Battery Park Spin Jam Saturday March 20, 3pm-5pm

It's time for our second annual, "Stop Hibernating and Play, Meetup and Spin Jam" in Battery Park.

Last year was a blast with a dozen people. Let's double that!

Bring poi, staves, hoops, wands, juggling balls and any other silliness that appeals to you.

Saturday, March 3pm

3PM SHARP!

(This means you, Mitch! Don't show up at 6pm. We'll be gone.)

And note, Crystal, it's the very north of Battery Park, the park, not Battery Park City, the ugly buildings.

Take the 1,2,3,A,C to Chambers or the 4,5,6,R,W to City Hall.

Walk straight West on Chambers Street until you get to the water.

Do not walk south into the buildings or toward ground zero.

Here's a map. http://bit.ly/battery_poi

We'll go until 5pm or whenever people are tired and then head off for Mexican food and Margarharittas. Woo hoo!

Come Play With Me!

Last year's spring spin jam! Sexay!

Flags!

Kaleidoscope 2009 Parade Saturday Night 6 PM

The fabulous Kaleidoscope Parade is back. The location is secret until the day of the event. Sign up on the site if you'd like to join us.

After the parade there will be a party with fire performers. I'll be one of them.

We had such a fabulous time last year. Come play with us!

Kaleidoscope Celebration of Color 2008 Photos

Wildfire Spring 2009

I can hardly put into words what an exhilarating experience my weekend retreat was. Every minute of every day was filled with art and artists, learning and sharing, awe and beauty. I'm truly blessed and humbled to have the opportunity to have such wonderful experiences.

I didn't take as many photos as I would have liked because I was so busy learning, performing and enjoying the other performances that I just didn't have the time. Here are some highlights.

Darrel, the hoopin', spinnin' cowboy and Crystal, who got me into all this nonsense. You're both awesome.

Our fearless leader, Chad. What an great guy.

A new friendship is born.

Fabulousness abounds.

Hoopers are adorable. I'm glad poi fit in a bag.

Fun with Kite Poi

My latest fabulous poi video is up from Wildfire 2009.

Portable Speakers for Outdoor Fun

A lot of people have complimented me on and asked about the portable iPod/iPhone speakers I use at poi spin meetups. I did a lot of research and think the Griffin Journi speakers offer the best combo of sound, price and size for rechargeable portable speakers. The built in folding stand/case is absolutely brilliant. And it's small enough to fit in my poi bag.

They are now discontinued but that just means you can now get them for less than $50. They don't officially support the iPhone, but they work with it just fine if you put the iPhone into Airplane mode.

HOWEVER, when the new iPhones are unveiled next month, I think there will also be a new wave of cool accessories. So unless you absolutely must get something this very minute you might want to wait.

The Incredible Poi Duo

Thanks so much to Marius Shanzer for his fabulous Dance Parade 2009 Album including this great shot of Masae and me.

Dance Parade!

The weather forecast has improved and the Dance Parade is on! Circus performers come join House of YES, GROUP #70. Meet Saturday, May 16, 12:30pm on 27th Street between 6th avenue and Broadway.

Bring poi, hoops and/or juggling balls. Have water. Wear sunscreen. No storage so don't burden yourself with much else.

Bring your most flashy toys. I'm bringing kite poi.

If you wanna dress up the House of YES theme is "Spirit Animals", but it's not necessary.

Come play with us! More fun to follow in Tompkins Square Park.

Remember, find GROUP #70 in the set up area.

More info here.

Facebook group here.

Fun In The Sun

Flagtastic!

Join Me Sunday Night for a Free Dance Performance and Poi Afterward

Sunday night, weather permitting, I'm going to see Los Vivancos perform free in Battery Park.





This fabulous free show is sponsored by The Joyce Theater. For more info and to make sure it's not rained out check this calendar.

The show is at 7:30pm.
I'll arrive around 6:30pm to stake out a spot. (map)
Contact me if you'd like to join my dinner group at 5:00pm.
Poi will be spun afterward.
There will likely be other silliness.

Kaleidoscope Celebration of Color 2008 Photos

I had such a quandary deciding whether to go to Kaleidoscope as a performer or a photographer. In the end, I decided to spin poi and let my awesome friend Connor Hays man the equipment. I had a wonderful time and he did a fabulous job.

Kaleidoscope Celebration of Color 2008 Photos



(It seems some of you can't see some embedded photos in my blog. Please be patient. This will change when I upgrade my web server next month. )

Hoops, Poi, Bride's Maids and All Manner of Twirling Things

World Hoop Day 2008 Photos Now Live!



Don't miss the whirling bride's maids.



And, of course, poi.

Dale's First Fire Poi Video

My first Fire Poi Video is up.
You know you're just dying to rate it 5 stars, right?

Come Play With Me!

I've launched a Poi, Juggling and Circus Performers Twitter. Subscribe for free updates about when and where I'll be spinning Poi.

I'm only going to use my twitter to create fun flash mobs. I promise not to spam you with crap like "Here's what I think of Obama, I'm napping, now here's what I think of Obama."

Like the Poi logo I designed?

Today is World Hoop Day. Come play with me in Central Park. More info on my twitter.

Fire Poi!

After ten fabulous weeks of studying poi,
my class graduated with a fire spinning spectacular.

Casual Athletic Nudity

Swimmers like Greg Louganis and Michael Phelps seem so comfortable showing their bodies to the world. Asked about it, athletes usually say something simple like, "that's the uniform."



I never understood this unselfconscious until I started spinning poi. If I leave my shirt on, it will just get sweaty and gross. So I take it off. It's not so much I'm dying to show my fuzzy navel to the world. It's just the uniform.

While poi has made me more confident about my body, an underwear model I ain't. But I'm feeling much less of an all-knees-and-elbows, gangly, awkward nerd these day. Thanks, poi.



At the Olympics, ancient Greeks would perform completely nude. But there was one taboo. It was considered indecent to show the glans of the penis. So to prevent it from accidentally slipping out, athletes would tie a kynodesme, a small string, around their foreskins, ensuring it would stay inside.

One More Trick and I Can Be a Clown

While buying poi at Dubé Juggling Equipment I decided to get some balls to brush up my long forgotten juggling skills.



All I have to do now is learn to spin plates and I can join the circus.

The Wages of Poi

Spinning poi in Italy has profited me two things ...



... a blister on my left middle finger and 10 Euro cents as a tip from a young man who called me a "Superstar".

The Color of Night

Long ago I bored of what I call, "proof photos," that is, photos that prove you were there. Me in front of the Eiffel Tower. Me in front of the Brandenburger Tor. Me in front of the British Houses of Parliament.

Zzzzzzz....

I know what these places look like. And I know what I look like. I don't need to know what I look like in front of these places.

Problem is, my mother complains if there are no photos of me amongst my holiday snaps. So I've combined my interest in night photography and poi. Here ya go, Mom. Happy?

Home of Poi Discount Code

If you're interested in getting into Poi, check out homeofpoi.com for info and supplies. Here's a discount code for 5% off at their store. I luv my new kite poi.

HOME OF POI DISCOUNT CODE
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Of course, you can always just make your own starter poi by filling a pair of socks with a half a cup of rice each. I like to put the rice into cheap, plain, white, girl's knee stockings so they make nice compact soft little balls. This keeps the rice from cutting through the socks as you spin them.

SOCK POI WITH STOCKING BALL


Sock poi can be made for just a few bucks and look great.
Here's an adorable couple I met both spinning my sock poi.

SOCK POI IN ACTION


HOW TO MAKE SOCK POI

Poi, The International Language

I've been meeting people with mad poi skills ... like raver boy here.



Look who's back.



Everyone wants to try out my new kite poi.



Turns out you don't even need a common language to learn poi. I taught this deaf girl to spin. She picked it up right away.



If you're happy and you know it spin your poi.



Mari J is a fire spinner from Japan. Her poi dance is fabulous.

Poi Cannot Be Stopped!

We had fun this weekend unicycling, juggling and spinning poi in the park. Then we got rained on. Did that stop us? Hell no!



My bathrobes got more use than they have in ages.

Agua Poi

I was trying out my new LED Poi when Sergey Matsko happened along. He shoots what he calls Agua Photos, images that emphasis motion over detail. How perfect for my little light show!

REVERSE WHEEL


FORWARD WHEEL


FORWARD WEAVE


MEXICAN WEAVE