So to phrase it nicely, last week was…difficult. I studied incessantly, slept minimal hours, and just really didn’t get much done other than practice tests and practice problems for midterms for my two hardest classes. One was on Thursday and the other on Friday. I was counting down the hours until Friday at 3pm when it was all over. After that I had a few things to get done, but I was so excited because I had some fun plans to look forward to, all of which included some hang time with the amigos! While I had technically been around a lot of them all week, it was in a high stress environment, with most conversation revolving around how do I do this?” or “when will this be over?”
I can be a little embarrassing...All the time...
Salsa on a longboard?
It was so nice to unwind on Friday night! I scrambled to complete as much homework and send as many emails as possible before 9pm. Then, I decided to make myself look presentable. It was time to make up for my appearance during midterms and remind myself that “Yes, I am in fact a girl.” So I got all dressed up for my very first salsa night! I had always walked by salsa nights, on my late night strolls down Bloom last year (on my way back from Parkside dorms to my Birnkrant dorm), and it looked like so much fun! I saw all the beautiful people, dancing the night away, stepping to the Latin rhythms, twirling and being effortlessly twirled by one another. I used to watch in amazement. This year, one of my good friends made the Breakon2 salsa team, and invited me to their first salsa night of the year. Needless to say, it was amazing! Even though I primarily spent most of my time watching, given I missed the lesson portion the first hour, my friend did share a dance with me and it was wonderful! Although I stared at my feet the whole time, I can’t
Our expert salsa-er and his trainees:)
deny how much fun just the basic step he taught me was. It was a good exercise in patience and control as well:) I am always so used to being in control of everything, but it was nice to have someone else leading on the dance floor, turning you and sweeping you in different directions as they see fit. I absolutely loved it, and hope to go back and get better in about 2 weeks. The environment was indescribable, and I would recommend that everyone try it at least once. Even if you aren’t feeling brave enough to make a fool of yourself, there are some stunning dancers and high energy in the room. Excellent people watching spot!
However, that was just the beginning of my night. I left at around midnight for a birthday party for two of my other friends, planned for that same evening. By that point, I was regretting not wearing more comfortable shoes. While I was able to trek from Webb Tower (my apartment building) to Mudd Hall (salsa night location) in my heels and then lightly dance in them for 3 hours, my feet were not prepared for the walk from Mudd to Gateway (the apartment where the birthday party was held). Friendly reminder to all the ladies out there: carry spare flat in a purse! It will go a long way, literally. So anyway, I toughed it out and just walked a little slower than I would have liked. My friends that
The birthday girls and my bestie:)
walked over to the party from salsa night with me were extremely patient:) Once we got there, my walk proved worth it. It was so nice to see so many of my friends in one place! Now that everyone is more spread out in where they live, I see less of some people than I would like. The energy at the party was almost as great as salsa night, except
for the fact no one was dancing! After mingling and taking a few photos in the hallway, I proceeded to get the dancing started (what else is new:?). While only a few of my friends joined me, it was a good work out. And then I decided to take off my shoes. My feet thanked me. After wishing my friends a happy birthday, I helped the soiree’s lovely hosts clean up. They asked to borrow my swiffer to complete cleanup, so we made the trek from Gateway back to my apartment with one of the guys from the apartment (who was kind enough to lend me some flippy floppies for the walk). Once we got there, the four of us just stayed up late talking, watching some Greek on netflix, and I made mac ‘n cheese. It was such a solid end to my week of midterms. I love having something to look forward to during a week of non stop work/studying. Last Friday night just made everything seem worth it:)
party in the hallway!
