Jlailin has got that power, power~

[Jlailin]

 

Don’t hesitate, move on
There’s no time
Your future depends on your imagination
Throw away your fear, we can do it, it’s okay
All the keys are in your possession

 

I've begun learning a dance that is very near and dear to my heart--EXO's Power.  I loved this song when I first heard it; it's one of those cheerful, happy, uplifting sort of songs.  It became even dearer to me when EXO was internationally recognized for it when it was played at the Dubai fountains as the first kpop song to ever debut there.  It tugged at all my emotional heartstrings when they performed it at the Olympics closing ceremony.  This song has marked so many huge milestones for these boys.  When I dance it, I feel like I'm right there with them, celebrating as a fan.

 

 

You used to dream even when you weren’t asleep
I hope you never forget
Today together
Let’s burn it up with fun
Like we’ve become one, feeling feeling
So turn me up

 

This challenge will be about learning, perfecting, and retaining this dance.  Learning will happen in the first official week of the challenge since that is when class is scheduled for.  Practicing to perfect and retain it will happen in the following weeks.  There is also a stunt by Kai where he executes five super fast Chaines turns in his solo.  I haven't done Chaines turns in forever, since my ballet days are pretty much ancient history, so that's going to be something I'll need to work on.  There may be a dance contest happening at the end of March, since my kpop class is having a goodbye party at the current studio before we move.  I don't know if I'll have the dance perfected enough to perform by then, but that will be my stretch goal.  By the end of this challenge, I will record a video of myself.  I am still undecided about posting it, but at the very least I will record it for myself.

 

 

We got that power power
Whenever you see me
Whenever we feel each other’s hearts
Power power
We become stronger
Turn the music up now

 

Along with that, I'm going to continue habits (IF and attending dance classes) from previous challenges and tackle more tasks from my home list.  ...I do need to figure out how I can include strength training more consistently into my routine.  To do this, I won't be focusing on a strength training goal, but rather a journaling/planning goal.  I'm going to figure out what is eating up my time by writing down what I do each day and find where I have one hour blocks.  If I do get to do a strength training workout, then that will be a bonus.

 

 

We got that power power
Through this music
When we sing with one voice
Power power
We become stronger
Turn the music up now

Power power
Ah ooh yeah
Turn the music up now

 

Let's rock this challenge!  We've got that power, power~!  

 

 

       

[Jlailin]

 

 

GOALS:

 

• Dance
  • Learn the dance for EXO's Power
    • Attend Kpop class on 3/21 and 3/25
    • Watch and study videos of performances
  • Practice the dance at least once per day
  • Master Kai's Chaines turn stunt
• Habits
  • Continue intermittent fasting
  • Dance class 3x per week (kpop, hip hop, grooves, etc)
  • Document activities and identify one hour openings for strength training
    • Bonus: Do strength training!
• Home
  • Get rid of the couches!

 

 

[Jlailin]

Reserved - Reminder to self to record measurements! 

[Plazmotic]

I am literally listening to Growl right now! Good luck with the challenge, you're gonna rock it!

[Jlailin]

13 minutes ago, Plazmotic said:

I am literally listening to Growl right now! Good luck with the challenge, you're gonna rock it!

Thank you!  Growl = <3  I actually started going to kpop dance class in hopes that they would teach me Growl.    Hasn't happened yet, but it could eventually happen if I keep requesting it every poll.  xD

[Siferiax]

Go go Jlailin!!
Sounds like an awesome challenge!!
I should lookup a video of the dance sometime to see what awesomeness you're doing ^^
Good luck this challenge!

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[Jlailin]

2 hours ago, Siferiax said:

Go go Jlailin!!
Sounds like an awesome challenge!!
I should lookup a video of the dance sometime to see what awesomeness you're doing ^^
Good luck this challenge!

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
 

Thank you!   You know, I really should post the actual dance here since my challenge is themed around it.  xD  Here you go!  This is a fancam version, so it doesn't have all the dynamic camera angles.  However, it shows you the entire stage, so that you can see the complete dance.  ...This one also has the lyrics translated to English if you turn on the CCs.  

 

 

 

Aaaaaand if you were curious (you probably weren't, but I'm way to dance-video happy right now  ), here's the one with dynamic camera angles.  

 

[Jlailin]

Challenge Update:

 

I am so exhausted.  I went to a Grooves class last night (it's styled like zumba where you follow the leader, but it's hip hop moves instead).  It was awesome, so much fun, and such a good workout.  My core, my thighs, my everything hurt (in a good way) afterward.  During the class we had the next teacher (whom was teaching Femme Hip Hop after the Grooves class) come in and lead for a few songs.  She was amazing.  Her energy was so high and her personality was infectious.  Her dance style was so fun.  After Grooves, we were offered a free class from her if we stayed.  I was dead tired, but everyone else stayed, so I jumped on the bandwagon.  I'm glad that I did--she's a phenomenal teacher.  Her class was a bit out of my comfort zone (I had no idea what juke was before that class), but it was a lot of fun.  I'm definitely straight, but I have a bit of a dancer-girl crush on that teacher--the way she moves just makes my jaw drop every time.  She's got such attitude, and she's positively brimming with life.  She's just so cool.

 

When I got home after class, I plopped in front of my mirrored wall and ran through the beginning part of Power that I learned last Sunday.  ...That mirrored wall is both a blessing and a curse.  It's great to be able to practice and see myself, but I keep losing random fifteen minute chunks when I get too excited to not practice walk in front of it.   

 

Tonight I'll be going to my kpop dance class and learning the last part of Stray Kids' Hellevator.  After that I am telling myself I'm not allowed to go to a dance class for the next two days.  I need to actually spend time at home, do adulting things, and sleep at a normal time.  >_>          

[Siferiax]

59 minutes ago, Jlailin said:

Challenge Update:

 

I am so exhausted.  I went to a Grooves class last night (it's styled like zumba where you follow the leader, but it's hip hop moves instead).  It was awesome, so much fun, and such a good workout.  My core, my thighs, my everything hurt (in a good way) afterward.  During the class we had the next teacher (whom was teaching Femme Hip Hop after the Grooves class) come in and lead for a few songs.  She was amazing.  Her energy was so high and her personality was infectious.  Her dance style was so fun.  After Grooves, we were offered a free class from her if we stayed.  I was dead tired, but everyone else stayed, so I jumped on the bandwagon.  I'm glad that I did--she's a phenomenal teacher.  Her class was a bit out of my comfort zone (I had no idea what juke was before that class), but it was a lot of fun.  I'm definitely straight, but I have a bit of a dancer-girl crush on that teacher--the way she moves just makes my jaw drop every time.  She's got such attitude, and she's positively brimming with life.  She's just so cool.

 

When I got home after class, I plopped in front of my mirrored wall and ran through the beginning part of Power that I learned last Sunday.  ...That mirrored wall is both a blessing and a curse.  It's great to be able to practice and see myself, but I keep losing random fifteen minute chunks when I get too excited to not practice walk in front of it.   

 

Tonight I'll be going to my kpop dance class and learning the last part of Stray Kids' Hellevator.  After that I am telling myself I'm not allowed to go to a dance class for the next two days.  I need to actually spend time at home, do adulting things, and sleep at a normal time.  >_>          

 

Hah awesome Glad you're having so much fun!!

 

Those videos were awesome btw. My autism couldn't follow all the things happening in the first, but the second definitely helped with that

[Bean Sidhe]

Following again. I know I fell behind last challenge, but I am going to try and do better this time around.

 

[Jlailin]

On 3/15/2018 at 12:54 PM, Bean Sidhe said:

Following again. I know I fell behind last challenge, but I am going to try and do better this time around.

 

Yay!  Glad to have you here!   

[Butternut]

Yeah for dance! What a fun challenge! Good luck!

[Jlailin]

48 minutes ago, Butternut said:

Yeah for dance! What a fun challenge! Good luck!

Thank you, Butternut!   

[Jlailin]

It's funny how things only come back to you when you let things go.  If you've been following any of my past challenge threads, you'll know I've been musing/brainstorming/complaining about how to merge my dancing worlds--my kpop dance program and the dance studio where I take my hip hop classes.  Both are budding ventures, so I've always felt there was so much synergy to be gained by their collaboration.  I've been thinking about this since late September of last year, but I didn't see a way to make it work until this past month.  My kpop program is losing its home studio and needs to find a new home.  I thought it was perfect, everything in my life was aligning, and that was that.  Happiness!  Success!

 

Wrong.  The kpop dance program owner became so wishy washy on me even after he told me he was excited for my suggestion.  He didn't reach out to confirm a time slot, so all the time slots started filling up for April.  The dance studio owner still told me I could have other time slots where there weren't classes, so I diligently collected all this information and passed it on.  I even created a nice little spreadsheet matrix for the kpop dance program owner based on studio locations, availability, pros, and cons.  I was super emotionally invested in it, but then it looked like it just wasn't going to work out.  I had to take a step back and distance myself from pushing for the outcome I wanted--even if the kpop program didn't choose the studio I backed, I would still go to it.  

 

So I had a heart to heart with my studio owner friend.  I told her I wanted it to work out but that the other guy was being stupid about demanding a certain time slot that I knew didn't exist.  I told her that I knew it wouldn't be fair to her at all to have her shift things around so much, and that I didn't expect her to.  I told her I'd still keep trying to get him interested in the available time slots she had, but I wanted her to know what was going on.  I thought that would be that.

 

On Tuesday night after class, my studio owner friend halted all of her students from leaving and called us to a business meeting.  She's done this before to bounce ideas off us, since we're her regulars, so I thought nothing of it.  She then starts asking the other students that typically attend her existing class on Wednesdays if they wouldn't mind if she cancelled it since we started the new class we just finished on Tuesdays.  Most people won't dance three days in a row, so they said it'd be fine.  She then turned to me and said she had to text one more person, but if they said yes, the Wednesday slot was mine.  I was shocked.  I immediately hugged her.  I couldn't believe it.  I told her I would smack my kpop dance program owner if he didn't take the slot, but that either way I was so thankful for what she did.

 

I held off telling the kpop owner until I had the final answer from her, and I also wanted to tell him in person at class.  I got the final answer in the morning, so I had to restrain myself from texting the story during the day.  ...and of course he messaged me to talk about all his other wonderful studio options during that day.  It was a huge test of willpower to hold my tongue.  I did let him know that I had some good news from my studio, but I told him I'd tell him the whole story in person.

 

I was ready to launch into my story the minute I walked through the door, but he had his story to get out first.  I was trying to patiently wait for him to finish to go on with mine, but then we got derailed by the arrival of the dance teacher (who was very much on my side for this studio, so that was actually a good thing).  He was about to launch back into his story, but I interrupted and said my story might change his story.  I then detailed the great lengths of what had been done by my friend because I wanted him to know this slot was not easy to come by.  I basically told him that if he didn't accept this time slot, he wouldn't get another.

 

Even then he was like "this is now a hard choice" instead of immediately saying yes.  He had to get the opinion of my dance teacher and his other dance teacher before he was like it's 99% yes until he got to physically see the place himself.  I'm okay with that answer; as a business owner he should be vetting it with his own eyes.  I'm a little annoyed that he doesn't seem to listen to me in the same way as his teachers even though I'm older and probably the most business experienced out of all of them.  He also not as dance experienced, so I think he doesn't really understand the value of the studio's connections.  If you know anything about dance, if you hear someone has connections to the Debbie Reynolds studio and choreographers who frequented there, you follow them.  ...and plus I think he is also just being lazy and trying to stay really close to his home.  

 

However, all that aside, I think we are finally getting there!  We will at least have our Wednesday class there, and our Sunday class will be somewhere closer to the current studio's location.  It's all starting to work out beautifully!  ...provided his Monday visit goes well.  My fingers, toes, and anything else I can cross are hoping that it does!  I will feel so relieved and happy after we get that time locked in.  I feel like I've been agonizing about it the whole month.  Whichever way his decision goes, I will be glad when it's over!

 

[Jlailin]

Nooooo!  I feel scratchiness in my throat.  I don't want to get sick!!!  TT_TT 

 

Went home from work early, took a nap, and ate garlic chili ramen.  Will bundle up and go to bed early in hopes that this goes away by morning...

[Bean Sidhe]

Okay, as far as the studio thing, if he decides to run with that time slot, he owes you big. The fact that you have put so much into this is huge and I have fingers adn toes crossed it works out for you.  GOOD LUCK

I feel you on the getting sick> I started coughing and a bit of wheezing yesterday. Neither of us need this. Hopefully your feeling better today.

 

[Siferiax]

Well that studio thing sounds taxing
I hope it's over and done with soon!

Also feel better. I hope you don't get sick!!

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[shy]

Take it from me, DON'T GET SICK! It's sucks the big one...  

 

Just wanted to drop in and say congrats on starting yet another challenge and... 

 

 

[Plazmotic]

Let's hope this is the conclusion of the studio saga!

[Jlailin]

Thank you for the get well wishes, Bean, Sif, Shy, and Plazmotic!  <3  I did definitely get sick and am still sick, but I'm not bedridden.  I think doing nothing this past weekend helped a lot.  I sound like a frog right now, but I feel like I'm on the mend.  Trying to be healthy by sleeping more (and utterly failing because I keep going to sleep at 2am, which I'm sure is a contributing factor to my current state).    I really want to work from home tomorrow just to catch up, but there's so much work I need to do.  ...and I'm one of those people that isn't always as productive when I WFH.  ...mostly because of a certain grey fur ball that likes to jump on my lap and aggressively snuggle with the hand I need to click the mouse.  >_>

 

 

On 3/17/2018 at 2:48 PM, Bean Sidhe said:

Okay, as far as the studio thing, if he decides to run with that time slot, he owes you big. The fact that you have put so much into this is huge and I have fingers adn toes crossed it works out for you.  GOOD LUCK

 

On 3/19/2018 at 5:33 AM, Siferiax said:

Well that studio thing sounds taxing
I hope it's over and done with soon!

 

On 3/19/2018 at 9:07 AM, Plazmotic said:

Let's hope this is the conclusion of the studio saga!

 

GUYS, IT IS DONE.  WE HAVE OFFICIALLY BOOKED THE STUDIO FOR WEDNESDAY CLASSES!  Words cannot describe how happy I am right now.  I am so excited and relieved.  I just want to fall into my bed, deliriously happy, and take a super long nap.  I feel like I can finally free up some brain space now.   

 

I gave my studio owner friend a gluten-free, dairy-free chocolate truffle oblivion mousse torte cake that I made as a thank you for moving her class for us.  I figured that since she has so many food sensitivities, she probably wouldn't be able to eat as many fancy dessert things without a huge hassle.  I'd actually been itching to make this cake recipe for her since I met her, since I devised it for another friend's wedding cake that had so many lactose-intolerant and gluten-allergic guests (basically the entire groom's family).  Apparently no one else has ever made her a cake, so this was the perfect gesture.  She fell upon it with a spoon as soon as I gave it to her.  xD  

 

Challenge Updates:

• Dance
  • Been practicing the first part Power at least once a day even when sick.  It's like a dance that's stuck in my head.  I'm so excited for tomorrow night's class where we'll learn part 2!
  • Been diligently fangirling over studying videos of their Power performances to see the details and get an idea of the movements that are coming.
• Home
  • I've gotten so many responses for my couches!  I posted a week ago, and I had kinda given up hope by Friday, since I didn't hear anything back.  Then someone responded late on Saturday night.  She came to check them out on Sunday and ended up turning them down, but I had two very interested people message me since then.  ...it's a possibility that my couches will still disappear on Thursday even though my original Thursday appointment cancelled.     

 

I am exhausted, but my heart is full.  <3 

 

[Siferiax]

OMG that's so great to hear!!!
I'm really glad things worked out for you ^^

I hope those couches go soon then
Sounds like they will.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[Plazmotic]

12 minutes ago, Jlailin said:

I gave my studio owner friend a gluten-free, dairy-free chocolate truffle oblivion mousse torte cake that I made

Hnnnngggghhh this sounds freaking delicious!

 

HOORAY for studio saga’s happy ending!

[Bean Sidhe]

So glad to hear everything is working out. Fingers crossed the couches go soon. Hope  you feel better

[Jlailin]

Thank you all!  I stayed home from work today because I felt like I was sorely lacking in sleep, and I didn't want to go into the office just to rebound right back into my sickness.  I feel much better at the moment.  I think I'm nearing the end of this sniffle-y, froggy voice nonsense.  Yay!

 

I just learned part 2 of Power tonight, and it was mostly okay except for this 10 second segment.  I kinda did it in class, but then I asked the teacher to film me at the end so I could remember it (the teacher is very religious, so she can't actually be in a dance video).  It was alright, except for those stupid 10 seconds.  I was so annoyed with myself because that was the part I wanted to record to remember, but it was too new to do without a lead.  The rest of the dance was fine.  There is a more physically challenging part where you use your momentum to spin up from the ground, but memorization-wise, it wasn't so bad.

 

...And so I came home and tried to redo those 10 seconds, so that I could go to sleep with at least the correct memory of the move.  But when I stood in front of my wall of mirrors, my mind went completely blank.  >_<  I had a vague memory of it, but the motions felt wrong.  I went to watch their actual video, and I realized the teacher taught us a slightly modified easier version of the move, which was totally fine for class.  If she had tried to teach us the full thing, it wouldn't have fit into our class time.  However, it made it so difficult to put it together watching the actual dance.  ...It confused my brain so much, that I went and searched for more online dance tutorials to teach me the full motion, so I'd be in sync with the video.

 

I started this at 10pm, and now it's 11:30pm.  ...I basically spent an hour and a half relearning those 10 seconds.  X_X  It is not completely crisp and perfect yet, but I feel like I understand the motions much better now.  I think if I sleep on it, it will help set it into memory more, and I can come back to it to practice it now that I know the correct way.  Sigh.  The things I do for fandom.  xD

 

Here's the craziness... It starts at 1:07 and ends at 1:17.

 

 

 

[Bean Sidhe]

Okay, even watching just the 10 seconds, I can see how it would be crazy hard to learn. I am so glad you figured it out and that with practice I am sure you will have it in no time.

There is nothing silly about what we do for fandom. Only spending an hour and a half searching is still fairly calm. I may have done more for my X-Files before...