POINT YOUR FEET!

Grrr, my feet.

I dislike my feet for a lot of reasons.  They are weird and knobby with callouses.  My toes are freakishly long, and because my second toe is longer than my first, sandals never look right on me.

My newest gripe is that they've never been trained to point.  Because of yoga, I can flex and even floint like a boss.  (Flointing is when you point your feet but flex your toes.  It is really ugly, but it is very good for engaging your feet and legs.)  You know that when yoga teachers tell you to lift you toes and spread them wide in tadasana?  I can spread my toes like fingers and move each one individually (yeah, it's freaky looking).

But pointing is taking some time and work to become a habit.

Learning to Release: Magic Movement

As some of you may remember, I started my journey of movement study exploration because of the fairly traumatic experience of losing my job. I had never failed anything before, and it hit me very hard. I figured I should try lots of things I wasn't naturally good at to learn that it wasn't the worst thing ever. I haven't written about about aerial that much here, but that was the activity that really "took" for me. I've been training about two to three times a week for a year now, and my teacher has declared me NOT TERRIBLE. Trust me, I started out pretty terrible, and while I am not exactly amazing now, I am not terrible. 

With this new found not-terribleness at aerial, I've been thinking that I should try something out of my comfort zone once again.  Well, sometimes life gives you exactly what you're looking for in unexpected ways.  Yesterday, I was at the aerial studio for my weekly lyra class when my teacher asked if I minded if we took a Magic Movement class with Magic DS instead.  None of this really meant anything to me, but as fairly non-demanding person, I simply said yes.

Laterpost - Intro Horton at Alvin Ailey

I wrote this post a while ago and had been letting it languish on my Google drive.  Remembered about it because I'm looking for a class to take on Friday.  Anyway, without further ado, my write up on Intro Horton at Alvin Ailey.

From 4/19/2013

I LOVED this class.  Loved, loved, loved.  A bit too tired to write in proper paragraphs with transitions and things, so a list after the jump.

I LOVE TV! Part I: Bunheads

I love TV.  I've always loved TV.  The only people who might love TV more than me are Mike Teavee and my sister.*  Anyway, at one point, the focus of my ardor was Gilmore Girls.  I would not take any phone calls while it was on, no talking was allowed during the episode, etc, etc.**  So it's kind of surprising that I did not immediately jump on the Gilmore Girl's creator Amy Sherman-Palladino's latest show about ballet students, Bunheads.  It probably has something to do with the fact that I am no longer a 14 year old girl.  More on this after the jump.

*Seriously, my sister loves television to a scary degree.  She has a journal from elementary school where she only wrote about TV shows we would watch after school while my parents were at work and we were watched by my doting grandmother.  Who ALSO loves TV.

** The only other show I have ever been so serious about is Boy Meets World.   A sequel of which is now being made about their CHILDREN.  God, I am an old.

A Reflection on my Yoga Teacher Training

When I received an e-mail asking me to write about my yoga teacher training experience, I immediately had a vivid memory of the first session of my training.  We were asked a similar question that evening, twenty-odd strangers sittings in a candlelit circle.  "Why did you choose to do this?"

That night, I dutifully fell to my task earnestly and honestly.  And then we were asked to share.  Share!  With a group of strangers!  I was not ready to expose myself to these people.   As the first person in the circle began to read from their journal, I frantically composed sentences in my head to say aloud  instead of what I had written.  I want to teach because I want to learn!  Or I want to spread the joy of my practice to the world with a pageant smile.  Content with that lie, I relaxed and anticipated my turn.

It would be a narrative device to say that I was the very last person to share and by the time it was my turn, my heart grew three sizes and I spilled my guts and that is what my teacher training means to me,  blah blah blah.  As it was, I was somewhere in the middle of the circle, and I was no yogi grinch, but listening to the others share openly did touch me a little.  Not enough to reveal everything, but enough that when it was my turn, my voice wavered as I spoke these words of truth, "Because I need this."

Student Teacher Mantra

Hello all!  I know I have not posted recently.  Things have been super busy.

BUT, I had to share this amazing recording of my fellow Kripalu yoga teacher trainees and I singing the Student Teacher Mantra from earlier this year.  We would sing this every session before class.  It's so funny, I had recently been asked to write about my yoga teacher training for a blog (you will see it here soon as well), and in the same week I received the letter I wrote to myself during my training, and this lovely recording!

Thank you Lyra for sharing.



Sanskrit and English lyrics after the jump.

Happy Weekend - Girl Walk All Day Video

So, if you know me, you probably knew that I LOVE Girl Talk.  In fact, if you know me, you may have taken a road trip where we only played Girl Talk, or you may have come to one of my numerous Girl Talk dance parties.  And by party I DO mean me drinking too much wine and rolling around on the floor to Girl Talk, while everyone else points and laughs.

Anyway, I am way behind the news on this one.*  This group of awesome people made a full length dance video set to all of Girl Talk's All Day album.  While my favorite will always be Night Ripper, this work is amazing!  Fun, happy, quirky...check out the trailer below; the rest of the film can be seen on their website.

Time for another Girl Talk dance party at my house...who's in!?


Official Trailer: Girl Walk // All Day from Girl Walk // All Day on Vimeo.

*And yes, there was a New York Times piece on it.  You can read it here.

Hugasana - A Drawing

I was feeling kind of nostalgic for Kripalu as I haven't been able to go to the meetups with my friends from YTT due to busyness, and came up with this doodle.    It's inspired by the Mama tree on the Kripalu grounds, and by this exercise we did in my teacher training, where we just stayed in a hug with someone for ten minutes.  I wonder what my students would say if I made them do hug-asana!  I probably should get them more used to the idea of partner work first!

Circus Art - Kees Van Dongen

As you may know (from real life or reading this blog), I work at a painting restoration studio.  We work with the auction houses a lot and I get to see really cool stuff.  And touch really expensive paintings.  Touching expensive paintings is the best, I highly recommend it.  Except at museums where you will set off alarms and have guards tackle you.  Anyway, this painting by Kees Van Dongen came across my radar a little while ago because it was in a sale, but I found myself thinking about it during aerial class at Circus to the People.  I think it is quite nifty!  And no, I can't do a crazy one armed handstand arabesque thing.

L'equilibriste

Von Dongen was a Fauvist artist who painted dancers, socialites, theater people, circus folk and prostitutes. You can read more about him on Wikipedia here.

OM my god, Aerial meditation!

So I've been away on vacation the last week, which is why I was lax about updating.  I was too busy napping on the beach in Bethany, DE.

Anyway, just a quick post to say that I have been doing more aerial arts!  One of my current favorite things is Aerial OM Meditation at OMFactory.  The class is basically what it sounds like, a combination of aerial yoga, meditation and chanting.  But what makes the class really special is the teacher, Seanna Sharpe.  An ISHTA yoga person (all of my favorite teachers who are not Kripalu are ISHTA) and amazing aerialist.  Below is a video of her doing cloud swing off of the Williamsburg Bridge in 2011.   She was arrested for it!  Seanna also teaches a donation based circus class, which I will be going to on Saturday.

Happy Weekend - Brokelandia Yoga Video!

I stumbled across this video recently.  Brokelandia is like Portlandia, but about Brooklyn, which happens to be where I was born and raised, as well as where I am currently living.  In fact the intersection they show in this video (Bedford and N. 7th) is a five minute walk from where I live.  Hm, please don't stalk me based on that information.

Anyway, this is their take on Bikram yoga.  I have to admit I've never done Bikram, because I'm scared I'd be like the protagonist of this video.  Although, I DID recently make a foray into the world of hot yoga, which you can read about here.  Also, I'm kind of freaked out that the part at the end is going to be my future.   In fact, my friend just said, "Oh god, that's totally your future."  ALSO, it features Grizz from 30 Rock!

 

See the rest of the Brokelandia series here: https://www.youtube.com/user/BrokelandiaTV

Drawing: Cats Doing Yoga

I was kind of bored, so I did a picture of kittehs doing cat - cow.  Cat - cow is often done in yoga as a warm-up stretch.  Start in a neutral table top position.  On an inhale, broaden through the collar bones, lift the sitz bones up, let the belly drop (cow).  Exhale, round the spine, release the head and neck (cat).

Yoga on the Road

Amelia Island

Some people go on vacation and practice yoga in their hotels with spiffy Manduka travel mats, while their travel companions chow on free breakfast buffets.  Some people go on vacation and serenely meditate on the beach, while frolicking children and dogs join them in the surf for impromptu tree poses.  I am not that person.  On my vacation to Amelia Island last week, I was the person who mostly drank beer, ate fried seafood, slept in and napped on the  beach a lot.  I actually have a Manduka travel mat, but it didn't even occur to me to pack it.  To be fair, I'm horrible at packing and my process basically is throwing all of my clean underwear and semi-clean black dresses from the floor into a duffel bag.

However, I AM the kind of person who researches local yoga studios as soon as I have a travel destination. (Well, I research it second, after reading about where I can get the best food.)  And I am happy I do, because it always gives me a chance to try something new!

Sometimes

Sometimes a class just comes together.  Mirroring left and right just comes naturally.  Everyone laughs at your jokes.  The students audibly breathe.  There is an exchange of energy.  We come together into a sangha (community), while plumbing the depth of individual practice.

I taught two classes and went to one yesterday.  They were AWESOME!

Happy weekend!  Here is a beautiful cool yoga video.

Summer project...capoeira?

Summer always seems to fly by doesn't it?  I feel like I have a ton of projects that I wanted to do, and I haven't even begun many of them!  

Sadly, I am taking a hiatus from ballet until the fall.  I didn't write about this previously, but I had some meniscus and other knee problems in my left leg.  My left leg gives me trouble in a lot of physical activities; it's one of the reasons why I no longer run.  I've casually asked some dancers and podiatrists for their opinion, and apparently my left leg turns in at the knee and my alignment is all wonky.  The turn out required in ballet creates additional torque, which is what creates the pain.  The pain coincided with my ballet teacher taking a break from teaching for the summer because she just was ordained as a Episcopal priest, and so I decided to take break as well.

Anyway!  This does leave me with time to do other things, although not nearly enough time.  I definitely want to take modern at Mark Morris (I think I will take my first class this Wednesday evening!) and do more circus arts, especially aerial silks.  My grandmother, a tai-chi master, advises that I take that up as well and I found free classes in Bryant Park on Tuesday mornings.  And, speaking of martial arts, I have some vouchers for Budokan classes I have to use.  I also noticed that a capoeira center opened up near my boyfriends apartment and am very curious about it.  Capoeira is a blend of martial arts, dance and music; doesn't it look nifty?  

What are your summer projects?

The greatest thing you'll ever learn...

The more I teach, the more I learn.  And the more I learn, the more I realize I do not know.  And then the doubt sets in.  Do my students hate me?  Am I doing this completely wrong?  What if I am the WORST TEACHER EVER?

As I mentioned before, I am prone to anxiety (you know, having a anxiety disorder and all).  Part of this anxiety is a crippling perfectionist tendency.  When I am objective about my classes, I think they are pretty okay!  But the little slip ups...a mix up between right and left, forgetting to balance both sides equally, even a stumble over a word...drive me to obsession over my doubts.  It doesn't matter how many students tell me they enjoyed the class afterwards.  It doesn't matter that I have been a student that has enjoyed less than perfect yoga classes.  It is the one mistake that I will linger on.

One of my fellow classmates once said I was a natural at teaching!  And admittedly, I love performing, I have no fears of public speaking, I am naturally sociable and chatty.  I am always the first to volunteer for audience participation, always the first to break the silence in class discussions.  But this easiness does not belie the demons in my head and does not silence my harshest critic.  

But there is one thing that I am learning...

Catching up: Kripalu retreat experience

Hey there, I've been kind of busy lately.  I just came back from an amazing four days at Kripalu in the Berkshires for the final graduation ceremony and retreat of my teacher training.  It was heart opening, inspiring, incredible, and too much for me to put into words at the moment.  So I thought I'd post some pictures and thoughts instead of writing out a full post.

Also, I'm teaching at Hosh tonight, which I am very excited about.  I would love if you came!

A view of Kripalu

I took the above picture on the last day right before I left.  I miss it already.

An Inquiry on Inquiries

Can I talk with my hands during a
silent retreat?  Please!?

So I've been thinking a lot about the concept of inquiry.  I've been obsessed with Pantanjali's first yoga sutra "atha yoga nushanam" throughout my training.   This translates to "now the inquiry of yoga" and each part of that sentence has so much to unpack!  I taught both a practice teach and a class at Hosh (second real class ever!) that focused all around the idea of the now.  How can I stay in the present in my practice?  I'll stick a Gide quote in here because I'm pretentious. "Seize from every moment its unique novelty and do not prepare your joys."  

I had taught a practice teach earlier this year centering around the word inquiry, but I have returned to it as of late.  In my class, I had focused the idea of inquiry around the  movement, inviting the students to make each pose an exploration of the posture.  However, I'm beginning to realize more and more than the idea of inquiry can be applied to many aspects of my life...

TV Recap: Breaking Pointe 2

Welcome to week 2 of Breaking Pointe!  Thank you for all the readers who checked out my post from Katie and Allison's retweets.

I have to say now that I know that people actually read this thing, I know I am snarky but I really don't mean it.  I called Allison a psycho in my last recap and I want to make it clear that I don't think reality TV is a reflection of what's real at all!  She definitely got a bit of the crazy villain edit last week, but I'm sure she and everyone else on the show are actually lovely people in real life.

Anyway, it's not really fun to be rational and fair-minded when writing about pop culture, so let the snark begin!

I have to admit that this week's show was a bit of a let down from the fantastic season premiere.  As a reality TV junkie, episodes tend to work best around a theme.  Last week's episode was great because it focused on this idea of competition and hierarchy; this week's episode was kind of centered around romantic and familial relationships, but definitely not focused enough to be interesting. Other viewers must have agreed with me, as the Nielsen ratings dropped from 1m to 700k this week.  I must implore you guys to spread the word about this show!  Even though this current episode wasn't great I'm still hooked.

On this weeks episode, the big questions are: will Ronnie renew his contract (yawn) and what will happen to our lovely crazy young couple in love Ronald and Katie?  Full recap with SPOILERS after the jump.

A Teaching Moment

I'm not sure what a pigeon has to do with anything,
 but I took this picture and I like it.

If you follow me on Twitter or in real life, then you'd know that I've passed my certification for yoga teaching!  Anyway, I have been teaching family and friends throughout my training, but had not taught strangers in a class...until yesterday.

My planned debut was actually supposed to be next week, Hosh, a non profit karma yoga studio where I normally practice.  (I will still be teaching next week, probably Wednesday morning, so stay tuned for announcements!).  When I found out I was going to be doing a trial class for Hosh, I decided to stop by Yoganesh where my teacher training had been held, to talk to one of my teachers about it.  Yoganesh is also having a crazy $30 for 30 days of yoga deal right  now*, so I decided to stop in and have class and maybe a chat.

I got there a little early for the 12:15 Lunch Express class and sat talking with with the lovely owner of the studio, Norma.  A few minutes before class starts, I ask where the teacher is.  Norma hastily makes a call and it turns out that the instructor was in Massachusetts!  I tell Norma that she should teach the class instead, and she said, "No, you should teach the class."  So I did!