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A Snappy Comeback, At Last!

Whenever someone makes a clever, snide, insulting or otherwise significant comment, do you ever come up with a snappy comeback - 20 minutes too late? Yeah, me too. Or do you just grin and bear it without any comeback at all? Yeah, me too.

Which makes my comeback last Sunday night even sweeter.

At Dance Haddonfield...

It was 28 November 2004, about 7:45 P.M. at Dance Haddonfield. While the group class was in progress in the main hall, a bunch of us were in the back room (where the food and drinks are) waiting for the class to end. Armand was discussing with Charlotte why he wasn't in the class: that the "lead" of raising your partner's arm as an indication for an outside turn was nonsense.

I interjected, half in jest, that the "proper" lead was to "shove" your partner into an outside turn. Armand replied that a very subtle lead was all that should be necessary. He then demonstrated with me: He held out his right hand and told me to walk (implying he would lead me with his right hand). I took his right hand with mine and started walking forward.

After a few steps straight forward he very softly applied horizontal resistance to my right, which made me make a 180-degree turn. He then raised my arm in such a way that I made a further 360-degree turn - an outside turn.

Charlotte asked a couple of questions, then Armand demonstrated the same steps and turn with me, and he led me into the same outside turn as before. Charlotte asked me if I could feel his lead - I said yes, I must have, I just did it twice.

Armand said, "Yes, he did, he makes a good girl."

Beat.

Beat.

"I make a better guy," I replied to Charlotte.

Charlotte and some others loved my comeback; Armand agreed it was a good one.