What a time to examine our attachments! It’s me again, here to talk to you about the next of the kleshas! The third of the five kleshas is Raga, translated to attachments. This is generally interpreted to be attachments specifically to material things. The teaching of the Sutras is that this attachment creates inherent insecurity because material things are fragile and can be lost or broken. When we inevitably lose that thing, it causes suffering. The sutras teach if we can soften or even release our attachment to material things, we will experience less suffering, but HOW? It’s an interestin ..read more

I found becoming a mother a devastating experience. There was this explosion of love and attachment for someone like I’d never known before. But, I had completely underestimated how hard it would be to bring an utterly helpless being home and keep it fed via nipple torture every 90-120 minutes. Layered on that was the stress of the almost crippling anxiety that something would go wrong and I would kill my baby in a thousand different ways. He was so tiny and fragile! My rational mind understands how rare SIDS is, but that mind was not in the driver's seat. A chronically sleep-deprived, postpar ..read more

Remember those pesky kleshas I wrote about? That dust or grime that fogs up the bright and shiny mirror that is your true self. I think early in the calendar year is a fantastic time to revisit this concept. First off, because you probably need that reminder that you are that beautiful self without changing a thing (cough cough new years resolutions anyone? ICK!). Now that we've followed the path of our drag queen inspirations to overcome the heteronormative gender roles and self-ignorance of Avidhya, let's turn to the second of the kleshas, Asmita. Asmita translates to an over the attachment ..read more

Jenni Rawlings is a yoga instructor that I have long admired. I follow her Instagram page and my yoga classes have benefited from the inventive functional movement elements that she incorporates into Vinyasa flow style sequences. I consider myself a lifelong student, and she is a teacher I continue to learn from. In the same spirit of constantly learning, I’ve read Robyn D’Angelo’s White Fragility and Ta-nehesi Coates Between the World and Me about the way white supremacy manifests in American society and how all white passing people benefit from and are thus complicit in it. I highly recomme ..read more

No teaching on the ethical principles (yamas and niyamas) skips a lengthy and often hotly debated discussion of the first yama, Ahimsa. It is usually translated as doing no harm and several yogis have interpreted it to include a vegetarian or vegan diet. Jivamukti and Dharma yoga both call on its adherents to avoid animal products and Sri Pattabhi Jois taught his students to avoid meat. Some teachers share these teachings in their studio classes and some do not. I choose not to, as I don’t want to risk a student misinterpreting my words. Luckily this space gives me the opportunity to fully ex ..read more

Daikon radishes two weeks in a row is not something I'm every going to be fully prepared for, but I did find a few creative ways to use them that I didn't know last year. I threw them in this radishes two ways avocado toast I came up with and I've eaten it more times than I can count this month. When the first bunch arrived, I went with a variation on this pickling recipe from the NYTimes in which I used pretty purple carrots that came in the same week's CSA to get the beautiful dark rich color you see in the mixture on the top of the avocado toast above. They are a great addition to any Asia ..read more

I was listening to to this wonderful story on NPR's All Things Considered and the very brave account by the Arizona Republic's publisher Mi-Ai Parrish. The paper has endorsed Hillary Clinton for President. This is the first time in the paper's history that they've endorsed a Democrat in a national election, and since the endorsement they have received multiple violent and horrible death threats. Unfortunately, this story didn't shock me terribly. Political discourse in this country has downgraded in the last several years and the ability to respectfully disagree is eluding too many of us. I d ..read more

Sometimes you're craving the bite of kimchi but in a more approachable eat on its own kind of way. I think this is a fresh and bright, but still spicy satisfier that you can eat on its own or paired with a heavier entree. Kimchi Coleslaw 4 cups shredded cabbage 1 yellow/red/orange pepper julienned 2 watermelon radishes julienned 1/2 cup shredded carrots 1/4 cup red onion julienned (If available, use a mandolin to slice all of the above vegetables nice and thin) 1/4 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup Greek yogurt 1/2 cup Kimchi 2 tablespoons sriracha 1 tablespoon granulated garlic 1 tablespoon salt ..read more

Adapted from Marie Simmons Fresh and Fast Vegetarian (this is a great cookbook and you should get it!) This may be the best time of year for those of us who try to eat locally and thus with the seasons. Tomatoes are finally here! This along with everything fresh, bright, and crunchy that makes you think of summer (I'm looking at you corn!). This almost absurdly simple salad looked too boring to be delicious, but I was wrong! It really reminded me of an episode of the a Chef's Life on PBS in which Chef Vivian Howard opts to simplify her dishes in the spirit of letting the ingredients shine. Th ..read more

What is better on a cold winter day than the warm comfort of mashed potatoes combined with a gravy and a lot of nutritious vegetables? This was my thought upon returning to harsh winter weather after a lovely trip to Belize last week. A tragic amount of vegetarian shepherd's pie dishes on the internet neglect to include the protein packed ingredient of lentils which is a crying shame. Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie with Lentils 2 lbs potatoes (I like russets, but use whatever!) 1 cup dried lentils 1 small onion, diced 3 stalks of celery, diced 2 large carrots, diced 1 large head of broccoli, chopp ..read more