On Saturday night I traveled to St. Charles to take in a show at The House Pub. The band I was going to see is named Noah’s Arcade, and it is fronted by Noah Giblin, who is the husband of my niece Rachel Giblin, yogini and nanny extraordinaire. The House Pub is located in downtown St. Charles right next to the Fox River, and as I approached the location I saw a large crowd of what appeared to be aging rockers in their finest regalia smoking cigarettes and mingling on the sidewalks and alley adjacent to the venue. My first thought was that Noah’s Arcade must be more popular than I had anticipated, but when I walked around the corner to the front of the building I saw the reason for the crowd.

It seems that The House Pub shares space in the same building with the Arcada Theater, and the bill for the night was sure to attract the crowd that I had seen on the street.

As the show had a scheduled start time of 10 pm (rather late for the 5 am riser that I am) and I was hungry, I went across the street to the El Puente Mexican Restaurant. I ordered the Quesadilla Grande with shrimp, and it definitely lived up to its name. My first thought was that I would not be able to finish it, but I did manage to get it down.

Then it was over to the venue where I met up with Rachel and her mom, Lee. I had not seen Rachel since she was an infant, and Lee for about 20 years, so it was wonderful to see and reconnect with them. Rachel is a lovely young lady, and Lee has seemingly not aged at all.

In addition to being rather tall, with an imposing presence, Noah is also a gifted musician and songwriter. He has an excellent stage presence, a good voice, and a large repertoire of original music. Noah can really shred on the electric guitar, and Rachel has assured me that he is equally gifted with the acoustic guitar and can also display a softer side as well. The show was scheduled to go on until 1 am, but as my goal for Sunday morning was to make it to the 8 am yoga class at Akasha Yoga I excused myself after the first set, but not before picking up Noah’s Arcade’s two CD’s for future enjoyment. It was a great evening and a real treat to reconnect with Rachel and Lee and meet Noah!

I have a number of family members who live in Crystal Lake, Illinois, and I try to make it here every summer to visit them. One of the highlights of coming here is that it provides me with the opportunity to take some classes at one of my favorite yoga studios, Akasha Yoga. Akasha is the creation of Jennifer Ewert, and her calm presence permeates the studio. Most, if not all, of the teachers at Akasha were trained by Jennifer, and trained very well indeed. Instructions are clear, practices are thorough and consistent, and a sense of well-being emanates from the steady application of Ayurvedic principles.

The studio is located on Main Street right by the train station. There are two practice rooms, a very comfortable foyer/waiting area, and plenty of props that are used liberally during the classes. I have probably taken nearly a dozen classes there over the past three years, and all have been well attended by some very serious yogis who are well-trained and dedicated to the studio.

I was just a little bit disappointed to see that my favorite Akasha teacher, Emily, was not on the schedule for July, but my disappointment dissipated immediately when I showed up for class this morning to find that Emily was subbing for Jennifer. It turns out that this was the first class Emily was teaching since going out on maternity leave two months ago and is now going back on the regular schedule, so my timing could not have worked out better! The staff at Akasha are truly a family, and that family is growing rapidly as it seems that teacher Laura is now out on maternity leave as well!

If you find yourself in the area, you will not be disappointed if you make Akasha your yoga home away from home!

The highlight of my visit to Macomb, IL, was finding a wonderful yoga/fitness studio, Free Range Yoga, situated on the town square. This studio is the creation of Dawn Piper, and I was alerted to its existence by my former gymnastics coach, Roger Gedney. Dawn’s husband Tim is on the faculty of Western Illinois University and teaches Kinesiology. Tim also has taken over much of the support role for the community weight room that Roger created in the basement of the Salvation Army 30 years ago. Both Tim and Dawn are committed to improving the well-being of the community as a whole, and both are very knowledgeable about how to do so.

Dawn, pictured above, is not your typical yoga teacher. Most teachers stick to the catalog of standard asanas, but the rare few take a more eclectic approach bringing in exercises and activities drawn from other areas such as Pilates,  Physical Therapy, and classical exercise methodology. Dawn is one of those instructors, and I knew that I would be in for an rare experience when I was instructed to grab two dumbells, a small elastic band, a larger elastic band, and a plastic playground ball, all of which were incorporated into the class. I came away from the class invigorated and in possession of some new exercises that I found to be extremely effective at improving stability and balance and which I plan to incorporate into my own practice.

The main studio is situated in a former old-fashioned drug store, and is a very clean and beautifully appointed. One of the things I liked the best was the fact that Dawn managed to incorporate the original lunch counter into the decor of the studio.

But wait, there’s more! Dawn’s perspective is much wider than that of the usual yoga studio, and she has acquired a separate space two doors down that is used for general fitness training and is equipped with weights and machines for that purpose.

If you ever find yourself in Macomb, please be sure to visit Free Range. You will meet some very fine people and have an excellent and eclectic experience.

One of the real pleasures of my travels is the opportunity to visit yoga studios all over the country, and one of the exceptional studios that I have encountered is Yoga Mountain Shadows in Colorado Springs. I had the opportunity to take two classes at the studio, one on Tuesday from 4:30-5:30 and another on Wednesday from 6:00 am until 7:00 am. Both classes were heated flow classes, and the first was taught by the young lady on the right in the featured image, Elsbeth. Also pictured is Jennifer who also teaches at the studio.

The waiting area is very large and well-appointed, with a nice selection of yoga gear on hand. There are three studio spaces. The main space is a very large room that is used for heated classes and can accommodate on the order of 40 students. There is a room that is half that size that is used for room temperature classes, and a third room that is fully matted on the floor and is used for aerial silk and acrobatics classes.

The two classes I took were both heated flow classes, and I enjoyed both of them thoroughly. Both students and staff are very friendly and welcoming, and they have a wonderful introductory offer of a week of unlimited classes for only ten dollars. I enjoyed the experience and the ambience very much, and if I do get back to the Springs in the future I will be sure to return.

One of the highlights of my trip to Colorado Springs was my visit to the Garden of the Gods park. This park would be impressive even if it were a national or state park, but the fact that it is a city park, owned and operated by the city of Colorado Springs, is even more impressive. The park is free of charge and contains incredibly beautiful rock formations and miles and miles of trails to wander.

The real highlight of my trip, however, was the opportunity to meet and get to know the beautiful people pictured below.

These were my hosts for two nights. In front are Rick Schwarz and his wife Marguerite Terze, and behind them is their housemate Heidi Cooper. Rick, Marguerite, Heidi, and Heidi’s daughter Deanna just moved into this housing arrangement last month, and Marguerite had to do some serious searching and unpacking to find the spices necessary to prepare the delicious dish on the table.

I was introduced to them by Tom Linz, formerly of the Springs but currently living in Maui with his wife Mary-Mike and their daughter’s family. My connection to the Linz’s is through their daughter, Erica Linz, and the connection between the Linz’s and Rick and Marguerite runs through the Colorado Springs Children’s Chorale, a wonderful organization that both Erica and Rick and Marguerite’s daughter Ann  were members of. Both Tom (formerly) and Rick (currently) have been heavily involved in supporting that organization with their efforts, Tom as the sound-master and equipment wrangler, and Rick in running the Bingo activities that help to fund the ongoing operations of the chorale.

Service runs deep in both families–Erica Linz is the creator and guiding force behind the Las Vegas based Circus Couture, an annual charity circus/fashion show/art auction that has raised well over a half-million dollars to fight pediatric cancer to date. Erica credits her mother, Mary-Mike, with inspiring her in her charitable efforts. Heidi is also committed to service, and is currently working as a social worker and pursuing a Master’s degree in that field.

Had kind of a restless night. The hotel is very comfortable, but the room had one of those connecting doors so a suite can be created, and the folks in the next room had their TV tuned to what sounded like some kind of annoying kids channel, with lots of noise. About midnight I tried knocking gently on their door to no avail, dialing the room on the phone with no answer, calling the front desk, and then finally about 1 am a couple of pounds on the connecting door finally got a response and a resolution.

I am off to Colorado Springs in a little bit. I had planned to drive up the 285 to the 24, which would take me through the mountains to the Springs, but as I am getting a bit of a late start (it’s now 10:15) and there is a fire burning rather close to that route I have decided to take the 285 up to Alamosa and catch the 160 which will connect me back to I-25.

Why the late start? Well, I did allow myself to “sleep in” until 6:20, and since I want to do some yoga but my arrival time in the Springs is uncertain I decided to take in a class here. I took the 8 am Hot Yoga class at Blissful Spirits Hot Yoga in Albuquerque NE, taught by the lovely Julie, pictured below. The price was definitely right: first class is only five dollars, but as I hadn’t brought any cash, just a debit card, Julie gave me the first one for free! The class was an hour long class, which was disappointing in my initial assessment, but it was a very intense hour and in the aftermath reminded me of my favorite joke about mat Pilates classes. Q: What’s the best thing about a mat Pilates class? A: It’s only an hour long! By the end of the hour I was thinking the same thing!

Julie, by the way, is a native Chicagoan as well, having grown up in Northbrook and lived in various places around the city, and her father, who is not that much older than me, is from a family of 10 and grew up in the city at the same time that I was there.

Wrapping it up for now and hitting the road!

I am staying the night at the Nativo Lodge, a very interesting hotel in Albuquerque. The hotel is permeated by a Native American theme, the price was right, and I even got a coupon for a 15% discount on the restaurant and bar! Can’t beat that! Above there is a picture of the statue of the Native American deity that graces the lobby. The staffing is minimal, but the employees they have are very friendly and efficient. I give it a good recommendation.

This morning I felt I needed a strong flow workout as I am missing my Saturday and Sunday classes with my yoga muse, Ramona Magnolia Tamulinas, so I took in a class at the Bend Hot Yoga studio in Prescott. The class, at 8:45 am on a Sunday, was packed, and the flow, while kind of formulaic was stimulating, fun, and generated copious sweat. While Ramona’s classes at Yoga World are room temperature classes, somehow they also turn into hot yoga classes due to the energy that is generated in the room. Students entering for the next classes always remark on how warm the room is, and that warmth is not externally generated but created by Ramona’s flow combined with the energies of the students. Her classes are the things that I miss most when I am on the road!

The drive up from Prescott was beautiful, but I was in for a bit of a shock when I stopped in Gallup and stepped out of my car–the temperature was 100 degrees, with a strong and steady wind of about 20 mph from the WSW. Not a very pleasant place to be outside when you throw in the high level of dust in the air. From Gallup to Albuquerque I could see clouds building to the south, and as I approached there were a lot of scattered thundershowers but all stayed to the south of I-40.

Tomorrow I head to Colorado Springs, taking the scenic route through the mountains. If the weather holds it promises to be a beautiful drive.