Oh this past week hurt... it hurt a lot. It started out ok though with a pretty decent lesson and then went down hill from there. First the kittens got sick, so I ran them up to the vet... discovered their white blood cell count was high, so they were obviously fighting off something. Left with directions for liquid antibiotics and instructions to monitor their intake and output for the next several days. While working from home and watching their every move, work became rather hectic causing some additional hours to be devoted in that direction.
In the process of cleaning up litter boxes after incidents I dare not describe at 3 in the morning, which was after I'd already been working late and trying to get some kind of rest, I had heard from my landlord that my apt would be ready for April 1st.
I was elated by that news! I called my insurance agency to let them know, so they could extend my hotel reservation to the proper date. I was then told by my insurance company that the restoration company working on my apartment would be finished March 25th. Ok... Also a date I could work with...if I have the proper advanced knowledge. It would be a tight squeeze, but I could get the symphony of tasks that would need to be accomplished that Friday in place a week earlier than originally thought.
I called my Landlord again to let her know what the insurance was saying, Insurance telling me to plan a move for March 25th, Landlord telling me to find a couch to crash on for a week because it's completely up to her when I move in.... oh.. and the rent will be going up when my lease is up in June. (Can we just get me back into my home please first!!!)
This whole moving drama didn't end officially until Saturday when I once again called insurance and said "Ok, you ya'll are telling me that as of right now you can't extend my reservation, but my landlord is telling me it's not up to you when I can move back it's up to her... from my point of view as of this moment I'm looking at a possible 7 days of essential homelessness if there is a gap of time between the restoration company being finished and the landlord's inspections.
With all of this news plus my furbabies being ill, plus work getting a bit hectic... I felt like I was right back at the week of the fire when I had to orchestrate everything as fast as possible to move forward. I usually thrive on a bit of stress, but THAT was ridiculous. I could feel that I was hanging on to sanity by a thread. Which also added the thoughts that this has got to be better, I have other plans in addition to all this... I sat and stared at this blog at 3am on 3 separate occasions, wanting to write but the energy and words just wouldn't make it to my fingertips.
So then this begs the question if I made it to the hotel gym... I did... not every day as I'd hoped due to some kitten (Salsa) letting me chase her around for a half hour each morning for her medication....(I'm not her favorite yet) that unexpected activity ate into my allotted gym time. BUT... I did make it three times for 30min brisk walk on the treadmill with a 5 min warm up. (35 min total).
It wasn't until Saturday that I was able to potentially settle, best as I could, my future living situation. The insurance company has assured me that if the inspections are not finished on my apartment they will not make me move out of the hotel with no place to go, so that was a huge load off my mind. I now have the date to plan.
As I put this past week and weekend to bed, I look forward to a fresh Monday and setting some new goals... I work better with goals, and with being honest about them. So here we go with this week's goals. Try as I might I am not the type that can just fly through life by the seat of my pants... well I can.. but I end up missing a whole lot. Not only that but the forseeable future is going to be a mad house, just as my living situation is set to calm down, the work situation will be steadily ramping up and somewhere in all of that I am fiercely hanging on to my personal life and making that an equal priority with everything else.
Goals for this week...
1- Get enough sleep 4-5 hours every single night isn't going to cut it.
2- Get one 40 min workout (this week including a warm up) in every day, not including the official dance lesson.
3- Make good food choices, I know how to do this and haven't I'm taking it one meal at a time.
4- Begin to build a more concrete schedule so Time Management is easier. My greatest weakness right now is my lack of time management I need to hone those skills.
4 Solid goals to start, it's going to be hour by hour this week. I have to get it together and this is the best way to start. So here's my question for you, dear readers, what goals do you set for yourselves and what do you do/how do you feel when you've met them? What about when you aren't able to meet them?
Anyone want to take the over under on how my week goes? How many of you think I'll actually make all 4 goals? Well you'll see how we go as the week progresses....
Don't forget! Look to the left and see that you can get posts directly into your inbox! Not only that but I want to hear from YOU! Click on the word "comments" below and leave me your thoughts! We can even have a debate if you want! :-)
Monday, March 21, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Lesson Day! Rhythm, Rhythm... and oh Look! More Rhythm!!
This lesson happened back on Monday, I have had it partially finished since then, but had a couple of major issues pop up this week and so...it's a little late..but here you go! This week's lesson:
I was running a little behind but I still got to the studio in enough time to change my shoes and see a few people. They were all talking about the International Ballroom class Rocky teaches, I guess there was some very interesting technique stuff regarding Tango. I must make it a point to attend this class I think.
I was chatting with some friends when I hear from behind me... "Kat..." I turn and it's Rocky standing there waiting for me.
"Oh! Is it time?" I ask, he nods, I immediately turn to my dance friends "Excuse me I have to go, talk to you later!" and take Rocky by the hand.
"Today, is a Salsa warm up." He states with a small grin.
"Really!? On1 and everything??" I excitedly ask back.
He thinks about it and nods, picked a song and off we went.
Interesting thing about this Salsa... we tried for Mambo a few times too! Personally I think we did pretty well, in fact I can almost feel it in my body when I think of Mambo that I can move On2. I am very excited by this! I'll have to practice some... I know I have some Mambo/Salsa's on my MP3 player. Oooo.. wouldn't it be cool if I could decide which one I wanted to do to any Mambo Salsa song??? That would be a totally awesome trick!
A few short minutes later we were warmed up and Rocky headed over for my dreaded book.
Now I do love my book, it has a lot of HISTORY in it... it's got my day one lesson, notes from past teachers, scores from past tests... I just don't see what it has to do with present day anymore... Rocky notes my distaste for my book and reminds me "It's not for you, it's for me."
Oh right! I forget that while he's been dancing forever he hasn't been dancing the Fred Astaire Syllabus forever... so I will no longer complain when he pulls out my book.
First dance we worked on officially was Cha Cha. Oh boy I can't wait until I can do what I did with that dance again! I'm getting closer I can feel it. We worked on the older steps, the Manhattan Roll -out (a personal fave), the Cupid breaks (other studio's call this one the "Turkish Towel") we'd stop for a second, Rocky would refer to the book... ask me if I knew a step and since I pretty rarely keep the names and numbers straight I'd tell him to lead it.
One step that he started to lead is from a part of the Syllabus that was Implemented long after I started, it involves knee lifts. I never officially learned it, but the one time it was taught to me I protested that it is not a followable step. From the position of the two partners there is no way for the lead to cue a knee lift. Which in a closed dancing lead/follow situation is ridiculous to me. Both of my prior teachers were more interested in the main Bronze portion of the syllabus to really get me involved in these steps, so if they're followable I can probably keep up, but it's not fair to me to pull a step that I can't follow and makes me look like the fool part of the partnership because I don't have the "routine" memorized. I stated as much to Rocky and I'm pretty sure I hit a sore spot. Meh... we moved on to a more followable version of grapevine which is leadable, thank you. Although Rocky sped it up and it wasn't long at all before it was too quick for me.
"You get warm quick huh?" Rocky asked.
I'm not entirely sure how he meant it but I never take comments like that well... I responded with "Yeah I do...it will get better."
When what I wanted to say was "Yeah I do, you would too if you were trying to come back to dancing wearing about 60 extra pounds since you stopped, and still nursing an ankle injury!!!" Glad I kept all that in check though... It's best not to alienate the pro as much as possible.
After that we worked a bit on where Rocky wanted to see passing feet in Cha Cha vs Lock Steps. I do Lock Steps out of habit, and I suppose part of the steps should be passing.. I have trouble executing a Passing step where I actually think it's decent.. it feels way too much like scooting Then Rocky brought up the nemisis again "Well since you don't compete, I guess it's not important, I like the look of lock steps better anyway."
I could have decked him.
"Look I know I don't compete, but I do have to test and, [the judge that tests us] likes me and all but he's going to mark me down if I'm not doing the right thing!"
"Not on that step!" Rocky retorts, it was past the portion of the syllabus I had been tested on already.
"Not the point. I want to learn it if it's the right way." I had calmed down a little bit.
_____Rant Alert____
I really hate that though.. like I'm just there to flit around and say I ballroom dance... at least that's how "Well you don't compete so it doesn't matter." sounds to me. I actually want to be able to dance, if I can't afford to compete I want to look like I do actually compete when people see me dance. I want people to watch my all non dancer looking self me and say you know what... she pretty much burns the floor... and I can't do that if my pro keeps telling me "Well you don't compete so it doesn't matter." IT MATTERS! I wouldn't stay as a non competitive student at one of the most highly skilled and accomplished studios in the area if it didn't matter! I know I have to do the work outside the studio to get it, that I don't take enough lessons to be where I want, it's the lessons that inspire me to be a better dancer and if I'm being told "it doesn't matter because I don't compete" That doesn't make me better.. it makes me pissed.
____Rant Complete____
After Cha Cha was a nice easy going East Coast Swing where we worked on the Chicken Walk move..which at first felt like a switch over to West Coast... I haven't danced West Coast since RT left so that kind of freaked me out. I also can't remember the last time I did the run run run, turn, lockstep, swivel, wiggle walk back to partner step either... AND it seems like that whole section after the follow turns away from the lead had changed too... We tried it a couple of times. It felt ok...but.
"Ok my feet are a mess when you're not looking.. no I don't mean to say if you're not looking I cheat, what I'm saying is in that small space of time my feet are definitely not doing all that they're supposed to." I try to explain.
"Oh, ok..." Rocky chuckles "I will look this time."
He did and then he pointed out what I wasn't doing..which was just about everything.. so that's a personal project.. gotta bring the foot speed back up and learn how to do spiral, locksteps, pivot, in the span of like 4 beats.
There was a bit of a debate on that one too... because I swear the last time it was shown to me it didn't have all that... I suggested I learned it wrong.... I was informed instead that they change or modify steps all the time. (Way to make it sound like my former pro didn't let the details of that step slide). :-)
I really just kind of became combative after the one statement I'll just say I don't like. I do still push myself though... I've always done that. I always want to do a step one more time or ask about a lead something like that... I would hope that it shows my desire to understand the skill and mechanics behind the step which will in turn help me learn it..but who the heck knows.
We finished the lesson with a healthy dose of Rumba... one of these days I'm going to have to bring my hips back into the equation... I'm not walking out of the dance studio sore enough.
I also realized this lesson was all Rhythm... which means I'm going to have to ask for smooth next time around. It was actually a good lesson... I did feel good about the dancing part of it anyway.
I have the rest of the week to stew and practice and process... It's been a really rough week, which I'll tell you about tomorrow.. but I'm still fighting! I'm NOT going back into the cave!!!
Oh! Thank you for your comments too! A couple of you have commented this week on some new and old posts. I appreciate it, I do love to know what you're thinking and welcome the feedback!
I am curious.... without actually identifying your pro, what is the most aggravating thing he/she has ever said to you during a lesson?
I was running a little behind but I still got to the studio in enough time to change my shoes and see a few people. They were all talking about the International Ballroom class Rocky teaches, I guess there was some very interesting technique stuff regarding Tango. I must make it a point to attend this class I think.
I was chatting with some friends when I hear from behind me... "Kat..." I turn and it's Rocky standing there waiting for me.
"Oh! Is it time?" I ask, he nods, I immediately turn to my dance friends "Excuse me I have to go, talk to you later!" and take Rocky by the hand.
"Today, is a Salsa warm up." He states with a small grin.
"Really!? On1 and everything??" I excitedly ask back.
He thinks about it and nods, picked a song and off we went.
Interesting thing about this Salsa... we tried for Mambo a few times too! Personally I think we did pretty well, in fact I can almost feel it in my body when I think of Mambo that I can move On2. I am very excited by this! I'll have to practice some... I know I have some Mambo/Salsa's on my MP3 player. Oooo.. wouldn't it be cool if I could decide which one I wanted to do to any Mambo Salsa song??? That would be a totally awesome trick!
A few short minutes later we were warmed up and Rocky headed over for my dreaded book.
Now I do love my book, it has a lot of HISTORY in it... it's got my day one lesson, notes from past teachers, scores from past tests... I just don't see what it has to do with present day anymore... Rocky notes my distaste for my book and reminds me "It's not for you, it's for me."
Oh right! I forget that while he's been dancing forever he hasn't been dancing the Fred Astaire Syllabus forever... so I will no longer complain when he pulls out my book.
First dance we worked on officially was Cha Cha. Oh boy I can't wait until I can do what I did with that dance again! I'm getting closer I can feel it. We worked on the older steps, the Manhattan Roll -out (a personal fave), the Cupid breaks (other studio's call this one the "Turkish Towel") we'd stop for a second, Rocky would refer to the book... ask me if I knew a step and since I pretty rarely keep the names and numbers straight I'd tell him to lead it.
One step that he started to lead is from a part of the Syllabus that was Implemented long after I started, it involves knee lifts. I never officially learned it, but the one time it was taught to me I protested that it is not a followable step. From the position of the two partners there is no way for the lead to cue a knee lift. Which in a closed dancing lead/follow situation is ridiculous to me. Both of my prior teachers were more interested in the main Bronze portion of the syllabus to really get me involved in these steps, so if they're followable I can probably keep up, but it's not fair to me to pull a step that I can't follow and makes me look like the fool part of the partnership because I don't have the "routine" memorized. I stated as much to Rocky and I'm pretty sure I hit a sore spot. Meh... we moved on to a more followable version of grapevine which is leadable, thank you. Although Rocky sped it up and it wasn't long at all before it was too quick for me.
"You get warm quick huh?" Rocky asked.
I'm not entirely sure how he meant it but I never take comments like that well... I responded with "Yeah I do...it will get better."
When what I wanted to say was "Yeah I do, you would too if you were trying to come back to dancing wearing about 60 extra pounds since you stopped, and still nursing an ankle injury!!!" Glad I kept all that in check though... It's best not to alienate the pro as much as possible.
After that we worked a bit on where Rocky wanted to see passing feet in Cha Cha vs Lock Steps. I do Lock Steps out of habit, and I suppose part of the steps should be passing.. I have trouble executing a Passing step where I actually think it's decent.. it feels way too much like scooting Then Rocky brought up the nemisis again "Well since you don't compete, I guess it's not important, I like the look of lock steps better anyway."
I could have decked him.
"Look I know I don't compete, but I do have to test and, [the judge that tests us] likes me and all but he's going to mark me down if I'm not doing the right thing!"
"Not on that step!" Rocky retorts, it was past the portion of the syllabus I had been tested on already.
"Not the point. I want to learn it if it's the right way." I had calmed down a little bit.
_____Rant Alert____
I really hate that though.. like I'm just there to flit around and say I ballroom dance... at least that's how "Well you don't compete so it doesn't matter." sounds to me. I actually want to be able to dance, if I can't afford to compete I want to look like I do actually compete when people see me dance. I want people to watch my all non dancer looking self me and say you know what... she pretty much burns the floor... and I can't do that if my pro keeps telling me "Well you don't compete so it doesn't matter." IT MATTERS! I wouldn't stay as a non competitive student at one of the most highly skilled and accomplished studios in the area if it didn't matter! I know I have to do the work outside the studio to get it, that I don't take enough lessons to be where I want, it's the lessons that inspire me to be a better dancer and if I'm being told "it doesn't matter because I don't compete" That doesn't make me better.. it makes me pissed.
____Rant Complete____
After Cha Cha was a nice easy going East Coast Swing where we worked on the Chicken Walk move..which at first felt like a switch over to West Coast... I haven't danced West Coast since RT left so that kind of freaked me out. I also can't remember the last time I did the run run run, turn, lockstep, swivel, wiggle walk back to partner step either... AND it seems like that whole section after the follow turns away from the lead had changed too... We tried it a couple of times. It felt ok...but.
"Ok my feet are a mess when you're not looking.. no I don't mean to say if you're not looking I cheat, what I'm saying is in that small space of time my feet are definitely not doing all that they're supposed to." I try to explain.
"Oh, ok..." Rocky chuckles "I will look this time."
He did and then he pointed out what I wasn't doing..which was just about everything.. so that's a personal project.. gotta bring the foot speed back up and learn how to do spiral, locksteps, pivot, in the span of like 4 beats.
There was a bit of a debate on that one too... because I swear the last time it was shown to me it didn't have all that... I suggested I learned it wrong.... I was informed instead that they change or modify steps all the time. (Way to make it sound like my former pro didn't let the details of that step slide). :-)
I really just kind of became combative after the one statement I'll just say I don't like. I do still push myself though... I've always done that. I always want to do a step one more time or ask about a lead something like that... I would hope that it shows my desire to understand the skill and mechanics behind the step which will in turn help me learn it..but who the heck knows.
We finished the lesson with a healthy dose of Rumba... one of these days I'm going to have to bring my hips back into the equation... I'm not walking out of the dance studio sore enough.
I also realized this lesson was all Rhythm... which means I'm going to have to ask for smooth next time around. It was actually a good lesson... I did feel good about the dancing part of it anyway.
I have the rest of the week to stew and practice and process... It's been a really rough week, which I'll tell you about tomorrow.. but I'm still fighting! I'm NOT going back into the cave!!!
Oh! Thank you for your comments too! A couple of you have commented this week on some new and old posts. I appreciate it, I do love to know what you're thinking and welcome the feedback!
I am curious.... without actually identifying your pro, what is the most aggravating thing he/she has ever said to you during a lesson?
Monday, March 14, 2011
Weekend Recap, Am I Living in Fear? NOT Anymore!
Hi Everyone!
I hope you all had a great weekend! Happy Pre-St. Patrick's Day!
My weekend started on Friday night with a very nice Dance Party at the studio, where I actually got several dances in, most notably two Cha Cha's where my leads took my written words and used them against me by leading me into that Open Cross Over Break, The lead starts with what I think is an open break but no, I am presented with my lead's flat palm which tells me he's going to "push" me into a spin...so I spin...face the opposite direction, once again I'm presented with an open palm to be "pushed" in the other very left like direction and then AGAIN back to right and the move is over. Admittedly the first time, with my first Cha Cha partner the Cha was slow enough that I executed the move in what I would call a passable manner, second time I was not so lucky.
I also got several dances in with Michael of Bonnie's Belle Gowns, he's always such a joy to dance with! He makes sure to snag me for a Salsa and on this night we also did a Rumba! I'm getting a small bit better now too so I'm enjoying every step a lot more than a few weeks ago.
It was a little later when Rocky picked me up for my third Cha Cha of the evening, he started the dance by air boxing a little, and I didn't get the reference (duh).
We had a bit of a back and forth about his reading the blog and actually really liking it. Which makes me feel great! It's much nicer when the characters in my life appreciate that I write about it. NOW I can proceed with lessons and working with my new pro Rocky as it should be. We had an ok Cha Cha better than anticipated by me anyway. Shortly after that I headed out for my friends' and mine Friday tradition, where we go out to unwind after a dance party and chill out before heading home.
There was some very exuberant discussion about working out at this little post party gathering, which made me feel bad about not hitting my workouts as hard this past week. It made me question why I wasn't pushing myself as hard as I know I could/should. In the end a couple of us kind of came up with a plan to kind of encourage each other. So that's promising, I have got to get my butt in gear... I'm so ready...and I'm SO making up excuses to start "tomorrow."
On to Saturday, I was on call for work, which entails being ready to answer calls and e-mails all weekend, now there is no reason why I couldn't bring my blackberry into the hotel gym with me to get at least 30-40 min on the treadmill in, but did I? No. Why? Because I was on call and used that as an excuse to not to.
Jumping to Sunday I did manage to get out of the hotel for a few hours, thankfully it was a slow on call Sunday, but I still didn't work out. I've mentally made all kinds of plans and commitments to my healthy life style though.
I am so there mentally, I am so ready to rock the casba and get back to the greatness that once was. Why can't I just suck it up and do it?? Then while receiving some Soap Box style lecturing from a friend, he really hit on something....
"We promise according to our hopes and perform according to our fears" - De La Rochefoucauld
That's exactly what I've done! EXACTLY what so many of us have done in promising to do better, get better, and live life. So let's turn the tables for a second, I'm not going to tell you what I'm going to do... You'll know it as we go on this journey together. What I'm going to do is tell you what I'm afraid of, and what's causing me to "perform according to my fears."
So, huh.. well... I don't spend a lot of time focusing on my fears on a conscious level.... What it seems to come down to am I afraid of succeeding or am I afraid of failing? I'm actually kind of afraid of both. If I succeed in my goals of an honest to God healthy life...what then? Do I really know what it's like to NOT be the fat chick in the room? Not really. However I'm a long way from here to "Not the fat chick in the room." let's be honest. I do have a major fear of the unknown that I have been aware of since this whole fire business for sure. I'm not afraid to be confident anymore that's one thing I definitely take away from starting dance.
On the failure side, what's lurking in those dark corners? Well the idea of being injured again for sure comes to mind, but that's not what really pulled me off the path to begin with, it certainly hurt my return, but what originally got me off the path was unemployment. Not having finances, and being made to feel terrible by some in my life for even attempting to spend what I had on dancing just ruined it for me, and in my case distance does NOT make the heart grow fonder, I more have the out of sight out of mind reaction to things. And... AND.. how much a fool was I for being made to feel bad for trying to do the best thing that ever popped into my life? Pffft... Yeah hindsight is 20/20 and it's not pretty.
So if we distill this even further, I'm afraid of the unknown, and of a repeat performance based on past experiences.
That makes me want to ask...what are you afraid of? Care to share? You can post anonymously by clicking on the word "comments" at the bottom of this post.
Ok... well.. wow.... that's all very overwhelming for me. I think what I have to do is take this one day at a time, tomorrow isn't scary... next week isn't either... Where I could be a month from now? That starts to make me a little nervous. This battle out of the dark place, or the cave as it has so often been referred to, on the public front is going well, now it's time for the private side (which isn't all that private...I'm a blogger)
Head first, blinders on to the fear... I'm going to promise based on my hopes and outperform based on my actual capability. We already know that I'm stronger than I even realize... so now I just have to tap into it. Care to come a long for the ride? It's gonna be a good one.Ups, Downs, Twists, and Turns... some of you even get to actually witness it, and you'll definitely be reading about it.
Last week I hit the gym three times for some paltry at best workouts... this week I'm going to do my very best to get there every day... we could place some bets on that too! How many times are you going to hit the gym and/or the dance floor this week!
I hope you all had a great weekend! Happy Pre-St. Patrick's Day!
My weekend started on Friday night with a very nice Dance Party at the studio, where I actually got several dances in, most notably two Cha Cha's where my leads took my written words and used them against me by leading me into that Open Cross Over Break, The lead starts with what I think is an open break but no, I am presented with my lead's flat palm which tells me he's going to "push" me into a spin...so I spin...face the opposite direction, once again I'm presented with an open palm to be "pushed" in the other very left like direction and then AGAIN back to right and the move is over. Admittedly the first time, with my first Cha Cha partner the Cha was slow enough that I executed the move in what I would call a passable manner, second time I was not so lucky.
I also got several dances in with Michael of Bonnie's Belle Gowns, he's always such a joy to dance with! He makes sure to snag me for a Salsa and on this night we also did a Rumba! I'm getting a small bit better now too so I'm enjoying every step a lot more than a few weeks ago.
It was a little later when Rocky picked me up for my third Cha Cha of the evening, he started the dance by air boxing a little, and I didn't get the reference (duh).
We had a bit of a back and forth about his reading the blog and actually really liking it. Which makes me feel great! It's much nicer when the characters in my life appreciate that I write about it. NOW I can proceed with lessons and working with my new pro Rocky as it should be. We had an ok Cha Cha better than anticipated by me anyway. Shortly after that I headed out for my friends' and mine Friday tradition, where we go out to unwind after a dance party and chill out before heading home.
There was some very exuberant discussion about working out at this little post party gathering, which made me feel bad about not hitting my workouts as hard this past week. It made me question why I wasn't pushing myself as hard as I know I could/should. In the end a couple of us kind of came up with a plan to kind of encourage each other. So that's promising, I have got to get my butt in gear... I'm so ready...and I'm SO making up excuses to start "tomorrow."
On to Saturday, I was on call for work, which entails being ready to answer calls and e-mails all weekend, now there is no reason why I couldn't bring my blackberry into the hotel gym with me to get at least 30-40 min on the treadmill in, but did I? No. Why? Because I was on call and used that as an excuse to not to.
Jumping to Sunday I did manage to get out of the hotel for a few hours, thankfully it was a slow on call Sunday, but I still didn't work out. I've mentally made all kinds of plans and commitments to my healthy life style though.
I am so there mentally, I am so ready to rock the casba and get back to the greatness that once was. Why can't I just suck it up and do it?? Then while receiving some Soap Box style lecturing from a friend, he really hit on something....
"We promise according to our hopes and perform according to our fears" - De La Rochefoucauld
That's exactly what I've done! EXACTLY what so many of us have done in promising to do better, get better, and live life. So let's turn the tables for a second, I'm not going to tell you what I'm going to do... You'll know it as we go on this journey together. What I'm going to do is tell you what I'm afraid of, and what's causing me to "perform according to my fears."
So, huh.. well... I don't spend a lot of time focusing on my fears on a conscious level.... What it seems to come down to am I afraid of succeeding or am I afraid of failing? I'm actually kind of afraid of both. If I succeed in my goals of an honest to God healthy life...what then? Do I really know what it's like to NOT be the fat chick in the room? Not really. However I'm a long way from here to "Not the fat chick in the room." let's be honest. I do have a major fear of the unknown that I have been aware of since this whole fire business for sure. I'm not afraid to be confident anymore that's one thing I definitely take away from starting dance.
On the failure side, what's lurking in those dark corners? Well the idea of being injured again for sure comes to mind, but that's not what really pulled me off the path to begin with, it certainly hurt my return, but what originally got me off the path was unemployment. Not having finances, and being made to feel terrible by some in my life for even attempting to spend what I had on dancing just ruined it for me, and in my case distance does NOT make the heart grow fonder, I more have the out of sight out of mind reaction to things. And... AND.. how much a fool was I for being made to feel bad for trying to do the best thing that ever popped into my life? Pffft... Yeah hindsight is 20/20 and it's not pretty.
So if we distill this even further, I'm afraid of the unknown, and of a repeat performance based on past experiences.
That makes me want to ask...what are you afraid of? Care to share? You can post anonymously by clicking on the word "comments" at the bottom of this post.
Ok... well.. wow.... that's all very overwhelming for me. I think what I have to do is take this one day at a time, tomorrow isn't scary... next week isn't either... Where I could be a month from now? That starts to make me a little nervous. This battle out of the dark place, or the cave as it has so often been referred to, on the public front is going well, now it's time for the private side (which isn't all that private...I'm a blogger)
Head first, blinders on to the fear... I'm going to promise based on my hopes and outperform based on my actual capability. We already know that I'm stronger than I even realize... so now I just have to tap into it. Care to come a long for the ride? It's gonna be a good one.Ups, Downs, Twists, and Turns... some of you even get to actually witness it, and you'll definitely be reading about it.
Last week I hit the gym three times for some paltry at best workouts... this week I'm going to do my very best to get there every day... we could place some bets on that too! How many times are you going to hit the gym and/or the dance floor this week!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
The New Kids... Blog Mascots??
With the passing of Sheri and Wyo back in December, I had written about Second Chance Pet Adoptions and their kindness in helping me provide a home for new kids (read: cats/kittens). I am VERY pleased to announce that I now have three fur ball children to call my very own.
They were Born on December 17th, a mere 4 days after the fire that took Sheri and Wyo, and they are from the same litter.
Instead of the two I had anticipated getting, I have THREE! I couldn't leave just one baby behind!
I present to you, very proudly, Salsa, Tango, and Cha Cha!
They are just over 9 weeks old in that picture, that was the first morning they discovered they could jump on the furniture.
Why the names? Funny you ask! I have never had a pet that had a "human" name.... my last pets were named for the city and state I was born in, these pets are named after a dance style that I love. I picked Salsa, because it's my favorite dance and it's cute for a girl, Cha Cha because it was another dance that made a good little girl name, and Tango because I needed a boy's name to go along with the girls AND as a small homage to my employer that runs Petango an adoptable pet search engine. My employer and co-workers were amazing in reacting about the fire.
This blog has never, and will never be about my pets, but since you all have been with me through it all and have supported me through everything I thought I'd at least introduce you.
It won't be long before I'm tripping over them in the kitchen trying to perfect my spiral turns again. :-)
They were Born on December 17th, a mere 4 days after the fire that took Sheri and Wyo, and they are from the same litter.
Instead of the two I had anticipated getting, I have THREE! I couldn't leave just one baby behind!
I present to you, very proudly, Salsa, Tango, and Cha Cha!
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| L to R Salsa (f), Cha Cha (f), Tango (m) |
Why the names? Funny you ask! I have never had a pet that had a "human" name.... my last pets were named for the city and state I was born in, these pets are named after a dance style that I love. I picked Salsa, because it's my favorite dance and it's cute for a girl, Cha Cha because it was another dance that made a good little girl name, and Tango because I needed a boy's name to go along with the girls AND as a small homage to my employer that runs Petango an adoptable pet search engine. My employer and co-workers were amazing in reacting about the fire.
This blog has never, and will never be about my pets, but since you all have been with me through it all and have supported me through everything I thought I'd at least introduce you.
It won't be long before I'm tripping over them in the kitchen trying to perfect my spiral turns again. :-)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Oh Yeah, This is What A Lesson with Kat is All About!
I had a good lesson too! The kind that just makes the world feel like it can be conquered, which is possibly my most favorite feeling that ever was. I headed up to the studio after work not really sure what to expect. I also wanted to try and get some Pączki's it is the one day they're everywhere. Unfortunately I wanted to make sure they were the good kind, grocery store bakery wouldn't do and I didn't plan enough in advance. Next time.
I walked in early as I like to be, getting to the studio early is key for me. I need a few minutes to shrug off the day and prepare to focus on dancing and not waste my lesson because my head is full of the day's residue. Shoes changed I talked to KIT for a little bit, and kind of flitted around testing my shoes on the floor, making sure my legs were going to be up for the challenge. I saw my new pro teaching a couple and they seemed to be having a good lesson. That was nice to see.
Lesson time! As my pro approached he made a face, and I realized... I got the super secret memo! We were both wearing pink shirts!! HA! We warmed up with a little slow hustle, as one of the newer pros came around, and then faded away because it was lesson time. It was really a slow just kind of a "how was your day" kind of a thing. He then went for my book, and I rolled my eyes. He referenced it real quick put it down and asked me if I wrote about our last lesson. (He's very intrigued by this whole blog thing)
"Yes! I did... OH! That reminds me it's been suggested that I actually let you pick your own nickname...so what would you like to be called ?"
He laughs, "You can call me what you want..."
"Well I was thinking of 'Rocky'." I reply
Again he laughed and asked me why, so I told him. He said it would be ok for me to use that. So another blog first, a pro actually gets to weigh in on what his blog nickname is! So my new pro...is Rocky! :-)
Immediately after that exchange we picked up with Cha Cha and he lead me into the ONE move I will never like... Open Cross-Over Breaks I think is what they're called, they're old.. at the top of the syllabus, but I can't spin to the left and feel like I'm in control so I don't like them at all, which I explained last time, and he remembered as he started the move. I finished it, the whole time saying how I didn't like it, I do believe if it's lead it's my job to follow it. Ballroom dancing is a team sport so we have to work as a team to keep the whole thing looking good. As the extreme amature in this new partnership I fail to hold up my end of the bargain a lot but I'll get better.
Still working on Cha Cha we moved to some more advanced Bronze steps that I did ok with, I still think Rocky is being easy on me, I suppose there will come a day when I will long for this kind of treatment. There is one move in particular, no idea what it's called but it's got a really fast spin at the end and I can never seem to get back fast enough, Rocky said it was fine. I'll take that today!
Next up was Swing.. which I agreed to only if it was a slower swing for my ankle and I don't think I'd ever danced East Coast swing with Rocky before. Ah East Coast, my very first ballroom love, you're still a blast, and you can still kick my ass. We worked a lot on the "back to back" move (Fred Astaire students know what I 'm talking about) It's one of my favorites, triple step, back to back triple step, front triple step, swivel swivel, turn out arm extended, spin back in to the left (the only left spin I can manage to pull off) to meet my partner face to face again with a triple step. Well for the first time in my life I was told to NOT extend my arm on the turn out...
This of course caused great debate of why and how and give me a minute to remember and all that. Rocky is right though it does look better that way, and we know how much I hate it when my pro is right if I'm fighting him on something. We worked that move over a few more times with some encouragement from TNT who was watching from the sidelines. Back to the book to review, Rocky asks why I don't work on Tango...
"Well you know, it's smooth and most of my former pros have been shorter than me so that made a proper Tango frame kind of difficult, and since I never liked smooth anyway...."
He left it alone, I didn't get the chance to tell him I'd like to work on Tango if he wants to.
Next up was some Rumba we spent the majority of the rest of the lesson on Rumba, which was good. I think Rumba is the best way to get used to a lead. We also got to chat more during this time and some parts had Rocky saying... "Ok...write about this..." and "Don't write about this..." Well I'll be honest with you my total and complete recall on lessons isn't quite as sharp as it once was. I know I'm not writing about anything he didn't want me to write about. I must remember to explain to him that I don't write to detail every conversation we have... it's more about what we do, how I react to it and how I think he is reacting to me.
There are lots of women in my situation, not exactly confident in their appearance and yet still desperately want to dance and feel comfortable doing it. It is my hope that my my telling my lesson stories it helps these women understand that it's ok to get out there and DO IT... take lessons, work on a move you don't feel so comfortable with, tell your pro why you like or don't like something. LAUGH about it, and then work some more. Some of the fun stuff that happens in the middle is for entertainment value and it helps whatever tension I might be feeling about what's going on in the dancing.
Ok wow... major divergence there, back to Rumba. We laughed a lot in this lesson, I had trouble getting into Rumba character (Don't worry Rocky, we'll get there.. I still need to get used to you and then game on.) I also managed to lead myself in a wayward underarm turn at some point and Rocky asked if he had lead it.
"Nope, but you do follow very well!" I retort.
He laughed a lot, I was so glad he seemed to be having a good time. That's important to me too, that my pro enjoy working with me, it makes me more comfortable learning and getting out of my comfort zone.
We went back to my book to review some steps, and again Rocky remarked "Do you really not work on Tango??"
Well no, and this was possibly the third time he'd mentioned it... so I have a sneaking suspision I'll be working on Tango in the near future. I will admit that I think height wise Rocky is really probably the best suited pro I've ever danced with so this might just be the time to start working on it in earnest.
While at my book I asked if Rocky knew what my favorite dance of all time was... I then pointed to the section labeled Mambo that had a huge "SALSA" written over it by RT over two years ago. This sparked the great Salsa/Mambo debate. Turns out we both don't care for dancing on the 2nd beat, well yet anyway. So I suggested we work on it a little, if I can get going On2 I can pretty much keep it up... Largo taught me that much. Then again if Rocky was ok with just dancing On1 that would suit me just fine too.
Not sure what we're going to do about that one, because I can't live without a Salsa fix every now and again, and we both need to work on this whole Mambo concept. We worked on it for a bit, and we had it..but something went wonky so we ended up on 1 in the end. I do love my Salsa, even if it is really just the Fred Astaire Mambo Syllabus on 1. We'll revisit that whole On2 situation during the next lesson.
We finished this lesson with the traditional "High Five" and then a quick hug after scheduling for the next lesson I, made sure to say "Happy Pączki Day!!"
"Heh, Happy Pączki Day!, oh and Happy Woman's Day!" He replied as he started to head for the back of the studio.
I was way impressed, no one actually ever wished me a happy Woman's Day before! "Hey, Thank you!" I smiled in return and then continued about my business to head home for the night.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
It's all or Nothing
Time moves incredibly fast, and sometimes excruciatingly slow. On the one side I can not believe we are just short of three months since the fire, on the other hand I feel like I've lived in this one bedroom hotel room forever.
I truly live an all or nothing life, when I'm in the game I'm in it all the way no holds barred moving like a steam locomotive that no one can stop. It's been a long time since I lived life on that side of things. I feel like I've left the "all" side of things and firmly planted myself on the "nothing" side. Physically I'm pretty much back at day one of dancing, only I am fully aware of the path I must travel to love life again. Mentally I can feel the shift from being motivated to do NOTHING to being motivated to do EVERYTHING.
This time is different though, I'm not looking to the outside for total motivation, I'm learning to find it inside. All the posts I've written about finding my inspiration I still believe in, but this time I am using my own experiences as an example of my strength. Think about it, in the past two years I have been unemployed, injured twice over, and had every earthly possession taken away by fire. You know what? I'M STILL HERE!
I'm still the same, albeit stronger, more resilient, and excited for the immediate and distant future. I am lucky, blessed, and honored to be surrounded by the people I have found. I can not even imagine having a better sense of family and friendship if I had actually hand picked each of "my people." So now it's time to stop resting on my laurels and letting myself down. I'm finished with "slothing" Sundays all day on the couch and marathon sessions of movies that just make me wish I'd get off my Ass.
I've kept in my life all I need to keep. The dancing - that will never change, in some form I will always be involved in ballroom. The people - Nature had actually weeded out the one's I don't need a long time ago. The arts and creativity- can go dormant from time to time but I'm working on putting it back into my life, one step at a time. Life is way to short and unexpected to dilly dally making decisions about what to and not to do.
I think I was mentally preparing to leap forward back into my healthy lifestyle once I moved into my home. It will signify the end of all this fire business, but I'm ready... I'm ready now. So Now it will be. No more waiting for the timing to be right, I can't, try as I might, script my life (duh).
Time for bed, I have a gym to hit when I wake up... and it's going to hurt.
I truly live an all or nothing life, when I'm in the game I'm in it all the way no holds barred moving like a steam locomotive that no one can stop. It's been a long time since I lived life on that side of things. I feel like I've left the "all" side of things and firmly planted myself on the "nothing" side. Physically I'm pretty much back at day one of dancing, only I am fully aware of the path I must travel to love life again. Mentally I can feel the shift from being motivated to do NOTHING to being motivated to do EVERYTHING.
This time is different though, I'm not looking to the outside for total motivation, I'm learning to find it inside. All the posts I've written about finding my inspiration I still believe in, but this time I am using my own experiences as an example of my strength. Think about it, in the past two years I have been unemployed, injured twice over, and had every earthly possession taken away by fire. You know what? I'M STILL HERE!
I'm still the same, albeit stronger, more resilient, and excited for the immediate and distant future. I am lucky, blessed, and honored to be surrounded by the people I have found. I can not even imagine having a better sense of family and friendship if I had actually hand picked each of "my people." So now it's time to stop resting on my laurels and letting myself down. I'm finished with "slothing" Sundays all day on the couch and marathon sessions of movies that just make me wish I'd get off my Ass.
I've kept in my life all I need to keep. The dancing - that will never change, in some form I will always be involved in ballroom. The people - Nature had actually weeded out the one's I don't need a long time ago. The arts and creativity- can go dormant from time to time but I'm working on putting it back into my life, one step at a time. Life is way to short and unexpected to dilly dally making decisions about what to and not to do.
I think I was mentally preparing to leap forward back into my healthy lifestyle once I moved into my home. It will signify the end of all this fire business, but I'm ready... I'm ready now. So Now it will be. No more waiting for the timing to be right, I can't, try as I might, script my life (duh).
Time for bed, I have a gym to hit when I wake up... and it's going to hurt.
Monday, March 7, 2011
First Lesson with my New Pro!
As I get back into the swing of things, I wasn't about to let Largo leaving stop me from moving forward with my getting back on track. Not a chance! I promptly selected my next pro and it was time to get cracking!
A little about him, his favorite Style is International Ballroom (formerly known as Standard), he's European trained and has had a very successful upbringing in ballroom. He's still young so he's got his whole ballroom career in front of him stateside. He also has a wicked sense of humor and I've heard he's a very dedicated instructor from some of my fellow students of dance. Fortunately I have had the opportunity to dance with him at some parties recently and I had an idea of his leading style.
Somehow we found my book, the one that says what steps I've learned and everything... it is WILDLY out of date, it has a big X through Waltz, a line through Foxtrot and probably hasn't been updated in nearly a year and a half, which I mentioned, my pro was clearly unfazed by this.
We opened with a warm up in Hustle, I tried to not warm up with a Hustle but it is kind of built into the Fred Astaire lesson plan that a warm up happens with Hustle. I'll have to work on that for future lessons, I prefer to warm up with Salsa or Mambo or just about anything except Hustle. I appreciate the wanting to get the blood flowing and all that, but I'm kinda over hustle, unless it's at a party or something.
Next we started chatting, we all know I could spend my whole lesson chatting and dancing, only we weren't dancing. I don't even remember what we were talking about, except that I kept asking him what he'd been told about me. I know there was some kind of back story given, despite what he had said. After a bit I noticed we were just standing and talking, so I looked him dead in the eye...
"Can you talk and dance at the same time? I know I can." followed by holding up my arms in frame and a big smile.
So we did some Rumba Basic while we chatted... I asked "You know I don't compete right? I don't have the money for it and I'd rather put what I have towards lessons." He nodded like he understood, and then without missing a beat.
"Ok, How about June?" (June is a big inter-regional Fred Astaire competition).
I didn't respond but Ha! Oh yeah.. I think we'll get along ok.
We worked a lot on Rumba, I think it was mostly because this was the getting to know you lesson, we also did a little Fox Trot, where I learned my new pro preferred Smooth to Rhythm, but was going to be competing in Rhythm with his partner who prefers that style. Now personally I would like to think that if I preferred a particular style I'd get to compete in it, but I guess that's just me. It was nice to hear what his competition plans might be though.
I also mentioned several times that things were different, which I do, I mention things seem different to me so that my instructor knows what kind of learning curve I'm on with the leading and following. Now he tried to apologize and change his leading style or something, which was not what I wanted, and I told him as such. Any pro I've worked with will tell you the first couple of lessons are filled with my stating "Well that's different." I'm more than happy to adapt, it only makes me a better follower anyway.
I also mentioned that I write, which went over pretty well.
"You did hear that I write about my lessons right?" I inquire between Fox Trots.
"No, what do you write?" he retorts.
"About lessons, about stuff I do with dance, a bunch of stuff."
"Oh..." looks at watch "...so how much longer do I have my job?" he jokes.
"Ha, very funny! No, actually most people get a kick out of it..." I then went to describe the number of readers I have and how long I've been doing it.
"Ok, you write, then I will Act." He says, followed by a little gentlemanly bow, which I thought was adorable.
"Go ahead, try...see how long you can keep that up."
During one of the rounds of Foxtrot I noticed I wasn't doing heel leads and I caught myself. So I told my partner... "Ok, if you ever catch me not doing heel leads you have to catch me because I haven't worked on smooth a lot so I'm still working on that."
He looks at me dead in the eye "Well, since you don't compete it's not so important..."
"Oh no, oh no you don't! It doesn't matter, I want to learn how to dance, and if heel leads are the proper way to do this, then that's what I want to learn."
In that one statement about heel leads not being important a seed of doubt was planted. If he's not going to take me seriously then I don't need to work with him. I tried to leave it alone, but it's stuck with me. We'll see... this was only our first lesson together.
The rest of the lesson ended with Waltz to a song he mentioned that he really liked... It also seemed to go ok from my side of things as far as following. We also ended up with a bit of an audience from the work out class that had just disbursed and one of my friends being slack jawed that I was waltzing. I also caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and cringed. UGH.
The lesson ended pretty well, I have another scheduled and I'm working on my plan of attack so that I no longer cringe when I'm in front of the mirror. Life is almost back to normal since the fire so it's time to get back to it.
Anyone have any ideas as to a good nickname for my new pro? I have a couple of ideas but I'm not in love with any of them... tell me your ideas!
A little about him, his favorite Style is International Ballroom (formerly known as Standard), he's European trained and has had a very successful upbringing in ballroom. He's still young so he's got his whole ballroom career in front of him stateside. He also has a wicked sense of humor and I've heard he's a very dedicated instructor from some of my fellow students of dance. Fortunately I have had the opportunity to dance with him at some parties recently and I had an idea of his leading style.
Somehow we found my book, the one that says what steps I've learned and everything... it is WILDLY out of date, it has a big X through Waltz, a line through Foxtrot and probably hasn't been updated in nearly a year and a half, which I mentioned, my pro was clearly unfazed by this.
We opened with a warm up in Hustle, I tried to not warm up with a Hustle but it is kind of built into the Fred Astaire lesson plan that a warm up happens with Hustle. I'll have to work on that for future lessons, I prefer to warm up with Salsa or Mambo or just about anything except Hustle. I appreciate the wanting to get the blood flowing and all that, but I'm kinda over hustle, unless it's at a party or something.
Next we started chatting, we all know I could spend my whole lesson chatting and dancing, only we weren't dancing. I don't even remember what we were talking about, except that I kept asking him what he'd been told about me. I know there was some kind of back story given, despite what he had said. After a bit I noticed we were just standing and talking, so I looked him dead in the eye...
"Can you talk and dance at the same time? I know I can." followed by holding up my arms in frame and a big smile.
So we did some Rumba Basic while we chatted... I asked "You know I don't compete right? I don't have the money for it and I'd rather put what I have towards lessons." He nodded like he understood, and then without missing a beat.
"Ok, How about June?" (June is a big inter-regional Fred Astaire competition).
I didn't respond but Ha! Oh yeah.. I think we'll get along ok.
We worked a lot on Rumba, I think it was mostly because this was the getting to know you lesson, we also did a little Fox Trot, where I learned my new pro preferred Smooth to Rhythm, but was going to be competing in Rhythm with his partner who prefers that style. Now personally I would like to think that if I preferred a particular style I'd get to compete in it, but I guess that's just me. It was nice to hear what his competition plans might be though.
I also mentioned several times that things were different, which I do, I mention things seem different to me so that my instructor knows what kind of learning curve I'm on with the leading and following. Now he tried to apologize and change his leading style or something, which was not what I wanted, and I told him as such. Any pro I've worked with will tell you the first couple of lessons are filled with my stating "Well that's different." I'm more than happy to adapt, it only makes me a better follower anyway.
I also mentioned that I write, which went over pretty well.
"You did hear that I write about my lessons right?" I inquire between Fox Trots.
"No, what do you write?" he retorts.
"About lessons, about stuff I do with dance, a bunch of stuff."
"Oh..." looks at watch "...so how much longer do I have my job?" he jokes.
"Ha, very funny! No, actually most people get a kick out of it..." I then went to describe the number of readers I have and how long I've been doing it.
"Ok, you write, then I will Act." He says, followed by a little gentlemanly bow, which I thought was adorable.
"Go ahead, try...see how long you can keep that up."
During one of the rounds of Foxtrot I noticed I wasn't doing heel leads and I caught myself. So I told my partner... "Ok, if you ever catch me not doing heel leads you have to catch me because I haven't worked on smooth a lot so I'm still working on that."
He looks at me dead in the eye "Well, since you don't compete it's not so important..."
"Oh no, oh no you don't! It doesn't matter, I want to learn how to dance, and if heel leads are the proper way to do this, then that's what I want to learn."
In that one statement about heel leads not being important a seed of doubt was planted. If he's not going to take me seriously then I don't need to work with him. I tried to leave it alone, but it's stuck with me. We'll see... this was only our first lesson together.
The rest of the lesson ended with Waltz to a song he mentioned that he really liked... It also seemed to go ok from my side of things as far as following. We also ended up with a bit of an audience from the work out class that had just disbursed and one of my friends being slack jawed that I was waltzing. I also caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and cringed. UGH.
The lesson ended pretty well, I have another scheduled and I'm working on my plan of attack so that I no longer cringe when I'm in front of the mirror. Life is almost back to normal since the fire so it's time to get back to it.
Anyone have any ideas as to a good nickname for my new pro? I have a couple of ideas but I'm not in love with any of them... tell me your ideas!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
First Spectating of 2011... Indiana Challenge!
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| Image Courtesy of Indiana Challenge |
Last weekend a group of friends and I journeyed down to Merrillville Indiana to catch the professional competition known as Indiana Challenge. I had attended this competition with a few of the same folks last year as well, and I do always like to make a repeat appearance if a comp is good. I like this one because it's not too far, it's smaller compared to some of the others, I know or have seen most of the competitors before, and possibly get a glimpse at what professionals are new to the circuit. As a side bonus I usually get to catch up in person with TNG, who is now teaching out of a studio in that area.
Our merry band of fans headed towards the boarder early enough so that we could eat at the pub in the hotel, last year we ended up with a big group and it was a lot of fun, this time it was a little more subdue but still nice. While puttering around I ran into TNG, seeing him always makes me squeak with glee (I'm really not much of a squeaker in general) I'm just proud to see someone I've known since the day they graced the dance floor doing so well. Before long it was time to find our way towards the ballroom.
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| STP and HFC from Emerald Star Ball 2010 |
"Hey [STP]...you're carrying....dance stuff!" I stated with glee!
"Uh..yeah well...you know..." he kind of mumbled.
"Yay! Who are you dancing with?" I inquire as I follow his gaze to.... HFC! "Ah, you must be dancing with this lovely partner right here!" I exclaim as I give HFC a hug hello. (She was very obviously dancing as she had the pretty hair piece already in place).
Yipee! Getting to see STP and HFC hit the floor again! I was so pleased! They had retired last year as an American Rhythm and 9 Dance competitive couple, and I knew seeing this competition tonight did not mean they were coming back, they were there to have a bit of fun and, I later learned, that they missed having fans cheer for them. (Awww).
Nearly immediately after my exchange with STP and HFC, TSD and FAF came on by to say hi before the all went off to prepare. One of the most genuine things that always comes from these professionals is their appreciation of our attendance when they compete, this makes it that much easier to make the effort to come cheer them on. I happily made my way to the ballroom.
I had called in advance to reserve our tickets, unfortunately for whatever reason the seats we got weren't exactly together but they were very close, and that's fine really, the chair is only for sitting in between events I'm interested in anyway. Although I will tell you that in the process of trying to get the seats situated TNG hooked me up and introduced me to one of the competition organizers which was very kind. (This is one of the many reasons why it pays to be out going and do what you can to stay in touch with people you meet along the way.) I was extrordinarily impressed by his reaction to my name, he thought it was very cool. I was happy as a clam just waiting for my preferred events to start. Get me in a room full of ballroom people add competition and hand me a glass of wine, I'm set for the night!
It was pretty clear that on the professional side of things this is somewhat of a "rebuilding" comp. What I mean by that is a LOT of new faces. Especially in American Rhythm! STP and HFC were the first to compete and it was very evident that they were the most polished out there. At one point, I believe it was in the Semi final STP threw out a wild JUMP into the air. I've seen their routines a lot, I don't recall that ever being in there, nor do I recall seeing it re-appear in the final. He caught some good air though.
As predicted, STP and HFC came in FIRST PLACE and won Indiana Challenge Open Rhythm! CONGRATULATIONS! It's always so much fun to cheer for you both!!!
In between heats the professionals would store their stuff near us, check in, let us know how it felt to be out there, tell us funny stories about getting ready to compete and in some cases help us cheer on their counterparts. That's always a lot of fun.
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| TSD and FAF (from OSB 2010) |
This event also had a semi-final, making it to the final was a cake walk for TSD and FAF, the final itself was a little harder. There were some new couples I don't recall seeing that were putting up a really good fight! We cheered our best for them and I could tell something was a bit off, I don't know what and I didn't ask...but I can generally tell when any kind of a performance is just not gelling...it's an energy that the performers give off. Had it been the kind of energy I'd felt at Ohio, I'd have claimed them the winners before the start of the Viennese Waltz, but this time I had them placed 2nd.
Turns out I was only kind of right. TSD and FAF were placed 3rd, by Rule 11. Which means they actually tied for 2nd place and Rule 11 then has the scrutineer look at the actual placements each judge has down for the tied couples and whomever has more 1st's (as an example) will get the higher placement overall. (That is a very simplified explanation of Rule 11 as I understand it) Still a very hearty CONGRATULATIONS to TSD and FAF... the year is just beginning and you all have bigger titles to take. :-)
While all this was going on I had several very lovely mini conversations with TNG, and I look very much forward to watching his career continue to progress as well.
With Indiana Challenge over and hugs from the pros thanking us for attending and cheering, we headed back to the Land of Lincoln already making plans for the next competitions to attend.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Breaking Blog Rules.... Meet Largo... Aleks Nashev!
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| Aleks' Solo Bolero Intro December 2010 |
So I'm breaking a long standing cardinal rule of this blog... I am mentioning a former instructor by NAME. Nope the sky isn't falling and nothing else is changing. I will continue to call Aleks "Largo" on this blog if I ever need to write about him again. However, Aleks is simply an amazing Ballroom Dancer and I firmly believe everyone on the planet should see him dance. Aleks puts every ounce of his being into his performances and competitions and is purely inspirational to watch and be near.
Here is your chance to keep up with this professional who has graced my life, and so many others, with his presence, if you are on Facebook (and really, who isn't now adays?!) become a fan of ("like") Aleks Nashev.
From this fan page he will be able to let us know where he's competing and what he's up to in the Ballroom world as he continues to take it by storm.
Just a few of his accomplishments so far (and I'm proud to say I've written about a few, and been there to witness some of them):
US (World) Rising Star Champion 2010 American Rhythm
2nd place US (World) Mambo Champion 2010
Bulgarian National Latin Champion
FIRST PLACES for all Competitions 2010 in Rising star American Rhythm
First Place in ALL DANCES Pro Latin at Harvest Moon 2011
So from wherever you are, and wherever you are going to be dancing, do not pass up the chance to see this stellar performer and competitor.
Jeez the more I write, the more I'm gonna miss him!
Take care everybody and Happy Dancing!
Monday, February 21, 2011
The LAST lesson with Largo....
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| The Pics, The Good, The Bad, and the "What is she doing?!?" |
I'm actually very happy for him! Yes I will miss having him as my pro, but this is the best decision for him. Let's face it, a social dancer like me is extraordinarily lucky to have had the opportunity to learn from such an accomplished pro and excellent teacher.
So our last lesson was actually a blast! We started out having a bit of an audience, Horace was there to see me dance smooth. He apparently didn't believe me when I told him I'd been learning to like and appreciate smooth a whole lot more than I used to. So we did a little Tango...Horace watching, Largo not really understanding why we had an audience, and confused as to why I was shaking through the whole thing. (Tango makes me nervous, the last time I danced it was Mini Match two years ago!). We made it around two sides of the floor and decided to switch to Fox Trot, a much more comfortable dance for me...one time around the floor and I look over to the foyer area, Horace has disappeared!
"Oh... He's gone..." I say as I bring Largo and I to a stop."Why did he want to watch?" asks a very inquisitive Largo.
"I'm not really sure, I don't think he believes that I could like smooth...what do you want to work on next?"
We actually ended up with more Fox Trot for a while, which I'm really beginning to enjoy. After a few pointers and a few more times around the floor we switch styles. My lessons are usually a series of rounds as I get back into it... it's all about getting comfortable on the floor again and finding my motivation to jump back in the fight of healthy living.
Next was Swing, this is currently my most difficult dance because of my ankle and my lack of stamina (I'm so out of shape I want to crawl under a rock, but then that wouldn't really help now would it...) But I hang on for as long as my ankle will allow it.
"If it hurts you tell me." Largo states.
"I'm fine... I'm not making faces!" I retort.
I can hide everything in my dancing when I'm in pain except my face... in recent weeks Largo has called me to the carpet about it several times. Our current deal is that I can dance as long as I promise to wear my special compression socks, jazz shoes (absolutely no heels), and don't make any faces where it looks like I'm in pain. So far I'm doing as the pro has ordered and it's working out really well.
Just about two beats after that I place my foot for the next step and my foot cracks, you know... like your foot sometimes does when you're working out, or at least mine sometimes does. I make the big mistake of saying "Ow oh...that's not right".
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| Forget my hair...his is way cooler and we're almost making the same face! |
"No, I'm fine, really you didn't hear me say that- it was just my foot...I'm fine." He's gotta believe me!
I got the look... the look of I shouldn't believe you but I'm going to anyway... turns out I was right I WAS actually fine my foot just had to do that for some reason. So we moved on to Rumba. Rumba was a series of conversational steps really. It was more talking about his plans and if he thinks the new pro I'll be picking up is going to be good for me (more on that later). We then took a break because Largo wanted to open the card I got him.
A little about the card... as I was in the card isle looking at my many options for Largo's card, one predominant thought kept going over and over in my head... thank you. So that's what I selected, I got Largo a Thank you card for all the lessons, kindness and partnership and when I wrote in the card I also wished him the best of luck on his new adventure. Well when he read that it was I who started to cry as he placed the card down and we stood up to dance my eyes burning with tears...
"Aww man! You shouldn't have opened the card!" as I'm fighting the urge to just cry...
"Shush.. come on... Rumba" and Rumba we did.... it wasn't but a few steps into it when my urge to cry was gone and I was back in the lesson.
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| Forget the top half but look at our pants! They're doing the same thing! LOL |
"Ha! Like I know if I know at this point... go ahead an lead it." and I go to take up frame.
You'll never believe this... apparently the "Wheel" I remembered in the first seconds of leading is the ONE ChaCha step that's always eluded me, at least it does on the first try. Except this time... this time I got it.. every foot placement, direction change, and lock step I GOT IT!!!
Sadly.... Largo didn't remember my trouble with this step from last year, but I was pretty dang proud of myself and that's what counts.
It was about this time that I notice Largo and I have picked up some studio paparazzi trying to get some candid shots of my lesson for me. Well... I seem to have a very big issue trying to be candid when I KNOW someone is taking pictures... which I tried to laugh off with Largo, but he just moved us to be right in front of the photographer. So we worked a little on Cha Cha and I could hear the snap snap snap of the camera each time the shutter was pushed.... UGH... then it popped into my head to let it go and just dance with my pro. I think a couple of them came out kinda cute and I have them scattered throughout this post.After Cha Cha we started on our Mambo/Salsa portion of the lesson... now Largo usually has me do Mambo because there is no reason why I shouldn't be able to dance it. I usually stop counting and rely on the lead to make sure I figure out how to move on the 2 beat. After a few measures I engage my brain into the dance...
"Hey! Wait a minute!! We're doing Salsa!"
"Yes, Salsa." Largo responds with a what did you think it was? tone to his voice.
"Alright then!" I exclaim and begin to actually pay attention which does in fact make the dance better. We did some under arm back to back loopy thing that I really enjoyed. I think I'll probably always love Salsa. I was really touched that Largo chose to dance on the 1 with me. It's little things like that.... just make a lesson special.
Last 5 or so minutes, our paparazzi has either left or found another target, and Largo asks me what I want to work on, you'll never believe what came out of my mouth.
"Ummm... what about a little Waltz? I mean my rise and fall is nowhere near what it should be yet, but I think we made progress last time."
What the hell? Even I'm shocked and I'm the one that said it! What is going on?!? I would have NEVER EVER not if you paid me, suggested Waltz before my ankle injury. Largo wasn't nearly as phased, he agreed to work on it with me.
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| Largo and I... Boy I'm gonna miss you string bean! Thank you for it all! |
We ended on a high note... new step learned and more confidence in American Smooth gained... we hugged and then I sat next to Largo on the bench to chit chat for a minute. It was nice. I'm gonna miss that kid... but the plus is that he's staying in the area so he'll be around for competitions when he gets a new partner lined up and if you've ever seen Largo dance you know it's a real treat. He's a force of nature in this Ballroom world, and I was lucky enough to call him my pro.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Dancing with One of the Stars... Jonathan Roberts' Group Class!
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| Mr. Jonathan Roberts... mid sentence is always | a good look! |
Ok so I didn’t actually dance with Jonathan Roberts, but I did attend his group class tonight at the studio. It’s been a LOOOONG time since I dropped in on one of these dance celebrity classes. I’m highly selective as to what classes I want to attend. I attended this one for a couple of reasons… first is that Jonathan had never been to the studio before, second he’s always been very interesting to me on ABC’s Dancing With the Stars, and finally… let’s face it.. I could use all the help I can afford to get right now.
Back when I was more seasoned I would have totally balked at ANOTHER group class full of American Rumba Box, but I’m smarter than that now that I’m trying to regain my old skill level. Rumba Box is the basis for ALL rhythm dances. Which I still love and I can feel my passion re-awakening. So here’s the low down in that only Kat can describe way….
I’d known for a long time that Jonathan Roberts and his wife Anna Trebunskaya were going to be in the studio for coaching’s and group classes. You may know them from many of the seasons they’ve been on DWTS (Dancing with the Stars). I only decided to sign up for Jonathan’s group class yesterday as long as there was still space, and I lucked out that there was. I walked into the studio chatted it up with some dance friends, checked out the ballroom gowns that were visiting from one of the top industry designers (most of them wouldn’t fit around my arm… but they’re pretty to look at). Then I saw Anna, and then Jonathan…whew… let me tell you… they’re pretty on TV… but they are absolutely gorgeous in person!!
Ok...ok… so yummy eye candy to go with the class… that’s completely secondary to gleaning dance knowledge…let’s focus for a minute on Jonathan’s dance pedigree since he is the instructor du jour: Jonathan began dancing when he was 20, someone that picks up dancing late in life like that we usually teasingly call a 6 week wonder. Not too dissimilar from the studio’s own Jesse DeSoto who started around the same age and then moved on to conquer the ballroom world. Jonathan was a top amateur before he moved on to turn pro and eventually dance with Anna. Together they placed really high in tons of comps all over the world, they placed 6th in the US and 24th in the world. (That’s HUGE!) Then they retired as a couple and decided to find separate partners. Jonathan moved on to become World Professional American Smooth Champion in 2008. Some of this even happened AS he was working on Dancing with the Stars! So you can understand a bit why I wanted to see what Jonathan’s teaching style is like. I mean come on… I may be a career amateur social dancer but I don’t take lessons from just ANYBODY! (Dance Pedigree info obtained from here.)
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| Me in My Spot! (I'm in the purple t-shirt) |
I had just run into a friend that I hadn’t seen in for EVER so I was a minute or two late to class…*gasp!* As I walked in to take up my usual position in the second ballroom (that really felt like being at home) I hear “Ok so you guys have to be really good, because this is going to determine how I’m going to teach class.” From Jonathan… I made a comment as I crossed the floor that I was going to head out now while I still had the chance! I had no idea what he was asking of us… I figured Rumba, but I wanted to wait for the song to come on to be sure. Music up and it’s one of those that could be a ChaCha but can be a quick Rumba. So I was momentarily confused… but picked up pretty quick that it was Rumba, wow... how long it had been since I stared down the pic of the Rat Pack in my little corner of the ballroom!! Ahhhh... home….
After some pointers on the Rumba box there was a simple routine put together with open breaks, swivels and a couple of pivot turns. I was again reminded how far I’d fallen, but I tried just the same.
At one point as we were getting the routine down Jesse DeSoto (Studio owner, and former cast member DWTS season 3, oh and ranked #2 in the world in Mambo during his career ß for new readers who don’t know ;-)) came up to me (from my position he has to walk by to get to his office) quietly put his hand on my shoulder and whispered “It’s good to see you got your spot back.” YEAH BABY… it is MY spot… we should tape it off and put my initials all over it.
Back to the class… We focused on swivels and at one point KIT (the gal that Keeps It Together) was running around taking pictures, and I get very nervous when I know there are candid shots being taken… like I’m trying to be candid and it’s not working or something… and I couldn’t swivel during the time when we were working with partners, and I mentioned to the gal I was partnering with “She’s back there taking pictures isn’t she….” In that grrrr kind of way. She must have thought I was really new or something… clearly not familiar with what my statement meant.
“Oh well that’s ok, your pretty hair color, you’ll look fine in them.” *grin*
I almost wanted to stop class laughing, she doesn’t know… that’s ok…she’ll learn ;-) I kept quiet and went back to trying to find my swivel. Although I have to say that when things like that happen it just makes me want IT more.
Back to the little routine we were working on, where I was really just trying to find my balance again. I seriously feel like I have to go to every instructor I’ve never worked with and say “Look, I used to be good, I’ve had a bit of a rough time with injury and then there was a fire...and anyway…I’m trying to come back...and I’m re-learning.. I’ll be good again I promise.” I didn’t of course, if I were having an individual coaching then sure, but not in a group class. Jonathan added arm movements and ways to focus on different body parts… hip, knee, shoulder, arm… I really enjoyed that part, esp. since I really desperately need to make my dancing look less utilitarian. Also…get this… the knee part, we lowered into our knees and then used our hips to accentuate the position…and wow. That actually felt really sexy. Yeah that’s right I said it... in my purple t-shirt and gray sweat pants… that movement felt a little sexy. We reviewed the routine with all added movements… I sucked at it… no seriously... I’m not being hard on myself… I really sucked… but I actually learned a lot. I’m one of those students that needs to process and then execute… so I have some good stuff to think about, and I will, and it will be part of what makes me better.
Last five minutes of class we worked on a basic Waltz, and I shocked myself by really looking forward to the info. I also totally forgot about heel leads… well give a girl a break, in my 4plus years of being involved in Ballroom I’ve only spent a scattered smattering of lessons and social dances on it. We did some steps like open fan steps, footwork only to start, and once I remembered the heel leads it felt pretty good…although due to ankle strength my rise and fall isn’t where it should be, but it felt good, so for me we know, that’s another jump in the right direction. So all in all good class! I can officially add Jonathan Roberts to my list of instructors I’ll suggest others learn from, and look forward to seeing him and Anna stop by the studio again.
I wanted to introduce myself to him before I left, but I was struck with an uncharacteristic bout of shyness. I mean who was I to him? A girl among many in one of a million group classes he’ll teach. Next time I’ll get some face time. Thanks Jonathan!
(Photographs courtesy of Savvy who was in the studio getting an awesome Tango and Rumba routine respectively)
Monday, February 14, 2011
No More Hanging On....
“Change is the only constant. Hanging on is the only sin.” - Denise McCluggage
So let’s review… since mid December there is just about no aspect of my life that hasn’t changed. Even the few things that have seemingly stayed the same are different. I still have the same awesome friends and family… but I’m somehow closer to them all. My co-workers are the same.. but they all proved that they are really awesome people too.. and have even made me lower some of those boundaries between work/personal life. (Some, all wouldn’t be healthy)
The changes keep coming, sometimes I feel like I’m standing amidst hurricane winds and if I don’t keep any eye on every little thing it will all just blow away. Then I realized… It’s ME that has to change. I’ve managed to maintain a very positive healthy attitude about the changes… but that’s not enough. There’s some serious fundamental evolutionary change that has to go on here. Change is constant, sure not quite as drastic as some of the changing that’s been going on over here..but it’s normal… and there’s no use in trying to desperately hang on to things that for one reason or another just need to change, evolve, or leave. Just treasure the experience, the time, the emotion, and roll with the punches.
Wow, I even surprise myself with that tidbit of wisdom. It’s nothing short of true. As the quote above says…. “Change is the only constant. Hanging on is the only sin.” No, not sin in the pray every night before you go to bed kind of “Sin” there are more meanings to that word than you realize. Hanging on is the only thing that’s going to hurt you in the end is all that means.
On a more fun note of change…It’s not all doom, gloom and scary..some of it is pretty damn awesome! Get this ya’ll… Largo and I have had a few lessons and he’s insisted that we work on American Smooth Waltz and Foxtrot… yeah that’s right.. this girl is getting her Smooth grove on! Mainly because I have to build up my ankle strength and this is the way to do it and still get my dancing in. You’ll never believe that I had the most amazing breakthrough with it. I’m looking forward to more Smooth lessons. *GAK!* Did I really just type that?!?! Long time readers know how loyal I am to my American Rhythm and Salsa… and that hasn’t changed, but I think until my ankles are a little better Smooth is the way to go… and perhaps I’ll try to see what International is all about??
I used to say “This too shall Pass.. and That which doesn’t kill me only serves to make me stronger”
I’ve officially dropped the “This too shall pass” bit… of course it will! If you don’t like something change it, if you can’t change it..change your approach to it…
I’ve got some inherent, possibly genetic laziness to change too which is possibly my biggest challenge ahead… but if I can do THAT? I’ll be completely, totally, and utterly, unstoppable! (That’s kind of exciting!)
Happy Dancing!
Kat
PS Happy Valentine's Day too! XO ;-)
So let’s review… since mid December there is just about no aspect of my life that hasn’t changed. Even the few things that have seemingly stayed the same are different. I still have the same awesome friends and family… but I’m somehow closer to them all. My co-workers are the same.. but they all proved that they are really awesome people too.. and have even made me lower some of those boundaries between work/personal life. (Some, all wouldn’t be healthy)
The changes keep coming, sometimes I feel like I’m standing amidst hurricane winds and if I don’t keep any eye on every little thing it will all just blow away. Then I realized… It’s ME that has to change. I’ve managed to maintain a very positive healthy attitude about the changes… but that’s not enough. There’s some serious fundamental evolutionary change that has to go on here. Change is constant, sure not quite as drastic as some of the changing that’s been going on over here..but it’s normal… and there’s no use in trying to desperately hang on to things that for one reason or another just need to change, evolve, or leave. Just treasure the experience, the time, the emotion, and roll with the punches.
Wow, I even surprise myself with that tidbit of wisdom. It’s nothing short of true. As the quote above says…. “Change is the only constant. Hanging on is the only sin.” No, not sin in the pray every night before you go to bed kind of “Sin” there are more meanings to that word than you realize. Hanging on is the only thing that’s going to hurt you in the end is all that means.
On a more fun note of change…It’s not all doom, gloom and scary..some of it is pretty damn awesome! Get this ya’ll… Largo and I have had a few lessons and he’s insisted that we work on American Smooth Waltz and Foxtrot… yeah that’s right.. this girl is getting her Smooth grove on! Mainly because I have to build up my ankle strength and this is the way to do it and still get my dancing in. You’ll never believe that I had the most amazing breakthrough with it. I’m looking forward to more Smooth lessons. *GAK!* Did I really just type that?!?! Long time readers know how loyal I am to my American Rhythm and Salsa… and that hasn’t changed, but I think until my ankles are a little better Smooth is the way to go… and perhaps I’ll try to see what International is all about??
I used to say “This too shall Pass.. and That which doesn’t kill me only serves to make me stronger”
I’ve officially dropped the “This too shall pass” bit… of course it will! If you don’t like something change it, if you can’t change it..change your approach to it…
I’ve got some inherent, possibly genetic laziness to change too which is possibly my biggest challenge ahead… but if I can do THAT? I’ll be completely, totally, and utterly, unstoppable! (That’s kind of exciting!)
Happy Dancing!
Kat
PS Happy Valentine's Day too! XO ;-)
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