Hello, Planet Tired.

Guess who had her first Afro Cuban performance? 

Si.
Moi.
Talaga!
Yay!

Plus I got to share the moment with loved ones :)

Next one up is Calgary Expo Latino.

Quite a happy opportunity for me, especially considering just even earlier this year I would've never guessed I'd be able to perform such a beautiful and soulful dance form.

For a little while I thought the performance wasn't going to happen because out of nowhere, it started raining really hard.  And then HAILING.  In August.  I was walking to my car and getting pelted in the head with hail for the first time (I know, eerie that it hasn't happened before in my Canadian life).  This was just about an hour before the performance was scheduled.

But sure enough Alberta-style, the weather quickly switched back to clear and sunny and the Latin Festival was back in full swing. 

I finally managed to tire myself out this weekend.  Apparently the price of my ticket to Planet Tired consists of consecutive weeknights of four hours of sleep and at least three hours of sweaty activity each night.  Even though I finally managed to get a decent amount of sleep last night I'm still deliciously sluggish on this double-practice Sunday.  I even had a nap just now while trying to catch up on laundry.  Ahhhh.  So. Good. To. Take. It. Slow.  I've been bouncing around even more than usual lately: working overtime but still able to dance doubletime or swing kettlebells in the evening.  No tiredness until yesterday. Yup, I still definitely 'blame' veggie power.

I'm trying to round up enough energy to cook my lunches for the rest of the week.  I'm thinking low fat vegan Pad Thai but in rice form since it's too much effort at the moment to get out of my condo and buy noodles.  It's nice to at least have the base ingredients handy in my kitchen (insert moment of pride here).  Hopefully almond butter is a sufficient substitute for peanut butter!

Mind Farts
-i don't think steel cut oats are friends with my intestines.  or maybe i don't cook them well enough.  either way, i'm staying away from now on!  a breakfast that takes more than 10 mins to make won't work for me anyhoo
-amazing local vegetarian discoveries: fake ginger beef on rice at La Pagode and fake lemongrass chicken on vermicelli at Veggie Garden
-oh, and Costco sells a yummy rice-based Gardenburger as well - who knew?!
-met my new financial adviser this weekend.  the Ethiopian accent is pretty, precise and sharp.  the rolling of the R's and the pointy T's?  scrrrrrumptious to listen to
-grew some balls and agreed to see the Conjuring with my sister (only because Rotten Tomatoes said it was going to be worth it).  spent half the movie staring down at my lap and still got freaked out.  sheesh - it's so much worse when it's based on a true story!
-got to see a famous Cuban salsa star and his band perform here in good ol' Edmonton (the very same one I got to meet in Cuba back in November).  it was sweaty and amazing, as predicted, just like a mini slice of being at Casa de la Musica in Havana again

Sucker(s) for Punishment.

I *heart* animals. 

 

Even if I don't really know what they are.  I think the one above is a gopher.  

Panorama is pretty!  Rained a bit - not enough to ruin the wedding fortunately - but it was nice to do not much else but celebrate and drink and eat baked ketchup chips (which is what I lured the gopher with).

There was a gondola right by my room.  I discovered it while getting ready in the morning. Seeing people fly by in the mirror reflection is always a good wake up.

Speaking of wake up calls, the couple that lives across from me is having a domestic dispute again.  She seriously needs a reality wake up call.  From the sounds of the fighting, it seems like she is supporting a deadbeat boyfriend who cheats on her while she's away working her butt off.  Fail.

I'm toe stretching again.  My toes are on a whole new level today.  My teacher bent them the complete opposite of the way toes naturally bend (the ballerina way) at practice today and that was super killer.  At times, the suffering actually made me nauseated.  But maybe I'm a sucker for punishment, because I am still fascinated with Afro Cuban dance and so I keep on. 

Mind Farts

-the Oatmeal is one guy?!?  and hilarious and a dog-lover :)  he wins in my books!

-oh Cuban rum ... you never fail to soothe

-a talented dancer had to quit dance training because of her jealous significant other.  le sigh.  that makes me sad.  it's such a waste!  since when did ultimatums = love?  i understand that ultimatums are at times necessary ("please give up crack cocaine"), but i don't know about asking someone to give up something he/she loves to do - especially if it doesn't harm anybody.  makes me grateful that i don't have to feel guilty for my hobbies

-beans and rice make me happy

-so do veggie maki rolls

Toe Stretch!

Yum. Cauliflower 65.  My favourite dish at Taste of Edmonton this year.  Yay for veggie dish hunting!  The story behind the "65": this was appetizer number 65 at a popular restaurant in Mumbai.  It's like an Indian sweet and sour dish.  I haven't checked out many Edmonton festivals this summer.  Missed K-Days and will be missing Heritage this weekend because I'll be in Panorama for a wedding.  I really should be packing right now.

I am currently stretching my toes for the sake of my poor feet.  This week included kettlebells, double practices and workshops and social dancing. Double practices mean I have been training with an Afro-Cuban group in addition to my "regular salsa" group.  It's awesome - I've loved Afro-Cuban dance ever since I first saw Cubans do it.  Difficult though.  Even the warm up with the group is difficult.  It is one of the toughest physical things I've done.  Talk about pushing limits!  There's some ballet and contemporary thrown into the mix (which I've never done) and my respect for ballet and contemporary dancers just shot up even more.  If I was ever looking for a new challenge, this is it.

I did end up getting a copy of Chimamanda Adichie's first book Purple Hibiscus and it was a beautiful read, just as I expected (despite hyping her up in my head so much).  The writing is so simple and unpretentious yet it captures so much.      

I also read Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg and enjoyed it.  Partially because it's so relevant to me.  Partially because I can feel her energy jumping off the pages.  One might take a look a the book and think "oh, a powerful woman leader trying to lift up other women" but it is so much more than that.  That's the thing - feminists don't have to strictly be angry women who refuse to shave or wear bras (even though I thoroughly respect that).  Being a feminist female means that you want to be able to do your own thing without being held back or judged.  And yes, of course a man can also be feminist.

Unfortunately, men can get judged for being modern thinkers too.  Just because you are okay with being the primary stay-at-home person doesn't make you any less manly. 

Maybe you can't have it all, but in this day and age I believe it is possible to have a whole lot :)

Says the woman who is packing and toe stretching after 2AM.

Mind Farts
-i'm in love with Allen Stone's voice.  i'm still amazed that he looks like a regular white dude in a toque
-there are some lazy ass engineers out there!  fortunately not at my office, but i recently encountered one that made me wonder how the heck he even made it through engineering school
-just because a man can dance doesn't mean he's less manly either.  shirtless professional dancer vs. shirtless beer belly ... mmhmm ... just saying
-baked ketchup chips nom nom nom nom

A Quiet Sunday Jog.

Just me and the river valley :)

I am a Writer's Groupie.

I have a lady crush on Chimamanda Adichie. While eating my pre-jog oatmeal, I stumbled upon an interview with her on CBC and she is delightful!  With her velvet voice and her casual laughter and her witty insight on worldly women in a sometimes not so worldly America.

Personal reminder to myself: pick up some of Ms. Adichie's work :)
And watch her TED talk too. 

Now off to pound the sidewalk in the sunshine for a bit before my jam-packed Sunday.

Focus and Perspective.

It's been a full couple of months.

Performed again at the Saskatoon congress.  My best and not-so-best performance at the same time.  Seconds into the routine, I started to notice my fake eyelash in my vision and started to panic, thinking my costume was falling apart.

Quickly realized that my eyelash was not connected to my costume and attempted as quick a recovery as I could.  My partner was amazing and totally stayed calm and kept it together, keeping me together in the process. The rest of the routine was fine.  But there's nothing like a capture of your moment of non-synchronization to keep as a reminder of a lesson learned:

I'm glad it happened.  It's a lesson in focus.  Must keep it together no matter what!  Eyes on the prize.  And that prize is the moment :)

Came back to my first ever slashed tires incident, which strangely enough was a silver lining: I was forced to fix my steering, suspension and alignment.  I probably put more into the car than its selling value.  When it rains it pours, because my condo was also smacked with a special assessment.  Bills, bills, bills in my face!  I can't complain, because the condo just south of me is suffering from a special assessment ten times larger. 

I was still rewarded with a uberfun trip to Vegas for bachelorette party, where sleep was replaced with dancing and alcohol and high heels.  In the picture below I am running on exactly zero hours of sleep.

So worth it!  Met some lovely and interesting folks.  I'm still streaming dance music because of that trip.

Again, I gulped down veggies whenever I had the chance.  Again, recovery as a veggie lover was fantastic.  Same with coming back from Saskatoon. Was at work the next morning for both trips despite arrivals after midnight.

Managed to squeeze in some mind enlightenment too.  Went to my first TEDx event (I *heart* TED talks).  This one was in Edmonton.  The theme was "The Future of ... "

Met Fred Penner :)  He talked about the future of children.   I really enjoyed the talk about the future of sabbaticals by author Todd Babiak.  There was even a talk about the future of food, by a *gasp* male vegan!! Only in his 30s, and CEO of a plant-based food research company handpicked by Bill Gates.  I am fascinated because male vegans are like unicorns in Edmonton.  I have yet to meet one (I know, I know ... it is Alberta after all).  Even my male friend beside me joked around about throwing a steak at the vegan CEO. Le sigh.

It's beyond crazy what's been happening in Southern Alberta.  I went from 40 degrees in Vegas to a tornado warning in Edmonton and now there's been massive flooding in Calgary and Southern Alberta.  Even my office is affected - the majority of our client headquarters are in Calgary.  I've resorted to using the delays to catch up on a bunch of work (mini silver lining).  When I see the pictures and the footage of the flooding, it's such a mind trip to think about it being so close to home.  

Mind Farts

-for a good time, walk into a salsa after party on your dance partner's arm while he is wearing a thrift store faux fur coat with fedora. haha thanks Macklemore  

-for an even better time, steal the coat and fedora:

-my knees are in decent shape again!!  after just TWO treatments from a neuromuscular therapist.  it's amazing what better alignment and awareness can do for you

-i did some heavy deadlifts with a barbell for the first time.  it was kind of awesome, i managed to do accidental 140lb deadlifts

-i still love my Nexus 7.  the size and feel still really works for me

-i received the most beautiful, creative and funky wedding invite from one of my bestest friends - a lime green Canada passport and boarding pass housed in lovely carry-on luggage and accompanying red Hermes wallet ... felt like a very spoiled maid of honour! :)  Hawaii here i come!

-i am semi-obsessed with a child talk show host in the Philippines. that's right! child talk show host. she's not even 8 yet but she's witty and can work the crowd. she's like a real life Dora!

-get well soon Mr. Mandela ... the world is praying for you

-i need to go to bed earlier.  like, seriously.  like, now.  ok, i'm out

Juice!

Made it to practice this morning in fairly good shape despite a ladies night out.  I find that as long that as I don't drink too too much alcohol and if I gulp down at least three glasses of water before going to bed, I'm good to go the next morning.

Now it's laundry + cook my work lunches time.  My winter tires are off and it's finally gorgeous outside (hellooo spring!) but one can enjoy sunshine from inside too (although I did manage to enjoy a bit of patio time after practice).

Exciting news - I found a 700W juicer for 40 bucks!  At XSCargo, magical discount store of randomness.   I even found an ab wheel for a few dollars.

I admit I was skeptical about the juicer being so cheap but lo and behold - it works!!  I even attempted pseudo banana bread using the juice pulp.  The bread tasted good, but crumbled too much (this might have been because I accidentally poured too much applesauce in - my own fault because I'm an "eyeballer" - I never measure everything out perfectly).  So far pineapple and apple are my favourite sweeteners for juicing.  Makes kale, spinach and carrots taste fantastic.  Today I am debating on whether or not I should try to save juice pulp and make something again.  Maybe in muffin form, so crumbling is not such an issue.

Okay I just re-read the above paragraph and weirded myself out. So grown-uppy.

Mind Farts

-"Che" mojitos at Rouge Lounge are awesome!  that place is underrated

-uh oh, bursitis has left my left knee and seems to have attacked my right knee.  i think my tendons and ligaments need to "catch up" to my muscles (been reading about it).  another tip was loading up on omega 3's.  i've graduated to flaxseed oil instead of fish oil.  Superstore has definitely stepped up its natural foods game.  i love that they have sprouted chia and flaxseed powder, vegan snack bars and even Vega protein

-my dad is now 62!  looks like he has my grandma's age genetics.  he definitely looks younger than his age.  Filipino genes, i guess.  hope they work for me too!  last night younger men thought i was 10 years younger, which was flattering (or maybe they just know how to flatter women in their 30's ... haaaa! smart!)

-my worlds are colliding - took some coworkers to a Salsa Thursday night and we all suffered Zombie Friday the next day.  they did enjoy the night, which was fun to see.  round two is in the works.  this is the result of an influx of new people at work who are still single and child-free