- Biography
- I moved to Buffalo in July, 2007 from Santa Fe, NM where I lived 8 years. Before that, I was living in Boston, MA. I went to college in PA and grew up in Lockport, NY. I moved back to Western NY to be closer to family and now that I'm back, I love hanging out with my sister and brother-in-law. I work at the Center for Computational Research on the Roswell Park campus where I do research in Computational Biology. When I was in NM, I worked in the same profession at Los Alamos National Laboratory. I'm an avid swing dancer (see my interests section) and I play french horn. Check out my swingbuffalo.com website!
- Last Login
- 1 week, 4 days ago
- User Rating
- 5.00 (2 votes)
- Interests:
- My day job is as a computer guy, but my life revolves around these forms of swing dancing: Balboa, Lindy Hop, Charleston (modern & 20s), Jitterbug, Collegiate Shag, Blues Dance, and a little Boogie Woogie. I teach, DJ, perform, and run swingbuffalo.com. My house comes equipped with a small dance studio (which I'm sure the previous owner used as a dining room). I attend many major national lindy hop and balboa events on a regular basis including, but not limited to: Camp Hollywood, Balboa Rendezvous, All Balboa Weekend (ABW), All Balboa Camp Detroit (ABCD), Lindy Focus, and many many various workshops and Lindy Exchanges (e.g. PHLX, HLBX, DLX, ACX, etc.). I was even on Frankie Manning's 90th birthday cruise in the Caribbean. I used to run santafeswing.com, but since I moved here, I gave the site to a friend and he hasn't gotten it back up and running yet. I'm in the process of establishing a Lindy and Balboa scene in Buffalo and am currently working on establishing a regular dance. I teach swing dance classes through the UB Swing Dance Club and am available for private lessons for those who are interested in learning Jitterbug, Balboa, or Lindy Hop. While in Santa Fe, I performed in an annual show called "Swingin' Suites" for 3 years and was a member of the troupe "NM Swing Fix" who performed at various dances and at the Western States Governor's Conference held in Santa Fe. Check out my website: swingbuffalo.com!
Oh yeah, I also play French Horn and do some computer stuff for fun. I haven't found a community band yet to join, but I've been so busy with my new house and establishing a swing scene, I'm putting that off indefinitely. Oh, and I recently started going to D&D nights with my brother-in-law.
- Favorite Movies:
- Star Wars (original version), The Matrix, My Cousin Vinny, 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up
- Favorite Music:
- Big Band Swing is my favorite: Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Chick Webb, Mora's Modern Rhythmists, Jimmy Lunceford, George Gee, etc.. I also like Blues and other forms of swing music - anything I can Lindy, Bal, or Charleston to. After swing, comes Alternative Rock, Bluegrass, Heavy Metal, Pop, Celtic, and club dance stuff. I pretty much like all other forms of music equally except country. I don't dislike all country, but I'd say I typically prefer to listen to other things. There's no genre of music in which I can't find a song I don't like.
- Favorite Books:
- Sci Fi and Fantasy are my staple, though I haven't read much lately. Instead of reading, I mostly listen to news via podcasts. Well, I did in NM anyway during my commute between Santa Fe and Los Alamos, but now that I don't have a commute, I've been experimenting with watching & listening to podcasts on my TV instead of subscribing to cable.
hepcat's Comments
City Sells Vacant Lots to Faith Baptist Church
Well, this is good. But what we need is to make it easier for Grassroots Gardens to get approval for rehabbing vacant lots. There are a bunch out there that they've asked for and no response is given. They're struggling to get ahold of lots to b…
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Uncommon Comeback
I never saw the original layout. Nor do I know all the activities and services this facility provided or was open to, but I hope they put in a huge sprung wood floor. Then maybe I could talk Dr. Calabrese into letting me hold dances there. The l…
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The Lindy Hop is Swingin'
The first Lindy Fix was a great success!!! There was excitement in the air. The atmosphere was really up-beat! People thought the venue and turnout were great. The beginner lesson filled the studio. Everyone danced with everyone. I couldn't h…
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The Lindy Hop is Swingin'
Also, a couple extra details... The UB swing dance club has been around a little while before I moved back here, so I'm not "starting" the scene per se. The club became an official temporary club mid-2007 and an official permanent club just recen…
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