Finding My Pretty

What up Adam Clayton?

So I haven't passed the silver free skate test yet. It's not for lack of training, but the opportunity hasn't been there. Still, I've been practicing my heart out, and... the music is getting stale. Granted, I'm skating to the awesome track "Flamethrower" by the J. Geils Band, which gives it a bit more longevity than the standard track, but when a skater gets bored with a piece, it's time to move on. When I finally pass the test, I will bid this one a fond adieu.

This farewell was nudged along by coach Michelle's desire that since the group of us decided not to compete at National Showcase, we look foward to the next competitive season. Seeing old youtube footage of Debi Thomas and her amazing layback struck in my heart the desire to "be pretty" this year.

Phase I of "pretty": picking music. It needed to be something that I feel emotionally connected to and piques my imagination. It also has to have movement, meaning not to be monotone or too slow.

My initial list had lots of rock songs on it, and good ones, including Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here and The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony. Not wishing to limit myself to just rock songs and fall into the "I'm a rocker through and through!" rut, I sat down with a portable CD player and a stack of classical CDs.

I also enlisted the help of a few others: I posted the question at motownsports.com and asked my mother-in-law to think about it.

So I created a playlist from all the suggestions and loaded it onto the iPhone. At skating yesterday, asked the girls what they thought. I didn't get past the first song, one which got unanimous gasps of admiration and the comment from Becky who said, "If you don't skate to it, I will."

So next year my competitive silver free will be to U2's "All I Want is You."

Part II: being pretty. I'm like most women out there, and don't see myself as pretty. I need to find definitions of myself that work within the context of pretty in order to come back around to the idea that I can pull pretty off:

I'm passionate.
I'm expressive.
I have pretty eyes.
...nice legs?

That's not much of a list. Looks like I have some work to do.

Phase III: pretty moves. I can't just stand there looking pretty, I have to work it. The bad news is *currently* I'm a not-quite-ready-for-silver skater, so whatever I put out there is going to place low. It took me 5 years to rise nationally to the middle of bronze ladies pack, how long will it take me to get out of the silver cellar?

The good news is this last place with dignity scenario gives me amazing freedom to try some new things without the fear that it "might" cost me a placement.

So what pretty do I want in the new program?
Debi Thomas-style layback
a flying back sit
a spiral sequence with lunges and spread eagles
reintroduce the lutz in combination
deep, lingering edges
footwork that is elegant and not awkward.

It's a big challenge, the class clown is going for her teen movie makeover.