Skip to content
Cafe Maru

Cafe Maru

bringing things learned in the dojo to outside the dojo <3

Category: Uncategorized

Posted on May 5, 2018May 7, 2018

Protected: 心

This content is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:

Recent Posts

  • Karate Unit
  • Wow, and that was an entire year
  • COVID Budgeting
  • Wow, a year has literally felt like a waste
  • What I also learned from plants:

Recent Comments

    Archives

    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • October 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • March 2018
    • August 2017

    Categories

    • 5-dan
    • Columbia
    • Coronapocalypse
    • Motor Learning
    • Multimedia
    • Naginata
    • NYC
    • Plants
    • Product Review
    • Reincarnation
    • Sensei
    • Sensei Sayings
    • Uncategorized
    • Year of the Ox
    • Year of the Rat
    • 心
    • 武道
    • 美
    • 観光

    Meta

    • Log in
    • Entries RSS
    • Comments RSS
    • WordPress.org

    Naginata Influencer

    Get 15% off your first and second order at Carbon38.com!

    iamtheyin

    心 は senjou. 💌
    Naginata Sensei @nynaginata & Coach @cunaginata
    MoHo&CU Alum
    15% off code = “Naginata” @carbon38 & @theandibrand
    💕🌸✨🍵PINK

    iamtheyin
    #tbt to Granny and I walking down the beaches in F #tbt to Granny and I walking down the beaches in Florida every summer...you can see why I’m uber picky about beaches 🤣🤣 

And even as a 5 year old, I was always thinking about kicking and martial arts 24/7.
    Afternoon snack🍡🍵 I realized that I placed Afternoon snack🍡🍵

I realized that I placed my #mochi on the other side of my #starbuckscherryblossom wooden tray. It has pretty Sakura patterns on it...oh well.

#pinkceramics #pink #pinklife
    Yes you do, yes you can still see my goal checklis Yes you do, yes you can still see my goal checklist in the corner of this frame! Although I may have changed my living space + daily routine by adding plants, don’t forget about the goals you have (both long and short term). 

I need to keep my billions of “to-do-list papers” on my wall so that I can not procrastinate from them. Whenever I can cross something off my list, I definitely get that huge feeling of gratification like how my undergrad Sports Pedagogy prof mentioned when it comes to #goals . Posting it up on your desk helps keep you in check. The plants just now add a pretty decor around it 🤣

#goalsetting #hoya #hoyarotundiflora #petphoto
    Another awesome soku-men photo taken by the talent Another awesome soku-men photo taken by the talented @rchong_photo ! This time, instead of Sakura, I have the NYC streetlights behind me (I think this is more fitting, tbh lol). 

I was asked by PBS to submit a video about my plants (which I did) for their American Portrait project, but I also decided to submit a video about NAGINATA as a way to spread out awareness for this rare art. The PBS guy said ok and ended up loving the video! I thought about using this photo to show how doing something foreign in an American context is actually not so alien after all. But, I wanted to save this photo for another NAGINATA PR moment, so I held myself back 😝

You can watch the video here:

https://www.pbs.org/american-portrait/story/24667/katie-r-new-york-ny-the-tradition-i-carry-on-is

#naginata #strike #strikeapose #womanwarrior #hapa #asianamericanwomen #なぎなた #長刀 #薙刀 #構え #無構え #着物 #武士 #nyc #武道 #kimono #blue #Japan #japanesemartialarts #vintagekimono #martialarts #powerfulwomen #sensei #先生 #nycmartialarts #samurai
#femalemartialartist #womeninpower #americanportraitpbs #model
    Decided to change it up a bit. #kyudo is definitel Decided to change it up a bit. #kyudo is definitely more elegant to take photos of compared to some other arts 🤣🤣 I’ve always loved the feathers on the ya (arrows) because they are so cute! 

Hilariously enough, I still remembered how to do the preparatory moves from my muscle memory 🤣 it’s been 12 years but hey, I guess if you practice enough, it’ll be in your brain’s back filing cabinet still stored.

And of course, my talented and Uber skilled homeboy #photographer @rchong_photo took these photos. Thanks so much!

#kimono #blackandwhite #blackandwhitephotography #archery #archery #弓道
    I finally got my desk again (temporarily 🤣🤣) I finally got my desk again (temporarily 🤣🤣) 

#monsteraadansoniivariegata #hoyarotundiflora #pink #pinklife #desk #deskdecor #mydesk
    Haven’t done a #kyudo shot in such a long time—-I think the last time was in high school. Kyudo has a lot of photographers so I was always able to have good photo opportunities like these. I also am impressed with how my new camera is on the #iphone12pro . Such impressive detail, especially with professional lighting omg. 

This was also my first time wearing a blue #kimono ! The bright color was perfect with my light skin!
    Well, I finally was able to do one of the things I Well, I finally was able to do one of the things I’ve always wanted to do: make a vlog and post it on YouTube. It’s not 100% perfect (as nothing ever is) however, it was good enough and I also know that so as long as I keep making them, the quality will just get better and better.

Quarantine and not being able to do my normal daily routine (especially without naginata) has given me this golden window of opportunity to really get done some back burner projects. I know how time consuming creative projects get, so back in my normal lifestyle, this wouldn’t have been possible, so I’m glad I was able to use my forced time away in a productive manner. 

Upon reviewing the video, I realized something: despite COVID-19, my life actually is still the same. I still am able to do my usual things, except the only thing that’s really missing is all the wasted commuting time. So I guess one could argue that life is better right now and not worth being all depressed about. Take advantage of the extra time/regain the time you have lost wasting it on mindless things. This is the best chance.

#creative #rhaphidophoratetrasperma #pink #vlog
    Love having a day off to actually have the time to Love having a day off to actually have the time to make some #matcha . Don’t forget to vote!
    The leaves are starting to change color, so it’s The leaves are starting to change color, so it’s HOT matcha season:P I don’t believe in pumpkin for consumption EXCEPT kabocha 😝

I can’t believe I’m back to tutoring season again, you truly do feel as though you have wasted a buttload of time with the coronavirus lifestyle.
    My life. Haha. I still need to get used to using a My life. Haha. I still need to get used to using a backdrop.
    Happy #indigenouspeoplesday ! I’m sure many of y Happy #indigenouspeoplesday ! I’m sure many of you don’t know, but my great-great grandmother was #miccosukee ; a tribe that ended up getting swallowed by the Creek and Seminoles, and were forced to leave their original settlement in Northern Florida. Although my bloodline was too thin to be considered for Native American scholarships for college, my dad always put in the effort to ensure that I did not forget where I came from. I would remember him waving a Dream Catcher up and down my body whenever I woke up from nightmares as a child, I remember him talking about how he always felt cringy whenever he heard someone say the word, “red skin,” and how he believed that because there was Native American blood in his family, that made his father’s side more tolerant of different races. 

I honestly don’t know much about my tribe first hand—-but I do remember hearing an audio recording of my paternal great grandfather speaking the Miccosukee language, talking about some legend about a fast black horse. Crystals have been used in many American Indian tribes (especially Cherokee) because they are believed to have powers due to their origins from Mother Earth. So all those people who obsess over crystals in the modern times basically are continuing on a tradition from American Indians. Sad that many do not know that.

Do not forget where you came from, everything is a part of you for a reason. Acknowledge and embrace it.
    Yup, my ideal backdrop 😝 So many elements of me Yup, my ideal backdrop 😝 So many elements of me here (especially new things that are now a part of me due to some discovery during COVID).

I also posted up my first (official) YouTube video (finally). My tenugui video needs some editing so that’s going to wait a bit. For now, you can enjoy my bogu unboxing here:

https://youtu.be/h4w7Fb7QQ-w
    I always loved those Instagram grid split pics, so I always loved those Instagram grid split pics, so I couldn’t resist to do one for my favorite naginata photo of myself of all time xD

Thank you @actionphoto2100 for taking the most iconic naginata photo of all time XD
    Kiai. #naginata Kiai.

#naginata
    Recently, someone I know in the #naginata world ha Recently, someone I know in the #naginata world had an amazing opportunity to be featured on a special with Danny Trejo from, “Man of Arms,” demonstrating naginata. But alas, as with all martial arts media, the first thing that viewers do is criticize the star by saying that they, “aren’t doing it right” or that they’re not good, etc etc.., all these negative comments ironically from people who have never done martial arts before (especially an esoteric one like naginata). They are the least qualified people to judge whether or not someone is legit so they really don’t have the right to write those comments in the first place.

But what is so disgusting and depressing is seeing how toxic people are—legitimately TOXIC. They body shamed and fat-shamed the naginata person so much, said comments about that person’s color of skin (the naginata person was Black) to the point where I was honestly taken aback at how people had the audacity to write these nasty things on a public forum like the internet. Race and body image issues have been an ongoing problem in not just the naginata world, but the martial arts and sports world, INSIDE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY. I just never could imagine how much nastier the people are outside the community. My first reaction to seeing these negative comments were, “Ok, well if you think you’re so good to the point where you feel as though your comments are legitimate, then why don’t you take him on in a match?” But of course, 99.9% of the commenters probably have never done naginata in their lives, so they don’t realize how hard it is to actually control a complicated weapon like this.

The overflood of negative comments were so bad to the point where I can see why others would be too overwhelmed to even stand up for the victim. I also was a bit disappointed to see the lack of moderator action and more active filtration. I knew what it was like to be alone and having a group of bullies, so I decided not to stay silent and wrote a comment crediting how this person was more than qualified for this feature. Please don’t be an @$$#0l3, be a better person and keep your negative comments to yourself.
    #keikogi #naginata #sakura #keikogi #naginata #sakura
    Spirit.

#kiai #気合 #武道 #なぎなた #薙刀 #長刀 #薙刀女子 #fightingspirit #気魄 #roar #naginata #budo #naginatagirls #thepowerwithin #japanesemartialarts #womenleadership
    Pixelated #sakura Pixelated #sakura
    The ishizuki of the #naginata should always be at The ishizuki of the #naginata should always be at elbow length...

#sakura #さくら #桜 #千本桜 #🌸 #naginata #budo #naginatagirls #なぎなた #薙刀 #長刀 #武道
    Load More... Follow on Instagram
    Proudly powered by WordPress