My Blog

new tribe for hoop performers!

HoopsieDaisy — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 22:33:29 GMT

Laurie had the brilliant idea that we should have a tribe where people can discuss hoop performances, so if you have any questions or advice about venues, costumes, music, etc. come check it out! http://tribes.tribe.net/hoopperformers

I can't do it alone!

HoopsieDaisy — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:39:46 GMT

When I know that I have a month to prepare for a performance, I think woo hoo, plenty of time! And then life happens and suddenly the performance date is upon me. Tonight was no exception. On September 3rd, Christabel mentioned that we had the opportunity to perform at Tease-O-Rama, which features the best burlesque performers in the country. Although neither Satise nor I had ever done burlesque, it sounded like fun! Christabel suggested that we partner hoop together, since she had just recently given us our first partner hooping lesson. Satise and I thought that was a great idea, even though we'd only partner hooped with each other once since Christabel's workshop. We thought that with a month to prepare, we could practice each Friday (when I have the studio reserved for my personal practice), which would give us several hours to practice partner hooping and put together a routine. The first Friday was very productive. We got into our rhythm and practiced hooping around the waist, and then we practiced the waltz step that Christabel had taught us. Then we got ambitious and tried some more challenging moves, like shoulder hooping back to back while doing zest, as well as one person doing a full turn inside the hoop. The next Friday, Satise was out of town for her mom's birthday. The Friday after that, Satise performed at Ruby Skye so we couldn't meet. The following Friday (last week), we were at Hoop Camp in Santa Cruz all weekend. We brought our partner hoop, but the schedule was so packed with classes that we only managed about half an hour of practice on afternoon. When we got back from Hoop Camp, we knew we had to really buckle down and get to work because the performance was only days away. Satise had suggested using "I Can't Do It Alone" from the Chicago soundtrack. On Monday night, most of the All Stars were unavailable for our regular rehearsal, so Satise and I used the time to choreograph our routine. After two hours, we had most of the beginning and all of the ending, but we still had one section in the middle that was a question mark. We met once more on Tuesday after work to finish choreographing and go over the entire routine. The studio wasn't available, so we met near my work and practiced until the sun started to go down. Even though we both would have felt better with a little more practice, we knew that this was our last chance. We both work during the day, and Satise's son's birthday was on Wednesday, so we ran through the choreography as much as possible. Near the end, our bodies and minds were not cooperating. Things that had worked the night before were suddenly no longer working and we were dropping our hoops constantly. Since it was starting to get dark and cold, we called it a night and headed home. On Wednesday, I put on the t-strap ballroom shoes I'd planned to wear with my costume. I'd worn these shoes with the same costume for our photo shoot in February, but I hadn't done jumps or anything tricky then. This costume was the last one of the photo shoot and we were behind schedule, so I only got eight shots (three different poses) in this costume, so I hadn't had time to go crazy in these shoes. I brought the shoes to my Wednesday night class so that I could try them out on a wooden dance floor. To my frustration, I could not do certain things. I think this was partly because the shoes are still very new and not broken in (the soles are leather, so they are smooth on the bottom when they are new) and partly because I borrowed the shoes from Christabel, who wears a half size larger than I do. In any case, knee hooping was quite a challenge. I could barely get the hoop back up my legs, and it was a struggle to keep the hoop from falling while knee hooping. I think this is because I am used to having my heels on the ground, and with these shoes my weight was pitched slightly more forward. I could also feel my feet sliding back and forth on the smooth wooden floor. This worried me because Satise and I had put a leg hooping section in our routine. I went home and walked around in front of my house trying to scuff up the leather soles for a little more traction, which helped, but I was still afraid that I would jump into the hoop and my feet would slide out from under me. I went back inside the house in the hopes of finding some other black shoes. I tried on the black spats Annie had made for another costume, but they looked like clunky moon boots when paired with the frilly knickers of the vaudeville costume. In desperation, I tried on some platform boots and they looked much better. Whew! In the mean time, I was starting to have some concerns about doing this performance. I realized that I know NOTHING about burlesque, so I felt I had no business performing at an event that was specifically for burlesque performers and fans. I worried that our routine was too musical theater and not burlesque enough. I was afraid that the seasoned burlesque professionals would wonder what in the hell we were doing. I thought that this might reflect poorly on HoopGirl and the All Stars if the burlesque community thought we had a lot of nerve coming to a burlesque showcase and doing a dorky musical theater routine. Then I thought about the wide range of performances I have seen fall under the umbrella of "burlesque" and I realized that I was freaking out over nothing. When we arrived in SF, I drove around looking for a parking spot. I found a lot nearby, so I pulled in and parked my car. A man came over and handed me a parking ticket. He asked if we were parking overnight, which seemed weird. I said no, and he said that he still had to charge us the $12 fee (as opposed to the $8, both of which were advertised on the big sign in the lot). I was rummaging around in my bag to find money, so Satise handed me a $20 to give to him. I handed it to him and he said he would go get our change. I continued to hunt through my bag so I could pay Satise for half the parking. We started unloading the car, deciding which hoops and which bags to bring inside. I looked up to see where the guy was, which is when I saw a big sign that said to pay at the box. Apparently we just bought some homeless guy tonight's dinner. Yes, we are out of town yokels. I walked over to the box where we were supposed to pay. It wasn't one of the old school boxes where you just shove money into the little slot that corresponds to your parking spot. This one was electronic and wanted me to enter my parking space number first. When it said I could pay, I could hear the little motor inside whirring, but it wouldn't take ANY of my dollar bills, even the nice crispy ones. This machine didn't take them and then reject them. Even though I could hear the motor, there was nothing pulling at the bills so it was like trying to shove a dollar against a wall. There was a sign on the box that said anyone who didn't pay would risk having their car booted. I just got back my stolen car two days ago, so I was not about to risk having anything happen to my car. With a sigh, I decided to find somewhere else to park. Luckily Shane spotted a metered spot right across the street, so I ran back to my car and got a sweet spot that didn't cost $8, $12, or $20. When we arrived at the Rickshaw Stop, everyone's name was on the list but mine and Satise's! Luckily we looked dressed up enough that they let us in. We climbed up the stairs to the tiny dressing room. There were only a few other girls there, but I'd already seen the list of performers for the evening and knew it was only a matter of time before the room was overrun. We had plenty to do before show time, so Satise met with the sound guy to discuss cuing our music. The stage manager asked us if we needed help bringing our hoops onstage. All in all, everyone was very helpful and accomodating, so we were able to relax. Satise reminded me that my tiny top hat might get in the way while hooping, so she suggested I warm up a little bit to make sure I didn't need to reposition it before our performance. Thankfully she had pinned it in the perfect place, so I didn't whack it with my hoop during any of the moves we had choreographed. We found a small spot upstairs where we had just enough space to spin our hoops (although some moves resulted in pipes, walls, and other solid objects getting smacked), so we ran through the routine a few times. Satise had been smart enough to bring her ipod dock so we could practice with our music, but the music from the party was so loud that we could barely hear. We reviewed the choreography a couple of times and then we each practiced the moves that we had shoe/hat concerns about. At that point, I was ready and wanted to perform right away. Luckily it was almost show time! We were fourth in the lineup, following Belles du Jour. Earlier I had mistakenly told Shane, Carson, and Susan that we were performing after the Scenic Sisters (this gaffe was because I'd seen the Scenic Sisters perform with Belles du Jour a few months ago, so I now have them inextricably linked in my mind). After I realized my mistake, I scampered around to each person to let them know that the Scenic Sisters were not performing that evening and that we would be going on after Belles du Jour. That's when I realized that Belles du Jour had taken the stage, so I threaded my way to the crowd and found Satise backstage. It was actually a blessing in disguise because I didn't have time to get nervous! Our performance went well - a few mistakes here or there, but it was so fun! The crowd was very supportive (and Shane later said that we got the loudest applause of the night), and they LOVED the partner hooping! Afterward, I couldn't walk five feet without someone stopping me to say how much they enjoyed our performance. Everyone was very receptive to hooping, so this may be just the beginning! Satise and I talked about how we would have loved another week to work on this routine, but what we proved to ourselves tonight was that it's entirely possible to choreograph and rehearse an entire routine in three hours. A little bit of hard work is all it takes! I'm not one to encourage procrastination, so my point is not to wait until the last minute but that when you really buckle down, you can get things done. I know that is not a huge revelation, but there seems to be a huge lean in the hoop community to improvise and go with the flow (which has been a huge challenge for me), so it's nice to see that a few hours of preparation can go a long way! Even when a routine is choreographed, you never know what will happen. Catherine Zeta Jones speaks at a much lower volume than she sings, so I couldn't really hear when she was talking in the middle of the song. Since I knew I wouldn't be right on with the lip syncing, I decided to just scrap that and improvise with some facial expressions. I also didn't realize that there would be a big sign on an easel on the stage. I saw it just as I was about to do a trick near the end, so I scooted a little further downstage and then almost whacked Satise. No matter how much you prepare, shit happens! I've learned to accept that no performance will be perfect or exactly as I planned and that it's okay to just go with it. On a totally shallow note, doing events sponsored by Hustler, Good Vibrations, and BPAL is AWESOME. The swag bag they gave to the performers included fishnets, underwear, a vibrator, a garter belt, and perfume. Sweeeeet. After all this talk, here is the video: http://www.vimeo.com/1873389

go for the gold

HoopsieDaisy — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:43:14 GMT

If I ever win an Olympic medal I will: (1) Cry unabashedly. Anyone who knows me will realize this isn't so much a promise or a plan as an admission that I know I will do it because I'm a big crybaby under the best of circumstances. (2) Sing the national anthem while it is being played during the medal ceremony. After watching sixteen days of medal ceremonies, I have realized how annoying it is to watch people stand up there on the podium and randomly move their lips once every fifteen seconds. Either commit to singing your national anthem or just stand there and smile, but don't do that weird mumbly, barely moving the lips thing - it looks lazy and stupid. Maybe it's the choir nerd in me, but I was taught that people should be able to tell you are singing (even if they can't hear you) by watching your lips. With some of the athletes, I couldn't tell if they were fidgeting, biting their lips, mumbling to themselves, or what. In a similar vein, I will not press my lips together, lick my lips, or keep sneaking looks at myself on the Jumbotron during the national anthem. Compare this to every time the Chinese won a gold medal - I don't speak Chinese, but damn if I couldn't read their lips while their national anthem was playing! Seeing all of those things made me realize why Motown used to train their singers what to do (and what not to do) on camera. I'm sure most of these athletes were caught up in the moment and didn't realize all the things they were doing, but since I just watched approximately 4.9 million medal ceremonies, now I know what I will and will not do in the event that I win a gold medal at the Olympics. (3) Be sure I am not wearing a white leotard with huge sweat stains. I felt really bad that Nastia Liukin was being photographed raising her arms after her silver medal beam performance and then a few minutes later at the medal ceremony. If I were her, I would always look at those pictures and think not, "That's the day I almost won an Olympic gold medal on beam," but "Why didn't anyone tell me I had huge such huge sweat stains showing? Whose idea was it to wear white leotards anyway?" I know she didn't have time to change, but if she'd known then maybe she would have just held up her medal with one hand and put the other arm around Shawn Johnson instead of exposing the pit stains to all the world. I just read an article about how NBC is so proud of themselves for their "successful" Olympic coverage. I beg to differ. They had a lot of coverage, to be sure, but it wasn't GOOD coverage. If I ever get put in charge of producing the Olympics, I will: (1) Have commentators who know something about the sport. Why Al Trautwig is a gymnastics commentator (and John Tesh before him) is beyond me. I don't need the everyman comments along the lines of, "Wow, what do you think will happen, Elfi?" After all these years of doing gymnastics commentary, Al Trautwig still doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground, so he is utterly useless to me. Another good rule of thumb, even for the experts: if you don't have anything interesting to say, shut it. I'd rather have silence than listen to someone babble for the sake of making noise in an attempt to justify why they were paid good money to be sent halfway around the world. Really - I'd rather hear nothing than inane comments. (2) Learn from experts or professionals in each sport which camera angles are best. There is no need to show a head-on shot of someone doing a tumbling pass because it makes it impossible to see if the gymnast under-rotated, over-rotated, landed correctly, etc. I also don't need to see leaps from the front. They need to be shown from the side so that the viewer can see whether it was high enough, split 180 degrees, whatever. If they can show diving and swimming from every possible angle, they can do it with other sports too. (3) Tell the camera operators that no, we don't need extreme close-ups of athletes while they are competing. I am watching to see their athleticism, not to see their faces fill my entire television screen. Not only do I find it weirdly intrusive to zoom in that close, but it also means that I CAN'T SEE WHAT THE ATHLETE IS DOING. I don't need to see someone's face from the chin to the forehead while they are running or doing any sort of activity. In addition, I would tell the producers that when a camera zooms in that close, just switch to one of the 95 other camera angles. There is no need to stay on that zoomed in camera for the next 30 seconds. Don't reward the zoomers, man. Same rule applies to opening and closing ceremonies. How can I see all the precise formations moving to form different pictures if the camera guy keeps zooming in on two people out of two thousand? It's cool to see the individual shots once in a while, but for crying out loud, the producers need to look at their monitors and see gee, they're doing something that looks really cool from far away so maybe now isn't the best time for a close up. (4) Air as much of it live as possible. Do you know what live means? That means showing something while it's actually happening, not telling China that we WILL start competition at 7am to accommodate American ratings and then put everything on a time delay for the Mountain and Pacific time zones. It's pretty pathetic when I can find out who won an event on Wednesday night before I go to bed but it won't air until Thursday evening at 11pm. There is a 12 hour time difference between Beijing and New York. That means that when an event airs in New York at 11pm, it's 11am in Beijing. It's also 8pm in Calfornia, which is primetime ratings, so why not air everything live, at least from 8pm PDT (11pm EDT) until the day's events are through? And please don't add insult to injury by leaving that huge red LIVE in the corner of the screen. (5) Tell online news sources not to print huge headlines on the front page screaming, "MICHAEL PHELPS WINS EIGHTH GOLD MEDAL" until after the footage has been aired everywhere. I have no problem with posting the results online, but it's possible to do that without giving away the results for people who are not given the option of watching what happened for another three hours. Some websites were better than other. Yahoo news posted headlines like "See if Michael Phelps won another gold" (although they did also post a headline saying that Nastia Liukin's bar score tied with someone else, followed by, "Who won?"). The New York Times, on the other hand, had no such subtlety. (6) Learn how to edit wisely. So first I have to sit through all of the supposed athlete bios, which are really 30 second fillers of being told these two divers have trained together for ten years, but revealing absolutely nothing about their personalities or lives. Then I watch "live" coverage where half the routines aren't shown. Then they go back and show parts of routines that they skipped, but in extreme close up AND slow motion so I can't see what the routine actually looked like. Then I get to watch a 45 second long shot of the arena with NO ONE COMPETING before switching back to different sport. So let me get this straight - NBC can't air an entire routine (again, as an example, gymnastics routines last a maximum of one minute and thirty seconds) and I'm only allowed to watch what amounts to 10 seconds of footage which end up lasting 25 seconds due to the ill-advised choice to show it in slow motion, but I can later watch dead air while no one is competing in the arena or THREE HOURS of marathon running? Since they didn't air anything live here on the West Coast, try editing out all the shots of runners milling around beforehand, getting into the starting blocks, and other stuff that is just eating up part of the precious six hours of coverage that amounts to about three hours of competition. Here's another idea: get rid of every segment where Mary Carillo showed an amazing lack of knowledge about whatever she was doing/seeing as well as a general disrespect for non-western culture, and SHOW MORE OF THE OLYMPICS. I guess at least now I know for certain that Mary Carillow doesn't know jack about pandas, acupuncture, kites, gymnastics, dams, or Shaolin monks. Singing "I'm a little teapot" in a tea house? Wow. * I realize a lot of my examples involve gymnastics. My sister used to do competitive gymnastics so I always watch!

my first Ruby Skye performance

HoopsieDaisy — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:22:21 GMT

Ruby Skye - it has loomed before me as a shimmering golden ring, illuminated with sparkling lights, glittery fairy dust, and choirs of angels singing. It was something I never thought I would achieve because it required such a high level of skill, both as a hooper and as a performer. I am practical, if nothing else, and I know my strengths and weaknesses, so performing there seemed like a pipe dream. A few months ago, we were asked to perform at SF Weekly's Best of San Francisco party which was held at Ruby Skye. I jumped at the chance (despite the fact that the performance was the night before I flew to San Diego for my sister's wedding) because I thought it would be my only opportunity to experience being on the Ruby Skye stage. The date came on the tail-end of a lot of other things going on in my life, including a hideous allergic reaction which manifested itself as a bumpy, hivey mess on my face that required me to cancel a photo shoot. I couldn't let that stop me from being on the stage at Ruby Skye! A little makeup and some dark lighting and no one would be able to tell the difference, right? Ruby Skye is a beautiful venue, built in the 1890s. It was one of the first places I went when I moved to San Francisco back in 2001, and it was a far cry from the casual beach bars I was used to frequenting in college (no cover, no dress code, no problem!). Even then, I was struck by the grandeur of the interior, but as a hooper I was even more awed knowing the high caliber of hooping possessed by those who had performed on that stage. I knew that it wouldn't be the same as performing at Ruby Skye on a Saturday night (SF Weekly rented the venue for a weeknight, so a comparable example would be performing at Carnegie Hall as a headliner vs. performing at Carnegie Hall when some rich person rented the venue for a private birthday party), but I still couldn't pass up the opportunity. Fast forward to August - my first performance at Ruby Skye. I was trying to stay calm, but things were going haywire. I allotted myself two hours to do my hair and makeup, and the first thing that happened: I couldn't find my moisturizer, which I put on before any makeup. I spent twenty minutes ransacking my bathroom and every place I have ever put any makeup in an effort to find this tiny bottle. I finally took a deep breath and told myself that I could get by without it and that it would turn up eventually. I'm getting better with the fake eyelashes, but the new pink feather eyelashes I bought to match this costume were virgin new. I'd never glued them on before, so I didn't realize how stiff the band was or how they didn't follow the contour of my Asian eyes until Saturday night. After a few botched attempts, I told myself that they didn't have to be perfect and moved on to the rest of my hair and makeup. Satise and I were going to drive over together, but her babysitter was running late and she didn't want to make me late for my first set. This posed a dilemma for me: drive my brand new four day old car without any license plates (which, for some reason, makes me feel paranoid that it's more likely to be stolen - although I have absolutely no empirical evidence to back this up - but it's the first brand new car I've ever bought so I'm still a little skittish) or drive the old car that overheats and might break down on the bridge. I opted for #1. As Shane said, if someone really wants to steal the car, the presence or absence of license plates isn't going to matter. We arrived exactly on time! Once inside the dressing room, I saw that not only were the go go dancers backstage, but the aerial artists were performing that night as well. I love watching all of them perform, but from a space point of view, it's pretty tight as it is. Six go go dancers, six aerialists (and their handlers), plus me is a lot of people in a very small space. I spent most of the time trying to stay out of the way. The go go dancers change outfits between every set so they are always a flurry of makeup, feathers, wigs, and glitter. The aerialists were stretching and warming up, which takes up more space than you might think! Annie later told me that although it can be intimidating to be around all the other performers, I need to stake out my own space there (instead of standing pressed against the wall next to the fire extinguisher to let people pass by continuously). As she said, I have just as much right to be there as anyone else. I don't know why I was being such a wall flower. I guess I felt that since my hair, makeup, and costume were all in place and I didn't need to do handstands to warm up, I was fine where I was. Poor Shane was stuck downstairs by himself. Ruby Skye is definitely not his kind of scene, and he was not feeling well, but he toughed it out for three long hours of thumping music to be there on my first night. The go go dancers perform several 20 minute sets each night, and there were three aerial acts. I was sandwiched between them in every sense of the word. The timing was great at the beginning of the night. My first set was at midnight on the dot. The second and third sets were supposed to be at 1am and 2am, but we got a little backed up and as a consequence, my second set was at 1:35am. I was parked in a garage that closes at 2am, so I asked the go go dancers if I could do my last set before they went back onstage. They were gracious enough to let me go back out, but that meant I had only five minutes off between sets. Not only was I tired, but I didn't want to repeat most of what I'd done in my second set since I knew all of the same people would be watching. As soon as I finished my last set, I ran upstairs, grabbed my coat and bag, and headed for the garage, only to see the parking attendant pulling down the metal gate. Luckily he was kind enough to let me in, otherwise I would have been stuck taking a taxi across the bridge to get home and then coming back the next day to pick up my car (and probably being charged for the second day). So what about the actual performances? Before my first set, I pulled the elastic on my shoe covers to tighten them and ZING! the elastic disappeared inside. If you have ever washed a hooded sweatshirt without tying the ends of the string, you know what happened next - lots of pulling and tugging to get the elastic back. And I did this on both shoes! It was a blessing in disguise though, because I was so busy pulling elastic that I didn't have time to get nervous! I was supposed to perform right after the aerial artists but before the go go dancers' next set, so I went downstairs with the go go dancers to watch the contortionist do his incredible handstand act. So much strength, flexibility, and grace! He did things that I've never seen before (and I am a long time gymnastics/dance/acrobatics fan who watches it every chance I get), all while staying in character. That's a tough act to follow, but follow it I did. The stage was already cleared and everyone's attention was focused on the stage, so I decided it was better to go right away than to wait. During his act, I'd been jumping up and down, trying to connect with the music and get my heart rate up. I didn't love the music, but I remembered Christabel's advice: pretend that this is the best music you have ever heard and believe it! My goal was to hoop a five minute set. Because we are at the DJ's mercy, it can be difficult to gauge how long five minutes really is. Having a live DJ is like being in a Las Vegas casino - time loses all meaning. Each song melts into the next and minutes can pass like molasses (if you don't like the song) or in a flash. Jess told me that her method is to hoop until she's tired and then hoop a little more, and that's usually about five minutes. At the SF Weekly party, I performed the shortest set (just under five minutes compared to the seven minutes Ariane and Claudia performed), so I wanted to make sure that I performed long enough. Shortly after I began, the hoop slipped out of my hand during atomic twirl. I know that it happens sometimes, but I hate to play it safe by not doing something "just in case." I don't want to start dividing my tricks into "safe for performance" and "only when no one is watching." This is why I ALWAYS hoop on one leg while performing. I usually end up dropping the hoop, but I need to keep doing it in performance because nothing adequately simulates how my adrenaline rush affects my timing. For the record, I got my leg back into the hoop after hooping on one leg two times out of three that night! I would guess that my sweaty palms contributed to the little slip with the atomic twirl. Thank goodness my hoop didn't whack anyone in the face! Someone near the edge of the stage handed it back to me so I blew him a kiss, which you can't see in the video because it's so dark. After about two minutes, the stage went from pitch black to blue lights. Then the inevitable breakdown (when the music slows down). Again, because we aren't allowed to give the DJ our own music ahead of time, we have to respond to the music and go with the flow. You never know how long a breakdown will last. Sometimes it's ten seconds, sometimes it's, ahem, much longer, but it's hard to tell when it's going to end. This one lasted an entire minute, so I kept thinking it would be over soon but it just kept going and going and going. When I got off stage, Shane told me that I had hooped over seven minutes - wow! I thought I had been up there barely five minutes. Five minutes isn't a long time to hoop when grooving in my own world, but five minutes of high energy performance hooping is another story. It's exhausting, physically and mentally. Ideally, I don't want to repeat a bunch of the same stuff, so usually about halfway through the set, I start thinking about what I have already done (and sometimes my adrenaline is pumping so much that I can't remember) and what I can still do that will be interesting. It's an endurance test, a slow motion sprint, to make it through five minutes of club hooping. I came off the stage drenched in sweat, my heart racing, thinking about how good a blast of air conditioning or some icy cold water would feel. As someone who used to take dance classes as a child, I'm used to being told what to do. Someone choreographs a routine, I learn it, and then I perform it. Most hoopers do the exact opposite - they improvise. It has been a long process for me to learn to let go and stop thinking about what to do next. One of the major skills I have been working on improving in the last year is my ability to improvise. It's very counterintuitive to the dance classes that I've taken in the past, so it's been an interesting and challenging journey. After my first set, I went upstairs to watch the video, and get some water. It's hard to see everything on my camera's two inch screen, but I just wanted to get a feel for what the performance looked like. I couldn't tell very well because of the lighting, but I drank lots of water and cooled down. That's when I realized I had to pee. Everything on my costume was pinned together to prevent migration, so going to the bathroom would require undoing everything from the waist down aside from my shoes. It was just barely past midnight and I knew that I couldn't wait two hours to pee, so I decided to suck it up since I had another half hour or so to re-pin myself. Onstage, the performers seem so glamorous, but as anyone who has ever worked in the arts can tell you, it's anything but glamorous backstage. At Ruby Skye, there is a toilet enclosed by plywood that doesn't extend all the way to the ceiling. There is no sink and the toilet is often backed up or overflowing. Fortunately for me, the toilet was backed up but not overflowing. The door is right in front of the toilet, so the doorknob is exactly at my eyelevel when copping a squat. I've peed in much worse circumstances though, so this was nothing! And I was prepared with hand wipes since I couldn't wash my hands at the non-existent sink. A few months ago, Ruby Skye started putting sofas onstage against the back wall. They let VIPs sit up there behind the DJ to watch the whole club go crazy. Now in addition to the sofas, they are letting 30-40 VIPs onstage to dance. I had to ask the bouncer to move everyone back before my second set. I don't like to be demanding, so just asking the bouncer to do his job felt like I was being a little bit pushy, but there was no way I could have performed in that sea of people. Once they were all moved safely out of the hoop's path, I entered only to see reflections of all the lights on the floor because apparently the VIPs had either spilled drinks everywhere or put their glasses down all over the stage. It was too late to stop dancing to ask the bouncer to wipe down the floor, so I spent most of the set looking down at the floor to avoid slipping in the wet spots. In addition, my boot covers started sliding around so that the fabric was covering almost the entire ball of my foot. I normally put my weight forward on the front part of my foot, but this was causing my front foot to slide forward an inch or so which felt unsafe to me. To keep myself from falling, I tried to stay back on my heels, which felt awkward. I danced around the wet spots, stayed on my heels, and stayed upright - hooray! Before my third set, the bouncer had to clear the stage again, but this time it was nice and dry. I thought he had cleared everyone off, but just as I got to the middle of the stage I saw a few more people dancing. I think they had been in a darker area of the stage or behind the DJ which is why I didn't see them before. Clearing the stage is not a matter of snobbery, but safety. I don't want to hit anyone with my hoop, and, honestly, drunk people don't always look where they're going. They moved to the back and then I promptly dropped my hoop doing a simple move. About four minutes in, two girls in the audience decided to jump onstage and start dancing. The bouncer was on it right away and moved them off the stage. I got home a little before 3am, but by the time I stripped off my sweaty costume (which I had to air out so I could wear it again the next day), removed a few dozen bobby pins from my head, peeled off the eyelashes, and scrubbed off all the makeup, it was 4am. I decided that since I was still awake, I might as put all the videos and pictures on my computer so that I could clear the memory card for the next day. I watched the videos on the large computer monitor and learned a lot. One of the most important things brought to mind an interview I read about an actor who started in theater and moved to television. He said that in the theater, actors are trained to make things big because the audience is so far away from them that they need to project in every way: their voices, their emotions, and their actions need to carry to the last row. When he began doing television, he realized that his theater acting looked hammy on camera because the point of view from the camera is so much closer and more intimate. Apparently I'm working in television because my hooping looked so small and non-energetic. Shane taped me at the same venue for the SF Weekly party, but he was able to stand right in front of the stage for that performance, and it looked true to life. This time around, he was further back, and it made a huge difference. All of my arm movements, head gestures, and jumps looked tiny, weak, and almost lazy from further away. I need to make a conscious effort to put a lot more energy into these moves so that people who are further back will see what the people in the front row see. Another important thing I learned from watching these videos is that I need a new psi hoop. I bought mine a year and a half ago, about six months after I started hooping. At the time, I was still hooping with my 42" hoop. I ordered my psi hoop slightly smaller (the theory being that a smaller hoop rotates more quickly and the lights would look better at a higher speed). For the last six months or so, I have been hooping with a light 36" hoop. I haven't used my psi hoop at all, so it felt slow and heavy. I'm used to my smaller, lighter hoop responding much more quickly to my movements so there were times when I was trying to do certain movements in time to the music and my psi hoop just wasn't getting there fast enough so my movements were no longer on the beat. I know that hooping quickly with a larger hoop is doable (and undoubtedly would be great cardiovascular exercise) but at this point I think it's a better idea for me to invest in a smaller psi hoop. The most important thing that I learned from this experience is that it was good experience. Lots of things happened that made it a less than ideal performance situation (nothing catastrophic though - just silly little things), but I feel that all of those things taught me I can handle it and keep going with a smile. As the saying goes, the show must go on! The next day, I was feeling down on myself because I kept thinking about how my performances looked on video. I just wanted to stay in bed and sleep. I'd already told Annie that I would model in her Prepare for the Playa fashion show, so I got out of bed and started putting on all the pieces that I'd taken off only twelve hours earlier. I wasn't enthused about performing, but I ended up having a good time. We had no time restrictions or performance requirements for this gig, so I was able to just relax and have fun. I actually felt much better after performing, so I'm glad that I had the opportunity to pep up after the previous night. So what is the moral of the story? When life hands you lemons, make lemonade! Why do lemons get such a bad rap anyway? They're light and refreshing with a kick - a perfect summery treat! I wasn't handed lemons though - I was handed a shiny sparkly ring bathed in luminous light, and I cherish it! I know that each time I perform is an opportunity to learn and improve. I can't wait to perform at Ruby Skye again! For some reason, I can't get the videos to embed, so here are the links. Google video makes the videos bigger than the original file, so they are a little fuzzy. If you go down to the bottom right corner just underneath the video screen, click on "google video" and then on the pop up menu, click "original size." The picture will be smaller but much clearer! Ruby Skye: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8024261885462547859&hl=en http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=140991916142910605&hl=en http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7552891068122464712&hl=en new Prepare for the Playa: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1039773046062431039&hl=en

happiness

HoopsieDaisy — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 01:18:58 GMT

This is a song that I sang back in my choir nerd days, but it means even more to be now as an adult! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fESujlY_4E

Hoop Path love

HoopsieDaisy — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:09:06 GMT

It's amazing to realize that I am capable of feeling so many different emotions simultaneously, and all centered around the same thing: the Hoop Path! Right now, I am exhausted from hooping at three intense Hoop Path workshops in three days (suffice it to say that hooping ten hours in three days is not the norm for me), blissed out from the wonderful feeling of community and love I felt in these workshops, motivated to hoop even more, happy that I had some breakthroughs, frustrated that I wasn't in flow tonight, happy that I got to see Bax, Ann, and several out of town hoopers, sad that they are all leaving, excited about going to North Carolina for the retreat, hungry to learn more, etc. I encountered the Hoop Path at the perfect time - I'd been slacking off on my hooping for a multitude of reasons (no space to hoop at home, too cold/rainy/muddy at the park, dark by the time I left work, tired after work) and I'd really hit a plateau in terms of my skill level and my motivation. When I saw that Bax was coming to teach some workshops, I signed up knowing almost nothing about the Hoop Path or Baxter's philosophy. The little I knew was from watching some youtube videos, but I think it's a great idea to take classes from as many different people as possible. Since he was coming to SF, it seemed silly not to go. I had no idea what he was going to teach, so I went in with almost no expectations of what I thought the class would be like. As soon as I walked into the room, I saw some amazing hoopers - Christabel, Revolva, kahunahula, and so many others who I recognized. There were a few people who I didn't recognize immediately, but as I watched them warm up I became even more intimidated. I later learned that two of these dynamos were Beth and Ann. I was so overwhelmed by the talented assembly of hoopers that I almost turned around and left. I told myself that was silly. I'd already paid, so I decided that I could just lurk in the back and watch everyone else hoop. I pictured myself sitting on the floor with my mouth wide open like a little kid, totally in awe of everyone else. Bax, ever the psychic, ruined my plan by having us hoop blindfolded. At first I was disappointed because this meant I wouldn't be able to watch everyone else hoop and enjoy all of their fabulousness. It wasn't until I put the blindfold on that I realized what a gift blind hooping is. Instead of being intimidated by all of the advanced hoopers in the room, I was able to relax because I knew that no one else could see me. Something deep inside me was unlocked on that day. I was able to stop being so self conscious. Instead of feeling awkward, I felt free. Because I felt free, I became free. After two workshops, I realized that I had hooped more in two days than I had hooped in the previous two MONTHS. Bax told us that he hooped about three hours a day, which made me realize that I had to start logging some serious flight time if I didn't want to wallow in complacency. By the time Bax left SF, I was looking up flights to see if I could get to his LA workshops. While I was checking flight prices, I decided to see how much it would cost to fly to Carrboro. When I realized that I could get a decently priced ticket if I bought far enough in advance, I decided to go to Carrboro. I emailed Bax to tell him that I wanted to come study with him in North Carolina. Luckily he said they were already planning a retreat, so I waited patiently (and by patiently, I mean that I checked tribe and my email obsessively in the hopes of hearing news of the retreat). The retreat was everything I'd hoped for and more. Not only did I have the opportunity to immerse myself into Baxter's teachings, but I found a warm, inclusive hoop community that welcomed us with kindness. Beth, one of the first Hoop Pathers I met, had told me that if I ever wanted to come to North Carolina, I could stay with her. The fact that she told me this right after I met her was the first sign of her unending generosity. I was fortunate enough to stay with her wonderful family, and she made me feel right at home. The other Hoop Pathers were equally selfless. Mary heard Khan and me discussing our yearning for North Carolina barbeque, so she brought us some that very night. Bonnie chauffeured me from Bax and Ann's, so we got to share our love of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Robbie brought dear Barney to the Weave, so I was able to get a little doggie love (I have pet envy because I don't have a dog). I could spend the next hour listing every nice thing that each HPer did while I was there, but for the sake of being efficient I will summarize by saying that every single person I met at the retreat was genuine, sincere, and so nice. In terms of hooping, Bax pushed me further during the retreat. As a teacher, he has an uncanny ability to make me feel like I'm the only student in the room. There is no hiding in his class. I feel as though he is speaking directly to me, not just about hooping, but about life and what's going on inside me, whether it's about creating personal boundaries, loving myself, or embracing my badasssedness. This weekend was the third time that I have taken part in Baxter's workshops, and each time that I am fortunate enough to take his classes, I feel this same mixture of emotions. Watching him, Ann, and the other participants hoop is always so inspiring. They show me endless possibilities of what can be done, things I would never think to do on my own. Bax seems to create a little hoop community wherever he goes. Even though his delicate southern disposition felt the chill of San Francisco's wind this weekend, I felt like I had a warm blanket of love wrapped around me because of all the incredibly friendly, supportive hoopers who surrounded me. At the end of the retreat, Bax said that he'd been afraid that Khan and I would be bored because we'd been to his workshops before. I found the opposite to be true - I always learn more from each workshop. The first time around, I was just trying to pay attention and keep up. The second time, there were a lot of, "Aha, yes, I remember this!" moments where my body and mind clicked back into those memories. The third time, I found myself sinking into the movements more easily and not thinking about the mechanics as much. There is still so much to learn and I want to absorb it all! Part of the Hoop Path teaching is that belief is the first phase. First there is the belief that something can be done at all. Next is the belief that you can do it. One of the great things about Bax is that he makes me feel that he believes I can do it. I guess that's phase 1.5 between believing it's physically possible and believing that I am capable of doing it. It's amazing how much confidence I gain from knowing that someone believes in me. Tonight we talked about how teaching is about sharing energy. I feel so blessed to share energy with Bax, Ann, and the other students. Just a few short hours revitalized me, uplifted me, and breathed more life into my hoop practice. It's a beautiful thing! If anyone has read this far (and yes, I know that I can be quite loquacious), thank you for letting me share my cyber energy with you! ETA: I took this picture last summer and for some reason, I remembered (incorrectly) that there were two birds in the picture. I'm going to pretend that the other one is just out of frame :D

a rose by another name would smell as sweet!

HoopsieDaisy — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 10:18:22 GMT

As I was going to teach a hoop class tonight, I heard someone on the street yelling. Now this is Berkeley. I've learned to ignore random yelling. Once when my sister and I were in a sketchy part of downtown San Diego, some guys started yelling at us and I (stupidly) turned around. My younger sister said, "Don't do that - it just encourages them!" Although I'm the oldest, I've always been a little naive about things like that. She was the one who told me (1) you can give out fake phone numbers and (2) you can just say, "No, I don't want to give you my phone number." Of course, she imparted this wisdom upon me after I gave my phone number to some random guy I met at the Palladium and he kept calling me. Hey, I was 15 and kind of stupid. Anyway, I heard the yelling getting closer as I was unlocking the door to the studio. Then a guy came running towards me. He said that he wanted to give me the roses he had. They were wrapped up in plastic and very pretty, so I thought what, this guy carries around roses and then tries to find random people to give them to? He said he saw my hoops and wanted to give me his flowers because, "Hooping is the shit!" I couldn't argue with that kind of logic! He then went on to tell me that he is one of the tree sitters (people protesting at UC Berkeley) and he just got kicked out of the grocery store a few minutes ago and they wouldn't let him buy anything. I must have looked confused because he then explained that he is vegan so he was putting notes on the meat at the grocery store and taking pictures of them for his portfolio but apparently the people at the grocery store didn't approve of this kind of activity so they made him leave. He also told me that he retrieved the roses from the dumpster behind the grocery store. At this point, I was getting a little antsy because I needed to get inside the studio and start setting up for class, so I thanked him for the beautiful flowers and he went on his way. After class, I gave the roses to my students. I started to explain, "This clown gave me a dozen roses," which I realized sounded like I was making a derogatory remark so I had to explain that the guy was really a clown, with face makeup, a red nose, and everything, and his name was Bus Stop. One of my students asked, "But was he wearing big shoes?" I think they initially thought that I might have been making this up! After I explained how the flowers came to be in my possession, one of my students said, "Isn't Berkeley great? Where else would a clown named Bus Stop give you roses?"

Desiderata

HoopsieDaisy — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 23:10:32 GMT

(photo taken in La Jolla, CA - July 2007) Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy. -Max Ehrmann

gratitude and appreciation for Hoopies nomination

HoopsieDaisy — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:22:18 GMT

I've been sick for about a week. My voice is so raspy that I'm about to get my own 976 number. This morning I felt so sick that I decided not to go to work today. I turned on the computer to email my boss and then saw I'd been nominated for a Hoopie as outstanding hoop instructor! Yes, I know - too sick to go to work, but not too sick to go online! Hee, it didn't miraculously cure me enough to go to work, but I felt very humbled by this gesture. Hooping has brought so much joy into my life, and I became a hoop teacher so that I could share that joy with others. Being recognized for that is truly an honor and a blessing. I know that this may sound hokey, but I don't think that there will be any real winners and losers in the Hoopies because these awards are a celebration of our community as a whole. Hoopers are by far the most generous group of people I have encountered in my life, and the fact that any of you thought to nominate me touches my heart. Thanks to all the hoopers who have inspired me, shared with me, and befriended me. I feel lucky that hooping has brought all of you into my life! To check out all the other awesome nominees, go to http://www.hooping.org/archives/001184.html Be sure to click on all the links for each nominee - the video of the year section alone is enough to keep me occupied!

dreams come true

HoopsieDaisy — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 07:32:17 GMT

I've had the Sugarland song "Baby Girl" stuck in my head, and that last line keeps echoing: "dreams come true." Dreams can come true, no matter how small or large. I'm always astounded when the universe drops a beautifully wrapped gift with a perfectly tied bow right into my lap. The last year has been full of abundance for me, and I feel so lucky to have been given so many wonderful opportunities. I feel lucky to be surrounded by love and support and to have the ability to do something I love. I began hooping last summer (I'm only days away from my first hoopiversery!), just for fun. A year earlier, I'd looked into hooping but I was on a very strict budget at the time, so I couldn't afford to take a class or buy a hoop. I bookmarked a bunch of sites and promptly forgot about it. A year later, I googled hooping again and I got this strange sense of deja vu. Why? Because I was looking at all the same sites I'd found the year before! I decided that even though I still couldn't really afford it, I would make a commitment and take a class. I had no idea that it would change my life! When Christabel introduced herself, she told the entire class, "Welcome to the first day of your hooping career," and we all laughed, but here I am almost a year later, still hooping, teaching hoop classes, and on the verge of my first hoop retreat! When I took Baxter's workshops in April, I was transformed. I don't think that my hooping has changed visibly because I'm still a beginner and in the process of learning, but something shifted inside of me and my hooping became more than just working on tricks. During that first workshop, something was triggered in me that opened a floodgate inside. I decided that I had to go to North Carolina to take some more classes, but when I emailed him (completely half-cocked, I might add), he said that a retreat was already in the works. The timing of the retreat worked out perfectly, and now I am in Carrboro. It's so surreal to me - I've seen bits and pieces of Carrboro thanks to Hoop Path videos at youtube, but it's so strange to see the tree that Ann and Kimo hooped in front of or the Weaver Street Market where I watched Beth whirl like a vortex. Although these places were already real, now they are larger than life. On my flight to North Carolina, I read an article in the Southwest Airlines magazine about Cinderella castle at Disney World. I never knew this, but one family is chosen each day to go on a private tour of the castle and have dinner there. To me, being in Carrboro has the same feeling - it's a place that I never dreamed I would be. I don't meant to make Carrboro sound like a mysterious, mythical place that can only be reached after trials of fire, but it's almost unreal for me to be sitting here at Ann and Baxter's. I have received so much love from the hooping community and I hope that I can give back as much love to everyone here. I'm really looking forward to meeting more Hoop Pathers because the few I've met thus far have been unfailingly generous, genuine, and freaking awesome. Hee, it's amazing the thoughts that come pouring out after spending all day on a plane when I'm doped up on Dramamine (I'm a lighweight so it doesn't take much) until 3am. If that's considered a trial by fire, I'm more than willing to do it again for the opportunity to be here!