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December 27, 2004
A quick link - tarot deck
1) Best 1-paragraph explanation of postmodernism EVER.
2) Hilarious deck
http://www.telp.com/tarot/pomo.htm
Posted by Josh A. at 01:11 AM | Comments (0)
December 11, 2004
Des' first visit to Heartwood
Crunching up the hill in the thick of the morning darkness, I got to my car and was pulling out of Heartwood's student parking lot just after 4:00 am. Down the mountain to pick Des up, I was impressed: there was hardly any fog.
Amazingly enough, the bus was right on time, although it threw me for a loop dropping him off on the opposite side of the street than I was expecting. Then I remembered... the last time I rode a bus up here, the driver managed to zoom right past Garberville and hard to turn around and come back from the other direction.
When we got back to the school, we laid down for only an hour or so; not wanting to waste the day, we made it to breakfast and I showed Des around and introduced him to random people who also managed to make it to the first meal of the day.
Afterward, we walked more of the campus. I showed him the Point, the Labyrinth, and we went for a hike in the woods... took lots of photos, plenty of mushrooms coming up and other interesting things.
We got back in time for me to do some homework, i.e. give him a session. It was a little nervous-making, but also nice to be able to do.
Lunch was simple, less than spectacular for a guest.
Then Des had some alone time and I went to Reiki II. Oh my god. Subtler than my Reiki I attunements, not overwhelming, thank the universe... but so rockin. Soyka holds amazing space, and we did group trades after the attunement. I wrote a rough draft that may become a final poem... but I don't know that I can live up to what I wrote after the first level attunements.
So Soyka gifted me greatly at the very end, saying "You are very gifted." I about melted. I quickly said something lame in reply, and grinned like an idiot.
Dinner was lasagna, good but not amazing; I was sad that Des didn't get to experience the best of Heartwood's kitchen, but... what? Next time.
We hung out with Jana, first at the store... I ate junk food. We ate junk food. Mostly ice cream cakes. Organic, yes, but still laden with concentrated sweeteners. Sitting on the stools there, we drew runes and divination cards from the bags they keep on the bar, and chatted and ate. Eventually Jim wandered in, and we all wandered out together.
Ended up at Jana's room, hanging holiday lights and talking about who-can-remember-what. Jana showed us her toybox and the dildos she cleans in the Community Kitchen.
When we departed, the last item on the to-do list was sauna! Mmm. It was so good. I rarely make time for it, but had to tonight. When we were in Reno the place we stayed had a sauna and we tried, ineptly, to use it. Now, having had hydrotherapy class, I'm supposed to know all about saunas, so we took Des' heart rate before and after and I filled out a homework sheet for the session.
Twenty minutes later we were headed back for some much needed sleep.
Posted by Josh A. at 07:18 PM | Comments (4)
December 10, 2004
Restful: madrona berries, mushrooms, and schtuff
Yay Des comes soon. I'll be heading down the dark and dangerous mountain road at 4am to pick him up from the bus station. Intense trip for him, overnighting it on a bus. How foolish. But we knew that; he's in love with me.
Anyway, we had a class today... to finish Hydrotherapy up this week instead of next. It started at 9; I made it in the middle of chanting.
First was the test, which was actually fun. Then class evals. Then an hour of practical. We got to choose what we wanted to do, and most people went down to the sauna. I didn't feel up to being out in the cold, so I did a nice footbath... read Natural Home... listened to Meryn Cadell.
Afterward, I went to the Wellness Clinic to talk with Dave. I decided not to order anything special yet. I'm not feeling called to make a decision just yet. It's definitely something I can sit with for a while longer.
We talked about some astragalus formulations... I think I'm interested in just full body tonification. But Eight Flavor Tea Pills should be in tomorrow, so I'll probably just get those.
Went for a walk with Green and Melissa. We hunted madrona berries and looked at mushrooms. Lots of different ones coming up. White, yellow, pink, brown.
My current projects include: deciding which flower essences to order; shopping for a lathe; and researching how to make my own massage lubricants.
I'm definitely getting a set of the 38 Bach essences, but I'm also thinking about getting a set of Five Element essences for Shiatsu, Chakra essences for reiki and other energy work, and a miscellany of essences for yoga practice to offer custom blends for yoga students.
As for massage lubricants, I haven't found anything on the market that's really good enough for me to rub on people's bodies.
Given that soon people will pay me to do this, with the intention of helping themselves, I don't really want to be putting anything harmful (for me, them, or the planet) on their skin. That includes refined oils, synthetic fragrances, petro-based anything, etc.
It'd be easy if I just wanted to use oils, but creams and lotions are very useful. So, I'm workin' on it. I'd also like to have oils for each ayurvedic body type... that are non-comedogenic, and again with the unrefined. I can't say it too many times.
Also working on what to do about oils on sheets. Not sure about the washing yet, but as for drying I've found these non-toxic dryer sheets, chemical free and landfill-friendly.
So they last for 500 loads each... I figured it out: for me, that would last about 9 years, maybe more. I wish you could pay the $20 as you go ;-)
Dinner was awesome Mexican food... whole wheat tortillas, black beans, red (brown) rice, fresh salsa and guacamole.
Nice day... the next two will be much quicker paced, but hopefully just as peaceful.
Posted by Josh A. at 10:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 09, 2004
False-to-fact?
This morning I got out of bed at 9:00am. Class starts at 9:00. As I got ready, I had the insight that I'm being given the opportunity to make different choices. But I don't want to make choices, I want everything fixed for me.
Other things work like that. I never expected the amazing positivity last week. I didn't have to be tested with angry or depressing circumstances to "make different choices". Of course, maybe that's now
As I walked in on movement warmups just before ten after, everyone let up a little cheer. "Yay." The emotional jaw in my head dropped. As I was coming up the trail, I was imagining myself in class judging someone in my position: "Ugh. They're late AGAIN." Guess it's good I'm the late one, because everyone seemed understanding. They know I've been struggling, and I felt so supported and celebrated in my place in my process.
I had my first really good experience receiving the work today. No coincidence that it comes on the heels of last night's conversation from someone who really appreciates and honors Swedish-style bodywork. I could hear the passion as she talked about the benefits she had received from it over the years. That was more important than her words, most of which I can no longer remember.
So while I was receiving the work (we did the arm sequence today) and feeling so good, I took the opportunity to do affirmations. Affirmations + feeling really good = manifestation rocket fuel. I chose "I deeply and completely accept, love, and nurture myself."
Today was heart circle, done after the bodywork. We had 30 minutes to get through 12 people, and we did. It didn't feel particularly rushed, even though it was palpably short. During my turn, I said I was grateful for the opportunities to learn from everyone through the issues that have been up for us this quarter, opportunities that I wouldn't have if everything were just "fixed" immediately.
That was the only class of the day, and I took a long lunch. So long, Max came to check to see if I was done with my dishes. I wasn't, and he assured me not to rush. I read Natural Home and considered what to do with the day. It feels good to be moving toward wanting to "go green"... err, greener. It's not really something you "finish".
Anyway, I didn't really want to do anything. I was feeling pretty "blah" and decided to be quiet a moment and just listen.
I ended up taking a walk. I hardly ever do that. Are you kidding? I don't have time to waste just wandering around. Besides, I walk every day. Rushed, trying to get from where I was to where I'm going. That counts, right?
Mm so I'm exaggerating to make my point. In reality, I do try to take time to notice while walking... things like slugs, sunrises, deer, and even the air. But I rarely just go walking.
The first thing I came across was the Labyrinth. I've never walked ours before, but I walked it today. I reached the center, and stopped to let the energy and emotions that came up drain out of me. Then I retraced my steps, wondering if I was unwinding or rewinding.
I found an awesome oak grove... saw some different mushrooms, mosses, and lichens... came across some mysterious part of our water system.
A large black rubber looking container, bigger than me, with hoses going in and out. I believe it takes waste water in at the top and outputs slightly cleaner waste water at the bottom, with oils and such floating on the top that have to periodically cleaned out. At least, that's my best guess based on things I've overheard and the way this thing looked.
When I got back to the main part of campus, I was feeling inspired to do my laundry and stop in at the Wellness Center. Dave is now running it... we talked about some things I might try taking, including Astra Essence, Triphala (an Ayurvedic standby), 8 versus 9 Flavor Tea Pills, etc. We also discussed the bone marrow soup project, which he doesn't feel the abundance of time to work on either... although he's never made it, so that's not a big deal.
At this point it looks like unless I just do it, it won't get done, and so I'm inclined to just sell what I produce myself. I bet the student store would sell it on consignment, and they've got a freezer. They bought 15 copies of a postcard I designed, and most have been sold already :-)
Laundry took forever. With only two washers and two dryers, and a community of over a hundred people, availability can be frustrating. But, it's done.
Haven't done much else... talked on the phone, hung out in the Lodge, chatted, made notes from an article on using Flower Essences to support yoga practice.
I still haven't shaken my "blah" feeling, even though having journaled I see that I've walked through the day with an attitude that doesn't necessarily fit the facts. It's one thing to talk about cultivating love & joy that's not dependent on external circumstances; it's another for the external circumstances to be what I would usually judge "good" and still feel down!
Posted by Josh A. at 11:33 PM | Comments (0)
December 08, 2004
Flower essences & salt glows
I missed the first hour of class this morning. Doh! Shannon came by and knocked on my door. Luckily, I didn't miss any material, but I did miss hearing Amy speak about our list of issues and solution ideas. Next time.
We did the neck and shoulder sequence today... I didn't have a very easy time of it. Grr, Swedish!
Afterward, we held a circle in order to create a Flower Essence spritz to use in the room. We spoke our intentions, and then Amy divined the Essences to use. Jana provided a very nice cobalt blue spritz bottle.
Into the bottle went Wild Rose (apathy), Aspen (over-worry), Cherry Plum (high stress), Gentian (discouragement), and Impatiens (argumentative/rushed). Two fear flowers, a depression flower, an anger flower, and a rigidity flower. Nice mix, eh?
We passed it around the circle and spritzed ourselves, then I spritzed the room.
During lunch I got new Essences for myself: Chestnut Bud (stuckness), Holly (cultivating unconditional love and compassion), Mustard (depression that comes and goes), Walnut (transitions), Wild Oat (putting my talents to use), and White Chestnut (getting to sleep).
Hydrotherapy rocked, as usual. First we did full body salt glows. I had never had one before; it was both invigorating and yet strangely relaxing. And then I traipsed on down to the sauna area in my little white CK briefs. So I'm standing there in the warm water, showering naked outside in the cold rain, looking out over the mountains and trees; I see a deer bounding up a hill, and I touch joy.
Then I run back to class wet and cold in my towel. :)
Afterward, we did castor oil packs, only for 20 minutes or so. To be effective, they are applied for 1 to 8 hours!
Dinner was African! And it was awesome: groundnut soup, cous cous, a yummy sauce.
Afterward was Cupping Review. Only three of us showed up, but a very enthusiastic volunteer "table angel" (as some call them) really made it worth it. I did re-learn some things I had forgotten, and finally got my cups applied successfully. I also got to receive, so hopefully that helps my cough/cold thing that's still hanging on (running around wet and naked probably doesn't help, though).
Posted by Josh A. at 10:22 PM | Comments (0)
December 07, 2004
Easier than I thought
Sooo tired. I didn't get to sleep until after midnight, and almost didn't make breakfast. As it was, I didn't want any of the food and just had an orange. Man, it was just what I wanted. Tasted really nice.
So in class at one point Nishkama looks at me and says innocently, "You have anger." My reflex was dismissal, but as I thought about it I realized I was angry at myself, very angry, pissed off about staying up and being tired. With awareness, I began to let go of it, but only somewhat. As I sit here typing, I am still holding on to a bit of it.
Today we did the facial sequence, including learning how to do a facial effleurage. How weird. I gave first, which got me out of my tired/angry funk. Receiving, I went promptly to sleep. I tried to stay conscious so I could give my partner feedback, but had little success.
We finished bodywork with half an hour left of class. At the end of class, it was difficult for us to wrap up discussion. I was so grateful we did the bodywork first, because had we started with discussion we absolutely would have talked more than 30 minutes and then wouldn't have had time for the bodywork.
The discussion was on the issues that have been up for the class, and went fairly well. I passed around a copy of the list I complied of issues (sorted geekily by category) and their corresponding suggested solutions that we brainstormed over the weekend. Amy took that copy home with her.
Of course, positive change has already happened with doing bodywork first. That was the major shift needed to solve most of the big problems. Just little stuff left. Tomorrow we will probably make up an essence spritz for the room. Amy even has a number of gem essences she's made.
Lunch was yummy, and the power went out. The sun out and there was enough light to study in the library during my meal.
When we got to A&P, the power was still out and Soyka hadn't been able to photocopy the test. She offered us some options, and we chose to do group open book test (we're not dumb!). Turns out I could have taken it on my own just fine... which means I stressed for nothing.
I've been trying to drop old school patterns, especially studying to tests and cramming. I was able to let go of some of that today, as well as let go of much of the stress, but I didn't do so entirely. Looks like I completely could have. Can always let go of stress of course, it doesn't help or change anything.
I had no energy for TPS today. My head hurt (need sleep!), but my cough is really clearing... almost gone.
Dinner was great... black bean tortilla soup, guacamole, wild rice, and such.
I've spent most of the evening doing some organizing, hole punching, filing, etc., and chatting with Des. He's coming up this weekend (yay) and I wanted to know what kind of bodywork he might be interested in receiving. There are people on campus doing myofascial release, cranio-sacral, polarity, swedish, and shiatsu. Of course, I get first dibs on him.
All in all, today was tired and long, but easier than I thought it would be. The hard part will be getting myself into that bed anytime soon.
Posted by Josh A. at 10:28 PM | Comments (0)
December 06, 2004
First power outage (minor)
What a day... it seems so long ago. Mondays are so long!
I made it to yoga, yay. It seemed to help move my coughing & chest congestion a bit. All I cared about was not making it worse. Yoga was more fun today... I find it better each time I go.
Breakfast was too sweet. Blueberry sauce on a muffin, flax flakes and chocolate granola in soy milk. I've been heating my soy milk (very cooling) in the community kitchen with cinnamon (a warming spice), and it soaks into the cereal creating a texture I really love, but most people probably hate. I always hated Captain Crunch as a kid, precisely because it took forever to get soggy enough for me to enjoy. I did love the soft smooshy texture, but also, Captain Crunch hurt my young palate otherwise.
In Massage Theory, I put up on the board before class: "Requests: Bodywork first / Discussion on class issues after"... well, we did the bodywork first... we learned the whole back sequence... and it took all the class time! A whole three and a half hours. I was so thankful we didn't do any discussion first.
At the end of class, Amy acknowledged what had happened and wanted us to know that she was willing to hear us on any issues we had. I raised my hand and said I was so happy to have completed the trade in class that I didn't mind that there was no time for discussion today.
So that was a big shift, and a happy one.
I brought my lunch back into the Kiva (where we have Massage Theory class) to begin work on an energetic upgrade: Master Plan 2.1! I've started reorganizing it, rewording and updating the intentions, and adding some new ones that have had space to come up. When I'm finished (should be tomorrow) I'll see Surya for some new Flower Essences (I used the last of my bottle today). So the timing seems on.
The person who did my first Reiki attunements gifted me with the idea of an "intention journal"... but keeping one didn't seem to work well for me. I'm finding this more contained, one-page method to be helpful. Of course, it has barely enough room for my personal growth intentions. I suppose I could keep a second page for, say, ongoing (as opposed to process-oriented) intentions. And third and fourth pages for...
Anyway, Amy was in the Kiva too, eating her lunch. I was surprised, since she seems to usually leave right after class. Anyway, we talked about the energetic problem of the room and discussed a few solutions. Soyka's willing to do some Feng Shui stuff with us, and I am really excited about the prospect of penduling an Essence blend specific to our-class-in-that-space to make a room spritzer with.
It's a superior solution to essential oil sprays or smudging herbs, since there are folks with sensitivities in the class. One can't be in the room if it's been smudged with sage or other things, although there are some (maybe sweetgrass) that don't make her throat close up.
Kinesiology was great. We talked about posture, went over our take-home test, and made naugahyde muscles.
I seem to have some twisting going on around my sacrum, and a classic "adrenaline response" upper body, shoulders hunched in, neck hyperextended disconnecting me from the present. I had set some intentions around it, and now I have even more detailed information on which to go... perfect timing for my Master Plan upgrade. (You know, I really need a less dramatic label for it than "Master Plan"... oh well.)
Each one of us instructed the class in doing one of our exercises form the take-home test. I thought about doing the Kegel Lifts, because Soyka is really into the perineal wall and its energetics, but in the end I did another one (deep neck flex) because it was a perfect example of client education. First you work with a partner to make sure they're using the right muscles and teach them how if they need, and then they can do it on their own.
As for naugahyde (made from endangered naugas), I made an infraspinatus. It fits on our skeleton models properly (inserts on the greater tubercle of the humerus), and I took home extra material to make one for the other side.
The power went out as dinner was winding down. We did Supervised Practice by candlelight. I snuck some Shiatsu in.
Afterward, I tried to study by flashlight. Finally the power came back on, and I'm still up. Not integrating my "get into bed" intentions nearly as well as the "get out of bed" ones!
Posted by Josh A. at 11:46 PM | Comments (0)
December 05, 2004
Chakralicious
My cold is so obviously on its last legs: I was up at 7, showered, and got to have breakfast. Yay!
Not to mention one of the breakfast options... leftover pizza! Hot damn.
I sat alone this morning and read more of Natural Home. I'm really enjoying it... it inspires me to continue "naturalizing" my life. I can't decide if I want to do it in a modular fashion, i.e. start in the bathroom, move on to the bedroom, etc., or do it more like a gesture sketch... the entire process could be called "finished" at any point, with equal progress made in all areas.
I finished my Kinesiology take home test. It was partially open ended, as we got to pick pretty much any kind of movement we wanted, as long as it was simple and in the areas on the list. Perineum was one of the areas, so I used Kegel Lifts as one of my movements. Here's what I ended up with:
KEGEL LIFTS
Activity can be done lying, sitting, or standing. First identify the proper muscles to contract by imagining you are trying to prevent yourself from passing gas and trying to stop your flow of urine, at the same time. The feeling should be one of "squeezing" rather than "bearing down". Specifically, women should "draw in" and "lift up" the perivaginal and anal sphincter muscles; men should simply tighten the anal spincter.
While doing the exercises, it is important to breathe easily and keep the abdominal, gluteal, and hip adductor muscles relaxed.
Work the fast twitch muscle fibers first by performing a series of 2-second contractions, followed by working the slow twtich muscle fibers with a sustained contraction of 5 seconds or longer. Rest at least 10 seconds between sets.
Primary movers
Agonists
Levator ani (includes pubococcygeus, aka “PC muscle”)
Coccygeus
Synergists
Ischiocavernosus
Bulbospongiosus
Superior transverse perineal
External sphincter ani
Kegel exercises are an isometric activity intended to strenghten the muscles of the pelvic floor. They help prevent incontinence and prolapse, and can enhance sexual activity. Women can also use them to help heal the perineum following birth.
For best results, perform exercises three times daily and, optimally, in all three positions (lying, sitting, standing). A minimum of 50-60 contractions per day is recommended, with a gradual increase in the number of contractions over time.
Laura emailed me to tell me she's going to the AOBTA convention, too! Yay! I haven't seen her since Cornell. She signed up for one of the workshops I did, and she'll be at all the morning exercises. Should be awesome.
I also talked with another Cornell friend tonight, and heard from him about how another was doing. Got me thinking that when I get more settled I'd love to organize a West Coast Visit and bring all those New Yorkers out here.
Tonight was the final class by Linda, a three hour Chakra intensive called An Emotional Journey Through the Chakras. It's been such a blessing having her here, teaching and giving sessions. I hope I can keep in contact with her. I'm feeling so over my disconnect issues, which I learned tonight are the bridge between the 1st and 2nd chakras. And here I just thought I was deficient ;-)
Posted by Josh A. at 10:33 PM | Comments (0)
December 04, 2004
Bach Flower Essences class!
I slept in until 11... still sick. Still detoxing from whatever's going on.
Checked out JFK University... they have a Holistic Studies program. Neat, aye?
Things continue to manifest so quickly... last night I was lusting after pizza, and I had made up my mind: today I would put a note in the kitchen suggestion box saying, "I know you folks only do pizza every week during the summer, but do you think you could do it at least once this quarter?"
Instead, today I ate pizza for lunch. The kitchen rocks!
Afterward, I checked in with someone about the meeting last night. I apologized because I felt like I got a bit confrontational with him. He in turn said he felt like he had been confrontational in general the whole time. We both let the other know that we didn't experience the other that way. And it was settled and clear.
So that was good practicing of conscious communication, I think. And it was that kind of little thing that it's so easy to just "let go" and never acknowledge, which sometimes works, but other times just festers. Why not take 5 minutes and demonstrate your commitment? Then there's no question, no room for negative thoughts. And you might get a hug afterward ;-)
Much love in the mail today. I knew I would get my new AC adaptor, but there was also a box from my aunt containing the pillow and sweater I left behind at Thanksgiving, and my first issue of Natural Home.
Neat advertisers, I looked at a few... likeHaiku Designs.
Love this platform bed, but think I could probably build it myself easily.
Also like these Edo Zen tables.
Lastly, this Integra Vision dishwasher from Bosch. Oh my god. Silent, no visible controls? I'll take five of them, please.
Before dinner was the Bach Flower Essences class, which was fantastic. After that, plus the previous experiences I had with them, I'm probably going to buy a set to start playing with.
I also absolutely need to get muscle testing and pendulum use under my belt. Here's the story... Surya offers two ways to prepare a dosage bottle of Essences: you can pick from a list with descriptions of each Essence, or she can use her pendulum to pick them. I've gone by the latter route both times.
The last time in particular, the pendulum indicated four different Essences; reading the descriptions, three seemed dead on, but one didn't seem to fit at all. But, "maybe they know something I don't" I thought and went with it.
So the handout Surya provides is one page with brief descriptions of the 38 Bach Flower Essences; at the class, we received five pages of information on those same 38, four of which were description. Reading this more detailed info, I found that the Essence that didn't seem appropriate is actually perfect. (Incidentally, of the four Flowers I'm using--picked to support the beginning stages of implementing the much mentioned Extra Fantastic Grand Master Plan 2.0--two are Depression Flowers and two are Anger Fowers. Hmm.)
Anyway, this more or less confirms it for me that the rational, thinking mind is more of a hindrance than a help when using some tools. I can also understand it via General Semantics:
The only way the mind begins to understand the effects of the Essences is by observing their effects either in the self or clients. This understanding, like the descriptions in handouts and books, constitutes a "map" of the "territories" comprising each Essence. Since the map cannot be the territory, our mind can never grasp all the effects and uses of even a single Essence.
The problem wasn't really the length or detail of the description, because for any given description (map) there will necessarily be aspects of the Essence (territory) that it doesn't cover, and the possibility always exists of encountering a situation in which those unknown aspects are precisely called for.
Hence, the necessity of relying on different ways of choosing Essences, such as the higher self (pendulums) or the body (muscle testing).
Of course, using either of those techniques requires getting out of one's own way. I have trouble getting out of my way. Pendulum use and muscle testing are like sitting zazen: if you're trying, you're not doing it; and if you're trying not to try, you're not doing it!
The Universe provides: Getting Out of Your Own Way Essence. It's not a Bach Essence, but if it can help me be in that place of allowing required to do the things I want to do... I'll take it! "Allowing" is required not only for pendulums and muscle testing, but also aura, chakra, other energy work, and who knows what else.
With Morningstar's Essence Guidance page, I also picked Indigo Sapphire Essence. I can see how it would apply, as pendulum use in particular seems to me like a Sixth Chakra/asking for guidance activity.
Few people really wanted to meet during dinner, so we put it off... by 7:30 or so, there were five of us forging ahead.
But before that I had some time to sit in the Kiva alone and sit with my feelings of disappointment. Something that came out of that was remembering that the Universe attends to itself, and that my particular vision, while it may be one way to shift the situation our class is in, is not required to address the issues.
Anyway, we'll see where things head tomorrow.
Posted by Josh A. at 10:30 PM | Comments (3)
December 03, 2004
Sick, meeting, polarity
Ugh. I've been in bed for the last half hour. In an unusual turn of events, I got into bed easily, and had difficulty falling asleep. Usually it's the opposite.
Deepak Chopra thinks it's best to just stay in bed, saying that the body still gets the benefits of rest. I say that tonight, 30 minutes of laying there is enough.
What I wouldn't do for some codeine... my cold has progressed, with more sinus symptoms. I have no idea why it's moving so slowly. I've taken some Cold Away, but not really enough. Can't stand the stuff.
This morning's alarm was set to get me to breakfast. Ha. In the end, I got up around 10:30.
First thing I did was register for the AOBTA convention, which should be hot. The author of the Shiatsu textbook we used in class is presenting, as well as other great folks. And I get to be in SF for it. My Shiatsu teacher is going also, but no one else from Heartwood as of yet. I've been trying to recruit people to go, just to make it all the more enjoyable.
After lunch, I worked on Kinesiology for a couple hours. I hope I'm on the right track with the take home test. Got a bit of coloring done after that, and preparing for tonight's meeting.
As I mentioned, I'm interested in our Massage Theory class being proactive about getting our needs met. So I've been spearheading internal insurrection. The meeting did not go as expected, but went well and was great practice.
I went up early to set the space. Cleared it with a rattle, set up a mini-altar, arranged some backjacks around it in a circle, turned on the heat, adjusting the lighting, started some music. Then went to the Lodge to get my dinner.
Only half the class showed up. We went ahead anyway. Expectation #1 dashed. I knew Teal wouldn't be there, but almost everyone else had agreed to come. One of them forgot and made other plans. Another needed personal time. Two others had left the mountain without realizing.
We decided to go on anyway. We went until 7:30 and didn't want to stop. I can't believe I thought we could get it all done in one night. Expectation #2 out the window. We got a pretty comprehensive list of issues put down on paper, and a few suggestions on how to approach them and integrate solutions into the class. There's still much to do, and everyone who was there agreed to meet again the next two dinners. Hopefully we can get more of the class into them.
My facilitation and communication skills have definitely improved here, but I learned more tonight
I had a Polarity session afterward... brought in my Master Plan 2.0 paper, the obsidian, my current bottle of Flower Essences, and the intention to meld everything together. I felt sooo spacey afterward, which I understand is normal for a Polarity session. It'll be interesting to see how my intentions manifest and integrate from between now and whatever next big steps I take.
Posted by Josh A. at 10:33 PM | Comments (0)
December 02, 2004
It's the end of this week as we know it
and I am SO still sick. This morning I almost didn't even go to class. And yet, there have been plenty of times this week when it hasn't mattered that I'm sick... when the stillness and joy have still been present. I think it's mainly the Flower Essences, but in connection of course with the massive intentions they're supporting.
In the end, I was simply a few minutes late to Massage Theory (my only class of today, and last class of the week). We started sequences today. The first is our leg sequence. It involves something called "crossovers" which are a) hard to explain, b) difficult to do elegantly, c) impossible for me to remember now, and d) boring. They were boring to receive and boring to give. That said, I'm glad to be into the meat of the course.
Today's trade in class was 2-on-1. I worked with Teal & Jana; it was really interesting to feel the difference in their touches. Having them work on me together facilitated the comparison and taught me a lot about how I want to move and touch my clients.
There have been increasing frustrations in the class, and today during lunch I heard complaints from people other than the usual suspects. Mostly stuff regarding time management in class (stuff which could be alleviated by a TA, if one was to be had), but also communication, homework assignments, and how to best spend class time.
And although I haven't journaled about it before, I'm working on Covey's 7 Habits again, one of which is Be Proactive. So I started checking in with folks to see if they would be willing to meet tomorrow during dinner to discuss the situation and explore how we can take responsibility for these issues by coming up with some solutions. The outcome I'm envisioning is to do some brainstorming and make some agreements as a group, then present the results to the instructor on Monday.
I busted out four sessions in a row today. Felt good, and I got to work on some new bodies that were unfamiliar. I still have some more to do, at least one. I'm trying to bring hydrotherapy in, but not with the time constraints I had today. I did use a hot water bottle to help keep one receiver warm.
I got to do some tarot exploration with Steve today. He just purchased the Osho Zen Tarot, and I'm still working with the Tarot of the Cat People. He's much better at reading the cards than I am at this point, so it was really helpful for me to work together. I did a spread called The Mirror, which gives insight into one's relationship with one's partner.
I wonder how one could do such a spread for a polyamorous relationship... even something as simple (seeming) as a triad would get much more complex. In the spread, cards represent each partner, as well as inner and outer aspects of the relationship. It's a total of 12 cards. For a triad, there are inner and outer aspects between each partner as well as for the over all relationship... I think one would need 33 cards to do it. The number needed goes up geometrically as folks are added, if they're all partnered. Although I don't imagine there are many, say, six-way relationships on the planet at the moment. But I know there are some.
Anyway, the Inner Spiritual Purpose cards for Des and I were pretty nice, speaking to intimate growth, coming together in transformation, and a combination of cards I haven't quite figured out (High Priest, reversed, and the Three of Cups) but get an enjoyable feeling from.
Tonight's workshop was Nutritional Kinesiology, which is muscle testing applied to diet and supplements. The practitioner can get quickly and easily test the body to see which, if any, organs are having trouble, which nutrients are deficient, which supplements would help or hinder, etc.
Had a great demo, but not much time for experiential work. Almost none of us had much success with the technique. Working with the instructor was great; doing it on my own was (and still is) a no-go. I'll keep practicing with it, but I may just seek out a full on class after I graduate--I'm sure there's something in the Bay Area, and would be helpful for other areas, too. You can use it for other areas, such as testing the body's polarity, decide which treatments to try, asking whether or not treatments are complete and effective, and plenty of other stuff I haven't heard or thought of yet.
I get a session tomorrow! I haven't decided if I want cranio-sacral or polarity, but I'm leaning toward polarity. I wanted one sooner rather than later this week, and it hasn't happened yet. I want to work on Super Duper Master Plan 2.0. I think I'll add to the name each time I mention it.
Posted by Josh A. at 10:23 PM | Comments (0)
December 01, 2004
Running out of title ideas
I sit typing in the Lodge... only to have to save and post this later. The mythical wireless network that's been talked about doesn't exist yet. The tech people are said to have had "hardware problems" and allegedly are coming back. Perhaps, though, they have run far far away... they may still be running. What if we get no network?
Whatever's energizing my week continues, still felt underneath layers of sleep deprivation, lack of yoga, and an empty stomach until half past noon.
In Massage Theory we practiced Vibration and Compression, which we had some experience with from Shiatsu. Amy showed us some things we haven't seen, though...a few Polarity rocking techniques. Good stuff.
It's Jana's birthday today. I gave her almonds, as requested. Silas has worn a sign all day announcing his role as "Jana's Birthday Pony". Probably not quite what she had in mind, but possibly more satisfying, and less costly/not as time consuming. Real ponies suck.
This afternoon we did a small birthday circle around her, sharing appreciations for her, Om'ing, and ending with lifting her (supine) into the air with our fingertips. Apparently it's an amazing feeling.
Hydrotherapy was fun and fast as usual. Today was cold treatments. We did ice packs and ice massage (intense). I think it made my cough worse. Ugh, I'm so over it. I'm doing my best to withdraw all energy from its continued existence.
After dinner, I received a Shiatsu session from one of the Asian Healing Arts students. Wednesdays are their Supervised Practice times. It was so good to be in that energy again (I miss Shiatsu class). The session involved back, leg, arm, and abdominal work, and the student paid special attention to some Lung points to help with my cough.
I need to talk with her later, because I want to find out what my pulses were like, but I just wanted to get out of there and get to bed.
Posted by Josh A. at 09:10 PM | Comments (0)