Gyrokinesis | Cathleen Murakami

Cathleen Murakami is the director of SynergySystems Fitness Studio, a training studio exclusively devoted to the art of Pilates and GYROTONIC exercise. Trained as a classical dancer, Cathleen was a dance major at the University of Washington and went on to instruct aerobics, funk and strength training classes for nearly two decades, both in the US and Europe. Certified in London at the Alan Herdman Pilates Studio in 1991, she helped develop the very successful Pilates programs at both Rancho La Puerta and The Golden Door spas, as well as for the Santa Barbara Athletic Club and Honolulu Club. Cathleen has produced five Pilates instructional videos, authored Morning Pilates Workouts published by Human Kinetics, and offers continuing education workshops as well as Pilates Instructor Certification at her studio in Encinitas, CA.

Cathie will teach a daily GYROKINESIS class for Ranch guests. GYROKINESIS is a complete movement system, for all levels and ages, and can be applied to a variety of situations, as one needs very little equipment. It incorporates many key principles from yoga, dance, gymnastics and Tai Chi. The class begins with the practitioner seated on a low stool and begins with simple breathing patterns to awaken the body. He or she mobilizes the spine and joints through a series of arching, curling and spiraling movements. The corresponding breathing patterns in every movement help to stimulate the nervous system and open up energy pathways. Rhythm, movement, & breath are the key elements of this system accessible for all fitness levels.

Jazz Piano Concerts | Bill Harris

Bill Harris' many performance venues include the Smithsonian, Blues Alley, and the World Bank in Washington, D.C.; the Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles; Snug Harbor in New Orleans and numerous jazz festivals. His musical direction for the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History IMAX JAZZ Café helped launch the venue's successful inaugural year. Bill is listed in Washingtonian Magazine’s Best of Jazz in DC and is winner of the Hennessy Cognac Best of DC Jazz Competition.

Bill's CDs "Invitation" "Solo + One," "Encompass Quartet" (Albert "Tootie" Heath is featured) and "Holiday Improvisations" have all received critical acclaim. Originally from Long Island, Bill started piano studies in Acton, MA in 1963 and continued with numerous teachers including local masters John Eaton and Les Karr. He also attended jazz piano master classes in New York City taught by jazz legend Barry Harris. Bill’s other major influences include Bill Evans, Tommy Flanagan, Wynton Kelly, Reuben Brown, Fred Hersch, Cedar Walton, Hank Jones, Stanley Cowell, Red Garland, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Art Tatum and Keith Jarrett, among others.

On the Web: www.bhjazz.com/

Make Your Portraits Come Alive -- Bring Your Camera | Connie Reider

Portrait photographer Connie Reider invites you to an entertaining evening "focusing" on how to make images of people and pets which are spontaneous, creative, and filled with emotional energy. Using her personal portfolio, as well as demonstrations with audience participation, you will be given easy take home tips to improve your photography. No matter what camera you own, or what experience you possess, this will be an evening of looking, learning, and laughing.

Photography Workshop: Photographing the Spirit of Rancho La Puerta

Join Connie for tips, demonstrations, and group participation. Photography can be a walking meditation. Leading from our hearts, we will photograph the spirit of Rancho la Puerta, using water and movement as tools to transform images to a more spiritual domain. Bring your camera but you are welcome even if you do not have one.

For more than 25 years, Connie Reider has specialized in portraiture and event photography in the Washington D.C. area. She has traveled the world extensively, creating fine art images which are ethereal, poetic and timeless. In her recent book, “In Shadow and Light...Looking for the Gifts of Cancer,” she used her camera to express the profound changes she experienced during her personal journey with breast cancer. Her images are in corporate and private collections, and her art has appeared in several one-woman and group shows. She lectures on a national level. In 2004, Connie co-founded The F. Holland Day Center for Healing and Creativity in Georgetown, Maine. Using photography as a tool to promote healing, Connie leads week-long retreats for people with cancer or other life challenging experiences. On the Web: www.conniereider.com

Celebrating Stories: Transforming our Lives | Terry Laszlo-Gopadze

In her presentation, “Creating Your Destiny,” Terry Laszlo-Gopadze, editor of “The Spirit of a Women: Stories to Empower and Inspire,” will share stories from her book with the hope that they will inspire you to live your life with more meaning, passion and purpose. Each of us has a great calling, or dream. Our dreams, our longings and even our challenges can lead us to where we belong in the world. We are creating our future, whether we realize it or not, by the stories we choose to guide us.

Author and poet, Mark Nepo, tells us of the importance of story, “Knowledge that matters, that helps us to live, comes to us through honest stories. And those only surface because of the courage of those who admit to the messy splendor of living.” Let’s gather together and celebrate the messy splendor of living!

The workshop series will bring participants together to hear stories with the diverse themes: “Connections,” “The Gift in the Challenge,” “Changes and Choices,” “Divine Interventions.” We will gather in a circle to conceive, compose, and tell stories, while being offered ideas to start your own stories. In our final session, we will carry our stories in to the Labyrinth in the Ranch’s oak grove. Every story has a gift. What will yours be?

Terry Laszlo-Gopadze, a compelling storyteller and award-winning author, brings humor, courage and compassion to her listeners, as she inspires them to create their own stories and to live their most meaningful dreams. She is a public speaker, therapist and personal development workshop leader. Offering workshops on storytelling, creating your destiny, finding the gift in the challenge, forgiveness, and healing are her passion and joy.

In her work as a licensed psychotherapist, Terry has spent over thirty-five years listening to the stories of others going through difficult passages and helping them to positively transform their lives. This led her to celebrate the heartfelt stories of women, who live inspiring spiritual lives in challenging circumstances, and to gather them into the book “The Spirit of a Woman: Stories to Empower and Inspire.” You can join her story-telling network and visit Terry and the authors online at http://www.womens-spirit.com

Terry is currently a faculty member and coach for Leap to Success, a leadership and empowerment program for women. The participants are rebuilding their lives from homelessness and domestic violence.