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Competitions: Giving You The Extra Push You Need
 Competitions: Giving You The Extra Push You Need 150 150 Clara Shih
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I remember back when I was an amateur competitor, one of my friends (outside the dance community) asked me why I chose to dance competitively. At the time, I was at the height of my competitive career, and I thought to myself, ‘The answer is obvious! First of all, I love to perform and second of all, I feed off of the competitive atmosphere, as it drives me to reach greater and greater heights.’

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Spreading the Love
 Spreading the Love 150 150 Clara Shih
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The other day, I took the Canada Line downtown to get my haircut at a long-time friend and fellow dancer’s hair salon: Kanai Hairstyling. It was a fun little trip. I felt like I was on vacation, because whenever I take the subway anywhere, it’s usually when I’m a tourist in another city, like Toronto, London, Paris or Tokyo. Having the new subway in Vancouver makes me feel like I’m a tourist in my own town. It’s great!

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Commitment and Clarity of Intention
 Commitment and Clarity of Intention 150 150 Clara Shih
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Oh, the smell of fall… It never fails that shortly after Embassy, when Joel and I get home, the sun disappears, the air becomes a little crisper and the first drops of rain bring in the new season. Fall is definitely upon us, and after basking in the sun on my very relaxing California vacation, I’m ready to get back to work again. In fact, after having a fantastic visit with Luca & Loraine here in Vancouver less than a month ago, I am fully inspired and raring to go!

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Connecting, Listening and a Passion for Life
 Connecting, Listening and a Passion for Life 150 150 Clara Shih
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These days, it seems to be so hard to connect with people. Everyone is so busy and preoccupied with all the things we have stacked on our plates, that we tend to forget the people who are living and breathing around us. How often do we go to Starbucks and barely acknowledge the barista or cashier, because we just want to grab our coffee and go? How about in the elevator or on the sidewalk? How many times have we tried to avert people’s eyes instead of giving a genuine smile and an honest hello?

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My Role as a Dance Doctor
 My Role as a Dance Doctor 150 150 Clara Shih
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As a dance teacher, I often see myself as an investigative doctor. My patient comes to me with a bunch of symptoms, and I need to detect the underlying cause. Whether they have symptoms of fatigue, gapping, racing ahead of the music or being unable to dance together in harmony, it’s up to me to find out why this is happening. I need to assess the situation thoroughly, find the infection and kill it before it’s too late!

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Decisions, Decisions… Making it Worthwhile
 Decisions, Decisions… Making it Worthwhile 150 150 Clara Shih
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Because there is indeed limited time, energy and (for most of us) money, we need to prioritize what we do from day to day… What is going to make something more worthwhile for you? Definitely, we’ve seen that financial viability is a big determining factor, as always… What else can we possibly change?

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Living the Italian Dream: Part II – How it all began
 Living the Italian Dream: Part II – How it all began 150 150 Clara Shih
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Sometimes I wonder in amazement, how Joel and I even got to have two such amazing people as Luca & Loraine in our lives… I always wonder how if one little thing had happened differently along the way, perhaps we would never have met them and our students would not have had the opportunity to benefit from their teaching. As a result, my life definitely wouldn’t have been the same, and I wouldn’t be the person I am today.

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Living the Italian Dream: Part I – Studio Danze Baricchi
 Living the Italian Dream: Part I – Studio Danze Baricchi 150 150 Clara Shih
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Oh the heat! Having a West-facing apartment, Joel and I have been just baking at our place for the past two days! It reminds me of those hot Italian summers when we lived in Italy. I remember it being so unbearably hot in the studio (cuz it didn’t have air conditioning) that we’d go and practice from 11pm to 2am in the morning! Those were crazy days, but when you’re insanely neurotic about dancing (as we are), you do anything to improve!

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Geniusness versus Neuroticism
 Geniusness versus Neuroticism 150 150 Clara Shih
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Have you ever wondered why some people are just so incredibly good at what they do? Whether it be Tiger Woods with golf, Yoyo Ma playing the cello or Bryan Watson in Latin… they are all experts who have achieved incredibly high standards in what they do. When you look at these champions, do you just stare in utter amazement? Do you simply chalk it up to talent, genetics or just plain luck?

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Consistent Dancing = Consistent Marks
 Consistent Dancing = Consistent Marks 150 150 Clara Shih
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In my last blog, I wrote about the Island Fantasy Ball, our local DanceSport competition in Nanaimo. As I mentioned in that article, the winners for each of the BC Closed Championships were obvious; and in some events, even the results of the top six were pretty clear.

Why is it so clear in some cases, with the winners often winning each and every dance and getting the majority of first place markings, while in other events, the results are all over the place? Honestly, at times, it is hard to say. However, the more you know about the judging system, the more you’ll understand what can actually be determined by looking at the judges’ marks.

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