May 30 will mark the 15th anniversary of the Weberstown Walkers. 

Watch for news about how we will celebrate.

Step one:  Confirm our welcome at the mall.  Weberstown asks that each participant take responsibility for his/her own safety.  Please –

• Sign a RELEASE — promising not to sue the mall if you suffer any mishap while exercising here.
• Provide emergency contact information — just in case.
• Respect Mall standards of conduct.
• Stay alert physical surroundings and other participants.
• Consult a physician if you experience pain or discomfort.
• Exercise at your own pace, attempting only those moves appropriate for your fitness level and conditioning.
• Wear comfortable, supportive shoes.
• Stay hydrated.

Release forms are available from me.  Be sure to check off your T-shirt size as well.

Just a reminder that the Mall’s holiday shopping hours begin at 9 AM until Christmas.

Mall Walk exercise groups need to clear out at that time to ensure that shoppers feel welcome.

Monday the 26th will also likely be an early opening day for many stores.

We’ll return to regular schedule on Tuesday, December 27.

Have a safe, happy and healthy holiday all.

On Sunday November 13, our Sacramento Tai Chi friends sponsored an afternoon of performance featuring local groups with guests from Stockton and San Jose.
Stockton was well represented by Master Tam’s group who performed with fans and Jully Kang’s group offering Chen Style QiKung and Mei Hua (Beautiful Flower), a waltz.

Everyone is welcome to work with these groups to polish their personal skills, and join in events like this if you desire.

Added a couple of new videos:  Rock Around the Clock & Hillbilly Rock & Roll.

The first is one that many of you know from Oak Park.  Good old fashioned rock & roll number.  Bill’s group at Sears may do this one.  If you like it, we can learn this one down at Dillard’s.

The second is one we’ve been practicing at Dillard’s.  There are several versions on line.  This is the one we’ve been doing.  The steps, in brief, are:

counts 1-8 — start on right
rock forward with a heel flick, rock back with a knee lift
back coaster

counts 9-16 — left foot
sugarfoot (tap toe then heel), shift weight to left
grapevine right

counts 17-24 — left foot
rock forward with a heel flick, rock back with a knee lift
back coaster

counts 25-32 — right foot
sugarfoot (tap toe then heel), shift weight to right
shuffle turn left

counts 33-40 — right foot
rocking chair
two steps (right left) doing 1/2 turn to left; tap right & hold

counts 41-48 — right foot
sailor (cross right back, step left, step right, hold)
sailor (cross left back, step right, step left, hold)

Check it out, and join us.  You only learn to dance by dancing.  🙂

Happens all the time.  Something new!  Holiday changes.

For instance, I’ll be out of town next Friday — October 21.  The mall will be open for walkers and other Leaders will conduct regular classes.

Check here regularly for updates.  Check the “Schedule” page for basic information.

Thank you all for your cooperation as we’ve tried to deal with some crowding on M-W-F as the mall created a new, free Wi-Fi area in front of Barnes & Nobel.  Expect more of the same as Christmas decorations and sales carts are added to the mall for the holidays.

To help with these problems, Jully Kang has moved her Qi Kung/Tai Chi classes to Thursday and Saturday mornings at Dillards.  If you are interested in understanding and getting the maximum benefit from these practices, give Jully’s classes a try.

Okay here’s one that a lot of you know from Oak Park or from dancing with Bill.

When you watch the video, you’ll see that the original steps include a full turn.  We won’t bother with that.  Of course, you can add it if you like.  I’ll include both variations in the steps.

Here they are:

Action

Choreographed by Darren “Daz” Bailey

32 count, 2 wall, beginner/intermediate line dance
Music:A Little Less Talk And A Lot More Action by Toby Keith [ Start dancing on lyrics

1-8 Walk back 2, coaster (or sailor ½ turn) – Walk up 2 (or ½ turn), kick-out-out

• Step back on left, back on right
• Left back, right back, left forward (or cross back left pivoting ½ to left, shuffle right/left)
• Step forward on right, forward on left (or step on right pivoting ½ to left, step left)
• Kick right, step right to right side, left to left side

8-16 Hitch step right & heel bounce 3 – Sway right/left/right/left

• Right knee up/stomp down, heel bounce right
• Heel bounce right, heel bounce right
• Sway right, sway left
• Sway right sway left

17-24 Behind, side, cross shuffle – rock, cross shuffle

• Cross back right, step left,
• cross shuffle to left (right/left/right)
• Rock to left on left, rock back on right,
• cross shuffle to right (left/right/left)

25-32 turn, touch-cross 2, jazz turn & kick

• ¼ turn to right on right, tap left to left,
• step ahead on left, tap right to right
• Cross right forward, rock back on left,
• ¼ turn to right on right, kick left

We’ll give this one a try this week.

One thing we can’t do at the mall is floor work, because we’d need mats.

Ah, so sad, we miss so much, and I am not just talking about sit-ups.  I make up for that with a yoga class each week at the Stockton Yoga Center.  Okay, not free, but an important part of my mind-body-spirit health.  http://www.stocktonyoga.com/

Just in case any of you have some interest in trying yoga for yourselves, the Yoga Center is offering a one-session intro class on either October 16 or November 5.  This 2-hour session costs $25.  Here’s the Yoga Center’s blurb:

Yoga Basics with Wendy

Yoga Basics two-hour class starts you on your yoga journey. Explore and learn at a comfortable pace in a supportive environment with others who are new to yoga. This class is designed to provide you with the basics so that you can feel confident and comfortable moving into a class that is right for you. You begin with a brief discussion of the historical and philosophical background of yoga. Demonstration and practice of the fundamental yoga postures. Instruction on how to combine breath and movement. Answers to frequently asked questions and misconceptions. You don’t need to be flexible, strong, or be able to quiet the mind. Simply show up and do your best. Cost $25 for new students.

Check it out.

You only learn to dance by dancing.  Still, I know this kind of reference can help.

Here’s a tricky one.  Lots of turns and also a little tricky to find on the web.

At the mall I use Chris Isaak, “Dancin” (that’s how video is listed to right) but it was written to go with Dinah Washington’s “September In the Rain.”   The only video I’ve found uses a third tune I’m not familiar with.  Ah well.

Here are the steps — more detailed than the last set.  🙂

September

32 count/2 wall line dance
Choreographed by Doris Newell
Music:  September in the Rain by Dinah Washington
(Mall Walk music is “Dancin” by Chris Isaacs

1-8          6 count vine with 2 turns & shuffle back

• Step side right – Cross back left
• ½ turn right — Step side left
• Cross back right — ½ turn left
• Back right-left-right

8-16       rock back, shuffle forward, turn & shuffle back, rock back

• Rock back left – Rock forward right
• Forward left-right-left
• ½ turn back right-left-right
• Rock back left – Rock forward right

17-24     lock step forward & tap, lock step back & step

• Step forward left – Lock right behind
• Step forward left – TAP right behind
• Step back right – Lock left in front of right
• Step back right – STEP left in front of right

25-32     back weave to left, then right

• Tap right to right side – Cross right behind left
• Step left – Cross right in front of left
• Tap left to left side – Cross left behind right
• Step right – Cross left in front of right

Hope this helps

Here’s a new one for us to try.  32 counts/4 walls.  Video to right, under “New Line Dance.”

Step sheet, short version:

1-8         Shuffle rock back, right & left.
9-16       Heel-step-step, right & left.  Rock-tap, shuffle back.
17-24     Shuffle 1/2 turn, shuffle forward, rocking chair right.
25-32    Jazz turn & cross, and cross and cross.

Let me know if this post helps anyone :-).

Okay, I don’t mean the confusion between right and left feet :-), or even the confusion between a grapevine and a weave.

A problem we all run into is sorting out the names of the dances from the names of the many pieces of music that each dance can be done with.  I’ll admit I’m not too good at this.  I typically think of the name of the song I normally use as being the same as the name of the dance.  Not so.

In selecting video links, the problem gets even more confusing.  Many of the best views of the steps use different music than we use at the Mall Walk.  Sometimes I don’t even know what music is being used on the video.  Yet, I’m using song names for my video tags — the songs we typically use at the mall, not the songs on the videos, and also not the names of the dances.

Yikes.  Bear with me.  Video tags read: name of mall walk music (not video music) followed by name of dance from step sheet (if I have that).

Hope this helps.

Coordinator