Divine Play

Last night, our yoga teacher started class by talking about lila.

Lila (pronounced "layla," I believe) is the Sanskrit word for divine play. Sure, yoga has a lot to do with perfection – the perfect pose, the perfect alignment. But it should also be fun.

A practice focused on divine play is just that. It's not about comparing yourself to the person next to you, or beating yourself up because you are falling out of a pose*. It's accepting where you are now and being okay with it. And furthermore – having fun with it.

That's a nice reminder for life too, isn't it? Sure, we should be striving to be better and looking to the future... but that can be exhausting. At least, that's what I've found. Comparing ourselves to others. Worrying we're not good enough. Wondering if we're on the right track. Second guessing. Feeling inadequate.

Being present is an intention I've had for myself for quite a while. I've probably written that phrase here more than a few times. But being reminded of that last night – after a tough week at work, feelings of inadequacy personally and professionally, a birthday weekend spent with my couch and DVR and overall just meh feelings lately – was refreshing.

Stop obsessing over where you could be or should be.
Look at where you are. Be grateful. Enjoy it. Have fun.

* To be fair, I did beat myself up for not getting the headstand last night.

** The picture is from my PNW trip (which I swear I'll blog about someday...). We were in Vancouver for just one day, and I was having regrets over not doing enough research on the city and worried we weren't making the most of our time there (as well as anxiety over getting lost, as my cell phone had limited map/calling functions). But Melanie asked a server for a neighborhood and bar recommendation, and we ended up spending the afternoon in Gastown buying too many Canada souvenirs. We stopped at this swanky bar, Chill Winston, even though I'm pretty sure we were both in yoga pants. We sat outside on the patio, even though it was probably too cold for patio weather and it was empty – they weren't even playing any music out there. We turned on a jazz Pandora station, ordered wine and champagne (because, why not!) and people watched under string lights as the sun went down in the city. It was a glorious, unexpected, unplanned evening. 

PNW Packing Inspo

Am I Crazy?

Can someone from the PNW area tell me if this is crazy?

Day 1	Fly in to Portland
Day 2	Full day in Portland
Day 3	Drive 1 hr to Columbia River Gorge for the morning; 4 hr to Seattle for the evening
Day 4	Full Day Seattle
Day 5	Drive 3 hours to Rainier for the day; 3 hours back to Seattle
Day 6	Morning in Seattle; Drive 3 hours to Vancouver for evening
Day 7	Full day ferry trip to Vancouver Island / Victoria
Day 8	Full day in Vancouver
Day 9	Long drive w/ stops in Olympic Park and coast, to Astoria
Day 10	morning in Astoria, 4 hrs to Eugene for the evening
Day 11	Eugene / OR exploration
Day 12	Eugene / OR exploration
Day 13	Fly home out of Portland

Choose Epic

“If you’re stuck between two choices, choose the epic one.” 

 - Jenny Chambers

image via kateheartscake

Trip Planning

And a glass of red wine to get me in the rainy, fall, West Coast mode. 

NOLA?

Already looking forward to the next few months - what, with the lake, annual softball tournament, Loufest, Roots and Blues, a epic trip to the Pacific Northwest and more - but today, my sister suggested a NOLA weekend in February. 

The idea has my head spinning. It complicates my plan to do an exotic NYE (although the holiday vacation is perfectly suited for that) and a trip to Greece... But I don't care. I love NOLA, I love trip planning and I love my sister. 

Oh Yeah, I Went To Savannah In April

In April, I visited the lovely, albeit humid, city of Savannah for a girls' weekend with my mom, sister, sister-in-law and niece. It was much too fast, and much too rainy, but a wonderful time.

We walked for coffee, visited the playground at Forsyth Park and sauntered down the tree-lined streets with beers in hand (open containers, for the win!). We walked along the riverfront, and the (slightly terrifying) old steps. We basically had Thanksgiving dinner at Paula Deen's restaurant, except with fried chicken instead of turkey.

We stayed in an airbnb rental right outside City Market, where we lunched, drank peach sangria, listened to live music, visited Wet Willie's (three times...) and ran in the rain with our pizza-to-go from VinnieVanGoGo's.

We drove to Tybee Island and relaxed on the beach, saw the lighthouse (but didn't go in) and feasted on a seafood boil – and my first crab legs! – at The Crab Shack.

Savannah is a lovely old city, and too much to explore / eat / drink in such a short amount of time. Can't wait to get back there someday.

Now taking suggestions for Girls' Weekend 3.0. I'm thinking classic New England (Boston, Baltimore, Connecticut-ish).

2016

I'm thinking Greece, DC, Austin for SX again, North Carolina, Colorado or Wyoming and maybe a weekend in the Caribbean. 

What do you think? Doable? 

Some SXSW Favorites

It's been almost a month, and I'm still trying to process everything that happened at SX. In the meantime, here are some of my favorite photos, completely without context:

Savannah 2015

Flight is booked.
Airbnb reservation confirmed. (Here's where we're staying.)
Pinterest board made.

It'll be a quick weeekend, but worth it to see my mom and sister and niece and sister-in-law, and explore a new, beautiful city.

Travel in 2015

We're only two months into 2015 and I already have all my travel plans set for the year. (Seriously, do not even try suggesting another trip to me  – even if it's "just" a long weekend!)

I was just in DC this past weekend for my niece Willa's first birthday, but that wasn't much a trip. 

1. The weather. It snowed 8 inches. And we got a flat tire. 
2. The trip was just for babysitting and Willa's birthday party. We didn't get out much. 

For the others, I've already got the Pinterest boards set up, the AirBNB wishlists saved and all the city guides I can find bookmarked. I heard once that we release more endorphins planning for vacation than we do while we're actually on them, and I'm sure that's true for me. #overplanneranonymous

Austin for six days in March for SXSWi. Technology, digital trends and all the tacos I can eat.

Savannah in April for a girls' weekend with my mom, sister, sister-in-law and niece. Average temperature range in April is 56-80, which is everything to me right now. 

Finally, making the trip to Nashville for a bachelorette party in May. Now, to buy cowboy boots or to not buy cowboy boots.

Summer weekends at the Tablerock Lake with my friends and family, including a longer trip when my sister, brother-in-law and niece visit in July.

This one is still tentative – but hopefully a weekend in DC in August to (you guessed it) visit my sister, brother-in-law and niece. Most trips to DC are overwhelmed with family, and it doesn't feel like I really get to see the city (or more importantly, brunch). Plus, I have never been to DC in the summer so it'll be nice to actually go outside!

And finally – this is the big one – a 10-12 day trip to the Pacific Northwest (Oregon, Washington, B.C. Canada). I'm nicknaming this trip "wine, beer and waterfalls."

This all seems overwhelming (for my wallet and time off work), but sadly, it doesn't even cover where I wish I was going. There's no weekend in Memphis. Or a trip out to North Carolina's Outer Banks to visit my brother and sister-in-law (which I'm totally bummed about). Or a non-work summer trip to Austin. My Pacific trip doesn't extend far enough south to see the Redwoods or Napa Valley or San Francisco. And I always say that a yearly trip to Colorado is good for my soul. There's no exotic beach vacation. And there's no trip abroad.

Alas, there's always 2016.

Worth Waiting For

Picked up a copy of AFAR Magazine at the airport in DC this weekend, and besides it being awesome, there was this great, thought-provoking little sidebar on waiting in lines:

I once waited in line for an hour to use a Times Square bathroom. For fun. As a public relations stunt, Charmin toilet paper had installed custom stalls, a VIP rope, and a lounge. Honestly, I never wanted to get out of that line. When someone finished their business, we all cheered like proud parents. We danced to the Cha-Cha-Cha Charmin jingle with a Charmin bear. I argued the superiority of Angel Soft with total strangers. Then I went to the bathroom. We built a little community. We bonded, we partied, we celebrated our willing roles in this grotesque manifestation of capitalism, and then we went our separate ways.  

Lines are a nuisance to everyone, right? But having grown up in New York City, I’ve never thought of them that way. 

To me, lines provide order and a slower pace. I first read what has become my favorite book over four visits to Shake Shack. Lines unite people around a cause. Many people think waiting for a Cronut is silly, but do you know who doesn’t? Every damn person in line for a Cronut! Lines are even a bit romantic. I had my best-ever first date waiting for cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery. We stood shoulder to shoulder for an hour, flirting and filling awkward pauses with our excitement for red velvets.  

I say: Isn’t everything in life worth waiting for?

Looking Back: Roots N Blues 2014

Just came across this video recap of 2014 Roots N Blues in Columbia, Mo. Last year's festival blew me away, and I can't wait for 2015. I'm curious to see what musicians they book this year, since last year they drew big names like Avett Brothers, Amos Lee, Trampled By Turtles and Lake Street Dive. I can only imagine that this year will be even better.

Early bird tickets – $89 for a 3-day pass – are available now.

Thanksgiving in North Carolina

It's almost Christmas, so it's a little bit late for me to be finally posting about my Thanksgiving trip to North Carolina. Alas... here it is.

The long weekend was mostly spent in the car. Driving to NC. Driving to Will's base. Driving to and from Will and Abby's house to our beachfront condo at Topsail Beach. Driving to Onslow Beach for family photos. Driving to Wilmington. Driving back to Topsail Beach. Driving back to St. Louis.

I don't love cars, and I was sick on the way home, so that sucked.

But beyond that, it was a wonderful weekend spent with family. Playing with my niece, Willa. Watching movies. Cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Visiting the USS North Carolina in Wilmington. Walks on the beach. Bowling, even. And all of the trumps a fever and car sickness.

One morning, I woke up early to go see the sunrise. I've been thinking about sunrises a lot lately. Someone said to me recently that "the best thing about sunsets is that there will be another one tomorrow." It occurred to me the this is the same for sunrises, but that I don't take advantage of it nearly enough. We've all seen a bazillion beautiful sunsets, but how many beautiful sunrises have you seen?

Well, now I can add another to my (short) list. I woke up, walked across the street to Topsail, and took in a lovely, albeit chilly, sunrise. I picked up a few seashells. I even saw dolphins. I kid you not. I have photo evidence. Cheesy as it sounds, it was all pretty magical.