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Chuck Hinman, IJMA 008: My First Dance It's Just Me Again, No. 008: My First Dance The next earlier Chuck Hinman story The Grocery Cart Story Is Chuck Hinman your favorite Sunday with CM columnist, as many tell us? If so, we hope you'll drop him a line by email. Reader comments to CM are appreciated, as are emails directly to Mr. Hinman at: charles.hinman@sbcglobal.net by Chuck Hinman I was a 17 year old farm boy, just fresh out of high school. I had never had a real date, I had never danced. This looked like the perfect place to change all that. It was bound to start somewhere! This might as well be the place! I was a freshman at Peru State Teacher's College, Peru, Nebraska and I was "bright eyed, and bushy-tailed" I guess you would say! My life seemed to be just beginning in so many ways and I was ready! My hormones, whatever and wherever they are, were already dancing wildly -- and the dance hadn't even started! It was a warm summer evening in June as young people began to gather outside the gym. The air was filled with a mixture of smells. Evening in Paris perfume and assorted unidentifiable after shave lotions competed with the overpowering smell of the honeysuckle bushes which were everywhere. This was a new experience for me and a bead of sweat cropped up on my forehead. I was apprehensive. It was still daylight when sounds of recorded music, Glenn Miller's very popular "String of Pearls," began to be belted out from inside the gym. Different ones could be seen snapping their fingers to the infectious rhythm of the music as though saying, "Let's get with it ---- do-wah!" Suddenly the music stopped and an over-amped male voice announced the first dance of the evening - a "mixer"! Instructions were bellowed out that the girls were to form a circle in the middle of the dance floor with the boys forming a separate circle surrounding the girl's circle. There were young whipper-snappers, all shapes and sizes everywhere, some good, some not so good. As the music began, the girl's circle was to move in a clockwise direction while the boy's circle was to move in the opposite direction. After a few seconds when the music stopped, you were to dance with the partner exactly opposite you. Directions couldn't have been clearer - let's get started! DO-WAH! My heart began to pound and the sweat became suddenly profuse as I followed the guy in front of me in a fast moving counterclockwise direction. I began to focus on who my partner would be if the music stopped NOW! My heart skipped a beat and almost stopped when this extremely tall, not very attractive girl came into view! "Oh, God, No! - not her!" I thought to myself. I couldn't stand to look as I drew nearer to her. "Please God, NOT HER!" I hadn't been a very religious person but I was getting acquainted with God in an unusual place. Suddenly the music stopped as I was about to faint. "Oh - No, God, it's HER!" There wasn't even a hint of a question who my partner was to be! It was like destiny took charge! Well, here goes nothing! It was time to dance. I had quit arguing with God! I lost! Do-wah! We awkwardly tried to decide how to get started. She seemed to be more experienced than me when as we started to take the first step -- she suddenly confused me by saying "Don't you want to lead?" Lead? I don't know what I want to do! I can't even see with my face even with her breasts! How do you expect me to lead! "You have a better view so you lead," seemed logical! My mind is obviously confused because of this dreadful experience but apparently I changed positions to appease her and completed the dance. Other dances that evening went off without incident -- probably not so much real dancing but more of an outlet for over-zealous hormones! Years later when I met Connie, she was an Arthur Murray dance studio graduate and she explained to me the fine points of men "leading" in a dance. It does have merit. After that awful beginning, I can't believe that years later with Connie as my mentor and partner, this farm boy actually became a pretty decent dancer. It was like our hormones were agreeing "he's (she's) the one!" Do-wah! This story was posted on 2010-06-20 06:23:20
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Have comments or corrections for this story? Use our contact form and let us know. More articles from topic Chuck Hinman - Reminiscences:
Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 88: The Grocery Cart Story Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 022: Teenagers: Where Do They Fit? Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 014: My Running Days Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 013: Funniest Weddings Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 015: Small Town Cemeteries Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 066: A forgotten gesture? Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 196: Changing Oil Chuck Hinman, IJMA 330: Cow tales Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 190 Spring Again Chuck Hinman, IJMA No. 340: Me and My Hair View even more articles in topic Chuck Hinman - Reminiscences |
 
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