As summer rapidly approaches, its time to jump out there and put all of those countless hours of salsa lessons into practice.....on a real dance floor in a real club. Its amazing how many of US consistently take salsa lessons from Tony, Ron, R & B Salsa, etc., and only confine our dancing to the actual class. Its amazing how few of US actually take that "not so great step" and venture into a real club for some real dancing. Its amazing that after all of those hours spent learning the "basic", right and left turn, footwork, cross body leads, etc., and all of those dollars invested in classes, that so many of US still lack the confidence to "get out there".

I always tell folks that "dancing, especially salsa, is attitude and confidence". If you feel that you "know your stuff", you will do very well on the dance floor. Contrary to what most folks might want us to believe, "this dance is ours"; its roots lie in the West African experience and spirituality. One of the reasons that I get from my peeps for not venturing into the salsa scene is that "they don't dance with us" or "they dance too good for me". GIVE ME A BREAK!

Oftentime, nobody dances with us because they don't think that we can dance because they don't see us dancing. If no one asks you to dance, grab some body. Once you're seen dancing, the dances will follow. Just as animals can detect fear, dancers in clubs can detect those among them who are not confident and are afraid. If you're giving off these kinds of vibes, believe me, you won't be asked to dance. If you just be your confident self, if you show the same level of confidence that you show in the classes that you take (or in your profession), dancers will be attracted to you and ask you to dance. Come on, confidence is an afrodesiac (spelling).

Again, as the summer approaches, you will find yourself with countless opportunities to either "jump or ease your way onto the salsa scene". Here are some spots to consider (you can do a search for more specific info on each of them): TUESDAYS: Mama Juanas (Studio City) Stevens Steakhouse (Commerce) WEDNESDAYS: Bungalow Club (Hollywood) Ambiente (Alhambra) Cohibes (Long Beach) Mama Juanas (Studio City) Monsoons (Santa Monica) THURSDAYS: Zabumba (West Los Angeles) Club Saffire (Hermosa Beach) Mama Juanas (Studio City) Stevens Steakhouse (Commerce) FRIDAYS: Josie Neglia's Dance Academy Social (East L.A.) Radisson Hotel (Whittier) Century Club (Century City) Granada (Alhambra) SATURDAYS: Granada (Alhambra) The Mayan (Los Angeles) Anyway, hope to see some of you a few more times on the dance floor and not necesarily, in a salsa class (smile).