Candidate Journals

Despite feeling sore all over, I went to Black Belt class and Sparring class. Learned a lot. I like working with the staff. New forms to learn (was not quite aware of them). Feeling behind, but liked the fast pace of black belt class. We have such a good community of people at our school. Everyone is so encouraging and everyone looks out after everyone else. Being the slow one in the class, I really benefit from everyone being willing to teach. I was able to get the oil changed in my car at AAA while I was in class (which was awesome because I do not have time to do it next week). Master Knight is so sweet. He saw someone driving my car and was concerned that it was being stolen. I appreciate him watching out for me. I've had 2 cars stolen from me in the past and it...

Today my friends and I were playing hide and go seek in the backyard, Trent and I were on a team and we had to count first while Logan and Parker hid. I counted to 60 with my brother. after that we tried to find Logan and Parker. We played two rounds of hide and go seek. Then we went to the creek for a while. Next we went home I can't wait to go to the creek again.

Out of the house before 7 for my run, home to requirements, off to North Charlotte for mentor session, black belt class and sparring. Topping it all off did not feel good but I survived. Had to lay down for a little bit when I got home - - - really it was because Rosie wanted snuggle time. No more tkd for the day, have to get ready as we have an event to attend tonight.

I finished everything early this morning.Then went to black belt class and sparring class and got more requirements. After class we went to my favorite store Trader Joe's!

Today I did some requirements. I am going to go run in a little bit. After that I will work on my pull ups and poomsaes. I am also going to do some sparring later on.

I decided to have a relaxing day working in my flowers.  It is another outlet I use that helps to keep me calm.  When I'm working  with my flowers I have no other thoughts of anything else.  I be in my own little world.  I did a few requirements and call it a day.

Today was a great day with the red, white and blue american theme at friday night football. But sadly it was canceled because of the storm but we had a great time while it lasted.

Friday, Funday! it's always a great feeling to get a four year old to really focus and get a handle on their techniques. Awesome way to start today!

Today i went to school and we had no homework! Then i did my essay for the white belt challenge. Then i went for a run. We got pizza on our way back.

Wow...September 11th. I can't believe it was 14 years ago. Sometimes it does feel like it was just the other day. I wonder what the world would be like if everyone did martial arts. I mean everyone. Everyone learned about respect for each other, trained with each other, sweated and laughed with each other. Man...that is definitely a world I would want to live in!

Today's friday!! Yay!!! Had a pretty good day. Did a lot of requirements today after school. Feeling tired tonight. Can't wait for tomorrow's Saturday black belt class and sparring class!

Feel like I've spent all week getting over the Labor Day weekend. Just one long weekend and I've gotten out of step. The days are getting shorter and it seems like a struggle to get everything done each day. Amazed that I average about 3 miles of walking with work alone. After work, I did my 3.5 mile greenway walk with Nala, my dog. I was so sore. Every step hurt my hips, back and thighs.  I thought the hard part would be the 105 miles walk/run, but these sit ups and push ups  kick every morning. Despite my plans to build up my numbers each day, I can't get beyond 20 of each each day. And I still struggle to get those done.  I've got a long way to go. Just keep going, put one foot in front of the other.......

Took a science test today and I think I did pretty good. I soak my ankle almost every day but it hurts all the time. I hope it gets better by test time. Went down to the dojang after school today and worked on my requirements with Cheyenne and Leah, I think I over did it again.

Today i had a mentor session with master Cavasoss. Lois Matthew and Joshua Were there for it to

Always thankful for my Friday private lesson with Master Chin - -yup she rocks!!! Got a lot accomplished but still so much to learn and make look better what I do think I have down- - -grace I am not. Requirements were on the downside today but that is ok.

I went to school and I'm going on a camping trip this weekend with the scouts. We are going whitewater rafting.

We leave for Washington DC this afternoon to say farewell to Shirley. She's one of the kindest, most genuine and sweetest person you will ever meet. Rest in peace Shirley. You'll be missed by all.

My confidence in knowing the insurmountable knowledge is overwhelming at times. At times, I feel like I have a handle on the material, and then you realize you don't remember another part. There's still time to learn my material. Just need to stay focus and have faith in my instructors and myself. Failure is not an option.

Busy day! I've been grappling with these two quotes recently and looking forward to some luck. “A lack of planning on your part doesn’t constitute an emergency on mine.” & “Luck Is What Happens When Preparation Meets Opportunity."

Today was pretty much the same thing except today I had to go to the dentist.  No cavities ya

Today my dad got a really cool sticker in the mail. It was a super hero sticker of the Justice League but they were done in 8 bit style. Dad found the sticker on Etsy which is a place where people sell things they have made. I want to search Etsy sometime to see what else is on there. Here are the heros that are on the sticker: Black Canary, Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter, Plastic Man, Zatana, Flash, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Hawkman, The Atom, Red Tornado, Aquaman, and Firestorm. Out of all of these my favorite is Flash, Atom, Firestorm, Green Arrow, and Batman. Don't forget Green Lantern. That is why I asked dad if I could get one of my own. This is also why I like 8bithero.

This has been a good day for me and my friends and I love the stars here

Because of color belt testing I got to stay home from tae kwon do and get some requirements done and study for some tests that I have to take tomorrow...School is rough

Today went by very quickly, because of the review we did in school for the tests I have tomorrow. I am enjoying my Spanish and Chorus classes the most. We started a fundraiser to sale cookie dough for our chorus trip to San Fran over Spring Break. So if anyone wants cookie dough, let me know;)

Today i went to school and we had lunch outside. When i came back, i did my homework and my requirements. Then i went to black belt class. i have to go, because we have guests, so bye.

Long day. I started work at 6:30AM. On the elevator from the 5 th to the 3 rd floor, I got 10 kicks in. Lol! I had to stop when someone got on the elevator. I'm sure I could have gotten in the full set of 25 if no one got on. Office was crazy busy, which is a good thing from 7:30AM to 1 PM. Then a lunch meeting and afternoon volunteering at the free clinic (it's not actually free, but the name has stuck). Then home to cook and care for the Max and Nala. I went to my first black belt class tonight. And I must admit, I was beat before the class. That mean little voice that keeps telling me to quit was trying to get me not to go to class tonight "I'm too tired, it's raining, it's lightening, my back hurts, this dobok is too...

My legs are sore from yesterdays class at 4:30. I didn't feel sore then but today it definitely begun to hurt. Helping all the class was fun and I also got some requirements in while i was helping with all the classes.

Today, for the most part, went well. Work crazy, but that's normal, then off to the dojang. My mentee had an event at school so was not able to meet with her. Knocked out quite a few requirements, helped in junior class then took the adult class. The night did not end on a high note but it is what it is. All I can keep doing is trying my best.

Today i went to black belt class glad i have no more pmaa to do. now i can get home earlier

I went to school then i came home and i had a bad day

Had a good day in school. Finished my Map project and turned it in today. It looks good. I used Korean King Tiger words as the name for my islands. My teacher thought it was great. Took 2 class at Master Shin's today. Got to work on some of my requirements. Now I need to study for my Science test tomorrow.

The test is 7 WEEKS FROM TOMORROW!!!!! Holy Cow!!!!

I am really looking forward to spend the night with my best friend Ethan tomorrow. Me and Ethan have be friends ever since kindergarten. I did go to a sleepover at his house before but what makes it more fun is that tomorrow is his birthday and I have made up a plan to make sure that we have lots and lots of fun.

OMG! that was one huuuuge storm. like sooo loud. seriously. yesterday was fun, helped out with little kids testing. They were really adorable. Today was fun, i have a ton of homework though....yay...no swim practice.....weekend soon....

Today my brother Trent and I were doing a project and were trying to see how many pennies we can put onto a tin foil boat that he made. We kept using 16 pennies as our amount and every time our ship would sink. It was an interesting experiment to try and we also tried other ideas for boats too. I hope that we will be able to do this experiment again.

Getting ready for some classes today! Spent some of this morning trying to train the new furry addition to the family. It's been awhile since we've had a new puppy/dog. Definitely another test of patience. There goes my carpet...

So, I've set an alarm for after lunchtime to make journal entries... trying to do better in this area. I finally made it to class last night. I took two classes, 5:30p & 6:30p and did not require an ambulance for either.. yeah ! Still dealing with the dizzies.. but I am on the mend. I made it through both classes without falling, and I only almost ran one person over on the road yesterday. (that is an improvement. lol ) I'm sore today but that is all good. Sore is different than pain, I can handle that. I've managed to get my sit ups, push ups, and kicks done already today. The poomsaes are still messing with my balance... it is a work in progress. As long as my body will continue to work with me throughout today I have full intentions of making it to Black Belt and PMAA...

I awakened this morning to my delight, a Ham & Cheese omlet.   My day doesn't really begin without coffee.  Next on my agenda to get out and get a few miles done and some other requirements.  I thought my body would make better adjustments to all the exercises I've done, but the way I feel, nah!  

Today wasn't good day at camp and I think that I am really getting to know my classmates.

Today started with a great training session with Master Evins and some of the other KT masters. All of the changes we're making to the program are starting to sink in too. My guys on the cycle are looking confident too. We have a big surprise at testing day. I hope it goes well!

Today wasn't bad I had a good.  This is how my day went got up got dressed packed my lunch  then went to school.  It was a pretty easy day I didn't have much homework and that was good.  When I got to tae Kwon do I just did the normal stuff while testing was going on.  So today was pretty easy.

Today I was able to do a few requirements including work on my miles.  I had my favorite dinner tonight and just relaxed afterwards.  I think I'll go to bed early tonight with hopes of getting early in the morning to beat the heat and get some more miles in.  

I was playing soccer today at school. I was going to headbutt the ball but another kid ran up in front of me, jumped up, and punched me in the face. I didn't tell on him but it hurt really bad. He didn't say he was sorry. Worse of all, it chipped my front, bottom tooth. I don't like talking about it because it was surprising. He chipped my tooth and doesn't care whatsoever because he didn't apologize. He should have been aware that I was going to get the ball, and he should have been aware of his surroundings. It makes me really sad that he didn't say he was sorry afterwards.

I was a beast today! I did a ton of requirements!. I'll be sore tomorrow, but it feels great not to be sick anymore. Last weekend while I was sick I read a book; "The Martian" (GREAT book) and watched 6 movies (Star Trek marathon-live long and prosper). I didn't move around much and I'm surprised I don't have bedsores. So....I need to make a confession.....if anyone has been looking at my pathetic pull up numbers, I want you to know that it's even worse than it appears. I ATTEMPT to do a pull-up occasionally but I have never been successful without my bungee. I can't even do 1. I still add 1 pull up to my online tracker, because dang it, I tried! They are especially hard with my palms facing out. Pull ups are definitely my nemesis. Tonight I practiced poomsaes, self defense and Hapkido 1-32 again and again...

Ok...I wanted to write Tuesday for the title of this one, but today isn't Tuesday. Labor Day weekend really threw me off! Went to the DMV this morning (everyone's favorite place, right?). Got a chance to work on essays for a bit today. Making pretty good progress so far. I have one more hero essay, my book essay, and my Wharang Do history essay left. I also have a pretty good start to my creative form, but still have some things to work out.

Today I went to school and we went to computer lab. We had a book fair so I bought a book for myself. When I came back I did my requirements and then I went to sparring class. It was exhausting! I was sweating a lot but it was fun. We practiced a lot of kicks and did sparring. Then I came home and ate dinner. I am sleepy .Good Night!

Wednesday's are just not in the cards for me, no energy my evening to recharge. Got home from work and the fur balls were screaming for snuggle time, yup it was a great nap. Got up and was going to go for a run but did not think wise with the rain and lightening so more snuggle time. Not a good day on the tkd front but feel great now, ready for bed.

At Taekwondo I took two classes and helped for one. The 4:30 class was sparring and the 5:30 class was PMAA. The last class was my favorite because we had alot of the new students there.

School went by very fast today because of what we learned today. I came home and played basketball with the neighbors, it started raining so we went inside to play xbox.

I have spent the last two days going on freshman field trips. That will truly try your patience. It is challenging sometimes figuring out what is just "spazzy" little kid and what is a little kid being disrespectful. Overall it was a good day, but I am ready to wind down for the day.

Been a busy day in school today. Worked hard. Came home to work on my Map project that is due tomorrow.

I went to school and i had a project due in spanish class, i think i did pretty good. i walked home and did some requirements and I'm about to go to my art class

Today was a nice chill day. I had 3 teachers absent from my 4 classes. The only teacher present was my gym teacher. All i did was play basketball in that class lol. It was great

my family & friends still think I should NOT be driving. ... I however think as long as I don't have to look to either side (much).. then I'm okay, and truth is, I am probably still safer than half the fools I pass who are driving and texting. (They all also think I drive too fast too, why start listening now. ha) This morning I did an entire set of kicks without having to hold on to the chair, and did not fall backwards. I did not go to BB class last night, forms are still tough, the physically turning is still really throwing me off. I was told afterwards they did falls and rolls too so probably best I didn't attempt that. uugh! I am hoping to remain well enough through the day today to actually attend class in Belmont tonight. One day at a time my friends. Sometimes...

Great day to be back after a long weekend! Went paddle boarding this past weekend on the Catawba River. New experiences always humble my athletic abilities.

Felt pretty good tonight in class- just coughed a few times. I'm officially on the mend! Master Evins is allowing me to mentor Donna and Jerome and I'm looking forward to meeting them possibly on Mondays and Saturdays! This cycle is flying by.

Long day...great classes though! Black belt class I got a chance to work on a variety of forms. Still got a ways to go before testing! PMAA was good too, big shoutout to Instructor Weeks for his help. Thank you sir! Gotta go to the DMV tomorrow morning... :( At least it will be a lesson in patience...

Today was a good day. I am on a school field trip to camp Harrison and we are doing team building activities and other fun stuff. I am doing my stuff before bed and it's kind of weird having the rest of the boys look at me like I'm crazy.

These last couple of weeks have been filled with news of family and friends passing. People handle death differently. I used to shout Aiden's name as I drove down the interstate. In the middle of the night, I would walk into is room and just sob in the middle of the floor. I'm not afraid of death anymore. I don't have a death wish or want to die any earlier, but I'll accept it when it's my time. The news of Grandmaster Jung passing was the first time I cried for someone after Aiden. It was hard when Lori's grandmother passed away too. I know there is more after you pass away. There has to be.

Today I had a fun day. I went to school from 9:15 to 4:30. After that I went to Tae Kwon Do and helped out the family class. After that I went home and ate dinner.

Today, i went to school. We moved to a new topic in math! When i came home, i did my requirements. Then i went to black belt class. Now i'm very busy.... so by

39 Clues is a book series written by Rick Riodan. I just read the first one and it is called The Maze of Bones. I liked the book because it has action and suspense. It was one of the best books I have ever read. I plan to read all 39 books in the series. The main characters are a boy and his sister. Their names are Dan and Amy. Amy is older than Dan but Dan seems smarter. Their friend Nelly is taking them all over the world. Their parents aren't the ones doing this because they died in a fire. Their Grandma Grace died and she left them the 39 Clues. But the some of the Cahill family was competing against them. They were competing against them because after the 39 clues are found, that team or person will become the more powerful Cahill in history. According to this...

Relaxing Labor Day weekend. Dyed fabric and made some batiks with mixed results. Cleared my summer deck garden. Spent some quality I me with myself and my pets. For such a relaxing weekend, everything hurts today. Not sure why. Work was physical this AM, but I was achy before I got out of bed. Tomorrow is early and long day at work. Hopefully, I can work in some requirements. Reading the Art of War for my book requirement. Trying to get back in the groove.

My body is not going to be a happy camper tomorrow as today I got a lot accomplished very early not knowing it was going to be red stripe week. Met with my mentee and worked on self defense & hapkido, helped in junior class at 5:45 then took adult class. Class was very nice as Master Chin took the senior belts to the back room with focus on some self defense but hit the physical requirements hard in between - -it was non stop and felt great. We will see what tomorrow brings- - - -.

Today I left school early to go to my great aunts funeral. We got hme around 3 and we were all tired.

It the first day back to school after the long weekend. I didn't much on Labor Day or Saturday. On Sunday though I went to Carowinds with friends and rode the Fury twice. I even got to ride the Intimidator three times. Tomorrow my class is having a debate/court about cutting down trees. I am defending (lawyer) the people that are affected by it. I hope my side wins again. Homework is now starting to pile up, but that is seventh grade. That is all for me bye.

ahhhh.... i feel very productive. I went to swim practice, for 2:00,than went to PMAA. It was a tough practice. Today was nice. It was my friends birthday. In 2 weeks minus a Monday is my birthday. Yay.

Woke up early this morning and did a few sit ups and push ups. Came home and ate dinner then went down to master Shin's and took three classes.

Today was the same as any other day I woke up early this morning and did requirements, then I had to go to school after school I came home and went to do 3 classes at Taekwondo. Plus I did more requirements and got a mentor session.

Today on school we got a lot of our quizzes back. I got good grades on all of them. When I got back from school, I did some requirements. I ran 2 miles today and did some jump rope.

I went to school then i came home and did some requirements. I'm about to go to TKD class

Didn't get much done today as far as requirements are concerned. Back to work tomorrow.

Had a great labor day! I did all my requirements  and some extra pull ups. After that i just chilled all day. it was great

Today, i went to a party because someone was getting a new house. Then i went to my friends house. I am not feeling well, and i have school tomorrow, so i have to sleep.

I went to discovery place and watched a movie, it was cool.

Yup it was a day of labor but all is good. Things happen for a reason so not all went as planned. My day that was to be machine mode for tkd did not happen instead I cycloned thru every room in the house to find donations for the rummage sale at Ironstone lane stables and rescue. It worked out as we have some construction projects starting so den needed cleared so why not everything else. Hope they have a successful sale. Love the fur balls!!! Happy for what I did fit in on requirements though, anything is better than nothing.

Woke up and did some requirements then I went back to doing essays for a while. I also went to the store with my parents, we went to Trader Joe's and they had really interesting foods there.

Today i played with my cousins and had cookie cake.

It's been a bad day today. We found out that my uncle passed away last Thursday but they did not find him until yesterday. We spent a long time with Miimi last night. Every one is really sad. I have not had much time to work on my requirements today. I'll do better tomorrow.

I found out today that one of my friends from OT school lost her father last night in a vehicle accident. It reminds me how fragile our lives are. Make your life count and tell the ones you love that you love them. Rest in Peace Tom The Jazzman Mallison.

Today I did a lot of requirements because of the long weekend. I am so sore now. I helped my sister play the piano. We are going out to eat today.

I began my day rather slowly today.  I slept late, got out of bed late, everything seems to be  happening either late or slow.  I'm trying to get energized so I can work on requirements.  Corn on the cobb and chicken on the grill made for a nice dinner .   After dinner back to work outs.  Trying to get them done.

Well, I am actually sitting in the chair and it is not spinning so I am very "happy' this Labor day, however my Labor day has been spent playing catch up on the endless work I need to catch up on. I've been able to do some kicks today (taking breaks from work) WITHOUT holding on to a chair. Yeah !!! ... Hopefully the balance is 'on the mend'. (I should probably knock on some wood or something. ha) Still have a lot of requirements to do today but while I am at the computer I figured I should make a journal entry. I find these difficult because it always seems like it is after midnight before I get to them, so I always feel like my timing is off.. I hope everyone has been able to enjoy their Labor Day !!

The Hartles and the Lloyds came over for diner and a fantasy football draft last night. I had a great time. We introduced Chelley to "ENO." Wasn't sure we were going to get her out. As for the night...All I can say is Sangracias.

Today was a great labor day spending quality time with family and friends. We went to lunch at Hickory Tavern and then had a great bonfire.

Today on Minecraft, I built a space station that you can live there without oxygen gear. I took a while to make it.

Got up and cooked a good breakfast this morning. Bacon, eggs, grits, and toast! Taking it kind of easy today. I want to get stuff done, but its also Labor Day, so I would like to relax a little bit. My wife and I adopted a new dog yesterday from the Lake Norman Animal Rescue. She is a beagle named River. She has definitely kept us entertained so far!

So today is Labor Day, obviously, and I don't know if we have swim practice. It's good and bad. Bad because swimming is like I dunno burns a lot of calories and you get a lot of muscle through hard work. Once last Tuesday we were doing like 6 100 of butterfly kick and my abs hurt sooo bad. Like we still swim outside in a long distance pool. It's because SwimMAC is building there own pool and we have to rent random swim spots like we swim at Moss Creek or at HFFA or at Davidson college. Yeah we swim we're the college swims. Literally like 15 minute walk and like 1 minute drive. Davidson is my favorite pool. But anyways swimming is like really annoying to get ready and stuff I have to decide which suit to wear like did I wear this one last last week? Or I...

Every body seems to have had a fabulous weekend. Our neighbors had their grandkids, and they just built a pool. Sooo jealous. My brother sister and I are working on convincing our parents to build one. But first they say, we have to renovate the porch. I agree though. It's made with wood for inside, not outside. Completely stupid. Even if it has a roof. My sister and i did have a nice weekend though. On Sunday, we did a cook off sort of thing, in our new kitchen. It's soooo nice. We renovateded it, and it's all grays, and dark wood, and it's really pretty. We had fun. Hope you had a fun weekend too!(we also did our requirements)

This is my 50th journal entry! I went to the mountains this weekend and I had a lot of fun rafting and going to a waterfall to swim in the river. I didn't do any requirements while I was there though. I am so glad that I don't have school today. I need to work on a few things like my essay, written test questions, and homework that I can get ahead on for the week.

Today is starting to be a good day. This is what has happened already. We woke up and watched TV. After that I went and logged my homework in my computer. Now I am doing my journal and after we are having a BBQ . I can not wait to see what happens at the BBQ today. And I can not wait for school and TKD tomorrow. See you then. Bye and see you tomorrow.

Today I got up early to mow the grass and then we went out on the boat. We stayed in the sand bar and lounged around in the water.

Today me and my family went to church, went home, took a nap, then we went to Lowes to get some stuff to fix up the backyard. So we fixed up the backyard and had a little chill time. I learned how to do a layup.

Major happy dance today!! So thankful for my mentor - she rocks!!!! Yup holiday weekend and she is willing to help. Alot accomplished and would not ask for more. Have some construction projects starting at the house so disaster zone but my crazy compullsiveness is trying to looking the otherway. Hope can finish packing up the den so essays can start tomorrow,

I spent most of the day working on my essays. I also went to the store with my dad and found these really cool water bottles that looked kinda like soad cans that had came in pink owls, blue anchors,grey camouflage, and many Coca~Cola designs, they were really cool! I also did other requirements.

Hooray for three day weekends! It's been a relaxing weekend so far. The boys got to play with their cousins and Lori and I are just chillin. My legs are recovering after a "heavy" day of leg day. I was able to get 225 on the smith for two sets of 8 doing squats. Taking it a little easy on the requirements since most of them are done.

Today we went for a hike in a mountain. It was very tiring! My feet were hurting so much. Then we went to Olive Garden to eat lunch. Now i will sleep.

My Grammie lives on Lake Gaston. It is half in NC and half in Virginia.She lives in NC yet is very close to the NC line. We ride the boat or jetski over it all the time. I like the jetski better because I can go knee boarding, tubing, or just jumping waves. I like kneeboarding because that means I can try something new. I've even gotten all the way on my feet. It's fun because it's hard to do and it challenges me. Even though I'm pretty experienced it's still hard to get on my feet. My uncle lives here with my Grammie and he has the original XBox with Halo 1 and 2. So when we are not playing in the lake I can play on the XBox. Always a good trip!

I have been in bed sick since Thursday night. Today I finally feel much better and I had a mentee session with Instructor Donna. Donna is like the Energizer Bunny. I wish I had half the energy she has! Easing my way back into requirements. Need to stay healthy until test day.

Got to sleep in late this morning. Have not done much all day. I played on my video games and worked on requirements.