Salsa - week three

Salsa class got a little more challenging this week. We learned some "cross body something-or-other" step that was kind of hard to get right, and we all spent most of the class screwing it up. It even humbled Hunkster. Not Rico, though. When I had to dance with Rico this week (and believe me - I tried to think of a way to somehow skip him), as soon as we took up our starting position, he proceeded to tell me what was wrong with my form. Thanks, Rico - because it is *you* that I strive to please. The instructor seemed to be perfectly satisfied with my form, so Rico can bite me.

This week, incidentally, he had on some kind of hand-painted-looking tropical shirt. Again it was long-sleeved, but at least the material appeared to be thin. I think it had swirls and maybe a bird or something. I don't really know. I tried not to look too carefully lest he mistake my curiosity for actual interest.

After class we went to a club to test out our skills. It was...humbling. This is where we went. The Web site claims Light Bar is a "must visit." I say it's a "visit if you've already visited all the places where there are people." It actually does have an interesting decor, but I have yet to be in there that it isn't just dead.

The exception was the part we were in last night, however. There's a rooftop area where the salsa band was set up, and that's where we went. There are a few problems with this area. One is that it was hot. I admit, I chose my outfit poorly. I wore jeans, and that's just stupid in Austin in July. I was hot. Also my shoes were too narrow and about a half-inch too high, so that became a problem. But my outfit notwithstanding, I'm not sure that an outside venue is what you're looking for to go dancing in Texas in the summer. That said, the place was packed. When we first got there, it wasn't bad, but it got wall-to-wall in short order. This was partly due to the fact that the rooftop area is small - like half the size of the club downstairs. But it was also due to the fact that there are apparently just a lot of people who salsa dance in this town.

Many of those people are very good. It was fun to watch them. It was embarrassing to dance next to them. Luckily a lot of people from our class showed, so we could dance with each other and be cheerleaders for one another. "You're doing great! You got it!" You need that when "So You Think You Can Dance?" is going on right next to you. It was fun to see all my classmates doing so well, though. And best of all, Rico wasn't there! There is no accounting for this, since I would think this is the moment he lives for - the chance to bust out his moves in public. But he wasn't there and no one was complaining. The Hunkster and his girlfriend came, but they stayed to themselves and only danced with each other. She was dressed to the nines in tight clothes, flowing hair and fuck-me pumps (those with sensitive ears, forgive me, but that's what they were). She actually wore that to class, which was an interesting choice. Like the guys weren't having enough trouble picking up the new step, and then they had to dance with the Playmate of the Year.

I tried to take some pictures to post, but I couldn't get any worth posting. It was too small a space and too crowded and you just couldn't get any nice action shots. So, I gave up. If you really must have a picture, here is one of me with my niece and nephew from Easter:



Last weekend I finally went through all the pictures that have been piling up in my office, and I found that one. Are those the cutest kids or what? Just for the record, my nephew is 6 years old, but he's almost as tall as I am when we're sitting. He did not get my midget gene, though it's hard to say if the issue here is his height or my lack of it. This goes back to what I said about martial arts the other day - I am not a big person. Incidentally, my niece also avoided the mini-person gene, though you can't tell in this picture. She's going to be tall and gorgeous. Strangely, I never feel particularly small. It only comes home to me when I see myself in pictures with other people. Luckily, for the moment, I'm still taller than my brother's kids, so I get to look a grown-up in this one!

My hair is a couple of inches longer now than in this picture, but those of you who have known me forever can attest that other than my hair, I pretty much never change. So, just add a couple of inches to my hair, flip up the ends, and there I am today - except not wearing that dress. Or imagine my hair up, and I'm wearing jeans and a sleeveless shirt, sweating and massaging my feet, and that's me last night. I promise to post more pictures of myself, too - not just ones to embarrass my friends. Of course, it's my blog, so I get to avoid posting any ugly ones of me. Author's perogative, you know.

Well, everyone have a great weekend! My brother is bringing his fam up this weekend and we're going tubing. Woo-hoo! So, I'll be on the river and not on Blogger. If you miss me, just gaze at the picture above. Or call me. Don't be afraid to just...phone moi. Call me and I'll be aroooound.