Candidate Journals

Today was a good day. I got promoted in my Spanish class. I'm now doing intermediate Spanish. In social studies, I presented my building project. We had to build a fortified trading post. I'm going to BBC at 7:30 today.

It's honestly unbelievable. I never thought I could get through the cycle successfully. Tae Kwon Do has honestly changed me for the better. I began as a tiny child who would probably cry at the slightest insult, but now I feel as if I could fend for myself! I give a deep thank you to Master Evins, Master Chelley, all the Masters, instructors, and my fellow candidates. I am so grateful to you all and think we can all do great things if we put our mind to it!

Today was an amazing day. In science class, our class had donuts. There was an incident in Spanish. There was a test in ELA. One highlight of the day was going outside, and everybody wanted to roll down a hill. After school, at 5 pm, I had a CLP lock-in. We had food, fun, and activities. It was great having fun with my teachers and playing some video games! Overall, today was great.

Today was a good day. I have a test for ELA and Spanish tomorrow. I finished 2 computer projects. After school, I went to curriculum night, but I found it it was for elementary school! After that, I went to Tae Kwon Do and mentored my mentee, did BBC, and got mentored. Thanks to Master Dege for getting me to my humble abode!

Yesterday was a good day. I did a mentor, mentee and Black belt class. I need to work on my Hapkidos. Testing is in about 2 weeks so its time to "grind".

Today was a regular day. I had a good day at school. We got a new science teacher, who seems nice. In Advanced Computers, one of my electives, we have 2 projects. In ELA, we did a journal on last week, which I am pretty much basing this off on. In Social Studies, we had a quiz and started learning about West Africa and slavery. I went to Tae Kwon Do at 6:30 PM to help with class.Tomorrow is my first CLP (College Leadership Program) meeting.  

Today I went to sparring and Black Belt class. I then went home and had samosas and chicken. Today I also went to Target and Starbucks. Overall, today was fun.

Today was a good day. I’m really tired right now. At school, we used our new Chromebooks a lot which is great because it saves paper. I got home and relaxed and did requirements.

I had a good day at school today. I helped with Wang Ho class and got mentored. I want to be more helpful whenever I’m assisting class.

Today I had a good day at school. I went to sparring class at Lake Norman. I’m glad to be done with essays, physical and written tests, but the Black Belt test could be harder then all 3 combined. 

Yesterday was the written and physical test. I think I did decently but I had trouble with a few things. I couldn't jump rope to the best of my ability because I didn't bring my own jump rope. I also need to improve on running and pull-ups.

I finished all my essays and am almost done with mentor sessions. It's crazy how the cycle will be over in a month. All that work coming to an end. This whole cycle has been great and I never thought I could do it. I have improved a lot and the upcoming physical test will tell.

Today, I only have one essay left, so I will finish it. During school I had fun. We are starting to use technology a lot more. I am a bit scared about the written and physical test. I will write again after BBC.

It was a good day yesterday. In school we had a science MAP test, and I passed. During BBC, Master Jean visited and we had a great class. We did lots of kicks and combinations. Master Jean is a great teacher. 

Today, I was still sick and I couldn't go to school. I will lay off on requirements. On the bright side, I can finish my essays. 

Almost done with all my essays! Going to start memorizing written test! May time my run soon. Sadly I am sick today and I hope I’m not tomorrow so I can go to school.

Today, I did nothing besides my requirements and worked on my Community Service essay. This week I will finish all my essays. 

Yesterday I finished my requirements. I also did some community service at the library. Me and some other people learned how to shelve books, and we tore paper out of magazines for an activity on this Tuesday.

Today has been a good break day. After school, I ate a snack and finished my new skill essay. I did some push and sit-ups. During school, I had a Spanish and US history test. We have our Chromebooks now and things are improving in my school.

Went to sparring class today. I am trying to balance school and the cycle. I want to do 108 push and sit-ups per day. I wrote a paragraph of my New Skill Essay. I will be doing community service this week or next week.

Today my school got lockers and chrome books. The hallways are getting very crowded. The chromebooks are good however. I went to the Huntersville school for sparring class today. Their facility is very nice. I love the mirrors near the class to see what you're doing. Master Chelley and Conrad Harte did a great job. Sparring class was kind of tough. Lots of kicks.

Yesterday I went to sparring and BBC. During sparring, we did some sparring rounds and lots of kicks. During BBC we did kicks, nun-chucks, and stick techniques (which I'm not sure what the name is). During the hour between sparring and BBC, I went on a mile run with some other Bo Cho Dans and others. Thank you, Mrs. Badia, for motivating me to run! 

Today has been an average day. However, I am very disappointed and disgusted by the people I am surrounded by at school. They say bad words and are incredibly disrespectful. Whenever a teacher leaves the room, the students talk negatively about said teacher. One day I hope to take this into my own hands. Alright, I’m done with the rant. I got a leadership 1 today. Red Stripe means tons of exercise. Great Job to everyone in the 6:45 PM class. One thing I’m happy about is my textbook. My history textbook is online, so I don’t have to bring a heavy textbook home. Also, there is a vocabulary and summary section. Last year, I disliked my social studies teacher because he made us take lots of notes and we never really learned anything. My history teacher this year is pretty nice. Anddd that’s all for today!

Today was a pretty average day. I went to school as usual. Went to BBC. Did some sparring rounds and self-defenses. At my school I've been noticing students saying profanity. Honestly, some kids today are so disrespectful. They need to focus on class, not their gossip.

I’ve been going to school for the past couple days. The campus is not the best, but I’ve learned to cope with that. Also the pre-test is tomorrow. I’m kind of stressed but excited. I really hope I do good. I wrote down some important information from the study guides. We’ll see how it goes.

Today was my first day of school. I was on a new campus. I'm in a class with all my friends. Everything is pretty chaotic because it's a new year. I will do requirements after school.

Today, I went to sparring and BBC. We did lots of forms and self-defenses. I saw the movie Lion King in live-action. It was a great movie. I loved seeing Simba as a cub. He was so cute. I loved seeing all the animals and I want to interact with those animals someday. Wasn't able to do a bunch of requirements, but still some. Will do more tomorrow. I also did a mentor session. Because Luis my mentor is gone temporarily, I have had some temporary mentors. I thank everyone who has mentored me and helped me grow in general. 

Today I went to my school orientation. I am going to 8th grade. It turns out my mentee goes to the same school. I mentored my mentee today and I went to Black Belt Class. My mentee is a junior Tiger so I learned some of the Junior Tiger curricula from him. We did a lot of Forms and Self Defenses in BBC.I need to practice High Yellow and Red Belt self defense. I also need to work on side kicks. I really hope school doesn't get the way of the cycle too much. I also signed up for a computer elective, which I am excited for. I think we should have a place to chat with other black belt candidates on this website. Texting and calls! 

Today I went shopping at a store called Lidl. The prices there are very good. I also went to class today and got mentored. We did lots of kicking, but no as much as Saturday's class. I currently am working on side kicks.

Today has been fairly normal. However, for the first time, I made a to-do list. Of course, I have to do cycle requirements. I also want to spend only 1 hour on social media, unless I am using it for productivity. Because school is coming up, I have been using Duolingo to practice Spanish and Khan Academy to practice math. I also want to read my book for the cycle. Pro Tip: Take notes on your book. Your future self will thank you for not having to read the book again. I will help with class today at 6:45 PM.

Today has been a pretty lazy day. I didn't do that many kicks, as yesterday's Saturday BBC had many kicks. I need to work on my sidekicks. Another topic I want to talk about is the fact that people are calling the cycle a grind. It is not a grind, the cycle was made for us to master all techniques of Tae Kwon Do. 

Today I went to BBC weekend and sparring class. We did a lot of kicks, over 300. I slept a little late yesterday and woke up feeling cranky, but I got through everything. Also today is the cycle start date! This day was a great start to this challenge.

I am pretty stressed about requirements. I haven’t been getting them all in and I am scared. Also the pre-test is coming up. I need to learn how to do proper pull-ups too! I’m glad that the cycle hasn’t technically started.

Today I went to a Black Belt class. Yesterday I got mentored, helped with class, and mentored someone. When I was helping with class I was helping a White Belt with Kwan Sool. Besides that I've been getting in requirements. Might go on a vacation in a week or 2.

I stayed indoors for the majority of today. Got most of my requirements. I am pretty stressed out about the pre-Test because I’ll have to remember EVERYTHING from colored belts. It would be very convenient to have a study guide for the pre-Test, but having a mentor is enough for me. I went to sparring class yesterday and my toe got a bit hurt, but I’m fine now. 

Today has been a pretty lazy day. It is very hot out and I don't feel like going outside. However, I am still getting in my requirements. I am hoping to go on a run around my neighborhood later. I like to run/walk in the night because it is colder and the heat recently has been crazy. I also am hoping to do at least 120 push-ups and sit-ups. Yesterday I had a mentor session and came home at about 9:30 from my Tae Kwon Do class. 9:30! That's crazy! But, hey, it'll all be worth it in the end. I also helped with a class on Wednesday, and I felt great. I hope to choose a mentee ASAP.