The Year of Festivals and Weddings!

It's that time of year when we start to reflect on how it all went. I am really reviewing my year...what I liked, what I didn't and how I want to make life even better next year. This year seemed to be particularly full of festivals and weddings. I went to SIXTEEN festivals this year, mostly of the flow arts and burlesque variety. I performed and/or taught at all of them but one. What a whirlwind! All over the country and one in France. Bags and I also got married TWICE! So yeah...2015 = festivals and weddings!

I also produced the most nights of shows in the most amount of productions I have produced in one year. Seven nights of shows in the span of three events. I made a dream of mine come true which was to produce in a real big theatre with a curtain, theatre lights, a big stage and lots of seats...The Midnight Carnival this past November was definitely an achievement. 

Another highlight was starting a Burlesque troupe! I started The Hoop Unit six years ago and we have dabbled in burlesque from the beginning, plus I have produced student and advanced student burlesque pieces under the name Vaudeville Vixens but this year we made it official and began the Vaudeville Vixen Showgirl troupe. We had lots of fun opportunities and created three new unique acts that we performed in many exciting places. Plus I got so close with these women and found a sisterhood that I cherish dearly. 

Here I go with a brief(ish) overview of my year and way to process it, in all of it's glory :)

Thailand with Bags' Fam

We started the year in Thailand! Rang in the New Year in Chaing Mai with almost all of Bags' extended family. They had a massive family reunion for the holidays and I got to be introduced to his aunts, uncles and cousins who live in Australia, England and Zimbabwe. They made me feel so welcomed and included. I truly felt completely accepted and like I gained a second awesome family! My favorite part was that for the white elephant gift exchange I was given a hand drawn/painted portrait of Bags and I by Bags' cousin Shane which was signed by every family member. Heart melt!

BellyFusions, Paris

After Thailand I headed to Paris to participate in my second Belly Fusions Festival. It was an incredible opportunity to push myself to create a new Belly Hoop Fusion routine AND I got to teach two workshops - one in Belly Hoop and the other in Belly Burlesque. So much fun! I really love the whole team that make that festival happen, they are so organized and warm. I was lucky enough to stay in a wonderful fellow hooper's flat and have a dinner date with Lila Chupra Hoops, an inspiring Parisian Hoop Burlesque sister.  

Face of Temptress!

In February I experienced the Mac gig sizeism debacle that you can read about here. I also was crowned the Face of Temptress Fashion that month! One of my goals of the year was to do as many photo shoots as possible and work on pin-up modeling. If I didn't do a million other things, I would love to pursue a career as a pin-up model. Since I can't do ALL THE THINGS, just doing photo shoots and being apart of the pin-up model family at Temptress has been amazing this past year. I have learned so much! Janet is such an inspiration to me; she is a strong, successful businesswoman who gives other women confidence and makes them feel sexy in her amazing clothing. I couldn't be more grateful for my time working with her this year. We got to do shoots in her store, out and and about in OB, at the Lafayette, as a mermaid on the cliffs and in the OB Christmas parade, plus on a horse ranch to make an epic calendar. Thank you Janet for all that you do!

First Wedding!

Springtime brought abundance, and man was it a busy, satisfying time of year. I was able to be featured in Lola Demure's House of Blues Burlesque & Variety show as well as Ooh La La's Circus Burlesque show at Tango Del Rey. I produced the VaVa VOOM! show with headliners Kristina Nekyia and Erin Shredder. It was the first show I produced that had solos from students who had taken my Solo Act Creation course, which I am running again this January. Both Kristina and Erin taught workshops while in San Diego that weekend. After that, Bags and I GOT MARRIED! The first time :) Bags' mom came from the UK and my mom and brother were there too. It was a spontaneous and beautiful wedding at the courthouse in downtown SD. I wore Temptress Fashion and we brought our Hoopologie hoops (of course).

The Flow Show, SF

We then headed up to SF to perform in the flow show. We debuted our multi-hoop juggling duet, "Circling the Infinite". We had worked on it hard for months and got the opportunity to perform it three times that weekend. We also were able to bring it around to every flow festival we taught at this past year. It was so satisfying to do the same act so often, and really hone it in. Each festival presented it's own challenges with performing the act, which I believe we learned from every time. In SF I was also able to perform with Hubba Hubba Revue and we taught workshops up there as well, hosted by the lovely Cherry Hoops. I was interviewed by Paige of HulaHoopla, you can listen the interview podcast here. We visited Harbin Hot Springs before it burned down. I feel so lucky to have been able to visit that magical place and to have taken Bags there before the destruction hit later this year. It was the most relaxed I had ever felt...yoga in the morning, alternating submerging in hot and cool pools, gazing upon a wild doe, sunbathing in the nude and getting a massage...ahhhhh, absolute bliss!

Fire Ceiling at Flame Festival

Our first flow festival of the season was FlowStorm in Texas. It was held at Quilombo Paixao which is Wesley's family's home on acres and acres of farmland. It was a small, intimate gathering that mixed lots of interesting workshops like permaculture with flow arts. We loved how well taken care of we felt and how family-like the festival was. I still remember taking Tom Thumb's Crowd Funding Campaign workshop there, it stuck with me! I am excited to use some of the techniques I learned to fundraise to open a training space in San Diego this year. Another highlight was getting friend avocado tacos from a food truck and vegan ice cream after the festival was over with Casandra and Marvin. 

Jillian & Nathaniel's Wedding

After FlowStorm was Flame Festival in Georgia. I got to bond with Casandra a lot at this one! She picked me up from the airport and we camped together. I ended up sleeping in her car the whole weekend because it was cold! Flame was one of the coolest flow festivals I went to this year. The infrastructure was very Burning Man-like, made it feel like more than just a flow arts festival. I performed my Belly Hoop Fusion routine in the instructor show and taught a couple workshops. That weekend I met McCalla too! We bonded instantly about hooping and ukulele. She said, if you're ever going to New Orleans, look me up. Which I did! In September. Flame Festival had these amazing flame throwing, flame ceiling-ed domes that were especially epic. Perkalator and Kassandra were there, who's workshops I thoroughly enjoyed. 

The Vaudeville Vixens

In April, our good friends Nathaniel and Jillian got married! I was fortunate enough to be a bridesmaid for their beautiful Temecula wedding and it was the first time I was in a bridal party. Bags and I performed our lovey hoop duet and enjoyed the mansion they rented for the weekend. Such a beautiful wedding! We then went to Colorado for The Spin Summit. It was my fourth one! This is where Bags made the crazy epic MultiHoop Madness video with all of the amazing multi-hoopers!! I was surrounded by badass Hoop Juggling women and it was awesome. I helped produce the showcase and enjoyed yet another year at our second home, oh Colorado, I love you!

Marvin Ong's Manipulation Theater

May brought Kinetic Festival in Ohio and Fire Drums in Northern California. Kinetic was one of the more challenging spaces to perform our act in. We were in a barn with rafters overhead that we had to juggle hoops through. It was interesting to say the least. I will never forget the moment in the renegade when Jonathan Alvarez surprised everyone with his unexpected entrance onstage, right after he was referred to by the MC. Whoa, that was a crazy moment! Fire Drums was at a beautiful northern California location. It had a kitschy barn which was probably my favorite part about it. There were butterflies and a really cold creek. The festival itself was freezing at night time too! I am a wimp. We got to perform the in the showcase with Wes Peden in it! Big deal!! The fire circle was HUGE!

Photoshoot with Hoopologie

That month the Vaudeville Vixens had our first photo shoot with Xavier Bailey of Studio X Photography. Wow! That was a wonderful, fun and sexy experience. He's an amazing photographer. You can see some more of the photos here. 

In June, we started the summer gigs at the Lafayette Hotel with Circus Mafia. We had a blast hooping and juggling poolside all summer this year! We also shot a video with the Hoop Unit, centered around Ocean Beach. Watch it here. We had a hoop booth at the OB Street Fair and Chili Cook Off, in which we performed as well. We got to be apart of Marvin Ong's Manipulation Theatre show in Brea and performed to live handpan by Stevan Morris. This was a creative decision made by Marvin that I don't think Bags and I would have chosen for ourselves. But it ended up being one of my all time favorite performance experiences ever. You can watch the video and see the pics here and here. Stevan's music is so dreamy and beautiful to move to. I can still remember looking at Bags, on that big beautiful stage while Stevan played behind us and being in pure blissful heaven. It was the beginning of what I hope is a long friendship and working relationship. I am so grateful to Marvin for that! I also began hooping at the Bahia Hotel that month for the rest of the summer every Thursday to a live band, The Mar Dels. That was a fun regular gig! I love their music and I loved being a gogo dancer/hooper right on the Mission Bay beach. 

Sizzzling Circus Sirens - 5 nights!

In July we went to Colorado for the Colorado Burlesque Festival. I met Midnite Martini for the first time and got to perform right before her at the late night Thursday show. I always love performing at Lannie's! We got to stay with Melinda of Hoopologie and her wonderful family. It was a pure treat to spend time playing with Evan, Mark, Matt, Pam, Danielle, Caterina and Jennifer Alberts! I loved the ping pong games at Evan and Mark's. We went on a gorgeous hike through the Rocky National Forest to Mills Lake for a photoshoot with Melinda, Evan and LOTS of Hoopologie hoops. We visited the mansion that inspired the Shining! 

The Hollywood Burlesque Festival

I also turned 30 in July, right before producing "Sizzzling Circus Sirens" at the Lyceum Theatre for the San Diego International Fringe Festival. Wow. That was an experience. 5 nights almost back to back of shows. I had never done anything like that before! It was intense! Tito Bonito was our host and stayed with us for a whole week. I loved being surrounded by my Burlesque Brother from Another Mother (BBFAM) and my silly husband all week. Lots of giggles! We were very well received at the Fringe with lots of packed houses and a different show every night. We had some great reviews too! We busked pretty much every day and did shows the same night, talk about labor of love! 

After the Fringe show we went to Pennsylvania to teach and perform at Return to Roots. We had taught there in 2013 and loved it so much we wanted to go back! It was on a Christmas tree farm, a really big property of gorgeous land. We slept in hammocks in a forest and relaxed. Another challenging performance experience in the showcase, outside in the dark with bright lights shinning into our eyes while we tried to pass hoops with each other, whoa! Somehow we managed it :)

ABurlyQ!

August brought the Hollywood Burlesque Festival, ABurlyQ and another photo shoot, this time with Scott Saw of Vixen Photography. I competed in the non-local LA performer category in the Hollywood Burlesque Festival and the Vaudeville Vixens performed in the showcase night. It was SO HOT backstage. It was during one of the many heat waves this summer and not AC in the backstage area. Phew! We were melting back there. It was the first time I had competed in a burlesque competition in which I was legitimately disappointed that I didn't place. But it was made up for the next weekend when I did win first place in the Variety Arts category at ABurlyQ with my Dance of the Seven Hoops piece. Emeraude LaStarr and Luna Divine of the Vaudeville Vixens joined me at ABurlyQ in the troupe category. We didn't place in that one but I know we all thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Watch our act here. The community was so warm, welcoming and inclusive. It felt like a big burlesque family love-fest and I truly believe it was due to the two main women who run the festival. An event is always going to take after the energy of it's leader, and these two - Vivian Mirann and Jane Sweeney are truly wonderful, open and sweet women! I was fortunate to teach two hoop workshops in Albuquerque and meet up with my friend Nicole who had a baby since las time I was there. 

Fee Fi Fo BUM in SF at Hubba Hubba

In September the Vaudeville Vixens had a weekend trip to San Francisco and performed in Hubba Hubba Revue's 9th Anniversary show! We did both our Pasties & Parasols number as well as the "Fee Fi Fo BUM" Pirates number. It was a long show! We were the last act in a show that ended up being around 3-4 hours long. I taught a workshop at the Alonzo Lines King Ballet studio again and we went out dancing and drinking in the Mission. I got to eat at my favorite restaurant ever, Gracias Madre and hang out with both Marria of Ninja Hoops and Revolva. It was a fun trip!

I also got to go to New Orleans that month to perform in the New Orleans Burlesque Festival. I was in the House of Blues show, The Queen's Ball. I taught two workshops at Audobon Park near the big beautiful tree with the help of McCalla. I ate vegan begneits at Seed, oh man was that place good! And got to watch the "Bad Girls of Burlesque Show" which I thoroughly enjoyed. Jeez Loueez was by far one of the best MC's I have ever witnessed. I hung out with a lovely bunch of Canadian burlesque performers from the Cheesecake Burlesque Revue. Another highlight  was the performer pool party on Sunday. 

After our Green Card interview

Bags and I joined Fern St Circus for two days of hot summer shows at the Carlsbad ArtSplash then headed up to Santa Cruz for Hoop Camp! The day we left for Hoop Camp we had our long awaited Green Card interview! It was such a stressful thing to lead up to, but it wasn't as bas we thought it was going to be and we passed! Woohoo!! It's a huge victory for us this year, Bags is legal here in the states! Hoop Camp was a blast! We loved teaching, performing and playing with so many epic hoopers. 

After returning home from Hoop Camp, we hosted a fun World Hoop Day celebration at the White Box Theatre with a community showcase, raffle and DJ'ed Hoop Jam. We raised more money for the World Hoop Day than last year and I really enjoyed this change of pace from previous WHD celebrations. There were so many talented hoopers in the show!

10 person corporate juggling gig

Bags and I headed to Marvin Ong's Manipulation retreat in Idlywild while the Vaudeville Vixens went to perform at the Las Vegas Burlesque Festival and represent us there. You can see the video of them performing here. A cool video of MOPs can be seen here. MOPs was epic, as usual. A big beautiful gym for training in all day and night, a gorgeous location and of course the best instructors out there. I loved learning from McKenzey, Gail O'Brien and Melissa Daly. In October we had a very exciting gig through Circus Mafia and Bollotta Entertainment doing a 10 person juggling show for an IAM San Diego event. It was circus themed and quite the production! I was honored to be booked primarily as a juggler :)

Florida Flow Fest

We headed to Florida Flow Fest at the end of October. Casandra is a genius. I loved the model of having a flow festival in a park in the middle of city. The festival is free to attend but you just have to pay to take workshops. So the exposure is truly wonderful. So many people who might not have otherwise known what the flow arts are get to find out about it. I helped produce both nights of showcases and Bags & I performed as well. The shows went really well and I felt appreciated for my addition. We enjoyed teaching, hanging out with Sharna, meeting and staying with Troy and of course spending time with Casandra. 

The Midnight Carnival

November was a big month! We produced the Midnight Carnival, I went to BurlyCon and we had wedding #2 (or number 3 if count the renegade Hoop Camp one). The Midnight Carnival was the biggest, grandest and most exquisite production I have had the pleasure of orchestrating to date. It was a dream of mine to do, and we did it! Midnite Martini headlined and we pretty much sold out the 500 seat theatre. Epic circus acts, flow artists, belly dancers and burlesque performers from all around the country as well as the Hoop Hooligans from New Zealand graced that stage and made me so proud! My students rocked it, troupes killed it and the audience was the best dressed, most loving and most understanding of my seating snafu ever. 

BurlyCon with SD Burly Babes!

Somehow the following weekend I made it to Seattle to have both my body and brain blown away by BurlyCon. I had wanted to go to it for about 5 years but money or scheduling always stopped me. Well this year, even though it was sandwiched between my wedding and a huge production, I went!! And man am I grateful that I did. I learned so much. I think I am still processing all that I learned. I felt like I got to know and bonded even more with some fabulous San Diego performers as well as met and learned from Burlesque stars and legends from around the world. I danced, I stretched, I workshopped, learned, took notes and brainstormed away those 5 days and have over 25 pages of notes to show from it. Whoa! Thank you BurlyCon!

The Second Wedding!

I came home basically to an apartment full of Brits! Bags' best friends Emma, Emily and Sandy all came out to San Diego to be apart of our wedding. Bags' mom and her partner were also in town for a couple weeks. Most of my family were able to make it too! It was a Circus Ukulele Hula Hoop Vegan Potluck wedding, of course! It wouldn't have been possible without the help of everyone who attended, that's for sure. It was a community effort. Everyone pitched in somehow and it ended up being a dream wedding. You can see some fabulous photos of it here. One of my favorite moments from the wedding was singing and playing uke to our own rendition of "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz in the ceremony with all of the 100 guests! While bubbles floated around :) We then spent Thanksgiving with both mine and Bags' mom which was a real treat.

Ensenada Gig Adventure

December brought some fun holiday gigs. The most memorable was at a convention center outside of Ensenada. The REMOTE convention center was down 30km of washboard dirt road, with crazy colorful Seussian architecture, sculptures, gardens, cacti and the ocean. We performed a 30 min circus show for the local employees of the organization. The org brings leaders from developing countries together to promote development in those regions of the world. I MC'ed our entire show in Spanish! Whoa! Performed in it as well and then came off each act huffing and puffing while trying my best to speak Spanish into a microphone in front of 450 Mexicans. It was intense but I feel really accomplished and of course my desire to work on Spanish has been re-ignited. The kids were the best! I am grateful to Mango and Dango for the referral, to Miriana for the Spanish help, to Bags for pushing me to learn a new routine, MC the show and for being the best adventure/performance partner a girl could ask for. I am excited to welcome more opportunities into my life that bring adventure, attainable challenges and abundance!

Naughty Christmas Burlesque

We also had a fun gig with Circus Mafia doing a holiday themed burlesque circus show for the WomanCare Global Evofem holiday party. That one gave us an excuse to create a fun Christmas-y burlesque routine to "I'm a Little Christmas Cracker" We got our cute costumes from Temptress Fashion. Bags and I have closed out the year working on filming videos of ALL of the skills we have to offer. It has been an intense process! We are working hard, investing in our future and creating gorgeous video content in hopes that clients will have a real idea of what we have to offer. You can see our newest glow hoop video here and my Multi-Hoop Solo routine promo video here. There are lots more on the way! 

Now that I have reviewed 2015 and picked out some of the highlights, I will go through the process of writing down what I am particularly proud of from this past year. I will also hone in on what it is that I want from the year to come. Practicing gratitude for what I already have and pride in what I have accomplished is the best platform for creating attainable goals for 2016! Can't wait to see what we all create!

The Teachings of Thailand

The BLISS of Tonsai on my face 

I am processing a whirlwind of adventure. An opening of the heart and the mind. A reintroduction to myself and the world. A reintroduction to life. A new outlook and fresh mindset. A renewed sense of faith in myself, humanity and mother nature.

Sounds like Burning Man, right? Well, this year my Burning Man was Thailand. All of Thailand was unforgettable but Tonsai (a unique place in the South where dramatic limestone cliffs meet the calm, flat, light blue ocean water) especially struck a cord in my heart and will forever leave an imprint on my soul. I will always be a burner. The playa goes with me everywhere I go. I mean, I'm a hula hooper for a living! If that doesn't scream Burning Man I don't know what does! I am glad, however, that I have opened myself up to other types of adventures. I have made San Diego my home, the playa is definitely my home and now so is Tonsai. I plan to actually make it my home at some point. I am already devising plans to live there :)

Sunset in Pai

I learned a lot in Thailand. Some lessons I learned were not new. But they obviously deserved rediscovery. About a week into the trip I fell while driving a motorbike in the rain. The roads were wet, the bike was in poor condition and I was having too much fun, clearly! A very nice Thai man drove me to the hospital where I was cleaned up and bandaged, given antibiotics and pain meds for about $11. Wow! That was part impressive. The rest was traumatic, painful and scary. I'm almost healed now! Just more battle-wounds for this temporary vessel we call our bodies. It occurred to me how everything can change in an instant. One second you're riding through life having a blast and the next you're a bloody, crying mess. Then you have to slow down. Slow way down. That's what I did. I was forced into a vacation from my vacation. I rested a lot. I slept. Read. Made friends. Hung out in hammocks and enjoyed staring at the Pai landscape.

Coconuts everyday!

I am humbled. 

I had an interesting epiphany about my life in San Diego. Traveling so far from home gave me a different perspective and new appreciation for my daily life. In San Diego, I am surrounded by support, love and admiration. It was hard at times (especially while I was healing from my motorbike accident) to be constantly meeting new people. I really missed my tribe! Luckily I had Leeloo with me :) When you're traveling (just like at Burning Man), no one knows who you are at home. You can be anyone you want to be! You can make up a new name for yourself, a whole new identity even! This anonymity made me appreciate everything that I have in San Diego in a whole new way. All of the friends, family, love, supportive community and inspiration that I have in my everyday life. Wow! I am truly blessed! It's funny how leaving home makes you realize what you love about home so much.  

I also realized that it is possible for me to have more than one home on this beautiful planet. It's ok to feel like you belong or you came from more than one place on Earth. Oh Tonsai!  Tonsai gave me some of the most potent natural highs I have ever felt. They came from the intense natural beauty, the rock climbing endorphines and the people. All of it made me write my version of poetry...

Hello Paradise!

I am a mermaid
I am a lion
I am One
I am one with the universe
Every one of my cells is connected to every cell in the entire universe
Every plant, animal, water, rock, grain of sand, insect
Intoxicated with Love
High on Nature
Blissfully Happy

The first day I discovered Pra Nang beach (next to Tonsai) I had what felt like a psychedelic experience while I was completely sober. I was high on nature! I kayaked to the beach with some new traveler friends. We climbed to the top of an epic cave that looked back onto the almost deserted beach. It was low tide so I was able to walk around a rock that jutted into the ocean and find a tiny little private patch of sand. Completely untouched and hidden. The little beach was at a perfect natural slant for reclining. I laid down in the sand and looked up at the limestone stalactites hanging down over my head. I rolled around in the sand as the waves lapped over my body. I couldn't stop saying, "I am One. I am One with the Universe" over and over in my head. I swam out into the extremely salty, warm, clear blue turquoise water and floated on my back looking up. The large, colorful stalactites hung over me as I lay in the ocean and let the water drops falling from the stalactites land on my face. This was one of the most beautiful moments of my life. I will never forget it!

Stalactites over the ocean

Not only did Tonsai show me a whole new understanding of the concept Unity (universal connectedness), a concept that I obviously feel strongly about, it also showed me how many other amazing skills there are to master in this life! I love to challenge myself. Especially physically. I have attempted pretty much every circus and dance skill that is somewhat accessible to me. Never have I tried rock climbing and I had no idea I was going to love it so much. Man, is it a rush! A huge challenge too. On so many levels...physically and mentally. I was lucky enough to meet some pretty fabulous people in Tonsai who introduced me to this new hobby. All I want to do it get better at it! Part of me is overwhelmed by all of the "things" I have already set out to master but part of me is telling myself there is time. There is time for everything that I make important. So this is a new important obsession. Yay! The other one is slack lining. The locals in Tonsai are some of the most epic slack liners and rock climbers I have ever witnessed. These people grew up walking on tightropes and rocks, like it ain't no thang. It's so cool. They spin fire poi, staff and juggle fire on the slack line! I was beyond impressed! I didn't see anyone fire hoop on the slack line so that's another new challenge I have set for myself. Create a slack line-burlesque routine as well as master slack line-fire hooping! Woot! I can do it! I can do anything I set my sights on! And so you can YOU!

Rock climbing w/ Laura's help!

There was a crazy rainstorm for a couple days while we were in Tonsai. It reminded me of the dust storms at Burning Man because it made you run for shelter no matter where you were or who you were with. It forced you to make new friends and get drunk in the middle of the afternoon, for lack of anything else to do :) More poetry...

Everything is wet
Breathing in the beauty
Absorbing and reflecting it
Breathing in the green
Lush and drippy
Giant leaves
Jungle love

I am in love with all of the new friends I made in Thailand. Interesting, open-minded people who I hope to see again someday. I had intellectually stimulating conversations about modern gender roles with a mixed group of people from Iran, Austria, Germany and America. I got to know some of the nicest Canadians ever (of course!) and lots of Australians who were way too much fun :) Connecting, laughing, playing, learning, admiring and sharing with each other. Leela and I hooped everywhere we went! We hooped in the hostels, the bars, the beaches and even at the temples. We taught locals and travelers alike how to hoop :) There will be a Thailand Hooping Video coming your way soon! Singapore performance pictures can be found HERE and our travel pictures are HERE.

Amazing new friends!

More highlights from Thaiand include: street food (all of the food!), tropical fruit shakes, Oh wait...just the tropical fruit in general! fresh coconuts to drink everyday, Thai massages that cost $7, tuk-tuks, the Sunday market in Chiang Mai, Thai cooking school, riding motorbikes (on the left side of the road) up to the Doi Suthep in Chiang Mai, thunder and lightning storms, rainbows everyday, ocean sunsets, waterfalls, the Pai canyon, fireflies, monkeys, SpicyPai and Kit, Julie's Guesthouse, Mama's Chicken, painting each other with neon paint because it was the full moon, Chang beer, lots of spliffs, beautiful seashells, Toffee & his band, Maxi...all the Tonsai locals actually...Bao and Lai and Zero and Yoni and Dee...the Sunset Pirate Bar, the Sawadee Bar, the owners and family at Pasook, holding Leela's hand hanging in hammocks in Pai and getting closer with her than ever before, laughing with her and going through a lot together, OMB (Oh My Buddha!), Boom!, "Shake, Shake...Shake Everyday", "Why not?", Same Same but Different, kayaking, hooping with the ocean as my partner, Ben and his infectious enthusiasm :) Thai reggae, and the kitties everywhere!  

LED Hooping at the Singapore Grand Prix

We left our bungalow made out of palm trees on the beach and went to Singapore to perform at the Grand Prix. We were put up in a fancy 5 star hotel and the woman at the front desk actually asked me if I wanted someone to carry our backpacks to the room! I had to laugh. Coming from hippie-land and ending up there was quite the change. What a gig! The most amazing one I have ever done. There is no question about that! People carrying all of my props for me and my own private dressing room?! Yes please! So spoiled! The event was HUGE! Thousands of people, bands, DJs, art, other entertainers, stages and of course the races zipping through the streets of Singapore constantly. I performed 3-5 sets a day so pretty much one Fire/LED set per hour for 5 hours. It was hard work because it was super humid and extremely hot! Lots of fun though! People loved it, I loved it :) It was win-win. Jovi was our assistant/helper the whole time and we loved him! So sweet and really on it. On the last day we had a longer break and walked around the event for an hour or so. What a bizzare experience! The races were so loud we had to wear ear plugs just to walk around. Then we couldn't really communicate with each other so we just gave each other weird faces and laughed a lot. Damn it was sweaty there!

Fire Hooping at the Singapore Grand Prix

Now I am looking forward to producing a Day of the Dead themed show on Nov 3rd, teaching and performing in San Francisco Oct 19th weekend and then touring England & Ireland in Nov-Dec. More soon. Thank you. Thank you for reading this, being in my life and inspiring me to continue to do what I do. Thank you universe. Gratitude!

Shedding Skin

Dancing with Manasa

The last month or two has brought on LOTS of changes in my life. As I have been going through these changes, one of my dance partners, my ball python Manasa (pronounced Menesha, named after the Hindu Snake Goddess) shed her skin again. It was like she knew I was doing the same thing! I felt closer to her than ever and understood her cyclical life on a whole new level. I realized that we are all constantly changing. This quote from the book I am currently reading really hit home: 

"He seemed to see time shimmering and moving up above him and through the leaves and down around his feet and through his middle. Nothing was like anything else, including himself, and everything was changing all of the time. He knew he couldn't perceive the change because he was changing too, along with everything else. There was no still point." - Jim Harrison, "Legends of the Fall"

Sometimes you have to shed your skin. Get rid of the old and make room for the new. Grow out of your current situation into the next one. The process might be painful but the outcome is always shiny, new and fresh.

I have taken most of the comforts out of my life and have already learned a lot about myself. Moved out of my apartment, got rid of most of my possessions, put the rest of them in storage and am currently living in my friend's RV. I have entered into the "nomadic" phase of my life. My mom says "nomadic" is just a romantic word for homeless, ha! I feel like I am actually living the traveling circus, gypsy, nomad lifestyle that I represent on stage so often. Instead of just performing it on stage, I am living it! It has been an interesting journey so far and it promises to get even more interesting!

I have struggled with the concept of being a nomad AND being a performer at the same time. Not only a performer, but a hoop making performer! All you hoop makers out there know what I mean! Making hoops takes space! Rolls of 100' tubing, dozens and dozens of tapes and not to mention all of the tools involved in making them! Space is one of the biggest commodities for a nomad. You don't have much of it. Being a performer requires that you have lots of stuff...costumes, stage props, more costumes, jewelry, makeup, fire tools, more costumes, fabric, crafting supplies, you get the point! You have to be ready at any moment to fill the whim of a prospective client. Oh you want me to be a fire spinning hula girl at your beach party? A retro vintage hula hooper at your corporate event? A belly dancer at your birthday? A burlesque performer in your stage show? Suuurrrre. Let me just run to my storage unit. Again.

All in all I have figured it out. It has taken some organization, planning and forethought but so far so good. It can be done! The worst thing that's happened is I've lost a couple material possessions along the way. But who cares? It's just stuff! I'm liking this whole non-attachment to material possessions thing!

In about 3 weeks I leave for my first trip to Asia. I was hired to perform fire dancing for 3 days at the Singapore Grand Prix! I used our flight money to go to Bangkok and then 4 weeks later down to Singapore. That's right. 4 weeks in Thailand! Wow! I am so excited and nervous at the same time I can hardly stand it. It will be a grand adventure! I feel like I will learn a lot about myself and about the world at the same time. After getting back from Southeast Asia I will be going to Santa Cruz to perform at Hoop Camp's Movements Arts Festival. Could life get better than that??

Day of the Dead Burlesque Inspiration

I am already planning my next big production, The Dia de los Muertos Cabaret to be held in San Diego the first weekend of November (2nd & 3rd). More details on the way. Just know now it's going to be EPIC! Then only 3 days later I am off to my 7 week UK tour! Whew! And Weeeee!!!!!

I will be teaching at SWhoop (South West Hoop Convergence) in Bristol, then in Dublin for a Flow Fest, then the Brighton Flow Fest, then I'm off to teach workshops in Plymouth, Oxford and finally London for the Fantasia Belly Dance Festival. This will be the longest I have traveled alone, ever! I'm going to the land of amazing music and amazing hooping! I can't even fathom the inspiration about to be bestowed upon me! When I saw the Bristol Hoop Massive Video for the first time, I was blown away. It might still be my favorite hoop video of all time. The comment I posted when I first saw it was, "I want to come hoop with you all in Bristol one day!" And look, it's happening! Thanks to Emma (Kenna Hoops)! My favorite musicians have ALL come from England! Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Cinematic Orchestra, Mr. Scruff...just to name a few! I hope to see Cinematic live while I'm there. I'm already planning to see Caravan Palace while I'm in Brighton. They are another one of my all time favorite bands but they're from France, close enough!

When I'm back from England I will actually be finding a real address like most of the rest of the world. But not too long after I will be joining about 100 hoopers on the Hoop Ship! Woot!  It's a cruise for hoopers to the BAHAMAS! WOOHOOO! Ever wanted to go a cruise? Ever wanted to go to a Hoop Retreat? Ever wanted to go to the BAHAMAS?? Here's your chance ALL IN ONE AMAZING EVENT! And it's SUPER affordable if you think about all of the amazingness you get! Epic instructor line up and Hoop classes on the beaches of the BAHAMAS! Did I mention the BAHAMAS? Ha! Come play! February 2013!

Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum :)

There is talk of a potential trip to India after that and then in summer of 2013 I plan to tour the United States with The Hoop Unit in a painted bus. Hey, a girl can dream, can't she? Look out for the Kickstarter campaign to fund the first ever cross country UNITY Tour!

Enough about what's coming up. What's been happening? Here is where I catch you up on all of the past highlights from the last month or so....

• I was fortunate enough to see the Pretty Things Peep Show when they were in town. That might have been the best show I have EVER seen! If you ever get a chance, jump on it! 

• I taught 14 children how to make hoops, do  impressive hoop dance tricks and perform them for their parents at the New Children's Museum Summer Camp. Watch the video here. There is still one week left at Cuyamaca College. Sign up here!

Me as a Twi'lek!

• I got to be apart of Hell on Heel's Carnival Burlesque show! That was fun!

• I had my first paid Lyra gig that was not at one of my own events! It was with Aerial Revolution for the 4th of July at the Escondido celebration.

• I walked on stilts for the first time! Thanks to Mango!!!

• I got to be a Twi'lek for the Keyhole Cabaret Comic Con show, "Nerd-tastic Burlesque" It was the first time I painted my whole body. What an adventure! There are snippets of the show here. You can see me eating fire as a Twi'lek at the end of the clip.

• Oh yeah and I turned 27 :) My birthday was everything I could have asked for. Relaxing, yummy and full of amazing friends. BRING IT 27!!!