Many years ago I briefly studied Kung Fu with one of the great masters of the art who, at the time, was teaching in the San Fernando Valley of California. One of the things he stated was that the hardest opponent to face would be a big, powerful, untrained bully because he had no fighting pattern to counter. Another thing I learned was never get into a fight when you are angry. If you get into a fight when you are angry, the anger will take over your mind. Rather than fighting instinctively based on your training, your actions will come from your rage. A lot of people think that it's good to get into a rage in order to prepare for a fight as it will increase your endorphins resulting in

[caption id="attachment_7924" align="alignright" width="180" caption="The Yulish Tree by DairDair"][/caption] It’s that time of year again…time for gift shopping! Whether you celebrate Yule, the Winter Solstice, Christmas or Hanukkah with your family and friends, the season has come to be synonymous with the giving of thoughtful gifts, trinkets or tokens of goodwill. This puts some degree of stress on all of us; though giving is joyous, often the expense and energy spent on tracking down “the perfect gift” is not. I am a book lover, so I happen to think books always make good gifts. There’s no need to worry about whether it fits or is the right color; no need to buy