A penny dropped for me last week. A light switched on.I am sure there is other cliché that I could use but I will save you the pain.
Over the last two years a change has occurred in my life. My focus has shifted from all things flying towards all things dancing. It is an odd feeling to say the least.
Dance is not something that I ever saw as a part of my life - I got dragged kicking and screaming into it only a handful of years back and once my eyes were opened I found it was something I needed.
Dance definitely gives me my fix of competition and challenge and does so in a more compact and convenient way than flying balloons ever did.
I still love our business and even flying still makes me smile inside once I am doing it but right now I don't ever wake up wishing I could go for a flight. I wake up wishing I could go for a dance instead.
Modern Jive or Ceroc is where I started in the dancing world. It is easy to pick up, very social and fun partner dance that can be done to just about any music.
Since then I have started expanding and playing with West Coast Swing. A more technical dance in some respects but oh so much fun to play with once it starts to click into place.
I am not there yet but every now and then there will be a moment where I get a taste of what it is about and it just blows my mind. It is a smooth and connected dance that is all about lead and follow and playing with the music and your partner.
So, the moment last week was bought about by two very special people. Benji Schwimmer and Kellese Key who were teaching at an event put on by Nuroc Dance Company.
Benji is the winner of So You Think You Can Dance, USA season 2. Kellese is his dance partner and they were out here teaching WCS workshops for a week and doing private lessons.
There were too many moments, laughs and highlights to touch on except to say that I finally can see myself as a dancer and know that this is a part of my life for ever. These guys made that connection for me, made me realise just how important this is to me.
It was amazing to watch them dance, talk and express themselves and the obvious part that dance has played in their lives.
Charlie and I belted out our 2009 Bond routine one last time to get yet another trophy and best of all, the peoples choice award for it. Not a bad way to wrap it up before we start work on this years competitive routine.
As for ballooning stuff, we wrapped up 2009 with our first ever special shape balloon. From go to woe it was my baby to design, certify and test fly.
It was quite a challenge but good fun. Even better fun because it just worked and is still out there working away, doing it's thing with not so much as a phone call or question from the customer.
The only thing I like more than sending a new balloon out the door, is never seeing it again until it has died of old age and the customer rings saying they would like another please!
