from my friend lindsay's blog:

"when spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest." hemingway / a moveable feast

rasa

though i'm usually writing about my life, or at least my emotional life, i've gotten away from writing about yoga on my blog and in order to deepen my own practice i think i should start exploring the philosophy of yoga and what it means in my life.

i took a class at flow yoga on thursday night that focused on spring and how spring brings more "rasa" into our life. rasa is literally translated as "juice, essence, taste, plasma, or transformational state" and is pretty much the nourishing juice or energy that fills us with life. so when spring rolls in we feel a burst of energy - the days are longer (but this time in a good way..), we feel lighter and more playful and even more hopeful. to increase the rasa within us, we need an energetic yoga practice. in my class our teacher had us incorporate 108 chaturangas into our vinyasas that were full of energizing poses - triangle, chair, twists.

"in order for the rasa state to arise, we must first become aware of our bhava, or 'true feeling state,' which is thought of as the soil of rasa," writes shiva rea. "without being true to our feeling state, it's easy to feel as if we're going through the motions of life. a lack of connection is all too common in this fast-paced world; we sometimes find ourselves eating without tasting our food, listening without being truly present, and doing yoga without experiencing the feelings that arise in us."

and even if you aren't doing yoga there are plenty of other ways to tap into this energy - taking a logn walk to work, going for a run, eating lots of fruits and vegetables.

"existence without juice is dry and tasteless. rasa is life's fluid reality, life's juice, in every sense of the word."
robert svoboda

scootin' in the springtime.

tonight the only thing i have to do is go to yoga and ride my scooter. i d e a l. i'm pretty exhausted. i'm working two jobs until the middle of april, plus teaching yoga, working on a little freelance, and trying to spend some time with my boyfriend who i LIVE with. (you'd think it would be a litter easier to see eachother once you're under the same roof.) but all of the things i'm doing are things that i absolutely love (except maybe the job i'm leaving) so it's pretty painless. just a bit tiring.

today during lunch my friends christina and stefan and i went for a scooter ride down 16th street to check out the movie brad pitt is filming. there was a full blown marching band performing on the front steps of the freemason's building and about 30 policemen on bikes. one of them said pretty loudly, "there are a lot of violations going on on those scooters.." (like stefan's lack of a helmet, my missing mirror, my flashing hazard lights..) yep, probably time to scoot away from that group. so we took off down 17th street and back to work. damn, that scooter is so exhilirating. i think it might make this summer the best one i've ever had.

i named my scooter too. it's 'ollie juice' after my grandma, elizabeth ollie barnes, who loved dirty martinis and having fun. when she passed away she left me a little money, and though i highly doubt she anticipated me buying hell on wheels with it, i'm pretty sure she would have enjoyed one at my age too. she did always say that she wished she could've learned how to drive a zamboni. this is close enough. i can't afford one of those.

anyone else but you.

you are always trying to keep it real
i'm in love with how you feel
i don't see what anyone can see, in anyone else
but you

we both have shiny happy fits of rage
you want more fans, I want more stage
i don't see what anyone can see, in anyone else
but you"

anyone else but you, the moldy peaches

There is a famous saying: "If the mind is not contrived, it is spontaneously blissful, just as water, when not agitated, is by nature transparent and clear." I often compare the mind in meditation to a jar of muddy water: The more we leave the water without interfering or stirring it, the more the particles of dirt will sink to the bottom, letting the natural clarity of the water shine through. The very nature of the mind is such that if you only leave it in its unaltered and natural state, it will find its true nature, which is bliss and clarity. So take care not to impose anything on the mind, or to tax it. When you meditate there should be no effort to control, and no attempt to be peaceful. Don't be overly solemn or feel that you are taking part in some special ritual; let go even of the idea that you are meditating. Let your body remain as it is, and your breath as you find it. Think of yourself as the sky, holding the whole universe.

Sogyal Rinpoche

i've got wheels!

not your average friday.

whoa.

i just quit my job.

after two years of editing in an office, i started craving a change. a big juicy change that included lots of yoga. and though i adore my friends/coworkers, i don't think i'm really the office type. i like fresh air and riding my bike and sunshine.

so i'll be teaching yoga, working for an amazing yoga company, and freelance writing. because if i've learned anything these past few months, it's that things can change in an instant, and there's no better time than right now to make a move toward your ideal life.

"it takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. but there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. there is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power."

alan cohen

inspiring me today.

inspiration boards

leona lewis (i do love my pop music. puts a little spring in your step.)


spring dresses (and cowboy boots)
lululemon (my rocking new gig)

spring has sprung

it seems we left during a dreary winter and returned in spring. on my (very jet lagged) walk home from work yesterday i noticed the trees were full of flowers, it was warm enough to go without my jacket, and there were so many more people outside strolling around. yes, spring is upon us. thank goodness.

i'm still catching up on sleep, but i can feel the effects of vacation on my mind and body. my body holds less tension, despite the lack of yoga on the trip, and i feel a bit more laissez-faire than normal.

i'm ready to just be here. no big trips, no huge deadlines, no craziness. just settling into spring and enjoying the current state of things.

from artist keri smith last year:

"it's the first moment of respite in a hectic week filled with deadlines, house renovation, taxes, and company. but i feel strangely rested and purged. i think mainly due to the fact spring has arrived and I can finally let a fresh breeze into the house. is it the spring that begs us to stop for a moment and see that everything is as it should be? at the root of my being i want to clean the winter dust off of everything, and purge my house of anything unnecesary.

how wonderful that our biological urges are still intact in this period of staring at screens all day. somewhere in the depths of our bodies the animal nature breathes and makes us want to go walk on the earth again after the thaw.

how is it that the smell of the earth is like a tonic that calms us into a calm state, even when we are surrounded by concrete and cars? the body knows more about what it needs than we do. it craves flowers and green and air that moves through the trees. it speaks to the trees and the trees speak back, but somewhere along the way we lost the ability to hear the language. but it's there. i know it.

the average child is able to identify hundreds of corporate logos, yet incapable of naming the species of tree in their own backyard. Yet they still communicate with the tree even if they don't know it. it must have something to do with the urge to build a house up in the branches, or build a fort in the roots.

just thinking about forts made me want to build one for myself. out of chairs and blankets. i want to hide a pile of books in there and sitting reading for the rest of the afternoon.

and listen to what the trees have to say."

two weeks in the middle east.

to sum up the last two weeks wouldn't do the trip even the slightest bit of justice, so i've broken it down into moments and photographs...

roadside camels with their front legs tied together (so they didn't run away.)


gliding down dubai creek with my love in a fisherman's boat. sunshine and seagulls all around.


heaping plates of grape leaves (my favorite), tabuloueh, fasoola, kibbeh, and lamb.


turkish coffee in the foggy morning.


lying on the "better than bahamas" beach drinking a glass of chardonnay, listening to the melding of accents and languages around me, and laughing with said.


buying short snazzy party dresses with said's mama.


cruising around ras al khaimah with the haddads eating fast food falafel in the backseat. yum.


said schmoozing us into buddha bar so we could drinking expensive martinis and only want to talk to eachother.



falling in love with the haddads' dog whitey only to be bit three times in one day.



dubai = beautiful, expensive excess.

dubai

it took me ten minutes to figure out which button on blogger was "new post" in arabic. very confusing.

ah, dubai. only two days left in our eleven day adventure. and it's truly been an adventure. camels, mosques, and dishdashas in contrast with starbucks, range rovers, and really strong martinis. dubai is gorgeous, expensive, and fast-paced, and ras al khaimah (where said's parents live) is also gorgeous, seaside, and ohsoquiet. said's family has welcomed me with open arms and i feel completely at home.

more to come. i'm off to enjoy my remaining 48 hours.