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At 6:49 PM, I posted a (private, I am not stupid) entry enumerating some of the reasons why I hate this state. Recognizing that this was an unhealthy outlook to have, and would ultimately lead to a truly miserable summer if I didn't remind myself of the good in the world and quickly, I soon thereafter went out for a walk.
After spending ten or fifteen minutes just swinging on a swingset, which is about the best thing there ever is or was, I found my eyes drifting sideways, to the hill next to the playground, with the broad flat field on top. Very flat, with nice lush grass. And big, too. As big as a ballroom.
A fiendish wicked grin later, and I was prancing about atop the hill, trying quick little one step maneuvers and waltzes. It's possible to do some bare footed swing up there, my standard test for skirts works just as well for dance floors --can I do a pas de basque? With a solid "yes" as an answer, I knew that I would have to plan a formal and *fabulous* dance up there some night.
My brain has ever since been thinking of problems and solutions --how to get music is easy, just hook speakers up to mom's generator. Citronella candles should help with the bugs, also bug spray and politely asking people to just suck it up, bugs are part of the charm. I'll do a sweep an hour or two before for animal poop and trash. If there are people there playing football or whatever (bastards) I know of another field that would be almost as good. And I have a little red wagon that I can fill with water jugs and cups.
The biggest problem, of course, is that of attendance. Pretend I have a poll here: Would you be willing to come to a barefoot ball? Bare feet would be optional, and the dress code would boil down to "whatever you find comfortable, and aren't afraid of potentially getting grass stains on.
It would probably run from about seven? until nine? Until it got too dark to see, and since this is Columbia, we may very well just dance all night. I would provide water and possibly cookies. I can't say when exactly --I'm torn between some weekend, when more people might be able to come, and just some generic single night I have off from work.
Dance forms would include: Waltzes, one-steps, tangos, swing, polkas, and a little bit of blues. I would try my best to have a Grand March, as well. If I feel I can teach them satisfactorily, and can find music for it, I'd be happy to do some SCD or contra. I'll probably toss in some random "just dance around like an idiot and stop caring about how you look" music, because I enjoy that. You're welcome to get me other music for other dances, though if it's hugely complicated, I'd like to have some kind of teaching provided as well.
Is this an incredibly stupid and lame idea? I'm currently in full out epiphany mode, so I can't actually tell. If you don't think it's lame, and would like to be on the list of people I send e-mail to when I have actual potential dates, tell me and please make sure I have your e-mail --either in the comments of this post or by dropping a line to kdsorceress at gmail dot com, along with your name.
~Sor
MOOP!
((Regardless of whether you have any interest in this specific thing or not, if you want to be on my e-mail list for "Maryland is boring, people are fun, let's run around outside like idiots" type-activities (Random dances, marshmallow wars, capture-the-flag, outdoor games, maybe a Get Childish Party or two, and whatever I plan on doing for my birthday) Leave me a comment telling me you want to be on that list.))
After spending ten or fifteen minutes just swinging on a swingset, which is about the best thing there ever is or was, I found my eyes drifting sideways, to the hill next to the playground, with the broad flat field on top. Very flat, with nice lush grass. And big, too. As big as a ballroom.
A fiendish wicked grin later, and I was prancing about atop the hill, trying quick little one step maneuvers and waltzes. It's possible to do some bare footed swing up there, my standard test for skirts works just as well for dance floors --can I do a pas de basque? With a solid "yes" as an answer, I knew that I would have to plan a formal and *fabulous* dance up there some night.
My brain has ever since been thinking of problems and solutions --how to get music is easy, just hook speakers up to mom's generator. Citronella candles should help with the bugs, also bug spray and politely asking people to just suck it up, bugs are part of the charm. I'll do a sweep an hour or two before for animal poop and trash. If there are people there playing football or whatever (bastards) I know of another field that would be almost as good. And I have a little red wagon that I can fill with water jugs and cups.
The biggest problem, of course, is that of attendance. Pretend I have a poll here: Would you be willing to come to a barefoot ball? Bare feet would be optional, and the dress code would boil down to "whatever you find comfortable, and aren't afraid of potentially getting grass stains on.
It would probably run from about seven? until nine? Until it got too dark to see, and since this is Columbia, we may very well just dance all night. I would provide water and possibly cookies. I can't say when exactly --I'm torn between some weekend, when more people might be able to come, and just some generic single night I have off from work.
Dance forms would include: Waltzes, one-steps, tangos, swing, polkas, and a little bit of blues. I would try my best to have a Grand March, as well. If I feel I can teach them satisfactorily, and can find music for it, I'd be happy to do some SCD or contra. I'll probably toss in some random "just dance around like an idiot and stop caring about how you look" music, because I enjoy that. You're welcome to get me other music for other dances, though if it's hugely complicated, I'd like to have some kind of teaching provided as well.
Is this an incredibly stupid and lame idea? I'm currently in full out epiphany mode, so I can't actually tell. If you don't think it's lame, and would like to be on the list of people I send e-mail to when I have actual potential dates, tell me and please make sure I have your e-mail --either in the comments of this post or by dropping a line to kdsorceress at gmail dot com, along with your name.
~Sor
MOOP!
((Regardless of whether you have any interest in this specific thing or not, if you want to be on my e-mail list for "Maryland is boring, people are fun, let's run around outside like idiots" type-activities (Random dances, marshmallow wars, capture-the-flag, outdoor games, maybe a Get Childish Party or two, and whatever I plan on doing for my birthday) Leave me a comment telling me you want to be on that list.))
no subject
on 2009-05-16 12:46 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 12:52 am (UTC)HAVE I BEEN DOING IT WRONG ALL THESE YEARS?!
~Sor
no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:32 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 12:49 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 12:56 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:06 am (UTC)Of course I am in, and so is giraffeaholic and senora_gem
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on 2009-05-16 01:25 am (UTC)I'm not going to plan my trip around whatever date you pick, but if it happens to coincide, it'd be neat.
no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:27 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:27 am (UTC)((and srs bsns, i'd love to be the ferret under the couch in *everything* you do))
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on 2009-05-16 01:29 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:34 am (UTC)I would love to be a part of this.
on 2009-05-16 01:57 am (UTC)OTOH, keep me posted on the plan. (You do have my email address, right?) I do have a trip to do to NC one of these days. And if the timing works just right...
no subject
on 2009-05-16 02:15 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 03:36 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 04:12 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 04:16 pm (UTC)But he'll be here for a few weeks IN a few weeks HURRAY!
no subject
on 2009-05-16 04:18 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 09:39 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 05:21 am (UTC)I'll admit I'm a bit nervous about the idea of people doing some of the more momentum-containing dances on that list barefoot on grass, especially if the grass gets damp in the evenings. [polka in particular, but also SCD and some forms of waltz]
no subject
on 2009-05-18 05:26 pm (UTC)If it turns into semi-ceilidh dancing, though, there are worse things. *grin*
no subject
on 2009-05-18 05:43 pm (UTC)Your point about selecting more appropriate dances to the surface is definitely well taken. And, I can't say I disagree with your conclusion.
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on 2009-05-18 06:56 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 06:14 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 10:26 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 01:22 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 02:23 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 04:11 pm (UTC)Columbia may be boring, but DC's certainly worthwhile :)
great great great idea!
on 2009-05-16 04:50 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-16 10:47 pm (UTC)On a related note, I wish to object to the statement "Maryland is boring." Open your eyes, Hon. In the 1950's Mayland used to promote itself as "America in Minature," and it was not so absurd a notion. We've got mountains (OK, not big ones, but for people who come from flat countries, Maryland's mountains are a revelation, so it's all relative.), we've got ocean, we've got forests, we've got funky cities & sophisticated cities & we've got quaint small towns, we have immediate access to the Nation's Capital, and we've got four seasons. We have the nation's biggest bay. all this packed into one reasonable and accessible sized package. The only major omission is deserts, and I'm OK with that.
Open your eyes. Put your epihany mood to work. I love the state I'm in & if you took another look, you could too.
BTW, I'm not alone. (http://llamagraphics.com/Meadow/Essays/MDPurdy.html)
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on 2009-05-18 05:45 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-17 05:06 am (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-17 05:30 am (UTC)Running around like idiots in general: yes please.
no subject
on 2009-05-17 03:15 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2009-05-18 05:31 pm (UTC)One question, which may or may not be relevant depending on the field in question: are there neighbors who might be reasonably expected to complain about dance music lasting well into the night? If so, you might want to take that into account, in terms of speaker size and hours involved.
Also, I assume this isn't the kind of field one needs to reserve in advance for stuff like that, but it might be worth double-checking.
no subject
on 2009-05-19 05:13 am (UTC)Also, I suggest using skip-change, rather than pas de basque, to test uneven or slippery surfaces like lawns, since it's affected more by those things.
And I also heartily approve.
no subject
on 2009-05-30 05:19 am (UTC)