Monday, April 26, 2010

too lazy to get up

It was a perfect, sunny spring afternoon. Patio sitting, latte drinking, life loving, sun basking perfection. Too happy to move, had to make do with taking pictures from my vantage point on the patio, look left, look up, look right...




Wednesday, April 21, 2010

mo' blossoms

Ok, so I might be a bit obsessed with the cherry blossoms but it's so gorgeous and there are so many people out tree-worshipping and I wait for this week all winter long - I can't stay away.



Besides, I spent all day in an eight hour planning meeting (my own personal hell) where I distracted myself from dwelling on how much I hate meetings by daydreaming about being outside and making things like this:



Ridiculous. So when I got home, I grabbed food, grabbed my bike and headed to the park to picnic and tree-worship. The world is beautiful, like mother nature took every possible shade of green, scattered them about, and then turned the colour-volume up to high. Everything is so vibrantly alive..


Life is full of fun, I lost track of things and got my weeks confused. I thought this week was last week, I actually have only two days left before I'm done for the summer. How did that happen?

In other work news: I busted one of my students plagiarizing which turned into catching several students. It's a big deal and it kind of sucks. Lives will change. Though they chose to cheat, I still feel badly for them, and am not looking forward to the meetings today, people are going to cry (I might be one of them). In other-other work news: I have a few odd situations of the male-female yoga-bunny equivalent. Although I will miss all three of my jobs and have thought about continuing through the summer instead of stopping, the universe is definitely helping me find the silver lining in taking time away. Time and distance will take care of everything.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

cherry blossoms

In 1959 the Japanese government gifted the city with 2,000 cherry blossom trees. The reasons are unknown, the results are awesome.





The park was packed and the sidewalks lined with people making the annual migration to the trees. There were picnickers, drummers, guitar players, hackeysack players, slackliners, frisbee games, and when we left a DJ was setting up his equipment.




And there were, of course, photographers. Rabid, nature-starved city-dwellers with cameras beautiful enough to make a grown girl (me) cry taking pictures of everything in view. Some people, tired of the trees (or the crowds) turned to the pond. These ones made me laugh - hey look! a swan! take a picture! I love the way the swan is looking at them as if to say "Dude! WTF?".




And the ducks? Thoroughly unimpressed, chilling on a log waiting for the annoying humans to get the hell out of their home. Humans are funny.


Whenever I see this many people gathering outside for something - a sunset, the first snow, cherry blossoms - I always think that us humans, we haven't totally lost ourselves in modernity yet. We're going to be just fine.

Impossibly busy and so much happening at once. Loving every little thing I'm doing. Wishing it weren't going to end for the summer. At the same time, can't wait for the break. Four more days of work until four months of play.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

fishing

I'm not entirely sure why spring brings out the fisher hidden within Torontonians but I've seen tons of people fishing over the last few weeks. In Toronto. In our lakes/ponds. Ew.



Mean treatment of fish aside, I love this picture. The moment was as calm and peaceful as it looks. It was good.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

1.5 years

It took me a year and a half to enjoy teaching led classes. Mysore I loved right from the start and it's not that I ever disliked teaching led classes, I just didn't enjoy them. Too anxious. I realized that today, as I begin to think about winding things down for the summer, that it's been ages since I was too anxious to enjoy teaching. Instead it's been playful and fun and incredibly wonderful. Many of my students have been with me for over two years, I taught them their first class, and others come week after week which is an honour. I'm finding that I don't want to wind things down. I'm going to miss them.

Pictures are from the other other studio, my Saturday morning one. I arrive super crazy early, take playtime practice (with music and props no less, ashtanga blasphemy), teach a few classes and head out into the sun to enjoy my day.




Wednesday, April 7, 2010

finally

someone in the family that likes to cook...



...and garden...


...he must get it from his father.

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Sunday, March 28, 2010

this river

I was looking through my pictures this afternoon, there are a lot of pictures of bridges. Hadn't given it much thought before but, yeah, I like bridges. This is one of my favourites. It's on the other side of the city, I go there often. I love the colours and the quote lining the top of the bridge as you head east.





Tuesday, March 23, 2010

guerilla photography

Opening, assisting, practicing, brunching, going places we're not supposed to go for picture taking, cafe sitting, cleaning, zenned out candlelight chilling. This is what Sundays are for.







Friday, March 19, 2010

the sweetest day

Open windows, sun basking, spring loving post-yoga coffee.



A few hours of assisting next, then patio lunch with my yoga girls, followed by sunset walk along the beaches boardwalk. And I finally get to wear my new, sequined-sparkling flip flops I've been dying to wear all winter. Such a good day.

Off to assisting...

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

sunshine happiness

Spring is here and it's gorgeous. The sun has melted the final signs of winter away and it's impossible to stay inside.

Sunday, March 14, 2010

pouting because i was working




...but not really. I was supposed to be somewhere else tonight but cancelled (my kazillionth cancellation of the weekend) to stay home where it is cozy and warm. I have a ton of work to do for the course I'm teaching but I'm too busy pretending to pout to be productive. Hard to believe that I'll go from insanely busy to the total and complete opposite in just over a month. Yay me.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

last sunday




spring has sprung

A few weeks ago:


This week:


Shorts, flip flops, rollerblades, bikes, patio sitting, sun basking, lake walking - all re-emerged this weekend and everyone is so happy.

Friday, February 26, 2010

6am through my windshield

Woke up to snow and going to bed to snow. In between, even more snow and the world became beautiful.


Today was one of those days when all kinds of things fell into place at once. Life is positioning me for something, subtle but eventful. So curious.

Love this from J. Scott: "Your body is your instrument. Dance to the song of your breath". Can't wait to dance tomorrow.

Monday, February 22, 2010

plans bad, last minute good

So many plans this weekend, I should have known better. Plans make me itchy, I cancelled them one-by-one.

It was a gorgeous weekend capped by the most beautiful Sunday with the kind of weather that makes it impossible to stay inside. Brunch was canceled to join the rest of the city basking in the sun along the lakeshore. So glad I did because look what I found when I stepped outside tonight:






Tuesday, February 16, 2010

obviously

grenadier pond

The pond in High Park has frozen over. The pond was packed with people walking, skating, playing hockey, figure skating, sledding and playing fetch with dogs on the vast white field of ice. Everyone was happy. Taken by the bright sun, the novelty of walking where water should be, the joy of weather cold enough to remind you you're alive but warm enough to let you enjoy being outside. Splashes of the reds, blues and yellows of winter coats stood out against the white and the mood was the kind of happy that comes from the real things in life, a gorgeous winter day. It was good, wholesome fun, I stayed out for hours. Seriously, my city is a great city.