It's Morning In the West

Just went over my stats on our blogosphere and it looks like we are finally getting rid of most of the junk hitters that we had. They make the rounds like locusts.

 "Today, a blog is a platform for news, tutorials, travel tales, articles, video, photos

and more. Blogs have several categories similar to what websites had several

years ago. You have technology blogs, travel blogs, personal blogs, news blogs,

video blogs, photo blogs, and I have even heard, there are dance blogs."

It just may be turning out that Oahu - West may lead the blogs in photos submitted by the readers. A good steady is Tim Cubero Jr. who also does some terrific blogging for us. Then Willy Dionisio contributes now and then, key photos that are necessary to keep this blog rolling. Now we have Maurice Morita with some good photos. They may not know it yet but some of those photos, in our blogs, are going to put their organizations on the map of Western Oahu.

It has been suggested many times that the photos are what are going to make this blog. We have the "Good People" once per month rolling along very nicely. Of the others, the special ones go into the slide show, and the reader/dancers like that. Hey, hey, we are beginning to roll. This blog is evolving in the right direction. And the reader/dancers are the ones that are going to do it, with their photos.

"Mr Sandman" ... The Chordettes

I was also informed today, that Oahu - West shouldn't get too uppity about how terrific they are in American Style of dance, which they are. In East Oahu, they have always had consistently good teaching in American Style of dance. Those students can compare very favorably with the rest of the island dancers.

They can dance. In fact there are enough good dancers there to make a terrific East Honolulu Dance Club. And how about dancing at Waimanalo Community Center? I'll bet they could come up with 100 organizing members if they tried. I don't know that much about that corner of this Island but it seems to me that it would be a smash hit. Perhaps they would even have the Western outlook of "I coulda been home in 20 minutes."

Pub's Side Note: There are plans to have a monthly photo, in Oahu And Beyond of the American Style Dance teachers similar to our "Good People" in the side bar. The problem is where do we start?

Whatta Nice Day

Saturday, I woke up nice and late and everything went like clockwork. I made my good connections with the Nanakuli Lumber Yard next door and they had my lumber cut and ready. What a wonderful world.

"You have two chances of making good without working, slim and none."

The details with the church are evolving slowly and I hope Jason becomes our first Guest Author in the Nanakuli Ridge blog. So we go slow. but we are going to get some good people there.

Got ready for my trip to Aliamanu in the afternoon and I got to Aliamanu Intermediate right around six and only Roger Yang was there, he got the first DVD. Waited about ten minutes and was able to get a photo of the Early Birds, always one of my favorite photos.

Anna and Jim Arrowhead, Roger Yang - DJ, Harrison Hirahara, Lynn Twigg and
Maurice Morita, the early birds. I am still pressing the button down too fast. Blurry pic.

Photo submitted by Maurice: left and right Derek Shimabukuro and Lenette Miyamura.

Center: Ping and Hector Centeno.

Maurice Adds: New Dance Hawaii members: Derek Shimabukuro and Lenette Miyamura, Derek is the father of Jake and Bruce Shimabukuro. Hector & Ping Centeno are Dance Hawaii American Social dance instructors at Aliamanu Elementary School.

Margaret, Kevin, Cora, Wayne, Lasting and Fil,  three of my favorite couples

and lucky I was slower in the button, I'm learning.

Waited around and slowly became aware and ratified my suspicions. In everything I do, I try to include everyone in our dancing world. However some do not wish to be included. And I reiterate, my intentions are to include, but if they wish to be excluded, we must respect their wishes. But we must continue to go on. we have much work ahead of us. If we are careful, it will be easy enough, and we have enough people to help.

These people know how to dance for fun, none of that Mickey Mouse stuff.

The dancers came in and perhaps this group will get more later on when they get more people that are not in some kind of private class. This is coming, we just have to be aware why it is happening. On the island of Oahu, different factions shape up fairly fast. In West Oahu we are beginning to get some but fortunately few and we know who they are and all we have to do is avoid them. It is a bit tricky, but we have a brand new dancing world shaping up in the West and it going to be for all of us to enjoy.

Photo taken by Maurice of Aiea Dance Club members having a ball.

Gotta quote for Maurice: "Come Dance With Us." I tried to shorten it, it was too long but I failed as per usual in this sort of thing.The crowd was nice just a trifle small, and I gave the last DVD to Tony's wife, I see him everywhere.

Ring of Prayer, Jim Arrowhead presiding and the Kau Kau line with ono local kine grindz.

Left at a little after 8, Got the bike on the 40 bus before 8:30, was able to get a seat and was home by ten. Put on some nice music and made myself a nice Rum & Coke. So how was your day?

Steady

Thing are just straightening out nicely. This entire section is just getting more solid and we have good reason to be optimistic. But then the demographics speak for themselves. There are plenty of dancers in this section. They have just been tied in town for too long.

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

Da Spin Doctor is vacationing on the Mainland so Pearl City Elks Lodge is on hold and so is the Fleet Lounge in the Airport area. Not only that but I am hoping he will blog something from the Mainland, it would prove interesting for the rest of us. He has the only music voice in our blogosphere. Hopefully we may get Disc Jockeys in the section for their views on the subject. This is a blog.

“Please Don’t Go” ... K.C. and The Sunshine

I am making plans to try again at Dance Hawaii, at Aliamanu Intermediate on Saturday, August 18th. Should be a humdinger, an awful lot of nice people there and I hope I can get some pictures to make an interesting blog. I will have to plan HBDA in somewhere and alternate. Both organizations can make the entire section glow for the dance community.

Then there is the growing interest in a Dance Studio on the Waianae Coast. I first got notice about 20 years ago from some good teachers that taught in town but lived in Kapolei. Nothing was ever

done by anyone. A Dance Studio was set up in Kapolei but for other types of dance same as the other studios in the West. Nothing resembling Ballroom. Now the interest is more up to date.

Some have had a condo in town for years and now might buy a house on Farrington Hwy for about 150 thousand, semi retirement and on their own, take their time and build the right kind of studio. We can kick it around in our crowd and something will emerge.

Kapolei Chapter HBDA still growing in popularity and may double in size. Of course, Ewa Beach Chapter has been mentioned before. Or could be Ewa Chapter after the new shopping center in Ewa is built. The time will come.

Pub's Side Note: The party of the rich has picked the right VP for the nomination. No they did not steal the nomination. These people are accustomed to paying cash for everything.

Waiting For A Few Pictures

Yes, photos are going to spruce up this blog. Not the hundreds like in Flicker and Photobucket. Five to Seven people is ideal, and the same people all time is not very ?? Anyway you all know what it means. They will do no harm to the contributors of the photos of course, and will enhance their own organizations in the public eye. I am always looking for a win-win situation. Once a month would be fine, they would flower up any blog on dancing.

I stole this one from someplace, I forget where. Some of the loveliest ladies in the West,

sorry about that, I meant on the entire island of Oahu.

"A good woman is like a good book - entertaining, inspiring and instructive, sometimes a bit too wordy, but when properly bound and decorated - irresistible." 

The planning for the Good Teachers in the Oahu And Beyond blog monthly in the side bar looking good so far. Possibly in September or October. I have to be very careful with the first one because they have to help me choose the second and possibly the third. These are only the amateur teachers.

We could have the International teachers in the Town Dancer and the American Style teachers in the Oahu And Beyond. All this should be done to help establish the differences in the blogs. They cannot be the same. Let us not bore our reader/dancers.

"My Way" ... Frank Sinatra

Blogging is not just about saying your piece, it is also about going out and joining the conversation where it is happening. It’s about reaching out to people and exposing yourself regularly to new ideas. Some giving as well, as taking back, is what we focus on. There are many of our friends on the verge of becoming good independent information contributors for this blog.

In American and Night Club dancing - the Promenade Position: The man’s right hip and the woman’s left hip are in close contact. The opposite sides of their bodies are open out to form a compact "V". It is the same as the Semi-Open Position, used in the Tango? Of course. And one hundred other dances too.

Pub's Side Note: The most valuable quotations will be the ones which I cannot determine the source. All I can do is put the quotation in quotes.

The Evening Entertainment

We have several places to go in the West, but many not conducive to recreational dancing. We have Pearl City Elks, a nice place with Da Spin Doctor providing the music. And we have Ige's 19th Puka, that provides a variety of good live music. The Goodies And Oldies Crowd are very prominent. There are other places in the Pearlridge area mainly for the under 30. Their own music and dance and they are certainly entitled to their preferences.

"It is not death that people should fear, they should fear never having lived." 

The Fleet Lounge with music by Da Spin Doctor is in a perfect location for the Pau Hana Dance. There has never been a Pau Hana Dance in this wilderness. The hours at the Fleet Lounge are set later because they await the people that are coming from town.

And everyone knows by now that not very many do come. So the evidence so far is that the Pau Hana Dance may not be ready and waiting for the people that work in the West, but the people in the West should be ready.

You get off work at 4:30 or 5 and clean up a little. Some will go to extremes in clean up and of course it is up to them. Most of the ladies will just need to touch up their make up. The men will maybe take their electric razors and perhaps an extra undershirt and a little freshen up the armpits with fresh water and a little underarm goop. The ten dollar cover charge (should not be more than that) and the music starts at five!

"Kiss Of Fire ... Georgia Gibbs

It may go past eight, but it is quite enough. Not much alcoholic drink (Dancers have the rep and this is not Happy Hour) a few snacks, plenty of dancing and good conversation with friends and acquaintances, in the middle of the week. The ride home is comfortable because of the reduced traffic. You get home in time for any last minute fixings and you are in bed early and ready for work the next day. You can't beat that!

Location wise, the next place to establish a Pau Hana shindig would be in the old Salt Lake Shopping Center, just East of Mapunapuna. This blog was made for brainstorming. One thousand wrong ones - and one that can hit the lottery.

Pub's Side Note: "Of the dancers, by the dancers and for the dancers" This does not mean all the dancers, they do not all want to be involved and we must respect.

Dance Floors

Dance Floors. The most needed dance item in the West. And we mean a dance floor that is used for dancing. This is difficult to understand, yes, we know.

"We could take the attitude of a student, never be too big to ask questions

and never know too much to learn something new."

At the moment the best dance floor in the West is at the Waianae District Park. But as far as I have inquired, there is no record of anyone ever dancing on that floor. They just got the plans screwed up from the beginning and designed a dance floor in there. just beautiful. But I suppose it could be used for playing basketball.

This is nothing new. There is a beautiful place in Waipio called the Legacy Ballroom. Cost millions in donations, I have heard that they have had dinners there, where they will wait on you hand and foot, but it costs an arm and a leg. I also don't find any record of anyone ever dancing ballroom in that place.  I hear that they do dust it regularly. Whatta waste!

There are Hotels in the airport area that have a section designated as a "ballroom" but no one can say if the floors have ever being used for dancing. For all we know on the island of Oahu, it may be illegal.

Many Community Centers and District Parks have always been large enough for a good dance floor but somehow they have other uses for the centers and dancing has not been one of them. Perhaps with Da Blogosphere blog we can do some communicating to get some dance floors.

The net result is that we need many more places, not just available, but to actually be used for dancing in the West. Ewa and Kapolei are wide open. One of them will evolve into the new dance center in the West. Hopefully some one will notify Da Blogosphere so we can write it up.

Update Good

Steady as she goes and I expect some faster moving as soon as we get an additional Guest Author. We cannot blame them for holding back. It has always been a commitment that they did not want to make. Ours is quite a different set up and it will take awhile to communicate this to everyone.

"We can seldom convince someone we are right or they are wrong,

they have to see it on their own. In our blogs, all we can do is present

different opinions, the readers will come to their own conclusions."

The feedback on the slide show has been very favorable. At the moment we have 23 photos but I expect to go to at least 25 and from there, play it by ear. Probably best at around thirty. I am weeding the older ones out. You got a favorite, send it in.

You can all see that the best ones are from four to seven people and it would be better if they were not just in a "row." Some that I have in now, have a very good variety of presentation. We are even getting suggestions about a slide show in Oahu and Beyond. Sounds good to me, but in a couple months when we get this one going good.

This blog does need some coverage in the Evening club action. Elk's and Ige's in Pearl City, and Fleet Lounge in the Airport area. Sooner or later there will be one in Kapolei. And of course, there will be a Pau Hana dance somewhere on a Wednesday evening that is coming for sure. The Fleet Lounge would be perfect because of all the light industrial area surrounding. There are your customers, a thousand available, but if you only get a hundred, would be nice.

You got judges on the social dance floor? You can bet your dancing shoes on that. For the men, who are leading and into social dancing, it would be much better to stick to the Bronze level and very little into the Silver. Learn these to as near to perfection as possible and let yourself enjoy listening to the music and moving to it. You're a social dancer, feel it and move with it. When you are ready for more difficult movements, you will know it. Then you may still not look like a professional but anyone will be able to tell that you are really dancing.

"At The Jazz Dance Ball" ... Victor Silvester

Productivity
A study conducted by Nucleus Research confirms that Facebook usage severely hampers productivity, with over 75 percent of employees using Facebook during the work day. The impact on productivity varies by users, but the study did find that some users spent upwards of two hours on Facebook during the work day. Whether you work at home or in an office, Facebook has an almost irresistible pull that can negatively impact your productivity

Pub's Side Note: Just got it on the grapevine, Yes, they will make a few changes if Romney gets in, It will now read. "The rich shall inherit the earth." These people are Christians.