Kudan All the Right Stuff

Friday Knight News

"If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride and never quit, you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high but so are the rewards." Paul Bryant

Congratulations are in order to Tony Annesi, sensei on the event of the recognition of his promotion! When a man of his caliber is overlooked for recognition it brings the whole system into question. Thankfully justice has been served; however, those of us that have had contact with him knew that the proof of his qualification has long been evident.

One of the first things that stood out to me about Tony Annesi, sensei was the fact that he was not overly conceited. To me this is one of the most important qualification for reaching the elevated rank of kudan, outside of martial art mastery. It is a true sign to me that that individual has done their homework in following the path to mastery. The martial arts serve as an exemplary method of building up our confidence and self-esteem while holding us in check as we are constantly honing ourselves against each other. Not everyone is going to be as fast as Bruce Lee, or as powerful as Mas Oyama or tenacious as Takayuki Kubota. Then again not everyone is going to be as knowledgeable and dedicated as Fumio Demura or Tony Annsei. Hanchi Annesi had mentioned to me that he had never considered himself to be overlooked, (which goes to prove my point about him not being full of himself).

I believe I must have been ten years old by the time I had verbalized my desire to become a black belt in karate. Prior to that I had always just wanted to be like Kato on the Green Hornet TV show. Of course I also had a healthy admiration for Charlie Chan and the way he made his clarification of "Jujutsu please, not Judo," to explain how the villain was overcome. Still it was not until I reached junior high or high school age before I allowed myself to dream of one day reaching the elevated rank of second or third degree black belt, (perhaps after graduating college).

Of course my lifetime achievement goal was to maybe possibly train in the system long enough and hard enough that I could achieve the rank of fourth, fifth or even the lofty rank of sixth degree black belt. However, I believed that to be only a pipe dream, and despite any rank or title that has been bestowed upon me, I still hold the examples of Joe Lewis and Tony Annesi before me as to how to conduct myself in the martial arts. These men serve as the proverbial signpost on the road to mastery by their being forever a student. That is what all the right stuff is in the martial arts and maybe all of life as well.

"Take the attitude of a student, never be too big to ask questions, never know too much to learn something new." Og Mandino

My stories are about martial arts adventures that are intertwined with paranormal or supernatural events. The following links are to the Kindle version books from the "Dream Walker” series. Our adventurers find themselves on a quest where they are confronted with both conspiracy and mystery. Their challenge is to unite their mind and body skills together utilizing what they have learned in the martial arts with the transcendental power of dream mediation. They attempt to do this while they are trying to make a life for themselves and elude those that seek to use and control them.

Conversations with a Sage (Book 1 of the Dream-Walker)

Conversations with a Sage: This explores Xander Davidson's early encounters with the mysterious fog like Dream Walking martial art sages. He ponders if they are real or if they are only remnants of his dreams. He mainly keeps this secret world to himself as he tries to copes with abuse, growing up without support or guidance and the mystery of his family's past. 

Xander and the Assassins Gift (Book 2 of the Dream-Walker)

The Assassins Gift: Xander Davidson struggles with the conspiracy of his family and the group that is actively trying to manipulate him to join them or die. The young Dream Walkers learns an early lesson to be careful about whom they let into their circle.


Warriors of Perception (Book 3 of the Dream-Walker)

Warriors of Perception: Xander Davidson and his band of friends embark on a mission to free themselves from their oppressors. They bravely face the challenge all the while vying for the right moment to turn the tables.

Jace Lee The Shift (Book 4 of the Dream-Walker)

Jace Lee The Shift: We find a new apprentice, Adam, that is fighting for his life. He is struggling to understand the amazing skills of his mentor, Jace Lee; a younger man that has trained under Xander Davidson. All the while his mentor attempts to reconcile the fact that his skills do not match up with the other Dream Walkers.


Jace Lee No Agenda (Dream Walker Book 5)

Jace Lee No Agenda: Jace Lee attempts to find himself on a self-imposed vision quest of sorts. Instead he finds himself being stalked by the same group that had previously sought after his teacher, (Xander Davidson). Instead of mastering his odd Dream Walking skills he finds love and the potential loss of his powers.

Jace Lee and the Tutelage of Ming Wu: Dream Walker 6 

Jace Lee The Tutelage of Ming Wu: Jace Lee rejoins his teacher Xander Davidson as they cope with a possible combined threat (the mysterious), Ming Wu and the Council that has continuously monitored the Dream Walkers.