A poem for those who love cats, and also, strangely enough, one for those who don't!
I COULD PEE ON THIS
Her new sweater doesn't smell of me
I could pee on that.
She's gone out for the day and
left her laptop on the counter
I could pee on that
Her new boyfriend just pushed
my head away
I could pee on him.
She's ignoring me ignoring her
I could pee everywhere
She's making up for it
by putting me in her lap
I could pee on this
I could pee on this
from I COULD PEE ON THIS, AND OTHER POEMS BY CATS
by Francesco Marciuliano
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Thumbrint
Just a poem this week, by Eve Merriam
THUMBPRINT
In the heel of my thumb
are whorls, whirls, wheels
in a unique design:
mine alone.
What a treasure to own!
My own flesh, my own feelings.
No other, however grand or base,
can ever contain the same.
My signature,
thumbing the pages of my time.
My universe key,
my singularity.
Impress, implant,
I am myself,
of all my atom part I an the sum.
And out of my blood and my brain
I make my own interior weather,
my own sun and rain.
Imprint my mark upon the world,
whatever I shall become.
THUMBPRINT
In the heel of my thumb
are whorls, whirls, wheels
in a unique design:
mine alone.
What a treasure to own!
My own flesh, my own feelings.
No other, however grand or base,
can ever contain the same.
My signature,
thumbing the pages of my time.
My universe key,
my singularity.
Impress, implant,
I am myself,
of all my atom part I an the sum.
And out of my blood and my brain
I make my own interior weather,
my own sun and rain.
Imprint my mark upon the world,
whatever I shall become.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Movement and Fluids
When new clients come, I give out a welcome bag that includes a folder of articles about massage and health. I'm always looking for simple things that people can do and incorporate into their day that will keep them feeling better. There are at least a couple of software programs out there that you can get that will remind you when its time for you to take a movement break. So this was a fun find: http://www.undulationexercise.com/index.htm The exercise "the octopus" which is one of the free videos here, is one I include in my welcome pack. Anything that gets you up and moving during the day is a great tool to have on hand. The Octopus is especially great for hands and forearms. Do it mindfully and really feel into the movements for all the subtle changes and differences from side to side. For a little more on why movement is different than just stretching, and a couple of little poems, check out my blog posts for this week. Peace
Our bodies are wonderful and intricate living machines. I don't usually like to use that analogy, but for this discussion it's useful.
Our bodies are wonderful and intricate living machines. I don't usually like to use that analogy, but for this discussion it's useful.
Our bodies were designed for gentle, nearly continuous, movement for most of the hours in a day. Think of foraging across a landscape. Moving along and picking seeds and fruit. The system that propels us along, the vehicle in which we dwell, is largely hydraulic. The tissues and even ligaments are mostly water.
The "pump" in this system is two fold: the heart and the contraction of the muscles. So when we sit for too long, the muscles in the legs stop pumping fluids back up to the torso, which puts the burden of moving fluids all on the heart. This puts quite a strain on the heart and is one of the reasons sitting is so tiring.
Additionally, not all fluids in the body are pumped by the heart, this mostly includes the lymph, which relies solely on the movement of muscles to move it around. So when we sit for too long, lymph pools and can become sluggish, which is not a great thing in a system responsible for removing the gunk from the body.
One more thing that movement does is stimulate the production of synovial fluid. Everybody has had the experience of being a bit stiff when waking up, but then it works its self out in a few minutes. Part of that is that the fluid that keeps joints lubricated is produced by the lining of the joint capsule and is secreted only when the joint is moving!
So there you are, a thumbnail sketch of body hydraulics. Now, get up and undulate! It really only takes a few minutes of movement to undo hours of sitting, so get up and have a bit of a jig.
Peace
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Sing of the Earth and sky
Just a couple of quick poems to enjoy. Take a deep breath, relax, let your mind expand and release all the little hobgoblins...
Sing of the Earth and sky,
sing of our lovely planet,
sing of the low and high,
of fossils locked in granite.
Sing of the strange, the known,
the secrets that surround us,
sing of the wonders shown,
and wonders still around us.
Aileen Fischer
from Auguries of Innocence
To see a World in a grain of sand
And a Heaven in a wild flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
William Blake
peace
Sing of the Earth and sky,
sing of our lovely planet,
sing of the low and high,
of fossils locked in granite.
Sing of the strange, the known,
the secrets that surround us,
sing of the wonders shown,
and wonders still around us.
Aileen Fischer
from Auguries of Innocence
To see a World in a grain of sand
And a Heaven in a wild flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
William Blake
peace
Friday, May 3, 2013
circling arms, breath in
This week's topic is more about stretching. We're all pretty good with the simple flexion and extension of the limbs, but in the torso there are muscles that wrap around, and need a different approach. One of the simplest is a standing twist. T'ai Chi and Qi Gong players will know variations of this. This is also good for stretching tendons and ligaments in the hips; additionally it works the spinal column muscles and energizes that part of your body.
Standing with crown of head floating up and tailbone tucked under, soften the knees. Inhale. While you exhale twist around to look behind you. Keep the hips still and the feet flat on the floor. Don't strain. Twist as far as you comfortable can, then slowly and easily return to center while inhaling. Repeat to the other side. Continue as long as you like. To get additional benefits you can add the arms. For those directions, go to my blog and read the very first entry, Circling arms, breath in. Be well!
The addition of the arm movements that go along with the spinal twisting motion work to open the chi channels in the shoulders, and are all some form of circling. Some circles are bigger, and some are smaller,deeper or shallower. Since I am not a T'ai Chi instructor this is just a synthesis of various styles I have practiced.
The breath is key,as it is in all aspects of life. The free and easy flow of breath signals the body that all is well; so if during these movements, or during a massage, you find your breath is strained, or held, release it and the tension will start to flow out and be replaced by more fluid movement in your body.
Standing looking forward, allow the top of the head, the crown, to float up. Tuck the tailbone under. This straightens the spine. You can start with your hands facing your lower abdomen, palms a few inches out from your body. As you twist to the right the right arm circles out and down and the breath goes out. At the apogee of the circle which is also the end of the twist, scoop with your hand. This can be very shallow, or more pronounced, the hand never rising more than about shoulder height; as you circle the arm forward and the torso returns to center, the breath comes in. The combination is this: the breath moves in as the right arm moves toward the (center of)the body, and out as the right arm moves away from the body.
The movements should be fluid and easy, the combination of breath and movement does a great deal to increase energy flow as well as the more grounded bodily fluids, loosens muscles and calms the nerves. One version of the movement is called Swimming Dragon. I like that image.
Standing with crown of head floating up and tailbone tucked under, soften the knees. Inhale. While you exhale twist around to look behind you. Keep the hips still and the feet flat on the floor. Don't strain. Twist as far as you comfortable can, then slowly and easily return to center while inhaling. Repeat to the other side. Continue as long as you like. To get additional benefits you can add the arms. For those directions, go to my blog and read the very first entry, Circling arms, breath in. Be well!
The addition of the arm movements that go along with the spinal twisting motion work to open the chi channels in the shoulders, and are all some form of circling. Some circles are bigger, and some are smaller,deeper or shallower. Since I am not a T'ai Chi instructor this is just a synthesis of various styles I have practiced.
The breath is key,as it is in all aspects of life. The free and easy flow of breath signals the body that all is well; so if during these movements, or during a massage, you find your breath is strained, or held, release it and the tension will start to flow out and be replaced by more fluid movement in your body.
Standing looking forward, allow the top of the head, the crown, to float up. Tuck the tailbone under. This straightens the spine. You can start with your hands facing your lower abdomen, palms a few inches out from your body. As you twist to the right the right arm circles out and down and the breath goes out. At the apogee of the circle which is also the end of the twist, scoop with your hand. This can be very shallow, or more pronounced, the hand never rising more than about shoulder height; as you circle the arm forward and the torso returns to center, the breath comes in. The combination is this: the breath moves in as the right arm moves toward the (center of)the body, and out as the right arm moves away from the body.
The movements should be fluid and easy, the combination of breath and movement does a great deal to increase energy flow as well as the more grounded bodily fluids, loosens muscles and calms the nerves. One version of the movement is called Swimming Dragon. I like that image.
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