>. Everyone will tease me, "You went to an Aikido-L seminar but
you aren't going to ours?" and then I'll just say, "damn skippy! and I'll
do it again too!" with a really big grin on my face!
Everyone has already given such nice reports about the seminar it is hard
to come up with things that haven't been said yet so excuse the shortness
of this. First off let me say THANK YOU to everybody that taught. I
learned SO MUCH! Thanks to everyone who organized the seminar and thanks
to Mike for talking me into going.
It was a tough 15 1/2hr ride up to DC so I was still recovering from that
when the seminar started (next time I am flying!) so I could only sit on
the sidelines and watch George Simcox teach an interesting class. I was
awed at his gentleness. He also said THE SAME sentence that Doc Walker
said to me in 1989 that turned me on to Aikido and I promptly fell in
love with it (it was about touching the ear).
After lunch I was limber enough after experiencing exquisite pain from
Wendy (hurts so good!) to try a class and I practically drooled over the
new ways of looking at my techniques that I learned from Philip Akin's
class. I was really impressed about how he kept reiterating 'from the
hips.' I can never get enough of that rule :-) Because that is something
I have been trying to work on lately, I think Philip's class was my
favorite, even though I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of all of the
classes. Special thanks to Wendy who made it possible for me to take
Philip's class ;-)
Ok, Ok, I know everyone has already talked about the delights they had
over Alan Drysdale's palm-to-palm shihonage but I have more to say about
it. So many good things have already been said about the technical parts
but what I also got out of it was the spiritual part that could be seen
in it, and how we can look at it as a visible example of harmony,
connection and oneness. Wow!
Jim Baker was enthusiastic in his teaching. I can't believe people are
actually that awake in the mornings (I'm allergic to them). His moves
were fluid. I learned yet another way to do iriminage. I nick-named it
elevatornage. I made it through half of his class before the ole' missing
spinal parts said enough. I loved it though because iriminage is one of
my favorites to take ukemi for (little tear in the eye--next year I am
flying!)
Chuck Gorgon.........Hmm........Mr. Hard Core showed an ever so soft
butterfly looking thing to the elbow for nikkyo that was a pure delight
to watch. Here would come this nice butterfly softly landing on the elbow
then BAM! uke would be tapping out (slightly over-exaggerated but not
much).
There was so much that went on in-between the classes that I would not do
justice to everyone by trying to tell it all so let me just say IT WAS
AWESOME!! Jim, you better be thanking your lucky stars that you were
there and I didn't have to hunt you down. Paul.....(hehehe!)......next
time make sure to do a formal introduction and simply ask who you are
talking with and you might just find who you are looking for :-) I met so
many wonderful people and I feel like we are just one big family. I love
you all! To the people I didn't get to meet while I was there here is
your hug (((HUG))), and to the people who didn't get to go here is yours
(((HUG))).
I'll shut up now :-)
with Metta (and all that
other coffee stuff)
Tam "who can't wait to go to
next years seminar" Naugster
PS--next time I will make SURE I am told about the phone call to go to
the party. Damn it! I was deprived (sob, sob, sob)