Day 38 of practice.
Mostly, I get inspired by other dancers, music, props, and costuming. But today I am inspired by a runner! This article explains how Belgian runner Stefaan Engels just completed his goal to run a marathon a day for a year. Compared to 26 miles of running, 30 minutes of dance seems ridiculously easy.
So today, some actual practice! I started off with dancing while cooking oatmeal -- I think this will be a new tradition, until the weather really warms up, at which point I'll switch to dancing while making smoothies. This morning-time practice seems to be really improving my shimmies and it allows me to playfully explore music without thinking so much about specific moves or performing, just having fun.
Just now, I finished doing some more serious dancing. I warmed up with shimmies and arm movements as usual, then did one song each of Anaya Tribal fast and slow moves, to start refreshing my memory before I go back to class on Thursday. My slow vocabulary is frustrating me... I can only remember a few moves reliably. I should spend more time with my DVDs, and ask Cari to spend more time going over slow in class.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Breakfast practice
Day 37 of practice.
Definitely under the half-hour mark today, but I did practice during breakfast. Right now I'm so tired I almost forgot to blog. Dancing is out of the question. Sleep is the only option. Real, honest-to-goodness practice tomorrow, and lots of it to make up for all the lackluster practice this week.
Definitely under the half-hour mark today, but I did practice during breakfast. Right now I'm so tired I almost forgot to blog. Dancing is out of the question. Sleep is the only option. Real, honest-to-goodness practice tomorrow, and lots of it to make up for all the lackluster practice this week.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Practice where I can get it
Day 36 of practice.
What a day it was! To think I thought yesterday allowed little time for practice. Today started on the wrong foot when I slept through the alarm! That's never happened to me before. In fact, I'm the sort of person who usually wakes up a few minutes before the alarm goes off, as if I'm equipped with some sort of magical internal alarm. But not this morning! I guess my body was too tired from all the partying last night. I overslept by an entire hour, which left me with no time for breakfast and definitely no time for dancing.
I did get a silly moment of practice during work, when I balanced a cone of thread on my head and did isolations while waiting for a price check on aforementioned thread. It was a lot easier to balance than a sword, but I don't think it would wow an audience. A couple of my classmates from Tempe did come down for the shows and visited me at work, but it was too busy in the booth for any improv tribal!
After putting in my eight hours at work, I went to an awesome dinner at one of Tucson's best restaurants (courtesy of my awesome boss!). Then I had to go straight to a party and make a slightly-more-than-token appearance. Both events were great, but I didn't get home until nafter 11pm, and I was stuffed and tired. So tonight's practice consists of isolations in the shower, and chair dancing to Beats Antique while updating this blog. I can't wait to get back to real dancing!
What a day it was! To think I thought yesterday allowed little time for practice. Today started on the wrong foot when I slept through the alarm! That's never happened to me before. In fact, I'm the sort of person who usually wakes up a few minutes before the alarm goes off, as if I'm equipped with some sort of magical internal alarm. But not this morning! I guess my body was too tired from all the partying last night. I overslept by an entire hour, which left me with no time for breakfast and definitely no time for dancing.
I did get a silly moment of practice during work, when I balanced a cone of thread on my head and did isolations while waiting for a price check on aforementioned thread. It was a lot easier to balance than a sword, but I don't think it would wow an audience. A couple of my classmates from Tempe did come down for the shows and visited me at work, but it was too busy in the booth for any improv tribal!
After putting in my eight hours at work, I went to an awesome dinner at one of Tucson's best restaurants (courtesy of my awesome boss!). Then I had to go straight to a party and make a slightly-more-than-token appearance. Both events were great, but I didn't get home until nafter 11pm, and I was stuffed and tired. So tonight's practice consists of isolations in the shower, and chair dancing to Beats Antique while updating this blog. I can't wait to get back to real dancing!
Friday, February 4, 2011
I cheated
Day 35 of practice.
When I started this goal, I said dancing at parties did not count for my practice... but today I am counting it. I just got back from the Swarovski party, where I danced a lot, and I am too tired to do 20 minutes of real practice to round out the 10 minutes I did while cooking breakfast this morning. In fact, I'm so tired that I'm just going to go crawl into bed right now.
When I started this goal, I said dancing at parties did not count for my practice... but today I am counting it. I just got back from the Swarovski party, where I danced a lot, and I am too tired to do 20 minutes of real practice to round out the 10 minutes I did while cooking breakfast this morning. In fact, I'm so tired that I'm just going to go crawl into bed right now.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
No class for me, boohoo!
Day 34 of practice.
Due to working the gem show, there's no way I could have made the drive to class and back tonight. I'd just be too tired! Plus the temperatures were in the 30s or lower all day today (28 degrees on the way to work this morning! This is unheard-of in Tucson). These temperatures froze up pretty much all the water in the city, rendering me unable to cook oatmeal this morning, so there was no dancing while preparing breakfast. AND I was supposed to dance at work today, for the entertainment of my co-workers, but we had a constant stream of customers in our booth. Great for business, lame for dancing! (It was tempting to dance FOR the customers, in hopes that they would tip me in beads, but that's a little too attention-grabby for me)
So it's another day of drilling belly-rolls (including in a blissfully hot shower once our water was back). Hopefully tomorrow morning will be less chaotic!
Due to working the gem show, there's no way I could have made the drive to class and back tonight. I'd just be too tired! Plus the temperatures were in the 30s or lower all day today (28 degrees on the way to work this morning! This is unheard-of in Tucson). These temperatures froze up pretty much all the water in the city, rendering me unable to cook oatmeal this morning, so there was no dancing while preparing breakfast. AND I was supposed to dance at work today, for the entertainment of my co-workers, but we had a constant stream of customers in our booth. Great for business, lame for dancing! (It was tempting to dance FOR the customers, in hopes that they would tip me in beads, but that's a little too attention-grabby for me)
So it's another day of drilling belly-rolls (including in a blissfully hot shower once our water was back). Hopefully tomorrow morning will be less chaotic!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Shivering does not count as shimmying
Day 33 of practice.
Brrrr! Sudden cold snap here in Tucson! I could barely dance my way through cooking breakfast, my muscles were too cold. It's below freezing outside and none too cozy inside my house tonight. My furnace has been incredibly unreliable this season.
Anyway, practice was split up between breakfast, work, and after dinner. Mostly belly rolls and mayas and shimmies and floreos. I'm sad that working the gem show kept me from class, but I heard it was cold in the studio, too, so I wouldn't have been very happy there. Sure hope the weather gets better soon!
Brrrr! Sudden cold snap here in Tucson! I could barely dance my way through cooking breakfast, my muscles were too cold. It's below freezing outside and none too cozy inside my house tonight. My furnace has been incredibly unreliable this season.
Anyway, practice was split up between breakfast, work, and after dinner. Mostly belly rolls and mayas and shimmies and floreos. I'm sad that working the gem show kept me from class, but I heard it was cold in the studio, too, so I wouldn't have been very happy there. Sure hope the weather gets better soon!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Practice-ish
Day 32 of practice.
Today was the first day of my gem show job, the day of setting up the booth -- which took about 6 hours. My practice consisted of dancing around the house while I cooked breakfast and got ready for work, which was hampered a bit by the fact that my husband and his co-worker were working from our dining room table, so I didn't feel like I could dance too much. I also did some belly rolls and mayas during brief breaks throughout the day. I'm not sure if my practice really totaled half an hour, but I'm calling it close enough!
Putting on my dance music in the morning really helped! I am not a morning person by nature, and I had a hard time falling asleep last night (busy thinking about the gem show!). The energy of the music really got me moving, especially paired with the knowledge that I wouldn't have much time for practice later in the day.
Today was the first day of my gem show job, the day of setting up the booth -- which took about 6 hours. My practice consisted of dancing around the house while I cooked breakfast and got ready for work, which was hampered a bit by the fact that my husband and his co-worker were working from our dining room table, so I didn't feel like I could dance too much. I also did some belly rolls and mayas during brief breaks throughout the day. I'm not sure if my practice really totaled half an hour, but I'm calling it close enough!
Putting on my dance music in the morning really helped! I am not a morning person by nature, and I had a hard time falling asleep last night (busy thinking about the gem show!). The energy of the music really got me moving, especially paired with the knowledge that I wouldn't have much time for practice later in the day.
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