So you want to Learn to Juggle?

I get a range of responses when I tell people I juggle. From the dismissive "um..ok Johnny" to the somewhat interested "cool, I never learned to do that", most people's interest perks up a bit when I mention I am working on 5 balls, then they comment on how they would not be able to juggle if they tried.

Well for those out there who never learned and think it you can't, I have a little video clip for you. This is the most simple, straight forward, 3 ball juggling tutorial I have seen. It is done by the World Juggling Federation president Jason Garfield. It is actually part of the "Theory and Practice of Juggling" DVD that I reviewed in an earlier post.

Here is the link to the video http://www.thewjf.com/learn.htm

you will need quicktime installed to view it, so if you don't you can watch it here in lower quality

http://video.google.com/videoplay?
docid=-6366713757585864298&q=juggle&pl=true

So go ahead and try it. I would suggest getting 3 balls that are not too large and not too bouncy Don't use foam balls, because they are too light. For best results, use actual juggling balls which are either beanbags or "stage balls". Stage balls are hollow plastic balls that don't bounce. But I would recommend getting beanbags. As you may have read in this post my first beanbags were hand made, but I am about to get a full set (7) of high quality bags from http://www.thewjf.com and I'll let you know how those work out after I get them. These of course are only for if you want to lay out some $$$ since they are $5.50 a beanbag. So for my set of 7, I'm looking at $45 after shipping.

But I gotta tell you, it is an addictive pastime. Its one of those things that there is always something harder to try. No matter what pattern, trick or amount of balls you can juggle, there is always more. That is why I am getting 7 balls this time. I'm only working on 5, but I know in the next couple of months, 6 balls will be on my mind, and probably 7 will be taunting me too.

So what can I say. I like to juggle, I like to think about juggling and I like to talk about it too. Most people do not, because they don't get it. Thats ok, I don't get a lot of things that other people can't get enough of (NASCAR, Baseball, Fishing, Working on their car, etc). Does it make me abnormal to be really into a solo sport that takes concentration, determination, skill, patience , precision and endurance? Rather than someone who likes to watch Baseball or Football with a beer in one hand and a bag of chips in the other? I guess I am just abnormal.