Respect

Today I wanna talk about the 1st Star, the man. 

For those who don't know, basically in this blog the seven stars are:

• The Man - cultivating a powerful self
• The Survivor - persisting and thriving in nature
• The Warrior - hand to hand combat, armed and unarmed
• The Gunfighter - use of firearms in combat
• The Specialist - specific skills to augment combat skills
• The Captain - being a leader of men
• The Strategist - the art of victory

"Self-control is the chief element in self-respect and self-respect is the chief element in courage."

~ Thucydides

I would like to formulate my own version of that idea. I believe, with Respect, comes almost all the virtuous traits. If you respect yourself, you will push yourself to improve, you will not allow yourself to succumb to vices and activities that will ultimately sabotage your health and mind, you will discipline yourself to be honest, diligent, and relentless, and you will have the esteem to have confidence in yourself. With respect for others, you will have loyalty, you will be reliable, responsible, and honest with them. 

In a survival and martial context, this respect is extremely important. Without the self-respect, you will not have the self-motivation to push yourself further and advance your skills, you will not have the drive to survive despite harsh conditions, and when in a life or death situation you will not have the willpower to say "no, fuck you! This ain't how it's going down, I will live and you will die!" Without respect for others, you will not fully understand how to work with the vegetation instead of trying to hack through it all, you will not cherish the successfully hunted animal as fully, you will not be cognizant of when to hold back, and you may not be aware of what is the appropriate level of response. When a man laughs at you, and you grab his arm, break it, throw him to the ground, and stomp on his neck - that's crazy. So is pulling out a pistol and emptying the mag on a man who flirts with your girlfriend, unless he crosses the line take it as a compliment - maybe your girl ain't half bad looking! Hahahahahaa

I understand between the teenage years and the late 30s we're (by modern lifespan standards) young primates, easily made eager to fight over perceived wrongs and use violence socially in big or small ways. It's in (most) our natures to get heated when another person is tryna get with our partners, or to consider responding violently to confrontations - but with enough respect for yourself and others, and being aware of your environment and situation, you can probably improve your life and seriously cut down on bullshit and drama...

Just some thoughts. 

Education, Training, and Practice...

I personally believe there's subtle but important differences between education, training, and practice. For example, you may have gone to a school, university, or academy of some sort for a certain field to gain education allowing you to be qualified for a task or job or career. This education is mainly intellectual - understanding the subject and its context. Training on the other hand is mainly physical and gets your mind and body used to and familiar with the task or job as well as the environment. However, practice is what makes all this education and training second nature. As I have been taught, it's not practice that makes perfect but perfect practice that makes perfect.

This past weekend I attended a three-part series of workshops held at my martial arts school (Plum Blossom Academy) and these classes were taught by my Shigong (Master Puyot). I learned the 七手 (Seven Hands) form of 八步螳螂拳 (Eight Step Mantis Boxing), gun disarms, and lastly the basics of the 燕青刀 (Yan Qing Dao/Saber). The combination of Master Puyot's and Master Brown's (my shifu) efforts to train and educate me and the others on the context, form, and applications of material contributed to these workshops being very enjoyable and educational for me. Seven hands are an enjoyable insight into a different flavor of fighting, however many of the movements were familiar. The gun disarms I felt were very practical and simple - having had a gun pointed at me and having been shot at in the past, the significance of having these in my "toolkit" was obvious to me. Lastly the dao was a very fun exercise. As some of you may know, I have liked machetes since 3rd grade and used and played with machetes extensively since age 16. The Chinese dao (of which there are many varieties) can vary from a large machete-like blade to a proper saber. While I already had some basics in wielding machetes, the workshop really helped me improve my holes that I had not previously realized were there. I learned many things this past Saturday and have taken notes (as always) to allow me to record things I learned and remember nuances I would've forgotten. And then, of course, practice them...

Ah, practice... That is the main part of mastering anything. You can know something, and be familiar with it, but if it is not ingrained, it will never be a part of you. Now... with even more on my plate... I need to drill in everything as perfectly as possible. As my teachers have said, "fast as you can, slow as you must".

For those following the blog, I've upload a video of me performing the Seven Hands form. Remember however, I am new to it, and I still consider myself pretty lousy at it. For those reading this that study with me, maybe you can tear apart what I am doing and improve your own training. For those seeking to copy me, bad idea. 1, I'm not too good yet, and 2 copying a form, a choreographed fight-scene, or a shadowboxing routine is a very different thing than knowing how to use its techniques in combat.

...and it's about time to sleep. G'night ya'll..

Review: Condor Tapanga

The machete is an extremely useful tool for survival in tropical and sub-tropical forests, as well as an agricultural implement, and a weapon when needed. The machete has a history several centuries long, beginning with the invasion of the Americas by the Spanish and the adaptation of European blade technology for the thick forests of Central and South America. Early swords such as the espada ancha were utilized both for war and work and were gradually developed better and better for the local environments. By the Age of Industrialization, the Espada Ancha was no more, replaced by factory made blades (in local styles) that were exported to Latin America and Africa. Today there are many companies. Names such as Collins, Imacasa, Tramontina, Colima, Ontario, Martindale, and Condor come to mind. Oh, and Cold Steel, which usually make good knives, but soft, overpriced machetes.

Today we're dealing the Condor made Tapanga. Condor is an off-shoot of Imacasa's and they make higher quality blades mainly for the American market. Both are based in El Salvador. Seeing as how Imacasa already has a decent reputation, and hearing of good experiences with Condor, I decided to give 'em a try.

The Tapanga, Panga, and other related styles all have a wide blade 14-20" long generally, and have most of their weight in the front. Supposedly these are popular in the Caribbean as well as south and east Africa - I've never been, I don't know for sure. However, generally this style is known for being a good chopping machete. Condor's version has a 20" blade made of 1075 carbon steel and blackened with a protective epoxy finish. It comes pretty sharp and has a comfortable hardwood(?) handle. It's about 2 and a half lbs. Fullers help lighten the blade and improve its flexibility and strength - this machete has 'em. The sheath is decent (conceptually), but the set up isn't conducive for a quick draw of the blade. The swiveling belt-loop is a great feature. The tapanga feels good and seems to chop, slash, and cut quite well. When compared to the Chinese made Wortools Tapanga, it clearly outshines it. The Wortools machete comes somewhat blunt, has a slightly loose soft wood handle, and seems to have a lower quality steel. Then again, Wortool's Tapanga I got for $8, where-as Condor's was $55.  Yea, DAMN! This ain't your normal cheap 'chete, it's a quality blade.

I can see it getting tiring if hacking at soft vegetation for hours since it's heftier than many other machete-styles, however unless clearing land for trails or agriculture, survival rarely requires you to hack that much. For combat, its 20" chopping blade makes it a fearsome weapon, but it must be used as intended, a tough chopping and hacking blade. You cannot treat it like a fast, thin fighting blade meant for quick cuts and long slashes. Like the Chinese Da-dao, this is best for fierce splitting and hacking attacks, most of which are more vertically oriented, striking downwards at your opponent's head, neck, shoulders, and arms, or even bending your knees to quickly strike low, cutting their quads or knees. The drawback of such a blade in combat would be the lack of stabbing, upward cuts being more difficult, and slower recovery time.

Please enjoy this video to see for yourself the Tapanga in action. It's not very professional, but it does its job. I apologize in advanced for the lousy camera.