It’s early here as I type this, but yeah, but no but, I’m heading to Philadelphia for a Tango Brunch at Atrium Dance Studio. Something different

Over on your side of the pond, I think Woody Allen should make a movie about tango, his deeply insightful but strangely comic psychoanalytical style seems to fit it so well.

In our small dance group, four of us majored in psychology, and we have a brain scientist as well. I can’t help thinking “psychology is over-represented in tango”, which seems a strange but possibly true thing, and a very “Woody Allen” kind of phrase.

A side-note:
When you refer to stones, I think immediately about the F.Fighters skit on the show Little Britain. Pardon me if you don’t care for that show.

The first 3 episodes of Season 1 gave me great enjoyment! Not as much as Tango, of course

With the university here it’s a very international group. At least 13 nationalities have been in our group so far that I know of.
Most have at least two languages, usually some English or Spanish, so we get by OK.

Of course Tango is learned by doing – applying balance and impetus, and watching, not words anyway, so there is no language barrier at all really.

Music is an international language too, and tango has a history and culture (and even a language – lunfardo) that is equally “foreign” to almost everyone except maybe Argentines and Uraguyans, so it’s almost perfect for people from many different parts of the world to have a great time together socially.

The internationalism of the group I dance with is another one of the things I really like about it.

I know you’re not from the USA because you’ve kilos, instead of pounds, and you meet lovely people (which I imagine you saying with an accent).

I imagine you smiling as you wrote your comment. Your enthusiasm will take you VERY far, especially if you’re already rigging your work schedule to get to Tango class.

I hope to hear more from you on future posts.

Where are you from, anyway?

Five months ago I went looking for CEROC (someone once said to me its good have a social life Plan B and I decided it was time to put Plan B into action). When I got there I found an Argentine tango class had taken over the venue, so I joined it and am loving it! I have a great teacher who is dedicated to bringing tango to those that really want to do it. I was just lucky, right time, right place.

2.What appealed to you about the dance?

It’s like time travel to a far away long ago time and different culture, an exciting time with lovely people and fantastic dancing and music. Tango has such a depth in history, styles and music.

3.What positive benefits has the tango given you?

Socially I meet lovely intelligent people, I escape from the pressures of work life for a while, I’m getting fitter & losing weight – 10 kilos so far! – better balance, discovering and developing in myself in quite interesting ways, and I’m a lot happier in my own skin.

4.How much better are you today than your first tango dance or lesson?

Argentine tango is a long road, not instant gratification – I gotta “walk my kilometers” like anyone else – but I can now certainly dance an adequate basic social tango and feel comfortable about it, help the real beginners a bit, and am just getting to learn some nice turns. I’m not worried about learning fast, as long as I keep improving even if only gradually. I love it, its good for me in so many ways, I’m getting better and enjoying the journey. Bear in mind until 5 months ago I couldn’t dance ANY kind of partner dance at all and was too shy to ask any girl for a dance – now I’m finding out how to lead colgadas/volgadas and I get to dance with beautiful women.

5.How drastically has your schedule changed so you can get your tango fix?

Ha ha yes! I finish work a different time, rush about to get ready, do things on different days to fit in… yeah, gotta have my fix

It only gets better, I promise you! I’m working on a surprise for the subscribers of this blog that will help further your education. You’ll know when it’s out and you’ll love it!

See you in class!

I don’t think it was Argentine, but when I was probably 5ish there was a Pepe’ Le Pew cartoon where these two people were tango-ing at a french bistro and Pepe’ walks by cause he is chasing this black female cat the ended up with a white paint stripe on its back so he thinks she is a girl skunk and he is in love, anyway as he passes by the dancers they both fall over from the stench. I remember asking my dad what the lady and the man were doing, and he told me they were dancing tango. Obviously if I remember this from when I was 5, tango made a lasting impression.

2. What appealed to you about the dance?

I think I like the closeness and connectedness the best, two hearts beating and moving as one. Also I like how you have to be in the moment and feel the lead, you can’t anticipate what your partner is going to lead you to do, you have to feel it and react to it as it comes. Its sort of a loss of control but in a good way. In order to achieve that you must completely trust your partner not to steer you into a wall, or other dancers and I guess I’m just saying its nice to be able to trust someone that much. Also, as someone that spends a lot of time pondering over whatever thoughts race through my head, its nice to just be in the moment and not have to think about anything. Although its really hard to achieve that non-thinking part, I have done it a few times but it only seems to last a few seconds and then I think Yay! I’m actually not thinking and in the moment! and then all is lost because now I’ve gone and had a thought and it screws it all up.

3. What positive benefits has the tango given you?

I always feel rejuvenated after a tango lesson, it seems to be helping my balance.

4. How much better are you today than your first tango dance or lesson?

I feel I am a million times better than I was at my first tango lesson. Every lesson I take it feels better and better.

5. How drastically has your schedule changed so you can get your tango fix?

I try to make my work schedule so that I am off on Wednesdays so I can take tango, unfortunately the guy that has the final say on the schedule doesn’t always see my tango class as a priority.

What’s your second favorite dance? I go nuts for Salsa!