Budo Rant #3 - Give Credit & Improve on the Previous

I was compelled to defend my honor as the first person to ever post a tutorial video on the internet on the subject of Triple String Nunchaku. My original video has been viewed more than 30,000 times and has found permanent places on several search engines and martial arts forums world wide.

It's my firm belief, as martial artists, that when we borrow ideas or base our work on the accomplishments of others before us, we must give credit where credit is due. I've done so in the past, and I will always cite the research and findings of others whenever I produce training and educational material to be posted on the internet.

rctrue, never contacted me to inform me he was going to reproduce my tutorial virtually shot for shot and step for step.

Mcjoebuilder, on the otherhand, used my tutorial as a basis but went about his tutorial the way he saw fit. And as an added bonus, he makes his own nunchaku. Kudos Joe! [prior to posting this entry, Mcjoebuilder emailed me and informed me he was linking my tutorial to his. I did the same likewise.]


This is a comment placed by a DTG spy who was "expelled" by Greg Park so that he could freely roam YouTube and try to gain the confidence of the unsuspecting. I didn't buy his story for a minute. SACREDFIREDOJOSHOW is still an active member of Nintaijutsu.


In this screenshot, we can see the date of publication as well as number of views as of today. Notice, how many more views my video has over rctrue's. This number can only be achieved over a long period of time. Thus, my tutorial came first.


In this next image, MOUNTAINOUS gives praise...only because he is another member of Nintaijutsu - Choson Ninja, under Greg Park. The following two individuals are more critical. cava002 directly asks rctrue if he knows who I am. No response. The third person had an even more practical comment. Look back at my tutorial. I specifically chose to use my white oak nunchaku with green parachute cord because of the contrast in color! Easier for viewers to see what's happening.

Lastly, here's the champion of the day: Mcjoebuilder and his excellent interpretation of my original lesson.



Always remember this courtesy: Give credit where credit is due and improve on the previous.

Thanks goes to YouTubers: HouzanSuzuki, scottbaioisdead, zeong77, and Mcjoebuilder

Ernie's Interview with Professor Stephen Hawking

No! Of course it's not a real interview. I wanted to challenge (with the hopes of improving) my editing skills.

This project required about six hours of sitting in front of my computer just to research, locate, and download stills and flash video. Then, I had to convert the flash into mpeg and avi files in order to edit them in Premiere.

At times, I had to separate the audio from the video. Such was the case when I created the Hawking dialog. Speach synthesis was generated using the speak function in the software Movie Magic Screenwriter.



In all there are about seven layers of complexity in this project and another six hours of meshing all the elements together. After watching the final cut, I know there's lots of room for improvement. Primarily, I need to step up from Premiere to Final Cut Pro which means I need a new and more powerful computer to run FCP. Great... Certainly, I haven't truly maximized the potential of the platform I currently have. A few more projects with what I've got will convince me one way or the other. Still, it's tough being a one man show!

But for now, I'm pleased with my progress. For my next project, I'd like to try audio punch-ins, over-dubbing, and green screen video. Just to keep things interesting.

It's a Cakewalk!

Actually, I'm demonstrating the fancy ringtones I have loaded on my cell phone with the aid of Cakewalk's audio production software Sonar 6.

Ernie's 5 Facts - Tag Game

Them YouTubers keep tagging me to say "5" of this or "5" of that...



This was a good exercise in organization and optimizing production and post-production time.

Ernie Opens His Prize From GirlTalkMD!

A few weeks ago, I entered a YouTube Contest conducted by GirlTalkMD, a Mother/Daughter team from Canada. They wanted to know: What's in our purses? They revealed what they had in theirs and invited the YouTube community to video reply with the contents of their purses. Well...I don't carry a purse, but I revealed what I carry in my fannypack. Technically, it's a gun holster that looks like a fannypack. Don't worry. I don't carry a gun. I like it because it's got lots of cargo compartments.


[One more thing to carry...yeah, I know!

Aviva's Future Gear

Aviva is a fellow Blogger and fantastic photographer. She's tagged me. She's challenged my limited Japanese language skills. So, I thought I'd poke fun at her where it hurts the most...


Aviva...If you brought this home, would Craig think you found the keys to the ordinance locker? "Hey Sarge! Where's the rocket launcher?"

OR---


On your next day trip, just throw this simple 160 megapixel 6x17 Seitz in your ruck. How the heck do you pull focus on this thing? And, does Lowepro make a bag to carry it?

OR---[and here's my favorite]


When you're back Stateside, get yourself a surplus stepvan and build yourself a portable (and drivable) gigantic pinhole camera. Let Mia design the paint job.

Actually, Aviva is a great sport. She and her family are based in Okinawa (Hubby is a Marine). Her blog and photos can be found here.

Ernie is a [Girl Scout] Cookie Monster

A friend at work bought a couple of boxes of Girl Scout cookies as a favor to a friend. She's been on a diet and had left the cookies on her desk since late February. As a favor to keep her on her diet, I relieved her of the temptations. I just recently dropped twenty-seven pounds and decided to celebrate...by eating some of the cookies.



Thanks Le Ann!

200,000 Miles!

The Toyota 22RE engine is near bulletproof. Witness my truck's odometer reach 200,000 miles...

Sai Sword Wrapping Tutorial

Sorry for the jittery video. I had to compress it to meet YouTube's size limit.

Happy Humbug All You Grinches!

It’s like the bestest Christmas present like forever!!!


The next time you go gift shopping for a serious martial artist, don’t buy anything martial arts related. We already have what we need, or most times we’re either very particular or require specialized materials, fittings, or gear.

If you really want to make a serious martial artist go all giddy like a little kid, find out what other hobbies or joys he or she likes.

For me: I love British science-fiction TV. Doctor Who just happens to be one of my favorites (from Hartnell to the present). Space 1999, Sapphire & Steel, and The Tomorrow People are pretty cool, too.

The gift of the Sonic Screwdriver was courtesy of The Lasit Family. (Kevin cooks a mean rib roast and lives by the motto: Where there’s meat, there’s gravy.)

Have I Been Saved or Not?

All my life, I've hated carry things in my front and hip pockets. It was always uncomfortable, sweaty, and bulky. For awhile I wore BDU (military) pants and carried stuff in the cargo pouches near the knees. Then I bought my first fanny pack back in 1985. It was hand made by a San Francisco artisan who normally made shoes and boots. It was the best fanny pack I ever owned. It lasted 18 years until the leather finally thinned out and a huge hole ripped through. I haven't been able to find an off the shelf fanny pack that lasted me more than a year. My lifestyle tends to treat them roughly, and I haven't been able to find any made from tough goat leather. The cheap sheepskin models at the malls are all crap!



Here I am siteseeing in Okinawa. I'm wearing an off-duty/plain clothes police model fanny pack that's designed to holster a pistol in the rear compartment. (The pack has a quick release that literally dumps the gun into your hand when opened. I used this section to carry Yen and my passport.) It's made of heavy ballistic nylon and has so far proved to be very tough. I'll be using this one for a long time.

Just surfing around, I came across the "Hip Holster." I thought mega-cool. Totally Han Solo. I gotta have one! Do they make left-handed and/or double-sided models?


[images from Urban Tool North America]

Then, it occurred to me, fanny packs went out of American fashion in the mid-1990's. If I got one of these, would my geek-factor shoot through the roof? Truthfully, I don't care. Walking around Kokusai-dori, in downtown Naha, Okinawa, I found dozens of shops selling hundreds of styles of fanny packs. And they weren't just for tourists. It seemed like every other person in town were wearing them. (I don't feel so lonely anymore.) These days we carry so much gear (wallet, cell phone, iPod, check book, sunglasses, keys, rescue breathing kit - yeah, I have First Aid/AED certification) that we need something more than our pockets and something less than a back pack/shoulder bag.

I'm always on the look out for a good fanny pack because I know I go through most like Swiss cheese. Pity I haven't been able to track down that guy in SF who made my first one. That really gets my goat!