I'm tired, but I can't get to bed...

This jetlag and daylight saving's time is CRAP. Insanely tired yet unable to unwind, constant headache, stressed about work, upcoming birthdays, vacation expenses, yada-yada-yada.

At risk of sounding cliché-ish, a vacation right about now would be nice.

Moment of truth?

I love having youngsters come to my yoga class (that is the 20-25 year olds). I could never have done yoga at that age; I just wasn't mature enough.

I am, however, most blown away by the "lady" yogis, some of them easily in their fifties. After having been away for a couple of weeks today's theme was "spring cleaning", and we focused extra on hip openers. The technique I saw was outstanding (I don't know what my sub Carina put in the incense holder, but all I could think was OMG; I'm not worthy ;-)!!). One lady in particular is one that I have followed for nearly two years. The past few months she has undergone a metamorphisis, and gone is the hunched over posture with shoulders by the ears as it has been replaced by a long, lean, and STRAIGHT back, even in postures with forward bends.

Afterwards she "confessed" to me that she had been ill and hadn't been able to work out for a couple of weeks, and that she felt that she had become more inflexible.

Maybe it was my jnana (knowledge) mudra (hand position) from earlier in class. I don't know. All I know is that somewhere from deep inside me I could immediately inform this student that she was not at all stiffer in her poses; it's just the fact that she is finding her true length that the poses reach down to the depths of her body, and this is the sensation she is feeling.

Just like an excavation that gives way for a revelation.

Mr. Meow

I am in the midst of the worst part of my jetlag syndrome, the second day after having flown eastward. On top of that we had daylight savings time last night and lost yet another hour of valuable sleep.

So why is it - this furry little creature refuses to use the kitty door we installed for his convenience? Instead he goes marching back and forth in my bedroom making the louding purring noise that is his signature.

So he wins. I get up and hold open the hatch for him. When he has sniffed about the hole for a minute or so I get tired of waiting and gently pat his rear so he gets the message - Go out already!

Look at the clock and see that it's twenty minutes to nine o'clock. Since I have to be on the road at 6 A.M. tomorrow it's just as well I get up anyhow.

Do I thank him or strangle him???

Earth hour - more than a manifestation

The manifestation part is great. I felt like I was part of the "cool" crowd. Around our block the few homes without their lights turned off out stood out like sore thumbs.

After having just arrived home from our trip to the States, we were all feeling pretty jetlagged. The time it took to unpack (which I'm still not completely done with) was nonending. Then the whole trying to get back into our (at least my) routines of grocery shopping, making meals, doing laundry, making beds...

And at 8:30 P.M. Earth Hour began. I had gotten all the candles out, and watched with my daughter as the streetlights went dark. It was dark yet peaceful. My daughter and I sat on the couch and discussed her upcoming birthday party while her little brother monkeyed around (couldn't find the switch that turns him off...). Then we pulled out little brother's new board game and played "Don't Wake the Hulk" by candlelight.

Maybe not the same as playing in a pool in Florida on a hot, sunny day, but just as nice.

Time-out cyberspace. Time-in focused time.

Tomorrow we leave for Florida. No cell. No computer. Well, at least not at an arm's length; I'm sure we'll be able to borrow one at some point.

I read an awesome article years ago in a Parent's magazine. In a huge study children with working moms were compared to children whose mothers were stay-at-home moms. The results showed that it didn't matter whether or not the mother worked outside of the home, since it was how families spent time together that affected the outcome of how their kids felt, not how much.

What was even more interesting was the conclusion that we parents don't have to freak out about finding "quality time" consisting of doing a ton of things together. Instead, children fared best if they had "focused" time with their parents; that is when kids and grownups each do their own things in the near vicinity of each other, resting assured that all parties are simply conscious of each other in a harmonious coexistence.

So this vacation, while we will rejoice in being able to spend quality time together, will even be a vitamin injection of focused time together as well...

Politically incorrect

Walking towards my client's office I crossed the same path a gentleman had just passed going in another direction. He was maybe 30 feet away, but the wonderful scent of cigar smoke he left hanging in the air made me just want to stand there and savor every bit.

Recipe for comfort (after an "ugly cry")

That is, if there is no Reeses Peanutbutter Cup Sundae available.

Part I - yoga - lets the tense muscles filled with stress hormones wring themselves out. It tires you out. It helps your breathing reach your stomach area instead of being restricted to your collarbones. The secret is to not demand too much of yourself, instead let the movements warm you and loosen your insides.

Part II - sauna - Lying on my back staring at the ceiling I thought about how miserable I had been feeling. The feelings that earlier had a chokehold on me, that were making me feel completely suffocated, were dissipating in the heat. It was like they were floating upward, the same way that a lucid dream dissolves upon awakening. The pressure in my sinuses lifted as the puffiness in my swollen eyes softened. Again, it' vital that you treat yourself with kindness; I remained on the lower bench in the comfortable heat rather than expose myself to the trying heat above.

Part III - wipeout - go home, crawl into bed with your family, and watch WIPEOUT on TV. Hearing my five-year-old laugh hysterically for an hour straight makes it impossible to stay in a bad mood.