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22 | OHCC LIVING | FEBRUARY 2019 | Village Squares Do Dues Day was a huge success, with many existing, and some new, members signing up for another year of dancing, hugs, and friendship. If you have not yet paid, the dues are $10 per person. Graduated members can also pre-pay $90, which covers you for all classes and dances. This is a huge savings because if you do not pre- pay, the cost for each class and club dance is $5. Everyone in the village was invited to our Open House on Jan. 9, in AB Hall for an introduction to Square Dancing and we had a very good turnout. Along with meeting new members and munching on goodies, our caller extraordinaire, Jim Randall, got everyone dancing as he led us in some of the basic calls. Our Beginner's Class started Jan. 15, and will continue throughout the year on Tuesdays from 3 to 5 pm in AB Hall. No prior dance experience and no partner is required. Even if you missed the first classes, you can join us until Feb. 6. In class, Jim reviews call for three weeks to allow students to catch up if they have to miss a class. The cost is $5 per class. In addition, we hold a review class each Thursday at 9 am, which is free. Square dancing is often described as "friendship set to music" and we look forward to having all our new students join our club. We are looking forward to our annual St Patrick's Day dinner/ dance on March 4. The Wearing of the Green will include a traditional Irish dinner at 5 pm and dancing will start at 6:30. Please check out our website at http://ohccvillagesquares.wix. com/villagesquares. Along with a monthly calendar of events, there are also links to other club dances in the area, videos of all the dance moves the students are learning, pictures, and videos of our club events, and even a video of Sam, the square dancing dog. Any questions, please contact our president, Pete Cannon at OHCCVillageSquares@gmail.com. LaBlast! When Larry and I celebrated our anniversary last year at Rancho La Puerta Spa, I took a LaBlast® Fitness dance class. It was lots of fun. Many of the steps were familiar from Ballroom Dance Club classes here at OHCC but it was much easier to dance solo than it is to try and follow a partner (no offense, Larry). I did some research and found that Louis Van Amstel from ABC's Dancing with the Stars created this style of aerobic dance. Van Amstel created LaBlast to promote fitness and make working out fun, all through the power of traditional dance. "I run this class for the people who think they can't dance or have two left feet, and offer five levels catering to everyone from the absolute beginner to the already experienced dancer!" During this work out participants, learn actual dance steps while moving to a variety of musical genres from ballroom, Latin, rock n roll, country, and hip-hop. LaBlast® Fitness uses all of the dances seen on Dancing with the Stars including Salsa, Cha Cha, Samba, Disco, Hustle, Merengue, Jive, Swing, Tango, and Waltz. The Ballroom Dance Club leadership is considering integrating some aspects of LaBlast into our lessons and dances at OHCC. For example, our classes might include solo dance instruction; we may broaden the types of dances taught. Our monthly dances might include space on the dance floor for solo dancers following a leader in simple dance steps; we may include a wider range of musical genres. Please email carriesmcbride@gmail.com with your comments and suggestions about incorporating LaBlast. Weekly lessons on Wednesdays in Abravanal Hall. Beginners are from 3 to 4 pm and Intermediate from 2 to 3 pm. Lessons are $5 for club members, $7 for nonmembers, pay at the door, start anytime. Enjoy your new Swing skills dancing with your sweetie to live music from Musicstation, one of the most popular bands at OHCC and in the San Diego area. The band features a mix of Swing, Motown, R&B, Rock & Roll, 70s - 80s, and current dance favorites. Our Valentine's Dance will be Fri., Feb. 8 from 7 to 10 pm. It is $12.50 for members, $15 for non-members, pay at the front desk. Dances continue every month on the second Friday. Ballroom Club membership is only $10/year, pay at the front desk. Ballroom Dance