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i was working at yyoga.ca on thursday and doing some work on the computer, updating my emailing and i saw that stella farina was travelling to have turkey dinner with her mom in tacoma.  now stella is an old friend from suki’s in the early eighties.  she was at my wedding and great fall of 1992 in the grand canyan, 1992.  for the last ten years she has been living in portland, pdx.  she is going to vacation in buenos aires, south america, next week.  since i did not get an invite to turkey dinner but i did get one to uruguay, i decided that i would invite myself to rose’s.

by 2pm i was on the road and on the way to mama rose’s new house in auburn, washington.  i got to practise my driving the car yoga intensely since i had to make dinner by 6 pm.  no stops for sure.  the border wait was light, that was amazing.  the oil light went on in the van and i was hit by a jolt of lightening.  do you know that feeling?  i stopped at the gas station and i learnt a few things about diesel engines from a truck driver who was very friendly and informative.

the long story short…the oil was poured in,  alex was a great map reader and we arrive just in time for the massive table of food- pumpkin soup and a big turkey with stuffing.  rose is an excellent cook and hostess.  thank you rose for your grace.

we had great conversation and good dinner music…a selection of hits sung by william shatner, leonard nimoy, and mae west.  three kinds of pie and fresh fruit.  i am grateful that i have learned to eat with my eyes on my stomach.  it makes it so much healthier for my in the long run.  i was there mainly for the long time friendship with the sacdalan family.  they are a hoot.

we sat and talked.  then we started our traditional scrabble game.  the family are dedicated scrabble players and i love scrabble.  they have a very competitive streak in their blood.  by that time, little sister kyra arrived from her dinner with her significant other’s family.  rose was pooped so she was missing from action and we had to contend with not having the head scrabbler at the board table.  of course, stella won the first game and luckily i squeaked into winning the second game and by then it was time for bed.

it was wonderful to settle into our pajamas and sit around.  telling stories.  catching up with our lives.  going to bed, satiated with tryptophan and love.

the dogs woke me in the morning with their clacking claws, excited to get outside for their morning constitution.  i settled back to dreamland but again was awakened by the sound of rose in the kitchen as she prepared for breakfast and her exodus to the US ritual of black friday – the biggest shopping day of the year.  when businesses, having to adjust their books, have the best prices for their goods.  the stories of people eating the turkey dinner and immediately going to the shops to line up for the goods is infamous.

myself, shopping is not a priority.  i have enough and to get more, i would have to get further in debt which i am not willing to do.  sleep calls and i am grateful for the rest.    my kid crashed beside me on the air mattress with silk and feather blankets over us in the coolness of the house.

one of the things i am sensing in america is that employment is scarce and that the people are watching their pennies.  still there is time for feasts of gratitude and time for family.

when the sacdalan clan finally congregate by mid morning, i sit and watch all the interpersonal conversations.  it is interesting.  i got my biofeedback system out and start work on stella and rose who i have loved for twenty years.  i did therapy for a couple of hours while i have breakfast with the family.  i am very happy that i can look over my loved ones in a way that based on energy healing.

during this time, since rose did need to have some stimulation for her lymphatic system, we decide to go to the local famous bathhouse called the olympus ladies spa http://olympusspa.net/,  last time i was in there was about three years ago.  for about $30US, women can go into this special place and use the hot pools, the cool pools, the hot dry sauna, the gem rooms, the sea salt room, the steam sauna and a    wonderful korean kitchen eating room.  there are masseuses and body polishers  on site, which is an extra service charge.  i have never used the massage people but i have used the wonderful ladies who do a very good job for $60.

i will describe somewhat happens when you go and use this unique but common korean traditional bathhouse.  when you enter, the desk welcomes you with a robe, towels, a hatnet and a keychain.  if you are new, they take you on a tour of the facilities.  on the left is the waiting area for the massage rooms, to the right is the korean kitchen, the heated floor reading area, and beyond that the dry hot rooms that range from 120-160 degrees Fahrenheit.  plenty hot.

from the entry, straight ahead is the changing rooms and it is such a culture shock to see the various shapes and sizes of women in various stages of undress.  so get ready to avert your eyes and drop your inhibitions.  in cultures such as japan and korea,  bath houses are part of the natural laws  traditions ( ie shinto ).  we are just humans and we are born naked.  the bath houses are a place of renewal and self care.

beyond that room is the oasis.  the showers and bathing areas are to the right.  it is new to see the traditional scrubbing that the korean do as a basic routine.  they have pails of instuments that scrub every last piece of flesh from their bodies.

there is a big 8 foot by 2 foot pool that has a tea made of mugwort which is poured by hand buckets over the body periodically throughout the whole steaming and soaking process.

Mugwort has stimulant and slightly tonic properties, and is of value as a nervine and emmenagogue, having also diuretic and diaphoretic action. Specifically, mugwort may help to:-

Anxiety, stress, insomnia

Asthma

Bacterial and fungal infections

Diarrhea, cramps, intestinal gas

Epilepsy

Fever

Headache

Irritability, restlessness

Menopause symptoms

Menstrual complaints

Mild depression

Muscle spasms

Persistent vomiting

Skin inflammation

Tapeworms and other worms

it was like nymphs leaping from one pool to another, with various activities happening in full view.  off to one side of the main water room was a room with four beds where women were called to do their services.  i was number 85 and i was a long way off from my 3.30 appointment and was grateful to soak, steam, lie in the hot rooms.  actually i parked myself in the massage waiting room and used the infra-red foot massager while i read a trashy magazine.

when i was called to my body scrub session, i was already use to the method of the scrub, which may be novel for a newbie.  the room has four wet beds and the attendants are dressed for the wet session in black attire.  i am invited to climb on the bed, naked as a jay bird, face down.  suzie, proceeded to throw buckets of hot water on my and it felt wonderful.

she got down to do the scrub and it is an arduous process.  with her hands incased in plastic rough gloves, she proceeds to scrub me down with first soap, then next a salt scrub.  it was rough and really, she managed to get to every last piece of me.  then she threw buckets of water on me again.  it took about 15 minutes just to do the backside of me.

then she did me in a side plane, that was a bit of a new and unusual process.  i can see how the attendants can get to every part of the anatomy with this position.  it is not for the faint of heart.  i really understood how this has an effect on the meridien lines and the lymph system.  i definitely will use this as a gallbladder access position.  again with the soap, the salt and the buckets of water.

suzie, then instructed me to lie on my back and she proceeded to scrub every last inch of me from the nape of my neck, down to the chest area, belly and legs.  she got the arm pits and arms and i really was alive with the sensational session i received up to that point.  she did my face and started at that time to introduce the wrapping of hot towels into the sequence.  ahhhhhh.

the buckets of water kept coming and by the end i was aware of how a deck of a boat would have felt after a good clean.  ha.

she made me roll over a last time and laid hot towels over my back and arms.  i am blessed.  this was not the first time i have had this  hot towel therapy done on me.  karen cruishank taught us this when we were learning her zen shiatsu therapies.  i know that it is a benefit that most cultures have nurtured in their healing practises and i am grateful to have it in my arsenal too.

by the time i was asked by my korean lady to sit up, i was woozy.  it was bliss.  she gave me a firm massage to my neck and shoulders and 40 minutes later i was finished.  wow!

rose had ordered dinner at the dining room and i just plopped myself in the chair to eat.  i had ordered the Bibimbap http://olympusspa.net/tacoma/tour-image.aspx?intAlbumID=28 which was delicious.  simple and tasty.

i was happy, scrubbed clean and with my two best friends in the world.

what a great thanksgiving!