We started out with the waltz. A couple of weeks on the waltz (I will always think of "Edelweiss" when waltzing as a result, and every time I hear that tune, I'm going to be thinking of that beautiful woman in my arms). I pretend to have it mastered. Shan dances so well she could fit in to a Disney princess movie.
Next up, they tried to teach the cha-cha. I say tried, because that's what it was. Please allow me paint a picture for you. They teach you the "thirds" position, where one foot is slightly in front of the other, always on the ball of your foot (never the heel), and when you step, the foot that your weight is on is also the hip that is higher than the other.... wait... what? Yup, that's what they taught me. It flies in the face of all I've ever been taught about weight distribution, movement, and "flowing". We tried for a few weeks. We did the usual "scientific experimentation" to try and determine the best way to cha-cha. We finally arrived at our conclusion - Shan is amazing at the cha-cha, but my hips just don't move that way. We're going to go to a dance every once in a while to see if something finally clicks in my head, but in the mean time, I can't really cha-cha very well.
Next up - we learned the swing. Luckily, I'd had some lessons on swing dancing before, but not the basics like they taught in this class. It was a good thing to get the basic frame down for swing dancing, then the rest of it finally made sense. It was like the heavens opened, inspiration flowed, and understanding prevailed, but without the heavens opening or inspiration flowing. It was fabulous! Once again, Shan rocked this one.
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| I love her smile! |
Then, they taught us a fox trot. With the length of the class, we really only had a single lesson on the fox trot. The good thing is that after the other classes with the other styles, it actually came fairly naturally. But, alas, Shan already had some fox trot lessons in the past, and it was really a learning experience for me. That foxy lady trotted the floor like a pro!
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| Look Closely - She's giving me pointers! |
Overall, here's what we learned... Shan has some serious skills, while I have some serious struggles. But, given enough time and dancing, and my skill level will finally lift into the "doable" range. We've already got it figured out to where we can go (and when) for some weekend nights out, and we will do so - that's a given. I'd dance any night away with the love of my life!
