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Team clogging awards!

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Does your clogging team do awards? Fancy Free Cloggers had our Christmas party/awards banquet this week! The banquet is a lovely time to look back on the year and appreciate the progress and contributions of each team member. 

Every Fancy Free Clogger receives a medal and is recognized for something special he/she brought to the team during the previous year. We also give special awards which vary from year to year, depending on the circumstances. Everyone, however, waits anxiously to see who will win the two highest honors: the Larry Pummel Award and Clogger of the Year!

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Christmas party game for cloggers! Silly ad-libs!

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Today's post is inspired by the latest issue of Double Toe Times, the clogging magazine. (If you don't already subscribe, click HERE to fix that.) The article on pages 18-22 suggests a whole list of clogging party games and activities, including clogging ad-lib word games. 

Word games AND clogging?! I am IN!!! Here are a few just in time for everybody's clogging team parties! Print these out and create a unique story with your fellow dancers!

For those of you who aren't familiar, the game leader asks one person (or the group as a whole) for words to fill in the blanks in a story. The story, which usually makes no sense, is then read aloud. The reader is encouraged to be as dramatic as he/she wishes!

1. You'll Never Dance In This Town Again

We thought it would be a great holiday experience. The mayor asked us to clog at __________(local Christmas event) and we __________(verb ending in -ed) at the chance!

Clogger's Dictionary: Christmas show (noun)

It's that time of year! Seems like every clogging team is part of a local holiday show or parade, or maybe they're putting on a show of their own. Our clogging vocabulary lesson this week examines the Christmas show!

Christmas show (noun): A dance performance which generally occurs sometime late November through December 25th, designed to not only bring the normal level of clogging joy, but to also get folks into the Christmas spirit! This may be exclusively a clogging show, or perhaps the dancers are part of a larger cast with singers, musicians, actors, etc.

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Adventures in clogging: lighted Christmas parade!

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The holiday season is in full swing, which means plenty of performance opportunities for cloggers! The latest for Fancy Free Cloggers was the Hometown Holidazzle lighted parade in Wilmington, Ohio!

First, the name "Hometown Holidazzle" is adorable and fun to say! Second, the town goes all out for this event!

I wish I had a photo of the parade grandstand, but couldn't get one since I was IN the parade! It was shining and flashing like Vegas! Way to go, Wilmington!

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The clogging team that stays together, um, stays together...

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On a recent trip to Chicago, my clogging team tried something new for accommodations: Airbnb!

We normally do the hotel thing, sharing rooms to cut down on cost. That works fine, but we aren't all together, we're usually cramped in a small room, etc.

During the planning process for this trip, one of my teammates spoke up about her experience with Airbnb. She offered to research options through that service.

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Five clogging steps that feel WRONG on the right foot.

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Why is it that certain clogging steps NEVER start on the right foot? It isn't a matter of difficulty; advanced cloggers are expected to perform pullbacks bilaterally, but most will hesitate when asked to perform these easier steps on the opposite foot!

Next dance class, challenge your teammates to give these steps a try on the right:

Clogger's Dictionary: Ripple (noun)

Today's vocabulary word is an element seen in many clogging routines: the ripple! Synonyms are not frequently used in this context, but could include a wave or a progressive movement.

Here's my official definition:

Ripple (noun): A movement performed by different dancers at different times to add visual and/or auditory interest to a routine. 

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Clogging for a cause: Diabetes Dance Dare!

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Have you heard about the Diabetes Dance Dare? If not, let's get you caught up - it is all the rage with cloggers who want to support a good cause!

According to the American Diabetes Association, someone in the United States is diagnosed with diabetes every 23 seconds. The dare is to post a video of yourself dancing for 23 seconds, make a donation to the association, and challenge 3 others to do the same.

Celebrities such as Shaq and Usher have created videos in support of the campaign, but I honestly never heard of this challenge until Kay Trimm and the Clog Wild Cloggers posted a video and challenged fellow cloggers to support the cause!

The girl with the clogging tattoo: Erica

How much do you love clogging? Enough to get a clogging tattoo? For Erica Haning, director of the Riverside Cloggers, the answer is YES!

This is Erica's second tattoo. Her brother previously worked in a tattoo shop, and he applied her first ink. She was so pleased with his work, she enlisted his services once again during a recent visit to his home in Florida.

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Bad Moon Rising - national dance list/fun dance challenge update

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October is the perfect time to dust off that classic clogging routine to Credence Clearwater Revival's "Bad Moon Rising".  The song's spooky vibe sets the tone for a Halloween performance! Your team can also have a chuckle at the famous misinterpretation of lyrics: There's a bathroom on the right!

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Favorite quirky place to clog: Mothman Festival!

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While I enjoy clogging at fall festivals in general, I have a special love of the quirky ones. The kind where people watching is every bit as fun as the sanctioned events. Mothman Festival in West Virginia tops my list! 

This show isn't even my team's gig; Riverside Cloggers (our "sister team") hails from Point Pleasant, and they always invite Fancy Free Cloggers to join one of their performances. Please keep inviting us!

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What color clogging shoes should you wear today? A clogging quiz!

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Imagine you wake up one morning to find a clogger's dream come true: the closet is full of dance shoes in every color! How will you decide which shoes to wear on any given day?

Grab a pencil and take this quiz, of course!

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How you feel while clogging vs how you actually look...

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Clogging feels awesome! I am bouncy and energetic and full of confidence as I make lots of noise with my taps! THEN, someone displays photos or video of my performance and ruins it all...

Okay, it doesn't really ruin things; it helps you perform better in the future. It's just SO awkward and painful in the moment. 

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All That! and a trip to the beach.

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Myrtle Beach, SC. Friday, July 15, 2016. Section B, Row 4, Seat 13. My vacation became way more awesome with a ticket to see All That! at the Carolina Opry!

I saw All That! perform in their "home" theater once before -  the last time Dieter held his Beach Jam competition - but the audience was full of cloggers. What would it be like on a "normal" summer night?

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Perks and perils of clogging to live music.

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For most of us, the typical clogging performance includes bringing music of our own. Predictable music. Exactly as practiced. Always sounds the same (with the exception of music technology glitches).

Sometimes, cloggers get to perform with live music instead! This brings a special level of fun and challenge!

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What's the big idea? Give your teammate's clogging idea a chance!

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Not every suggestion for a clogging routine is a great one. Sometimes, an idea that shows promise is just not right, due to a lack of time or other resources.  Other times, only one team member has a vision for a particular plan, so it quietly dies.

The next time that happens, hear the clogger out! Otherwise, you could miss an amazing adventure.

I only recently learned this lesson.