Sunday, March 20, 2011

Spring Equinox, 108, New York trip.

Happy Vernal Equinox!  There was a point around today that our Earths axis was tilted neither towards or away from the sun.
"Although the word equinox is often understood to mean "equal [day and] night," this is not strictly true. For most locations on earth, there are two distinct identifiable days per year when the length of day and night are closest to being equal; those days are referred to as the "equiluxes" to distinguish them from the equinoxes. Equinoxes are points in time, but equiluxes are days. By convention, equiluxes are the days where sunrise and sunset are closest to being exactly 12 hours apart."

  The beginning of spring is one of my favorite times of year.  Its when the weather starts to warm up and I can run outside again.  Its when I open all the doors and windows and send the kids outside when they start to drive me mad.  Its when I can finally breath again after a long winter of hardship. T-shirts come out and sweaters get put away.  I feel hopeful.


  Here in Des Moines there may not be flowers blooming yet other than Crocus ,of which I have not come across, there are however many plants and trees blooming.  This is a bee that I photographed when working with Jerry tending to his bee hives a couple of days ago.  There were loads of bees with full pollen baskets so spring is definitely here!


  One of my goals for this year was to do 108 Sun Salutations four times this year. (The link shows the type of salutations that I do.)   Once on each change of season.  I have not kept to many of my goals due to one thing or another but I have done 108 Sun Salutations today.
   I thought of my breath as I did each pose.  This is the first time I have felt like I was synced up with breath and movement.   I also focused on the problem areas and my form.  I also didn't take myself too seriously since 108 is a whole bunch of salutations.   I broke it down into 12 sets of 9 Sun Salutations at a time.   Some sets were back to back and the rest spread out throughout the day as I prepared food and lived my daily life.


  I am trying to work out a trip to NYC for a barefoot running coaching program with Lee Saxby.  It is a unique opportunity and it would fit in nicely with my trip to Mind The Ducks, although it will be a BIG trip.    So..... anyone want to host a barefoot runner, me, for a few days in May???  I will be at the Chelsea Piers during the long days.  Any tips on navigating the mass transit systems of Manhattan?  

Exciting things to think about.  Its easier to consider when I feel well and the weather is nice.

If you haven't checked out my raffle please do so now!!  Lots of cool stuff up for grabs and a good cause.

12 comments:

Richelle said...

Wow... that bee photo is amazing! I learn so much reading your blog. I didn't even know there was an equilux, and that it is confused with equinox.

Junk Miler said...

NYC Transit tips:
1. Don't panic.
2. Study the map a bit beforehand and it will make more sense.
3. Look busy/lost in thought, avoiding eye contact. Not for safety or anything like that, it's just with such a dense population it's considered impolite to expect others to acknowledge your presence.
4. Stand in the aisle without holding on to anything - that's train surfing, and it's fun.
5. The blind guy playing the violin isn't really blind, but he's still pretty good.
6. When waiting for a train, watch the rats play on the tracks.
7. The 7 will take you to Jackson Heights, Queens, where you will find some of the best Indian Buffet in the world.
8. Not train related, but you MUST run over one of the bridges for me. I miss those bridges, especially the Queensboro and Williamsburg.
9. You can get to most of your destinations by walking, since the island isn't all that big really.

misszippy said...

NYC is the best...wish I lived there to host you! Let me know when you have a need to go to Baltimore or DC!

I am impressed with your sun salutations. That's a commitment!

Penny said...

way to go with all those salutations. You are going to have so much fun in NYC. All people tho would make me a little nervous.

JessiePants said...

Well done with the sun salutations and I also share your enjoyment of spring!

Ludo said...

Bummer.... I just moved out of NYC (Northern California now) or I would have host you with pleasure.

I can post something on the NYC Barefoot Running Meetup group for you and maybe someone will help you.

No worries for NYC transit.
It's very straight forward.
Just "study" it before coming but basically, you just need to know what direction (uptown or downtown) you are going to and see what lines can bring you where you want to go.

I second what Josh said, you got to run the bridges.
I used to run from Manhattan to Brooklyn using the Brooklyn Br. and coming back from Williamsburg Br.

Chelsea Piers is right on the West Side highway.... you can run down to Battery Park all the way up to the George Washington bridge!
You will have a great time!

Can't find any email on your blog to send you more info if you need it so let me know.

Unknown said...

I didn't know that either Richelle!!

Josh, Don't Panic is my favorite advice every! 42 :) Hope you love Douglas Adams too!

So where I am tentatively staying is in Brooklyn and I will ride the subway for about 45-60 minutes. Lots of time for sly people watching ect.
Thanks for the tips! I think it would be awesome to run the bridges!

MissZippy, I think I have the option to layover in DC for an hour or more on my way to NY....

Ludo, maybe in the morning I could run to and across the Brooklyn Bridge and then catch a train up to the piers..:) My email is hoopataka at gmail dot com!

Unknown said...

Penny, I am a little nervous about all the people too but I get the impression that if you just mind your own bees wax that its not so bad...I hope so anyways!

Iris said...

Please, for me, consume a pile of street meat (chicken and rice, or mystery meat on a stick), preferably with both the hot and white sauces. If I could bring one thing here from nyc, it would be that. And samosas. And Beard Papas cream puffs. And sample sales.

Jen said...

Sounds like so much fun! What a great opportunity to be around Lee Saxby. I'm looking forward to a post after that!
I love spring too. So much hope in new beginnings. I love that you are working with a bee keeper. Very cool. We buy local honey and it's so delicious! What a great way to learn a new skill.

Anonymous said...

I lived and went to school in the big apple for a few years!! Love it!! Love spring, except here its hurricane force winds all the time! UGH!!

Black Knight said...

I visited N.Y. in 1999 and it was a wonderful trip.
Great pics: the first because I love and defend the animals - the second because I work in a port where I plan the organization of the berths.

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