So what part of Budo involves the elitist bullshit you've just
suggested? The money was not the point. I'm just merely pointing out
that I'm an enthusiastic student who went out of his way to be there
to be taught. I'm just a poor university student, it was a big
sacrifice to save the money I needed to be there, but I was willing to
do it because I so wanted to be taught by Chida Sensei, someone I've
heard nothing but of his brilliance, not to be treated as something
beneath some deified clique of guys who like to call themselves Senseis.

Even if my technique was SO bad that I couldn't understand the nuances
of what Chida was trying to say that's still no excuse for them to not
even try to help me understand. Think of it in a sense of a
classroom, if you were a teacher and you had a student who was
struggling, would you ignore them and only pay attention to the
students having the easiest time? No, at least not if you were a
teacher of any worth. A good teacher tries to elevate even the most
difficult of students because no one is beyond understanding. If that
is indeed the reason you've suggested then be damned to all of them,
none of them had anything to say that I hadn't heard already from
someone who actually makes the effort to help me understand. I was
only hoping that the could help me with some of my specific problems
in ways I hadn't heard before.

So the men at the Seminar have proven to me that they may be good or
even brilliant martial artists, but that does not automatically make
them good teachers,To me there is only ONE man who has earned the
right to have me call him my Sensei, one who shows a love for both the
art and for teaching, one who has earned my respect by never demanding
it. I've never had to offer him gifts for coming out to do his job,
or applaude him for just showing up in a cameo appearance or any of
that nonesense. He's asked nothing more than for me to listen
carefully and keep an open mind. So what do I stand to learn from
people like the ones you've suggested the top ranking men and women of
Yoshinkan Aikido are, other than how to be a snob? Which frankly is a
lesson I'd rather skip.

Brian

--- In yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com, Christopher Ross <maturin@r...> wrote:
> Brian - Have you considered the possiblity that your
> aikido is so bad it is best ignorred? I was myself at
> this stage and then I became merely terrible and
> benefited by Mustard Sensei's correctly saying my
> aikido was absolutely awful and his patiently trying
> to do something about it.... Chida Shihan once spent
> over an hour trying to teach me Kokyu ho, something
> which cause his deshi to nash their teeth as he had
> never spent a smililar time teaching them a single
> teqhnique. Mills Sensei in his incarnation as my
> friend Nick at the Honbu was kind enough to train with
> me and I got a lot from partnering him.
>
> In short I have learned from all of the sensei you
> mention (with the exception of Jeannette Sensei). I
> continue to do so. Not by being directly taught by
> them as I am currently a long way away. But by
> understanding what they are doing and continuing
> striving to be like them in my small and
> insignificiant way, a quiet echo of something true....
> which is why if you watch my aikido you will notice it
> is has a special qulaity.....not because of me but
> solely because of my teachers and sempai.
>
> Being ignored, if that is what happened to you, is the
> beginning. The money you mention has nothing to do
> with budo, it is solely to pay for halls and plane
> tickets and hotel rooms... the trivia of a material
> world.
>
> Best,
>
> Christopher Ross
>
>
> --- yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com wrote:
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> --------------------------------------------------------------------~->
> >
> >
> > There are 3 messages in this issue.
> >
> > Topics in this digest:
> >
> > 1. Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> > From: "Brian Downey"
> > <akuma_ku@h...>
> > 2. Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> > From: "Steven Miranda"
> > <aysdojo@y...>
> > 3. Re: Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> > From: "SAMUEL COMBES" <scombes@m...>
> >
> >
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> > Message: 1
> > Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 03:56:17 -0000
> > From: "Brian Downey" <akuma_ku@h...>
> > Subject: Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> >
> > I didn't recieve one piece of correction or advice
> > from Chida nor
> > from Robert Mustard, or Jim Janette or even Nic
> > Mills. Although
> > they passed by me many many times correcting the
> > people around me
> > and would even occassionally stop and watch me but
> > offer no
> > wisdom... I don't understand why not. I'm only 5th
> > kyu, I'm sure
> > there were many points that I could have been doing
> > better on but I
> > was ignored during all four clinics.
> >
> > I can only assume that I'm doing the technique
> > properly until
> > someone who knows better tells me otherwise, but for
> > all the time
> > and money I invested in going to the seminar.. I was
> > ignored.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> > Message: 2
> > Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 05:49:44 -0000
> > From: "Steven Miranda" <aysdojo@y...>
> > Subject: Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> >
> > --- In yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com, "Brian Downey"
> > <akuma_ku@h...>
> > wrote:
> > > I didn't recieve one piece of correction or advice
> > from Chida nor
> > > from Robert Mustard, or Jim Janette or even Nic
> > Mills. Although
> > > they passed by me many many times correcting the
> > people around me
> > > and would even occassionally stop and watch me but
> > offer no
> > > wisdom... I don't understand why not. I'm only
> > 5th kyu, I'm sure
> > > there were many points that I could have been
> > doing better on but I
> > > was ignored during all four clinics.
> > >
> > > I can only assume that I'm doing the technique
> > properly until
> > > someone who knows better tells me otherwise, but
> > for all the time
> > > and money I invested in going to the seminar.. I
> > was ignored.
> >
> >
> > Well then ... come to Houston, Texas in September
> > and I promise to
> > personally ensure Parker Sensei or one of the 6th
> > and/or 5th dan will
> > give you all the attention you need - at no extra
> > cost ... :)
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> > Message: 3
> > Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 00:26:54 -0700
> > From: "SAMUEL COMBES" <scombes@m...>
> > Subject: Re: Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> >
> > or come to Yasuhisa SHIODA's clinic in Carlsbad in
> > August.
> > OSU!
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Steven Miranda<mailto:aysdojo@y...>
> > To:
> >
> yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com<mailto:yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com>
> >
> > Sent: Thursday, July 22, 2004 10:49 PM
> > Subject: [Yoshinkan] Re: Chida Sensei Seminar
> >
> >
> > --- In
> >
> yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com<mailto:yoshinkan@yahoogroups.com>,
> > "Brian Downey" <akuma_ku@h<mailto:akuma_ku@h>...>
> > wrote:
> > > I didn't recieve one piece of correction or
> > advice from Chida nor
> > > from Robert Mustard, or Jim Janette or even Nic
> > Mills. Although
> > > they passed by me many many times correcting the
> > people around me
> > > and would even occassionally stop and watch me
> > but offer no
> > > wisdom... I don't understand why not. I'm only
> > 5th kyu, I'm sure
> > > there were many points that I could have been
> > doing better on but I
> > > was ignored during all four clinics.
> > >
> > > I can only assume that I'm doing the technique
> > properly until
> > > someone who knows better tells me otherwise, but
> > for all the time
> > > and money I invested in going to the seminar.. I
> > was ignored.
> >
> >
> > Well then ... come to Houston, Texas in September
> > and I promise to
> > personally ensure Parker Sensei or one of the 6th
> > and/or 5th dan will
> > give you all the attention you need - at no extra
> > cost ... :)
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > [Non-text portions of this message have been
> > removed]
> >
> >
> >
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> ________________________________________________________________________
> >
> >
> >
> >
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> >
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>
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