Dancing Hippos, my hilarious monthly Blogging Letter

Dancing Hippos is the name of my Blog Newsletter. If you are not on the mailing list, then write to DancingHipposNewsletter@gmail.com and we will put you on the mailing list. And if you do receive it already, then please share it with friends. A lot of people have told me it cheers them up at this difficult time of isolation, confinement and worry about viral infection. Dancing Hippos are not as elegant as Dancing Scotsmen, but they reflect my dancing and the happiness of my life in Africa.

Can we start dancing in September?????

What the French call "Contre danses" - referring to the set-lines where we are standing opposite our partners at regulation confinement distance of 6 feet - means that Scottish dancers and English Country Dancers are better protected from virus transmission that other dancers. Janet McCrorie's picture "Clasp" (top) shows how we may need adjustments: her second picture "Ceilidh Spin" reduces face-to-face impact. Her dancers even seem to be wearing masks. This may be how we should dance if we want to restart in September. AND THAT IS WHAT WE WANT!!

Two joyful portraits to raise your confined spirits

REP visiting RSCDS Edinburgh in 2019; and my son's portrait of me in 1980 when I looked fresher and young Edward was four years old at French pre-school. He might have been a Picasso, but he neglected his artistic talent - and even his Highland Dancing medals - to become a lawyer.

Music for coming out of Confinement

This has been a remarkable time. I have been privileged because I have an income and a garden where I have done more weeding than ever before. But many people have lost incomes, have been stuck inside small apartments, have struggled to educate and entertain their children, and now they have to brave the new virus-threatened world of work and play. We think of them, and we share the sorrow of those who have lost dear ones to this terrible pandemic. Music is one of the greatest sources of solace. For calm, I recommend the Celtic Harp and the West African classical harp = the kora. But I think we need musical excitement. Mory Kanté was a great musician who just died (not from COVID-19). His world-famous hit YekeYeke will get your blood and spirits moving! Enjoy!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJNiMNUSrw8

VE Day 75 years ago was a victory for All of Europe

The defeat of nazi and italian Fascism on 8th May 1945 (Victory in Europe) brought liberty to all of Europe (except in the Soviet zone) and the birth of the United Nations. Konrad Adenhauer, Robert Schumann and Jean Monnet created what became the European Economic Community and - later - the European Union. We need to hold on to peace and friendship across frontiers. What we all need is peace: respect for Nature and for each other - symbolized by peace dancing (here in St Andrews).

Another beautiful dance painting BEFORE YOUR EYES by Janet McCrorie, whose art I am privileged to show you. Like my amusing book I DANCE THEREFORE I AM, sales of Janet McCrorie's paintings and elegant greetings cards benefit the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society of which we are proud members - in my own case, a Life Member since 1967 when I was still a student at St Andrews University dancing every week with the university's Celtic Society. I still send occasional donations to the Celtic Society, to encourage the art and practice and joy of DANCING among young people! I have a lifetime of pleasure on the dance floor.  My own children Catherine Leila and Edward can be seen dancing on the cover of my book: the perfect gift for a dance friend.

I share with you a piece of wisdom that applies to peace negotiations, to BREXIT and Boris Johnson, to problems such as racism, bullying, sexism, sexual harassment, the Middle East..... especially the Middle East: one can imagine so many possible ways to insult people with this quotation!

George Bernard Shaw said: "I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a PIG. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it."

More beautiful Janet McCrorie dance pictures

"On your toes" and

and "Pink Mist" - sweet dance movements with whirl and swirl: thank you, Janet

I DANCE THEREFORE I AM -  it keeps me healthy and happy !

Bob Hope & James Cagney great dance routine

Well I dance as an amateur, and I do not tap dance. Wish I did !  Here is a wonderful dance routine well worth seeing for dance skills and laughs:  http://videos2view.net/Hope-Cagney.htm

Comedian Bob Hope and actor James Cagney put on a show for their friends in the Friars' Club.

Thank you Wilbur for sending me this great link.

Dancing with beautiful women

English country dancers from Sussex came to dance in Brittany - and naturally we danced with them. Do you prefer the elegance of her Lewes dress or the style of my Maclean kilt?

UK's Health Secretary supports DANCING for health

A new initiative launched by British Health Secretary Matt Hancock, doctors in the U.K. will soon be able to prescribe dance classes—along with art, music, sports, gardening and more—for patients suffering from conditions as various as dementia, lung problems and mental health issues.

In the Nov 2018 issue of Dance Magazine, reporter Lauren Wingenroth reported just how significant an impact movement can have as a form of treatment. For instance, when Mark Morris Dance Group's successful Dance for Parkinson's Disease program was profiled in the Journal of Neural Transmission in 2016, researchers found that patients who took 16 classes over eight weeks showed a 10.4 percent improvement in overall movement, a 26.7 percent improvement in walking and a 18.5 percent improvement in tremors. In 2010.

DANCE FIT AND HEALTHY is the theme of my blog; and my amusing book on this subject is called "I Dance Therefore I Am"  .... which you can buy on Amazon. 

the story of a cow and a cowboy

A devout cowboy in the area known as the "American Bible Belt" lost his favorite Bible while mending fences out on the range. Three weeks later, a cow walked up to him carrying the Bible in its mouth. The cowboy couldn't believe his eyes. He took the precious book out of the cow's mouth, raised his eyes heavenward and exclaimed, "It's a miracle!"

"Not really," said the cow. "Your name is written inside the cover."

 It must have been an intelligent Highland Cow, or Hielan' Koo.

Perfect Valentine gift for the dancer you love

Here is the author, modestly recommending his amusing dance memoir to contra dancers in New York. I do not remember how many CDNY bought one, but that is not because the number was large. I need more readers - and especially more reviewers on Amazon so that we can beat the algorithm.

Snow is coming, so dance to keep warm!

here in New York we can feel a nip in the air, as New England is threatened by snow .... like the snow storm that hit Virginia last month (a friend's picture below). Dancing keeps you warm; friendship keeps you cosy; dancing builds friendships. But don't forget to warm up before you dance, to avoid injury, and stretch out those muscles (feet and legs, necks and backs especially) to avoid cramps before you go to sleep.

Scottish dancing is thriving in France

I DANCE THEREFORE I AM fit and healthy and happy, wherever I am dancing !  Dancing keeps me fit: mentally fit, physically fit, and spiritually fit. Scottish Dance provides a full cultural work-out.

Right now I am dancing with the RSCDS and the Scotia Dancers in New York, while supporting my dancing daughter Catherine Leïla and her new baby Emmy. I plan to celebrate Hogmanay (the last dance of 2018, followed by the first dance of 2019) with dancing friends in the Delaware Valley. In January 2019 I shall dance with my Richmond group in Virginia. In the Spring I shall be back in France, where people dance all over. I will resume dancing with the RSCDS Scots Bonnet group in St Quai Perros, and also with the less formal group Breizh Merry Dancers in Lannion. Here are these merry folk celebrating the 89th birthday of Vefa (short for Geneviève) and the 2018 Christmas Season.   Joyeux Noël à tous !!!!!

Bon anniversaire à notre Doyenne!

Yesterday our lovely daughter Catherine Leila became a mother. 30 years ago she was dancing The Dashing White Sergeant with her uncle Rory and aunt Maureen in a family ceilidh. How time passes, and how the precious memories remain.