Welcome to Dance Data ! Dance Tips and Resources

March 3, 2008: Volume 1, Issue 10

To view this Newsletter Online: Issue #10        March Madness!      The third month of the year is already here! Last month was love and this month is luck.     Have you been lucky enough to experience the love of dance yet? If    so, I am sure that dancing has helped you to spin through the long winter    season, and if not there is no time like the present to start dancing your way    into spring. Do yourself a favor and make a commitment to dancing, at least    twice a week. It will improve your over all well being, and bring a smile to your    face. Grab your partner or a friend and head out to your local dance studio,    community center or nightclub and kickup you heels!      Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your world!                                                                         The "Ras Girls"      Michele Rasmussen, Ras #1      Cindy Rastutis, Ras #2

Tip Of The Week

Backup, your computer !   The tip this week has nothing to do with dance. A friend of mine recently experienced the dreaded computer crash. She lost everything on her computer. Tax files, important documents, pictures, music dance videos, power point presentations, etc. You know, your life! Now I know that noteveryone is like me, the girl that only backs up while doing the Country Two Step, so this may not interest you but I have found the coolest thing ever. It is Carbonite. After your initial backup, which took me several days, Carbonite continually backs up all of your data moment by moment. You will never have to worry about any of your important "stuff." Even if your computer is lost or stolen, you will be able to recover your life. Cool, huh? Try Carbonite Online Backup FREE for 15 days and back up your irreplaceable files automatically and securely. No credit card required!

Recent Article

"Become Familiar with Your Dance Partner" Social dancing is a sport whose players come in all shapes and sizes, not to mention different levels of ability, experience and technique. Even if both partners are experienced dancers, the first few phrases of a song can clearly define the success and enjoyment of that particular dance. Consideration to both leader and follower needs to be implemented in order to familiarize yourselves with each other. It is wise to start slow, with just a few basic steps and underarm turns to "test the waters", to become comfortable and familiar with each other. Once you have established your connection you can then continue to explore each others abilities. Of course leaders, you are in control, so it is up to you to establish the connection and to allow you and your partner the time get to know each other. It can be very difficult to enjoy a dance if one partner out dances the other. Do not walk onto the dance floor and start leading your partner through one difficult move or pattern after another, without first establishing a clear connection and becoming familiar with one another. If you do this, you will likely become frustrated and your partner will be confused. Start slow and build, trying new dance moves as you go. If something doesn't work the first time, you might try it again, but do not waste the entire dance focusing on just that one move. By the end of the dance, you will each have a better perspective of the other persons ability and of the way you dance with each other so that the next time you dance you can pick up where you left off and you will know just what to expect. Even if you have previously danced with someone, it is a good idea to dance a starter step or two, just to get in sync with the music and your partner. While it is proper etiquette to dance to the level of your partner, I am not saying that you should never try out that new dance move that you have been working on. That is part of the fun and enjoyment of dancing. What I am saying is to be sure that you are both dancing the same dance, to the same music at the same time before throwing all caution to the wind! Taking just a little bit of time during the first few steps of your dance, to familiarize yourselves with each other can mean the difference of a beautifully executed dance or a complete train wreck. Take your time and enjoy!

Upcoming Events

Los Angeles Premier Dance Classic, LA, Ca.  - April 3-5, 2009 Seattle Easter SwingChampionships - April 9 - 12, 2009 Reno Dance Sensation  - April 16 -19, 2009

Blog Re-Cap

Anyone care to Dance and Cruise? Join us Sept. 27, 2009 on a cruise through the Mexican Riviera. There will be workshops, dancing and parties. Fun, fun, fun! For those dance addicts, like me and Cindy, you might get a kick out of Ras #2's Country Countdown blog, how dare they gyp us out of 5 minutes of dancing!And then you be sure to check out;Dancing Magic.                                                                                Please be sure and share your dancing stories with us. We love to hear about your trials and triumphs! http://www.ras-this.com/

Resources

Online Dance Instruction: www.learntoballroomdanceonline.com             Ballroom Dance Association:  www.USAdance.org                                 National Association of Swing Dance Events:  http://www.nasde.net/     USA Swing Dance Network: http://www.usaswingnet.com/

Keeping Up with the Ras-Girls Our Blog: www.Ras-This.com Be our friend on MySpace Add Michele as a friend on Facebook Add Cindy as a friend on Facebook Twitter Follow Michele at http://twitter.com/LovetoDance Twitter Follow Cindy at http://twitter.com/threerivers33 Email address: ras.this@gmail.com       About Us                 We are Cindy Rastutis and Michele Rasmussen, aka The "Ras Girls, #2 & #1". We share the same hopes and dreams (and often times a brain) as many of you, and hope to share the joy that we have found by learning to "Dance in the Rain". Thank-You!