Life is busy but good

Shu's a quitter! The Salsa classes failed to launch. I've missed 4 classes now, due to busy after-work travel planning work and well, lack of prolonged enthusiasm for that type of dance style.

I've missed blogging (relax Shu, it's been only 2 weeks) soooo much. Many days passed when I wanted to write so badly but did not make it before my auto-shut down time.

On a serious note, I have come to realise that I am only as good as the things I practice regularly. It applies to nearly everything in my life; skills, thoughts, habits, etc.

There's only one thing on my mind and that's the destination I'm traveling to in a week's time. My days are plagued with disturbed sleep (rare in Shu-burbia), attention deficit disorders, panic attacks and respiratory ailments. The goal is NOT to die of exhilaration in the next few days leading to the actual holiday.

Rihanna's biggest fan these days:

Say hello to bloodshot eyes

I'm going to regret this milo I had at 12 in the midnight.

Dance classes are somewhat enjoyable, although tough. I'm getting several bits of good advice from the instructor like "Relax your shoulders, don't be too stiff", "Dont look down on your feet when dancing", "Look your partner straight in the eye, be confident", "Feel the music", "Relax", etc etc. There is a Hip Hop class going on at the auditorium just before my Salsa class. Today, I was a few minutes early and happened to see the Hip Hop kids taught a robotic dance move with "locking". Pretty amazing, I thought.

Last week, I was eating this stuff at work. Finished a whole pack in a few days. Wonder if Roald Dahl gave them the permission to use that brand name on the box.

I had to invest on a Lonely Planet Traveler's Guide for my vacation overseas. Been reading it diligently at work, trying to remember all the things a traveler must. The section on social etiquette states that one must never accept food with the left hand and must always eat with one's right hand. Great. The first thought was to add "disposable spoons" to my list of things to take. On second thoughts, I'll just give them a piece of my mind; "You want me to start eating with the hand that for 20+ years I've been using for other purposes?? And you'd rather run the risk of getting a bad case of diarrea yourself than see me accept your food with my left hand?? What have you done to the lefties in your nation??"

I say, grow some common sense.

On third thoughts, that might not go down well. I can't even speak their language!

Shu goes a Salsa-ing

This day has to be logged for future records.

In an attempt to bring a cheer to my otherwise dull life, I decided to take either an aerobics or a dance class. Actually, it was more to get a little physically active so I don't drop dead next month while 'hiking in the Himalayas'. Nowadays, climbing a small staircase at work makes me pant, gasp for breath and curse my lungs. I haven't been this determined to find something in the recent decades, but I spent many hours calling places, google-ing places, looking at advertisements, asking around, reading sites, etc. Until finally, I found the most cost-effective and convenient class, very close to my block.

There's a mad dancer inside me, trapped and waiting to break free from my social-phobia and physical inhibitions. I just hope it decides to come out before I die or become bed-ridden, in other words, not too late. Hip Hop classes, which I have been dying to take since forever were at a timeslot that I could not make. The only choice left was a Salsa class. I have never been a big fan of it, mostly because of the high heels and ass-hugging mini-dresses worn by female Salsa dancers. Just for a month, I thought, I'll take what I can.

This guy's a charm in the Lion King movie! Took me many years to know that "Hakuna matata" was a real phrase very often used in Kenya.

So today, I set out for the first class. Luckily, we were asked to wear track pants and socks (and not heels and minis)! There were just two other girls and the instructor, who looked old enough to be my little brother and who looked remotely related to Timon in Lion King (Oh that reminds me, there's gonna be a remake of Lion King in 3D soon. Woohoo! Think I know almost all the dialogues and scenes by heart!). We learnt the first three basic steps of Salsa, taking turns to partner with different people of both genders. It was very awkward; one's supposed to stare right in the face of the partner to gain confidence and avoid looking at one's feet. Comes to mind a game we used to play as kids. We'd stare at each other's faces and see who cracks with laughter first. Usually, I was first or second to burst out laughing, so needless to say, it was hard. The steps were simple enough, but rapid changing of the steps to music proved challenging.

There's talk of changing the timeslot of this class to one I can't participate next time. So even if this was a one-time experience, it was fun and mostly, it was a new experience that I gave a shot!