Kevin DeLand

Neighboring

Wed, 20 Feb 2019 16:00:00 +0000

My friend has an art gallery where she hosts a different artist each month. She put out a call for people to meet a neighbor they don’t know and then make a piece of art about it.

So I invited my neighbor over for dinner and we had takeout together. Then I turned our takeout containers into flying saucers, cut out some stars and aliens, and made this little scene.

Food can be a vehicle for human connection. So I invited my neighbor over for dinner, and then I turned our takeout containers into flying saucers Our neighbors may seem alien to us, like they are unidentified friendly objects. But we can use food to explore each other’s worlds.

Poi Spinning

Sun, 08 Jan 2017 22:10:51 +0000

I have been spinning poi since July of 2016, when a friend of a friend brought her poi to an outdoor baby shower. I tried it out and thought “hmmm this could be something pretty neat to learn.” Then I went to PEX Summer Festival and attended a workshop by Noel Yee, and I was amazed that he was able to put this medium of dance into such mathematical terms. I have been hooked ever since. Poi spinning is the perfect combination of the kinesthetic and physical, the abstract and mathematical, and the musical. It has become one of my favorite new ways to relieve stress and get out of my own head.

Here is a gif of me doing a move called a “four-petal anti-spin flower”. It’s called an anti-spin because the hand travels in the opposite direction of the light.

Funny story, I actually independently invented my own LED poi back in the summer of 2015, before I had even heard or seen of this type of thing. I used a pair of LED bike lights I had bought (despite not having an actual bike), and some twine I found in a shed at a party.

One-Legged Free Throws

Sun, 08 Jan 2017 22:10:51 +0000

This Thursday I made my first ever free throw in a basketball game while standing on one leg! I was fouled on a shot (which totally should have been a jump ball, but that’s okay), and got two free throws. I came up short on the first, as I was still a bit hesitant to shoot with one foot.

Why shoot with one foot? It forces me to focus on my balance. If I am just sitting casually at the free throw line, my mind tends to wander. But if I am forced to align my balance, I must be completely present with my body, living completely in the moment. This is something I had been practicing last spring, so I am glad I was able to try it out in a live game.

I wonder… if I get too good at free throws on one leg, will I have to add another layer of difficulty?