Karate conundrum

It's been about two months since I last attended classes at my new (Shotokan) dojo. I'm trying to decide if I want to go back. On the one hand, if I continue in Shotokan, I'll eventually (probably) get my black belt and my teaching license, and be able to teach. This is a happy-making thought. On the other hand, I'm not particularly crazy about the way the classes are run, and I'm not certain that Shotokan is the right style for me.

Another option I've considered is returning to Sensei Don's (Chito-Ryu) dojo. The more I'm away, the more I realize that I really like the way Don runs his classes, and I always feel that there's more to learn. (A feeling I don't get at the Shotokan dojo, mostly because of the way the classes are structured.) If I ever teach karate, I want to run my classes the way Don runs his. I also think Chito-Ryu's a better fit for me than Shotokan. On the other hand, I'll probably never reach black belt at Don's dojo and I'll probably never teach. One further consideration: while I'm technically a blue belt at Don's dojo, I've forgotten a lot, and even with some intensive practice at home, I'd need to relearn most of the more advanced stuff (i.e. green- and blue-belt techniques) and I can imagine a few awkward moments at the dojo as I'm relearning.

Finally, there's the option of just not going back for a while. As things stand, my Wednesday nights and Friday nights are booked, as are every other Thursday. And if I get a 9-5 job again, I might not be able to get to evening classes anyway. I stopped going regularly to Don's dojo when I started working at Softitler and found myself in the office every day until 6:30, which conflicted with most of the classes.

So... I don't know. I'd really like to start moving again, especially now that Marc's all muscled after his fire season. I just don't know what I should be doing. Anyone want to chime in with their two cents?

Adventures in cooking: Corniest corn muffins

There's a recent column in the New York Times called "The Apprentice Baker." She, like me, is teaching herself to cook (and bake), and has been working through various recipes that a chef friend of hers is giving her. The very first recipe she tried out is called corniest corn muffins, and it is a cornmeal muffin with corn kernels in it. It sounded interesting, and I'd never made muffins before, so I decided to give it a shot.

I made two batches, actually. Both times, the butter congealed while I was mixing it (oh, well), but otherwise it came out more or less as expected. Marc and I weren't crazy about the corn kernels in the first batch, so we left them out for the second one. We both agree that that second one, without kernels, is much better, and probably a keeper.

We agree that they're much better with butter. I'll be taking them to my D&D game tonight, and we'll see what people there think.