How Long Can You Go Without Email?

I’ve been pondering this question ever since reading about it over at Zen Habits.

Where I’m heading for the winter recess has no internet.  I will be disconnected from all internet for twelve days, and I’m wondering if I can do it?  I think I can, but that could be sheer bravado.  I’ve done a few days here and there … but twelve?  Nearly two weeks, without even a hint of a connection?  This could be more challening than I expect.

What do you think?  Could you go without email?  If so, for how long until you started twitching and obsessing?

So, on January 5th, I’ll be back online.  Until then, wish me luck!

(whimper)

Holiday Round-Up

Can I just say how very glad I will be to get on the bus tomorrow afternoon?  6:10pm, baby – I’m outta here!!  Twelve days in beautiful Rangeley Maine with the Family.  The Big Guy will be joining us for New Years.  Besides lots of sleeping and eating, there’s skiing, snowshoeing, working out at the amazing fitness center (yoga!), maybe renting a snowmobile for a day and doing some sightseeing, ice-skating, and copious amounts of warming alcohol to be consumed.

This holiday season has been particularly insane, but the upside is that an insane life means a great deal of blog fodder to share with you so let’s get started!

There are a ton of FO’s to share (FO = Finished Object for the non-crafters).

The winter warmers came out great and have received praise from the Roommates.  I don’t get into my bed without it!  How I ever lived without one of these beauties is beyond me.

the woodsy ones are for Mom, the pink are for gifts

The first “real” sewing project concluded on a lucky half day.  HBS, like many businesses last Friday, decided to close early and send all non-essential staff home. (Librarians?  Non-essential?  I think not, but it’s not a point I’m about to take up when it means a paid half day.)  Anyways, I had a lovely free afternoon which I spent very happily at the sewing machine, finishing Mom’s Christmas present …. a brand new adjustable apron to match her new kitchen.

Wine = fuel for all creativity

Side Note: why, on God’s green earth has it taken me this long to discover the wonder and awesomeness of Instructables?!?!  Someone take away my crafter’s card.  I am not worthy.

Since most of New England was completely snowed in all weekend, I also had plenty of time, along with the help of Dexter, Season 3 and Mad Men, Season 1, to finish the  Striped Scarf from Brooklyn Tweed.  (Details of the project on Flickr and Ravelry).

Apologies for the lame-ass modeling job, but I wanted SOMETHING to put up, even if it was the dorkiest pic of me EVER.  I’m thinking of running a seminar for The Roommates on “How to Take Pictures of Handknits.”  Anyways, here’s the finished scarf:

Keeping warm!

So, while the weather was doing this:

So glad this isn't my transportation

… I was tucked away, working on the above projects, wrapping presents, doing web work for Dad (making it snow on his WP blog was awesome!), stumbling through the blizzard-like conditions to get to yoga, stumbling back out for the Boston Pops holiday concert, and having one of the best and busiest weekends ever!  The weather outside may have been frightful, but the weekend was delightful.  (I’m still ready for vacation though!)

The reward

More Flickr Love

Flickr brought back their Christmas Easter egg where you can add Santa hats and beards to your own photos

Santa Louie

Or make it snow on any photo page!

Snowflakes in the Seattle Public Library

To create Santa beards, add a note to the image with the text “ho ho ho hat” — same for beards, but with “ho ho ho beard”.

For snow, add the extension ?snow=1 to the end of any URL.

Lifehacker has more Easter Eggs for your procrastination pleasure.

LOLSpeak on Flickr

Flickr has long posted greetings to its users in different languages, but this one had me cracking up:

O Hai bak!

The End of Christmas Cards

This is it.  After this year, there will be no holiday cards sent from Casa de Abby. No, I’m not turning Grinchy, but I’ve come to the realization that cards are a waste of time, money and resources – mine and yours.

Inspired by what a cousin did this year in lieu of cards, next year I’ll be calculating the money I would have spent buying cards and stamps and the time spent writing and mailing, and donating the sum to a local charity.

Let me know in the comments if you have any recommendations for local, charitable organizations in the Boston area.  After all, this is your holiday card for next year, so go ahead and have a say! 

Holiday Crafts & Gifts: Winter Warmers

Every holiday, I try to make as many handmade gifts as possible and time allows.  It usully end up in a race against time. The best example of this — two years ago I knit a pair of mittens for my Mom while sitting behind her on a flight to Germany.

This year I’m in much better shape.

What Girls Want – Response and Rant

I have problems with Twilight.  Big problems. Big enough that I picked it back up and finished it.  Yup.  I hated the book so much that I forced myself to re-read it, just so I could defend my point of view from all those out there who love the book with a hot, shimmery, flower-breathed, teeny-bopper kind of love.

What I Read – November

Here’s the November run down.  Still lagging on the yoga reading.  *sigh*  I need to put on the big girl panties and just get through the rest of it.

As always, links go to reviews on Goodreads.com

In a Sunburned Country, Bill Bryson

Silent in the Grave, Deanna Raybourn

Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness, Erich Schiffmann

Silent in the Sanctuary, Deanna Raybourn

A Year in Provence, Peter Mayle

Round Ireland with a Fridge, Tony Hawks

Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, translated and interpreted by Mukunda Stiles

Update on Malaysian Yoga Controversy

Yoga Journal Buzz had an update on the controversy over Muslims practicing yoga in Malaysia.  According to their report

“…the prime minister said last week that Muslims could still take up yoga, but minus the chanting.”

So it is the chanting that makes it religious and more of a religious practice than a physical practice?

Interestingly, I had a conversation with a roommate who expressed uncertainty about the chanting done in her yoga class.  Because the chants are not translated and the entire class is asked to chant in unison, she feels uncomfortable and doesn’t enjoy the practice as much.

What’s the solution here?  Avoid the classes that require a more spiritual participation if that’s not your thing?  Refuse to chant in the class?  Is it the chanting that makes yoga a religion and not the physical practice of asanas?

For yoga-practitioners out there, do you practice for a spiritual reason?  If so, how do you fit yoga into your religious beliefs?