Author Archives: Mike Poole

I went back home for a few days this week. My mom went back into the hospital a week ago. It started the end of January. In fact, she has spent the vast majority of 2015 in either a hospital … Continued

I grew up a Lutheran. I learned very quickly what a potluck was (long before Garrison Keillor started revealing them to the world). About ten years ago, it was a dream of mine to set the record for World’s Largest … Continued

I spent the year from August 1st, 2014 until July 31st, 2015 focusing on the kata Gojushiho. One of the avenues I took to study the kata was to look at of traditions variations of the kata. This helped immensely … Continued

 We see these colored bracelets all the time. A lot of people were them. Some wear many bracelets at one time. What do all these colors mean? October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The color for breast cancer awareness is … Continued

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast Cancer touches all of us, one way or another. I’ve had family and friends go through breast cancer treatment. In fact, last week, I heard the story of a high school classmate of … Continued

We have started our classes up here on Staten Island. One of the frequent questions I get is, “Why Study Martial Arts?” Why should people take an hour or so out of the busy day to come spend it with … Continued

 I have been a fan of Indy Car Racing for a very long time. I grew up watching the Indy 500 on television. My first “real” job was working security at the corporate offices of Red Roof Inns, which also … Continued

August 29th 2015 is the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina coming ashore, leading to the devastation of a place I have called home! I had the opportunity to reside in NOLA in 2001.  I fell in love with the vibrancy and … Continued

 This article appeared in the December 2012 edition of The Lutheran. As a martial artist who was older than I was when I started, I was draw to Roberta’s story. I corresponded with her over the next couple months. She started … Continued

 Sensei Michael, Sensei Jan and I have been having an online discussion about kata and bunkai. Sensei Michael quoted a book and said that he had “Written notes in the margins.” I do that, too. I write notes in the … Continued