Caribana week ahead: getting ready (to wuk)

This week will be an exciting one, with the Caribana parade this Saturday, partying the Sunday after, and all the preparation that's going into it all.

Today was the last class of Socasize Bootcamp, a dance aerobic class a couple of us took to get ready for the road, both by getting familiar with this year's music and moves, and also of course by upping our endurance to wine up for some 6 hours straight! I found that two hours of aerobics was really pushing it at first, but I got more used ot it, and the format of the class is perfect. It used the moves I grew up with as well as new ones to build tone and endurance, and the instructor really encourages you to throw it all out there and have fun with the dancing and the music. I totally would do it again, either during the year as a regular one-hour non-boot-camp class, or the bootcamp again if I play Mas in the future. Some of my favourite songs from the class:

• Come to Meh by Iwer George
• Hard Wuk by Machel Montano 
• Advantage by Machel Montano
• Illegal by Machel Montano
• Tornado by Otis 
• Wotless by Kes the Band 

Les souris dansent (or: When the cat is away...)

This week, I wanted to try something with a more uplifting feeling. I started with some bubbly, cute ideas (which I still may keep for later), but as it happened, partway through my idea-generating process, I put on headphones and iTunes to block out outside distractions, and a couple of my favourite songs songs came on. As I tried to resist the urge to bop in my chair rather than write a story, I realized that some of my favourite things are music and dancing. But sometimes I find it hard to dance "genuinely" with people around, unless I'm in a club full of others e who are, similarly, dancing their hearts out -- which doesn't come together as often as I'd like.

When it does though, I'm in heaven, and if that isn't uplifting, well, I dunno.

On rare occasions, you dine out. I blast 90bpm in the living room. No mirrors, no eyes. Euphoria. When no one's watching, I am Sasha Fierce.

Turn and turn about (or: I can do better, but choose not to)

Okay, so here is this week's instalment.

Before I paste the text here, I have to say, I'm not satisfied with this, not by a long (long, long) shot. I had an idea (annoying bits of songs that repeat in my head without continuing on or stopping when done -- with  format mimicking content, such as rondo or mirror or readable-back-to-front), and I wanted to experiment with it, and I know that if I took more time with it I could come up with something better, though possibly with only very superficial resemblance to this.

However, I also want to make sure I set some limits for myself with this whole mini-creative process. The object is not to create something perfect or even satisfactory. The object is to create something. Frequently and with a measure of regularity and hopefully some small interest value. Anyway, with all that preamble, you should now be just dying to read on.

Christmas and "musical" moments: These are a few of my favourite things

I follow this blog, zenhabits, because it sometimes has good ideas for reducing clutter and upping your simple happiness factor. Today's post is about doing the things that truly inspire you and make you happy, and in it, the author linked to this video. (Scroll down to the middle of the page, to the youtube insert.)

Now, you all know I love flashmobs. This one is awesome and definitely no exception. While I watched it, I had to wonder how many people were originally part of the performance, and how many joined in spontaneously because they have performed the chorus in one form or another before and know it fairly well.

Happy holidays.

http://zenhabits.net/get-inspired/