Two Rules

There are only two rules in life. They have to do with behavior and emotional response. Follow these rules and your life will be easy and peaceful.

They are simple rules. They are clearly written. And that makes them very easy to read and understand. However, despite their simplicity, they are sometimes difficult to learn.

So I'll try to explain them as best I can.

Rule #1. Do be nice to all living things, especially small things. Being nice to small things is a defining point of our character. How we treat living things that cannot defend themselves reflects our emotional adjustment as human beings. We speak of the very core of living values. Are we kind? Are we just? Are we fair? Are we generous? Do we have honor? Always being able to answer "yes" to these questions is life's main lesson. That's why it's Rule #1.

Rule #2. DO NOT tease, provoke, bait, bedevil, bug, bother, torment, or otherwise molest tigers, bears, lions, crocodiles, or any other living animal that is bigger, stronger, meaner, or more ferocious than a human being. We mere humans share the top of the food chain with the great sharp-toothed, sharp-clawed animals of this earth only because we are smarter than them. We keep our distance from fangs and talons, and we do our hunting at Walmart. As soon as we forget this, AS SOON AS WE LOSE OUR INTELLECTUAL ADVANTAGE OVER THEM, they have all rights to, and will seriously remind us of our ignorance and stupidity, our weaknesses, our mortality, and very often, our tastiness.

Actually, rule #2 is harder to learn because most people are not actually smarter than the great beasts. They tease them and taunt them and get too near them, thinking they're on TV playing with Hobbes the Tiger, or Yogi the Bear. Alas, this is assuredly not the case.

So that's it. Just two rules. Choose to follow them, and life will be long and rewarding. Choose not to, and you're lunch.

Hoi Joon Moo Sool

"Do" roughly means martial art. "Ki" means energy, namely the energy of a living thing. (The Chinese call it "Chi.") "Hap" means union. So all three together, Hapkido means the union between living energy and the art of fighting.

Hoi Joon Moo Sool is a style of Hapkido. It's main move is called Hoi Joon Kong Po.

The right shoulder, (the first shoulder) is forward, and the left foot is back. First hand is forward and up. The first motion is made with a downward swinging arc, using the knife edge of the hand against a kick or a knee, or as a forward swing, striking the side of opponent’s right side of the head. The second hand coming straight from the belt, swings out straight-armed using the top of the wrist to strike opponent’s right side mandible or temple. Both arms are now swinging in the same direction.

Because both arms move in the same direction, enough inertia is created for the body to spin full-circle. The forward hand completes its arcing strike and ends pointing straight to the sky, and the back foot takes one step forward and the body spins full-circle on the forward arm and rear foot’s axis. The rear hand, after striking, bends at the elbow to protect the face and head.

To complete the full spin, the forward hand comes down from its position as the body’s axis to the level of the opponents head, and becomes a hammer to strike the opponent's right side of the head, while the rear hand remains in position blocking the face and head.

This move should be practiced with both clockwise and counterclockwise spins, right hand leading the clockwise spin, left hand leading the other. It should also be done as quickly as possible, aiming to complete the full spin in less than half a second. It should also be done at close quarters, advancing only about 1 meter’s length.

As such, the opponent can be pushed back 1 or 2 meters while three very hard strikes are effectively delivered in less than a second to vital points on the right side of opponent’s head.

This is the whirlpool. This is the hurricane, the tornado. This is Hoi Joon Moo Sool, the martial art of the maelstrom.

weeds

Ooops. That ain't weeds.

That's a rat I snapped that was eating MY bananas in MY kitchen.

Freak not. It was quick and painless.

Base Twelve

Know well the enemy.
Bide time.
Make a plan.
Work alone.
Leave no trace.
Follow no pattern.
Act from out-of-town.
Do business once.
Pay cash.
Never return.
Never admit.
Never apologize.