30 days of yoga: Week 1

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Yogis, Yoginis, & assorted partially interested parties, I made it through week one!

I’ve managed 4 days of longer practice (a mix of hatha & ashtanga), and 2 days of some admittedly gentler & shorter yogaing at home. AND, and, I did a bit of Zumba (side note: wow, I am not coordinated).

In the midst of this, I also walked down 19 flights of stairs thanks to a fire drill, so my legs are seriously feeling it right now.  However, I did take Friday off to compensate, as I was feeling kind of like this:  

Yoga

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Yesterday was a lovely wrap-up for the week – I went to a gorgeous Hatha class, visited my chiropractor, and Mr Bookeater (an ex-massage therapist) treated me to a massage.  I feel like I’ve pressed the “restore to factory settings” button.

In terms of progress, my lower back is opening up a lot more – and this means my forward bends are actually progressing which is an exciting development for me!

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Temporary Asana-ity

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Yesterday, in a fit of temporary insanity (asana-ity? I CAN’T STOP THE YOGA PUNS. SEND HELP.) I posted this on facebook:

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So, to keep myself accountable, I’m going to be posting a weekly yoga wrap-up (a weekly yoga bind? seriously, I can’t stop.) on my practice thus far.

I’m dedicating this 30 days to change, to cultivating community, to fulfillment, and to family. Yoga manifests (I am so sorry for using these words, I just don’t have any that aren’t patchouli scented) such vibrant energy, positivity, and serenity, and I hope to harness some of that for the momentum needed to affect some exciting changes over the next few months. I know this isn’t really a proper post, but I wanted to offer some explanation for the yoga-centric posts to come. Now, please go watch this video. You’ll thank me. 

 

Good news everyone!

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I’m leaving this post here to reaffirm that the world is definitely not flat, which means that I have definitely not fallen off the edge of the world. I’m pretty sure anyway. Things still look mostly normal here…

A large number (some might call it a veritable clusterfuck) of Serious Things have been happening in my household lately, and my coping strategy has been to walk around with this sign taped to my forehead:

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However, I can’t see the computer screen with that sign in the way, and so I haven’t posted anything in a few weeks. Plus, my brain has mostly looked like this:

This is a scientific diagram. Really.

However, good news!  The Serious Things have worked themselves out, and so my brain is much calmer.  I think. We’re at about this stage:

This is also really scientific.

This means that sometime soon (possibly this week, but definitely next week) I’ll once again be posting about things you may or may not be interested in. EXCITING TIMES.

Also, thank you for your patience.

Why is healthy only for the wealthy?

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Fellow Hippies, we need to talk.

We need to talk about the economics of healthy eating. We need to talk about why, as a student, every time I visit my local health food store I feel priced out of a market that I truly believe in.

Health food is too expensive. Before I go on, let me clarify. When I talk about health food, I am not talking about goddamn Himalayan diamond encrusted goji berries picked under a full moon by the virgin priestesses of the Goddess. I am talking about basic fruits and vegetables that are not soaked in pesticide. I am talking about shower soap that doesn’t contain ingredients linked to organ system toxicity. I am talking about basic grocery needs.

Our Western society is obsessed with health, to the point that it’s become a status symbol. It’s also become an issue of class at the same time. Health, which may include an all organic diet, personal trainer, yearly overseas yoga retreat and overpriced linen pants, is positioned as something that we all should aspire to. But this has also lead to a very real monetization of health related industries. By turning their products and services into a luxury commodity, many companies have made these products and services unavailable to a large number of people.

The commodification of Health with a capital H is emblematic of some larger issues surrounding class in many western countries (and perhaps elsewhere, but I don’t know enough to speak to that), and the processes by which this happens are deeply problematic – but this will have to wait for another post, otherwise I could go on for AGES.

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I’m interested in how we can change this; how can we shift the attitudes surrounding health food? How can we stop thinking about these products as luxury, niche products that you might buy as a treat, and start thinking about them as a different (and often better) option to your regular grocery purchases?

Perhaps we need to recognize that buying organic and locally grown items means that we’ll need to relearn how to work with what’s actually in season at the time – it’s far to easy to become accustomed to buying whatever you like, whenever. I know that I genuinely have no clue about when most fruits and veggies are in season – I have to rely on the little “from Australia” signs to work it out. And please don’t get me started on the supermarket chains *cough* COLES *cough* that wrap their organic produce in 6 layers of plastic and Styrofoam.

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I think there’s a definite groundswell of support for a more ecologically sound lifestyle, and that includes organic produce, and a massive push to reduce the chemicals we’re exposed to in all types of products.  There’s a new study every week pointing out that BPA is a bad idea, or sulfates are not so great for anyone, or that organic produce really does seem to be better for you. Also, that NO ONE EVER should eat a McRib. 

So can someone please tell me why I still need to spend twice as much for organic produce, and why I have to visit 7 different shops to find a basic shower gel that’s chemical free AND affordable?!?

Who knew a dictionary could be this lovely?

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Today my own words are rather lacking in inspiration, so instead I present to you someone else’s wonderful creation!

Loving words as I do, I feel compelled to share this most wonderful tumblr with you: The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. This definition below is a gorgeous reminder of our human messiness and complexity:

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n. the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.

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We’re all connected. Go hug someone today. 

The Canadian Apology: Sorry, eh?

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Sorry to bother you, but I’d like to talk about something today. The Canadian Sorry.

Canadians are subject to stereotypes like all other nations, often suffering them gladly. I have yet to see a backpacker appropriating any other country’s flag, which is an odd, but pleasant compliment.  However, our reputation for extreme politeness has led to a complete global misunderstanding of a unique linguistic habit: the Canadian Sorry.

Image source: Hark, A Vagrant!

The Canadian Sorry stands out as a rich point** in Canadian languaculture; it’s a global stereotype; most Canadians willingly admit their over-usage of sorry; and most non-Canadians COMPLETELY miss the point of the Canadian Sorry.

So. What is the point of all these miscellaneous sorrys then?

As a Canadian I have my own definition and uses for the Canadian Sorry, and I thought it was pretty likely that other Canadians did as well.  So, I politely (ha!) conducted an informal survey via Facebook and Twitter, asking “how is the ‘Canadian Sorry’ different from a regular sorry? How do you use it?” and the responses – all from my wonderful fellow Canadian interneters – sparked a debate and provided a range of answers, many of which overlapped. So, from here I wanted to explore the uses and meanings of this cultural phenomenon.

Canadian+stats.+Sorry+i+see+that+you+are+busy+right_be1e3d_3967305

NB: This is a (hopefully obviously) satirical twitter account

Within the languaculture of Canada I think the over-usage of ‘sorry’ functions as a social lubricant, and a useful device to ease communication difficulties.  It’s a marker of politeness, and can be used in situations of both positive and negative face. ‘Sorry’ is used in a wide range of situations and depending on context, has a wide range of meaning; personally, I’d say the least used instance of ‘sorry’ is with actual apologetic intent. Through my own ‘sorrying’ and the responses received from my admittedly small, and informal survey, these are my thoughts on the common situational uses of the Canadian Sorry, and the implied meanings.

The Facebook responses received laid out 9 scenarios in which Canadians use ‘sorry’.

  1. When someone bumps into you
  2. When you bump into someone
  3. When asking someone to repeat themselves
  4. When asking for goods or services, such as the cheque after dinner
  5. When passing someone in a crowded space
  6. Expressing genuine apology
  7. Expressing an empathic state (I’m so sorry to hear that)
  8. In place of thank-you
  9. During a pause in conversation, when your interlocutor is waiting on your response or comment

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Ian & Will Ferguson, authors of How to be a Canadian (even if you’re already one) claim “Canadians say sorry often, but rarely apologize”.  I tend to agree. Sorry if you don’t.  Let’s examine, shall we?

Scenarios 1, 6 & 7 fall into the category of genuine apologetic or empathic intent, and are largely unremarkable. These uses are common to American, Australian, UK and NZ English speakers as well.

Scenario 8 is totally new to me, but was reported by one Facebook respondent. I really need examples of this one!

Scenario 9 functions as a type of genuine apology, meaning both “sorry to keep you waiting” and “hold on, I’m thinking”. It could also be interpreted as a conversational placeholder, indicating to the interlocutor that the speaker is not yet giving up his or her conversational turn.

Scenarios 2-5 reflect the use of ‘sorry’ as a replacement for ‘excuse me’ or another attention getting linguistic device.  In these instances, sorry can be viewed as an expression of negative politeness. It is worth noting that in English speaking countries, most requests are phrased as indirect speech acts, so the use of sorry is almost a doubling up of negative politeness – “sorry, could I please get the cheque?” is a likely structure for scenario 4.

However, there are definite semantic quirks built into this proliferation of sorry.

Take scenario 1. Here’s what we really mean.

Bill: *is bumped into*

Bill: “sorry”
gloss: [WHAT AM I, INVISIBLE? I’M RIGHT HERE BUDDY]

Ted: “sorry!”

Bill: “…”
gloss: [Oh, well then. Ok.]

~ Life carries on ~

A prime example of this comes from a Canadian friend living in Australia who shared a story about going grocery shopping; a stranger bumped into her in the aisle, and my Canadian friend responded with an automatic ‘sorry’. However, the stranger didn’t respond, and as the individual walked away, my now irritated friend called out “Fine, then I’m not sorry!”

Overall, I’d call the Canadian Sorry a politeness strategy that functions broadly as a social lubricant. Canadians will ask for what they want, and aren’t afraid to do so – however, we’d prefer to be polite while doing the asking.  Utilising the Canadian Sorry as we do allows us to politely make our needs and wants known, without overtly imposing on others.  If that confuses the rest of the world, well, we’re sorry about that.

** A languacultural rich point is linguistically simple upon first assessment, but also contains a layered richness of cultural and semantic meaning. This variation of cultural and semantic meanings will contain commonalities that participants in the native culture will identify with, but it will also contain a set of differences, which provokes (often fierce) debate among the same native culture participants.

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Keep calm, and carry on. Yeah, I said it.

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Firstly: nothing but full disclosure here.  I own adorable scarves, patterned & colourful tights, and a knitted winter beanie.  I spent the entirety of last winter wearing dresses with tights and flats.  My favourite bikini has birds ALL OVER IT.

I unabashedly love Zooey Deschanel.  And I am not apologizing.

I love Twee.  All of it.  Every last bird-printed Jackalope bust wearing Ray-bans, resting on a stack of repurposed vintage suitcases surrounded by terrariums. In my humble opinion, combining a vintage aesthetic with meticulous handcrafted goods (often made locally) produces awesome design on a pretty regular basis. Yarn bombers, carry on. Wes Anderson – never quit!

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A recent discussion with an artist friend has left me thinking about how we value creative work, and place it in a hierarchy that is constantly shifting, and shockingly arbitrary. As with many other things (uh, life in general), artistic work does tend to have a cyclical nature – perhaps this year “Narrative is dead” or “Memoir is so passé” but the next 5 years sees a resurgence in traditional narrative forms; or an explosion of interest in illustration or typography. I feel that creative work is largely undervalued as a whole, and so denigrating particular forms of expression from within the artistic community is a tad self-defeating, no?

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In my opinion, artistic work of any sort is ultimately about connection – if your act of creation makes someone else feel something, hey – nicely done! Art matters because its production and consumption is equally fulfilling – but as Oscar Wilde might remind us “Art is the only serious thing in the world. And the artist is the only person who is never serious.”  There’s something to be said for taking joy in whatever form of artistic expression speaks to you, even if it has become a mass marketed commodity through its own popularity. Which brings me back to the question of Twee.

The process of curating design aesthetics based on popular styles often produces a sense of artificiality which has seen some serious (and hilarious) backlash on the internet; however, I don’t think this should dissuade anyone from continuing to pursue this (or any) aesthetic if it speaks to them. Art and design are about individual tastes, and the number of people that share your taste doesn’t actually impact on how much it should be valued.  Create, consume, share, collaborate – and most importantly, cultivate joy through art.

Twee felt like a generation’s attempt at taking back our ability to create, collaborate, and produce outside of the mass-marketed sphere.  Unfortunately it took all of 5 minutes before this design aesthetic landed in chain stores, but that doesn’t matter – it’s still possible to avoid this and go for the real stuff.

You know, the stuff that was there before it was cool.