I’m named after a Hindu devi, a goddess of the mountains, whose purpose was to harmonize earthly and heavenly energies. True to my namesake I love remote mountain quietude, yet also crave the the edge and hum of city life. Like yin and yang, I am both serious and playful, deeply reverential and quantifiably absurd, graceful and clumsy. I believe both laughter and grief can be superpowers. In essence I’m a mountain biking, whiskey drinking, book writing, meditating, rational mystic ninja creative director.
“Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.” —BASHO
By night I’m a mild mannered, lycra-clad yoga teacher, sharing the therapeutic gifts of wellness and health with others. By day I don my superhero costume as a creative professional, with special areas of interest and expertise in logo design/branding, collateral, publications and web design. I also offer copywriting, technical and nonfiction writing both for client projects and for publication.
My career—like my life—has had a unique, unconventional rhythm; A bit of free jazz with symphonic undertones and a fat back beat. I’ve been called a dilettante—a Jill-of-all-trades. Call me what you will, I’m passionate, dedicated, and persevering.
“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” —HOWARD THURMAN
Join me on LinkedIn: Linked In
OR if you’re a cycling fan, check out BikeYoga
And to keep up with my writing and design work, please visit www.umacreative.com
Since 1998 I have been sharing the healing benefits of yoga with people who want to move through life more easily, experiencing less pain in their bodies and connecting consciously with their purpose in the world. While the forms of practice I teach vary depending on the individual, one consistent component is the practice of self-inquiry through meditation. While millions of Americans practice yoga for various reasons with fitness at the top of the list, my own approach engages yoga as a therapeutic tool that maintains or improves health and wellness on all levels, not just physical.
My goal as a teacher is to help others reduce tension, pain and suffering in their bodies. Through mindful movement we also examine patterns of thought and mind that may be causing inhibition, dis-ease, or conflict—mentally and emotionally. It is my pleasure and privilege to hold the space for and assist students who wish to discover—or recover—ease and joy in mind, body and spirit.
I began practicing yoga as a way of healing from PTSD, chronic pain, deadline stress, and nerve strain that comes with long days sitting at a computer coupled with sports injuries. Following formal studies in various traditions, including Iyengar, Ashtanga, Yin and Anusara, I began teaching DharmaYoga — a holistic form of therapeutic practice that draws inspiration from Buddhist teachings and other Eastern wisdom traditions.
My practice relies equally on both the outer forms of physically therapeutic movement, as well as the “internal arts” of meditation and contemplation. Meditation is one of the least popular aspects of yoga yet is perhaps the most important. After all, a healthy body depends on a strong and flexible mind which sees reality now as it wishes things were, but with clarity and compassion—seeing how things are.
For more information about my teaching practice, please visit my facebook page to stay informed of upcoming events.
For over 20 years I have designed print and web pages alike. Part designer, part writer, part developer, and part analyst, I massage images and ideas to tell stories and create connection. My clients range from small start-ups to international publishing giants. While I receive more calls for website design these days, my true passion is for print design: cards, brochures, booklets, invitations, etc. You can see a small sampling of my portfolio here: www.umacreative.com
RECENT WEB DEVELOPMENT:
NEWSLETTER AUTHORING AND DESIGN:
PUBLISHING:
PACKAGING / RETAIL:
How can I help you grow your business? Email me and let’s get started! Or pick up the phone and call 503-819-6953.
My passion for writing began in childhood. As an Army brat, I moved around the country with alarming frequency, never staying in one place too long. Friends, schools and family members came and went. Life was chaotic at best. Words became my home, the only constant in my life. By at 13 I was reading heady esoteric teachings on metaphysics, Jack Kerouac, the beat poets and psychology texts. And I wrote about my adventures as a modern day gypsy.
That trend continues to this day. For the past several years I have been working on a manuscript that has been a lifetime int he making. In summer 2012 I decided to hole up in a makeshift writer’s residence in the middle of nowhere, living in a gutted Airstream trailer while working to complete a collection of essays for publication. Think Kerouac meets Krakauer. My personal version of “Into the Wild”, minus Christopher McCandless’ unfortunate demise.
SPRING 2013 UPDATE: My months in “The Tin Can” were very productive. The isolation and lack of social contact allowed me to retreat into a hyper-focused creative state I needed in order to complete several chapters which had proven elusive, previously. The story is not yet complete, but the need to reconnect with community and engage in collaborative work takes precedence now. I hope to do another retreat at some time in the next couple of years to continue the work on this passion project.
Published Works:
BOOKS:
I’ve self published a non-fiction instructional book of yoga for cyclists called BikeYoga: Tune Up Your Mind and Body, available for sale here.
ARTICLES & ESSAYS:
MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS:
I write web content, brochures, and newsletters. Email me if you have a project and you need help telling your story.
For over 15 years I have offered marketing, advertising and management expertise to small businesses who need help defining — or refining — their identity, image or messaging. In today’s economy, the small business owner needs a smart, professional marketing presence from the start. Launching with a do-it-yourself logo or poorly executed materials that don’t connect you with customers doesn’t work. You want to put the best possible face forward and be clear about your message, product, or service.
I specialize in helping small businesses with a holistic orientation to the world: yoga studios, holistic wellness centers, bodyworkers, psychologists and sport and fitness coaches to name a few. Businesses who care about making a difference, as well as making a buck. Services provided include:
- aesthetics: logo / image / branding / physical store or office environment and signage
- message: telling your story via your website, brochures, ads
- marketing: writing and designing effective postcards, newsletters, brochures, etc
- promotions: special events, discounts and co-promotional opportunities
Consider me your personal, pocket-sized agency, able to leap over tall deadlines with a single bound, but for a fraction of what you’d pay for a full service agency.
You can see examples of my work here: www.umacreative.com
How can I help you grow your business? Email me and let’s get started! Or pick up the phone and call 503-819-6953.
Bike? What does that have to do with anything? How random, right?
Au contraire, dear reader. Bikes have everything to do with everything as far as I’m concerned.
You see, for me the bicycle is a thing of beauty, a source of pleasure, and a means to physical and emotional health. It’s about more than just getting around town and staying fit, and it’s bigger than competition and joy riding. In my life the bicycle is more than a well-engineered tool and a means of transportation.
I see the bicycle as a vehicle of transformation.
Bikes and fitness come and go, but joy remains the same.
I did not begin racing until many years later. My fitness teaching experience lent itself to leading novice women’s development groups and coaching. I merged two of my passions—yoga and cycling—by developing a simple, accessible recovery and flexibility program for cyclists, called BikeYoga.
The BikeYoga practice focuses on preventing and correcting overuse injuries and conditions. But at its heart is the classical yoga philosophy that everything one does—as long as one does it with all their heart and total presence of mind—is “yoga”. If riding your bike makes you feel connected, alive, vital and radiant, that’s yoga! Yeah, sure, it could just be the endorphins talking, but you know when it’s something more than that… something more meaningful and—dare I say—spiritual.
The English word spirit comes from the Latin spiritus, which means breath. From this perspective there is no separation between spiritual life and any other part of life: to breathe is to live and vice versa. As long as we draw breath, we are “infused with spirit”.
Riding bikes—whether riding for transportation, fun, athletic challenge or touring—makes me feel alive. It helps fuel the rest of my life as a writer, designer, producer. Like riding, yoga and writing are as necessary as breathing to me. Sharing these things with others also looking to “catch their breath” is my small contribution to the world.
So relax. Breathe deep. Find what you love and do that.
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