Day 3: Be Active!

In this workshop, students will be introduced to the benefits and basic standing postures of classical yoga. We will practice fundamental poses together to sustain and create comfort in the body and mind. Keep in mind that this is not a therapeutic class. Students need to be able to get up and down from the floor, have not had surgeries, and be in good health. You will need a yoga mat, 3 cotton or wool blankets, a metal folding chair that doesn't swivel. It would also be great if you brought a yoga strap, two yoga blocks, and a yoga bolster. And try to refrain from eating right before class!

We’ll spend some time focusing on our breath in preparation for a 30-minute workout. Post-workout, we’ll down-regulate as a way to transition into the next part of your day. You’ll need comfortable clothes, a space in which you can move and work out, and a positive mindset.

The Red Willow People have been at the site of Taos Pueblo for over 1,000 years and the Pueblo itself is the oldest structure in North America. During minicourse, some MA students had the privilege of going to Taos and learning from the community. We spent time with elementary school children, learned traditional and modern gardening practices, and heard music and stories from community members. Through these experiences we learned a lot about Tiwa, the now endangered language of the Red Willow people, the historical interactions with the Spanish and U.S., and the culture of the Taos Pueblo community. Come learn about the Taos Pueblo community and hopefully be inspired to go on this amazing minicourse in the future!

Participants will need to download the iNaturalist app before the seminar and then plan to get to their backyard. I will teach how to use the app, we can take some time to explore and then I'll provide a short guide to the trees in the Bay Area. At the end, I will show off my epic trail camera footage!

Find out more here!

Join Efren Buzzo, a professional dance and fitness instructor, to learn some new dance moves while getting your heart rate up! In this class, Efren will focus on Salsa and Reggaeton. Learn a bit about the history of these dances and follow along with some original choreography. All levels are encouraged to join in! No prior experience necessary.

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This is a power yoga class led by Kena Barshack! It is open to MA community members with all levels of yoga experience, especially to beginners! There will be fun music to accompany this 30 minute zoom class. I have been doing yoga for a couple of years and have been able to do it every single day during quarantine. I’m really excited to be able to share something that has kept me grounded during this hectic time. A yoga mat is recommended but a towel also works. If you’re not flexible, a yoga block or thick books can be helpful!

Remember those giant snowflakes, hearts, and musical instruments adorning the BBLC staircase last year? Or if not, have you ever wanted a fast, easy method of creating decorations for a friend’s birthday? In this workshop, we’ll learn a few simple techniques to smooth out your cardboard art skills (quite literally) and you’ll even get to leave with two ornaments of your own. Recommended for the course: an excess of scrap cardboard, hot glue+gun or tape, and something to cut your cardboard with (x-acto knife, box cutter, sharp scissors, etc).

What scares us -- and why? Are we responding to ancient and ancestral fears, like being eaten by predators, being alone in the dark? Are we terrified by modern fears, like technology we can’t control or an environment that may take dark revenge on us? Why do certain kinds of monsters -- vampires, zombies, ghosts -- recur in horror stories across cultures and what do they represent? How can horror films and stories, at their best, be a mirror that shows us our darkest selves and reveals truths we might otherwise want to avoid? In this session, we will explore the psychology of horror and attempt to answer some of these questions.

A brief word on what this session is NOT. We will not be discussing any of the found-footage, cheap jump-scare genre that has sadly taken the multiplex by storm (think Paranormal Activity), nor will we be watching any of the gratuitously violent and gory films (think SAW, Hostel, etc.) that have also become popular of late. Rather, this will be an exploration of the origins of the horror genre and its psychological underpinnings that will involve considerably more thoughtful films, most of which you will not have seen and some of which you may know nothing about.

This workshop is designed to show you the process we went through to create a community project. We were inspired with local issues and spent a lot of time brainstorming, researching potential partners, and creating sparkpages to show off our plans for possible projects. Anyone who is interested in learning about the process we went through to create a community project during our semester away, this is a workshop we recommend participating in.

We'll start with ~15min of movement, giving everyone a chance to shake off some of the cobwebs from a semester of distance learning. Then we'll discuss some prevailing theories for what aspects of training translate to the field of competition. Talk about why intention matters, and why no one improves on accident. Finally we'll discuss why "hard for the sake of hard" doesn't tend to improve your athletic ability. Goal will be to leave 5-10min at the end to give people the chance to ask questions.

This session is perfect for those of you who are looking for a way to get a little exercise and have some fun during the festival of learning. Trying a Zoomba class is a great way to push yourself out of your comfort zone in a super supportive environment. You will have to have your camera on, but I can promise that most people won't be looking at you! The only requirement is that you keep an open mind and try to have fun with it! There will also be opportunities at the end if any of the attendees feel like leading the group in some groovy moves!