Rubbish@Bloggery!

Hello world :)

Ok, so i am obviously rubbish at this blogging thing, but i have no shame and no apology for my half arsed bloggery. I have not posted since returning from India (about 3 months ago or something)

 You may have wondered if i had got lost in the desert and been eaten by tigers and pecked at by hungry birds or if i made it back to the uk at all.... probably not though and since i have returned to the blog it is clear that i am alive and well and back in my chair in lovely sunny (ahem...cough) England.

I got fed up with the slooooow internet speeds and ancient PC's in Indian internet cafes and basically gave up with trying to post things online.

Since returning to England, I have performed loads, taught loads and other than that i have mostly been sat my chair in my home office, working on stuff and promoting various things....webshite building...stuff and things.

I found this on my keydrive, It's a blog i had begun to write in India but never got round to finishing or posting. so here it is in it's raw, unfinished, unedited form:

'Monday morning we had our final rehearsal for the Odissi performance, the costumes had only arrived 2 days before the performance and my costume at this point was with the tailor having major surgery due to a 2 sizes too small issue. The tailor performed a miracle by 1pm it was good to go and fit perfectly. So a big thank you to the tailor in Pushkar who fixed my costume and saved the day!
We spent around 4 hours getting ready for the show, much make up and hair to be done. Whilst we were in the dance school getting ready a monkey snuck in and tried to steal some flowers, I was quite enthusiastic about the monkey joining us but i can see how it may have been impractical since monkeys are not best known for their make-up technique at least not as far as im aware.
After some photo opportunities and an interview for the dvd, we all got covered in alter (bright red paint stuff) which is meant to be painted on the finger tips and circles on the hands and then also the toes and sides of the feet, unfortunately I am rather like a 5 year old especially in terms of being messy and getting covered in paint on my hands looked like I had been finger painting.
Before the performance we waited in a small room at the back of the stage, trying to keep our garuga (ankle bells) from jangling too much and all very excited and slightly nervous in anticipation. After some meditation followed by lots of good lucks and blowing kisses at each other (and me getting a mouthful of flower petals which were for the offering...I was trying to stop them from falling out of my hands...with my mouth, our teacher Sudansu yelled "No No! flower not for eating!" hahaha)
Then it was time for us to make our entrance on to the stage.
The live musicians came from Orissa and included a famous Odissi singer who we were given the rare opportunity to take an Odissi music theory and singing workshop with yesterday which was amazing, she is a beautiful and inspiring lady!
...back to the performance....
We began our choreography, 18 of us, dressed in beautiful red Odissi costume and silver jewelry, all smiling from ear to ear, the stage lights were so bright it was impossible to see past the front of the stage. Then 10 minutes or so later it was over, we were all completely ecstatic, the hours of hard work and often not having a clue what was going on during the rehearsals, all paid off.
The audience was a couple of thousand, the temple grounds were full and people were stood on nearby roof tops watching the performance. This was definitely one of the most incredible experiences of my life so far :) Thank you to all the gorgeous ladies who I had the pleasure of sharing this with! and to our wonderful teachers for sharing their time and knowledge!'

... That's as far as I got with the India blog.

Right anyway, as i was saying...

I am rubbish at blogging because writing journals or keeping logs (not the made of tree kind) 

keeping diarys or anything like that does NOT come naturally to me. 

I do like to have things thoroughly organised into files/boxes/folders and files within folders and boxes in boxes etc.... but writing a blog does not feel like something I can organise or tidy up and therefore I am rubbish at it. The files on my MAC (yes mac not PC) are so organised, you might say I am a little OCD and you wouldn't be far wrong, in fact, if I wasn't narcoleptic I would be putting much more time into obsessively organising things.

Unfortunately being eternally tired does not allow for such behavior and although my computer files are in perfect order, my bedroom floor, like some other areas in my life are not so in order....however

Being terribly stubborn I am not one to give up on a task no matter how long it may take to conclude, (especially if I want to prove a point or do the opposite of what everyone expected me to do....)

I will soldier on with this bloggery.

This afternoon I got my backside into our studio to record BDUK.TV podcast number II 

with the fabulous and slightly mintol Maz and Shani of Lapis Lazuli as my guests. 

I am now getting ready to perform at The Castle of Delights this evening....

that is a blatant lie, I am obviously sat typing, but I will be doing that shortly after this...

BDUK.TV Podcast II will be available to listen to, if all goes to plan

hopefully by the end of this weekend.

so keep your pies eeld ... or your eyes peeled & Watch this Spaz Space

Catch you later Bill & Ted  ;)

READ PREVIOUS BLOGS HERE!

http://bduktv.blogspot.com/

LISTEN TO THE FIRST BDUK.TV PODCAST HERE!

http://bduktvpodcast.blogspot.com/

JOIN THE NTB FACEBOOK PAGE !
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=152615831439693

Still monkeying around in Pushkar

Hello, Just checking in with the world. I have been doing little other than dancing, eating and sleeping.
Our group is preparing for our Odissi performance so we are now focusing on the choreography.
Half the group has been here since January and the rest of us are the 'new girls' and basically we have to get up to standard in very little time. To be honest I am struggling, I am a long way from home, alone and it's my first time in India, dancing a style I have never studied before and we are now starting stepping class at 8am then we have 2 choreo practices, one from 12pm till 2pm then in the evening from 6 till as late as 10pm sometimes and I am trying to balance all this with being narcoleptic. Thankfully Colleena is very lovely and understanding as are the other girls. I am having to skip stepping class to save myself for practice. It is just not realistic for me to attempt to take the amount of medication required to get through a day starting at 8am till 10pm. It is difficult because I am surrounded by a world of people that believe in treating all ailments with natural methods, and I am all down with that totally but there are some things (ie, serious brain disorders) that can't be treated with plants and massages, although if anyone wants to give me a massage or indeed a plant (not of the smoking sort of course, that would be somewhat counterproductive) i would happily accept. The thing is, I may look normal (this is debatable) most of the time but out in public, what you are seeing is someone who has taken 3 different types of pills just to get my eyes to open and my legs to work in the first place. I don't appear to be ill most of the time, I am an expert at disguising it and no one really notices how many pills I am popping. I must point out though, I choose to go without them wherever possible, I am not best pleased about being reliant on meds for life, but I accepted long ago that to do the things I want to do, with having this condition, I simply cannot do them without taking the meds. If I were to make a video of me not taking them for one weekend, you would see a very different person. Not pretty at all and not much use to anyone, in fact I woudn't even be able to bathe or cook for myself without supervision, because the Cataplexy (the paralysis, a symptom everyone forgets about other than the one where I am rather sleepy a lot ) would be so severe I would be very likely to either drown in the bath or burn the house down or scald myself whilst attempting to cook. I live with this, I don't complain, I am happy with my life and where I am but sometimes I wish people could see it for a moment, just so they would stop before suggesting I might try an alternative method. I don't really expect people to understand or have a clue about what goes on with being narcoleptic as much as I don't understand what it is like to have any other illness but sometimes i find, the fact that I mince around pretending to be normal, doing super normal things and far more than the average person, kind of makes it even more difficult for people to imagine I am anything other than the super me I often appear to be when actually I am just a very very tired person in a busy persons body.
anyway, got that out of my system. Better head to class now. Ciao x

Hello world, update from me, in Pushkar, India

Hello world, I am still alive and well in Pushkar, India.
Been having wi-fi issues & hate using other peoples computers & internet cafes but i have finally given in. Also, bad men tried to use my credit card details so it has been canceled
I am being bailed out as usual...(thank you!)
Pushkar is amazing though, I love it I think I might not bother moving into the Amber Fort in Jaipur
(as i mentioned in a recent facebook update for those of you who don't chase me around in cyberspace and this was before I disappeared and had the longest time away from a computer in around ten years)
anyway, there is a nice looking palace type building I have my eye on, perfect for my rein as Emperor.
Having decided Jaipur was a little too big and noisy I opted for Pushkar, a much smaller Empire, still fairly noisy but mostly just dogs barking and the odd bell ringing. The property is much more modern and smaller than Amber Fort too and needs a lot less work structurally. I got the welcome to India sickness the other day but fought it off with magic bottled water and Olympic bathroom technique...this is a nice way of putting it!
I am really enjoying the Odissi dance course at Colleena Shakti's school, it is very very demanding but the hard work is so worth it! I feel like a total beginner again which is a very strange feeling as I am used to being a teacher but i suppose it is good for me to be in that position again. It is an incredible thing to study though and I really can't describe it in words so I won't even try to. The girls on the course are all super lovely and we are all practicing together and helping each other to learn. I am very excited to be performing at the temple dance festival on the 28th Jan. If any one is in Rajasthan, get on a bus to Pushkar and come along, It is totally free and will be an amazing show!!!
(see how I plugged the show there, hehe)
Lastly, I just need to mention my next ATS class term will be happening again when I return at the end of March. If anyone is interested in signing up for the next Tribal Basics and Beyond Tribal Basics, info is on the website and please tell all your friends and direct them to
www.nottinghamtribalbellydance.co.uk
Right, I am off to go watch some Kalbelia gypsy dancing at another hotel so signing off again now.

Love and Monkeys from
The very small but very easy to move around, brand new up and coming Emperor of Pushkar
(good title yes?)

Music by meee

6-4-7 by Blenim Dove

What They Never Told You by Blenim Dove

CouchSurfing Bellydancers

Hello
I would like to invite you to join my couchsurfing Belly dancers group.
CouchSurfing Bellydancers UK
If you are not aware of couchsurfing, it is a wonderful worldwide community 
of travelers who share hospitality with one another. I have hosted many CS'ers
and have so far couchsurfed in the UK and in California, all of my experiences have been very positive and I recommend couchsurfing as a wonderful way to travel and meet new people.
If you are unable to spare a couch, you are not obliged to host.
When arriving in a new city, many people are just looking for someone to connect with over a coffee and chat or have a local tour  There are active CS communities in most major cities worldwide and they have numerous groups and plenty of activities and events going on. In terms of Belly dance, with all the events and workshops we go to, it isn't always easy to find a suitable place to stay and hotels can be very expensive. I want to encourage the belly dance community to be involved in the couchsurfing community. When there are events taking place in your area, why not offer up your couches/spare rooms/floors, and also use this website as a tool for connecting with other dancers who are going to the same events, instead of ten people traveling from the same area in different cars, why not car share, saving on money and reducing the carbon footprint. Please spread the word and get your friends and fellow dancers to join the CS group. 

CouchSurfing Bellydancers UK

What is CouchSurfing?

CouchSurfing is an international non-profit network that connects travelers with locals in over 230 countries and territories around the world. Since 2004, members have been using our system to come together for cultural exchange, friendship, and learning experiences. Today, over a million people who might otherwise never meet are able to share hospitality and cultural understanding.

Our mission as an organization is to create inspiring experiences: cross-cultural encounters that are fun, engaging, and illuminating. These experiences take many forms. CouchSurfing's initial focus was on hosting and "surfing" (staying with a local as a guest in their home). Alongside these core experiences, we now also facilitate a growing array of activities and events.

We have a vision of a world where everyone can explore and create meaningful connections with the people and places they encounter. Each CouchSurfing experience shared by our members brings us closer to that vision.

How does CouchSurfing work?

CouchSurfing members share hospitality with one another. These exchanges are a uniquely rich form of cultural interaction. Hosts have the opportunity to meet people from all over the world without leaving home. "Surfers," or travelers, are able to participate in the local life of the places they visit. We also give more people the chance to become travelers, because "surfing" lowers the financial cost of exploration.

The CouchSurfing community continues to expand its horizons. Members are always finding more ways to connect and learn about each other. Every day, people across the world share coffee, camping trips, meetings, language exchanges, discussions and all sorts of other experiences.

Yalla yalla YIP!!!!

Hello, finally decided to start a blog. I will be using this blog to talk about my adventures in Belly dance and to connect with other dancers around the globe, to promote events and workshops, music, costume and other resources. 


So, who the hell am i anyway? well, I am Beatrice Flowers, I am a Belly dance teacher and performer based in Nottingham, UK. I am director of Nottingham Tribal Belly Dance, we are a Fat Chance Belly Dance sister studio and specialise in FCBD ATS instruction. NTB began in early 2009 after I completed my FCBD general skills and teacher training in San Francisco.


I also teach and perform fusion dance, my style is heavily influenced by classical and contemporary dance which I trained in for many years beginning in my early childhood. Unfortunately I had to give up dancing for a long time after developing a neurological disorder, I was diagnosed with narcolepsy at the age of 12 after five years of severe unmedicated excessive daytime sleepiness, paralysis, hallucinations and various other nasty things that affected me through every hour of every day.


Although I studied dance and choreography and college, I never really felt I could fit in, so during my teens I pursued a career in music, keeping dance closely at my side, but never really able to have dance in my life the way it had been previously. It wasn't until I was in my early twenties that I was able to really dance again, this was mainly because one of my symptoms caused my muscles to go in to paralysis and a dancer that at any given moment can turn into to a blob of Jelly on the floor isn't really ideal, not to mention a dancer who is constantly falling asleep even on her feet! 
It was the decision to try a medication to treat this particular symptom that allowed me to remain standing without turning into a jelly. So, the new jelly free me began taking bellydance classes, soon discovered Tribal Belly dance, became obsessed and the rest is history. 


I never imagined I would be a teacher, but doors kept opening and I just go wherever the wind takes me, and It brought me here, so I want to share all these amazing experiences and my knowledge with everyone I meet along the way. 
The crappy void in my life that came from having to give up dance all those years before, has been filled ten fold by Belly dance. I like to call Tribal Belly dance 'Ballet without the bullshit' It has the poise and posture and grace of Ballet without the damaging effects on ones body image and in Belly dance, we can truly be who we really are, no matter who we are, what we look like, and most importantly for me, even if I am perpetually tired. No one is telling me I am too short or that I cannot be a professional dancer with my illness. I am able to be the best I can because the belly dance community encourages  me and gives me the support I need to be confident enough to just go out there and do what i love most. 


anyway, I don't want to talk about my condition for this entire post. 
I want to talk about what exciting things I have planned for the end of this year and for 2011.
So, firstly,  Our upcoming podcast...


BDUK.TV, is a  Belly Dance production company that I co-run with my partner chauffeur extraordinaire Doug. We specialise in showreels, videography, photography and promotion for performers, our sister company is Unit24 productions which is a small independent music production company, we are not for profit and everything we do is to support fellow performers and musicians. BDUK.TV will be doing a brand new Belly Dance podcast which will feature interviews, event announcments, costume tips,  music reviews and much more. 
I don't  yet have a launch date for the podcast but I will announce it here as soon as It is ready for lift off. 
I will sign off here.... the old sleepy thing is beginning to creep in and cause my typing to make no sense! 


So for now, take care, I look forward to sharing the shimmies and spilling the beans... the tribal beans of course.
Love and undulations, Bea