stretching out

One of my favorite things to do is yoga. WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, just you WAAAIIIIIT..before you stereotype me and label me and judge me let me go on. There are many kinds of yoga. Here in Budapest I practice ashtanga yoga. My teacher's name is John. He is originally from Philadelphia but has lived all over the world, making Budapest his home for the past 3 years. We practice in a beautiful orange building, next to a warm and cozy tea-house. It is a couple blocks from my apartment and right across the street is a little plaza with a quaint little park. My friend Peter turned me onto this place and we have made it into a ritual. If you come over, I'll introduce you to Peter, he's one of a kind and we are always laughing. And I mean the from-the-bottom-of-your-gut laughing where you can't remember what made you start in the first place. LOVE IT. Oh and by the way, Peter is from the Arctic Circle. YES-reread that last sentance. How sweet is that? So picture this 6'5" big, thick lumberjack kind of guy, who can track, hunt, and kill a caribou and then sleep in its body cavity to survive.....doing yoga. So, yoga is good for the body but boy does my body just screeeam the day after my yoga sessions. But it is such a good way to end the week, or begin it for that matter. Stress release. Anyways, point of the story is this: in ashtanga yoga you are told to lead your motions with squared shoulders, or "with your heart" as John says. And again, before you roll your eyes at me, YES I CAN SEE YOU ROLL YOUR EYES, let me go on. This is important in more than just yoga. It irritates me when people give me advice as though nothing can steer me off course or affect how I rank and order my preferences. Guess what folks---that's life and we don't live in a vaccum. You are supposed to be affected. It's not a bad thing. It becomes a bad thing when you sit and dwell or get blown around like a fragile little leaf. That's not me. But I do make decisions with much more than my brain. I hope you do too.

DECEMBER events

This week Budapest held the funeral for the greatest Hungarian footballer who ever played the game. Lui chiama Puskas, which means "of the rifle." The streets flew massive black flags in place of the usual bright red, green, and white national flag. I was walking on my way home the night the procession and funeral were held, and stopped along the street to witness a drumcorps composed of 50+ men, keeping a beat as they marched along, almost luring the casket towards the Basilica. It was a moving scene as people of all ages were carrying candles and walked alongside the drummers as they marched, like a protective shell, down the lighted street. But it was not a sad feeling, I was more overwhelmed with a feeling of community and togetherness and recognition of someone who brought this country smiles and hope and thrills. He had been a national hero in a time when there was not a lot to smile about and heroes were few and far between.

Tonight I was so pleasantly surprised to look at my calendar posted above my desk, and see that the date was screaming DECEMBER 11 at me. Come again??? I don’t think I remember what I had for breakfast today, let alone the past couple months, life has been flying by so quickly. I have a gigantic SACK full of great memories already, just waiting to be shared around the dinner table to eager ears. I hope my family knows to get out the spotlight because the star is coming home!! Just kidding mom and dad, but seriously, I know you love me most.

The end of the semester is here and it feels so good. I finished with a bang. You could even call it a big bang (HAHA). Ooooooooooor something similar to a gymnast with a perfect dismount off the beam, toes pointed and feet shoulder width apart---knees bent in a 90 degree fashion, holding my landing for a dramatic extra 5 second pause…wobbling…wobbling…might fall…..BUT WAIT…I HOLD THE PERFECT DISMOUNT AND SCORE A PERFECT 10!! If you managed to cut through all that exaggeration and thick description, let’s just say that things ended well. Tres bien pour moi.


The past couple days I have been making arrangements for the holiday trip home and so my mind has drifted every now and then to thoughts of my home sweet home. While I am as excited as I can remember to return home to spend time with loved ones and regain a normal, humane sleeping pattern, it can be a little difficult relating with old friends of my high school years, of what seems now like ages ago. I am sure this applies to everyone in one form or another, where things have just changed so much from what they once were, this is not a bad thing by any means, it just makes understanding each other more necessary maybe.

I was reading an international magazine earlier today and turned to an article on EU integration in Budapest and while in my mind this minute I was back home, I found myself getting a giddy feeling about reading this article—like I was already looking forward to coming back here after break. I got this feeling earlier in the week as well, sitting in a café with good friends. I love that feeling. I have made this place a home.

HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS, HERE COMES SANTA CLAUS, RIGHT DOWN SANTA CLAUS LAAAAAAAANNEEEEE

FOGGY DAYS

On this December day, early in the morning, this is what the city can look like.

I was walking on my way to class and as soon as I saw this, I sprinted straight into the fog and let myself get so into the thick of it all...it was nice to get lost for a while.

XOXOOXOXOXOXO

Miss you loads.