The Prosecco Life

Moving back "home" to Yogademia.com!

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 22:17:00 +0000

After a year writing The Prosecco Life, I've decided to move back back "home" to my earlier space, Yogademia. Thanks for all your love and support here - I couldn't have made this evolution without your help and encouragement.

I hope you'll stay with me for fresh content six days a week plus tweets!

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Beauty and Anarchy

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 18:25:00 +0000

"I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck."

"If I can't dance, I don't want to be in your revolution."

"I want freedom, the right to self-expression, everybody's right to beautiful, radiant things."

Reading these quotes, you might expect that their author was someone rather like you or me. But they were written* by Emma Goldman, an activist and anarchist during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Image credit

Not afraid to use violence and assassination as tools for change, Goldman was imprisoned several times during her life. But she also espoused causes like birth control and worked to counteract prejudice against homosexuality - causes that are still controversial today, nearly one hundred years later.

Does Emma Goldman's identity change the impact the quotes have on you?
Are you tempted to use the quotes or ignore them because of their history?

*"If I can't dance..." is probably not directly attributable to her, but has come to espouse the general tone and tack of her philosophy.

Jump in the line, rock your body in time!

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:15:00 +0000

I met my big writing goal this week - finishing the draft of my current chapter, and a week early too! That calls for my rump-shakin' victory dance, set to some Harry Belafonte. It looks something like this:

Nothing like a little Harry B. to put a celebratory mood on the evening! Shake shake shake, senora!

The Omnivorous Yogi(ni)'s Dilemma

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 20:18:00 +0000

Yoga and vegetarianism/veganism seem to be attached at the hip, for better or worse.

As a confirmed foodie who functions better and happier with some animal-sourced protein, I have always found this particularly difficult to "stomach," although I agree with the theory of non-harming that lies behind it. But I have particular difficulty with the near-fundamentalism with which the vegan/vegetarian yogic path is typically preached, and the condescending judgment that is passed down upon those who chose to walk the omnivorous path.

Sadie Nardini, founder of Core Strength Vinyasa Yoga, wrote a provocative column today for the Huffington Post about this very issue in which she speaks boldly and controversially about her feelings on the subject.

Photo credit

Her biggest fear is that this is just one of the many ways in which yoga is making itself exclusive rather than inclusive. The remedy, she believes, is to practice more of our yoga in daily life and to raise a dialogue about this issue, peacefully, with a non-judgmental "live and let eat" type of philosophy.

Do you agree with that? Especially those of you who have recently seen Food, Inc.?

British Summer, in a bowl

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 20:00:00 +0000

One of my favorite things about living in Britain is the delicious recklessness with which cream is deployed here. Whipped cream, clotted cream, cream poured straight from the jug onto fresh summer berries - it's marvelous, if incredibly unhealthy. Possibly the best discovery I've made about British cuisine is Eton Mess, a glorious bowl of strawberries, cream, and crumbled meringues. This is truly summer in a bowl: utterly simple, and utterly decadent.

The recipe is included below, but for real Anglophile sumptuousness, you should watch Nigella:

Eton Mess, from Nigella Express

Ingredients

4 cups strawberries
2 teaspoons caster or vanilla sugar
2 teaspoons pomegranate juice
2 cups whipping cream
1 packet individual meringue nests

Directions

*Hull and chop the strawberries and put into a bowl and add the sugar and pomegranate juice and leave to macerate while you whip the cream.

*Whip the cream in a large bowl until thick but still soft. Roughly crumble in 4 of the meringues nests - you will need chunks for texture as well as a little fine dust.

*Take out about half a cupful of the chopped strawberries, and fold the meringue cream and rest of the fruit mixture together.

*Arrange on 4 serving plates or glasses or in a mound, and top each with some of the remaining macerated strawberries.

The Artist's Way, Online

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 20:05:00 +0000

Many of us are connected to The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron's seminal book about recovering one's creativity and letting it out. It is largely be a solo process, but did you know that you can join TAW forums and creative clusters online? Check out The Artist's Way Online for more connection, news, and updates!

Fizz Fix: 19 July 2009

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 21:20:00 +0000

The Fizz Fix is a collection of inspiring and thought-provoking items on a variety of topics sourced from around the web and world, published Sundays.

*Beauty Tips for Ministers has a wonderful post about not letting people stomp on your tang.

*Need writing or journaling inspiration for this week? Try answering some of these fifty questions that will free your mind from Marc and Angel Hack Life.

*Christine Kane offers up some wonderful tips on how we can stop explaining our lives away.

*Can you sum up your leadership in six words?

Lotuses and waterlilies

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 19:30:00 +0000

There are few images more calming than brightly-colored lotuses and waterlilies amid lush green leaves, especially against a lakeside backdrop. Enjoy!

All photos personally taken at "Slender West Lake" in Yangzhou, summer 2004.

Happiness List

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 19:32:00 +0000

City Girl tagged me to write a happiness list, which seems like the perfect way to round out the week on an up note with a sense of gratitude.

Six things that make me happy, on Friday evening at 19:56

1) Spending a cozy Friday evening in with my favorite guy, catching up on House, and eating Keralan takeout - my favorite type of Indian cuisine!

2) Meeting my professional writing goal of 20,000 words for this week

3) Releasing my chronic jaw tension aggravated by computer work with tons of free podcast yoga

4) "Shopping" in my giant box of toiletry samples gleaned from international travel and chancing upon shampoo and conditioner scented with lemongrass

5) The prospect of tomorrow's Artist Date of checking out a new (to me) shop for funky Asian accessories and home goods, followed by Harry Potter at the independent cinema with a little personal pot of local ice cream to eat during the show (British movie snacks - so civilized!)

6) Signing up for the foundation workshop that is the precursor to a yoga teacher training (!!!!!!!)

Spearmint Salad

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 20:25:00 +0000

We were a little low on salad fixings the other day, so I came up with this great salad for lunch. It's very filling without leaving you weighed down, and very rejuvenating. Using spearmint rather than peppermint makes for a remarkably refreshing salad without overpowering your tastebuds. Other subtler mints would work as well: ginger mint, pineapple mint, and the like. I used cashews, but you could use whatever you have handy.

Spearmint Salad
2-3 cups baby spinach
2 small pears, cored and coarsely chopped into bite-sized pieces
12-15 spearmint leaves, washed and chopped into strips
1/4 cup cashews, almonds, walnuts, etc.
1 tbsp. raspberry vinegar
1/2 tbsp. olive oil

Combine spinach, pears, spearmint and cashews in a bowl. Whisk or shake together vinegar and oil, pour over salad, and toss to combine. Serve immediately. Serves one as a main course salad, or two as a side salad.

Leap of faith - an Artist's Prayer

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:25:00 +0000

In Week 4 of The Artist's Way - the same week as the reading ban, for "recovering a sense of integrity" - one of the suggested tasks is to write an Artist's Prayer. I put this off, intimidated by what it meant and unsure of what to say to a divinity I could not even articulate, much less address. Now, in Week 6 of "recovering a sense of abundance," we are supposed to give up our fears that the universe will not provide for us and instead trust that it does and will concern itself with matters as mundane as a livelihood.

Obviously, this is not a fear one can give up cold turkey.

Abundance, abundance, abundance - that words seems to be everywhere lately. No matter how I try to avoid it, the universe is presenting me with a embarrassment of wonderful things related to what I am trying to achieve. Of course, that only works if I have the courage to step off the safe, but limiting, ledge on which I stand and grab them with both hands. For a leap of faith like that, a prayer is absolutely necessary to help you screw your courage to the sticking point.

Throughout the entire process of drafting this prayer, this image and its words kept coming to mind:

Faith is Believing, Curly Girl Design

I chose not to look at it until after I felt just about finished drafting, in an attempt to keep the process pure, but once I did, I found that the power of the sentiment and the illustration were just too strong to deny. So this will be the illustration to accompany my prayer, which is especially fitting because of the yoga pose that emphasizes it. To that end, I'm going to begin incorporating Warrior 3, and other "flying" or "winged" poses into my practice as physical manifestations and illustrations of the prayer. These poses also scare me to no end, but I believe that just practicing through the fear is taking the leap of faith.

Artist's Prayer
Infinite Creator, unknowable source of all artistry and inspiration,
I surrender my limiting misconceptions about your power.
I unfurl my convictions about your abundance.
Help me release the fear of foundering that stems from disappointing you.
Help me fertilize my passion for writing that was planted by you.
Help me manifest my dreams of creative flow that begin and end in you.
Help me live with integrity and authenticity rooted in the truth of you.
Help me bring courage to others, and in doing so, align ourselves as one with you.
I will take the leap of faith, trusting that you will provide abundantly,
with a solid place to land
or strong wings with which to fly.
The divine in me acknowledges and honors you, the Divine.

Tiny Yoga

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:31:00 +0000

Artist and author SARK is a strong proponent of micromovements, tiny little motions in the particular direction you want to go. She has a great free micromovement worksheet to help you get the hang of this - it might seem silly at first, but by breaking goals and tasks down into smaller and smaller pieces, doing just miniscule bits at any given time, you move further and further along your chosen path.

One of my SWIM writing goals this week is spending daily time on my yoga mat. Actually making that happen in the midst of, you know, LIFE can be incredibly difficult. But in her monthly e-letter for July, Loving Summer Spoon-Full, SARK applied the concept of micromovements to her yoga practice and created "Tiny Yoga":

Sometimes even the effort required to think about rolling out your mat is just too much. But something keeps calling to us about the practice, although perhaps that little voice is named "Guilt" rather than anything else. So what about practicing Tiny Yoga? Five- to fifteen-minute classes, with no judgment, perhaps just one or two favorite poses or ones that we really feel we need, and then re-evaluate with the option of moving on or not?

Have you ever practiced Tiny Yoga? Would you consider it? Does it "count" as yoga?

Free download of Shakira's new single!

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:33:00 +0000

Download Shakira's new single She Wolf for free until the end of today: Monday, 13 July!
New running music from my favorite international pop star! What a way to to start the week!

Fizz Fix: 12 July 2009

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 06:55:00 +0000

The Fizz Fix is a collection of inspiring and thought-provoking items on a variety of topics sourced from around the web and world, published Sundays.

*Jello as a creative medium - brilliant! Love these Carmen Miranda toppers!

*What about wearing one dress for an entire year? Could you do it? Sure, it might help you simplify, but there's also the problem of your closet overflowing with accessories.

*Carolyn of Hang On Little Tomato is giving away an absolutely gorgeous notebook/journal, and she's making it so much fun - just leave a comment describing your dream vacation on her blog!

*Looking for a new book or movie? Try the play M. Butterfly by David Henry Hwang or its film version, based on the compelling story of French diplomat Bernard Boursicot posted to China during the 1960s who was fooled by his lover Shi Pei Pu, a male Peking opera singer and spy, into thinking that Shi was actually a woman. The fascinating plot makes it well worth a read, but truth is even stranger than fiction - Shi Pei Pu died in Paris last week, leaving a trail of peculiar stories in his wake.

*Who taught us to open bananas? We all open them the difficult way! Try opening a banana like a monkey instead - much easier!

Peep-tacular!

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:42:00 +0000

I have an inexplicable and abiding affection for Peeps.

Image credit

There are no Peeps in the UK. Yes, those indestructible little critters of marshmallow-like joy have not been exported to England. Although now I can tour the factory virtually, and there will soon be a documentary The Power of the Peep, I have otherwise been Peepless this year.

Until now.

Thanks to the wonderful people at What's Cooking America, it is now possible to make your own Peeps at home! Enjoy - Happy Friday!

Homemade Marshmallow Peeps

Original recipe

Vegetable oil (for the pan)
Powdered (confectioner's) sugar
2/3 cup cold water, divided
2 envelopes (2 tablespoons) unflavored gelatin
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Colored sugar for decorating
Tiny amount of melted chocolate for decorating
Chick-shaped cookie cutter

Line the bottom and sides of a 13- by 9-inch baking pan with plastic wrap; oil and then generously dust bottom and sides with some powdered sugar.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, place 1/3 cup cold water; sprinkle the gelatin over the surface.

In a heavy saucepan with a tight fitting lid, add sugar, corn syrup, salt, and remaining 1/3 cup water; stir to dissolve sugar. Cover the pan and place over moderately low heat. Remove the cover after 4 to 5 minutes. The steam will have caused any sugar crystals to dissolve and the syrup will be bubbling lightly. Increase the heat to high, insert a candy thermometer, and boil the syrup, without stirring, until it reaches 240 degrees F. Immediately remove from the heat.

Fit your electric mixer with the whisk attachment. slowly and carefully pour the syrup into the gelatin while the mixer is beating constantly at medium speed. When all of the syrup has been added, increase the speed to high and whip for approximately 10 minutes until the mixture is lukewarm very white, and the consistency of marshmallow cream. Add the vanilla extract toward the end of mixing.

Pour the marshmallow mixture into the prepared pan; smooth the top and sprinkle liberally with colored sugar of your choice. Let the pan stand, uncovered, at room temperature to dry. out. NOTE: Depending on the humidity, this may happen in several hours or take up to 8 hours. Generally speaking the longer you let it set up, the easier the marshmallow sheet will be to cut.

When ready to cut, invert the pan of marshmallow onto a clean cutting surface; remove the plastic wrap and coat the top with colored sugar (it should adhere easily).

Use cookie cutters to stamp out your peeps (or bunnies) and toss them in a bowl of sugar to coat the edges. If you find your cookie cutter getting sticky, was it and lightly coat with vegetable oil.

With a toothpick apply a dot of chocolate to form an eye.

Store the marshmallow peeps in an airtight container.

Makes about 80 marshmallows.

How to run 5k in a strapless bra (Part II)

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 20:44:00 +0000

Running in a strapless bra: it sounds impossible. By most estimations, doing anything other than sitting very still and trying not to breathe while wearing a strapless is impossible.

And that is because your bra does not fit properly.

Image credit

For my 27th birthday, I decided that my gift to myself would be to get a real bra fitting and invest in a collection of lingerie that actually fit. Everything I owned kind of worked, but never terribly well, and there were always little hints that what I was wearing wasn't right: quadraboob, red marks on my shoulders, and other problems like the ones here. But nothing I found in any store ever made a difference. The Boston branch of Intimacy was offering free fittings (all branches do!), so in I went. My life has never been the same.

Let me be completely candid here, because that is the only way I am going to get my point across. I walked in thinking I was a 36C; I walked out of Intimacy with my first properly-fitting lingerie in a 32E. My first thought when the fitter told me this new size was, "Are you kidding? An E-cup? You can't even find an E-cup in stores!" And that, you fabulous readers, is precisely the problem.

Victoria's Secret, that mainstay of American malls and Main Streets, only stocks sizes 32AA to 40DD. All those famous models with the fantastic cleavage? They are all wearing bras that are too small. Many companies only produce 32A to 36C, and we have been fooled into thinking we have to fit into one of these sizes. Wrong! Not true at all! Band sizes run at least from 28 to 44, and cup sizes from AA through to K! Think of all the possible permutations!

The best thing you can do is to give up whatever ideas you currently have about your bra size and get yourself properly fitted, then take advantage of the resources below to invest in pieces that actually fit you properly. Doing this ranks as one of the best things I have ever done for myself, because it makes me so much more confident. Plus, my clothing fits and looks better, I stand up straighter, and I no longer worry about quadraboob. Buying lingerie is not cheap, but this is an investment that I believe is just as important as my retirement fund and emergency fund.

You should also be aware of the things that can change your size: pregnancy, weight gained, weight lost, hormones, and so on. All the weight I took off while in Beijing during the autumn was enough to impact me again because I went down more than an entire dress size. Although I had been putting it off for several months, last week I was refitted at Bravissimo as a 30E. The proof of just how important proper sizing is came yesterday during my 5k: if I had not been properly re-fitted, there is no way I could have a) run b) a 5k c) in 26:21. I was able to do that for no other reason than the strapless bra I wore under my camisole all day was the right size.

Need any more proof of the positive impact this can make on your life? What about an Artist Date to get properly fitted? It might just be one of the best decisions you ever make!

US Resources
Intimacy (various locations)
Bra*tenders (New York - thanks, City Girl!)
Bratique Helene (Dallas - thanks, City Girl!)
Coup de Foudre (D.C. - thanks, City Girl!)
Figleaves US
La Senza US

UK Resources
Bravissimo
Figleaves UK
La Senza UK
Brastop

Canadian Resources
Secrets from your Sister (Toronto - thanks, Ellecubed!)

Lingerie Blogs
The Lingerie Post
Frou Frou Fashionista
Knickers
Petite Coquette

How to run 5k in a strapless bra (Part I)

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:43:00 +0000

Today was the second summer 5k for the Sweaty Betty running club I run with on Wednesdays. During the first 5k, I ran 27:44 - which I was pretty proud of considering I hadn't run a timed 5k since age 17. I really wanted to beat that time today, so I started psyching myself up several hours before. I even got out my favorite Storypeople tidbit about running to get this great mantra into my head:

Run Proud, Storypeople by Brian Andreas

"Run proud and remember you are alive" - perfect mantra. The temperature here has dropped 10 degrees in the last week - perfect weather. My best knee-supporting running tights were clean - perfect gear. Everything was perfect! Until I arrived at the shop to change before going out and realized:

I had forgotten to pack my sports bra!!!!

DOH!
Of course, today had to be the day when I decided to wear strapless plunge bra under a v-neck camisole.
DOUBLE DOH!

But based on some factors that I'll talk about in Part II of this adventure - to be posted tomorrow! - I decided to give it a shot, with the goal of beating 27:44. I tried to be as yogic as possible about the breathing to link the left footfalls with the exhalation, which helps prevent stitches and cramps in your side. There was a girl running just ahead of me, so I had some help keeping pace. The temperature was just right for running our route along the River Cam.

And I rocked it with a finishing time of 26:21! That's a full 1:23 faster than before! WOOHOO!!

Now the question is: how did I manage that in a strapless bra? Tune in tomorrow to find out!

Bread and Roses

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 19:20:00 +0000

Amid everything else on our plates each day that is part of our survival and basic functioning, we ache for what makes our lives beautiful. We blog, write morning pages, take photographs, collage, bake, cook, read, garden, go on Artist Dates, listen to podcasts, practice yoga, and so on. But these things aren't just what make our lives beautiful; they are what make them bearable against the workloads of home and/or office.

I'm not being melodramatic here. Take away these things, turn us purely into functional and practical beings, and we starve. We become cranky, angry, resentful, depressed, perhaps even ill if we don't have these things in our lives.

That's why we go above and beyond to include these bits of beauty in our lives. We fit them in during the spare moments, wake up extra-early to squeeze them in before the world begins in the mornings, stay up late to tuck them in to our days before midnight and another day passes without them.

This morning I was thinking about why I make the time each day to write, read, practice yoga or run, sit quietly with a cup of tea and watch my plants grow. Sometimes, this leaves me exhausted early in the evening from getting up at 5:30, makes me a somewhat neglectful girlfriend, maybe even inflames my pesky tendons despite all precautions. Why do this? Why are these things so important? The answer came out of nowhere as I cycled to my office:

"Hearts starve as well as bodies, give us bread but give us roses."

Bread and Roses bakery and deli-café, Paris

The line comes from "Bread and Roses," first written during the early 20th century, but popularized by folk singers in the 1970s. The phrase "bread and roses" has a murky history, but it is closely linked with the Lawrence textile strike in 1912, in which it is said that the women strikers carried placards with the phrase from a poem published in 1911 by American poet James Oppenheim. In 1976, the lines were set to music by singer and activist Mimi Fariña. She and her sister Joan Baez sang it together here in 1979:

If you can get your hands on the Judy Collins version, that one is even more powerful for its swelling choral arrangement.

The cliché "man cannot live on bread alone" is all very well and good, but it doesn't articulate what else it takes for man to live, rather than simply survive. "Bread and roses" explains it all - we want the bread to live on, and the roses to make our lives beautiful. And for the roses, whatever they are, we are willing to go above and beyond.

What are your "roses"?

Artist Date, in Photos

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:12:00 +0000

My Artist Date began as soon as I tumbled out of bed on Saturday morning, with homemade iced chai, morning pages, and Hawaiian music.

After an hour with Yoga Today's free class for last week - conveniently themed around stress reduction - I noshed on a Raspberry Dark Chocolate Almond granola-y bar for breakfast.

Then I headed out the door for some wandering and shopping at all the "girly" places in town. One of my stops was at Ark, which has lovely goodies for all your senses, and a terrific top floor devoted entirely to lovely vintage pieces. They had 40's jazz on the stereo, which just made it all the more lovely.

My final destination was Origin8, which sells only local yummies sourced from East Anglia. I had been ogling their meringues since they opened, but had never sat down to eat there. They were offering a choice of chocolate, vanilla, lemon and raspberry meringues on Saturday - I chose lemon and a cranberry-rosehip lightly carbonated drink, and went downstairs to their separate seating area. The meringue was perfect: tart glaze over a crisp shell and the scrumptiously gooey interior that is the mark of a true meringue.

It was perfect - everything I have been looking for in the quest for "my" café here in Cambridge. Quiet, spacious, air-conditioned (rare for Britain), plenty of light, free wi-fi, and lovely food. I spent the next two hours there working on my Vision Planner: my current creativity project that began as a vision board and morphed into making a blank moleskine into a dayplanner for 2010. Here's the inside cover, and all the little bits of inspiration I'm spreading throughout the book:

I spread out over a whole table, with my snacks on the next table, and no one minded a bit because there were only a few people down there. Cambridge is always mobbed on the weekends, so finding a café with all the goodness of this one AND cool quietude at mid-day on a Saturday is a real goldmine! Finally, I've found "my" café for out-of-office writing - Borders is great, but it just doesn't compare to this at all.

Fizz Fix: TED Edition

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 20:34:00 +0000

The Fizz Fix is a collection of inspiring and thought-provoking items on a variety of topics sourced from around the web and world, published on weekends.

Today's Fizz Fix is a special TED edition: "ideas worth spreading."

*Want to learn how to fold anything - truly anything - out of origami? Download Robert Lang's free Treemaker program that will help you design your item. (Flapping Birds and Space Telescopes, delivered February 2008)

Rock Climber, Opus 275

*Tinkering School is a week-long immersion where kids learn that tinkering is a great way to experiment with creating all sorts of wonderful machines and structures. In his TED talk, founder Gever Tulley made a fascinating observation about the kids: "When faced with particularly difficult setbacks or complexities, a really interesting behavior emerges: decoration. Decoration of the unfinished project is a kind of conceptual incubation. From these interludes come deep insights and amazing new approaches to solving the problems that had them frustrated just moments before." Try this the next time you get stuck - let your creative side run wild and decorate your project or your space, and see how that helps you move forward in your unfinished project. (Life Lessons Through Tinkering, delivered February 2009)

*Looking for more resources on creativity? Check out the talks by:

Elizabeth Gilbert on nurturing creativity

Amy Tan on creativity generally

Tim Brown on the link between creativity and play

Ken Robinson on whether schools kill creativity

Isaac Mizrahi on fashion and creativity

Larry Lessig on laws that choke creativity

Prosecco Profile: need your input!

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:39:00 +0000

There have been some incredible role models in my life who just don't get enough credit. That was why in May, I wrote my first Prosecco Profile of musician and yogini Jess Meider. That post was one of the most fun to write, because it made me incredibly happy to think of all the positive impact she has had on so many people, especially on me.

But there are so many more people like that! I have been so blessed by all the incredible people around me, and perhaps this gives me an opportunity to give back. So I am hereby instituting "Prosecco Profile" as a new monthly feature, and I already have my next fantastic individual lined up (she knows who she is, but it has to remain a secret for now!).

[Photo credit by the next Prosecco Profile - to be revealed soon!]

I'm putting together a list of questions for these Profiles to create an interview, but I'd like your help too: How do you feel about the following list? What other questions would you like to have answered? These people are going to be from all walks of life and experience, male and female, younger and older, so go wild!

*Describe yourself - what do you do, how do you do it, and why?

*You have created an incredible life for yourself - how did you do that?

*Did you expect your life to turn out the way it did?

*Broadly defined, what do you consider your creative talent? How do you share that with the world?

*What do you consider your greatest accomplishment?

*If we were sitting in front of you, what skill would you teach us?

*What person or event has most deeply impacted your outlook on life?

*What has been your greatest adventure to date?

*What advice do you have to share?

What additions do you have to this list?
What questions would you like the ask the people who have most inspired you?
Please list them in the comments below!

What's next?

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:55:00 +0000

This morning while getting ready, I listened to a TED talk by Sherwin Nuland on electroshock therapy. Despite being successfully treated for mental illness with the therapy as a younger man, he would occasionally feel himself falling back into some of those old patterns. Inspired by Gilbert and Sullivan's Ruddigore, he decided that he needed a word to help break the grip of those moments. In the opera, Despard Murgatroyd and his wife "Mad Margaret" decide on the word 'Basingstoke' to help snap her back to reality when she starts going a little nutty. Being from the Bronx, Nuland decided on something a little more "colorful," but it was the same idea.

In yesterday's post about moving on from setbacks, I mentioned the phrase "What's next?" as the question to ask yourself. This didn't materialize out of thin air: it came from Darcy, and the fact that over the winter we watched all seven seasons of The West Wing:

The way Darcy talked me down from the ledge yesterday was simply by asking, "What's next?" That just shocked me - what's next? There are lots of things to do next! I have to dust myself off and get to them! Like Jed Bartlett says in the clip above, "When I ask 'what's next,' it means I'm ready to move on to other things. So, what's next?"

So that has become the catchphrase from now on. Life is chock-a-block full of setbacks, and I can't keep freaking out every time I encounter one of them. Instead, I'll start with "What's next?" and trust in that to trigger the forward movement just like it did yesterday. (Of course, the dark berry mocha frappuccino helped too...)

Partial Enlightenment

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:37:00 +0000

Storypeople: Partial Enlightenment

In the space of just 90 minutes today, I went from smugly satisfied about creating a piece of writing in achievement of a writing goal, to completely paralyzed by the rejection of that piece. Being shot down so incredibly fast just shot me down - I couldn't write. At all. As I sat there trying to figure out what message the universe was trying to tell me with this particularly odious exercise, for no reason I can possibly articulate I felt compelled to pour an entire dumptruck of salt right into that wound. I read over old rejected abstracts, old writing criticisms, and even old e-mails from my ex-fiancé that told me in no uncertain terms just what a waste of carbon I was (note: worst idea ever).

As much as I hate to admit it, my sense of self-worth is deeply intermingled with my writing. The problem with writing anything - a report, a blog entry, a dissertation chapter, or in this case a conference proposal - is that when someone else rejects it, it is entirely too easy to take it as a rejection of my value as an individual. Unsurprisingly, I react very, very badly to failure and criticism. No matter how many times I read Thomas Edison's quotes about overcoming failure, the failure to bounce back from failure is one of my biggest...well...failures. And the result is paralysis.

Like the story above says, if you believe that everything happens for a reason, when bad things happen that belief is cold comfort. The universe's customer service department just gives you a benign smile and says, "No refunds - it will all work out in the end, trust us. Next in line, please!" How incredibly frustrating and useless! When will it work out? How? No wonder I'm left feeling paralyzed - I have no control, and in that case, any movement I make could get me into trouble. Paralysis is self-preservation: if I don't move, I can't get hurt.

But in that case, the final line of the story rings out as clear as a bell: it doesn't even do any good to complain. That realization is like splashing cold water on your face. If there's no point even in complaining about the perceived injustice you've suffered, then you might as well just ask yourself "What's next?" and move on. "What's next" is my new chapter, due at the end of July. So that's what I did - I abandoned my office for my preferred writing site at the Starbucks inside Borders and prepared for what comes next:

*I threw health to the wind and sipped on an extremely restorative Dark Berry Mocha Frappuccino with whipped cream (and they use real hand-whipped cream here, not the squirty fake-o stuff).
*I smiled at the little giggly kid at the next table who had to show me that counting your fingers is just the most fantastic thing ever.
*I read some Chinese to remind myself that Mandarin is one of my cooler superpowers.
*I tidied up my virtual writing binder of files, images, articles and documents into good clear files.
*I wrote a plan of chapter action.
*I brainstormed ideas and questions about the sections.
*I wrote down "begin drafting Chapter 4" in my planner for tomorrow.

As Scarlett O'Hara says, "Tomorrow is another day." And tomorrow, I will begin again, because even when things aren't going the way you hope they will, it doesn't even do any good to complain.

Beijing: a love-hate relationship

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:38:00 +0000

Recently, someone suggested through Skribit that I rank the places I've lived from best to worst so far. It's not that easy, really - it's more like Pros and Cons, and there are so many for each place I think each needs its own post just to be fair. Maybe after going through each place, I'll be able to rank them. Let's start with Beijing, where I lived from August 2005 to July 2007, and again from September-December 2009.

I think just about every expat in Beijing has a love-hate relationship with the city that just comes standard with your residence permit. But you should absolutely go visit if you haven't already! If you're going over there, let me know - I've got restaurant recommendations galore, complete with directions and contact numbers! Or if you need a tour guide, there's none better than an art historian whose research covers all the important tourist sites...

Reasons to live in Beijing
Best yoga studio in the universe, Yoga Yard
Incredible food from all over China and the world
Fascinating people, both expats and locals
Compelling historical sites like the Forbidden City
High quality of life as a foreigner thanks to the exchange rate
Safety - no guns, high visibility as a foreigner
People love chatting with you, especially if you speak Chinese
Playing tour guide when friends come to town
On clear days, you can see the mountains around the city
Relatively easy to get clothes in "foreigner sizes" now; also affordable custom tailoring
Always something surreal happening that makes a good story (for example, I was on TV once)

And of course, hiking the Great Wall

Reasons NOT to live in Beijing
Horrific pollution and air quality thanks to god-awful traffic and ceaseless factories
Pollution-related health problems
Repressive political climate and media censorship
Not being able to talk about the 3 T's (and an F)
Bureaucracy and indolence, especially at state-run sites
Worries about tainted food: melamine, hepatitis, parasites, metal shavings, needles, cardboard...
Alcohol tainted with formaldehyde, isopropyl, grain alcohol, paint thinner, baijiu...
Cheese is incredibly expensive (this is important!)
Near-constant upper respiratory infections in winter because of coal smoke
Layer of black dust and soot that settles on everything
Limited and overcrowded subway system (getting better slowly, though)
Some internet connections are only domestic
Great Firewall, and now the Green Dam as well
Always something surreal happening that will make you crazy
Unabashed staring can be extremely uncomfortable, particularly if you are a woman
People talk about you right in front of you, thinking you can't understand
Public spitting, snot rockets, loogie hocking, and children using the sidewalk as a toilet

Next city: Boston

Writing goals update: Got my chapter out the door on time! It all just came together in the end...

Newsflash: All Reading Banned at The Prosecco Life

kiki.yogademia@gmail.com (Kiki) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:29:00 +0000

What follows is the conversation that happened inside my head when I discovered that Week 4 of The Artist's Way is a complete ban on all reading. The internal voice is italicized; my own voice is just...well...a little unhinged.

FLAX Art & Design, San Francisco. Photo NYT.

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No reading this week. None. No books, magazines, newspapers, blogs, tweets, or anything of the like.

Yep, sure. What's the real task?

Not kidding.

Exsqueeze me? Baking Powder?

That's right. Nothing.

What in the name of all that is good and holy is that supposed to do?

All those words are dulling your creative voice. This week is all about recovering a sense of integrity and of what your own voice sounds like. Think of it as a detox.

That's just wrong. How can I not read? Are you nuts? I get all my inspiration from out there! I love reading! When I'm sick of reading books with footnotes, I read books without footnotes! I read cereal boxes and mustard jars! I even read on the john, even if it's just the back of my lotion bottles! I'll read the ingredients on the bottle of Toilet Duck if I have to!

[Raises eyebrow and smirks.] And you think I'm crazy?

Okay, fine. You wanna play, I'll play. Bring it on. But let's be reasonable first: I have to get this chapter out the door by 6 p.m. Tuesday, and there are some facts I need to check before that can happen. Can I open books only to check facts, making a concerted effort to not actually look at any other words than the very specific ones I need?"

Deal. Monday and Tuesday, you can check facts but nothing else. The rest of the week, it's no reading material at all. All your writing has to come from you and you only - that goes for professional writing as well as personal writing. As far as your dissertation goes, this is really the perfect week for a reading detox. You're finishing one chapter, you're about to start another, you can hash out some of those ideas that you've been scribbling on scraps of paper instead of carrying them around stuffed in your pockets all the time. Before you ask, yes, you can read e-mail. Still, no blogs. Or tweets.

But I've only just made some blog friends and found some tweeps! SWIM was only started last week! I can't comment on other people's posts if I don't read them, and commenting is crucial! Why should other people have to suffer?!?! You've got me punctuating each sentence with an exclamation point, I'm so worked up! I need a paper bag, I'm hyperventilating!

Way to 'bring it,' girlfriend.

Watch it, smartmouth. Just because you're an internal voice and don't have an actual butt doesn't mean I can't kick it.

Good grief, it's only a week. Next Sunday morning, you can climb online and gorge yourself on everything you've missed. You can stuff your face with tweets and posts and the Times' Style section until you can't move. If you post about this - and you're not just allowed to post, you're encouraged to post - I am sure they will understand. They're working on creativity too, remember?

This is completely insane. I'll be shaking like a junkie outside the meth lab by Monday evening. What the heck am I supposed to do if I can't read?

[Exasperated sigh] Oh, for Pete's sake. Do I have to do everything? You could practice more yoga, go for more runs, work on your planner project, start those conference papers you're giving, take Darcy out for those nice mojitos at Brown's, have a dinner picnic, begin knitting your sweater, clean out your closet, take more photographs, practice your theme song on the guitar, make more homemade granola bars, go on an extended Artist Date...

Or maybe try that new café with the rose meringues, or mend my pajama pants, or think of some new post ideas, or file my image collection, or watch some of those TED talks I've been saving...

See? I'm sure you'll survive...
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So that's the story, folks. This week is Prohibition Week at The Prosecco Life, where I'll be making bathtub gin and backyard moonshine out of my own words to fill the empty space left by this reading ban with lots of writing goals. But I'm thinking of you all, I promise! And the comments will fly thick and fast on Sunday once this embargo has been lifted.

You understand, right?

This week's challenge: write instead of reading. Gulp.