hip hip hooray! Happy new year!

hey cats,

here's wishing you all a happy and sunshine filled new year! 2007 is gonna be THE year, I just know it.

2006 was a year full of crazy full on experiences and lots of changes of scenery. It was the year I really stepped out on my own and taught yoga full time. It was the year I saw the inside of a hospital again; the year I hulahooped and had a ball; the year I fell in love a little, and got jolted back out of it; but all up, it was a year of getting lost, and finding the path again.

Right now, I've got no idea where 2007 is going to see me land. But throughout the past 12 months I've come to get a clearer picture of where I don't want to be - and that is just as good. There's a great quote along the lines of "there is no such thing as a 'mistake', there's just ways of learning how NOT to do things". That could be my quote of the year :)

I have let go of myself this year - I've worked too much, and when I've had time off, I've lost the ability to really relax. I've lost a lot of joy this year too, so I'm gonna work towards getting that back. I am also making 2007 the year of making yoga a priority again.

In 2007:
I want to have energy.
I want to travel.
I want to explore.
I want to be happy.

So there's a couple of things to live up to!
Mostly though, i just want to stop being so hard on myself.

So here we go... countdown!



Love n' sunshine all! xxx

Failure: not an option

There is a great book that has really been inspiration to me lately, and as soon as I saw it in the bookstore I laughed out loud as it completely sums me up – “I Could Do Anything… if only I knew what it was”. Yep, that’s me to a tee!

We all have these grand ideas in life and while some ppl know exactly what they want to do and where they want to be, I’ve more so just traveled along some great paths, but haven’t necessarily sought them out. Passion is the key here. So basically this book helps you when you’re feeling a little lost, a little aimless, a little under-utilised. It tells you to go and do a course, to move outside your barriers, and best yet (this part really got me) it asks, what would you do if failure wasn’t an option? What would you do if money wasn’t a problem?

I studied journalism and communications at Uni, and finished a year long internship at a magazine during my last year. Then I fell into the world of music and publicity, writing all the while, doing a couple of freelance bits and pieces, and always hoping in the back of my mind that I could – someday – be a ‘real journalist’ working at a magazine or newspaper etc. I have fallen in love with lots of other paths in the meantime – I would love to open my own yoga studio, and work part time as a publicist, and then be a freelance writer around that. Yep, I’m one of those that loves stimulation.

But one thing I’ve always wondered about, and keep coming back to, is my writing. So I started researching – and soon found that I need an updated portfolio. Enter an old friend who works at a glossy teen mag. I followed her up, asked her for some advice, and ended up with an article to write! Woohoo! So I’ve got a couple of weeks to research and interview and present that article. And by the time I finish that, it will soon be February 2007 – and time for my freelance writing course. Double woohoo!

I love courses and learning but lack of money dictates what you do (or don’t) so I’ve really bitten the bullet here, paid the deposit, and have a month to come up with the rest of the money. And indeed I will! We always put things off that we don’t deem ‘vital’, but really, following your dreams is all we really should look at sometimes. So I’ll be heading over to the Sydney Writers Centre early February for a week long intensive feature writing course, and I couldn’t be happier.

Now over to YOU – what would you love to do if failure wasn’t an option? Or if there were no money worries?

Think about it and enjoy :)

What I'm Reading...

Save Karyn (Karyn Bosnak)


Yogini: The Power of Women in Yoga (Janice Gates)




You are what you Eat (Dr Gillian McKeith)

No Need For Speed (John Bingham)

Hospital.. the aftermath.

Desiderata.

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, Copyright 1952.

10 things i have learned from the girls in the office:

1. water off a ducks back is a good motto to live by
2. even instant dismissal has a light side to it
3. cheap carpet is easy to trip over in thongs
4. hollywood tape has its uses
5. when everything is going to shit, chocolate can make it bearable
6. ears are funny
7. girls can burp just as good as boys can, and that i find it funny too
8. what beautiful is
9. red shoes can make a day at work seem all ok
10. "am i ever gonna see this place again? no way, get f%cked, f$ck off!!!!"


It's been a blast... girls, I'll miss you :)
xx

Shiny's Big Bad Debt Tally

It worked going online for Karyn, so I'm gonna give it a whirl too.

Debt
Personal Loan: 4949 (now 3127.75)
Credit Card: 3250 (now 2958.34)
Mum: 4000
Library fines: 50
Car Share: 1000 (paid off!!)

Starting: $13249 (Jan 1, 08) (FARK!!!!)
Current: $10136.09 (August 18, 08)
Paid Off: $3112.91

Savings
Current: $100
Goal 1: $500
Goal 2: $1000
Goal 3: $5000

Detox for a new year?

At an old place I used to work, Eat Fit Food would come around every lunchtime - offering an amazing selection of healthy lunches to purchase. They'd also have wraps and muffins and juices... all freshly prepared and so tasty. I loved it!

And what a great idea - so many office workers will just eat crappy takeaway, or nothing, because they can't be bothered or don't have time to go out and get something healthy.

One thing I was always interested in doing was their 10 day detox programme - here's the guff:

Introducing the Eat Fit Food 10-day detox plan, a program to energise cleanse & motivate! The plan will invigorate your body, rid your system of toxins & kick start a healthy eating lifestyle. Featuring food that is high in antioxidants, amino acids and phytochemicals, the comprehensive program will detoxify you body without relying on commercial pills.

The Eat Fit Food Detox Plan is followed over a 10 day period. There is no alcohol, dairy or red meat and only small amounts of saturated fats. The chicken is certified organic and only the freshest local fish is sourced. To experience optimum benefits from the program, stimulants such as coffee, cola drinks, alcohol, tea & sugar must be avoided.

Your food will arrive on your doorstep every second day. Inside your insulated cooler bag will be a pre breakfast cleansing juice, additional supplements, two additional snacks, breakfast, lunch & dinner.

What are you waiting for?

And I'm really considering doing it in the new year - to treat myself and to start off a new year full of health and energy. The one downfall - it isn't cheap. But one thing that starts happening when I get depressed is that I don't eat - or I just eat takeaway, or shit. And this is happening lots lately. Today, for example, I've eated a tin of corn, and a tin of spaghetti. All day. Yuck.
SO I might do it.

We'll see.

I need something to get me happy again.

2007 - the best year yet

Ok, so 2007 is the year of 'getting out of debt!'

It's also the year of the clean slate - come early January, this 29 yo chicken ain't got no job... and rather than being scared, I'm over the moon. I've resigned from jobs to go to other jobs. I've been made redundant but found my feet right away. But this time, I've resigned, I've got a month of work, and then.... then the world is my oyster.

Exciting.

Shall I pick grapes for a living? Work in a bookstore? Open my own yoga studio? The answers are out there... somewhere... and I'm sure these little sparkles of wisdom will unfold themselves as they need to.

So right now, I'll sit back, post random thoughts, and enjoy what comes my way. As with each new breath, comes a brand new start, a brand new chance.

Bring it on.

Eep! :)

Dinner time!

I am in the mood for pizza... actually, I'm more so in the mood for home delivery.
Hangovers suck. Haven't been this sick for a while.

Anyway, I was online to look up a menu and Crust in Annandale was recommended... so went to check out their menu and was completely sucked in by the tomato pizza - fresh roma tomato, garlic, fresh basil, and yum yum - anchovies! So I was not happy to find out they don't deliver to my particular street in Newtown. Yep - they deliver to 'some' streets in Newtown, just not mine. Fark!

So went with the old fave, Little Gourmet Pizza Shop (the have one in Bondi and Newtown) and got my regular - half margarita and half vego. Plus some arribiata spaghetti for that carb rush. And cause I have anchovies on the mind now, I had to get a couple of them on the pizza. Hmmmmm thanks sis, for introducing me to them!

Now I've got 45 mins to wait, with a groaning belly. 'American Pie 2' is on telly so it's a good night all round....

:)
Enjoy yr weekends, all. x

Thursday thoughts....

I feel like mashed potatoes.

I haven’t had a good plate of mash for ages. Clems (King St, Newtown) mashed potatoes with gravy, this is seriously to die for. Perhaps cause it’s summer her (though sometimes it’s hard to tell) one could understand why I’ve not indulged in the creamy mash, but it’s been hanging around for a while and I might just have to bite the bullet. Hmmmm… gherkins dipped in mashed potatoes – my sister could never quite figure it out, but I’m sure there’s some of you out there that can appreciate the weird blending of hot, cold, creamy and crunchy together? Yum.

Anyway, I guess I thought of mash because I was reading The Food Whore (so good) and she is mentioning all these American Christmas parties… just like my pal, staci, who is having a white chrissy back home in the US.

And all this talk of weather and continents and travel just makes me want to get my butt into gear and go away…. Over the seas, across the hills, far far away. I guess really, I’m just sick of coming to the end of the year and finding myself with the same thoughts as the previous years combined. Still broke, still in debt, still unsure of where and what I’m doing.

I used to be good at saving but it’s all turning pearshaped again – I know I had a year off and struggled with debt and sickness and so forth, and shouldn’t forget that I still managed to pay off one credit card and get the others mostly current. But I feel like I’m floundering again. Really floundering.

I just don’t know where my money goes. It’s scary. But if all goes to plan, I should be able to have $1000 in the bank in savings (ie. Not to touch!) by December 30. That will be the most savings I’ve had for hmmmm years. So I need to try hard.

*sigh*

Flowing into Grace - Anusara Workshop 25/26 November

11 hours of yoga over 2 days – AMAZING!

John Friend, the founder of Anusara Yoga, came to Australia from Texas last weekend for some workshops which, being the proudly self-professed Yoga Nerd that I am, I had applied for months earlier. And it was so worth it!

This was my first experience of a big yoga event like that – there were over 100 yogis of ALL shapes and sizes and ages gathered in the space, and the mats were centimeters apart… the heat built up in the room, the smiles were broad, and you could just feel the encouragement.

To be honest, John Friend IS Anusara Yoga. His complete enthusiasm and descriptions and excitement about yoga really explain his vibe of ‘yoga from the inside out’. His “inner body bright” catch-cry and his “no worries” command when we first got into a pose really set the scene for the best weekend I’ve had in a long time.

Gosh, how do you sum up 11 hours of the most fantastic yoga into just a few paragraphs? Well, it’s hard. But every pose, every breath, was an effort and an advancement on my practice. Crazy – in a good way! And with his energetic assistants keeping their eyes and hands on us at all times... there was no chance to slacken off!

Uttanasana (standing forward bend) was the fave pose of the weekend I think – John loved it! And it really improved over the weekend – I was a lot more flexible than I’d been for a while. Best pose? Ardha Chandrasana – for sure. And not just regular half moon pose, but half moon pose with the top leg bent and the top hand holding onto the leg… so Danurasana legs with ardha chandrasana lower body. All in balance!

One other theme of the weekend was to pull it all inwards – so the first step was ‘no worries’, the 2nd was inner body bright, then it was about all pulling it inwards. It is all about the core – and finding balance. And it works! These little tricks of explaining poses and your body in new ways makes all the difference. Even John’s explanation about making your practice about grace and gratitude swept all of us up – writing it here in my own words won’t even do his stunning commentary justice, suffice it to say we were all bursting with happiness at the end of the weekend… exactly what is meant to happen to those who practice Anusara Yoga.

Ps – He signed my Yoga Journal mag. I’m a Friend-head!!!

Pps - If you're interested in finding out some more about Anusara Yoga, take a look at some of these articles - Talking Shop with John Friend, Emotions during Yoga, and Bouncing into Graceland. Enjoy!

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