Tuesday, September 23, 2008

*POPS COLLAR*

I get geeked at the most random things. Well this is not that random, but still. Anyway, i was doing my usual post luncherie surfing to combat the desire to sleep, and i decide to youtube some salsa. Well i came across this couple making it do what it do, and i was watching them, mouth agape, when i realized: hey...i'm just as good, if not better than they are! I've come a long way from my first lesson, where my lack of rhythm betrayed my skin color and my two left feet confused all who thought i was anatomically correct.

So this couple is just amateurs, dancing for fun, but boy do they look good. (check for the ill spin at :17 i can do that too! :D lol)




and someday i hope to be able to do this:



I've typed this before and i'll type it again: i love love salsa. Its one of the few non-bookish things i've attempted that i actually am good at. And this is despite my innate clumsiness. Who would have thunk that this nerd had dance skillz? Then there's the added bonus that its an activity in which big hips and small stature are a virtue. The rhythm, the movement, the call and response...everything about it is just such fun.

One of the best things about salsa is that its a dance for two people. Now i love a two step as much as anyone, but there is something to be said for a partnership. Salsa(and any other "formal" dance i suppose) require active participation of both parties. While the guy can look cool doing what he does, its pretty much his responsibility to make the woman look good. No leaning back, arms folded while homegirl grinds her booty into his crotch. Nope. His is the job of keeping us on beat, making it look effortless and ever so elegant.(and sexaaay.)

One of my favorite parts is the multiple spins. OMG. Once my friend and I were dancing and he had me doing spin upon spin upon spin upon spin. It was wonderful. Throughout the spins i was laughing so hard because he wouldn't let me stop!(not that i wanted to lol)

I have a lot to work on, namely my upper body styling(arms esp) which at times can go dead when doing complicated patterns. Not cute. All in time though. My lessons have given me confidence - not only in dance, but in other parts of life that have absolutely nothing to do with dance. Go figure. Anyway, now that its cooler i can get my dance on without my hair going completely to the dogs by the end of the night. Not that the poufy hair well discourage me from dancing(ok maybe on some occasions),but its pretty fab that i'll be coming out looking almost as good as i came in.

Any fellow salseros? Lets talk shop.

Also, all this dance talk has made me hungry. Not that it takes much to make me hungry. But, i digress. I think tomorrow i'll make some arroz con gandules. Calories? Who cares. Calories can kiss my grits.

Clave!

Eddie Palmieri - Melao Para el Sapo

and

Mongo Santamaria w/Carl Tjader - Cuban Fantasy

6 comments:

rashad

Back in 2000, I took salsa lessons for a good 3 months. happy hour was from 6-7, and dancing was from 7-9. so i was lit and dancing...good times!

£

well! you officially rock my friend. Do you still go salsa-ing on occasion? I'm alway impressed with men who don't balk at the idea of dancing.

rashad

sadly, i haven't salsa-ed in 7 years...i've lost my mojo

sparkle

i'm waaaaaaaaaay amateur on this. the time i should have been practicing w/ the dudes @ my college was instead spent hating the whole experience. i did, however, cut a bit of an ill rug @ my bday party last year. we went to bembe in hipsterlandia (aka williamsburg, bklyn) and had a blast.

i heart around the way salseros way more than the "pros," but that's just me...

asabi

i took lessons for 2 months last year, life got in the way so i stopped but this post along with watching El Cantante this weekend has hyped me up to start back again. I forgot how much i loved it..thanks lex

£

@ sparkle i'm girl u know it. i am such an amateur! I think im decent until i get around folks who have been doing it since birth and then i realize how far i have to go. but look @ you cutting a rug, girl you're probably the bomb and just being modest. i c u!

@ asabi i've been wanting to see el cantante for the longest. Was it good? And no prob on the reminder :) Its great that so many people love to dance. I find that its a fantastic stress buster.

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