*DISCLAIMER*…. I’m trying to understand the rationale behind the whole debate. I’m not trying to target anyone in particular, so let’s keep this clean, ok? I'm looking for input, not a poo-flinging contest.

Lately I have found myself in the midst of or around titillating conversation focused on one thing: What makes a dancer a “pro”? People seem to like to stand on either end of an extreme: Either they can’t believe that someone is competing at the professional level because they believe the person in question does not have the credentials/winnings/whatever, or they are pissed off that a dancer is competing in a lower division when they also are teaching (or are professional in another style of dance).

It seems to be a long-standing debate, and I don’t believe there is a solid line that one can draw, really. I teach, both private lessons and group lessons, but does that make me a professional? I hope not! Yikes, scary thought! I'm an Intermediate/Advanced dancer, and although I aspire to be something great, I plan on sticking to the plan for some time!

Some convention rules define a pro versus non-pro as those who make a certain amount of annual income from dance-related instruction, etc… Even here, the amount of money earned varies between events.

I think this is a Catch-22 situation. People seem to get upset when a dancer (who just happens to teach at a pro or semi-pro level, be it WCS or another style) plays by the rules and works their way up the World Swing Dance Council (WSDC) points system. They say that the dancer shouldn’t be competing at their level, because it isn’t fair. They can be called sandbaggers, or worse. Other people are upset when a dancer skips levels and ends up in a pro division somewhere. They say that the dancer doesn’t deserve to be up there, or that they haven’t earned their way up, and that it isn’t fair. Sometimes these statements come from the same people! Why is that?

Is it fair to the dancers who are in question? People are sometimes so adamant about the matter that they are rude to these dancers and treat them like outcasts (in some cases). Sometimes these dancers don’t have too much of a choice, and sometimes they do. I think that if they truly belong in a higher division, they will prove themselves in time. Either they’re going to literally fly up the competitive ladder and end up there ANYWAY, or they’re going to go straight to the top without stopping, and either sink or swim.

Is it fair to bring in a dancer’s background/successes in a different form of dance into the argument? Seriously, since when does being a double-dutch or pole-dancing champion make someone HAVE to start out in a higher level of a different dance?

A perfect example. I was recently at a dance event (ok, so it was about 6 months ago), and while I was watching a lower-level competition, a complete stranger came up and commented to me, “I can’t believe that dancer has the gall to dance in this division. They are a professional in another dance style! They should dance with the pros. That is SO unfair.”

I turned to her and politely informed her that the dancer is simply playing by the rules and working their way up in the WSDC points system. Besides, different styles of dance should have no impact on where a dancer starts in another world altogether. Key word here: DIFFERENT dance styles.

The stranger said she agreed and understood, but she still had that sideways glance that told me she wasn’t quite convinced. Oh well, you can’t convince them all.. but you do see where the problem lies?

So I ask, where should it end? Where should the people in charge draw the line?

All I have to say, is that if a dance event somewhere tried to put ME in a professional division, saying that since I teach that I have to compete there, I’d probably ask to please be excused so I can change my pants, burn the pair with skid marks, and then go hide somewhere until it’s over, because there would be NO WAY I could compete against them on the same level.
OH HELL NO.

You know you’re addicted to dancing when you’re willing to drive two and a half hours in LA traffic, sit in a sweltering studio/auditorium for 6 hours, sweating under heat lamps galore, and sitting in chairs until JUUUUSSTT before your butt goes numb (then they’d thankfully announce for us to get up and dance for the breaks, only to repeat all over again), all for the sake of dancing and upholding the spirit of dance.

I drove up to Hollywood yesterday after working a half day at work to help film a pilot for a POSSIBLE new dance TV show, “The US Open Swing Dance Challenge.” It’s really awesome that Ron and Tyoni Martin’s brainchild has finally come to life, and it’s very inspiring to know that they’re making such a huge effort to bring our somewhat underground community up and out into the sunlight where everyone can be aware of it.

I can’t remember how many times I’ve been at a dance competition at a hotel somewhere and people would wander in and be dumbstruck by how COOL West Coast Swing is. Usually the first thing out of their mouths is something along the lines of, “Oh my god this is so amazing!” The second thing is either “I never knew this even existed!” or “I didn’t know people did things like this!” Hopefully this pilot can be picked up by a producer so that WCS can finally get some great exposure. We like new blood :-D

We were asked to dress up very nicely (“cocktail”), and were seated at small tables surrounding the central dance floor. As the audience, our role was to sit there, look pretty, clap when appropriate, cheer when it’s good, and get up and dance in between performances so that we can show that the dances can be done socially (a mix of WCS and Lindy music was played… I figured I’d spare the world my 5 year old Lindy and just participate in the WCS numbers). 3 of the couples performing in the mock competition were WCS dancers, and 3 were lindy dancers. Sorry WCS dancers, you guys were GREAT, but the Lindy dancers WERE AWESOME!!

Actually, all of the performances were awesome. Way to go, Benji and Lacey. You’re radicool!

Kudos to all the juniors who were there at the studio from 6AM until late at night helping out set up and cleanup. You guys are troopers! You all looked awesome, too. Lauren, you looked 23, you were so gorgeous!! Josh, I’ll say it again: Your mom is Supermom. Sorry for trying to break my elbow on your nose…… Lacey, I WANT THAT TOP!!!!!!!!

Eventually I’ll get some pictures up, but I had to use a *GASP* disposable camera because I was a genius and plugged my digital camera into the charger, but didn’t plug the charger into the wall. Oops.

Thanks goes out to Geoff for passing his cell phone around the dinner table so people could talk to me and keep me awake while driving back to San Diego… I’m still trying to get that mental image of Benji maniacally sprinkling sugar “snow” in Lauren’s hair while singing “Jingle Bells” in the middle of a crowded restaurant out of my head…. May I never have to listen to Buddy sing his rendition of “Happy Birthday” over the phone for a fake birthday ever again…. My poor ears :-D

1. I've never been to a concert in my life.
2. When I was little, I had a pet raven... among other things. There were few animals that I did NOT have at one point or another.
3. I can plug my nose with my lips. It's how my dad taught me to swim when I was little.
4. When I was in my sophomore year of high school, I survived a kick to the forehead by a horse.
5. Until I was 7, I was bilingual, English and Spanish.
6. I used to be a wallflower, until about mid-Sophomore year. I hated to dance. Boy, hard to believe, huh?
7. I grew up on a tiny island that took an hour and a half to get to by boat, or something like that.
8. Once, I smuggled an iguana across the US-Mexican border in a sock.
9. I was once engaged. BIG mistake. :-D
10. I spent a year of high school without a car. I hitchhiked instead (ah, the benefits of growing up on a rock in the middle of B.F.E.).
11. The farthest I've ever gone for a first date is Colorado - from Washington. On HIS tab.
12. I have a freckle on my left knee in the shape of a capital letter "A". That's right, Grade A, baby.
13. Number thirteen.... Just for you, Josh: I once photographed Superman flying over a hotel bed in Los Angeles...... :-D

I saw Dukes of Hazzard tonight...

Mostly, I laughed, because I am easily amused and there was a lot of dumb humor. I should have known something was up when I recognized the guy who played Farva in Super Troopers. Message to Director Jay Chandrasekhar: Dude.. if you're going to cast the same guys in different movies, at LEAST change up the scenes! They took a whole scene out of Super Troopers!! Same actors playing the cops, same idea, just different speeds:

"How fast do you think you were going?"
"10 miles an hour?"
"8."
"But isn't that under the speed limit sir?"

And later... when the Dukes peeled away from a cop car, the SAME actor walks up in front of the camera with a faraway look reflected in his shades, and says (in the same booming voice), "Mother of God..."

.. I rest my case. Shit, Super Troopers is one of my favorite funny movies.. and dammit if the Director didn't think his crap was funny enough the first time around, he had to inject recycled scenes into new movies in hopes of generating more laughs? Super Troopers has been desecrated!
Dukes of Hazzard went ahead and took a big smelly dump on it.
I think not. The whole theater's reaction to this was a massive groan of pained effort.

Granted, it was still funny in a cute-General-Lee-Was-The-Best-Part kind of way, and if you like to make catcalls whenever Jessica Simpson is onscreen, by all means go and see it... but if I were you I'd wait until it came out on rental.... The best part by far were the bloopers at the end. You get to see Johnny Knoxville teabagging Seann William Scott!!