because of this, the school decided to give me special education students, a.k.a. anyone who has a major behavior problem plus the students who truly need to be classified special ed. All this, while pregnant with my first baby. I went on maternity leave, had my daughter in 2001, and never looked back.

We sold our house; and my husband switched careers so that I would be able to stay home with my baby girl. By home, I literally mean home, as in we moved in with my parents for a year. Then, we moved to NJ. Then we moved back to my hometown.

In October 2005, I gave birth to our second daughter after a long wait to get her on her way. I wanted everything to be natural, and planned a birth center birth. Then I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes and that all changed. I did have a midwife deliver her and that was truly awesome.

I now work from home (in my spare time) as a part time logistics recruiter and freelance writer; my husband sometimes works from home too. Because of this, our neighbors probably think that:
A. we are independently wealthy
B. pajamas are the new ‘business casual’
C. our house will be foreclosed on momentarily
None of these are true. Well, except for B., maybe.

I am trying to raise my girls to be smart, strong women. I am a 1st kyu brown belt in both Okinawan Kenpo and Kobudo. Did I mention it’s a family affair? (I didn’t just mean "strong" in the figurative sense.) Big I started karate when she was three and is now an 7th kyu; Lil C will probably know how to snap kick before she’s potty trained (she already knows how to kiai better than I do); and I was a little late on the draw, starting when I was 29 (Yeah, I realize the math doesn’t make sense with the whole "forever 29" statement in the beginning, but just work with me here).

I’ve realized that it’s never too late to learn something new. You just have to be willing to face the fact that the 14 year old you take class with who has been there since she was three is 100% capable of kicking your butt.

I love: reading a good book, playing fantasy football (damn you LaDainian Tomlinson), going on vacations, and nailing a new kata.

I can’t stand: litter butts, people who don’t put their dogs on a leash, folding laundry, liars and bad table manners.

I think that about covers it.

If you have something nice to say, please leave me a comment or write me an email. If not, no one is forcing you to read this so get lost.

No, seriously.

Email Black Belt Mama.

Ikigai 108
Review Writer

I am a Sandan in Okinawa Kenpo Karate and Okinawa Kenpo Kobudo of the Heilman, Odo, Nakamura lineage.  I have been training for twelve years and teaching for seven.  I have also been studying Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu (Miura line) for three years.

The martial arts have long been a way of life for me, and I have gone through many different phases of my training (as most martial artists do).  I went to tournaments for awhile and collected some shiny plastic.  I learned high ranking kata, assuming they had super death-touch secrets that I needed to unlock (unlike those silly ‘beginner katas’).  I watched Bruce Lee movies in awe and admiration…and the list goes on.

That’s all fun stuff, but eventually (thankfully) I found a better balance in my training.  I have come into contact with some amazing teachers and continue to grow and learn so as to live up to their standard of excellence.  Training has become a personal journey for me through which I endeavor to carve away all the imperfections in my technique, spirit, and character (which is why they call the martial arts a lifetime occupation!)

I decided to write reviews in the martial arts due to my academic background.  I graduated from Penn State University with a BA in Professional Writing.  Over the years I have published in several different venues, such as Blur (Creative Nonfiction anthology), Penn State Collegian Newspaper, Nolde Forest Outreach (public relations package), Woven With Words (published book), and hopefully in the near future, Masters Magazine.  Writing about the martial arts has always been a guilty pleasure of mine, so I decided to put that energy to good use and offer up some reviews.

Likes:  reading & writing (but not so much rithmatic), feeling that ahh-ha! moment in the martial arts, comedy shows on tv, browsing youtube.

Dislikes:  puffy chested martial artists of any style, closed minds, dishonesty, reality tv, stories that end with ‘you had to be there.’

On a final note, for those who are curious and hung in there through my bio, I chose the name “Ikigai” because it is a term that I consider significant.  It roughly means ‘that which makes your life worth living,’ but it’s a very slippery and thought-inducing concept.  Look into it if you’ve got a slow day at the office or something; use that google all the kids talk about these days.

Email Ikigai 108.

TSDAdam
Review Writer

I’m a 30 year old (I prefer the terms twenty-ten or twenteen to be honest, I’m sure you’re meant to feel more grown up at this age) married man from Cornwall, in the very South-West tip of the UK where I live with my wife, two cats and our new pup.

When I’m not working in my current role as a Project Officer, I like to read, socialise, play games, and most of all – my all-cosuming passion – martial arts. In my case, the martial art of choice is Tang Soo Do, which is essentially Korean Karate. After nearly two years of training I’m currently at 5th Gup (or Kyu for fans of the Japanese/Okinawan styles), working hard and horribly addicted! I started for several reasons, most notably a desire to get fit again and lose weight, but also because it was always one of those things I always wanted to do, but never got around to. Now I train because I can’t imagine my life without it. My interest has also led me to doing a lot of my own reading and research into the history of the art I’m learning and its predecessors.

As mentioned above, one of my interests is games, or more specifically video games. I’ve been playing with computers and games consoles for as long as I can remember, and over the last few years I’ve taken the step to try to enthuse others in the same way I have been, by turning my hand to penning some reviews. I write reviews and articles for the UK-based, import-centric ntsc-uk.com, so it seemed like a natural progression for me then to combine my interest in writing/reviewing with my newfound love of martial arts. So here I am!

Likes: Peanut butter, Autumn, taking a good hit in sparring.
Dislikes: Egos, poor spelling, narrow-mindedness.

If I’ve a few minutes spare to myself, I also keep my blog updated when I have something to write about. You can see for yourself how my leaky sponge of a brain works here at Adam’s Cerebral Spillage.

Email TSDAdam.

TKDDaughter
Review Writer

I am a 30-something mom who lives in Western Pennsylvania with my 3 year old son, my 30-something husband, and our two very fat, very lazy cats.  We are working on restoring a 125 year old Queen Anne Victorian home to its original splendor…if only we had the money to do it!  My husband does all of his own work, so the process is slow going. 

I attended a small liberal arts college where I majored in both English and Theatre with great aspirations of someday winning a Tony Award.  Once reality set in and I realized my talent was only as good as a community theater regular, I began to pursue ways to finance my life.

I worked in retail management for far more years than I would like to admit while working on two Masters degrees-one in Literature, one in Secondary Education.  Retail provided me the foundation for every other job to come and gave me richer experience than any other job since.  I applaud those who continue retail careers-it’s a tough job.  So, dear readers, be kind to retail employees-chances are, someone was just really rude to them!

Upon finishing my graduate degrees, I began my calling as an English teacher at a small, private Catholic high school.  I love my students, I love my colleagues (most of the time), and I love curriculum.  Now if only the administration could get a clue…

I took a year off when I had my son and worked from my home as sales assistant for a major bra company.  I despised every bloody second of it, but it allowed me to stay at home with my son during his first year and a half.  Why I thought I would enjoy working with numbers all day is beyond me-I am a words kind of girl!

While on my year sabbatical, I also began a new phase of my teaching career working for a cyber charter school.  I remain at both teaching jobs part-time now and love them both equally.  They are drastically different, but equally challenging!

Besides being a mom, wife and teacher, I am addicted to stamping and scrapbooking and all things crafty.  I am trying my hand at knitting and crocheting, but I’m not sure if I have the talent for it.  I have a background in theater and while I don’t get to work in the theater anymore, I still enjoy seeing plays and musicals.  I am always reading many books at the same time, most for pleasure, some for my job. I love Jane Austen and Shakespeare and Ian McEwan. 

Unlike the other reviewers for this site, my only link to the martial arts is my father, a 3rd degree Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do (which he earned in his late 50’s!) who desperately tried to get me interested, but was too annoyed after my constant giggling as he tried to teach me techniques.  I am, however, tremendously proud of him as he continues his training at his late 60’s.

Likes: Hearing my son laugh, potato chips, cheese, peanut butter cups, dark chocolate, classy people, a great novel, seeing my students master a skill

Dislikes: Seeing my son upset, rude people, lazy people, melons of any kind (I know…weird…), bad acting

Email TKDDaughter.