Finally - I can bind!!!

Wow - I can't believe it! After all this time - I think it's 5 years since I first went to an Ashtanga class - I can finally bind (on one side) in Marichyasana A! Something that most people can do immediately, or within 6 months of starting! But I guess that's skinny people! Those of us who have more to 'wrap around'(!) find it more difficult! I can do it on the right side by myself - did yesterday in class. The left side I still need help but hopefully won't take long till I get that too. I know I was getting closer anyway, but I also think that losing weight (as I have been) has definitely helped! In fact, this was one of the reasons why I started trying to lose weight! They say you should set yourself weight-loss goals and then reward yourself when you get there. Well, I didn't need to go out and buy anything new to wear or anything! Binding was the reward and was it sweet!!

What else? On Wednesday (choir practice) we started rehearsing some songs we're going to be singing (as part of a massed 450+ choir) at the finale of the Brisbane River Festival. Should be great - we're going to be backing Kate Ceberano (among others)! Not quite as good as someone from another choir's experience, who joined a scratch choir that went and sang at a choral festival in Italy, and ended up singing with/backing Luciano Pavarotti (triple wow!!!) but still a real thrill! Concert is 3 weeks today!

And my sister was complaining that I hadn't mentioned Ireland in the description of this blog (along the top)! So, I've fixed that now Judy!! (btw - if you want to comment here, you need to get a 'blogger identity'. That just means chosing a username and password - you don't have to set up a blog or anything. Try it!)

winter hiatus ...

Feel like I've been in a bit of a hiatus (nice word!) for the last couple of weeks, yoga-wise anyway. I've really had to push myself to practice at lunchtimes, and when I've made it to class I've felt pretty lacking in energy. I think it's more mental than anything (oh, cue for a song!) It's silly really - progress is coming in the marichyasanas (though this is coming from someone who can't even bind in 'A', so there's a lot of ground to cover!) ... Anyway ...

Got my head down at work, it's only 5 weeks till I go on holidays, and I'm trying to hang onto the projects that I like! Right now I'm tearing my hair out trying to do a website in CSS - using absolute positioning etc. Why oh why can't Microsoft make Internet Explorer standards-compliant! I can't blame it all on Ms though. This is the first website I've done not in tables (or almost not in tables!- there is a university banner that is in a table but I have to use it as supplied) And trying to work out what doesn't work, and why, has my brain spinning! I fix something and then find that something else has changed as a result ... I do think I'm making progress here though!

To the inventor of blogs: Thank You!

I've got a friend with Hepatitis C. It developed/manifested in the years since I've last seen her, although she would have had the virus at that time. I knew virtually nothing about HepC and when I first heard that she had it I was really scared for her.

At the beginning of this year I heard from her that she was going to start treatment for it, and was going to write a blog. So I started reading it, and following along with her ups and downs. I discovered there is a whole blogging community of people with HepC, giving each other the personal support and advice (from people who've been there and done that) that they could never have gotten before the days of blogs.

It has been so inspiring to read these blogs. Everyday people facing and dealing with a life-changing/threatening disease. Having to self-inject, self-treat with chemotherapy (pills) ... and go through all the side-effects of the medication.

She has now done her last injection, and either today or tomorrow is the last day she has to take the pills. I'm so proud of her, the strength she has found to get through this. And I'm so grateful to whoever it was (Dave Winer?) who invented the original blogging software. This has been one of those inventions that has really changed lives. I love reading all the ashtanga blogs (and the cricket ones and the techie ones!) - but for people who need support and don't necessarily have a community of people in the same situation around them, it really has made a difference ... :)

Yaayyyy! England won!!!

England won the test match!!!! What an amazing match that was. Only 2 wickets left and 107 (?) runs to get, everyone thought it'd be over in 10 minutes! (Although the ground was completely sold out!)

But it went right down to the nail. In fact, when Australia only had to get 15 runs I had to stop watching - the suspense was too much! So I was watching Doctor Who (which I'd taped) and switching back and forth every couple of minutes. And, of course I ended up missing the winning moment!!!

But such a great match! And people have been mumbling about how boring test matches are and we should stick with one-dayers or even the shorter 20 over ones. Ha!! Well, that's woken everyone up to how wonderful Test matches can be ...

btw - I love cricket, in case you hadn't realised ... :)

Singing and cricket (among other things!)

Went out to lunch at a Chinese restaurant with some of the uni choir I sing with yesterday - it was fun! There were about 20 of us - we didn't sing at the restaurant (as threatened!) as there were heaps of other people there - but maybe they'd have liked it?! Who knows ... :)

We're rehearsing a whole lot of Gilbert & Sullivan stuff from Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance and other pieces - lots of 'tarantara tarantara' etc! It'll be a really fun performance, but I'll be in London when it's on! (Or maybe Portugal?) Still, I'm enjoying the rehearsals even though I won't be in it ... (But I will, I will, I will be practicing for The Messiah in November while I'm away!!)

After that I went to the afternoon mysore yoga class, which was great. (It doesn't start till 4pm so I figured 3 hours was plenty of time between eating and doing yoga if any yoga people notice)

Ended up watching the cricket on TV last night - the Ashes tour. I have to come out and say it - I'm barracking for England! I'm just fed up with Australia always winning - it gets boring! From the news this morning it looks like England is close to winning the 2nd test - hoorrayy!! (But better not get too excited in case the Aussie bottom order bowlers manage to bat better than the batsmen!) I'm dying for England to win! In fact I want them to win the Ashes, not just one or two tests!!

on my iPod/iTunes: Don Shiva - Bollywood Lounge