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Sounds pretty bleak, doesn't it? Luckily it's not; not at all. It only sounds bleak when you view it from the level of ordinary mental perspective, the very level at which the treadmill mechanism operates. |
Down under that level lies another whole perspective, a completely different way to look at the universe. It is a level of functioning where the mind does not try to freeze time, where we do not grasp onto our experience as it flows by, where we do not try to block things out and ignore them. |
You can't ever get everything you want. It is impossible. Luckily, there is another option. You can learn to control your mind, to step outside of this endless cycle of desire and aversion. You can learn to not want what you want, to recognize desires but not be controlled by them. |
You want something, but you don't need to chase after it. You fear something, but you don't need to stand there quaking in your boots. This sort of mental culture is very difficult. It takes years. But trying to control everything is impossible, and the difficult is preferable to the impossible. |
You can't make radical changes in the pattern of your life until you begin to see yourself exactly as you are now. As soon as you do that, changes flow naturally. You don't have to force or struggle or obey rules dictated to you by some authority. You just change. It is automatic. |
But arriving at the initial insight is quite a task. You've got to see who you are and how you are, without illusion, judgement or resistance of any kind. You've got to see your own place in society and your function as a social being. |
You've got to see your duties and obligations to your fellow human beings, and above all, your responsibility to yourself as an individual living with other individuals. And you've got to see all of that clearly and as a unit, a single gestalt of interrelationship. |
It sounds complex, but it often occurs in a single instant. Mental culture through meditation is without rival in helping you achieve this sort of understanding and serene happiness... |
Meditation is intended to purify the mind. It cleanses the thought process of what can be called psychic irritants, things like greed, hatred and jealousy, things that keep you snarled up in emotional bondage. It brings the mind to a state of tranquility and awareness, a state of concentration and insight. |
You become like a perfect parent or an ideal teacher. You are ready to forgive and forget. You feel love towards others because you understand them. And you understand others because you have understood yourself. |
You have looked deeply inside and seen self illusion and your own human failings. You have seen your own humanity and learned to forgive and to love. When you have learned compassion for yourself, compassion for others is automatic. |
~Henepola Gunaratana Mahathera |
Mindfulness in Plain English |
10 Best Tips I've Learned As A Girl Entrepreneur |
There came a point in my career as a yoga teacher, when I realized that I would have to become seriously creative and courageous if I ever wanted to increase how much money I made. |
Here are my top 10 tips for all the women out there looking to take the jump into entrepreneurship. |
1. For inspiration, take walks in nature. I know this sounds crazy, but my best original ideas come to me when I'm walking in the woods. |
2. You have to take risks to be successful. I remember putting down deposits on retreats when I first started leading them and thinking about how screwed I'd be if nobody signed up. As an entrepreneur, it is rare that you'll be able to avoid risk-taking so be sure to have some money saved up in case things don't work. |
3. Don't worry about the competition, just worry about yourself. |
4. If nothing else, get your branding on point. This will draw people to your website and increase your social media following ten fold. |
5. Don't quit everything to pursue your entrepreneurial goals. Not to crush your dreams or anything, but like the old saying goes, don't put all your eggs in one basket. Keep your 9-5 while you start your new business. I know life will be crazy for a little while but if you are truly passionate about your new idea, launching it will excite you enough for you to push through. Once you start bringing in cash is an appropriate time to consider quitting your old job. |
6. Support your community like crazy. The best marketing is getting to know your potential clients/customers face-to-face. Anytime you need a service or an item, shop locally from other entrepreneurs. My hairstylist, aesthetician, bookkeeper, coffee barista, and favourite shop owners are all yoga students. I use them as often as possible and often refer people to them to keep our relationships strong. |
7. On social media, don't be afraid to be vulnerable. You can not use social media just to sell your product. In fact, studies show that 1 in 4 posts should be the maximum number of posts you actually use to market your products. I've found the most effective posts are when I share personal anecdotes that express my struggles because it makes me relatable. Just check out my Facebook page and view which posts got the most likes if you don't believe me:) |
8. Get your taxes in order. I hate this. It's so hard and miserable and dull but it is necessary. You need to ensure you are operating legally and professionally to prevent future issues. |
9. As a woman, I've found sometimes that men (usually old-school men) think it's "cute" that I'm running a business. My deeply feminist ego struggles with being respectful in conversations where this happens but I've found solace in learning the ropes of business and demonstrating this articulately:) |
10. Life can get crazy but it's important that no matter what, you give yourself an hour a week to do whatever you want. Sometimes I use this to take tap dancing lessons, to colour, to watch Sex and the City reruns, or sometimes I just stare at the wall (life can be hard ok?). If you don't do this, I guarantee you will have a meltdown complete with existential murmurings ("What is this all for? Why me?"). So remember, nothing is worth your sanity. Constantly ask yourself, "is it worth this?" and if it excites you than you've found your dharma. If you feel relieved when you think about letting your business go, than it's time. |
Introducing Yoga Teacher Prep! |
Yoga Teacher Prep |
An Intentional Resource Hub for Future Yoga Teachers |
Cheers and Namaste, |
l.e. martini |
Fish Pose (Matsyasana): The best posture to relieve asthma and chest congestion |
Matsyasana or Fish Pose |
Enjoy the freedom of breathing fully into your chest! |
Cheers and Namaste, |
l.e. martini |
Object Recognition Using Combined Color and Angular Spatial Matching |
Peer reviewed: |
No, item is not peer reviewed. |
Scholarly level: |
Graduate student (Masters) |
Date created: |
Object recognition |
Image processing |
In this thesis, we proposed a novel object recognition method that utilizes object's color along with its shape information to represent the appearance of it. Such representation of a known object can be used to identify a target object in unknown environments. The color and shape characteristics are first extracted from multiple images of an object and later used to search for that object within a scene. The Saturation-weighted Distributive Hue (SDH) histograms are considered to be promising color descriptors as they possess computational efficiency and view invariance properties. However, the proportion of each color on an object's surface is not included in this descriptor. To overcome this problem, we developed the Chromatically-improved SDH (CSDH) histograms based on proportional color segmentation. Additionally, a shape descriptor, called Bag of Angles (BoA), is developed that increases the recognition rate for objects with similar colors but with different shapes. The BoA shape descriptor utilizes the angles between consecutive segments of the objects contours. To identify a target object in the scene, the color and shape features are sequentially compared to those extracted from the scene image. For evaluation purpose, the proposed method is tested on the Robotic Vision Object Image Library (RVOIL) and the Amsterdam Library of Object Images (ALOI) databases. The experimental results show that the proposed method can achieve an average recognition rate of 84\%, which is better than the state-of-the-art method (80\%). |
Document type: |
Senior supervisor: |
Parvaneh Saeedi |
Applied Sciences: School of Engineering Science |
Thesis type: |
(Thesis) M.A.Sc. |
Friday, April 26, 2013 |
Salmon Cakes |
We absolutely have LOVED making these lately - they are simple and delicious! |
I actually even used a bag of frozen salmon fillets to make these the first time and it worked perfectly! John likes his on a bun (burger style), and I prefer over a bed of mixed greens. You must try them - I know you'll love them as much as we do! |
Salmon Cakes with Honey Mustard Vinaigrette |
Makes 6-7 small patties (2 patties per serving) |
1 lb. salmon, skin removed |
1 cup water |
1/2 lemon, juice and zest |
1 1/3rd cup breadcrumbs |
1 1/2 TBSP all purpose flour |
1/2 red bell pepper, diced small |
1 small shallot, chopped fine |
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh parsley, chopped |
2 tsp. whole fennel seeds, chopped |
1/2 tsp. kosher salt (or 1/4 tsp. sea salt) |
1/8th tsp. cayenne pepper (optional) |
1 large egg, slightly beaten |
2 TBSP dijon mustard |
Olive oil, for the pan |
For the vinaigrette: |
*you can also just use your favorite vinaigrette salad dressing* |
1/4 cup brown rice vinegar |
1/8th cup tarragon vinegar |
1 TBSP raspberry vinegar |
2-3 TBSP honey, to taste |
1-2 TBSP dijon mustard, to taste |
For serving: |
Mixed greens |
Fresh sliced avocado |
Any other veggies you like |
1. Poach the salmon: In a shallow skillet or saute pan, bring the water and juice of a lemon to a boil. Once boiling, add your salmon and cover (if your pan doesn't have a lid, use a sheet of parchment or aluminum foil). Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 6-8 minutes or until the salmon is opaque and flaky all the way through. The time will vary depending on how thick your fish is, so check the doneness by flaking the salmon with a fork. Remove the salmon from the cooking liquid and set aside to cool a little while you prep the rest of your ingredients. |
2. In a large bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, flour, bell pepper, shallot, parsley, chopped fennel seeds, lemon zest, salt, and cayenne. |
3. Add the salmon to the bowl and break it apart with a fork. Add the dijon mustard and egg, and stir everything to combine. |
4. Form the mixture into patties. Take a handful and squeeze into a ball, then shape it into a disc - the patty should just barely hold together. If the mixture is too flaky to hold together, add another 1/2 TBSP flour. I like to make small patties, about 1/2 cup each, and make two per serving. |
5. Heat a skillet over medium-high with 1-2 TBSP olive oil. Seer the patties for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip, and cook for another 2-3 minutes on the other side. Serve over mixed greens with slices of avocado and a drizzle of vinaigrette. |
6. For the vinaigrette: whisk together all the vinegars, honey, and mustard. While whisking, drizzle in the olive oil. Stir or shake before serving. |
*To freeze: Wrap uncooked patties in wax paper and then store in ziploc baggies - then thaw and follow cooking directions when ready to eat.* |
post signature |
Marie Rowe said... |
The salmon patties look delicious!! I'll try them! |
Liesl said... |
These look SUPER delish, must try them!!! :) |
(Fragment) Young Daina. Photo: Inta Ruka |
Film About George Bush’s Owner 0 |
An interview with Swedish director and documentary filmmaker Maud Nycander |
Sergei Timofeev |
At the at the beginning of March, Riga’s Splendid Palace cinema hosted the Latvian premiere of the film “Road’s End”, shot by the Swedish director and documentary filmmaker Maud Nycander. This is the story of a woman who brought up two children who have now moved away into the “big world”. During the shooting of the film the son lived in Norway and the daughter got married in Italy. This woman was living alone in the house where previously she was happy, in the Latvian rural wilderness without electricity, TV or other comforts of civilization. She chopped wood in winter, went to fetch water, fed her goats, her cow and her dog who she named George Bush, all by herself. This woman’s name is Daina Tavare, and she was photographed multiple times by Inta Ruka, who is easily the most famous Latvian photographer in the world. Her theme is rural people and urban people who live on the outskirts of cities in 2-3 story houses, where life on the streets smoothly flows into life in the apartments. However, most of all the photographer is interested in rural people, especially those on small farms which are small fortresses of human civilization among the huge world of forests and fields. Inta Ruka’s photographs became an important part of “Road’s End” by giving it a new dimension, which is time. At the same time the film is not the first result of cooperation between Maud Nycander and Inta Ruka. In 2009 Maud made a film about Inta, the photographer and the woman who has worked many years as a cleaner in the Swedish embassy. The ambassador himself allowed her one working day a week to devote to photography. |
Daina and her children when they were young. Photo: Inta Ruka |
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