Help comes from unexpected sources...

On what turned out to be an unexpectedly lovely evening this week, I've possibly made my first steps to understanding eliptical orbits and their impact on the seasons! I stayed with sis #1 at friends of hers in Selly Oak on Tuesday, ahead of a funeral on Wednesday, which might explain the excessive consumption of JD. Or it might just be that the chap of the house is a big fan, and happened to be well stocked with caffeine-free coke - oh, the joy! Anyway, I digress....

Said chap was trailed as knowing everything I might want to know about science and religion, which turned out to be true. At least for a Tuesday in Birmingham. And with the help of a green rubber ball and an apple (with the stalk being the North Pole), I took steps towards understanding how it all works. Now I won't say my first steps - others have gone before, and my problem is always one of retention. Light bulb moments are common, but they fall out of my head. And so look out Stuart - on Sunday I'll attempt to relay my new-found knowledge and see if you understand too. And then we'll progress. Thanks Fishy!

On other subjects, me & Shaun are like 'this' (crossing of fingers going on here) now (see earlier post), after a second mention on the BBC Six Music breakfast show this morning - it was about porridge, prunes and cardigans, all subjects on which I'm an expert. So maybe I can invite him out soon...

And I now own juggling balls...and can drop them really really well! Aside from having two friends that have offered to teach me, I'm liking this site for being nice and simple. Watch this space for progress...

Just like riding a bike...!

Actually, I think I have probably been on a bike more recently than I have picked up my recorders. It must have been at least 15 years since I've played anything remotely musical (maracas don't count, I'm fairly sure!), and I have this afternoon utterly surprised myself by being not only able to play the notes but to even sight read a tune. Admittedly, only Christmas carols so far, but in a very recognisable fashion, apart from the recorder being a tad flat. I guess when things are drilled into us enough at a young age, we retain some level of competence (I was about 9 years old when I learnt to read music). I am excited though - so bring on the busking, which will be 11th December somewhere discreet in Trafalgar Square, if there is such a thing, with maybe a mince pie and a flask of mulled wine. I will need carol singers, so feel free to come along and witness me possibly officially crossing off the first thing on my list! Bring a camera...

Other contenders though are juggling, which I'm hoping to attempt this weekend coming (might take me a while though, my hand/eye coordination is notoriously bad), and the jumper, for which I have purchased the wool and the needles. Crochet and Christmas cards are where my creativity is being focused at the moment though, but it would be nice to have the jumper done before the spring arrives at least!

Other progress includes having Shaun Keaveny name check me on the BBC 6 Music breakfast show (so maybe I could arrange to buy him a drink sometime - it's either him or Clare Sweeney at the moment!), deciding my scrapbook could be an online one, with a little help from a friend, a little more work on the dolphin, and identifying a photography group that should help my skills and motivation there.

Areas I'm definitely slacking in are the running and the writing...still, there's plenty of time...

A good headstand starts with a dolphin

It's been a long while since I've been in a yoga class that teaches the headstand (sirhasana). For some reason it seems to be avoided generally in the UK - maybe it's to avoid the comedy factor of a room full of vaguely zen-like individuals toppling over onto each other, or maybe there's a litigous reason associated with the same scenario. Either way, I think the last time I seriously attempted it was in India in 2004. I have, maybe only once, achieved the delightful state of weightlessness that is supposed to come with a well balanced headstand, but if I recall correctly that was for maybe a second or two before a less-than-graceful wobble and a return to earth.

I'm not naturally a well-balanced person (I hear chuckling!), and any asana that requires balance is invariably frustrating for me. But with the headstand there is the added problem of my not having much upper body strength. And this is where the dolphin comes in, designed specifically as a preparatory posture to get those biceps, triceps and shoulders working. For the first time in a long time this morning I incorporated it into my yoga session. I'll await the resulting muscle ache with some trepidation!

There is a long list of benefits associated with inverted postures, and particularly the headstand, including: relieving anxiety; preventing asthma, hay fever and menopausal imbalance (I'm not quite there yet); rectifying glandular disorder; and other things to do with reversing gravity in the spine and the legs. All good reasons to persist methinks...I'll just need to remember that patience is a virtue.