Days 9 - Too Long : Albuquerque

For those of you akin to New Mexico or Albuquerque, please do not read the post title and think ill. I simply did not plan to be in Albuquerque for 12 days. I was awaiting some mail to be sent to a friend here and its delivery was delayed. I accomplished many things during this time and was also able to reconnect with two friends living in the area (thank you Liz and David for entertaining me!). Yet I was feeling the need to be away from the city. Having said that, I did make the best of my time in the Big A and had some interesting experiences. Also, Stella loved the daily trips to an amazing dog park!

Yoga

Has anyone ever heard of Dahn Yoga? Apparently there are about 100 of these nationwide. This is not your typical yoga practice with downward dog, eagle, crooning hyena, whatever. Oh no, it is something completely different. I walk in with my yoga mat in hand and was immediately directed to a "changing room" disguised as a coat closet. Seriously, she told me to hang up my coat, close the door and change. Change into what one may ask? A uniform. Yep, a uniform. It looked more like Tai Chi. Once in class we spent the first 5 minutes hitting ourselves in the stomach. No joke. Both my arms and my stomach crying out in pain. This was apparently the warm up. All I could think was "warm up for what?! A boxing match?" Although the yoga was very different from any other experience I have had, I did get enjoyment out of it. The movements were fluid and natural, lending to a peaceful feeling. My favorite part was at the end, we sat around in a circle while being served tea and cookies (instructor said they were "power cookies", though it tasted just like a peanut butter cookie...go figure). Then we went around and shared with the other students our experience with the class. It was nice to share stories. When I told the instructor that I was traveling and exploring the states, she asked "have you explored yourself?" Excellent question and I think I am doing that right now.

Worms!

Anyone out there heard of or tried 'vermiculutre'? It is composting with worms. It is supposed to produce amazing results and it decomposes your leftovers 3 times faster than normal composting. It was first suggested by a friend but I was reluctant to try. Well, I did more research and found that it could really work well in situation. I searched around Albuquerque for someone selling worms (weird, I know) and found the Gardeners' Guild. I dropped by and the person working there, Christianna, took time to answer all of my questions. I was so impressed with her knowledge and her helpfulness. If you live in Albuquerque and have gardening needs, this is the place to go! So off I went with a cup full of worms and the knowledge to start my 'vermiculture' experiment! I'll let you know how it goes!

Banjo!

One of the things I had to do while in town was buy banjo strings. I know, many of you may be saying "wow, I didn't know Brian played the Banjo." Well, I don't...yet! I have my grandfathers old banjo and recently restored it, but was in need of a new set of strings. Well, apparently, Banjo playing is not very popular in Albuquerque. I called 4 or 5 music stores in town and was finally referred to a place called Apple Mountain Music. Once again, the people in this store with extremely helpful and one of the employees, Dane, took the time to show me the proper way to string and tune the banjo. Now I was ready to Jam! That night, Stella was the focus of all my melodies. I'm not sure she was very happy with the jam session that ensued.