Happy Christmas, from The Japan Times and Me

There was a Christmas gift lottery in the Japan Times two weeks ago. All you had to do was send them an email with your name and address and your preferred choice of gift from the list of six or seven different presents on offer. I selected what I imagined would be the least popular choices, sent off an email. Lo and behold on Saturday I got a nice hand addressed letter with a little surprise inside :



A bookmark in traditional lacquer technique, handmade and hand painted by Japanese craftsmen from Fuji-Tori.



I was delighted at such a beautiful piece of work, many thanks indeed to the Japan Times and Fuji-Torii for the gift.

So, to all my readers, enjoy your gifts and the holiday season. Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas, and all the best for the New Year.

My Life as a Yoga Guinea Pig - Jala Neti

Most married men are subject to the whims of their (sometimes insane) wives, and I am no exception. You see the wife teaches yoga and there has been no peace for the last year whilst I resolutely refused to practise Jala Neti ( saline nasal irrigation ) for the simple reason that a. it was horrible and b. nothing (good) happened.

In yoga circles "good" is defined as water going in one nostril and then flowing Ganges-like through the other nostril under the pull of gravity or whatever.

I started my feeble efforts about a year ago but some beaver-like log-jam deep inside my sinuses prevented any fluid from emerging. Then, about three weeks ago ( and for no particular reason ) I decided to give it another go. This was about the third time and you know what they say ..

The Niagara effect did indeed manifest but only from left to right nostril; a two-way flow was only established on the fourth attempt.

To finish : Since my jala neti epiphany I have not gone around sniffing at everything, nor have I become a wine expert, but I AM breathing rather well.

If you want to subject yourself to similar (ill) treatment, contact paola@yogasan.net and see YogaSan