Aspiration

I know I have been gushing about yoga lately, but I'm on a kick! I have been going four times a week, and it is helping me in so many ways! My new eventual goal is to become a certified yoga instructor and teach a couple classes here and there. That would be awesome.

Yogi Love

More wise words from my favorite teabag tabs:

I am beautiful, I am bountiful, I am blissful.

May this day bring you peace, tranquility and harmony.

Grace brings contentment.

The beauty of life is to experience yourself.

It's not life that matters, it's the courage that we bring to it.

Life is a flow of love; your participation is requested.

Let your heart guide you.

Let your heart speak to other hearts.

Feel great, act great and approve of yourself.

Experience the warmth and love of your soul.

Understanding is found through compassion.

Live to share.

Wisdom, character and consciousness conquer all.

Oneness is achieved by recognizing yourself.

When we practice listening, we become intuitive.

Listen and you will develop intuition.

Your Soul is your highest self.

Joy is the essence of success.

Open up to infinity and you become infinity.

Our intuition lies in our innocence.

Act selfless, you will be infinite.

Let love elevate your self to excellence.

Gratitude is the open door to abundance.

Your greatness is not what you have, it's what you give.

Love is where compassion prevails and kindness rules.

Compassion has no limit. Kindness has no enemy.

Let your manners speak for you.

Inspiring others toward happiness brings you happiness.

Meditation is the medicine of the mind.

Life is a chance. Love is infinity. Grace is reality.

Sweet Tooth?

My company loves to celebrate birthdays. We had to cut down on the amount of "cake parties" we have because these delicious celebrations were just getting too expensive. It reminds me of that Seinfeld episode where Elaine's company has a cake party for everything.

Well today was our CEO's cake party, so it was only necessary to go all out!

My sweeth tooth log:
2 pcs mango/strawberry pie (amazing)
1 c mango sorbet (refreshing)
1 bite of blueberry pie (not the biggest fan of blueberry pie)
4 oatmeal/butterscotch cookies (another batch still are hiding in the kitchen, so the total may go up!)

Yummmmmy! I'll be good tomorrow ;)

Only in NYC

Today, during my lovely lunch in Bryant Park with my friend Molly,
I was crapped on by a pigeon.

I am waiting for good luck... any day now...

Ladi da

Right now..
I am extremely bored.
I could use a snack.
I am excited for an industry party after work!
I want to try a new recepie from my new cook book.

Work it!
This morning I ran 4 miles! My legs hurt.
I did a headstand yesterday in Yoga, my neck almost snapped but I'm improving!

Jamin'
Led Zeppelin has been dominating my ipod lately!

Daydream
I have been thinking about a special someone all day today. He makes me smile :)

Oh Baby!

Confession: Sometimes, I have the biggest sweet tooth of anyone you have ever met.

There is the greatest little bakery on my block (trouble!) called Babycakes. Its a vegan bakery that makes the majority of its goodies gluten free and dairy free! I visit Babycakes once or twice a week, and I am always welcomed by the warm, cozy room and the sweetest smell you could imagine. There are always smiling ladies baking up a storm in their cute pink little outfits and white aprons. As I walk down my favorite block in the city, Orchard and Broome, I just can't resist the sweet taste of a warm vanilla cupcake and an agave sweetened brownie! Mmmm...

Wise Words

With my newfound "earthyness," I have been enjoying a variety of herbal teas by Yogi Tea. One thing I like about this type of tea, other than its rich flavor, is the tiny tab on each and every teabag that has a special message for each cup. I have started collecting the teabag tabs (call me corny) because I like the inspiration. Here are a few words of wisdom I'll share. More will come; I drink a lot of tea..

Your breath is the voice of your soul.

Your greatest strength is love.

Grace brings trust, appreciation, love and prosperity.

Live with reverence for yourself and others.

Keep up.

Live from your heart, you will be most effective.

Live for each other.

Where there is love, there is no question.

By honoring your words, you are honored.

Your head must bow to your heart.

When you know that all is light, you are enlightened.

Love has no fear and no vengeance.

Socialize with compassion, kindness and grace.

You are unlimited.

Now doesn't that just make you want to drink some tea and do some yoga?

Pretty Parks

I spend a lot of time in Union Square. I usually browse around the first ever Barnes and Nobles bookstore, or eat at a few different restaurants along the park, or go to the movies in the neighborhood. Union Square Park is small, but it has an amazing farmers market on the weekends where you can buy almost anything fresh!

Madison Square Park is so pretty. It is right by my nail salon, so I get to enjoy the view from across the street as I get a neck massage and wait for my nails to dry. In the middle of this park is the Shake Shack, which I hear has some of the best burgers, fries and milk shakes in the city. I thought that was an exhaggeration until I actually saw the line, a single-file 50 person line, just the other day for this place! Must be good!

Battery Park is full of many interesting statues, and the largest and most impressive of them all can be seen just across the water.

Washington Square Park is very cool because of all of the history that has occured there. A few scenes of the movie, "Across the Universe" were filmed in this spot, where several groups of people and riots gathered to protest the war. My boyfriend and I spent some time one afternoon in this park, observing all of the different people and culture that surrounded us.

Bryant Park is lovely. I work a block away, so I enjoy lunch in the park whenever I can. There is a big grassy spot in the middle where a few of us like to picnic on a blanket, and there are also tables to sit at as well. Several events are offered in the park like free yoga classes on Thursday nights, old movie viewings on a big screen on Monday nights, and excerpts from Broadway productions during the lunch hour on some days. I just love it!

In Central Park:

Sheeps Meadow is such a relaxing place where you can just lay in a grassy field surrounded by far-away buildings for hours to people watch, throw frisbees, picnic, read, catch some rays and enjoy the day. It's always packed with people and I would metaphorically consider it Central Park's nice public beach.

The Zoo is so fun! I couldn't believe there is a zoo in Central Park! I took my sister there and we arrived just in time to see the seals being fed. They will do almost anything to have a fish thrown in their mouths! There were also several funny red-butt monkeys and one sleepy polar bear.

Strawberry Fields is the John Lennon memorial spot in Central Park, where all is quiet and fresh flowers almost constantly surround the tiled concrete with the word he is most remembered by. I took this picture when I went my first time, where the silent scene was surrounded by fans paying their respects to the talented artist.

The Belvedere Tower is gorgeous, and if you climb the narrow stairs to the top and step onto the balcony, the view of Central Park will take your breath away.

I have so much more exploring to do!!

Wedding Bells

While I was home in May, I was fortunate enough to be part of one of my best friend's wedding! Every detail about the whole day was planned out beautifully. Above is her something old, new, borrowed and blue, as well as the gorgeous green and white flowers she carried down the isle. There was even a candy bar will a nice selection of green sweets delicately arranged on a table during the reception, which I found myself at several times throughout the night. It was quite an event, and it was great to see two of my good friends celebrate their lives together.

Pair-o-Pugs

I think Pugs are so funny and cute! Whenever I see someone walking a Pug, there is always more than one! I am not sure if this is the norm, but I have seen about twenty pairs of Pugs walking around the city. It is so funny to me! Maybe they need each other's company or something. This picture was taken when my sister was in town, at one of my favorite vintage shoe stores, Girls Love Shoes.

ick!

There are many things that I will never understand about Chinatown. This tiny community does not seem to understand proper subway etiquette, yielding to people traffic or even common courtesy. For example, when subway doors open, the polite thing to do would be to wait until everyone gets out before you step into the cars. In this particular subway station, people will literally knock you off your feet if you aren't careful, trying to make their way onto the cars before anyone steps off! One time I saw three dead hogs just laying in the back of a truck bed on my way to work! Another personal favorite: the hanging ducks in store windows. It makes me feel like I am taking crazy pills!

Yesterday I was on my way home from the subway on Grand street and I was chased for three blocks by a snot-rocketing Chinese man! I sped up my pace as I heard him blowing his nose with his hand and shooting it onto the street! Just when I thought I'd lost him, my foot splashed into a puddle of fish water that had dripped through the sidewalk from the pile of dead fish stacked up in a cardboard box! Gross! I ignored all street lights, flying across the street to get away from the hustle and bustle and the disgusting stench of the fish market.

A new day; a note about gratitude

I woke up with a feeling of gratitude this morning, after a long day yesterday that ended with me purging some of my negative emotions through tears. Ironically, the heat wave that had made me even more irritable for the past four days came to a dramatic end with a huge thunderstorm and bolts of lightening all across the city sky. (Since unfortunately there are no stars above the city, that was the most action the night sky has seen ahile).

Last night, my yoga teacher asked us at the end of class to find two things to be thankful for, the first being something easy and the second benig a little bit more difficult. I was thankful that I brought myself to class and that my instructor helped me find a way to breathe and just "let go." The hard part was being thankful for the challenges I've faced during my time here on my own. There is a new challenge with each day, which comes with something new to learn.

Today is a new day, the calm after the storm and rage of yesterday. I threw on my gym shoes and went for a run. The air was light and breezy and it was nice to hear the leaves on the trees whistling. The icing on the cake was an email that I got in my inbox this morning. It was a Christian email of encouragement that I get every once in awhile and usually only read if I get some extra downtime. But today it was the first email I opened, and it totally spoke to me! It's like God is giving me a little kick or something.

So now I am very thankful for this new day, for all of my blessings, and hopefully for my new attitude toward many new things.

One of those days

Today was just one of those days... I don't know how to explain it, but everything just seemed to get to me. I need a few things to make me smile:

going for a run then some yoga
a tasty little snack
fresh air, even though its 95 today
thinking about that special someone
talking to my silly sister
jammin to some tunes
getting into bed early
quiet time, perhaps a good book

I wish there were more hours in the day. I'll remain hopeful and maybe tomorrow will be better!

Yoga Challenge

My friend and I have decided to go to a yoga class every day for this whole week. I'm a little nervous, as I am extremely soar from the first class we took. I had my friend all hyped up about the teacher and the class, and the whole mind and body experience, and there ended up being a substitute teacher that day who seriously kicked both our asses. It was the hardest hour of my life as I dove into poses I'd never even heard of and tried to translate the entire class that was basically taught in Sanskrit! My friend and I exchanged glances of agony as sweat dripped off our faces and onto our slippery mats.

The second class was fabulous! The teacher brought so much positive energy to the room and began the class with the liberating news that she didn't care if we all laid on our backs the whole time! As long as we were able to make an inner connection and feel good, she'd be happy.. and so was I!

El Verano

Summer is in full force with a heat wave reaching up to 97 today! This weekend we broke out the sun dresses, slapped on the SPF and sat on the roof. My friends and I had so much fun celebrating a birthday at Cuba in the West Village. It was a swanky little place that seemed tiny but actually had a romantic back room where we sat, as well as a basement with another bar where we enjoyed a round of drinks on the house. After a few drinks, I busted out my Spanish (typical) to the bar tender, Eduardo, as we all got into the live salsa music that gave even more life to the ambiance of the place.

Love in the air

This weekend I fell in love all over again with a very special guy! We had so much fun together and connected as if no time had passed at all. I also remembered how much I truly love being home in the company of my family and close friends.

It was really hard to say goodbye to everyone this time when I headed back to NYC. My brother said that now he understands why my mom and aunts used to cry when they had to say goodbye to each other after nice week visits, only to jump into the Van and drive 12 hours back to Alabama. We're growing up now and we all have our own busy lives, and sometimes it seems like time is passing way too fast. Its sad to think about being so far away from the people who I love most in my life, yet I am constantly reminded how greatful I am for this life-changing experience. I love New York, but a few more trips back home to Indiana couldn't hurt.