Of course I didn't practice yesterday. I actually woke up and considered it... then I thought I would be stupid to even try it. My liver was probably so strung out from the consumption of alcohol and the horrible food I ingested that I might send it over the edge were I to get on the mat. Truth be told, I have cheated this month and did not take my Ladies Holiday. I was having so many good practices that I basically just said screw it and practiced anyway. Bad Bad Lady. Since, technically, I still had my moon on Thursday I figured I'd call it my Moon Day and stroke my ego for taking the rest. No one said your personal delusions had to be transparent. The ones we recognize and see are the best ones we make up, aren't they?

Work was grueling. I got another new project put on my plate that, apparently, "trumps" the previous fire I had. I go from one thing to another... always beta code.. always something to beat my head up with. I drove home through rush hour traffic in L.A. and Orange County... those of you local know the pain that emited... not to mention hours and hours in the car doesn't do a whole heck of a lot of good for one's hips.

So when I woke up this morning at 5, drank my caffeine, checked my email, did a bit of work... I thought to myself "Today isn't going to be as much fun as my recent practices have been. Today is the day the universe pays me back for Wednesday night's alcohol fest." Another hot practice. Last day of teacher training. I was just sorta getting used to the crowd, the energy and the vibe. I haven't been paying much attention to the teacher trainees during practice so I imagine it is just the rhythm of the waves of breath. I noticed this morning, I started about 4 sun salutations before everyone else, that the breath was this enormous wave of sound energy... at one point, while I was in Trikonasana I thought "WOW, if I was just standing on the corner I'd be looking all around me to see what is coming to take over."

I didn't get touched most of the practice today. I mention this only because practice is much more of an internal process when one isn't getting adjusted a lot. It's those times when you wake up a half hour later and wonder what mechanism spurred your body to pose after pose... and your brain has almost taken no notice. When Tim came to adjust me in Mari D I must have had some look on my face and he says "How was L.A.?" I said "Okay but too much alcohol." He says "Well, then, we need some liver cleansing." He pulled me in super tight and twisted me all the way around. The guy on the mat behind me caught my eye and gave me this incredulous look... or maybe he just thought "Exorcism" the way I do. By the time I finished Setu Bandhasana, I debated doing the rest of my practice. While I know it is traditional to do only first on Fridays, for the most part, those of us at the studio who aren't doing an intermediate or beyond practice tend to do our entire practice on Fridays anyway. Sunday is my first series day and since I know that regularly I miss days at the studio for various reasons, when I'm there, I try to do my whole practice... but today I considered Friday to be a nice excuse to withdraw my energy... I jumped flat footed out of habit... thought "Mhmm... Pasasana? Not Pasasana?" In the end, I'm just too used to it and don't feel "complete" without the rest of my practice so I went for it.

I know you are all waiting for today's Kapotasana whine. I have one. The Australian is gonna work me over in Kapotasana I can tell. Today he had me drop back to his ankles (grabbing his ankles with my hands) and try to extend through my arms and push my chest open. This was, well, painful. I don't think I ever straightened my elbows all the way but I can also tell that if I did that regularly things would open up. I referenced Vanessa's comment that once the head goes down you're done... The Australian agreed and said everything flattens out once the head goes down. He told me to start going back and walking my hands in. Kiran watched his adjustment and said my hands were just below my heels. I did it again after The Australian left... I am able to walk my hands in and grab to the same place on my own now. After I came out of it I was thinking about how hard I try to keep my elbows down and in. I put a lot of energy to my elbows in this pose... I noticed that a couple girls around me were grabbing their heels but letting their elbows come up and out. I wonder if, like backbending, I should take that approach and, once I can get comfortable in the pose, find the way to bring them back. I talked to Kiran a bit after my second attempt. I think one of the things happening for me is that I feel somewhat rushed. I know I'm gonna get adjusted in Kapotasana and I know once I drop back there it's coming... I'm in a state of near panic about it really... I know I can't "hold the pose" all that long, the crank in my lower back is too alarming... so I try to get it over with. I think if I felt I had more time to hang out down there maybe I could find the way to breathe. Something to mention before I'm adjusting in it again.

Another good backbending day. Standing up doesn't appear to be negotiable anymore... I'm still turning my feet out but I figure it is getting better and the only real way to go is in.

The Daughter had a "talent show" at her gymnastics summer camp right after practice. This camp isn't at her gymnastics gym and was more of a "fun for all" type camp. The teacher told me after the first day that The Daughter was light years more advanced than the other kids in the group but I explained that she does enough gymnastics and having her do some "fun" stuff was fine with me. She didn't seem to mind. So in the talent show, the kids had to run down a carpet and do something, I guess. 90% of the kids just ran and then did a forward roll. A couple girls tried cartwheels.. running...slowing down..maybe a half cartwheel... so when it was The Daughter's turn she's flying down the carpet.. I mean like full steam... and executes this beautiful, high, perfect cartwheel. The audience did a collective *GASP* (she was going really fast) and then a sign of amazement. One of the moms leaned over and said "She's going to be recuited for the Olympics! She's amazing!" She is amazing... and she is really advanced for her age... the other day her coach called me and told me she is being hand picked for a new special class. The new class is going to be a group of girls below team level but advanced for their ages, they are going to "groom" these girls for team. Well this has me scared to death. The Daughter loves gymnastics but I've always just assumed she'd get too tall or bored before we had to worry about team. I'm just not sure about team gymnastics. On the one hand I love the discipline, I love the skills, I love the innate sense of body those girls have. On the other, I worry about the overall "health" of those girls -- from knee injuries to hamstrings to eating disorders. I mean, clearly, The Daughter is 5 and not going to be on team for another 5 years at least... I've never heard in a single teacher, parent or coach even mention body type to any child at that gym and, to be honest, I've seen the team, not a single one of them looks unhealthy to me.... it could be just what I've heard about the Olympics, I don't know... I have to make that decision before next week. I think I'll let her do it... she loves it so much... and she's really good. I know how it feels to be 5, be really good at something and have parents who don't want to give you over to it. I always swore I wouldn't do that to my kid.. funny how those lessons present themselves in life, isn't it?