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Randori Roundup

Pete Muldoon’s seminar from the other day got me thinking about my first Judo lessons, and has me wondering why I ever stopped. From day one you learn how to jump and fall, all while wrestling your friends to the ground. No katas or forms, just controlled roughhousing. Randori, as judokas refer to it. As a kid I loved it. And while I have always gravitated more towards of the striking arts, Judo was one of the first martial arts that I was introduced to when I was younger. Alot of time has past since those days. In fact it had been so long that I was shocked when my mother told me that it had been more than twenty-five years since my last Judo tournament.

I  started taking Judo while I was a camper at Kutsher’s Sports Academy back in the late 70′s and early 80′s. The summers that I Read the rest of this entry »

A judo chop, chop, chop!!

After a week of really crappy weather it was great to get out of the house and attend a combat Judo seminar taught by Peter Muldoon this weekend. Pete, is a 3rd Dan black belt and one of the senior instructors at the Krav Maga Federation headquarters in Manhattan. He was gracious enough take time out of his schedule and share some of his knowledge of throws and takedowns with a group of us on a cold Sunday afternoon.

I had been looking forward to this seminar ever since Read the rest of this entry »

Meeting the Mayor…or “Yo, dat’s my cousin”!!!

Those that know me are well aware that I am not very political, or politically correct for that matter. So it was interesting that I was invited to spend the afternoon rubbing elbows with NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other important people within city politics. After years of her hard work and sacrifice, my cousin sworn in as NYC judge. Needless to Read the rest of this entry »

Y’all are Stressin’ me

Interviewed on CBS

I was cleaning out my hard drive and came across this video of me being stopped by a reporter for CBS Channel 2 and asked about the McCain/Obama debate. This was during Read the rest of this entry »

Mr. Richardson, we’re ready for your closeup.

One of the benefits of being a professor is that you get to see how your students grow and develop over time. You are able to watch them start off as raw and untrained media enthusiasts and Read the rest of this entry »

NYC International Motorcycle Show

In order to dull the pain of getting rid of the Batmobile, and to hopefully head off any impeding mid-life crisis, I have decided to a buy a motorcycle. In researching cycle options I thought it would be prudent to check out the annual NYC International Motorcycle Show and see what was out there. The show is held every year at the Javits Center. I hadn’t gone to the show for a few years and was eager to see the new models.

I was shocked to see how many different brands and style of bikes are available today. The Javits center was packed with vendors from nearly every motorcycle maker and third party accessory company. I saw a bunch of attractive protective gear with reinforced Kevlar and Nomex material that looked straight out of the comic books. It caught me off guard because I remember when jeans and a leather jacket was considered sufficient gear.

Both my wife and my moms are opposed to me getting a cycle, as well Read the rest of this entry »

Playing with the Christmas Presents

Despite the economic downturn, this Christmas was pretty good for me and the fam. We had a set amount of money that we agreed not to go beyond for gifts this year. Then each of us placed on the family list one thing that we  really wanted. The one thing,or should I say the one gift, that would make our Christmas spectacular. I wanted a Kindle, Ski wanted a Northface jacket, Tita wanted a digital camera, and J wanted a motorcycle. Luckily, we were all able to get what we wanted. And most importantly, we had a great time playing and spending time together over the holidays.

I really love my wife and kids.

Atomic batteries to power, turbines to speed!

They say that every American man has a love affair with his first car. I don’t know if that is really true but the decision to part with the Batmobile after 20 years was like deciding to shoot my horse after it broke a leg. It was something painful, but something that needed to be done. She was getting a little old and harder to maintain in these difficult economic times. I hated to part with her but that last estimate of 1500 bucks for a new ABS braking pump was the kicker. And this was after dropping 900 bucks for a new transmission sensor control. Between maintenance, garage, insurance, and gas I was spending a ton of money per month that could be better spent on other stuff. Despite all that it is not an exaggeration Read the rest of this entry »

2009 NYC Marathon

Marathon day is here again and my wife is running in her fourth competition. She has been training for the past year and always gets a little anxiously, and therefore makes me anxious, right before the big day. To complicate matters this year, Ski was nursing a shin injury that was affecting her ability to run. Now since my wife isn’t a complainer, I knew that the injury must have been very painful if she was even talking about it. You have to understand that those darn vikings tend to be a hardy lot and whining is like a cardinal sin. I knew was gonna run the race with the injury regardless of what I said, so I said nothing and hoped for the best.

Read the rest of this entry »