So... fellow blogger, La Tanguera, posted this video on her blog:
and it got me thinking... I usually say I don't like performance because you rarely see something you haven't seen before and it just bogs the the night down; energy et all. Watching this - Fabulous - milonga performance, it just dawned on me why I don't like performances: YOU CAN NOT DANCE LIKE THIS IN A MILONGA! Certainly you shouldn't and/or shouldn't be able to.. although there are plenty of hot-shot-jerks who try, and cause havoc - especially on the ankles of innocent followers. Keep this stuff on Broadway.. why dance like this at a milonga-performance when no one can try the same steps once the floor fills up again.
One of the best performances I've ever seen was performed by Christopher and Caroline of San Francisco.. they danced within one 24" x 24" dance parquet square the entire song to demonstrate that one does not need space to dance well.
Kudos to all who can dance like the kid in that video, but it don't do naught for me.
Showing posts with label Tango. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tango. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Tango-sick
3-more weeks until Memorial Day festival in Denver and Ms.Spain's arrival. I've been working like a dog last several weeks and miss dancing tango. I've been invited to go to Ann Arbor for no charge (travel fee's still apply, of course), but I just can't afford the travel or lost time at work.
I can do work whilst traveling but sleeping in late and spending 3-6+ hours at a milonga per night takes its toll on my productivity.
Ms.France.. my longtime friend and quasi-training partner often calls me to whine that I don't show up to dance.. she lives 80 miles north in the next town. If I want to dance, period, I'd have to drive up north to her town, where the community milongas are. Sucks to live in a tango vacuum.
Ms.Vegas' friend from Michigan is considering moving to my town/state.. if she does.. that might be a boost to my dancing frequency. It's been limited to dancing during my travels to or with Ms.Spain ever since Ms.Vegas moved to, well, Las Vegas, last year. I feel I'm seriously back-tracking in my dancing abilities not dancing as often as I used to.
Blah..
I can do work whilst traveling but sleeping in late and spending 3-6+ hours at a milonga per night takes its toll on my productivity.
Ms.France.. my longtime friend and quasi-training partner often calls me to whine that I don't show up to dance.. she lives 80 miles north in the next town. If I want to dance, period, I'd have to drive up north to her town, where the community milongas are. Sucks to live in a tango vacuum.
Ms.Vegas' friend from Michigan is considering moving to my town/state.. if she does.. that might be a boost to my dancing frequency. It's been limited to dancing during my travels to or with Ms.Spain ever since Ms.Vegas moved to, well, Las Vegas, last year. I feel I'm seriously back-tracking in my dancing abilities not dancing as often as I used to.
Blah..
Monday, March 17, 2008
DC Tango Marathon, done with
Heads remained surely and solidly lodged up peoples asses.
Attendance on Sunday was about half of Saturday, so there was quite a bit of space to move, but one still had to keep a lookout for the donkey's that possibly shot out towards you from the dark breeches of the floor.
DJ Yulia did a great job at the afternoon milonga but her one and only alternative set was not a very danceable one.. otherwise she did splendidly.
DJ Fredi should crawl under a rock and rot. He played a lot of alternative.. mostly attached to vals and milonga sets thus extending the length of those sets to 5-7. Majority of the alternative was crap. I'm sure he thought his cortina, too, was a cute and smart one as it was about tango, but it was hard as heck trying to figure out what was alternative and what was his cortina, so you ended up standing there for 15 seconds looking dumbfounded whilst trying to figure out whether to embrace or to say "thank you". Later on in the morning, circa 3 am, he started playing his sets in a completely unpredictable manner at one point playing a tango tanda that was 8 song long. You begin with an format; you end with an format. His sucky selections made me leave early.
In the hindsight: Not a festival worth paying $20 per milonga and $45 per class. Certain people will keep making the festival a destination, though. A festival for people who want to do what-the-ever-the-fuck-they-want-when-they-want-to-do-it, though; not a social dance festival.
Ta.
Attendance on Sunday was about half of Saturday, so there was quite a bit of space to move, but one still had to keep a lookout for the donkey's that possibly shot out towards you from the dark breeches of the floor.
DJ Yulia did a great job at the afternoon milonga but her one and only alternative set was not a very danceable one.. otherwise she did splendidly.
DJ Fredi should crawl under a rock and rot. He played a lot of alternative.. mostly attached to vals and milonga sets thus extending the length of those sets to 5-7. Majority of the alternative was crap. I'm sure he thought his cortina, too, was a cute and smart one as it was about tango, but it was hard as heck trying to figure out what was alternative and what was his cortina, so you ended up standing there for 15 seconds looking dumbfounded whilst trying to figure out whether to embrace or to say "thank you". Later on in the morning, circa 3 am, he started playing his sets in a completely unpredictable manner at one point playing a tango tanda that was 8 song long. You begin with an format; you end with an format. His sucky selections made me leave early.
In the hindsight: Not a festival worth paying $20 per milonga and $45 per class. Certain people will keep making the festival a destination, though. A festival for people who want to do what-the-ever-the-fuck-they-want-when-they-want-to-do-it, though; not a social dance festival.
Ta.
Friday, March 14, 2008
DC Tango Marathon Day 1, Thursday 13th
Been a while again...
Tonight was the (un-)official opening night of the annual DC Tango Marathon. It was at the Eastern Market in SE DC, not far from the Capitol. There was a lot of strange energy in the air this night and I was not the only one to notice it. I think it had something to do with people not quite knowing their places yet, and so there wasn't an established "clique" crowd yet. I'm sure that by the end of the first alternative milonga tomorrow, clear and definite classes will have borne out of the masses; you'll have your A and B class citizens.
The floor at the Eastern Market was it's typical late fall/winter/early spring quality; it was covered in red dust that made the floor very slippery. But by 12:30am the dust had been absorbed into peoples shoes and it even began to shine in places and got to be super sticky - kind of like in the humidity of the summertime.
Another downfall was the lack of bathrooms. In fact, I believe it to be illegal to put on a public event for which you are charging a covercharge, and then not provide lavatories for all.
I wasn't feeling very energetic nor inspired and ended up sitting quite a few sets down. The clear lack of cabeceo also throws me on a loop. We'll see how this weekend progresses, etc.
Ciao
Tonight was the (un-)official opening night of the annual DC Tango Marathon. It was at the Eastern Market in SE DC, not far from the Capitol. There was a lot of strange energy in the air this night and I was not the only one to notice it. I think it had something to do with people not quite knowing their places yet, and so there wasn't an established "clique" crowd yet. I'm sure that by the end of the first alternative milonga tomorrow, clear and definite classes will have borne out of the masses; you'll have your A and B class citizens.
The floor at the Eastern Market was it's typical late fall/winter/early spring quality; it was covered in red dust that made the floor very slippery. But by 12:30am the dust had been absorbed into peoples shoes and it even began to shine in places and got to be super sticky - kind of like in the humidity of the summertime.
Another downfall was the lack of bathrooms. In fact, I believe it to be illegal to put on a public event for which you are charging a covercharge, and then not provide lavatories for all.
I wasn't feeling very energetic nor inspired and ended up sitting quite a few sets down. The clear lack of cabeceo also throws me on a loop. We'll see how this weekend progresses, etc.
Ciao
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Tango Dance styles of old
Here's Rudolph Valentino in 1921 'dipping' his stuff in "Horsemen of the Apocalypse".
And here is Carlos Gardel in 1935 from "Tango Bar" moving smoothly to the rhythm. Unfortunately, this was all the tango dancing in this 1-hour long movie. Tango Bar was also Carlos' final leading role. He perished in the plane crash later that same year. Carlito is the second dancing couple.. not the first.
"Tango Bar Drama, 1hr 27min Carlos Gardel, Rosita Moreno, Enrique de Rosas. Killed in a plane crash in June of 1935, Argentine musical star Carlos Gardel was well on his way to becoming a legend when his final starring feature, Tango Bar, was released in the U.S. Though well past middle age, Gardel convincingly plays an amorous young cabaret vocalist named Ricardo, who falls in love with gorgeous dancer Laura (Rosita Moreno). To rescue the heroine from a gang of crooks, Ricardo puts his own life on the line, nearly losing same in the process. The villain, played by Enrique de Rosas, is a government official, reflecting the "outlaw" status of the tango in much of South America. Though filmed in Spanish and set in Argentina, Tango Bar was lensed in its entirety in Paramount's East Coast studios at Astoria, Long Island. Songs: Arrabal amargo, Por una cabeza, Lejana tierra mía y Los ojos de mi moza. Bonus Track : Gardel Color "Por una cabeza", "Golondrinas", "Cuesta abajo"
And here is Carlos Gardel in 1935 from "Tango Bar" moving smoothly to the rhythm. Unfortunately, this was all the tango dancing in this 1-hour long movie. Tango Bar was also Carlos' final leading role. He perished in the plane crash later that same year. Carlito is the second dancing couple.. not the first.
"Tango Bar Drama, 1hr 27min Carlos Gardel, Rosita Moreno, Enrique de Rosas. Killed in a plane crash in June of 1935, Argentine musical star Carlos Gardel was well on his way to becoming a legend when his final starring feature, Tango Bar, was released in the U.S. Though well past middle age, Gardel convincingly plays an amorous young cabaret vocalist named Ricardo, who falls in love with gorgeous dancer Laura (Rosita Moreno). To rescue the heroine from a gang of crooks, Ricardo puts his own life on the line, nearly losing same in the process. The villain, played by Enrique de Rosas, is a government official, reflecting the "outlaw" status of the tango in much of South America. Though filmed in Spanish and set in Argentina, Tango Bar was lensed in its entirety in Paramount's East Coast studios at Astoria, Long Island. Songs: Arrabal amargo, Por una cabeza, Lejana tierra mía y Los ojos de mi moza. Bonus Track : Gardel Color "Por una cabeza", "Golondrinas", "Cuesta abajo"
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Last flight of the year?
Here I sit, at the airport again, on my way home after - a total of - 2 weeks with Ms.Spain. Quite possibly the last trip I'm undertaking this year as I've no other trips planned and/or paid for at the moment.
I'm 99.90% certain that I won't be going to Portland this Valentine's for Valentango, so I don't have any clue when my next trip will be. I have a trip coming up for 2-3 weeks to Houston, but that won't occur until the later part of next year. I might go to Seattle again once there is adequate cashflow to support it. I liked Seattle.. maybe I should wait until the weather there gets a bit better, though.
I (bought and) downloaded an unabridged audio book copy of Anne Rice's Vampire Lestat. 20 CD's worth of book.. 23-25 hours.. lol. It's hard to type this and to concentrate on the audio book at the same time so I just had to pause the book.
I like working (design work) to audio books and earlier in the year went through all of David Sedaris' work and 6 years worth of This American Life from NPR. I can't, however, type or write while listening to an audio book. For that, only music works, as long as the music isn't intellectually demanding; i.e. require listening to the lyrics.
We went to a milonga last night and it was an ok one. Unfortunately, the music for over half the night sucked. Lots of nice dancers, but because of the music I only danced with 4: Ms.Spain, Ms.Belgium (who was recuperating from a serious allergic reaction), Ms.Ruskie#1, and Ms.Ruskie#2.
This will be my first time flying on Frontier. I was able to find a very decently priced 1-way ticket to DEN.. it's even a true non-stop flight. Even if it's the same plane that takes you from A to C through B, but you have to de-plane at B, it isn't a non-stop flight in my book. Too bad there isn't a non-stop flight from here to my hometown... would make it so much easier to visit Ms.Spain and to get her to come visit me. She's talked about coming around New Year's after spending Yule with her parents.
Anyway... it had been awhile since the last post so I thought to drop a line..
Ta
I'm 99.90% certain that I won't be going to Portland this Valentine's for Valentango, so I don't have any clue when my next trip will be. I have a trip coming up for 2-3 weeks to Houston, but that won't occur until the later part of next year. I might go to Seattle again once there is adequate cashflow to support it. I liked Seattle.. maybe I should wait until the weather there gets a bit better, though.
I (bought and) downloaded an unabridged audio book copy of Anne Rice's Vampire Lestat. 20 CD's worth of book.. 23-25 hours.. lol. It's hard to type this and to concentrate on the audio book at the same time so I just had to pause the book.
I like working (design work) to audio books and earlier in the year went through all of David Sedaris' work and 6 years worth of This American Life from NPR. I can't, however, type or write while listening to an audio book. For that, only music works, as long as the music isn't intellectually demanding; i.e. require listening to the lyrics.
We went to a milonga last night and it was an ok one. Unfortunately, the music for over half the night sucked. Lots of nice dancers, but because of the music I only danced with 4: Ms.Spain, Ms.Belgium (who was recuperating from a serious allergic reaction), Ms.Ruskie#1, and Ms.Ruskie#2.
This will be my first time flying on Frontier. I was able to find a very decently priced 1-way ticket to DEN.. it's even a true non-stop flight. Even if it's the same plane that takes you from A to C through B, but you have to de-plane at B, it isn't a non-stop flight in my book. Too bad there isn't a non-stop flight from here to my hometown... would make it so much easier to visit Ms.Spain and to get her to come visit me. She's talked about coming around New Year's after spending Yule with her parents.
Anyway... it had been awhile since the last post so I thought to drop a line..
Ta
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Dumb thing to say
Alright.. So I flew back home on Tuesday and returned to Ms.Spain on Friday.
Last night we had a nice milonga that we went to, and I said something not-so-wise. Last few months I've been suffering from severe lower back pain; The muscles get all tense and locked up when I dance. Well.. for some reason I told Ms.Spain that my back didn't hurt with somebody else but did with her... which of course wasn't true.. my back hurt equally bad with everyone. So, naturally, I managed to hurt her feelings.
The DJ was an out-of-town variety and she did not do very well. The first set she played, for example, were all the same orchestra, but different eras and different singers. Then later in the evening a vals set mysteriously turned into a tango tanda after only 1 vals.. and the next non-tango set that she played a little later was again a vals tanda. Quite strange.
We just had dinner and I'm feeling woozy: had a glass and a half of red wine, which I haven't had in ages. For breakfast/brunch/lunch we went to a local diner that served all-you-can-drink Mimosas for $7, and I had three, I think. So I've been slightly intoxicated most of the day, lol.
My expensive laptop is working a little strange so I bought a bluetooth mouse and a keyboard today.. pretty nifty.
No tango today. Have to wait until tomorrow night for some. 'Till then...
Last night we had a nice milonga that we went to, and I said something not-so-wise. Last few months I've been suffering from severe lower back pain; The muscles get all tense and locked up when I dance. Well.. for some reason I told Ms.Spain that my back didn't hurt with somebody else but did with her... which of course wasn't true.. my back hurt equally bad with everyone. So, naturally, I managed to hurt her feelings.
The DJ was an out-of-town variety and she did not do very well. The first set she played, for example, were all the same orchestra, but different eras and different singers. Then later in the evening a vals set mysteriously turned into a tango tanda after only 1 vals.. and the next non-tango set that she played a little later was again a vals tanda. Quite strange.
We just had dinner and I'm feeling woozy: had a glass and a half of red wine, which I haven't had in ages. For breakfast/brunch/lunch we went to a local diner that served all-you-can-drink Mimosas for $7, and I had three, I think. So I've been slightly intoxicated most of the day, lol.
My expensive laptop is working a little strange so I bought a bluetooth mouse and a keyboard today.. pretty nifty.
No tango today. Have to wait until tomorrow night for some. 'Till then...
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sunday morning soreness
Ms.Spain's mattress seems to be the cause for both our sore backs.. more so on me than her.
Last night I DJ'd my second time in this town and the first milonga here that I would classify as very conservative. Now mind you, a couple did come ask for Pugliese, but that was a fluke.
I let Ms.Spain help me choose some of the sets I played so that I could utilize her Spanish skills: I wanted to make sure I didn't have sets where 3 songs sing about a broken heart and the 4th is about losing money at the horse track. With the exception of one Di Sarli set, and a few sets that I should have played much earlier in the evening because they were so fast and energetic, I think it went alright. I was swimming in my suit, though. I had forgotten to bring a tie with me, and then the black shirt I had chosen to bring was clearly faded against the black suit so I swapped shirts last minute.The new shirt didn't work with my perspiration-fighting Potomac Field Gear-undershirt so I used a regular undershirt and was soaked.
My new suit is also one size larger than my regular size. I, mistakenly, listened to the suit salesman.. or rather trusted him... I clearly can not see what I look like behind and asked him if there were problems and he said no. Last night there were alot of mirrors, and it became clear to me that the jacket was and looks to be 1 size too big. Shoulder line doesn't stay straight and crisp, and with my arm up the jacket doesn't taper one bit *sigh*
I've got work to do and I don't feel like doing it. People, before I came here, kept telling me: Have a nice vacation, and I kept saying that it wasn't since I was bringing work with me, but I sure feel like it's a vacation.. sleeping in late.. not getting naught done.. lol.
Ms.Spain will go to work tomorrow so I'll be forced to be productive being by myself.
Ta
Last night I DJ'd my second time in this town and the first milonga here that I would classify as very conservative. Now mind you, a couple did come ask for Pugliese, but that was a fluke.
I let Ms.Spain help me choose some of the sets I played so that I could utilize her Spanish skills: I wanted to make sure I didn't have sets where 3 songs sing about a broken heart and the 4th is about losing money at the horse track. With the exception of one Di Sarli set, and a few sets that I should have played much earlier in the evening because they were so fast and energetic, I think it went alright. I was swimming in my suit, though. I had forgotten to bring a tie with me, and then the black shirt I had chosen to bring was clearly faded against the black suit so I swapped shirts last minute.The new shirt didn't work with my perspiration-fighting Potomac Field Gear-undershirt so I used a regular undershirt and was soaked.
My new suit is also one size larger than my regular size. I, mistakenly, listened to the suit salesman.. or rather trusted him... I clearly can not see what I look like behind and asked him if there were problems and he said no. Last night there were alot of mirrors, and it became clear to me that the jacket was and looks to be 1 size too big. Shoulder line doesn't stay straight and crisp, and with my arm up the jacket doesn't taper one bit *sigh*
I've got work to do and I don't feel like doing it. People, before I came here, kept telling me: Have a nice vacation, and I kept saying that it wasn't since I was bringing work with me, but I sure feel like it's a vacation.. sleeping in late.. not getting naught done.. lol.
Ms.Spain will go to work tomorrow so I'll be forced to be productive being by myself.
Ta
Saturday, November 24, 2007
After the first milonga
Okay! We finally made it out to dance last night. I arrived late Thursday night and we just
retired pretty early. On Friday we went to see "Love in the time of Cholera", which is based on a very successful book. The movie isn't nearly as good, but it isn't a horrible movie. What pisses me off to no end, though, is how they just employ actors with horrible (or authentic) Spanish accents instead of just speaking in Spanish, since they ARE in Columbia. Kind of like war movies where Germans and Russians speak English in an accent, lol.
The milonga was a disaster floor-wise. It was more slippery than an ice rink, if you had anything leather on the sole of your shoes. Rubber would have been best and would have/did slide just as well as leather on a normal floor. It was so slippery that every muscle in your body had to tense to keep from falling, so you quickly felt like you'd been beaten with a 2x4.
We left after only 4 sets and didn't dance with anyone else either.
Tonight I'm DJ'ng at another event so I hope all goes well. Will update after.
Ta!
retired pretty early. On Friday we went to see "Love in the time of Cholera", which is based on a very successful book. The movie isn't nearly as good, but it isn't a horrible movie. What pisses me off to no end, though, is how they just employ actors with horrible (or authentic) Spanish accents instead of just speaking in Spanish, since they ARE in Columbia. Kind of like war movies where Germans and Russians speak English in an accent, lol.
The milonga was a disaster floor-wise. It was more slippery than an ice rink, if you had anything leather on the sole of your shoes. Rubber would have been best and would have/did slide just as well as leather on a normal floor. It was so slippery that every muscle in your body had to tense to keep from falling, so you quickly felt like you'd been beaten with a 2x4.
We left after only 4 sets and didn't dance with anyone else either.
Tonight I'm DJ'ng at another event so I hope all goes well. Will update after.
Ta!
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Travel Day on the Turkey Day
Wow.. DIA has moved into the 21st century and has started providing free WiFi; WiFi that is ad-laden, that is. Top of the screen has advertisements and crap - Not free-free like it is at the COS airport and Helsinki-Vantaa in Finland. I also wouldn't be surprised, if the free zone only extended to this end of the C-terminal, where the SouthWest Airlines gates are. Since they moved to Denver a year ago, they've added tables that provide free power; even in the form of USB ports for juicing your gear. No other airline or other spot in the airport has such good access to electrical plugs.
I'm spending pretty much the entire day, 11 hrs on planes and in airports plus 2.5hrs of driving, getting out east to be with Ms.Spain for at least a few days. Original plan was for 12 continuous days, but problems with the current contract may force me to fly back next week and then return to Ms.Spain, and ultimately return almost a week later than now planned. If the building owners or their representative wants me to return to finish the job before the end of the month, they're going to pay for 3 flights to accomplish that.
I'm going to DJ once during my stay and the pay is actually pretty good. Twice what I got for last weekends gig in-town, and 35% more than the typical milonga in Denver. In fact, it is exactly 1-half of my airline ticket price, before tax. I need to create more tandas before Sat, though. The event is super conservative. It will, in fact, be the first time I've ever DJ'd whilst wearing a suit. I foresee heavy d'Agostino and Fresedo presence at the milonga - my two current favorites. It is interesting how ones music taste changes over the years. I used to much dislike both of them - I was more of a de Angelis/Pugliese-kind-of-guy. I feel that the next orquesta I might "re"-discover is Di Sarli.
Anyways.. they've got a football game blaring in the area I'm sitting in, and it's quite distracting. I don't follow football, though. I stopped caring for it when I stopped playing it myself.
Ta!
I'm spending pretty much the entire day, 11 hrs on planes and in airports plus 2.5hrs of driving, getting out east to be with Ms.Spain for at least a few days. Original plan was for 12 continuous days, but problems with the current contract may force me to fly back next week and then return to Ms.Spain, and ultimately return almost a week later than now planned. If the building owners or their representative wants me to return to finish the job before the end of the month, they're going to pay for 3 flights to accomplish that.
I'm going to DJ once during my stay and the pay is actually pretty good. Twice what I got for last weekends gig in-town, and 35% more than the typical milonga in Denver. In fact, it is exactly 1-half of my airline ticket price, before tax. I need to create more tandas before Sat, though. The event is super conservative. It will, in fact, be the first time I've ever DJ'd whilst wearing a suit. I foresee heavy d'Agostino and Fresedo presence at the milonga - my two current favorites. It is interesting how ones music taste changes over the years. I used to much dislike both of them - I was more of a de Angelis/Pugliese-kind-of-guy. I feel that the next orquesta I might "re"-discover is Di Sarli.
Anyways.. they've got a football game blaring in the area I'm sitting in, and it's quite distracting. I don't follow football, though. I stopped caring for it when I stopped playing it myself.
Ta!
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Another week gone by
Been a bit since my last post; been pretty busy.
I'm working on a project that is due for completion day after Thanksgiving, and I was essentially given 10 days, including 2 Saturdays and 2 Sundays, to get a job done that I told them as early as 2006, takes me 14-working days -not including weekends- to complete. *sigh*
I DJ'd on Friday and last night.
On Friday the attendance was pretty good since Julio Balmaceda and Corina de la Rosa were scheduled to perform at midnight. Well.. they were late.. and I estimate a good 30% of the people had left by the time they got there and performed at around 1 am. Of course it could not go without another incident: I play off of my laptop but the facility has 2 CD decks available. I had not tested the CD-player other than putting a CD in it with the sound down to see if it played, and it does spin the record. Well.. when it came to crank the volume.. of course nothing comes out *sigh* Had to swap the players while Julio was tapping his foot and whistling in the middle of the dance floor.
Last night we had our annual milonga here in-town, for which they collect money all year round, rent the space, and this year I even got paid a bit. Including me, there were 30 people. Lame. I was so wiped from the previous night and having had to get up early on Sat to go to work, still, that I had a hard time staying awake. My back was killing me too when I danced and my heels have been bruised for a week now from the physical labor. I only danced 3 sets and they were all with my cat sitter; sort of payment for her services.
Went to Lowes today.. I was blogging about my experiences during my last Lowes visit in June on my old blog. The place SUCKS. Ok so I go there for the ONE thing they've got that Home Depot doesn't : Cedar/Cedarwood colored caulk/silicone. I ended up buying all sorts of things, of course, as I usually do.. blades, drill bits, and the sorts. 160 dollars worth. And again, as last time, I get NO HELP what-so-ever. You can't even see associates lounging about as they do at H.D. I would have bought a 260 dollar cordless nail gun, but since I received no assistance and there were none to be readily taken on sale, I took off. They had ONE cashier-assisted register open, and that was at the help desk. Four self-help lines were in-use and I had to succumb to use one of them. I hate them. I pay good money for my tools and crap and expect someone to ring me in and to bag the shit for me. I don't want to do it myself. And then, of course, the machine has to think that you didn't ring something up or didn't put it in the bagging area or some other crap like that, and it's bitching at you non-stop. Sucks to have to rely on idiots and/or crappy organizations/companies.
Relief is just around the corner, though. I'm scheduled to complete my work by Wednesday on this project, and on Thursday I'm cramming my ass on an airplane for an all-day travel excursion back to the East Coast to be with Ms.Spain for 12 days. Finally good dancing and TLC.
Ta.
I'm working on a project that is due for completion day after Thanksgiving, and I was essentially given 10 days, including 2 Saturdays and 2 Sundays, to get a job done that I told them as early as 2006, takes me 14-working days -not including weekends- to complete. *sigh*
I DJ'd on Friday and last night.
On Friday the attendance was pretty good since Julio Balmaceda and Corina de la Rosa were scheduled to perform at midnight. Well.. they were late.. and I estimate a good 30% of the people had left by the time they got there and performed at around 1 am. Of course it could not go without another incident: I play off of my laptop but the facility has 2 CD decks available. I had not tested the CD-player other than putting a CD in it with the sound down to see if it played, and it does spin the record. Well.. when it came to crank the volume.. of course nothing comes out *sigh* Had to swap the players while Julio was tapping his foot and whistling in the middle of the dance floor.
Last night we had our annual milonga here in-town, for which they collect money all year round, rent the space, and this year I even got paid a bit. Including me, there were 30 people. Lame. I was so wiped from the previous night and having had to get up early on Sat to go to work, still, that I had a hard time staying awake. My back was killing me too when I danced and my heels have been bruised for a week now from the physical labor. I only danced 3 sets and they were all with my cat sitter; sort of payment for her services.
Went to Lowes today.. I was blogging about my experiences during my last Lowes visit in June on my old blog. The place SUCKS. Ok so I go there for the ONE thing they've got that Home Depot doesn't : Cedar/Cedarwood colored caulk/silicone. I ended up buying all sorts of things, of course, as I usually do.. blades, drill bits, and the sorts. 160 dollars worth. And again, as last time, I get NO HELP what-so-ever. You can't even see associates lounging about as they do at H.D. I would have bought a 260 dollar cordless nail gun, but since I received no assistance and there were none to be readily taken on sale, I took off. They had ONE cashier-assisted register open, and that was at the help desk. Four self-help lines were in-use and I had to succumb to use one of them. I hate them. I pay good money for my tools and crap and expect someone to ring me in and to bag the shit for me. I don't want to do it myself. And then, of course, the machine has to think that you didn't ring something up or didn't put it in the bagging area or some other crap like that, and it's bitching at you non-stop. Sucks to have to rely on idiots and/or crappy organizations/companies.
Relief is just around the corner, though. I'm scheduled to complete my work by Wednesday on this project, and on Thursday I'm cramming my ass on an airplane for an all-day travel excursion back to the East Coast to be with Ms.Spain for 12 days. Finally good dancing and TLC.
Ta.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Fall Season
Been awhile.. nothing much has happened. Fall has come.. it's cold(-ish) in the morning and then it warms up by mid-day - usually to a point where the vest or coat you needed in the morning now suffocates you.
I'm DJ'ng three times in November, and it worries me just a little bit (three times in my state - also when I go meet Ms.Spain for Thanksgiving I've been scheduled to play): I originally didn't want to play too often from the fears that it waters down the music.. you hear the same stuff too often it gets old. For that reason I never request to DJ but rather do it only when I get asked to. I'm playing the 2nd, 16th, and 17th. Usually my list is heavy on artists that the other local DJ's don't play much: Donato, Rodriguez, d'Arienzo/Echague.
I finally started listening to more of the music I have so I just got done creating 10-12 new tandas just from d'Agostino, Fresedo, and Laurenz. It's hard to pay good attention to the music when trying to concentrate on work at the same time and there's just no time to just sit around for hours listening to music. Having just been to Portland's festival kept some tandas fresh in my mind to re-create them at my end. Also helped that Ms.Spain is a native Spanish speaker and she was able to memorize and recognize a song just from having danced to it with me: we found it right away once we got back to the hotel.
I now have 5 hours and 50 minutes worth of pre-made tandas of tango only. 2-3 hrs of milongas and 2-3 hours of valses. I have enough un-listened/edited music, still, to create maybe another 1-2 hours of tandas for each style.
Ta.
I'm DJ'ng three times in November, and it worries me just a little bit (three times in my state - also when I go meet Ms.Spain for Thanksgiving I've been scheduled to play): I originally didn't want to play too often from the fears that it waters down the music.. you hear the same stuff too often it gets old. For that reason I never request to DJ but rather do it only when I get asked to. I'm playing the 2nd, 16th, and 17th. Usually my list is heavy on artists that the other local DJ's don't play much: Donato, Rodriguez, d'Arienzo/Echague.
I finally started listening to more of the music I have so I just got done creating 10-12 new tandas just from d'Agostino, Fresedo, and Laurenz. It's hard to pay good attention to the music when trying to concentrate on work at the same time and there's just no time to just sit around for hours listening to music. Having just been to Portland's festival kept some tandas fresh in my mind to re-create them at my end. Also helped that Ms.Spain is a native Spanish speaker and she was able to memorize and recognize a song just from having danced to it with me: we found it right away once we got back to the hotel.
I now have 5 hours and 50 minutes worth of pre-made tandas of tango only. 2-3 hrs of milongas and 2-3 hours of valses. I have enough un-listened/edited music, still, to create maybe another 1-2 hours of tandas for each style.
Ta.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Portland Part 1
Ok.. lot's of bithing about things Pacific, as usual.
It's Sunday right now and Ms.Spain and I just got done eating breakfast and are waiting in the lobby for her room to get cleaned. We've got one more milonga to go: We're skipping the 4 to 7 "maestros" milonga and the all-nighters at Alex's: Ramu is DJ - no thanks. Besides, Ms.Spain has a 7:30am flight to catch and the milonga doesn't end until around 8 am, anyway, and she needs to pack and we need more quality time together.
Miles has been posting, as far as I know, in his typical manner so I will keep my whining to what bothers me.
Clique-crowd. The Portland scene is by far the worst - maybe because it is the youngest? Seattle certainly has a good deal of the same going, but it seems so much more and visible in Portland. They only dance with each others and look down upon anyone else not in their midst. They also avoid talking to, making eye contact, and otherwise relating to us mere mortals out of the risk of possibly having to feel obligated to dance with someone not at their (IMAGINED) level. Location: Always as near or behind the DJ as possible.. typically a stage of sorts. PPAA, Norse Hall, Oaks Park.
DJ's. Why are they letting Ramu play twice? Why was the best alternative tango DJ in the country not utilized at all? Vijay is playing twice too, but at least as a traditional DJ he knocks Ramu's socks out.
DJ Dan B. was absolutely wonderful at the Oaks Park all-nighter, but both Ms.Spain and I were suffering from lack of sleep and had to retire at 4 am.
Floor. There has at best only been one line of dance. A lot of people seem to dance kind of on two lanes where you can't pass them on either side as to the left of them begins the whirlwind of the center chaos. I, myself, typically dance always so close to the outside that I touch furniture etc. They also haven't been doing a very good at setting up tables so that the chairs stay off the dance floor and you have walk ways around the dance floor: ONLY Oaks Park was like that, but the floor was stickier than a June Bugs arse.
Other complaints include the typical ones: people not asking for permission to enter the dance floor and cut someone off; more than 1 couple squeeze in-between someone getting on the floor; chatting on the floor past the 1st measure (intro) of music; not clearing the floor promptly during the cortina; taking backward steps (biggest offenders this year have been 'well-known' teachers and dancers who dance alternative on a very crowded floor), etc, etc, etc.
I might go more into detail later but I didn't make any posts after each night so I can't remember in too good detail.
Ta.
It's Sunday right now and Ms.Spain and I just got done eating breakfast and are waiting in the lobby for her room to get cleaned. We've got one more milonga to go: We're skipping the 4 to 7 "maestros" milonga and the all-nighters at Alex's: Ramu is DJ - no thanks. Besides, Ms.Spain has a 7:30am flight to catch and the milonga doesn't end until around 8 am, anyway, and she needs to pack and we need more quality time together.
Miles has been posting, as far as I know, in his typical manner so I will keep my whining to what bothers me.
Clique-crowd. The Portland scene is by far the worst - maybe because it is the youngest? Seattle certainly has a good deal of the same going, but it seems so much more and visible in Portland. They only dance with each others and look down upon anyone else not in their midst. They also avoid talking to, making eye contact, and otherwise relating to us mere mortals out of the risk of possibly having to feel obligated to dance with someone not at their (IMAGINED) level. Location: Always as near or behind the DJ as possible.. typically a stage of sorts. PPAA, Norse Hall, Oaks Park.
DJ's. Why are they letting Ramu play twice? Why was the best alternative tango DJ in the country not utilized at all? Vijay is playing twice too, but at least as a traditional DJ he knocks Ramu's socks out.
DJ Dan B. was absolutely wonderful at the Oaks Park all-nighter, but both Ms.Spain and I were suffering from lack of sleep and had to retire at 4 am.
Floor. There has at best only been one line of dance. A lot of people seem to dance kind of on two lanes where you can't pass them on either side as to the left of them begins the whirlwind of the center chaos. I, myself, typically dance always so close to the outside that I touch furniture etc. They also haven't been doing a very good at setting up tables so that the chairs stay off the dance floor and you have walk ways around the dance floor: ONLY Oaks Park was like that, but the floor was stickier than a June Bugs arse.
Other complaints include the typical ones: people not asking for permission to enter the dance floor and cut someone off; more than 1 couple squeeze in-between someone getting on the floor; chatting on the floor past the 1st measure (intro) of music; not clearing the floor promptly during the cortina; taking backward steps (biggest offenders this year have been 'well-known' teachers and dancers who dance alternative on a very crowded floor), etc, etc, etc.
I might go more into detail later but I didn't make any posts after each night so I can't remember in too good detail.
Ta.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
PDX here we come
Here I am sitting yet at another airport enroute to another city. This time the trip is to Portland, OR; my second this year. The primary reason is the largest tango festival in the country, the Portland Tangofestival. The second reason is to take a written test with the Portland Police Department.
This is the first year I'll have an room mate in PDX (my 7th-9th time visiting PDX) so I'm anxious to see how that goes: I have to make two trips down to Tigard to meet with my suppliers and then the one-two trips to the Police Department, and I'm also giving my roomie rides....
This is also the first time I'm staying as far east as the airport. Ever since one of the hotels downtown closed and got turned into college dormes it's been hard to find sub $50/night rooms in the city or right on the east side of the river. In February I actually stayed down in Tigard but that wasn't an option this year with an room mate. Getting the room for $40 a night vs. $90 is still worth the 10-15 minute ride from the milongas.
Ms.Spain will also come to the festival, Yay!, but only from Saturday through early Monday morning, weep!, but it's still better than naught. I'm going back to the East Coast to be with her a longer time at Thanksgiving so these two days are just to tie us over until then, lol.
Well.. enough of this for now.. need to do some work.
Ta!
This is the first year I'll have an room mate in PDX (my 7th-9th time visiting PDX) so I'm anxious to see how that goes: I have to make two trips down to Tigard to meet with my suppliers and then the one-two trips to the Police Department, and I'm also giving my roomie rides....
This is also the first time I'm staying as far east as the airport. Ever since one of the hotels downtown closed and got turned into college dormes it's been hard to find sub $50/night rooms in the city or right on the east side of the river. In February I actually stayed down in Tigard but that wasn't an option this year with an room mate. Getting the room for $40 a night vs. $90 is still worth the 10-15 minute ride from the milongas.
Ms.Spain will also come to the festival, Yay!, but only from Saturday through early Monday morning, weep!, but it's still better than naught. I'm going back to the East Coast to be with her a longer time at Thanksgiving so these two days are just to tie us over until then, lol.
Well.. enough of this for now.. need to do some work.
Ta!
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Escape from Michigan
Ok.. back home. The tiny A2 anniversary festival behind us.
Attendance was low.. 150-200-ish. I haven't heard any official numbers, though.
We stayed outside AA in Whitmore Lake, 20 minutes north. All the hotels in the area, even in Whitmore Lake, were sold out Fri-Sat because of the Penn State-Michigan football game.
Weather was pretty nice.. mid 70's to low 80's during the peaks and 60's at night. Not a single cloud on the sky any of the days we were there.
Ok.. dancing.. a lot less people came for this than I had expected. A handful of good dancers, only. There was a pretty distinct outer lane at all the milongas but there were about a half a dozen leaders that zig-zagged and when they saw a gap rushed for it, or danced half on the outer lane and half on the inner lane effectively blocking both as they slowly moved along doing their pirouettes and boleos and ganchos. Bastards.
Cabeceo was practically non-existent, again. There were 3-4 followers I had really wanted to dance with, all of which I knew looked at me when I was dancing, and I knew they saw me looking at them when they were dancing whilst I sat, but at no time did they look toward me when we were both seated - even if practically next to each other (particularly at the small all-night-venue). And I, of course, do not verbally ask a stranger to dance, no matter how badly I want to dance with them. I asked some ladies in NYC this past Spring but only after they were recommended and named by Robin Thomas. If cabeceo doesn't work we won't be dancing.. unless of course she comes to ask me. That happened to me once, that a follow I had wanted to dance with did come ask me verbally... not sure if she knew what cabeceo was, but the two tandas we danced didn't end up being all that great.
So with the exception of 3 follows I danced exclusively with follows I knew personally from previous festivals, etc. From Philly, DC, AA. Sort of sucks, except dancing with Ms.Spain never sucks.
Ms.Spain and I left early from each of the milongas, which is something I almost never do, and we didn't even end up going to the practica the last night. But we were both tired, sore, and had to get up at 3:45 AM the next morning, so not attending the practica was quite justified.
I'm DJ'ng this Friday and after that on the 13th of October, a week before the Tangofest in PDX. I probably won't be dancing at all between those two times.
Ta.
Attendance was low.. 150-200-ish. I haven't heard any official numbers, though.
We stayed outside AA in Whitmore Lake, 20 minutes north. All the hotels in the area, even in Whitmore Lake, were sold out Fri-Sat because of the Penn State-Michigan football game.
Weather was pretty nice.. mid 70's to low 80's during the peaks and 60's at night. Not a single cloud on the sky any of the days we were there.
Ok.. dancing.. a lot less people came for this than I had expected. A handful of good dancers, only. There was a pretty distinct outer lane at all the milongas but there were about a half a dozen leaders that zig-zagged and when they saw a gap rushed for it, or danced half on the outer lane and half on the inner lane effectively blocking both as they slowly moved along doing their pirouettes and boleos and ganchos. Bastards.
Cabeceo was practically non-existent, again. There were 3-4 followers I had really wanted to dance with, all of which I knew looked at me when I was dancing, and I knew they saw me looking at them when they were dancing whilst I sat, but at no time did they look toward me when we were both seated - even if practically next to each other (particularly at the small all-night-venue). And I, of course, do not verbally ask a stranger to dance, no matter how badly I want to dance with them. I asked some ladies in NYC this past Spring but only after they were recommended and named by Robin Thomas. If cabeceo doesn't work we won't be dancing.. unless of course she comes to ask me. That happened to me once, that a follow I had wanted to dance with did come ask me verbally... not sure if she knew what cabeceo was, but the two tandas we danced didn't end up being all that great.
So with the exception of 3 follows I danced exclusively with follows I knew personally from previous festivals, etc. From Philly, DC, AA. Sort of sucks, except dancing with Ms.Spain never sucks.
Ms.Spain and I left early from each of the milongas, which is something I almost never do, and we didn't even end up going to the practica the last night. But we were both tired, sore, and had to get up at 3:45 AM the next morning, so not attending the practica was quite justified.
I'm DJ'ng this Friday and after that on the 13th of October, a week before the Tangofest in PDX. I probably won't be dancing at all between those two times.
Ta.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Michigan here we come
Ok.. Ann Arbor Anniversary Tango Club festival is in the books.
I'm staying in a small unincorporated town 20 minutes north of AA alongside a small lake with Ms.Spain, who's joining me at this Festival; kind of a meet-in-the-middle-deal :) If the water temperature and weather permit it we'll go swimming or Skidoo'ing during the day. Personally I haven't been on the water for years.. maybe over a decade.
A2 festival is from Friday the 21st through (unofficially) Monday night's practica. Very small and short compared to Denver or Portland but it's better than nothing, but certainly going to be great because of Ms.Spain. It's just going to be too short of a visit.
Ta.
I'm staying in a small unincorporated town 20 minutes north of AA alongside a small lake with Ms.Spain, who's joining me at this Festival; kind of a meet-in-the-middle-deal :) If the water temperature and weather permit it we'll go swimming or Skidoo'ing during the day. Personally I haven't been on the water for years.. maybe over a decade.
A2 festival is from Friday the 21st through (unofficially) Monday night's practica. Very small and short compared to Denver or Portland but it's better than nothing, but certainly going to be great because of Ms.Spain. It's just going to be too short of a visit.
Ta.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Outdoor milonga went poof
So.. we had our second annual outdoor milonga today. I was DJ'ng and it was meant to go from 4 to 8... However.. practically no one showed up. Only 2 people came down from Denver, for a short time, and 1 person from Boulder. So lame. Also.. for some reason the pavilion lights did not come on or maybe they don't come on until 8 pm.. so it was too dark to keep going so we packed it in at 7. I'm sick and tired that the Denver people don't support our small community.
Tango in my town is as good as dead.
I am not a Coloradoan.. I certainly don't want to be considered a "local" anywhere in this state but especially not in Denver (like during the festivals). I didn't dance with as many strangers this labor day as I usually do since Ms.Spain and Ms.Italy and Ms.Ruskie and Ms.Grand all came and I was obligated and pleased and honored to dance with them a lot. Usually when I dance with a lot of new people and they ask where I'm from and I respond.. they inevitably go "Oh.. so you're a local". No, no I'm not. I'm actually wanting to bail out of Colorado; sooner the better. It's too hot and far too conservative here... and what free minded people are here abouts they're all into the Hippie/Rasta culture and I'm not into that at all.
I went to the shooting range yesterday just to go through the motions on the AR-15 and a Remington pump shotgun. Got a nasty paper cut in-between the fingers of my left hand from picking up the targets... sucky. I pay a monthly fee of $25 for the range membership but I'm not utilizing it. Last time I went was months ago. Membership allows me to go as many times as I want and don't even have to buy anything from them, although I always buy my targets from them. You have to buy the bullets from them if you rent guns from them, though. Supposedly they do that so they can keep track of how many rounds are being put through the rental guns, but there's no real way for them to keep track. For example I bought 200 rounds of 9 mm ammo, and put about 75-100 of that through the AR-15 and rest through a Springfield XD DOA pistol. I don't even know the exact count myself.
Been looking at ticket prices for flights to Las Vegas and Ann Arbor and DC, again. LV and AA both have a small/short festival on the same 3rd weekend in September.. and I'd like to go to DC to dance with Ms.Spain, of course. Not finding anything cheap however.. fall prices are much higher than spring/summer prices were.. I wonder why.
Ta.
Tango in my town is as good as dead.
I am not a Coloradoan.. I certainly don't want to be considered a "local" anywhere in this state but especially not in Denver (like during the festivals). I didn't dance with as many strangers this labor day as I usually do since Ms.Spain and Ms.Italy and Ms.Ruskie and Ms.Grand all came and I was obligated and pleased and honored to dance with them a lot. Usually when I dance with a lot of new people and they ask where I'm from and I respond.. they inevitably go "Oh.. so you're a local". No, no I'm not. I'm actually wanting to bail out of Colorado; sooner the better. It's too hot and far too conservative here... and what free minded people are here abouts they're all into the Hippie/Rasta culture and I'm not into that at all.
I went to the shooting range yesterday just to go through the motions on the AR-15 and a Remington pump shotgun. Got a nasty paper cut in-between the fingers of my left hand from picking up the targets... sucky. I pay a monthly fee of $25 for the range membership but I'm not utilizing it. Last time I went was months ago. Membership allows me to go as many times as I want and don't even have to buy anything from them, although I always buy my targets from them. You have to buy the bullets from them if you rent guns from them, though. Supposedly they do that so they can keep track of how many rounds are being put through the rental guns, but there's no real way for them to keep track. For example I bought 200 rounds of 9 mm ammo, and put about 75-100 of that through the AR-15 and rest through a Springfield XD DOA pistol. I don't even know the exact count myself.
Been looking at ticket prices for flights to Las Vegas and Ann Arbor and DC, again. LV and AA both have a small/short festival on the same 3rd weekend in September.. and I'd like to go to DC to dance with Ms.Spain, of course. Not finding anything cheap however.. fall prices are much higher than spring/summer prices were.. I wonder why.
Ta.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Failure
*sigh*
So... here I am.. in Seattle, WA. I flew here to test for the city police department. I was very anxious about the whole process as I had failed (due to lack of sleep night before) my last written exam with the Denver Police Department. I had also left the studying pretty much until the last 1-2 wks as that was when I knew what date the testing was going to be on.
I also knew that the physical agility testing was going to be different from what I'm used to with other departments and at my current physical condition knew it was going to be a challenge.
Since I was not made to sign a confidentiality agreement about the testing process with SPD, I can tell that their test is also entirely different from the other departments I've tested with before. They make you study some material for 2 hours before the actual test and then you are tested on that material during the 1.5 hr written portion, plus some other stuff. About 50-60% of all the questions were directly drawn from the study guide you studied so it's a test on memory retention and recalling specific sentences, policies, reports, and maps.
I became very worried once I learned this because the practice tests and book I have and have taken don't really go too deep into this, as it is something they really can't help you with in that kind of a book. They do recommend other resources that help one improve short-term memory.
Well I got a sneak peak at my score when they were trying to pronounce my name, which they NEVER get right, and saw that I had scored 88.88 out of a 100 maximum. Passing score was 80. Otherwise they just tell you to get in-line. If your name isn't called to stand in-line you did not pass the written and would not be invited to continue on to the PAT portion (physical agility test) half an hour later. Only those that were Lateral (already a police officer somewhere) or from Out-of-State did they score the test for immediately. The rest get their results in the mail in the next 1-2 wks and have their PAT in September.
Unlike the obstacles courses I've gotten used to with other departments, the State of Washington's Law Enforcement Academy has set forth the following criteria/testing:
1) 300 yard sprint, timed with a maximum time
2) Push-ups, not timed, minimum being 21.
3) Sit-ups in 1 minute, minimum being 30.
4) 1.5 mile run under specific time.
I've never been one to place too much emphasis on push-ups or bench press and have not worked out at all in years - Dancing Tango has been my only hobby and exercise. I was actually the most afraid of this testing process than anything else but I did manage 25 which was a personal best for me.
With the sprint I blew all that I had and got my time under the limit to get maximum points - that was good but it really drained me.
Sit-ups.... umm.. another thing I really haven't done much.. I did do some for a few days before my week in DC but during the trip I did absolutely nothing. Minimum was 30 in 1-minute.. and I died at 29.5. Failure. One is given an opportunity to retake this portion after the distance run.
1.5 mile run - I died. My legs were like lead and my liver started hurting as it released cool blood; I hadn't warmed up adequately in an attempt to reserve my (what I knew to be) limited energy. I completed almost 7 laps in the maximum allotted time and needed to complete 8. As I failed 2 events, I was out, and there was no point and definitely no energy left to re-attempt the sit-ups.
So.. I'm out.. for now. I'm allowed to re-take just the PAT portion in 2 months if I so choose, but if I don't do it then, I would need to wait at least 6-months and do the entire process all over including written. This could be beneficial, however, as it would give me more time to get in-shape, lose some weight, re-build some of the muscle mass I've lost in the last 12-years, study and improve my memory. Now that I know what kind of test they administer I could hopefully improve.
I need to get something along the lines of 95% to be highly competitive and closer to the top of the list. Veterans get an automatic 10% added to their score so if they score high plus the bonus they're unbeatable.
I can't really slack off now from depression, though, as the Portland written test is coming up on October 20th, right during the TangoFest there... however passing applicant must travel back to PDX at another time for the PAT test. Portland being one of the few large cities that do not accommodate out-of-staters like other departments I've tested for: Anchorage, AK; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO.
I recently learned of a website that allows you to take a test with the company/agency, and they send your results to any agencies you pick from the list - it is intended for smaller towns that do not have the resources to test/train applicants themselves. Some small towns for example only hire Lateral applicants as they can not provide any testing. This website hosts nearly all of the small towns in Idaho, AK, OR, and WA. You can apply to hundreds of places by taking 1 test. A real time AND money saver.
Well.. I'm going to call Delta and see if I couldn't get on a flight 1 day sooner now that I do not have the oral boards and psychological in the next few days - I fear the cost will out-weigh the 1-day saving though.
I want to stay through Monday into Tuesday so that I can attend the China Harbour milonga on Monday night. It is the (one of the) best in the city and most people I know in this area will be there and not at Sunnie's tonight, where I'm going to also go.
Getting home a day early would allow me to better prepare for my Kansas trip, though, that I embark on no later than noon on Thursday (driving - 8hrs). Right now my flight returns home Wednesday night, late.
Oh well. oh well oh well. I'm not used to failing. It's a bitter pill to swallow.
Ta.
So... here I am.. in Seattle, WA. I flew here to test for the city police department. I was very anxious about the whole process as I had failed (due to lack of sleep night before) my last written exam with the Denver Police Department. I had also left the studying pretty much until the last 1-2 wks as that was when I knew what date the testing was going to be on.
I also knew that the physical agility testing was going to be different from what I'm used to with other departments and at my current physical condition knew it was going to be a challenge.
Since I was not made to sign a confidentiality agreement about the testing process with SPD, I can tell that their test is also entirely different from the other departments I've tested with before. They make you study some material for 2 hours before the actual test and then you are tested on that material during the 1.5 hr written portion, plus some other stuff. About 50-60% of all the questions were directly drawn from the study guide you studied so it's a test on memory retention and recalling specific sentences, policies, reports, and maps.
I became very worried once I learned this because the practice tests and book I have and have taken don't really go too deep into this, as it is something they really can't help you with in that kind of a book. They do recommend other resources that help one improve short-term memory.
Well I got a sneak peak at my score when they were trying to pronounce my name, which they NEVER get right, and saw that I had scored 88.88 out of a 100 maximum. Passing score was 80. Otherwise they just tell you to get in-line. If your name isn't called to stand in-line you did not pass the written and would not be invited to continue on to the PAT portion (physical agility test) half an hour later. Only those that were Lateral (already a police officer somewhere) or from Out-of-State did they score the test for immediately. The rest get their results in the mail in the next 1-2 wks and have their PAT in September.
Unlike the obstacles courses I've gotten used to with other departments, the State of Washington's Law Enforcement Academy has set forth the following criteria/testing:
1) 300 yard sprint, timed with a maximum time
2) Push-ups, not timed, minimum being 21.
3) Sit-ups in 1 minute, minimum being 30.
4) 1.5 mile run under specific time.
I've never been one to place too much emphasis on push-ups or bench press and have not worked out at all in years - Dancing Tango has been my only hobby and exercise. I was actually the most afraid of this testing process than anything else but I did manage 25 which was a personal best for me.
With the sprint I blew all that I had and got my time under the limit to get maximum points - that was good but it really drained me.
Sit-ups.... umm.. another thing I really haven't done much.. I did do some for a few days before my week in DC but during the trip I did absolutely nothing. Minimum was 30 in 1-minute.. and I died at 29.5. Failure. One is given an opportunity to retake this portion after the distance run.
1.5 mile run - I died. My legs were like lead and my liver started hurting as it released cool blood; I hadn't warmed up adequately in an attempt to reserve my (what I knew to be) limited energy. I completed almost 7 laps in the maximum allotted time and needed to complete 8. As I failed 2 events, I was out, and there was no point and definitely no energy left to re-attempt the sit-ups.
So.. I'm out.. for now. I'm allowed to re-take just the PAT portion in 2 months if I so choose, but if I don't do it then, I would need to wait at least 6-months and do the entire process all over including written. This could be beneficial, however, as it would give me more time to get in-shape, lose some weight, re-build some of the muscle mass I've lost in the last 12-years, study and improve my memory. Now that I know what kind of test they administer I could hopefully improve.
I need to get something along the lines of 95% to be highly competitive and closer to the top of the list. Veterans get an automatic 10% added to their score so if they score high plus the bonus they're unbeatable.
I can't really slack off now from depression, though, as the Portland written test is coming up on October 20th, right during the TangoFest there... however passing applicant must travel back to PDX at another time for the PAT test. Portland being one of the few large cities that do not accommodate out-of-staters like other departments I've tested for: Anchorage, AK; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO.
I recently learned of a website that allows you to take a test with the company/agency, and they send your results to any agencies you pick from the list - it is intended for smaller towns that do not have the resources to test/train applicants themselves. Some small towns for example only hire Lateral applicants as they can not provide any testing. This website hosts nearly all of the small towns in Idaho, AK, OR, and WA. You can apply to hundreds of places by taking 1 test. A real time AND money saver.
Well.. I'm going to call Delta and see if I couldn't get on a flight 1 day sooner now that I do not have the oral boards and psychological in the next few days - I fear the cost will out-weigh the 1-day saving though.
I want to stay through Monday into Tuesday so that I can attend the China Harbour milonga on Monday night. It is the (one of the) best in the city and most people I know in this area will be there and not at Sunnie's tonight, where I'm going to also go.
Getting home a day early would allow me to better prepare for my Kansas trip, though, that I embark on no later than noon on Thursday (driving - 8hrs). Right now my flight returns home Wednesday night, late.
Oh well. oh well oh well. I'm not used to failing. It's a bitter pill to swallow.
Ta.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Last Day
It's Wednesday.. I'm catching an 6 am flight out of DCA back home for a bit. On Saturday I fly out to Seattle; it'll be my first visit to the city and I'm looking forward to it. Will be able to catch 2 milongas too, one of them China Harbor.
I've been here in DC a week come midnight. I've caught 4 milongas with Ms.Spain thus far, DJ'ng myself one of them, and tonight being the 5th and last milonga for this trip. I had such a good time with Ms.Spain in June that it was worth traveling back just for dancing.. and to see if anything else might work out as well. I'm still trying to coax her to commit to the Denver Milonguero Festival on Labor Day. After that.. in September.. who knows.. next festival after that is the TangoFest in Portland in October.
Finally saw the much praised movie "Cinema Paradiso" last night. Very beautiful film.. with an even stronger soundtrack; been listening to it this morning.
Haven't been paying too much attention to what I've eaten during my visit.. but that's what holidays are for, aren't they? I most certainly have put back on the 5 pounds I lost during the 2 weeks before the trip but oh well. Back on the horse when I get home.
Ta.
I've been here in DC a week come midnight. I've caught 4 milongas with Ms.Spain thus far, DJ'ng myself one of them, and tonight being the 5th and last milonga for this trip. I had such a good time with Ms.Spain in June that it was worth traveling back just for dancing.. and to see if anything else might work out as well. I'm still trying to coax her to commit to the Denver Milonguero Festival on Labor Day. After that.. in September.. who knows.. next festival after that is the TangoFest in Portland in October.
Finally saw the much praised movie "Cinema Paradiso" last night. Very beautiful film.. with an even stronger soundtrack; been listening to it this morning.
Haven't been paying too much attention to what I've eaten during my visit.. but that's what holidays are for, aren't they? I most certainly have put back on the 5 pounds I lost during the 2 weeks before the trip but oh well. Back on the horse when I get home.
Ta.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Tango Trip #? - Who keeps count?
I flew out to the East Coast last night. I guess it's pointless to be too vague as any cross reference to myspace page of mine would reveal I was in DC last time, so here I am, in Washington DC.
I had such a good time dancing with Ms.Spain here in June that I decided to return for a week. We had talked about maybe meeting in the middle.. like in Houston; somewhere where we both could have taken a single direct commuter flight, but with her just having been out of the country for 10-days and being backlogged at work, we decided it best for me to take a connecting flight and to come all the way to DC. Lodging would be free for both of us as well, as I'm crashing on her futon.
Tonight would be the first milonga, at the Eastern Market. I dread it as the weather is oppressingly hot and humid and that place has no Air Conditioning.. kind of like Ms.Spain's loft, lol. She does.. but the machines either leak freon; are severely undersized; or the filters are clogged. Right now it's 82F and I had to lose my jeans.
I'm quite happy though not working but rather burning the cd's Ms.Spain obtained for me at my request. From artists I care for I only lack a few d'Arienzo and 2 Pugliese now.
Ta.
I had such a good time dancing with Ms.Spain here in June that I decided to return for a week. We had talked about maybe meeting in the middle.. like in Houston; somewhere where we both could have taken a single direct commuter flight, but with her just having been out of the country for 10-days and being backlogged at work, we decided it best for me to take a connecting flight and to come all the way to DC. Lodging would be free for both of us as well, as I'm crashing on her futon.
Tonight would be the first milonga, at the Eastern Market. I dread it as the weather is oppressingly hot and humid and that place has no Air Conditioning.. kind of like Ms.Spain's loft, lol. She does.. but the machines either leak freon; are severely undersized; or the filters are clogged. Right now it's 82F and I had to lose my jeans.
I'm quite happy though not working but rather burning the cd's Ms.Spain obtained for me at my request. From artists I care for I only lack a few d'Arienzo and 2 Pugliese now.
Ta.
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