Hyperreal

So, now I had my ticket, and transport, I was going to the Corn Exchange!

I was a bit worried as it was a “ball”, and I’d be expected to dress up a little. We had been warned “no jeans!” I wondered about black jeans, but decided not to risk it.

In the end my travel companion did go for a casual look of t-shirt and (black) jeans and didn’t have any problems, but it was nice to make an effort anyway.

In fact it was a real effort to find a suitable pair of trousers to wear. And then find a shirt (or two) to go with it. I think I did quite well in the end, though I’d be interested in hearing other people’s views, so make sure and leave a comment!

After getting back from Stirling, a little recovery time was needed, so we didn’t get on our way to Edinburgh until about quarter to 9, getting in about 10-ish, once we had found the place. (The tiny map we had on our tickets wasn’t really much help.)

The Corn Exchange is a fantastic venue. It’s clean, stylish, and roomy, with a good set-up of the main floor being mostly clear of tables and chairs, with a couple of wings for all the clutter of people. It did mean though that it was slightly hard to find people on occasion.

The floor was great. I had worn my “sensible” shoes, but after the dancing in Stirling, and a little bit of walking in them I decided that’d be too sore to dance in, so it was just as well I had also brought my comfy “tiger feet” shoes. And the funny thing is that even with their rubber soles, they were a great match for the floor. Slippy enough to spin and slide when I wanted to, but not over the top. Next time I’ll just leave the “sensible” shoes at home.

There were loads of people there, though not many I knew. Three out of four of the lady “dancers for hire” (proceeds to charity) I knew, one from Glasgow, one from a Glasgow party and the forum, and one from the Stirling busk. The forth one I sort-of knew by association. Apart from them and one or two guys, that was it. I had no choice but to ask strangers to dance! Of course, once you get started it’s not so difficult and I danced with a fair number of Edinburgh’s fine ladies. I even got asked to dance by some of them!

I guess at around 11-ish, a larger bunch of Glasgow dancers turned up. Most of them had been at Stirling, and must also have needed a fair amount of time to get home, recover and get ready for Edinburgh. Still, it was a shame they weren’t there earlier to give us more time to dance together.

I reckon during the three hours I was there, I must have danced around 20 times. Which at 3 minutes a time, is a full hour, or a third of the time. That’s pretty good for me. Especially as I was feeling tired and dizzy. Some of the dancers were great. I didn’t manage to get to dance with one or two I’d have liked to, though at my level sometimes dancing with the best dancers isn’t so good for my confidence and ego. While women assure me that a few simple moves done well is better than lots of complex moves, not necessarily done especially well, I’d like to be able to impress and surprise every woman I dance with.

I didn’t have the confidence to try any of the more exotic moves I’ve recently learnt. I’ll need lots more practice time before I’ll be able to feel comfortable doing anything but the simplest of moves.

The music… Well it’s funny… There wasn’t much of the sort of music I’d normally listen to. Much of it was older, some had a latiny feel, some swing, and bit of straight-down-the-line rock’n'roll. I much prefer modern up-tempo music to listen to, and, at least at the moment, to dance to. Maybe as I get better I’ll come to appreciate these other styles of music for dancing to. Certainly it appeared that plenty other people liked the music.

Aside from one or two dances or dancers, I enjoyed myself enormously. I felt that I could have danced a good hour more, though thinking how I feel today, it’s probably just as well I didn’t.

I’m totally shattered today, my feet are sore, my legs ache, my arms don’t like me much, and even my fingers are complaining. I woke up yesterday with a bit of a sore wrist – dancing with it wasn’t painful at all, but it hurts just a little bit more this morning. I’ve hardly had any sleep, so I think I’ll go for another wee snooze in a little while…

Big thanks to all the dancers, the DJ, and Twinkle Toes for organising a fab night.

Cheers!