It's so nice to be back. Back and writing (I was backed up at work -- couldn't take any breaks to write.) But more than anything, back in Seattle -- where more than one person knows me, loves me, and wants to dance with me. Over the weekend I have almost forgotten what it is like to be asked to dance... As you may guess, "Part II" of Vancouver B.C. travels isn't coming. All I can say is that the most note worthy event of the second day was the aforementioned awesome lead taking us out to dinner at a nice place on the waterfront and showing us around town. He really went out of his way to make the city more inviting... It's only because of him that we'd ever go back there for another visit.
Seattle, on the other hand, had the luck of welcoming us back with my favorite event. Perhaps that's what made coming home so much more exciting. The monthly latin dance night at Teatro Zinzanni is an event that every Seattle Salsa dancer should attend at least once. It's truly breathtaking -- at least for individuals with a creative streak and an imagination that runs for miles and miles. There is nothing similar to it in town -- the setup has a vibe that is entirely its own.
I distinctly remember the first time I walked into Teatro. The vintage circus, with it's bright velvet decorations, the lights sparkling on the dance floor, and the live music coming from a lit up stage, made me feel like I stepped out of reality and into a 1920's classic film. I stayed in awe for the entire night. Perhaps the fact that Teatro only happens once a month makes this event a little extra special. The atmosphere calls for dressing up -- preferably in red or in sparkly (or both!)
But yesterday I realized the most important thing about Teatro: it makes me relive those first few times ever that I went dancing. Unfortunately, even after as little as six months of Salsa, there is a rut that a person can get stuck in. The excitement and exhilaration of the dancing itself is replaced with the comfort of familiar leads, mixed with anxiety of not being good enough to execute an "x" amount of turns. But Teatro brings out the "first time" smile in me every time I go. Not that I don't smile anywhere else. I actually do. A lot. But this is a different kind of smile. It's the one that just naturally comes on because you're having so much fun. It's the one that you're not aware of, and are not trying to force. It's the real one.
Perhaps Teatro is also special because of the several milestones in my dance life that took place there. Like being asked to dance by one of the best leads in town for the first time. But most importantly, meeting one of my now closest Salsa friends. Who is hopefully there to stay for life. And WILL work on our friendship once the "honeymoon" phase is over ;) A combination of all these things makes Teatro almost a magic place for me. A place where a lot of good things happen in a completely different time...
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Life Outside Seattle -- Vancouver BC. Part I
It's 2:00a.m. and the concierge at the hotel asks us "Will you be parking with us overnight?" I am stupified, and for a good minute and a half can't think of how to answer the question. All sorts of things are running through my mind: When does he consider "night" to begin and end? Why is he asking me this? Does he know what time it is? Does he think that we'll only park for an hour and leave again at 3:00a.m.? Luckily for me, my "twin" jumps in with a ready "Yes." I start cracking up. What would the guy say if we actually answered "No?" I ask him if he's supposed to say this every time. He replies affirmatively and specifies that he DOES realize how stupid of a question this is considering the time.
We are in Vancouver, BC returning from a night of dancing at the Polish Hall -- THE venue to be at on a Friday night in Vancouver. The night was full of the unexpected: everyone's gushing about the city promised much more than Vancouver delivered. The Salsa scene was just the opposite. I definitely expected nothing good out of my night, having never stepped foot in Vancouver before and knowing absolutely no dancers there. But Vancouver salseros were quick to envelop their guests in warm hospitality.
Of course it did take a little while to figure out exactly by whose hospitality one SHOULD be enveloped. Two new follows walking into an unfamiliar venue naturally invited all the creeps to fluster to their victims like vultures to their prey. Thus, our first few dances left us wondering if there's another secret place in Vancouver where all the decent leads go. The "welcoming" was especially persistent during bachatas, for which continuous offers to "teach" us this easy dance kept coming in, even after a polite decline and assurance that we don't, in fact, dance it. (On principle.) The only way out was to dance it with each other, which is exactly what we did.
After a little while I desperately started wishing for a Vancouver blog that has the "map" of Polish Hall. But there being none to the best of my knowledge, I decided to indulge myself in the art of observation (much to the dismay of a few rejected welcomers), and try and figure out the "map" on my own. Although the corners were somewhat unclear due to the fact that many people were, in fact, at a special event (as we found out later,) I was able to identify two or three good leads. That's all it took. After that, as if magically, they asked us both to dance on their own.... Ok that's a lie :) I did ask the DJ, and practically stared down the amazing one who clearly stood out from the crowd until he finally approached. That literally saved our night. His impeccable skill and consideration showcased our following in a much better light than warranted by reality. Other good leads took note. From then on Vancouver Salsa rendered nothing but smiles.
I'm just hoping it'll stay this way for tonight as well. But of course, it should be easier because of the thirty people from Seattle also coming up for the Salsa Showcase. And as fun as it is to explore the unknown of new venues and new leads, Seattle remains a home sweet home -- cozy, warm, and familiar.
We are in Vancouver, BC returning from a night of dancing at the Polish Hall -- THE venue to be at on a Friday night in Vancouver. The night was full of the unexpected: everyone's gushing about the city promised much more than Vancouver delivered. The Salsa scene was just the opposite. I definitely expected nothing good out of my night, having never stepped foot in Vancouver before and knowing absolutely no dancers there. But Vancouver salseros were quick to envelop their guests in warm hospitality.
Of course it did take a little while to figure out exactly by whose hospitality one SHOULD be enveloped. Two new follows walking into an unfamiliar venue naturally invited all the creeps to fluster to their victims like vultures to their prey. Thus, our first few dances left us wondering if there's another secret place in Vancouver where all the decent leads go. The "welcoming" was especially persistent during bachatas, for which continuous offers to "teach" us this easy dance kept coming in, even after a polite decline and assurance that we don't, in fact, dance it. (On principle.) The only way out was to dance it with each other, which is exactly what we did.
After a little while I desperately started wishing for a Vancouver blog that has the "map" of Polish Hall. But there being none to the best of my knowledge, I decided to indulge myself in the art of observation (much to the dismay of a few rejected welcomers), and try and figure out the "map" on my own. Although the corners were somewhat unclear due to the fact that many people were, in fact, at a special event (as we found out later,) I was able to identify two or three good leads. That's all it took. After that, as if magically, they asked us both to dance on their own.... Ok that's a lie :) I did ask the DJ, and practically stared down the amazing one who clearly stood out from the crowd until he finally approached. That literally saved our night. His impeccable skill and consideration showcased our following in a much better light than warranted by reality. Other good leads took note. From then on Vancouver Salsa rendered nothing but smiles.
I'm just hoping it'll stay this way for tonight as well. But of course, it should be easier because of the thirty people from Seattle also coming up for the Salsa Showcase. And as fun as it is to explore the unknown of new venues and new leads, Seattle remains a home sweet home -- cozy, warm, and familiar.
Monday, October 12, 2009
10 Things Found in a Salsera's Shoe bag
We all know that a woman's purse can hold all sorts of unexpected things. A lead has recently referred to mine as "Bartell Drugs" as he happened to glance in while I was searching through a myriad of very loosely organized and very miscellaneous items for some eye drops. Granted, there is barely ever a need for a Salsera to bring in her pharmacy to dance events. For one, she expects to get sweaty after a couple songs anyways, so there is no need for make-up or hair styling products. In addition, she expects to be occupied enough to be able to survive without all the wonderful entertaining items in her purse for a couple of hours. Also, her trunk presents a safer place for "valuables" than a random chair under which the purse is most likely to end up at an event. This said, there are several essentials that she absolutely cannot part with, even for a short amount of time. These she puts in her dance shoe bag (which conveniently will hold a pretty large amount of random crap.) So here are the "essentials" that you will most likely find in a shoe bag of a woman who left her purse in the trunk of the car.
1. ID
This is her passport for getting into venues of choice. Without ID the woman is pretty much helpless, or at least extremely dependent on charm and connections with owners/door guardians of the venue.
2. Money
Please do not go through Salsera's bags laying around in search of this valuable item, as the bag only serves as shelter for it until Salsera abandons Money at the door of the venue. More likely than not she brought exactly the amount required to get in, and most likely it's cash since that's the only currency a lot of venues accept.
3. Dance Shoes
Duh. That's what the shoe bag was designed for in the first place. They are Salsera's most prized possession.
4. Lip Gloss
Yes, she'll be sweaty in a second anyways, but her eye make up is most likely waterproof. Unfortunately, barely any lip gloss that is wearable comes in long lasting or waterproof options, so Salsera will come back to her "jar of vaseline" over and over throughout the night to moisturize her luscious lips so that she can charm the leads with a smile and make the dance more enjoyable for both.
5. Cell Phone
This is the item that no Salsera ever parts with, or should part with. If anything happens to friends/car/self it's her only gateway to the outside world, as well as a good source of entertainment should she get bored after all.
6. Car Keys
To be able to get to her pharmacy upon return from dance venue. More often than not Salsera locks this prized possession in the trunk along with "Bartell Drugs." That's when Cell Phone comes in handy.
7. Band Aids
Dance Shoes aren't always as nice and caring about Salsera's feet as she'd hope. Band Aids to the rescue. If it's not for her, Salsera will always be willing to share with friends who are hurting either from shoes or accidents on the floor.
8. Magic Eight Ball
To be able to quickly come up with a good line when asked if she would like to dance. Just kidding :)
9. Gum
Stacks and stacks of it that make Salsera smell like strawberries. The excessive amount is for her to share with all her friend Salsera's. Luckily Salseros don't ask for it since it's fruity and girly.
10. Eye Drops
Although Salsera is not sure why exactly that's the case, she has been asked for them twice in this past week, so now she keeps Eye Drops on her at all times to be able to come to the rescue of friends whose eyes bother them because of too little sleep/too much sweating/irritating contacts/other unknown reasons.
I'm amazed that this list does actually contain 10 items in it. I hope everyone's curiosity is now satisfied. I dare you to pick up a random shoe bag at the next venue you're at and count out how many of these items you can locate inside. Just don't take anything. Especially the magic eight ball. :)
1. ID
This is her passport for getting into venues of choice. Without ID the woman is pretty much helpless, or at least extremely dependent on charm and connections with owners/door guardians of the venue.
2. Money
Please do not go through Salsera's bags laying around in search of this valuable item, as the bag only serves as shelter for it until Salsera abandons Money at the door of the venue. More likely than not she brought exactly the amount required to get in, and most likely it's cash since that's the only currency a lot of venues accept.
3. Dance Shoes
Duh. That's what the shoe bag was designed for in the first place. They are Salsera's most prized possession.
4. Lip Gloss
Yes, she'll be sweaty in a second anyways, but her eye make up is most likely waterproof. Unfortunately, barely any lip gloss that is wearable comes in long lasting or waterproof options, so Salsera will come back to her "jar of vaseline" over and over throughout the night to moisturize her luscious lips so that she can charm the leads with a smile and make the dance more enjoyable for both.
5. Cell Phone
This is the item that no Salsera ever parts with, or should part with. If anything happens to friends/car/self it's her only gateway to the outside world, as well as a good source of entertainment should she get bored after all.
6. Car Keys
To be able to get to her pharmacy upon return from dance venue. More often than not Salsera locks this prized possession in the trunk along with "Bartell Drugs." That's when Cell Phone comes in handy.
7. Band Aids
Dance Shoes aren't always as nice and caring about Salsera's feet as she'd hope. Band Aids to the rescue. If it's not for her, Salsera will always be willing to share with friends who are hurting either from shoes or accidents on the floor.
8. Magic Eight Ball
To be able to quickly come up with a good line when asked if she would like to dance. Just kidding :)
9. Gum
Stacks and stacks of it that make Salsera smell like strawberries. The excessive amount is for her to share with all her friend Salsera's. Luckily Salseros don't ask for it since it's fruity and girly.
10. Eye Drops
Although Salsera is not sure why exactly that's the case, she has been asked for them twice in this past week, so now she keeps Eye Drops on her at all times to be able to come to the rescue of friends whose eyes bother them because of too little sleep/too much sweating/irritating contacts/other unknown reasons.
I'm amazed that this list does actually contain 10 items in it. I hope everyone's curiosity is now satisfied. I dare you to pick up a random shoe bag at the next venue you're at and count out how many of these items you can locate inside. Just don't take anything. Especially the magic eight ball. :)
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
10 Signs You Have a Salsa Crush
In case you don't read my other blog (and you should. It's at kluelessinseattle.blogspot.com), I will warn you that the number "10" in the title serves just as an attention grabber and I rarely ever actually do 10 anything. It's always either less or more. So don't be surprised.
A salsa crush is different from a regular, romantic crush in the sense that you have a strong inclination to want to brush it off, and you know way too well that it can't lead to anything serious (except maybe a serious heartbreak when things go too far.) But here are some signs that you might, perhaps, have one:
1. Your first instinct upon entry into a venue is to look around and locate that person.
2. Once you locate your crush, you walk past the spot where they are and give them a little longer than normal "hello" hug.
3. You can't seem to stop smiling while you're dancing with your crush. Even if all they can do is a basic cross-body-lead, you think their dancing is the best thing that's ever happened to you!
4. If you spot them dancing a close bachata with someone else, a cloud suddenly envelops your otherwise perfectly good night. You feel an insatiable urge to cut in and break the madness off.
5. Your kiss good bye "accidentally" ends up on the lips instead of a cheek.
6. Your favorite moves with your crush are all the ones that require close contact. If anyone else tried it on you, they'd be officially dubbed creepy.
7. You consider your greatest achievement on the floor to be that time you were successful at making them smile.
8. You think about them outside of Salsa.
9. You're not that close, but you have their biography memorized down to the dot. Girlfriends, siblings and grandparents names, pets, venues they usually attend, favorite food, cell phone number... etc.
10. You constantly check if there's anything new on their social networking site, and stay signed in on skype/icq/fb/aol/msn chat all day, hoping that they will contact you first.
11. When you see them at a place where they weren't expected, your happiness is translated into jumping them at the door and hugging until they're too out of breath to try and get you off.
12. You check your phone every couple of seconds to see if there's a text message from them.
When you do get a text message from them, you wait a half an hour before responding so they won't think that you're checking your phone every couple of seconds to see if there's a text message from them.
13. Their beer belly looks good to you. You haven't noticed yet that they're missing a couple of teeth.
14. You want to dance all your favorite songs with only that person. They have the last dance pretty much reserved.
A special thanks to Anna and Frances for their contributions that made this post happen!
A salsa crush is different from a regular, romantic crush in the sense that you have a strong inclination to want to brush it off, and you know way too well that it can't lead to anything serious (except maybe a serious heartbreak when things go too far.) But here are some signs that you might, perhaps, have one:
1. Your first instinct upon entry into a venue is to look around and locate that person.
2. Once you locate your crush, you walk past the spot where they are and give them a little longer than normal "hello" hug.
3. You can't seem to stop smiling while you're dancing with your crush. Even if all they can do is a basic cross-body-lead, you think their dancing is the best thing that's ever happened to you!
4. If you spot them dancing a close bachata with someone else, a cloud suddenly envelops your otherwise perfectly good night. You feel an insatiable urge to cut in and break the madness off.
5. Your kiss good bye "accidentally" ends up on the lips instead of a cheek.
6. Your favorite moves with your crush are all the ones that require close contact. If anyone else tried it on you, they'd be officially dubbed creepy.
7. You consider your greatest achievement on the floor to be that time you were successful at making them smile.
8. You think about them outside of Salsa.
9. You're not that close, but you have their biography memorized down to the dot. Girlfriends, siblings and grandparents names, pets, venues they usually attend, favorite food, cell phone number... etc.
10. You constantly check if there's anything new on their social networking site, and stay signed in on skype/icq/fb/aol/msn chat all day, hoping that they will contact you first.
11. When you see them at a place where they weren't expected, your happiness is translated into jumping them at the door and hugging until they're too out of breath to try and get you off.
12. You check your phone every couple of seconds to see if there's a text message from them.
When you do get a text message from them, you wait a half an hour before responding so they won't think that you're checking your phone every couple of seconds to see if there's a text message from them.
13. Their beer belly looks good to you. You haven't noticed yet that they're missing a couple of teeth.
14. You want to dance all your favorite songs with only that person. They have the last dance pretty much reserved.
A special thanks to Anna and Frances for their contributions that made this post happen!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Things That Make Follows Cry
One week of 5 hours of sleep/night + one day of 4 hours of sleep + 22 hours up + 2 bad dances = DISASTER. This I learned when a recent incident on the floor made me storm out of Century in tears, scaring the heck out of all my friends and making one very considerate lead (thank you!) run after me worried that I will hurt myself driving in that condition. (Note to all: I calm down within seconds of a tantrum and never really lose the clarity of mind, no matter how much it appears not to be so.) I blame lack of sleep, of course, but my behavior made me quite embarrassed the next day. Until a heart-to-heart with some more follows revealed that I am not the first person to shed a few because of something seemingly insignificant. So what kinds of things make showers of salty water come out of our eyes? Here are a few examples, starting with my own:
During a wonderful night spent twirling around with guys who are "professional social dancers," (coined by: Andre) nothing foretold the unthinkable. One of the so many time mentioned creeps found me one dance before last. Why did I say "yes?" Because I feel bad. The man was kind enough to dance with me when I was a beginner. And I am suspecting that his creepiness doesn't come out of perversion, but rather out of severe lack of social skill and self-confidence. That, however, doesn't make dancing with him any more pleasant. So after enduring the awkwardness for an entire song, I was looking forward to completing the night with a good last dance. But it was not to be.
My venting to a friend apparently took a little longer than it should have, because the next thing I knew, all the wonderful familiar leads were partnered up with equally wonderful familiar follows, which left me sitting on stage, wallowing in the thought that my last dance of the night was with the aforementioned creepster. Of course my isolation, unprotected by any friendly bodies to serve as a barrier between me and disaster (as I already mentioned, they were all on the floor by then), immediately attracted more predators. My state of mind, of course, welcomed a chance to remedy the previous shock, so I took a bargain, and accepted a dance from a decent-looking lead that I've never seen before, hoping that the last song wouldn't be as disastrous as the one before. But once again, it was not to be.
Unfortunately, out on the floor, decent looks do nothing for a man that doesn't know how to count till 8. Even worse is a man who THINKS he knows how to count. And I'm not trying to be rude here. It's just that if a lead switches the beat once in a while we can catch on. If he switches consistently we don't really know what to do, because we are not mind-readers. We've been taught that our only job in a dance is to move our feet in the rhythm of quick-quick-slow, and wait for directions about where exactly to move them. If you take the quick-quick-slow from us, there's pretty much nothing left. This guy took it all. Not only was I unable to pick up ANY rhythmical pattern in his dance, but he was also not considerate enough to look around. Thus, I was embarrassingly thrown into a happy couple dancing behind us. Three times. Even more mortifying was the fact that they actually moved from their signature spot (unthinkable!) to avoid any further trauma from happening. Additionally, I was stepped on, bruised with thumbs of iron clinging to my wrists with a force of a bulldozer, and twisted in unthinkable ways not found in any recorded moves of the dance of salsa.
One of my girls had a similar situation when she first started dancing in Seattle. Apparently, a creep not found on the floor any longer (and I hope he is banned from Salsa for life!) proceeded to lick her in the ear during a dance. F.Y.I.: in case you've ever been tempted to do so, it's considered inappropriate behavior on the floor. In her own words of what she did after: "I probably went somewhere to cry." Another follow had a breakdown when after a night of unfortunate events a lead who agreed to dance the "next song" with her magically ended up on the floor with other follows for the rest of the night. The stories are probably endless, and my examples too few... But at least I know that I'm not a complete idiot for overreacting to some things after a week of no sleep.
Now, what can be done to make sure that no follow ever leaves the dance floor unhappy or with tears in her eyes? Nothing. Hehe. Unfortunately a teary explosion doesn't really depend on leads, (or follows for that matter). It depends on her emotional state of mind at that moment and just how much she can take with a laugh. But a few important steps from both sides can help tremendously! Follows: eat your food and get your sleep. A balanced state of mind will prevent you from getting emotional in situations outside your control. Leads: Learn how to count. And if you happen to notice that your friend follow just had a horrible dance/rejection, seriously consider rescuing her for the next song. Make sure she NEVER ends up alone on stage! Friends: Watch out for each other. It's easy to get carried away in the rush of a good night. (I, myself, am guilty as charged!) But it's not worth it if a friend is in tears at the end of it.
Once again, I'd like to thank all my wonderful friends who called, left messages, and ran after me that night. Moreover, I'd like to recognize those who consistently protect me from being invited for a "dance of a lifetime:" Carlette, Julia, Anna, Alex, and Joshua -- thanks for being so perceptive and caring!
During a wonderful night spent twirling around with guys who are "professional social dancers," (coined by: Andre) nothing foretold the unthinkable. One of the so many time mentioned creeps found me one dance before last. Why did I say "yes?" Because I feel bad. The man was kind enough to dance with me when I was a beginner. And I am suspecting that his creepiness doesn't come out of perversion, but rather out of severe lack of social skill and self-confidence. That, however, doesn't make dancing with him any more pleasant. So after enduring the awkwardness for an entire song, I was looking forward to completing the night with a good last dance. But it was not to be.
My venting to a friend apparently took a little longer than it should have, because the next thing I knew, all the wonderful familiar leads were partnered up with equally wonderful familiar follows, which left me sitting on stage, wallowing in the thought that my last dance of the night was with the aforementioned creepster. Of course my isolation, unprotected by any friendly bodies to serve as a barrier between me and disaster (as I already mentioned, they were all on the floor by then), immediately attracted more predators. My state of mind, of course, welcomed a chance to remedy the previous shock, so I took a bargain, and accepted a dance from a decent-looking lead that I've never seen before, hoping that the last song wouldn't be as disastrous as the one before. But once again, it was not to be.
Unfortunately, out on the floor, decent looks do nothing for a man that doesn't know how to count till 8. Even worse is a man who THINKS he knows how to count. And I'm not trying to be rude here. It's just that if a lead switches the beat once in a while we can catch on. If he switches consistently we don't really know what to do, because we are not mind-readers. We've been taught that our only job in a dance is to move our feet in the rhythm of quick-quick-slow, and wait for directions about where exactly to move them. If you take the quick-quick-slow from us, there's pretty much nothing left. This guy took it all. Not only was I unable to pick up ANY rhythmical pattern in his dance, but he was also not considerate enough to look around. Thus, I was embarrassingly thrown into a happy couple dancing behind us. Three times. Even more mortifying was the fact that they actually moved from their signature spot (unthinkable!) to avoid any further trauma from happening. Additionally, I was stepped on, bruised with thumbs of iron clinging to my wrists with a force of a bulldozer, and twisted in unthinkable ways not found in any recorded moves of the dance of salsa.
One of my girls had a similar situation when she first started dancing in Seattle. Apparently, a creep not found on the floor any longer (and I hope he is banned from Salsa for life!) proceeded to lick her in the ear during a dance. F.Y.I.: in case you've ever been tempted to do so, it's considered inappropriate behavior on the floor. In her own words of what she did after: "I probably went somewhere to cry." Another follow had a breakdown when after a night of unfortunate events a lead who agreed to dance the "next song" with her magically ended up on the floor with other follows for the rest of the night. The stories are probably endless, and my examples too few... But at least I know that I'm not a complete idiot for overreacting to some things after a week of no sleep.
Now, what can be done to make sure that no follow ever leaves the dance floor unhappy or with tears in her eyes? Nothing. Hehe. Unfortunately a teary explosion doesn't really depend on leads, (or follows for that matter). It depends on her emotional state of mind at that moment and just how much she can take with a laugh. But a few important steps from both sides can help tremendously! Follows: eat your food and get your sleep. A balanced state of mind will prevent you from getting emotional in situations outside your control. Leads: Learn how to count. And if you happen to notice that your friend follow just had a horrible dance/rejection, seriously consider rescuing her for the next song. Make sure she NEVER ends up alone on stage! Friends: Watch out for each other. It's easy to get carried away in the rush of a good night. (I, myself, am guilty as charged!) But it's not worth it if a friend is in tears at the end of it.
Once again, I'd like to thank all my wonderful friends who called, left messages, and ran after me that night. Moreover, I'd like to recognize those who consistently protect me from being invited for a "dance of a lifetime:" Carlette, Julia, Anna, Alex, and Joshua -- thanks for being so perceptive and caring!
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