<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Kalia,<div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">At South Bay Contra ( SF Bay Area) we have a sign posted around the hall (edited from a sign that I got from Pasadena Contra that edited the sign from Lake City Contra). It says: </div><div class=""><span id="docs-internal-guid-006e5564-6866-eae1-4487-7cd1b481e898" class=""><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" class=""><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-weight: 700; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">When looking for your next dance partner</span><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">, please know: </span></div><ul style="margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt;" class=""><li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;" class=""><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" class=""><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">Anyone can ask anyone. Don’t wait to be asked.</span></div></li><li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;" class=""><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" class=""><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">If someone asks you to dance, it’s fine to say no. </span></div></li><li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;" class=""><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" class=""><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">You don’t have to sit out a dance because you declined an offer. </span></div></li><li dir="ltr" style="list-style-type: disc; font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;" class=""><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;" class=""><span style="font-size: 18pt; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;" class="">If you want to dance, ask someone right after the last dance ends. Sitting down means you are not going to dance.</span></div></li></ul></span><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">We also ask that the caller reiterate this during the lesson and during the dance. </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Claire Takemori </div></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><div><div class=""><div class=""><br class="">On 12/16/17 11:39 AM, Kalia Kliban via Callers wrote:<br class=""><blockquote type="cite" class="">Hi all,<br class=""><br class="">Those of us who started dancing 2 or 3 decades back probably remember <br class="">the rule about sitting out the dance if you turn down a partner offer. <br class="">A very competent male dancer I know who started around the same time I <br class="">did (late 80s) recently confessed to me that he never asks anyone to <br class="">dance because he doesn't want to put folks in the position of thinking <br class="">"If I don't dance with this guy then I have to sit one out.? Oh crap, <br class="">guess I'll have to dance with him."? For the record, he's a totally <br class="">solid and delightful dancer.<br class=""><br class="">To what extent has that earlier etiquette norm either survived or been <br class="">replaced, and what has it been replaced with?? In your dance <br class="">community, do you have a written statement of the etiquette around <br class="">this?? Our community's statement doesn't directly address this issue.<br class=""><br class="">Kalia<br class="">_______________________________________________<br class=""></blockquote></div></div></div><br class=""></div></body></html>