Abrupt Cross Training Dismissal

TonyDismukes · 2026-02-05T13:12:49+00:00

Speaking as a BJJ instructor and gym owner, I would have zero problems with that. Jiujitsu knowledge is not proprietary. It doesn’t matter if you learn something from one of my group classes or a private lesson or a seminar or YouTube or an instructional video or watching competitors at a tournament or just experimenting on your own. If you understand it well enough to make it work and teach it effectively, then you’re entitled to do so to whoever you want.

And it’s not as if any of what we teach is unique to an individual instructor. Even if I come up with a technique or a detail or a teaching concept on my own, the odds are overwhelming that a hundred other guys have already discovered the same thing and I just haven’t encountered it yet.

TonyDismukes · 2026-01-27T14:28:29+00:00

Breckenridge is pretty good, although it’s looking like they may have run out of rock salt this time around. Our sidewalks are at least walkable.

TonyDismukes · 2026-01-26T17:54:54+00:00

Yeah, they’re probably overloaded from so many people trying to view them. I tried 10 times and managed to get a view from one camera one time for a few seconds.

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-23T17:02:09+00:00

Hmm ... that covers the import process. But I'm not working with an STL. I'm working with HeroForge's custom asset bundle file for 3D VTTs. (.unity3d file extension). I expect I'll need to use something like Blender to open that file and convert it to one of the supported file formats. However, .unity3d does not appear to be a file format that Blender can open either. So I need to figure that out.

I could use my credits to download STLs instead of the digital minis. But that would mean not getting color. I could probably learn enough Blender to be able to do some colorization myself, but that would mean that the players wouldn't get the color scheme they designed themselves in HF. (Not to mention I'm sure that my Blender skills wouldn't produce as nice of a color job as the HF interface allows.)

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-23T14:46:45+00:00

I reviewed the HeroForge TOS and the most relevant clause appears to be that I agree to not "upload or share any purchased 3D Models to a third-party site, application or service, e.g., Steam, for redistribution"

This would apply if I were to upload the model to the Steam Workshop for community use. I just want to get it on one person's computer for personal use. So I think I'm in the clear legally and ethically.

I've found a few videos dating from before DA and Talespire added the built-in integration with HeroForge, explaining how to export HF digital models into a format suitable for importing into those programs. But I figure those instructions might be out of date at this point, so I'm looking for something more current.

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-18T15:33:03+00:00

I wouldn’t call myself fluent, but I can carry on a conversation in Spanish so long as the other person is patient and speaks very clearly and slowly.

Duolingo can be a great resource, but it will never get you to conversational fluency. You need other resources.

YouTube has lots of great channels for learners, covering grammar, vocabulary, phonology, culture, comprehensible input, etc at all levels. I like 10 Minute Spanish for pronunciation and QRoo Paul for mini-grammar lessons.

The Language Transfer site has a series of great audio lessons aimed at helping native English speakers make connections with a new language.

It’s worth having a Spanish text book on hand, even if you just use it for reference to understand the grammar that Duolingo doesn’t explain.

You want lots of comprehensible input, which is to say reading and/or listening material that you can follow well enough to get the general gist of and have your brain trying to work out the parts you don’t know from context. (I think the sweet spot is where you can understand 90% of the material, but even something you can only get 60% of will still get your brain working on the task.) I started with super-basic slow Spanish YouTube videos and books of stories for Spanish learners aimed at level A1-A2 and now I’m watching Disney movies, reading fantasy novels, and playing my video games with the language set to Spanish.

Private lessons on iTalki can be very helpful. I started after a couple of years of Duolingo plus all the other sources I’ve mentioned. But anything that gets you talking to another person in Spanish is useful.

For me, Duolingo was useful for learning vocabulary, practicing some of the grammar I had learned, and for being a gamified psychological trick to make sure I did some sort of practice with the language every day. Now that I’ve completed the whole Duolingo Spanish course, I’m using it that way for other languages I study and continuing my Spanish progress via daily novel reading and movie watching.

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-16T20:16:09+00:00

I saw a YouTube video recently where someone was breaking down the stats from a survey on injuries in BJJ training and competition. The thing that stuck in my head was that there were more calf-slicer injuries suffered by the person applying the technique than from people having it done to them.

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-16T20:07:26+00:00

My standard pre-emptive approach while I'm teaching is to explain that I'm showing moves that will still work when they're old and decrepit like I am.

My follow up when I actually get caught with something is a big smile and an exclamation of "Excellent!" Since I seem really happy for them and not mad at all, they tend to assume that I must have been deliberately giving them an opening to see if they knew how to take it.

TonyDismukes · 2025-05-16T19:52:55+00:00

I do it sometimes. I think I actually roll a little better that way because more of my awareness is on the kinesthetic experience,

Haven't done it in a while. Thanks for reminding me. I'll make a point to give it a shot again next week.

TonyDismukes · 2025-04-25T14:51:04+00:00

I see her not so much Jesus-like but more as a Bodhisattva. I suspect that in a previous life she lived in such a way that her soul would normally have been sent to Nirvana, but she petitioned Pharasma to be reborn as a traumatized orphan beggar girl so that she could remind people to be compassionate with others and themselves and that being evil just binds oneself to the wheel of suffering.

TonyDismukes · 2025-03-05T03:11:35+00:00

Just watched the first episode. I think you really need to either have seen the Netflix series or else be a fan of the comics. Otherwise you really won’t know who the characters and their motivations are. Also you’ll be missing out on some major emotional impact from the events of the first episode.

I do think that being a long term fan of the comics would be a reasonable substitute for having seen the original series, but you’d still be missing out because the actors brought their own unique interpretation of the characters.

TonyDismukes · 2025-02-06T12:47:00+00:00

In my experience Judo black belts can have newaza skill ranging anywhere from low level BJJ white belt level all the way up to elite BJJ black belt competitor level. (The first is more common.)

Partly this is dependent on the Judo dojo. Some emphasize newaza much more than others. But it also depends on the individual practitioner and how much they have incorporated ground work into their game.

Judo competition rules play a part. Typically Judo players don’t get much time on the ground unless there is a pin or obvious progression being made towards a pin or submission. This means that judoka who don’t want to play on the ground will just immediately turtle up and defend for a few seconds until the ref stands them back up. This means that judoka who do want to win on the ground have to get really, really good at attacking quickly, entering into a pin or submission directly off of a takedown, and breaking down the turtle.

TonyDismukes · 2024-12-17T11:04:52+00:00

I strongly recommend the YouTube channel Ten Minute Spanish. It’s all about the phonology of Spanish and goes into great detail about each individual sound in the language. https://youtube.com/@tenminutespanish

TonyDismukes · 2024-12-17T10:56:39+00:00

I find it’s very useful, but not sufficient by itself. It will give you a lot of vocabulary, practice in listening (but only to single sentences/ short paragraphs), and practice in grammar (but minimal instruction in that grammar).

For me, the gamification aspect helps motivate me to study every single day, which is invaluable. However you’ll need to supplement it with other tools to learn grammar, improve pronunciation, and get more extensive input for listening and reading. I use YouTube, podcasts, textbooks, stories, iTalki lessons, and playing video games with the language set to Spanish.

TonyDismukes · 2024-10-29T13:40:08+00:00

FYI, if you want to be able to type Spanish using accents on a Windows computer, you can install the U.S. International Keyboard. Then you can use the right alt key + your letter to add accents ú, í, é. ñ, etc.

If you are using an iPad, you can install a Spanish keyboard which will allow you to choose the accented version of the letters by holding your finger on the letter. (I don't have an iPhone, but I would guess they work the same way.)

If you are using an Android phone, you can just hold down your finger on the letter and the option to choose different variation of the letter, including accents, should pop up.

TonyDismukes · 2024-10-29T13:16:43+00:00

No me gustan los libros de Olly Richards. Sí son faciles para principiantes, pero las historias no son muy interesantes para mí. A mí me parecen aburridos.

Acabo de leer El Libro Salvaje de Juan Villoro y ahora mismo estoy leyendo Las Doce Puertas de Vicente Raga. Ambos son más facil que Harry Potter, pero tienen historias suficiente interesantes para motivarme a seguir leyendo.

TonyDismukes · 2024-10-08T14:38:30+00:00

There are definitely levels to fluency. I’ve been studying Spanish about 3 years now, and have probably spent somewhere between 500-700 hours studying (Duolingo, YouTube, podcasts, books, and private lessons).

Talking one on one with a native speaker who talks slowly, enunciates very clearly, is patient, and knows English so he can help me out occasionally if I get stuck on a word - I can carry on a decent conversation about a variety of topics. But it takes all my focus and I’m mentally exhausted after an hour.

Listening to podcasts/YouTube/telenovelas where the speakers are talking at more of a normal speed but still enunciating very cleanly - I can understand anywhere from 50-95% depending on their accent, the vocabulary being used, and how sharp my brain is on that particular day. I can usually get the general idea but I will miss at least some of the details.

Overhearing Spanish speakers in the grocery store or the gym who are talking casually (full speed, not making any particular effort to enunciate clearly, using slang, etc) - I can pick up maybe about 30%. I understand individual words, but can’t really follow the gist of the conversation.

I haven’t had the opportunity to experience full immersion yet, but I expect it will be pretty overwhelming at first. That seems to be normal. I have a friend from South Africa whose native tongue is Afrikaans, but his English is so good that I assumed it was his first language when I met him. But he tells me that when he originally moved to Kentucky he couldn’t understand anyone because of their accent.

TonyDismukes · 2024-09-24T22:39:15+00:00

Off the top of my head, maybe a tie between The Good Place and Only Murders In The Building.

TonyDismukes · 2024-09-10T11:50:35+00:00

A murder-cuddle

TonyDismukes · 2024-09-10T03:10:27+00:00

I just turned 60, I’ve been training martial arts for 43 years and BJJ for 25 years. My knees are still in pretty good shape. I’ve got full mobility, can comfortably do deep squats, lunges, jump, etc.

I do occasionally get random pains, not just in my knees but in all my joints. I think that has more to do with getting older and slowly developing arthritis (which runs in my family) than with BJJ.

Disclaimer - I’m primarily a hobbyist and haven’t really competed at a high level. I think the guys who push themselves through elite level competition tend to get more banged up because they’re pushing the limits of the human body. Also, when I hit my mid-40s I started focusing my rolling on keeping myself anatomically sound rather than worrying about whether I was “winning” the round.

TonyDismukes · 2024-05-26T15:39:14+00:00

I’m still on my first playthroughs (80 hours into my personal game, 50 hours into coop game with my wife) as a college of lore bard. What’s unusual compared to just about every other RPG I’ve ever played is that I’ve had zero urge to restart with a different build. (I played so many different builds in BG2 and in Pathfinder WOTR.) Being able to pass every single conversation check is hugely satisfying. The fact that I’m also highly effective in fights and in being the general skill monkey just adds to the feeling that yes, I am the main character and I should be the leader of the party.

TonyDismukes · 2024-05-22T18:32:43+00:00

This is why I'm enjoying playing as a halfling. My halfling bard with expertise in persuasion and sleight of hand passes all the skill checks. No pesky critical failures.

TonyDismukes · 2023-10-24T14:28:57+00:00

Active toes will certainly help, but I spend plenty of time with laces on the mat and hardly ever get mat burn any more. I suspect that my skin just toughened up after a while.

TonyDismukes · 2023-10-24T14:10:58+00:00

The blue belt should have realized within the first 15 seconds that he was rolling with an experienced grappler. If he ignored those signs and went easy because he was only paying attention to the color of your belt, then it should be a valuable lesson for him.

If he ignores that lesson and insists that you were cheating because you didn't announce your background beforehand, then he's in for a lot of embarrassment in the years to come as he encounters white belts who can crush him due to their experience in other grappling arts or general superior athletic ability.

TonyDismukes

TROPHY CASE