Washington Heights' Hosiery Center; Dance Lessons

Since I have been in New York, I have gone through several distinct phases: Early 80s Punk Chick (with a quasi-mohawk); Alert Housewife/Career Gal; Trashy, About-to-Be-Divorced-Housewife; Boozy Skirt; Party Girl; Somewhat-Reformed-Party-Girl-Who-Still-Wants-to-Look-Nice.

One shop has stayed with me through each phase?the Value Hosiery Center in Washington Heights. The nice salesladies were there when I wanted to buy cheesy, leopard-print tights and when I wanted black stockings with a skull and crossbones on them, complete with fake ruby eyes. They helped me out when I decided that I was going to wear pantyhose that had seams up the back with all my business skirts. They once even put my name on the ankle of a pair of sheer stockings, although I don't know if they still do that.

You, of course, probably go through your own stages in life, maybe from mousy to sporty, for instance, and this little gem of a store can be a godsend. They have all types of leotards, many for around $10, as well as tights in all styles. They usually have a small stock of gloves and mittens too, which they put out in Lucite-type shoe boxes that you can rummage through. No matter what mood I was in, the Value Hosiery Center was truly a delight?nothing fancy or expensive, but a place where you could try on a new look, see what it might be like to be a dance girl in fishnets and then just go back to your opaque stockings, with no one the wiser.

Value Hosiery Center, 4225 Broadway (179th St.), 795-1680.

Dance Lessons

I spent a memorable afternoon at Roseland once, and it was not for an Alanis Morissette concert. We went for the ballroom dancing, a holdover from when Roseland was the mecca of dance halls, the place where soldiers and sailors canoodled with chorus girls (they called them "dance hostesses" when I was there) and several hundred marriages were launched. As we watched the folks spinning around the dancefloor, my friends and I got to wondering: how is it that the older generation always seemed to know how to dance so well? A couple of gents asked us to foxtrot, and when we asked, they would shrug, and say an older sister or an aunt or cousin taught them to dance in the living room, with the rugs rolled up. I guess when the 70s rolled around, when I should have been learning, the jitterbug had become a skill like quilting or churning butter: a dying art.

The Roseland afternoon was in the late 80s; now, swing has come back with a vengeance and already gone away again. What if you just want to learn a few basic steps without any fuss? The answer: the dance classes sponsored by the Healthy Heart Coalition, from St. Vincent's Hospital. Tina Fuchs, the coordinator, said the series started in the fall of 2000, when they held some free lessons at the Hudson Park library, just to see if there was any interest.

"We got a lot of people from the community, so we decided to move them to a bigger place. We have a grant from the New York State Dept. of Health, and the idea is to promote physical activity and nutrition, for better heart health," she said.

For a very reasonable $40, you can get a month of lessons which are held every Thursday, either salsa or swing, in an attitude-free setting.

"Our goal is to get people moving, to get them to be more active. The focus is on beginners, so it is a great opportunity for them to test the waters," said Fuchs.

I myself am taking a series of classes. Next stop: Roseland. They better have raised the rate from 10 cents a dance, though.

Call 604-7572 for more information, or to register for classes, which are held at Greenwich House, 27 Barrow St. (7th Ave. S.).