Days 8, 9, 10 Whirlwind weekend and recovery!

Day 8.

I performed at Xmortis "Arabian Midnights" at somewhere between  12 and 1am, so I was pretty tired on Saturday morning. Nonetheless, I taught a private Skype lesson at 11 EST. Mmmm...coffee!

Look at the talons! I love the costume with the chain mail, too. 
The boobs aren't that noticeable...shut up!

Then it was off to help some friends move their stuff from one Temple space to another. I did not lift anything, as I try to protect my spine from injury. I did, however, provide the truck. This, of course, required another coffee. Iced Hazelnut. With milk and sugar, that's right.

Thai food for dinner: Masaman Curry with tofu, vegetable tempura.

Mike had a drumming gig that I'd planned to attend on Sat night, but I was a very tired person from the night before, and I decided to stay home. This gave me time to spend part of the eve setting up my studio space. I put out old 1960's bellydance record covers, and organized and otherwise decorated. Lots of red, and some really cool sheets of "stained glass" for the windows. Now all I need are mirrors, and we're good! Up to Home depot I go. Unless of course I can find something free or cheap on Craig's list. I'm looking.

Day 9.

Sunday was a housewarming/birthday party at my place. I'm not even going to TELL you what I ate, because though it included lots of veggies, it also included quite a bit of white flour, and wine and Viking Blod.

I had a great conversation with my dear friend Naraya about dance, as we sat in my studio and watched her toddler daughter play my electric guitar.

Day 10.

Oh man. So tired. I needed this rest day...If you call a rest day answering emails and and having a meeting with a photographer friend to plan a photoshoot . Even Gwyddie was tired today, and that is indeed rare. My SI joint is also sore from going up and down flights of stairs, cleaning, organizing, and setting up for the party yesterday.

I will be making another appointment to get another injection in my SI joint. I have chronic sacroiliitis which at times gets in the way of my dancing. Mayas are particularly tough on it. Menstrual time is also a trigger, as  some of the same hormones that our female bodies use to widen and open the hips in childbirth are also released during menstruation. I have to rest the joint, ice it, and slurp down Ibuprofen. My ass is on ice a lot!

Tomorrow is another day. Now off to watch a horror movie, then beddie-bye.

Day 7: Damn, I love to move my body!

I love to move my body.

I also love the feeling a finishing choreography, of putting in a good rehearsal, and of just free dancing around the studio for the joy of it! Sometimes I just go through my iTunes and play whatever and remember that I have all this wonderful music! Doing that first can at times help me focus in, and serves as a warm-up.



20min Pilates and Yoga
90 min rehearsal/drilling

Today I ate:
Coffee
Yogurt
Cereal.

Not enough water.

and, I need more food! Off I go to fuel up for Xmortis tonight. I perform at 12-1am.

Happy Friday!

Day 6--the Birthday Edition...

I began the day getting up at 7am to go to the dentist. My broken tooth needed some attending. It's filled and ready to roock! However, it's a signal to me that I need to cut down on the candy and sugar.

It's amazing that when the time comes to do something, the time really comes. The Universe signals from all directions. I am undergoing a transit (moving astrological influence) from Saturn. Saturn is Father Time, She is Crone Mother Wisdom; Saturn shows up when its time to get with it, increase discipline levels, get focused, cut the shit, etc. Saturn actually rules the spine, bones and teeth! (Broken tooth, uh-oh, time to get with it and get to the dentist more often). Saturn wants real authenticity in real time. Dreams are great, Saturn says, but how do you want to implement your plan. Saturn is very happy with this blog, because it signals to the Cosmos that I am ready to get down to business.  He like Pilates, Yoga (as long as its done well and not in some bullshit kinda way), he likes honesty, integrity, and discipline. He is pictured with a scythe, the Grim Reaper, the One who cuts out what no longer works to make way for the new.

So, eh, Saturn...how long will you be hanging around my chart? 2 years, he says. Okey doke. Sounds grand.

When Saturn passed over my Moon, which rules family ties and self-nurturing, my sister passed away. So did sister dancer Jeniviva. This was a harsh version of Saturn's lessons, the cutting away of connections that I loved. I'm still trying to recover.

This time Saturn is transiting a position that signifies how I relate to the world, and how I appear one-on-one. It is telling me that the healing from loss and injury will go on, but now is the time to strengthen body and mind.. I have also been called upon to shore up boundaries, to claim territory, to claim accomplishments and personal power. Saturn is the archetype of caution and sobriety, but paradoxically, I have been quicker to say what I mean, with directness and clarity. I think this is part of claiming power. Why let something fester? That can't be good for my health, I am fiery by nature. The deaths in my life have signaled to me that life is short, and unpredictable. Petty politics are for peons. I don't have time to play bullshit games.

Saturn appreciates authentic expression in art, and real world working on it. He says--you will get out of your dance exactly what you put in. He likes solid technique, and he LOVES drilling and practicing. So, I shall do just that.

Today I did Pilates on the front porch. Gwyddie was there, coaching me. He like to get involved. He's a sweet little pest, and he makes me laugh so hard.

So far today I've had a banana and TJ"s Ginger Granola cereal with almond milk.
It's lunch time, and I'm about to prepare a salad with organic mixed greens and a can of smoked oysters. That's right, oysters. Geisha makes them tasty, and they're full of nutrients. Gwyddie likes them, too.

Since its my birthday today, i expect to fall of the wagon later. I'll jump off, maybe. :)

I have some rehearsing to do, some drilling to do, and I also have some to photos to put up. One for the road:

Day 4 and 5 Hot baths and wine cure headaches, and more...

Day 4:

Feeling not up to snuff today. Needing relaxation and rest.

-Walked in the woods with Gwyddie 30 mins
-Pilates and yoga: 30 mins
-several walks around neighborhood.

Breakfast:
Coffee, chocolate yogurt, and a banana

Snack:
Trader Joe's blueberry bar

Lunch:
Brown rice california roll (sushi)

Dinner:
Mushroom ravioli, mixed greens with organic Thousand Island. Flax flatbread with Earth Balance.

I'm noticing by doing this log that I am not drinking enough water thoughout the day. I will also start recording water. (How exciting for you, dear reader. ).

I'm also noticing that I would like to work more on my breath and meditation practice. Will alo chronicle that. So, Day 4: sat in chair holding Gwyddie, deep breathing and following the breath for 30 breaths. Listening to ambient sound and letting thoughts pass.

Yesterday eve I had a big super-duper premenstrual headache. Pounding. Irritable and overstressed. Mike suggested that I take a bath and have a glass of wine. Yes! Candles, wine, Big Band music and a hot bath. Ahhhhh....Perfect stress relief! Headache gone.

Ran circles around and around the apt while "chasing" Gwyddie with his ball. Fell asleep early.


Day 5:

Breakfast:
coffee, ginger granola cereal

Lunch:
Apple and blue cheese

Dinner (early) 5 Vegetable dumplings with sauce.

Gwyddie is under the weather with digestive problems. (He's seeing DR. Jessamyn tomorrow). So no woods today, as he's needed rest.

I will also be seeing the Dr tomorrow, as MY TOOTH BROKE!  What?! Yes, it broke? I didn't even know I had a cavity, there was no pain. Sheesh. Off to the Dentist bright and early tomorrow, and its my dang birthday! That's OK, because I'm celebrating with friends on Sunday.

Rehearsal for dance performance at Xmortis on Friday : 60 mins

Tonight: photoshoot! :)

Day 3

I started the day with a walk with Gwyddion in the woods:
Breakfast:
Trader Joe's Instant coffee.
Organic pomegranate/strawberry yogurt, multi-grain toast with Earth Balance and blueberry preserves.

The medication that i am on for my nervous system issues slows me down and makes me feel tired and spacey. By nature, i am a pretty high strung individual, a Vata dosha with a healthy touch of Pitta. In fact, I often feel that the two "types" war it out within me. The sensitive fragile artist-mystic with the fiery aggressive confident self. Anyway, I never "needed" caffeine until I began taking this medication. Still, the benefits outweigh the negatives, and I am glad for it. I could substitute coffee for tea or Yerba Mate, and sometimes I do. But some vices have their place, and this is one of them. Coffee and meds it is.

Lunch:
OK, so I fall off the wagon so easily. I was hungry! Dunkin Donuts egg and cheese croissant for lunch with iced coffee at North Station. Mmmmm...

Lots of Blackberrying on the train. Caught up on dance-related emails (never!).

Snack: 1 banana, almonds.
Dinner: Jasmine rice with chicken, with this awesome African Smokey seasoning, and big bowl o' mixed greens. (Yup, I ate chicken).
Nightime after class: 1 piece pizza with anchovies (this fish=omega 3's! seriously! and lots of white flour in the dough. Fine.).
3 walks with Gwyddie not including AM walk I mentioned earlier.

Today I did not have time to do any dance. So I chose to be extra conscious of my posture throughout the day.

I have had trouble with my posture for some time, being tall and all. Tall girl symdrome. So I must be extra careful with it. And after two car accidents, my spine has been injured and weakened. I am still recovering, but I've healed quite considerably. I am needing some good solar plexus chakra work. I am wanting to get myself back to a good healthy posture and core strength.

I struggle with chronic pain in my spine from injuries. I find that it keeps me from dancing and exercising as much as I'd like. I generally do at least 2 miles in the woods with Gwyddie per day (he needs it for his boundless energy). This is hiking, climbing, walking, running, and sitting and breathing. Occasionally Pilates and Yoga on the rocks.

I would like to do Pilates more than that. I hereby set my intention to do Pilates at least 3x per week.

Dear diary...

I've called this diary "Serpent Moon" because it has been begun on the New Moon (created yesterday). I pulled a card form my Animal-Wise deck to ask for a dance guide and "8 of Ancients: Rat Snake" appeared. "Acceleration and Movement." The serpent. "Progress is assured as long as we assert and accelerate our efforts". OK! I am publicly pushing myself to work in a more organized way toward some new dance goals.

Poem by   Travis Bowman   

My intentions for this time period of one moon cycle (28 days) is to develop some new habits and better organize my efforts. I am wanting to more clearly examine the connection between my everyday agenda, my art, my overall health, and my dance practice, becoming clearer about where I prioritize my time.

I do this publically to both help myself be accounatble, and also to decide, frankly, if i truly enjoy my work as much as I like to think, or, what aspects I enjoy most, and are the ones I do not enjoy worth time. I have many other artistic media that I enjoy working in; again, my intent is to more clearly prioritize in a way that is authentic, and meaningful, and current.

I was inspired by Naraya and her blog to create this public dance diary. Thank you, Naraya! :) If the great and accomplished Naraya can do this, then its probably a smart idea for me to try it out, too.

---------------

Day One: (yesterday)
-Taught private Skype lesson in AM.
-Began blog.
-Also, went to a mixed media Tarot inspired show; had the pleasure of watching OmBellyCo dance.

I enjoyed the show on many levels. The dancing was brief as it was part of an overall collaboration, but was a pleasure watching Erin Power, (once a student of mine and assistant teacher and now a teacher in her own right and member of OmBellyCo) step onto the stage as The Empress. Watching OmBellyCo and their ATS work reminded me to remember to practice basics, and learn some new things that I may have overlooked the first time around. for instance, the dancers had some very beautiful arm accents that would be nice for me to learn. Also, they move slowly and simply; again, there is an elegance in that that I would like to capture in my own dance. I tend to "attack" my work. I'd like to better learn to let the audience come to me, rather than feeling the need to grab them around the neck. Not that there isn't something to be said for that, but still...;)

Day Two: (today)
Neck ache. SI joint pain. Hangover. Day off from dance movement, unless you include the celebration dance I did all over the house today for Gwyddie as he finally made it up the stairs.
-Worked on website. Several hours.
-long discussion with Mike about events and projects over Sunday coffee
-made arrangements for Dark Goddess Masque