The 7th Annual Lovely Rita Fundraiser

Well, we did it again.  Twirly Girls Pole Fitness hosted the 7th Annual Lovely Rita Fundraiser to benefit the National Kidney Foundation.  Our very own Rita has had three kidney transplants and Bel has hosted this event every year to help support Rita and to fund research to help people have healthy kidneys.

I performed a routine choreographed by Pole Dance Reunion with Jade, Alana and Katie.  These ladies are another reminder of the importance of sisterhood.  We had a great time getting together to practice and actually have our next two routines sketched out.

Each year, we have an issue in the studio at this event.  The toilet has flooded.  The AC has gone out.  The stereo has broken.  This year, it was the lights.  They kept going into strobe mode.  After two false starts, we finally got the green light, no pun intended.  Although it certainly wasn't my strongest performance of this routine, I am still mostly happy with how it turned out.

If you would like to donate, please visit this link: http://donate.kidney.org/site/TR/Walk/NKFServingtheWest?px=1559560&pg=personal&fr_id=8163

And to watch our video, please do so below:



Be happy you can pee!  If you've had any kidney experiences you'd like to share, please do so below!

Trying out Cleo's Rock N Pole

Last week I posted a video and wanted to make sure I shared it here as well.  This month I'm trying out Cleo's Rock N Pole.  I don't have a pole at home but there are still tons of lessons for me!  If you want to join me, check out my video below.

My performance at Cowboy Wild's Pole-Tacular Birthday Extravaganza

This will be short and sweet.  Here's video of my performance at Robert's birthday (you can read more about the weekend HERE).  There is also the playlist of other performances.  Thank you to AJ for teaching us the choreography from the video!  And thank you so much to all of my back-up dancers!  Since I could barely remember the dance, I needed you!!! 

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It was a Timber Brown weekend!

When Robert aka Cowboy Wild decided to make his birthday party a benefit for Timber Brown's organization, Timber's Kids, we thought it would fun to invite him but figured it was a shot in the dark on whether he would have time to come out for it (or even want to...hello, we are virtual strangers asking him to fly out and perform on a promise that we are supporting his cause).  It never hurts to ask and this one paid off big time.

Timber's Kids is a charity that supports children who may have had rough childhoods and allows him to bring circus opportunities to them.  If you would like to support the cause, please donate HERE.  If you work for a school or other organization that would like to have Timber come out, please contact him. 

I first saw Timber perform at California Pole Dance Championships in 2011.  I was mostly only familiar with what I consider "traditional" pole dancers at the time, which consisted of female dancers.  Think Natasha Wang, Phoenix Kazree.  Beautiful dancers and athletic - yes, but they still were not doing anything like Timber was doing at the time.  CPDC was on stage poles that year and Timber blew my mind and probably almost knocked over the poles.  I interviewed him in my blog the same year.  [You can read that post HERE.]  Timber and I spoke on the phone before I sent him my questions and the one thing I took away was how sweet he was. 

Fast forward to Pole Expo 2013.  Timber was in the middle of his America's Got Talent ride and I finally got to meet him in person.  Sometimes I don't like meeting famous people.  I don't like to ruin my vision of them.  But again, I was very taken with what a nice person he was.  So when Robert wanted Timber at his birthday this year, I felt like we had nothing to lose by asking.  Timber not only came through but far-exceeded our expectations. 

Timber flew out last Friday and we went on an adventure in San Francisco.  We rode BART and Muni.  Timber climbed things.  Tall things.  [There was only one rule: he couldn't get arrested...death was fine, but handcuffs were not...until Sunday, that is!]  There were handstands in the Marina overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge.  We had cupcakes to celebrate Robert's birthday.  It was really a beautiful day (minus our sunburns).  That evening, Timber taught a private class at Twirly Girls and, after dinner for Robert's birthday, we went back to the studio for more fun on the pole. 

Timber brought a really fun new aparatus with him.  He has fashioned a chair to a spinning pole and the things he can do on it are pretty amazing.  The working title of the chair is Timber Brown's Pole Chair.  There is a patent pending.  Check out some play time at Twirly Girls:



I think one of the things I admire most about Timber is the intensity and the honesty in his performances.  It doesn't matter who is in that chair.  The eye contact is there and that person feels like they are the only person in the room.  I'm not sure Timber meant for his chair to be a lap dance tool but it sure did work out for Robert and his birthday!

Our fun continued on Sunday, as we returned to San Francisco to watch Robert's husband as Holotta Tymes in Sunday's A Drag at the Starlight Room.  We ate a delicious brunch and enjoyed the show from the front row.  We then went back to Walnut Creek, where we held Robert's birthday show to benefit Timber's Kids at Club 1220:  Cowboy Wild's Pole-Tacular Birthday Extravaganza.  You can keep an eye out on my YouTube channel for video of the performances, but I just couldn't wait to get Daisy's lap dance up for everyone to enjoy.  She donated $110 in order to enjoy this special performance up close and personal! 



In the end, over $1,800 was donated to Timber's Kids.  We are so touched that Timber was able to join us for the weekend and I'm so proud of how Robert is flourishing, both as a person and a pole dancer.  Thank you to every single person who made this weekend so amazing.  I can't wait to do it again! 

Check out a few photos from our adventures below:

Kate providing a lovely base for Timber's handstand

I caught him fair and square!!



Timber in SF -- to which a lady screamed: BE CAREFUL!



Timber in front of the Sir Francis Drake Hotel before brunch on Sunday



Hey, you're wearing my shirt!

Getting all up in Cassandra Cass

 

Holotta Tymes, Timber and Donna Sashay at the Starlight Room

Daisy enjoying Timber's awesome pole chair

Cake by Jessica!

Timber doing his thing

Another poletastic weekend.  Thank you to Robert and Dale for including me in the birthday celebrations, thank you to Kate for joining us this weekend, to AJ, Seanmichael, and all of the Twirly Girls.  To 1220.  To everyone who attended the show.  To everyone who participated in the show.  ESPECIALLY TO MY BACK-UP DANCERS!  And to Timber.  What an amazing soul.  I look forward to doing this again!  Until next time...keep twirling!  (Or twisting...that's for you, Steve!)

My Sasja Lee Weekend

I wrote about Sasja Lee, aka Sassy, over two years ago.  We bonded over In-N-Out on Facebook and we have been FB buddies ever since.  Last weekend, Sasja came to San Francisco to dance at Volare Variety and teach some workshops, so we got to hang out a little bit. 



Cast of Volare

Sasja has been tearing up the competition circuit this past year.  I watched her win California Pole Dance Championship last year and she has been pretty much winning every competition since.  I really don't know what she can't do.  I understand she won CPDC just days after being in a horrible car accident!  Beast mode.  Seriously. 

Anyway, after Volare, Sasja and SeanMichael rode back on BART with Rita and me, where they gave BART riders a thrilling public trans shoulder mount experience.  It was so funny!  I got photos but I guess video would have been better -- maybe next time!  It turned out that Sasja was eager to ride BART after reading on Facebook about some of my "awesome" experiences. 

shoulder mount on BART

The next morning, Sasja did two workshops at Twirly Girls.  I pretty much judge my workshop experience based on how an instructor treats me after the class has advanced beyond my skills (which will happen in most workshops and I am okay with it).  We were learning a little routine.  After she taught each piece, Sasja would come around and watch each of us do the move.  We finally got to a point where you would invert, pike, then go into superman.  I giggled.  Time for me to check out!  So she gets to my pole and she says, your turn!  I said, yeah right.  She goes, no seriously, try it!  So I went to get my woody band seat belt and I got myself upside down.  She says, now let go and grab above your leg.  I said, you're crazy.  She said she's heard that before.  HA!  Look, once I'm upside down, I need all my arms and legs to hold on for dear life.  I'm not ready to let go yet.  I really, really appreciated her continuing to include me in the class, and I feel like I learned so much even once the routine was more advanced than I could do.  I really do appreciate those instructors who continue to include me even though I can't do all the moves.  It is a small effort and makes a dancer who struggles with moves like I do feel like I am still part of class.  I still got some pretty awesome bruises that I've been proudly showing off to anyone who will look. 

That being said, for the last 20 minutes, I did just go to the back room and start stretching.  Perhaps a brutal yoga class right before a 90 minute Sasja Lee workshop wasn't my best choice that day! 

I really wish I had been able to spend more time with Sasja during her trip.  I swear, I'm going to win the lottery someday and just start hanging out with these cool people who have such interesting lives!

Have you ever taken a workshop with Sasja?  Tell me about it in the comments section!

Covering up Sasja's amazing arms

Getting ready for the BART shoulder mount

Our class

My tiny sister

 

That's me!!!  This bruise is the most fantastic!

Pole Strength: More Woody Band Exercises

I made a couple of new videos about how to use iron woody bands for pole strengthening exercises.  Check them out.  One is a pole-up to the side of the pole and the other is a push-up on the ground.  Let me know what you think, and if you have any requests, leave a comment.  Thanks!

June 2014 Blog Hop: Body Awareness

For this month's blog hop, we are talking about body consciousness.  The official title is: The Body is Art.  We could consider questions such as "how do we honor our bodies?"  Or, "Tell the story of your body."  I feel like many of you know the story of my body, so I decided to choose this subtopic:

How has being a poler, aerial artist or athlete contributed to your awareness of your body? Are you more critical or satisfied with your body? Are you more in tuned with your body?

Oh I am very aware of my body.  I'm aware of the rolls that hang over my pants.  My thighs that spread wider than I'd like.  My chins that occasionally double up on me.  My arms that sag despite surgical intervention.  My boobs that are a little too large and low for my liking.  Yeah, I have some crazy body awareness.  I'm aware that I don't like my body much.  At the same time, I so appreciate the things it does for me.  It carries me everywhere I need to go, even when I'm in pain.  It lets me dance and do yoga.  It lets me ride a bike.  It lets me swim.  I might grump about my body, and my body may hurt sometimes (thanks to my abuse) but it still gets me to all the places I need to show up.  So I appreciate it for that.  

This is such a funny topic for me.  I am very weird about my body.  On one hand, I hide my body.  I tug at my shirt to cover my fat, even though a lot of my fat was surgically cut off years ago.  On the other hand, I put on tiny shorts on a very regular basis and dance around, often posting photos and videos to public websites.  How does that work?!

See?  I'm so shy!

I've always been a walking contradiction.  When I was at my highest weight and started getting shy about going out in public, I started working with a local band and forcing myself to go out and deal with my new-found phobia.  I had an amazing boss early in my career who always told me "the worst someone can do is say no."  They aren't going to kill me or fire me, as long as I'm asking for something reasonable.  So I've kind of applied that to my entire life.  Even when I really, really don't want to do something, I just force myself to do it.  What's the worst that can happen?  Someone doesn't like me?  Ok.  Whatever.  It gives me an air of confidence that I don't actually have.  I still go home at night wondering if people like me.

I feel that pole dancing has furthered that attitude.  Sure, I am very self-conscious about my appearance and my lack of ability to dance extremely well or do tricks.  But I still do all the shows at Twirly Girls.  I make an effort to create an interesting routine so (most) people aren't wishing I would hurry up and get off stage. I fully realize I am not putting on the most amazing routine of the night.  But still, I do it.

I can't tell you how many times I've been stopped while cosplaying as Candy of Chunky Girl Comics.  Women generally in awe that I would walk around in such small shorts.  Always telling me how much they admire me for being brave.  I guess I'm supposed to be more self-conscious about my thunder thighs.  Oh well.  I guess I always figured if I faked confidence and self-esteem, it might actually happen for me.  Fake it til you make it, right?  It must be working because people are often surprised when I say I struggle with self-esteem issues. 

I recently played around at Twirly Girls and put a video of some of my moves together (still not back to free dancing a full song well).  I am frustrated because I have lists of combos I want to try but when the music starts, I freeze.  So, rather than continuing to talk about my body, I'm going to let you watch my larger-than-average body twirling around the pole and writhing on the floor.  It's my body, and I'll do what I want with it.  If you don't like, look away.  That's my attitude!

The Fairytale of Bodybinds and the Plus-Sized Pole Princess

As some of you may remember, the PDBA recently struck a deal with Bodybinds to write some lifestyle blogs.  Lifestyle meaning, we don't have to just write about pole, we can write about everyday life.  Most of us have multi-faceted lives, so of course, we don't only read pole blogs.  My first blog for Bodybinds, in fact, will be about the benefits of yoga. 

Anyway, I had never worn Bodybinds.  I don't exactly have the body type you might typically find wearing something like Bodybinds.  As part of our deal, we had the opportunity to order loner items so that we could try out the product and feel like we connected more and understood the company for which we would be writing.  I had checked out the website and saw that the maximum stretch on the one size fits "all" (or most) items would still barely fit me.  I was worried about destroying the loaner.  I just resigned myself to the fact that I would probably blow the seams out and would just reimburse her for the product and be okay with that embarrassing little experience.  I also talked myself into not being able to wear the product properly as the elastic would just cut into my fat rolls, and no one really wants to outline fat rolls.  But this was business and I was going to give Bodybinds a fair review.  Jackie, the owner, had asked us for measurements.  I casually threw mine over to her, fully expecting her response to be, "sorry, we don't have anything for you."  I ordered the "safest" item I could possibly order -- and only the top because I figured the bottoms wouldn't work for me. 

How wrong I was.

When my beautiful little red Bodybinds bag showed up, I was hesitant but excited.  I pulled out the hot pink Michelle Bondage Bikini Top and immediately put it on over my shirt.  I was confused for a second, then I got really excited.  This was clearly custom made to fit my larger than average sized body!  I e-mailed Jackie and asked her if she had custom-made the top for me.  She confirmed she had.  I was over the moon, and I excitedly set up my photoshoot for the following Saturday.

I truly do believe that a picture is worth a thousand words, so I would rather post photos than explain my dance session.  First off, these are not professionally taken or edited photos (as evidenced by my cellulite and the off-balance coloring).  This is a girl and her camera alone in a studio.  I just wanted to dance around and see how the top fared.  I danced for almost an hour and let the camera roll.  I got tired and sweaty, but the top stayed in place.  Since it was made in a larger size, it didn't cut into my fat rolls, and it was extremely comfortable to wear.  My only regret was that I didn't order the bottoms or go crazy and order one of the other items my sad little mind told me I was too big to wear.  So enjoy my photo journal and if you are considering Bodybinds, please do contact Jackie and talk to her about your body concerns so she can put your mind at ease and help you choose the perfect Bodybinds outfit for you!

December 2013 Blog Hop: Best of 2013...

I have been avoiding this blog hop, mostly because I didn't know if I had a bunch of things I loved about 2013.  Did I love my foot being injured and having surgery and losing strength and gaining weight and feeling crappy?  Not really.  But when I look back, I really didn't have a terrible year.  So, I thought I would go through my posts for the year and pick some of my favorites to re-share with those of you who may be new or may have missed them.   While I will discuss some posts at length, others I will just list so you can decide if you want to read them or not. 

Random stuff about me:

I posted in January about sweating and magnesium.  Sweating is still an issue for me.  I sweat from my head, which can be gross when flipping around wet hair, and I can't run my hands through my hair otherwise I will slip on the pole.  It's not super sexy.  My hands and body, however, are generally overly dry.  I have Dew Point for my legs and Mighty Grip for my hands.  Just to make life interesting, if I flip over in some way, into a handstand or inversion, my body suddenly gets nervous, and then my legs will sweat.  It's super awesome to be a pole dancer with these weird problems.  I have been taking magnesium this year and I feel like some days it helps and some days it doesn't.  I have contemplated taking medication to help with hyperhydrosis, but am worried that it would cause more issues in my body NOT to sweat (we sweat for a reason!).  If you have any tips on this issue, I would very, very much appreciate it.


My foot injury made its debut in February.  

The mini documentary about me and pole dancing!

I joined UPA's Sexy Back Week.  Kinda.

Twirly Girls on TV! No really, we were on TV!

Defining myself in the pole industry.

Blog Hops:

My very first pole post for 2013 was a PDBA Blog Hop!  It was listing pole goals.  Did I hit my goals?  Yes and no.  I was on track until my foot derailed me.  Not only could I not take a class each week, I couldn't even teach my own class for a couple of months this year.  It has been a very frustrating year in the physicality department and I am very much looking forward to setting (and attaining) the same pole goals in 2014 that I set for 2013:  Take a weekly class, work on flow and get stronger.  I have not yet made it back to taking a weekly class on top of teaching my weekly class, but that is on the list for January.  I also feel like taking workshops with Tracee Kafer helped reignite my desire to dance again.  And I have been a beast at yoga so I am already feeling muscles in my arms and legs again.  I got this.  I know it.   (I later updated old pole goals with photos but haven't progressed in any.)

The February Blog Hop discussed our love of pole.  

The March Blog Hop was about pole products.

The April Blog Hop was about PPC.

The May Blog Hop:  Questions for a Pole Dancer.

June Blog Hop:  Things I wish I had known when I started dancing...

The July Blog Hop is about a day in the life of a pole dancer. 

The August Blog Hop is all about social media.

Perfect timing for the September Blog Hop.  We talked about wellness.

October Blog Hop...I had to do two!  First up:  stripping the stripper out of pole.  Second up:  the sanitization of pole.

November Blog Hop:  Gratitude.

From a business perspective:  

Music in the Pole Studio.  

How much does it cost to run a pole studio?  

How much does it cost to put on a pole show?

Pole in General:

If you share a pole at your studio, how do you find your grease-mate?  

I posted about Derby Skinz shorts in January as well.  Still my favorites because they are fully customizable!  I think I have three different pair now and I love them all for different reasons. 

Do you train on both sides?

Twisted Grip?

Pioneer of Pole:  Anna Grundstrom.

As I watch all of us age and get injuries, I wondered...how many years can you pole dance anyway? 

For those who have never pole danced.

Pole dance is for everyBODY.

The History of Pole Dance, Part Three.

Discussing the crazy complex moves people are doing in pole lately...

Poletry in Motion - visiting other studios, pole events and/or meeting pole friends:

Studio Botan in San Francisco.

Entangle & Sway in San Francisco.

Nadia Sharif rocks!

Pole Expo.

Meeting Angela of Ascending Slowly.

Aeriform Arts in Hollywood.

Poletential's 7th anniversary.

California Pole Dance Championship in Los Angeles.

Roz the Diva.  Nothing else needs to be said.

Kitty Kats' Korner in Vacaville, California.

Kinetic Arts Center in Oakland.

BadAzz.

Volare Variety, a burlesque show in San Francisco.

Cowboy Wild's Un-Pole-Lievable Pole Show in Walnut Creek, California.

So, did I REALLY just list every pole post I made in 2013?  Shockingly, no.  But I did list most of them.  You know why?  Because every single thing I do in the pole world makes me happy.  These are a lot of the awesome things that happened to me in 2013, and this post serves as a reminder to myself that I am blessed.  

I feel very fortunate to surround myself with a lot of amazing people.  I am so happy to be part of the Pole Dancing Bloggers Association.  Valentina, Sheena and Nina (ummm, do all of your names rhyme and I JUST figured that out?!) are awesome at pushing me into being more aware of myself and my writing and I am so happy to have been invited to be on the Board.  I didn't list any of my posts here, but I am grateful to be a writer for Vertical Art and Fitness Magazine, and although I haven't been asked to do a post in awhile, I appreciate that The Pole Dancing Shop gave me writing projects for a very long time.  Non-pole related appreciations include joining the Chunky Girl Comics family this year and having a job to pay for all of my adventures.   

Thank you to everyone who was part of my 2013 and I look forward to what 2014 has in store for me!  Please share your highlights for this past year in the comments section below.   

The Un-Pole-Lievable Show ROCKED!

If you missed Cowboy Wild's Un-Pole-Lievable Pole Show on November 30, I wanted to post videos and photos from some of the performances.  Check them out below.  Thank you to Liquidpulp Photography for coming back to the Bay Area and taking photos! 

Also, mark your calendar....Cowboy Wild's Good Old-Fashioned Pole-Down to benefit AIDS LifeCycle will be held on Saturday, February 1, 2014 at Club 1220.  All money raised will benefit Robert aka Cowboy Wild's AIDS LifeCycle ride!  If you are a local business or pole company that has gift certificates or items you would like to donate for the raffle, please let me know.  THANKS!