A I K I D O



I told Smiley "I'm studying Aikido again. We're doing Rolls. It's just like a Highside bail... only smoother."

Most motorcyclists avoid even thinking about crashing like it's self-inflicted root canal with a weed wacker, so he grins and looks at me out of the corners of his eyes "Oh, you mean like California Rolls and Uni rolls and Tekkamaki Rolls?!"

"Uh, yeah, That's right. In Aikido we dissipate energy by rolling fish and rice in flattened seaweed. Shit works Man. I'm telling you. 'Yet another attacker rendered helpless by the perfect execution and sublime beauty of an ahi tuna sashimi.' "


















My Radically condensed Aikido history

In college, I studied Hapkido. It was fun, but way too much testosterone for me. We came on the mat right after the Aikido class got through and my fellow Hapkido students would always sit there and watch in mild condescending amusement at the Aikido students getting thrown all over creation and think "This is a martial art? Where's the punches? Where's the kicks? Where's the groveling opponent slapping out on the ground screaming uncle?" I soon discovered my fellow Hapkido students wanted the power to destroy. When my class schedule changed the next quarter, I lost interest, despite the cool black uniform. But never forgot about Aikido. And I started reading as much as I could about it.

I picked up Aikido when I moved to Berkeley, but work got in the way. And when presented with the choice of another shift slinging lattes and eating for the next week and going to Aikido and starving, well... I choose work and figuring it out over a beer or 12 later.

North Bay Aikido took me in as a student 3 weeks late and I am grateful to be on the path again. Do you have any idea what it's like to study martial arts where people get thrown across the room and land laughing? Changes everything. Lemme tell you.

Aikido teaches us more than just beating people into a writhing, sniveling, mercy-begging puddle of remorse unable to rise from the ground that's now embedded in several less-than-mentionable bruised and broken body parts. Sorry. I'm an Aries - prone to hyperbole.
Not that Aikido, if applied improperly, isn't capable of that ... but we are given and entrusted with the choice to do something else. And last I checked, this world could use a few less pissed off victims of overzealous aggression.

Now, the hardest, and easiest, (and not hardest and not easiest) thing for me o do is get to practice. Like L.L. Cool J. said "Persistence overcomes resistance."









So ... like ... dude ... What is... you know ... Aikido?

Get to practice. For Real. It's just that simple.

I can't tell you what Aikido is. The best explanation is to show up at a dojo and do it. Experience it. Aikido is much more than a beautiful spectator sport. It's often compared to dancing, but like most things in life, to get an understanding, we must partcipate. It is a living art. It must be lived. If that's somehow not an option, there are several fantastic books out there on Aikido.










What can I read on Aikido?











I don't have time to read... where's the website?

There are hordes of Aikido websites out there. A vast cornucopia of HTML possibilities. Try a few of these