Lots to think about and practice :)

What a whirlwind of a weekend, it is still a bit of a blur but now I can actually "think" about what we did.

I cannot express adequately the amount of relaxation and fun I had while being down in Hood River country with Co-co (Colette) and Momma C (Carolena) for the Advanced and Floorwork Workshops.

Even though it was a 4 hour drive, going along with my bud in the car made it seem to speed by, even on the way back after the long day of dancing and pushing the perverbial physical envelope. Fran and I always seem to make it a nice road trip no matter where we head. :)

I had my eyes opened to a fews things...those details that sometimes slip through the crack when you are trying to absorb it all....things that made me go "oh that is how it is done." Instead of the fake it until you make it look kinda right movement. :) Now, I gots the skinny on some things. :)

Shapes, constant movement, presentation, presence, in the moment, skill levels, smiles, eye communication, body communication, personal body challenges, beauty of the dance - just a skimming of what this dance is about and how it is to look and function.

The variety of skills levels in these workshops provided all of us with new and exciting challenges:::...
For those times that the more seasoned dancers got the brief chance to dance together coming from a chorus that ebbed and flowed - it provided that glimpse of what we are aiming for in the dance. When this ebb and flow allowed it to get mixed up in skill levels it provided yet another wonderful challenge in pushing seasoned dancers to be clear in their intentions and newer dancers to learn with clarity coming from the other dancer. Finally, when the flow put all newer dancers together, they got the chance to explore themselves and growth of each other in this process. It was wonderful to go through this experience, seeing the Advanced Workshop staying at the advanced level, and the learning and growth from all of us in such a wide span of ways.

It made my heart smile inside and needless to say my face showed it too. :) YAY!

The floorwork class was as expected since I had taken it at the Cues & Tattoos 2010 event just a few weeks prior, but I knew that I wanted to do it again because you can never have too much information. You just never know that some morsel or tidbit might emerge that didn't before that would become useful to myself. So, I will take classes many times even though I "know" how to do it...you can never have too much information. :)

So, the class met and exceeded my expectations this time. Because....
I for the second time ever allowed myself to try a drop. The first time was back in Seattle several years back and quite a few pounds heavier. It was a disaster in my head and I just resigned myself to the fact, drops were not for me. But for some reason this time, I thought ok, why not try. The first attempt caused my muscles to release and I literally dropped to the ground (yes, had spotters), but I tried again and wow, it was far different than I thought it would be and it was a successful drop. Not pretty, but I made it down properly. Hmmmmmm, now the possibilities are opening up again. But we will see...after all I am getting older and I haven't been doing this all along, but *wink* you never know cause I am pretty young at heart after all. :)

So, the trip was quite the adventure and success story, I am so glad to have gone.