Saturday, May 20, 2006

Prom

What good is melody, what good is music
If it ain't possessin' something sweet
It ain't the melody, it ain't the music
There's something else that makes the tune complete
It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing
It don't mean a thing, all you got to do is swing
It makes no diff'rence if it's sweet or hot
Just give that rhythm ev'rything you got
It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing
--"It Don't Mean A Thing", Ella Fitzgerald


So last night I went to the homeschool prom, organized by a homeschool group in our area, open to all homeschoolers. Got dressed up, suit, jacket, fedora (my personal touch)-- aye, the whole bit.

The music was pretty good, for a mainly Evangelical crowd--lots of swing, some Sinatra, Bobby Darin, Beatles, "Sweet Home Alabama", "Roll Over Beethoven" (my personal favorite); also some unfortunate rap and contemporary Christian music, but the latter had good dance beats, and the former at least was not Christian rap, so I guess thank goodness for small favors; and of course there was the Chicken Dance. I knew some swing moves, some cool spins and stuff, and picked up/was taught a waltz and some "contemporary" moves, so I didn't look like a complete idiot dancing to more modern songs.

I actually danced with like eight girls this year, up from four or five last year. :-D Pretty good for an introvert like me. And, as previously stated, dancing is quite fun. Near the beginning of the evening, when people weren't really "mixing", the DJ (a homeschooler dad with some experience DJ-ing) had everybody line up facing the wall, girls on one side, boys on the other. Each person was assigned a number, and the boy with, say, number eight had to dance with the number eight girl. I thought it was quite effective, and certain members of the party I came with probably wouldn't have danced with any save one or two people they knew otherwise.

All in all, pretty fun. And people were well-behaved (for teenagers :-D). So yeah, today I'm still recovering (please forgive any flying pink monkey incoherence. It's not entirely my hippo fault. Toothpicks.)

Sassafrass banana-bread,
Ethan
(Exit, break-dancing)

20 comments:

Heidi said...

Hi, Ethan! I found your blog by following a link from Aaron's. I've got to say dancing is a lot of fun, even though I don't really know how to dance. I'm going to dance tomorrow though. I guess I'll either *pretend* again that I know how to dance, or get someone to teach me something! :D Fun stuff.

Ethan said...

Hi Heidi! (oh good more readers :D)

if you don't know how to dance, just sway or step back and forth in time to the music-I did that alot, and it seemed to work. :-)

Emily said...

I don't know how to dance... I don't really like dancing either... -shifty gaze-
Jack Bauer doesn't dance, I bet. =P

...

I just got a vivid image in my head of Jack Bauer dancing...

>_<
No, Jack doesnt dance..
xD

Anonymous said...

i pitty u. christian music? ROLL OVER BETOVEN? a father as a dj? im so, so sorry. you elistrated my point from the last time about drugs very well in your last paragraph. on e word: rehab.
colin

ps someone has a 24 obsession

Ethan said...

Emily:

That's quite an image, lol.

Upon further reflection, no, Jack doesn't dance. :-D

Colin:

1. Yes the "Christian" "music" was quite bad.

2. The dad used to be a dj, or sumthin', not too bad.

3. "Roll Over Beethoven" is an excellent song, at least the ELO version... and the Beatles version.

4. All the dancing elephants AND the little green men agree that i don't need rehab, or any help at all. So THERE.

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

Hey look, Ethan, when you start posting on my blog, emailing MH, etc., people start getting to know you and do things like comment on your blog. :-) I think you're really starting to overcome your shyness. *thumbs up* Good for you.

Sounds like you had fun. Dancing is fun. I know a little about dancing, [sorta] know a waltz, and know a few line and square dances. Mostly though, I just pretend really well. My favorite thing to do is pretend that my '80s moves are cool and modern.

Does the cat with the machine gun also agree that you don't need rehab? ;-) :P

Ethan said...

Aye, like I said, the bats in my cave were getting a little needy. ;-)

I know a waltz, and a jitterbug with some cool turns (from the lessons), but even that is, like you said, alot of fakery. And who says 80's moves aren't cool? ;-)

The cat agrees. He keeps trying to shoot me with his gun, but he agrees. :D

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

I'm certainly not hinting that '80s moves aren't cool. Quite the opposite, I still am convinced they are cool.

The cat is well trained. Has he got you at all yet?

Ethan said...

I think a certain Napoleon-something or-other made 80's moves cool again....

Bah, that day the cat gets me will be the day Neil Young stops sounding druggy.

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

I've been using them as cool long before dynamite was around. :D B)

Amazing! Neil Young stopped sounding druggy! Ethan? You there? :P

Ethan said...

*mutters about cretins who find loopholes in his analogies, as he patches up his wounded arm and prepares to hunt down that bloody cat*

Thing shot my arm off, dude. You happy?

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

Yes. I'm happy now. ;)

You must of fought well to if the cat is bloody... or is it your blood?

Ethan said...

'Bloody'is a euphamism, dude, but yes, he is actually bloody. And when I find out where he's hiding, he will DIE!

COME OUT! COME OUT YOU MANGY CUR, AND MEET YOUR DESTINY! GAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

*machine gun sounds*
ra-ta-tat-tat-br-r-r-tat-tat-bang

Meow?

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

Thanks for getting rid of those bloody cats for me! :D Here's a prize for successfully eliminating them: http://kevan.org/brain.cgi?Darth%20Nemoyer ;-)

*two platoons of trained, not yet bloody, machine gun wielding cats disarm all Ethan's nukes then go after Ethan himself*

*climbs into one of his Nuke-Proofed High AT-AT Walker and leaves*

Ethan said...

You shpuld disguise that as a link if you want it to work.

*Opens a hole in Space-Time Continuum for armed cats to fall through, thereby erasing said platoons and all other cats with any kind of military traing from both past, present, and future*

*Climbs into his High Snowspeeder and uses grappling cable to topple Aaron's AT-AT*

Anan said...

Look! YOu wrie about a prom and everyone comments! ooooh... I should try that!

*shoots Jack Bauer*

Aaron.D.Nemoyer said...

*bribes Ethan into forgetting the whole matter with a collection of great literature*

Ethan said...

*GASP!*

BOOOOOOOOOKSSSSSES!!!!!!!

*slobbers*

*forgets whole matter*