Geeky Dancing: Where is My Mind?

So, I'm thinking about starting a series of videos where I dance to songs that have "geek based" background to them. For my first video of the series, I'm dancing to a song that you probably heard from the movie, "Fight Club" featuring Ed Norton and Brad Pitt. If you haven't seen the movie, but still know this song as a great Pixies song, more props to ya!


Song: "Where is My Mind" by Pixies


This is just a little improv I whipped together in a day.  Send me as much feedback as possible!  Thanks!


~Liz

Genres, Basically: Rock Music

With all these different sub-genres of rock music floating around, it is quite easy to get confused.  Allow me to help you clarify the meaning of some of these genres.

Rockabilly

Elvis, and all those other cool cats in the 1950s that your great grandparents probably hated.


Blues Rock

Take Muddy Waters.  Add Jagger.  John Mayer also creeps in.  The Black Keys make it delicious.


Hard Rock

A loosely defined group of music.  Makes you nod your head and go "Ungh!  Yeauh!"


Soft Rock

Opposite of Hard Rock, supposedly.  Also known as "Easy Listening".  Basically Fleetwood Mac.


Classic Rock

Anything before the 90s.  What your parents probably listen to.


Alternative Rock

Any rock music made after 1989.  Slowly being killed by Chicago radio.


Industrial Rock

Guitars, bass, and drums featuring the construction workers of America.  Sometimes band members reach their mid 40s and compose award-winning film scores.


Christian Rock

Guitars plus Jesus.  Handled with care, it can actually pass.


Folk Rock

I'm telling you a story...with guitars.  Fact:  Everybody, and I mean everybody loves at least one folk song.


Psychedelic Rock

alexross.com

It's exactly what you think it is.  Just watch Yellow Submarine...




Grunge

The 90s.  Garage bands.  Nirvana.  Flannel shirts.  Daria.


Glam Rock

I...I really don't think it's about the sound of the music.  The 'Lady Gaga's' of their day.


Rap Rock

kobun04.deviantart.com

Rock music with rappers.  Don't give me that look.  It's more frequent than you think it is.  I'm looking at you Linkin Park...Beastie Boys...Rage Against the Machine...Red Hot Chili Peppers...  The list goes on.

Heavy Metal

Loud.  Distorted.  Impressive screaming vocals.  Extra-long guitar solos.  Cool fast drumming-thingy.  Aggressive.  Whiplash.  Overcompensated masculinity.


Nu Metal

Love child of grunge and metal.  Hip hop sometimes visits on the weekends.  Here's looking at you, Korn.


Punk Rock

Anti-establishment influenced rock conceived in the 1970s.  Short songs, and simple riffs.  Went from The Clash to Green Day to Blink 182.  Keeps claiming that it is not dead.  Possibly may be in a state of denial.  Evidence shows that the Irish may still have it.


Ska Punk

thematicsradio.com

Combination of ska and punk rock elements.  Usually contains a brass section.  I'm thinking of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, but you're probably thinking of Sublime.  I'm okay with that.


Pop Rock

Mainstream, commercial, often unauthentic, but catchy.  Actually gets played on the radio.  Even the white kids can sing along.


Party Rock

Spoilers:  It's not really rock music.


I'd like to take this time to thank Wikipedia.com for all their scholarly help.  You truly are a student's dream.

Awesomely Bad Baby Names

Somewhere in the world, there is a person named Superman.  I know this not only because I read the news from time to time, but because people are crazy.  Even though it may seem as though I'm generalizing here, I am betting that you can relate.  Everyone has their beloved pop-culture symbols that they claim will one day be the namesake of either their future pets or children (or Sim characters, just to play it safe).

I think I'll name you Dr. House 

(sims3updates.net)

I am also one who is guilty of thinking up horrible little names to name my children and/or pets (True story: I have a fish named Gerard Butler).  However, when it comes to naming children, I think a little bit deeper.  If a person's going to keep their name for the rest of their life, it has to be good.  This is why I'm making a list (in no particular order) of some geek-inspired names that are a bit ridiculous but fantastic at the same time.

Constantine (as a boy's name)

I've loved this name ever since the first time I heard it.  I really don't know why.  It's nice as a girl name, but as a boy's name, it's just so unique and fresh.

The bad:  I'm guessing either two images popped into most of your heads upon reading the name:  Keanu Reeves from the movie of the same name, or that American Idol contestant who looks like he might be vampire.  The implications of giving a child this name will likely be a lifetime of extremely banal jokes about fighting demons and/or being pressured to audition for season 48 of American Idol.

"Yeah, Simon called me tone-deaf, so I shot him.  No big."

The awesome:  If you didn't automatically think of the movie or the American Idol contestant, then chances are you thought about the Constantine the Great, or St. Constantine, the Roman Emperor.  He signed the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, which proclaimed religious tolerance in the Roman Empire, thus lessening Christian persecution.  Yeah.  Just tell people he's the namesake of your child in case anyone asks.  Trust me; it'll reduce the awkward tension after a person asks, "Hey isn't Constantine the name of that Keanu Reeves movie", to which you will swiftly reply, "No.  It's a saint name.  How ignorant of you!"  Then you will briskly walk away with your stroller.

ALSO!  When you get angry and yell at your future child, Constantine, you will be able to say, "CON!"....  That was a Star Trek reference right there....

Ash

No.  I do not mean this in a "short-for-Ashley" kind of way.  I would never name my boy-kid Ashley.  I would however name him Ash.  Why?  Because I like it.

The bad:  I'm guessing that most of you have seen the popular children's television show, Pokemon.  Well, the main character of the show is named Ash, and he means well, but the kid gets a little annoying after a bit.  Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Ash Ketchum.  He was just a character that I never completely adored.  I was much more interested in Brock (even though he was a little over-sexed).  Long story short: You tell a person that your kid's name is Ash, and every teacher in the school district will be asking him this after roll call: "Do you want to be the very best...  Like no one ever was?  ...Then don't fail my class". 

"You think that's bad?  My sister's name is Snorlax."

The awesome:  Three words:  The Evil Dead.  You know who I'm thinking about.  Yes, it's Bruce Campbell's character of Ash from the Evil Dead movies.  This just might be one of the most bad-ass characters in all movie history.  He had a freaking chainsaw for a hand.  A chainsaw!  Not to mention, he has great one liners:

However, if naming your child after a movie character still isn't acceptable for you then, you can tell everyone it's just short for Asher.  It's a nice name, too.

And it's better than 'Bruce'.

Link

This guy probably has one of the most famous names in video game history.  He's also one of the most recognizable video game heroes.  His name is Link, and he doesn't talk (except for in the T.V. show, but let's not get crazy, now).

He's the ONLY character I use in Super Smash Bros.

The bad:  Upon introducing your child, Link, to society, he (or she if you're really cool) may be received with one of these reactions:

A#1.  Link's peers will forever ridicule him.  He will be pressured into sword fights and mocked when he speaks any word that isn't "AH".  Little annoying children with high pitched voices will follow him around constantly screaming "Hey!  Listen!", because they think it's so funny.  Upon reaching puberty, little Link will then try his hardest to avoid dating all females named Zelda, because he knows the wedding ceremony would be unbearably hilarious for all other attendees.

B#2.  People might say, "Hey your name is Link?  That's so cool.  I used to love that game!"

...Or "I still love that game", depending on the status of the franchise in 2020...

The awesome:  This name is lovely, and actually really want to name one of my children Link someday.  If you are also considering this as a baby name, don't worry about it being a name of almost empty meaning and origin (assuming that LoZ fandom is not enough ground for naming babies).  The name 'Link' can be short for 'Lincoln'.  I got this idea from the television drama, Prison Break, where the main character named Lincoln was sometimes referred to as 'Link the Sink'.  

As if the name wasn't awesome enough, you can also tell people that your kid is named after the 16th president of the United States.

Freer of slaves and also a great vampire hunter.

(screenjunkies.com)

And there you have it.  But these are only a few of the most awesomely bad names to give your children.  There are more to come.  So many more...

See MORE Awesomely Bad Baby Names: Part II HERE!

Another Update: Making Changes... Again.

Hello all!  I have a few changes I will be making to the blog.  First of all, I changed the web address and title of my blog.  I've decided to take a slightly different route with this and post content that related to more things than just dance.  Don't worry.  I will still write about dance.  It is a passion after all.

Second of all, I will be changing the layout sooner or later, so don't be too alarmed.

Remember, when you want to access the blog, the address is now lizwiththestuff.blogspot.com.

Thank you again for putting up with my randomness!

~Liz

Take a Look: Smashing Pumpkin Dances

I haven't made a dance-related update in a while, so I thought I might share a couple of cool dance videos I found.

Smashing Pumpkins is one of my favorite rock bands of all time.  Their songs just sound so right to me.  It's something that's hard to explain some times.  So, while just "trololololoing" through YouTube, I decided to see if I could dig up any dances people had done to their songs.  I could only find dances done to "Landslide" (which is also a Fleetwood Mac cover).  I here's a few that I found particularly striking:

Apparently, this dance was done by a contestant from So You Think You Can Dance: Canada.  It's very pretty.  The movements are just my taste.  I love it.

I really enjoy this one, too.  The dancer is young, but she has so much talent.  I don't even mind the instructor talking through the whole thing.  His words are encouraging and supportive, and he's not just shouting out commands.

Homosexuality a Mental Disorder?

This blog post has nothing to do with dance.  Please read it anyway, please. :)




I didn't think it would be necessary for me to have to write this article, but sadly, it is becoming more and more evident to me that some individuals cannot grasp the simple concept that homosexuality is in fact NOT a mental disease, disorder, or illness.

First, allow me to start off with some basic definitions:
Disease: A disorder of structure or function in a human that produces specific signs or symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury.

Disorder: a disruption of normal physical or mental functions.

Illness: a disease, or period of sickness affecting the body.

Now all you have do is apply the word mental (meaning "in the mind/brain") to any of these definitions, and there you have the definition of a mental disease, disorder, or illness.  In the psychology world, these words are used interchangeably, so for the rest of this article I will just use "mental disorder".

It is common knowledge that mental disorders are classified as ones that cause distress and/or harm for the person with the sickness, and potential distress and harm for others around them.  That being said, I will ask my imaginary friend, here:  Do you really think that there is any harm in being a homosexual?  Does being homosexual cause them harm?  Is it causing harm to others around them?

"Yes it causes harm.  Why do you think so many homosexual men and women end up depressed?"
Sure, many homosexual individuals go through life being mental unstable and depressed.  Many unfortunately end their own lives, but back up for a second.  Is it because they are gay, or is it because they are being bullied?  If you said something along the lines of "their gay-ness is detrimental to their own health", then you should go smack your head against a textbook.  Imagine that you go through your whole life with everyone around you telling you that you are worthless, you are weird, and you are going to Hell.  Imagine you were bullied every single day because of what you like.  Heck, I would be depressed, too.  Bulling is the problem, not the circumstance of being gay.  It is a correlation, not a cause-effect situation.

"Okay, but homosexuality is harmful to others around it.  It makes parents upset, and it's just not normal.  Isn't a deviation from normal things considered a disorder."
True, the definition of a disorder is "a disruption of normal" functions.  However, what is normal?  I don't mean to sound like a "hippy", but I'm being serious.  There is a grey area in the "normal" functions of society.  Think about this for a minute:  A long time ago, it was not considered "normal" for women to pursue higher education.  It was not "normal" for people of different races to fall in love.  It was normal for girls to marry and start families before they reached the age of 17.  NOW, we have television shows exploiting the deviation and horror of teen pregnancy.  Case in point; what is considered "normal" today could be changed tomorrow.
Concerning the statement that homosexuality is harmful to others; no.  It's just not.  Really.  No...  Your gay son and his boyfriend are not going to make you die.  So relax.  Sure, it causes distress in some households because people tend to care a lot (and way too much) about what everyone else will think, but none of that should matter.  Remember when little Suzy came home that one time with a tattoo on her arm, dyed her hair pink, and started dating a guy named Flea who owned a motorcycle?  Yeah.  I bet that was a little distressing, too.  How dare she deviate from "the normal"?!  But I also bet you got over it.

"Alright, but I know this guy who went through Reparative Therapy, and now he's not gay anymore.  So he must have gotten his problems fixed."
Okay ma'am or sir...  First of all, my spell checker says that "reparative" isn't even a word...  Second of all, I call bullshit on this kind of "therapy" and so does every other real professional out there in the field.  This is NOT an empirically supported form of therapy, thus there is no way of telling that it truly works.  Homosexuality is not something you can "fix" because it's not broken.  That's like saying I should go to a therapist to get rid of my attraction to White men.  It's absurd!  Just the thought of this so-called "reparative therapy" makes me sick to my stomach.  I'm sure I will be writing more articles concerning it's questionable procedures.
Also, if your "former" gay friend says that the shrink got rid of his gay-ness, there are only two explanations:
One-he is lying to you, and is still very much attracted to the same-sex, but is ashamed of himself because the world around him tells him that he should be.
Two-he never really was gay in the first place.  He probably had one tiny gay thought or experimented in his youth, and now irrationally fears eternal damnation.


Well, I hoped I cleared that up just a bit for those who do not seem to grasp this fact.  Homosexuality is fine.  Homosexuals are fine.  Leave them alone.  They are not sick, and they definitely don't need your help getting on the "right path".  Trying to change them is the equivalent of trying to get me to stop being an awkward person. It's just not going to happen.  Homosexuality is NOT a disease because it does no harm to anyone.  If anything, people who are homophobic should be considered the ones with the sickness.  The deep hatred for homosexuals is more detrimental than homosexuality itself.  Not only are homophobic people chronic bullies, but their fear (phobia = fear) is highly irrational.

If you still aren't convinced that homosexuality is not a disorder, go take a look in the American Psychological Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.  You wont find homosexuality anywhere in it.  Smart people wrote this manual, and I trust smart people.

Who are the crazy one's now?

How I Feel About The Glee Movie (In 5 Seconds or Less)

This pretty much sums up my feelings:

Yes, I did make this.  No, I do not like Glee.
First of all, my feelings about concert movies are not that bad.  However my feelings about 3D concert movies are quite horrible.  Now when you put Glee into the equation, I just get belligerent.

Glee was never a show I could really get into.  It's basically High School Musical with more "adult" themes.  To be fair, I did watch the whole season, and it was just okay.  Nothing special.  I didn't have time to watch seasons after that, but believe me when I say that some of my friends were bat-shit crazy about it.  Not only was the show becoming a big "hit", but it's music was also making it's way to radio stations.  I don't have a problem with covers of songs, but the covers done by these Glee kids just sound so soulless to me.  These songs sound like they belong on a borderline Kidz Bob album most of the time.  I think Glee's problem is that they don't know the difference between Broadway and Pop music.  All the kids on this show are Broadway-bound.  There's no denying that.  So my question is why don't they freaking go there?!

"I just want to be Kristen Chenoweth so bad!!!"

So in conclusion, I hate Glee.

BUT WAIT!

Not only does producer, Ryan Murphy feel the need to infect my television AND radio with Glee songs.  Someone felt the need that the stars from the show needed to tour around the country singing their songs to screaming fans live.  That sounds so necessary.

BUT WAIT!

Just in case you missed the completely necessary Glee Tour, someone decided to professionally film it, with behind-the-scenes footage and all, and release it to theaters...  In 3D...

This is how I like to imagine how Glee fans would watch this movie.

I'm sure that somewhere in the future, I will make a list of movie genres that should never be shown in 3D, and "concert movies" will be on the list.  In the mean time, you probably should take the advice of Jane Lynch and save your money.

Well...shit.

Why SYTYCD Will Never Be the Same

This is a clip of an audition of Donyelle Jones from season 2 of So You Think You Can Dance:

Notice something?  No fancy leg extensions.  No 5,000 turns.  No flips.  No tricks.  Just pure and honest dancing.  And what's best is that the judges sent her to Vegas right away.  And what's even BETTER is that this wonderful woman made it all the way to the Top 4 finale show.  She took 3rd place.  Donyelle is one of my favorite dancers of all time, and inspires me so much.  However, I get the feeling that if she were to audition for the same show today, judges would not give her second looks.

Watching this show today, I think that dancers have to try a lot harder to get on this show.  There's nothing wrong with that.  Previous contestants have raised the bar, and that is great, and I love that they do that.  However, I am kind of upset to see numerous amounts of what appear to be just "dance tricks", and no real dancing.  When I see someone dance, I want to see their soul laid out on the floor, not their legs going in places that really shouldn't be humanly possible.  Although these kids are VERY talented, I just wish they would show more of themselves in their dancing.  I'm not feeling the same kind of emotion that I did in past seasons.  

If Brian Freedman loved her, she must be the sh*t!

Oh Hai, Blogger Dot Com!

[If you don't get the title reference, I have two words for you: Tommy Wiseau]

This is just an update blog, to let my zero followers know what I have been up to.  First, I have decided to discontinue the current blog layout that I have been using.  The highlighting of the keywords with different colors was pretty cool, but I figured it might begin to get obnoxious since I completely changed the look of my blog.

Second, I have changed the title of my blog.  I just thought this sounded nicer, and it just rolls off the tongue easier.

It's also not a quote from a Billy Idol song. 


Third, I actually have been keeping up with So You Think You Can Dance.  Like I predicted, everything got better after the Top 10.  I still don't find the show as gripping as past seasons, but it has been doing a fairly good job so far.  I have to say that I even have a few favorites!

But seriously, if Sasha or Melanie doesn't win, I will be PISSED!


Fourth and finally, I have decided to start my own little internet review show.  It will be called "On Pointe", and I will be reviewing the worst of the worst dance movies out there.  I already finished my script and filming.  All that's left is for me to record my voice-overs and edit everything together (these are the hard parts).  I will try to have it up by Saturday.  I really hope it will get positive reviews.  I get about 80% percent of my video-making inspiration from the producers at ThatGuyWithTheGlasses.com.  It would be my dream for someone from the site to see my work and praise it.  But I think that's a long shot; I have a few big steps to take before that ever happens.  Plus, I would really have to impress them big time to be considered for the site, seeing as they are not hiring at the moment.  Oh, well!  A girl can dream, can't she?
DON'T STOP BELIEVIN'!

Ugh, that was not the image I wanted in my head...

Songs Made Better Through Dance: "Rock That Body" by The Black Eyed Peas

I have noticed something:  If I take a song that I either really dislike or never cared for, and combine it with certain circumstances, there is a chance that I will begin to enjoy that song because of the event that I associate it with.  This happens to a lot of people with songs that are featured in movies, TV shows, or video games.  With me, it happens through dance also.

Many of the songs on my MP3 player are songs I never would have been interested it if it hadn't been for a certain dance routine or combination.  One of them just so happens to be "Rock That Body" by The Black Eyed Peas.  Now, I won't rant too much about this group's music.  Just know, that they tend to have hits and misses (mostly misses, in my opinion).  "Rock That Body" is not a song that I would immediately find appealing.  It's not all that bad, but it's also not all that good.  I am not a big fan of synthesizers and that all around "computer-generated" sound that this decade loves so much.  I'd rather listen to real musicians rather than Fergie's "chipmunk voice".  If you don't know what I'm talking about, just listen to it yourself:

To be honest, I actually kind of dug the hook in the beginning ("I wanna rock right now" repeated 10x times). It make me think a little of B-boys in the 80s doing their thing on the streets.  So basically, whenever this came on the radio, I would listen to the first 30 seconds, then turn away.  This song was not clicking with me.

Then this happened:

These lovely gentlemen call themselves S**t Kingz, however their dancing looks nothing like "shit".  They dance so smoothly that all you can say while you watch them is, "Shiiiiiit!".  Watch them.  They are the amazing sauce on top of perfection!  The way they move is not even close to human.  Also, if you look closely, you will see how they transition through formations like ninjas.  So.  Unbelievably.  Smooth.  This is hip-hop dancing.  This is brilliance.

Every time I think of this song, I think of these men and their powerful movements.

Alas!  This is the reason why I can tolerate "Rock That Body" for a few more minutes.

"Meh": or, Why I Stopped Trying, and Learned to Watch SYTYCD Casually

Remember when I said I was going to keep myself updated on all the episodes of this season of So You Think You Can Dance?  Well, if you don't remember, just look below at the previous blog post...

Well clearly I have not been making regular blog posts about it for a few reasons, which I will post now:

1.  I'm never around when the show comes on

Apparently I have a busy life (or something), and always seem to miss new episodes.  I would watch them on Fox's website, but since the episodes aren't posted until days later, I tend to forget.

2.  I'm too damn lazy

I'll admit it.  I'm partially too lazy recap shows, which brings me to my next point...

3.  I don't like recapping

That's just not something that I do.  If you want a recap, I'm sure you can find one on Fox's website, IMDB, or some other site.  I'm here to give my thoughts and opinions, and that is all.

4.  America's best dancers?

In my honest opinion, I believe there are dancers in the world that are far better than some of the contestants on this show.  I'm not saying that the contestants are bad, because that are FAR from it.  They are all amazing, but I think that I have seen better dancers.  And when dancers appear on the show that actually can be considered "The Best" in my eyes, they never win (*cough,cough*Jakob...).  Later, I think will be posting a list of the best dancers and choreographers that I have seen in my short life.

5.  It doesn't get good until the Top 10

When the stakes get raised, everything gets more interesting.  I'm going to wait until it gets down to the last 10 or so dancers, and then maybe I will try to tune in more.

6.  I'd rather be dancing

Yes.  I am one of those people.  It's not that I hate to see other's dancing, but it depresses me to some extent to see so many amazing dancers do all these things that I can only dream of doing.  I went to a dance recital recently, and I literally could not stand still.  I was all ready to jump out of my seat and do leaps in the aisles.  I can sit down and watch this show just fine, but I have a problem.  I need to be dancing while I watch it.
Yeah, I'm a weirdo...


Please understand, that this list does not mean that I am not a fan of SYTYCD.  I am, and will always be a fan of this show to some extent.  It's just that I do not have the same passion for this show as I had back in the earlier seasons.  I promise I will still watch it from time to time, and if something happens this season that inspires me to write, I promise I will.

Until then, keep dancing!

So You Think You Can Dance... Yup...

Season 8 of So You Think You Can Dance has started?  Oh...  Cool.

The last time I watched a full season of SYTYCD was Season 5 with winner, Jeanine Mason.  From there, I either was too busy with other things in my life to sit down and watch full episodes, or I lost interest.  Actually I do believe it was a little bit of both.  I did keep up with the show to some extent (I'm aware of the winners and major events and such), but as far as watching every single dance routine...  That was something I just couldn't find the time to do anymore.  Honestly, I really don't think I missed much.

When Season 6 came out, it didn't really grab me from the start.  I remember them airing this whole pre-show kind of thing before the actual competition actually started.  It was a nice idea I suppose, since it gave viewers the chance to see the dancers for more than one day before they started cutting them.  In retrospect, it didn't seem so bad.  Why didn't I like this season?...

Oh wait, now I remember.

They added-not one, not two, but three tappers.  Three.  Now, I have nothing against tappers.  In fact I love to tap dance.  The problem was that they didn't go very far.  They weren't that good, and the judges pushed so hard to get them to the Top 20.  It's nice that the producers wanted to showcase a different dance style on the show, but being a well-rounded dancer is a big part of being a contestant on SYTYCD.  The tappers just weren't up to par, and were a waste of space, in my opinion.  That being said; I had no problem with the winner of that season.  Oh wait.. I did...

Krumper, Russel (right) was great, but how could America NOT CHOOSE JAKOB??? (left)  I'll leave it up to you to go find YouTube videos to compare the two...

Season 7 was something I can honestly say that I did not watch at all.  I don't think I was quite down with the "Top 10..oh wait, no!  Top 11 dance show, where the contestants dance with past winners."  Did Fox not have time to air a complete season?  Besides all that shady business, I don't think this season was that bad.  In fact, it might have been better than the previous (I am speaking from a glance, here).  I watched a few of the dance routines from this season on YouTube, and they were pretty darn great.  The Alex Wong/Twitch hip-hop routine will alway and forever be a fan favorite, I'm sure.  Once again, I can't complain about the winner. Actually...  Um...  Damn...  Why can't there ever be ties on this show?!

Runner up Kent Boyd (left) alongside Season 7 winner, Lauren Froderman (right).

And now on to Season 8-the current season.  I've decided that since it's summer, I'm not in school, and I have little to nothing to do for two months, I might as well sit down and watch this season all the way through. Also Fox has FINALLY made a good choice and put full episodes on their website, so I can watch anything that I missed.  (No, I don't have a DVR... I still live in 2000.)

Season 8 looks promising to me.  I watched one audition episode, and the talent was all there.  I skipped all that Vegas-process-stuff and missed the first Top 20 episode, but I did see the Results Show last night.

SPOILERS:



The reason I honestly believe this season will not disappoint is because no one got eliminated.  This isn't anything new, but I totally agreed with the judges' decision this time.  While watching the dancers who where in the "bottom" do their solos, I really could not pick out a bad dancer.  Everyone "brought it" and laid out everything they had on the table, which is very surprising, seeing as this is only the first week of the competition.  Good for them!  The downside, is that two couples have to be eliminated next week.  Thus, next week's show should be intense!

We, we, we so excited...

As far as having a favorite dancer... It's too early in the competition to pick one.  I really want to like Ashley Rich, but A: I haven't seen much of her yet, and B: I can't quite figure out her personality.  If she has a big ego, I'll drop her like a hotcake.

Anywho!  Can't wait to watch the next episode!

KEEP DANCING, FOLKS!

 

Take a Look: Amazing Dance Animation

This video has probably been floating through the interwebs for a while now, but just in case you haven't seen it yet, here it is.  I can honestly say this is one of the best works of animation that I have seen.  It may not be filled in, and it may look like a rough draft, but that's what makes it beautiful to me.  The artist, Ryan Woodward, perfectly captures all the delicate movements of a dancer.  At some points in the video, his animation almost feels like you are watching two very real bodies.  Just watch it and see for yourself.  The man is brilliant.

Woodward also got the chance to have his art featured as a "Google Doodle" for the birthday of Martha Graham.  It's just as beautiful:

If you want to see the "making of" video of the "Thought of You" animation you can watch it here.  I think the thing that I appreciate most from this guy is that he was so interested in contemporary dance (my favorite dance style, by the way) that he took the time to carefully capture all the elements of a dance and the dancers...and he doesn't even dance!  He even collaborated with actual dancers and choreographers.  That's dedication!  Not only does he do a marvelous job of capturing dance; his work also tells a story.  I can dig it.

Applause to you, Mr. Woodward.  Applause.

And....I'm Back.

No..seriously. For real this time guys.

That's right! I'm out of school (until September) which means I have plenty of time for blogging. HOO-RAY! ..........

"Good grief, Liz"

Believe me, dammit!

I always say to myself that I'm going to start blogging seriously, but it never quite works out. So, here's what I'm going to do...

I'm not going to make a day job out of blogging. I'm just going to do it for pure fun. I will just post whenever I feel like it. Of course it won't be everyday, but I'll do my best to make posts at least once or twice a week. I have a lot of inspiration in front of me, so I'm super excited to get started again.

As expected, I will be posting dance-related information, thoughts, reviews, news, etc. on this blog. ARE YOU READY?

'Cuz I'm soooo ready...

*puts on sunglasses and turns on music by The Who*