Karen Sandler

Tag: traditions

  • May Your Holidays Be Bright

    Just a short message to all who celebrate Christmas (and those who don’t, but like the decorations, lol). I love seeing my tree up and take far too many pictures of it. I have nearly 12 years represented here, although I’m missing a couple years.

    2008-2012 (mysteriously missing 2009)

    I’m an ornament collector (I can stop any time, I swear). Every year I either buy new ones or my kids buy me one or two. And don’t even get me started on the socks they give me. Last year was doughnuts & llamas (not on the same socks, however).

    2013-2016 (cameo appearances by Tenka & Zak)

    This year I went a little crazy buying sea life ornaments. If you look close enough at 2021, you’ll see a couple jelly fish, a crab, a seahorse, a sea turtle, and a couple of flamingos, one dressed as a mail carrier and one as Santa.

    2017-2021 (2018 MIA, photo bomb by Tenka)

    I hope you have a lovely end of 2021, no matter what holidays you celebrate.

  • Dance Camp Traditions

    Yeah, dance camp is about dancing. Like yesterday’s dances–a smoking hot Israeli dance I barely kept up with (Orot Ve Ashan), or the cool Bulgarian during the afternoon workshop or the tricky English Country dance, Chocolate for Breakfast. The delightful Canon Polska Schottische and the challenging Vira Cruzada. Plus the always frantic fun squares.

    But Stockton Folk Dance Camp also has its traditions. The picture day on Tuesday night where we all shared our finest costumes. The Wednesday night live auction, which always includes a chocolate Kahlua cake that this year went for something like $175. Our squares caller, Jerry Helt, runs the auction with his trademark patter.

    Then there’s Hat Night on Thursday. We all don our most beautiful, most outlandish, craziest and just plain ugly headwear and proudly dance around the room showing them off. What a great opportunity for a bunch of adults to just plain get silly.

    Here are a few of my favorites: