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STORY ONE
TAKE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE: THE SSQQ CRUISE TO MARDI GRAS AND COZUMEL!!
http://ssqq.com/information/mardigrashome.htm
SSQQ has scheduled a 7 Day Cruise to visit the 2004 New Orleans' Mardi Gras. We will sail aboard Royal Caribbean's beautiful Rhapsody of the Seas. We leave Sunday, February 22nd, and return on Sunday, February 29th.
Since we first wrote about this trip a month ago, we have filled two-thirds of our space.
Count on reaching New Orleans Monday evening in time for a wild night of dancing on Bourbon Street. Then after a little rest, on Tuesday we hit the peak of Mardi Gras during the legendary Fat Tuesday, the day of Parades, revelry, and legalized insanity.
We will remain in New Orleans Wednesday till 6 pm, then it is off to the sparkling warm waters in beautiful Cozumel. While others shiver stateside in the middle of winter, our group will work on getting great suntans at the famous Chankanaab Beach.
This exciting trip promises to be the experience of a lifetime!
The deadline to pay for the trip is December 13th. This is the day we have to return our reservations and it is unlikely there will be any space left after that.
SSQQ NOW HAS THE LOWEST PRICE IN TOWN BUT YOU BETTER HURRY!!
Since we reserved 50 spots back in the summer, we were able to obtain a very low price and keep it as such. The Marriott Hotel in New Orleans is up to $200 a night for Mardi Gras. As these rates keep climbing, you will realize what a bargain the SSQQ Trip really is.
(check out to see who is already going to Mardi Gras:
http://ssqq.com/information/mardigraspassengers.htm
)
Therefore, if you have any desire to go - YOU SHOULD MAKE YOUR MOVE NOW!
IT COSTS YOU ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO MAKE A RESERVATION.
If you decide not to go, then you can get your entire deposit refunded as long as you ask for it before December 13th.
REPEAT: You know the game - after you make your deposit, you then have till December 13th to completely make up your mind (December 13th is the last day you are entitled to a full refund of your $250).
BUT YOU MUST PLUNK DOWN $250 NOW TO RESERVE THE RIGHT TO GIVE YOURSELF TWO MORE MONTHS TO MAKE UP YOUR MIND.
This trip is a surefire hit. The Mardi Gras IN NEW ORLEANS is an incredible experience. YOU WILL HAVE A BLAST! He (or She) who hesitates is lost. Please DO NOT wait to call or email us today.
marla@ssqq.com (Marla Gorzynski email)
713 862 4428 (Marla Gorzynski phone)
Check out the ssqq web site for the price, to see who is going, and further promotional information -
http://ssqq.com/information/mardigrashome.htm
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THE
DECEMBER 2003 DANCE SEMESTER BEGINS SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23.
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/schedule.htm
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DECEMBER 2003 SCHEDULE
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/extra.htm
LINDY HOP 5 will be offered on Sundays in December with Gloria Sanchez. This class has never been offered before so you can be sure it will be interesting. Gloria's class has become quite the "Event" as her students have been together nearly half a year.
Sunday afternoons in November (starts Nov 23rd) marks the return of a favorite course: INTERMEDIATE SLOW DANCING FOR HOLIDAY PARTIES. Christmas and New Year is the only time of year many people dance at all. Marty and Adele Raber will introduce intermediate patterns for Foxtrot, Waltz, & 2 forms of Slow Dancing. Now when "New York New York" (Foxtrot), "Auld Lang Syne" (Waltz), & "Unforgettable" (Slow Dance) gets played at New Year's you will be the best dancer at your Holiday Party!
Please note a BEGINNER LEVEL OF THE HOLIDAY SLOW DANCE class will be offered on Mondays! It will be taught by Maureen Brunetti.
INTERMEDIATE WHIP/WEST COAST SWING will be offered on MONDAYS (starts November 24th) as well as on Thursdays for the December schedule. There was a misprint in the studio schedule that indicated Lunar Whip would be offered instead and this was wrong.
INTERMEDIATE WESTERN WALTZ, the Western dance of Romance, will be offered on Sundays at 7 pm with Judy Archer. Offered in time to get you ready for Christmas dancing and New Year's Parties, Western Waltz is exceptionally beautiful and marvelous fun to dance.
INTERMEDIATE BALLROOM finally makes its first appearance at SSQQ in December. We have had requests for this class for several months and now it is time. Judy and Charlene will offer advanced patterns to Foxtrot, Waltz, Cha Cha, Tango
you ask for it, they'll teach it!
December brings us SUPER ADVANCED WESTERN CHA CHA with Sharon Crawford on Wednesdays. This difficult class is only offered once a year, so don't miss it!!
GHOST TOWN 12 will be offered Fridays with Brian White. This Ghost Town level has only been taught once previously and it contains some great patterns!! Plus you know Brian will add something of his own to try your soul...
MARTIAN WHIP 12 EXTRA is a special feature of the Martian Whip class. Taught by Rick Archer and Jack Benard, this class no longer parallels the Thursday class. It is taught like a Crash Course - something new every week. As always, you pay one price for the Thursday or the Friday class and get the other class for free. Such a deal!!
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THE SSQQ TURKEY TROT WESTERN DANCE
Saturday, November 22nd, 9:15 - Midnight, Cover charge $7
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/party22.htm
7:00 - 9:00 PM CRASH COURSES
$14 person, $22 couple
BEG TWOSTEP - Leo
BEG WESTERN SWING - MG
BEG WESTERN WALTZ - Jill
JITTERBUG ACROBATICS - Paul (cpls only)
DIRTY DANCING - Rachel/Wil (cpls only)
ANITA'S FAVORITE HIJACKS - Anita & Rick
(Please note that any Man accompanied by a lady taking this interesting course can attend this class for free. Men who show up without a partner can pay half-price to be molested all night long
sorry, Girls, only one free man per lady. You can't bring in the entire Harem Scarem for free.)
Music Western Room 1, Whip Room 4
Dress Hot to Trot or Get Ignored a Lot!!
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THE RED AND WHITE HAPPY HOLIDAYS SWING DANCE.
Saturday, December 6th, 9:15 pm - Midnight
Cover Charge $7
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/party23.htm
CRASH COURSES (7 - 9 PM)
FREESTYLE - Jill
BEG NIGHT CLUB - Anita
BEG WESTERN WALTZ - Judy
LISE'S FAV SWING PTRNS - Lise
SLOW DANCING - Maureen (cpls only)
BEG C&W: TEXAS TWOSTEP - Kimberly
LINDA'S FAVORITE GHOST TOWN PTRNS - Linda
Wear Red and White or Stay outta Sight
Music Swing in Room 1, Western and Whip in Room 4.
THE SSQQ CHRISTMAS PARTY, Friday, December 19th (9:15 pm - 12:30 am)
Cover Charge $7.
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/party24.htm
The SSQQ Christmas Party is unusual in that much of our music has a Christmas twist to it. Thanks to the many Western performers such as Garth Brooks and George Strait, there are many Christmas songs that are excellent Twosteps and Polkas. And there is a lot of Christmas Swing music as well. We play normal dance music as well, but the emphasis is on dancing to Christmas songs.
There are many Waltzes played at the SSQQ Christmas Party. It turns out there are many Christmas Carols that turn out to be Waltz-tempo such as "What Child is This?", "The First Noel", "Silver Bells", "Away in a Manger", "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear", and several others. If you like to Waltz, you will love this party!
As a nice touch, George Grega has offered to provide his special lighting that was so popular at the Halloween Party for this year's Christmas and New Year's Party. George owns a company that specializes in providing every service imaginable for large events. If you are curious, check out the story about his company on the ssqq web site at http://ssqq.com/information/gregagtgevents.htm
For a nice Dress suggestion, wear clothing with Red or Green or a Christmas Theme shirt/pullover. But you know what? Wear whatever you wish.
Personally I resent the Christmas decorations I saw in Highlands Village that were put up before the Halloween Party this year. I accept that Christmas Season can start after Thanksgiving, but before Halloween is ridiculous. So if you are fed up with everything "Christmas" and feel "Bah Humbug", you can wear whatever makes you happy.
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THE SSQQ NEW YEAR'S PARTY, Wednesday, December 31st.
http://www.ssqq.com/ssqq/party25.htm
(More about this in the next Newsletter)
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STORY THREE: RICK ARCHER HAS A FIRE AT HIS HOUSE!!
At 3:30 pm on Wednesday, November 19, 2003, I was sitting at my desk in my home merrily typing away at the December issue of the SSQQ Newsletter when I heard heavy banging on my back door. Surprised at the interruption, I got up from the computer to check out the sound. It turned out to be Dulce, a young lady who lives next door to me on my left. She said my house was on fire!!
Well, Mr. Cool and Collected Me had the presence to look around the kitchen to find my handy red fire extinguisher. I mean, how bad could the fire be?
When I walked outside prepared to spray the "fire" to oblivion, I was astonished to see massive 30 foot high flames engulfing my fence!! My fire extinguisher and I were not going to make a dent in this blaze; that was immediately obvious. I wondered if this was a "San Diego"-style fire, but dismissed that as nonsense. I could not imagine what had caused something this big other than arson. It made no sense.
| I ran back inside and called 911. They said a truck was already en route. I suppose 30 foot high flames don't go unnoticed for long although I didn't have a clue about the danger while I sat at the computer. For that matter I didn't even realize that Houston had flooded again two days earlier. I am lost in another world when I get going on the computer.
After calling 911, I went back out, grabbed my hose and started spraying down whatever flames were nearest. I was astonished when two minutes after I started I was nearly drowned to death by a tidal wave of water sent over from the other side of the fence by
some newly-arrived firemen. If the fire didn't kill me first, I might drown!! |
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I ran to safety to avoid the torrential rainfall.
Soon two firemen walked through a gap in the fence only to stop and laugh at the sight of me with my little spray gun hose trying to put out a fire of this magnitude. By now it had gotten up into my trees and could be seen for miles away. It was now 40 feet high and twenty feet long. This immense wall of fire was very intimidating.
Now that the firemen were here, I put down my popgun hose and tried to move my dogs to safety, but they immediately scrambled back out the door to see what was going on. I hate my dogs sometimes.
So I sat down and watched the show. Within five minutes the firemen had the fire under control. They were
awesome!!
It turned out that my next door neighbor had a shed in their back yard that abutted my fence. The shed has been there for 25 years. Inside this shed was an old dryer that started an electrical fire. It didn't help that several cans full of gasoline were also stored in the shed.
Once the flames got hold of my fence, it was off to the races. I might add I learned from a fireman that the woman who lives in the house had told him she had noticed sparks on several previous occasions. Well, Duh.
I estimated the damage to be about $500 to $1,000. I called my insurance company and found the deductible was $4,000.
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As I thought about it, I remembered that Judy Archer had her car window smashed in four days earlier. She was parked 20 feet from the entrance to the Weslayan Randalls The thief took her knitting and my daughter's pen and pencil set. The cost to fix the window was several hundred dollars. My daughter's laptop computer had so many stickers on it the thief didn't even notice it laying there in back. What a smart burglar, huh.
And then my mind drifted to the Nail Shop next to the studio. They didn't bother to fix a small leak in their toilet. As a result the water ran downhill over to SSQQ. Now the small bathrooms in Room 6 have several rotten floorboards that have to be replaced. Did you know this same problem happened two years before and caused several thousand dollars in damage to our floor? And now it has happened again. Don't be surprised if your toilet falls through the floor one day while using one of those bathrooms. Hopefully the problem isn't that bad. We hope to fix the problem over our upcoming Christmas Break.
Oh, the stupidity of others.
You can just be sitting at your computer minding your own business or buying bananas at Randalls and the next thing you know some fool is making your life miserable. Now I have a gigantic hole in my fence and Judy has a hole in her window.
And at the same time they are blowing up buildings in Turkey and shooting down helicopters in Iraq. It's tough to feel too sorry for myself when I realize it could be much worse.
Still I was so rattled by the fire, I could not concentrate on my writing for the next two days. As a result, the SSQQ December Newsletter will not appear on the web site until late Friday afternoon, December 22nd. Please forgive my tardiness. I will try to add some gruesome pictures of the fire to the Newsletter.
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STORY FOUR: THIS YEAR'S HALLOWEEN
PARTY REVISITED
I led off the story of the upcoming Halloween Party last month with this line:
"When you come to the SSQQ Halloween Party, you better wear a costume!! We take costumes VERY SERIOUSLY and we keep photographic evidence that indicates how hard you tried."
I have to say that the message got through. The costumes were just fabulous. I could not ask for a better response in the costume department. The SSQQ Halloween Party must be the best Halloween Party in the world.
Our party was so early this year on October 25th. I just happened to be driving home from the studio on the real Halloween Night October 31st when I passed several different parties in the Montrose and the Heights. People were walking the streets to these parties wearing the most pathetic costumes. It dawned on me that by and large most of our guests really make an effort to wear nice costumes to our party.
For this I am very grateful to all of you. I work hard to make the party good for you and you turn around and support me by looking wonderful. I definitely appreciate all of you so much for your contributions!
This year a lot of people worked hard to make the party a success. We had a whole team of people decorating for the party and putting the Haunted House together. The group included me, Sandy Lenar-Doozy and her son, plus Lisa Palmer, Marla Gorzynski and Diane Murrell. Judy Archer and Susan Schroeder worked for two days putting together the most awesome Mummy for the Haunted House.
Then we had so much help during the party to make it happen. Assistant Chief Holloway was on hand again to patrol the parking lot. As usual, there was no problem. Our cars were safe and so were our guests.
Donna Tillery, Diane Murrell, and Patty Oh helped watch the doors.
And don't let me forget Tim Knight (pictured at right
with Maureen Brunetti) who slaved for four solid hours without a break taking one picture after another. He gave me a CD with 600 pictures on it!! (and you can buy a copy of this CD for $10. Email me at
dance@ssqq.com to get a copy).
In past years we have had people take many excellent "still photographs", but this year Tim got right in the middle of the crowd and got pictures of people dancing. This is difficult photography, but Tim stayed with it and delivered the best pictures of the entire party that I have ever seen. I am so grateful to him.
After reviewing the pictures Tim took, I am convinced we came close to the mythical 400 number, but didn't quite make it. After all, I put 300 pictures on the web site. I constantly noticed people in the backgrounds that had made no effort to get their pictures taken, but were caught in the act anyway by Tim's photographic diligence.
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I counted 154 different people in the first 10 pages alone. Then I counted 104 new faces in the second 10 pages. Then I counted 50 more in the final 10 pages. My guess is we came close to 400, but didn't quite make it.
Just wait till next year!!
My daughter Samantha Archer plus her friends Nicholas and Emily Mann helped put the fear into the Haunted House.
George Grega (pictured at right with Betty
Richardson) and his two protιgιs brought in the most wonderful lights and sound equipment to add to the party. Gary Richardson contributed all the music for the Whip room.
It was a great party and it was a great team effort.
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STORY FIVE: AND NOW FOR THE HALLOWEEN PARTY TOP 10 BEST COSTUME LIST.
http://ssqq.com/information/halloweenbest2003.htm
We started our Top 10 List with a couple wearing what appeared to be Egyptian costumes that were very beautiful. Next came Randy Winfrey and Melissa Gauthier with marvelous Japanese costumes. A mystery couple came as ZZ Top. They were definitely a big hit. After getting honorable mention last year, Jim Colby and Marlane Kayfes cracked the Top 10 with Marlane coming as Spaghetti on a table and Jim wearing a chef's outfit. I have to hand it to Marlane for staying in costume all night long. It isn't easy wearing a table around your waist while you dance.
Next came Susan Robinson as the green alien with three breasts. And a pretty lady named Diane came as an Alien Miss Universe complete with weird ears and a third eye.
A mystery man came as the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I would imagine his terrific outfit would garner him some Best Costume votes. He was terrific!!
Tiny Michelle Wann, all 5 feet of her, came dressed as a pimp while her 6 foot fiancιe Trent Haynes came dressed as a Street Walker. They were easily the most outrageous couple. Trent reveled in his debauchery. He seemed very comfortable in his costume and wore it well.
Maureen Brunetti had on the skimpiest dress that didn't cover much. Bets were being made throughout the night on just how long everything would stay contained in that flimsy outfit, but sorry boys, not this night. Unfortunately none of us knew exactly what the theme was for her costume, but on the other hand, who cared? It was a great outfit and Maureen had a lot of guts and quite a figure to pull it off.
Kerry Pelham came dress as Paul Stanley, the Star Child from the Rock group Kiss. Her outfit and makeup was so authentic! I had to say if Kerry didn't win Best Costume, she had to be in the Top 3 at least. She looked great!
Next came a mystery couple dressed as Frankenstein and the Mummy. There are a lot of pictures that suggested they came together, but there are other pictures that contradicted this theory. Nevertheless when these two danced in the Monster Mash, they were always next to each other and they were wonderfully gruesome to watch dancing their dance. We gave them the Best Couple award. The Mummy outfit also deserved to compete for the best individual costume award. The makeup and the rags must have taken a lot of work to complete.
Our best group picture was an easy pick. The Oriental Group included Garald and Virginia McEathron, Melissa Gauthier, Randy Winfrey, and LeeAnn Tran. I might add I loved LeeAnn's beautiful dress so much! These five beat out a tame Doctor's group picture, the three Cats, and the cute but not very difficult Slumber Party group to win by a wide margin.
And then there was the Honorable Mention Costumes. Mona Nashed wore the most beautiful red Egyptian dress as she competed with LeeAnn Tran's oriental dress for the honor of wearing the prettiest dress.
Then came a mystery lady with a wonderful Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz. Her outfit and makeup were quite authentic.
Judy Walsh came as a larger than life Southern Lady. She had a wicked time staying in character all night and made me laugh with her sense of humor.
A mystery couple came as a Nerd and a Prom Queen from the 50s. They looked great together!!
Martin Thomas came as a Blues Sax player complete with a Blue face and Saxophone as a prop. Who could resist his clever outfit??
Jason Heise was dead-on with his Hawaiian shirt and lei to emulate the infamous Daryl Armstrong. I really enjoyed his costume. Daryl was so shaken by the resemblance I have not even seen him wear a Hawaiian shirt since. I hope a little parody won't change Daryl too much. I might the same thing was done to me back in 1987. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Jim Landureth and Linda Zane came as Prince Charming and Snow White. They were pretty adorable together.
A mystery man came as a Golf Ball. I realize it was a mask and didn't take a lot of work, but darn it, I liked the Golf Ball a lot!! Sometimes winning doesn't take a terrific outfit. Cute sometimes wins instead.
And then there was George Rahbany with a most excellent "Pimp Costume" complete with lots of skin. Too bad Michelle didn't feel obligated to match George flesh for flesh.
Wrapping things up was a mystery man as the Dead Captain of the Titanic. He just barely missed the judges' Top Ten list.
And who were the judges? Rick, Marla, and Sam. We each voted separately then compared our lists. It was remarkable how little disagreement there was between our selections.
However we were unable to decide who had the best costume. We therefore invite our readers to vote. Send in your choice for the Best Costume to Rick Archer,
dance@ssqq.com
And while you are at it, be sure to offer some names for our mystery winners if you would. Thanks!!
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STORY SIX: THE GREAT HALLOWEEN PARTY
SCAVENGER HUNT
http://ssqq.com/information/hallo2003puzzle.htm
As you peruse the 300 pictures, why not keep some notes and see if you can find a picture with two halos. Or an apple. Or a duplicate picture. Or a picture with that pesky alien Waldo that visited our party this year. Or count the Cat Women. Or find a Super Hero. Or a Young Republican, a Big Ghost, or an Unidentifiable Costume. It's fun to keep track of these pictures as you spot them page by page.
The Scavenger Hunt makes you look at each picture more closely. Sometimes there are secrets in the background that would ordinarily escape your eye.
The top five results get a free party plus Crash Course. Try the Scavenger Hunt. It is kind of easy and definitely lots of fun.
THE CURSE OF THE HIDDEN PICTURES CONTEST
http://ssqq.com/information/hallo2003puzzle.htm
It cannot be said that our Hidden Pictures Contest is fun. No way. It is miserable hard work. This contest separates the ams from the pros. You cannot bring a weak attitude to our Hidden Pictures Contest because it is just plain HARD!
Last year a lady named Rose Rungnapa who worked for El Paso sent in an entry that nailed every one of the hidden pictures. I still have no idea who she is or what she looked like. All I know is she made this particular contest look easy compared to all the rest of the answers. And she said it only took her an hour and fifteen seconds. I hate geniuses.
Maybe another smart El Paso employee like Marlies Whitmoyer can ace it this year.
Oh, by the way, Marlies had to miss the party this year for some college football game. Please. Videotape it and watch it in half the time the next day. What a lame excuse. Maybe she can vindicate herself with a victory in the Hidden Pictures contest. Mara Rivas loves to try this one too. Maybe they will go head to head!
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STORY SEVEN:
CHRIS O'ROURKE PLANS A NEW YEAR'S BASH AFTER NEW YEARS.
Saturday, January 3, 2004. 8pm till really, really late, late, late
For Map and Information, Click
Here
Chris O'Rourke is an SSQQ instructor who threw some mighty big parties in the late 90s. I went to his party in 1998 and had a very good time.
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STORY EIGHT:
SSQQ COMPLAINT OF THE MONTH:
RICK ARCHER IS A SLANDERER FOR WRITING HIS MEMOIRS.
""Hello Rick,
My name is Sherry and I'm Glen Hunsucker's sister. I would appreciate your changing your bio up to exclude your encounters w/ Glen. That stuff is all in the past and I don't think anyone needs to be reminded of it. Nor do they think anymore of you for passing this crap around.
In my opinion, you either have a lot of extra time on your hands or either you are extremely jealous of my very talented brother.
I would really appreciate your dropping these some true and some very slanderous remarks.
And by the way, he would never, ever slander anyone like that personally, or in the business world.
Thank you,
Sherry Abbott"
Editor's Note: Last month I published a story about Glen Hunsucker, the man who taught me practically everything I know about dancing. Glen was incredibly instrumental in helping me launch the start of SSQQ Dance Studio.
Back in the 80s Glen was recognized in Houston's dance circles as probably the finest jazz dancer in Houston, the best choreographer, and the best jazz teacher.
Along the way however, Glen's life took a horrible downward turn when he wrestled with the demons of drug addiction. His misfortune cost him his studio, his career, and very nearly his life as he became very sick for a while.
Today Glen has recovered and has begun to restart his once-prolific career as a Jazz instructor. It is my hope that he will become even more successful than he once was and add a marvelous chapter to his amazing life story. Glen's story is that of legends - Genius, Greatness, the Fall from Grace, the Descent into Hell, the Long Climb Back. Now he just needs to write one more chapter - the Return to Greatness.
I wrote the story about Glen because it is a huge part of the history of SSQQ. Unfortunately I put off writing this story for many years because I felt so guilty about writing about Glen's battle with drugs. Finally I decided it was too important a part of the SSQQ legend not to tell the tale.
If you are interested in this story, you can visit the SSQQ Newsletter late Friday to read what my response was to Ms. Abbott's letter.
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RESULTS OF THE OCTOBER LOGIC PUZZLE RESULTS - THE MONSTER NEIGHBORHOOD!
Our previous month's Logic Puzzle was the most popular logic puzzle in SSQQ History. In September we set a new record with twelve winners!!
We almost matched that total in October with eleven winners. Here are the names of our brilliant 11 puzzle solvers for October in the order they submitted their answers. Nice work, everyone!!
1. Todd Kristofik
2. Mara Rivas (The infamous Brain Robber wins for the third month in a row!)
3. Susan Arevalo (Third month in a row)
4. Manny Hernandez (after a two month absence, he wins for the fourth time this year)
5. Carolyn Van Hoof and Jon Bracksieck (First Timers!)
6. Robby Thompson (Tied with Mara and the Woodmans for first place with four months in a row)
7. Marlies Whitmoyer (Three months in a row!!)
8. Jeff and Connie Woodman (Fourth month in a row!)
9. James McCormick (Second time winner)
10. Ann Faget (Two months in a row, Three time winner)
11. Marla Gorzynski (squeezed in a solution at the last minute for her second victory)
And where were Christina Montalvo, Sabriena Watts, Ryan Borelo, Elicia Anderson, and Jackie Chang this month? They were all winners in September but didn't keep their Streak alive.
In recent months, I have written stories about the dynamic duo of Mara Rivas and Marlies Whitmoyer. One Friday night a couple months they got together and took Marla Gorzynski and Patty Harrison out drinking and dancing at Wild West. Marla in case you don't know is my fiancιe and Patty is my wonderful Whip assistant on Sunday. Well, guess what? M and M tried to get M and P drunk. Let me tell ya, I'm still hearing gossip related to that evening!
Well, guess what else? The next thing you know Marla, competitive devil that she is, decides to submit a Logic Puzzle entry in September. No way she's gonna let M and M get the goods on her.
So Marla, where's the answers to the October puzzle? "I'm too busy!!"
Finally I threatened Marla that I was going to publish the top ten reasons Marla was too busy to do the puzzle. Ten minutes the answers were dropped on my lap.
The power of Gossip is second only to the power of Gravity as a major force in the Universe. I think the power of Gossip is so great it should be studied in Physics. The threat of Gossip got Marla moving when nothing else - appeals to her pride, gentle prodding, comparisons to the brilliance of M and M, etc - didn't work.
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AND NOW FOR THE DECEMBER SSQQ LOGIC PUZZLE - WHO OWNS
RUDOLPH??
Difficulty Level: Very Hard.
http://ssqq.com/archive/logicpuzzle12.htm
Way up at the North Pole, Santa and his elves live a relatively normal life for much of the year. Santa in particular is a best friend with four elves: Fritz, Olaf, Andreas and Hans.
These five men live in Winter Wonderland, a ritzy North Pole subdivision. As friends, they do everything together. Each of the five keeps one of the Reindeer in his cottage with him for company: Prancer, Dancer, Comet, Cupid, and of course Rudolph.
The reindeer, the elves, and Santa all hang out and do winter sports.
Accordingly each person keeps a single snow transport in his home including skis, a toboggan, a sled, ice skates, and a sleigh (which stays at Santa's cottage). Furthermore they all like to get together in each other's cottages after work and drink together. Each cottage is visited once a week and each of the five men has his own particular favorite beverage which he serves:
Brau, Wassail, Schnapps, Eggnog, and Cider.
The cottages of the elves and Santa are all lined in a row side by side one another on Reindeer Avenue.
Now, from the clues listed below, do you think you can figure out which of the four elves or Santa keeps Rudolph in his cottage?? And who drinks the cider??
Good luck, this is a tricky one!!
http://ssqq.com/archive/logicpuzzle12.htm
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STORY TEN: THE FASCINATING TRUE STORY OF HOW SSQQ GOT ITS START, WARTS AND ALL.
After 25 years in the dance business, there is no doubt that a man named Glen Hunsucker will forever remain the single most influential person in my career.
Glen was my dance teacher for six years from 1978 to 1984. He gave me the valuable training I needed to become an effective dance teacher.
It was Glen who saved my skin in 1980 when I was thrown out of my first dance studio. By offering his own studio as a safety net, he stepped in to save my skin at a time when I had no other options.
For the next eight years following the rescue I subleased space from Glen at Dance Arts. These years were the most financially profitable era of my career. These years were also a period of great expansion for my business. In many ways I liken the Dance Arts era to the protective period a parent gives a child to grow up and prepare to take of himself.
Finally in an odd twist of fate, it was Glen who indirectly donated his studio to me, the pivotal move that opened the door for SSQQ to become the largest dance studio in the city of Houston.
And yet there is a mystery about why Glen's importance to the studio has never been revealed before.
Long-time readers of the SSQQ Newsletter and the SSQQ Web Site know I love to write about every important or interesting event that ever occurred during the studio's long history. And yet the story of Glen Hunsucker is at best the hundredth story I have written. Doesn't that seem an odd position for the story of the man I have named as without a doubt the single most important reason my career has succeeded? By all rights, shouldn't Glen's story have been the one of the first?
The reason I have avoided writing about this episode in my life is that I always wanted this story to be a tribute, but hesitated because it also reveals controversy and a great tragedy, one that I have never completely come to grips with. Unlike many of my stories which include elements of humor and irony, the story of Glen Hunsucker is mostly one of pain and unresolved feelings. On the one hand I wanted to tell the world Glen's great ability, but on the other hand I wanted to protect his reputation... Does this sound like a conflict to you?
My uncertainty over the correct path to take explains why it has taken me so long to get up the nerve to write about this man who was so pivotal in my life for ten years and so instrumental in my career.
http://ssqq.com/information/advent38.htm
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DID YOU KNOW?? 20 QUESTIONS - THE SSQQ INFORMATION PAGE
The SSQQ Web Site has a question and answer section.
http://ssqq.com/information/information.htm
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01. Private Lessons
02. Refunds
03. Referring new students
04. Group Discounts
05. Switching Partners
06. Guests
07. Credit for Unfinished classes
08. Same Sex Dancing
09. Making up a Class
10. Volunteering
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11. Clothes/Shoes
12. Need a Partner?
13. Watching Classes
14. Starting classes a week late
15. Repeating a Class
16. Children
17. Husbands Who Won't Dance
18. Map
19. What level of class to take
20. Parallel Classes |
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Plus General Questions (like why SSQQ doesn't have bottled water and why we don't have other locations).
If you have a question you want to have answered, let us know!! dance@ssqq.com
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AND THATS A WRAP FOR THIS ISSUE
As you can see, the SSQQ Newsletter is mostly written by people just like you who send stuff in. If you have any comments, suggestions, requests, complaints, jokes, pictures or poetry to share, please send it to me, Rick Archer, at
ssqq@houston.rr.com
And thanks for reading all the way to the bottom!
. I might add I do have reason to believe some of you simply scroll to the bottom to look for any little surprises I hide down here. ;-)
Anyhow, thanks to all for making it this far!
One more thing. In case you were wondering, this issue of the SSQQ
Newsletter is equivalent in length to 25 pages.
Rick Archer SSQQ Dance Studio
4803 Bissonnet
Email: ssqq@houston.rr.com
Web: www.ssqq.com
Phone: 713-861-1906
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