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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Happy 4th Bloggerversary to Confessions of a Twirly Girl!

Today, Confessions of a Twirly Girl turns four years old!  You can read my post from last year HERE

There's so much the same as last year (and pretty much every year lately).  Learn to love myself no matter what the scale says and try harder at pole.  One big change is coming up.  I found a job only two blocks from my home, so I'll be able to walk to work in two short weeks.  I will get almost two hours a day of my life back and no more crazy BART stories!  I have been consistently going to yoga and pole for the last few months and I'm finally seeing some changes in my body.  Last night, I took a photo for the PDBA photo challenge and I could actually see some muscles in my legs again!  WOOHOO!

So here are some stats on my blog.

My pole-friendly Facebook profile had 2,300 friends last year.  This year, I'm down to 2,092.  That is partially due to me removing people I NEVER interacted with or thought might be spam profiles.  The Confessions fan page has 1,653 fans. 

Last year, I had about 1,400 Twitter followers.  Now, I'm up to almost 1,600.

Last year, my blog had a little under 165,000 views (now that I'm running Google Analytics, I am learning that the blog most likely counts each page view, and Analytics will just count the first visit to your site, so their numbers are slightly lower than my blog stats report).  This year, my all-time page view count is at 306,324.

What does all of this mean?  Not much.  It just means there are at least a few people who understand my struggles and perhaps enjoy my rants a bit.  You don't come to my page because you want to learn amazing pole tricks.  You come to discuss how we are all on our own journeys and we feel better knowing that we are in good company.  For that, I am very grateful.  Thank you again to each and every one of you who reads my blog.

So, what's new in the last year?  

I have been asked to be a Board Member for the Pole Dancing Bloggers Association.  We host monthly blog hops and weekly photo challenges.  We would love to get more people involved.  Even if you aren't a blogger, you can still participate in the photo challenges

I am still in the process of planning the Northern California Pole Presentational.  We almost have our location locked down and will be making an official announcement SOON. 

I want to thank everyone who takes the time to read my posts and would love to know more about you.  If you'd like to post a comment with your name and where you're from, I'd love to hear from you!

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Poletry in Motion: Kinetic Arts Center

In November, I wrote about attending a show at Kinetic Arts Center in Oakland.  I was re-reading the post and realized, I almost come off sounding like Sean Michael didn't deserve his win.  When I said I felt guilty voting for him, it wasn't because he wasn't amazing, it was just because, well how do you vote against CHILDREN?!  I hope no one (meaning my lovely Sean Michael) read that and took offense. 

So, before the show, Kinetic Arts had set out props and fun things for people to use in photos.  The winner would receive a free class.  Of course, I took a ton of photos and bombarded their Facebook page.  I think they only let me win so I'd stop posting pictures!  (In fact, Rita and AJ were invited to come to classes as well.)  I was so excited to win but then came time to choose a class!  They offer so many different type of circus and aerial art classes (in addition to strengthening classes such as pilates, yoga and parkour).  They welcome all ages and fitness levels.  It is easy to choose which class might work for you, as the schedule clearly states the ages and level of experience required for each class. 

I toyed around with trying the beginner trapeze, rope and tissue class on Sundays, but ultimately chose Pole Fit & Play with Luiza on a Thursday night.  What a great class!  The pole room has four poles and there were five girls in class (not including Luiza).  I felt like we all shared the poles really well without interrupting the flow of class.  We started with a really intense but much-needed warm-up, then Luiza taught some simple dance choreography.  If there were moves that I couldn't do, she had alternatives ready.  Luiza is a beautiful dancer and I really enjoyed learning from her.  I also adore her because she is Sean Michael's pole mama!  Everyone was very welcoming and I felt right at home.

There is so much more to do at Kinetic Arts.  Of course there are pole classes, but if you want to try any kind of circus classes or at least be conditioned like a circus performer, this is the place to go!  Please check out their website and let me know if you are going to take a class!



Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Workshops with Tracee Kafer

Ginger, Jade, Tracee, Terri and me
So during Air Show weekend, OVER A MONTH AGO (yes, I'm behind), I got to take two workshops with the beautiful and talented Tracee Kafer of Body & Pole.

Friday night was Finding Your Freestyle.  Luckily, I was near the beautiful ladies of Venus Pole Fitness of Turlock, so there were plenty of giggles and fun to be had during class.  This class focused a lot on becoming comfortable with yourself and aware of all of your parts.  So we danced and emphasized "odd" body parts, such as elbows.  I prayed for "boobs" but got elbows (which somehow turned into "penis" in our group...sorry, Tracee, can't take us anywhere!).  It was a really fun reminder that I need to get out of my head and just let myself dance but also be aware of what my body is doing.  I also need to start turning down the lights and just letting my body move sometimes.  Lately, I have felt so self-conscious because I don't feel comfortable in my own skin and I feel like I have lost a lot of strength and fluidity in my dance.  I often feel like I get left behind in workshops (which is not anyone's fault but my own) since I am not advanced but this was a workshop in which I could keep up.  I can't promise I looked good!  But I didn't feel left out.  Allison Wardwell was also in class with us.  She is a really amazing dancer and it was sometimes difficult to concentrate because I just wanted to watch her dance rather than muddle through my own moves.  


Venus Pole Fitness letting me jump in on their photo
At the end of the workshop, we had to dance for a partner (ooooh I was so lucky...my partner was so beautiful!!!  Thanks for putting up with me Rhiannon!!).  We had to choose an emotion and dance.  I couldn't really pinpoint my emotion as I danced.  I was kind of frustrated with my foot for being injured and I was blaming it for holding me back.  But I had hope for the future.  How do you dance that?  Rhiannon guesses my emotion...I feel like you're trying to find your voice.  I said, naw, that's not it...wait a second...YES THAT IS EXACTLY IT!  It was kind of a cool moment.  I also felt like I nailed her emotion.  I believe I guessed hopeful or longing and I believe she was going for longing (guess it would have helped to bring my notes today!!).  Anyway, I thought it was a really awesome experience.  I took videos throughout but am kind of glad they were too dark to post.  It was one of those intimate experiences that might be good to keep to yourself. 


Saturday was Grounded Spins on Static.  Tracee came with a seven or eight spin combo.  I could remember all the parts but there were definitely a few pieces that I didn't perform well due to strength issues.  I have it on video and need to grab the clip and remind myself so I can continue to practice it (I am currently getting comfortable in letting myself one arm spin into Juliette).  I really had a fun time (and was happy to see the ladies from Kitty Kats' Korner there).  I also got to share a pole with Ann, who takes classes at Poletential.  She was really sweet and we had fun chatting during class (and hopefully kept ourselves on track and moving forward when we both felt slightly frustrated with a couple of the moves).

Tracee also performed at Air Show that evening.  She is always such a beautiful and expressive dancer.  I tried to guess her emotion that evening and I felt like it was difficult to pinpoint, but after discussing how she felt that day about the direction in which her life is going, I felt like I was pretty close!  

I want to thank Tracee for putting up with me and am looking forward to our next meeting!  Have you ever taken a workshop with Tracee?  Tell me about your experience!

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Air Show, Flight 5

Terri, Lori, Rita and Sean Michael The Great!
So I have been lost in a pile of other stuff and haven't yet had a chance to blog about Poletential's Air Show, Flight 5!  They had a brand new venue with REAL poles all the way to the ceiling.  Aerial acrobats galore!!  It was an amazing show!  

Some of the awesome instructors from Body & Pole in New York came out for workshops and to perform (Tracee Kafer, Allison Wardwell and Elaina Royter).  I took two workshops with Tracee (and will blog about that soon).  

You can watch most of the show on Poletential's YouTube account.  Check out the playlist below.



One of my favorites didn't make it into the playlist, so don't miss the straps Fever routine!



One of the videos was damaged, so here's my footage of Allison Wardwell from Body & Pole. 



Poletential will be hosting Air Shows twice a year at their new Fox venue in Redwood City.  Keep an eye on their website, I'm sure an announcement will be coming soon regarding Flight 6 in May!

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

The History of Pole, Part Four

I posted my updated history of pole piece fairly recently.  You can read it HERE

Today, while reading an article about Michelle Stanek, I noticed she commented on Demi Moore training to pole dance for a movie that came out in 1996.  That means she very easily could have been training to pole dance in 1994-1995, so that would also mean Demi Moore was pole dancing "before it was cool." 

Granted, when discussing the actual history of modern pole dance, you can't really compare an actress training for a movie role to one our pioneers of pole since Fawnia Dietrich actually opened her own pole dance school in 1994.  But I do feel it is worth a mention in my series as I continue to my quest to learn about the history of pole. 

Here's the quote:

"How have you seen pole dancing transition from entertainment for men to a legitimate fitness workout?

The program at Crunch—where I took my first class—originated because one of the directors at Crunch met Demi Moore when she was training for that movie Striptease and watched [Demi's] body completely transform just because of the movement of pole dancing. She was studying to be a stripper in a movie but her body just became slammin'. Crunch is always thinking outside the box so they decided to create a [pole dancing] class. It was starting to become an all-women's fitness class in various places around the country."

*****

I am still on the hunt for an accurate account of how pole dance developed around the world.  If you know of one of the first pole studios in your country, please let me know!  

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Cowboy Wild's Good Old Fashioned Pole Down - an AIDS LifeCycle Fundraiser!

We are less than a month away from our next pole dance fundraiser at Club 1220.  This one benefits Cowboy Wild's AIDS LifeCycle ride!  The Facebook event can be found HERE (you can also find the most current list of performers there as well). 

WANTED:

Pole cleaners!  Especially pole cleaners happy to dress up in cowgirl or boy attire.  


We are looking for online pole companies or other local businesses that would be willing to donate items for the raffle.  If you are interested, please contact us through the Confessions of a Twirly Girl fan page.  You can use the link on the right hand side of the page to go to the Facebook page and send a private message. 

We are also looking for local polers who may be interested in participating in a pole-dance-off that night at the event!  Names will be drawn at the show so send us your names if you'd like to be included on the list (you can send a message to the Confessions of a Twirly Girl fan page as well).  Winner gets a prize!  Who doesn't love prizes?!

Now, normally we don't take tips, however at this show, TIPPING IS HIGHLY ENCOURAGED!

The cover charge is only $6 and the dancers will be donating their tips to support Robert in this 500 mile (plus) bike ride.  

In addition to many Twirly Girl favorites, I hear Ck from Poletential will be dancing for us!!  You don't want to miss her 1220 debut!

So, please join us on Saturday, February 1st at 6:00 PM at Club 1220 in Walnut Creek for a night of fun and exciting performances (1220 is bar so 21 and up only!).  Hey guess what, I recently decided that I will be performing as well!  I got my song and my costume and my concept...so now I better get to work!

Can't make it to the show but still want to donate?  Robert's fundraising page can be found HERE.

Friday, January 3, 2014

PDBA and BodyBinds!

I am very excited to be included as one of BodyBinds' new lifestyle bloggers.  Please read the PDBA announcement HERE

I am especially excited to try out BodyBinds to see if they will stretch to accommodate my ample body.  Please keep an eye on BodyBinds' website and the PDBA fan site for upcoming articles from some pole bloggers that I truly admire and adore!

What kind of articles would you like to see on the BodyBinds site?  Are you interested in costuming tips?  Healthy recipes?  I'm taking requests here!  




January 2014 Blog Hop: Setting My Intentions For The Year

This month's PDBA blog hop is about setting goals, intentions...or that yucky word, resolutions.  Why is that word so horrible to me?  A resolution tells me I'm doing something wrong, and need to do it better.  Even if it's the truth, sometimes you aren't ready to hear it.  Setting goals makes me feel shitty since I'm four years into pole dancing and still not hitting many of the goals I set early on in my pole dancing "career."  So many what-ifs.  What if I hadn't gotten a hip injury a few months into pole dancing?  What if I didn't have to start commuting to San Francisco for work?  What if I didn't get a bone spur in my right foot, causing me to have foot surgery?  What if I didn't have a problem in my left foot now?  What if I didn't gain a bunch of weight?

So I am going to set some intentions.  They seem like so much less pressure than resolutions or goals. 

January 2013
Flexibility - especially back-bending.  I am not a flexible person.  Even in 2008/2009, when I was "in shape" and going to yoga three times a week religiously, I was not a flexible person.  That is all the more reason to work as hard as I can to stay "flexible" -- well my version of flexible, which is still very inflexible by many others' standards.  My body hurts when I don't do yoga, and I lose a lot of muscle.  So there are many incentives to continue with my yoga practice.

Deal with my foot issues without beating myself up.  I am frustrated beyond belief.  I started this job in San Francisco in October 2012, and almost immediately started getting a pain in my right foot.  It was weird to me because the extra walking and standing on BART to and from work shouldn't have caused it, as I was fairly active already.  The only thing I could come up with was that I went from wearing flip flops every day to wearing "real" shoes.  (By the way, I was wearing good contoured flip flops and not dollar shoes from Old Navy, since everyone seems to mention that.)  Anyway, my body had clearly gotten used to walking in flip flops, and moving to shoes (and probably the extra walking and standing) irritated my plantar fascia, which started touching the bone spur and swelling.  Lucky me.  Flash forward to August 2013, where I have surgery to release the plantar fascia.  I took a month off work and two months off exercising.  I returned to exercise a tiny bit too soon.  Now that I'm back into it, that foot still hasn't fully healed.  It doesn't hurt as much but there is still swelling, which could eventually lead to the fascia touching the spur and hurting again.  It also feels like the integrity of my foot has been compromised and the foot in general just hurts every day, all day.  Foot pain sucks...there's no way not to walk on your foot so every step is a jarring reminder that you hurt. 
December 2013

And from limping, then walking in a moon boot on my right foot, my left foot -- which I call the "good foot" -- started to hurt within the last couple of months.  In April 2013, I actually stepped down really hard on that foot and got a jarring pain.  The next two days, I couldn't walk on it.  I thought I had a hairline fracture.  My regular doctor (not the podiatrist treating my right foot) felt like it was no big deal, it seemed to heal up.  But now that I have limped on it and maybe since the weather has gotten extremely cold (yes the 30's is cold for California), the pain is excruciating.  It is slightly different pain than the right foot, so maybe I did actually break it back in April, but if I push around on my heel, I can "make" it hurt like the other foot, so who knows.  I have another doctor's appointment in two weeks (with my podiatrist).  Frustrating. 

I often like to say, here is the reason I'm doing something.  It may sound like an excuse, but it is simply the reason.  No, I can't go run 5k's, because neither of my feet is physically able to handle that kind of pounding.  I can cycle a bit and do yoga.  But even walking for short distances leaves me in a lot of pain.  If we're talking about the 0-10 scale, I wake up as a 3-4 and am up to an 8 by mid-day.  Every time I stand up, I get to steady myself and kind of warm my feet up before I take a step so I don't topple.  Anyway, I'm trying not to whine about it, and also trying not to be mad at myself about things out of my control.  Would my pain be lessened by some weight loss?  It's possible.  But it's not a guarantee.  It is difficult for me to lose weight quickly (especially when my exercise is limited).  It has to be a combination of exercise and better food choices.  (I have officially been counting calories for about two months and go up and down the same five pounds, so no true/real loss yet.  No, I'm not eating hidden calories or "forgetting" to count everything I eat.)  But I will never be that person who can drop 20 pounds in two weeks by doing a liquid diet.  That pushes my brain into crazy mode and causes a binge, which leads to weight gain.  I've been playing this game for a long time.  I play by my own rules but that's just how it has to be.  (By the way, pushing pyramid scheme diet products on me isn't helpful and is actually extremely rude.  Also pointing out I've gained weight and need to do something doesn't motivate me.  It really makes me want to no longer be friends.) 

Do more.  Do less.  I plan to do more of the things that make me happy this year and do less of the things that I feel obligated to do, but don't enjoy.  Certainly, there will be things I have to do because I AM obligated to do them.  But I truly can't attend the birthday parties of every child of every acquaintance that I have.  It's just not feasible.  I also plan to spend less time with people who feel that they need to guilt me into it.  I enjoy my friends, I really do.  And I am a busy person.  It's not a game I play to feel important or special, it just is what it is.  But the number of people who feel the need to make snide remarks about how little time I have or make for them aren't people I need to spend time with at all.  I'm all about making my down time fun and relaxing.  I am excited, however, to do more in the pole dancing world.  I am still excited about future projects in the works with the Pole Dancing Bloggers Association and am working hard on getting that Nor Cal pole competition set up this summer with Amy Bond. 

Be Healthy.  Not just with food and exercise, but with my work life, my home life and every part of my life in between.  Everything requires some kind of balance. 

*****

I am at a cross-roads, that is for sure.  Either I can throw the towel in and call it a day, or I can make the effort to get up every day and make it a good one.  For now, I am making the effort and I appreciate every one of you who reads my blog and sends me messages letting me know we are all on our own journey. 

Please tell me if you are setting goals or resolutions (or intentions) for the new year.  I'd love to hear them!


Thursday, January 2, 2014

January 2014 - Pole Photo Challenge for PDBA!

If you would like to join PDBA's Pole Photo-A-Week Challenge, check out the prompts below and tag your public photo on Instagram or Twitter with #pdbloggers. 

For more info, read the instructions below:

http://www.pdbloggers.com/2013/12/january-2014-pole-photo-challenge/