How do you dance?
madscientist
Pileated woodpecker
Joined: 7 May 2007
Gender: Male
Posts: 193
Location: Across the 8th Dimension...
Not at all if I can help it. Several times I've been unable to avoid it, some people have told me I'm good at it, but I feel that I look like a complete idiot and they're just trying to be kind. This is probably because I tend to think most of them look like idiots and I'M just trying to be kind when I compliment them.
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Scientia est Potentia
quiet:
I have never actually seen anyone dance before in person (of course I've seen it on the TV and movies though). I grew up in a community where it was considered a very evil thing to do.
Please don't get me started on how messed up this is. (not meaning rude, because i DO understand why you have felt that way). your body responds to music. its easy to do.
i personally love to dance and have felt very self conscious in my youth (no more-im old- 28, well old enough to not give a s**t about being embarrassed). but i love to dance, thats why i go out. its not to hook up or talk to some moron, its to drink a cocktail and dance to some awesome music in a way i haven't before. dancing is always new, unless your britney spears and you lip sing with back up dancers.
its a response to your senses.
this is what i would do for those of you who feel self conscious, just turn your light off and dance.
i dance all the time, with my ipod on, my dogs are jumping up and down. in the dark if i feel like it, with candles, in the shower, i have even stopped on a corner at a busy red light and totally broke it down i hope they enjoyed it as much as me.
but if you are really scared just turn your light off and dance. feel comfortable with yourself, don't think of what you look like- nobody can see you (unless you are schizophrenic, in that case ignore them) just do what you like.
not for ten seconds but for one whole cd. when your tired move slow when you feel like it do what you want. do not feel embarrassed of yourself or how you move.
my little brother is AS diagnosed (age 17) and very cool, we dance often. he is very trusting of few, but those few are so lucky. hes a blast. he even tells me to give him some space so he can really do his thing.
dancing is fun, its human and easy. my point is don't worry too much. you will find it is fun.
GoatOnFire
Veteran
Joined: 22 Feb 2007
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 4,986
Location: Den of the ecdysiasts
i personally love to dance and have felt very self conscious in my youth (no more-im old- 28, well old enough to not give a sh** about being embarrassed). but i love to dance, thats why i go out. its not to hook up or talk to some moron, its to drink a cocktail and dance to some awesome music in a way i haven't before. dancing is always new, unless your britney spears and you lip sing with back up dancers.
its a response to your senses.
Well, I did not actually ever think that dancing was evil. But at the school (K-12) that I went to it was not allowed (such as at school events, they would have banquets but not dancing). In addition, any kind of dating or relationships were strongly opposed (even in high school they told everyone to "wait until college to date"). So, for example, almost 50% of my high school class had never dated when we graduated from high school. Then I lived off campus during college so I never had any opportunities to witness people dancing.
To me currently it just seems like a very strange and alien concept, like watching animals doing strange things on nature shows.
i personally love to dance and have felt very self conscious in my youth (no more-im old- 28, well old enough to not give a sh** about being embarrassed). but i love to dance, thats why i go out. its not to hook up or talk to some moron, its to drink a cocktail and dance to some awesome music in a way i haven't before. dancing is always new, unless your britney spears and you lip sing with back up dancers.
its a response to your senses.
Well, I did not actually ever think that dancing was evil. But at the school (K-12) that I went to it was not allowed (such as at school events, they would have banquets but not dancing). In addition, any kind of dating or relationships were strongly opposed (even in high school they told everyone to "wait until college to date"). So, for example, almost 50% of my high school class had never dated when we graduated from high school. Then I lived off campus during college so I never had any opportunities to witness people dancing.
To me currently it just seems like a very strange and alien concept, like watching animals doing strange things on nature shows.
i like how you describe it (the whole animal thing.) thats why i commented. ive lived in a place like that. lets make ourselves feel more uncomfortable. (not you, but the society) as if its not screwy enough.
Go to industrial events, or some other musical style that's reasonably underground, people will all dance differently and no one will really care how you do it, unless you manage to kick them in the crotch or something!
I personally love to dance, but I can't do choreographies at all. I stumble, bump into people, the whole nine yards. Which is very annoying since on the Jewish events I go to there always seems to be a group of girls that are dead set on doing hora, or some idiotic line dance, and urge everyone to mimic them. Which most people do. And then I end up stumbling and bumping into people etc. you get the idea. Gaaarh!! But whenever I have a chance to dance just the way I like to, which mostly involves rather large arm movements and jumping around like crazy, people usually like it and swoon over my dancing, which I find odd because it's really just something made up and nothing special. If I knew exactly what made it so cool I'd tell you in a second, but I have no idea.
If you want to gather confidence before you go to a party (a non-mainstream party, as I said above), try dancing to the same kind of music at home, and just do what your body feels like doing. Do this for some time every day, and I think your movements will become 'practiced', more fluid, regardless of what kind of movements they might be, and people will see that. So they won't think "ah he can't dance" but "what an unusual style". At least I dance a lot at home, it's a great way to exercise and let off steam.
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HurricaneRae
Yellow-bellied Woodpecker
Joined: 9 May 2007
Age: 40
Gender: Female
Posts: 73
Location: Fort Wayne, IN
Although I am very self-conscience about dancing, I can dance. I most feel comcortable dancing without a partner though. I am female and I am HORRIBLE at following a partner. Although I like salsa and swing dancing, I tend to start leading my partner and they get frustrated. I use to go to raves and dance clubs because at places like that you don't dance with anyone, no one cares how you dance, and you can just disappear in the music.
I was in a show choir for 2 years. Choreography was always my down fall.
I was allways totally useless at dancing until I found THE SECRET ! !! !! !
Yes it's true, there is a key thing that makes it much easier to actually look COOL dancing instead of looking like a dork with flailing arms everywhere etc etc.
I read abou this somewhere and decided to try it and havent looked back since. Now I am not afraid to hit the dancefloor anymore, which allways used to give me panick attacks!
ok ok, so what is it then? heh. here it is:
The key is to dance to the BASE and not to the drums! That's it! really simple actually. It gives you a much more funky rythm, and you can look at good dancers and see that this is what they are doing too (maybe without knowing it). It also gives you a much slower rythm which is really good because most bad dancers dance way to fast because they are moving to the fast beating drums...
If there is no base, or you can't hear it properly or tune into it, then just MAKE UP your own base in your head that goes with the music and dance to that!! !
Sometimes it's harder to 'tune in' to the base, so when you get on the dancefloor dont move for a coupple of seconds and just concentrate on the music and you'll hear the base and then start moving.
Just try it at home a few times and you'll see what I mean.
Anyway, I hope I'm not stating the obvious (something I do ALL the time), but I was really clueless myself about this before I caught on....
Tip two: Don't dance with a beer/drink in your hand... it looks sloppy and shows you don't care and/or are nervous about dancing etc. I know it's a comfort thing because it's somewhere to put your hand, but really, force youself to put that beer/drink down!
Anyway, if you dance to the BASE, it doesn't really matter where your arms are because you'll look way more funky anyway.
Good luck!
ok ok, so what is it then? heh. here it is:
The key is to dance to the BASE and not to the drums! That's it! really simple actually.
Rather depends on the music. But the drums tend not to be
the best line to follow. Sometimes, I go after the guitars themselves,
which can be truly a wild orgy of energy.
!
Ah, but there is so much grace in dancing energetically whilst
balancing a drink, so that it doesn't spill. I'll even toss it from hand
to hand - all in seeming to be just about to fall in a total disaster.
It's rather like the singers who sound as though they are just
about to fall off key, but never do; a truly exhilarating risk.
I sincerely doubt that it is much of what
I do. They barely move. They seem capable
of making sense.
When I started it up again, I was first looking
for girls. But I gave that up, and started looking
for death instead. Now, I just want the high. That
and the acclaim.
Um..... okay.
On a lighter note, I went to my school dance yesterday and rocked!! !
Evfertbody thought is was cool that I danced (grind) because it was out od character for me, what with being a AS and all
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