March Madness

I can't believe that March is almost over. I mean, I can...but it's still crazy when you realize how fast time flies.

It's almost May...which means we'll be at the year countdown to our wedding. Eep!

We were in Charlotte this past weekend for another Greek dance thing. We're junkies, I confess. One of the nights, a couple of our friends decided to dress up for the Greek 'Carnival' and Jordan, not to be left out, decided we should dress up, too.

He decided we dress up as The Californians, from the Saturday Night Live skit.

If you haven't seen any of the skits, please find them online. I know Hulu has them and you can find them sometimes on YouTube. It will make your day. Jordan has the best sense of humor, is witty and sarcastic, and he doesn't take himself seriously. He's so much fun to be around. And when you get him and his brother, Kelly, together - FORGET IT! I'm almost always on the verge of my head exploding from laughing so much. (For example, as I'm writing this, Jordan looked over at my shoulder and turned to Kelly and said "I didn't realize we were so close to having her head explode...we should try harder next time!") Hahaha!

Funny, funny boys ;)

1...2...3...KICK!

“Dance is the hidden language of the soul.” – Martha Graham

I love dance. Everything dance. All kinds of dance. I like ballet,ballroom, line, urban. I like the "dancing-in-front-of-your-mirror" kind of dancing. I like "yay-I-found-cupcakes" dancing. I think dance is such a beautiful expression of music. And everyone expresses it differently.

But my favorite kind of dancing is Greek folk dance. The country my family is from is so rich in dances, it’s amazing. I started learning folk dances when I was young and continue learning to this day. I was in a competing dance group with some of my oldest and best friends. We made some of the best memories practicing for hours together, raising the funds to travel to competitions, and competing together. Our group dissolved a couple years ago, as many of us were getting jobs or leaving for school, but we still all love dancing and continue to learn on our own.

I’ve been very lucky in finding a man who loves folk dancing as well…he knows more than I ever could AND he’s so good at it. Hot! 

Here’s a performance Jordan and his friends put together for a competition in Chicago in 2009:

Love these boys!

This next video was taken in California last month. It’s in the lobby of the hotel that the competition was hosted at. This is the 3am interpretation of this dance. The guy at the end of the video is playing the Greek version of a bagpipe...it's a dead goat...turned inside out...Greeks are LOONEY TOONS. Jordan is the tall stud playing the drum, and I’m the one bouncing around in the black dress with the short hair (and my bra strap showing…HA!) Please ignore the fact that I start dropping-it-like-it’s-hot…that is not part of Greek folk dancing! ;)

I am just always amazed when I go to workshops or competitions around the U.S. and seeall these other Greek-Americans from both big cities and small towns who all love Greek folk dancing just as much as I do. It really brings us all together in a way that nothing else can. We share this dorky thing in common - a love for keeping this part of our culture alive – and it’s so much fun! 

I'm still here!

I wasn't kidding when I said these first few months are always busy, busy, BUSY!

We had Superbowl, Greek festivals, our week-long trip to California (more on that in a bit), birthdays, weddings…and then, in between,work…obviously.

But let me tell you, as exhausting as these past few weeks have been, it has been so much fun!

Today is Jordan’s birthday! Last night we celebrated a friend’s wedding and then tomorrow I have an event starting at 4am (*sob*) and Jordan has to work, so we’re keeping it low-key tonight and doing our favorite thing – dinner and movie!

California recap: We flew into San Fransisco and stayed with our friend again (thanks, Dean – we love you!) The weather was gorgeous, so we spent one of our days walking around Union Square, Ghirardelli Square, riding a cable car down to Fisherman’s Wharf, watching sea lions, eating Dungeness crab(y-u-m), admiring tons of street musicians, and of COURSE – hunting down red velvet cupcakes! Later that night, we had dinner with friends on a quadruple date at a Persian restaurant - yum!

The next day we drove across Golden Gate bridge to see the Redwoods in Muir Woods and then headed to Napa, where we shared a bottle of delicious wine and a delicious picnic lunch on the grounds of V.Sattui Winery. Two beautiful spots in one day - I'm blessed!

After a few days in San Fransisco, we drove down with Dean to Anaheim, where the big Greek folk dance competition was being held. Two of our friends from back home flew over to meet us, in addition to all of our friends from all over the U.S. (literally) - so we had SUCH a blast being with our friends, dancing, and hanging out. It's always such a bummer when the weekend is finally over.

Tasia & Mark (our FL friends), Jordan, Peter, me, John and Dimitri in front

However, I did get to scratch a couple of things off my “101 things in 1001 days” list!

9. Have wine in Napa – V.Sattui Winery

74. Move out

93. Try 10 new restaurants (2/10) – Shalizaar Restaurant and Fog Harbor Fish House at Pier 39 in San Fransisco

101. Attend another outdoor concert in Mizner –FeBREWary with All American Rejects (hello 2005!)

I think checking off 3.2 things a month after I made this list is not so bad!

I’m looking forward to seeing what I cross off at the end of this month.

I promise to try and update more regularly!

And if you’re reading this, I thank you! =)