The drums and whistle moved me, the movements disturbed me, and the whistling perturbed my cat.

re: tomorrow grindstone--sorry you have to work on the holiday.

That dude is awesome. Clearly he has bones to hold all those muscles. I'd say he was ligamentless, but ligaments, I think, bind said muscles to the bones. I could be wrong.

Excuse me, I have to go stretch now.

maybe the ligaments are super stretchy. I'm thinking about doing a yoga class. I've never taken one, I don't know what I'm doing. Advice appreciated.

WTH. Jealous. Just one more thing I wish I could do.

chewatadistance: Are you serious about your inexperience with yoga? Just asking 'cause I learned that "yoga" is your MetaFilter name. I'm about to get all stalker-y on your MeFi activity now.

(I practiced yoga in a fitness club class setting for awhile. The benefits were enormous, aspects of it enhance my life daily, and I hope to return to an instructed setting.)

Yeah, I'm serious. yoga is short for yogaboat. :) What do you wear to yoga? Do you have to wear skimpy stuff or can you just wear a tshirt and some loose-ish pants? And what are the benefits of sweating your butt off in a hot yoga class?

chewie, don't do hot yoga to start. If you have specific class descriptions, e-mail me and I'd be happy to advise.

Nobody much wears skimpy stuff to any kind of classes anymore, yes you can wear tee shirts and sweats.

All yoga works your flexibly, and ideally, provides mind focus, but that second part really depends on the gifts of your instructor.

So after stretching, I still have a right leg front split, no middle split at all, and a left leg front split only if I have to save my family by performing one. Also, I have a backbend, but now have to get in and out of it from the floor, not standing. Same status as last time I checked. Ah, the inexorable march of time.

Thanks for the tip, rainbaby. We have some dvd's here - maybe I'll try those before I spend $ on a class. I feel like I should clean my house before the maid comes, you know? Mostly I'm afraid I would laugh hysterically and violate some invisible ethics law of yoga in a class.

Thank you for the clarification, chewatadistance. :)

Yoga clothing: Comfortable things with no snaps, rivets, buttons, or other ornaments that will press into your flesh. Shirts that are close-fitting or will stay tucked in help . Some bending-over postures will send a loose shirt arm-ways and make one paranoid that others can see up-shirt. As in any other public activity, most folk are too wrapped up in what they're worried about to pay you any attention. Still, much of yoga is about the mind. If the mind is worried about OMIGOD my shirt is traveling over my head--get another shirt. Pants should be loose enough to stay on and allow you to inhale from your lower abdomen comfortably.

Find out what instructors/settings are available in your area/budget. Talk to the instructors and find out how a beginner can benefit most from classes. Find out what neutral pose one can take when over-exerted or confused about positions.

For a general overview of what one can expect, check out About.com: Yoga

I hope you will try a class--I'm sure you can do it!

Thanks, bonobo, very helpful. :D

There is something very wrong with that guys right leg, but as for the lotus and other super nimble positions he puts himself in, they're doable with bones. You just have to be supah fit and nimble. (i'm sitting in a proper lotus right now because I find it comfortable. I don't do both legs behind my neck since I was 16 though, only one now that I'm 35.)

This is the sort of pole dancing I want lessons in!