Brazilian rum and rhythms

I lost the spelling bee in 7th grade for misspelling rhythm. Funny, since I've been in music my entire life. But regardless, you don't need to know how to spell rhythm to have it. And boy did I have it last night.

I went to Cafe Citron last night for a samba lesson with a true light of the world, we'll call her "Hearty Laugher" because she laughs louder and happier than anyone I know. As she is a highlight to any person's day, and every person's party, it obviously was a wonderful time. She has the phenomenal ability to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome, usually with a bone-crushing hug, and she does this for no other reason than because she is a loving kind soul.

The instructor FINALLY showed up and we learned some samba. The class had quick learners so she progressed at a fast enough pace that it wasn't boring. What I found especially intriguing was how integrated I felt in the culture when she began doing a samba I had never seen before. Hearty Laugher informed me it was from northern Brazil, and was usually never taught in these classes so it was a rare treat. The motions of "chopping the wood" were integrated in the dance and I felt so balanced by culture. It was a moving experience. I describe samba, now having actually been taught the basics of it, as a bouncing, high-energy movement of the lower half of the body, with intense African influences that makes one go crazy! Hearty Laugher and I let out several shouts of excitement. You couldn't stop us, and you never will.

Cheers to mojitos and samba skillz.

Oh yeah, and we saw someone like this perform before I headed off to wait ridiculous amounts of time for subway trains.