Le Yogi Sade

Sade - Cherish the Day


I had to smile when I heard Sade in yoga class yesterday. It took me back to this post I made, when I was in Munich listening to Sade and thinking about living in New York. And now here I am and it is nothing like I imagined. In fact, one of the few places where I feel like it's right and all the planets are aligned is in yoga class. The room, the view from the window, the time of day, my teacher Jeffrey and even the other students feel just right. The rest of the time I wander around the city thinking "What am I doing here?" or "Was it worth all the trouble to move here? What for?" or just "Wow".

But in yoga class, all of that is different. Everything makes sense there, even my weirdly flexible, middle eastern, crooked body, which delights in each weird crooked strechy move. As a gym student who once got a D, it is fun to excel at a sport and feel like it comes naturally to me. My favorite poses are the ones are the really twisted bendy ones, and the ones I used to do as a kid for fun, like a shoulder stand with my legs wound around two times. Surrounded by serious grown-ups, it never occured to me that adults would ever do it too.

Yoga is also the one of the few commitments I've been able to make recently. Ever since my break up, this class has been my therapy session, where my mind gets to rest as my body takes over. Everytime Jeffrey would say open your heart (where you point your chest to the sky), I would open as wide as possible so forces from above could heal the broken parts of my heart. It hurt but it also felt nourishing.

And then there's the music; Sade and Thievery Corporation which sometimes come up, and are both artists who I just love.

All in all, I try to take a "yoga view" to my life. Regardless of why I'm here, or if it was right or wrong, now that I'm in New York, I might as well live in the moment, enjoy it to the fullest and remember to breath.

Namaste

Le Closure

"Loneliness is not being alone; it's loving others to no avail." - Mario Stefani



Today was a day of closure for me. I had a long overdue talk with my ex in order to understand exactly what happened and why things ended up the way they did. We've had these chats before, but I've always come away feeling confused. But today was different, I got some answers I needed and finally understood what happened.

In some ways I feel like Carrie in the 'Sex and the City' episode where she feels like Barbra Streisand in 'The Way We Were'. That I am the crazy, emotional person who overwhelms Hubbell and he decides he can't handle her. I am relieved and happy that the permanent state of confusion that has plagued me for months has finally come to an end, and I can leave the past behind. And being Barbra/Carrie is not so bad.

After my long discussion, I came home to find a baggage-free apartment, since my undependable landlord was kind enough to help me and put my winter suitcase away where I can't reach. He only left one small bag behind. I smiled, put it away and wrote that one last email I knew I had to write, the period at the end of a sentence.

Le Goodbye to Paris

My Parisian Home

I didn't realize when I went to Paris last week, that it would be goodbye to the city of lights. It was just like going to dinner with a boyfriend without suspecting it would be your last meal together. Then you sit down across from each other and realize you have nothing left to say. It is evident your time together has come to an end, as you sit there chewing and staring.

Our "last" meal was at Cafe Marly. I was sitting at the same restaurant I always go to, having just ordered the same thing I always order. I looked at the amazing view of I.M. Pei's pyramids and I felt nothing. How many times can you go to the same place? Or see the same buildings? Or eat the same steak and mashed potatoes followed by Chocolat Fondant? Isn't it time to move on when the magic just isn't there? I felt an ending running through my bones.



We took a walk after dinner and I found my past lurking behind every corner. I returned to all my old favorite places only to find them haunted by memories. I greeted my friendly ghosts - they are all warm and happy in Paris - and I walked on. At some point, you just want to see something new, and begin a new phase in life, and I may be overdue.

I felt a door closing and another one opening. With one last glance at the city of lights, at Pont Neuf and Les Invalides, I shut the door and turned around. I couldn't wait to see those yellow taxi cabs of New York.

Le Dream Resurrection

Source

How to bring back dreams that have died or left you:

1. Acknowledge the death of the dream

2. Investigate the possible causes

3. Once found, remove the instigator immediately. Due to their virus-like nature, dream-killers will eventually spread to your other dreams and soul

4. Wait. Allow your soul to slowly get accustomed to the now safe environment

5. Begin to act as if the dream were still alive, and proceed with small steps that you would have taken had it had never gone away. For example, if your dream is to go on a roadtrip on Highway 1 in California, purchase a USA guidebook. This sends a positive message to your deceased dream, letting it know it is safe to return.

6. Keep at it time and again, and with regular intervals of space, it will return one day. Perhaps you will be taking a nap at home, and upon waking up, you get a wanderlust for the late-afternoon Californian sun. You dream the brilliant ocean is glistening to your left, while you drive a red convertable on those beautiful windy cliffs.

Love,
Breens

Le List of Deeds

Source

I did the most amazing thing last week. I was writing and couldn't remember the chronology of my life after college. A bit sad since I'm only 29, but all those late nights out drinking are starting to turn into one. So I decided to write a brief list summarizing each year, and when I got to the years I've been in New York, the lists started to get longer and the deeds bigger. I was shocked. I didn't feel like I had accomplished anything here, especially last year. I felt more down on myself and kept seeing the things I hadn't done, or the things wrong with what I had done, and just thinking to myself, 'Yes, I know moving to NY is hard, but I didn't do it right because blah blah blah.' And last year, the year I remember as empty, flat, and coming short of my expectations, turned out to be the biggest list of all and included:

- Finding and accepting a job in NY
- Living with a boy for 1.5 months
- Finding an apartment in NY without a broker's fee
- Learning how to drive and getting my driver's license
- Traveling to several places including back to my USA childhood home, Atlanta, Napa Valley and Mexico
- Learning how to read and write in Hebrew (I have since forgotten)
- etc.

I was surprised when I finished. I did all that? I guess it wasn't so much that I didn't do anything, it was a false perception of my strength and my capabilities. I figure if I had saved the world, I still wouldn't have felt like I did anything worthy, since my perception of myself was based on something other than what was really happening. Maybe things people had said to me, or ways in which I had disappointed myself in the past, causing me to peg myself as a not successful. Writing the list didn't heal that, but it opened my eyes to my false perception, and since acknowledgment is the first step, it has helped me change the way I look at myself.

You should definitely try it, it's kind of mind-blowing even though it sounds so simple. I'd love to hear about it, but first I'm off to look at shoes. I think I deserve a little reward for learning and forgetting a new alphabet last year :).

Love,
Sabrina

Le Pierre Menard

Source

Foreigner to New York seeks English to English translator/interpreter. Person should be fluent in American verbal and written (emails, text messages, etc.) American and New York English, as well as non-verbal communications (unanswered emails, text messages, long pauses in conversation, eye contact). The person should be able to translate these messages into plain old European (UK, Ireland, Expat) English or German. Must decipher what people actually mean to say without actually saying it directly. Please send a photo with your application. No phone calls.

Thank you.
Pierre Menard

Le Convenience of 29

Source


I conveniently decided today that I don't believe in age anymore. I think you just need to *be* and when you're ready for things to happen, they happen, and you can't really go by a number because people do things at different ages, so there really are no rules. Oh yeah, I'm also 29 today. Yay me.

I have a lot of opinions about being 29. First, I really like having a 9 in my age. I don't know, it feels soothing. 27 and 28 were a bit so so and involved a lot of drama, so I'm kind of glad to be in a new age bracket. I think this one is going to be a winner, where I sort of return to my roots and find happiness again.

This is also the last of my 20s. At first I was a bit depressed, to be honest. I felt like I hadn't accomplished much, and most importantly, I was really nervous about celebrating without my family and close friends. But then I decided to make the best of it, and I actually got excited about my birthday again. I don't think I've been excited for a birthday in over 5 years. I made plans, saw people, enhanced budding friendships, did fun things like go see Marc Jacobs talk at the New York Times and watch No Doubt perform at Rockefeller Plaza on the Today show. And of course I went shopping at the Hello Kitty store. It was a successful spree if you must know. I figured if I could survive my birthday "alone", then I can live here on my own as well. It's not over yet, but I think so far it's been good and I have a good shot at this whole New York thing.

So the last of my 20s. I started writing all these rules about things I had to do this year since next year I won't be able to, like dress like Gwen Stefani or wear mini skirts, but honestly...who cares? Gwen Stefani is 39 and she dresses like herself, so why can't I in my 30s? That's kind of silly.

I also started writing a list of accomplishments and was going to complain to you about how I don't feel like I've accomplished anything. But honestly, who the hell am I to judge that? It all comes down to seeing how happy you are, and if you feel like you are being true to yourself, and right now I am trying as hard as possible to do just that. I want to go back to truth and honesty like I used to be before I moved here. You can't really go wrong in that case as long as you refrain from doing things that feel wrong. Like not dressing like Gwen (I know I keep bringing her up, I just really like stripes right now). It feels really right and makes me happy so I'm doing it.

Anyway, I'm off to enjoy the rest of my birthday. I wish you happiness, truth and beautiful clothes. Here's to a new year :).

Love,
Sabrina

PS
Join me on my Facebook music page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Le-Beat-Song-of-the-Day/69948538314?ref=ts

Le Love Lockdown

Kanye West - Love Lockdown