Happy Monday and Day 1 of the Dance Diaries book tour! I’m keeping the book tour blog post updated with specific links to guest posts, book spotlights, interviews, etc. AND the link to the giveaway, so check them out whenever you have time. I’m also sharing the tour stops on Facebook and Twitter, so follow me there too!

Meanwhile, in the studio…

If all goes as planned (but when does it ever?), I should be dancing four days in a row this week! Tomorrow is a social dance lesson with Teacher’s friend, Wednesday is practice with Ballroom Viking followed by a lesson with Teacher, Thursday is hip hop (new group class!), and Friday is my second lesson with Teacher.

Whew!

Naturally, I’m waiting for something to go wrong so one or more of these dance days disappears. But at the same time, I’m working hard to stay positive and remind myself that if I don’t get as much dancing in this week as planned, it won’t be the end of the world like it so often feels when I’m cancelled on. I will survive to dance another day.

Since the next competition on my calendar is still a big ‘ol question mark, I’ve been refocusing on what I have in front of me. I have standing lessons with Teacher and somewhat standing lessons with Teacher’s friend. A recent addition to the schedule is my standing practice with BV, and even newer is a hip hop group class I decided to join, despite the extra cost. Check out the Instagram or Facebook page for a video clip of the choreography I attempted to learn at the first class! It’s ok if you laugh, I know it’s bad.

I don’t know when exactly, but at some point recently, I think I finally accepted that California Open back in February was going to be my only competition for 2016. There are still a few more in the upcoming months, but I have to face facts and recognize that several thousand dollars are not likely to manifest in that timeframe.

That doesn’t mean I stop trying, of course. I continue to work hard inside and outside of the studio, so I’ll be ready to compete as soon as financially possible. When you’re stuck on the sidelines while everyone else gets to play in the game though, keeping things fresh and interesting is important.

Switching between rhythm and smooth from week to week with Teacher has added a variety to our lessons, so it doesn’t feel like we’re working on the same things over and over with no specific endpoint. Practice with BV is a different experience since we’re both still learning. We just spend our time dancing until one of us fumbles, at which point we stop, regroup and try again. While BV and I pretty much just practice smooth, lessons with Teacher’s friend are like my rhythm practice since he also likes to just keep dancing until one of us (i.e., me) fumbles.

Just having different partners to learn and practice with has been a blessing and a treat, and I’m sure my dancing has progressed because of that one factor. Plus, I’m having fun! I’m trying to enjoy dancing for dancing’s sake because that’s all I have right now. I had a fear that I would never regain my competition momentum once I lost it, and so far that fear has proven true. But it’s becoming less of a fear as I’ve realized that I’m still able to prepare for a comp, even if I can’t pay for it. I also haven’t stopped scrimping and saving; it’s just been slow-going because Life keeps demanding that the money be put toward other things. But if I hadn’t been scrimping and saving in the first place, I’d be in even worse shape!

So acknowledge your efforts, accept where you are on your journey, and don’t ever give up. Oh, and have fun! Those are my words of wisdom for tonight.

Sweet dreams and happy dancing everyone!