A Girl Post of a Different Color

I’ve always loved movies with Kick Ass Girls...with an important caveat.  A girl kicking an ass, (or multiple asses), in my book must actually look as though she could, you know, kick them. Many actors chosen for these roles are very pretty, but I just can’t see those flimsy arms and legs knocking down anyone. My benchmark is Angelina Jolie in the first Tomb Raider movie.

So it was with some trepidation that a friend of mine introduced me to Gina Carano in Haywire. The minute she walked, no strode, onto the set I knew she was an athlete. I didn’t know until afterwards that she is a world renowned mixed marshal arts champion. The movie itself wasn’t as good as Tomb, but I am betting she could kick Ms. Jolie’s ass high and wide, and understand, I love Angie’s Tomb fight scenes with an almost religious fervor.

I usually don’t like boxing, kick boxing and their ilk in real life because it is so violent, but a choreographed movie score, that’s different. OK, I’m seething mass of inconsistencies. Anyway, as I watched the movie and then you tube vids of Gina, I noticed something. Despite all the face punching and floor mauling, the movements are beautiful. Dancer-like. Dare I say Argentina tango-like in some of the arabesques and kick turns. In the end, I loved that fighting can be beautiful, just like dancing can be athletic; two sides of the same coin. 

I think Gary was a little scared when I told him I just might incorporate some of those lovely kicks in our Swango. Heh heh. Be afraid.

Here’s a you tube vid of Gina doing her thing. It is violent…be warned. But it is also breathtaking.

Magnetic Nail Polish: Girl Post

Summertime is when my fashion magazines make their biggest appearance…I read them all year, but there are only so many I can consume immersed in water via my winter soaks. When I spend a day on my deck, it’s morning until dusk, so there is plenty of time to discover new beauty trends.

My newest discovery is Sally Hansen magnetic nail polish. Not magnetic as in a magnetic personality (although you might be headed that way with this stuff), but really magnetic, as in the polish has metal bits and the lid is a magnet.

You know how sometimes you wish someone would invent panty hose that didn’t run or a pair of jeans that fit everywhere? Or how you could have glittery stars floating around you that whirl at every step? Ok, that’s just me. Anyway, many new beauty products are improvements on existing items or things I’d wished for. This polish is so unexpected. First, who comes up with ideas like this??? As creative as I like to think I am, my brain never would have thought of it.

It works just like it says…paint it on, hold the magnet over your nail for a few seconds, and poof, nails that appear moonstone-like with soft ripples of color. Incredibly beautiful, easy, and not expensive, about 6 bucks.

Good job oh nameless one working at Sally Hansen. Now get going on those floating stars.

PS. It says use two coats. It’s pretty thick so I used one coat (with a clear base) and it worked just fine. The metal bits tend to settle or maybe I’m a slow painter, but I needed to shake the bottle a couple of times to keep the metal in the mix, so to speak.

Spandex and Cream: Girl Post

Gotcha.  :-) Sorry, no dance porn here.Spandex as in hose, cream as in cleansing cream.

Let’s start with the cream. As I’ve said so many times, dancing is an odd sport because it requires a prettiness quotient…at least for most people. For my hair I want it to look nice, but I’ve bowed to the notion that my dancing hair works best shoulder length or above, and I’ve allowed my curls freedom, because exercise makes it curl no matter what I do anyway. The added benefit is styling is easy.

I do, however, want products that keep those curls from bouncing out of control without turning my do into helmet head. I use a taming gel (with subtle sparkle) Got2Be Cosmic Shimmer, and various types of flexible hairspray. That’s a lot of goop. I end up shampooing more than I need to because of that…curly hair is drier.

I didn’t think much about my shampooing routine…I use whatever is on sale followed by an equally inexpensive conditioner. For the most part shampoo is shampoo…read the ingredients. Then I discovered a new product by L’Oreal called cleansing hair cream. Let me stop here to say as long as a new beauty innovation can be found in a drug store or on eBay I will try it. It’s fun, and who knows, maybe it will be a new fave. So I thought hey…cleansing cream. Might not be as drying. So I found some on eBay and gave it a shot. It’s about 6 bucks but I now have coupons for it, and you don’t need conditioner.

Wow. It cleaned the goop and left my hair soft and with better defined curls. Curl construction is crucial; we of the curly hair know that our locks do not curl uniformly…there are always a few places that go rogue and other spots that flatten. At least for us white girls. My Puerto Rican friend’s hair always looks perfect, although she bemoans other problems with hers; I guess we are never happy with what we have. Anyway. I usually have to touch up with a curling iron, but with this stuff I do way less of that.

Moving on the the spandex. I am not a hose lover. In the winter when dancing I mostly choose an above the knee stretch skirt with tights. In the summer I switch to slightly longer skirts and bare legs. That worked great until Gary and I started doing lifts and dips. Teacher teacher I declare…haha. So I needed hose. I tried a bunch of kinds which either cut me in two around the waist or bagged around my knees. Yuk. “Dance” hose I hated even more…it makes your legs look pretty and it is almost indestructible, but it’s also hot and opaque and oh so obvious. Then I discovered Spanx. It has underwear in it so no VPL, an added bonus. It is sheer as a whisper and therefore not hot and it practically disappears. It covers, um, any imperfections and so shorter skirts are now a summer option, and the panties look like shorts so when I’m flipped nothing shows.

They are not cheap, almost 30 bucks a pop. I found them on eBay for 12 to 15. Still WAY over what is decent to pay for hose, but I figure a pair a month can be budgeted. I’m rationalizing by saying I’m saving on underwear. Did you know most people can’t make it through one day without at least ten juicy rationalizations? Spanx comes in a variety of skin tones, grey and black, and black with stripes and dots. Also they have tights. Sadly, no stars, skulls, or multicolors. Yet. A girl can hope.

The Cubanola Glide

The Cubanola Glide

Sometimes it's amazing how modern an old tune can sound. You're looking at the cover of the Cubanola Glide, a rag written and published by Harry Von Tilzer with words by Vincent Bryan in 1909. The cover's nothing to speak of, it kind of reminds me of all the Hawaii and South Pacific themed covers that were common through the twenties when the wealth of the stock market boom allowed average people the opportunity to travel the world. Cubanola features a simple sea view with potted palms and what might be El Morro Castle in the background. The whole thing is done in a questionable green, but I guess all things tropical should be green.

Harry Von Tilzer

Von Tilzer holds a special place for me since he's a local boy. He was born in Goshen, Indiana and at the age of 14 ran away to fulfill every boy's dream of joining a traveling circus. Harry was a successful calliope player and he wrote new tunes and incidental music for the shows. Once he left the circus, he wrote and played for Burlesque and Vaudeville shows. In 1898 he sold his song My Old New Hampshire Home to a publisher for the grand sum of $15, and then watched it become a national hit that sold over 2 million copies. Bolstered by this success, he began writing professionally. 

In 1900 his tune A Bird in a Gilded Cage became one of the biggest hits of the age and Von Tilzer became one of the best known Tin Pan Alley songwriters. In 1902 Von Tilzer formed his own publishing company, where he was soon joined by his younger brother Albert. 

Harry Von Tilzer's other hits included Wait 'Til The Sun Shines Nellie, Old King Tut, All Alone, Mariutch, The Ragtime Goblin Man, I Love My Wife, But Oh You Kid!, They Always Pick On Me, I Want A Girl (Just Like The Girl That Married Dear Old Dad), And The Green Grass Grew All Around, and On the Old Fall River Line among others. Harry died in New York City on January 10, 1946. 

I managed to find a version of the Cubanola Glide by Arthur Smith. It's nice to actually hear a piece. So many times you're left with the cover image and no idea of what it might have sounded like. I imagine there was a Cubanola Glide dance too, but I couldn't find any videos showing the steps. I guess sometimes the past keeps her secrets.