Next Dojo Social Event
Reminder about class cancelation policy
Since there have been a lot of Mondays off from classes lately I've inquired about if I could teach classes on certain days that may be off from school. I've been informed that the "no school no class" policy is a Cheshire Ymca wide policy so I shouldn't. That being said, make-up classes are available and I'll stay for an extra 15 minutes or so after Monday classes so students who are interested can make up for some lost time.
Cheshire Classes Ending
As of October 1, 2013 our dojo will no longer be offering classes through the Cheshire Ymca. It saddens me to say this but one of the very few drawbacks to running classes through an organization that isn't yours is that you don't have control over when the classes can be.
THE SITUATION. With my teaching position, I simply cannot safely make it to the Cheshire classes before 4:15 (one half hour after the normal starting time). After over a month of negotiating with the Ymca to push the class back by 30 minutes they decided to go with a different sensei rather than change the schedule.
MOVING FORWARD. I sincerely hope that you consider staying with us at one of our other locations, especially if you have worked long and hard enough to attain yellow belt or higher. You really owe it to yourself to continue rather than to start over as a white belt in another system. (I'm not sure what style is being taught in Cheshire moving forward, but I know for a fact that it's not Shobayashi-Ryu since I know every Shobayashi-Ryu dojo in the state).
YOUR OPTIONS: If you want to stay with us here are some of your options. Switch to the Southington Ymca class. These classes have been running regularly for 25 years and the schedule has only changed once so you don't have to worry about this happening there. The kids' class is on Tuesday and Thursday from 5:45-6:45 and the Teen/Adult class (there are kids who are 8 years old doing fine in the class so don't feel you can't join) runs on the same nights from 7:00-8:00. If you aren't sure about if you can switch, come down. I hereby give all Cheshire students 3 free classes in Southington! Another option is taking private lessons. Several students enjoy these as a way to personalize their training and get more one-on-one attention from a Sensei. Email me for details.
ANOTHER SCENARIO: Feel free to let the Cheshire Ymca know your opinion on the matter. I urge everyone to do so in a calm, collected, and respectful manner. Keep in mind all that our dojo represents. I am in no way asking people to petition, or otherwise bother the Cheshire Ymca. We left them on good terms. We understand that they have a business to run, and they understand that in order for us to teach karate (and charge money) the way we believe we should (low cost, high quality) every Sensei has to pursue a career outside of karate and that conflicts can occur because of this.
I love you all. Whether I see you next month at the Southington class/private lessons, or if I see you five years from now at a tournament in another dojo's gi, I welcome you to stay in contact with us. Check the blog to learn more. Email me with questions or just to catch up.
THE SITUATION. With my teaching position, I simply cannot safely make it to the Cheshire classes before 4:15 (one half hour after the normal starting time). After over a month of negotiating with the Ymca to push the class back by 30 minutes they decided to go with a different sensei rather than change the schedule.
MOVING FORWARD. I sincerely hope that you consider staying with us at one of our other locations, especially if you have worked long and hard enough to attain yellow belt or higher. You really owe it to yourself to continue rather than to start over as a white belt in another system. (I'm not sure what style is being taught in Cheshire moving forward, but I know for a fact that it's not Shobayashi-Ryu since I know every Shobayashi-Ryu dojo in the state).
YOUR OPTIONS: If you want to stay with us here are some of your options. Switch to the Southington Ymca class. These classes have been running regularly for 25 years and the schedule has only changed once so you don't have to worry about this happening there. The kids' class is on Tuesday and Thursday from 5:45-6:45 and the Teen/Adult class (there are kids who are 8 years old doing fine in the class so don't feel you can't join) runs on the same nights from 7:00-8:00. If you aren't sure about if you can switch, come down. I hereby give all Cheshire students 3 free classes in Southington! Another option is taking private lessons. Several students enjoy these as a way to personalize their training and get more one-on-one attention from a Sensei. Email me for details.
ANOTHER SCENARIO: Feel free to let the Cheshire Ymca know your opinion on the matter. I urge everyone to do so in a calm, collected, and respectful manner. Keep in mind all that our dojo represents. I am in no way asking people to petition, or otherwise bother the Cheshire Ymca. We left them on good terms. We understand that they have a business to run, and they understand that in order for us to teach karate (and charge money) the way we believe we should (low cost, high quality) every Sensei has to pursue a career outside of karate and that conflicts can occur because of this.
I love you all. Whether I see you next month at the Southington class/private lessons, or if I see you five years from now at a tournament in another dojo's gi, I welcome you to stay in contact with us. Check the blog to learn more. Email me with questions or just to catch up.
Website Updates
Please feel free to check the "Sensei O's Blog" section of the website at least once per week. I will be updating this with information/advice when it comes to at home training, history of Okinawa/the masters, new information I discover, etc. Please comment on blog entries if you enjoyed a particular entry and/or would like to see more of that type of entry.