Learning How To Fall
A couple week ago, when Big I started first Danzan Ryu ju-jutsu, I was worried that this wasn't going to be her thing either. The very first thing that they learn in class is how to properly fall. There's a lot to remember and it's a little different than how we do it in karate. I spent the first night of class watching her fall on her arms constantly when she tried to do the side break fall. I watched her forget to turn her head sideways for the front one. I was worried.
Last week, they started doing roll falls and I began to really worry. Big I is not your typical little girl in the rolling department. It doesn't come naturally to her the way it does to many others girls. I wrote about this in the past and described Big I trying to do a forward roll as someone throwing their forehead at the floor. She just doesn't get that you're not supposed to roll on your head and almost break your neck. I think a big part of it has to do with how tall and skinny she got so very quickly. She just doesn't know how to work with that body yet.
However, this week at class, Big I made some major progress. With the exception of only one or two times, the kid got every break fall nearly perfect. Her Sensei was impressed. This was only her third class.
The class progresses with the usage of scrolls that have various techniques on them, and this week they were able to move down to the 5th technique. The children's class is currently only Big I and her Sensei's daughter. They get along really well, work great together and although Sensei's daughter seems to pick things up a little quicker than Big I, she's also his daughter and has had some at home training.
This week though, Big I was doing so well. When we got home from class, she wanted to show Mr. BBM all the things she had learned. There, in the middle of the family room, she showed him her break falls without being on mats. She is genuinely excited about what she's learning and tries to show her "moves" to everyone. Last night, she told me that if I'd like, she can teach me and Mr. BBM what she's learned in class. It may not have looked like it was her thing at the start, but it's appearing that it's becoming her thing fairly quickly.
There's a new giveaway over at The BBM Review, and it's food! Go now! Leave a comment and win one of three gift packages.
How to Make Your Teacher EXTREMELY Cranky
My speech students are working on their final speech project. The last speech is a group speech with an intense question/answer period following it. Students were able to form their own groups. I helped, if necessary. In some cases it was necessary. For example, the four students who decided they wanted to be a group of four when I had already told them groups could be no larger than three.
Breathe in, breathe out. FRUSTRATING!
After two weeks of group work during class time so that I could supervise, assist, and advise, outlines were due today. I should stress that this was the fourth time they were handing in outlines. The only thing different about this one was that I also required a group outline with a group introduction and group conclusion and transitions in between. It's not confusing, especially since I went over how to create it at least four times in class. On Thursday of last week, I wrote the exact format on the board and went over it. There was no shortage of instruction on how to create this outline.
I have six groups in my class and figured I would be able to get through all of their group outlines today during class. The plan was to conference with each group and advise them regarding changes they needed to make.
I got through two groups. The first group took me about 15 minutes which put me on schedule to finish all of the groups by the end of the class time. Then I got to the second group.
One of the group members was absent. . . again. The other two guys sat there, doing nothing, as they've done for the past two weeks which has surprised me because one of the guys is one of my best students. I have repeatedly told them to use their time wisely, to work on their group introduction, and that if they weren't busy, it signaled that they weren't going to do well on this speech.
Their outline was a complete mess, and guess what? No group introduction, no group conclusion and barely a transition. It was scattered, incorrectly formatted, and just plain irritating because it had nothing that I told them it needed in the previous weeks.
"Let me see your notes from last Thursday," I said grumpily.
They stared at me like I'd just asked them to recite the Bible, backwards, in Farsi or something.
"Where are your notes on how to do this group outline?" I demanded.
They stared at me, but this time, they were both turning a little red.
"So neither of you have notes on how to do this outline?"
They both nodded in agreement. "Ah, well that explains why this looks like garbage." I couldn't help myself. I was just so angry. I mean seriously! Why do I stand up there speaking to them, instructing them, spelling things out word for word, if they're not going to listen or write it down?
I had a little fit on them, hacked their outline to pieces with my pen, and then told them I'd have to take it with me to grade it because at that very moment, I was tempted to put a big fat zero on it. I asked them if they'd like to go and make a copy of it before class was over so they had my notes and suggestions and they stared at me again.
Hello? Anyone home?
"It's not really a question guys. Go and make a copy so you have my notes and can piece this mess into something decent for your speech next week! GO!"
I'm not usually this cranky with my students. I'm really not. In fact, most of them would say that I'm downright pleasant. But when I have spent this semester bending over backwards to try to get them on track and kick their butts into academic shape, and they turn in something as pathetic as that outline and then just stare at me like that?
UGH.
When I was finished with them, I had five minutes left. I told the students I was willing to stay late and work with any group that needed help. Two groups stayed and I'm thankful they did. Those two groups proved to me that I taught them what to do properly.
It's not me; it's them. Sometimes I need to remind myself.
Copyright Policy
This site is copyrighted, and what that means, for people who may have trouble with comprehension, is that you can’t take my stuff (posts, pictures, design, etc.) and put it on your site. You can’t even take my pictures and post and put them on your site if you give me a link. You just can’t. I won’t allow it, except within certain parameters (see below).
Let’s look at a few different scenarios:
Scenario 1:
1. You read a post from my site, like it, and repost it in its entirety, giving me credit or not.
2. I get upset.
3. I email you (if I can find an email address for you) and request, kindly, that you take it down.
4. You take it down and say you’re sorry.
5. We’re cool.
Scenario 2:
1. You read a post from my site, like it, and repost it in its entirety, giving me credit or not.
2. I get upset.
3. I email you (if I can find an email address for you) and request, kindly, that you take it down.
4. You don’t take it down and either a) ignore me, b) write a nasty post about me, or c) all of the above.
5. I ask you again, nicely, except now I’m not feeling so nice, but I’m trying. I’m really trying.
6. You repeat step 4 and now you’re making me mad and wasting my time.
7. I file a DMCA complaint against you and your site gets shut down.
8. Now you’re even more mad at me, but the only person you should be mad at is yourself, copy-cat.
Scenario 3:
1. You read a post from my site, like it, and re-post a couple lines from it, giving me complete credit OR you read a post from my site, provide your own take or commentary and link back to the original article OR you read something and then send me an email requesting use of it and I respond and give you permission.
2. We’re cool.
Wouldn’t you rather be a participant in Scenario 3?
I take copyright issues very seriously and pursue them aggressively. You’ve been warned.
Do It Yourself Landscaping (With Injuries to Prove It)
When we got the landscaping estimate two weeks ago from the landscape design lady, we knew there was no way it was going to happen unless a landscaping god dropped plants and trees from the sky, and we did it ourselves.
Then we found where the landscaping gods live. Everyone in our neighborhood has been singing the praises of a nursery located about 25 minutes from our neighborhood. Owned by a mennonite family, they have the best stuff, at a fraction of the price, and they're all super helpful. As a comparison, the plants for the front and one side of our house were going to cost us over $3000, not including labor from the first lady.
From the landscaping gods? We were able to buy all 78 of the plants for around $1000. No, you aren't imagining things; it really does say 78 plants. That could explain why my body feels like it's been through a meat grinder today. The weekend started off with a bang, no, literally a bang.
On Saturday morning, I tried to maneuver around my disorganized laundry room and banged the inside of my ankle on the metal thing sticking out of the inside of the dryer door. It was one of those hitting your funny bone type of moments, but there was nothing funny feeling about it. I scraped some skin off my ankle and it just throbbed for a good five minutes; but there was work to be done, so that's the only time I allowed myself to feel it.
Mr. BBM and I worked for 8.5 hours with barely a break while Lil C ransacked the garage and sometimes sat contentedly on the front porch with her sunglasses on upside down, observing us grumpily. When all was said and done, we had finished the front, and planted two big trees (a birch clump and a weeping blue atlas cedar).
We were exhausted but went to our friends' house for dinner. It was only after washing off the layers of dirt, and arriving at their house, that I realized my ankle was still throbbing. I took a peek at it and noticed it was quite large, as in three times the size of my other one. I spent the rest of the night elevating it and medicating with appletini's.
Sunday I woke up even more sore, despite the fact that I had iced it before going to sleep. I was moving at a snail's pace, but still working because we had no choice. By the close of yesterday, we had planted all but three hosta plants.
My ankle is still swollen and sore. My right knee has a big bruise on it from smacking the shovel against it every time I tried to get some digging leverage. My fingers feel horrible from grasping and shoving dirt around, and my back, we just won't even discuss.
Despite the injuries and the exhaustion, I have to say, that landscaping your entire yard by yourself (me and Mr. BBM) feels pretty good, especially when you can do it for a fraction of the price it would have cost you otherwise.
When it stops raining and we get the mulch down, I'll share some pictures so you can all tell me how fabulous it turned out.
Help a Girl Out
I never, in a million years, thought that I'd be praying that the only thing my best friend has to go through is a D&C to remove what her body thought was a baby that was never meant to be. This week, I've had a hard time thinking about anything but her.
On Friday, I saw Renovation Girl for the first time in many months. We had a girls night and went to dinner by ourselves. We ate and talked for hours. I sipped wine; she sipped ginger ale because she was newly pregnant and nauseated. Having gone through a miscarriage only months ago, and many years of disappointing failed fertility treatments, she remained cautious in her expectations.
As her HCG numbers continued to rise though, so did my hopes, that this pregnancy was going to work for her. I told her to remain cautious. I told her I would invest in this pregnancy for her and believe that this time, it was for real and meant to be.
When I got her phone call on Tuesday, I was devastated for her. To be told that not only is there no baby, but that there is a possibility that there's something more sinister, to be told that the "c" word is a possibility after everything she's already been through. . .
It's all too much.
I will never understand why such horrible things happen to such good people. Please visit my best friend today and give her some love. And if you're so inclined, please say a prayer that the only thing she's going to have to deal with is getting over yet another miscarriage.
Copyright
© Copyright 2006-2019 blackbeltmama dot com ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Follow Me
Blog Designed By
My Creations
Things You Could Care Less About
