Me and Social Dancing Dips Not Usually On Speaking Terms

I generally don’t like Dips and warn all prospective dance partners against any attempts at doing them with me if I even sense they are “Dippers”. If I haven’t properly vetted the Dipping potential of a partner and they attempt to Dip me while we dance, I kindly tell them- while we are fumbling through their Dip attempt gone horribly awry- in no uncertain terms to not do that again because I don’t like to be Dipped. If I had to be really honest, most dips look too alarmingly showboat-like, Vegas, and gaudy for my taste in dance- like the guy is really trying to impress an audience and showoff instead of just focusing on his partner. Whatever the reason for people doing dips, I generally don’t offer any excuses or apologies for my lack of interest in being dipped- Just Don’t Dip Me!

I have severe trust issues with letting go, deep fears of someone hurting my back and/or dropping me from some crazy dip, coupled with a complete lack of understanding of the mechanics of how to do a Dip from the follower’s perspective. And frankly, I haven’t tried to really learn how to do them because of weak knees to begin with and of course, my already acknowledged fear of someone dropping me- hence a never ending vicious cycle of not being inclined to follow a Dip led IN THE LEAST.

But last night during my Bday Dance, I was dipped 3Xs- not baby dips but DIP DIPS! They were all executed suddenly and so smoothly that some sort of way, I just went with the flow without my usual death grip that I apply and claw into the guy’s shoulders with my fingers to anchor me or the dragging down of the guy to the floor with a choke hold. I just figure if I go down, we all going down, Buddy! But this time I went with the flow and allowed the Dip to be completed. Now to be fair, I’m not really sure that I didn’t STILL APPLY the death grip to my partners dipping me during my Bday Dance but can only assume that I DIDN’T based on the look of pleasant calm on their faces and not rising alarm by the antics of their crazy partner who is doing her best to avoid being Dipped. The Dips I experienced were quite lovely and I found them to be thrilling- a shocking development. Granted, they were done by Leads who seem to specialize in make most girls LOOK AND FEEL GOOD on the dance floor which included Cesar from NYC, Giovanni from Richmond, VA, and a 3rd person who I can’t recall due to the quick moving blur and whirl of my Bday Dance.

Bottom line, I think I’m ready to begin a dialogue with Dips again after 6 years of banishment and may possibly include them into my dance repertoire- after I take some classes on how to lay into a dip properly.

Written November 11, 2013