High-Five Thursday

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I don’t know how they did it but Glee turned a terrible song like Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” into something extremely likable the second they covered it (the adorable Darren Criss didn’t hurt the cause either).  Wanna know how that turns into “High-Five Thursday”?

When the fabulous Karim Tonsy decided Glee’s version of Teenage Dream needed to make an appearance on his playlist for Dance! at Equinox this morning.

Ohhh, man.  The high-fives were a-flyin’.  My first time at Dance! in 2 months- HIGH FIVE!  Leslie, Gary, Jake, Erika… the gang’s all here- HIGH FIVE!  Karim can shake it like nothing I’ve ever seen- HIGH FIVE!  I’m working out before noon- HIGH FIVE!

It was a good morning.

Dig Down Deep

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The 42nd Annual Sheffield Garden Walk was this weekend and I met up with some friends to enjoy the musical stylings of a band called “Cowboy Mouth”.  The Garden Walk is apparently exactly that–a walk through a bunch of cool gardens in Lincoln Park, coupled with concerts at night.  I didn’t know about the actual garden part until I got on their website tonight.  I feel a little guilty–I thought it was an even exclusively about beer and loud music.  I like gardens as much as the next person and would have totally checked the educational part of this festival out but I am willing to place bets that if this was the 42nd Sheffield Garden, there will be a 43rd and I can have a more well-rounded Garden Walk experience.

Anyways.

Cowboy Mouth was pretty fantastic.  And funny.  The drummer was placed in the middle of the stage and did a majority of the singing, which was pretty impressive considering that hitting sticks on tubs and singing at the same time can’t be easy.  Usually, if I am not familiar with a band, I have a hard time getting into the concert.  Cowboy Mouth made it impossible to not be engaged–within minutes, I was shouting the band’s name along with the rest of the crowd and doing my little concert dance that involves a lot of arm waving and hair tossing.

What really made me want to be a Cowboy Mouth fan was the moment in the concert when the drummer/lead singer was banging along and told the crowd to “Dig down deep inside, dig down really deep inside to that part inside you that you KNOW is bad ass”.  Umm, hello?  Of all the things we do to keep positive and present in our daily lives, how often do we think about and rely on that part of us that we just know is bad ass?  In those dig deep moments, have I ever been like “Man oh man, Nina, you are just incredibly bad ass!”?  No.   It’s really conjures up that confidence piece, which is always key, right?

I have been pretty much obsessed with things/people/ideas that inspire me lately, like someone who has been walking through the desert in Vegas and need a cocktail, er, water.  I’m not sure if I’m just more aware lately of all the inspiring things that happen every single day in this world of ours or if there’s something in the water at my place of employment but I have been so thirsty to soak it up.  From Dance! (Leslie was in the chair next to me while I was getting a pedicure on Friday, btw) to conversations with co-workers to just seeing the movers and shakers in this community doing their thing, I have been on an inspiration high lately.  Annnnd I love it.

High Five of the Day: My boy Rosco who provided me the lovely pic posted above.  He’s also on the internets–http://www.xroscox.com/.  It’s not porn, I swear.

Dance. Exclamation Point.

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No one should have this much fun at 8am.

I’m talking about Dance! with Karem Tonsy at Equinox.  Dance! is so packed every time we are working out down there that my buddy Jordan and I just had to see what the big deal was.

First of all, it’s called Dance!.  The exclamation point is a part of the title.  Second, the instructor, Karem, is a super toned, energetic, hip-shaking, latin dancing…did I mention hip shaking?  I mean, his hips moved in ways I just have never seen.  And third, the class packed with the coolest movers and shakers I have seen in a long time–ages 25-probably around 70.

20 minutes of my best moves later and Jordan and I had met this little ball of INCREDIBLE energy named Leslie.  She was rocking out every single move, totally motivating me to kick my feet a little higher and shake my booty a little lower. 25 minutes later and Leslie was calling Jordan “Jordie” as she was high-fiving her.  And everyone was like Leslie, from the 40-something man to my left up to the 70 year old woman wearing Keds in the front row.  Everyone was a regular, knew each other and were high fiving and hooting and hollering.  It created this incredible energy.  30 minutes later and I was sweating buckets, realizing that I totally underestimated what a killer workout Dance! would be!  I was booty shaking, hand punching, salsa spinning…in other words, I felt like I was a backup dancer in a music video.  Yessss…

Karem was the best.  His moves were so much fun but still so do-able.  He shook it with the best of ’em but then would yell like a it was a regular fitness class.  “Noo!  More!” or “Not enough–SHAKE IT!”.  And you listen when a guy like Karem tells you to adjust your dance moves, you just do.

Jordie, as Leslie now calls her, and I were beyond pumped up after the class and spent the better part of our work day talking about Dance, Exclamation Point.  Anything that can get me sweating that much and having more fun than I have EVER had getting sweaty is something I have GOT to be doing once a week.  Or once a day.  8-9am on Thursday is a standing date for me now.  Exclamation point.