With Ambivalence

On Saturday, went to hang out with my yoga classmates; it ended up being much longer than I had planned but it was a relaxing evening and I enjoyed talking with them and the chores can wait another week, month...

As we talked, my classmate Camille said that she was missing book club. Upon further discussion, Camille mentioned that they had read The Bluest Eye and I said that it really took listening to the audio version for me to fully appreciate this book. Camille asked if Morrison read her own book. Yes, I responded.

My yes lead me to listen to audio clips of The Bluest Eye and Song of Solomon. Hearing Morrison's voice was so sweet and it made me feel at ease.

After a month-long hiatus, went swimming last night. What I love about the latter part of the year is that the water is just a tad bit warmer. Don't really enjoy that open swim is moved back to 7:30 p.m. in the fall but I deal with it. I totally missed the water and my body felt properly stretched and in alignment afterward...

There's this woman who attends Zumba classes on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. I asked her tonight how she was doing and she said, with an ambivalent face, okay. I related.

Listened to about 40 minutes of the Kryptonite for the Inner Critic, Self-Compassion Series episode of 10% Happier then I moved on to different podcasts. For some reason, I gave it another try today and it was just what I needed.

Towards the end of yoga teacher training, I remember how Stacy said that she felt more generous and didn't feel the need to be so insular.

I'm not feeling very generous and after listening to most of Kryptonite, I know that's okay but I'm also looking forward to being more than okay.

Spring Rider

Went to a slow flow/restorative yoga class on Friday and spotted Stacy after class since it was a yoga teacher training weekend.

She told me and another yoga teacher "This is not a sustainable lifestyle." Tell me about it...

One of my colleagues that's in her 20's said that she feels like a robot. Tell me about it...

Before I saw Stacy on Friday, I saw a post that she put on social media saying that she had five days off between now and the end of the year. She wants to collaborate with more people but... time.

I have given up on how frequently I wash my hair, clean out the fish tank etc...

Went for a bike ride on Saturday and as I headed that way, I thought about how I probably would have to wear my long-sleeved shirt around my waist. Wrong! I had forgotten about how it's colder around water. I'm such a spring/summer rider that it didn't occur to me that it would be cold and windy. The weather was definitely an incentive to keep moving though.

Geese Strategy

Saw this sweet story on CBS Sunday morning about this 93-year-old who opened a bakery. The story provided much needed inspiration.

On The Downswing

Did I mention that I've been browsing through a lot of yoga books? I've gotten a lot of elements for sequences this way; sometimes the elements work and sometimes they don't but, overall, the books have been super helpful and interesting.

From the library...

Decided to try this "move" called chopping wood. Imagine you're holding an imaginary axe above your head (with both hands), you tuck your chin on the downswing and then you repeat that about 10 times. It's a heat-building move. 

One of my colleagues, who hasn't been to yoga in about a month or more, came yesterday and she took to chopping wood like a fish takes to water. When we finished, that particular colleague looked extremely satisfied; she said that one of her office mates, who'd had a rough day, could have totally used that move...

Went to my yoga trainer's class this evening. Hadn't seen her in a long time and was craving her teaching style. The class that I went to is described as Yoga Fusion: sweet flow, deep stretching  and restorative. I didn't go for the flow and, afterwards, Stacy said I hope you didn't want to kill me at the beginning and I told her No, I knew what I was getting into. That class made me so relaxed -- even before the restorative part. Also, it's nice to have a teacher who knows what style of yoga you like... 

Got tagged in an Instagram post today and it made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. 

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Erin here 👋🏼. Let’s talk about REAL self care (aka not what’s thrust upon you as self care by the wellness industry). I just went to my first @tuesdaystogetherstl hosted by @ashleypieperphotography @leahstrickman @rudysflowertruck and @sweetsarahmariephotography and it was all about caring for yourself as a business owner. These ladies did a wonderful job! We had yoga led by @andrea_mw and meditation by @yesiamjudd. I’ll admit, I arrived frazzled after a long day of meetings, errands and editing. I was NOT ready to relax with yoga but after a few minutes, my mindset shifted. It can be hard to feel like you even have time to slow down and reflect. But here’s the thing: If you take the time for the mental break you need, you’ll be more refreshed and energized for your work ahead. If you aren’t there for yourself, you won’t have the mental capacity to be there for your clients or customers. Self care doesn’t have to be instagrammable, and it doesn’t have to be something you purchase. It can be as simple as getting an extra hour of sleep, putting down your laptop to take your dog for a walk or even just making sure you get plenty of water. I cannot tell you how much I appreciated my first Tuesdays Together. It’s like the universe knew I was running on empty ;). thethinkbigworkshop.comm

A post shared by The Think Big Workshop (@thethinkbigworkshop) on May 16, 2019 at 9:51am PDT

She's Good

After three years, the batteries inside of my Garmin Vivofit tracker gave out. Anticipating that the batteries would wear out sooner than later, I purchased replacements more than a year ago but couldn't find them. Ordered more and chided myself for being disorganized.

As I tried to replace the batteries, a spring shot across the room never to be found and the tracker, which was already falling part, fell apart further so I decided to spend Christmas money on a new tracker. Went back to the Fitbit brand and got a Flex 2 which is lighter than the Vivofit. Didn't really like the fact that the Flex doesn't have a display but I'm used to it now...

The other perk is the Fitbit app; didn't use it last time but now I'm logging water and I've been drinking twice as much water as I have been drinking which is a sad commentary on my water intake...

Messaged my yoga trainer, Stacy, so that I could get one of my assist/adjustment classes out of the way. I decided to do this requirement with my trainer at one of her private classes. When I jump in, I jump all the way in. I did think that a private group would be smaller and, possibly, a better foray than a class of, say, 25; it's January, you know...

I was so nervous and wasn't quite sure how the set-up would be or how I would execute my assists. Stacy asked everyone to introduce themselves and to talk a little about why they practice yoga and, of course, everyone was super welcoming, nice, wished me well and it was cool to hear their yoga stories.

Stacy thanked me at the end of class, which made me breathe a sigh of relief. It's a pleasure to watch Stacy teach; she’s good at what she does.

Super Funny

When I went to deal with a down payment for yoga teacher training, saw one of my fellow yoga peeps, Deena, who likes to "give me the business" when she doesn't see me for a while.

Deena told me how she sets a goal of 20 yoga classes per month; otherwise, she slacks. As she told me that I wondered why she hadn't signed up for training but I, who'd only been to two classes in the last two months, was preparing to undertake an almost year-long training.

Life is "funny" that way, I guess.

Another time when I dealt with a payment, I handed an envelope to the studio owner and the lead trainer, Stacy, said What is that? Your resignation letter? For some reason, I found that super funny. Another comment about seeing me later because I probably had some wall to climb was equally funny...

Recently finished Trevor Noah's book, Born a Crime and really "enjoyed" it. Enjoy gets quotes because it was an intense book. From now on, the books that I will read will have the work yoga somewhere on the cover and a lot of them will be intense too. I will say, though, after taking four yoga classes in one week, I felt much calmer.

It was nice to have my weekend back. Went to Zumba, shopped, cleaned the living room, washed loads of clothes then had pool time with the 'Fugee and that was just on Saturday...

At work today, the staff celebration committee hosted and Eid celebration. To my surprise, my coworker to my right started to put henna on someone. I didn't know she had skills that. I asked her to put a design on me. She kept apologizing because the tube was not cooperating but I had no complaints because I don't apply henna at all and I can't draw.

I can see why henna is used ritually at wedding parties etc.; it's a bonding experience. I had such a nice time talking with coworkers that I don't see regularly. I asked one intern who is super calm and happy if she meditates and she said “No, but I pray.”

Someone made baklava happen. I didn't have any though...