Jennifer Lee Snowden, Freelance Writer

Hometown: Spring Lake, Michigan (bonus points if you’ve heard of it)
How You Found UGS: My fiance came across the website and sent me an email saying, “This is right up your alley!!!”  I went to the site and noticed the “Horse Back Riding and Wine Tasting Event.”  Oh my word, two of my favorite things combined into one outing?…how could I not love this thing called Urban Girl Squad?  I signed up and I have been hooked ever since.  I can’t wait to give Amanda a high five for creating something that brings such cool girls together and I could not be happier to be the new writer!
Most Interesting Job: Besides being a Singer/Songwriter (which comes with it’s own set of interesting stories), I was once a Private Investigator!  I didn’t wear a trench coat, but I did have lots of cool detective gadgets!  I’ll tell you more over a glass of red wine.
Favorite NYC Spot: Public Restaurant is my home away from home!  It reminds me of my year in Australia and gave me a family when I first moved to NYC!  Of course, I also love Royalton.  I’m the Maitre’ D there and am lucky to say that I LOVE both my jobs!
Off Hours:  I’m writing my first book, so it pretty much consumes my off hours.  Oh yeah, I’m also planning my wedding.  When I do have a moment though, I try to spend it walking my adorable Rodegian Ridgeback and Boxer mixed puppy, Buster Brown.  I love him so much that it makes my fiance jealous.

We at Urban Girl Squad were surfing the web planning more upcoming events for you at Pure Yoga (stay tuned for details) when we came across this article — and well — we just had to share!

By ABC News — Feb 9, 2012 5:33pm

Better Sex Through Yoga? Book Says ‘Yes!’

ABC News’ Nikki Battiste and Dan Harris report:

The latest way to improve your love life doesn’t involve a slick how-to guide. It doesn’t involve Big Pharma, either.

It’s yoga.

According to William Broad, author of “The Science of Yoga,” which came out Feb. 7, there is real evidence yoga helps sex.  For example, the cobra pose boosts blood flow to the pelvis.

“Why spend millions on those little blue pills, right?” Broad said in an interview with ABC News’ Dan Harris.

Broad, a science writer for The New York Times, spent years combing through the scientific literature on yoga.

“I can cite you study after study after study,” Broad said. “We can go through hormones, brain waves, vaginal blood flow…”

Broad said yoga started in medieval India as a sex cult, a series of practices that used our sexual energies as the fast track to enlightenment.

Broad said he was familiar with the “yogasm,” a term coined by the HBO’s “Sex and the City” to mean yoga-induced orgasm. Yogasms are now the topic of scientific study, he said.

Scientists at Rutgers University are conducting brain scans on women who lie under fluorescent lights, close their eyes and enter states of orgasmic bliss. The physical signs are visible on monitors, Broad said.

“[Y]ou can get into states where you are orgasmic without touching yourself,” he explained.  ”In the clinical literature, it’s called spontaneous orgasm. In the popular world, it’s called ‘thinking off.’”

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Want to try yoga for yourself? Check out Pure Yoga, our favorite spot in NYC to practice whether you are an expert or a first timer!

New York City – if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere, right? Those of us who dare to venture into the big city come willing to do whatever it takes. We work 7 jobs, with 40-hour days, neurotically attached to our iPhone/Blackberry/e-mail/etc for any “opportunity” to bend over backwards for someone else. Over time, in theory we “succeed.” Our reward? More emails, more meetings thus we must work faster, try harder, budget better. But damn it, we’re “making it” in New York! Hooray!

When we read this expression of the daily grind we realize how absurd this approach to life really is… enter yoga…

While I was lured into yoga with the promise of a perfect body and flat abs, my practice soon became an addiction that delivered on a much deeper level. A level that essentially saved my life. Yoga is first and foremost a spiritual practice, based in meditation and self-exploration of your mind and body. While the asanas (physical postures), especially in western culture, do invigorate the physical body, the sequence is designed to invigorate the mind (whether or not the student is aware).

The more I practiced yoga, the better I felt. And not just in the physical “look how healthy/skinny/strong/revived” I am. I suddenly found that I was less likely to bitch out the cab that tried to run me over in the street and more willing to say yes to that potentially annoying favor. In fact, my even boss yelled at me for being “too calm”…wtf!?

The core of the yoga practice lies in the breath. Vinyasa is the pair of the movement with the breath (and the intention, but I won’t get into that right now). The beauty of yoga is that you breathe through everything you’re feeling – physically, mentally, and emotionally. The more I practiced, the more I could breathe through an uncomfortable pose and remain steady, even calm.

Plus, as opposed to everything else in my life, in yoga you want to try less. Yep, less. Tensing up and exerting more effort gets you no where – releasing and letting the tension go allows you to relax into a pose naturally and (more) easily.

Inhale…”let”…exhale…”go”…

Guess what? The same idea applies to life. The stronger my practice got, the more equipped I was to breathe through an uncomfortable situation OFF the mat. Annoying project? Inhale. Rude subway rider? Exhale. Overwhelming to-do list? Inhale. Coffee down my shirt? Exhale.

Yes, my daily “yoga practice” has enabled me to be more steady, stable, calm, at ease, focused, etc., despite the level of chaos my life reaches on a daily basis. People ask me all the time why I’m such a yoga dork, specifically why I went through extensive lengths to get certified to teach. I tell them, honestly, yoga saved my type-A New Yorker ass and all I want to do is share what I’ve learned.

Bonus: now I have a killer yoga butt.

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Written By… Lindsay Carson is our Social Media Director and a Yoga Instructor

Want to try yoga for yourself? Check out Pure Yoga, our favorite spot in NYC to practice whether you are an expert or a first timer!

Just a few of our fab staff members!

UPDATE (1/27/2012): we have hired our new employees for each of these positions! If you would like us to keep your resume on file, please send in an application to jobs [at] urbangirlsquad.com.

Do you love Urban Girl Squad as much as we do?  If so, join our team!  We are currently hiring for the following positions.

Sales Associate

The Position
The Sales Associate will sell sponsorships to local businesses by engaging them in Urban Girl Squad’s mission and member base.  The Sales Associate will conduct in-person and over the phone sales meetings and will develop creative new ideas for our sponsorship packages.  Sponsorship of Urban Girl Squad could mean several things for a business, including hosting events, branding our cocktail parties or other events, offering raffle prizes to our member base, or reaching out with special offers to our social media base.

This position is part time and will be paid on commission.

Who We’re Looking For
You should be energetic, friendly, creative, and confident and be adept at thinking on your feet.

How to Apply
Send a cover letter telling us why you’re right for this position, including your history with and interest in Urban Girl Squad, and your resume to jobs @ urbangirlsquad.com (delete the spaces).  Please include a description of why you would make a good representative and salesperson for Urban Girl Squad, a short description of previous sales experience, and your online profile (Facebook page, blog, Twitter feed, etc.).  Be creative!

Get Involved as a Volunteer!

Do you love the Urban Girl Squad community and want to volunteer to help us spread the word?  There are a few ways to help us out.  First, tell your friends about us!  Have them to join our mailing list, follow our Twitter feed, and like our Facebook page.  Second, volunteer with us!  Please email us at volunteer @ urbangirlsquad.com (delete the spaces) with specific ideas for ways you want to get more involved.  The more information you can give us about the kind of tasks you would like to do, the better.

Freelance Writer

The Position
The Freelance Writer will compose Urban Girl Squad’s marketing emails and the event descriptions on the Events page.  Event descriptions and emails each go live one to two times per week.  We estimate that this position will take approximately two to four hours per week, and we ask for a 48-hour turnaround period on this work.

The person in this role will also be responsible for one-off writing projects and editing, including press releases, website updates, and occasional blog posts.

Who We’re Looking For
You should be able to write in Urban Girl Squad’s voice and “UGS-ify” the basic details of an event into a playful, exciting, and engaging description.

How to Apply
Send a cover letter telling us why you’re right for this position, including your history with and interest in Urban Girl Squad, and your resume to jobs @ urbangirlsquad.com (delete the spaces).  Please include writing samples, preferably of direct-response emails and website writing (we prefer to see more than just blog posts), your online profile (Facebook page, blog, Twitter feed, etc.), and salary requirements (including whether you charge by the hour, project, or monthly retainer).