Quote for the day: “We should consider every day lost in which we do not Dance at least once” – Nietzsche

This was almost a lost day, but I did dance a few steps in the callers seminar (but is it really dancing when there’s no music?).

Here’s a source for new singing call ideas: Worst Country Song Titles. How ’bout it?

Seems like there are a lot of caller databases out there, and I suppose that one needs to be listed in all of them, although my guess is that they’ll shake out to two or three that folks will automatically check first.

So here are the ones that I know about:

• Caller and Cuer Database: No need to send email; you can add and edit your own record at any time. You can also perform searches: show me all the callers with websites who live in New Mexico and call C2 (it’s just me…). This site also includes pictures.
• Dosado: So far, Bill’s just collecting info (using HTML forms…no need to send email). Don’t know what form the listings are going to take. My guess is it’ll be a database of some sort; whether it’ll be as sophisticated as Vic’s remains to be seen.
• Dave Gipson’s Internet Listing of Square Dance Callers: Looks like Dave’s updated his listing service so that one can fill out a form rather than sending him email. No searches on the database, though; it’s strictly a listing. Although you can get a listing of just the callers with websites, so there’s probably some kind of database engine running behind the scenes.
• SquareDancing.com’s Caller Database: This is a real searchable database; anyone can search it, but one has to join to enter or modify a record. Interestingly, one’s “membership” to the forums on this site is separate from one’s “membership” for database purposes, although I was able to set up the same username and password for both (whew! one less thing to remember…)
• CircleLeft: Somehow, fifty callers managed to get listed here. I haven’t been able to get a response to my email, so I’m not. It’s a listing, not (as far as I can tell) a database. Actually, the more I look at it, the more I think it’s real old. It’s got URLs and email addresses for some callers that I know are way out of date. Anyone know how long it’s been around and how long since it’s been updated?

Jerry Jestin (no web site yet, but he says he’ll set one up any day now) was in Albuquerque this weekend. We kept him busy, with an ACES A2 dance Friday night, an afternoon dance for the Wilde Bunch on Saturday, an Allemanders Plus dance Saturday night and a (finally, something relevant) callers seminar for our local callers association on Sunday. He did a great job; we talked about working into different, but not hard, choreography, his use of music, and a lot of other stuff. I think all the callers there (ranging from 0 to 65 years of experience) got something out of it.