The Diversity Projekt
Empowerment for All People of Color
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Philly Salsa Community United for Haiti!!
So I am sitting here in my warm apartment tonight contemplating the last time I was out dancing – Brasil’s, Cuba Libre, The Reef…anything. It has been weeks.
I am in full winter hibernation mode.
It never fails. I get this way every year after the holidays. After all of the commotion of the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years, I hit a lull. I become a complete homebody.
Can I just say that the timing is bad this year. I have dance rehearsal twice a week for April’s Estilo performance. I haven’t kept to my standard weekly dance schedule since I went home to Jax for Christmas.
Salsa is my therapy. The Medic can attest to how much I wig out when I don’t get my fix. Nevertheless, the power of hibernation has won over for the last few months.
I am back into the swing of things as of tomorrow night:
- Tues, 630pm-730pm salsa
- Thurs, 630pm-930pm salsa/bachata
- Fri, 9pm Brasil’s or Cuba Libre
- Saturday, 1030am-230pm rehearsal and salsa
- Saturday, 9pm Brasil’s
- Sunday, 1-3pm dance rehearsal
Speaking of dancing….if you like salsa, bachata, merengue, etc. and want to make a difference in the lives of Hatians who have been impacted by the earthquake, check out an upcoming event at Brazil’s:
Date: Thursday, Feb. 11th
Time: 9pm-2am
Location: Brasil’s Nightclub
(112 Chestnut St. Phila., PA)
Join Us As Our Salsa Community Unites! Here’s your chance to help those affected by the recent events in Haiti, all while doing what you love to do most!DJs United: DJ Jay Rockwell, DJ La Clave, DJ Jose Rodriguez, DJ Jose Maldoado; Salsa Lesson by: Vikki Woods & “Big” George Dennis; Also Featuring Great Raffles and Special Live Performances!
All DJ’s and Instructors have donated their time for this event and 100% of the proceeds will go to the relief effort on behalf of the Salsa community.
Admission: Requested $10 donation (The beneficiary chosen is the American Red Cross). YOUR DONATION DOUBLED!!! Jones New York has generously agreed to match any donations made from our fundraiser, so whatever you can give, it will be doubled!
Jeans & Shoe Donations Needed! We will also be accepting new and gently worn jeans and shoes for the people in Haiti the night of the fundraiser.
More info on Charity Organizations and their help with Haiti:
American Red Cross
Soles4Souls
Teens For Jeans
(Aéropostale Store will donate one brand new pair of jeans for every pair of donated jeans!)
NaBloWriMo Day 9: On the Move and Making it Happen
I haven’t been extremely successful in posting regularly for NaBloWriMo. I am up against deadlines at work (way past the deadline actually), and writing anything is the last thing on my mind by the time I settle in for the night.
I am grappling with how I am going to document my journey to healthy and simpler living. The – one post per day for NaBloWriMo – isn’t quite working with my schedule. I seem to have fallen into a blogging rut as of late. I need to find my groove again.
Nevertheless, I have been getting some comments and questions regarding my quest for simpler and healthier living. The nutrition part of my quest is a bit bumpy – $40 a week is quite a challenge. Yet, I must say that the exercise part of my journey is right on point. I prefer using the term “moving’” over exercise…semantics, I know! Anyway, I am moving more than I have in a long time.
So, what works for Kathrin, you ask? Well…you are in luck today, because I am up for a bit of sharing. My weekly routine has really hit an awesome groove. There is a lot of daily and weekly consistency, with enough variety and entertainment to keep me coming back. So, let me break it down for you:Daily:
- walk Samson 45 minutes every morning and 30 minutes every night
- Weight Watchers Online – I journal my eating and moving every single day and weigh in every Friday morning
- Weight Watcher’s Abs for Beginners every evening (least favorite part of my week)
- drink lots of water 40-48 fl oz a day (water, crystal light, herbal tea…all count – caffeine is the big no no)
Weekly:
- Tuesday – Salsa Class @ Estilo and The Reef Salsa Night
- Thursday – Salsa and Bachata Class @ Estilo and (on rare occasions) a trip to Club Adecc0
- Friday – Brasil’s Salsa Night
- Saturday – Salsa Class @ Estilo and Brasil’s Salsa Night
Sundays are my day off. I still walk Samson and eat sensibly, but I hit pause on everything else.
After years of struggling, I have finally found a combination of healthy eating and moving that keeps me entertained and fulfilled. I can’t put enough emphasis on the fact that my current regime keeps me entertained. In the past, as soon as boredom kicked in so did giving up. Yeah, I am like a 5 year old when it comes to moving and eating right. If there isn’t anything shiny and sparkly, it will most likely not keep my attention for very long.I am in week five of Weight Watchers and week six of Salsa. Classes at Estilo Dance Studio have been such a huge part in this shift for me. I have definitely been sucked into the salsa vortex. I need to take a pause and say that I love everything about Estilo – the environment, fellow students and most definitely the instructors. I also appreciate their solid brand. There is strong continuity between the image they project while promoting at various venues throughout Philadelphia and the culture then are fostering in the studio. Most important – I feel amazing when I take classes and dance, and have gotten to know some really awesome people! Both of these things are truly priceless!
Since starting salsa I have lost 29.5lbs. Since starting Weight Watchers I have lost 19.4lbs. YAY me! My weekly weight loss started off really high in those first two weeks and am now am down to a healthy weekly weight loss of between 1.5 and 3lbs.
Once I move, I may include Mon and Wed at ShapeGirl Fitness or I may join Fitness Works for the winter months. Fitness Works is definitely more convenient since Estilo is located in the same building. ShapeGirl is in far South Philadelphia (near Oregon Avenue). I really liked the class I took there, but it is a bit out of my way. My new place is close to the Schuylkill river path. Once the weather gets warmer again I will take Samson out there more for a run. Yeah, you heard right…running! I am on the Weight Watcher’s Running for Beginners plan. I think Samson loves it more than I do at this point though. I was hoping to run the next Mother’s Day Breast Cancer event next Memorial Day weekend, but I will be in NYC for Salsa Congress.
This weekend rocked! I went salsa dancing with several people from my classes on Friday and Saturday night. Samson and I went on several long walks and the weather was just gorgeous! If that wasn’t enough, three really fabulous things happened:
- I fit into my Lane Bryant Size2 jeans. It has been almost a year since that was possible. They are a little snug, but that won’t last too long.
- I am feeling more and more comfortable on the dance floor. I danced with someone I haven’t danced with since my first week of classes and he said something super sweet.
- My instructor noticed that I had lost weight
oh…ok, so there were four things that happened this weekend:
- I re-connected with an old friend and we are going out on a date on Thursday evening after my bachata class. She moved away for a while, but recently moved back to Philadelphia.
To that effect, my Monday went off without too much of the Monday blues and SEPTA is acting right again! So, I am calling it a day and meeting my friend Jess at Vango. Neither of us have ever been and she doesn’t want to go alone. Glad that I didn’t remove my practices shoes from my bag.
Until next time….
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