No, not that kind of swingin.’ I haven’t added an appropriate category for that kind of post.
My birthday brought out weird vibes in me this year. After another day of flat hunting, I ventured out to a place my friend Jeremy has often talked about – the Doghouse on Mission in San Francisco.
Every Saturday they have a healthy five hours of swing dancing. Sadly, its a DJ and not the 16 piece orchestra I grew accustomed to in my early days of swing in greater Boston. But the music grabs you nevertheless…….and, it doesn’t let you go.
When you have a birthday and the “floor” knows about it, you are thrown into what’s called a “birthday jam” by the dance community.
What’s fabulous about a jam, is that in one four minute dance, you experience a few ‘swing outs’ and turns with nearly every man in the place. They line up, throw a few moves your way, duck out and the next one comes in.
I realized as I drove to the venue that I had not been to an “official” swing dance in close to five years. The night brought back too many memories to describe.
I went in and out of various emotions throughout the night. One move reminded me of an all night dance I went to in France, while another one reminded me of the Millenium Dance in Mexico, and another yet brought me to a dance camp in Catalina. The list goes on.
I spent years training with some of the best dancers in the world, including Frankie Manning and Sweden’s Eddie & Eva of the Rhythm Hot Shots. Then suddenly one day in early 2000, I just stopped dancing. How tragic.
My grandfather once said to me about a man I brought home – “He doesn’t have music in his soul. It’ll never work.” He was right. You can see it in someone’s eyes – the music.
Dancing sits underneath the soul and dance moves are how they look at the world. It’s amazing what you can learn from someone after spending three minutes on the floor with them…..a bit like a chess match, but much more interactive and much more fun.
It’s engaging and addictive. While I tried to pace myself, the music touched me so deep inside that I lost track of the hours, the original plan and eventually the nerves I had when I arrived. It’s been five years, I kept telling myself. Stop the mantra. Just feel it and the rest comes.
It’s not exactly the same as riding a bike….you don’t “remember” all the moves. What I was reminded however, is that when you close your eyes and listen ‘to the music,’ the moves are irrelevant because rhythm overtakes you. It swallows you. You become it. It becomes you. You’re no more alive than when you reach this plateau. God, its such a beautiful thing.
Renee Blodgett is the Founder and Managing Editor of We Blog the World, a global travel, culture and lifestyle publication exploring the world through the lens of meaningful experiences, human connection and cultural depth. Having lived in 10 countries and traveled to 95, Renee has spent much of her life immersed in the people, traditions, landscapes and ideas that shape how we experience the world.
Since launching We Blog the World in 2007, she has written and produced extensive editorial coverage spanning boutique and luxury travel, culinary experiences, arts and culture, wellness, adventure, technology, spiritual traditions and transformative travel. Her work is rooted in the belief that travel is about more than where we go—it is also about what a place, culture or encounter awakens within us.
Renee brings more than three decades of experience across journalism, photography, media, brand strategy, technology, wellness and global storytelling. She has worked with companies and organizations around the world on brand positioning, communications, product launches, media strategy, speaker positioning and storytelling. Through Blue Soul Media, she works with authors, entrepreneurs, thought leaders and purpose-driven brands to clarify their message and expand their impact, which includes speaker coaching/training for high-profile stages such as TED and bringing authors’ work to market while retaining authors rights.
She is also the co-founder of Blue Soul Earth, an educational platform exploring consciousness, ancient wisdom, spirituality, healing and the intersection between science and the nature of reality. Renee is the producer and host of the award-winning Blue Soul CHATS, a conversational series bringing together leading voices in science, technology, consciousness, wellness and spirituality.
Her growing body of work also includes Blue Soul Living, which extends her interest in consciousness and well-being into the spaces we inhabit, exploring how intentional design, energy and environment can support greater harmony and connection.
Renee is the award-winning co-author of the bestselling Magdalene’s Journey and founder of the Magdalene Collection, inspired by women’s voices, stories and wisdom across cultures and generations.
A longtime photographer and storyteller, Renee has documented people, places and cultures around the world and produced photographic collections focused on destinations including the Galápagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome and Ecuador. She also co-founded Traveling Geeks, an international initiative that brought entrepreneurs, journalists, creators and technology leaders together with their counterparts in other countries to exchange ideas and explore innovation across cultures.
Renee’s work has been recognized by Forbes, the United Nations and others for her influence in media and social storytelling. Across her work in travel, media, consciousness and culture, a common thread remains: curiosity about the world, the stories that connect us and the ways meaningful experiences can change how we see ourselves and one another.
