Website woes

[mekyria]

I have grossly neglected my websites in the past year(s), due to being Career Woman and all that. I did a quick update round, but it appears that the free wordpress.com websites have disappeared because I can't access them after I log in. The website states that ' I haven't gotten a blog yet, start here!'. Well, I have two, thank you very much, and I need to update at least one of them so GIVE ME MY BLOG BACK ALREADY.

This only proves how little you can trust free cloud services like wordpress.com, even though they are very nice and trustworthy in general. Glad that I host my bellydance website on a server in the Netherlands, granting me full control. The reason why I updated my website is because I was called by a lady for a booking next Thursday and I realized that I hadn't updated my online calendar for a while. I did ofcourse update my website earlier this year to reflect the VAT going up from 19% to 21%.

Next week is insane: I'm doing a (close to charity) gig with FaKyMa on wednesday in Zoetermeer, a christmasparty performance in Bussum on Thursday (party thrown by surgeons, they pay the standard deal without complaining. Yay!) and performing in the Stairway on Friday (It's a local club, quite famous with the general public, I'm doing full blown bellydance with veil and zills). Saturday I celebrate my birthday, woohoo!! Sunday is wedding dress shopping with ikaiya.

Talking about belly dance adminsitration, I should also sit down and make the bill for last semester's classes and the trial class in September. I could use the money for the Aziza Dreamcamp next year. I have HUGE first world problems, being that I am planning my holidays for 2013 and I have to choose between going to New York for the Belly Dance Theatrical Festival, or to Aziza's Dream Camp in Belgium.  Woe is me! *faints while holding her hand to her face*. Ranya and Anasma, or Aziza and Hisham? What Would Flisties Do?

I digress. I have to figure out how to get control back over the two public websites, being the event website for RonDom Buikdans and the troupe website for Sense of Bellydance. I'll start out by the wordpress faq, will post back on the result.

Comments

[beafarhana.livejournal.com]

It would be Ranya for me, every time!

Good luck with the websites.

[mekyria.livejournal.com]

with regards to the website: I R stupid, apparently I have a seperate adim account that I forgot all about. Can't find a trace of the damn thing, I'm hoping wordpress can help me out on that one. *double facepalm*

[misspotsitt.livejournal.com]

I feel a bit guilty saying this, but I have taken workshops with almost all of them and I would be going for Ranya and Anasma personally.

[mekyria.livejournal.com]

I have taken classes with Anasma and Aziza, but never Ranya.

My consideration is that it is insanely expensive to go to New York with relative little workshop time. (plane ticket: 600 euro, I think overall 1500 euro) But hey, New York! And Ranya! And Anasma!

In the other hand, I could do with an intensive training week and Aziza's dreamcamp suits my style, it is closer by (on the same continent) and also insanely expensive (about 1200-1500 euro)

I have someone nearby who says that I should do both and screw the cost. It's a lot of money and I don't know if I can swing it, especially since I'm going to Indonesia in August (I estimate 2500 euro for that one)

[misspotsitt.livejournal.com]

Yeah I do know what you mean. After Christmas in the UK we get loads of flight deals, is it the same where you are? You may be able to bagsie a cheap NY flight?

I quite like intensive training (like a week of dancing) as I do find my dance really progresses in that time. Ranya is awesome though, I would thoroughly recommend training with her.

[mekyria.livejournal.com]

Ranya isn't teaching much during the festival, it appears everyone from the WDNY dvds is making an appearance, including Sarah Skinner, Neon, Blanca, Helena Vlahos (!), Anahid Sofian, Elena Lentini, Dalia Carella, Oreet and Yasmina Ramzy (not the half of the UK ramzies).

Still an exciting and impressive list of teachers.

[wooglethealien.livejournal.com]

Indonesia sounds more interesting than either TBH

[mekyria.livejournal.com]

it is! Little Brother and me are going to visit our roots. I already set the money aside for that one, so it is definetly going to happen.

[ikaiya.livejournal.com]

The cost are almost the same......Go to New York!

[evil-spice.livejournal.com]

Personally I'd do Dreambootcamp because I really like that intensive training and can imagine that a week of Aziza would be transformative. I think the way the theatrical bellydance conference is organised sounds interesting though. I gues it depends whether you think you'll enjoy focussing on a topic or on a dancer. I can see both being really useful.

[mizmarti.livejournal.com]

Unless you specifically want to focus on "theatrical bellydance" -- not "bellydance bellydance" -- I'd go with Aziza and Issam, hands down. I admire many of the teachers that Ranya and Anasma have booked this year, and I think it's really cool that they put on a festival with a unique focus. If I wanted to choose the most valuable training for dance as DANCE, though, and get the most return on my investment by that standard, I'd go with the more focused (and more traditionally dance-focused) intensive.

[mekyria.livejournal.com]

The conundrum is that I earn money with good old straight belly dance, money thatvI use for classes and dance trips. BUT!
In the past 18 months participated in several theater projects which I highly enjoyed and all of those projects cost me money.

In case of investment, dance camp is a better choice. Looking from an interest perspective, New York would be awesome.