Greetings and Salutations as the Seasons begin to Slide,

I’ve been thinking about the difference between batch and continuous operations lately.  It started when I was in a limited time frame for getting out the door to teach.  I was watching the clock in minutes to be sure I was on time and got the essentials done, like eating and putting on clothes, the basics.  And so in that 15 minute period I was aware of minutes.  And then, without  much forethought, I went to my computer to just “quickly” check emails. Okay it’s true I have more emails accounts than most people have fingers and that is another quirk of my life, but when I was done with a very peripheral check, six minutes had elapsed.  I mean,  I didn’t even respond to anything.  And six minutes of my 15 minutes were gone.  I was shocked at the time the task took.

And I thought to myself, Batch It, Hirschl.  Just do email once or twice a day, don’t do it as continuous flow.  This sort of thinking goes back to my days in manufacturing supervising, one of my many work incarnations.

When I was in the Brewing division of Miller Brewing Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and making beer, it was most definitely a batch process, meaning the workers sat around a lot and checked temperatures and opened valves occasionally.  I supervised and also was required to be on the QA taste test panel to check that the beer was good before moving on.  This wasn’t exactly hard labor.

Contrast this to the bottling line where the bottles and cans go by continually as our ‘batched’ beer flows through pipes to the mechanized line.  Hey, there was no doubt which was a better job, besides the inherent fun in making beer (seriously foam might just overflow from fermenters right down into the streets of Miller Valley and then baby, the plant manager was in your face).

So now I’m seeing choices in email and other activities:  what can I group together and waste less time, and what do I do on a continual basis, like, well, how about:  taking a breath, pausing and smiling.

Speaking of choices, I had the occasion to drive through Texas recently, to attend a 50th wedding anniversary of my Aunt and Uncle, a celebratory event especially in these days of fragile marriages. Driving through Muleshow, Texas I noticed the MacDonald sign in the picture, which I’m sure is in Albuquerque too, but somehow when I travel I see differently. It recommended a new bacon cheese snack wrap.  When I went inside the store, I talked with the friendly clerk who let me know it is one of the new healthy snacks.  Well, I must have a different idea of healthy.

So my idea of healthy and worth recommendation:   I came home to harvest some eggplant and basil to make an Eggplant Parmesean meal, which in my humble opinion was scrumptious (if you want the recipe, please leave a comment and I’ll put it in my next blog).  This is the picture that made my eyes sparkle:  

FINALLY, don’t forget the GONG BATH this Sunday, August 29 at 7:30 pm.

Sending you big hugs, smiles and hopes for fresh yummy food, for anyone’s garden,

namaste,

Meta.

Greetings and A Full Moon is A Comin’,

This Tuesday August 24 is the next full moon.  The longer I’m in Albuquerque,  over 17 years now, and drinking in those full moons that rise about the Sandias with such glory, size and color, and the longer I’ve been doing yoga, the more I feel pulled to the cycles of the moon in the sky.  Since the last new moon, August 9th, I’ve had this feeling of building and shifting and creating new worlds, inner and outer, heading inexorably toward the fullness.  Perhaps you also can relate to the constant creative forces that you can use to shape your life and your world.

A dear friend sent me this link to a trainer (famous in the world of intense workouts) talking to the folks about why yoga is the bomb.  Here’s Tony Horton on yoga: Tony Horton on Yoga

I couldn’t agree more.

If you are enjoying yoga and attending yoga classes at YogaNow studio, please add let me know — add a response to this post if you can.  That would be great ! and please encourage others to experience the strength and healing of yoga, for all ages and levels.   www.YogaNow.org.

And don’t forget I still have 2000 copies of Vital Yoga — A Sourcebook for Teachers and Students — sitting in my living room.  I have heard that books make great holiday gifts.

Make sure sometime today to, take a breath, smile, and give yourself a hug.  Maybe enjoy some of those summer veggies!

Many blessings and with deep humility,
Meta.

Meta Chaya Hirschl      www.YogaNow.org        and       www.VitalYogaTheBook.com

The chickens are cackling (one of my all time favorite sounds) and the sun is arising. Another beautiful day in Nuevo Mexico.  I hope you are all very well and enjoying the mid-August moments, maybe even some splendiferous garden tomatoes.

First a note about our August special:  $10 OFF the workshop this weekend, Second Chakra with Poses, Meditations and Energetics taught by Cypresse and Meta.  So the price at the door is $45 (not $55), 2-5 pm Sunday August 15.  Please join us for this awakening workshop which includes Second Chakra Sun Salutations, Core Flow and Horizontal Pranayama.

The picture at the right is a mudra for the second chakra from Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers, page 99.

On another fruitful adventure was the death of my Blackberry phone.  Of course I immediately envisioned purple juicy liquids flowing around the edges of this funny little device but in truth, nothing that lovely.  It just stopped working.  And in that new space of no emails, no immediate Internet access and no cell calls, I found a little extra space.  A friend left a message on my land line, the business phone, 232-4717, saying she was worried I was okay.  I thought, okay, hell, this is good.  Squashing that Blackberry disconnected me a tad from the moment by moment attention to the external.  Frankly, I’m near computers plenty and don’t really need to get email every second.  Certainly don’t need to check emails at stop lights (ouch).

Now that I’m Bberry free, I’m on the search for simple freedoms.  Just took to Thrifttown bags of unneeded linens, bags, and what I have left actually gets used. Amazing.  Spaciousness feels well, relaxed.  And removing devices and things has helped me.

I send my wishes for a fabulous day, an ever fabulous breath and this, my new favorite translation of an ancient Tantra, The Vijnana Bhairava Tantra:

Close the ears that track the outer world,
Open the ears of the soul.
Engage the muscles at the base of the pelvis,
The intimate special places,
Cherish the vibrating energies thus contained.

The song of creation, the unstruck chord,
Is playing in your heart.
…Listen in.

Meditating on the sound of your own life currents,
Entering the shimmering palace of the Creator.

-Lorin Roche, The Radiance Sutras, p 91

With love and gratitude,

namate,

Meta.

Greetings and Jumping July,

What the heck happened last  Monday at noon? Seems many students showed up for class and there was no teacher. Drats.

At the time I was returning from a family reunion and wedding in Tacoma, WA and was sad to learn of the waiting and unsatisfied yogis.  The teacher (new) just didn’t show and resigned so, today:

EVERYONE take the noon class for free and yes, there will be a special summertime treat after class (think summer on a stick).  Our new schedule means I teach the m-w-f noon classes and Cypresse teaches t-th so we hope you can join us for a perfect midday lift.

The Pacific NW trip included the Burke Museum at the University of Washington for an exhibition of International Conservation Photography Awards.  The photo above of a pink katydid in Illinois was shocking in its beauty and those natural buggy colors. And the picture of the Japanese Snow  Monkey family luxuriating in the hot springs struck my heart with a sense of our shared humanity:

As we move about our day may we remember that we are all connected, inter-connected and share the same maha-prana (life force of the cosmos).

From my heart to you, I send you wishes for a nourishing and happy day.  I sign off with a photo of the henna tatoo I got at the Tacoma Farmer’s Market…Namaste on my hand…I bow to you:

Namaste,

Meta.

Greetings and July Salutations!

I hope this finds all of you enjoying the beauty of summer and the joy of each moment.

With the help of Maggie Duval we’ve combined our web sites to make it easier to find YogaNow studio info and easier to find Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers.  And even more importantly, we can update these pages ourselves, so hopefully you can count on the web site being current.  Please please add your comments with questions, suggestions, your own inspirations.

To kick off the new site and Jump into July, we’re offering a free copy of Vital Yoga with a purchase of a twenty class bundle for the month of July.  If you already have the book you can either give it as a gift yourself or for shipping and handling of $7, we’ll send it for you.

I’ve been experiencing the delight of travel and if you’ve been reading the blogs and vlogs (okay that’s a video blog if you didn’t know which I didn’t until Mags clued me in)  you know it’s been fun and rewarding – two awards for Vital Yoga and meeting amazing authors.

More recently I’ve just returned from Denver where I attended a trade show and had the pleasure of hearing Joan Borysenko, MD and Julie Cameron speak in addition to meeting many sincere and inspired souls.

Doing all this sitting while driving, flying, waiting, and of course at the computer reminded me of the special care we need for our bodies for traveling. I have a video blog (vblog) showing some simple and effective poses for helping with potential back pain, including lengthening the psoas, see page 124 of Vital Yoga for more about anatomy and poses.

In addition to our physical form we can help shift travel induced anxiety, stress, nervousness, lack of grounding, by chanting a simple mantra, which I chant for you at the end of the vlog and here are the words, should you like to use this vibrational mood shifter:

Om Gum Ganapatayei Namaha

You may want to ‘charge’ your vibration by chanting this in the morning or at night 108 times and then when you feel out of sorts, just chant this as you need, to yourself or out loud.

May we all receive the great blessings of the cosmos and open our eyes in gratitude,

Namaste,

Meta.

Here are some yoga tips for traveling bodies…and hearts and minds.

GREETINGS and Happy Memorial Day Holidays!

Special offering:
THIS Saturday, May 29, 2010,
7 pm at YogaNow

Healing and Gayatri Mantra and Meditation with
Satyabhama

by donation only

Satyabhama, partner of Namadeva, Thomas Ashley-Farrand is in town for a short visit and wanted to make this offering to our community.

join us as we sit in sacred sangha (group of like minded individuals)

Namaste,
Meta.

Greetings from the Skies,

I’m writing this 30,000 feet high approximately over Arkansas on my way to NYC to attend the Book Expo America and to receive two awards for Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers. I’m so honored and grateful that Vital Yoga is receiving recognition (Gold Medal Living Now Book Award and Next Generation Indie Book Award) because this will hopefully mean more people read the book and discover the magic of yoga.

Speaking of magic, thanks to my dear friends I have discovered an amazing cookbook, Lord Krishna’s Cuisine, The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking. I’ve been enjoying the whole process of learning new cooking techniques and enjoying the scrumptious and satisfying food.

And then I learned about kaporas, you know if you go to Indian buffets, the sort of veggie tempura. Turns out these are easy to make, very popular in India, AND they are mentioned in very ancient vedic texts, talk about food with history.

This yoga, this magic of yoga, has been around in so many ways in so many forms for literally thousands of years, and that includes food.

Here’s another hit of mesmerizing magic, of the visual sort:

http://www.youtube.com/user/originoftheword

May we all be nourished, inside and out, heart, mind and body,

I hope to meet you on the mat on Sunday at 10 am.

with great love and even more gratitude,

Meta.

namaste, I bow to you

May All Beings Be Happy.

I’ve noticed that I field questions about yoga everyday, when I answer the YogaNow phone, talk with students in class and after class, and when I give presentations and book signings for Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers.

I thought it might be helpful to record some of the questions and answers as short videos…this is the beginning of that effort.

The intro video is part of the blog and the FIRST video short discussion is “What Clothes Do I Wear to Yoga and btw, Where Do I Buy those Weird Clothes” can be seen on the TV channel on this site: VIEW HERE Do you have questions you’d like to submit? Do you have other solutions? Let me know!

humbly offered,

deep bows and namaste,
Meta.

or as my Irish Grandfather would say, May His Memory Be a Blessing:

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Growing up St. Pat’s day always began with Green Scrambled eggs. Now my chickens, perhaps it’s Dreamsicle but it could also be Taffy, produce a green egg everyday, quite lovely.

Please consider viewing an interview about Vital Yoga: A Sourcebook for Students and Teachers which is now showing on http://www.theauthorsshow.com/ then click on The Authors Show TV.

May the wind be always at your back and yoga in your heart and body and mind, bringing you happiness inside and out,

Namaste,
Meta.