Jason Couch
Early Days at the Bartitsu Club
Here are some clippings from that early period when E. W. Barton-Wright first opened the Bartitsu Club, those days prior to the import of his jujutsu experts. There are a couple of reasons I like these. First, the issues of class (perhaps bigotry as well?) in Victorian society are readily acknowledged, but rarely felt by [...]
The Cultural Divide
You might be a survivalist if the Number One tip in your list of additional uses for salt is to 1. Soak stained bandanas in salt water before washing to help eliminate the stains. I had to chuckle picturing someone
Fifth Manly Arts Day in Maryland
This is without a doubt the best martial arts value you will see this year!
Not the Will to Win
Sometimes I get Rory Miller, sometimes I don’t. He knocked it out of the park the other day with a succinct post on why it’s not the will to win that’s important, but the will to prepare to win.
Cholitas Luchadoras
The August 2010 issue of National Geographic has a gorgeous article on the recent popularity of the Cholitas Luchadoras, the female wrestlers in Bolivia who perform in traditional garb. Luckily the complete article is online, along with the picture gallery, which doesn’t quite do justice to the print version, but is definitely worth a look. [...]
Failure
Failure is not an option, it’s a fact of life. The challenge, of course, is how the inevitable is faced. J. D. Roth, of Get Rich Slowly, recently put together a piece called Failure is Okay, which examines how successful people move forward when things don’t go as planned. It might seem odd to
The First Thanksgiving
You’ve probably read a number of heartwarming Thanksgiving posts over the last day or two. I’ve decided to go a different direction with this tale of the first Thanksgiving and Pilgrim/Native American relations. Enjoy this account from Lossing’s History of the United States (1909).
Who can punch the softest?
Weston, of facetious memory, having borrowed on note the sum of five pounds, and failing in payment, the gentlman who had lent the money took occasion to talk of it in a public coffee-house, which caused Weston to send him a challenge. Being in the field, the gentleman, a little tender in point of courage, [...]
Boy Scouts in War
You may know Robert Baden-Powell was the founder of the Boy Scouts and you may consider the Scouts a para-military organization. But did you know the Scouts was formed in the crucible of the Boer War? Baden-Powell used the Mafeking Cadet Corps (12-15 y.o. boys)
Chinese Martial Arts in 19th century China
The following are English language accounts of Chinese martial arts practice in 1800s China.
Roundup
Insane Would-be Seattle ninja found impaled on metal fence Arkansas police officer tasers 10 year-old girl Amusing? How To: Survive in a Redneck Bar Useful? Make Your Own Medicine Balls for Classic Home Workouts. If you need some ideas on how to use it once it’s made, poke around Crossfit a bit.
Old Soldier Ancestors
The other week I posted about the database where you can search muster rolls from the Hundred Years War (1300s-1400s). It looks like wildcard searches are the way to go, because I found soldiers in the database that share the surname of both sides of my family by searching on the first couple of letters [...]
Gatka Goes International
The Punjab Gatka Association is trying to popularize the Sikh martial art of Gatka by arranging for international amateur competitions, although it looks like they will be held in India. The association has been making strides to open the art up to western interest. There are already some schools in the west, including France, Germany, [...]
Knife Dances
I stopped by Pete Kautz’s website recently; Pete’s site and his buddy James Keating’s, for that matter, are ones you can forget about because they don’t offer news feeds. I saw an article on Traditional Knife Dances Around the World where Pete collected Youtube clips of men performing knife dances from different cultures. There’s easily [...]
Hey, Watch This!
Looking at this photo, you can’t help but wonder if this police officer injured himself during this photo shoot
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