So now you all know why I have been spending my weekends at the coast and have not been seen dancing in London recently. I have been trying to go out a couple of times during the week, but recently I had injured my leg somehow and haven’t been able to dance for a couple of weeks. My leg is better now so I will be out with a vengeance this week, starting tonight.
Because I haven’t been around lately, I am always being asked, particularly by the Argentines, if there is a man on the scene, as if that is the only reason to stop dancing. I have been asked this many times over the last few years. Sometimes I go on holiday or I am busy at work. In the last year or so I have only been going out on the weekends. I have been hibernating in the winters. As I used to go out nearly five nights a week for around three and a half years, I suppose any change in my habits will get people speculating on my personal life, especially as I have never been seen with anyone.
I am usually asked this question by the men. Perhaps it is because the men might have ulterior motives other than dancing. I have been told by many Latin men that they learn to dance in order to meet women. In saying that, they also learn to become good dancers. Perhaps it is their macho pride. I would always laugh at them and say that even if there were a man on the scene, that wouldn’t stop me from dancing.
A friend of mine hasn’t been dancing for awhile now as she has an injury. People think that she has a man and that is why she is not dancing. I tell them she is not dancing because she has an injury and can’t dance. They looked shocked and tell me that they might contact her. I really don’t understand why they hadn’t already contacted her if they were that concerned about her in the first place.
Women stay away from dancing for many reasons. I am generalising about dancing as this seems to be a thread in the various dance forms that I do, not just Tango. There are times when the women become more accomplished than the men and that leaves the women with few good dancers to dance with. So the women will stay away or try something different for a little while before they go back to dancing again. When they return, everything seems fresh as there may be new people to dance with or the previous dancers have improved. I have spoken to many women who have become disenchanted with the dance scene, particularly here in London. They say they get bored with seeing the same old faces or they are not dancing as much as they used to. The one thing that we all feel is that the dancing will always be there for us whenever we decide to come back to it.
Now that I feel competent with my dancing, I don’t feel the need to go out as often and I can get back to doing other things. After all, dancing did take up a huge part of my social life at one time. I am surprised that I still have friends left. I do have other interests and have recently been enjoying other activities since my redundancy. I have been meeting non-dance people. I had forgotten that there are other things in life to enjoy apart from dance.
Now there is man in my life and I am not to be seen in London on the weekends. I haven’t given up dancing, I just go dancing on different days of the week. I have investigated Tango near where my amor lives and will be trying out new venues and will be meeting new people.
I am involved with a non-dancer who has the potential to be a good dancer (I have tested his moves!), whether of Tango or Ceroc, Salsa, Jive, etc., who knows. Or maybe not, it is up to him. Either way, I am not giving up on dance just because there is a man in my life.
I am taking a break!
Posts
