Dancing with the stars....

wow, how did I not know that Candlemas Day and Groundhog Day are both Feb 2nd?

That's what comes from trying to align 2 cultures... I recently learned about Candlemas, following from the 3 Kings Day holiday Jan. 6, and the custom of whoever gets the baby in the 3 Kings cake has to do a dinner or a fiesta for everyone on Candlemas; (I read a related story of how one invitado at a 3 King's Day Dinner, when discovering that his slice of cake had the plastic 'baby' went ahead & swallowed it, not telling anyone, &  saving him from hosting the subsequent Candlemas fiesta for the whole group in attendance, an event he would not be able to afford!)
    So, Candlemas &  Ground Hog's Day... both  Feb 2nd, but I just never realized that til yesterday.   Not that it matters, but I guess there is a custom in which weather is predicted on Candlemas Day also, so there are some similarities. (see below... I'll just copy this, from a site my son sometimes writes for....  not that I'm promoting tequila...  but thought this was rather unique tie-in-
from The Awl.com

Happy Candlemas! Margarita Cupcakes with Tequila Shooter Toppers

by Jolie Kerr on February 2nd, 2011

If you are a person who is either an Anglophile or an ursinophile or both, you likely already know this: “In the United Kingdom, good weather at Candlemas is taken to indicate severe winter weather later: 'If Candlemas Day is clear and bright, / winter will have another bite. / If Candlemas Day brings cloud and rain, / winter is gone and will not come again.' It is also alleged to be the date that bears emerge from hibernation to inspect the weather."
But you may not know that in Mexico, Candlemas, or Día de la Candelaria, is a family and religious holiday celebrated throughout Mexico on February 2nd and, oh no, we’re certainly not marking Candlemas as an excuse to share this particular margarita-and-tequila themed recipe, of course not! We would never cook up a news hook to justify publishing this, which rightly ought to be showcased on Cinco de Mayo—nope, not this website! ¡Feliz Candlemas!
But here we are.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

oh well....  it's over.  missed doing that.  maybe next year.  Those cupcakes look pretty yummy....
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

on to the current day.  after skipping dance class yesterday, my 3rd total day, I did return today for my 4th lesson. Think I'll stick with it, & it's a bit more fun than yoga.
After only 3 lessons, I had learned (not mastered) salsa, mambo, cha cha and pasa doble.  But then our instructor, a (perhaps famous?) dance instructor from Cuba, threw the rhumba at us.  Sorry, it just put me over the edge, and I had to skip the Wed. 7:30am class.  Glad  I got up courage enough to try again.
Ciro is so darn cute & encouraging....such a really fine instructor...and it boggles my mind how he can do it with one leg and crutches...but, whatever...   it works! As someone said,...'only on Isla...' and he calls all the moves   in Spanish too....        maybe sometime I'll get a photo-- you would never be able to imagine it... I'll never be on Dancing with the stars...he could be...

Ciro Crombet Hurtado is our maestro, & I believe he may be a rather famous choreographer for a Folklore and Dance group from Cuba.  I googled his name & got some info on him, and now I'm even more impressed.  How lucky we are to have him and someday maybe I'll get the rest of his story...