and squat for the last week.

So a brief good start a week ago... then not much else after that. Partially bad timing, partially a gout flare up (makes it hard to run when you foot feels broke) and mostly lazy.

So on the gout front... I get a couple flare ups a year. Somtimes (like this time) it occurs in a part of my foot that I don't realize in time is gout. So 3 days later or so, when I realize no the pain is not going away, I finally treat it. Adding to the overall recovery time. sigh. Normally it is the main "knuckle" of my big toe, bu this time it's nailing the bottom of my right foot. So lots of ibuprofen and water. All controllable through diet, so ate too much of something in the last week (I have theories, but gout is mostly controllable through diet, so if I overdue a food, or get out of balance it can flare up.)

Exercise... hope to be decent enoug to go to iaido tomorrow, missed 3 weeks of it so far and need the calming influence of swinging a sword and not cutting my self in the process.

New motive for a 5k ... Going to sign up for the Dreidel Run. Just debating 5k or 10k we'll see, looks like a fund run.

Next time I'll talk about some of the software/websites I'm using.

Aikido Yoshokai curiousity...

So started back at Aikido with eldest daughter... and now the "academic" brain has started going...

She had her second class this last Saturday, and I attended my first beginners/basic class in ooooo... 18 years give or take (my 3rd kyu test was back in 90/91 just before the split.)

Eldest had a good time (the important thing at this stage) and even convinced the instructor to show her the use of the bokken. The instructor just showed her basic etiquette, which was a good call. I attribute going for the weapon as being indicitive that she's my daughter. :-)

As for the basic class, it went pretty well considering I'm out of shape and out of practice. The technique was familiar, nothing new except the ending pin. It was slightly different than what I expected (but don't have any recollection of what I might have done in the past.)

So the academic part I mentioned. It's been just shy of 20 years since AYANA split from Yoshinkai and became Yoshokai. I'm curious if any differences have developed, at least noticeable ones. Somme pins seem different, but just curious if anything else has changed especially since Kushida Sensei's son is pretty much head instructor (though there is is a claim that there is a governing body too.) What little I find on line seems to think there is little difference between the two except that AYANA is still highly centralized and controlled. For example test standards are very strict and still are sent out from the head dojo in the case of AYANA.

Also wondering how IYAF is doing, as there were some concerns, back in the day, that standards for dojos were going to become a little more loose (or allow for more independence depending on you view.) So wondering how that is going.

And again I view this as very academic as what matters on the ground is that the dojo I go to is run by good teachers, and that my daughter and I find it fun to do. Also eventually we'll introduce daughter #2 to Aikido, once I have #1 fully hooke. :-)