Week 15. I have taken to writing things down on small scraps of paper so I can remember what happened in any one class. This has not helped, as the words are about as legible as a doctor's script. Perhaps I should invest in a small dictaphone.
From what I can make out on this weeks napkin - Guedo took this week's class. We seemed to concentrate a great deal on Bossa nova and did not have a lot of time for my favourites Merengue and Salsa. We are learning how to travel back and forth in Bossa Nova and also adding 180 degree turns. When we first started dancing Bossa Nova it seemed boring as we only ever went side to side in the same spot. Then we learnt to turn on the spot and now we have learnt to walk forwards and backwards. The step is much more like waltzing now and we are able to cover the entire room. The next step in the learning process is how to avoid other dancers.
Avoiding others is extremely difficult, as the studio is not that big when 10 couples start to meander around the floor. There are some strange forces at work - dancers seem to be drawn towards others in same floor area - as if there was something interesting happening in a particular corner of the room. One explanation might be that when there is a small pile up other dancers slow down and move over to see what has happened - like driving on the freeway. We all start bumping into each other and this throws off the steps - so we stop to regain the beat. The whole scene reminds me of the dodgem cars at the ekka show
If you think driving in heavy traffic is difficult you should try dancing in traffic. Like driving in Victoria, nobody indicates, people change lanes constantly and reverse without looking. At his stage I am concentrating soo hard on avoiding accidents I have forgotten about stepping, keeping in time with the music and holding the correct dance frame. I can tell this by the confused look in my partner's face as I try to
Dois Pra La when I should Dois Pra Ca in an attempt to avoid another collision. I am running low on ideas and then suddenly out of nowhere a voice comes to me ... "use the force Steve". I take a deep breath, close my eyes, feel the music and begin to move around the floor.Amazingly it worked .... for about 20 seconds. On reflection I think this was due not to the "force" but more of a self-preservation action adopted by the other dancers, not too unlike cars avoiding a runaway vehicle.
Steve.