Dirty Dancing - How To Horrah 21.05.2015

The two things I love about a wedding: the salmon board while photographers document a day, and the washing machine spin-cycle of the horas that’ll leave you in a sweat. the rest is for the dvd.
This article is a short illustration of the horas you should be doing on your wedding day, if youre jewish or just want to be New York-cool.

1.The Classic
This is the go-to hora, its easily understood by all participants. Even the kids that struggled to put the square toy in the square opening will get this hora spot on. One circle of mates going in one direction, and an inner circle of mates going in the opposite direction. four rotations and you have a successful dance. spinning too fast could alter the internal comfort zone of the venue.

 2.The Square

                                                                    The Square is a little harder to arrange, afterall not all of us are accountants. But you really have to have buy-in on this dance. You don’t need to choose team mates, just grab the closest chosid, pull him to you tightly, shoulder to shoulder and command the floor. you'll be required to separate the participants into 4 groups. This isn't the Civil War, for here North engages South and East engages West. North and South move towards each other bumping chests, then return to their original spot. East and west do likewise. If you're creative, you might get your team mates to clash into the opposing team backwards. Try it. It's fun.

 3.The ‘You spin me right round like a record player..’ manoeuvre.
This is really basic. Your best mates make a giant circle moving in a chosen direction, using the classic, right foot forward, then left foot forward , then right foot behind left foot hora step. You the groom jump into the centre and grab your old man, while your boet grabs your uncle. You begin doing frenetic circles, toes against each other  holding hands. It's a roller coaster and you didn’t even have to fit under the gold miners hand.

 4.Sifting soya

This move is daring and the groom has got to give his go-ahead. You’ll need 2 fresh table clothes, big enough to sift rocks, but not let them through. Usually as many lads as possible hold onto the edges of the cloths while the groom jumps onto the stretched ‘skin’. Think, fire fighters. From here on in, he has paid his entrance money and the ride takes its course. ’Ground control to Major Tom’. The lads proceed bouncing the cloth up and down, the groom with it. Like bouncing beans on a drum the howls of laughter or screams of fear will echo off the Sandton Shul halls walls. The lads must control the grooms flight and direction. Houston we have lift off.

5. ‘The Bridge over the River Kwai’
This dance is ‘extreme’.  Each of the guests grabs a partner, face to face, interlinking arms, creating a tight bond. Each pair gets close to one another, shoulder to shoulder. The groom runs and jumps onto the ‘bridge’ arms in front like Superman. It’s critical that his feet are held down by the participants. The groom gets bounced forward, momentarily suspended, flying. 'Is it a bird?, is it a plane?, no, it's Moishe'. A dream come true.

6. The 'A' train

This dance ain't exactly a night out in Manhatten, but it'll make uncle Max happy to be part of the festivities. It comes about when we're lost for ideas on the next move. This is the dance that gets you a view of more than the big flower pot with its hay fever pollinating gladioli. Here you’ll walk the length and breadth of the dance floor, gaining a fish eye view of a whose who at the wedding. Evoking the figure '8' is common in nature, even educated bees are doing it. Should this dance hold one's attention for long enough, that number might be achievable. All you got to do is grab the closest yid on his shoulders, ensure he does likewise with the next closest yid and just start heading uptown.

 7. The Wrecking Ball

This vigorous move is an exciting assault on the senses. You're clustered in groups of four, huddled spinning, spinning. it might happen that you collide with other clusters. this dance is galactic, and my personal favourite.

8. The 3 Scoop

Who doesn't love a 3 scoop? As a regular wedding goer I am yet to see this move, or achieve it. my lungs often shredded from screaming '3 circles, 3 circles'. The 3 Scoop is made up of 3 concentric circles rotating in opposite directions. 'People, it just takes a little bit of organisation and innovation. that's all.' this is undoubtedly the golden ticket of hora manoeuvres and looks phenomenal from a bird's perspective.

                                                                            

 9. The Skipper

If you ever had dreams of being like Rocky Balboa but never been to Philadelphia, now is your chance to show how good a skipper you are. No need to guide a ship through stormy water or land a wayward rocket on the moon, just jump over a moving string. strong legs and out stretched arms and a quick reflex will get you applause. two lads each take the ends of a long table cloth turning it into a 'rope' for skipping. the protagonist, the person who wants video coverage has the courage to go ajumping. this is school playground kind of fun.

 10. The Bucking Bronco/Hold the Hankie

This move takes initiative. Someone from either men's and woman's section must run to get a chair for both the bride and for the groom at the same time. Splitting the red sea couldn't have been more difficult. then you require strong lads to heave the groom/bride upon the chair, twirling them and showing them off like a marvelled Oscar statue. The idea is then to get the bride and groom together to share holding a handkerchief... sigh...love

 

 11. Pop the Balloon

The brides organiser friends make sure she has things to pop-long polls wrapped in beautiful ribbons with colourful balloons attached. The bride is placed on a chair with a sharp object while her friends holding the polls circumnavigate the lucky lady. as they pass by pop pop the bride goes.

There are many more hora ideas, so be innovative, be exciting and make sure to entertain the bride and groom.

Bowling For Ballen - The Tale of a Two Scoop 19.05.2015

The king of ice-cream,  Paul Ballen.

 I scream, you scream, we all scream for Ice Cream.
Like the arrival of The Beetles at the Met, the ice cream frenzy is extra-planetary.

Of dad from NY City and of artist mom, split in two, a twin, Paul Ballen experienced life less ordinary, a life more exotic. Cultured in the arts, worldly in travel, and with a taste for food, the world was his perogan.

Educated in the black, whites and blues of King David Victory Park, he followed the beaten path.
A BA in History and Psychology and an honours in Clinical Psychology, he was a little uncertain.  And so, a gap year filled with numbers, a PDM at Wits business school. 

Holidays filled walking the streets of New York City while visiting his granddad was life education, Paul got his. The steamy streets, the sweat dripped brows of hot New Yorkers, and the jungle humid caverns of the Metro underground. I love New York in June. ‘So who wants an ice cream?’

Paul’s sister’s boyfriend got an ice creamer maker. In 2009 Paul wanted an ice cream maker too. Churning out a batch of ice-cream had the neighbourhood screaming for more. After throwing his first 'ice cream and waffle' day at his folk’s house in the summer of ’09, the drooling throngs of fans arrived. Paul’s Homemade Ice Cream had erupted.
 

With social media ripe for launching, lots of ‘likes’ on Facebook , images of the ice cream, of the machine and the process on Instagram, and a streaming Twitter feed creating further hype, ice cream orders flooded in.  His one over-worked ice-cream machine was increased. His artillery became 3.
Under pressure to progress, his mom designed a logo, he filled tubs, continued doing ice cream and waffle events and pushed hard to get into stores. One, then two. Braamfontein. Illovo. They released the flood gates, and the ice cream flew out of hipster central.

Things just happened, they fell into place. One meeting led to another. Roger, his dad, advised, 'have meetings, chat to people and things will happen'.

A gaping gap in the market, and the right space in time assisted Paul. There was momentum.
There were doubts in his mind though. ‘Should I do this?, do I have the time?, will this work out?, Should I not be pursuing a staid office job? Once the deliberating debate with his mind had settled, the realisation was that ‘I’m young, and I’ve nothing to lose’. And so he took the leap.

Ice-cream making is a creative process, requiring traditional business aspects along with a need for a passion for food. Paul understands he has many skills, none specific and this pursuit has allowed him to utilise his vast array of talents.
Paul’s Homemade is changing our perception of ice cream as a crafted, artisanal product made with care and patience. It’s  associated with memory, it’s not trending, it’s not a fad, it’s sustainable.

The two scoop has gained momentum. With the growth of the business, Paul and his creative spirit have now been twinned with Josh Amoils and his business acumen. They have since moved in to new premises, a building in Orange Grove, a yawing ships cabin.

‘Operating your own business has its difficulties, and criticism is directed at you.
It’s a heavy blow being up against the ropes. You've got to be passionate and driven enough to ensure the product is successful.’ Paul is fighting a market that is driven by economics, that wants a cheaper, value-for-money product. Adrenalin, belief and passion drive Paul, there is no time for sitting still.

"Is it important to have a goal?" I ask. Ballen responds, 'Is it your personality?
We’re unique. He didn't ever anticipate being where he is. He never ever said, 'I’m gonna be...' Some people have a better understanding of their skills and strengths allowing them to envision their pursuit.'

His success is seeing a product people enjoy, appreciate and identify as being quality. 'Ice Cream is only the beginning'.
‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts’, Winston Churchill

Motivation, a strong work ethic, a responsibility to clients, a ‘no half measures’ attitude , some vision and support from his parents have been cool components in his rise. His parents gave him the chance to try. All our experiences are learning curves.

Live each day as it comes, be passionate, reflect on what you’re doing and reassess. Be happy, the moment you aren’t happy or you aren’t learning or have doubts, it’s time to move on.

Next time you’re considering a two hour session at a psychologist, lick a scoop of Paul Ballen’s  Homemade Ice Cream and stretch a smile.