I made it to Tea Heaven!

My fabulous husband has an exhibition of his Warhol Surfboards at the StolenSpace Gallery in East London.  It runs through September 1, 2013.  While their for the opening we walked some of the poshest streets in London, visiting other galleries and extending invitations to others in the London art world to the BessellxWarhol Show. At one point in the day we passed a whole row of shop windows displaying beautiful arrangements of tea accessories, picnic provisions and other marvelous items arranged into elaborate scenes.  After tucking down a corner we visited a cutting edge contemporary gallery called the White Cube, and then doubled back and passed these gorgeous window displays.

I told Tim we just had to check it out, and a well dressed door man opened the big brass door to a world of delights since 1707, Fortnum and Mason.  It was like Main Street Disneyland in a way, bright jewel tones and pastels everywhere.  On the right of the entry began an expanse of sweets and candies like I had never seen, and on my left tea, all kinds of tea in all varieties of beautiful tins and boxes.  Towards the back of the room I remember cakes, cookies and chocolates.  When I thought it couldn't possibly get any better, I reached the center of the store, and it opend up into a pillar of space linking the many tiers of this heaven, like the big mall in San Francisco at a Bart stop that would be easy to get from while in college.  This enables you to look up and down and see that you were in fact on the second floor, with one more below and four more above!  A floor for tea cups and pots as well as dishes, pots and pans, really everything you might need for your table and kitchen.  The bottom floor had more market items, meet, fish, cheese, olives and such, really beautiful food and often in exquisite packaging.  There were floors for both ladies gifts and mens gifts.

On my flight home from London I watched a documentary about the Queen's Jubilee Festivities this last year, and sure enough a visit to mmm with her daughter-in-law and great-grand-daughter-in-law (!) was an important event featured in the movie.  Those lovely ladies all dressed up for a visit to the store to receive big picnic hampers filled with delights for a picnic in Queen Mary's Rose Garden!  No one greeted me with such a gift, but I made a selection from that castle of gorgeous home sundries, and came home with two basic teas that I chose mainly to reuse the cans as storage in my kitchen for my Robin's Nest tea!  I also chose these teas as they are both favorites that I carry in my line, and I wanted to compare the teas.

Hibiscus Sun Tea

This is an herbal sun tea.  My mom always made sun tea in the summer with a few bags of Lipton tea.  We had two great lemon trees and my parents loved to drink their tea with lots of ice and a wedge of lemon as they read the paper on a sunny weekend.  Sun tea is so simple, all you need is a big glass container, some tea, and a sunny spot.  It's good to use transparent glass container so the infusion receives the full spectrum of the sun's light and, like all tea, it's good to use the cleanest and freshest water possible.  You do not heat the water, fill your container with room temperature water and your tea, about a quarter cup for a gallon of water.  If your container doesn't have a lid, cover with a towel or plastic wrap so no bugs fly in and place the container in the sun.  I left this hibiscus tea out all day.  For a black or green tea you might leave it less time, like 4 or 6 hours.  Strain the tea and refrigerate.  I didn't sweeten the hibiscus tea, it is quite tart, and many would prefer it sweetened with some honey, agave, or sugar.  You can purchase the dried hibiscus flowers from my Etsy Shop or at The Robin's Nest.

A Yoga Breathing Exercise for Balance

Alternate Nostril Breathing, or, Anuloma Viloma Pranayama, is part of the Sivananda Basic Hatha Yoga class.  I have taught this exercise thousands of times and find it to be calming, centering and a great tool for expanding awareness of your own inner workings.

This breathing can be done before your yoga asanas to center you and gather your energy at the beginning of your practice.  In the Sivananda Series we practice Pranayama at the beginning of class beginning with Khapalabhati Pranayama followed by Anuloma Viloma.  It can be done at the end of your asana practice to settle and calm you before final relaxation.  Or it can be done as a stand alone exercise at most anytime and in any place.  I was told once a story of a powerful attorney who would always practice for  few minutes before appearing in court.

If you are deeply congested the exercise will be impossible.  If you are pregnant or are experiencing headache or other tension, it is best not to hold the breath.  Instead, alternate the breathing but with a continuous breath and without retentions.


Let's begin:

Typically we sit on the floor in sukhasana, a cross legged position.  You can sit on a blanket or cushion to be more comfortable.  The exercise could be done sitting in a chair, laying in bed, or even standing if necessary. As you follow these instructions, keep you body and face relaxed.  Do the best you can pacing your breath, but if it is difficult, adjust the exercise so it works for you.  It is best to sit and practice deep conscious breathing for a few minutes before beginning this exercise.

Practice slow deep breathing for a few minutes at both the beginning and end of this exercise.

With the right hand you will form the Vishnu Mudra and use the fingers to regulate the flow of breath through the right or left side, I'll explain this more in a moment.  With your left hand form the Gyan Mudra by touching your thumb to the tip of your index finger to form a circle while extending your outer three fingers open.  Place your left hand on your leg or knee and let it rest there throughout the exercise.

Place your left hand on your knee in Gyan Mudra throughout the exercise.

With your right hand form the Vishnu Mudra by folding your first two fingers to the base of your thumb while extending the thumb, ring and pinky finger.  After a calm breath in, seal the right nostril with the thumb and exhale slowly through the left side to a slow count of eight.  Next inhale on the same left side for a shorter count of four.

Exhale from the left nostril to a count of 8 then inhale on the left for a count of 4.

Gently seal both nostrils and retain the breath for about 16 seconds.  Focus internally at your third eye point at the center of your forehead.

Cover the nostrils and retain the breath for 16 seconds.

Uncover the right nostril by lifting the thumb and exhale for 8 seconds then inhale for 4 seconds.  You repeat this pattern exhaling for 8, inhaling for 4, retaining for 16, other side exhale 8, inhale 4, retain 16.  It is considered a "round" when you complete both sides.  As a beginner you might start with four rounds and gradually increase over time.  Another way to make the exercise more advanced is to lengthen the pace, exhaling for 10, inhaling for 5 and retaining for 20.  It's a ratio inhale:1 exhale:2 retention:4.

Exhale on the right side for 8 and inhale for 4.

After you have completed the exercise it is most important to drop your right hand back down to your knee and to sit and meditate for a few minutes.  During this time become aware of the sensations in your body, your breath, and your mind.

The Robin's Nest, your source for Tea

Humans have been drinking tea for thousands of years.  It is the second most widely drunk beverage after water.  Legend says a Chinese emperor discovered tea when's few leaves drifted into a hot cup of water.  Tea has many health benefits such as antioxidants, trace minerals and phyto-compounds.  Drinking green tea can help stabilize your weight and herbal teas can be taking for countless medicinal purposes.  Tea is beautiful and simple, connecting you to the earth with each sip.  At the Robin's Nest you can purchase loose leaf teas that are certified organic and certified fair trade.  It is important to drink organic tea because the tea plant is extremely sensitive to its environment, it absorbs what it finds in its surroundings.  If your tea is grown in healthy soil it will contain nutrients, if it is grown with pesticides, it will contain chemical pesticides.  What the tea contains, it releases into the water when brewing.  It is also important to drink fair trade certified tea.  Tea plants need a tremendous amount of rainfall to grow and many tea plantations are located in the developing world in places such as India, China and Indonesia.  The fair trade certification lets us know that the workers in these plantations are receiving a wage that enables them to meet the costs of living for their community and are not exploited.  And lastly it is important to drink loose leaf tea for its quality and freshness.  One the tea leaves are kept whole, they retain their flavor and nutrients.  Wen tea is placed in bags, it is crushed, exposing its surface area to light and air.  Open a bag of tea and compare it with the Robin's Nest tea, it's like comparing a handful of dirt to a bouquet of potpourri!  Drink the best and feel great!

Thai Massage Workshop

Learn Thai Massage on  Sunday, April 14 from 12-3

I will be offering a class at The Robin's Nest in April on Thai Massage.  It will be a three hour course from introducing basic techniques for working on the body.  Although seasoned practitioners are welcome to take this course, the focus will be on introducing basic skills to the novice.  Thai Massage is a great way to learn to work with the body.  It can be done almost anywhere, with virtually no equipment.  As long as you can move around on the ground, sit and squat and move your body, you can do Thai Massage.  As of March 15 there is only one space still available in this course.  Be sure to sign up right away if you are wanting to participate!  I will offer this course again soon if you miss this opportunity.

Click here to Register for this workshop.

Massage...it does a Body Good!

It's an exciting year for me, my tenth anniversary as a Massage Therapist!  It's been an awesome journey so far, and each day I enjoy the work even more!  One benefit I have received is to become a client of massage, and other health practices.  I have probably received a thousand massage in the last decade, each of them a fabulous exploration in to myself.  Massage opens up a window between your mind and your body, a window that allows greater conversation between these two aspects of yourself.  Massage releases pain, awakens us to our subconscious patterns, and improves our ability to cope with stress.

There are many types of massage.  Historically every culture has created a hands on way to promote healing and vitality.  A study of massage traditions becomes a virtual tour around the planet.  I personally have studied such varied traditions as Thai massage, Chinese Tui-Na, Japanese Jin Shin, Swedish Circulatory massage, Hawaiian Lomi-Lomi and western techniques such as Deep Tissue and Passive Joint Movement.

If you would like to schedule a massage at The Robin's Nest, please click on the schedule now link.  Be well!