This list represents five people who've had a major impact on my life;

My Mom and Dad, for always supporting me even during the toughest of times, and teaching me right from wrong.

Caroll Purshuty, for teaching me to control my anger and be a kinder person.

Hayao Miyazaki, for making me want to learn how to draw and animate, and become an artist.

Shigeru Miyamoto, for making the games that I grew up with and making me want to become a game designer and…

Cross-train your brain

Cross-training simply means doing exercises that alternately work the left (verbal memory and logic) and right (visual memory) sides of the brain, thereby boosting mental agility over time. For a fun cognitive workout, go to our sister site, ellegirl.com, where you can play games like Chinese Checkers,…

No one ever ‘gets’ a black belt.  It’s not something that you wear, it’s something that you become.

Many people know that at our school children are not allowed to "get" their first uniform and white belt either.  They earn it, by proving that they understand that martial arts is more than kicking and punching, and that at Mercer Island Martial Arts we teach, lesson…