Today was the Fourth of July, not only my birthday but that of my country. Not the country I am in right now, however, so this Fourth of July was not marked by the usual fireworks and other celebrations. My cumpleaños – the Spanish word for birthday – was a much more low key affair, and that was just perfect for me.
I started the day with a mountain hike. This was another of those hikes which should be relatively relatively easy because it was only 3 1/2 miles, but the change in elevation combined with a relatively high humidity made it pretty challenging.
The rest of the day was much easier. I took a couple Pilates classes. I was going to do another water class, but the overexposure I had to the sun yesterday turned into a first-class sunburn today, so I judged it better to just avoid the pool for a while.
In the afternoon, I took a balance and coordination class which was surprisingly hard. Then I had my first ever session on a Pilates Reformer. This, for those of you who are not gym rats, is a device which looks vaguely like something invented by the Spanish Inquisition which Pilates teachers use in individual or very small group sessions. I’m not sure I’ll do this back in LA where its quite pricey, but it was a fun experience. I have another session on Wednesday. With three hours of Pilates a day, my posture should be amazing. I’ll be happy if its only improved.
I did the guided meditation after this. The leader was sweet and earnest, but a definite true believer in Yoga. I do try to be respectful of the beliefs of others, but I have a lot of difficulty when I’m being told to channel the prana towards specific chakras which are now glowing various colors. I just let my mind wander a bit.
In the evening, we had a Fourth of July party around the pool. They had a local band doing covers of American rock and roll hits, and they were surprisingly good. We had a table of fun and interesting people.
And finally, one of those kind people snapped this picture of John and me for a memento.
