I’ve mentioned that I am going on a road trip soon. My boys and I will be driving across the country to stay with family in eastern Pennsylvania for a couple months. Three and a half days in a car with only two dogs for company! For some reason, a lot of people think I’m nuts. I say it’ll be an adventure and will probably give me a couple good blog posts.
Category: The Student Perspective
Things I Learned From Watching My Practice Videos
If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you may have seen that I posted a few videos yesterday. If not, the links are on the side bar. Go check them out! I’ll wait.
The Orange Starburst
In the last couple weeks, I’ve attempted to alleviate my hunger for ballroom with social dancing. Two weeks ago, Roomie and I attended a Halloween social dance at a local studio. I went to the monthly swing dance, complete with a live band, at another studio this past Saturday. And last night, I went to another social dance after my hip hop class, since the two were at the same place. Last night in particular inspired this post because of some interesting comments people made and because of how I’m feeling post-dancing.
The Crappy Days Are More Important
I had an idea for my next post, another one about climbing out of the comparison trap. I wanted to come up with a list of real things that I or anyone else could do that would help stop the comparisons and get back to a more positive mindset. The exercise in gratitude was ok, but I wanted something more practical and more concrete. When I am having trouble with a ballroom step, Teacher can give me very specific things to do to correct the issue. I’ve been stuck in this self-pity state for longer than I’d like to admit. I have plenty of excuses and some good, honest reasons, but that doesn’t change the fact that I’m only hurting myself. I actually googled “how to stop comparing” to see what others have written about the subject.
An Exercise in Gratitude, as Told by a Cynic
After several depressing posts, I thought I should try to turn the mood around by stopping the moaning and groaning and exercising a little gratitude instead. The only problem is I’m a bit of a cynic.
Stuck in a Bog of Uncertainty
A few days ago, Dance Advantage posted an article titled 7 Things To Remember In Phases Of Uncertainty In Your Dance Life. The seven things are nothing earth-shattering, but they are excellent reminders. I think I’ve written about all of them myself in past posts. Which got me thinking…
What do you do when you know all these things and you do your best to practice them, but you’re still struggling? Sure, you know “this too shall past,” but does that really help you in the here and now?
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall – We Meet Again
I originally wrote this article two years ago for my old blog, the Uphill Factor. I wanted to share it again here because I still struggle with what I see in the mirror and I’m sure someone else out there does too.
Sometimes I Just Need to Vent
I’ve been feeling very stalled in my dancing. This isn’t news. I have no competitions on the calendar, and scheduling conflicts all around have been messing with my lesson and practice time. As much as I preach a “don’t give up!” philosophy, walking the walk has been much harder lately.
Mid-Tour Reflections
One more week to go on the Dance Diaries book tour! The responses have been incredibly positive, which I did not prepare for at all. I’ve never done something like this before and I didn’t know what to expect, so naturally, I prepared for the worst. I was ready to have my books criticized, my ego shot down, and my writing torn apart. None of that has happened though.
Let’s Get Serious, Dancers
In July 2015, I wrote a post titled At What Point Can You Call Yourself a “Dancer”? A little over a year later, I can confidently say I am a dancer!
I was inspired this week to expand on last year’s post and consider what makes a serious dancer.
The Girl with the Tree Tattoo 