We haven't had any new students. Tim is training with us regularly, and his grown up son joined in a on a class this past week too. The training is good, and fun! But if we're not getting any students then we can't really have a program.
John and I have decided that if there are no students by the end of the month, then we're going to suspend the program for now, and John will switch to teaching Tai Chi, in the meantime we all still meet to train together, while John and I advertise taking on students for private lessons.
I think there's a much better market for Tai Chi classes (which John has taught in the past), particularly with the WREN crowd. I can understand how hard it can be for someone to devote years to trying to learn a martial art and obtain a black belt. Unfortunately, some "McDojos" and the diluting due to the increase and overcommercialization of MMA have taken away from some of the core principles of the studying the martial arts, particularly improving one's own character.
We might try again in the fall with a regular class program. Who knows. Most importantly, we're training again.
Tommorrow I'm flying out to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for a cousin's wedding. I'll see my parents along with my brother and his girlfriend, some aunts and uncles. Should be fun. My girlfriend won't be going, since the plans were made before we started dating last year, and she's busy with a new job.
Looking forward to the vacation. Work has been good, but you need a break every once in a while.
Maybe I'll be enjoying a margarita on the beach when I write my next post...
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Mother's Day
And a Happy Mother's Day to all the good mom's out there, particularly my own.
My brother and I consider ourselves very lucky for our mom and dad growing up. Our mom in particular seemed to meet almost an idealized version of what a mom should be: loving, smart, industrious, good cook, hard working in her career as a nurse and at home, and devoted to mine and my brother's endeavors.
I don't get to see either of my parents much since they moved to Arizona a few years back. My old man retired as a firefighter, and was more than happy to get away from our cold winters up here. My mom's job as RN, sometimes travelling, paved the way for their exploration for somewhere much warmer to live year round. They tried a few different places, but both fell in love with southern Arizona. They did some sacrificing for that with time apart while my mother did some travelling as an RN. My old man was able to switch some shifts around to take weeks off at a time to fly out to see her before he retired.
First they had a big camper they'd use to stay at various campgrounds. Then they found a retirement community just north of Phoenix, and bought a house. I haven't been to their new house in a couple years, but maybe next year I'll make the trip.
I'll see my parents next week in old Mexico. My younger brother, his girlfriend, my parents and some aunts and uncles will be out there for my cousin's wedding. Unless my folks visit NH later this year, it'll probably be the only time I see them. At least we enjoy the short time we have together.
My brother and I consider ourselves very lucky for our mom and dad growing up. Our mom in particular seemed to meet almost an idealized version of what a mom should be: loving, smart, industrious, good cook, hard working in her career as a nurse and at home, and devoted to mine and my brother's endeavors.
I don't get to see either of my parents much since they moved to Arizona a few years back. My old man retired as a firefighter, and was more than happy to get away from our cold winters up here. My mom's job as RN, sometimes travelling, paved the way for their exploration for somewhere much warmer to live year round. They tried a few different places, but both fell in love with southern Arizona. They did some sacrificing for that with time apart while my mother did some travelling as an RN. My old man was able to switch some shifts around to take weeks off at a time to fly out to see her before he retired.
First they had a big camper they'd use to stay at various campgrounds. Then they found a retirement community just north of Phoenix, and bought a house. I haven't been to their new house in a couple years, but maybe next year I'll make the trip.
I'll see my parents next week in old Mexico. My younger brother, his girlfriend, my parents and some aunts and uncles will be out there for my cousin's wedding. Unless my folks visit NH later this year, it'll probably be the only time I see them. At least we enjoy the short time we have together.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Well then...
So we had our open house.
One person came. This one person was a lady that used to train at the school way back when. John does not want her there as a student due to some past issues.
I was hoping we'd be able to get the interest of at least a few people, optimally half a dozen.
No one else came. Disappointing to say the least. That one lady hung out for a while, during which John and I practiced some self defense strategies. A decent training at least.
We're going to start regular classes next Monday and Wednesday. If we don't get any regular students by the end of the month, then we're pretty much done. John has told me he'd like to continue training with me if this program doesn't work out, so I think we'll still do that at least. Another possibility to start up again might be checking with the local community college to do a program in the fall if our program doesn't do well; but that's just a random thought.
Once again, I'd be happy with 3 students, optimally 6. I'm skeptical now whether this will work. Unfortunately I think we've more or less just angered a lot of people with the age limit of 14 and up for the class. I've had some friends particularly that have expressed their disappointment in that decision. If we were opening up an actual dojo again, there's would definitely be a kids program, but that would be down the road if all worked out.
In some ways I should have expected the poor turnout. The Aikido program in Conway only has a few of us for students. Only so much you can expect in small communities for these types of programs I guess.
One person came. This one person was a lady that used to train at the school way back when. John does not want her there as a student due to some past issues.
I was hoping we'd be able to get the interest of at least a few people, optimally half a dozen.
No one else came. Disappointing to say the least. That one lady hung out for a while, during which John and I practiced some self defense strategies. A decent training at least.
We're going to start regular classes next Monday and Wednesday. If we don't get any regular students by the end of the month, then we're pretty much done. John has told me he'd like to continue training with me if this program doesn't work out, so I think we'll still do that at least. Another possibility to start up again might be checking with the local community college to do a program in the fall if our program doesn't do well; but that's just a random thought.
Once again, I'd be happy with 3 students, optimally 6. I'm skeptical now whether this will work. Unfortunately I think we've more or less just angered a lot of people with the age limit of 14 and up for the class. I've had some friends particularly that have expressed their disappointment in that decision. If we were opening up an actual dojo again, there's would definitely be a kids program, but that would be down the road if all worked out.
In some ways I should have expected the poor turnout. The Aikido program in Conway only has a few of us for students. Only so much you can expect in small communities for these types of programs I guess.
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