I took a “mental health afternoon” today because I was going to lose my mind if our house didn’t get clean and laundry didn’t get done. Do you ever get to that point where nothing else can be done until your surroundings are tidy and clean?
I spent most of my morning at the studio trying to get our retail area in order. We just got a big shipment in from Manduka, Lululemon and Onzie.
I got everything out and arranged and then met with our Manduka rep to strategize on how to maximize on our retail space and how we are displaying product. They just started selling yoga clothes this winter and they are lovely but it’s a bit of a learning curve to get our clients on board with the new brand. Our meeting was very informative given that I am not a very shopping and fashion-minded person. (Although I sure do love doing all the online shopping and placing the retail orders for the studio!)
I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the house, walking the girls, chatting with my parents, conference call and catching up on life and general before heading to the studio for a meeting, teaching and practice.
My BFF texted me last minute and asked if I wanted to stay after practice to grab wine and chat. YES is always the answer to that, even when I have to teach at 6a the next morning. We shared a bottle of malbec and I had our harvest salad with arugula, red cabbage, apples and salmon with a maple mustard vinaigrette.
I read a poem in my class tonight that I have loved for many years. I first heard it on “On Being” on NPR. It’s called Tickled Pink and written by Kevin Kling.
“At times in our pink innocence, we lie fallow, composting waiting to grow. And other times we rush headlong like so many of our ancestors. But rush headlong or lie fallow, it doesn’t matter.
One day you’ll round a corner, your path is shifted. In a blink, something is missing. It’s stolen, misplaced, it’s gone. Your heart, a memory, a limb, a promise…… a person. Your innocence is gone, and now your journey has changed. Your path, as though channeled through a spectrum, is refracted and has left you pointed in a new direction. Some won’t approve. Some will want the other you. And some will cry that you’ve left it all. But what has happened, has happened, and cannot be undone.
We pay for our laughter. We pay to weep. Knowledge is not cheap. To survive we must return to our senses, touch, taste, smell, sight, sound. We must let our spirit guide us, our spirit that lives in breath. With each breath we inhale, we exhale. We inspire, we expire. Every breath has a possibility of a laugh, a cry, a story, a song. Every conversation is an exchange of spirit, the words flowing bitter or sweet over the tongue. Every scar is a monument to a battle survived.
Now when you’re born into loss, you grow from it. But when you experience loss later in life, you grow toward it. A slow move to an embrace, an embrace that leaves you holding tight the beauty wrapped in the grotesque, an embrace that becomes a dance, a new dance, a dance of pink.”
So after years of scouring the internet for new music and creating new playlists on iTunes, I finally switched to Spotify last June. Tonight I took it back to my old ways and got sucked into downloading music from YouTube and This Song is Sick and making a killer new iTunes playlist. Sometimes I just love the stuff you can find online that isn’t available on Spotify. I love all of the remixes.
Here are the screenshots:
Class was so great. <3
Finally, a few things I’ve been reading to recommend:
Instagram is switching it’s feed from chronological to best posts first. Yet another social media site becomes all about the algorithms.
Just don’t expect crazy people to be sane (because that’s crazy). Via my girl Danielle LaPorte.
Which type of exercise is best for the brain? from the New York Times.
20-minute total body workout from Julie. I know so many of you love quick workouts that can be done at home.
How much should I sacrifice to make a relationship work? Take a step back and try to see it from the outside.
Why We Are Exploring Homeschool via my friend Brittany. I’m not even a parent and I find this SO fascinating.
What’s on heavy rotation on your playlist?
What do you think about the Instagram changes?
Any thoughts or experiences with homeschool?
Funny….I just talked to my manduka rep yesterday too. I had to place an order and I was obsessing over which towels to buy. They have so many cool designs and colors right now. I still haven’t tried their clothes but I’m obsessed with their mats, towels and props.
Is your rep Leigh!?
No her name is Ivy.
Honestly, I don`t like Instagram`s changes at all. I think it is strange and make your feed mess.
Agreed!!!!
Ugh, I wondered what was going on with Instagram. I’ve got a lot of Flo Rida playing on my iPod these days. His music just has a good rhythm for my running.
I know, I am leery on how this is going to go. I just updated my Insta last night and am getting used to the new feed. Flo Rida is always a good choice for workout music! 🙂
I love your mix!! This may be ignorant, but how do you download music from YouTube? I always find the best remixes there but don’t know how to translate that to a playlist.
Thanks Mary! I definitely play “non-traditional” yoga music! 🙂
If a song isn’t available on iTunes I will use a video to MP3 converter site.
Great Playlist! Where do you usually find out about new songs to put on your yoga playlists?
Hey Caitlin! Thanks. Mostly Spotify these days. I browse through the “recommended for you” weekly playlist Spotify provides and then also through each weeks new releases. I also look through their various EDM, Workout and Chill playlists.I always look for remixes of popular songs and artists to help keep it fresh. I used to use YouTube a lot (you can easily get sucked down a black hole of “suggested for you” videos) and also This Song Is Sick, although 80% of their stuff is pretty hardcore and not yoga appropriate. I spend way too much time on putting together playlists but I feel like it makes such a difference in the energy of class!
Thank you for the heads up about instagram!!! This will change a lot!!! Definitely makes it harder as a new blogger to put myself out there!
You are so welcome! Let me know what I can do to support you!
Which company makes the strappy back black tank on the mannequin?! Love it
Onzie makes the tank and Lulu makes the sports bra under it. It’s the free to be wild bra.
WOOHOO!! You made my morning!! A playlist to listen to all day at work. THANK YOU!