Loving right now

Just a short listing post today, all about things I love today.

Foods:
*Target's house brand fruit leather strips. They're really delicious, guys!
*Pistachios
*Quiche. More on this tomorrow...

Knits:
*socks on the needles
*also this:

I heart Aran by Tanis Lavallee. I really can't wait for exams to be over so that I can cast on. It is going to be my reward.

Books:
*Louise Erdrich's The Master Butchers Singing Club (I don't know if it's just that fiction is such a huge contrast from everything else I'm reading or what, but this book just seems like the best thing ever, and I spend all day looking forward to climbing in bed at night and reading a chapter.)
*deJong, et al, eds. Narrators, Narratees, and Narratives in Ancient Greek Literature - so many great ideas bubbling around in my head because of this one.

Workouts:
*I did lots and lots of yoga last week, and I feel really strong as a result. I mean, my back is sore because I keep going back and forth between amazing yoga classes and then sitting in a chair for 4 hours at a time, but the yoga part is truly wonderful and is probably helping my back feel less awful than it would otherwise.

Things:
*New e.l.f. eyeshadow in a very flattering shade of pink called "Sweet"
*Gold glitter ballet flats, worn nonstop

People:
*My wonderful friends
*My hilarious siblings

What are you loving today?

Brown and Blue

Like black and blue, but way more awesome. Also, hi! I'm still alive. And I'm even knitting. Check it out.

This is a trellis scarf on the needles in Madelinetosh, shade Vanilla Bean.

Glorious STR sock yarns. The one on the left is being (VERY VERY SLOWLY) knit into a pair of River Rapids socks.

What are you up to? Tell me an exciting story.

FO: owl

Here is something I made:

Pattern: Owls Two Ways by Ana Clerc

Yarn: Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Fjord Heather and some goldenrod colored Vanna's Choice acrylic, plus some scraps of white and brown for the eyes

Needles: US4s, I think

Verdict: super cute! I would definitely make this again. Plus, Gus approves. More importantly, so do the soon-to-be-parents whose baby I knit this for. 

In other news, exams studying is kicking my butt right now. Today was one of those "I'm overtired and feeling like a totally unbalanced human because I haven't done any yoga or knitting all week plus my house is a mess, so I'm going to sob over having to wash the dishes" kind of days. Thankfully, I have some amazing friends, which means I got an afternoon coffee break and some good conversation. And there are socks on the needles, they're just not getting any attention.  Hopefully the knitting will pick up soon. 

Now, back to reading!

Goings-on

Things are really busy right now!  This week is turning out to be like a list of daily tasks

*coffee, coffee, coffee
*yoga
*reading the heck out of a lot of books
*a little bit of knitting start-itis, to be shared soon
(and by "a little bit" I mean I've started two new projects in the last 24 hours)
*lunch with friends
*walking a whole lot
*cooking quick meals
*cleaning things
*dessert
*sleep

What's new with you?

Spring in my step

Photos from my walk around the neighborhood today: it was so lovely out, even with a bit of a chill in the wind.

Are there signs of spring where you live?

On the needles: Party Socks

Yarn: Fame Trend in colorway Party - actually this is not true, because the label reads: Color 656 Party S566, which means "Party" is equivalent to "Dye Lot". But I am still calling them party socks.
Needles: US 1 (2.25mm) dpns
Pattern: simply stockinette, ribbed cuff

What are you working on?

[practicing kindness] lead with the heart

I've said it before, but I'll gladly say it again: my favorite yoga teacher hits the nail on the head pretty much every class. This week we were working through a couple of ways to strengthen our Surya Namaskar (sun salutation) sequence, and she shared the best little tidbit. I have to pass it along.

Surya means sun, and Hinduism holds that the seat of the sun within the body is in the heart.  

The seat of the moon is in the brain/head.  

The sun is constant, but the moon is fickle.  

When you practice, lead with the heart, get the head to follow along, and let the body take care of itself.

If you're like me, you know it's all too easy to let the brain take the lead, and that can create a lot of problems with confusion, self-contradiction, and - worst of all - a real lack of kindness toward the self.  Most often, I would say, the reason I'm blaming or berating myself is because I determined some ideal outcome with my head and wasn't able to bring it about, and I start to feel like nothing I do is good enough, when instead I could have chosen to act from the heart without expectation and be content or even happy with whatever outcome came my way, because I could know my motivations were the best I could make them. 

So here's my little challenge for practicing kindness this week - what about leading with the heart and really letting the true essence or purpose of yourself be the way you approach the world around you?  What about choosing from a place of authenticity and emotion instead of calculation and caution?

I'd love it if you'd share your thoughts or plans in the comments.