Musings on Dance, Food, Geek Stuff
During the 1980s in London and other Northern UK cities and towns, an underground movement of dancers and DJs were creating a wild, frenzied, and electrifying style of dance called “Old School Jazz Dance,” or simply “Jazz Dance.” A blend of vernacular jazz, tap, ballet, West Indies and African dance traditions, these UK jazz dancers…
So it was bound to happen: last night I got into my first real motorscooter accident. It was about 7:15pm on a Saturday night. I was feeling fantastic after a day of lindy hop dance workshops and prelims for a dance contest. I was five minutes from home when I was cut off by a…
After the bacchanal of my 50th birthday celebrations, I decided to go off my low-carb, no-sugar diet for a month to see what would happen. I’ve been operating under the theory that my food choices have been keeping me slim and healthy, but haven’t really tested it for awhile. So — for science — I’ve…
I’m a bit late to the party, but I finally got around to reading this incredible tirade on Facebook by a mother against childless couples at the Disneyworld theme park. In case you missed, here it is, in all of its unhinged, insane glory. I have so many feelings about this, as someone who loves…
I’m very passionate about croissants. I spend weekends scouring the city for the best French pastries, looking for that crispy exterior, beautiful “laminated” layers of dough, and buttery goodness of a perfect croissant. I went to Paris last Spring to eat my weight in croissants. So I was surprised to hear from my fellow pastry-nerd…
True Confession: I’m terrible at making time to meditate. As a college student, I was probably my most diligent at meditation, or prayer as I called it then as a born again Christian. I had a regular morning practice I followed, a list of people and concerns I prayed for, sacred texts that I read,…
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…
My colleague Janelle sent this amazing clip from the movie “Clueless” (1995) that is weirdly apropos to both my birthday and Independence Day tomorrow. And in conclusion, may I please remind you that it does not say “RSVP” on the Statue of Liberty. Well said, Cher. Well said.
I made this cover photo for Facebook, some of my favorite pics of me from the past. In order: Yosemite, 1978 Disneyland with Cori and Mom, 1982 School photo, 1987 Lindy hopping with my friend Nina, 2001 Lindy Focus 2015 (by Jess Keener)