Where?

Well I am sort of here...but I am also sort of here.

Hoooooly Capoeira!

I went to a party at Jai Yoga Arts and played Capoeira. :)

The End.

How do you find your center?

In studying the Yamas and Niyamas of Yoga I find great importance to the idea of Ethics. Yamas and Niyamas are all about how you treat the world around and you and how you treat yourself.

"Ethics is the glue that binds earth to Heaven. One cannot serve two masters. The only way a human being can reconcile the paradox of the demands of earth and soul is through the observation of ethical principles." From Iyengar's Light on Life

I am a person who relies on ethics in life. I find it important establishing what my limits are and how I treat the world around me. I am constantly checking and re-checking myself. Where is the boundary of right and wrong and how close do I allow myself to be to it? Does this boundary still work for me? Do I need to change my limits?

I also find that being so ethical ties me very closely to the earth. This can sometimes be a heavy and burdensome. I'm by nature and over-thinker. So, I have this breathing exercise for meditation in which I imagine I am inhaling in heaven -not religious heaven but more like the universe, the air and sky that is infinite. And on the exhale I imagine rooting in to the earth.

And with this exercise I think about this Heaven and Earth thing and what lies between...us, people. Some of use are more Heaven oriented -have you ever met someone who is so up in the clouds? Flighty? Free spirited? And then there are Earthy types...myself -very grounded and realistic, easily brought down. There is this great middle path that has a little of both of these concepts. I like this breathing exercise because I'm overly grounded it helps me to breath in the heavens and take something in that is lighter. I feel lifted and freer. For my flighty heaven people, the rooting and grounding helps balance them out as well.

Pain in the neck

Everyone around me is coughing and sneezing and I am just getting by here. So I am taking my zinc with meals and doing my sesame seed oil ritual to keep things in check. Nonetheless the cold always gets into my muscles and here I am with back and neck pain. OK, to be fair, it also could be from sparring with some of the fighters the other day, but the point is my neck and upper back is all kinds of tight and painful. Red Flower Oil to the rescue! This is great for sore and tight muscles. Please don't cover your whole body in it though...that is actually really bad for you! A lil Red Flower goes a long way! So next time some one punches you in the face and it snaps your neck back, drags you by the neck or maybe you just slept all funny...try rubbing some Red Flower into your aches and pains.

Boo!

I am not venturing outside today in honor of the frozen eggs that they used to throw on Halloween in my old neighborhood. Granted that I do not live there anymore and I have no idea of kids still do such childish things...I live too close to the parade to want to deal with the hordes of people outside! Though I do love Halloween and seeing all the costumes...I will save that for when I run out to get dinner later :)

I'm sure there will be many awesome Halloween themed Yoga classes like at Jai Yoga Arts and Iwona Yoga...and even more amazing Halloween Rodas for Capoeiristas. But This year I will pass...In other news, I will be staying in to hand out candy to the kids in my building. Boooo!

Yoga in Bushwick

Jai Yoga Arts is one of my new favorite Yoga studios. Living in Manhattan amongst many many yoga studios, though its amazing,it makes me appreciate the community feel you get from a Yoga studio in Bushwick or Ridgewood, where having a Yoga studio feels extra special. Vinyasa in Bushwick!

Rush hour takes years off your life!

Ever since I stopped living a 9-5 life, though I am much poorer, I am much more mentally sane. Have you ever come in contact with that person who shoves you out of the way to get up or down subway stairs, or a crowded sidewalk only to find they are walking at the same speed as you. Or the person who plows into the subway before you've even had the chance to step off? Wait, have YOU ever been that person? Admit it! Cause that used to be me. I always thought I was going to be late and...I never was late. However, had I been late a minute or two...five minutes...I mean what was so important that I need to shove people aside for? When I stopped commuting during peak hours I realized how I had just given myself 10 more years of life!

Seriously, its amazing. I traveled on the subway today during rush hour, and watched as all these people piled into an already crowded train. Some people ran down the steps just catching the door to hold it open and squeeze in, then another 3 people did the same, and then another person. They were relieved to get on while 4 people on the train shook their heads and one person actually said "OH COME ON!" while the last person held the door. Watching this from the sidelines made me think...wow, its not that big of a deal to get on the train...next one comes in 5 minutes, remember its rush hour? And if people want to hold the doors open to get on a train what's another 30 seconds of your life? Will it really kill you? I promise you it won't.

Next time you find yourself being the person who is shoving people aside OR the person who is pissed off that someone held a subway door to delay your life for 30 seconds...breathe. Because..its not that big of a deal!

If only we could get some MTA workers to do this in the mornings...

Consistency

I have been so reflective lately its odd...because I miss my unreflective time...like watching Jersey Shore! Anyways, I have been running over all these themes that I am proactive about in my life. Another one I have been thinking about lately is consistency. I like having consistency in my life because it gives me a basis and a structure in my everyday. I also like for my relationships to be reliable and consistent. There is so much comfort in this!

The thing I love most about my regular yoga practice is that it always happens on Monday and Wednesday mornings and there are only about 3-4 variations in the sequence that my teacher goes through. He will run through one sequence for about 3 months before he decides to only switch one small section for another 3 months or so again. This might sound boring but I think its amazing because I can really see how I improve. This is why I always make a point to show up to my Monday and Wednesday morning classes even if they are at 7am! Sometimes I am really lost without my Yoga practice. If I practice it outside studios its always fine but I lose my regular routine and I also lose track of my goals. This is why Yoga is a PRACTICE!

Yes I am still here

I hate to do a whole lump of picture postings all at once but here we go....match the picture to the occasion: Moon Festival, Angry Birds for my BFF's bday, Prajiats give fighters good luck, Yummy Luke's Lobster truck sandwich and studying for school.

Connections

There is an awesome thing about living in New York City that I've highlighted in my life. Connections. You will always see connections between people. I joke that there are only really 3, sometimes 2 degrees of separation between the 9 million of us here. Despite that there are so many of us, we're always on top of each other. We all...kind of know each other. Being a New Yorker, I've made connections a sort of theme in my life in general. I love bringing people together and having connections that make sense be made.