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Dancing is a wonderful training for girls, it's the first way you learn to guess what a man is going to do before he does it. |
Thursday, November 13, 1997
Last night I started up with dance lessons again at the Century Ballroom. This took some doing, because the Swing Girls seem to be a little relaxed about such things as deciding on a schedule of what lessons are when, and none too prompt about mailing out the flyers. I finally found out on Monday that the beginning swing lessons are at 6:30, intermediate swing at 7:30, and beginning lindy hop at 8:30. I was able to recruit a few Microsoft people to join me, including a cow-orker from a project I worked on in 1993!
Because it was the first night of the session, it seemed like a good idea to invite my nephew J--- (he's six years old) to come and watch, and participate as much as he cared to or was practical. I picked him up at his house and drove back to my neighborhood, where we walked down the hill to the Century. We ate dinner at the cafe there, a fresh mozzarella sandwich and a bowl of minestrone between us.
J--- loved the large space, and was running around and dancing while we were waiting. I'm retaking beginning swing to practice and get more style, but for this first class I just danced with him when we were dancing with partners. I've never seen such concentration! He really worked hard and took it seriously. My sister came and picked him up when the first class was over.
Then I stayed for intermediate swing, along with my friend Jon Newman. New steps, more practice. The third hour was the most exhausting: beginning lindy hop. Swivel, Swivel, pivot and step, step, cross, step and step. One basic! But this is the dance people are doing when you see them jitterbugging in the movies. Fun!
There was a live band (well, I'd call it a combo.) after class. I was asked to dance by a ballroom dance guy who really likes to swoop around the floor, leading the woman through a series of fast, unfamiliar steps. A challenge! My next partner (who I had trouble following) was more of a lindy dancer, less of a swing dancer; a little guy with a ponytail and beards. I also saw B--, the guy who wore a tank top when I danced with him in September. He's been taking swing classes in the University District, and has improved greatly. After we danced once and I missed a few leads, I insisted we try one more because I wanted to learn to read his signals! I know it's partly my inexperience, but not entirely: I can follow classmates and other leaders very well.
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The funniest thing happened today at our return site visit to the basket sales rep. She said she loved the history feature in the browser, because it enabled her to find out that her thirteen-year-old son had been surfing to some web sites that he was definitely not allowed to go to! He was mystified as to how she knew, and she didn't reveal the source. She just let him think that she had psychic powers! The other woman and I were laughing out loud at this story.
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