Yes We Dance is Becoming More of a Reality!

 So, I got an update about one of the many obstacles in the way of my being able to perform in the Yes We Dance salsa and bachata performances on April 8th. 

I hadn't even truly considered that I'd get to perform in this event when I'd started lessons with HTDC, but the more I practiced their choreography and gotten to know my fellow dancers and teachers (and actually gotten pretty good at the choreography too), the more I REALLY wanted to do it. The many obstacles (money, and it being on a workday were the main ones) are almost gone! The money is a close call, but now thanks to some strings pulled and a bunch of little things adding up, and being super extra frugal, and even selling some things, I think I can just barely swing it. The work thing was the next biggie.

Today I was working in the place I'll most likely (PLEASSSEE 🙏) be working at on Saturdays next year, and the person in charge of that area happened to be there. He came up to me and was talking to me about my last one-student class (the one that if I miss it, I can make it just in time to dance), telling me that the student might switch to a different class, and I would actually finish Saturdays really early, until (if) they add another class. I like, couldn't hold in my excitement and was literally jumping up and down and hugged him and explained that I was actually trying to figure out how to get this one class subbed or miss it once because of Yes We Dance, which I hadn't talked to anyone at my company with about yet besides my best friend who introduced me to HTDC, one of my other close work friends, and an email I sent asking if this is doable, that I will hear the reply to probably tomorrow (Jan 25th, she's off today which is the 24th, and I'm not gonna post this blog until the day I know for sure that I'm 100% good to go to Yes We Dance 😁). Anyway, he said they're probably gonna fill it with something eventually, but I told him, I JUST need April 8th, and he said it's fine! Even if the student does't change classes!!!! 😭💕 

But, he's not the ultimate person in control of my schedule, and there's still a chance that maybe I won't even actually be in that location next school year, though it is super likely I will...but there's another person on my side, supporting my chance to dance, and that makes me super happy!

I still can't get over my excitement from today, he just came up to me and started saying exactly what I had been wanting and wishing and waiting to hear without having any idea how powerful those words were to me in that moment XD

Please, universe, let me daaaaance!!!!

中央線でSalsa #2

 This was Saturday, and the beginning of a weekend full of dance!  I went to the 中央線でサルサ event again, and this time I tried more meringue, not so much bachata this time, and gave on 2 salsa more of a chance. I do on 1 style, so it’s like learning how to write with my left hand to do on 2. Anyway, I think I’m starting to get the hang of it, and the more different types of dance I learn can only make me an all around a better dancer! I’ve got the hips swaying and the body waves of bachata, the gracefulness and ability to spin and spot my turns from ballet, the posture, endurance, and quick feet from salsa (maybe a little bit from tap too), and the ability to read the lead and follow from swing!

 Anyway, the teacher was really patient and helped me pick up the steps at the social dance. We'd mostly danced on 1 cuz he can do both, and I requested it because I didn't feel ready to tackle on 2 on the dance floor yet and I wanted to dance freely and confidently (and I guess the Leo in me wanted to show off a bit before trying the dance I'm less confident in). Finally, I decided to try on 2 with him, and it really helped! Like I said in a previous post, ALWAYS dance with the instructors at any dance thing you do, they are patient, know how to lead beginner followers well, and you might learn something new. 

Anyway, I made a new friend! Of course I like everyone I met there already, but me and this girl just clicked instantly. She lived in Thailand and Australia, so her English is perfect, and she's bright and bubbly like me, loves dancing and wine, and she wants us salsa girls to hang together sometime!

Book review: Darren Shan

This is actually a post from more than a year ago, but I just realized I hadn't posted it, so here it is!

❤♡❤♡❤♡❤♡❤♡❤♡❤

I’ve just finished reading the book series Darren Shan Cirque du Freak, and tears were literally running down my face. And I’m not one to often react strongly (at least not physically) to books even though I love reading. 

I used to read a lot when I was younger, and loved when teachers read stories to us in middle school (even though many other students complained). I’d stopped reading for years when life got in the way, as seemed to be the same for most of my friends who grew up reading a lot. I’d recently (like within the past year) only gotten back into it because I can read books on and have a whole library stored right on my phone! Yay technology! I’d been able to reread and finished series that I’d started and never gotten all the books for when I was younger, like Pretty Little Liars, and I finally read all of the Harry Potter books.

Darren Shan is not something I would chose to read on my own. My preferred genres are usually along the lines of young adult, dystopian futures, fantasy, and guilty-pleasure romances, along with some light novels and manga, like Tora Dora and Spice and Wolf. My husband, when I’d told him I’d really been getting into reading again, had been pestering me to read Darren Shan. It is popular enough that it had even been translated into Japanese (and many other languages). I was reading the Spice and Wolf light novel because I watched some of the anime years ago and loved it but never finished it. I finally caught up to the most recent one because surprisingly it’s still going on! On a whim, I finally decided to start reading the Darren Shan saga I’d downloaded to my phone a while ago.

It was NOT the right one…there’s another series by the same author and it started out…GRUESOMELY. I started reading it an early morning before I had to get ready for work, and after one chapter, I hated it. I don’t like horror, though I can handle some violence, if it’s for the greater good in my stories. I told him I hated it and already felt like I would have nightmares! It disgusted me (although I still can’t help to mention the fact that I was a little bit intrigued and tempted to read on). But then he asked me if I’d met Steve…well, I don’t want to give anything away 🤫 but that novel definitely was not the one he’d intended to recommend to me!

Anyway, it’s 12 books long and I started reading about a week ago and now finished, and I’m so glad I’m at home in a bath crying over this book, instead of on the train coming home from, or going to work! There were some points that were a tad…Grotesque…and hopelessly sad, but it was worth it in the end. I don’t even know why I was crying, but I couldn’t stop. It got me thinking about hope, destiny, and how much power we have with each choice we make in life.

中央線でSalsa

Happy New Year! This is my first post of the year, so I guess I can still say that. 

It is Friday today, and I am sooo looking forward to the weekend! I have my HTDC Salsa on Sunday, and we are almost at the end of learning our salsa and bachata routines, which means we get to probably learn some fancy acrobatty dance moves for the endings! Then on Monday, I have HTDC bachata open lesson and then their twice-a-month social dance! Even Saturday, though, which is a long stressful, work day, I'm excited for. Why? Because I found a cool Saturday weekly salsa thing! 

So last week, I was checking this app I was shown called salsa calendar that shows events on certain days near your chosen location. I randomly checked and found one called salsa on the Chuo line 中央線でサルサ, which also happens to be the train line that my work is at every Saturday...so I checked where and found that it was super near me and starts shortly after I finish work! There was no way I couldn't go give it a try! There is one little thing though, and that is the fact that the salsa I have learned and am good at is on 1 style salsa, or LA style, and their lesson is on 2 style, or NY style, which I had no idea even existed until at a social dance, I was asked "1 or 2?" and was like huh?? and then they said New York or LA, and I was like ohhhh where am I from? NY! And then he did on 2 and I was like AHHHHH, and he got it, and went into on 1 and then I was ok XD I Googled it later.

I didn't particularly have an interest in learning on 2 style salsa, but it was too good of a time and place to pass up, and it can only improve my dancing overall, so I went! It was confusing. The steps are the same, but it's just like one count different and my brain has been already wired to on 1, so it makes it extra difficult for me to pick it up. Luckily, everyone was SUPER nice and friendly, and some spoke English a bit, and let me know that almost everyone there could also do on 1, so for the social dance, I would be able to dance my heart out! I also asked if there were any bachata dancers, and there were a few, so they played a bit of bachata for me too. And I tried some cha-cha, which like salsa but more steps??  The craziest thing though, was that I met someone who used to do theatre things with my work like MANY years ago! And then another man whose daughter is currently studying abroad at West Virginia University!! My university in America! How crazy is that? What a coincidence XD I told him to tell her to go to Yama Japanese restaurant in Morgantown for some real, good, Japanese food if she gets homesick.

I danced and drank and talked, and had so much fun!! They all accepted me into their group so quickly and easily, and it's a weekly event, so I'm gonna go every week that I can! On 2, I'm gonna have to figure you out I guess. I love dancing!

Yes!! I Will Dance

Hello all! I think I’m just gonna talk freely about my life and feelings, and what’s been going on and whatever I want! It’s easier to get the post written that way, instead of trying too hard to have a purpose or story or objective besides just kind of a journal.

So I guess I’ll start with today (at the time of starting writing this blog post! I just finished my salsa lesson with Hiro Taku Dance Company. It’s Monday, so it’s the open lesson that all of the different levels of students currently taking lessons with HTDC, beginner to master, are welcome to come to. Also, new people can come do a trial lesson if they want. If that’s the case, it’s usually a beginner on 1 salsa lesson. Today there was no trial student, and besides me, only 2 students from the upper level came, so we worked on their dance for the Yes We Dance event (more about that later). I’m in the advanced class, so I don’t know this dance, and I got to learn it, so today was really fun! I seriously love these lessons. The teachers are amazing, all the other dancers are too, and I’m making lots of friends. I’m in love with salsa and bachata in general, anyway and never want to stop! Like, I could keep dancing after the lessons for hours, and 3 hour long social dances aren't enough!

Soooo, about Yes We Dance. It's an event, the biggest event hosted by HTDC every year. Aaaaaand it's on a Saturday (always a workday at my job). But not just any Saturday, but the first Saturday of the new school year, where I could be meeting students and parents for the first time. My schedule at this time is not yet decided, so I'm not sure if they are actual first time tiny baby students who need to meet their new teacher right away or older students who are cool if their teacher is not there the first week, or even if they are the same exact line of classes I currently have on Saturdays. So, I talked to my best friend who also works with me (and does salsa at the same place but he is on hiatus right now). He said there is a chance that I could maaaaaybe get the afternoon older student classes subbed. At the time we talked, my tentative Saturday schedule was kind of far away with a latish end, but doable if I miss a few classes. That has changed now into a 6pm ending day that's way closer, and only one class need be missed!! But, it could change again...

For Yes We Dance, from 9:30 am we have to be there for rehearsal and what-not. The performances from the company (where I would be onstage) start from 6:45 pm. If my tentative schedule remains as it is, I could miss only my last class, which is 1 student, who is like 12 or 13 years old and finish at 4:50. I haven't asked yet, because I wanna ask in person, and am kind of scared the answer will be no,  but I think I can get it! 

And then the other big hurdle that was keeping me from even thinking I had a chance to seriously consider going onstage for this event was money. First of all, husband is in between jobs. He actually just got hired for a really nice thing, but, at the current moment, he hasn't started yet, so money is really tight right now. Then, the company I'm taking dance lessons from isn't cheap. Like, with the amount of lessons a week, and the amazing community, and how the teachers have really leveled up my dancing skills already after only about a month, it's sooooo worth it! And the first 4 months when you first start, there is a nice discount. And then on top of that, they let me split the payment in half instead of all upfront, for which I am super grateful, because even starting these lessons I thought was not gonna be possible for me. I had been just going to their bi-weekly socials and a few other social dances around Tokyo, but these ones with HTDC, the teachers, the community, and the vibe is my favorite! 

For Yes We Dance, we have this thing called a norma, I'm not sure what that is or if it even exists in English, but basically we have to buy a bunch of tickets and sell them which is like A LOT of money. In class, when they were explaining all the ticket selling options and stuff, I was lost. My Japanese understanding level is quite good, but this was all new territory for me. Basically, the cheapest option would be me paying ¥29800 (like $300 not including the costume, I believe?). But I want to do this. More than anything, I want to dance, I wanna be a part of this!!! I want to dance on-stage with everyone in Yes We Dance. I'm not even thinking of stage fright, because I just wanna dance, I wanna perform these routines we're learning, and I'm surprising myself. I have EXTREME stage fright, I've done so many dance shows onstage my whole life and always wished to skip the whole performance part. I actually want to do this. I want to be on that stage with these dancers so bad!! I don't think I've wanted anything in my life so much, except for when I decided I wanted to move to Japan.

Even if I couldn't be ON the stage though, I want to go and watch or support, at the very least, but work-wise is still a maybe. I took photos at their first event I went to on Halloween that my best friend was performing in, and they really liked my photography, which made me super happy! So, I was thinking it would be cool if I can at least get permission to be a photographer for the event, even if I have to show up a bit late for it. So, after the Monday lesson (that I started this blog talking about) I decided (kind of spur of the moment at the end right as dancers were trickling out to go home) to ask them that if I can't perform, (they already know my 2 big dilemmas of work and money) I'd at least like to have permission to be a photographer for the part of it that I can come to. I felt instantly stupid after asking, and my Japanese was not as smooth as usual because I felt weirdly nervous and sad, when I'm usually bright, happy, and confident talking with them.  I also didn't fully think about how or what I was even asking, it just kinda took over my head and I felt like I couldn't go without saying something. He said, after a little pause, もちろん! Of course I can take photos! But as I left, I felt really sad. I couldn't figure out why right away, I always feel so happy after dancing, like literally I can't stop smiling as I walk home. I realized that what I had asked had meant that I truly accepted the fact that I had to give up on performing in Yes We Dance, and like that was me telling them that, and it made it real that I won't be able to do it. I felt like crying as I walked to the train station, and I was confused as to why I felt so strongly.

The next day, Tuesday, I took on an extra work thing on Tuesdays that goes until 7, then I went to the closing ceremony party for the Midsummer Night's Dream cast members! It was fun, but I felt slightly lonely? Like, sometimes, I could just have not been there and and no one would miss me, but then sometimes I had really good connections and had fun. I love them, they are amazing people, but they have their own long history together, and I am a newcomer, and on top of that, I can't completely, fully join in on their conversations in Japanese. They all can speak varying levels of English and try to as much as they can, but sometimes the conversations fly away, I don't want to try and interrupt and slow them down, so I'm left behind and get stuck in my own mind sometimes. 

I got home kind of late and drunk. It was at a nearby Chinese restaurant that we were regular customers of and hadn't been in a while since the show had ended. I usually can't drink so much there, because I don't like Chinese alcohol, so I stick to oolong hi's that aren't strong enough for me XD I decided to have shochu on the rocks, because I knew husband, who doesn't drink so much usually, would probably drink a lot here because he likes Chinese alcohol and drinking and talking with these fun cast members. Anyway, then, I checked my Line messages, and I got one from HTDC. They said that they knew it would be difficult for me to perform in Yes We Dance, but they WANT me to. Me, specifically me, they WANT me to perform!?! And, they thought about it enough to message me the next day, after my awkward weirdness, AND in English, which neither of the teachers can really speak! They said that I can be a photographer for the event, except for during my performance, and that if I'm photographer, I can pay ¥10000 ($100) less to perform!!! I read it, and I actually cried. Like, real tears of happiness. They want me to perform, they are helping me make it possible! They want me to be there. They want me to dance!

I didn't know what to say, so I thought about it and responded the next morning. I told him I was so happy that I cried in both Japanese and English, and I explained about my schedule at work and how it could change in more detail all in English, so I know I'll be clear. I explained that I need to talk to my work people next week and my possible ending time and classes I could try to get off. He said it was funny that I said I was so happy that I cried XD But, it's true, I did, and I wanted it to be known how happy this made me! Then, he said it would be ok if I miss the rehearsal the morning/afternoon and can at least make it to the performance.

So now, I need be strict with money! I need to talk with my work to miss one class (if my schedule doesn't change). I need to practice the dances! I need to work out and be healthy. I've got my plan. I am going to perform in Yes We Dance, because I said so!!