Fall 2024 Black Belt Cycle

Candidate Journals

King Tiger Tae Kwon Do Black Belt candidates blog daily about their journey: their thoughts and feelings, their struggles and successes; their pain and their encouragement. Follow along on their journey; words of encouragement are always welcome!

Kip Up

Today i finally learned how to do a kip up and it was awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now it's like muscle memory for me, i couldn't have done it without my mom and my brother. Also sparring was awesome, i got Praneal with a turning hook kick in the head 2-3 times. So today was amazingly awesome!!!!!

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About 36 h...

About 36 hours ago the riots started and i knew it was bad but today i found out one of my friends was in the riot and his mom accidentally ran the car into the bus at the riots and his mom died. He watched her die and he broke both of his collar bones and he is in rehab. Please pray for him, he really needs help and he might go to a foster home, please pray for him.

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Yesterday ...

Yesterday I went to the fair but I couldn't journal about it because we got home so late and I needed to go to bed to wake up for sparring. My feet are super soar, but they will be more soar after sparring class.

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Today i we...

Today i went back to school again and i had a lot of homework I didn't get done till ten pm. I still have to wake up in the morning tomorrow to go run. not the best day.

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Today I di...

Today I did 5 times the poomsaes and self defenses and tomorrow I don't have school so that's awesome!!!!!

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Today I di...

Today I did 5 times the poomsaes and self defenses and tomorrow I don't have school so that's awesome!!!!!

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Today i we...

Today i went to the Hartles school for Saturday BB class and we got to do a lot of poomsaes, i did all of the palgwe's and all the stick staff and bolo forms. and i got 100 roles and falls in for today so that is awesome!! so today was pretty good.

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Today i wo...

Today i woke early got my run done then finished a bit of requirements then went to school, it was fun so that was good and after school i ate and went to class so i could finish some requirements for today, so today was pretty good for Thursday.

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today i ha...

today i had a school assembly and it was cool the teachers wrapped them selves in plastic wrap and tried to go through a course and some fell down and others made it. i got a mentor session done, and a men-tee session done. i just need a few more.

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Today i ha...

Today i had my second day of school and it was good. I got to see a lot of my friends and we start regular classes tomorrow. I also have gym tomorrow so that's good and that's about it.

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Today I go...

Today I got an intense workout on in sparring, and in black belt class got to work with weapons! I even got a machete for the bolo form, not a real one but, you know. After that we went to defy gravity with Josh zach and brice. It was a good day!!

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Today I go...

Today I got my school supply ready for scholarship and my backpack. So I am basically set for school, and tae kwon do doing all of my requirements.

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Today I we...

Today I went to open house, and saw all my friends so that was cool. I finished all of my requirements for today and I have a lot of friends in my homeroom. That's awesome!!!!!

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Today I go...

Today I got my haircut and it's a nice fresh cut. My hair feels really spiky. I watched the movie barbershop the next cut. That movie was funny. And tomorrow is my open house.

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Today I go...

Today I got my haircut and it's a nice fresh cut. My hair feels really spiky. I watched the movie barbershop the next cut. That movie was funny. And tomorrow is my open house.

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Today I go...

Today I got my new skull essay Don and got my school schedule in the mail!! A lot of my friends ate in my homeroom. And I got my plant a few days ago so that's good.

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Today I go...

Today I got my cypress plant and it is pretty cool. My brother is going to a friends birthday party at 5 and that gives me a little time alone.

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Today I we...

Today I went to the sparring seminar and I learned a lot!! I got to sparr a lot of new people, and it was really fun. I can't wait till the aau tournament.

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Today I we...

Today I went to a friends house and took a CPR class for my new skill. Tomorrow I will start my essay and start the sparring seminar tomorrow. I'm really excited!!????????.

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Today I di...

Today I did all of myour requirements and tomorrow I am going to maybe take a CPR class for my new skill.

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Today my b...

Today my brother came back from Virginia, he said the trip was good and I got my drops for my pink eye today. My eyes still hurt but they're getting better.

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Today my b...

Today my brother went to Virginia with his friend won't be back till Sunday. I will miss him and he will also miss class tomorrow. But he did extra requirements for the past few days. So he's good????????

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Today I he...

Today I helped out in testing and my dog got groomed, the groomer was nice and my dog is nice and clean!!???? testing was good because everybody did good and I'm getting better at helping out in class????

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Today I fi...

Today I finished all of my requirements early and then helped out for class so it was like a normal day, and I am going to help tomorrow's testing, and hope everyone does good.

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Today we t...

Today we took our dog to the animal hospital and he got a checkup and he's good. He does need medicine in his ears for the next 2 weeks, but he is good.

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Today I we...

Today I went to hyper and we used nunchucks. It was pretty cool. And we also jumped over targets and that was fun. So today was good and I got a metee session in.

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Today I di...

Today I did all of my requirements and took care of my dog, and I am going to finish my book and start that essay.

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Today I wo...

Today I woke up early for sparring class and the class was really tiring, and in black belt class I learned some helpful tips for my self defense. Today was a good day.

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Today we r...

Today we ran in the mist and I have most of my requirements and I am going to read more of my book so I cab start my essay.

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Chill day

Today I just did all of my requirements and watched some TV and movies nothing really exciting but school is in a week.

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Today I we...

Today I went to defy gravity with 2 of my friends, and we all played dodge ball most of the time. My brother accidentally hit the ref in the face, she was ok though. But it was funny, then we went to my grandmother's house, ate dinner then went home.

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Today I ju...

Today I just finished all my requirements and am going to class in about an hour, I can finally wear my pmaa uniform!! So that's about it.

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Today I go...

Today I got back to my normal routine for tkd, and we didn't really go anywhere today but I did go to class and got a mentor session plus leadership 1 and 2, so a pretty good day.

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Today we c...

Today we came back from the beach and the drive back was 5 hours long! But we entertained our selves, and the sun was very bright and my face and back got burned so every time the sun shined on me it hurt badly. But my face felt very smooth, mostly my nose. So that was my day.

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Today I we...

Today I went to the kukkiwon cup and it was awesome!!!!! I got both gold in sparring and poomsaes!!! In sparring I started out down 0 to 5. Then I got up to 4 and he was all the way at 12!! Then I made a huge come back and I ended up at 16 and he ended up at 14. It was the best tournament ever, and I really like the medals.

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Today we a...

Today we are leaving to go to the hotel for kukkiwon, I'm really excited for sparring and I know what I have to do for my poomsae. Then we're going to the beach after kukkiwon!!

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Today I di...

Today I did all of my requirements and I'm about to go to my grandparents house. I'm still going to black class and have packed for kukkiwon cup.

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Today I ju...

Today I just did all my requirements and not much except go to auto bell to get our car cleaned for kukkiwon. And I have gotten even more tips for my poomsae, so I think I'm ready for kukkiwon!! Thatso about it for today.

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Today i me...

Today i met up with a friend and watched the movie legend of Tarzan, that movie was really good, some parts were kind of slow but overall a good movie. I also got to tae kwon do at 6:10 and didn't end till about 9:25 so that was long!! But i do like the PMAA class and i got the uniform today, that's so cool!! And kukkiwon is coming up on Saturday and i got really good feedback, can't wait!!

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Today i am...

Today i am done with my white belt challenge and my actual black belt feels way heavier than the white belt! But i do have to put ice on my arm and i can't wait for kukkiwon cup!!!!

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Today i fi...

Today i finished my white belt essay and also did my regular workouts, i'm very glad to say that i can wear my black belt once again. But my left shoulder has been hurting since 2 days ago, and i am going to the chiropractor tomorrow so that's good. That's really all so good bye.

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Preparing for kukkiwon

Today I learned that i need to work on things in sparring like throwing more than 1 kick, and being the aggressor. In my poomsaes I learned that i need to have more passion when I block or strike. So sparring was good and I can't wait for kukkiwon cup!

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Today was ...

Today was something, i got to watch kung fu panda 3 today, and got to chill for a little bit and went over to my grandmothers house and ate there for a little bit. Then we went home but the storm was huge, there was lightning everywhere, and the sky was super dark. I just hope our power doesn't go out again!

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hello ther...

hello there, today i went to defy gravity for 2 hours and it was fun, i really only played dodge ball the whole time. Then i went to help out the little tigers and that took A LOT of patience. Then i took black belt class and went home for the night, and now i am going to bed.

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Hey everyb...

Hey everybody today i woke up ate some breakfast, and later on went to defy gravity, it was fun bouncing around but i did get tired. After that we saw the secret life of pets, that movie was ok. Then we went to tae kwon do and i did some of my requirements got a mentor session done and helped out in class. so that was my day.

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Today was ...

Today was a long day because i was half awake when i was running and doing all my requirements, and my brothers 2 friends came over and they are exhausting when you have to wrestle them and go to the pool with them after they had a Slurpee and are really hyper, and i had to help out in class from 6:10 till 7:20 and stay at tae kwon do till about 9:25. so yeah you could say i was tired.

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Today i di...

Today i did all my requirements for the day and started my white belt challenge so that's great, not really but i'm trying to get all my essays done before school starts. Helping out in class today was kinda like a refresher for me to listen more, master Evins told us only to show the first six steps of the poomsae and i almost went through the whole thing so that was something!

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Today i ce...

Today i celebrated my grandmothers birthday and we went to Fridays for lunch so that was nice. Even though it was freezing inside the place they still had good food, i got my grandmother a plant for her birthday, and she got some money so that was my day. :)

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Hello ther...

Hello there, today my brother did the empathy challenge and is going to write about it tomorrow, unfortunately he did run into me 3-4 times so not the best thing. Yesterday i couldn't journal because our power went out when there was a big storm and the WiFi went out and we couldn't journal and we also had to use candles as light and my phone light. but the power came back up at 12:00 AM so we were fine.

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Hello ever...

Hello everybody today i did all my usual workouts and poomsaes but at 1 o'clock my mom, Greg, Bethany, and me went bowling. My brother couldn't get higher than 63 points, but Bethany beat me every time except for the last game, I beat her 104 to 97. I felt proud since the other six games i lost badly!! After that we went and got food but there was a huge storm, and we tried going to get my brother food but the restaurants power kept going out and we couldn't get anything. So we headed away from the storm and got food there. Then we went home and got into bed.

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Blind Empathy

Today i woke up this morning did my running as usual and for some reason i thought it was a good idea to start my empathy essay. I ran into almost every wall, and also elbowed my brother in the face doing self defense, also doing sparring rounds with my brother also hurt since i couldn't see. I managed throughout the day though, but when we went to our grandparents house and got to our car to drive home my other senses must of had some sort of boost because i could guess exactly where we were on the drive home every time. So i guess that will help me in sparring, then i finally got to open my eyes, i felt really dizzy and it took a few minutes to recover but i did and after i went to bed.

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Hello ever...

Hello everybody, I first woke up this morning ate a hardy breakfast with eggs, bacon, and pears. I then ran 1.5 miles with my Bro, and quickly started doing pull-ups, sit-ups, push-ups, and sparring rounds. jump rope i had to do throughout the whole day because it takes a lot of cardio, and 3 in a row is too much!! We did go to the pool today since going outside was basically like walking onto a grill. After the pool we went to my grand parents house to finish our poomsaes and self defenses. We then got home and took good showers, and went to sleep.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and tomorrow i will not have school because of black belt testing. And tonight i get to go to bed extra late and wake up at 1:00 pm, GOOD LUCK!!!! to everyone on the cycle that is testing tomorrow.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and tested out my ballistics box, which measures speed. So when i tested it (the sling shot) the marble went flying in the air, hit the paper and measured how far it went. The marble went fast to. So that was my day.

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Today i ha...

Today i have no school today and that is nice because i am super exhausted from the retreat and that was something that was fun but serious at the same time. I hope that when i do the next cycle (fall cycle) that master Evins will consider doing that again. But man i don't know if i am bunking with Luis again because he talked in his sleep and argued with himself, and he started moving and it was an earth quake. I didn't go to bed on Saturday till 2:00 am. But like master Evins said you get to know your friends better when you go camping.

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Today i ha...

Today i have no school today and that is nice because i am super exhausted from the retreat and that was something that was fun but serious at the same time. I hope that when i do the next cycle (fall cycle) that master Evins will consider doing that again. But man i don't know if i am bunking with Luis again because he talked in his sleep and argued with himself, and he started moving and it was an earth quake. I didn't go to bed on Saturday till 2:00 am. But like master Evins said you get to know your friends better when you go camping.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and this police officer came in for about 45 minutes and he was huge!!!! Then he talked about his speed detector/distance measure. Then he pulled his motorcycle out and that thing was huge!!!!!! It looked like robocop a little, he even had a computer built into the bike!!!!! and a printer!!!!! That was awesome!!!!!!! Going to camp oak hill tomorrow see everyone there!!!!!

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and i made a sling shot in shop class and we tested it out and that thing went at least three yards!!! which is far for a small sling shot. And that was my day.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and there is a drill bit that i used in shop class and that thing drilled right through the wood we needed and i thought it was about to go through my hand! Then i went home and i had no homework so i did my requirements for the day and watched my Tuesday show.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and i did what i did as usual and to day i had no homework so that was nice, for the rest of the time at home i rested up and then went to tkd and went home.

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Today i pl...

Today i played outside with some friends and we played tag and almost ran so fast that we couldn't breathe. But it was fun, also before i went outside i stayed in bed till nine but woke up at 7 because it was freezing cold when i woke up. So that was the day.

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Today i we...

Today i went to the AAU competition and did both forms and sparring. The good part was that we were all in the same spot instead of spread out, we were able to cheer each other on when we each came out. Over all i had a good time.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and at the end of the day we played volley ball in gym. My team was not the greatest in fact we have lost to every team we have played so far. We were very close to beating the team we last played today but they caught up to us. But we will still keep trying.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and finalized my building for a project and we helped out other peoples projects. I also helped out the moving of the stuff for TKD and then i went home and went to bed.

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last class

Today i went to school and i had 2 teachers out for ELA and STEM class (shop class). And today we had our last black belt class (weekday) so that was nice and we took a picture, of course serious smile first and then silly. So today was good.

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Saturday i...

Saturday i did a 5K for the hope builders and that was a blast because I've never done a 5K before and for my first 5K it was awesome. The really good thing that was really funny was that on the run my brother forgot his water bottle and i had my back pack on, and i know what you are thinking hes crazy for bringing that, but i had to because my phone. So when my brother came up to me on the run he said spray me with your water and sure enough i sprayed him and he looked so funny, it was even better when i told my mom. And during the 5K it started raining and then at the end it all came pouring down. So that was the good part of my weekend.

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and we worked on a crazy math term called the ''Pythagorean theorem''. The word itself was hard to pronounce, it was even harder to do the math. But were using it for a building from the renaissance time period and will make it not life size, but to our measurements. So that was my day.

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Today I me...

Today I measured my plant and It was 12.5 inches high!!! It says that the plant is supposed to be up to like as tall as me and if not taller. So that's the big deal about today.

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Today I to...

Today I took my written and physical test and on my written test i got a 104%!!!! So yay me!!!! I just missed one question, but hey i got above a hundred so i cant complain. I passed my physical test to so also yay me!!!After the test and after the classes i went to lowes to get my shrub. The shrub has gold tips so it will remind me that the plants are priceless!!!

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Today I to...

Today I took my written and physical test and on my written test i got a 104%!!!! So yay me!!!! I just missed one question, but hey i got above a hundred so i cant complain. I passed my physical test to so also yay me!!!After the test and after the classes i went to lowes to get my shrub. The shrub has gold tips so it will remind me that the plants are priceless!!!

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and i got to use the drill bit in my 4th period, and that was awesome!!!! Then i went to black belt class and got to play tae kwon do jeopardy. I got all answers right except for one, But overall i did awesome!!!! This one question master Evins asked me what the bars on the Korean flag are called, and i said the full answer because that's what i thought we had to do. Overall one of the best days!!!!!!!

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Today i we...

Today i went to school and got time to finish my homework in class and i did finish it in class. So i had no homework for the day. I then took Spanish class at the end of the day. Which was fun! I am currently in Spanish 2. Then i went home and took time to make my belly full. I got spaghetti and that was mm mm good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Yesterday ...

Yesterday i went to the fair with some middle school friends and high school friends, and it was fun. We stayed till eleven o'clock, My friends and i went on zero gravity which is a spinning thing that pushes you against the wall so you can't go forwards. I also went on Khaos, That ride goes swinging side to side while you spin around and it did get to the top then stopped for like 5 seconds and all the blood just rushed to my head. So i had a blast.

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today i we...

today i went to school but Saturday i had a sleep over at my friends house and i went to bed at 4:30 am on Sunday and woke up at 7:00 am. So that threw me off when i went to school. When i went to school i nearly fell asleep in class, i definitely fell asleep on the bus though. Then since it was a Monday i had homework and after i had to go to T.K.D. that was rough.

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Today I we...

Today I went to school on the bus and the bus ride was okay. When i got to school all of a sudden on the board i see the words i never want to see... HOMEWORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But the homework turned out to be easy. At the end of the day when i got home i finished it in 2 minutes.

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today i we...

today i went to school for the fourth time and bought a ticket for the school dance. Then i went to homeroom. The school dance isn't really like a dance its more of a 2 hour hang out. So that was my day.

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Today was ...

Today was my second day of school and we talked about key concepts that we needed to stay on task.

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today i we...

today i went to school an since it was the first day and i was going into 7th grade, there were double the amount of people there were last year. and all the 6th graders were so small. but other than the traffic i got some of my friends in my class so the first day wasn't so bad.

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Today sinc...

Today since it was raining i was able to fix my game console. That worked like a charm so me and my bro played some games over the day and exercised, like doing push-ups, sit-ups, and pull-ups.

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Today i ha...

Today i had a sparring seminar with master Hama. It was cool what he taught us, I learned that when you kick to the head that if your ankle and hips don't turn then you wont kick as high. It was fun and i had a great time with him and his coach.

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Today i we...

Today i went to the chiropractor to get an adjustment because my back was hurting. Then after that i helped out testing and got a thanks from master Evins. Then i went home and got some food to get ready to go to bed and get ready for the next day.

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Today i we...

Today i went to tae kwon do and got a sparring class taut to me by master Hama. I had a really great time and he gave me a lot of pointers in sparring.

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Today me a...

Today me and my friends brother swapped places. My brother was with my friends brother, and i was with my friend and his other brother. I had a fun time in there pool and also we played a little outside. Then i had to go home and rest to get ready for tae kwon do.

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Today i he...

Today i helped my uncle video tape a video for the new coming teachers. It took a few hours because we had to go through his high school and video tape clips then he would edit them.

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Today we j...

Today we just stayed home and did what we usually do. I did my requirements and then did my self-defense with my brother. Then we relaxed and watched a movie, then i got back to doing what i needed to do.

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today i di...

today i did all my requirements and then went to class. After class i went home and had lunch. Then me and my brother made some slime together. It was disgusting!!!!!!! There was one that i didn't like because it sliped right out of my hand when i squeezed it.

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Today I we...

Today I went Frisbee golfing with my uncle. The only problem is i had to wake up at 6:30. Boy!!!!!! that was rough, Then it sprinkled a little at Frank Liske park, then it rained a little harder but we still made it through the course. After that me and my family went to chik-fila but me and my brother only got something because my mom was going to have lunch with her friend. Then we went home ate dinner (in about 1 hour after lunch) then watched a movie then we went to bed.

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today i we...

today i went to my moms doctor appointment and used the WiFi. i was able to write down part of an essay so that's nice. then i went to tae kwon do and got my credits. i went home and ate dinner and went to bed.

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today my b...

today my brothers friend came over and we played a little at my house then we went to the pool and played tag there. We (I mean me and my mom) were exhausted from the pool, but my brother and his friend were not. So we went outside and played for a little while. I went to tae kwon do then at 9:30 we went to pick up my grandmother. and didn't get home until 11:00 and that's it.

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today I wa...

today I was able to go to the pool with my family and go on some of the water slides and threw my brother in the 3 ft side. After that we went home and ate dinner while watching transformers 3! That movie is awesome!

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Today i di...

Today i did all the push ups pull ups and sit ups etc that i needed to do and went to my moms doctor appointment while my brother went to the pool with my grandpa and aunt, uncle, and 2 girl cousins. Then after the appointment me and my mom went to the library to get some books. Then i helped out class, then took black belt class and came home took a shower, of course!! then got tired and went to bed.

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Today i wa...

Today i was able to work out with my uncle and since i have been doing my requirements and he is not on the black belt cycle, lets say he couldnt move for 30 minutes.

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Today my m...

Today my mom went shopping for groceries and got all the food i wanted. Then after that we went to the pool which wore me out.

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Today was ...

Today was a good day and i did all my requirements in the morning and the afternoon. Also i went to black belt class and did the stick form and the new updated version of the koryo poomsae. Then i did sparring which was OK, after sparring class i had learned a lot. Then i went to my house ate lunch and that was the best foot long ever!

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Today was ...

Today was a good day considering that i went to carowinds and road thunder road. The reason why it is great is because thunder road was suppose to close on Saturday and i went on it today! I also went on the intimidator and the new ride FURY 325!!!!!!!! So the day was awesome.

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Today was ...

Today was a pretty good day. I did all the pull ups, push ups, sit ups that I needed to do and then went to my moms doctor appointment and used their WiFi. That was awesome! I got to watch some videos on you tube. and then went to class to get some credits.

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Today wasn...

Today wasn't the brightest day but we looked through some old VHS' and stumbled upon a almost 20 year old video. I saw a few people I haven't seen at all or I don't remember them. 2 of the people in the video arnt even alive anymore. But i did take class and got a good workout in sparring. That was the end.

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I did pret...

I did pretty much nothing except going to the grocery store and the mall. My brother had his room painted though by my grand parents and him, and that took like 5-6 hours. So the day was slow.

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Today I wo...

Today I woke up, went to black belt class then sparring class. After I went home took a shower so my mom wouldn't make my mom faint. After we watched Madagascar 2. Then I went to sleep to get ready for the next day.

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Today I we...

Today I went Frisbee golfing and also did my 120 push-ups and sit-ups every three holes. My mom dropped my brother off at his friends house for a sleep over, she talked and talked to the other mom for 30 minutes. I got bored until she said, "D'Andre maybe we can watch the movie terminator Genesis". I was thrilled! We watched the movie and it was awesome! Then I came home and went to bed.

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