New Students
Let's take a moment to welcome our new students: Frank Cimino, Kevin Reeder, and Nicolas Michaud.  When you see them, make sure to introduce yourself, offer them any help, and then throw them.

Website News
We're bursting at the seams!  New student inquiries are at an all time high, and our attendance is through the roof.  To keep up, we've made some changes to the website.  First, you may have noticed that our URL has changed.  To better reflect who we are, our web address is now AikidoCenterOfJacksonville.com.  (We've also reserved other web addresses, which you'll hear about soon.)  Second, we've added new pictures to our multimedia gallery.  And lastly, we've created an online nafudakake, or ranking board.  We have lots of plans, so stay tuned!

Upcoming Camping Trip
We need a final count on our upcoming camping trip.  We're looking at the weekend of March 8th, at Little Talbot Island or Hanna Park.  Please email Sensei so we can finalize our plans.

A Reminder...
Students can read Dojo News, check their monthly attendance, and access other features by logging into the website.  If you've forgotten your user name or password, ask Sensei or Jerry next time you're in class.

Student Spotlight - Oscar Senn
Student Spotlight is a new column which highlights members of our school.  We hope to make this a (somewhat) regular feature, so if you want to nominate someone, please let us know.  For March, however, we are proud to present (drum roll...) Oscar Senn.

Oscar joined the school in April 1999, and is one of our sempai or senior students.  He recently passed 2nd kyu, and is a font of Aikido wisdom.  But what I really want to talk about is Oscar off the mat.  For those who may not know, Oscar is an accomplished artist, whose paintings explore both surreal and totemic subject matter.  He is a commercial illustrator, published author, and design guru extraordinaire.  Oh, and we hear he likes to play with toys (his own creations, natch).  His interests are far ranging: from the (apparent) intersection of geometry and the Kabbalah, to the national razor of France (and no, dear readers, it's not Gillette.)  So, the next time you see someone gracefully performing irimi-nage wearing a pirate bandana, remember to ask him about flying turtles or heroic cats saving the universe.  (Seriously.)  And if the conversation turns towards the French Revolution and la Grande Terreur, don't say we didn't warn you.

If you're interested in more of Oscar's work, you can check out his website or contact his Florida representative.

Technique of the Month - Sankyo
Sensei demonstrated a dynamic version of sankyo with bokken.  When performed with a weapon, this technique clearly illustrates the openings also present when sankyo is performed empty handed.

(1) Uke, who is unarmed, grabs Nage's wrist to prevent her from drawing her blade.  (2) Nage, rather than attempting to overpower Uke, slides back, thereby releasing her blade from her saya.  (3) Nage then turns her blade into Uke, trapping his wrist with sankyo.  (4) Uke is then forced to move backwards around Nage's center in an attempt to avoid the cut. (5) When Uke is behind Nage, Nage steps under Uke's arm.  (6) Nage then cuts Uke's legs, stepping back at the same time.  Uke is forced into breakfall to avoid the strike.  (7) Nage completes the technique.