I know we’re still a few days from the official start of the spring season, but with the start of Daylight Savings time last week, a lot of us are feeling a distinct shift. For some, it’s a mostly positive, renewed sense of energy. For others, there’s an element of restlessness, or a rush of emotions and difficulty focusing. More sunlight has a huge effect on the mind and body!
I find that I personally do best when I acknowledge whatever it is that comes up and harness that higher energy level to make positive changes to offset the negatives. I’ve also noticed that if I’ve had a project or something I’ve wanted to work on but felt “stuck” with, this is the time of year I suddenly feel capable of just doing it—of doing all the things. For the most part, this is great, but it can be easy to overdo it without realizing it.
One day a week I see clients in an office space occupied mainly by Chinese medicine practitioners. The other night, I had an interesting little chat with one woman who was commenting on the “mania” aspect of spring, caused by a rush of expansive yang energy. When a person doesn’t have enough yin energy to balance it out, you see that crazed affect. So yes, spring is a great time to eat lots of green stuff and clean the hell out of our closet, but it’s also a good time to check in and see where you may need to focus on grounding yourself and fostering a sense of balance. If you want to read more about the season of spring in Traditional Chinese Medicine, here are some of the basics, but if you’re interested, this book is one of my favorites ways to nerd out on the subject.
Spring must really be almost here—I had my first rose wine of the year last night. After a winter of Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, and blues-y things, earlier this week I made a new “Daylight Savings”-type of playlist. This will do very little to ground you, but if you want to shake things out or knock out some cardio, it’s great for that. I know I haven’t shared any playlists in a while, but it’s pretty safe to say I haven’t done one for you emo/indie kids in a while. Some of this is very throwback Thursday (lots of 2003 and 2006 & 7 obsessions here) but have fun!
- The Start of Something—Voxtrot
- Sink/Let It Sway—Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
- Long Distance Call—Phoenix
- Twenty-Twenty Surgery—Taking Back Sunday
- Wild Honey Pie—the Pixies
- My Favorite Accident—Motion City Soundtrack
- Drunk Girls—LCD Soundsystem
- Heart to Tell—the Love Language
- Requiem for O.M.M. 2—Of Montreal
- Bloom-the Veils
- Young Folks—Peter Bjorn and John
- Buddy Holly—Weezer
- Come Home—Chappo
- Cherry Tulips—Headlights
How do you typically feel come springtime? What songs are you loving lately?