Jason Alan Griffin :: The Blog

Yesterday, I made a special trip out of my way from Charlotte, NC to Richmond, VA all the way west to Roanoke, VA so that I could spend today cruising along the Blue Ridge Parkway. I woke up early and gassed up. It was easy to follow signs in Roanoke to the entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is a special road around which the natural beauty has been carefully maintained. The speed limit is usually 45 MPH or less to encourage cruising and gawking. There were also viewpoint turnouts every few hundred feet and lots of people were biking or hiking along the road, giving it all a very casual atmosphere. Our first stop was at a place over looking a railroad track. And as luck would have it, a train was going by just as we pulled up, so I let River watch it before we got out to play. I left this video without much narration because I wanted to capture a bit of the peacefulness that this drive offered. It was the dictionary definition of bucolic splendor. I didn't make it al...

This was gig added at a later date and not on the original plan. But my friend and colleague, Kate Finlayson found out I was coming through her town and asked if I could fit in a gig at Joy of Movement studio in Pittsboro, NC. I had originally had a class set up at a fitness facility that later had second thoughts about allowing River in. So we cancelled that date. It worked out perfectly because I was able to give it to Kate. River and I stopped to play in a park on the way out of Rock Hill, South Carolina. I miscalculated how long it would take, with traffic to get to the motel. I was again afraid I was going to be late to class. I'm usually good at not getting myself into these jams, but for some reason, I've been caught off guard by ridiculous traffic conditions lately. I got to the motel and quickly took the fastest shower I could, shaved, and put in my contacts and got immediately back in the car and headed to the studio. Turns out I made it in plenty of time. T...

I woke up in Tucker and was shocked when I took River out for his morning walk and saw Georgia in the parking lot. It looked like a totally different color. I thought I saw it as green; almost like slate. In the dark of the night before it looked very dark grey. It was going to be another epic day. My third in a row. This day was all orchestrated by Sherrie Flack. She rented a gorgeous ballroom in Fort Mill, South Carolina and attracted a shimmering group that really got into the wearing of the metallic clothes. The class was brilliant and we all had a blast. Then many of us caravanned over to Gail Coplin's house for a pot luck lunch. After lunch, I led a two hour 8BC barring workshop for seven ladies. I felt really good about the progress we made; it seemed like everyone left with a lot more clarity on the practice. And then, I had about three hours until teaching another class at a yoga studio in North Carolina. I went back to my room and napped for about twenty minu...

It had been on my mind for a while. I was unhappy with the moon roof in Thumper. It was glass and didn't block the sun from beating down on my head. There was no relief from relentless UV rays on the top of my head. After a couple of hours of midday driving, I could feel a burning sensation on my exposed skin. So I knew I was going to trade it in for a new one, or get it fixed with a decal. I wasn't fond of the decal idea because then I have a defaced moon roof. I thought it made more sense to just get a hard top. Once I set my mind on something I like to act. I don't like to wait. I had all day to go just about three hours to my next destination and no classes to teach until the following morning. So I stopped into the local Mini dealership to inquire about what my situation would be and my options on inventory and leasing over buying, etc. To make a long story short, I traded cars. Thumper (on the left) staying in Altanta. Georgia (on the right) is coming with ...

This is actually still the same day as Alabama, but a different state, so I made it a new post. I drove right from the class in Cullman, to the guy who didn't have any soap and from there on to Decatur, Georgia. I lost an hour crossing over from Central to Eastern Time and barely made it to the Decatur Recreation Center in enough time to walk River in the park and eat some cashews and strawberries before class started. The traffic going through Atlanta was so incredibly slow, that I had to scrap my original plan of going to the motel room and showering and eating before class. Instead I drove directly from one class to the next. Although I had rinsed my costume in the sink in Alabama, I didn't use soap (still hadn't found any) They were dry by the time I was putting them back on in the Decatur Rec Center restroom as I had laid them flat on the back platform in the car under the rear window. They dry quickly from the sun and the wind. But as I put them on, I was aware th...

The sign, welcoming us to Alabama says, "Alabama the Beautiful." And my first impression was that it was indeed beautiful, and it was also very humid and hot. It is very peaceful, too. I feel a calmness in the air that slows me down a bit; it's nice. Even the speed limits on the streets and highways seem slower than average. I found a farmers market and got some turnip greens and some tomatoes and cucumbers and strawberries. The greens farmer was talking my ear off about the nutrional value of the stems of the greens and various vegetables, and how his son grew the biggest pumpkin in the county this year. All the while with turnip greens in his teeth. River got lots of loving attention at the market, and after shopping with me, I let him sniff around in the weeds behind the market before we took off for class. Ann Caretti was the producer for my Goldfinger class at the Cullman Recreational Center, in Cullman Alabama, and her students were so lovely and came dres...

Leaving New Orleans, in the morning, we headed out of state, bound for Atlanta, Georgia. I was planning on giving Mississippi a miss, but mid-Mississippi, Thumper needed to refuel and River needed to (ahem) "stretch his legs". So we pulled over in ... I enjoyed our quick stop in MS because when I walked into the store to pay for my gas, I got to hear the clerk, with her head in the hotdog machine, saying, without irony, "Gaggumit. Ah! Dagnabbit" The drive through the south was surprisingly lush. I didn't know it, but I must have I had this mental image of the south being more barren. I was surprised that there is a decent amount of greenery and a lot of trees. And there is certainly no shortage of bugs.