Hip Hop started out in the heart . . .

Lanecia and I watched the screening of this documentary Bouncing Cats, which features the story of Abraham "Abramz" Tekya and the Breakdance Project Uganda. Lanecia met Abramz a couple of years ago when she was in Kampala and took a hip hop class at the BPU (hehehe).

Find this film screening somewhere near you. Seriously. It's a must-see. Good stuff. And it features K'naan. :)

BOUNCING CATS film trailer from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.

Smile Loudly

As I walked into Kroger on Charlotte Ave. yesterday, I saw a tall man in the parking lot. His face wore wrinkles like a shar pei. His body wore Carolina blue pants that hugged his waist right above his belly button, a white pullover and a baseball cap to match his pants. In his hand, which was worn by age, he carried a rectangular old school cassette player—the kind with 5 black push buttons and one red one. The player blared a Cher tune while Tall Old Man stepped in time, bobbling his head like a baseball player figurine taped to the dashboard of a car. His movements were small and almost arthritic, but he danced through the parking lot each step of the way.

“Do you believe in life after love? I can feel something inside me say . . .”

I laughed. I wasn’t making fun of him with my laugh. I laughed to participate in his joy.

He heard my laugh. And creating my all-time favorite grocery store moment, Tall Old Man responded to my laughter, “I love to hear you smile!” as he continued to let the music move him.

May your day be filled with special moments that move you to dance to the rhythm of life. May you find a moment to participate in someone else’s joy. And may you always smile loudly enough for the world to hear.

Hoop Gal!

I began hooping Tuesday! It's fabulous! Just me, the music and a hoop spinning around me . . . well, and an instructor and about 10 other people who are taking the class with me.

Yes, I'm reverting back to days of childhood when I was a kid playing with my hula hoop! And I adore it! I'm taking classes at Hooprama under the instruction of hoop dancer Sunny Becks! She's amazing. She hooped through most of her pregnancy, and I saw her perform just about a week after having her baby. Amazing!

So it was possibly the most fun I've had working out for an hour. And I could have hooped for even longer than that. It's an amazing workout, and I recommend it. If you're in Nashville, register quickly! I joined after my friend Kara kept talking about maybe taking the class. I was hoping to get a renewed exercise routine that may help me with my dance moves. I think I may be able to even incorporate it into my bellydance, actually. The moves are not the same, but there are some similarities. And I believe I can fuse the hands of Middle Eastern dance into the hoop dance. I don't know. I'm thinking far ahead of myself. For now, I will work on keeping the hoop on my body.

I purchased a hoop yesterday and will get it Saturday (these aren't your average hula hoops you can purchase at Target; they are large and weighted for a strong workout). So if after Friday you see someone with a dual-tone green hoop spinning around her body in Centennial Park or at the crossroads of Wedgewood and Music Row, it's just me trying to keep the hoop going. Honks and waves from my friends are welcome!