I Hate To Break It To You..

...but this is just another Chia Pet



  Fushigi..the most obnoxious advert of the year for a ball you do not need. There is nothing magical, nor gravity-defying about what is going on here.

  It's called Contact Juggling and you can do this too without paying 20 bucks plus shipping and handling to John Cammarano's infomercial conglomerate. With a reasonable amount of practice, you can make any sphere do all of these things- you can do it with a baseball, bocce ball, or one of those shiny Chinese stress balls. If you're really good, you can do every one of these 'magical' tricks with a reasonably symmetrical orange.

  It started becoming popular during a period in the 80's when all sorts of physical pastimes such as competitive Yo-yo and breakdancing hit playgrounds all over.
 The folks in the ads are performance artists, some of whom have over a decade of experience. These dudes have pissed off an entire art community by selling their creative souls to the same guy who invented that annoying singing Boogie Bass.

  I'm not saying that Contact Juggling isn't fun or a decent form of solitary exercise, because it is both of these things. It is an exercise in dexterity that you can become very adept at with a great deal of practice. If you have exhausted all of the tennis balls and oranges in your house and want to try something new, buy durable balls from a juggling store that you can test before you invest.
  While the Fushigi folks seem to claim to have invented the 'new' sport and to beware of imitators, this is nothing new, nor is their product superior to any other Contact Juggling ball. In fact, the carefully marketed ball doesn't fare very well when dropped. And if you're a rookie, you will drop this- a LOT.

  So if you're tempted to pick up your credit card, go HERE or HERE to find out about a very real artistic sport that is not exactly as seen on television.