yoga_in_the_park epitome of incomprehensibility ...didn't stretch my soul yesterday, but my shoulders, front and back. Or if soul equals imagination: on the way there, late, I was thinking of my first visit to la_fontaine_park. Winter, skating, literal cold_feet. First date, I'd thought. How would my life be different if Jürgen had thought the same? Would I marry at 23? End up in Austria, safely bypassing any possibility of violent outbursts against classmates? Would giving up David be worth not hurting people? Or would my still-immature system direct anger against /j/ at one point (the J That Sounds Like Y), leaving him not just appalled but betrayed? He would divorce me. I'd be back to square one and maybe more rattled. Maybe let's not play with life alternatives if we're going to take them too seriously, my thoughts told me. Alternately, they told me, you're just upset about being late, but relax, you're almost there. See? There they are! I felt awkward bringing a thick fold-in-four gym mat rather than a small roll-up one, but it turned out to be sturdy, so why not? The tree behind the instructor gave our group welcome shade. The instructor shed welcome light, going around checking on people's stretches when she wasn't demonstrating them. At one point she encouraged me to stretch more, at another point gave me an easier alternative (the original involved curling your back and putting your arms on the ground between your legs, and my back isn't terribly flexible). In short, she knows how to adjust the difficulty. Then the question: where to get lunch? Mount Royal places seem pricey. Less than most was a subway sandwich called something like a banh mi at a Vietnamese place ("Don't ban me!" it cried out. "I am not a boring sandwich, I have nice sauce inside!" and it did.) In the shade of the terasse umbrella, I continued transferring journal entries from my trip from one book to another, as if I didn't have a novel I wanted to write. 220703 ... e_o_i The last one tired out my legs, but it was good. I got there 15 minutes late instead of 25, remembering how to get there from Mount Royal metro (though apparently it's faster from the Sherbrooke stop) The meditation exercise at the end had us stand up and make swimming motions with her arms. Last week's was about lying down and breathing, being aware of one's breath but not actively controlling it. This was an interesting and not-too-easy mental balance to achieve - usually I'm not paying attention to breathing, and when I am, it's to control it (whether while singing or trying to calm down/focus). 220712 ... e_o_i edits ...swimming motions with OUR arms. We didn't all approach some random Her and move her arms around. (Athena only has two and she's probably holding something, Shiva is tired of people fixating on hers, and girl!Cthulhu will transform you into a chaos_demon if you touch her.) 220712 ... e_o_i None today because I was puppy-sitting while Mom and Dad drove to the country to pick blueberries. But I found the Vistaprint password and finally got the artisan-fair flyers for this year designed and printed! They'll arrive before the smaller summer fair, phew. I'd put off ordering them for too long. Washed some clothes as well. Took Shiloh for a walk. All of which are not yoga. But I feel a random need to account for my time spent not yogaing. 220716 ... I am e_o_i hear me roar "Hello, world. I was mildly organized." 220716 ... e_o_i Started up again, only in Jeanne-Mance Park instead of Lafontaine. B. called me and let me kno,w after saying I should have checked the Facebook event. "Jeanne-Mance, do you know where that is?" Confusion: did I? Someplace east, someplace even farther? And then it clicked: the park on Parc street, next to Mount Royal. Poses: uncertain, wobbly. But determined to be strong. 220825 ... e_o_i corrects and answers herself Weirdest comma error ever. Sure, K., just put them INSIDE words now. Why not. This morning, my arms and legs were a little sore. Why do I get sore from yoga but not extensive walking (except temporarily sore_feet)? Less-used muscle groups, probably. I was also like that when I tried to take up swimming again. 220826 what's it to you? who go blather from