Stickgrappler's Sojourn of Septillion Steps: February 2014

Friday, February 28, 2014

MMA: Ronda Rousey X Taylor Stratford (Jan 7, 2011)

Meant to post this earlier around Ronda's birthday.

Enjoy the Ronda Rousey X Taylor Stratford (Jan 7, 2011) fight!

For previous posts on Ronda you may have missed:

For further info:

MMA: Ronda Rousey X Autumn Richardson (Nov 12, 2010)

Meant to post this earlier around Ronda's birthday.

Enjoy the Ronda Rousey X Autumn Richardson (Nov 12, 2010) fight!

For previous posts you may have missed:

For further info:

MMA: Ronda Rousey X Hayden Munoz (Aug 6, 2010) (Amateur MMA Debut)

Meant to post this earlier around Ronda's birthday.

Enjoy the Ronda Rousey X Hayden Munoz (Aug 6, 2010) (Amateur MMA Debut) fight!

For previous posts you may have missed:

For further info:

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Mark Dacascos - Drive (1997) (Full movie)

Yesterday was Mark Dacascos' 50th birthday. Today, I am posting one of his movies in celebration. This is the cult action movie Drive (1997) and is the director's cut.

Enjoy!

A prototype enhanced human, on the run from Chinese-hired hit men, hooks up with a dread-locked bystander, and the two of them elude their pursuers narrowly each time.

Also posted these Mark Dacascos full videos:

For further info on Drive and Mark:

Mark Dacascos - History Channel's Samurai (Miyamoto Musashi)

Yesterday was Mark Dacascos' 50th birthday. Today, I am posting the History Channel's Samurai documentary he hosted in celebration.

Mark visits Japan to trace the life of legendary Samurai Warrior: Miyamoto Musashi.

Enjoy!

Also posted these Mark Dacascos full videos:

For further info on Mark Dacascos:

Mark Dacascos - Only the Strong (1993) (Full movie)

Yesterday was Mark Dacascos' 50th birthday. Today, I am posting one of his movies in celebration. This is the great capoeira movie Only the Strong (1993).

Enjoy!

"Alright everyone. Listen up. If you can't ginga, you can't fight. That's the basic element."

~ Louis Stevens

Plot:

Ex-Special Forces soldier Louis Stevens returns to Miami to find his former high school overrun by drugs and violence. A master of the Brazilian martial art, capoeira, Stevens pledges to straighten out a dozen of the school's worst students by teaching them this demanding and highly-disciplined fighting style. Slowly, his program begins to work, giving the students new hope and purpose. But the local drug lord, himself a martial arts expert, vows to stop Stevens' positive influence. Now Stevens must fight to save his own life, as well as the lives of his rebellious young students.

Trivia:

Stunt coordinator and fight choreographer for this movie was Frank Dux - the full-contact martial artist whose life was portrayed by Jean-Claude Van Damme in the movie Bloodsport. Moreover, Dux has a cameo appearance as one of the men fighting Louis Stevens in the car workshop.

Also posted these Mark Dacascos full videos:

For further info on Only the Strong and Mark:

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Happy 50th Birthday Mark Dacascos!!

Happy 50th Birthday Mark Dacascos!! I'm posting some videoclips in his honor!

Enjoy!

Also posted these Mark Dacascos full videos in his honor:

For further info on Mark:

The Balisong Knife in Movies: The Gangster (2012) ("Antapal")

Today's post is part of my ongoing project of making animated GIF's of the Balisong Knife in Movies and TV.

This set is from a 2012 Thai movie called The Gangster (aka "Antapal"). Review forthcoming.

For other GIFs of Balisong usage I've made, please check out:

My Projects page

Enjoy!

Isolating just the opening from the above GIF

He flubbed the opening a little :)

I liked how O-Tee was carefree and dancing around in the middle of a knifefight LOL

For more info:

IMDB

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Tian Jing - 3rd GIF Set from Donnie Yen's Special ID

This is the 3rd GIF set featuring new actress Tian Jing that I've made. It's also my 6th GIF Set from Donnie Yen's new movie, Special ID. If you missed the previous 5 sets, please check out:

This fight has Tian Jing take on Andy On. Not any old fight, but a fight inside a vehicle! Not just a fight in a vehicle, but a speeding vehicle!!!

Enjoy!

For further info on Tian Jing, please check out:

IMDB

Friday, February 21, 2014

Special ID - GIF Set 5 (Tian Jing)

This 5th GIF set from Donnie Yen's new movie, Special ID, features the lead actress Tian Jing. If you missed the previous 4 sets, please check out:

This fight has Tian Jing take on Collin Chou.

Enjoy!

This next GIF is a combo of the above 3 GIF's

For further info on Tian Jing, please check out:

IMDB

Sunday, February 16, 2014

The Raid: Redemption 3rd GIF Set

The third and final set of GIFs I made to celebrate Iko Uwais' 31st birthday!

If you missed the first two sets of GIFs of Iko Uwais in action from The Raid: Redemption:

Enjoy!

For other GIFs I made featuring the Baton (Telescopic), please check out:

For further info on Iko Uwais:

Saturday, February 15, 2014

PR-24 Baton and Knife GIFs from The Raid: Redemption

Following up on my first set of GIFs of Iko Uwais in action from The Raid: Redemption:

Happy 31st Birthday Iko Uwais! (The Raid: Redemption Animated GIF Set 1)

Here is the 2nd of 3 animated GIF sets I made in celebration of Uwais' 31st birthday!

Enjoy!

Here's the 3rd GIF Set:

The Raid: Redemption 3rd GIF Set

For other GIFs I made featuring the Baton (Telescopic), please check out:

For further info on Iko Uwais:

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Happy 45th Birthday Kelly Hu!

Photo Credit: justjared

Home sick, I missed posting this yesterday :(

Happy 45th Birthday Kelly Hu!!

I intended to make animated GIFs of Kelly Hu in action, especially from Martial Law, but ugh on me, sick at home.

Posting some video clips in celebration of one of my favorite actresses!

Maxim Shoot

Kisses in Plain Sight

Fights

For further info on Kelly Hu:

NOTE: Posted Feb 14, 2014 as-of Feb 13, 2014. I will be making some GIFs of Kelly Hu in action soon!

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Aubrey Marcus' What is a Warrior?

There is a great piece/poem that The Warrior Poet (aka Aubrey Marcus) wrote. This piece in itself is pretty powerful! I've been struggling to put my thoughts down on paper about a similar subject if not the same. Aubrey Marcus does an admirable job in defining a "Warrior"!!

Marcus collaborated with NotThisBody on the below video which more than brings the text to life!

Enjoy!

What is a Warrior? from Warrior Poet on Vimeo.

Full transcript:

What is a warrior? A warrior is a way of life, a way of thinking, a way of being. Carlos Castaneda says we choose only once, to be warriors or ordinary. We choose only once. Because choosing to be a warrior alters your fundamental approach to life. While others will view everything as a blessing or a curse, you see only challenges. And a warrior lives to overcome challenges.

Every warrior has a code, an ethos. It is an invisible thread that connects him to all of his warrior brothers and sisters since the beginning of time. Steven Pressfield asks “How do we find our true calling, our soul companions, our destiny? He answers, “In this task, our mightiest ally is the warrior ethos.”

A warrior never hopes, but he must have faith. Hope is powerless, useless... The longer we sit and hope the more time we waste, because the universe gives only what is sought, what is believed! But yet a warrior must have faith. Because at times not every path is clear, and not every enemy a fiery dragon. When the forest is dark the warrior holds his ground with faith that if he remembers the warrior code, the light to illuminate the darkness will come.

For the warrior, the body is as important as the mind, because the two are inseparable. Danielle Bolleli writes “ A person who knows there is a wild wolf living under the skin has less reason to be intimidated by reality. Even when the power of the mind is in doubt, the body can provide tangible proof.”

A warrior is not an ascetic. He does not deny himself the pleasures of conquest simply for the sake of denying them. He realizes that in denying oneself it is easy to think he is doing great things, when really he is just focused on himself. But neither is the warrior attached to these pleasures. He can walk away from them at any time, and sometimes he does, just to prove it to himself.

The warrior is a natural leader, and he leads under one principle-- Follow me. When Alexander the great was threatened with mutiny after years of a brutal campaign in India, he stripped down naked, so all the men could see his scars. “Bring forth a man who has bled more than me, and we will go home.” No one came forth, because it was Alexander, riding his horse Bucephalus with a double plumed helmet who led every charge. Instead, his men erupted in cheers and pounded their shields.

The Warrior is a Believer. As Paulo Coelho says, “Because he believes in miracles, miracles begin to happen. Because he is sure that his thoughts can change his life, his life begins to change. Because he is certain that he will find love, love appears.”

A warrior is highly tuned to sense danger, but he does not fear. He does not fear because pain is temporary and death is an illusion. What is eternal cannot die, and the warrior knows that he will laugh, he will love, and he will fight for all eternity, in this world or some other.

If he errs, if he wanders, if he indulges in self pity, if he complains... He does not despair. He knows that he is human, and he remembers the choice he made. He picks his sword back up from the ground, and resumes the path of the warrior.

A warrior fights for one reason alone: love. Love of life, love of what is good, love of family, love of tribe, and love of our infinite soul on the quest for impeccability. He lets love swell in his heart, flushing through every cell in his being until he cannot help but proclaim, like Cyrano De Bergerac, “I am going to be a storm -- a flame -- I need to fight whole armies alone. I have ten hearts! I have a hundred arms! I feel too strong to war with mortals. Bring me GIANTS!”

Please check out these other posts on Poetry:

For further info:

NOTE: My appreciation to my friend Eddie C. for giving me a heads-up on this!

Happy 31st Birthday Iko Uwais! (The Raid: Redemption Animated GIF Set 1)

Happy 31st Birthday Iko Uwais!!

In celebration, I made 3 sets of animated GIFs from his 2nd movie, The Raid: Redemption. Here is the first set which features Iko Uwais using a PR-24 baton and knife vs bad guys!

Enjoy!

Here are the next 2 GIF Sets in this series:

For other GIFs I made featuring the Baton (Telescopic), please check out:

For further info on Iko Uwais:

NOTE: Posted Feb 14, 2014 as-of Feb 12, 2014. Home sick and didn't have a chance to make the GIFs in time for Iko Uwais' birthday :( Deepest appreciation to my friend Rosemary D. for the reminder!

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: Feb 11, 1990 Mike Tyson vs. Buster Douglas

24 years ago, history was made! Remembering when Buster Douglas knocked out Mike Tyson back on Feb 11, 1990 in Ring Magazine's Upset of the Year.

Made some GIFs and posting a video.

GIF in 2 speeds:

Here is the full fight:

For more information:

Evan Tanner would've been 43 today :(

"Believe in yourself. Believe in your own potential for greatness. Believe that you can change the world. It is something that is within each of us. Believe in the Power of ONE."
~ Evan Tanner

I had an epic project planned for this most special of dates but didn't finish it in time sadly. I wanted to take a moment to recognize the birthday of a special and popular MMA fighter. Today would've been the 43rd birthday of Evan Tanner.

My previous entries on Evan Tanner:

For further info:

RIP Champ

Friday, February 07, 2014

Physical Body DVD Outtakes 1/2 Part 2 - Jori/Gada swinging at Morchali Birbaba Akhara in Varanasi

Back on Jan 23, 2014, I posted:

The Physical Body DVD Outtakes 1/2 - Hanuman Akhara in Delhi, India

Here is the 2nd part of the Outtakes:

"The second part in our Physical Body outtakes series focuses on Jori and Gada swinging at the Morchali Birbaba Akhara in Varanasi."

Kushti: Physical Body Outtakes Part 2 from Vincent Giordano on Vimeo.

Here is Part 3:

Kushti: Physical Body Outtakes Part 3

Enjoy!

For ordering info, please check out:

For further information on new DVDs, please email:

vanishingflame@NOSPAMgmail.com(please take out the "NOSPAM" when emailing)

Thursday, February 06, 2014

Happy Birthday everyone! It's Renri (Chinese:人日, literally Human Day) today.

According to Chinese culture, today is everyone's birthday! It's Renri (Chinese:人日, literally Human Day) today.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renri:

Renri (Chinese:人日, literally Human Day) refers specially to the 7th day of zhengyue (正月, the first month in the Chinese calendar). According to Chinese customs, renri was the day human beings were created. It is celebrated not only in China, but also other regions influenced by Chinese culture.

Happy Birthday everyone! or Happy Renri Day!

Saturday, February 01, 2014

Happy 27th Birthday Ronda Rousey!!

Ronda Rousey turns 27 today! May she have a long and successful career!! Posting 2 videos in her honor!

Happy Birthday Ronda!!!

Ronda Rousey 2014 Highlight || I Don't Give A Damn by @FlyWinMedia

Ronda Rousey tells us in detail what it feels like to tear apart an arm

For previous posts you may have missed:

For further info:

Brandon Lee would've been 49 today!

*SIGH*

Of all the people who have passed, Brandon Lee holds a special place in my heart. I identified with him closely, too closely, mostly because he was the son of Bruce Lee and also he was born in the same year as me.

Just when his star was rising, one day it was all gone and that hurt, that hurt deeply.

I do not know him personally but like all charismatic celebrities, the fan identifies with the celebrity and well, I'm no exception.

I wanted to take time out of this day to recognize that Brandon Lee would've been 49 today.

Happy Birthday Brandon!

Previous entries on Brandon Lee you may have missed: