The Dragon's Head Blog

Restoration work continues at our second International Center.  Framing teams continue construction of the load-bearing walls and have begun replacement of the girders on the second floor of the northeast wing. Plumbers continue to work in the southeast wing. The lobby scaffolding around the new support column has been removed. Work on the new lobby […]

On February 27th the Corpus Christi, Texas location welcomed the Year of the Fire Monkey with our traditional Chinese New Year banquet at our Santa Fe street location. Over 80 guests attended including the Corpus Christi Chief of Police, Fire Chief, and Assistant Director of Parks & Recreation, as well as participants from Austin and […]

On Friday, March 18th, the Tampa Bay Times will run the following article with an online video of the work being done at the International Center Florida, Fenway Hotel and the Society. Watch the video Tampa Bay Times Article Even during its latest 10-year stint as a vacant building, the historic Fenway Hotel has remained […]

Over eighty members attended the Chinese New Year Dinner at the Buffalo Center on March 5th. Everyone enjoyed the northwestern Chinese style menu as well as the music provided by our talented members.  Thanks go out to everyone who participated in the planning, preparation and clean-up of the dinner.

There has been lots of activity in the southeast wing of the A building (the Fenway Hotel). This wing has had the roof dried-in. This refers to the process of applying a layer of roofing paper, tar and a thick rubber material to waterproof the roof. The final roofing material layer for all of the wings […]

The Portland Oregon Branch held its annual Chinese New Year Reception and Banquet on February 27th Approximately 200 participants and guests came together to celebrate and to welcome honored guests, Aide to US Senator Ron Wyden, State Representative Lew Fredrick, and VA Recreational Therapist Nancy McFarland who is helping us make Taoist Tai Chi available to […]

Osprey were sighted today on the new nesting platform at the International Center in Dunedin, Florida. The osprey originally had their nest in one of the chimneys that needed to be removed. The society asked forestry officials and the National Audubon Society to oversee the move of the nest to the platform on top of […]

Participants attending the five-day International Program held last week at the International Center in Florida enjoyed the beautiful sunshine and pleasant weather. Participants working in small groups discovered the circle in the square doing dan yus.  The balance of palms pushing out and relaxed dropping opened the pelvic floor. They were given a special treat on Friday:  […]

This is the International Center Florida construction update for the week ending January 31, 2016. Building A Windows Window installers continue to install the east and west windows on the center wing of Building A. Exterior Stairwells The exterior stairwells on the north and south sides of the building have surveyors’ stakes in place prior […]

Participants in Billings, Montana held their Chinese New Year celebration including a talk about the origin and meaning of the year of the fire monkey. A delicious pot-luck dinner was enjoyed by all and there was no shortage of volunteers to demonstrate the Tai Chi Set when requested by a participant’s spouse.

International Center Florida Construction Update for the week ending January 21, 2016 Building A Interior Framing and strapping continues throughout the first floor SE wing. Replacement of damaged floor joists continues on second floor NE wing. The elevator and restrooms support walls were constructed and cells filled with concrete. These walls will support floor joists […]

More than 170 participants attended the Central Region Program lead by Tony Kwong. The weather was beautiful and cool. The group was divided with half of the participants in the practice hall and half under a tent in the north parking lot. One evening the group had an ice cream social and a set in the courtyard. Many participants […]

International Center Florida Construction Update Jan 12, 2016 Framing and strapping continues on the first and second floors. The SE wing framing is completed and strapping continues. On the second floor of the  NE wing above the kitchen, the sub-floor has been removed to expose potential termite damage to the floor joists.    Looking down […]

I am a living testimonial that Taoist Tai Chi® arts is a lifestyle practice that everyone can benefit from, regardless of age and physical challenges. Here’s my story. Ten years ago I was in my 50s and enjoying my second adolescence of activity. I ran, swam, cycled and competed in age group triathlons. It was […]

International Center Florida Construction Update for  Jan 5, 2016 The new windows for the International Center Florida were delivered today for building A from Marvin Integrity. The trucks originated in Fargo, North Dakota and arrived this morning at 8:30AM and 12:30PM. Windows were unloaded by hand and locked inside of building C north wing. The […]

The International Center Florida held its first Senior Trip to the Duncan McClellan Glass Gallery and Hot Shop on January 6, 2016. The Duncan McClellan Gallery, located in St. Petersberg Florida, features rotating exhibitions showcasing nationally and internationally recognized glass artists. With 3,000 square feet of gallery spaces and 5,000 square feet of outdoor courtyards, the […]

On January 9th and 10th the International Center Florida held its first Hsing-i Weekend. Nearly 100 participants took part in the workshop lead by Sean Dennison. The weekend precedes the Central Region Program January 13-17th.

Inspired by the Dunedin Center’s dragon bike rack, James Mallory, working on Fenway’s construction, built a Rocking Dragon from wood reused from the Fenway and donated it to the Branch.  This was raffled as a fundraiser at Tai Chi Week in November and won by Steve Shaya of Dunedin.  He shipped it to Santa who […]

The 8:00 am class took responsibility to plan a holiday party at the Sarasota, FL branch.  Afraid it would be difficult to lure people out of their comfortable homes during the holiday break, the class decided to do something different.  With Branch Council support, and a bit of skepticism – the idea was put into […]