Yesterday i didn't make it with the practice, but today managed to find the time when nobody was here in the hostel.
Focus on the step E of the new exercise. Asleep and tired, but persevere in applying attention to it & trust the process.
Friday, 17 April 2009
Thursday, 16 April 2009
15th April
The guitar at night. It's late, and therefore quiet too.
Spend some time with Fratres & play.
Look forward to settling down in London soon and establishing new & appropriate practice.
Spend some time with Fratres & play.
Look forward to settling down in London soon and establishing new & appropriate practice.
15th April
Two short practices today:
Late afternoon: step C of the new exercise. I'm attentive and sensitive - more is possible at this point.
Late night: step D. At one point i stop and get lost in the daydreaming, notice it. So there we go. There's opportunity to observe myself at any 'waking' moment, now (or is it?). A level of attention doesn't remain the same, it varies from one minute to another.
Late afternoon: step C of the new exercise. I'm attentive and sensitive - more is possible at this point.
Late night: step D. At one point i stop and get lost in the daydreaming, notice it. So there we go. There's opportunity to observe myself at any 'waking' moment, now (or is it?). A level of attention doesn't remain the same, it varies from one minute to another.
Wednesday, 15 April 2009
14th April
I noticed that having an 'I have it' attitude makes me miss a lot of richness and information available on the way.
Focus on the 'C' part of the new exercise. Fully engaged in the work with it.
Focus on the 'C' part of the new exercise. Fully engaged in the work with it.
Monday, 13 April 2009
In the rhythm of the shopping music
Today we went with Ania to the big shopping outlet near Leeds. While waiting for her outside one shop i spontaneously practiced DOA for few minutes, using the pulse of the shopping background music.
And there's a new material from Alain to be worked on. It came at the right time, and i give it a shot late in the evening.
I have a good feel for this exercise, which in order to be discharged requires certain degree of Attention, so it can be later divided.
And there's a new material from Alain to be worked on. It came at the right time, and i give it a shot late in the evening.
I have a good feel for this exercise, which in order to be discharged requires certain degree of Attention, so it can be later divided.
Non-noticing noticed
I don't have a specific commitment for this AT section at the moment, but keeping this journal helped me to notice at the end of this day that i haven't noticed anything AT related today. So ... it's useful.
Saturday, 11 April 2009
Late night
Practiced after Chi Kung session today, and it made the difference to this work.
Short practice today, only 10 minutes.
Next week I'm going to experiment more with what i do, and hopefully, look at it with fresh eyes.
Short practice today, only 10 minutes.
Next week I'm going to experiment more with what i do, and hopefully, look at it with fresh eyes.
Thursday, 9 April 2009
A little moment of improved use
In the grip of bad habits today, there were very few moments when I intentionally improved my use.
When walking i noticed how all the body is doing, pushing forward, unnecessarily. I gently asked to stop it and allowed the legs to carry on with the job and the upper half of the body just to rest. Wow! Walking can actually be quite an easy and effortless activity.
Honour Sufficiency applied to the movement.
When walking i noticed how all the body is doing, pushing forward, unnecessarily. I gently asked to stop it and allowed the legs to carry on with the job and the upper half of the body just to rest. Wow! Walking can actually be quite an easy and effortless activity.
Honour Sufficiency applied to the movement.
Liveliness
Begin with directing attention.
It's quite touching when 4 against 5 poly-rhythm integrates in the body. Somehow it makes me feel connected with myself and the world, it gives the sense of liveliness.
Varied and flexible practice today.
It's quite touching when 4 against 5 poly-rhythm integrates in the body. Somehow it makes me feel connected with myself and the world, it gives the sense of liveliness.
Varied and flexible practice today.
Dis-connected
Short & unfocused practice today. Feel temporarily disconnected from the instrument.
Learn new arpeggios from Fratres.
Learn new arpeggios from Fratres.
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Welcomed change
Late practice so instead of working on loud '16th notes legs' do '16th notes hands'.
Today is a welcoming change, and it feels more like practice dividing the attention. What is different? First of all there's some Attention to be divided, which is a good thing to acknowledge in these dozy times.
4 against 5.
Today is a welcoming change, and it feels more like practice dividing the attention. What is different? First of all there's some Attention to be divided, which is a good thing to acknowledge in these dozy times.
4 against 5.
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
4 against 5
Solid practice. Keep the variety and hence interest in what I am doing, bearing in mind that this work is basically about the Attention.
Continue approaching 4 against 5
Continue approaching 4 against 5
Monday, 6 April 2009
2 rebels
Notice a lot of tension in the soles of the feet today. How silly, as if pressing them down to the ground was helping in staying upright or walking. It doesn't, and in fact it does the reverse. So keep observing these rebellious limbs of mine, and in the meantime keep the overview of the whole body & keep releasing the neck (when I can remember). Surely the morning GC Practice supports this kind of attention work.
Also do an AT lie-down today. Listening. It's comforting to come back to the body. In my case, perhaps because I inhabit my mind so much, so moving the centre of gravity from the thinking activity to awareness of the body presence is a relief, indeed.
Also notice other related recurring habitual tensions, but won't be going into details here, the point is that i noticed them & kept looking at them.
Also do an AT lie-down today. Listening. It's comforting to come back to the body. In my case, perhaps because I inhabit my mind so much, so moving the centre of gravity from the thinking activity to awareness of the body presence is a relief, indeed.
Also notice other related recurring habitual tensions, but won't be going into details here, the point is that i noticed them & kept looking at them.
Gradual approach
1st practice:
Back in action.
Basically developing the exercises, building on the work done so far.
I focus on getting the steady & relaxed flow in the feet.
During this notice that i'm tired and that I'm willing to persist.
44 & 48 BPM.
2nd practice:
52 BPM.
Work on the smooth flow of the feet.
Gradually approach 4/5.
Also reverse feet/hand for a change.
Back in action.
Basically developing the exercises, building on the work done so far.
I focus on getting the steady & relaxed flow in the feet.
During this notice that i'm tired and that I'm willing to persist.
44 & 48 BPM.
2nd practice:
52 BPM.
Work on the smooth flow of the feet.
Gradually approach 4/5.
Also reverse feet/hand for a change.
Stuff i dunno
Not particularly structured practice today. Mostly go through some repertoire and check some stuff out, explore what 'i don't know'.
Saturday, 4 April 2009
Centaur
I've recently finished reading No Boundary.
From one chapter:
To re-own the body might initially strike one as a peculiar notion. The boundary between ego and flesh is so deeply embedded in the average person's consciousness that he responds to the proposed task of healing the split with a curious mixture of puzzlement and boredom. He has come to believe that the boundary between the mind and body is unalterably real, and thus he can't figure out why anyone would want to tamper with it, let alone dissolve it.
As it turns out, few of us have lost our minds, but most of us have long ago lost our bodies...
Indeed, my body seems just to dangle along under me. I no longer approach the world 'with' my body but on my body. I'm up here, it's down there, and I'm basically uneasy about just what it is down there.
It seems to me that the Alexander Technique offers excellent means to dissolving this ego/body boundary, it applies to the centauric level.
From one chapter:
To re-own the body might initially strike one as a peculiar notion. The boundary between ego and flesh is so deeply embedded in the average person's consciousness that he responds to the proposed task of healing the split with a curious mixture of puzzlement and boredom. He has come to believe that the boundary between the mind and body is unalterably real, and thus he can't figure out why anyone would want to tamper with it, let alone dissolve it.
As it turns out, few of us have lost our minds, but most of us have long ago lost our bodies...
Indeed, my body seems just to dangle along under me. I no longer approach the world 'with' my body but on my body. I'm up here, it's down there, and I'm basically uneasy about just what it is down there.
It seems to me that the Alexander Technique offers excellent means to dissolving this ego/body boundary, it applies to the centauric level.
Friday, 3 April 2009
Yet another chair
The bus chairs are designed:
(1) by people who collapse
(2) for people who collapse
(3) in order to induce and facilitate collapsing.
I had such a chair on the bus from and to London. After spending sufficient time collapsing i stopped curving my back into the chair, came back on the sitting bones and invited sense of both being grounded and going up from this base. With my recent use i can't maintain such a sense while leaning against the chair.
This realignment allowed more clarity and ease, and to move to doing something little bit more useful and constructive than tension induced day dreaming and anxiety.
(1) by people who collapse
(2) for people who collapse
(3) in order to induce and facilitate collapsing.
I had such a chair on the bus from and to London. After spending sufficient time collapsing i stopped curving my back into the chair, came back on the sitting bones and invited sense of both being grounded and going up from this base. With my recent use i can't maintain such a sense while leaning against the chair.
This realignment allowed more clarity and ease, and to move to doing something little bit more useful and constructive than tension induced day dreaming and anxiety.
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