AliThinks

And Then My Head Fell Off

Because I am going to France today, I woke up thinking about passports. Not mine, mine are valid and I know where they are. My kids' American passports, however, are either expired or about to expire.

This is something I've been procrastinating about because renewing the children's passports will require collaboration and cooperation with my ex-husband, which basically means that I must inform him that he's going to have to take both kids to the nearest consulate. I know he's not going to like that.

Poppy Fields' post about renewing her girls' passports brought the issue back to the "urgent" part of my brain.

If you want to know what a nightmare this is going to be, read on.

Shout Out

Today's my dad's birthday, and I doubt he's reading this, but Happy Birthday, Dad!

In an e-mail this morning I told him I have a card for him — I've had it for about two months — and that I'd send it this afternoon.

Oops.

So, um, yeah.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Untitled

There are those inexplicable things, those "you had to be there" moments in life, and most of the time they don't translate well to the written word. It is with this disclaimer that I am going to attempt to relate our lunch last Friday.

Allan and I were on our way to Pittsburgh for the weekend, and we chose to drive across route 64 to Charleston, West By God Virginia, then up route 79 to my hometown. We can drive up route 75 to 71 and halfway across Ohio to route 70, then across the other half of Ohio, through the West Virginia panhandle to Washington, PA, then up route 79 for 50 or so miles — but as I've written here before, Ohio will suck the soul right out of you, no matter which way you cross it.

So eastward on route 64 it was. We decided to stop for lunch close to Charleston, because beyond it on 79 there's not much happening except for mountainous curves and more mountainous curves until you get to the "Hi-Tech Corridor" of Clarksburg and Morgantown.

We were hungry by the time we crossed over into West Virginia, and we decided to stop at the Shoney's in Huntington. It sits next to a Golden Corral, but we thought we'd keep our Golden Corral eating record at zero, so Shoney's it was.

This One's For...

Betty C., who wanted to see photos.

Jeff, who wanted a photo of Pittsburgh.

My SIL, who wants me to update more often.

This is the loo at The Beehive on Pittsburgh's Southside. For more information about The Beehive (and a view of the men's room), click here.

Dichotomy

Lunch at Shoney's in Huntington, West Virginia.

Dinner at Seviche in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Too Cool!

I am using my iPod Touch to post this blog entry! I <3 technology.

The Bikram Yoga Challenge Recap

Well. It's over. Here's the rundown:

• I went 15 days in a row, then I took my "free" day.
• I wrote about being in between classes 18 and 19, then I took 5 days off.
• Yes, I said FIVE.
• I was VERY SORE and tired.
• I started back up, and thought about doubling up on classes in order to complete the challenge.
• That thought lasted about two hours.
• I took last Thursday and Friday off, but went on Saturday, the last day of the challenge.
• Here's a summary of what bikram yoga is, in case you've forgotten.

How do I feel? Sore and tired. Proud of myself for attending 22 classes in 30 days, but a little disappointed that I didn't complete the challenge. But I couldn't bear the thought of really hurting myself by pulling a muscle or injuring a joint, so I took the time off.

Have I lost any weight? A little, but I also gave myself license to be "bad" by using the yoga as my juicy rationalization of the day/week/month.

Will I go back? Most definitely. I plan to sign up for a 3-month unlimited pass, then go from there. During my last session, I made breakthroughs on some of the asana. I can't even explain how good that felt, both mentally and physically.

I have to take some photos today, so I can see the Before and After. First I have to dig up the same clothes I was wearing in the Before photos. I'm willing to share these with you, but only if you're a woman whom I trust. Sorry, guys! Sorry, random readers! Let me know if you'd like to see what 22 sessions of bikram yoga will do to a body.
 

More Seriously...

Le dernier poilu est mort.

Here's a story in English.

The Bacon's Bacon

Our Bacon, who art in Bacon,
Bacon be thy Bacon.
Thy Bacon come.
Thy Bacon be done,
On Bacon as it is in Bacon.
Give us this Bacon our daily Bacon.
And Bacon us our Bacon,
As we Bacon those who Bacon against us.
And Bacon us not into Bacon,
But Bacon us from Bacon.
For thine is the Bacon,
and the Bacon, and the Bacon,
for Bacon and Bacon.

Bacon

Special thanks to MBE, who made this up.

Quatre Heures

That's what the French call an afternoon snack, but it's also how many hours of sleep I got last night.

I wish I had something compelling to discuss. Like politics and sex scandals, or interactivity in Austin. Sadly, no. I have bikram yoga and my slackerdom.

Yesterday was my first day back after a five-day hiatus. Unless I go to two classes a day for the rest of the week, I won't complete the challenge. I was a little disappointed in myself for not going, but at the same time, I was incredibly sore, and I didn't want to injure myself.

Then we got snowed in, sort of, and yoga was canceled. Then it was the weekend. And we moved the clocks forward. And we had to have coffee with a friend who was in town for the day. You know how it is.

Yesterday afternoon I crashed for two hours, which may explain why I was awake until 1 am. Nothing explains the awake at 5 am part, because no one gets up at 5 am for pleasure. Do people do that? Never mind, I don't want to know.

There's not much else to say. It takes 21 days to make a habit, they say. Today's my 20th yoga class. I think I'll stay committed to it. You know, make it a habit.

Ow!

The yoga. It has kilt me.

My Very Own Tom Swifty

"We're just following ancient history," she said, adamantly.

Between 18 And 19

I know you're all dying for a yoga update.

As I write this, I'm about halfway between classes 18 and 19. You'll remember that I skipped Saturday, day 17. Sunday morning I realized that skipping a class had the dreaded effect on me: I was going to dread all future classes.

Add to this a certain soreness I didn't have before, and each morning I contemplate waiting until the afternoon class. But I did that Sunday; I waited until afternoon to do bikram yoga, and every single second was a bitch.

Before this morning's class (Tuesday, March 4, class 18, since I don't know when I will post this entry), I thought I'd just lie down in savasana if I needed to. I had to do so on Sunday afternoon for the first time in more than a week. But then during Awkward Pose (utkatasana), I was able to keep my arms raised for all three phases of the pose, for the first time EVER. I was pretty excited about that. (I dare you to raise your arms to shoulder level in front of you, tighten your biceps and triceps, and hold it for ± three minutes. Go on. I'll wait. You don't have to do the rest of the pose.)

With that little victory, I plodded on. I had a few twinges here and there, which I asked about after class. "Your muscles there are weak, and you're strengthening them" was the answer.

Okay, then. I do believe it. I've seen my arms and thighs get stronger in the past couple of weeks. But oh, the soreness. Arnica montana CH 6 is my friend.

It's true that the heat helps your body go beyond what it could do in a normal room, but I'm wondering if I should take it easy during class 19. Less trikonasana, more savasana. On the other hand, every little counts, to quote New Order*. I am challenging my body, but I do realize there are some things I can't yet do. I don't push it.

On verra, as the French say. I'll see how I feel during class.

PS: I'm in skinnier jeans.

*I love New Order. When it was released, this video struck all my senses.

March 4, 1936

That's the day my mother was born. She would be 72 today.

I miss her; it's hard to believe she will have been gone fifteen years next month.

Heureux

Heureux, originally uploaded by Alison.

Look at this cat. Is he not the cutest? He's sofa king cute, I can't stand it.

A Day Off

I didn't go to yoga today. So that's my "free" day of the challenge; remember, I have to go to 29 sessions in 30 days.

Why didn't I go? I was going to attend the afternoon session, but as morning became afternoon, I realized that my body was pretty tired and sore.

Tomorrow morning afternoon, however, I'm there.