Monday, January 02, 2006

D'OH!!!!!

I was checking out the Shala X website to see when their holiday schedule finished up so that I could get myself back to my practice there (their reduced holiday schedule didn't work for me over the holidays - what with my kids being on vacation - and I have been practicing for the most part on my own, interspersed with some led classes at Yoga Sutra and a couple of Bikram classes simply because I crave the heat)...and I saw to my shock and dismay that there is a new schedule. At first, I couldn't even understand how the schedule works: Sunday through Saturday? Doesn't that mean every day? An extended session on Tuesdays and Thursdays that goes until 11:30, great...but what about the 9:30 session that they used to have on the other days?

It looks like my ability to practice at Shala X has now been seriously reduced. Tuesdays, I can do. Sundays I can do. But I teach on Thursday mornings at Yoga Sutra, and the other days, if I begin practicing at 9:30 (which is when I can get there without severe agita, after dropping of my boys at school, making sure Lewis the Bagle is set and making my way downtown), I will have only 45 minutes before I have to go to finishing postures (Sir is VERY strict about his students starting finishing postures by a specified time). And there is no way that I could, or would want to, finish my entire practice in 45 minutes, save for the finishing sequence. I mean, that's what we eek out in a half-led primary class IF we're lucky, and that doesn't leave much time for long, slow breaths or extended exploration of any postures.

This puts quite a wrench into my plans to be practicing with Sir as my teacher. I suppose I can still be there twice a week - Tuesdays and Sundays. But what about the other days (other than Thursdays, which I spend at Yoga Sutra)? Is it okay for someone like me (read: a relative novice) to practice without a teacher three days a week, and to practice with my teacher only twice a week (with once a week being 1/2 led primary)?

And assuming it IS okay, is it something I WANT to be doing? I LIKE getting my adjustments....

And if it is NOT okay, or if I decide that I want to be practicing with a teacher in a Mysore setting more than twice a week, then what are my other options?

Shiva Shala has Mysore until late morning every weekday. But it seems so out of the way. Yoga Sutra's morning Mysore (6:30 to 9:30, finishing postures to follow) seems much more appealing because I feel very much at home there, but if I get there between 9 and 9:30, then although I know that I will be free to practice for as long as it takes me to finish my practice, I will nevertheless have to practice without a teacher for the majority of my practice. Of coure, there's always the option of what one might refer to as the "AYRI Annex" in south SoHo, since they have an 11:00 a.m. session. But it is not at all clear to me whether I would be welcome there given my free-agent tendencies...

I hear the echoes in my head of the discussions this summer, the objections raised to my being at both Sir's and the AYRI Annex on a regular basis, and I shudder to think that I might hear them again. And even if I don't hear the objections, still, there is the reality: this isn't the way it is supposed to be done, alternating teachers, alternating practice spaces, becoming, essentially an Ashtanga gypsy....

I am confused, and my head is spinning thinking about this. I know that it will all fall into place. But for now, I don't even know where to go tomorrow morning. Oh, wait...it will be Tuesday. I can still go to Shala X....

Any advice is appreciated, but please try to keep it constructive. I am feeling a bit fragile right now.

YC

10 comments:

Lees Lamar said...

You need to decide if Guy is your teacher or not. If he is, then the two days with him is enough. You seem very dedicated to self practice, very motivated. Yeah, adjustments are great, but if Guy is your teacher then two days a week will have to do. Schedules will always change and you have to be flexible and do what you can with it. Especially if Guy is your teacher.
Is Sir your Guy?

I am trying to make this lighthearted, given the usual battery of opinions!

And hey you are way better off still than I am in Never Ashtanga Land!

Tiff said...

Just one comment...isn't bikram's great?! Super addicting, yet I always find myself having to force so hard to return if I've missed a large amount of days...oh but there's nothing like a good sweat!

AVIANA said...

Hey, I like your site. I just graduated from law school and barred in NY but no interest in doing this law thing at all. So there alot of us out there. Glad you found your calling and followed your passion.

www.lisafrancisco.blogspot.com

Yoga Chickie said...

You know, Susan, that was my very first instinct. It really seems to be the best thought-out decision, as well as the default decision in the event that inaction takes over. It's pretty much what I have been doing anyway - practicing at Shala X (yes, Sir is Guy, which makes sense to me on a number of levels) and when I can't make it self practicing, or if I am lucky, squeezing in a session with Zoe or a led class at Yoga Sutra.

For better or for worse, this is what the universe is bringing me right now. It actually seems okay.

Lauren

P.S. I was wondering if there was ammonia in the Eraser - but it doesn't smell at all, and it isn't caustic to the touch. What could it BE???? Have you seen the movie, Envy? It reminds me of the stuff Jack Black's character invented, Pooh-be-gone or some such. No one knew what the hell was in it. Actually, it turned out to be toxic, so hopefully it's NOT like that!

AVIANA said...

Hey, glad I saw your site. I'm just graduated from law school and just got barred in NY. I have no interest in doing law at all. I'm glad your following your passion.

www.lisafrancisco.blogspot.com

Yoga Chickie said...

Yes, Tiff, Bikram rocks. It is yoga at its most simplistic with its focus on moving into a meditative state. It sort of "tricks" you into yoga. Ultimately, I craved something more, something different. But I still go back for my fix occasionally (and yes, it is HARD to go back after you've been gone awhile!).

Lees Lamar said...

Maybe it has something to do with the foam material..
Kinda like those pet hair removers you can get.

I think you should go with your first instinct.
Stick with the teacher you feel is your teacher.

Anonymous said...

YC

Could you make it to the 11 Am session every day? If so--you did LIKE that place from what I recall.....

Why don't you ask your teacher what he thinks?

Sally

Anonymous said...

2 days a week with guy is enough if you are dedicated to having a home practice. I'm sure his schedule will change again and make things easier for you once again to attend more regularly. on the other hand if you feel that not going somewhere 6 days a wekk will put a damper on your enthusiasm to practice I would consider going soemwhere else.

Anonymous said...

Sir has a very...how shall I say...unique writing style, that despite years of higher education, I never understand. My advice is to email him direct question to understand the schedule. He often writes one thing but means another...

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Northern Westchester, New York, United States
I live by a duck pond. I used to live by the East River. I don't work. I used to work a lot. Now, not so much. I used to teach a lot of yoga. Now not so much. I still practice a lot of yoga though. A LOT. I love my kids, being outdoors, taking photos, reading magazines, writing and stirring the pot. Enjoy responsibly.

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