Dad, Get Up, It’s Thanksgiving!

I woke up this morning to the usual sound of my cat, Ace, meowing in my ear to alert me that it was time to get up and feed him. His pitch is so loud it’s like he’s saying, “Daaaad! You’re killing me and I haven’t eaten in 5 days! Get up before it’s too late!” I look at his little body and wonder how can an animal that small produce such a loud sound as to strike fear in me that it will wake the neighbors. He proceeds to walk on top of my chest and then nuzzle across my neck and the sound of a purring symphony begins. He’s always done this since he was a little kitten and I’ve grown accustom to these signs of affection and have begun to look forward to our morning “bonding time”. At this point, he gets bored as he always does and jumps off the bed. I don’t dare watch him or move for fear that he realizes that I may get out of bed to feed his starving little body. About 10 minutes go by and he’s back on the bed meowing as if I didn’t hear him the first time. This whole procedure continues back and forth and until I am forced out of my slumber to serve him. A thought enters my head as I stumble out of bed and wonder if he is “thankful” for what I do for him. Does he know the word and does he know that today is Thanksgiving, the day to be thankful for the things in your life.

I doubt any of these things because I believe in the life of an animal, everyday is a day to be thankful for and it’s a given. They inherently know that everyday is a day to live to the fullest. I don’t think they actually ask themselves, “Hmmm, what or who am I thankful for in my life?” It doesn’t even dawn to our pets that they have a good life, good friends and a job that they love. No, they get up every morning and think, “Hmmm, I wonder if Dad is going to get up to feed me!”

After feeding him his new food and him looking at me with disdain because it’s not his favorite food he’s use to, I lick my wounds of letting my little cat down. I want him to be happy and I think he is. Currently, he’s sitting on my lap and encouraging me to type more about him and his undying love for me. I think it’s amazing that animals give us so much. I always look forward to seeing him after a long day and know that no matter how my day went, he’s always there with a loud meow or wanting me to pick him up which always puts a smile on my face.

I decided to look up the word thankful and here’s what it said:
pleased and relieved : [with clause ] they were thankful that the war was finally over | [with infinitive ] I was very thankful to be alive.
expressing gratitude and relief : an earnest and thankful prayer.

So, I wondered, how thankful am I today? Am I pleased and relieved for something? Maybe my cat is the thankful one in my house? He’s pleased and relieved that I’m home and feeding him- everyday! Why do we have a holiday that reminds us to be thankful? I think we should be thankful and wake up being grateful for our jobs, our family, and especially our health. I know for myself, I’m thankful for all these things. I’ve got a great job, family and my health is great!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving spent with people you love and surrounded with reminders of how blessed we all are for what we have. I know I’ll be especially thankful today because of the friendly reminder from my cat, Ace.

He just meowed, again...

Am I Doing Yoga?

I came home tonight with alot on my mind. Things like where do I want to be in 5 or even 10 years from now? Do I want to keep teaching? Maybe my career as a yoga teacher will evolve into becoming a medical intuitive? I've asked myself this question throughout my life and I always seem to come up with the same answer. That answer has always been- I was made to motivate people and heal people through movement.

Someone once told me I was a "healer". You can imagine my excitement when I heard this and something felt "right" about it. I've always been interested in the mind and how the body connect. Beyond that, I've always knew that we were spiritual beings on this planet to maximize who we are and in some powerful way make a positive impact on the people around us.

But, I came home with many things on my mind including the question -What is yoga? How does someone define what yoga is? According to Reverend Jaganath Carrera in his book, "Inside the Yoga Sutras", he writes "Derived from the root, yuj, it refers to the act of yoking.. Later, the word was applied to the control of the senses and referred to harnessing the power of a concentrated mind toward an object of worship. It was then generalized to refer to any spiritual disciplines. "Yoga" is also used to refer the essential union or Oneness of the individual with the Self.

As I was reading this statement, it struck me that yoga is about the union and connection of the entire being. I continued to ponder the questions in my head about how others see yoga. Do they see yoga as only a physical activity? Do they experience yoga as a transformational process? Do students rely on me to bring them to an understanding of themselves? What expectations do we have of yoga and are those expectations "real"? If I'm not doing yoga, then what am I doing?

To be continued...

Finding what you love to do...

When I started my career in fitness, I was lucky enough to find something that I truly love- MOVING PEOPLE'S BODIES!

I can remember the first fitness class I took. I can still hear myself saying, "I can do that! I'm going to be really good at it and make a lot of money!" I think I was very lucky to find something that I was so passionate about and loved doing.

After many years in the fitness industry, I've seen many things change. From "aerobics" to core classes, the industry has shaped people's lives and I hope that I've made a difference. It still makes me smile when I see someone change not only their body but their mind. Exercise empowers people to take charge of there life and be healthier.

To be honest, I don't know how people get up and go to a job they hate. Why do people do this to themselves? If you can't get up and be excited about your life/job, maybe you should consider doing something else! It's not a criticism but why not do something you LOVE? What if everyone thought this way? I wonder if we would still be living in the culture we do now?

My Class with Janet Jackson

For this blog, we were asked to read Carl Jung's book, Man and His Symbols. Jung discusses the symbolism in dreams and how we "work out" what we don't deal with in our real life. Our assignment was to write about a dream we had and then discuss some of the symbolism we thought our "unconscious" is trying to tell us.

My dream starts off with me at a gym. The colors of the gym are primarily blue with mirrors strategically put around the walls so people can see themselves working out. I don't see anyone else around the gym. But, it feels as if there are people around somewhere. The gym contains the usual workout equipment and it feels as if it is a big gym that is multi-level. I walk up some stairs to the second floor and discover that I've entered the area where they have a studio with mirrors in the front where classes are taught. Being in fitness, I'm use to seeing this in places I've worked. This particular setup was more of a nightclub that was an open area with a DJ area near the front of the studio. I look around the space and see that people are waiting for a class to start. The sun is shining on the studio floor and I feel a warmth coming through the open doors beyond the workout area. I then realize that I'm the teacher for the class and it's a hip hop style dance class. Then, I proceed to get my music ready. I approach the stereo to test my music and suddenly notice that the studio is filling up with more students. In the center of all the people is Janet Jackson! I begin to sweat nervously, but feel that I can handle the situation. Being a huge fan, I decide that I'm going to play one of her songs. But, then feel that she might get embarrassed and more importantly, I'll look like I'm trying to impress her. I notice the clock on the wall and it's 11:00 am. For some reason, I'm unable to find my music and a stir from the students begins to get my attention. They realize that I can't find my music or something is wrong with the stereo. I start sweating. I think about Plan B. But, I really don't have a Plan B! I look up at the clock and it's now 11:10 am. Still, can't find my music and Janet Jackson is staring at me. I try and figure out what I'm going to do. Thoughts pass through my head... should I make something up? Should I get someone from the front desk to help me? Should I talk to Janet Jackson and ask her for help? I sweat more. I'm calm but embarrassed that I can't get it together. I look up and now people are starting to leave. I look at the clock and it's now 11:20 am. I haven't said anything but I'm hoping that they can tell I'm trying to figure the music out. I'm pressing buttons and turning the power switch on and off. Still nothing. Thoughts run through my head that Janet Jackson is going to say something to her friends that the teacher couldn't get it together. I try and stay calm throughout the ordeal and wonder if this is really happening.

I wake up.

I frown.

I shake my head in disbelief.

I laugh at the thought of Janet Jackson.

I laugh at the thought that I was teaching a dance class to Janet Jackson.

I go back to sleep.

Analysis:
There were a lot of symbols that showed up in my dream. First, the building. I work at a couple of health clubs. But, this gym was multi-level and painted blue. I think this gym represents me. Or maybe my own house for my thoughts about who I am. The mirrors are times that I reflect on my actions and my affect on those around me. Second, one of my fears is relying on technology to work for me. I sometimes get obsessed with checking to see if my computer is on or if the television is working properly. As stupid as they may seem, I still do it. Third, Janet Jackson being in my dream was just weird. Like I said, I'm a big fan and I think I might have been listening to one of her songs before I went to sleep. Or maybe I thought of someone who reminds me of her. In any case, I enjoy her music and her dancing. I always thought it would be cool if I danced with her. Well, I tried at least in my dream. But, the sad part was that the technology wasn't working and I couldn't show off my moves to her. Fourth, the people in the room I believe were people who know me and always support me even at my lowest points. The people in the class weren't mad but they were concerned, just like my friends and family. There was also some feelings of regret. Feelings that I wasn't able to do my best. I think that's one thing that I stress about in life. I try very hard to do many things. I want to be good at everything and sometimes it feels frustrating that I can't do it all!

I didn't give it much thought until writing this blog. It's weird, but I think when we think about what we dream, it gives us a different look at what's happening when we're awake. Sometimes the dreams can be funny or scary. But, I think our unconscious mind does speak to us especially in our dreams!

The Code Revisited

After reading Hall's complete lecture, I wanted to come back and embellish more of my thoughts about how I felt about his view.

I agree with Hall that communication is power and those with the power are able to get their messages out to the world. Youtube is a perfect example of a medium that uses it power to connect others with their product. I've had countless conversations with friends about what video is the most watched video from week to week. In addition, we have discussions about what the most popular videos are and why.

Youtube has proven that it has power over us.

But, have we let them control us without our knowing it? Of course, we have! We are a society and generation that relies on media that is fast and quick. We want to be entertained immediately. If we aren't, we quickly move to something that does.

In many ways, Youtube satisfies our need to a quick fix of moving pictures that capture our senses. We are constantly bombarded with videos of people doing things we like, wished we could do, or never imagined doing in our lifetime.

I think the problem our society faces is finding meaning in these images. I worry that Youtube connects people on a superficial level rather than the deep connection we get when we are face to face with someone else. Besides, are the images we see so important to us that we spend countless hours watching them over and over again?

Overall, I think Youtube has changed how we view images in our society. I think it has enabled people to "connect" in ways that we have never done before. But, do these images truly represent who we are or are they just a way to entertain us?

Personally, I think the images represent who we are as a society. We have created this world to satisfy the desire to show the world our personal lives that we weren't able to do in the past. We have now identified with each other that our world is just as diverse as it has always been. But, more than ever, we are exposed to images we have only dreamed about.

Time will tell if our new discovery can take on more than it can chew!!

Concession:
While Rosen argues that viewers of Youtube are mindlessly watching, Hall believes that the viewer is constantly making personal judgements and decisions as to the content and meaning of what they see.

What's the Code?

I just finished reading Stuart Hall's Encoding and Decoding and compared it to Youtube.

Youtube has become a communicative event as Hall stated. Overnight, Youtube has linked groups of people together by showing videos of different worlds, places and people to the masses. I've been able to see things from other countries that I would have never seen without it. Unlike Rosen, the message is something we can't ignore. We are actively engaged in the process of watching videos. We get to choose what videos we want to watch and when we want to watch them. In addition, we can pick our favorites and even post our own videos.

Youtube is both a sender and receiver of information. We have used the medium to connect people into our lives that normally wouldn't be in it. We can get information from everything from the medical field to silly pet videos. I know that I watch it to learn the latest headline news, sports and comedic shows.

Hall asks, "What is content?"

Content is the story that Youtube gives us. There are millions of stories that people are exposed to. I know for myself how I enjoy watching a video only to find myself watching a link to another video. Suddenly, 2 hours have gone by and I wonder what happened with the time. Youtube links many stories together that pull people in to watch. It's not uncommon to have discussions about the content on Youtube. In a way, Youtube has built a community of viewers on not only a local scale, but an international one too!

Hall talks about how the representation of violence on television isn't violence but messages about violence. I thought this was interesting because I know that when I watch violent things on television, I am able to identify if something is violent or not. Scary music, dark lighting, or even nervous actors pretending to be scared, give the viewer the clues to identify violent messages. In addition, our interpretation of these messages is what we have been conditioned to base our decisions on. Now, with reality television, the viewer is exposed even more to the dysfunction of our society and have become desensitized to it's effects.

This leads me into what Hall says that, "Certain codes may be naturalized in to us over time". This is because they give you certain codes that make us think that we are looking at the actually object we are naming. We have been so accustomed to images around us that we have begun to develop certain ideas about objects in our lives. Again, we have been conditioned to agree with what is in front of us as fact because we don't question what we have been brought up to know as truth. Hall's example was the winter sweater advertisement. I agree with Hall and believe I've fallen into this mind-set even without my knowing it. As Hall states, we have identified and decoded a certain number of signs and put them in a creative relation between themselves and with other signs.

Hall finishes his discussion with 3 hypothetical positions. Each one offers ways we have adapted to watching media around us.

The dominant-henemonic positon is about the media operating with certain rules. Their job is to show images within a range for people to absorb and learn from.

The negotiated code is built around certain parameters that the message must be in. The focus is to understand what is right and wrong about what the images are.

The oppositional code is based on showing the opposite of what the viewers actually want.

I think all 3 positions offer a construct for us to look at media in a new way. After reading some of their definitions, I was struck with the idea that we move back and forth from each position. I think in that way, it helps to keep our minds active and our focused on what we really want in our lives.

I need my iphone...

After examining many different forms of media and what really spoke to me, I thought of the iphone. I was reluctant to get the iphone because a lot of my friends had the phone. 2 years ago, I had the Motorola Razor. I thought this was the best phone because I could get everything I needed. I used that phone everywhere I went and thought I was so cool. Not a lot of people had it at the time so I felt very “in”.

Fast forward to the introduction of the iphone.

I remember hearing how this new phone would be the best phone ever invented. Some of my friends actually stood in line to get their phone so they could be the first ones to get it. I thought it was all hype and ridiculous because I thought that a phone couldn’t get any better. For the next few months, my friends raved and bragged about their iphone and how they couldn’t live without it.

Well, you know what happened…

My phone died and I was forced to get a new phone. The phone representative told me how great the iphone was and persuaded me to get one.

Wow, was I impressed and amazed!! I had a phone that could do more than my dinosaur phone. The best part was that I could now talk to all my friends about how I couldn’t live without out my phone and how I understood what they were talking about.

These days, our world is inundated with commercials about the iphone and how great it is. I couldn’t agree anymore about this. The phone does everything I need and it’s really cool. Actually, it’s very cool!! I truly believe that I have been influenced by the media to purchase this product. The ads have given true meaning to what having an iphone gives me. Plus, the commercials reinforce why I have to have this phone in my life. I think everyone should have an iphone. That’s the way to go and to be cool.

Have the images from the media seduced me to buy the iphone? I think so! I love that the commercials tell me how to use it in different ways that I haven’t even explored. The commercials are short. It’s almost like a short tutorial about the product. Everytime I see a commercial or an ad, I pay attention because I think I might learn something.

The iphone has trained me to be a dedicated user to them. I wonder what they will come out with next to help me on this communication adventure?

I need my iphone 4G!!!