Please forgive the length, but this is not a tale to summarize....

Well, the Lantern Festival, brought to you by the fire folks of Phoenix Projekt, has come and gone...And yes I'm still alive.

I'm tired and extremely sore, especially the arches of my feet and my ankles. I drove 25 miles downtown to the venue everyday from Wednesday to Sunday where I was on my feet constantly; helping lift stuff, build, decorate, install lights, etc, getting ready for the big night.

Lou and I put the stage together on Wednesday, only to have to partially dismantle it and re-assemble it on Thursday. Lou, you and I OWNED that stage! Thursday, Friday and Saturday involved cleaning every inch of the venue, stacking and restacking random junk that was in the green room, handling items with an inch of playa dust caked into them, putting together 50+ lanterns, hoisting and climbing ladders, sweeping the layers of dust off of everything, and still finding time to rehearse and add last minute touches, etc......you had to be there to experience it........

So Saturday, the big night came, and boy, what a show! There were a few hiccups, as with every show. The two sets I choreographed went over well with the audience.

the Tai Chi fan piece was sharp and precise. Cat, aka Miss Kitty Cat and I totally hit this one hard. I was nervous because Cat's Tai Chi/Wushu instructor was in the audience. We both PRAYED to Kuan Yin that for the 3 minutes of our piece there would be NO wind so we could do our fan toss. My balance was a little funky, but we did the toss and BOTH caught it. Man you should have seen the smile on my face. And we got cheers when Cat and I both hit the splits. Kitty scritches and props to Cat!

Quick costume change and the Fire Fan piece was up. It also got a great response, and there were CHEERS when we did the serpentine. Major props out to Aingeal, Cat, Susie and Jamie. You girls really made this piece happen. Although by the time my solo bit came by, my fans had run out of fuel and were out. :( But I rallied and kept going with a big smile.

Then came the big finale and time for the Titanium SPARKLE powder. When Cat and I lit up the fans we got cheers. We were rocking and we were NOT stopping.

Then I got cheers as soon as my fire whip got lit. I got MAJOR cheers as I cracked it hard and did tricks with it. BTW, ever seen a fire whip WITH titanium flakes? Muhahahaha! I even did a whip wrap and got even more cheers.

And I got more cheers when I brought out the flaming nunchucks. Hell I was just happy that I didn't drop them, but they enjoyed every minute of it.

Next thing I know, it was over. The crowd is cheering and the show is over. What a rush!

I gathered my things, and by this time I'm my feet were aching terribly. I made it up to the green room and then headed back down to greet the crowd. I got compliments from my fellow spinners who made it out to see me as well as from total strangers. I was tired, and in pain, but still extremely happy. For a moment I thought I might have the energy to keep rocking the night away. And I was reunited with a dear friend that I hadn't seen in TWELVE years. He found me via MySpace about three weeks ago and made the trip all the way from Palmdale to see me. We had been mere teenagers when we had last met and it was wonderful to see him again. The night was awesome and I was having a great time.

Then the fucking cops showed up.

After EVERYTHING we did...After all the damn work we had done to obtain permit after permit, including the all important FIRE permit, they were responding for noise complaints. NOISE COMPLAINTS? We are in the middle of downtown where there is nothing but industrial warehouses and it is SATURDAY NIGHT? Who the heck lives out there? But they threated to fine us and impound the DJ equipment.

Lame, so very very VERY lame.....Even the fire marshal, who was majorly cool, thought it was stupid.

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Ah well, c'est la vie.....We still had our best show ever and I was quite pleased with my performance, even if my fans went out.

I'm exhausted, sleep deprived, and I'm taking a break while working a double shift today. My costumes reek of fuel, my feet and ankles hurt every time I walk, and my hands and fingernails still have soot embedded in them.

But I am still happy, and eagerly looking forward to the next show....

Many hugs and props to everyone in Phoenix Projekt, and all who helped out and gave support.