Last week I was talking with a colleague at work about the summer and Pride and what kind of parties he’s been going to lately (namely after hour loft parties that go on for days was his answer.)
“I never see you out.” He said looking at me.
I told him that I did but even when I mentioned the clubs that I tend to frequent I realized it had been months since I’d been to any of these venues.
This has not been much of a dancing summer I’m afraid and if I’m being completely honest with myself I’m unsure if I actually miss it. Clubbing has somehow lost a bit of its lustre. Everything is over priced and too loud and too late at night. I want to give myself the space to outgrow things with grace. However, when you start a Substack about nightlife and club culture, it' starts to feel a bit disingenuous when there are no boots on the ground.
Luckily, I still have so much dancing that permeates my life outside of dark dance floors. As a freelance dance fitness instructor by day, I still get to express myself through my body, rearrange my molecules and shake off a healthy dose of negativity replaced by dopamine and serotonin.
The downside is that most of the time on my days off from teaching, the last thing my body wants to do is go out dancing. Dancing for my own pleasure often takes a back seat these days.
Sometimes I really do think I should just bow out and stop going out altogether. But as an OG clubbed, hippie-raver, there’s a part of me that feels like it’s my duty to show up, take up space in dark rooms and be the light that lets people know that I have a right to be here, I belong here, no one is ever too old to dance…
