Any questions? These four things, with the exception of hooping, have been an extremely important and influencial part of my being for a large amount of the recent years. When I started listening to dance music, it was purely for partying. But, then, it was as if a veil was lifted and I began to see the coincidences in my life, corresponding with the rhythm of the music. Techno, as many refer it, became a part of my everyday living; the soundtrack to my life. All of my favorite memories stem from listening to or attending an EDM (electronic dance music, for those who may not know) event.
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| Luke Brown |
Even the early stages of my yoga practice were scored by various dj setlists. It seemed automatic, authentic and natural that my life should be accompanied by dance music. I was drawn to multitudes of EDM related limbs, eventually leading to visionary artistry, astral body, chakras, and the astounding impact that music can have on the spiritual body. This, ultimately led to my favorite genre, psytrance. It is funny how one interest can lead to others, then, in an almost impossible way, make it self back around. You see, it all really is connected.
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| Luke Brown |
Hooping accented this journey through expansion by EDM, by giving me a creative outlet to explore my soul with movement to music that has opened my mind since the first day it pounded through my ears. I didn't even realize that a majority of the hooping community were ravers or were drawn to hooping at raves. It seeme like a funny coincidence, for sure. The hoop was literally making circles in my tree, leading back to the roots of my spiritual existance; EDM.
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| Willow Arlenea |
Ah, if only I could get the high that going to a rave, dancing with a room full of strangers, feeling the bass thump through my core, and creating that almost inner connection I get with the dj when they drop the track that takes my breath away, in every day situations. Yes, I can have spiritual experiences not at raves, but most seem to correspond with listening to music. Yesterday, while hooping to some Crystal Method, I found myself frozen to the ground, watching the newly sprouted grass blades dancing along, carried by the wind to the beat of my music. It was a purely nonchalant situation that gave me an intense feeling of interconnectiveness. Spurred, in my belief, from the musical influence the rhythms and energies of the music created.
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| Michael Pukac |
Within all this babbling, there is a motive. I have the complete pleasure of informing you, my dear readers, that I have been given an opportunity of a life time; I will be performing on stage with one of the biggest musical influences in my life: The Crystal Method. The guys will be spinning at Chilkoot Charlies on May 27th. It truly will be a soul-lifting experience that I will for ever be grateful for.
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| From LA Weekly |
I pour out the gratitude that I have inside to all of you hoopers, performers, fans, whoever, that *anything* is possible. If you believe and you give yourself permission to explore, amazing things will come to you. I also have the sacred circle to thank. If it wasn't for hooping, I may have not gotten this chance. Beautiful and inspiring things come when you allow yourself to be open to receiving. Even through all the muck, nastiness, unfairness, and dissapointment that life can throw at you, believe that there will always be that gorgeous, hopeful lotus growing magnificantly in the mud. You just have to get through the ugliness to experience the inner light.
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| Willow Arlenea |
TCM has been there through many hardships and good times in the last 10+ years of my life. I have seen them many times when I lived on the east coast. They put on a damn good show if I may say so myself. Now, in this moment of what I believed was a sort of low point, I get the chance to combine all my past times together to complete that circle of my passions. Hooping, art, yoga, and EDM, now uniform. It should be a life changing situation to be able to express myself within the hoop to the beats of my favorite djs.
Here I leave you with some videos footage of the shows that I attended that TCM played at.
First time I saw TCM at one of the hottest clubs in DC- Nation Nightclub (RIP)
Saw this show with my boyfriend and our friends Mike and Heather.
I had to include this video from Virgin Music Festival in Bmore because, well, can you blame me?
This was an amazing day let me tell you. Here is another amazing video from this day not related to TCM
Another favorite, Infected Mushroom with Matisyahu!! Amazing!! Ok back to TCM
Well, I have to say I was going to end this with a video from their show in Norfolk (my hometown) that I missed after I moved up to AK, but there is no video posted!! I mean, really? No one there even did one video? Aaaahhhh!! If I was there, I would have taken a video for sure!!
Oh well. Anyways, more updates on hooping and this performance coming soon!! Peace, love, light, and of course, hoops.
Ingredients:
lady at my work was going to a holistic doctor down in Anchorage and he was weaning her off dairy. She, like most Alaskans, drinks lots of coffee. She told me she had been using vanilla almond milk as a replacement for creamer and that I should try it because it was really good; so I did. It was good!! Then, I saw an ad in my yoga magazine for a new line of coconut milk products. I found them in my grocery and had to try- I LOVE coconut!! Let me tell you, Mmmmm. It is totally delicious- no wonder the line is called So Delicious. The main reason why I like coconut milk is because I can actually drink it straight, like with some cookies, and even in my cereal. I, of course, like the vanilla for my coffee. It definitely has that creamy flavor and it's not such a harsh, nutty flavor like most of the other milks I had tried, which mostly prevented me from ever drinking it straight. I know that the store has the So Delicious ice cream- and I sooo want to try it. Too bad the yogurt hasn't come in yet. Hopefully they will get that, too, so that I can try some coconut yogurt- yummm...
I hurriedly put together a Wood Sprite costume; who doesn't love faeries? I pretty much just took a skirt and top that I had and pinned some Ivy leaves to it. I also stuck some all in my hair and in my boots. I didn't think it was too bad
considering I had one day to plan. Luckily, I was calling myself a Wood Sprite instead of Mother Earth because there happened to be another chick dressed as Mother Earth. It was a fun party. My neighbor is a super good cook, homemaker, and caterer, so all of her ghoulish treats were delicious- think bleached bones (almond biscottis); ogre fingers (cookies with almond "nails"); wizard wands (pretzel sticks with chocolate and sprinkles); and mummy mash (spinach and artichoke dip) with crusty heels (sliced French bread). Yumm!! It was also fun to see all the kids dressed up. We played some Halloween themed games (mostly for the kids), but I participated in the mummy wrapping contest by wrapping this little boy. I think he had fun, which was the point of me doing it. He was all giggly turning and turning around in circles.
Yesterday I was playing with my hoop out in the snow and it was so fun. I actually really like hooping in the winter here; its cold, but I don't tend to get all sweaty like in the summer. Plus, it's more beautiful and your hoop makes awesome pictures when ever you drop it.
