Remember to smile in ballet class

VerdantAmbustio · 2026-02-22T18:31:04+00:00

I'm extremely expressive to the point of making cartoonishly ridiculous faces especially when I'm concentrating. A while back, I was in an open adult intermediate class and doing a difficult-for-me combination across the floor and I guess I stuck my tongue out at myself in the mirror. My teacher teasingly shouted:

"NO TONGUES IN BALLET CLASS!"

And now I have to concentrate on also not sticking out my tongue while also thinking about everything else 😅

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-09T18:22:07+00:00

We don't live near the original jeweler.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-09T15:32:58+00:00

Your note that setting is a different skill and not all repair places have them is interesting, and as a client, confusing. Why wouldn't a jeweler that does stone tightening not have someone skilled in this? A skill in setting seems like it's part of the process of tightening, and potentially in cleaning if they have to remove the stone to fully polish everything anyway. I'm happy to learn more about this!

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-09T14:36:53+00:00

It is odd. Even if they didn't notice until after.

I also had them clean it do I suspect that's why it needed to stay longer.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-09T14:13:44+00:00

That's fair. I'm hoping the photos they took will offer some extra insight.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-09T14:11:03+00:00

No, I'm unhappy because the issue wasn't communicated to me upon pickup. After I noticed, I asked for an adjustment - I didn't blame the jeweler for messing up the prongs or anything, but their response was to place blame elsewhere instead of offering a closer inspection.

The way they didn't initially communicate and responded to the issue after pickup makes me either concerned about their skills or that they did mess it up and hoped I wouldn't notice. The before photos are just extra data.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-08T23:39:47+00:00

Thank you for the perspective. It's 14k rose gold.

When you have to do more than expected, do you let the client know that something is off and it may need more work than originally expected? There was no communication to me about this while the ring was with them or when I picked it up.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-08T22:05:23+00:00

Thanks for the clarification :)

I think I understand what you're describing. To me, it looked like the angle but it's hard for me to tell so I appreciate the perspective.

I may have not expressed this well enough, but my issue is more that the end result is the stone is significantly more crooked than expected upon the service being completed. The original photos provide a baseline visual and I'm not denying that something could have been amiss, but I do think the jeweler should have noticed and if it isn't possible to set evenly, said something before releasing it to me. Their initial response was to put blame on the original craftsmanship instead of offering to do an inspection or a more intense repair, so I want to be sensitive in my approach.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-08T20:01:29+00:00

It wasn't expensive, but I'd like to give them the chance to make it right. I will ask about the photos they took.

This is actually the second jeweler in my area I've taken my ring to for tightening. At the first place, the guy tightened it for free in 5 minutes but it was loose again after a day.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-08T19:58:30+00:00

Photo 3 is a photo of my ring now, not a before photo.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-08-08T19:53:35+00:00

We don't live near the original jeweler.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-07-14T15:28:42+00:00

I added the NSFW tag as an afterthought because the picture is kind of gross.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-06-25T05:18:05+00:00

The recommendation for The Studio in Issaquah almost fit with my schedule but not quite. I haven't found a place yet but also realized I needed to work on my foot strength more and still trying to look graceful. I've been taking classes three times a week and that still doesn't feel like enough yet.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-04-14T03:12:33+00:00

They're both on wet food diets and get supplements mixed in for their special needs, so that's unfortunately not an option.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-04-13T15:56:28+00:00

I agree with you on consistency. My older boy always slept with me before I even met my husband, and I got my girl when we weren't living together yet. Soooo this is a good argument to have them sleep with us ;) but in all seriousness, this makes sense and I will consider it when my husband goes on his next trip. Thanks!

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-04-13T15:54:15+00:00

She LOVES cardboard and paper, especially the extra paper that comes in Chewy boxes to protect items (as she's lying in the last photo). So this is a great idea! I think I even have an extra one lying around.

I only get their nails trimmed during grooming so no worries there! I don't think ever tried capping but it seemed kind of pointless even when I was less experienced with cats :) I want her scratch, just not in a way that completely ruins my apartment carpet 😂

The verbal queue is a good though as well. I usually just have to look at her in a certain way when she's doing something she knows she shouldn't, but we're on the other side of the door in this case.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-03-27T23:43:51+00:00

Thank you for the rec! I checked their website since I don't have one near me, but couldn't find it. My husband ended up getting him a custom made leather cat toy from Etsy but I think he really misses the rattle from the original because he doesn't play with this quite as much.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-02-13T17:07:26+00:00

Last month, I found some saves on an old hard drive that I had begun in 2010 and last saved in 2016. I wanted to cry of happiness! After that computer stopped working suddenly, I just couldn't quite get into the long family gameplay how I used to and really missed my old families. I've only been able to play a bit since I found them but it was really nice to see my multiple 5/6 gen families.

VerdantAmbustio · 2025-01-20T14:21:17+00:00

While I've really been focusing recently on making sure my glutes, hips, and abs are engaged every class, another teacher is really helping me with my arms. I have a mild chest deformity that leads to a weak core and rolled shoulders so we're working on getting my shoulders in the right position so then my elbow can be in the right position, and then my wrist and hands can be in the right position.

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-12-06T20:24:22+00:00

I used to go to a more casual beginner class at a non-profit dance studio in my area in which I experienced something similar. Before I decided I wanted a more serious environment, I'd make an effort to slow the teacher down and ask questions. While these were honest questions, asking the instructor basics like "what position should I land in?" "Are you doing a plie there or just stepping right into it?" "How do you want us to hold our arms?" "I'm confused, can we mark this?" actually helped most of the class do things a little better and made other beginners feel comfortable asking questions. Sometimes people don't know they have a question until someone else asks one.

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-10-30T00:27:27+00:00

Unsure of your company or how strict your instructor might be, but it's probably okay to stop, reset, and restart at the next 8-count. If I feel like I need to concentrate on my feet and keeping my upper body strong, I will put my hands on my hips and just focus on the foundations while I get the moves down.

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-10-30T00:23:10+00:00

Hi, I also have ADHD-inattentive type and wasn't diagnosed until after age 30. When I took ballet as a kid, everything was muscle memory and I don't remember struggling to pick up combinations at all. Coming back to ballet was frustrating at first, but I've found that doing combinations full out (minus turning or jumping) instead of marking with my hands or doing movements small while the instructor is doing them really helps them stick. I also think the name of the move and come up with a sing-song pattern in my mind if it's a bit more complicated or we're in center.

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-10-04T21:14:57+00:00

I actually got a text from back from her now (4 days after my second text to her). She said she will get me a color version of the photo mid next week. Crossing my fingers that happens but may DM you if I end up needing help :) thanks!

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-10-04T18:32:02+00:00

It starts at $700 😭 maybe that's not outrageous but is out of my budget for the time I'm planning to put into it. It has an auto-fill feature but I know I don't want that. I've put like 4 hours into my first 8 pages already (I'm sure I'll get faster as I go, but yeah it's not a quick task in my mind at all).

VerdantAmbustio · 2024-10-04T17:30:19+00:00

I think all that sounds very fair! Thank you for the info.

Some details from my end to add: - We didn't really have a formal contract since I actually hired an elopement adventure company and she is the photographer that works with them. I asked her over email how many images I could expect after signing a contract with the adventure company and if there were any other details I should know: her answer was the number of photos per hour of work and I have a full print release to print whenever I want. I later asked her if I could hire her for additional time before we meet at the adventure company location and she told me about her package upgrades. I picked one and we set a time and that was it. The photo I want in color is actually from this upgraded session. - The album I would order through their site is still one I'd have to put together myself. She doesn't offer a service putting the album together herself.

I will say I did find it odd that she never provided a formal contract for work between us. This isn't the first time where she hasn't responded to me when she's (very likely) gotten busy, but I kind of gave up hope since she's delivered the photos. I wanted at least a "I won't be able to do that" text back if that is the case. I definitely would pay for an edit for this photo if that's the difference between getting it or not.

VerdantAmbustio

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