Yoga on the Labyrinth

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I’ve spent my last two Tuesday evenings at Grace Cathedral, participating in their (mostly) weekly Yoga on the Labyrinth.

It had been on my to-do list for years, and thanks to a yoga-craving, I made a date with a friend to finally experience it. I’m so glad I did.

It’s extraordinary, for countless reasons. The opening mediations. The ethereal, live instrumentals. How gratifyingly small you feel when you get lost gazing up at the cathedral’s ceiling as you lean into a pose. The otherworldly manner in which every sound and voice echoes. That you’re doing yoga, in the middle of this beautiful, chaotic city, with hundreds of strangers. Your inability to hear your own voice in the harmonious, reverberating, and perfectly in sync chorus of closing oms.

It’s surreal and stirring. I walk out feeling tranquil, happy, recentered — I can’t recommend it enough.

You can’t calm the storm… so stop trying. What you can do is calm yourself. The storm will pass.

Conversations with Lily

I’ve only spent an hour with her today, but my heart is already bursting at the seams. When I’m with her, nothing else matters. I’ll never forget her reaction when I surprised her this morning — it’s forever seared into my memory.

A few snippets:

“Jen Jen, would you like to play with me?” Always irresistible, always in a slight British accent.

“Hey Mochi, what’s the matter?” Said in a sweet, comforting tone to one of her dogs, who was looking mopey.

“Mochi, it’s not for doggies, for pete’s sake.” I laugh, and she smirks because she knows exactly what was so funny. “Yeah, I say ‘for pete’s sake.’”

“Turn on the music, so we can dance, ok?” A gal after my own heart. But I prefer my dance parties after 8am.

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Don’t worry, she gave me a mask too.

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100% Jenny Zhu

I recently signed into my 23andMe account and spotted something I hadn’t noticed before: Ancestry Composition. As a Chinese woman whose parents (and grandparents, great grandparents, and so forth) were born and raised in China, I foolishly never gave much thought to my ancestry.

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Turns out I’m maybe only 88.8% (that percentage though!) Chinese. And that’s based on their “Speculative Estimate.”

The default Speculative Estimate corresponds to 51% confidence – this provides the most detailed view of your ancestry. You have the option to make the estimate more strict, meaning that the interpretation shown is more likely to be accurate. The Standard Estimate is at 75% confidence, and the Conservative Estimate is at 90% confidence.

At 90% confidence, they can only peg me at 55.1% Chinese.

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I’m continually blown away by all the interesting info and connections I’ve been getting for the past three years from 23andMe, which I only paid $99 for.

If you’re like me and have both an insatiable curiosity and a desire to know all truths, despite its potential unpleasantness, I highly recommend.

Gratitude

Maybe it’s…

  • The holidays.
  • My turning 30 soon.
  • Being back in Lodi, where I grew up.
  • Facebook’s On This Day feature.
  • Watching my niece blossom into the smartest, funniest, coolest kid.
  • My new OCP.

…but I’m feeling extra sentimental these days. In my usual fashion, I’ll share a little bit, in list form. :)

Here are a few of the countless things I’m thankful for:

  • My people. My family (furry ones too!), friends, and coworkers. I could write a book on this bullet alone. Everyone, both near and far: even if we’re not in touch all the time, I’m often thinking of you and appreciate you very much.
  • Automattic/my work. I get to work on fantastic things, with wonderful company, amazing flexibility, and incredible benefits. I never forget this.
  • My health. I’m aging, I can feel it! My wrists are hurting more, my right ankle continues to be problematic, and I experienced heartburn for the first time ever, twice in the past month. These completely trivial annoyances remind me to appreciate my body and all that it does for me, despite the hell I sometimes put it through.
  • Technology/the internet. I have the pleasure of blowing my parents’ minds every time I reveal a bit more of the magic. It’s slow-going, but such a treat. For example, my mom was pumped today because we just got to watch an episode of BBC’s Monkey Planet (she loves animal documentaries) on the TV instead of the iPad (thanks Chromecast!). They have had such rough lives, but they deserve all of life’s pleasures, which we often take for granted.
  • The bay area. It’s beautiful!
  • All things new — good, bad, or inbetween. New experiences, new places, new feelings.

Here’s a glimpse of my completely normal, but 100% delightful day:

Lots of guests, so I’m on the couch with this guy. We woke up like dis.
Lily in jammies.
Morning negotiations.
Coworking.
WordPress.com is blocked in Georgia? Oh no!
Yum.
Fall run.
Lazy day.
Target trip.
Lily got to pick one item.
Dinner time. She prefers to eat tapas/dim sum style.
Her first experience with tights. She kept staring curiously and petting my legs. Verdict: she doesn’t like them.
Chaos in the Zhu household.
Goofing around.
A headlamp is a great tool to have during hide-and-seek.
She wouldn’t let me take a pic because I wouldn’t chase her around the house for the 100th time.
Magic.
Chillin.
Roughhousing with dad.
SO. COOL.

Although the photos aren’t anything special, the moments were.

Automattic GM 2015

 

It was a wonderful week reconnecting with old friends and getting to know new ones. It seems like a lot of time to spend together, but I wish we had more than just one week out of the year.

Late nights. Early mornings. Dance parties. Oversharing. Contact improv. Jane Doze. Chillin. Swing dancing. Messes. Flash talks. Lists. Bacon. Escalade. Cocktail suicide. Questionable automattchers. DJing. Ghosting. Selfies. Credit card. Mentor/mentee shots. On fleek. Speed shopping.

My week in photos and videos:

 

Our Right

We need to say that women have sex, have abortions, are at peace with the decision and move on with their lives. We need to say that is their right, and, moreover, it’s good for everyone that they have this right: The whole society benefits when motherhood is voluntary.

Read the full NYT opinion piece here.

Coffee

My body is pretty sensitive in that I react quickly and noticeably to many external agents/incidents. Examples:

  • I’m allergic to most everything under the sun, confirmed via prick test with an allergist. Doesn’t slow me down, but everyone around me has to put up with a bit of sneezing…
  • I bruise like a peach.
  • I get car sick pretty easily. Yes, much like a child.
  • Meds works great — I never need a higher dose of anything.

But because I’ve been living this way for nearly 30 years, I’ve become… desensitized to the sensitivity. This is my reality. I’m used to it!

Nevertheless, caffeine remains a tricky one for me to manage. I generally avoid it because I (think I) have an addictive personality (this is my MO not only out of practicality, but also necessity) — I don’t want to develop a dependence on caffeine. But man, I love the taste and ritual of coffee.

So, I have coffee when…

(1) I crave the flavor, as a treat. This is dangerous because it makes me feel fantastic, and makes me want to feel that way all. the. time. But unfortunately, one sip too many leaves me shaking and feeling like my heart is going to explode out of my chest.
(2) I’m tired, but need to be on my A game. However, more often than not, it doesn’t do anything for me at this point, when I actually need the boost.

Where does that leave me? It’s either too effective or completely ineffective. Am I doing it wrong?