It has been quite a while since I last posted. Sadly, Christmas is now over. My husband and I had a great time playing games with family and friends. Part of me wishes it had been a white Christmas. There is just something about snow that makes Christmas more magical. The more practical part of my brain was glad it didn't snow. I'm not fond of driving in snow. My dog however LOVES snow. This was her last year after we got a good foot of snow.

So I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Have a safe and wonderful New Years!

Take a deep, slow breath

I continue to find it amazing how underestimated breathing is. It has an incredible impact on one's body, mind, and dare I say spirit. Sometimes all it takes to release stress it taking a few deep breaths. Just breath in through the nose and out through the mouth. Actually focus on the feeling of the air entering your body. Feel it fill up your lungs and, if it helps, imagine the yucky stuff of the day, the stress, exiting the body when you blow the air out. People might find this a little too new age or whatever. But what it comes down to is this: breathing is a necessary action for your body. We all know this, but do we really think about it? It's an action that happens without thought. When you are stressed it affects how you breath and thus, intake oxygen. Taking the time to reset your breathing can help the body to release some tension and let you breath more naturally. It also helps to just not think about whatever is stressing you out. Taking a step back and breathing can be the best thing to do at times. It's helpful even when not stressed. It's a good way to just... be.

A Weekend of Blues and Bikes

       This weekend was both the Roots n' Blues and BBQ Festival and also the MS150. So Friday night I got to spend time with my husband listening to fantastic music and eat really good food at Bleu. Railroad Earth was probably my favorite band. We just lounged in Peace Park and enjoyed the night. Saturday Susan (a business partner) and I worked the VIP tent at Roots doing chair massage. Since the VIP tent was right next to one of the stages we were entertained by more great music. The weather was lovely. It rained a few times but never very hard or for very long. I tried really hard to stick around and listen to more wonderful music but by six o'clock I was so worn out. So I was a wuss and went home and vegetated.
        The MS150 was both Saturday and Sunday, but I only worked it today. It is such a fun event to work. People come from all over to bike and raise money to help fight MS. It was pretty slow, which was fine. I got to sit and enjoy the company of therapists I don't see often. Again, the weather was balmy with a nice breeze. So it was a busy but good weekend. I was really looking forward to taking pictures at Roots, but alas I left my SD card at home so my camera was useless... oh well. Maybe next year.

Tensi... what?

           I have begun reading Thomas Myers' articles entitled the Body 3 (or the Body Cubed). It's a facinating look at the structure of the human body. You soon realize that we take so much for granted. He stesses something called "tensegrity".
So what is tenesgrity?

To quote Richard Buckminster Fuller (exerpt from Synergetics, p. 372)
          "The word 'tensegrity' is an invention: a contraction of 'tensional integrity.' Tensegrity describes a structural-relationship principal in which structural shape is guarenteed by the finitely closed, comprehensively continuous, tensional behaviors of the system and not by the discontinuous and exclusively local compressional member behaviors. Tensegrity provides the ability to yield increasingly without ultimately breaking or coming asunder." 

          Again I ask, what does that mean? Think of the structures like the Arch in St. Louis, it is held together souly by the compression of all it's parts. However, it is a moving object. There is the ability to absorb shock- thus preventing it from breaking apart. Now apply that principle to the human structure. We are made up of bones, muscles, and connective tissues. We are able to absorb massive amounts of stress and gravity. Bascially what I'm attempting to say, and how Myers looks at the body is that you cannot separate out the parts. Each part is dependent on the other. If there is undue strain or injury in one area it stands to reason it would affect others.

            We take our bodies for granted. We have forgotten to look at it as a whole structure. Look at the body as more of an arcitectural creation. It makes you appreciate the fact that we can stand up, let alone function.

Leaf One

Today was Labor Day and what a beautiful day it was. I spent the day enjoying the weather and time with my husband. I also spent time playing with my terribly cute dog. The brothers-in-law visited for a while as well.