On September Suffering, On Refuge.

Bayou Teche, Louisiana, USA.  July, 2012 by Mix Hart
I chose this photo for this particular post for its serenity: a young blue heron on the bayou, amongst the graceful lotus blossoms--a true place of refuge for the mind.

I had a dream last night that made total sense of feminism and Buddhism. I dreamed that I was me but I was also a matriarchal, nurturing Buddha and on my knee was a happy little boy. The little boy was so happy, fun and adorable; blonde, blue-eyed and freckles on his nose. I told him he looked like a young David Bowie. He jumped from my knee to go and try out playing a drum set. And then I realized that the little boy was me, as a child, in male form.

It all made sense: I am the Buddha, I am also the child looking for refuge in the Buddha. I am both male and female in energy (essence) and so is the Buddha. We are interchangeable, one and the same. We all have the nature of the Buddha and we are all of male and female truth.

September is not an easy month for most Westerners. It is a new school year, fraught with changes. One often feels confused and overwhelmed by the physical and mental demands of the day. We all suffer in ways.

I am not immune to this September Suffering.
I have been practicing mindfulness for some time, practicing meditation and learning Buddhist philosophy for ten years. So, as a Westerner (and our achievement oriented culture), I had ideas of what I should have accomplished, to date, in my mindfulness training.

When September stresses combined with other stress factors began to eat away at my happiness, I was  disappointed in my mind. I believed that it failed me. I was suffering, I was experiencing anxiety, depression and a dose of self loathing. How could this be? I thought (with all my mindfulness knowledge and training) that I would not fall into this type of suffering anymore, that the strength of my mind would not allow it.

And so, when I found myself unhappy and overwhelmed, I became angry with myself: I had failed my self again--I had not mastered mindfulness training. The desire to kick oneself when one is down is strong.
How dare I feel suffering?! I have a good life, I should be stronger than that. But then, after a few nasty kicks at myself, and discussing a little dharma with another, the mindfulness came back.

We all suffer. Strength is not in preventing the suffering but rather what one does with suffering. To feel anger at oneself, or something/someone for the suffering, only prolongs and intensifies the suffering. To have compassion, to accept it is one's nature to suffer, this is what eases the pain. Compassion ends anger and nurtures happiness.

And all those problems I have in trying to achieve the modern life, the ones contributing to the overall September suffering? They are only problems if I believe they need to be solved. If I believe they do not need to be solved, only left on their own to evolve in one way or another, I can focus my attention on the things that bring me joy. When problems no longer need a resolution, but rather, are observed as a work in progress--they are no longer problems.

This is what I love about mindfulness training, even when you think you fail, you actually have the opportunity to turn conceived failures into great lessons and experiential wisdom.

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Bare Foot Buddhism

My morning  footprints on the Northwest Coast, Oregon, USA

My feet. Monkey toes.

Another's footprints on the beach that morning.

A teeny crab Anemone found in the Salmon River--that's her little thumb.

Northwest Pacific coastal shore Plant

Northwest Pacific Coastal plant on the rocky shore. Such a beautiful plant with it's colours and shapes.

A still life I created with objects I'd just found in low tide. The rock made me think of my darling little girl at home. I thought Pippi's little fingers would fit perfectly in the rock. Whenever I am separated from my girls, it is often small things in nature that remind me of my darlings--knowing we would cherish the beauty together.

Another fascinating shore plant with interesting green berries at Westwind, Oregon.

One of the great gifts I received from the Buddhist Mindfulness retreat at Westwind, Oregon, was the freedom to walk barefoot for the entire stay: through sandy shores, pine needle paths, rocky paths and wooden floors. The natural beauty of the coast is surreal in its spectacularness and I was blessed to explore this region barefoot--connecting completely with the land and sea. Walking barefoot is the best thing for the brain and mind. All the nerves in the foot are stimulated by the changing surfaces, and temperatures, this stimulates the brain. It forces one to be present in the moment--aware of each and every step one takes, connecting fully with one's movement through space. The retreat was perfection for one's health: barefoot, healthy fresh foods, raw natural setting, many other humans to activate the social areas of our brains and meditation.
I've always been one to forgo the shoes whenever I can. As a child I'd slip off my shoes to run barefoot home from friends' houses, feeling I was so much faster barefoot. I've never liked slippers either, preferring my bare feet on floors. Perhaps this is why, to this day, my toes are very flexible--my sister used to call me monkey toes as a child because I can move my toes in many directions. It's an easy gift we can all give ourselves: walk barefoot to stimulate your brain and body--it feels great. My eldest daughter appears to have flat feet--the flattest I have seen. But a recent trip to a specialist pointed out the true nature of those long, thin, elegant feet of hers: they are super flexible. Her feet are not actually flat at all. In the air, while stepping, she has a lovely arch, on contact with the ground, her over-flexible foot completely compresses--flattens out. The specialist advised no treatment other than continuing to strengthen them with barefoot walking and ballet (she is taking point this year). With those super-rubbery feet of hers I am sure she'll be the first on point! So, my darling daughter and I often walk the rocky mountain trails near our home together-barefoot. The rocks are big and sharp. The hike is the ultimate foot strengthening test. Ideally though, we need to live on a long stretch of sandy beach (like the wonderful Westwind) so we can walk and run with the tide each morning.

The Bombastic Monastics

A noble silence walking meditation at a Buddhist Mindfulness Retreat in Westwind, Oregon. The walking meditation was followed by a picnic lunch on the beach each afternoon. The photographs below document our peaceful afternoon. I've added a picture of the Monastics from Deer Park Monastery--two sisters and two brothers attended our retreat as our thays (teachers).

Brother Man Tue.

Sisters swept away.

I call them the Bombastic Monastics. In this pic the Monastics were chanting and playing instruments for talent night. They were a lot of fun. The sisters were lovely women originally from Vietnam. I chatted with most of the Monastics (a little "la blah-blah" as Brother Phap Hai would say). The sisters are: Sister Hang Ngheim and Sister Dac Ngheim. The brothers are: Brother Man Tue from Vietnam, Brother Phap Hai from Australia-- all from Deer Park Monastery in California and ordained by Thich Nhat Hanh at Plum Village in Southern France.

A walking mediation followed by a noble silence picnic lunch on the beach.

Miranda and I practicing right speech once the noble silence was lifted. We had fun thinking up new lyrics to some of the retreat's songs. Our songs say basically the same thing but with less eloquent speech and a little more passion ;) 

Lunch on the beach with  the children...

Nem and Tabs making their way to the picnic spot.

The Dharma Kids Posse.

The posse of Dharma kids at the retreat. They were adorable--bonded instantly and spent the entire retreat together exploring.

The coast at Westwind.

I Breathe In Peace

Buddhist Mindfulness Retreat 

The Photographs below are of the Pacific Northwest Coast at Westwind Oregon, USA
by Mix Hart

I had a surreal week in Oregon. The retreat was on the North Pacific Coast in a protected United Nations Biosphere: where the Salmon River meets the Pacific Ocean. The area has a Tsunami every 300 years. One is due. An earthquake off the coast of Washington last week left me a little nervous—I kept this from the children. I felt blessed though, that our rustic cabin (Tyee) was high on a mountain top above the beach—along the designated Tsunami escape route—at least we were safe while we slept. At night, we climbed the steep mountain path to our cabin. Only three of the cabins were located on our mountain—so quiet and secluded. There were no artificial lights to guide our way—we used a flashlight. The toilet was an outhouse on the edge of a cliff with amazing view of the ocean. One false move in the dark and over the cliff you went!

The Monastics attending the retreat were from the Deer Park Monastery in San Diego, California. They practice Zen Buddhism and follow the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh of Plum Village, France. Thich Nhat Hanh’s Buddhism is new to me. He has successfully transformed and packaged Buddhism to attract North Americans. This type of Buddhism is very accessible to me (as a North American with a family). The focus is on living a good life full of compassion, awareness, and connectedness with others and nature along with daily meditation (but not the several hour long meditations as I have been accustomed).

I traveled with my sister, her daughter and my two eldest daughters. The girls had the time of their lives: meeting new friends, exploring the coast and learning a little dharma. As well, the girls received new Dharma names.

It is difficult to summarize the retreat in blog post. It was an amazing week of unbelievable natural beauty and wonder, combined with intimate social connections and Buddhist Dharma. I spent the entire week bare foot. Modern society was so very far away—existing in a parallel universe.

It was a joyful celebration of nature and human connections. We sang many songs, ate healthy, natural foods and practiced meditation, dharma talks and Qi Gong (dance-like style of martial arts). It was also challenging on many levels and revealed to me some personal fears and the route of some personal anxiety.

In the next few posts I hope to capture a glimpse of my experience through photographs. 

United Nations Bio-Sphere

Picture from www.mindfulnesscamp.org

I am leaving the country for a short while. This is where I am going to (above pic). I am attending a Buddhist mindfulness camp inside a United Nations Biosphere on the Oregon Coast. The mindfulness camp is organized in collaboration with the monks and nuns from the Deer Park monastery who practice under the Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. We have to reach the Salmon River by Thursday morning and then will be escorted by ferry to the site of the camp.  
I'm afraid there is no internet at the camp. 
I will update Modernista Mama on my return...
Much Metta

The Micro (do-it-yourself) Spiritual Retreat

The more Buddhist philosophy I read, the more I realize how little of life's truths I know. Even the truths I have learned often become lost again in daily life. I try to keep up my meditation practices. I have tired various meditation techniques. I favour my own unique mix. This micro-retreat is for anyone who enjoys meditation. One does not have to be a Buddhist to attempt this micro-retreat. This is my own unique way of combining meditations.

The Micro (do-it-yourself)  Spiritual Retreat

I am a do-it yourself kind of a girl. This applies to my spirituality. I like to find truths along the way of my own spiritual path. I don't need to hold anyone's hand to meditate. I read, search out spiritual leaders to learn from, but ultimately, like everyone else, I travel the spiritual path alone. Though, I must say, I do enjoy attending weekly group meditations when I can and retreats away are the best.

Spring is a time of rebirth and thus, one needs to rebirth one's mind (I wish I could disappear into a Buddhist Monastery to expedite the process but alas I have to find that mind of mine in the forests surrounding my home). I recommend one find a little space in nature, bring a hot or cool beverage, depending on the weather, and a picnic blanket. Sit.

Pippi and I happy to have found the perfect spot for a micro retreat.

•  My first suggestion is a little unconventional for most meditators but it works. It really helps one clear out the mind of pressing worries before one starts to seriously attempt to meditate. My philosophy is to calm the immediate concerns about one's life so one can truly enjoy the mediation process. To do this I suggest one go through one's life mandala to see if one is on track. This is done in one's mind--a virtual check list. Go through a mental breakdown of the mandala and take note on which areas you are currently working on according to your set goals and which areas need more work. Awareness is the key. Be aware of what you are doing right and what needs a little more attention.

*If you haven't already written down and know your life mandala then do that first (prior to the mini-retreat). Pen and paper or a lap top needed for this step. A life Mandala is an overall map of your life--all the areas you must include and pay attention to. My mandala includes spiritual quests, career, health, fitness, hobby pursuits, home and even personal upkeep:grooming and fashion. I list the most simplified basic goal (s) in this area. If one can keep on top of the most basic, simplified goal (s) in any one area of one's life--one's mandala is in order and life does not become overwhelming. The mandala is fluid, thus it must be updated and changed as one's life changes. Nothing is set in stone. However, the most basic goals should not change too much (if they truly are simplified and attainable they are usually somewhat flexible). 

Pippi enjoying the tea ceremony meditation.

• Next step is to put the Mandala out of one's mind. Clear the mind and meditate. A tea ceremony meditation is a lovely way to start. Sip a piping hot cup of tea very slowly, very quietly. Just sit and sip and enjoy the sensual experience of the tea. Think of nothing, just enjoy the sensations of sipping hot tea from your cup. Take time.
• The next step is to seriously clear the mind of pressing baggage before a longer meditation. I find it helpful to deal with my life's problems through visitation/visualization meditations. I perform a compassion meditation. In my mind, I receive each and every person whom I have an issue with. I take from them every negative emotion I detect them as having and recycle these emotions into compassion. It is calming to realize that those that cause us the most pain are often in pain themselves. If I am having issues with myself then I do the same thing for myself with my own negative emotions (yes, I'm always on my own hot seat). This visualization should be done before the nothingness meditation. 
• Finally, true meditation time. There are many different ways to meditate but at some point one needs to completely clear the mind to nothingness.  This is something one must research on their own--how to meditate. I personally practice a technique I learned through Vipassana meditation: focusing on sensations throughout the body. Eventually the mind clears and one's mind is at peace indefinitely until one decides to end the meditation. Mediate for as long as you wish. 

Once the mind is clear, pack up your blanket and head home with a fresh mind.

Note: you will not be able to do the serious "nothingness" meditation with your little darlings. If you bring your babes, the retreat will most likely end after the tea!

Pippi and I after having finished our micro-spiritual retreat--time for a cuddle and nearly ready to walk down the mountain and head back home.

Fifteen

This is what 15 looks like at our house: my darling daughter Mist. She truly is the most sophisticated 15 year old you'll ever meet. She is so much fun to hang out with :)

Her party had a Pokemon theme :)

Party girls!

The coffee-toffee icecream cake I invented, soooo good!

Happy things are falling into place for me. UBC is open to having me teach many more classes this winter and I have a dance audition to teach at a new gym. The audition is next weekend in Vernon. The gym is in Kelowna but we are auditioning in Vernon as they have a small version of the gym there. Might post the song I'm going to dance to. It is difficult to know which song to dance to, on one hand I want to wow them the most difficult moves. Yet on the other hand, I must show case my teaching so I don't want it to be too difficult for my students (we teach to our fellow auditioners). I also start exam invigilation training this Friday. I may end up having to turn down someone in the winter--too many dance classes to teach. Oh, and I am teaching dance all January for the school district (3 classes are hiring me so far)--very happy about this!

This Friday is going to be so busy. Training at UBC until 3:30--race to teach ZumbAtomics at 4:30 to 5:30 and them a Zumba party starts at 7. I love dancing so all the dancing is going to be the best!
I debated throwing a dinner party on the same day as my audition but have decided to do it next weekend instead.

Working on my novel. Publishing Queen of the Godforsaken is first on my list and then I'll follow it shortly with publishing my junior fiction novel Peter Not-Pizzaface and the Decrepit Caboose. I will be painting chapter illustrations for the junior fiction series. The series deals with nature extraordinaire so this is where my wildlife painting comes in :)

Finding time to meditate each evening again. It feels so good. I am in the process of changing all my past negative memories into positive ones. The human brain remembers negative experiences much better than positive ones (this works for survival--we don't repeat near deadly mistakes). But, in some ways it creates a flood gate of bad memories at times. The key, is to take one or two positive memories from every experience and focus on those--soon you remember the good stuff and no longer get overwhelmed with bad memories :) This is the Buddhist and neuro-science junkie side of me talking. Though, I do practice what I preach.

Portland is coming up! I am going to Oregon to train with the Gina Grant (more Zumba). Peter and I are staying at the Governor for 3 nights. Should be so amazing. My wonderful Mom is coming to help look after the girls. My sis (and hubby) is also leaving the country for a holiday so my mom will be busy with five young gals to manage! But my Mist is very mature and reliable and I know they'll be fine.

Looking for Buddha in All the Wrong Places

Pip and Tabs in Hawaii (Big Island), March 2010
*note Tabs' bloody eye from body surfing incident.

My spiritual journey through Buddhism --from the very first meditation lesson I received and the Buddhist philosophy books I've read--has often been frustrating and disappointing. Though in fact, the first lesson was the best (I loved the happy nun who taught it)  and I admit the most rewarding Buddhist information I have received is through books. Without the books I would be lost.
Perhaps Western Canada is a  spiritual wasteland, at least as far as Buddhism is concerned. I have yet to meet any inspirational Buddhist leaders in Kelowna or fellow meditators.
I could tell so many strange stories about the odd characters I've encountered on my journey. The grotty basements I have been to... the peanut-butter-eating, lip-smacking arrogant monks...all in the name of my spiritual quest.
I am searching for the secrets of the universe. I believe Buddhism holds at least one of the keys.
My latest disappointment lies in believing other Vipassana "leaders" are genuine. I did much service, finding the experienced Vipassana students a place to meditate and the woman who was supposed to be one of the leaders based in Kelowna proved to be untrustworthy. So yet again, it seems a meditation group based in Kelowna is not to be.
So meditating in isolation seems to be the Kelowna norm for a true Theravada Buddhist. Vipassana was different in that I found my teacher Veronika to be somewhat inspirational. However, the Vipassana centre was frustrating in many ways too. I am not speaking of the gruelling aspects but rather how that because they are a non secular form of mediation (although based on Buddhism), one learns very little philosophy. They gear the meditation trainings to the masses. I felt stifled. Because I have read much Buddhist philosophy and have meditated on my own for years, I advanced quickly and wanted more, yet they are focused on teaching basic meditation to the masses.
What's an aspiring Buddha to do?
It gives me comfort knowing that earthly spiritual quests are horrid for the most part. I look at Jesus Christ and how his earthly spiritual quest ended with his own torture and brutal murder at the hands of ignorant haters.
So yes, my journey is a cake walk thus far.

Much Happiness

This is the opening screen to my power point presentation on my thesis. My thesis is about the covert story telling by cyberstuffies that happens in a subculture on Facebook.

I am happy.
My presentation was a great success. Just arrived home from it. I rate my success by many modes. First, I wasn't too nervous and I spoke confidently and told all of my planned humorous stories and got a few laughs. Secondly, it was the biggest crowd over 3x larger than the crowds for the other 2 presentations I attended. Third, I got bombarded with questions afterward as I sat on the panel. The panel I was on was titled Identity. Fourthly, I had people approach me after the session and ask more questions. And finally, a professor at the University approached me afterward and asked if I wanted to collaborate on a paper with her about "audience in pop culture"--to present at conferences with her.

My kamma is changing. Vipassana promises a good often huge positive kamma change if you follow the path. I am following the path of Theravada Buddhism which is the same path as Vipassana. It involves following the Buddhist moral conduct codes and dedicated meditation. I credit this path as well as my own attempts to follow the social literacy code I know to be true--thanks to life's hard knocks and my research on social literacy. This social literacy code is vital if one wants to navigate through society successfully. I am following the unwritten rules despite how much it hurts at times.

Doors are opening after so many months of struggles and misery. I am getting very close to choosing a direction and closing some of my options for the present. Another door that just opened is Greenpeace. After months of waiting, Greenpeace is suddenly very keen on me founding an Okanagan Chapter. This could prove to be very exciting. Tons of work but in a field I want to enter.

To keep the good kamma (Pali word for the sanskrit karma) going I will diligently follow the paths. Though, I admit, I have a conference supper at Summerhill Winery this evening. And I will indulge in one glass of organic wine. Because alcohol has never been my drug. I never get intoxicated. One glass once or twice a month is my limit. Chocolate is more my drug. I eat 99% and 90% dark chocolate daily. It keeps the endorphins flowing.

Vipassana: Dhamma Surabhi

Home again.
Looking rough and feeling hungry.

So much to capture in a few words. The eleven days felt like eleven months.
It was grueling.
It was amazing.
A line from Amazing Grace comes to mind, was blind but now I see.

Meditating twelve hour days.
Living like monks and nuns.
4 a.m. wake-up gong.
No food past 11 a.m.
Silence.
No communicating with the thirty other women and thirty men.
Three roommates in my room.
No writing, no reading.
Nothing but: meditate, eat a little, meditate some more and sleep at night.

The very first morning, with the wake up gong at 4 a.m., my instant reaction was to blurt out "oh man..."

That first morning meditation was an adventure. My eyes were closed, I was meditating and suddenly something heavy landed in my lap, I opened my eyes to discover a body on top of me. The woman in front of me had fainted and fallen back onto me, her head in my lap. When she came conscious, I helped her back up. Later, before we left, I spoke with her and she told me the eye contact I had with her and my arm around her shoulder gave her comfort and she knew she was o.k.
Then, the very next morning, in meditation hall, I received a tap on my shoulder. This time, it was the woman behind--alerting me that I had a huge spider crawling up my back. I looked at it and discovered it wasn't poisonous so I ignored it--I have never been afraid of spiders.

Vipassana was the most grueling of experiences and yet the most rewarding. I learned much.

It is an amazing meditation technique that I believe would benefit so many that suffer from brain damage. A bonus to the meditation is that as one mentally feels the body to find sensations everywhere, in doing so, sharpens and rewires the brain's body map.
It proved challenging to feel my legs as separate limbs after sitting crossed legged for so long--the brain morphs then into one entity (in the brain map) naturally. I had to work to separate them in my brain's body map and feel them as separate.
 The practice sharpened my mind such, that in mediation I felt my mind was like a laser that could burn a hole through matter if I focused it on one spot.
Also, if you know a little about neuro-science, you might understand that after so many hours of "feeling my entire body sensations", I was able to "see" my body with my eyes still closed. I looked down and my brain received optical images of my arms and legs even though I kept my eyes shut. I moved my hands and arms and watched in my brain like my eyes were open. The optical space in my brain was being stimulated by input from other than the eye lenses.

The most bizarre thing that happened was that I had life changing meditations. Very odd meditations. Not your traditional Vipassana. In one case, on day five, it was as though I touched a live electric wire. My entire body was on fire with electric like vibrations. These were very intense. And my eyes were moving rapidly although they were closed. It was not a pleasant sensation, as it was so intense.  The current through my body was very strong and it was like my skin was on fire. I honestly felt like I was floating above my cushion. My limbs were locked and my fingers stiff and immovable. But, like a good Vipassana meditator, I observed the entire experience and it lasted for a good 5-10 minutes and afterward I discovered tears running down my cheeks. While it was happening my entire inside was brightly lit like a sun was shining from within me. It was a little frightening as I thought bodily sensations like that only happened in supernatural thriller movies. It must have been the mother of all sankharas I was feeling (negative reaction surfacing from my subconscious mind).

On another day, the agony in my hips was too great. I couldn't sit still for the hour long "sitting of determination." I talked to the teacher afterward and said, "Womens' hips are not the same as mens. I have given birth three times, if Buddha had given birth three times, he would have moved his legs too." She laughed and agreed with me.

My roommates were cool. One woman commutes to the UN in Geneva (she founded a non profit organization for refugees from Afghanistan to make sure they have human rights in their new countries). Another just moved to Vancouver from Dubai. When the nobel silence finally ended on our last day, we talked so late that everyone else in centre was asleep but us. It was the middle of the night and all 4 of us crept down the dark hall to use the bathroom. It was rather humorous from our point of view that suddenly our fellow meditators were treated to the flush of all 4 toilets at once in the middle on the night (11 p.m. is the middle of the night when 4 a.m. is wake-up call).

I enjoyed their company even though one of my roommates was a tattle-tale. She complained to the management that I "wrote something with a pen on paper." Writing is against the rules. When my teacher asked me if I was the culprit from room #8 behind such a deed, I just laughed and said, "Guilty as charged. I can't believe someone tattled on me!" It felt like second grade prison.

 My humor pulled me through the entire eleven days. In the deadly silence, I would tell my self little jokes and hide my smiles. My humour must have been sensed in my energy because after the silence lifted on day ten, one of my roommates told me I should be a stand up comedian because everything I did made her laugh and she couldn't look at me all retreat because she would crack up.

One of the greatest gifts was on the morning of day eight, I was walking in the forest yard and I heard wolves howling. It was a dream come true. Wolves are so difficult to hear as they are rare. Dhamma Surabhi is located in pure mountain wilderness off of the Coquihalla. The forests are teaming with big mammals: moose, bear, cougars and wolves. And the stars! They shone so brightly at night, reminded me of how clear the sky is in Hawaii.

It was excruciating at times and what pulled me through were the little pleasures in life. I made friends with a squirrel and chipmunk in the forest and spent my few free minutes outside watching them. The squirrel had unearthed its stash of pine cones from last fall and would dig one out at a time and excitedly eat each one like a cob of corn.

Can I maintain the 2 h a day meditations to keep my mind free of misery? I will do my best. I will return to Dhamma Surabhi to serve while my girls are in summer mini-meditation camps. I am also in charge of finding us Kelowna meditators a place to meditate weekly as a group. I am very close to securing us a room on campus.
Thank-you, to the Buddhas-in-training that helped me find the path.

Communication Revolution: Forward Ever, Backward Never!

Fernando's

I took the girls out for supper last night to a new Mexican Restaurant called Fernando's. Of course we had to try it out since I love Mexican food and our darling dog is named Fernando. Peter was in Vancouver at meetings.

It was very busy down town last night. Fernando's was busy too and very chilly outside! We had to park about 6 blocks from the restaurant. Walking back to the van proved to be very chilly. We stopped half way at a Starbucks for hot coco.

I love being down town at night. Peter is not big on the down town but I like it. I am always on the look out for interesting people and adventure. My girls are the three most interesting persons on earth but I am always open to meeting others. Unfortunately no new interesting people out and about last night. 

Where were you other interesting people last night? Next time try and be out and about when I need you.

Just returned from my Hep A shot. Now I am immune for life. It is snowing in Kelowna. The biggest snow fall ever last night and today. The snow plows can't keep up!
Tabs is home with a sore throat--too much choir! The girl has belonged to 3 separate choirs this past two months! She sings for an hour + daily. However, I believe it is actually a cold type virus. Pip has had it this past week too.
Tonight, Peter is finally home from Van. Date night! I am wanting to see a movie down town. Hope it stops snowing so we can. Sometimes, the snow plows stop working after 4PM so if it snows a lot after that, one cannot make it up the mountain until they plow the next morning.

Excited as I dropped my quest to find Buddhist sanga in Kelowna (community). The pressure to meditate with a group shut me down. I prefer to meditate alone, just before bed and get my sanga from a yearly visit to a ashram. I honestly don;t have 2 hours each week to meditate at the yoga house in the evening. I am too busy. And honestly, my personality is one that likes action. I am doing hot yoga and Zumba in the evenings instead. Zumba instead of latin dance because #1 I can't find a willing male dance partner: if you are out there please give me a call! #2 Zumba is at Tabs school gym at night--a five minute drive--convieniencce means a lot to me in the evening! Bikram's is too expensive. They don't give student discounts and they don't do punch cards. However hot yoga is offering $12 a time student classes this year--so I am taking them up on it Monday evenings. Yes, the floor is heated along with the room to over 100 degress F. I feel like a piece of bacon sizzling around during corpse pose--but beggars can't be choosers!

My paper was accepted for an international conference--YAY! It means though, writing like a crazed woman for 2 weeks to make the final copy deadline. I love my thesis though. Good stuff. I am so happy with my research. It is very exciting. I may not be able to leave academia behind after my MA is done--I love feeling connected to something much bigger than me and my research--this whole communication revolution is a fun ride!