Forums > Social Discussion > Glowstringing, Fact or Fiction?

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mixinluv2umember
129 posts
Location: chicago suburb, IL


Posted:
Just curious, how do you guys view glowstringing?

couple questions to focus/start off the discussion:

Is glowstringing and poi one and the same or different? If it's different then how do you define glowstringing and seperate the two?

Do glowstringers have a unique set of moves outside of traditional poi moves?

Should the difference in each tool/medium (glowstring vs sock poi vs fire poi) be emphasized? Or should all of them be spun the same way?

How do you define/develop style and originality in poi? Should the same principles of style and originality be applied to glowstringing? Or can glowstringing have their own principles and methodologies?

Are there differences in cultural background and philosophy between poi and glowstringing?

Cynicdave1member
36 posts

Posted:
"Wes is extremely diplomatic and extremely respectful BUT this thread was started as a direct result of hostility at GSC. I guess I was unhappy that it was introduced here with smiles and hugs the day after I was told "F#ck home of Poi" by another member.

NYC:
I don't know who said that, but it certainly wasn't me. Also, I don't think anyone was even critiquing YOUR words, which always seemed pretty diplomatic. If my posts ever came off as referring to YOU, i apologize. they were directed at other people.

Cynicdave1member
36 posts

Posted:
"so freehand glowstick is a sub section of double staff then?"

To some people no. =D

ado-pGOLD Member
Pirate Ninja
3,882 posts
Location: Galway/Ireland


Posted:
ubblol

hug

Love is the law.


PyrolificBRONZE Member
Returning to a unique state of Equilibrium
3,289 posts
Location: Adelaide, South Australia


Posted:
you Gs.c / HOP crew rock! smile

(at least from what I've read here) hug

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KaelGotRiceGOLD Member
Basu gasu bakuhatsu - because sometimes buses explode
1,584 posts
Location: Angels Landing, USA


Posted:
*from one gs.c mod to HoP mod.

hug

wink

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Wildfire/US East coast fire footage

LA/EDC glow/fire footage

Fresno fire


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Hey look everybody, we've got a new member!

[Old link]

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


TheWibblerGOLD Member
old hand
920 posts
Location: New Zealand


Posted:
^^^ haha,

I can't believe this is still going on,

can someone get to the point please, all i've gathered so far is that you can't spin snowballs made from slush.

m

Spherculism ~:~ The Act of becoming Spherculish.


NaganootchAKA CLERIC
172 posts
Location: Staten Island , NY. USA


Posted:
^^HAHAHA^^

We are defined by the choices we make


infinitemember
110 posts
Location: ashland OR


Posted:
Well on COL 5 there is someone spinning poi (fatherandson) and he does very good spirals, wherre both poi wrap in the same direction around both hands and then unwind. I though this was only able to be done fluidly with glowsticks. He also does good good buzzsaw hyperloops. I can do most glowstick mpves with my poi, neckwraps and some tricks are really hard because I use 18" strings. But there is some wrap theory that poi hasnt even touched upon, most poeiople prefer the fluidness of constant circles.

dont make peoples heads turn, give them whiplash.


quietanalytic
503 posts
Location: bristol


Posted:
re: onewheeldave: 'Of course! No one with half a brain is going to think that the Innuit have a greater appreciation of snow types because they have more words for it!'

cheers megan for nailing the right response to this . . .

however, I've still [yep, you guessed it] got something to add

to wit: I think it's more than plausible to suppose that the more words you have for something, the more likely you are to have an appreciation of it, or at least of subtle distinctions. for instance, the fact that I differentiate between objects which react strongly to ultraviolet, and objects which don't, began with me USING THE WORD. i later encountered glowing things at parties and clubs; but that's a different issue.

sure, the reason why there are so many words might be [at least in part] due to snow being 'omni-present'. but that doesn't mean that the distinctions which [e.g.] the inuit make are due to snow being 'omni-present' rather than the great number of words available.

consider: even if snow wasn't omni-present, if your culture had 200 words for snow [just supposing], then you might still make those subtle differentiations.

don't you think?

e

ture na sig


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
But wouldn't you say that, generally, words are created as they are needed?

For example, an arabic tribe whose entire history has taken place in the Sahara, are unlikely to have many words, or ways of referring, to snow.

Whereas the Inuit have lots of ways of referring to, and distinguishing between, a wide variety of snow types (I'll cease to use 'words for snow' here, due to previous posts- however, I will maintain that they have language that distinguishes between a wide variety of snow types).

Conversly, I would expect the arabic tribe in the Sahara to have a variety of ways of referring to different types of sand and sand conditions (whereas the Inuit quite possibly, traditionally lack a word for 'sand').

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: quiet





consider: even if snow wasn't omni-present, if your culture had 200 words for snow [just supposing], then you might still make those subtle differentiations.



don't you think?



e




Why would a culture have developed 200 words for something that they hardly ever encounter?



Maybe it would be part of some technical language (in the same way that, in our culture, a technical expert on computers may have a vast vocabulary that distinguishes between 200 types of microchip- yet the non-technical majority of everyday people would not know or use those 200 words).



Whereas, for the Inuit, those terms for distinguishing snow would not be the language of a technical elite, but instead be everyday, common terms, learnt by children from an early age.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


TheWibblerGOLD Member
old hand
920 posts
Location: New Zealand


Posted:
What on earth has snow got to do with glostringing???

Maybe you guys should check out that new site "Home of Weather" i hear it's really interesting ubblol

Spherculism ~:~ The Act of becoming Spherculish.


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Na... it's all snowhaters over there.

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: spherculist


What on earth has snow got to do with glostringing???





In the same way that snow can be seen as one thing, or many things, depending on the culture/viewpoint of the people looking at it; so, it has been suggested, can glowstringing be seen as either being poi, or a different entity.

So, a person from one culture (say HOP) may see glowstringing as being in a different category as one from a different culture (say GS.com).

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


TheWibblerGOLD Member
old hand
920 posts
Location: New Zealand


Posted:
hmm... I'm still not really down with this whole snow analogy, but i've got a much clearer idea why glokids wanna distance themselves from poi spinners ubblol

wonder if i can remember my gsc password?

Spherculism ~:~ The Act of becoming Spherculish.


TheWibblerGOLD Member
old hand
920 posts
Location: New Zealand


Posted:
SO i've just read this over on gsc https://www.glowsticking.com/about.php


Which makes for an interesting read.

Whilst learning poi i spent quite a while at raves, did my fair share of spinning glowsticks, even learnt how to do lots of wraps in quick sucession, even used to catch my glosticks and do a little freehand

Poi in britain came from the rave culture too you know, and to be perfectly frank poi and glostringing are the same thing. I think that glokids perception of poi spinners is equally as twisted as poi spinners perception of glokids.

I admit they are slightly different genres of the same thing, you couldn't say glostringing is poi and you couldn't say poi is glostringing, but imo they are the same.

I've seen people with glowsticks who spin like poi spinners and i've seen people with fire spin like glowsringers. The lines are so blurred as to seem totally rediculous to me.

Anyhoo, i'm off to gsc to have a nose round the forums

Spherculism ~:~ The Act of becoming Spherculish.


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: spherculist



Poi in britain came from the rave culture too you know,




No it didn't.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Oh wait, lemme grab some chips and soda before this one starts...

wink

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


Jomember
517 posts
Location: Sheffield, England


Posted:
I would certainly agree with the statement "poi in Britain SPRANG out of the rave culture"



ie. it existed but really took off in the clubs/raves.



Jo.

Educate yourself in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


RevBRONZE Member
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA


Posted:
oh yeah.. well my poi can kick your poi's censored anyday... nana

More useless information courtesy of Rev...
Confusing the masses, one post at a time...
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"Buy the ticket... Take the ride..." -Raoul Duke
"FEMA has never done catastrophe planning..."-Michael Brown


StoneGOLD Member
Stream Entrant
2,829 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia


Posted:
So OWD where did poi culture spring from in Britain?

I’ve also asked this question a number of times, but I’ve yet to hear a detailed answers on this topic.

smile

If we as members of the human race practice meditation, we can transcend our fear, despair, and forgetfulness. Meditation is not an escape. It is the courage to look at reality with mindfulness and concentration. Thich Nhat Hanh


RevBRONZE Member
Bastard Newbie Messiah
1,269 posts
Location: Apparently lost in my ego, USA


Posted:
I'm interested in this too, since the rave culture in england can be traced back to what like the 70's or so in manchester.. (not saying that is where I think it came from.. just stating that I would hope that poi had an earlier start in england thatn that.. )

More useless information courtesy of Rev...
Confusing the masses, one post at a time...
"Obviously, you're not a golfer.."- The Dude
"Buy the ticket... Take the ride..." -Raoul Duke
"FEMA has never done catastrophe planning..."-Michael Brown


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:


What I posted was in reply to-

Written by: spherculist



Poi in britain came from the rave culture too you know,




which struck me very forcibly as nothing more than a totally unsubstantiated opinion, so I posted my opinion in a similar (unsubstantiated) form-

Written by: onewheeldave



No it didn't.




I expect poi in Britain came from, and developed from, a number of different sources, including people who'd travelled and picked it up elsewhere, internet resources (HOP).

Some believe that poi was given to all the world as a gift by the 'poi spirits', as a point of interest, I believe it can be argued that there is actually some evidence for that viewpoint.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that that is the case, just that there is evidence for it.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


ado-pGOLD Member
Pirate Ninja
3,882 posts
Location: Galway/Ireland


Posted:
so who introduced glow stringing to the ravers then?

chicken and egg guys....

Love is the law.


colemanSILVER Member
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom


Posted:
i learnt the basics of poi before i'd ever heard of juggling workshops.

i learnt from people that i went clubbing with.

most of my spinning was done either in a garden or in a club.

and the only workshop i ever visited was a workshop run for and by spinners - not jugglers.



i missed out on the drome.

it was a squat.

that was used, among other things, for parties.

'other things' included a juggling workshop.



so i'm not saying that the people i learnt from didn't go to juggling workshops and learn there.

but i didn't pick up poi from the juggling community, nor was i a part of its culture until i learnt to juggle.

i got into and progressed in poi at outdoor parties and in clubs during winter.



my poi *did* come from and grow out of 'the rave culture' i was immersed in at the time.



i too think poi in britain had many influences and for me, the london party scene was central to these influences - why would people have gone all-out to find super uv sock material if the culture was based primarily in daytime/evening juggling workshops?



parties are the real world 'home of poi' to me smile





cole. x



[edit: sounds like i'm arguing against someone's opinion here - i'm not, i'm just sorting out where i think the various elements of what i know were learnt.

before this discussion, i had forgotten how much poi i learnt away from workshops - it was most of it.

my technical understanding of poi improved by coming here and meeting old school spinners at workshops and meets.

but i was taught most of the [Old link] by people i partied and chilled out with, in our homes.]
EDITED_BY: coleman (1113903171)

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i come to 'dis cafe quite a lot myself.
they do porridge."
- tim westwood


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
That's fair enough Coleman- you've pointed out that you learnt via 'rave culture' whilst not claiming that so did everyone else.

It's no surprise to me that you didn't learn poi from juggling circles as, in the years we're talking about, there was a fair bit of prejudice against poi in juggling circles.

For the record, I definitly didn't learn poi at 'raves' or clubs- for me it was a combination of interent resources, learning from friends, and personal innovation.

Admittedly, some of those friends were involved in the club scene; nevertheless, I'll maintain that it was a minor influnce, on the grounds that they were also innovating.

IMO poi developed here primarily due to innovators, some of whom had substantial rave/club influences.

And, IMO, it's no coincidence that the huge boost in poi technology occured with the rise of the interenet- I'm confident that if the internet hadn't happened, poi would be much rarer.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


TheWibblerGOLD Member
old hand
920 posts
Location: New Zealand


Posted:
Here's the conclusion about glowsticking / stringing from gsc

Written by:

In conclusion...
In all glowsticking has a fundamentally different outlook to its art than do other dances. We are defined by our roots in the rave culture, and thus our philosophies about style and dancing are different from other arts. That does not mean, of course, we are stuck in the rave culture, and to even define the rave culture as such is sort of a misnomer, as it is different in every nation, in every region, and even in the same city. As the music and the dance evolves, so will glowsticking and glowstickers.

We simply ask that everyone have an open mind. Thank you for respecing our culture and taking the time to read through all of this.




All of that definitely applies to poi as i've seen it grow in britain.

1999 ~ The Warp Experience, The Drome, London

I bet that 90% of spinners in the south of england could trace their poi ancestry back to that time and place or one of the many off shoots like Synergy, ID Spiral, Liquid Connective and so on. A hell of a lot of those people travel all over the place, thailand, india, austrailia ~ sure they bought back knowledge from all those places but i think that london around the turn of the millenium was a melting pot of new inovations which i'm very glad to have been a part of.

The London Rave scene has for many years been number one showcase for the most badass spinners around. I mean come on. Never heard anyone talk about badass London Style Spinners before? Hell, that's where Nick and Ally's infamous Orange poi come from.

Now obviously anything I say is my opinion only, perhaps dave you feel like you have some omnipotent opinion on these matters, just feel free to add an IMO anywhere you like.

So you personally didn't go to raves and learn poi from them. I think you're very much in the minority.

I went to glastonbury 2002, 2003, 2004. In 2002 there was a handful of people spinning poi, in 2003 there were a lot of people spinning, in 2004 there were only a handful of people not spinning poi up at the stone circle. It was a massive explosion which i'm certain was fueled by free parties. The number of people who have seen me spin at parties and festivals and then told me they wanna learn is enormous.

Anywho, my main point was that the glowstringers seemed to feel that glowstringing exclusively came out of rave culture and somehow it was more about the 'dance' than contemporary poi. Maybe i mis interpreted it but IMO that is BS and could be said about the london poi scene as well.

Or maybe i'm just a glostringer at heart. I certainly don't spin like a maori woman, So why call it poi?

In conclusion. I don't think a distinction can be drawn between poi and glostringing, they are subtley different but they are still both sphercular forms.

laters

Spherculism ~:~ The Act of becoming Spherculish.


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: spherculist



Now obviously anything I say is my opinion only, perhaps dave you feel like you have some omnipotent opinion on these matters, just feel free to add an IMO anywhere you like.





With respect; I do stick a good few IMO's in my posts; I'm under the impression that it's you who tends not to.

In particular, as I previously mentioned-

Written by: spherculist


Poi in britain came from the rave culture too you know,






was, IMO, somewhat presumptious, unsubstantiated (at the time anyway; your recent post is a worthwhile attempt at giving grounds) and was presented more as straight fact than your opinion.











Written by: spherculist



The London Rave scene has for many years been number one showcase for the most badass spinners around. I mean come on. Never heard anyone talk about badass London Style Spinners before? Hell, that's where Nick and Ally's infamous Orange poi come from.








In all honesty, yes, I have never heard of the 'badass london style spinners' or of nick and ally's infamous orange poi.

Nevertheless, I do a lot of poi, and don't feel any loss from not having encountered these marvels smile










Written by: spherculist


I went to glastonbury 2002, 2003, 2004. In 2002 there was a handful of people spinning poi, in 2003 there were a lot of people spinning, in 2004 there were only a handful of people not spinning poi up at the stone circle. It was a massive explosion which i'm certain was fueled by free parties. The number of people who have seen me spin at parties and festivals and then told me they wanna learn is enormous.







I'm sure the rave side was a factor, I just consider it to be far from the main one.

Those who go to raves a lot will, I'm sure, tend to see a lot of poi there. Those of us who never went to raves, also saw a lot of poi in other (non-rave) places.

IMO, if the rave/club scene had never been, poi would be around today; whereas if the internet had never been, I suspect it wouldn't.

I'd say that the internet is more responsible for the growth of poi than the rave scene.

Written by: spherculist

The number of people who have seen me spin at parties and festivals and then told me they wanna learn is enormous.





Similarly, a lot of people say the same to me when I spin in non-rave environments such as parks, juggling clubs etc- it's more of a people-seeing-something-good and-wanting-to-learn-it thing; and yes, some of them will happen to be at raves at the time; equally, others won't. People like you will encounter the ones at raves, people like me will encounter them elsewhere.

I suspect that there's an element of some people in the rave scene who spin, being a bit blinkered and possibly possessive here.

ie they spend a lot of times at raves, and little time at non-rave spinning events, or the non-rave spinning events they do go to tend to be frequented by ravers etc.

So they come to equate poi with raving.

Then maybe some also feel the need to 'possess' poi, and claim it as part of their rave culture.

In a similar vien we had, in the past, threads addressing the overriding missconception that poi were inextricably bound with drug use, due to the perception that most spinners used drugs.

Those threads cleared up that misconception and established that many spinners do not use drugs. It seems obvious now, but at the time the misconception was rife.

Similarly, if we make an effort, with maybe a poll, or maybe just with this thread, IMO we'll find that many people spin who do not associate it with rave.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


colemanSILVER Member
big and good and broken
7,330 posts
Location: lunn dunn, yoo kay, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: onewheeldave



I suspect that there's an element of some people in the rave scene who spin, being a bit blinkered and possibly possessive here.



ie they spend a lot of times at raves, and little time at non-rave spinning events, or the non-rave spinning events they do go to tend to be frequented by ravers etc.



So they come to equate poi with raving.



Then maybe some also feel the need to 'possess' poi, and claim it as part of their rave culture.








i think that's a major point and it is exactly what many of us (at least myself, nyc and spherculist i think i can speak for here) believe the glowstringer section of spinners has done, over at gsc and in general.



possession of the activity/culture is what this thread is all about, no?



and trust me dave - you have definitely lost out on not spinning nick and ali poi wink

in all seriousness though, i still stand by the fact that they are the original and best ever examples of 'sock poi'.





cole. x

"i see you at 'dis cafe.
i come to 'dis cafe quite a lot myself.
they do porridge."
- tim westwood


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