ny ny ny.

i spent a lot of time on the trains.

thai massaging, giving metta.

hello alice!

new york was riding the 2 train from atlantic/pacific to 14th street, communal lunches at integral yoga center on the break of my thai massage training, catching up with peace corps friends, yoga in the park with the amazing chrissy carter, learning about the ayurvedic doshas and how they apply to thai massage, korean bbq with allison and david (my adorable labor day wedding couple who have been together for 13 years), having great talks with my friend amanda in her lucious brooklyn backyard where she has strawberries and a lot of bamboo growing and i don't feel like i am in the city at all, a rainy evening spent trying everything on at anthropologie in soho and getting a few gems, acroyoga in the park with sarita and greg the night before they headed off to wanderlust, the best nyc diner and cupcake experience with dear Susannah and getting to hear about a few of her post-grad dreams, private-room karoke (highlight was simple mind's "don't you (forget about me)" and generally just feeling like a honorary new yorker because i could get myself around the city and even forgot to look up sometimes. it was a great week full of ethnic food and a lot of metta but i was so happy to come back to dc which feels like one big hug of a neighborhood to me.

rampaging.

the incredible orchids at the penn quarter farmer's market (adam got one for his anniversary present)

i appreciate the warm sun and cooler breeze today and that i can write this while sitting on my back porch. i appreciate that my fridge/freezer are working better than ever (they got real sick in the heat of last week) and for the a/c unit that julie gave me (after three summers of no-ac in a dc summer, the june heat wave and julie's generosity have changed everything). i appreciate my relationship with my boo and that it's been a year and it keeps feeling better and better and that i can call him in hard moments and laugh with him in softer ones (we laugh a little in the harder moments too--just a little). i appreciate this photo essay about people who make their own things and live darling little creative lives. i appreciate getting to teach at the two coolest yoga studios in dc (this is my blog so what i get to say what is coolest) and how my students are badasses and how i love what i do and am always finding new opportunities to use it. i appreciate mike and neela, the couple whose little wedding ceremony i photographed this weekend. they were so sweet and laid-back and they organized a new orlean's brass band to walk the wedding party from the ceremony to the reception and the sun was setting in dc and everyone on the streets was so quick to wave and cheer. i appreciate that i get to do a lot of things. i appreciate the idea that joy equals success and that we never get it all done so it's best to just have a good time and see how it comes together. i appreciate in advance my trip to nyc this next week to study more thai massage and ayurveda and see my good people up there. and speaking of traveling, i totally appreciate this opportunity i am getting to co-teach a yoga and thai massage retreat in costa rica this august with my good friend sarita lou. the two of us meant in the youth of unity when we were 15 and have followed parallel yogic paths on different coasts. we are coming together to teach what we love most and we are excited to see the group come together for this trip. if you are interested then let me know...

pictures from may to june.

david, brother, graduates law school.

bloomingdale graffiti.

adam likes: flowers; dislikes: being photographed.

hanging out with julie is like living in a jcrew photo shoot!

the lovely mia at raleigh's new (and very cool) contemporary art museum.

i've been experiementing with combining beans into baked goods to add more protein without fat. the ginger-chickpea bread was awesome; the lemon-basil-white bean, not so much. i'm going to keep working on them.


ahh, so much going on and i want to share it with you all! i'll start with these pictures now and say that much has happened and there is more in store. currently i am excited about celebrating one year with adam (we had a picnic at hillwood mansions and an incredible dinner at palena), a road trip to raleigh with great friends to visit ricki and mia, and the loveliness of walking about dc's farmers markets on the weekends. i hope everyone is feeling summer kissed and full these days.

i seriously loved this documentary.

too many good parts to mention--just watch it for yourself and see.

blessed yogini.

isn't ayelet the most lovely yoga lady? we took these pictures in dumbarton oaks park over in georgetown. we walked ten minutes away from the road and suddenly we were in a little fairy glen of greenness. ayelet described it best by saying that the whole shoot conveyed the mother earth sukha (sanskrit for softness, openness). i think this makes sense because ayelet expresses her own sense of sukha so well (and has some awesomely defined tricep muscles that show her developed capacity for sthira (strength)).

as long as we are on yoga, i found a list of pantajili's yamas and niyamas that i copied from one of my mom's yoga books. as i am always trying to remember to live by these, i thought i would share them, along with some of my mom's notes in the margin (her thoughts are the ones punctuated by "quotation marks." i've been studying these for the past few years and it's interesting how all of a sudden one will become really interesting to me. last year i was all about the svadyaya--just looking again and again at the way that i act and think about things. this year i am really feeling the importance of tapas, disciplined practice, for me to be true to myself. but really, it's always ahimsa, non-violence, that is really the centerpiece of this whole yoga practice. if i start there then i know--especially with how i treat myself--that pretty much i will be in alignment with the way i want to be living. let me know what speaks to you...

yama and niyama: conscious relationship with your world and yourself
"awareness. it's about eliminating distractions from your path. without spiritual connection, yoga is just exercise. the wise use of all our gifts--increases them. unwise use--decreases them"

yama--"based on non-violence"
social ethics

ahimsa, non-violence/compassion
behave in kindness, friendliness, compassion, and thoughtful consideration for all beings and things, as well as yourself. "in the presence of one established in compassion (non-violence) all hostility dissolves. co-listening. violence--intent to harm (usually because we feel threatened)"

satya, non-deception/truthfulness
practice conscious communication through speech, writing, gesture, and actions. consider what you say, how you say it and in what way it could affect others. "for one established in truth, the results fit the action"

asteya, non-stealing/honesty
take advantage of no person or situation for personal gain. "generosity. the persona established in honesty lives in abundance"

brahmacharya, non-abuse of sexual energy, conscious sexuality, energy management
honor your sexuality and that of others. create relationships that foster your understanding of the highest truths. "on established in conscious sexuality has abundant energy"

aparigraha, non-greed/security
take only what you need and nothing more. "one who is consistently w/o greed understands the meaning of life"

niyamas "based on purification"
personal practices

saucha, purity
maintain cleanliness of body, mind, and surroundings. "over exposure to bad language, sexuality, violence, gossip de-sanitizes us. there is a the possibility for attaining equilibrium, purity, well-being, focus, mastery of the senses, and ultimately self-realization"

santosha, contentment
practice being comfortable with what you have and what you do not have. embrace all experiences as opportunities to learn and grow. "contentment brings supreme joy"

tapas, discipline
increase the heat that burns impurities through practices that keep you body/mind fit and healthy; proper sleep, exercise, nutrition, work, and relaxation "through disciplines that strengthen and purify body, mind, and senses one becomes capable of extraordinary abilities. ability to endure pain"

svadhyaya, self-examination
observe, read, study, practice, reflect, review and observe your progress so that you may see yourself more clearly. "therapy. self-study (sacred texts) brings realization of one's true nature"

isvarapranidhana, spiritual attunement
'let go and let god.' attune to the all-knowing presence within you and allow that presence to direct your actions. "develops extraordinary abilities. experiencing the presence (of god) to see what's real"

ayurveda myths.

i love this piece by anne thiel about how ayurveda doesn't have to be so extreme. i especially dig that part at the end where she talks about beer being good for people with vata imbalances :)

love this song.

thanks acacia for turning me on to jazmine.