danzbuddies Wednesday Class - new dances

hi danzbuddies,

here are details of dances we will be sharing this week:

- 'Beach Party' by Robbie Carrington. 32-count, 2-wall, Beginner level . This is a very basic level cha cha cha dance ..... some will find it a little too simple, but never mind ! - enjoy it for the great music that goes with it - song is 'A La Playa' by SBS.

- 'Lucky Lips' by Peter Thijssen. 64-count, 4-wall, beginner level. Not to be confused with the previous choreography. This new choreography is easier and steps go well with the song - use the Cliff Richard or the Magnificent 7 versions.

- 'Rah-Rah Ooh La La' by Jo & John Kinser and Mark Furnell. A phrased dance. 2-wall, Intermediate level. Nice Lady Gaga song - 'Bad Romance'. Note the tag at end of wall 4 and restart on walls 5.

We shall be bringing back two 'blast from the past' dances:

- 'Baby Blues" by Tina Argyle. 48-count, 4-wall, beginner level. No tag, no restart. Danced to a good song 'Blues About You Baby' by Plain Loco. Easy steps that go well with the song. A nice enjoyable dance.

- 'Sorry' by Martin Ritchie. 32-count, 4-wall , beginner level. No tag, no restart. A real classic. Using a very catchy song - 'Saying Sorry' by The Borderers.

Max to the Vet, Again

Tuesday 11 May 2010



Max's constipation problem wasn't getting better and we had to bring him to James Tan Vetinerary Hospital again for treatment. We were happy to see that Dr Jean and assistant Siew Lan were still at the clinic - they had been treating Max since Sep 2006, so were familiar with his case.

Max stayed at the clinic for 7 hours - had his 'operation' under G.A. and came home all weak, hungry and groggy..... And the bill - we paid $281.40 this time......

Climbimg Bukit Timah

Saturday, 8th May 2010

It was a fine sunny Saturday morning, I had dropped the good Wife at Magaret's place for her therapeutic massage session and had time to kill. So, as I drove along Bukit Timah Road I decided to visit and climb up Bukit Timah, one of those things I had always wanted to do......

Turning into Hindhede Drive, I found the car-park - quite a big one, but it was already full of cars. Happily, I managed to get a lot, so off I went to the 'Visitors Centre' which houses the toilets, a gift shop and an exhibition hall.





I was surprised to see the number of monkeys around the car park and Visitors' Centre area...
big ones, small ones, old ones and young ones.......




Had a look-see around the exhibition hall.... quite an interesting place where you can see and read about the history and all the nitty gritty details about the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.......

Asked for a map of the climbing routes.......and was refered to the notice board showing the various routes one can take to go up the hill.

Being a first-timer, I decided to take the easy, shortest route up - the 'red' route. And so, off I went, following the crowd of many others doing the climb.... I was surprised to see the number of climbers....

The first quarter of the climb was the steepest and it took me about 15 minutes to reach the half way mark - There a rest pavilion called the "Simpang Hut".....

Continuing the climb, I found the slope not as steep as before and began to enjoy the surroundings - there were plenty of 'educational' signages and signs to point out diversions to different trekking paths you can take on the climb.

It was getting cooler and the crowd had thinned out.......where had everyone dissappeared to...? So, I sensed the top of the hill is near......maybe round the next bend....?



True enough, on rounding that bend, I saw the "Summit Hut" sitting at the hill top. It had taken me 30 minutes of brisk walking to reach the summit - not a 'Mount Everest' moment, but still, the feeling was good, after all - at least I climbed Bukit Timah, after nearly 60 years living in Singapore.......

5 minutes rest, and down I went on the return journey and arrived at the bottom soon enough. Saw the 'Battle For Bukit Timah' sign at the road-side - it tells of the importance of the hill during the Japanese invasion. When the japanese soldiers captured Bukit Timah on the 11th February 1942, it spelled the end for the British's hold on Singapore and the rest, so they say, is history....


It was a good experience climbing Bukit Timah - never felt so close to nature, never seen so many monkeys......

The monkeys made me think..........they didn't seem to have a single care in the world, all of them were just lazing around, grooming each other, climbimg up the trees and...well monkeying around.....

Why can't we be like them more often.........?

danzbuddies makan time

Talk about food...and our danzbuddies never fail to get all excited. Not only are we great connoisseurs of good food, danzbuddies are also great at cooking up some delicious dishes. One example was the 'glutinous rice dish prepared by Maggie Yong last Friday.......it was so good, the dish was all gone within 5 minutes.......

We also enjoyed the 'chwee kuay' and the 'steamed yam cake' from Chinatown Complex. Here's the stall number of the 'chwee kuay' outlet......

danzbuddies Wednesday Class - new dances

hi danzbuddies,

REMINDER - we start another 8-week module for our on-going class this Wednesday, 12th May, please bring along your class fees........

Dances we shall be sharing are as follows:

- 'Better Than Nada' by Wil Bos & Roy Verdonk. 32-count, 4-wall, beginner level line dance. Danced to a delightful number by Freddy Fender & Texas Tornados 'A Little Bit Better Than Nada'. Nice choreography with easy steps. There are two tags, to be done after walls 4 and 8, both at 12.00 o'clock wall.

- 'Skippers Daughter' by Louise Elfvengren. 32-count, 4-wall, beginner level. There are two restarts - at walls 3 and 7. Danced to the cute irish beer song 'Drunken Sailor' by Denis Sosson.

- 'KLAWS' by Rep Ghazali. 64-count, 2-wall, intermediate level. One restart at wall 3.Song is 'Stay With Me' by Alexander Klaws. A good, 'heavy-beat' song, dance routine goes quite well with it. The turnings may seem daunting, but are actually quite easy to manage.......do a 'walk, walk' for the full turn on section 7.

Our 'blast from the past' dances are as follows:

'Push' by Michele Perron. 32-count, 4-wall, intermediate level......a great dance.

'Hot Love' by Maggie Gallagher. 48-count, 4-wall, intermediate level dance. A 'hot' favourite in its time, still enjoys some popularity at parties.

REMINDER - the need to warm up always

hi danzbuddies,

here's another reminder about the need to do a 10-minute warm-up routine before starting on any line dance, or any other physical exercise and be aware of the 'DOs and DON'Ts' before you embark on any physical activity. We reproduce here some of the advice from the People's Association regarding this.

DOs
- always do warm-up exercise before starting physical activities
- if you feel unwell at any point in time, stop immediately and inform the organisers
- have a good rest the night before any strenuous physical activity
- drink sufficient water before the activity to avoid dehydration
- wear comfortable attire when taking part in physical activities
- if you are going alone, have an "emergency" contact number with you

DON'Ts

- do not have a heavy meal before taking part in any physical activity
- do not consume alcohol before physical activities

danzbuddies Wednesday Class - new dances

hi danzbuddies,

here are details of new dances we are sharing this week:

- 'Country Rock 'N' Roll' by Sandi Larkins. 32-count, 4-wall, beginner level line dance with no tag, no restart.....Great country song 'That's How Country Boys Roll' by Billy Currington....Its a very easy dance with a cute last section.....

- 'People Like Me' by Robbie McGowan Hickie. 64-count, 2-wall, intermediate level line dance. Note that there's one tag at the end of wall 2. Good country song 'People Like Me' by Jason Matthews.....

- 'Undercover' by Robbie McGowan Hickie. 48-count, 4-wall, intermediate level line dance. Another great choreography by Robbie.....it seems to be the current hottest dance ....even though the step sheets are not available yet....!? A very catchy song is used for thwe dance - 'What's Your Name' by Cosmos 4......

- 'Gaga's Fashion' by Celina & Hoe. 32-count, 4-wall, intermediate level line dance. Great song used - 'Fashion' by Lady Gaga. Steps are interesting and goes well with the music......

Our 'Blast from the Past' dance this week is:

- 'Pot Of Gold' a 1999 classic by Liam Hrycan. 64-count, 4-wall, intermediate level line dance. Danced to a nice number by Ronan Hardiman - 'Dance Above The Rainbow'. Steps are fairly easy, a popular dance whenever played at parties.....