Hello dancers!
I have been PRODUCTIVE the last two days and it’s feeling really good. First, I had a double lesson (meaning 1.5 hours instead of 45 minutes) on Friday after work. It wasn’t extra; Teacher had asked if we could reschedule our usual Wednesday lesson. I like having a double lesson once in awhile because sometimes 45 minutes is just not enough time. You start getting deep into something and just as you feel you’re making some real progress, time’s up!
2018 is coming up fast, and like every other blogger on the world wide web, I’m reflecting on the past year and sharing my thoughts with you. Hope you don’t mind!
In honor of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, I’m doing an Instagram series giving thanks for what ballroom dance has done for me!
This time of year has become very materialistic. Most retailers don’t even acknowledge Thanksgiving anymore, skipping ahead to Christmas because that is where the profits are made. A coworker who was born and raised in another country commented the other day that it’s so odd to her that this country created this holiday and now we practically ignore it.
Personally, I like to give each holiday in this season its due. So follow me on Instagram (@thegirlwiththetreetattoo) for the next seven days to find out some of the reasons why I’m grateful for ballroom dance. Hint: NONE of the things I’m grateful for can be bought in a store!
What are you grateful for?
Howdy dancers! I hope the week is treating you well. My week certainly is. I took the day off today after getting home yesterday from a weekend workshop in Scottsdale, Arizona. No, it wasn’t a dance workshop (I know, what else could it be??).
I am WAY behind in reading other ballroom dancers’ blogs, but I finally made it to this one and felt compelled to share it. This dancer makes the great point that what you see is not always what you do, and sometimes that can even lead to “dangerous” dancing when an inexperienced lead tries to replicate the illusion instead of the actual trick behind an advanced dance move.
Check it out!
Dance is an illusion. That back-breaking dip isn’t so back-breaking as it is knee-bending and core-crunching. That light and lithe follow being lifted over her lead’s head is really a compact case of pure muscle. I once told a pro friend of mine how jealous I was that all her steps were always so clean […]
Continue reading -> Falling for the Illusion — A Step In Quarter Time
One of the big unexpected side effects of ballroom dancing I continue to experience is the courage to dive into my other passions. I’ve always loved creative writing, but hadn’t done it consistently in years until I started dancing, after which I started blogging. I also realized my dream of being a published author. The tree of life tattoo idea I had since high school finally fully formed in my mind after I started dancing, and then I actually got it inked!
The title isn’t a metaphor. I’m wrote this post while sitting against a heating pad. This month’s guest article, Life Outside of Dance…, came at the perfect time for me. The night I reviewed Birgit’s final draft was also the night I woke up with a painful muscle spasm in my back. A cluster of muscles in my upper back took it upon itself to seize up and refuse to be moved. It made that painfully clear every time I tried to roll over or shift my position in bed to get more comfortable. The next morning was Friday. I was able to get out of bed and walk. I could even bend down and touch my toes! I just couldn’t rotate to the right. At all. You never realize how many actions require at least a small turn to the right until you can’t do it.
Hello my lovely readers!
Just a quick post tonight. I just finished up some work for the main day job. It’s been a busy week (and it’s only Wednesday!) with an extra project for the main job plus side work from the second job. That did not stop me from getting to my dance lesson tonight though.
Less than three weeks until my first competition in over a year! This past week’s lessons brought me through the whole spectrum of emotions related to that fact. First, there was Wednesday.
After about a week and a half out of the studio, I had a lesson with Teacher on Wednesday followed by almost an hour-long practice with a new practice partner. I think I pushed myself a little too far because I was exhausted and started getting a serious headache on the way home. There’s no time to slow down though; Ballroom Beach Bash is in four weeks!
The Girl with the Tree Tattoo 