American Moo-Do Kwan

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Tet Party - February 27, 2010

I would just like to take a moment to thank you and your family members for joining us to celebrate the Vietnamese/Chinese New Year. We had a great turn out, and there was great food and interactions. I want to give a special thanks to Michelle and Ava for all the hard working in decorating and preparing a Vietnamese feast, and I also want to thank everyone who brought food, treats and drinks. All the young people who joined in were well mannered and lots of fun to have there. Even our dog, Zoe, had a great time.

I know that the weather was not the best yesterday, so that even increases the value of your participation more. I hope that you had your fill of the many great treats and maybe even were able to take some home with you. Here’s wishing everyone the best of luck in the new year, and I hope that we have many more times to meet up again causally in festive occasions. PHOTOS

Best regards and chúc mừng năm mới / Gung Hee Fat Choy,

Riley J. Sullivan SBN - February 18, 2010

Riley SBN's 1st Brick Break

Riley SBN will be testing for his 2nd Dan at our 1st Quarter Testing on Saturday, March 20. In 2008 we implemented a new "pipeline" that all Black Belt Candidates (Red/Black) and Black Belts (1st Dan & up) had to follow. The reason for implementing the Pipeline was due to several Black Belt Candidates and Black Belts in the past not having a sense of direction, not taking an initiative of leadership (teacher), taking the test casually, and so on. To avoid that in the future, the Pipeline was created to give each Black Belt & Black Belt Candidate a clear direction to follow before reaching Black Belt and the Path that starts after obtaining the level of Black Belt. One item that is requested from Black Belts, but not Black Belt Candidates is to submit a "Consideration for Rank Advancement." In essence, they had to tell us why we should consider testing them for the next level of Black Belt. Recently, we received Riley SBN's "Consideration for Rank Advancement" and I think it conveys an important message that is worth sharing with everyone. -LSA

Consideration for Rank Advancement To 2^nd Dan

I am honored to be considered for rank advancement to 2^nd Dan.

I feel I have come a long way on my Martial Arts path this past year, maybe farther than in all the preceding years combined! I have a new-found enlightenment for which I feel inwardly energized and outwardly excited to share. I recognize and accept the fact that my “WIIFM” is evolving from one that is more focused on my own personal physical/technical growth to one that includes a focus on teaching and philosophical growth. I now realize that when all the pieces come together, the result is a mutual benefit for everyone involved.

I have been a member in good standing and vehemently believe in the direction and philosophy of the AMK. I will pass along these tenents by continuing along the path set forth by those whom have gone before me, by extending a hand to those who also believe in the path and want to walk beside me for a while. I finally believe I can help others by being an example to follow and I will attempt to earn their respect each and every day.

I have demonstrated continued growth in leadership, teaching and increased mental toughness. My mental backsliding is becoming less severe, but, has also helped me realize the great strides I have made. I have been re-reading all the e-mails that my instructors, mentors and family have sent me over the past year. I am now beginning to accept the fact that I have made personal strides in my life’s path. Others can see it; it’s about time I opened my eyes to the facts.

I have ventured out of my cave of self-limitation and have seen the light, and, the possibilities are endless. I will fight the temptation to seek the comfort of the cave, and will strive towards no limitations.

I will continue to dedicate myself to be able to earn my place in the AMK Martial Arts family.

Class - January 23, 2010

Elmier practices a new stretch

Our 1st Class of 2010 took place on January 9 and we also celebrated Nathan's Birthday. Photo Gallery can be found HERE

Jasmine & Marc's Birthday and Jasmine's 1 Year Anniversary - January 16, 2010

Jasmine reenacts her 1st Day

Our 1st Class of 2010 took place on January 9 and we also celebrated Nathan's Birthday. Photo Gallery can be found HERE

1st Class of 2010 & Nathan's Birthday - January 9, 2010

Elmier throws Nathan for his Birthday

Our 1st Class of 2010 took place on January 9 and we also celebrated Nathan's Birthday. Photo Gallery can be found HERE

2009 Year in Review Video - Conceived & Edited by Lisa S. Amsell

2009 Year in Review cover

During our Xmas Party on December 12, 2009 a video was shown that reviewed the year of 2009. I starting working on this video on October 18 and finished the last edit on December 9. I inserted covers, labels, and inserts on December 10. I burned copies of the DVD from December 10-December 11.

When I made this video, I had several goals in mind. 1. To convey the difference in feeling and music than the 2008 video. 2. Try to do something I've never done before in a video. 3. Tie in the whole year with a common theme 4. To introduce our current students to how much we do in one year before they started. Above all, this video emphasizes the concept of perseverance which became a reoccurring theme throughout the entire year whether it be our school in general, test boards, or outside visiting instructors.

I am often asked about the time I put into this video. It normally consists of 2 complete phases. This year it consisted of 3 complete phases. The first phase was to collect photos, color correct all photos, and crop every photo to fit into a TV screen size. That process takes no less than 50 hours. I cannot "batch" the photos since not all of them require the same crop or color correcting. I have to do them individually. The second phase was to put each photo in chronological order (by month), add music, add transitions, add motion zooms, render, preview, make it viewable on TV, and make the DVD cover and inserts. That process also took no less than 75 hours. The third NEW phase was to add in video. Since I have never tried to put in video before I wasn't sure how well it would come out. I used videos taken from Flip Camera, Samsung camcorder (that records to HC SD), Nikon Coolpix point-and-shoot camera, and 2 different cell phone cameras. Needless to say, there were some conversion problems as well. After our 4th Qtr. testing (with time now working against me), I had only 2 minutes left to completely finish the video and I was hoping to have it done quickly. When I tried to put in the new video from testing, my program kept crashing. I could not get it to restart. I ended up losing the entire video I made up to that point. Fortunately, due to Auto-Save, I was able to use a previous version and go from there. I finally figured out a way to make the video work and after 21 hours, I finished my 1 minute and 42 seconds worth of video. The final stats are: 547 photos, 95 videos, and the longest video ever made (22 minutes and 39 seconds).

Every project I take on, I do with complete and total dedication. But this one was different. I pushed the envelope on this one to really emphasize the feeling of perseverance. I think it was only appropriate that I had major difficulty while trying to do something different with this video. From losing it to the videos not working out as planned, this one was the hardest one I've ever had to make. I had to persevere while making it. I could not just take out the videos because that was an extremely important part of this video. It became more than perseverance shown with what's in the video. It became perseverance while making it as well. Not only has our school came so far this year from last year, but for me to go from only doing photos to doing videos was a big step for me.

I felt obligated to do this one right because every aspect of this video (from making it to what's in it) shows "how far we've come" and how much more we can do. It shows that as martial artists we must never give up. We keep trying. We "fall down 7 time and get up 8 times." That was my driving force behind this video and I hope you can enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it.

-LSA

AMK's 2009 Year in Review Video CLICK HERE

End of the Year Party & 4th Quarter Testing Results - December 12, 2009

The meaning of moo-do/budo

We had our End of the Year Party, 4th Quarter Testing Results, and End of the Year Awards on Saturday, December 12 at A'Roma Ristorante in La Palma, CA. The FULL REPORT can be found HERE

4th Quarter Testing - December 5, 2009

4th Quarter Testing

We had a final test of the year take place on Saturday, December 5. The FULL REPORT on our 4th Quarter Testing (including 200+ photos) can be found HERE

3rd Quarter Testing Results (Terry L. Owens SBN) - October 3, 2009

Terry SBN is promoted to 4th Dan

We gave out our 3rd Quarter Testing results on Saturday, October 3. You can read up on the full results HERE

3rd Quarter Testing (Double Black Belt Test) - September 19, 2009

3rd Quarter Examiners

We had a very special Black Belt test take place on Saturday, September 19. This test was a first in our school's history and several key people in our school's history took part in it to ensure that it will be a test to be remembered. The FULL REPORT on our 3rd Quarter Testing (including 300+ photos) can be found HERE

3rd Quarter Testing (Black Belt Test) - September 19, 2009

Dave SBN at Terry SBN's 3rd Dan test (2006)

Our 3rd Quarter Testing will include TWO Black Belt tests.Terry L. Owens SBN will be testing for 4th Dan, Black Belt. As many of you may know, Terry SBN was the first person who was promoted to Black Belt from our the Boeing/Raytheon/DirecTV club. 4th Dan is a very important test because at 4th Dan is when a Black Belt is considered independent and has the authority to promote others to the rank of Black Belt. Our last 4th Dan test took place in 2002 for Lisa SBN. Our next one will be no sooner than 2014.

In addition, we have our long-time colleague Master David D. Johnson (Fresno, CA) will be testing for 7th Dan, Black Belt by Grandmaster Yun. As some of you may know, Dave SBN has been working through a spine injury. He has started going through intense physical therapy due to cervical disc degeneration of C3/4 and Disc bulge/herniation C6/7. Even with his injury, he still plans to test. This is the essence of the true martial arts spirit and attitude. We want to make sure that all students and instructors support his test like he has done for our school for such a long time.

This is a very special time for our school and we'd like to see full support from our students & instructors to support Terry SBN & Dave SBN on their Path of martial arts training. As instructors move up the Black Belt ranks, their tests become further and further apart. If Terry SBN is promoted, his next test will be no sooner than 2013. If Dave SBN is promoted, his next test will be no sooner than 2017. You do not want to miss this special test board!

For more on Terry SBN, please refer to:

Instructors>Senior Instructor (Public)

Students>Instructors>Terry SBN (Students ONLY)

Students>Instructors>Terry SBN>Q&A (Students ONLY)

Terry SBN Gallery Click Here

For more on Master David D. Johnson, please refer to:

Students>Testing>Testing 12/9/06
Students>Testing>Testing 7/18/09
Activities>Group>Conference 5/17-18
Activities>Tournaments>Training Tourney
Activities>Tournaments>Training Tourney
Activities>Tournaments>NQ#6 - Fresno
Activities>Tournaments>Stanford Open

Dave SBN, Terry SBN, Rob SBN, Lisa SBN (2007)
NQ#6 - Fresno (2007)

Beach Training - August 15, 2009

Beach Training 2009

Our annual Beach Training took place at Corona Del Mar State Beach in Newport Beach. You can read up on our full report WITH photos HERE

2nd Quarter Testing Results (Marcus A. Krieter SBN) - July 25, 2009

Marcus SBN is promoted to 2nd Dan

We gave out our 2nd Quarter Testing results on Saturday, July 25. You can read up on the full results HERE

2nd Quarter Testing (Triple Black Belt Test) - July 18, 2009

Testing Participants

We had a very special Black Belt test take place on Saturday, July 18. This test was a first in our school's history and several key people in our school's history took part in it to ensure that it will be a test to be remembered. The FULL REPORT on our 2nd Quarter Testing (including 300+ photos) can be found HERE

The Calm Before the Storm - July 11, 2009

Collin hopes he'll do well at testing

We are less than one week away from our 2nd Quarter Testing. This testing will include 3 separate Black Belt tests. Marcus A. Krieter SBN will be testing for 2nd Dan. The other two Black Belt tests will be special guests to our school. This test will include 4 Special Guest Examiners (3rd Dan-9th Dan). We will also have some other surprises in store at our test board as well. We had our final formal review session on Saturday, July 11. That was the last chance for students and instructors to get a full review on what will be at testing. For photos from our final review please go here: Testing Review

A Note from Grandmaster Kim - July 8, 2009

Master Amsell & GM Kim in 1978 and 2008

As most of our students know, Grandmaster Chan-Yong Kim (owner of the Oriental Moo-Do School) was Master Amsell first instructor. He was also the original instructor of Lisa SBN and her sister Lynda SBN. The philosophy of the OMS became the foundation of the AMK which we still follow today. Master Amsell and Lisa SBN make regular visits to GM Kim's school in Cerritos to keep in touch. During a recent visit, Master Amsell shared with GM Kim his Memorial Day article (Memorial Day for the Entitled). GM Kim sent an e-mail response to Master Amsell on his thoughts and feelings in regards to the article:

Dear Sir,

Thank you for the nice article.

The subject matter that you stated is so true. However, it can have no value to someone who does not understand, or couldn't care less about, the values it addresses. Therefore, we have to educate people (as young as possible) on the basic principles of life.

Unfortunately, we don’t see any educational institution that teaches or instills these values. Virtually, there are only a few individuals (teachers or martial art instructors) who try to fight this up-hill battle in this society.

Chan-Yong Kim

AMK Notebooks - June 21, 2009

Lisa SBN's notebook cover from age 10-16

As most of you may know, our school requires all students (regardless of age) and instructors to keep a notebook and bring it with them to class everyday. On testing, they must turn in their notebook for a score. Their notebooks account for 25% of their Personal Qualities score. Over the years, we have had many wonderful notebooks. I have always wanted to share them with others. Now, for the first time, I made copies of some of our junior students' notebooks. I have also included pages out of my first notebook that I made when I was also a junior member of our school. I think that it shows that regardless of age, our junior members understand the benefit of traditional martial arts training and thrive on it. Special thanks to the contributions of Nathan Penid, Elmier Penid, Jessica Lewandowski, Collin Lewandowski, and Jasmine Adair. Please check them out here: AMK Notebooks

Introduction to Kendo - June 20, 2009

Master Amsell teaches Kendo

Today we gave an introduction to some of our younger students to Kendo . Even though they're below the rank normally required for Kendo training, because of their hard work and dedication they were rewarded by having the opportunity to learn more advanced material. Also worth noting on the Academic front, Collin Lewandowski received all 3s on his report card which means he gets to move on to 1st grade. The most pleasant surprise though was Jessica Lewandowski who moved from a mainly 'B's and 'C's to straight 'A's and is moving on to the 3rd grade. We're very proud of Jessica & Collin's academic progress since joining our class. To see pictures from this day (and to see the famous Muscle Shirt pictures), please go to Introduction to Kendo

Elmier's Birthday & The Academic Achievers - June 13, 2009

Maria throws Elmier for his birthday (6,000th photo)

Today we celebrated Elmier Penid's birthday in our traditional AMK fashion with a birthday throw from all students and instructors. We also found a way to get his mother involved in the class with an offer she couldn't refuse: "Throw Elmier." This also happened to mark our 6,000 photo uploaded to our AMK photo gallery. On the academic school front, Nathan Penid received the Outstanding Student award for doing well in all areas of school. Jasmine Adair received her report card with straight "A"s along with her graduation from Kindergarten. Collin Lewandowski receive a Kindness/Courtesy award for supporting others in his class, sharing his supplies, and overall kindness to his fellow peers. Congratulations to Nathan, Jasmine, and Collin for a job well done! We also completed all of the White/Yellow Poomsae, sparring basics, and Aikido today in preparation for our upcoming test board. To see pictures from this day, please go to Elmier's Birthday & The Academic Achievers

Memorial Day - May 25, 2009

Vietnam Veteran Memorial, Washington D.C.

For those of you who are not on the AMK/AMAC mailing list, Master Amsell started writing an annual Memorial Day editorial since 1989 (when the AMK Newsletter was in circulation). Due to the importance of Memorial Day, he continued to write one every year even after the AMK Newsletter was no longer in circulation. The original Memorial Day Editorial can be found here: Remembering the Vietnam Veteran: Volume 1, Issue 5. This year's edition can be found here: Memorial Day 2009