Candidate Journals

Just wanted to say good luck everyone! See you Friday night at North Charlotte!

Holidays are for black belt requirements, didn't you know.  Plus we had yesterday's requirements to make up from yesterday, too.  Plus fixing food, taking the adult kids shopping, buying kleenex- you know, unimportant stuff like that.  It was four in the afternoon when I realized I hadn't opened up the door and gone outside yet.  Physical requirements, double duty forms, self defenses, and kicks, then working on essays.  Plus making up planks and pull ups.  After dinner we went back to working on self defenses.  We may do some more pomsae in a bit, but I need to determine if my knee will hold out.  I did the essay on Ki energy today and was surprised about the things I learned.  I found an article validating the pathways ki energy takes in the body, complete with actual pictures from actual cadavers.  For those of you who don't know, I love stuff...

Well, we actually made it out to the Apple Festival! The plan was to go to the festival then go apple picking at Stepps, a pick your own place we have frequented for years.  When we got to the festival there were some dark clouds, but it was sunny and humid.  The clouds decided that they, too, would like to visit the festival and brought their friends lightening and thunder with them! We didn't get to stay as long as we probably would have liked, and went to go find food elsewhere.  Mark's food challenge makes it a bit more interesting than just dealing with my allergies, but we ended up getting a rotisserie chicken and baguette from Ingles grocery store that worked for both of our food needs. The kids are tacos from White Duck.  By the time we are the storm had passed, so we went to Stepps. We...

I'm just going to say it- today was weird in many ways.  One: no black belt class today.  I rolled over and realized that I had ten minutes to get my oldest to work, let alone eat, pack and drive to Lake Norman for class.  Guess I needed sleep more.  Two: I got up fully intending to crank out about 4-5 miles as I still had two plus miles to make up from last week.  I was doing great despite the knee being gimpy today, not even sweating.  All of a sudden the sun comes out from behind the clouds, the air gets heavy and heats up 20 degrees instantly, and my body went "nope, we are done".  I had to go back to the house, now pouring sweat and feeling like I was going to pass out.  It took water+food+air conditioning to feel normal again.  Three: the TOPS of my...

Hey guys this is a rewrite! I apparently forgot to title the blog post so the post didn't save! Hooray! Anyhow-sparring class was fun.  One of the activities was to look down, spin in a circle, and then try and throw five fast front kicks.  There were some who ended up on the mat immediately after spinning.  No judgement, because that was not an easy task.  At the end o class Master Opey and Instructor Max did some unofficial sparring, which was cool to watch.  I was glad the pouring rain waited until we got home.  Driving in rain is no good, because you can't see the lines on the road.  Hopefully we make.it to the apple festival tomorrow.  I'd really like to find a second flying dragon for the bedroom, and we found the first one at the apple festival pre covid 

I know it's still Thursday, but I'm not going to lie-I am looking forward to having a long weekend.  I invited the parents of my Joshua's friend Joshua (yes, they have the same name) to go to the apple festival in Hendersonville this weekend and apple picking if we have time.  They are also a family of five so we will probably have to caravan if everyone goes. We may also be going to Lake Norman for black belt class Saturday since they are open.  We'll see how things go because of timing with getting Joshua to work that morning.  On a TKD note, I realized that my instructor skills need to be sharpened for the little distractible students.  I was given a group of three to work with tonight.  One focused well, and he seems to be a good student.  Student two-intelligent, asked questions, list focus half way through small...

In black belt class we ended up in groups of three doing self defenses. If you were in the middle you were defending.  Your partners were attacking two different self defenses, although not at the same time.  It was a good mental exercise and made you really think about what to do next.  I wish we had gotten to do weapons tonight, but not every night is a weapon class (unfortunately).  I have the next few moves of my creative form down, but I really need to practice outside because I keep hitting the ceiling fan twirling the staff.  I'm going to accidentally break a light bulb and it's hard practicing in the dark when you are trying to make up a new form.

I wish I knew what I did to my knee, but apparently I angered it in class sometimes yesterday.  I got up in the middle of the night and realized that a) my knee felt stiff and wouldn't bend and b) I couldn't put weight on it.  I had to do some weird one legged limp shuffle to the bathroom, rub some voltaran gel on it, fall back into bed, and pray that the morning found it more cooperative.  It was a bit better in the morning but still stiff.  Between Voltaran and ibuprofen I was able to get three miles in walking, but not at top speed.  I also saw a very friendly black cat along the way who insisted I stop and pet it.  I made it to guitar (yea!) but was late because I had to swing by and give Samuel ibuprofen because he fell and sprained his...

And what even is a normal day? Pretty sure normal is just a setting on the dryer.  Anyhow, my oldest started the day going to the podiatrist and ended up with shoes inserts.  We keep trying to get him into the dojang as he shows n aptitude for martial arts, but he's still a bit nervous to come.  The exterminator came after we got home, and we ended up talking about different dog breeds as he sprayed the interior of the house.  He went out to his truck and I hear him call our "hey, did you kill this snake?" Short answer is no as I don't kill snakes (copperheads aren't friendly snakes so they don't count) because snakes are beneficial,but I apparently had a dead black snake with white rings on it in the driveway.  He asked if he could keep it-sure, what am I going to do with it...

It was the longest of days, it was the shortest of days....up and to the park in the morning to go over forms and self defenses with other black belt friends.  When we got home, I decided to make some food including some turkey sausage and steel cut oats.  I went to sit down for a second, and heard a strange noise coming from the kitchen.  I glanced up and saw our dog Matilda up on her hind legs, front paws firmly planted in my counter, and muzzle down in the sausage plate eating as fast and noisily as she could go.  Needless to say, Matilda ended up in time out in her kennel contemplating her relationship with the turkey sausage for a while.  Considering she's a dog (and a stubborn one at that with all the herding breeds she's comprised of) I doubt seriously that she cared much beyond a) the human was upset, b) she's in the kennel, and c) there is no more sausage today.  Matilda is an incorrigible repeat offender by the way, and would have long since been doing hard time under Bill Clinton's "three strikes and you're out" policy.  Turkey sausage, bacon, even the occasional blueberry muffin isn't safe from that four legged furry sneak.  Good thing she's cute. She was able to stay away from Mark's birthday cake, which I was able to finally make for him (hooray!), and we called Mark's mom to check on family in California.  I got off the phone not long ago, hence the late journal.  So much for getting to bed early.

Class started 15 minutes early so we could run through second dan and up stuff.  We took Black Belt class, went over forms and poomsaes, then did mentoring.  We decided to stay for Muay Tai but had a leave a couple of minutes early to get our oldest son from work   it feels so strange to be back at the beginning of a martial arts class and having to learn different ways of doing kicks, stances, etc.  We finished up requirements for the day around 4 ish or so and went to Aldi.  Due to my food allergies I have to be in careful where I eat.  We found  out that Outback cooks in beef tallow so as long as I order carefully I should be good.  We went to Outback for Mark's birthday dinner.  I still haven't made him his cake yet, but hopefully I will get to do it tomorrow.  

Sparring class was actually fun tonight. I usually don't say that about sparring, but I like the way that Instructor Max breaks down drills so that we are working on techniques rather than trying to kick each other to death.  I also like that we can also use our hands rather than traditional TKD sparring where you are just using kicks.  Class is early tomorrow, so this entry will be a bit shorter than most.  Today is Instructor Mark's birthday so if you are so inclined wish him a happy belated birthday.

I haven't been sleeping as much as I should be the past few days  so I feel like I'm dragging quite a bit.  The good thing is that usually when I get time to sleep I don't usually have issues with sleeping.  Once in a while I get a bout of insomnia.  It always makes me feel bad for people with regular insomnia.  I don't know how they do it.    So as we typically do, Mark and I practiced our self defense and forms together.  The good thing about practicing and practicing together is usually the other person remembers what you don't.  It also makes me more comfortable with doing self defenses since you get to practice with an actual person attacking, and you can play around with hand/foot placements with more time flexibility than in class.  I feel like this has absolutely helped me improve self defenses over time,...

I'm not sure what to write about right now. I was pretty excited to get my new mouthpiece in today.  I ordered a new one because the old one literally has pieces falling out of it.  I don't really want to choke on mouthpiece plastic in the middle of sparring.  When I was looking there was one that had a bicycle moustache design on it.  For those of you wanting to know, no, I did not buy that one.  I'll show you guys in sparring on Friday night, so ask if inquiring minds want to know.  

Today's schedule has lots of changes.  Samuel didn't go to school because he didn't feel well (not covid or viral, but they think he has stomach issues brewing again), added in a doctor's appointment for him, had to go do blood work for myself, and saw my nutritionist.  In the middle of the nutritionist visit the fire alarm started going off so the visit was cut a bit short so she could evacuate.  I also had a dentist appointment to check out an area that seems to have developed a lot of cold sensitivity recently.  Lo and behold there is a cavity that needs taking care of, and my dentist can actually take care of it right now rather than having me come back.  Well, sure, why not fix it now, plus cold sensitivity isn't the most fun thing to deal with.  I've been with this dentist for seventeen years, so...

Called my dad tonight and actually got him on the phone.  I was telling him about our black belt requirements and he responds with "sounds great if you're retired".  He isn't wrong, it's a lot of work to do every day for weeks on end.  I did kicks in the living room and was working on doing turning kicks. Mark told me the kicks looked really good.  Now if only they will let me test in my socks on carpet so I can look good on testing night.  

Looking forward in the book for this week and a couple.od.weeks past that I realized that we are in high requirement time. It feels like I'm always borderline hungry regardless of what I eat, and Mark pretty much commented the same feelings for himself.  It's hard getting through everything we have to do sometimes if you literally run out of gas part way.  The irony is, I am not sure what to eat and I'm rarely craving anything in particular.  And water-soooooo much water.  We did get up and go train at the park today with other TKD friends.  It was weird teaching the self defenses I'm currently trying to learn and perfect to others.  I also got to demo how to do the wrist locks on first Dan special (thank you Master Cavazos).  Time to get ready for bed and do it all over again tomorrow.....

I know it may seem silly to everyone else, but for some reason it really bothers me when the grass gets tall.  Not like a quarter inch too long tall, I'm not worried about that.  Weirdly enough, I just really dislike the idea of walking out in the yard in the morning to check the garden areas and having the grass so long it wets my shoes and socks with dew or rain, then you get wet feet.  I also realized while mowing that one of the rose bushes I bought and thought was a hybrid tea is a climbing vine, so I need to get it supported somehow.  Working backwards in the day, I made fried chicken sandwiches for dinner.  Because of all my food allergies/sensitivities I don't eat out much, and it's gotten a bit more restrictive due to the food challenge Mark took on so we don't lot...

Due to the schedule change at the school, sparring is now in Friday.  Mark commented that we are now at the school six days a week with one class or another.  At least my book is getting inked up, so that's a good thing.  I'm going to try and get the site updated tomorrow with everything I've written down in the book.  With one thing or another I just haven't found the time to get it all transferred from the book to the site.  I also need a cook and a maid so I have time to work on requirements and guitar.  Practice has taken a back seat unfortunately, so I haven't had time to do my music homework in like two weeks.  I still have poomsaes to work on with Mark tonight.  I've gotten like 7-10 seconds in my creative form done, but truth be told I'm not real happy...

We went to Muay Tai tonight.  I wasn't sure I was actually going to go because I was negative fifteen points in energy when I got off work but go I did.  It was a good class, but I realized that a) I don't know how to count in that class and b) I have to relearn all my stances and kicks.  I didn't get to meet everyone in class tonight but I'm sure eventually I'll know everyone's name.  The guys coming from Black Belt USA seem to be a decent crew and I'm looking forward to meeting more friends in the group.  In a different note: The screw in the tire has also been removed and patched for those keeping track 

This morning I was (un) pleasantly surprised to discover that the tire pressure light on my dash was on and my car was driving funny.  So I stopped and put sir in the tire, went to work, and decided to see how things were after.  Sure enough, leaving work and driving across the street to the dojang (yes I work across the street from the dojang) the tire pressure light is on again, staring at me unblinkingly from the void.  So-more air so I can get home, had Mark follow behind just in case, and called AAA while I made dinner.  Samuel got to watch the guy change the tire, remarking "that's so cool!".  I forgot he doesn't see that a lot.  My dad was a mechanic and a machinist before retiring, so I saw him working on cars all the time.  I'm glad Samuel got a cool experience for tonight. ...

Today was a get up earlier than normal day, which if you've been reading about kids returning to school you already know about.  School car line gets better, but not for about a week, so you got to just hang in there. I tried to call my dad today but he didn't answer.  That's not unusual though, since it seems at least one of my nephews or nieces has stolen his phone and run the battery down.  He usually calls back at some point. I spoke with one of my sisters earlier, and she sounded not at all like her usual perky self due to still being numb from having dental work done.  Apparently her dentist was training a new person and was telling the new person that my sister is a great patient to work on, learn on, is laid back and " she knows the drill".  I stopped her...

And all through the house, The black belts were practicing with nary a grouse The stockings were discarded as they practiced feet bare, In hopes that soon new belts they would wear. Kicking and punching, requirements working the core Til they didn't think they could take  anymore Pal chang, chil chang, and on to six more Double practice on Hapkido one, two, three, four Time for bed, it's late, turn out the light! Practice well black belt family, and to all a good night.

Because it is the last weekend before school I took Samuel to Carowinds as a last hurrah to summer.  Mark hasn't been feeling great and the other two kids didn't want to go, so it was just me and Samuel.  He has way too much fun and ended up riding a wooden roller coaster twice ina row.  Once we came home and the adrenaline wore off, he was complaining of his sides hurting. Where he was complaining he was hurting there seems to be muscle and not much else, so I'm thinking he just overdid things. I did end up doing some requirements while I was waiting for him to ride the coasters.  I'd catch people looking but trying to to look at me doing stuff.  One lady wasn't shy about staring, openly watching me with one eyebrow raised.  You gotta fit it in where you can fit it in ...

For those of you who don't know, Mark and I have a small garden we tend every year.  The poor garden seems to suffer every black belt summer, and this year is no exception.  Anyone want a job helping pull weeds? Despite neglect, the garden seems to be determined to pump out a bunch of cucumbers.  We have already gotten a harvest of garlic.  I have the shallots in the fridge but-surprise! No time to prep them for the freezer to join their already prepped shallow friends.  The tomatoes are still producing some, but the rain has made them explode like seed filled water balloons.  I also found more decorative pumpkins growing than I originally thought I had growing.  The yard is looking like a jungle, so I tried to get some.of.it cut before PMAA training.  As I was pushing the mower, I happened to look over at the garden and...

Apparently the front desk staff decided to go home at 3:30 because there was supposed to be a protest outside our building from 4-7.  The last time they were there I couldn't get out of the parking lot for a while and then police had to break them up enough for those of us stuck to go home.  I left the office to go to Samuel's open house, where he said he saw the Clowers! I came back to the office and parked in the parking lot next to the parking lot for our building, walked through the bushes back to my office, and went back to work.  After work I went downstairs to leave, expecting the sound of yelling and bullhorns, only to hear the sound of traffic like normal.  No chants, no crowds, no protesters.  It was a hot walk back through the bushes back to the car through...

I'm pretty sure anyone who would like a shower earlier today could have gone outside with a bar of soap earlier and had no problem finding off the suds.  Because of the rain (and some appointment cancellations) I was able to get some milage for the week done.  I still need a bit more milage by tomorrow for weekly requirements.  I need to start my creative form but haven't yet because I can't figure out what weapon I want to use.  Staff is the easy answer for me, but I need to figure out if I'd rather do something else.  Kamas, sword, stick,sais....guess I'll figure it out.  I really want a form where I can incorporate them all.

Tonight's black belt class was brought to you by....nobody.  class was cancelled due to junior tigers testing.  Anyone who showed up either did mentoring sessions and/or broke off into groups to work on individual preferences.  I got to work on various combinations of things with Mark, Kim, Courtney, Kushi, Harsh, and Hansika .  We went over staff forms, Hapkido forms, and self defenses.  At the end there was a fair amount of tumbling and laughing, so it seems a good time was had by all.  Mark and I  are still working on getting more solid with the self defenses, and I need to ask Master Cavazos about the flip over the shoulder at the end of six.  I know I'll have it down. For testing but I need to find out how they actually want this done.  Roll over the shoulder? Flying leap? Launch out of a cannon? Stay tuned....

I knew this would be the case going into the cycle, however, I don't think my last cycles were this hot and humid outdoors.  I wanted to get some grass cut before the rains come, but that didn't happen.  I did get to go to guitar today, which is good because I haven't been able to go due to various circumstances the past few weeks.  We also tested in PMAA tonight, and testing ran longer than class does.  I'm wondering if part of that has to do with the amount of material we had to cover in this section.  There's a sticks training Saturday I need to sign us up for but I'm trying to see if my oldest wants to jump in before I buy stuff. In addition to PMAA testing I also took class, went to spin class earlier in the day, and lifted some weights.  Can't forgot to...

Dry as in the weather.  I was looking at the rain forecast with Debby coming up the coast and I'm pretty sure my grass is going to look like tigers stalk through it looking for hunters to eat.  I wish I had time to get outside and do some milage before the rains come, but I am also grateful to have access to treadmills for times like these.  Maybe the storm will veer off into the ocean, who knows? Hurricanes are predictable yet unpredictable. So helped in one class, led warm ups in another.  It's really strange after you get used to teaching a class the whole period just leading warm ups.  I feel like I'm slacking.... speaking of.slacking, I need to get cranking on that creative form.  I really really REALLY want to do some with my three section staff, but I don't know what the learning curve is on...

I tend to ask this every Sunday evening to be fair, but it seems like I blink and the weekend is gone.  I am remembering now why every cycle I have contemplated hiring a maid until October, because between classes/requirements/shopping for the upcoming week I never have enough time to clean it seems.  And keeping the house clean is important, as well have multiple people who have dust allergies.  In addition to that, my daughter's new aide is mildly allergic to dogs.  We.have a dog, so I am trying to at least vacuum and wash the dog's things more than usual so she doesn't have a reaction.  

For those of you following along with the icky fish saga, there is definitely improvement in their looks and behavior.  One fish looks almost entirely normal again.  The other fish had little color yesterday and looked like he was wearing those contacts that actors wear to make their eyes look entirely white.  His eyes look back to normal today, so no more zombie fish.  And more importantly, they are both eating again.  Looks like they are going to pull through! We got to go to black belt class today with Master Opie at the helm.  One thing I really like about when he teaches is that we are going to do stretching at some point in the class.  We also usually get to do punching/blocking/kicking drills that are not the usual combos.    After class, PMAA review, and mentoring, we stopped to visit the fish guy since he was out. The...

Did everyone get these lovely storms? I was going to go out and finish up my milage for the week but decided not to with the lovely light show outside.  When. I got home I realized the goldfish looked strange.  Upon closer examination they appear to have ick.  Mark ended up going to the store to get them medicine so they can get un-icky and look normal again.  Tomorrow is Black Belt class followed by PMAA training followed by mentee session. We are supposed to test in PMAA Tuesday, so good luck to my fellow PMAA students.   On a non-icky and definitely cool note, I was at work and saw Master Chelley in the waiting room! She wasn't there to visit me, but it was a very nice and unexpected Friday surprise!

Does anyone know how to do that? Me neither.  So on to sparring class... I must say that I do like how Instructor Max teaches sparring.  I don't mind doing kick practice, it is more fun when you are given combos that don't usually get paired to practice.  And there is a lot of good talent for sparring in both the instructors as well as the students.  It was great watching how some people performed tonight.  I need to remember to go get a new mouth piece this weekend.  Between the mouthpiece and my gloves I was shedding black pieces all over the mat the entire class.  Time up upgrade the gear.

So I realized yesterday I haven't spoke to either of my sisters in a while, and one in particular I haven't called in weeks.  That's kind of unusual for us not to talk every 1-2 weeks.  So the black belt cycle came up in conversation.  She tells me "Yeah, I can always tell when you are on the cycle because I don't hear from you until it's over".  Ouch.  I didn't realize that was a pattern, so I need to do better and be more mindful about calling.  The cycle can be very time consuming, and part of the challenge is definitely having that work/life balance with this.  Not an easy thing to do when it feels like you are constantly in class, practicing, teaching, learning, sleep deprived, and constantly covered in sweat.

So I'm just going to say that I have a hard time coming up with titles to these posts.  Sometimes the title is obvious, days like today not so much.  Right before we left the dojang after PMAA the skies lit up, the wind started blowing, and the rains fell like Noah was outside furiously building a boat.  I drove well under the speed limit with the hazards on, as did pretty much everyone else on the road.  Got home safely, made dinner, and trying to keep my eyes open to finish this and get ready for bed.  Today was filled with  working in the garden some and harvesting the shallots.  Unfortunately two watermelons had blossom end rot, two cantaloupes have split, and the tomatoes are a split, drippy.mess because of all the rain.  On a positive note, the cucumbers are doing quite well for themselves and made a delicious side...

I know, I know, it's senior tigers/wang ho class, but I personally prefer to it as color belt class.  The irony is that pretty much the two front lines are bochos and higher, which I find particularly awesome.  When we first started TKD pretty much no black belts came to the Monday evening class save one or two.  I remember being towards the back of the class watching the higher belts go through their forms and thinking "How do they remember all that?!?". Well, now I know-lots of time dedicated to practicing, watching, learning, and asking questions.  I think of this class as my original class because it's the one I started in, so it's near and dear to me.  At one point the class had dwindled to only a handful of us, and there was concern that the class may not have enough people to continue.  Thankfully it has grown,...

So.... I'm doing it now.  There always seem to be distractions at night and when I journal  I feel like I'm speed typing to get in under midnight.  I found a new chicken breast  stuffed recipe that I made yesterday with spinach and vegan cheese ( for those who don't know I'm allergic to dairy and soy).  I added turkey bacon because I left out the feta and wanted something to replace it with. Apparently it was pretty good but I need to find  a way to keep the chicken from drying a bit.  I also did some stretching after I finished my requirements and- guys- I may not be able to replicate it again, but I touched my forehead to my knee in the first time in YEARS.  Obviously I need to keep stretching so I can stay flexible.  Anyhow, we have shopping to do for the week and I'm...

I feel like I have a bit of a cool thing going on when I'm on the cycle-i have someone who is my belt rank to practice with when I need to.  Self defense are more fun to do and I feel I learn a lot more when you can go up to someone in your house and say "hey, throw a punch at me, I want to do X" and they a)know why you want them to throw a punch, b) they won't actually land it, c) they can give you immediate feedback on how you did, and d) they usually ask you to punch them back.  It also helps keep you on track and accountable when you might be tempted to skip it and make up time the next day, because if they walk up and say "hey, do forms with me", "time my kicks", or "let me toss...

Thursday is sparring day-well, at least for now.  The dojang 's schedule is getting ready to change so we can add Muay Tai, so sparring will move to Friday.  Also got a mentoring session in while we were there.  I think I need a new pair of gloves along with the stick bag I need to buy for myself.  I had forgotten how much the gloves shed when you use them.   It's like I'm the soot monster, raining soot and punches wherever I go.  My por stick bag has a hole in the bottom, so I have to be careful not to have a stick sneak out like a teenager sliding out of their window meeting their friends after midnight.  

I got to the dojang too late to really help with class.  I did get there in time for black belt class and got a mentor session in with Master Cavazos before leaving. Lots and lots of kicks today, and looking forward to Saturday to train for single stick forms.  We take a LOT of classes, on the cycle or not.  Recently my uniform is soaked even after one class, so we are constantly doing laundry just to have a fresh one for class.  No, we don't febreze uniforms and put them back on (you're welcome, those of you who take class with me!)

I feel like I have spent the whole day sweaty.  Took Samuel to an appointment this morning and while I was waiting for him to finish up I worked on requirements in the waiting room (it was just Rachael and me there so I didn't have to be concerned about being stared at).  Then we went to the gym for an hour of spin class, then home to try and cut the grass before it rained.  It looked like the clouds were building a bit so I asked the kids if they wanted to go to the pool before the storms hit.  So more sitting outside, covered in sweat, with little pieces of grass in my hair and over my skin.  Then helping with class, taking class and PMAA class after that.  I had forgotten just how sweaty you can be ALL.  DAY.  LONG.  

Got up really sore but went to the park to practice anyway.  It was great to practice with others as you can get help with attacking/defending/vicarious learning/teaching all in the same setting.  After practice went home and did most of the rest of the requirements, but had to finish some later because Samuel went to Mikey's birthday party.  For the North Charlotte people-yes, THAT Mikey.  Tall, always happy, cool kid.  We actually got to play dodge ball with the kids which was fun.  Went home and did some meal prepping for the week.  Meal prepping is important when a) you're allergic to a lot of things and b) you are at the dojang until pretty much bedtime.   

To make sure we had enough time to get our three miles in we had to get up at 4 am.  I know that may sound a bit extreme, but keep in mind I needed to drive 25 minutes to get to the track after waking up after five hours of sleep, plus making sure we are, got Samuel in the car, and made sure he had food and drinks.  It was very dark when we got there, and there was only Instructors Courtney and Lisa there as far as I could tell in addition to us.  It is very pretty to watch the sun come up and see more and more folks join us on the track.  I was surprised to see John join in the run.  He said he had gotten up at 2 am and walked to the track so he could participate.  Testing seemed to go well...

Wishing all my fellow candidates a restful sleep and awesome performance tomorrow! I was thinking that it would just be Mark and myself at the track at midnight (or slightly after) doing their milage but I realized there will be others out there with us watching the sun rise as we finish up our milage.  I made sure to plug in my headphones so I've got plenty of music.  See you tomorrow on the track!

First sparring class is in the books (literally)! Instructor Max comes up with good ideas for sparring and keeps things moving and fun.  I don't really like wearing the hobuk as it makes me feel claustrophobic.  Unfortunately that thing isn't built for...erm...certain assets, shall we say.  I really wanted to check on the garden when I got home, so I went out back with my flashlight  sneaking around my own back yard to take a peek.  I need to pick tomatoes as they are ripening like crazy, and I pulled off a small cantaloupe and a cucumber that had to be at least 14 inches long.  Looks like we have some watermelon growing as well.so we'll see.if we get any off this year.

So full disclosure: at some point in the cycle I always think "why in the world did I sign up for this?!? Is that extra stripe really that important?" Usually this hits about halfway through the cycle, but this time here we are and we are even at the pretest yet! I know it will pass, but right now it's a matter of pushing through.  It will get easier, just riding the struggle bus right now.  I also know it has more to do with other factors I won't go into at this time, so hopefully things level out soon.

Nothing like starting the day with two miles and other black belt requirements, to be followed by fasting labs (whee!), an updated tetanus booster, and a cortisone shot in the hip bursae.  After which I sat down and started mending some of Samuel's shirts he has ripped while he went into his dental cleaning.  After that it was guitar lessons and meeting with a dietician who helps with rebuilding gut biomes and other issues. I discussed with her the nutrition challenge and she came up with something for me to do for the month as a part of overall fixing damage done by lots of antibiotics.  Also ran into an old friend who apparently works at TNT now so that was exciting to run into her.  

So today I'm not horribly sore, but I think this might be due to the Prednisone I'm taking due to hip bursitis.  I have four more days of that and I guess we'll see how things feel.  I can still feel the muscle fatigue though, so make so mistake I'm not speeding happily through this due to roids.  I ended up with a client today that went half through my lunch hour, so unfortunately I was not able to get my milage in so I'm planning on getting up tomorrow early and trying to walk in what seems to be passing as an oven outside before God turns up the heat to bake biscuits or whatever else is on the menu.  I'd also like to get some of the other requirements done early since I'm supposed to get an updated tetanus shot tomorrow (oh joy)!

Between cycle requirements, shopping ,and taking the two youngest to the gym it's definitely a sweaty and sore experience.  I realized about 30 seconds into weight training that neither of my kids had ANY real knowledge of etiquette in a weight room.  Towels in the middle of the floor, not wiping equipment, banging weights....oh, what a teaching opportunity we had! Samuel did say yesterday that he was "pulling Shrek's ears" when I asked him where he disappeared to.  I asked him to show me, because I couldn't think of any equipment that looked like that.  Turns out that a skiing simulator has handles that-you guessed it- look just like Shrek's ears!  I want to go try it at some point, but that may have to wait until my kids can navigate the equipment without getting strange looks from other people.

Welcome to the bochos and welcome back to us repeat offenders! Today is also Mark's and my 28th wedding anniversary.  If you had asked me over a quarter of a century ago what I'd be doing as an opener for an anniversary morning I would NOT have said going to black belt class.  That is what we did, however, and we've been working on requirements since then.  We went to the gym and got some milage cranked out, turned on 80's rock and got the other requirements done.  It's so much easier when you have someone to work with!