Obligatory Promise to Blog

I have absolutely no doubt that among all the New Year’s Resolutions running rampant in this universe that somewhere among the top ten list is a promise to be more consistent with blogging. I’m not saying it tops the ‘lose weight’, ‘get new job’, ‘new relationship’ promises that always bubble up within each of us…I just want to acknowledge that I’m not the only one out there feeling the need to publicly make this promise.

I started my blog in September, feeling all fresh and rejuvenated from a summer hiatus from belly dancing. I had such grand aspirations, and a lovely list of topics to pull from. The problem I realize is that list…I have come to the conclusion that lists don’t work in blogging world. Why you ask? Well think about it. Blogs are supposed to be train of thought, on-line journaling…they should be spontaneous, sporadic, unrehearsed and certainly not planned out in a systematic fashion. Hence my downfall.

So, I decided to look for inspiration and found it in a couple of sources. First, in several blogs that are well maintained by friends. Wow, I admire their tenacity and dedication…and my competitive side also says if they can do…I can do it more often and better, right????? The second came from a simple Google search. Being the ultimate researcher that I am, I thought I would go look for some tips and tools to help out. (Side note, I really am good at finding things on the Internet…I have even had librarians call me to help locate information).

What I found was actually a little scary and has now sent me scampering to start blogging again. These are the highlights from the article.

1. It’s easy to start a blog. But effort and consistency are required to
   maintain one.
2. After starting it, a blog wants to be maintained. It wants fresh posts or articles. It wants it often. And not just anything will do; it wants things people like to read.
3. Without fresh content, a blog gets stale. It whithers. It becomes another statistic.

My thoughts? Well , it turns out I am one of their statistics! Apparently, 66% of blogs (out of over 4 million reviewed) had not been updated in two months and that over a million were one-day wonders. Wow, I last posted in October…but at least, I lasted more than one day!

So, here we go again…I’m letting go of the need to write well planned articles complete with appropriate links and photos and just use train of thought. With any luck, I’ll have something very soon for everyone to look at and a whole semester’s worth of fabulous belly dancing tidbits to enjoy!

Breakin' Boards for Belly Dance?

Okay, so I have to first apologize for the length of time between my last post and this one. It's not that I don't have things to write about (I actually have a lovely list of topics); it's that I probably have too many things to write about, and haven’t spent the time to sit and write. I do promise to catch everyone up, and share all sorts of belly dance goodies; however, for this post...we're going to take a little detour. Now, you may be wondering what boards and belly dance have to do with each other, but sit tight and I'll explain.

You see, last week I broke a board with my bare hand for the second time in my life (and no, I don't have a problem with anger management). The first time was a terrifying, overwhelming experience laced with the very real fear (in my mind at least) of breaking my hand. I consider myself to be fairly tough, but let's be realistic...compare your hand with all its little bones to a very solid looking 3/4" pine board, and you'll understand my trepidation. (As a side note, Sherry, the Engineer in our troupe told me afterwards that the bending strength of that board was between 900 and 1500 pounds per square inch, yikes!)

It actually took me several tries and lots of reassurance to crack that puppy, but I did it for the first time last December and the photo is my memento of the event. In fact, I still have a hard time believing I actually did it! I broke that board, not because I was testing for some martial arts belt exam or even just trying to show off my fabulous punches (which by the way, are much less girly than they used to be). The whole board breaking process was an exercise in understanding how our mind creates obstacles, and if we can trust our bodies to be in proper alignment, grounded and centered than one punch is all it takes to split that board.

Now, I don't encourage anyone to actually attempt this without proper supervision and training (hint...use a really well trained martial arts instructor) but there are some great lessons to learn that do apply to belly dance.

Both dancing and martial arts require you to be grounded, centered, aligned, relaxed and resilient. If you’re lucky you have the experience of feeling totally alive and connected with your body and your surroundings while dancing or moving through a form. It’s when the music resonates within your body, your movements and motions are simply the expression of those beats and that energy, and you just surrender to the moment and dance. The audience and the stage simply melt away, there are no distractions or hesitations, and you feel 100% present to the moment.

Martial arts’ training focuses on being present to the sensations of your body, and connecting. In dancing we often spend a great deal of time focusing on technique or movement or speed, but sometimes we forget about the intention, the feeling, the movement and the utter joy. When I learned that I would have to break another board last week, there was no anxiety, fear or trepidation. Just like the familiar feeling when the music and your movements melt together, the notion of slamming my palm into the board seemed very matter of fact (although I still needed expert supervision).

And the lesson learned? For me, it is practicing the basics, your fundamentals, the core of your movement whether it is dance or martial arts. Beyond that practice, you have to let go, surrender, release, and trust. So, I encourage all of you who dance (or those who just watch) to allow yourselves to be present to the moment, let go of fears and anxieties, relax, connect and above all else…breathe.

By the way, if you want to see more martial arts and belly dance, come watch our show this Thursday. We have live music with Sonya and Belaharr, lot's of fabulous dancing, and I'll be trying to practice what I'm preaching here (wish me luck!)

So, Just How Exclusive is "Exclusive"?

According to Webster's dictionary, the word exclusive has many meanings, among them:

• fashionable; stylish: to patronize only the most exclusive designers
• admitting only members of a socially restricted or very carefully selected group: an exclusive club
• shutting out all others from a part or share: an exclusive right to film the novel
• disposed to resist the admission of outsiders to association, intimacy, etc.: an exclusive circle of intimate friends

Now, I admit that I do think you have to be in a very special group to know about Mirage shows, and the entire Mirage experience...but really all we want is for everyone to share in this part of Austin's belly dance tradition. If you didn't know, this is the longest running venue in Austin, in Texas and I suspect...in the nation, and we want to keep it that way! Now I know belly dancers (their fans, and significant others) were a little worn out after the "Year and a Day" show but next time, pace yourselves, rest up, pack snacks and make sure you work in time for a Mirage show.

Why you ask? Well, you missed (with the exception of our exclusive audience last week) a really fun and exciting show, and the debut of our beautiful new stage back drop. Now, I may be a little biased because I had the chance to work on this beatiful stage, the reality is that women always want to show off something new in our wardrobe...and to everyone we can find. Now, if it include pretty colors and sparkles..watch out! The ooohs and ahhs are always appreciated, and we just needed to hear more of them!

The idea behind the colors came from Katarina who liked the idea of blending spice colors and indian influences for our new website. Although many dancers choose a traditional cabaret or raks sharqi style, the truth is we have an equal number of dancers who perform on our stage that prefer tribal, fusion or just plain 'ole American (or is it Austin?) style belly dance. So, when I was shopping for ideas this summer, and consulting with Sherry and her 'secret stash of saris'...blending the colors and using saris to create a "harem-like" effect seemed to be the perfect solution.

We're thrilled by the new look, and how extra-beautiful (and stunning) everyone looks on stage. And like most women, we have plans to make some additions to the new 'wardrobe'. So, mark your calendars for our September 20 show, come see for yourself...and help us redefine the word "exclusive"!

(P.S. You can see more photos from the show on our website and our Myspace pages.)

Ready to shimmy again soon,

Najla

Are You a Socialist or a Belly Dancer?

Okay, if you believe that this question requires each of you to think about your own philosophical or ontological perspective of the world think again. If you know anything about the Mirage experience, it simply is a way to determine where you’re sitting at Ruby’s BBQ after the show. I know, belly dancing and barbeque seem like an odd combination and quite honestly I don’t know how it all got started, but its part of the tradition of our Thursday night shows.

My memories of Ruby’s BBQ actually date to before it was Ruby’s, and was a little place called Fajita Flats. If you look carefully at the sign out front, the original name still remains. This was where I had my first real college experience of “hanging out” on campus. I was a senior in high school but had the opportunity to come visit UT for a weekend to get a feel for the dorm and university experience. I stayed at Kinsolving Dorm (which I later lived in) with a drill team friend name Kendra. She was the one who took me up the street (it seemed like such a long distance away) to a place that really did look like a hole in the wall (a little scary for such a suburban girl like myself) and introduced me to fajitas (no, they haven’t been around forever!). I really felt like I had the inside scoop on the college experience and while attending UT, I frequently visited the place, even after it became a BBQ joint.

The beauty of Ruby’s is that it hasn’t changed much over the last 20 years. And, unless you’re in the “cool’ crowd of belly dancers you wouldn’t know that every other Thursday in the fall and spring, groups of belly dancers and socialists gather together to share a bite of food, some stories and many laughs. Now, granted we do sit at separate tables…and you can usually tell us apart (the sparkles and glitter are a dead give away)…but nonetheless it feels like a group experience to me! For those of you who haven’t joined in the fun, just come to a show and come join us afterwards (they even have great vegetarian entrees) and see for yourself.

I'll see you soon

Najla (I can smell the brisket from here!)