1 sep 2008

So. Very. Tired. Without going into detail, work has been crazy busy the past few weeks. Every day I wake up physically exhausted, and today I voluntarily went in despite the holiday to which I was entitled, just to try to catch up (which I didn't). So that pretty much saps the energy to do much of anything, blogging included. Although that doesn't entirely account for the month I've been away from posting. Of course, a few weeks back the Olympics were on, and sorry, but everything else takes a back seat for me when the Olympics are on. Now, I'm really not much of a sports fan--three out of four years I couldn't care less about most of the events--but during the Olympics I'm riveted by everything. And with the miracle of modern technology you can keep up with just about all of it. It's an investment and takes some discipline, but great if you're into that kind of thing. At the end of it I felt similar to how I did after my first trip to BsAs--two weeks with little sleep. I think the games are just about the perfect length because I don't think I'd be able to keep up my enthusiasm for any longer.

Despite all the extraneous activities (which of course refers to anything not tango related) I still managed to adequately keep up with my dancing and practicing, although certainly more with the latter. And in the past couple weeks I filled in as head organizer for the all-nighter at The Beat and shared dj duties at Cellspace along with Dan Peters. The all-nighter in particular was taxing. In the experiences I've had where I was put in charge of things I find that I just can't get in the mind set to enjoy myself. I'm always trying to make sure everything is running okay and that those who are assisting me aren't doing more or less than their due share of work, although ultimately I'm not one who is especially adept at delegating authority and am more prone to want to do things myself. I suppose it's a good thing to be aware of for any future event where I'm in that kind of position. Just write it off as a night I'm not there to partake of the activities but to make sure everybody else gets the best experience. Like being the designated driver.

Similarly, it's very difficult for me to join in when I'm responsible for the music. I always want to make sure the sound quality is okay and that the people are responding well. Dj duty at Cellspace is even trickier given that you are trading off with another dj and have to play off of what they are playing to keep a logical flow to the proceedings. Adding to the difficulty is this month's "experiment" where the music switches from traditional to alternative every other tanda, and adding on to that was the extra experiment given to Dan and me to switch off between one another after every two tandas. These stipulations made it near impossible for me to get any time to dance and so I didn't bother for the most part (I gave in for one song to allow my friend, who is recently trying to practice the leader's part, the opportunity to weave me around the floor--sadly, I don't think I was the most responsive follower she's had :P) In the end, I think we pulled it off well, and several people approached me and commented that they *love* the traditional-alt format. My own opinion... well, I think I should discuss it with the organizers.

Anyway, once my workload eases up I'm looking forward to going out more socially once again. In the meantime, I'm dealing with a gnarly corn on my little toe that makes it painful just to put my shoes on. Of course it affects my ability to dance or practice and also weighs in on my decision whether I want to go out dancing or not. Hopefully, it'll be under control by the time Luciana's workshops start at the end of the month.