Canoles May 31, 2005

Not that I’d eat one, since I’ve got this wicked gluten intolerance, but it just sounded like a fun word. I like the way it rolls off your tongue. I remember this place back in Orange County where I grew up that had these monster canoles that were impossible for even two people to finish. One time I actually took one of ‘em down with a girl I had a crush on. That was a proud moment. Ahh the things I did for so many years that have permanently scarred my intestines…lovely.

Practice was lighter today than yesterday. Holy shit I was a brick ‘o lead yesterday- haven’t felt that way in a long time. My arms just didn’t want to work. Today was better, but my shoulders still feel stiff, for whatever reason. I got supta vajrasana today. I had a heel-grabber kapotasana with THE ADJUSTMENT, but my stupid shoulders wouldn’t let me get to the ankles. Close, but just not cutting the mustard. Back was in good shape despite not getting any serious adjustments in over two weeks. Must’ve been the margaritas yesterday with Neti and the Mrs.

The first year of grad school is over now. In addition to my never-ending research (which I love) I’ve given myself some serious reading assignments for the summer, though. Gotta get caught up on a number of basic facts in my field. One whole textbook oughta do it.

Steamin May 27, 2005

Finished four days of practice at David and Catherine’s today. They are amazing people. My travel buddies are good friends with them, so we all had lunch yesterday. I love hearing senior teachers talk about their experiences of Guruji, how they found Ashtanga, their time in Mysore, and how they’ve worked through the practice. There’s nothing like sitting down with someone who has so much experience and just listening to them talk. It helps when they are as friendly as David and Catherine.

Seattle’s been hotter than a witch’s teat this week. It’s in the mid to upper 80s. We practiced with the windows open this morning it was so hot. Yesterday I almost drowned in my own sweat. Today I got garbhapindasna and kukuttasna for real for the first time ever. They were the last bastion of resistance from my former knee problems. I’ve now been able to reasonably complete every pose in first series, in my humble (yea, right) estimation. Having shaved arms from the tattoo work helps. Oh, speaking of which, I’ve got links to two tat pix up in the previous entry now. I think next week I’ll shave my legs too.

An observation on backbending. I’ve noticed, after watching many people including several advanced practitioners, that most people have success in backbends due to flexible shoulders, not flexible backs. This is why they have so much trouble standing up- the bend in the back is shallow, forcing the weight over the arms. To shift the weight forward, one must be able to bend the back even further than where it is after the drop back, which is not possible for many. I have a very flexible back, which makes these things easy. But while I can stand up with parallel feet and my heels down, grab my ankles in chakra bandhasana, and grab them in kapotasana, I still can’t get my elbows down in pigeon without assist. Why? I have tight shoulders. Many who pass through second series get past the backbends because they have open shoulders- those poses really work them. I’ve realized that you only have to have a modestly open back, but very open shoulders to complete kapotasana well enough to be let past it. This after noticing both a third and fourth series practitioner not be able to stand up or drop back without lifting their heels. Next time you see someone in pigeon, watch them do their drop backs and compare where they’re bending….

Majoresque May 24, 2005

My practices before leaving for San Diego were soothing. I found myself leaving feeling very happy with where I was at, in spite of the fact that my last bay area practice was shit. Tired, heavy, anxious. Had to call it early.

Driving always makes me zone out. If I have the right music on, I can almost go into a trance over the couse of a few hours. Spending time with my grandfather was uncomfortable. It was like I was holding my breath the whole time. I had to keep reminding myself to relax my abdomen. We ran out of things to talk about a couple times. I found myself scouring my imagination for topics of conversation. He was in pain, but wanting things to seem normal for my visit. He even took my grandmother, who has dementia so badly that he has to help dress in the morning, to the beauty salon so her hair would be nice. I cried when I left.

The tat took 5 hours of needle time (maybe 1.5hrs prep), but we bailed out on the fine shading for Ganesha’s face and the flowers, though I’ll go back for that in a few months. Julie stopped by to say hi- right as I got to the most painful part of the fill. I think she thought I was going to pass out at one point. On the whole, it was a great experience. Always nice when the tattoo artist is so happy he’s singing.

Full arm
Forearm

I haven’t been to Portland since I was with her. Then I loved the city, but it always had a sadness associated with it. This time that feeling was gone. The sun was out. Surrounded by friends, we hit it pretty hard Sunday night- full moon partying. Always fun.

Myself and my travel buddies sacked up yesterday afternoon and practiced at 6pm in my parents’s Bainbridge island living room. Half primary for me, first practice in 6 days. It was a good one. This morning was a 6am full primary at David and Catherine’s new studio in Seattle proper. It’s a beautiful space and heated by wood-burning stoves. My back is still open despite all the driving- ankles in chakra bandhasana with little trouble. I’ve driven from San Diego to Seattle in the last three days. West coast, corner to corner. Fun.

Drowning pigeon May 15, 2005

Today after class I was sitting on the couch in the lobby chatting with friends when my teacher walked by with a broom to clean the studio. I said to him “don’t you need to mop first?” ; ) Seriously, it was wet today. I dunno if the heat was up more than normal or if it was just more humid or what, but I was dripping. In krounchasnana, as I was looking up at my pointed foot, I could see the sweat just falling off my forearms like rain. UN-real.

My practice was good, but a little too fast for my taste. When it’s all hot like that I have a lot of trouble keeping my breath slow, and so I just kinda hovered in that zone of just a little too fast but not so fast that I’m losing control of myself. My legs are shot. After a two hour critical mass ride Friday and an all day biking day with Neti and his wife yesterday (though punctuated with stops for food, or music, or margaritas), my quads were more or less useless today. I’m honestly perplexed that I was able to complete my standing poses! Most of the practice was fine though, and I really was glad to go. I had an early to bed for me last night and got tons of sleep, which I hope to duplicate tonight. Two more days before I leave for a week and a half off! I can’t wait.

Week down May 13, 2005

Friday reds. Like the opposite from Monday blues. What is it called when you have the opposite of the blues? The reds sounds too 1930’s anti-communist propaganda to me. Oh well. Regardless of the color, today was nice. I had a speedy first series with tons of heat and sweat and good flexibility and stength. I was feeling pretty sleepy throughout practice, but I got to cash in during savasana. Took it easy on the back today. Did my stand-up/drop-backs and called it quits. I’m happy to have tomorrow off.

The lab has been calm today. I won’t be working tonight, thank God. In fact, I think I only have a limited necessity to come in Sunday, and only during the morning. I’ll probably practice, do that, and then head to the city for some bikin’ with my other fixie friends (Neti and the Mrs). Tonight I’m going to spend some time grabbing a cider with buddies before going to my first Critical Mass ride. Stoked on that. I’ve never been, but I’m always up for some rebellious activity. The weather around here has been absolutely amazing, and the evenings are a wonderful time to be out.

Holy Pigeon! May 12, 2005

Whoa. Major back day today. I woke up feeling like I was finally adapted to the 5:30 hour this week. It always takes me until about Wednesday or Thursday to get used to that- right in time to sleep a little more Friday and over the weekend. Anyway, practice went by with little note, other than the simple fact that it felt good and I felt strong. Flexibility was all good. I got to kapotasana right as my teacher was finishing an adjustment on someone near me, so I figured I was in for THE ADJUSTMENT. I was right. As I began to go back, I could tell he wasn’t letting me down as far as normal. I couldn’t figure out why. He took my hands and we began the descent to my feet. I felt my thumbs touch…no…wait…the back of my heels!? Yep. As in the achilles tendon. Which meant my fingers were going to wrap around…could they really…my ankles…gulp (well I couldn’t gulp in that state). Yep. Full ankle grab in kapotasana. I didn’t think I’d have the strength to maintain the hold, seeing as how sweaty my ankles were at that point. My teacher came around to adjust my elbows in and simultaneously placed his feet against my hands, lodging them there. I wasn’t thinking about anything other than the sensation of the ankle grab. It wasn’t particularly uncomfortable- not any more than usual. But compared to grabbing the heels, that’s a significant amount of shift forward with the hands. COOL! Chakra bandhasana was a good finish- straight to ankles again, and this time straight to a little above the ankles. Very cool. Today is my new benchmark for back mobility. Wow. It’s amazing to have those days where you go further than you ever have before. I love them. They are the fleeting reward for discipline and the madness of this practice. They last only as long as you prove you can repeat it at will, and then the reward aspect is over. Well, first series tomorrow- a little relaxation. I’ve going to make sure to get to practice Sunday, however, so I can get at least three days in at my shala next week. Perhaps I’ll have the gumption to do a home practice at my buddy’s place Thursday before my tattoo. I’m going to shoot for it.

No big pigeon May 11, 2005

Posting early today. I’ve got some free time and I’m not sure when that’s going to happen again. Thought I’d take advantage. Another good practice. I was feeling a bit stronger, though still off from my last week high of feeling like superman. My knees have become very cooperative at this point in the week, which is reassuring. That’s the part of me that suffers the most from time off. I’m assuming what it means is that my hips tighten up after a couple days of no practice, and therefore my knees have more strain. Always by Wednesday or so, provided I’ve been practicing all week, there’s no longer any pain. Today was no exception. This is an important point, as I’ll return to below.

So it wasn’t nearly as packed today as it was yesterday. I guess we just had a rush yesterday. Maybe they were selling mat spots at half price. Who knows with these crafty shala business owners. First series was nothing really to speak of. Nothing new, nothing old. Those poses are just kinda coasting right now. Oh, well, I guess I’m feeling like I’m progressing in baddha konasana- I’ve got my knees down in A and am getting much closer to the ground with my head- and also in janu sirsasana C. Second series poses are coming along. Pasasana is still the bane of my existance. I’ve taken to attempting it with my heels off the ground now, which has resulted in me learning to balance with my heels off the ground, but I’m still not connecting on my own. Oh well. I’m sure by the time I have that pose I’ll also have my shoulders to the ground in kapotasana by myself as well. It’s all a shoulder thing now.

Chakra bandhasana was very cool today. My teacher did the direct-to-ankle approach again, and this time was easier for both of us. I got a good hold right away with both hands, and he even went back and pushed them both a little higher. Nice. It felt really intense today- getting closer to the intensity of my adjusted kapotasana (which didn’t happen today). But all in all, my back is feeling exceptionally great. So after a long paschimottanasana adjustment I got up to walk to the finishing asanas section, and my teacher stopped me to ask about my knees. I told them they were doing well, and he asked if they were hurting in mari D and lotus poses. I said no- they’re actually feeling great in those poses. Which is true- in fact, at this point the only time I get pain or discomfort is in ardha baddha padmottanasana. After standing poses, my knees are ok every day. I guess when I blog that they’re cranky, I’m remembering that first half-lotus in the standing poses. I’m glad he asked me, because before I hadn’t reflected on that fact. Anyway, after I responded, he told me that we might do supta vajrasana next week. Sweet. I’m going to try and forget it, in case we don’t!

Rollin pigeon May 10, 2005

Back to second series today. Yum. Sorta. My back was feeling good, so it went smootly. I was feeling a little weak today however. I got a big push about halfway through my practice from the steadily increasing mass of folks at the shala, however. It was packed today. A fellow ashtangi/grad student friend and I were talking over lunch about how weird it was that there were so many people and yet many of the regulars weren’t even there. Looks like either SKPJ had an impact on attendance (there’s been a slew of first-timers this week) or it’s just the spring excitement getting people out in the mornings. It’s basically light at 5:30am here (not something that would happen in San Diego) now and that definitely makes it easier on me to practice. Anyway, the energy in the room was neat. And I had a woman next to me that I’ve never met who had a marvelous practice. Steady, charged, precise- good breath- that kind of thing really drives me also. Having an exceptional practitioner next to me always gives me a lift. And I’m not really ever allowing myself to just watch the practice, but I can certainly feel the whole thing. Kapotasana felt pretty mellow today, though I didn’t get adjusted, so that obviously skews my appraisal, but I was able to get my fingers further up my feet than usual without an adjustment, and it wasn’t all that intense. My elbows are certainly still outta whack, but the bend in the back was nice and deep. My teacher pulled a new one on me today, too. Going back for chakra bandhasana, I could tell something was different. He was keeping me higher. Was he really going to- yep! Wham, he just grabbed my hand before I got it to the ground and put it on my ankle. It slipped at first, but then I got a firm hold. Then the second. So I got my first direct-to-ankle-grab today. It wasn’t all that different, though I didn’t get quite as deep into it as usual. But I like the idea of going straight into it. It’s way more efficient! Plus, in some strange way, it feels more organic. I dunno. So yeah. Good day. Good practice. Looking forward to tomorrow.

Monday May 9, 2005

A good Monday. A good start to the week. Well, the real week that is. I was working in the lab all weekend so this barely counts, but the practice actually made it seem a little more like I actually had a weekend. I was in the lab until 12:30am Friday (Saturday technically) and then back again before 7 the next morning. Stayed until 4 that day. Holy shit. Then yesterday I put some hours in too. Needless to say, I was completely unable to practice Saturday since I was destroyed from lack of sleep and so much work, and yesterday I just decided to chuck it.

But today was really nice. I woke up before my alarm and had plenty of energy going this morning. The heat was there and the strength too, but parts of me were a little creaky from all the activity and lack of sleep over the weekend. I needed some nurturing, so I stuck with first series. My back slowly opened up, and my hips too, but my right knee was deciding to be a bastard today so I had to be cautious. In any case, it was a really nice re-introduction to the week. I’m looking forward to keeping things going this week. Next week I’m going to take some time off. I have a HUGE tattoo appointment a week from Thursday which will kill off Friday. I’m driving down to San Diego Wednesday morning early, so no practice that day. Saturday I’ll be coming back up here, joining some friends and driving that same night up to Seattle where we’ll take a week to practice with David and Catherine and basically pretend like we’re yoga bums. So Wed thru Tuesday maybe (that Monday is a moonday). Big break. So I want to keep things rolling this week and the beginning of next to anticipate that.

The reason why I’m driving down to SD instead of flying is so I can stop in LA and spend some time with my grandfather. I spoke with him last night and he’s getting slowly worse. He’s in a lot more pain than before, and is barely mobile anymore. Apparently, he’s lost even more weight than the last pix I saw of him. I’m sure I’ll be shocked out of my gourd when I see him. He’s still got his spirit, though his distinct sense of humor is conspicuously absent. That’s the part that’s hard to see go. It means he’s really having a hard time. He says the right things to make everyone else feel good, but I can tell he’s having a tough go. I’m looking forward to seeing him; I’m fairly certain it will be the last time.

Wham! it’s Friday May 6, 2005

I wish when I wrote that title I had something to relate to the 80’s band with George Micheal, but unfortunately all I’m referring to is how suddenly it became Friday and how smashed I am with work right now. It’s going to be a long night. I just began an experiment at 1:30 that’s going to need at least 3, 3-hour sample timepoints today, and depending on how it goes, may even need some in the middle of the night. Oh well. We work when the bugs want us to, that’s just how it goes.

Practice today was nice. I didn’t get as much sleep last night as I would have liked, but it is Friday and so all I had to do was get through the first series. It was actually a really nice practice. I like this new body I’ve inhabited from the week with Guruji. It’s much nicer than the old one. Kinda like buying a new car or something- everything works so much better and there’s not as much need for maintenance. Great! I’d be more happy if I was going to get to practice tomorrow morning in the shala, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to be here early tomorrow, so that’s out. I’ll have to do an afternoon home session if I want to get it done tomorrow, but honestly that’s a tough sell after working all morning- on a Saturday. I guess I’ll just have to see where I can squeeze something in this weekend. Perhaps a morning practice at home Sunday. This moon day is most inconvenient! That or my work is inconvenient. Or both. Anyway, it’s all for the best, I know that. I’m sooo tired right now though…ugh.