Well, hello there (featured image snapped at Kite Beach). 

2020 is shaping up to be a rather strange year? I’m not sure I can add anything useful about the current global situation (other than wash your hands and don’t be racist), so it’s business as usual here today and a quick sharing of current happenings in my world.

New Openings

I definitely don’t eat out and about as much as I used to, but I’ve enjoyed trying a few new venues in the last month or so, my favourite being…

Brunch & Cake, a super cute import from Barcelona, serving up a really wide range of dishes. If you’re vegan or gluten-free they have some great options, as well as catering for meat-eaters and indulgence-seekers too. I really like their ethos that if you are going to have a cake or a pizza, it should be made from the very best ingredients possible. The food is VERY Instagram-worthy but it actually tastes good too. Staff are nice and I’ve been here three times already and each visit was consistently good. Portions are big so sharing is recommended! Acai bowl pictured below.

All Things Yoga

I am coming up to five months of teaching yoga full time! Still loving it, still learning a lot every day. I’ve taught a few outdoor classes this month including at Ripe Market (pictured below) which was really fun.

I’ve started sharing a few little tips and tricks on my Instagram, along with my pictures of poses and while I know there is more than enough yoga content on Instagram I’m hoping adding my voice is helpful. 

I think I’ve taught around 200 classes now, my schedule was really packed for a while but I’m now taking around fifteen classes a week which feels like a better balance. It’s really important to keep your energy high and positive when teaching, I’m learning to slow down a little in my free time and not feel pressured to be doing a thousand things.

I’m always looking for ways to continue my yogic education and a couple of weeks back I attended a really fun workshop on hands on assists with Cristina, it’s helped my teaching so much. Next week I’m reconnecting with my 200 hours teacher trainer, Peewee, to learn more about the chakras. I love doing a mix of delving deeper into yogic theory, and also learning how to be a more effective teacher.

Studies

I recently finished reading Circe by Madeline Miller and the logical next step was obviously to sign up to an online undergraduate course in Greek and Roman Mythology.

I’d been looking for something new to study since finishing my course with IIN. I always thought that if I were to do an undergraduate course again, I’d want to do something for just the sheer pleasure of learning rather than something linked to a potentially lucrative career (law graduate over here!).

I am studying with Coursera and I’m really enjoying it so far. The course is free, the videos are in nice bite-sized chunks and while there isn’t a huge community element the material is SO interesting and engaging. Sadly there is no students’ union and my only study buddy is cat who wants to stand on my keyboard…

Reading / Listening / Watching

My favourite podcast of the last month or so has been The Baron Of Botox, a delve into the life (and death) of Dr Brandt, this podcast explores dark themes (TW: suicide and depression) in our conception of beauty and ageing and highlights the now relative normalcy of botox and fillers. My boyfriend was shocked to hear that my dentist offers botox, his does not. Answers on postcard as to which of us needs a new dentist..

I love The Skinny Confidential Him & Her podcast and the episode with Khalil Rafati is so good I listed to it twice. Extra points because when I posted a story on how much I loved the episode, Khalil replied to me despite having a bazillion followers and running an ever-growing business. I’ve ordered his book and once the current travel chaos is over I’m determined that one day I’ll have a Sunlife Organics matcha!

Books…this month I’ve read Exit West by Mohsin Hamid for my bookclub, a very current novel about migration with a hint of magical realism. I picked up Bryony Gordon’s The Wrong Knickers from a book exchange and experienced equal laughter and despair. I’m currently reading Running With Scissors by Augustus Burroughs, also for my bookclub and it’s….a little…out there. I’ve not been a fan of memoirs in the past but lately I’m really enjoying the format.

I was floored by Riz Ahmed’s The Long Goodbye. It’s a short film/teaser for his new album, it’s so powerful and I couldn’t stop thinking about it for the entire day after I first watched it. I think it’s even more poignant for those, like me, who have a personal connection to immigration and have been asked “but where are you really from?”

Finally, my dear friend Michelle has been sharing the personal impacts of the current global pandemic on her and her family, her blogpost explaining the story behind her viral tweet is a must read.

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Sending health + happiness to you all! Let me know what you’ve been up to? And any book recommendations are gratefully received!