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I can tell this is going to be very different, and I'm going to have to seriously compartmentalize the weapons forms from the open palm forms.
The stances are similar, but there's no chansi. You move your torso as a solid block, like in dance frame. (Maybe also somewhat in san shou and the other non-Chen forms, because Chen uses chansi more than all the others.) They're also smaller, not as wide. And xiebu doesn't have knee into calf but beside it, which is problematic because my fat fucking thighs get in the way. There's an extra gao(?) xiebu, which is high xiebu. Don't have that in Chen.
It started off with reciting things facing an altar, which is kinda weird, but whatever. I can handle that (even if it means having more Chinese phrases to completely mangle pronunciation of.) Then there was a stance+breathing exercise, which would be useful if I remembered how the stick was held in any of them or which order they were done in. -___- Then we broke up into 3 pairs, each with an old student and a new student, to do the Four Flowers, which is basically a taiji walk to the 8 points and at each point performing one of the flowers. I'm not sure how to describe them in words, because it's a gong bu, weight shift, turn and weight shift and turn, the order determined by which flower you're doing. (front wt, cross body, back wt, square forward, front wt, for example.) It's one of those things you'll just have to do a zillion times before you get it and can do it at home. (where you = I)
Then it was follow the leaders in short stick, at which I floundered a lot. Then everyone (but me) did what they'd been practicing: the two teenagers did the beginning of stick, an older student did some cane, and Violet and Gul did bien. Then the individual instruction. LaoMa split us into groups, with Gul teaching the 2 teens and Violet teaching me. He worked with Dorothy on cane. I liked Violet; she's about my height. She's also really good. After that, class was over.
I hope I'm paired with Violet again next week. The 2 high school kids seem to need the vaguely more intimidating figure of Gul to stay in line (though they're not very good at it even then.) (Also, I'd be vaguely more intimidated because I think he's kinda hot. Violet is, too, but for some reason I find her less intimidating.)
I need to get a stick so I can practice the spinning parts (which I can already tell is going to take for freaking ever to get right.) Gul said he saw a lu te (I think that's what LaoMa called it) at Surplus Sid's in the stick bucket, so I'll swing by there tomorrow afternoon after I get my hair cut. And while I'm at Sid's, I'll fondle the old uniforms and sigh wistfully that the awesome vintage ones are way expensive.
The stances are similar, but there's no chansi. You move your torso as a solid block, like in dance frame. (Maybe also somewhat in san shou and the other non-Chen forms, because Chen uses chansi more than all the others.) They're also smaller, not as wide. And xiebu doesn't have knee into calf but beside it, which is problematic because my fat fucking thighs get in the way. There's an extra gao(?) xiebu, which is high xiebu. Don't have that in Chen.
It started off with reciting things facing an altar, which is kinda weird, but whatever. I can handle that (even if it means having more Chinese phrases to completely mangle pronunciation of.) Then there was a stance+breathing exercise, which would be useful if I remembered how the stick was held in any of them or which order they were done in. -___- Then we broke up into 3 pairs, each with an old student and a new student, to do the Four Flowers, which is basically a taiji walk to the 8 points and at each point performing one of the flowers. I'm not sure how to describe them in words, because it's a gong bu, weight shift, turn and weight shift and turn, the order determined by which flower you're doing. (front wt, cross body, back wt, square forward, front wt, for example.) It's one of those things you'll just have to do a zillion times before you get it and can do it at home. (where you = I)
Then it was follow the leaders in short stick, at which I floundered a lot. Then everyone (but me) did what they'd been practicing: the two teenagers did the beginning of stick, an older student did some cane, and Violet and Gul did bien. Then the individual instruction. LaoMa split us into groups, with Gul teaching the 2 teens and Violet teaching me. He worked with Dorothy on cane. I liked Violet; she's about my height. She's also really good. After that, class was over.
I hope I'm paired with Violet again next week. The 2 high school kids seem to need the vaguely more intimidating figure of Gul to stay in line (though they're not very good at it even then.) (Also, I'd be vaguely more intimidated because I think he's kinda hot. Violet is, too, but for some reason I find her less intimidating.)
I need to get a stick so I can practice the spinning parts (which I can already tell is going to take for freaking ever to get right.) Gul said he saw a lu te (I think that's what LaoMa called it) at Surplus Sid's in the stick bucket, so I'll swing by there tomorrow afternoon after I get my hair cut. And while I'm at Sid's, I'll fondle the old uniforms and sigh wistfully that the awesome vintage ones are way expensive.
