Valentines 2010

This past week was frustrating at work.  Almost everything that could've gone wrong did.  It was pretty impressive.  I was ready for the end of the week by Wednesday, so since I knew there were various plans going on this Saturday, I decided to take a three-day weekend.

And boy, I'm glad I did.

At JNO on Friday night, I enjoyed myself for the first time in a few months.  Recently, I've been staying at JNO for about and hour, then leaving (if I went at all).  I'm not entirely sure if it's me or if the whole scene has just gotten to the point that I can't stand it.  But at the Pink Party on Friday, through some combination of the people there, the atmosphere, and the fact that I didn't have to work the following morning, it just all worked out.  And it showed in my dancing.  After failing miserably in a couples contest with Ben in December, we tried it again and placed third.  I really hope that something happens with whatever's bringing me down on Fridays so I can enjoy myself that much again.

This last week, Kate was in town, spending time with everyone before she and her shiny new husband head off to Korea to teach English for the next year.  Unfortunately, both times we were together, I wasn't exactly in the mood for dealing with the world, and the times I was, I had plans with other people before she called me.  She left for Chicago tonight, and her flight to Korea is tomorrow, so I screwed up that one.  -___-;;

With all the running around I was doing at work, I was running on adrenaline by the time I got home.  With the extra energy, I actually managed to clean my apartment.  Hopefully I'll be able to keep it up.

It was good that I cleaned my kitchen too, because last night I got an invitation to a last-minute Valentine's Day party for everyone without plans (read: single).  It was a potluck-type of deal, and since I was feeling like using my shiny clean kitchen and trying out new recipes, I ran out and got supplies for S'Mores Brownies and Stuffed Pizza Rolls (pepperoni and Hawaiian).  And man, those brownies ended up all sorts of wonderful.  They were horribly rich though, so I now have half of them sitting on my counter at home, calling my name.  We spent the most of the rest of the day playing A Game of Thrones (which went on for far too long), and finished off with Halo 2 multiplayer and ping pong.

I was a little worried about spending this week alone, but really, I'm enjoying myself a lot.  Hopefully that's not the sugar from the brownies talking.

Four Birthdays and a Wedding

There sure seem to be a lot of people with birthdays at the end of August and beginning of September (including me).

Two weekends ago, Matt, Troy, and Ben all had their birthdays. And lucky Ben turned 21 this year. Eric and I pretty much promised we were going to get him trashed (I said that I would consider it a failure if we weren’t carrying him home), and, well, I think I fulfilled that promise (and gave ourselves several days of amusement with the pictures taken that night).

Kate’s wedding was last Saturday, the day after my birthday, so for the first time in several years, a) both of my best friends were in town for my birthday, and b) it was on a Friday night. Yes, we had do deal with bad linoleum floor in a church basement for dancing since the Eagles kicked us out for dart players, but we made the most of it.

The wedding on Saturday was something I was dreading possibly more than the bride was, since I was maid of honor (complete with the maid of honor’s toast) and DJ for the rock/pop and swing portions of the evening. But the biggest hassle was right before the wedding. We had planned on me wearing an old green prom dress of mine, a green one, and although it fit a couple of months ago when I tried it on, it wouldn’t fit now. Just a couple of pounds in all the wrong places. -____-;; So, after getting Kate’s OK, I switched dresses and zoomed over to the wedding location (after a brief pit-stop at the wrong place), where I quickly set up my laptop for DJing, got the last few songs from Kate (most of which I never played), and running errands for the bride and her mother.

The ceremony went off with barely a hitch. (The only ones I could think of was the blinding sun in my eyes and how long it took for the bride and her parents to walk down with the photographer making them stop and pose for so long.) During the dinner, I kept checking the DJ booth to make sure that my list of quiet songs wasn’t running out and trying to keep the swing dancers at least somewhat entertained. Eventually, time came for my toast. Thankfully, the best man, Michael’s brother, was going first so I could judge what I had to say to stay interesting. And I lucked out, since it seemed all he could say was “Congratulations.” I opened with a lame-ass joke, Kate called Annette up to save my sorry ass, I said something about how neither of us expected to be there when we met 9 years ago, and I wished them luck. During the last couple of toasts and the cutting of the cake, we moved some tables out of the way, and we swing dancers decided to test the floor. ;) From there out, I traded DJ duties with one of the folk dancers, alternating between folk dances and swing dances (and whatever other dances the bride wanted to do), and as the night cleared, I played one final bout of rock/pop music to amuse the non-dancers there and called it a night.

Because my birthday was kind of preempted by Kate’s wedding, and a lot of the dancers didn’t show up Friday because of the venue change, I decided to have a birthday dinner on Sunday night, which was also a chance for most of the dancers to congratulate the newly married couple. And, as usual anymore when several of us get together, it degenerated into Rock Band at Troy and Merinda’s. :D

Last week somehow wasn’t as crazy as I feared it would be. The zoo’s gearing up for a fundraiser this Friday, but it’s strangely quiet today. Next week is Cowtown Jamborama, and the major part of housing (what I was charged with, along with a couple of others) is done with. I’m sure things are going to get busy again pretty soon, but I’m glad that the big crunch I was worried about fizzled into a pleasant event.

Metamorphosis of a Dancer

I’ve never really talked about my dancing inspirations, have I?  Here’s a pseudo-chronological timeline of major events in my dancing career.

Swing Club
Every story has a beginning.  Mine starts at Central with the Swing Club, started by Corinn, Dana, Chris, and Miriam.  The first meeting was January 7, 2003, I believe, the first Tuesday after winter break.  I remember Kate turning to me when we passed one of the posters and saying, “By the way, you’re going to this whether you like it or not.”  (I had already decided before winter break that I was going to go whether Kate and Annette joined me or not.)  Corinn, Dana, and Chris switched around the primary teaching duties, but if I had to call one of them my first teacher, it would be Corinn.  It felt like she always knew exactly what she was doing and was one of the main forces behind the group.  One of my biggest regrets about high school was that I was not able to continue the Swing Club the next year, when Kate, Annette, and I were the big three dancers at the school since everyone else graduated.

JNO, Beginning Lindy Hop, and Cowtown Jamborama 1
January 24, 2003, was the first time I went to Jitterbugs’ Night Out.  At the time, I didn’t think swing dancing was going to be such a large part of my life later, since I didn’t write much about it at the time.  Thankfully, the memory was still strong four years later.  In July, Billy and Lindsay let me take a beginning Lindy Hop class for free since they were short follows.  I had already had an introduction to it from Swing Club as well as a couple of the leads, but it was good for making sure I knew the basics of swingouts and Charleston kicks.  Later, I tried to pay for the classes, but Billy said no, put that into payment for the first Cowtown Jamborama.

That Cowtown taught me a lot of things:

• Everyone has their own idea of what a swingout is
• A lot of swing dancers are really nice (woo, birthday jam with all of the instructors!)
• A few swing dance instructors come off as jerks though
• I was at the low end of the totem pole at dancing
• But I wasn’t at the bottom of the totem pole :D

Dancing with Dan
In the next year, I managed to get the Lindy Hop down pat, and also picked up a little Collegiate Shag, Charleston, and Balboa.  I started dancing with Dan in the summer of 2004, I think, after being intimidated for the previous year.  (Annette was finally the one to say, “Here, dance.”)  Dan is in the hardcore Savoy group of dancers, of which there aren’t many in town.  I watched him dance with Monique and a few other follows, some who have stayed and some who have gone, doing tricks that no one else does, thinking, “Holy crap, I’ll never be able to do that, even in ten years.”  It’s funny looking back on it since after a couple of years, I started picking up the subtle physical and visual leads that tell me what move he’s going to do next.  Now I think I’m considered one of the hardcore Savoy follows, and can follow almost anything he throws at me.  I think my tendency to goof around and hit breaks in the songs annoys some of the other leads though.  ^___^;;

Making My Own Style
I skipped Cowtown 2004 for lack of funds, but I went in 2005.  A couple of the instructors we had were Skye and Frida, an internationally renowned pair of swing dancers.  One of the classes, held at Central on a sticky former-gym floor was Performance Lindy Hop.  I think it was an intermediate/advanced class, where they went over some of the aspects of dancing for a performance, like opening up to the audience and making it visually interesting.  Like follows adding swivels at the end of swingouts.  I credit this workshop with my swivels.  Also around this time, the group of people I danced with expanded.  I used to stay with Greg, his brother Ben, Kevin, and Cliff, but I started adding new leads like Dan and Eric.  Up until this point, my following was mostly based off of Greg’s leading.  I also started paying attention to the other follows, seeing what they did that I liked, and I came up with the big three at JNO that I wanted to emulate:

1. Corinn, because she makes it seem so effortless and seems to never make a mistake dancing (and later, in a poll of four leads about what makes a good follow, they all used her as an example)
2. Dana, because she has so much fun out on the dance floor, even if she doesn’t have a partner to dance with, and is so comfortable with her body and how it moves
3. Merinda, who dances with so much power and moves her hips so much when she dances

For the last few years, these three are the ones I’ve been copying.  Only in the last year do I feel like I’m starting to get how Corinn and Merinda move.  I still don’t have Dana’s sense of movement though.

Ben the Boyfriend
November 3, 2006, finally saw me entering the world of dating.  Ben had only been coming to JNO for a few months at that point.  We started talking at the Halloween dance at JNO, and the next week, he asked me out.  Not too long after that, he started taking a lot of classes with the Jitterbugs, every once in a while bringing out something new to me that he learned in a class.  He was my main dancing partner for a few months, as he started getting to know both the dance and the other follows.  It’s strange; I know we had to have influenced each other’s dancing, but I can’t really name anything specific.  I know during this time, I started trying to take smaller steps, but I think it’s only because I noticed how big they were when dancing with Ben and Eric and a couple of other leads when I lost my balance with them.  Ben would graciously pay for me to take a workshop or class every once in a while since my meager gift shop paycheck barely covered car insurance and gas sometimes, so I learned a few things from some of those, like an Advanced Lindy Hop class-turned-workshop (due to lack of attendance) that added kick-ball-changes into my steps and a small concentration-type class where I learned more control over my body and, again, that not everyone’s version of a swingout is the same.  Unfortunately, dancing caused the two of us to butt heads more than once as my experience didn’t fit with what he was taught every once in a while.  While this affected my dancing, I think the whole relationship affected my personality more.  It was during this time that Sarah the Wallflower disappeared, and my group of friends suddenly became much larger than Kate and Annette.

Performances
Unfortunately, I actually don’t remember my first dancing gig.  I know Dan arranged it, asking me at JNO one time if I was free this night and would I be willing to dance?  When he explained his requirements (fun to watch, fun to dance with, knows what the hell she’s doing), I felt flattered.  After all this time of thinking of myself as a bad-to-mediocre dancer, I was considered a “good” dancer.  People would come up during these events and tell us how much they enjoyed watching us dance, or grab me while I was passing by and mention how much fun it was to see dancing like that.  Especially when I was at a gig and dancing with Ben, people would say, “Oh, how nice that young people like you are dancing so well!”  Sometimes I’m not sure if we’re honestly good, if they just think that it’s good that some young people dance something other than bump & grind, or if it’s the nostalgia of them remembering what it was like to dance like that coloring their opinions.  But it’s still humbling to think that wow, some people are willing to pay to watch me swing dance!  Woo, confidence!

David

I met David not long after breaking up with Ben last year.  I remember the first time I saw him dance.  I think the thoughts that first went through my head (in roughly the same order) were, “Wow, another Savoy dancer.  Must be an out-of-towner.  He’s good, too good to want to dance with me, probably.  And he’s really cute too.”  The first night we danced was the first night back at JNO since breaking up with Ben.  I spent much of the night in a corner being miserable, but David came over saying, “Hey, you need to get out of your corner.”  While we were dancing, he got a slightly confused look on his face and asked me where I learned to dance.  When I said I learned here, he remarked at how I didn’t dance like most of the follows here, I had a lot more momentum.  I apologized, since one of the things Ben always nagged about was that I had too much momentum.  David laughed and told me not to apologize; the momentum meant I could do more things with my feet.  It was one of the best dances I had, similar to how I always thought I should be dancing, and a huge ego boost after the months of being told that I was doing it wrong.  And it helped that it was a horribly good-looking guy telling me this.  ^__^;;  I started picking up blues and West Coast little by little dancing with him, but it wasn’t until after Cowtown, when we both decided that yes, we kinda liked each other and started dancing together more often that I really picked it up.  I helped him with demonstrations a couple of times when he didn’t have a steady dance partner back in his town, and met a few of his student-friends.  Unfortunately, the romantic part of the relationship didn’t work, but I still enjoy dancing with him when he’s in town; I can only describe that dancing with David, like dancing with Dan, feels natural to me, despite the fact that both of them don’t really follow standard Lindy Hop patterns.  Possibly it’s because the two of them dance with the music, following breaks and phrases more than others.  All I really know is that after dancing regularly with David, I think I’ve been tagged as a blues dancer as much as I’ve been tagged a Savoy dancer.

Contests

I'm in the black shirt and green skirt, dancing with Eric

I had tried a couple of the local contests before, but after getting the boot in the prelims too many times, I had kinda given up.  Around my birthday last year, there were a pair of contests for free admission into the corresponding Cowtown contests.  I decided to try it just for the hell of it, entering into the Jack & Jill contest the Friday after my birthday.  And somehow, after years of not even making it to semi-finals/finals, I got third place with Chris.  I was mildly stunned by this turn of events.  The next week was the partner contest, and I managed to convince Dan to enter that one with me, since he’s one of the best leads that I can follow.  In the contest that followed, he and I got second place, beaten only by Chris and Corinn (and that was understandable; those two were steady partners for the first four years that I had known them, taking lessons together, and still dance on a regular basis.  Hell, I was rooting for them).  Unfortunately, I haven’t placed in a contest since then, not even advancing to the semi-finals in any of them (not counting the automatic advancing to the finals for me and Eric at the Cowtown couples contest).  But that was still an amazing ego boost.  Hell, September 2008 was an ego boost.

Teaching
Last year, a couple of weeks after Cowtown, I was asked by a few friends if I could teach them how to do the Shim Sham.  We ended up getting together at one of their houses, had dinner, and I gave them a crash course in the Shim Sham.  We talked about following, our leads, and styling, and they commented about some of the things that I do that no one else does.  Which I thought was strange, since I thought that pretty much everything I did was copied from someone else.  But I started paying attention and realized that yes, I do certain parts of the Shim Sham differently than other dancers.  More and more in the next few weeks, some of the other follows would ask me how I did certain things, and I’d try to answer as best as I could.  Dan, Eric, and David all would grab me when they wanted to show a move to someone or try out a new trick.  I helped David with a couple of his classes, though it was mostly just being a follow and maybe answering a couple of follow-specific questions.  Eric and I even had an actual teaching gig back in April.  Somehow, in the last half-year, I started half-assedly teaching.  It’s making me think more about my following and how I would explain it.  Unfortunately, the furthest I’ve gotten is, “Don’t think about the dance.  Think about the music and the connection with the lead.”  David used to get after me when I said “don’t think.”  But for me, it’s the truth.  It’s like that state of mind you get after a couple of drinks, where your mind is kind of fuzzy and you can’t really concentrate.  Primal instincts take over cognitive functions and all you can concentrate on are your major senses: sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste.  Except when sober, you still have mind enough to concentrate on just the two senses most important to dancing: sound and touch (and not looking like a drunken idiot).  Being mostly asleep can give you the same mental state.  I swear that I follow my best when I’m half-asleep and dancing with a good lead to good music.  But it’s dangerous too; I’m more prone to being grumpy and going through mood swings when tired.

Real Dancing Shoes
I’ve been dancing six and a half years, but only a month ago, right before going to NYC for Frankie 95, did I actually get a pair of proper dancing shoes (in this case, get proper dancing soles put on my pair of Converse sneakers).  I had always set aside a few pairs for dancing because their soles weren’t too bad and the Eagle’s ballroom floor is slick.  But, for an international dancing event, I figured I should have a real pair of dancing shoes.  And boy, do they make a difference.  I need to get a couple of other pairs converted now, I think.  I can spin a lot easier, I can do slides, and Charleston almost seems fun.  ~.^  I’m still learning how to control them on the slick floor at JNO though, especially on nights like last night where there seemed to be a ton of dance wax on the floor.  But these have made an amazing impact on my dancing, I think.

Frankie 95
I’ve already recapped a lot of the stuff I learned at this event.  The first time I danced at home after the event, a couple of the leads remarked upon how my dancing had changed.  Again, most of that is the dancing shoes, I think, but I know my dancing has changed subtly.  I’m looser in my upper body, I’m still doing some of the styling that I learned, and I’m more confident about a lot of my dancing.

And that’s where I’m at now.  I hadn’t really thought about how much my dancing had changed until last night, when David mentioned how much my dancing had improved since he last danced with me at the beginning of May.  And several times in the last week, even a couple of other times last night alone, how much I’ve changed personally has come up.  (But that one boils down pretty easily to three events: meeting Kate and Annette, starting dancing, and dating Ben.)  I’ve been wanting to talk about my dancing inspirations for a while, especially how much I admire Corinn, Dana, and Merinda, but there’s so much more beyond me trying to emulate them, especially concerning Savoy style and blues.

Credit for the photos (except the ones of me and Corinn and of my shoes) go to Cliff.  Video credit goes to Steve.

Start > Shut Down > Restart

I knew I was in a rut, but I don’t think I realized how much of a rut until I went to NY.  Dancing at JNO the next Friday was different in a good way.  I had new things to work on, like the little slide on 7-8-1-2 on swingouts and keeping my frame less tense than it was.  It was a challenge on my side again.

Dancing is fun again.

It was a mindset like I had 6 years ago, when I was taking Lindy Hop with Billy and Lindsay.  I want to learn again.  Things to think about, things to try, but no deadlines in which to perfect them.

Unfortunately, I’m probably not going to be able to get out for any more workshop weekends until the end of the year.  When I went out to NY, I thought I had 3 days of holiday time and could fill in the last 2 days with sick time.  When I came back, I was told no, I couldn’t use the sick time, but I did have an additional day of holiday time for Memorial Day, making me 1 day short on sick time.  The day after, I was told no, I only had the holiday time for Memorial Day (“Didn’t you check how many hours you had?”), so I’m missing paid time off for the other 4 days.  I might get holiday time for the 4th of July and Labor Day, just enough to go to Cowtown, but I’m not certain.  All I know is that, come October when I get my official paid vacation, I’m going to be shorted the time for NY, cutting me down to two days of paid vacation (which is better than being cut in pay now for the time missed, I guess).  It’s a headache I really didn’t want to deal with.

We’ll see if this new outlook on dancing holds up tonight.  There is a live band…

(Random note: In looking through previous posts for related links, I found a post where I said this: “That's why I don't work at the zoo.”  Famous last words…)

Frankie 95, Part 7: Final Thoughts About the Event and the City

• My favorite band of the event was the Blues Vipers of Brooklyn.  George Gee and his Make-Believe Ballroom Orchestra was a close second though.
• I think I’m framing my contest number from the World’s Largest Jack & Jill contest.
• I’m amazed that I’m as good a blues dancer as I am, considering how rarely I dance it on a regular basis.  I may have to look up blues dancing back home.
• I didn’t get to social dance with any of the big names, but I did get to dance in classes with Nick Williams and Warren Hayes.
• I think I can consider myself an advanced Lindy Hopper.  It’s a little strange to think that. But I was comfortable enough in those classes.
• I think I lost at least 5 pounds.  Maybe more.  An inch around the waist for sure.
• I could see myself living in New York.  But I think I’d have to move out here with someone, like a boyfriend or something.  Someone I can stand for long periods of time.  I’d probably stay in Brooklyn.
• I think 3 days is my average for spending time with people and still be in a good mood.  Past that, I start to get anxious and want to get away and spend time on my own.  Especially when we’re having to bunk together.
• The only real “sightseeing” I wanted to do was to go visit Frankie Manning’s grave in the Bronx.  Never made it out there though because of timing problems (and Jillian didn’t really want to go).  But it’ll be there next time I come out here.
• So, I don’t get pressure headaches from all plane flights, just ones where they suck at pressurizing the cabin.
• What’s even worse is flights where you’re stuck sitting next to someone with horrible B.O.
• I’m avoiding JFK if I ever fly out to New York again.  It’s confusing as hell.
• It’s strange driving a car again.

I think that’s everything I can think of right now.  I’ll be uploading video to YouTube over the next few weeks, and probably adding photos to posts if I remember have added photos to past posts.

Frankie 95, Part 6: The End

Final day of classes.  I’m very tired at this point.  And all the classes are all levels.

Class 1, 11:00AM-12:10PM:

Chazz Tap

Lance B Charleston

Warren Hayes Lindy Hop

Daniel & Asa Shim Sham

Sing Lim Big Apple

Lennart Jazz Steps

I kinda wanted to take Chazz’s class, but I really don’t like tap.  And I knew I wouldn’t be able to get the Big Apple in a 1-hour workshop (considering I couldn’t get it in 2 1/2 hours of workshops a few years ago).  And the Big Apple workshop was in another building altogether.  So, I took Lindy Hop with Warren from London.  I kinda like taking these classes because they make me aware of the bad habits/things I’m doing wrong that are so horribly basic that they aren’t touched on in upper level classes.  Like the fact that I have too much tension in my right arm.

 

Class 2, 12:30PM-1:40PM:

Catrine Black Bottom

Paul Grecki Peabody

Jerry & Kathy Blues

Sakarias Solo Charleston

Dawn Bhangra

Sing Lim Charleston Stroll

Ryan & Jenny Technique

So many good classes, and an unofficial picnic at Central Park...  I wanted to take Dawn Hampton’s class and Ryan & Jenny’s, but they were both in other buildings and couldn’t overcome my love of the blues.  It was nice, taking this class with what I know now of the blues.

 

Class 3, 2:00PM-3:15PM:

Chester Chester’s Bag of Tricks

Steven Jazz

David Dalmo Instructor’s Choice

Paul Grecki Lindy Hop

After seeing Chester’s performance in the show last night, I really wanted to take his class.  He brings humor into the dance.  He taught us a Savoy Lindy routine, made up mostly of stuff we already knew, but did toss in a few new moves or variations on ones we already knew.  He ran 15 minutes over, in a small, crowded, hot-as-hell dance room, and we loved it (or I did, at least).  It was a good way to end the workshops.

 

Jillian and I went back to the dorm, changed into our outfits for the evening, then hit a Japanese restaurant that she was telling me about.  We weren’t too concerned about the presentation that night, about rediscovering Frankie and Lindy Hop in the ‘80’s, but we managed to make it with time to spare.  The crowd was significantly less, and I didn’t dance much, to my great disappointment.  I tried to push my way through the crowd to be one of the 95 girls Chazz Young would dance with, keeping the tradition of his father dancing with as many girls as he was years old (as soon as I got up to the front, it was over with).  Doing so gave me an amazing front row view of the jam circle right afterwards (so close I nearly got kicked in the head several times).  Then a Shim Sham, where, despite being towards the front, in the middle, I managed to be the only one in the area without a partner and had to weave my way off the floor.  I preordered the videos of the event ($75! And it’s going to go up), and Jillian and I left the dance and the event around 1:00, where we proceeded to crash.

Frankie 95, Part 5: Classes, Day 2

So, what did Sarah do today?  Besides enjoy the late start to the day that allowed her to catch up on computer stuff?  Like uploading pictures?

Class 1, 11:00AM-12:10 PM:

Nick & Carla Hesitations (I)

Matt & Laura Lindy Hop (I)

Max & Annie Powerful Lindy Hop (M)

Steven & Virginie Waltz/Foxtrot for Lindy Hoppers (I/A)

Daniel & Asa Fast Lindy (A)

Sylvia Whatever Sylvia Does (A)

I had been planning on taking Sylvia’s class, just for the hell of it, but after taking Nick & Carla’s classes yesterday and getting fed up with the heat at La Guardia, I went over to Alvin Ailey Dance Center to take the Hesitations class.  Which was Carla-less.  So, Nick had to grab random follows for demonstrations.  And he pulled me out twice.  And said he liked my Jitterbugs t-shirt.  ^___^  He pulled Jillian out once too.  The material though was very similar to what I had done in Skye & Frida’s Movement class and also had the same Matrix-esque slowdown in the swingout from yesterday’s advanced class.  So, nothing new there, unfortunately.

 

Class 2, 12:30PM-1:40PM:

Chazz & W Lindy Hop (I)

Lennart & Catrine Jazz Steps (M)

Sylvia Footwork Variations (I/A)

Sing Lim Ol Skool Lindy (A)

Sugar & Peter Sugar’s Big Apple (A)

I didn’t really figure out what I wanted to take for this set of classes until last night/this morning, I think.  I had been going between Lindy Hop, Footwork Variations, and Ol Skool Lindy, but since I really wanted to take a Lindy class with Frankie Manning’s son (and because I’m lazy), I stayed in the same building.  The class started out with something similar to an aerobics class, with a few jazz moves.  He then moved on to a little move he called the “Come On” (right heel tap, left heel tap, kick-ball-change on the right with a “come on” motion with the right arm).  We did that for at least 10 minutes (it felt like forever), and my left calf was killing me by then.  Then they separated us lead/follow, paired us off (instead of letting us pair each other off), and started the bulk of the lesson.  Chazz went over what it meant to dance Savoy-style.  Then we started with a little routine that was pretty easy at the beginning, a little swingout thing followed by a little Charleston thing, and then came the hard part: a small jazz routine.  And of course, the one day that I don’t bring my camera, opting to let the battery charge instead, I have a chance to use it in the classes.  Chazz demonstrated a couple of times how to do the routine, and I didn’t think of using my Blackberry for video.  I might have to record myself trying to do it at some point.  But I can say, that was the one of the most physically-demanding, but most fun workshops I’ve done.

Class 3, 2:00PM-3:15PM:

Sylvia Momentum (I)

Sugar & Peter Stops (M)

Sing Lim Busting Out Without Busting Your Partner (I/A)

Matt & Laura Lindy Hop (A)

Rob & Diane Lindy Hop (A)

Probably, if the printed schedule I had said something more than “partner” for Sing Lim’s class, I would’ve gone there (Jillian and I thought it stood for “Partner Charleston” but we were wrong), but since it didn’t, I completed being lazy and stayed at Alvin Ailey for Sylvia’s momentum class.  That woman’s crazy in a wonderful way.  It was probably a better class for the leads than the follows (I can’t really say that I learned anything in it), but it was great just for her personality.  But I’m a little glad I didn’t take her classes all day like I had been planning on doing; not entirely sure if I could take that.  Again, I didn’t have my camera with me and she gave a demonstration at the end, but this time, I thought faster and grabbed my Crackberry to uploaded it to YouTube.

 

It was the big show tonight.  Considering the lackluster attendance for the previous nights’ panels and such, Jillian and I didn’t think too much about it and got to the Manhattan Center a little before 6:30.  Where we found out that there was a line stretching around the corner.  It wasn’t too bad yet, just there by the diner, and not long after getting in line, it moved up a bit and we were back around the corner, on the same street at the Manhattan Center again.  The line moved slowly for the next half hour as they shuffled people around, with a long stall for us about thirty meters from the doors.  That’s when we found out that there were two lines for the silver/gold groups (full weekend passes like me and Jillian and the VIP members with better seating) as well as a third line for the other groups to be able to buy the tickets for the show, since their passes didn’t come with them.  Finally, around 7:10, the doors opened.  After a brief decision in whether to take the elevator or climb up seven flights of stairs (made unfortunately easier by having the elevator doors shut in our faces), we made it up to the ballroom/theater and found not too bad seats in the back, stage left, in one of the aisles.  The show’s start was delayed another half-hour, in which I learned that flash photography and videos were prohibited (though I may have taken a few pictures anyway).  Finally the show started.

And it was amazing.

Some of the scenes were representations of Frankie Manning’s life, like when his mother (played by Dawn Hampton in this) said that he’d never be a dancer, the first airstep, his rediscovery in the ‘80’s, and a few others.  Some were recreations of famous Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers routines, with the big finale being a recreation of the Hellzapoppin’ scene.  Others were just dancers showing off or having fun, like Herräng in New York, where a few of the Swedish Lindy Hoppers just got to have fun and wear strange outfits (which might have been my favorite part of the show ~.^).  At the end, after all the cast had come out on stage, Ryan Francois explained what this show was, how it came about, that they only had a week to make this (and it did show in the bad transitions and technical difficulties), and Chazz Young led us all in a Shim Sham.  Which was made interesting by the chairs (thank goodness I grabbed an aisle seat) and that somehow, the push-crossovers were skipped in the first half.  (It was disconcerting when I looked around and saw everyone else is doing something different than I am, but then listened to the music and realized they’re off.)

The show lasted to about 10:15PM, then it was dancing.  I figured the late start would help keep me and Jillian awake, but not long after the Jack & Jill semi-finals (60 people out of the 410-or-so that were in the prelims.  And no wonder I didn’t have much of a chance, since several big names in dancing were in the semi-finals) Jillian and I called it a night and headed back.

Frankie 95, Part 4: Classes, Day 1 (In Which Sarah is a Dancing Dork)

So, I didn’t do the master class.  Which was a good thing since Jillian and I overslept anyway.

First set of classes, 10:00AM-11:10AM (the one I took is highlighted):

Erin Stevens Frankie’s Footwork (Intermediate)

Nick & Carla Jam Routines (Masters)

Skye & Frida Hustle & Flow (Intermediate / Advanced)

Max & Annie Lindy Hop by Frankie (Advanced)

Lennart & Catrine Jazz Steps (Advanced)

Lindy Hop by Frankie was a couple of mini-routines made famous by Frankie Manning.  The ones was a swingout, followed by 8 counts of knee slaps, 8 counts of shimmys back and forth, and finally, a pimp walk backwards.  The second one was kicks and points, a move I learned from Dan what feels like ages ago.  I can say that I like Max & Annie as teachers, but I’m not sure how practical that class was for me.  I’d have to remember enough of the lead to teach it to a lead, I think.

 

Second round of classes, 11:30AM-12:40PM:

Max & Annie Ninja Techinique for Lindy Hop (I)

Steven & Virginie Swing Walk (M)

Sakarias Rhythmical Authentic Jazz (I/A)

Sylvia Balboa (A)

Skye & Frida Movement (A)

I remember taking a performance Lindy Hop class by Skye & Frida at Cowtown a few years ago.  That’s where I picked up the swivels I put at the end of swingouts.  So I was excited to see a movement class by them.  Of course, I had forgotten how hard they were as teachers.  The building I had been dancing in for this class and the last, La Guardia High School, has very poor air conditioning.  I had already gone through all the water I had brought with me by the beginning of this class.  By the end, after all the swingouts, I could barely stand up.  This class was mostly things you can do on the 7-8/1-2 of your swingouts.  I was laughing when they taught the combination of 7-8 swivel with 1-2 kick-ball-change; that’s my default way of doing swingouts anymore.

 

Third round of classes, 1:00PM-2:10PM:

Ryan & Jenny Lindy Hop (I)

Skye & Frida The Art of Finesse (M)

Nick & Carla These Are a Few of Our Favorite Things (I/A)

Steven & Virginie Partner Cake Walk (A)

Sakarias Jazz (A)

 

My first venue change was also one of the longest ones.  Jillian and I were late getting to this class, but luckily not by much.  I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this class, but it sounded more interesting than any of the other ones I could get into.  (The Art of Finesse was one of the Master classes that I really wanted to get into.)  I was glad to see that this venue, a small gym under a church right by the Manhattan Center (where all the evening dances are held), was air conditioned better than the high school.  Nick & Carla taught a type of swivel-stop (I’m not entirely sure what to call it), that you could end with a spin.  I’ve done it before, but this class was able to improve it just a bit more and made me a lot more comfortable with my spins.  I’ve never quite felt that I’ve been able to spin well.  One of the things that surprised me was the difference in dancing levels between the advanced classes I had been taking and this intermediate/advanced class.  I didn’t expect as big of a difference as there was.

 

Fourth set of classes, 2:30PM-3:45PM:

Skye & Frida Styling (I)

Sakarias Solo Charleston (M)

Max & Annie Couples Charleston (I/A)

Ryan & Jenny Lindy Hop (A)

Nick & Carla Swingout Styling (A)

 

And back to the hot high school.  Despite me and Nick & Carla leaving at the same time, they got there a significant amount before me.  I have a feeling that the way Jillian told me to go isn’t the quickest way.  Or they have taxis or something.  Which isn’t fair.  ;__;  I was wondering if I should even bother with this class after all the styling in the Skye & Frida class earlier, but I was so glad I took this class.  So far, it’s my favorite.  (And I was also very glad I took a couple ibuprofin while heading to this class.)  While most swingout styling is done on 7-8/1-2, this class also concentrated on things you can do in between.  For the follows, it was stretching 2 into 3 for a bit, then continuing with the swingout as normal.  For the leads, it was slowing it down for the 3-4/5-6 (or however long you want) for a type of Matrix bullet-time effect.  I did find out that I can’t do new 7-8/1-2 variations and still be able to catch the slow-down later.  Not without a lot more practice.

 

I finally had time between the classes and the nightly dance to sit down, upload pictures, and upload the posts I had written to here.  Then, it was off to the black tie birthday gala.  I’m glad that a couple of leads are remembering me from the previous dances and/or classes and are asking me to dance again; it means I’m not one of the worst dancers there.  And it really boost my ego when I was told that I was one of the better follows that a couple of leads have danced with.  ^___^  The two highlights of the evening (for me, at least) was when Chazz Young, Frankie Manning’s first son, lead the entire room in the Shim Sham.  I think that was more the world record-breaking Shim Sham than the one we did in Central Park.  A giant dance floor, full of people, dancing the Shim Sham…  The other highlight?  The three bands of the evening, George Gee & His Make-Believe Ballroom Orchestra, the Harlem Renaissance Orchestra, and The Loud Minority all got together and played “Shiny Stockings,” Frankie Manning’s favorite song, with the composer of that song, Frank Foster, conducting.

Frankie 95, Part 3: Memorial, Central Park, and Satanic Swing Dancing?!

Somehow, despite Jillian’s bed resembling a sheet of rock, I managed to get a decent night’s sleep and was able to get going to the memorial service that was supposed to start at 9:00 AM.  Of course, this being a Lindy Hopper’s event, everything starts late.  I was one of the first ones to get in to the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church due to that.  I cried during a lot of the ceremonies.  I again found a new respect for Dawn Hampton.  But not even halfway through the service, I ran out of room on my memory card.  I knew I should have bought a couple more back home since they were on an amazing sale (4GB SDHC card for $10).

We ran an hour late.  Jillian, who had to go to school in the morning, was wondering where we were at.  We started the processional to Central Park at 1:00, led by the Gully Low Jazz Band.  It was amazing, being in a sort of parade, everyone on the streets looking at us and wondering what was going on.  Unfortunately, I wore the completely wrong shoes to this thing, to both walk and dance in.  My feet were killing me by the time we got to the bandshell.  During the processional, I ran into Nate, so we’re only really missing one of the local crowd. I didn’t dance much because of my feet and the heat, saving my energy for the World’s Largest Jack and Jill contest.

In which I was contestant #666.

(The registration folks raised their eyebrows at me, wondering if I really wanted that number.  When I grinned at them, they said, “A number like that has to be a winner.”)

I was wondering if they were going to do it in heats or all at once.  They chose the all-at-once method.  Each of the six or seven judges (I think one of the judges didn’t do this) had to choose ten dancers each and grab their number while they were dancing.  Most of the judges stayed on stage and just picked people out of the front.  A couple did go through the crowd, but it was at the end.  So, none of them picked my number.  And here I was hoping that the number would draw their attention to how awesome my dancing was.  -___-;;

Before the contest was the World’s Largest Shim Sham.  I managed to be in the front couple of rows, so I might make it onto video.  ^___^

But after the contest, my feet were dead.  We headed back, grabbed some Chinese, and headed out to the nightly dance.  They changed the ballroom to the one on the ground floor instead of the one up eight flights of stairs.  I got to try out my newly resoled Converse sneakers; they work pretty well, but I think if I’m going to do it again, I might just get hard leather on the bottoms for more slide (and I don’t have to worry quite so much about taking care of them ^__^;;).  I’m also finding out that I’m not half-bad for a dancer.  I’ve had a couple of leads who remembered dancing with me last night, and others who commented on how good my dancing was.  My favorite exchange was with a lead from London:

London: So, what types of dances do they do where you’re from?
Me: Oh, Lindy Hop mostly.  Some Balboa and Charleston.
::dance to a blues song::
London: I guess you do a fair bit of blues too back home.

I didn’t quite have the heart to tell him that I didn’t really learn blues with the Jitterbugs.  ^__^;;

Jillian and I lasted past midnight this time, but not by much.  The dance floor had gotten too crowded around 11:30, and the whole room was too hot by 12:30.  But we stayed around long enough for the Hellzapoppin’ (Couples) semi-finals.  They added some “special” couples to the competition at this round, ones who didn’t compete in the prelims the night before.  It was fun, getting to watch people dance in real life that I had only seen previously on YouTube, like Kevin St. Laurent and Max Pitruzzella.  (In fact, I had almost asked Kevin to dance earlier in the evening.  He had been dancing close to where I was standing.  I never got the nerve to go up when he didn’t have a follow.  There should be time to try again though, right?)

But, I’ve decided against the master class auditions.  A lot of the other classes look more interesting than those.  And, in the fluke case that I did make it, I’d feel obligated to take all the master classes.  -___-;;  So, extra hour of sleep/goofing around for Sarah.

Frankie 95, Part 2: Day 1

Despite my usual misgivings about mornings and airplanes, I managed to get to the airport on time, go through security, get my bag checked in without paying the fee again, but wasn’t able to get a first-class seat without talking to five different places.  Which I wasn’t awake enough to do.  So, coach it is.

Things for me to note for the future:

• I get really bad headaches from the pressure, especially in the smaller planes
• I do get nauseous
• I hate turbulence
• Sunrise from the air is actually pretty cool.  I was starting to wish I had gotten a window seat; most of the people at the windows on that side were either leaning up against it or drew down the “blind” or whatever that’s called to sleep.
• Sitting in the first row behind first class isn’t too bad

I arrived at New York only a few minutes late (after getting to fly over Manhattan and see most of the famous New York landmarks from the sky), managed to not have my bag lost, and, fortunately, didn’t have to wait as long for Jillian to pick me up as I expected.  After running a few errands, I did a little sightseeing (Brooklyn Bridge), got my first insult by a New Yorker (“stupid”; I really have to try harder), checked in at Frankie 95 at the Manhattan Center, then ran back to the apartment to change and head back to the Manhattan Center to go to the first event, the premiere of Frankie Manning: Never Stop Swinging, and the dance that followed (after climbing the endless stairs to the ballroom).

I’ll admit this: I’ve never met the man, this was going to be my first time at a Frankie event.  And I cried throughout the documentary and everyone’s recollections of him.  I felt like a dork, but at least I knew I wasn’t the only one in tears.

Since I’ve been up since 3:00AM, and Jillian wasn’t much better, we both unfortunately tuckered out right before midnight.  We got to see some of the performances (and I got to take video with my new camera!  Too bad I’m a horrible videographer: it’s jerky, blurry, ugly…) thankfully and got a few dances in.

But now, sleep.  Tomorrow is the memorial service, followed by the Central Park dance and the world record biggest Shim Sham and Jack & Jill contest (wish me luck!).

Oh Noes, Swine Flu! And Other Things

A little over a week ago, I woke up with a sore throat. It's turned into a cough and nasal crap, and I've been joking that it's swine flu. I'm kinda wondering if it's not a joke anymore, except that I'm usually knocked out more by the regular flu than I am by this. I keep telling myself I'm going to go to a doctor and get a check up, but it hasn't happened yet. -__-;

I heard yesterday that my best friend Kate is engaged to the guy she's been seeing for... a hell of a long time? (Their's is one of those relationships that has a few different points where they can say they started dating. I'm not sure which one they consider to be the start.) It's strange. Didn't think any of us were going to get married till our late twenties.

I'm still heading to NY for the Frankie 95 festival next week. The plane leaves a week from today, and I'm no where near prepared for this. I still have to do laundry, still have to figure out which outfits and shoes I'm taking. I finally took in my pair of Converse sneakers to a cobbler to get dancing suede put on them. Hopefully they'll be done next Tuesday. ^__^;; I'm a little anxious; this is the first time on a plane since I went to San Francisco in 2003. (And in looking back for a link, I see that I put the chronicles of that trip on a separate website that has since died. Sad.) And this is my first major out-of-town swing dance event, and it looks like it might be the biggest one ever. Considering how I'm usually so out-of-place even at Cowtown when all the out-of-towners show up, we'll see how I deal.

Last Sunday, Mother's Day, I took my mom and aunt to see Star Trek. How this came about: I mentioned to my mother about how I was going to see it with friends at the IMAX. Her eyes lit up, and I started looking for tickets for Sunday. I was surprised it wasn't sold out. I was a little disappointed about how they didn't really take advantage of the IMAX screen, and that the print had bugs all over it, including a smeared one in the center of the screen. (At first, I thought it was a projector booth problem. I talked later with a coworker who also saw it there the next day. He also saw the bugs, so it was on the actual film.) I might see it again, if someone wants to go, but I might encourage going to a regular theater, maybe one with digital projection (and no bugs).

After the movie, I headed out to assist in an attempt to beat the Endless Setlist 2 in Rock Band 2 and get the Bladder of Steel achievement (play with no pauses) for a couple of friends (somehow, I've become the main drummer in my group of friends). It was a good time. I stayed on drums for the most part, trading out to take breaks, eat, and try my hand at bass and vocals. It's funny; I hadn't played any of the guitar parts for so long, that I forgot how to hold the controller. It was handed to me with the strap going the wrong way, so the song started, I'm thinking, "This isn't right" and ended up flipping the guitar around and playing without the strap. (In my defense, I played bass again right afterwards and got 100%. So I can brag and say that I got 100% at least once on all the parts I played.)

I was on drums for the last hour and a half, I think. I might have been relieved once because my wrist was hurting a bit. I know "Chop Suey" was the last song I did on another part (singing). The song I was worried most about, "Battery" (because the drums are the only insrument on the off-beat), was no real problem for once. And I had never played the last song in the list, so I was caught off-guard by the fact that it starts and ends with drum solos... but I aced both of them (and it's on video! I think. Haven't seen it yet). We documented parts of it. I know on my breaks, I usually picked up the camera and goofed off. It probably looks weird though since I'm constantly looking off-camera and at the screen. -___-; So now that we've gone through that with no real problems except a goofy microphone (even though I never noticed any problem with it, everyone else did) and getting perfect 5 stars on every song (barely in a couple of cases), I think we've graduated from medium levels on the instruments (or at least our primary ones). I'm going to have to play hard level drums from here on out. -___-;;

It's strange. Ever since I moved out, and especially this last month or so, I've had something going on most nights of the week, whether it's dancing or gaming or what. It's gotten so that I don't know what to do with myself on the nights that I don't have anything to do. I almost want to be around people now, which was unheard of as little as five or six months ago. Maybe it's due to the fact that I'm living on my own now. I need to clean this place up so I can have people over. To do what though? The TV isn't in the best of shape, everything's yellow, so movies and the Wii aren't of the best quality (can't say that it's really stopped me before though). And I don't have the collections of board games (or the room, really) to have those gamers over.

I don't know. Time keeps going forward, and it seems to be speeding up, leaving me behind.

A Little Too Late: RIP, Frankie

Frankie Manning, ambassador of Lindy Hop, passed away this morning.  Next month was the big 95th birthday celebration in New York that I've been planning on going to.  I thought to myself, "This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance!  I need to do this now!"  One of my friends had said, "Wouldn't it suck if he died before the festival?"  I had tried not to think about it and what I would do if it happened.

Guess I have to now.  I think I'm still going to go.  It's still a once-in-a-lifetime event.  Just not quite as joyous of one.

But I just have to laugh: I thought things were going to get better.  -___-;;;

And Life Continues On Its Way

I've been living on my own for almost two months now. I'm starting to get used to everything, get into my own groove. I still haven't thrown an actual housewarming party, just a sofa-warming party. I still haven't officially met any of my neighbors, but I've gotten used to them. Upstairs I think is just one person, but they stomp around like they're 300 lbs, and usually when I'm trying to sleep. On the third level I think (or next door to upstairs), the man of the house likes to yell. Across the hall from me is a girl about my age, and I think she thinks I'm weird. Can't blame her; she's usually dressed very professionally, while I'm half-asleep in a gray sweatshirt and khakis that have seen much better days. Next door is strangely quiet and gives off a slightly creepy vibe. And no one really pays attention to when their laundry's done, even though there are timers on the things.

One of the things I've unfortunately found is that it's damn near impossible to get into any of the complex's parking lots when it snows. It really sucks. Hopefully, we've seen the last of the snow here.

I started up classes again. Database Design and Accounting. And I really didn't like how I had one week to do two week's worth of assignments in the database class, especially since I was out with a bad case of food poisoning this weekend. (Seriously, I was sleeping for most of Saturday.) Luckily, the accounting class is a lot more lenient; the first assignments aren't due for another couple of weeks. At least everything else should be much more balanced for the rest of the quarter. But I want to know why I don't have any luck with the teachers for advanced CS concepts (Networking Essentials, C++ 2, Data Structures Using C++, and now Database Design)? (Can't miss one week of class, else I'm immediately dropped/failed! Or the teacher wants a five page report... every week! And a twenty page report every three weeks! Or, as in the C++ classes, the teacher doesn't even know how to use the compiler, let alone actually teach instead of reading the Powerpoint provided by the book!)

March is the busy month at the zoo. I didn't know if it would effect IT as much as it does Gift Shop, but it really does. We have a page and a half list of projects that have to be done by next week. Some things have been finished up or are in the final stages. Other things are no where near completion, and worst of all, it's not our fault (outside companies that we have a warranty with being stupid and not fixing a laptop that we took in over two months ago). Monday and Tuesday next week will be interesting. The zoo's getting a new director, and the old director for the last 40 years is sticking around, but in another office... that just moved off zoo grounds. That was yesterday's big project, getting the zoo's new west office up and running. Well, it's up, can't quite say it's running yet though. There's still a lot of server configuring to do.

I'm playing around with the idea of moving this blog to Wordpress. Thing is, because I've grown to be a control freak, I'd rather have it on my own server instead of a wordpress.com blog, so I can play around with the extra space easily, maybe host a wiki or something geeky like that. Wordpress seems to be a lot more customizable and easier to code for than Blogger, so maybe I'd actually get back into web design again. That'd be nice.

On a final note, I've been told by a dancing friend that this follow dances like me. Not that I dance blues like that, with the hips and tricks and everything, but I could see little things, like bending my back weird during spins, having my left arm away from my body more than usual, and taking big steps (I walked up behind him while he was watching this and thought that she danced like me before he even said anything). My friend says he noticed it mostly in the swing-outs, but he can't put his finger on what exactly it is about them. The only thing I can think of is how she swings her left arm back during those, like I do. (I started doing that because the momentum of the swing out continues being carried by that arm while I wait for the lead to bring me in. It's a nice feeling while it happens and [I think] adds power back into the dance when I bring in back in. Jury's still out on whether it makes me a better dancer or makes me look more graceful. I know that the last video in which I saw myself dancing, I wasn't too bad to watch, but still no where near professional level.) It's still weird to see something like that; it's rare to see two people who dance a lot alike, even when they're in the same scene. I've tried to base my following and styling off of a few of the other follows at JNO, but I usually don't get compared to them like I do the follow in this video.

Ah, Good Times

Cowtown was last weekend.  I didn't place in any of the contests like I'd hoped I would.  I didn't even make it to finals in the Jack and Jill (I'm follow #90, the first Sarah), and Eric and I made finals in the couples contest because there were no prelims.  Though it was fun dancing to a live band in that contest. ^__^;;

But it was still amazing!  I hadn't done that much dancing in a long time.  I didn't go to any of the after hours dances, preferring to be semi-alive for the workshops.  My favorite class might have been the Lindy Routine, even though it was the hardest one.

Sunday night came, everyone was tired, and we all went to Jazz, the restaurant at the end of the universe in the lower part of the place where the dance was going to be held and had some good times.  But when we went to the club upstairs... I'm still wishing that it hadn't ended, it was just so much fun.  Anymore, Sunday night's what I've been daydreaming about at work while I'm doing the mindless task of putting stickers on the tags of stuffed animals.

And speaking of work...!  When I came back on Tuesday, I found out two things: 1) That there was a very good-looking trucker that delivered a shipment on Monday that I missed (no big deal, I said; I got to dance with good-looking guys all weekend!), and 2) A position opened up in the IT department because the head of that department is leaving.  I quickly filled out another in-house application and turned in it, though I hate that I wasn't able to attach a résumé to it, since it was due that day.  Hopefully I'll still get asked for an interview; it looked like I was close to getting the job last time.

So right now, I'm going through dancing withdrawal.  I keep getting antsy, especially at work, and all I can think of is getting back on the dance floor.  Man, I can't wait for Friday.

In No Particular Order, Last Sunday I...

• Went swing dancing
• Had amazing pineapple coconut ice cream (BEST ICE CREAM EVER!)
• Played pool for the first time in nearly a year
• Was a lot worse at pool than I remembered
• Played blackjack and a hand of poker
• Failed miserably at blackjack and poker (except for one blackjack hand)
• Had the best meal I've had in a long time
• Hung out with a bunch of guys (and one awesome girl)
• Gave my phone number out to two guys (that, despite knowing them for years, I hadn't given my number to them before for some inane reason)
• Became the leader of a bunch of child-like adults
• Made decent decisions as leader (via a democratic voting system)
• Made at least two people's days a lot better than they were (course, both those people had adult beverages as well)

I've determined that I'm doing a lot this week, but not much of it's going to be work, even though we've gotten a lot of good-sized orders in at once.

• Monday: Half day at work, then class, then teaching Eric's co-worker how to dance
• Tuesday: Work all day, relax at night (though I should do everything that I'm not going to be able to do the rest of the week)
• Wednesday: Work half the day, go to eye doctor appointment, go to class, and go practice for the dance contests!
• Thursday: Work until swing dancers attack the zoo (if they do).  Hopefully I'll have the big plush order done by then.  And figure out what I'm doing for...
• Friday: The start of Cowtown Jamborama!

Victory #2

Somehow, Dan and I got second place in the couples competition at dance tonight.  Free admission into the couples contest at Cowtown for us.  Except Dan's not going to be there.  We'll see if I can still get in with a different lead for free.

And I'm starting to draw up a new idea for what it takes to win the local contests at least.  Technical skill makes up a surprisingly small part.  Flashy moves help if you know your partner.  Being friends with the judges helps in some cases.  But I'm starting to think that looking like you're having fun is the most important part.  These last two competitions, I haven't been concentrating on footwork or moves; I've been having fun, or at least forcing a smile on my face.  And I'm finally getting to the finals, even though I feel like I'm outclassed.

But that's just a theory.  And I don't know how well it will stand up next week at Cowtown.  Different set of judges, different criteria.  I'll likely die of shock if I make it past the prelims.

And I somehow managed to jam my right index finger not long after the contest, and I don't know how it happened.

Birthday Celebrations

So, what did I actually do on my birthday?  Not much, just dinner with my mom and aunt.

But the day after my birthday?

• Last-minute surprise dinner before swing Somehow, a bunch of my swing dancing friends showed up at Don & Millie's, where Eric and I were going to have dinner, in order to embarrass me horribly.  Gee, how coincidental.
• I had a birthday jam for the first time in a few years.
• The Jack & Jill contest - I still don't know how I placed third, squeaking in free admission to the Jack & Jill contest at Cowtown.  I thank my leads, primarily Chris, for that one.
• I was able to pay for Cowtown.

There's been a lot of little things as well over the last few days that have made me smile, too.  Most of it being everyone who's wished me "Happy Birthday."  Thank you everyone!  (And thank you Matt and Eric for the pictures!)

A Nice Night

Work was surprisingly eventful today.  We were short-staffed for once, not helped by the fact that the two warehouse supervisors took the day off, leaving me in charge of the dungeon deliveries.  But, I was also needed upstairs because we only had one cashier in the morning.  And I found out that from here on out, I'm working upstairs on Monday mornings.  Including this upcoming Monday, Labor Day, that I thought I had off from work.  -__-;;  But the running upstairs and downstairs made me feel somewhat important, even if I wasn't really doing anything.  ^___^

I left work early when the afternoon shift came and I ran out of stuff to do in the warehouse.  Then I was running around, getting my car registered, eating, and getting stuff for Matt's big (surprise?) birthday bash.  (I think the guests were more surprised that it was a surprise party than the birthday boy himself.)  I went home, changed into dressy clothes to combat the lack of air conditioning at dance I was warned about (we were kicked out of the Eagles by a dart tournament [again] and moved to a church basement), and headed out to the party.

I'm still not entirely sure where the time went.  Maybe it was the frisbee (though I think I only played for an hour or so).  Possibly it was the eating and talking.  But it was soon nighttime, and time for dance.

I was amazed at the complements I received about getting rid of my glasses.  "You have really pretty blue eyes."  "We can see your face now."  "You look. . . different."  So, even if the convenience hadn't convinced me, everyone's reactions cinched the deal—I'm switching back to contacts officially.  It just hinges on whether the eye doctors decide this kind is the right kind.

The atmosphere in the church was great; it felt like being back at the Beehive again.  Warm and a bit stuffy, very few tables and chairs so you ended up dancing just so you didn't feel stupid standing, and a stoop outside where you can cool off and talk without being right there on the street.

But the grand show of the night happened at about 9:30.  I was dancing with someone (I think it was Eric), when I see Ben come dancing in with a girl.  "Wait," I thought, "that almost looks like—"  Finally the follow came into view; it was Kate, here as my early birthday present.  She was laughing her head off as the song ended; I broke away from my partner and attacked her with a fierce hug.  I was grinning like a loon, I was told later.  I don't think I let her go for a solid minute.

What makes it even funnier was that I had a suspicion that at least she, if not both Kate and Annette, were going to come over here for my birthday.  But I didn't think it would be this weekend; I figured next, closer to my birthday and potential birthday jam.  This was completely out of the blue.

She couldn't stay long—something about three boxes duct taped to the top of her car.  But I got in a dance with her, she went and attacked a couple of the crowd she liked, I hugged her again and pleaded one last time for her to stay, or at least return, pulling out my trump card of everyone else's birthday jam, failed at that, then watched her go.  I really could not stop smiling for the rest of the night, and it was a tough call between staying at the dance and spending time with Kate.  I stayed for most of the dance since I figured her family would like some time with her.

Oh boy.  As if this weekend wasn't crazy enough as it was.

. . .

I love it.

 

ETA: Oh hell yeah.  Portal for $10?  Count me in.

My Favorite Thing: Bulleted Lists!

• After many trials and tribulations with our cable's on demand service, I've finally watched both seasons of Dexter.  Man, that's a good show.  I need to get the books now; Mom already bought the first one.
• I've also finally read The Picture of Dorian Gray, though I haven't finished the short stories included with it.
• Friends at swing dancing make it all the better.  I actually stayed till the raffle this time.
• Wendy's is only good for Frosties anymore.  It's really depressing.
• I get to actually dress up for work tomorrow, since I'm going to be checking in coats at a fundraiser at the zoo for Earth Day.  Too bad it'll mean I'm at the zoo from 1:00 PM (if I go in for gift shop) to about 10:00 PM (maybe I can get out earlier; I don't know).
• OMG I have money!  That's not all going to my car!!  It's Spring again!
• But if it's Spring, what's up with the snow?  Seriously.
• My cat's weird, but in a cute way.  (I have pictures, but I need to find the cord for the camera).
• I think I'm going to have to splurge on royal lilies for my room this summer.  It's so much nicer when I have flowers in here.

What I've Learned on the Other Side - My Future in Swing

Tonight was two weeks after the break-up and the first time I've gone swing dancing.  I went there expecting to call it my last night swing dancing.  Hell, I nearly quit swing dancing right after I got home two weeks ago, made up a post and everything.  But I decided to see what it's going to be like.

Luckily for all those who like dancing with me, Eric was there, asked me to dance, then said that he was glad I showed up.  It really meant a lot.  Merinda came and we talked (ended up that I missed her and Troy at the zoo earlier), I danced with Dan for a while, and it was good.  Ben came late, and I ignored him.  (I still feel betrayed in a way, since even though I called for the split, I didn't want to, I hoped that it would spur us to work it out. I still hope that he'll change his mind, but I know he won't.  And I just can't really be friends right now, even though he wants to be.  Wanting to be "just friends" is as painful to a girl as it is a guy.)

But, I just started to be so lonely.  (It didn't help when a well-meaning girl asked me if I was waiting for my friends to show.)  That's one thing I've noticed since all this happened: I'm very needy and need someone to be with me at nearly all times (but I won't ask for people to sit with me, because that just makes me feel horrible.  And I know everyone else I know has enough problems of their own for me to dump mine upon them).  And ever since I've started swing dancing, there was at least one person that I would spend the night hanging out with, talking, having fun -- Kate and Annette, Greg, Big Ben, Greg's little brother Ben, my now ex-boyfriend Ben (way too many Bens).  But now, the ones that I used to hang out with don't come anymore, and the last one who was that support for me, I can't stand to be near.  So, I still left early, but I was there for about an hour, more than I have been.

And I've figured, I'm not going to stop swing dancing entirely.  Too many people there care about me too much for me to do that to them.  But I'm not going to waste $5 + the price of gas to just spend an hour moping in a corner (seriously, it's been more than a month since the last time I've lasted long enough to do the raffle).  So, I'm just going to go once, maybe twice a month.  Probably on weeks I get paid.  Definitely if Kate or Annette's in town and wanting to go (even though those two conditions get harder and harder to meet).  Maybe if I can get over this, I'll come back more often.  But I have such a hard time letting go; it'll be a long time before I do.  Just bear with me?