Whistler

Oops, I'm a bit behind in my blog posts. Two weekends ago we went up to Whistler for the weekend with a group of Marc's classmates. There were 15 of us total and we had a great time skiing, shopping, and eating at great restaurants. Here are some pics from the winter wonderland

Soham सोऽहम्

Last week we had a big snow storm in Seattle and people were stuck home for multiple days - I got a little bit of cabin fever but overall I thought it was a lovely introspective time. It can be easy to maintain focus and clarity when I'm alone without distractions and obstacles, but it's more challenging to recreate this state of being in the midst of regular life.

One of the things that helps me maintain focus is to chant a mantra. The Sanskrit word mantra means "instrument of thought" [man = to think; tra = tool or instrument]. A mantra can be a sound, word or phrase, and repeating a mantra can help quiet the stream of thoughts that play in your mind.

The mantra we are using in class today is Soham which means "I am that" or "I myself." I love how it looks in Sanskrit, so beautiful! सोऽहम्
Soham acts as a natural mantra to control your breathing pattern, to help achieve deep breath, and to gain concentration. As we inhale, we think the sound Sooooo... and as we exhale, we think the sound Hummmm...

When most people hear the word "yoga" they think of the physical practice of various poses. This is called asana and it is only one of the eight limbs of yoga. Pranayama, or breathing exercises, is another one of the eight limbs of yoga. One of my favorite breathing exercises is called Nadi Shodhana (nah-dee show-DAH-nah) or Alternate Nostril Breathing [nadi = channel; shodhana = cleaning, purifying]. In Nadi Shodhana, you inhale through one nostril, retain the breath, and exhale through the other nostril (then repeat). This leads to a balance between your logical (left brain) and creative (right brain) thinking. Here is a great article on some more benefits to Nadi Shodhana.

Today in class we are using the Soham and Nadi Shodhana to even out our breath bringing balance to our mind and our postures, which will then translate into our lives.

Here is my playlist for 1/25 Yogis at UW

music and quotes

This quarter I'm super excited about teaching classes every other Wednesday for Yogis at UW. I'm going to post my playlists and quotes I read for each class here on my blog. For the students, you won't have to try to remember what we did because it's all right here. For those of you who can't make it to class, I hope you will still find inspiration in reading these posts. Here's the first one for today - the quote is from Neil Gaiman:

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life. Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it. Make your mistakes, next year and forever.

Here is the music playlist:

In class today we are going to do a lot of hip openers (which can bring up emotions) and back bending (which can bring up fear). When we are receptive to our emotions and in touch with our fears, we are in a perfect place to try something new! Exciting and scary at the same time :)

Make mistakes, make magic, make miracles! It's all the same - it's all movement. Moving towards what? Who cares??? Goals can be great, but if you are so focused on getting somewhere, it's hard to enjoy being here. Have you ever experience getting "there" and feeling let down? "I thought if I got that job I would be happy then...I thought if I made that much money, I would be happy then...I thought that if I lost that much weight, I would be happy then...etc..."

For me, 2012 is going to be all about living now and I hope to share that with my friends, family and students.

Resolutions

I've never really been big on making New Years resolutions. However, I am in favor of living life to the fullest no matter what time of year it is, so here are some things that inspire me. First a quote from Christian D. Larson:

promise yourself.

to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

to talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.

to make all your friends feel that there is something wonderful in them.

to look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

to think only of the best, to work only for the best, & to expect only the best.

to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

to forget the mistakes of the past & press on to the greater achievements of the future.

to wear a cheerful countenance at all times & give every living creature you meet a smile.

to give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.

live in the faith that the whole world is on your side so long as your are true to the best in you! 

Second, check out this article called 30 Things to Stop Doing. Here are some of my favorites from the list:
#4. Stop putting your own needs on the back burner.
It's true - you can't help other people if you are a mess yourself!
#10 Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness.
If your happiness is dependent upon others, you are setting yourself up for disappointment. (BTW, the book they suggest Stumbling on Happiness is definitely worth reading!)
25. Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn't.
This is a big one for me - I've always been good at putting on a happy face and now I'm learning how to feel safe while expressing my feelings. It's a work in progress...

Third is another article - this one summarizes the Top 5 Regrets of the Dying 
#1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me. 
Living in Bali for a month was definitely unexpected, and amazing in every possible way! While I missed everyone at home, I felt like I was right where I was supposed to be. I'm not sure what lies ahead for me, but I know it will involve more traveling.
#3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.
Ah man, it's on this list too??? Okay universe, I hear ya!

Finally, if you are looking for a great book, check out The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin. It's a narrative about her adventures during the twelve months she spent test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier. I swear it's not a self-help type book; it really is good!

Okay I lied...one more thing...but this one is a video, yay! Take a break from reading all my ramblings and spend 8 minutes watching this video letting go. I know 8 minutes may sound like a long time, but don't let "not having time" be an excuse...remember we're practicing making our needs a priority :)

Here are some photos from New Years:

Holiday buzz

This week was jam packed with holiday fun! We had seven parties over the course of three days and it was wonderful to catch up with friends and family!

One of my favorite parts was getting to spends time with my niece (who will be four in March). She is full of energy and has a great imagination - so cute. We had a non-stop dance party going which mostly consisted of twirling and jumping. Every time I would stop she would say "no, jump!" Ha ha, easy for her to say, she wasn't in high heels. My feet and legs were hurting in the end but it was well worth it.

Oh and now I have an excuse to go back to Bali...my niece told me that she liked my dress and then said "can you get me one?" I tried to explain that I got it in Bali so I couldn't just go buy it at the store, but I don't think she understood. She seemed pretty set on the idea of having a matching dress.

For her Christmas present, I'm going to take her up skiing for the first time. I'm so excited! If this rain would just hurry up and turn to snow...

I don't have any pictures from the weekend but here is one with Marc at a surprise party for my co-worker's 40th birthday!

Tis the season

Every year the Sheraton Hotel in Seattle has an amazing gingerbread village display. This year the theme is train-stations from around the world and it's definitely worth checking out! Here are some of the masterpieces:

my favorite is the Abominable snowman here:

followed by this guy in the background here, ha ha:

Catching up

I know, I know, I've been a bad blogger the past couple weeks! So here's a recap of what has been going on recently.

My parents came over to Seattle (from Spokane) for Thanksgiving weekend which was nice. My mom and I went to a Thanksgiving morning yoga class and it was packed:132 people lined up mat-to-mat. Incredible energy! Other than that, we went to a UW basketball game and to the Apple Cup (football game) - both of which the Huskies won! Oh and we saw the Muppet movie which was hilarious - loved it.

In December, I've had lots of holiday parties between work, friends, family and Marc's school group. All fun stuff, but sadly it's interfered with being able to go skiing. I haven't been up a single day yet this season...which is probably why I haven't blogged at all because I haven't felt like I've done anything interesting worth talking about. This is my first year (ever that I can remember) without having a season's pass. I've officially turned into a weekend warrior, boo! I swore up and down that would never happen, but I think I finally came to grips with it. The only redeeming thing about not having a pass is that now I'll be able to go to more mountains - when I have a pass, I always feel like I'm wasting money to go somewhere else when I could be skiing for free. I have friends that ski at different mountains, so now I can go wherever because it will cost money either way. Plus, I have friends in Tahoe, Salt Lake & Colorado that I want to visit!

On the yoga front, I'm really excited about setting up a regular teaching schedule. In January, I'm going to teach yoga every-other Wednesday for Yogis at UW. It will be fun to build a relationship with the students and watch them progress over time, since that's something I miss when I teach one-off classes. Speaking of which, I taught a holiday themed yoga class at Urban Yoga Spa this past Sunday afternoon focused on giving and gratitude. I volunteered to teach for free and asked everyone to bring food items to donate to the food bank! We had a small group - 14 of us - which wasn't surprising because of all the holiday parties happening over the weekend. It was perfect though because having a small class provided an opportunity to give individual attention which is always a bonus. I incorporated the idea of gratitude into some of the more difficult poses we did- a reminder that it's easy to feel grateful when things are going our way and when we are feeling good...but how can we continue to cultivate gratitude when life is challenging? 

I used all holiday music and a few people asked what some of the songs were, so here is the full playlist.
Winter Song - Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson (love this one)
The Heartache Can Wait - Brandi Carlile
Silver Bells - Alice Smith
All My Bells Are Ringing - Lenka
Carol of the Bells - The Bird & The Bee
Jingle Bells - Diana Krall
Sleigh Ride - KT Tunstall
Frosty the Snowman - Fiona Apple
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Jack Johnson (best version ever)
Peace is Here (acoustic version) - Jars of Clay
Very Merry Christmas - Dave Barnes
Mistletoe - Justin Bieber (I know...insert joke here)
Let it Snow - A Fine Frenzy
Winter Wonderland - Kate Havnevik
White Christmas - Katy Perry (yep, more teen pop stars...)
The Christmas Song - Catherine Feeny
Mistletoe - Colbie Caillat
I'll be Home for Christmas - Holly Conlan
Have Yourself a Very Merry Christmas - Hem
There is a Star That Shines Tonight - Sheryl Crow
Silent Night - Priscilla Ahn (my favorite if you're only going to check out one)