A dancin' fool (Week 49)
"Dancing is a vertical interpretation of a horizontal intention."
Fred Astaire, you saucy chappie! Those are some truly inspirational words from the greatest ballroom dancer the world has ever known. But could it mean there's even hope for me, a hopelessly uncoordinated and ungraceful ox? Before I could answer that, Val and I would have to spend the week introducing ourselves to some basic steps courtesy of the Victoria Ballroom Dance Society.
Friends of ours joked that we would probably be the youngest people in the introductory class, and that the few people who showed up would be little old ladies. Wrong! We were blown away to see an entire range of ages, and a 50/50 split in gender. What's more, the place was packed with at least 40 people all wanting to learn more about moving their bodies to music. So we started off on comfortable enough footing.
Our instructor, Elizabeth, was a real delight. In our first hour-long session, she took us through three latin dances: cha cha, rumba and tango. Elizabeth kept it quick and light, and didn't make me feel the least bit foolish for my bumbles and stumbles. I think I only crushed Val's feet twice. And that was only in the cha cha. By the time the tango rolled around, we were starting to look like a real life dancing couple.
The tango is really the most fun. Besides being kind of hammy and dramatic in that oh-so-serious South American way, it's also surprisingly easy for a beginner. It might also help that Val was born in Argentina. From now on, I think we will always jump to our feet when we hear a tango fire up.
A hundred years ago, in small communities everywhere and in the darkness of winter, dance really was the social glue that kept people together. It's where hearts first fluttered and where we felt the first touch of hands. I think people still long for that simple and joyous connection.
The benefits of dancing have been well documented. I hope the promise of "greater flexibility" will apply to me eventually, but I'll have to put some serious hours in before that happens. There are other physical plusses, too, like improved muscle strength and endurance, and of course weight loss.
Maybe our brightly lit gym wasn't the smoke-filled Casbah of the silver screen, and maybe I wasn't kitted out in top hat and tails, but there's an undeniable romance in the air any time latin music comes on and couples take to the floor.
Now to satisfy your inevitable horizontal curiosity. Fred Astaire was absolutely correct. Ballroom dancing really did make me sleep like a baby.
NEXT WEEK: Living the 100 Mile Diet!
Fred Astaire, you saucy chappie! Those are some truly inspirational words from the greatest ballroom dancer the world has ever known. But could it mean there's even hope for me, a hopelessly uncoordinated and ungraceful ox? Before I could answer that, Val and I would have to spend the week introducing ourselves to some basic steps courtesy of the Victoria Ballroom Dance Society.
Friends of ours joked that we would probably be the youngest people in the introductory class, and that the few people who showed up would be little old ladies. Wrong! We were blown away to see an entire range of ages, and a 50/50 split in gender. What's more, the place was packed with at least 40 people all wanting to learn more about moving their bodies to music. So we started off on comfortable enough footing.
Our instructor, Elizabeth, was a real delight. In our first hour-long session, she took us through three latin dances: cha cha, rumba and tango. Elizabeth kept it quick and light, and didn't make me feel the least bit foolish for my bumbles and stumbles. I think I only crushed Val's feet twice. And that was only in the cha cha. By the time the tango rolled around, we were starting to look like a real life dancing couple.
The tango is really the most fun. Besides being kind of hammy and dramatic in that oh-so-serious South American way, it's also surprisingly easy for a beginner. It might also help that Val was born in Argentina. From now on, I think we will always jump to our feet when we hear a tango fire up.
The benefits of dancing have been well documented. I hope the promise of "greater flexibility" will apply to me eventually, but I'll have to put some serious hours in before that happens. There are other physical plusses, too, like improved muscle strength and endurance, and of course weight loss.
Maybe our brightly lit gym wasn't the smoke-filled Casbah of the silver screen, and maybe I wasn't kitted out in top hat and tails, but there's an undeniable romance in the air any time latin music comes on and couples take to the floor.
Now to satisfy your inevitable horizontal curiosity. Fred Astaire was absolutely correct. Ballroom dancing really did make me sleep like a baby.
NEXT WEEK: Living the 100 Mile Diet!
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