Spotlighting

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On Yoga

August 27, 2010 in Admiring, Being, Practicing, Spotlighting by Colleen | 3 comments

As many of you know, from this space and my life in the physical world, I practice yoga.  What initially began as neat way to get exercise has become a deeply invigorating physical and spiritual practice.  By God’s grace, I have the privilege to be led through asanas that bring me closer to what I believe is most important in this world: body, mind, and spirit connecting and strengthening, not just within me, but to human consciousness, and all that lives, breathes, and moves.  As a result, I have changed.  I am more integrated, physically stronger yet softer, more understanding, caring, and connected.  I still have a long way to go, but the journey, with yoga, is far more joyous and centered.

At the center of this is Shiva Rea.  I have had other teachers, but none has inspired me or encouraged me to continue as she has (despite never having met!).  Were it not for the discovery of the brilliant Yoga Shakti DVD more than five years ago, I don’t know that I would still be practicing.  It’s not only Shiva’s way of teaching, of leading, but the steady evolution of her yoga, rooted in the ebb and flow of life, not to mention those fabulous matrices that allow me to mix it up according to my needs and time.

These four DVDs are my favorites and are the foundation of my practice.  They are challenging, fun, beautiful, and as ever changing as I am.  Difficult one day, a breeze the next, they enable me to be exactly where I am and embrace it.

As for each video – Yoga Shakti is closest to what I would call a traditional vinyasa practice.  I think, too, if you are new to yoga, it is the best place to start, as she offers some basic postures and forms.  As you progress, it can be very challenging, too.  Even after more than five years, I can, by no means, complete all the postures as shown.  Shiva is strong and incredibly flexible!  My goal is to have this video mastered in 2013.  The body and mind open slowly, over time.

Trance Dance – I’ve written about this before, and my love for it is simple.  Dance!  Invigorating, fluid, sacred, and totally fun!

Daily Energy – I was so jazzed when she made this DVD!  Sometimes I don’t have a lot of time.  With this video, I can have a complete practice in as little as twenty minutes, which is pretty awesome.  Since it also has a yoga matrix, I can make it a whole lot longer, add some core work, forward bends, and a complete shavasana, too.

Creative Core + Upper Body – Though the practice is centered around 108 push-ups (not all at once – thank goodness!), it is definitely not just for the upper body.  The legs and core get a terrific workout, too.  Speaking of the core – in all of the DVDs except Trance, she offers core cultivation in very creative and fun ways.   I’d never seen or felt anything like it – very good!  Oh, and this one is also pretty short, running at 35 minutes.

Norse

August 13, 2010 in Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 1 comment

I’ve got two terrific titles for you today, and a little alliteration, which is always fun.  Both are Norwegian and awfully good.

Buddy follows Kristoffer, a young and carefree billboard hanger who chronicles his everyday life via film.  Nothing is kept from the camera – laughter, the heartache of a recent breakup, and crazy behavior receive equal time.  When he and his friend/roommate Geir decide to jump from a third story window into a dumpster at a local news station, the pair are nearly caught, and Kristoffer loses some video tape in the process.  The station actually likes what they see, forgive his and Geir’s trespassing, and offer them a weekly spot on a popular show. They and their third roommate Stig (who hasn’t left their apartment complex for two years) become local celebrities.  The future looks bright for rising star Kristoffer, but problems ensue when his increasing popularity causes his friends and his relationships with them to suffer.  It’s a great story about true friendship – what it really means to be a Buddy.

Hawaii, Oslo follows the paths of several strangers on the hottest day of the year.  Frode and Milla are overcome with grief that their newborn baby might die.  Two young boys search for their mother after the loss of their dad.  Institutionalized Leon has a date made ten years earlier to meet his childhood sweetheart Asa.   Leon’s brother, Trygve has a weekend leave from prison to visit him on his birthday.  At the center, touching all of their lives, is Vidar, a nurse who can see the future in his sleep, or can he?  It’s a great story about the power of dreams and finding what is most meaningful in life.

Daniel’s Songs

August 6, 2010 in Admiring, Listening, Spotlighting by Colleen | 1 comment

Pride is a funny feeling.  At times, it can be an almost overwhelming presence casting an enormous shadow and causing a lump in the throat.  Other times, it is more subtle, that rosy glow on a smiling cheek.  Or, as it is for me in this moment, a flash of joyful tears.

The source of my joyful tears is the fantastic music of a former student from my ever so brief period of teaching high school English.  It was a rather unfortunate beginning for me and Daniel, actually.  I came in two weeks after the school year started to help with overcrowding, and though I was excited and academically quite prepared, I never anticipated the hard feelings being uprooted from other classes would stir up in my students.   Daniel was among the worst instigators, making it very plain that my presence was not welcome.  Fortunately for both of us, I turned out to be something unexpected and likable and was forgiven in time, even praised by my big hearted students, and again, Daniel led the pack.

So when he found me on Facebook recently, I gladly accepted his offer of friendship.  What I didn’t expect was the music.  Though Daniel sang in the choir at school, and was quite good, I might add, I could never have fathomed that this sweet and oftentimes goofy (we have that in common, to be sure) boy (ahem, man, Ms. Sohn – he’s in his twenties!) would have such great lyrics and music to share.  Seriously, the more I listen, the more I like it, and not just because it is his.  I am not that kind of person.  It is marvelously layered and just the kind of music I enjoy – with a little of this and a little of that to make a fine package.

What’s more is Daniel’s fearless nature about his music.  He is out THERE, promoting, recording, packaging, selling and generally believing in himself.  I am just so proud of him and truly believe that with his passion, talent, and smarts, he’s headed for the stars!  But you don’t have to take my word for it – give his music a listen (please buy some, too, I did!) and remember the name Daniel Van Dyk.

Oh, and Daniel, let’s get a picture together sometime soon – the ferris wheel, while not at all shabby, is a poor substitute.

Visioneers

July 9, 2010 in Being, Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | No comments

I read somewhere recently that the purpose of school is to make people learn to conform.   I have to admit that a tight knot formed in my belly upon reading it.  Fighting words.  School is so much more.  Then I thought a bit more about it and found myself conforming to whomever’s idea it was.  Sit here, be nice, 2+2=4, oh, and you better agree with me.  I’ve spent a lot of my life agreeing with people.  Sometimes even when I really don’t.  It is easier and kinder and usually feels right.  What about those times when it doesn’t?  When I quit the charade and speak my mind?  It surprises people and I don’t get invited back to that cool clique on the playground.  Someone I used to know called it my hard nugget.  “See, you’re petite, and have such a sweet smile, and then POW! out comes the hard nugget.”

I would rather be alone than not be me.  It’s that simple.  Which is a rather roundabout way of getting to Visioneers, the topic of today’s spotlight.  It is a weird and wacky black comedy about the power of corporate America to infiltrate our lives (and the government), and one man’s struggle to discover his authentic self, no matter the cost.

When the number of people exploding from some mystery ailment drastically increases, Visioneer George Washington Winsterhammerman (played by Zach Galifianakis of The Hangover fame) begins to worry.  He’s got the classic symptoms – insomnia, loss of interest in sex, binge eating and, most frightening of all – he still dreams.

I really liked this movie.  First off, in the aforementioned wacky way, it totally made me laugh.  People at the company where George works  flip each other off and say, “Jeffers Morning” to greet each other.  The insignia for the company is this same gesture (see it there in the poster?).  They are terrified by chaos, but they call it “chay-os.”  They are an uber efficient and detached group of conformists, with an extreme terror of exploding.   Especially George.

Yet there is a certain pleasure in his work, a connection with his level four boss, Charisma.  She calls and is friendly, human even.  She attaches sticky notes with smiley faces to his work.  But, when she gets fired and disappears, George starts to unravel and descend into chay-os.  His already troubled marriage takes a turn; his weird, drop-out brother starts to make sense, and his dreams intensify.  Is he going to explode?  It was terribly worthwhile to find out.

I Like Vince Vaughn, Circa 1996 – 1998

June 18, 2010 in Quoting, Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 2 comments

Well, actually, I should say that I prefer his films of this era, because I still think he’s pretty terrific as a person.  He seems like a good guy: affable, likable, decent, and any time I’ve seen him on Ellen he’s been game for pretty much anything.  As a matter of fact, he’s probably the best celebrity I’ve seen play Humdinger, so there.  I’m just not crazy about the movies he’s made lately.

It all started with his breakout role in Swingers, and Trent, of course.  He’s ballsy, a natty dresser with a cool car (a 1964 Mercury Comet), and the best cheerleader of a friend any fella could ask for.  He’s got so many great lines that, at least for me, never get old:

” Baby, you’re so money and you don’t even know it!”

“You take yourself out of the game; you start talking about puppy dogs and ice cream, and of course it’s going to end up on the friendship tip.”

“I don’t want you to be the guy in the PG-13 movie everyone’s *really* hoping makes it happen.”

Then, in what I consider his best year of film, he played what I now realize is kind of the serial killer version of Trent in Clay Pigeons.  He’s Lester Long (the name does have a killer ring to it), a guy’s best friend, with an edge, though he’s decked out in western wear gear this time (come square dancing!).

In A Cool Dry Place, he’s divorced and raising his son in a small Kansas town when life gets complicated by a new romance, a life changing job offer, and the return of his ex wife. 

Return to Paradise pairs him with Joaquin Phoenix again (he’s the Clay of Clay Pigeons), in a rather sad tale of good times gone bad.  A trio of men meet in Malaysia, do a lot of partying and drugs, before two return home.  Unfortunately, they leave their drugs and the third, played by Phoenix, is accused of drug trafficking as a result.  Two years go by and they are contacted and asked to go to jail in order to prevent the third from being hung for his “crime.”  It’s a beautiful tale, one that asks some pretty interesting questions, too.

So Vince, since I know you read my wildly popular blog, how about some more 1998?  It would make this fan very happy!

Not Their Usual

June 4, 2010 in Inspiring, Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | No comments

As my cutie pie neighbor Keirnan (age five) might say, “She’s up to her old tricks.”  He’d be right, too.  I am up to my old tricks, loving the offbeat films where the actors are decidedly not up to theirs.  It is so refreshing!

The hubster and I saw Greenberg this past weekend.  Finally, finally something I was interested in seeing at the Academy.  I have been waiting for ages.  Seriously, I cannot remember when I was there last, and it totally bums me out.  I love movies.  I love sitting in movie theaters.  I love watching people file in and search for the perfect seat.  I love the moment the lights dim and the action starts, all the while munching on buttery popcorn and Reese’s Pieces, despite their absence of nutrition.  For the film is the sustenance, the essence of life, moments in darkness that ultimately illuminate.

I digress.  Greenberg, save two, um, cold(?) sex scenes, yes, cold, is one of those train wreck type films.  I could not look away, yet my heart kind of ached to.  It is the story of Roger Greenberg: broken man, letter writer, vest wearer.  He’s come to Los Angeles to house sit for his brother’s family after suffering a mental breakdown.  He’s meant to build a dog house, take care of its future occupant, Mahler, and, as he states rather explicitly, do nothing else.  It doesn’t quite work out as planned, as he immediately has feelings for his brother’s assistant Florence (a pitch perfect performance from Greta Gerwig), the dog gets sick, and he generally makes an ass of himself, though he puts the blame squarely on others.  It’s a great story about loss, starting off on the wrong foot, and the way we cobble our lives back together.  Perfect in its imperfection.

Will Farrel is Harold Crick, a boring and friendless IRS agent who suddenly starts hearing a voice.  A voice that knows him well, is never wrong, and clearly states that he is going to die.   What ensues is a beautiful transformation – from a numbers man ticking away the hours to a human being truly living and loving life.  So very, very good.  It makes me want to be a better writer.

This is Paul Thomas Anderson’s fantastic and exhilarating art house version of Adam Sandler.   As much as I like movies like 50 First Dates and Mr. Deeds (Are you surprised?  Do you underestimate my sneakiness?  They’re funny!), I sure wish he would make more movies like this.  Sandler plays Barry Egan, intense, lonely, incessantly badgered by his annoying and domineering sisters, he is constantly on the verge of rage and violence, and utterly powerless to stop it.   When a woman unexpectedly enters his life, there is instant chemistry and mystery.  What will he do?  Will this end badly?  What about that awful guy at the phone sex place?  Finding out is a great and scary ride.

This last one could actually be tied with Vampire’s Kiss.  Have you seen that one?  Nicholas Cage (circa 1988) plays a guy who thinks he’s been bitten by a vampire and acts accordingly, sporting fake teeth and all.  Which only makes me think of Chris Cooper’s teeth in this movie, oy vay, creepy.  This movie is strange, smart, and beautiful.  Nicholas Cage plays the Kaufman brothers, so unlike any character I have ever seen.  Fearful, weird, out of shape, paranoid, balding, and obsessed, yet likable.  The kind of underdog fellas you root for.  Besides that, there’s Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper.  Who could ask for anything more?

Classic Home Desserts

May 7, 2010 in Cooking and Baking, Reading, Spotlighting by Colleen | 2 comments

This, my friends is a slice of terrific banana cake.  I’ve adapted it from what I think is a pretty terrific book, Classic Home Desserts, by the late Richard Sax.  My number one favorite in this department, and one that I’ve had since 1994, longer than any other, of any kind, I might add.  As someone who is a great purger, this is saying a lot.  This book, no doubt, will be with me until it is coming apart at the seams, all 688 glorious pages.  It is full of great stories and historic recipes, not only a treasure to bake from but one to read, as well.  I’ve made countless recipes from it, all went off without a hitch and tasted even better (two other examples are here and here).  How is that for a product endorsement?  Fortunately, the book is not out of print, but the latest edition, from 2000, is, in my opinion, prohibitively expensive, at least on Amazon ($45 used – $99 new, zoiks!), so, if you’d like to give it a try, head to Powell’s (I’ve seen used copies for $25), your local library, or cross your fingers that they print another edition.

Anyway, to the recipe.  I’ve adapted it from his original, of course, for it is my way, but I honestly don’t think he (or you) will mind.  An additional bit, part of my love for this cake stems from the fact that it is made in a Bundt style pan.  Have I ever spoken of my love for the Bundt pan?  Dessert is somehow elevated when it comes out of a pan shaped like that, truly.

Banana Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 sticks butter, softened or, if you are short on time, grate it fine with a cheese grater

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

3/4 cup ripe mashed banana (about 2)

1/4 cup, plus 2 tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt

Preheat the oven to 350.  Generously butter a 10″ tube or Bundt pan.  Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a small bowl.  Set aside.

Beat the butter with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until very light.  Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until fluffy.  Beat in the eggs, one by one; beat in the vanilla.  Put mixer on the lowest speed and add half of the flour mixture, alternating with the banana.  Add the remaining flour, alternating with the sour cream or yogurt, in batches.  Do not overmix.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50-55 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes.  Carefully unmold the cake and cool to room temperature.  Eat plain, dust with powdered sugar, or frost.  This is great with a caramel, vanilla, or chocolate frosting.  I’ll bet it would be great with a cream cheese frosting, too.  You can’t go wrong!  Like the picture, it also tastes great with coffee.

Enjoy!

The Pleasures of Cooking for One

April 30, 2010 in Cooking and Baking, Eating, Reading, Spotlighting by Colleen | 3 comments

Do you cook much for yourself?  I don’t.  When I am on my own, my efforts are pretty slapdash, grabbing this and that, and often eating while standing up in the kitchen, as I just did (I’m writing this on Wednesday afternoon), happily consuming two slices of Dave’s Killer Bread with a light smearing of unsalted butter, a giant spoonful of white bean dip (made on Sunday to last the week), a slice of Havarti cheese, and a kiwi.  I guess I’ve never seen the point in making an effort when it is just me.  In contrast, I receive great satisfaction in making food to share with the hubster.  I like the time in the kitchen, the gathering of ingredients, the easy rythm of cooking, like the best jazz.  Then there is the pleasure of sitting down together, chatting happily about whatever strikes us, and having just enough so he can take leftovers for lunch the next day.  Sweet perfection.

Then the book pictured above, The Pleasures of Cooking for One, by Judith Jones, came along and got me wondering.  She’d been married a long time, and when her husband died, she didn’t initially cook for herself, thinking it wasn’t worth doing.  Then, with time, and some encouragement from some of her readers, she decided she would do it and found it an exciting and enjoyable challenge to adapt recipes that serve many into individual servings or those that can be morphed further into new meals over the course of days.  More than that, I think it is about deciding that, as individuals, we are important and merit the preparation of a delicious meal.  We matter.  What we eat matters.

Though Judith and I don’t share all of the same tastes (tongue and organ meats not being among mine), we are both economical shoppers and make every attempt not to waste.  The photo is a perfect example.  I was on my own for dinner (the hubster was working out), and I decided I would really make something for myself rather than my usual slapdash meal (though I did double the recipe so he could have some when he arrived – I love to share).  I looked in the fridge and realized it would have to be the souffle because I had neglected to go to the store that day, and we didn’t have much on hand.   I had eggs, rice milk, a little bit of Appenzeller cheese, and butter lettuce.  The souffle left me with two egg yolks, so I decided to gild the lily and make a hollandaise sauce.  The timing was perfect, too.  I made the souffle batter, put it in the oven, made the hollandaise, washed and dressed the lettuce with a simple balsamic vinaigrette, and had about one minute to spare.  As I sat there on my own, with a crazy bun atop my head, wearing sweats stretched at the knees, I felt kind of special, savoring every bite, even oohing and ahhing, like I was being treated to a delicious meal.  Which, I guess, was true.  I treated myself, because, as they say in the commercials, I’m worth it.  Aren’t we all?  I’d definitely do it again.  Thank you, Judith, for the inspiration and the recipes.

The Memory of a Killer

April 23, 2010 in Spotlighting, Watching by Colleen | 1 comment

I love a good surprise of a film.  When we got this one in the mail we, quite frankly, were a little worried.  A killer with Alzheimer’s?  This can’t be good.  Why did I even put it in the queue?  Besides, we’d been on a Mad Men Season Three spree (one more DVD to go!) and weren’t terribly keen on breaking up the flow, but, reluctant as we were, we did, and boy were we ever glad.  This is a fantastic film.

The story follows two men on very different sides of the law.  One, a cop who cannot let go of a particular case involving a young girl, and the other, a professional hit man.  Each man is damaged and worn in his own way.  Vincke (the police officer) is obsessed by work and a great loss, and Ledda by the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s and a past he thought he left behind.  The two men’s lives intersect when they both find themselves working on the same case.  Vincke wants to bring the criminals to justice, while Ledda prefers them dead.

It is a race to the finish, as Ledda, with a clear lead over the police, leaves them clues and calls them out on their slowness.  It is an expertly written and well acted story.  Full of moral ambiguity, surprises, twists, and odd bits of humor, this film was a worthy pause in the Mad Men frenzy.

Bob Dylan: Blonde on Blonde

April 9, 2010 in Listening, Spotlighting by Colleen | 1 comment

It’s been so rainy and chilly here in Stumptown these past few weeks, with only stolen bits of sunshine and warmth.  It feels like winter, and I look a bit like Bob on this album cover, my absolute favorite of his.  I am bundled up and, perhaps, a bit weary, stern, and blurry.  But warmth will soon be at hand in these parts, I’m sure.

As I am no scholar of music, and I know of the importance of this album (considered one of the greatest of all time), I won’t pretend to know something special about it, save what it arouses in me.  I love the layered lyrics and the sense of wonder and pleasure I feel at the listening.  Is he cruel or kind, dreamy or rooted – probably all of these, for aren’t we all?  The man is thoughtful and gifted (I certainly envy his mad writing skills sometimes) and wickedly clever.  If you don’t already know them, read the lyrics to “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again”  or “Visions of Johanna” and you’ll see what I mean.  Good stuff!

As well, I’ll be taking a break from the blog next week.  See you on the 19th or thereabouts.  Take care my friends!

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