Just wondering whether there are other Menewshans with a passion for these arts? I myself started spinning poi just last October or November, though I had to take a break in February and March due to a broken ankle.
Then I started doing contact juggling, since that was something I could do while sitting down, and I've recently picked up the flowerstix and I've become completely addicted to them - I can't put them down!
I've become so addicted in fact that I was spinning them while walking and threw the middle stick over a fence and into a garden. I left my number in the mailbox, but I still haven't heard back from them, so I've ordered a new middle stick online, should arrive next week. I also ordered some juggling balls, since I've been wanting to learn that for a while.
Right, hopefully there are some other fanatics out there. *bounces impatiently*
AHH I LOVE YOU COME TEACH ME PLEASE!? XD I've wanted to learn fire spinning for yeaarsssss and I'm starting to get into contact juggling. I also got to learn a little regular juggling, too. Just 2....oranges....for now. XD I love Faerie Festivals....>.> Can't find any workshops or....anyone at all that does this, really....in my area.
Ohhh awesome! I've got a lovely pair of fire poi I've been playing with a bit, it's amazing. They're so loud when you spin them and what with the light and everything, you just get immersed completely in your own world while you're spinning, it's a great feeling. Do you do regular poi or..?
Contact juggling is so much fun. :D Do you have a proper contact ball? I was an idiot and was playing with mine while walking on the street, so of course I dropped it so now it has a crack in it. D: It's not massive, but my friend told me it'll keep getting larger as I drop it more. *sigh*
If you're in the UK or Iceland, I can help you out, if not.. well.. I'll let you know when I'm traveling next? I originally learned mostly from the internet, but it is so much better to learn from other people.
What are Faerie Festivals?
lol yar I'm in US. They're Festivals for the Fae! =D It's kind of like a Renaissance Festival? It's a festival...but faerie/magic themed. They're super funtimesyaaa! ^_^ They have street performers, vendors, stage acts, food, and people running around as faeries being awesome. >.>
I haven't learned regular poi or anything yet. And I don't really have an actual contact ball...I got a plastic one, though...so I guess that counts? I didn't want to get a real pretty one while I was just beginning to learn, 'cause I'd be too afraid to use it. I got to play with one at the Maryland Festival, though. The guy selling them brought of bunch of learning ones so people could learn some basics from him. Super fun!
And obviouslyyyyy I'm just gonna have to go visit Iceland or the UK sometime. Gosh. XD
Ohhh sounds like fun! Haha I just go to rave parties where people run around as faeries.. those are super fun too. : D
I got a plastic practice one first too, it's good to get used to it, and they're cheaper so in case you end up not continuing with it you haven't spent too much money on it. Poi are super easy to make actually, you just get a pair of knee high socks and a couple of regular balloons that you fill with water - not water balloons mind, because those will break. Regular balloons won't break that easy. Get them to a size that fits comfortably in your palm, they're soft and squishy too so if you hit yourself it doesn't hurt as much as having rice or whatever. Play Poi has really good instruction videos too, I used those to get started. : )
Haha, do! I am going to tour the US one day, but I don't think I can afford it for another few years. :c
You're welcome, and I sure will. And let me know if you come over to Europe, and how the juggling works out for you. I can't wait to get my flowerstick and juggling balls. :squee:
Oh, that's very interesting. I do regular juggling, but hadn't noticed this kind becoming popular because, honestly, I've been preoccupied with other things. But it reminds me of rhythmic gymnastics, which I loved doing, too. I definitely have to try it. =D
What kind do you mean? If you have any tips for regular juggling they would be most welcome.. I have one friend here who does them, but he's always busy so it might be difficult to get him to teach me stuff. I have loads of juggling friends in London who I'd just started getting to really know when I had to go home for the summer. It's great to practice with others though, I know of at least three groups in London doing weekly meetings, and I've gone to all of them, but most often to one called Synergy Spinners, I really feel at home there since I've gotten to know most of the people there. My two best friends do flowerstix too, and one of them does poi and the other has a staff he hasn't quite mastered yet though.
I've never done any gymnastics, though sometimes I wish I had when I was younger..
I have some regular poi that i play around with. Try as i may, i cannot get the hang of the 3 beat weave. Much to my annoyance. That aside, i can do some other little fancy moves with them. I find them a great arm workout, and brilliant for meditation. I really zone out from everything while im spinning them. I'd love to learn how to use them properly, but i don't have anyone to teach me, and i find it hard to copy online accounts of how to do things.
Guivre, that looks amazing! I don't think I've seen that sort of gymnastics before, it does look like a lot of fun. And I can definitely see the connection to contact juggling. : D
Sun, it took me a while to get the 3-beat weave too, but you know how with other moves you keep trying and then all of a sudden, something pops and you can do it, even though you felt like you would never get it before? That's what it's like for me with most moves. P: Have you tried Playpoi? I linked earlier to their video page, they have really good instructions in their videos. Also, I saw on your profile you're in the UK - depending on where you are, you might be able to find juggling groups where you can go and learn from others, I thoroughly recommend them. I know groups in London, Brighton and I think somewhere else, but they shouldn't be too hard to find. And from my experience, they're always very friendly to newcomers, even when you don't know anyone there.
I don't have any plans to join the circus either.. though if given the chance, I'd have a really difficult time saying no!
Haha yeah exactly. I mean.. wouldn't it be effing amazing? I can't imagine why people would say no to an offer like that. Unless it was because they looked different from most people and it was only to showcase that. But yeah, apart from that.. I can't think of any reason.
Argghh I want my lunastix - I can't wait!
Last edited by ljosberinn; 06-16-2010 at 05:29 PM..
There are schools where you can learn these things, I've heard of a few people going to clown school and such. But it's best to just find some small classes or something unless you want to get into it full time. The groups I go to in London charge £3-4 just so that they can pay for the club they host it in, and sometimes there'll be someone doing an organised class, teaching the others tricks or something and sometimes you pay a couple of pounds extra for that. My friend who hosts the group I mainly go to also has a weekly poi course for beginners and intermediate spinners, I can't remember how much that is though.
Belatedly I realized that the video I posted is of the Russian rhythmic gymnast who supposedly had an affair with Vladimir Putin. It really was a great routine though.
I'm Bulgarian-American and when I was in school the Bulgarians were the best rhythmic gymnasts in the world, so that's why I was aware of it, though we did have it in High School, later. Simona Peycheva (Bulgarian) was the best single rhythmic gymnast in the world, but she retired more recently and I think she's had a baby since.
Anyway, I wish I'd taken these things more seriously when I was younger (though it's sort of hard to take juggling seriously, lol.) I did have a boyfriend in school whose dad was a clown, and knew all the clowns in the area, which I think probably should have inspired me, but somehow didn't. The international clown hall of fame is just a couple of hours drive from where I am, and he and his dad would take trips there, and his dad would always talk about his "clown dreams," etc. It all seemed very silly at the time, but if I had linked the athletic/limber stuff that I liked to the idea I know I would have enjoyed it.
I love those kind of things.
But unfortunatly I don't have to time to train properly this things, so the only thing I know it to juggle u.u
Right now I'm trying to juggle with 4 objects since I only know with 3 right now.
Although I've never taken a class for it, when I was younger I did a lot of juggling, and a few years back I started juggling knives. To my surprise, I can do it rather well, and find it fun.
Most of my friends find it less fun when there's sharp pointy objects flying through the air, but I haven't cut myself practicing yet, and I've been doing it for years.
Guivre, haha that sounds great. You really can't take it too seriously, which makes it kinda funny when people are really ambitious about it. But kinda awesome too.
I met some people last night who are in a circus here in Reykjavík, and they invited me to come to their practice on Tuesday! I'm excited but also nervous because these people are actually doing this professionally and I only know a little bit of a few things. I've gotten the hang of juggling three balls though, I just need to practice more so that I don't throw them forward and so I can keep it going continuously for longer. I've got the technique down though. : D
Silas, wow, knife juggling. That sounds amazing! I can imagine people not being comfortable with being too close though.. it's the same when I play with my fire poi. My mum nearly freaked out when I showed her..
