Street dancers (and hoofer) tearing it up to "That's It" by Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Nuff said. Credits Director, Editor and ChoreographerJo Roy DancersBliss UltraOmniMicah "Jamz" AbbreyDalphe MorantusJohn LubbersShelby Stehlin
Two Week Review of the FitBit Surge: An Impressive, Affordable Fitness Tracking Smartwatch
I've had the new Fitbit Surge smartwatch for two weeks now and I have to say I'm pretty happy with it so far! Is it going to win any design awards? Probably not. But does it get the job done as an exercise tracker / smart watch? Absolutely. For those that don't know, the Surge…
$10 a Night at the Waldorf: 1950 AAA New York Map and Hotel Price Sheet
My work was clearing out some old files, including some old maps. I found this 1950 AAA map of New York that is just wonderful. The best part is the listing of hotel prices for each city and town. The Waldorf Astoria costs a whopping $10-20 a night! The Hotel Times Square is a more…
Ksenia Parkhatskaya Dancing with Herself to “Big Chief” by Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Awesome dancing and choreography by Russian dancer Ksenia Parkhatskaya, amazing use of green screen tech, and a great Nola-funk by Dirty Dozen Brass Band. You can't have too many Ksenia's. Check out this earlier version of this choreography from 2012 done with multiple dancers (instead of multiple Ksenia's.)
Frankie Manning’s 101st Birthday and What He Taught Me
Today would have been the 101st birthday of Mr. Frankie Manning, the “ambassador of swing” and one the finest humans I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. I was fortunate enough to start swing dancing in the late 1990s in New York, right during the peak of the neo-swing resurgence and when Frankie Manning was…
How Important Is Target Heart Rate to Your Health?
136 to 150 beats per minute: according to Kaiser Permanente's target heart rate calculator, this is the sweet spot that I'm supposed to go for when I'm exercising. My latest run I averaged 131 bpm, according to my new FitBit Surge. So that's encouraging how close I am. But how important is being in your "target…
“V” Is for “Vermi-composting”: Visiting Eco-friendly Verde Island, Philippines
One of the awesome out-of-the-way spots that I got to visit in the Philippines in April was the small island of Isla Verde (Verde Island) in Batangas Province. I was there along with a team of educators and scientists to do an outreach to the local community about their local marine biodiversity and how to safeguard…
My New Fitbit Surge
Let's do this! Here's my new FitBit Surge smart watch. Pretty darn geeky, I gotta say. More soon, once I've had time to play with it.
XPress Your Swing Performance: More Lindy Hop + Street Dance Freshness
This video from the Xpress Your Swing festival in Montpellier, France has all the things that I love: slick lindy hop, funky street dancing, cool tricks, and clever choreo. And the energy of the whole thing is fantastic. Other dance styles in there include boogie woogie, West Coast Swing, breaking, popping, and whatever that they…
#IAmFrankieManning: Recreating a Photo of a Legendary Dancer
Here's my quick recreation of a photo of legendary lindy hopper, the late Frankie Manning. Check out the original image at this link. A modest contribution to a month-long celebration of Frankie's life, sponsored by the Frankie Manning Foundation. Many more photos can be found soon by checking out the hashtag #iamfrankiemanning this month! More…