Perfect

Written by AnnaDenise on Tuesday, May 07, 2013 at 21:50

Larger version here

03112013

Written by AnnaDenise on Monday, March 11, 2013 at 22:58

Hello... Etsy!

Written by AnnaDenise on Wednesday, October 24, 2012 at 09:00

I think I've told everyone now, so I can make this public. I quit my job at the cultural institute and accepted a job at Etsy in The Netherlands!

'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!' doesn't even begin to cover my excitement. This is a dream come true.

I have been a part of the Etsy community since 2007 and have met many of my friends and acquaintances through the site. I have developed my freelance work, have slowly learned how to run a business (instead of just 'playing shop'), and have gotten more and more involved in the Dutch and Belgian Etsy community these past few years.

Right now, Etsy is going through so many exciting new developments (like a Dutch website, a Dutch iPhone app, the 'Hello Etsy' summit this weekend in Eindhoven), and a new round of investments).

I am so proud, thankful, and happy to be a part of this company that I so very much believe in. So wish me luck!!!

And now, all of you, go open up an Etsy shop! Kssht!

Weird September Dream

Written by AnnaDenise on Saturday, October 06, 2012 at 23:20

I had a lot of very weird dreams in September. Which I usually just interpret to be the result of my very vivid imagination + crazy neighborhood sounds, but it seems I am now also a natural genius at dream interpretation. *Sigh* so many talents, so little time.

Sleep Colored

Written by AnnaDenise on Thursday, September 20, 2012 at 22:03

I promised to show you this drawing again in color, and most of you have already seen the side-by-side comparison on Facebook or Twitter, but just in case you're a Google Reader type of person - here you go!

And here they are side by side. Click on the image for a larger version.

Which one do you like better?

Sleep Sans Color

Written by AnnaDenise on Sunday, September 09, 2012 at 23:48

I love using color in my journal. Color, for me, is as important as lines are, if not more important. But MAN does it take fo-evah to color all of those journal pages. I would be such a good little uploader would I leave out the coloring. Which is what I did today (and then added some grey in Photoshop). Drew this page at 23:30, it's up on the web by midnight. You know what I'm saaying?

So I'll color in this page tomorrow or whenever I end up having time for it (I am a busy lady these days - all good stuff, though!) and show you a side by side comparison.

Good night!

(As usual, click on the image to see a larger version on Flickr)

Journal Pages: Lago Maggiore, Italy

Written by AnnaDenise on Tuesday, September 04, 2012 at 23:00

So I went on vacation to Italy and didn't tell you about it beforehand because I read about that one couple that put their holiday plans on Facebook and then got robbed while away. I of course still love all of you long time - I just don't trust you one bit (ah, the consistency of dysfunctional relationships). BUT! Of course that doesn't at all mean I will now stop sharing all my most intimate thoughts and secrets with you by means of my journal pages! Here they are. Enjoy!

Bikram 30 Day Challenge - Week 4 (and a bit)

Written by AnnaDenise on Friday, August 10, 2012 at 16:06

Wrapping up!
Week 4 started with another great class in Utrecht. I had a brilliant day ahead of me and it was nice to start off the day and the week with an early morning class. My own studio doesn't offer very early morning classes, but despite the stiffness, I do enjoy going early. It just sets the right intention for the day and I'm in a good mood all day.

Things continued to go on quite well until... day 25. All of a sudden I was very done with it all. I felt very tired physically (which probably had to do with a lack of sleep) and mentally I was just ready to be done.

Day 26, same story. Another rough, hot, tired class. I never actually even considered giving up (I didn't actually consider it at all during the entire challenge), but I was definitely wishing for it to be over. We have a saying in Dutch that 'the last leads weigh the heaviest'. Not sure if there's an equivalent in English?

And then, day 27. Feeling good again. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that I went to bed early on Friday and also I felt very proud I got rediculously close to actually 'biting my toes' in the forward bend. Still not there yet, but almost. Also, this was a really nice day. Ashwin and I went shopping for a vintage coffee table and we had pancakes.

The 29th was the day of our 8th anniversary (yay! I love you, Ash!) and day 28 of my challenge. I got to sleep in a bit (for the first time this month... aaaah) and did an afternoon class working on my standing bow, before heading off to see 'To Rome with Love', which I found enjoyable (not brilliant, but I had fun) and Ashwin absolutely hated, haha. It took some homemade meatballs to overcome that little disaster.

Day 29, I don't even remember. But then there was day 30. On which I got a round of applause from the class and felt like a star. The class went well, and I pushed myself as much as I could to do everything right (which never happens). Push, push, push!

People kept asking me whether I'd do it again. Yes. Definitely. They also asked me whether I had lost weight (don't know), whether my practice improved (yes, but not as much as I had thought), and whether I would now stop going (ehm, no. What would be the point of that). No one asked me what I had learned, but I think I learned so many things that are hard to even put in words. I wrote down some things on the final page (click on the image for a larger version), but I think mostly, I learned to let go. Accept each day and state of being as it is. I felt more grounded. And somehow knew how to be content and grateful without trying. To feel compassionate, detached, but connected (if that doesn't sound like a complete oxymoron). Also, I am now more hooked to this yoga than ever. :-)

The end! Have an amazing weekend!

Bikram 30 Day Challenge - Week 3

Written by AnnaDenise on Wednesday, August 01, 2012 at 23:20

Week 3 is kind of a blur and it just felt like the yoga had become a part of my daily routine and I was moving forward, physically. Some days were good, others not so much, but I was able to let it go and just get on with it. I also completely messed up the order of the poses in my drawings. Yoga brain!

I had a frustrating day, where everything and everything annoyed me and I couldn't get my mind to calm the ef down. (Sorry about the censored image, sometimes a girl has to do what a girl has to do).

I had a fantastic day, and then a hangover day.

I got a new bikini and felt pretty content with myself, despite the harsh realities of the changing room mirror.

Annnd I had a bit of a crisis where I couldn't get my S-shaped spine (a remnant from too much gymnastics, I think) straight. I just didn't understand how I was supposed to move my hips forward without curving my back. It wasn't pretty.

But then I went to Holland for the weekend, where I took two classes at the Bikram studio in Utrecht (with my friend Nuria! Who just returned from her trip around the world) and something about what the teacher said about my spine finally clicked and I got it right. Instead of just pushing the top of the hips forward, I needed to tuck my tailbone in. What a world of difference! Fascinating for you people, I know, but it really was a revelation. I heard some more things during those two classes I took in Utrecht that really helped me.

It was funny to realize how once you get used to teachers and their teaching style, it can be hard to hear their instructions with a fresh mind. Audrey had been telling me the exact same thing for weeks, but something about the wording or the presence of a new teacher made me understand what she was saying all along.

Mindfulness, folks. Even when you think you're doing it, you might not be doing it. Arg!

Bikram 30 Day Challenge - Week 2

Written by AnnaDenise on Tuesday, July 31, 2012 at 17:16

Week two of the challenge (that I am finishing TODAY - but I'm behind on my coloring) was easier and harder, in unexpected ways. Easier, because the mental stress had ebbed away and in its place came a sort of silence, a quiet acceptance of the challenge and all the hours I would spend in the hot room. I even started to LOVE the backbends and looking forward to them, while I usually have the hardest time letting go and breathing in those scary backbends.

It was also harder, because I hurt my lower back. Feeling strong and invincible, I spent all day lifting heavy frames and photographs, whilst taking down an exhibition. I feel a total snob for admitting this, but I usually don't build or take down the exhibitions myself - I just give instructions and draw up plans - and I probably made some odd lower back / hip movements I shouldn't have made.

To my great frustration, the pain lasted for almost an entire week (which probably isn't that long), but the fact that the yoga really helped just reaffirmed my belief that this yoga will save my back from succumbing to the terrible back-issues that plague my family members.

Back (heh) tomorrow with more!