Archive for the 'yoga' Category

busy bee

I just realized that over the next few days this is what I have going on:

  • Newly loved yoga practice
  • Four new freelance projects (three new clients!)
  • Two current freelance projects
  • Must install and learn CMS system for one of the clients
  • Yoga
  • Obama cookout tonight
  • Rollergirls tomorrow
  • Yoga
  • Party tomorrow night
  • Gym and more yoga
  • French class Monday nights
  • White dog cafe lady speaking at the History Museum next Tuesday
  • Yoga
  • NCBC meeting next Thursday

All THIS before I leave to visit friends and family in PA next Friday for a week. HOLY HELL. Remember like six weeks ago when I was miserable and bored with life in Raleigh… WELL I WENT AND NIPPED THAT IN THE ASS DIDN’T I?

I talked to my friend Kris from Portland while the BG and I visited and she was telling me how her yoga practice had taken off… she was practicing and going to class like 8 times per week. Insane! I was kind of jealous when she was telling me because she loved her classes and her instructor and she could think about nothing else besides yoga. At the time I hadn’t been doing ANY exercising because I suck, but after our trip the BG and I made more of an effort to work out. Now I think we’ve got it (finally). And my new friend Julianne who incidentally also practices yoga at my YMCA has started motivating me to go to intermediate level classes, where I’m doing surprisingly well I think. (At least I did last night.)

Anyway, it’s all I can think about now. And I’ve been practicing at home more too. While I’m in PA I’m going to bum a class or two off m’s YMCA because we rock like that.

Thank god I have coffee fueling my brain today. CAN’T YOU TELL.

Published
by
frekur
on September 12, 2008
in french, goals, happiness, learning, the_move, veg*nism, work and yoga
. 1 Comment

promises, promises

The idea of “New Year’s Resolutions” kinda pisses me off. Mostly because I just get aggravated when people say a bunch of bullshit that I assume they’ll never follow through on. I’ve been slowly understanding, though, that I jump to conclusions a lot and become bitter over things without any real logic. (Like my absolute distaste for Harry Potter. I’ve never read the books, but I can’t stand the series. See? No logic.)

Anyway. This year I’ve decided to make some changes, whether or not related to the New Year.

1. Not get mad so often over silly things (see above).
2. Call my friends. (M has promised to push me so that I do it.)
3. Work out.
4. Another attempt at veg*nism. (Prompted by the BG… Eeeeee!)
5. Join a CSA, make and preserve food!

The BG and I joined the YMCA yesterday which is *brand new*. It’s listed as such on their website, but I forgot about it until we walked in the door. Needless to say, it’s gorgeous and everyone there is really nice. The yoga and other studio classes (which include pilates, kickboxing and African dancing!) are included in the $37/month price. I’m very excited. It’s less than a mile and a half from where we live which is a great biking distance. We attended yoga together both yesterday and today, and today we worked out in the gym using our bikes to get there and back.

Eeee!

And, I’m (we’re) taking another shot at not eating eggs or cheese… we’ll see how it works out. In addition, we’ve chosen a CSA to join. They drop off the loot weekly at the Whole Foods store for us to pick up, which is super convenient. And the BG has purchased some equipment for us to begin canning food.

Woo! :D

Oh, and just to add to all this excitement? Last night we took a stab at making homemade ravioli which turned out REALLY WELL. Pics coming soon. :D

Published
by
frekur
on January 5, 2008
in bicycling, food, green living, happiness and yoga
. 1 Comment

unemployed, still

It is amazing the crazy things you think about when you don’t have a job. And, it’s amazing how those crazy things can bring you down at the drop of a hat when you feel bored, insecure and financially trapped.

Aside from freelance work (which doesn’t require that much time), I haven’t had a full time job in a month. That’s the longest I’ve gone without one since I was in college 9 years ago. I’ll say, though, that not once have I doubted my design work. Instead, I’ve let the feeble mindset of the unemployed carry over into other areas of my life (I’ll save you all the stupid details). But this really isn’t the only reason I’ve been a little wishy washy, and I am aware that attention and patience will get me through it.

I had two more interviews last week that went well. Both jobs are interesting to me for different reasons and I believe I could grow and learn in either one.

Last weekend was filled (once again) with of new faces, including a few from Couchsurfing and quite a handful from OkCupid. All of us met for a major night out on Friday that included dinner at a Thai restaurant, a movie at the art museum, and drinks at several pubs in downtown Raleigh. I had an amazing time talking with new people and drinking to new relationships. The BG worked hard arranging the night and it paid off as everyone said they had a great time.

This week I’m shopping for a bike (that has suddenly morphed into my combined birthday and xmas gift from the parents… sometimes being a December baby pays off…) in addition to the continued job search and freelance work. Amazingly, Trex is giving me another project. I thought I wasn’t going to be getting much more work from them (for budget reasons).

All this free time affords me the opportunity to go on field trips with the BG. Together, over the past three weeks, we’ve traveled out of the city to check on his little strawberries and yesterday I also joined him on a farm tour that he was attending. I found it interesting because I had never really been on a farm before.

My goals for this week? Complete one freelance job, start the second, practice yoga three times and buy a bike. Will I have a full time job by Friday?

We’ll see.

Published
by
frekur
on November 12, 2007
in bicycling, design, relationships, the_other_move, work and yoga
. 0 Comments

updates from raleigh

I hesitate to be honest about Raleigh because I know I’ve seen and experienced very little. I don’t want to make harsh claims or rash decisions based on just shy of three weeks time here. One thing I’ve noticed is how important public transit is to me. It is by far what makes me believe a city has it, or doesn’t. And based on that I’ll say simply that Raleigh definitely doesn’t have it.

Skip the light rail or any subway system, as it doesn’t exist. The buses are confusing, scheduling is unclear and timing is inconvenient. The BG and I attempted to take the bus from the NCSU campus (a healthy ten minute walk from our apartment) into the city, which is less than 2 miles from campus, to the bar. This was around 8pm on a weeknight and the bus never arrived. We waited for an hour.

I took the bus one other time from campus to a job interview. Three transfers and an hour later, I suddenly became trapped as a bus headed back to Raleigh just didn’t exist! Only during rush hours do certain buses run to/from certain places in Research Triangle Park, I learned. (I was headed to the EPA. You’d think this wouldn’t be a problem.) Also, you cannot get to or from the RDU airport on Sundays, as buses don’t run(???).

I felt liberated when I sold off my vehicles in Portland. I started taking the bus everywhere and then I figured I could live even more cheaply by riding my bike. This worked well. A brief look at the bus lines in Raleigh before my move had me thinking that since I’ve spent my whole life basically overlooking public buses that surely all I needed to do was be patient and learn the ways of a new system. Maybe Portland made me a snob by offering cheap, abundant public transit, but I don’t know if I can get by here without owning a vehicle. I guess it will depend on where I end up working.

Anyway.

The apartment is pretty much done for now. We went ahead and bought a mattress last week and it is SWEET. Less than $400 and more comfortable than my Tempurpedic.

I’m also shopping for a bike. I’d like to get a hybrid but it seems like each company does them differently. My preference would be to have something lightweight, comfortable for commuting and also for long road/trail trips. Not sure yet if this is possible, at least for an off the shelf product.

This past weekend we hosted our first Couchsurfer. She was really sweet and hung out with us for most of the weekend. I also met a new friend last weekend, Morgan, and hung out with her this past Friday night with both her boyfriend and the BG. We made fun of the fartsy people in downtown Raleigh for First Friday.

Saturday we drove out to the Chapel Hill area to visit the Weaver Street Market, a co-op and cafe with really delicious food. While we were there we met up with a new friend I met on OkCupid named Mike. We chatted for a bit then broke it off for the afternoon, as the three of us headed back to Raleigh to run some errands and get ready to make a huge homemade taco dinner, to which Mike was invited. The four of us had an awesome meal together and then went out to a pub afterward.

The weekend was great, meeting new friends kicks ass.

Now, I’m back to job searching and freelance work. This Saturday I’m scheduled to start volunteering at the Raleigh Habitat for Humanity ReStore. I’ve also located several yoga studios who teach yoga in the Iyengar tradition, which is similar to what I was enjoying in Portland. (I’m lining up the yoga and Spanish classes for when I get a job.)

I’ve been doing pretty well with my home yoga. I practice about every other day (except this past weekend) and have been able to do a few poses I wasn’t comfortable doing in my fast paced classes in Portland. That is the tradeoff with home practice; you get time to focus on practicing poses that are difficult and really customize a routine that you feel works for you (and it’s free), but you don’t get the attention from an instructor that really helps you ensure proper posture and position in the poses. I’m looking forward to attending classes once or twice a week to supplement my home routine.

Published
by
frekur
on November 5, 2007
in bicycling, complaining, relationships, the_other_move, volunteer and yoga
. 0 Comments

fork in the road

I have chosen to let go.

(My first week of unlimited yoga is complete, as of yesterday.)

I am not sure what’s happening to me, but I feel free. I don’t know whether to attribute it solely to the yoga practice, the ever-growing closeness I continue to have with the BG, learning about new people through making friends, or my recent decision to keep my head up and positive on all fronts.

It is an immense improvement.

After spending a few weeks in a battle with myself, feeling insecure and acting ridiculous, analyzing what I am doing, where I am headed, the distance between the BG and I, my job, my living situation, and leaving Portland — all culminating in a self-rendered state of overwhelming despair… Suddenly, I have let go.

Sometimes I *really* surprise myself.

The subtle guilt from being sedentary is absolutely gone. Between riding my bike daily, and now committing to yoga (I now attend classes five days per week), I wonder why in the hell I’ve waited so long to integrate these activities into my life. It is very easy, now that I don’t drive, to achieve them, that’s for sure. But it also helps to have a coworker friend who has recently committed to the same activities as well.

Kris works with me in the office next door and has been doing yoga for about ten years, and has also recently begun to commute by bicycle. She is incredible, both at yoga, and as a support for me beginning my practice. I have a terrible habit of giving a shit of what others think of me, and she has a nice way of reminding me to keep it under wraps; it’s not what yoga is about.

After practicing for two weeks, intensely for these past seven days, I’ve come to understand that everyone performs yoga in a unique way. The practice itself is as flexible as the body becomes with time, and holding onto expectations will do nothing but hinder my progression.

The other night in class I did a head stand for the first time, and I did not need the wall. It wasn’t held for very long, but it made me feel a little fearless. ;)

It is amazing what my body can do, without my mind holding it back.

Even though I miss the BG very much, and think about him all the time, I have decided to make the absolute most of my final months in Portland. I’ve surrounded myself with wonderful people, am involved in fun and challenging activities and I have nothing to complain about or over analyze.

I’m beginning to learn that feeling satisfied and happy with my life actually takes work, that it doesn’t just appear.

I feel awesome, and it is of my own doing.

Yayyyyyyy… (It’s like I’m learning or some shit. Hehe.)

Published
by
frekur
on September 20, 2007
in bicycling, happiness, learning, self-awareness and yoga
. 3 Comments

yoga

I’ve begun a week-long extensive yoga practice at Yoga Bhoga with my coworker Kris.

My first class was last night (I’ve been the studio before, but this is the first class of what I plan on being a steady study of yoga) and it kicked my ass.

I… I love it. I used to cringe at the idea of exercising, but man, it’s really been keeping me together lately. Riding the bike, yoga, walking everywhere. It’s not enough to do this once or twice a week.

The idea of “centering” myself was realized last night in class. I know of the concept but not sure that home practice alone achieves it. The instructor and the studio are perfect for me; I need to have a guide (at least in the beginning) to keep my mind from wandering too far, and the surrounding students as an energetic support system.

I’m going tonight, and everyday next week as well. My budget might shift a bit in the direction of going out less, doing yoga more. It has better long-term effects for me.

:) :) :)

Published
by
frekur
on September 14, 2007
in learning and yoga
. 1 Comment