Because I’m a dot-dot-dot

Tags

backpacking, claustrophobia, Egypt, giant flat screen TV, kirtan, Luxor, pedicure, pyramids of Giza, salsa, Valley of the Kings, vodka martinis, wandering sadhu, wilds of nature, Yoga

Had a bit of a HUGE night out last night, most unexpectedly. Catching up with an old workmate (in town from Sydney) I haven’t seen in almost six years. There were vodka martinis involved, and towards the end of the night a very fun-loving woman I’d met only ten minutes earlier was trying to hook me up with some very inappropriate men. Men, quick, run the other way!! I don’t date anymore, doesn’t she know that? Haha!

It was a rather late night out, and combined with alcohol (which I rarely touch these days), today I am wiped. I was meant to be going out tonight but instead I’m mouching around my apartment, feeling a little fluey and just a touch avoid-y about writing the things I REALLY need to write about.

So instead, you get this. Which I borrowed from Rachel. Who in turn borrowed it from others. Because it’s fun and because otherwise I wouldn’t be writing anything here at all.

1. The most adventurous thing I’ve ever done is… I don’t know if this is the MOST adventurous thing, but it’s what I want to write about right now. Many years ago I visited Egypt with my then-boyfriend. I think I was 22 or 23. We had two weeks in this mad, wild and ancient place and I loved every minute of it. I hope I get to go back some day!
   I’m trying to remember if it was at the Pyramids of Giza or down in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, but I found myself going into this (once) secret passage-way inside of some dusty old tomb. Thing is – getting into the secret passage-way required lying on one’s back and shimmying underneath a thick stone wall. The space inside was not terribly generous either. I did it without thinking and ever-after I’ve had this feeling of claustrophobia whenever I think of what I did.
2. If I were a pair of shoes I would be… as close to barefoot as possible, while still being relatively stylish (think painted toenails and a pedicure) and something you can take backpacking around the world. I dunno what kind of shoe that is, but yeah!
3. My preferred mode of digital communication is… well, it used to be email. But these days I find it easier to reply to tweets than emails. Oh uhhh, and then there’s this blog I have…
4. I feel happiest when… I’m singing (kirtan, so it’s a shame about tonight), dancing (at a live music gig, salsa or belly-dancing etc), and doing yoga. Also, whenever I’m in the wilds of nature. Oh. Yes.
5. A little dream I have for my life is to… ummm, I actually find this one a little challenging right now. It’s been a while since I allowed myself to have dreams for my life at all, and I’m still not real good with that. But here’s one: living somewhere in Asia, teaching yoga and perhaps being a freelance writer and published author. Living a very simple and joyous life, with not a single giant flat screen TV in sight. Yep, that’ll do.
6. The one modern convenience I could NOT do without is… Yup, the internet! A little while ago, I wrote this tweet: “Y’know, I really wouldn’t mind the life of a wandering sadhu. As long as I could keep my internets”.
7. Music, movies, TV or books: if I could only choose one to enjoy I would pick… music of all kinds. Beautiful vocals, instrumental stuff, tribal drumming music and everything in-between. Except for metal and country. Not really my thing!

~Svasti

Kudos & house guests

Tags

antique coffin, bellydance, blog award, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, cat flu, Cleo, cranky horse, cursive writing, Dead Can Dance, Egypt, Espy Hotel, handwriting, house guest, Interview with the Vampire, late night contemplation, Meme, Miss Cleopatra the Cat, pyramids of Giza, Rockwiz, snoring, True Blood, vampires, whoosh, Yulunga

Its been busy over here in Svasti-land, where yoga teacher training swallows my Saturdays whole (takes the rest of the week to digest every succulent morsel), and a family visit on Sunday which should’ve taken up only 65% of my waking day instead took the whole dang thing (result of train break downs and seemingly generous offer of a ride from parental unit, but oh, we’ll drop you and your bike off at a train station as close as possible to us and as far as possible from your place). Its my fault, I shouldn’t have assumed they’d do otherwise.

Yup, the weekend went whoosh!

Consequently, not much writing was done, even though on Friday my wonderful-super-special-lotus-book arrived (from the marvellous Karin). I love it!! And to introduce it to its new home, I’ll take it sightseeing (for inspiration) and some happy snaps of my little treasure seeing some of the landmarks of Melbourne-town.

Here it is this morning, catching a tram to work with me… more photos to come (in another post)!

(You can click on all pics to enlarge)

It was rather foggy this morning

And… for the next week I have a house guest! He’s the 23 year old son of one of my fellow yoginis. In fact, she and I shared a bamboo hut together for four weeks in Thailand last year where I inflicted her with my snoring on a nightly basis, poor thing. Maybe sending me her son is payback?

Nah! 😉

He’s here from Brisbane (major climate difference to deal with) doing some work experience in sound engineering, interning with the Guy in Charge of Sound for Rockwiz – which is filmed in the iconic and handily positioned Espy Hotel.

Lucky thing!

He arrived Monday night, so there’s been plenty of good hostess duties going on and yup, not much time for writing (except when I’m at work where there’s little else to do! Haha…)

Blog lurvvvve

Seems I’ve won the jackpot of blogger-friend love, with BlissChick, Brooks & Linda-Sama all listing me as fellow blog award folks for the exact same award!

This is it!

Personally, I think that’s kinda cool to be triple tagged. They’re all very special chicks, so I am honoured!

And I also think that given this warm three-sided embrace (nothing dirty here folks, move along!) I should respond. But hey, you’re only getting one lot of seven things from me.

Tidbits about me I haven’t told you before (I think) x7

1. Call it the curse of being taught cursive writing in primary school, but I have two types of “E”, “s” and “F/f” that I produce in my handwriting. I never know which one I’m going to use until it arises. This is what they look like…

Notice the variations on F, S and E! (This is really how I write)

2. Sunday night when I really needed some sleep, instead I was kept wide awake with contemplations on the nature of fire, fiery natures, anger and sex. All topics I’m chewing on at present. There might be a post or two in there somewhere and I’ll share with y’all sometime (perhaps).

3. I’ve got a bit of a thing for vampires and own the entire series of both Buffy and Angel on DVD. Plus season one of True Blood (awesome show). I dream of them every now and then, and it’s always an adventure.

4. I was once stood on by a very cranky horse. While I was on holiday in Egypt, believe it or not. We were planning a jaunt around the pyramids of Giza – my boyfriend on a camel and me on a horse. I’d been persuaded this particular horse was okay to ride even though I really didn’t think he was. So we start riding and the horse was definitely not okay. He veered away from where we were meant to be going, wouldn’t respond to riding commands, dumped me in a puddle and came back around to stand on my left inner thigh. For the rest of the trip, I had an enormous bruise which was a little tough to explain at the swimming pool!

5. My very first ever belly dance performance was held as part of a very fun dress up night one of my ex-boyfriends and I organised when the movie Interview with the Vampire premiered (see point 3). We organised approximately forty people to head to the movie all dressed up like vampires, arriving in style in stretch limos.

Yes, I'm in this photo somewhere...

After the movie we wandered a few blocks from the city to Darlinghurst. There, we’d booked out the entire upstairs area of a fantastic Indian restaurant in a gothic styled building. A friend brought an antique coffin (of course) as a center piece.

A coffin, candelabra & plenty of gothicness

We had a quartet of violinists (buskers we’d met on the street) playing as people arrived. And my debut bellydance performance was there, among that environment. I danced to one of my favourite tunes, Yulunga by Dead Can Dance, and I absolutely loved it!

That's me with the veil!

6. As a result of much dancing, performing and teaching others, I developed a theory about human movement (I later realised its not an original observation at all – just tapping into existing knowledge in the world). Its especially clear when people dance – most people either move with their head/neck/genitals/limbs only, or head and heart plus limbs/genitals. Very few people move with their whole body, or sense their lower torso. Even fewer have the ability to isolate the muscles in this area.

Its no coincidence that the lower torso is where we store suppressed emotions and fears. They live in the body until we work with them, and/or they make us sick. Bellydancing especially is great for liberating that part of the body and its one of the reasons I like teaching men as well as women to shake their thang.

I also firmly believe that all kids should be taught to dance and learn at a young age so they avoid feeling self-conscious.

7. Last week Miss Cleopatra (Cleo) the Cat decided it was a good time for a dose of cat flu. Which caused a lot of worry and necessitated a trip to the vet. The vet of course, informed me she also needs approximately $500 worth of dental work in the next couple of months. Sigh.

Payin’ it forward…

You’re also meant to pass this on to seven other people. For the first time in ages, I’m playing along. But only coz there’s some people I’d like to learn a little more about…

• Holly from Earth to Holly
• Christa from Giggle On!
• Amanda from Anthroyogini
• Mama Dharma
• Clinically Clueless
• Caroline of Laughing Yogini
• Jaliya of A Post-Cynical Seer (and a couple of other blogs too)

~Svasti