At the beginning of September, I always feel like the new year is starting.  It’s back to school for many people – both kids and adults, and there’s a freshness to the air that just blows away the sweatiness of summer.
For the first week or two, though, I wait with anticipatory tension and hope to see which of my classes will run, who I’ll get to play with again, and what new adventures I’ll be embarking upon.  Now that I know the status of most of my classes, I can take a deep breath and get down to business. There’s still room on Thursday evenings from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. if you want to try bellydance 🙂

It’s been an interesting September though during the wait – creating 7 new dresses for Bollywood For Fun < 4 more to be made over the next couple of weeks as well>…learning a new routine taught by my co-founder of BFF, Eurika for Cine-Musique last night…

as well as reconnecting with the Luxe ladies for a brief stint of Alterations Specialist work…
And now, I feel I can start to focus on the other many things I’ve had to put aside for the moment while I was prepping for the “new year”.
While I am no longer chair of the OttawaBrowncoats, my company, TAV Creations, is a sponsor, and I will be there to support the charities, enjoy Serenity, and see the amazing costumes and great people who come out for this fun event.
I also took some time while on holidays in August to examine more ways I can be good to me, I’m actually pretty self- preservationist most of the time anyway, but I can easily get caught up in doing more than I can do without starting to twitch, so part of my new year’s resolutions involve taking some time for me and my little family every week.

And eventually, I’ll even start getting out to more events that are not directly related to my work/business/etc. and trying some new things – but one step at a time.
For now – let’s get this new year off to a mellow start:
http://vine.co/v/OadAxpTeUJu

 
’nuff said, right?
Oh – and go see Guardians of the Galaxy…just saying’…
See ya in September!

Friends of our are doing something awesome! Check and support if you can!!

This weekend, we had a yard sale, checked out the new apartment we’ll be moving to within the next 2 weeks and generally had a bit of an emotional  roller coaster time.
After 17 years in an “unusually large for the price” apartment, with access to a back yard that almost no one else ever used, it will be strange to start paying “market value rent”, for a place about ¾ the size of our present place, with a much smaller yard area and 5 other, fully occupied units.
It’s still an older building with “character”, it’s in our chosen area to live; due to the other aspects of our lives, it was most logical for us to stick around this area.
And it’s disconcerting, strange, and hard to always keep up the positive viewpoint since we really would not be moving if things were totally in our control.  But we did make the choice to move now, instead of waiting to see how bad it might get here with the new owners doing renovations upstairs.
And we have so many blessings that even with this small change in our lives, I am grateful for the offers of many friends to help us move – STOP ASKING US WHEN- WE’LL LET YOU KNOW AS SOON AS WE DO! 🙂
Downsizing, living more simply, letting go of excess, all such noble sentiments and I am doing my best to go with the positives of it.  Certainly, I am glad we were able to sell and give away a LOT of stuff yesterday and the few things I kept to sell online are items of value that someone will be willing to pay for – or wedding gifts !!
And there will be a grieving process that I will be going through as well. But I grieve privately, so while I am sure folks believe they are being supportive by making, “Aw, that’s too bad”  type of sentiments, it is not actually helpful.
I know you are all there to support us, if and when we need you.
THANK YOU.  YOU ARE APPRECIATED. But like anyone who has gone camping with me, worked an event with me, or generally been around me, I will ask when I need the help, but otherwise, as I’ve heard many friends say, “Stay  outta the way! It’s safer that way…”
We have a lot of changes still coming in our existence, so if you feel you want to be helpful, keep sending us work to help us pay the bills, “like” my silly Sprocket pictures, and occasionally, when we have time for it, we’ll be out there socializing and enjoying your awesome company.
Ok – personal time done !
Come see me dance Friday, July 25th at Summer Sizzle and if you don’t have a ticket, you can win one from me here!

Taken by me , July 9,2014 at Bordeleau park in Ottawa.

<sigh>
Here’s the thing.
I like information. I like finding it without having to ask for it.
I like searching for it and having it pop up on my computer screen, so that even if I have a small question for something I cannot seem to find answered in my digital search, I already am armed with most of what I need to know.
So… do unto others, right?
I set up online sources of information for my students, my dance colleagues that I work with, people who may be interested in hiring me for either dance functions or sewing related projects.  And while I may not get it updated immediately when something new comes into the knowledge base, I do try.
So… once all of this information is set up, I then provide links to it as best I can for anyone who may need that information.

And then I am surrounded by the most amazing human beings who keep bringing me back into this touchy- feely world of “call and response.”
They ask me questions in person …<HUH?!?>, and they tolerate my response of a dramatic head shaking, followed by, “There’s this link…”

And they are still my friends, and they still talk to me, even though I constantly try to get them to join me in my information revolution!
So, thanks, ladies for trying to connect with my human, imperfect, and ever so whack side!
 

So… What a conundrum. The blog post in question is entitled, “why I hate white belly dancers”. Notably it has a stock photo in it as opposed to an original shot.
I am one of those dancers who has studied for over 15 years, do my best to respect the dance’s origins by learning and relating the information I glean.
I find myself correcting people who equate the dance form with less family friendly forms of dance.
I try to make sure the non Arabic people who organize multi-cultural events I perform at clearly understand that “Bellydance” Baladi, Raks Sharky etc is not from India, but from Arabian countries.
Yes, I also have a stage name, and it helps me connect with my dancing in a professional capacity.
And I can see her points. But I live in a multicultural area that is continuing to become more multicultural all the time.
I just performed at an international women’s day event where I was joined on the dance floor by Muslim women, French Canadian women, Asian women, Aboriginal women and more. I was greeted with smiles and questions about my background and the type of dance I would be doing ( I chose to wear an Egyptian Baladi dress and danced with my zills and a tiny bit of veil work).
The Lebanese woman who joined me with grace and style, she was not offended by my being non Arabic. The Sudanese dancers who performed before me, stuck around and joined me as well, with glowing compliments.
So should I feel guilt and shame for the years I have spent learning, perfecting and sharing a dance form that I was not born into?
I don’t think I will take that on.
I do understand that there are a LOT of dancers out there who do just toss on a bra and hip belt and shake their thing.
And if the writer was targeting those dancers who are not taking at least some time to understand the basics, and are just going on their cuteness and sex appeal, well ok then.
Appropriation of other cultures is a serious matter. Disrespecting others is a serious matter. Ignorance is not an excuse.
The world is getting smaller every day. Learning another’s language is not wrong. Learning about other peoples cultures is not wrong.
Finding a balance is a constant journey, and there will always be juggling and shifting as we learn to enjoy our cultural differences with respect and joy.
But I have no interest in studying irish dance, which my cultural background should make me feel obliged to stick with, if I follow the writer’s advice.
So thanks Natasha for tagging me and making me think for a few minutes.
I am going to go back to my dog, my sewing, my family visiting, and generally being the best creative force I can be.