Ceili goodness
So, Alameda Ceili went really well last night. We had a big old line of folks for Haymaker's Jig, 2 polka sets, lots of nifty, cool energy, saw a few new faces, lots of regulars, & a few old, familiar faces.
And, best of all, we had, like, a bunch of musicians. Let's see... was it 5? 6? I lost count. I was so glad that I had decided to put the polka sets early enough in the evening to take advantage of all that wonderful live music. And while the dancers still had lots & lots of energy.
Only problem with doing polka sets early is making the folks who aren't up to that speed sit there not dancing for a fairly seriously long time. It's fun to watch, but I should put a really cool beginner dance just before polka sets so that they're at least tired enough not to really notice the wait!
We had a bit of a strange issue later in the evening, when folks started to leave. There was a guy in the back lot - most likely intoxicated, quite possibly homeless - who was getting a little too close to people. I called the police to ask them to come check it out, but the dispatcher wanted me, the person calling, to actually see him out there approaching someone.
So I walked outside, down the back stairs, while on the phone to the police, to see if I could spot him. He came out from under the landing & almost immediately started talking to & walking toward me. So I gave the description she wanted as I was walking back up the stairs, back inside & locking the back door behind me.
As a result, we stayed a bit late, got to dance High Caul Cap after all, figuring to give the police time to show up & shoo him away. I think they did, but he was back by the time we left. We encouraged most folks to leave by the front door, which I have to lock from the inside, but he had walked around to the front by then. At least Park Street is far better lit than the parking lot behind the dance studio.
And, all in all, no harm was done. He didn't seem truly threatening, but you never know. So we took all the necessary but not quite paranoid precautions... making sure everyone knew what was going on, keeping the building secure, walking out in groups. Not much excitement to be had in Alameda, so that was ours. And we'll know to be watchful next week.
And, best of all, we had, like, a bunch of musicians. Let's see... was it 5? 6? I lost count. I was so glad that I had decided to put the polka sets early enough in the evening to take advantage of all that wonderful live music. And while the dancers still had lots & lots of energy.
Only problem with doing polka sets early is making the folks who aren't up to that speed sit there not dancing for a fairly seriously long time. It's fun to watch, but I should put a really cool beginner dance just before polka sets so that they're at least tired enough not to really notice the wait!
We had a bit of a strange issue later in the evening, when folks started to leave. There was a guy in the back lot - most likely intoxicated, quite possibly homeless - who was getting a little too close to people. I called the police to ask them to come check it out, but the dispatcher wanted me, the person calling, to actually see him out there approaching someone.
So I walked outside, down the back stairs, while on the phone to the police, to see if I could spot him. He came out from under the landing & almost immediately started talking to & walking toward me. So I gave the description she wanted as I was walking back up the stairs, back inside & locking the back door behind me.
As a result, we stayed a bit late, got to dance High Caul Cap after all, figuring to give the police time to show up & shoo him away. I think they did, but he was back by the time we left. We encouraged most folks to leave by the front door, which I have to lock from the inside, but he had walked around to the front by then. At least Park Street is far better lit than the parking lot behind the dance studio.
And, all in all, no harm was done. He didn't seem truly threatening, but you never know. So we took all the necessary but not quite paranoid precautions... making sure everyone knew what was going on, keeping the building secure, walking out in groups. Not much excitement to be had in Alameda, so that was ours. And we'll know to be watchful next week.