BEING THERE

Thursday, May 7, 1998

Sam, You Made the Pants Too Long!
Because I've increased my activity level by dancing up a storm lately, I'm a bit smaller than I was. This has had the effect of making the jeans I bought last fall both too big and too long, although they are supposed to be proportioned for petite women. I'm walking around tugging them up, and must get a belt if I want to get more use out them. I think I'll donate them instead, and get some new ones!

My size change has been a side effect of pursuing dancing, not a result of conscious dieting.

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Mr. Blunt Jackson pointed to his list of journals that he reads in his entry, "Selfish Bastard." I figured out his little challenge about finding the navigation path from the entry to the list page, but I don't know if I was the first one to do so.

I thought this was an interesting description of me: "Anita is rare in that she is not trying to be anything in her journal." This makes me sound like a zen sensei, or maybe Yoda. "Be or be not. There is no try." Or am I more like Chance the Gardener?

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Dance last night was good. I danced with a man who was in his sixties or seventies. He said he knew how to lindy, "the real way." His mother taught him to dance! But what he danced didn't really resemble the lindy that I know; it was more like swing, but with no pattern that was recognizable to me. I followed as best I could. Most of my favorite partners were there, plus some new faces.

Tonight was the last class in my current series with Cat Daddy Chris and Hep Jen. They wisely spent a good portion of the class reviewing all the things we've learned in the past six weeks. We have covered a lot of material, and it's all danceable and leadable, which pleases me. The dance afterwards was fun! (I know, I know, when isn't it?) My friend Jon Newman was able to stick around, which hasn't been possible most weeks this session. The early start time of class -- so he must drive through bad traffic -- and an increased workload and religious holidays, mean that he hasn't been able to get as much benefit from this session as from previous ones. And now, with the film festival starting and family visiting all summer, he won't be in class again until August, if then. I hope he keeps it up!

My dance buddy HyperDan has been doing quite a bit of work on his new Lindyhype web site. This will be different from existing Seattle lindy sites, because it will feature Dan's and other folks' opinions.