Brushless shaving cream was a step up from the old straight razor and shaving mug, celebrated with several verses, including:
Soon shaving brushes
Will be trimmin’
Those screwy hats
We see on women.
Burma Shave
But then came the next step: electric razors, and the Burma Vita company was fighting on a new front:
A handsome cheek
All smooth and clean
Is not obtained
With a mowing machine
Burma Shave
Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! The new name of my next mystery novel is Darned If You Do. The name was suggested by a fan on my Facebook account (hidden among a list of other titles she liked). My publisher is all cock-a-hoop because nobody else has ever used that as a title. Titles are not copyright-able, and so they turn up again and again. I once published an arson-murder novel I called Ashes to Ashes, and I think there were three or four other novels in print at the time with that name, and countless others back-listed.
One problem with the title is that I had to stop writing the story long enough to research darning so I could change a scene where Godwin teaches a young customer to purl to Godwin teaches a young customer to darn a sock. I haven’t actually tried it, so I hope I have the instructions right. (Ask me, I’ll send what I’ve written to you so you can vet it. Thanks!)
My husband and I attended a gun handling class Friday, and the instructor was a retired military/retired deputy sheriff character so profane and masculine I almost came away with testosterone poisoning. Oddly enough, I also found him funny and attractive, and I’m going to interview him about some of the darker aspects of law enforcement and perhaps create a character for my books like him. I’ll have to lighten him up some and launder his language, but it’ll be fun to see him in print. I’m sure all writers come across strong personalities they shade and mold a bit to fit what genre they’re writing. In a creative writing class I took many years ago, the instructor gave us a print of a Norman Rockwell painting of a cute runaway boy talking to a policeman who had bought him an ice cream cone. We were to write a short story based on the painting. I kept the cop a nice guy, but made the little boy a budding Nazi trying to get away from his sweet parents. See? Shading and molding! LOL
Somebody described our weather as “bipolar,” an excellent description of a week that went from twelve below to fifty-four above
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Friday, March 7, 2014
Already the rain is forgotten. The only reminder is that everything has greened up. The gentle temperatures have returned and the air is fragrant from the pink blooms of the jasmine plant in my yard. The orange blossoms will open any day now and the air will smell even sweeter.
The nice part is that since Molly Pink in essence lives at my house, all the time I’m sitting in my yard, drinking coffee and soaking up the morning sun, I’m really working. I notice everything with the idea of writing about it. How silent it was this morning, that’s silent in terms of traffic and city noises, but there were birds singing everywhere.
My flowers love this weather. The carnations are blooming, the red salvia is attracting humming birds and the pot of pink jasmine reminds me how much I like the colors of pink and green together.
Molly has spent a lot of time in this yard and sometimes I can almost see the action I’ve written as if it were happening now.
I love going out in the yard at night. For some reason, even with all the lights around, I can see a lot of stars. The sky is big and dark blue twinkling with the big dipper and Venus. I can pick out the reddish cast of Mars.
When I was a kid we lived in an apartment that had a backyard full of broken glass and empty dirt. The only time I spent there was when my mother hung out laundry. I would keep her company in the basement while she washed the clothes on an old ringer machine. The basement was dark and pretty creepy. The room with the furnace was next to the washing room and I would watch the janitor load the trash into the fire. He used to find me treasures in the trash, like a little hand sewing machine.
As an aside, our old building was built as hotel for 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. At the time I didn’t think any thing of it, but all the rooms in our apartment were the same size, except for the living room which was really two rooms divided by a pocket door and must have been a suite. It offered cheap rent and a lot of our neighbors were artists and writers. And then urban renewal came along and they tore it down.
I wish I could get a message to that me and let her know that a wonderful yard was in her future.
The nice part is that since Molly Pink in essence lives at my house, all the time I’m sitting in my yard, drinking coffee and soaking up the morning sun, I’m really working. I notice everything with the idea of writing about it. How silent it was this morning, that’s silent in terms of traffic and city noises, but there were birds singing everywhere.
My flowers love this weather. The carnations are blooming, the red salvia is attracting humming birds and the pot of pink jasmine reminds me how much I like the colors of pink and green together.
Molly has spent a lot of time in this yard and sometimes I can almost see the action I’ve written as if it were happening now.
I love going out in the yard at night. For some reason, even with all the lights around, I can see a lot of stars. The sky is big and dark blue twinkling with the big dipper and Venus. I can pick out the reddish cast of Mars.
When I was a kid we lived in an apartment that had a backyard full of broken glass and empty dirt. The only time I spent there was when my mother hung out laundry. I would keep her company in the basement while she washed the clothes on an old ringer machine. The basement was dark and pretty creepy. The room with the furnace was next to the washing room and I would watch the janitor load the trash into the fire. He used to find me treasures in the trash, like a little hand sewing machine.
As an aside, our old building was built as hotel for 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. At the time I didn’t think any thing of it, but all the rooms in our apartment were the same size, except for the living room which was really two rooms divided by a pocket door and must have been a suite. It offered cheap rent and a lot of our neighbors were artists and writers. And then urban renewal came along and they tore it down.
I wish I could get a message to that me and let her know that a wonderful yard was in her future.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
A Better Forward Bend
One of Viniyoga’s key differentiators is our principle of adaptation, or modifying a pose’s form to achieve its function. Because of this principle, we often do poses in a Viniyoga classes significantly differently than in other styles. This is especially apparent in forward bends. (Actually, lateral bends as well, but that’s a blog topic for another day).
In Viniyoga, we categorize postures based on their primary and secondary intentions. The primary intention is the “have to have,” if you will, or the most important effect of a posture. The secondary intentions of a pose are the “nice to haves.” Those effects that, while useful, can be sacrificed if needed to achieve the primary goal of the pose.
In forward bends, the primary intention is usually stretching the low back. Secondarily, the pose may also stretch hips, hamstrings and the upper back. If you feel a forward bend in your hamstrings or upper back but not your low back, then you are likely getting the secondary intention of the pose at the expense of the primary intention.
The photos below are of a student doing a specific forward bend, called Uttanasana. In the photo on the left, she is stretching her hamstrings, but not her low back. The photo on the right shows the same student with improved form. Note how a slight bend in her knees has changed the pose significantly.
Of course you can’t see your own form when you’re practicing, but you can still tell whether you are doing the pose “right” by how it feels. If you’re doing Uttanasana correctly, you will feel a stretch in your low back and perhaps a small stretch in the backs of your legs.
Coming out of the forward bend should feel a bit different, and this is where things get tricky. While it is vitally important to stretch the low back, you should do so while keeping the rest of the spine, particularly the inter-vertebral discs, resilient and safe. Therefore you should not keep a rounded position as you come back up to standing. Doing so puts pressure on the front of the discs, which may lead to disc wear and even disc herniation over time. Instead, contract the low back muscles and come to a neutral or even slightly arched back at the half-way point. From there, press through the feet and return to standing. Many teachers call this “lifting through a flat back.” I often describe this movement as “lifting from your collar bones.”
In the photos below, the student on the left is rounding through her back as she comes to standing. On the right, she is using correct form. Note the return of the subtle arch of her lumbar curve.
Again, you’ll know if you’re doing the movement “right” by how it feels. When you come to standing, you should feel your shoulder blades move together, your collar bones lift, and a slight curve return to your lower back.
Still not sure if you’re doing it correctly? Ask your teacher to watch you closely and give individual feedback. Sometimes a even minute change in form can have a dramatic impact.
Namaste
Tracy
Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle, and check out Tracy Weber's author page for information about the Downward Dog Mysteries series. MURDER STRIKES A POSE is available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Whole Life Yoga, and wherever books are sold.
In Viniyoga, we categorize postures based on their primary and secondary intentions. The primary intention is the “have to have,” if you will, or the most important effect of a posture. The secondary intentions of a pose are the “nice to haves.” Those effects that, while useful, can be sacrificed if needed to achieve the primary goal of the pose.
In forward bends, the primary intention is usually stretching the low back. Secondarily, the pose may also stretch hips, hamstrings and the upper back. If you feel a forward bend in your hamstrings or upper back but not your low back, then you are likely getting the secondary intention of the pose at the expense of the primary intention.
The photos below are of a student doing a specific forward bend, called Uttanasana. In the photo on the left, she is stretching her hamstrings, but not her low back. The photo on the right shows the same student with improved form. Note how a slight bend in her knees has changed the pose significantly.
Of course you can’t see your own form when you’re practicing, but you can still tell whether you are doing the pose “right” by how it feels. If you’re doing Uttanasana correctly, you will feel a stretch in your low back and perhaps a small stretch in the backs of your legs.
Coming out of the forward bend should feel a bit different, and this is where things get tricky. While it is vitally important to stretch the low back, you should do so while keeping the rest of the spine, particularly the inter-vertebral discs, resilient and safe. Therefore you should not keep a rounded position as you come back up to standing. Doing so puts pressure on the front of the discs, which may lead to disc wear and even disc herniation over time. Instead, contract the low back muscles and come to a neutral or even slightly arched back at the half-way point. From there, press through the feet and return to standing. Many teachers call this “lifting through a flat back.” I often describe this movement as “lifting from your collar bones.”
In the photos below, the student on the left is rounding through her back as she comes to standing. On the right, she is using correct form. Note the return of the subtle arch of her lumbar curve.
Again, you’ll know if you’re doing the movement “right” by how it feels. When you come to standing, you should feel your shoulder blades move together, your collar bones lift, and a slight curve return to your lower back.
Still not sure if you’re doing it correctly? Ask your teacher to watch you closely and give individual feedback. Sometimes a even minute change in form can have a dramatic impact.
Namaste
Tracy
Come visit Whole Life Yoga in Seattle, and check out Tracy Weber's author page for information about the Downward Dog Mysteries series. MURDER STRIKES A POSE is available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Whole Life Yoga, and wherever books are sold.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
