my dad and Christmas

My dad always brought home a beautiful, fresh balsam fir Christmas tree for us each year when I was growing up, and it was one of the most magical times of the year for me - such fun, decorating the tree and then sitting by it on winter nights, smelling the fresh pine, and then opening gifts by it on xmas day - Dad passed away 6 years ago today, during the holiday season, and I feel very fortunate to have home movies of him and my mom with me on xmas day, that I can watch year after year, to remember the great times we had.

My dad was a great man - here's to you, dad - Merry Christmas from your daughter Mary.

Ostrich steaks!

So Peter cooked ostrich for his dinner last night, for the first time ever, and when I got in the car next to him around midnight, when he picked me up from a late concert in NYC, I could smell a strong, cheeselike aroma, kind of like old socks - well, when I got in the house, that smell was in the kitchen and living rooms, too - we're just not used to the smell of cooked ostrich. Yikes!

Hosting Turkey Day!

We will be hosting our 4th annual Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. Turkey is in the fridge with all the trimmings, waiting to be cooked! Should be very good!

I went to my first class at the Jivamukti Yoga School in Union Square. Another good, unique experience! This class had the most men in it of any class I've ever taken, and the long rectangular room had half the students facing the front and the other half facing the back. A lady played a harp throughout the class, which was quite nice. The instructor is also an acrobat and could do some of the more difficult moves much better than most of us, but she was very patient and helpful. It was a series of classic hatha yoga moves, but much faster paced than I'm used to. I don't think I'd attend regularly, but it was a good experience. This is the yoga studio that's hosting the yogadance with Toni this Friday - can't wait for that!

Kripalu Yoga Weekend!

I spent the first Saturday in October at the Kripalu Yoga Center in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. It was a brilliant crisp, sunny fall day, and I reached MA around 7 a.m. - saw the sun come up and the mist rising from the trees. Kripalu is situated at the top of a hill overlooking the trees and mountains, with a lovely lake on the property - truly stunning this time of year!

A highlight of my day was an hour of "journey dance", with Toni, who was fantastic, and drummers who had us dancing the whole time - I was at once exhausted and exhilarated at the end of the day! Check it out: www.JourneyDance.com

Authentic Fish Tacos in Tribeca!

Who knew one could get good fish tacos right here in NYC. I'm definitely going to take a walk over there for a fish lunch some day soon!

Check out their website: pinchetaqueria.com

Todd Bracher in the news!

Check out this very cool article on Peter's high-school friend Scott's younger brother, Todd and his success as a designer -
Very impressive, go Todd!






http://www.nydailynews.com/real_estate/2008/07/31/2008-07-31_todd_bracher_stakes_his_claim_as_the_cou.html

A Helping Hand

Upon exiting the Costco store after returning a few things last night, I saw an elderly woman trying to push her shopping cart AND her husband in a wheel chair, so I ran over and pushed the cart to her car for her - she was so grateful and kept thanking me - it felt SO good! I felt I was meant to be at Costco at that time, to help her out....I could see that her husband had a parkinson's related condition, like my dad did. A good evening.

Wild by Nature

I'm really looking forward to visiting this new natural food store in my area....just decided to try a wheat-free diet cause I think I'm allergic! They have a wide array of gluten-free stuff!

Where, oh where, is my husband??

When I got home last night, Peter's car was in front of the house, indicating he had returned from the gym, but when I went inside, he wasn't there! I thought he'd been kidnapped by the Baldwin Banshee or something! Lo and behold, when I went to put the trash bin out, our neighbor across the street beckoned to me and told me he was in their house, helping them with an email setup on the computer! Relieved, I went over to their house for a little chat. Hooray, my husband isn't missing after all!

www.biscuitsandbath.com

So I'm walking down 6th Ave to work this morning, and a dark green Honda with the "biscuits and bath" logo on it stops at a light in front of me - I was intrigued, as I'd never heard of this service before - who knew doggies could live so good in NYC?

A great time in Boston area!

We always start our visit with our good friend Liz at the Thirsty Scholar, a pub with great beer, food and atmosphere - can easily spend 3-4 hrs there!

My husband Peter, and our good friend, Liz, spent a lovely Saturday during our visit to the Boston area walking around Rockport, a very cute seaside town with lots of shops and candy stores. We spent some time sitting by the water, shopping a bit, went for lunch at a seafood restaurant, then headed for the candy store to buy yummy taffy and chocolate! The weather was perfect, sunny with a light breeze off the water. All in all, a fabulous day!

No visit to Boston would be complete without a game at Fenway Park, which Peter enjoyed immensely, while Liz and I took in a movie - the rain stopped just in time! We had a great brunch at the cute Rosebud Diner in Somerville before heading to Fenway.

a new type of yoga!

I went to my first Kundalini yoga session here in NYC, at the Kundalini Yoga East studio, and it was fabulous - it's a form of yoga that clears out toxins from the body and boosts the immune system - it is a bit faster paced and more intense than what we're used to, but I feel SO good today! Here's how it was:

I totally lucked out, because the instructor of the class I took is the co-founder/owner of the yoga studio and learned from the master of this form of yoga, Yogi Bhajan - she was really great! It was held in a fairly large, rectangular room, and the instructor, wearing a turban, sat on a platform at the front the entire time, and behind her was a triangular structure with blue sky and clouds on it. There was a large metal "gong" covered with a lilac cloth to her right, and I think she hit it when we were resting @ the end, cause it sounded like a helicopter or something was overhead! Very cool!

The class was packed - 15 to 20 people, easily, and it went fast - we did lots of classic yoga moves, and a few ones that were new to me, in a faster, more intense way, to build strength - it's a great workout. I figured it would be more strenuous when they had me sign a waiver form saying they're not responsible for injuries, etc.!!

When we went out of the room, there were 2 pots of Classic India Spice Yogi tea and some crackers waiting for us to enjoy! The tea was so good that I stopped @ Whole Foods and bought some on the way home! I felt like I was in a totally different world when I walked out onto the street, more so than I've ever felt after a Hatha or Iyengar class.

Although I felt a bit sore and stiff last night, I feel SO GOOD today, full of energy and in SUCH a good mood!