Bonne Fete a Moi!

I heart birthdays so very much. Always have. As I've grown older I have kept the firm belief that birthdays should be celebrated with childhood abandon even as we transform and that innocence slips away. Birthdays are meant to celebrate your awesomeness, your friendships and your family. (check out the dude with the sign in the background... more on him later in the post!)

That being said, this year wasn't shaping up to be the best birthday... I was down, scattered unbalanced and stressed. The birthday party fell through completely (simply life got in the way) and my favourite cake wasn't being made anymore (The Royale while I lived in Montreal, Jane's on the Common's Chocolate Hazelnut Torte here in Halifax).

So Saturday I decided that pre and during birthday (Sat and Sun) would be "me" time. Saturday morning a few friends went to the community class at 108 yoga and for the first time I experienced Yoga Nidra. The class was supposed to be an immune booster- nourishing type class... unfortunately the instructor didn't give a lot of info about Yoga Nidra... so it was more of an interesting experience.

That afternoon we went to Bhavana Yoga Boutique and chatted with the ever gracious and kind Krista (the owner). She was so helpful and grounding and while talking with her I realized that perhaps feeling this scattered and out of sorts each moon wasn't something I had to tough out. Suddenly, it became apparent that I had missed something in my "naturalization" process with my cycles. I had cut out the synthetic hormones that were destroying my cervix.... but didn't think that perhaps "a la naturel" would need some thought. Now it just seems ridiculous that I wouldn't want to incorporate (my choice...of course *wink) scents, meditation, more music and yoga for these times.

I left her space feeling renewed and decided: I will be adding more guitar playing, quiet and grounding yoga to my personal practice adventure each month.

I also was the new owner of a Sam-Sara bag and wallet. (the purple monstrosity on my shoulder in that pic) Oh my they are BEAUTIFUL. I have never owned TWO wallets at the same time, nor have I ever owned more than TWO purses at once! Sam-sara is the latest venture of Matt&Natt bags and means rebirth in sanskrit. Based out of Montreal, all bags are 100% Vegan and for each bag sold one dollar is donated to the charity of the consumer's choice (Canadian non-profit organizations). You can see on their site how much money has already been raised for each organization and the countdown is until the checks are cut with four new charities each year. They also have a bag recycling program where your "gently-used" bag will go to someone who is working to overcome poverty. Krista also inquired as to why their bags were made in China- according to MattNatt, that is only place production of the Vegan material can be accomplished. I'm sure it's something similar to the issues faced by Klean Kanteen and other stainless steel water bottles: no processing plants in North America.

In any case, I heart my bags even though they are made from synthetic materials (i.e. petroleum) and MattNatt align themselves with PETA (I'm not really a fan of their tactics... at all).

Follow this shopping escapade with a stop into Halifax's Climate Change Action Day event! It was COLD here yesterday so a hat, mittens, scarf and winter jacket was a must. We got to the commons just in time to line up in the 350 photo line, get handed a Stop Global Warming sign and half heartedly chant "hey hey, ho ho, climate change has got to go" hoping no one could hear me lol. At least it had stopped hail/raining long enough to take the picture. We also saw this fantastic older dude (at least in his late 60's) holding a sign that said: "The End is Near".... YES! Although it was supposed to be an important global event, I kinda feel like a photo isn't really enough... so I'm thinking of writing Mr. Harper. Missed out on the 350 Climate Action day fun? Why not write a letter to your government leader informing them that the planet and it's civilization actually DOES matter and that you hope they represent your interests at the December Copenhagen Climate summit. Also, check out the awesome photos on 350.org of people around the world who support action against climate change.

Finish this up with a Clary Sage bath (step one in centering), some singing, a slight fever, a few friends and a homemade cake... YUM.
(my favourite pic on 350.org: Australia)

And now, my actual Birth Day, the entire day is open!

Blessings!

article and photos copyright of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com