Taipei 101 New Years Eve moments before the countdown

I would summarize 2009 as the year of taking the leap and the year of pushing limits. It was a year filled with incredible experiences.

wushu training with the beijing wushu team

The day I made the US Wushu A Team

First of all 2009 was incredible in that it topped 2008 which was already a great year. In 2009 I yet again took a leave of absence and traveled to China to train for the US national wushu team trials. I was reunited with great wushu friends, beijing food, and intense training with the beijing wushu team. I can’t believe that was just this year because so much has happened this year. I came back to the US and enacted revenge on my 2007 Team Trials results. This year I finally made the US wushu team. In 2009 I fulfilled my LIFELONG dream to be on the A team of the US wushu team. There were moments of stress, fear, anxiety, friendship, excitement, ambition, and joy in all the millions of seconds that led me up to receiving my official certificate placing me on the 1st seat of the 2009 US wushu team. This alone would have made 2009 a memorable year among memorable years.

US Wushu A Team

2 Gold Medalists with JBJ reppin USA

To add to the excitement, this was the year I would finally take the plunge. I took a leap of faith to pursue my passions by quitting my stable corporate job. Boy do I not regret that move. It was something I thought of doing for a long time, but when I did it everything seemed to fall into place. It allowed me to devote more physical and mental energy to training for the World Wushu Championships! All the competitors at the 10th World Wushu Championships were eager to fight for their right to take home a medal for their country. Therefore, I think every extra second I trained helped me win my title as a World Champion in straight sword. There will always be a time to work on a career or make money, but this was my moment to seize a World Champion title and I did it! Fortunately for me my parents were there as well to witness that moment. I can’t describe how unbelievable it is to be able to think back on that day- especially since wushu has been such a big part of my life. This World Wushu Championships completed the circle on my wushu career. I wanted no regrets and I left with none. I wanted to be satisfied with my performance on ALL my forms not just straight sword and I was very happy with my performances in chang quan and qiang shu as well.

Smashing pots on Deadliest Warrior

butterfinger fight commercial

Playing the part of a sailor

In front of the camera I got on my first national and international TV show.  I got the part as the Shaolin Expert and lead shaolin monk protagonist on Spike TV’s Deadliest Warrior. My episode caught quite some publicity with the shaolin fighting and my eye gouging with the emei piercers.  It even aired in Canada and the UK! Aside from this show I also did my first green screen project with the History Channel and worked on 2 projects with good buddies David and Al Brocca. Projects followed projects and I got to do photo shoots and ended up getting featured articles in Masters Magazine and Kung Fu Magazine!

tea in store

Nicole promoting Angels Tea

In business WushuKicks has successfully grown from a project in the back of my head to an incorporated business that brings in consistent sales every month. We also got our google checkout badge, increased page rank, and made sales to well known clients such as Cirque du Soleil. I got my real estate license and am a recognized real estate agent. I also partnered up with a few entrepreneurs this year and learned and worked on many other business ventures including clothing, pokerbling, angels tea, and nutritional supplements. Angels Tea signed contracts with 3 retail locations that now offer our delicious flavors.

TST in Hong Kong

Friends in Taiwan

Mucho thanks to Ivy for looking out for me in business and entertainment in Taiwan

Big Thanks to Sarah and her family for making my Taiwan Adventures possible!

After the plunge to become an entertainer and entrepreneur I flew from Toronto to SF and before I could get over the time difference of Toronto and SF, I flew to Taipei.  During my stay in Asia, I went to Hong Kong and Macau as well. I met Daniel Wu and Victy Wong a member of the Jackie Chan stunt team. Both are people that I respect and people that have worked with Jackie Chan. =) I am still in Taipei as I write this, but will be heading home in 2 days. In Taipei I was interviewed by Channel 10 News and also interviewed on a famous variety show hosted by Zhang Fei. The friends and bonds I made here will definitely be lifelong ones. I achieved most of my goals for this trip which included getting more familiar with the entertainment industry, learning more chinese, and deciding whether I could or would like to live in Asia for an extended period of time.

I’ve fulfilled many goals this year including an 8 year long wushu dream, being on national tv, and watching the fireworks light up from the 101 building in Taipei. I think 2010 is a very bright year. I am looking forward with anticipation and excitement. I got my years of corporate experience and am ready to embark on a unpaved path as an entrepreneur. I have no excuses now and have put myself in a sink or swim situation. I predict success, but either way I am following my motto.. of living a life without regrets. On one path, I am more safe and know the outcome (which I know I will not be satisfied with), on the other I forge my own destiny to achieve greatness in the things I am passionate about.. in which I know that even without success, the memories built from doing something I am passionate about will already be more valuable than the safe path. In any case all I am saying is that 2010 is the year for this passion and excitement. It’s not to say that some time in the future, I won’t want more stability and calm.. but 2010 will not be that year. =)

Performed drunken sword at the Long Beach Internationals on August 8th, 2009. Suzy of UCLA Wushu performed straight sword. It was supposed to be mainly a UCLA wushu demo, but some FORCES OF NATURE were literally OUT to prevent this demo from happening. Normally its super easy to get people to demo. This time everyone happened to be out of town, out of the country (stopher), running errands (dennis), parents in town (adam), CAR ACCIDENT (rickie), and more random occurences. In the end it was me and Susan. Then the demo coordinator had his line up of demos running late and he almost couldnt squeeze us in and Suzy had parked at a metered spot so she needed to leave to prevent being charged exorbitant rates so she was almost out of the picture. This was not meant to be, but in the end my beast mode willed through it and made the demo happen… which might explain why I went beast mode on my demo itself.

Dragon The Bruce Lee Story

Bruce Lee Similarities
So a few nights before, “Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story” was on TV and there was a scene where Bruce Lee was at the First Ed Parker Long Beach Martial Arts Tournament. He did a minute long demo where in the movie he challenged anyone in the building saying he could defeat them in under 60 seconds. Bruce’s wife Linda told him not to fight but then he still did. In the end, he won and was spotted by the director for the Green Hornet where Bruce was ultimately cast as Kato.

Coincidentally, I was going to a similar Long Beach Tournament. I was asked to demo. My form (drunken sword) is about a minute long. There were forces trying to prevent me from demoing. I was submitted and trying out for the role of Kato. My roommate and I joked that it was meant to be. (My “Alfred as Kato” article http://www.casualiscool.com/martial-arts/alfred-hsing-as-kato-in-the-green-hornet-plus-my-new-2009-demo-reel/) Unfortunately Jay Chou got cast as Kato. LOL! =(

http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=57816 – It hurts me!.. but good luck to Jay Chou!

My Changquan

My Taijiquan

My Jianshu

My Qiangshu

My Taijijian
Coming soon…

Ready

Li Mu Bai: No growth without assistance. No action without reaction. No desire without restraint. Now give yourself up and find yourself again.

Wushu
2009 US Wushu Team Trials is tomorrow. Dennis, Will, and Sarah stayed over at my house last night. This morning I woke up at 9am and then walked through my forms once each with Zou lao shi at Omei Cupertino.
Then we all went to Lees Sandwiches for some grub. At 1pm we got to Li Su Dong’s school for warm ups. Fu Bi De helped me make a dope spear which I will be using on Sunday. After warm ups we went home to get changed and drew lots at the Hilton. My order of events are:

Saturday
Changquan – #5 out of 34
Taijiquan – #2 out of 6
Taijijian – #4 out of 6
Jianshu – #14 out of 14

Sunday
Qiangshu – #8 out of 14

Had a delicious pasta dinner that my mom made along with some carrots and celery. Going to make my tai chi music now and then get some rest. Been training 2 years specifically for this. Going to do my best tomorrow.

Currently thinking about what Damarques Johnson (from the Ultimate Fighter US vs UK) says before a fight.

Something to the effect of-
God thank you for letting me fight. I don’t pray for victory, I just ask that I fight to the best of ability and thank you for letting me have the chance to display my skill.

Other
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