Day 186 of practice.
Well, I didn't really blow away, but we had some crazy windstorms today. Could it be because my new DVD by Tempest arrived in the mail?!? Who knows! I'm excited to check the DVD out as I really love Tempest's style and it apparently has a warm-up that is good for daily practice. My practice could use some more structure!
Today's unstructured practice included hand drills, shimmies while I washed the dishes, glute squeezes while reading, and some practice of various versions of Arabic. On Fonda's advice, I've been working to smooth out the chest lift and drop on my Arabic. I do it well enough when I'm dancing slow to medium, but apparently I get very choppy when I get fast. It's so good to have specific things to work on!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Thunder and Fireworks
Day 185 of practice.
Another rainy thunderstorm today. I like this! I don't like the humidity, and I don't like how much my pets get scared (especially Daisy, who walks through the house whining until she finds someone to snuggle up to, then she shivers. Or she hides behind/under furniture), but I like the rain. Since the storm was in the afternoon, the fireworks shows went on as scheduled. I didn't go out to see them, but I could hear them from the house... as well as all of the illegal ones being fired off by my neighbors!
Simple practice today, arm and hand drills and glute squeezes mostly, and then some slow moves because I felt like it. While I was doing slow moves, my husband started playing drum rhythms on the wall and I had fun correctly guessing each one that he played. All in all, it was a pretty nice, relaxing day, part of a lovely weekend. But I have big dance things on the horizon so I need to get into some more serious practice this week!
Another rainy thunderstorm today. I like this! I don't like the humidity, and I don't like how much my pets get scared (especially Daisy, who walks through the house whining until she finds someone to snuggle up to, then she shivers. Or she hides behind/under furniture), but I like the rain. Since the storm was in the afternoon, the fireworks shows went on as scheduled. I didn't go out to see them, but I could hear them from the house... as well as all of the illegal ones being fired off by my neighbors!
Simple practice today, arm and hand drills and glute squeezes mostly, and then some slow moves because I felt like it. While I was doing slow moves, my husband started playing drum rhythms on the wall and I had fun correctly guessing each one that he played. All in all, it was a pretty nice, relaxing day, part of a lovely weekend. But I have big dance things on the horizon so I need to get into some more serious practice this week!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Dancing in the rain
Day 184 of practice.
It rained today! This is kind of a big deal because it feels like we might be in for a real monsoon season for the first time in years. The desert has been so dry, and of course if you follow the news at all you probably know about the fires here in AZ and also in NM. We had a storm on Wednesday, but it was at 3:30am so I didn't get a chance to dance in it. Today's rain came in around 10pmish, so I paused the movie we were watching and ran outside to dance just a bit. It was surprisingly COLD so I didn't dance much. Ha ha! But it felt so nice. I wish the storm had lasted longer.
The rest of my practice consisted of shimmies while I did the dishes and glute squeezes while I read. The big problem with monsoons is that it makes a lie of our unofficial state slogan "But it's a dry heat!" The only thing worse than trying to dance in the heat is trying to dance in heat and humidity.
It rained today! This is kind of a big deal because it feels like we might be in for a real monsoon season for the first time in years. The desert has been so dry, and of course if you follow the news at all you probably know about the fires here in AZ and also in NM. We had a storm on Wednesday, but it was at 3:30am so I didn't get a chance to dance in it. Today's rain came in around 10pmish, so I paused the movie we were watching and ran outside to dance just a bit. It was surprisingly COLD so I didn't dance much. Ha ha! But it felt so nice. I wish the storm had lasted longer.
The rest of my practice consisted of shimmies while I did the dishes and glute squeezes while I read. The big problem with monsoons is that it makes a lie of our unofficial state slogan "But it's a dry heat!" The only thing worse than trying to dance in the heat is trying to dance in heat and humidity.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Half a year down!
Day 183 of practice.
More than half the year is gone and I'm still dancing every day! Go me! Woohoo!
Today's practice was nothing special, I did isolations in the car on the way to a party in Phoenix. Really too tired to actually dance, but there will be plenty of time for dancing tomorrow and Monday. Hooray, 3 day weekend!
More than half the year is gone and I'm still dancing every day! Go me! Woohoo!
Today's practice was nothing special, I did isolations in the car on the way to a party in Phoenix. Really too tired to actually dance, but there will be plenty of time for dancing tomorrow and Monday. Hooray, 3 day weekend!
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Weird places to dance
Day 182 of practice.
What is the weirdest place that you've ever practiced dancing? So far, for me, it's Office Max.
I don't know if it's all Office Maxes or just the one near us, but it seems like every time we go there, either there's a problem ringing us up, or a problem with the person ahead of us, and there's only ever one person working the register. So annoying! Today we were there to buy some card blanks for my jewelry business, and the lady ahead of us was doing a return, which required the use of the only register. After a few minutes I got horribly bored and put the package of cards on my head and began to do mayas and hip slides. After all, if I have to be stuck in line, I might as well DO something.
Today was apparently the day for multi-tasking practice, because not only did I do that, but I also just shimmied my way through an entire sink full of dishes, and now I'm going to go lie in bed with a book and do glute squeezes. It's the lazy girl's guide to shortcuts for dance practice when it's too hot to dance and you've only had 5 hours of sleep so you really don't care!
What is the weirdest place that you've ever practiced dancing? So far, for me, it's Office Max.
I don't know if it's all Office Maxes or just the one near us, but it seems like every time we go there, either there's a problem ringing us up, or a problem with the person ahead of us, and there's only ever one person working the register. So annoying! Today we were there to buy some card blanks for my jewelry business, and the lady ahead of us was doing a return, which required the use of the only register. After a few minutes I got horribly bored and put the package of cards on my head and began to do mayas and hip slides. After all, if I have to be stuck in line, I might as well DO something.
Today was apparently the day for multi-tasking practice, because not only did I do that, but I also just shimmied my way through an entire sink full of dishes, and now I'm going to go lie in bed with a book and do glute squeezes. It's the lazy girl's guide to shortcuts for dance practice when it's too hot to dance and you've only had 5 hours of sleep so you really don't care!
Friday, July 1, 2011
Last night's costume
A friend was asking about last night's costume, so here are a few pictures! I kept it simple, because I was doing veil and also because it was hot. Just black and burnt orange pants, and a black halter top with black and copper lace overlay. Jewelry is a necklace, earrings, and bindi, and I put my hair in a bun and mostly circled it with a variety of flowers.
Dancing with my new veil
Ok, this is not the best picture because my camera apparently thought that it should focus on the doumbek on the counter, even though it's at the edge of the frame instead of the center. Really, my camera doesn't like taking pictures of dancers in dim rooms. It's used to an easy life of well-lit jewelry. But I like this picture, because it shows my veil a bit, and my cool pants that everyone liked, and it gives you an idea of the space I was dancing in.
I had a lot of fun dancing tonight! The Luxor is a nice spot to perform at because they have an open "stage" space, but there's also room to go between the tables if you want. Also, customers can see the dancers from pretty much wherever they sit, but some spots are better than others. And the food is delicious! And the other dancers were really good! There was a nice mix of soloists and student troupes, and a good variety of tribal, fusion, cabaret, and folkloric styles. Big thanks to Gina for organizing the event and letting me dance!
And even though I was busy getting ready for a performance, I actually practiced today! I did a dress rehearsal of my solo, and I also danced around to a few other songs because I felt like it and I wanted to practice. I'm already thinking ahead to future solos, although I'll definitely continue to perform to the song I did tonight, and Convivio, too. I just want to build up a nice arsenal of solos... but I'll discuss that more tomorrow!
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