Hooping with Roots of Creation

Recently at Backwoods Pondfest in Peru, NY, I got the chance to hoop on stage with Roots of Creation. You should check them out, they're one of my favorite bands at the moment. As far as hooping goes, I didn't have much space, in fact, it was the trickiest space I ever hooped in. But, I didn't bang the keyboard player in the head with my hoop, nor did I fall off the stage, so all things considered, it was great! Here's more pictures, taken by Laura Carbone.

Warming up backstage:

That dress is made of hemp :D

I Find No Sweeter Fat Than Sticks to My Bones

Here are my favorite quotes from Walt Whitman (1819-1892). Don't you just love these:

"I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars."

"Be curious, not judgemental."

"Every moment of light and dark is a miracle."

"I find no sweeter fat than sticks to my bones."

"Keep your face always toward the sunshine - and shadows will fall behind you."

"Re-examine all that you have been told... dismiss that which insults your soul."

"Simplicity is the glory of expression."

"Stranger, if you passing meet me and desire to speak to me, why should you not speak to me? And why should I not speak to you?"

"If you done it, it ain't bragging."

Chanting at the University of Maryland

Festival of India at the University of Maryland. I set up a book table and chanted for hours :) Met a bunch of cool people too and had many deep conversations that really tested my knowledge and memory of the Veda philosophy. After the day my brain felt poked around in and inspired.

Here's a little video clip of me chanting, and the line for the free veggie lunch. This was during class so it was not as busy as during the class breaks when the line was four times that long! :)

Beautiful Haikus by Issa

I'm in a library and happened to pick up a book of haiku poems by Issa (1763-1827). I love it how in haikus the last line gives everything a surprising twist - these are my favorites:

Full moon;

my ramshackle hut

is what it is.

***

The toad! It looks like

it could belch

a cloud.

***

Writing shit about new snow

for the rich

is not art.

***

All the time I pray to Buddha

I keep on

killing mosquitoes.

***

Blossoms at night

and the faces of people

moved by music.

How to Make a Hula Hoop in 8 Easy Steps

1. Get tubing from a hardware store. I use one that’s 3/4” wide and has 100 PSI (PSI measures the pressure a tube can handle). The bigger the PSI, the heavier the hoop will be. 100 PSI is nice and light.

2. Measure where to cut the tubing. It’s easier to hoop with a bigger hula hoop because it moves slower around you. A big size would reach between your stomach and chest, or even up to your chest. A normal size would be up to your waist/belly.

3. Cut the tubing in the spot you measured. Kitchen knife works well, I have also used a saw before with harder tubing. Try to cut straight. Watch your fingers (duh). You might want to use sandpaper to smooth out the edges where you cut.

4. Get a 3/4” plastic connector to match the width of your tubing. They are sold in hardware stores as well for about one dollar.

5. Heat and soften a few inches of the tip of the tubing. With this particular tubing, 15 seconds was enough. I rolled the tubing around the fire so that it would melt evenly on all sides. In the process the other end of the tubing went all around the kitchen and knocked down my camera from the table, banging onto the stone-tiled floor. So be careful. Don’t let it melt too much either. If you smell something funny, quit heating it.

6. Quickly push the connector half way inside the tubing. Then put it immediately under cold water so the tubing won’t continue to melt and deform too much on the connector.

7. Heat the other end of the tubing and push it on the remaining half of the connector. Push the tubing as close to the other end of the tubing as possible. Again, give it a quick cold shower. The skeleton is done!

8. Now dress your precious. You can use (colorful) electrical tape which is sold in all hardware stores. I got some fancy holographic and gaffer tapes, from DIY Hoop Supply on Etsy. Fancy-Tapes is a popular source for European hoopers.

For maximum hoopyness, extend the joy and make a hula hoop or two for your friends too! I made these for Citra and Deva. You should see Deva hoop, it's the cutest thing ever!

If you have any further tips or questions for successful hoop making, please leave them in the comments!

Do You Give Roses or Throw Bricks?

(click to see bigger)

Many years ago I read a book by Bhakti Tirtha Swami. I never forgot one point he made. He advised the reader to examine their consciousness while interacting with someone. The words you speak, the intention you have, your body language, the tone of your email, the look in your eyes... Energywise, it all comes down to this: you are either giving someone a rose, or you are throwing a brick at them.

When was the last time I threw a brick at someone and what can I do about it now? How could I have given a rose instead? I’m sure we’ve all had our share of bricks thrown at us. But there are people in our lives that we know will always give us a rose. 

I think my hubby gets the most bricks from me. Just two days ago I got pissed off at him. He was disappointed (and rightly so) that I didn’t offer to help him with some car repair stuff. I got offended and eventually said, “Shut up!” and walked out of the conversation. THAT was a brick. 

Instead, I could have let go of the ego a little bit and said rosier things like:

• “Yeah, I understand you feel disappointed.”
• “I really don’t like car repair stuff. But I should help you anyway - I know you don’t like it either.”
• “I didn’t realize you needed my help so much. Sorry.”

We solved the situation later and I apologized. But I remember some bricks I’ve gotten in my life that still kind of hurt when I think about them - brick throwing is no joke. 

If I Had a Freezer

...I would make strawberry frozen yogurt ASAP.

2 cups plain yogurt

2 cups sliced strawberries

1/2 cup beet juice

3 tbsp liquid honey

Mix all these in a container and freeze the whole thing for 1-2 hours, or until frozen. You can let it melt in the fridge for a while if it’s too hard to cut or eat. Kindly do your best to use organic ingredients to make it 110% guilt-free ;)

Measures for my milliliter-friends:

2 cups = 500 ml

1/2 cup = 125 ml

3 tbsp = 45 ml

PS. The image is from Lexie's Kitchen. She has a nice recipe for a dairy and sugar free version here. 

Sue the Doctor, Things Got Trippy!

Just another psychedelic afternoon in North Carolina... I had an absolute blast hooping with the two of me. The music: clip from Sue the Doctor by Tim Duster, and the main song is Avaruusmetro [Space Subway] by EvsY, these are some of my favorite Finnish psytrance artists.

TOP 10 Beautiful Sounding Sanskrit Words

I took this picture a week or two ago on my visit to the Himalayas. Ok, I’m just kidding. You’re looking at North Sister and Middle Sister, covered with snow in the heights of Oregon. The black rocks in the front are former lava. You can see where the lava stopped, and trees are growing normally.

Himalaya actually means “the home of snow”. Sanskrit is so beautiful.

Here are my Top 10 Beautiful Sounding Sanskrit Words, in no specific order:

1. Padma - lotus
2. Madhava - husband of the Goddess of fortune
3. Dharma - occupation, intrinsic nature of a thing
4. Lila - play, pastime
5. Nanda-Nandana - son of King Nanda (name of Krishna)
6. Timingila - a great fish which can easily eat large sharks
7. Rasarani - the queen of loving mellows or moods
8. Rajarishi - a king and a sage; a saintly king
9. Sharanam - to take shelter; be protected 
10. Chintamani - a touchstone; stone that fulfills all desires

I realize these could make excellent names. It might be quite eccentric though to explain the meaning of your fancy Sanskrit name, if it was Timingala.

As a native Finnish speaker it’s easy to pronounce Sanskrit, hopefully others are able to figure out the sound of these words too. Which one is your favorite?