Musings on Dance, Food, Geek Stuff
As a lindy hopper and a jazz enthusiast living in San Francisco, I am embarrassed about how little I know about the historic Fillmore District. In the 1940s and 1950s this area was known as the “Harlem of the West” because of the large number of Black-owned businesses, particularly supper clubs, dance halls, and after-hours…
Here’s my three of my current favorite waackers, doing a showcase together: Lip J, Wizzard and Yoon Ji! I love this showcase for showing off the diversity in their styles: Lip J brings the sexiness and grace, Wizzard with the showmanship and comedy, and Yoon Ji with the passion and energy. I love how broad…
I wrote this for a new course I’m designing. I kind of want to shoot this for real now. Rising Stars SCENE 1: Evening, interior, a casual cafe Two middle aged women are sharing a meal together. KATY: It’s so good to see you, Jo, it’s been too long! JO: I know, I’m sorry. We’ve…
As a birthday present to myself, I hired my good friend Auey of Photograffiti to shoot me in one of my favorite spots: the Music Concourse of Golden Gate Park. I’ve been dancing and hanging out in this section of the park for many years. So it seemed appropriate to do a photo shoot there….
I had four occasions to dance in public this weekend. I’m proud of myself that in all of those situations, I effing DANCED. I remember what it was like to hear awesome music and feel the urge to dance, but stop myself for so many dumb reasons — The fear of looking dumb, of being…
Last December, it hit me out of the blue what I wanted to do for my 50th birthday. I was having dinner with my mother in a Filipino restaurant. In an adjoining dining room, we could hear some kind of party taking place. There was music, cake, food, dancing — the works. I thought to…
Next weekend, I’m honored to participate in this freestyle focused-dance show “Diggs Deeper” on Sunday July 7. You all should come and support all the artists, dance with us, and learn about the urban dance culture. It’s always an inspiring event! Plus it’s my birthday weekend! This is the third time I’ve performed at Diggs…
I was hanging out by a public pool the other day and was watching the little kids playing and interacting with each other. There was one young boy, maybe 5 or 6 years old, who seemed to be by himself. The other kids had siblings or friends that they were with. The boy REALLY wanted…
Dance jams are not a big part of San Francisco dance culture. Which is kind of a shame, since they generate so much excitement about the dance. A jam broke out last Thursday at 9:20 Special to the classic Count Basie smoker “Jumping at the Woodside.” It was fun to get in a little bit…
Today would have been the 105th birthday of Frankie Manning, the ambassador of lindy hop. As I think about my 20+ years as a lindy hopper, I’m reflecting on all the things that this dance has brought into my life: a way to connect to jazz music I’ve always longed for, a bottomless well of…