Who's Afraid of Yoga Instructors?

All the brouhaha over how dangerous yoga can be—or not!—continues. “Don’t Be Intimidated By Your Yoga Instructor,” published on the wellness website  www.beforliving.com, comes down on the yoga-is-good-for-you side of the argument. Check it out, and not just because I’m featured in it:

http://beforliving.com/dont-be-intimidated-by-your-yoga-instructor

Namaste, Virginia Woolf!

The Year of Giving Continues….

Day 36 of 365

It’s Superbowl Sunday, and I gave the men in my life the gift of actually watching the game. Which was a heartbreaker for us New Englanders.

Day 37 of 365

I wrote a poem for a friend, and sent it to her.

Day 38 of 365

I found a local bakery that makes elephant ears—and I bought two pastries to share with a friend who loves them as much as I do.

Day 39 of 365

I helped a friend who had foot surgery recently return the wheelchair, walker, and other equipment she’d borrowed for her recovery

Day 40 of 365

Today I got a reclusive friend out of the house. Since I got laid off, I am beginning to understand how hard it can be sometimes just to get out of the house.

Day 41 of 365

Sometimes the best gift you can give someone is an apology. Today I said I was sorry to someone who was just trying to help. I am not always gracious as I should be to people who try to help me.

Day 42 of 365

Today I gave a friend a ride into the city, and paid the $47 parking.

Day 43 of 365

Today I played chauffeur to a neighbor whose car was in the shop.

Day 44 of 365

Today a former colleague asked for a reference—and I happily agreed.

Day 45 of 365

Today is Valentine’s Day—and I gave my sweetie two beautiful sweaters. But more important, I made him fried chicken for dinner.

Day 46 of 365

Today I gave a pep talk to a friend going through a divorce. Having been there myself, I know it will be the first of many.

Day 47 of 365

My son had his wisdom teeth removed today—and I was his chauffeur, cook, maid, and nurse. In other words, being his mom.

Day 48 of 365

Today I spent the day with my ailing son—and sat through the first season of Game of Thrones with him. Considering that there’s a decapitation in the very first scene, this was indeed a gift!

Day 49 of 365

I really need to give more of my books away, but I resist this more than I can say. But today, going through my bookshelf, I found unopened copies of Bryan Gruley’s well-reviewed books Starvation Lake and The Hanging Tree—and I gave them to my pal Phil.

http://bryangruley.com/

Day 50 of 365

I gave a girlfriend suffering a bout of self-doubt a third-chakra bracelet of yellow quartz to inspire confidence.

Day 51 of 365

Today I volunteered to help do publicity for an upcoming charitable event. More on this to come.

Breathe through Your Superbowl Stress

Bad plays.

Bad calls.

Bad food.

Watching the Superbowl can be a nerve-racking ordeal, somewhere between death and impotence on the stress scale—depending upon whether your team is winning or losing. (Here in New England, where Patriots fervor has reached bikram-fever pitch, even those of us who couldn’t care less about football could use a little stress relief going into the big game. If only to deal with our obsessed friends, neighbors, and significant others.)

But it doesn’t have to be that way. You can breathe your way through every fumble,  offside kick, and incomplete pass. When your offense loses ground, don’t hyperventilate, just breathe. When your defense fails to, well, defend, don’t hold your breath, just breathe. When the very worst happens and that Hail Mary pass falls happily into that scrappy receiver’s clever hands right in the end zone, winning the game with only seconds to spare and thereby cheating your team of yet another Superbowl victory, don’t beat your head against the flat-screen, just breathe.

Here’s a little half-time breathing exercise to go with your chips, dip, and Bud Lite. Close your eyes—or keep them trained on Madonna, your choice—and inhale deeply. Imagine your breath as the perfect throw of the pigskin, soaring through your chest, up your throat, past your third eye and out the top of your crown. Touchdown! Now exhale slowly, emptying your belly completely of breath. Repeat:

Breathe in calm, exhale anxiety.
Breathe in courage; exhale fear.
Breathe in victory; exhale defeat.

Namaste, football fans! May the most enlightened team win.


The Year of Giving Continues….

Day 32 of 365
A writer friend was looking for ideas—and I gave her the seed that she grew into this swell Tom Brady vs. Eli Manning brain-off blog:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/prime-your-gray-cells/201202/super-bowl-battle-the-quarterback-brains


Day 33 of 365
I created a special sequence of asanas for a friend with fibromyalgia, complete with its own soundtrack, and taught it to her so she can continue to practice on her own at home.

Day 34 of 365
Another out-of-work pal was depressed, so I planned a Friday afternoon respite for us: a 3D screening of Hugo, the Martin Scorsese film based on Brian Selznick’s bestselling children’s book. A charming story beautifully told, and guaranteed to lift anyone’s spirits.

Day 35 of 365
I picked up a copy of David Mamet’s On Directing Film at the independent bookstore for that replaced the defunct Borders at the mall. It’s for a filmmaker friend of mine out in Los Angeles.