Nia Jam Palo Alto 2016
Posted by terrepruitt on April 4, 2016
Saturday, April 2, 2016 there was a Nia Jam in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has been a long time since I have been to a Nia Jam. The last one I went to was in 2013! They are so fun. The energy at a jam is fantastic. I thought I was going to miss it because the event was being held at a studio in the Oshman Family JCC in Palo Alto. It is a HUGE complex and I parked in the garage and followed the first sign that said fitness center. It led me to a courtyard where every door was locked. There was a sign pointing up and to the left, but there was no way for me to go up and to the left. I asked someone walking around if he knew where it was and bless his heart, he had no idea but he made an attempt to help me. We looked at a map and I decided the best route was to go out to the street and go all the way around to where I thought the studio was. As I was making my way back to the garage, I made a few turns and ended up on the right track. I was supposed to be the first teacher and I was kinda bummed that I was late because I thought I missed it. But as I was walking in they were saying. “Where is Terre?” and I was able to say, HERE!” Yay! I made it. I was about 5 minutes late. I thought I was going to be early. I am so glad I made it. Nia Jams are soooo fun.
Often times there are microphone issues. It seems as if movement disrupted this one’s connection. But Nancy H. worked on it and got it fixed after the first few songs. And it was good to go. As we were making introductions one of the teachers told me she was going to be after me. It is important in a jam situation to know who is before you and after you. You need to know who is before you so you are paying attention and can be ready to switch off with the microphone. And also, it is nice to know who is after you so you can make eye-contact as you are ending your selection so the switch off can go as smooth as possible.
I don’t normally teach with a microphone so I always feel like I have to be quiet when I have one in my face. Otherwise it would blow people’s ears out.
The focus was the Nia Five Sensations, FAMSS, (Flexibility, Agility, Mobility, Strength, and Stability) And I did it again, I don’t know what the intent was. I always seem to miss the intent. We had a great playlist (as you can see)!
It was super fun. It is always so nice to see all the teachers. We are kind of spread out in so many different areas. It is even nicer to be able to dance with everyone. And the JCC was very kind to donate the space so between ticket sales and the raffle, I think the association did well.
Here are some pictures and a video. I will continue to encourage you to go to a Nia Jam. They are so fun. I know you will love it!
See a short video of me teaching on my website.
I want to thank all the students that came and danced and all the teachers that taught. Such fun! See? Doesn’t it look like fun?
Terre Pruitt's Blog 
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