Tuesday, January 23, 2007

I love my practice.

I just thought I would mention that.

The upside to taking so long to really master Supta K is that I have so so so much time to master ALL of Primary. I've watched my proficiency level go steadily up in all the postures, one by one, and my ability to keep vinyasa-ing without falling to the ground with each chatturanga has steadily improved until I am pretty much caught up to my asanas (in other words, I can do every vinyasa up through Garba Pindasana, fairly competently). My sweating has greatly diminished, thanks to giving up my morning cup of coffee. My Mari D is feeling all cozy and squishy again, just like I like it, thanks primarily to not eating at night, and limiting my fluid intake after midnight. Good advice from Sir, all of it.

Today Sir caught me slacking off in Navasana. I laughed out loud. I have NEVER been caught slacking in Navasana. NEVER! And yet, I must slack off in Navasana on a consistent, daily basis. Well, turns out, of course, that holding Navasana for the full five inhales and the full five exhales makes the press-ups in between feel much easier and I ended up feeling far more ready for Buja and Kurmasana. I guess Navasana is a palate cleanser. Never thought of it as the sorbet of Ashtanga practice. But it seems that it is.

I practiced at home yesterday in the late afternoon due to spending most of the day on a class field trip to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. We were supposed to have gone to Katz's Deli beforehand, but the school bus that was taking us there did not arrive until forty minutes late. As such, we skipped it. Instead, I volunteered to pick up knishes and knockwurst this morning after my practice, which I did, and BOY do I wish I had a camera with me. Katz's is the ORIGINAL, and perhaps the ONLY delicatessen in NYC that is truly a "delicatessen" of the old school ilk. I don't think that ANYTHING in there has been changed in the last 100 years, not the decor, not the menus, not the signs on the wall ("Send a Salami to Your Kid in The Army"), although the prices have changed, and it's no longer Jews at the counter, but rather other relatively new immigrants from countries I couldn't readily identify.

I enjoyed a post-practice turkey on rye with coleslaw with half-sour pickles on the side, washed down with a half liter of Dr. Brown's Diet Black Raspberry. I finished about an eighth of the sandwich before I felt full. I put it back together (I tend to pick sandwiches apart, picking out the choicest bits and leaving the rest), packed it up and took it home with me.

I am pretty sure that the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld, as well as from real life, took his cue from the counter at Katz's. The moment you walk in, you're handed a ticket stub and directed to hand it to whomever gives you food and then return it to the cashier at the front of the room when you're done. Then you make your way to the block-long counter, which is actually a combination of several smaller counters, only you wouldn't know that if you hadn't been there before. Sandwiches are at one part of the counter. Take-away-style food such as knishes, hotdogs, sausages and the like are at another part of the counter. I am not sure where the hamburgers and eggs part of the counter was, but it was there somewhere, as was a counter devoted to large orders and beverages. It was mind bogglingly confusing, and the counters are peppered with signs that are rather assertive in their tone, but are intended to help you figure out where to go and what to do ("Go to the shortest line," one directs). Luckily, the lunch crowd had not yet arrived, and so the counter guys were able to help me out and point me in the right direction(s). The lack of surliness is where it diverges from the Soup Nazi, I suppose. That and the fabulousness of the deli fare. I'm not a big fan of the Soup Nazi's soups. Rather pedestrian, in my opinion, which of course, everything that you'll read here is, in some way, shape or form.

As Miranda Priestly would say, That's all.

YC

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

You mean you didn't get the no food idea at night FROM ME?

:-)

Anonymous said...

Sorry, I meant the "no food at night idea", ha ha

Anonymous said...

Oh, for a quarter of a turkey and tongue sandwich on seeded rye with Russian dressing and coleslaw! I can smell that deli!

Anonymous said...

tongue?

Coming to NYC the first week of April, the whole gang, 3 kids, husband, leaving the dog at home.
Looking for "kid" things to do, do you think that museum is worth taking them too? We will do the usual, central park, staue of liberty and of course now that Night at the Musuem was such a success we will go there as well.
Any other suggestions?
I would love to meet you for a cup of coffe, tea or something.


Kiran

Yoga Chickie said...

Well, V, I wouldn't want it all to go to your head, what with the Eka Padas and the fact that you're my Ashtanga idol and all...

Bebe - That is known as an Epi Special, right? That was my sandwich from my childhood. MMMMMM. Twisted and really un-pc, but mmmmm.

Kiran - I am around during that week, would love to see you. Will you be practicing with Guy this time around? I'd actually love to meet your husband in person - put a face and voice to the ezboard persona. At any rate, you should definitely get to Katz's for a true NYC experience. Also, the Tenement Museum is just around the corner from there. It is a live-action museum, with an actress who plays the role of a teenaged immigrant living in the tiny apartment.

Other NY kid things to do: ESPN Zone in Times Square, the Bronx Zoo, South Street Seaport, lunch or dinner at one of the old historical restaurants like Fraunces Tavern (it's still there from Colonial times), the Empire State Building observation deck, the Central Park Zoo...

Anonymous said...

LOL you are right, my head is big enough as it is lately! :-)

Anonymous said...

I plan on going to Guy's, will he be around that week? Definetely we should all get together after practice or dinner? something, we could even include kids.

Kiran

Yoga Chickie said...

I believe he will be around - there is a Costa Rica retreat sometime in the spring, but I doubt that it's the first week of April. You should check the website and maybe send him an email just to make sure he is going to be there. Assuming he is, it would be great to see you there, and I would love to go out for some post practice grub afterward. We could also go out with the husbands and/or the kids. I'll leave that up to you since you only have a limited time here.

Yoga Chickie said...

Oh - and Kiran...tongue is a Jew thing. Big favorite at the deli.

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About Me

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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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