So this morning I was scrolling through my phone and saw this complicated guide about Rodrigues Shogun techniques. Looked fancy but way too messy. I thought – heck, why not try making this simpler? Grabbed my notebook and started experimenting.
Getting Stuff Ready
First thing, I needed actual examples to work with. Rummaged through my kitchen junk drawer:
- Three mismatched chopsticks
- An old plastic fork
- Half-broken wooden spatula
- My kid’s pencil case for rotations
Set everything on the dining table covered with pizza grease stains. Perfect messy workspace.
Testing Basic Movements
Started twisting chopsticks clockwise against the pencil case corner. Too slippery. Tried counter-clockwise while pushing down – bam! The spatula went flying and hit the wall. Recorded this disaster in my notebook: “Lesson 1: Dry surfaces = flying objects“.
Added friction by wetting the chopstick tips with soda spilled earlier. That sticky mess finally gave me control. Made three different rotations:
- Slow drag-and-spin with two fingers
- Quick wrist flick holding the middle
- Whole palm rolling thing
Turned pencil case upside down for vertical flips. Dropped everything four times before finally getting stable motion.
Building Muscle Memory
Tried doing same movements blindfolded with oven mittens on. Felt like drunk octopus. Kept going until I could rotate and flip stuff without dropping. Counted reps in my phone notes:
- Morning: 26 fails, 3 successes
- After lunch: 9 fails, 11 successes
My shoulder started burning from awkward angles. Noticed my elbow was doing extra wobble – locked it against my hip and immediately got cleaner spins.
Final Test
Grabbed kitchen tongs – hardest object. Did rapid flips while humming that annoying nursery rhyme stuck in my head. Took eighteen attempts but finally nailed five clean rotations without dropping.
Biggest takeaway? Stop when hands cramp. And pizza grease actually helps with friction.
