Saturday

Okay, I'll admit: I didn't stick around for the weapons class afterward, but the one-hour open hand class was terrific.

One thing I have learned is not to show up too early on Saturday. On this particular Saturday I showed up at 9:45 for a 10:00 class. Bad form, one might say, as that's too late to help move the tables and set up the mats. The dojo belongs to all of us, and we all need to help with its maintenance.

The chief instructor showed up at 9:55. He was the only one with the key. What's the point of showing up at the dojo early just to wait around 20 minutes to get it? It's not like occasionally someone shows up early with a key, and we all get in by 9:15 to start setting up. No. Never. At best, early means 9:30, but that only happens in the winter.

Doesn't matter, though. We spent an hour practicing a variety of techniques from ryotatori (two hands grab two wrists). It was fun. I had fun, I had good endurance, and my techniques were working smoothly and effectively. It doesn't get too much better than that for me.