The Home Advantage

There's nothing like dancing tango in your own hometown. You've got the edge. You've got the home court advantage. Milonga One of Tango Sutra and I've all but given up. Relocated down the hall to the computers of Trinity College. Don't get me wrong. It's a wonderful milonga full of swirling couples, a beautiful hall, one of the best dj's I've heard in a while. I think her name is Julia. She's Russian. That's actually why I had to step out. My most cherished Di Sarli tango was played and I couldn't find a partner. Not being able to dance to it was just killing me. So I stepped out of the ballroom. I danced two tandas earlier with a woman I knew from years ago. She and another friend used to come to NY alot when D.C. didn't have much of a scene. They were beautiful tandas. I could have danced with her all night but I had to let her go.

I'm in a bad mood. An extremely bad mood. I haven't had this bad a milonga experience since the dreaded beginner days as a follower back in 1996. It's also parralleling my second time in Bs As which was a total nightmare. Listen, there are a lot of great men dancing tonight. Serious competition. And I don't know anyone. And I'm not clear about how they are making the arrangements to dance. It's not through cabacceo. It's not verbal. Something's going on but I can't quite catch the drift. I think my hunting muscles are soft to be honest. I am spoiled by NY and my home court advantage. Also my mind is kind of twisted up right now and I am convinced that these women do not really want to dance with another woman. They want to dance with men. As convinced of this as I am, utterly convinced, so convinced that I put it in writing put it in blog - a woman approaches me - Zoe. She asks if I am studying here. She wants to know if I am writing my dissertation or some sort of studies and on my breaks I come in and dance. I think this is kind of funny because I am nothing more than a criminal - illegally using the computers here because I am pissed off in the milonga. I tell Zoe that I am visiting and I don't know anyone here. Well that's not true. I know several people here but I am in a funk and I have given up on getting dances. Zoe tells me that she has seen what a wonderful leader I am and she would be happy to dance with me when I return to the milonga. So there we have it - my theory shot to hell! A woman wants to dance with me. She lets me know. Perhaps I am too used to having the women approach me for dance in NY. This happens alot. I am lazy and stupidly shy tonight. I am also pissed off that they don't have TANGO SUTRA TSHIRTS this year. That was one of the main reasons I came to this festival. Other than that, I guess I can't really complain. The weekend has just begun. There's a crowded room around the corner and Zoe waiting for a dance. Now that I've blown off some steam, maybe my energy and my tango luck will change. I will end on this note - for me - NYC and Roma have been the best cities for me to dance in as a leader. So D.C. I challange you to prove me wrong!