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The bookshelf in Rick WInfrey's shrine room contains mostly Buddhist material, but also readings from the Hindu and Christian religions.
are able to make positive life adjustments. Then your living area is not only pleasing to the eye, but also pleasing to the heart and the mind.
Feng Shui is a fairly new concept for Americans, but it's not that "new age". The practice began evolving more than 3,000 years ago during China's Shang Dynasty. Though the elements have changed tremendously, the same basic principle still lies beneath—a need for order in our lives. "As we've become busier, we're looking for ways to find balance and comfort in our lives," says Laurie Bornstein, founder of Living Space Designs and Lawrence Feng Shui consultant. "Our reason and fascination is that we are trying to find that place of comfort by evaluating what's important and honoring that."
When a space is organized, inviting and nurturing, you are able to bridle the energy and improve all areas of your life. It's your guide to finding balance in relationships with family, friends and lovers. It can help your career, health and prosperity, says Bornstein, whose business continues to increase. "It's the difference between a house and a home."
Yearning for Yoga
"Into downward facing dog," says your yoga instructor. From a push-up position you exhale, lifting your hips to the sky while pushing your heels and palms into the ground beneath you.
Poses like this are becoming more and more familiar to Americans as yoga's popularity increases. A 1994 Roper poll estimated 6 million Americans practiced yoga. According to a September 2003 Wall Street Journal article, a Harris Interactive poll estimated 15 million Americans practiced yoga last year. "It's becoming less and less novel," says Jill Krebs, co-owner of Yoga Center of Lawrence, 920 Massachusetts St. "It answers many, many needs - spiritual, mental and physical."
Yoga is so beneficial that insurance
companies are paying for classes for patients with muscular skeletal problems, multiple sclerosis and other health problems. Informal studies have even shown that yoga can help to lower cholesterol by decreasing stress hormone levels—hormones that release cholesterol into the body, says Krebs. "Of all things people in the U.S. need, it's the stress relieving aspect," Krebs says. "It's paramount and the most valuable."
The most stress-relieving factor is the breathing exercises, or pranayamas, a primary focus of yoga. Through a series of poses, or asanas, you enhance balance, flexibility and strength. The students learn proper body alignment and their concentration increases. "I thought because yoga was slow-paced that it would be less challenging than other fitness classes," says Lindsay Siegel, Highland Park, Ill., senior. "I was wrong. Not only was it difficult, but I started developing more muscle tone, but in longer, leaner lines."
Many, like Krebs, see yoga as a path to self-awareness with benefits that spill over into other areas of life. Some students come back to it again and again for clarity, invigoration and fitness, while others see it as purely a way to stay in shape.
Much to the dismay of our parents, tattoos have become a normalcy for our generation. Leading the norm in tattoo art design is Chinese characters. Nothing seems to be stopping this trend, not even the risk of having a permanent ink mark that you thought said 'Happiness' but really says 'Smelly.'
obsession with yoga isn't fading. If anything, the exercise regime for the inner and outer being is gaining momentum, says Krebs, who has seen an algorithmic increase in business since 1999. "It's absolutely here to stay," she says.
Whatever the reasons, Americans'
Leslie Lukens, Medicine Lodge senior, says she wasn't worried about the meaning behind her symbol when she went in for her 21st-birthday inking. Lukens and a friend from home were getting identical tattoos — the Chinese character symbolizing friendship. They came prepared, bringing their own picture of the character as a resource. The tattoo parlor's picture matched and the needling began. "We just wanted to do something that was meaningful for our friendship," Lukens says. She says Chinese characters were appealing because the symbol is mysterious. "People have to ask you what that means," she says. "It draws attention."
Trendy Tattoos
"I feel much more comfortable with myself and trusting my natural inclinations even in times when it isn't the socially right thing to do or most accepted."
—Rick Winfrey, Wichita junior
Steve Bridgman, tattoo artist at Skin Illustrations, 1530 W. Sixth St., says it's common to see groups, such as siblings or friends, come in asking for Chinese character tattoos. "It comes in spurts," Bridgman says. "I think it will stay leveled off for a while like it is now."
Satisfying Sushi
He says the trend isn't gender biased, but men and women generally differ in the their choice of symbol. Women typically choose characters that symbolize friendship, whereas men pick symbols representing strength and honor.
When KoKoRo, a Japanese sushi and steak restaurant, first opened its doors four years ago, no other sushi restaurants were in Lawrence. "There were so many international students, but no international food," says Young Baronette, KoKoRo manager, 601 Kasold Drive. "We wanted to introduce more international food in this nice college town."
The restaurant was on the right track. According to www.sushi-man.com, Japanese restaurants have more than 7,000 establishments in the United States, with a 13 percent growth rate. The recent craze isn't sizzling out. "I believe Asian food is really, really healthy food," Baronette says. "It's a simple taste, simple cooking and it has a nice taste. It's not strange."
Baronette says that many Americans still have misconceptions that sushi is raw fish but only some items contain uncooked fish. The main ingredients are seasoned rice and vinegar. Optional meats include salmon, tuna, shrimp and eel.
"I love the freshness of the fish," says David Weber, Tulsa, Okla., senior. "There's a feeling that you get when you eat sushi that you don't get when you eat other food—a satisfying feeling."
—Julie Jones, Jayplay writer, can be reached at jjones@kansan.com.
14 jayplay
thursday. november 13, 2003