Day 20: Oct. 11, 2013

I went to the Grand Opening of Hazel and Moss today in Victoria, MN.  Hazel and Moss is a yoga studio/health and wellness center founded by my friend Chelsea Rice and her friend Christine Tschida.  Chelsea ties her passion for hatha yoga with personalized health coaching (her background is in nutrition and she has holistic approaches to preventative care that helps clients develop lifestyle changes and lasting results).  Christine focuses on developing health and well being with her clients through reiki sessions and diets centered on individuals' chakras.  It was great to see them in their space and learn about what they are looking to offer their guests.  It sounds like Chelsea's classes are capped at 6, so she asks for her clients to sign up in advance (there is a discounted rate for those who pre-register for $13/class; drops-in requests are $16 per class).  I am not sure what Christine's rate is for a reiki session but I had a complimentary mini session with her today and loved her calm approach.  I felt energy swirling around my solar plexus, but otherwise things were calm.  She said I felt "grounded" in my feet and that around my head was "light and airy" which is great!  She sensed a lot of warmth in my third chakra and I explained that I had been working on engaging my Uddiyana Bandha throughout my daily practice (more on bandhas).

Anyway, traffic was thick and it took a long time to get back to Saint Paul.  I was late to my tea date with Johanna, another former coworker of mine from Juut.  We spent time catching up;  I won't go into detail on that here.  After I met with her I went back home and saw Bryce and Philippa for the first time since Tuesday, we've all been on the go a lot.  They invited me to join them out for dinner, so I did.

When we came back I spent a few hours revising my LinkedIn profile and then I realized that I had not written my daily journal entry, so that brings us to now...


Daily Yoga Meal:
10/11  Dinner with Bryce and Philippa.  Ate together at Grand Central, a local restaurant focused on fresh salads, panini sandwiches and crepes.

Remained seated? Yes ✓  No.

Refrained from conversation while chewing?  Yes   No ✓ (if no, % of meal = 80%)

Refrained from any external distractions?  Yes✓ No  

Waited until food was completely chewed and swallowed before picking up my next bite.  Yes  No✓   (if no, % of meal = 0%)

Refrained from putting more than two handfuls of food on my plate at any given time, finished eating my two handfuls, then waited 3-5 minutes before taking more food. Yes✓  No

Waited 2-6 hours before taking my next meal. Yes✓ No.

Comments: I had three small portions of salads; one was a beet salad with green beans, one was a chicken curry salad with scallions and the other was a broccoli salad with onions, crasins and chia seeds.  I took my time eating but continually focused on putting more food on my fork.  I was not rushing from bite to bite but I was not setting down my fork during the interim of chewing.  There were two instances where I caught myself talking with a remnant of food in my mouth, which was disappointing.  I loved all the colors and flavors of this meal but it would have been better yet if I had taken the time to give it more reverence.



Daily Meditation:  This morning, 9:00 a.m.  Shortly after waking I went into the living room, the house was still quiet.  If others were awake, they weren't around.  I had woken up with feelings of nervous anxiety; I was not looking forward to calling Joel at the Mississippi Market and turning down the job offer.  I guess I was 1. disappointed that it wasn't the end of my job search and 2. afraid that if I said no to this offer that I would be without luck for another job offer (so not true and a negative perspective)!  I decided, going into my meditation, that it would be best if I could let these thoughts go since they did not serve me.  My breathing was not as focused or as deep as the night before but my anxiety subsided and I observed my thoughts become fewer and further between.  It is nice to be able to slow down and say to the thought, "I recognize you but I will not engage with you right now."



Daily Practice:  No instructor today; just me, myself and I.  I practiced 5 Sun Salutation As and 5 Bs after my meditation and then had a short savasana (maybe I should have done the meditation afterwards but today I think this method worked for me).  I was flowing in Sun A but in Sun B my body told me it did not want to rest in warrior 1 position; I think my hips are still tired from the "sunflower" poses from Wednesday's class with Jennifer.  I notice today that my knees are still bothering me.  I will have to research some counter poses and work to relieve the tension that I feel...


Daily Gratitude: I am thankful for a day that allowed me to grow.  I turned down a job offer but I allowed myself the opportunity to continue searching for something that is an even better fit/meets my needs.  I am thankful for Pauline who got in contact with me (she is from the recruiting agency that I visited with yesterday) and she set me up with an interview for a full time position in down town St. Paul for next Friday at 11:00 a.m.  This was a great encouragement and I feel like I can keep on keeping on!  I am thankful for getting time to catch up with Bryce and Pippa a little today.  I am also grateful that I received a phone call from a stranger today who had found Christine's lost phone.  She will be SO happy and surprised to get it back;  I am glad that it was found so she does not have to purchase a new one.  I am thankful now that I am done with my responsibilities for the day and can go to sleep.  I have many things to accomplish tomorrow including practice at Highland Park Lifetime Fitness, writing a paper and teaching Sun Salutations to Amy (and whomever else wants to join in)!