More Spring Walking

Mid-day today was near 70 and beautiful.  Later in the afternoon rain rolled in from the west.  I have an excellent view out my window, 16 stories or so in the air.  Dark gray clouds advanced, and the air looked thick, rather than transparent.

By the time I left work, it was cooler, still cloudy, but the rain had lessened.  I decided to walk to Takoma Park instead of taking the Metro.  I thought it would take about 30 minutes, and it took almost exactly that.

I passed many other people walking the route.  For a while, the path is along the train tracks, and as I was on that section, I felt the rumble of a CSX freight train coming up from behind.  The freight trains project an immense power as they approach, even though they aren't moving fast.  They're limited to 35 mph here, and this one was not going that fast.  They can also be very long - I've counted nearly 100 cars.  I was quite a ways down the path before the last car came by and the tracks grew quiet again.

Spring Evening

I rode the Metro to Takoma Park after work to teach a yoga class.  Afterward, I walked the 3 miles home.

The sky was as clear as I've seen it in months.  Even with the city lights, the stars were visible.  The Moon and Jupiter, the twin stars of Gemini, the large constellation Orion - all floated overhead. Venus moved toward the western horizon, and Ursa Major filled the sky to the north.

It was 55 degrees, with only an occasional chilly breeze.  All in all, very pleasant walking conditions.

Bike Commute

Several days a week, I go to Willow Street Yoga's Takoma Park studio to teach or to take a class.  Sometimes I ride the Metro down from Silver Spring.  Other times I walk, which takes just under an hour.  Usually, if I'm going from home, I drive.

Today, I decided to ride my bike.  It was chilly - in the low 40's.  Sunny, but with a chilly breeze.  I wore a hat under my helmet, and gloves.

The trip took 21 minutes.  There are some nasty hills along the way, so it's a good workout for legs and got my heart rate up.

This will likely become my normal mode of transportation for my Sunday classes, so long as the weather is decent.  Since driving over and parking takes about 15 minutes, 21 minutes to ride over isn't adding much.  I'll probably get a little faster as I get in better shape.  Getting some cardio work in during time I'd be spending in transit anyway is a great plus.

Washing the Dishes

In the past few months we've been having cloudy white deposits build up on dishes.  I think it is minerals from the water, but I'm not sure.  They don't scrub off easily, if at all.  Soaking for some minutes in vinegar will loosen the deposits.  

My trial and error approach to figuring out what was causing the buildup and how to remove it has led me to a new habit of washing dishes by hand after each meal.  I'm finding that to be a beneficial practice.

Spending just a few minutes washing, rinsing, drying and putting away the dishes brings a satisfying completion to each meal, and avoids a gradual accumulation of dishes that later becomes a much larger project.

It's also an opportunity to practice staying with a task until it's done, resisting the urges to distraction.

The Religion of Bigotry

The State of Indiana recently enacted a law allowing businesses to discriminate based on religious beliefs.  The impetus appears to be the issue of same-sex marriage.  Some, who object to same-sex marriage, want to be able to withhold business services to gays and lesbians, for religious reasons.

In the mainstream midwest protestant tradition that I was raised in, I was taught that there is right and wrong, that we should try to do right, and that in the end, we all sin and fall short.  I was taught about grace and forgiveness, loving your neighbor, and doing unto others as you would like them to do unto you.

I cannot find the basis in those religious teachings for refusing to sell flowers or cakes to same-sex couples.  In fact, the teaching seems to be the opposite - judge not lest ye be judged.

Even if you believe that homosexual relationships are sinful, so are greed, lust, envy, murder, failing to honor your father and mother, and etc.  A business that refused to trade with sinners would have no customers at all.  So what exactly is the religious basis for this targeted discrimination against same-sex couples?  I don't think there is any.  I think that religion is simply being used as an excuse to discriminate.  In 2015 this is focused on same-sex couples - but the same rationalization could be made for any identifiable behavior or group of people.

I oppose the justification of bigotry as religious freedom.  I strongly oppose the sanction of such bigotry by government.  I'll be watching what happens in Indiana, and hope that this misguided law will be quickly repealed.

Leftie

Practicing yoga Tuesday evening, I made a sweeping overhead arm movement and felt a sharp pain in the top of my right shoulder.  I had injured that shoulder before I began doing yoga, and it gradually healed and strengthened over a period of 2-3 years, becoming pain free.  So this twinge concerned me.

I wanted to limit the stress and range of movement I put my right arm through to avoid further aggravating the muscle that had yelled at me Tuesday night, so I transferred as much work as possible to my left side.   

That's an interesting exercise.  Some things transfer relatively easily - others are more awkward. The most awkward was brushing my teeth.  Writing is a close second, but years ago I spent some time writing left handed and while it doesn't feel natural, and the results can be close to illegible if I'm not focused enough, the patterns are established in my brain.

It appears that no long-term injury had occurred - perhaps a small strain and some inflammation.  By Thursday the shoulder felt normal, and I was able to return to my full range of practices.  I'm continuing to do more things as a leftie, just for fun.

The Part of Me That Thinks

The part of me that thinks -
is not the most important part.

The thinking mind is a wonderful tool,
it has a place, it has a purpose.

Like all tools, sometimes it needs
to be turned off and put in the cabinet.

Thinking is not awareness -
or how I most directly experience the world.

Thinking is not how I know
who I truly am,
what I most deeply need.

The part of me that thinks
isn't the part of me that chooses -
though it often thinks it is.

When the part of me that thinks
is in good balance with the rest -
When it supports my full being
with its ability to analyze and evaluate,
without running amok like a noisy toy
with a broken "off" switch -
Then - the part of me that thinks
is truly valuable.

Red

I walked to work this morning tuning my awareness to red(dish) things.

Brick houses and sidewalks,
Cars and buses.

Robin breasts,
(I didn't see any cardinals today)

Tail lights and stop signs,
stop lights and deli signs.

Coats and shoes and bicycles,
Newspaper ads and traffic cones.  

There's lots of red out there,
Most of it on human-made things
trying to catch attention.

Night Sky

Scattered clouds floated beneath the black early night sky,
low enough to glow faintly from the city lights.

The blackness is dotted with light from stars and planets,
and the moving lights of airplanes.

A crescent of moon soars above Venus.

Early Spring

Spring is here.  The days are lighter and birds are singing, although the trees are still bare and the yards are brown.  Soon the early trees will flower, and then green leaves will burst forth.

I walked the 3 miles over to Takoma Park this afternoon - it predictably takes just under an hour.  Where I was sheltered from the wind and in the sun, I got quite warm - taking off my hat and unzipping my jacket.  Then I'd turn a corner and be hit by a chilly blast.  

I arrived with time to spare so I sat outside for a while, in a spot sheltered from the wind, and enjoyed the feeling of the day.

End of the Week Low

Nine o'clock on Friday evening.  Since coming home I've had supper and been gathering things up to pack for the trip to France tomorrow.

My energy level is low.  I find that I need to make an effort to queue up the next task, and another effort to work on it.  The list of things I need to do, accumulated over the past week or so, is essential.
A few minutes of trumpet playing - moving the air - brought a little energy boost.  Enough for a couple more things before I turn in for the night.

Still Standing

After a couple more days with the standing desk routine, my initial experience is holding up.  Standing feels more active, helps me stay more alert, and I find that I am getting more done.

As I naturally tend to deliberate on things for a while before taking action, and that sometimes leads to procrastination or paralysis by analysis, anything that tips the scales in the direction of quickly completing tasks is a good thing for me.

Standing Around

I decided to try standing at work today, so I set up a workstation support to elevate my monitor and keyboard.  I noticed several things right away:

1.  Standing felt more like a stance of action, and it seemed easier to focus on getting things done.
2.  It was easier for me to leave the office to go talk to a co-worker - since I was already standing, the transition to walking was very near.
3.  Overall, I felt more alert - none of the afternoon slouch in the chair and feel drowsy moments.

I'm very aware that some or all of this effect may be related to the novelty of the change, and may not last, but it was interesting to experience.

I'll see in the days ahead if the effect is lasting

Questions of Self-Inquiry

Three questions:

- What do your feel in your body?
- What is your mind feeling or thinking about?
- What is the quality of your breath?

These are an entry point for deep inquiry and self awareness.

I find that the answers are often interconnected. This isn't surprising since the breath forms a connection between the body and the mind.  The breath bridges the subconscious autonomic nervous system, with its different responses if we feel threatened, or feel safe, and the conscious mind, as we are able to intentionally change our breathing pattern.

In addition, emotional states such as calmness, anxiety, anger, or fear, manifest both in the mind and in how the body feels.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be exploring these questions with the yoga classes I teach.

Waiting for Spring

I walked into downtown Silver Spring this morning on some errands.  Night had been cold - down to 12 degrees - but the sun was out and it was getting warmer - heading into the 40s by the afternoon.

The thick blanket of snow from Thursday's storm covered almost everything, but under some trees near the side of a building, the ground was bare.  A flock of robins foraged in the earth, tilling it up, looking for bugs or seeds to sustain them until more snow melted.

A block away, another flock worked in a holly tree that still had red berries.   And high up in tree branches overhanging the street, another group sat perched, facing east in the sun, red breasts plumped up to maximize heat retention.

The birds seem as eager for spring as we are.

Transformation

Snow.

Just cold water - water that's too cold to flow.

Not a solid mass of ice, but tiny, individually crafted crystals.

Millions and millions of them lie across the landscape,
until warmth returns the fluidity and they coalesce and run away to the sea.

Snow.

Piling onto and draping over shrubs to create sculpture forms.

Blazing white in the sun, a blank canvas for crisp shadows from the bare trees -
and the shadows of the snow-shrub sculptures.

An original show - here for a limited engagement.

Don't miss it!

Snow

I felt the cool pricks of the first snowflakes on my face as I walked to my yoga training this morning. The snow was starting to accumulate on the roads, enough to feel squishy underfoot.

We watched the snow fall throughout the day, coating the tops of the tree branches outside the window with an ever-thickening layer.  Seldom heavy, but steady hour after hour.

By the time I walked home, 8 inches or so covered the ground.

In the bush outside our door, the snow had piled up in flat-topped pyramid shapes between the bare branches.

Contingencies

There's a winter storm forecast to start early tomorrow morning.  It's 47 degrees now, at 10 pm, but temperatures are expected to drop below freezing in the next few hours as a cold front moves through.

I'll go to bed tonight not knowing what tomorrow will bring.  When I get up, I'll first check to see if government offices are open.  If they are, I'll walk to the office to teach a 7:30 am yoga class at the fitness center.  If not, I'll stay home.

I'm supposed to have the final day of a 5 day yoga teacher training tomorrow.  I'll also find out in the morning if we'll be able to meet.   If so, I'll either be walking there from the office fitness center or from home.

A band I play in is scheduled to play tomorrow night for an event downtown.  That also will be up in the air, depending on how much snow comes and how quickly the roads are cleared.

So, tomorrow could be a very busy day.  Or not.  Whatever happens, I'll be present for it.

Crackling Morning

I opened the door the morning after the ice storm,
expecting the quiet of a winter landscape.

The wind was calm, and though overcast,
it was not raining.

But my ears were greeted with a crackling sound,
quite unexpected -
as if the world was speaking
a new language
that I didn't understand.

The air was warmer,
and the melting ice was moving, shifting,
cracking and popping.

The only place I've heard that sound before
was on a glacier in Alaska.

I walked on, through the landscape -
sound bubbling all around me -
drops dripping, like rain, from the melting ice
on the trees overhead.

March 1

The dogwood tree outside the kitchen window,
stands in the fading evening light.
Bare gray branches coated with a layer of ice
that glistens like crystal.

On the ground, the ice will be slick,
treacherous for anyone venturing out.

Inside, I am warm, dry, and secure.
I will stay here.