After Lindy Groove last night, I went directly to the homestead. This weekend Bork and Genie are away on a social interview to see if they fit in with the firm that Bork is interning at this summer. So, all three Beans were going to be boy-handled by the rest of the family.
Dad, who was sleeping on the couch downstairs, was very happy to see me. He pointed to a bottle of formula, then the portable crib with Bean 3 in it, then went upstairs to bed. After a short shower, and checking on the other two Beans, I settled down on the couch.
Bean 3 started acting up around 0200. When it became decidedly apparent that he wasn’t going to go back to sleep, I got him his bottle, changed his diappy, and patted his bum until he rejoined Winkum, Blinkum and Nod. Fortunately, he didn’t wake the other two Beans.
In the morning, it was a little chaotic. Beans 1 and 2 up and hungry, and just a tad ornery. Bean 3 having a very different type of stinky diappy this morning. The bigger beans wanting to eat the chips and seven layer dip that I was snacking on, but not quite getting the hang of the layering, and swiping most of the cheese and sour cream off the top. Mom leaving for work. I tried to run out to Fry’s to get some cool stuff on sale, but Bean 3 suddenly got very attached to me, and started wailing whenever I walked away from him. So it was that we all piled into Dad’s car (which had all three car seats) and going over to Fry’s.
I love wandering around Fry’s. All kinds of cool, techie electronics. I positively drooled over the cameras, computers and gadgets, but only ended up getting some cd/dvd sleeves, an organizer, and an 8Gig (!) USB flash drive that I seem to have misplaced as soon as I got back to my apartment.
Rest of the day was uneventful. Back at home there was more of the same. Bigger Beans running around, always wanting something to snack on. Bean 3 wanting to be fed, changed, and held/watched all the time. I did break out the Planet Earth dvd’s for us all to watch, and that held the boys until about lunch time … at which point dad took the big boys over to McDonald’s for lunch and playtime in the kiddie jungle gym room. I stayed home with Bean 3 and tried to keep my cool in the heat.
In the late afternoon, while Bean 3 was sleeping, I slipped away to Lens Crafters to pick up my glasses. The optician who helped me was (to use a completely tired work) cute. Kind brown eyes, curly brown hair, a disarming smile, and a shy and helpful manner. It’s strange … I spend so much of my time avoiding eye contact (An asian thing? An I-don’t-want-to-dance-with-you thing? An I-really-like-you-so-I’ll completely-ignore-you thing?), but feel completely comfortable looking into the eyes of whichever optician is helping me at the moment. Maybe it’s because I know they’re not trying to plumb the depths of my mind, and I can just enjoy looking into theirs. The eyes seem to tell so much. I like looking into others’ eyes when we’re having really deep talks. And I have trouble meeting someone’s eyes when I’m talking about my innermost thoughts and feelings. Indeed, when I’m having a real heart-to-heart (as opposed to being a confidant or trouble shooter), I prefer to be where the light is very, very dim.
Anyway, the guy was cute. And my new glasses look good. He cute optician guy told me so. But even more important, I felt it was so. However, the contacts won’t be ready for a couple weeks.
Back at the homestead, I got ready for dancing. Quick shower and change, all the while praying that it would cool down before the dancing got too far along, then I was off to Paseo Colorado.
If I had to compose a personal, “My Favorite Things,” it would include summer outdoor dancing to live music. In years previous, I was always a little suspicious of outdoor venues … lindy is danced into the ground, and it’s just too hard to do on most concrete surfaces. However, the last week of the series last summer, I went, and had a marvelous time. So, I was ready to start on day one this year. The band was hopping, and the floor was full when I arrived. Luckily, I bumped into Mini-Hulk, and got in two dances right away. Lots of other people around, and I danced almost as much as I wanted to.
Must confess that nowadays I am mostly a groove dancer. I tend to be more partial to the intermediate tempos, and to dance with leads who allow me a lot of flexibility. However, there is something special about dancing in a skirt … I always revert back to how I danced when I was taking semi-private lessons with Erik and Sylvia: a little bouncier, a little more Hollywood, a little more feminine, and a lot flirtier. Plus, as LitheOne articulated the other week, it’s just so much cooler to have the legs exposed when dancing.
Royal Crown Revue was kickstarting the Paseo Colorado summer series. They are such a dynamic band. Eddie Nichols, the lead singer, has a bit of the old-time gangster/pugilist air about him, and all the other band members are young, handsome and vibrant. Think Peter Lawford in the original Ocean’s Eleven. When I first started dancing, they played every week at the Derby, and I went at least once a week. That was where I met Wataboi, Little Flower and GioBfast, and 8-On. Good times, those were. Tonight, RCR played a wide variety of music, a lot of it rather fast. The floor was so packed that people started dancing on the concrete, which was smooth and not half-bad. At one point, it was just the drummer and the basist on the stage. Drummer started beating out a complex rhythm just with his sticks, then moved to drumming on the base, while the basist fingered the strings on the handle. It was amazing.
Anyway, I love it. There’s so much amazing dancing going on this summer … most of it free! Here’s just a taste:
Paseo Colorado ~ Free dancing from 830-2130 in the courtyard. Fridays are swing, Saturdays are salsa. Free lesson by PBDA owners Erin and Tami Stevens. I’m not big on the style they teach, but they are good dancers, and PBDA does feature live music.
I’ve also heard tell that there is swing dancing at One Colorado Courtyard on Fridays from 2100 on. Haven’t been able to find any info, but next time I’ll head over after Paseo Colorado and check it out.
Through July, there is also outdoor dancing to live music in Burbank on Thursdays . Lessons at 1800 by Francisco and Stacey. Music goes on at 1900 and goes through about 2100.
Also on Thursdays is
Lindy Groove for more dancing! $7 admission. Casual. Everyone from high schoolers through retirees.
And, Paladino’s is open every Tuesday in the summer. This is where the cool Hollwood dancers hand out. DJ music in a bar (with pool tables on the side). The floor isn’t great, but the music and dancers are. $7 admission, 21 and over.
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