Too Old to Dance?

DancingWhere can older people go to dance? Are people in their 30's, 40's, 50's and older limited to cheesy hotel bars and the odd wedding for any dancing other than salsa or ballroom which is way, way out of my ability? These days, with Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance, almost everybody (unfortunately in some cases), thinks they can dance, but the choices are definitely more limited once you reach a certain age.

Recently, at a Seattle pub strangely known for hosting both soccer fans and classic rock bands, I made the mistake of busting a move. The dance floor was semi-crowded, the band was playing one of my favorite tunes, and I couldn't help but leave my small party to get a closer view of the dance floor.  My toe-tapping evolved into an enthusiastic dance/romp of sorts that didn't hurt anyone (ie. I did not step on any toes or flail my arms wildly into someone's beer). The crowd was mostly in their 20's, but I was not the only older person to hit the floor.

Then I heard a be-atch near me and I stopped in my tracks. "Why are there so many old people dancing here?" The girl who was about 22 had perfect hair, perfect make-up, and a perfect body to match, but that didn't make her beautiful in my eyes, mostly because of the sneer on her face.

I felt like shit. I knew I wasn't a great dancer, was certainly not the youngest person on the floor, and felt like the remark was targeted directly at me. With that one remark, the little be-atch had stolen my joy. I stopped dancing until some random guy roughly my age came over to ask me why I wasn't dancing and asked me to dance. I danced with him, but inwardly I was seething. It was no joyous dance of the butterfly, but instead a slow, dancing death march as I tried and failed to figure out how not to lead.

I went back to my table and enlisted some support. My friend younger friend "B" came out to the dance floor with me and snapped the beatch's picture. In 2.2 seconds, the chica was in his face asking why he took the picture. Traitorous to a "T" in the face of a girl even younger than he was, "B" explained that he was just taking pictures for fun. I took the camera back and explained the real reason to the clueless girl.

At first, she lied. "I was just saying how cute all the old people were on the dance floor."

That is not what she said and I told her so in no uncertain terms. WTF? Dancing is only for young people now?

She got in my face about taking her picture and I left, the camera in my hand, and felt like my evening had been dampered, but more than this, had to face the sad reality that I was too old to dance. I was 37.

As I walked away, a woman a few years older than I was thanked me for speaking up to the young girl, but I still felt bad.