Dance can be as simple as moving your body to a rhythm. The beats can come from external sources or internal musings. The dance can be aerobic, therapeutic, sensual. It can be anything you want it to be. Dance is a form of self-expression, whether you follow prescribed steps with a partner on a ballroom floor or twirl with an air guitar in your living room.

Dancing improves strength, balance, coordination, flexibility, stamina, and posture. Vigorous dance provides excellent cardio and fat burning benefits. Don’t slump, pull in that tummy, and dancing will work your core nicely, too!

I’ve recently found my inner dancer, and have been taking her for as many spins as possible. I dance alone to liven up my housekeeping, I dance with my dog just to keep her on her toes, and I even take lessons and dance with other people at a couple of local ballroom dance clubs. I may be addicted, but I don’t think I’ll be seeking any treatment beyond dance therapy any time soon.

I’d love to hear from other dancers around Huntsville and Madison. How, where, and what kind of dancing do you do? Feel free to link dance halls, clubs, schools or events, or any dance pictures that you’ve taken around town.

Dance stuff:

Quote: “You’ve gotta dance like there’s nobody watching!”

Come on out! Those of us in the Huntsville area are pretty lucky to have lots of options to dance socially. Here’s a list of mixed type dance clubs and a list of ballroom and Latin style dance clubs and organizations to get you started.

I dance mostly at Rocket City Dance Club on Artie Street and Madison Ballroom Dance Studio on Madison Boulevard. They both have superb leadership, friendly regulars, great websites with calendars that stay updated, and wonderful opportunities for learning dancing in different venues (private instruction, group lessons, and dance parties).

For dance shoes, the ladies at Bloom over on Regal Drive rule. They have a nice selection and the customer service is excellent. Or, if you’d like to just convert a pair of street shoes, J.T.’s Shoe Care over on Bob Wallace was recommended to me by my RCDC instructor. They replaced a buckle on mine for me and I bought some nice pads there, too.

The diversity in style, approach, experience, and background represented delighted me. The exercises boggled me. I piddle with writing, anymore. I don’t drill. But I did… Three times, for 20 minutes each, prompted by randomly drawn words, even. By the time we left, I had three critiqued pieces of writing, two complete – very short – drafts and one piece of a draft that may or may not get fleshed out in the future. And I had a great time.

So why post this weeks after the fact? Because I was flipping through my notebook and smiled at the hastily scribbled pages I had left. So, I typed up the first story, cleaned it up a touch, and smiled a little more. Feelings like that are meant to be shared, and since I have a blog I thought this might be a fine place to share it! Of course, the best way to experience the feeling would be to take the opportunity to stop by one Saturday and slap around some ideas and ink, yourself. Maybe I’ll see you there.

My little story, Tea for Two, while not incredibly original, is short, sweet, and I hope a little fun.

Details on all the fun to be had can be found at the Still Serving Veterans website.

Veterans that would like to attend with their families need to RSVP to Still Serving Veterans no later than 31 March 2010:

Helen McAlister
phone: 256-883-7035
email: hmcalister[at]stillservingveterans[dot]org

Volunteers are needed to help set up the picnic, serve the veterans and their families, and offer assistance during the course of the day. If you’re interested in volunteering, contact HandsOn-Huntsville:

Mona Foroughi
phone: 256-539-7797 ext. 11
email: mona[at]volunteerhsv[dot]org