Week 6 Evaluation

Pushups (modified): 1015/1000

Situps (modified): 1033/1000

Weapon form: 25/50

Hand form: 7/25

My weapon form repetition goals are probably going to have to be reduced for the time being because doing them is not helping the knee at all. To be honest even the hand form is causing me grief. I’m disappointed because I wanted some buffer because I know that growing season adversely affects my ability to get my numbers in. Suggestions on how to keep up my numbers (modifications) for my form reps would be welcome. My forms are Stick and Lau Gar.

Didn’t get as much progress done on the large declutter project but did make some headway.

Succeeded in reading chapter 14 of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

Managed to read most of the blog posts of my team mates. This is often difficult for me to do especially when, at the same time, I’m trying to reduce screen time. Ah, balance.

The art homework was mostly done. We have definitely found one of my weaknesses: taking a design and drawing it from different angles while still looking like the original design. My homework is to continue with that exercise as well as a few other drawings and information for the creature design. This one creature design has taken so many weeks. I feel so slow! The Art Mentor says I’ve come a long way but I don’t see it yet myself.

Didn’t get any new drawings in the sketchbook but did continue a drawing.

Really enjoyed the IHC lesson where we discussed, and worked on, centre-ing as well as doing side-heal and roundhouse kicks from crane stance. I can see doing more of that kick exercise once my knee stops giving me grief. That said, the knee feels very slightly better and I’ve made an appointment with the physician.

Would like to do something more intentional about improving flexibility but suspect that’s not going to happen until the Sil Lim seminar coming up. Still glad to be getting some stretching done in the meantime.

Read another chapter of Four Thousand Weeks. This one was on attention and the “attention economy”, which then made me think of what we are often told to ask ourselves when we are in Kung Fu class, “Where am I, and what am I doing?” The chapter talks about distraction, both as a good thing and a bad thing; how our attention is our lives; what we pay attention to affects what our lives are. What you pay attention to expands. Did I CHOOSE to do (pay attention to) this, or was I distracted into doing this? I especially liked the quote from T.S. Elliot, “distracted from distraction by distraction”, which seems very appropriate in our electronic algorithm filled lives these days, making us wonder why we waste so much of our precious lives (time and attention) on social media etc. More reasons I endeavour to reduce my screen time. Though, ironically enough, this particular book I’m reading on a screen.

Numbers:

Pushups (modified): 5201 / 50,000

Situps (modified): 5143 / 50,000

Weapon Form: 176 / 1000

Hand Form: 125 /1000

Random Acts of Kindness: 54 / 1000

Sparring: 50 / 1000

Kilometres: 125 / 1609

Memorize “Mastery”: 2

Nurture Relationships:

Blogging: 12 / 52

Art Like it’s My Job: 29 / 252 days

Declutter my life: 11 days this year where some decluttering was done

Greatcoat project:

Improved flexibility: 12 days of doing something