Baguazhang… Twelve (years between) monkeys 7 Apr 2016 I've just realized that twelve years have passed by since my first ever visit to Beijing, while it's nearly six years since I left to return to Wales, not knowing…
Buddhism… Is mindfulness dangerous? 27 Jan 2016 Short answer: no, if done properly. Usually not, even if not done properly. Alternatively: yes, decidedly so. Much depends on your perspective. Continue reading "Is mindfulness dangerous?"
Beijing… End-of-year review 1 of 2: meditation 26 Dec 2015 Well, well, well: it's almost nine months since I came back to Beijing. Here are some thoughts as 2015 inches towards its close. Continue reading "End-of-year review 1 of 2:…
Beijing Zhong Yi Yiquan Wuguan… Straight up 16 Sep 2015 Receiving an elbow strike to the bridge of the nose certainly focuses one's attention, and that's what happened to me recently. Continue reading "Straight up"
Baguazhang… Pooping, squatting, fighting, hopping 17 Jul 2015 China Daily recently ran a story on how the government is planning to replace lots of traditional squat toilets with Western-style porcelain thrones. This is a tragedy for Chinese martial…
Beijing Zhong Yi Yiquan Wuguan… What lies beneath 12 Jul 2015 I've been thinking a great deal about filters recently. By "filters", I mean mental filters: the means by which we exclude information, and limit our understanding of the world. This…
Acupuncture… No 'ski jump' at the bottom 21 Jun 2015 I saw something on Facebook recently, which went along the lines of "The pharmaceutical industry doesn't create cures, it creates customers". This is quite true. Continue reading "No 'ski jump'…
Beijing Zhong Yi Yiquan Wuguan… Tree and wave 10 Jun 2015 Some thoughts prompted by today's yiquan class... Continue reading "Tree and wave"
Acupuncture… China once more 9 Jun 2015 Something odd happened recently during a work trip to Tianjin. I had a few spare periods, and I used them to practice my ZMQ-37 taijiquan form. Like most things that…
Meditation… Small steps of progress 1 Aug 2014 Take it in small steps. Don't run before you can walk. Two steps forward, one step back. In it for the long haul. All useful phrases, especially this week. Continue…
