Walking as exercise

Have you ever seen the episode of Portlandia where Kenneth from 30 Rock cameos as a dude who forget to bring his own bags to the grocery store? The store doesn’t have any. He bought a watermelon. They belittle him over the loud speaker. It’s really funny for the reason most of Portlandia is funny- because it’s not untrue. The NW corner of the US is like that. For example, today in Olympia (not as big as Portland, but the Capitol of WA) I was at a little cafe and I ordered soup at the counter. When she delivered it, she asked me if I needed a spoon with that. Um, it’s SOUP! As an eco conscious person in the said NW, I happen to have a travel spoon with me at all times. But still. It’s a restaurant! Do you need a spoon.

It’s little tiger’s 18-month bday today. Thus far, I’ve been pretty baby centered in my new life and that is great. It’s given me time to adjust some to being a mama in private before I have to take the show on the road. I have made a few radical decisions lately that I’m going to share for my own sake really.

*I am taking an obvious sugar break for the month of June. That means it’s not a label-reading sugar break, just the big monsters.
*I am going to exercise every day! Best discovery: Little Tiger on my back in the Ergo while I ride my bike. Not a permanent solution, but a good adventure exercise combo.

And the winner for things-I-thought-I’d-never-say-of-the-day: Walking can be exercise! I actually haven’t tried it yet because it still sounds preposterous, but I’m going to pry my mind open this week.

Some good news: I am finally going to be teaching yoga regularly again. At a beautiful studio in downtown Olympia, The Yoga Loft. It’s just once a week for the summer (Sun at 8:30am) but it’s a boon for sure.

I met a woman today who reminded me of who I really am. It’s a rare gift and I’m thankful for the encounter, albeit brief. It got me thinking about living abroad. One of the disappointments I had living in Africa (also only for a moment) was that I didn’t experience deep joy and connection with myself or others. That had been my past experience with travel in retrospect. Especially traveling in another language or culture is challenging, lonely, and can be unpleasant in myriad ways. But then the other-ness dissolves a little, strange things normalize and there are pockets of joy. Through the darkness, there is light!

And voilà, the theme of my life.

Seriously. It was a rough winter in these parts. And now it’s June, where the natural light is abundant, and hope reigns queen. Too many people have died. But as a wise friend reminded me: Death is just something that happens. It’s sad for us, but only because we were blessed to have heard their laughter.