So I hear it's 80 in SC...

Yeah. Not so much here...

Jonathan

-- Post From My iPhone

Really? A tackle box?

Yeah. Pretty much. It's day 2 on the trail of the elusive fishing tackle box. You
May wonder, "why would jon need a tackle box?" and that's a great question considering I find fishing incredibly dull. Well I need one to put stuff in bc they are great for that.

So today finds me traveling the opposite direction from yesterdays failed attempts. Though I did manage to secure Christmas presents, glasses like I got Steve, and zappers for the Wii so eric and I could more fully enjoy our Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles shooter experience. But alas a target in the Bronx holds little for the fishing afficianado. (I'm pretty sure I spelled that wrong but since my phone didn't correct the spelling I'll continue to pretend like it's right and do my part to further ill-placed trust in technology and my own ignorance)

So now I'm on my favorite express ride downtown, the A train. Hooray for express! Of course I have a farther walk to my transfer at 42nd to the N or R than if I took the 1 but these are the daily delima's a new yorker faces.

Then there are those great moments of disapointment in your life when you look up and realize you're at 155th when the A doesn't stop there unless it isn't running express. Should have taken the 1 and transferred to the express 2 at 96th street. Ach! All this just to go to a stupid tackle shop on Mercer and hobby shop on 8th. Man life is hard. Of course I could he like my lovely bride and be sleeping bc I have to work a third night in a row.

But I'll be completely honest. I don't really think about the 2 train that much. It's kinda like washing behind your ears. You don't really think about it untill it's too late. Man now I'm getting hungry. Glad I got a couple bucks. I think. Wait better check...

Nope forgot we ordered No.1 (our favorite local Chinese\Mexican fare-don't ask. We don't understand how the go together either but they're fast and good.). Only $10 left. Hey! The A's running express now! Victory!

Well thanks for reading my rambles as I kill time riding the train and typing on this blog since I didn't bring my book to read like the lady next to me...






Man I wish I had a book. But at least I have headphones so I don't have to listen to the children screaming. Hah! Got one up on the book lady...

Keep it classy,
Jonathan

Ps. Did I mention I'm doing this in 14 degree wind chill?
-- Post From My iPhone

Back in NY take 2...

Okay so I just lost my first post due to technological screw ups and operational stupidity. I just found the save button. So now back to my entire post rewrite project.

I and doing this for my buddy Carl...






...who tells me he needs more to read on his lunch breaks. And I have found a lovely appliction for my phone that allows me to blog on the go. God bless Steve Jobs and the joys of technology in general.

So we just came back from a quick trip back to the SC. Which was great. We got to see the family, eat at restaurants, and hang with hommies...
























So we got there thanks to Mr Howard and Caroline and stand by delta flights. So thanks a ton to him for that and to Caroline for hooking it up.

We returned safely and went straight back to the grind. I have off today from teaching so went to target to get the necessities...Christmas gifts and water filters. Of course thanks to MTA bettering our train ways, I had to go to 242nd to get to 225th for my Target shopping. The uptown 1 is skipping all stops from 207-242nd. So how does one get to a stop you ask? Go to the end of the line and catch the downtown train. Thanks MTA, you just helpped me blog.

When I got off the train to go to the targét I helpped an older lady carry her cart down the stairs from the train. Man I'm a nice guy, helping old ladies, make people smile, helping new yorkers everywhere get a slighty better rep.

But later another older lady was walking up the stairs as I was coming back to the train and all I could think of was how some old people just don't care about people around them and who they are holding ip. I tries to pass here 4 times with no success and just fumed on the way up. Man I suck. Oh the fickle heart of man...

This is me saying love to all....
Peace.





-- Post From My iPhone

October in NY

So here we are our second fall upon us....i love NY in the Fall...the weather is great and so is life. Tammy is still working hard at the Hospital and we are talking about her going back and getting her masters...that'd be pretty dope. As for me i am soo ridiculously neck deep in teaching it's funny. I'm teaching 9 classes a week in two public schools here to students in 6th-9th grade as well as teachers for both schools. in addition to that i've been training for some competitions and am preparing to put together a competition team from the students i'm teaching. So that's pretty exciting. Beyond that i'm 28 now and still some kinda good lookin...so to all our family everywhere, Love.

Jonathan

My Mommy Told Me To....

Actually she asked, so 2 posts in one week for me at least has to be some kind of record worthy of an award..

so this one's for my mom, bc she called with a question about BJJ (Brazilian Jujitsu) and since i can't train i'll talk about it.

I guess i'll start with the concept of BJJ...As a martial art it was developed from a Japanese form of Jujitsu late 19th century by the Gracie family from Brazil as the "ultimate form of fighting." if you want more info on the history, google it. It was developed bc the originator believed all fights ended up on the ground, and his family was notoriously undersized as far as people went (short and 135 on average as adult males). So this system of grappling or wrestling was developed focusing on immobilizing and submitting your opponent based on joint locks and chokes, which is very different from other martial arts since there are no strikes in BJJ.

So now to the Method....

The idea of engaging your opponent in BJJ is to put them on the ground, control them with your body weight, leverage, and superior technique (not strength) and to submit them as i mentioned. So there are a few basic positions you need to become familiar with: 

1)the Guard: This is a primarily defensive position where the opponent is grasped between your legs and you are seeking to sweep them, or possibly submit them. Your leverage here is your arms but especially your legs. You throw your opponent forward toward your head and look to isolate their arm or neck for a submission or to get their body weight and balance off so you can sweep them and get on top. 

2)the Half Guard: This is a slightly better position for the person on top then being in full guard. from here you have better control of the person on bottom but are admittedly often at a risk of being swept if you don't keep your base solid. Here you can attack chokes, arms, and possibly the legs from the top. From the bottom you are surging upward with your energy trying to imbalance the person on top and keep them from attempting a submission with the hopes they make a mistake and leave an opening for you to sweep or submit from the bottom.

 

This is a good time to mention base everything in BJJ is about balance. you have to be grounded and sensitive to what your opponent is doing. In most of the positions your goal, especially when on top is to keep pressure on the person below you so they can get to a more advantageous position. The idea is to feel heavier than you are. That being  said however you have to remain relatively relaxed at almost all times, tension can hurt you and make you more vulnerable to being swept and submitted or freaking out prematurely when in a bad position and giving up unnecessarily.

3) Side Control - This is when you are on top of your opponent at a roughly 90 degree angle to them with all your limbs free of their guard. This is a very good position to submit and control the opponent especially by driving your weight in to the ground. To maximize this position you have to minimize the amount of space between you and your opponent. you don't allow them a crack of space to work with and meanwhile are attack their arms neck and looking to move to mount or take their back. From the bottom when you are being pressed down you have to look and try to create space between you and the opponent on top so you can either sweep them, take their back if they are careless, or get them back in your guard.

4) Mount - this is when you are straddling your opponent and is a very good offensive position but often leaves the one on top vulnerable to sweeps and reversals when they attack. In this position base is even that much more important to maintain balance and weight on your opponent.

5) Taking the Back - this is possibly one of the crumbiest positions to be in as a defender and a good one for the attacker. in this position as the aggressor you have your legs wrapped  around your  opponent and feet ("hooks") under their thighs. your chest is tight to their back and arms open to a number of possible submissions, especially chokes.

As a BJJ practitioner there are times consistently through the rolling process that you feel in pain, afraid, like you screwed up, don't have enough energy to throw the guy on top of you, can hardly breath as your being choked out, or just plain out of ideas bc nothing seems to work. This is an are of BJJ that i am learning to painfully appreciate - patience, determination, stamina, planning. Inevitably i have been in positions where i am being choked by a triangle choke and couldn't position myself to break the hold of my opponent so i've had to decide wether to tap and give up or push through and hope he gets tired before i pass out. now a number of factors go into deciding these things and i do both quit often, however the necessity of that decision still exists.

Another challenge of training like this is simply the discipline day in and day out to train and get up early and eat right when most days you just want to snuggle in bed, or go get pizza and a movie...the self inflicted challenges of working through pain, discomfort, and determination of training for championships, as well as the outward inflicted challenges that come with this sport and challenges of the mental aspect of the game are all things that draw me to and bring me joy in BJJ. Maybe you have to be slightly sadistic, maybe simply this mans need to challenge himself beyond what i want or am comfortable doing. Regardless, the effect of the sport caries into my spiritual and personal life...discipline i believe is holistic in its application. as are concepts of fluidity, relaxation under pressure, and determination...if i can get up tomorrow at 6am and train in 3 classes, 1 lifting\ conditioning workout, mental focus drills, spend 1-2 hours drilling, call my bride and tell her i miss her, answer some emails,  eat 5-6x's and be home by 4 to wake tammy up and kiss her so we can have dinner together and either go out, stay in, or do it all over again the next day...then i can sacrifice my comfort when God calls me to, i can give when it hurts to give, i can serve when i don't want to serve, i can give grace\ forgiveness\ and mercy when i want to inflict pain\ hate\ and retaliate. i can read scripture every day and humble myself to rebuke, i can become a better more patient and loving, serving, and giving husband than i was the day before....

of course the challenge with all these things are the same as me getting up at 6 tomorrow...i don't want to...but i have to decide every morning to not give up.

in honesty,

Jonathan +)

I Need the Wisdom of Your life...

For the record, i'm pretty sure i've mentioned this before but i'll do it again, New York rain is great...15 minute serious thunderstorm and finito...geographical weather patterns amaze me.

So our friends Jeanne and her mom are currently on the way to Laguardia to fly back to SC and we had a good time with them this weekend. Tammy as usual played the patient role of tour guide, we have decided to start charging a nominal fee for her services of guidance and my google maps researching contributions to peoples trips. and for the record we love our new little buddy Gus. He is a wonderfully inquisitive ferret, very energetic and prone to claw, shred, dig, break, fall, knock over, climb, or randomly attack things...like our knees and shoes, but he is super sweet and strangely (as compared to jeffery who tolerates it) loves to be petted and rubbed much like a dog...

And so everyone know Tammy made it back safely from Vegas and had a really good time plus got the chance to see the Cirque du Soliel KA production, which was mind blowing she says and if you know her fascination with Cirque, was a fantastic dream come true...

We are very much still discussing the plan for my teaching in the future and what that's going to look like this next year. And i think i still think in a college time frame, partly due to my association with schools here, but also due to our schedule with CV...so i mean this school year. On that note, Tammy and i have discussed time and again my involvement in continuing to teach evening classes over the next year and here's the lowdown:

As i mentioned before CV and Sheng Tai Studios (STS) are going into a public school here in our neighborhood in partnership with an organization from Dallas called Heart of a Champion (HOC) - we like initials in the non-profit organizational world - HOC has been actively providing materials for character development in public schools in a number of states in the country, but has struggled bc of costs to stay afloat here in NYC. So through Divine orchestration, we are able to partner with them and take their program of simple materials to the next level (and not the summer missions experience) with onsite followup, advocacy for the school and families to the community and political leaders, launch event with pro athletes, and of course my role - martial arts instruction to reinforce the materials in about 50 students. 

My role will be a paid position by the program and i will be responsible for 4 classes a week with 2 on Monday, 1 Wednesday, 1 Friday. This is great for me bc i'm working with slightly older students 6-9 grades and able to really focus on mentoring students and helping develop character, i like this hands on ministry style. However this leaves me in a pickle...

Tammy and i decided for me to focus on my training with the Gracie's as an investment in our future since that is what i want to be teaching for a number of reasons, as well as working toward competition. so between those two, it makes a challenging schedule to be also offering evening classes and not running myself ragged. When i talk about training i need to clarify that i am training for 2 goals, 1:to gain the knowledge to instruct champions, 2:to become a champion so i can teach champions. So i realize most people are like, "what's the big deal with training? Just do it then teach." But i need to clarify that i leave the house Monday - Friday at 6:30 in the morning and don't get home from training until 4 in the afternoon. We're talking about a full time job here. And on top of that add all the physical abuse i take and the mental strain of the sport, and i am pretty much beat. so we are trying to be wise with our time so we can also have time together. mind you she leaves around 7 which is a prime time for teaching a class, and we want to see each other.

so anyway all that being said in way of explination, we want to be wise in our decision making. i want to be consistent in what i do but realize i can't do everything so any wisdom in that area would be very much appreciated from you guys. Also if you could be praying for the funding for this program to come in, since we need to raise my salary, cost of materials, launch event costs, etc. all in all we budgeted $300,000+ for this years program, thankfully we have connections to some sports teams and all, but still need to raise it. so be in prayer and if you know anyone that want's to sponsor a child, or any businesses that want to get behind this please let us know at jonathan@citivision.org. The cost to sponsor a child is $250. 

please feel free to pass on to tammy and i your invaluable wisdom as well...i'm still new to this business thing and life is always a beautiful and challenging ride...

love you all,

Jonathan

Whooooo....Summer is almost over...

Wow, so it is now verging on the brink of August and i'd like to say i don't know where the last 2 months went, but i know exactly where they wound up...completely consumed over 7 weeks by 12 teams during The Next Level. We are finished and have had the first part of the week off (which i have spent diligently training for about 5 hours a day and have the rashes, burns, bruises, and sore muscles to show for it) and Wallace, Hooptie, and i meet back at 9 to make some sense of what's next and to close out TNL. Tammy is currently flying back from Las Vegas where she was in a nursing convention for the first part of the week and we may actually get to start seeing each other again.

What i mean by that is i would be with teams from about 7 or 8 in the morning (She doesn't get back until about 9) until between 11 to 2 in the morning (which is after she has left for work). So do the math...6 days a week...we went almost 3 weeks without seeing each other for more than a 2 hour period one day. Needless to say we're looking forward to life getting a little more normal. And CV (CitiVision) and I will be assessing the schedule again...we have better plans to make it work even better next year since it sounds like the 3 of us will continue to do this again as well as hopefully we will get to get all 4 of the interns we budgeted for....who would have thought spending a summer in NYC would be soo hard to sell to late HS and College students...

Well the summer was great and it was a fantastic reminder to me to give my seat up on the subway, not to ignore the homeless, the body of Christ can function in unity, i need to always be open to reproof, it's okay to admit i went the wrong direction trying to find the subway, let God interrupt my schedule, i don't know everything about everything, and to be patient, walk in mercy and grace, and love genuinely. 

On top of actually making a little bit of money for our home CV or Wallace, i'm not sure which gifted me and austin with iPhones! woooohooo! i love this thing...all phones should be so fantastic, and it's really helped pass some time between classes at the academy when i have no one to roll with. So that was an unexpected and thrilling gift....it may have made all the late nights worth it...may....

Speaking of the academy, while i've been able to train a bit more this week, Tammy and I decided i should focus some more of my time in training since i have such a unique opportunity to train with the Gracie family here in NY. Which as an aside i was training yesterday and today along side the 2 highest ranking Canadian fighter next to GSP yesterday and today....for those of you that understand that sort of thing...Anyway, i am going to be working out my training schedule with Walter as we look at what the rest of this year and possibilities concerning TNL next summer as well...Tammy is still undecided if she wants me to do it again, as am i, though i believe we can work out a better schedule now that i've done it once...So that obviously affects how much i will be teaching as well...so i'm looking at moving to a new location but before i commit to do that i want to make sure that we have time together...so pray for wisdom in the future for us.

I'm pretty sure NYC agrees with us...randomly i was thinking yesterday while i was eating some lunch under a tree on 34th between 7th and 8th that this city is still amazing to me...i forget to look up sometimes, i've decided that tall buildings are like blinders once you've been around them for awhile...you don't look up much...so i'm trying to do that more. The people are great here...in the words of my friend Eric "i like the way they think." And where else could Tammy and i go to a packed showing of Batman on IMAX at 4:10 AM? Where i ask you? 

i'm reminded by a text message from our last intern about the longing to return here tammy and i experienced our first year before we moved...it amazes me how God places such a passion and love for people in our hearts especially as they are tied to a location. (for us New Yorkers) This life change has certainly made me a believer in the Exodus concept and the "hometown prophet" deal...i know i was cynical and bitter about the Church as i saw it and especially about where i worked, mostly i see now due to a simple difference in ministry philosophy, but i can definitely see how God takes people from their homes from their comfort and transplants them, like He did Israel...several times, so His greater will can be accomplished...fantastic!

now for some pics....

Honey Bunny with the newest Peagler infant....yes Chris is a dad...

When NY Comes to SC...we are the universal balance for all things good...

We are supper heros...Noemi likes my Mandatory Meal times...

Love you guys all, see you in a later date....

Jontastic