100  Keep It Simple Nice and Easy

Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2001 01:11:06 EDT
From: Arthur Greenberg <AHGberg@AOL.COM>
Subject: Keep It Simple Nice and Easy

Hi Learning Dancers:

There is so much that I was supposed to learn when I first started my
initiation into the art of dancing the Argentine Tango.

First....we want you to learn how to walk. No one told me that it was a
specialized type of walk; a Tango Dance Walk. When I had "mastered" the walk
solo (by myself without partner for about 15 minutes) I was provided with a
partner, a rather large young lady, approx 5'-11" and solidly built, I guess
she weighed in at 160 pounds.(all of it very nicely arranged on her lovely
female body.) Let's just call her, "Blondie"! Blondie was instructed to
provide me with some resistance to my forward motion while leaning toward me
to "retard" my forward walk. We assumed our dance hold and commenced. 10
minutes later we were "totally drenched with perspiration". We were both
quite exhausted from this effort and we both required some rest from this
vigorous exercise. Included in her mission was the extension from the hip as
well as an extended ankle, with her toe stretching backward to its farthest
point and a controlled roll-down from the toe, then to the ball of her foot
and then to avoid her putting any weight on her heel as she commenced her
next step (of course brushing the inside of her ankles and knees as one leg
passed the other. (By this time I was ready for a shower and a complete
change of clothes!) Blondie looked as if someone hit her with a full pail of
water. She was dripping wet! (She also was in need of a shower but I
hesitated to suggest it!) Perhaps some improvement in the air conditioning
might have helped. (But I doubt it!)

Walking to the Cross was the second mission for Blondie. It was explained to
me that I led this cross when I brought my right foot up to and closed it to
my left foot, changing weight. This had to be accomplished by stepping
outside my partner without us losing contact with each other's upper chest
and the integrity of our hold was maintained. .

The resolution followed. Half of a "Waltz Step", forward left, side right,
close left to right achieving about a "quarter of a turn". The Lady does the
counterpart.

We thanked each other profusely for the rigorous exercise we both experienced
in each other's arms and said, "Good Night"! As Blondie left she turned to
me and said, "We certainly got to know each other's body very well!"

I never saw Blondie again !

There must be a moral to this tale!

Sincerely,
Arturo
AHGberg@aol.com
West Palm Beach, Florida, USA