Here my roommate just came to me to ask me if I just felt the earthquake.
You know what? I didn't even feel it.
Damn! Just missed my first earthquake!!
Probably better that way... :-)
Things are going well here. I love it.
I love the way people are so welcoming, and also challenging me into getting rid of all preconceptions I had about the US, different cultures and races, religions, about everything really. I love the way I can get fresh organic vegetable and fruit that is amazingly tasty, and LOCAL!!
I love the way people move, dance, and challenge me into moving and dancing more and better.
There is no way I am staying here only three months. Not near enough to discover everything I have to discover, live everything I have to live.
I will find a way.
The universe will find a way with me.
We will come back.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Issac Delgado
On Saturday I went with my roommate and friends to a nice San Francisco club to see Issac Delgado live...
He is a Cuban singer, one of the best salsa singers in the world.
And listening to the incredible rhythm flowing effortlessly from him and his band, I realised how much many of us Europeans are rhythm-handicapped...
Looking at all these Cuban and Latino people moving freely and following all rhythms easily, I become more aware of my own awkwardness... Thank God I took a few months of salsa lessons back in Ireland so I can at least relate to the rhythm... It feels like a long time ago though.
Bathing in that music is a lot of fun though. The rhythms make it joyful and it is impossible to resist dancing to it.
This area of the San Francisco Bay is such a blessing for the many influences and musics and cultures that all seem to integrate into one.
I love this opportunity to get to know so many new styles and things I hadn't even imagined!
And now tonight I get to meet a friend for the first time. I had met her on tribe.net and she used to live in Seattle and is now moving to Italy. She is staying in San Francisco for a few days so we'll have dinner together tonight with another few friends. Guess where? In a French restaurant!!
It will be my first time being in San Francisco on my own at night time. That will allow me to get a feel for how Barts and buses and taxis work then.
He is a Cuban singer, one of the best salsa singers in the world.
And listening to the incredible rhythm flowing effortlessly from him and his band, I realised how much many of us Europeans are rhythm-handicapped...
Looking at all these Cuban and Latino people moving freely and following all rhythms easily, I become more aware of my own awkwardness... Thank God I took a few months of salsa lessons back in Ireland so I can at least relate to the rhythm... It feels like a long time ago though.
Bathing in that music is a lot of fun though. The rhythms make it joyful and it is impossible to resist dancing to it.
This area of the San Francisco Bay is such a blessing for the many influences and musics and cultures that all seem to integrate into one.
I love this opportunity to get to know so many new styles and things I hadn't even imagined!
And now tonight I get to meet a friend for the first time. I had met her on tribe.net and she used to live in Seattle and is now moving to Italy. She is staying in San Francisco for a few days so we'll have dinner together tonight with another few friends. Guess where? In a French restaurant!!
It will be my first time being in San Francisco on my own at night time. That will allow me to get a feel for how Barts and buses and taxis work then.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Chris Howard weekend
I just came back last night from a weekend seminar with Christopher Howard (www.chrishoward.com). It was a free weekend, got the link to get there from another girl on tribe.net.
So I booked my hotel in Santa Clara, deciding to stay in the hotel the seminar was in, so I wouldn't have to wander the streets after very long days of listening, dancing (yes there was loud music involved!) and changing beliefs.
The seminar was called Breakthrough to Success, maybe some of you know of it, or have already been there.
Basically the guy combines all the cutting edge techniques from psychology, psychotherapy and counseling, NLP (neuro-linguistic programing) and management techniques, as well as hypnosis. That makes it powerful. He also has a great energy, and managed to teach from 9am to 11pm for 3 days (well the third day was a bit shorter) without losing on energy, and without losing us either. I was impressed that over the three really long days, I didn't drift away for more than a few minutes!
Of course he used the opportunity to promote himself and his other workshops a lot, but still gave us really good tools for getting over our fears or limiting decisions that prevent us from going forward.
So today I mostly slept at first. I felt like I needed a lot of sleep to start integrating everything that went on over the weekend, and find myself on my feet again, but empowered.
I do feel like I have a clearer vision, and I feel much more confident that I can do anything, and everything I really want to.
And the best thing is, I got to meet a lot of people, some of which live around the corner from here!
And, on the side, I submitted today my first article to a magazine... Fingers crossed!
So I booked my hotel in Santa Clara, deciding to stay in the hotel the seminar was in, so I wouldn't have to wander the streets after very long days of listening, dancing (yes there was loud music involved!) and changing beliefs.
The seminar was called Breakthrough to Success, maybe some of you know of it, or have already been there.
Basically the guy combines all the cutting edge techniques from psychology, psychotherapy and counseling, NLP (neuro-linguistic programing) and management techniques, as well as hypnosis. That makes it powerful. He also has a great energy, and managed to teach from 9am to 11pm for 3 days (well the third day was a bit shorter) without losing on energy, and without losing us either. I was impressed that over the three really long days, I didn't drift away for more than a few minutes!
Of course he used the opportunity to promote himself and his other workshops a lot, but still gave us really good tools for getting over our fears or limiting decisions that prevent us from going forward.
So today I mostly slept at first. I felt like I needed a lot of sleep to start integrating everything that went on over the weekend, and find myself on my feet again, but empowered.
I do feel like I have a clearer vision, and I feel much more confident that I can do anything, and everything I really want to.
And the best thing is, I got to meet a lot of people, some of which live around the corner from here!
And, on the side, I submitted today my first article to a magazine... Fingers crossed!
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Cafe Gratitude
Today I went to Cafe Gratitude in Berkeley.
It is an amazing place where people are smiling, and relaxed, and always positive.
All the dishes and drinks have names of the same format: "I am" and then some positive word like "abundant", "energetic", "courageous", etc... And when they serve the dish to you, they come to you and tell you "you are abundant" or the name of the dish you ordered. All of that with a smile, of course.
That place feels good. Have the feeling I am going to hang out there a bit.
Also, there are another two of these Cafes in San Francisco itself.
I will explore the one in the Mission district tomorrow, am meeting a friend there.
I still find it hard to ground. A glass of wine (doesn't even have to be large) sends me up above the clouds straight away, and I am particularly vulnerable to buying expensive things in the next hour or so until I come down at last... Hmmm. Haven't bought anything I regret though. That's good.
I am learning to take more time. And to trust.
I have the strong feeling that I don't need to control everything in this new experience. As a matter of fact, I don't feel like I need to control anything at all. Just go with the flow. And see where my heart leads me, at every moment of every day.
Exciting.
It is an amazing place where people are smiling, and relaxed, and always positive.
All the dishes and drinks have names of the same format: "I am" and then some positive word like "abundant", "energetic", "courageous", etc... And when they serve the dish to you, they come to you and tell you "you are abundant" or the name of the dish you ordered. All of that with a smile, of course.
That place feels good. Have the feeling I am going to hang out there a bit.
Also, there are another two of these Cafes in San Francisco itself.
I will explore the one in the Mission district tomorrow, am meeting a friend there.
I still find it hard to ground. A glass of wine (doesn't even have to be large) sends me up above the clouds straight away, and I am particularly vulnerable to buying expensive things in the next hour or so until I come down at last... Hmmm. Haven't bought anything I regret though. That's good.
I am learning to take more time. And to trust.
I have the strong feeling that I don't need to control everything in this new experience. As a matter of fact, I don't feel like I need to control anything at all. Just go with the flow. And see where my heart leads me, at every moment of every day.
Exciting.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
A week and a day
Well, there is a week since yesterday that I am here.
The jet lag is over, but the culture shock is still lasting a bit, as I discover more and more new things that I had no idea about. There are cultures, religions, musics, languages, and ways of thinking here that are completely unknown to me. Sometimes it feels like I am on another planet.
And it is hard to ground. It just feels like it is easier to fly than to walk with the feet firmly on the earth.
I haven't met that many people yet, but I am giving myself time to do so. Right now I need time to integrate everything I have come across, observed and experienced. I don't want to throw myself into a whirl of activities and meetings without keeping time to stay centered.
But I can feel this place is facilitating a deep transformation within me. It is giving me a safe place where I can let go of all the thought patterns that do not serve me anymore, and loosen up to find and create who I really am.
It feels like what I am going to do will come later. First I need to answer the main questions. The rest will flow from that.
The jet lag is over, but the culture shock is still lasting a bit, as I discover more and more new things that I had no idea about. There are cultures, religions, musics, languages, and ways of thinking here that are completely unknown to me. Sometimes it feels like I am on another planet.
And it is hard to ground. It just feels like it is easier to fly than to walk with the feet firmly on the earth.
I haven't met that many people yet, but I am giving myself time to do so. Right now I need time to integrate everything I have come across, observed and experienced. I don't want to throw myself into a whirl of activities and meetings without keeping time to stay centered.
But I can feel this place is facilitating a deep transformation within me. It is giving me a safe place where I can let go of all the thought patterns that do not serve me anymore, and loosen up to find and create who I really am.
It feels like what I am going to do will come later. First I need to answer the main questions. The rest will flow from that.
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