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August 31, 2007
Vineyard Race
Yesterday evening, we hopped on a train from Grand Central for Stamford, CT to join the skipper's briefing before today's start of the Vineyard Race. The race is 230 miles out to Buzzard's Bay off Martha's Vineyard, and back. Click here to track the race. It was thoroughly enjoyable, and I daresay I wish I was crew on one of the boats starting at 3 this afternoon. Last year, it was nasty weather, and only 4 boats finished.
Posted by dave at 03:56 PM | Comments (0)
August 30, 2007
Racing MoonDance
I was out racing last night on the Hudson River with friends Toby, Ryan and MoonDance owner Andrew. We had nice wind compared to last week when we simply drifted around in the current. We arrived at the starting line over by Ellis Island and wondered where all the boats were. It turned out to be a Ladies' Regatta. We were four men. We raced anyway. We were the only boat in our class. We won.
Posted by dave at 02:31 PM | Comments (0)
August 28, 2007
(नमस्ते [nʌmʌsˈteː]
My brother-in-law, and his partner, are unbelieveable inspirations. I adore them both. Her mother is dying. She is so strong, with so much energy. Her journey will be a difficult one, and hardest on the loved ones around her.
Namasté or Namaskar (नमस्ते [nʌmʌsˈteː] in Nepali and Hindi (from internal sandhi between namaḥ and te) is an Indian greeting or parting phrase as well as a gesture.
Taken literally, it means "I bow to you". The word is derived from Sanskrit (namas): to bow, obeisance, reverential salutation, and (te): "to you".
When spoken to another person, it is commonly accompanied by a slight bow made with hands pressed together, palms touching and fingers pointed upwards, in front of the chest. The gesture can also be performed wordlessly and carry the same meaning.
Many believe it has a spiritual basis, in recognizing a common divinity within the other person.
"I honor the Spirit in you which is also in me".
"I honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells, I honor the place in you which is of Love, of Truth, of Light and of Peace, When you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, we are One."
"I salute the God within you."
“I recognize that we are all equal.”
“The entire universe resides within you.”
“The divine light in me salutes the divine light in you.”
"Your spirit and my spirit are ONE."
"That which is of God in me greets that which is of God in you"
"I honor the Holy One that lives in you."
"I bow to the divine in you"
"The Light of God in Me recognizes and honours The Light of God in You and in that recognition is our Oneness."
Dear Shirley,
namaste
And,
Dear little Sam, you would be one year old,
namaste
Posted by dave at 11:20 PM | Comments (0)
August 27, 2007
OWWWWIE #2
I had just turned the corner on the south end of Pier 40 when it happened. I wasn't running all that fast, but I daresay I have been pushing this 41-year-young body a little hard lately. Vinyasa yoga, Bikram yoga, running, cycling...
And then it happened. SPROING! A muscle or tendon in my lower right calf became instantly disengaged. The pain was unreal. It shot from the top of my achilles tendon to the middle of my shin bone. It hurt like nasty to toe off.
I stopped straight away and began a series of stretches and load bearings to see if I could isolate the tear. At first, I thought it was my plantaris tendon.
I went to Bikram yoga this afternoon, in the back of the class so that I could feel my way through the pain. The heat, I figured, would help. It did. A lot. But I discovered that the pain was truly running up the inside of my shin bone, so bing-bango-bongo, it must be my soleus. Damn. This is the nasty little muscle that is to blame for shin splints.
No more running until this clears up. Stairs are miserable, but walking is tolerable.
Damn. Damn. Damn.
More yoga. Less running.
Posted by dave at 06:40 PM | Comments (0)
August 21, 2007
Owwwwie
Power vinyasa yoga was awesome. It did something for me in a similar way to Bikram. But, man, I have to say, my arms and shoulders and hips are killin' me.
Now that I'm over-the-hill, I have to be a little careful and slow down.
NO WAY! I'm in!
Posted by dave at 08:13 PM | Comments (0)
August 20, 2007
Prana Power Yoga
About a month ago, I tried a yoga called anusara. Partly to try something new, and partly because I was considering buying the SOHO studio. The yoga didn't speak to me the way Bikram does, and I didn't proceed to buy the studio.
Today, I am going to try a vinyasa yoga class. It is in a heated room, but not nearly as hot as a Bikram studio. The postures move with your breath, which is very different indeed. In Bikram, the heat brings on a mild state of panic and can often affect your breathing, making it highly irregular. Much of the time, getting the breathing under control is the better part of the battle.
The heat in Bikram yoga, for me, is a metaphor for all the struggles we face in our lives. If you overcome the effect that the heat has on you, you can overcome just about anything.
Posted by dave at 11:32 AM | Comments (0)
August 09, 2007
Of Mice, ISPs and Mighty Men
Several weeks ago, I was standing in our empty apartment with the flooring contractor, and in a sequence befitting a calculus equation, two small mice tramped across the floor right in front of us. Within minutes, I called the Super for an exterminator, who came (apparently) the day before we moved back in.
DP and AJ were visiting last week, and we were sitting around talking about a modern dance show we had just seen, when out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a mouse. It ran for hiding. Then, Chis and I were sitting on the couch the other evening, and watched a mouse darting around the living room.
1pm Wednesday, I returned home from a series of meetings to discover a red light flashing on our modem. I called our ISP, and after two-and-a-half hours on the phone, the tech told me that the problem was theirs, not mine. Hmm. Our internet phone goes yellow if it doesn’t have a signal, which was the first thing I told him before we reconfigured my laptop, and re-booted several dozen times. They asked for 24 hours to fix the problem.
20 hours later, I called to get an update. “We’re still working on it” said Electric Lucy. To speak to a technician, the estimate wait time was “under 30 minutes”. Whoa! I walked over to the cable company to see what I could do with them. For the same price, I walked out with a modem, went home and hooked it up.
On my way home, I stopped by the hardware store and picked up 12 mouse traps, and while I waited for the new cable modem to warm up, I strategically set the traps where we had seen the mice.
I called our ISP to cancel. He said I would have to pay a $79 early termination fee because I had committed to a one-year contract. I asked him to provide me with the document I signed, which he couldn’t. As I was beginning a vitriolic speech about consumer rights and the FCC, he cut in to say that they had remedied the situation and I could get back online. After another hour on the phone, I was on again. Whew! I called the cable company, who let me off without a hitch.
We hopped on a train for Princeton to celebrate a 40th birthday, and returned around 11pm. Not a single mouse in the traps. Blast!
We may not have caught the dastardly mice, but we taught those ISPs a thing or two.
Posted by dave at 10:17 AM | Comments (0)
August 05, 2007
Senors Speedies Gonzales
Carbo loading took on new meaning last night with a feast of lobster risotto, complete with fresh basil and roasted field tomatoes. And a huge salad.
I awoke shortly after 4am. I crept into the kitchen, made some coffee, and poured over yet another chapter of the new Harry Potter book, which, I would say, I am not enjoying nearly as much as the others.
I woke Chis at 5. We were out the door shortly after 5:30, and, eye-lids half closed, we walked from the subway at Lexington Ave and 86th Street to the start in Central Park at 90th Street.
The start was corralled. And we both got seeded status. Chis way closer to the start line than me. The corrals closed at 6:15am, locking us into a 45 minute wait for the start.
The high humidity and temperature of the past couple of weeks had eased, and the clear blue sky yielded wonderful running conditions. It was a spectacular race, and we were finished the 13.1-miles and back home before 10.
We gorged on greasy diner breakfast, well-deserved, after a wee snooze. Chis was uber-fast, as always. I broke 1 hour-45 minutes easily, and set a new pace record for my new "Masters" status (over 40). 7:38 pace. Not bad for an old guy.
Posted by dave at 06:12 PM | Comments (0)
August 03, 2007
Come Back Soon
DP and AJ arrived last Sunday in the pouring rain. They decided to leave their car in Jersey City, thanks to the gracious generosity of Toby, who arranged for parking at the marina where he lives on his bateau. Chis and I, soaked to the bone, met them over there. We were just happy to see their smiling happy faces. A ferry ride, a walk, a subway ride, and another walk, and we were at our humble abode.
We had a fantastic week with them. It seemed just the right pace of shopping, theatre, dance, shopping, Bikram yoga, walking, groceries, etc. Nothing too hectic, but frenetic enough to help them forget about home in Toronto, and their jobs.
It is debateable whether the lattes at Grumpy on 20th Street are better than Jet Fuel on Parliament Street in Toronto.
I dropped them in Jersey City this morning, and as they drove away, I shed a tear. I truly enjoy their company, and hope that we see them again really soon. Life is so short, and friends are so precious.
Posted by dave at 07:00 PM | Comments (0)