Today I joined a (actually the, I believe) local aikido dojo, and bought a dogi to train in as well. Along with my gi came an obi, of course, and, well, I’ve got no idea how to tie the thing. A quick google serach on ‘obi’ is inconclusive.
So, to the akidoists and other martial artists here, what’s the proper/best way?
Huh. I tied a kenpo belt this way, but I don’t know if aikido is the same…
Start with the belt ends in your hands, in front of you. Pass the ends around your middle and cross them over in the back. Bring the ends forward again and tie in a square knot in front of you.
Thanks you two; simple enough, especially with the illustrations. 
You should have a “fortune cookie”- slot facing outwards and squared to front in binding knot.
I think a proper square knot will create that “cookie.”
I could run up and tie one of my kid’s belts to double-check! 
IME, there are several knots with which to tie an obi, and your school will have a preferred way, which they will teach you before your first class. You are not, I’m sure, the only new student who doesn’t know.
My son’s school (blended form) ties theirs so it points out a little in the front (I could see it being called a “fortune cookie”, like **devilsknew **describes. But unfortunately, there’s no way I could describe how to do it without pictures. But that’s OK, 'cause your school will undoubtedly want something different. If I were in your place, I’d put on my gi before class and hold the obi folded in my hands. If you see a teacher before class, respectfully ask how to tie the obi then, if not, they’ll notice you holding your obi at the lineup and they’ll help you. Some schools even have a little bit of ceremony around a person getting their first obi tied on by the teacher - a symbol of the student/teacher relationship.
My son’s teachers seem offended if an obi is tied wrong, which is why I wouldn’t guess and do a square knot. A square knot should lie flat in front, forming a perfectly flat square, and is definitely not the knot my son uses. But it’s probably the correct knot in some schools.
Went to my first class today, and as it turns out, the knot described in toadspittle’s post is spot on. As soon as I popped out of the dressing room, another student was ready to lend a hand with it.
Now if only falling down were so easy… 
Thanks again all.
Sooooo…how was the class?
It was fun, certainly, though there’s always that awkwardness to work through with something like this; you’re doing things that’re all quite foreign, and you sorta feel like a complete klutz with your arms and legs not doing what they ought to. So doing a basic backwards roll I sorta felt like my legs were just flailing about; forwards I tended to go more sideways than I should’ve.
That said, we did do some very basic techniques to work on falling properly, which at least hinted at where things go from here; if I can figure out how to fall, roll about, and keep my pants from falling down–with which the obi, sad to say, does not much help!–I think I may enjoy this quite a bit.
From what I’ve seen of my fellow students, the various teachers, and the atmosphere of the dojo in general, it seems like a very relaxed, supportive place to be, and since it’s non-profit, I don’t get any of that slight feeling of shadiness that I did when I did a little kung fu back in the day.
Overall, it was a very good experience. I’m probably going again tomorrow.