Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

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"In the Mushroom Summer," by David Mason

Colorado turns Kyoto in a shower, mist in the pines so thick the crows delight (or seem to), winging in obscurity. The ineffectual panic of a squirrel who chattered at my passing gave me pause to watch his Ponderosa come and go— long needles scratching cloud. I’d summited but knew it only by the wildflower meadow, the muted harebells, paintbrush, gentian, scattered among the locoweed and sage. Today my grief abated like water soaking underground, its scar a little path of twigs and needles winding ahead of me downhill to the next bend. Today I let the rain soak through my shirt and was unharmed.

Yoga, hiking and more with Aventura

I knew when I was asked to be an ambassador for Aventura that melding its responsibilities and Project 333 might be challenging.

One of the key duties of an ambassador is to accept free clothes and try them out (I know, rough gig). (One of the other duties is to share great discounts with my readers, so hang in there until the end and I'll explain how you can earn a 60-percent-off discount card.)

What I didn't know at the time was that ultimately the clothes I received from Aventura would become some of my favorites for teaching yoga, working out and adventuring — all categories that are not part of my 33 core items.

[Wipes brow and sighs with relief.]

Weekly, you'll find me at my home studio Root teaching restorative yoga in either the Floral Capri Legging or the Lily Capri Legging. I've worn a lot of leggings over the years and these are some of the best. Cute, but subtle prints — the Lily, in black, has tiny, tiny dots of black and grey; shirring at the ankle; a comfortable waistband. And a thick enough stretchy knit that those around you won't get an inappropriate peek at your underwear. They also wash well, necessary when you wear them a lot.

On top, you'll see me often donning either the Lantana Hoodie or the Kyle Wrap. The Kyle's sleeve ruching gives this piece a little fun flare, and the burnout fabric of the Lantana draws interest. Both are lightweight, good for layering over a tank.

I love scarves and the one I've been living in is the Marnie. Not only is it the perfect length for a once-around-the-neck wrap, but the blue-cream blend works as a neutral, particularly when wearing denim. And it's so soft that it's doubled as an eye covering for a handful of my students during yoga class. My Marnie has already traveled on three trips with me.

I can't end this post without a quick nod to the Keeva Skort. A little bit of Spandex added to recycled polyester gives this skort just the perfect amount of stretch for hiking. The mesh shorts beneath allow for jumping on a bike for a quick trip downtown. And the side pocket holds a cell phone without dragging the fabric.

If you'd like to try out some Aventura clothing for yourself, all you need to do is comment below and let me know what fun outings you have planned this summer that Aventura could help you enjoy. Thanks to the company, the first 10 individuals to leave me a note between now and July 1 will receive a code for 60-percent-off a one-time purchase of up to $250 in clothing and accessories.

Happy adventuring!

Project 333: the slightly-frustrated-but-figuring-it-out post

This is my third official cycle of Project 333.

And my first to really struggle with it.

June should be the third month of my second quarter. But because of the struggle, I've decided to learn from my mistakes and start fresh with a new "quarter" for June-July-August.

What's been going on that's made this quarter so difficult?

First, we've had lots of unusually cool, cloudy and rainy (and snowy) weather this spring in Colorado. Which has meant I've been layering like a fiend over summer-ish clothes, or shivering when I don't really need to be, and that's just made me cranky.

Second, after two cycles of winter-wear, I rotated out quite a number of pieces, and rotated in lots that were either brand-new, new-to-me (via a swap), or had been firmly packed away for about a year. As I began to wear them, I realized I didn't actually like them, or they didn't fit quite right. So I'd wear a skirt once, and have a "meh" feeling about it, but put it back in the 33 rotation.

And then I would avoid it, shoving it to the far end of the closet. I did this with numerous items, which meant I really didn't have 33 items to play with anymore.

Third, I've been reading more blogs and books about minimalist wardrobes and lifestyles (including The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo). After seeing the clothing section on Paris To Go, I was both inspired to cut back even more than I already have and appalled that I was struggling with 33 pieces, when she lives with basically 10 core items ... inParis.

In order to be successful with a capsule closet, I've learned a few things.

1. For me, an overwhelming majority of the items in my closet during a cycle must be able to be worn in mix-and-match ways — whether through layering or just shifting tops with different bottoms. I knew this in my head, and having read others' experiences, but it didn't hit home until recently. What it means on a day-to-day basis is that there can really only be two or three outliers in my wardrobe, by style or color; and overall, a complementary color scheme is key.

2. I still love clothing swaps for all the reasons I wrote about in this article for The Simple Dollar, but I'm starting to get more and more enjoyment out of the process of swapping than picking up items for myself. In other words, the connecting with girlfriends, helping them discover new styles, giving them a place to recycle pieces they're having a hard time letting go of, and delivering donations after the fact. Swaps, for me, have mostly become a good place to grab a few outliers. Like that black and turquoise dress in the photo above. (And at my last swap, the most awesome MASH T-shirt ever, perfect for wearing while watching the entire series as part of my #41before42 project. Seriously. Thanks again, Claire.)

3. It's OK to stop, take a deep breath, and shift gears. Yes, I would have liked to have finished off this three-month cycle for a sense of completion. Yes, the J part of my INFJ personality cringes at my "not following the rules." But then, those "rules" were — are — self-imposed, and sometimes it's more beneficial to let go.

I recognize this type of process isn't for everyone, but I really do like it. Even with the slight frustrations of the past two months — and, who knows, that may have had more to do with the heavy clouds hanging overhead more than anything — I enjoy organizing, cleaning out and rethinking my clothing.

So with all that, I'm approaching this June-July-August capsule with a bit of giddy excitement. As of today, I have 28 of my 33 items ready to go, and I'm leaving five spots open so that I can intentionally shop for pieces I would like to add over the summer.

And even though I feel better about my layering options, I'm crossing my fingers that the summery weather that seems to have finally hit our area sticks around for awhile.

P.S. Because people ask me this all the time, I've designed my version of Project 333 to focus on 33 core items for three months. After multiple years of cutting back, and (almost) three fully committed cycles, I no longer include outerwear, shoes or accessories. And as Courtney Carver designed the program in the beginning, I also do not include workout wear (which includes yoga-teaching wear for me), adventuring gear, underwear or pajamas. For this cycle so far I've got 12 tops, one sweater, two jackets, one pair of dressy black pants, three pairs of jeans, three skirts, five dresses and one jumpsuit.

Sunday sadhana

To me, sadhana is a daily spiritual practice allowing time and space for an individual to turn inward.

As Yogi Bhajan (of the Kundalini yoga tradition) says, "Sadhana is self-enrichment. It is not something which is done to please somebody or to gain something. Sadhana is a personal process in which you bring out your best."

Sadhana could be taking a walk in nature, doing breath work or yoga asanas on a mat, spending time meditating or chanting, reading and reflecting on a poem, or simply watching the sun rise.

Please accept this post as a possible starting point for your own practice today.

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Presents, by Norman MacCaig

I give you an emptiness, I give you a plenitude, unwrap them carefully — One’s as fragile as the other — and when you thank me I’ll pretend to notice the doubt in your voice when you say they’re just what you wanted.

Put them on the table by your bed. When you wake in the morning they’ll have gone through the door of sleep into your head. Wherever you go they’ll go with you and wherever you are you’ll wonder, smiling about the fullness you can’t add to and the emptiness that you can fill.

What hiking Camelback taught me

There's a line in my last post on kayaking for my #41before42 project about how as I age I'm craving physical challenges more and more.

I was particularly struck by this when I stood at the bottom of Scottsdale, Arizona's Camelback Mountain, prepping to head up a mile.

Twenty years ago, you would not have found me at 7:15 in the morning, dressed in hiking gear with water bottle in hand all gung-ho to climb straight up a mountain. Honestly, you probably wouldn't have found me doing that even 10 years ago. (It was only about five years ago that I started hiking much at all.)

But a few weeks ago, on assignment for Adventure Girl during a press trip organized by the Scottsdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, I popped out of my guide's car at the trailhead and took a deep breath.

Camelback is similar in many ways to the Manitou Springs Incline. You first have to claim a parking space — getting there as early as possible helps, and weekdays are easier than weekends. There are two trails up: Cholla and Echo Canyon. My guide — one of the CVB staff who regularly hikes the area — had chosen the latter, a 1.2-mile trip to the summit. The beginning of this trail consists of railroad tie stairs and small rocks. Then there are two "rail" sections, where I had to haul myself up steep walls of rock while clinging to a metal handrail.

Once we got past the second rail, the hiking turned primarily to scrambling large rocks, a section where I wished I'd had my own "Camelbak" instead of my water bottle. (Thankfully I did have a nice hiking companion and a carabiner, so we hooked my bottle onto her pack when things got tricky. Of course coming down I wished I'd had my trekking pole. It would have helped my knees and given me more confidence to move a little faster.)

The big difference between Arizona and Colorado, of course, is the altitude. Camelback climbs 1,200 feet in a little over a mile, from 1,424 ft. to 2,704 ft. The Incline starts at 6,600 ft. and climbs about 2,000 feet in just under a mile.

But just because you might breathe easier due to the lower altitude, you still have to fight the heat of Arizona. And while we started hiking Camelback early enough that I didn't feel it on the way up, I did feel it warming on the way down.

Round-trip, the hike took us about 2 1/2 hours — and that included a 10-or-so-minute break at the top, where the views are stunning everywhere you look.

I have to admit, on this side of the hike now, I kind of feel about Camelback like I do about the Incline. I did it once, and that's good enough for me.

As I'm aging, I am finding myself more inclined to tackle new physical challenges, but I'm also finding myself less inclined to do them more than once because someone else thinks I should (or because I think someone else thinks I should).

Would I recommend Camelback if you happen to find yourself in Scottsdale?

Definitely.

Will you find me on that trail again?

Probably not.

But that doesn't mean I won't seek out a different one in the area. And actually, I think the McDowell Sonoran Preserve might be calling my name.