Why do you attend your local juggling clubs?
What is their purpose?
Background:
OK, so I tried to promote my juggling club (effectively on my own) yesterday. This involved both an attempt to interact with the public and a 'juggling' performance. It went about as well as I could have expected for a person inexperienced at dealing with the general public on his own. At least I wore my glasses this time, even if I still wasn't prepared.
The Spark:
"There is a juggling club!?" in response to my talking about my local juggling club.
I feel if I'd have prepared better I would have had a good justification for why juggling clubs exist. I tried to justify it from my perspective, but I'd never really thought about it, especially not to a person with an attitude that seemed to be treading a narrow minded line. Looking back on it I go for social reasons, because my lounge is a bit cramped, I like to do group juggling and because well we find it fun, OK?. Still not good enough as a retort. Anyway: I should have prepared better.
SO, why do you attend your local juggling club or clubs? (I set this as a compo, so there's a prize for the best answer. By prize, I mean prestige and also kudos.)
Cheers
This is a competition thread which ran from 16th Jun 2013 to 26th Jun 2013. View results.
RegularJugular - - Parent #
Additional bonus 'learning experience':
They also asked "Why can't you do it in a pub?"
"hmmm, because throwing things around glasses full of beer, sounds like a great idea", does not sound like the most friendly of responses. I claimed something about high ceilings at the time. *FACEPALM*
Votes: 1
Roflcopter - - Parent #
I guess I would say that just as any other hobby or sport it is beneficial to interact and connect with other practitioners. Juggling clubs exsist for pretty much the same reason pubs,youth groups,gyms,and boxing clubs or salons do; to exchange information about a certain subject and for simple merry making.
That's just what I'm thinking.
Tea & cake.
(We don't actually do much tea & cake at TWJC, but this will be the winning post)
Votes: 3
Little Paul - - Parent #
Heh! I don't really go juggling any more, but I can only think of 2 clubs I've ever been to (out of 9ish) where they charged for tea, and at least two of the clubs I've been to over the years has had free cake on a semiregular basis.
Saturday mornings in Birmingham used to have a toaster... that was great! Turn up with a hangover on a Saturday morning, drink tea and eat toast until you felt well enough to juggle - then go home because the hall was about to close. I miss that club, I think it's gone now.
Altern8 in Bristol (Monday nights) still does free tea and biscuits (as far as I know) and it's not unheard of for cake or large quantities of chocolate to turn up there and be dished out to anyone who wanted any.
RegularJugular - - Parent #
CircusWurx in Crawley had Tea and Biscuits the times I've been there. Up for grabs in Totnes definitely had Tea every time I went, although I don't remember there being Biscuits sadly. Both had the refreshments about half way through the session and I can't imagine they've given up their traditional half-time breaks.
The Sheffield Flying Teapots has free tea and biscuits, and in its heyday also had a space festooned with sofas, on which to imbibe the tea and munch the biscuits.
I think the tea-based social scene helped to keep members who had kind of lost interest (temporarily or otherwise) in juggling, and their presence in turn helped retain new beginner members, by teaching and being helpful and sociable and friendly. Sometimes, deeply committed jugglers don't make good club organisers, because they're too busy facing a wall working on their seven balls to engage with newbies long enough or often enough.
Little Paul - - Parent #
Whenever someone asks for advice about starting up a juggling club I emphasise the social/tea/biscuits/cake/pub side of things. A half time
tea break, or a post meet pub trip is an opportunity to talk to the siteswap-in-the-corner jugglers
I firmly believe its instrumental in retaining new/old members
Votes: 1
York Jugglers - - Parent #
At York Jugglers we used to have tea and cake at half-time, but that has become tea and biscuits more recently.
The university club in York quite often have cake, but you have to take your own drinks.
I agree with Paul that is is very important to have a sociable time at club meetings and tea & cake is a good reason to pause from juggling for a moment and be more sociable.
We used to all go to the pub after juggling, but that tradition sadly seems to have died out, perhaps because so many members come from further afield or don't drink.
#YorkJugglers , #JuggleSoc
Hullabaloo in Leeds has free tea & biscuits (often chocolate digestives), when the hall was free there was no charge for juggling but a collection box for contributions towards the tea and biscuits fund (unfortunately the days of a free hall are now in the past).
I go to my juggling club because I enjoy it; also I have the key and have to let everyone else in.
Hullabaloo also (usually) go to the pub afterwards, best bit of the evening!
Alice
Votes: 1
RegularJugular - - Parent #
You're right about the 'Tea and Cake'. However have you ever had/tried to justify TWJC's existence to anybody? What did you/would you have said? Did they find that watching a Zumba demonstration was more interesting?
Ok so Tea and C... Eureka! That's what I did wrong yesterday. I didn't give the impression there was any possibility of Free Food and Drink!!! I could have been there with cupcakes iced with juggling props or TWJC lettering. That's a load more accessible than 'throw something and catch something repeatedly'.
In fact being there with some other people would have helped too, then I might have looked more sociable. However only with hindsight did I realise the importance of that at this 'school summer fair' exercise.
I've never *had* to justify TWJC & I don't think I ever will. It's not as if we are hurting anyone (ok aside from each other sometimes).
As an entertainer (or not as an entertainer for that matter), if someone asks a question try not to automatically treat it as a confrontation. You don't 'fail' or 'lose' if you don't have an answer.
In terms of encouraging people along to a juggling club remember just because you enjoy something doesn't mean that anyone else has to enjoy it too.
RegularJugular - - Parent #
It was hypothetical, at least I thought it was. A thought exercise if you will. It was not intended to be confrontational, although it probably came off as that, sorry.
I was well aware of the other two points at the time although I did over react and didn't know how to deal with my mood fluctuations on the day.
For a practice space for juggling, to learn new juggling tricks but mostly, to be sociable with a bunch of fairly like-minded, friendly people.
-Formerly of the Leicester juggling club (dearly missed
-Also formerly of Glasgow juggling club.
-Now of the Norwich juggling club.
(The Edge seems to have trimmed my last post a bit. Weird.)
Robotic juggle - - Parent #
wish some american clubs served tea :(
Little Paul - - Parent #
What do you get? Gator aid or something?
Roflcopter - - Parent #
Hahahahah!
That was a good one.Brightened up my morning.
thegoheads - - Parent #
I find that when I juggle with other people, I almost always try things I normally never would or never have before. Even when juggling with beginners, regardless of me having a higher skill level I still get ideas from them. In short, it keeps me inspired and keeps my juggling fresh and new. Also, juggling games like HORSE or endurance type games add a whole new element that you can't really do by yourself.
I don't think that's a good reason to convince random people to want to start going to clubs and learning juggling, but that's my reason anyway. I think the best way to accomplish what you were trying to do is just be incredibly enthusiastic. If you make is seem that what you're doing is sooooo much fun (which, coincidentally, it is!) that people are crazy for not at least trying it, maybe it would encourage people to show up just to make sure they're not missing the next big thing. :)
-Steve
Votes: 1
Do you not call it JUGGLE? I thought that was the generally accepted name for the game.
thegoheads - - Parent #
Yes, I usually play it as JUGGLE. As far as I know it originated as a trick shot basketball game called HORSE with the same basic idea and rules. I guess I could have typed JUGGLE instead and it would have made more sense. Sometimes we play it with other words too, for a shorter or longer game. It doesn't so much matter what the word is, just how many letters it has.
-Steve
thegoheads - - Parent #
heh, ok, why?
Saying things like "Who wants a game of c-h-e-s-s?" or "Anyone for a game of s-c-r-a-b-b-l-e?" could be pretty confusing. Games such as a-n-t-i-d-i-s-e-s-t-a-b-l-i-s-h-m-e-n-t-a-r-i-a-n-i-s-m are just plain long and various profanities are probably pretty bad words to pick too.
Looking at the time, it's a bit late for a game of antidisestablishmentarianism.
This competition has now ended. Here are the results:
- Orinoco (3 votes)
- Little Paul (2 votes)
- RegularJugular (1 vote)
- thegoheads (1 vote)
- Little Paul (1 vote)
- pumpkineater23 (1 vote)
- Alice (1 vote)
- Cedric Lackpot (1 vote)