I heard an interesting sound in practice today. When you go to the grocery store and tap on a pumpkin or a melon to see if they're ripe, they make a hollow kind of "thump" sound. It turns out that's almost exactly the same sound my head makes when it piles into the ground after an unsuccessful attempt at a drop back. The amazing thing is that it didn't hurt at all. Rock solid and hollow as a drum, that's me head. I guess I don't have to worry anymore when I try drop backs. Now I know if I blow the move, I can just auger in head first with nary a worry. I think I'm going to try using my legs next time though.

Today's class was an Improv class. We did some of the same poses as last Saturday, including Vamadevasana and Viranchyasana. This time though, for Viranchyasana she didn't have everyone try and put their foot behind their head with the other leg in lotus. She just had them keep the heel of the lower leg next to the hip. Too wimpy for me, I wanted the real deal so I tried the half lotus version. I could get the right side, though I could tell there was no way I could press up into the second part of the pose without my leg slipping off of my shoulder. I did cheat a little by putting my sweat towel under the hip of the Eka Pada leg to minimize tipping over. I couldn't get the left side though. If I had some more time I probably could have winched myself into it eventually. When I was trying to touch the soles of my feet in Vamadevasana, I felt a grinding sensation in the ankle of the front leg. No pain, no swelling, it just felt weird when it was happening. My left side is my less capable hip, so I can't get the feet together on that side and it's a little uncomfortable trying. I can get the soles of the feet to brush on the other side but that's about it. I don't think I can hold it for five breaths. It's physically hard to get the front foot lifted up. I have to really crank with my arm.

We did some Pincha Mayurasana work today. We did a few warm up poses, first in down dog with the forearms on the floor, then forearms on the floor and the feet against the wall with the legs at roughly right angles to the wall. Then we did normal Pincha Mayurasana. After that we did a version where you try to eliminate any arch in the back and keep the legs, body and head in a straight line. It is supposed to vertical enough of an alignment that you can look up and see your toes. That's one of the harder variations for some reason. Then we did some Vrishikasana attempts. I know my feet are not close to my head when I try this but I have no sense of how far away they really are. I'd ask my wife but she would probably have a hard time stopping laughing. Bendy people like her have no understanding of us stiffies.

Today we were at my youngest's soccer tournament. After the last game, while the girls were all getting their group photos, my wife starting doing some yoga poses in the grass next to the field. She had me try to do the one she was having a hard time with, Urdhva Kukkutasana C, where you go into tripod headstand then fold the legs into lotus while in the headstand, lower the knees to the armpits, then press the head up off of the ground and go into Urdhva Kukkutasana. Hard as that is, neither of us could do it, even harder is getting the head back down on the ground and back up into headstand. We both gave it several tries on the field. Next thing you know, four or five parents and several kids are out there all trying to do headstands and stuff. It was kind of fun. It was good to see people willing to let loose and try stuff, even at the risk of looking silly.

No call for me this weekend, so tomorrow I get to go to the led Second series class. Hopefully the Pincha Mayurasana work today will help me not do endos tomorrow. I've got to get back in the saddle and go back for a drop back again, before I get a phobia or something. The look of alarm on the face of the woman next to me was kind of neat though.