Paulette Rees-Denis's Blog, page 52
December 7, 2012
Friday what is rocking my world!
What a fun week it has been, studying , playing music, getting my tribal groove on, finishing up the Trance Dance series…
* and woo hoo… I am working on something, a new online course, I am so excited to share with you…coming up in a few weeks! this is officially a tease to you 
*Learning the app, Pages, on my iPad…Also learning more about IMovie and sharing video footage…I am so not a computer geek, but I am getting it!
*Sharing my photographs that I have taken, spanning the past 20 years of tribal dance, troupes, tattoos, musicians and more, at my new Etsy shop
http://www.etsy.com/shop/PauletteReesDenis
Dragons
Pomegranate
* Jonathon Fields– Good Life Project (again!)…last one with another hero, Marie Forleo
http://www.goodlifeproject.com/
*Danielle LaPorte’s new Desire Map, she is totally rockin it!
*Simon Sinek’s TED talk about leadership–I love what he has to say, heart and soul and brain works…what draws you in to someone or something…
http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html
*Still loving Leonie’s Business Goddess e-course, I go back to it often…
http://leoniedawson.com/affiliate-redirect/?w=bizgoddess&p=Gypsypaulette
Now you can get her
2013 Create Your Incredible Year Calendar & Workbook
Forget resolutions (they never last!) Create an incredible 2013.. I am writing writing writing, listening listening listening …to my heart and soul… you?
http://leoniedawson.com/affiliate-redirect/?w=incredyear&p=Gypsypaulette
**Kris Carr’s new cookbook–crazy Sexy Kitchen…, OMG…so many drooling recipes, I’m trying a new one almost everyday…
and yes, I did make the beet ravioli with cashew cream cheese, unbelievably good…
click to view!
Have a great weekend… I’m glad you are here!
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Collective Soul Level One, Portland May 2,3,4, 2013
also Level Two and Teacher Training Level One to follow!
What do you get when you take Gypsy Caravan Tribal Bellydance Certification Course–Collective Soul and Teacher Training?
Join us!
*to see you follow your dreams
*to give you information and instruction
*to teach you dance training, strength training, and body skills
*to assist you in becoming the artist you are/can be
*to give you the tools to further your dance
*to challenge you and to empower you as a dancer
*to honor your body, your spirit, and your mind
*to joyfully bring you together, to network, with other like-minded dancers from around the globe
http://paulettereesdenis.com/soul.php
July 27, 2012
This blog has moved!
I am very excited about my new website at
And that means this blog has a new home…loud zaghareet goes here! Please come and visit me and the Gypsy Caravan Dance Co. At our new home…
The Taking Tribal Global blog is at
Www.paulettereesdenis.com/blog/tribal...
And visit my other crazy blog: The Adventures of Tribal Country Gal Paulette, to read about music, tattoos, glamping, and other good stuff! Also on that incredible new site…oh yea…
Plus there is tonS of info on my travels, workshops, Tribal Certification courses, plus a whole page of shopping! Woo hoo…Tribal Techniques DVDs, Gypsy Caravan music and digital downloads, online classes (soon to come), fabulous Tribal Rocks Tshirts, postcards and more…
Stop by, say hi…see you there!
And many thanks for hanging out with me…love you….
July 6, 2012
Very excited today…what I am loving
I am so happy and excited to bring you my new website…it is almost up and running…and what an ordeal it has been. Sometimes you just don’t think things could take so long, or be so trying on your patience, or difficult to communicate your ideas. What do you mean you can’t read my mind? Isn’t that the artist’s way and your job, though, to get across the creation that is in your mind, or your body, whatever your art medium is.
Sometimes when I dance, I do feel like I want to convey an emotion, or a feat, and sometimes, in fact most of the times for me, it is the beauty in form that is what my dance is about. The way a body can move, the way the multiple bodies move in one synchronistic wave, or the sway of the formation, or the power of the busting out…we all have our reasons to create, but getting them out of the brain so someone else can enjoy them, or translate them, or whatever that process is.
And so in communicating ideas! I KNOW what I mean, and I can see it in my mind, but I need to tell you what it is so you can design it for me! Ha…well, anyway… my website will be coming at you soon!
In the meantime…
What I am loving today, Friday…
Friday already, a funny week with July 4th holiday in the middle….a week of quickly losing my darling cat to cancer, another night of emergency room treatment for my dog, a couple of nights of insane booming outside which drives my dog ballistic, a night of rehearsing and brainstorming and making delicious dance plans for you!
YES, we are going in the studio today to finally start filming my online classes!!!! After what seems like years of planning… so be on the watch for that too. I’m all tingly just telling you about it!
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Have you seen swissmiss yet? What a cool blog site from a designer…full of quotes and toys and silliness and inventiveness..refreshing
“No one looks stupid when they’re having fun.”
- Amy Poehler
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pretty pumped up for my upcoming touring schedule through mid 2013..
http://www.gypsycaravan.us/workshops.php
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and here is a sneak peak at my new tribal cards…soon to be out for YOU!
alright my lovelies…enjoy your day, enjoy your weekend, thanks for stopping by…
July 2, 2012
Dance To Word
Release and Joy…
I have stepped outside of myself these last several months, kicking back in to my creative dance mode.. In a freaking amazing way. I pre-planned my schedule so that I allowed time to do things I really wanted and really needed. I made time to do some studying at home, made time to be still, to write, dream, work on new projects, new dance pieces, new dance troupe stuff. Approach new ideas with gusto, even if they are a little scary or different than what I’ve done before. Like with my newly revamped this year dance troupe, Gypsy Caravan Dance Company International. (http://www.gypsycaravan.us/gypsy_caravan.php) People ask how am I doing things with my dancers spread out all over the world, and I say, I take it one day at a time, because I’ve never done this before. Exhilarating…
Or filming my Tribal Technique DVDs in other countries? Wow, that has been an amazing experience! Sure, tricky, language defying, with traveling time frame deadlines and more. But I thought it was worth the risk because I really wanted to try and test my Taking Tribal Global theories with my international dancing sisters. And they are working. Plus the internet is an amazing entity to work with! (By the way, see my DVD special at the bottom of this post!)
It is mind boggling sometimes, and I’m not always sure what or how to do things. But they become clear if I let them. And take time to focus and learn. And experiment. And ask for help. That is part of the fun, the experimentation, the sharing, the process. And it has been incredibly soul satisfying. Who says I can’t do something? What happens if something does not work? Well, revamp again…what is the worry? Personal and professional fulfillment and achievement. Because it is about my vision. But my vision, my dance has to do with you. My dance is my gift to give, to share, I don’t hang on to it for me. It has to do with what service can I provide for you? How can I help you to be a better dancer? To live your dream? To be an artist? To get unstuck, or wherever we go together to get you moving!
It all is a big circle for me, I take care of what I need, in order to do the work I do, so that I can work with you. Get it? woo hoo…pretty hot stuff. Just what I wanted my life to be, and I take it day by day.
So in my past blog post, What Makes You, You?
(June 20th, http://www.tribalbellydanceblog.com/wednesday-thoughts-and-quotes-what-makes-you-you#comments )
Cayte in the UK, wrote me back almost immediately after reading my post, with her answer. And it is a brilliant answer! In writing something akin to this, there is no right or wrong, just what needs to come out of your heart and soul. And in this particular case, it needs to be truthful, as opposed to making up a person you would like to be!
Cayte writes,
What am I?
I’m a mother, daughter, sister, wife, lover, friend. A listening ear, supportive shoulder, caring heart, sharer of laughter and tears, good times and bad.
I’m a teacher, student, mentor, enabler, encouraging smile. A dancer, writer, reader, dreamer, envisioner, imagineer. A deep thinker, logician, mathematician, planner, reflector and newly-discovered website creatrix.
I’m a drummer, ziller, violinist and owner of a set of qarqabas that bewitch and infuriate me in equal measure.
I am a vegan. A child of life and light and colour and beauty. A believer, hoper, warrior for compassion. A lover of ALL life.
A woman of purpose and a lost soul.
I am a pierced, tattooed, funky booted,hippy rock chick. A creator of alternative existences; creator of my own existence …
There you go! Wow – that was so therapeutic – thank you!
Cayte x
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You can just feel a sense of her, can’t you? And hear her joy and passion about life, as she wrote those words! And her stance. What else would you say about her, just by reading her picture of herself? Her words are so colorful and strong.
Now, if you did the journal exercise (or you can do it now!), continue on with the next phase of this writing. What would be your dream self? Maybe you want to change your job, or move, or divorce, or join the gym, dye your hair, write a book, bicycle across the states? A bucket list? Or a life change? Anything? What have you always wanted to do, but thought you did not have the time? What if you had the time? Go wild. Is someone stopping you from dreaming? Let go and soar baby…
and then, see what happens!
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I am on my way to co-teach my Tribal Trance and Dance class tonight. Our subjects tonight are Release and Joy…
so go on and dance to the music!
many thanks,
Paulette
!!!!!!!!and the special…you have until the 4th of July to purchase…
Want some fabulous FREE Gypsy Caravan music? Order your Tribal Technique DVD today (10 to choose from)!
Before my new web site goes live, you can still shop on my Facebook (TabJuice) store. and if you do, there is a sale waiting for you…
Buy any one DVD (Tribal Techs, #1-#10), and get any one CD free! ( choose form Awakening, Quest, Migration, Live, and Caravan Rhythms), just make sure to tell me which DVD and which CD!
https://www.facebook.com/ GypsyCaravanDanceCompany?v=app_ 111032002302150&app_data=produ ct:
enjoy the dance, the workout, and shimmy into your day with some great tunes!
June 29, 2012
Friday, what is rocking my world!
*Starting my morning off with a great post from
This is a guy in Australia, a writer, a hunter, fisherman, gardener and quite the cook! Some pretty damn fine recipes (only the meatless ones for me!)
Stuff…..and the downfall of the first world.
About just how much STUFF we have, and don’t need…and I’ve been preparing for a yard sale, so this just reiterates my feelings on releasing stuff back to the world, for someone else to reuse, repurpose. Downsizing, opening up my space, also opens up my head. Know what I mean? And allows breathing room for new thoughts and creative genius! 
*Have I told you about Leonie? She runs the Goddess Circle, an international group of women, who are creatives-artists, entrepeneurs, and all fo the delightful things that make up us women! I”ve joined in her circle, and have been working on her business e-course, loving it, so glad for the help and inspiration. Sometimes you just need a little extra guidance, you now?
**You can check out the Goddess Circle here. Tell her I sent you!
(P.S. And I know her rates are going up in 6 days, so hurry if you want to get in before then. Maybe I’ll see you there!)
* And going to my gym for some hiphop, getting ready for our Gypsy Caravan gig tomorrow night…loving how my body feels as I get stronger and fitter!
*AND almost ready to release my new website, finally, it is looking awesome, and I can’t wait to share it with you. After almost 8 months of designs and webmasters and ideas… we are about to show it to the world… And I”ve special new Tribal Cards for you to check out too…
**In fact, how about a pre July 4th sale, just for you?
Before my site goes live, you can still shop on my Facebook store. and if you do, I will put up a sale for you…
Buy any one DVD (Tribal Techs, #1-#10), and get any one CD free! ( choose form Awakening, Quest, Migration, Live, and Caravan Rhythms)
so that is $25.00 plus 6.95 for shipping, and enjoy the dance, the workout, and shimmy into your day with some great tunes!
Shop here! Now through July 4th
https://www.facebook.com/GypsyCaravanDanceCompany?v=app_111032002302150&app_data=product:
**alrighty then..enjoy your weekend! and thanks for being here…
as always, I love to hear from you, get registered if you haven’t already, so you can leave comments for all of us…love that too…
June 28, 2012
Thoughts and Quotes
Ah, a gorgeous summer morning here in Portland, rare these last days of June, and my mind is swirling with so many ideas of words to share with you. I want to write about my thoughts on getting older as a dancer, I want to write about the beauty of being a teacher and watching your students excel and thrive, my dance gig last night with my troupe and musicians playing rocking kick ass drums and zurnas, my very sick cat Sage and my aching heart. I want to tell you about the dance projects that I am about to reveal. My new website that is looking gorgeous also about to be revealed. The thrill of having so much in my heart I want to write is great, so much to share with you, to give you, the love of words.
Because sometimes there is a void. Do you know what I mean?
Sometimes there feels like there is just nothing coming, as an artist, a block, an emptiness, a lack of joy, no response… How do you get through those periods? Can you force creativity? No, I believe it is important to have a discipline, a way that you work, a schedule of sorts, to a degree, but there is also a need and a time for nothingness, for patience, for respect of our own processes. And for forgiveness. Not an excuse, but to let things be sometimes, whether it be a time for rejuvenation, time to let things percolate, a time for more play dates-alone or with loving friends, whatever it is that we need as artists, humans. With no guilt, no excuses.
As a recovering workaholic (!), I find that I feel guilty sometimes when I take down time, or one half day of no work. Those of you who work for themselves probably really get that. Can you imagine one whole day of not being on the computer, answering emails, or whatever it is that you do. Even if it only takes ten minutes, you say. It still is a mind set. I don’t think I’ve had a total day off in eternity, because I find myself always checking emails, jotting down notes, even when I’m camping. Most of the time that feels OK, because my work is my play, my life, and I love what I do. Really. But even I need to get away from it.
There was a time when I did not love what I was doing, and I had to back away for re-evaluation, a change. It can take time, that deep soul searching. Naps. Massages. Walks. Some times you need help to find what you need, friends to bounce ideas off of, friends to take you out for a cocktail, or two. Slumber parties. Silent retreat. Laughter. Therapy. A new outlook. A new job. I found what I needed and I made my changes. Because I wanted to. I also had to, to save myself, my art, my love, my life. Nothing is forever, got to remember that. But dont’ drag yourself through the mud before you make a shift.
I had a friend tell me recently that she was tired and burned out, needed a change, needed a rest, needed time. But the sad thing was that she had been saying that for months. And not doing it. Getting more frustrated, more tired, and more angry. Well, that is so not good. Not a great way to feel, to be, to live everyday. I know it is a cliche, but I am trying to live everyday, every moment. Who knows what tomorrow may bring? I find joy in my work. And to find joy in my down time. I am taking time to smell my roses, and my garden is so full of them right now, it makes me weep to see their blooming beauty. And I soooo am loving that! Too much, ha…
Why is it that it is hard to step up and ask for what we need? Go after what we want? Now? Why wait? It is our inherent right to be happy, to be vibrant and alive. To do the work we love. To take the time for ourselves with no excuses. To be at peace with ourselves and what we do. Sometimes we just have to step back and do it. I don’t like to not walk my talk. I know what I need and want. And damn, here I go to do it, to get it. No stopping me.
So, next time you make an excuse for yourself, step back and look at yourself. Stand up tall, proud, beautiful, and breathe deep. Look around, be grateful. Find your light. Love….yea…
June 25, 2012
Dance to Word…
Can you take some time to watch a show? I don’t have television,and although I am on my computer many hours a day, I don’t usually watch a show…but I was turned onto Oprah Super Soul Sunday yesterday…what a great name! And her guest was Caroline Myss. A chatting show of sorts, but I decided to take some time to watch it after my work out, and wow….what a knock out conversation. I’ve known of Caroline for years, have a few of her books even, unread, but she is a well known author, healer, intuitive, motivational speaker, in a big way. And this was superb. I love Oprah, but haven’t really watched her in years.
Their conversation is inspiring, enlightening, thrilling…as they talk about spirit, empowerment, sacred life contracts, hope. And you now how it is when you think something, but when someone says it out loud, it makes so much more sense. Some of what they talked about I knew, but to hear the conversation, to listen to solid ideas, newer thoughts, beliefs, and different ways of talking about your life path…what more can I say, than just brilliant!
So today I invite you to watch this hour show… have your journal and pen handy, jot down notes, get excited, write about it, give yourself time to process, and let me know where you go with it…
http://www.oprah.com/own-super-soul-sunday/Super-Soul-Sunday-Full-Episode-Caroline-Myss-Video
Enjoy!
June 22, 2012
Friday, what is rockin’ my world!
another delicious day… we were prepping for a yard sale this weekend, but now it looks like more rain! we’ll see…but sometimes nothing can stop me, ever feel that way? I feel good, I’m drinking my green smoothies, I’m rehearsing with my dancers, I’m writing, I’m working out, I am ready to conquer the world, my own world that is…
and then I get this great email blog from one of my heroes, Kris Carr (author of Crazy Sexy Diet, and more), with her words that mirror that same thing. I LOVE that… she talks about being happy and in love with her life and how odd it feels to say that outloud. To acknowledge that publicly! Why is that such a weird thing to do, she asks? I get that… Some people have told me that I’m too optimistic. WTF? No way, jose, I’m not cynical, I don’t think it is cool to bitch and moan, I don’t want to let life rule me, I don’t want to be a complainer, I’m not a victim or a martyr. I get so tired of hearing people blame others, or blame the weather, or blame the government, or or or…
I make my life, I learn from my mistakes, I take responsibility, and I LOVE what I do. No, not always easy, but so…I get up and keep going. And I’m not afraid to say so. Life is beautiful, life is good. If things are dragging me down, I change them. Yes, hard, but still good…it is the journey after all. And Kris Carr just rocked it for me today! (please check her out, and get her newsletter too… http://crazysexylife.com/)
So you try it! Say it out loud…smile, even if you don’t feel like it, go work out, you will feel better, I promise, spread the love peeps!
ok, what else am I loving?
My friends farm babies! how adorable can you get?
the vintage trailer rally, wow…so many great cool vintage trailers! mouth watering….
and then along came my new friend Tammy and her cute little Fifi trailer, totally dolled (or should I say poodled up?)
is she and that trailer not the cutest????
and then while there in Roslyn WA, a drink at the Brick Tavern, you remember, from Northern Exposure, one of my fab TV shows, back in the days when I had a television! How fun was that, complete with a country band playing some of my fav merle haggard tunes!
and then an end to the fab glamping weekend playing tunes with some fine musicians at a Sister on the Fly event in Prosser, WA, put on by my friends Rene and Jennel! Waht fun…
photo Rene Groom
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*Are you a guitar player? I”m loving my guitar classes on Guitartricks.com! Wow, it so rocks….
*Tattooroadtrip.com, check them out for lots of good stuff about tattoos and tattooists, and more, plus my roadtripping column!
* a lovely Solstice dinner and wine with garden designer extraordinaire, Suzinn Weiss, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Suzinn-Weiss-Garden-Design/136516031770, does she have a way with plants! amazing…
*all my dance projects I’m working on, sooooo excited to be sharing them with you soon!
And now my friends, enjoy your weekend, see you sunday with Dance to Word…
Thanks for being here…
June 20, 2012
Wednesday Thoughts and Quotes—What makes you you?
I am a dance teacher and a writer….for my life’s work…not one, not the other, both…I can’t be one without the other…
in reality I am many things… or should I say, many things make up my crazy sexy life human being that I am!
I am a dancer, a teacher, a writer, a musician, a singer, a performer, a cook, a wife, a lover, a friend, a best friend, a coach, an instigator, an innovator, an artist, a gardener, a tattooed one, a bleached blond 50-something honky tonkin’ guitar player, a glamper, a hostess, a homemaker, a mother of many, a daughter, a sister, a loyal being, an earth worshipper, a caregiver, a passionate soul, a wine drinker, a vegetarian, a creatrix, a photographer….. oh, I’m sure I can keep that list going for a while.
How about you? Can you write me a list of who and what you are…or again, what makes you you?
Define yourself with delicious words, color yourself, with preciseness, with passion, with truth….
The dream list can come later…. but now, today, what makes you you? There may be words in there you would not want anyone else to read. Hhmmm, what to do about that? There may be words that make you glow, shine with pride. Rock on! And you should allow yourself to shine, to glow, to love who you are, no humbleness allowed here, my friends…
But if I were to really want to define me, my life’s work, I would say that I am a dance teacher and a writer. Today, those feel like my greatest callings in life, where and how I empower others through my experience and knowledge, which is what I love to do the most. I am on fire when I am in these modes. I can give the world to someone who wants it, truely, heart and soul. It is the most rewarding, and the most selfless thing I can do. Selfless, because nothing else exists in those moments, does that make sense? It is not about me, but about them, what I can do to help, my little corner of the world, it all makes a difference, every little act, every thought, and thoughts become things, says one of my gurus, Mike Dooley, www.tut.com),
So what are you thinking right now? You know, you can make it happen…
Now, some of you may know me by now, I love lists….so I want you to get that list going. What makes you you?
It seems on my blog, I want to have certain days be certain subjects… but when I am on fire, I need to go with the light, the burn, and then, I cannot wait to pass it on to you. This was to be my Sunday Dance to Word, but why wait? It’s here right now… go for it!
Some of my projects come into fruition in small snippets, and some take weeks, months, and years long. I have a few new ones coming at you soon…in the meantime, enjoy what the day brings! I hope you enjoy my words, I love sharing with you, and hope you can share with me/us too…
Thanks for being here…
Happy solstice…may your light burn bright and true.
June 17, 2012
Sunday Dance to Word–accomplishing great things!
“to accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe.” Anatole France, the French novelist, storyteller, Nobel Prize winner….
Sooooo, where do you shine? Why not radiate, chant yourself alive with dreams and words?
If you had to tell me about yourself, no humbleness allowed, what would you say? Tell me how you are radiant! Show me what your divine traits are! Woo hoo…I want to hear how much you are in love with yourself, and what you feel, think, do….How do you take up space?
And what is it you want to do later? if you could time travel, where will you be?
lay it out, plot it, dream it, love it, write it down, define it, frill it up with fine lace and leather, gingham and aprons, chickens and goats, pens and pages, vintage and antiques, calm and cool, walk it, bench press it, then act it, today…
use your words and go for the ride
