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Free Yoga Boston (Winter/Spring 2022)

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Whew! Between moving in October, working, the holidays, then getting COVID, things got away from me. This list is up far later than I’d hoped, but it’s also very special. I recently realized that this is a milestone list. Back in 2012 was the first time that I posted a full listing of free yoga classes by day of the week. That’s 10 years ago!

While I may abandon word games at the drop of a hat, I’ve hung in there with Free Yoga Boston. Much of the reason is because I’ve gotten such great feedback over the years from many of you about how useful you find this information. Back then, I could have never imagined all the virtual classes. Life comes at you fast! So we adapt.

Make sure to check the Free Yoga Boston Facebook Group in addition to the Free Yoga Boston Facebook page. The group is private, but you can request to join. Members share information and sometimes there are additional classes and events listed.

You can also find classes on Eventbrite and Meetup. Classes listed here are free or donation based and the time is Eastern. Click on the links for more details on dates and to register. Because of the way some of the classes are listed, it was easier to include a few that will take us into summer. You can plan early!

As always, this list is a work in progress that will have changes and updates. Please let me know if you have any questions, corrections and/or tips! Enjoy!

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MONDAY

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care: Ongoing (Online)
5:15pm – 6:15pm

TUESDAY

Yoga Hub & Boston Public Library Yoga: May 3 – June 7
(Senior Chair Yoga @ Codman Square Branch, 690 Washington St., Boston)
11am – 12pm

WEDNESDAY

Humble Roots Yoga: Ongoing
(Thomas Crane Public Library, 40 Washington St., Quincy)
9:30am – 10:30am

Pranayama ~ Joy of Breathing: Ongoing (Online)
1pm – 1:30pm

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care: Ongoing (Online)
5:15pm – 6:15pm

THURSDAY

Humble Roots Yoga: Ongoing
(Tufts Library, 46 Broad St., Weymouth)
9:30am – 10:30am

SATURDAY

Yoga Hub & Boston Public Library Yoga: April 30 – June 4
(Family Flow @ Lower Mills Branch, 27 Richmond St., Dorchester Center)
10:30am – 11:30am

Yoga Hub & Boston Public Library Yoga: March 19 – April 23
(Family Flow @ Adams Street Branch, 690 Adams St., Dorchester)
11am – 12pm

Yoga Hub & Boston Public Library Yoga: May 28 – July 2
(Hatha Yoga For Active Adults @ South Boston Branch, 646 E Broadway, South Boston)
11am – 12pm

SUNDAY

Vinyasa Yoga (Biweekly starting 2/20/22 – Registration Required)
(Allbirds, 29 Brattle St., Harvard Square, Cambridge)
9:30am – 10:15am

Boston Parks Winter Fitness Virtual Yoga: Through April 24 (Online)
6pm – 7pm

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If you like the work and want to support it, I ❤️ coffee!

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BPL Offering Free Gardening Kits

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*UPDATED 5/2/22*

I just got the May BPL Newsletter and they are giving away these gardening kits again this year, but only at the branch locations: Brighton, Codman, Connolly, East Boston, Egleston, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan, Parker Hill and South Boston. This is only while supplies last.

There is no longer a link on the BPL website about this, so I called and was told that none of these gardening kits will be available at the BPL’s Central Location. Also the website says that the South End Branch is closed until further notice, so I did not list it above.

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Boston Public Library Gardening Kit

A few years ago, I remember reading about seed libraries and thinking that it was a wonderful idea for those interested in gardening. The idea has taken off and you can probably find one near you or even start your own.

What is a seed library? Pretty much what it sounds like. It’s a place, like a library, that shares seeds with people in the local community. The specific rules may vary from place to place, but you can generally get seeds for free or at a low price.

While you can have seeds for houseplants, flowers and herbs, having seeds for growing fruits and vegetables provides a way to strengthen food security. In other words, being intentional about keeping seeds for growing food allows some independence from the mainstream food system.

Food is delicious and fun. But it’s also a necessity for life and therefore political. There is enough food for everyone, but everyone doesn’t have enough. Systems in place need changing.

As we leave the pandemic, more of us are thinking differently about life and welcoming systemic change. This week I had my second COVID-19 vaccine, so I’m looking forward to normal life again. However, I’m hoping the new normal is better than the old one.

Seed libraries provide the literal seeds to grow our own gardens. Starting on May 5th, gardening kits were available from the Boston Public Library – 850 kits spread out among the branches.

You can choose from two types of gardening kits. Resilient Gardening Kits include everything you need for a veggie garden. For those with a focus on herbal remedies, Herbal Wildflower Kits contain what you’ll need. I’m not sure how long these will last, therefore, it’s probably best to go sooner than later. Happy planting!

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Screenshot: Boston Public Library

Free Yoga Boston (October 2020 – May 2021)

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home yoga practice

For now, virtual classes are still the norm, so it’s still a good time to continue working on a home yoga practice and include meditation.

So let’s light some candles and roll out our mats. Classes listed are free or donation based. Please donate if you can! Also, since people can take online classes from anywhere, the times listed here are Eastern Time.

Make sure to check the Free Yoga Boston Facebook Group in addition to the Free Yoga Boston Facebook page. The group is private, but you can request to join. Members share information and there are additional classes and events listed.

Some classes here are found on Eventbrite and Meetup, so you can look for classes there as well. As always, this list is a work in progress and will be updated. From what I can tell, the classes listed below are ongoing for the time being.

Classes for Boston Community Yoga (BCY) are included and may vary somewhat week to week. DM them on Instagram to sign up and look at their weekly schedule.

If you know of other classes that are missing or have corrections, let me know!

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MONDAY

BCY – Monday Motivational Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
5:30pm – 6:30pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

Dan Rodman Meditation and Spirituality (Ongoing) Virtual
6:30pm – 7:30pm

Online Zoom Yoga (Ongoing) Virtual
8pm – 9:15pm

Meditation Group (Ongoing) Virtual
9pm – 9:30pm

TUESDAY

BCY – All Levels Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
6pm – 7pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

BCY – Beginner Vinyasa Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
7pm – 8pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

 

WEDNESDAY

BCY – Morning Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
7am – 8am (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

Yoga for Busy Legal Professionals (Ongoing) Virtual
2pm – 2:20pm

BCY – Vinyasa Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
6pm – 7pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

Laughter Yoga on Zoom (Ongoing) Virtual
7:30pm – 8:10pm

Zoom Yoga, Wednesday Release! (Ongoing) Virtual
8pm – 9:15pm

THURSDAY

Chair Yoga with Ivor (Weekly through 4/29/21) Virtual
11am – 12pm

Older Adults’ Chair Yoga (4/22/21, 6/24/21) Virtual
2pm – 3pm

BCY – Vinyasa Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
5:30pm – 6:30pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

FRIDAY

Yogi Dimps Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
12pm – 12:30pm (DM for IG Live classes)

BCY – Friday Morning Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
6:30am – 7:30am (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

Friday Unwind: Gentle Yoga (Ongoing) Virtual
4pm – 5pm

SATURDAY

BCY – Power Vinyasa (Ongoing) Virtual
8am – 9am (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

Self Care Saturday All Levels Yoga (Ongoing) Virtual
9am – 10am

Online Guided Meditation (Ongoing) Virtual
9:45pm – 11pm

BCY – Weekend Warrior Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
11am – 12pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

SUNDAY

Online Guided Meditation (Ongoing) Virtual
9:45am – 11am

Afro Flow Yoga (Ongoing) Virtual
1:30pm – 2:30pm

Yoga and Mindfulness (Ongoing) Virtual
2pm – 3pm

BCY – Yoga for the Sunday Scaries (Ongoing) Virtual
6:30pm – 7:30pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

BCY – Restorative Flow (Ongoing) Virtual
7:30pm – 8:30pm (Time may vary. Check weekly schedule and DM to sign up.)

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If you like the work and want to support it, I ❤️ coffee!

Buy Me A Coffee

How You Can Find Hand Sanitizer

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hand sanitizer bottle

Yes! It’s possible to find hand sanitizer. I was able to get three travel size bottles yesterday.

I always have hand sanitizer around. In my pocketbook and in my car for when I’m out and about and can’t wash my hands. Usually I keep an extra bottle at home too. I didn’t run out, but started running a bit low within the past couple of weeks.

My mom also wanted me to get some for her, so I started looking. And looking. And looking. I went to about five stores and couldn’t find any.

When I first heard about coronavirus at the beginning of the year, I figured it would eventually be in the United States, but didn’t know enough to think about what that meant exactly.

It never crossed my mind that this country would run out of something as simple as hand sanitizer.  In my lifetime, the supply of most everything has always been there. My generation (the oldest of GenX or the youngest of Boomers) in this country, generally does not have a famine mentality.

There has always been enough of everything to buy. Whether we can afford to buy it is another story. My mom’s generation remembers food rations during World War II. It was hard to even conceive of rations before, but it got a little easier to imagine recently.

Since it had become pointless to keep looking in stores, I looked online. Way too expensive. I figured that there must be another way that I wasn’t thinking about.

Try Your Local Bank

The one extra small bottle of hand sanitizer that I had at home was given to me. I didn’t buy it. It was from a new bank giving out promotional gifts as marketing.

I had been given hand sanitizer as a gift from my own bank too, a while back. I wondered if they had any left. Since I had to go the bank anyway, I decided to ask. They did! I only got one bottle and was told that they were running low. There were two other bank branches not too far away, so I figured I’d go to them as well.

I went to another branch and got two more bottles! I was so appreciative and told the woman that these were as precious as gold! Makes sense that I got them at a bank!

When I asked for the branded hand sanitizers, a customer who was sitting down whipped his head around to look over. I don’t know for sure, but I bet he asked for some before he left.

The third branch told me that they didn’t have any left. But that’s okay. I have enough for me and to give some to my mom.

So think about banks or other businesses that give out branded promotional items.  Then ask them. They may just have some to give you too.

Free Coffee Today @ Coffee Break Cafe!

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coffee break cafe turns 24

Happy 24th Birthday Coffee Break Cafe! On Instagram yesterday, I saw that today, Tuesday, March 3rd, Coffee Break Cafe will be giving out free small coffees, iced or hot, all day until closing.

What a generous way to celebrate their birthday! You can get free coffee at all four locations — Wollaston, Quincy Center, Milton and Hyde Park. The locations have different closing times, but they are all open until the early evening, so you still have a lot of time to stop by.

Since it’s also Super Tuesday, many of you here in Massachusetts are out voting and breaking up your usual routines. So while you’re out, treat yourself and grab a free coffee! ☕

 

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Image Credit: Coffee Break on Instagram