red elephant

How I've Been Spending Time

[And How I've Been Keeping Track Of It All]

Right now, we are selling our house, buying a new house in Madison, finishing Kat's graduation plans, and finishing wedding plans -- some of the most stressful things one can do in a life. And we're doing all of them within a couple of months. Things seem to be moving along well, though. I'll have more definite news on the first two things on the list by the end of the week.

To keep track of everything, I've been using Backpack for lists, and Google Calendar for organizing time. Similarly, Kat was looking for a replacement for her current email/calendar setup with Outlook and her school/cox email accounts. She has been thinking about a Gmail account for some time Add Google Calendar [GCal for the rest of this post], and you've got something, at least via web access.

I set up Thunderbird as a replacement for Outlook, at least for email. Thunderchicken [as Kat calls it] just reached version 2.0, which has some new bells & whistles. The trick was finding a way to access Google Calendar when away from internet access. I have tried out Calgoo, a stand-alone application that syncs up with your GCal, and allows you to work offline. I like it pretty well, since I only use web-based email. However, for Kat, we wanted an all-in-one solution.

Then my friend Max chimed in. Max is an award winning comic book creator, diligent reader of Lifehacker, and all around internet resource. He found a post on how to add use your GCal through Thunderbird. The Lifehacker blog post is here, but the actual how-to article is here. Basically, you need to add Lightning, a calender plug-in for Thunderbird. Then you need to add the Google Calender Provider Extension. There are more steps, but the article takes you through them pretty well.

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Also in the world of the interwebs, I am excited about the new features over at Achewood. Chris Onstad has some pretty rabid fans. Just look at the Great Outdoor Fight fan site, and all the fan-created lore there. Give them a chance to rate & discuss the actual comics, and they're going to go ape wild.

I say "them" but I mean "us."

I admit to being a pretty big Achewood dork. I talk it up whenever I can, and support Mr. Onstad by buying merchandise when I can. I've only gone through the archive once or twice, so I don't know if I qualify for "rabid" status.

That said, I think I'll be revisiting some older favorites, which are much easier to find now. I'm not sure when the archive switched over, but now you can view a month's worth of thumbnails at once. That seems a pretty intuitive way to find a strip. Then again, you can always search for dialogue on the  main page. The search box should be below the comic.

Things I Have Learned From My Dog

1. Every day is a new day.
2. When you gotta go, you gotta go.
3. Getting outside to run around every day is important.
4. If you don't get regular time to play, you go crazy.
5. You will get attention if you act cute.

Things My Dog Has Not Learned

1. Fetch. Really, he just goes to get the toy/ball/whatever. Then he just plays with it wherever he is. No bringing it back.
2. The mailman is not trying to break into the house.
3. People do not want to kiss you after you have been licking your own genitals.

I love my dog, and think he's pretty charming.

Jay Pinkerton thinks that Dogs are Idiots. (Via Max)

Two for the price of one

<Shameless Self Promotion Follows>

I'm excited to be teaching a new class over at Lighthouse. We've changed up the schedule a bit, so my Monday night class is 7:45pm instead of 7:00pm. It's still Levels 1 & 2, so everyone is welcome. I'm also teaching a new class on Wednesday nights. It's in the early slot 6:00-7:30pm, and it's a Level 2 class.

Will it be that much harder? Well, it depends. We've done a lot of talking around the studio about standardizing our classes a bit more so that when you go to a Level 1, 2, or 3 class that you will get a class appropriate to the label. You always have to teach to the class that's there, but you shouldn't be pushing students farther than the scope of the class. Just because someone has been studying yoga for a long time & is quite flexible, doesn't mean that they want to push their own limits in a Level 1 class.

That said, I am excited to try a class where the bar is a little higher. Basically, Wednesday is for people who've been doing yoga for a little while, and want to take things further. As a teacher, I have to do some more exploration within my own practice. I should only be teaching what I know, so I had better know some more if I'm going to teach this class.

<End Shameless Self Promotion>

Now, on to the technology roundup. The other topic for which I'm usually ready to type a couple of paragraphs, or talk your ear off.

For starters, I'm poised to replace my computer. I've had one of the old 500 mHz white iBooks for about five years now, and it's time for an upgrade. I'm pretty stoked with the new MacBooks, but I'd prefer to wait for the next generation. Usually, newly-released software or hardware still has a few kinks to work out.

As I've told a couple of people, I'm really stoked to try out Delicious Library. It's software to keep and inventory of your books, albums, movies. And it's called Library for a reason. It allows you to "check out" items to your friends, and reminds you who's got when, and whether it's overdue.

Besides that, if you've got an iSight camera, like the one built-in to the new MacBooks, you can scan in the barcode or ISBN on the back of your book, and it will enter all the relevant information for you. Less typing is a good thing when you're talking about entering all of your stuff. Besides that, there's integration with Amazon.com for recommendations for similar items, if you're into that sort of thing. You can also turn on two-click ordering, etc.

I'm also interested in the different ways to run windows, either with BootCamp or Parallels. Jim asked me why I wanted to bother, and I didn't have a good answer ready. Maybe I just want to hack around with it.

So, after going over some finances last night, it will still be a bit before I'm opening a new box. But I'm still pretty excited. Maybe I wait for the new Mac OS to debut at the Developer's Conference. Maybe I figure that I'll use the older software. Leave the new stuff for the fanboys and early adopters.

Tweaks

So, I'm trying some new things on the site. For one, I've signed up for last.fm, which is an interesting service. You can download a plugin for iTunes [and other audio players] that records what you're listening to & then makes recommendations based on what you listen to most often. Kind of how Amazon builds 'The Page You Made' and other recommendations. You can also tag tracks, a la Fickr, and create lists based on those tags.

The other part of this equation is an audio player that you can download. It will make playlists [or 'radio stations'] based on recommendations, tags, or whatever you select. Heck, on their front page, there's a box where you type in a band you like, and it will make recommendations from that. Also notable on the front page is a list of what you get when you sign up. My favorite is at the bottom, "A Pony."

When you're listening to the player, you can tag tracks as ones you love, and you can skip/ban tracks you hate. This is a way to keep track of new music that you don't know, but want to keep an eye on. I'm going to have to file this under my other post on discovering new music. You could also do better to read Pitchfork's more recent article on this subject. There's also the article on Kottke's site that also helped put last.fm on my radar.

It also has some feeds that I've been messing with today, trying to get them to work. Over on your right, I'm featuring the last 10 tracks that I listened to in iTunes. To get it to fit, I've changed the design of the site slightly. I've taken my photo off, but I didn't really need that anyway. I should do one better and update my online albums here, or on my flickr account. The image only updates every five minutes, so it's not going to change while you're reading this. But, if you come back in a couple of hours, and I've been listening to music, then you'll get something else.

I'm always interested in discovering new music, and letting other people know what I'm currently enjoying. Any of my friends will tell you that I'm usually pushing something. During Burgers for MS, Max said that I'd turned him on to his last three albums. I like that.

Burgers for MS

Well, May is here again. That means that my father and I will be riding bikes to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis. We've been doing this for several years now, and it's always a good time. I'm sure some of you already got hit up by Joe for the MS Walk in NYC. Joe's mother is living with MS, so he takes raising money pretty seriously.

I'll be doing my part by hosting a little fundraiser at my house this Saturday, May 20, at 7pm. I'll be grilling burgers and asking for a $5 donation.  No, you don't need to donate to come. Yes, there will be turkey burgers & soyburgs for those who are not into cow. Yes, dogs are welcome. Yes, I will provide drinks. Yes, you can bring your own side dish.

If you can't make it, you can always pledge over the web through my team's webpage. [Thanks to Lindsy, who was the first to do this. It's not hard, is it Ms. D?] Thanks also to Dan & Erin, both of whom have sent checks already.

While we're on the subject of food & drink, check out this great article on fat v. skinny asparagus in the NYT.

And feel free to try out the new wine tagging / review site Cork'd.

Mad Loot

Junior's Cheesecake delivered from New York City. Thanks, Nick and Micahla.

Thanks also to Max for the Slimmy wallet. I needed a replacement since my last two wallets, a billfold and an old metal cigarette case, have all but fallen apart.

Max has expressed interest in drinking tea. So I got him this starter set, from Adagio Teas

Thanks to Paul, for his always appreciated gift of Basil Hayden's Bourbon.

Thanks finally, to Dan Walker, for his generous contribution to Multiple Sclerosis, which kicks off my fundraising drive for Celebrate Cycling 2006. I'll set up a webpage for our cycling team, once I get registered, which should be this weekend. That way, those of you who don't see me on a semi-regular basis, can pledge online, if you so choose.

Also have to give a shout to Chris Onstand. The Achewood strip on my birthday contained the best gift ever, Airwolf. Spoiler/backstory -- Ray bought Airwolf off of eBay Platinum, while high. You kind of had to be there, or just be a fan of the webcomic in the first place.

But come on, it's Airwolf. Christian thinks that "Airwolf" should be the new "Deck/Hawt/Cool/etc." As in, "Dude, check out my new wallet. "

"Oh, that's totally Airwolf."

[*EDIT*] Thanks also to Sonali who hooked me up with the iTunes gift certificate. I bought $20 worth of music before I could figure out how to enter my gift card code. Next time, I RTFM.

Age is how you feel it

So, Max made some ado about his birthday yesterday. I can't help feeling that it came out of a conversation we started during the Yeah Yeah Yeahs concert.

But let's take a step back, see if I can put you in the scene. Pun intended.

I'm late to the concert for a variety of reasons, including an extra ticket that I can't sell or give away. I get into the show and get into line for a drink, a line which is ridiculously long. Long because it's the final break in between sets before the YYYs come on. I'm people watching, as you do, especially as you do when you come alone. I see a few faces I know & nod.

After waiting for twenty minutes in line, the band comes on and the area in front of the bar clears out. I grab my drink and look around to see if I can find a decent place to see the stage. I hear my name shouted, turn around, and see Max waving me over. He's in the back of a suddenly very short line, and standing with a couple of guys. He says, "Meet these guys. I'm buying them beer. This guy just turned 21."

I think that's where it started. Max started spinning yarns about seeing Morphine & other shows back in the day at Sokol. The kid starts talking about shoegaze, and I can see the generation gap. Max buys him a coke, and the other guy in line a beer, and we head over to where his wife and some other friends are.

We're watching from the fringe, stage left to be precise. We can see occasional glimpses of the band through the speakers, but we're really more just at the show rather than part of the crowd.
He says that he feels old. He points that we're watching the show from the edge rather than getting down in front and going berserk.

"But you could be," I said.

Max isn't one to shy away from the pit, from getting down to John Spencer, to Morphine, or Gwar, if memory serves me right. But I see what he means. We're the old guys in back, watching from the fringe. That's the rule, isn't it? That as you get older, the farther back you stand. That you're less a part of the frenzy, and more just there to watch.

I remember one of the first concerts I saw in high school, Soul Asylum at the Civic Auditorium. We started out up in the seats, but by the end all I wanted to do was be on the floor in the middle of it all. So, I went.

Nowadays, I'm as likely to be hanging back, enjoying an adult beverage, as I am to try to push to center stage in front of the band. Sure, catch me at a Faint show, and I'll be shaking my ass in the middle of the crowd, on the edge, wherever. Hell, I have friends older than me that are always pushing up as close as they can get.

But I don't think it was just the distance Max was talking about. He said that whenever he sees kids -- actual kids, high schoolers -- he just has to smile and pay respect to those days. He even gives props to the younger college kids, but it's the spirit of youth he's talking about. The getting silly drunk, having bad sex, and the most of your worries be about the test/exam this week.

Never mind that those of us pushing 30 -- some of us in less than a week -- have on our mind:  mortgages, day jobs, wives, husbands, children, dogs, whatever. As opposed to the blissful ignorance of school days, we've got plenty to keep us grounded.

On the other hand, Max did think that being a comic book artist was pretty cool. That it gave him a little more credibility than just wearing old school vans, or being the guy at the concert down front with the band's shirt on.

Personally, I like being this seasoned. [cough, old, cough] I think I've really got the best of both worlds. I can go to a show, and not wake up with a cheap beer hangover. I can be good at what I do, and not be so caught up in the identity crisis that is high school/college. I'm not just studying to be something. No disrespect to studying. I still study yoga as well as being a yoga teacher. The difference is in potential versus actuality. I will be someday versus I am.

I am a yoga teacher. I am an office manager. I am a guy with a house. I am a guy who goes to rock shows. And yes, I am almost 30.

I feel like I get the best of both worlds. I'm lucky to keep a few stars in my eyes, even if I'm a bit jaded around the edges. I'm not as concerned about what people think about me, what I wear in public, whether people are watching what I do and approving. Sure, I have to give the kids respect for their immortality, their blissful ignorance, and their own set of problems.

But I also have to give respect to us kids at heart. We're only the old guys, and we're only in back, when we choose to be.

Yogaversary and other delights

Last night's class marks one year since I started teaching yoga, and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.

I think I've gotten the most out of developing my own practice. Sure, going to classes is a great way to learn, but it really comes down to whether you can internalize the lessons, whether you can teach yourself, whether you can figure out what you're doing right and wrong.

I've also drawn inspiration from my teachers. Jed, who I've been studying with the past few years, has really gotten me interested in exploring things a bit more. It's not just doing the same poses over and over -- though there is some of that -- but listening to my own body. I've started off practices just stretching out, seeing what's tight, and seeing if I can make it feel better.

Another way I've approached my own practice is to take something that I learned in class or a workshop and break it down. For example, I have some students who just don't like Ardha Chandrasana [Half Moon Pose]. I've been trying to find other ways to approach the pose, rather than launching from Utthita Trikonasana, as most people do.

It's somewhat similar to Virabhadrasana III [Warrior III Pose], but I wanted to start from a much more supported and stable place, since that was the complaint that I was hearing, that it was too hard to balance. So, I had the class start in Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend), and take one leg back like Warrior III, but with the hands on the ground, just to keep the pose supported.

From there, we opened the hip up, moving towards Half-Moon, but building it up from the floor rather than launching into it. The other variation, I got from Jed, which is to start at an "L" on the wall with your palms on the wall, folding at the hips, feet on the floor. From there, you can take one leg back. You then open the top hip, and move towards a supported Half-Moon with your hands on the wall.

I've had good results, overall. Some people prefer the original pose & getting into it from Trikonasana. Others feel more supported building it from the floor, or using the wall as a prop. In any case, the exploration has been the key. It's not something I would have done a year ago, and that's the difference.

There's a teacher training exercise where you take detailed notes of someone in a pose so that you can re-create the pose with your body. That way, you can approximate the student's position and perhaps feel anything that's grossly out of alignment.

That's what it's really about, trying to figure out what's going on in your own body, and in the bodies of your students. This way you can do more than just practice the pose the way you first learned it. It becomes about learning principles of alignment, paying attention to what's going on in your body and asking questions.

Then you try to answer them.