There is less than a month left until the end of the semester. A month seems like a long time, but with the way things are going, I know that it will pass by quickly. I am very excited to be going home to see my friends and family. I especially miss the people at YMAA Andover. I don't think I have ever been away from the studio for this long and cannot wait to see my students, classmates, and teachers again. Although I do not wish to admit it.. I kind of miss my cat too.

Training has been going well. Progress seems to be slow, but Sifu says he is content and happy that we are working hard. The roads here will be fixed soon so there is no need for us to fill our backpacks before running up the mountain. Now, all we have to do is add a few extra per day. Sifu says that our goal by the end of our conditioning period should be to run up the mountain in 10 minutes with 50 pounds on our back. With what we're doing now, I can see the next few months being painful ones :P

Taijiquan is getting better. Although sometimes I can't seem to concentrate during the warm up and qigong exercises, form and application times go by quickly. I think I have come to enjoy practicing Taijiquan more than Shaolin. I am not entirely sure why this is and am still trying to understand the reasoning behind it. Adding jing into the form has made it even more fun. It is interesting to go through the form with different applications in mind, manifesting power into movements in various ways. I think the hardest thing for me right now is applying long jing while hopping forwards. Although I feel like I'm beginning to get a feeling for the timing, I know that I still have a long way to go.

Reaction training has becoming more fun as well. Instead of just rocking back and forth in our stances, we are now hopping forwards and backwards. Our punches have also become more free so I don't feel as trapped, as I did with standing four corners training.

Oh yeah, I finally finished the first draft of my article. Just two more projects to go! ...the harder ones :(

And again, after another long break.. a comic!

Here's our life at the Retreat Center :P


Finally, here's something for a certain somebody:
"It's not denial. I'm just selective about the reality I accept." -Calvin and Hobbes