xp_logs | Jay & Kurt Log midday

Kurt teaches Jay how to juggle. This will take a few lessons.

"Al'ight, Ah didn' have anythin' tha' Ah could use tha wouldn' break but these," Jay pulled six water bottles from his bag on the gym floor and set them down next to him. "Ah ain't gonna make any money if Ah'm breakin' everythin'. Sorry--" he stood up with three in his hands, waiting for some direction.

"Very sensible", Kurt approved. "I would have provided something to use, if you had asked, but plastic bottles will do well enough. Do you know anything of how to do it, before we begin?"

"Well," he started, shifting the bottles in his hands to hold them by their caps. "Ah reckon it's somethin' like this." Jay tossed a bottle in the air and caught it but not without dropping another. It rolled away and he moved to collect it before returning back to his previous position. "-- or something?"

"...well, that is a good start", Kurt said carefully. "But you need to be able to do that with all the bottles at once, and know where they are at all times. Perhaps it might be easier to begin with two."

"Al'ight, two then," he set one down and repositioned the two, clucking his tongue and trying again. Tossing one in the air, Jay caught it with the other hand after tossing the other bottle but his left didn't quite catch it and both fell to the ground. "Shhh...’oot."

"It will come with practice", Kurt told him calmly. "Try again."

Jay made a face, trying again with the same results, only one bottle went scattering away, to which sent him after it. "Ya know, if tha' was a bottle, Ah'd be out fifty bucks." He moved back next to Kurt, tried one more time and fumbled, tossed it in the air again and missed catching it. "This looks a whole lot easier on T.V."

"Jay, do not be too hard on yourself", was the next, gently offered, advice. "The ones who do it on TV have been learning it for weeks, at the very least - and that is only if they are actors. Sometimes it can take months to perfect."

"Ya think this is gonna take weeks huh? Should Ah be quitting before we start?" He asked, somewhat discouraged by the prospect of taking so long. "Ah mean, if Ah can do something wicked like flip tha bottle an' catch it without breakin' tha beat, Ah'll get good tips." He offered a weak smile, as if the words were not even convincing for himself. He wanted to try though. "Al'ight, al'light. Like this, right?" he motioned, flipping the bottle and catching it by the cap. "An like this," he did the same with his left hand. "An', now, ta put 'em together." He threw them both up in the air, timed wrong, while the third went rolling away.

"All I meant was that you cannot expect it to come instantly." He frowned at the demonstration. "I think we need to work on your timing. Give me the bottles and watch."

"Luck with tha," he passed over the two bottles and fetches the third. "Ya need this right? Oh an' Ah wanna be able ta do it in flight too. Maybe that's too much ta ask right now."

"...I would suggest mastering it on the ground first, yes. Once you have done that, then work on learning it in flight." He took the bottles and - deliberately slowly, because this was a lesson, not showing off - began to juggle them.

"Yeah Ah know. I was just saying. How long did it take ya ta learn?" he asked, tucking his hands into his pockets. Blowing out a sigh, he marvelled at how effortlessly Kurt juggled. Even slowly, it was hard to grasp. "Al'ight, there's too many ends ta catch at one time. Ah can see wha yer doin' but Ah don' know how ta get all three o' 'em like tha'."

"To do it and never drop one? Quite some time", Kurt had to tell him. "And you are not meant to catch all of them at once. Two should always be in your hands and the rest in the air."

Jay groaned inwardly. "Okay Kurt, lemme level with ya a second. Ah don' know if Ah can do this without a little guidance. Do ya think we could, uh, get together maybe once a week an' ya could tell me wha' Ah'm doin' wrong?"

"When I offered to teach you, I did not mean only one lesson", he said placidly. "I will meet with you as often as you like, and the rest of the time, you practice when you get a moment."

"Sounds like a plan," he smiled, reaching out to take the bottles and give it a try. "An' fer yer help, ya can sleep better at night, knowin' there's one less bottle tha' Ah'll be breakin'."