A working day today, but didn't need to leave the house til midday or after. So a slow start to the morning, but was ready in plenty of time with everything in the house packed up... and then it got darker and darker and the heavens opened. I rang my employers in Castleford and they said we'd be working inside the Bridge Arts building.
I got the 13.09 train and a sweet old nun sat next to me... Sister Rosemary from The Convent of the Good Shepherd in Manchester. She'd been visiting her family in York and was happy to chat. Lovely!
I got off at Leeds and had my sandwiches whilst waiting for the 2pm train to Castleford. Then it was only another 17 minutes on the train. It was raining in Castleford, but it was less than 10 minutes walk to the venue on Sagar Street. I got changed and was 'up and running' with my circus stuff by 1.50pm. There were several other stalls there... the ones I liked were
'Teddies for Tragedies', who knit little teddy bears to give to children in less than fortunate situations, and some historical re-creators called Time Tarts who were very friendly. I chap turned up with a bag of diabolos and proceeded to perform some absolutely amazing tricks, including with two diabolos on one string. 'GT' as he likes to be known did quite a bit of diaboloing, and I then did my little show... the tricks not nearly as sophisticated as his, but I make up little stories with mine and explain how the diabolo works... whereas he did his amazing tricks in silence. I was pleased he liked my act as much as he said he did. I offered to help him develop his entertainment a bit, and told him I was willing to give him info about Equity, insurance, advertising, risk assessments, how to ask for fees and more.
There were a steady stream of 'punters' wanting to try devilsticks, juggling, balancing, diabolo and the four wheeled and two wheeled unicycles, as well as have assorted balloon models. At one stage a group of people assembled on the new bridge (it had stopped raining) and I was invited to go out with them. The bridge is brilliant! It's an S shape horizontally and is for pedestrians and cyclists. It connects a residential area with the town so that the people don't have to go to a busy road bridge. I love it. (See a selection of images here)
I left Bridge Arts at about 5.50 and got to the station 2 minutes AFTER the 6.02 train had gone. Oh dear! So I sat and read and waited for the 6.57 to Leeds. A good quick change in Leeds and back in York surprisingly quickly. I decided to pop in to the St Nicks' social and BBQ for something to eat... I had several veg kebabs and rolls with 'Linda McCartney' in them (!) and two pints of organic cider...
Home before 10, and was able to confirm with my son that he does want to work at the Big Green Gathering so he can get in for free. He has to do 6 hours for me to get the cheque back. If he doesn't do the work, they cash the cheque! He seemed quite excited about being 'part of the festival' and gave me big hugs! I'm really looking forward to it... I need to get train tickets and a tent! My last tent disintegrated in terrible weather at last year's NGG. However, I have only had two tents in about 20 years... so it's not bad going!
Settled down to do emails and blog, and watched one of my favourite films 'It's All Gone Pete Tong' for a second time...
Showing posts with label diabolo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label diabolo. Show all posts
Friday, 3 July 2009
Thursday, 13 December 2007
Thursday 13th December 07
A really good day apart from a runny nose. I had been invited into school to do a lesson for year 4, my youngest son's class. So I signed in and arrived at the lines in the playground just before they went in. My 'lesson' started with an introduction as my lad's dad and told them I preferred to be known as John, not Mr Cossham, and that I was also called Professor Fiddlesticks when I was out earning my living.
I started with devilsticks, I love it when they all gasp with amazement when the stick goes up and it looks like it's done with magnets! I showed them how it worked with the centre line being a balance point and then how if it is balanced off-centre, it begins to fall down and it can be caught with the other stick, and it then starts to fall in the other direction. I then did the trick where I balance the stick on my nose (cries of 'awsome' and 'beautiful'!) and explained how this works, moving the base in the same direction that the top is starting to fall in. Then got a third of the class out to balance a peacock feather on their hand or finger for a few minutes, followed by the second third and then the final group.
Then moved from this easy skill to a more difficult one, juggling three balls. The children had been given homework before the weekend to make 3 balls from a filler (rice or other seeds) and three balloons per ball. I showed them my basic juggling skills and how the curved throw worked with the three forces (how much it is thrown vertically up, how hard it is thrown horizionally and how much gravity pulls it down. I then explained how they could learn, starting with one ball being thrown up with one hand and caught in the same hand, then to try that with the other hand. Then onto the 'rainbow shape' throw from one hand to the other, making sure that the catch was in a hand in front of their tummy or chest, and not reaching up to grab the ball or clutch it to their chest. The next stage is to spot the top (used the word 'apex') of the curve which shows the juggler when to throw the second ball, in the same 'rainbow' shape. I showed them the juggling pattern I didn't want them to do, which I call the 'schoolgirl pattern', which is a throw up with the same hand each time and a pass from the other hand into the throwing hand, a roughly circular shape. I knew quite a few of them would get stuck on this, and that relatively few would get to the 3 ball flash and the 3 ball cascade. I was delighted that one child did get the 3-ball flash, and others had seemingly got the idea at least. Th eteacher showed us his juggling prowess, slightly better than me. Then I finished off with a diabolo demonstration with my pet diabolo 'Derek'.
Then I went onto the next classroom, year 3, and they got a shorter demo, with devilstick, hands-on feather-balancing and the diabolo show. Finished at 11am, and was invited up to the staffroom. I had a conversation with a volunteer who is also a mum with children in our children's classes, and she was really happy and impressed with what Id just done. I don't think she'd seen my skills before. We also strayed into the subject of my recent diagnosis, and she said that she now felt she understood me a bit more now I was 'out' as having Aspergers Syndrome with Hyperactivity. She was really lovely and I felt warmed by her comments.
Gill was out in town when I got back, I went on the computer to do emails and after lunch did a stint if splitting logs with my hydraulic/electric splitter, as I have been unable to do these rounds from Woodlands with my axe, the wood is too tough. Some logs split really easily, these don't.
I brought the children home, my eldest was too tired to go to cubs. I, amazingly, fell asleep after tea... this is a rare event! Only for 30 minutes though, and woke to make the kids their supper and put them to bed.
I started with devilsticks, I love it when they all gasp with amazement when the stick goes up and it looks like it's done with magnets! I showed them how it worked with the centre line being a balance point and then how if it is balanced off-centre, it begins to fall down and it can be caught with the other stick, and it then starts to fall in the other direction. I then did the trick where I balance the stick on my nose (cries of 'awsome' and 'beautiful'!) and explained how this works, moving the base in the same direction that the top is starting to fall in. Then got a third of the class out to balance a peacock feather on their hand or finger for a few minutes, followed by the second third and then the final group.
Then moved from this easy skill to a more difficult one, juggling three balls. The children had been given homework before the weekend to make 3 balls from a filler (rice or other seeds) and three balloons per ball. I showed them my basic juggling skills and how the curved throw worked with the three forces (how much it is thrown vertically up, how hard it is thrown horizionally and how much gravity pulls it down. I then explained how they could learn, starting with one ball being thrown up with one hand and caught in the same hand, then to try that with the other hand. Then onto the 'rainbow shape' throw from one hand to the other, making sure that the catch was in a hand in front of their tummy or chest, and not reaching up to grab the ball or clutch it to their chest. The next stage is to spot the top (used the word 'apex') of the curve which shows the juggler when to throw the second ball, in the same 'rainbow' shape. I showed them the juggling pattern I didn't want them to do, which I call the 'schoolgirl pattern', which is a throw up with the same hand each time and a pass from the other hand into the throwing hand, a roughly circular shape. I knew quite a few of them would get stuck on this, and that relatively few would get to the 3 ball flash and the 3 ball cascade. I was delighted that one child did get the 3-ball flash, and others had seemingly got the idea at least. Th eteacher showed us his juggling prowess, slightly better than me. Then I finished off with a diabolo demonstration with my pet diabolo 'Derek'.
Then I went onto the next classroom, year 3, and they got a shorter demo, with devilstick, hands-on feather-balancing and the diabolo show. Finished at 11am, and was invited up to the staffroom. I had a conversation with a volunteer who is also a mum with children in our children's classes, and she was really happy and impressed with what Id just done. I don't think she'd seen my skills before. We also strayed into the subject of my recent diagnosis, and she said that she now felt she understood me a bit more now I was 'out' as having Aspergers Syndrome with Hyperactivity. She was really lovely and I felt warmed by her comments.
Gill was out in town when I got back, I went on the computer to do emails and after lunch did a stint if splitting logs with my hydraulic/electric splitter, as I have been unable to do these rounds from Woodlands with my axe, the wood is too tough. Some logs split really easily, these don't.
I brought the children home, my eldest was too tired to go to cubs. I, amazingly, fell asleep after tea... this is a rare event! Only for 30 minutes though, and woke to make the kids their supper and put them to bed.
Thursday, 3 May 2007
Thursday 3rd May 2007 Local Elections Day
Woke feeling quite excited as the elections are always reasonably exciting, even if I don't have much chance of getting elected, which would be just amazing since I've done no leafletting or canvassing in my ward.
I took the kids to school as Gill wasn't feeling good, and towards 10am the media students arrived, as planned, to film some of the election stuff, me going into the polling station with Gill, and they also wanted to find out how I earned my living so I did some Professor Fiddlesticks practice in the garden, and some of the crew had a go at devilstick, diabolo and 3 ball juggling. Fun!
They left by lunchtime and after lunch, whilst Gill went and sat in the poling station in Fishergate, I went to town and picked up my 'wednesday' composting... which I didn't do yesterday, and also popped in on Miller's Yard, Claire was delighted to give me 3 trays of oranges which she described as sour, and unsuitable to put in their orange squeezing machine. However I had some when I got home and found them just fine, and probably good for making marmalade.
Picked up the kids and then went to the allotment to put in the final two varieties of first earlies, did some compost management and weeding too. Gill provided nice tea, including asparagus soup made from the tips of about 10 bunches picked up yesterday.... I prepared and cooked them at midnight to stop them deteriorating further, and Gill put celery and potato with them and made a good soup.
At 7pm I went to the Fishergate polling station to sit in it for a couple of hours and ask for peoples' electoral roll numbers so Green voters who had promised to vote for us but hadn't visited the polling station could be 'door knocked' and reminded that it was election day.
When I got back I was cold and was happy to sit by the stove and warm up. Watched some late night election tv coverage. Our telephone stopped working, no dialtone, so couldn't do any blogging or emails.
I took the kids to school as Gill wasn't feeling good, and towards 10am the media students arrived, as planned, to film some of the election stuff, me going into the polling station with Gill, and they also wanted to find out how I earned my living so I did some Professor Fiddlesticks practice in the garden, and some of the crew had a go at devilstick, diabolo and 3 ball juggling. Fun!
They left by lunchtime and after lunch, whilst Gill went and sat in the poling station in Fishergate, I went to town and picked up my 'wednesday' composting... which I didn't do yesterday, and also popped in on Miller's Yard, Claire was delighted to give me 3 trays of oranges which she described as sour, and unsuitable to put in their orange squeezing machine. However I had some when I got home and found them just fine, and probably good for making marmalade.
Picked up the kids and then went to the allotment to put in the final two varieties of first earlies, did some compost management and weeding too. Gill provided nice tea, including asparagus soup made from the tips of about 10 bunches picked up yesterday.... I prepared and cooked them at midnight to stop them deteriorating further, and Gill put celery and potato with them and made a good soup.
At 7pm I went to the Fishergate polling station to sit in it for a couple of hours and ask for peoples' electoral roll numbers so Green voters who had promised to vote for us but hadn't visited the polling station could be 'door knocked' and reminded that it was election day.
When I got back I was cold and was happy to sit by the stove and warm up. Watched some late night election tv coverage. Our telephone stopped working, no dialtone, so couldn't do any blogging or emails.
Friday, 23 February 2007
22 Feb 07
A busy day today, with a 'freecycle' meet-up, a 'Professor Fiddlesticks' gig and 2 social visits.
A few weeks ago, during the gales, a sheet of expanded polystyrene blew into our garden. It was too big to be called litter, so it didn't get tidied and put in the bin, it got put in the conservatory and we wondered what to do with it. Last week I was delighted to read on my 'Freecycle' email digest that someone wanted a sheet of polystyrene, so I offered it to him. Freecycle is great. You find your local Freecycle group on the net and sign up with your email address, and wait for the first emails. I wanted to get a block of up to 25 emails at once, and the messages are from people offering all kinds of things for free, and a few wanting free things. The aims are to stop items going into landfill which could be reused. All sorts of things are offered, from kitchen cabinets to childrens books, old computers suitable only for spares to as-yet-unwrapped (but unwanted) bathroom toiletries, and everything inbetween, and then some things you didn't think of!
So far I haven't recieved anything I've asked for, as other people are invariably online as the message is posted, but I've helped out several people with their wants... wood for repairing something, an electric toaster, and now the polystyrene sheet. The happy recipient said he could collect it by car on Wednesday, so I emailed back and suggested that I could deliver by bike on my way to my gig today. So at midday I met him at the Fox and handed over the polystyrene. He wanted it to place under a heated propagator for germinating seeds, to reduce heat being conducted away through the staging in his greenhouse.
I cycled on to the school I was working in, a lunchtime circus skills workshop with some slightly special-needs youngsters. This is the third in a series, today was focussing on 3 ball juggling. I earn my living as 'Professor Fiddlesticks' (www.kidspartysurvivalguide.com/fiddlesticks), an entertainer performing circus skills workshops and shows, and teaching balloon modelling. I've been doing this since 1992 and still love it! The youngsters all had a go with juggling and some suprised themselves by learning the basics. One lad was keen to show me his yoyo tricks, others are diabolo-mad. My favourite is devilsticks, it really grabs my attention and I love doing it. Seemingly I perform it well enough for others to enjoy watching me, and I'm a good teacher, patient and good at explaining 'how to'. Infact my science background and my ability to explain stuff means I have developed a show called 'Professor Fiddlesticks Fun Physics' which has key stage 1 and ks2 science in a fun interactive format. I'd like more gigs presenting this.
After my 45 minutes full-on circus teach-in, I visited my lovely old lady-friend Jean. She was 90 years old a week or two ago, and she resides in a care home. We have been friends for over 10 years and she's very unconventional and free-thinking. We can talk about anything, no subjects off-limits. She doesn't get a lot of physical contact anymore, so I always give her a foot massage which she finds very relaxing. Next week I'm going to visit and she'll dictate a couple of letters to people who sent her letters for her birthday. She got so many cards, quite a few were from people she couldn't remember or work out where she had met them. But in 90 years you must collect quite a few contacts, and by that age it must be easy to forget some of them!
So I had two hours with Jean and then nearly an hour with my good friend Pauline. She is a 'low carbon lifestyle' person, and is keen on her Clearview stove and her Freecycled kitchen. I met Pauline through a project which helped me when I was younger and angrier, AVP, Alternatives to Violence Project. They put on workshops to help people understand the conflicts in their life, and to help them resolve them creatively. It certainly helped me, as now I am able (most of the time!) to deal with my anger and to recognise my triggers. AVP puts on workshops in prisons and in the community, and I am still involved, helping to run 'AVP North-East And East Midlands', which is a member of AVP Britain. AVP runs worldwide and has helped so many people. One of the jobs I do is to phone up participants a month or two after the workshop and conduct some followup, to find if they found it useful. Most people say it has changed their lives and they have used what they've learnt in everyday situations. Pauline was the coordinator at one time. Then we worked together on the Local Agenda 21 group... but that's another blog!
Home to a big bowl of pumpkin, butternut and leek soup, cooked on the woodstove. Delicious!
A few weeks ago, during the gales, a sheet of expanded polystyrene blew into our garden. It was too big to be called litter, so it didn't get tidied and put in the bin, it got put in the conservatory and we wondered what to do with it. Last week I was delighted to read on my 'Freecycle' email digest that someone wanted a sheet of polystyrene, so I offered it to him. Freecycle is great. You find your local Freecycle group on the net and sign up with your email address, and wait for the first emails. I wanted to get a block of up to 25 emails at once, and the messages are from people offering all kinds of things for free, and a few wanting free things. The aims are to stop items going into landfill which could be reused. All sorts of things are offered, from kitchen cabinets to childrens books, old computers suitable only for spares to as-yet-unwrapped (but unwanted) bathroom toiletries, and everything inbetween, and then some things you didn't think of!
So far I haven't recieved anything I've asked for, as other people are invariably online as the message is posted, but I've helped out several people with their wants... wood for repairing something, an electric toaster, and now the polystyrene sheet. The happy recipient said he could collect it by car on Wednesday, so I emailed back and suggested that I could deliver by bike on my way to my gig today. So at midday I met him at the Fox and handed over the polystyrene. He wanted it to place under a heated propagator for germinating seeds, to reduce heat being conducted away through the staging in his greenhouse.
I cycled on to the school I was working in, a lunchtime circus skills workshop with some slightly special-needs youngsters. This is the third in a series, today was focussing on 3 ball juggling. I earn my living as 'Professor Fiddlesticks' (www.kidspartysurvivalguide.com/fiddlesticks), an entertainer performing circus skills workshops and shows, and teaching balloon modelling. I've been doing this since 1992 and still love it! The youngsters all had a go with juggling and some suprised themselves by learning the basics. One lad was keen to show me his yoyo tricks, others are diabolo-mad. My favourite is devilsticks, it really grabs my attention and I love doing it. Seemingly I perform it well enough for others to enjoy watching me, and I'm a good teacher, patient and good at explaining 'how to'. Infact my science background and my ability to explain stuff means I have developed a show called 'Professor Fiddlesticks Fun Physics' which has key stage 1 and ks2 science in a fun interactive format. I'd like more gigs presenting this.
After my 45 minutes full-on circus teach-in, I visited my lovely old lady-friend Jean. She was 90 years old a week or two ago, and she resides in a care home. We have been friends for over 10 years and she's very unconventional and free-thinking. We can talk about anything, no subjects off-limits. She doesn't get a lot of physical contact anymore, so I always give her a foot massage which she finds very relaxing. Next week I'm going to visit and she'll dictate a couple of letters to people who sent her letters for her birthday. She got so many cards, quite a few were from people she couldn't remember or work out where she had met them. But in 90 years you must collect quite a few contacts, and by that age it must be easy to forget some of them!
So I had two hours with Jean and then nearly an hour with my good friend Pauline. She is a 'low carbon lifestyle' person, and is keen on her Clearview stove and her Freecycled kitchen. I met Pauline through a project which helped me when I was younger and angrier, AVP, Alternatives to Violence Project. They put on workshops to help people understand the conflicts in their life, and to help them resolve them creatively. It certainly helped me, as now I am able (most of the time!) to deal with my anger and to recognise my triggers. AVP puts on workshops in prisons and in the community, and I am still involved, helping to run 'AVP North-East And East Midlands', which is a member of AVP Britain. AVP runs worldwide and has helped so many people. One of the jobs I do is to phone up participants a month or two after the workshop and conduct some followup, to find if they found it useful. Most people say it has changed their lives and they have used what they've learnt in everyday situations. Pauline was the coordinator at one time. Then we worked together on the Local Agenda 21 group... but that's another blog!
Home to a big bowl of pumpkin, butternut and leek soup, cooked on the woodstove. Delicious!
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