Category: Music that moves me

Yoga Anyone?

As I mentioned before in Cave Girl, I work Monday through Friday on 100% commission in media ad sales, a super stressful, extremely competitive industry.   Consequently, on the weekends (or even some weeknights) I’m on the look-out for new ways to de-stress.

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Yoga has become a new ‘old way.‘  Full Moon Yoga with Gong Meditation that is.  It’s my new go-to when the gym (Edge Fitness in Hamden) although helpful in terms of working up a sweat, building lean muscle, burning calories and fat, etc. still leaves me with a busy head…

 

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At this point I’m looking more for something that helps me to relax to the point of emptying my mind and filling it with good clear thoughts.

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My solution has become Full Moon Yoga with Gong Meditation.  It’s offered once a month at the Yoga Community Center in Hamden, on the Friday closest to the Full Moon. It’s  held from 7pm to 9pm.  It’s wise not to go on a full stomach and light refreshments are served afterwards.  It costs $22 for one session or $60 for three sessions.  Everything takes place on the second floor in a large yellow walled yoga studio with soft lighting and relaxing music.  Mats, blankets and other yoga equipment are provided if you do not have your own.  Quick tip: don’t forget your water bottle.  Kundalini Yoga is practiced in the first hour and the second hour (while you are now lying on your mat, covered in a blanket with your eyes closed) focuses on deep sound healing and relaxation via Gong Meditation.  This is where you hear an actual gong being struck repeatedly for a good hour.  The gong vibrations (after two or more sessions) will cause you to experience deep relaxation.  The goal of  each of these sessions is to “elevate awareness and rebalance your physical, emotional and spiritual bodies.”  I remember the first or second time I went I felt like I was walking on actual clouds for at least an hour after the session (smile).

If interested, you may register online at yourcommunityyoga.com or call them at (203) 287-2277.  Drop-Ins, however, are always welcome.

Namaste!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Made of Wood…

I’m listening to a ’70s station on the radio the other day and one of my favorite songs by The Dramatics comes on, “Whatcha see is Whatcha get,” and it really got me thinking…

They don’t make music like they used to…

It also served to remind me that I grew up in a time when records were made of vinyl and album covers (LP or “long playing” covers) were a small work of art.  Records (disc formats: 33s, 45s and 78 RPMs) were played on boxy turntables back in the day and we even owned one that had a needle that needed a penny on top of it just to keep it stable (smile); and they were affordable!  A 45 single could run you somewhere between 75 cents to one dollar and a whole album (LP) could run from eight to ten dollars… Also, your favorite song wasn’t as accessible as it is today.  There was no Google or other search engines to go to when you just had to hear  that song.  You actually had to wait and hope the DJ would play your song on the radio or better yet, your parents owned the record so you could hear it at your leisure.

I loved Saturdays though because although we did not have YouTube, what we did have featured a lot of Rhythm & Blues & Soul music all in one place.   It was called Soul Train (the musical variety show on TV).  It was the center of my world back then and my show!  I planned my Saturdays around it.

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I marveled at the dancing, the fashions, the too-easy-to-solve word puzzles, and Don Cornelius’s ability to use his charismatic personality to captivate audiences each and every week.

I wanted his job, as it seemed like it was more a labor of love than a daily grind.

At any rate, the 70’s were a special time, there were no smart phones for people to listen to music out of and dare I say, we were far less distracted as a result.   Plus, music seemed to possess real meaning, as we sang along to heartfelt lyrics which oftentimes conjured up deep thoughts.

‘Watcha see is Watcha get’ by The Dramatics is just one example from the ’70s of a song with meaning.   As it turned out, it was far more than a song lyric, it was a way of life for me, a pre-teen coming of age in the small town of Groton, CT…