Want to dance?

Hi neighbors. I hope you've enjoyed all the snow and ice. I'm ready to skip spring and go right into August.

In case you have forgotten, the ice storm first arrived on Friday, Jan. 12. I remember the date well, because I was driving to Iowa shortly after the sleeting started.

Conditions were not too bad until about 10 miles south of Harrisonville, then my windshield wipers could not keep up with the falling sleet, causing ice build-up on the glass. They tried courageously, though ... pulling three to four inch chunks of ice across the window with each swipe.

After I met with my daughter's long-time friend Connie, we parked my car and drove her car the rest of the way to Des Moines.

You would think driving north would mean worse weather. Actually, halfway across Kansas City, the ice stopped and there was nothing else past that.

After we passed Liberty, the roads were dry and all was well.

Unfortunately, my car sat out in ice for three days and nights. When the mechanic raised the hood to discover why my wipers no longer worked, he discovered four inches of ice across the motor where it meets the windshield. Once this thawed, everything worked fine.

The trip was well worth the effort, though, as our reason for going was to help with my daughter's annual dance showcase.

By the day of the dance, several inches of snow covered Des Moines, and it was still snowing heavily. That didn't deter visitors, though. People came from across Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri and Illinois. The only ones who couldn't make it due to weather were from Wichita. They were sharing Missouri's ice storm.

During the all-day event, Connie and I collected money and made certain people got to the correct workshop at the right time. These hourly workshops covered tips and practice steps for every aspect and type of dance from casual social dancing to professional competition.

It was a couple of hours after the workshops that the dinner was served and after that the showcase started.

Although I do not dance myself, I do enjoy watching the dancers in costumes and/or ballroom dresses perform.

There was a wide variety this year, with swing dancers and couples doing expressive dance as well as regular ballroom dances.

Jennifer's college students performed a routine to the Hustle with lots of jumps and twirls through the air complete with hula hoops. Part of this routine was done in the dark in reflective clothing -- very impressive! A group of students from another Iowa college were there, doing swing dance routines. There were waltzes and quick-steps, fox-trots and West Coast Swing country dances. It was a fine group of performances by amateurs as well as seasoned professionals and everyone did well.

One of the highlights this year, in my opinion, was the caterer. This was the first time Jennifer had contracted with this delightful lady and I hope she works with her again. She and her sister had started their own catering service a few years ago and had ample staff to quickly set up tables and chairs. The food was served hot and tasted delicious.

I particularly liked the service as she provided all-day hot coffee! Karl, Jennifer's fiancé, ran the sound system and did a terrific job keeping everyone's music organized. The huge speaker system did a great job, too.

During the workshops a different musical system was used. To my amazement, most professional instructors brought those tiny IPod things with their own speaker systems. I didn't know such things existed! I knew about IPods of course, but not the speakers.

After watching how they work, they seemed the logical resource.

It was a great day and a wonderfully entertaining evening. Even driving back to Jennifer's in the snow didn't dim our enthusiasm. I will admit we were all ready for bed when we got home.

At about noon the next day, Connie and I headed back toward Missouri.

When we arrived in Harrisonville, my car was under four inches of ice! We spent almost an hour chipping off enough to see out of the windows.

Backing it out of where it had been parked for three days, we got it belly-hung on a ridge of ice. Luckily a couple of nice young men drove by and stopped to help push the car over the bump.

Free at last, I started home.

Until the next time friends remember, weather, even bad weather, is just a situation we have to keep moving through. It certainly isn't a reason to miss a good dance -- or free coffee!