Kero's brow lifting smirk

Kero lifts her brows and her voice rises a bit, her eyes go wide and she chuckles and makes witty retorts, with a smile widening her lips like the strange and seldom seen expression it is. She does not flail or jump about, but seems to have been everywhere at once and back where she started before you can blink. Arms full, offering you whatever part of the conversation caught her fancy or filled her with spontaneous joy: the cat, the airsoft rifle, the newest video game or belt band, or catalog. Yet when looking right at her she seems almost perfectly still, and quite poised. Except those raised brows, open face, wide eyes and curled back lips chortling with a polite and abbreviated head bow.

Kevin's Happy Pacing and Lusty Saunter

When theorizing on a new concept, or piecing together abstract bits of information in a new way, Kevin begins to hurriedly pace back and forth, and preaches excitedly, almost non-stop. The energy of the whole room shifts around him as he goes into lecture mode. One wonders how he breathes, as he systematically rattles off scenarios and requirements; the light in his eyes reaches a frantic flickering almost as quick as his arm swings. He becomes quite pleased with this expression and it can become self perpetuating if the conversation is right, and he doesn’t become self conscious.

When his attention is even more aroused, by a person, conversation, or idea (a pretty girl talking about the difference between third and fourth dimensional physics for example) Kevin’s eyes light up in a way that makes him even more handsome than usual. He glides across the floor like an apparition, smoothly with a confidence, speed, and agility he does not seem to display so openly at other times. A Saunter is a slower, more sensuous version of a strut. It is mesmerizing and hypnotic, and oh so quick. His usually bright and dazzling smile takes on a depth and authenticity it often lacks to the discerning eye. One feels frozen and baffled, like a rabbit in the head lights. This joy filled, lusty saunter and scoop is a distinctive and completely unforgettable moving picture; A Happy dance of its own caliber, that is tangible and has the effect of transporting others to a similar state of blissful focus.

Donny's Tasty Food Shimmy

When Donny takes a bite of good food, his eyes roll back, his breathing flutters and, if it’s really good, his knees will buckle and he will have to steady himself on the walls or furniture. Once he catches his breath the groaning ensues. This doesn’t happen with every bite, usually just the first few. It’s kind of amazing. His appreciation is so tangible that his girlfriend and I love to make extra food just so we can feed him when he shows up. The night that Donny was introduced to flan, his quiet little whimpers were almost indecent. I could speculate all day at the pleasure and happiness, and the various levels of nourishment he experiences with being fed so deliberately, or why he wasn't well fed before, but the why is not what I am here to examine, merely the dance of spontaneous Joy itself; whatever its cause or underlying influences to its expression.

Leslie's two stage Happy Dance

Sitting in a coffee shop when she heard the news, Leslie did a two part happy dance. The initial dance was a miniature seated version of the twist. She raised her voice a bit, shook her fists and waved them back and forth above the table while twisting in her chair, and chanting “I got the job, I got the job, I got the job”. Leslie"s happy dance included a few derogatory jabs, and third hand threats of legal action towards her nemesis, and those she felt snubbed by for other jobs. So letting out her anger and resentment clouded the purity of some of the joy, but revenge at least in words seems to be a frequent part of her initial expressions. But once that is expressed as a possible plan, an important change occurs.

About five minutes later the second wave hit. This was a deeper more internalized expression of Joy. The resentment was removed and the happiness a bit more authentic and accessible. Her eyes lit up, and the smile seemed to consume her whole body. Her fists moved up and down in unison as she shook with low pitched, and quiet, but deep laughter. Her head and torso shook back and forth in small but very energetic movements. This seemed to be a smaller, seated version of her full body happy dance. I’ve seen her wag her whole body like a tail-less dog. The shimmy travels up the body to the head, and back down again to the hips, and out the legs.

Tamia's How to GET Happy Dance

She grinned a “Cheshire cat” grin, with big teeth, and wiggled her assets all over. A few shoulder shimmy’s, and high fives, then booty bumped her roommate a few times and bumped fists with the roommates boy friend. She boogied down, played some funk from George Clinton, and boogied right back up again. “If you gotta do the twist, rub some funk on it”. This was a very creative way to put the groceries away. After that it was time to strut. Around the house, off to the store in her favorite coat, and out to the bank. Strutting is a slower more drawn out version of the Happy Dance. Like an after shock. It can happen hours or even days later as a residual ripple of the Happy dance phenomenon. Strutting and wearing your favorite clothes is a longer more deliberate Happy Dance, but still an expression of joy and a just a little bit of impromptu, self righteous bragging to boost the attitude; “Oh yeah. I got it. I’m all that baby. All that and more. Don’t you wish you were me? Oh ya. Lets Rock-n-roll!"

JEN's Happy Dance

”It was crazy! Sporadic! And beautiful. My amazing roommate got a call while we were shopping for clothes. When she learned she got a job that she really wanted she hung up the phone and literally skipped, and danced and jumped in the air! She may have even clicked her heels! She was shrieking and dancing and kicking her legs, waving her arms, oblivious to the huge spectacle she was making of herself. Utterly un-intimidated by the store staff and their disapproving stares, she laughed and hooted and flailed about. I laughed with her, and at the reactions of the people who pretended not to notice. Why has happiness become a taboo in our culture? We can share violence, anger and even sex in the streets but pure, unbridled joy really shakes people up. “

“Is it because there is no script? It’s so unpredictable, and uncontainable. Where could this lead? We might have creativity and innovation. We could see solutions to problems and ultimately people could start thinking for themselves, or stop watching TV, or heavens! We might stop consuming new products… If we are happy and satisfied, content just as we are, we don’t have to engage in “seeking” behaviors, the search for happiness, and it’s a lot harder to sell us things we don’t need to feed consumerism”.

Pissy Dances?

If for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, then it stands to reason that there is an equal and opposite to the “Happy Dance”. This must surely be the Pissy Dance, or the micro tantrum. That whining and stomping and throwing of limbs that happens when we don’t get our way, or things don’t go according to our meager hopes or plans. Now obviously this is not going to happen in a board room environment, but I have witnessed it in many social settings, on many levels, from the exasperated sigh, to the full on escalation of expressed displeasure. What is this? How does this fit into our sense of ceremony, celebration and ritual or the lack there of?

On a recent visit to a popular ice cream parlor to people watch and indulge a binge in the ultimate dairy drug experience, we observed that almost no one seemed happy or even cheerful. Lined up at the counter like junkies awaiting their fix, the patrons took their ice cream and sat in stoic silence, or stomped off into the rainy night. The only evident exception was the children but their post sugar excitement seemed frantic and manic, NOT happy, or cheerful, or joyous. What’s the deal? Where is the joy? Where is the savoring of the delicious treat? It just reinforces my opinion that dairy IS a drug, and not a very healthy or happy one at that. We have a micro tantrum when they don’t have the flavor of ice cream we want, or if the line is too long, but we are not made happy by the indulgence. I will have to look elsewhere to capture spontaneous joyousness in action.