DWTS Shocker - Sasha gone

I was really surprised by Monday night’s elimination of Sasha.  She is one of the best dancers and I thought she was popular with her show “Pretty Little Liars”.  It just goes to show how the voting can go as Nick Lachey has been in jeopardy the last 2 weeks but was safe this time.  Kind of a surprise that he wasn’t eliminated as he is really not very good (quite stiff) but then Drew Scott started out stiff but he is improving a lot quicker than Nick is.  It’s hard sometimes to see good dancers eliminated too early in the game.  And Frankie being in jeopardy?  Wow.  It’s an exciting season for sure.

I think Jordan Fisher is by far the best dancer but I also think the violinist Lindsey is very much in the running.  Victoria will likely make the finals.  I like Nikki, she is fierce and coming along very well.  There sure a lot in the “middle of the pack” and that’s what makes it so exciting.

Looking forward to seeing Shania Twain as a judge next week.  So far Season 25 is really terrific but mom and I are agreed, we don’t like all the sob stories on the Memorable Year episode, it’s getting old.

Dancing with the Stars

This season seems to be one of very equal talent so it’s very hard to wait for the weekly eliminations, wondering who is going to go off.  I find Drew Scott very endearing, Victoria Alden is an inspiration, Jordan Fisher is, I think, the one who will win. 

When Mom came to live with me some 5 or 6 years ago now she had never watched DWTS but now it is the highlight of her TV week.  It’s fun for us to talk at commercial break to analyze the dancing to date and of course, to always praise Maks’ and Val’s footwork.  I pointed out their style to Mom the first time she watched and she caught on right away.  So cute.

DWTS is the only “reality” show we watch as it is such a positive show.  There is rarely any nasty comments from the judges and the contestants all say that there is so much camaraderie behind the scenes that you know it is a very supportive environment.  With so much negativity in the world it’s nice to know there are good things also.

Looking forward to Disney Night tomorrow!

The Next Big Thing

The magic of a PVR helps to eliminate all that white noise we call commercials but even as I whiz past them all I wonder to myself “What am I missing?  Could there be something really big that I am missing out on?”  Seldom do I slow the machine down to catch a bit of the blurb because the truth is most of the time I feel so inundated with information that my mind feels as though it will explode.

Reading books, the newspaper, a magazine, listening to the radio, talking with colleagues and friends, there seems to be a lot of information to absorb on a regular basis.  Then there is the inside noise in your brain, your dreams, your meditation, your so-called mindless wanderings that also have to be collected, sorted and thrown away.  Raw information.  Somewhere in all of that, do you maybe think you could have the next big thing?

Frequently there are things on the tip of our tongue, hovering on the edge of our mind, just beyond the fog of the dream, that could perhaps, maybe, almost be that magic thing that could make you a millionaire.  Or not.  It could just be something that you think would be really cool but everyone else thinks a total dud.  The magical thing about our minds though, is that we have one and we need to slow down once in a while to appreciate what is going on in that head of ours because maybe, just maybe you are on to something big.

Isn’t that a cool thought?  Stop and think about what you are thinking about.  It’s kind of nice.

My little niece said that to my dad once, he laughed for days.

The A-Game

As one becomes familiar with their job they know exactly what to do each day when they get to work.  If they are good at what they do they become proficient in all aspects of their job and before many years have passed they assume a professional aspect to their career.  Yes, the job becomes more than a job, it becomes a career and one becomes professional at it.  When we are at the top of our career we bring our A-game to the workplace on a daily basis because that is what professionals do.

      Now here we are 40 years in to the career and pondering retirement which looms ahead in the very near future.  What do you see?  Before you look to deep into that retirement world I am asking you to draw back and look at the trees.  Look at the years, months, weeks, and days before that big scenario Retirement.  What are you going to do in that time space prior to dipping into the wonderful world of Retirement?  Are you pausing?  For most of our lives we have lived with phrases such as “when I grow up”, “when I finish college”, “when I buy a house”, “when the mortgage is paid”, “when the kids are out of the house” and “when I retire”.

      It comes as a bit of a shock that in all these years our life has, perhaps, been passing us by.  Once in a while we are actually in the moment, enjoying the present highlight whether we are at a movie, play, party or family milestone but most of the time we feel our lives are somewhat humdrum and ordinary.  Some of us are more adventurous in our lives and will take on new things constantly but such folk are rare indeed.  While we are taking care of our every day needs it is very difficult to always appreciate special moments, indeed frequently we don’t even notice them. 

      While contemplating my 60^th year and my future I had a lightbulb moment and told myself that from now on I would be bringing my A-game to the rest of my life, not just to my professional life.  It’s not a new concept but it is a new approach.  Already rich in happiness, gratitude and appreciation what more can be brought into the A-game of every day life?  Time.  Making time for the new and valuable aspects of life rather than continuing in the humdrum.  Learning and pursing new things daily has become the new goal.  Not looking at the future, but looking at the day.

       That’s the A-game.

Dancing with the Stars - the winners are . . .

Gosh but it was difficult to pick the best dancers of the three finalists but in the end I was happy that Melissa & Tony won.  This was a really fantastic season with so many terrific dances.  It was the best entertainment we’ve seen on television in a very long time.  I especially enjoyed the rest of this season’s celebrities returning to continue dancing.  Some cute moments with the young dancers made it different as well.

       Well done.

All Stars - Dancing with the Stars

This has been an interesting season with the returning stars and the level of dancing has certainly gone up for most of the competitors.  I love Kirstie Alley and find her incredibly entertaining but she is not the best dancer.  You can’t help admiring her simply for the work out she is doing to get to the level of dancing she is putting out there.  She has improved a lot and you simply have to give her credit for her age!  Last night’s spoof of the election was fabulous and Kirstie was the winner by far!

       Once again the stars were amazing in their charity work, raising funds, food and other supplies for the relief of Hurricane Sandy.  You simply have to give huge credit to the Americans for always, always stepping up to the plate when it comes to helping their fellow man.  I find it curious that they will go the extra mile in charity, but they won’t understand how social help would also help their fellow man.  That requires a different type of compassion perhaps.

       Today will see how America wants their country to move forward.  I can hardly wait for the results but most of all I can hardly wait for those commercials to be over. 

       Okay – I’m giving my wishful call – Obama for 4 more years.

Sanne and the Two-Step

This morning I am feeling muscles that I haven’t felt in years.  There’s an interesting muscle that runs up the side of your leg which is currently screeching “ouch” every time I take a step.  And who knew there were muscles at the waist line?  I’ve always had shoulder tension but now I have a nice little twitch in my neck and along my upper arms I notice a sort of rubber band zing.  All this because of a little dancing!

       Yes, we were learning country dancing yesterday as part of our Stampede Team building event.  We certainly looked the part in our lovely new western shirts, the ladies in black and the gents in white, so coordinated.  Until we got on the dance floor. 

       The dance instructors (world champions) had us lined up against each other just like a football scrimmage (as though I knew what that was) but happily we had no mishaps.  I was considerably alarmed however when I discovered that we were not learning line dancing.  Instead, we were to learn the two-step, twirls and all.  I feared broken legs, arms, or worse.  The concern was not of my partners but  because I knew I did not have a country twanginess in any part of my body and the poor gentlemen were endangering themselves.  There were only 10 ladies to 25 gents so we got double workouts (no wonder I can barely walk this morning) but it was Sadie Hawkins Day all over again as the instructor instructed us to go “grab your partner”.  10 determined women sached across the floor while the men looked over their shoulders for an escape route.  Unfortunately for them, the only exit was through to the kitchens and two bartenders stood guard there.  No way out. 

       They smiled then and bravely took on the one, two, three, five; one, two, three, five, back and forth across the floor, released us and we grabbed the second partner and did it all over again.  Needless to say I was dripping with sweat after the first round.  I looked at my watch.  2:05.  I still had one hour and 55 minutes to go.  Would it ever end?  Oh no, now we are going to twirl.  This does not bode well.  However, surprisingly now, the gents were really getting into it.  They had been told “this is your space”, just like Dancing with the Stars, and suddenly we had a firm hand guiding us along the floor.  Was I actually doing it right?  It seemed to me that for a fleeting moment I actually had the full tempo but then whoosh, I got excited and made a misstep and we were back to cautiously counting (one, two, three, five).

       Three o’clock.  Time for a drink.  Where’s my nice little terry hanky from Japan to wipe away all the sweat dripping from my brow?  Oh don’t I look like an appealing little partner.  Envision Sandra Bullock in her worst moments and still she would be charming.  Not so Sanne. I looked like a ripe tomato about to explode.  I pitied my partner and certainly understood if they wanted to look at their feet instead of me. 

       But here’s the thing, from the get-go there was laughter around the room and throughout the lessons everyone was smiling and having a good time.  Not a complaint, only the normal deprecating that “they were no good at it”.  When I took my breather and watched, they were so very good at it! 

       What a team!

Dancing With the Stars - Season 14

This is probably the best cast of dancers I have seen yet.  Everyone did very well and some were outstanding.  The classical singer Katherine and Erkel (Jaleel White) were really terrific.  Sadly Katherine (whose name I don’t recall) is not at all well known so with a small fan base she will probably go early.  It’s not the fairest way to eliminate the stars but I suppose we have to accept how it is.  Sherry and Gladys Knight surprised me with their ability; Sherry in particular was so glowing and happy to be there it was fun to watch her.

        Okay so this was the foxtrot and cha cha night and I can do these dances.  In P.J.s and night slippers I practiced the steps on a 3 foot square of space while the critters hunched up on tables, chair backs and wondered “what on earth is she doing now?”  Cherie sneaked away and lay dozing in the living room during commercial break.  I crept noisily up to him and he tried to escape me but I scooped him up and started fox-trotting him through the kitchen.  His ears were laid flat back, his eyes were starting out of their sockets but he lay limply in my arms.  He was torn between leaping out when I loosed him or showing off to Thumper that he was my favourite.  I could clearly see the conflict and I knew exactly what he was thinking as he looked over at Thumper who was suddenly sitting at attention and glaring at us. 

        I have to say that I sure have fun with my critters.  Arnold and Harold were both slouched over the sofas looking wearily at us.  They were probably thinking “thank God we are too big for her to do that to us”.  And I’m thinking “wait until the waltz, then you will get yours”.

        This is the only “reality” show that I watch because it is interactive and there is really no nastiness unless you count Len’s perfectionist criticisms as mean.  This is honest entertainment.  (But I thought they were not fair in judging Melissa Gilbert so low, I thought she was great).

These are the Ecuadorian dancers we saw last year.

Tripping the Light Fantastic

This phrase first appeared in Shakespeare as”tripping on his toe” and then was picked up by Milton as “light fantastic toe” and from thence to Thackeray “plied the light fantastic toe” and finally to Lawlor & Blake’s song Sidewalks of New York

Boys and girls together, me and Mamie O'Rourke

Tripped the light fantastic

on the sidewalks of New York

The image the phrase brings up to me is that of lighthearted dancers simply enjoying themselves on any sort of dance floor.  But with the holding of our terrific fall weather I feel like dancing a little jig every morning as I step out of the house and on towards the garage and my car.  Oh it feels so good to have this long stretch of good weather after our last dismal winter and spring.

            I think it is so important to say thank you to Mother Nature, Jehovah God and just the lucky winds that bring us this fine weather whenever we can.  We often take too much for granted in our lives, from simply waking up each morning, our jobs, and the safety in our country that the smaller things are taken even more for granted.  This week I’ve heard some sad news from several different friends that hit their world unexpectedly and while I take great pity on the circumstances I also think “how lucky I am” to be spared this situation.

Take a little time this brown month to tally up your blessings and send up a prayer of thanks to your spiritual guide that you are blessed.  We never know when the tranquility we store up will be taxed with unhappy surprises.

My cup runneth over.

What's Fair?

Goodbye to Carson Kressley.  Carson was fun to watch but he certainly was one of the most uncoordinated dancers I’ve ever seen on the show.  I enjoyed watching him dance but it is really confusing to see good dancers leave ahead of someone that isn’t doing so well.  Still disturbed that Chynna Phillips got eliminated so soon.  I really wonder sometimes if it’s true that it’s the fans that keep people on; can Carson really have had more fans than Chynna Phillips? 

            Fairness anywhere is very subjective.  Whether it is Dancing with the Stars, at work, family dynamics or anything else fairness is often in the eye of the beholder.  For instance, in the family each sibling is only looking at their own situation when they cry out “it isn’t fair” and until they are older and can analyze the situation it will feel like unfairness in the parents’ decision to let the brother play the accordion while the sister can’t have piano lessons.  A nine year old doesn’t understand that a piano costs thousands while an accordion can be rented for $2.00 (back in the day). 

            However in the working world we do find unfairness occurs more frequently than one would like to see but as adults we have to shrug our shoulders and say “c’est la vie”.  Now why is that?  It’s because if you cannot control the outcome there is nothing else to do.  Certainly one can whine and complain but the truth is that doesn’t make you look very good and it doesn’t change anything in the end.  Instead you either accept it or you move on.

            Politically speaking if one sees unfairness one can protest, or again, do nothing.  For many of us in North America we choose not to see unfairness until it strikes home.  Yesterday I read an editorial in the National Post and my thought to the writer is “you simply refuse to look at the issue correctly”.  The article was about the Occupy Wall Street protests and the “we are the 99%” posters.  The writer gave a slanted story which only looked at the world wide distribution of wealth rather than the wealth inside Canada and/or the United States.  So if the reader doesn’t know the rest of the story they would think the writer was right on the money (pun intended).  Ah, no.  

            There is unfairness.  And there is corruption.  Two different things entirely.

            So what is happening on Dancing with the Stars?  What is happening with Occupy Wall Street?

Zumba

The good news this morning is that I can still walk, the bad news is that I can confirm with perfect confidence that I was born with two left feet. I had my first Zumba class last night and all I can say is God Give Me Strength to get through the next 10 weeks! Don’t get me wrong, I had a lot of fun and I certainly did sweat, but I don’t think I did one correct step in the whole hour! After the first dance which was supposed to be “slow” as a warm up all I could say was “I have so much respect for those people on Dancing with the Stars”!

I do not have the moves, baby!

I won’t say I am exactly discouraged but as a high achiever I loath being at the bottom of the class. This reminds me of the time I took the tatting class where I was also the dummy in the class. At least that time I had a bit of an excuse because all the other ladies were over 70 and had done tatting before. I was 35 and had never done a stitch. But dancing, this I have done. Why is it that as soon as it becomes an exercise everything seems speeded up 10 times. I was at least 12 steps behind the teacher and by the third dance I was simply pretending to keep up. The good news, according to Charlotte, is that while I was definitely the worst in the class there were a lot of other people in the class who were also not keeping up and going to their own tempo. Her tip to me was to not do the turns and just keep watching the teacher the whole time. I don’t hold out much hope for me though. I dreamt about tap tap tapping until I am sure my feet were moving in the night. Thumper decided to get out of Dodge and slept on the floor.

I think my heart rate is still up this morning, is that a good thing? Just kidding.

So are you wondering what the heck Zumba is? It is every kind of dance step thrown in one step (at least when I do it). We did Salsa, belly dancing, Walk like an Egyptian, Reggae (which I thought was the Macarena at first and I thought “oh good, I know this one”, silly me) and a lot of two stepping that was suddenly four stepping. I’ve heard it was a very addictive exercise and maybe it will be if I don’t break a leg first! Quite honestly I don’t think I can master the steps in 10 easy lessons. What did I think I was getting in to? I thought it was exercise with some kind of dance step, I didn’t think I would be doing actual dance steps the whole night long at lightening speed! But like I said, I can still walk this morning and only hurt in my ego so I suppose that is a good thing.

As we left our class we walked by the swimming pool and I thought “oh, let’s see if there is Free Style at 7:00” but unfortunately it was Water Polo and Charlotte didn’t want her sweaty hair in a helmet. Go figure.

Another off the cuff

Watching the recap of last night's Dancing with the Stars --- sometimes you have to wonder what the judges are seeing that we are missing? I've been watching for several years now but i still don't see the same things half the time!

Ricki Lake is a charmer but this Nancy person is very goodtoo. I thought Chynna had the best dance of the night.

I thought Carson put in so much effort but I could see what the judges meant, he was kind of all over the place, a little awkward but you could see how hard he was trying to make it smooth. I've been rooting for Chaz but not very good this last round.

So who are you rooting for?

The Beat Goes On

I’m not sure when we first realize that the world doesn’t revolve around our own lives and for some people the realization never occurs. Perhaps after high school when we get into the working world or university where the professors don’t take a personal interest in their students the lightbulb goes on. In school we are always thinking everyone is looking at me that I’m pretty sure we could all be diagnosed paranoid. I’m not sure when I first asked the question “whose looking?” but I was at least in my thirties!

This paranoia doesn’t have anything to do with vanity. I simply think we are born with the feeling that we are the centre of the universe. Ego. Slowly over time we realize that this isn’t the case, but it is an unconscious evolution and eventually we are mature enough to know that we aren’t being scrutinized for every little mistake we make.

Now we have this technology called Social Networking. We can blog, we can Facebook, we can Tweet and it seems overnight we have again become narcissistic. We are the centre of our universe again. I watched Julie & Julia a while back and didn’t understand what she was doing when she would rush to her computer every morning to look at the numbers. She was looking for the hits on her blog and nothing was happening and she was feeling devastated. I know how she feels now except she had a purpose in writing. Well, I suppose I have a purpose also but still . . .

And then there is Facebook. How many millions look at their Facebook and hope for a comment from someone when they’ve written something witty, weird or wild? In a way these people are being very brave because they are putting themselves out on the line. Brave? Foolish? Optimistic? Hopeful?

What I know for sure is that this technology is allowing many people who otherwise would be silent quiet little mushrooms an opportunity to express themselves and while most of what goes out there may be drivel to most of us to the author it generally has some kind of meaning. It will be interesting to do a study some years hence on the evolution and consequences of this self expression. I suspect this generation will be interesting to watch.

Saturday Night Fever

By the way, my friend really called it - she mentioned a while ago "I'm waiting for John Travolta to come out to help Kirstie". Sure enough, he was so cute tonight! the Dance Doctor can come visit me any time! :)

Sugar Ray Leaves

I called it - knew it was Sugar Ray that would leave tonight. He is a very gracious gentleman but his dancing was quite stiff though he really did give it his all. It was a tough competition last night - sorry anyone had to go!

Just another flying by the seat of my pants remark - seriously, can Kirstie have any more bad luck . . . her talented is being destroyed by accidents.

Sugar Ray and Kirstie Alley

Due to snow I was home late so I missed the first half hour of the new season but I managed to catch Sugar Ray Leonard and Kirstie Alley. I had mentioned to Erik that Sugar Ray was going to be one and he was adamant he still wasn’t going to watch the show. Did he watch the show? Wait to find out.

I love the dance, it’s the only reality show that I care to watch and the judges are really quite decent in their comments. They aren’t mean like on the other shows, even though Len can be a bit of a pooh. My favorite dances are the waltz, the jive and the quick step, though sometimes the last two look so much alike I’m not sure what I am watching. Overall I have to stay that Jennifer Grey has been the greatest dancer on the show, she is a natural. But there have been so many really great entertainers, when they get into the finals there have been some really fantastic dances and from some of the most surprising people. Say what you will, with Bristol Palin’s staying power she certainly did improve tremendously the last couple of weeks, you have to give her credit for her efforts.

Wow, Kirstie Alley nailed her cha cha, what great footwork. If she keeps it up she’s going to win the trophy!

Erik, as usual, made it up for the finale of Sugar Ray. He was working on dry walling the basement!

This is strictly off the cuff - tension mounts as we sit through the final hour of DWTS - who will win? Will the tea party upset Jennifer Grey's perfect streak and crown Bristol?

Sniff, I'm so frustrated that my body won't do what I want it to do. I'm trying to sit without crossing my legs but my restless leg syndrome is just too much. Sniff.

But I'm going to show everyone that I have what it takes, I can stay awake until 9 p.m. on a Tuesday night to see this through.

I have my mojo back, after all, I've shown them that I can stay awake through my massages without falling asleep more than 4 times in one session.

Tension, tension, tension.