![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Realizations in dance
I'm not sure why, but these last few days I've been noticing things about my dance. It feels like I've recently improved my ability to step outside and watch myself without throwing the dance all to hell in the process (reduced Heisenberg factor).
First off, there's something about trusting my instincts more about what someone is doing, or is going to do. Tonight I was dancing with a woman with a strong background in MA and yoga, but no CI. She was on my back/butt as I was in a downward dog-ish pose. She started rolling sideways to come off of me onto her feet.
As she rolled sideways, she also edged forward and moved her body so that it was her hip rather than her belly that was in contact with me (I tried writing this as "she changed the concavity of her body on the point of contact" which is more to the point, but I don't think it's even vaguely english. What I'm trying to get at is, at one point she was effectively hooked onto me, but then she turned the hook sideways so it was no longer an effective hook. If anyone can tell me how to say that, I'd love to hear it...), and proceeded to slide down my back head first.
By the time she started to slide, I'd reached back with my right arm and caught her leg in a pressure lock creating enough friction between her leg and my back that I could stand up leisurely and continue to dance. On someone more experienced I would have let them go as they chose (I know it bugs me when people "protect" me. I'm falling because I want to be falling, or at least because I was open to the possibility...) With her I knew she wasn't aware that she was about to go floor-ward (I can say this for certain as we talked about it later).
Monday night I was dancing with a woman who weighs within a loud shout of what I do. I was lying on my back with my arms out and up like a tuning fork (modulo my head). As she stood on my hands and did a vaguely triumphant tarzan thing I picked her up. Despite being a pure strength move it was smooth, easy, soft, and lush. She then leaned forward, rested her elbow on my feet (which were just kind of there), smiled, and lounged like a great cat going to sleep. Oh it's wonderful dancing with her...
The thing that struck me was that I'd always heard that you don't want to do that sort of thing in CI, it's all about muscle, and not from the core. I think that it may be more accurate to say that you don't want to do things like that if they are muscularly difficult for you. If you can just lift the person easily and stably, hey, go for it. Surprise someone.
I've been announcing the Sunday CI Jam (11:30AM-1:30 Sunday at the Arlington Center, 369 Mass Ave, we've got a bunch of new people in the jam, come on down it's fun) at the various dances for about 10 months now. In that time three people have asked me for more details, until the last week. Now I've heard that I'm running the jam, a tribal elder in the local CI community, teach CI on the side, and six people wanted more info tonight alone. Also, I've been asked to help run one of the dances (the current crew is starting to realize that they burnt out a year ago).
Between all of that, I've been noticing a difference in how people respond to me and how I can move through a room. I'm being given more space, I'm being deferred to a lot more in dances, and I feel like people are watching me. I'm not yet sure how I feel about these.
When someone starts doing something that I really don't like (one of my bug-bears is grabbing a connection rather than offering one (some people have said that they feel a bit insecure flying on me as I'm intentionally leaving space for them to get out if they so choose)) I can just walk away. I tend to let people know the why the first time or three, but after a while I just go.
I've found this to be very liberating, both in its gross form, and generally that I'm just not doing things I don't want to. Like I'm letting my closeted minimalist out more lately...
This is not a bad thing, but I really just noticed, in the last two dances that I've been to, I've danced with 4 males, and that was enough for me to think "Gee, I've danced with a lot of boys lately."
Oh there's probably more, but I have to go to sleep. I'd love feedback, particularly from people who've danced with me. Be well.
First off, there's something about trusting my instincts more about what someone is doing, or is going to do. Tonight I was dancing with a woman with a strong background in MA and yoga, but no CI. She was on my back/butt as I was in a downward dog-ish pose. She started rolling sideways to come off of me onto her feet.
As she rolled sideways, she also edged forward and moved her body so that it was her hip rather than her belly that was in contact with me (I tried writing this as "she changed the concavity of her body on the point of contact" which is more to the point, but I don't think it's even vaguely english. What I'm trying to get at is, at one point she was effectively hooked onto me, but then she turned the hook sideways so it was no longer an effective hook. If anyone can tell me how to say that, I'd love to hear it...), and proceeded to slide down my back head first.
By the time she started to slide, I'd reached back with my right arm and caught her leg in a pressure lock creating enough friction between her leg and my back that I could stand up leisurely and continue to dance. On someone more experienced I would have let them go as they chose (I know it bugs me when people "protect" me. I'm falling because I want to be falling, or at least because I was open to the possibility...) With her I knew she wasn't aware that she was about to go floor-ward (I can say this for certain as we talked about it later).
Monday night I was dancing with a woman who weighs within a loud shout of what I do. I was lying on my back with my arms out and up like a tuning fork (modulo my head). As she stood on my hands and did a vaguely triumphant tarzan thing I picked her up. Despite being a pure strength move it was smooth, easy, soft, and lush. She then leaned forward, rested her elbow on my feet (which were just kind of there), smiled, and lounged like a great cat going to sleep. Oh it's wonderful dancing with her...
The thing that struck me was that I'd always heard that you don't want to do that sort of thing in CI, it's all about muscle, and not from the core. I think that it may be more accurate to say that you don't want to do things like that if they are muscularly difficult for you. If you can just lift the person easily and stably, hey, go for it. Surprise someone.
I've been announcing the Sunday CI Jam (11:30AM-1:30 Sunday at the Arlington Center, 369 Mass Ave, we've got a bunch of new people in the jam, come on down it's fun) at the various dances for about 10 months now. In that time three people have asked me for more details, until the last week. Now I've heard that I'm running the jam, a tribal elder in the local CI community, teach CI on the side, and six people wanted more info tonight alone. Also, I've been asked to help run one of the dances (the current crew is starting to realize that they burnt out a year ago).
Between all of that, I've been noticing a difference in how people respond to me and how I can move through a room. I'm being given more space, I'm being deferred to a lot more in dances, and I feel like people are watching me. I'm not yet sure how I feel about these.
When someone starts doing something that I really don't like (one of my bug-bears is grabbing a connection rather than offering one (some people have said that they feel a bit insecure flying on me as I'm intentionally leaving space for them to get out if they so choose)) I can just walk away. I tend to let people know the why the first time or three, but after a while I just go.
I've found this to be very liberating, both in its gross form, and generally that I'm just not doing things I don't want to. Like I'm letting my closeted minimalist out more lately...
This is not a bad thing, but I really just noticed, in the last two dances that I've been to, I've danced with 4 males, and that was enough for me to think "Gee, I've danced with a lot of boys lately."
Oh there's probably more, but I have to go to sleep. I'd love feedback, particularly from people who've danced with me. Be well.