September 2026 Catch-Up: InterWeb Woes, The Near Abroad, and Training

Thanks again for your patience and comments on the hike series.  To be completely honest, it effectively wrote itself. I just posted some pictures and pulled notes from my journal.  I have created a page with all of the posts if you ever want to "binge read" the entire thing at one sitting like a streaming series.

That said, I have been frustrated by the fact that apparently there is a lag issue with updating new posts over on the right.  It is not just me, it is everywhere.  A brief look online suggests that it is related to some aspect of Google that (apparently) they are either not in a rush to fix or cannot fix.  It appears in some cases that it may be resolving, but not for everyone.

Short version:  Your favourite bloggers are likely still posting, but you will have to go directly to the site.  It is a great idea if you can do it; again, writers always want to be read.

(As a side note, it does bring up in my mind the question of the longer sustainability of this platform, which is almost a relic by today's standards.  Something for me to think about).

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Last week I flew back to New Home for our rescheduled Iaijutsu training.

New Home 2.0 has a fine airport, which is pretty easy to access and is very nice inside as it is finishing up redesign. It also has nice long terminals, which are good for walking if you have not done your aerobic exercise for the days.  We are especially blessed as we can use public transit, which literally goes from our doorstep to the airport for the princely sum of $2.20.

Another blessing is the fact that I can get a direct from New Home 2.0 to New Home.  Having spent four years of non-direct flights from New Home to Old Home, I cannot tell you how much I appreciate the fact I do not have to change planes and I save anywhere from 25% to 50% of transit time simply by getting where I need to go in one fell swoop.  The price is not really that much difference.

In this regard, a shout-out to Alaska Airlines, both for their service and the fact that they are one of the few U.S. based airlines that continues to allow rabbits to fly in the main cabin in a carrier.  For that reason alone, you will always be my first choice.

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New Home 2.0 was as it always is in September:  Hot.

Having been away a little over 2.5 years now, subtle changes are showing up, the sorts of things that you say "I think that used to be a..." or "Where did that go?" 

There are whole sections of town that used to have businesses that are either torn down or fenced off to be torn down or have new construction going up.  It is a very odd sensation, to see the old literally making way for the new in real time.

Poppy The Brave is well and sends her greetings.  The house is pretty much the same as it has been, although with training I spent little enough time there.

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The rescheduled training was, as always, good.

On the one hand (of course), two days is never enough.  There is so much more to learn and be corrected on.  And one joy of the in-person trainings with our Grandmaster is that we get to hear some history or why things are done the way they are done or stories from his past.  This is the sort of thing that one simply cannot get without direct contact.

On the other hand, any training is good training.  And I am grateful for it.

One of the things I tried to apply from my hiking experience was the admonition to "Be Present".  It is a little harder than one might think, especially if (like me) you have a mind prone to wandering.  One of the things I find that helps me the most is simply closing my eyes and listening.  I at least do not have to contend with visual stimulation.

One thing that was different this class was that I - with my former Sensei, my current Sensei, and a senior student in my former dojo, spent a great deal of time either demonstrating or observing the other students.  Part of this may be the fact there were (happily!) a lot of students for three of the four sessions I was at and so there was perhaps a space issue.  Part of, though, was the fact that I seem to have accidentally become a "senior student".  At best, I can observe and know what the correct technique often is, even if I am very unable to do it myself.

We will continue to train hard until this coming January/February, when (hopefully) the next training in Japan will occur.