My own personal season opener

Tuesday May 12, 2009
Philadelphia Phillies 5, LA Dodgers 3

Jayson Werth stole four bases, including home. Go Phils!

Yo Soy Yogini

I love yoga. I know I'm just adding to the list of things that my family in New Jersey can make fun of me for, but I don't care. Have you tried this? It's wonderful. It's all about stretching and breathing, pushing your body (not too far) and leaving your worries behind.



I go to class about once a week and spend an hour and a half doing vinyasas and asanas in an 80 degree heated room. The asanas (AH-sa-nas) are a series of postures like Warrior Two (demonstrated nicely by Eric, above) and Trikonasana (demonstrated by me and Jaja, below). My instructor Robert describes the asanas as flowers on a lei, with your breath as the string that holds them together.



A lot of the focus of yoga is on breathing. My favorite Robert quote of late is "yoga is not about tension; it's about intention through breath." I love it.

The top photo was taken by Jaja on her manual camera (what's that?). The bottom was taken by LStad, both at Big Sur. And here's a hilarious website I found that shows you how to do the asana poses through animation.

A stands for Athletics

I got to experience my 8th (count them, 8) major league baseball stadium on Friday. And I'm not even a real fan, it's ridiculous.



The McAfee Coliseum, home of the Oakland Athletics. The A's won, beating Jaja's Kansas City Royals 13-2 (oooooooooooo!). The fan turnout was pathetic, but the enthusiasm of the fans that were present was overwhelming. I would put A's fans up there with Phillies fans in the "don't mess" category.

Here's where I've been (I like lists):

• Shea Stadium (New York Mets)
• Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox)
• Busch Stadium (St. Louis Cardinals)
• Three Rivers Stadium (Pittsburgh Pirates)
• Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia Phillies)
• AT&T Park (San Francisco Giants)
• Yankee Stadium (New York Yankees)
• McAfee Coliseum (Oakland Athletics)
  

I leave for Nevada tomorrow, and I will try to post, but the internet connection in the trailer can't be trusted. We'll see what happens.

Giants Game

On Saturday I went to a Giants baseball game in beautiful AT&T Park in San Fran. It was awesome, the Giants beat the Diamondbacks 4-1 (5-1?) and a good time was had by all.



I complained about the name of the park before, and that stands, but everything else about it is awesome. The park opens up to the bay, and people hang out in kayaks and boats, waiting to catch "splash hit" home runs. After talking with my friend Mason, I found out that the stadium is built in a style called "retro-classic" which was started by the Baltimore Orioles in 1992 (he, being from Balmer, knew all about this). It basically means that it is baseball-only, and it has elements that hearken back to the way that parks were built in the golden age of baseball (think Fenway Park and Wrigley Field). AT&T Park has amazing public transportation too, I took the MUNI straight to the front door (with a thousand other people, and I was the only one not wearing orange and black).



I went with my housemates G and M, and two of their friends. I ate enough cotton candy to make me sick, I actually had to stop, can you believe it? It was also bobble-head night, so I now have a Barry Zito bobble-head in my possession. Doesn't he fit right in?

Sauerkraut and baseball, a match made in heaven

Well, I've discovered my new favorite breakfast; scrambled eggs with Parmesan cheese, diced tomatoes, and sauerkraut. The combination of salty, sour, acidic, and creamy was exactly what I was looking for this morning. It's not that pretty, but the sauerkraut itself is a nice yellow/green color now. I took it out of the crock and put it in the fridge in a tupperware, so the fermentation is finally over. And I think I can promise that this is the last post with sauerkraut pictures (for now, mwahahahaha!).



I went to a minor league baseball game in Sacramento the other day, my first time. We were rooting for the Sacramento Rivercats, who are the minor league team for the Oakland A's. They lost, oh well. It was at Raley field, where they have lawn seats for $6 in back of the outfield, and it was a great way to spend a Thursday night. The stadium was surprisingly professional looking, with the regular vendors and everything, but it was all on a smaller scale. I'm going to see the Giants in San Francisco next weekend, so I'll be able to compare. Not counting Raley field, I've been to 5 baseball stadiums, which is quite a lot for someone who isn't really a big baseball fan. Shea Stadium (New York Mets), Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox), Busch Stadium (St. Louis Cardinals), Three Rivers Stadium (Pittsburgh Pirates), and Citizens Bank Park (Philadelphia Phillies). Now I get to add AT&T Park to the list. What a terrible name. I don't know which is worse, AT&T Park, or Citizens Bank Park, ick.



Here's a sneak peek of the weaving project. No details until it's done, sorry.