Well, I suppose so and indeed I have now been doing Yoga classes for a few weeks just down the road from my apartment.

Temple of the temple

It really is wonderful. We do 90 minutes of exercises resulting in the sensation that you have been pounded by a very gentle but insistent All Black pack. The room is very hot and sweat pours off and I make embarrassing puddles on the beautiful wood floor. We chant and sing incantations at the start of the course but the emphasis is  on the physical rather than the spiritual. Sumako guides us through series of movements some of which she labels “very dynamic.” I am pitifully stiff and creaky especially when it comes to trying to get my knees anywhere near the ground in the lotus position or trying to get my head anywhere my knees whilst sitting with the legs straight ahead.

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips' red;

There is no doubt that practice makes things better and little by little I improve. The essential is self discipline. Anyone who practices can obtain success in yoga but not one who is lazy.  Constant practice alone is the secret of success.

So today is class day but  er um unfortunately it clashes with Scotland/Romania in the World Cup. My body is a temple but the Boys in Blue need me. I self install in front of the screen.

Scotland are wonderful ticking all the boxes of our national strength and weakness. Paterson misses a conversion directly in front of the posts. In fact he does not even manage to get the ball into the air. Danielli messes up totally with 5 metres to go and a man outside him.That said, we are brave, proud and ugly and with 10 minutes to go Romania are winning.

Romania score!

But Scotland win! Hail Caledonia.

The match is played in Invercargill and the ground is charmingly tiny.  I expect a flock of sheep.