"Your professionalism and knowledge as a dancer need not be proven; if you’re cream, you’ll float to the top.
- "Eddie Torres, The Mambo King.
"Dear Edie,
Hello ...My name is [name] , I am from [city]. I have been reading about your organization for almost a year. I am teaching Salsa for the last 5 years ... we are a group that has a great impact on the 'Salsa community' here in [city]. Do you dance & teach on 1 or on the 2????? IF YOU DANCE ON BOTH.....WHICH ONE DO YOU THINK IS THE RIGHT WAY....????? The reason is that we might want to come down to L.A or one of the locations that you have a workshop & check it out... Please let me know......( I hope it is on the 1 which is the original way....) Thank you
- Confused"
Dear Confused,
Dancing on the One or the Two is liking knowing Spanish or English.
Which is the right language?
To dance on any beat, is simply a means of communicating with your partner.
Dancing "to the music" is truly living life. Stopping to smell the roses... feeling the warmth of the sun on your back. Finding love and eating out with friends. That's "living life".
What Would you rather do. Simply "talk", or live your life?
We're finding that most Salsa dancers are just talking now; petty shallow words, causing rifts, fights, and chaos in the Salsa world. Let's stop talking, and start living life!! Lets go back to WHY we started dancing to begin with:
To finally let go, have fun, be free, and LIVE OUR LIVES!!!
What's in now - is Millennium Style - combining both.
The argument over the One or the Two is OLD NEWS and frankly, people are getting tired of it. It's causing divisions and problems in the community that we can definitely do without. Dancing to the hits, peaks, and valleys of the song is so much more challenging and exciting than keeping a certain timing 100% of the time.
Dip at the finale. hit the hits, pause on the pauses, bodywave to the waves, jump to the jumps - interpret the music!!! Go back to the One or the Two in between the breaks, but focus and interpret the MUSIC - not just the beat.
When you develop dancing or "talking" on the One or the Two, don't develop an attitude about it, and just dance THAT. Do both Speak both languages with a smile and excitement, while Millennium Styling to the Hits in between!! God has given you TWO SKILLS now, so use them both.
- Edie, The Salsa FREAK
Excerpt From www.DanceinTimeProductions.com
Article by Barb Berstien
Quote: "Edie, What do you think of the One vs Two Arguement?"
"Edie, the Salsa Freak, had some interesting things to say about "on one" and "on two" dancing. She said that what is important is dancing "to the music" by responding to the hits and breaks in a song, rather than whether the dance is structured "on one or two." In her opinion, the best and most musically rich experience is to respond to the accents of a particular piece of music by altering where your break steps are to match those accents. Then afterwards you can resume whichever pattern ("on one or two") you were doing for the bulk of the dance. In short, she felt that flexibility in responding to the music is more important that being wedded to a particular style or break pattern." Ref: http://www.danceintimeproductions.com/percussion.htm
Dancing musically, to the MUSIC is part of what we call "MILLENNIUM STYLE DANCING. "
- Edie, The Salsa FREAK
Poor Use of MP3's - -article by Max Noxon, L.A.
I was at the ’03 SF Congress this last weekend and I believe I’ve had my fill of bad horrible terrible MP3 music used on performer’s routines. Here’s what I have to say about it…maybe you could post this so anyone coming up will take your thoughts into consideration when selecting the source of their music! Click here for story...
"Dear Edie,
Just wondering how to get rid of the anxiety???? I just started taking lessons and I know I could be a lot better than what I am showing my instructor but I am so self conscious and stiff and I don't know how to relax. When I am home dancing I am moving pretty good but I feel like a big awkward nerd when I am dancing with my instructor. Please help me learn some tips to relax a bit....
Sincerely, - "Self Conscious"
Dear "Self Conscious"
Stop looking, and focusing so much on "you", "yourself", and "your self-conscious".
Take note and count how many "I" 's are in your paragraph above.
That's your problem.
Solution: Impress the heck out of THEM, and take your eyes and focus off of YOU. Show them/him/they/her/audience just how important THEY ARE. Not you.
- Edie, The Salsa FREAK
"Dear Edie,
I LOVE the way you show your example of a VERY mature Salsera to your readers! You obviously pay attention to the people/world side of the sport, not just the action part of it. I sure can learn from you in all areas of dance, on or off the floor. I'm glad you're part of this whole dance world.
Yes, sigh, I love the escape from the world of ours with no clear boundaries between men and women to the dance world where there is JOY in being a man and a woman. The big extra bonus in our dance world is learning to be a man and a woman, and being UNSELFISH about it. The only way I've been able to avoid the problems of ego in dance is to bring to it the wisdom of a 12 step program. My friends in THAT world call 'ego', "Edging God Out". Works for me anyway. - Dennis"
"Dear Edie,
Your points regarding "Gutter Dancing" needed to be made. Fortunately, as a respected professional at the high end of salsa dancing; your assertions have powerful credibility.
It's simple; these moves make the men look desperate and the women look cheap. But now that the genie is out of the bottle, so to speak, it's unlikely that "gutter dancing" will vanish any time soon.
You see, "attention" is an addiction for some people; and these outrageous moves provide a reliable catalyst for attracting attention. Any attention. And as sure as the sun rises in the east, there will always be a few men who will initiate these moves, and a few women who will reciprocate, happily.
I briefly dated a woman who would do "any move" with "any guy." I offered up to her the idea that even though she herself was not "trashy," the moves she was a party to were. As one might assume, when a roomful of guys sees how far a woman will go with a particular dance partner, they themselves are tempted to also push the envelope.
A good rule of thumb is: "Would you feel comfortable doing this dance move if your father was watching?"
I'm not particularly parochial when it comes to dancing, but good taste never goes out of style. Salsa affords everyone the opportunity for self-expression. It is interesting to note that classy people and sleazy people eventually express themselves in their respective idioms...given enough floor space.
As in life, so in dance. A person might say, "Well, Edie, I've seen you execute moves that are rife with sensuality if not downright suggestive. Who are you to say that pushing a girl against the DJ booth and grinding pelvises crosses the line?'"
That's a difficult question to answer because of its subjective nature.
But for those who need to ask that question, I suspect the meaning of the answer would be lost anyway.
Edie, thank you for establishing a position that has hopefully "enabled" women who wish to reject sleaziness, to do so."
"Hi Edie,
A friend of mine forwarded me your article about the PLAYER. Unfortunately, I am one of the un-lucky ones captured by a Salsa-dancing player. I have been seeing him for about 6 months now and I have just recently bring myself to recognize that he IS a player. There were many signs but of course he denies everything. I have always dated very honest and trustworthy men before, so now I am furious that there are such people around and they can get away with it. I want to get back at him. I want HIM to suffer, like I suffocated from a broken heart. All his sweet lies to make me fall for him and then all his mean words to make sure I am not clinging on to him.
What should I do, I will not be satisfied with just walking away. The damage is done and He has to pay, for all his ever so convincing lies. He turned me against my friends and family, he turned my life style up side down. Now am I suppose to just walk away and let him carry on with the next victim's)???
Dear Edie, we women are NOT wusses, we need to strike back. just not going out with the player is not good enough, there are always some girls that will fall for them. They will always win. Let's devise a plan to make them FEEL for what they did. I gave my heart, then its stepped on and cut open. Help me, what would make him feel the same pain I felt? -Justice Seeking Salsera"
Dear Justice-Seeking Salsera,
I feel your pain in your every word. I too was played very badly by someone whom I loved very dearly. He hurt me both mentally and physically. I wouldn't wish what he did to me to the WORST of humanity!
But you know what?
SUCCESS is the SWEETEST REVENGE.
Focus on your SELF. Improve your SELF, be SELFISH, and work on YOUR own SELF-Worth. The best way to get over a relationship is to REPLACE THEM with someone better, smarter, mentally healthy, outrageously funny, stimulating, gorgeous, and absolutely sssssooooo everything your former Player is NOT.
Forgiveness certainly helps, but it takes a while. It happens in stages, over time. First you'll "say" you forgive him. But won't feel it in your heart. Then, you'll tell all your friends that you've forgiven him, but then you just realize you said that to make yourself look good. Then, you'll bring up the courage to actually call and tell him you forgive him, but the way he reacts will just piss you off all over again.
Then, after a while, you'll learn that your non-forgiveness is affecting your business and success in life. Like heavy baggage, unforgiveness weighs us down both mentally and physically. Unforgiveness makes us ugly and unattractive. Unforgiveness kills the spirit, and causes a rift between us and any future relationships we'll ever have. If you let this affect you, all your relationships from now on will take on a new meaning of pain and agony. Unforgiveness can scar for life - forever.
To truly succeed in life is to forgive ultimately - wiping the slate absolutely clean. Like a blank sheet of paper, starting over again with a fresh new start.
Start over, from this point in time FORWARD. History is in the PAST. Leave it there, but don't let your PAST determine what will happen in your FUTURE.
FROM THIS POINT IN TIME, is the beginning.
NOW - TODAY is the beginning of the rest of your life.
Don't let your belief formula be:
Men + Salsa = Chaos, agony, pain, and hurt.
Change your belief formula back to:
Men + Salsa = Great Dance Partners and the possibility of a
Fabulous Loving Relationship some day very soon!
God gave humanity a sunrise every single morning so that we can "start over" one more time. We all screw up, every day. Each day He gives us one more chance to make amends and forgive. We need to give ourselves the same chance - a chance to START OVER, FORGIVE, AND MOVE ON LEADING SUCCESSFUL, LOVING, FRUITFUL LIVES.
Christ died on the cross as a ransom for our sins. He forgives us as far as the East is from the West (Psalm 103:12). When we ask forgiveness, God looks at our history like a blank sheet of white paper - wiped clean and crisp.
We need to do the same. We will never forget, but we can forgive. The only way we learn is from past mistakes. Take your experience as a learning experience. Seeking revenge will only hurt yourself.
If you don't forgive this Player here on earth, how will YOU ever be forgiven at the gates of heaven? Wouldn't it be horrible if you still had a grudge with this guy, and he ended up in heaven too? AS YOUR NEIGHBOR?
It's a choice.
Don't let his actions ruin your life.
It's YOUR CHOICE. Work on yourself, pray for the power to forgive. Pray for the Player to see the light and change his ways with his future victims. Pray that he realize what he is doing to women. Prayer is the most powerful gift. Pray for wisdom. Pray for SUCCESS!!!
- Edie, The Salsa FREAK