Step...then turn

I may have mentioned this before: Eric and I are taking salsa lessons at the Cheryl Burke Dance Studio here in SF. We are taking advantage of a bargain basement introductory offer which includes four private lessons and admission to one of their Friday night dance parties.

Our instructor is named Eric (also) and he is a chipper young fellow who immediately won Eric (student) over when he likened one hand motion to "wax on." Sold.

He speaks quickly and uses a lot of analogies. One that came up last night was in regard to turning: it is easier to stir a small pot than a huge one. If it isn't obvious, the dance insight to be taken from that is that tight, small turns are easier to execute well than big ones.

"Tonight, we will call Ellie 'little pot,' " he announced cheerily.

I think that one of my major weaknesses as a dancer is that I don't have great balance, which can make spins difficult if not actually dangerous. Another weakness is that I am just not a very good dancer.

Eric (teacher) watched me flail through a particularly challenging turn several times before diagnosing the problem. I was trying to turn while stepping, rather than stepping onto the foot, and then turning from there. In the notes Eric (teacher) wrote in our folder at the end of our class, he put an "F" for Follower (me) and then a big asterisk followed by all caps: STEP THEN TURN.

I'm just glad he didn't write me up as "L.P."