Bellydance

Happy Sunday all............

Today I practiced some of my dance moves. I really haven't fully gotten back into bellydance like I used to, but I am slowly getting there. Today I pulled out my sword and just improvised. Not my big one, but the little one, the first one I ever bought. It has a case and is harder than my larger one to balance on my head. But I did it and improvised a little. It was nice, I had a good time.

I kinda stopped putting my heart into dance last year. I started to let it go. It was a mistake. Last year was a hard year for me and I spent over half of it depressed. I just felt like everything was going wrong that year, and I felt trapped. And because of that I didn't want to dance anymore. Big mistake. But I think that when you stop doing something you love, you realize how important it was to you all along.

I started bellydance in the summer of 2002. Technically I took a couple of lessons at the university in the spring of that year. But I consider that summer the first time I actually decided that I would pour my heart into it. I remember seeing a Persian bellydancer in Germany while I was eating with my aunt at the restaurant. And I got inspired. It has become a part of me since then and helped me stay in shape and build my confidence level. I have also met some cool girls.

My teacher that summer was from Egypt and she taught out of her living room. I ended up buying my first professional costume from her.

Anyway, I was on You Tube and came across this girl that isn't an expert, but she is a real good dancer.

http://www.youtube.com/user/aisayah

I have a hard time finding a dancer to watch that I connect with. Time almost means nothing when you bellydance. Yeah, don't get me wrong, it's important to practice. But to me it's more about the enthusiasm and charisma. If the person doesn't love the dance, or isn't confident about the moves you can see it.

I've seen a lot of dancers perform at the dance fairs, and I've tried out different teachers, and I just don't get most of them. I'm not saying I could do better, but I guess I am a picky watcher.

 This girl on You Tube is wonderful dancer, a natural. I watch a lot of bellydance videos on You Tube only to come up disappointed. Even when I watch some of the performers in Turkey or Lebanon. I also see a lot of videos of young girls trying to bellydance and it just isn't my style. But this girl is. I also love watching my teacher perform. She is awesome and she and I have the same name.

This girl whose video I am posting, is located in Spain. Notice how small her room is. When I lived in Spain, my room was that size too. I never practiced dance in my room there.

I did, however take belly dance lessons in Barcelona. It was a beautiful studio with a nice wooden floor. I even bought a coin belt there. Beautiful lavendar belt with silver coins. It took me a while to take the metro and walk to the studio. The class would last for a couple of hours.

The teacher was nice. My Spanish still wasn't all that, but hey all I had to do was follow ! I remember when she started speaking in Catalan...... I think when she asked me a question I kinda freaked out because I didn't even know how to respond. I appologized and said that I was from the U.S and that I didn't understand. She was nice enough to stop speaking Catalan, which is a rare thing over there. They almost get mad at you for not learning it, lol.

Anyway, enjoy the video clips.

Saturday Ramblings

Hello All,

I hope that you enjoyed your Independence Day. I had to work, but I took a little break to go to the roof and catch some fireworks.

I have an apricot tree in my front yard which produces beautiful, ripe apricots. I picked them yesterday. I had to climb the fence to reach the top of the tree, but it was worth it. The top of the tree always yields the best fruit. It smelled so ripe, almost pungent. I brought some to work and people loved them. They told me that I brought the best apricots. The tree is almost bare, I think I picked it all, lol.

The good news is that I also have a peach tree in my back yard so I think in a month or two I will have some ripe, juicy peaches.

What else.......... today I was out getting my mail at my mailbox (I have a mailing address), and these firemen pulled up and went to get lunch next door. We played a good game of "Hide, Check me out and go seek" lol. I checked them out under my sunglasses, and did my best not to be obvious as I was walking to get my mail. Then as I was inside getting my mail, I see a couple of the guys stick their heads back to check me out, lol. It was fabulous. Haha, the best part was that as I walked a couple of stores down to get a smoothie, I see another fire truck pull up and stop to get lunch.

After my errands I had bellydance. I had a nice time. We worked on stomach rolls and shimmies. It was a lot of work, and I really shouldn't have eaten before the class, but whatever. I felt good after. The nice thing about it is that they also offer yoga lessons in the same studio. I like yoga, so I will probably come back for that too. Yoga has helped me with my bellydance moves and turned me into a better performer. Not only that, but it helps me sleep better at night.

Anyway, I am happy that tomorrow is Sunday. It is still the weekend, so I will probably try to get out of the house again before work and chill out.

Looking for More J Land Pals

Hello There My Lovelies..........

I need help. I currently read only one AOL journal and that is Winivere's journal. I had a few more friends here, but they all stopped writing or gave up AOL altogether. And sadly one passed away due to cancer last year.

I am looking for more journals to add to my sidebar. And more journals to read. If you read my journal and have one of your own, please come out and tell me about your journal. AOL journal or not. No discrimination, lol.

And if you know of someone, please tell me and leave their address.

I will continue to write in here whether I have one or a million readers. I write for me. But that doesn't mean that I couldn't use some company around here.

Stealing Win's Survey............

1.  Your First Name and Where do you Live?

My name is Senorita and I live in the Bay Area, California

 

 

2.  Children/Grandchildren?

No and No

 

 

3.  Planning a Summer Vacation? 

No, but I am planning a long travel excursion with my friend, Henry in a year or two.

 

 

4.  Occupation?

Student

 

 

5.  Have you ever had a miracle happen to you? 

If so, tell us about it.

Yes.

My Oma who passed away in 2006 has been showing herself to me in various ways since she died.

 

 

6.  Your favorite TV show.

Law and Order SVU

 

 

7.  If you had one wish that would come true,

what would it be & why?

I have two wishes:

1. To have my fabulous career

2. To find true love

 

8.  Do you have a hobby and if so, tell us about it?

Yes.

Bellydance.

 

 

9.  Do you go to casino & if so,

what is the biggest amount you have won?

I don't believe in casinos

 

10. What is your most prized possession?

My Oma's things that I inherited, my sword for dance and my competition grade ice skates

 

 

11. What is your most memorable vacation?

The time I lived in Barcelona for a whole year

 

 

12. Are you afraid to Fly?

Give me wings first, then we can discuss the flying part

 

13. What is your biggest fear in life?

To be where I am now when I am in my thirties and forties

 

14. What kind of car do u drive

& what kind do u wish u drove?

I drive a 2004 Nissan Sentra. I wish drove a Prius so that I could save on some gas

 

 

15. Will you be voting in Nov. &

are u a decided voter

<u dont have to tell us who>?

I still am not decided on which party I should belong to. And I am still deciding on a candidate.

 

16. Do you do any volunteer work,

if so for what charity?

Up until this year I volunteered for Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto. We helped undocumented people facing abuse get legal status. Very rewarding work.

 

 

17. What is your fav kind of food?

I love Spanish food, Catalan food, Korean food......

 

18. What is your most memorable childhood memory?

The time I lived in Austria when I was 10 with my aunt, uncle and cousins.

 

 

19. What do you enjoy receiving the most on The List?

On the List??

What list?

 

20. Anything else you want to share with us?

I am a total survey whore........

 

21. If you have a pic of yourself,

please insert it here..

Look to the left of my journal and you shall have a glimpse of moi !!

 

Some thoughts

Hello there my lovelies,

Soooooooo......... Yesterday I started summer school. I just got done taking my finals on Friday. Now I am in for another session. I am a little burned out at this point. I know that I will have a lot of reading and writing to do for the next 6 weeks.

Today I got my badge at my internship. I am real happy about that. No more waiting in the lobby until my supervisor gets me. Plus, I actually took a good photo today, lol.

Before I go I am leaving a link to a video that I found to be very inspiring. This guy, Matt is so cool. Basically he traveled all over the world and did his dance in different locations. Eventually people started joining him in the dance. Also, he got Stride Gum to sponsor his travels, which I think is genious. I love the scenery in his video shots.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY

Check it out for yourselves. I almost cried. I would love to dance with him. He already has been to San Francisco. I hope you enjoy it too.