If you noticed the site looking funny Sunday morning, it's because I was reinstalling the server-side blog software I use, which is called WordPress. Some time in the last month or two this blog was hacked, through a vulnerability in WordPress that is described here.
The effect of the hack was to inject hundreds of links to spammers' web sites into the text of the blog, in one case visibly and in one case invisibly. This benefits hackers because if they can get a lot of web sites to link to StupidViagraSite.com, Google will think StupidViagraSite.com is "interesting," and will rank it highly in search results.
Here's what I did:
I deleted the spam links.
I upgraded WordPress to a version that fixes this vulnerability.
I changed all relevant passwords and took other security precautions.
Hearty congratulations to Reuben and Abigale, whose first child arrived on Tuesday, May 27 at 10:01 AM. Reuben writes:
Her name is Lucy Knapp Govender and she arrived very happily weighing in at solid 6 pounds 15 ounces (not sure if there is a Judo weight category for her !!!) and she measured 21 inches long which I am reliably informed is "tall" for a newborn. In any case, I promised Sensei and Barbara that I would bring pictures but it seems I will most likely not be at the dojo for a while until my wife and I get into some sort of non-sleep-deprived schedule.
Yotam posted some photos from the Kodokan's Spring Red and White Tournament. The "highlight" pictures are in the "Japan 2008" set, starting here and ending with this shot of Yotam and Thomi Lee (click the photo to see it on Flickr):
The whole "2008 Spring Kohaku-jiai (Red & White Tournament)" set is here. I almost feel like I was there.
I was going through old posts and noticed it's been one year since we started the move from Leonard St. We started taking up the mats last Memorial Day weekend. I remember Sensei and Barbara fed us with takeout from Excellent Dumpling House, on Lafayette below Canal. I was just there yesterday — good hot and sour soup.
June 11 will be the first anniversary of the first class at the new location. I think it's safe to say the dojo feels much more lived-in now.
Not only do my eyes play tricks on me; my brain never learns.
These stickers are in the window of a storefront on the way from my office to the dojo. Every time I walk by it, I think I see the word "KOGA", and I do a double take. Every time.
Oishi Judo had a good turnout at yesterday's Hudson promotionals. Alex, Bob, Karim, Mars, Michael, Paul, Ron, Tom, and Yotam all competed.
Congratulations to Yotam Gingold, who advances to nikyu, and Paul Virtue, who is now a kata test away from shodan. Paul won six times in a row in the masters division, including five consecutive ippons.
Here are highlights, including ippons by Ron and Bob.
Update: Here are the matches that Yotam won, in their entirety:
I'm always forgetting how to get from Manhattan to Tech Judo. Here are bus directions for future reference. (Driving directions are on the Tech Judo web site.)
You will be taking the number 127 NJ Transit bus to North Bergen. The bus schedule can be downloaded from NJ Transit. It will be about a twenty minute bus ride followed by a ten minute walk. Plan accordingly around your weigh-in time.
Go to the Port Authority bus terminal. You want to be in the building at 42nd and 8th. Follow the signs within the terminal to Gate 230. It may take you a few minutes to get oriented and find the signs if you haven't made this trip before. There are ticket machines by the gate and at other locations within the terminal. When the ticket machine prompts you for a zone, enter 2 (you can look up the zone number for North Bergen on a sign by the machine, but I thought I'd save you a moment). As of this writing, an adult round trip is $5.10.
From Port Authority the bus will go into New Jersey, weave around a bit, and get onto a main road called Tonnelle Ave. Tech Judo is on 85th St. off Tonnelle. You'll see the street numbers increasing as you proceed along Tonnelle. Get off at 83rd St. (ring for the driver to stop when you're at 81st or so). Don't worry if you miss it, you can also get off at 86th.
Walk to 85th. You'll be walking downhill on 85th for maybe the equivalent of two city blocks. You'll walk past a parking lot on your left and then the facility will be on your right. You'll probably see judoka hanging around out front. There are two entrances. Take the one on the right to sign in and get weighed.
The 127 bus doesn't run very frequently, at least not on weekends, so plan your return trip accordingly. You can catch the returning bus on Tonnelle at about 83rd or 84th, I forget exactly which.
UPDATE: I rewrote some parts and added details like the gate number and zone number for the 127 bus. Also I've learned you can take the 166 or 165 bus (thanks to referee Lillian Tom). Those buses come much more frequently, but the walk from Tech Judo to the bus stop is much longer and all uphill. I'm too lazy to write up the alternate route right now; just be aware that it exists and might come in handy.
UPDATE, 2012-04-25: Below is a map that shows the path the 127 bus takes from Port Authority to where you want to get off. You can click the image to go to Google Maps, where you can use street view, see bus alternatives, etc.
