Erika - ProfilesArchive

About Me

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Create Your Own!
I'm the owner and director of Salsa Caliente Dance Studio in Tampa, FL. I was a backup singer for bachata artist Alexa, a dancer for salsa artist Charlie Cruz, and a regular dancer and swimsuit model on the Univision show "Caliente" for 4 years before it was canceled. I'm technically a "gringa," but I speak Spanish, listen to Latin music, and teach salsa dancing for a living, so most people consider me an "honorary Latina."
I'm a vampire! I find that I'm most productive at night, so I usually go to bed at 4 or 5am and wake up at 1 or 2 in the afternoon. I'm kind of a homebody, definitely not a big partier. I also love gadgets! Can't live without my computers, Treo cell phone, iPod, and HD DVR. Not a "channel-surfer," but I have my favorite shows that I never miss.
Check out www.tampasalsa.com for photos, videos, and information about salsa classes, Latin clubs, and events in the Tampa area.
Also visit my new website: Caliente Dance Shoes . These shoes are SUPER comfortable and very well-made. You can custom order any style in any size, fabric, color, heel, and width for only $85, and standard shipping is included! We have dance shoes for men, women, and children.
Oh, one more thing. I'm not here to collect 5 million friends. Almost everyone on my friends list is someone I actually know, so don't be offended if I deny your request. Especially if you don't even write me first. I don't generally add random people.

My Interests

Things I'm passionate about:
• salsa dancing and music
• singing
• computers and technology
• the environment/climate change (my friends call me the recycling nazi)
• eating organic
• astronomy/space exploration
• roller coasters/thrill rides
• my TV shows
• reading
• vocabulary and grammar (I know, I'm a nerd)
• learning new things
• Disney! (Tigger is my FAVORITE!!!)
• the color purple, especially lavender

I'd like to meet:

Anyone who shares my passion for salsa music and dancing. I'd also love to catch up with old friends.

Music:

Salsa (especially old-school mambo), merengue, bachata, reggaeton, R&B, pop.
Some of my favorite artists:
• Marc Anthony
• Joe Cuba Sextette
• Gran Combo
• Eddie Palmieri
• Roberto Roena
• Richie Ray y Bobby Cruz
• Daddy Yankee
• Oro Solido
• Fulanito
• Domenic Marte
• Katharine McPhee
• Carrie Underwood
• Alicia Keys
• Usher
• Maroon 5
• Ne-Yo
• Rihanna
• Chris Brown
• JoJo (she's so talented!)
• Donnell Jones

Movies:

• Harry Potter
• anything Disney
• Day After Tomorrow
• Billy Madison
• The Pest
• Demolition Man
• Apollo 13
• I Robot
• Speed
• Titanic
• Taking Lives (Angelina is a GODDESS!!!)
• The Notebook

Childhood Faves:
• Goonies
• Neverending Story
• Labyrinth
• Rad
• T2

Television:

• 24
• Desperate Housewives
• Nip/Tuck
• Prison Break
• CSI (all 3)
• ER
• Grey's Anatomy
• American Idol
• So You Think You Can Dance?
• How It's Made (I LOVE the Science Channel!)
• Eco-Tech
• home improvement shows like Flip That House, Holmes on Homes, Take Home Handyman, Trading Spaces, etc.

Books:

I LOVE to read! Some of my favorites:
• The Green Book
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
• Harry Potter
• DaVinci Code and Dan Brown's other novels
• anything by Michael Crichton (especially Timeline)
• anything by Dean Koontz
• Dante's Equation
• The God Particle
• The Coming Global Superstorm
• He's Just Not That Into You
• The Afterlife Experiments
There are so many... I'll add more as I think of them.

Heroes:

My Mom. :)

My Blog

Letting go

Saw this on a friend's page and had to repost: "Letting go doesn`t mean giving up... it means moving on. It is one of the hardest things one can do. Starting at birth, we grasp on to anything we can g...
Posted by Erika on Fri, 22 Sep 2006 03:31:00 PST

I've Learned...

I saw this on someone's page and had to repost it: I've learned- That you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved. The rest is up to them. I've learned- Th...
Posted by Erika on Mon, 30 Jan 2006 09:50:00 PST

My Interview in La Voz del Mambo

Check it out: http://www.relacontechnology.com/CONTENT/Interviews/Dancers/ Florida/ErikaOcchipinti/tabid/611/Default.aspx You have to be a registered user to view the article (it's free)....
Posted by Erika on Wed, 18 Jan 2006 01:35:00 PST

Common Salsa Ailments

Taken from: http://www.williefuego.com/medbook.html The Willie Fuego Medical Handbook of Common Salsa Ailments By Will Pagán M.D. INTRODUCTIONThe road to developing yourself as a salsa dancer is undou...
Posted by Erika on Wed, 04 Jan 2006 02:53:00 PST

Holiday Party

I just want to say thank you to everyone who came to our Holiday Party last Friday (12/16/05), especially those of you who brought food and/or helped set up and clean up. It was a BLAST! I...
Posted by Erika on Tue, 20 Dec 2005 02:36:00 PST

7 years ago today...

To paraphrase something I once read, some events are so significant as to forever divide a person's life into two parts: before the event occurred and after. For me, the event that forever ...
Posted by Erika on Wed, 07 Dec 2005 10:36:00 PST

So annoyed!

Some people are so rude! Ok, I just got back from a club a little while ago, and the whole night reminded me of why I don't go out very much. Nothing against the club, just the people...
Posted by Erika on Sat, 03 Dec 2005 04:53:00 PST

Need to vent

I'm BEYOND pissed right now!!! I'm in Daytona Beach with my family for Thanksgiving, and my brother and I decided to go a mile away to see a movie. Just as we're arriving ba...
Posted by Erika on Fri, 25 Nov 2005 11:26:00 PST

My cruise experience

I recently returned home from my very first cruise (a salsa cruise to the Bahamas), and I think that perhaps I'm not so much a cruise person. Just the logistics of the trip made it a stressful a...
Posted by Erika on Fri, 18 Nov 2005 01:07:00 PST