Word Wednesday : "OM"

Today is Word Wednesday. As of next week it's going to be WINE WEDNESDAY...because I've discovered a new passion for those delicious grapes and I have been studying some wine books. What I've discovered is that wine isn't just for snobs, it's for everyone. So I figure that once a week I will share some of what I have been learning, and therefore we can hang with the connoisseurs! Anyways, back to WORD wednesday. The word today is "OM". I just finished teaching my first ever yoga lesson {yes, I had PAYING customers!}. In addition to studying wine, I have been studying a bunch of yoga books and watching dvd's like, "How To: Instructing Yoga". I am definitely more about yoga for fitness and peace of mind....not so much into the spiritual aspect. None the less, I feel like I should nail down what "OM" actually IS.

OM

written in Devanagari as ॐ

in Chinese as 唵

in Tibetan as ༀ

in Sanskrit known as praṇava प्रणव or oṃkāra ओंकार lit.

OM, as we know it, is actually AUM.

AUM (aka OM) is a mystical or sacred syllable (yes, it's not even really a word) in the Indian religions {including Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism}. It is pronounced as a long or over-long nasalized close-mid back rounded vowel. It is placed at the beginning of most Hindu texts as a sacred exclamation to be uttered at the beginning and end of a reading of the Vedas or previously to any prayer or mantra. {Vedas are the oldest sacred texts of hinduism} The syllable is taken to consist of three phonemes, a, u and m, variously symbolizing the Three Vedas or the Hindu Trimurti. Concerning the Mandukya Upanishad {a Hindu scripture devoted to the explanation of Aum} AUM is the following:

There are three mātrās ("letters", syllabic instants in prosody) in the word aum : ‘a’, ‘u’ and ‘m’. The ‘a’ stands for the state of wakefulness, where we experience externally through our mind and sense organs. The ‘u’ stands for the dream state, in which inward experiences are available. In the state of deep sleep, represented by the sound ‘m’, there is no desire and consciousness is gathered in upon itself.

But there is a fourth, transcendent state, that of one "who is neither inwardly nor outwardly aware, nor both inward and outward, nor with consciousness infolded on itself.... who is unseen and ineffable, ungraspable, featureless, unthinkable and unnameable" The fourth state (turīya avasthā) corresponds to silence as the other three correspond to AUM. It is the substratum of the other three states.

Hindus begin their day or any work or a journey by uttering Om. The sacred symbol is often found at the head of letters, at the beginning of examination papers and so on. Many Hindus, as an expression of spiritual perfection, wear the sign of Om as a pendant. In yoga, it is used as a symbol marking the beginning of and end of your routine.

aum in TIBETAN

aum in TAMIL

aum in DEVANAGARI

aum in BALINESE

marley and me

I just finished watching Marley & Me (with Jen Aniston & Owen Wilson). I know, I know…it got bad write-ups, everyone thought that it would be a chick flick, but I think that it was one of the best movies of the year…and it was certainly one of the best films concerning dogs. I’ve grown up with dogs. There’s dog people, and then there is everyone else. So, if you’ve ever had a dog, loved a dog, or hope to someday have one – I recommend Marley & Me…because it hits the nail on the head.

The movie ends with this quote:

“A dog has no use for fancy cars, or big homes or designer clothes. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog doesn’t care if you are rich or poor, clever or dull, smart or dumb. Give em your heart and he’ll give you his. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel…extradorinary?”

Everyone has one great dog in their life.

This was mine, Raven.

Love From Oeste Pat

Just got a SKYPE call from PAT in Oeste!!! I love, love, love Pat, and it was GREAT to finally hear her voice. We've been sending super long emails back and forth, but it's just not the same as chatting. It reminded me of the beautiful paradise, home-away-from-home that I have waiting for me once summer is through...and it's helping me get through this awful, chilly, rainy day that we are having today in Jers. I can't wait to get back to living la Pura Vida with my great friends!! But until then...there's always Skype!!

the oeste ladies

shawnie and miss pat

Bow and Arrow Bulls-Eye!

For our one year anniversary, I bought Shawnie a beautiful, hand-crafted bow. He has been shooting up a storm and the other day nailed the bulls-eye multiple time. Woohooo, now he needs to kill a deer to feeeed me!! Shawn, the Provider.

heres a photo of me back in the day, showin everybody how its done.

Sprintime Health & Music Fair

I'm scheduled to play with Sven @ 3:30pm today @ the Springtime Health & Music Fair. 

Below is the article from the AC Press. Check it out, I hope to see you all there!

Jacque Major uses her voice to soothe people's minds and souls. Over the years, she also benefitted from applying the healing arts, which include yoga and Tai Chi, to deal with her illnesses.

Major decided to combine the fields of music and health to organize the first Springtime Health & Music Fair on Sunday, May 3, at the Ocean City Music Pier.

The Somers Point singer-songwriter-guitarist first came up with the idea for a health and music fair a couple of years ago. She developed a frustration with playing music in places that based a large part of their business on alcohol consumption. Alcohol will not be served during the health and music fair.

Even though Major is a musician, her objective in organizing it was spreading the word about the healing arts, which also include acupuncture, massage therapy and gentle chiropractic care. Major is a certified yoga and Tai Chi instructor, who working in conjunction with her primary healthcare physician, has been helped by the healing arts when faced with serious injuries.

"I want everyone to feel the compassion of these amazing healing arts practitioners and benefit from their vast knowledge of the subjects," Major says.

At least a dozen professionals of different healing arts will attend to answer questions, give demonstrations and have written information for visitors, and at least six healthcare vendors.

Egg Harbor Township's Paul F. Pickens, a college certified instructor of Tai Chi and Chi Kung, will do a demonstration during the fair.

"I hope to enlighten them (attendees) to the fact that there are tools for relaxation that help them cope in a fast-paced world. ... All ages and levels of ability can partake," Pickens says.

Musicians will take turn playing live followed by demonstrations from the healing arts experts. Bassist Tim Lekan of Ocean City and Joe Barrett start the day with jazz. The music moves to acoustic rock with Major and her friends, then to a jazz-rock jam with a combination of Lekan's and Major's groups. The rock of the Geri Mingori Band will be followed by blues guitarist Danny Eyer of Buena Vista Township, Bubba Mac, Cailin Callahan and Sacred Cry.

Proceeds from this event benefit the Alcove Center for Grieving Children & Families in Northfield. There will be raffles of donated gifts from the community as well as a traditional 50/50 raffle.

Springtime Health

& Music Fair

WHEN: Noon to 8 p.m. Sunday, May 3

WHERE: Ocean City Music Pier, Moorlyn Terrace and the Boardwalk, Ocean City

HOW MUCH: Suggested donation is $20 adults, $10 students, veterans and seniors. Small children are admitted free.

MORE INFO: Call 609-214-1658 or go to www.thealcove.org.

offensive and delightful

Wow. What a day. From start to finish. 

Thursday was my last day with Bodhi. So I went over in the morning, fed him some breakfast, threw the ball, and we bid a teary farewell. After that I got cleaned up, dressed up and Sharonie dropped me at the Atlantic City Bus Station for the 9:40am bus. To go from AC to Philly via NjTransit is $13.50....which is a deal considering how much the tolls have gone up, how bad drivers are, and how nice it is to sit on a chauffeured bus without a care! In an hour and a half I was sitting in Shawnie's van, once again being chauffeured around, en route to get VIETNAMESE for lunch. For a while we had been going to this vietnamese restaurant on Washington & 11th ( I believe that the name is Nam Phoung) . Wanted to mix it up, spread the lunch love around, so we went to the Vietnam Palace - right across the street from the Vietnam Restaurant {we've dined at both}. It was good. We split a Green Papaya Salad w/ Beef Jerky, and we both had Vermicelli {mine was the DELUXE - obviously - which had grilled pork, spring rolls, and shrimp:  Shawn had the vegetarian spring rolls on his. ha.}. I washed it all down with a Vietnamese Iced Coffee...obviously. Disappointed though because the coffee and milk was already mixed up and the coffee must have been pre-made. I gotta say, though that place was "nicer", I will never again stray from the tried and true Washington & 11th spot. 1: It's always packed, which means the food is not sitting around. 2: The second you sit, a big kettle of tea is placed on your table. Gratis - AND its pretty phenomenal. 3: Their iced coffee's are the real deal....with the 1/2 inch of sweetend condensed milk at the bottom of the glass with ice. Another glass with the vietnamese coffee press atop, let the rich, bold brew drip down. The way it should be. 4: Their Green Papaya Salad's dressing is made with fish sauce, which is salty as opposed to sweet {vietnam palaces' was way too sweet} and 5: ITS CHEAP. Atleast a dollar or two cheaper, everything on the menu. 

One of the stops was at the AIA {American Institute of Architecture} Bookstore & Design Center . It's totally a pompous shop, where everyone that works there wears black, has a very serious look on their face, and refuses to make eye contact. Robots. This place is basically across the street from Reading Terminal. Located @ 1218 Arch Street. The first time that I went to this bookstore it was with Shawn, my architect boyfriend, so he could buy a gift for a fellow architect. Apparently architects are so picky that they need their own store filled with acceptable architect gifts. Ha. They have some cool stuff in there. At Christmas that had some amazing ornaments, for only about $8 a piece. I bought several of them then, and also bought some cards. They carry this brand called Offensive + Delightful. HYSTERICAL. They are $4.50 a card, but they come in these great little manilla envelopes, the design is great, and the rhetoric is just so funny. They have a website: www.OPLUSD.com . On the website, the cards are only 3.75...so load up on these fabulous, offensive cards. Check it out. 

I almost got lost in a Kitchen/Cooking shop...filled with completely unnecessary cooking gadgets, all that I felt that I needed. Did you know that there are 4 different gadgets out there just for slicing and/or storing avocados!? HA. Shawn had to physically remove me from the store, and I didn't go silently....

Also along the way we picked up some great salt, homemade red wine vinegar, and 2 huge mangoes. We had an IKEA trip that I won't even get into. It was an endless trip, sucking every drop of energy that I had left in me. I got a lemon zester out of it though.... All of this left us exhausted so we parked the van, and napped in the park. After that we grabbed some caffeine, a bottle of wine and headed to the river -  where we would be meeting Shawn's students {the whole POINT of us being in Philly}. His students had teamed up with a class from Moore College of Art, and had some installations {and performance art} set up throughout Philadelphia. While we waited for them we snacked on tortilla chips and hummus, and sipped white wine. They arrived and over the span of the next 4 hours we trekked high and low, covering every inch of Philly. Some peoples projects had been taken down {did I mention that these projects were either on public property, or private - condemned buildings?}, and others required us scaling  barbed wire fences. It ended with a pizza party w/ Jazz and dancing under an abandoned railway {built in the 1880's}. To top it all off, Shawn and I dropped by N.3rd for a burger and beer. The place was cute, with great artwork on the walls. The burgers were pretty top notch (I got mine with bleu cheese, Shawn got cheddar cheese and jalapenos). Fries were delicious...all was well, except for Shawn's flat Lager. Oh well...you win some, you lose some. 

Loaded into the van around 11 to head home. I told Shawn that I would be part of the team and stay awake for the ride home, but I only made it over the bridge before climbing into the back of the van and passing out. I woke up when we were coming over the Ocean City bridge back home.  

What a great success. 

la reina de esterillos oeste

speaking of dogs, i recently got an update on the Queen Perro of Esterillos, Oeste...miss Paloma.

her owner, Mike, sent me this photo, which is hysterical because she's the sweetest dog on the planet....

isn't she so cute?

BODHI

For over a week now I have been watching Bodhi. I visit him three times a day to feed him, play with him, and to make sure that he has a full dish of clean water. Sometimes we just hang out and cuddle. Bodhi's a leaner...he just likes to sit next to you and lean into you! Sometimes we play fetch, but that only lasts about 3 throws before he loses interests and stops bringing the ball back to me. Bodhi's a pretty cool dog. He's sweet and mellow...and he just sits there while I clean his infected ear and bad skin {poor Bodhi has really bad allergies}. ANyways, I think he's damn cute. So here are some photos of my best new bud, Bodhi. 

Bodhi, bringing me back the ball....

But not really...he'd rather keep it for himself....

"He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. 

You are his life, his love, his leader. 

He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. 

You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion"

HOP INK & Greek Cuisine!

So, my friend Gina came to visit for the weekend. We had a lovely time filled with sunbathing, food, chatting, food, and more food. Anyways, before she left on Monday evening I made us an easy and delicious greek feast for lunch. Here's the easy recipes:

Greek Salad:

• lettuce (romaine)
• sliced cucumber
• sliced tomato
• thinly sliced sweet yellow onion
• kalmata olives
• feta cheese

greek salad dressing:

1/3 lemon juice

2/3 GOOD olive oil

salt and pepper

fresh dill

Served alongside our Greek Salad was Grilled Lemon Chicken Shishkabobs with homemade tzatziki.

Grilled Lemon Chicken Shishkabobs:

Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Cut into cubes. Load up the skewer and then douse the chicken with lemon juice (squeeze a whole lemon on there!), and a generous amount of salt and pepper. Pour some olive oil on top or spray with PAM and throw onto a hot grill. I had the grill on Medium-High. I let the chicken cook on one side for about 5 minutes before turning it.

Tzatziki Sauce:

• 1 small container plain yogurt, or greek yogurt
• small handful of chopped fresh dill
• even smaller handful of chopped fresh mint
• salt & pepper
• grated cucumber, (about half a medium-sized cucumber)

Boom. It was delicious. Yummy greek salad and some fresh-off-the-grill lemon chicken topped with homemade tzatziki. I think the whole meal took me about 20 minutes to make...grilling included. Serve a grilled pita on the side -- brush with some olive oil, throw on the grill - a minute or so on each side. MmMmMm.

Here's Gina and I after our lovely afternoon lunch.

“He who receives his friends and gives no personal attention to the meal which is being prepared for them, is not worthy of having friends.”
Jean-Antheleme Brillat-Savarin (1755-1826)

**************

Gina's Company, HOP Ink Studio. She makes hand-crafted notes, cards, envelopes, stationary, books and illustrations. To send to "somebunny" special. Again, her email address is ginaenberg@mac.com She has a store on etsy.com: hopinkstudios.etsy.com which will be updated with new inventory at the end of this month.

Sunshine means it's Iced Coffee Time!

MmMmMm been lovin' this weather. Soaking up the sun as much as possible, letting the Vitamin D revitalize and rejuvenate my soul after a not-so-fabulous month of rainy cold weather. To keep refreshed in this weather I have three favorite beverages: iced coffee, lemonade, and agua de sandia. There's something about these three delicious drinks that cools you down and leaves you feeling fresh. I figured that I would share my recipe's with you...as well as the best store-bought version, in case you don't have a few minutes on your hands.

Iced Coffee: Iced coffee is not just coffee poured over ice. That's where many are mistaken and are left with a watery, less-than-desirable sweaty glass of bleh. Underwhelming. The key is strong coffee, cold coffee, whole milk or cream, and WHEN the sweetener is added. Follow these simple steps and you are golden:

1. brew coffee an hour or so ahead of when you are going to want the iced coffee. in the summer i usually make a big brew and leave it in a pitcher in my fridge. you want the coffee to be EXTRA strong, so double up on your coffee grinds {whether its drip, bialetti, percolator, or french press -- definitely definitely add an extra few tablespoons of grinds}.

2. now - if you refuse to use fake sugar {aka splenda}, then add your sugar as soon as the coffee is finished brewing....if you wait until the coffee is cold and add your sugar then, than it won't dissolve. mix the sugar into hot coffee.

3. put your extra-strength, sweetened coffee into the fridge.

4. now comes the time to pour the coffee over ice and add milk. i recommend whole milk or cream {or soymilk..given it's creamy texture} because otherwise you are left with a watery iced coffee -- which is AWFUL. bah, i shudder just thinking about it. so please, use a thicker milk or cream, it is truly the only way.

5. for the advanced coffee drinker - i recommend making coffee ice cubes. YES, coffee ice cubes. that way, when the ice melts, it's not watering down your coffee!! real simple - just pour some of your leftover brew into an ice cube tray and set in the freezer.

If you want to get fancy, top with some whip cream or add some chocolate syrup - but I'm an iced-coffee purist. For those who are on the go, then MC DONALD'S iced coffee is a pretty phenomenal substitute for the homemade goods. I gotta hand it to McD's...they make a hell of a cup of coffee. I ask for mine to be unsweetened, light on the cream, with splenda on the side. I know, it sounds obnoxious - but otherwise you get 3/4 cream with a boatload of sugar. Trust me, if you order like I did: unsweetened, light on cream w/ splenda on the side you will be truly delighted with the results.

My second favorite warm-weather beverage, Lemonade. This is a delicious, easy twist on that. All you need are 2 lemons, 1 lime, sweetener {sugar, agave or splenda}, water, ice, a blender and a strainer. Fresh mint is optional, but adding only a few leaves really perks it up. Quarter the lemons and lime and put in the blender. The whole lemon...including the rind. Everything. Then add 1/3 ice and about 2/3 water. Add however much sweetener you'd like {I like my lemonade tart, so I only add a few tablespoons of Agave Nectar}. Blend. Let the blender work it's magic for a minute or two. Pour through a strainer (so it can catch the ground up rinds and seeds} and then serve over ice. Perfecto. Cloudy Lemonade. Garnish with some fresh mint and serve to your friends. If you're on the run, pick up a NANTUCKET NECTARS "Iced Tea Lemonade". Bah, it's EPIC.

Last, but not least, is Agua de Sandia. So deliciouso. And SO easy to make. Cut up some watermelon and fill up the blender with the chunks. Add a bit of water so it blends nicely, add handful of fresh mint, and some lime juice (1 lime). Hit the blender for about a minute, add water if it starts to stall in the blender, and then chill in the fridge for around an hour. Serve over ice. I'm not sure what you could substitute on the run for this one, so this perfect recipe will have to be saved for a lazy afternoon.

one year.

a lot has happened this past year. 

i've been a ton of places, meet some amazing people, and ate some damn-fine food. 

and for the past year i have been with my boyfriend, shawnie. 

it feels like only yesterday we met at the beach -- thanks to his beautiful dog, maude. 

we've had a ton of fun, a bunch of laughs, and at the end of the day he's my best friend. 

and really -- all that matters is that you're having fun. 

woohoo...cheers for one year!

The Grand essentials of happiness are: 

something to do, something to love, and something to hope for.

-- allan k. chalmers

those who matter

all that matters in life are those who matter, and no one else.

'64 Chevrolet Chevelle Camino

Oh lord, won't you buy me a '64 Chevelle El Camino...

Boom. I love it. There aren't any cars out there that really blow my skirt up. I love my bright blue Ford Fuckus with the big dent in the back door. There's no car that I want more than the Fuckus. It's cute, funny, efficient...and totally mine. BUT, if I were to buy a new when -- shall I say, WHEN I buy a new car, I want an El Camino. My dad drove a red one, back in the day, and he looked absolutely badass. After searching high and low, I decided that I like the Camino's from 1964...the Chevelle model.  What do you think? Can you see me crusin' in the Camino, boards hangin out the back and Maude cruisin with her head out the window? I can.

How Deep Is The Ocean.

The OH SO BEAUTIFUL and TALENTED, Peggy Lee.

I love a good love song. And I feel like all of the good love songs were produced during the "big band" time...performed by singers like Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, so on and so forth. I love the simplicity of the words, and the delicacy in which they are delivered. My latest favorite is titled "How Deep Is The Ocean".

How Deep Is The Ocean

How much do I love you?

I'll tell you no lie

How deep is the ocean?

How high is the sky?

How many times a day do I think of you?

How many roses are sprinkled with dew?

How far would I travel

to be where you are?

How far is the journey

from here to a star?

And if I ever lost you

how much would I cry?

How deep is the ocean?

How high is the sky?

Billie Holiday.

Check out Billie's version here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUG2SQK03tU

Spring Cuisine

I'm trying to channel Spring.

I feel like maybe if I dress, act and eat like it's Spring,

that it will finally arrive.

SO, Today for lunch I had:

Grapefruit & Avocado Salad

Lemon Linguini

w/ Sparkling White Wine

It was pretty tasty...certainly a Spring menu, so I figured that I would share the recipes with you. The grapefruit avocado salad is a version of an old Martha Stewart salad recipe...and the Lemon Linguini is my interpretation of a Nigella Lawson recipe. The sparkling white wine -- well, that's just genius.

Grapefruit Avocado Salad

- 1 Grapefruit

- 1 Avocado

- Romaine Lettuce

- Salt & Pepper

- E.V. Olive Oil

Slice up the grapefruit into sections...for a quick and easy time, you could even buy the Del Monte pre-sliced Ruby Red Grapefruit. Slice up the avocado as well. Prepare lettuce as you normally would, decorating with the avocado and grapefruit. The salad dressing is made out of the juice squeezed from the grapefruit(2/3), 1/3 olive oil, salt and pepper. For some extra sweetness, add a splash of Balsamic Vinegar. Boom. That's it.

Lemon Linguini

- Linguini (1/2 lb)

- Fresh Parsley

- 1 Lemon

- 1 Egg

- Parmesan Cheese

- E.V. Olive Oil

- Garlic {Powder}

- Oregano

- Salt & Pepper

Prepare linguini. Coat the cooked pasta with olive oil. When completely coated, beat egg YOLK (toss the egg white) and pour over pasta. Mix in well. Squeeze the juice of one lemon over pasta. Sprinkle with 1 to 2 tablespoons of oregano, 1 tablespoon of garlic powder, and a dusting of parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Cut up a handleful of fresh parsley and mix into pasta.

For those who don't drink...instead of Sparkling White Wine, substitute with a fizzy Spring beverage: 3/4 Seltzer Water, 1/4 Juice {Cranberry} and a lime wedge.

Perfecto. Come on Spring...we're all rootin' for you!! No more rain or cold weather!

Happy Spring Everyone!!!

Hopefully all of these April showers will bring May Flowers.

April is a promise that May is bound to keep.

~Hal Borland