1.28.13

hello again new home number 28!

it's been a costa rica kind of year.

1.27.14

3 coyote day

adios america, may we meet again under better weather conditions.

1.26.14

preparing

i've really tried to enjoy using an e-reader.  i have tried and tried and sometimes almost liked it.  but fuck it.

i love books.  

if my suitcase is overweight then it's overweight.

1.25.14

 

                                                                                            bookstore day

"when you run out - then you will so clearly see, every second spent apologizing for who you are was a bloody waste of precious time." 

 - my journal

1.24.14

snow's coming

i'm really feeling the urge to get the hell out of here.

1.23.14

good news day

"and i feel i have something very serious and urgent to say to you, my non-existent reader, and i feel i should say it as urgently as if i were standing in the room with you.  that life -- whatever else it is -- is short.  that fate is cruel but maybe not random.  that nature (meaning death) always wins but that doesn't mean we have to bow and grovel to it.  that maybe even if we're not always so glad to be here, it's our task to immerse ourselves anyway:  wade straight through it, right through the cesspool, while keeping eyes and hearts open.  and in the midst of our dying, as we raise from the organic and sink back ignominiously into the organic, it is a glory and a privilege to love what death doesn't touch."

- donna tartt, the goldfinch

1.22.14

snow day

1.21.14

promos for paradise

i spent alot of time today working on promo's for holistic expeditions.  if anyone is interested in coming on a retreat to costa rica in april i'd love to see you there!  nikki will be teaching thai massage and i'll be helping out with daily yoga and meditation.  if you're a massage therapist you will receive continuing education credits, if you're a yoga teacher you will improve your assists and practice - no doubt, and if you're neither you'll be able to have some great adventures and experiences in paradise!

check out www.holisticexpeditions.com/workshops 

there are more details for this specific retreat on the april calender.  xx

1.20.14

sfo -> den

1.19.14

room 436

goodbye sf, i'll see you soon. xx

1.18.14

 

svasana day

this man is full of wisdom and humor and is still busting no hands headstands well into his 70's.  thank you sri dharma mittra, for the inspirational day.

"you are not cell phone;  you are signal." 

"you get older and every year lose more poses.  until in the end one pose remains; svasana." 

~sri dharma mittra

1.17.14

 

                                                                                   aim true, stay true

today, my girl crush kathryn budig, asked us to define what "aim true" means to each of us personally.  i often find metaphors in literal definitions so i started with the actions of aiming and shooting.  i thought of each physical step i go through when i stand at 30 yards, draw my bow, and release the arrow.  here's what i wrote:

observe (your target)
lighten your grip
pull back/prepare (use your strength)
focus
breathe
let go (release)

taking this list of steps through a figurative filter to apply to all life challenges they came out something like this:

right perception
trust/acceptance
knowledge
intention
breathe
go! (with confidence)

no distractions, no doubts, no hesitation.  aim true.

 she also had us impersonate jackie chan all day but that's a story for another post....

1.16.14

yjsf

it's been a busy new year so far and so i haven't been writing as much.  devin came to visit, we've had various health challenges going on, the new class started, i've taken more of a leadership role creating a yoga program at the school and now we've made our way to san francisco for the yoga journal conference.
nikki and russ are working hard debuting holistic expeditions, while i get to sample alot of yoga.  i have 18 hours of yoga scheduled over the next three days.   i'm going to be studying with dharma mittra, kathryn budig, ana forest, sean corne and annie carpenter.  i. am. so. excited.  
i can't wait to be a yoga student all weekend.  namaste bitches, xx.

1.15.14

straight to kabuki

it was a much shorter trip to san francisco.  oh san francisco; even after all this time you still have that same spot in my heart.

1.14.14

its a long way from nicoya

just one 4 hour, midnight van ride through the jungle, one 5 and a half hour flight and one trip through customs and i'm back in winterland... for the moment.

1.13.14

13 months 13th

taught a sunrise yoga class on the beach this morning.  wish you were there.

1.12.14

love hue

1.11.14

double victory

1.10.14

nicoya coastline

1.9.14

utthita hasta padangustasana

1.8.14

2014 rana class orientation

every time i attend an orientation i get so excited for the coming four months.  it is a wonderful thing to witness people taking a huge leap and changing their lives.  three cheers for bravery.  if you ever want to make a change, learn more about yourself or have an amazing adventure, come to the costa rica school of massage therapy. 

1.7.14

devin in buena vista

"the earth is a very small stage, in a vast cosmic arena." 
~ carl sagan

1.6.14

chaturanga dandasana modified

"make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into the flames of achievement." - golda meir

1.5.14

get the horns

devin is visiting from snowy nyc.  obviously we took him straight to the rodeo. 

1.4.13

love over fear

i feel this energy in the air, this undercurrent i'm sensing, this spark which i hope becomes a flame; of self acceptance.  it's been building and building, or should i say we've been tearing down; tearing down outdated opinions about 'the norm'.  we've been tearing down antiquated beliefs about what love looks like, about what beauty is.  there's a lot left to dismantle but lately i've been sensing some momentum in the wrecking.  

i'd like to throw my voice into the greater conversational hum. 

healthy is beautiful, whatever height or weight it comes in.  taking care of your precious body so it can carry you through this life is an act of beauty and honor.  it's a privilege.  let's agree that being happy and healthy in the body you have outshines being unhappy in one you're constantly starving or shaming or disguising.  

love is aspirational.  not conditionally, not for some people, not depending on who you love, all love.  and let's not forget self-love.

fear is a choice.  it may feel otherwise, you may feel hemmed in, trapped and constantly bombarded by all the many things there are to be afraid of.  you may feel overwhelmed by all the many chances that are scary to take because they may be unwise.  unwise to whom?  who decides this?  you.  you decide. you choose.  fear is a choice.

i'll try to remember this if you will.  namaste bitches, xx.

1.3.14

kapyasana

this is just a reminder: enjoy where you are in life, you won't be there long.

1.2.14

manifestation station

it's so exciting to return to costa rica and see all the work that's gone on while we've been away.  months ago on our way to moab russ and i pulled over at a gas station and drew the plans for a new classroom on a napkin.  after some deliberations we decided we'd nailed our blueprint and took a photo with russ's phone, sending it off to be duplicated in real life.  
after much work, some problems, and lots of fine tuning the classroom is finally ALMOST done!  i couldn't resist jumping in for a triumphant warrior pose today when we were checking out what our napkin drawing had become.  master manifestation in action! i can't wait to see all the students in it in the coming week.

1.1.14

hasta uttanasana

on the first day of 2014 i did yoga, then went to an airport, then did yoga in an airport, then left the country.  sounds about right.

12.31.13

                                         happy new year babies!

i was looking up my resolutions from this past year and i did pretty damn good.  the list i compiled on day one of 2013 was as follows:

this year i resolve to:
- learn spanish (check!)
- continue and go further on this path of health (check!)
- visit a country on my short list (check! check!)
- learn to surf for real (check!)
- *surrender 
- be present (check, mostly)
- continue a dedicated yoga practice (CHECK!)
- visit anbesa and frankie ray (fail.)
- have the most epic year of all time (CHECK CHECK CHECK!)

* surrender ~ ishwara pranidhana ~ surrender is the voluntary letting go of limited, personal desires for the sake of a greater and more fulfilling experience.

while i really hit it out of the park with most items, surrender is an ongoing challenge.  i'll put it on the list, this year and every year.  i'll check in next year on 2014.  i have a feeling it's gonna be another amazing one.

12.30.13

madonna mine

drove across colorado again today.  that's two days of driving for a two day ranch visit.  i just can't seem to stay in one place.

12.29.13

 

                                                                                                circusy person

Just a little family/holiday/circus time.