persistence pays off

Well, the little marketing/sales exercise has begun on a trial basis and the response so far has been surprisingly good - a few more sales would go down well but the level of acceptance from winery mail list customers is very high. People really want to discuss the wines and winery and are positively overjoyed at the prospect of being called occasionally by us. Good news. Have been using Skype for the calls, a lot cheaper than NZ Telecom (gougers that they are) and this works ok - there is a little bit of a delay, particularly for places that are a long way from their local exchange - for example a few of the mroe rural ones. The Auckland and Wellington homes are fine, and even the delay isn't a real issue for a couple of reasons - firstly Kiwis, like Aussies, are a little bit more laid back on the phone than say Brits of Yanks, so a little pause sits ok with them, and also people are used to ropey lines with mobile calls so they tolerate it and it doesn't interfere with the sell. Now, it occurs to me that of course this activity, skype based as it is, is totally portable and thus could be done comfortably from anywhere with a broadband link. Top of the list then for India. All I need to do is get a campaign hooked up to do over October and November and I could be able to earn while in India. Now that would be incredible.

I did of course nearly ditch this whole exercise the other day, but almost because of a lack of anything else ready to get into I thought 'why not play it out, nothin to lose..."

This could be developed and am already talking to a mate at another winery who seems to suddenly like the idea. Which is a start. So, could look to grind this out a bit further. No start-up costs, only a few hours work per day. Perfect if it can fly. No risk - just my time. Good business.

Yoga wise, I really think my attitude is transforming compared even to 2 months ago. I am trying to totally take any pressure off myself, while also sneaking around to a 4 or 5 practice week. Easy practice if I feel like it. I really notice my ability to observe aspects of what I am doing now without really changing them. A big shift and something I always wondered about. What would it feel like? It feels a like you are almost external to your actual body, clearly able to visualise yourself lying there, or watching the chest rise and fall as if it werent one's own. It's actually incredibly peaceful to do - like a mini break from life almost. This is a big help in terms of grappling with things like the fear and apprehension that sometimes arise before a difficult asana, or just one that keeps getting away from one, like headstand or the Lotus - which is still a way off for me. Fuck it - keep right on!