Death by Dancing

I swear they were trying to kill me on Friday. Dance after dance. Song after song. It started out with the first three songs. Two of them being quite fast. Can a girl sit and rest?? I have to admit, the music was great. Sin Miedo was playing and they are quite good. Even the DJ was playing some good stuff during their break. So I danced and I danced. I tried to leave. They wouldn't let me. There I was being drug back out onto the dance floor. 45 minutes later, I was finally putting on my coat only to have to put it down just once more. Thankfully, I was allowed to leave. My feet were tired. My knees were a little achy. And I knew I had a long drive home. To top it all off, an idiot parked in the exit lane of the parking lot. And even worse? Having the flu all the next day.

Calle Ocho Success!

This past weekend was pretty awesome. Not only did I get to dance a ton (although I don't think I dropped the 3-4 lbs I was hoping for but oh well) but I go to hang out with my friends a lot. The coming-together of the 4 big area rueda groups was fairly monumental. There can be a lot of competition between the groups for lessons, students, performances, etc. Rueda is a very social dance yet people tend to act very unsociably at times. But Saturday night saw 100+ people together, dancing, without worrying about who dances with what group. The performances were great. Everyone did a wonderful job. Overall, it was just a lot of fun. I hope that we organize something similar for the near future because I think it would help grow rueda/casino dancing in the Wash DC area.

Observations:

• SAOCO members are hot. As a whole. The group, performers and those just hanging out and taking lessons - very good looking group!!


• Aramis is such a beautiful man! (if you don't know who that is, its ok).


• The Alliance Dance Studio is gorgeous and I hope they'll have us back!


• Some people really think they are awesome dancers but all they do is throw you around and its annoying, hurts, and makes me not ever want to dance with you again!


• I created a sign for the event and it was awesome. I was very proud of it!!


• I can almost dance normal in my 3 inch heels!!

Michael Stuart - Back to Da Barrio

 Michael Stuart has a new album out - Back to Da Barrio. Michael has never really popped as a salsa singer. Anyone who has heard him in person will confess that the man can sing. His first album wasn't that good - at least in my opinion. It did not make me want to get up and dance. But this Back to Da Barrio - it sounds good. I like it. And I am downloading it off iTunes today. The first song, "Mayor que Yo" is hot and it made me want to get up and dance instantly. He has a remake of a popular song that's on the radio right now, "Ven Bailalo", made popular by Khriz y Angel. I like the original. I like Michael's a little better. If you are feeling the need for new salsa - check out this CD. I think you'll like it. Plus I mean really...look at the man...whew... 

I Don't Get It

I like it when a man looks goooooood to go out and dance. Seeing a guy wear a great shirt, pants that fit really nice, etc. is very special. I have a couple of friends who really dress nice when they go out and it makes it all the better to dance with them. What I don't get is a guy who will dress in a 3-piece suit. I know that they probably think they are fashionable or smooth but I find it annoying. And to top it off, more times than not, they aren't some great dancer...they are mediocre. It also looks uncomfortable. I realize that there are men who are very comfortable in suits and probably wear them all the time. No problem. Go ahead and wear them. I just think that when salsa or latin dancing, it could be restrictive. Let me know if it isn't because you look uncomfortable to me.

Friday Night - Cecilia's

Tonight I'm headed out to Cecilia's in Arlington. Normally I go to lessons but with the group practicing so much it will probably be a light night like last week and I want to dance!

They have a good, live band on Friday nights (so I hear) so I'm happy to check them out!

Tuesday Dancing

I wouldn't mind going out dancing tonight. I'm really undecided. The only place really available for dancing on a Tuesday night is The Barking Dog in Bethesda. It isn't a bad place. But it isn't great either. The dance floor is nice. The drinks are fairly cheap. The music is good. The crowd is the biggest problem. Normally, I'll see a few people I know there and that's always fun. But on the downside, you get some of the "we're better than you" attitudes up in there. They tend to all dance the same for some reason - footwork, styling, etc. I can never figure out why they all want to look the same on the dancefloor but maybe its inevitable since they tend to take classes from the same person.

Decisions decisions. Should I go or not?

Hector Lavoe Video

Catch this video of the great Hector Lavoe who is considered one of the best salseros of all time. It has been a long time since I have seen even a brief clip of him so this is special. It is a little jumpy but considering it is from 1977...awesome!!

The Queen - Celia Cruz - with the Fania All Stars

Another Hector Video

And more yet...

Reporting from Washington D.C.

Since I had to retire my last blog, I decided to start a new one with a new topic. 90% of the time, this blog will be focused on salsa with probably 80% of that being focused on timba, rueda, casino, etc. Every once in awhile, you may get something personal on here. I am only human.

Some background...
I left my ex-husband. It was a glorious and incredibly dark time in my life. I had only two people in my life for support and even one of them were not all that supportive. My family was non-existent at this time. So for the most part, I was alone. One day, I went to the movies and saw Dance With Me staring Vanessa L. Williams and Chayanne (yum). I saw the dancing in that movie and was hooked. Of course, not by the ballroom dancing...just the salsa montages. I had no idea at that time the dancing in the club during one scene was Rueda. Finally, I got myself to some classes and loved it. Somehow I got involved with rueda lessons (I know how but its too long of a story for here) and the rest is history. I've taken time off to have a couple of babies and have just started back dancing again and love it. And to top it off, I can say that this is the first time where I've felt like I have actual friendships through salsa dancing. That's a big first for me since friendships and I don't generally go together.

First Post

First post so far...