This post is for ME-What I have learned.

1. Silvina Valz: Go with my body, Go with ease, Look out at or above eye level (this organizes my body), Walk on the beat, Caress the floor, Move leg from my diaphragm, go at the last minute (tension and release)
2. Cecelia Gonzalez: Use more disassociation, Use the torso and back in the molinete, Keep my hips facing the man.
3. Amanda Gris: Improvise and interpret on my own, Keep body soft (ice to water)
4. Johana Copes: Don't go up and down, Make a definite step, Use the standing leg for power, Don't collapse my left side. In forward ocho- torso, hip, leg and then the foot, In the back ocho- hip first.
5. Maria Angeles Rodriguez: Weight over front foot in forward ochos
6. Marcela Duran: Long leg back in the ocho before the weight goes down( cross the leg a little), Ice-cream cone theory- enjoy every part of every step.
7. Augusto Balizano: Dance the pivot into the floor, Posture erect, Take my time- slow it down, Follow through with the right arm.
8. Olga Besio: Find the pause in the tango, Dance to the floor and the music.
9. Daniela Arcuri: Don't collapse my left side, Don't collapse my right side.
10. Carina Mele: Lift torso, Lighten my upper body
11. Eliana Sanchez Arteaga: Follow the man's left arm
12. Marissa Quiroga: Feet on the floor, Beauty in the foot.
13. Pablo Veron: Put the back heel down, Look over the mans shoulder and up a bit (posture up, head up)
14. Sonia Peralta: Move like a methodical cat, Don't go up and down.
15. Pablo Alvarez: Keep hip level in the side step
16. Noelia Barsi: Open the hip on the back step, deeper cruzada
17. Aurora Lubiz: Free leg totally free, small beautiful adornos but seldom
18. Gabriel Misse: Use the diaphragm for balance forward and back, Use the back muscles for lateral balance, lag the back leg
19. Oscar Gauna: Breathe together.
20. Silvana Nunez: Vary the speed between fast and slow
21. Me: Perservere, Keep a blog about all this, Thank all the above and all the below in some way.
22. Privates and group lessons with instructors who nudged me with some of the above ideas. Junior Cervila, Jesus Velazquez, Natalia Rojo, Miguel Zotto, Alberto Paz, and more to come.
ADD ONS from April 2014- Of course, Rodolfo Dinzel
 Beto Barsellini and Lis Dorin: Complete the pivots, relax the ankles, knees and hips, lift the chest at a slight diagonal, push the floor on every step. More disassociation.

Workshop Weekend in Ithaca

Oliver and Silvina both had birthdays on November 7th so the weekend was special for all of us. Dinner hosts at the farm made our stay even more special. Wolfgang and Susan concocted a carrot soup that was laced with ginger. The rest of the meal was equally delicious. Nice to visit with Joaquin, Vatan, Juan and other tango lovers.
Workshop 1 - rebounds with a slow, quick, slow beat. Most of the guys mastered the step but not the beat.
Workshop 2- interrupting the cross. This was gorgeous but hard to lead. I decided to do the cruzada every time unless the interruption was clear. Worked well for me. The first one we learned was an overturned cruzada. This is my favorite walking step this year or maybe ever. I have to remember to drill into the floor before the forward step.
Anyway I don't know how the Durkins drive the distance in 1 1/2 hours. 2 hours and we were just pulling in - the last 30 minutes seemed like forever in the dark.
The more we organize and get ready for our trip to BsAs the messier it gets.
Bonfire might be good right now. Too many clothes, too much clutter and not enough time to do something about it all.

Why did I worry?

Just the most wonderful time for all of us and I've never seen a milonga like the Oliver and Silvina version. Good food and the most gorgeous evening surrounded by our friends, the true- believers- and 6 tango instructors under one tent roof. Back in the spring for our 4th summer.

Moving the Date and Getting Ready

Oliver and Silvina don't mind the cold and we don't mind the cold, but we moved the tent closing back two weeks this year so our last night would be a bit balmy. The forecast looked dismal. Mike and I ran around trying to rent another propane heater for the other end of the tent, but nothing was left for the weekend. Home Depot had a 7 footer with a gorgeous copper base. "Takes about 30 minutes to construct" Hah!
Walter came on Friday to make Pigs in the Blanket. "Goes really quickly" Hah!
I never want to see a cabbage again!
So tonight we'll see how it goes. Mike and I have to hang plastic sheeting around the small tent, clean the floor and add all the finishing touches.
Thank god for friends who always help and give us support for this crazy endeavor. Thank God for Oliver and Silvina who teach us the tango.

SILVINA SAYS........

1. GO WITH YOUR BODY - last night at Cathie's excellent lesson at Jack's I moved so differently I didn't know it was me. This was tango. Even our milonga moved freely. My last milonga with Dan in close embrace surprised both of us. Better, much better. How nice to see 10 enthusiasts walking to the BEAT of tango.
2. GO WITH EASE- Silvina stood me up from the breakfast table and took me sideways, backwards, forward over and over in a relaxed embrace. If Silvina only knew how many times I've heard, relax, relax the free leg, breathe, just RELAX. It's #1 on my list of 17.
3.LOOK OUT AT EYE LEVEL AND IT WILL ORGANIZE YOUR SKELETON- picking things around the room at eye level was a distraction for many tandas. Now I understand the way it works. Makes me feel giddy, but my balance is a million times better.
4. DRILL INTO THE FLOOR BEFORE THE BACK OCHO- my axis was secure and I was able to "open my hips". Drilling is not bending the knees. The floor is my first romance.
5. WALK ON THE BEAT- Mike is slowly starting to grasp the beat and will allow me to softly count it out for a few measures. This is the biggest change in our dancing.
6. WATCH HOW YO PLACE YOUR FOOT- I am on my metatarsals with all toes flat. With all the ballet training I had years and years ago I am starting a love affair with the floor. CARESS the floor she tells me. Thank God ballroom has bypassed my limited dancing lessons.
Silvina is my hero and an extraordinary teacher and woman. I watch her over and over on YouTube and our videos to try to channel her energy and grace. She has changed my dance. Might I someday leave the beginner level ? This thought hadn't even crossed my mind. We'll see. MAYBE?

Getting Ready for Oliver and Silvina- One Day and Counting Down

A bit of a frenzy happened yesterday and my God, I can't thank enough all the people who have helped us pull off this coming tango weekend. Me, with my type A, everything-has-to-be-done right kicking in and Roscoe calling me the boss and saluting every time he sees me. Frank, the plumber and tango dancer, brings Frenchy to work on the outside commode. We feed them all lunch then Frank gets the itch to tango. Out of his car come his tango shoes. We are all dirty and tired, but gather in the tent.
Mike puts on the music and my lovely niece, Sue, shows up to watch and laugh at our craziness.
Off come my jeans and I wiggle into a skirt and 3" heels. Mike and I dance first. Not a good one, but I didn't expect much. Now Frank and I take the floor. Another one not so good. The milonga feels energetic and easy. Roscoe wants to give it a try so we do some walking. Roscoe is going to be a tango dancer, if he can settle down enough to learn. Sue, in a cast with a broken foot, declines a chance to walk around the floor, but I see the interest in her eyes. Frenchy steps on the floor last with his size 15 work boots.
Oh am I in trouble if he steps on my foot, but he catches on quickly to the tilt of his chest and his weight up and a bit forward. I tell him to walk as if he's on top of a pair of cross country skis and that he does- collecting the size 15's as he goes. This would have been a good one for YouTube. A sorrier looking group have never graced the tango floor, but what fun.... AND they'll all be back tomorrow.

Jerry Neri 1943 (CANCER SUCKS)- May 2009

Karen Lucey at 3:13pm May 24
Jerry changed our lives in the most interesting way. When we tango in our tent at our home in northeast PA we always think of Jerry and always will. How I teased him about the Sunday stop we made at his house in June 07, always saying "That was the most expensive stop I've ever made." And it was!!!!! Within weeks we'd ordered a concrete pad, Celina tent, clear sides, 20x 30 dance deck etc., etc. -ready to go by the end of September.
When Jerry made his lovely photoart of our tango, which was the last time we saw him in the fall of 08, we had it framed and now it hangs in our dining area where the sun hits it at the end of the summer. Last night at a small dinner party here, a new guest and his wife commented on the art. Mike and I got quiet and sad, but life goes on. The best part of the evening came next- their interest in tango started with questions about our trips to BsAs, we showed them videos of Oliver Kolker and Silvina Valz. They wanted to try some basic walking. The other friends already love the dance so we all headed to our tent for a little tango to tweak the music, check the soft lighting and start our summer season. Mike held me closer and closer. Just a little closer than usual. How I wish Jerry had come to BsAs with us! We have so much to thank him for and because we are HERE so much to be thankful for.
Tango.....y nada mas.

Making Videos

Since we'll be closing our space in Clarks Summit in 16 days- only 2 more Sunday milongas, Mike and I decided to set up our video camera and take a good look at what we've learned before our April trip to BA. My dancing looks stiff. The long leg that reaches back isn't so long after all. Why do I think I look like Silvina Valz?
Balance and footwork seem fair, but the dynamics aren't there. Cecilia Gonzalez and my other wonderful instructors gave me a list of 7 ways to improve my dance. If I'm in a practice mode and not lost in the dance ( which is rare)I pick just one to work on. Yesterday it was a deeper knee bend on my standing leg and a push with the toes to propel back. Certainly looks different on the video than it feels. My best guess is that I need to relax more and let the dance happen. HAH!
Mike had a wonderful hint from Vince- to stop thinking about walking and think about where he wants to go- where he wants to take me. This made a huge change in his lead. He feels like Chiche- just taking me along for the ride. Most of our dance is just walking and thinking about Miguel Zotto's emphasis on embrace. Figures we save for another day.

This one was a success!

Yesterday The Scranton Times had my favorite headline. "Best Bets for Sunday- Argentine Tango" Guess where? This one we made special. Andi had her going away cake. Vince had a photographer come at 5:00 and I think he took 1,000 pictures. In came one new couple from Sugarloaf who smiled and smiled. About 5:45 we had the lesson and Mike and I made movies of many of the dancers. 20 of us gathered around the floor watching and learning. Juan suggested the celebration waltz and the guys danced with Andi. Even Mr. Mazz did some walking and side stepping. This turned into a late night for us. A little more work than usual on the clean up end. After we watched the downloaded movies spent another 1/2 hour watching Oliver and Silvina in Moscow doing swing, tango and a milonga- a milonga that can't be described as dance. It is pure joy and energy like a cyclone moving along the floor. All of these are on YouTube from their recent trip to Russia. Anyway it was just the way a tango evening should be.