I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE ROOFING KIND

A few days ago Chris noticed a rash on his side. It was blistery and red and I didn't know what it was, so we put Benadryll on it. But it didn't get better. Instead it got worse and started to spread. We had this conversation at stop lights on Monday because we were on the scooters. He thought he might have shingles. I was like "No way!"; only old people get that. He figured it was shingles because the info he'd found online. A lot of time I feel that seeking medical information online can lead to a heap of hypochondria. But I got online that evening and within seconds of glancing at the first picture, agreed that Chris had shingles. The doctor confirmed it this morning and put Chris on a bunch of steroids and told him to stay away from small children, pregnant women, and the elderly.

He feels fine other then the fact that he has a painful itchy rash on his side (think chickenpox for adults). But neither of us can stop saying "shingles" in this totally exasperated and amazed way. Chris never gets sick. Never. He gets a cold and it might last a day or two, but that's it. I've never known him to go to the doctor to get antibiotics for a sinus infection or strep. He's usually driving me to the doctor for those kinds of things. That's our normal routine. Chris started getting a really bad cold just as we were leaving for Portland that turned to an extremely bad cold (I think sinus infection) while we were there. We're both pretty sure that this compromised his immune system and then add in the stress of being back here and working out our new budget. Bam! He's got shingles. I'm tempted to duck tape oven mitts to his hands just for the fun of it.

Shingles?!?!?!?

IS IT JUST ME, OR ARE THESE TEACHER TRAINING ENTRIES GETTING CLOSER TOGETHER?

This month's yoga teacher training was less about philosophy and more about instruction. I have an easier time with these types of weekends then I do with the ones that discuss the philosophical side of yoga. It's just easier for me to wrap my brain around and this weekend was great because we dealt with relaxation (yum) and inversions (fun). Some say that inversions reduce the aging process. I think this is because they are just fun. I love doing headstands, particularly now that I'm older (old and decrepit). It's something I could do as a kid, but you never think you could pull off as an adult. So, once you get into it, its like "Wow! Look at me!". I do not like handstands. I have a very large carrying angle in my arms; they don't lay straight, but bend at the elbows and even hyper-extend. This means I don't have joint on joint alignment in a handstand. The carrying angle starts developing in girls between the ages of 7-14. If a girl falls during this developmental stage, she is most likely to break her arm because of the way she would put her hands out to catch herself. I have broken both of my arms. Not at the same time; more like two years apart. I think was 7 when I broke the first one and 10 for the second one. My carrying angle was not caused by the broken arms. They're purely genetic. Handstands make my elbows hurt... I mean HUUURRRTTT! So I don't do them. And the great thing about this weekend, is that I learned that I don't have to do them.

There are only two weeks before our next teacher training (ACK!) and our session one training will be over with in January. Then I start session two where we learn to teach beginning yoga. Some parts of this seems to be winding up really fast, but then I think that I still have another six months left and I'm "Gah! Can I just be finished all ready?!". I have lots of homework stuff due in December and that has me slightly panicky. When I was in school, I was on top of things. Assignments were turned in at least a week before they were due. Now, I'm all about procrastination. Chris must be wearing off on me.

WOULD LIKE AN EXTRA HELPING OF GUILT WITH THAT?

This weekend I held a baby shower for my best friend (Steph) at my mom's. My mother's house was full with family and friends and food... so much food... too much food. The baby shower went well. I love Steph's two aunts (maybe even great aunts, not sure). They're kind of a picture of what Steph and I will be like in our old age, constantly concerned for each other, but bickering and picking on one another. They're like cartoon characters. I also got to finally meet the newest member of the family, Lucas, who is three months old already. Cati (Steph's little girl) was totally enamored and told my sister-in-law that she was going to have a baby brother soon too. Katrina's so great with little ones. She propped Cati up on the couch and plopped little Lucas down on Cati's lap so she could get the hang of holding a baby. Lucas was great. He just smiled and chewed on his hands and farted as he got passed all around.

There's a scene in Nightmare Before Christmas where Sally has to sew herself back together after jumping from the window. This is how I feel after a weekend with my family. I feel like there's never enough of me or enough time to talk and get caught up with each and every one. Part of this is my own fault because I don't go home as often as I used to, so they don't see me very often. Since the last time I saw them, my great-nephew's voice has changed (sounds just like J), a baby was born, and my niece started talking again (she'd been doing the uncommunicative teenager bit). It's just so much easier to deal with them on an individual basis. I really feel guilty about not spending enough time with Dad this weekend, who for some reason kept asking me if I was hungry every time he saw me (what's up with that?!). But Dad can't miss a day of peanut sales from the flea market.

At the end of it all, I packed up the car with twice as much stuff as I came with including a large bag of guilt. And when I had made it home, I started stitching myself back together.

DELUSIONS IN PINK

Remember at the end of Pretty In Pink when Blaine walks up to Andy and says "I always believed in you. You just didn't believe in me."? Am I only one that thinks he was totally lame? Of course she didn't believe in him. He never gave her any reason to believe in him. He lied to her about having a prom date and he never called her back. You know, I like this movie right up to the end. Andy is cool and different (much like me in my HS years, without the fashion). Then she goes squishy for a guy because he asks her to the prom. That's not the part that bugs me the most either. It's the end where Blaine acts like he's the one who was wronged. I'm sorry. Did I miss the part where he was calling her? Did the movie skip at the part where he tracks her down and tries to apologize? I don't think I was meant to watch this movie after HS.

SOME PICTURES

I went crazy with the camera on our vacation. I've compiled a few for you here. Enjoy!

WAIT! I HAD A TEACHER TRAINING THAT NEEDS TO BE BLOGGED ABOUT!

Last month in yoga teacher training we discussed the eight limbs of yoga as defined in the Yoga Sutras. Each limb is a step in the path to becoming a true yogi. You can't skip ahead; they have to mastered in order. I realized I was in serious trouble when I haven't even mastered the first limb. The first limb is yama and sort of like the ten commandments except there are only five: 1. Ahimsa = nonviolence, 2. Satya = truthfulness, 3. Asteya = nonstealing, 4. Brahmacharya = continence, and 5. Aparigraha = non-covetousness. Forget about all the other yamas except ahimsa. Now, just like people study and pick apart the scriptures, the same is true for the Yoga Sutras. And I know you're thinking "Why is Cindy worrying about the first limb? She's not a violent person.", but it's not as simple as that. Or at least my brain wants to make it more complicated. You see, I lumped anger into the definition of ahimsa.

Chris and I talked about this while we ate lunch outside behind the yoga studio that day. I told him I was angry all the time and then he asked me what it was that I was angry about. I blinked a few times and then told him it would probably be easier to tell you the things I'm not angry about. The crazy thing is, I didn't feel this way on vacation. I know! Enough with the Portland trip already! I am just going to say this. I felt less volatile while we were in Oregon.

The last yoga teacher training taught me that I have a lot of work to do. The idea is that as you start practicing yoga, you start to want to learn more. The physical practice leads you to a spiritual practice. I've been resisting this for some time because I was having a hard time separating spiritual from religious. But I know now that practicing and focusing on the eight limbs doesn't make me religious. The limbs are just tools for making me a better person. It's time to start the climb.

DRUNK BLOGGING... WITHOUT THE BOOZE

Oh... this is probably a bad idea, but I'm good at bad ideas. I'm watching the VP debate. That's bad idea number one. Bad idea number two is actually writing about it. First of all let's talk about energy independence. I'm all for being energy independent. There's no reason why we should be buying oil from foreign countries. Just like there's no reason why we should be buying clothes, electronics, auto parts, or food from foreign countries. But why is it when they talk about energy dependence, they talk about the need to open up more places on American soil for drilling? Why does our energy have to come from oil? Are you telling me that the U.S.A, home to MIT, Berkley, Harvard, Cornell, cannot develop technologies that would make us energy independent without relying on oil? I just don't understand why we are putting all this time and money into a non-renewable resource. Non-renewable means that once it's used up, it's gone. That's it. Nada. No more. Secondly, and boy is this one going to get me in trouble, what happens to our solders if we stop funding this war? Well...hmmmm.... THEY GET TO COME HOME! People, if we stop funding this "war", we have to bring our troops home. Because we love our military, we will not leave them over there without food or water. No money means we can't afford to keep them there any more. Why is bringing our troops home unpatriotic? I think it's very patriotic to want to bring our troops home safely to their families. It's time to let the Iraqis take care of their own and America to focus on taking care of Americans.

Thirdly, Palin just said that McCain was against government health care. McCain had government health care when he was in the military. He had government health care as a U.S. senator and since McCain is over 65, he has government health care as a senior citizen. If government health care is good enough for John McCain, then why isn't it good enough for the rest of us? Of course it isn't. We've all seen the Nightline news stories about the horrible conditions in our veteran's hospitals. We have higher standards in the TV shows we watch then how we care for our veterans, our elderly and our children.

I'm tired of settling for less. I demand energy dependence with out relying on oil. I demand an end to this war, shifting our focus to the real terrorist threats. I demand that we take care of our own with affordable health care for every one. I demand tax reform that removes tax breaks for the wealthy and puts the tax burden on the middle class and poor. I demand accountability, not just for my government, but for all of us.

OK, OK... I'm preaching to the choir. Stepping down off the soap box now.

VACATION ENDED TOO SOON

I did a terrible job of keeping everyone up on the Portland trip. There just wasn't enough time. Every day of our trip was full. I promise to post pictures soon; there's so many to upload and edit. It's almost impossible to sum up Portland. I could walk into any restaurant and eat without questioning or settling for the one vegetarian option on the menu. In fact, often there were too many vegetarian options. This made things very difficult because I only packed one stomach. I left town with not just a food baby, but food quadruplets. Looking back, I'm kicking myself for not having Cupcake Jones ship me a dozen cupcakes. Why did I only eat one?!? Oh, and don't even get me started on the Ben and Jerry's ice cream parlors. Those were just cruel.

It was also odd (in a very, very , very good way) to be in a political environment that reflects my own beliefs, to be surrounded by people who are on my side. People were polite and nice and respectful. They drove the speed limit on the freeways and let you into traffic. The market vendors would let you buy things, but they didn't try to sell you anything. And Portland doesn't seem to have "Truck Month". It all made coming home really hard. It wasn't difficult to imagine our lives in this place. We'd live in one of the small neighborhoods outside of downtown Portland. We could walk down the street to the local market, cafe, or coffee shop. A few blocks over from there, we would take Hooper to the park and on weekends, pack up the camp gear and head to the beach. You can throw a rock on the Coastal Highway and hit a state park. There’s just a whole lot to do in Oregon. Sigh.

THE VACATION THUS FAR

I have a travel journal I take with me on trips and I usually do a pretty good job of writing in it every day, but this trip I have written nothing. Which is a shame, because I don't know how I'm going to remember everything. Our trip really has centered around food. We had breakfast on our first full day here at Byways, a great little diner in the Pearl district. I've never seen so many blueberries inside a pancake in all my life. After that, Chris and I just wandered around downtown. We went into Powell's Bookstore and spent nearly two hours just roaming amongst all the books. It was the most awesome bookstore that even sold Obama swag (I love this town!). I found an Anthropologie store. I had only ever seen this place online and to actually go in a store and touch all the beautiful clothes, brought tears to my eyes. As God is my witness, I will have clothes from Anthropologie one day! Day two of vacation I went to a vinyasa class at Yoga Bhoga. It was a really great class. The studio was small and intimate. The class was exactly what I needed, challenging enough to make me sweat a little, but slow enough to have time to just be in the poses. But I will say that four minutes holding warrior I makes for some pretty sore arms the next day. After yoga, we picked up Amy and Brian from the airport and headed back downtown to peruse more shops, mostly vintage clothing shops. They have the best used clothing stores here. I haven't bought anything yet, but I have my eyes peeled for something really great. That night, we ate dinner at a place recommended by one of our friends called Paradox. Nothing, I repeat nothing, on the menu contained any meat products... at all. I think we spent fifteen minutes trying to choose something to eat because we have never been anywhere where we had so much to choose from vegetarian wise. The food was outstanding!

Yesterday was road tripping day. We drove out to Newport to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium and eat a picnic lunch near the beach. We spent forever walking along the beach picking up shells, rocks, and bits of wood. I found a starfish, but he was still kind of moving around, so I scooted him closer to the water and left him behind. It didn't take me long to fill my hands with sea swag, really wishing I had taken a bucket. I got to a point were I would point at things sticking out of the sand and make Chris pick it up and carry it. I could have spent all day there. We then headed down the coastal highway towards the Sea Lion caves and we actually saw sea lions swimming around in the water. The drive down that highway is breathtakingly beautiful. We couldn't get over it! The Pacific Ocean was right there! After the sea lion caves we headed east to Eugene so we could eat dinner at the Pizza Research Institute for the best pizza I've ever had in my life. I'm not making that up. Chris and I ordered the Chef's special (changes daily). The pizza had squash, broccoli, corn (on the cob), apricots, curried cauliflower, spinach, black olives, mushrooms, onions... I think that's it. I know you're thinking "apricots on a pizza, yuck", but oh no... very yum. After stuffing our faces on impossible pizza combination, we headed back to our hotel room in Portland concluding the longest day and sleeping like babies.

What's in store for today I wonder?

I'M ON VACATION!

I had a whole entry in my head from teacher training weekend, but I just ran out of time. Maybe later I'll post something on the 8 Limbs of Yoga, but now.... now.... I'm on vacation! Right this minute, I am typing this in our hotel room in Portland, OR (I've been up since 5:00 am their time). And I'm already just a little bit in love. Our flight left OKC at 6:30 yesterday morning. We thought it was a non-stop flight, at least that's what our tickets said. But really they meant non-changing-planes flight. We stopped in Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Boise Idaho before our final stop in Portland. That's a long trip consisting on a Luna bar and peanuts. By the time we made it to Portland we were so hungry we could eat at Arby's. When this happens, Chris and I usually do something stupid like eat at some place familiar. We lucked out this time and went to a Burgerville right across from our hotel.

Burgerville is Oregon's fast food burger joint. they use all sustainable stuff and local farmers. I got the veggie burger which turned out to be one of the best veggie burgers I've ever had. And you had a choice between regular fries or.... are you ready for this? ... sweet potato fries. Who does that?!?! No fast food place were I live does this.

After Burgerville, we hunted down a Trader Joe's to buy some provisions. Then we perused the REI store and found the yoga studio I researches online. That's it. We were pooped. I think I went to bed at 7:00 PM local time and Chris followed soon after. Not sure what we plan to do yet today, but I don't care. I'm on vacation!

MELT

So, I had a minor melt down over the weekend that involved my very own personal flaming tantrum of death. I don't think that even I had realized how much I had been holding in until it all came out in a screaming blubbering snot flying fit. Oh yeah... I was screaming. I don't scream and really for the most part, I don't cry. Combining the two was a very rare event. Could have sold tickets; it was that shocking. What was this tantrum about you ask? The fit was about how much I hated living in Mrs. Swan's home. Which now that I look back at the tantrum, it seems a tad bit silly. But only a tad bit. Chris didn't realize I was so miserable and probably would never have known if I hadn't had the mother-of-all melt downs. After he got me calmed down and the snot mopped up, he told me that when we returned from Oregon, we would sit down put together a real budget. We will start "operation prepare to move".

And you know what? I've never felt better. Things have been great even with Mrs. Swan (who wasn't present for the show, but I'm starting wonder if she heard the tail end of it). The next morning she asked me to go washer and dryer shopping with her. She bought a new washer and dryer! A really good set and hopefully they'll be delivered today. She actually ate dinner with us last night instead of turning her nose up at what ever I had made. She talks to me a little bit more, like actual conversation talking. And... and... I bought a new pair of jeans that fit and they're a size 10! I've never been a size 10. The tag in my HS senior prom dress says 12. I have to admit that putting those jeans on and buttoning them with out sucking in, brought tears to my eyes.

So... things could be worse right? I have roof over my head and Chris and Hooper. And I told Chris this. I'm happy and in a good place right now, but that doesn't mean I want to stay. It means I've found a way to live with where we are now. Later is a whole other story.

DEAREST HOOPER

I completely understand that there are squirrels in the backyard and that these squirrels are of the asshole variety that perch just out of reach on the fence while shaking their tails at you. They need to be barked at. I get that. I also realize that you take your job as backyard security dog very seriously. I know you feel that the fence perimeter must be patrolled many times a day. I mean, you never know right? Something may be trying to get in. A small hole may appear for you to squeeze through. You just don't know. Don't get me wrong. I appreciate all the work you do. I really do. I love that you bark at the strangers that walk by the house. And even though it's a little cliche, I even love that you bark at the mailman. I just have one request. Do you think you could manage to take a few days off for rain days? Do you really need to do all that stuff while it's pouring buckets outside? Last I checked you have a really nice dog house with a view of the entire backyard. I am not completely fooled you know. I know that in between all the barking, there's plenty of lounging. You should think of rainy days as vacation days. Just think, a whole day of laying around in a warm dry house. Paradise.

I would also appreciate it on those rainy days that you insist on staying out in the weather, that you would refrain from using the couch for your personal towel. I just don't think it's necessary to fling past me snubbing the clean towel I'm holding for the couch. Yes... I know the couch is ugly, but trust me. Rubbing your wet dog funk all over it does not improve it.

Thank you for your cooperation. Love , Your Human

AND WE'RE ONLY A WEEK IN

My brain is so full, I think it's going to explode. September is turning out to be a crazy month. I have two baby showers to attend this week as well as one to plan. Yoga teacher training is coming up in a couple of weeks with yet another presentation due (haven't even started). September is our vacation month and we are headed to Oregon in two and a half weeks. I'm excited and nervous about Oregon, but mostly just glad to be going on vacation. Plus, Chris and I have been brain storming on a project all weekend. It's something we're not ready to talk about yet because it's still in the development stages. We are really going to get busy on the project when we get back from vacation, but all the ideas and excitement over the project have my head all a jumble. I really can't wait to get started and moving ahead on it.

We've also been a little more social then usual. Saturday night we went to our friend Zelda's house for food and booze. Zelda is an old pal from our under-grad days and even though we live in the same city, we only see each other about once every five years or so (or when Jupiter aligns with Mars). But we are doing much better. We've managed to see her at least three times this year alone with plans for more fantastic get togethers. Saturday evening reminded me of the Friday's at Stonewall's days. We all sat around drinking and talking about everything from politics to being vegetarian. I sat there listening to stories that made me laugh so I hard, cider and salsa almost came out my nose. We didn't even get home until almost three in the morning. That's pretty late for me (we all know my bed time is 9:30, though lately closer to 10:00...yeah, I'm old).

FOOD

I haven't really talked much about what happened after the cleansing diet I did in July or what I learned about myself and food from the diet. I guess since the detox I've become sort of a closet vegetarian. I only eat meat if I know where it comes from, meaning organic and humane meat. But usually its just easier to tell people that I'm a vegetarian. When I told mom that I only eat meat if I know where it comes from, she replied "Well...I bought the chicken from Pilgrim's Pride". And when Mrs. Swan made fried rice the other day, Chris said "Oh...it has chicken in it. Cindy doesn't eat chicken". His mom then said "Oh. I thought you said she didn't eat meat". Apparently chicken is a vegetable. I ate the fried rice. I don't want to be rude or snobby about it. But I don't feel good physically when I eat meat. I feel bloated and sluggish and just plain ugh.

So...this is one of the things I learned from the diet. Meat makes me sluggish. The second thing I learned was that gluten is the cause of my flaky lips. The entire time I was on the diet, no matter how hard I tried, I could not peel my lips off. Oh.. and I tried. Now, I can tell when I've had more gluten then usual. Those are the days I easily peel off my lip before applying a thick coating of lip balm. Even though I know gluten is bad for me, I haven't given it up. Gluten is every where! I just pay more attention to it these days and try to introduce more gluten free option into the meal plans. I also can't give up seafood. It brings me pleasure to eat a slab of raw tuna on bed of sushi rice. It's not something I get very often, so I'm not depriving myself.

The new changes have been good. I've lost a little weight. I feel better physically. I'm learning to be a more creative cook and getting close to being able to write my own "OKC Vegetarian Restaurant Guide". This weekend, I might even try making my own paneer...from scratch!

FENCED IN

Misti: "I need money. Because I want a new Mac Pro...and to go to London to see my boyfriend, Michael Phelps in the next summer olympics....and do fencing." Me: "But you can do fencing. There's those classes at Redlands. They have ads in The Gazette all the time."

Misti: "They have classes for that?!? At Redlands?!?"

Me: "Yeah! The ads are always in The Gazette."

Misti: "They have classes on putting in fencing? At Redlands?"

Me: "Wait...you meant fencing as in fence-in-your-yard fencing. Not the swashbuckling kind? Well, then no. They don't have those kind of classes at Redlands."

If you knew Misti, you would totally make the same assumption that she meant the swashbuckling kind of fencing.

DECISIONS

Chris and I worked hard in 2004 registering people to vote, working with the Red River Democracy Project, and attending rallies. We wanted to believe in change and we wanted to believe in John Kerry. The day after voting day in November was one of the most depressing days. I felt like a failure and I felt utterly hopeless. I felt like I didn't belong here. I just couldn't fathom the idea that there was such a majority of people out there who didn't believe in health care for everyone, and who didn't believe that we should give our troops and veterans (all of them) the medical care they deserved and needed, and who didn't believe that it is just plain wrong to pass on such the financial burden created by pursuing horrible economic policies to our children and grandchildren. We have been quietly sitting on the sidelines this election year. Don't get me wrong. I'm excited about our democratic nominee. He's the best candidate. Part of me just wants to be giddy with the prospects. But after the devastation of 2004, I just couldn't invest that much heart into something like this again. Which is to say, I've finally lost my idealism (thanks very much Bush administration). I've been watching the Democratic National Convention in Denver haphazardly this week, catching the speeches the next day on YouTube. Last night, we went to a watch party for the Obama speech. For a tiny instant, that spark and rush of excitement hit me and I thought "we may actually pull this off". You see...I'm so jaded that I still can't give in. I'll be holding my breath until the day after we vote. And my new mantra is "just don't fuck it up, just don't fuck it up, just don't fuck it up".

ROUND TWO AT THE DMV

Oklahoma City schools are back in session, so I decided today would be a good time to attempt getting my motorcycle license. I felt that things were leaning in my favor when I arrived at ten till 7:00 (AM) and there were only ten people in line before me. I have to say that the DMV is a very interesting place. Apparently it was Asian day at the DMV, because there were several oriental people there getting their driver's license. There were these two guys, driving the same car, who both wanted to get their driver's license. They kept walking away from the counter whenever the DMV agent would ask for a certain form like insurance or ID and she kept having to call them back over. I was given a time for my driving test and I went outside to wait with my scooter. The first dude took his test and then parked right next to me. The second guy got into the car for his test and started backing up...and backing up...and backing up. Then the guy administering his test told the dude to just drive forward and park it. He didn't pass, but Hey! his friend did! Then there was a little old oriental lady parked on my other side. The DMV agent noticed that the old lady didn't have a current tag and wouldn't let her take the test at all. The poor thing got in her car and then put it in drive to back out of her parking space...twice.

There were several people there for the motorcycle test. The guy who went just before me was older and had been riding for a while with out his license. He parked next to me when he came back from his test. I got to hear how he did from the DMV agent. He failed because he rolled through the stop signs. I was extra nervous when it was my turn. But I passed! My only problem was going to slow (35 in a 40). I was so excited, I made the DMV agent be in my 365 day picture. She wasn't sure what to think about that, but it made her chuckle and that's something she probably doesn't do very often with her job.

TRAINING SESSION 7

I'm not sure, but I think these yoga teacher training weekends are getting easier. It may just be because we really didn't do much yoga until Sunday afternoon and the rest of the time was sitting in lecture. This month we learned about the Kriya Shatkarmas and we were paired up to do a presentation on one of the kriyas. The kriyas are six purification processes often performed by yogis. Some of them, well actually all of them sound down right disgusting. The big thing was to show a YouTube video of someone actually performing the kriya you were assigned to present. Thankfully there were not videos available for all the kriyas, like the one that involves sucking water (through a tube) up into your lower intestines or swallowing 23 feet of cotton string and then pulling it back out through the mouth. Yeah, some of the kriyas just do not seem physically possible. But I did learn the correct way to use my neti pot. I've been using a neti pot since January and it's been really helpful in preventing sinus infections, but I was having problems with water draining into my ears and feeling panicky while using my neti pot. I don't have that problem any more.

We are constantly being told at the trainings that we are teaching people to breath calmly in stressful situations. If you are breathing erratically and shallow while holding a particular yoga pose, you are not getting the benefits of yoga. You are not learning to relax and be in the pose. I realized that my training has helped me when I take a yoga class taught by a teacher with a different yoga style/philosophy. I dragged my ass out of bed this morning and made it to the yoga class at the Y. The teacher has a tendency to make me cringe, but today I approached each pose with a calm and even breath while others around me panted and groaned and when I felt like it was just too much, I backed off from the pose and rested...with out guilt.

BLAHBEEDEE BLAH BLAH BLAH

I've got a major case of the blahs. It might have something to do with the weather. It's been rainy and cool, which is uncharacteristic for OK in August. I feel like I was gypped out of a summer. We only had one week of 105 degree temps. That's not right. I'm hoping for an indian summer. I also have scooter blues. With the weather being so crappy, I haven't had a chance to get out on the scooter and practice. I want to take my driving test next week (schools will be back in session). Chris said the other day that I was acting like a teenager waiting to get her driving license. In true immature fashion, I told him he was ruining my life and to shut up.

About the only enthusiasm I could muster this week was when I went to Home Depot with Ms. Swan. We scheduled an appointment for them to come measure windows. Windows with screens. Windows that open. Windows that don't leak air (and bugs) into the house. I'm more excited about being able to open windows and have fresh air floating through the house. I'm tired of smelling like fried rice.

STUFF

Yeah...I know I have this thing called a blog. But other then the totally awesome Dave Matthews concert, I really don't have much to say. I still don't have my motorcycle license (maybe nest week). I've been busy with yoga homework (crap! forgot to email my teacher about my latest teaching experience). I've also been crazy busy with work (paper coming out soon!). I have not been watching the summer Olympics, even though I love the summer Olympics. I'm boycotting this year on principle. The list of complaints and controversy is a mile long and I'm sure you've all heard them. This is my little stand (it's hurting no one but me).

I've finished two more books form my bargain stack. The first was The Russian Concubine by Kate Furnivall. I really enjoyed this book. It was just a good escape book. It started out kind of slow, but once I got hooked, I didn't want to put it down. I love that Furnivall based her story on her mother's experience as a White Russian. The second book was Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin. Totally improbable, but wonderful. It didn't even bother me that I figured out who the murderer was half way into the book. It was still fun and exciting.

That's about it really. I started The Cape Ann by Faith Sullivan, but I just can't get into it. I may skip it and move on to the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer. What I really need to do is focus on my yoga books and homework. They need to invent motivation fill-up stations. I'm low.