I'm begining to think the MOV is pretty cool.

My museum musings are usually reserved for my away from home travels, but working in the tourism industry and participating in the Tourism Challenge I've had the opportunity to explore some of our local attractions and have been pleasantly surprised. So one of two things may be happening here. The Museum of Vancouver really has some cool exhibits that delve into vancouver's quirky historical style influences... or I've now entered into that age where museum exhibits are cool. You tell me. Last year they had the FLuevog exhibit. I love my Vog boots and I remember back in the 80's when Fluevogs were used to describe a Vancouver Goth/punk/nonconforming person. I remember explaining a guy I dated to my friends as 'he wears Vogs' and they knew exactly what it meant. So the exhibit last year was a fun walk through time. His shoes are art. This year there were a couple of fun exhibits as well. The first one consists of a bunch of the salvaged neon signs that used to be in Vancouver along with the cities Neon history. It was a quiet time when I went so was able to stand in the middle of the room full of signs listening to the electric hum. Pretty cool.

and then there was the fashions through the ages exhibit. Beautiful gowns that I'd totally wear now if I had the occasion. Funny, I seemed to always gravitate to the 30's 'tea dresses'. What kind of tea's did these ladies do in the 30's? Here's a sample of one. I was going to Photoshop a Starbucks Venti Tea Misto into her hand, but then I remembered I have no Photoshop skillz.

Meet my favourite Zafu...

Before September of 2011 I had no idea what a Zafu was and my meditation experience ended with the shavasana portion of a yoga class. I spent the month of September in the jungles of Costa Rica at a yoga retreat where my mind and body fell in love with meditation. Sitting on the yoga deck in the jungle overlooking the ocean with monkeys playing a few feet away was where I met my first Zafu. A Zafu is a cushion used in sitting meditation (literal Japanese translation - sewn seat). For someone that suffers from back issues the Zafu was invaluable. Once I returned home I knew I wanted to continue my meditation practice but would have some physical barriers. Meditation step one - find a comfortable steady seat. I set out to find my own Zafu and found multiple varieties. Here's my Goldilocks tour of the Zafu shapes and sizes:

Halfmoon Zafu - this shape provided the perfect lift I need in the hips and the halfmoon shape left a perfect sitting place for my feet.

Om Zafu - Most of the time this would be perfect for me, but not sure if this had enough lift for when my hips feel tight. I loved the lightness and portability, perfect for yoga classes where I need to bring my own props.

Round Zafu The first Zafu I tried. The great thing about the round Zafu is that you can adjust the buckwheat hulls depending on the lift you need that day.

V shaped Zafu A lot of lift on this one and a place for my feet. It might just be a little too much lift for me though. Great for someone tall. In the end they all felt great but it was the Halfmoon Zafu combined with a Zabuton cushion that won my heart. Now when I perch on my meditation seat all I feel is the tranquil calm I was first introduced to in the Jungle. Tell me, how do you Zafu? As someone new to meditation and working with joint and back issues I'd love to hear your tips. Have you found your perfect mediation seat. #howdoyouzafu

Tea Sparrow...

I was introduced to this great new local company this past weekend at a friends birthday/tea party. Tea Sparrow is a tea subscription company. Essentially they sample all these great tea blends from various companies and then choose the best to send out in sample kits each month to subscribers. Sounds simple but I have to say that what will make this work... the amazing teas! Great combinations that I would never think to purchase like Ginger Lime Rooibos and Vanilla Honeybush. I always seem to go for a chai or green tea - love them but now I know there's a world of taste out there.

Zumba

Here's an interview I did for Empowered Health. I'm super sweaty because the interview was right after class and a bit subdued due to the migraine I had, but that aside I really like how it turned out. Great editing :) And here's a copy of the article they printed in the Vancouver Sun to go along with it.

My Saturday Zumba

Free trial of my Saturday Zumba class this March 17th at 11:00 am

Axe Capoeira Academy 45 West Hastings Next session starts March 24th Pre purchase a punch card at $7 a class or drop in at $12 a class facebook.com/ZumbaTammy

Loving Yoga Barre...

So my shoulder was messed up. Restorative yoga classes really helped release the facia and I was able to gain mobility of the arm again, but lost all the stability and strength in my shoulder. Well I started adding the Chopra Yoga Centre lunchtime Yoga Barre class to my routine of Restorative and Yin classes and the strength is coming back!!! Something about ballet movements. I think my body remembers being 'prompted' by my dance teachers James, Lane and Florence back in the day to stand straight, shoulders back, neck in and tall, abs on... add light weights to the mix and it's perfect shoulder re-hab for me. Who needs physio!! Well ok, I do, but I'm not covered on my work plan so this is the next best thing... and they there's a sauna and tea ;)

This is where I go back to...

When I close my eyes and meditate.

Anamaya Jungle Retreat - Costa Rica

messenger musings...

Me - was going to ring you when I got home but phone died
Mr. Disturber - thought something like that happened
Me - ya, phone died... charger didn't work
Mr. Disturber - did u bury ur iphone?
Me - No I resuscitated it but now it’s all ‘I’ve seen the other side’ and acting all enlightened… It’s a little annoying really.

" doin ok?" sounds a lot like "do you know Kay?"...

So my shoulder has been royally messed up and recent Physio IMS treatments have made it worse to the point that I can no longer put weight on it without feeling like it's going to painfully slide right out of the socket. Hard to believe that only 3 short months ago i was easily zipping through endless chaturangas at my 200hr yoga teacher retreat. My bad shoulder means I have not been able to take advantage of my new yoga membership at Chopra Yoga Studio... Eager to get into the studio, I decided to try out a restorative class - no Down dog or vinyasa so shoulder should not be an issue. The class was awesome! By the end I was amazed my shoulder felt pretty good and I was so relaxed. So... Getting to the title of this post, I'm putting my stuff away at the end of the class and still in my post relaxation fog... The instructor was checking in with students to see how each of them were doing. When he got to me and said "doin ok?" I heard "do you know Kay?" to which I responded with a confused no, to which he responded with a surprised really? We both looked confused... I say "who's Kay?' he looks more confused... We did finally figure it out and get on the same page... Time to get my ears checked : )