(b) allowing some discretion who you spend half of the dance with.
Hmm. Perhaps I've been unlucky in only finding myself involved in the kind of dance where it doesn't make a difference then. *shrug*
Don't you like dancing? Why not?
As ewx suggests, part of it is that it's probably a lot more fun when you have a clear enough idea of what you're doing to be able to just enjoy it without constantly worrying that you're spinning round the wrong way, grabbing the wrong woman, stepping on someone's feet or just standing there trying desperately to remember what comes next.
Also, I think, the sort of big sprawling dance that involves every dancer being one cog in a large machine just doesn't hold much intrinsic appeal for me. I can at least see the point of a ballroom-style dance such as a waltz, even if I don't have the skills to actually do it, because it seems to me that dancing with a partner in that sense is a means of spending quality time with them which combines the good points of several sorts of activity: the bonding effect of any cooperative physical activity, the intimacy of a prolonged cuddle, and the pleasant feeling of having each other's undivided attention for a reasonable period (which is often hard to get any other way in a large social event). But a ceilidh-style dance doesn't really have any of those things in the same way, and I'm not entirely sure I see what it does have instead that makes it enjoyable.
Hmm. Perhaps I've been unlucky in only finding myself involved in the kind of dance
They're a minority, I'd actually like to see more of them[1]. It's mainly very confusing/annoying when you don't realise before you start, if either you would have liked to join in, or prefer to stick with a couple of people you started with you know will lead you round.
[1] I'm not sure why. I like meeting many people even if briefly. It has an intricate clock like thing going.
[dancing]
I feel sure there must be an RFC or something somewhere explaining "Why dancing is fun", if only in case we meet aliens and they all go "You do WHAT? To MUSIC?" :) You're right, if you haven't, it's awkard. I did ballroom for ages, and it's only comfortable when you can dance with people without checking if you know the same things first. It's perhaps lucky if someone takes you in hard and shows you a first few, easy dances; a partner who can show you in a dance where that makes sense can make it a lot easier.
waltz vs ceilidh
*shrug* To each his own. I like both, though I couldn't say why. Perhaps compare a ceilidh to socialising with a *group* of friends; while waltz is clearly superior for cuddling, celidh has more abandon and mixing. I don't know.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Hmm. Perhaps I've been unlucky in only finding myself involved in the kind of dance where it doesn't make a difference then. *shrug*
Don't you like dancing? Why not?
As
Also, I think, the sort of big sprawling dance that involves every dancer being one cog in a large machine just doesn't hold much intrinsic appeal for me. I can at least see the point of a ballroom-style dance such as a waltz, even if I don't have the skills to actually do it, because it seems to me that dancing with a partner in that sense is a means of spending quality time with them which combines the good points of several sorts of activity: the bonding effect of any cooperative physical activity, the intimacy of a prolonged cuddle, and the pleasant feeling of having each other's undivided attention for a reasonable period (which is often hard to get any other way in a large social event). But a ceilidh-style dance doesn't really have any of those things in the same way, and I'm not entirely sure I see what it does have instead that makes it enjoyable.
They're a minority, I'd actually like to see more of them[1]. It's mainly very confusing/annoying when you don't realise before you start, if either you would have liked to join in, or prefer to stick with a couple of people you started with you know will lead you round.
[1] I'm not sure why. I like meeting many people even if briefly. It has an intricate clock like thing going.
[dancing]
I feel sure there must be an RFC or something somewhere explaining "Why dancing is fun", if only in case we meet aliens and they all go "You do WHAT? To MUSIC?" :) You're right, if you haven't, it's awkard. I did ballroom for ages, and it's only comfortable when you can dance with people without checking if you know the same things first. It's perhaps lucky if someone takes you in hard and shows you a first few, easy dances; a partner who can show you in a dance where that makes sense can make it a lot easier.
waltz vs ceilidh
*shrug* To each his own. I like both, though I couldn't say why. Perhaps compare a ceilidh to socialising with a *group* of friends; while waltz is clearly superior for cuddling, celidh has more abandon and mixing. I don't know.