New location

Yeah, so I stopped posting here a while ago, as evidenced by the date on my previous post. I am now here:

http:\\apanchenko.com

No time

When you are mad because it's 8 pm and your network sign-on is about to expire for the day and you have to go home... Well, let's face it, you're a workoholic who is short on time.

For the past two weeks, I have not had time... Or life. How sad.

Yes!

This just in!!! Oh sweet mother, we were not so bad after all! What a relief!

Oh wtf, who am I kidding, another anonymous unhappy female dancer just ripped us a new one. On one hand, what's with all the hatred, women of tango? On the other hand, I think I know what exactly is with it... and, honestly, I thought we were not as good as we could have been. Then again, I don't think we were that bad. Well, I just don't know what I think, ok!

Valentango 2007

So R., my dance partner and good friend, got invited to teach at Valentango, and asked me to teach with her as the organizer of the festival asked her to bring a partner to teach together. Needless to say, I was excited beyond belief.

I came back on Monday, still excited after a weekend of classes, practicas and milongas. I did not dance nearly as much as I hoped because teaching really wiped me out. I danced enough to enjoy it though. Everything was just dandy.

That's until the reviews started popping up on the Valentango feedback blog. We got owned by some angry woman posting anonymously. I am assuming this was a woman because of the frustration with too many women and not enough men to dance with them, etc. etc. I mean, there was a guy posting with similar sentiment but there was just too much pure fury to come from a guy sympathizing with the women who didn't get to dance much... Regardless, we got slammed. Her precise words were that we 'should have been taking classes, not teaching them'. The only thing that saved my sanity from getting lost was the amount of positive feedback we received personally from students in classes we taught. I guess it is only a question of time until those positive words show up on the blog because - oh God almighty, no! - Clay (the organizer) decides whether to bring back a certain teacher based on the feedback. So far we are down 2 -0 (yeah, there was another 'nice but not up to snuff' comment). Come on people! Bring in the good stuff!!!

Yeah, I am not really worried, honestly... I have so much ahead of me. For the next couple of years I will be preoccupied with balancing work, school and family life so this stuff really takes a spot below the aforementioned priorities.

I had a good time. Inna (my girlfriend) had a good time. That's all that matters. Next festival, I am dancing, not teaching :)

Rediscovering Tango

There is no other way to call this. I am re-discovering Tango for myself and it has been breathtaking. Literally, half the time I find myself on the dance floor breathless as I lead my follow through the simplest of steps. It is as if all my senses sharpened tenfold and I can feel her heart beat inside of me and her breath feel my lungs with oxigen. We dance through tandas, inseparable. And it repeats over and over again. I have never believed in tango trance and here I am, experiencing something that I think is exactly it.

I am addicted to tango as it is but now that I have felt what it is like to be one with the follow, music and the dance floor, I am pretty sure this is for life. A fantastic feeling, sending tingles down my spine even when I just think about it. I can only wish that every tango dancer experiences this in his or her life. This is worth all the pain of being a beginner, all the money spent on airfare, hotels, workshops, privates, and shoes. This is worth the wait and it is definitely worth the dance!

UN Security Council

As we all know, the 60th UN General Assembly has commenced in New York. One of the important discussion topics will be expansion of the Security Council. Two seats will be added to the Council, with Germany and Japan being the candidates. Not many people know that Iran and North Korea tried to nominate their representatives for the Council seats saying: "At least we got the BOMB!"

Fortune cookie

Word to word: "You have an unusual equipment for success, use it properly."

I mean, are there still doubts why men rule the world?! Remembering The War of the Roses: "Honey, you are not equipped!" It's all about the penis. Even the Chinese food industry is catching up.

How sad...