This week I went back to TranquilSpace for the first time in 18 months. I took a weekly class at the studio until early 2005. I had also gone on a retreat with Kimberly at Yogaville in November 2004. It was where I made my first serious effort at learning yoga, kind of like going back to the high school 25th reunion.

I took a Yoga II class with Kimberly Wilson, the owner and lead instructor, after work. As usual, the class was maxed out -- at least 30 people squeezed into the equivalent of a brownstone living room. There were six inches between the mats. Kimberly made several adjustments to my postures during the class so she knows how to move around in confined spaces. I also suspect that she had to limit the repertoire of postures and vinyasas because you simply can't let it all hang out in close quarters.

After class, I approached Kimberly and she remembered my name and also my wife's. I told her about how I had based my yoga practice at Thrive Yoga because of a great exchange (web hosting and maintenance for classes).

I was actually hoping to get an ego-tweak from Kimberly, make her say how my yoga had improved. She did not say anything and probably couldn't even remember what state my practice was in. She only taught me those three days on the retreat. In any case, I confirmed in my own mind that I had moved beyond my novice status. I also knew that I preferred to practice in my usual yoga haunts (Thrive and Flow).