2009 August 08 | Suddenly *Not So* Single Journey

Archive for August 8th, 2009

Hey, Mom! I’m a Pole Dancer.

Saturday, August 8th, 2009

pole dancing Certainly, those are words that every mother fears hearing from her daughter. Don’t worry, I’ll still be maintaining my amateur status. This is not the way I plan on filling the void in my bank account.

My struggles with weight loss are legendary. I’ve been looking for something fun to do, something that I could stick with, something that I would feel like I had actually worked out after. In the end, I turned to a class that may seem a tad controversial but is actually very fun…and effective.

Yup. Check out Pole Dance Charlotte at

http://www.poledancecharlotte.com

I highly recommend it. Donna has talked about going with me, but she’s out of town right now, enjoying Sumter. And I just couldn’t put it off any longer. Not only that, but I can’t have my workouts dependent on whether or not I have a workout buddy. I have to be stronger and more determined than that.

Last night I signed up. S and I had been talking about me taking the classes for a few weeks. At first I worried over his reaction. Instead, he was highly supportive, his only concern whether or not there would be other guys there that I would be using to practice my lap dances on. (No, baby.)

Well, I showed up for the sampler class that started at 11am. I decided that if I liked the half hour class, I’d sign up for the monthly membership which allows me to take as many classes as I want. The class after was an hour long Pole Dance 101 session. And if I could still move, hard core as I am, I’d stay for Sensual Seduction, a class that involved lap tease, floor and wall work.

I’m so glad I went. I can barely move now, but I know that it will be worth it. I made some new friends…or at least acquaintances. And I worked the heck out of my body while developing some useful seduction skills. (Every woman should have some in her bag of tricks. For me, it’s about stinking time.) The music was great, as were the instructions for how to work with the music. (Don’t follow the beat!)

The instructor was great in every respect. She taught with patience and understanding, helping us build confidence. She was really encouraging, which I thrive on. And she had an amazing body (which gives me hope) and mad skills (which I hope to develop).

Now picture me, late thirties, short, curvy, and clumsy. There is not a graceful or sexy bone in my body. Remember, Michael says I’m built for comfort. I learned some things about myself today. I went in there with the attitude that I wasn’t gong to hold back. I wasn’t going to be shy and self-conscious. I was spending money and I needed to take it seriously. The end result: I’m a natural. I can really work a pole! I learned at least four different spins and lots of transitional moves. I really liked it. And the best part: there was no need for me to be self-conscious. We pick stage names for the class. Mine: Sassy! (I thought it up all by myself.)

I have some goals now. I want to master…everything. The spins are especially fun. I hope to build my confidence in my body. And…I want my name tag on the ceiling. I will conquer that pole! (Just give me a couple of weeks.)

S has been looking around the house, periodically pointing out places where he might install a pole for me. It was a joke at first, but now I’m serious. And I have a huge surprise in store for him. ‘Black Velvet’ is one of his favorite songs. He thinks it’s stupid sexy and is dying for me to sing it to him. I’m going to raise the performance to the next level. The instructor used it as some of the background music for class. I’m so going to put together a dance to it. He’d better just hold onto his seat. I’m gonna rock his world.

And ladies, if you live in Charlotte, I look forward to seeing you at the studio. If you live in other cities, look up the pole dancing classes. Two big thumbs up!

http://www.poledancecharlotte.com

Posted in Health and Beauty | 8 Comments »

Part Nine: The Keys

Saturday, August 8th, 2009

florida keys Somehow I have to try and help you understand what a big deal this trip was. S had barely taken any trips before I came into his life. And he had never flown. Neither of us had ever been on a cruise. Most importantly, we had never spent more than four days alone together at any given time. Between the cruise and the time in Miami before and after the cruise, we had more than doubled that: nine days!

So, after our first night in Miami Lakes, where S had made me towel animals, we knew we had an entire day to spend as we liked before flying out at 4pm the next day. He had asked me, as we hung out in the hot tub that evening what I wanted to do.

S: We can do anything you want. Anything. You decide.

And I knew what I wanted to do. Sometimes I can be really easy going and just do the whole ‘oh whatever you want to do’ thing. Those are times that I really am that easy going, not necessarily indecisive. This time, however, I had something in mind.

The next day, Saturday, was Valentine’s Day. It was our first. And while we were big on our firsts, I knew this one would freak him out, too much pressure. I wanted easy breezy.

me: Let’s drive The Keys. (He looked at me a moment.) Let’s just leave after breakfast and drive, explore, no plan in mind, just go for as long as we can, maybe all the way back down to Key West.

S: (without hesitation) Let’s do it.

So we woke up and readied ourselves for the day. A hot buffet breakfast was included with our room. And we enjoyed it thoroughly. Then we loaded ourselves, the camera, and a beach bag into the rental car and headed out.

We had finally smartened up, realized I couldn’t be trusted to manage a map, and decided that ten dollars was a more than reasonable price for the GPS Avis offered. So, feeling prepared and elated, we headed out.

We drove forever. I was happy, practically giddy. I couldn’t imagine a better way to spend the day. We saw cool signs for alligator crossings. We saw blue water as far as the eye could see. We drove from island to island using the bridges.

Finally, we decided that we were hungry and stopped on Islamorada (which is currently my favorite) to try and grab some lunch at a bar. Remember, S is the king of bar food. Give him some chicken fingers or wings and fries, the man is happy. There was no luck. Believe it or not, that bar only served alcohol. We used the stop to take some pictures. We wandered around. I collected more coral and shells that had washed ashore. One of the photos from there is framed over the mantle.

At last we reached a popular local restaurant. It fit the bill. We just wanted some place where we could sit and eat on the water. There were fish. We ate wings. (Sometimes I think I may grow feathers.) Mostly we just relaxed.

After we finished crossing the Seven Mile Bridge, realizing it was getting later, and because we were still trying to meet up with his friend, Spider Ian, we headed back to Miami Lakes. I captured the sunset, sort of. I missed capturing the gator crossing signs. (In a perfect world, there would have been a sign and a real gator under it.) We grabbed a real estate guide. (I pick them up at every beach destination we hit because you never know…)

Yeah. It wasn’t an eventful day, but it was just what we needed. You see, Sunday didn’t go nearly as smoothly. We almost didn’t make it out of Miami. (I think it was sign…)

**Stop by tomorrow to find out why I will NEVER fly American Airlines. (And why you shouldn’t either…)

Posted in Travels | 1 Comment »