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Quick and Easy Yoga Workout For Core Strength

November 18th, 2008

In the midst of school and other obligations, it’s often hard to find time to stay strong.  So throughout the day, I like to bust out some yoga moves to stretch out the back and work on strength and flexibility.  These ones are especially good for skiers and other athletes.

Start by lifting your arms and extending your spine while firmly rooting your feet to the ground:

Next, bend at the waist and plant your hands putting equal weight on both:

Extend one leg behind you:

From the above position, touch your knee to your opposite elbow 5x:

Knee to forehead 5x:

Knee to same elbow 5x:

Repeat on the opposite side.  Try and do 3 sets of 5 on each side, and tell me if you feel the burn.  It’s intense.

Hope you enjoy!  Stay tuned for a video and more workouts.

Posted in Salt Lake City, Yoga

Fat Flake Festival

November 16th, 2008

What a weekend…

Saturday, Alta opened.  Thanks to everyone who came and donated a jacket to go to the homeless.  They received over 2,000 jackets in the first 3 hours, drastically exceeding their initial goal of 500.

Last night was Ski Utah’s annual Fat Flake Festival, a party to kick off the beginning of another ski season.  They had a ski boot race, athlete poster signing, real wood campfires to toast marshmallows, live music, and much more.  I had two favorite parts of the night.  First was Alta’s booth.  Here’s a shot of Connie Marshall and me, rocking it old school style.

My other favorite was the Vintage Ski Clothing Contest.  I want to give a big shout out to all the contestants who dressed up!  I know it isn’t always easy walking around downtown in neon stretch pants or old racing suits (I’ve dealt with the funny looks and weird comments all my life).  But dozens of people last night did it and you did it with style.  Congratulations to Justin Stoddard who took first place and won a brand new pair of Rossignol skis, courtesy of Ski Utah.  Thanks to Alta for voting my costume into the finals and giving me a chance to show it off.  Here are some pictures from the contest (photos by Chris Pearson, Ski Utah):

Busting out my dance moves.

Getting the crowd’s support

The final 4 (The winner, Justin, is on the far left closest to the camera)

Thanks to Ski Utah for putting on such a fun event again this year.  Now let’s all PRAY FOR SNOW!

Posted in Film & Photography, Salt Lake City, Skiing, Style & Design

Jim Matheson at the University of Utah

November 13th, 2008

Yesterday, I had a wonderful opportunity to talk to Utah’s 2nd District Congressperson, Jim Matheson.  He came to the Hinckley Institute of Politics on campus at the University of Utah.  After making some opening comments, he opened up the forum to discussion and student questions.

Jim Matheson is on the House Committee for energy and commerce.  Listening to and talking with him gave me new confidence and hope for Utah politics.  He believes we need a rapid transformation in our country, especially in terms of energy use.  He had enlightening responses on questions involving the economy, health care and the housing crisis.

Overall, he spoke to us, a group of University students, with honesty on an eye-to-eye level.  We hear so many politicians that speak at us, instead of to us, and it was refreshing to interact with a real person, whose nose did not keep growing like Pinocchio with each ensuing lie.

Here’s a picture of me with our newly re-elected Congressperson:

For more information on the Hinckley Institute of Politics, including upcoming forums, check out this site:

http://www.hinckley.utah.edu/

In our country right now, it is so important to have these discussions and talk about taxes, oil, big government bailout bills, health care and everything else.  We are the generation that is going to be paying for this.  We cannot simply ignore these issues.  I have received some comments from readers who want to see more ski pictures and more talk about ski community events.  I promise I will keep those blogs coming.  But please, let’s open up these dialogues and keep them in our minds right now.

On another note, Alta is opening this weekend (Nov. 15 and 16 and then for the season on the 21).  Alta is doing a coat drive to collect warm, winter coats for homeless individuals in Salt Lake City.  If you bring a clean jacket to the Wildcat Ticket Office between 11 am – 4 pm on either Saturday or Sunday, you can get a FREE lift ticket.  So please, go through your closet and see if you have something you aren’t using so that we can keep those less fortunate people warm during our cold, snowy Utah winters.  I can’t wait to see everyone there!

Photo by Alexa Miller, editing by Chris Pearson.

Posted in Politics, Salt Lake City, Social Commentary

Breaking the Stigma of "Used": I <3 Thrift Town

November 12th, 2008

Lately, I have had anxieties on my mind, some of which I’ve alluded to in earlier writings.  These anxieties have come from my studies, specifically from studying labor economics and American national government.

I am troubled by the way we live in our country at the expense of people in other, “less-developed” countries.  I am troubled by the huge, growing disparity in wealth .  And although these things will not change overnight, there are some small things we can do.

One specific thing we can do is to boycott shopping for new stuff to fill up our lives when we can find the same stuff used, for much less money.  Here we can purchase, clean, non-sweat shop, non child-labor clothing and other products.  It also helps stimulate local markets by providing fun jobs to workers.  Thrift Town, located conveniently on the corner of 3300 S. and 1300 E., has raised over $75 million dollars for charities that go to benefit children and adults with development disabilities.

Here’s a pic of me rocking my one of my favorite thrift town finds (Only $2.99 for that outfit!):

Deseret Industries (D.I.) is another thrift chain in Utah and other states where LDS membership is strong.  D.I. has a direct association with the LDS Church. As a human rights advocate, I would recommend steering clear of D.I. after the LDS Church reportedly donated $20 million to the campaign fighting Yes on Proposition 8 in California, furthering our struggle for equality and freedom.  So go to Thrift Town instead.

Finally, I just wanted to add a side note about the concept of “used” clothes.  It has come to my attention that many people think that used clothes are dirty or inferior to new clothes, or that they may contain lice or scabies.  For one, nothing will live on these clothes for more than 48 hours, and in the 25+ years my mother has been a practicing dermatologist, she has never seen one single case of a patient contracting something from used clothing.  Furthermore, new clothes purchased made in China could contain remnants of chemicals used in the production process and some of them are stained by the tears of young children (Target, Costco and others have reportedly been involved in child labor disputes).

Thanks for reading my rant.  I hope it doesn’t make you want to do this to me:

photo by Johannes Kroemer

Finally, some eye candy to celebrate the beginning of ski season:

photo by Lee Cohen

Posted in Salt Lake City, Style & Design, Vintage

Quotes for the Day

November 11th, 2008

“Resist much.  Obey little.”       Walt Whitman

“Now.  Or Never.”         Thoreau

“In the mountains, there you feel free.”          T.S. Eliot

“There is no such thing as absolute dirt: it exists in the eye of the beholder.”                  Mary Douglas

And now…the funniest picture from last season.  Iris Noack and I were shooting with Steven Lloyd early in the season at Brighton.  This was the first day of the new Milicent lift being opened and the area was littered with rocks.  Steve and Jason West lined her up off this rock after inspection, and even though I knew I should’ve stayed behind the mound of snow, I had to see if she stuck it.  Every time Iris and I look at my goofy helmet head sticking out, we laugh hysterically.  Enjoy!

Posted in Film & Photography, Salt Lake City, Skiing, Social Commentary