tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22424208663032764082024-02-18T19:53:05.249-06:00Knit, Read, RepeatJenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-27587516682943716872010-09-03T15:58:00.002-05:002010-09-03T16:10:15.699-05:00My goodness, I'm going to have a busy fall. Teaching French for around 20-25 hours a week, teaching ballet on Tuesday nights, and maybe more as well (I'm still really not sure about that), doing a program so I can be a better yoga teacher, taking French classes through the Alliance Française, maybe doing Czech dancing on Monday nights. And researching grad schools and writing a statement of purpose and polishing my writing sample and getting letters of recommendation. And I still have a week and a half as Assistant Stage Manager for Ananya Dance Theater, with tech this week and performances next weekend. It's looking really good, and really intense, and I'm feeling really inspired to be really creative. Really. <br /><br />It is freakishly cold right now. How can you go from wearing shorts and tank tops one day to, only three days later, a sweatshirt and jeans? Only in Minnesota, methinks. At least I'm being a good hipster (I guess I might be one?) and am wearing skinny jeans and cowboy boots.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-19837160325645139702010-08-22T07:12:00.001-05:002010-08-22T07:13:28.498-05:00Ugh. It is far too early to be up. But today is pickle-making day! And I have bright red yoga pants!Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-40844813654569504662010-08-20T00:20:00.003-05:002010-08-20T00:26:37.880-05:00My parents put Molly to sleep on Monday. When I went home to do some laundry today, her bowls weren't by the stove anymore. My mom gathered up all of her things from their homes around the house, but can't quite seem to get rid of them yet. They're all just sitting in a corner of the kitchen, forlorn and unused, but not forgotten. <br /><br />I haven't been particularly attached to her lately, but it's still hard to imagine home without Molly. She's been around for practically as long as I can remember.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-67689745501748039072010-08-19T22:19:00.002-05:002010-08-19T22:24:22.664-05:00I am now CPR certified. That means I can teach in a yoga classroom by myself. Yay! <br /><br />Also, I have a job interview/audition to be a yoga teacher tomorrow at noon. It's for a pilates studio that I've never been to before, but I'm excited just to get the chance to teach a class. And possibly getting a job out of doing that only makes it better. <br /><br />This is the last week of summer classes at Language Sprout. It's been a good summer, if a bit crazy. I think I served my students well, and the ones that wanted to learn learned a lot. The ones that didn't really want to learn at least picked up something, which is all you can ask for. <br /><br />I have to move out of my apartment by noon on the 31st, and that's really weirding me out. This has been such a great apartment, I've really loved living here. I have a hard time imagining not living here. Also, I have a lot of stuff. Like really, a lot. <br /><br />Apparently disjointed and choppy sentences are all I can manage right now. I'm going to go make a drink, read some LOTR, and plan what we'll do during the last day of camp tomorrow.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-78028624019993025502010-08-10T23:21:00.002-05:002010-08-10T23:30:15.431-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihi5UNcFGohcAdq0csqydlnsSoU5JJ4eOwn9kXRpsWkCOiKnNPUqFmPdVTwAcWXG3e_MTk7XQPEYTPozSWYWETO566Tp0E_aLJlBgAMqFI9GhEU5CoW2BHhahveLlq4EwfbddGmH1Y9Ng/s1600/c6d5ee6e-cbdf-4a6c-b92b-b9911cca0bdf.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihi5UNcFGohcAdq0csqydlnsSoU5JJ4eOwn9kXRpsWkCOiKnNPUqFmPdVTwAcWXG3e_MTk7XQPEYTPozSWYWETO566Tp0E_aLJlBgAMqFI9GhEU5CoW2BHhahveLlq4EwfbddGmH1Y9Ng/s320/c6d5ee6e-cbdf-4a6c-b92b-b9911cca0bdf.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504002787230731346" /></a><br /><br />Molly was found, safely ensconced in the animal humane society. She looks so sad in her picture, and I think she had a pretty rough day. We ended up having a family meeting, and decided that her quality of life is practically non-existent, and that we'll have to look into having her put down, possibly tomorrow morning. Kate and I ended up having a nice conversation about her, and all of the things that she loves, and our memories of getting her, and playing with her, and walking with her, and how she loves to be the queen of the laundry basket. It is surprising to think that the dog that has been such a fixture of life on Berkeley Ave for most of my memories isn't going to be around anymore. At the same time, when you compare Molly as she is now to how she was when she was younger, it's obvious that her time has come. She has seizures, some days she can hardly walk, she has no control over her bladder, and is deaf and mostly blind from cataracts. It's the humane thing to do, I just can't wrap my head around it.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-9362430383932396832010-08-10T18:59:00.003-05:002010-08-10T19:04:53.285-05:00I lost the sixteen year old family dog. The sixteen year old dog with epilepsy, cataracts, hearing loss and the beginnings of kidney failure. Molly decided she was three again and ran away like she used to do. But she's not three, she's sixteen and has epilepsy and could hardly walk yesterday, hasn't been able to see anything for over a year, and is mostly deaf. And my parents are due back in town any minute, and the dog is gone. The dog is gone and not wearing a collar, because we all thought that of course the sixteen year old dog that can hardly walk would never run away, and there would be no need for a collar. <br /><br />Why do dramatic things happen whenever a family member is coming back from a big trip? Kate got home from Prague and the car got impounded. My parents fly back from Sacramento and the dog runs away. What kind of bad karma do I have?Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-88815439784809280152010-08-10T10:25:00.002-05:002010-08-10T10:28:36.298-05:00I woke up at 8:30 to my dog barking her head off, so I let her outside and went back to bed, noticing in the meantime how smelly the kitchen was because she had pooped in her kennel again. It started pouring. Molly got soaked, and the kennel still smells, which means the entire first floor of the house smells, cause I'm sure as hell not about to go clean it out in the pouring rain. <br /><br />Oh, and the light fixture in the back entryway managed to start leaking water from the little porch we have upstairs that must not be draining properly. Yay.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-26948637836831310172010-08-09T09:30:00.003-05:002010-08-09T09:45:47.218-05:00So, my boss asked me to come into work early today to help out with a camp in a language I don't speak. Just like I thought, there really isn't anything for me to do right now and I got up early for no good reason. Good thing I brought my knitting. <br /><br />Being graduated from Teacher Training is kinda weird. I miss seeing people, and having class (what?!), and practically living at the yoga studio. I don't miss how crazy busy I was, but I do miss the people, and the experience. Also, I realized that the extensions program continuation thing starts the same weekend as the show that I'm ASMing. Problems. <br /><br />I taught my first French camp over the past two weeks. It was mostly successful. Each of the three kids had their bratty moments, but there were also some really sweet ones that more or less made up for that. I think they all learned a good amount (of course, they could have learned more...) and had fun. By the end of the two weeks I felt like I knew what I was doing and that I actually had the right to call myself a teacher. A teacher in the 'I know what I'm doing in a classroom and can handle the kids and plan lessons that will be effective and not freak out' kind of way. <br /><br />I killed a fly with my bare hands last night. I feel kinda bad about it, because I've been trying to be yogic and do no harm, but it kept buzzing in my ear while I was trying to go to sleep. <br /><br />I can't believe how tired I've been lately. I think I need a week off, but I don't think I'll get one. I feel like I've had one gigantic thing after another all summer, starting with finishing with my thesis, then finishing my distance learning class, then teacher training, then french camp, and now ASMing. There have been little breaks here and there, but there's always been some big thing to get done hanging over my head. I guess this is being an adult?Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-37830895879279801082010-07-30T23:39:00.001-05:002010-07-30T23:40:52.012-05:00Also, the entire right side of my face started twitching when i was in corpse pose and wouldn't stop for like 10 minutes.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-19286915022100892432010-07-30T23:38:00.002-05:002010-07-30T23:39:10.506-05:00I left home this morning at 8:10 and got home again at 10:50. Not in the gone for 2.5 hours way, in the gone for 14.5 hours way. So tired. Have so much to do. So much yoga. Happytiredcrazyproudalmostdone.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-80072677928615456982010-07-28T09:48:00.001-05:002010-07-28T09:48:31.274-05:00I ate cookie dough ice cream for breakfast. It was tasty.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-48072087362580231572010-07-24T10:52:00.000-05:002010-07-24T10:53:14.677-05:00I fell on my nose. It hurts.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-39640527463919927552010-07-23T03:03:00.002-05:002010-07-23T03:06:33.037-05:00I am so many things right now. Mostly happy, sad that Colin's leaving and thrilled that he gets to go, excited about yoga and yoga people, grateful for my family and all of the amazing people in my life. In awe at how beautiful Minneapolis is, especially when you look at it at two am from one of your favorite places in the world. Have me take you there sometime, it's pretty breathtaking. <br /><br />I had a really good night tonight. Thanks, everyone. <br /><br />I love myself. I haven't been able to say that before, but now it's true.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-89159933041687867432010-07-15T15:14:00.002-05:002010-07-15T15:16:37.727-05:00Oh how I love thee, hammock on my parent's deck. You are perfectly placed in the shade and have a soothing rocking motion. I can stare off into space and watch the birds fly by and reread a favorite book. Perfection.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-63671756002214707952010-07-15T10:52:00.003-05:002010-07-15T11:14:49.082-05:00So much yoga. So many fantastic people in my life. I can't even begin to explain how excited I am about all of this and how much I feel like a better, happier version of me. The commitment and kindness and integrity present in this group of thirty people (plus super-amazing teachers!) is simply astounding. They're good people, people who get it, who care, who want to create a better world through their actions. We may not have much in common beyond yoga, but that in itself is enough.<br /><br />Yesterday at Teacher Training we went around and talked about our favorite memories from the past five weeks. People talked about the things that they learned, the changes they can see in themselves and how they live their lives, and the really awesome sense of community that we've all had since day one. I couldn't articulate it fully at the time, but for me the most exciting moment came after we finished team teaching our first class in the middle of week 3. All of a sudden I had this sense that "I can do this." I didn't think that it would be easy, or that the classes I teach will be perfect, but I just knew that somehow I would make it through this training and come out the other side a stronger person and a good yoga teacher. You all know me, and how much I doubt my own abilities and underestimate myself. <br /><br />I've always been a 'might' person. I might be able to do lots of things, but if I only say that I <span style="font-style:italic;">might</span> succeed at it, any eventual failure won't matter as much. I usually don't fail, but I always have that little bit of built in protection just in case I do. Because of all the work I've done lately on forgiving myself and accepting me for who I am, I've realized that I don't need to be a might person anymore. Failure is okay, and is never actually failure if you're willing to forgive yourself for it and accept it as a learning experience. If you're not going to fail, you can go ahead and commit yourself fully to an experience with the knowledge that, whatever the result, you will be okay. <br /><br />This teacher training might not end up how I want it to. I would love to be a teacher at CorePower a few months from now and have the chance to share how awesome yoga is with the rest of the world, but if that doesn't happen there will be other opportunities for me at other yoga studios or gyms. I've decided to accept the possibility of things not working out how I want them to, but that does not mean that I'm not going to try my hardest to make my goal happen. I will be the best yoga teacher in training I can be and give CorePower lots of good reasons to hire me. Yes I will, because I can. <br /><br />On a completely different note, I'm reading <span style="font-style:italic;">The Count of Monte Cristo</span> in French. It's amazing how different a novel can feel when you read it in the original language.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-82018959489781840042010-07-08T01:00:00.000-05:002010-07-08T01:01:15.335-05:00Someday I might post about something other than yoga. Maybe.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-26159067307608569152010-07-08T00:57:00.003-05:002010-07-08T01:00:10.877-05:00I have always been a little bit afraid of being upside down. I trust that my body can do it, but for some strange reason just don't seem to think that I can. I can get halfway there or three-fourths of the way there, no problem, but actually doing a headstand or handstand is just beyond me. <br /><br />Today I did a headstand. It was against the wall at 1 am, but it was a headstand! And it was surprisingly easy, once I decided I was going to do it and remembered my technique and alignment. Wahoo!Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-58979815115373659142010-07-06T10:29:00.003-05:002010-07-06T10:31:28.442-05:00I am sore in places I've never been sore before. That is an accomplishment, considering how I've spent the vast majority of my life dancing and playing soccer and running around. <br /><br />But seriously. There are lots of tiny little muscles around my thoracic spine and they all hurt.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-30364711531205376112010-07-05T19:19:00.003-05:002010-07-05T19:26:43.925-05:00My head both feels like mush and like it's about to explode. I went to Andy's 5:30 C1 class expecting a good warmup and review for the practice teaching I'm about to do in half an hour. Only one other person showed up, and he's also good at yoga and a former dancer. Andy decided to do a really intense posture clinic for an hour instead of teaching a normal class. <br /><br />We would go into a posture, and then Andy would give really specific corrections about what we were doing. Things like: raise your right hip, ground the inner arch of your left foot, engage your core, relax your lower back, extend your back kneed and reach through your heel, soften your shoulders down your back, lengthen between your ribs and your pelvis on your right side, bring your left hip back, and expand your chest. And breathe. All for one posture. And then we would do it again for the next one. It was amazing, but there was so much information that I can't even begin to process it all. My mind=blown, and my body= exhausted. Both in the best way possible.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-76965808416201335902010-07-01T18:20:00.002-05:002010-07-01T18:21:01.602-05:00Dear Self,<br />Please don't ever eat so much ice cream before going to a C2 yoga class ever again. It might taste really good at the time, but you will definitely come to regret it. <br />Sincerely,<br />Your stomachJenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-59756755073085046922010-07-01T00:24:00.002-05:002010-07-01T01:01:35.147-05:00Wait a minute. How is it all of a sudden June 30th?!!!!<br /><br />I feel like I've changed a lot since the last time I wrote. Here, have a summary of my past two weeks:<br /><br />This is going to sound super hippie, but my goodness, yoga has started to really alter my life. I love it, it really works for me, and it's given me the chance to reinvent myself in subtle and fascinating ways. I feel in control and weak at the same time, powerful and completely lost, and all sorts of other false dichotomies all at once. The tensions in my body that I knew I was holding but never knew how to release are finally starting to float away, the mental and emotional blocks and resentments along with them. Our bodies are great at holding onto old emotional baggage in surprising places, and finding the release and counteraction for all of that has been fantastic. Bad muscular habits that I've held onto since I was eight because I didn't know how to release them and I thought I needed them, are finally gone, and I'm starting to feel like a new person. It's pretty fantastic, and I'm absolutely positive that this same sort of thing will just keep happening. Also, yoga teacher training is pretty flippin wonderful. Tonight we divided up the entire sequence of a basic yoga class and each taught a part while the rest of us took the class. We all did really well, especially given the fact that we all just finished our third week of training. The sense of accomplishment and community that the exercise brought out, along with the realization that I know more yoga than I think I do was really, really exciting. <br /><br />I'm starting to realize that I am no longer just a student, but also a teacher and have found that incredibly fulfilling. The slight edge of not knowing whether I can make it through my next class, if my French-speaking abilities will be able to hold up under fire and get me through the next hour, if my vocabulary will be big enough to answer all of the random questions my students throw at me, is both exhilarating and exhausting. The humbleness that comes with having to admit to not knowing something combines with the certainty brought about by a successful lesson to create a roller coaster ride of emotions that makes me excited and exhausted and terrified and thrilled. All at once (sense a theme?).<br /><br />Jumping back into Czech dancing has taught me the value of technique and of going with the flow. There isn't time to go back and teach me all of the dances that the group regularly performs, so my partner and I just have to pick up as much as we can as fast as we can. Dealing with that feeling of not knowing has been hard for me, since usually when I dance I at least have a general idea of what's going on and what might come next. That is not at all the case in Czech dance practices. Like everything else lately, it's scary and fun and educational, all at the same time. Not quite as completely me-altering as allllllll of the yoga or the teaching, but still pretty interesting. <br /><br />Last on the list of new and exciting things comes the fact that I'm going to be (am, really) one of two Assistant Stage Managers for an Ananya Dance Theater production going up at The Southern this fall. I have absolutely no backstage experience. Like everything else, this will be exciting and fun and challenging and ridiculously crazy. Laurie and Ananya, two of the women I admire most, are the directors of the show, and I'm excited to have them in my life again. They challenge me to grow and improve myself in ways I didn't even know I needed to. The company as a whole is filled with strong women with strong personalities, and dealing with all of them might be a challenge. Then again, I'm (finally?) starting to realize that I might, myself, be a strong woman with a strong personality. <br /><br />So, yeah. That's my life for now. I need to find more ways to make money, but don't really have the time to do that right now. Maybe just (just?!) spiritual and emotional growth will have to be enough for now. My schedule goes something like this:<br /><br />Monday: off, Czech dance 7:30-10<br />Tuesday: modern if possible, teach at 5:30<br />Wednesday: Teach at 10, yoga teacher training 7-10<br />Thursday: modern if possible, teach at 12, <br />Friday: Teach at 3:30, sometimes yoga teacher training at 7<br />Saturday: Teach at 10, yoga teacher training from 2-5<br />Sunday: Yoga teacher training from 2-5<br />Also, 5 yoga classes at some point, usually around one per day with Tuesday and Thursday off. Also, none of my Assistant Stage Manager stuff is solidified yet, so that's still not accounted for. <br /><br />That adds up to lots of time driving back and forth between Minneapolis and STP. Also adds up to lots of scheduling difficulties, and feeling like I'm on the go constantly. I can't tell if that's just because it's a new schedule and I'm still settling in, or if I'm actually that crazy busy. Anyways, this post is ridiculously long and I'm going to bed so I can get up in time for modern tomorrow.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-41199684564578615782010-06-19T12:08:00.002-05:002010-06-19T12:10:05.842-05:00So the repair man is here, which is fabulous-- it will be nice to have a light in the closet again. But, honestly, how hard is it to replace a light fixture? This is the third time he's blown the fuse for my apartment. The third!Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-41316816305530245132010-06-18T20:55:00.001-05:002010-06-18T20:56:12.302-05:00Wahoo! I got the job! More later, off to celebrate...Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-87570067021920682392010-06-17T17:33:00.004-05:002010-06-17T17:37:30.505-05:00Left for yoga by bike, only to realize that not only was my front tire almost completely flat, but that my bike felt the need to make this odd clicking noise every time I pedaled. Walked back home, parked the bike, and went to try driving to yoga. Drove there, got a parking spot, only to realize that I had left my wallet in my apartment (I thought I wouldn't need it, since I was biking), and had no way to pay the dollar for the parking lot. Clearly it was not my day to go to yoga.<br /><br />Also, still no news about this job, even though it's been more than 24 hours. At what point does no news become bad news?Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2242420866303276408.post-85661883381398560202010-06-17T14:17:00.002-05:002010-06-17T14:18:54.824-05:00Still no news. I did find out that I get to be an ASM for Ananya Dance Theater during their fall production, so that's good. <br /><br />Watching the Mexico vs. France game online, getting started on a new knitting project.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16658339693329812590noreply@blogger.com0