Practicing hoop dancing is impossible in the house unless I am standing on the dinner table or the bed, neither of which is a very good practice platform, so I do my practices outside.
On dry days, I can dance in the little patch of grass behind our building. The grass feels nice on my bare feet and I can look up at the sky as I move. But I cannot do do any "off-body" tricks that might end with my hoop flung over the fence onto the Marunouchi line tracks - I like my hoops too much to lose them.
On wet days, I practice in the garage/carport. Concrete is not as good on the feet and the ceiling restricts the high-reaching tricks, but it works out fine enough. There's lots of room to practice walking and to really dance. Sometimes I run from one end to the other with the hoop in motion. That's kinda fun. And my presence entertains the building staff and neighbors, which is another kind of fun.
I've only been down to the park once. It was good but a little too far away for a daily play. Walking along in workout clothes with my hoop over my shoulder got a few interesting looks, and even more when I gave in to an irresistible urge and hand hooped down Kasuga Dori.
Everywhere I go now, I see good places to hoop in public. As I improve my skills, or maybe just as the weather cools down a little, I can imagine myself hooping in the courtyard of the science museum, at the war memorial, and on the train platform (actually, I did the last night after class).
I am amusing the heck out of myself.
Leave a comment