a w a r e n e s s

Video Snippet of the day: Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough’s Paso Doble from “Dancing with the Stars”

Thanks to DVR, we literally rewound to rewatch this dance approximately 10 times last night after it aired. And now, thanks to YouTube, we can all watch it a few times more. :]

Also, a minor plug on “Dancing with the Stars” and how amazing of a show it is: It’s brought to my awareness so many different kinds of dances, choreography styles, and music from all over the world. The costumes are always so beautifully designed and constructed, the dancers and guest performers are hardly short of entertaining, the live singers are on point with the song covers, and the hosts and judges (when they’re not completely off with their scores) are witty and hilarous. I highly recommend checking it out!

Paz Doble.
C

Everyone says that coming back from studying abroad offers a more intense culture shock than living in another country. It’s partly true. I definitely felt it when I returned to Cal Poly from Costa Rica last spring. But somehow, this time around, I’m really happy to be home. It might have something to do with the fact that I’m graduating in less than four months, or that I’m 21 now and the activities in San Luis Obispo has suddenly expanded dramatically, or that having family from South Africa visit in December gave us more to look forward to and significantly helped the transition into normalcy. Either way, all factors are working in my favor and it doesn’t hurt that I love California, where the sun decided to stay strong this year despite the season.

I’ve been getting into yoga, especially recently. It’s the perfect indoor activity to stimulate the heart, loosen the muscles, and detox the soul even when it’s cold and rainy outside (weather that typically makes me feel lazy and dull). It’s not only a workout, but it’s self-paced, peaceful, and meditative all at the same time. An unknown author once said ”Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.” And that is fact attained through something as marvelous as yoga; it’s amazing how my mood is elevated even after 30 minutes of practicing it. The image to the right is of me getting in some yoga time before the sunset on a beach in Malaysia (Tioman Island) and the crazy one to the left was taken by “barrel-maker” on www.deviantart.com. There are so many challenging poses and positions that I’m striving to achieve. In the process, I’ve gained a new appreciation for the art of bboying/bgirling (commercially known as breakdancing). So many of their moves take some serious yoga skills…all while spinning, jumping, flipping, and rolling around in a dense circle of gaping spectators. Here’s a video of one of my friends, Bedrock, and his crew, the Infamous Zebra Mob of New Jersey, who continuously take it to a new level.

Peace