à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Curiosity
“Should” is a Dirty Word
Not long ago someone “should” on me. Inside, I recoiled and shut down rather than reach toward them. Since then, I’ve been trying to think of a context in which that word has a kind, benign or even neutral connotation. I can’t come up with a single one. Even saying the word, a single syllable with a hard … Continue reading
Dear New Yorker: Your Gluten Article is Hard to Swallow
Dear New Yorker, There was a time when I couldn’t wait for you to arrive in the mail each week. That was in the mid-1990s, when I was in my late twenties and worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Your covers and cartoons delighted me, your articles and essays informed and challenged me. Spending … Continue reading
Feldenkrais: How Do We Know We’re at Choice?
My fourth grade teacher Miss Fredericks, whose heavily lacquered blond bouffant resembled a golden helmet, gave us an exercise I still remember. She handed each of us a sheet of mimeographed instructions and asked us to read them to ourselves, silently. Perusing the purplish letters on the white sheet, I began to follow the instructions, each … Continue reading
Feldenkrais and the Coleman Camp Stove
During my last minute road trip, I booked lodging in Polebridge, MT, on the edge of Glacier National Park, less than 24 hours in advance. That I found a funkily furnished ger, a round tent-like structure created in Mongolia, with a real bed, a private compost toilet and an outdoor shower on short notice, thrilled me. I could enjoy the … Continue reading
Road Trip: the Etch-a-Sketch of Travel
“Planning the next moment drains your energy. Being present to this one replenishes it.” – Living Compassion I love to travel. My mind loves to doubt. Every time I’m on a trip, regardless of destination or length, my mind wonders if I should have done it differently or visited somewhere else altogether. If I’m alone, it tells … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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