Everyone else is doing it, so why not me...

I'm a Balanced Yogi!

A Balanced Yogi You love your friends unconditionally and accept them for who they are no matter what their yoga style preference, religious beliefs, or spending habits. You focus on the good in people and would never try to change them. Almost everyone feels comfortable in your presence. You live your yoga. You are an inspiration to yoga students everywhere!

Take the Yoga Journal Yoga Snob Quiz!

Some of the answers to the quiz were pretty silly, and after all, who would want the rest of the world to know that they were a yoga trend snob?

Another home practice today, slow and creaky as usual, nothing new to report except a satisfyingly loud "crack" during mari c on the right. My wrists have been feeling a bit stressed lately during bhuja p and bakasana...I hope this is not a portent of troubles to come. My lower back continues to be very stiff and achy though practice helps.

Yesterday, I felt kind of glum because of circumstances and the more I reflected on it, the worse I felt. Circumstances haven't changed since yesterday, but I felt inexplicably better today. I would like to think it was practice that made the difference.

Creaky and stiff.

Full primary this morning at home, for the first time since two Saturdays ago. Despite doing four hot fusion classes last week I felt like an old lady. The tops of my shoulders and back of my neck are sore from shoulder stand/urdva padmasana and my hammies are sore as well.

I felt strong enough, but slow and stiff. My left hip/lower back is persistently stiff and achy. Stretching it does help, but it's low grade painful all day, especially bad when I get up in the morning. I could sit in Janu b on my left heel all afternoon and still feel like I needed to stretch it some more.

I spent all afternoon dealing with the freaking gift wrap sales company, trying to make sure their ordering system works before I distribute the catalogs and ordering instructions on Thursday. I'm sure the universe is laughing at me - I HATE those things and refuse to participate, yet here I am, spending my time trying to make sure it works. This is this particular company's first year doing online-only sales; we were going to kick them to the curb if we had to do it manually again. So there are some glitches, and I'm glad I tried to register and place an order before I found myself inundated with questions about their unclear instructions/nonfunctioning website.

I took a load of clothes to the consignment store this afternoon and on my way out, detoured by their shoe racks. I found a brand new pair of these (though in a slightly lighter color, like a dark tan) for $23:



Score! I have a black leather pair that I have worn every winter for the past five years, at least four times a week. I have been thinking about getting another pair, but they're so expensive, I felt like I needed to get a pair just as functional as black. But not black. I never could decide on what other color would be as useful, so I never got another pair. But for $23? Never worn? I had to have them.

Of course, it'll be at least two more months before it's cool enough to wear them, but I still get a tiny thrill of excitement and anticipation at the thought of them, waiting for me in the closet.

Will came home with a "red" (meaning bad) on his behavior report today for singing the song "Who Let the Dogs Out" over and over in class after being asked to stop. Lee and I were laughing, despite ourselves. I think his teacher is the bomb and she's great for his type of kid, but his pre-K teacher would have never put up with that. He did get a red, but they were quick to assure me it was not really a big deal. I guess I wish it were a bigger deal; maybe it would make more of an impression on him. Will having to move his clip from green to yellow or red makes absolutely no difference to him; Michael would have been in tears of mortification. The other day (before the behavior reports starting coming home, but a day he would have gotten a red) some other kid said "oooh, you're gonna be in trouble when you get home" and Will said "but my mommy will still love me anyway."

When we got home, I confiscated the CD with that song on it, told him that any day he came home with red was a no-tv day, and said that if the singing in class continued to be a problem, his CD player would be confiscated as well.

Oy, the third week of kindy and he's already trouble with a capital "T".

Homebody.

That's what I've been all day today. I don't sit around and relax very well, so I've been puttering around, getting things done so I can start the week off right. I did a few things in the yard, did two loads of laundry, got an eBay item ready to mail to the winner, got some clothes ready to take to the consignment store, cooked a package of chicken breasts and made chicken salad for lunches out of them, roasted beets for salad, and roasted sweet potatoes to puree with seasonings for the boys. I also made a nut-based vinaigrette for tonight's dinner that is really yummy - pulverize a small garlic clove in the food processor with a half-cup of nuts (I used almonds). Then add a quarter cup of vinegar (I used champagne) and salt, then 3/4 cup of olive oil and blend until smooth. I wound up adding more olive oil and about a half cup of warm water to thin it out. It would make a wonderful dip as well as a salad dressing. I thought it would be good with the roasted beets. We are also having grilled flat iron steak and grilled yellow squash.

Friday night I went out to dinner at Watershed with six friends to celebrate two birthdays, then five of us went to Beth's house at Lake Hartwell to spend the night. I've never had a close group of girlfriends before, but I really have one now and I treasure them. They're my posse. We sat up until about 1:30 am Saturday with cocktails and birthday cake, gossiping and laughing hysterically. We got up Saturday, cooked breakfast, sat around and talked some more, then helped Beth put their boat in the water. We took the boat way out, then stopped in the middle of the lake with the radio on to swim and sun ourselves. After a couple hours on the lake, we came back to the house and Gloria made this awesome spicy buffalo chicken dip, which was our lunch along with more birthday cake. We took the boat back out of the water, then loaded up, drove back, and got here about 8:30 last night.

It was my first time going away from Lee and the boys; they've been away from me plenty of times, but I've never left them, and I did miss them and wonder if Lee was taking care of them correctly. ;-) Obviously, I am a control freak!

I did return to find them overtired, overstimulated, and in the same clothes they wore to school on Friday, but the house wasn't a mess. So that's something.

I did four Hot Power Fusion classes last week, and only a partial primary practice one morning before one of those classes. I have used up all my classes at both studios, and can't afford to buy any right now, so my plan is to do three primary practices at home this week before Friday, when I have to go on a field trip with the third graders. I admit to feeling like a bit of an ashtanga impostor these days. I read about other people's six day a week practice and feel like I'll never achieve "real" ashtangi status.

At last, the string of brutally hot 100+ degree days has broken. We had a good rain on Friday night, and it's been raining lightly for the last two hours, so perhaps everyone's disposition will improve. Next week is predicted to get into the low 90's which will feel like a cold front by comparison. We've all been exhausted and grumpy every night, feeling absolutely drained by the relentless scorching sun.

"Hot Power Fusion"

I'm sure that "people" would scoff at this class, but you know what, I enjoyed it and I went back this morning. I tend to be sort of a traditionalist, rule-follower type, but I think I'm mellowing out in my old age. One goal, many paths, you know?

This class takes the 26 asanas of the Bikram series and links them together with postures from other yoga lineages, plus some up and down dogs. It also has a section of core work at the end, plus a longish backbend. It's more of an upper body strengthener than Bikram, and offers a little more variety. The class I took today was a little different from the one I took last night. Both good.

I am craving a primary series, but I don't know when it's going to happen. Tomorrow I must do some PTA stuff at school, and then go to Ikea for a tension rod and curtains to replace the falling-apart bifold doors of Michael's closet. On Wednesday, I could practice at home by myself or I could go back for another hot power fusion in the morning.

I am sitting up waiting for one of my auctions to end. It's a prana tank top that I found at the thrift store a few months ago and never wore. It's up to more than $25 right now with a few minutes to go. Cha-ching!

Bananas.

I used to be able to count on my kids eating bananas at any time. I always picked up a big bunch whenever I went to the grocery store. These days they're turning their noses up at them, or else eating them grudgingly with peanut butter when I threaten them with "protein snack, or else"! If the bananas have very many spots on them, they won't touch them at all. I don't eat them anymore because they are too high in carbs.

The ziplock bag I keep in the freezer with the spotted bananas was full, and I had yet another bunch going all brown two weeks ago. I made two loaves of banana bread from Mark Bittman's "How To Cook Everything". The boys were only marginally more enthused about that banana bread than they were the bananas. Normally, I use Martha Stewart's banana bread recipe from her "Collected Recipes for Everyday" book. That recipe calls for sour cream and a bit more sugar than the other recipe. I think it is the best banana bread I've ever had, but at the time I didn't have any sour cream.

So when I had yet another bunch of bananas going brown and spotty, I looked through some other cookbooks for inspiration. I pulled out my "Best of the Pillsbury Bake-Off" cookbook, which I hardly ever use, and found an easy recipe for banana spice cake with a powdered sugar glaze. I had all the ingredients on hand, too. I made a batch to take to the lake when we went a few weeks ago, and I made it last weekend so the boys would have a treat in their lunchboxes the first day of school. It was a hit. I subbed whole wheat pastry flour for all-purpose flour and I couldn't even tell.

You think I'd learn, but I had yet another bunch of bananas to use up this weekend. I was craving a peanut butter and banana sandwich at the time, so when I was looking for a recipe calling for bananas, I searched online for some kind of snack cake calling for peanut butter and bananas together and found this recipe for Banana Cake with Peanut Butter icing on cooks.com. The cake is similar to Martha Stewart's banana bread recipe, and the icing, which is peanut butter, cream cheese and corn syrup, is not very sweet. It's pretty awesome, I have to say, the combo of banana cake with the icing. Yum.

Our across-the-street neighbor brought the boys a carton of chocolate chip ice cream from Brusters, because Lee did some legal work for her and wouldn't charge her, so it's going to be a dessert extravaganza after dinner tonight (stir-fried chicken with cashews and brown rice).

Since I've been consuming a bit more carbs than I normally do this weekend, I'm going to try a new class at my hot yoga studio this afternoon - a "Hot Power Fusion" class. There's a "Hot Power Fusion" teacher training going on there all week, so all the Bikram classes this week are now "Hot Power Fusion" classes.

Yesterday morning I went to advanced primary at the other studio. I really tried to recreate that feeling of relaxed mindfulness that I had my last home practice, and for the most part, I was able to, even though the pace was faster.

Once thing I've noticed is how my strength can come and go during the series. During the surya namaskars, sometimes I feel heavy as lead and can barely do a chattaranga without touching my knees down. At other points in the series I have a surge of energy and I feel almost weightless - and I notice this particularly after ardha baddha padma. When I come up out of that posture, I almost always have a head-rushy feeling, but the vinyasa after that feels completely floaty and light and I don't struggle with the chattaranga at all. Isn't that wierd?

For the next two weeks I guess my practice is going to be at home or else the hot studio. On Friday, the group of girlfriends is going up to my friend Beth's lake house to celebrate two birthdays, so I won't be here for the Saturday morning advanced primary.

Crim, yet so satisfying.

I had planned to attend a hot class this morning, then practice at home tomorrow morning, but during the three hours of insomnia I suffered through during the night, I discovered it was time for a ladies' holiday.

This morning I was exhausted, cranky, and my left hip and lower back hurt like crazy. I craved a good stretch to get the kinks out, so I rolled out my mat planning to do a couple of slow surya namaskar a's just to get the blood flowing a bit, then a few stretches.

I think because I didn't think of it as "practice", with all the expectations that come with it (in my mind), is why it was so good.

I moved slow, taking time to remind myself to engage my bandhas, and I felt light, fluid and bendy. I think during classes or official "practices" I have adrenalin flowing, which makes me more tense, or something. I never feel very light.

I did all of standing, all of seated except for janu c and mari d, and I skipped vinyasas between sides. I just so enjoyed each pop and release in my joints. If a posture felt good, I stayed there as long as I wanted. Janu b, sitting on the left heel, goes exactly to the area of my left hip/lower back that hurts. I stayed in it for about thirty breaths, just visualizing and feeling the stretch starting in my left low back and going all the way up into my shoulderblade. It was amazing.

I did navasana, bhujapidasana, and baddha konasana. The last time I practiced at home, I had an awesome, rocking baddha konasana. It felt so good, so I just stayed there and breathed...and breathed...and breathed...and felt that elusive sense of being outside myself....and I felt my inner thighs stretch....and I breathed....my forehead got closer and closer to the floor with each breath...and then it was on the floor...and I stayed there for another several minutes, until my knees started to protest, bringing me back to reality. I did the same thing again today, but my forehead was on the floor in about half the time. The stretching and opening felt wonderful.

I pushed up into one ten-breath backbend, then took a short savasana.

I felt a thousand percent better afterward.

In other news, it's hot as HELL outside. Lee called me as he was leaving a business lunch to report that the thermostat on his dashboard display panel said it was 107 degrees.

We never see the cat anymore during the day. He comes out from under the neighbor's shady front porch after the sun goes down. He always gets kind of skinny and scruffy looking during the summer, but now he looks even worse. I'd keep him in, but he'd pee on something, so I'm not doing it. He comes in for a little bit each evening, but we keep him in our sights the entire time, and the second he starts to slink away, out he goes.

There is a Barbeque, Blues & Bluegrass Festival in the neighborhood village where the school is on Saturday afternoon & evening. My friends and I are working a beer truck from 6 to 8 pm. God help us!

No drama. No excitement.

I've been noticing lately how dull a life I lead compared to some of my fellow ashtangis. No travel, no exciting work, no drama at all. Well, there was some drama this morning when we couldn't find about $40 worth of food purchased for the PTA "Boo-Hoo" breakfast. It turned up in the cafeteria refrigerator. I know, how can one person stand such highs and lows?

As you might have guessed, today is the first day of school. I got there at 7:30 with a bunch of Chick-Fil-A breakfast trays and there was a small crowd of parents already waiting for coffee & breakfast which stressed me out quite a bit. As well, I was the only PTA person there, so I was running around like a crazy woman trying to get it all ready.

I did manage to slip out and go down to Will's classroom when Lee got there with the boys. It was like the kids were stars and the parents were paparazzi, snapping pictures of their every move (well, not us, but I wish I had). Since Will was in full-time school last year, it's not such a huge deal to be starting kindergarten, but I am sure I have only begun to appreciate that he is at the same school as Michael.

Here they are:



I have been fantasizing about having my days free, but I definitely felt at loose ends today, unable to focus and not sure what to do first. Tomorrow a bunch of moms are going out to breakfast after dropping off the kids at school. Then, I'm going to Bed Bath & Beyond to buy a microfiber towel for my hair and to browse the styling products at Target. Embracing my curly hair truly is one of the most fulfilling things I have going on right now.

My practices have been just as exciting as my life; a couple of part-primary practices in the living room last week while the boys were occupied, two hot classes and, yesterday, intermediate primary at the studio. It was actually more of a beginning primary, geared toward some newbies in the class. It was much more slow paced than usual, but as a bonus each posture had a lot more instruction, which turned out to be okay, like a refresher course.

Well, it's almost time to head back over to school. I would love to walk, but it's so crazy hot that I'm not sure I could stand the three-block walk.

Please be sure to visit my blog again! You won't want to miss a single exciting moment!

Four more days.

That's how many days until school starts. Lest everyone think I am a terrible mother who will have the kids waiting at the school door the night before - well, I may be a terrible mother but I'll wait until the day of to take them to school - we've been together since Memorial Day weekend, and we all need to see some new faces. People from other parts of the country always grumble about school starting back so early here, but look at the southern summer. The nicest part of summer is June. We get out of school around Memorial Day and we have a whole month in which it's actually bearable to be outside. After July 4, it becomes less and less bearable until we reach the point at which we are now, which is 98, 99, 100 degree days coupled with "ozone alert" and "particulate matter alert" days. We're also at the point where we've done everything, seen every movie, so why not go back to school? It's certainly too hot to play outside. If I suggested to my kids that we go to the pool, they'd probably revolt. They're sick of it.

My friend Beth was attending a "Safe Routes to School" training meeting at school yesterday and heard that all PE classes are going to be held in the auditorium for the first week of school because of air quality issues. It's that bad.

For crying out loud, it's 10:25pm and the temperature box in my taskbar says it's still 89 degrees. Is that not sickening?

I did take the kids back to Sun Valley Beach today with two other moms and we spent all but twenty minutes for a lunch break neck-deep in the water while the kids swam. Even the sand was too hot to walk on.

Practice, well, I'm kind of squeezing in a bare minimum right now. I did a Bikram class on Monday night, and three-quarters of primary yesterday morning. Home practice is not very inspiring, but I'm plugging away at it. I'm continuing to struggle with strength and with backbends. They're related, of course. After a Bikram class, I can push up into the bendiest backbend, with nice straight arms, and feel like I could hold it for a while. At the end of primary, it's all I can do to lift myself up, much less stay there for a few breaths.

I'd trade some of my flexibility for more strength, if I could.

Naturally curly.

Last night, after a Date at a nice restaurant, Lee and I stopped by a bookstore in town. This is an independent bookstore, recently opened, and we wanted to see what kind of stuff they had. It's in a old post office, so it's quite big and it doesn't look like they're done filling it up yet, but they had a decent selection of books. I was checking out their "health & fitness" section to see if they had any yoga books when I found a book that I first heard about from Donutzenmom: Curly Girl: the handbook.

When I started doing Bikram yoga I realized I had to do something about my hair. I usually kept it fairly short and used a blow dryer to straighten it, but I left each class with seriously frizzy, crazy hair. Because it was short, it wasn't crazy in a good way, either. It's so humid here for much of the year that frizzy, crazy hair was a regular problem, but hot yoga kind of brought it to a head (har har). I decided to start letting it grow and curl in hopes that it would be less maintenance for me and that it would look better after a sweaty class.

So I've been letting it grow for about eight months, with regular trims. I like it much better and it is lower maintenance, but I haven't been very happy with my trims, and the growing out period has been a little bit difficult. On the days when my hair is big and bushy and a mess, I thought about getting it all chopped off again.

I had no idea there were entire books devoted to curly hair until Donutzenmom mentioned it on her blog. I put this book on my Amazon wish list and kind of forgot about it until last night.

When I got home, I read the entire thing and I think it has the potential to change my life! Along with advice on how to care for and cut curly hair, there were lots of anecdotes from other curly-haired women and with each one, I found myself nodding in agreement as they talked about fighting their curly hair for most of their lives. I've done that too, ever since I was little, when I used to wear a baby blanket on my head like a wig and pretend it was my long, straight hair. I can't wait to try some of the things suggested in the book and in a few months, when my hair has grown some more, I'm going to find a stylist who specializes in curly hair and get a good haircut.

On the other end of the spectrum....I also bought a book called Introduction to Buddhism. If I'm lucky, while I'm on the way to enlightenment, my hair will look good.

I went to advanced primary yesterday morning....good class, though I didn't feel very strong, no doubt due to the late nights and alcohol. I did get bound in supta kurmasana, though, all by myself. John had us do another killer round of urdva dhanurasanas, walking up and back, turning 180 degrees, etcetera, then three for ten counts each. After last week, I knew to ration my strength so I could try to make it through the last three. My arms were so tired afterwards that I could only hold my headstand for ten counts.

I was thinking of going to a hot class late this afternoon, but I'm so tired today that I may just pass it up and go tomorrow night. I also thought about going back into town for an intermediate primary, but I definitely don't have the energy for that. I don't think I've ever willingly passed up an opportunity to go to a class before! As well, it's supposed to be 96 degrees this afternoon, so I could just go sit outside for a while....

Tired & talked out.

Back from the lake with my friends and their kids. A great time was had by all, but I'm glad to be home. The first night I slept in a twin bed with Will and slept badly, after staying up past midnight with my girlfriends, drinking and talking on the back deck. One of the other moms left yesterday so I moved upstairs to another bedroom with a queen bed and shared it with Will, but again we were up past midnight and when I did get to sleep, Will had his feet in my back all night.

We went out on her boat several times and all the kids rode "Big Bertha" the innertube, pulled along behind the boat. When the kids would switch out turns in the innertube, we'd all jump off the back of the boat, even the dog, and swim around in the middle of the lake. I still have a funny, slightly unstable feeling as if I'm rocking back and forth slightly.

I ate too much, drank too much, didn't stretch enough, and I can't wait until yoga in the morning. It's only 7:20, but I'm about to take a shower, give myself a quick pedicure, and go to bed.